Failings of the Fathers: 73

"You might want my son, but you won't get him.  You'd better bet on that," Todd's eyes took on the fury Blair remembered well from his younger days but his tone remained calm and steely.  

Steel.  They'd discussed that very thing the first night they were together.   It was so long ago.  Peter had just died . . .He's alive, Blair.  He's definitely alive.

"Threatening me.  Hmf.  I've certainly got the upper hand.  I've got the gun, and your boy.  I take care of you, and put your wife in those cuffs.  You know the ones.  The ones I put there for your mother, that tramp.  How's that image?"

Todd felt bile rising in his throat, and he swallowed it down as hard as he could.  "You're sick and so sure of yourself and your power.  But, you always were.  As much as you hated him, if Coach didn't come in that night, you'd be a pile of rotting bones by now."  He reached behind himself to get the gun from his waistband.

Peter said, "Put the gun you've got down on the ground.  I want to laugh at the fact that you haven't used it yet.  Pansy, and you never change.  By now, you should have shot me dead."

"While you hold my baby?  That's what you would do, Peter, not me."

"Peter?  You don't have the respect to call me 'Dad?'"

Todd felt heat under his eyelids, and could barely control his urge to grab the man by the throat and squeeze until there was no life left.  But his son.  Their little boy.  He couldn't let him grow up like he did with violence and hate around him, or see his father, and then his mother, gunned down.  No.  He reached for the gun.

Peter was pointing his pistol at the baby now, at his chest.  His little tear-stained face was almost blank, but he was sucking on a lollipop that Peter handed him.  Todd brought the gun forward and put it on the ground in front of him.  Peter said, "Kick it.  Toward me."

He did as asked.  Blair was back behind him, one hand on his lower back.  He pushed her completely behind him with his arm and said, "Blair's leaving now.  Let her go and take Ray with her.  Come on.  You don't want them."  His son had become very still.  Shock, maybe.  God.

"On the contrary, I want everything that you hold dear.  Now, get on your knees."

Todd studied his father's face as he slowly cooperated.  He could see that time had made tracks on the man's forehead and around his eyes, and he saw everything he had forgotten as a child and a young man: a sick, cruel sadistic person who had no compassion or capacity for love.  A sociopath.  A sadist and a sociopath.  He raised me to be a monster, and now, he's going to kill me in front of my son, to make him have demons . . .and then . . . hurt Blair however his sick needs tell him to.  Gotta do something, now. . .  

Once on his knees, he made eye contact with his son, and said, "Ray, close your eyes, Buddy."  

Of course, his son didn't listen.  Instead, he dropped the lollipop to the floor, and said, "You're bad!" into Peter's ear.

Blair screamed, "No!  Todd, no!"

Todd took advantage of his wife's inadvertent diversion and shouted, "Raymond Thomas Manning, no kicking!"

The toddler suddenly kicked frantically at Peter and squirmed enough to wriggle loose.  Todd, on his knees, reached out shoved the little boy past him toward his mother.  Peter, who had been taken by surprise, lifted the gun and aimed it at Todd's head.

***


Miguel was brought into the office by his doctor, and there seemed to be an air of caution in the room.  He said, "Why am I here?"

"We have to let you know something.  This is Detective Schuler, he has some news.  You . . . were listed as next of kin."

"To who?  Aiden?  That can't be, his father, brother and wife . . ."

"No, not to Aiden," the doctor said, bowing his head a bit.  "We're going to wait for your therapist, if that's acceptable."

Miguel was not understanding.  If there were clues to what was going on, he wasn't picking them up well.    His face demonstrated puzzlement.  It was quiet as they waited for Dr. Amaker to come in.  As he entered, Miguel looked up, and said, "Doctor, what is this all about?"

"Detective Schuler has brought something," the therapist said, "he needs you to look at."

The policeman handed him a small scrap of leather.  Miguel said, with his expression fading, "That's Malcolm's.  It was a piece of a leather bag that his wife had woven for him.  To keep his tools."  He handed it back.  "Why do you have that?"

The detective looked toward the doctor and therapist.  Dr. Amaker said, "It was found . . . on a man who was killed in the airport."

Miguel felt hollow.  "Killed?"

"Yes.  He was found dead in a janitorial closet."

"I . . . don't understand.  Why would someone kill Malcolm?  He was . . . I don't understand this," and his voice had changed with every sentence from confused and meek, to determined and angry.

"We're trying to surmise that," the detective answered.  He handed Miguel something else.  "Do you recognize this?"

"Yes.  It's Malcolm and his wife.  One of the few pictures he had left."

"He was . . . holding it, in his hand."

Miguel swallowed, but he knew that the man they found had to be his friend.  "It's him, then.  For certain."

"I believe it is, yes.  His identification was all taken.  These were the only two things we could find.  We could not identify him via the body."

Miguel knew that meant that however Malcolm had died was something torturous that left him unrecognizable.  He said, "This can't be right."

"It is.  I'm sorry," the detective said.  "You're on his medical records as next of kin.  Seems he had no one else."

"No, he . . . he didn't."

Dr. Amaker added, "This is going to be hard for you, Miguel, but we'll get through it.  Do you have any idea who would have done this?"

His eyes brightened.  "You know, right when he disappeared, and wouldn't return my calls, so did Calvin.  You know, the crochety guy, with the heart surgery?"

The detective was taking notes, "Doctors, can you get me a description and a full name?"

One nodded, and left.  Dr. Amaker said, "Miguel, let's have our session early today, say, right after this conversation?"

"Not sure I'm up to it," he said.

"That's exactly why I want to do this.  I'll be in my office," and he departed.

***

Blair took her son in her arms, and through gasps and sobs, she kissed his face.  "Mommy!" he cried, and his little hands were gripping her blouse.  Relieved and overcome with joy at both seeing him and holding him again, she hugged him to her.  

Todd yelled to her, "Get him out of here!"  

Looking up from their reunion, she raised her head just in time to see Peter, with the gun lowered toward Todd's head, sneer like she'd never forget.  "You just went too far," Peter said.  The anger was palpable; Todd was still on his knees in front of Peter, staring up at him.  For a moment, from behind, she flashed on one of Bitsy's drawings.

Blair realized she was shaking as the older man said, "You never were going to amount to much.  And look at you, on your knees, in front of me, again.  Some things never change." 

Todd said, "No, some things never do.  Blair, now.  Get out!"

Frantic to get her son to safety but afraid to leave her husband, Blair backed up toward the cellar stairs that lead outside when Todd jumped to his feet and attacked Peter, his hands going for his throat.  She turned her back to make sure her son was completely shielded by her back, and in doing so, she heard the scuffle and the jarring sound of the gun going off.  She jumped, and the baby screamed, "Daddy!" as Blair covered his head with her hand and pushed his head into her chest, tighter, to shield him.  

It was all dreamlike, but exceedingly fast.  She felt as if she couldn't move, as she tried to calm her son and turned to watch her husband fall to the ground.  "No!"  she called out, and then struggled to keep Ray, who was squirming and crying, from turning and seeing Todd, the blood that had spattered to the floor, and Peter still holding the gun.  Her hand was on the back of Ray's head as she sucked in air in shock.  

She was back in the penthouse, years back, pregnant with Starr.  She could still hear, as if it were today, Dorian on the phone.  

No, he's not dead.  No.  He can't be . . .

All this.  All this for nothing?  He came back to us.  He came back from Leona, from Carlo, from Mitch.  No.  No.

Peter smiled, half of his mouth curling upward, his eyes crazed with triumph.  She opened her mouth to scream again, when Peter's head suddenly jerked back.  Unexpectedly, his forehead spurted blood through a small hole between his eyes.  She gasped in shock, and turned to look behind her, still keeping Ray's face buried in the safety of her chest, to see where the shot had come from.

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The Mysterious Samuel Toddman: Chapter 26

         Samuel sensed it, the moment when Todd awoke. He was becoming very attuned to his original self. He headed back to his car, thinking of the earlier talk with Ms. Perkins. He realized that he and Todd were going to have to face the Cemetery soon. Before they attempted it though, he had to get all the pieces of the puzzle in place. Samuel knew he couldn't come back into this town as Todd until he knew everything that had gone on in his absence. Reaching his car, Samuel made a decision. One person in this town already knew of his existence. If he was going to get the information he needed, the first place to start was with Blair. But he would wait till later to contact her. He drove to the area where Vicki's house was. 

        There it sat. Llanfair, the house his father built. Samuel parked down the road, he entered the estate from the back of the property wandering past the garden shed and headed toward the back patio. He looked in through the patio doors. There she was, his beautiful sister. She was rocking a baby in her arms. He remembered her holding Starr and rocking her the same way. She had accepted him unconditionally even though he and her older son hated each other. For reason's he had never quite figured out, she loved him. He wanted so much to knock on that door and see her face to face, to talk to her and tell her where he had been all this time. Regretfully he knew it wasn't time yet. There was another man in this town whom she believed to be him. That fact hurt. Anyone else in this town might have been fooled, but he had always thought Vicki knew the real him. Knowing that even she had fallen for the lies, this other man told, felt as if she had stabbed him in the heart. God, whoever did this to him was going to pay. With tears in his eyes, he turned and left, Vicki. He needed to get home. Right now, he needed the comfort of his three Muses more than ever.

