Release (41 page)

She
went over to it, realizing she hadn’t wrapped it up yet.  Annoyed, she
took a couple of minutes to do so, then took it, leaving the studio and locking
up behind her.  She entered the stairwell and jogged down the
stairs.  As she got down to the first floor, she grabbed the door to enter
into the hallway off the lobby, just as the sound of two people arguing
registered in her brain. 

She
stepped into the hallway and smacked right into Jennifer Edwards and Armand
DiCarlo.

They
were both dressed casually, but Jenn had on a long auburn colored wig, along
with a flowy skirt and tank top.  Slung over Armand’s shoulder was a
canister that was used to hold rolled up canvases.  There was no reason in
the world for them to be there.  However, in this case, Ryann had a
feeling that the rolled up canvas in this particular canister, was potentially
the stolen painting by Mackenzie Renault.

…..

They
were all so stunned to see each other, a silent moment passed until chaos
ensued.

Jennifer
screamed, “Grab her!”, and Armand lunged for her, but Ryann threw her own
painting at them, and turned to run.

Armand
was only delayed a moment and snatched her up easily, lifting her off the
ground.  She fought and kicked, but in the scuffle, he clipped her on the
head causing her reaction to slow.

He
held her tightly, and began cursing in Italian.  “Ryann, stop
fighting!  I don’t want to hurt you.  Dio mio, what the hell are you
doing here?” he growled.

She
was panting slightly.  “I could ask you the same thing, but I think I know
the answer.”

He
carried her over to where Jennifer was, and held her arms behind her.

Jennifer
looked at her scornfully.  “You just always have to ruin everything, don’t
you, you bitch?”  Then she looked at Armand, “Or maybe this is the perfect
scenario.”

When
Ryann bumped into them in the hallway, they were just coming through the
doorway that led to the basement.  Had they actually stolen the painting? 
What were they doing here?

Armand
was breathing heavily and mumbled in a loud whisper, “Ryann, why are you
here?  What the hell are we going to do now?” he asked Jennifer.

Jennifer
looked at Ryann, and said, “What else is there to do?  We’re going to get
rid of her.  They didn’t find the painting all week in the boiler
room.  They won’t find her either.”  Jennifer pulled out a gun.

“What
the
fuck
, Jennifer?” Armand sputtered.  “No.  I didn’t agree
to hurting anyone.  Just give me a second to think.”

Holy
shit...Ryann needed a second to think, too.  She’d been inside for at
least 10 minutes...maybe longer, since she’d had to wrap up her painting. 
Would Manny wonder what was taking her so long?

“There’s
nothing to think about, you idiot!  She knows.  It’s not like we can
let her go.”

“Jennifer,”
he growled, “put your fucking gun away.  We’re not handling it this way.”

“You
know what, Armand?  I’m the one holding the gun, and it’s pointed at both
of
you.
  So, I think I’ll be calling the shots from now on…move
over there,” directing them both to the door leading them to the basement.

Armand
let Ryann go, and stepped slightly in front of her, “Really, Jennifer? 
So, you’re a murderer now?  That’s how you want this to end?”

“You’re
pathetic, you know that?  If you’d stop thinking with your dick, you’d
realize this is the only way.  But now that I know where your loyalties
lie, the plan’s going to change.  God, what does this little bitch have
that makes you guys forget yourselves?  You’re all fucking idiots!” she
said vehemently.

Jennifer
positioned herself in front of them, their backs to the hallway wall. 
They weren’t far from where Ryann had seen Jeremy and Tiffany.  Just
around the corner from where Jennifer stood, was the lobby.  Where the
hell was the security guard?  Had they killed him?

Jennifer
continued talking to Armand, “You helped with the security, you helped with the
alibi, and now you’re going to help with the perfect set up…”

While
Jennifer was talking, Ryann stood slightly behind Armand, trying to keep the
attention off of her.  There was no way in hell she was going to let this
woman take away the life she knew she had ahead of her.  She had a chance
at happiness again, and she would do everything in her power to keep it. 

“You
see, at the gala, you made yourself scarce during the beginning of the auction,
and while the caterers were leaving, you came in through the kitchen and the
back of the parlor, where no one would suspect you,” Jennifer started to
explain. “Then, you tased and tied up the guard and moved him into the kitchen,
removed the painting from the frame and put a replica of the same size and
weight in its place, so that if the other guard looked in, it would buy you
some time.  Then you brought the real painting down to lock it into the
boiler room in the ceiling tiles, knowing you wouldn’t be able to leave with it
without being caught on all of the security cameras.  You came up to the
auction, you left with the last of the guests from Quinn Hall without anyone
knowing the painting was already gone, and the guard in the lobby had no idea
what had gone on only feet from him inside the parlor.  You decided to
wait until a holiday, after the crime scene had been cleaned up, and there was
only one security guard here to retrieve the painting.”

