TIES THAT BIND

Chapter 10

She had kept asking if he was sure, did he really want to do this, was it for the right reasons he didn't have to, not for her anyway, he could stay in if he wanted, maybe go for another promotion, she'd never slept with a Major, it might be different, more bossy she'd giggled making him laugh, shaking his head as he got out of bed stretching out his shoulders, telling her that being a Major would just give him more people he could bark orders at, put them on latrine clean if they didn't follow them. Apart from the fact she wasn't even in the army he thought it extremely unlikely that she would follow any order of his regardless of his rank, she hadn't when he was second Lieutenant, a Lieutenant or a Captain so being a Major would probably have little effect, although it might be worth more points waggling his eyebrows, sniggering as he turned to look at her, the look of confusion, shaking his head throwing it back laughing at her lack of knowledge of army humour. Lobbing a cushion at him demanding an explanation, then wanting to know if he had been tempted, you know, shag a private so she got her 50 points, reminding her that she was the only one who would get the points and after what they had just done it must surely be worth at least that, it was for him anyway as another cushion, this time perfectly aimed, hit the back of his head as he made his way to the ensuite, unable to stop the wide grin spreading across his face.

The day had arrived he was due to leave what had been a huge part of his life for more than a decade, to be in the army was what he had always wanted but now was the time to say goodbye to the men he served with, hand back his uniforms and passes, only his operational medals left, stored in a box in the bottom of his wardrobe along with photos, letters and memories of his time in a service he had taken great pride in. He hadn't realised it would be so hard, his sections throwing him a leaving do, a raucous affair reminiscing of tours and exercises, of colleagues past and present, how they were bonded by a war and would keep in touch. Sergeants King and Kinders, had excelled themselves, tracking down colleagues from his Sandhurst days, grinning as he welcomed Blue, Elvis and Bones, how had they kept this do a secret from him. The men who had served with him in Hong Kong and Sierra Leone some he hadn't seen for years. The men he served with more recently in Iraq and Afghanistan, pleased to see Dangleberries had come. It would be nice if they meant it, kept in touch, let him know how they were getting on from time to time, some of them just out their teens when they became part of his command. He was leaving a life that had probably changed him beyond all recognition from the impressionable boy that had joined and spent 44 weeks trying to be a decent officer. The one influenced by his father and his friends, how he thought of them, how they made a difference, he had wanted to be just like them. He had always told Molly that the army was a family, where they always looked out for the man next to them, he sighed, he really did hope they kept in touch now and again, just to let him know how they were doing. He was doing the right thing for him, he knew that, but he was leaving a family that had played an important part in his life, the night was mixed with laughter and some sadness on his part, this was the end of something he once enjoyed but didn't believe was his future.

-OG-

The conversation with Molly in their kitchen, the ones that followed, after he watched her shoot a man in the foot made him open his eyes, finally understanding the life she had been brought up in, even if she didn't play a part in it these days. She wanted him to be proud of her, run a pukka business, her whispered words echoing in his head, as she told him she loved him and didn't want him dragged into the life, kybosh his career and lose what he always wanted. Even he could see it had been never about trust, it was because she loved him enough to change who she was, or try to. It also made him realise there could be someone, one day, that would come for her and the family again, want to remove them and he needed to be home, wanted to be there. He knew without a shadow of doubt she would play her part; his loyal Molly would do what needed to be done to protect the family and she included him as part of that, maybe Fred had been right and she really would have found a way out there after he had been shot, when Molly got the bit between her teeth nothing seemed to stop her, absolutely no regard for her own safety. No matter how scared he was when he saw her do some of the things her instinct told her needed doing, that sick feeling in the pit of his stomach when he recalled her words "only Jacs and me left standing" made him want to be there if there was a next time. He didn't care that she kept telling him she was as hard as nails and could look after herself, that business with Derek and the guns, racing to Gary with only a baseball bat, Baxter and then all that had happened since Jack; he shook his head as he snorted a laugh, 'hard as nails' she scared the living daylights out of him sometimes. He couldn't begin to contemplate a life without her in it. Her need to fix people, solve a family crisis with no regard for her own safety had him tearing his hair out, drove him insane with an anger only she could instil in him, but then she would surprise him and bring some homeless soul and his dog out the rain and into the bar giving him a hot drink and organising a cooked meal, even sent one of doormen out to get dog food and take the wet bedding and clothes to the launderette round the corner, who nodded in resignation as if it wasn't the first time he'd been asked to do this. Jac's telling him the old boy had been on the streets for years, couldn't get a place in a hostel because of the dog, Molls often brought him in to dry off if it was raining, "Cor that dog don't half pen and ink" she'd berated shaking her head "Nothing worse than damp dog, that aint had a bath in years" and he had to agree; well apart from an Afghan shitter, that could make your eyes water. The old boy must have sat in the corner with his dog at his feet for a couple of hours watching the rehearsals, before a doorman came over with all his worldly goods, all washed and dried for him. He asked who the man was but apart from his name being Bill and the dog was Monty none of them knew, just that he had been there years, never told them why, figured if he wanted them to know he would tell them. She was a conundrum alright; one he would never tire of.

