Author's note: Thanks for all of your lovely reviews again :) I'm currently re-considering the development of the whole story, but I promise to update as soon as I've got everything sorted out in my head.
Btw: This chapter is inspired by Florence and the Machine's song "Take Care". Some of the lyrics respond very well to Victoria's and David's relationship.
But now enjoy :)
Conrad Grayson was quite pleased with himself.
Playing the loving husband and father whose trust had been betrayed by a two-faced employee had definitely been the right choice.
He was sitting in his study enjoying a late night drink which had sort of become a new habit of his.
Conrad had been astonished about how easy it had been to convince David Clarke's secretary Lydia Davis to help him spin the heartbreaking story they were telling the world. In fact, a secure position in the company and a check had been enough to make her report all kinds of fake meetings with potential terrorists or question the accuracy of David's accounting. Once, she had seen all the benefit resulting from that deal, she had forgotten about her loyalty to Mr Clarke instantly.
Conrad wished that Victoria would act just like her. The odd thing was that usually his wife was open to any form of bribery if it worked for her advantage. In the case of David Clarke however her brain seemed to make her take entirely different decisions.
Reminded of the more than complicated situation with Victoria, he took another sip from the Bourbon in his glass.
Conrad didn't want to admit it but the alcohol made him feel better. In a way, it helped him lift the weight off his shoulders and feel optimistic about reuniting his family again. As a child he had always wondered why his father had been drinking alone in the living room but now he understood.
Glancing down at the well-written press statement lying on his desk in front of him, he couldn't help but smile. He imagined how devastated David must be thanks to his tearful TV appearance including several destructive accusations against him. He also liked to imagine Victoria panicking and calling him to beg him to leave Daniel and her out of the whole trial.
Yes, Conrad was sure that his wife would soon surrender, given the gloomy future that her lover was inevitably facing. It was only a matter of time until she would contact him, desperately wanting her old life back.
As if on cue, the phone started ringing just that moment.
My dear, I'd be glad to welcome you back home. Conrad thought to himself, confidently picking up the receiver.
"Yes, Grayson." He murmured while taking another gulp from the crystal glass in his hand.
"You will pay for this, Conrad Grayson." A low voice came from the other end of the line.
Conrad decided to listen before he could say something stupid.
"I know that it was you who laundered that money. You won't get away with that. Justice will be delivered as you so appropriately pointed out."
Instinctively Conrad let a smile creep across his face as he recognized his biggest rival's voice.
"Ah, Mr Clarke, I'm honored that you're calling me because obviously my strategy seems to work."
There was a short time of silence after that. David regretted being so driven by his anger when he realized that he was playing right into Conrad's hands.
"Hello, Mr Clarke, are you still there?" Conrad mocked already feeling in a superior position.
"No one will believe that I am a terrorist, Mr Grayson. That is simply ridiculous. And if you ask your wife, she will tell the truth about us, about everything that you've put us through." David tried to stay calm but it was hard for him to sound self-assured while he couldn't even be certain that his relationship with Victoria would survive this crisis.
Conrad chuckled. "Oh I'm not sure about that. See, it's pretty stupid of you to call me, the man who hates you more than anyone else in this world, because you make it so much easier for me to determine your location now.
Mr Clarke, I had thought more of you. I imagined you to be sort of smarter since you've seduced my wife, as you so appropriately pointed out, and kidnapped my son. I can only assume now that the credits for the whole thing belong to Victoria's sharp mind after all. If there's one thing I'm 100 percent sure of, it's that my charming wife is more intelligent than most people expect her to be. Speaking of the devil: How is Victoria?" He paused for a second, but David obviously didn't know how to respond so he continued. "Has she already lost interest in using you as her little puppet? Is she already complaining about how she can't eat at her favorite restaurant or buy that new Dior dress? I for one feel sorry for her. Being with a penniless man has never been her preferred kind of lifestyle."
David was fuming. That call definitely didn't go the way he had wanted it to go. Thus he tried to prevent more damage. "This is senseless. Just remember that I will fight and won't go down because of you or your money, Mr Grayson. Good bye."
Conrad then let out a loud laugh. "Very impressive, Mr Clarke. Just one more second." He said ironically. "Would you be so kind and tell my lovely wife that I miss her and my darling son very much and that they can feel free to return home whenever they like. Better sooner than later though."
