"I don't -" The words seemed to tumble from her lips as she struggled to make sense of how quickly things had changed. What had happened in the span of a few moments. What had Mallet told him. How had he-

"Save it, Marina!" He shouted at her, his voice booming throughout the sparsely furnished room, its walls only magnifying the deep timber of his tone. "Whatever lie you're trying to concoct, whatever story you're coming up with, you can save it. Save yourself the trouble and save us both the time. I know better."

"Shayne, if you'll just"- She struggled to follow his maniacal pace around the room, watching as he grabbed all of his belongings and shoved them into the messenger bag- the one still stained with his blood. "You don't understand." Her breath caught suddenly as she was forced to stop, his body freezing in front of her and whirling around, his face mere inches from hers.

The eyes she'd looked into so many times now stared at her with disdain. "I know what I heard," he growled. His jaw trembled, as he clenched his teeth together and struggled to keep his anger at bay. "Don't lie to me anymore. I deserve to know."

She swallowed hard before managing a tentative nod. "You do," she whispered, "And you're right. She is with him. I …"

"I know that, Marina. That's not what I asked you. Where are they?"

"I don't know," she said quietly, dread washing over her as the words left her lips. He wouldn't believe her and, in truth, she didn't blame him. She'd been keeping this secret from him for way too long and now any hope she had of him trusting her was gone. Why would he take her word on this?

"Marina." His voice shook as he glared at her, his anger so visceral that it somehow seemed to seep from his pores. "I know you know more than you're telling me and I know you've known for a long time, so the least you could do is be honest with me now. You know how hard this has been for me. You've seen what I've been going through and you've sat here and watched it all the while knowing exactly where she is and you could have …."

"I'm sorry," she whispered, the words barely audible through the oncoming sob. "I didn't want to hurt you and I was …"

"You're sorry?!" Clenching his fists, he drew in a breath before slamming the bedside table into the wall. "You're sorry?!" he repeated. "Is that supposed to make this okay? That you're sorry?"

"Shayne," she stepped closer to him, reaching out to touch him, desperate to do something, anything to explain. He jerked away from her, retreating to the corner of the room.

"What's the problem in here?"

Marina turned towards the sound of the voice. Her shoulders sagged in relief at the sight of the nurse that stood in the doorway. "I'm sorry," she said quickly. "He just received some upsetting news and he's …"

"She's been lying to me for months and she still is. She's standing right there acting like she's helpful and concerned and she's still lying to my face and to your face and to everyone here when she says she wants what's best for me. What she really means is that she wants what she thinks is best for me, but she doesn't get to decide that. I decide. I choose and I want the truth … now."

"Mr. Lewis, I understand that there is a lot going on here, but in order for us to discharge you, you have to be stable and right now, I can't sign off on that, so if you want to leave these premises, I recommend you get back in that bed, take some deep breaths, and try to calm down. I'm going to come back in about 15 minutes and see how you're doing and if you're calming, I can take those vitals and hopefully we can get you on your way." She nodded as she turned back towards Marina. "And I think you and I should take a little stroll out to the waiting area."

"I just need a minute with -"

"You just need to step outside for a bit," the nurse interrupted, her tone polite, but firm.

Marina sighed, watching as Shayne's cold glare followed her out of the room.

"Try not to take it too personally."

She felt her body jerk at the unexpected contact, her mind far too frantic and crazed to have even registered the nurse's attempts at soothing her. "What?" she managed, barely able to meet her gaze.

"He's working through it the only way he can right now. He has to get through all that anger before we can get anywhere near the root of it. In a way, this is actually a good thing and I know that's not easy to watch and it's a lot easier for someone like me to say than it is to actually live through, but …"

The nurse's face was kind and compassionate. Her lips moved slowly, patiently as she said still more words that all seemed to blend together into a sea of noise. She managed a nod to feign understanding, hoping against hope that she'd simply leave. She meant well - everyone always did. Even she had, when she'd kept this all from Shayne in the first place, but it didn't change the reality. It didn't change the facts. Dinah was with Mallet, somewhere in Europe, and she was carrying Shayne's child.

