"When was the last time you heard from her?" Katherine asked in French.
"It was a year ago," the man said in French. "The Master asked her to send aide, but she didn't reply."
"That's because she's in prison," Caroline whispered to Daryl and he nodded.
"Now, please, put everything back in his desk."
Connor and Murphy placed what they had removed from the desk back in the drawers, closed the drawers then walked around to the front of the desk.
"Why did he leave in such a hurry?" Katherine asked in French.
"I am not allowed to give out that information. Now, you are to be taken up to your rooms," the man said in French.
"We're not staying."
"Considering one of the cars which was damaged when the Lady attacked was yours, I am afraid you are."
"Is our driver alright?"
"Yes."
"Where is he?"
"He is in the barracks."
"What is your name?"
"I am Maurice," Maurice LeClaire said with a small bow as he switched to English. "Please follow me."
Katherine followed behind Maurice as they headed for the doorway and Caroline and Daryl stood on either side of Connor and Murphy. They left the room as they headed down the hallway and a tense feeling moved through the air. They came to the main hall as Maurice led them to the grand staircase and they walked upstairs. They arrived at the top floor while he led them down the hallway and Daryl noticed the guards near the staircase on each floor.
"So much fer makin' a quick getaway," Daryl whispered to Caroline and she nodded.
They stopped at a pair of white doors as Maurice nodded to the guards and the guard opened the door.
"Gentlemen, this is your room," Maurice said while he looked at Connor and Murphy.
"One of my guards will be staying with them," Katherine said.
"No. Guards stay in the barracks."
He saw the cold look in her eyes as the muscles of Maurice's jaw twitched then he nodded his head.
"Go," she said to Daryl and Daryl followed Connor and Murphy in the room. The guard closed the door while Maurice led Katherine and Caroline to the pair of the white doors and the guard opened the door.
"Ladies," Maurice said with a small bow and Caroline and Katherine walked in the room.
"Nice," Caroline said after she removed the riot helmet. She looked at the elegant furniture, the marble planters in the corners and a dark blue carpet spread over the hard wood floor. Large windows with dark blue curtains were at the back of the room and had metal bars over the glass. Elegant paintings were on the walls and gold chandeliers hung from the ceiling on metal chains.
"The bathroom's in here," Katherine said after she opened the door.
"This must be the closet," Caroline said as she walked to the door. She opened the door when she saw another door and she knocked on the door. She waited for a few seconds then she knocked again and the door opened.
"Hey," Daryl said. He had removed the riot helmet and some of his hair was sticking up.
"Guess he didn't realize we have connecting rooms," Katherine said as she walked by him and headed for Connor.
"We need to find a way outta here," Connor said while he sat on the couch, lowered the hood, shood out his hair and she went to sit on his lap.
"Not gonna be easy with bars on th'windows and those eejits at th'door," Murphy said while he lowered the hood and he shook out his hair.
"Still curious as to why Du Monte needed help from Pamela Milton," Caroline said
"He needed bodyguards," Daryl said.
"How do you know?" Katherine asked.
"This," Daryl said as he walked to the couch and he handed the piece of paper he found on Andre's desk to Connor. Connor looked at the piece of paper as he read the information and frowned.
"What is th'Commonwealth?" Connor asked.
"It's where we live," Caroline said as she and Daryl took turns telling them about the Commonwealth.
"The Commonwealth sounds like most of the places around here," Katherine said.
"She's right. There are a lotta people who think usin' an iron hand will keep people safe and happy," Murphy said.
"Which leads t'civil unrest," Connor said.
"When did he receive that letter?" Caroline asked.
"It was a month before the Commonwealth fell," Daryl said.
"The Commonwealth fell?" came from the doorway as Andre walked in the room and the guard closed the door.
"Yeah. It fell a year ago."
"What happened to Governor Milton?"
"She was put in prison."
"I see."
"Is it true you wanted her to send you bodyguards?" Katherine asked.
