Bend But Never Break

by Cheryl Phipps

  ‘We’ve been unable to locate any older notes on you, but it would seem likely that not too long ago you suffered internal damage?’

  ‘Yes that’s true but it healed.’

  ‘It would appear it wasn’t healed fully. Because of a blow you received last night, your spleen ripped, aggravating the old injury. There was a lot of tissue damage and scarring, therefore we had to remove most of it, but you’re young and very healthy, otherwise, so you should live a long, healthy life. You’re going to need a quiet place to relax and recuperate after you’re discharged. We’ve given you some strong medication, but if you do begin to feel uncomfortable, just ring for a nurse. Is there anything else I can do?’

  ‘No, thank you. I’ll be fine. When can I leave?’

  ‘Oh, I shouldn’t worry about that right now. Perhaps in a couple of days we can reassess you.’ He looked back at Nick. ‘Please don’t stay too long or upset my patient.’

  Once they were alone, there was a lengthy silence,

  ‘Do you feel up to discussing things?’ Nick looked at her intently.

  ‘What, in particular?’

  ‘The things you’ve been hiding from me. I know quite a bit but I’d like the whole story.’

  ‘As a cop?’

  ‘I am a cop, but firstly, I’m a man who cares about you.’

  Talia thought about it, but only for a moment. If there was a chance it would help locate Chloe she had to be totally honest.

  ‘I was working in an art gallery when I first met Randall. He’d become friends of my parents, like I told you. One day, he came in to work and asked me to recommend some paintings to buy for his new house. It’s a free service we provided, so there was nothing unusual about his request. He started to come more frequently until I told him I wouldn’t date him while he was a customer. So when I had finished advising him, we went out a few times. He wanted me to host his dinner parties and I was flattered. I didn’t know what he did, just that he was some sort of entrepreneur.’ She turned and looked out the window, the memories of her life of lies painful.

  ‘When my family died, he stepped into the void and seemed to offer a solution to my loneliness. As soon as we were married, everything changed. It was only a few months before I realised I’d made a huge mistake and by then, I was pregnant. He hated the idea of a child, told me to get an abortion,’ she flinched just saying the word. ‘So I moved out and filed for a divorce. He let me go but I had to do certain things for him.’

  ‘What things?’

  ‘I allowed him space in our containers for his own goods. I swear, at that stage I didn’t know he was dealing with drugs.’

  ‘Go on.’

  ‘That last time, when his boys picked me up, they said Randall was signing the divorce papers. I saw them on the table and they were signed.’ She laughed hollowly. ‘But it was actually a ruse to get me there. After I explained that I couldn’t be a party to his dealings, he let those men beat me and left me to die. You know the rest. A stranger happened by, and for reasons I could never fathom, he took me home and got me all the medical attention I needed. He taught me to fight, and made me want to live to see my daughter safe.’

  ‘Actually, I was the one who found you and took you to Kirk.’

  He couldn’t have surprised her more.

  ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’

  ‘Probably for the same reason that you didn’t trust me to get Chloe back at the same time as catching Randall - trust. It’s a hard enough thing to come by at the best of times, let alone when you’re dealing with criminals on a day-to-day basis.’

  Her cheeks flamed. ‘I’m sorry about that, but I had no reason to trust anyone after Randall.’

  ‘Apart from Kirk?’

  ‘Kirk is the sweetest, most honest man in the world, even if he acted like an old bear at times. He never gave me a reason to doubt him.’

  Nick shifted uncomfortably.

  ‘What’s happened? Is there something else you’re not telling me?’

  ‘I would’ve liked to wait until you were better, but you’ll want to know that Kirk left a prearranged message for me.’

  ‘What did it say?’

  Nick seemed to be struggling with his emotions. Eventually, he pulled out his phone and replayed the message.

  “If that’s you, my friend, then I’ve failed for the second time. You were right. She was worth it. It’s up to you now.”

  The message finished and she tried to comprehend what he meant but drew a blank. ‘I don’t understand. How did he fail twice? And where is he?’

