Deadly Expectations (29 page)

“What did you dream about?”
 
Paul asked.

“Our daughter.
 
She lived here with a young man.
 
They were expecting a baby … she was way bigger than I am.
 
She was beautiful Paul.
 
She looked like me with your dark hair and green eyes.
 
It was late spring and we walked down to the pond to the south … tall grass and wildflowers.
 
It smelled so good.
 
I was only there for a few hours, but it made her happy.”

Suddenly I felt the butterflies in my belly again.
 
Ray had been up getting a second round for himself and Paul and stopped when he noticed the look on my face.

“Anna … Are you okay?” he asked.

I pointed at my stomach.
 

Moving, I mouthed.

Paul came around and sat by me and put his hand on her.
 
We waited a minute.

“She stopped,” I was disappointed.
 
Paul stuck his nose behind my ear and kissed me.

“Moving?” Ray asked.

I nodded.
 
“We first felt it the night the men came.”

“That sounds about right.”

“Ray, did you need to check me out?
 
I’m going to lie down for a while before I hit the fridge again.”

He looked at his second bottle of beer.
 
“You’re off the hook … the doctor’s impaired.”

“Fine with me,” I punched his arm on the way by.
 
“I’ll be back down when I hear dinner.”

Paul’s room was cold.
 
I decided I would try and fix the heat so I went to one of the other rooms down the hall that we had moved some tools into, took a big flat-headed screwdriver.
 
I pulled the front off the old metal register.

The cause of the heat problem was obvious.
 
Someone had jammed a big wad of fabric down into the duct.
 
When I grabbed it something sharp bit into my palm through the cloth.
 
I pulled my hand back for a moment then carefully grasped it in a different place and pulled it out.
 
Hot air immediately started to pour into the room.
 
It was strange how little dust there was considering how ancient the ball of cloth looked.

I opened it up.
 
It was a long lacy shirt of some kind … covered in dark brown stains.
 
I paused in excitement when I saw what was wrapped in it.
 
Craving to test the weight of it in my hand and needing to run the other way at the same time.
 
Shining in the lamp light was the gold handled knife that had killed Catherine and her lover.
 
I was certain.
 
The delicate gold guard around the handle, the narrow double edged blade.
 
I held up in my shaking hand and looked at my palm.
 
Just a small dent from the point.
 
A small drop of blood on my skin.

This knife knew me.

I balanced it in my left hand then I laughed.
 
It was a good knife.
 
I stuffed the old shirt back in the duct and replaced the cover not wanting to give away that I’d found it.
 
The knife went into the bottom of my pack beside my dresser then I put the screwdriver in my drawer.
 
I wouldn’t have much time to pack and get to the bike later and it was coming with me.

I decided to strip the bed and put clean sheets on it before I lay down.
 
They had been on there a week so I pulled the blankets and quilt off and tossed them on the chair.
 
Then the pillow cases and the top sheet.
 
I stopped and looked at the bottom sheet; there was something there.

They were clusters of little purple flowers.
 
There were more in the shower.
 
I had gone to see her.
 
Not for long, but I had gone.
 
I opened one of my drawers and pushed the clothes aside to put the flowers there for now.
 
I didn’t know where else to hide them.

I took out a notepad and pen from a pocket on my pack and wrote Paul a letter.
 
I hid that in my drawer then I put what I would wear on the top of one drawer and what I would stuff in my bag on top of the other.
 
I made sure I knew where everything I would need from the bathroom was so I could get it quickly.

This would be our last night together for a while so I went to find Paul.
 
I wasn’t going to miss another minute of it.
 
He was asleep on the sofa so I got out the paperwork the Colonel had left for me and started on it.
 
I had it done by the time dinner was ready.

“Come on cowboy, time for grub,” I told Paul as I nudged his knee with mine.
 
“Let’s eat.”

He blinked up at me.
 
I took his hands and helped him up.

“How are your ribs feeling?” I asked.

“Just stiff now,” he yawned quietly.

“I hope you have some energy left for me,” I whispered to him.
 
“I already did all that paperwork for the Colonel so if you fall asleep I’ll have nothing to do.”

He yawned again.
 
“Maybe there’s still some coffee on.”

There wasn’t.
 
With the food in him he seemed to perk up.
 
As usual I helped cleanup after dinner and Paul got the first night watch out the door.
 
Ray and Paul were whispering about something when I came in to the common room to join them.
 
