“Well you should be.” Elizabeth said her revitalized confidence dwindled with her lack of connection with Leo. Her hand unconsciously flickered against her ear for some form of reassurance; panic filled her when she felt nothing. ‘Why had she felt so confident that she could do this?’ She thought as her mind raced, wondering how much more time she had, the gun on her leg suddenly heavy.
Her panicky thoughts quickly left her when she felt Roger pull back her head painfully by her hair. His face above hers as he pulled her head one way then the other, anger radiated from him as he threw her aside. “You little bitch, what has you all in a panic? Did your boy toy place something on you to keep track of our movement?” he asked in anger, before he turned back to Aurora to pull her up from the cot, her body limp as a rag doll in his arms. “Do you not know me well enough, to play these games?” He asked as a knife suddenly appeared in his hand. “I don’t understand…why you keep doing this to people that you supposedly love?” the knife tight against Aurora’s neck as a drop of blood appeared from beneath it.
“No. Stop.” Elizabeth said in desperation. “I don’t know what I was thinking, you’re right I’m selfish and cruel. It was unfair of me to not believe you.” She said softly hoping to distract him from what he was about to do. “I’ll give you the information. I promise, no more games.”
Roger’s dark eyes bore into Elizabeth as he held Aurora precariously in his arms, then he nodded, pulling the knife away from Aurora as he tossed her carelessly back onto the cot. “Good.” He said simply as he walked back to the table and laptop.
Elizabeth sighed in relief at the close call, her eyes never leaving Aurora’s still form as she rattled off the number and letter sequence she had memorized. She held her breath as she waited for the confirmation, knowing that if she had remembered the code incorrectly then there would be no second chance for her or Aurora. ‘Damn it Leo, where are you?” she thought in frustration. and relieved when Roger pulled back from the computer with a small smile.
His hand pulled down the cover of the laptop as he disconnected the wires attaching it to a small modem box she had missed seeing earlier. “Very good. Our business is concluded then,” he said as he placed it into a duffle bag, zipping it up snugly.
Elizabeth frowned as she watched him, “Does this mean, Aurora and I can leave now?”
The question brought about a fit of laughter from Roger as he stood. “No. It means I can go now.”
“But…what about Aurora? She needs medical attention.” Elizabeth said as she walked over to the cot, sitting down next to Aurora’s limp form. “You promised that if I did what you asked that we could go. If you’re worried about us talking to the authorities, don’t be. I promise we won’t say a word.”
Roger laughed further as he walked to the door. “I’m not worried about you talking to the authorities. I have made myself a little insurance policy to keep that from happening.” He said as he lifted a small box, flipping a switch. “You see. Under this little poacher’s outpost I have rigged a number of explosives, which I have set on a timer.” He lifted the small inconsequential box to show her, “As you can see, I was kind enough to put a little clock on it for you.” Elizabeth saw numbers start to flash down. “This way, you can see exactly when your life will.... well let’s just say-you’ll go out with a bang,” he said with a smile. “You see Julia… I know how you think more than you realize and I did a bit of research myself on your hired boy. So, I realized as you so elegantly pointed out your boy toy was a pro. So, instead of taking a risk on your silence, I thought I would give your boyfriend a bit of a show since I do believe you are correct. He does have the capability and the means to find both of you. So by the time your boyfriend gets here to rescue you, he will only find shards of wood, with Piranhas and alligators feasting on an early evening snack, to greet him.”
Elizabeth’s body shook in anger as she stood up. “You lying piece of shit. You planned this all along.”
Roger calm as he answered, “I can’t tell a lie. Yes, I have.”
“Leo will hunt you down, you know. You won’t live to enjoy what you just took.”
“Oh. I don’t know about that. I was able to elude trackers when I escaped from the asylum. I’m pretty sure I can elude your amateur boyfriend also.” He said as he turned around to replace the box and pick up his bag, giving Elizabeth time to retrieve the gun she had hidden, her hand surprisingly steady with the weight of the gun.