He couldn't be any surer of his decision, had thought the army was his life, craved it at one time. But it was time to stop living out of a Bergan, not be sent off for months on end, sometimes at a moment's notice, where the food was questionable and the accommodation worse. He'd loved his time at Sandhurst, made some lifelong friends. The tours which got him his promotions to Captain, the ups and downs it brought, but it was definitely time, the army was changing, he was tired and he needed to do something else before it messed him up completely, a dusty road in Iraq had seen to that. Those last tours in Afghanistan had proved he was still fit enough, that he could focus, but with each tour a little bit more of him felt like it was vanishing as he tried to lock down what he had seen, to keep remaining emotionally detached, to not get involved, the distrust or maybe hatred in the eyes of some of the people he was there to protect, wondering if he was imagining things. Sometimes he felt, some of that detachment was creeping into his life with Molly when he came home. When he didn't want to talk about it, shutting her out with his moods, Elvis had been right, he did sanitise what he told her, not because he didn't think she would understand or cope with the knowledge, but because it was him, he didn't want to think about it or remember. It was definitely time, before he lost everything as he kept himself detached from his men, what he saw, not allowing himself to think of Molly and home in case he lost focus, taking that lack of emotion home with him, taking longer each time to adapt back to a life where he wasn't on constant alert there were people who wanted to kill him and his men, the guilt, the fear, all of it getting harder to shake off. The feelings, still fresh in his mind that he could have lost her in that shooting, or what came after, was enough to remind him that he needed her in his life. She was the one that kept him focused, listened when he told her things, even if he did keep a lot of it back, held him tight when he had a nightmare. His commission wasn't the most important thing in his life, she was and the life they had together.

-OG-

They packed up and moved to the suburbs, although you could still see London in the distance when they went out walking with Teddy and definitely not far enough away for him, if only to get her away from that life, he would move them to the outer Hebrides if he could, but he did love the house, their own little oasis where they could shut out the world, just like they had in their apartment only this was more spacious, greener and the air smelt cleaner. He'd never appreciated just how big the forest actually was, how many different routes he could run through, how much wildlife there was and so close to a huge city.

The move hadn't been entirely stress free and their furniture looked lost in the large open plan ground floor and he'd been dragged round department stores to fill the empty rooms. When they bought the apartment Molly had said it didn't have to be their forever home, it was an investment and without a doubt it had been, it certainly paid for a chunk of this one, they both loved it, from the second they saw it. She'd asked him if he ever thought about going back home, to live in Bath. The question caught him by surprise, came out the blue when they were sat at a café on one of their walks with Teddy. He'd left Bath to go to university and had barely lived there again since, his parents lived there, his brother and he would always go back to see them but he didn't consider it home anymore. He had to admit he couldn't see himself living anywhere else but here "Our forever home" she'd beamed at him as a series of butterflies rampaged through his chest at the look on her face.

