by Linda Ladd
“You just need to rest now, babe. What you need is a good night’s sleep,” Black was whispering to her, right after he gave her a very potent sedative. “I’ve got this now. I’ll go down and make sure everybody’s settled and okay. I’ve got to get hold of some people in D.C. then I’ll be back up. We think Marcel got away clean, but we’ve got to locate him. You just relax, and I’ll be back in just a little while.”
Black leaned down and smoothed back her hair and kissed her cheek, looking like a Sicilian mafioso himself at the moment, with his dark beard and white cotton shirt, all he needed was his rifle slung over his shoulder and he could be the lead in The Godfather, Part IV. But she just murmured okay to all that, and then she shut her eyes and didn’t know when Black left or when he came back upstairs and showered and got into bed with her, didn’t know anything, didn’t hear anything, didn’t want to hear anything, for at least the next twenty-four hours. She lost herself in deep, dreamless, lovely, uninterrupted sleep, with no firing of guns or hitting with saps, or no hysterically stabbing anybody in the jugular with a jagged piece of glass. Maybe she’d never wake up again. Maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
Chapter Twenty-four
Fortunately, Claire did manage to wake up again. Her shaky mental health had firmed up and was back on track. Everybody was fine again, despite the wear and tear, and that was a literal observation. Black, who had been through the worst of it, was sitting in a chair beside the bed, apparently waiting for her to open her eyes and actually say something rational. He got down beside the bed and seemed very alert now, even pleased at how things had turned out. But he had been the major target of the psychopathic Soquets and had survived, so maybe he deserved some good cheer.
“How do you feel, sweetheart?” he asked.
“Better. I feel happy that we’re both still alive.”
Black smiled and then he took her bandaged, recently stitched hand and lifted it to his mouth and kissed the back of it. Then he turned it over, lifted the gauze, and looked at the fresh row of about fifty stitches put in by a very friendly and talkative but sworn-to-secrecy Potenza-affiliated doctor. “I’m so sorry about all this, Claire. So damn sorry you had to go through such an awful ordeal.”
“No worries. We both made it out in one piece, like I just said.”
“If you hadn’t come, I’d still be there. I might’ve been there for years. But I would’ve been dead one day, regardless.”
Claire looked at him, and then she slid the fingers of her good hand up through his thick black hair just above his temple, curlier now that it had grown out. “I kinda like you all scruffy and bearded like this. You know, now you look more like a true Ozark hillbilly.”
Black didn’t smile. He got hold of her hand again and kissed it.
“Besides that, Black, I really needed a groom for that wedding you wanted so badly, so I rushed right over here and met up with Crazy Jaxy. All just for you. You know how it is, weddings are just so boring when the bride gets married all by herself.”
Black held her gaze, still not smiling, his eyes somber. “I know you joke about serious things, but I don’t want to joke around right now. You saved my life. I’ll never forget that. And you went through hell to do it. You’re amazing, Claire. You’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever known.”
“Yeah, right. Quit with the sappy stuff, already, you’re embarrassing me. Besides, you saved my life. You know, right after I saved yours. So, that’s all done and wrapped up. No use beating a dead horse, right? How are the other guys? Is Novak okay?”
“They’re all on heavy doses of painkillers. I prescribed them.”
That made Claire laugh. “Well, good. Jot me down at the bottom of that list, too. The stronger the better. That’s my motto lately.”
Black still wasn’t laughing. “I’m so sorry about your house, Claire.”
“Guess I’ll be staying with you at Cedar Bend from now on. That’s what you’ve always wanted, anyway.”
“I’m gonna build you a new house, a bigger and better one. Any kind you want. Anything you want. I mean it, Claire. I know you loved that place. I feel terrible it’s gone now, and it’s my fault.”
Claire shook her head. “How many people can even offer up a new house, just like that, Black? I declare, you’re the one who’s one of a kind. Next time, though, please, just tell me you have some whacked-out grenade-throwing maniacs gunnin’ for you, okay? Then I’ll stay more alert. And I’ll make sure you do, too.”
