The Power of a Name
Chapter Ten
"Shawn, are you sure this will work? He'll catch us. I know he will." The frightened warning in her whispered words was accompanied by a restraining hand on Shawn's arm. Eight years with the Phoenix had been enough to make her actually believe him when he said that he knew every move she made.
Shawn turned to her, taking her hand in his, soothing her with his confidence. "Don't worry, Sapphire. I'll get you out of her, just like I promised. Trust me." The delivery boy had been struck by her mournful beauty from the first time he saw her, and the succeeding months had only increased his desire to see her out of this accursed place. A year older than her in age, a lifetime younger in experience, Shawn believed it was up to him to be her savior.
Looking into his warm brown eyes, she forced a smile. But it was weak. She knew so many things about the Phoenix no one else did. The man was the devil incarnate. He could make anyone do anything. He was a master at manipulation. "I do trust you, it's just…Let's get out of here, Shawn," she pleaded. "I'm sure I'll feel better once we're out of this house."
Shawn nodded, carrying her suitcase in one hand while still holding hers in the other. Noiselessly, they made their way past the many closed doors in the old, respectable—from an aesthetic perspective at any rate—brownstone. She refused to let herself feel anything at all. Not yet. Not until she was out of this house, this city, this state.
From that first day, her life had been ruthlessly torn apart. Again and again, the layers of her innocence had been stripped away from her, until there was nothing left at all. Her mind and emotions had been molested just as completely as her body. And then, a year ago, when he'd taken every last drop of her humanity and dignity away from her, when he'd left her so torn and scarred that she'd never recover, when she had finally convinced herself that there was nothing more he could do to hurt her, he'd revealed exactly how diabolical he really was. Her hellish existence over the past seven years had only been in preparation for her to serve the perverted lusts of every senator, judge, and public official that Stefano needed in his pocket.
She had absolutely reached the end. Suicide was looking more appealing by the day. Not that it would be her first attempt. But then Shawn had come into her life. And he had given her the one thing she was most desperate for…hope. Hope of escape, hope of something more. For that alone, she was willing to pay any price. When all he asked for in return was her body and her love, it seemed a more than fair exchange. She didn't have a clue in hell what love was; but she didn't loathe and despise him like she did every other man she'd ever known, so she'd take that as a step in the right direction. The first time she and Shawn slept together was the first time she'd ever had sex with a man where she wasn't forced or paid. She'd somehow expected it would feel different. But it hadn't. She still felt dirty, used; and this time, she was using him right back. He was her way out.
She almost couldn't believe it when they made it down the back staircase and outside. She had been so sure that they'd be caught before they ever left the building. It struck her that this was her first breath of fresh air in eight years untainted by the presence of that monster. She took one look back at her own personal purgatory as she and Shawn made their way to his truck. The only thing that could make this moment more complete would be to see the place in flames.
But it was as the engine started and they drove away that the realization of freedom settled over her. She didn't feel joy. She was incapable of that emotion by now. She felt only a sort of grim satisfaction for finally having beaten the Phoenix in his sadistic little chess game. She didn't know where she would go from here. She didn't care. Life had ceased to hold any importance to her a long time ago. For the moment, it was enough simply to be away from him.
She didn't take notice of her surroundings until the truck pulled to a stop. She froze suddenly with fear, a knot forming in her belly. "Shawn, why did you bring me here? I can't go in there. You know I can't."
Shawn gave her shoulders a comforting squeeze. "It's all right, Sapphire. Nothing's going to happen to you. But we're going to make sure they give that son of a bitch everything he deserves. Don't worry about it. We'll go in; you'll give your statement; and then, they'll arrest him. That's what you want, isn't it? To see Stefano rot in jail for what he did to you?"
She shook her head violently. "You don't understand, Shawn. Stefano owns the police force. He owns the whole damn city. If we go in there, it's all over. He'll get us for sure."
"Sapphire, you're overreacting," Shawn argued in a patronizing, over-confident tone. "All your time with that man has made you think he had more power than he really does. He's just a man. He'll suffer the consequences for his actions. The police will make sure of it. Come on, baby. You trust me, don't you?" She reluctantly nodded. "Then, tell the police what he did to you, and I promise you'll never have to worry about him again as long as you live."
She didn't have a choice. Shawn was her only friend in the world. So she obediently walked with him to the station house. She knew it was an idiotic idea the moment they entered the building. Half the men there were on the Phoenix's payroll. But Shawn refused to see what she did. His head was too full of the glory that would be his for taking down Stefano DiMera.