Ryann’s
head was spinning.  Wow.  The FBI wasn’t far from figuring it
out.  How on earth had they pulled this off before midnight, while guests
were still in the building?

“Hmm,
strangely similar to the truth, Jennifer, except that you’ve forgotten a few
important points.  One, stealing the painting was your idea, and you
played a part by distracting the guard in the lobby.  And two, don’t
forget, I’ve already been interrogated by the FBI.  They have nothing on
me. 
You’re
the one who’s fallen off the radar this last
week.  You don’t think the FBI has been looking into you?  There
might be FBI and police waiting outside for you right now,” he said with a
smirk.

The
hand holding the gun took aim at Armand.  “Why would they even be
here?  They don’t know where I’ve been.  And you’re my alibi.  I
was with you when you got the first call.  And even if they were outside,
I don’t exactly look like myself today.”  She smiled maliciously at
Ryann.  “Have you figured it out yet, Miss Goody Two Shoes?”

Ryann
nearly shuddered with the anger that coursed through her.  “Are you
supposed to look like me, Jennifer, is that it?  So this was all to set me
up?”  Pause.  “How on earth were you going to pin this on me?”

Jennifer
looked at her with fury.  “You know what you are, Ryann?  You’re one
of those sweet little things who thinks she can always charm the wits out of
all the men.”  Jenn said in a whiny tone making fun of her.  “Well,
your time is up.  I was prepared to just let you take the fall, so Jeremy
could see that his sweet little thing wasn’t so sweet, but now I think I’ll
just kill you, and let him suffer that way...maybe I’ll comfort him when you’re
gone.”

Like
hell she would!  She wasn’t leaving Jeremy.  The pain of thinking
about what Jeremy would go through if she was killed nearly stopped her
breath.  She would never let this woman succeed.  She just needed to
keep her talking.  Maybe Manny would call Jeremy.

Jennifer
obviously didn’t know Ryann had an alibi for the night of the gala.  And
how had Jennifer gotten into the Institute tonight?

“How
did you get in tonight?”

Jennifer
smiled, and explained.  “I knocked on the door and when the guard asked
who I was through the intercom, I explained my name was Ryann Thornton, and
that I was an instructor who needed to grab something, but forgot my ID. 
He checked your name on the list and let me in.  I made conversation with
him as I was walking up to the desk, and then tased him, and let Armand in the
side.  Armand helped me drag him behind the desk to tie him up.  When
he comes to, he’ll remember Ryann Thornton was the one who came in and tased
him.  Now, you’ve made the plan a perfect one by showing up,” she smirked
and looked down at her outfit.  “All that’s left is to exchange clothes
with you.”

“And
me, Jennifer?  What’s your plan for me?” Armand asked, his stance casual.

All
of a sudden, a shot rang out.  Ryann screamed, and Armand crumpled in
front of her. 

Jennifer,
smoking gun in her hand, looked at him on the floor, unconscious, blood seeping
from his chest, then looked at Ryann, who had her hand covering her mouth in
horror.

Oh,
God.  Please let me survive this.  Give me a way to get out of this.

Jennifer’s
eyes gleamed, and she was now standing only a couple of feet away, the gun
aimed at Ryann, saying, “It’s a shame that Armand, your co-conspirator, turned
on you, Ryann.  You had to kill him.  He attacked you, after
all.  There was a struggle, and you both got shot.”  Jennifer
tsked.  “Such a pity.”

“Wait,
Jennifer.  I don’t understand.”
 Keep her talking, Ryann.
 
“How were you able to pull this off?” 
Make her feel smart,
Ryann. 
“Was Armand always in on it?  He brought me home during
the gala, and wanted to stay with me.  How was he going to steal the
painting if he was with me?”

Jennifer
chuckled, then sneered.  “Do you think you’re really that irresistible to
every man out there?  We had our eye on you from day one.  You were
going to be his alibi.  He was watching you the night of the gala, and
when he saw you running, he intercepted you.  He was going to fuck you
that night, and after, he was going to give you a little something to help you
sleep ‘til morning, then come back here to get the job done.  He would’ve
loved to stick it to both you
and
Jeremy.  Your fucking superior
moral code apparently squashed that plan.” 

Off
to the side, Ryann saw a movement.  Keeping her eyes on Jennifer, she
could just make out Michael and Jeremy quietly coming up behind Jennifer. 
Michael was holding a gun in his hand, and held up a finger to his lips,
indicating Ryann shouldn’t make a sound. 

Her
heartbeat raced, as relief, hope, and fear burst through her. 
Oh
God.  Please don’t let Jeremy get hurt.