“I should have. I know that now. I was trying to protect you without you having to worry about Marcel Soquet, too. You had enough problems of your own.”
“Okay, I forgive you.”
“Well, don’t worry, you’re gonna know all my secrets from here on out.” He sighed, and it was a deep, regretful one. “But right now, I’m gonna get you a book of house plans and get my builders started on it right away. I’ll call them today. This is my fault, every bit of it. You almost died because of me. I can’t believe we made it out of there alive. It’s just incredible.”
“Well, all righty then, if you insist. And I’m gonna hold you to that. How about a new car, too, while you’re feeling so generous? That old Explorer of mine was in the garage. Probably in several parts now, down on the bottom of the lake. I could go for one of those Humvees like yours? Maybe a bigger version.”
“You got it. You got anything you want. Just name it.”
“Wow. Okay. Let me make a list.”
Black finally smiled and pressed his mouth to the back of her hand again. He grew serious, though, almost at once. His gaze held hers. “There’s one other thing we need to talk about, sweetheart. It can’t wait. I don’t want it to wait.”
Claire watched him, not sure what was coming. Something that meant a lot to him, she could tell that much. “Okay.”
“I want to go ahead with the wedding, just as soon as we get back home.”
Claire could only stare at him. Then she shook her head in disbelief. “Seriously, Black? That’s what you’re worrying about right now? That damn wedding? After all this life-and-death stuff we just went through?”
“I feel bad for ruining your surprise. I was a fool. I should’ve been more careful that night they got me. Hell, I’m embarrassed they nabbed me so easily. I guess I was thinking about you, about getting home for the wedding on time. I got careless in a way that I’m never careless. And you had to pay the price for my stupid amateurish mistakes.”
“Well, I guess I’ll forgive you. Since everything turned out all right.”
“We’re all going back together on Jack’s plane. Today. If you’re up to it. We’ve been waiting for you to wake up and feel better. Do you think you’re rested enough and up for such a long flight?”
“You bet I am. Home sounds pretty good to me right now.”
“I called Cedar Bend this morning. Most of the guests are still at the hotel. We can go ahead and have the ceremony there the minute we get back. We can use one of the ballrooms.”
“Black, come on, we don’t have to rush this thing. The minute we get back? I mean, we’re all still pretty out of it, you know, bummed up and limping and all bandaged up and bleeding, with all those crutches and slings and painkillers.”
“I want to marry you. Before anything else happens to prevent it. Nancy and Laurie are setting up again right now in the ballroom. I told them to do anything they want and charge everything to me.”
“No kidding? I bet they liked the sound of that, all right.” Claire laughed again, imagining her two best friends out shopping with Black’s bottomless credit card clutched in their hands. “But I warn you, the wedding party’s gonna look like a damn ER waiting room. You do know that, don’t you? Almost everybody who’s standing up with us is injured. The wedding album will be embarrassing to look at and it’s gonna bring back some very bad memories for all of us.”
Black dimpled up under his whiskers. Probably relieved she wanted to have a wedding album. “I’ll just rem
ember saying our vows when I look at those pictures. But we’re all walking on our own two feet again. So what do you say? Is all this okay with you?”
Claire sighed. “Well, I guess so. Or we could just get married here. You know, have one of those Sicilian weddings like Michael Corleone did in The Godfather, with that cool brass band marching along, and everybody in town following us down the street.”
“And make all Nancy’s and Laurie’s hard work go for nothing? They saved your wedding dress, by the way. Apparently, you tore off most of the buttons when you jerked it off that day. Nancy took it home to repair, God bless her. And the veil, too. So it didn’t get destroyed in the blast. You lost everything else, though. Laurie took Jules Verne home with her, so he’s good, too, thank God.”
“Yeah, well, let me tell you, I wasn’t in a very good mood when I ripped that big thing off. Thinkin’ you were dead and blown to bits inside your Learjet and all that sort of bother.”