"Yes, it is true. Like I told you, I have information which will get me killed. That is why I asked her, and you, for assistance. She had contacted me and assured me she was going to send them, but she never did. Even after I contacted her again and pleaded with her to send them."
Daryl and Caroline looked at each other when something clicked in Daryl's head and Caroline gave him a puzzled look.
"I need to ask you somethin'," Daryl said and Andre nodded for him to continue. "When you first ask Governor Milton fer help, did she tell you the names of the people she was sendin'?"
"She did," Andre said.
"What were their names?" Caroline asked.
"I can't remember their first names, but their last names were the same."
"What was the last name?" Daryl asked.
"Dixon."
Caroline and Daryl felt like they had been punched in the stomach.
"What did you do after she didn't send them?" Daryl asked.
"I sent people to find out why," Andre said.
"People like Captain Hank Trask?" Caroline asked.
"Yes. And I am glad I sent him. He was able to find the people Pamela Milton promised to send me."
"How did he find 'em?" Daryl asked.
"He was in a port town called Oceanside and the dockmaster told him he knew them."
"Did he also tell him what they looked like?" Caroline asked.
"He didn't have to. He reported they were at Oceanside and the dockmaster pointed them out to him. I told him to bring them to me and to pay the dockmaster handsomely for his help."
"How was he gonna get hold of 'em?" Daryl asked.
"Trask reported the dockmaster told him where they lived and how to get there."
"Where did he say they lived?" Caroline asked.
"Some placed called Alexandria. On the way to their location, his advanced scout happened to see them on the road and reported back to him. That was when he set up an ambush to capture the Dixons. He had sent word he had acquired them and I told him to bring them here."
"What was supposed to happen once he returned here with them?" Katherine asked.
"I had one of my people meet him at an arranged location, but he failed to deliver them to me."
"How did that happen?" Caroline asked.
"According to my man, Trask and his men had been rendered unconscious."
"What happened to the Dixons?" Katherine asked.
"The Dixons escaped."
"What did you do with Trask?" Daryl asked.
"I had him and his men executed and their bodies returned to their ship."
"Shit," Caroline whispered.
"Where are the Dixons now?" Katherine asked.
"Like I said, they escaped. I have no idea where they are. And, seeing how I have no idea what they look like, I have no way to find them."
Daryl and Caroline heard the truth in his words as Andre sighed and lightly shook his head.
"Will you please help me?" Andrea asked.
"Only if you will tell us what the information is," Katherine said.
"I will need some time. For now, I invite you to share dinner with me."
"No."
"I assure you that you will not be harmed."
Connor saw the pleading look in Andre's eyes as Connor walked over to Murphy and they locked eyes. They had a silent conversation then Connor walked over to Katherine and she stood.
"When will backup get here?" Connor whispered to her in Latin.
"Not until morning," she whispered to him in Latin.
"Which means we'll have t'trust him."
"Yeah."
Katherine turned to look at Andre when Katherine sighed and lowered her head.
"We'll be honored to share dinner with you," Katherine said.
"Then will you follow me?" Andre asked and they headed for the door. Andre opened the door as they left the room and the guards followed them down the hallway. They went down the grand staircase then headed for the dining hall and the guards opened the doors.
They headed into the dining ball and Andre headed for the head of the long, dark wood table. A white carpet covered the middle of the light wood flooring and the white carpet was etched with gold thread. The dark wood, high back chairs surrounded the table and a white linen runner covered the center of the table. Gold candelabras were evenly spaced over the white linen runner and a crystal bowl filled with shiny pebbles sat at the center of the white linen. Dark wood China cabinets were on either side of the room with framed landscape paintings between the cabinets. White marble planters were in the corners of the room with large leaf plant inside and gold wall lights cast a soft glow in the room. At the back of the room were tall windows with iron bars in front of the glass and dark red curtains were in front of the windows.