        He got back in his car. Samuel realized he still had one more stop before he could go home. He turned his car and headed for the area of town where he would find Todd Manning's home. He pulled up across the street from the entrance, turn off the car and sat there watching. Hopefully, he would catch a glimpse of the man with his life. He watched as a couple of teenagers headed into the house. He didn't recognize either of them. I wonder who they're visiting. Maybe Starr is there? He thought. Then he saw her. His breath caught. She was as stunning as he had remembered. What was she doing here? The last time he had seen her, she was standing on a beach. The wind blowing her hair as she waved goodbye to him. He had been a fool to leave her. No, please don't go in. No, had Manning taken her too? Samuel felt totally bereft as he watched Tea enter Manning's home. He couldn't take much more of this. Then Samuel saw Manning.

       He turned on the car and the interior lights and stared at him. Manning stopped and turned towards him. Samuel looked Manning in the eyes. As soon as Manning began to walk toward the car, Samuel start driving slowly by him, as he got right next to him, Samuel smiled and nodded his head, then he drove away leaving Manning in the road. There, that got his attention. thought Samuel and he smiled. He hoped Manning had a very uncomfortable night. Manning had recognized him of that he was certain. He would let Manning think about what he had just seen. Starting tomorrow there were going to be others that were going to be seeing Ghosts.

       Samuel entered the penthouse and went into the living room. He walked to the fireplace and looked at his girls. " My beautiful ones I'm losing you." Even as he said it he could feel his connections weakening. He knew that the reality of the situation was worse than he had imagined back in Paris. He was back on that raft floating and praying that someone would throw him a lifeline. Blair was his best hope right now. She had been here the whole time and she was aware of his situation. He had to believe that she would help. Samuel believed that Blair still cared something for Todd. That was the lifeline he and Todd would have to cling to if they were going to come out of this in one piece.

       Enough.  Stop feeling sorry for yourself, thought Samuel, Feeling that way isn't going to help. He shook his head and realized he was hungry. Taking the cell phone he had purchased earlier that day, he called a pizza joint he remembered and ordered some Pizza. While he waited, he poured himself some wine and took out the list of contacts he had put in his wallet. He called one that was in the local area and got him started on the Kipling Research facility. He wanted to know everything that could be found on the backers of the Facility. Also anything that could be found about some of the projects that the facility had worked on in the past. The doorbell rang and Samuel paid for his Pizza, he hadn't recognized the delivery boy, so he figured the young man hadn't recognized him either. He would have to be careful calling some of the old numbers Todd had used frequently. He had gotten lucky with the delivery boy. He might not be so lucky the next time. As he sat there eating. He picked up the phone book and search for a number. Then he called it. It was ringing.

       Who would be calling this late? Blair wondered as she picked up the phone. She didn't recognize the caller.  "Hello?"

       "Hello Blair, This is Samuel." replied Samuel.

        Was she hearing right? "Hello, Samuel is that really you?" asked Blair. "My goodness, It's got to be the early morning there. What's going on? Is everything alright?" She had been thinking of Samuel for most of the day. She wanted to see him again but knew he was probably better off in Paris. She still hadn't been able to wrap her head around the fact that Walker wasn't Todd and Samuel was.

        "Everything is fine. I trust your journey home was uneventful," said Samuel.

        "The flight was fine. Strangely enough, I ran into an acquaintance who has a connection to someone that was on your list. Remember I told you to be careful of Carlo Hesser. Well, I ran into his ex-wife Alex Olanov. It turns out she was in Paris too. I found it unusual that I should meet her just after talking to you about her ex.. Have you thought any more of possibly coming to the States?" inquired Blair.

        "Actually, that is why I have called. I'm already in the States. I have been for several days. You see, I need your help. I'm here Blair. I'm in Llanview." Samuel paused. "We need to meet and probably the safest place would be here."

        "My God, you're here in Llanview. Samuel, you must be careful. There are a lot of people who know my ex-husband. I'm not sure what would happen if you were to run into any of them. Where is this safe place you want to meet?" asked Blair

         "Blair, come to the Penthouse. I'll be waiting. Hurry." Samuel hung up.

         Blair put the phone down. She replayed his last words over again. 'Come to the Penthouse, I'll be waiting.' Was it possible? Had Samuel remembered something? Was it possible he was at Todd's old penthouse? Blair grabbed her bag. "Momma, I'm going out. Jack get off that computer and get to bed," she yelled and headed out the door. She made record time getting downtown. Blair pulled into the parking garage and took the elevator up to the Penthouse floor. Stepping off the elevator she walked hesitantly toward the door. It had been years since she had gone through that door. Is Samuel really here?" She knocked. She had butterflies in her stomach. Who was going to answer?

         Samuel heard the knock and went to the door. He hoped it was going to be Blair. After the day he'd had he wanted to see one of his Muses in the flesh. He opened the door. She stood there as beautiful as always. But he saw a look in her eyes as she looked at him. She was searching for Todd. As he watched, he saw the expectation die. Blair smiled tremulously. "Hello Samuel, may I come in?" Samuel moved aside to let her enter. He closed the door and followed her into the living room.

       “Welcome to our humble home Blair."

        She walked into the living room.  It looked different but familiar. Then it registered what Samuel had just said. She spun around and stared at him. Questions tumbling through her head. Before she could ask one, he said.  "Yes, Blair, I know and yes, he's here."

       Samuel let her absorb his revelation. "Please, sit down. Much has happened since we saw each other. I'll get some wine and we can talk." he went to the cabinet and poured two glasses of wine and walked to Blair. He handed her one glass and taking a sip sat down opposite her so they could chat.

      "My journey to here began after we parted in Paris. I had told you of my memory loss and we had discussed your ex-husband Todd. Something occurred when we kissed goodbye that afternoon. There was a moment during that kiss when I was no longer kissing you instead I was watching it. When I left you a number of memories suddenly filled me but I realized they were happening to someone else. That is when I met Todd. I'm telling you this because I believe you already know what I just found out. I'm an alter, Blair, just like Tom, Rodd, Pete and Ms. Perkins but until recently I didn't know this. I'm here because something horrendous happened to Todd in 2003. The trauma was so bad I came into being and Todd retreated. You should know that Todd is once more aware but still trapped except during your kiss. My memories are returning rapidly but there are parts that haven't filled in yet. I'm here now because we believe that someone gained access to my memories and gave them to the man currently calling himself Todd Manning. It is the only explanation that would answer how he has been fooling you all these years. We don't know if this man was a willing or unwilling participant in this plot, so for now we'll hold off judging him. I am here to get Todd's life back for him. Will you help me?" Samuel sat back and waited for her reply.

      Blair was just trying to take it all in. Samuel knew he was an alter. He, Todd and the other Alters were working to get Todd free. If she didn't know DID was real, she would have thought she had entered the Twilight Zone. There was one other thing Samuel had said. He said, Todd had come out during their kiss. Oh God, she had known it. She knew he had kissed her. She would help. Todd deserved to be free. He had been trapped long enough. "Samuel of course I'll help. But you do know getting Todd out and getting his life back are two different goals. I don't know what I can do to free him, I thought all he had to do was want back in charge, are you telling me something is preventing that?" asked Blair.

       "Unfortunately, We've encountered a stumbling block in the system. It seems that whatever sent Todd inside himself is still tied to him somehow and it is preventing him from coming forth. That is my main goal, we are trying to find that particular memory. When we do, Todd and I are going to have to face it. One of us will emerge victorious. The other will not." Samuel replied. He met Blair's eyes. He knew her next question.

       "Are you telling me, Todd might not get free? But what of his life, will you all die?" asked Blair.

       "No, Blair we won't die but we'll probably never see Todd again. We'll also never be completely whole again. So you understand, I must endeavor to get his life and family back, no matter what. You see. I promised him." 

      "Samuel, surely there is some way for Todd to survive without losing you. All the other alters still survive and are a part of Todd. Why do you think only one of you will make it past this memory?" Blair asked searching his eyes for some glimmer of hope. All she saw was sadness.

       "There's always hope that Todd will emerge and retain me also, but I'm fearful that won't be the case. When the time arrives to face what is out there I'm not sure if I'll be strong enough to protect and support Todd and save myself at the same time. But that is my worry not yours. For now I'm here and I've found out a few facts already. I believe I've figured out where I was the first three months following my accident. I have reason to believe I might have been in the Kipling Neuroscience Research Facility which is outside of Philadelphia. I have some people working on that but I need someone here who can find out things about the people of interest here. The first one of interest is Todd Manning. You and I know he's an imposter and I can't confront him yet. We need to know if he's been acting any different lately. And on a more personal note. What is his relationship to Tea Delgado?" Samuel looked at Blair expectantly .

