My fingers flipped through the prayer book to the section on family prayers. Tom slipped his hand around my waist and studied the words. “Are we really here to pray?”
I kept my voice barely audible. Sounds in the stone chapel echoed at a pin drop. “Yes. And talk.” I glanced at the Officer Willis now seated on the back row. “If we can.”
Tom cleared his throat. He read the first prayer. “O God, the Creator and Preserver of all mankind, we humbly beseech thee for all sorts and conditions of men…”
When he got to the part where we could add our own intercessions, I bowed my head. “For the soul of Robert. May You receive him into Your mercy.” My voice cracked.
Tom clutched my fingers. “For Jen. Whatever trouble he laid in her heart, may she be healed of it.”
A shockwave surged through me. Did he know? Had Robert told him? I stared as his eyes turned intensely blue.
“Tom, I…”
He leaned and whispered into my ear. “He hurt you deeply, Jen. I get that. And I know you need time to heal. I want to help you get through this. Demons will surface. We’ll pray them away. I promise you.”
My body began to shake. I rocked down onto my heels and sobbed. I heard Officer Willis rise, but Tom, still on his knees, swiveled toward him. “No.” His voice became stern. “She needs to get it out. The doctor said grief comes in waves.”
The officer gave a slight cough and from the creak of the ancient wooden pew, I gather he sat back down. Tom reached in his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. “Here. I came prepared.”
I blew my nose, and rung a corner of it in my hands. “Oh, Tom. If you only knew…”
He hugged me to him. I rested my head on his good shoulder. “In time, Jen. In time.”
I wept softly, drenching his shirt. He didn’t seem to mind. He stroked my hair and murmured. “I have a few skeletons in my own closet.” He kissed the crown of my scalp. “We’ll reveal each as the time feels right. I want what we have to be based in total honesty. After what you’ve been through, it’s the only way.”
I rose up to peer into his eyes. “Is there such a thing?”
His face softened. “I want to believe so.”
I got up off my knees and walked to the first pew. He slid in next to me, arm resting on the back.
“Tom, what happens now?”
He blew a breath out of his cheeks. “I wish I knew. I really want out of all this mess, Jen. Lead a normal life. My assignment is over. My debts paid.”
I twisted to meet his face. “Is that possible?”
He shrugged. “I’m only an asset. Not a full blown spy.” He wiggled his fingers to mime quotation marks around the word “spy.”
“What will you do?”
He scratched his temple. Soft age lines rippled his forehead. “I haven’t a clue. I’ve done this since I got out of the military.” He blinked. “What about you?”
I mimicked his shrug. “Check in with WITSEC through the NCA, I guess. I mean, how does one get their life back? There have been way too many lies. Legitimate ones, mind you, but really, if you think about it…” I gazed at him face on. “All my bridges are burned. You are the only one I really trust. I have no family, no friends.”
His grin stretched to his cheekbones. “Ah, exclusive rights. I like it.” He glanced back at Officer Willis, gave him a quick wave, and then leaned in to kiss me full on the mouth.
There in a chapel, in front of God and one man, we declared our love—without words.
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
That night I slept like a baby—naturally, without the help of Dr. Wilson’s little bag of knock-out drugs. In fact, I dozed off and on the rest of the next day as well. I recall Tom making an appearance with Mary. Their voices drifted into my dreamless state. The woman tucked the covers around me. “Let’s let her sleep. She needs it more than food, I guess.”
“Yes,” Tom agreed. “Rest is healing.”
“I’ll keep a check on her, sir. You just mind that, now.”
“Good. You are a God-send, Mary. For us all.”
The door closed softly behind them. I rolled over, and shut out the world once more.
* * *
About dusk, I awoke to a tap on the door. My mind pushed back the fog. Robert? Was the armoire there? I shook with several blinks. No, I lay cuddled in the navy room. Nightmare over.
“Who is it?”
Mary cracked the door. “Ah, you’re awake, dear. I have hot tomato bisque and yeast rolls.”
I sat up in the bed and curled my legs into a half lotus. “Oh, sounds amazing.”
Her cheeks became rosy as she plopped the bed tray onto my lap. On the tray sat a vase with a single pink carnation. I touched it.
