by Unknown
Jayla had no clue what he was talking about. She’d mainly paid attention to what he’d said about her, after that, she tuned him out. Her heart sank when she’d heard him say he was bringing her home. He was taking her back to D.C. whether she wanted to return or not.
“I’m not going home,” she snapped, angry. “The senator will be pissed when he learns I’m pregnant.”
Kane cupped the sides of her face and kissed her mouth so thoroughly, she felt weak at the knees. “Let him be pissed. Who cares?”
“I do! You don’t know what he’s capable of.”
“It’s none of his business.”
“I’m his business.” Tears welled into her eyes. “He won’t let me go. He’ll never allow me to have this baby.”
“He’ll have no choice. By the time we return, you’ll be past the abortion stage. We aren’t going back until nearly time for you to deliver.”
“I can’t afford to stay in a foreign country for that long. I’ll run out of money.”
“I won’t,” he assured her. “In fact, let’s plan for you to have the baby here, or anywhere you want, except in the states.”
“But—”
He pressed a long finger across her lips cutting off her words. “Shush. We’re going to have a baby. I think we should celebrate after you see a doctor.”
“Okay. I still wanna go to Switzerland.”
He frowned. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. It’s cold. You might take a chill or slip and fall on the ice. Let’s remain in India. I like it here.”
“No. I have to go to Switzerland. I have to see my mother. I haven’t seen her in months.”
“Why are you so determined to go there?”
“My mother’s in a treatment center for cancer there. She could die anytime.”
“What are you talking about?”
“My mother. She’s very ill. Dying.”
He snorted. “Honey, your mother doesn’t have cancer. Where did you get that idea? She’s a hard core drug user. Every so often, when she becomes a nuisance, Hamilton sends her away for treatment. She comes back clean, but she can’t leave the heroin alone. She’s a junky who doesn’t care about anything except getting her next fix.”
Jayla sank down on the side of the bed once again. “But…I don’t understand. How? Where on Earth does she get the stuff?”
“Hamilton. Who the hell do you think got her hooked on the junk? He wanted you. She was in his way. Once she was hooked, she didn’t care what he did to you.”
“She still doesn’t,” Jayla said quietly. “She’s walked in my room a couple of times and seen him in my bed. She never said anything, just closed the door and left. I thought she was too ill…” Her words trailed away on a little sob. “Oh, God, how could she do that to me? I’m her daughter. I–I let him touch me…do things to me…” She shuddered. “I thought she was ill…that she needed treatments. I let him…”
Everything clicked in place. What a naïve fool she’d been. She was free now. Her mother wasn’t dying, and she damn well refused to let both her mother and the senator use her. Jayla clenched her fists. She’d never allow Hamilton to touch her again. She refused to be her mother’s supplier. It was hard to take it all in, but that’s what she’d basically become—her mother’s supplier.
“Don’t torture yourself, sweetheart,” Kane said. “She isn’t worth it.”
Jayla pressed her hands against her stomach. “I swear I’ll be a better mother to my child. I’ll never let anything happen to our baby.”
Content in Kane’s arms, she had no idea how those words would come back to haunt her.
* * * *
Jayla drew a deep breath and tried to ignore the ache in her heart, the loss, the discussion of something in her past she’d chosen to bury, never to dig up like old bones or talk about again, wasn’t easy for her. Tears rolled down her face. She scrubbed them away with the back of her hand and lifted her gaze to Wild.
His dark face reflected the agony she felt. Hell, he had enough pain of his own without trying to deal with hers.
“What happened?” he inquired, his voice serious.
She finished wrapping the clean bandage around his elbow and lower arm she’d made of one of his clean thermal shirts. “Which time?” she asked, desperate to find the courage she needed in order to finish telling her story. Maybe if she shared it with Wild, she’d somehow rid herself of all the guilt that never gave her peace.
“Jayla, if it’s too painful for you, then we’ll leave it buried.”