There was no need for deep psychoanalysis here. She knew exactly what had driven Shayne to this point. He had found out the truth. The only thing left to discover was if he knew everything and if it could possibly get any worse.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" His heart ached as he watched her, her hands gripping her knees as she pulled them tight against her chest and tried to and gently rolled her neck from side to side.

"No," she whispered. "I'll be fine."

"You really look like you're hurting." The concern in his voice was palpable. This had been precisely what he'd been trying to avoid. This stress was the number one reason he'd wanted to stay away from Springfield and all the drama that they'd left behind. She didn't need this - especially now.

"It's just a headache," she said softly. "It'll pass. It always does."

"The doctor said that the non prescription stuff was safe, especially if you used it sparingly. Maybe if you just took one and -" He stopped, already seeing the resolve on her face.

"I don't want to take anything. I'll be fine. I'll just sit here for a bit and try to relax and everything will be fine. I'm sure it's just …" She let the words fade, not wanting him to feel any guilt for this. He'd told her the truth, something she always wanted him to do.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I know none of this is easy for you. I wish there was something I could say or do to make it better, but I think you know that this really is the only way that everyone stays safe."

She nodded. "I know. It's just … it's hard to think about, Mallet. I know that you will be a great father to this baby, but part of me can't help but think how horrible I felt when I was growing up, not knowing who my father was. And then finding him all those years later, and realizing that I'd missed out on all those years because my mother hadn't told him. I was so angry with her. I felt like she'd cheated me out of so much." Her eyes filled with tears as she looked at him. "What if that's how my child feels about me? What if there's a day where I'm staring into my own child's eyes as they ask me how I could have lied to them, how I could have kept the truth from their father?"

"You know that I'm not going to pressure you into anything. If you've changed your mind and you've decided that you want to tell Shayne the truth, I'll be there to support you, but if you're asking me for my opinion …" He brought his hand to her cheek and lightly brushed away the tears. "I think you would tell your child that you were doing what you had to do to make sure they were safe, that you wanted to make sure no one would take them away from you, and that you were making sure that as long as they were with you they would be safe and happy and loved. I wish someone had done that for you when you were growing up. I think if they had, you might not have been so angry with your Mom for what she did. I'm so sorry you went through everything that you did, but I can do that for you now. I can make sure that you and this baby are safe, and I can make sure that neither of you are ever alone again." He paused to pull her closer to him, hating to see the pain that was so evident on her face. "I don't know if that's enough, but …"

"Mallet," she breathed, "It's more than enough. I just wish I knew if I was doing the right thing. I'm just so afraid that my child will grow up to be as angry with me as I was with my parents."

He let his lips brush her forehead as he held her against his chest. "You know what," he said softly. "You don't have to figure all this out now. Let's just get this little one here and then you can reevaluate and see if you feel differently. Right now, let's just focus on a happy, healthy baby and a happy healthy you, okay?" He felt her deep exhale and allowed his own body to relax a bit.

"Tell you what," he said, as he leaned back and let her body rest against the sofa cushions. "I'm gonna go make a pot of that tea you like, okay? Maybe it'll help with the headache."

She managed a weak smile which still somehow made her eyes sparkle.

As he stepped into the kitchen, he felt the familiar vibration of his phone. He placed the phone on the countertop, glancing at the screen as he reached for the kettle. Marina's face flashed across quickly and he pressed accept as he darted into the pantry.

"Marina?" he whispered.

"Mallet, what the hell?!"

"Marina," he hissed. "Can you keep your voice down, please? Dinah is -"

"I know damn well where Dinah is and so does Shayne. That's why I'm calling. I want to know why the hell you told him she was with you. Why would you do that Mallet? What the hell were you thinking?"