-OG-

Fred had showed him round the offices of the security company, Dangles had filled him in on what he did. They had a long discussion over a pint about the day when he had been asked to set up some computers in a small office, they had to remain untraceable, it was the only time he had been asked to do something that he had reservations about, you know, was it strictly legal. Yeah! He knew he got Molly that taser, but this was different, he could see that, it had been so much bigger than that. It was all done cash in hand and where a couple of men he didn't know came into work for a couple of days, spent a lot of time talking on their phones, they were secretive about what they were doing, but he knew they were hacking into systems, changing files, he managed to see a few things "to be honest boss, once I saw what they were doing, I wanted to do it, that weren't anything to do with collateral damage in a war zone, what they did outside the casino, that was downright slaughter, didn't care who they hit" The first he had heard of Dangles being involved, part of a team of hackers, he must have seen the look on his face before he could mask it "Does this mean you don't want me working there anymore, now that you are taking over" his Captain had always been a straight up bloke and he was worried, but Dave and Fred, well they had listened to him at that reunion, set him up and he owed them, he wouldn't forget that.

Charles hadn't known of his involvement, was pretty sure that even Molly probably hadn't known. He shook his head "I don't know what direction I want to take the business but always be sure you have a job, perhaps we could look at cyber security as a new path to follow, especially if it is making banks and government websites safer" he grinned at Dangles "Will anyone be able to trace it back to the company" Dangles shook his head "Not a chance Boss, we were only there for a couple of days and it's all boxed up and empty now, just like it was when we went in there, the blokes that came in were very thorough" he shrugged "Looked like a derelict unit to me, don't reckon anyone had been in there for years, it was bloody filthy"

-OG-

It was a summer barbeque at their home only a couple months after they had moved in, when Bones suggested he get the company certified, told him not to limit himself to just security on doors and events, to look towards VIP protection, with his experience and background he could get the company on the government recommended lists. That's exactly what he had done, looked into what it would take to provide protection to VIP's, get the company on government lists. He wasn't surprised that Fred and Dave hadn't done much with the business other than to provide doors to their clubs and their friends. Seems all the men including Colin were boxers at their gym and not one of them had gone through any required training. Admittedly the business made a profit but not a huge one, Fred was on the directorship but Dave wasn't as he had a criminal record. It was also when he found out that some of the business never even went through the books, illegal gambling and boxing events.

He sat down with both Fred and Dave at Gary's club, had a long discussion about how everything would go through the books and all be strictly above board "Don't get your knickers in a twist son" laughed Dave as he waved at Jackie who brought 3 beers to the table "they aint ever found anything untoward with that company, not once" Fred nodded "He's right Charles, not once in the nearly 40 years it's been trading, always pays the taxes and VAT" Charles sighed "I know all that Uncle, but not one of those men is qualified under current rules to be door men, and this business with gambling dens and illegal fight nights…" rubbing the back of his neck and rolling his head "Don't stress Charles" laughed Fred "We said we was handing it over and you could do what you wanted with it; you can, we can always get cover for those events" he chuckled "none of that stuff went through the books anyway, strictly cash in hand" as Charles rolled his eyes, not feeling any better about it.

Once the paperwork had been finalised, it was with some trepidation and sleepless nights he set about getting all of them on a course, get them all certified to provide security at events, clubs and pubs, start advertising the business outside of the friends of Fred and Dave, start looking for more people, because he had a bad feeling some of the men wouldn't pass muster, he just had to hope that at least Colin made it through, it didn't bare thinking about, what Molly would say if he had to let him go. He'd even had a business lunch with Danny. To say he was more than a little nervous when Danny requested it was an understatement, as he stared at himself in the full-length mirror dressed in a dark grey suit white shirt and dark tie, feeling less confident with this new uniform.

He was pleasantly surprised at just how amiable Danny was, oh he knew who he was alright, what he was capable of, or thought he did, but to see him in his Saville Row suit and providing him with a business lunch at the Savoy no less, casually chatting about family you would never know, asking how he was coping without the structure of the army and wearing a suit instead of combats. Danny was certainly observant, knew all this was new to him, noticed how frequently he fiddled with his tie. They had a long chat about what Charles wanted to do with the company and had listened with interest, nodding where appropriate and had actually given him some very good ideas.