She shook her head. “I was such a fool,” she said bitterly. “I returned with Kane to D.C., to the senator’s house six weeks after our daughter was born in India.” She released a soft sigh. “Emily was my entire world. And Kane. Kane was so much a part of my life for the next four years. It took me that long to understand just how dangerous, how ruthless he was, how much he was involved in Hamilton’s shady dealings.”
Looking up, she saw Wild’s brows knit in a deep scowl.
“He killed her, didn’t he? Or at the least, had her killed.”
“Who?” Jayla searched Wild’s steadfast gaze.
“Barbara?”
“Oh, yes. The day I told Kane I was pregnant, and he called the senator, he told him to ‘Do it.’ He’d ordered Barbara’s execution. Cold as a block of ice, he ordered her death right there in front of me and I had no clue. When we returned to D.C., it was done.”
Wild held her hands. “How did he get by with it?”
She shrugged. “I’m not sure, except it’d been almost a year since Kane had even talked to the senator. It made them appear innocent. The cops were waiting for us to tell Kane the news his wife had died while he was on an extended business trip to India with me. You see, Hamilton waited until the last minute before our scheduled arrival to murder Barbara. We were on the plane home. There was no way they could connect Kane to her death. There I stood with a six week old baby in my arms and Kane’s arm around my shoulders. Those detectives knew. They stared at me with cold, accusing eyes, and I knew they believed I was to blame for Barbara’s death…and I was. They knew Kane was guilty…but I didn’t, and they couldn’t prove he’d been involved. After all, he’d been out of the country at the time of her death, living with another woman who’d willingly testify he was with her for the past year. They couldn’t prove a damn thing.”
“Jesus, Jayla.”
“I didn’t know. I swear I didn’t realize what he’d done or even planned. I just didn’t connect the dots. He was a god to me. I believed his every word. He swore to me he had nothing to do with Barbara’s death…and I believed him. Why wouldn’t I believe him? He was with me on the plane? I loved him and I couldn’t see past that.”
“You were in love with love.”
“We had a child together.” She hung her head. “Yes, I suppose I was in love with love. I was young. Kane treated me like his queen. By the time I realized they’d planned Barbara’s death by making it look like she overdosed on heroin, I was already two months pregnant with our second child.”
Wild’s head jerked. “You have two children?”
“No.” She didn’t think she could get past this point, say anymore. “No.” She swallowed hard. Jayla forced herself to look Wild in the eye. “Although I detested the woman, I hadn’t wanted her dead. I felt that I’d caused her death by being involved with Kane Masters. I should have left…but I’d tried that once before. This time I had a three year old daughter and another baby on the way. Where was I gonna go that Kane wouldn’t find me or that he wouldn’t take my child away from me?”
“What did you do?”
“Nothing. I kept my new found knowledge to myself.”
“Probably a damn good thing.” Wild brushed a stray curl from her eyes. “You’re either the bravest woman I know or the most foolish.”
“I wasn’t brave. God knows I was sick and scared. I was a fool. I should have grabbed Emily and at least tried to get away, but I was so sick with the
second pregnancy, every morning and just about all day. I stayed tired. One morning I started spotting.” She paused, drew a deep breath, released it, and continued. “After returning from the emergency room, I laid down on the sofa catnapping. Emily was playing on the floor nearby. The pain medicine…I didn’t mean to, but I drifted into a deep sleep. I fell asleep. How could I do that with my baby in the room?”
Wild squeezed her hands and waited for her to continue.