Even as they were led away to take down their statements, Shawn was completely unaware of the net closing in around them. But she was. She had just learned a long time ago the futility of struggle. She should never have listened to Shawn in the first place. She had been foolish to believe that he was doing this solely for her. Everyone had an ulterior motive. She knew that. She swore then and there that she'd never trust anyone ever again. Trust was the enemy. Hope was for children. Love was the foulest word in the English language.
The officer taking her statement got up and left. He didn't say a word about letting her go, and she wasn't surprised when he locked the door from the outside. She could already see it all playing out in her mind. Any moment now, the Phoenix would come into the room, frowning like a heartbroken father, and say—
"How could you, my Sapphire?" His actual presence was even more intimidating than the one in her mind's eye. Immediately, her back went rigid. She couldn't let him see her fear. She took refuge in the only weapon she'd ever had. Her anger.
"Go to hell," she spat out, not even surprised herself at the lack of passion in her voice. The words didn't cut him at all. A monster that created hell on earth for innocent children couldn't even be frightened by the threat of eternal damnation. He was the Phoenix after all, able to resurrect himself from the ashes.
Stefano chuckled darkly, and there was death knell for her in the sound. "My little Sapphire." Underneath the affectionate words, a river of rage flowed. "Always so eloquent in your responses. I would think, after all this time, you could come up with something more original."
So she did. Using every filthy word she'd ever learned in a lifetime filled with them, she told him exactly what she thought of him. She was beyond caring of the consequences. Even as she saw him turn practically purple with anger, her only thought was that she might finally make him snap enough to kill her. Death held no fear for her. It was the only release she could imagine.
"Enough," the Phoenix commanded finally, the one word telling her it was settled. She raised her chin defiantly, unflinching in the face of his murderous evil. He approached her and grasped her face in his hand, his grip forceful enough that it made her wince despite herself. "I thought you had learned long ago, my dear, that there are always consequences for disobeying me. It seems you have forgotten. A reminder is in order." He straightened again and made a gesture towards an officer waiting outside the interrogation room.
A feeling of dread she had hitherto been without swept over her as she saw them bringing Shawn. Terror and pain were already visible in chocolate eyes. They were still beautifully untouched in the battered, bloodied face. Oh God, what had she done? This was all her fault. He didn't deserve this. "Shawn, I'm sorry, so sorry," she said quietly, as the officers drew him to a halt right in front of her.
He shook his head, as his eyes lovingly traced every line of her face. "No, Sapphire. I'm sorry. I should have listened to you. Forgive me."
The Phoenix's dark laughter broke into their moment. "I'd say you both made your share of mistakes. Sapphire, would you mind enlightening your foolish lover about where you first went wrong?"
She winced, knowing she was caught in yet another of Stefano's sick mind games. Any defiance she showed would be immediately punished. But not taken out on her. Stefano wouldn't risk damaging his property like that. Shawn would be the one to pay for her sins. "I forgot who I belong to," she mumbled, keeping anything that might be construed as rebellion out of her voice. "I forgot that I'm yours."
Stefano nodded his approval, before turning a malicious gaze on the handcuffed boy in front of him. "And what about you, Shawnie boy? When did you first go wrong?" She held her breath, hoping against hope that Shawn would give the docile answer the Phoenix wanted to hear.
But Shawn's jaw clenched and he didn't even try to bite back the venomous retort on his lips. "My first mistake? Not killing you, you bastard." He struggled unsuccessfully against the policemen holding him.
The Phoenix smiled then, a smile full of poison. "Yes, Shawn. A grievous mistake on your part. Luckily, I don't intend to make the same." In one swift motion, Stefano pulled out a gun from his waistband, cocked it, and aimed it at Shawn's head. "You see, Shawnie boy, the one thing you should have known is you don't cross a DiMera and live to tell about it."
Her face went white as she watched the scene unfold. He wasn't joking. This was no idle bluff. He was going to kill Shawn, the only decent man she'd ever met, a man whose only crime was to try and help her. "No!" she found herself screaming, placing herself between Shawn and the gun barrel. "Please, Stefano, you can't do this. Let him go. I've learned my lesson. I swear I have."
The same venomous smile still lingered on Stefano's lips. "An Oscar-worthy performance, my dear. You truly are a wonderful actress, Sapphire. You can even pretend on occasion that you have a heart; but we both know better, don't we, dear? You're stone cold, dead inside, the supreme creation I've been looking for all my life." He raised an eyebrow and stroked his beard, getting a predatory gleam in his eye. "In fact, let's try something new, shall we?"
