"Tom I've been thinking…" Elizabet said.
"Never a good idea," Tom joked. Giving him an elbow in the ribs, Elizabet continued. "No. I was thinking, what if we could help them."
Tom stopped what he was doing. "Why is it I'm getting the feeling that I'm not going to like what you say next?"
Elizabet turned and looked him in the eye. "What if we got Walter to sign, oh I don't know---a confession or something or other? You know something that they could use to help in a divorce."
"And how would you do that?"
"I thought maybe you could-"
"Me? You want me to beat the guy senseless and make him write it all down?"
Elizabet sat up in bed, the excitement growing in her voice as she explained her plan. "No, no. Just threaten him, scare him. You wouldn't need to get him to write anything down. I could make up a letter of confession and you could get him to sign it."
"You're serious?"
"Come on, Tom, after all she did for me," Elizabet said, resting her chin on his chest. "If it hadn't been for, Alice, I probably wouldn't be here right now. God knows where I would have ended up. And as for John, wouldn't you like to see him happy?"
Tom shook his head. "I can't believe you're the woman I married. Little did I know the devious brain that was behind those beautiful eyes."
Elizabet fluttered her eyelashes and pouted. "So what do you think? You think it could work?" Seeing Tom smile, she asked him. "Wouldn't you like to see him get his comeuppance?"
"Alright, but if I'm doing this I'm doing it alone, and I'm doing it my way."
Chapter 14
Watching from the safety of the beach, Alice watched John at play with his daughter in the sea. Starting off in a simple water fight, their antics grew until Amy found herself hanging upside down by the ankles. Threatening to dunk her head under the water, Alice found Amy calling for her.
"Help me, Alice!"
"Yes, come and save her, Alice," John grinned, putting his daughter back upright and splashing her.
"You know I can't swim," Alice called back.
"Aw, come on Alice, boys against girls," Amy said. "Please!"
"I think she's chicken, Amy," John said.
Getting up off the sand, Alice crossed the beach and stopped at the water's edge. "Come here and call me that again," Alice grinned. "Unless you're afraid."
John pointed to himself. "Me?"
"Chicken."
Seeing him run through the water toward her, Alice took off running in the opposite direction. "Run Amy, save yourself. I'll lead him away." Hearing him chase after her, Alice slowed her run and let him catch up with her. Now right behind her, she turned and faced him.
"That was a pathetic getaway," John grinned.
"Who said I was running away, maybe I was luring you into a trap," Alice replied.
Looking around him, he asked. "And that trap is?"
Stepping forward to give him a kiss, Alice changed her movement at the last second. Moving quickly, she wrapped a leg behind John's and placed an arm around his neck. Pushing off with her other leg and using his weight against him, she tripped him up and sent him crashing to the sand. Moving in for the kill, she straddled him and pinned his arms to the sand with her knees. "That trap."
"Where the hell did you learn to do that?" John asked, struggling to free himself.
"It's called Judo, I learned this move from one of the Chinese waiters that worked at the hotel. Good isn't it. Now, what was that you were calling me?"
"Chicken," John teased.
Alice looked up. "You hear that Amy?" John tried his best to see what his daughter was getting up to. "Who do you thinks better, boys or the girl, Amy?"
"Girls," Amy replied and dropped a lump of seaweed on her father's face.
Lifting the seaweed off his face, Alice asked. "Well, are girls better?"
"From where I am, they are," John smirked. "I could stay here all day."
"I think you need some time in that cold sea," Alice said.
"Care to join me?"
Alice looked up and was relieved to see Amy had grown bored with their antics. "You know I can't swim."
"Who said anything about swimming?" he said.
"Boys." Alice sat up and shook her head. Trying to make herself comfortable, she found herself quickly thrown over and pinned to the sand.
"Girls." John smiled and kissed her. "Now you've fallen into my trap. Think you can escape?"