“I woke up, my heart pounding. I’d been dreaming of Emily. I heard her laughter, then her terrified scream, her cries, Mommy! Mommy! I couldn’t tell what was real, what was a part of my dreams, but Emily, my sweet baby girl wasn’t there by me when I opened my eyes. I jumped up screaming her name, nothing but silence greeted me, and the certain knowledge that something was terribly wrong.” Tears wet her lashes. “Those double doors, the same ones where Kane watched me remove my bra stood ajar. They led out to the pool. Oh, God. They led out to the pool…and I–I ran, screaming Emily’s name. I ran…and when I saw her…she was just there…so small…floating in the pool, her sweet little face down, dark hair all around her and I knew…I knew she was gone. My baby was gone and it was my fault.” Jayla wiped the tears off her face with unsteady hands. “I jumped in, pulled her out of the water. I…screamed her name, gave her mouth to mouth over and over…and all the while, I was losing the baby inside me. There was so much blood on me and still I wouldn’t give up. I couldn’t give up. But Em…my baby…so cold,” she choked. “So wet and cold.” She looked up at Wild and saw her torment reflected on his dark face. “I thought I locked those doors. I swear to God I locked them…I thought I did.” Jayla’s voice cracked, deep wrenching sobs shook her slender body. “I killed my baby. I fell asleep and my little girl died.”
“Aww, baby.” Wild pulled her close and held her tight with one arm. “You aren’t to blame. Where was Kane when this happened?”
“He went to get my prescriptions filled.”
“I know you’re eat up with guilt, but you were ill. It wasn’t your fault. You’re a human, and as such, we all make dreadful mistakes. I’m so sorry you lost your little girl and the baby. I’m sorry, sweetheart. Someone should have been there looking after you and Emily. You were medicated. You should never have been left alone.”
Her heart and mind devastated, she buried her face against his chest. “I’ll never forgive myself for not locking those doors.” Jayla looked up, her tear drenched gaze steady on Wild’s face. “I wanted to die. I wished so many times that I’d died that day.”
“Sssh. Don’t say such things, baby. We all deserve second chances in life.”
“But you see…I understood about that gun. I knew why you had it. I’ve been there, Wild. I’ve been exactly where you were.”
“Yeah,” he said, wiping her hair from her damp cheeks. “I imagine you have.”
She palmed his face. “This is why this baby is so important to me. She has to live. I can’t lose another child. I can’t. It’s why I came to you. I knew in my heart you’d never let anything happen to me or my child.”
He nodded. “Jesus, sweetheart, I’m just a man, not a god, not any god, but I’ll protect both of you with my life. I swear.”
Jayla sniffed and gave him a tremulous smile. “I knew you’d say that. Thank you.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Pain adds rest unto pleasure, and teaches the luxury of health.
~Martin Tupper
Denver, Colorado
St. Anthony Central Hospital
February 24, Tuesday
10:00 a.m.
Flayme Jansen snapped her cell phone shut and quickly turned to the man who owned her heart. A few days earlier, Duel Remington had taken a couple of bullets for her. Now one of those deadly projectiles lay against his spine. Dangerous. Crippling.
“That was Sam,” she declared. “She has everything all set up, but we have to leave today. Your surgery’s scheduled for tomorrow morning at seven.”
Duel chewed on his lower lip. It wasn’t much time for him to consider or reconsider. They’d reached a jumping off place, do or die. He groaned as he grabbed the trapeze bar and pulled himself up higher in the bed. Moving caused him extreme pain. “Are we sure about this?” he finally spit out between clenched teeth.
She heard the doubt in his words, the pain, and knew it took every ounce of courage he possessed to face and question what lay ahead for them, to endure what might end up leaving him paralyzed.
Flayme took his hand and pressed a soft kiss to his palm. “If you aren’t ready to take on another operation, I’ll call Sam back and tell her we need more time.”
He rubbed the top of her hand with his thumb. “What if I end up in a wheelchair for life? Are you sure about this? About us?”
He questioned her constantly about her decision to stay with him. The man simply couldn’t get it through his head she loved him, for better or worse, even if the vows hadn’t been spoken yet.
He wasn’t afraid for himself. She knew that. His concern was for her, that he’d end up a burden. Flayme bit her lip. Somehow she had to find the right words to convince him her love for him was as strong as it’d been since the first time she saw him. Nothing was going to erase that, certainly not the possibility of a damn wheelchair.