Daryl and Caroline looked at the rest of the elegant furniture in the room as Connor, Murphy and Katherine walked to the table and Connor moved one of the high back chairs back so Katherine could sit down. She smiled as he moved the chair to the table then he sat on the chair next to her. Murphy sat on the chair across from his brother and Daryl and Caroline stood near their chairs.
"You may serve," Andre said in French to the butler and the butler made a low bow before leaving the room. Andre looked at Daryl and Caroline when he frowned and tilted his head to one side. "Are you two related?"
"We are brothers," Connor said in Latin and he pointed to Murphy and himself.
"They're brothers," Katherine translated.
"I meant your guards. There is a slight family resemblance," Andrea said as he switched to Englash.
"Yes, they are related."
"I see."
The butler entered the room with a service cart and he placed the bowls of soup in front of Andre, Katherine, Connor and Murphy. Caroline saw the look in Murphy's eyes when she looked at the bowl of soup and he handed her the spoon.
"What are you doing?" Andre asked as he looked at Caroline after she took the spoon from Murphy.
"She is going to taste the soup to make sure you didn't do anything to it," Murphy said in Latin.
"She has to taste his food," Katherine explained.
"I told you I would not harm you," Andre said.
"But you didn't say your staff wouldn't harm us."
Andre sat back in the high back chair as he placed his hands on the arms of the chair and he sighed.
"Now I understand why people say Cardinal and Bishop are paranoid," Andre said in French.
"More like we enjoy being alive," Katherine said in French and he glared at her.
Daryl and Caroline glanced at each other while Andre strummed his fingers on the arms of the high back chair. Andre looked from Murphy to Caroline when he crossed his arms over his chest and snorted a breath of air.
"Then by all means, have her taste the soup," Andre said in English as he looked at Caroline. Caroline scooped some of the soup and she lifted the spoon to her mouth. Murphy shook his head as she placed the spoon in the bowl and Andre smiled. "I see I am right. You care about her."
"Of course, he cares about her. She's his personal guard," Katherine said.
"No, she is more than that. A man has to be blind not to see it."
"Then you truly are blind."
Sighing, Andre started eating. He watched them when Connor stood and Connor headed for the door leading into the kitchen.
"Where are you going?" Andre asked.
"I am going to make us something to eat," Connor said in Latin.
"He's going to make us dinner," Katherine translated and Connor opened the door. Murphy had gotten up as he followed his brother into the kitchen and Katherine stood. She headed for the door as Daryl and Caroline followed her into the kitchen and the door swung back and forth. The kitchen staff gave them surprised looks as Connor headed for the refrigerator. He opened the door while he looked at the food and Murphy stood behind him.
"See anything interestin'?" Murphy asked in Spanish.
"How about this?" Connor asked in Spanish as he removed a plastic container with what looked like sliced beef.
"See any cheese?"
"Yep. And some lettuce, pickles…."
"I don't like pickles."
"Right. You don't."
"I found some bread," Caroline said in Spanish while Katherine took some plates off the counter and Daryl found some silverware in the drawers.
The kitchen staff watched them make sandwiches and one of the cooks told Katherine where the glasses were. Connor found a glass bottle of fresh milk as he poured the milk into the glasses and Murphy cut some fruit into slices. They sat on the stools near the counter when they started eating their dinner and Caroline lightly nudged Murphy.
"Don't you ever do that again," she whispered in Russian with a cold look on her eyes and Murphy nodded, taking a long drink of milk. She lightly nudged him as he smiled and he gave her a wink.
The Commonwealth
Carol walked down the hallway while two guards walked behind her and she headed for Pamela's cell. She knew Pamela was going to deny knowing who A was. Carol stopped at the door to Pamela's cell and the guard opened the door.
"What do you want?" Pamela asked.
"I want you to look at this," Carol said while she walked to Pamela and handed her the crumpled piece of paper. "It was found under the cabinet behind the desk in your old office."
Pamela took the crumpled piece of paper from her as she opened the crumpled piece of paper and she looked at what was written there.
"Do you know who this "A" person is?" Carol asked.