Not even trying to do so, Alice wrapped her hands around the back of his neck and pulled him to her. Taking him in a long and passionate kiss, she held his head there and wouldn't let him straighten himself. "Think you can escape?"
"I don't want to…"
"Me neither," Alice said and pulled her to him once more. Feeling his chest lay on hers, she ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him close to her. Losing herself in a longer and more passionate kiss, she felt her body yearn to be with his. Pushing him away she looked at him to see if he felt the same way. "Cold water?"
John nodded and copied her. “Cold water.”
Watching him get to his feet, Alice found a hand offered to her and pulled upright. Holding her in an embrace, John looked into her eyes. "For a while, I thought I'd never know what it was to fall in love again. I'd always thought that you only find love once in this lifetime." Taking his hand, Alice felt him pin back a piece of her loose hair before putting his hand on her cheek. "But you, you've shown me how wrong I was. It scares me a little, but I don't think my life would be the same without you."
Alice felt a tear break free and run down her face. "I love you."
"I love you too. I swear I'm going to try everything I can to get this divorce thing sorted-" John said, before Alice placed a finger to his lips.
"I can wait. Do you honestly think I couldn't wait?"
"Well no, but I'd like us to be married before Amy is," John joked. "I don't think even you could wait that long."
Feeling a tone of frustration in his voice, Alice took his hand and led him along the beach. "Let's not think about that for now. This week with you and Amy has been one of the happiest of my life, let's not spoil that."
"You're right. It has been for me too. I'm glad we came away like this, just the three of us. Amy's had a great time having us both here to spoil her."
"I'm glad, it can't have been easy for her. Her mum gone, and you away a lot."
"Thankfully she was too young to really notice. It's now that I can see how she's paying attention to things—you know she asked me something the other night?"
"About what?"
"About you," John said. "She said, she didn't know what to call you. She knows we're getting married and all, but I think she's having trouble calling you Alice. And then with her mum's gone she's struggling to find the right name."
Alice watched the child at play and felt her heart go out to her.
"But she settled on one."
"She did?"
"We got to talking, and I said that you brought happiness to both of us. Kinda like magic the way you cheered us both up. I suppose that's where she got the idea from-"
"For what?"
"She's started calling you, Fairy Mom," John said.
Alice felt her eyes flood with tears and wiped them away. Feeling like running up the beach and holding her in an embrace she'd never escape from, John leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.
"That's what you are to both of us. The woman that brought happiness back into our home."
Chapter 15
Standing beside the door, Tom heard the doorknob turn and a man curse on the other side. Pulling his gun free, Tom listened to the drunken muttering that went on before he heard metal coming into contact with metal. Hearing the key being turned in the keyhole, he braced himself for action and held the muzzle of his gun at the height he presumed the man's head would be. Waiting for the door to open Tom allowed the man to enter before slamming the door behind him. Putting the gun to his head, Tom watched him fr
eeze.
"Walter, I presume," Tom said. Expecting to hear a garbled reply, Tom was surprised by how quickly the man sobered up.
"Who's asking?"
"Let's just say, we've have a mutual friend," Tom said.
"Is this about money? Because if it is I promised that I'd pay-"
Pulling back on the hammer of his gun, Tom listened as its click silenced him. Letting him stew for a second, Tom said nothing and pushed the muzzle deeper into his neck.
"You gonna kill me?"
"That depends," Tom replied.
"On what?"
"On you being able to write your name," Tom said. Seeing Walter try to turn around to look at him, Tom dug his gun in deeper. "Try that again and I'll plaster this room with your brains. Understand?"
Walter nodded his head slowly. "I don't understand."
"You see that table in front of you?"
Walter nodded.
"How about you make yourself comfortable in the chair beside it." Walking in step with him, Tom made sure that his gun stayed in contact with the man. "Now sit down." Now with Walter in a chair, Tom walked to the other side of the table and turned up the paraffin lamp on it. Now with the room lit in a bright glow, he watched Walter fight against its brightness with a hand to his eyes.
