Every Rose Has Its Thorn 4

When I finally arrived at J.F.K. airport, I exited and gathered my luggage. Outside, I quickly found cab that would take me home. The weather was absolutely terrible. It was raining cats and dogs. Thunder and lightning roared through the skies. Almost like a bad omen. Not to mention the freezing cold, unlike the nice and sunny beaches that I had left behind. The grisly weather made me feel even more depressed than I already was.

With heavy legs that felt like lead, I opened the door to my apartment. There was no one in the cold and dark apartment to greet me. Just the silence and the loneliness that overwhelmed me. I realized that moment how much I was going to miss Karl. I sat down on a chair to let the emotions pass by.

After a couple of minutes, I got up and proceeded to unpack my luggage. I had put all of my clothes in their drawers and opened all of the packages that I had brought home, except for the one that Karl had given me. I looked at it and anxiously wondered what it might contain. Karl did say the contents would make me remember him for always. My curiosity got stronger. I shook the box and then tore off the wrapping. To my surprise, the box only contained a letter and a sealed envelope. I took out the letter and read:


Dear Ann,


By the time you read this, you’ll be back in the U.S. and I’ll be far, far away and long gone. Please don't try to find me because you won't. Many others have tried before and they've all failed. First of all, I want you to know that I will always remember you and that we had something very special while it lasted. Even though I have done this many times before, I never seem to get tired of this. I really had a lot of fun. However, this is not the only reason that I decided to write you this letter. 

The real reason is that I have a confession to make. I haven’t been totally honest with you. For starters, my name is not Karl. What my name really is, I won’t say. You most likely thought, like many other before, I was the man of your dreams. In reality, I am most likely your worst nightmare. 

We did not meet by accident, when we bumped into each other. Rather, it was carefully planned by me, ever since I saw you for the first time at the airport. Yes, I did saw you and I know that you were staring at me. I couldn’t resist the opportunity and followed you to the hotel. It was also no accident that you saw me when you were shopping in that store for clothes. I wanted to make sure that I continued to occupy your mind so that when the moment came we actually met, you would be obsessed by me. As soon as you told me, you had never been here before, the thrill of the hunt was on. 

Like I said before. I'm a professional and I take great pride in what I do. You may think that I just wanted to get in bed with you. But that wasn't the main reason. That was just a way to accomplish my real goal. Now you are probably asking yourself what the reason is behind all the charade. To answer that question , you will have to open the envelope that came with this letter. That will make everything clear to you.


Love,

        Karl


I was totally surprised and didn’t know what to think after I had read the letter. I was sure that we had met by chance and had not suspected that Karl had seen through me and had hid the fact from me. I broke the seal of the envelope and read the words that would haunt me for the rest of my life...

“I am a carrier of the AIDS virus!”

I was shocked and yet I could not believe that it was true. I refused to believe that Karl, or whatever his real name was, had faked everything. I called the number he had given me and sent him an email, but they were all bogus. I could not believe that he had pretended to love me, when all he really wanted was to inflict me with the deadly virus. I went to the doctor to have myself tested.

When I finally heard the news, I was petrified. The result of the test was positive. My fate was sealed. I cannot describe what went through me as I sat there absorbing the bitter truth. “Why, why, why?” I cried. I didn't understand why someone would do something like that. Whether it was out of revenge or because he derives some sort of sick pleasure out of it. He could have simply raped me and that would have been easier to take. He also wanted my heart, only to break it. I cried and I cried, but there were no answers. Nothing could change what had happened. All that was left for me to do was to wait for the day my life would come to its tragic end.

--o--

Click on Part 3 for what happened previously or on Part 5 for what happens next in this series.