Chapter Fourteen: Full Bladders and Heart to Hearts

The next two hours passed with the bore of the monotonous stretch of freeway for Talia as she steadily approached the Lang household, the all-weather tires eating up the asphalt as she kept the accelerator pressed to the floor.

The same one hundred and twenty minutes was the light to Talia's approaching darkness as Bane's heart swelled in his chest when he didn't have to vow his life in order to receive love.

Bane and Helena shared the chaise lounge for a while after he tucked her against his side. The brisk air got to Helena first and she returned to the warm kitchen to refill her coffee cup.

Everything changed as Helena rooted around a low cupboard for a bottle of barrel-aged whiskey to add to their coffee, something to warm their centers.

Bane kept his eyes closed under the sun, the firm padding cradled his massive frame, and he could've slipped into sleep if Helena's piercing scream hadn't shaken him into immediate, upright consciousness.

The sound of glass shattering followed before another, shorter shout from Helena. Bane could hear the fear in her wail as he moved with the fluidity of something not manmade and found Talia standing in the middle of the spacious kitchen.

A .45 titanium handgun in her right hand was pointed at Helena who had turned nearly grey.

"Get on your knees whore," Talia spit.

Talia's glossy, red, full lips pulled into a big smile when Bane appeared in the opposite doorway to the kitchen.

"There you are," she murmured as her eyes returned to Helena, slowing lowering herself to the floor.

Bane's eyes went from the gun in Talia's steady hands to Helena, vulnerable as she knelt.

"Come in and sit down," Talia said to Bane, never taking her eyes off Helena.

"Talia," Bane started before Talia pivoted and leveled the gun to the middle of his chest. "Sit down, you're continuing to give me nothing but more reasons why I should've cut that fucking rope. Why did I think you had honor or loyalty. You're a whoremonger like my father," she hissed and used the gun to point at the dining room chairs. "Sit down or I shoot your pet slut while you continue to stand there and disobey."

Bane nodded and settled in the closest seat, his eyes never leaving hers. He longed to openly stare at Helena, rush to her side. He had to be careful, he was entering dangerous territory where he didn't necessarily have the upper hand and for the first time was truly afraid of loss.

Talia nodded in satisfaction as Bane sat and held his eyes, unblinking as she continued. "What is it about that cunt?"

Bane allowed himself a carefully measured glance in Helena's direction. She had her eyes squeezed shut and tears were running down her pale cheeks.

"Why her?" Talia asked again and Bane brought his eyes back to meet hers.

Talia's anger was further fanned until it was practically pyroclastic as Bane remained silent.

"Is it her body? Her family's money or just the fact that she's an available whore?"

Bane smiled and spoke easily. "You know nothing of honor, loyalty or leadership. Your father didn't sire a warrior."

Talia narrowed her eyes and stomped the small distance between herself and Helena.

Bane stood as Talia grabbed a handful of the silken fall of Helena's hair and yanked her neck taut as she shoved the end of the handgun under her chin.

"You're throwing away your honor and service for this whore, you're just like my father, he fell for the mother of this crying cunt."

"What do you want Talia? What price will rectify the errors I have committed against you?"

Helena could breathe a little easier when Bane's question caught Talia off guard, and she lessened the pressure of the gun against her throat.

"You think there's something that can make up for your betrayal, your treason against me?"

"Even Jupiter would accept a sacrifice laid at his feet," Bane murmured.

Talia narrowed her eyes and smiled, her cruel words were cold and pierced his heart.

"Kill her, pledge yourself to me."

Bane fought to not look at Helena as he walked towards where Talia had her on her knees and terrified.

Talia stepped back from Helena and raised the gun at Bane. "Kill her, lay her at my feet. I shall absolve you of all your wrongdoing."

Bane let himself turn towards Helena as she curled her body until she could make herself smaller. He wanted so badly to comfort her as he brought his gaze back to Talia's.

He dropped heavily to his knees in front of Talia and rested his hands loosely at his thighs. Bane bowed his head and let his breathing come back to a normal rate as he felt Talia's assessing eyes move over him, judging the veracity of his penitence.

His humility was rewarded as he heard the air slide around the barrel of the gun as she lowered it. Bane moved with inhuman dexterity and had Talia's gun hand wrapped up before he brought her to the ground and smothered her.

Talia screeched and shouted in a dead language before Bane's massive hand closed around her throat and cut off her air. She blinked up at him, her eyes widening as he moved the gun to hover over the center of her beautiful face.

Bane's eyes filled with fire as he whispered lowly. "I'd change the shape of the universe for that woman. I'm going to feed her persimmons until I own every part of her," he growled right before he pulled the trigger.

The armor-piercing rounds were too heavy of firepower for such close proximity. Talia's face caved inwards and exploded out the rear of her skull, her head flew apart like a dropped fleshy, watermelon.

Helena remained in a near-fetal position with her eyes squeezed shut as so many noises happened around her.

She screamed when a hand handed on her shoulder.

"Shhh, you're okay, you're completely safe," came Bane's voice.

Helena slowly rolled towards him and let him pull her to her feet and into his embrace.

Her eyes tried to dart everywhere as she saw blood but no bodies.

"What hap….?" she started to ask before Bane pressed his fingertips to her lips. "I'm going to walk you upstairs; I'd like you to take a bath and get some rest."

Helena started to protest before Bane interrupted her. "You are safe, I just need to tie up some loose ends."

Helena nodded, in her head she imagined Bane burying balls of pink yarn and knitting needles.

She drank the generous glass of scotch Bane handed her. He had mixed in a heavy sedative and she slept for eighteen solid hours, waking up with a full bladder and a lot of questions.

Bane had coffee and breakfast waiting for her and they talked for a very long time.

Six Months Later

Helena jumped about three feet into the air when Bane's hands landed on her bare shoulders.

Bane chuckled lowly; the sound so masculine as it moved throughout his broad chest. She adjusted the bath towel she had wrapped around her body and went back to ordering takeout from the touch screen tablet.

He settled next to her on the sofa and waited impatiently as she typed in her credit card number and tapped through a few other screens before she set the tablet aside.

"Forty-five minutes until pizza," Helena said as she relaxed against his side.

Bane dropped his arm around her and squeezed her tighter to his side as his eyes swept across the collection of photos on the mantle.

Her father's body hadn't been recovered yet and he had helped turned her life upside down and inside out.

"Do you regret accepting me?" Bane asked and shifted until he could see her beautiful face and meet her eyes.

"I don't regret anything. Why are you asking me something like that, are you okay?" Helena asked as she frowned and reached a hand up to cup his jaw, tracing her thumb along his lower lip.

He caught her small wrist in his large grip and pressed his lips to her palm.

Bane caught her trying to cover her smile with her other hand, he didn't need to ask her to explain.

"I thought that's why you wanted to get takeout tonight and stay in," she started before she began to blush and added in a rush. "To celebrate our six-month anniversary."

Bane made her squeal involuntarily as he scooped her up and plopped her unceremoniously onto her back.

"We still have forty-two minutes until the pizza is delivered," he growled as he pulled at her towel.