Suddenly, his hand grabbed her wrist. He was awake. Their eyes locked. Without a word, he sat up and let go of her wrist, only to reach around her with both arms and pull her closer to him. Instinctively, Andy looked away. She always looked away. But he stopped her by putting both hands on her face by her ears, urging her to look at him. “Please…don’t…” he whispered.
With those two words, Andy realized that he had felt her fear, not just at that moment but at every moment—every aversion of her eyes from his, every inch of space that she had placed between them, every excuse that she had made to avoid her feelings. He recognized her hesitation once again, right there on a cold floor inside a strange, dark house, and he was refusing to let it happen any longer. He was tired of it, and so was she.
Before she could think or feel another thought, he pulled her face toward him until their lips were a mere inch apart. Her breath caught in her throat in the same moment as he swallowed hard. Then he leaned in the rest of the way.
And when she kissed him back, it was not for practice or to secretly play out a fantasy. This was actually happening. This was real.
Time seemed to both speed up and stand still as months of unspoken longing melted away. They kissed without restraint. The sensation of Ben’s mouth and tongue against hers was electrifying, and when Andy began running her hands through his hair, then down his shoulder and back, she knew she couldn’t stop at this alone.
He moved his hand down from her waist until his palm slid under her rear beneath the blanket. A soft sigh escaped her mouth. With his other hand, he lifted her up and sat her down on top of his thighs, and she wrapped her legs around him. As he started to gently tug at the sides of her underwear, she suddenly pulled back. She looked anxious and uncertain.
“Ben, I’ve never…never done this.”
He blinked. “It’s okay. We don’t have to.”
“But I want to…with you.”
“Are you sure?”
She looked into his eyes. They reassured her. “Yes.”
Carefully and gently he ran a hand down the length of her stomach and she drew in a sharp breath between her teeth. He then ran his fingers up and down her back, feeling her relax. He kissed her again and whispered, “You okay?”
Biting her lower lip, she nodded, and he kissed away the single tear that had fallen down her cheek. Then he leaned back against the ottoman and hugged her to his chest.
Andy could feel his heart drumming. She looked up at him to let him know she was ready.
Then slowly, he lifted her up off his thighs and gently lowered her back down onto the floor.
Chapter XXVII
W
hen Andy awoke, concern that they had stayed too long in the house immediately gripped her. She checked her watch and was stunned to find that it was after seven. “Crap!” she hissed and quickly stood up. The room was cold once again, but her clothes and shoes were mercifully dry. Once her shoes were laced, she knelt down beside Ben who was still fast asleep on the floor. “Wake up,” she murmured gently into his ear. He stirred mildly, so she shook his shoulder. “Sweetie, wake up.”
His eyes blinked open, and when he saw her face, he smiled. “Did you just call me
sweetie
?”
“I did. Now get up. It’s after seven.”
He sat up, but instead of reaching for his clothes, he grabbed Andy’s waist and pulled her down to the floor. Squealing, she landed right beside him and laughed. He leaned in and kissed her mouth.
She kissed him back with equal eagerness as the tingling sensation returned in her stomach, but she forced herself to pull back. “Stop that! We have to go!”
Reluctantly and with a groan, he released her and threw on his clothes. “You’re spoiling all the fun.” He pulled his fleece sweatshirt over his head before reaching for his raincoat.
“I just want us to get away from here,” she replied. Wearing a knowing smile, she whispered, “We’ll have more fun when we get home. You know, to celebrate.”
Smiling in turn, he replied, “Promise?”
“I promise.” And she kissed him again before adding as a final joke, “Was I better than champagne?”
“No comparison,” was his candid reply, and then his face grew serious. “I never thanked you for doing this,” he added.
“Doing what?”
“All of this. For dragging me back here and helping Jim and I finish what we started.”
She grabbed at the neckline of his sweater affectionately. “I did it because I knew that deep down, you wanted to come back.”
After one final kiss, they quickly gathered their things and went out the door. But when Ben stepped outside, he stopped cold.
Standing in the cul-de-sac surrounded by half a dozen guards stood Sean. Upon seeing Ben, a repulsive, self-satisfied smile spread across his face. “Well, well…isn’t this cozy? We’ve been waiting forever for you two to wake up.”
Acting on instinct, Ben placed himself in front of Andy, grabbed his rifle leaning against the wall by the door, and pointed it at Sean.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
But Ben steadied his aim and shut his left eye as his right focused in on the front sight. “Why not? Your head is right in my line of fire.”
“Because your rifle has no firing pin.” Sean pulled out a thin metal object from inside his pocket. It was a few inches in length and resembled a long nail.
“You’re bluffing,” Ben hollered back, though his voice wavered.
Wearing a smug grin, Sean outstretched his arms as if daring Ben to fire. “Go ahead…pull the trigger.”
Without hesitation, Ben flexed his right index finger a second after Sean uttered his last word. Horribly, nothing happened, so he tried again and again until the hideous sound of Sean’s laugh forced him to stop.
Both terrified and enraged, Andy fished inside her backpack for her pistol, but her hand found nothing.
“Looking for this?” Sean suddenly revealed her gun and held it up as the guards began to laugh.
“You two really should’ve locked the doors last night. But I guess you were too busy screwing each other to think about it.”
In a split-second motion, Ben whirled around toward Andy. “The back door. Go!”
Her feet propelled her back into the house. There was a door in the kitchen that led to a rear patio. She burst through it and launched over the short fence that wrapped around the patio as Ben ran after her.
