Memories Unlocked #38

Chapter 38

Vargas found himself taken from his cell. “Hey, what’s going on?”

The officer merely looked at him. “Someone wants to talk to you.”

“I’m not talking to anyone without a lawyer?’ Vargas scowled at the officer. “I have my rights, you didn’t even let me call anyone.”

“You’ll get your call.  Right now you’re coming with me.”

Vargas frowned but allowed himself to be hauled upstairs.  The next thing he knew he was put into an interrogation room.  A few seconds later, the commissioner walked in.

“We’ll have to make this quick.  I just learned there is already a lawyer looking to get you released.  His name is Phillips. Do you know him?”

Antonio looked at his boss.  “No, he’s not one of Bernardo’s lawyers.”

“Okay, then it’s a safe bet someone else is looking after you.  What did you find out?”

“They’ve approached Bernardo but he wanted to meet with O’Brien.  Word has come down that it’s not going to happen. Bernardo is really pissed.”

“Do you think Bernardo will give in and work with the syndicate?”

“I doubt it,  Bernardo likes his power and he’s not about to let someone he doesn’t know come in and make off with his territory.”

“I see”  Bo sat on the end of the table. He looked at the man in front of him and to tell the truth, even up close, he looked nothing like his friend Antonio Vega.  Vega had been willing to undergo some Botox treatments and some prosthetics to change his looks. His face was fuller and he wore some gnarled scars on his left cheek. He had also died his hair black. But Bo could still see a lot of Antonio when he looked at him.  “Are you sure you want to continue this? What if someone from your old gang sees you? They could mess up this whole scheme.”

“Bo, I knew what I was getting into.  Look, I made sure none of my former pals are anywhere in town. My gang dissolved years ago when we cleaned up Angel Square.  Most of them scattered and those that didn’t are dead. All of Bernardo’s men have only recently come here, they followed Bernardo from New York.  They have no real family here. I think I’m safe.”

Suddenly a cop popped his head into the room.  “The lawyer’s on the way?”

Bo stood up and rounded the table standing opposite Antonio.  “Listen, Vargas, one of my men ended up in the hospital because of your gang.  I can’t get the ones who hurt him but I have you. I’m going to see you go to prison for it.”

“That won’t be happening, Commissioner,” said a man standing in the doorway. “I’m Harold Phillips and I’m here to see that my client isn’t tried for something he had nothing to do with.  I have sworn statements from several store owners who live on the street where your officer was hurt and all of them say that Mr. Vargas never touched the officer in question. I demand you release him at once.  I’m sure the Mayor would frown if you railroad an innocent man.”

Bo exchanged a quick glance at Antonio and then growled. “Harrison, release Vargas.  Mr. Phillips, I suggest you find another more worthy client then Vargas here. He’s street scum and isn’t worthy of your trouble.” With that, he stormed out of the room. A short time later Antonio found himself on the street.

“Mr. Phillips, thank you.  You’re not one of Bernardo’s regular attorneys.  It usually takes them a day or two to get any one of us free.  Where did he find you?” Antonio took a good long look at his new lawyer waiting for an answer.

“You don’t need to worry about that.” said another man who approached them.  “I’m
Bart McKinney  I’ve been authorized to offer you a deal.  I’m not sure if you heard but I’ve been told Mr. Bernardo met an unfortunate accident last night while the police held you.”

Surprised Antonio struggled to keep his composure. “Bernardo’s dead?”

“If my sources are to be believed and I trust my sources.  Surely the police already know this? If not, I’m sure they are finding it out as we speak.” McKinney watched Vargas intensely to see how the man took the news.  He could tell Vargas was shocked but he still needed to know what Vargas would do next.

Antonio’s mind was working a mile a minute.  O’Brien hadn’t wasted any time. When Bernardo wouldn’t fall in line  O’Brien had just eliminated him from the equation. Bo was right., the syndicate meant business.  He shoved a hand through his hair. “Wow, well I guess I need to get back to my men. With Bernardo gone, they’ll be itching to make some trouble. I take it that Mr. Phillips here is your man.  What is this offer you have in mind? I need to hear it quickly, the gang will be in an uproar with Bernardo dead. I’ll need to get to them soon and settle them down.”

McKinney smiled. “Excellent, you’re just the man I hoped you would be.  We want you to work for us, You and your gang already have a hold on the people of Angel Square.  I‘m aware you’re currently running a protection scheme. My boss wants to take that to a new level.  But he needs men already in place. You would be working under me and taking orders. All you have to do is give those same orders to your men.  What do you say? Answer carefully, Mr. Vargas. Who knows, maybe you’ll end up having an unfortunate accident too?”

Antonio realized he had no choice but to accept.  Still, getting into the syndicate wasn’t the problem, getting enough on them to get rid of them was.  McKinney had made it very clear that O’Brien was still out of reach. One step at a time, Vega.  Antonio held out his hand. “I understand perfectly.  I’ll get the men to toe the line. You have us. The next step is yours.”

****  

It had been over a week since Blair and Todd had discussed O’Brien’s Syndicate.  Blair refused to back off and when she discovered that a street gang leader had been killed suspiciously she had turned all eyes on the organization.  Strangely, she hadn’t received anymore threatening calls. For his part, Todd had been working extra hard to get his legs strengthened. Just that morning he had walked the whole length of the parallel bars in the therapy room without the use of the braces.  It was the first milestone he had been working for, unfortunately, he still didn’t have the strength in his legs to climb steps and he desperately wanted to finally get upstairs in his penthouse.

He had a fantasy of calling Blair over and then greeting her by walking down the stairs.  He wanted to see her eyes and be able to pull her into his arms while standing up on his own two legs.  His stomach growled letting him know it was time for lunch and his date with Blair. He rolled his chair to the curb where Williams and the van sat waiting.  Todd positioned his chair and locked the wheels in place and reached for the seat belt. “Williams, let’s go. You know Blair is always ready to eat by now.” He started to reach for a drink when a bag was suddenly flung over his head. “What the…” he reached to remove the bag but felt his hands grabbed and someone zip tied them to his chair.