They had retrieved their weapons from behind the sofa and looked pretty tired.

“I won’t ask how little sleep you got the last four days,” I told them.
 
“You should know better than to try and stay up as long as I can sleep.”

Ray shrugged.

“The sky wouldn’t have fallen.
 
You both look wiped.”

Paul yawned.
 
I laughed quietly.

“You’re more than a little distracted tonight,” he said.
 
“And you haven’t talked about Alina all day.”

“I did … I offered her to your mother for Joshua,” I winked at him.

“That’s not what I meant,” he said.
 
“You’re not still thinking of going after her, are you?”

I was glad I didn’t have to add lying to Paul to running out on him.

“No … I think that man is sufficiently angry to come after me here.
 
I just don’t like risking everyone … I might not see him coming next time.”

“Anna,” Paul hesitated.
 
“I guess your clearance covers this.
 
We have standing orders to deal with Damian and his men.
 
However we can.
 
Here we have the home field advantage … it’s what we want.”

“Yeah,” I responded.
 
It wasn’t what I wanted but I didn’t want him coming for me anywhere.
 
My eyes closed as I tried to relax.
 
“Andre would love a few minutes with him alone if I get the chance.
 
He owes him.
 
Big,” I told them.
 
Paul sighed loudly.
 
I could hear the low growl in his throat.

“Just saying.
 
And he really likes your knife,” I told them.
 

“Anna,” Paul said.
 
“You’re not going Andre on us again, are you?”

“No,” I smiled at him.
 
“Just Anna in here is crowded enough.
 
I’m sorry.
 
I guess that big sleep left me a little out of sorts.”

“Okay, warn me please if he comes back?
 
Too much of him in you would be … concerning.”

“Sure Paul,” I told him.
 
“No Andre.”

“I think I’m going to turn in,” Ray said.
 
“Three hours of Camille with a beer chaser has tired me out.”

“Seconded,” Paul yawned.

I shook my head.
 
I had her on me most of their visit and I wasn’t worn out like they were.
 
Next watch change would be soon.
 
The change after that Paul would go out.
 
Then I would.

Paul’s room was colder than it was before dinner.
 
I huddled in to him to try and keep the bed itself from freezing me until it warmed up.

“We’re going to have heat in here when we’re done, right?” I asked him.
 
If I didn’t warm up soon my teeth would be chattering.

“Mm
hm
,” he said.
 
He was working his way down my neck with his lips.

“Some of that paperwork from the Colonel is for you.
 
I got the rest done.”

“Okay,” he mumbled.

Then he stopped.
 
“Are you stalling?”

“No,” I said and curled myself in closer.

He lifted his head up and looked at me in the lamp light.

“This doesn’t hurt you, does it?
 
Or her?” he asked, concerned.

“Not at all …
we can
go until you’re in danger of being crushed by me,” I smiled to him.

“I don’t notice the cold in here any more.
 
You’re like a little furnace.”

“Okay then Paul,” I laughed.
 
“Stop stalling.”

He laughed too.
 
We had missed each other a lot.

Chapter 27

The knock on Paul’s door came too soon.
 
I didn’t want to go out in the cold; I just wanted to wait to warm him up when he got back.
 
He dressed quietly and kissed me goodbye.

“I love you,” I told him.
 
“Forever.”

“I love you too Anna,” he said and kissed me again.

Then he was gone.

I quietly pulled on the clothes I had put aside and put on my gun.
 
The knife was still in my pack so I grabbed my things from the bathroom and stuffed them in.
 
Then my clothes.
 
I took my wallet, passport, phone and charger.
 
The front door closed.

The letter for Paul went on top of his dresser, along with the flowers I found in the bed.

Nobody was around on the dark main floor.
 
I didn’t expect anyone.
 
I watched him go quickly down the road until he was out of sight.
 
I tried not to cry, but tears came anyway.
 
I took the garage key from its hook above the desk and got out as fast as I could.
 
The wind started to nudge me from behind as soon as I got to the bottom of the stairs.
 
Steadily pushing me, stronger gusts hurrying me up.
 
Pressure was building in my spine already.
 
That was good.
 
I probably wouldn’t get away with this if I had to turn around at the warehouse and head back up for a second run.
 
The bike would have woken the whole camp by then.
 
I stumbled as the gusts pushed me harder.
 
The cold cut through my clothes and blew my hair in my face.