With a grip like iron, he caught hold of her wrist and turned her body around into his, delighting in her cry of pain. He placed both her hands around the gun, with his on top of hers, controlling her every motion. His breath was warm and foul in her ear as she found herself looking down the gun barrel towards Shawn's petrified face.
"You see, Shawn?" the Phoenix taunted, relishing the cruel game. "She's mind. I can bend her to my will as easily as she can bend her luscious body." His fingers led hers to the trigger. "Pull it, Sapphire. Pull it now." His voice was hypnotizing and demanding, as it always had been when he wanted her to try something new and dreadful. There had always been dire consequences when she hadn't.
"No," she whispered, horrified. The gun shook in her trembling hands, as beads of sweat began to form on her forehead. She wouldn't do it. She refused to kill someone like Shawn. If she ever committed murder, it would be to rid the world of a loathsome piece of scum like the Phoenix.
"Pull it," he ordered. "Kill him now, Sapphire, or watch him be tortured to death before your eyes." When her hand still refused to do his dirty work, he signaled the men guarding Shawn. One of them immediately shattered his kneecap with his nightstick, the nauseating crack echoing in her ears. Shawn crumpled with a cry of pain, before the guards yanked him up by his hair, holding him in perfect range of the gun.
"Damn you," she gritted out, anger replacing her fear. "Damn you, you sadistic son of a bitch."
Stefano fed off her hatred for him. It was her hatred that kept him in control, though she didn't know this. She thought it strengthened her, but it only kept her in his power. He manipulated it, encouraged it, nurtured it. "Yes, Sapphire. Damn me," he urged her on. "But damn all men. I wasn't the first man to hurt you, was I? No. There were others before me." Images of her grandfather swam before her eyes. The words spoken about her father. Her mother dead in a pool of blood on the floor.
"And I'm not the only one who's used you, am I?" he continued in a coaching voice. He was leading her down the path he wanted her to go. It was so easy, so incredibly simple, to control her. He could feel the rigidity in her body. The gun no longer shook in her hands. "All men use you. They take what they want from you, without a thought for how it affects you. Even Shawn. Did you think he actually loved you, Sapphire? He doesn't. He only wanted the glory of bringing down a DiMera. Deep down, you already know that. Deep down, you know what you have to do. Think of every man who's ever hurt you, lied to you, used you, abused you. You can pay us all back, Sapphire. You hold the power in your hands—"
After that, there was only the roar of the gunshot and the taste of lead inside her mouth…
Brady listened in horror to the mumblings coming out of her troubled sleep. This was more than a nightmare. She was reliving some terrible past. And even the few muffled words he'd been able to make out had painted a hellish picture of a tormented life. She showed no signs of waking as she had with her previous nightmares. Brady contemplated waking her, if only to free her from such an ordeal.
Tentatively, he reached out a hand to stroke the hair back from her fevered forehead. Her only reaction was a soft sigh as she slowly relaxed into a deeper, truer, dreamless sleep. Brady watched in wonder. For the first time, she wasn't pulling away from him, wasn't recoiling in fear. She looked so young and angelic in her sleep, now that her nightmares had abated.
Afraid to wake her but unable to resist the urge to hold her, comfort her, Brady gently lay down on the bed beside his wife. To his surprise, she didn't stir and allowed him to wrap her securely in his arms. Content, Brady held her close to his heart and closed his eyes, willing her to accept the shelter and safety he offered her when she was sleeping, even if she wouldn't when she woke.
~~*~~
Connor Lockhart was not happy. His mom hadn't been feeling well because of the baby, so she'd sent him over to the neighbors' house to play, while Dad was on a job interview and she took a nap. The neighbors had two little girls, Ashley and Britney. Connor did not like girls. Especially the kind of girls who liked to play Barbie dolls and house all day long. They were most definitely that kind of girls.
When he'd finally convinced them to go to the park, he'd been thrilled. Of course, once they got there, they still weren't any fun. They wouldn't play tag or hide and seek or anything fun. They just rolled their eyes at him and went to play on the merry go round. Stupid girls. He was never getting married, even if he lived to be a hundred and five.
