Unwanted Obsession

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Kate approached the side door of the Delozier house ready for another day.  The dream was out of her mind now… pretty much.  It was absurd that the realness of it was still affecting, really.  She didn’t have time for these ridiculous dreams.  Dear old Nathan was of primary importance.

Todd was the person who hired her and that was all.  He was her boss, nothing more.  Now if she could just convince her brain of that, everything would be perfect.

She opened the door distantly wondering if Todd would be there to greet her again.  But no, he wasn’t there.  It was just another normal Thursday morning.  The usual list of things to do for Nathan ran through her mind as she turned on the hall light and walked towards his bedroom.

Usually the closer she got, the more she could hear his snoring.  But not today.  Maybe he’s already awake. 

Kate opened his bedroom door, light from the hallway entering the room.  Nope, he’s still asleep.  She walked over to the windows on the other side of the room and opened the curtains, allowing more light to enter the room.  Then, she turned towards Nathan still body and smiled.

He always looked so peaceful when he slept. 

Although…

Something seemed.. different.  Kate studied him closely as she approached his bed.  “Mr. Delozier?” she called out, her voice slightly shaky.  “It’s time to wake up.”

She was nearly to his bed now.  Something definitely wasn’t right.  Why couldn’t she see his chest moving indicating that he was breathing?  Why couldn’t she see any part of him moving?  And then, he usually starts coming to by now. 

“Mr. Delozier?”  Kate was standing over him now.  She reached out to shake him a little, but it seemed her hands had a mind of their own as they moved to check his pulse instead.

Nothing.

She couldn’t feel anything. 

Everything was still as Kate continued to hold his wrist. 

There wasn’t a pulse, his arm was limp, and his face looked much too pale.

“Oh no-,” Kate whispered, her heart beating more and more rapidly.  Tears swelled in her eyes.  She was about to lose it.

And then, she did.

Nathan’s arm dropped from her grasp hanging lifelessly down the side of the bed.  It was sickening.  Kate proceeded to back away and let out a piercing scream, her hand moving to cover her mouth.

Not even five seconds later, her peripheral vision noticed someone run into the room.  It was Todd.  Nathan’s only son.  Here to see his father’s dead body.  Totally unprepared.

Kate began to cry even more frantically, shaking her head back and forth.  She looked over at Todd who was standing in front of his father’s bed.  She watched as he looked at her anxiously, then at his father, and then back at her.  He was obviously trying to figure out what had happened.

The answer appeared on his face within the next moment.  His eyes widened and he gasped while looking down at his father’s dead body.  Kate began to cry harder at the look of complete and utter shock she saw.

She closed the distance between them.  “I- I’m s- sorry!” she cried.  “I didn’t-  He just-.”  She stood helplessly trying to explain, her body shaking.

Then, however, she felt an arm go around her and a hand turn her face away from the bed.  Todd was holding her against him and shielding her face away from the scene. 

“Shh,” he whispered soothingly.  “Please, Kate, calm down.”

Kate could only cry more, although it wasn’t quite as hysterical as before.  She needed to pull herself together and explain.  Taking some deep breaths, she tried to politely back away from him but he continued to hold her there.  “I- I’m ok,” she choked out, assuming he wasn’t letting her go because he thought she needed comfort.  “Really,” she tried again.

He finally allowed her to back away.  She looked down for a second to gain composure.  Kate found she couldn’t look at Nathan’s dead body on the bed.  It was too horrifying.

But she had to calm down, just as Todd had said.  And she had to give him an explanation.  He was undoubtedly waiting for one.  Kate looked up at him desperately and found that his eyes were on her.  “I- I just got here and was about to wake him up, but-”  She shuddered.  “He was already g- gone.”

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Todd eyed her carefully while focusing on giving a flawless performance.  “He died in his sleep,” he stated, forcing there to be weakness in his tone. 

Kate nodded, tears rolling down her precious cheeks.

“M- my father… He’s dead.”  Todd’s false weary eyes lowered to the floor and, just as he hoped, Kate took the opportunity to hug him. 

“I’m sorry.”  Her voice was shaky.  “I- I’m so sorry.”

He wrapped his arms around her slowly and they stood together silently. 

“I’m glad you’re here,” he admitted softly.  “I don’t think I could handle this alone.”  She nodded against him.

“Of course,” she whispered.

Todd could feel his shirt becoming damp with her tears, and he loved it.  The feel of her against him was better than he’d even imagined it would be.  Their bodies molded together perfectly.  He’d waited so long for exactly this..

But, of course, the embrace was going on a little too long for Kate.  She tried to back away from him, and Todd unwillingly let her.  “Wh- what happens now?”  Her voice was small.

He forced his eyes to be sad, although underneath the sadness was a look of complete triumph.  “Don’t worry, I will take care of everything.”

Kate gave him a sympathetic look.  “Ok.  Maybe I should give you some time alone with him..”

Todd quickly shook his head.  “No, I don’t need time alone with him.”

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Kate blinked, a little confused.  But then, he had said he didn’t think he could handle this alone.  Of course he wouldn’t want me to leave now, Kate thought regretting her previous words. 

“Please stay,” he begged.

“Yeah, of course I’ll stay.”

“Thank you, Kate.”  Todd could have laughed and breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.  This was going better than expected, but he didn’t want to reveal his intentions just yet…  She wasn’t ready.

But, at this rate, he wouldn’t be surprised if she stayed with him forever willingly.

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-Lauren