On Ice (34 page)

“
Now the question is, what is your next move?”

“
I wish I knew,” Rene said.

~*~

T.J. McCann’s small finger pressed the doorbell. She refused to have her nails shaped into talons and painted with garish shades of lacquer. Her well-shaped digits didn’t need artifice to be attractive. She filed her nails down to a no-nonsense length to reflect her attitude and to avoid the ridicule of her karate instructor.

“
Hya!” she muttered under her breath as she jabbed the doorbell again.

“
Hi to you, too,” Terrence said as he smiled down at her through the open doorway.

“
Oh, no! I mean, that’s what we yell in karate when we strike a blow or fall.” She smiled back as she stepped into the foyer.

“
Oh. Poor doorbell. Am I to gather it offended you in some way?”

Damned attractive man.
She admired the dimple that played around his mouth when he was teasing her.
But too big. Way too big.
“No, it was not offensive. It was the lack of response I was punishing.”

“
Oh, then t’was I who deserve the punishment, for I must admit I tarried behind the door admirin’ the caller.”

“
What am I to say to that?” She tried not to look too pleased.

“
You should think of a suitable punishment for me and make sure I suffer a lot.”

“
I would, but I’m afraid you’d enjoy it too much.” She tilted her head to one side considering the possibilities.
He’s only a foot and a half taller than I. Surely people would only point and stare.

“
How about dinner, then? You can order something expensive just for spite.”

“
Dinner?” She rolled her eyes toward the vaulted ceiling, giving the appearance of careful consideration.
I could never take him home to Daddy. He’d like him way too
much. Then I’d have to marry him just to stay in the will
. “When would this proposed dinner take place?”

“
Anytime you like. Tonight? Friday or Saturday would be good.”

“
I don’t believe I have plans for Friday night,” she said.
Oh, no! What am I doing? Our children will be huge. Monsters, actually.
She sighed aloud.
Oh, well, giving birth to the first one will probably kill me so I won’t have to worry about it.
“Friday will be good but you must promise not to enjoy it at all.”

He raised his right hand solemnly. “Seven o’clock, then?”

She jotted her home number on the back of her card and gave it to him. His hand closed around hers as he bent over it. T.J. felt a thrill play around her spine as he brushed a kiss over the back.
Omigod! A hand kisser. Not fair.

“
Call me,” she said as he tucked the card into the pocket of his jacket.

Without a word he opened the doors to the Great Room where Dr. and Mrs. Sanders were waiting.

She noticed they pulled slightly apart when she entered. If she didn’t know they were married, she would have sworn they were having an affair.
It must be great to be in love like that.

“
Miss McCann.” Ted started to rise.

“
Please don’t get up. I’m just going to stay a moment.” T.J. smiled at Maddy.

“
Did you have some news for us today?” Maddy asked.

“
Yes, and I didn’t want to tip Mark off.” T. J. took out a printed report. “The police are doing a covert investigation of their own man and confirm that Detective Ambrose has been in contact with Mark Desmond. They’ve ordered records of his bank accounts and recent purchases.”

“
I don’t care about the dirty Detective Ambrose,” Maddy said. “I just want Mark to pay for his own dirty deeds.”

“
Unfortunately, when we suggested that Mark might be paying off the cop, we opened another can of worms. The police are interested in investigating their own. They don’t want to blow their investigation by picking up Mr. Desmond.”

“
Great! Just what we needed,” Ted grimaced. “First we get ignored and then it’s, it’s like--”

“
Overkill,” Maddy said quietly.

“
Exactly!” Ted said.

“
At least they’re actually investigating this time,” T.J. said. “They have new reports filed on the assault on Terrence in the garage and the vehicular assault. Best of all, he’s under surveillance, too.”

“
I guess that’s some consolation,” Ted said uncertainly.

“
Since the police are involved now, do you want me to continue my surveillance?”

Ted and Maddy glanced at each other and answered in unison, “Yes!”

~*~

Rene played on the computer, searching through the archives for financial aid sources for orphans in Alaska. She was able to access some areas, but most sites referred her to another. Looking up, she realized she had spent several hours with very little to show for her efforts. She pushed away from the computer and felt her loneliness wrap around her like a blanket, though she drew no comfort from it. Turning her back on the computer, she walked to the fireplace and added a log to the glowing remains on the grate. The sound of the embers crackling softly intermingled with the low whir of the computer and the sleep sounds of her children overhead in the loft. The wind danced through the trees, sending sprays of snow skidding off the boughs to land softly on the white blanket nestled around the trunks.

Rene settled on the sofa and tucked her feet up under her. She pulled her heavy flannel gown down to cover her wool socks and lamb-lined house shoes. Wrapping her warm cardigan around her knees, she stared into the glowing fire. The heat emanating from the hearth warmed her, but couldn’t fill the void inside. She pictured Brett’s face and heaved a big sigh. There was no way she could have hoped for a relationship with him, not with Mark in the picture. But she had been so happy with him for a short while.

The worst thing about happiness was that it came in little batches and when the bad times came, it made the sweet memories all the more painful. A tear slid down the side of her nose to drop off her chin onto her sweater. Brett was suffering too, according to Mrs. Jolly. That wasn’t much comfort, but it helped some.

It was late. She had half a mind to call him anyway. What would she say? She could tell him he had a lot of nerve feeling sorry for himself when he was the one who turned his back on her. She could tell him the kids missed him. How dare he provide them with the first positive male figure in their lives and then leave?

