We are getting closer to the end now! :( lol…..Thanks to everyone who has stuck with this story and for all the support! I hope you enjoy this one, too!
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Chapter Fifteen:
"Sassenach, who is that?"
"Frank."
Before Jamie could clarify what she'd said, Frank was walking toward her, a simmering smirk on his face. "Claire, darling," he crooned, far too sweet, even for him.
"Frank, what… what are you doing here?"
Her mind was spinning with options, scenarios, anything to explain why her ex-boyfriend, a man she'd grown to love over the years, was sitting in this courtroom, behind the enemy, no less.
Claire's eyes flicked over to Master Raymond, who was sitting there cool as a cucumber, conversing with his lawyer as if they were simply at a coffee shop, catching up on the latest news, not sitting in a courtroom awaiting trial.
"Yeah," Frank said, clicking his tongue, "About that…" He grinned at her again, and she felt bile rise in her throat. "Master Raymond is, well, my boss, Claire." His lip curled as he looked from his boss to her, their eyes connecting. Those eyes that she used to look into and see nothing but love. Now, though, his true colors were being shown.
"That's why you got so angry when I broke up with you."
He practically growled at that, one nostril flaring. He shifted on his feet, and good, he seemed bothered by that comment. "If you hadn't gone to fucking Spain," he mumbled, cheek twitching in anger as he sighed an annoyed breath.
Anger. Hate. Disgust. Betrayal. They all swirled around her like storm clouds, fogging her vision momentarily as she tried to work on this information in her mind.
"So you were playing me this whole time?" she asked, snarling right back at him. She could feel the blood rushing through her veins, heating her skin from the inside. "You don't even really like yoga?"
The question was ridiculous, she realized when she heard Jamie stifle a chuckle under his breath, but she couldn't understand what was happening.
Frank grinned again, a smile that once made her feel weak in the knees, but she now saw the malevolent gleam beneath the surface. "No, I just needed a way into your life. Needed to try and see if your husband," he sneered the word, cutting his eyes to Jamie, "was alive or not. We thought for so long that he might not be dead." He sniffed, one nostril flaring as he flicked his gaze to Jamie again, then back to her, "Turns out our suspicions were right."
Cutting her eyes over his shoulder, she saw Master Raymond look over his own shoulder, his eyes meeting with hers. He grinned at her, and she felt the fury bubbling inside, her fist clenching, and she only remembered to breathe again when Jamie slipped his hand in hers, trying to pull her to their seats.
Murtagh came to stand behind her, and she could feel the heat of his anger radiating off of him. "I kent I could never trust ye, you rat bastard," he seethed so low that she was not sure even Frank could hear him.
But he did, and Frank scoffed out a singular laugh, sending a chill up Claire's spine. His whole attitude was different—his facial expressions, his sweet smile, everything she once found so endearing, was gone.
She swallowed thickly, listening as he told her cooly, "My suspicions were back up when you came back from Spain and were pulling away from me, and thanks to this," he held up a tiny listening device, "I discovered he was."
She thought of the handful of times she saw him after her trip, and how different he'd seemed, how much pushier he was with their physical intimacy, and she felt sick to her stomach.
It all made sense now. And she felt like a fucking idiot.
How did she not see what was happening right under her nose? He was listening in on her home this whole fucking time, which explains that eerie feeling she always had that someone was watching. Not watching, per se, listening. Fucking bastard.
She never wanted to punch someone so badly before, and she felt her body lurch toward him without thought, but Jamie tugged her arm back before her movements were noticed and whispered, "Sassenach, no," and pulled her away, his eyes glaring at Frank as they walked away.
That was days ago, and she's no less angry now, but she tries to contain herself, knowing Jamie needs all her support today. Today is when he testifies, and as brave as he's being, she knows he's nervous.
As she walks into the courtroom, Frank is sitting there—behind Master Raymond like the good little sidekick he is, just as he has the past three days—with his smug expression upon his face, and it takes all she has to not slap him. Her lip is set in a permanent sneer, she can feel her lip curled up in disgust, but she figures that's better than attacking him out of fury.
