Martin slid down the wall he was leaning on until he rested on his haunches. He had heard the whole conversation and he closed his eyes when he heard the other woman start to cry. He rearranged himself until he was sitting flat on the floor with his legs stretched out in front of him and his back against the wall. He looked at his watch and listened to the crying woman for the next three hours. Finally, he got up and stretched painfully to work out the stiffness in his joints. With a deep breath, he rounded the corner to enter the kitchen, noticing as he approached that she had evidently gotten to the end of the file some time ago, and had just been crying. He had to clear his throat several times to get her to notice him.
"Hi, Piper," he said pleasantly and her eyes widened at the mention of her name. "I'm Martin."
She looked at him for a long moment without speaking.
"There are some things you should know that aren't in that file," he said softly.
"I don't if I can bear to know anymore," she said hoarsely.
"If you love her, you need to know these things," Martin said kindly and she started to cry again but got control of herself long enough to nod in the affirmative.
"Come on," he said, gesturing to the hall and led her to the library where he walked over and removed a book from one of the shelves.
"Do you know about her family?" he asked.
"Vaguely," Piper said, sitting down on the sofa and wiping at her eyes.
"Her family thinks she's dead but her whole adult life she's been fighting for their survival. Everything you read in that file she did because she didn't have a choice," Martin said speaking slowly. "They hid her family from her and held them over her head. She's the best because she had to be, not because she wanted to be. If she had tried to run or had she died, they would have instantly killed her family. Do you have any idea how hard it would be to live the life she has and to know that if you made any mistakes your family would die? That's what she's lived with for all of these years," He stopped and went over to sit next to her on the sofa.
"She's seen things and done things that you and I could never imagine. She's taken risks that pass belief, but I think the biggest risk that woman ever took was letting you in," Martin said as he opened the book he held and handed it to her. "I want to show you something, I caught her scribbling in this not long after she started dating you."
Piper took the book from his hand with a puzzled expression upon noticing that it was dictionary. She looked closely at the displayed pages to see that the word ‘love' was circled with red ink and drawn next to it on the page was a little heart that had the initials P.T + B.C written inside. She closed the book with a snap and was assaulted by another wave of tears.
Martin waited patiently until she subsided. "A thirty-one year old woman shouldn't have to look up that word in the dictionary," he said softly. "And what she wrote is the work of a teenager, not a woman her age. For fifteen years she's just existed from day to day but when she met you..." He paused, "…you gave her hope."
Piper wiped at her eyes. "She killed a man today right in front of me," she said with a sniffle.
Martin's eyes widened a little. "Piper," he said gently, "they want her dead."
"I don't understand," Piper said further agitated.
"You'd better let her explain that part," Martin said. "Are you going to leave her?"
Piper took a deep breath. "Of course not, she needs me."
Martin smiled in relief. "Then you'd better go tell her."
Piper wiped at her eyes and rose from the couch. "Why are you here?" she asked bluntly.
"Because they want me dead, too," Martin said. "She saved my life."
Piper looked at him for several seconds, finally just nodding and leaving the room. She retraced her steps back to the kitchen and tentatively walked down the hall that Bailey had taken hours earlier. She noted several rooms on both sides of the hall but ignored them in favor of the last one that she could see had a light on.
She took a deep breath as she stepped through the doorway and her heart clenched painfully at the sight before her. Bailey hadn't noticed her and was sitting cross-legged on the corner of a king-sized bed, her back was to her but Piper could see her rocking back and forth as if in pain, holding the teddy bear she had given her in her lap.
"Bailey," Piper said softly and she stopped rocking and went very still.
"Please don't leave me," Bailey pleaded pathetically not turning around, her hand coming up to wipe at her eyes.
"I'm not going anywhere," Piper said coming over and sitting behind her on the bed.
"You're not going to leave me?" Bailey asked roughly, her voice cracking.
"No, I'm not," Piper said softly. "I love you, Bailey," she added gently placing a hand on her shoulder, feeling the body under her hand buck a little and take several quick deep breaths.
"I love you, Bailey," she repeated and Bailey turned to bury her head in her lap, embracing her around the waist.
Piper started to cry again as she watched her struggle with herself. "It's alright, sweetheart," she sniffled. "It's okay to cry."
The arms around her waist embraced her tightly and hands clutched at her back almost painfully as they clung desperately for purchase. It started as a sob that racked her whole body and gave way to an outpouring as she brought her knees up to her chest protectively and buried her head further into her lap.
The tears soon turned to raging and she held her tightly as she lost control of herself completely. She let the tears slide silently down her own face, realizing sadly that now that the wall had buckled and given way, everything that had been imprisoned behind was coming forward with a vengeance. She could only imagine how difficult it was for her and she felt her own heart break for the young girl who had loved her father and had given in to the madness of her loss, only to watch the slow death of her own soul.
She whispered words of comfort and started to rock her gently when her breath started to become forced as she attempted to keep up with the sobs she had no control over. Growing alarmed and afraid that she might hurt herself, she leaned over the head in her lap to brush her lips over the ebony hair.
