Chapter 38

Paris, France

Emergency Room, Marie Curie Hospital

-

"How is she?" Sean asked Anna, as she stepped out of Sandrine's curtain-enclosed cubicle.

"She'll be fine. They gave her something for the pain and it's made her groggy," Anna said grimly, her own face weary with exhaustion. "Seven stitches. Concussion."

Sean frowned. "Is that right?"

Anna raised her eyebrows at the tone of his voice. "What do you mean 'is that right'?"

"There's something fishy here," he mumbled, pacing across the empty waiting room, his polo shirt loosened at the collar. "It's weird, Anna."

Anna sat down on one of the worn, leather-draped chairs. The entire room was an unflattering throwback to the sixties. "What are you getting at?"

Sean stopped pacing long enough to put his hands on his hips and direct his gaze towards her. "We were gone from that room what…a minute maybe? And in that minute Jan gets out of his handcuffs and overpowers her, without us so much as hearing a sound even though we're right next door? Tell me that doesn't seem odd?"

Anna sunk her head into her palms. "Sandrine told us what happened. That she undid the cuffs…"

"Which begs the question, just what kind of a trained agent would do such an unbelievably stupid thing?!" Sean interrupted.

Anna ignored him, finishing what she started to explain; "…because Jan tricked her into believing he was seriously hurt."

"Right. You believe that?"

"Why in the world would she lie, Sean?" Anna shot back, questioning his suspicions. She knew that he still harboured his initial mistrust of Sandrine Mutanga. Yet, at the same time, it was Sean who had checked Sandrine's credentials many times over and who had spoken with her boss, Clive Sampson. Ultimately it was Sean who had decided she could be trusted enough to join their team. Why then would he now suspect she had something to do with Jan's escape?

It made no sense and Anna's every instinct told her that Sandrine's heart was in the right place. That she was on their side. "Have you had a look at her, Sean?" Anna asked him. "Her head looks like it was hit by a bowling ball. She's in a lot of pain."

"Head injuries are notorious for looking worse than they are," Sean pointed out.

"I can't believe you're hung up on this when we have so much more to worry about," she said, pausing long enough to meet his gaze. "Do you think Faison knows already?"

"No…not necessarily."

"Why wouldn't Jan have told him the truth about Alex as soon as he had the chance?" Anna challenged him tiredly. "He's obviously proven his loyalty to his boss."

If Jan did tell Faison, it meant that Alex had run out of time.

Her sister had run out of time and still they hadn't found her. The thought of what might happen next terrified Anna and she had to force herself to push it from her mind. If she didn't, she was afraid the panic would crush her like a physical blow, rendering her immobile.

"We have to go to Moscow," Sean told her. "If we can get the help of the local authorities for some organized crime connections, we might be able to track him down."

It was a Catch-22, Anna realized. Getting the help of local authorities meant coming clean about what had happened. About the kidnapping and about the switch of identities. It also meant admitting that they had purposely avoided law enforcement until now and it could cost each of them their careers.

It was why they didn't issue an all-points bulletin to try and keep Jan from fleeing the country. Because it meant they would have to own up to keeping him at the Auberge against his will. Then they'd have to dig into Jan's past transactions to create a record of criminal intent. All of it would take time and time was one commodity they didn't have.

"If Jan wants out of France, he'll get out," Sean had convinced Anna earlier. "He has enough connections to give him a false identity within hours, regardless of whether or not there's a warrant for his arrest out there and keeping him out of Russia doesn't help Alex. If Jan wants to talk, all it takes is one phone call." Sean stopped pacing long enough to stare out the window of the waiting room. "Dan is telling Dimitri about what happened as we speak. If Marick can get his jet in from Hungary, we could be on our way to Russia tonight."

'Dimitri,' Anna thought with a shudder. The events of the last two hours had almost made her forget her sister's husband. 'How the hell is he going to react when he finds out we handed Alex a death sentence by letting Jan Holstrom escape?'

As though summoned, Dan O'Toole walked into the waiting room just as Sean spoke his name, looking as tense as they'd ever seen him.

"The Marick jet is on its way to Paris. It should land in less than two hours," he announced.

Anna jumped to her feet with lightning speed. "How did Dimitri take the news?"