“Courtesy of the gentleman Tom.” Her voice had a lilt in it.
I smiled and jammed my spoon into the creamy broth. Pure heaven.
“Good. Glad your appetite’s back. It’s a clear night tonight. And not that cool or damp. Rather dry actually. Would you like a wee stroll in the moonlight garden after you eat?”
I crossed my arms. “With you?”
Mary laughed. “I’m thinking there is someone else in this house you’d rather be with. But, for propriety’s sake, I should tag along.”
“Whatever you think, dear Mary. If you want to be our chaperone, I wouldn’t mind.”
She waved her wrist. “Pfft. You two know right from wrong.” She started for the door. “I’ll be back in about a half hour to help you dress.”
“Mary?”
She paused, her hand on the door. “Yes, dear?”
“Any chance of scrounging up some makeup around here?”
She gave a hearty chuckle. “Oh, I think we can find a bit here and about.” With a wide grin, she closed the door and let me enjoy the hearty soup and bread in peace. I’m glad she’d brought a large bowl. Rarely did I recall feeling so ravenous.
* * *
Tom waited in the drawing room. When I entered, with hair washed and curled, plus liner and shadow on my eyes, his knees wobbled. The blue in his glistened as he let out a long whistle through his teeth. “Well, well. The rest did do you good.”
The bruising to his face had faded, and the swelling around the eye diminished. “You look better, too.”
His laughter was the best medicine yet. He extended his good elbow for me. I laced my arm through it.
We strolled under the moonlight in silence. Tom let me set the pace. It warmed me down to my toes to be with him—not to have a soul-searching talk, worry about tomorrow, or become tangled in the past—like a normal couple enjoying each other’s company.
After a while, he motioned me to a cement bench in front of a niche of hedges. There were four of them in the garden, I gather to mark the four points on the compass. Each held a similar bench back-dropped by a Greco-Roman statuary. In the center perched a three-tiered fountain. Tonight, it spouted a mere trickle, but soft pink and blue underwater lights illuminated it. I giggled.
“What?”
“It reminds me of Sleeping Beauty. The two fairies? Make it pink. Make it blue.”
He twisted towards me and felt my forehead with the back of his hand.
I batted him away. “You never watched Sleeping Beauty as a child?”
He reared back and cocked his eyebrow. “Seriously?”
My cheeks heated. Drat these Irish redheaded genes. “Yeah, I guess you guys were into Ninja Turtles and Transformers.”
He dipped his head several times. “Now you’re talking my language.”
I sucked in a deep sigh then released it. On the surface this seemed all so pleasant, so natural. I peered out onto the landscape. My soul longed to come clean with him. But, my heart hung the words in my throat. I didn’t want this fantasy to end.
He picked up on my silence. “Did I say something?”
My gaze dashed down to my hands. Unable to look him in the face, I shook my head. The tears pooled again. I sniffled. “It’s been so long since I had a normal c
onversation. Robert and I did when we first…” I gulped.
Tom wrapped his good arm around my shoulders. “You are always safe to cry with me, Jen. It’s God’s way of helping you wash out the hurt and pain.”
“But it’s all I’ve been doing.” I waved my hand in front of my eyes. “I have cried more in the past week than my entire life.” I fanned my face. “The first time I wear makeup in days and now it is all probably running down my cheeks.”
He lifted my chin. “You don’t need any to look good for me.”
I leapt to my feet. “Enough, Tom. I know you mean well, but it’s too much, too soon. I can’t take it.”
His mouth gaped open. I backed away as my hands covered my face. “I’m-I’m sorry.”
I spun on my heel and ran into the house, up the stairs and threw myself in a belly-flop onto my bed in gut-wrenching sobs. After a while, the waterworks turned to heavy sighs, and eventually into sleep…again.
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
The next morning, a series of knocks woke me. I lay on top of the covers, still fully dressed. Hair disheveled, I waddled barefoot and opened the door. Jane stood there with a tray. Strong coffee, orange scones and rashers whiffed into my senses. “Breakfast, ma’am.”
I let her in. She shuffled to the coffee table. I sat down and tucked one leg under the other on the sofa. “Thanks, Jane. But after this, I think I am ready to take my meals downstairs with everyone else.”
