"What God has joined, let no man put asunder," said the chaplain. Aiden, who could not stand, was still in the bed, holding Tina's hand. She had a flower chain on her head. Todd was solemn, with his hands folded in front of him. Timothy was smiling, but with sadness in his eyes.
"You're married," the chaplain continued. "You may kiss the bride."
Aiden reached up with his hand and brought Tina to his lips.
"Well, Son, ya made a great choice!" Timothy said.
"I have. But ya know, she made me do it!"
She playfully slapped his shoulder. "Hey!"
"She made me, because I wouldn't have thought I'd ever see the day. I didn't deserve it. I am not really worth the time, and God knows, I may not have long."
"We won't be talking that way," Tina said.
"Ah, but we must. She did this for me," he said, looking at what he thought was her face, and then to the ceiling. "God knows why, but she wanted me to have my wish, to be married in my life. And I am, eh?"
"That's not why I did it. Well, not the only reason," Tina said.
"Ya don't have to say that. Not for the likes of me."
"I mean it, though." Tina got very quiet. She leaned over and kissed Aiden's mouth, and whispered, "I very much want to be your wife."
Todd said, "I think it's nice, you know, that you guys did this."
Tina was surprised. "Nice?"
"Yeah, I mean, it's sweet. Blair would have loved it."
"Todd, you okay?" Tina asked.
He laughed, "Yeah, I guess so. Maybe I've changed over the years, Tina. A little."
***
"I don't know, Shaun. I can't seem to connect with someone who wants that damn job!" Blair said, slamming the list onto the counter.
"People want to work, don't they?" Shaun said. "There has to be someone?"
"Well, so far they're either busy, or have a police record, or smell funny . . ."
She heard herself and laughed. Shaun said, "Try again tomorrow."
"Maybe. I wanted to get this done, for Todd. I don't want him to worry about this stuff while he's dealing with his brother's illness."
"So weird to hear that said. He has a brother."
"I know, isn't it? It's just . . . sad, too, that he might lose him."
"Good thoughts, Blair. You know that. You've done it for a long time, about a lot of things."
"An hour until we call Todd. I have to admit, I'm excited to see him. I'm going to set the computer up soon."
"The kids are looking forward to it."
"Yep."
"Blair?"
"Yeah?"
"Sam's having some bad dreams."
"He is?"
"He is. Jack's been tending to him at night. The little guy's freaked out."
"By what, Todd's being gone?"
"No, it's been longer than that."
"Why didn't he tell me?"
"He didn't want to make you cry, because you're tired a lot. Those are his words, I just think he didn't want to worry you with the baby here."
"Poor Sam."
"Yeah, well, there's a bit more."
"Like?"
"He saw Bitsy's art. He's pretty freaked out about it."
"How did he see it?"
"He went into her room when he wasn't supposed to. Jack seems to think it was a while back."
"Jack. He should have told me about this."
"He was trying to handle it. Knew there was a lot going on. Don't blame him, he promised the kid he wouldn't tell."
"That was wrong on his part. But, poor Sam. I can't help thinking that."
"Don't worry his favorite Superhero is about to clear that up."
"Spiderman?"
"No, Todd Manning."
***
The nun walked into Bea's room, and pulled up a chair, sitting next to her, and gazing out the same window. "Ah, Bea, it's a nice day, already. Shaping up to be a sunny one. Spring is coming."
The woman did not respond or answer. She just sat, continually staring into the distance.
The nun sighed. "I love the lake. My favorite part of Mountainview, except the people. So many good people here."
Nothing.
"I know that ya came to my room, and left a drawing for me. I appreciate it, and I know y'ar trying to comunicate with me. I know y'ar afraid." She pulled her chair very close, and covered Bea's hand with her own. "I would be afraid, too. It seems like being inside y'ar own head is much safer than out here. We get that. I certainly do, and y'ar son does. He does."
Nothing.
"I have been having dreams. Similar to y'ars. I know what y'ar feeling. They're very frightening. Not something we want to think about ever happening. It's about the children, and it scares us. But, God willing, things will be all right and He will keep them safe in His love and His light."