"I love you, Bailey Ann," she said quietly. "Come back to me."
The raging tapered off gradually but the tears lasted until her muscles grew stiff and her body started to protest loudly. She put her body on hold and closed her eyes, awaking with a start to find Bailey asleep in her lap and having no idea how much time had passed or how long she had been in the same position. Gently disentangling herself from her embrace, she stretched out beside her, grimacing as her body complained to the restrictions she had placed on it. Once circulation had reasserted itself, she made herself comfortable next to the vulnerable form of her lover and slowly, very slowly, drifted back off to sleep.
----------
Piper awoke at almost three in the morning to find Bailey still asleep. She looked at her features carefully, noticing puffy eyes and dried tear streaks still staining her face. She tenderly brushed the hair out of her face and went in search of the bathroom.
When she emerged, she made a slow circle of Bailey's bedroom and paused for quite some time when she found the knife that Bailey carried buried to the hilt in the top of a dresser, obviously placed there in anger or frustration, probably a mixture of both. It broke her heart to fully understand the life that Bailey had been forced to lead. She looked around and found nothing that gave the impression of home, finding the entire dwelling to be a very impersonal and almost antiseptic environment.
She ventured out of the bedroom and curiously entered what looked like an office because she could see the glow of several computer screens. She flipped on the light and found a large desk in front of the window and a smaller desk that was the operation center for several rack-mounted computers. She clicked off the light and walked across the hall into another room.
When she turned on the light, she was surprised to find only a loveseat in the middle of the room. When she entered, sh
e saw that one wall was dedicated to a breathtaking mural that had been painstakingly painted upon the wall itself. She sat down on the loveseat that faced it and studied it carefully. The picture portraying the ocean as seen from someone standing on the bow of a ship adrift in a storm. The swells tall and furious, the ship itself cresting the top of a wave and looking down upon the violent cauldron of water that surrounded it.
She wondered if Bailey had painted it herself.
"I…uhm… come in here sometimes and imagine what it would be like to live on the ocean," Bailey said quietly from the doorway. "To be so free and to go only where the current takes you."
"It's beautiful," Piper said. "Did you paint it yourself?"
Bailey nodded to the affirmative and Piper patted the cushion beside her. She entered the room and sat down gingerly beside her.
"I spoke to Martin," Piper said. "He tells me that the people you used to work for want you dead. Will you tell me why?"
She took a deep breath. "They want me dead because I present a security risk to them. A great enough risk to destroy them if I was to expose them publicly. I left the Organization three years ago, but they recently decided they wanted me back. As long as they had my family, they had a hold on me; they don't anymore," Bailey said quietly.
"I see." Piper said. "And the man in the mall, was he one of them?"
"No," Bailey said. "He was a contractor. I doubt the Organization knew or they wouldn't have allowed it, they wouldn't be careless enough to make an attempt on me so soon."
"Are you saying that they're going to try in the future to kill you?"
"Yes," Bailey said. "I'm followed every time I leave the building and have been almost since I met you. They have several people working downstairs as employees and I estimate they have around seventy people in Atlanta at the moment waiting for the orders to eliminate me."
"My God," Piper said closing her eyes. "Why are they waiting?"
"Because they're not sure they can pull it off," Bailey said. "They can't afford to lose the amount of people it would take to kill me. They also can't afford to make an attempt without it succeeding; if they failed, the threat of me exposing them becomes greater. They're waiting until an almost guaranteed opportunity presents itself or they have no other options."
"I take it you've got a plan."
"Yes," Bailey said. "I hope to end this without any violence."
"Is that possible?" Piper asked. "Will they just let you go?"
"I don't plan on giving them a choice."
"I don't understand all of this," Piper said. "Where does Martin come in and why is he here?"
"Martin stole the file that you read from the Organization, they know he did and they want him eliminated as well. He came to me for protection and because he knew the location of my mother and brother," Bailey said. "Without his assistance, I wouldn't have my family."
"That file," Piper said softly. "Is all of it true?"
"I've never looked at it," Bailey said in a whisper, her eyes studying the floor. "But I imagine it's fairly accurate, yes."
"What did you want to be when you were a little girl?"
"A musician," Bailey said regretfully. "That seems a lifetime ago now."
"You would've been a wonderful musician, Bailey," Piper said tenderly. "You still can be, if you want."
"I just want you," Bailey said with downcast eyes. "More than I ever wanted anything."
"You already have me," she said, taking her hand. "Forever."
"I don't think forever is long enough."
"It'll have to do," Piper replied, bringing Bailey's hand to her mouth and placing a kiss on it.
"I got scared when I woke up and you weren't there," Bailey said. "I thought you had decided to leave."
"Bailey, I've told you several times I wouldn't leave you and I won't," Piper said. "Why don't you believe me?"
"Because I can't believe you would want a killer," she said shamefaced.
"The file I read was about a soldier, not a killer," Piper said gently. "A soldier that didn't have a choice."
"I had a choice once," Bailey said. "My life is the result of that choice."
"No it isn't."
