Chapter 7
Michael smiled as he walked in the door. "Miss me, baby?" he asked as he crossed the room towards her. Kate circled around the table evasively. "What? No tearful greeting? No hug and kiss for your dear husband?" He was trying to be charming, but Kate was used to his tricks now. He had never loved her, never even really liked her. She wasn't his type. Micheal was only interested in what she could get for him.
Looking at him closely Kate realized something that knotted her stomach even further. "You're drunk," she said flatly. And there was no doubt in her mind. Watching him closely she could see the deliberateness in his movements and hear how carefully he was forming his words. There was a sheen to his eyes that she was all too used to seeing.
Instantly he dropped his charming facade. "Nag, nag, nag. That's all you do, isnt' it?" he demanded petulantly, absently picking up a knife off the table and playing with it. "I've been gone for a month..."
"Two months," she interjected.
"Whatever," he waved the knife dismissively. "And I get no welcome home. No concern for my welfare. I've been faithfully serving my country, risking my life and my only reward is a shrewish wife. It's a wonder people ever marry."
Kate looked at him scornfully. "You left me here in the middle of nowhere with no money, barely any supplies and you expected me to do you work for you!" Kate could feel her cheeks heating up in anger. The last thing she wanted was to fight with Micheal, especially when he was drunk, but he just made her so mad. Was she the only one who saw him for what he really was?
Micheal smiled a genuine smile. "Right! Good job on that, by the way. Ambassador was very impressed. The pilots spoke very highly of you, too. Cute lot, weren't they?" he winked. "The ambassador wants to give me a medal for my contribution." He leaned in to whisper, as if imparting confidential information. "I was out giving the Japs the run around so that you could ride to the rescue."
Kate's eyebrows raised in disbelief. Only Micheal would take credit for everything and get away with it.
"One of the pilots was quite upset about leaving his friend behind. He tried to petition to go back and retrieve the body. Very emotional. They were sent out on the first plane." He told her all this in an off hand manner as he began to walk around the table to her.
"They made it home?" Kate asked, knowing that Danny would want to know and hoping that the news would snap him out of his silence. Trying not to be too obvious, she continued to move, keeping the table between them.
"Oh, sure," Micheal smiled slyly, letting her know that he knew what she was doing. "They landed at Pearl last week amid all kinds of fanfare and hoopla." He shrugged. "The whole thing seemed rather silly to me. Sixteen planes to avenge the damage caused by over 300? Waste of 16 perfectly good planes, I'd say."
"You would," was Kate's derrisive reply, her contempt for him obvious.
Micheal's eyes narrowd slightly. "Let me jump on the bandwagon. Yay, rah, rah. Go America," he cheered flatly. "They barely did any damage and lost all their planes, not to mention the number of flyers. You rescued, what? Four? What kind of man goes on a senseless suicide mission like that?"
"You wouldn't know heroism if it bit you on the ass," Kate snapped. "They risked their lives for their country. They put the fear of God and America into the Japanese and they gave America the will to fight. They aren't cowards like you, who use daddy to hide behind, never thinking beyond yourself."
Micheal's eyes were darkening in anger, but Kate couldn't help defending the raid. It was Michael's own fault that he was such a coward. He didn't even deserve to be in the same room with Danny or any of the Raiders.
Giving her a chilling smile, Micheal stopped walking and, too late, Kate realized her mistake. She tried not to panic while she looked him in the eyes. The worst thing she could do was to show fear. He loved that too much. "You know," he said thoughtfully, as if they were discussing the weather. "You saved only four men, but rumor around the village has it that one more might have survived." Kate refused to respond to his probe. "A poor, wounded pilot nursed to health by my dear, sweet, loving wife."
Quicker than she thought possible, Micheal turned and opened the bedroom door. Kate ran around the table and pushed past him into the room, trying to block him from entering further. Both Danny and Grace were asleep and she wanted to keep it that way. She didn't want Danny to witness what a catastrophe her marriage was and if Grace started crying it would only exacerbate Michael's temper further. He always hated it when she cried.
"My, my, my," he clicked his tongue in appreciation as he looked over Danny's long body. It was almost June and the nights were hot. Danny was laying sprawled out on the bed with only his boxer shorts on, the blankets bunched around his legs. It was obvious that he had recently lost weight, but he still had a good body. "What a good looking flyboy you have here, my dear. They sure do grow them good back home on the farm, don't they?" He smiled viciously. "Or is he not your type? I certainly wouldn't mind having a go at him. There's something of a boyish innocence about him - despite the bullet wounds."
