Todd walked into the Baton Rouge airport as Tony Lord and boarded the short flight from there to New Orleans. Upon entering the New Orleans airport after landing, he went into the bathroom and emerged dressed in his tailormade silk suit and donned his sunglasses. He headed for the exit where a Limo was waiting to pick up him up. He spotted the driver holding up a card with his name and walked towards the vehicle.
“Mr. Butler?” the driver inquired.
Todd nodded and entered the car.
“Where to Sir?”
“Take me to the Buckner Mansion.” He sat back in the vehicle and thought of the last time he had hired a Limo. He had just arrived back in Llanview and had decided to see Blair. That was when he found out she had opened Shelter. So much had happened since that night. He still found it hard to believe his brother Victor was alive, but the organization had changed him. Victor had meant business when he had attempted to kill him. If he hadn’t disappeared Todd wasn’t sure if he wouldn’t have tried to kill him again. The organization wanted him to do just that.
Todd rubbed his forehead as the headache he had fought all day began to pound again. Think of Blair, it helped earlier. Focus. He pulled the wallet from his pocket and took the ring out again. Just touching the cool metal recalled the moment when Blair slipped it on his finger. His hand clenched around it. She helped you make it through those days in that compound. Without her and the kids, they would have beaten you. Don’t let them get you now. He looked out the window and noticed the car was entering the Garden District. Soon he would see Blair.
The Limo pulled into the driveway of the mansion, and he instructed the driver to go to the back entrance. Blair came out onto the back veranda. He was surprised. The minute the car pulled away, she began running towards him and he braced himself as she flew into his arms. It was one of the things he loved most about her. She was never afraid to show her emotions, something he had long had trouble with. She was also a very tactile creature, he remembered his surprise when she reached for his injured hand in the park after only their third meeting. Other women would have shied from touching him because of his reputation, but not Blair. He loved her touch and right then he loved the smell of her hair so close to his face. “You’re early, I guessed you missed me,” he whispered into her ear, before kissing the nape of her neck when she loosened her hold on him.
Blair laughed, and let go of his neck, slipping her arm through his and resting her head on his shoulder. “You know I did. I thought this day would never get here. I was beginning to get a little cranky at work and home. I think Dorian was glad to see me leave this morning and I know Cutter was.” They reached the back door and entered the home. She quickly closed the door and turned back into his embrace. “You look mighty handsome, Mr. Butler.” She put her hands on his shoulders and ran her fingers down his lapels. I hope you got all your business finished for the weekend because you’re all mine for the next couple of days.”
Todd answered her, by closing the small gap between them and thoroughly kissing her. Blair’s lips melted beneath his and her arms wrapped around his neck going with the flow. They were both breathless when they finally stopped. Todd found himself unwilling to let her go. The sun was beginning to drop in the sky, and the light played around the room. It made her hair shine, almost glow as she stood to face him. He stood in front, with one arm holding her securely around the waist as he used his free hand to move her hair away from her face. His fingers caressed her cheek and slid down her neck, and he was fascinated as he felt her heartbeat beneath his fingertips. All those years in and out of that damn chair, and he had only had his memories of her to sustain him but now was different. She was here, and real, and his.
Blair had looked at Todd when he had stopped kissing her and relished his caress, but then she sensed a change in him as he held her. He seemed a million miles away for just a moment. She suddenly felt a small chill go down her back. Something had happened. “Todd, are you alright? What’s the matter?” It was like he didn’t hear her at first, then his gaze met her own.
“Do you know you’re even more beautiful now, than you were when I met you? I’ve got to admit, I was surprised you even talked to me after they sent me home from my job at the hospital because I was drunk. But you did, and you even understood how I felt that night.” Her hand came up and covered his, where it rested over her heart. He looked down at it for a moment and then back up. “You’ve never been afraid to touch me or spend time with me even when everyone in Llanview thought you were crazy to associate with me. I think it was your little touches that got to me first. They made me feel human. I needed that... to feel human. Too much in my recent past made me feel less than human.”
Blair knew at that moment that something had scared Todd. He only opened up to her when he was afraid of losing her. She reached and touched his face softly. “You’re human, Todd, and vulnerable, even when you try to hide that part of yourself. You don’t have to hide it from me. I love you, if something’s bothering you, please tell me.”
