“You. They’ll release Regina, but only if you take her place.”
“When? How much time do we have?”
“You’re asking the impossible, Parris.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not asking any longer, Martin. I’m telling you…”
Martin gripped her shoulders, pulling her up hard to his chest. “You don’t…”
“Don’t ask, don’t say this, and don’t say that,” she flung at him, her voice rising to match his runaway temper. “Dress like this, Parris, and don’t forget to smile, Mrs. Cole. Please sit this way. Get up, Parris! Go to bed, Parris!” Her voice continued to escalate and the brown color disappeared from her eyes. “Not once since I’ve become the enviable Mrs. Martin Diaz Cole have I been allowed to be Parris.”
She struggled to free herself from his iron grip. “Ever since I’ve known you I’ve suffered because of who I am. And because I had the misfortune of falling in love with you I’ve lived on a tightrope of fear. But do you want to know something, your lordship? I’m no longer the frightened awe-struck little girl of ten years ago. I’m tired of living in fear. This time Regina’s involved and in no way will I permit her to experience what I’ve gone through.” She paused to watch disbelief freeze his features. “You better tell whoever has my child that if they want me they can have me.”
“You intend to give in to their demands.”
“Hell, yeah!” she spat at him, ignoring the pain in his eyes.
“They’ll kill you, Parris.” Martin’s voice was hoarse and shaky.
“Without Regina I am dead.”
There was a sharp rap on the door before it swung open. “You’d better get out here, Martin. The news is out and the FBI are swarming all over the place!”
Martin released Parris, spinning around and following David. Someone had leaked the news of Regina’s kidnapping.
The air was charged with static as the formal agents concluded their questioning and Vincent Daniels waited for answers. His red eyebrows rose an inch higher as he shook his head.
“The press has been hounding me, Martin. They want to know something. Anything.”
Martin bowed his head, unable to face his press secretary. “Do they want the low-down on the madness affecting my private life or do they want the truth. Parris has been threatened with death three times, and now my baby has been kidnapped.” He ran a hand over his face. “Tell them Regina Cole is missing.”
Vince nodded. “What if the word kidnapping comes up?”
“You know nothing of a kidnapping,” Martin insisted. “All you’ve been told is that the child has been reported missing.”
“Then missing it is,” Vince repeated. “Again, I’m sorry about the girl, Martin. If anything comes up I can’t handle I’ll call you on your private line.”
Vincent Daniels never heard the low murmur of thanks as he closed the door and was escorted off the Cole property by a stoic agent.
There was a knock on the library door and Joshua opened it. Standing beside David was the person he’d been waiting for.
He extended his hand. “Thanks for coming.”
“You owe me,” replied the tall man with long black hair. He shook Joshua’s hand, his golden eyes sweeping around the room, missing nothing. “Fill me in on everything and we’ll see how quickly we can get this wrapped up.”
Chapter 35
Only Martin’s grip on her hand kept Parris from bolting when Matthew Sterling walked into the room. He was tall, taller than Martin, Joshua or David, and broader. There was something wild, almost savage, in the amber-green eyes under thick black eyebrows. His sun-browned skin was smooth where a short black beard didn’t conceal his face. He held his head like a large cat, sniffing the air for the scent of his prey. He didn’t sit, preferring to stand in a corner where he blended into the shadows.
“Is there anything about your ex-husband that would make him vulnerable?” Matt asked Parris. “Any bad habits or vices?”
Parris sucked in her breath, staring at Martin’s profile. He tightened his grip on her fingers. “Owen was addicted to cocaine.” All eyes were trained on her face. “It wasn’t until after we were married that I discovered his addiction.” Her gaze shifted, focusing on the crystal base of a table lamp. “It was the reason Owen was never able to perform sexually with me.”
“You’ve never told anyone about his addiction?” Matt Sterling questioned.
She shook her head. “No one. I told him I wouldn’t if he gave me my freedom.”
