CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

As Astra sat in the car that drove both her and Ray, she wondered why she had not seen the signs. Well, there was also the fact that she might have seen the signs but had ignored them. At first when they were in high school, it was taken as just a crush and it was even looked upon as cute back then. It had made Astra feel a bit good that someone liked her that much. Over time, Astra saw that it was posing as a problem, but she did not take it seriously. It was when she got into college and realized that he was trying to sabotage her relationships that she even took a little seriously, just a little though. Astra had actually thought that if he met someone else that he would leave her alone.
Astra did not want that person to be Stephanie at first but her friend had been so hooked on Ray that Astra could have not dissuaded her if she tried, and Astra tried. She did a lot to make Stephanie leave him, but it did not work. After a while, it seemed like Ray's attention shifted from her to Steph and Stephanie loved the attention. Astra was cool with it. Hell, she was happy. Dating was still not easy for her though, because of the amount of breakups. When she met Nicholas, she was ready to fall in love. It happened so hard and so fast that they could barely see the obstacles on their way. When Ray was angry that she did not tell him that she got married, Astra figured he was angry for the same reason everyone was, that they were not invited to the wedding. He was living with Stephanie and they were basically the best couple she knew. Astra did not suspect that Ray was still in love with her.
Even when Nicholas and Astra started having issues of farce infidelity and all, Astra could have never even suspected Ray. Nicholas had many other enemies and it was not usually Ray's style. Her mind went to his direction once in a while but it never stayed there. When her marriage with Nicholas ended, Ray did not try to make a pass at her. He was still with Stephanie even. All the doubts she had left then.
She might have seen the signs but so many things contradicted them, and now this. Astra recalled when she came back to town and Nicholas put her on the case with Thompson. She wondered then what role Thompson had to play in it all, was he just a pawn? Or did he have a major role to play with Ray?
'What are you thinking about? Are you still shocked?" Ray asked. He seemed so smug. He was probably feeling himself because he had pulled it off, he fooled her.
'What does Thompson have to do with anything?" Astra asked. Evidence pointed to Thompson as the culprit, but it was never enough to pin it on him. It also seemed like someone was protecting him. It seemed like that person was Ray.
'Oh, you are trying to put all the pieces together aren't you? Well you have a lot of pieces to put together. Thompson is just one," Ray said, and Astra chilled. Did it mean he had done even more than she knew?
'I really love you, you know," Ray said moving closer to her. He took her face in his hand and she tried to move away from him. Astra felt like insects were crawling over her. This was not the friend that she knew. She felt so irritated.
'Don't touch me," Astra spat, and it seemed like Ray changed in the space of a second. His eyes grew angry and murderous. His grip on her jaw was extra painful and it felt like he wanted to rip her jaw from her body. Pain reverberated from her entire face and neck.
'You know you are a such a brat right? I had to go through all this stress because of you. I had to do so much, use so many years. I just needed you, I tried to get someone else, but I could not just be satisfied. It is your fault. I don't have any problem in hurting people around you if you are not willing. I still know where your son is. Be careful how you behave with me," Ray said and Astra felt chills down her spine. He moved her face closer to his and Astra was schooling herself on how to try to be calm and then he suddenly let go of her face.
'No need to rush, I have an entire lifetime with you all to myself," Ray said. The force with which he removed his hand made her shift backwards and land on her back. Astra felt relieved that Ray left her alone for that moment, but she also knew that her relief would not last, as he was already planning on what he would do later on.
Astra was scared for her child. She badly needed someone to search her house and find the note. She did not mind sacrificing herself as she barely even had a choice, but she did not want her child to be hurt in the long run. Astra knew that Ray would not just suddenly leave her son alone. He was clearly getting obsessed with him.
'Oh yes, you asked a question," Ray said. It seemed like he forgot that she was there and just recalled. Astra liked that he was talking though, he es interacting with her and she was gathering evidence. Astra was grateful that she was able to get the recording device from the house and even able to wear it without Ray suspecting anything. She just needed to gather enough information and flee. She hoped that the police and Nicholas would come for her soon.
