by Angela Blake
He placed a call to Henry, and one to Roger and his mother.
It was barely ten minutes before Henry showed up, his eyes grim. John and Roger were close behind and John held a blanket in his arms, which he covered Faith with and tightened it around her. The gentle look on his face had Faith bursting into sobs and throwing her arms around his neck, startling him.
But she felt safe with him, like she did with Landon. And right now she just wanted someone to tell her it was going to be okay. She didn’t want Landon’s fury. She just wanted comfort.
John held her and she closed her eyes, not wanting to see the vile words on the car that Landon had borrowed from his father.
Landon was arguing with Henry over something and Roger was making discreet calls on a black cell phone that looked like it belonged to the Middle Ages. He looked towards Landon and gave a curt nod. Faith watched them and her stark eyes moved to John who hovered in front of her, protectively.
“What is happening?”
John’s eyes were on Landon and then he looked at Faith and it shook her to see how much the fierce look in his eyes resembled that of Landon’s, “Whatever it is, Landon will make sure nothing happens to you. It’s been a long time since I last saw him this angry.”
“What do you mean?”
When he just looked away, she tugged at his shirt sleeve, “Distract me. Tell me something. Anything.”
John studied her for a heartbeat and then tucked his hands into the pockets of his black pants, “After his divorce, he changed a lot. Became more quiet, more brooding. He blamed himself for everything. For Amelia cheating on him, then leaving him. He just wasn’t the same. When he seemed to have recovered, he threw himself into women and the military.”
His hands turned into fists in his pockets, and John controlled his expression, “When he came back home, he would be more and more broken each time, his reactions to most anything seemed to be forced. And now, this time, after he met you, although its been a week or so, he’s completely different.”
“Different in a good way?” Faith ventured, hopefully.
John smiled at her, “You have no idea.”
They looked on as a black van parked itself opposite the scene and five burly men, clearly SEALS, got out. One of them looked over at them and John stiffened.
“John?” Faith sounded wary.
“It’s nothing.” John told her, his voice tense as the man kept staring at Faith and then at him, and then he glanced away and joined his companions as they walked over to where Landon stood, involved in a heated argument with Detective Santigo.
“Let’s go, Faith.” John told her, and helped her stand.
“I don’t understand,” Faith looked over to where everybody stood.
“Landon has called in reinforcements. We should leave.”
“Where are we going?” She asked him, trying not to look at the car that was in her line of vision.
“Somewhere you will be protected.”
As they passed everyone, Faith clenched the blanket tighter around her and tried not to think of the deliberate red crosses on her face in each photograph.
Chapter 10
Mrs. Brown refused to let Faith do anything.
“Absolutely not, dear! You just rest. You’ve had an awful shock. John, be a dear and bring her something to drink.”
“No, please, Mrs. Brown. I feel much better.”
“Nonsense.”
“Give the girl some air, Sarah. What’s a five letter word that pierces a body and is also romantic?” Mr. Brown asked.
It took Faith a few seconds to realize the question was directed towards her. As she spluttered, John handed Mr. Brown a cup of tea, “An arrow. Don’t leave the pen open on the sofa. It’ll stain.”
Mr. Brown grunted at the quiet reprimand and put the open pen on the table, returning to the crossword. But Faith could feel his sharp eyes move to her after every few minutes as if assessing her.
They were all worried about her, she realized and she felt a little guilty.
“I’m fine. Really.” She told them.
And she was.
The shock had evaporated, leaving only anger behind.
She was angry that someone had targeted her and that Landon had been dragged into this whole mess. She was angry that she had done absolutely nothing to deserve this.
The banging of the front door had everyone looking up as Landon walked in, followed by Roger, who looked serious.
Faith stood up just as he marched over to her.
“Are you okay?” He demanded, concern overwriting anger.
“Yeah,” she nodded as he looked at her, disbelieving.
She put a hand over his cheek, “It took me by surprise, Landon. I’m okay now. Your family took care of me.”
“Yes, well.” He stuck his hands in his pockets, like a boy would, and rocked on his heels.
Roger took a seat next to Mr. Brown and studied Faith. “We matched the Polaroid type and found that it had been purchased in Charleston over a month ago by a man who matches your ex boyfriend’s image.”
Faith froze. “Noah? Noah is doing this?”
Landon growled, “We contacted his mother who swears he’s been with her for the past few months.”
“She could be lying.” Roger interjected. “So we’ve hit up some contacts in Chicago. They’re going to get in touch with us soon.”
“Why would Noah do that?” Faith struggled to understand.
Landon just growled and John frowned at him, forcing him to calm down, “We’ll figure this out. In the meantime, you should stay here.”
Faith looked horrified, “I couldn’t possibly impose-“
“That sounds fantastic!” Mrs. Brown declared. “It would be so nice to have a girl around the house for a change.”
“Mom-“ Landon said, weakly, but he was brushed aside as his mother took Faith’s arm and started walking her upstairs, “You can stay in the master guest suite. It’s absolutely divine. I did the redecorations myself. Well, John helped but what does he know? He’s a man.”
