“I was staying with a friend for Christmas,” she answered vaguely. “They were out for the evening, but I stayed in because I was tired. She kicked me a few times, and injected me with something that forced me to go into labor. It was the same woman who killed Holden. I pulled out a handful of her hair and clawed one of her eyes out. Herbert is looking for her now.”
“What will you do when he finds her?”
The fear in his voice made her look up. Sebastian used his thumb to brush a tear from her cheek.
“I'm going to kill her.”
“Please, don't.” Sebastian crushed her to his chest again. “Please, don't go to that place where you disappear.”
“She's taken everything from me, Sebastian.”
“You took her father from her.”
Mariss pulled away violently, almost falling to the floor as pain wrapped around her back and buckled her knees. Sebastian caught her before she collapsed.
“Don't you dare fight in her corner.”
“I'm not. I swear to you, I'm not. I just… I don't want you to live with what I live with every day. Let me handle it.”
“No.” Mariss tried to pull away again, but he wouldn't release her.
“Let me and Herbert handle it.”
“No,” Mariss said again. “She's coming for me next. When she finds out that I'm not dead, she's coming after me.”
“Alright.” Sebastian held her firm. He made her look into his eyes. “Alright. If that's what you need, Herbert will take care of it, I'm sure. Just calm down. I'm not trying to keep you from your revenge. I just don't want you to regret it later.”
“Do you regret it?”
Sebastian had once killed a man to protect Hellena. Mariss still didn't know the whole story.
“No. There were some times that I did, but generally I do not, but you aren't me. You have a conscience and morals. You will hate yourself if you do this.”
Mariss knew it was true, but the last thing she wanted in that moment was to have sense talked into her.
The nurse knocked on the window and motioned for them to come out.
“Good bye, little one,” Mariss whispered softly to her son. He reacted to her voice again and she smiled. “I'll be back.”
“You have a visitor,” Nurse Mary said as they stripped out of their sterile suits and exited the room.
Herbert was waiting when Sebastian wheeled Mariss back to her room.
“You look awful, Mrs. Red,” the FBI agent said, a slight smirk on his face that quickly disappeared when he asked, “How's the baby?”
“No change,” she replied and let Sebastian help her back into bed. It took a moment for her to get her pillows situated right. “Have you found her?”
“No.” Herbert handed her a folder. “She's good at hiding. We can't get to her.”
“Then we bring her to us. It's not the first time I've used myself as bait when someone was trying to kill me.”
“Absolutely not,” Sebastian growled.
“It could work,” Herbert contradicted. “I can get a team up here, talk to the hospital staff. It'll be safe,” he promised.
Sebastian wasn't having it though. His handsome face twisted into a frown born of worry and rage. “I'll have no part of this.”
“You will if I say you will,” Mariss said, her tone even.
The room went still as tension shot through the roof. She was sure Herbert would die from shock. She and Sebastian had never seriously gone head to head before. All they really did was argue, but she wasn't about to give this one up.
“I beg your pardon?” Sebastian chuckled.
“You heard me. I'm going to have to sell it hard if it's going to be believable.”
Sebastian shook his head. “I want no part of this. I won't willingly put you in danger. Not after…”
His eyes shot up to Herbert, cold and hard. Herbert threw his hands into the air.
“I already know you've got the hots for her. Everyone does.”
“Sebastian, I need you to do this for me. Please.” Mariss blinked up at him. It seemed the tears were non-stop now. “Please, Bassy.”
She knew she had him then.
“Shit. Mariss…”
She smiled and so did Herbert. He made no move to hide his amusement. Sebastian growled at him, but Herbert just shook his head.
“I'll make some calls,” he said as he left the room.
“I don't suppose I can get you to reconsider?” Sebastian asked.
Mariss shook her head. “No. If you're gentle you can lay down with me though.”
CHAPTER THIRTY THREE
CASSANDRA FRACTURES
“Due to complications with a premature pregnancy, Mariss Red of The Red Wife Media Group was pronounced dead this morning along with her son Holiss, named for his parents Holden and Mariss Red.”
Mariss sat in an uncomfortable chair, bundled in thick blankets to ward against the cold of the morgue, reading the news on her phone. Their thinking was that Alina would come to the morgue to make sure Mariss was really dead. That was when they'd catch her.
Mariss shifted against her pillows, trying to find a place on her backside that wasn't sore, but it wasn't possible. Tears of frustration made her want to punch the steel table. They'd been down here for hours waiting, and she was starting to get restless, to say the least.
“What's wrong, May?” Sebastian was at her side in a moment.
“I can't get comfortable,” she sobbed. “And I'm so fucking tired of crying!”
He chuckled, but not even the beautiful sound of his laughter could break through her frustration. “Stop laughing at me.”
“I'm not,” he answered, sobering. “I never would. Come here.” He pulled her to her feet and against his chest. “Are you cold?”
She nodded. “Freezing. I wish I had a hat or something.”
“I'll see what I can find,” Sebastian promised as his hands briskly rubbed her arms creating friction that not only warmed her body, but other parts of her as well.
