Some Things Are Better Left Unsaid
Rated PG-13 for language and some violence.
Disclaimer ~ I don't own 'em.
Summery ~ Evelyn is suffering from postpartum depression while an old flame from Rick's past returns to haunt the present.
Thank you to everyone who read (and especially those who reviewed!!) I've got a BIG one in the works (don't worry, Buff, I'm still working on the Normal Life series… I'm just a little stuck at the moment… gotta make you hate Annie more!! Ha!! :) ) Anyhoo, here's the final chapter! Enjoy!
Ch 7
"Oh, dear. How is Evy doing?"
"She's finally asleep." Evelyn's eyes opened slowly, glancing about the room as if to remind herself last night was all too real. She listened to the two voices floating in softly from the foyer to her somewhat upright position in the chair in the parlor.
"Do you know who might have done such a horrid thing?" Evelyn gradually recognized the voice of Mrs. Bentley. News obviously traveled fast.
"Yeah, I do," Rick replied.
"Well, if there is anything you need...anything at all, please don't hesitate to give us a ring, you hear?"
"Of course, Mrs. Bentley. Thank you." She heard the front door close, the heavy footfalls making their way toward the parlor. "Hey," he said, kneeling down beside Evelyn's chair. "How'd you sleep?"
"About as well as you look," she replied with a weak smile. "Did you sleep at all?" Rick shook his head silently.
"I've been waiting for word from our favorite person." Rick shook his head with an exasperated sigh. "Marguerite's gone too far. There's a fine line between love and obsession, and she's gone leaps and bounds beyond any measurement of either. She wouldn't have taken Alex for the sake of having a child. She wants me. If I know her, she'll use him as bait." Both nearly leapt out of their skins as the phone rang loudly though the silent, childless house. Evelyn looked to her husband, her breath catching in her throat. With little thought, Rick leapt to his feet, reaching the phone in a few easy strides.
"Hello? ... Oh, no Jonathan, we haven't heard anything yet." Evelyn's shoulders dropped as she heard her brother's name. "Yeah, I'll let you know. Yeah, all right. Yeah ... yeah, bye." Rick set the receiver down, taking a deep breath as his heart slowed in his chest. The phone rang again, Rick diving to answer it. "Hello? ... Jonathan, you realize ... No, you don't have to come over … Yes, I will let you know the minute we hear something, all right? Now get off the line! Bye." Rick slammed the receiver down, shaking his head. "The word 'no' really doesn't mean anything to him, does it?" Evelyn closed her eyes with a light smile.
"He's just being a worried brother and uncle," she said, laying her head against the large wing of the chair. Her eyes shot open as the phone rang once more, sending Rick flying in fury.
"I'm sorry, Evy," he said as he reached for the receiver, "but you're about to become an only child." Throwing the receiver up to his ear, he said, "Really, Jonathan, there is a limit – " His eyes flashed as he grew very silent. Evelyn watched, sitting up straight in the chair. "What have you done with him? ... Yeah, I know where that is ... I swear, Marguerite, if there is one hair out of place on his head, you'll wish you'd never –" He stopped, staring at the end of the receiver as it buzzed quietly back at him.
"What did she say? Where's Alex?" Evelyn asked, her heart racing. Rick took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment.
"She wants me to meet her at the docks by the station at midnight. Alone."
"Like hell you are," Evelyn said, standing up. "I'm going with you."
"Like hell *you* are," Rick replied. "Evy, she's at a point she will do anything. And I do mean anything. She will kill Alex without a second thought." Evelyn slumped down into her chair, resting her head in her hands. "Honey," he said, his voice softening as he knelt beside her. "I don't know what she's going to do, but I don't want to risk Alex's life. It may just be best to do what she asks."
"So when she asks you to go with her, you'll do that too?" Evelyn said bitterly, glancing up at him.
"I shouldn't have to answer that," Rick replied, trying to control his temper. Evelyn pushed herself up out of the chair, stalking up the stairs. Rick shook his head, mumbling to himself, "It's a gonna be a long wait 'til midnight."
****
Evelyn sat by the bedroom window most of the day, mindlessly watching the cars roll by on the road below when she wasn't sleeping from pure exhaustion. Night had come at a crawl, and it seemed like ages before she finally heard the clock strike eleven. The bedroom door opened with a creak, as Rick slid into the room. "I'm heading out now," he said quietly, standing a few feet behind his silent wife. "Jonathan's here." Again, no response. "Evy, this is ridiculous. Talk to me, for God's sake."
"I have nothing to say," she said quietly.
"Fine. I'm going to get Alex back." Rick stormed out of the room, nearly knocking over Jonathan who had come to stand in the doorway. They could hear Rick slam the front door, before Jonathan sat in the chair by the dark fireplace, throwing his feet up on the footstool.
"It'll be all right, Evy," Jonathan said, closing his eyes for a moment. "I know Rick will get little Alex back." Evelyn said nothing, watching Rick's car back out of the drive.
"Jonathan, get your coat."
"Wha-what?"
"I said, get your coat," she repeated, standing away from the window.
"But I just sat down," Jonathan protested. "And besides, he told you to stay put."
"I know very well what he told me, but that's my son out there too. And your nephew. And I'm not about to let Rick get either one of them killed because he's being a damn stubborn fool. So get out of that chair and get your coat. We're going to the docks right now."