"Are ye alright, mo nighean donn?" Jamie asked her that night in bed, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
She sat up, huffing in anger. "I'm fucking pissed," she snarled. "I've never felt so… so deceived, Jamie." What a vile man he was, fucking Frank Randall. "I thought he loved me, I thought I loved him." She sighed, tugging at her hair. She'd struggled with her feelings for this man once Jamie had come back, had thought he really cared about her. "I spent three years being his friend, thinking he had good intentions. I dated him for seven months!" She rambled on, spewing her hatred for Frank, "I let him near our children, let him be alone with our girls… he's in pictures with them!" She shuddered at the thought… she'd let him kiss her, let his hands roam her body, had contemplated sleeping with him… "Fucking bastard."
Jamie tried to hide his amused smile, she could tell, and normally she would have cracked, would have smiled right along with him and let whatever was bothering her go, but not this. This was too much. She was so hurt, so betrayed… Fuck Frank.
She shakes herself from the memory and tries to contain her anger as it once again bubbles inside her gut.
Frank had more than likely been there the night of Jamie's attack and wormed his way into her life at just the right time.
The second day of the trial they learned that there'd been talk within the mob that the informant, James Fraser, was actually alive and in police protection.
Frank had gotten closer with Claire almost three years ago, trying to get intel on her husband.
She should cry, wants to, but instead the uncontrollable indignation has overwhelmed her these past few days, almost unable to comprehend how blindsided and betrayed she really feels.
She does her best to ignore Frank, focusing on her husband as she takes his hand in hers, letting her thumb run against the back of his hand.
"I call James Fraser to the stand."
Murtagh, Jocasta and Joe are behind them, and his godfather pats him on the back in reassurance as his name is called.
Her breath catches in her throat, and she can feel Jamie tense. She squeezes his hand, kissing his cheek before he stands.
John is beside her, and he smiles reassuringly at Jamie, whispering that he can do this.
They'd practiced plenty; she knows he knows what to say, but that doesn't help the nerves swarming in her stomach as she watches him approach the stand, placing his hand on the bible and swearing to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
The prosecutor, Ned Gowan, asks him questions about that night of his attack—what he saw, what he heard—and Jamie recounts everything exactly as he remembers it.
"I saw four men, two on each side, face each other with guns," he tells the jury, looking from them to the lawyer. "They were talking about a trade, one said a shipment was coming in that they wanted." He says Raymond's men were shouting at Sandringham's, saying they'd kill them if they didn't give them the name of the weapons dealer. "I ken now one of them was that man," he says, pointing toward Frank. "Frank Randall."
"And how do you know that?"
Jamie looks over to Claire and John, saying, "Officer John Grey was undercover in Master Raymond's mob. He was the other one there with Frank that night, and when we saw him here the other day, John told me Frank was there that night."
John had been just as shocked the first day to learn Frank, the man he knew as Master Raymond's top guy—and who they always called The Professor—was Claire's boyfriend. He'd never seen pictures of Frank, just knew that was Claire's boyfriend's name. John had apologized beyond belief that night, saying he felt like a failure for not looking into Claire's boyfriend when they came back from Spain.
She'd told him there was nothing to forgive, of course, how could he have ever known that innocent Frank was actually The Professor?
Claire cuts her eyes over to Frank at Jamie's words, watching as he sits there, calm as ever, as if Jamie is just reporting the weather from that night.
She sucks in her cheeks, willing herself not to cry over the man. She's shed enough tears over him; he doesn't deserve anymore.
"That was all I heard, though, ye ken, wasna even sure I was hearing correctly. Who kent that kind o'thing happened in our part of town?" Jamie shakes his head, eyes dazing off as if he's stuck in his memory, saying, "I was just trying to get home to my wife and child. She was pregnant, and I kent if I didn't get the ice cream tae her, she'd be raging mad."
The jury softly chuckles, and Jamie smirks, but sobers up. Telling them how he tried to turn the corner and sneak away so as to avoid the argument between the men, but he was spotted.
"I'm too big, I guess, and they saw me," he says, rubbing the back of his neck with his uninjured hand.