"You're a sick man." And with that David aggressively ended the call but not before Conrad could make his vision of the future clear to him. "See you behind bars, Mr Clarke."
The last thing David heard was Conrad Grayson's cruel laugh and the echo of his diminishing choice of words being stuck in his head.
Victoria's eyelids fluttered open as she awoke from her restless sleep.
She couldn't remember drifting off to the land of dreams as her thoughts had constantly been circling around the great danger she had put David in.
However, she was lying in bed now with her short summer nightgown on and Daniel resting in her arms.
It was still dark outside and when she tried to sit up a bit she also noticed that she still felt bad.
Very bad. She had hoped that David would have come back within the next hour after their fight but he had stayed away leaving Victoria to nothing but the blame she placed on herself for deceiving him. Luckily, the room had air conditioning so at least the heat of the day was not afflicting her anymore.
Slowly she moved Daniel from her arms onto the fluff pillows and sat up wrapping her arms around her knees. What was she to do now? She couldn't bear David breaking up with her and then seeing him being framed as a ruthless terrorist.
Although it was probably the worst possibility of all, she felt the urge to call Conrad and tell him that she was willing to come back home with Daniel if he dropped the case against David and looked for a different solution to resolve the scandal instead. Of course, she wouldn't be able to be with David then, but at least he could move on with his life as a free man and she could go back to being rich but unhappy and somehow make her husband believe that the child she was carrying was his.
It sounded so easy but deep down in her heart Victoria felt that the only thing she truly wanted was to be with David regardless of all the difficulties that stood in their way.
She sighed heavily when suddenly a voice pulled her out of her self-destructive thoughts.
"Victoria?" He asked soberly.
"Yes? David?" Her voice was spilling with relief. He had come back after all, but she hadn't noticed because she had been asleep.
"Come over here." He demanded in a serious tone.
Therefore Victoria simply obeyed and slipped out of bed to make her way towards David who was resting on the sofa at the other end of the room.
When she reached the pink piece of furniture, she stood there like an insecure teenager brushing her long dark hair.
"Come on, don't pretend to be shy now." David pulled back the thin sheets and indicated Victoria to lie down next to him.
Without saying a word she crawled onto the couch not quite sure how to act.
She studied his face analyzing every little wrinkle that could possibly reveal his current state of mind. Much to her dissatisfaction, he kept his poker face and only lay in silence peering at her with his hypnotic blue eyes.
"Are you still mad?" She finally asked innocently.
David let out a sigh. "Of course I am. I've been betrayed by so many people and in so many ways. How could I not be mad?" He answered truthfully and immediately recognized the guilt shimmering in Victoria's dark brown eyes.
"I know. I am so sorry for ruining your life. If it wasn't for me, Conrad would've chosen to destroy someone else's existence." Victoria was ready to stand up again since she couldn't bear being anywhere near the man she had hurt so deeply.
"But it has been my own decision to be with you, Vic." David stopped her from leaving. "I've always known that someday I would have to face Conrad and risk my reputation being ruined. But I've also always known that you are worth it and that's why I've decided to forgive you, Vic. I know how stubborn you can be at times and that you only had the best for us in mind." He comfortingly wrapped his arms around his lover's body and pulled her close to him. "And of course also because I love you. I wouldn't go through all of this if I wasn't absolutely sure that you are the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with. " David whispered and pressed a kiss on top of her head. He had decided beforehand not to mention his conversation with Conrad because he didn't want to stress Victoria more than their whole situation already had.
Victoria was amazed by David's good character and his unconditional love for her and she felt ashamed for seriously thinking about going back to Conrad only a few minutes ago.
"Are you sure David? I don't know if I'm able to forgive myself for what I've done to you and Amanda."
David noticed she was trembling again and pulled her even closer to him closing the space between their two bodies. Feeling her bare skin through the thin material of her night gown which ended just above her mid-thigh was enough to send shivers through his whole body.
God, she was gorgeous. He never wanted to let her go. No matter what she did, he could never stay mad at her.
"David?" Victoria's hands wandered up to his neck where she began to gently stroke his blonde locks.
"It's necessary that you forgive yourself, Victoria. We need to be happy, we deserve that. No one should be able to ruin our relationship so easily. We have to be strong." He suddenly remembered what he originally wanted to say. "And I think we both know that we will be caught eventually. There is no way to escape Conrad and the police now, but I agree with you that we should try to run away from them as long as we can. We need that time to be together and figure out a way to defeat Conrad and his army of lawyers so that we can come out of this nightmare as a family." He pressed another tender kiss to her head as his hands soon found the hem of her nightgown sliding it up her body.