       "Oh Samuel, I'm sorry to tell you but they are married." Blair felt dreadful, She had an inkling that Samuel loved Tea. Why not? Todd had loved her. "If it's any consolation she thinks she's married to you."

      "I was afraid that might be the case when I observed her entering his home. I've been gone for eight years.  The world did not stand still. It is wrong to expect all of you to stop your lives for me. In my head, I understand the dilemma you faced, but in my heart I'm having a hard time understanding how you thought he was me. I have one other question and I really need the answer to this one Blair. Where is Starr? Where is my daughter?" Samuel asked quietly looking at her.

       Blair looked back at him, tears welling in her eyes. He had remembered his daughter. "Starr lives with me at Dorian's. She's well. She graduated from high school last year. A lot has been going on in her life since you saw her last. For one, Starr knows about Marty. You have been spared the anguish she went through when she found out. Your impostor was not so lucky. One thing you should know about the man you call impostor. He's been through a lot in your name. I'm not ready to consider him a villain. Samuel, there is one other thing you should know and it concerns you, daughter. Starr has a daughter of her own. Her name is Hope and she's your granddaughter. But you haven't asked me about Jack, Do you remember him?"

         Samuel had been taking in what Blair said about Starr. His little girl was all grown up and a mother. He was a grandfather. But who was Jack? His mind wandered back to a painting he had done of Blair and a Child. As he pictured it in his mind, the scene took on a whole new look. He saw Todd helping Blair, she was in labor. Then the baby was there, it was a boy. He remembered giving away the boy only to go searching for him later. Samuel stood up and began pacing. God, Todd what were you thinking, your own son, how could you? He really didn't expect a reply from Todd, in his heart he knew what had driven Todd. Are we so screwed up we can't trust at all? Samuel turned and flung his wine glass at the fireplace. He turned from Blair and walked to his sister's portrait. He rested his head on the cool bricks. He had a son too. Most likely a young man, who had been raised not by him, but another man. He feared too many years had past. How could he possibly step back into Starr's and Jack's lives now. Was this task too insurmountable?

        Blair had watched silently. She saw the pain and anguish cross Samuel's face as he remembered his son and the circumstances surrounding his birth. She recognized the anger and self recrimination she had seen in Todd's eyes so many times. Blair got up and walked to Samuel. She embraced him and held him close, "Don't do this Samuel. I don't believe any of this is hopeless. It's just complicated. We'll figure it out, like we always have. You and me together. You'll see!"


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The Alibi

Once upon a time, there was a small city nestled in the rolling mountains outside of Philadelphia. Like its bigger sister, crime, and passion sometime ruled the lives of its inhabitants. This is the story of a couple of those inhabitants.

 ****

He protested loudly as once again he found himself behind bars and this time, he had done nothing to deserve it.  The guard just laughed and walked away.  He gazed out the bars wondering if he would ever get a break. Had it only been an hour since he had actually had a decent conversation with Blair?  When they had parted ways, he had felt like maybe, just maybe, something could grow between them.  She was the first woman in a long time who hadn't run the other way.  He sat down on his cot and tugged at the bandages covering his knuckles.  She had been something else.  Instead of being alarmed that his hand was all bloody, she had been concerned.  "I guess your streak of bad luck is still ongoing, Manning. She'll never give you another look when she finds out you've been arrested again.”

Uptown from the station, Blair answered her door. She frowned as she saw her visitor was one of Llanview's finest.  "To what do I owe the honor?" She slipped her dressing gown up onto her shoulders to provide a little more cover on top of her nightgown.

The officer cleared his throat. "Um Sorry Mam, but the Police Commissioner sent me. Can you tell me where you were this evening between 11:00 pm. and Midnight?"

 "I can, but why should I?"

"We're trying to verify the whereabouts of Todd Manning during that time. He insists that he was with you?”

 Blair responded, "Well not that it's any of your business, but he was."  Blair narrowed her gaze at the young officer.  "Why do you need to know where Todd was this night?”

The policeman dropped his eyes then stammered. "He was brought in for attempted rape."

Without even thinking, Blair said. "You've got the wrong guy. Like I said, he was with me.  He only left me a short while ago.  If you don't believe me, I have the bandages he was wearing when we left the hospital.  That's where I ran into him and it was just a couple of minutes after 11:00.  He had an altercation with that girl Rebecca and put his hand through the wall.  I ran into him coming out of the nurses lounge, grumbling to himself, as he finished wrapping his hand.  I noticed Marty Saybrooke in the room when he walked out and figured they had probably had words.  I offered to keep him company when he mumbled something about waiting for a call back from his therapist.  When the guy didn't call, we decided to take a walk through the park. We sat on a bench and talked and I bought a couple of sodas.  His hand was still bleeding and I suggested he come here so I could clean and wrap his hand better."

The officer stared at her. "Um, I need to call the Commissioner. He might want to see those bandages you say you have."

Blair bristled.  "Look, I'm not lying.  You go ahead and call Big Ole Commissioner Bo.  But you tell him if he wants those bandages, he’ll have to come get them himself."

The young policeman looked around nervously then stepped inside the penthouse doorway. “Mam, I’m going to have to ask you to sit down where I can keep an eye on you while I make this call.”

“If you keep calling me Mam, you won’t have any eyes left to watch me with,” Blair went to the bar and helped herself to a drink. Then she went and sat down on her couch.  She pulled out a magazine and pretended to read, all the while listening in on the officer’s phone call.  As she sat there, she was reminded of the feelings she had felt earlier that night.  Poor Todd, he was so much like her.   No matter what, all the good people in Llanview thought the worst of them and they couldn’t seem to shake their pasts.  The officer put his phone away and faced her.  “Well, what’s the verdict?” she asked.

Clearing his throat and looking even more uncomfortable he said. “The Commissioner is coming, but he said you were to stay put.  I’ve been instructed to make sure you don’t do anything until he gets here.”

Blair looked at her watch and then glanced down at her dressing gown and negligee.  “I guess that means I can’t even get dressed.”

 At her words, the officer blushed.  He had been having a hard time keeping his eyes off of certain parts of her anatomy and now he had been ordered by his boss to keep watch so she couldn’t try anything to get Manning free.   “Um, perhaps I could get you a blanket or something.”

“You’ve  got to be kidding me.  Do I look like I’m cold?” She reached for her drink and proceeded to tease the officer further by running the cool glass down her neck and stopping it right between her breasts.  She smiled as he turned even redder than before and watched as he turned away slightly and studiously began checking his notes on her earlier remarks.   Several minutes later, Blair started to get another drink when the doorbell rang again.  The officer jumped and then hurried to open the door.

Bo and Detective Manzo looked in and saw Blair standing in her negligee.  Bo quickly assessed the situation, noting how nervous his officer was.  “Blair, you might want to go get dressed.”

“I can’t Bo. Your officer said I was to be watched at all times.  I mean I can’t be trusted not to magically produce some bloody bandages while I dress.” She couldn’t help jerking Bo around.  After all, he was the one treating her like she had or was going to do something wrong.

“Blair, that’s enough.  Just tell me where the bandages are and then you can get dressed.”

Getting tired of the game, she pointed towards her bedroom.  “You’ll find them in the hall bathroom in the trash.”

Bo nodded to Manzo, who headed to the bathroom.

“I found them Commissioner,” yelled Manzo from the hallway.

“Bag them and anything else pertaining to them.”  He looked around the living room and spotted a second glass sitting on the coffee table.  “Bag the glass too,” he ordered Manzo and then turned to Blair.  “We’ll check those items for Manning’s blood and fingerprints.  Now go dress, I want you to come down to the station and give us an official statement.  If the lab work comes back agreeing with your story, Manning will owe you.”

****

Todd paced in his cell.  It had been a shock to find out he was being accused of raping Rebecca.  He had seen her filling out paperwork when they brought him in and he had seen Marty with her.  He leaned against the bars.  “Why Rebecca?  Why me?”  After he had smashed his hand, Dr. Ben Price had stopped him from talking anymore to Rebecca.  He’d only wanted to get more answers out of her about the accusation of his stalking her in the park.  Seeing her cowering behind the Doctor, he had chosen to walk away and headed for a phone to try and talk to Ray.  He had been forced to leave Ray a message.  In frustration, he had gone to the lounge to cool off and had a small run-in with Marty.  “I know Marty put you up to this Rebecca, I just don’t understand how you could believe I would hurt you,” he said aloud.

“Oh poor Todd, so misunderstood.  You’ve hurt others, why wouldn’t she believe you attacked her?  You’re not fooling anyone with this innocent act,” Andy Harrison sneered from her side of the bars.  “I need you to sign off on your belongings.”

  “Leave me alone. I didn’t do anything. You have no proof,” snarled Todd.

“That’s where you’re wrong.  You made a mistake.  Dylan saw what you tried to do to Rebecca.  You’re not getting off this time.”

“I’m telling you it wasn’t me,” Todd growled and tightened his grip on the bars.  He wanted so much to wipe that sneer off Harrison’s face.