****
"I don't like this. I don't like this one bit."
"Oh, Jonathan, stop your whining. Look, there's his car. Turn your lights off." Jonathan pulled along side the blue Bentley, killing the engine as soon as they stopped. He grabbed Evelyn's arm as she threw open the door.
"What are you doing? If Rick catches you here, he's going to maim us both."
"So stay in the car. I didn't come all the way out here in the middle of the night to sit and wait. I could have done that at home." She shook her arm free, getting out of the car.
"And you should have!" Jonathan said as she slammed the door. He jumped out of the car, leaning against the top carefully, watching her walk away quickly, trying to keep from running. "Evy!" he hissed. "I'm going to regret this, I just know it."
Evelyn made her way as quickly and quietly as possible, looking for any sign of Rick or Marguerite. A baby's cry caught her attention as it echoed through the tight buildings of the shipyard. "Alex," she said under her breath, following the sound of her son. She stopped behind a large crate, peering around to see Rick come to a stop several feet away from Marguerite. Evelyn resisted the initial urge to run out and save her baby, waiting with clinched fists in the shadows.
"I knew you would come," Marguerite said, a cheerful, knowing grin playing across her lips.
"I don't think I had a whole lot of choice in the matter," Rick replied. He took a step forward, saying, "Hand him over, Margot."
"Stop! Not another step!" she said, dangling the screaming child out over the edge of the dock. Evelyn felt two hands wrap around her arms, holding her back as she nearly darted out.
"No, Evy," Jonathan said quietly. "Rick is right there." He continued to hold her as she leaned forward, though she had stopped struggling.
"Come with me, Rick," Marguerite said, taking a step away. "Tell me that you will be mine once more and we can raise your son together."
"You're starting to sound like a cheap romance novel," Rick said with a raised eyebrow.
"Where do you think I get all of my ideas from?" Marguerite answered with a sly grin.
"This isn't a joke, Marguerite. I thought you understood. You told me you understood. I love Evelyn. I won't leave her. Not for you, not for anyone."
"No! It's not true! You said you loved me!"
"I never said that!" Tears streamed down Marguerite's face as she took another step backward. Rick stepped forward carefully, closely watching her grip on Alex. "Don't do this, Margot. It's not worth it."
"I do understand. I understand completely. You used me! You made me think you cared for me but it was all a lie!"
"I did care for you, until you started this little tirade." He regretted it the moment the words passed his lips. Marguerite straightened up, her face growing hard.
"Then I shall make you suffer as you made me." She stepped closer to the edge, her fingers relaxing as the child slipped from her hand.
"NO!" Rick and Evelyn shouted in unison. In a split second, Rick was over the side of the dock, into the frigid river, while Evelyn broke free of Jonathan's grasp. She raced toward Marguerite as the French woman pulled a small pistol from her handbag.
"If the waters don't kill you, I will," she said, aiming toward the lapping water below. She squeezed the trigger as Evelyn collided into her, knocking both women into the water below. The shock of cold raced through Evelyn's veins, paralyzing her. She could feel Marguerite's grasp slip away, but she could do nothing; her arms and legs refused to respond. She finally felt herself capable of kicking one foot, then the other, slowly pushing herself toward the moonlit surface. Slowly her fingers responded, her arms aiding in the push toward air. Evelyn suddenly felt herself stop, just inched from the top, as her coat caught around an old nail sticking out of the post of the dock. She tried to pull it free, finding it was a lost battle with the icy waters creepy into her lungs. The panic subsided as she dropped her arms, slipping out of the coat. She glided easily to the surface, breaking through the waters with a large gasp.
"Over there, Rick!" Evelyn dipped back under before resurfacing, but not of her own will. A hand had wrapped around her wrist, pulling her back to the night air. Another hand slipped under her other arm, lugging her into a small fisherman's boat. She coughed for a moment, expelling the arctic waters from her lungs.
"Are you all right?" Rick asked, pulling Evelyn up. She nodded weakly. "Evelyn," he started, holding his breath as he tried to find the words to be angry with her, but found there was nothing he could say. He finally exhaled, pulling her in close, whispering, "Thank you."
Evelyn smiled, closing her eyes as she melted into his sopping embrace. She stood there for a moment, lulled by the gentle rocking of the boat before her eyes shot open wide.
"Alex," she gasped. "Where's Alex?" Rick pulled away, knelling down as he produced Alex smiling happily up at his mum. She took him greedily, gasping the child tightly before a strange realization struck her. "He's...he's dry. But...how?"
"Marguerite had impeccable aim," he said, gesturing to the boat they stood in.
"You all right, ol' mum?" Jonathan called from the dock above.
"Now," she replied with a smile, glancing to her husband.
"Any sign of Marguerite?" Rick called up. Jonathan shook his head in response. Rick inhaled deeply, letting go of his past, before turning to his future.
"Let's get the hell out of here," he said to Evelyn with a small grin. He stepped to the edge of the boat where a rope ladder hanged from the dock above. Evelyn grabbed his collar, pulling him back, holding Alex to her tightly in one arm, and planting a large kiss on her husband. "Save that for later," he said with a flick of his eyebrows as he ascended the ladder.
****
The following morning, all the newspaper headlines read of a woman's body washed ashore on the riverfront. Authorities suspected no foul-play and the case was closed.