What else was a boy to do but go down to the river and start skipping rocks? But even that was destined not to bring him much enjoyment for long. Pretty soon, an old man came along and started yelling at him for scaring all the ducks away. Sometimes life just wasn't fair. Nobody seemed to even want him around anymore. Dad was always upset about everything since he'd lost his job. Mom only seemed to care about that stupid baby she was going to have. And Mimi was busy all the time with school and friends and stuff. Life sucked.
And now, here he was, walking through the park all alone, kicking a pine cone and feeling sorry for himself. He barely even noticed as the light began to fade so deep was his pile of self-pity. He kept walking along, not watching or caring where he was going and generally feeling angry with the world. Until he bumped into someone tall and solid and in a mood every bit as dark as his was.
"What is it with this town?" Jason muttered, as he helped the little boy back up to his feet. "Does nobody watch where they're going?" The boy looked up at him with solemn dark eyes and a serious expression. "Hey, Squirt. A little late to be out all by yourself, isn't it?" The child didn't answer, and Jason frowned. It was times like these he wished he had Brady and Belle's way with children. He hunkered down before the kid. "What's your name, buddy? Are you lost?"
The boy looked around him for the first time in hours. The park which he usually knew as well as his own backyard seemed suddenly dark and foreboding. His gaze returned to the sandy-haired stranger. He knew he wasn't usually supposed to talk to strangers, but wasn't there supposed to be some sort of exception to that rule when you were lost? Besides, he didn't really look so scary. "Connor," he muttered finally. "My name is Connor."
Jason let out a relieved breath. At least the kid could talk. "Nice to meet you, Connor. Are your parents around here somewhere?" Seeing the wary expression on the child's face, he added, "It's okay, Connor. I just want to make sure you get home safe. Do you live around here?"
Connor nodded, looking around him once more. "We live at the edge of the park. 182 Sullivan Drive. But I can't find it in the dark. Do you know the way?"
Jason stood up again, his expression bewildered as he tried to spot the roads bordering the park. "Sorry, kid. I'm pretty new here, and I don't know the streets all that well yet. I don't want to leave you all alone out here though, so what do you say we walk until we find it or find someone from whom we can ask directions?" Lacking any other appealing options, Connor nodded following the man's lead. Jason walked beside him in silence for a few minutes, feeling awkward and out of his depth. He didn't have a clue how to relate to this small personage. Relax, Masters, he silently chided himself. He's just a little boy. You were one yourself, you know.
He thought back on his childhood. He remembered carefree summer days playing baseball with Brady, Philip, and the gang. He remembered the tree fort that had been his and Brady's secret hideout, until the day Belle found it. He could still recall how furious they had been when they had come back from one of their adventures and found her there having a tea party with their G.I. Joes. That seemed a lifetime ago. He pictured splashing wars at the lake, snowball fights at the cabins, and pulling Belle's hair just to annoy her. He remembered the one major fight he'd had with Brady after Brady teased him about being in love with Belle when he was in the third grade. He remembered the picnic when they'd first discovered the meadow, their meadow…
Jason pulled himself out of his thoughts, unwilling to remember anymore. His gaze fell once more on the blonde boy by his side. Connor looked discomforted by his prolonged silence. Jason cleared his throat uncomfortably. "So are you looking forward to summer vacation?"
"Guess so," Connor mumbled, his eyes searching desperately for any familiar landmark. Everything looked sinister by the uneven light of the streetlamps. He was starting to question the wisdom of trusting a stranger.
Jason exhaled in frustration. What had possessed him to take responsibility for this kid? Oh well. It was done now. He could only hope that they found his home soon. "Are you into baseball or anything, Connor?" he asked, deciding to take one more stab at starting a conversation.
Connor shrugged. "It's okay. I like soccer better." The child's eyes lit up as he mentioned his favorite pastime. "My team is undefeated so far this year," he boasted proudly.
"Impressive," Jason complimented hastily, glad to finally have him talking. "What position do you play?" As Connor rambled on enthusiastically about everything relative to his sport of choice, Jason smiled. He couldn't help thinking the boy reminded him of someone. But who?
~~*~~
Mimi waved goodbye to Susan after being dropped off at her house. She was still smiling as she entered the front door, dropping her bag in the foyer. "I'm home!" she shouted to no one in particular. "We won!" She'd been playing her final softball game of the season. There was something nostalgic about it, knowing that it was the last game of her high school career as well.
"Mimi." Her mother's tense tone of voice, coupled with the worry lines etched deeply in her face immediately let Mimi know something was horribly wrong.