He fiddles with his navy tie, recounting how the man, that he now knows was Frank, pulled out his gun and shot him in the shoulder. He grabbed his shoulder, crying out in pain, then felt another shot to his leg. It took him down, unable to walk or crawl. Next thing he knew, four large hands were on him, dragging him down the broken road.
Claire closes her eyes, a tear falling down her cheek as she has to hear this story again. It's just as painful each time, but something about watching Jamie up on the stand, nervously telling it to a group of strangers as he fights back tears, breaks her heart.
"I ken it was Master Raymond's men dragging me, I remember Sandringham's guys running off, but…" he takes a deep breath, finishing with, "that's all I can remember. I passed out after that." He chokes out the last bit, clearing his throat.
She can see the veins in his neck protruding, and she knows he's trying with all his strength not to lose it on the stand.
Mr. Gowan thanks him, asking him how he got to safety. "Officer John Grey was undercover," he says, "working with Master Raymond, ken? He was one of the ones to pull me down the street." Jamie clears his throat, smoothing down his blue tie. "He got me to a small hospital somehow, that's where I woke up and found out I was being placed in witness protection."
He breathes in deeply, closing his eyes to get himself back together. She knows this is so hard for him, much harder than when they were at home just letting him go over the facts he was going to say. It's different now. It's real. And having to recount it all again in front of strangers makes it even harder. He sniffles quickly, reaching up to wipe a tear away. He does a good job of passing it off as just scratching his eye from an itch, but Claire knows him, knows his emotions are bubbling just beneath the surface.
Claire looks over to the jury with tears in her eyes, and she can see through blurry vision that they look just as moved by the tale as she is.
She hopes that's a good sign that they'll get Master Raymond, and all of his men, especially Frank, put away.
John squeezes her hand, drawing her attention to it, and she realizes that she's been holding it the entire time, drawing support from her new friend.
Before Ned lets Jamie down, he asks about his broken hand and bruised eye. Jamie sighs, telling them how he was attacked outside his home the other night, stabbed in the back, and Claire looks over to Frank as her husband tells the story, eyes growing wide when he turns to look at her.
Frank smirks knowingly, one eyebrow quirking up, and she feels her breath catch in her throat, lips snarling once more at him as she realizes it was Frank that attacked Jamie at the mailbox.
He winks at her, as if this is a fucking game, and she flinches, her body craving to march over there and beat the shit out of that man like he did to Jamie.
Murtagh places his hand on her shoulder from behind, drawing her attention away from Frank, and she has to sit herself down, only now realizing she'd lifted herself up from the bench slightly.
"Not worth it," John whispers beside her, keeping a pleasant smile on his face the whole time for onlookers.
Claire sighs, unhinged anger seething beneath the surface. She wants to scream, wants to cry, wants to punch something… she wants to get out of that courthouse and never step foot in there again. She just wants this all to be over.
Jamie is let down from the stand after a cross-examination, which led nowhere, and he joins them back on the benches, Claire's other hand taking Jamie's.
He leans in, kissing her ear and whispering, "Are ye alright?"
She nods, wiping a tear away and swallowing down her anger as she assures him she's just fine and that he did great up there.
{********************}
They get home that night, completely exhausted and terrified.
That hardest part is over, Jamie's testimony went over well and he won't be called to the stand again… but now they have to wait and see what the jury decides. They have a few more people left to give statements, John's is tomorrow, and she's hoping it'll be the nail in the coffin since he worked so closely with Master Raymond and his men for so long.
"Daddy, is the bad guy put away yet?" Brianna asks that night as Jamie brushes her hair.
Both girls are fresh from their showers and have just changed into their pajamas. Faith and Claire have joined them in Brianna's room, getting them both ready for bed.
"Not yet, a leannan," he says, tugging the brush through a stubborn tangle. "But soon."
He looks over to Claire, and she smiles softly, hoping he's right.
She works on Faith's hair, spritzing it with her anti-frizz spray and combing through it, twisting some of the ringlets around her finger to create large curls. She then works it into two braided pigtails before kissing Faith's cheeks, letting her know she was all done.
Jamie tells the girls as much as he can about the trial, both of them avoiding telling them about Frank. She knows she needs to, and will, but tonight, while she's still silently seething, is not the time. The girls loved Frank, and she wants to handle it delicately, so she'll hold off for now until she's calmer and can explain it better to her children.
