The End of Blame: Chapter 9

"We have to find a place to send my father another message," Jack said, now losing patience.  Orinia could see he was becoming angry, and she said, "Jahck, you should just go back.  Go to the Athenian Hotel, as he asked you.  I am fine on my own.  I will find a way."


"That's not what I meant.  I have to let him know I am all right.  I know my mom is probably really upset."  He secretly was even more worried about Todd.  What if his father had gotten worse because of his disappearance?  "I just have to, that's all."


"All right, if that is the case, Jahck Mahnning, I'll find out."  She approached the next passerby and asked.  The woman swatted her off.  She waited a few more minutes, and tried an older man who said, 'what is the internet?' in Greek.  Finally, she saw a middle-aged gentleman, and she approached him.  In the fluidity of the Greek language, she said, "Can you tell me where we might find an internet cafe?"


The man appeared to be very interested, and Jack heard him ask a question.  The only word he understood was 'American.'  She nodded.  The man approached them both, and smiled, before leading them down the street and into an alley, where he turned and held a knife to Orinia's throat.  He said something in Greek, she repeated it, "He wants your wallet.  Don't give it to him, Jahck."


"The hell I won't!" he shouted, and tossed it to the man's free hand.  The robber promptly took off down the street, leaving her in a heap on the ground and Jack, whose nervousness had transferred to his hands, scrambled to help her up.  He said, "In my family, I've learned the hard way that money can be replaced, people can't."


"But how will you get back to your parents or survive?"


"I'll figure it out."  He said.  He began to wonder just how that would work.  They had to eat soon, it had been hours.  The internet cafes all had cover charges, or a minimum order.  He thought of finding a person to loan a cell phone to them, like he did in Llanview at the mall, and realized that after their encounter, that probably was not the best idea.  He said the obvious, "We'll go to the police.  Or I will, not you.  They will let me call my father."


"They might.  You must realize, Greece is not America."


"It's about all we've got," he said.


***


"Are you okay with leaving the kids with Viki and The Nun?"  He said, combing his hair with his fingers, and pulling on his slacks.  He seemed back in control.


"Yes, I'm okay with that.  Are you okay, Todd?  You just went through. . . something."  Blair said, uncertain.


"I'm okay.  The baby and you snapped me out of it.  Not to mention McBain standing over me.  I was sure the hero would protect me from the bad guys."


"He's not a bad guy, either, Todd."


"I know he's not.  You misunderstood me.  I was serious.  He is a hero, I guess.  When I saw him, I just suddenly felt like I wasn't in danger anymore.  He's not the type to let the nuts and perverts have their way with me."


She shook.  Sometimes, even though he was snarking, his words were so brutal they pierced her heart.  But, it's real.  It's what he's dealt with.  Brutality.  She said, "We're going to find Jack.  I feel it."


"I do, too.  Plus he doesn't really want to be lost.  He wants us to find him, or he never would have written."


"I felt the same way," she added, touching his shoulder.  Both of them looked into the mirror.


He said, "A far cry from the man you first married?"


"Not really, Todd.  It's always been you.  Somehow."


"You look exactly the same," he said.


"That's a bit much, don't you think?"


"No, I don't."  He said, turning and kissing her.  "Thank you for what you tried to do for me earlier, Babe."


She nodded yes, and kissed his cheek over his scar.  "That's my job.  I'm your wife."


There was a knock at the door.  Todd let John in the room, and grabbed his laptop bag.  "Sorry, McBain, you've been waiting a while."


"I just came to see if everything was okay up here.  You two ready?  We have to make that flight."


"We're ready."  Blair said, taking Todd's arm.


He looked into her eyes.  "We're ready,"  he said, grateful she was there.


***


"I am so sorry, Jahck, to get you into this problem."  Orinia said, brushing her hair back from her eyes.


"It's no big deal,"  he said, realizing he did not know how to cancel his credit card, and that he lost his driver's permit in the wallet, as well as $350 in cash.  Remember, money can be replaced.  He could hear his father's distinct voice in his ears.  "It doesn't matter."


Wandering along a bit longer, they came to the police station, and she waited outside in the alley, while he went inside.  He approached the desk and realized he did not know how to communicate with the officers without Orinia.  A man approached him, wearing a uniform similar to formal police attire, yet none of the other men were in plain clothes at all, as one might see in Llanview.  The man said something to him in Greek.  Jack said, "I'm American.  English?"  The policeman called to another, a younger one.  He in turn said, "You're American?"


"Yes.  I'm lost.  I got separated from my parents.  I need to call my father, and I was just mugged.  My wallet was taken."


"I'm sorry to hear that, young man.  We can provide you with a phone.  Hopefully, you will reach your family."


He turned and left Jack at the counter, and returned with a dial-up phone.  Jack dialed his father's cell phone.  It immediately went to voice mail.  He left a message, telling where he was, hung up and dialed Blair.  The same thing happened on her phone.  He looked to the officer and puzzled, he said, "I can't get through."


***
On the plane, Todd dozed, and Blair, holding his hand, turned to John.  "I'm scared."


"I would be, too.  Can't say I blame you." he looked out the window.  "I heard a lot of that, Blair, what happened today."


She said, "Don't ever tell him how much.  It would make him feel . . . less of a man.  I just want this over, so we can get home and take care of him."


"Blair, I may have overstepped, but I almost called Ray Martino earlier."


"It's not overstepping, it's concern.  I called him.  He's on vacation, in Aruba.  When we get home, he will be there for Todd."


She looked back to her husband.  Then, to John, she broke into tears.  "I can't bear this.  It's so unfair.  He's made mistakes, but nothing he did deserves all of this, for weeks and months and years?  It never stops."


John patted her arm.  "He'll be okay, Blair."


"Will he?"  She asked him.


"He will."  Todd said, waking.  He opened one eye, and it reminded her of the past, in the early days of Starr's life, when he tried time and time again to put their family back together.  You were such a fool, Blair.  You were such a fool to let him go then.  Such a fool to send him off to Mitch and his 'death.'  Such wasted time.


"Stop, Blair.  I know where your head is."  He said, as if reading her mind.


"You do, do you?" she smiled through her sadness.


"Yeah, I do.  It's all water under the bridge, Babe.  We're together.  That's what matters now.  And if you two would be quiet, I could get some shut eye around here," he said, smirking and closing his eyes.


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