The nun didn't turn or overreact when Bea put her head on the clergywoman's shoulder and let it rest there.
***
"May we come in?" a voice said from the doorway. Todd and Timothy both looked toward the door, and Aiden, who was lost in an intimate conversation with Tina, brightened a little.
"It's Malcolm and Miguel. Y'ave come to see y'ar old pal."
"We have," Malcolm began. "how are you holding up?"
"I'm married, that's how."
Malcolm smiled. "Congratulations."
Miguel said, "Yeah, that's amazing. Congratulations."
"I want ya to meet someone. This is my brotha, Todd. I told ya all about him, remember?"
Miguel nodded, in Todd's direction, but Malcolm stepped forward. "You're the one who helped bring down The Men of 21. Aiden's told us a lot of stories about you and your experiences. I'd like to shake your hand, if you don't mind. They . . . killed my wife, the only thing that ever mattered to me."
Todd looked into the man's eyes and said, "I'm . . . sorry. Of course you can shake my hand. But I think it should be mutual admiration. You lost your wife, I can't imagine how that must be."
"Pretty bad," Miguel said. "He can't even go outside anymore. We were just talking about that. In fact, he's thinking of trying. He used to be a caretaker at Kensington Palace Gardens."
"Kensington Palace Gardens?" Todd asked. He knew what that meant. In his work purchasing Courtown Demesne, he had come across it. "That's pretty impressive."
"When they killed her . . ." Malcolm couldn't complete his sentence. Instead, he went far away, as is stuck in remembering.
"Hey, you don't have to relive that on my account," Todd said. What would you do, Manning, if Blair was killed? If you lost her? You'd be like this guy, only worse. You'd . . . be inside yourself for good, and the kids . . . He pushed his own thoughts away; they were too hard.
"I . . . was just thinking. I can see it as if it were yesterday." Malcolm said.
Todd swallowed down the large lump in his throat. Sure, they had tortured and brutalized him, but, Blair? "I can't imagine you'd ever forget."
Malcolm had clasped Todd's hand to shake it, and then had not let go. He was still gripping Todd's hand as he faded back into thought. He finally shook himself from it, and let go. "I'm sorry, I was lost in thought. I wasn't trying to hold hands with you," he attempted humor.
"I was hoping you were, but that's okay," Todd teased back. But he squinted, looking at the man and realizing how lost he was.
Just then, Dr. Vigo came by, and entered the room. "Soon, Mr. O'Farrell will have surgery, we've been able to schedule. The sooner the better, because the longer there is swelling, the more danger he is in. I have to ask you all to clear the room for a moment. I need to examine him."
Everyone did. Malcolm seemed out of sorts, confused. Todd hung back near him, while Timothy and Tina said, "Maybe we should catch some early dinner."
"That's not a bad idea," Timothy said, "I haven't eaten much today."
"I could eat," Miguel said, following.
"I'll, uh, meet up with you guys," Todd said, seeing Malcolm sit down in one of the four wallchairs.
Miguel looked back and lingered. He said, "Are you going to be okay, Malcolm?"
"Yeah, I'm . . . I just need a minute. Go ahead. I know how you like to eat early and get the food fresh out of the ovens. Go ahead, I'm okay. Really."
"If I run into old sour puss, I'll tell him I love him," Miguel said.
Malcolm half-smiled and Todd stood a distance away, texting Blair that his Skype call would be later than they had planned.
When Miguel walked off, Todd headed back to Malcolm. "You mind?" He pointed to one of the empty wallchairs.
"No."
Todd sat. "Aiden's a cool guy."
"He is."
"So, he told you all about my life?"
"Not exactly. But he did tell us some of it. It was almost folklore, the way he explained it."
"Hmf. Before we met, he and his friends in Ireland used to consider me some kind of hero. They called me The Great Scar."
"Well, you made it through something most men wouldn't." He looked to his hands.
"You really want to talk about me?"
