Liberation (I Am Margaret Book 3) (27 page)

“I’d have been happier not knowing, you mean?” I swiped my sleeve across my tear-streaked face. “I’d have been happier
trying to do something about it
!”

Jon sighed.

“Well, maybe you will feel better doing something, but please, please don’t get your hopes up! That’s... that’s too cruel to yourself.”

“They’re not going to torture my husband and expect me to keep quiet about it!”

Silence was a thing of the past five minutes after I made my blog post – at least online. The internet erupted with indignation and sympathy. Other bloggers wrote strongly worded demands for the EuroGov to release Bane – or at least stop hurting him. No one doubted what was going on, though I’d not a stick of evidence.

None of it would actually help Bane, though. Eduardo was right about exactly how much the EuroGov wanted him dead, even if he’d been lying through his teeth about the rest. But it might help in the long run.

The long run. The rest of my life. No Bane.

“I can’t even think about that...” I whispered.

“Hmm?” Jon started awake. He’d stayed in the cathedral with me for most of the previous night, as well.

That made three nights with no sleep but I didn’t feel tired. I was like a live wire. I typed and typed, answering comments, commenting on other blogs, writing new blog posts. I’d posted two today already. I’d keep on stirring this pot until they strapped me to a gurney! What did I want with Africa and Kanju without Bane?

Back to the cathedral after lunch, where I struggled to concentrate. My prayer had taken on a seesaw tendency. My heart wanted to pray for Bane to be alive, but my head told me it was a bad idea. I actually fell back on ‘your will, Lord,’ from sheer confusion and despair, though it tore my heart out every time I said it...
Your will, Lord
.
Your will, Lord
...

Forest. I was in a forest. Snow blanketed the ground. Somewhere in central Europe? Could’ve been the French forest we’d trekked through for so long. I was walking among the trees, dressed in a pure white dress insufficient for the weather, but I didn’t feel cold. I trailed a hand along the trunks, elfin and graceful, like I wasn’t really here... Weird. What
was
I doing here?

A man was stumbling through the trees, dressed in rags. A stubbly beard covered his face and his hair was unkempt. He kept falling, dragging himself to his feet and staggering on, like he could barely stand. Even as I watched he fell again, into a deep drift, and lay there, limp and shaking. Giving up?

I floaty-walked over to him.

“You can’t stay
there
. You’ll die.”

He just lay, curled up like an animal, uncaring.

“I thought you wanted to
know
.” Odd thing to say. Why’d I said that?

But his head jerked up and his eyes flew open. Wide, green eyes.

I started awake with a gasp. Someone was carrying me.

“Jon?”

“Shss... Go back to sleep.”

Things I should be doing. Important things... but blackness sucked me back down.

Someone was knocking at the door.

I rolled over and opened my eyes. Alone. In the big double bed. Dark outside. A vague recollection of Jon carrying me from the cathedral... A dream? Something about snow? It was gone. Must’ve been tired after all...

The tapping came again.

“Coming...”

I climbed out of bed and went straight to the door. Opened it.

My heart launched itself up into my mouth and hung there, burning like a captive sun.

“
B... B... Bane
?”

***+***

25

OVER THE WALL

I was still asleep. Surely I was still asleep? Couldn’t even dare to hope... I pinched my forearm, hard – flinched.

A dirty hand caught my wrist.

“Don’t... I’m really here.”

Surely I was dreaming? Never had understood how pinching oneself was supposed to establish one was awake. But I felt awake...

“Bane?”

He was filthy, his left arm bare, the sleeve cut away to make room for a dressing, shockingly white and clean against his grubby golden skin. His black hair was sweat-clumped; his brown eyes stared solemnly at me. There was... what was the word he’d used about me?...a shadow... in them. Like he’d seen hell.

My paralysis finally snapped and I flung myself at him. He clamped his arms around me, hissed slightly in pain, then buried his face in my hair, letting out a long, long breath, as though he’d been holding it since the last time he saw me.

I pressed my face to his neck, into his hair, and my nose was filled with the smell of sweat, fear, death, but also Bane.
Bane, Bane, Bane
. No dream. He’d come back.

Drawing away, just slightly, I placed my hands on either side of his face and stared into his eyes, still hardly able to believe it.

“I promised, didn’t I?” His mouth quirked tiredly.

“Oh, Bane...”

“Thought I’d never see you again,” he whispered.

I laughed – raggedly. “That’s my line!”

“I suppose...”

I drew him inside the room. Shut the door. Gave him a mock-scowl. “What’re you knocking on your own door for, silly?”

He looked slightly embarrassed.

“Jon said he’d put you to bed. Didn’t want to... burst in on you.”

“He was hardly going to undress me!” But I was looking at that neat bandage. “How long have you been
back
?”