Struggling to see, Walter asked, "Who are you? What do you want?"
"How about your life for a signature?"
"What?"
Tom took out the pre-written letter from his pocket and tossed in on the table. "Sign it." Seeing the man picked up the piece of paper and try to read it, Tom wondered if Walter could even read the words on the paper.
"What's this?"
"It's a confession."
"For what?"
Tom took a pen from his pocket and tossed it to him. "Giving Alice grounds for divorce due to your abuse of her."
Walter pushed the paper away and laughed. "So this is what this is all about. In your dreams. That bitch is married to me and that's the way it's going to stay."
"I was hoping you'd say that," Tom said, stepping out of the shadows. "I knew this would be a waste of time. But, then again bullets are cheap."
"Tell her it's not going to happen."
She doesn't know anything about this, Tom said. "I could blow you away right now and no one would care."
"You wouldn't dare-"
Firing off his gun, Tom watched the tip of Walter's right ear disappear in a pink mist. Watching the man scream out and put his hand to the side of his head. Tom replied, "I would. Now do yourself a favor and pick up that pen. The next bullet is going between your eyebrows." Trying his best to hold both his ear and write with the pen, Tom watched Walter scribble down a signature at the end of the page. Reaching over to retrieve the letter, Tom make sure that Walter got a good look at him. "I never want to see your face anywhere near her again, you hear me?"
Walter nodded in silence.
"Good. Now every time you look in the mirror I want you to realize how lucky you were today. Only she's a good woman, I would have killed you at the door," Tom said, tucking the letter into a pocket with his free hand. "Now you have a good day, Walter." Leaving at that, Tom made a hasty exit, satisfied with a job well done.
Chapter 16
Brushing her hair, Alice looked at herself in the mirror and admired the hint of a tan on her face. Not one to have called herself pale, her work load at the hotel and poor diet had left her that way. Pulling back a strand of hair to find a new freckle, she enjoyed the woman that looked back at her. Looking happy and surprisingly confident, it was a woman she thought she'd never see. Putting thoughts of her past behind her, Alice put her mind to better use and thought of lesson's she could go through with Amy the following day. Now a governess, she found Amy's thirst for knowledge had an effect on herself. Not one to have read much in her earlier years, Alice found herself taking frequent visit to the library in John's study and borrowing books on every subject. Trying to keep ahead of the child, she found each question pushed her on to learn more. Lost in thought, she jumped on hearing a knock on her bedroom door. Putting her brush down and going to it, she opened it partly and found John there.
"What up, something wrong?" Alice asked opening the door. Seeing him grin and say nothing in return, she watched him walk to the center of the room. "What's going on, John?"
"Close your eyes."
Alice looked him over, "Why? What is it?"
"Just close your eyes, and hold out your hands," John said. "I've got a surprise for you."
Seeing him smirk with excitement and not knowing what to expect, Alice found herself grin as well. Doing as she was told, she held out her hands and braced herself. "Alright. What is it? Will I like it?"
"I think so, now no peeking," John said.
Feeling something placed in her hands, Alice kept her eyes closed and tried to work out what it was. Opening her eyes she found exactly what she thought it was. Staring at it, she asked, "What is it?"
"Open it."
Wondering what was giving John his smirk, Alice tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter inside. Looking up to see his grin grow wider, he nodded.
"Go on, read it."
Scanning the top of the letter Alice found Walter's name mentioned and paused, "What is this?"
"It's a confession from Walter saying that he was abusive in your relationship and he's giving you full permission for a divorce-"
"But how? I don't understand why would he?"
Tom took the letter from her hand, "Guess he had a change of heart-"
"He did and his eye, it was you, wasn't it?"
John shook his head and acted hurt. "You know yourself, I never left your side this past week. How could I?"
"Tom, then," Alice said.