“Relax, Mr. Manning, we’re just going for a little drive.”

Todd’s heart was beating a mile a minute and he was trying to control the panic attack that was threatening to take him over. He still had some trouble with tight spaces and a hood over his head reminded him of being stuffed into a trunk, bleeding, and taking a long flight off of a cliff.  It took him a minute to steady his breathing and his mind was racing, he was rich but he didn’t have any current enemies that he knew of. Of all times to be incapacitated. Todd seethed, he was so close to being able to walk but whoever had him had timed things perfectly and he was caught in a stupid wheelchair “Who are you?”

“ Oh, I’m just someone who’s concerned about you and your family.  Let’s just say, as long as you behave yourself this will just end up being a short vacation for you.  Don’t worry you’ll be back home before you know it, but only if that wife of yours is smart. Although on that I have some doubts, she strikes me as a pretty dumb blonde who doesn’t know her place, so she’s going to learn. Sean let’s go.”  The car began to move.

Todd didn’t like that last statement at all.  His heart sank as he realized who had him. Blair wasn’t going to see this coming and Todd had a bad feeling his captivity was only the tip of the iceberg. The fact that they had taken him told him they weren’t ready to all-out kill her but they planned to make her suffer by using him.  He kept his voice steady. “It won’t work, She’ll never go along with your demands, I’m just not that important to her except as the biological father of her kids. We don’t even live together. Sure she’ll be upset if something happens for the sake of the children but she won’t lose any sleep over me.”  Laughter came from the seat across from his chair and he heard a drink being poured.

“Hah, Tsk, Tsk, Mr. Manning, you should know better than that.  We’re very thorough. We know she flew all the way to Guam to bring you home.  I must say I am surprised you haven’t been living with her though. I imagine she’s probably good in bed or maybe you just haven’t been able to get it up since your accident.  I'm guessing that’s why you’re living apart. Too bad, if she wasn’t so interfering, I wouldn’t mind having a bit of that ass myself.”

“Why you son of a bitch. If you so much as put a hand on her you’re a dead man!” Todd’s hands had been gripping the arms of his chairs so tightly as the man talked but now he struggled to break free. All he wanted to do was get those same hands around his captor’s neck.  

“Temper, temper, Mr. Manning.  She’s okay for now. You will be too, as long as Mrs. Manning stops writing her articles.  By now, the police will have found your chauffeur and I’m guessing she’s received word you are missing.”  

“This isn’t going to work.  The cops will be on the lookout for this limousine, once Williams is found.”

“Of that, I’m certain, which is why this is where we get off.”  

The van came to a stop and Todd prayed they were just going to just leave him and the car but unfortunately they had other plans.  Suddenly Todd felt a knife drive into his shoulder. He almost passed out from the pain and blood traveled down his arm. God, please let it be a flesh wound.  He started feeling dizzy and worried they had struck an artery.  Before he passed out he heard another man enter the van.

“Bart, that wound is bleeding bad. The boss doesn’t want him dead.”

"It will be fine.  He’ll be stitched up as soon as we get on our way.  The boss also said leave evidence that we aren’t kidding.  I think the blood will do just that.” McKinney checked Manning’s pulse,  “He’s still alive. Let’s move, we need to be gone before some cop sees this Limo.”  After rolling him off, they removed him from his chair and dumped it next to a garbage bin.  Then they laid him in another vehicle and left.

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
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Memories Unlocked # 37

Chapter 37

O’Brien looked up as his second lieutenant walked into his office. “Tell me we’ve got that broad under control.”

“Sorry Boss, she’s digging in and doesn’t believe we’ll hurt her.  Do you want me to take a couple of the fellas and show her we mean business.”

“No Damn it!  That the last thing we need to do.  Thanks to her articles, the police in this town are starting to turn their eyes toward us and are beginning to believe her accusations.  They’ve stepped up their presence here in Angel Square. Right now, she doesn’t have any proof to back up her articles. If we strike at her, it will prove her articles are true.  No, we have to think of another way to get her to back off. Get me more detailed information about her family and colleagues. Maybe we can use them to put the scare into her.”

“Gotcha.  The leader of that street gang wants a meeting.  Says he wants to meet you in particular. I told him that was a no, but he’s putting up a stink.”

“I see, who’s his second in command?”

“Some punk named Antonio Vargas.  He seems to know his place. I’ve watched him back up his leader, and he’s good at keeping the gang under control.”

“Take out the leader, then we’ll negotiate with this Vargas guy.  Make sure he understands you are his connection. There will be no meetings with me.  If he wavers, take him out too. That will put a scare in the gang and they’ll do whatever we tell them.  Don’t forget I want information on that Publisher broad. She’ll drop the articles or else.”

****

Vargas stood talking to a group of men lounging around on several stoops in the Angel Square Area of Llanview.  They were keeping a loose watch out for cops as several of the men tagged an alley with their colors. Vargas spotted some beat cops headed their way and whistled alerting the men to cease what they were doing.  As the cops approached them, Vargas watched as several men started to deride them.

“Lookie lookie, it’s some of the big bad Commissioner’s boys sent to protect us citizens.”

One of the men dropped to his knees and pleaded. “Mr. Policeman, I need your help.  That bad old store owner has said he’ll harm me if I make a move to enter his store again.” The men laughed as the officer looked angrily at the man on his knees.  

“Get up, Rodrigues.  I should take you in because you trashed his store last week but Mr. Santos is afraid to press charges.”  he turned to another man sitting on the top step of the stoop. “Bernardo, break up this little gathering. The Commissioner has promised the people some protection.  You won’t be able to intimidate them much longer. We cleared Angel Square of your type before and we can do it again.”

