The woman casting the shadow was unfamiliar to Tabby. The cold, gray eyes seemed to bore into her. It was an all too familiar sensation. It was the one Helen had given her at the end. It was the one Jenny had given her. It was…Tabby swallowed as she knew she should scream. She knew she should somehow alert the entire Walker clan that there was an intruder in the bed and breakfast.
“Don’t bother screaming.” The light reflected off from something. The voice was now familiar. She’d never seen the face that belonged to it as she’d had the canvas bag over her head. It was the one who had been giving orders back in the forest. The light cleared and the weapon came into view. It was what appeared to be a butcher’s knife. “You’ve been around violence enough over the past few years. You know that I can kill you and get away. So I’d remain quiet and listen.”
Tabby knew it was true. Even if she screamed, no matter the weapon, she would be dead. No matter what happened, she couldn’t fight like Emily. She wasn’t a detective. She wasn’t even a nurse who could fight better than most professionals. As she held her hands in the air, one thought crossed her mind. She wondered if the strange woman standing before her knew exactly what it was she was getting into.
As the knife motioned towards the open sliding glass door, Tabby couldn’t help the smile that graced her face. The stranger tilted her head. The nurse never said a word. Her thoughts were on two people. They would see her through this. They would see her through anything that was thrown her way. It was with comfort, almost, that she managed to make it down the ladder that awaited her. And into the unknown. All with a knife still being brandished in her face.
Chapter 14
Emily couldn’t believe it had been two days since she’d overtaken the prison. She hadn’t meant to. It had been some deep rooted instinct for her to protect someone. Sally had been attempting to do the same, in a way. But her cellmate had also been doing it for her own personal gain. Ever since she’d become empress of the prison, Sally hadn’t spoken to her much. And Tessa had continued to give her eyes.
The one Emily was worried about was Sarge. The woman had been reprimanded for the fight. There was no hiding her bruises. Apparently when Emily had been protecting Sally, she had become more vocal than she recalled. It had alerted other guards. The fight had been discovered. Tessa had been given solitary confinement for the day, as had her crew. Sally hadn’t had any punishments, at least not assigned. But Sarge? She had been placed on administrative leave.
As Emily walked along the mesh wire fence, she could feel the eyes upon her. Was it a good thing? They had hoped it would be Sally who gained enough respect to bring out whoever was in charge. Whoever was behind attempting to harm Tabby and Emily, at least on an emotional level. Was it wrong it was the therapist instead of the inmate?
“We need to talk.” The voice didn’t startle her. But knowing who the voice belonged to did surprise Emily. She turned to see the tall, olive skinned woman she had beaten. The one who had once had all the power she was ‘enjoying’. “I didn’t know a skinny bitch like you could fight. I just thought you were clinging on to wannabe Sally.”
This was the moment. What if this Tessa was the one Emily had been waiting for? It could be sour grapes. It could be an attempt to regain what was hers. Or it could be finally what they had been hoping for. It was a little quicker than Emily had thought, but if it was, she was far from complaining. Instead of saying anything, Emily turned her attention away from the imposing woman.
When Emily felt her arm grasped, she merely reacted. She took a hold of the offending hand and bent back. It wasn’t long before Tessa was down on one knee. It was clear she was barely able to breathe. At seeing how readily her instincts were to use violence was becoming the norm, Emily hastily released the offending hand. Tessa sat on the ground, rubbing the wrist. She was at least able to flex it so it wasn’t broken.
“They never told me you could fight.” Tessa glanced up at the tall, blonde goddess. Emily met her gaze. The face was neutral. But there was something in those eyes. It was as if they were lighting up. But why? And it dawned on her exactly why Emily would be happy she’d allowed that little bit of information to slip. “You were hoping I’d show myself, weren’t you?” Tessa managed to gracefully stand. Still, she clung to her wrist.
“Show yourself?” Emily knew exactly what Tessa was referring to. How she wished Max or Sally were there. If only the inmate wasn’t pissed at her. It wasn’t the therapist’s fault that she was the one who had defeated Tessa and her crew. “You’re the one who said we need to talk. After you called Sally out. That’s the only way I even have anything to do with any of this.”
Tessa looked at Emily as if she had grown a third breast. It was unheard of anyone who gained the run of the prison would act as if she didn’t want it. In fact, she had continued to distance herself from everyone. Normally when one came into power, they surrounded themselves with the best bodyguards around so that one didn’t have to fight. What was with this woman? She was different. It was as if she didn’t belong.
“I don’t get you.” Tessa took a tentative step towards her enemy. Or was she? While she had been hired to torture Emily while she was in prison, even attempting to have her commit a crime, there was something about her that caused her to want to be friends with her. Not to continue this charade. “You and Sally aren’t a couple are you?”
While she was supposed to be playing a part, Emily couldn’t. Not only because even having placed her hand on Sally in her mind constituted cheating, but also because this wasn’t her. She wasn’t a fighter. She was a survivor. And while she wanted to know who was behind framing her and attempting to harm her family, it wasn’t worth it. Somehow she’d have to get a message to Max saying just that.