"What is it, Mom?" She was instantly at Maureen's side, supporting her and leading her back to the living room and her soft, squishy chair. "Is it the baby? Do you need a doctor? Where's Dad?"
Maureen shook her head vigorously. "It's not me, honey. I'm fine. It's Connor. He's missing. Your father's out looking for him now." She clung compulsively to her daughter's hands, frantic as only a mother could be.
Mimi felt all the air sucked forcibly out of her lungs. Connor, her sweet little brother, missing? It wasn't possible. "How…?" Her voice faltered, and she took a deep breath before starting again. "How long has he been gone? What happened, Mom? Start from the beginning." She willed herself to remain calm. Her mother was depending on her for once.
"I wasn't feeling well today," Maureen began, in a distant tone, as if it had happened years ago, and not merely this afternoon. "I needed to lie down, but I didn't think it was right to keep him cooped up in the house all day so I asked Kim if I could send him over to play with the girls. She said it would be fine, and I didn't think much more about it until a couple of hours ago when she called me. Apparently, she let the kids go to the park by themselves—"
"What!?" Mimi exclaimed angrily, cutting her mother off. "What kind of stupid, irresponsible moron lets three kids wander around the city by themselves?"
Maureen stroked her daughter's hair to calm her down. "Believe me, honey, I've already given her a piece of my mind. But that won't help us find Connor any sooner. The point is the girls came back a few hours ago. Without your brother. They said he wandered off, and they couldn't find him. Ron and your father are out looking for him right now. I would be too, but David thought it best I stay here in case Connor comes back on his own."
Mimi struggled to fight back the overpowering fear that assaulted her senses. This was the kind of thing nightmares were made of. Flashing through her mind was every single news story about missing children she'd ever heard. She knew enough to know that the more time that passed without sight of him the greater the chances that he'd been abducted or…No, she refused to think about that. She couldn't. She jumped up quickly, unable to sit still a moment longer. "Dad's right, Mom. You need to stay here, but I'm going to go look for him. I know most of his favorite spots. And I'll get Kevin and Su to help too. We'll find him, Mom. I promise."
Only pausing to give her mother a quick, comforting hug, Mimi went to the hall closet and grabbed a jacket and flashlight. She proceeded to the front door and flung it open only to come face to face with him. He looked every bit as stunned as she felt. Mimi barely had time to process it though before the small figure at his side grabbed all her attention. "Connor," she cried, kneeling down and hauling him into her arms, unsure whether to laugh or cry.
Jason took in the scene with confused astonishment. What kind of sick joke was fate playing on him now? The kid was Mimi Lockhart's little brother? He didn't appreciate this little twist. Everything in him told him the smartest thing he could do was turn and run as far away from this house and that girl as possible. The situation was made even easier on him by the appearance of an older woman in the hallway. Judging by the distinct resemblance to Mimi and the tears that formed in her eyes as she pulled both children to her, this was undoubtedly their mother. Both unwilling to interrupt the touching scene and feeling the need to escape from that girl and his unsettling feelings for her, Jason turned and headed back down the street.
Mimi heard his footsteps clatter on the sidewalk as he walked away, out of her life again. She wasn't going to let him get away that easily this time. She yanked out of her mother's embrace and ran out the door, ignoring Maureen's startled calls. She knew how crazed she must seem to any of her neighbors that might have been looking out their windows at that moment, but she didn't care. He'd been brought back into her life again by some mysterious force, and she wasn't going to let it be in vain.
Jason had already reached the curb when he heard someone running behind him. Slowly, he turned, only too aware of whom he'd find. And of course, there she was, breathless from her mad dash. Even as he instructed himself not to, he noticed how her cheeks were flushed from the effort, making her seem that much more alive and beautiful. The light of the moon reflected off the tears streaming down her cheeks and even more off the unshed pools of water in her emerald eyes. Why the hell did she have to be so damn enchanting? "What do you want?" he asked sharply, to shorten this encounter as much as possible.
"I want…I wanted too…" Mimi fumbled for the words, as her breath slowly came back to her. No words seemed adequate as she stared up at a face chiseled out of stone, eyes as hard as marble. Every last hint of the admiration she had seen there a moment ago was gone. All that remained was the iron stranger. Once again, she listened to an impulse instinct. Instead of rambling, instead of searching for perfect words that would never come, she moved closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you," she whispered, her breathy voice in his ear.