Todd gulped. He realized he had said too much. They were supposed to be happy, and he had let his nightmare intrude. He forced himself to smile. “There’s nothing, Blair. We’re here to continue our honeymoon. That’s not Chinese food, I smell. Don’t tell me you decided to cook this evening?” He teased her.
Blair sighed, he had started to joke. She now knew he did it when he was hurt or scared. She was used to it but also frustrated. They had been making such great progress, keeping things open and upfront. Whatever was bothering Todd, had just come between them. She knew better than to push and went along with him for the time being and answered his query. “Yes, I made dinner.” Todd raised his eyebrows at that, and she pushed him away from her. “Don’t give me that look, you know I can cook. In fact, it’s your favorite. I just wanted it to be us this evening. I sent the hired cook home.” She grabbed his hand and led him into the spacious kitchen. The breakfast nook was decked out elegantly for a quiet intimate dinner. “You open the sparkling grape juice for me and fix yourself a drink, while I finish up.”
Todd walked to the refrigerator and retrieved the grape juice. He opened it and poured some into Blair’s wine glass, then poured himself about two fingers of Scotch from the decanter on the counter. Leaning against the counter he watched curiously as Blair turned into a domestic goddess in front of him. He loved just looking at her, and he noticed that she was starting to show just a little under the apron she had donned. Anyone not knowing she was pregnant would think she had put on a little bit of weight. He walked across the kitchen and moved behind her as she worked on their salad for the night. Setting her glass next to her on the counter, he couldn’t resist putting an arm around her and rubbing the area where his baby resided. “Have you seen the doctor? Is everything going along alright?”
The moment his hand had touched her, Blair had paused and now she put her own hand on top of his. “The baby is doing fine. The doctor just told me to try and keep my stress level down. Being here with you helps that a lot.” Todd smiled at her words and took the moment to kiss her neck. Blair sighed and squeezed the hand on her belly, then lifted it off her. She turned to face him. “ I also need to eat regularly and that’s not going to happen if you keep distracting me. Behave, and make yourself useful. Would you light the candles at the table?”
Todd nodded. “Yes, Dear.” He gulped down the last of his drink and did as she asked then decided to further make himself useful by getting the main course out of the oven. He was pleasantly surprised to see a roasted chicken sitting surrounded by potatoes and carrots in the pot. Grabbing the proper gloves, he removed them and carried them to the table, setting them on the trivets Blair had placed there. His mouth watered at the sight.
Blair set the salad on the table, and they sat down. She watched with amusement as Todd made a big show of carving the chicken and then they dug in. When the dinner was over, he helped her clear the table, but he finally put his foot down when she was ready to wash the dishes.
“You made dinner, now let the maid I hired clean things up. We’ve wasted enough time with normal everyday things. Come with me.” They made their way to the bedroom and Todd turned the lamps down low and led Blair to the bed. He stood in front of her and opened his hands to hers. “I believe when I got here, you said I was to be yours all weekend. Take me, Blair, the weekend has started.”
****
Hours later Blair was awakened by Todd suddenly grabbing her tightly and moaning. It was jarring when he spoke aloud. He was obviously upset. “I don’t know, I’ve told you I don’t have it. Why are you doing this?” Todd’s head began shaking back and forth, this was the first time she had ever seen Todd so disturbed. She had heard of another time in his life when he had nightmares, but he had always seemed fine when he was with her. She gently tried to wake him, but he was locked into the nightmare and whatever was happening began escalating. He suddenly screamed and jerked violently, then went very still. Blair was frantic. “Todd, please wake up. Oh God, what is it?” She sat up and watched helplessly as Todd’s body started shaking again and his arms dropped to his side stiffly.
Todd was trapped in his nightmare, once again strapped to the chair. The current raced through his body and he convulsed feeling consciousness leaving him. He fought to regain control, he couldn’t lose himself again. Even as his muscles spasmed from the current he began to say the only thing he could that would keep him sane. “You... won’t... beat... me, I have a daughter,....her name is Starr,...Starr has a mother, her mother is Blair,...Blair is my wife. I have a son, his name is Jack….I have a daughter, her name is Starr,...Starr…. has a mother, her mother is Blair. Blair is my wife. ...Blair... is... my... wife…” his jaw was clenched and it was a struggle to say the words but he continued.