“Yeah, I heard you had an alibi.  Blair Daimler right?  Forget it. The commissioner knows she’s not to be trusted.  If she’s smart, she better not try anything.  It will only land her in here too.” she said sharply.

Todd was surprised at the vehemence in Harrison’s voice.  “What’s got you so riled up about Blair?   I mean, I know she’s got a reputation here in town, but what did she do to you?”

Andy paused, a little flustered that she had dropped her guard on her emotions.  “Max Holden is my brother and she tried to ruin his life.  She’s trouble and I wouldn’t trust her as far as I could throw her.  Remember that.  She only thinks about herself.  She’s not going to back you up, Manning.”  With that parting shot, Andy Harrison left Todd alone.

Upstairs in the squad room, Marty was anxiously watching Rebecca complete her statement.  “So, it’s finished.  Are you okay, Rebecca?”

Rebecca nodded and looked at the clock on the wall. It was a little after 2:00 in the morning. “I’m just tired.  I can’t believe it was just 11:00 when this all happened.”

Marty was taken aback. “I’m sorry. Did you say 11:00?  You mean more like 11:30 right?”

“No, it was 11:00.  I remember because I looked at my watch and the church bells chimed.  Look, I better turn this in.   All I want to do is get out of here.” Rebecca walked over to turn in her statement.

Marty stood there and realized Todd couldn’t have assaulted Rebecca.  He had been with her at 11:00. Don’t dwell on it, Marty.  He’s where he belongs.  No one else can back his story.   He’ll be going back to Pentonville and you’ll finally be rid of him.

Blair sat a couple of desks over, putting her own finishing touches on her statement.  She had overheard the conversation between Marty and Rebecca.   She watched Marty and wondered if she was going to stop Rebecca and tell her about Todd and the hospital.  Marty did nothing.  Blair then saw Bo call Andy Harrison over.  Andy looked upset by what Bo was telling her.  Blair gave a soft chuckle. If she was right, Bo had just gotten back the results of the tests.  She watched as Andy seemed to deflate and then head towards lockup.  Blair got up and wandered over to Bo.  “Do you believe me now?”

Bo frowned.  It stuck in his craw that Manning had dodged the bullet again.  “The blood matches Todd’s and so do the fingerprints on your glass.  Evidence seems to indicate he was with you tonight.  Hank and I agreed that Manning couldn’t be in two places at the same time. He’s being released.”  Bo looked around the room and spotted Marty.  She now had some explaining of her own to do.  “If you’ll  excuse me, I need to talk to Marty and Rebecca.”

As he moved to join Marty, Andy brought Todd into the squad room and handed him his belongings.

Todd had been totally surprised when Andy had come back down so suddenly and even more surprised when she had unlocked his cell door.  “What happened?”

“You’re free.  Blair backed your story.  Whatever she did, Bo says I have to release you.”

 Todd smiled.  Maybe he wasn’t wrong.  It looked like Blair had felt something too.  When he walked into the squad room he saw her standing there.  Her eyes met his and she smiled at him.  He took his belongings from Andy and started to walk to Blair.

“What’s going on?” Marty shrieked suddenly.  “You can’t let him go.  He tried to rape Rebecca!”

Bo looked at her.  “Did he, Marty?  I have proof that says otherwise.  But I think you already know that, don’t you?”

Rebecca looked at Todd who had joined Blair and back to Bo and Marty.  “I don’t understand?”

Bo kept his gaze on Marty.  “Do you tell her, Marty, or do I?  You were so hellbent on putting Todd behind bars you would have said nothing.  Am I right?”

Marty gulped.  “I didn’t know.  I really thought he had hurt her.  I only found out a few minutes ago.”

“Okay, say I believe you.  Once you found out, you should have told Rebecca and me.  You didn’t.   That tells me you were going to let an innocent man go to jail for something he didn’t do.”

Marty collapsed into the nearest chair.  “He raped me.  Rebecca thought he attacked her.  He needs to be in prison.”

Blair had had enough.  She marched over to Marty.  “I heard everything.  You knew what time the attack happened and you knew you were with Todd but you hate him so much you were determined to just ignore that.  Poor Martyr Saybrooke, if you couldn’t keep him in prison the first time, you figured, this time, would work.  You’ve been trying to beat him down ever since he was released from prison.”  Blair started to slap Marty but a hand caught her and stopped her.  She turned to find Todd.

“Don’t, Bo will just slap you behind bars for assault.  Let’s get out of here.” Blair took his arm. Todd looked down at Marty who had begun to sob.  He knew she had a long way to go to get past what he had done to her and in a way he understood why she hadn’t spoken up.  But deliberately encouraging Rebecca to accuse him, killed any sympathy for her.  As he walked past Rebecca, he heard her whisper, “I’m sorry.”  He straightened his shoulders leaving them both behind him.  Something new had happened and he was looking forward to exploring it.  Blair pulled in closer and they left the police station.

Outside the police station, Blair looked at Todd.  “Well, can I give you a ride back to your hotel?”

Before Todd could answer a guy ran by and snatched Blair purse and took off running.  Todd followed immediately.  The guy was good, but Todd was gaining on him.  The bandit slipped into an alley thinking he had lost Todd, instead he saw a dead end and knew he was cornered.  Todd smiled as he confronted the culprit, “Not too smart, are you?  Snatching her purse when she wasn’t alone.  Strictly amateur.”  He moved closer to the man.  “You shouldn’t have done it.  I’ve been wanting to let off steam for awhile tonight.”

The guy swung the purse with one hand and pulled a knife with the other.  “Stay back.  You come any closer and you’ll be sorry.”

Todd observed the sweat on the thief’s brow and the way his eyes darted around.  The idiot was going to make his move soon.  Keeping a close eye, Todd stayed back and instead crouched down and acted like he was going to tie his shoe, then he lunged forward and drove the guy into the wall.  With a few hard whacks of his hand against the bricks, the thief dropped the knife and purse, then began fighting back.  Todd laughed; it was just what he needed. They were pretty evenly matched, but Todd finally got one good blow and the guy dropped to his feet.  Todd got down and tapped the guy who was groaning at his feet.  “You should’ve just given me the purse, man. I’ve fought guys bigger than you in Pentonville.”  He pointed out his ankle bracelet and then the guy passed out.  He reached over and picked up Blair’s purse  and was about to go find her when he found himself facing another cop.

“Hands up Mister,  Keep them where I can see them.” the cop moved slowly into the alley.  His flashlight and gun still aimed at Todd.

“You’ve got the wrong guy, there’s the one who took the purse.” Todd nodded to the thief lying on the ground.

“Yeah, right.  You’re the one holding it.  It wasn’t very smart stealing a purse in front of the police station.  I saw you running around the corner when the lady cried out.”  The officer started to check on the guy on the ground.  He saw Todd’s ankle bracelet and smirked.  “What happened?  Did this guy try to stop you?  Put your hands behind your back.”  The officer set the flashlight down and pulled some cuffs from his pocket.

Todd sighed and started to cooperate when Blair came around the corner.

“Oh, thank God you’re alright.  Wait a  minute.  What’s going on?” Blair looked from Todd to the officer.  “What are you doing?  That’s my friend.”  She pointed to the man lying on the ground.   “There’s the guy who took my purse.  My friend ran after him to catch him.”

The officer looked skeptical. “You’re kidding, right?  This guy’s an ex-con.”

Blair stared down the cop.  “That’s the operative word:  ex.  Now let my friend go and take the real guy in and you better hurry.  I suggest you cuff him before he runs away.”

The officer looked around quickly.  Sure enough, the thief had been slowly getting to his feet and had been about to make a hasty retreat  while the officer was busy with Todd.  The officer speedily put the cuffs on the thief.  Then he looked at Blair. “You’re going to need to come back to the station and file charges.”

The thief protested, “I want to file charges too.  That guy could have killed me”

Todd raised his hands. “Hey, it was self-defense.  He pulled a knife on me.  It’s over there on the ground.  The only prints you’ll find are his.”

Pointing his flashlight where Todd said, the officer saw the knife.  He carefully picked it up.  “I guess you’ll need to come along and tell your story too.”

A short while later Todd and Blair left the station once again.  Blair began to giggle.  “I thought Bo was going to have a heart attack when he saw us walk in with that officer.”

Todd grinned at her. “He positively turned green when he found out I was there to file charges, not being charged.”

Under the streetlight,  Blair looked him up and down.  “I’m not surprised,  From the looks of you, he probably thought we had gotten involved in a bar fight.  That thief got in some pretty good licks and your hand is all messed up again.  Come on, it’s back to my place.  You can clean up and I’ll fix the hand again.”

It was nearing dawn when Blair pulled into Todd’s hotel parking lot.  He turned in his car seat.  “By the way, I forgot to thank you for having my back tonight.”

Blair shrugged, “What are friends for?”

“Friends huh, I’d like that.  Just one question?  Why were you at the hospital last night?”  With all of his drama, it just occurred to him that if she hadn’t been there, he’d still be in lockup.

