Just Me - Finding out you are not who you think you are can lead to unforeseen consequences. The sky was heavy with clouds and there was a brooding in the atmosphere that warned of the storm to come. At such times as these, I became agitated as if I too were brooding. But my mind wasn’t thinking of storms and atmospheric phenomenon. My mind was, when it was not occupied with whatever subject I had been asked to research, thinking about a certain golden-haired man who had just been elected Sheriff of our small town of Briarton, Iowa. Joseph and I had gone to high school together and I had always fantasized about having him in my life. But I was a plain bookworm and he was a golden god who every female from 17 to 40 panted after. The fact that he had been one of my closest friends since I had come to Briarton when I was fourteen made no difference. “Margaret Mason,” I chided myself as I turned from the windows of the kitchen with my mug, “you are hopeless.” I had just caught sight of him at the house he shared with his sister and brother-in-law across the stream from my home. Our morning ritual, I smiled. He would always wave to me if he saw me in the kitchen on his way to work. I made a habit of being here at the same time every morning for exactly that reason. “How is lover boy looking this morning?” my friend, and mentor, Professor Maxine Troughton said as she poked her head in the kitchen. She had brought in the latest requests for my skills and set them in my box in the office in what had once been the library of the mansion. “God, Maxie!” I choked and whirled from the window. “You’re going to give me a heart attack.” “You are wasting your life here in Briarton, Maggie,” the silver-haired woman shook her head. As the head of the Briarton College English Department, she was also my employer. As head researcher for her department, I was responsible for gathering information on every subject she and her teachers needed. I had traveled the world of literature and learned the history of the world for places I had only ever dreamed of visiting. “I’ve seen some of the requests you get,” she continued as she parked herself on the edge of the desk and shook her head at me. “London, Paris, New York! You could travel and meet people outside of this nowhere town.” “I happen to like this town, Maxie,” I replied as I sat back to look over her outfit of the day. Today’s color scheme was orange. At least four shades of that color were caught up in her stylish pantsuit and blouse and the scarf she had used to hold back her thick hair. “Has anyone called you a pumpkin yet, you old dear?” “Not to my face, Maggie Mason,” Maxine made a face at me. “I am a professor with tenure. Only you would be so openly disrespectful as to tell me I look like a pumpkin.” Maxine had taken me under her wing from the very first day I had started college. She seemed to have an over-developed maternal instinct and had taken my poor orphaned self to her heart. The fact that I was a naturally gifted researcher who tended to drift into solitary mode quickly had been a constant trial to her over the years. She was forever trying to get me to come out of my shell and experience more of life than that of a researcher for our small town’s English Department. She had become a substitute for the mother I had lost when I was seven. “I’m the only one at the college who does not quake at the sight of you, Maxie,” I laughed. I stretched my back and held my hand out for her mug. It was not there for once. “No tea?” “No, thank you, dear,” Maxine shook her head. “I have meetings all morning and a lunch date with Harrison.” She saw my face and shook her finger at me as she mentioned the head of the college, Dean Stanton Harrison. He was a few years older than Maxine, and as much her polar opposite as it was possible for a human being to be. I still could not understand what she saw in the man. “At least I have a gentleman friend, Maggie Mason. You’re only twenty-four. You should be out on hot dates every other night.” “I might do that if my employer would quit putting new research projects in my In Box,” I teased her. “You know how I hate to let my In Box remain full.” I took the folders out and added the date they had come in to the label. “Any of these have a deadline on them?” “Just the one on the Grady murders,” Maxine shivered. “Some author from Minnesota is looking to write a book about them and wants every last detail you can scrounge up.” “Maxie,” I frowned at the woman. “I asked you not to loan me out like a tool, didn’t I?” Once again she was ignoring my wishes. I was quite happy with my quiet little life. But she was forever pushing at me to do more. Several other colleges had made me offers to come work with them, but I had refused them all. So Maxine had started sneaking in projects I knew had nothing to do with the current curriculum as a favor to her friends and peers at those other schools and in other walks of life. What would she say if she knew this new project was more than mere research to me; that the Grady couple had been my parents? I had hoped I would never have to tell her about that part of my life but I now felt it was time to share it with someone I trusted. “I thought you’d like this one,” Maxie replied, brushing off my complaint as she always did. “Mr. Kellogg is going to be in town for the next few weeks and would like some preliminary data as soon as you can compile it. He’s already registered at Lenore’s B&B, so he’s expecting you to have dinner with him on Saturday, six p.m.” “Maxie!” I sighed as I went to the closet and pulled out a box of files. “I already have everything there is to know about those murders,” I told her as her eyebrows rose. “The Grady’s were my parents, Maxine. I was put in the orphanage after they were killed.” “Maggie,” Maxine looked distressed. “You never told me about that.” “Uncle Craig told me I should never tell anyone, Maxie,” I said with some regret. “He said that the people who murdered my parents could find me if I let anyone know the truth,” I laid my hand on her arm. “I’m sorry,” I cried in dismay. “I’ve always known I could trust you, but…” “I understand, Maggie, dear,” Maxine hugged me and tweaked one of the coppery curls that were always falling down over my eyes. “Your guardian was probably right. As I remember it, the authorities never did find the murderer or murderers.” She could see it was time to change the subject and saw the Out Box. Her eyes widened. “How do you get it done so fast?” she asked as she took the completed work with her and slid it into her attaché case. “That’s what I’d like to know.” “I don’t have a life,” I reminded her. “Remember?” She laughed and kissed my cheek and left the office trailing her lavender and vanilla perfume along behind her. I adored Maxine Troughton. I just wished once in a while she wouldn’t try to run my life quite so thoroughly. I remembered I was going to get some tea and left my small office to go to the kitchen. The fact that I was allowed to work from my home gave me even more time to dedicate to my research. The man who had become my guardian when I was fifteen had left it to me when he died four years later with the proviso that I be allowed to live there until I died or no longer wished to reside there. Since I allowed the college to use the building and property from time to time they had let me attend school tuition free. This mansion had been used in more amateur student films over the past seven years than I cared to remember. I had been at work for nearly five hours when there was a pounding on the front door. I went to answer it and no one was there. A car was just pulling away from the curb and I watched it go, frowning. On the stoop was a package wrapped in brown paper. I opened it and inside was a photograph of a woman who looked a great deal like me. I dropped it to the floor as I saw the blood and backed away, whimpering. Across the photograph was written ‘Let the Grady family rest in peace’ in large red letters. “Sheriff North please,” I stammered into the phone as I made the call. “Joseph,” I continued once he came on the line, “I need you here at Evergreen House. Someone just left me a very disturbing package.” I set it on the hall table and let it sit there as I went to get more tea. I was sitting on the stairs holding the cold cup in my hands, and staring at the package as if I expected it to harm me, when the Sheriff came pulling up. “There,” I nodded to the hall table and did not move. “Someone just dropped it off on the stoop and drove off.” Sheriff Joseph North was just twenty-five and one of the handsomest men I had ever known. He had the golden looks of a Nordic prince I had always fancied and his deep blue eyes were always snapping with humor. Right now, however, they were filled with concern. He went out to this car and returned with a large plastic bag and plastic gloves. He bagged the offensive thing and took notes on what I could tell him. “How could anyone know I was approached to do this research?” I asked him as I watched him work. “I just got the request five hours ago when Maxie stopped by on her way to campus.” I shivered. “Is someone watching me?” “Tell me about the car, Maggie,” Joseph interjected as he recognized the signs of panic in me. He was used to my imagination running riot when I was nervous and had learned that trick years ago. “You said dark,” he prompted and I shot him a grateful smile. “Black, blue, green?” “Definitely black,” I said. “Heavy and square, so I’d say an older model of a Chevy or like type vehicle. The license plate was obscured.” I thought about it, isolating the image in my mind as I had been taught. “It was covered in mud, but whether that was deliberate or not I couldn’t say.” “You should have been a detective,” Joseph smiled and laid his hand on my shoulder. “You have a keen eye for detail. It’s going to make it a lot easier for me to find the bastard that sent you this package.” He kissed me on the forehead and for a moment we both forgot about the thing he was holding in his hand. He leaned closer and I whimpered; the sound reminding him he was not there for kissing. “Have you had lunch yet?” Joseph asked me as he stepped away with regret in his eyes. I looked at him with the usual confusion when he asked me out. I knew it was just the act of a friend who was looking out for a friend. “You have to eat, Maggie.” “I’ll heat up some soup,” I shrugged. He took my hand and led me to the kitchen. I knew what this meant. He was not leaving until he saw that soup on the table and me with a spoon in my hand. So I pulled out the kettle and filled it with water. When he saw this, he shook his head and took the kettle from me. “That,” he said tightly, “is not lunch. You’re coming with me, Sweetness Mason.” Whenever he used the nickname the three guys in our gang of four had chosen for me in high school I knew he was not letting me refuse. So I got my purse and sweater and slipped my shoes on and we left the mansion. He made certain it was locked up tight before we got in the patrol car and drove to the diner in town. It was a beautiful day. The sky was a brilliant blue and the trees were just beginning to take on their fall color. As Joseph left my property, I could see that quite a few people were still taking advantage of the Indian Summer weather to be out on their sailboats on the Mississippi River. In this area of Iowa the rolling hills and bluffs were always a shock to anyone who thought our state held nothing but cornfields and pig farms. “In another few days,” I sighed as I took in the splendors of mid-Autumn displayed before me, “we’ll be wearing coats.” “And you’ll still be hiding in your Office,” Joseph teased as he glanced over at me fondly, “buried in someone else’s business.” “Not as long as I have you to rescue me like from time to time, Muscles,” I replied. I laid my hand on his arm and smiled at him fondly. “You’re my best friend, Joseph. I can always count on you to look out for my welfare.” Joseph started to say something but there was a warning in my eyes he saw immediately and he let it lie. I let my attention stray to the nineteenth century storefronts as he drove into our small town and past the historical district. Our town fathers had very wisely chosen to hold on to the look and feel of Briarton’s original architecture. Any new structure built in the city limits had to look as if it could have been constructed in 1840, the year our town was founded. “You don’t get out enough, Maggie,” Joseph said as we pulled up in front of his Office and walked across the street to the Diner. He opened the door for me and we stepped back in time. Earl’s Diner had been here forever. The original features were still in place. Music from the big band era played over the hidden speakers and I smiled. “Hey, Maggie!” Rhonda Jansen called from the cash register as she rung up a sale. She had been one of my friends in high school and we had stayed close since. Her husband was the grandson of the original owner. “Sheriff!” her eyes went wide as she saw who I was with. “Looking good, Stud!” “Don’t let your husband hear you, Racy,” Joseph smiled at her with affection and ruffled her hair. Rhonda James Janson was his cousin and they had a very odd relationship. I had been seriously jealous of her until I learned hey were related. “I’d hate to have to face him down.” “Oh coz!” Rhonda laughed that gloriously warm laugh of hers that warmed the heart of anyone within the sound of it. “You know my man wouldn’t hurt a fly.” “I,” Joseph said as he tweaked one of her curls, “am not a fly.” His teasing look altered to one of outright respect as he saw the man now. Thor Jansen came out of the kitchen and the diner suddenly became a much smaller place. He was at least seven feet tall, I had always thought. Here was the Viking god whose name his mother had given to the man in the flesh. He even wore his blond hair long, held back when he cooked. Arms the size of small tree trunks were on display and the t-shirt he wore was more like a second skin. Every woman in the place was instantly aware than an Alpha male was in the room. “Thor,” Joseph nodded as he put his hand to the small of my back, reminding me that he was there. I was not immune to the sight of Thor Jansen any more than any other female. Joseph, of course, was no small man but Thor made him seem like a dwarf. “The Maggie special, please, and a cup of coffee and slice of cherry pie for me?” “Hey there, Maggie,” Thor smiled as me and I felt my knees buckle under his intense blue gaze. “Haven’t seen you in here for at least a week.” He looked me over and his concern was plain. I had lost some weight over the last month. “You eating right?” “That’s what I count on you for,” I replied with a bemused smile. Thor and Rhonda made it a point to send me a meal from time to time. In fact, a lot of the people in this town seemed to make it their business to make certain I was taking care of myself. I might remain at my property most of the time, but I could count on a phone call or a visit because someone was ‘in the neighborhood’ at least three times a week. I had a sneaking suspicion that Maxine had arranged that. “Do our best, Maggie,” Thor nodded, his gaze shrewd. He never missed anything this man. “You need to get out more.” He looked at Joseph. “See she does, Muscles.” “Plan on it,” Joseph said in a voice that had me looking at him in confusion. He moved his hand to my elbow and guided me to a table by the window. As we went, I noted his gaze taking in the entire room, noting the locals and the out of towners. Always on duty, I smiled as he pulled out the chair for me. “So, Maggie…” “Sheriff!” a strident voice cut through whatever he’d been about to see. He got a long-suffering look on his face for a brief second that made me giggle, then he rose to his feet and his expression was polite as the source of that voice approached. Miss Edna Everett, the town librarian, and a constant thorn in his side. She was even tinier than I was but her abrasive manner and sharp eyes had always intimidated anyone who met her. “Miss Edna,” Joseph put on his most charming smile. “What can I do for you today?” “You can,” she actually poked her finger into his chest and I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing out loud at the sight of this tiny bird woman taking Joseph, who had to be at least a foot taller and wider than she was, to task. She suddenly quieted as she saw me, and a wide smile crossed her face. “Why Margaret, you dear child. How nice to see you out and about.” “Hello, Miss Edna,” I smiled back at her. “How are you today?” “Why you darling girl,” Edna beamed and came over to kiss me on the cheek. “You always were a thoughtful child.” She pulled back with a frown. “Are you feeling all right, Margaret. You’re running a bit warm.” “Nothing a good meal won’t cure,” Joseph said as he saw Thor bringing my lunch over. He remained standing while Edna was there. “This,” he smiled as he the grilled cheese sandwich, vegetable beef soup, and a chocolate milk shake was set in front of me, “is lunch!” “I’ll leave you to it then,” Edna nodded. “Sheriff,” she said stiffly. “I’ll be over to talk to you later.” “Lucky me!” Joseph muttered under his breath. He sat down as the woman moved off and looked at me in gratitude. “I should take you out more often, Sweetness. You don’t realize what you save me from.” “Someone’s dog digging in her rose beds again?” I smiled back at him. “Isn’t that what it always is?” He nodded. “She grows prize winners, Joseph. Of course, she’d be upset if someone was disturbing them.” “Quit stalling,” Joseph said as he nodded to the meal I hadn’t touched, “and eat!” “You are a bully, Joseph North,” I laughed at him as he held a sandwich half out to me and nodded. I bit into it and sighed as the creamy cheese and rich tasting whole grain bread hit my taste buds. After that I needed no encouragement to eat. We talked then about how things were going for each of us and about our mutual friends in town. We might live next door but he was a very active Sheriff and spent a great deal of time traveling the area, while I was quite happy to stick close to home. “Hey, Maggie! Hey, Sheriff!” Pastor Andrews smiled as he came in to pick up his lunch. His wife was out of town on Fridays, her day to visit the nursing home and he did not cook for himself as a matter of principle. I like the grandfatherly man. He reminded me of an absent-minded monk with his thinning white hair and wire-rimmed glasses. I had helped him do research for his sermons from time to time. “Good to see you out and about, Maggie dear.” He smiled at Joseph. “Are you under arrest?” “In a way,” I smiled at the man. “He insisted I have a lunch that did not consist of pre-packaged food. You know Joseph. He never lets anyone win an argument.” “Best man the Speech Club ever had,” the Pastor nodded. Pastor Andrews volunteered time at the high school and he had been the coach for the Speech Club for nearly thirty years. “He’s right, you know. Proper nutrition is very important and you have been looking a bit pale the last few weeks.” He laid his hand on my shoulder and met my eyes with concern. “Are you feeling all right, Maggie?” “I’ve been a bit tired lately,” I admitted to the man. I never lied to the Pastor. “That’s the third person to comment on how pale you look since we got in here,” Joseph looked at me sharply. He’d already decimated his slice of pie and was sitting there watching my every move. I was quite annoyed with him at that point but his concern ended that feeling. “Probably just a cold coming on,” I assured him. “I’ll stop work early today and do some reading.” “You should have told me you’ve been feeling ill, Maggie,” Joseph frowned. “I would have brought lunch to you.” He went to pay the tab and the Pastor smiled down at me. “He’s a good man, our Sheriff,” he said as he patted my shoulder. “He cares about you.” “He’s a good friend,” I nodded and finished my soup. The Pastor gave me an odd look and went to pick up his food. Joseph sat back and waited for me to finish my lunch. Several other people came over to say hello and it was nearly four by the time we returned to the mansion. I realized I really should get into town more than. So much for an early night, I frowned. I would have to work at least three hours to make up for that long lunch. I caught myself on the railing of the front stairs a moment as a dizzy spell hit and Joseph caught my arm and looked at me in concern. “No more work for you, Sweetness,” he said sternly as he saw the weariness in my eyes. “As for me, I have to get on patrol to make up for that long lunch.” He kissed me on the forehead and I saw an expression in his eyes that puzzled me. It was gone so quickly that I knew I had to be imagining it. Joseph was my friend. He did not have any romantic feelings for me. “Lock up tight tonight, Maggie,” he said as he turned away. “If you get any more of these kind of gifts, call me at once.” “Thanks for lunch, Joseph,” I nodded and shut the door behind him, locking and latching it. I moved through the house and made certain every door and window was fastened tight. When I finally went into my bedroom three hours later I froze as I saw a single black rose resting on my bedspread. A note was wound around it and tied with a black ribbon. My fingers were shaking as I picked it up and pulled the note free. ‘They hid you well, little girl,’ the note read, ‘but I know where you are now and I am coming for you.’ I dropped it and backed away. This was not happening to me! I wasn’t anyone that maniacs would target. I was just plain bookish Maggie Mason. Why was this all happening to me now? I stumbled back and knocked the phone off of the table in the hall. I was picking it back up when I saw a figure standing on the balcony outside my bedroom. He was clothed all in black and his face was hidden. He raised a knife and drew it across his own throat and I screamed and backed into the corner, my arms wrapped around my knees. “Maggie, honey,” Joseph said gently as he came towards me. He’d been in the driveway coming to check on me when he’d heard me scream. “What is it?” I could only shake my head and whimper. He went into my bedroom and came out with the second gift. I would not look at it. “I think you’d better stay somewhere else tonight. I’m calling Ruth.” He dialed a number and his sister was on the line. “Sis. Maggie has been getting some disturbing gifts tonight. She needs our guest room.” He smiled. “I knew she could count on you, Ruth.” He crouched down in front of me and raised my eyes to his. “Talk to me, Maggie.” “You’ll think I’m nuts, Joshua,” I said softly. “I couldn’t possibly have seen what I think I saw.” “Tell me anyway,” Joseph prodded gently as he picked me up in his arms and jogged across the back yard and crossed the bridge over the stream to his brother-in-law’s property. When I did he didn’t tell me I was nuts. He nodded and looked angry and concerned. He saw the tears in my eyes and laid his hand on my cheek. Ruth was opening the front door and her concerned look put a halt to my imagination. “Here she is Ruth.” “You take her up,” Ruth nodded as she saw how pale I was. “I’ll get my bag.” “Ruth will give you something to help you sleep,” Joseph said as he set me down on the bed in the guest room. “I’ll send Abner over to fix the door I broke.” “Was…wasn’t your key there?” I asked him. I had a key placed in a spot only the two of us were aware of for emergency use. “I have to admit, Maggie,” Joseph said honestly, “that when I heard you screaming the last thing on my mind was wasting time looking for the key. I only knew I had to get in there to help you.” He looked up at his sister who was looking quite shocked at his admission. “I need to check out the balcony and the grounds before I go back to work.” “I’ll take good care of her, Joey,” Ruth assured him. He kissed me on the forehead and took off. “I’ll get you a nightgown and robe, Maggie,” Ruth nodded, “and run you a bath. You’ll feel better after a nice warm bath.” I heard her move off but I just sat there staring. A moment later I heard the water running. I just could not seem to function yet and I loved Joseph and his sister for coming to my aid. She got me up and helped me undress and get into the tub. She put a bell on the rim of the tub. “If you feel another panic attack coming on, ring this bell. All right, Maggie?” I think I nodded, but I could not be certain. Somehow I managed to wash my hair and body, the movements on auto-pilot. I found myself standing on the rug outside the tub with towels on my hair and around my body, but that was it. I could not make myself move another step. And then I was on my knees, sobbing as if my heart was breaking. “It’s better than numb, Maggie,” Ruth said as she helped me up and into the nightgown. She sat me down in front of the vanity table and combed out my hair for me. Then she got me into the bed and put the bell in my hand. I clung to it tightly and she stroked my cheek and got out her bag. “I was afraid to give you a sedative earlier, you were so deep in shock. But this should help you relax and allow you to get some sleep.” She fixed the needle and gave me the shot. I looked away as always; I hated needles. “That’s a champ,” Ruth said and stroked my arm. She had been my doctor ever since she had come back to town five years ago and knew about my phobia from personal experience. “I’ll be just next door if you need me.” “I feel like such a baby,” I whimpered as the ice continued to ease around my mind and body. “Someone is probably just playing pranks on me and I’m acting like the heroine in a Gothic novel.” “It’s better to treat these things seriously, Maggie,” Ruth said as she watched me carefully for any adverse side effects. “Joey will treat it that way. He has a soft spot for pretty copper-haired bookworms.” She saw me looking for him and hid her smile. “He’ll find out how the man got into your home.” I knew I had to be dreaming that comment about his soft spot. Joseph North would never look at me twice with all the pretty women in this college town. I drifted off and dreamed of him and in my dreams he came into my room and pressed a gentle kiss on my forehead and murmured assurances to me. He would make certain no one would ever hurt me. It was a very pleasant dream and I woke up feeling much better about things. I got dressed and went downstairs wondering why I smelled pancakes. I was a cup of tea and a piece of dry toast kind of breakfast eater. There hadn’t been a cooked meal at this time of the day since Uncle Craig had died five years earlier. Then I remembered that I wasn’t in my home. I shivered as I put my clothes back on and went downstairs “Good morning, Maggie,” Ruth smiled as she turned from the griddle when I entered her kitchen. “How many?” “I’m not real big on breakfast, Ruth,” I started to protest. She made a face at me and I knew I was in danger of a lecture about my eating habits. “Two, please.” She smiled then and the lecture was averted. I could see her twin sons out in the back yard marching around with sticks over their shoulders. Ruth followed my gaze and smiled. “Their Uncle Joseph told them you needed protection,” Ruth laughed. “They’ve been out there since he left this morning.” She looked at me pointedly. “He said to tell you he’ll be back to check in with you at lunchtime.” “You’ve raised some very special sons there, Ruth,” I smiled and shook my head. “There’s homemade syrup?” I asked in astonishment as I saw the pitcher on the table. “When did you get up, Ruth?” “I’m used to being up early,” Ruth smiled as she slid two pancakes off the platter onto my plate. “I am the town doctor after all, and I have to make certain the twins got a proper breakfast. Daniel would just hand them a box of cereal and leave them to forage. I love the man dearly but he can be so absent-minded about things.” Daniel Armstrong, Ruth’s husband, was also the town mayor. She looked at me critically. “You’re still far too pale, Maggie.” She slid onto a chair and put three pancakes on her own plate. We ate in an easy silence that five years of friendship had formed. “This is nice. You should come visit me more often. No screaming kids, and no spilled milk. It’s heaven.” “You adore your kids,” I laughed with her. “I wish…” I quieted and held my thoughts to myself. Ruth didn’t want to hear about my unfulfilled dreams. I picked at the pancakes and she frowned. “I’m sure they taste fine, Ruth. I just don’t have much of an appetite.” I sighed heavily. “I have to stop listening to those old voices, that’s all.” I cut into the pancakes and took a bite, sighing in pleasure. “These are good!” I looked down at my thighs. “And see, no extra poundage anywhere in sight.” “You were told that old lie, too?” Ruth laughed. “Mine was my Mom. Yours?” “Sister Clarissa at Holy Angels,” I said softly. “She made it sound like anything we put in our mouths would lead us straight to obesity and gluttony. A lot of skinny children came out of the orphanage while she was in charge of the kitchens.” “Some people can cause a lot of damage trying to be kind,” Ruth said softly. She was five years older than her younger brother and had been attending medical school in Boston when I had come to Briarton. “How old were you when you were placed in the orphanage, Maggie?” “About seven years old, I think,” I replied. “I used to wonder why no one wanted me,” I remembered the old hurt of watching other children being adopted while I remained behind. “I guess I was a homely kid even then.” What are you talking about?” Joseph’s voice sounded from the hall door. I squeaked in fright and turned towards him, knocking over the orange juice glass. “Clumsy, maybe,” he smiled gently as he got the paper towels and mopped up my mess; “but not homely.” He took my chin in his hand and turned my head from side to side. He shook his head. “Nope,” he said with a warm smile on his face; “anything but homely, Maggie Mason.” “I think your brother needs his eyes examined, Ruth,” I laughed self-consciously as Ruth got a wet paper towel and went over the places he’d just mopped up. “Any leads on those ‘gifts’ I’ve been receiving?” “It’s only been eight hours, Maggie,” Joseph replied. “Even a crackerjack lab like ours needs a little time to process the information it’s given.” “How old are you?” I laughed at my friend. “Crackerjack? Who talks like that?” “I do,” Joseph tweaked one of the curls framing my face. “It’s Saturday. Do you have any plans for today?” “No, I…” I started to reply and then had to groan. “Maxine set up a meeting with a researcher from Minnesota at six p.m.” I had to go home and get the preliminary information together for the man. I felt faint suddenly and the room went circling around me as I collapsed to the floor. When I came to, I was lying on the couch and Ruth had her stethoscope to my chest. “I’m fine,” I said as I tried to sit up. I knew I was not fine, but I hated having people fuss over me. I could hear the wheeze in my voice. “Let me up, Ruth.” “No,” Ruth shook her head. “You’re not going anywhere but to the hospital for some tests. This is no cold you’re suffering from.” She looked at me with real concern in her expression. Joseph was coming into the room and his face showed he was worried. “Why didn’t you ever tell us you had a heart problem, Maggie?” “I don’t have a heart problem,” I said to her, puzzled. “Why would you think such a thing?” She put the ear pieces in my ears and I listened to my heart beating erratically. “That’s me?” “It’s probably just the stress,” Ruth nodded, “but I don’t believe in taking any chances. Joseph is taking you to Methodist. I’ve called ahead and the hospital’s Administrator, Dr. Norman, is waiting for you. He’s going to make certain you get the best care the staff there can provide.” “I can’t afford their worst care,” I protested, “much less their best…” “No arguments,” Joseph said as he got a blanket and wrapped it around me. “You heard your doctor.” Hospitals horrified me. I had bad memories of being in and out of them when I was very young. I had forgotten just why that had been necessary but the phobia was still there. People caused you pain in hospitals and I didn’t want to go there. I had to think of some way to stall what I could see was an inevitability as I saw twin expressions of concern on the faces of Joseph and his sister, Ruth. “I need to call Maxine and ask her to reschedule that meeting,” I insisted, as I tried to get off the couch. “I’ll do that, Maggie,” Ruth stated. “No more stalling now. You need to go.” Joseph carried me out to his patrol car and put me in the passenger seat. He made certain I was strapped in and then he ran around to the driver’s side and strapped himself in. He put on the sirens and took off at a speed that would have given me a panic attack if I weren’t