The laughter stopped as Bernardo stood up and made his way down the stairs.  At first glance, he looked pretty mild-mannered, like he didn’t quite fit into a gang, but then you met his eyes and they were cold and pierced right through you.  You realized you were watching a predator, like a poisonous snake you gave a wide berth too. Bernardo ruled with an iron fist and his men followed because he even intimidated them.  He sneered as he stepped right into the officer’s space, making the man take a step back.

“I don’t like threats, Officer.  This is our neighborhood and if you know what’s best, you’ll tell the Commissioner that we aren’t going anywhere.  I think you need to show some respect. What do you say, fellas? Let’s teach them how to show respect.”

Carlotta Vega had been watching the officers and when she saw the gang leader stand up, she quickly called the police.   “Yes, I’m calling from Angel Square,. Send help, your men are in danger….Yes, it’s going down just across the street from my cafe. Please hurry.”  She watched helplessly as Bernardo’s men surrounded the officers.

Vargas moved quickly, behind one of the officers, and forced him to his knees, while several others took down the second patrolman. Vargas saw the second officer attempt to fight and with his hands tied up holding the first officer and keeping him on his knees, he was unable to stop the glancing blow the second officer received knocking him out. “Enough,” he commanded. The men stopped from hurting the officer any more and Vargas met the angry eyes of Bernardo.  “Don’t be a fool, you made your point. If they kill him we all go to jail. Look around, we’re attracting attention.”

Bernardo frowned,  He looked at the officer still on his knees. “You’re lucky my man spoke up.  From now on I only want to hear ‘Yes Sir’ when you see me.” Just then sirens and cars came around the corner. In the distraction, the officer Vargas was holding onto slipped his hold and began fighting with Vargas.  Bernardo and his men scattered, leaving Vargas still wrestling with the officer as help arrived.

Carlotta watched as they took Vargas into custody and an ambulance was sent for the downed officer.  She said a prayer the officer wasn’t badly hurt, but her eyes followed Vargas as he was put into the policemen’s car and taken away.

O’Brien’s man watched the whole thing play out.  It was clear to him that Vargas was the man they wanted.  He had taken command of the situation and had stopped his own leader effectively before real trouble had happened.  Although arrested, he hadn’t really hurt anyone and it would be easy for O’Brien's lawyer to get him out of jail. Vargas would owe O’Brien.  He smiled and pulled his phone to make a call.

****

Blair was putting the finishing touches on the headline.and was just getting ready to send off to the printer when Sam Rappaport entered. “Where have you been?  Starr told me Matthew was spending his time with Nora and Troy for the last couple of weeks. You just disappeared. I know you were upset about my decision to stay with Todd but going off to sulk doesn’t become you, Sam.”

Sam frowned and ran a hand through his gray hair.  Blair wasn’t far off. He had left in a huff. Although he had seen the proof in Todd’s records, he still hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that Todd was playing everyone again.  ”I had to go out of the country. I ran into Tea and she told me about the island and Todd’s time there.”

“Let me guess, she told you that Todd offered to marry her again if she would help him get the children.”

Sam was shocked. “That’s exactly what she told me.”

“I’m sure she also regaled about the fact that she and Todd had sex, right?”

Sam couldn’t meet Blair’s eyes.  Tea had done just as Blair said. He had been overjoyed thinking he could tell Blair and she would toss Todd aside after she heard that, but from Blair’s tone she had already forgiven Todd his indiscretion.  He cleared his throat. “Blair, if you know he was unfaithful to you, how can you stand there and tell me you’re going to stay with him?”

“Sam, I wasn’t so faithful myself.  You know I tried to seduce Troy and besides, what you’re not remembering is Todd got on that raft and was determined to get home to me and the children.  That in itself, tells me Tea meant nothing to him.” Blair finished stacking her papers on her desk and looked over at Sam. :”I’m surprised you didn’t ask me how I knew about Tea?”

“
           “Well, I’m asking now.  How did you find out about Tea and Todd?”  Sam folded his arms across his chest. He was pretty sure of the answer.

“Todd told me”

Sam smiled. “Aha, I told you he was lying about his amnesia.  Okay, I admit he was injured but now you tell me he told you about the island.  How do you know he isn’t lying about his walking too? Maybe he’s just pretending his disability to get your sympathy.”

“Sam stop.  I know you talked to Larry and I’ve had talks with both Larry and Troy.  Both Todd’s amnesia and paralysis were real. But Todd’s getting better, his memories are coming back to him now and he told me about the island because he didn’t want me to find out from Tea. herself.  I believe him. Am I happy he had a fling with Tea? Of course not, but I cling to the belief that Tea told Sam Vance the truth when she was rescued. Tea told her that nothing and no one could talk Todd out of getting on that raft to come home to me.  I believe that. I see his love in his eyes when I look at him every day. He wants me, Sam, not Tea or anyone else.  As far as the paralysis goes, Todd’s getting feeling now in both legs and I know he’ll be back on his feet soon. He’s not trying to play on my sympathy.  Todd’s frustrated by how slow his recovery is going. He really hates being incapacitated.”

Blair walked over to Sam and laid a hand on his arm.  “Sam, what happened between you and Todd? You were disappointed in him and shocked by what he did with Jack but if anyone understands Todd’s motives for doing things I thought you did.  Why are you still trying to find fault with him?”

Sam couldn’t stop himself, he took Blair’s hand in his. “Blair, he’s not good for you.  He’ll hurt you again and I just don’t want that to happen. We were getting closer and I felt…”

Blair pulled her hand free. “Don’t Sam. We had something a long time ago, and I know you were hoping to rekindle that but it’s not going to happen.  You’re my friend and I’ll always be grateful you were here when everything happened with Jack but my feelings for Todd never changed. I love him, Sam.  I don’t think I ever stopped loving him.”

“Hey Blair, you’re holding up the paper.  They need your final draft on that headline.”  Todd rolled to a stop when he saw Sam standing next to Blair.”Oh, … umm, Sam, I haven’t seen you in a while. Are you keeping busy these days?” Todd saw the glance between Blair and Sam.  “Oh, I get it, you’re still trying to convince Blair I’m faking everything. You used to be on my side,”

Sam faced Todd, “Yes, well that was before you pulled all your stunts and hurt so many people.  I just can’t trust you anymore, Todd. You were wondering where I’ve been, You might be surprised to know I just got back from seeing Tea.”