Blair got very quiet trying to think of the best answer to give him.  Then she spoke.  “I was feeling down.  I had run into Tina Roberts earlier and she had rubbed it in my face that Max had gone back to Luna.  I don’t know.  I suddenly found myself close to the hospital and thought I’d see if the pharmacy had any sleeping pills.  I just wanted to go home and try to put Max out of my mind.”  She chewed on her lower lip and waited to see what Todd would say.

It wasn’t too hard to put two and two together.  “Did you get what you went there for?”   He had to know.  She called him a friend and strangely, he didn’t want to lose that friendship.

“No, I got something much better.  I got a chance to get to know you better and it felt good to be able to help you.  We’re a lot alike.  I feel more comfortable with you than I have with anyone else in a long time.”

“I feel the same way.  Look, you know I’m not off the hook with the other rapes.  I’ve got to find out who’s doing it so Bo and his play cops will get off my back.  But, I’m here if you just want to talk or have a drink.”

Blair smiled. “With the way my life’s been going, I just might take you up on that offer.”

“You do that.” Todd climbed out of the car. “I guess I’ll see you later. Goodnight Blair.”

She laughed. “I think you better make that Good Morning.”

Todd laughed with her as the sun peaked over the horizon.

Yes, a new day had dawned over Llanview and two lost souls had come away stronger because of their new found friendship.  Would it continue to grow?  Well, that’s another story.



*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
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Failings of the Fathers: 72

"Dear Addie, thank ya for the warm greeting," the nun said, walking into the foyer at La Boulaie.

"You're welcome, Sister.  How was your trip?"

"The flight was uneventful, but the time away was, well, not appealing, I say.  I'm hoping things will return to normal soon."

"I'm sorry to hear about your nephew," Addie said.

"Thank ya," the nun said, just as Sam came barreling down the stairs into her arms.  

"Sister Becca Thrin!  You're back!"  He hugged her.

"Yes, Sam, I'm here.  How are ya?"

The boy started to cry.  She took his hand, "Oh, Dear.  Come on with me, into the living room, where we can sit down and talk a bit, all right, Lad?"

He nodded and followed her.

Addie ascended the stairs to let Jack know that the nun was there.  As she rounded the corner at the top to go toward his room, she noticed the door was closed.  Puzzled, and having concern as well, she went to it and knocked.

Inside, Jack was sleeping and Jenna was in his arms.  He woke to the rapping on the door, and sat up.  Jenna did the same.  He went to the door, and she moved herself to the chair.

"Yeah, hi, Grandma Addie," he said, as he opened the door.

"Jack, the door is supposed to be open when Jenna visits."

"It's my fault,"  Jenna spoke up.  "He was very upset, beside himself.  I just thought we needed some privacy."

"I can tell you, though, nothing happened.  She's just not ready for that, she's a really sweet girl," Jack chimed in.  Jenna's face flushed.

The kids seemed sincere, and under the circumstances, Addie felt it wasn't the time or place for the discussion - or the person.  She knew it would be up to Todd and Blair to deal with it when they got back.  She said, "Someone's here to see you."

"Mom?  Dad?  Are they home?"  his demeanor changed to excitement.

"No, Jack, it's Sister Rebecca Katherine.  She just got back to the states.  I am not sure you knew, but your uncle, Aiden, died."

Jack sat back on the bed a moment, as if defeated.  "Died?  That's Dad's new brother?  Grandpa Timothy's real kid?"

"Yes."

"Shit."

"Jack," Addie began.

"I know, my mouth."

"No, I just was going to say I'm sorry about it, and that the nun is downstairs if you want to see her."

"I'll be right there," he said, and looked at Jenna.  She was still a little red-faced and embarrassed.  He said,  "I'm sorry."

"No, it's my fault.  I am the one who broke the rule and closed the door."

"Yeah, but it's my wacky family, and I know the deal."

"It's all right.  You just . . . needed that."

"It felt good," he said.  "Just being there with you, like that."

She smiled, and her face was still pinked with innocent shame.  "I know."

"Thank you," he said, walking to her.  She was still sitting in the desk chair, when he leaned down to kiss her.

***

"Okay, then what?  What do you want?  Just let Blair go, with my son.  Then you and I can settle up."  Todd said.

"I want your son, someone's got to teach him right from wrong."

"He's a pest, doesn't listen.  He moves around too much, runs away.  You don't like that much in a victim."

Peter glared at him.  "I want you to miss him.  Every day."

Todd began to get alarmed by his father's words, and Blair, leaning over, now stood, wiping her mouth with her sleeve.  She said, "Over my dead body, you sick bastard!"

Todd grabbed her around the waist just as she was trying to lunge at Peter.  She was losing control, and he didn't blame her.  He had to be the one who wasn't losing it.  Stay with this.  He's crazy, he's . . . sick.  Stay with it, don't lose it now.

Peter squinted at her, and then said, "You're a fiery one.  I've got just the place for you."

He backed up toward the secret room, still holding Ray.  He was tiring; they could both see it.  Todd hoped he tired himself so much that there would be an opening to get the baby from him and strangle him until he turned purple, and his head exploded.

Blair said, "I'm not afraid of you.  You're scum.  Picking on innocent children, or people who can't defend themselves.  I'm not afraid of your 'room,'" she said, still in Todd's restraining grip.

"I know just the place for you," he repeated, and then said, "we can get along just fine once you're in there."

Todd said, "Let the baby go, and Blair can take him home.  I'll do whatever you want, I'll go in the room, whatever, just let them get out of here.  Who wants to be saddled with a little headstrong toddler and an even more-headstrong woman?  Neither one of them is a really good listener. . ." he tried to reason with Peter.  "and you hate that."

"She'll listen, if she wants you and her son to live.  She'll do whatever I want her to, Wrap those pretty, long legs around me., especially if I do this," he said, taking out the gun and pointing the nozzle toward Todd's head.  "I can just as easily turn this on the kid."

Blair sucked in air so quickly that it created a loud gasp that filled the cellar.  "No," she said, now calmer and considerably less cocky, "no, don't.  He's just a baby."

"After I get rid of Todd, you and I will have a great deal of fun, Mrs. Manning.  Is that your name, Mrs. Manning?  Blair?"

"You don't have to kill anyone.  I'll go in the room,"  Blair said, in an urgent whisper, "I swear I will.  I'll do whatever you want."

Todd was still holding her at the waist.  He was ready to die, if he had to, to prevent Peter from getting his hands on her and from taking his son anywhere.  He said, "Come on, old man, it's me you want.  From the start, I was nothing but a thorn in your side.  You even told me that, often.  I was never the son you wanted.  I wasn't in your image, a total disappointment.  It's really about me, isn't it?"

Peter flinched, as sweat went into one of his eyes, and he wiped it with the sleeve of the arm holding the gun, which brought the pistol dangerously close to Little Ray's head.  He said, "You'll never understand me or my reasons.  You were always like you are right now: a pansy."

Todd was surging with rage.  His instinct was to lunge at Peter and take his chances, but his heart was warning him to tread carefully.  With all his strength, he pushed Blair directly behind him, and grabbed the belt of her pants in front to hold her there.  At first, she resisted, but then, sensing that he knew what he was doing, she went with it.  He said, "Why don't you deal with me, then?  Just a pansy-ass disappointment, a reject.  It should be simple for you to face off with me.  Just me.  You don't need any woman or kid for that."

Peter's eyes shifted from desperate and angry to simply pure evil.  He was enraged, almost to the point that he had forgotten he was holding Ray.  His focus was on Todd's words, and Todd had realized that the man was far gone.  He'd been living some kind of mystery life, for almost twenty years, waiting for this very moment.  Obsession.  And that scared him.  He knew years of planning were built into this day, and for Peter, it would go how he wanted or not go at all. 

***

"Tina, come in," Viki said, holding her arms out.  The sisters embraced, and Tina felt herself giving in to emotion.  Viki said, "I'm so sorry."

"Thanks," she managed to croak out.  "He's gone."

"I know how much he meant to you.  You couldn't stop talking about him when we last spoke."

"We . . . got married, Viki.  Right before he died."

"Oh, that's dreadful, Tina.  What can I do?"

"Nothing," she said, separating from her sister.  "Nothing that I can think of."

"Well, definitely come in.  Let's go and sit down in the library, and we can talk."

"I'm not sure what to do with myself."

"Come on," Viki said, and put an arm around her.  

They sat in the library on Viki's flowered sofa.  Tina said, "I can't believe this all happened.  And now, Todd and Blair's family attacked.   I still don't understand what happened there."

Viki gulped, "Peter Manning happened."

"What?  I don't understand."

"The man who attacked Todd's family was Peter Manning, supposedly.  Dorian told me.  Todd and Blair went after their baby son who was kidnapped.  I think Blair called her and told her."

Tina went white.  "Ray?"

"Yes."

"No, not Ray, please?"  she stood and wobbled as she did.

Viki instinctively grabbed her hands to steady her.  "Tina you must get yourself together, you've been through quite a shock."

Tina slowly sat down.  "Peter.  Peter Manning has Little Ray?"