already suffering from one. My chest was aching by the time we got to the hospital and I was finding it even harder to breathe. He kept talking to me, giving my mind something to focus on besides the fear that was eating at me. “Margaret Mason,” Joseph shouted as he ran directly into the ER with me in his arms. “Doctor Norman was called.” He saw the man already waiting for them and nodded. “This is your patient, Doc. She had a major panic attack last night and was numb for over half an hour before it passed. Had another attack a half hour ago that is still in progress. Chest palpitations and shortness of breath, along with arrhythmia.” He set me down on the examination table and held my hand. “Some sick bastard has been playing some very disturbing pranks on her. Ruth thinks it could be just the stress.” “But your sister is a cautious and competent practitioner,” Norman nodded, “so she had you bring Miss Mason to me.” “She’s been complaining of being tired the past couple weeks,” Joseph said to the man. “She thought it was just a cold coming on.” I looked at the tall, brown-haired man looming over me and I knew him. I could remember him leaning over me like this when I was a terrified four year old looking at me with the same kind smile. I had to bite my lip to keep from shrieking when his cold hand touched mine. “Try to relax, Miss Mason,” Norman smiled as he took my pulse and other vital signs. He listened to my heart and frowned. “That’s a very disturbing rhythm your heart is beating out.” He looked at the Nurse. “Tell Abrams I want the full spectrum. We need to know if this is stress induced or there is an underlying pathology at work.” He looked at me kindly. “Do you know your medical history, Miss Mason?” “I could really have a heart problem?” I asked him quietly. “Wouldn’t the nuns have been aware of it?” “Not necessarily,” Norman replied. “It might be some early damage that’s waited all these years to become a problem or merely the stress of handling overwork and thoughtless pranks.” He put his hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry. You’re in the best of hands now, Miss Mason. I’ll make certain our people find out exactly what is going on with your dear little heart.” He smiled as the Nurse came with the chair. “Nurse Daniels is going to be your personal escort. Once the preliminary tests are done, she’ll settle you into a private room where you can have a nice rest…” “I can’t afford any of this,” I protested. “Joseph, please just take me home. I’ll go to County on Monday…” “Nonsense,” Norman broke in. “You are now a special case, Miss Mason. I take them on from time to time for my friends. Ruth asked me to help you and I am going to do it.” He helped me down off the table. “You go on now, Miss Mason. Let us take care of you.” I tried to protest again but I could see I was going to be vetoed. Joseph’s expression assured me he would cuff me to the exam table before he would let me leave. For some reason I did not fully understand, Doctor Norman had been asked to look after me. I was having a disturbing sense of déjà vu. I had been in hospitals before. I could remember lying in a bed hooked up to monitors while Mama and Papa sat beside me keeping me calm. I could remember the pain and the fear and the utter helplessness and I didn’t want to go there again. I started to panic again and my eyes rolled up into my head and I passed out. “No,” I cried as I came back and someone was sticking something into my arm. “Let me go! I don’t want to be here. I want to go home.” “Calm down now, Miss Mason,” Norman’s voice broke into my panic, calm, gentle, and kind. “You don’t want to cause another attack.” He stroked my hair and smiled. “We want to take care of you.” I whimpered as I felt something burning into my veins. “Just a little sedative to keep you calm.” He sat down by the bed and put his hand over mine. “Why do you have such a hard time accepting that we want to help you, child?” “Not what I’m used to,” I said groggily, the words hard to push out as my body began to go numb. “Always a catch…” “What kind of orphanage was she raised in?” Norman looked over at Joseph. “The Marquis de Sade School for Girls?” He stroked my hair. “Poor little lady. No wonder she keeps to herself.” He saw Abrams coming in with the preliminary test results. “Let’s see what we have here.” He was frowning as I fell asleep and my sleep was filled with nightmares of people who strapped me down and stuck needles in my arm so they could rip my heart out. When I woke up the next morning, the tests began in earnest. I was so worn out from the stress test that I had another attack. I was sedated again to keep me ‘calm’ and spent another night in the hospital. The third day Joseph came to take me home. Doctor Abrams prescribed a medication for me to take and I was left feeling so exhausted I could hardly function. I hated it. Maxine saw my condition as Joseph carried me in and she was horrified. “I’ll be in later to see you,” Joseph said as he kissed me on the forehead. “Remember what the doctor said. No excitement, and no exertion.” He nodded at Maxine. “Professor Troughton. Please make certain she takes her medication and eats real food. Maggie hasn’t been taking care of herself.” Maxine followed him downstairs as I dozed off and he told her the truth. “She has something wrong with her heart, Maxine,” he said bluntly. “The doctors say she must have had a problem when she was a child that is starting to cause trouble for her now.” He looked worried. “They’re talking surgery.” “That’s serious, Joseph,” Maxine nodded. “Don’t worry. I’ll look after your girl for you.” She saw him blush and knew she’d hit it right. “She is your girl, isn’t she?” “Tell her that,” Joseph said softly. “She’ll probably sleep most of the rest of the day. Just make certain she doesn’t forget her medication?” Maxine nodded and saw him out. She went back to the bedroom and saw that I was sound asleep. So she made herself comfortable in my office and made a few phone calls. She had her secretary cancel all the appointments for the rest of the day and went into the kitchen to make a snack and some tea. When she took it up, I was waking up. I smiled as she set the tray on the dresser and helped me sit up. “You don’t need to wait on me, Maxie,” I protested weakly as she set the tray across my lap. “You’ve been in the hospital almost three days, Maggie,” Maxine stated, as she saw how pale I was. “You’re as weak as a newborn.” She went to my closet once she made certain I was eating. “I am packing your bag. You are moving in with me.” “But Doctor Abrams said I shouldn’t exert myself, Maxie,” I parroted the instructions that had been beaten into my mind. “I’ll be fine if I just get some rest.” “You can’t be here on your own,” Maxine insisted. She looked up as someone knocked on the door and saw her stepson standing in the doorway. “Maggie, this is James Kellogg from Minnesota. You remember my telling you about him?” “The man who wanted some research done on the Grady murders,” I nodded and did not open my eyes. “I’m sorry I missed our meeting on Saturday, Mr. Kellogg. I haven’t been feeling well.” “I can see that,” James frowned. Even in his limited medical experience, he could see something was very wrong. “Max is right. You need to be among people who care about you.” He looked over at Maxine. “She’s too weak right now to move. I’ll stay here with her.” “Why should you do that?” I asked in confusion as I did look up then. I felt my heart go up into my throat as the dark-haired green-eyed man standing in the doorway. He was the very image of every swashbuckler and medieval hero I had ever fashioned in my fertile imagination. I gathered my wits about me and frowned at him. “I don’t even know you.” I looked over at Maxine who had her stern ‘take no prisoners’ face on. “I don’t know why you think I should allow a perfect stranger to intrude in my life, Maxie. I’ll be fine. I just need to rest and then I’ll feel better…” “You’re not going to get better taking these,” James said after he took the medication and opened the bottle and sniffed the pills. He recognized that scent. It was not heart medication. He carried it into the bathroom and I heard him dumping the pills into the toilet. A minute later, he brought the empty bottle back out. He had rinsed it out and dried it thoroughly. “Do you trust Maxine, Miss Mason?” “Of course I do,” I nodded firmly. “Then you need to trust me,” James said calmly. “I am staying here. We will work on the case I asked you to research for me only as your health permits. A young woman’s life depends on our finding out all we can about what happened to Henry and Fiona Grady.” “Would a complete copy of the police files and subsequent investigations help?” I asked him, a strange excitement filling me at the thought. He might actually be able to help me find out why my parents had been murdered. A surge of energy shot through me at the thought that someone needed me. I tried to get up and my legs would not hold me. “Maxie, please bring my laptop up here. Let’s get started.” Maxine went down into my office and got the laptop and the power cord. She made certain it had the wireless modem and brought it upstairs. James had gone out to get his suitcase and his laptop. When he came back, he handed me a program disk and I loaded it. I was astounded when the program found several spy programs and open back doors into my laptop. Once they had been located, the program shut them down and set up a firewall to keep further spies from getting through. “Someone was busy while you were in the hospital, Miss Mason,” James told me bluntly. “I’m beginning to think someone does not want you to look into this matter.” “I’ve spent seventeen years not knowing what happened to my parents; why should I let them stop me now that I have a chance to find out why they were killed?” I asked him bluntly. I started typing as I mused aloud and did not see the look James exchanged with Maxine over my bent head. “Grady, Henry and Fiona.” I brought up the police files I had transposed from the paper records. “This is curious,” I said as I read through the file. “Daughter Kerrigan Margaret Grady missing from scene. Preliminary investigation suggests child was taken by assailant and feared dead.” I frowned at that. “Why would they think that?” I fingered the locket at my throat nervously and frowned. “I was taken away long before my parents were murdered. I remember them kissing me goodbye.” I was lost in my own special world now. I pulled up photographs of the family and current information on the Grady’s family. Every member was now deceased except for the missing daughter. Curiously, there were no photographs of the girl or her parents anywhere in the file, but I didn’t need them. I got up and found the photo album Uncle Craig had given me. I could feel tears pricking my eyelids as I scrolled through the children, uncles, aunts, cousins, and grandparents I had lost contact with for my own protection. There were an awful lot of sudden deaths in the family and that raised red flags. I compiled a list of the physicians involved and one name kept appearing: Doctor Robert Norman. I pulled up a photo and background and it was indeed the Administrator at Methodist. “I thought he looked familiar,” I said softly as I shoved the laptop away. I looked over at James. “I don’t understand. Why was my family targeted like this?” I put my arms around my body and shuddered. “The number of sudden deaths defies statistics.” I needed air. I needed to pace. I felt so restless now that I was like a caged animal. I slid the laptop aside and tried to get on my feet. My legs were still too weak to hold me but I refused to let that stop me. I stumbled over the wall and waved James and Maxine off as they tried to help me. I opened the balcony doors and stepped out to draw in deep breaths of air and saw Ruth over in her yard. She waved at me then pulled out her cell phone and made a call. Fifteen minutes later, the Sheriff was pulling up in front of the house. Maxine let him in and he came right up the stairs to my room. He frowned as he saw evidence of my working. “Maggie,” he said as he carried me back to bed, “you shouldn’t be working. You know what Doctor Abrams said. You need to rest.” “I’m not used to being sedentary, Joseph,” I complained. “I need to keep my mind active if my body can’t be moving.” I saw him frown and was suddenly glad I had closed down the search before I got out of bed. Then I realized James and his things were gone from my room. I watched Joseph get the vial and frown as he saw it empty. “They made me groggy,” I defended James’ action; “so I threw them out.” I laid back and closed my eyes. I heard him moving around the bed. “Please leave the laptop, Joseph. I can’t ignore my work.” I could almost feel him hesitating. “I still have to earn my living.” “I’m certain Maxine can give you a few weeks off, Maggie,” Joseph started to argue; “just until you’re feeling better?” “A few weeks?” Maxine shrieked from the doorway. I was too tired to interact. “Do you know what you’re asking, Sheriff? The English and History Departments would come to a standstill if Maggie wasn’t working.” She pushed Joseph out. “I promise you I will try to keep her load to a minimum, but a vacation at this time of the semester is completely out of the question.” She got him out the door and out of the house and locked the doors before coming back upstairs. “There is something going on here, Maggie. We need to find out what that is.” I dozed off soon after that and did not see the people who showed up to wish me well. Maxine accepted their flowers and gifts for me and I woke up to see them lining the shelves and resting on the furniture. I smiled briefly and went back to sleep. When I woke up again, I saw Maxine sitting over by the windows again. The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs reminded me we were not alone. He knocked on the door and waited for me to invite him in. “That transformer at the edge of the property is pretty old, Miss Mason,” he said as he came in. “I made a temporary repair, but you might want to think about asking the city to replace that antique before it causes a fire.” “You didn’t come here to play handyman, Mr. Kellogg,” I said weakly. “Everything you need is right in there,” I nodded to the laptop. “In the file marked Grady. The password is lost ones.” I looked at James as he put his belongings back on my desk. He was a dangerous man, was my first impression. He had been in the military from the way he moved. His dark brown eyes and golden skin and his deep green hair made me think of forests and hunting. Yes, I thought to myself; I could see him stalking through the trees with a bow, clad in a jerkin and hose. His strong, lean legs practically cried out for hose. I blushed as I realized his eyes were on me and he had been watching me. There was humor in those eyes now and warmth. “Only right to wonder,” he said as he came over to sit next to me on the bed. He held out his hand. “Let me introduce myself to you properly, Miss Mason,” he said as we shook. “My name is James Kerrigan Kellogg. I am a senior field agent for the FBI.” “Kerrigan was Mama’s maiden name, and my first name,” I said softly. I looked at him in confusion. “You’re related to me?” “Fiona Kerrigan Grady was a very distant cousin quite a few times removed,” James replied. “We met at a Kerrigan family association meeting my mother took me to when I was twelve and I was fascinated by her. I was fifteen when she and her husband were murdered and I vowed I would find out why.” He paused a moment and I nodded for him to continue. “I went to college after two tours of duty in the Marines and got a degree in Criminal Science. I was recruited by the FBI and began to investigate in my own time. It was harder then,” he smiled briefly. “Computers weren’t as efficient as they are now and I was working on my own.” “Someone tried to stop you,” I said as I saw the scar on his neck. Without thinking, my fingers moved up to his neck. “Even then, no one wanted this case reopened.” “I didn’t let them stop me,” James said as he caught my hand and held it down. He looked at me sternly. “Are you going to help me, knowing it could put you in danger?” “They were my parents,” I said as I was held by those deep mysterious eyes, “and I need to know why they were murdered, Agent Kellogg.” I looked down as I felt myself falling into those beautiful hazel eyes and felt like I’d lost something important by breaking contact. I nodded. “Let’s find out.” “That’s my girl!” James smiled and leaned over to plant a gentle kiss on my lips. I blushed scarlet and his smile widened. “How refreshing, a woman who can honestly blush.” He grew serious as he pulled away. “I need to ask you not to tell anyone who I really am, Maggie; or what we are working on. Can you do that?” “I’ll have to take the folder out of my In Box then,” I said softly as I pulled my eyes away from his. He must work out to have a body that hard, my errant thoughts sounded. I caught his knowing expression on me and I lowered my head in shame. “I’ll go get it,” Maxine nodded, smiling over at James and shaking her head. “Try to keep your hands off each other while I’m gone?” “Maxie!” I exclaimed, shocked at her forthrightness. “I would never…” I saw she was laughing and me and I got angry. “It’s not like he’d ever…” I saw his curious expression and I was mortified. I got up and stumbled my way to the bathroom where I wet a washcloth and wiped my flaming face. Then I bit down on it to quiet my scream. How could Maxine think that man would ever think of me that way? The amusement in his expression when the older woman had mentioned it had told me plainly he was not in the least interested in me as anything but a research assistant. I caught sight of one of the pills James had thrown out floating in the toilet water and I got a dosing spoon out of the drawer in the sink cabinet and fished it out. I had an empty contact lens case in there, so I put the pill in that and slid it into my pocket. He seemed to think the pills were responsible for my feeling so ill. I had a friend in the Science Department. Brad Coleman was a graduate student for the Chemistry Professor and we had gone to high school together; I would ask him to analyze it for me. “I need to call my friend,” I said as I came out of the bathroom. I went out to the phone as James nodded absently from where he was reading the police file. I dialed the number and Brad Coleman answered on the seventeenth ring. “Working hard, Rocket?” I teased as his weary voice sounded over the line. “Sweetness!” Brad crowed; all trace of weariness erased from his voice. I could see him straightening his tie and finger combing his hair in my mind’s eye and I smiled. “To what do I owe this call?” “Do I need a reason to call one of my best buds, Brad?” I said loud enough for my visitor to hear. “I thought I’d call you and see if we can’t catch up now that I’m out of the hospital...” “Hospital?” Brad was instantly alarmed. His moods were always mercurial. “You’re not ill, Sweetness? Oh perish the thought…” “Save your dramatic oration for someone else, Rocket,” I laughed over what I knew from long experience would become a quote. Brad Coleman was a dear friend, but he was also very happily married. “I had a little scare and my doctor decided to have me checked out. Nothing serious,” I lied to him. He didn’t need to know about my health problems. “I need your help, Rocket,” I changed the subject. “Can I come see you tomorrow?” “Sweetness,” Brad crowed happily. “I look forward to your arrival in great anticipation.” “You are a nut, Bradley Coleman,” I laughed. “I’ll see you tomorrow around two.” I jumped as I heard movement nearby and looked up to see James lounging in the doorway. His expression told me I would not be going alone. “I’ll be bringing one of Maxine’s friends with me. He is fascinated by all things science.” “Quelle tragique,” Bradley sighed. “I was hoping…” “No you weren’t you flirt,” I laughed. “Not if you want your wife to let you in the house.” I could hear his warm chuckle and I smiled. “We’ll be there at two. Goodbye, Brad.” “Is there a reason you’re calling the grad student in the Chemistry Department, Maggie?” James asked as I hung up the phone. I pulled the lens case out and held it up. “One of them didn’t flush?” “I want to know what Doctor Abrams was giving me,” I said to him defiantly. “It’s not that I don’t trust you, Agent James Kerrigan Kellogg of the FBI, but…” “Don’t apologize,” James broke in, laying his fingers over my lips. “If I were you, I wouldn’t trust me either.” “Did you know I was Kerrigan Grady when you came here?” I asked him bluntly. He nodded and I felt the fear fill me. The man who was stalking me knew who I really was. “He’s coming to kill me, too. Isn’t he?” “You have such beautiful lips, Maggie, did you know that?” His eyes went warm and his fingers began to stroke my lips gently. I shook my head slowly, my eyes caught by his again. I felt like a fly on paper. I wanted to move, but my body would not listen to me. “Do they taste as sweet as they look?” he sighed as he leaned close. I whimpered and he pulled me to him, his lips brushing mine. I jumped as if I had been scalded and he pulled away. “I’m sorry, Maggie. I shouldn’t have done that.” I watched him walk away and I still could not move. My lips were practically throbbing from that gentle caress. It wasn’t like I hadn’t been kissed before so why did I feel as if this had been the first? I shook my head to clear it of that fancy and turned to see Maxine coming up the stairs with a tray. There was a pot of tea and three cups as well as the sugar bowl, creamer, cut lemons and honey. I saw her look and knew she’d seen that kiss. I burst into tears and ran into my room to give myself time to think. The phone rang and I went to answer it. “Who is he, little girl?” a man’s cold voice demanded before I could speak. I put my hand to my throat. “Get rid of him or I will.” “Leave me alone!” I sobbed as the receiver dropped from my hand. James was there and his arms went around me as we watched Maxine check the phone. She shook her head as no one was there and hung up. “He – he said I had to get rid or you or he would.” I looked up at the man in alarm. “He’s going to hurt you, James.” “Don’t worry about me, Maggie,” James smiled softly as he helped me up. He could see I was not convinced. “I’ll call in my team, if that will make you feel better.” “Team?” I repeated. The thought that he was not working alone did assure me and I felt the panic easing. “Yes, please,” I nodded. “I would hate for anything to happen to you.” I realized what I had said and I tried to look away. James made me look back and his expression assured me that he was touched by my concern for his safety. Something was going on here that was confusing me. This man would get the information he needed, and then he would be gone. He would never stay here and be a part of my life. That kiss earlier had just been his way of distracting me from asking questions he wasn’t prepared to answer. I pushed out of his hold and moved towards the stairs with some vague excuse. “Don’t push her, James,” Maxine warned as she caught his arm when he started to follow. “She’s not used to being pursued.” “What is wrong with the men in this town?” James asked her as he stayed where he was and watched me taking the stairs slowly. My fierce determination and independence was quite appealing. “Can’t they see what a beautiful woman she is?” “Easy, James,” Maxine hissed. “You are here for a very specific purpose. Don’t you start anything with Maggie you have no intention of finishing.” He looked at her for an explanation. “She is an innocent young woman with no experience. You start a romance and she will take it seriously. You’ll leave and I’ll be here having to help her nurse a broken heart.” She wagged her finger at him. “I won’t have it, James! I’ll have you reassigned…” “Don’t worry, Maxie,” James broke in, looking regretful. “I am not here to romance the pretty little bookworm. As you’ve said, I am here for a very specific purpose. I’ll keep my distance.” “And leave her thinking she’s ugly and unwanted? Oh no!” Maxine shook her head. “I’m counting on you to find a way to be her friend and help her get over this fiction she’s built in her mind of how inadequate and unworthy she is. Just don’t overdo it!” “Yes, ma’am!” James saluted as he grinned at his stepmother. “Any other orders, mon General?” “Oh get on with you!” Maxine sighed. “Honestly, James; if you weren’t my stepson, I’d have nothing to do with you.” “You adore me, you old fraud,” James laughed and gave her a quick hug, “and you know it!” He pulled out his cell phone and hit a speed dial number. “It’s K. Get the team mobilized,” he said as he started down the stairs to check on his charge. He entered my office and saw me kneeling in the center of the room. I looked up at him and the distress in my eyes made his heart ache. “We definitely have a situation brewing here in Briarton. We’ve found Kerrigan Grady.” He hung up and looked at the photograph I was holding in my hands. It was Henry and Fiona; one of the shots that should have been in the police file. Someone had written ‘Keep looking and you’re next’ across it in large red letters. He took it out of my hands and pulled me to him, and I burst into tears. “It’s all right, Maggie. I’m not going to let anyone hurt you. I promise.” “It was sitting on the desk with a – another black rose,” I whimpered as I saw him slip the photograph into the folder I’d marked for the Grady investigation. I looked up at him anxiously. “Whoever this man is he means business.” I went to the phone. “I need to call Sheriff North.” “You need to go to bed,” James stated firmly as he picked me up in his arms. He carried me upstairs and set me down on the bed. “Drink your tea,” he said harshly and then turned on his heel and left the room. “He can’t just tell me what to do,” I fumed as I looked over at Maxine, “like I was a child and he was my father!” I saw her look and quieted. “I don’t want anyone getting hurt, Maxie.” “Neither does he, Maggie,” Maxine replied as she poured out some tea and brought it to me. “And, unlike you, he has the skills and knowledge to make certain no one is.” She stroked my hand, smiling at me kindly. “Drink your tea, dear. Then I think it’s time for you to take a nap. I promised the Sheriff I wouldn’t push you too hard, didn’t I?” she asked as I looked at her sharply. I nodded and kept my mouth shut. “He has eyes for you, Maggie.” “Sheriff North?” I sputtered. I set the teacup aside and found a napkin being handed to me. “No, Maxie. You’re mistaken. Joseph is just being thoughtful.” “He took you to the hospital himself, Maggie,” Maxine reminded me, “and stayed with you the whole first night.” I looked at her in confusion. “His sister was talking about it at the diner this morning. She seems quite pleased that he is taking an interest in you.” “But, he would never…” I was completely confused now and I could only shake my head. “Maxie, you’re reading more into this than there is. He is just…” She looked at me pointedly and I quieted a moment. Then I blushed as I realized that she was being serious. Sheriff North liked me? “No,” I shook my head. “He could have any of the pretty girls in town. He wouldn’t want to waste his time on someone as plain as I am.” “You are not plain!” Maxine chided me, as always. She sighed as she saw I was not convinced. “That’s it! We’re taking you for a makeover!” “We’re what?” “Makeover,” Maxine repeated. “Grab your purse, young lady. I am taking you to get a hair cut and have your nails done.” She nodded as I looked at her in panic. “A day of pampering is just what you need.” “I couldn’t agree more,” Cheryl Troughton’s cultured tones swept into the room with her Chanel No 5 hitting my nostrils and making them itch. “Maggie, dear,” she said as she helped me to my feet. “Prepare to be pampered.” “But, I…” I looked over at Maxine who was beaming. A twin expression lit her daughter’s face and I knew I had been manipulated again. “When did you two set this up?” “I called Cheryl last month,” Maxine said as she got my shoes and my purse. “We made this date then.” She hooked her arm through mine. “Come along, dear. We can’t keep the stylists waiting.” “Stylists?” I squeaked. “Maxie, this is too much! I won’t have you wasting this kind of time and money on me…” “Nonsense!” Maxine broke in firmly. “You are as dear to me as one of my own children, Maggie,” she continued as she saw the stubborn set of my chin. “If I want to treat you, then I will! Now quit pouting at me and come along. Everything is set up downstairs in the library. Liliana and Nora are waiting.” I quieted and let them take me to the library. Sure enough Cheryl had brought two of the friends she had allowed me to meet on my visit to her in New York at Easter along with her. She had always treated me like a little sister and I admired the older woman and wished I were more like her. Cheryl had the same forceful ‘take no prisoners’ attitude as her mother. A chair was set up with a portable sink and a hair dryer waiting nearby. Her two friends took me in hand and Maxine and Cheryl busied themselves over by a portable rolling closet as my hair was washed and trimmed. I was sitting with the women doing my nails when there was a knock on the door. Maxine slipped out and I could hear her anger. I tried to get up and Cheryl pushed me back. “You are our prisoner now, Maggie girl,” she smiled at me. “You are not allowed out of this room until we are done.” She saw my worry as the voices rose outside. “You let Mother deal with whoever it is. Let yourself relax. You deserve it.” She looked at her friends. “See if you can’t find just the right color to play up those beautiful lips of hers and her gorgeous eyes,” she told them and kept her hand on my chest until I gave in. “That’s a good victim. You just let the girls work their magic on you and you will not regret it.” I sighed heavily and let them play. If it made them feel good to waste time on a non-entity like me then I was not going to argue any further. It actually felt good to have someone caring about me. I closed my eyes with a sigh of pleasure as Liliana, the Italian punk with her purple and magenta hair, gently massaged my scalp. “I hear you have date tomorrow,” Cheryl continued chattering away as I remained quiet. “He is going to be devastated by you.” “It’s not a date…” “Nonsense, Maggie,” the dark-skinned Nora chirped as she wet combed my hair and began to trim. “Any time a pretty girl meets a man during lunch hours, it is a date!” I let them chatter and forced myself to calm down. This was what I had been denying myself so long, this sense of fun and belonging. I was really quite grateful to Maxine and Cheryl for teaming up and arranging this for me. Nora finished the trim and did not let me see what she’d done. Liliana took over and did my makeup, something I had never had the inclination to learn how to do myself. “The man won’t know what hit him when he sees you.” Liliana nodded as she finished my makeup and turned the chair around. “Look now, Maggie. That is not a plain woman in that mirror.” I looked and saw me, but so much more. My hair glowed with health and seemed to dance around my face with a vitality it had never seen before. Liliana had done my makeup and it was subtle and yet expert enough to enhance the color of my eyes. They sparkled. I could think of no other word for it. I looked like someone who had come to life after a long sleep. “That’s not me,” I said softly. “I have never looked like this before.” “You have always looked like this,” Cheryl said as she hugged me briefly. “You were just hiding behind your plain and practical clothing and your timid nature.” She looked at me sternly. “That ends now, young woman. Do you hear me?” “Everyone on the block can hear you, Cheryl,” James laughed as he came into the room with Maxine. His eyes widened as he saw me. Then he was smiling in a way that made me feel as desirable as any of the prettier woman must. He stood behind me, and met my eyes in the mirror. “Now there’s Maggie as she should be seen: beautiful, confident, and full of life!” He leaned down and leaned his cheek against mine. “Very pretty.” I started to shake my head in denial and he stopped me. “I do not lie, Maggie. You have to stop comparing yourself to other people and see yourself as you are.” He stepped away and kissed Cheryl on the cheek. “You and your ladies have done a great thing here, Miss Troughton. I’m taking you all out to dinner.” “How generous of you, Mr. Kellogg,” Cheryl smiled. “Let us finish up with Maggie and we’ll meet you outside.” James nodded and left the room, wondering why I looked deflated. He couldn’t think it had anything to do with his kissing Cheryl. But then that was the only thing it could be. He was smiling as he went to clean up and put on a jacket. I was jealous. He toyed with the idea of telling me that Cheryl was his sister and decided against it. Maxine had brought him into this without telling me that he was related to Cheryl and her; he had to believe there was a reason for that. “Now,” Maxine said as she returned and went to the rolling closet. “We must find just the right outfit for her public debut.” I heard her pushing hangars aside and then her pleased laugh. She pulled out a dress in rich forest green velvet. “This!” “I could never wear something like that,” I protested as Cheryl removed the cover and helped me up. “It’s so not me!” “It is so you,” Maxine argued, “that I am surprised you never saw it.” She pulled out lingerie and a pair of strappy black shoes with two-inch heels. “You are going to make every man in town trip over his jaw!” “I would hate for anyone to hurt themselves,” I laughed as the women continued pushing me into this nonsense. I finally gave up and let myself enjoy what was happening. What could it hurt to let myself believe I was something I was not for one evening? I put on the filmy lingerie and the beautiful dress and toyed with the locket at my throat as I looked at the results, something I always did when I was uncertain or nervous, and I had to admit I was impressed. “You’ve made me look good.” “You always looked good,” Maxine hugged me once I’d finished changing. “You just weren’t letting yourself see it.” There was a knock on the door. “There’s your date, dear.” “But I thought…” I looked at the four women smiling at me in amusement and I was angry. “You set me up!” “Of course we did, you darling,” Cheryl laughed and kissed my cheek. “Now go out and enjoy yourself. James is a very good dinner companion. He knows how to make a woman feel like she is the only woman who matters.” I didn’t know what to say to that and the door opened just then. I turned and saw the man standing there in his dinner jacket and I could think of nothing to say. He was even more handsome than I had realized. He held his arm out to me, smiling gently, and somehow I found the strength to go to him. He winked at Maxine as I was looking elsewhere and took me outside. “You have a Jag?” I stammered as I saw the car. Why wasn’t I more surprised? I let him help me inside and ran my hands over the buttery soft leather, sighing. I was being treated like a princess. “This is going to raise a few eyebrows.” “Exactly what we intend,” James said as he started the car. “Whoever is watching you is going to get an eyeful.” “I – see.” I frowned. So this was an act meant to catch my tormentor, nothing more. He was no more interested in treating me like a real date than any other man in this town. Even with the pretty clothes and the new look, I was not the kind of woman to inspire anything more than friendship in a man. I jumped as his hand clamped down on mine and met his eyes. “You are looking very lovely tonight, Maggie,” he said honestly. “Don’t frown so. We are two friends about to share dinner and you look like you’re being executed.” “Friends?” I said dully. “Is that what we are?” “That’s a good thing, isn’t it?” James asked, looking worried at my deflated mood. “I would like to think you and I could become very good friends.” He brought my hand up to his lips and I shivered as he kissed it. His eyes were warm as he leaned towards me. “Very close friends,” he smiled as he took my lips. “Please don’t play games with me, James,” I cried in dismay as I pulled away from him. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to behave.” “And that innocence is what is so appealing about you,” James replied. He drove away from the property and headed north out of town. “You are so refreshing and…damn!” He sent me a look of apology as the lights from a patrol car flashed in his rear-view mirror. “Your boyfriend the jealous type?” “My boyfriend?” I turned to see the patrol car as James pulled over and stopped. “Sheriff North isn’t my boyfriend.” “Isn’t he?” James smiled at me and I felt like he was trying to tell me something he thought I should be well aware of. “Stay in the car, Maggie,” James warned me as I started to open the door. I sat back and watched as he got out and went to talk to Joseph. James listened politely and Joseph grew angry. When he shoved James, I was out of the car. “Joseph North!” I snapped as I came around the back of the car and saw him with his hand on James’ throat. “What do you think you are doing to my client?” “Client?” Joseph released James and looked at me. Whatever else he’d been about to say died as his eyes widened. He whistled and took a step towards me. “Damn, Maggie! You are looking fine tonight. What’s the occasion?” “Business dinner with a potential client,” I said tightly. “You have absolutely no reason to be manhandling Mr. Kellogg!” I asked as I moved to help James up. “If this is how you treat every visiting author, I’m going to have to hold my meetings out of town.” “Author?” Joseph looked at James and did not see author stamped anywhere on the man facing him. Dangerous, mysterious, and duplicitous, yes; but not author. “Just what kind of book is he writing that he needs your help on?” “Historical,” I supplied easily. “Mr. Kellogg is writing a book on the history of the county and he asked Maxine to give him the name of someone who could help him with his research. He was thinking of hiring me,” I looked at Joseph coldly, “but after this I wouldn’t blame him if he changed his mind about offering me the job.” “Maggie, I…” “Apologize to Mr. Kellogg, Sheriff, not me,” I broke in as he looked like I’d pole-axed him. “Honestly,” I practically stamped my foot in irritation and turned to James. “Are you all right, sir? I apologize for him. He can be a bit overbearing, but he means well.” “I am sorry, sir,” Joseph said in a tone that held no apology in it at all. “Maggie has been ill recently and I was afraid…” “That I meant to molest her?” James finished. “I can assure you, Sheriff, that thought never entered my mind.” He put his hand under my elbow. “Come along, Miss Mason. We’re going to miss our dinner reservations if we don’t hurry.” He got me back in the car and we drove off at a leisurely pace. I looked back to see Joseph still standing in the road as if he’d been frozen there. “That was quick thinking back there. Thank you.” “I couldn’t let him hurt you,” I replied as I tried to understand why Joseph would behave like that. “You’re a guest in my home.” I wrapped my arms around my body and shivered. “I don’t understand why he would do something like that.” “You wouldn’t,” James smiled over at me gently. He wondered how a young woman as intelligent as I was could be so dense. It was obvious to everyone else in town that the Sheriff liked me. “It’s over now, Maggie. You can relax.” I nodded and tried to do what he suggested, but my mind kept going back to that encounter. Joseph had been behaving like a thug! That was not the man I knew. He couldn’t possibly be jealous, he had never expressed feelings for me other than as a friend and neighbor. I put it aside and realized we were leaving town and headed towards the country club. James wasn’t a member so I knew we couldn’t possibly be going there, but we were. He pulled up to the entrance and the valet helped me out. James tossed his keys to another and came around to offer his arm to me. “James!” an older man with silver hair and James’ face beckoned from the bar as we went inside the building. It was modeled along the lines of an old English manor house and I was enchanted with the décor. “Damn it, boy,” he said as he looked at me in interest, “you have a knack for finding the prettiest women.” He smiled as I blushed. “This pretty one is not your usual type.” He took my hand in his and kissed it gallantly. “I am…” “Senator William Kendrick,” I supplied his name in awe. “Maggie Mason, sir. It’s an honor to meet you.” “Wait until you know the old shark better,” James laughed as he put his arm around my waist, “before you say that, Maggie. Uncle Bill,” he held his hand out to his uncle. “It’s good to see you again. Thank you for your invitation.” “Your stepmother told me you were coming into town, James,” Kendrick nodded, his smile dying only a fraction. “The club is open to you and your friends for as long as you are here.” He offered me his arm. “You will be joining our party, of course, you pretty child.” I looked at James in confusion but he nodded and we went into the dining room. Senator Kendrick’s party consisted of himself, his wife, a dark-haired man with a goatee about James’ age named Nathaniel Layton, and Doctor Norman. I saw Norman’s start as he saw me, but he rallied and gripped my hand warmly as I was seated between him and James. “You are looking very healthy tonight, Maggie,” he said as he sat back down after pushing my chair in for me. “If I hadn’t been there, I would never have known you’d been in the hospital.” “Hospital?” Mrs. Kendrick caught the word and looked at me in concern. “You’re not ill, are you, dear?” “Maggie has a heart ailment,” Norman supplied before I could deny the claim. “We discovered it only recently.” He looked at James pointedly. “She should be home resting.” “This girl hasn’t been sick a day in her life,” Kendrick boomed and smiled at me warmly. “If she’s working with James,” Layton said as he picked up the thread, “then he probably worked her to the point of a breakdown and she just needs to slow down. Isn’t that right, Maggie?” His eyes were twinkling with interest as he looked at me and I wanted to disappear. “I knew it!” Kendrick looked at Norman. “You doctors are always making more out of things than necessary.” The waiter came and Kendrick ordered for all of us. “Prime rib tonight. You must try it,” he insisted when I started to protest. “The cooks here are four star.” “Just go with it, Maggie,” James laughed and rested his hand on mine. “The Senator does not take no for an answer.” “I can see that, James,” I smiled up at him. “That’s a family trait, then?” “She’s got you pegged, Kellogg!” Layton laughed in delight. “Maggie,” he said as he raised his glass to me, “I think James has finally met someone he can’t bully.” “Why would he want to?” I asked the man in confusion. Layton laughed and left me sitting there in confusion. I saw the smile on James’ face and I blushed and looked down at my hands. “I’m not used to people like you.” “Just hang on,” James said as he patted my hands and I looked back up at him. “It gets even more interesting as the evening progresses.” He was right. He and his colorful uncle and aunt spent the evening encouraging me and teasing me at equal turns. Layton kept eyeing me like I was a particularly intriguing person and he wanted to know me very badly. I saw Norman watching me closely and saw his concern and a flash of anger as I let myself be talked into dancing. He warned me I was pushing things but I was too happy to listen. I was dancing with the Senator after a short break for a drink, water with lemon and lime, when I began to wheeze. “James?” I looked up at him in distress as my heart pounded in my ears. “I need some air.” James took me outside where he made me sit on a bench in the gardens as he stroked my back until I began to calm. “It’s all right, Maggie,” he said as he saw the color return to my face and the panic leave my eyes. “You’re fine now.” “I’m not fine,” I sobbed as I let him hold me. “James, I nearly had another attack! What if Doctor Norman is right and I am really sick?” “Hush now,” James crooned into my ear. “Don’t you dare let that old bastard talk you into becoming an invalid.” I looked up at him hoping he was right and he kissed me. All the panic fled and I sighed as peace washed over me. “That’s my brave beauty,” he said as he helped me to my feet. “We’ll go back in now and assure my over-excited aunt that you have not expired.” He put his arm around my waist and held me to him firmly. “We’ll sit out the rest of the dancing, though.” We went back inside and Mrs. Kendrick was relieved to see that I was returned to health. She insisted that I sit with her and we watched the dancing and had a very lively conversation about the latest fashions. Or rather I listened as she regaled me with stories of her trips to the fashion shows in Milan and Paris and New York. I could see she had a sharp mind from her comments, so I knew she was not as shallow as her conversation would lead one to believe. “You’re very good at pretending to be shallow, Mrs. Kendrick,” I said softly enough that only she could hear me. “I suppose that skill proves useful in the world of politics?” “You are a very intelligent young woman, Maggie Mason,” she smiled and patted my hand. She leaned in close then and her expression was quite serious. “You be careful,” she whispered in my ear. “I like you.” She found her husband where he was having a drink with Layton. “William,” she beckoned to him. He excused himself and came over. “It is time we said good night to James’ delightful little friend.” “Of course,” William nodded. He leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. “You listen to James, Maggie,” he whispered. “He will keep you safe.” He smiled at my puzzled look. “Good night, Miss Maggie,” he said aloud. “I hope we’ll see more of you around here. This musty old place can use a pretty woman like you.” “Senator,” Layton said as he took my hand and smiled at me warmly, “I could not agree with you more.” I felt like a sheep facing a wolf and I hoped my fear wasn’t apparent. “I would like an opportunity to further our acquaintance, Maggie. Perhaps over dinner tomorrow?” “Come on, Maggie,” James smiled stiffly as he pulled me away. “You look done in.” He nodded to his uncle. “Good night, sir.” He went to kiss his aunt. “Good night, Aunt. Layton,” he turned to the man, “I’ll call you tomorrow about that golf game.” “You play golf?” I asked as we went to get the car. I looked at him and wondered what else there was about him I did not know. He nodded and shrugged as if playing golf was no big thing. “Could you teach me?” “When you’re feeling better,” James said to me. I looked where he was and saw Doctor Norman watching us. “It’s an awful lot of walking, Maggie, for someone who isn’t healthy.” “Maybe just one hole, then?” I pleaded with him. He looked hesitant and I put my hand on his arm and looked up at him, willing him to give me this. “Please, James. I don’t want to stop living just because I could be ill.” “One hole,” James gave in. He saw Norman frown and move off as he helped me into the car. “You were brilliant, Maggie!” he said as he kissed me. He went around to the driver’s side and got in, laughing as he drove off. Layton watched as we drove off from the shadows where he had been listening to our interaction. He pulled out his cell phone and waited a moment for the call to go through. “This is Layton,” he said simply as he continued watching the car. “I have just met the woman I am going to make my wife. Find out everything you can about Margaret Mason of Briarton, Iowa.” We drove in silence for several minutes enjoying the moonlight and the feel of the night breeze through the open windows. I closed my eyes and relived the dinner. I had spent an entire evening without once feeling inadequate or inferior. The Senator and his wife had accepted me as an equal. I was nearly asleep when James’ voice broke in. “We’re going to have to take a blood sample when we get home,” he said softly. I opened my eyes to see him speaking into his cell phone. “Someone may have slipped her something to cause this latest attack.” He looked over at me and smiled. “We’ll be there in twenty.” “But Doctor Abrams…” “I’m not all that certain it wasn’t him,” James broke in as he hung up the phone. I looked at him in shock. “You have a heart ailment like I have two heads.” I giggled and he smiled happily. “That’s my girl!” He held my hand and I sighed and let myself relax. I woke up as we pulled into the driveway of the mansion and blushed as I realized he’d held my hand the entire drive home. “You are so pretty when you blush like that,” he said as he leaned over and kissed me. “And you have the sweetest lips, Maggie Mason.” He got out and came around to help me out. We walked up to the mansion, his arm going around my waist instantly as I stumbled on an uneven patch in the drive. He looked at me worriedly and I smiled up at him and assured him I was fine. Tired, but fine. He took me to the porch swing and we sat down in companionable silence, his arm still around me as I leaned against him. “Why don’t you like Mr. Layton, James?” I asked after a few moments of silence. “He is a person of interest in an ongoing investigation,” James said simply. “You don’t need to know more than that.” He looked at me sternly. “You would be wise to avoid him.” I opened my mouth to protest but then quieted. He was right, of course. He was an FBI agent and what he worked on was his business. The only investigation that I was connected to was the Grady murders. It hurt that he would cut me off so coldly, but I could understand why. I let myself relax and he let me lean against him. “I could really grow to care for you, Maggie Grady,” James said softly as he stroked my hair. So softly, I knew he didn’t think I could hear him. I didn’t say anything in reply but allowed him to keep his secret. I would cherish those words, I knew, until the day I died. He let me drift off for a few minutes and then he shook me. “You should be in bed, young woman,” he said as he picked me up in his arms and carried me inside. I leaned against him with a happy sigh as he got me up to my room and set me down on the bed. “Good night, Maggie,” he said as he kissed me on the forehead. “Good night, James,” I smiled up at him. “Thank you for a wonderful evening.” He nodded and left, closing the door behind him. I removed the beautiful gown and the shoes and put them away. I got into my robe and turned to see the hooded man standing behind me. My scream was cut off as he shoved me against the wall, his hand going over my mouth. “I’ve been looking for you for a very long time, little girl,” he snarled as his other hand brought up a black rose. He ran it slowly along my arm and I whimpered in fear. “I will come for you soon, Kerrigan,” he continued as he grabbed my wrists and held on so tight I was afraid he was going to break them, “and no one is going to be able to stop me.” He let me go then and I fell back against the wall with a thud. He went out on the balcony and I watched him go down the stairs and head towards the forest. I couldn’t believe what had just happened. He had left the rose stuck in the bodice of my dress and I screamed in anger as I ripped it out and threw it. I was shaking as I heard the door of my room open. “He was just here,” I said to James as I pointed out the door to where the man was running into the forest. “He said he would be coming for me soon.” I pulled the sleeve of my robe up and saw the angry bruises on my wrists where he’d held on. “He did that to you?” James hissed as he saw the tears start. When my lips started to quiver, he pulled me into his arms. “Damn it, Maggie. That man isn’t right.” He looked down into my hurt expression. The hurt changed to anger and he smiled to himself. Good. I was not going to let myself remain frightened. “My people will be here in a few hours, we’ll see to it at least one of us is with you every minute. This,” he held my wrists up and kissed the bruises, “is never going to happen again.” “He said no one could stop him,” I stammered as James made me sit down. I clung to him. “Please don’t do anything to make him hurt you, James. I couldn’t bear it!” “James,” Maxine’s voice cut through the air. “I think you’ve done enough tonight. I’ll see to Maggie now.” I looked over to her and saw the anger in her eyes. She brought me the drink she was holding and made me take a few sips. The fear began to ease and I felt calmer. I took a shower and got ready for bed and she was still in my room, sitting in the rocking chair in the corner. “Go to sleep, dear. I’ll be right here until you do.” I closed my eyes and drifted off. Despite my fears that my sleep would be riddled with nightmares, I slept soundly. I woke up to see that Cheryl was now sitting in the rocking chair. She was looking out of the window with an amused look on her face. I got up and put my robe on and joined her there. Joseph was standing in the back yard of his sister’s house with his nephews each holding a pair of binoculars. “James told him about the attack, Maggie, so he’s got the boys on the watch now,” Cheryl smiled. “Tell me about it.” I told her about how he had been there in my room. My skin crawled on recounting the event. How long had he been in my room watching me before he approached me? I looked at the bruises again and shivered at the remembrance of his anger and his threats. “I don’t understand any of this,” I said to Cheryl. “Why would he treat me like he has some right to me?” “Some men have very nasty imaginations, Maggie,” Cheryl said as she put her arm around my shoulders. “Let’s get some breakfast and then we’ll talk about what you’re going to wear on your date with Dr. Coleman.” “It is not a date, Cheryl,” I said to her and saw she wasn’t listening to me. I gave up and we went downstairs to find the kitchen crowded with people I had never met before. “Maggie,” James smiled from where he was making waffles. “Meet the team. Team, this is our hostess, Kerrigan Margaret Grady.” He nodded to the people around the room, introducing them quickly: George, Robert, Simon, Claudia, Irene, and Shelley. They were all taller than me and physically fit. There was intelligence and purpose in their expressions, and I felt peace flow over me at the thought that these people were here to keep me safe. I had never had so many people caring for me before and it was a strange feeling. “It’s nice to meet you all,” I said as I sank down on a chair someone, the tall lanky George, I thought, pulled out for me. I looked at James in confusion. “When you said ‘team’ I thought one or two people. This is more like a tribe.” “They’re staying at the B&B, Maggie,” Cheryl said as she went to help herself to a plate and put on two waffles and some fruit. She set it down in front of me. “Eat, girl. You need your strength for your big date.” “Will you cut that out?” I laughed at her. “I’m not going on a date! James and I are taking…” I saw James shake his head and I was confused. “You’re not coming?” “I wouldn’t dream of intruding on your time with the brilliant Dr. Coleman,” James said a bit stiffly. “I have a meeting with the Senator.” Something was going on here and I did not like it. He was treating me differently this morning, like I was just another person he knew. What had happened between last night and this morning to change his view of me? I took the glass of juice someone poured out for me and left the kitchen. The room was suddenly much too small. Cheryl followed me with my plate and sat down on the porch swing with me. “There’s no reason for you all to stay at the B&B,” I said absently as I picked at the meal. “There are twenty bedrooms in this place. It shouldn’t take too long to make some habitable.” I could feel tears pricking at my eyes and I wiped at them angrily. I was not going to cry because James had remembered I was just the hired help and not someone he could care about. But the tears weren’t listening to me any more than my heart was. I felt Cheryl take the plate out of my hand and put her arms around me. “I’m such an idiot, Cheryl! How could I think last night meant anything? He was just being nice to me.” She looked back at James, who was trying not to look like he was watching and glared at him. He backed up in shock at her cold look but knew he deserved it. He should never have started something with me. Maxine had warned him not to play games with me and he had pushed the limits. In his defense, he had only done it to make me realize I was someone worthy of a man’s attention. He watched me get up and walk away with my head down and knew he’d miscalculated. “Maggie.” Joseph’s voice cut through my anguish and I looked up from where I stood by the stream that cut between the properties. I had strayed automatically in my distress to ‘our spot’ at the bridge, where Joseph and I used to sneak out at night to join our friends Charles “Brain” Novak and Brad “Rocket” Coleman for our late night talks when we were in high school. He was holding his hat in his hands and looking nervous. “About last night…” “Leave me alone, Joseph,” I said tightly. “You had no right to be like that,” I said as he stepped towards me. My tears were back again. “I thought you were my friend and you embarrassed me!” “Maggie, wait…” I was not listening. I ran blind and when I finally calmed I was in the middle of the forest that bordered my property. I turned to go back and realized I had no idea where I was. I fought down the panic and tried to get my bearings. I couldn’t be that far off. I heard someone moving nearby and hoped it wasn’t Joseph trying to apologize again. I really did not want to talk to him right now. “Hello?” I called out and tried to find the person I could hear moving nearby. “Who’s there, please?” “It’s me, precious,” a man’s voice called through the forest. I shook my head as panic began to strike. It was the man from my room. “It’s time for you to come home.” “Why are you doing this to me?” I demanded as I backed away from the direction I felt the voice had come from. “What do you want?” “I want you, Kerrigan Grady,” the man laughed from another direction. I whirled around but there was no one there. “Did you think you could hide from me forever?” “Go away!” I cried in protest. “Please leave me alone!” I could feel my heart starting to pound as the panic increased. I willed myself to remain calm as I headed in the direction I thought led home. “I can’t, precious,” the man said from yet another direction. “I need you.” I screamed as a man stepped out directly in front of me. He was dressed all in black and his face was hidden in the depths of a hood. I backed away, shaking my head in denial. This was not real! Someone was just trying to scare me for their own amusement. He came after me and I could hear his steps as he followed. “Joseph,” I screamed out the name of the one person I felt could help me. I turned on my heel and ran. “Help!” “No one can help you now, Kerrigan,” the man laughed as he cut around in front of me. He grabbed my arms and I looked up to see two deep red eyes glowing back at me from inside the hood. “You were promised to me. It’s time you kept that promise.” “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” I sobbed as the man started leaning closer. “I don’t want to go with you!” “Maggie!” I heard Joseph calling out to me and I tried to answer. But the man’s hand clamped over my mouth and he kept forcing me on. I tried to pull free but he was a great deal stronger than I was. I could not let him take me; that was plain. So I dug in my heels and he lost his balance. He slapped me as I kept screaming for help but I would not stop. I could hear people coming to help me and I was not going to let this man take me. “This isn’t over, precious,” the man whispered as he leaned in close. “You will be mine. That is your fate.” I screamed as his hands clamped around my throat and began to tighten. “I’ll be back for you, Kerrigan,” he whispered in my ear. “You can count on that!” I blacked out then as the panic overwhelmed my mind and I collapsed to the forest floor. Someone touched me and I screamed and struck out blindly. Then I heard a familiar voice and I opened my eyes and saw Joseph. I threw my arms around him, sobbing in relief. He helped me up and let me cling to him until I felt calmer. I heard the others moving out to try to find my attacker. “I never saw his face,” I told them when we got back to my home and were sitting in the kitchen. I was holding a glass of whiskey between my hands and Joseph was rubbing my shoulders, frowning darkly. “He was all in black and he was wearing a hood over his face. I shivered. “He had to be wearing colored contacts because his eyes were glowing red. No one’s eyes glow red.” I put my hand up to my throat. “He said I was promised to him and he would be back for me.” “He’s not getting near you again, Maggie,” Joseph said tightly. He looked at the others. “I need to get to work.” He made me look at him and I saw his concern and his anguish. “Please be careful, Maggie. I’d die if anything happened to you.” I sat there frozen in shock as he left the house. He really cared about me. That expression had left nothing open for interpretation. How could I not have known he felt like that about me, though? I jumped as Cheryl put her arms around me from behind. “You feel up to your meeting with the chemistry professor?” she asked me as a way to get my mind back on track. “We want to make just the right impression.” Bradley! I looked at the clock and saw it was only ten a.m. I nodded. I should be all right by two p.m. I followed Cheryl upstairs and she made me take a shower. She had my robe and slippers and pajamas in a bag. I did not question why. There might be evidence there that would help James and his people find that man. She pulled out a camera and took a picture of my bruised throat and wrists. “So tell me how things are between you and the Sheriff,” Cheryl said to take my mind off of the attack. I told her about last night and she laughed. “He actually got in James’ face?” I nodded. “Brave man, your Joseph.” “He tried to apologize this morning,” I answered her, as I got dressed. “I was too angry to listen.” “Is that why you were out in the woods?” Cheryl asked. I nodded and she looked at me understandingly. “Men can be such idiots sometimes.” She laid her hand on my arm as my lips started to quiver. “Don’t worry, Maggie. We’re not going to let this man near you again. Why don’t you lie down for a while and try to relax.” She nodded to the rocking chair. “I’ll be right over there if you need me.” I did as she suggested, but I could not seem to relax. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw red glowing eyes and felt my air being choked off. I finally was forced to give up. I went down to my office and put my mind to work on the case, hoping that would help me forget. Instead, it was all brought back to me as I read the witness reports and saw the phrase ‘man in black’ repeated with chilling frequency. My phone rang and I picked it up without thinking. “You shouldn’t be looking into that, little girl,” his voice hit my ear and sent a chill down my spine. “They hid you so you would never have to know.” “What?” I demanded of the man. “What did they not want me to know?” “Can’t you guess, little girl?” he laughed coldly. “Your real name, and your real family, of course.” I shook my head in denial as he taunted me. I knew I should hang up, but my hand seemed glued to the receiver and my body would not move. “Ask your lover. He knows the truth. Everyone knows but you.” “Maggie…” James walked in and saw me sitting behind my desk frozen with the receiver to my ear. He pulled it free. “Leave her alone, you bastard or I will kill you!” He slammed the receiver down and the noise broke the spell I was under. I looked at him in anguish and he reached out to touch my cheek. I shook my head and backed away from him. “Maggie, honey…” “No,” I shook my head as I backed into the corner. “He – he said you knew the truth. You know why this man is stalking me, James. What is it?” “Maggie, please…” “I’m not listening to you, James,” I said coldly, putting my hands to my ears. “You’re lying to me!” He came towards me slowly and I looked around for something to fend him off with. I picked up the swimming trophy I had won when I was sixteen and gripped it tight. “Leave me alone, James Kerrigan Kellogg, or I will hurt you! I swear I will.” He sank back on the desk and began to laugh. I could not believe he would actually think this was funny. I was certainly not amused. I looked at him as if he had lost his mind. Somehow his amusement broke through my anger and panic. I felt my grip relaxing on the statue and realized I was fighting the wrong person. I set the statue down and sank down on the floor with a sigh. Someone was stalking me and I was taking his word for it that James was the one lying to me? How pathetic was that? When James came to sit down next to me I did not argue. He put his arms around me and I leaned against him and drank in the comfort he was offering me. I was asleep in moments. “That was all she needed,” Cheryl smiled as she came in to see what was up now that the storm was over. “Was that her stalker?” “He is taunting her now, Cheryl,” James said. “He told her I knew who she really was.” “But he didn’t tell her,” Cheryl nodded. “Damn him! How can anyone be so sick as to do such a horrid thing to these girls? Is it on tape?” “Yes,” James nodded as he stroked my hair while I slept. “Maxine insisted that Maggie keep all her conversations recorded. Seems Maxine has a very poor memory.” “Our Maxine?” Cheryl laughed. “Sharp old bird.” She looked at me. “She’d probably be more comfortable in her bed, James…” “Leave her be,” James broke in. “She’s just fine where she is.” He shifted his position slightly and I whimpered in protest. “Poor kid. She’s had a hard time of it.” “At least this time we’re in a position to help this one,” Robert spoke from the doorway. He shook his head as he saw the trusting way I was leaning against James in my sleep. “You always did have a way about you, Kellogg.” “You came in here for a reason, Rob?” “Sheriff North called,” the man said softly so he would not wake me. “One of his deputies called him en route to his office with a report of a late model sedan, black with tinted windows, racing along the forest road just south of where Miss Grady was attacked. The license was covered in mud.” He frowned. “The car was found abandoned at a rest area twenty miles south of town. His deputy was out cold nearby. I’ve asked him to bring us a copy of the report once he’s through with it.” He smiled as my eyes started to open. “Feeling better for the nap, Miss Grady?” I looked up at him and saw where I was. I blushed and got up to my feet so fast that I stumbled. James caught me and he felt me stiffen. I was still hearing the man’s lies in my head and I was having a hard time fighting it. There was something these people were not telling me and I needed to know what it was before this went any further. “I want to know what you’re really doing here,” I said as I looked from James to Cheryl and on to Robert. “If you don’t tell me, I am going to ask you to leave.” “Sit down, Maggie,” James said in a voice that had me obeying him. He looked at the others and they nodded. “We are an FBI task force,” he said simply. I nodded, accepting this could be true since he had already told me he was with the FBI. He relaxed. “We have been tracking a man who has been targeting former residents of the Holy Angels Orphanage over the past year.” “He’s been doing this to others?” I asked him. He shook his head. It didn’t make me feel any better. In fact, it made me angry. “He’s been telling them he knows who they really are and then what?” James hesitated. “This is my life being disrupted, I need to know.” “He gets them to meet him alone,” Robert said when James wouldn’t, “and tortures them, Miss Grady.” He saw me go white but he would not stop. “Then he…” “That’s enough!” James snapped as he saw me go white. “We’re not going to let that happen to you, Maggie. You believe me, don’t you?” “I want to believe you,” I said as I looked at him. I fell silent for a few minutes. “Why the Grady case?” “What?” “You could have asked me to research anything,” I said to him. “Why the Grady case?” He didn’t answer and I had a thought. “You think this is the man who murdered my parents?” Each of them nodded and I choked. “He’s looking for me, isn’t he? He’s going after the girls because he’s looking for me; Kerrigan Grady.” I knew then where we had to be looking. I went to the files my adopted father had taken from the orphanage and hidden in the closet. I had found them after he had died and begun compiling the information into a computer file as backup. I pulled out a box and pulled out the folder. “There were ten girls around my same age at about the time I came in.” I saw the list of the other girls who had arrived within three months of when I did. “Where did you get these records, Maggie?” James asked as he looked through the box. “The nuns told us they were lost.” “Uncle Craig asked them to say that,” I said. “I never asked why he wanted them. I put them on the computer recently, so these are just the paper files.” They looked worried. “He was a good man and he cared about me. He saw to it that I had a good home and a good education and that I never had to worry about my future.” I suddenly went pale. “He said he owed it to me.” “About Mr. Craig, Maggie…” “I need some air,” I stammered as I backed away from the box and left the office. I couldn’t let myself question the meaning of that phrase. Uncle Craig had given me a good life and I had loved him for it. I didn’t want to know why he thought he had to. Someone knocked on the door and I saw George go to answer it. Joseph was standing there. “What do you want, Joseph?” I asked tightly. I didn’t want to deal with him now. “I have the file for Agent Kellogg,” he said simply. I saw the folder in his hand and opened the door for him. “Is he in the office?” I nodded and followed him, wanting to see his face when he realized who Agent Kellogg was. Sure enough he went pale as he saw that the man he had nearly assaulted last night was the FBI agent he was bringing his files to. “Agent Kellogg?” He gulped. “If I’d known, sir…” “You weren’t supposed to know,” James broke in. “That’s what covert means.” He looked over at me. “As far as anyone is to know I am an author here to have a book researched. Is that clear, Sheriff?” “Yes, sir.” Joseph looked at the others. “And these other people?” “Miss Mason is hosting an author’s conference as a favor to Professor Troughton,” Cheryl spoke up. “My mother is trying to get Maggie to agree to hire her excellent skills out to more people and she hopes we can convince her to do so.” I looked at her in shock. “For some reason none of us can understand, Miss Mason seems to think she is nothing special.” “That’s not true!” Joseph exclaimed heatedly. “There is no one more special…” He saw me looking at him in shock and he quieted. “You know it’s true, Maggie,” he said as he looked at me, and only at me. “I would never have looked at you twice if you were as vain and shallow as the rest of the pretty girls in this town.” “I am not…” “None of that, Sweetness!” He put his fingers over my lips as I started to protest. “Don’t you dare say that you are not pretty! I won’t hear you disparage yourself like that any longer.” “Miss Mason?” James cut in. I looked at him and he saw my confusion. I’d actually forgotten they were there he realized and he hid his smile. “Why don’t you go see if Simon needs your help in the kitchen? He’s rather hopeless with mechanical devices.” I nodded numbly. “We need to talk to Sheriff North now.” Robert closed the door behind me and Joseph turned to face James. Dear God, James thought, the pup is in love with her! He was relieved to see that. It meant he didn’t have to be anything more to me than a concerned friend. He had hated playing games with me. He put his mind back to the reason they were all here. “Quit bristling, Sheriff,” James said calmly and indicated a chair. “We have a situation here that we need your help with.” Joseph nodded and sat down. “You like her, don’t you?” “Since the moment I first met her,” Joseph nodded, “but she never noticed.” He blushed. “My sister has been dropping hints, but Maggie won’t believe her.” “We need you to push her then, Sheriff,” James told him bluntly. “When you leave this office, you will ask her out. When she tells you she has to meet with Dr. Coleman, you will insist on driving her. She is not to be alone for a moment from now on, do you understand?” “Maggie’s in real danger, isn’t she?” Joseph asked. James nodded. “Should I know why?” “Would it make a difference?” “Hell, no!” Joseph said fervently. “You want me to stick to her like glue when she’s not in this house or with one of your people, right?” James nodded. “Then I will! No one is getting to her without doing me a great deal of bodily injury.” “Good man,” James was pleased. “And Sheriff?” he said as he got up to his feet and walked around the desk. Joseph nodded and James slammed him into the wall. “If you ever behave like a caveman around that girl again, I will see you up on charges after I’ve beaten you bloody. Do you understand that as well?” “Yes, sir,” Joseph nodded. “I tried to apologize to her but she wouldn’t listen to me.” “Make her listen,” James said as he let the younger man go. “We’re counting on you to keep her safe when we can’t.” He nodded towards the door. “Get going.” “Yes, sir!” Joseph nodded and fled from the office. He found me in the kitchen helping a dark wiry man chop vegetables. “Maggie, we need to talk.” He took the knife out of my hand and I pulled free and went to wash my hands. He took me out on the front porch and I sat down on the swing. He leaned on the railing and watched me swing for a few moments as he struggled for words. “I know you didn’t mean it, Joseph,” I said softly. “You wouldn’t have acted like that if you’d been thinking straight.” I looked at him then. “Why didn’t you tell me you liked me like that?” “I’ve tried, Maggie,” Joseph said as he smiled at me shyly. “You wouldn’t listen. I even had Ruth drop little hints.” I blushed at this. “You can’t seriously tell me you didn’t understand what she meant, Maggie.” “I thought she was joking, Joseph,” I told him honestly. “You could have any girl you want in this town…” “But I don’t want just any girl, Maggie. I want you,” he said as he sat down next to me and raised my eyes to his. “God, Maggie. I’ve wanted you since you were fifteen! One look into those beautiful eyes of yours and I was lost.” I looked up at him and I was afraid to hope. He was playing with me now; that was what I started to think anyway. But I saw the sincerity in his eyes and I knew he was not lying. He honestly had feelings for me; had for several years, and I had not seen it. I felt like a complete idiot. All this time, we could have been together! “But you never said anything,” I said softly, shock plain in my tones. “And you were always with some other girl…” “Those girls were always after me,” Joseph broke in. “I never encouraged any of them, Maggie. Why do you think I spent so much time with you and the brains? I even skipped Prom rather than have to go with anyone but you.” He quieted as I processed this. “Go to lunch with me. We’ll talk about this…” “I can’t, Joseph,” I shook my head. “I have to go see Rocket.” “I’ll go with you then,” Joseph said. He shook his head as I started to argue. “No arguments. We’ll see Rocket and then you and I will go somewhere and talk. Is that clear, Sweetness?” “Yes, sir!” I nodded. I looked at my watch. “We could have lunch before we go see Rocket,” I suggested, wondering how I suddenly had such nerve. “I’m not due there until two and it’s only twelve now.” I got to my feet. “Let me get my coat.” Joseph nodded and I ran in and grabbed my purse and my coat. I didn’t see James’ smile as I hurried away with a happy smile on my face. I joined Joseph at the patrol car and we drove to the diner where we spent the next hour and a half going over all the times he had tried to show me how he felt and I had ignored him or refused to see it. I felt horrible then at how he had suffered because of me. He merely laughed it off and said we’d forget it and go on from today. I nodded my agreement and we headed off to meet Brad at the Science Building. He didn’t seem surprised to see Joseph with me. I handed him the lens case and asked him if he could test the pill for me. “How is it, Sweetness,” Brad smiled as we waited for the results, “that Muscles and I have aged and you haven’t changed one bit since high school?” He looked me over. “You’re looking tired and pale, but you still look like you did the day we met when we were all fifteen.” “You’re a flatterer,” I said to him. “That’s not true and you know it.” “Not true?” Brad replied, looking wounded. “Is she calling me a liar, Muscles?” Joseph smiled and shrugged. So Brad got up and went to his desk. He opened the bottom drawer and took out a framed photograph. “Here,” he said as he held it out to me. I took it and he took me to a mirror. “You at fifteen,” he held the photo up next to my head, “and you at twenty-four.” He looked over at Joseph. “Tell me there’s any change, Muscles.” Joseph looked from the photograph of the four of them at fifteen to my own pale face in the mirror. Brad was right. The only difference was that I was pale and drawn. There was no apparent change in my appearance. He had to admit that Brad had a very good eye, he would never have realized that time had not altered me in the least over the past eight years. “He’s right, Maggie,” Joseph said as he set the photo down. “You are exactly the same as you were.” The alarm went off and we all turned to watch Brad go to the analyzer that was running the test on the pill. “What are we dealing with?” “Arsenic,” he frowned as he saw the results. “A low dose. Where did you get these, Maggie?” “Someone prescribed them for a friend of mine,” I said to him, not wanting him involved. “Why? Is it dangerous?” “Not the one pill,” Brad replied. “But if your ‘friend’ had continued to take these, over time it would have built up in their blood and they would have died. It’s a horrible way to die, Maggie; slow and agonizing. You’d better tell your friend to talk to the police about the man who prescribed these for her.” “I will,” I nodded and got up to kiss his cheek. “Thank you, Rocket. I was worried about her and now that I know I wasn’t imagining things I’ll do what I can to help her.” “You and the Sheriff?” Brad whispered in my ear. I nodded and he smiled. “You know I’m here for you, Sweetness,” he said as he returned my kiss. “If this goes south...” “You are a dear friend, Bradley Coleman,” I hugged him. I had him print out the test results and slid the printout and the lens case with the tested pill in it into my purse. “Thanks.” “Anytime, kid,” Brad nodded. He saw the possessive way Joseph took my hand. “Keep our girl safe, Muscles.” Joseph nodded and we decided to stroll down by the river and I noticed he was looking very uneasy. He knew as well as I did who had given me those pills and he was punishing himself for letting the man near me. I laid my hand on his arm and he looked down at me, smiled, and put his arms around me. His chin rested on my head as I leaned back, and we stood looking out at the sailboats on the river for a few more minutes. Then he nodded and turned me to face him. He kissed me and I felt something coming to life inside of me. I put my hands to the back of his head as I went up on tiptoe and pushed him closer, deepening the kiss. “Wow!” Joseph smiled, looking as stunned as I felt. He hugged me to him and laughed in delight. “I knew you were my girl!” “I need to tell you the truth, Joseph,” I said as I went to sit on a nearby bench. He sat down next to me and nodded. “The man who left me in the orphanage gave the nuns a false name when he dropped me off. I think you should know who I really am before this goes any further.” “Maggie….” “No,” I shook my head and put my fingers on his lips. “I need you to know the truth.” He nodded and kissed my fingers. “My name is really Kerrigan Margaret Grady. My parents were murdered when I was seven and the man who is stalking me now may be the man who murdered them.” Joseph whistled and I nodded. “It changes things…” “It changes nothing, Maggie,” Joseph broke in firmly. “I love you, Sweetness; no matter what your real name is. And I am going to keep you safe from this maniac. I promise you that.” “We’d better get these results back to the house,” I said as we strolled back to his car many long and happy moments later. I froze as we saw the damage that had been done while we were in the Science Building. Someone had sprayed ‘He can’t protect you’ all over the vehicle. Joseph called for a tow truck and called my office to have someone come get me. “Why is he doing this, Joseph? I wasn’t there when my parents were killed. It makes no sense!” “This man is not right in the head, Maggie,” Joseph said. He saw his deputy pulling up and made the man wait with them until Maxine arrived with Simon. “You take care of my girl,” he said to Maxine. He kissed me and left with his deputy ribbing him. “It’s about time, Maggie,” Maxine smiled as I got into her car. “He’s only been after you for eight years.” “What can I say?” I shrugged and willed her to stop. “I was blind. Simon,” I addressed the man seated behind us, “Doctor Norman was an attending physician on a lot of the cases involving the Grady family deaths. He is involved in all of this somehow.” “I’ll look into it, Maggie,” Simon nodded and got out his cell to make the information request regarding the background of Doctor Norman. “There was some information that wasn’t included in the internet file,” I said a few minutes later. “Do you think we could stop at the library, Maxie? I’d like to see if I can find it there.” Maxine took the next left and we headed up the hill to the Briarton Public Library. I went to the Archives section and the lanky red-haired man who worked that section smiled as I appeared at the door. As usual, his glasses were hanging at the end of his nose and he was on the computer. Charles Novak was a former classmate. We had spent a lot of time together: Charles, Bradley, and I, the class brains, and Joseph the football star, had all been inseparable in school. “I hear Muscles finally landed you, Sweetness,” he said as he let me in. “You certain about that?” “He’s a good man, Brain,” I said to him, wondering why he was scowling about it. He used to sit with me for hours while I babbled about Joseph. “He has been waiting for me for eight years. I can at least see if something might work, don’t you think?” “Just be careful, Sweetness,” Charles said as he left me to explore. “If you need my help…” “I’ll sing,” I finished the phrase and smiled. He returned my smile with a bit more hesitation than normal and I shook my head. I knew he wasn’t talking about the Archives. I moved to the year the Grady murders had happened and found the date and took the box with me to a table in back. I had been disturbed that no photographs had appeared of the victims or their daughter in the police file. That had not seemed right, and I realized where the photo in the first care package had to have come from. I found the first report and there was a photo of the family; my family. It wasn’t that photo that interested me. According to the police file, someone had taken a photo of the mysterious ‘man in black’ that night. I was hoping it had leaked to the internet and been placed in the files. I was disappointed when it wasn’t there. I returned the box to its place and froze as the lights went out. “Brain?” I called out as I felt my way along the stacks. “Did you forget I was back here?” He didn’t answer and I felt my blood turn to ice. I grabbed my purse and pulled out my cell phone as I headed for the Emergency Exit. “Maxine?” I whispered as she answered. “I’m in the Archives. The lights are out here and Brain isn’t answering me. What should I do?” I heard someone moving nearby and turned. “Brain? Is that you?” “Your friend can’t talk right now, precious,” the man who had been taunting me for the past week laughed. The figure moved into my sight and I backed away. “Hang up the phone, Kerrigan. It’s time for you to come home.” “Leave me alone!” I whimpered as I continued backing away from him. He kept coming so I threw my purse at him. He batted it aside and I saw it hit the table and rest there. “Why are you doing this to me? I can’t hurt you.” “Hang up the phone, Kerrigan,” the man repeated as he backed me into the corner. “You won’t need it where we’re going.” Someone moved up behind him and he whirled to face him. As they struggled, the second man’s hood fell back and I shook my head in denial. It wasn’t him! It couldn’t be him. “No…” I sobbed as the world spun around me as confused as I was. “Not you! It couldn’t be you!” The phone slipped from my hand and I followed it to the floor. My hand hit the camera function as it hit the phone and the two men jumped back, cursing as the light blinded them. Then the lights came back up and my attacker whirled and struck my would-be rescuer. “No one is keeping you from me, Kerrigan,” my attacker said as he hefted me over his shoulder and headed for the emergency entrance. “It’s time for you to come home. “No!” Brain hissed and brought the book in his hands down on the man’s head. He pulled me up as the man fell and carried me back towards the main doors. He did not see the attacker get up but he found himself flying towards the wall and his head being slammed into the surface repeatedly. He slipped down the wall with a groan. “You are more trouble than you’re worth, boy,” the man snarled and brought out the rope. He started to strangle Brain and had to give up before he was through as he heard other people arriving. He looked over to where I was lying. “I will be back, little girl,” he said as he stroked my cheek. “You can count on it.” I came awake to the murmur of voices. People were talking around me as if they did not want to disturb me. I knew I was in the hospital before I had even opened my eyes. I felt something in my nostrils and I tried to remove it with an irritated sound. I saw Maxine get to her feet and come over to kiss me on the forehead. She had been crying and I was frightened. She made me leave the oxygen feed alone. “It’s helping you, dear,” she said as she straightened the plugs and put my hands down. “Leave it alone.” “I’m not dying, am I?” I asked in a soft whisper. I was so tired. “Is Brain all right?” I asked her. “He hates the dark.” She choked and turned away and Cheryl took her place. “Brain?” “The man who attacked you strangled him,” Cheryl told me the truth as she laid her hand on mine. “He was without air for several moments, Maggie. He may have suffered some brain damage. They’re still checking him out.” “No,” I sobbed as this news felt like my fault. “There was no reason to do that. Brain would have been paralyzed just by the lights going out.” I looked for my purse and my phone and I couldn’t see them. “Cheryl, I need my purse. There’s something in there I need you to see.” “We didn’t find your purse, Maggie,” James said as he came to stand by Cheryl. He pulled up a chair. “Maxine and Simon heard the conversation you had with your attacker and the man who stopped him. You know the second man, don’t you?” “I know him?” I looked at him in confusion. “I never saw his face, James. I blacked out when he went after my attacker.” I could see he thought I was lying and I wondered why. I had never lied to him. “That’s all I can remember.” “Shock will do that,” Doctor Norman said as he entered the room and pushed everyone aside. “We should be glad that she can remember anything after what she’s been put through.” He moved over to the other side of the bed when Joseph refused to let go of my hand and I finally noticed I was hooked up to a monitor. I didn’t know how I could have missed the beeping sound. He hit a print button and a tape came out of the machine. He looked it over and frowned. “What’s wrong?” I asked him as I caught his concern. I saw that same concern on every face in the room. “It’s bad, isn’t it?” “I wasn’t lying when I said you had a heart ailment, Maggie,” Dr. Norman said as he took the chair next to the bed and held my hand. He smiled briefly and I squeezed his hand weakly. He nodded. “Agent Kellogg found your medical records in the boxes at the mansion. You were born with a heart defect and your parents were getting the money together for the surgery that would have repaired it. But they were taken from you before that surgery could be performed and you were left with the defect.” He saw my worry. “Your quiet nature has kept anyone from realizing you had a problem until recently when this stress and your tendency to overwork aggravated the condition.” “Why did Dr. Abrams give me arsenic, Dr. Norman?” I asked him weakly. “Is that the normal treatment for someone with a damaged heart?” “Arsenic?” Norman looked at the FBI agents and then me. “I don’t understand. How did she get arsenic tablets?” “They were in the vial the Pharmacist gave me, sir,” Joseph said. He gripped my hand tightly. “Maggie had one tested when they were making her feel weak and sickly.” “Dr. Abrams wouldn’t have prescribed arsenic,” Norman frowned. He pulled out his handheld and checked the date and the prescription logs. He went pale. “Someone switched the order numbers around,” he cursed and called the Security Office. The Chief came running and he showed him the handheld. “Find out how this happened, Martin. Now!” “Yes, sir!” “I assure you, child,” Norman said as he turned back from the door. “Abrams would never prescribe a poison for a young woman who is already in a weakened physical state. Whoever did that was looking to hurt you.” He looked at me seriously. “I had been the Grady family physician for most of my career. When Ruth came to me a few months with a photograph of her brother and his ‘friend’, I told her if you ever needed medical care I would take you on as a patient without fee.” “You’ve known all this time I was really Kerrigan Grady,” I frowned at him, “and you never said anything?” I closed my eyes a moment and felt Joseph squeeze my hand. I looked up at him to reassure him I was all right. “Why is this man so determined to get his hands on me?” “We’re looking into it, Maggie,” James replied. “You just concentrate on getting stronger.” He nodded at Joseph. “I’m certain your personal champion will do everything he can to make certain you stay safe.” I blushed and he smiled and shook his head. “You still have the prettiest blush I’ve ever seen in my life, girl.” He turned to his people. “We’ve got a man to find. Say goodbye, people, and let’s go after him.” “My phone,” I said suddenly and sat upright. “Did you find my phone?” James looked at me in confusion. “I’m not certain but I think I took a picture before I passed out.” They told me they hadn’t found a phone and I bit my lip. Then I smiled. “One of the men must have taken it but they can’t have known about the auto-send, can they?” “Auto-send?” James sat down again and I could see his eagerness. “I was tired of having to load the photos afterwards,” I nodded, “so I asked Brain…” I quieted a moment and prayed for my friend to recover. “Brain designed a program for my phone that would send the photos directly to my laptop once I took them. If you bring it to me I can find it for you.” They looked hesitant. “I’m the only one who can unlock the program,” I told them. “He designed it that way specifically so no one could get in and take my photos without my knowledge.” “That young man should be working for us,” Robert said as he came up and kissed me on the forehead. “I’m going to stick by him, Maggie. When he wakes up, I plan on recruiting him for the Bureau.” “Charles “Brain” Novak,” Joseph smiled with me; “Federal Agent!” “He’d like that,” I laughed. “Please find this man,” I said to them all. “I don’t think I can stand another encounter like this last one.” I looked over at Norman as James and his team took their leave. “So, Doctor Norman, can you correct this damage? I would rather not spend the rest of my life fainting like a possum every time I get excited or stressed.” “We’ll have to run a few tests,” Norman told me honestly. “I can’t promise anything until we see exactly what we’re talking about.” “I appreciate your honesty, Doctor,” I nodded. I sank back against the pillow with a sigh. “I’m so tired.” “You get some rest then,” Norman smiled at me gently. “I’ll be in to check on you in another couple hours.” He looked sad for a moment. “You look just like your mother, Maggie. I wish she were here for you now.” “When you have some time, Doctor,” I smiled back at him weakly, “I would love to hear about my parents, and the rest of my family.” “I’ll come share supper with you then,” Norman nodded. He looked at Joseph as the cell phone rang. “I think your deputy is looking for you, Sheriff.” Joseph nodded and pulled his cell out to go into the stair well away from the machinery. “That’s a good man you’ve got there, Maggie.” He nodded and left the room and I laid back and closed my eyes, lulled to sleep by the steady beeping of my own heart. My eyes came open a few hours later and I looked around. I was completely alone and that wasn’t right. I tried to get up and winced as the IV line pulled. I was hooked into so many things I couldn’t get up without help. I hit the button for the nurse and Daniels came to help me get up. When I came back out, she wasn’t there and I began to get worried. I decided to go see about Brain and I moved out into the hall. Daniels was at the desk with the other nurses in the intensive care ward. “What are you doing out of bed, Miss Grady?” she chided me as she got a wheelchair. “You’re supposed to rest.” “I need to see my friend, Nurse Daniels,” I said to her, my breathing coming out in a wheeze from the walking I’d done. “Please?” Daniels made a call to Norman and he gave his permission. So I was wheeled into Brain’s room where he was hooked up to more machines than I had ever seen. I was in tears as I sat there holding his hand. Daniels left me there talking to him and so I was not in my room when Maxine came back. She ran to the nurses in a panic and they nodded to the room where I was lying with my head on Brain’s hand sound asleep. “Maggie?” Maxine said as she shook me gently. I opened my eyes and looked up at her drowsily. “You need to be back in your own room, honey.” “I just wanted to see him, Maxie,” I said softly. “The nurses say his vital signs are good. He should wake up soon.” “We all hope that, dear,” Maxine nodded. “Where’s your personal guardian?” “He wasn’t around when I woke up,” I said and felt a twinge of worry at that. “Maybe he had to go to work? He does have more to do than worry about me.” “Wherever he is,” Maxine smiled as she patted my shoulder, “I’m sure he’s worrying about you. That one is as loyal as the day is long.” She nodded to Brain. “Say goodbye and I’ll take you back to your room.” “Can’t I move in here?” I asked her as she pulled me away. “Brain could use the company.” I saw her frowning at me. “He’s trapped in there somewhere, Maxie. He needs his friends to help him find his way back.” “That is as neat as explanation for what he’s going through as I’ve ever heard,” a man’s voice sounded from the doorway. We turned to see a doctor with graying hair standing there. “Hello, ladies. I’m Doctor Simpson. Mr. Novak is my patient. And you are?” “Professor Maxine Troughton,” Maxine made the introductions, “and Maggie Grady. Mr. Novak and Miss Grady have been friends since high school.” “Ah yes,” Simpson nodded. “Dr. Norman’s star patient.” He came in to check the readouts. “He’s actually doing quite well, Miss Grady. Your friend is a fighter.” He looked at me clinically. “You need to be back in your bed, Miss Grady. I think I saw Nurse Daniels headed that way with your medication.” “She knows I’m in here,” I frowned at the comment. “Why would she go to my room?” I looked at Maxine. “Maxie, do you have your cell?” She nodded. “Go call Joseph and tell him that someone was poking around in my room while I wasn’t in there.” Simpson went to the phone and Martin the Security Chief came running to Brain’s room a few moments later. I told him what I believed and he checked into it. He found Nurse Daniels in the supply closet, bound and gagged and missing her uniform. When he and his men went to my room, there was no one in it. He sent them hunting as quickly and unobtrusively as possible, then he called Norman. It was decided I would move into the room with Brain where I would be in sight of the nurses’ station. By the time the transfer was made I was exhausted. I dozed off several times during dinner with Norman and he finally got up to leave. “Rest is what you need, Maggie,” he said as he kissed me on the forehead. “I’ll pop in before I leave for the night but you should be sleeping.” I nodded and heard him leave. I had planned to pull up the photo for the agents but I was just too tired. I drifted off to sleep secure in the knowledge that the laptop was well hidden. Only I knew where I had put it, and only I could get the information off of it. I wondered briefly as I fell asleep if my room had been bugged. There was no other explanation for how someone could have known about it and come looking. “Kerrigan,” a familiar voice sounded in my ear. I felt his hand over my mouth and did not open my eyes. “When they let you out of here I will be waiting to take you home.” A hand stroked my hair gently and I tried not to shudder. “Don’t be afraid, precious. I’m not going to harm you. Not yet.” I heard him leave and I still would not open my eyes. If I didn’t see him then he wasn’t really here. It would have been a dream and I could forget his threat. But then my hand moved and I felt something. I looked and then I began to scream. A black rose was lying there with another note wound around it. This one read ‘Refuse me next time and someone you care about dies.’ I tried to get the phone to call Joseph and I fell out of the bed as another attack started. I came awake to hear Norman’s angry voice. “I am not going to let you use this girl as bait!” he was snarling into the phone. “Find another way to end this for her.” He fell silent a moment. “This last attack nearly killed her, Agent Kerrigan. She’s resting comfortably now but we’re going to have to keep her on mild sedation. Martin has put security on the room so no one I have not approved of beforehand will be allowed near her.” He turned and saw me watching him. “You can come talk to her but I can not promise she will be awake to speak to you.” He hung up and smiled at me gently. “How are you feeling, Maggie dear?” “Almost died?” I said weakly as he took my pulse and listened to my heart. “Afraid so, Maggie,” Norman said to me. “Abrams has scheduled the laparoscopy of your heart for tomorrow morning. We need to see what’s going on in there so we can decide what to do.” “Tired.” “I should expect so, Maggie,” Norman smiled weakly. “You were unconscious for nearly five hours after that last attack. We were afraid you were going to slip into a coma like your friend Mr. Novak.” “How is…” I tried to speak but it was too much of an effort to put the words together. I turned my head and looked over at Brain. But he wasn’t there. “Not…” “He woke up, dear,” Norman told me, smiling. “We moved him to a different ward. When he’s stronger, he’ll be up to see you, I’m certain.” He looked up as someone came in. “Here’s your young man to make you smile. I’ll be back in the morning to talk to you both about the procedure.” He nodded to Joseph. “Try not to keep her up. She needs to rest.” Joseph nodded and watched the man go. He shut the glass doors and came towards the bed and I saw how tired he was. He looked like he hadn’t slept since I’d seen him last. He sat down next to the bed and lifted my hand to his cheek. He didn’t speak but just sat there as if he had to memorize my face. I could tell he was worried about the procedure and I smiled at him. “Don’t worry.” “Easy for you to say, Sweetness,” Joseph choked. “You get to sleep through it. I’m the one who’s going to be wearing a hole in the floor…” “Don’t worry,” I repeated firmly. “Please.” “All right, Maggie,” he smiled and kissed me gently. I put my hand behind his head and pushed him in closer. “Oh, baby! I love you so much! You do know that, don’t you?” “Going to be fine,” I forced out and then closed my eyes. “So tired.” I complained as the sedative entered my vein. “Don’t like being so tired.” Joseph kissed me gently and I felt him getting on the bed next to me. His arms went around me and I leaned back against him with a sigh. When the nurse came to check on me, we were both asleep. She didn’t have the heart to wake either of us up. Joseph’s cell phone did that for him early the next morning. He got up with a frown, kissed me once more, and went outside to take the call. It was Agent Kerrigan. “She’s going into the procedure in an hour, sir,” Joseph told him. “Maggie is not going to be in any condition to talk to anyone for several hours afterwards.” He listened and nodded. “I can appreciate that, sir; but it doesn’t matter right now. This procedure could kill her. I’ve got to go.” Norman and Abrams came in to discuss the procedure with us and I dozed off in the middle of it, leaving Joseph alone to ask questions and voice his concerns. I woke up briefly as the nurse came with the sedative. I saw Joseph as my vision began to blur and I smiled at him. His smile was there for me and I took it with me into the darkness. I was asleep as Abrams sent the camera into my heart and took the pictures they needed to use to decide what to do to help me. I was unaware of the heart attack I had while I was undergoing the procedure. We had been warned this could happen but Joseph nearly had an attack of his own as he was informed. “Calm down, Joseph,” Ruth said as he began to pace again. “Maggie needs you healthy.” He nodded and tried to sit still but it was too much. He was out in the hall glaring at the doors into the surgery unit when Norman came out. He had assisted Abrams so he was the one who brought the news. “Maggie is stable now,” he said in relief. “She’ll be in Recovery for a while and then we’ll move her back to ICU.” He looked over at Joseph. “You can go in to her now, Sheriff.” He watched Joseph hurry in and shook his head. “He’s really hooked, isn’t he?” “Did you find out what’s going on with her?” Ruth asked him bluntly. “We found some scarring obstructing one of her heart valves,” Norman told her, “but thankfully, it will be easy to repair. Once we have done so, and she has recovered, Maggie should live a long and happy life.” “But?” Maxine asked as she saw his look. “It needs to be done soon,” Norman told her. “If she has any more attacks, it could kill her. It will be at least a month before she is strong enough to undergo surgery. She is going to have to be kept quiet and placed on a monitor. That means,” he looked at Cheryl and Maxine then, “no more FBI investigations. If she does work, it will be only an hour or two at a time.” He shook his head. “She’s her mother’s daughter; that won’t be easy to manage.” “I will sit on her if I have to,” Maxine nodded. “You don’t need to worry, Doctor. I have always looked on that girl as one of my own. I won’t do anything, or let her do anything, to jeopardize her health.” “See that you don’t, Professor Troughton,” Norman nodded. “She will need to stay in the hospital for a couple of days until she is strong enough to go home.” I woke up and saw Joseph sitting next to me, dozing. I smiled and squeezed his hand and he smiled. I took it with me as I drifted off again. When I woke up again, I was back in the room. Joseph was standing at the window looking out at the town beyond. He heard me sigh and turned, smiling in relief. He gripped my hand as he sat down by me on the bed. “Maggie,” he sighed as he pressed my hand to his cheek. “How are you feeling, baby?” “Like somebody hit me in the chest with a hammer,” I said weakly. I saw I was still hooked up to the monitors and I frowned. “When can I go home?” “Doctor Norman says you need to stay here for at least two days,” Joseph told me. “Just to make sure you don’t have another heart attack.” “Another?” I repeated the word and bit my lip. “I had a heart attack?” Joseph nodded. “But I’m all right now?” He looked away and I drew his eyes back to mine. “Tell me.” “It was hard on you, baby,” Joseph smiled weakly and pushed a curl that had fallen over my eye back behind my ear. “The good news is that the damage to your heart can be repaired,” he told me as a way to change the subject. He was still reeling from nearly losing me; “but they can’t operate for a month, Maggie. So when you go home you are going to have to stay quiet and on a monitor.” “For a whole month?” “Think of it as an extended vacation,” Joseph smiled at me encouragingly. “Maxie and I will be moving in with you so you won’t be alone. When you’re feeling stronger we’ll ask Ruth to send the twins over with their favorite Disney movies and you and I can curl up on the couch together.” “That might be more excitement than I can take, Joseph,” I smiled at him. “I’ve spent time with your nephews.” Ruth’s twin boys, Douglas and Edward, were eight and they did not know the meaning of the words slow, gentle, or cautious. They reminded me of Joseph when he had been younger and were my dearest friends. I could always count on them to bring me something they had found on their searches through the yards and the forest. They considered me ‘their’ girl. “We’ll make a game out of it,” Joseph said. “They’re old enough now they can understand why they need to treat you gently.” I wasn’t convinced, but I was too tired to argue. I drifted off again and spent the next two days sleeping more than waking. I woke up the third morning to hear Norman telling Joseph that I could go home and I managed to stay awake as the nurse came to help me into my clothing. Norman had me fit with a cardiac monitor and had a technician explain to Joseph and I how it worked. Then Joseph saw me home. Everyone I knew was at the mansion to welcome me home but I was asleep after the first glass of punch and Joseph carried me upstairs. It was another two days before I managed to stay awake longer than an hour or two at a time. Joseph had indeed moved in with me. He and Maxie were with me every minute of the day and I was growing quite annoyed with their constant presence as the days passed. I got back to the work I had on my desk after a few days but I was only allowed to spend an hour or two on it at any one time. “You’re treating me like an invalid,” I complained to Maxine as she sent me out to the front porch with a glass of lemonade and made me sit down on the porch swing. “I’m fine, Maxie. Honest.” “You’re not fine, Maggie,” Maxine replied. “The only reason you were allowed to come home was because we promised Doctor Abrams we would keep you quiet. Working yourself into another attack is not quiet.” She saw a car coming up the drive. “Who is this?” Her eyes narrowed as the silver BMW convertible pulled to a stop in front of the mansion. Layton got out and smiled as he removed his sunglasses and saw us. He had a bouquet of violets and snowdrops in his hand. He came towards us and, as always, I had the impression of a predator under that man’s handsome face. “Mr. Layton,” I nodded as he came up the stairs. “This is unexpected.” I saw the frown in Maxine’s eyes. “Have you met Professor Maxine Troughton?” “I know Mr. Layton, Maggie,” Maxine said tightly. “His mother and I work for some of the same charities.” She was not at all welcoming. “Why are you here, Nathaniel?” “I came to see how Maggie was feeling,” Layton replied. “We met at the Country Club a few nights ago and I heard she was in the hospital.” He ignored Maxine then and came over to hand me the flowers. “For you, pretty lady.” “They’re beautiful,” I smiled as I drew in the scent. “Maxie…” “I’ll find a vase,” Maxine finished the request and took the flowers. “Don’t keep her long, Nathaniel. Maggie is supposed to be resting.” “I shall be the perfect visitor,” Layton nodded, but kept his eyes on me. When the front door closed, he smiled at me impishly. “I have a feeling you would much rather be doing anything but sitting here on your swing, Maggie.” He nodded towards his car. “How about a drive in the country? I promise I won’t let you exert yourself.” I didn’t know this man, but the lure of being away from the house after the past week was more than I could resist. I nodded and he picked me up in his arms and carried me to the car. He saw me settled and moved around the driver’s side. He saw Maxine coming out the door as he turned on the engine and the look on her face was priceless. He pulled away from the house with a pleased smile on his face. “Why doesn’t Maxine like you, Mr. Layton?” I asked the question that was uppermost in my mind. “You don’t waste any time, Maggie,” Layton replied. He thought about it and decided truth was best with me. “She believes that I don’t think about the ethics of my business decisions.” “Money before morals?” I quipped. He nodded and I had to admit I appreciated his honesty. “Why are you here to see me? I have a feeling that I am not anything like the woman you usually spend time with.” “And that is why I am with you,” Layton replied and smiled at me warmly. He saw me blush and he was enchanted. “You are as beautiful as they are, but you have an intelligence and an innocence I find quite intriguing.” “There’s more to it than that, Mr. Layton,” I said as a strange thought entered my mind. He was after me for some reason he was not stating and I suddenly realized I had been wrong to come with him so trustingly. “Take me home.” Layton shook his head and kept on driving. He did not listen to my demands for him to turn around and so I quieted. He did not engage me in further conversation until he pulled into an overlook along the river. I ran for the roadside phone and began rummaging through my pockets for some change. “I am not going to hurt you, Maggie,” Layton said as he caught up with me and hung up the phone. His hand gripped my wrist and he looked at me seriously. “I needed to talk to you somewhere we would not be disturbed.” I went to lean against the railing and looked out over the river valley below. This was a beautiful spot and just being here usually calmed me down. But there was something about the man who had brought me here that disturbed me. He sat next to me and just watched me as I struggled to find some peace. When I finally gave up, I turned to look at him and saw that he had been appraising me quite closely. “So,” I said tightly, “did I pass?” He looked at me quizzically. “Whatever test you put me to, Mr. Layton. Did I pass?” “You surpassed all the criteria,” Layton replied with a pleased smiled. “Maggie, I have a business proposition to put to you.” “Business?” I saw the gleam in his eyes and I shook my head. “I can just imagine what kind of business you want to discuss with me and I am not interested.” “Without hearing the specifics?” Layton looked at me in disappointment. “How unlike you.” I looked at his sharply. “You have an insatiable need to know, my dear. It is one of the qualities that makes you so good at what you do.” “I do not think you want my skills as a researcher, Mr. Layton,” I said tightly. “You can take me home now.” He moved suddenly and I was trapped between his arms. I fought my fear and looked at him coldly. “Let me up.” Layton just smiled and his eyes were filled with the promise of something I did not want. His lips pressed against mine and the touch was gentle but the effect was devastating. I felt like I was being branded and I was terrified. I pushed him off of me and saw from his eyes that he had felt it too and he was as confused as I was. “Take me home, Mr. Layton,” I snapped at him. “There is nothing you have to say to me that I am interested in hearing.” Layton nodded stiffly and went to open the door for me. I slid inside, still shaking from what had passed between us with that simple caress. He did not say a word the entire trip back to my home. He let me out and saw me back to the swing. For a moment I felt like he wanted to say something more, but then he just nodded and took off. I sat on the swing for several moments with my fingers to my lips and wondered why they were throbbing. I heard the door open and saw Maxine standing there looking at me closely. “He’s after something, Maxie,” I said as I got up to go back inside. “I don’t like it.” “I talked to his mother while you were out,” Maxine nodded as she closed the door behind me. “Her son is looking for a wife and he’s told her that you are his choice.” “I don’t even know the man,” I protested as we went into the kitchen. I made myself some tea. “I don’t like the little I do know about him.” I looked at her in dismay. “Why me?” “He didn’t tell you?” Maxine asked as she came over to rescue the tea kettle when my hands were shaking too badly to hold hit steady. She set it on a cold burner and made me sit down. “He said he wanted to be with me,” I choked out, “because I was more intelligent and innocent than the women he usually associates with.” Maxine nodded. “He kissed me, Maxie, and I felt like he was branding me.” I shuddered and wrapped my arms around my body. “I don’t want anything to do with that man. He terrifies me.” “He is not the type of man you want to have anything to do with, Maggie,” Maxine agreed. She looked at the clock. “Joseph will be here with his nephews soon. It’s movie night,” she reminded me and saw me frown. “If you want to call it off…” “I would hate to disappoint the twins,” I said. “I just need to change.” I went upstairs and sat down on the bed in my room to think. How could one little kiss be so devastating? I touched my lips again as I went to the mirror to see if they had changed. I couldn’t see anything altered, but I felt as if something had changed. I shook my head and tried to forget the encounter so I could enjoy the evening. “Princess Maggie!” the twins yelled up the staircase an hour later. I smiled and smoothed the skirt of the deep purple dress with the lacing up the front that swirled around my knees. They had chosen it for me as a birthday present and so I wore it for them. I stepped out on the landing and saw that they were both dressed like they were going to church. Joseph stood behind them, smiling as they bowed. “Good evening, young sirs,” I smiled and curtsied to them. “Thank you for joining us for the entertainment and feasting.” I came down the stairs and they both hugged me as if I would break. I met Joseph’s eyes and all the terror of the earlier encounter with Layton fled from my mind. Joseph kissed me gently and it was warm and tender and filled me with a sense of peace that had been completely lacking in Layton’s caress. The twins were waiting in the living room as I took Joseph’s arm. I was impressed with how well behaved they were as we ate and watched the movie they had brought. When Ruth came for them, Joseph and I were curled up on the couch and I was sound asleep while the twins were bouncing off the walls. “They were perfect gentlemen,” Joseph said as he saw her. “Tell them I’ll take them fishing tomorrow.” “Who’s staying with Maggie?” Ruth asked worriedly. “She can’t be left alone, Joseph.” She saw his smile. “No,” she shook her head. “You can’t take her fishing with you, Joey. What about walking?” “She needs to get out into the fresh air, Ruth,” Joseph said as he got up and lowered me to the couch. “Maggie has been cooped up in this place over a week.” He saw her look of censure. “So come with us,” he suggested. “We’re only going to Miller’s Pond. It’s close enough to the road I can carry her in and out. We’ll set up a lounge for her and let her sleep.” He picked up the pill bottle. “She’ll have taken one of her pills, Ruth, so the boys won’t disturb her.” “You’ve really got it bad for her, Joey,” Ruth shook her head. She saw where her twins were headed. “Stay away from that shed, hellions! There’s nothing in there you need to be bothering.” She looked at her brother seriously. “Be careful with her, little brother. I want to have nephews and nieces of my own one day.” “Thanks, sis,” Joseph nodded. He watched his sister herd her sons homeward. When he turned back it was to find me watching him with a smile of my face. “So?” “The fishing trip wasn’t vetoed,” Joseph replied. He looked worried. “You really think we should do this? You’ve only been out of the hospital a little over a week. Doctor Norman said no excitement.” “Fishing is not exciting, Joseph,” I smiled up at him. I got to my feet and he had me in his arms immediately. I put my arms around his neck. “I’d better be in bed when Maxie comes or you will be in big trouble.” There was a knock on the door and I looked confused. “It’s too early for Maxie,” I frowned as he set me back down on the couch. “Who could that be?” Joseph went to answer the door and I could hear his voice as I got my juice and sipped at it. Whoever it was had no intention of leaving and I was not surprised when Joseph returned. My eyes widened as I saw who followed him in. Layton stood there with another bouquet of violets and snowdrops in his hand. “Maggie,” he smiled at me warmly. “I wanted to apologize for what happened earlier.” “That was kind of you, Mr. Layton,” I said as I took the flowers from him. “They’re lovely. Thank you.” I looked up at Joseph. “Could you put these in a vase for me, Joseph?” I asked him as he stood there glaring at the man. “I’m sorry. You haven’t met Sheriff Joseph North, Mr. Layton…” “Her fiancé,” Joseph broke in, holding out his hand. He saw the man flinch slightly. “Mr. Layton,” he mused. He knew that name and the feeling he got from it was not a good one. “Nathaniel Layton?” “Don’t believe everything you read about me, Sheriff,” Layton said as he knew what the man was thinking. “Allegations are not confirmation of wrongdoing. I expect to be fully exonerated any day now.” He looked at me and saw that I was intrigued. “I did not come here to discuss my business dealings,” he reminded us both. “I came here to find out how my charming little friend is doing.” “Joseph?” I touched his hand and he looked away from Layton. “The vase?” He nodded and left the room with a great deal of reluctance. “Now, Mr. Layton,” I said the moment he was out of the room. “Suppose you tell me why you’re really here.” “You are a very perceptive and plain speaking young woman, Miss Grady,” Layton smiled as he sat on the heavy coffee table and looked into my eyes. “I’ll speak just as plain then.” He took my chin in his hand and smiled as his thumb stroked my lips gently. “I want you.” “Excuse me?” I choked and looked at him as if he’d gone insane. “You can’t be serious.” “On the contrary, precious,” Layton said as he leaned closer. “I couldn’t be more serious. I have decided that you are going to be my wife.” “No,” I shook my head. “I’m already engaged. Didn’t you hear Joseph?” “A childish infatuation,” Layton sniffed. “You are made for something more than spending your life buried here in Briarton. I can give you that.” I could see how some women might find this man attractive. His confidence was heady but it was not the type I appreciated. If I were going to have any life, it would be one that I chose for myself. And I had chosen to be with Joseph. So when Layton leaned down to kiss me, I did not hesitate. I slapped the smug bastard across the face and heard Joseph come running. “Joseph,” I said as I glared at the stunned man. “Mr. Layton was just leaving. Please see him to the door.” I smiled at the man briefly “Thank you for the lovely flowers, Mr. Layton.” Joseph made Layton leave and then carried me up the stairs as the rain that had been threatening all day began to fall. We did not discuss Layton and I was glad. That man made me feel very nervous and uncertain and I did not like it. I saw the lightning flashes as he set me down on the bed and I was thrilled. I loved thunderstorms; they always made me feel energized. I asked him to set the rocking chair up by the French doors and put me there and he shook his head. It didn’t matter how I pleaded, he was not listening to me. I sighed heavily as he made me take my medication and then made me comfortable in the bed and went downstairs to wait for Maxine. I got up six hours later, knowing it was a stupid thing to do; but I was so tired of being in bed I was ready to scream. As I got close the wind whipped along the back of the building and the doors burst open bringing wind and rain into the room. The door caught me in the temple and I went down. I heard footsteps on the balcony and saw black boots and black pants. A black rose drifted down and landed in front of my eyes and I saw the note wrapped around it. He pulled me up onto my feet and dragged me out into the storm. I pushed him as hard as I could and he fell back over the railing. I watched him hit the ground and disappear. But then he was standing next to me as I collapsed to my knees and I screamed as his hands tightened around my throat. “Maggie!” Maxine’s voice cut through the nightmare. I looked up and saw her standing next to the bed, eyeing me in concern. “What’s wrong, dear?” “It wasn’t real,” I sobbed. I threw my arms around her and sobbed in relief. “It was just a dream.” I looked out the window and saw the storm still raging. “Joseph wouldn’t let me stay up, Maxie. Could I…” “No, you may not,” Maxine shook her head. “It’s only half past midnight, Maggie. You need to be sleeping.” She went to get the pills and handed me one. I knew she was right, but I had a strange feeling I had to stay awake. So I put the pill in my mouth and let it rest under my tongue as I drank the water. I laid back and she kissed me on the forehead and turned out the lights. I spit the pill out into my hand and got up. “I just gave it to her,” Maxine was saying as I crept down the stairs slowly. “She’ll be asleep in twenty minutes. You can come for her then.” I couldn’t believe what I’d just heard. Maxine was my friend. She would never betray me like this. I heard her close the door to the office and I went to the front door and got my coat and purse. I saw Maxine’s purse and changed my mind. Leaving my things behind, I grabbed hers. I bent down and got the laptop from the living room where I’d left it earlier and went to Maxine’s car. I got in and drove into town, pulling out onto the road just minutes before another car was slowing down to turn onto the driveway. “What do you mean she’s not there?” Maxine cried in dismay as James came down the stairs. “I gave her the medication. She should be sleeping.” “This isn’t good, Maxine,” James frowned. “We’ve identified the man who’s been sending her the roses. He left a fingerprint on the last note.” He looked over his shoulder at Cheryl. “Simon and Robert are looking for him now but we wanted Maggie in protective custody until they had him.” “Wherever she is,” Maggie said worriedly, “I hope it’s somewhere safe.” “Joseph?” I cried out as I ran into the Sheriff’s Office. The deputies turned and I did not recognize them. I went into Joseph’s office clutching my laptop to my chest and decided to do something I probably should have done sooner. I unlocked the program and found the photo I had taken the day I had almost been abducted from the library. I emailed it to James and to Cheryl without looking at it and erased the photo from the hard drive. I slid the laptop in the bottom drawer of the desk and went to get myself some water. I heard someone moan and looked towards the cell block. That was when I saw Joseph lying in a cell, out cold. “Joseph!” I cried in dismay. I picked up the keys and got into the cell and knelt next to Joseph. “Wake up, Joseph. Please wake up.” “Maggie?” Joseph moaned. “Oh God, Maggie! What are you doing here? The deputies…” “I know, Joseph,” I broke in softly. “They aren’t your men. We’re safe in here for now.” I searched his eyes and saw the pain in them. “Did they hurt you?” “You are risking his life, Kerrigan.” I looked up in shock and saw the hooded man standing there. “You remember the last note I sent you, don’t you, little girl?” I nodded. “If you don’t come out of the cell now, my friends will shoot your handsome friend. You don’t want him to die, do you?” “Don’t listen to him, Maggie,” Joseph said as he pulled himself up and leaned against the cot. He pulled out his cell phone and hit a speed dial number. “Agent Kellogg? Sheriff’s Office now!” “That was the wrong thing to do, Sheriff North,” the man snarled. He raised his gun and shot Joseph in the shoulder. “The next shot will be fatal, Kerrigan. Bring me the keys, little girl.” “Maggie, no!” Joseph moaned as I got to my feet. He tried to stop me and fell over. “I can’t let him hurt you any more, Joseph,” I sobbed as I got the keys and approached the door. “I’ll give you the keys if you put the gun away,” I told the man. “I’d hurry. I’m going to pass out soon and there’s no telling where these keys will end up.” “Very well, Kerrigan,” the man nodded and put the gun back in its holster and I held out the keys. He tossed them to one of the deputies and held my wrists as the man unlocked the door. He yanked me out and looked at the deputies. “Once we’re gone,” he said as he headed for the door, “kill him. Then join us at the Grady property.” “No!” I protested and tried to get free. “Please…” “Now Kerrigan,” the man laughed as he took a bottle out of his pocket and forced me to take a pill. “We can’t let him live. He’ll come after you and we can’t have anyone interrupting our plans now.” He stroked my cheek. “We’ll find another man for you.” “Joseph!” I screamed as the man carried me outside. I beat at his face and he just laughed as my blows grew weaker and weaker. He set me down on the seat of his car and put a blanket over me. As he got behind the wheel, I sat up and opened the door. I got out and ran as fast as my weakening legs would carry me. My robe and pajamas were plastered to my body now and the rain was still coming down hard. I knew my time was running out but I kept going. I saw the lights of his car and ducked back behind the church. I saw the basement door open and I ran in and shut and bolted the door behind me. I was shivering with cold and growing numb and I went to the old storage room where I knew the donations for the charity drive were being held. I slipped inside and found everything I needed to dry off and change into dry clothing. I fell asleep on a pile of blankets praying someone other than my stalker would find me. Simpson pulled the car up behind the church, smiling as he saw me run around to the back. I was a very resourceful and strong-willed girl, he thought to himself. I would make the man they had chosen for me an excellent pet once he had trained me. He knew I was out cold by now, so he returned to the hospital and went about his shift. If anyone found me before he was through, he would be in a position to move. If not, he knew exactly where I was. It wouldn’t be that hard to convince the Pastor and his wife that it was crucial for me to be returned to the hospital. “Pastor Andrews?” he was there twenty minutes before I should be awake. “I’m Dr. Simpson from Methodist Hospital.” The Pastor nodded. “We have a situation developing with Miss Grady.” He saw the man’s confusion. “I believe she was known as Maggie Mason before the truth became known.” “Is Maggie all right?” Mrs. Andrews paled. “We heard she had a problem with her heart…” “She’s supposed to be home on bed rest before her surgery, Mrs. Andrews,” Simpson broke in, “but she’s run away. We are asking the residents to keep their eyes open for her.” He looked down a moment. “I’d like your permission to search here. She might have gotten in during the storm last night and be lying unconscious somewhere in the building.” “Oh the poor child!” Mrs. Andrews exclaimed. She looked at her husband. “Of course we have to search. I’ll look up here, darling. Why don’t you take Dr. Simpson and search the rooms in the basement?” Simpson followed the man downstairs and they separated to make the search go faster. He was the one who found the storage room and saw me stirring on the pile of blankets. He had gauged the down time incorrectly. He slipped into the room and hid in the shadows near the door. “Kerrigan!” My eyes shot open and I looked around the darkened room in fear. Was he in here with me? He hadn’t sounded that close, so I guessed he was out in the hall somewhere searching for me. I held a pillow to my lips and moved into the corner near the furniture. I got in behind a chifferobe and held the pillow to my chest, doing my best to stay calm. I tried to stay as quiet as possible as Simpson stepped away from the door. I couldn’t see who it was. I didn’t need to see who it was. “Little girl,” he called out softly. “You’re only making it worse for yourself. I wasn’t going to hurt you.” He moved into the room slowly. “But you’re being a very naughty girl. I’m going to have to punish you now like I did all the others.” I couldn’t help the sob that rose up in my throat as I thought of what he had done to the other girls. Simpson started forward and then fell back as the Pastor stepped into the room and caught sight of me. “There you are,” the man said in relief as he came directly towards me. I rose slowly to my feet and shoved the chifferobe at him then I ran. I heard him cry out in surprise as the piece of furniture came at him but I didn’t stop running. “Going somewhere, little girl?” Simpson laughed as he stepped out of the shadows near the door. He came at me and I backed into the man I’d shoved the chifferobe onto. I shook my head in disbelief. It was the Pastor lying there under the chifferobe and he was out cold. Simpson grabbed my arms, laughing. “Very neatly done, Kerrigan. He was coming to help you and you took him out for me.” “No!” I sobbed and tried to pull free so I could help the man I’d hurt in my fear. “Let me go!” “You’ve wasted enough of my time, little girl,” Simpson replied. “It’s time to go.” He slugged me across the jaw and I collapsed. I was barely conscious as he carried me out of the church and dumped me into the trunk of his car. He tied my wrists behind my back and bound my ankles and then gagged me. I heard him slam the lid shut and struggled to come back to awareness. The man who shot Joseph had me captive now and I knew I was not going to live through this encounter. I felt around the trunk and it was completely empty. There was nothing there for me to use to defend myself. James was at the hospital watching Joseph being lifted out of