“I do know how that feels. And I’ve already got a new jet on order. I’m getting a Gulfstream this time, a bigger and better one. It’s a G650ER with long-range capability. We can fly eight thousand nautical miles nonstop now. It’s a real honey of an aircraft, babe. It’s supposed to be delivered day after tomorrow in time for us to take off on our honeymoon. Anyway, I want you to have a real wedding, that wedding you’ve been planning so long. And I want you to spring that surprise on me, as if none of this ever happened. I’ve been curious about that for months.”
“Well, you’ve certainly been busy, haven’t you? But sometimes surprises are overrated. Big-time. I think I hate them now. Especially ones that involve evil families with red hair.”
“Think you’ll really feel up to flying out today? Your hand was so infected that it’s going to be very painful for a while, but I gave you some pretty potent antibiotics when I gave you that sedative. That should help you feel better in no time. That and that nice long sleep you just had.”
“Sure. Let’s go. But only if you’ll let me go back to bed on the plane. Lately, not being unconscious is hard on my nerves.”
“Jacques is coming back with us, too.”
“How did he get here so fast, anyway?”
“He took off right after I called him, but he got our location on his phone and called Potenza and asked him to get to us as soon as he could.”
“Yeah, I think I love him now. Giuseppe, too. I think I love underworld figures even better than I like cops now. They do come in handy. All over the world, too.”
“He loves you, that’s for damn sure.”
“What about Rico? Where’s he? He’s gonna be all right, isn’t he?”
“He’s outside in the garden, playing with Rosalinda’s sons, like nothing ever happened. We’ll find him a good home. He’s a good kid, Claire. God, I can’t believe how brave he is, to be such a little guy. He’s been in here to see you a dozen times already but you haven’t been awake. He’s been really worried. He’d put his hands on your cheeks and watch your face and wait for you to open your eyes until I made him go outside and play with the other kids.”
Claire listened to all that, but by the time he stopped talking, all her muscles were tensed up tight again. Then she felt something she hadn’t felt in a long time. Something she thought was long dead inside her. “I’m not leaving him here, Black. No way in hell will I leave Rico here.”
Black’s face registered surprise. Then he frowned. “We can’t just take him back to the States. That’s gonna require all kinds of red tape with the Italian government. He might even have relatives here in Italy who’ll want him back.”
“I am not leaving here without him, I said. I mean it, Black. He goes, or I don’t.”
“Claire, you’ve got to be reasonable about this. You’re not thinking clearly. We can’t just take a child away from here without some kind of legal document.”
“No, you have to be reasonable about this. Without his help, I would be dead. And you would be dead. I am not leaving him here with these strangers. You hear me, Black? I am not stepping one foot on that plane without him.”
“We’ll be breaking all kinds of Italian laws if we just fly him out of here. Hell, we’ll be breaking international laws.”
Claire’s laugh came quickly, and yes, it was chock full of scorn. “As if we haven’t been breaking Italian laws ever since we got here? You know, killing all those people out on that island, flying in under the radar, enlisting the aid of known criminals, all that minor unlawful stuff.”
Black just stared at her for a moment, but it was a long and silent moment. “Well, I’m sure as hell not leaving you here. That’s for damn sure.”
“Okay, then. That kid has been through enough. He doesn’t need to be left with people he hardly knows. Especially Mafia people he hardly knows. He trusts us. He saved us. We owe him.”
“Okay. I guess I’ll have to think of something.”
Claire breathed out a sigh of relief. Now she felt much better, especially if he kept his word about Rico. And he damned well better keep it.
So, very pleased now, she gave Black a slow and happy smile. “Alrighty then, guess I need to get up and get ready for the Claire and Black Wedding, Part Two.”
Black wasn’t finished, still looked very serious. “I think we ought to go somewhere that’s nice and quiet for our honeymoon. Just us, alone and together, somewhere safe. Somewhere where nobody will bother us.”