"I know, it's impossible to think of but he's alive and has him."

Tina slouched back onto the couch.  Looking to the ceiling, she said, "You know, I never was close with my brother.  But he was there for me, in Switzerland.  And before, with the Mitch thing, he didn't press charges.  He tried to understand.  Maybe because he has been a pariah before and knows what it's like for everyone to judge you.  He made a lot of mistakes.   But he doesn't deserve this, does he?"

"No.  I don't believe he does, at all.  He's made a few terrible mistakes, but he's also had some terrible things done to him.  This is an innocent child."

"Poor Ray.  Blair must be out of her mind."

"Yes, I'd say that'a fair assessment.  But what about you?"

Tina let the hurt rise in her chest again, and said, "I'll make it.  I have before."

"Yes, but..."

"He was kind.  He made me feel like a good person."

"Then I suppose you can grab hold of that and make it a reality for your life."

She smiled, through tears, "Why not?"

***

"It can't be much more, Lad.  The map says we're almost there."  Timothy said, with his face in the unfolded recesses of the atlas.  "How did ya get this address?"  he asked.  "Are ya sure it's right?"

"I got it from DMV records.  Not that tough to do, when you're a cop."  John answered, focused on driving.  "How much longer?"

"A few miles, it seems."

"Then we keep on," John added.

"I'm worried about the child, and Blair, of course.  And Todd, because who knows how he'll do facing this monster of a man."

"You know, I remember once Marty telling me that Todd called himself a monster over the years.  He believed he was one.  Probably helped him act like one, more than once."

For a moment, Timothy was silent, then, "I agree.  But it's easy to see how misguided he was, growing up in that."

John didn't answer, but he agreed, deep down.  He didn't want to make excuses for Todd Manning, but somehow, with everything that had been revealed since Todd came back to town at the Vickerman Premier all those months back, he knew it was true.  He grew up in a world of violence and degradation.  It didn't make his actions right, but it explained so much.  He said, "We must be almost there.  Can't believe this car doesn't have a GPS."

"Ah, ya wanted one of those?  I have it on this blasted contraption Todd gave me, I do."  He fumbled with his phone.

John said, "Too late for that, I think this might be the road."  He turned on to the next left.

Timothy said, "I want us to drive up and see Todd holding his son.  As if all is said and done, ay?"

"We can't be that lucky."

"Ya have the luck of the Irish on our side, John McBain, and ya, of all people, should know that."

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

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Failings of the Fathers: 71

Jenna was at the front door when Dorian opened it.  "Yes, Jenna?"

"I'd like to see Jack, if that's all right."

Dorian pursed her lips.  "I suppose.  I'll get him."

Addie stepped forward.  "Jenna, go right up.  You know which is his room.  Just leave the door open, will you?"

"Of course, I know the rules.  I'm just here because, well, he called me.  He needs someone right now."

Addie said, "We know.  Go on ahead now."

As she walked off, Dorian closed the front door and said, "You undermined me."

"You needed it.  I had to.  You caused him to be upset.  Now he needs a friend.  Jenna's a good girl, a positive force in his life.  He needs that without his mother and father here."

She didn't answer, she just walked into the living room, and Addie followed.

Jenna turned at the top of the stairs and went to the door of what used to be Jack's room.  She knocked, and he said, "Get away."

"It's me," she said, and within seconds the door opened.  He fell into her arms and held her close to him.  She continued, "I think it's going to be okay."

"I don't want to drink," he said.  "in case you're worrying.  I promised my father.  He can't come back to me drinking.  Neither can Mom."

"That's a good thing.  And you don't have to drink.  You can talk, with me.  As long as you want."

She sat at his desk, and he sat across from her, on his bed.  "Shaun's really hurt.  Starr's all beat up.  It's because I left them."

"No, it's not.  It's because of that man, Malcolm, whatever."

"He's not Malcolm," Jack said.  No one had told him anything, but in the pit of his stomach, he knew it wasn't Malcolm Carlisle that had hurt his family.  It was someone else.  A force, a demon, someone very evil, and he thought he knew.  He said, "He's some crazy dude.  Whoever he is, he's sick."

"Then there's no possible way it's your fault, Jack Manning.  No possible way."

"I was supposed to be there.  He would have had more of us to fight off."

"It's over with.  You can't go back.  No one blames you."

"No, just me," he said, getting up and pacing, with his hands in his front pants pockets.  "Just me.  I blame me.  I was supposed to be home.  Maybe the old guy would have gotten me instead."

"You're just tormenting yourself.  You can't change a thing."

"Maybe.  Better than who my Aunt Dorian is blaming."

"Your father?"

"Yep."

"She can't blame him.  He had nothing to do with this."  Jenna sounded indignant.

"He did, in his own way.  She believes he brought the guy here, endangered us.  I don't believe that.  Whoever he sent can't be this guy.  No way."

"Then let her talk.  Your mother and father are who they are, together.  Your aunt can't change that fact, either."

"No.  But she can make his life miserable.  She's done it before.  She's one of the reasons my parents were apart when he came back from Ireland when Starr was a baby."

"That sounds like a long story.  Is it?"

"Yeah.  I just . . . don't want to be alone," he said, stopping in front of her.  She looked up at him from his desk chair.  "I don't want to drink, I don't want to think."

"All right."  She stood up, and went to the bedroom door, and to his surprise, she closed it.  Turning back to him, she took his hand and led him to the bed.  

He said, "Um, I . . ."

"Don't get any ideas.  Just lie down,"  she said.

He did.

She crawled in next to him and held him in her arms.

***

Blair was almost to her feet when Peter pulled the gun out from inside his shirt.  "Sit down, or I'll blow his head off."

She froze.  Todd was nowhere; he wasn't moving or reacting.  He's gone.  The lighter.  No.  She didn't sit down, but she didn't move, either.  Without warning, Peter went to the door and left the house.  At that point, she went to Todd, put her hand on his head and stroked his hair.  "Todd?  Todd, come on now, we need you.  Ray needs you, Todd."

He looked up at her, instantly, and seemed confused.  "What's going on?"

She sighed, and tears left her eyes.  He reached up and touched her face gently where it was bruised. "I think I . . . left for a minute.  Shit, he hurt you." Then, he became agitated.  "Where did the fucker go?"

"Outside.  I was scared I wouldn't be able to get you back."

"The lighter, he had it, right . . .?"

"I know, My Love," she said, hugging his head to her.

"I'm going to kill him, with my bare hands, you know that."

She dismissed it.  "He went out, Todd, he's going to get away, and we'll never find the baby."  She was panicking.

He got up and went to the window.  "He's not going anywhere, look."  The black Chevy was still there; Peter was making his way into the backyard instead.

"What's he doing?"  Blair asked, as she came up behind Todd and peered out the kitchen window.  He was walking across the yard with determined, long strides.

Todd knew.  "He's going to the shed.  He's probably got Ray in there.  Put him in there because . . . he wouldn't listen, maybe."

Blair was shaking so much he could feel it against his back.  Manning, come on, get it together.  She needs you and so does your son.  His numbness finally went away; it was replaced with a tingling sort of buzz in his head and limbs.  He turned to her and held her, briefly, as he continued to watch.  She said, "Let's go get him!"

"No, wait a minute," Todd said, trying to collect his thoughts.

Peter emerged from the shed with Ray in his arms.  The little boy was quiet, and Todd and Blair both knew it was from trauma or shock.  She said, "Oh my God, he has Ray.  Look at him, Todd, he's so scared!"  She was crying, and shivering, her lip crusting over from the break.

Attempting to determine which was the best course of action, Todd thought, with one arm still around Blair.  Peter was heading back to the house, but not on the route he came.  I can't shoot him while he's holding the baby.  Where's he . . .

He looked at Blair, and for a moment, he was unable to speak.  He just waited for things to register with her, when she also noticed where he was heading.  She said, "My God, he's going inside the house through the basement door.  He's . . ."

"I know.  Let's go."

"Your mother!  She's gone!"  At this, he looked at the place where Bitsy's crumpled form had been lying, and saw nothing.  "We don't have time for that.  We have to get down there," he said, taking Blair by the hand and racing to the door that lead to the basement.  It was locked, and he took his pistol and shot the lock off.  

They went down the staircase, to be there before Peter was, and made it.  It was dark, dank and musty, just as before.  Blair feared for Todd's mental well-being as they stood, once again, in the room with the white stained sink and paneled wall with the small door.

***

"Are we flying?"  Timothy had said to John.

John had closed up his office and answered, "We're not doing anything."

"Ya can't leave me out.  I just buried a son.  I'll be mincemeat if I lose the other."  John looked at the man, and their eyes locked.  "I'll do what ya say, I'm no hero.  I'm Todd's father, but not a Manning, if ya know what I mean.  My head can stay cool."

John liked the guy, and his approach.  "You'll follow my lead?"

"Yes.  I'm not Todd, I don't go off and do things half-cocked."

"If you put it that way, come on, then."