Beyond the small backyard of the house lay a cluster of trees. She ran toward them, but just as she was about to disappear into them, two armed guards suddenly appeared from behind the trees and quickly subdued her. She stopped dead in her tracks as Ben nearly ran into her from behind. Within moments, they were surrounded.
Looking up at Ben, Andy saw only terror in his face. Even so, his eyes were scanning the area in a desperate search for another way to escape. But the horrific reality was that any attempt to flee at this point would only result in one or both of them getting shot.
Walking slowly, Sean came around the side of the house to the backyard. He calmly pulled an apple out of his coat pocket and began biting away at it as though he were simply out for a stroll on a crisp, autumn day. “You know, you two make a really cute couple,” he said between bites. He entered the circle created by his guards as they maintained their aim on both their targets. Taking another bite, Sean looked back and forth between Andy and Ben, his icy blue eyes dancing with delight. After swallowing, he said, “It’s too bad that you won’t be able to see what might’ve become of this beautiful relationship.” And with that, he flung the remainder of the apple to the ground, a cue for the guards to grab Andy and pull her away.
She struggled in their grasp, and Ben cried out her name in desperation as the remaining guards maintained their circle around him. One thrust the barrel of his gun into Ben’s chest.
“Get off of me! Let…me…GO!” Andy screamed as they dragged her to the front of the house. She kicked and squirmed violently, but the guards’ grips were too strong. Sean followed them, marching behind her as he stared into her face and frowned with keen interest.
The guards finally released her when they reached the front curb, flinging her crumpled body to the ground. When she tried to stand up, they rapidly restrained her.
An SUV pulled up to the curb, and Luke stepped out of the passenger’s seat. He looked down at Andy and sneered. “Hello, Katrina. Nice to see you again.”
“Actually, it’s Andy,” Sean corrected as he joined his comrade. “At least that’s what our good friend Ben called her a moment ago.”
Luke seemed to consider the name and nodded in approval. “Andy, huh? Well, nice to see you again anyway, though you look like shit compared to the last time I saw you.”
Seething, she stared up at Luke with overt hatred in her eyes but remained silent.
Sean gestured for Luke to follow him to the back of the house. “Watch her,” he ordered the guards before he and Luke walked away.
After rounding the house once more, Sean approached the circle of guards who were still restraining Ben. He waved them back to give him more room and turned to Luke. He leaned in close and said in a low voice, “Tell the two guards you trust the most to stay behind and send the rest to the front of the house.”
Ben’s eyes flashed wildly between Sean, Luke, and each of the guards, desperate to figure out what was going on.
Luke eyed the guards and pointed at two of them. “You two…stay here. The rest of you go back to the front.”
The guards obeyed, and as they broke off, Ben took advantage of the moment to break free and run. He managed to get beyond Luke and the guards. Only Sean reacted quickly and retrieved Andy’s gun from his coat pocket. With impressive skill, he aimed it at Ben and fired.
The sound of the gun shattered in the air, and the bullet lodged itself into the back of Ben’s right shoulder as its momentum hurtled him to the ground. The echo of the shot resonated off the house and trees, and Andy released an ear-piercing scream from the front of the house.
In shock, Ben rolled over and opened his eyes. He saw Sean and Luke standing over him but their faces were out of focus. When at last the pain emerged, Ben grabbed his shoulder and groaned in agony. He couldn’t hear what either Sean or Luke were saying, but soon after the throbbing began and the warm gush of blood flowed from his shoulder, he vaguely heard the thunderous crack of two more shots being fired. Neither of them were aimed anywhere near him.
More of Andy’s screams could be heard in the distance; louder and more heart wrenching than the first. Ben heard her cries, and they only added to his pain. The gunshot wound was unlike anything he’d ever felt, and his mind raced from thought to incongruous thought.
Should it burn this much?
was his last before the butt of a rifle slammed into his forehead. His vision faded to black.
“You two,” Sean said sharply to the two guards. “Ben Kelly is dead…got it? If I hear anything otherwise, you are both dead.”
The guards nodded fearfully.
“Good. Now stand over there for a few minutes while Luke and I talk.”
The guards did as they were told.
“Take her back to the city. Put her in that closet across the hall from my office and make sure it’s locked and guarded. I’ll be there after I deal with him.”
“What will you do?” Luke asked.
He pursed his lips together, still staring at his unconscious enemy. “I’m working on that.”
At that moment, Andy appeared around the corner of the house. Somehow, she had broken free from the guards who were now trailing after her. One of them raised his gun to shoot her.
“No!” Sean yelled out and waved his arms, stopping the guard just in time.
Andy collapsed to the ground when she saw Ben’s lifeless body, and she began to sob uncontrollably as the guards dragged her away once more.
Smirking, Sean turned back to Luke. “At least now she’ll believe that her beloved Ben is dead.”
***
Staring out the living room window, Morgan held Katie in her arms as she fed her a bottle of formula. With the exception of Katie and Carmen, everyone had suffered a restless night, but she hadn’t slept at all.
Neither Andy nor Ben had returned, and by morning, it was evident that something had happened to them.
“I’ll feed her,” Jim said as he came up behind Morgan. “You should try to get some sleep.”
“No, that’s okay. I can’t sleep.”
“We’ll find them.”
She turned around and gave him a sharp look. “How do you know that?”
“Because I know Ben and you know Andy. They’re fighters.”
“I won’t just sit and wait for them. We’ve got to do something.”
“We’ll go back to the prison today and see if we can find out what happened.”
She looked hard into his weary eyes. “When you say ‘we’ll go back,’ you mean you and Charlie, right?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“Oh and us girls get to stay back and do nothing, is that it?”
He sighed. “No, that’s not what I meant…”