Chapter 12
Margaret, the lunatic, was sitting in a chair with about 100 feet of rope wrapped around her. Zach had the gun pointed at her. The window was boarded up using various, well, board games and duct tape on hand. Manning's arm was wrapped. Bo, who turned out to be the police commissioner in Llanview, had gotten in touch with Manning to let him know that Blair had been found and was doing fine. The only problem was that because of the condition of the roads, the "cavalry" was taking awhile in getting there.
Kendall handed Zach a cup of coffee. She brought a cup to Manning. "If I give this to you, you're not going to throw it in her face, are you?" Wordlessly, Todd took the cup. Margarent tossed her head. "He wouldn't hurt me. I'm going to be the mother of his child." Kendall stopped cold. "Please tell me that you didn't kidnap him so that he would impregnate you." Margaret shrugged and looked pious. Kendall looked back at Zach, her eyes wide. He smirked. "Well, Kendall, I guess your theory was correct. You have more of a knack for understanding the sociopathic mind than you thought."
Todd looked over at Zach. "What theory? When were you discussing theories?" Kendall looked uncomfortable. She cleared her throat. "Earlier, I saw you outside and I saw her come and bring you back to the cabin. It seemed suspicious, and I guess I was right. Not knowing what was going on, we went over and peeked inside. We saw you two…um…you know. We figured all was well and came back here." Kendall fell silent. Zach picked up the story. "Once Kendall thought about it some, she decided that there was still something wrong with the whole scenario. It was the expressions on your faces. Not exactly romantic." Margaret spoke up. "It was romantic! The most beautiful experience…." Todd threw his cup to the ground. "Shut up! Shut up, you filthy pig! You will never speak of this again, do you hear? None of you will ever mention this ever again!"
There was silence for a moment. Margaret smiled serenely. "You can try to forget it all you like, but our child will be a constant reminder of our magical night together." Todd struggled to his feet and made to lunge for her, but Zach blocked him. "You're going to start bleeding again. She's not worth it!" Kendall turned to Margaret. "So what made you want to have Manning's love child? Its not like he has lots of fans out there. Sure, his tabloid is popular, but only for the type of people that wear tin foil hats. Oh wait, maybe you are one of those types. Did you think maybe he was an alien and that having his baby would land you on the cover of that rag?"
Margaret glared at Kendall. "Don't you talk about him that way! Todd is a wonderful man. A doting father. It was easy to fall in love with him. I only wished he could have loved me back. I decided that if I couldn't have him, then I could have his child, and the child would love me as no one else could." Kendall shook her head. "You mean to tell me that you have such low self-esteem that you thought having this man's child would be your salvation? Not only is that incredibly stupid, but its also cruel. No child should have that burden. Having a child is not the answer to anyone's problems." Margaret laughed. "Look who's talking! The sister of Bianca Montgomery. Talk about salvation! Brutally raped, she decided to keep her attacker's child. Then the poor baby dies, and is commemorated by the building of a support center in her honor. But lo, the baby Miranda lives after all. Her mother comes out of a coma, and all live happily ever after. It is a beautiful story, and I know that my little angel will be just like Miranda."
Margaret didn't get any further. Kendall had grabbed a fistful of hair and had pulled her head back. "Don't you EVER talk about my niece in the same sentence as that spawn you have growing in your twisted body." She slapped a strip of duct tape over Margaret's mouth. Manning looked at Kendall thoughtfully. "I thought I recognized you. It didn't click until just now." Kendall glared at him. "I'm surprised you didn't know who I was instantly. Your newspaper has certainly splashed my name and face all over it often enough." Todd smirked. "Yes, you've provided some good fodder over the years. My personal favorite is you getting your 'maternity' dress ripped off in court. Priceless! People think we make stuff up at The Sun, but who needs to? The news writes itself." Zach spoke up. "You should know. The story of your wife accusing you of rape, only for it to be a brain tumor….well that was worthy of some grins and giggles."
There was a long pause, and then Todd narrowed his eyes. "You're the brother aren't you? The one who should have inherited the Cambias billions. You haven't been in Pennsylvania long, but you've certainly made a name for yourself. Now that I realize who you are, I have to wonder why you and Ms. Hart here are shacked up in a cabin together. I would have thought she wouldn't be caught dead with the brother of Michael Cambias. Especially since I've heard rumors that she's shacking up with the man who claimed to be your son. Is he your son? Is Ms. Hart here working her way through all the Cambias men, and you were next in line? Too bad she couldn't get to your father before he died. Or did she? If I recall, she was in Vegas pretending to marry Michael around the time that your father bit the big one. I bet he died with a smile on his face."
Zach's smile was deadly and his eyes were cold. "You certainly weren't smiling a couple of hours ago when Margaret here was pounding away on top of you. No sir. You were realizing for the first time exactly what that college girl felt when you were pounding away at her and invited all your friends to do the same. It makes me smile to finally realize that at least sometimes there is justice in the world." Kendall stepped in between the two men. "Save your pissing contest for later. I just checked the window. The cops have finally arrived. I can tell you one thing, I am NEVER going to stay in a mountain cabin ever again. Nothing good ever comes of it."