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The Tessarae Inn |
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The Son Also Rises
CHAPTER 12 Blair could hear her breathing. In and out, smooth as glass. In and out, quiet as snow falling. Nothing about her breathing conveyed the sick feeling inside that was inching its way along the walls of her stomach. Sean was Todd’s son? That could not be. Todd would never lie to her about something that important. He just wouldn’t. Would he? Addie patted the seat beside her and Sean rushed forward and sat next to her. He flashed Blair a wide grin as Addie wrapped her arm around his shoulder. “Do you want to call me Grandmother?
Starr and Jack do. I know Blair’s not your mother but I bet she is a good
second one. She loves her children
and she loves Todd’s children too. So
you can call me Grandmother if you like.” Sean shot Blair a wide-eyed stare. She tried not to let the panic of the mounting realization show on her face. Did Sean know? She forced herself to breathe normally and to look at him with gentle warmth. She could see him relax. Whatever was going on was not this beautiful child’s fault. He leaned forward and said, “Can I?” Blair stilled her soul and forced her breathing into a normal pattern. “It would make Mama very happy and me, too.” Addie bounced up and down and yelled, “Yipppeee.” Sean watched her with a gleeful expression on his face. They both turned and smiled at her and Blair felt her heart flip. Why hadn’t she seen this before? Why was she always so damn blind when it came to Todd? “Is he your son, Todd? Yes or no?” “What the hell are they pumping into the air up at St. Anne’s? Your mother, who let us all agree is several bottles short of a recycling bin, tells you she thinks that boy is my son and you believe her. What is with you, Blair?” “I did the math, Todd. I can count. It all fits.” “If that’s what this is based on then there are thousands of kids who are my son too by that calculation.” “For once in your miserable rotten life, just tell me the truth.” Todd gritted his teeth then ran his hand across his mouth and down his throat. “What truth do you want to hear?” “Did you father that child? Is he your biological son?” “Yes.” She had been expecting to hear him admit what was obvious so why did it feel like he had just kicked her in her soul? Why after everything damn thing that had happened between them did he still have the capacity to hurt her so damn much with just a single word? Todd’s eyes darkened and turned hard. “That’s the truth you wanted. Now you have to deal with it. Look at what I did for you. I gave him up only to come home to find you screwing that stupid backstabbing poet.” She was determined not to cry. There had been too many tears over too many things in the years since Ireland. Todd fathered a child with another woman and he knew she was alive and waiting for him. Then he came home and punished her for what she did when she thought he was dead. “Get away from me.” “Blair, look. I…” “Leave me alone.” “Not like this.” “Get the fuck away from me.” “So you can do something stupid? So you can say something stupid? No. I’m staying right here.” ========== Todd watched Blair’s head drop forward. She shook it violently probably to keep the tears back but they rushed forward anyway. Her breathing was rapid and short. She brushed past him and slammed open the patio doors and disappeared into the dim light. He did not follow her immediately. He couldn’t let her get away from him but she needed to think she was alone. He eased out of the doors and spotted her sitting on one of the chaise lounges near the pool. She was crying and he was trying not to listen. He had to stay focused. Her next move was going to be to go for the car. She was raging now but she would never put the children in danger. He knew even in the grips of this pain she would go off alone rather than risk their safety but tomorrow she would come back and then the battle would begin. Again. He didn’t want to go through that again. He didn’t want to have to fight the demons of hell to get her back. He didn’t want to have to rip her soul out again to make it clear to her that she belonged to him and always would. In the end, he would win—again—but at what price this time? He had to find a way to stop it before it started. They were on the edge of the cliff. For once in his life he wanted to stop it before everything careened downhill and out of control. The truth was out now and she would just have to deal with it. Viki had been right. He should have just told her upfront. She was going to try to leave but he was not going to let her do that this time. This time it was going to be different. How big of a lie was it really? A sudden movement startled him. Sean and Starr emerge from behind one of the large bushes that banked the patio. What they hell? They were holding hands! The sight made his heart sink. Sean stepped toward Blair but Starr held back. Sean tried to pull her forward but Starr resisted. Finally, Sean pulled his hand out of Starr’s and walked next to Blair. “I’m sorry,” he said. Blair looked up as if his voice had startled her. “What?” “I’m sorry I was born. I never meant to hurt you. I’ll go away so you won’t have to cry anymore.” Blair tented her hands over her mouth then shook her head. She wiped her eyes and then rubbed her hands along her pants leg. She pulled him next to her on the chaise lounge. “This is not about you, Sweetheart.” “Yes, it is. I know it is. But I’ll go away. I promise. Just don’t cry anymore.” “No. You’re not going anywhere. This is your home, too.” Sean looked up at her and burst into tears. Starr rushed over to them and Blair pulled her close to her on the other side. Todd watched them and slowly sank into a squatting position. He had never felt more alone in his entire life. He had been wrong before. They were going to close him out and this time it was going to be for