“Now. Enough chitchat. Time is running out.” He said as his hand lifted the lantern to extinguish the light, putting the cabin back into darkness, his laughter filling the swamps as he stepped out onto the landing.
Elizabeth at that moment stood, her steps fueled by rage as she walked forward with the gun from the bank shooting, knowing how appropriate that Roger should die with the same gun which he had used to murder so many. Her voice called out to him, a look of shock crossed his face as he turned. Elizabeth having raised the gun now, her childhood lessons on marksmanship filled her with renewed confidence. The shot loud in the swamp, echoing through the trees, a look of shock filled Roger’s face, his body jerked back as the first bullet hit him in the chest. His hand reached up to touch the area, then a smile spread across his face when it came back clean. Elizabeth saw her mistake instantly as she adjusted her aim, the smile dying on his lips as another shot filled the air, a look of disbelief crossed his face, his forehead scrunched into a frown of confusion just before his body fell backwards into the dark waters.
Coldly, Elizabeth walked to the railing; she looked down and plugged a few more shots into the water for good measure. Reassured that she had struck her mark, she watched several gators from across the way slide soundlessly into the water. A commotion of activity sent ripples along the water. Elizabeth watched as they lapped across the bank. “No, I believe you will be their early evening snack.” She said coldly.
A commotion from inside the cabin startled her away from the waters; she looked down at the gun still hot in her hand, instinctively tossing it into the swamps. She didn’t have time to consider what she had done. As she ran back into the hut, Aurora’s voice calling out sent her flying back to the cot where Aurora was now lying on the floor next to it.
The timer box was sitting omnisciently on the floor not far from them. The timer struck five minutes, then four fifty nine. Elizabeth’s hands urgently attempted to lift Aurora from the floor. Aurora groaned incoherently, her face full of pain. “Aurora please. You have to help me, I know it hurts but we have to get out of here. There is a bomb that is about to go off.” She pleaded frantically as she started to drag Aurora’s limp body, laden with drugs across the floor and not wanting to look at the timer and how much time they had left.
Her head turned when she saw a shadow fill the door and a cry of relief filled her when she recognized Leo. “Leo, hurry. We have to get out of here. Roger set a bomb to go off under the building at any second.”
Leo quickly stepped forward to lift Aurora easily into his arms and Elizabeth looked up to see Jeff, the kamikaze pilot, following closely behind him. Leo handed Aurora’s limp form over to him as he picked up the timer box from the floor; his eyes growing wide with what he saw. His voice was urgent as he told Jeff to run, as his arms were picking up Elizabeth in his rush to follow Jeff outside.
Her heart caught as he jumped over the railing with Elizabeth still in his arms, the water shockingly cold as she went under. Taking in a mouthful of water, she felt something brush against her leg as she swam to the surface. Strong hands pulled her up and over the side of a boat as soon as she surfaced and as Leo quickly followed, the boat was already moving before he was totally in. Elizabeth looked around frantically then relief filled her when she saw Aurora crumpled body on the floor of the boat.
Elizabeth coughed up water while she looked back at the building; the force of the explosion sent her flying back into Leo’s arms. Her body was numb fr
om shock as she watched pieces of the building float back down, striking the water all around them while her body was covered by Leo.
Chapter 45
Elizabeth brushed back Aurora’s dark hair from her forehead; her throat tight and raw, her tears now silent as she picked up Aurora’s limp hand from the bed. “I’m sorry Aurora. So very, very, sorry.” Elizabeth’s said softly not wanting to wake her. “I wish... you were me and I was you. You never deserved this. I should be the one lying here.”
Elizabeth jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder, so focused on Aurora she had not heard the door open and close. Her eyes were drawn up to Leo’s concerned face as he asked how she was doing.
“Resting. Dr. Williams gave her a sedative and some morphine for the pain. He said, that with time, she should be fine.”
“Good. Now, how about you take care of yourself?” Leo said as he pulled her arm gently to stand.
