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?? “
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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