"Yes, it is," Bailey insisted. "I could've just grieved with my family and gone on. But I didn't. I plotted to kill that man and I did. And this is where it got me."
"It got you right here with me," Piper said. "And I'm glad I have you, very glad."
"You're are the only positive result of my life, Piper."
"Let me love you, Bailey," Piper said. "Live with me now and don't dwell on things it's far to late to change."
"I'd like that," Bailey said in a small voice.
"Me too," Piper said, resting her head on Bailey's shoulder.
Bailey sighed and placed a kiss in Piper's hair.
"Have you considered going to see your mother?"
"I'd like to, but the prospect scares me," Bailey admitted.
"Are they going to stay with the British indefinitely?"
"No, they can live wherever they want when this over."
"I think you should go see them."
"I don't know if I can," Bailey said sadly. "I'm not exactly the daughter my mother would've hoped for."
"It doesn't mean that she doesn't love you, Bailey."
She considered that silently for several minutes. "Would you go with me?"
"Of course," Piper said readily. "Anytime you're ready."
"Will you stay with me here?" Bailey asked quietly.
"Yes," Piper said happily. "I'll need to go get some things, but I'd love stay with you."
Bailey stood from the loveseat pulling Piper with her and enveloping her in a tight embrace. "Is Wednesday morning okay?" she said into Piper's hair.
"Okay for what?" Piper asked with a smile.
"To go see my mother."
"Sure, I'll call Debra when she gets in and tell her I'll be gone for a couple of days."
"Come on," Bailey said and led Piper enthusiastically across the hall and into the office where she seated herself in front of the computers.
"What are you doing?" Piper asked curiously.
"I'm going to make some calls," Bailey said punching a number into the keyboard.
"You need a computer to make phone calls?" Piper asked placing her hands on Bailey's shoulders.
"They monitor the connection for any tampering," Bailey said casually as she watched the monitor.
"Watts," Jeremy said groggily on the seventh ring.
"Good morning, Major," Bailey said pleasantly.
Jeremy cleared his throat. "I'm glad you called, there's been some hits on your paper."
"How many?"
"Two," Jeremy said. "A Vietnamese semi-pro name Nguyen and an Italian operative that goes by Dante. The Italian has a reputation."
"Any details on Dante?"
"I can give you a copy of the British dossier, if you'd like."
"I would."
"Where should I send it?" Jeremy asked and Bailey could hear him get out of bed.
"Sorry I woke you, Major," Bailey said. "I'll pick it up on Wednesday."
"I'm glad to hear that," Jeremy said pleasantly. "I'm afraid I'm not your mother's favorite person, she's stopped speaking to me altogether."
"Is everything all right?"
"Let's just say that she reluctantly agreed to the move over here and has grown more agitated with me daily since our arrival. But she's in very good health as is your brother and his fiance," Jeremy explained.
"My brother has a fiance?" Bailey asked with a smile.
"Yes, a pretty lass too," Jeremy said. "What time should I expect you on Wednesday?"
"I'll call you when I arrive. Can you arrange transportation for me?"
"Yes, I'll have an embassy car pick you up."
"Much appreciated," Bailey said sincerely.
"No trouble at all," Jeremy said easily. "Shall I prepare a dossier on Nguyen as well?"
"No need," Bailey said. "I met
him last night."
"I see," Jeremy said slowly. "I shall expect your call sometime on Wednesday then?"
"Yes, good day, Major."
"Take care," Jeremy said in departure and Bailey drummed her fingers on the desk for a moment.
"He sounds like a good man," Piper said quietly.
"He is."
"Where do you know him from?" Piper asked curiously.
"I saved his life many years ago," Bailey said. "He's with British Intelligence."
"I see."
Bailey lifted a hand to pat Piper's and dialed another number into the computer.
"Yes?" Thumper said on the second ring.
"I need another helicopter ride."
"When and to where?"
"Wednesday morning at nine to Washington D.C. returning that same day."
"Done, same arrangement?"
"Deal," Bailey said. "I'd like the same pilot if possible."
"It is," Thumper said. "Pick up in the same place?"
"Yes."
"He'll be there at nine," Thumper said. "By the way the material you asked for will be available by Thursday."
"Great," Bailey said. "Any problems?"
"None," Thumper said. "The building used to belong to the Board of Education so all information is public domain."
"That's good news," Bailey said pleased. "I'll speak to you on Thursday."
"Alright," Thumper said. "Your ‘copter will be available at nine then."
"Thanks, Thumper," Bailey said and hung up.
"Who was that?" Piper asked when the line went dead.
"Thumper Washington."
"Why does that name sound familiar?"
"He runs one the largest crime families in the South," Bailey admitted.
"And you know him?" Piper asked with a scowl.
"I only met him once, we have an arrangement."
"What kind of arrangement?"
"He does things for me and I ignore him."
"Oh," Piper said slowly. "Do I want to know what that means?"
"Probably not," Bailey said honestly and Piper nodded.
"Are you going to buy another building?"
Stories by Kiera Dellacroix Page 38