He'd told him that he would like to bring the skills up, recruit more men from the services for close protection, surveillance for insurance fraud maybe eventually look into cybercrimes. "Would you be looking at dropping my business" the question was asked casually but Charles could see the narrowed eyes and steely look, it was anything but "The thing is Charles that company has been providing doormen, concierges, floor walkers to the casino since my father's time and with the new hotel and Casino being built with Dave and Fred I will be needing even more security" raising his eyebrows at the young man in front of him, he certainly had ambition from the way he was speaking and he had heard good things from the discrete enquiries he had made, Fred and Dave certainly thought highly of him and he didn't think for one moment that young Molly would have saddled herself with a muppet, he could see that he was nervous and wanted to make an impression.

Charles stared at the man in front of him "As I said I want to upskill the men and women I employ, make sure they have all the relevant certifications to provide a good service, in the future I want our reputation to be of interest to the government to be on their recommended lists to provide visiting dignitaries the security they need, to keep them safe while visiting here or abroad" Danny stared at him for a few seconds although to Charles it felt a lot longer as his heart started racing, trying to decipher the expression and hoping he had been tactful that he no more wanted Danny's questionable business than he wanted Dave and Fred's illegal fight nights.

Danny burst out laughing "You don't need to worry Charles, the casino is strictly legitimate, has been since my old Dad visited it back in the day and so will the new one" he laughed again as he saw the relief on Charles face "Not every business I own is crooked, not that the police here know I own it, I'm just a minority shareholder in a consortium of likeminded business men that visit London from time to time. The same will apply to the new one" he poured them another glass of wine each as a waiter came to remove the main course plates "So are you going to continue to supply the staff that will be needed" Charles continued to look at Danny, Dave had said he was a wily old fox, that if he didn't want anyone to know what he was thinking, then they wouldn't and he was certainly finding it difficult to read this man; he liked to think he was a pretty good judge of people and situations. The casino had been running with no issues for decades and this new hotel and casino at the old wharf would probably be run the same way. Molly had told him that Danny kept a low profile, that most of his businesses were abroad, his mum was a Londoner and he still had relatives here, the casino was more of a sentimental thing, hung on to it because his father loved it here. He found himself nodding, albeit with reservation "OK but if I am getting them all accredited their skills will be in more demand" he smiled although it didn't meet his eyes "perhaps we should renegotiate that contract as you will be getting a better service"

Danny grinned and raised his wine glass "I think you will do very well in your new venture Charles" laughing at the shock on Charles face before turning serious again, he too was very astute and could sense when someone was being economical with the truth, that Charles still wasn't convinced, unsure of the wisdom of his decision if he wanted to go for government contracts at some point, worst case he could just poach Charles staff and employ them directly, but it was less problematic to have that side outsourced.

"I'm going to tell you a story Charles" he started taking a sip of his wine attracting the attention of the waiter to bring them coffee "My father's family is huge, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles but all of them have one thing in common, they don't like notoriety. We are not like some of the families who seek fame and fortune, who make themselves targets because of a life they inherited, that feel they are entitled to respect because of their name and the fear that name instils" he shook his head "Whole families wiped out for following the vices instead of the virtues" he grinned at Charles confused face, although after recent events he wondered if he understood more than his face was giving away