  ‘The first time was when I caught him in his old job as an assassin. Kirk prided himself on his skills, and he should never have been found out, but I’d had an anonymous tip. He was ‘taking care’ of people that were the scum of society, but I convinced him to use his skills in a non-criminal way after that.’

  ‘Kirk was a killer? But he was so gentle with me. I never felt threatened and he must have spent a fortune on my rehabilitation. It sounds like you’re talking about someone else.’

  ‘In spite of his background, Kirk was a man of honour, with plenty of contacts who valued his skills, so you were safer with him than any other person I know. And I wouldn’t worry about him spending money. Kirk was always paid well.’

  She took a minute to get her head around all this before speaking again. ‘And the second time he failed?’

  ‘Randall must have found out about him helping you.’

  ‘I persuaded Kirk to help me get Chloe back. He was on the island at a location in town.’

  ‘Okay, give me the address and I’ll check it out,’ Nick said, obviously exasperated at their deception.

  ‘Do you know where he is?’

  ‘I have no idea but that message would only play if he couldn’t get near that particular phone. Only I had the number.’

  ‘He’s dead?’

  ‘At the very least, they’ve captured him – but I suspect he is, yes.’

  Tears welled up in her eyes. ‘It’s my fault. I desperately wanted to trust you, but I couldn’t leave my daughter’s fate to chance, which is how it felt from the beginning. I’m so sorry. If I hadn’t been in such a hurry to get away from you, they would never have found him. I bet they followed me,’ she said, allowing the tears to flow.

  ‘Shhhh. I’ll find Randall or his body and I’ll get Chloe back.’ Nick pulled her into his arms.

  It felt good to have him comfort her, but she couldn’t help but see Kirk’s face, and she shuddered to think what Randall would do to her dear friend. She wouldn’t allow herself to think he could harm Chloe – not physically, at least.

  ‘Talia?’

  She raised her tear-streaked face and he pushed back her hair, lightly kissing her forehead and finally her lips. The kiss was so gentle and tender. She closed her eyes and sighed.

  Nick laid her back onto the pillow. ‘You’re exhausted and the doctor’s going to kick me out any minute. Try to rest. The sooner you get better, the sooner we can get you out of here. I won’t be far away if you need me.’

  She welcomed sleep to escape from the knowledge that a good man had probably died for her. Her daughter was still out there somewhere, and undoubtedly Randall was, too. As much as she wished he had been killed in the explosion, if he was alive, she had hope that they would find Chloe. He was probably the only one who knew her whereabouts.

  ***

  Nick paced the corridor, dwelling on everything Talia had said. His heart was heavy. There was a leak and it had to be one of his key people. The thought of someone, hand-picked, betraying the team, betraying him, made him feel ill, but he had to find out who it was before he took another move against Randall. There was no point in putting them all in danger if the outcome was going to be the same.

  A tap on his shoulder made him jump. The sooner he got out of this line of work, the better. His skills as a detective seemed non-existent.

  ‘How’s she doing?’ Jack asked. Emma stood behind him, her arm in a
sling.

  ‘I think she’s going to be okay. You’re looking a bit better than the last time I saw you,’ he said to Emma.

  She gave a small smile while Jack just stood there. Clearly, they wanted explanations.

  ‘Come with me and I’ll fill you in.’

  They sat in the cafeteria and over coffee, Nick told them of Talia’s world before they knew her. He told them everything a piece of paper could not.

  ‘Shit, the poor woman. It’s a lot worse than her file says. And no one has any idea where her daughter is?’ Jack was straight to the point.

  ‘No, and she looked sick when I said Randall might still be alive. Which leads me to our biggest problem. Someone knows more than they’re telling.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Randall knew everything. He as much said that he had an informer who told him Talia was on the island. He knew where we were staying and he was so sure he could contain us, he allowed the deal to go down. We found a tunnel leading to a hidden underground boat ramp. Someone had to have helped him get away and someone fed him the information. I know for sure it wasn’t Talia and I know it wasn’t us, so it must be someone working in our team. Any suggestions?’