Jason, as often happened with Mimi Lockhart, found himself in a situation with which he had no idea how to deal. She had taken him completely by surprise yet again. Tonight, she was neither the rambling adolescent nor the playful child nor the forceful woman. Tonight, she was…hell, he didn't even know who she was. But he wanted to. He wanted to know everything about her, every facet of her character. And that was more frightening than anything else.
He should push her away. He was well aware that the most dangerous thing he could do was return her embrace. Yet somehow, without even consciously realizing what he was doing, his arms had snaked around her waist, pulling her tighter into his arms. She smelled like strawberries, and her skin felt like satin against his. He cradled her gently, as if she would shatter if he held her too tightly. This little piece of heaven in his arms.
Mimi closed her eyes, trying to file everything about this moment away to memory. The scent, the feel, the presence of him. She knew that any moment now those old defenses would come back up and he would pull away from her, shut her out again. She was becoming familiar with the routine by now. But at this instant, she was wrapped in his arms, her body molding into his. It felt so right. She felt so safe. Her hands lowered from their grip around his neck to rest on his solid chest. She could feel the steady beating of his heart beneath her touch; and she memorized the cadence, until her own heart was beating in time with his.
It was only then, when she looked up into his eyes with an expression of such mingled innocence and knowledge, that Jason recovered himself. What the hell was he doing? His arms dropped limply to his side as he took a step backwards from her. He cleared his throat self-consciously. "You're welcome, Miss Lockhart," he said formally, glad to see he had annoyed her. If she was angry with him, maybe she'd leave and save him the trouble of teaching his feet to obey his brain again. They were glued to the sidewalk.
Mimi exhaled in frustration. Every time she thought she was getting through to him the walls came back even higher than before. "It's Mimi, remember?" she returned testily, before forcing herself to calm down. "Anyway, thanks again for bringing Connor home." She frowned as a sudden thought occurred to her. "How did you know he was my brother?"
Jason shook his head, still furious with whatever cosmic entity kept throwing Mimi Lockhart in his path. "I didn't. I was walking through the park, when he ran into me." His mouth turned up in a wry smirk. "Must be a family trait or something."
To his surprise, Mimi's expression turned serious and thoughtful. She nodded solemnly. "There's something to that. There's a reason why we keep running into each other. I don't think it's sheer coincidence that you're the one who found my brother tonight. I think there's something much deeper going on here, something powerful drawing us together. You feel it too, don't you?"
It was hardly even a question, Jason thought as he stared into the bewitching eyes that radiated her conviction. The thing he was trying his hardest to deny she accepted with open arms. But he couldn't believe that. He refused to. Function suddenly seemed to return to his body, and he was able to take another step backward. He laughed off her words, but it sounded forced even to his own ears. "Look, Mimi, I'm glad I was there to help the kid. He's a good kid. But there's nothing going on between us. You're not much more than a kid yourself. So go on home to your nice, safe little family. Trust me, if you really knew anything about me, you'd be running away as fast as you possibly could."
Mimi shook her head vehemently, fighting back tears of rage and humiliation. "Everything you just said is pure crap, and you know it. You're pushing me away because you're hurting and afraid. I don't know what it is yet, but I will. I don't give up easily, so you could just make it easy on yourself and tell me now. What is it? What's that pain I see in your eyes? Tell me. Please. Maybe I can help."
Jason laughed again. The bitterness in the sound almost choked him. Mimi help him? What a joke. All she could do was cause him to compound his sins. He had made a vow, and she was the temptation to break it. But he wouldn't give in. He forced himself to remember Belle's blue eyes and gentle touch. Or he tried to. They were obscured by the emerald eyes shooting rays of pity out at him, by the fresh memory of holding Mimi Lockhart in his arms. That settled it. He had to get away from her. Now. "Goodbye, Mimi," he said coldly, brutal finality in his voice.
Mimi watched him walked away, too stung to try and stop him. She kept putting herself on the line for him, and he kept going out of his way to hurt her. Maybe Susan was right. Maybe she was indulging in a juvenile fantasy. Maybe Kevin was right. Maybe she was setting herself up for heartbreak. She sighed miserably as he turned the corner and was lost from sight.
It didn't matter if she told herself to listen to their lectures or not. She was too much in love to get over it now. Her heart was his to break as often as he chose. Her fate was out of her hands. It was being controlled by forces beyond her comprehension; and as long as God kept bringing him into her life, she would continue to love him. Completely. Unconditionally. "Goodnight, my love," she whispered to the darkness, breathing a quiet prayer for the tortured soul who was her destiny.