She didn't want to feel attracted to him or turned on sexually right now. She was supposed to be afraid. She was supposed to feel apprehension. But the only thing she felt, besides the clenching of tiny muscles in her groin, was calm vengeance and a deep sadness where she missed her husband deeply and ached for her dying baby.
Mariss shook herself. Now was not the time for tears. She needed to be focused and ready for whatever was about to happen. There was no telling how long it would take Alina to get there. Or if it would take any time at all.
Sebastian squeezed her arm. Mariss frowned up at him. “What?”
“I've been talking to you for the last five minutes. Did you hear any of it?”
She shook her head. “No. I wasn't paying you any attention.”
His voice was flat when he said, “Clearly. I said Mother wants to see you. She's not going to take no for an answer.”
Mariss sighed. “I'm not really in the mood for small talk, Sebastian.”
“I know, but I'm only trying to help.”
“It's not helping. It makes me mad.” This was so close to so many conversations she'd had with Holden in the past that she almost smiled.
One of Herbert's men turned and motioned for them to be quiet. Mariss was instantly on edge, listening.
Footsteps echoed with purpose across the tile floor. She imagined Alina was wearing her 'victory heels', shoes she wore when she felt good about herself. It was a term Eloisa had used when she wore here fire engine red stilettos to the office after a night with a man she'd been hunting.
She needed to call Eloisa, work things out. When this was over, maybe she would do that.
The clack clack of heels stopped by the metal table. From where Mariss was situated, she could see the woman's thick blonde hair hanging down her back in gentle waves. She threw back the sheet and swore.
Six of Herbert's men dressed in full riot gear jumped out of their hiding places, guns trained, shouting, “Down on the ground!
Get down on the ground now!” Over and over they shouted until she slowly complied, sinking to the cold tile floor, splayed out on her stomach. Not until she was cuffed and secured did Sebastian and Herbert release Mariss to step into the room. She held her head high, a smug smile on her face.
“Nice try,” Mariss said. She would have clapped dramatically if Sebastian hadn't been holding her up. She felt her emotions start to shut down and watched the woman's face for any change. This was the most she'd ever let herself sink so deep inside and she knew it would be hard to come out. She'd have to spend the next six months eating, sleeping, and breathing her therapist. Sebastian could help. He'd wanted to see her therapist with her after all.
She was disappointed to find that she hadn't clawed the woman's eye out after all. There were, however, several deep scratches above and below her right eye. They would make ugly, ragged scars.
“You almost won,” Mariss droned. Her tone was flat and cold. Finally, the woman reacted. Her eyes widened some. “You have no idea what I'm capable of, but I promise, you're going to learn.”
“You killed my father!” Alina shouted in German.
Mariss nodded. “He started it,” she replied in the same language.
Alina jerked her body to the side, effectively releasing herself from the FBI agent's hold, and lunged at Mariss.
Mariss had a scalpal in her hand a second later. She plunged it into the woman's shoulder where she knew it would wedge between the ball and socket of the joint, just like she'd done to the Gernam at Sebstian's party. Alina screamed in rage and pain as she was reapprehended. The wound bled, but not as much as it would once the knife was removed.
“Do you think these people will let anything happen to me?” Mariss asked. “You're sorely mistaken and you're wrong if you think you're going to get yourself killed before I get my hands on you. I'll see you soon.” Mariss blew her a little kiss. “Promise.”
Mariss watched the men drag Alinaaway and shoved herself a little deeper inside. She couldn't allow her emotions or her convictions to open up again. Not yet. There was still one thing to handle before she allowed that to happen.
“Now what?” Herbert asked.
“Now, I hold a press conference to let everyone know why I had to lie about my death. I want one of the newspaper articles that covered the story, though.”
“Mariss?” Sebastian called to her and she turned. The moment he saw her face, his body went rigid and his eyes darkened until they were almost black. She'd never seen them do that before and it intruiged her, like a lion hunting prey.
Her predatory self knew this to be his fear face. On a man who wasn't given to emotions - unless they were directed at getting her into bed with him - the look was almost frightening. It would have been, too, if she could have felt anything.
“Don't worry,” Mariss tried to console him. “I'm still here. Somewhere.” She added the last part for his reaction.
“Are you trying to make him pee his pants?”
Her gaze moved from Sebastian to Herbert. To her surprise, the big man wasn't the least bit intimidated. In fact, there was a challenge in his eyes. Of course, he'd worked with worse people than she. At least, she assumed he had.
“I doubt I can make him lose his faculties enough for that to happen, but that's an interesting challenge.”
“You can't go in front of the world like that,” Herbert told her.
“I can act,” she assured him. “Take me wherever you're taking her and don't give me any shit about being a Federal Officer. I want to talk to her.”
“Fine.”
“I'm going with her.”
Mariss turned to find Sebastian's dark eyes fixed on Herbert with a look no one would argue with.
Herbert just shrugged. “Suit yourself, but I'm not covering for you should anything go down.” He eyed her. “I ought to pat you down. Just to be sure you don't have another knife on you somewhere.”
Mariss spread her arms, ready to be searched. Herbert shook his head and walked away. Maybe he was afraid of her after all.