Malcolm, shrugged.
"We can do that," Todd said. "I can tell you all about being abused, cut, shocked and battered by those bastards. For eight years. Until I traded myself for my wife and baby son, he was an infant at the time, and went right back."
Malcolm looked at Todd. "You put yourself back into their hands? Soon after you had escaped?"
"Yeah. I couldn't have this . . . handler . . . get hold of my son or my wife."
The man's eyes misted. "I can understand that."
"I almost died in her arms in Dublin. I was bleeding for days from the wounds my handler carved into me. He got off on it . . . and other things."
Todd could see Malcolm's reaction and disgust. Then, the Englishman said, "You've been through a great deal."
"Yeah. But I have Blair, my wife," Todd said. "You want to tell me about yours?"
Malcolm faltered. Then he said, "She was . . . everything. I don't know how else to put it. She couldn't have children, but we just turned our lives into giving everything we could to each other. You have kids?"
"Yeah. We just had our fifth, a baby girl. She was premature," he took out his phone and showed Malcolm his homescreen. Blair's beautiful face and green eyes and Jewel, pressed against her cheek looked back at them.
"My God, they're both beautiful." Malcolm said.
"Thanks."
"Genevieve was my everything. Much like I'm sensing your Blair is to you."
"You're sensing right. I can't imagine what I'd be doing right now if she were gone."
"You'd be doing what I am. Nothing. Mourning. Not living, but crawling through your life. Something like that."
"How long has it been?"
"Over four years."
Todd nodded. "So what's this about not going outside? I mean, you don't have to tell me, but, you also won't see me again, most likely. Sometimes, that's the best way to get things out."
"She . . . was killed in front of me just outside our cottage. I was digging out some weeds, with a small garden shovel, and she came out the door. Her hair was . . . catching the sun a certain way, but blowing back off her shoulders. She was a redhead, a real one, with freckles and light blue eyes. She smiled at me, and I smiled at her, and . . . and then . . ." he put his face into his hands, and then ran his fingers through his graying hair. He didn't continue.
Todd said, "So you can't go outside because she was killed outside. In the garden the both of you grew."
He looked at Todd with surprise. "Yes. I guess that's it, in short."
"I'm good at short," he paused. "What about your treatment here?"
"It's all right. There are medications and regimens that would help the anxiety, but I can't afford them. Sometimes, I want to be back outside, in the gardens again, but, then I realize that I can't. My chest tightens, my heart races."
"Panic. I've had it. It sucks."
"Hmf," the man slightly smiled, "you're something else."
"What that is, we don't know yet." Todd said, "If you got that medicine, what would you do?"
"Not sure. Miguel thinks I should try and go outside without the medicine."
"Why not?"
"I agree. I told him I was going to try, soon."
"It's fear. I know. I've dealt with that a lot. My life is not just about the captivity thing. There's way more to me than that. And I'm no hero."
"I don't understand that, but I won't argue. A man knows who he is."
Todd nodded. "So, when are you going to try?"
"I was going to try this evening. I thought."
"Okay. So, what happens when you try to go out?"
"I get a panic attack, usually. Sometimes they are severe. The therapy has not helped as much as I like. And as much as the medicines are supposed to work, I don't like how I feel when taking them."
"Wrong therapist," Todd said, picturing Ray taking Malcolm to the lake at Mountainview. "If it doesn't work, then the therapist is not the right one."
"You're talking from experience."
"Yeah. Believe me. Half my life was a lie, that I couldn't admit to myself, or remember, until recently."
"I believe you."
"Then try. Why not? If you make it, I have a job for you. In the states. My house, needs a groundskeeper. We're losing ours. Free place to live, lots of mess to work with. My wife wants her roses kept up, her herb garden, heck maybe even vegetables. We need someone right away. Good pay. I'm filthy rich."
At this, Malcolm actually laughed. "You don't know me, really."
"You're Aiden's friend, right? You lost something to the Men of 21, so did I. I lost eight years of my life, and almost my sanity. What's there to know?"
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
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