Her voice trailed off as they disappeared from sight and John muttered, under his breath, “I feel a little insulted. She wanted to go for pink. I insisted on mute colors.”
***
“You’re living there?” Naomi sounded both shocked and fascinating. “So, do they really have a butler?”
Faith ran her hand through her hair, “John is more of part of the family than a butler. He just acts like one when people are there.”
“So, how are you holding up,” Jack asked, leaning against her desk, studying her.
“Just peachy.” Faith said, dryly, as she went through the sheaf of papers on her desk. Then, she stopped, her shoulders firming, “Well, the one on one interaction with the Browns is actually kind of helping with getting their input on certain aspects of the houses and getting it implemented.”
“Atta girl.” Jack patted her on the shoulder before making his way to his own desk. “Besides, two days are left till the Gala, and we are just putting finishing touches on the houses. Guess who cut a low deal from Mayfen Furnitures?”
He pointed the pen he had been twirling in the air towards himself, looking proud. His moment of pride was interrupted when Faith paled at the mention of the gala, “I completely forgot. I don’t have anything to wear. And I can’t skip it now. Not with everything the Browns have done for me. And Landon – Oh, God.”
She groaned.
“If it helps, Faith, I still have to go shopping as well.” Naomi bared her teeth in a smile that just told Faith that she was going to regret this.
And she did.
There was no such thing as the perfect dress when Faith went shopping.
But when Naomi went shopping, the woman was a master of accessorizing. She had Faith try at least thirty dresses till she had finally sighed in wonder at the last one.
“We’ll take this one,” She had declared a
nd as the saleswoman had taken a breath of relief, Faith too had thought she would be granted a reprieve.
However, she was sorely mistaken.
Matching jewelry, shoes with just the right amount of heel.
As Faith stuffed the bags in Naomi’s car, she glared at her, “You said we’d be done in a flash. Five hours is not a flash, Naomi. Landon’s going to be-“
She stopped as her vision blurred and she gripped the roof of the car to steady herself.
Thankfully, Naomi didn’t notice as she was rearranging her own packages in the car’s trunk. “Landon will treat you like a goddess because you’ll look like one. We’ll straighten your hair, put on some makeup, play with some contour; you’ll look good enough to eat.”
Not wanting to worry her, Faith just nodded along, all the while starting to get a little worried about her dizziness spells. This was the third one in five days.
Making a mental reminder to go get a checkup done tomorrow, she let Naomi drive her back.
As she drove to the Brown residence, she decided to stop by the supermarket to pick up some chocolate. She had been craving some for days. It wasn’t yet dark and the parking lot wasn’t empty so she took her time in choosing a few flavors.
As she passed by the medical aisle, her eyes landed on the stacked pregnancy tests and she bit her lower lip. However, she found herself grabbing two.
It was better to be safe than sorry, she told herself.
When she was back in her car, however, she laughed at herself. She and Landon always used protection. There was no way she was pregnant. It was just the buildup of stress over these few days that had her body acting weird. She stuffed the pregnancy tests in her purse.
It was just the stress.
***
Mr. and Mrs. Brown had gone out for a dinner with friends and so that left her alone with Landon, who was all set for watching a movie.
“I got popcorn.” He announced, making his way to the couch.
“I’ve got,” Faith read the title aloud, “Alien Covenant?”
When her lover grinned, she made a face, “This is going to have people being swallowed alive by aliens, isn’t it? I hate that.”
“Well, suck it up,” Landon told her. “We watched Avengers yesterday and that was your choice.”
Faith just sighed and gave up, letting him hold her as the movie started.
The one advantage of having a big man around when watching a fantasy horror flick was that he could be her security blanket.
By the end of it, she had all but crawled into his lap and was fast asleep when the credits came on. Landon smiled at her sleeping face and picked her up gently to take her to their room.
When she protested at the lack of warmth when he put her in bed, he stripped and climbed in with her, curling himself around her small form, protectively.
He was starting to get used to having Faith underfoot everywhere. He quite liked it. She had wanted to return to his apartment but he knew this place was built like a fortress. Plus, with Roger sleeping in another room and another friend located inside the house, there was no way anyone could sneak in.
He didn’t know when he fell asleep but he was awoken by frantic movements from the woman who lay in his arms. Except she was no longer in his arms as she jumped out of bed and ran towards the bathroom.
“Faith?” He called out, alarmed, when he heard the sounds of her retching.
“Don’t come in!” She begged, her voice hoarse, and then she started throwing up again.
“The hell I’m not!” He growled. And threw open the door of the bathroom.
She was clutching onto the toilet seat, tears in her eyes, along with a hint of humiliation at being seen in such a state.
However, Landon just picked up the towel that hung from the rail, dampened it with cold water, and gently gathering hair to hold up, he wiped her face with it.
When she threw up again, he didn’t flinch.
“A stomach bug?” He murmured.
She shook her head, miserably, “I don’t know. I feel simply awful.”