“Yes, ma’am.” She did a quick bob. “We’ll all be glad to see you up and about.” She gave me a once over look, though. “If you’re sure.”
“I am. I’ll clean up and change in a bit. Then I may comb the library for a good Jane Austen. You’ll see me at lunch.” I took a sip of coffee. She started to leave.
“Jane? Exactly who is still in the manor now?”
Jane returned to the middle of the room. “Well, there is the dowager, Niamh, the gentleman Tom…” She paused and glanced at me briefly, I guess to judge my reaction to his name. “Then there are always one or two officers or agents assigned to watch over us all. They rotate off and on.” She repositioned her weight. “Oh, and us staff. Malcolm, Mary, Cook, me-self, Charles, Eddie the mechanic and footman, and Joseph, the handyman. He does odd repairs and helps Malcolm with the heavy stuff. But we eat downstairs off the kitchen.”
“Ah, yes. Of course.” I traced the pattern on the saucer with my fingernail. “And Dr. Wilson?”
Jane shook her head. It made the dark curls bounce like miniature Slinky toys. “Lady Greenwell told him to never return. Sad, really. He’d been here forever it seems.”
“I see.” I chomped a strip of rasher, and downed it with more coffee. “Jane, how is Lady Greenwell?”
“Well.” Jane’s eyes dashed around the room as if someone was going to tell her not to speak of the dowager. But she wet her lips and lowered her voice as she edged toward me. I leaned in. “It seems they took her into Bath to the doctors there yesterday. Spent the whole day running test after test. She’d been given all the wrong medicines, they said now, didn’t they? Uh-huh. And do you know, this morning she’s rosy-cheeked and bright eyed? I can tell a difference already.”
I smiled. “Good for her. And Niamh. Is she recovering?”
Jane nodded. More curls bounced. “Yes. I think she is past the worse of it, now. Can you believe all she went through? They tell me you found her.”
“Well…” I cocked my head to my shoulder. “I had help. I discovered her diary. And once I read it, something inside me told me she had to still be alive. An old vagrant in the woods thought I was her. He knew where they were holding her captive.”
Jane clucked her tongue. “Poor thing. Awful. Just awful.”
“It’s what my late husband did for a living. I tried to tell you all.”
Tears welled the rims of her eyes. “Yes, ma’am.”
Another tap, tap, tap on the door. Mary peeked in. “There you are. What’s been keeping you, girl? Thought the carpet had swallowed ya.”
I waved her off. “My fault. I have been talking with Jane.”
Jane shot me a grateful grin. I continued. “I told her I’d like to take meals downstairs with the others from now on. And then I asked her about the weather and things.” I raised my shoulders up to my earlobes. “Guess I’m a bit lonely.”
Mary’s scowl faded. She gave Jane a come-on motion with her hand. “Well, now. It’s okay. But the girl does have duties.” She turned to leave herself. “I’ll be back up for the tray in a while, then.” She stopped, spun her head, and looked me over. “Dear Lord in Heaven. You never got undressed.”
I cocked my head. “The garden stroll plum wore me out. I was too tired to change.”
“Hmmm.” She closed the door.
I took a quick bath, dabbed on some eye makeup and rouge, and dressed in a long-sleeved T-shirt and jeans, courtesy of Niamh. I decided to take a leisurely tour of the mansion that had once been my prison. But, upon entering the library, I noticed one of the officers by the fireplace doing the crossword puzzle. Tom sat opposite him, reading the newspaper. When he noticed me, he folded it. “Jen. You’re up.”
I clasped my hands over my chest. “No. It’s me ghost, now isn’t it?” I mocked the sentence in my amateurish British accent. The officer chuckled under his breath.
Tom’s face tightened. “I can, uh, go into another room, if…”
A feeling of contriteness washed through me. “No. Don’t be silly. I’m not upset anymore, Tom. Really. Just, well, confused.”
A smile began to dance in his eyes. “You’ve been on the merry-go-round so long, you’re dizzy when you’re off, is that it?”
I leaned against a reading table. “Apt description. Yes, in a numb sort of manner…until the slightest thing surges me into tears.”