A sombre look draped his face. "How do you think? After all this time, instead of telling him we made progress we tell him we made a mistake that could cost…" He glanced at Anna first, then at Sean, stopping himself in mid-sentence. "That could cost us… a lot. But," he added icily. "Before I take one more step with you…I want to know exactly what happened at the Auberge. How the hell did all three of you just so happen to let him get away while I was out getting pastries?"

Alexei Estate, North of Moscow, Russia

-

She was in a flower garden holding a rabbit in the palm of her hand.

It whimpered in pain.

"It's alright," she whispered to the injured animal, petting its soft fur. "I can help you."

One of its hind legs was crushed and she could only imagine the pain the animal was in.

She was kneeling on the ground barely able to hold on to the squirming rabbit. One hand held it fast while the other ran over the damaged leg, feeling for the place…or places where the bone had broken. She'd done this before. Not with a rabbit, but with other animals. It was different, yet the same. In the end, tissue was tissue and bones were bones.

"Hold still," she whispered to the rabbit. "I know it hurts, but I need you to hold still if you want me to make you better."

She thought of the materials she would use to set the leg. String and wood splints. Rubber bands and maybe a cotton kerchief to help fasten it.

"Sasha! What are you doing?"

Alex jumped, nearly dropping the animal. "It's hurt, Mum. I'm fixing its leg."

Her mother's face was stern. Exasperated. "Let it go."

"I can't," she protested. "If I let it go, a fox will catch it. It's weak and hurt. We have to keep it safe in the cottage while I set its leg."

Her mother pulled the whimpering bunny from her hands so quickly that Alex barely noticed the animal's fur slipping through her fingers. Her mother had a way of doing that, of surprising her with her speed.

The animal squealed and writhed, terrified in her mother's hands.

"If I let you fix it, I think it's only fair that you do something in return for me, Sasha, don't you think?"

There was something odd in her mother's voice and it frightened Alex. She knew her mother only wanted what was best for her, but it didn't make Alex fear her any less.

"What do you want me to do?" she asked, afraid of the answer.

"I want you to promise me that's the last animal you're going to fix up."

"Mum, I can't…" Alex started to protest. She had a way of making them better. Her father said it himself. He said it was something special. A gift.

"You're growing up, Sasha, and you are not going to waste any more time playing doctor with these useless animals," her mother said quietly, her lips a thin, hard line.

"I have to Mum, Dad said not everyone can what I do…"

The slap came from nowhere, stinging her cheek with a searing, white-hot pain. Alex cried out.

"I have big plans for you, Sasha," her mother said calmly, as though she hadn't just struck her. "I'm not going to let you throw them away."

Alex didn't know how to answer. Or what the right answer might be.

"Do you promise me to stop wasting your time fixing up rodents?"

"Yes..." Alex nodded wildly. Anything to free the rabbit. "I promise…I promise."

Her mother held the bunny by the neck. "Since you're so smart, I assume you know what will happen to this bunny if I tighten my grip?"

Alex jumped up. "Don't, Mum…please! Please you'll break its neck! Please, Mum…don't!" Her voice was hysterical now.

Her mother tightened her grip on the rabbit's neck and Alex watched the wounded animal struggling to breathe.

"Please Mum!" Tears fell uncontrollably down her face.

"Promise me, this is the last animal?" her mother repeated slowly.

"I promise! I swear! I promise!"

Her mother dropped the rabbit to the ground, and at the same time Alex fell to her knees trying to break its fall. It scampered onto her lap, whimpering louder than it did before.

Alex felt her mother's lips on her head, kissing her.

"I love you, Sasha. You know that everything I do is for you, and I need you to trust me that I know what's best for you."

Alex agreed, unable to utter a single, coherent word.

Her mother took off in silence and Alex was left alone in the enormous yard, burying her face in the rabbit's fur.

"I'm sorry," she whispered into its drooping ears. "I'm sorry I let her hurt you. I'm so sorry…I'm sorry…"

-

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry…"

Cesar Faison watched her. He had watched her all night. He sat with her until she fell asleep, and, although she was unaware of it, he stayed at her bedside long after.

She was a restless sleeper.

She tossed and turned and murmured in her sleep, her eyebrows etched in concentration even when her eyes were shut tight.

"I'm sorry…" she repeated the words over and over, her voice full of regret.

When Faison couldn't stand it any longer, he reached for her.