“I have someone on the outside.” That was the truth. It was honest, to a point. “And I don’t care how it looks or how things are done in here. I won’t be with anyone while I’m on the inside. And if you want your crown back, take it.” Emily sighed heavily. “While I can easily defend those I care about, I don’t want the power. I don’t want the fight. All I want is to be reunited with my soulmate.”
It was clear the words were foreign to Tessa. The inmate began leaning on the mesh fence. She was staring into space. Emily wondered what she was contemplating. Was it what she had revealed about not wanting power? About how she wanted to reunite with Tabby? Or was it a combination of things? Perhaps things Tessa was never allowed to know as a child. And now, it was a foreign concept to her.
“I think we do need to talk.” Tessa’s focus remained on some unseen force or spot. Perhaps it was someone specific she was focusing on. Emily could relate as it was two specific people that were helping her to continue to be in this god’s forsaken place. “I don’t mean about you being in charge instead of me. Do you really think soulmates exist?”
“There’s an old poem that my best friend used to tell me about. How people had two heads, four arms and four legs.” Tessa turned her attention immediately to Emily. The therapist couldn’t help but laugh at the look on her face. “I’m not much into the old poems either. But the point is, they were separated and humans spend eternity attempting to find their soulmates. I felt like that. The moment Tabby took a chance on speaking to me…” Emily sighed heavily.
“I felt that way once.” Tessa was now staring into space once again. “It doesn’t matter her name. It was when I was a kid. My family is rich. But they are ruthless. Meaning if you weren’t the right person, you weren’t allowed in.” Tessa’s voice had grown quieter with each word she spoke. It was at the point Emily was having difficulty hearing what the inmate had to say. And she knew it was extremely important.
“I wasn’t allowed to attend the funeral.” A stray tear managed to escape Tessa’s face. “They said it was a childhood disease that took her from me.” Tessa chanced a glance at who was supposed to be her enemy. “But I never believed it. I snuck into the hospital. The nurses were dumbfounded at how quickly she had tak
en a turn for the worse. Yet, the head doctor said it was completely normal. Even at a young age, I knew exactly what it meant.”
Emily didn’t know how to respond. She’d heard a similar story from Max. It was how her soulmate had been forced to toe the line. His first love, who had resembled Sam, had been killed. It had been devastating. And one of the reasons Peter had hesitated in allowing their love to run its course. How many others were out there in these criminal families who had suffered something similar?
Tessa angrily wiped the tear away. At one time, she wouldn’t have cared if anyone seen her cry. But the day she had heard her lover had died, and most likely the reason behind her death, she had hardened her heart. She had not wanted anyone to see any kind of weakness. And now she was in prison, most likely for life. In fact, she was lucky she wasn’t facing the death penalty for snuffing a cop. “Do you believe there’s only one soulmate out there for everyone? I mean, that’s the definition, right?”
How had the conversation taken this turn? Emily wasn’t certain what to say. Yes, she was a therapist. But how did she deal with this? And with the situation she found herself in? Abby entered her mind. For as much as her best friend was a nurse, she was also a bard of sorts. Not just writing stories or plays, but also telling them. She was an amazing teller of stories. And another of the stories Abby had written would be perfect for Tessa. If the inmate was willing to hear it.
“Let me tell you a story.” Tessa eyed the leggy blonde. “There was once a young woman. She was sixteen so she was just coming into adulthood. She was also contending with the fact she was a lesbian. It was her best friend who had captured her heart. While there was sexual attraction, this young woman knew that there was more to it than that. It was as if she couldn’t breathe without at least speaking to her friend once a day.”
Once again, Tessa was leaning against the wire mesh fence. It was a relaxed posture. It was something Emily was glad to see. It meant, at least on a small scale, her enemy was beginning to trust her. Would they ever be friends? As Emily flexed her hands, remembering the pain she had caused the five women, she knew stranger ways friends had been made. And yet, could Tessa release all the ways she had been taught over the years?
“Then tragedy happened for the young woman.” Emily couldn’t remember the exact story Abby had told her. She wished she could remember. Not only for Tessa, but herself. “The young woman found herself without a soulmate. She became bitter and barely able to function. Slowly, she managed to live in the world, without taking her life. It was a struggle merely getting out of bed every day.”
Emily swallowed. It was the thought of losing Tabby. Could she be able to move on? If only the story she was about to tell could come true, then perhaps she could move on. But it was a fantasy. It was a fairytale. It was something an imaginative person created and would one day put to paper, perhaps. But could real life ever be like the story?
“Then one day, when the woman was nearing her mid-forties, she met a young woman. She was twenty years younger. The appearance. The expressions. The attitude, it all reminded the woman of the lover she had lost so long ago.” Emily managed to smile. How, she didn’t know. Living twenty some years without her soulmate was nearly too much to think of. “The woman fought the attraction. Partially it was the age difference. Partially it was because the young woman couldn’t be her soulmate. And yet, she was exactly like her.”
“The short of the story…” Emily turned. She found Tessa staring at her. There were more tears. There was also a hopefulness. It was something the therapist could relate to. More than she cared to admit. “The woman finally allowed herself to see the younger woman for who she was. And that was someone who was the keeper of her soul. They lived a long and happy life together.”