“Tea;, huh, I know she, and that Ross character, were rescued by Sam Vance.  I’m glad they got off that island. Is she doing okay?”

Sam was disappointed, he had hoped to shake up Todd.  “She’s fine. she told me about your stay on the island.”

“Yes well, I  still can only remember bits and pieces of my stay. You heard my memories are coming back right? I remember Ross was a regular boy scout.  If he hadn’t been there we probably would have starved. Yep, he and Tea got along great. They must have felt like Adam, and Eve once they were alone on that island without me being the third wheel.”  Todd looked at Blair, ”Um, Blair, they’re still waiting in printing.”

Blair looked from Todd to Sam and picked up her final draft. You could cut the tension between Todd and Sam with a knife.  She walked over and gave Todd a quick kiss.“I’ll be right back. Behave,” she whispered into Todd’s ear as she left.

Todd stared quietly at Sam.  “You brought up Tea on purpose, didn’t you?  You found out she and I slept together one night on the island.  You just had to come and bring Blair that news. Did you get the response from Blair you were expecting because I’m guessing not?  I might not have all my memories back yet and some of them still come at me in nightmares but I remember that night on the island. Yes, Tea and I had sex, but that’s all it was.  I woke up dreaming of Blair. Sam, do you understand? Tea doesn’t do it for me? She never did. That’s why our whole relationship was so toxic. Don’t get me wrong, I cared about Tea and I still do, but I never loved her.  She knew that. She‘s the one who gave me my picture of Blair and the kids to carry home with me when I set off on that raft. That picture was the only thing I had when I woke up in Guam and even though I didn’t know who they were I couldn’t throw that picture away.  That’s how important Blair and the children are to me. Damn it, Sam. You know I love Blair. Stop trying to come between us!”

Sam was all prepared to pounce on Todd for his acting so nonchalantly about the island and Tea and had been taken aback by Todd’s righteous anger and accusation. It hit him right between the eyes. Sam abruptly sat down on the couch. Todd was right, ever since he heard that Blair found Todd he had done everything in his power to stop Blair taking Todd back.   It wasn’t his right to do that. No matter what he felt for Blair. She didn’t feel it for him. She cared for Todd and he had known that for a long time. He met Todd’s eyes. “You’re right. I have been trying to get in between you two.  Blair’s a good woman and you’ve hurt her so many times, Todd. She deserves better.”

“She does.  But we love each other.  All I can do is try and do better for her. You know me Sam, but so does she and she’s willing to try again.  I can’t promise I won’t hurt her again, but I prayed to God when I was on that raft that if he got me home to her I would make every effort to change into the man she needs.  All I’m asking you to do is give us a chance.”

 

Memories Unlocked # 36

Chapter 36

The next few weeks after getting his memories back had been exhausting for Todd.  He had overseen the remodeling done at the penthouse and had set up regular therapy sessions at the hospital.  He continued to use the wheelchair when he went into The Sun and when Blair asked him why he didn’t use the brace more often along with a crutch, he told her the truth. He couldn’t stand wearing it..  

Every day from ten in the morning until noon, he worked with his therapist.  The last half hour was devoted to working with the brace and he hated every minute of it.  The right leg had improved immensely but the therapist still insisted he wear the brace because the muscles needed time to recover.  Todd was convinced it was unnecessary because he was now able to put all his weight on that leg without any problem. When the brace for the left leg was added, Todd felt the impact of his disability even more.  He had gotten used to the chair but for some reason, the braces made things harder. He was grateful they got him on his feet, but he hated the feeling of helplessness they gave him. He now remembered everything he had gone through to get back to Blair from Ireland, and the braces just brought that whole ordeal back into focus and also reminded him of the outcome of that return.

He could have done without those memories forever.  He had woken up several nights in a row as his memories kept coming back and more than once he had broken out in a cold sweat as all his sins came to light.  The things he had done to so many people including Blair and Vicki were beyond bad and yet both Blair and Vicki had forgiven him. He still couldn’t understand how they continued to love him but he was grateful they did.

Todd glanced out the window of the van as Williams pulled into The Manning Building parking garage.  It had been another grueling workout but the therapist said he was right on schedule and would probably be walking without support soon.  Todd was pleased and all he wanted to do was have a nice luncheon with Blair and an even better evening. He rolled into the executive office outer room and overheard Blair talking to someone on the phone.

“Look, your threats are useless.  This is America, and as a publisher, I have the right to inform the citizens of Llanview about the thugs coming into their town.  If Mr. O’Brien doesn’t like the publicity maybe he should consider finding another town to set up house in that will cater to his kind.”  Blair slammed the phone down and walked behind the desk muttering to herself’

Todd rolled over to Suzanne.  “Did I just hear Blair say the word ‘threat’?  Is this the first time?”

“No Sir, that call was the third one this week.  I’m worried. Mrs. Manning won’t take them seriously.  She says they’re bluffing to try and stop her from writing her articles.”

Frowning, he looked at Suzanne.  “I want to be notified immediately if she gets another call like that.”  He rolled into the main office. “Hey Babe, you look a bit out of sorts. Tell me which idiot here at the paper is giving you trouble and I’ll fire them immediately.”

Blair laughed. “Stop that.  No one here would dare give me any trouble now that you’re back in town.  Your reputation for instant dismissals is too well known.”

Todd grabbed her hand as she neared him and pulled her down onto his lap and gave her a kiss

.After a quick gasp, when she found herself in his lap, Blair wrapped her arms around him and returned his kiss passionately.

When they finally came up for air, Todd frowned at Blair.  “Is there anything you want to tell me?”

Blair looked at him in surprise. “Like what?”