Blair wanted to cry as she listened to his tortured words. She was mesmerized by his actions as his hands appeared to be counting with each name he said. His voice was ragged and she realized for the first time where Todd’s nightmare had trapped him. “Oh no you’re back with them aren’t you, Todd? You’re in Irene’s hands.” She tried again to wake him. “Todd, it’s me, Blair, your wife. You’re safe now. You need to wake up.” He was still unresponsive to her. She clutched at his shoulders trying to shake him awake but to no avail. Think Blair, there has to be something that would bring him out of this. Wait, the baby. She took his hand. “Todd, wake up. I think the baby just kicked me. Don’t you want to feel it. Here, put your hand here.” She guided his hand to her belly and prayed for a miracle. His chanting stopped, and his body stilled. He shuddered and then slowly opened his eyes.
Todd found it difficult to focus. For one brief minute, he was still in the confines of the compound room and then it shifted around him and he found himself staring into anxious emerald eyes as he lay on the bed in New Orleans. “Blair??? What??? OH God!” He closed his eyes as the last remnants of the night terrors sifted through his brain. For over a year he had held off those memories. Now they were plaguing him. Blair must have awakened to his nightmare. What had he done? He was about to ask her that very question when he realized she had his hand and where she was holding it. Suddenly he felt a little flutter under his fingertips and Blair gasped in surprise.
Blair glanced down as she too felt the movement. It wasn’t her imagination. She smiled tremulously and met his eyes. “I couldn’t wake you. Then I thought if you felt your child, you would come back to us. It worked. Todd, are you okay?”
He gulped and moved his hand gently over the spot to see if his child would move again. His hand shook a little bit, and he knew it was the after-effects of the dream. He nodded at Blair and tried to compose himself. “I am now. I’m sorry I scared you. That’s the last thing I ever wanted to do.” He sat up in the bed and moved extra pillows behind him, giving himself time before having to explain what had just occurred. Then he leaned back against them and pulled Blair into the crook of his arm. He hesitated a moment. You’re stalling Manning. You tried to hide it before, now she’s caught up in the middle of it. Just talk to her. “I’m not sure why this is happening. I know you were confused and upset with me earlier, but I thought what happened yesterday was just an isolated nightmare because of my chat with Baker. Now, I’m not so sure.”
Blair leaned back against his shoulder, anxious to hear whatever Todd wanted to tell her. She couldn’t help smiling a little to herself when Todd’s free hand settled across her belly, and her hand intertwined with his. Then his last words hit her. She turned to look at him. “You didn’t tell me you talked with Baker. Maybe all of this is because of him. I knew I didn’t like you working with him.” She paused to search his face. She was trying to gauge just how upset he was, and she saw the dark circles she had failed to notice when he arrived. “Todd, you never told me what really occurred those eight years. Why?”
“I couldn’t. It sounded lame to me when I said the word torture to Viki and Starr, and I know McBain was skeptical. In the end, I think Starr believed me, but you have no idea how it hurt when all of you just took for granted that I escaped relatively unharmed.” Todd stifled a bitter chuckle that tried to escape and remarked sarcastically. “Shit, I was the picture of health, thanks to the care they gave me while I was catatonic. How could any of you believe what Irene and Baker really did to me?” He fell silent, released her hand, and began to rub her belly slowly.
Blair began to understand just how hard it must have been for him when he returned. Instead of welcoming him home, he had been met with suspicion and disbelief. When the truth came out, Victor received all the sympathy. When Todd was arrested for Victor’s death, no one was surprised. After all, it was Todd you were talking about. Even she had been convinced the Post Traumatic Stress was just a means to get out of jail, but now she knew differently. What she just witness changed everything. Covering his hand with hers again, she said. “I believe you, and I’m worried. This isn’t good, Todd. What happened tonight was more than a nightmare. Baker might not be the cause, but even you said you had a nightmare before coming here, and that you had just talked to Baker. Whatever he said or did must have triggered something.”
“It was so real, Blair. I can’t explain it, but it felt like I was there all over again. All I’ve wanted to do since escaping my mother was put those eight years behind me. Now it’s coming back to haunt me. As for Baker, I just don’t know. It could be him or maybe the damn compound. Whatever has happened, I need to find a way to make it stop. We’ve got too much at stake. I won’t let Irene beat me.” He enclosed her fully into his arms and hugged her, whispering another “I won’t.” as he kissed the top of her head.
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