THIS BOOK OR ANY PORTION THEREOF MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED IN ANY FORM WITHOUT PERMISSION. THE SCANNING, UPLOADING, AND DISTRIBUTION OF THIS BOOK VIA THE INTERNET OR VIA ANY OTHER MEANS WITHOUT THE PERMISSION OF THE PUBLISHER IS ILLEGAL AND PUNISHABLE BY LAW.

Regina opened her eyes to see the two FBI agents in her room again. Three weeks. Three weeks since she woke up and they're still asking questions. Valdez and Waltz are sitting in chairs opposite each other. A way for her to have to turn her head to each one so the other can watch her. The bed is tilted up and she's wrapped from neck to toe in bandages. A monitor is tight on her abdomen to monitor the baby that managed to survive. Barely.

Valdez smiled, "How are you feeling?" Why is he always so friendly, she wanted to know?

"Dandy," she said.

Waltz put in, "You've got more color. Your doctors say you're recovering, but you've got a long road ahead of you."

"That's what they say," she said.

The ache in her head still hadn't dulled. A concussion was supposed to go away, but she felt with the unending questions, her headache remained. Migraines took it's place sometimes. She closed her eyes to the one coming on now.

"We thought we'd stop in and continue where we left off," Valdez said opening his notes. "We stopped at the phone records. It looks like the phone calls to three young ladies were taken from your home, two from your cellphone, and the rest from Simon's." He said it so casually, like the horror of it didn't matter. That it didn't make her skin crawl.

"As I said yesterday, I wasn't home or near my phone when those calls were made. The calls from the house took place when I was driving Sammy to school. I've already told you I had little control over my cellphone, and he monitored it closely."

Waltz asked, "How long does it take you to drive to the school and back?"

Regina sighed, "If I go straight there and back, it takes me fifteen minutes give or take a few if I get stuck behind a train. If I stop at the market, it would be closer to thirty or forty-five depending on how much is on my list." It was best to not fight them and to answer every question they asked. No matter how boring or little.

Valdez dropped the friendly chatter, she was grateful, "The conversations lasted no more than five minutes. Three for the last one. How can you be sure you weren't home or running late?"

Regina said, "I never dropped him off late, you can check the school records. If I was ever late, Simon would punish me. I told you that."

"Alright, let's move on to the car. How often did you drive into town?"

"Every month and never by myself. Simon didn't let me leave town without him."

Waltz asked, "Did you shop, outside of groceries, together?"

"Sometimes he'd take me to the hardware store on the way home from dinner. Or we'd stop at his work, or to the sites where he was helping find lost hikers. I didn't spend much time in the car on my own. The longest would be dropping Sammy at school or going to the market. There are security cameras in the stores to show the time stamp."

Valdez knew she was clever and always seemed to have an answer for any question they threw at her. Clever was the half of it, she was a smart woman, but she'd been through hell and never once asked for a lawyer. It was curious.

Waltz eyed his partner, "Enough with the car. We've got your statement and we've already corroborated the trips you've made. We've got hours of tape all over town. Let's move on to Sydney Glass. Where did you meet?"

Regina wondered when he'd finally come up. "He came over for dinner when Simon asked me to marry him. I was friends with his wife before she died. Cancer."

"And how close was your relationship?"

"Platonic, if that's what you're asking. Syd was there for me and let me vent every time Simon knocked me around. I used to tell him back then when it wasn't so bad. After Sammy was born, it got worse and degrading. I stopped telling him, but he never stopped being there for me."

Regina shuddered when she attempted to lift her arm and the pain of her shoulder shot through her system bringing to tears to her eyes. She eyed the red button on the bed but knew that she needed to answer more questions.

"How did he help you leave the night you left California?" Waltz noticed the pain on her face and pushed the button for her.

"He bought a plane ticket for me and Sammy. He used to work for the DMV and knew how to make IDs. He made us a passport and me a driver's license. He used my teaching degree and found covers with the same qualifications. He has money and connections. I trusted him. That night, Simon beat me, and I left him behind."

Valdez asked, "Where did you go?"

Regina took them on a journey of the worst time of her life. "When we got in the car, a man was behind the wheel. He asked for my name and I gave it. He drove me six miles out of town to another car parked in the tunnel waiting for me. Sammy and I got in the other car and were told to throw all our belongings in a trash bag. The man took them, and we left.

"The next car drove us to an empty warehouse out on Thistle, I think. It used to house flattened cars. A woman was waiting with a change of clothes, makeup, and wigs for us. We changed our clothes and she changed my appearance. We were driven to the airport after our new identities. We settled in Oregon for three months."

Waltz kept the nurse at the door before she could administer any pain medication. Regina was talking and they needed the story. "Why did you leave?"

"Simon found us in line at the gas station, of all places. He'd gone there on a trip with his buddy and we ended up running into each other. Before he could get his hands on us, I called Syd. I was picked up twenty minutes later after dodging him."

"From there?"

Regina felt tired and the pain was making her edgy. "We took a plane to Nebraska and settled there for four months. I didn't feel comfortable staying there for long. Sammy was starting to hate the people asking questions. So, we called Syd and he moved us again."