Kate began to push him out the door. "You. Stay. Away. From. Him," she bit out through clenched teeth. Danny was the one thing in her life that wasn't stained by Micheal and his lewdness and malice. She didn't even want Micheal in the same country let alone the same room as Danny.
"What?" Micheal asked in mock innocence. "I was just making an observation."
"Whatever," Kate replied as she closed the door. "Just stay out and let them rest."
"Them?" Micheal asked, momentarily bewildered. Then light dawned. "Oh yes. My beloved daughter, Grace."
Kate pushed past him, her temper beginning to flare again. "I can't believe you forgot your own daughter."
He shrugged. "It's not important." Kate just stared at him icily so he continued on. "You know," he said, switching to his silky voice. "She's must be getting awfully big. Maybe we should try for another." He ran a hand up her arm, but Kate mangaged to pull away and put some distance between them.
"I don't think so."
Micheal began stalking her again, the mad gleam back in his eyes. "Oh come on. A boy. A little brother for Grace." He cocked his head to the side. "Or has the Flyboy taken care of that already?"
"Don't be ridiculous!" Kate tried to scoff, but she was cornered now and she didn't like it at all. He was drunker than she had thought if he was going to make a pass at her. "He's recovering from two bullet wounds and blood loss. Besides, I keep my wedding vows, no matter what kind of sick coward I foolishly got talked in to marrying. I..."
His fist came out of nowhere, slamming into her lip and causing her to fall backwards against the sink. A glass fell to the floor and shattered.
"You are my wife," he hissed, grabbing her painfully by the arm before she could recover. "You will show me some respect. And know this: I will have you whenever and wherever I wish."
"Over my dead body," Kate said defiantly.
Micheal grabbed her other arm and began to shake her. "That can be arranged," he said as her head hit the wall. He pulled her up so that they were nose to nose, the alcohol on his breath was strong. "What would happen to dear, little Gracie then? Huh? Huh?" He shook her at each question. The last one causing Kate to see stars behind her closed eyelids.
"You touch her and I will kill you," Kate menanced, pulling away from his grasp.
"Oh yeah," Micheal responded automatically, but for once there was some fear in his eyes. He knew that she meant what she said.
Getting her equillibrium back, Kate looked him up and down with a derrisive sneer on her face. "You don't want me. You just want to terrorize and hurt me so you can get turned on. Then you'll go out and buy some poor boy and have your sick fun. You couldn't impregnate a woman. You're not man enough. You're just a sick and twisted...." Kate knew that she had gone to far, but she couldn't help herself. All of the rage and frustration of four years of marriage to this pitiful excuse for a man came pouring out.
This time she saw the punch coming but was unable to duck fast enough. It caught her on the cheekbone, spinning her around and almost knocking her down. She was not going to be a pretty sight come morning.
Slowly she turned to face him, all her loathing for him visible on her face. "Did that make you feel better," she taunted. "Did it make you feel more like a man? Can't control your own life so you use and abuse your wife and little boys, is that it? I will never let you touch me again. You will never get a son from me and that means you'll never get my money. You'll..."
This time he grabbed her around the throat, choking off her words. "What good are you anyways?" he hissed at her, squeezing so that she could no longer breath. "You only produce scrawny girls and dead babies!" Kate tried to pull his hands off of her, but he was too strong. She was beginning to black out when she heard Danny's voice.
"Let go of her now," he said quietly from behind Micheal. Kate was amazed when she was immediately released. Her vision swam for a moment and then she looked up to see Danny holding a knife to Micheal's throat. If it had possible, she would have smiled in triumph at the terrified look in his eyes, but she couldn't because she was shaking with her own fear and nerves. He would have strangled her to death if Danny hadn't shown up, she had no doubt whatsoever.
"Who are you? Why are you here?" Danny asked.
Micheal was literally beginning to sweat. "To see my wife and child," he whispered. His answer didn't please Danny because Micheal's eyes suddenly bulged as the knife pressed harder into his throat. "The embassy is shutting down," he practically squeaked. "Friday. Everyone's leaving. The Chinese are planning to round up all foreigners and put them into camps."
Danny took the knife away, and, grabbing Micheal by the neck, he propelled him out the door, giving him a hard shove for good measure.
"Thanks for the information. Now get out of here before I kill you." Though Danny sounded cool and calm, there was a thread of steel in his voice. Just as Kate was sure that Micheal would have strangled her, she knew that Danny wouldn't hesitate to kill Micheal if decided to stick around. Micheal took Danny for his word and was soon running down the path to the main road.