Claire started to tell him that she really was okay, that he didn’t have to worry about her so much, but then she saw the haunted look that touched the depths of his blue eyes, very briefly, but not before she glimpsed it. Then he shut his eyes and brought her hand back up to his lips. At that point, the truth hit her hard. He needed the time to decompress. He needed some peace and quiet and time to reflect on what had happened to him, far away from everybody else in his life. He needed time alone with her in a calm, serene setting. Oh, God, no wonder he wanted that, after the things those devils had put him through. But he didn’t want to have to say it, and she understood that, too. Claire’s emotions actually shivered with an aching and deep and heartfelt empathy. She swallowed all that down and smiled at him.
“Know what, Black? I think that’s a really good idea. I need some quiet time, you know, to make peace with everything that’s been going on. Thank you for realizing that.”
Then Black looked up at her, his crystal blue eyes steadily delving into hers, and she knew then, without a doubt, that he knew precisely what she was doing. She was sure of it, without either of them saying another word. She knew that he was grateful that she understood his pain, and that he loved her, and that he knew that she loved him. Tears came unbidden into her eyes, hot, and hard not to let fall. But she dashed them back. “Everything’s gonna be good for us now, Black. From now on, our lives are gonna rock.”
Black just grinned, pleased, and kissed her very gently, and she realized how happy he was to know all those things, and that made her happy, too.
Chapter Twenty-five
Less than three days later, Nicholas Black stood at the front of the glittering Ozark Ballroom at Cedar Bend Lodge, his eyes focused intently on the white double doors at the end of the wide, candle-lined wedding aisle. He had just arrived in front of the altar, where his best man and the other groomsmen had been waiting for him, as they had been a week or so ago, before Black had made his trip down into purgatory and back. But now the wedding was going forward in just the way he had always wanted but thought it would never happen.
The place looked great, all decked out with white netting, twinkling white lights, white roses, and white candles glowing everywhere. More candles were ablaze in all the sets of tall French doors that led to the terrace, and Black could see the stars twinkling in the beautiful black velvet night sky. Nancy and Laurie had come through again and had made the place as magical and romantic as it ever could be. He was pleased with them. He was pleased with everything in his life.
Claire had been right about th
e wedding party, though. Except for the black tuxedoes, it looked like a battle triage unit in an active war zone. Black still had lots of dark bruises on his face but his black eyes were healing well enough. Not so swollen anymore. Holliday was walking with a cane. Novak had his arm in a sling. Booker stood beside him as best man, and he had a gauze bandage wrapped around his forehead and on lots of his other shrapnel wounds. Everybody sported bruises in various colors, but Black didn’t care about any of that. They were all alive and would heal. All he wanted was for Claire to hurry up and walk down that aisle and become his wife.
Finally, after what seemed like days to him, the music began. The traditional “Wedding March,” soft and slow. What that brought to Black, however, were visions of that terrible white room and that same blaring song playing over and over and the sleep deprivation and getting hit with the sap and the drugs that made him go crazy. All of it came crashing down hard inside his mind, staggering him mentally for a few seconds. He forced the bad stuff away, determined that those ugly memories were not going to ruin his wedding. He was going to replace them with this night, with Claire in her wedding gown and all his friends there watching him get married.
Then Laurie came out the doors, looking tall and elegant and beautiful in her simple black strapless gown, and then Nancy followed, looking just as lovely and graceful with her long auburn hair and matching black dress. Then came Bud Davis, as Claire’s man of honor, looking very sharp in a traditional tuxedo with a black cummerbund and tie like the ones that Black and his groomsmen wore. They gained their places on the other side of the altar and turned their eyes on little Lizzie McKay when she came out the door in a tiny white lace dress and a basket of rose petals. Rico was walking beside her with the wedding rings tied onto a white satin pillow and leading Jules Verne on a leash. The tiny poodle was wagging his tail to beat the band and sniffing everybody sitting along the aisle. The audience oohed and ahhed as the two small, adorable children made their way to the front. Then everybody’s attention went to the back where Claire would appear.