The ringing doorbell caught Shane by surprise. He wondered who could be ringing the bell after dark, but then remembered it was Halloween. Of course, the neighborhood kids would be out in force. Smiling slightly, he decided to go to the foyer. Perhaps he could even beat Simmons, who undoubtedly had a large bowl of candy ready for eager trick-or-treaters.
The doorbell actually was a welcome distraction. After Kim had left, Shane had tried to rest, but his mind kept going back to that brief moment with Kim earlier in the evening. He could still feel the soft skin of her cheek and the pressure on his hand as she leaned into his touch.
And then she had pulled away. Again, he had been left to wonder what he could do to convince her that he wanted to be with her, that he wanted their family to be complete.
With those thoughts rushing through his head, Shane had given up on rest and had decided to go back to library, though he had little idea of what he would do once there. He had only just reached that room when the doorbell rang.
"I have it, sir," Simmons said, breaking Shane out of his reverie. Shane had reached the foyer, but the butler was already opening the door to reveal a six-foot tall gorilla.
"Trick or treat," came a voice that Shane instantly recognized. Jack Devereaux.
Shaking his head, Shane asked, "Jack, what the devil are you doing here? Especially looking like that?"
"Haven't you heard?" Jack said, removing his gorilla head. His own head, now exposed, looked tiny surrounded by the giant shoulders of the animal costume. "It's Halloween. All Hallows Eve. Also known as Samhain in your neck of the woods."
It was amazing how quickly Jack could become irritating. In the span of two sentences, Shane was already glaring. "I know what day it is. That doesn't explain why you're here."
"Okay, okay." Jack raised his furry hands. "I'm here because I want to talk to you, and I figured the costume would help me get in the door so-to-speak. I figure you probably have all sorts of security that would zap me before I made it to the front steps."
Shane rolled his eyes. "It does cut down on door-to-door solicitors."
Jack suddenly looked rather nervous. "Do you really?"
"No, Jack, I don't shoot people for coming to the front door." Shane knew he sounded exasperated.
"Oh. . . ." Jack actually sounded disappointed. "I just figured . . . an ex-ISA guy like you. . . ."
"Ex-ISA guy?" Shane said with a pointed look.
Jack flushed red. "Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that. You know I'm sorry about that article and would take it back if I could."
Shane did not really want to rehash the article. "Jack. . . ." He took a deep breath. "Just tell me what you're doing here?"
"I . . . uh. . . ." Jack paused as if suddenly deliberating if he should answer the question. Apparently, answering won out over not answer. "Shane, I wanted to see if you'd consent to an interview with the Spectator. The public's heard from everyone else and-"
Shane cut him off abruptly. "Out!"
"Wait!" Jack said. "I'm just trying to help."
"No, Jack." Shane pointed at the door. "I'm not giving interviews, and that's final. I've told you before, so there's no point continuing to pester me."
Jack frowned. "But I even wore a gorilla suit-"
"Out!"
Jack let out a dramatic breath, turned, and stepped through the door. "Fine. But if you change your-" His words got cut off as Simmons shut the door.
"I'm sorry, sir," he said. "I assumed it was children from the neighborhood."
Shane nodded as he started back to the library. He was halfway to his desk when he heard the front door open. Not again, he thought. Jack Devereaux just couldn't take no for an answer.
"Jack, if you-"
He stopped short as he turned to the library door and saw Kim standing there.
"Kim. . . what are you doing back?" He looked at the clock, which showed it was only a little more than an hour since Kim had left the house. Worried, Shane asked, "Is everything okay with the kids?"
"They're fine," she said. "Simmons has Jeannie, and Andrew is going to spend the night on the boat with Bo and Shawn Douglas."
Shane studied Kim, still confused. "Are you okay? I mean, I can't imagine you leaving a family party so early."
Kim sighed and entered the room. "I . . . I'm okay, at least, I think I am. Or I will be. I guess I'll have to be."
"Kim, I don't understand."
"No, I guess you don't." Kim gave him a soft smile that betrayed some sadness. "There's something I need to talk to you about. Something I need to . . . confess."
Now even more confused, Shane stepped toward her. "What do you mean?"
Kim took his free hand and pulled him to the sofa. "I think you should sit down." He could tell from her demeanor that she was nervous and afraid, and his mind involuntarily flashed back to the day he had confronted her after learning that Victor might be Andrew's father. As he had told her that he had seen her on the cameras at Victor's house, Kim had shown the same type of nervousness and fear.
His own nerves jangled, Shane took a seat. "Kim-"
"No, please," she said. "Let me talk. I've gone over and over in my head how I was going to tell you this and, well, I just need to get it out there, so, please, just listen."
Shane felt a rush of cold down his spine. He did not like this. But he remained silent.
"It has to do with Cal," Kim said. She stopped to take a deep breath. "When he had me and Kayla." She was pacing now and not looking at Shane. "He threatened to kill her. He was going to take me, but he was going to kill her. And he was going to kill the children."
Shane had to speak up. "I would never have let Cal hurt the children."
Kim shook her head. "He was so close, remember. Remember the pictures. He could have done it, and I knew that was why he was still in Salem. He said he wanted to eliminate my links to the past. That's what he called them." Tears formed in her eyes. "Andrew and Jeannie . . . my links to the past - to you," she said, facing Shane once more.
"But it was just a threat," Shane said. "Cal's gone."
"But he wasn't then." Kim shook her head again. "Oh, he was so real. And I knew . . . I knew if he hurt Kayla or one of the kids or you. . . . I wouldn't have been able to live with it." A lone tear ran down her cheek. "I had to do it, Shane. I had to."
Shane felt his chest constrict. Slowly, he asked, "What . . . what did you do?"
Kim looked away and her face turned red. When she spoke, he could hear the shame in her voice. "I told him I'd go with him - voluntarily. I said I'd do whatever he wanted."
"You were just saying what you had to to protect Kayla," Shane said.
"That's not it." Kim's voice rose sharply. "Don't you understand? I didn't just say I'd do it. I would have. I was ready to give myself to him. I even tried to at the hangar, but Kayla stopped me. If you hadn't shown up when you did, we would have been gone, and I would have done it without a second thought." Kim turned to face him. "I would have done it."
The room fell silent for a moment.
"Do you hear me, Shane?" she asked. "I would have gone with Cal. I would have been his willing whore."
Shane felt the room spin a little as he tried to let her words sink in, but Kim did not stop. Her eyes locked on his as she finished.
"I would have been his whore, Shane - and if that's what it took to keep my family safe, I wouldn't have regretted it for a second."