“Like how you’ve been getting threatening calls.  Why the hell would you keep that from me? I thought we were starting over clean.  No more secrets.”

Blair put her hands on his shoulders, her eyes meeting his.  “Todd, it’s nothing. If I don’t get a threat every other week I figure The Sun isn’t doing its job.”

Todd took her hands off his shoulders. He could see on her face she had no idea of the hornet’s nest she had stirred.“This is different, Blair.  Suzanne says these calls have been from O’Brien and his syndicate. I warned you, you needed to be careful. You’ve been stepping on some serious toes  These guys play for keeps.”

 

“I’m a big girl Todd.  They wouldn’t dare harm someone from the press. “  She slipped off his lap. “You went after the Men of 21. Why is it wrong of me to go after these guys?” Blair had no sooner said the remark when she realized Todd probably had no memory of that occasion.  “Todd, I …” She paused as she realized Todd wasn’t looking at her any longer.

Todd found himself looking at Patrick and Mahoney fighting over the gun and then the shot rang out. Mahoney stood tall for a minute as Patrick backed away from him.  Mahoney collapsed and Patrick soon followed. Todd walked over and nudged Mahoney but he was dead. He then turned his attention to Patrick, the blood was spreading across his chest. Todd moved to Patrick but then backed off as Bo and the police came through his door.  The next thing he knew Marty came screaming into the room going straight to Patrick. She was hysterical trying to staunch Patrick’s wound. As Marty held him, Patrick looked right at Todd

“I’ve repaid you for saving my life in Innishcraig.”  His breathing was labored

Todd could only look on silently as Marty pleaded. “No! No! Don’t even think about dying!”

Patrick gasped continuing to look directly at Todd.  “In the end, you’ll pay for what you’ve done and you’ll know that I saved your life and the life of your beautiful daughter.  That’s the beginning of your punishment.” Patrick turned his attention to Marty telling her what she meant to him and then he died in her arms.

Todd looked on with sorrow knowing he had once again hurt Marty.  

Bo turned to Todd. “Manning, I need to know what happened?”

Marty glared at Todd as she continued to hold Patrick.  Her tone was laden with hatred as she spit out the words.  “Right, got to give them a statement. Got to tell them why all this happened. Tell how it’s all your fault and Patrick’s dead”

“Marty, I…”

She screamed. “Don’t say my name! You’re not a man, you’re a Curse!”

Just then, Blair burst in looking for Starr. She looked around and saw the carnage. Her eyes met Todd’s. “You’re a magnet for Chaos, Danger, and Death!”  Those last words reverberated through Todd and he found himself gasping for breath.

Even as she watched Todd, she realized the memory he was having was a bad one.  When he started struggling to breathe she knew she had to get him out of the memory. She sat down on his lap again and wrapped her arms around him. “Todd, let it go.  Whatever is holding you is something from long ago. Let it go. Come back to me.” His breathing got more regular and she brought one hand up to his face. “That’s it, Todd.  Look at me. I don’t know what happened, I’m sorry.”

Todd took a deep breath. His eyes met Blair’s.  “I didn’t want him dead. I just wanted to get him gone from Llanview.   He was never supposed to die. God, you and Marty were correct I’m a curse who only hurts the people he loves.”

Blair was baffled.  “Todd, who died?  I don’t understand.”

“Patrick, he died because I couldn’t let go of my hate.  He died because my articles to destroy him and the Men of Twenty-one brought the killer to my door.”

As she listened, Blair finally realized what had brought on the memories.  “Oh my god, Todd, this happened because I brought up those articles. I never should have mentioned them.  I was just trying to make a point. But Todd, you need to know something. Patrick didn’t die. He and Marty went into hiding.  You didn’t kill him. And one thing more, I never called you a Curse and if Marty did she was wrong. You’re your own worst enemy.  Yes, you’ve hurt us, but in the end;, you are the one that hurts himself the most. We’ve all had a support system but you always end up alone, and I’m not going to let that happen again.  I will fight your demons for your soul if that’s what it takes. Do you understand me?”

Todd gazed at Blair. He took in her features from her gorgeous green eyes to her silky hair.  One would never know just looking at her, just how scrappy a fighter she was. It still puzzled him how she continued to love him.  He knew one other thing, despite her scrappiness, Blair was impulsive and took chances. The memory he had just endured reminded him just how dangerous it was to play games with the mob.  She was waiting for an answer so he gave her one. “I understand. But now I need you to listen to me. I played with fire when I tried to take down Patrick and I got burned. I don’t want to see you go up in flames.  I need you to back off O’Brien’s Syndicate. I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but you should let Bo handle him for a while.” Blair started to say something and Todd put his hand over her mouth. “I’m serious, Blair.  I won’t lose you again.”

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Message from Karena about Final Book in the Series

To my readers.

For those of you who have been reading my Samuel Toddman Series, I have decided not to bring the last book Don't Shoot The Messenger over to this site because of some of the violent and dark sexual content that takes place inside this book.  You can find this book at my site Passionate4Todd.

passionate4todd.blogspot.com

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Todd Manning, Enigma Chapter 31

Chapter 31

          It took several days for all the fallout from the night of Todd Manning’s celebration to settle down. Two stories made the headlines. The first being, the coming out of Samuel Toddman as the Real Todd Manning and the second was the coverage of the mysterious death of International Magnate, Gregor Daimler. Try as they could to stifle the story, word leaked out that Daimler’s death was connected to the abduction of Todd Manning’s wife and two other women that night. It became necessary for Todd to step in and write an article before the sleazy tabloids wrote their own version. By writing his own story, Todd was able to keep the speculation about why the women had been taken to the more obvious story of ransom rather than the truth of what really had happened. The tabloids had run with the story and soon they had discovered some of the interesting stories floating around about Daimler, possible embezzlement from his Corporation and unconfirmed connections to crime syndicates. Todd and his family breathed a collective sigh of relief as the attention moved onto Daimler and away from them.

A day after Todd’s story broke, Blair received an unexpected call from Renee.