He gave a guilty shrug. His hands slid up my arms and drew me close.

“I’ve debriefed already. Just wanted us to be able to be together. Nothing else. No faffing with doctors and Eduardo’s questions. And Jon said how tired you were. Didn’t want to wake you up before...”

Had he been back for as much as an hour, and not let anyone come and wake me? No good, I couldn’t be annoyed. A sort of warm glow irradiated my entire body.

“How did you
get
here?”

“Ferry from Italy to Malta, then a motorboat. That was the easy bit. I expect you’ve heard the gist of the raid?”

I nodded. But the shadow loomed larger in his eyes.

“Tell me tomorrow, Bane. It’s late. Let’s go to bed.”

He smiled, chasing the shadow back a bit.

“What a wonderful idea!”

I raised my face, he lowered his, our lips came together. Bliss.

After a moment he drew away.

“I’m going to have a shower.”

“
Now?
”

“I’m
filthy
.”

“I don’t care.”

“I do. I don’t want to get you all mucky. I’ll be quick.”

I looked at him from under my eyelids.

“I’ll pop that wedding present on while I wait, shall I?”

He swallowed.

“
Very
quick.”

He was. I’d barely slipped into that pretty nightie and sorted out the lighting when he came back out, catching me hovering beside the bed as I tried to decide whether to get in or not. He’d slipped on those pyjamas and looked damp and gorgeous. He went around to the other side and stared at me across the bed.

“The nightdress looks lovely.”

“Pyjamas look nice too.”

For one slightly awkward moment we remained where we were, then we each lifted a corner of the sheets and slid in, coming together in the middle, giggling.

“Like we aren’t just dying to take them off!”

“I think that’s going to be part of the fun...” Bane tried to sound seductive and spoiled it with another snort of laughter. His hands ran over me, gentle and tentative. We could take our time...

Gratias Domine!

The sun was hot on my face. The curtains must be open. Bane’s heart drummed under my ear, his chest bare against my cheek. We were married now, all right. The last three days could’ve been nothing but a bad dream... except for the whiteness of the bandage on Bane’s arm. I hadn’t even asked how badly he was hurt!

Easing away slightly, I brushed hair back from his face. He didn’t stir, he was deep asleep. Must be exhausted.

For a long time I lay, just watching him sleeping there, in our bed. Alive.
Alive, alive, alive!
Eventually I went into the bathroom – time for my weekly shower anyway – and got dressed. Came out to find Bane still sound asleep.

I’d nip down and fetch us some breakfast in bed. He deserved that, after what he’d been through. I knew that, just from his eyes.

Creeping out of the room – though I’d probably have to slam the door to get any reaction – I headed down the stairs – I’d see if Jon was in. Wasn’t really that late and after the last few nights he might well have slept through Mass. In fact... here he was, coming up the stairs towards me.

“Good morning, Jon.” I gave him a brilliant smile – he’d hear it in my voice.

He grimaced.

“Where’s Bane?”

“Asleep. He’s exhausted.” He looked white as a sheet. “
Jon?
What’s
wrong
?”

“You didn’t look out the window when you got up, did you?”

Strange remark.

“Not really.”

“No, you’re on Cloud Nine. Well, I hate to be the bearer, so come and have a look for yourself; apparently it’s hard to miss. There’s a window here, isn’t there?”

He went back down a few steps to the stairwell windows. I followed, my stomach knotting up. Jon seemed... frightened.
Really
frightened.

I searched the horizon. A sinister grey shape floated in the distant ocean.

“Is that a warship! EuroNavy?”

“Yes, and yes.” The hand holding his ‘long eye’ was trembling slightly. “Look closer.”

My stomach turned over, my eyes darting among the rooftops of the abandoned city around us.

“
Oh Lord, protect us
...”

Snipers on the roofs. A tank at the base of the ramp to the Citadel’s main gate...

“They’ve found us! What about the evacuation plans?”

Jon bit his lip.

“No go, so far. We were supposed to see them coming. But
they
were supposed to bully permission to seize us out of the Maltese government. Instead of just blitz-krieging the state.”

“They’ve
what
?”

“They annexed Malta. And Gozo, of course. Just like that. Dropped on it in the night. The President managed to broadcast a warning to Eduardo but it was too late. We were already surrounded.”

“And there’s no way out?”

“Eduardo sent out some of his men to look.” Jon looked grim. “Several of them didn’t even make it back.”

Something in his voice... a wobble... Oh Lord! Eduardo would send his best men in a situation like this... Alligator, Grass Snake, Snail, Bumblebee...

“
Who
?”

“Al,” said Jon miserably. “They’ve got him. That big deep-voiced chap – Toni, is it? He was killed. Rafael – y’know, Land Rover – we’re not sure, but he didn’t come back.”

