Three Can Keep a Secret if Two are…Sisters

Kim was about to say something when Rachel’s stressed and emotional voice carried down to us from upstairs

“Why, Petrov? Why, what is wrong?…………………..I don’t understand? Why?”

There was a long pause and Rachel’s voice changed to surprise and then shock.

“What!……..But, Petrov!…….Why?!……..Petrov, they’ll kill me!”

Kim and I looked at each other, each eyeing the same unspoken question. Rachel was almost in tears now.

“Please, Petrov! Don’t…………please!…………..Nooooooooooooo!

And then all we heard was Rachel sobbing. We looked at each other for a fast second and then we jumped up from the couch, and burst in on Rachel who was sitting on her bed, crying into her hands.

“Rachel! What is it?” asked Kim excitedly.

Rachel did not answer. She just sat there, sobbing.

“Rach?” I asked softly

“I’m so fucking stupid!” Rachel erupted at us

“You’re not stupid.” Kim countered “What’s wrong?”

“I knew better! I knew better right from the start! But, did I listen to that little voice in my head? No!” continued Rachel, building a little anger, and little fervor into her voice.

“Rachel, what did you mean when you said ‘they’ll kill’ you?” I asked

“Oh, and they will, too!” Rachel said a little psychotically

Kim looked at me, worried.

“Who is going to kill you?” asked Kim

“Who do you think? The goddamn Russian Mafia, that’s who!” she said more animated.

“Rach, you’re not making any sense. Why would the Russian mafia want to kill you?

But, even before the question was out of my mouth the word “Petrov” popped into my head. Rachel looked at me for a second; like I was a very slow child that she was tired of teaching math to.

“Petrov is one of those guys and he did something very stupid, and I’m now going to have to pay for it” said Rachel getting even more excited.

“Fuck, Rachel! Will you just tell us what the fuck is going on?” yelled Kim exasperated.

Kim’s outburst acted like a slap to the face. Rachel got wide eyed for a second and then she relaxed. Rachel took a deep breath and while looking at her bare feet, she started to tell her story.

“Petrov is like an accountant for the Russian mob. He’s the one who launders the money, invests it, and keeps track of it. So most it goes through his hands at some point. I didn’t know this when we met, eight months ago”

That stung. We weren’t divorced yet and she had already found someone else. Rachel knew what she had just said and she interrupted her narrative to look up at me.

“I’m sorry, Ron. We both knew the marriage wasn’t working back then. When I met Petrov, that was the final straw and I got a lawyer.”

Her apology was hollow to my ears. I had not been screwing around on her. I had trusted her all the way to the end. I felt my anger start to rise.

“If it’s any consolation, I didn’t sleep with him until after the divorce was final.”

That didn’t make me feel better. For some reason it made me feel even worse. She had enough respect for me to not give her body to her new flame, but still hated me enough to drag the divorce out for six months, fighting over what amounted to pennies. I was officially pissed off, and I got up.

“Fuck, Rachel! So, why the hell didn’t you just sign the goddamn papers and be done with it? Why the fuck did you have to drag it out so long?’ I yelled at her

She just started to cry again. Kim shot me a glare. I was still mad as hell and needed to vent some of this anger.

“I need some air! I’m going for a drive!” I said angrily as I got up and left the room.

Kim caught me in the hall.

“Ron, wait!” she called

“Please don’t be mad at me!” she said

That helped to dissipate my anger some. At least I knew Kim was thinking of my feelings

“I’m not mad at you; just your bitch sister. I’ll be back in awhile.”

I turned to go, but she pulled me back, and kissed me softly, tenderly. I felt more of my anger slip away.

“I love you.” She said

“I love you, too” I said reluctantly.

Not because I didn’t think it was true, but because I was still pissed and wanted to hold on to the remaining anger. It was comforting and affirming. I turned and walked down the stairs and out the front door. I got in my little Toyota and drove off.

My anger morphed into disappointment and self-pity. Tasha was right. I am dense. How could I not notice that Rachel had fallen for someone else? I wonder if she was lying about not fucking him until after the divorce. Did it matter?