John remembered the conversation in Llanview he'd had with Timothy hours before.  Now, waiting in the airport bus depot, and just finishing his calls, John looked up to see Timothy approaching him, with a set of keys.  "I've secured a rental car."

"Good, let's go."  In situations like these, he took his time alerting authorities.  He could handle it.  He'd size up the situation and then decide if he needed help.  He went rogue when it was personal.  And this was personal.  For Blair, and he hated to admit, for Manning, too.

They got into the car, and Timothy said, "Are ya sure we don't need parts?"

"What?"

"Parts, ya know, guns."

"You mean pieces?  I've got one."

"What about me?"

"You don't go off half-cocked, remember?"

"Ah, yes.  I do recall that."

"Okay then.  You won't need one.  Things will be all right."

"Okay." Timothy looked out the window, as they pulled off.  He didn't care much for Chicago.  Everything seemed gray.  He didn't like the feel of it, and he didn't like what had happened to his son and Bitsy there.  He tried Todd again, on his cell phone, and got no answer.

"No answer?"  John asked.

"No."

"I'm sorry about your son, Aiden."

"I know, as am I.  This may not make sense to ya, but from this old Irish heart, I'm relieved that I was there when he was born, and this time, when he died."

John, swallowed, and at the next light, stopped and handed Timothy a pistol.  "Here, just in case."

***

"I should have killed him when I had the chance," Todd said.  The dampness of the basement chilled him, but he shook it off.

She said, "You couldn't.  You didn't know where he had the baby."  

She understands how I think.

"I wasn't talking about today.  I knew he had a gun," he said.  "Starr told me.  I . . . didn't want him to shoot me, and have his way with you and Momma . . . and Ray.  I was talking about . . . when I was fourteen."

"Don't go there, Todd, just, don't."

The cellar doors opened, and the light pouring in from outside, though dim, made them squint.  Peter stood at the top of the cellar steps, silhouetted, Ray dangling from under his arm.  "Just moving him to a safer place," Peter said, with caustic sarcasm.

Todd said, "Put him down, and we can talk about whatever you want."

"Nothing to talk about," the man said, walking toward them into the room.  The outside light wasn't doing much to help them see; so he reached up and pulled a ratty curtain back from a small window.

Blair could see her son's eyes adjusting to the small amount of light, and she tried to gain composure and fix her face, so he would not be as frightened.  She smiled, "Hi Baby Boy," she said.

"Mommy.  Daddy.  He's bad."

Todd swallowed, hearing his son say the words he knew to be simple but true.  He's a bad man.  Understated.  Simple.  It rocked him, to his core.  He pushed to the back of his mind how Ray may have determined that fact.  

Blair said, "Ray, are you all right?  Did he hurt you?"

Peter had Ray tucked under one arm, and clearly, his grip was tight.  "Shut that bitch up."  He continued, "You want to talk?  Talk about what?"

"Whatever you want.  Just put him down.  Better yet, let Blair have him, and she can go.  Right?  It's just really about you and me, isn't it?"

Todd was surprised when his father laughed, and said, "No.  It's not.  It's about me.  Period.  What you want isn't in the equation."

Todd and Blair still were standing where they started, in the center of the room, the staircase behind them.  Todd so wanted Blair to leave, but he knew she'd never go without her son.  He feared what Peter had planned next, and knew she was not off-limits to the man.  He'd seen his handiwork for years.  He said, "All right.  Then, you call the shots."

Sweat was dripping off Peter's brow, and Todd realized the whole event was physically taxing the older man more than he let on.  With the heart problems and his age, holding 35 pounds of kicking, squirming human had to be straining him.  But he didn't let on.  "I do call them.  That's the whole point.  That's how it was then, eh, 'Boomer?'" he sneered, mocking The Coach's name for him.

"Yeah, that's how it's always been."  Todd agreed.  He just wanted an opening.  A second where he could grab the baby, hand him off to Blair, and shout at her to run.  He had the car keys, she didn't.  He went into his pocket, indiscriminately, and fumbled for them.  Being from a rental car company, there was only one key on the ring, no jingling conglomerate of house and other keys.  He took them into his palm, and as Peter backed up toward the secret room door looking to his feet as not to trip on something, Todd found her hand and gave them to her.  Her only response was a soft, barely audible, "No."

Peter didn't even notice.  The strain was wearing on him.  "And it always will be that way," he added.  Ray started to cry.  "Shut up, kid."

Blair almost broke free of her husband's grip on her hand and lunged at Peter, but Todd pulled her back.  She sobbed a few times, and Ray cried harder.  Her heart was pounding in her chest, and Todd could feel her pulse beating in her hand.  Gotta stop this, now.  Gotta get them out.  "Seems we agree on that, at least.  So, what do you want?"  Todd said.  It was a fight like he never fought to contain his rage.

"To have you suffer and crumble right in front of me.  You spent your whole life fighting me."  Peter said.

He has no idea how right he is.

Peter continued.  "Different ways.  You were always rebellious against me.  You always stopped yourself from crying when you should cry.  You kept yourself from yelling out when you should have.  You had to show me you wouldn't break.  You always had to have the last word, without even speaking."

Blair leaned over and heaved.  She let go of Todd's hand again, and he could feel the key was no longer in it.  She'd taken it, and now, she was throwing up the day's nourishment onto the floor.

Peter laughed.  "I guess that was too much information for her."

"Listen, time's wasting.  It's getting dark, you'll be able to get really far from here overnight.  You've got that car, you can have the money, whatever you want.  You want the last word?  You've got it."

"I want more than that," he said.

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The Mysterious Samuel Toddman: Chapter 25

Samuel walked out of the airport, he hailed a cab and instructed the driver to take him to the nearest luxury car dealership. Once there, he purchased a black sports car and drove southeast out of the city. He took the route that would take him past the Kipling Neuroscience Research Facility. It was a large facility with an incredible amount of security for a research institute. He wondered what they were researching inside. He made a mental note to get his contacts working on the Facility first thing in the morning.

Samuel took the interstate and found himself outside of Llanview in no time. The first thing he had to do was close the deal on the penthouse he had purchased. He found the realtors office, signed the closing papers and received the key to the property. Samuel was curious what his money had bought. He drove into downtown, heading for the address given to him by the realtor. The more he looked at the address the more familiar it seemed. He pulled into the parking garage and headed up to the penthouse floors. It couldn't be, but Samuel felt that definite sense of Deja Vu. As he stepped out of the elevator he headed straight for a very familiar door. Was it the right one? He checked the address, there it was, Penthouse # 2.  He put the key in the lock and walked in.

 For a moment time stopped, a memory assailed him and he again saw Blair on the floor as he walked into the living room. Then the scene in his head changed and he saw Dee standing in front of him vulnerable and crying in her red negligee. God!  He remembered what had happened next. He, or rather Pete, had thrown Dee out. It had been snowing that night. Samuel wandered around, the furniture from that time still was there. He saw himself, sleeping fitfully on the couch and suddenly waking up and accidentally flinging Dee to the floor. That had been the night Dee had stayed with him and watched over him as he slept. Samuel neared the stairs and saw Blair looking out the windows, waiting for a surprise that Todd had promised her. He saw her face light up as Fireworks exploded in the night sky. He set his luggage down and walked to the window looking at a building across the way. There it was. The Manning building. "I'm home. Look out Llanview, we're here to stay."

Samuel came out of his daydreams, there was work to be done. He walked over to the desk and blew some of the dust away. He better get a cleaning crew in here and he needed to get some food. He reach for the phone and realized he still didn't have any service. It was probably better if he stuck with throwaway cells for the time being. Well, he'd better find a grocer, and he needed to locate a frame shop. Samuel wanted to get the girls on the wall as quick as possible. This penthouse was familiar, but it wouldn't be home for him until the Girls were where he could see and talk to them. He also better check with the building manager and find out if his supplies had arrived yet. Samuel needed the smell of paint and canvas surrounding him.

 It was a nice day, as Samuel stepped out of the elevator. He decided to take a walk, figuring to pick up some food while he was out. He needed to get familiar with the area, as his memory still had plenty of holes that needed filling. Samuel had walked for over an hour and found himself walking into an area with a statue of an Angel in the square. He was getting hungry and saw a cafe called the Buenas Dias Cafe and then noticed a grocer not much farther down the street. I should probably stay out of gathering places like restaurants for a while. Now isn't the time to run into someone who might have known Todd. He walked to the grocers and purchased some staples like bread, fruit, and cheese and walked back toward his penthouse. He stopped at a Liquor store and picked up a couple of bottles of wine too. With his arms full, he flagged down a cab and rode back to the penthouse. He got to his new home and once inside put the food and wine away. He had found out his supplies had been delivered while he was out.

 After putting his food away, Samuel opened the one box he had labeled cleaning supplies. Although that basically applied to his paint cleaning supplies he knew he had some clean rags that he could use to get the dust off most of the furniture. Samuel went to work making the living room more usable for him. After some rearranging, Samuel was satisfied with the setup. He had set up his easels for the time being close to the windows. He hadn't checked out the upstairs rooms yet, one of them might make an ideal studio, if not, then where the easels currently stood would work. Samuel hadn't passed a frame shop on his walk so he pulled out the telephone book and looked a few of them up. He found one out close to the cemetery. He would drive over and see what they had. 