the ambulance as a black car drove by slowly and he recognized the driver. Something about the man’s expression made him uneasy and he looked for the license plate. It was obscured by mud. He motioned to Simon and nodded towards the car moving down the street at the speed limit. “That’s our man!” he yelled as he looked for his team. “Follow him, Simon,” James ordered tersely. “Call in when he stops and let us know where you are.” Simon nodded and ran to the SUV. He followed the sedan at a distance where he could just see the vehicle’s taillights. He saw it heading out of town as if the man were just on his way home and had no worries in the world. But the moment it left the town limits, the vehicle suddenly sped up, took a corner sharply and then managed to disappear from sight. “K,” he snapped into the radio as Simon hit the brakes to keep from tipping over at the corner. “He lost me!” He stopped his vehicle and got out to look down the side streets. “Whoever this bastard is, he’s slick.” I had no idea how long I was locked in the trunk. All I knew was that I was stiff from behind bound and I was finding it harder and harder to move. I had hit my head when he had taken the corner fast and it was throbbing. I hadn’t eaten in quite some time and my stomach was cramping up on me. When he finally stopped, I was so weak and achy I couldn’t have fought him. He stroked my hair and smiled as he lifted me out of the trunk. “Poor little girl,” he said as he saw the blood on my face. “Hit your head, did you?” He carried me out of what I saw was a barn and locked the doors to hide the car. He set me down so I could see the house. “Look familiar, Kerrigan?” he asked as he saw me go pale. “You’re home, little girl.” “Home?” I looked at the farmhouse surrounded by green lawn, rich cornfields, and hills in the distance, and was puzzled. I could seeimages flash into my mind of a laughing man with copper hair and his dark-haired wife, both with green eyes. This was my home, I realized as the memories returned that had been buried for the past seventeen years. I shivered at the thought that this was going to be where I died. He hefted me over his shoulder and carried me up the three steps to the porch and then in through the front door. He took me up the stairs and opened a door at the end of the landing to the left. “Your old room, little girl,” he said as he dumped me on the bed and untied my ankles. “I’ll bring up something for you to eat later,” he said kindly as he removed the gag. He brought out his bag and filled a needle. “Rest is what you need right now.” “I want to go home,” I whimpered as the needle bit into my vein. “I want Joseph…” “You’ll forget Joseph,” Simpson said as he injected the sedative. He stroked my hair as he removed the needle. “He is a part of your past. Your future is with someone else.” “No,” I sobbed as he hit on one of my major fears. “I don’t want someone else.” “We have no intention of giving you a choice, little girl,” Simpson said gently. “We have been waiting seventeen years for you.” I began to cry and he shook his head as he untied my wrists. I heard him leave and the door being pulled shut behind him. Why was he doing this to me? I found my eyes moving around the room and memories came surging back to me. I had been happy in this room, I remembered. Stuffed animals and dolls sat on shelves and in child-sized furniture. Not a whole lot, though. I had been given a limited number of special companions growing up, and each one had been handmade by my mother or father. I got up and went to the shelves built into the corner of the room. I remembered my father then, a copper-haired man with green eyes smiling up at me as he sanded the wood in a workshop. He held his hand out to me and I took the sandpaper from him as he showed me how to smooth the wood. He held me in his lap and nodded. “That’s right, my fairy child,” he said, his voice warm and deep and filled with affection. “You need to be firm but gentle with the wood and let it tell you how it wants to be.” He kissed my head and smiled over at the dark-haired woman sitting in front of a sewing machine. “It’s just like being a parent.” He left me sanding the shelves and went to the large box on the worktable. He opened it and pulled out a wrapped package. “Maggie, darling,” he called and I turned to smile at him. He held out the gift. “Happy Birthday, fairy child.” I ran over, giggling in delight, and unwrapped the package. Inside of it was a small hand-carved wooden box stained a deep mahogany and embellished with pieces of mother-of-pearl in the shape of three hearts. I could still feel that smooth wood under my fingers and I knew where it was. I opened a drawer in the cabinets under the bookshelves and lifted the box out. “Papa!” I sobbed as I remembered him. I could feel the drug kicking in and I took the box with me and laid down with it clutched to my heart. His gift to me on my seventh birthday, the same night someone had taken my parents away from me. I remembered more of that night as I drifted off to sleep. Mama and Papa had shown me the secret room hidden behind the fireplace. My box was the key that opened the entrance to it. I was delighted at being entrusted with this secret. They made certain that I understood that no one else could ever know about it. They also made certain that I was aware of the defense mechanism. If I did not key in the secret code on the computer within five minutes of opening the door, the room would be destroyed and everything inside of it. “Never tell anyone, fairy child,” Papa had told me. “You understand? If the wrong people get their hands on this data they could ruin a lot of people’s lives. We don’t want that to happen.” “I won’t tell, Papa,” my seven-year-old self had nodded solemnly. I crossed my heart. “Never ever!” I felt something on my arm and when I went to rub it off I touched someone’s hand. I opened my eyes and saw Simpson looking down at me, smiling. He helped me sit up and I saw the tray of food he’d brought. I wasn’t expecting this kindness from him. “Why are you doing this?” I asked him as he settled the tray over my lap. He just shook his head and held the cup out to me. I slapped it out of his hand and turned away from him and he yanked my head back and slapped me in return. “What do you want from me?” “You know, little girl,” Simpson replied. “Your parents told you where it’s hidden and you are going to tell me.” He put his hand on my throat when I shook my head. “I want to be gentle with you, Kerrigan, given your delicate condition, but we need that information.” “I don’t know anything!” I protested. I looked up at him in total confusion. “Please, Dr. Simpson. You have to believe me…” “No, I don’t,” Simpson replied. He let go and patted me on the head. “Eat now, little girl. We’ll talk more about this later.” He nodded as I ate. I didn’t want to eat, but it had been several hours since my last meal and I needed my strength. “That’s a good girl,” he nodded as he picked up the cup I’d sent flying. “I’ll get you some more milk.” I watched him leave and ate the meal quickly. I pushed the tray aside and got on my feet. When I tried to door, it was locked. I beat on it and then turned away with a cry of frustration. I went over to the rocking chair and sat down to figure out what I was going to do. The door opened and Simpson came in with the cup of milk. He handed it to me and I drank it slowly, trying to keep him from doing anything else to me. But it was soon gone and he took the cup and dishes and left me alone a moment. When he returned, I was trying to get out the window. He pulled me back and shoved me down into the rocking chair. “I hurt a lot of people to find you, Kerrigan Grady,” he said coldly as he brought out a pair of handcuffs and fastened one on my left wrist. “I won’t stop at you.” He yanked me back to the bed and shoved me down, running the other cuff behind a slat in the headboard before fastening it to my other wrist. He ran his hand along my arm and I shuddered in reaction. This made him smile. “Tell me what I want to know, little girl. Save yourself the pain and degradation.” “I don’t know anything,” I sobbed. “You’re doing all of this for nothing!” I pulled on the cuffs and looked at him in anguish. “Please let me go!” “Calm down, little girl,” Simpson smiled as he ran his hand slowly down my arm. “I don’t want you having another heart attack.” There was a glow in his eyes that made me shudder and he was smiling. “I’ve been watching you, Kerrigan,” he said softly as his fingers stroked my lips. “You’ve grown into a very beautiful woman. It is an exciting thought that I would be the first man to have you.” I screamed and he covered my mouth with his hand. I could feel my heart racing in terror at the thought of what he meant to do to me. Simpson saw the signs of panic and he let me go. “Don’t worry, little girl. I am not going to touch you that way.” He leaned close and ran the tip of his tongue along my lips. “Yet.” I started to sob then and I could not stop. He let me go and I watched him leave the room. I had to get out of this place, was my only thought as I pulled on the cuffs. I ignored the warning signs and kept pulling. My breathing grew more and more labored and my heart was pounding so hard my vision was blurring. I could feel myself growing faint but I refused to let go. I could hear the wood cracking and I was determined to get free. “What are you doing?” Simpson demanded as he came into the room just as the slat broke. I pulled my wrists free and backed away from him as he came after me. “You’re just wasting your energy for nothing, little girl,” he laughed as he caught my hair and yanked me back. “You are going to tell me what I want to know,” he promised as he straddled my struggling body, “or I will start killing people you care about.” He saw me trying to talk and got his bag from the hall. He put his stethoscope to my heart. “Damn it, little girl. What have you done to yourself?” I couldn’t answer him; it was all I could do to breathe. He ran out of the room and came back with an oxygen mask. I didn’t fight him as he put this over my face. I began to feel better as my lungs were given the oxygen, and the pain started to ease. Simpson gave me a mild sedative and the panic was gone. “All you had to do was tell me where to find those files, little girl,” Simpson said as he stroked my hair. I was too exhausted to do more than shake my head. I didn’t care what he did to me. I had made a promise to my father and I would die before I betrayed his trust in me. “You really don’t know, do you?” I turned my head away from him and listened to him leave. I needed to be running away now, but my body was not having it. Even lifting my hand exhausted me now. Tears flowed down my cheeks in frustration and I was glad when the drug kicked in and I was asleep. At least asleep I could not do or say anything that would hurt someone. “Have you gotten anywhere with the scans?” Simpson asked a man who was sitting behind a bank of machines in the old dining room. The man looked up and removed his headphones. “No sign of hidden rooms, underground vaults?” “Not as yet, Doctor,” the man frowned. “If there is such a thing the Grady couple hid it well.” He looked up the stairs. “Their daughter is not cooperating?” “Their daughter,” Simpson frowned back, “is a very sick young woman. Pushing her could very probably kill her.” He shivered. “You know what would happen to us if we allowed that to occur.” “Why does it matter?” the man asked honestly. “What makes her any different than any of the other girls?” “Do you want to ask them, Heath?” Simpson asked. He saw the other man pale and shake his head. “Then you just concentrate on finding that room and leave the girl to me.” James lowered his binoculars and turned to the patrol car where Joseph was going over the layout of the property with the county Sheriff and his deputies. The entire team was there as well. Joseph had been the first person to think of the possibility that the man would bring me to my family home. As he had had said, it made a sick sort of sense. He was obsessed with the Grady family; where best to bring the last remaining family member than the farm where my parents had died? “I count ten,” he said tightly. He was dressed in black, like the rest of the team. “Five on patrol around the property, four inside the house. Maggie is in an upstairs bedroom where only the doctor has gone so far.” “Is she all right?” Joseph asked the only question he needed an answer for. He winced as he leaned a bit too hard on the hood and aggravated his shoulder wound. “We’ll need to get closer to ascertain that,” Sheriff Morrison replied. A short man; he was built like a barrel. Despite his size, he had a vitality about him that made people sit up and pay attention. He wore his gray hair cut close to the scalp military style and there wasn’t a spare ounce of fat on him. He could see the young man was personally involved with the victim and that made him antsy. “These men are here for a purpose and, it appears, they need your girl alive.” He looked at James. “You could tell us what that purpose is, Agent Kellogg.” “If we knew that, Sheriff Morrison,” James said with true regret, “we would have gotten here first.” He looked at Joseph eyeing him suspiciously. “All we know is that her parents hid something some very nasty characters are desperate to get their hands on.” “And they think Maggie knows where it is?” Joseph was aghast at the thought. “Who would entrust their seven-year-old child with such a secret?” he demanded. “And even if they did, she’s been away from that house for most of her life!” He was pacing. “And she needs to be in the hospital!” “Down, boy,” Cheryl said as she stepped up to him. Joseph glared at her and turned to look down at the farmhouse. She turned to James and saw the worry. “Someone’s coming,” she said as she saw the headlights coming down the single lane road. “Is it our man?” “Your man?” Joseph asked as he looked at them sharply. “You’re sending someone in?” “He insisted,” James frowned at the younger man. “If you can’t behave, Joseph, we can always send you back to the hospital. I’m certain Doctor Norman would be more than happy to keep you under sedation if we explained the situation.” He watched Joseph open his mouth to protest and then close it again. “We’re going to get your girl back for you, Sheriff. Count on it.” “Who is this man?” Joseph asked tightly. “Am I at least allowed to know that?” “No,” James shook his head. “It would compromise his cover.” Joseph knew he should listen. This man was a federal agent and, despite their rocky start, he had a great deal of respect for James Kellogg. But this was his girl they were here to save and he hated the idea that he was helpless to do anything to help. There had to be something he could do. He saw the others watching him and knew that he was as much a prisoner as I was. They were watching him like a hawk. “He’s going to give you trouble, Agent Kellogg,” Morrison said as Joseph moved off. “Men in love can be remarkably stupid where their women’s welfare is concerned.” He made a motion to his deputies and they saw Joseph to the back of the patrol car. James watched this and didn’t know whether to be amused or relieved. He had been worrying about the boy himself. He probably shouldn’t have let the boy come in the first place, but he knew if he’d refused to allow it, Joseph would have found his own way here. “Better?” James nodded and met Joseph’s glare. He turned his attention back to the road where their agent was just turning onto the road leading past the farm. Sure enough some of the men patrolling the grounds took instant note. The agent stopped the car and opened the hood as two men came over to check. James smiled as his man took them out and shoved them in the trunk. Two down, eight to go. Craig didn’t wait. He slid into the property and headed towards the back of the house. He had spent many long and happy years on this property and he knew it well. He made his way up the back stairs and took out another man on the way, shoving him into a closet. He got to my room and stepped inside to find me sleeping. He saw the oxygen mask and was horrified. “She almost had another attack,” Simpson said as he walked up behind the man with two of his men in tow. “I was wondering when you would make an appearance, Dr. Grady.” He raised his gun and Craig backed into the room. “Your niece is all right. We caught it in time to keep her from cardiac arrest.” “Why are you doing this to her?” Craig demanded as he sat down on the bed next to me and took my pulse. “She should be in the hospital, not being held hostage to your employers’ madness.” “Tell us where the room is, Dr. Grady,” Simpson said to his new prisoner, “and we’ll let you take her out of here.” “If I knew where it was,” Craig snapped at the man, “I would have gotten in there and turned over every last document to the authorities.” He saw the doctor’s bag and opened it. Simpson let him work, watching as the man got the stethoscope. “She needs to be in the hospital!” he repeated as he made Simpson listen. “Please let me take her before she gets any sicker.” Instead Simpson had his men grab Craig and hold him. He got out a drug and drew some into a syringe. Then he nodded. The men removed Craig’s jacket and rolled up the sleeve of his shirt and held out his arm. Simpson gave Craig the injection and had his men cuff the man’s wrists behind his back. “Your niece is too sick to talk to me, Dr. Grady,” Simpson said as he watched the man struggling not to succumb to the drug. “So before I let you take her, you are going to have to convince me you don’t know anything.” He looked at his men. “Bring him down to the kitchen. I don’t want to disturb her rest.” Craig was forced downstairs and the other men in the house were on their feet. They had not heard him enter so they were disturbed he had gotten in without their being aware of it. He was beginning to feel the effects of the drug he’d been given and knew his time was running short. So he drove his elbow into the side of the man to his right and that man went down. The second man went down soon afterwards but Craig suddenly froze as he felt the muzzle of a gun pressed into the back of his neck. “You can’t get the child to the hospital,” Simpson said coldly, “if you are dead.” He glared at the two men. “Tie him to that chair,” he nodded towards the table. They did so, using much more force than necessary. He didn’t correct them. They had no orders to keep this man alive. “Now, Dr. Grady,” he smiled as he saw the drug finally kicking in. “I have a few questions for you. How you answer them will make the difference between your being alive to help your niece or not. Do you understand?” Craig nodded and Simpson smiled. “You always were the more reasonable brother.” “I told Henry he was making a mistake,” Craig said softly. “He wouldn’t listen to me.” He shook his head. “Maggie…” “Kerrigan is fine,” Simpson broke in and made Craig look at him. “She will stay that way only if you tell us where your brother hid those documents he stole from my employers.” “He never told me about any documents,” Craig admitted. He glared at Simpson fiercely. “I would tell you if he had shared that with me. I would hand them over to you personally to keep her safe.” He was shaking with the effort to stay quiet but his need to keep me safe was stronger. “The box,” he continued helplessly. “The key is in the box he made her for her birthday. The one with the three hearts on top of it.” He bit his lip but it all came gushing out: how he had seen his brother testing the box once when Henry had thought he was in the house alone. “I never told him I knew where the room was. He never told me what he had hidden in there.” He looked up at Simpson in desperation. “You have to let her go. Maggie will die if you don’t let her get to a hospital soon. You know that!” Simpson watched the man pass out and had his men take him upstairs to another room. He could not let the girl go. Her transport to the compound and its excellent medical facilities was already arranged. But Dr. Craig Grady was another matter. The man was supposed to be dead. His employers would be quite interested to hear where the man had been the past seventeen years. He wasn’t all that convinced that Craig had been as innocent of knowledge as he stated, even with the sodium pentothal in his veins. “Kerrigan,” he said softly as he went back to my room. He removed the oxygen mask and I whimpered in protest. “Where is your birthday present, little girl? The pretty box your father made you?” “Box?” I opened my eyes with a great deal of effort and tried to sit up. Simpson had to help me. I saw it sitting on the shelf with some of the clay statues and animals I had made as a child. “There on the middle shelf,” I nodded and fell back against the pillows utterly exhausted. “It has three hearts on the cover,” I smiled wearily as he put the mask back over my face. “So tired.” “I know, little girl,” Simpson nodded and stroked my hair. “We’ll be leaving soon for the hospital. You’re going to have your operation.” I closed my eyes, frowning. “Rest now, Kerrigan.” The frown eased and he got up and went to the bookshelf. He found the box easily and opened the lid. He heard a chime that echoed through the house and then one of the men calling his name. He went downstairs to find a section of the wall sliding open to the left of the fireplace. There was a lock exposed now and he took the key out of the box and turned it. There was a clicking sound and the wall opened like a door. “Gentlemen,” Simpson smiled as he looked in and saw the office with its computer setup and file cabinets. “I believe we have found what we were sent here for.” He came around the desk and frowned as he saw the request for a password and a timer ticking down from five minutes. “What the hell?” He motioned to his brain. “What can you do with this, Heath?” “It’s a destruct sequence,” Heath told him after just a half minutes diagnostic. “If we don’t enter the code it’s asking for this entire room is going up.” He saw Simpson’s expression. “As in boom, Doc?” He looked at the asterisks. “Ten letters. There is no way I could find it in the four minutes left to us.” He frowned and thought about it. Then he laughed and shook his head. “It can’t be that simple,” he said as he typed in what he guessed. The code was accepted. “Her father called Kerrigan his ‘fairy child’, Doc. That was the code.” He frowned as a panel on the top of the desk slid open and a lighted panel rose up. “What is this? A Bio-lock? But that is impossible.” “What are you talking about?” “You’re going to have to bring the girl down here, Doc,” Heath replied. “Fast.” He saw the timer counting down from where it had left off. “You have three minutes.” Simpson nodded and was halfway up the stairs when he heard the gunfire outside. He got me out of the bedroom and down the stairs, ordering his men to get Craig. They went into the hidden room and he laid my hand on the panel. It went green and he leaned me up against the wall next to my unconscious uncle. The door closed and would not open. Simpson looked at Heath and the man shrugged. “What the…” Simpson choked as a section of wall opened between the file cabinets. He saw a tunnel and a handcart on a set of tracks. “How considerate!” he laughed. “They have everything waiting so we can take the files with us.” He nodded to Heath. “We’ll start loading while our hostages rest.” “We’re really taking them along, Doc?” “Of course,” Simpson nodded. “There are still a few questions that need to be answered.” Heath opened the first drawer and pulled out a folder. “What’s wrong?” “It’s empty, Doc,” Heath frowned. He opened a few more. “They’re all empty!” “The documents are in a safe place.” The two men turned as Craig began to laugh. He rose to his feet and pulled the gun they hadn’t bothered to search him for. “You lied?” Simpson exclaimed. “But you were under sodium pentothal, Grady…” “I didn’t lie,” Craig broke in. “My brother didn’t tell me about the documents. I found them later when I came to close up the house after their funerals.” He saw the men trying to gauge how good he was and hid his amusement. “If your employers contact you in jail, tell them they will remain hidden only as long as they keep away from my niece.” He held out the cuffs he had slipped out of while they had been focused on the computer. Then he made Simpson put one of the cuffs on Heath’s wrist and then the other on Simpson’s wrist. Craig closed the tunnel passage and opened the door into the living room. James was waiting for him. “Took a bit longer than we planned,” James said as he stepped aside for the prisoners to be shoved out. “How is Maggie?” “We need to get her to the hospital now, James,” Craig said as he bent down and picked me up in his arms. “Her condition is deteriorating.” “We can handle things here, Craig,” James nodded. “Sheriff Morrison is out front with Sheriff North. They’ll get you to the airfield.” “You brought the kid here?” Craig shook his head. “That was risky.” He hurried out and saw Joseph in the back of the patrol car. He nodded to Morrison. “I see you had things under control as usual, Van.” He opened the door and set me down next to Joseph so that my head was in his lap. Craig got in front. “Let’s see how fast you can get this jalopy to go. We have a flight to catch.” He saw Joseph’s worry. “Keep a close eye on her, Joseph,” he said to the young man. “If her breathing starts to become more difficult or she seems to be in pain, sing out.” “You’re Craig Mason, aren’t you?” Joseph frowned. “You’re supposed to be dead, sir.” “I’ve heard that a few times in my life,” Craig laughed. He looked over at Morrison. “How many now, Van? Five? Six?” “I’ve lost track of the number of your near death experiences, Grady,” Morrison replied. He floored it and the patrol car took off in a shower of dirt and rock. “Hang on back there. It’s going to be a rough ride.” Joseph pulled me into his arms and my eyes shot open. I saw who was holding me and I relaxed and smiled before I passed out again. I was safe. Joseph was here with me and I was going to be fine. I slept through the trip to the airfield and Craig took over, making certain I was hooked up to the waiting monitor in the private jet. Joseph did not ask how a man who was definitely not who he thought he was rated a private jet. He turned to thank Morrison for his help but the man was already racing off. “He’s like that,” Craig shrugged as a man closed the hatch. “I owe him at least a thousand thanks over the course of my life. I haven’t had the opportunity to voice one of them yet.” He got me settled and went to strap in. “Sit down boy and strap in. We’ll be in Rochester as quickly as we can. The surgeon is already standing by.” Joseph nodded and sat down as close to me as he could get. He smiled as I woke and reached out to touch him, as if needing to reassure myself I was not hallucinating. I dozed off again and he looked at Craig in concern. Craig got up and checked me and smiled reassuringly. But Joseph did not relax. I was about to undergo heart surgery and he felt like he was going under the knife with me. “You can’t go in there,” Craig laughed as Joseph tried to follow me into the surgery. He made him sit down and waited until James arrived. “I’ll let you know how things are going,” he told them. “I’m going to sit in on this one.” “Who is that man?” Joseph asked as James found a seat and settled in for what would be several hours of waiting. “Doctor Craig Grady,” James replied with a shrug. “He’s been an FBI consultant the past seventeen years.” He saw Joseph’s shocked look. “How do you think he managed to hide his niece so well?” “You knew all along where she was?” Joseph asked the man. He had a very unsettling thought. “You were using her as bait this entire time!” “We were,” James nodded. “It’s not something I’m proud of,” he admitted to the younger man. “Especially when they went after those other girls first. But it’s over now. Her uncle has seen to that.” “She’s not ever going to know he’s her uncle, is she?” “As far as she’s concerned, Joseph,” James reminded the younger man, “her Uncle Craig is dead. He has a lot more to do before he is ready to retire and she would be a weapon his targets could use against him if they were aware of her.” He looked at Joseph pointedly. “Don’t you think she’s gone through enough?” “She won’t hear about it from me, Agent Kellogg,” Joseph replied. “Once she’s through this, I plan to make her life as crisis-free as possible.” He rose to his feet as Craig came stumbling out four hours later and his blood went cold as he saw the blood on the man’s shirt. “No,” he shook his head as he saw the man’s white face. “No!” “They took her, Joseph,” Craig choked out. “They were waiting for us in the Recovery Room. I couldn’t stop them…” He keeled over as the alarms rang through the hospital. He looked up at James in distress. “You have to find her, James. Promise me you’ll find her!” James nodded and ran to get a gurney. He got Craig up and his friend was taken into surgery. He was on the phone and running, leaving Joseph standing in the waiting room. Joseph knew he was out of his depth here, so he opted to remain with Craig. He knew James and his people would find me; he had to believe they would. Layton was in his office when the call came. He listened to the kidnappers’ demands and knew he had to do as they asked. He was not going to risk my life by approaching the authorities. So he drove to the bank and got a suitcase filled with the ransom demanded. Then he took it to the overlook near the airport where a van waited. “Mr. Layton,” a hooded man nodded as he got out from behind the wheel. “We heard you were interested in this particular piece of merchandise.” He nodded and the doors opened. Layton could see me lying on a gurney and hooked up to a monitor and an IV. “She came through the surgery quite well. The surgeon got the obstruction cleared.” He saw the suitcase. “I assume that’s the price we asked for her?” Layton nodded. “Set it down and move this way, sir.” Layton did as he was told, his hands out and away from his sides. One of the men patted him down and then he was handed the keys to the van. He watched as they took his car and the suitcase. He checked me over and was relieved to find that I was well. He got behind the wheel and drove to the airfield where his private jet was waiting. “Get rid of the van,” he told one of his men. “And find the men who did this to her. I want them to vanish.” The man nodded. “You can keep the money as a thank you, Randall.” I woke up and saw that I was in a hospital bed, but not in a hospital room. There was an IV in my arm and I was hooked up to a monitor. I turned my head to see a nurse sitting in an upholstered wing-back chair. She smiled as she saw that I was awake and came to take my vital signs. Then she picked up the receiver. “She’s awake, sir,” she said simply as she raised the head of the bed so I was sitting up. “How are you feeling today, Mrs. Layton?” “I’m not…” It was so hard to talk. “Hurts to talk.” “It will get better,” the Nurse smiled as he got out a comb and ran it through my thick hair. “You’ve had heart surgery and it will be a while before you’ve fully recovered.” She smiled as the door opened. “Here’s your handsome husband. He’ll make you feel better.” I looked up and saw Layton standing there. I shook my head as he came towards me. It was not right! I wasn’t supposed to be his wife. I belonged with Joseph. Layton sent the nurse out and he sat down on the bed gently. He picked up my hand and kissed me on the palm, smiling. “I was so worried, precious,” he said as he made certain I saw the wedding and engagement rings on my finger. “The surgery was very rough on you.” He put his fingers on my lips. “Don’t try to talk, my sweet Kerrigan. Let me tell you what has happened.” I nodded and even that was an effort. “Some men who thought they were doing me a favor abducted you from the hospital where you had your surgery. They sold you to me.” “How long…” “Have we been here?” he asked. I nodded and closed my eyes. “Two days,” he told me and saw the tears start. “I had a close personal friend of mine perform the wedding ceremony the night after we arrived here.” He stroked my hair. “I could not bear the thought of being without you, Kerrigan.” “Maggie,” I forced out, glaring at him as coldly as I could through the exhaustion. “No, darling,” Layton shook his head. “Your name is Kerrigan and that is how you shall be addressed.” He nodded to a man who was hovering in the door. “We can lose the IV and monitor now. Your doctors say you are healing well and we can start to work on returning you to normal activities.” “Why?” I looked at him in confusion. “I want