Brianna giggles at something Faith says, bringing Claire back to the present. She watches as the girls pile onto Jamie's back and he stomps around, pretending to be a bear.
"Be careful of his back and hand," she warns, knowing it's only been a week since his attack. His side was still a little sore, and his hand was still in a cast.
"Och," he grunts, "I'm fine, Sassenach."
"Yeah, he's fine, Sassenach!" Brianna copies, causing them all to laugh.
Claire stands, knowing she's outnumbered on this one, and grabs Bree, knowing Faith will be more gentle with Jamie, and slings the little girl onto her back.
"Piggyback dance party!" Faith shouts, laughing into Jamie's ear.
"A what?" he asks, looking over to Claire.
Claire looks up, catching Brianna's gaze, and they giggle together. Claire takes her phone out, plugging it into Brianna's speakers on her bookshelf. She flips to the "Dance Party" playlist on her phone, setting it down, and beginning to dance around as the Kidz Bop version of "Blinding Lights" streams through to the room.
Brianna wraps her legs around Claire's waist, one arm around her shoulder as the other pumps in the air, her little body wiggling against Claire's back. Claire laughs—feeling lighter than she has all week—bouncing and jumping around, doing her best to dance with her little monkey on her back.
Faith hops down from Jamie's back, taking his good hand in hers. "Come on, Daddy! We'll do it this way so I don't hurt your side!"
She begins to dance around, singing along to the song as Jamie guffaws, jumping up and down wildly, doing his best to impersonate his daughter.
Chortling, Claire bites down on her lip, afraid her heart will burst with happiness as she watches her husband dance with their oldest daughter.
Their youngest jumping from her back jolts her to reality, and she watches as Brianna hops onto her bed, laughing and moving her arms in a Saturday Night Fever type motion, wiggling all around.
The covers are messed up, and Claire knows it's almost bedtime, but she wants them to enjoy these moments. Hell, it's summer break, and it's been a stressful week, they all deserve this.
She and Jamie have been getting home late each night, too exhausted to do much else other than eat and go to bed, so she knows the girls have missed them as much as they've missed the girls.
The song changes to "That's My Girl" and the girls squeal, Brianna hoping down and clasping hands with Faith as they sing Who's been working so so hard you've got that head on overload... All the girls around the world… then they mumble through the parts they don't know, throwing their hands up in the air as the chorus hits.
"That's my girl… that's my girl… that's my girl…" Bree sings, pointing to herself, then Faith, then Claire with each 'girl', adding a, "and that's my boy!" pointing to Jamie.
They all laugh at her silliness, Jamie taking Claire's hand and spinning her around to the music as their daughters jump around together.
Before long, the song changes again and Claire lets them dance to one more before she calls the dance party officially over. She can see the sheen of sweat on both their foreheads, and deems it time to cool down before they both need another shower.
Claire pulls the covers back up on Brianna's bed from where she'd messed them up with her dancing, tightening them and brushing them off so they felt fresh for Bree when she climbs into bed.
When she turns around, both girls are laying on the floor, hands on their chests as they feel their pounding hearts, catching their breath.
Jamie is propped against the bookshelf, unplugging Claire's phone and grinning down at their daughters.
"That was one wild dance party, lasses," he says, laughing as Faith flips onto her belly, hands cupping her chin as she giggles and nods in Jamie's direction.
"But it was so fun!" she exclaims, wiggling her body as she reviews her favorite dance move Brianna came up with, causing Bree to burst into laughter at her sister's impersonation.
Jamie tells both girls to sit up, handing Faith a plastic cup of water and letting her sip from it before handing it to Bree to do the same thing. "Ye wee tornadoes need to calm down, yer riling me up just lookin' at ye."
He takes the cup from them, setting it down and standing, pulling back Brianna's covers and ushering her into bed. He kisses the top of her head as Claire grabs a book from her bookshelf, knowing they both need a story to calm them down. There's no way either one will be falling asleep right now as riled up as they are.
Brianna's bed is pushed against the wall, and she rolls to the side closest to it, leaving room for Claire to sit next to her head, while Jamie props himself up on the end of the bed.