good. =================== Sean-Ryan decided that he needed to get back home sooner than yesterday. This decadent living was making him soft. It had taken him five seconds to realize that somehow Blair had discovered the truth about the boy. Just the look on her face had made him want to kick anyone in the balls who had hurt her like that. But it wasn’t a person, it was just fate playing its winning hand, yet again. How Manning thought he would be able to keep his secret was beyond him but now the excrement had hit the fan and it looked as if there would be hell to pay. Maybe in the end, Katherine was the one who would win after all. He clocked out at the garage after taking the limo to be washed and freshened up for the evening engagements. He was not working tonight. First, he was going back to his dinky little flat for a couple hours of sleep then he was going to spend his last full night in America getting smashed on good whiskey and ale. He walked to the parking lot with a strange smile on his face. It hadn’t been a bad adventure at all. Not a bad trip. A few weeks to screw his head on straight and remember who he was. Never paid to care too much. He almost forgot that. When he spotted his car, he reached in his pocket and pulled out his keys. It was just an old wreck on the outside but it was solid under the hood and could outrun almost anything on the road. Damn shame he had to leave it behind. The air current around him seemed to change. He sniffed the air and scanned the area in smooth but quick bursts. Not for the first time he experienced a strange sensation that someone was close by but every time he looked around there was no one anywhere near him. His instincts were probably trying to fine-tune themselves again to a razor sharp pitch. No one here knew who he was. Even those people he contacted to explore business options thought he was a low level operative. He had let himself become soft. At home that was suicide. He slipped into the driver’s seat of his car and turned the key in the ignition. All he heard was a click. The battery was dead. How in the hell could the battery be dead? Something was not right. He reached over and unlocked the glove compartment then opened it. His gun was missing! Probably, just the work of one the hooligans he worked with. He had never met such a bunch of low-level thieves and con artist in his life. If these rich people had any idea who was really driving them they would shit bricks, but then maybe not. He was convinced he’d never met a bigger bunch of thieves and con artist than these rich people. They were just better at it than the ones stuck driving them around. Still, there was no use taking a risk. He eased out of the car and then scanned the area again systematically. He would stake his life on the fact that no one was around. Out of the corner of his right eye he caught a whirl of movement then a flash of pain seemed to crush him and everything went black. Sean-Ryan drifted into consciousness slowly. He became aware of his body and then aware that his senses were working. He was not dead but he was wherever he was not by choice. The first step had to be to assess the situation. He did not dare open his eyes, yet. His head hurt but he was not bound or gagged and he was laying on something that felt soft like a sofa or a bed. He could smell coffee and bread! Where the hell was he? He forced himself to keep his eyes shut, while he tried to determine if anyone else was in the room with him. He couldn’t pick up anything on his sensory wavelengths—no sound, no movement, no odors. Slowly he opened his eyes. Shit! There was a figure dressed in black wearing a black ski mask and gloves staring straight at him. He was sitting in an easy chair. His easy chair! Someone had knocked him out and then brought him home! “You wake?” The voice was cold and rough and an obvious attempt was being made to disguise it but he still picked up on a familiar cadence. Someone from his past had caught up with him while his trousers were down. He could offer himself no more sympathy than he would have felt for anyone else in this situation. You make mistakes, you pay. Nothing in the rules said he had to make it easy though. No use pretending to be asleep anymore. He moved his arms and legs slightly to test their functioning as he visualized the layout of the bedroom. What could he use as a weapon? Where were they? How far away? “I know what you’re thinking. Forget it. I have cold steel in my hand pointing right at your heart. Don’t press your luck.” Sean-Ryan sat up slowly. “Who are you? What do you want?” The man stood and walked close to the bed. There was something so familiar about his walk and his voice too although he was making an effort to disguise it. “Strange question coming from you. You have no idea what I want?” Sean planted his feet firmly on the floor then stood and faced the man. “And I don’t give a damn. If it’s your job to take me out, do it. Don’t expect me to play twenty questions.” “Well, here’s an answer for you.” The man reached up then yanked at the knit ski mask. Sean-Ryan’s breath literally caught in his throat as the face emerged but he forced himself to exhale. He had been wrong before. “You don’t seem surprised to see.” “More like disappointed.” “I would talk with care, Sean-Ryan. It has been a hard trip and my nerves are a tad frayed.” “Why are you here?” “Don’t act daft. It doesn’t suit you.” “Indulge me, for once.” She stared at him with emerald green eyes then cleared her throat. She pulled off her skullcap and shook her hair free. He cursed himself because he couldn’t take his eyes off of her. “I’ve come to get my son,” she said, “and all that I was cheated out of.” He exhaled loudly then shook his head. “Don’t worry, Sean-Ryan McGill. I’ll give you what you’re due. Maybe then you’ll stop trying to kill me.” Comments?
The Son Also Rises FAN FICTION SLIDESHOWS
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