Tessa was speechless at the thought of a soulmate returning. In a way, being reincarnated. That didn’t happen. It couldn’t happen, could it? That was for the storytellers to decide. All she knew was that she wanted the story to be true. That there was the possibility she could be reunited with the one she had loved. Or at least she had thought she had loved.
The thought brought more questions. What if? What if Tessa had only thought she had loved Simone. Then what? What if her soulmate was still out there and she had fucked up and ended up in jail? Would they still be able to connect? Would her soulmate continue to search in vain? And what if they discovered one another in prison? Would it work? “How do you know if you’ve met your true soulmate?”
“Ah! Now there’s something I know a little about.” Emily felt more like a therapist than she had since she’d begun her journey with a new career. It had started with helping Sam, Abby and the boys to deal with all the things that had happened to them. It had continued as her love for helping people continued to grow.
The fact they were who they were and where they were was in the back of the therapist’s mind. But what better way to continue, hopefully, to gain Tessa’s trust. It was necessary. It was more than necessary. It was why she was putting herself through being behind bars. What else would she have to put herself through before she could have her forever with Tabby?
“You see…I never had much luck in the love department.” Emily wasn’t certain how to relate her story. “You see, I knew I was kinda attracted to both men and women. I’d just never given into the desire for women. Partially it was because of how my parents would react. Partially it was I never had found someone to truly stir me. It was always men that I’d dated. But even then, it was all in fun.”
Tessa wondered where this was heading. It was actually kind of fun sitting here talking. Not worrying who had the most power. Not worrying who was plotting to kill you. More and more Tessa regretted taking the police officer’s life. It wasn’t only being incarcerated. Something was slowly changing. And it had all begun when she had met Emily and began thinking of the one that had gotten away.
“Then I met ‘the one’.” The way Emily had said ‘the one’ Tessa knew this was where the story became interesting. “Simon was the one I intended to spend the rest of my life with. The sex was decent enough. But it wasn’t like we had a connection. What we had was the fact I come from a rich family.” Emily nearly choked on the words. It was past tense she should have been using. Her mother was gone and her stepfather had disowned her. There was no money. There technically never had been.
“Long story short, he was in debt. Gambling. And other things.” Emily became quiet for a moment. This was how Tabby had been harmed. This was how Nicky had been harmed. If it hadn’t been for Simon and his connection to Anthony, they never would have been kidnapped. And yet, at the time, she had only been following her heart.
“It wasn’t even that I was placed in harm’s way. And later, my soulmate was placed in danger.” Emily pushed off the wire mesh fence. It was closing in on the evening meal. Not that she was hungry. Not that she was ever hungry in the few days she had been voluntarily confined. “Having watched my best friend and her wife interact…I was beginning to know what true love and soulmates looked like. I just denied it to myself.”
The day flashed in her mind. The day that had changed her life for the better. She had been sat at the counter of the diner. In had walked Tabby. From the time she had spoken, it was clear what she had wanted. Even without saying the words, Emily had known. It was why they had ended up in the hotel room, consummating their relationship with barely a handful of words spoken aloud.
“Let’s just say when I met my soulmate I finally realized what it was like. Not only to be in love, but also to have a true soulmate.” Emily turned to look at her enemy. Though in that moment, Tessa was merely a scared young woman. Yes, even someone who had murdered someone could be a scared, meek person. “So if you are doubting what you had in your youth or perhaps wondering if you’ll find her again, I have one word.”
Tessa tilted her head. What could this one magical word be that could make her believe. That could restore her conviction. That could make everything all right? “Fai
th.” When the inmate burst into laughter, Emily slowly made her way to the taller woman. She placed a hand on Tessa’s shoulder. “Faith in yourself. Faith that you will one day find your soulmate. Whether it’s the one you lost reincarnated or someone new, have faith that soulmates exist. And will find one another. No matter what is thrown at them. I’m a prime example. So is my best friend.”
Emily winked before turning to go. She knew the moment she walked away, they would once again become enemies. While there was now an understanding between them, it wouldn’t change the facts. Which were? Emily had taken away what Tessa had taken for granted. That Tessa needed the power to survive. That Emily only wanted out. That she wanted her freedom to love Tabby and Nicky for eternity.
“Emily!” The woman who had been her enemy quickly chased her down. “I think I know why you are here. I know I let it slip earlier that you wanted something from me. That you want something extremely valuable.” Tessa managed to catch the tall blonde. She had been moving with purpose. Now the tall, raven-haired woman stood before her. They stared into one another’s eyes. “You know the information you are asking for could get both of us killed.”
“I’ve been kidnapped. Twice.” Emily stood with her arms crossed over her chest. “I’ve seen what villains can do to good people. Or those that are attempting to protect the ones they love. Death terrifies me, I admit it. But not for the reason you think. I know I’ll be reunited with Tabby one day. What terrifies me is leaving her behind. Leaving our child behind. So if I have to face death to protect them, even with the fear of leaving them alone, I’ll do that. Simply put, I’d die or live for them.”
Distance of the Heart Page 29