What about Kim and me? I think I love her, but how the hell do you really know? I know I enjoy being around her. And, Jesus is she good in bed.

That thought brought a smile to my face. Not only was she good, but she was willing. That was something I could get used to. I hated all of the begging and cajoling I had to do with Rachel. I suppose I was going to see where the relationship went and just play it by ear.

Then my thoughts drifted back to Rachel. The Russian mob? How the devil did she get involved with a Russian gangster? Where do you even meet one of those? And kill her? What did she mean by that? She couldn’t have meant literally ‘kill her’, could she?

I supposed I should go back and hear the rest of her story. I glanced at my watch. I had been gone about 45 minutes. I made my way back to Kim and Rachel’s house and pulled into the same spot in their driveway that I had vacated an hour ago.

As I walked up porch stairs I heard a female voice from inside yell

“Help! Help us! Please!”

I bounded up the short flight of stairs, flung the door open, expecting to see a fire or something. What I did see stopped me cold. Rachel, still in her robe, was sitting in a dining room chair. Her hands were behind the chair, like she was restrained. Her robe was open allowing her breasts to spill out.

But, what sent me into a panic was Kim. She was in another chair, naked. She was turned profile, so I could see that she was tied up. Her arms were behind the chair, tied to the spokes of the back. Each of her tanned and toned legs was tied to a chair leg, and she was gagged.

“Ron! Thank God! He went out the back!” exclaimed Rachel

I glanced through the kitchen and saw the back door open and dashed over. I looked out and I saw nothing except the backyard. The gate leading to the front was closed. I listened for sounds of footsteps or for a car roaring off, but all I heard were the neighbor kids playing in their pool. I slammed the door shut and locked it. I ran to the front door and locked it, too.

“Your Dad’s gun?!” I shouted.

“Don’t worry about him! He’s gone! Untie us!” said Rachel.

I was no where near as sure that whoever, and I thought I had an idea who, was gone. Maybe, I’m not as dense as they thought.

“Mmmm! Mmmmm!” I heard Kim through her gag and my heart broke.

I went over to Kim, and noticed for the first time that she was bleeding. There was a small cut on her right breast. Blood had trickled out, and dried. I pulled her gag down.

“You’re hurt! I’m calling an ambulance!” I said excitedly

“No! I’m fine!” Kim said near hysterics “Just untie me! Hold me!”

I got an arm free and she wrapped it around me, crying. As I worked on the other arm, I asked Rachel

“Who was here and what did they want?

“It was one of the guys I told you about. They are after the money.” Rachel said calmly.

“What fucking money?” I said angrily.

I got Kim’s arm free and she pulled me into her and sobbed uncontrollably into my shoulder. I was not used to seeing the tough little Kim in tears, scared.

“T..the money that Petrov stole from the mob” Rachel said weakly and low.

“What!” I thundered “Your boyfriend took money from the Russian mob?!”

“Ya…yes.” Rachel said, starting to cry. “Ww.we were g…g.going to get married and r..runaway together. You and Kim h.h.elping me m.move was going to b.be a diversion. An…and now he is r..rrrunning away alone and leaving me ta…to deal with his ‘friends’?” Rachel said as sobs choked off her words.

Then she just started crying. I finished with the knot binding Kim’s legs to the chair. She got up and hugged me like she was afraid to let go.

“Did he hurt you?” I asked meaning not just the blood, but her virtue as well.

“H..h..he was ab.bbout to, when he h..hheard you pull up.” Kim said try to regain her composure.

“I don’t think he brought a gun and he was alone. So he ran out the back” she finished stronger.

Kim was returning to as normal as a naked woman with a cut on her breast inflicted by a sociopath can get. She relaxed her grip.

“So, are you OK?” I asked again.

“Yeah. He cut me a little. He said he was going to….to torture me until Rachel told him were the money was.” Kim said, stumbling over the words as she realized what could have happened.

“You have the money!” I said to Rachel incredulously

“sniff…..sniff…No….sniff….I told you Petrov took the money. I told him that, but he didn’t believe me.” Rachel replied still emotional.

“Can you get me loose, Ron?” said Rachel pathetically.

I had forgotten she was tied up.