She thought she knew it all

Anna hung up the phone , certain that her friends fate would not be hers. Her friend Diane had just found out that her husband was gay and was leaving her for another man, She had gone for an aids test , but was confused about how she hadn't sensed anything. They had weekly sex, he didn't seem unattracted. Anna had silently listened, she figured Jerry was bi-sexual but just happened to have a deeper connection with his new partner to be, than he did with Diane.

Anna felt confident she knew all her boyfriend's secrets they talked regularly. He was bisexual but it had been ages since he had been with a man. They had been dating off and on for ten years. He had had other girlfriends, but she was the one he loved. It seemed as if all her friends were breaking up. She laughed her relationship was the one they said would never last.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the doorbell. Carlos was in Brazil, and she wasn't expecting anybody, but she answered the door expecting to find a salesman.

She gasped. There stood a muscular man with long brown hair. He asked for Carlos. He's not here she replied. He started to push past her into the house."He will not be back for three or four days, you are not waiting here for him". He seemed startled. " What do you need him for ?" she asked, She was confused and not sure she should be volunteering information. But her new instinct told her she wanted him to leave. "He's in South America, he's from there you know." The man looked confused. " Maybe I have the wrong man. What business is he in? " He is a jeweler, he brings back stones from Columbia. I am not sure which jeweler is in Brazil." The man grunted, presented a fake smile , thanked her and went to leave. Anna asked him if he had a business card he wanted to leave. He told her he must have the wrong person, and not to bother him, She closed the door , she might have been naive, but she knew this man was lying.

She texted Carlos as soon as she closed the door. When he failed to respond she figured there was nothing about the stranger to worry about. She walked to the subway and headed to the market. She was listening to music through her headphone and singing when she got back home. "Today I feel in love with some one I barely knew. I thought it took a little time to learn about loving. She stopped singing when she entered the house. It was neater than she had left it. The books she had been reading had been put back into the bookcase. She called out to Carlos but he wasn't there. She looked in her jewelry boxes. Everything was there. She texted Carlos again. She was thinking he had left something out of their talks. She was both mad and scared.

She heard nothing from Carlos that night. She knew something was wrong. He would be concerned about her safety if he thought someone had broken into the house. He would usually be telling her what to do. She was wondering if he had done something wrong and it was better not to call the police. She was pretty sure that that man was not a Boston cop, maybe a international investigator. When she got home from work all his things were gone. She sat down and cried. She could not share this with their friends, what would she say., She was pretty sure Carlos was now out of her life, unless he was working as a undercover investigator. She had Alexa play Diana Ross, maybe she should think about that rude good looking man that had been at her door. Who she would most likely never see again. She sang and danced like a woman in love but internally she was crying., She told herself that it was the music, not the man , she would never be unfaithful to Carlos. She smiled thank god tomorrow was Saturday.

When she heard the doorbell she ran to the door. Answers , hopefully there would be answers. Three men were at the. door, and they were not sexy. They had guns on their hips. She froze. "You need protection" they ventured. Anna said nothing. "Your boyfriend has some powerful enemies" Anna laughed brushing off the comment. "He's a jeweler". They did not explain more." I can not have men like you hanging around my house and work " She went to close the door , but one man caught it. " All his stuff is gone, she said He is most likely not coming back. He has not communicated with me since your rep came by the other day. Both her and the men stood in silence., She started first. "how am I supposed to explain his absence? I have no idea what is going on." One of the men said that they couldn't explain. " They could have someone who appeared more normal to her sleep in her extra room. She could tell her friends that it was Carlos's brother. He would not be dressed like them. He would be dressed like her. It would not seem un-normal to her friends. Tell them Carlos is in the hospital,he can not have visitors except family, that is why his brother is here."" Anna did not like secrets but she said okay.

She knew at a glance that this man would not be her lover or even close enough to cry to. but she could pretend that he was family. Alberto was his name, She told him they would share meals,as if he was family, She did not want some strange man keeping guard, and no real communication. He suggested that they watch the news, There was a plane accident in the jungle of South America. Anna was not really interested until she saw the photos of the passengers. He was still alive but his name was not Carlos. That was all the information the tv provided her. "What jewels would be in the jungle? "Is he coming home" she asked. "Do you want him to? "Alberto asked. " I don't know. I thought we had no secrets. I thought he bought and sold stones like emeralds .He brought them home occasionally, and that's all he ever brought home from his work".

Alberto brought her comfort for the next week. They ate takeout, listened to music, He taught her some of the dances he knew. The news about Carlos-Marcus slowly unfolded over the tv. There was going to be a trial, so the lawyers and police could not talk much about the on-going investigation. To protect her she was not even mentioned., He had a Mexican girl-fiend who was his business partner. Alberto was supportive, she wondered how she would have coped , if he had not been here, but she knew he would soon be leaving. Sometimes she wondered about the first stranger that had appeared at the door,but his picture never appeared on the news. She did not ask Alberto about him., She ignored the phone. She was sure her friends recognized the picture. They would all feel sorry for her., She did not want their pity. She just wanted to move on