While he had the phone book opened, Samuel looked up the only two names he knew, Blair Cramer and Todd Manning. Hmmm, Blair lived in one of the fancier neighborhoods, that was close to some estates. One of the estates was called Llanfair, that name rang a bell as he remembered something about Todd hiding out on the Llanfair estate. He found Todd Manning had a home in another exclusive area of town. So tomorrow he would look into those households, but he wasn't sure if he should let Blair know he was in town yet. Better to keep her in the dark until he figured out what was really happening here.

Samuel opened his luggage and pulled out the three canisters containing his portraits. He unrolled them to make sure they were undamaged and laid them side by side on the couch. "Welcome to our new home my dear ones. I have to go out, but I should be home shortly," then he left for the frame shop. When he pulled into the parking lot of the frame shop he noted it was across the street from the entrance to the cemetery. His eyes were drawn to the gates. The place seemed to be drawing him in. He shook his head and went into the shop.  After a bit of searching, he found the frames he needed to make the girls beautiful and whole. He purchased them and exited with them on his arm.

 As he got to his car, he felt the pull of the cemetery. Something was telling him he should go in. Samuel put the frames in his car and started to walk across the street. For some unknown reason he felt there were answers waiting for him in there. He was halfway across when a horn blared in his ear. Careful, Samuel, you almost became a permanent resident. A chill rippled through his body. Samuel turned and returned to his car.

Todd was petrified as he saw where Samuel was headed. “ No! Don't Go There!” He tried shouting at Samuel, but no words were coming out, what was the matter with him? He felt like he was going to pass out.  That was it, something happened in the cemetery. Todd managed to get out one word before collapsing. "Help." Pete was next to him and caught him as he toppled.

"Ms. Perkins something's happened." said Pete.

Ms. Perkins rushed to the bed where Pete had just laid down Todd. "What happened! Pete do you know what made him collapse?"

"How the hell, should I know, I was working on the wall like all of you." replied Pete. " I heard his cry and he dropped into my arms. That's when I called you."

Ms. Perkins looked out the windows trying to see where Samuel was. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary. Samuel was driving back to town. He wasn't acting like anything was wrong. His heart was beating strong. Still, something Samuel did caused a relapse in Todd. She needed to find a way to communicate with Samuel. Of course! She could use the mirror in the car, but they needed to get Samuel to pull over. "Ok boys, we need to get Samuel to stop and get off the road. I have to talk to him. All together now. Everybody yell, Samuel Stop, on the count of three. One, Two, Three. SAMUEL STOP!"

Samuel jerked as the words popped into his head. They wanted him to stop. But why were they yelling, and how come Todd wasn't talking to him? Samuel saw a parking lot in front of him and pulled in. He stopped the car. Now what? He thought, "Todd what do you want?" No answer. Something was wrong, he tried to recall what he had done when he first heard the voices. Oh yes, he remembered the mirror. Well it’s worth a shot. Samuel flipped down his visor and opened the mirror "What happened? Where's Todd?... This isn't going to work, I'm crazy."

      "You’re not crazy, Samuel. This is the only way we can communicate when Todd is out. " said Ms.Perkins. "Something made Todd collapse, what have you been doing recently."

"What do you mean Todd collapsed? How long ago?" asked Samuel.

"It just happened, that's why I need to know the last few things you did. Something you did caused this and whatever it is Todd has retreated. I hope only temporarily but we need to know the cause, so when he faces it again he does it with us supporting him. So tell me where have you been?" pleaded Ms.Perkins.

"I just came from the frame shop where I picked up some frames." said Samuel.

"Did you see anyone or talk to anyone?" asked Ms Perkins.

" Other than the shop owner, I saw no one. I left the shop and put the frames in my trunk. I didn't speak to anyone else. Of course I almost got run over." answered Samuel. "I had been on my way across to the cemetery. Right after I almost got hit, I remember thinking that I almost became a permanent member. It was weird, a sudden chill ripped through my whole body right then, do you think that is when Todd collapsed."

 "Yes, I'm certain of it. Something about the place terrifies him and he's not strong enough to face it yet. For now, you must avoid it. I believe that it’s the key to the memory that is buried so deep right now. He's stirring I think he's coming back. Remember Samuel this particular memory is yours to protect until he's ready for it. I think you'll know when it's time to return to the cemetery. For now, it's too soon. Keep up the good work we're close to freeing all the rest of your memories. Goodbye for now,"

Just like that he was alone in the car again, Samuel took in her words. Something had happened in that cemetery. Something far worse than all the horrific memories he had encountered so far. Once again the cold raced through his body. Ms. Perkins was right, it wasn't time. Todd wasn't the only one who wanted to avoid that memory, Samuel wasn't ready to face it either. Samuel arrived back at the garage and parked his car. He gathered the frames and went up to the penthouse. After some dinner of bread, cheese and wine, he got to work mounting and framing the Girls.  Soon he had them hung on the wall above the fireplace. With the Girls in place, Samuel headed over to the desk and got out a piece of paper. He started making a list of things to do in the next couple of days.

Samuel knew he had to keep a low profile until Todd was ready to reappear, but he wanted to catch a glimpse of Vicki and Tea. He wanted to see the two women who had helped him all these years. It was going to be tricky but he knew there had to be a way. On thing he could do was drive around and find out where everybody lived. Samuel grabbed his coat and headed out for an evening drive. It would be fun the see places that were starting to pop up in his memory although he was sure some of those places might have bad memories too.

Samuel had several memories of the docks so he decided to head there first. He parked his car and took a slow walk towards the end. He paused at several locations, as he came upon them. He recalled sitting on the edge at one point and talking to Marty, he felt a twinge of pain in his heart when he realized the conversation had been about the loss of his child with Blair. With that memory a little too painful, he moved on to a portion in which he remembered standing over Delgado, his Dee, holding her necklace and then carefully putting it back around her neck. For one moment, they had been so close but he had managed to mess even that up.

Samuel stared out over the water and thought about how messed up his and Todd's life had always been. For eight years, he had been living in shadows but Todd, he had been living in hell most of his life and had only had glimpses of warmth and love to brighten his existence. Samuel felt deeply for Todd and hoped with all his heart that one day Todd might be free from his personal hell.

****
Todd laid there, he couldn't make himself open his eyes, something inside of him was terrified. He felt around and breathed a sigh of relief he was on the bed. Slowly he opened his eyes, he faced the windows and saw that Samuel was standing on the docks. He was cold and found a blanket suddenly next to him. He wrapped it around him and sat up shakily. "Ms. Perkins, what happened?" She was there next to him. Then she sat down and joined him on the bed.

"You collapsed. At first we didn't know why but I was able to have a talk with Samuel. I think we might now have some idea what brought you here eight years ago. Todd, I don't think you're ready to face it yet." answered Ms. Perkins.

"Maybe I'm not ready to face it but I need to know as much as you can tell me. The last thing I remember is watching Samuel go into a frame shop. What happened afterward?" asked Todd.

"Brace yourself then, Samuel came out of the Frame shop and after stowing the frames Samuel started to cross the street. He said he felt drawn to the place across the way. Before he made it across though he almost got run over so he changed his mind and headed home." said Ms. Perkins.

"That's it, he almost got run over. That doesn't make any sense, You're leaving something out. Just where was Samuel headed to?" Todd looked at Ms. Perkins directly into her eyes and said grimly. "Tell me."

"Very well, Samuel was headed into the Cemetery." as she told him, she kept a close eye on his reactions.

"The Cemetery." Todd gripped the edges of the blanket and drew it around him tighter. He felt so cold. He was shivering. Todd held on to the blanket for dear life and Ms.Perkins held on to Todd. He didn't collapse again, but he couldn't stop shaking. Slowly the shaking subsided and Todd turned to Ms. Perkins and held on to her as if his life depended on her. He whispered in her ear. "That's it, I know it. Something in there waits for me. It's been waiting for a long time. I don't think I'm strong enough to face it. I don't think I'm ever going to be strong enough." Even as he said those words, Todd remembered saying something similar to his sister Vicki. He was on that ledge again. Only this time he was trying desperately to hold on. The abyss below was trying to pull him in and it was taking everything he had to not let go.

Like his sister many years before, Ms Perkins merely held him and said. "You are strong Todd, you've lived a horrible strife-filled life but there is a strength in you that has always kept you going. It was that strength that created us to help you. There is also an innate goodness in you that has enabled you to have the love of others even though you feel unworthy. You must believe now that somebody out there does love you. That love is yours for the taking don't let the darkness win."

Todd withdrew from her arms, and sat up straighter. "You're right, I can do this. I lived through bullets and knife wounds, injuries that would have killed a normal man. But I'm not normal, I'm Todd Manning. I've beaten Death and I can beat this Abyss. I always have been and I always will be Todd Manning."

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