Michael smiled as he walked in the door. "Miss me, baby?" he asked as he crossed the room towards her. Kate circled around the table evasively. "What? No tearful greeting? No hug and kiss for your dear husband?" He was trying to be charming, but Kate was used to his tricks now. He had never loved her, never even really liked her. She wasn't his type. Micheal was only interested in what she could get for him.
Looking at him closely Kate realized something that knotted her stomach even further. "You're drunk," she said flatly. And there was no doubt in her mind. Watching him closely she could see the deliberateness in his movements and hear how carefully he was forming his words. There was a sheen to his eyes that she was all too used to seeing.
Instantly he dropped his charming facade. "Nag, nag, nag. That's all you do, isnt' it?" he demanded petulantly, absently picking up a knife off the table and playing with it. "I've been gone for a month..."
"Two months," she interjected.
"Whatever," he waved the knife dismissively. "And I get no welcome home. No concern for my welfare. I've been faithfully serving my country, risking my life and my only reward is a shrewish wife. It's a wonder people ever marry."
Kate looked at him scornfully. "You left me here in the middle of nowhere with no money, barely any supplies and you expected me to do you work for you!" Kate could feel her cheeks heating up in anger. The last thing she wanted was to fight with Micheal, especially when he was drunk, but he just made her so mad. Was she the only one who saw him for what he really was?
Micheal smiled a genuine smile. "Right! Good job on that, by the way. Ambassador was very impressed. The pilots spoke very highly of you, too. Cute lot, weren't they?" he winked. "The ambassador wants to give me a medal for my contribution." He leaned in to whisper, as if imparting confidential information. "I was out giving the Japs the run around so that you could ride to the rescue."
Kate's eyebrows raised in disbelief. Only Micheal would take credit for everything and get away with it.
"One of the pilots was quite upset about leaving his friend behind. He tried to petition to go back and retrieve the body. Very emotional. They were sent out on the first plane." He told her all this in an off hand manner as he began to walk around the table to her.
"They made it home?" Kate asked, knowing that Danny would want to know and hoping that the news would snap him out of his silence. Trying not to be too obvious, she continued to move, keeping the table between them.
"Oh, sure," Micheal smiled slyly, letting her know that he knew what she was doing. "They landed at Pearl last week amid all kinds of fanfare and hoopla." He shrugged. "The whole thing seemed rather silly to me. Sixteen planes to avenge the damage caused by over 300? Waste of 16 perfectly good planes, I'd say."
"You would," was Kate's derrisive reply, her contempt for him obvious.
Micheal's eyes narrowd slightly. "Let me jump on the bandwagon. Yay, rah, rah. Go America," he cheered flatly. "They barely did any damage and lost all their planes, not to mention the number of flyers. You rescued, what? Four? What kind of man goes on a senseless suicide mission like that?"
"You wouldn't know heroism if it bit you on the ass," Kate snapped. "They risked their lives for their country. They put the fear of God and America into the Japanese and they gave America the will to fight. They aren't cowards like you, who use daddy to hide behind, never thinking beyond yourself."
Micheal's eyes were darkening in anger, but Kate couldn't help defending the raid. It was Michael's own fault that he was such a coward. He didn't even deserve to be in the same room with Danny or any of the Raiders.
Giving her a chilling smile, Micheal stopped walking and, too late, Kate realized her mistake. She tried not to panic while she looked him in the eyes. The worst thing she could do was to show fear. He loved that too much. "You know," he said thoughtfully, as if they were discussing the weather. "You saved only four men, but rumor around the village has it that one more might have survived." Kate refused to respond to his probe. "A poor, wounded pilot nursed to health by my dear, sweet, loving wife."
Quicker than she thought possible, Micheal turned and opened the bedroom door. Kate ran around the table and pushed past him into the room, trying to block him from entering further. Both Danny and Grace were asleep and she wanted to keep it that way. She didn't want Danny to witness what a catastrophe her marriage was and if Grace started crying it would only exacerbate Michael's temper further. He always hated it when she cried.
"My, my, my," he clicked his tongue in appreciation as he looked over Danny's long body. It was almost June and the nights were hot. Danny was laying sprawled out on the bed with only his boxer shorts on, the blankets bunched around his legs. It was obvious that he had recently lost weight, but he still had a good body. "What a good looking flyboy you have here, my dear. They sure do grow them good back home on the farm, don't they?" He smiled viciously. "Or is he not your type? I certainly wouldn't mind having a go at him. There's something of a boyish innocence about him - despite the bullet wounds."
