Rundown (Curveball Book 2) (32 page)

My
mouth falls open and my gaze volleys between Mark and Spencer.

“
This
has to do with the plane being ambushed, doesn’t it?”

“
Yes.”

“
It
really is all connected.  You...Alexis…it’s all linked.”

“
Yes.”

Christ,
Drew was right all along.

“
When?
 I mean, you were gone long before anything happened to the
flight…I don’t understand.”

“
I’m
not going into all of that tonight.”

“
You
have to tell me something.”

The
look on Mark’s face confirms that I’m not getting more from him
in terms of the investigation, so I change tactics and revert to my
original objective.

“
When
did you know that you had to leave?”

“
Whether
it was this assignment or another one, it was always a possibility.”

“
It
was always a possibility,” I repeat.  “You married me and
started a family with me, knowing that one day you’d likely have to
leave us?”  I stumble back until I collide with a wall.  “How
could you do that?  Do you have any idea what you put us
through?”

“
It’s
my job.”

“
And
I thought that we were your life!”  Can he really not see how
screwed up this is?

“
It’s
not like I could have quit.  I always knew what was expected of
me.”

“
Yeah,
well I didn’t.  And neither did your children.  God, did
you even love us, or was having the perfect family part of your
rouse?”  I take four huge steps forward and slam my fists
against his chest.  “Did you ever stop to think what any of
this would do to the kids and me?  Or did you forget about us
the moment you walked away?  Were you watching the day we
lowered your empty coffin into the ground?”  I raise my arms
to strike him again but grabs my wrists. 

“
Is
that why you didn’t want to have Maddie?  Too much baggage for
you?”

“
The
bigger our family became, the more people I had to leave behind.”

I
continue trying to free my hands from his hold.  Eying my fist,
Mark’s grip tightens.  Darkness consumes his narrowed glare as
his pupils dilate.  His heated stare is concentrated on my
balled up hands, which he’s pulled to within inches from his
face.  

My
engagement ring.

“
From
the sound and look of it, you’ve been doing just fine,” he
snarls.

I
stop struggling and feel my hostility begin to dissolve into hurt. 
I’m so confused I don’t know how to feel about anything right
now.  All I know is that I’m exhausted and I want to be
alone. 

“
You
didn’t answer me.”

“
I’m
not going to.”

I
don’t even realize that I’ve started crying yet again until my
sight becomes blurry. I’d give anything not to show him how much
this is affecting me because clearly it never affected him. 
Damn this hurts.

“
You’re
really going to marry him?” he asks, finally letting me go.

“
I
guess that depends on whether or not I’m still married to you.”

“
If
we were wou—”

“
Go
to hell,” I practically spit, cutting him off.

“
Calm
down, Breanne.”

“
In
a matter of minutes you’ve managed to alter a decade of memories. 
Don’t tell me to calm down!  I’ve spent years grieving for
you; consoling our children while you’ve been off doing who knows
what.” 

“
I’ve
been protecting our country.” 

“
Stop
trying to justify this.  It’s clear that you only care about
yourself.  How could you do this to me?”

“
I'm
here, risking everything, because of you.”

“
Well
I didn’t ask for this.  Not to mention, I've been in danger
for months.”

Frustrated,
Mark turns his back on me and places his hands on the counter. 
“This isn't easy for me either.”

“
I
could give a shit if this is hard for you!  You put us in this
situation.”

Mark
drops his head.  “We’ll go into more detail tomorrow. 
I think there’s been enough excitement for tonight.”

“
You’re
joking.  You really have nothing else to say?  Why the hell
did you even come back?  I mean…are you back?  Tell me
what all this means, Mark!”

He
whips around.  “I told you.  I’m here to protect you,
and I’m back until this situation gets resolved.  In order for
that to happen, I need you to stay out of the public eye, and more
importantly, stop talking about the investigation.  Don’t
discuss anything related to what happened on the plane or the
aftermath.  Keep the events that took place in California to
yourself, and under no circumstances are you to mention to anyone
that I’m alive.” 

“
So
when you said you’re here to protect me, you really meant that
you’re here to solve a case.”  Mark groans.  “Well
you can relax.  I haven’t said a word to anyone other than
Drew and the authorities.” 

“
No?”
he challenges. 

“
And
Vivian, but she’s practically family, and I didn’t really tell
her much.”  He searches my face.  “What?”

“
Distance
yourself from her.” 

“
Why?
 Have I put her in danger?” 

“
No. 
She
is
the danger.”

Vivian
is the danger. 
I repeat his words to myself several times. 
“Why would Vivian want to hurt me?”

“
We’ll
get into the details tomorrow, Breanne.  I’m not prepared to
share more information tonight.  You need to go home and sleep
on this.  We’ll talk more in the morning.”