“Blair, I know we’ll never be friends but I wanted to apologize for what Daimler did to you and your sister under my roof, and I called to ask for your help.”

“Whatever you want to ask must really be important. I know how much you hate to have anything to do with me”

“You’re right, but this is about family. No one was more surprised than me to see C.J.with Todd the other night, much less finding out he was married and his wife had been abducted. I'm calling for Asa’s family. Clint, Cord, and Tina, they’ve been worried sick about C.J. Surely you can understand I want to get them back together again. It’s something Asa would have wanted.”

Blair listened to Renee’s pleas, she knew Renee still cared deeply for her great-grandson. But she wondered how Renee really felt about Kym. She knew Kym was Daimler’s daughter and by now she knew all about Daimler’s seamier dealings.

“I want to meet your sister and get to know her. You don’t have to help, you don’t owe me anything, but I’ve been trying for years to reconcile C.J. with his family. I’m hoping your sister might help me do just that.”

“Are you so sure, Renee? Do you really think the Buchanans and the Roberts would welcome someone with Kym’s background into their insular little group?” Blair couldn’t help but sound bitter, as far as she was concerned C.J.and Kym should stay well away from the Buchanans. She loved C.J. and was overjoyed he had married Kym, but they were both better off back home in Georgia.

Todd had been listening to Blair as she responded and detected the anger and pain in her voice. Whatever Renee had asked had struck a nerve. He gathered from Blair’s answer that it had something to do with C.J.’s estrangement from his family. He reached across the table to hold Blair’s hand and gently rubbed the palm with his thumb. She looked at him and entwined his fingers with hers as she made a decision.

“Renee, I don’t think I can help you at this time. I feel it should be C.J.’s decision to reconcile or not and I don’t think Kym would want to be used as a means to make that happen. She’s been used most of her life. Right now, she doesn’t need any more pressure from unknown family members.” She hung up, unable to stay on the phone any longer, her eyes filling with tears. She knew it was illogical, but she couldn’t get over past hurts

.

Todd got up and walked around to his wife and gathered her into his arms. After all these years it still stung that a former Madame had the respect and love of many in Llanview and that no matter how hard she tried, Blair would always be considered the town slut to those self-righteous hypocrites. 

Blair wiped her tears and pulled out of Todd’s arms. “Kym hasn’t been doing too well with all the media hype about Daimler. I thought I would take her into Philadelphia tomorrow and have a girls morning out. Will you be able to work around that?”

Todd knew she had changed the subject because she was upset that Renee had gotten to her in front of him. “Can’t say I understand this girls day out thing but go, I doubt Kym has had many of them. I’ll even watch the kids”

Blair laughed, wondering who would be watching who, and flung her arms around him gleefully. He had asked no questions, yet she knew in her heart he had understood.

***

          The next morning, Todd was home from the paper to help watch Sam and Hope. He had wanted to be at the house regardless, because of the men coming that day. Starr had just gotten home from classes and he took the moment to grab a coffee and headed out to the terrace for some peace.

The Sun had been flying off the stands as the events surrounding Daimler’s death and his subsequent secrets had come to light. From his accidental death from the balcony of the Palace Hotel to the stories of his involvement in human trafficking, Gregor Daimler was big news. Todd had finished one final article entitled The Death of a Despot by Thomas Lord and had faxed the copy to Amos. It was only fair that Thomas Lord’s last article should be printed by the Savannah Herald first. It was a fitting ending to his series. Amos’s response about scooping the great Todd Manning, Publisher of The Sun had brought a belly laugh from Todd as he read it. Amos loved the quirkiness that was Thomas Lord and he informed Todd that he would accept any and all articles Thomas Lord cared to send his way. In a separate email, Amos informed him that Addie and Cassie were fine as were Joshua and the children. 

Todd strolled to the outside table and sat down opening his copy of The Sun. He smiled as he read the latest news. There had been more casualties as a result of Gregor’s misdeeds. Uchin and his cohorts had been found dead in their cells twenty-four hours earlier and the Mayor was under attack because their deaths had followed a previous death still under investigation that had occurred while the prisoner had been in police custody. Todd was behind the push to discover why the Llanview Police department was so ineffectual when it came to keeping their prisoners alive. Vicki had wanted him to stand down on the article but there was a problem in the LPD that needed to be found and he was determined to find it. Even, John and Bo had agreed something was rotten in the department.

Todd was distracted suddenly by the yelling coming from inside the house. Hope and Sam were running screaming through the house and Starr was trying to chase them down, She struggled to corral them because there were workers in the foyer and she didn’t want the children getting hurt. It seemed, while examining Gregor’s suite, Natalie had come across the laptop lying on the floor. She had opened it to discover it was still connected to the cameras a Dragonheart. After making note of the connection she had tagged the computer and sent it to the lab for further study. Before returning home to be with Liam, Natalie had informed John of her discovery and he had called to let Todd know about the cameras.

Todd got up and reentered the house. He walked into the foyer and watched as the workmen removed yet another offending camera. He reached into his slacks, his fingers finding the comb Blair had worn that night. It had been delivered that morning with a note from John saying it wasn’t necessary for the investigation. His hand clenched around it as the picture of Blair on the bed flashed through his mind. He was trying hard to keep his emotions under control for Blair’s sake but the comb brought that night back like it just happened

.

The pain in his hand brought him back to the present and he pulled his hand out of his pocket and looked at the fine cuts made by the comb’s teeth.

“Damn the little piece bit me,” he removed the comb and taking his handkerchief carefully wiped the blood off the teeth and then wrapped his hand with the cloth.

“Yeah, not as in control as you’d like everyone to believe are you?”

“Shut up Pete, and back off.”

“Big bad Todd, talks tough but can’t handle the truth.”

“What is the truth, Pete? You told me to face myself, I’ve been doing that. Is this rage really me or you? I can’t tell the difference anymore.”

“Maybe that’s your answer.”