"Anna," he said gently. "Anna, wake up. It's just a dream."

"No…I can't stop…I have to help them. I have to…it's a gift."

Faison held on to her arms, to stop them from thrashing around. "Anna! Wake up!"

She gasped and jolted awake. She sat upright and only then did Faison notice the tiny pearls of perspiration on her forehead. Her eyes were wide open now.

"Anna, you're safe," he said gently, rubbing her back with one of his hands. "It was just a dream."

She collapsed back onto the pillow. "A dream…"

"Yes. A nightmare. But you're fine. Safe."

She turned her back to him, pulling the blanket up to her chin. "Leave me alone please."

Faison shuddered at the thought of her terror. "Anna, darling, I won't leave you like this. You're upset."

"I'm fine…"

"You're not."

"I am."

She wouldn't face him and Faison shook his head in frustration, climbing into the bed to sit next to her.

"Let me protect you, Anna," he said softly. "I know you're strong but sometimes we all need someone else's strength. Even you."

He stroked her hair, noticing that she was shaking.

Faison lay down on the bed, wrapping himself around her, as if the gesture could transfer the warmth of his body onto hers.

"It's alright, Anna," he whispered, kissing the back of her head, as his own head sank down on her pillow. "I'm here and I'll keep you safe."

She still refused to meet his gaze and judging from the occasional sobs he heard, she was crying.

He held her tighter, surprised that she made no move to fight him off.

Faison was fully clothed, and a blanket that covered her served as a further barrier between them. Yet, even so, the sudden intimacy between them that couldn't have been greater if were they lovers, lying naked beneath the covers.

Faison closed his eyes, marvelling at the knowledge that he finally held the woman he loved in his arms.

'She needs me,' he thought with contentment. 'Anna finally accepts that she needs me. Soon she will accept that she loves me. Soon.'

Marie Curie Hospital, Paris, France

-

"What the hell happened at the Auberge?" Dan O'Toole demanded, his normally unflappable calm replaced by the frustration of someone purposely left in the dark.

"Sandrine went to check on him and he attacked her," Sean spat out. "I explained that to you."

"Right," O'Toole replied. "That's what you told me. Now I'd like the truth."

Anna looked at him wearily, before turning back to Sean. "He has a right to know everything."

"After everything I've risked, I can't believe I still have to fight for that right," O'Toole said, his face flushing with anger as he paced across the room.

Sean glared at Anna. "We told you everything."

"You didn't tell him why Sandrine was alone with Jan Holstrom," Anna said softly. While the two men stood across from each other, elbows folded, she remained seated on the worn, waiting room chair. "You didn't tell him that I went in to see Jan before Sandrine did."

Anna caught a glimpse of Sean cringing, before seeing the disbelief in Dan O'Toole's eyes.

"You did what?"

"I had to try and make him talk…"

"You went in there after we mutually decided you shouldn't go near him?"

"I had to try...for Alex," Anna tried to explain, knowing it wasn't possible. Knowing he wouldn't understand.

More than the disbelief it was the disappointment in his face that stung her.

"Was it worth it, Anna?"

Sean rolled his eyes. "Of course if it was your sister, you'd never have considered doing what Anna did, right? No, not you."

"Sure, I might have considered it," O'Toole shot back. "That doesn't mean I would have done it!" He angrily raised an arm into the air. "Damn it, Anna! What the hell got into you?"

Sean took a step towards O'Toole. "Let me point out, that it wasn't Anna who let that bastard escape!"

"She might as well have!"

"That's enough!" Sean yelled back, only to be told by a passing nurse to keep it down.

"Don't you dare patronize me after everything I've done!" O'Toole shot back. "You asked me to step outside the bounds of the law many times over since I got involved in this! I've risked my career and my reputation to help find Alexandra Marick. The last thing I need is to be told what to think from the people I'm trying to help."

"You make it sound so damn selfless," Sean said cynically. "So altruistic. You're forgetting that it's our fault that Alex is gone. We're the ones who screwed up that night at the Pont D'Arcole! Cesar Faison got away with Alex because we were careless!"

Anna sighed, observing them both.

Sean had a habit of taking her side. She loved him for it but at the same time she knew she it was a biased loyalty. One she didn't always merit.

'Like today,' she thought, hating the look of disappointment in Dan O'Toole's face.