“No, not yet. I don’t want her to wake up alone…you know that she may be fine physically over time but she will never be the same.” Elizabeth said , she looked back over to Aurora.
“I know.” Leo said as he stroked Elizabeth’s arm. “But, you also don’t want her to wake up with you looking like this either, do you?”
Knowing that she must look like death warmed over, she finally sighed in resignation, gently lying Aurora’s hand back down on the white down comforter. She leaned forward to brush her lips against Aurora’s pale cheek. “I’ll be right back. You just rest and get better.” She said in a whisper against Aurora’s ear. Then she looked back over to Leo pulling herself up, her back sore from hunching over for too long, she stepped softly after Leo, closing the door quietly behind them. “Are Dr. Williams and Jeff still here?” She asked, as they moved away.
“No. They left just a few minutes ago.”
“Shoot. I wanted to thank Dr. Williams for doing this favor for us, it would have raised a lot of uncomfortable questions if we had to bring her to the hospital.”
“I agree. He left some instructions for us in case she should wake up distressed. But, it wasn’t only Aurora he was worried about, he was also worried about your own state of mind and what you had gone through along with Aurora. He wanted to make sure that you could get some rest, so he left some sleeping pills for you...”
“I don’t need it,” Elizabeth said abruptly, stopping Leo before he could finish.
“I told him you would say that. But he left them anyway, just in case.”
“Well there is no just in case. I appreciate his concern but I will not be doped if Aurora needs me. I will not desert her once more.”
“Elizabeth, you can’t blame yourself for what that madman did.”
Elizabeth glared over at him, anger with the situation but not wanting to get into it at this time. She stepped around him without replying to walk down into the kitchen to fix some green tea, a remedy that had always helped in the past to soothe her nerves. She looked back up when she saw Leo walk in after her. “Can we trust them not to go to the authorities?” she asked.
“Dr. Williams and Jeff?” He asked with a frown. “Of course, I wouldn’t have asked for their help if they were not trustworthy. They have helped me on several other delicate situations,” Leo answered.
“Good. I’ll call Rita tomorrow so she can talk to Aurora’s family.”
“What are you going to tell her to tell them?” Leo asked as he lifted the steaming pot from the stove to pour the water over loose tea leaves in the mesh nestled in a teapot.
“I don’t know yet,” Elizabeth said as she shrugged her shoulders in worry. “But Rita owes me after what she did to me as a child.”
“Have you started to forgive her yet?”
“Who Rita?...somewhat…I guess” Elizabeth said hesitantly as she waved her fingers impatiently, not wanting to think too much yet. “Although, I do realize if she didn’t do what she did I most likely would not be alive today-but with that being said, also…Aurora would not have to have gone through what she just did.”
“That is ridiculous.” Leo said impatiently. “But, since you brought Aurora back into the conversation we still need to address her in this whole scenario. Such as when she wakes up and is feeling better, can she be trusted?”
“Trusted to do what?” Elizabeth asked in anger as she glared once more at Leo, finding her anger irrationally directed at him. “Trusted to keep quiet? Does it really matter? So what if she talks?”
“It would be a lot less complicated if this was kept quiet,” Leo said.
“For whom? Look. I put her smack dab in the middle of my screwed up life, which almost got her killed. So, frankly, it really doesn’t matter to me what she tells people.”
Leo lifted his hand in surrender. “Let’s talk about this later. I can see it’s not the right time.”
“You’re right,” Elizabeth said in anger as she leaned back, then guilt filled her when she saw Leo’s green eyes turn a different hue, sadness emitting from them. She attempted to brush off her anger as she stepped over to him, her arms going around his waist to hug him, realizing she was directing her anger at the wrong person. “Look, I’m sorry. I’m just worried about Aurora and how she is going to psychologically deal with all of this., without worrying about what she might and might not say to the authorities once she is better. I just need a little time to myself right now.” She said, as she stepped back to look up at him, her hands taking his. “So I’m going to head up upstairs and draw myself a hot bath,” She continued as she leaned forward to brush her lips against his in apology. “I may not be showing it, but I really do care for you and appreciate all that you have done for Aurora and me. Just promise me that we will always be honest with each other.”
