Passion Island

In my country,Malaysia we are following the British in pronounciation and spelling but I’m a fan of American novels, so my word usage and my spelling will be a bit weird plus I’m not too good at grammar. Anyway, I’m still working on my next project( the progress is painfully slow!). To Ann: Thank you for taking time to read my humble story!

Well, this chapter is still about Cherish Cloude and Taylor Ashton. Just for fun, Taylor is a brown haired, tanned sim with grey eyes and with a penchant of kicking somebody’s trash can.

Ventris Area 4, Miller’s Residence. February 3, SY700(SimsYear).

1.30 a.m.

"Damn, Taylor will kill me for sure if he comes home before me!," Sierra Miller muttered to herself while trying to open the front door of the two story high town house she lives in with her brother in law.
‘Where have you been, Miss Sierra Eve Miller?’ A voice asked right before the living room light switched on.
Sierra blinked to adjust her vision in the lighted room and saw her brother in law, Taylor lying on one of the leather couch looking tired but stern as well. Her eyes then fell on the couch opposite Taylor,on it a young girl deep in sleep. Her eyebrows raised, looking quizically at Taylor waiting for an answer as her brother in law never bring any female back to the house at this hour before.
‘Wilson’s will be victim,’ he answered her before the blond-haired teenager opens her mouth.
Still in his lying position he watched with eyes half opened as Sierra moved close to look at the girl he saved from the habitual rapist.
‘She is from my dorm, her room just opposite mine,’ Sierra said after brushing Cherish’s fringe away from her face. ‘Her name is Charis, I’ve heard.’ She frowned as she tried to recall the last name of the brunette in front of her. ‘I can’t remember her last name, I think is Storm or is it Strom?.’ She plopped on the red beanie chair that look totally out of place in the earth toned living room with black leather sofa set. ‘How did you manage to get her away from that jerk?’ Sierra questioned again.
‘I presented my superb martial art skills,’ Taylor said half-smiling.
‘Did he saw your face ?’ Sierra asked, alarmed. She knew her brother in law will be in trouble if that pervert knows who attacked him.
‘I don’t think he get a good look of me at all. He chose a dimly lit parking lot to do his job. He didn’t even know what hit him,’ Taylor said grimly knowing what Sierra had in her mind.’Don’t worry kid,if he recognise me or anything we can always pack and leave for another city, a less shitty city where money and family names are nothing in the face of law.’ Taylor said smilling, letting himself dreamed about living in an ideal city.
‘ Like where? Oracle? Or some newly established cities? Or maybe Cloudeford? I heard that they are pretty strict with the law there. No one get away with crime for sure,’ Sierra added joining in to Taylor’s little dream.
‘I came from Oracle remember? As for those newly established ones, I can’t farm to save my life. Don’t even think about Cloudeford, it is the hardest place to get citizenship in this world and yeah, people there look a bit too beautiful, no uglies at all. Weird!’ he shook his head trying to cleared his brain of the idea of running away from the city he had been living in for past six years.’Help me get her up to the guest room, she will get a stiff neck sleeping like this all night.’
Without a word the duo worked silently to get the unconscious Cherish Cloude into a guest room on the first floor just next to Sierra’s room.
‘She will wake up around noon , let her drink lots of warm water.If she asked how she get here, just tell her you found her in a garden near the car park,’ Taylor requested before stepping out of the room.
‘Huh, he forgot to ask me in details of where I’ve gone to just now,’ Sierra said to herself, letting out a sigh of relief.

‘Don’t think I’ll forget the fact you are not sitting at home as I’ve instructed you to do. Better write me a ’sorry card’ and explain why you are fooling around outside instead of staying at home,’ Taylor said with a half serious expression when he poked his head from behind the bedroom door startling Sierra. He walked back to his bedroom smiling at his success of making Sierra jumped up from the chair.

‘Sheryl, I miss you a lot. I’m working hard to give Sierra a good life and good education just like how you wanted. I saved a young girl from that bastard just now, I know you will be happy to know that,’ Taylor said to the picture of his wife smiling,wearing a wedding gown. He put the picture back on the side table and lying on his bed pondering where he had seen Cherish as her face is very familiar to him before slowly drifting into dreamland.

Miller Residence’s Guest room, Same day @ 8.30 a.m.

She dreamed she was still a preteen wearing her favorite pink flowery dress, her sister was there too in their old bedroom drawing a portrait of her sitting on the white plushy armchair their father bought for their birthday. The scene shifted to the kitchen, their mother and father were making dinner together, laughing and teasing each other, totally in love. The scene shifted again, the family was having dinner together, Cherish knew she was dreaming but still she let herself  indulged in that scene of her family eating and laughing together. It shifted again, she was in her school uniform, standing on the porch when her sister screamed from the living room. She rushed in, her mother lying cold and stiff with a cross shaped stake deep in her chest, blood pooled around her, odd shaped candles positioned around her body.

She opened her eyes finally, tears blurring her vision. Wiping it off, she found herself in a new surrounding, she tried to get up but her head hurts, her mind still filled with images of her mother.

‘ You are up earlier than we have expected. Don’t try to get up. Drink some water first,’ Sierra said holding out a bottle of water pretending not to notices Cherish’s tear streaked face. She helped the other girl to sit straight on the bed and studied the girl’s face as she gulped down the bottle of water. ’You have a nice and clear complexion, almost glowing. Lucky you,’ she commented

‘Thanks, may I ask how I end up in here?’ Cherish asked while rubbing her temples.