Kate began to push him out the door. "You. Stay. Away. From. Him," she bit out through clenched teeth. Danny was the one thing in her life that wasn't stained by Micheal and his lewdness and malice. She didn't even want Micheal in the same country let alone the same room as Danny.
"What?" Micheal asked in mock innocence. "I was just making an observation."
"Whatever," Kate replied as she closed the door. "Just stay out and let them rest."
"Them?" Micheal asked, momentarily bewildered. Then light dawned. "Oh yes. My beloved daughter, Grace."
Kate pushed past him, her temper beginning to flare again. "I can't believe you forgot your own daughter."
He shrugged. "It's not important." Kate just stared at him icily so he continued on. "You know," he said, switching to his silky voice. "She's must be getting awfully big. Maybe we should try for another." He ran a hand up her arm, but Kate mangaged to pull away and put some distance between them.
"I don't think so."
Micheal began stalking her again, the mad gleam back in his eyes. "Oh come on. A boy. A little brother for Grace." He cocked his head to the side. "Or has the Flyboy taken care of that already?"
"Don't be ridiculous!" Kate tried to scoff, but she was cornered now and she didn't like it at all. He was drunker than she had thought if he was going to make a pass at her. "He's recovering from two bullet wounds and blood loss. Besides, I keep my wedding vows, no matter what kind of sick coward I foolishly got talked in to marrying. I..."
His fist came out of nowhere, slamming into her lip and causing her to fall backwards against the sink. A glass fell to the floor and shattered.
"You are my wife," he hissed, grabbing her painfully by the arm before she could recover. "You will show me some respect. And know this: I will have you whenever and wherever I wish."
"Over my dead body," Kate said defiantly.
Micheal grabbed her other arm and began to shake her. "That can be arranged," he said as her head hit the wall. He pulled her up so that they were nose to nose, the alcohol on his breath was strong. "What would happen to dear, little Gracie then? Huh? Huh?" He shook her at each question. The last one causing Kate to see stars behind her closed eyelids.
"You touch her and I will kill you," Kate menanced, pulling away from his grasp.
"Oh yeah," Micheal responded automatically, but for once there was some fear in his eyes. He knew that she meant what she said.
Getting her equillibrium back, Kate looked him up and down with a derrisive sneer on her face. "You don't want me. You just want to terrorize and hurt me so you can get turned on. Then you'll go out and buy some poor boy and have your sick fun. You couldn't impregnate a woman. You're not man enough. You're just a sick and twisted...." Kate knew that she had gone to far, but she couldn't help herself. All of the rage and frustration of four years of marriage to this pitiful excuse for a man came pouring out.
This time she saw the punch coming but was unable to duck fast enough. It caught her on the cheekbone, spinning her around and almost knocking her down. She was not going to be a pretty sight come morning.
Slowly she turned to face him, all her loathing for him visible on her face. "Did that make you feel better," she taunted. "Did it make you feel more like a man? Can't control your own life so you use and abuse your wife and little boys, is that it? I will never let you touch me again. You will never get a son from me and that means you'll never get my money. You'll..."
This time he grabbed her around the throat, choking off her words. "What good are you anyways?" he hissed at her, squeezing so that she could no longer breath. "You only produce scrawny girls and dead babies!" Kate tried to pull his hands off of her, but he was too strong. She was beginning to black out when she heard Danny's voice.
"Let go of her now," he said quietly from behind Micheal. Kate was amazed when she was immediately released. Her vision swam for a moment and then she looked up to see Danny holding a knife to Micheal's throat. If it had possible, she would have smiled in triumph at the terrified look in his eyes, but she couldn't because she was shaking with her own fear and nerves. He would have strangled her to death if Danny hadn't shown up, she had no doubt whatsoever.
"Who are you? Why are you here?" Danny asked.
Micheal was literally beginning to sweat. "To see my wife and child," he whispered. His answer didn't please Danny because Micheal's eyes suddenly bulged as the knife pressed harder into his throat. "The embassy is shutting down," he practically squeaked. "Friday. Everyone's leaving. The Chinese are planning to round up all foreigners and put them into camps."
Danny took the knife away, and, grabbing Micheal by the neck, he propelled him out the door, giving him a hard shove for good measure.
"Thanks for the information. Now get out of here before I kill you." Though Danny sounded cool and calm, there was a thread of steel in his voice. Just as Kate was sure that Micheal would have strangled her, she knew that Danny wouldn't hesitate to kill Micheal if decided to stick around. Micheal took Danny for his word and was soon running down the path to the main road.