A look of uncertainty crossed his face before it quickly vanished. But not before Elizabeth picked up on the slight hesitation, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Leo said as he leaned forward to brush his lips against hers and lifting his eyebrows up when Elizabeth raised her own in doubt. “Now, don’t give me that look,” He said as he pushed her back gently, directing her to the stairs. “Go on up and take that hot bath. I’m just going to stay down here for a few more minutes and make a few calls.”
“To whom?” Elizabeth asked in curiosity as he pushed her along to the stairs.
“Take your bath. And then we can talk,” Leo said.
Elizabeth recognized the look that she wasn’t going to get anything more; she shrugged her shoulders and then stopped midway up and turned. “You will tell me once I’m done with my bath?”
Leo smiled sadly as he nodded his head in agreement.
Chapter 46
After checking in on Aurora and satisfied that she would be asleep for awhile longer, Elizabeth stepped into Leo’s master bath and lit several candles to settle down into the therapeutic heat of the water. Her body more sore than she had originally thought, understanding what Leo meant by her looks when she had looked into the mirror just before settling into the water. Scratches crisscrossed her arms and face and the bruise along her jaw had started to turn a disgusting color of blue and red.
Elizabeth closed her eyes as she laid her head back against the cushioned headrest on the tub, moving her still slightly stiff and achy jaw. Her mind, no matter how hard she tried, kept drifting back to Roger and all he had done. The fact he was now dead still hard for her to believe, her nightmare finally over, knowing it couldn’t have ended any other way. But the fact that she was the one to do it was still something she was having a hard time wrapping her mind around.
She shook her head to clear the thought as she tried to only think of the good. Aurora was alive. She was alive. Leo... well Leo was something she had only dreamed about. He was too good to be true. Movement from the other room made her sit up in the now cooled water as she heard him move around in the other room. She reached over to grab the plush towel to dry herself
off after stepping out of the tub.. She then grabbed the terry cloth robe from the wall as she walked past it.
Pausing in the doorway, she was surprised to see him lying fully clothed on the bed, his head cradled in his arms on the pillow, a frown marring his rugged good looks as he stared at the ceiling. Elizabeth felt her breath catch as she watched him; the rug soft underfoot as she walked forward,. A desire to take away whatever was troubling him filled her. She smiled when he looked over at her, “Did you make your calls?”
Leo nodded as he reached out a hand for her to come forward. “Come… lie next to me.”
Elizabeth felt her heart skip a beat as she sensed something was bothering him, her movement hesitant as she crawled up to lay her head on his chest, his heart rapid beneath her ear. She was afraid to ask why he was acting so strangely yet knew she needed to know. Lightly she rubbed her fingertips against his shirt as she unconsciously unbuttoned the top button, her hand reaching in to touch his warm flesh. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
“We still have been unable to locate Roger’s body.”
Her hand paused at the words, an image of Roger’s body falling backwards into the swamp and the gators from the bay slithering in also. “I told you, the gators had him for their dinner.”
“I would feel better if we could locate something.” He said with hesitation, his heart still rapid beneath her ear.
Elizabeth could sense something else was bothering him more than the lack of a body, afraid to probe deeper but knowing she had to. “What else?” She asked softly.
Leo’s hand paused in her hair at the question. Elizabeth felt his heart skip against her cheek. “I’m not sure where to begin.”
“Just begin,” Elizabeth said her eyes closed as Leo’s fingers stroked through her hair soothingly. An unexplainable fear filled her with what he was about to say, wishing that this moment before she knew what he had to say wouldn’t end, wishing she could live her life once more in ignorance, but knowing it was impossible, she could never go back.
Secrets of the Weeping Willow Page 34