“What the hell do you mean? Pete? Pete?” Todd stood there a moment and a chill ran through him. He walked into his office and shut the door. He sat down behind his desk and pulled out his phone. His thoughts were going a mile a minute. “Ray, I need to talk. Have you got some time?... No, not here. You’re kidding, right? Yeah, I’ll be there but I must be nuts.” Todd ended the call. “Starr, I’m going out. Do you and Shaun have everything under control here?”

“Sure Dad we’re fine. Are you going to be back by the time Mom returns?” Starr waited for an answer and realized her Dad was lost in his thoughts. “Hey Dad are you all right and what happened to your hand?”

Todd heard her words and looked at his hand. “It’s nothing. Don’t wait dinner, I’m not sure how long I’ll be gone."

***

Todd parked his car in the visitor’s parking lot. and sat there looking at the one place he had sworn never to return to, Statesville Prison. He stepped out of the car and walked to the gate. He waited for the guard to arrive, his palms were sweaty. “Stop this Manning, you’re no longer an inmate. Get a grip.” The guard asked his name and business. Todd looked surprised he thought every guard here knew him but this guy was obviously new.

“The name”s Todd Manning and I’m here to see Ray Martino.” The moment he had spoken his name the guard’s eyes had widened. The man might not have known his face but he certainly knew his name.

“Say you’re the guy responsible for Carlo Hesser and Ivan Kipling being our guests. Right on, Mister. They’re a pair, I bet they would love to see you. ...Yeah right.” He laughed at his humor and opened the gate. “If you go over to the building on the right, they’ll get you to Dr. Ray.”

“Yes I know, I’m familiar with the set-up,” replied Todd as he walked away. He couldn’t stop the shudder that ran through him as the gate slammed shut behind him.

***

          A few hours earlier Ray was finishing with an inmate when the call came through. He was surprised to hear Todd voice on the other end. It didn’t take long to realize Todd’s call wasn’t social. He hadn’t had a chance to congratulate Todd the night of the party, there had been a lot of people wanting his time that night and Ray had only been able to stay a short time. He had talked briefly with Blair and had found out Todd was holding up pretty good since recovering from the coma. Now he wondered if that was really true, there had been something in Todd’s voice that said otherwise and the fact that he had agreed to come to Statesville spoke volumes.

           The phone rang and he picked it up. “Yes, Okay I’ll get him. Thank you.” Ray walked into the visitor’s lounge and saw Todd staring out the window, his hands were in his pockets, a childish trait that would always be part of Todd’s makeup, but there was nothing childish about the man across the room. His stance was strong and he gave off the impression of a man used to power and wielding it. Ray knew the hidden strengths his friend had and he knew his weaknesses, Todd was not happy to be there. Even as he watched, Ray saw Todd take his hand out of his pocket and look at his watch. It was obvious he wanted to be anywhere else but the prison. “Todd, I glad you found the time to come here. I’m sorry, I couldn’t meet you someplace else but my day is going to be pretty full a little later on.”

Todd turned at his name and relief washed over his face. He really needed to talk, but the atmosphere was dragging him down. “You do have someplace we can talk in private?”

“Sure Todd, let’s go to my office.” Ray led the way down the corridor, Todd, as always, silent, followed Ray. He moved so quietly, Ray turned around to make sure he was still there. They entered his office and he offered a chair to Todd.

“No thanks, I don’t think I could sit down right now.”

“It’s up to you Todd. You wanted to talk, we haven’t had a session in quite a while. In fact, our last one was way before you mysteriously disappeared. I know a lot happened after you disappeared. Those were some excellent articles Thomas wrote, but I’m guessing Thomas isn’t your Tom. What happened, is he the reason you went missing? Is Thomas Lord a new Alter?”

Todd looked at Ray in surprise. “What?...No,... Thomas is just an alias I used to stay hidden. But the reason I disappeared, is why I’m here.”

Ray nodded, he had had a feeling something had occurred that had driven Todd to disappear, now Todd was ready to talk about it. “Let me ask this Todd? The reason you left all those months ago, does it have any connection to the events that took place the night Blair was abducted?”

Todd stopped pacing. Ray knew him well.

“You know my issues, Ray. I’ve been trying to come to terms with my anger toward Peter Manning and everything he did to me. I thought I had succeeded, until the night I took down Carlo Hesser and Ivan Kipling. I let Pete have full rein that night and I stood back and watched as he tortured Hesser and Kipling. The problem happened when I realized I was enjoying it. A part of me was reveling in it. After it was over, I realized I was still a monster, I had buried that part of me and put all blame on Pete. After all, he was my violent part, I was free and clear of all my past misdeeds while Pete was around.” Todd looked over at Ray, wondering if he understood him.

“That’s what you’ve done isn’t it, you think Pete is the only one who could do the violent things because he was created by your anger for the terrible things Peter did to you. You felt like you separated your anger from you when he was created. You did, but now Todd, you know why he was created and you‘ve been attempting to take back your power by overcoming the rage.”

“You think I want to control the rage myself and I’m letting the anger back in? Are you crazy?! That anger is the very thing I’ve hated about myself since the night I raped Marty. What do you mean? Why would I be letting it back in?” Todd stared at Ray like he was seeing an alien.

“Todd the whole purpose of our session was to come to terms with your alters and to integrate with them. Why do you think your monster has returned? “

“Ray, I came this close to killing Hesser that day when he took Blair from the courthouse. With Pete’s help, I had managed to separate Hesser and Blair from Kipling, but he still held her and threatened to kill her if I didn’t drive him to freedom. Pete lost it and attacked but as he was strangling Carlo, I was suddenly back in control and the feel of his windpipe giving under my fingers was heady. I was killing him, not Pete.”

“But Todd, You didn’t kill Hesser. Why?”

“Because Blair asked me not to. As I came to my senses, I knew Hesser was dying because of me and I let go. Once again I realized I hadn’t lost control of Pete, I had lost control of myself.”

“You said once again, I take it this wasn’t the first time. Care to tell me another time you lost control.”