Faith climbs into Jamie's lap as Claire opens Junie B. Jones: Graduation Girl, both girls reciting the first few lines from memory. "My name is Junie B. Jones. The B stands for Beatrice. Except I don't know like Beatrice. I just like B and that's all."
Jamie looks impressed as he watches both girls, raising his eyebrows at Claire.
She giggles, explaining, "Each book in the series starts off the exact same way. And we read Junie B a lot."
She goes on, reading to the room about how yesterday was Junie's birthday and how Junie's mom reminded her that she was graduating kindergarten on Friday.
"I graduated last year!" Brianna tells Jamie. "I wore a cap and gown and everything!"
Claire smiles, saying she showed him the pictures the other night.
Bree's eyes grow wide, asking, "Didn't I look cute!?"
Jamie snickers, "Aye, ye did, m'annsachd."
"What about my graduation, Mama?" Faith asks, "Did you show him mine?"
"I did," she nods, telling Faith that he loved the picture of Uncle Murtagh holding her as she waved her diploma around.
Faith giggles, twirling the end of one of her braids around. "But now I'm in third grade, so I won't have another graduation until high school."
Jamie grins, kissing her cheek. "Aye, but I'll be there for that one, ye ken."
Faith nods, settling back against Jamie's chest. He looks over her little head at Claire, and she smiles, her heart warming at the thought of him being around for the rest of their childrens' milestones in life.
"Keep going," Faith says, nodding toward the book.
Smiling, she picks it back up, reading about how Mrs. tells the class they will be receiving caps and gowns, but Junie calls it cats and gowns, making both girls laugh.
After another two chapters, both little Frasers' eyes are dropping, Brianna half asleep in her bed already. Jamie stands, Faith curling into him, and Claire smiles fondly watching them, knowing Faith is getting older, too old to hear bedtimes stories or be carried to bed for much longer, so she'll enjoy it while she can.
Claire leans in, whispering, "Goodnight, darling," into Brianna's hair, kissing her temple and pulling the covers up over her shoulder. She runs a finger delicately over her cheek, watching as Brianna smiles in her sleep just like her sister and father.
She walks down the hall, peeking into Faith's bedroom, watching as Jamie deposits a sleepy Faith into her bed. She climbs under the covers, reaching out to hug Jamie again. "I'm glad you're back," she murmurs, yawning around her words.
Jamie smiles, his Adam's apple bobbing. "I'm glad too, m'annsachd," he says, giving her a hug. "Goodnight."
{***********************}
She and Jamie make their way to their bedroom, quickly showering and changing into pajamas before crawling into bed completely exhausted.
"That wee dance party wore me out," he chuckles, wrapping his arms around Claire.
She huffs out a tired laugh, snuggling into his side.
Kissing his chest, she lets her hand rest there over his heart, being comforted by the feel of it beating beneath her palm.
Jamie kisses the top of her head, whispering goodnight as he reaches to turn off the light, sheathing their bedroom into darkness save for the moonlight streaming in from the windows.
After a few moments, all of the overwhelming emotions of the past few days hit Claire like a ton of bricks, and she begins to softly cry.
"What is it, mo nighean donn?" He reaches over, turning the bedside lamp on again.
She shakes her head, brows cinching as she squeezes her eyes shut, pushing out her tears. "I'm just… I'm so sorry I ever dated Frank."
"Oh, mo chridhe…" he wraps his arms around her, cradling her in his embrace. "'Tis alright, ye didna ken who he truly was. He fooled everyone up until a few days ago." He kisses the top of her head, resting his chin there as she cries.
"John knew."
"Aye," he chuckles softly, "but he didna ken that's who ye were dating, he just kent him as Master Raymond's right hand man. The Professor."
She nods, sinking further into his hold as he gently says, "Ye didna ken, and I could never be angry wi' ye for that, hm?"
Sniffling, she nods, wiping the tears away from her cheeks.
He turns the lamp back off, sliding deeper into the covers as they both drift off to sleep.
{**********************}
Hours later, just after midnight, Claire is startled awake by Jamie's thrashing around.
"No," he cries in his sleep, "stop!"