'You asked about Thompson," he continued. It was clear that he did not need validation from her to keep on talking.
'Thompson was really just the available means I had. He had a grudge against Nicholas, I knew a secret of his and so he was very easy to manipulate. For the longest time, the man felt like I was helping him. Well, that was until he decided that he had developed a conscience. Oops, it was so bad that he did not remain the same way he was at the beginning," Ray said, he was grinning now. It was chilling. Astra feared for Thompson. She hoped that Ray did not mean that he killed the man. She would not be able to bear the burden of a dead man on her conscience.
Ray looked at her and began to laugh. It was not the kind of laughter that prompted you to laugh too, it was different. It was a different type of laughter, the type that brought chills down your spine. Astra knew then that something was seriously wrong with the man, he needed to be in a psychiatric hospital, and it felt like it was her fault that it got this bad.
'You know let me tell you a secret, Thompson's secret," Ray said in a hushed tone. Astra was just afraid of the man that she was seeing, he was growing unhinged.
'He has a daughter, and yes, her mother is a hooker. And he is ashamed of them, he doesn't want anyone to know. And I found out, I have pictures. Just like the type I had of you," Ray said. Astra did not know what to think. Ray was a manipulative bastard. He probably made Thompson believe that his daughter was such a terrible secret.
'You are a horrible human being," Astra spat. She felt terrible that she was his friend for so long, someone that did not seem to have feelings.
'Just the way you made me," Ray said and Astra felt like a knife went into her chest.
'I was fine before you came and ruined me. I was just fine. I did not have all these thoughts in my head, I did not think about you only, and the voices in my head were much more quiet," Ray said. He sounded like a child then. A child that had been deprived of candy. He sounded like a child that was about to throw a tantrum. Maybe that was all he was. For a split moment, Astra felt sorry for him. Maybe he did not deserve all that life dished out for him. Maybe nothing was his fault. His next words though, took all the her pity away. Ray seemed to switch again, it was like he was a new person.
'Do you remember when I took those pictures? Oh of course you don't remember, you were asleep and so was Nicholas," Ray said. He was smiling now. Like a cat who had gotten the cream. Astra wished that the ride would just end. She was tired.
Astra wondered what he was talking about again. She hoped it was not what she felt it was.
'You were asleep because I gave you an injection. You know I worked so hard on those pictures. It took me three months to make everything perfect. The both of you were so happy that it sickened me, I needed to do something," Ray started and realization began to come to Astra, tears began to flow. What the hell had she done?
'I organized an orgy for those old buggers and they jumped at the chance. It was quite easy to get them all high, but it was harder to get you and your idiot ex husband out of your house. I had to drug you both with a very hard drug so that you would not have any memory at all of what happened. I managed to do it, it wasn't easy though. I got you into the orgy with the help of my men and naked too. I enjoyed photographing you, I have some shots myself. I even did some of your husband, I was planning to give them to you, but it seemed like only your pictures were enough to ruin the marriage. Just like that. I had to bid my time before giving him the pictures because I was not sure just how much he remembered from that night. I did not want to send pictures and be figured out then. My patience helped though, it all worked according to plan," Ray said. Astra felt like she was going to throw up. She felt dirty, used, good enough as trash. She did not even know what to think. She figured that the pictures were photoshopped but to think that he actually took them. Her tears began to rush out more and more.
'I actually thought that you would immediately come to me when your husband pushed you out, but you didn't. I was so angry, but unable to do anything, just like when you got married. I knew that I could not act so that I would not be considered as a suspect. I took out my anger on Nicholas, by making sure that his investors began to leave one by one. I was happy then, finally. I also sent the pictures to your parents and family to make sure that you had no where to go. I was happy that Nicholas was in pain, and for a while that you were in pain too," Ray said. Astra launched at him then, she started hitting him. He was the reason why her parents had cut off ties with her, and he claimed that he loved her.
'You're a monster," Astra said as she hit him. She was crying and he was laughing. Her hits went nowhere.
'The exact type that you made," Ray replied and Astra cried even harder.