"Where?"

"Saltlake city, Utah. The only trouble was I'd forgotten about Simon's yearly visit to the gun show. We happened to be on field trips with the kids at the rodeo when I spotted him. I took Sammy and we bailed. We were only there for two months."

"Where next?" Waltz kept his eyes open to see how much she could handle before she began to hurt too bad.

"I'm hurting, could I get my meds now?" she pleaded.

"Just a minute. The nurse is ready, I want you to finish," Waltz said.

"Fine. We moved to Colorado for four months, but Simon found us when someone he knows spotted me at the fair. I'd changed my hair and I'd lost some weight, but he noticed me. We had to move in the middle of the night. Sammy was scared. We took a flight to Virginia and stayed only three weeks before Simon got wind of us. I don't know how he found us then."

"No ideas?"

"No. I called Syd and he told me I should disappear in a small town. We chose New York. It was small and the people liked us, but it was only a matter of time before Simon showed up. He must've had someone looking out for us because he found us. That brings us to here. I've already told you all about my life here."

She was taking in shallow breaths, "Please, it hurts."

"Alright, we'll get to check out these statements. You get some rest, Sabrina. We'll see you again." They refused to call her Regina. It was a tactic to annoy her. She let it slide.

"When can I see Sammy?" she asked. It was the same question with the same answer.

"When we can verify each aspect of your story, you'll see him," Waltz said and left her alone.

When the nurse came in with a sympathetic smile, she was happy to fall into the darkness the medication sucked her into.

Robin is propped up on the couch with his healing leg in a boot and the TV turned on the news. The broadcast is talking about the Thompson case. It's been six weeks since Simon was shot by officers and Sabrina, Regina, was taken to the hospital. They're talking about how she could be connected. It angers him and he turns off the set.

It took her three weeks to wake up. It shaved off three years of his life to worry endlessly while she lay in her bed with a tube breathing for her. He worried that she wouldn't make it. He was elated to know the baby and her survived. But other than the occasional medical update, he heard nothing.

Regina hadn't just been cut with a scalpel, he knew now. Simon, the bastard, had peeled off the top layer of her skin and it was taking eons for her to heal. In the meantime, they were monitoring the baby. The baby was strong, he could thank God for that. He wanted to know how she was withstanding questions, but he couldn't get any information.

Geoff and Jerry weren't privy to FBI investigations and didn't know how the questioning was going. Henry picked up the phone each chance he got to call and ask to see his mom. It broke his heart to see him like that. Roland was sitting on the couch next to him avoiding Marian. God knew why she was in the other room picking up the remaining clothes he'd kept in the trunk by the bed.

"Does she have to stay for dinner?" Roland's voice sounded bitter for a boy.

Robin glanced toward the room and shrugged, "No, but it'd be rude since she offered to cook."

"Maybe it's poisoned," he said darkly.

"Roland knock it off. I know you're upset with her and I am too. But, she's here and she's trying. The least you can do is eat the food she cooks for you."

"Okay," he pouted.

"Dammit, come here." Fat tears appeared in his eyes as he wrapped his arms around his father. Robin squeezed him and felt the dull ache where his ribs were still healing. "Roland, she's your mom."

"I know," he said.

Marian walked into the room and broke up their moment. "Is he alright?"

"Yea, he's just tired," he lied.

"I'll start dinner. Maybe he'll feel better with some food in his stomach." When she turned to leave, Roland pulled back to look at his father.

"Can I go hang out with Henry?"

"Yea, give him a hug for me," Robin said and watched his boy walk down the hall. Henry didn't come out of his room unless he was forced to. Robin couldn't blame him. They shared the same heartache. They missed her and needed her.

Robin not only needed her, but he needed to see her growing. To feel the baby move when it was time. To enjoy the life, they made. Instead, they couldn't get near her. He desperately wanted to hold her, smell her, feel her. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine her here with him. He could almost smell her.

Marian sat next to him and shattered the illusion, "Is this about Regina or me?"

His eyes opened and focused on her face. "What?"

"Roland and his behavior. Is he sad that she's not here, or mad that I am?"

"Both," he said honestly.

"Oh," she said. He watched her gaze around the room at the pictures on the wall and the life he had with her felt so far away in another lifetime. When she turned back to meet his gaze, she asked, "Can you ever forgive me for leaving?"

He didn't answer right away. Instead, he watched those eyes fill and tried to remember the woman he'd told himself he'd fallen in love with, married, and made a life with. A woman he knew had wanted him once upon a time. "Yea, I can."

Marian started to smile, but he added, "But, I'm not in love with you anymore and I'm not sure when I stopped. I thought it was when you went to Africa. When you chose to go. But I'm realizing that it was long before then." He turned his gaze toward the pictures on the walls. "I can't even pinpoint when it happened. I've been thinking about it for the last few weeks. Where did we go wrong? Where did I fail? Why didn't I notice? I've asked myself tons of questions and I don't have the answers."

"Robin…"

He turned to her and shrugged, "It's over, Marian. Let's not kid ourselves. You filed for divorce, I've signed the papers. I try not to harbor any resentment toward you. I tried to understand that you needed to be set free. Free from me, from us. I'm hurt but I get it. When you walked into my hospital room, I realized how I feel about you."