  Emma looked pale. ‘I’ll hunt around see what I can dig up.’

  ‘Me, too,’ Jack added, looking equally upset.

  Nick got to his feet. ‘This is such a stuff-up, and I know you two will be feeling as bad as I do about a leak. Let’s go talk to Talia.’

  Talia had slept soundly for the first time in months, due, no doubt, to the drugs they had pumped into her last night. The doctor had been in already, and as soon as he checked her new blood results, she would be able to leave. She’d be glad to get out of here, but where should she go? She’d been living at Kirk’s place since the beating and she had no idea how she would get her clothes back from there or the island. A wave of self-pity enveloped her, so she was floundering for more tissues and didn’t hear the door open.

  ‘Here, let me get them for you.’ Nick pulled a box off the trolley and put them in her hands.

  Through misty eyes, she took them gratefully. ‘Sorry, I can’t seem to stop the waterworks,’ she sniffed.

  ‘I’d be surprised if you weren’t upset. After what you’ve been through, it wouldn’t surprise me if you were throwing things and cursing me.’

  His kindness made her cry harder, especially when he took her hand, patting it awkwardly.

  ‘Since we met, your life hasn’t been too easy, and after I promised to get Chloe back, here you are stuck in a hospital bed with only me for company - the guy that ruined all your plans.’

  ‘I don’t want you to blame yourself, Nick. You saved my life and because of my stubbornness and mistrust, I put you and your partners in danger. It could have turned out so much worse. I’m very grateful to you and, of course, Jack and Emma. How are they, by the way?’

  ‘How about you ask them yourself?’

  As if on cue, they both walked in. Obviously, they’d been waiting to see if she was interested in seeing them or not.

  ‘Hi, Talia.’ Jack bent to kiss her cheek. ‘You look much better this morning. When can you leave?’

  ‘As soon as the doctor checks my latest blood works. Hi, Emma.’

  ‘Hi, Talia. You look a bit worse for wear.’

  ‘I guess we all have our war wounds.’ She nodded at Emma’s sling.

  ‘So what are you going to do now?’ Emma sat on her bed.

  ‘I have no idea.’

  ‘Why can’t you use the flat that’s listed as your last known address?’

  Talia was a little surprised that Emma knew about it, since it was in her maiden name, but they probably knew everything about her by now. There was no point in having any secrets. ‘When the mortgage wasn’t paid, they foreclosed on it. It wasn’t really much of a home. I just needed somewhere to take Chloe that Randall didn’t know about.’ Her eyes misted at the thought of not having that option.

  ‘You need a place where you can heal,’ Nick said.

  ‘I could stay in my parents’ house. It’s been empty for quite a while. Randall told me he hated the place, and we never went there after we were married. Which was okay by me – too many memories.’ She rubbed a hand across her eyes. ‘What happens next? About Randall and Chloe?’ Talia dared to ask.

  ‘We’ll keep looking for both of them and you’ll have surveillance on you for some time in case he comes looking for you.’

  ‘He’ll come, all right,’ Emma said matter-of-factly.

  ‘We don’t know for certain that he’s alive,’ Jack interjected.

  ‘Talia needs to be prepared.’

  Talia appreciated Emma’s honesty but she seemed to take pleasure in Talia’s fear. She was clearly still in love with Nick, so it must be hard for her to see him breaking the rules for another woman, by letting Talia be so involved in the case and not having her arrested as an accessory.

  ‘I think she needs some rest. Let’s leave her for a while.’ Nick turned back to her and his face softened. There’s a policeman outside your door until you leave. I’ll be back soon.’

  True to his word, he was back by the time she’d had a small nap. The doctor arrived soon after and she was given the all clear to leave. Nick went to the door.

  ‘Right. You get dressed and I’ll take you home.’

  ‘There’s no need. I can get a taxi,’ she protested.

  ‘No way. I want to know you’re settled and that’s final.’

  Talia smiled as the door closed. When he eventually did leave her, she was going to miss him - his bossy ways, his thoughtfulness and a lot more, besides.