“When was the last time you saw your ex-husband?” Matt continued with his questioning.
“I saw him once since I’ve returned to Florida.” Parris felt the force of Martin’s gaze on her face as she turned away from him. “He didn’t see me. I was driving through Palm Beach and I saw him coming out of the condominiums on Bradley Place.”
“L’Ermitage,” Joshua said softly.
“When do we make the exchange?” Parris asked.
“There won’t be an exchange,” Martin declared with quiet emphasis.
A lump formed in Parris’s chest. “They’ll kill her,” she cried out.
“They won’t kill her,” Joshua said. “It’s you they want, not Regina.”
“I don’t believe you. None of you!” Her eyes were wild with fear. “You’re playing Russian roulette with my child’s life.” She lashed out to strike Martin, but he caught her free hand, trapping her. “I hate you!” she screamed at him.
Martin held her effortlessly until she yielded to his superior strength. He buried his face in her hair. “I can’t afford to lose you, darling.”
A stabbing pain wouldn’t permit her to breathe. “They’ll kill my baby.” She sobbed weakly against his chest.
Martin tightened his grip on her body. “We’ll have more children, Parris. I would sacrifice ten Reginas for you.” His hand curved under her chin. “I love you more than any baby we could ever have. If I lost Regina I could go on living. If I lost you again I couldn’t,” he confessed.
Parris saw the pain in his gaze. “You lost me before.”
“I had no choice then, darling. Now I do. And if we lose Regina that’s beyond the both of us. But as long as I’m alive I’ll hold onto you until that is beyond me.”
She melted against him, unaware that Joshua and Matt Sterling had slipped quietly from the room.
Only David remained, awed by the depth of his brother’s love for his wife. He prayed he would never be tested where he would be faced with the dilemma of choosing between the woman he loved and the seed from his loins.
* * *
Word of Regina’s kidnapping flashed across the television screen. Martin clenched his jaw as the news bulletin preempted regular programming. He punched the button on the remote.
Six days; it was now six days since Regina’s abduction. Was she frightened? Had she been abused?
He walked out of the family room and made his way up the staircase to the bedroom where Parris lay, hiding herself away from him and the world.
She was right, he thought. She hadn’t been allowed to be a wife, a mother or even to manage her own career. She had become a pawn for him in his bid to secure an elected office.
Parris was young, intelligent and beautiful. Women were beginning to emulate her style of dress and graceful gestures. And most of all he had been aware that having Parris as his wife only enhanced his image appreciably when he rethought her virulent tirades.
He slowed his steps, staring at the top of the stairs. What happened to their walks along the beach? The weekend sailing and fishing trips? And the late-night exotic meals over candlelight with soft music? And if he did win the election and embark on a political career would there ever be time for her, Regina and the other children they planned to have?
He had given Parris his name in marriage, his wealth, his child, his love yet not himself. And that was all she’d ever wanted from him. Just Martin Cole and nothing else.
Martin felt as if all of his burdens were lifted when he reac
hed the top of the staircase. He had just made a decision which would change their lives.
“Parris?” He looked around the bedroom. Walking through the bedroom, he opened the door to the bathroom. Where could she have gone? He called out her name, his voice bouncing off the walls.
Martin bounded down the stairs, his heart pumping painfully in his chest. He was breathing heavily when he ran into the dining room. “Where’s Parris?”
M.J. stared at him. “She went upstairs to take a nap.”
“How long ago?”
M.J. shrugged a delicate shoulder. “Less than an hour ago.”
“Where are you going?” Samuel asked.
“To find my wife.”
Now Martin knew how his mother felt when she had to search the large house for Regina. Doors were swung open and slammed on their hinges. Silent servants shook their heads and gave him a blank stare when he asked if they saw Parris.
He was mindless with fright as he closed the door to the last room. He had searched the interior and now he headed outside.
Annoyance prickled his nerves as he walked through the darkened shadows of the garden with only a slip of a moon darting behind opaque clouds.