“Well. There’s a TV in the den across the way and some old DVDs. How about vegging out for a few hours and not thinking of anything important?”
My eyes grew wide. “Wonderful.” My voiced lilted. “You two care to join me?”
The NCA officer grinned and tossed down the crosswords. “Only if popcorn is involved.”
Tom got up and pulled the tapestry chord dangling between the fireplace and the bookshelves. “Great. I’m sure Cook can scrounge some up.”
After an Agatha Christie murder mystery, Niamh came in and sat through a few episodes of a popular British sitcom. Despite the dark circles under her eyes, she looked fairly good. Since she’d watched the series before, she explained the characters and backgrounds to us.
“It’s still pretty dry for me.” I shrugged.
“Make that two of us.” Tom stood to stretch. His lean muscles rippled. Niamh noticed. A touch of the green monster reared inside of me, but when he winked in my direction, it disintegrated.
Mary and Malcolm entered to help Niamh back to her bed. She told us goodbye. Our bodyguard cleared the popcorn bowl from the table. I rose to my feet. “Fancy another walk in the garden, Tom?”
“Okay…” He narrowed his eyes. “You sure?”
“I’m up for it.”
Tom motioned with a bow. I led the way.
I heard Jane say softly, “Well, guess they made up, eh?”
Malcolm hissed back, “Hush, woman.”
* * *
Outside on the walk, I paused. “They all knew about my outburst, huh?”
Tom jammed his fists deep into his trouser pockets. “The house has ears.”
We strolled a bit in silence.
Tom stopped to turn toward me. “The inquiry is tomorrow, remember? Do you have anything a bit more, um…” He cast a gaze at my casual attire. “Business-like to wear?”
“Have they found any of my luggage?”
“No. ’Fraid not. Are you up to shopping? Mary could take you. Of course, you’ll probably have one of the officers as an escort.”
“I’m sort of used to having minders, Tom.”
He squinted into the sky. “Right.”
“Niamh
and I wear the same size. I noticed in her room there are several cardigans and skirts, so maybe she’d let me borrow…who is that coming so fast?”
A black car screamed down the lane towards the manor, gravel spewing from its tires. We stopped and stared. It kept coming straight for us. Tom shoved me to the ground. “Down, Jen. Down.”
The car swerved into a tight circle with a screech of the brakes. Gunshots sprayed in rapid fire before it sped back into the direction it came.
The officer on duty dashed out, his gun cocked in his hands, arms outstretched and legs straddled. I raised my head to watch him aim at the rear of the car. But he didn’t fire. It had travelled too far down the lane to be in range. He pulled his weapon straight up and kicked the dirt. “Too late. Did you two get the plate number?” He tucked the gun in the back of his pants.
“Not completely. BB8 something.” Tom’s voice sounded pained.
The officer noticed we both still crouched low to the ground. “Blimey.” He rushed to us. “You two okay?”
Tom winced as he eased up from his injured shoulder. “I am. You, Jen?” He gave me his other hand.
I grabbed it and he lifted me to my feet. The garden began to warp into a fuzzy, slanted scene. “Tom, I feel woozy.”
Tom’s face paled. The officer’s mouth opened. My lower abdomen flared in pain. I put my hand there. It felt wet. I looked down and watched my T-shirt and palm turn red. “Oh.”
I wobbled to my knees as my eyes rolled back into my head. The world darkened into a cone-shaped tunnel. Tom yelled my name…the last thing I remembered.
CHAPTER SIXTY
Beep. Beep. Beep. High-pitched and steady. A bright light shown in my eyes. I squinted my lids tight.
A woman’s voice penetrated the beeps. “She’s coming around. Jen, Jen, can you hear me?”
Paper rustled. A mask appeared with two eyes above it. I shut mine again. Her voice penetrated my mind again, in an echo. “Jen. Wake up. Jen?”
My lids felt as if fishing weights had been sewed on them. A pungent smell of antiseptic joined the brilliant beam flashing between my eyelids to arouse my senses. My chest ached as if a too tight bandage restricted it from accepting my breaths. I coughed. Oh, how it hurt. My throat became painfully raw.
Legitimate Lies Page 27