"Yes, I know who they are," Pamela said.
"And here I thought you would deny it."
Pamela glared at her as Carol sighed and Pamela tossed the crumpled piece of paper on the floor.
"When A first contacted me, I was not able to send them the aide they needed. Then you and your people arrived. I had Mercer inform me if there was anyone in your group who might be of service to me and that is when he told me about your friends," Pamela said.
"You mean Daryl and Caroline Dixon," Carol said.
"Yes. They were the perfect candidates."
"If things hadn't fallen apart, you would have sent them to A?"
"Yes. They would have become one of the missing."
"And you didn't' think we wouldn't have noticed?"
"People disappeared around here all the time."
Carol noticed the cold tone in her voice as Carol leaned against the wall and crossed her arms under her breasts.
"What would have happened to Daryl and Caroline once A had gotten their hands on them?" Carol asked.
"What usually happens with bodyguards. They either protect A or they would have died," Pamela said. Carol felt the anger growing inside her and Pamela smiled. "Like I told you earlier. If I were you, I would accept the fact that your friends are not coming back."
One of the guards walked in the cell when he cleared his throat and Carol turned to look at him.
"We have received word from the Governor," he said.
"What does he want?" Carol asked.
"He's gotten word from Oceanside. The Blue Dolphin has arrived."
Carol looked at Pamela then Carol picked up the crumpled piece of paper and left the cell.
With a small growl, Pamela started pacing the cell and she curled her fingers into fists.
The Du Monte Estates
The light from the fireplace caused a dim light in the bedroom while Katherine rested on her left side and she looked toward Caroline standing near the door.
"Are you going to stay there all night? There is a guard at the door," Katherine said.
"Doesn't mean he wouldn't allow someone to come in if Du Monte told them to," Caroline said.
"You have a point. But don't you want to spend some time with Murphy?"
"I do, but…"
"Do you still love him?"
"Yeah."
"Then why don't you want to be with him?"
"For one thing, my brother's in there," Caroline said with a small laugh.
"So's Connor."
"The other thing, I don't want you to be in here alone."
"Then send Connor in here or I can go in there and send Murphy in here."
Caroline felt the blush moving across her cheeks when the door to the connecting room opened and she saw someone standing in the doorway with a gold candlestick in their hand.
"Is Katherine awake?" Connor whispered in Italian.
"Yes," Caroline whispered in Italian.
"Thanks."
She watched Connor heading for Katherine's bed when he placed the candlestick on the night table then he turned to look at Caroline.
"Murphy's waitin'," he said with a sly grin.
"Uh…," Caroline said as she looked at the doorway to the other room.
"Go."
Caroline headed for the door when she walked in the next room and she could just see Daryl standing next to the door to the hallway. She then looked over to the bed where Murphy was sitting against the headboard and she headed for the bed. She could just see he was bare chested and she wondered if he was wearing anything under the bedding.
"I don't have any pajamas," she said.
"You can wear my shirt," Murphy said as he reached under the bedding and held his shirt out to her.
"What if I didn't come in here?"
"I would've dropped it on th'floor."
Daryl and Murphy closed their eyes as Caroline got undressed then she placed the shirt on. She moved the bedding back as she crawled onto the bed and settled next to Murphy. He had slid down onto his back and she tapped his chest. Murphy opened his eyes as she moved the bedding up and rolled onto her right side. He could just see her closing her eyes and he sat up on his elbows to look at Daryl.
"She's in bed," Murphy said and Daryl opened his eyes.
The room became quiet while Daryl leaned against the door and Murphy looked at Caroline. A few minutes passed as she drifted off to sleep and Murphy went onto his back. He looked at the ceiling when he snorted a laugh and Daryl frowned.
"What's so funny?" Daryl asked.
"Jus' remembered this time Caroline spent th'night," Murphy said.
"Hmph."