Wending his way through the maze of the boxwood garden, he swore under his breath. The Cole property encompassed twelve acres of land, and nearly one-fourth of it was made up of gardens: tropical, exotic Japanese and boxwood.
His agitation increased the more he searched. The agents were pulled after Joshua made a call to someone in Virigina. His request was confirmed and acknowledged within two hours, leaving the property unguarded.
Martin’s cotton shirt was soaked through with moisture and he pulled it away from his chest. Relying totally on his heightened senses, he detected the subtle fragrance of different flowers, the crisp crunch of insects under his feet and the intermittent glow of a firefly. He brushed at the gossamer touch of flying night insects against his exposed face and arms.
The bright glow of the house and floodlights faded the deeper he intruded into the stillness and darkness of the garden.
“Damnit, Parris. Where the hell are you?” he whispered. A flash of light and the soft murmur of voices stopped him.
“You couldn’t stay away, could you?” The raspy voice reverberated in the quiet night. “I told you what would happen to you if you told anyone about our little chat. I caught hell for not killing you, but this time I’ll do what…”
Martin recoiled when he heard the sharp crack of flesh meeting flesh, then Parris’s voice. “You low-life frog. You can’t feel like a man until you abduct women and children. I could…” Her words were cut off by the sound of two slaps in rapid succession.
“Don’t kill her yet,” came another masculine voice, freezing Martin where he stood. There was more than one man in the garden with Parris.
The blood roared in his head. The moon slipped behind a veil of clouds, casting an eerie glow on the network of swirling knots of sculpted greenery.
Crouching lower, Martin moved forward, trying to remember in which direction he’d heard the voices. He was almost certain the two men could hear his heavy breathing as he made his way through the maze. A shadow moved on his left and he dropped lower, ready to spring.
“Careful, buddy. It’s me.”
“Josh.” Relief was evident in his voice.
“Stay put,” Joshua ordered in a low tone. “Matt and I will take it from here.” Reaching out, he squeezed Martin’s shoulder. “Your daughter is safe.”
Martin sank down to the ground, pressing his head against a thick wall of shrubbery. His breath was coming so quickly he nearly panicked; he was hyperventilating. Tucking his knees to his chest, he lowered his head, then froze when he heard a bloodcurdling scream of terror. There was another scream, then a deadly silence.
He waited and waited. He sat, frozen, until footsteps brought him to his feet. He saw Joshua, the front of his shirt stained with a darker color, leading Parris toward him. She moaned his name once before he gathered her to his chest. She was safe. Regina was safe.
“Get her up to the house while Matt and I look after our friends,” Joshua ordered. His voice, though quiet, had an ominous quality. “They’re pretty tough when it comes to bullying women and children. We’re going to test their courage a little more before turning them over to the police.”
Martin tightened his hold on his wife’s shoulders. “Don’t kill them. I want to make certain they spend the rest of their lives behind the walls of a prison.”
“Remember, this is Florida. They may get the death penalty. Kidnapping, blackmail and attempted murder are serious charges. Wait about fifteen minutes before you call the police. Then get your family together. Ten years of blackmail and kidnapping will end tonight.”
Parris clung to Martin, unable to believe she was still alive. It was over. No more stalkings, threats or living in fear. She had lived with the fear so long she knew it would take her a while before she could relax completely.
“Regina?”
“She’s all right, darling. They found her. Joshua would give up his own life to bring her back to us.” Lowering his head, he kissed her deeply. He had to reassure himself that Parris was still alive.
“Why didn’t you tell me before that Joshua is your brother?” Her arm went around his waist as he led her toward the house.
Martin frowned in the darkness, staring at the large house ablaze with light and filled with both tender and bitter memories. “Joshua is not very proud of his Cole blood. Aside from my family only a few know his lineage. Maybe one day he’ll tell you of his background.”