‘I found you in the garden near Triton Pub, sprawled on the ground. Luckily my brother in law was nearby that time, I called him and we brought you home together last night. By the way, I’m afraid I haven’t introduce myself yet, my name is Sierra Miller,’ Sierra said smiling extended her hand towards a confused looking Cherish.

‘My name is Cher… Charis Storm,’ Cherish replied weakly. As her mind cleared off from her mother’s image lying dead on the floor, she remembered almost everything about the event that had happen to her previous night. Her hand start to shook from a mixture of disgust, anger and fear. She was nearly raped by someone she thought supposed to guide and if not protect her at least someone she could trust. She buried her face with her palms, feeling foolish and betrayed as her tears poured down again.

Sierra said nothing, making no movements as she waited for the green-eyed girl to calm down. She understand the other girl’s feeling. In fact she even felt a strange impulse to hold her in her arms telling her everything is okay now, she felt weird that she had the impulse of wanting to protect someone she barely knows.

‘Did you see anyone near me when you found me?’ Cherish asked after wiping off tears on her face. She recalled that someone had rescued her from the clutches of that monster.

‘No, I did not see anyone near you that time. You were lying there on the ground, with your bag next to you,’ Sierra said, her brain storming to come up with more stories in case Cherish ask again. ‘Do you know that we live in the same dorm? My room is just opposite yours,’ Sierra asked after she decided to avoid Cherish from asking any question about last night.

‘Oh, I don’t know. Thanks for helping me. Can you show me where is the nearest police station. I need to report that monster to the polices.’ Cherish said with a sudden determination that surprised Sierra. ‘He is a professor, how could he do this to me. How could he! He tried to rape me, he tricked me into that pub saying how much he love my work and how he wanted so much to exhibit my work! I trusted him. How could I be so stupid!’ Cherish said in a tone almost inaudible to Sierra.

‘Don’t bother. They wouldn’t charge him. Don’t even bother reporting it to the college. They will only offer you a scholarship. Douglas Wilson, had been doing this for a decade. No one ever come close enough to get him in the headlines for raping college girls,’ Sierra replied stonily. She saw Cherish’s face fell when she said that. ‘ His wife is Greta Mason, her family is powerful. Her father is the mayor while her elder brother runs the underground society. That type of punk who will burn someone house down just because he don’t like your face? Plus they own half the city including the college. Seven years ago, a girl like you, young and naive but pretty fell for his trick but she was very unlucky because he beat her up badly when she fought back and raped her brutally after she was semi-conscious. He leave her to die in an empty house afterwards but a young college boy from another city on vacation walked pass the house saw Wilson running out with blood on his clothing. That boy sensed something was amiss ,went in and saw that girl naked and bloodied. He called the police and sent her to hospital,’ Sierra said walking towards the window and saw Taylor’s car slowly backed out from the garage.’The girl survived, she reported it to the police and college but they ignored her. They gave her greedy father an outstanding amount of money to settle the problem. Offered scholarship to that girl but she was too emotionally disturbed to continue schooling.’

‘Why? How could this happened? I thought this is a civilised city!’ Cherish said tears rolling down again as she knew Sierra was truthful about why and how she will never get that monster in jail. Sierra walked towards her and took Cherish in her arms letting her cried until both of them fell asleep from emotional exhaustion.

Ventris Area 3 (Commercial Area), Ashton’s Studio, 3 February ,SY700.

8.30 p.m.

Taylor stretched himself after several hours of working non stop. He sat in front of his computer checking his e-mail saw nothing interesting until his eyes fell on one with a familiar title, he clicked it out of curiosity.

‘Please check your e-mail. This is urgent’

Taylor shrugged after reading the e-mail and reluctantly logged on to a website . He typed in his identification and password before logging in to his e-mail account. To his surprise he received almost fifty messages, some dating five years ago. He found it amusing and annoyed at the same time,’ didn’t I told them I quit?’. He clicked on the oldest message, a series of pictures loaded on the screen. His eyes bulged upon seeing the pictures and realisation hit him. A question in his mind is solved. He continued reading all the messages he received endlessly for the next two hours. After he finished reading, the sound of his cell phone ringing startled him. It was an unknown caller with no numbers indication, but he instinctively knew who was the caller.

‘ Hello, Taylor Ashton speaking.’

‘It’s been a long time T.A. We finally get you to check the mail, I see. So I guess you are interested in what we would like you to do. Aren’t you? You logged on for more than two hours,’ a husky female voice asked.

‘Yes, I’m interested. In fact I have done part of my duty without even knowing it, I’ll file my report after this and send it to you, Judy,’ Taylor replied with a serious tone.

‘Hmm, You have forgotten the rules it seems to me. No first name basis. There are another one like you in the city, perhaps you two will get together one day. I will be waiting for your report and your rewards will be deliver soon. Take care,’ the caller named Judy ended the phone call.

After the call Taylor typed furiously and completed his report in just half an hour. With a sense of justice and hope, he clicked on the Send button and breathe a sigh of contentment.As he sat back on his comfortable chair he closed his eyes wondering how strange life and fate can be.