“
You
seriously think I’ll be able to sleep?  You appear from thin
air and basically tell me that everything I’ve known has been a
lie.”

“
If
you share this information with Drew make sure that conversation
doesn’t take place in our house.”

“
Of
course I’ll tell him.  Wait, why can’t I talk in the house? 
Is it bugged or something?”

His
expression tells me all I need to know. 
Of course it is.

“
Who’s
listening?  Vivian?”

Mark
hesitates a moment too long.  “Yes.  She recently planted
listening devices in an attempt to get more information about
developments in the case.  After what you shared with her the
other night she’s on high alert.  I’ve given her a false
lead that’s taken her out of state for a couple of days, but she’ll
still be listening.”

“
The
picture frames,” I mutter.  “She brought a picture frame and
a few gifts for the kids.  I’m throwing them away.”

“
Don’t. 
She’ll get suspicious.  Besides, there could be more. 
For now, watch what you say.”

I
grab the gem of my necklace and begin rubbing it between my fingers. 
Beyond logic lies the truth. 

“
The
necklace.  Alexis was warning me about Vivian, wasn’t she?” 

Mark
doesn’t respond. 
How did I not see this before? 
The colors of the necklace match Vivian’s signature red hair and
striking green eyes to a T.  Depending on light exposure, the
alexandrite gem changes like a chameleon, much like Vivian’s
intentions.  I guess some people do keep their enemies closer.
 
But why am I her enemy?

I
think I’m going to be sick.

Is
it possible to grieve for someone who’s come back from the dead, if
the person they turn out to be isn’t the person you loved?  It
feels
possible.  The different stages of grief flash in
my mind.  In a matter of seconds I swear I jumped from denial to
anger.  I may spend some time at the bargaining stage to get
some semblance of control, but I’ll be damned if I spend another
minute of my life on depression.  I’ve cried too much over
this man already.

“
You’re
right.  I’ve had enough for tonight.”

I
slowly back out of the room, then turn and jog toward the stairs,
taking them two at a time and ignoring the sound of my voice being
called.  Sprinting into the bedroom, I blindly search for my bag
near the entrance to the bathroom.  By the time I feel the soft
fabric of my favorite sweatpants and step into them, I’m being
yanked from behind. 

I
gasp.

“
Are
you ok?”

“
Damn
it, Drew!  You scared the shit out of me.”

“
Answer
me.”

“
No. 
I’m not ok.  I’m…I don’t know what I am,” I snap. 

“
What
did he say to you?”

“
I
want to go home.”

“
We
are home.  This.” Drew forcefully points his finger at the
ground. “This is supposed to be our home.”

“
You
know what I mean.”

We’re
both silent for what seems like an eternity. 

“
I’m
not taking you back there,” Drew says. 

“
I’ll
take myself then.”

“
Sarah
and your father knew I was proposing tonight.  If we go back to
your house, Sarah will know that something’s wrong and you can’t
lie on your best day.  We’re going to my place.”

“
Fine.”

We
collect our things and leave the house without seeing Mark again. 
He mentioned discussing more with me tomorrow but I seriously hope he
stays away.  I need to process everything and I have no idea
where to begin.  I can’t believe he’s alive. 

Drew
insists on driving us, leaving Everett and Spencer alone in the other
car.  I know he wants me to open up about my conversation with
Mark, but I can’t yet.  I need to make sense of it in my mind
first.  I desperately try to think of the happier events this
evening and fail.  My emotions have been all over the place. 
Neither my head nor my heart can keep up.  

As
the car glides around the curves of the narrow back roads, I start
losing it.  How have I trusted these people and not known who
they really were?  I pull my legs up to my chest, balling into a
cocoon in the passenger seat and do my best to stay calm. 

“
Talk
to me,” Drew pleads.

I
shake my head as we round another turn and dip down a small hill. 
The sensation does more than create butterflies; it threatens to
unload the knots in my stomach.

“
I’m
going to be sick.  Pull over.”

Drew
pulls off the side of the road and slams on the breaks.  He’s
out of the car in seconds, helping me get a few feet from the car
just in time.  He swiftly pulls my hair to the side and rubs my
back until I’m done.

“
Tell
me how to help you.”

“
You
can’t,” I exclaim, collapsing on my knees.

“
Are
you going to get sick again?”

“
I
don’t know…I…I want to hit something,” I proclaim.

Drew
rubs my back for several minutes before vanishing.  I hear the
slamming of a car door and wonder if he’s had enough.  If that
were the case, I wouldn’t blame him.  My life is a complete
and utter mess.  I turn in time to see Drew pull onto the road
and feel more defeated than I thought possible.