"Does it matter," John answered, taking her in an embrace. "Once we get this letter processed, there's nothing that can stop us getting married. I thought you'd be happy?"
Alice took the letter and looked it over again. "I am, I am. If I'd known what you were doing, I would have-"
"Honestly, I didn't know anything about it," John said and pulled her in for a long and lingering kiss. "Isn't it great news?"
"Yes. I just wouldn't want anyone to get hurt for this," Alice said and found him take her once more in a passionate kiss. "I guess I better give Elizabet the good news."
"She already knows," John smiled. "Actually it was her idea."
"Seriously?" Alice asked.
John nodded. "She said she had to repay you for what you did for her."
"But I didn't do anything—so is there anyone in this house that doesn't know about this?"
"Well, there is one person," John said. "I thought we'd tell her together." Taking her hand, they both left to give Amy the good news.
Chapter 17
Hearing a floor board creak, Alice opened an eye and decided not to pay it any attention. She was used to John's home by now and grown accustomed to its noises at night. Turning over she pulled the blanket closer to her cheek and tried to return to the dream she'd been having. Closing her eyes, she tried to put herself back to the moment when she and John were skinny dipping. Remembering vividly the part where their wet bodies were about to meet, she cursed the floor for its timing. Just on the verge of feeling John's hands explore her, the noise had taken her away it. Groaning to herself, Alice knew that another part of herself out there having the time of her life and she was losing out. Tossing again and thumping her pillow in frustration, Alice paused on hearing the floor creak once more. Sounding different than earlier, the creak was slower as if someone was trying to carry their weight over it in silence. Now curious, Alice sat up and looked around. At first seeing nothing to alert her to any danger, she found a shape that shouldn't be there. Wondering if one of the cleaning staff had moved her folding screen, she suddenly saw the shadow move. Realizing that she wasn't alone, she watched it cross the room quicker than she could scream. Grabbed around the mouth, Alice found her head thrown backwards and pinned t
o the pillow. Looking up in terror, she caught the smell of alcohol and instantly knew who it was.
"Hi Alice. Long time no see. Miss me?"
Alice shook her head and tried to free her mouth. Held even tighter, Walter cautioned her. "Try to scream and I'll burn this place to the ground." Taking a match with his free hand, he scratched it off the bedpost and showed her his face. "Like the ear? A little memento to remind me, he said."
Alice shook her head as best she could to give an answer.
"Doesn't matter anyway, confession or not, there's no way I'm letting you go. You hear me? You're mine and no one else's. The thought of another man having his hands on you..."
Staring at Walters face, Alice noticed a change in him since the last time she'd seen him. Wondering what it was, she realized that he wasn't drunk. Smelling a faint hint of alcohol on his breath, his eyes were clearly in focus as he looked her over. Lighting another match, he stretched himself to light the paraffin lamp on her bedside. Tossing the match away, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a gun.
"You're probably wondering what's going to happen next."
Alice nodded her head in terror.
"Truth be told, I didn't think I'd get this far," Walter admitted. "I followed your fella back here and hid out in the garden. All I had to do was wait till dark and break in." Waving his gun in front of her face he said, "I'm going to take my hand away now. But I'm warning you, you scream and you'll die. I don't want to do it, but if you push me. Understood?"
Alice nodded her head and took a deep breath as he took his hand away. "Walter, please. Whatever you're thinking don't-"
"You think I'm here to attack you?" Walter shook his head and laughed. "I'm here to free you from this place. I know you don't want to marry him, not really."
"Huh?
"You and me, Alice, we're destined to be together. I know that now. It took me long enough to realize that," Walter said and rubbed her cheek. "I'm a changed man, you'll see. It was the drink, Alice. Changed me, made me into a monster. I can see that now. You'll forgive me in time, I know that. Come on, get dressed, we're leaving."
Mail Order Bride: Journey's End: A Mail Order Brides Western Romance (Love On The Line Book 2) Page 6