Joseph.” “You only think you did,” Layton shook his head, “because he was your first love.” He stroked my hair as I winced. “Careful, you lout! I will not have my wife hurt.” “Sorry, Mr. Layton,” the man paled. He met my eyes and I could see his fear. “Mrs. Layton.” He removed the leads that connected me to the monitor and checked the incision sight. “They were able to do the repair with minimal invasion. You should be feeling more like yourself in a month or so.” He looked over at Layton. “I’ll be going now, sir. Enjoy your honeymoon.” He saw me go white and left the room without another comment. Layton helped me to my feet and supported me as he took me out on the balcony outside of the bedroom. It was enclosed in glass so that I could not get out. Beyond the glass I could see an unfamiliar city. “Where are we?” I asked him without taking my eyes off the view. “In our penthouse in the Savoy in London,” Layton told me. “We’ll stay here a few months until you are stronger and then we’ll join my mother at the penthouse.” He moved his hand to stroke my hair and I pulled away. “She’s looking forward to meeting you, darling.” “You want her to know how much I hate you?” I snapped at him as I sank down on the lounge shaking from the exertion. Layton went to the table nearby and poured out a glass of juice. He held it to me and I sipped at it. But I was still weak and the walk had tired me out. I held the glass out to him and he set it back on the table. “We’ll do a little more every day,” he told me as he joined me on the lounge and stroked my cheek, “until you can walk on your own. The doctors all agree that you need to get back to normal activity.” He frowned as I refused to look at him. “I’ll leave you here to rest. Nurse Barrett will come help you back to bed in an hour or so and I will join you for lunch.” “Go away,” I said as I looked out at the beautifully landscaped gardens below. He turned my head and kissed me and I whimpered. “I hate you.” “You’ll get over it,” Layton smiled and ran his fingers along my lips. “You’re my wife now, Kerrigan, and you will learn to accept me.” “Go away!” I sobbed and pulled away from him. “I don’t want you! I want Joseph!” “If you ever mention his name to me again, my darling wife,” Layton hissed as he pulled me to him, “I will send my men to arrange a little accident for him.” He saw that he had my attention. “He’ll be all alone on his patrol and the tire will blow just as he’s going around a curve.” He saw me go pale. “I see you understand now.” He lowered me back down gently. “I plan on treating you quite well, Kerrigan. You will have everything you could ever want or need as my wife…” “Except a man I love,” I sobbed. I was in distress now. “Please Mr. Layton…” “Nathaniel,” he interjected sternly. “Nathaniel,” I sobbed as I obeyed what was obviously an order. “You have to let me go. I don’t want to be your wife.” “It doesn’t matter,” Layton replied. “You are my wife and I have no intention of letting you go.” He pulled out his cell phone to make a call. “She is a bit reluctant to settle in,” he said simply. “Put a team on Sheriff North and have them take photos that illustrate to my pretty wife just how easy it would be for that conscientious young man to suffer an ‘accident’.” He hung up smiling down at me; knowing only one thing remained for his triumph to be complete. He made the call now. “Kellogg,” he said coldly as the man answered. “This is Layton. I just wanted you to know Kerrigan is doing quite well. The men who stole her from the hospital sold her to me.” He laughed at James’ comment. “They would never have gone after her if you had not brought her to the club, Kellogg. You know that, don’t you?” “You are a bastard,” I said softly as he hung up. “You’ll never know just how much,” Layton smiled at me. He sat down again and pulled me close. “We are supposed to return slowly to normal activity. Let’s start with what I will expect from you in bed.” “Don’t touch me!” I cried in distress and tried to pull free of his hold. He leaned down and kissed me and I felt ill. He had no right to do this to me! I did not want him touching me. “Please stop!” “Why, precious?” Layton said softly as he undid the belt on my robe and pulled it aside. His hand moved to stroke and caress me and I was sobbing in horror. “You’re mine now, Kerrigan. I will enjoy what is mine.” His eyes were warm as he touched me. “You are so beautiful, my love, and I shall be the first and only man to have you in his bed.” He did not stop until I was whimpering for a whole other reason than fear. He looked into my eyes and saw what he was looking for. When he took my lips I could feel myself falling into his snare and I could not fight it. I found my arms going up around his neck and my hands pushed him in for a deeper kiss. He took advantage of my surrender and carried me back to the bed where he slowly and gently began to fashion the chains he would use to hold me to him. “You see, my precious,” he smiled once he had finished, “marriage to me will not be without its pleasures.” He could see the pain in my eyes and called the nurse after he pulled the robe closed around my shivering body. “My wife pushed herself a bit too hard this time. Have the doctor come check her. If he says she is well, you will have her moved to the master bedroom.” I watched him go and knew I was lost. He was never going to let me leave him and if I tried, he would have his men murder Joseph. I loved Joseph far too much to let that happen. He would find another woman to love and go on to have a life without me. I could be content if I knew he was alive. The doctor returned and checked me over and I was helped into a wheelchair and taken to the master bedroom. Layton smiled as I joined him. He pulled back the covers and picked me up in his arms. “Tomorrow,” he said as he set me down and pulled the blankets up around me, “we will start to work on becoming the team I know we can become, my precious one.” He kissed me on the forehead. “For now, rest. We have a lifetime to learn to enjoy each other.” I did not argue. I closed my eyes and let myself drift off. There was peace to be found in sleep and I needed it desperately. I might be a wife to this man, but I knew the truth. I was his property not his partner. Layton would never love me as a man should love his wife. Joseph’s life depended on me accepting slavery in exchange. The weeks passed and four months went by as I became accustomed to my strange marriage. Layton was gentle with me in bed as he taught me how he wanted to have sex with me. He bought me little gifts and the penthouse was filled with fresh flowers from the bouquets he brought home every night. When the doctor assured him that I was finally strong enough to leave the penthouse, he was quite happy to accompany me to the dress salon where the owner took great delight in having me measured and then sat with us as she discussed style, color, etc. with Layton. “Don’t you have an opinion, Mrs. Layton?” the woman asked me as I remained quiet. “Whatever pleases my husband,” I said softly. I looked at Layton and saw him eyeing me worriedly. “Honestly,” I said as I laid my hand on his. “I’ve never really given much thought to such things before.” “You should, Mrs. Layton,” the woman chided me. “You are a very beautiful young woman.” She patted my hand. “I’m certain once you see how well you look in your lovely new garments your interest will be piqued.” We finished up with the salon and Layton decided on treating me. He said we were going to see a show and have dinner. I had the oddest feeling that there was more to it than that, but he didn’t say anything until we were back at our suite in the hotel. “You’ve been a very dutiful wife, Kerrigan,” he said as he held me while I was looking out at the city from the bedroom windows. “Cheryl Troughton is in London right now with her friends, Liliana and Nora,” Layton smiled at me gently. “They’re doing a photo shoot at Piccadilly Square. Would you like to go?” He saw my eyes light up. His hand moved down under my underwear and I responded to his touch as he had trained me to over the months. “There are worse things than to have a life with someone who only wants to please you, Kerrigan.” He claimed my lips as his hand continued its work and I was moaning as he stroked me to madness. “My beautiful wife,” he sighed as he slid inside of my very willing and ready body as gently as he could. “How can you not be content?” We finished and he held me close and stroked my hair as I dozed off. When I woke, he left me to change while he attended to some business. He came in to get me for our walk to the photo shoot site and we walked hand-in-hand like any loving couple might. He might not love me, but he was very attentive and caring. We found a bench near the circus that was a photo shoot. “Maggie!” Liliana squealed as she caught sight of me. She set her brushes down and ran towards me, beaming. I was laughing as she spun me around. “Oh Lord! It’s so good to see you again.” She looked at Layton. “Is this your husband?” “Nathaniel Layton,” Layton nodded and held out his hand. “It is a pleasure to meet one of Kerrigan’s friends.” “Kerrigan?” Liliana asked in confusion. Then her mind cleared. “You found your birth parents, didn’t you?” “Kerrigan, darling,” Layton broke open a bottle of water and handed me one. “Have some water while I speak to your friend.” I saw him walk off with Liliana. She looked upset and glanced over at me and then she nodded. She came back to give me a quick hug and then went back to work. “I told her about your parents. I hope you don’t mind.” “Truth is always the best choice,” I said softly as I looked at him then and knew it had to be said. “You can be a very good man when you allow yourself to be, Nathaniel.” The phone rang and I frowned. “Layton,” he snapped into the phone. He was on his feet. He put his hand over the receiver. “Stay here, Kerrigan. If I’m not back in an hour, please ask your friends to keep you close.” “Nathaniel?” I was worried now. Something was wrong and I knew it. But he kissed me gently and with an emotion I could not quite place and left me sitting by the makeup table. I was shocked to realize that I actually cared what happened to him. When had that happened? I heard Liliana say something but I was too distracted to listen. She touched my arm and I looked up at her. “I’m sorry, Liliana. Did you say something?” “You actually care about that man, don’t you?” “Yes,” I admitted with some reservation. “I don’t understand how it happened, but it did.” I saw a man hanging around the fringes of the shoot and a chill went through me. I looked at the man with his slicked back hair and pencil moustache and a shiver went down my spine. Something about this man in his perfectly tailored tweeds screamed villain and I was glad of Liliana’s presence. This man was the type who would hurt people to get what he wanted. “I have a feeling that he is in some kind of trouble, Liliana.” “Well, you don’t need to worry about that one,” Nora said as she joined us. She picked up a comb and ran it through my hair. Then she raised it up on top of my head and moved it around. “Have you ever thought of modeling, Maggie?” She saw Liliana’s look and met my eyes in the mirror. “Your name might be Kerrigan on the birth certificate, but you’ll always be Maggie to me.” “That’s what I love about you, Nora,” I smiled at her. “Straight shooting all the way.” I stroked her hand and looked at both of them. “You both go right on calling me Maggie if that’s what you want.” I saw the man edging towards me and I shivered. “Do you want something from me?” I asked him as he came closer. “Mrs. Layton?” the man asked nervously. I nodded and he relaxed. “My name is David Foster. I’m a business associate of your husband.” “Mr. Foster,” I nodded. “I assume there is a reason for your introducing yourself to me?” The man was looking nervous again, but I also sensed an anger in him that frightened me. Layton had done something to make the man feel that way. I waited for him to say something and saw a gleam in his eyes that only increased my uneasiness around him. “Nora,” I called the woman, who had moved off a bit. I was on my feet when he grabbed my arm. I looked up at him and his anger was quite apparent now. “Let go of my arm, Mr. Foster,” I said coldly. “If you have a problem with my husband, take it up with him.” I pulled my arm free and went to Nora. “You were saying something about modeling?” I knew he was watching me as I moved off with Nora to go talk to Cheryl. She gave me a hug and explained what she needed from me. I smiled and nodded. It was such a small thing and I didn’t have anyone telling me not to. For the first time in months I was free to make a choice of my own again and I relished it. We got through the scene she asked me to be part of, but then the world started spinning around me and I had to sit down. “Maggie!” Cheryl cried as I fainted. She patted my cheeks and helped me to my feet. “Are you all right, darling?” “I’m sorry,” I said as I reached for a bottle of water and sipped at it slowly. “I just felt a little dizzy.” “You’re not pregnant, are you?” Cheryl asked bluntly. She made me look at her and I could see her concern. “He didn’t waste any time, did he?” “He’s my husband, Cheryl,” I said sadly. “Of course we’ve had sex. That’s what marriage is supposed to be like, isn’t it?” I burst into tears then and she wrapped her arms around me. “I need to go lie down, Cheryl. Could you please have someone take me to the hotel?” “We’ll be through here in another hour, Maggie,” Cheryl replied, stroking my hair like she always did. “Hang in just that much longer and Liliana and Nora and I will take you. We’ll order Chinese and we’ll make it a Ladies Night if your handsome man isn’t there. All right?” “I’ve missed you, Cheryl,” I sniffed and found someone handing me a handkerchief. I looked up to see Nora there. “You are such good friends to me.” “I have a feeling you can use all the friends you can get,” Nora said as she looked over my shoulder and saw Foster still hanging around. “That man makes me nervous.” She looked for the security chief. “That one,” she pointed to Foster. “Have your team keep an eye on him, please. He was annoying Mrs. Layton earlier and he has the appearance of a stalker if I ever saw one.” “That’s hardly fair,” I protested. “We don’t know anything at all about the man.” I had a sudden thought. “But we could.” I looked around and saw what I needed. “Could you have someone go with me? I have an idea.” “I’ll go with you, Mrs. Layton,” Tad Dalton, the big burly security chief, smiled. He turned to his assistant. “Nora will tell you who she’s worried about, Elwood.” Cheryl nodded and I knew I could trust Dalton. We went along the Square and I entered the electronics store. I bought the best PDA they had with internet capabilities, a cell phone, and a wireless program. The salesman showed me how everything worked and smiled as I pulled out the platinum card that Layton had provided me with. He programmed the phone for me with my number from Briarton and we returned to the shoot. I spent the next hour finding out everything I could about David Foster. What I read did not make me feel any better about the fact that he was hanging around me. He was one of my husband’s fiercest business rivals and most outspoken critics and they were currently competing on a big contract. That made me uneasy. “I used to be such a trusting soul,” I sighed as I rejoined my friends. “I hate losing that part of my self.” I glanced over at Foster and he was talking to two very nasty looking people. I saw him glance over at me and there was a look on his face even Layton at his nastiest had never had. I moved closer to Tad and he caught my panic. He looked over at Foster and caught him moving off with the two strangers. I was relieved when the director finally called a halt to the day’s activities. “So, Maggie,” Liliana smiled as she took my arm, “where are you staying in London?” I told her and her eyebrows lifted. “He really is upper crust, isn’t he?” As we waited for a taxi, we began a discussion about Chinese versus Italian. We did not see the car coming towards us. One moment, I was standing with my friends, feeling totally at peace. The next moment, a door opened and I was being yanked off of my feet. I saw the shock on my friends’ faces as I was pulled away from them. But then someone pulled me back and I was in Tad’s arms watching the car roar off without me. “Nathaniel!” I sobbed as I saw him coming towards me. He pulled me into his arms and I clung to him as the fear kept me shaking. I was shaking so badly I could not stay on my feet, but he did not mind holding me. I saw an expression in his eyes I had never thought to see there. He actually cared about me. When I recovered I looked for Tad. “Thank you, Mr. Dalton. You saved my life!” “Yes, Mr. Dalton,” Nathaniel nodded and held out his hand. “Thank you. I owe you dearly for keeping my wife safe.” He pulled out a business card. “Come see me here when you have time tomorrow.” He put his hands on either side of my face where I sat on a bench and his concern was sincere and touching. “Are you certain you are all right, Kerrigan?” I nodded and he pulled me to his chest. “I am not letting you out of my sight from this moment on.” “That’s not very practical,” I smiled up at him. “Don’t you have a job?” “I’ll work from home,” Layton smiled at me as he picked me up in his arms and carried me to the car. He stopped when I whispered something in his ear. He turned. “Ladies?” They turned. “We would be quite pleased if you would join us for dinner. You as well, Mr. Dalton?” “Please?” I begged them. The quartet nodded and we all got into the rental car. Layton held me close as we went to the best Chinese place in town. For the next two hours, I saw a side of my husband I had not known existed. He was actually quite nice when he let himself relax and enjoy the company he was with. I woke up later as cramps hit and slipped out of bed. Nathaniel didn’t move. When I was finally feeling better, I went to the kitchen to make myself some dry toast and tea. Nathaniel came up behind me and I leaned into him with a sigh as his lips pressed to my shoulder. “So, my precious wife,” Nathaniel smiled as he leaned his cheek against mine, “you’re not finding marriage to me quite as horrible as you once did?” “I am finding that you are not quite the monster I believed you to be, Nathaniel,” I said honestly. I held out an empty teacup. “Would you like some?” He shook his head and took the cup from my hands. “I really need something to settle my stomach…” “You’re still feeling sick?” Layton looked down at me worriedly. He cupped my cheek in his hand and I leaned into the caress with a sigh. “Tomorrow, we call Doctor Stanley.” I started to protest and he shook his head slightly. “No more arguments, Kerrigan. I value you far too highly to take any chances with your health.” He took my lips with his as he picked me up. There was such tenderness in his touch that there was no hesitation in my response. I cared for this Nathaniel; the one who showed me that my needs were important to him. I heard something heavy fall but it didn’t register through the fog settling on my mind. It was the sound of a man’s cold laughter and hands clapping together that ended the spell I was under. “Four months married and still on your honeymoon?” Foster said snidely as he stepped into the room. “She must be something very special to keep you interested, Layton.” “Foster,” Nathaniel hissed as he set me down on my feet. He put his body between the intruder and myself. “What are you doing here?” “I never got a chance to congratulate you and your beautiful wife on your marriage,” Foster said as he ran his eyes over me insolently. “So is there an heir on the way yet?” “Kerrigan,” Nathaniel said softly as his hand moved back and pushed me gently towards the kitchen. His eyes never left Foster’s. “Why don’t you go fix that tea now?” I could practically see the tension between them and I did as I was told. I heard Foster’s snide comment about how ‘well trained’ I was and I wanted to smash my fist into his face. “My wife is not a pet, Foster,” Nathaniel’s comment hit me hard and made my heart soar. “She is an intelligent woman who knows when it is best to do as she’s asked.” I shot him a grateful smile and he winked at me. The door closed behind me and someone stepped in behind me and clamped their hand over my mouth. I struggled wildly as there was ether and then dizziness and darkness. The door opened and Foster pushed Layton into the kitchen where I was lying on the floor. “What have you done?” Layton roared as he pushed Foster’s man aside and pulled me into his arms. “Kerrigan!” He glared at Foster. “If you’ve hurt her, Foster; I’ll kill you!” “All you have to do is back off of that deal, Layton,” Foster said as he nodded to his man, “and you can have her back.” Layton was struck over the head with the knife block and he fell to the floor with a groan. “Don’t hurt the little beauty,” he hissed as his man yanked me up roughly. “She’s our key to billions now.” He ran his fingers along my jaw line. “We are going to treat her like a princess while she is our guest.” He looked down at Layton and laughed as he left through the kitchen exit with his man and his prisoner. Layton struggled to his knees a few moments later and stumbled to the phone. He hated having to do what he was about to do, but my life was truly in peril now. “Agent Kellogg,” he said when the line was answered. “This is Nathaniel Layton. My wife has just been abducted. I need you here in London as soon as possible.” He hung up and then called his people with a track and report order. They would keep their eyes on Foster and let him know where I was being held. Then he made another call. “Darius. It’s Layton,” he was fuming by the time he reached his business manager. “I need you to make it look like we’re backing out on the Metropolitan deal. No,” he shook his head when the man asked why. “You don’t need to know why. Just do as I ask.” He pressed the intercom. “Doctor Chambers. I need you up here immediately. There’s a problem.” He caught himself on the counter and stood there shaking as pain coursed through his head. When the doctor arrived, he had passed out again. He woke up in the hospital and saw James standing at his bedside. With him was his Interpol counterpart, who bore a very strong resemblance to Tad Dalton. Layton should have known that man was too sharp to be run of the mill security. He told them what had happened. “Get her back, James,” he said as he gripped the man’s arm. “I’ll give you what you’ve been asking for in exchange for her safe return.” “You’ll be signing your own death warrant if you do that,” James reminded his old friend. He saw the expression in Layton’s eyes. “She’s gotten to you, hasn’t she?” “If you’re asking me if I love my wife, James,” Layton said as he closed his eyes and leaned back, “the answer is yes. I would slit my own throat to see her safe and happy.” He opened his eyes to see the shock on James’ face. “I know,” he nodded slowly and regretted it. “Shocked the hell out of me, too, when I realized the truth.” He smiled for a moment. “She’s an angel, James. I never should have involved her in my world.” He drifted off then and James was stunned. He had known Layton their entire lives. They had been very close friends before Layton had fallen in with people who thought they owned the world and his entire worldview had shifted. He had become distant and smug and James had hated him. But if Layton was to be believed, and James had never known him to lie, then I had affected a change in him in the four months I had been in his life. Knowing me, James could see how that could happen. If he had not seen how much Joseph loved me, he would have pursued me himself. “Cheryl,” he said as he made the call, “our little Maggie is in trouble again. Her husband has called us in.” He heard her comment and smiled. “He is giving himself up in exchange for her safe return. Put your ladies on Foster.” He turned to Dalton. “You’ve been investigating this Foster. Would he hurt her, Dalton?” “In a heartbeat,” Dalton replied, “once she is no longer of use to him. So I suggest we hurry.” He looked at Layton. “Never thought I’d see that one fall.” “She’s something special, Dalton,” James said softly. “And she needs us.” I was standing at the locked French doors in the richly furnished suite I had woken up in when the doors opened. I saw Foster walk in and two large men closed the doors behind him. So I was under guard as well as locked up. That was useful information. I pulled the afghan I had found lying at the foot of the bed around me and met his insolent gaze with anger. I was still wearing the nightgown I’d been wearing when he had abducted me. “I trust the rooms are to your liking, Kerrigan,” he said as he came towards me slowly. “I have a woman coming in to see to your clothing issue.” He ran his eyes over me and I felt like he could see everything through the afghan and nightgown. “If your husband does as he is told you will only be here a few days.” “You expect me to believe that you are going to let me go?” I snapped at him. “Please don’t lie to me, Mr. Foster. I don’t appreciate it.” “You are a strange young woman,” Foster said as he looked at me pointedly. “I expected something quite different from one of Layton’s women.” “That is insulting,” I frowned at him. “You make far too many assumptions for a man of your alleged intelligence, Mr. Foster.” “Alleged?” Foster choked. He was on me so fast I didn’t even have time to protect myself. He slapped me so hard I knew he had injured my neck. He shoved me down on the couch as I fought as he started to kiss me and fondle me. “Don’t fight me, girl. I can be so much more appreciative than Layton ever was.” “Take your filthy hands off of me!” I screamed and raked my nails across his face. He jerked back and I shoved him off of me and ran to the bathroom. I locked the door and sank down against it, shaking at my near miss. I jumped as he pounded on the door. “Go away!” I sobbed as he continued beating. The pounding stopped and I got up and looked for some way out. The pounding started again, but I knew it was not Foster who was doing it. The door was coming off of its hinges. I ducked into the walk-in closet and waited until the door broke open and then I ran. I locked the doors to the suite and ran. I found the back stairs and made my way to the kitchen. “What is that noise?” a man snarled as I ducked into the pantry. He swept by and I ducked out and found a room full of uniforms. I found one that was close to my size and put it on. Alarms rang as I got outside. I was not letting him get his hands on me again, I told myself firmly as I found a place to hide among the hedges while men ran around the grounds searching. I heard his voice nearby and I got as small as I could. “She can’t have gotten far,” Foster snarled. I heard him slap someone. “So find her! If that girl gets off this estate, we are all in a great deal of trouble.” I moved around the hedge slowly and found myself looking at the front gate and a thick high wall. Two very large men were standing by the gate. There was no chance of my getting out that way. I hurried to the far wall and hid behind some large bushes as more men ran by. They were armed but I knew they would not shoot me. I was too valuable alive at the moment. “There she is!” a man called out nearby and I took off running. I saw two men moving in to cut me off and I veered off at the last moment and ran right into Foster and two of his men. “Take Mrs. Layton to the kitchen and see she is given a meal,” Foster said. “Then put her back in the guest room. Her door is to remain locked and guarded from this point on.” He slapped me and I glared at him coldly. “We won’t have a repeat of this little incident, Mrs. Layton, or I will have you beaten!” “Let me go!” I demanded as the men each took one of my arms and forced me back to the house. I kicked and struggled but they just smiled at me like I was a child and kept forcing me on. I did not know that an Interpol agent was photographing every move. The very motherly woman working in the kitchen saw to it that I had a good meal and then the men took me back up to the room and shoved me inside. I was not going to let them do this to me. I saw the phone and picked up the receiver. There was a dial tone so I called Layton. His voice came over the line and for a moment I couldn’t say a word. I did not hear the door open as I listened to him tell me it was all right. A hand covered my mouth and I was dragged back. Foster took the receiver out of my hand. “She only stays alive,” he said coldly to my husband, “if you do what you’re told, Layton.” He laughed as Layton said something. “Oh we’re treating her quite well, I assure you. How long that lasts is completely up to you.” He held out the receiver and nodded. “Come assure your husband that you are all right, Kerrigan, dear.” “Nathaniel?” I whimpered as the guard held my arm bent up behind my back. “You’re hurting me!” I sobbed as the guard tightened his hold. “Stop it!” “You have a very beautiful wife, Layton,” Foster laughed as after he yanked the receiver back to taunt my husband. “I had planned to see what it is about her that appeals to you.” He laughed as I went pale. He ran his eyes over me in a way that had me shaking in fear. He turned his eyes away from me. “The only thing stopping me for the moment is the fact that your lovely wife is pregnant.” “It’s not true!” I shook my head in disbelief. I raised my voice as I tried to pull free of the men holding me. “Don’t listen to him, Nathaniel. He’s lying to you!” “Are you willing to run that risk, Layton?” His expression went cold and deadly. “I had her tested when we arrived just to be certain. She’s been so sick.” He looked at my shocked expression. The man had been watching us? “Several months along, Layton.” He shook his head looked stern. “You took her the very first night she was yours, didn’t you? Hardly a thoughtful act, considering she’d only just gotten out of the hospital.” He ran his eyes over me insolently “Although I see the appeal, you ran a great risk of doing her damage with that selfish act.” I glared at him and he laughed. Then he went quite serious. “You have until the end of the work day tomorrow. I want to see a copy of the document you send to Metropolitan canceling your bid or your pretty wife will become my new playmate.” His men shoved me to the bed and I fell against it and remained on the floor as they left. Foster hung up the phone and smiled as he watched me struggling to my feet and I could see he meant what he had said. If he did not have that document by tomorrow evening, I would be in his bed. I had less than twenty-four hours to find a way out of this place. “I can see your fertile little mind working on another escape attempt, Kerrigan,” Foster laughed as I met his cold eyes. “It won’t do you any good. As soon as you’ve had your dinner, you will be sedated.” “No!” I protested. “Please, Mr. Foster…” “I have been assured that this sedative will not harm your child,” Foster broke in. “I need you quiet, my dear. I am having guests this evening and I do not want them disturbing you, or vice versa.” He came towards me then and I found myself pinned in the corner. His hand moved up to my cheek as I remained absolutely still. “It’s a pity. You are a very beautiful young woman. My guests would enjoy getting to know you.” He let me go with a laugh and I was alone in the room for the next two hours. I dozed off and woke to the sound of cars. I went to the windows and saw people in party clothes arriving. I enjoyed the sight for a while and did not turn as the door to the suite opened. When my visitor did not talk, I turned to see Cheryl standing there in a maid’s uniform. “Mr. Foster says you’re to eat now, Mrs. Layton,” she said in the most convincing English accent I had ever heard. “I’m to wait here to make certain you do.” “And I suppose he told you to make me eat if I refuse?” I snapped at her as I would if she were actually one of Foster’s people. “No, ma’am,” Cheryl shook her head and nodded towards the guards who were watching closely. “They will come make you eat.” I sat down at the table by the windows and Cheryl put the tray down. As she set the dishes out for me, she leaned close and told me to be ready to move. I told her they were going to sedate me and saw her frown. I knew this was going to create a problem for her and her people, but there was nothing I could do about it. Especially when I started to eat and realized that the sedative had been put in the soup I had been given. Cheryl helped me to bed and made me comfortable. Then she took the dishes to the kitchen and