"Nothin' happened. Well, she came over t'watch a movie after a long shift. Ended up fallin' asleep against me. Didn't want t'wake her so she could go home and I put her in my bed. I did remove her boots, socks, shirt and jeans, but that was it. Stripped down t'my underpants, turned th'lights off and went t'bed."
"Where was Connor?"
"He was over at Rocco's. It was poker night, but I didn't wanna go."
Murphy looked at Caroline when she sighed, rolled over and snuggled against him. Her head came to rest on his chest and Murphy glanced over at Daryl. Daryl nodded and Murphy wrapped his left arm around her.
"Some time durin' th'night, I felt th'bed movin'. Woke up and Caroline was gettin' outta bed. I watched her head fer th'toilet. I didn't watch her pee, but did hear her flush then wash her hands. I thought she was gonna come back t'bed, but she headed fer th'wrong bed," Murphy said with a small grin.
"Why didn't you say somethin'?" Daryl asked.
"I dunno. What made it even funnier was Connor must've come home at some point."
"He was in the other bed?"
"Yep. Sound asleep."
"What happened?"
"She got in bed with him."
"Did either of them wake up?"
"Connor did. He could just see me sittin' there and I pointed for him t'look behind him. He did then he got up and headed fer my bed. We switched beds and went back t'sleep."
"Did you tell her what happened when she woke up?"
"Yeah. She was so embarrassed. Didn't talk t'me fer a week."
"You still shoulda said somethin'."
"Damn right, you shoulda," Caroline grumbled and Murphy kissed the top of her head.
"Remember what you and Connor did t'get back at me?" Murphy asked and she half-opened her eyes to look at him.
"You had to sit all night on the roof with nothin' on, but yer underpants. Lucky fer you it was summer and it didn't rain that night."
Daryl snorted a laugh as Murphy smiled and Caroline closed her eyes. The room became quiet as Murphy moved his fingers up and down her left upper arm then he made a deep sigh.
"Can I ask you summat?" Murphy asked while looking at Daryl.
"What do you wanna know?" Daryl asked.
"Caroline told me she made a lot of new friends after th'world fell. One of 'em is Carol. Who's Carol?"
"She's…. Carol is a force of nature."
Murphy heard the pain in his voice.
"She's more than that," Murphy said.
"Yeah, she is."
"Is she always on yer mind?"
"Yeah."
"Do you feel empty without her?"
"Yeah."
"Is she th'reason you wanna go home?"
"One of 'em," Daryl said then he yawned. Murphy glanced at him then at Caroline and Caroline moved her fingers over his chest.
"Go t'bed," Murphy said, closing his eyes.
"I'm good," Daryl said.
"No, you're not."
Daryl looked at the other bed when he pushed off the door, walked to the bed and sat on the edge of the bed. He removed his boots and moved the bedding back when he stretched out on the bed and he rolled onto his right side. Daryl looked at the darkness then moved the bedding up and he listened to the soft crackling sound of the fire. Yawning, he closed his eyes and he slowly drifted off to sleep. Murphy glanced over at him while Caroline's fingers moved over his chest and Murphy made a stuttered sigh before he closed his eyes and held the palm of her hand against his chest.
Oceanside
The gate opened while Duncan Keller stood on the porch of the command center and he placed his hands on the railing. He watched as the carriage headed for the command center and the Commonwealth soldiers rode on the horses on either side of the carriage.
The carriage came to a stop and Duncan walked to the carriage door. He felt the eyes of the Commonwealth guards on him as Duncan opened the carriage door and he was surprised to see not only Carol, but Mercer and Hornsby. Duncan stepped back while Carol, Mercer and Hornsby got out of the carriage and Duncan saw the anger in Carol's eyes.
"Did you detain the Blue Dolphin like I asked?" Carol asked.
"Yes. I also put the crew in holding," Duncan said.
"Take us to holding," Mercer said.
"I'd do what he says if I were you," Lance said with a grin.
Trying hard not to growl, Duncan nodded and they headed toward the one-story cement building. The guard opened the door as they walked inside and headed down the hallway.