Mariss was barely aware of time passing, and before she knew it, she was circling the chair where Alina sat. She didn't appear nervous or scared, but Mariss was sure that would soon change.
“I think it's time you understood just exactly what's going on here,” she said plainly, to ensure that the woman would hear and understand. “I don't care if you believe me or not, because the fact of the matter remains. You killed my husband and my child, and now, I could kill you if I choose to. We'll see what happens.” She offered a nonchalant shrug.
Alina spat on the floor at Mariss' feet, just missing her shoes. She had to wear flats because of what the bitch had done to her back.
“I'm not afraid of you,” she spat in German.
“That's okay. You will be. Just like your father.”
“What do you know of my father?” the woman shouted.
“I know that the gang I used to run with sold me to him in exchange for keeping them out of jail.” Mariss leaned in close so Alina could see her eyes. “Your father tried to rape me and I tried to kill him for it. Then he put me in jail and had his men in the prison try to finish his job. The only reason I survived was because one of his men accidentally forgot to turn off the cameras one day. I tried to kill him too.”
“Lies! You're a liar!”
Mariss pulled away and shrugged. “You can call me what you like. It doesn't change the truth.”
She started her slow, circular dance around the chair once again. “I'm not sorry your father died. Part of me is glad he suffered as long as he did. I know that's not the right way to think, but right now, I just can't find it in me to care. Maybe he'd be proud of you. Maybe he found religion at the end. I don't know and I don't care. You attacked my mother. You killed my husband and my child. I won't let that go.”
“What are you going to do?” Alina asked. She sounded like she was starting to get scared. Like she was starting to realize that she was tied to a chair in a room with a pyschotic, bereaved woman.
“I haven't decided yet.”
She knew Sebastian was right. Mariss wouldn't be able to live with herself if she killed this woman, but with her inhibitions and her morals tamped down so far, it was hard to find the part of her that cared. She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. She was on the verge of fracturing, a complete mental breakdown. These last few months had been harder on her than she realized, but she hadn't quite passed the point of no return. Or had she?
“I hope that you got what you wanted from this.” Mariss dropped her arms to her sides. She probably could kill this woman, but fatigue settled over her and weighed her shoulders down. In that moment, she lost the will. She would make sure that justice was served. Herbert and Sebastian would make sure of it. Holden would never approve if she killed this woman out of revenge.
Mariss turned away before the tears started to fall and she left the room.
“Where are you going?” the woman shouted. “Where are you going?”
The closing of the door cut off her shouts. Sebastian fell into step beside her.
“I'm proud of you,” he said, taking her hand.
Mariss snatched it from his grasp. “Don't be.”
CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR
YOU MAKE ME WANT TO SMILE
It was raining this time. Where the weather had been bright and inviting for Holden's funeral, the day of Holiss' came grim and grey with light misting rain that soaked everything through.
Mariss stared straight ahead at the tiny coffin, but no tears came. The despair in her heart, of losing her husband, her son, and everything they would have been together, cascaded around her in waves. But she couldn't feel. She was shoved too deep inside herself to feel anything. For two months she'd hovered in this numb state, unwilling to see her friends or her therapist. She'd refused to let B and his family come to the funeral and declined her mother's offer to fly in.
Sebastian was ever by her side and Brit and Julie
t weren't far away. They were still sore about the scare she'd given them with her death announcement, but they understood to an extent.
Mariss shivered in the frigid February rain. There wasn't even snow on the ground to make the day seem a little brighter.
“Are you going to the reception at the office?” Sebastian asked.
Mariss shook her head, unable to find words as the horrible day settled around her. Holiss had lived far longer than anyone had expected him to. A few nights ago, Holiss' little body had finally given up its fight. Two whole months she'd spent with her little man, but in the end, he'd been to weak to hold on. Being with him was the only thing that pulled Mariss out of herself, but now that he was gone, there was nothing left for her to cling to.
Sebastian had brought a photographer in so she'd have some pictures of her with Holiss. There were also a few from the nurses that they'd taken while he was still alive.
Realizing she was crushing Sebastian's hand in her own, she attempted to let him go, but his fingers grasped hers, unwilling to release her.
“I think it's time to go,” he said as they lowered the casket into the ground.
Without a word, she turned away and followed him back to his car. He was silent on the drive back to his apartment. Mariss didn't even question why they weren't going back to her place.
They entered the apartment without a word to each other. Mariss dropped her purse on the piano bench and marched into Sebastian's bedroom without a word. Stripping to remove the stifling attire, she paid no heed to Sebastian or the words he was saying that were so clearly directed at her. Words rang in her ears as a constant reminder that she was still alive and her husband and child where not. She didn't even have the little piece of DNA that Holden had offered in the form of their son.
She could no longer feel. The pain that should have crippled her buzzed at the back of her brain, reminding her what would be there when she came back to herself and giving her every reason not to.
A warm, heavy hand on her shoulder brought Mariss around. She looked up into Sebastian's eyes and watched his aqua irises darken to navy. His fear was showing, but there wasn't enough of her to care or react anymore.
The Red Wife Page 31