"Stop it," she said angrily, getting up to stand between them. "Please stop it. Both of you!"

"If we're going to play the blame game," Sean told her. "We might as well point the finger in the right direction."

"He's right…I shouldn't have been in that room with Jan."

"No, you shouldn't have," Dan agreed with her.

"But," Anna turned to face him. "What if it were your sister? What if you knew that man knew her whereabouts and wasn't telling. Would you stand back and do nothing?"

Dan said nothing.

"If you don't agree with my methods, then I don't want you to feel obligated to help us, Dan," she said softly.

"Anna, that's not what this is about…" he tried.

"You've been more than a friend and colleague to me. I can't imagine anyone else doing what you've done. If you can't go any further I want you to know…that I understand."

It was the truth, Anna thought. Daniel O'Toole owed her nothing. Her mind drifted back to the day Leah was born, to the hours Dan had spent waiting with Robin until her daughter came into the world. She couldn't have asked for a kinder friend and colleague.

"Anna might understand, but I don't," Sean cut in.

Dan ignored him, facing Anna. "I'm not going to back out."

"I'm telling you that I would understand if you did."

"I wouldn't," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "This is probably not the time to say this... but I care for you, Anna. More than I have a right to. But you made a mistake when you stepped into that room with Jan Holstrom. Even worse, on top of it all, you two tried to keep it from me."

"We were wrong," Anna agreed. "I'm sorry."

Dan turned his gaze back to Sean, removing his wire-rimmed glasses to rub his tired eyes. "You were. But that doesn't mean I'm going to give up."

Anna reached up to put an arm around him. "Thank you."

He smiled a lop-sided smile. "Thank me when we've found your sister." Readjusting his glasses again, he then headed for the door. "Can we meet at the Auberge in an hour? I told Dimitri to meet us there before we leave for Charles de Gaulle."

"We'll see you there," Sean told him.

He waited until the Irishman left the room before turning back to Anna, stifling back a yawn. "Well, that was interesting."

"He's a good guy," Anna replied, knowing she didn't have the energy to touch on the subject of O'Toole's feelings for her. "And he's right, after all he's done, we can't keep him in the dark."

"If you say so," Sean sighed. "I should head back to my hotel to pack some essentials and give Tiffany a call before we head to Moscow."

"I should see Robin and David."

Sean glanced at his watch. "I'll see you at the Auberge then."

"What about Sandrine?"

"I'm not sure we should be telling her our next move…"

Anna furrowed her brows. "You don't seriously think she had something to do with Jan gaining his freedom?"

"I hope not."

"I'm going to check on her."

Sean moved towards the door. "You do that, sweetheart. Just make sure you don't tell her anything."

Alexei Estate, North of Moscow, Russia

-

Faison kept his arms wrapped around her until she finally fell back asleep.

It took longer than he thought it would. Although she refused to turn around and face him, he could hear her occasional efforts to stop from crying, until he finally felt her breathing deepen. Until her body relaxed against his and she fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

He kissed the back of her head before pulling out his arm from underneath her. It felt limp and useless and only when blood began circulating through its veins again, did he feel a biting, prickly sensation running all along it.

He would stay here with her tonight, he decided. In case she had another dream.

The nightmares worried him. They were worse and more debilitating than Anna had let on. He wondered what triggered them, and why the hell David Hayward never insisted she saw a professional to help her deal with them.

'Because you're a useless, spineless coward,' he concluded of the cardiologist.

He started moving his fingers, biting his teeth at the stinging pain, just as a knock pounded on the door of the bedroom.

He saw Anna stir in her sleep. Faison cursed silently, thinking that if the noise woke her, he'd have the head of whoever was on the other side of the door.

The person knocked a second time and Faison jumped to answer it.

"What the hell do you think…" he cursed as he tore open the door only to find Olga standing on the other side.

"Sir," she said with a panicked voice. "I'm so sorry to bother you and Ms. Devane."

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" he hissed.

"I know," she stuttered. "I'm so sorry…but there's a phone call for you."

Faison stepped out into the corridor, shutting the door behind him. He was livid. "It's three in the morning! Take a damn message!"

Olga winced at the outburst. "He…he said I had to wake you. That it couldn't…it couldn't wait."

"Who?" Faison demanded, wondering who had the nerve to summon him to a phone call at three in the morning.

"Jan Holstrom."