“I’m positive. You’re mine, Duel Remington. I waited so long for the right man to love. You’re it. My heartthrob. My hero. I love you.”
The faint shadows left his face and at last, he grinned. “It’s a good thing you do, doll baby.”
Flayme narrowed her eyes. “Why’s that?”
“Because I ordered a preacher this morning.”
“Ordered a preacher?” She laughed. “Jeez, Duel. You can’t just order a preacher like a pizza.”
“Yeah, I can,” he said a bit sheepish. “He’ll be here in a couple of hours to marry us…if you’re willing.” He sounded unsure again.
She didn’t want him to have any doubts about them. Yes, he was worried about tying her down to a cripple. She didn’t care if he ended up in a wheelchair. This was her man. She’d marry him under any circumstances. “Mrs. Duel Remington. I love the sound of it.”
He released a long slow breath. “Me, too.”
“What do I need to do to get ready?” she asked, noting the gentle way he rubbed her belly.
“Nothing. You look perfect the way you are. One request though once everything returns to normal again.”
She arched a thin brow in question. “What?”
“I wanna see you naked wearing nothing but a pair of those killer heels you had on the very first time I saw you in D.C. You have no idea the wicked things I imagined doing to you while you wore those sexy six inch spikes.”
She giggled, but sobered instantly when someone knocked on their door.
“Come in,” she called.
A white-haired man stuck his head around the door, a big smile on his slender face. “I hear someone in here is looking for a preacher?”
“Yup,” Duel said, squeezing her hand. “Come on in. This is my bride-to-be, Flayme Jansen.”
* * * *
McLean, Virginia
CIA Headquarters
February 24, Tuesday
1:00 p.m.
Samantha Rivers hung up the phone and eyed Travis Bradley, her best agent now that Duel was laid up. “They did it. Duel and Flayme married a few hours ago.”
“Good for them,” Travis replied, grinning. “How’s he feeling?”
She shrugged and laughed. “I guess pretty damn well.”
Travis snorted.
“No, he’s in pain, but the nurses are keeping it under control. He has a morphine pump, so he can self-medicate, but you know Duel. He won’t punch that button until he’s in agony. Their plane’s scheduled to land later today.” Sam paused and sent Travis a questioning gaze. “An ambulance will be waiting to transport him to Georgetown University Hospital. Flayme has a rental car waiting to follow it. I think we should meet them and s
ecure their protection.”
“Absolutely.”
“Travis—”
“Don’t.” He held up a hand cutting her off. “Unless you’re gonna say you’ll be my wife, I don’t want any further personal conversation between us. I put in my notice as you ordered. This is my last week here. I think it’ll be better for both of us if we go our separate ways, just as you said.”
Samantha swallowed back the pain. She loved this man, but she simply couldn’t bring herself to agree to marry him, not after the abuse she’d suffered from her deceased husband.
“If it helps make the break easier, I’m not pregnant,” she said. “That news should ease your mind.”
“It eases your mind. I want babies and a wife. I’ve talked to a lawyer. I’m filing for joint custody for Hayley.”
She didn’t know why that news stunned her. She’d known all along that once Travis discovered they had a child together, he’d want to be a part of her life. She simply wasn’t prepared for it to happen so fast.
Sam opened her mouth to argue, closed it instead. There was no point arguing. She already knew he had a case against her. When it came to his rights as a father, she’d cheated him. He’d win in court. Besides, now that he knew he had a daughter, she couldn’t find it in her heart to keep Hayley from him any longer. She nodded. “You can see her anytime you want.”
“Excuse me if I don’t quite believe you. I’ll obtain legal papers.” He headed to the door, his strides long and determined. He wanted distance between them, and he wanted it fast. She could hardly blame him.
“Travis…” Her voice quivered. And in spite of her desperate need to remain in control, she caved and burst into tears.