They were silent as they walked arm-in-arm to the house. Parris took a deep breath, then walked through the door. She made her way to the suite of rooms where she’d spent the last six days. She couldn’t bring herself to run up the stairs. Too many things had happened to her, to Regina, and she didn’t trust her present state of mind. It was as if everything that had happened was a bad dream and she’d wake up to find everything as it was.
She stood in the doorway, watching Juliana as she pulled a lightweight blanket over a sleeping Regina’s shoulders. Juliana glanced up, placing a finger over her lips. Parris nodded. She turned to go downstairs. Her baby was safe.
Parris waited with the other Coles. The cool interior of the antique-filled living room set the stage for Joshua when he strode in and closed the sliding double doors.
All conversation ceased as he stood, giving each person a slow examination as his eyes grew colder and forbidding. A handgun hung limply from the fingers of his left hand. Leaning against the door, he brought it up slowly.
“David, take Nancy and Juliana home.” His voice was low and demanding.
“Who do you think you are, Joshua?” Juliana questioned.
“Take them out of here!” he ordered again.
David stared at his half-brother, then rose to his feet. Within seconds Joshua Kirkland had established his position as his older brother and his equal.
Juliana and Nancy gave Martin looks of desperation, seeking his assistance; however, Martin’s expression was closed, and they followed David out of the living room.
All gazes were fixed on Joshua as he slid the doors closed for the second time. There was a chorus of sighs when he concealed the gun in his waistband behind his back.
Parris shivered and averted her gaze from the dark red stains on his shirt. The blood was a reminder of Matthew Sterling’s way of dealing with the two men who had attempted to kill her. His razor-sharp knife was lethal and silent.
“It’s too bad this family gathering couldn’t be for a joyous occasion instead of the sickness and madness which has been allowed to run rampant for more than ten years,” Joshua began.
“Get the hell out of my house!” Samuel ordered. He pushed away M.J.’s hand when she tried to keep him from lunging at Joshua.
The gun was back in Joshua’s hand in a motion too quick for the human eye to follow. His lips were drawn back over his t
eeth. “I’d love to blow your sick head off, but I won’t because I want you to live and wallow in guilt from the filth you’ve created.” His gaze never wavered from Samuel’s face. “Parris, meet my father and your blackmailer.”
Chapter 36
Parris sagged limply on her chair, unable to believe what she was witnessing. It was like a scene from a Hollywood melodrama, and she’d laugh hysterically once it ended.
M.J. glared up at her husband. “I told you that you would come to regret your liaison with that woman. She was nothing but a tramp and…”
“That’s enough about my mother,” Joshua cut in.
M.J.’s delicate jaw snapped loudly, and she looked to Martin for support.
He stared at his mother, shaking his head. “Go on, Josh,” he urged, closing his eyes.
“Sammy didn’t want you to marry Martin,” Joshua continued, staring at Parris’s strickened face. “So he hired someone to frighten you away from Martin. He made certain to cover himself so nothing would be traced to him, but forgot there is no such thing as a perfect crime.
“It took Matt less than two minutes to get a name from Owen Lawson as to who came to him asking about his ex-wife. Our next informant proved to be a lot more resistant. He nearly drowned in his own blood, but he named Samuel Claridge Cole as the man who’d made him a rich man for doing his dirty work.”
Martin’s black eyes blazed with a sudden anger. “You’re lying, Josh! You hate him so much you’d…”
“I’m not lying,” Joshua shot back, his chest rising and falling in rage. “I am not lying,” he repeated in a softer tone. “And how I feel about…” His gaze swung back to Samuel, narrowing as he studied the man whom he couldn’t openly claim as his father. “How I feel about Samuel has nothing to do with the truth. And I’m telling you the truth when I say that he’s responsible for having Parris abducted ten years ago.”
Samuel crossed one leg over the other, smiling at Joshua. He patted his wife’s hand as she moved closer to him on the love seat. “I’m going to give you an opportunity to leave my home before I call the police and have you forcibly removed.”
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