Or she could send him an e-mail message. She could compose it carefully so she had all the perfect words to make him see how unfair and selfish he was. Or she could tell him how selfish she was to want him when she wasn’t free to love him.

She sighed again.

She wished for the millionth time she could call her sister. Maddy probably had an e-mail address, but how could she find out? The girls played games on their computer, but did their mom use it? Maddy was the first to try everything new. Surely she used e-mail. Maddy had provided Rene lots of information to help her survive in this new world. Did she give her enough to hold onto from the old one?

Rene unfolded herself from the sofa and stretched lazily in front of the crackling fire. She walked to the center of the cabin to examine the thermometer Ben had rigged up for her. When it had hung on any of the walls, the temperature wasn’t an accurate indicator of the true comfort level in the room. Ben’s solution was to suspend it from one of the large, somewhat rusty, iron hooks hanging from the crossbeams. He said they were used to hang smoked meats for the winter. Now she saw that it read close to sixty degrees inside. Warm as toast, if you were wearing your long johns.

Rene swept a colorfully woven wool blanket around her shoulders and pulled the nylon bag from under her bed. A wave of longing washed over her as she recalled extracting it from the locker in the Houston bus station in the not-so-distant past. She dumped the contents on the sofa and curled up again to examine each document more carefully. After pouring over each page, she was unable to locate any place for communications except the mailbox where the bills from the credit card would be sent. Rene only used the card for her initial escape costs. She paid her own way since first receiving her sign-on-bonus. Perhaps Maddy had closed the box or no longer checked it. It was worth a try. Rene shoved the papers back into the bag, the zipper making a loud noise in the silent cabin. She hoisted it onto her shoulder, the nylon swishing against her cardigan as she walked. Something hard bumped against her hip with each step. Inside the small zipped pocket she found the billfold Maddy had filled for her. She pulled out all of the cards and papers folded inside and spread them on the kitchen table. Examining each in turn under the dangling light, she found no help in the various forms of identification and credit card in her false name. Ted’s business card was there, she supposed, in case the locals needed someone to come and claim her body.

She shoved all dark thoughts from her mind and began to return the cards to the billfold when suddenly she grabbed Ted’s card again. There, in the lower right corner was his e-mail address. She had a link to her family.

Her fingers grasped the card like a lifeline as she sat shakily at the table. Did she dare send a message to Maddy? Would the message be received at Ted’s office or at home? She had to take a chance. The isolation was crushing her.

Returning to the computer screen, she typed in the address and a simple message.

The experiment is proceeding. All of

the subjects reacting well to the

environment, functioning well under

refrigeration. Need feedback from

control group.

Orion

“
That ought to do it,” she said under her breath. She clicked on the “send” button and after a blink the message disappeared from the screen. It was done. If the message was received at home she could get a reply at any time. If it went to Ted’s office she would have to wait until Monday.

The sound of a motor approaching caused her to look up. It was well after midnight. No one would come to the cabin at this hour unless there was an evil purpose. She knew that even the low lights inside the cabin glowed like a beacon outside. Whoever was in the vehicle would know she was awake. She drew the hanging blankets closed making a tent around her bed and stepped up onto it. Carefully peeling back the layers of insulated material, she peered out into the darkness. The waning crescent moon cast an eerie glow over the blanket of snow, clearly defining Brett’s Hummer idling at the edge of the clearing.

A wave of relief swept over her and then suspicion stirred in the pit of her stomach.
What is he doing out there?
She continued to watch but he made no move to come closer. Did she want him to come closer?
Yes. . .No. . . Yes, I do.

Turning from the window, she opened the blankets back to admit heat to her little cubicle. Was he going to sit out there watching the cabin for the rest of the night? Maybe he hadn’t expected her to be awake. But why had he come?

Rene swirled the woolen blanket back around her shoulders and unlatched the door. She stepped out onto the porch, the frigid air immediately penetrating her layers of clothing. She stood for a moment staring at the Hummer, her gaze unable to penetrate the blackness within. She walked to the edge of the porch just as it came creeping slowly closer. The sound of her heartbeat hammering in her ears was louder than the powerful motor approaching her. Snuggling the blanket closer around her, she inhaled the icy air deeply and realized she had been holding her breath.

The truck drew parallel to the porch. The passenger door swung open.

“
Get in,” Brett ordered gruffly.

She stood as if paralyzed until he reached a hand out to help her. Stepping off the porch, the snow clung to her lambskin house shoes, almost dragging them off. She reached up to grab his hand and he pulled her into the warm interior, leaning across her to slam the door shut.

Silently, they regarded each other. She let the blanket fall away from her shoulders just as Brett reached for her. Grabbing the tightly woven blanket, he slid her toward him. The familiar aroma of whatever soap or shave cream he used caused her to have pleasant stirrings inside.

Rene couldn’t suppress a smile, though he glared at her with an intensity she couldn’t read. She touched his gloved hand still clutching the blanket.

Without a word, he tore off the gloves and threw them to the floorboard. His rough fingers gently caressed the sides of her face as he lowered his lips to hers.

The kiss began simply, but intensified to a screaming pitch soon enough. She wrenched her lips from his, gasping for air. She was drowning in a pool of bliss. Drowning in a pool of Brett.

His expression remained dark, but he lowered his gaze and started unbuttoning the bulky cardigan. He spread it open and regarded the small buttons of her flannel gown. She raised her hands to the top one and removed it from the small buttonhole. His eyes locked on hers and for the first time, a tiny smile played around his lips.