My chest felt choked up and shaking. I fought back tears. Jack. In EuroGov hands. I knew how horribly he would die.

“Let’s get Bane...” I turned to go back upstairs – Jon snagged my arm.

“No, let him sleep. Better he not show his face until people have cooled off a bit.”

“What? What’s that supposed to mean?”

Jon sighed and began to head down the stairs.

“You know what it means, Margo.”

I raced after him.

“People think
Bane
betrayed us? It could’ve been anyone! Quite a lot of people do know we’re here!”

“In which case the coincidence is unfortunate.”

“Hyena was captured too,” I couldn’t help pointing out.

“No, Hyena was killed when the trap was sprung in the lab.”

Jon had been at Bane’s debriefing...

“Do
you
think he betrayed us?”

Jon grimaced.

“Betrayed, no. Led them here, yes. By accident. Must’ve been him. Hasn’t he told you how he got away?”

“Not yet. When he got back... he... I... we were tired...” My face was burning.

Jon managed a smirk.

“Tired. Of course.”

“What’s happening, then?”

“We’re besieged. The EuroGov can roll over us any time they choose, they’re just pausing for the sake of public relations –
see, we gave them time to make a deal
. Like they’ll
make
any deal. The ultimatum’s a joke – surrender before four o’clock or we take you over. No guarantees, so what’s the difference?” He sounded bitter… and defeated.

I turned back up the stairs.

“I’m going to wake Bane. He has to know about this.” And I wanted to know why even his best friend was so sure he was responsible for this disaster.

“Well, I’m off back to the Admin block now I’ve found you. That’s where they’re trying to figure things out.”

“We’ll come over in a bit, then.”

“Okay.” He trudged off down the stairs.

I went back up the stairs rather more quickly. Had to focus on finding out how Bane had escaped – because as soon as I allowed myself to consider what was happening, I’d probably fall apart into a million pieces.

Bane was in the shower again when I went back into the room. The sun must’ve woken him. I should’ve shut the curtains.

Be nice to join him in here... Better not get distracted. Though it probably hardly mattered now... But it wasn’t long before he emerged, dressed in clean clothes, rather grim-faced. But he broke into a smile as soon as he saw me. A slightly sheepish one.

“It was a very short shower last night, I was still a bit grubby. I won’t usually be so extravagant,” he apologised. When I just smiled he came over and gathered me into his arms. “I couldn’t find my wife when I woke up,” he confided. “I felt like calling out the guard.”

“Sorry.” I leant into the circle of his arms – hadn’t realised how afraid I was until now. “I thought you were going to sleep for hours and hours.” But after a moment I drew away and pulled him over to sit on the bed beside me. “Will you tell me how you got away? Everyone knows except me, it seems.”

“Oh. Of course.” He shot me a slightly puzzled look – wondering why it couldn’t wait until after breakfast? – but didn’t demur. “Well... You know how the raid went.” His eyes had gone rather shadowed again.

“Yes.”

“Well, Hyena and I went to try and get Doms. Juwan had seen them take her past the hatch in his door and she hadn’t been gone for long, so we hoped there might be a chance. And we went really carefully, too, despite the desperate need for speed. We looked, we listened, we checked around corners, you’d have been proud.

“When we got to the lab the dismantlers and their team were already at work, but even so, we took a really good look through that door, Margo, but honestly, it looked safe. So in we went. Started dropping those dismantlers and minions... then every cupboard door in the bloody place flew open and we were in the sights of about ten nonLees.

“Well, it was hopeless, but we tried. Hyena went for them with a roar – pretty smart, actually, ‘cause he panicked too many of them into firing and I think he was dead by the time he hit the ground.” Bane’s voice was tight with pain, and so was his brow.

“I wasn’t so quick witted. Think I hit two, much good that did, then they put me out. I came round strapped to a gurney.” Sweat beaded his brow now and I slipped my arm around him and leant close.

“I hadn’t been out long and they’d stopped work on Doms to wait for me to come around. Then they started again. They’d got my gurney up in a near-vertical position so I didn’t miss anything.” Bane shuddered. “God, it was horrible. But you know that.”

I gave him a comforting squeeze.

“And there was nothing I could do to help her.” His voice was low and tormented. “I know she wasn’t conscious, but... there wasn’t even anything I could do to help myself. I tried not to watch but I just... I couldn’t seem to help it. All I could do was remind myself, over and over – I’d be unconscious too, I wasn’t going to feel anything, just the EuroGov being horrible. And... eventually they’d finished.

“I thought I’d get taken off then to be interrogated – or tried – or
something
. But they just wound the gurney back into a horizontal position, and the dismantler injected me with this orange liquid...”