"My father came to London on a business trip, was taken to the casino for a meeting" still smiling "My mother was a croupier there, a beautiful woman with a mouth like the Blackwall tunnel if you gave her any lip, born and bred in the East End" Charles wasn't sure why he was telling him this but he found Danny fascinating to listen to, a mixture of London vernacular he had heard many times from the Dawes and his Uncle but also the smooth quiet tones of an American twang "It was love at first sight Charles" Danny chuckled "He tried to buy the casino, there and then" he drained his wine glass before topping it up "the owner refused to sell, you see it was his sister that was the croupier, my father went there every night and played at her table until he convinced her to have dinner with him" he twirled the stem of the glass in his fingers looking up suddenly at Charles. Charles frowned, he thought he knew the history of the casino "Wasn't the Casino owned by…" he started but was interrupted by Danny shaking his head "Not who you think although they went there to conduct business meetings from time to time" he smirked "Tony Wilkins was much like my father, had many interests, not all of them legal" and he laughed "but like my father he hated the notoriety, resented the term of being a face, especially after someone left his in a mess. There were enough faces in the area causing problems fighting over territory and perceived slights" he shrugged rolling his eyes, it was all such a long time ago "There are firms, families that court notoriety want the fame and kudos that the life brings, who think pride, envy, avarice and wrath are virtues and will do anything to earn the extra dollar that they don't need and never really wanted, and no concern over what the cost might be." He held up his glass to the light as if inspecting the quality of the wine "And there are others like my father who owned a great many businesses had great wealth, but were always discrete, never coveted the fame, you would never know he was there" he shrugged, his eyes moving from the glass and locking with Charles "why put a target on your families back, he always said, trying to chase a dollar, that if you have patience, stealth and wisdom will become yours anyway once the hotheads have lost it all" he stared across at Charles who felt the need to swallow hard as he saw what Molly had told him, someone who was dangerous who you wouldn't know was coming until it was far too late, he had met Tony many times over the years, and had absolutely no idea he was so involved with Danny's father "My brothers and I have carried on the family tradition, while some of my business dealings are very questionable, the ones I have here are not, we have always tried with all our business's to maintain a very low profile, to not make ourselves targets for some upstart, to put our families at risk" he grinned "Tony Wilkins and my Father did business for many years, until they both retired. Tony, as you know, had no children of his own, but both he and Doris held Dave, your Uncle and Mother in very high regard. You see Charles; Dave, Fred and I all go back a long way, a very long way, there has always been trust and respect between us, they even sold me the Casino where my parents first met" Charles had a distinct feeling that in some way he had been warned, could tell by the way Danny was watching him that in business he was single minded and ruthless, but when it came to family his loyalty could make him unpredictable and dangerous "The security for the casino and the new hotel and casino is strictly a business transaction, and will not impact on your desire to expand the company in whichever direction you choose"

Danny laughed at the expression on Charles face "Enough about business, how are you settling in to your new home, I'm surprised you got Molly to leave London, even if it's only a few miles out" he laughed again the whole tone of the meeting changing as Charles finally started to relax "Did you know that Molly used to play with my daughter when they were children, I think Belinda thought she was turning into a bit of a tom boy with those brothers of hers, all those boys in the family with you and your brother, Doris certainly had a soft spot for her being the only girl apart from Catherine, anyway Belinda hoped Cathrine might play dress up with her, but she too had mainly boys to grow up with" he threw his head back laughing "they didn't pinch my wife's clothes, shoes or makeup, they dressed up as cowgirls went around firing those bloody caps all day" he huffed "well that was until Tony thought it a bright idea to buy them bows and arrows" Charles couldn't help the snigger, he had witnessed Molly's poor aim "Did they hit anything" still smiling Danny answered "Let's just say the greenhouse had a few missing panes, the bows were snapped in half and a conversation about the suitability of presents for 8 year olds was made quite succinctly"

Danny handed over his credit card settling the bill as both men stood to leave, standing outside Danny waved to his driver and the car pulled level with him, he turned to Charles putting out his hand "I wish you well with the business and I would like it if you continued with our business arrangements, my son Anthony is a corporate lawyer, has an excellent business mind and he will deal with it when you send the new contracts" he grinned "What about your daughter, Cathrine, what does she do?" Charles was curious, Molly had never mentioned this friend who she played with as a child and wondered if she still kept in touch "Cathrine" laughed Danny "she was at your wedding with us, but I guess you wouldn't have noticed, it passes in such a blur doesn't it" and Charles nodded "She bought a rundown hotel and Casino in Nevada" he couldn't help smiling at the shock in Charles face, he obviously noticed the similarities "turned it around, virtually knocked it down and started again" and Charles could see the pride "I saw the invoices, but it's one of the swankiest places in Vegas now" he patted Charles on the arm "You should go on holiday there Charles, Cathrine would love to show Molly round"

-OG-

There were days he wondered at his decision to leave the army, the loss of the structure, the can-do attitude that made things happen, now he had to pander to the egos of the people he was trying to do business with. He felt he was working even longer hours than he had done when he was in the army, and that was saying something, but at least he got home every night, even if he did fall asleep on the sofa sometimes, Molly having to wake him, grinning like a cheshire cat. Slowly but surely the business started getting a reputation and he was getting business outside the circle of friends of Dave and Fred. One of his many highlights being that Colin passed all the tests, it wasn't just because he had looked after Molly for all those years, he liked him, couldn't remember a time he lost it or saw him wasted, even in the ring he was controlled.