Not able to see her in such an unhappy and pained state, he kissed her forehead, “Let me go ask Mom for something. Will you be okay?”
She nodded, grateful.
As he exited the bathroom, his eyes fell on her purse that lay on its side, it’s contents scattered. Bending down to pick them up, he saw the two home pregnancy tests and froze.
Was Faith-?
No, she would have mentioned something. And she wouldn’t have had that wine last night. Maybe she-?
Why would she need these? They had always had protected sex. The only time they hadn’t had been – Landon’s blood ran cold. Their first night together.
They hadn’t used protection because they had both been drunk.
Gripping onto to the tests, he walked back to Faith, who paled when she saw what he was holding.
“Where did-“
“They were on the ground with your purse.” He held out the two boxes, “Maybe you should take these first?”
“Landon?” Her voice quivered.
However, he was very gentle as he helped her up, “Take the test, Faith.”
She was staring at him as he closed the bathroom door behind him.
His mind was blank as he sat on the edge of the bed. His thoughts were empty as he sat and stared at the door, willing it to open and what?
What did he want?
He didn’t want to think.
So, he just waited.
And after a long while, the door opened slowly, and Faith stood there, shaking, tears shining in her eyes and it confirmed what he had already known.
And for some reason, he didn’t know why, a broad smile lit up his face.
She stared at him, “Why are you smiling like that? Landon, I’m pregnant! What are – What are we going to do?”
“I don’t know,” he said, his hand resting on her stomach, his eyes open in wonder. “I’m going to become a father.”
Faith grabbed his face in her hands, frustrated and scared, “I’m pregnant and you’re happy?”
“Should I not be happy?” He asked her, quietly.
Faith had no answer to that.
“We made a tiny human,” he told her, his eyes full of worship for her and the devotion and awe in his eyes calmed Faith down.
“So, you’re going to stick around?” She asked hesitantly.
Landon blinked, “Of course! It’s my child, too.” Then he ran his hand over her flat stomach, “I know this may sound weird, but I feel so lucky that you are the mother of my child.”
Faith’s cheeks turned red, but she put an anxious hand over his, “Are we going to be okay? Is this going to be okay? How will this work, Landon?”
“We’ll make it work.” He told her, his voice patient, and his eyes filled with joy. “I didn’t think I was ready to be a father but I am.”
“I was ready to panic. I was ready for you to panic, throw a fit, blame me, something.” Faith confessed, the shock in her receding for a while. “But you’re so calm, so happy, like I just gave you a gift or something.”
“You did.” Landon murmured. He wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his head on her stomach. “You gave me the most beautiful gift anyone could have every given me, Faith.”
His sincerity was so profound that she had no choice but to believe it.
“I’m not going to marry you.” She told him after a short period of silence. When she saw his crestfallen face, which he quickly hid underneath a blank façade, she said, “Not because of this, Landon. I don’t want to marry you just because we’re having a baby together.”
“I think that’s a very valid reason to get married,” he said. “I want our child to have a solid foundation.”
“So do I,” Faith insisted. “But we’ve just known each other for a few weeks. And I-“
“I’ll court you.” Landon interjected. “Look, Faith
, I am already halfway in love with you. Let me show you I’m good enough to be your husband.”
Faith’s eyes widened, “It’s not about you not being good enough, Landon. I never meant to- No. I’m just saying, we don’t even know each other that well. What if we’re not compatible? What if we destroy our child’s life?”
“Then we’ll get to know each other.” Landon was stubborn. He grabbed her hands, and looked at her, “Give us a chance, Faith.”
She was silent for a few moments and then leaned forward, kissing him lightly on the lips, “Fine. But for now, not a word to anyone. Not even your parents. Let’s put this whole stalker thing to rest first before we go around stirring more drama.”
However, drama was to be stirred because when they went down for breakfast, Roger sat there looking grim, having just got off the phone.
“Noah Renolds never attended any session with his appointed psychiatrist. The man who posed as Noah was paid off by him. Noah’s whereabouts are unaccounted for since the day Faith moved to Charleston.”
Chapter 11
Faith remained still as Naomi worked on her makeup, “I still say this is completely unnecessary.”
“Oh, hush.” Her friend scolded her, “Landon is going to drop dead when he sees you.”
When she saw Faith’s wary expression, Naomi corrected, “In a good way.”
“How does one drop dead in a good way?” Came Jack’s voice from the doorway. Both women turned around to glare at his intrusion.
When Naomi noted the way he was gaping at her in her emerald dress, she gave a satisfied smile, “That is how a man drops dead in a good way.” She dismissed Jack who was tuxedo clad without a second thought, “Of course, Jack just looks like a pervert, but who’s judging.”
“What are you doing here, Jack?” Faith asked. “Shouldn’t you be leaving for the Gala?”
Jack’s lips curved, “I thought I’d escort you lovely ladies myself there.”
“His date ditched him,” Naomi informed her, as she applied blush to Faith’s cheeks. “She claims she has a case of the flu, but,” she shrugged, giving Jack a cheerful smile, “Who knows, maybe your witty personality gave her the flu?”