Through the Darkness, Chapter Twenty One

CHAPTER 21

August, 2013

Jack had thrown a few days’ worth of clothes into his bag and went to do the same for Sam.  “Where’s your Spiderman suitcase?” he asked.

“Why do you need my suitcase?” Sam asked, getting off his bed and going into his closet.

“I think Mom’s about to blow up against Aunt Dorian and won’t want herself or any of us to stick around for the fallout.”  He took the bag and repeated the task he had just done for himself.  “I don’t think it’ll be more than a few days.”

“Where are we going to go?” was the next question.

“I don’t think Mom’s thinking that far ahead,” Jack admitted.  “You got any toys you want to bring?  Tell me now.”

Sam looked pensive for a minute.  “There’s my Spiderman Web Shooter.  I don’t want to leave that behind.”  Jack looked around the room until Sam told him he’d left in in Dorian’s office.

After grumbling about Sam being in places he shouldn’t be, he ordered his brother to stay in his room until Jack returned.  Heading down the back stairs he went into the office and searched around the room.  The desk was a mess and in shifting papers and files looking for the toy, a number of them fell on the floor.  Grunting some more, Jack bent over to pick them up.  While he was under the desk he found the Web Shooter and he reached over to grab it.

That was when the name jumped out at him – Pellegrino.  He had seen the articles The Sun had been running on the financial state of The Banner.  It was all very subdued for the competition, but he figured Todd wasn’t competitive enough to rub Aunt Viki’s misfortunes in her face so publicly.  He opened the file and had to do a double take.  It looked like a lot of lawmaker jargon, but it made mention of SEC code and open investigations.  Why would Aunt Dorian have this information?  She was on the Intelligence Committee if he remembered correctly.  He decided to take the file and look it over more closely when they got to wherever they were going to.

Instead of going back the way he came, he headed out to the foyer and up the main stairs.  That was when he heard two voices.  It was his mother and Dorian’s and neither sounded happy.   

“I’m sorry, but I must have misheard you,” Dorian said.

Blair leveled a gaze at her.  “No, you didn’t,” she replied.  “You will not say a word against my husband.”

Dorian seemed to blanch when she repeated herself.  Then she shook her head.  “No, please tell me you did not…did not remarry…” she stuttered. 

Blair approached her slowly and then, standing inches from her, removed the gold ring she wore over her wedding band.

“Now I know you’re lying.  Todd Manning would have never gotten you a ring like that!” Dorian proclaimed. 

“I don’t need any diamond to symbolize the love I have for Todd,” Blair informed her.  “I came to tell you that I’m taking the kids and leaving tonight.”

“Why?  For pointing out what a psycho that man is?” Dorian yelled, her voice getting shriller.

“My kids are right now traumatized by what happened to their father.  And you, no surprise, are no help.  I get that you can’t stand Todd, but Starr, Jack and Sam love him and they need to be in an environment that loves Todd too.”  With that, she turned her heals and headed for the door.

“So, you’re going to go to Llanfair?” Dorian asked derisively.

“I will see if we can stay with Viki.  If not, we’ll go to the Palace,” Blair said.  She opened the door and found Jack standing outside.  She wanted to be annoyed he had eavesdropped on her, but the false bravado she had just displayed washed out of her.  Wordless, he made his way up the stairs, followed by her.  Fifteen minutes later, all four were downstairs and piled into the car.

“Do you think Aunt Viki will even put us up?” Jack asked.

“I don’t know,” Blair answered.  But she was not surprised to see Viki very generously opening her home to Blair and the children.  Sam was put to bed and Jack decided to turn in.  Starr plunked herself in the library and wanted to go over the files again, even though she admitted she probably wouldn’t find anything else.

Viki offered to make Blair a cup of tea and Blair was thoughtful enough to grab a bottle bourbon to add to it.

Viki eyed her sister-in-law.  “That bad?”

“I want to apologize.  I went back on our deal,” Blair said, pouring a finger of bourbon into the teacup as Viki brought the water to a boil.  Then she looked at the older woman.  “I told Dorian about Todd and I.”

“Oh dear,” Viki replied, her face taking on its typical ‘Dorian’ look.

“Yeah, she made a comment.  It wasn’t even the worst one she could have come up with.  But, I don’t know, I think my nerves are just frayed over all this that it hit me wrong.  I told her she was not to speak of the father of my children that way, speak of my husband that way,” Blair remembered with a chuckle.  “She didn’t believe me.  She may still not.  I told her and just walked out.  I can’t deal with it anymore.”  Viki pour the water and Blair took a sip, finally feeling relaxed.  “I had actually been thinking about finding a place so that when we did get Todd back, he wouldn’t have to step foot into La Boulie.”

“Well, it’s not La Boulaie, but for the time being, I could have you stay in the carriage house.  It’s not that I’m throwing you out, but it would be a little more private, if you’d like that better,” Viki offered.