His face is scrunched in agony, and she can tell he's crying in his sleep.
He's tossing and turning, grunting, mumbling. "Jamie," she says softly, shaking his shoulder.
He doesn't hear her, though, but his shouts get louder. No, no! Don't… stop… leave me alone…
"Jamie!" she calls louder, shaking him more forcefully.
He jolts awake, arms flailing about, and she dodges to miss being smacked in the face on accident.
"Sassenach?"
She sighs, reaching out to wipe the sweat from his brow. "I'm here, Jamie."
His whole body relaxes at her words, and he takes deep, calming breaths. His hand reaches up to feel his beating heart, and he apologizes. "I was having a nightmare."
"I see that," she murmurs softly, running her hands through his hair and down to his jaw, tucking her fingers under his chin. She can barely make out his face, but she'd know the lines of his face without any light at all. "Are you alright?"
"Aye," he states, giving her that boyish grin of his. "I was dreamin' that I was back in that alleyway, ken?"
She nods, swallowing around the lump in her throat. She listens as he tells her about the nightmare, how this time she was there with him, "So were the bairns." He shudders at that, saying he was begging Frank not to hurt them. "I was sae scared, mo ghraidh. Thought he would hurt ye or the girls."
He chokes on a sob then, pulling her into his arms, crying in relief that everyone is okay.
"We're here, Jamie, we're all at home."
"I ken," he breathes, kissing her softly as his salty tears land on her lip. "It just felt sae real."
She nods, knowing how vivid nightmares can often be. For so long after he died, she'd dream of him, could smell him, feel him, then she'd wake up and realize it was her mind playing tricks on her and she'd beg her body not to sleep, not to go through it again and again.
He kisses her again, this time more passionately, and she knows he needs to feel her, to know she's really there. "Come find me, Jamie," she breathes, rolling over to her side of the bed, pulling his arm with her.
He rolls on top of her, then hisses when he puts too much pressure on his broken hand.
She pushes on his shoulder, rolling him back to his side. She slips off her tank top, shimmying out of the cotton shorts she'd worn to bed, and straddles his hips. "Come find me," she whispers again, this time more pleading, taking his uninjured hand in hers and placing it on her naked breast.
He sits up, his head level with her chest now and sucks on her nipple, bringing the other to a hardened peak of anticipation.
The room is bathed in a blue hue from the moonlight, just a sliver peeking through the curtains, but it's enough to see the lines of his face, the look of awe he has while staring into hers. He's looking at her as if he's in complete awe of what he sees, and before she combusts on the spot with her love for him, she leans in, crashing her lips to his.
He begins to rock his hips, and she lifts up, reaching between them to take hold of his hardened cock. She slips it free from his boxers, leaning down to kiss his bare chest. "Touch me," she demands breathily, guiding his head back to her breasts.
His tongue swirls around one nipple, licking up her chest and over to the next breast, showering it with the same attention.
She strokes him, then lifts her hips enough to sink down on his cock, savoring the feel from this position as she sheaths herself completely around her.
"Oh, Claire," he pants, rutting his hips up, his cock pressing against her cervix, shrouding her in a wave of euphoria. "Ye're real," he says, looking at her as if she was the sun coming out on a cloudy day. "Ye're mine… and I'm yers."
She nods her agreement, moving her hips against him, leaning down to cup his jaw with her hands and pulling his lips to hers. Their tongues press together as she lets his slip inside her mouth, and she moans into their kiss as she raises herself off his cock, then back on, hitting deeper this time, hitting her g-spot and bringing her closer to her release with each thrust.
They make love that night, over and over, rocking slowly against one another and finding solace in each other's embrace.
She comes with his name on her lips, moaning breathlessly into the darkness of their room, his release not far behind hers, reassuring one another with their words and bodies that they are here, they are safe, and they are together.
{*****************}
Before anyone comes for me, I'm not a lawyer LOL so I know some parts of the trial I showed weren't 100% accurate… but.. That's ok! haha. Like I always say, it's fiction! I hope y'all enjoyed it anyway as a whole. I had a lot of fun writing their family time/dance party and incorporating the "come find me" sexy times from Paris into this as well haha. Please review!