It was the Olympics in 2012 when they came into their own, Elvis finally having decided the time was right to put in his papers joining him the year before as director. They got their certifications, in close protection, security, surveillance and evasive driving. Blue and Bones promoting them and got them on a government list for providing protection and they got a lot of business during the event from visiting dignitaries, far exceeding anything Dave and Fred had done in the past. It had certainly given both Elvis and him ideas on where to develop new business. Their new office was much bigger and they employed more than just a couple of people. Sergeant Geddings a trainer from Pirbright had completed his 20 years and was now part of the HR recruiting and training team, Dangles was part of the new IT group not just looking after their own systems and equipment but providing support to corporates who wanted to test their own security systems and they now employed a couple of ethical hackers. Dangles had come on in leaps and bounds since that disastrous tour, where his career came to an end and Smurf lost his life, the frightened boy who didn't know what would happen to him long gone and a man determined to make something of himself was now heading up his IT team and he couldn't be prouder.

The army had pulled out of Iraq and was winding down Afghan, NGO's and charities were going to those destinations to provide support and help with rebuilding, although both he and Elvis thought it would still be years before the army finally left completely. Their job, his and Elvis was to provide a strategy, implement support, find safe accommodation and work out exit plans if anything changed. They were still required to do reconnaissance which meant going away from time to time, maybe six weeks but not for six months, the odd trip here and there, refresher courses but most of the time he was able to get home to his wife and new son.

-OG-

The icing on the cake for him, the same year Elvis joined him in the business, the year when Molly told him she wasn't sure, she might be, she could be pregnant, that she was scared, it might be like last time. He could see from her eyes how scared she was, wanted it to be true but didn't at the same time, holding her, trying his best to say there was no reason why it should be like last time, that pretending it wasn't happening wouldn't make it go away, surely, she could see that. Unable to fully comprehend why she had left it until a Sunday morning to finally tell him. They had to know, get it checked just to be sure. He couldn't stop grinning as he raced down the stairs to get his car keys to find a chemist, ran back up the stairs to put on a shirt and kiss her, making her laugh, as he was off again saying it wouldn't take him long and he would be back. Who knew that finding an emergency chemist could be so bloody difficult.

It was with trepidation they went for the scan, both terrified until the beaming face of the nurse let them know, this time, this time their baby was exactly where it should be, a tiny blob on a screen. He was there for every scan and checkup. Once her initial fear had been delt with from that first scan, all he wanted to do was wrap her up in cotton wool, keep her at home, but typical Molly, that wasn't going to happen. He found an antenatal class held in the back room of a pub, which along with his insistent pleading convinced Molly to go to, she wasn't going to any stuffy church hall with a load of people looking down their noses at her, he would be alright with his posh voice. Her mum never went, she couldn't see the point, she could ask her mum, in the end they had both enjoyed it. Got to meet expectant parents in their area, and it certainly allayed some of his worries about what to expect, what Molly would have to do and how he could support her. She on the other hand was particularly flippant about the birth, reckoned she knew how to bloody breath and all she wanted were the good drugs to dull the pain, doing what she always did, being the class clown, when in actual fact she was as scared as he was.

Sam made his way into the world a little bit early, kicking and screaming at the noise and the lights, but from the second they saw him red faced and angry, they both knew their little miracle would always be an important part of their lives.

-OG-

A/N: The drama is over and the rest of the story is mainly set in the present, a few more bits of Charles reminiscing in the next chapter, but mainly just family stuff and carrying on from the first chapter. Any outstanding questions from Reckless Moments, I hope I've answered them, the rest of the story….well its only four chapters.