It actually sounded like a good idea.  Her kids weren’t on top of everyone else in Llanfair and it would contain the inevitable visit from Dorian to not escalate into the main house.  She nodded her head in thanks.

Now, she had to put her focus back on finding Todd.

**********

The door opened again.  Two voices could be heard.  “Yeah, it’s better that they used the gas on them when it’s night time,” Voice One said.

“Just put the food on the table,” Voice Two ordered.  “I don’t like being in here with them after the stories I’ve heard.”

“Ah, they’re out like lights.  Besides, how much damage could the do really?  I mean, they one up top is kinda scrawny to begin with,” One replied.

“He killed one of ours with his bare hands,” Two retorted.  “Just get a move on.”

Todd realized it was now or never.  Opening his eyes, he and Victor, in perfectly timed unity, leapt off the bunk and tackled the guards.  One was so caught off guard, he never saw Todd’s body as he was slammed to the floor.  Two, a little more cautious, put up a little more of a fight, but several blows of Victor’s fists stopped him.  He checked the guy and found his sidearm, while Todd grabbed the rifle the other one had. 

“Let’s get the hell out of here,” Todd said and Victor nodded in agreement.  They hurried out the door and over to the opposite wall.  Victor peeked around the corner, and not seeing anyone, signaled Todd, who moved ahead.  They leapfrogged each other for a few more turns until they heard an all too familiar voice.

“I don’t know why you showed up here.  I have everything under control,” Allison Perkins could be heard. 

Neither brother heard the reply but sensed them approaching.  Victor looked around and saw what appeared to be a closet.  He waved Todd in but the other man didn’t move at first.  Victor had to haul him in under protest.  They got cover just before Allison and her companion passed by.

“What the hell was that for?” Todd asked, pissed off.

“It’s too risky,” Victor said.

“I was trying to figure out who her partner is!”

“And you would have given us away!” Victor retorted.  He opened the door and, finding no one outside, signaled to Todd.  Todd moved out of the closet and down to the next corner.  Around it, he saw an exit sign.  He gave thumbs up and Victor moved next to him.  Todd counted down from three and Victor headed to the door.  He had his hand on the knob when a shot rang out.  He turned around and saw his twin on the floor, clutching his knee.

Todd looked up and saw Victor.  “Just go!” he yelled, his face contorted in pain.

Victor looked at the door and back at Todd.  He was maybe ten feet away.  Victor was about to leave when he thought of Blair.  He turned back and fired his gun behind Todd’s position.  He must have hit someone, because he heard a cry and the firing stopped.  Then he rushed to Todd and pulled his brother’s arm around his neck.  “Can you walk?” Victor asked.

“You’re risking yourself, you idiot,” Todd answered as he was put upright.

“I’d be risking myself if I left you, brother,” he answered looking Todd in the eye.

Todd got the meaning and nodded.  “Don’t want Blair…under arrest for shooting anyone again,” he said with a grimace. 

Together, they made it out the door.  It opened to a large parking lot on a dawning morning.  Victor went to an older Accord and, using his elbow, broke the passenger side window.  He got the door open and threw Todd in, who yelped in pain.  Then he made his way to the other side and repeated the action.  Getting in, he looked under the steering wheel.  He grabbed at the wires and after a few tries, the car started.  With that, they were off.

Todd was a little surprised to see the outside of their prison.  There were no guards around, no one armed expect the two inside.  It was disquieting but he put it out of his head for a minute.  Once they were on a main road, Todd said to him, “We need to figure out where the hell we are in the first place.”

“We need to get you to a hospital in the first place,” Victor told him.  “Look, where a few miles outside of Buffalo.  That’s a start.”

“It’s nothing that…a melon baller…can’t fix,” Todd grunted out.  “You’ve got…an arrest warrant out for you.  If you have to…just drop me outside…the emergency room.”

Victor shook his head.  “You said Tea even wants me brought into custody.  Trust me, I know how to play this.”

Victor managed to find his way to the Sisters of Charity Hospital.  He pulled up next to the door for the ER and hoisted Todd out of the car.  Going in, he yelled, “Help, my brother’s been shot.”

A doctor and three nurses came scurrying over.  “When did it happen?” the doctor asked.

“Within the hour,” Victor asked as Todd was put on the stretcher.  As the rushed him to a cubicle, Victor gave them further information.

The doctor nodded and then said, “Sir, you’re going to have to stay here.”

But Victor wasn’t having any of it.  “I’m staying with my brother,” he said in a deathly calm.

“Sir, we need to get him into surgery to remove the bullet,” the doctor insisted.

Victor walked around to next to Todd.  Todd gave him a puzzled look.  “Victor, what the hell are you doing?”

Victor didn’t answer him.  Instead, he pulled the gun he had since the escape.  In a calm voice he said.  “You call Victoria Lord, Llanfair estate, Llanview, Pennsylvania.  Tell her her brother has been admitted to the hospital.  Call Bo Buchanan at the Llanview PD.  When they get here, I will leave my brother’s side.  But not a minute before then.”