Victoria automatically let a gasp escape her mouth at the soft touch of his hands on her skin.
David smiled against her hair when he felt her grip tightening in his neck.
Victoria was caught by surprise as he stopped removing the gown just below her breasts. Instead he tilted her chin up causing her to look right into his eyes while he carefully placed a hand on her abdomen.
"I'm sorry for questioning you earlier, Vic. I didn't mean it, I was just so outraged. I won't let you down during your pregnancy. But you have to let me take care of you. I know that you're fierce and independent but please Victoria, don't deny me the chance to provide for this family and be a father our child can be proud of some day." He lovingly moved his hand over her body although her stomach was still pretty much flat.
"I promise." She whispered breathlessly focusing on his deep blue eyes. It was truly a miracle how this man could make her feel lost and hopeless one moment only to show her deep affection the next. In an instant she had forgotten about returning home to Grayson Manor because she realized in that moment that the only place that felt like home to her was David. She always felt safe and appreciated around him.
Not taking her eyes off his face, Victoria placed her hand on top of his feeling the adoration that shot through both of their bodies.
David then closed his lips around hers in a longing kiss which she naturally returned with the same passion. He started running his fingers up and down her exposed thigh until he carefully pulled her on top of him.
Victoria's breathing soon grew erratic when he encircled his arms around her back forcing her to stay close to his body so that his lips could make their way down from her face and to her cleavage gently sucking at her creamy flesh.
She was already fumbling with the waistband of his underwear when David took her hands and stopped her.
Irritated, she glanced up at her lover, desire clearly filling her eyes.
"I know. I'd love to continue, too." He laughed quietly guiding her down to lie next to him in a relaxed position again. "But I still need to tell you something." David kept his fear of also waking Daniel or Amanda to himself because he knew all too well that Victoria was a person who always voiced her pleasure quite noisily.
When he saw the disappointed expression painted all over her face, he began to explain himself. "You have to be aware of the fact that we can't continue our affair like we did in the Hamptons. We have to deal with serious problems now."
"Yes, I understand that." Victoria replied settling in David's intimate embrace.
"Okay, so listen to me, this is very important. When we get up in the morning, I want you to walk over to that cupboard." He pointed towards the door. Victoria didn't get what he was aiming at so she simply nodded waiting for further details.
"I placed a white envelope on there. You need to keep that envelope somewhere safe in your purse because it contains a phone number you'll have to dial sooner or later. When the time comes and I'll be arrested you'll have to call that number and ask for help. That's the only chance I can survive the case with the hope of not losing it right on the first day of the trial."
"Whose number is it?" Victoria wanted to know curiously.
"I can't tell you. You'll find out soon enough, I guess. Just do what I've told you, okay?" David caringly tucked one of her dark curls behind her ear.
"Yes, I will do anything to save you." She answered determinedly although she was still suspicious of why David was refusing her to reveal the person to whom the number belonged.
"Good." He pressed a thankful kiss onto her lips. "There's something else. Do you remember when I told you about my aunt Charlotte who owns that farm in Kansas?"
"Of course, you've always spoken very fondly of her." Again Victoria didn't know what exactly her lover had in mind.
"Well, I considered our options and I think it would be a good idea to visit her. Her house is big enough for all of us and situated in the middle of nowhere. It'll take them ages to find us there." A confident smile spread across David's face as he waited for Victoria's answer.
Given the lack of ideas on her own to solve their problems, she accepted his suggestion.
"I think you might be right. Let's take the kids and disappear." She quickly returned his smile.
"Trust me, that'll turn out great. We'll have our privacy there and I'm sure that Aunt Charlotte will be happy to help us. She's a great woman. Sleep well, Victoria. I love you." David instantly felt her body relaxing against his and her now steady breathing brushing against throat.
"I love you, too." She whispered before she drifted off to sleep again, desperately trying to believe that what he was promising her was true.
But she knew that her husband would stop at nothing to track them down and once he had, he would rip them apart and make sure that David would never get out of jail again.
He wouldn't be able to take care of her then like he had promised, so as much as Victoria wanted to make him happy, she also had to prepare for what was coming at them in the nearer future and she certainly wouldn't rely on that mysterious phone number David had given her alone.
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