"How do you feel about me?" Her cheeks were pink, her eyes damp.

"You meant a lot to me once upon a time. You were the mother of my child, my wife. But now you're a woman I don't recognize. I don't want to hurt you, but I fell in love with Regina the moment she came to Camden. I didn't even think about you when I was with her. When I did, I realized that we have something I never had with you."

Tears were wetting her cheeks, she was trembling. "What is that?"

To soothe her, he took her hand, "Love, Marian. I have love."

"Are you telling me you were never in love with me?" she cried.

"I'm saying what we had wasn't love. It was infatuation, it was a friendship and a connection and sexual attraction. But, if we loved each other like we were supposed to, you'd never have been able to walk out and leave me behind. Though, I suspect you left before you took that flight."

A sob escaped her, and she nodded, "You're right, I didn't want to admit it, but I checked out before I left."

"I know."

"I tried. I kept trying to feel the way it was when we met and that new exciting feeling. I'd look at you and wonder why I didn't feel it." She wiped her face and took a breath. "I tried to be there for Roland and to think that when we were all together it was enough. But there was always something missing."

He kept rubbing her hand with his thumb, "I tried to hate you for it."

She looked up at him with eyes full of hurt, "Do you?"

"No." He swallowed. "I look at you now and I resented you and blamed you for all of it. It was my own shortcomings too. I was too coward to let you know. To ask. But, under it, I knew. I distracted myself with Roland, but I knew."

"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm so sorry for hurting you and for letting him down. I wanted to be what you needed, and I was losing myself in the process. I tried masking it with my studies or with another project."

He didn't want to point out how that made him crazy. There was no use now.

"When the trip to Africa came up, I thought some time away would give me some clarity and make me miss you. But…"

"You didn't miss me. You felt clear and you knew what you wanted," he finished for her.

"Yea," she said.

"I forgive you, Marian. I forgive you for hurting me but I'm not so fast to forgive you for walking out on Roland."

She nodded, "I'm a terrible mother. He deserves better."

"What are you saying?" he watched her look around and fidget. "You're not coming back, are you?"

When she met his eyes, he saw it. "I think I'm going to move to Africa. There are plenty of opportunities and I found someone who…"

"You can love," he finished. "You can leave so easily? I understand me, but Roland? Your blood?"

"Robin, he's always loved you more than me and I've been an awful example of a mother. I couldn't connect to him like I think a mother should. I kept trying and failing at it. I think he belongs to you. I love him but he doesn't need me. This trip has proved that. He's barely said two words to me willingly."

Robin cursed, "What do you expect after you left him here?"

"That's the point if I'd had that connection, I know mothers should have with their sons, he'd have forgiven me. Even at his tender age, he hates me."

"He does not," he argued.

"Yes, he does. I heard him say it to Henry last night." The tears came hot and fresh again. "The tone of his voice was as true as you are looking at me right now." She paused. "I'm leaving in the morning, Robin. I'm gonna finish up this dinner and go back to my hotel."

When she stood, he took her hand. "Marian…" She looked down at him. "Say goodbye and be clear this time." Nodding, she turned to the kitchen.

Later, when the food was gone and the dishes were clear, Robin walked her to the front door. She'd spent twenty minutes in the room alone with Roland. Both exited with tears and pale faces. "What did you say to him?"

Limping behind her, they stepped outside. "I told him that I loved him but that you needed him here and my home was in Africa. That I'd never stop loving him. And, as promised, I said I wasn't coming back. I said goodbye."

"Be sure, Marian. I don't want you coming back later and upsetting him again. Be sure that this is what you want." He leaned his arm against the doorframe to take the weight off his foot.

"I'm sure," she sniffled. "Goodbye, Robin. Is it improper to ask for a hug?"

He paused and then opened his arm for her to wrap around him. He expected the hug to be brief, but it was him to hold on to her tight. To close his eyes and let go of her both in his heart and his arms. When she lifted her face to his, he kissed her on the cheek. "Goodbye, Marian."

He stood there for a long time after she'd gone. He tried to analyze how he was feeling. Saying goodbye to the woman he'd known, loved, and admired. It felt empty. It didn't hurt. It should, he mused. It should hurt to see her go. He only felt relieved.

Roland watched Robin from the window of his room. He stood holding one arm on the house and the other tucked in his pockets. He watched them hug and the kiss he'd given her. But he was glad when she got in the car and left. Now, he stared at his dad and wondered what he was thinking about. When he walked into the house, Roland walked out of the room and down the hall.

Robin sat on the sofa and Roland walked to him. "Are you sad?"

"No, I'm not sad. Are you?"

Roland with his young mind and fragile heart shook his head, "I don't think so. I missed her but she never came. Then she did and I don't miss her anymore."

Robin sighed and understood exactly how he felt. "Come here, buddy."

He embraced his son and they sat together on the couch watching Tv. It was their routine. Their time together and their way of moving past their emotions. It was a closure that needed no words. Just two guys sitting together understanding the other's feelings.