  ***

  Instead of dropping her off and leaving her life, Nick had been a constant presence for the last week. At first he came to give her updates on Chloe, not that there was much to report, and gradually, his visits grew longer. Talia wondered if he was feeling sorry for her, but after many hours in his company, she’d realised he wanted to be with her.

  They could spend hours talking about nothing and everything. He never seemed bored with her, nor did he seem to want her for anything else other than friendship. At first, she’d been happy about that, but now her body yearned for him to kiss her again, to touch her, to make love to her. She was afraid she was falling in love with him.

  Tonight he was coming by for dinner after work. She’d already prepared a pot roast and the table was set. Giving it a last appraisal, she tweaked a couple of flowers. Not bad, she thought. Talia had been a damn good hostess for Randall, but this evening was as far removed from that as night from day. She’d never felt this way about any man. Tonight, as much as it scared her, she planned to seduce Nick. She wasn’t sure how this would go but she was going to give it her all. First a nice bubble bath, then she’d put on the cute little dress she’d found in the back of her old wardrobe.

  The phone rang as she was getting out of the bath. She threw a towel around herself and ran to pick it up.

  ‘Hello. Hello. Is there anyone there?’ Silence greeted her. She knew someone was on the line but he or she refused to speak. She flung the phone back in the cradle. This had happened repeatedly over the last few days and she was beginning to think it was the same person. She didn’t know why; it was just a feeling. She would tell Nick tonight.

  She’d spent more time on her appearance than ever before, so it was a bit disconcerting when she finally opened the door to Nick and his mouth dropped open and he made no move to enter. He eventually handed over a bottle of wine but continued to stare.

  Unsure of herself, Talia stood back. ‘Is there something wrong? Aren’t you coming in?’ She had an urge to find a mirror to make sure there was nothing stuck to her face. She rubbed her suddenly sweaty palms over her hips.

  He shook his head but came into the hall. ‘Sorry. You look fabulous. What’s the occasion? Did I miss something? Hey, it’s not your birthday, is it?’

  Blushing furiously, Talia walked into the kitchen. ‘Don�
�t be silly. Can’t a girl dress up now and again?’

  Nick followed, scratching his head, probably wondering why she was so annoyed with him all of a sudden. ‘Sure, I just feel like a slob next to you.’

  He reached up to get wine glasses from her cupboard and she couldn’t help but notice the way his jeans and polo shirt pulled across his muscles. His thighs strained the seams and his butt was firm. She gulped as she imagined him naked, in a statue-of-David pose.

  ‘Are you all right, Talia? You look flushed. Maybe you have a fever.’

  Yes, she sure as hell did. ‘It’s probably from the cooking. The oven’s been on for a few hours.’

  ‘Oh, right. Shall I carry the dish?’ He tried to take it from her.

  ‘No that’s fine. I’ve got it. You could take the wine, though,’ she added, feeling nervous.

  He followed her through to the small dining room and watched as she fussed with serving him the meal, making sure he had enough of everything. He couldn’t stop looking at her. She was stunning. Her eyes were sparkling and reflecting back the shade of her turquoise dress. The way she looked at him over the rim of her wineglass sent flickers of lust into his groin. Her skin had a peachy glow that had been the result of time spent in her garden, and was now enhanced by the candlelight. She looked wonderfully alive. Nick had wanted her desperately for the longest time, but after all that had happened, he’d forced himself to take things slowly.

  The familiar ache he felt around her had begun as soon as she’d opened the door and he’d seen her in that dress. God, she looked like some sea sprite with her hair still a little damp from a recent shower. The blonde had been replaced by her normal colouring, since there’d been no reason to keep up the disguise. No matter if Randall was alive or dead, her cover was well and truly blown. So now the rich auburn was a mass of curls. The natural and unaffected look only fanned the flame of his desire for her. Her breasts rose and fell in the low-cut satin dress and with each breath, he could feel his self-control weakening.

  The food was pushed around on both of their plates, and for the most part, uneaten. Conversation had become a bit stilted when Talia got up and came to his end of the table.