“The night of the raid in Savannah I was attempting to get to Blair’s sister and help her free the girls in her charge, unfortunately, the bosses of the slave ring had changed the guard on me and I ran afoul of some mercenaries I had met previously. I should say they had met Pete and the encounter hadn’t ended well. I didn’t have my ring on at the time and so I was blind as a bat. The new guys were immediately suspicious and didn’t believe I was blind and beat the shit out of me. The next thing I knew Blair was untying me and we watched as the guards came rushing back into the warehouse looking for hostages. I lost it when they took Kym and threatened her and the girls. The one guy I took down, the leader, ended up with a damaged knee but I almost took his head with an ax. That’s how out of control I was.”

“Did you kill the man?"

“Of course not, but it wouldn’t have taken much on his part for me to go over the edge.”

“Yet you didn’t and I’m guessing Blair was watching? Todd, ask yourself. Why do you regain control over your baser instincts when Blair is around?”

Todd thought only for a moment. “Because I love her and I don’t want her to think of me as a monster. She’s the only one who never let my past bother her. She accepted me as I was. There was only one time that my monster came out to her.“

“What happened when he did, Todd?“

“I came close to raping her Ray, but I couldn’t do it. At that moment I was so hurt I hated her and wanted to hurt her back, but I didn’t. She saw me that day and the strange thing was she forgave me and loved me in spite of it.”

“You controlled yourself that day because you loved her. I think you’ve always been able to control your monster, I want to try something. Have a seat Todd, I think it’s time you and Pete talked again not just in your head but face to face.”

Todd sat down he wasn’t sure if Pete would show. He hadn’t had a chance to tell Ray about that but he was curious to find out what Ray thought was going on.

“Excuse me for a moment, I’ll be right back.” Ray got up and left.

“Samuel have you been listening. The things he ‘s been saying about letting the anger in and wanting my own control, does that make sense to you?”

“Yes, Todd, you and Pete are more alike then you can imagine.”

Before Todd could get more out of Samuel, Ray came back into the room with a Mirror. He placed it down on the desk and sat down to view Todd. “You know how this works, tell Pete to come and talk.”

“You heard him, Pete. You wanted to talk earlier. Get out here, let's finish our talk.”

Todd watched as Pete began walking toward him in the mirror but there was something wrong. Pete looked different. Todd wondered if he had developed double vision At first glance it looked like Pete with his leather jacket and insolent sneer but the face wouldn’t stay in focus, “What the hell, Pete you said something earlier. What did you mean by it?” Todd rubbed his eyes, he then shut them going inside, but it didn’t help Pete didn’t look right or feel right.

“You said it yourself Todd, you said you couldn’t tell the difference between us anymore, look at me, Todd. Damn it look at me!”

“No, wait, I said I was having a hard time telling the difference between your anger and mine. What’s that got to do with the way you look. What’s going on? Why are you changing after all these years?”

“You’re so sure I’m the one who’s changing. Get real. I’ve known since the other night the way of things. Samuel pointed it out to me, and I knew.“

Ray was fascinated Todd had forgotten he was there and something he was seeing was bothering him greatly. “Pete, sorry to interrupt but what happened the other night?” Pete looked over at Ray, the transformation on Todd’s face was harsh. Pete had little love for the therapist and he had always been opposed to the sessions.

Pete sneered. “You don’t fool me, Doc. You know what’s going on, why else would you ask for this? The other night,... I’ll tell you. He almost killed Gregor Daimler for hurting Blair and he wouldn’t let me out to finish the job. He had the situation in hand and he didn’t need me. The fuck didn’t need me and now this is happening. I think you’re going to have to explain it to him he can’t see what’s right in front of him. You idiot, look at me.”

Todd shook his head and gazed at the mirror. He watched as Pete’s youthful face changed and aged the long hair slowly changing to a shorter cut. The sneer was still there but the more he looked at Pete the more he saw himself. “I don’t understand. Why are you beginning to look like me?”

“What did I tell you, Doc? Todd I’m gone G-O-N-E gone. You don’t need me. It ‘s been fun. I gotta say, Hesser and Kipling ..what a way to go out.. Doc, explain it.”

The silence in his head at that moment was deafening. Todd stared at the man in the mirror and watched the leather coat fade away with the last vestiges of his images of Pete.. “He’s not there anymore. I don’t understand? We were just fighting earlier today and now he’s just not there.”

“Samuel talk to me. Have you seen Pete?”

“He’s gone, Todd .”

“What the hell! He can’t be gone just like that. Please tell me, I need to know. Ms. Perkins? Tom?? “

           “I can’t answer that. I don’t know.”

            Todd closed his eyes and collapsed back in the chair. He took a deep breath. Samuel was still there.

            Ray touch his friend’s arm. “Todd, I’m sorry.”

“Explain it to me, Ray, why now?”

“You weren’t ready earlier. You were still absorbing all the revelations about your so-called father and you still needed them, especially Pete. You couldn’t let Pete go until you understood you could handle the anger by yourself. You can you know. Sure it alarms you when it hits you hard, and you’re enraged but you’ve found a way to temper it. It will get easier. You’re not a monster. Blair knows that because you showed her the real you long before your rage appeared. Like you said, she loves you.”

Todd sat there letting Ray’s words sink in. He ran a hand through his hair and stood up. “I need a drink. Got to get out of here, too many bad memories. The next time we meet at Rodi’s.” He nodded at Ray and left.

Ray turned the light on his desk; that had been a session he hadn’t expected. He walked to the window and watched his friend depart. Definitely a puzzling man. Ray left his office heading for his group therapy session.

Todd’s thoughts were all over the place as he left Ray. “Could it really be? Pete, the monster, and me, really one and the same.” Even as he voiced it he realized the truth of it. It also came to him that it wasn’t a disaster like he had been imagining all along. He stopped just outside the building and looked back at a part of his life he was finally finished with. As he walked out, he left the past behind and the gates clanged shut resoundingly.

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