turned them over to the scullery maid. “They sedated her,” she said to a man standing in the shadows near the kitchen door when she went out to smoke a cigarette. “She’s not going to be able to help us.” The man nodded and moved off and Cheryl slipped away and got into one of the limos in line behind several others. By the time it got to the house, she stepped out in her evening dress with Liliana and Nora. The party went as planned for the first hour. People talked and danced and flirted. Foster was in his element as Cheryl and her friends targeted him and provided him with attention. He was as stunned as the rest of the guests when an automatic weapon went off nearby. He turned to see ten men in black with their faces covered surge into the house. One of them walked up to him and bowed his head. “Mr. Foster,” he snarled. “You forgot to send us an invitation.” He pulled Cheryl to his side and smiled down at her. “Lock the guests up in here and keep them under guard. Mr. Foster,” he continued as he nodded to two of his men and they grabbed him, “we need to talk.” Cheryl was astounded. They had not factored this into their action for tonight. She did not fight as the man took her along. They went into Foster’s office and the man was shoved into the chair behind the desk. He glared at the man holding her prisoner. “She doesn’t need to be here,” Foster protested as the man ran his gloved fingers over Cheryl’s lips and smiled warmly. “Let her go back to the others.” “Why would I do that?” the man laughed. “I want an unbiased witness here while we conduct our little transaction.” He made Cheryl sit down. “You just sit there and be beautiful, pretty lady.” Cheryl nodded and folded her hands in her lap. “Smart as well as beautiful. I think I’m in love.” “What do you want, Atwater?” Foster hissed. “I’ve already paid you.” “But you failed to mention, old man,” the man hissed, “that the man would send hunters after us once he had the girl.” “He gave you enough money to hide well,” Foster sniffed. “You should be in Rio now not here harassing me and my guests.” “We were in Rio,” Atwater snapped. “Imagine our surprise when we were met at the Airport by your welcoming party.” His eyes were cold now. “I hope none of them were important to you, Foster, because the piranhas made quite a mess of them.” He was pleased when the man actually paled. He had not thought Foster capable of true emotion. “You hired us to snatch the girl and sell her to Layton. We did that for you and we thought the job over. You should have left it at that.” “So I suppose now you’re going to slit my throat in retribution?” “Oh no, sir,” Atwater laughed. “Something far more painful.” He pulled out a piece of paper and set it down in front of him. “You are going to sign this little confession for me. Then we are going to take Mrs. Layton and the pretty lady here and the document with us. We will disappear and you will never hear from us again as long as you don’t make another move against us.” He saw Foster’s mind working. “You can continue to blackmail her grieving husband, Foster. We will keep the little lady hidden well.” “And why should I trust you, Atwater?” Foster asked bluntly. “Because we are saving your unworthy neck, Foster,” Atwater replied. He ripped Cheryl’s purse away and dumped its contents on the desk. “They’re moving in on you. If the girl is here when they arrive, you’re dead.” “FBI?” Foster hissed as he saw Cheryl’s badge. He didn’t have to think. “The girl is upstairs in the guest suite at the back of the west wing,” he said as he signed the document. “I’ll go with you…” “You’ll return to your guests,” Atwater corrected him. “My men and I can handle your goons.” He yanked Cheryl up to her feet. “Come along, pretty. You’re going to be our new toy while we keep the girl safe for Mr. Foster.” He shoved her to the desk. “Get your things.” Cheryl did as she was told. She put the document in her purse along with her badge and other belongings. Her gun was hidden on her person so it was not there for them to take. She had to go along with this for now. Someone had to be close to me to help when an opportunity to escape presented itself. The men left Foster in his office and went upstairs. The guards were shot and dumped in the guest suite. One of them came out carrying me in his arms and they left out the back. Cheryl saw the armed men coming towards the three vans waiting on the other side of the walls. “What the?” Gunfire went off and screams of frightened women filled the air. Cheryl took advantage of the distraction. She grabbed the gun from the man nearest her after driving her elbow into his jaw. Then she pointed the gun at the driver. “Turn off the van,” she said coldly, “or I’ll put a bullet in your brain.” The man complied and she cold-cocked him. She whirled as someone came at her and the butt of the weapon struck him across the jaw. He stumbled back and fell out the side of the van, moaning as the man Cheryl had taken out earlier fell on top of him. She shoved the driver out the door and engaged the locks. Then she sank down next to me with a sigh of relief. “Not quite how this was supposed to go down,” she laughed as she stroked my hair. She got behind the wheel and drove for the gate. When she pulled through it, she turned the wheel and brought the van into a position that blocked the gate for the two vans following. I was awake when the Interpol agents pulled in front of Scotland Yard. I knew I could not be under arrest but the men were not talking to me. I was escorted to a room upstairs and I cried in joy as I saw Layton waiting there. I threw my arms around him and kissed him warmly. When he did not put his arms around me I pulled back and saw the handcuffs. “Why are you under arrest?” I asked him. “You didn’t do anything wrong here.” “It was part of the deal,” Layton told me gently as he made me sit down. “If they got you back, I would turn myself in and give them the information they need to bring my associates down, as well.” He raised his bound hands to my cheek and I leaned into his touch. “I told you once that I was not exactly ethical about some of my business dealings, remember?” I nodded and could feel tears forming in my eyes. “That was a euphemism, Kerrigan. I am a criminal.” I shook my head in disbelief. “It is quite true, my precious one.” “That’s why James was investigating you,” I said softly as I remembered what James had told me the night I had met Layton. “You’re turning yourself in?” Layton nodded. “But you can’t! I need you, Nathaniel.” “No, Kerrigan,” Layton shook his head. “You need the man you love…” He put his fingers over my lips as I started to protest. “You do not love me, Kerrigan. What we had was becoming a very close and caring relationship, but it was never love.” “Is that what I tell our child?” I snapped as the hurt mounted inside of me. I pulled away from him and saw the shock on his face. “Yes, Nathaniel. Our child!” I was shaking now as he stepped away from me, shaking his head. I put my hand on my abdomen and glared at him. “The son or daughter you sired growing inside of me!” “You can’t be pregnant,” Layton said softly, his voice filled with distress. “It was a lie Foster told to keep you docile. I took every precaution to make certain…” “It didn’t work,” I broke in harshly. “Your carefully laid plans just did not work as you had hoped, Nathaniel.” I felt the dizziness strike and the nausea following. I went to the door and knocked on it. “I need the bathroom,” I said simply. The guard let me out and took me to the room. When I was through being sick, a man took me to an office and let me use the couch. “Maggie?” I looked up to see Joseph standing there. I sat up slowly, hating myself for what I had put him through. I was sobbing by the time he had his arms around me. How could he still want to touch me after what I had done? I clung to him as the storm continued. Joseph was my friend, he would never fail me; no matter what life threw at him. “It’s all right, Maggie,” he said softly. “I’m here now. I won’t let anyone hurt you again.” He looked up as the door opened and a man came in with a doctor’s bag. “What’s this?” “Mr. Layton is demanding proof of his wife’s claim,” the man replied. He took out a needle and took a blood sample. “We’ll know in fifteen minutes.” Joseph watched the man go and looked at my pale face. He could feel his heart breaking at the thought of me in that man’s bed. But Layton had been my husband for four months, how could he expect any man to keep his hands off me. He held my hand and we waited in silence. The doctor came back and he was looking at me quite sadly. He nodded and I burst into tears. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Layton,” he said simply. “It’s true. You are pregnant.” “It’s better to know,” I smiled at him weakly. “Thank you, Doctor.” He left and I went to look out the windows, my thoughts heavy. I might not have wanted to marry the man, but that did not change anything. I was carrying his child and he was headed to prison. I turned to Joseph. “What do I do now, Joseph?” “You are going to divorce him,” Joseph replied as he came to my side. “Then you and I will be married and your baby will be ours.” I looked up at him and saw he meant every word of what he had just said. But I couldn’t do that to him. I pulled away from him, shaking my head and I saw the hurt in his eyes. I couldn’t help it. I needed time to think about what was best for my child and my self. I was not going to go from a forced marriage to marriage with a man I cared for without knowing it was the right thing to do. “I need time, Joseph,” I told him bluntly. “Please let me think…” “Maggie…” His protest went unvoiced as the door opened. We turned to see Layton being brought in by a police officer. Joseph looked at me but my eyes were on my husband. He kissed me on the cheek and I squeezed his hand and nodded. Joseph and the officer left the office and I was alone with Layton. “I am having your child, Nathaniel,” I told him. “The tests confirmed it.” “They told me,” Layton said softly. “I never meant for it to happen, Kerrigan,” he continued, looking as if he had murdered me. “I wanted you to be able to walk away from our marriage without any ill feelings.” He went to the window. “I signed over everything I own to you the day I married you. Our child will have that.” “But not its father,” I said stiffly. “No,” Layton nodded. “I am giving you your freedom, Kerrigan. Can’t you be happy about that?” “I don’t know how to feel any more, Nathaniel,” I told him honestly. “You married me while I was unable to protest and I hated you for that. But,” I said as I moved closer, “I have grown to care for you.” I saw the expression in his eyes willing me to quiet but I would not keep the truth from him. “I know you love me, Nathaniel.” He looked at me in shock. I smiled briefly. “I am a very perceptive person, remember?” He nodded. “What I feel for you might one day have been love, of a sort, but we’ll never know now, will we?” I took his hand in mine and laid it on my abdomen. “Whatever else happens, our child will know that we cared for each other.” “Kerrigan!” Nathaniel choked. He pulled me into his arms and kissed me and I knew my feelings were true. He did love me. That was why he was sacrificing himself now. “My beloved wife!” Someone knocked on the door and he nodded. “Our time together will be a cherished memory for me, my love.” I watched him start for the door and I was sobbing at the loss of what we might have had. Then I heard a strange popping noise and watched as the glass shattered in the window. A small projectile was followed by two more and they struck Layton in the back and in the head. I screamed and fell to my knees as he kept falling forward. The door opened and the police officer went green as he saw Layton on the floor in a pool of blood. James pushed him aside and helped me up as I continued to scream. I pushed him away but he held on and got me out of the room. “He’s still alive,” the doctor snapped as he examined my fallen husband. “Get him to the hospital now!” He saw me and looked at James. “Keep her here.” “No, I want to be with my husband,” I said as I got to my feet. But I wasn’t on my feet long before the darkness rose up and dragged me down. I came back to my senses to see a woman in a white uniform preparing a shot. “No drugs!” I shook my head and tried to get up. “You’ll hurt my baby!” “We’re not going to hurt your baby, Maggie,” James said gently as he made the woman back off. He sat down and took my hands in his. “I wish I could tell you…” “Oh my God!” I sobbed and pushed him aside. I ran for the bathroom and was ill at the thought of the man I had come to care for dead. I heard the door open as I was rinsing out my mouth and Cheryl was standing there. I could tell what she was going to say from the expression on her face. “He’s dead.” “I’m sorry, Maggie,” Cheryl said honestly. “I know you cared for the man.” I started crying then and I was still at it as she helped me back to the office. I saw an older woman sitting there with a stricken expression on her pale face. This woman could only be Layton’s mother, was my thought as she rose to her feet and held her arms out to me. I went to her and we held each other tight until I stopped crying. Then she wiped my face and gave me one more hug. “Kerrigan, dear,” she said softly. “You’ll come home with me until the funeral.” I looked at her in confusion. “You’re in no condition to be without family right now and I consider you my daughter.” She laid her hand on my cheek. “My son loved you quite dearly.” I could feel the tears coming again. “I know, precious. You’re hurting terribly right now. We’ll get you home and see that you are well cared for.” “Mrs. Layton,” Cheryl said as the woman got me to my feet. “There will be questions…” “They can come to the penthouse,” Daphne sniffed. “Kerrigan’s health is my only concern right now. The poor child is in shock, can’t you see that?” I didn’t fight her as she got me out the door and we headed outside. There was a Rolls Royce waiting with a chauffeur. I was settled inside with a glass of brandy and my mother-in-law, a woman I had not ever met, made me sip at it as she tucked a blanket around me. I knew she meant well so I went along with her. I had to think and one place was as good as another to do that in. “Here you go, darling,” Daphne smiled at me as she held out a pill and a glass of water. “You sleep now. When you wake up, you’ll feel much more capable of facing things.” “No,” I shook my head. “I don’t want to take anything, Mrs. Layton…” “You will call me Mother, please,” Daphne broke in as she forced the pill into my hand. “And isn’t there a little adage about Mother knowing best? This is a very mild sedative, it won’t hurt the child you’re carrying.” I could see she was not going to let me refuse so I took the pill and washed it down. “That’s a good girl. You do what Mother says and we’ll get through this tragic time together.” There was a knock on the door and a woman in a maid’s uniform came in. “This is Elise. She is your maid.” She laid her hand against my cheek, a caress Layton had often made, and I burst into tears again. “Elise, help my daughter into her nightclothes and stay with her. No one is to disturb her, is that clear?” “Yes, ma’am,” Elise nodded. She went to the closet and came out with my nightgown. I looked at my mother-in-law for some explanation. “Nathaniel had your things sent over the day after that nasty man abducted you, Kerrigan,” she explained. “He was planning on your staying with me when he…” She bit her lip and shook her head. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow, darling. You need to rest.” I wanted to say something to make her feel better but I was too busy being ill. I stumbled to the bathroom and lost the pill I’d just been given. I realized then that I hadn’t eaten for some time and I mentioned this to Daphne. She sent Elise to get me a light meal. Once I had eaten, and it stayed down, she gave me another pill and I went to bed. It felt good to have someone looking after me right now. I fell asleep as my mother-in-law sat beside me stroking my hair gently with a sad smile on her face. Daphne was sitting next to me in the living room the next morning when the inspectors arrived to question me about Layton’s shooting. I told them what I could and they left with their empty assurances that they would find out who had murdered my husband. I had a feeling they would never find out who had committed the crime. “There is no reason for you to remain in England, Mrs. Layton,” Inspector Sykes said to me kindly. “If you wish, I can have you taken to the airport now…” “She must remain in England until the will is read,” Daphne broke in firmly. I looked at her and saw the fear and determination in her eyes. She patted my hand and smiled at me kindly. “Kerrigan will stay with me until then.” I started to protest and she shook her head. “You know it’s for the best, dear.” She was so concerned I did not have the heart to refuse her. So I merely nodded and the Inspector noted this information in the file. We went to the penthouse and Daphne and I shared lunch. I was sick almost immediately afterwards and she had Elise make some broth and then sent me to bed like a child. After a week the morning sickness began to fade. I was left feeling completely exhausted and I wondered how I found the strength to attend Layton’s funeral. The sight of my friends standing across from me made the tears come again. I thought about Layton then and my tears were not feigned. I had come to care for this man and someone had shot him down before he could make his life count for something. It wasn’t right. “Are you feeling all right, Maggie?” Maxine asked when she got me alone at the reception later. “You look so pale.” “I’m starting to feel better, Maxie,” I said softly as I sank down on a chair nearby with the water I’d been sipping for the past hour. “The worst of the morning sickness is over.” I felt a familiar and hated sensation and I ran to the nearest bathroom. Maxine followed me and Cheryl soon joined her. “Oh Maxie!” I sobbed as she held me. “I’m so scared. I don’t know what to do.” “That’s what we’re here for, Maggie,” Cheryl said gently as she wiped my face for me. I nodded even as I smiled briefly. “Don’t worry,” she continued as she handed me a glass of water so I could rinse out my mouth. “We’ll help you.” The door opened and Daphne sailed in, looking distressed. “Kerrigan, darling,” she crooned as she helped me to my feet. “I knew you should have gone to bed sooner. I should have insisted you stay home.” She nodded to Maxine and Cheryl and herded me off before I could stop her. I found myself in my room being turned over to Elise. “Bring Dr. Stanley up here, Elise. This has gone on much too long.” When the maid was gone, Daphne stroked my cheek. “Poor darling Kerrigan. It would kill me if anything happened to you now. Your child and you are all I have left of my son.” I saw something in her eyes that disturbed me suddenly and I was frightened for her. She wasn’t going to let me leave. With Layton gone, his mother had no one left and was fixating on me. The door opened and I saw the doctor who had been treating me for Layton walk in. He had his bag with him. “Elise tells me you aren’t feeling well, Kerrigan,” he smiled at me gently as he examined me. “Tell me what’s been going on.” He nodded as he heard my symptoms and took a prescription pad out of his bag. “We’ll get you something to help with the nausea.” He patted my hand. “Lots of fluids, plenty of rest, and regular healthy meals. If you continue to have these attacks, we’re going to have to put you in the hospital.” “No hospital,” I shook my head firmly. I laid back and closed my eyes. “It’s just morning sickness,” I said fervently. “Another day or two and I’ll be just fine.” “If you continue to remain this sick, Kerrigan,” Stanley told me bluntly, “you will be dehydrated to the point where we will have to put you on an IV to hydrate you. We have to take care of your child and you.” He put his hand on mine. “Layton would insist…” “Nathaniel isn’t here,” I sobbed. “He should be here.” I let the tears fall then and turned away from him, hugging a pillow to my chest as I continued to mourn the loss of my husband. It struck me then that I had more than cared for Layton. I had fallen in love with the man. His absence in my life had left me uncertain and afraid and I did not like it one bit. “I need him and he isn’t here!” “Oh Kerrigan,” Daphne cried out in dismay and came over to hold me. “You really loved him, didn’t you?” “Of course I loved him,” I looked up at her in confusion. “How could I not love him?” I looked up at her in distress. “Why did he have to die, Mother? It’s not right for him to be gone when I need him.” My hand moved to my abdomen. “We both need him.” Daphne held me closer and I felt her shaking. I knew she was sharing my grief fully this time. She had been holding back her own feelings from me, I realized; afraid to be honest with someone she had not been certain shared them. She did not let me go until I had finished crying and then she sat there stroking my hair until I fell asleep. “Is it really as serious as that, Stanley,” Daphne asked as she and the doctor left my room. “Hospitalization?” “It isn’t good for the child if she becomes dehydrated, Daphne,” Stanley replied. “I should take her now but you saw how she felt about the suggestion.” He ran his hand through his thick golden brown hair. “Not that I blame her after undergoing heart surgery so recently, but we don’t want to risk losing your son’s heir.” He smiled at her then. “This pretty child is carrying the future of the Layton family.” “Layton would have been such a loving father,” Daphne’s grief was doubled at this thought. She did not hesitate. “You do everything you must to assure she carries this child full term.” “She’s a healthy young woman,” Stanley replied, “so that should be no problem.” He went to the phone and called the pharmacy he used to order the medication. “She’s to take this until the episodes end.” He looked back towards the door. “Light meals every three hours should keep the worst of it at bay.” Daphne nodded and saw the man downstairs. She was not surprised in the least to see Maxine and Cheryl waiting for her in the living room. The other visitors had gone so the only reason these two were here was because they really cared about the girl. “Come into the study,” Daphne nodded. The mother and daughter followed her. “Can I get you something to drink?” she asked as she poured herself a glass of wine. Her guests shook their heads and she sat down and took a sip. She rubbed her temples and sighed. “This has been so hard on her. She’s going to need all of us now.” “Is she feeling all right?” Maxine asked her friend. Daphne nodded. “Pregnant on top of widowed. Poor Maggie.” “It will be a struggle, Maxine,” Daphne broke in, “but she’s a fighter.” She looked very sad. “I have not known her very long, but I have come to care for her very deeply. I can see how my son fell in love with her.” “He loved her?” Cheryl exclaimed. “When did that happen?” “The first moment he saw her,” Daphne told the younger woman. She smiled sadly. “He called me that very night and told me he had just met the only woman he would ever want as his wife. He was practically gushing as he told me about her.” She looked at Maxine. “You’ve known my son most of his life, Maxine. Have you ever known him to gush?” For the next hour the trio shared stories of Layton and a bottle of wine. Maxine could tell this was what Daphne needed. Daphne called the butler and had him prepare guest rooms for them so they could spend the night. Maxine agreed but Cheryl had things she needed to take care of. “We’re moving on to our next location, actually. I have to go home and pack,” Cheryl got to her feet. “I’ll be by tomorrow to say goodbye on the way to the airport.” She pulled out her cell phone and was already dialing. “K? It’s C. We have a problem.” She was halfway to her car before she realized something. “Get a team here to keep an eye on Maggie. I have a feeling she’s going to need us.” I looked at the obstetrician in utter disbelief. I didn’t care what the tests said, it just was not possible that I was four months pregnant. That meant I had gotten that way the very first night Layton had sex with me. She assured me that it was true and decided an ultrasound was probably in order just to reassure me. “There we are, Kerrigan,” she smiled as she nodded to the monitor. “Your baby.” I looked at the monitor and saw my child. “Looking very healthy and quite secure.” She let me listen to its heartbeat and I was convinced. She nodded to her nurse. “Help her dress and bring her to my office.” She turned to my mother-in-law. “If you would join me, Mrs. Layton?” Daphne followed her and did not like the woman’s serious expression as Rosemary closed the door. She didn’t say a word as she made her way to her chair. “I understand that your daughter-in-law had heart surgery just before she married your son, Mrs. Layton. We’re going to have to monitor this pregnancy very closely.” “You think she could lose the child?” Daphne choked. “That would kill her, Doctor.” “The child is quite healthy at this point,” Rosemary replied. “I’m thinking more of Kerrigan’s health. We must do all we can to insure that she receives the best care possible. Keep her from stressful situations as much as you can. From what I’ve heard about your daughter-in-law, she will push herself if no one is there to stop her.” She looked at Daphne. “Once she feels well enough to travel, let her go back to Iowa if that is what she wants.” “You’ve heard something, haven’t you?” Daphne looked at the other woman sharply. “They aren’t satisfied yet?” “All I’m saying is that you should take your daughter-in-law somewhere she will be able to relax,” Rosemary evaded the direct question. “I can say nothing more, you know that.” There was a knock on the door and Kerrigan stepped inside. “Ah, the mother-to-be. Please sit down, Kerrigan.” She smiled as she saw me holding the photo they’d taken of the baby. “Your first image of your child,” she nodded. “How does that make you feel?” “I’m stunned,” I told her. “I still can’t believe that this child is in its fourth month. He or she was conceived the very first time Nathaniel and I…” I blushed as I remembered that first time. I had hated him for what he was doing to me then. “My husband and I were not very close at first,” I told the woman honestly. “We only came to realize we truly loved each other later.” “And now you have a little person growing inside of you,” Rosemary smiled gently, “who will remind you of your late husband for the rest of his or her life. How does that make you feel?” “Are you an obstetrician or a psychiatrist?” I asked the woman bluntly. “How am I supposed to feel?” I got to my feet and went to the window. I always felt better when I was looking out at a view. This one was quite lovely. I could see Saint Paul’s Cathedral from her office. “I lost the man I had grown to love only to find he left me alone with his child growing inside of me.” I was being quite honest now. “I am angry and I am hurt and I am frightened.” I looked over at Daphne. “I want to go back to Briarton, Mother.” “And we shall, Kerrigan,” Daphne nodded as she came to stand next to me. “Once the will has been read and you are feeling a bit stronger.” She looked at Rosemary. “The doctor will write some prescriptions for you and then we will join Maxine and Cheryl at the Savoy.” I nodded and remained at the window. I saw a man standing out on the street below and something about him sent terror flooding through me. His blue eyes met mine and my hand went to my abdomen. I turned away quickly, fighting the fear he’d instilled in me. I was so tired of being afraid. “Daphne,” I asked as I turned from the window and stepped out of the line of imaginary fire, “how soon before we can leave?” “The reading is this afternoon, Kerrigan,” Daphne replied. “If you’re feeling strong enough, we can leave in two days.” She saw my look and wished then she could make it sooner. “There are arrangements that need to be made, darling.” I nodded and we left the medical building and went to the Savoy where Maxine and Cheryl were waiting. I told Cheryl what I had seen and she assured me that someone was keeping an eye on me. The rest of the lunch was spent happily discussing the pregnancy. Maxine and Daphne were doting grandmothers and Cheryl was already in full-blown big sister mode. We went to the lawyer’s office in Daphne’s Rolls and walked in to find James waiting for us. “Now that the heirs are all present,” the lawyer nodded, “we will begin the reading of the will of Nathaniel Nicholas Layton, Earl of Sotherby.” I was so stunned by this claim of nobility that I wasn’t listening fully to the will as it was read. Layton had told me he had left me everything so I wondered why we were even bothering with a reading. “As for Layton Industries, it is my wish that James Kellogg stand as my wife’s representative. The townhouse at St James Place shall be available for his use but remain the property of my wife, Kerrigan Grady Layton, Lady Sotherby.” I paid attention then and looked over at James who was looking back at me for approval. I knew why this had been done. James was going in to clean house and I wished him every success. I nodded to him and he looked relieved. Had he really thought I would fight him on this move? I heard the rustling of papers and turned to the lawyer, who was pulling a briefcase out from under the desk. “Lady Sotherby,” he smiled at me gently. “Inside this case you will find all the deeds and other documents pertaining to your inheritance. I am certain you will wish to look them over at your leisure.” He pushed a paper towards me. “This is your acceptance of the inheritance and the conditions for your receiving it.” “Conditions?” I looked at him in confusion. He must have covered that while I was not listening. I looked at the paper and I saw what Layton had set as the conditions. “1) Follow your instincts, 2) Do what makes you happy, and 3) Remember I loved you.” I burst into tears and found myself in James’ arms. He stroked my hair as I sobbed, wondering how it was possible for me to have any tears left after this last week. When it was over, I signed the document happily and left the office with my friends. Four hours later, I was getting ready to board the corporate jet to return to Briarton when a car pulled up. He handed me a large envelope as two very large burly men carried several boxes on board the jet. Inside of them, according to the letter accompanying yet more documents and a listing of contents, was Layton’s personal and childhood property. According to his wishes, he wanted his child to have what was inside of them when they were old enough to enjoy them and left that timing to my discretion. As boxes of every shape and size were put into the cargo hold, I sank down on the steps into the jet. “Lady Layton will be visiting you soon,” the lawyer continued in his kind but brisk manner, “to go over the remainder of this bequest with you. I believe she wishes to assure herself that you and her grandchild are safely settled in your home in Briarton.” I nodded numbly and watched him leave. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up to see Joseph standing there. I laid my hand on his and smiled weakly. I had a feeling my life was never going to be what it had been. I went aboard, praying that it would at least be free of the violence that had touched me over the past several months. I could see from the looks on Maxine and Joseph’s faces that they were determined to do whatever was necessary to make that happen for me. James stood on the tarmac watching the jet leave. He did not move when a man with intense blue eyes moved up next to him, holding a chauffeur’s cap in his hand. This was the same man who had been watching me from the street outside of the obstetrician’s office. “You’re certain you had to go this far, old friend?” he asked as they watched the jet until it disappeared. “I can’t do what needs to be done if I’m worrying about her, James,” Layton said simply. “Everyone believes I am dead now and they will leave her alone. I’ll be able to move freely.” He laid his hand on James’ arm. “Take care of her for me.” “You can count on that,” James nodded. He saw the look in his friend’s eyes. “Ready to go to war?” “More than ready,” Layton nodded. He went into servant mode in a blink. “Your car is ready, sir. Where to first?” “The office,” James replied. “No sense in wasting time.” “Very good, sir.”

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Tag der Veröffentlichung: 11.01.2010

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