Jennifer
laughed.  “He was actually pretty disappointed.  He was hoping to get
a taste of you that night.  He would’ve
loved
to throw that in
Jeremy’s face.” 

Jenn
stepped closer and said in a dramatic whisper, “But, don’t worry.  He
still had a good fuck that night.  And I can promise you this.  It
was much more enjoyable than what he would’ve gotten from you.”

Just
as she raised the gun to Ryann’s chest, Michael quietly appeared several feet
behind her. “Drop the gun, Jennifer.  Now.”

Ryann
looked at Michael in panic, and saw Jeremy tense with a look of complete rage
and fear on his face.

Jennifer
jumped slightly when Michael spoke, but continued looking at Ryann, and said,
“You just keep ruining everything, don’t you?”

She
pulled the trigger and Ryann felt pain tear through her just as she heard
another shot ring out almost simultaneously...along with Jeremy’s scream. 

Then
everything went black.

Ryann’s foggy brain registered voices...fragments of
conversations. 

“…fortunately,
it went cleanly through her side…a couple of days, then she can be dis…”

“…when
will she wake up?  She’s been out of surgery…”

“…need
to give her time…”

She
was trying to focus, but her consciousness failed her, and she fell back into
the abyss.

…..

She
was trying desperately to wake up, but she just couldn’t open her eyes. 
All she could hear was Jeremy’s voice.

“…you
promised you’d never leave me again…”

“…come
back…”

“…don’t
you
leave
me, Ryann…”

Ryann
could hear Jeremy’s panic and fear.  His sadness.  She was trying to
reach out to him, but she couldn’t gain the strength to open her eyes.

I’m
here, Jeremy… I’m okay… I’m almost there…

…..

She
could feel the warmth of a hand in hers, and the weight of something next to
her side.  She tried to open her eyes, which felt like they were glued
shut.  She didn’t want to stay asleep anymore.

She
needed to see Jeremy.  She needed to tell him that she was okay.

She
pried her eyes open and allowed the sights and sounds around her to sink into
her awareness.  The room was darkened.  She could hear a beeping
noise over her shoulder, and see her mother over by the window, sleeping in a
chair.

She looked down
and saw Jeremy holding her hand, with his head lying on the bed next to her.

Ryann
squeezed his hand, and croaked out, “Jeremy?”

Jeremy’s
head shot up.  “Ryann?”  He smiled a dazzling smile, relief evident
on his face.

“Luv?” 
Ryann’s mom rushed over.

Jeremy
leaned up over her and brushed back her hair, “Hey.”  He swallowed and
brought his forehead down to hers, taking a deep breath.  He leaned back
and looked her in the eye.  “How are you feeling?”

“Thirsty.” 
She smiled up at his gorgeous face, “Can I have some water?”  

“Of
course, hold on…”  He reached over to get her cup of water, then helped
hold up her head.  “Open up, baby…take a small sip.”

She
did.

“Ryann,
we’ve been waiting for you to wake up, luv.”  Her mom reached down and
kissed her forehead, then smiled with relief.  “I’ll go get the
doctor.”  She looked at Jeremy and winked, then left.

When
she left, Ryann turned to Jeremy, whose eyes were glittering with unshed
tears.  She reached out her hand, and grabbed for his.

He
looked terrified, and sat next to her on the bed, trying not to jostle her too
much, and kissed her hand.  She could see him
swallowing...once...twice...trying to regain his emotion.

“I’m
okay, Jeremy.  I’m okay,” she said over and over, stroking his face, while
he kissed her palm.  He still hadn’t said anything, battling whatever
demons were inside him.  “I love you...I love you...” she kept whispering.

“Baby.” 
Pause.  “God, you scared me to death...thank God you woke up.”

“I’m
missing a few details in my head… Can you fill in the blanks?”

“I’ll
tell you anything.  What do you want to know?”

Before
she could form a question, a tall good looking man came in with her mother,
wearing a white doctor’s coat.  He looked to be in his mid-thirties, and
was a light skinned African American, with dark calm eyes.

“Well,
hello there,” he said in his rich voice, smiling at her.  “I’m Dr.
Huntington.  How are you feeling?”

“Good. 
Just a little tired.  And thirsty.”

He
reached for the cup, and Jeremy said, “I just gave her a little sip.”

“Good.” 
He spent the next few moments checking her pupils, and asking her generic
questions.

“Do
you remember how you got here?”

“I
was just about to ask Jeremy some questions....was I shot?”  She couldn’t
believe she was even asking the question.  It was like a movie.

“Yes. 
Why don’t I give you some of the medical highlights.”  He paused. 
“You were shot, on your left side.  The bullet didn’t hit any major organs,
and passed cleanly through right below your ribcage.  You’ve had a surgery
to patch everything up, but you’re going to be fine.”

Ryann
processed what he said.  “I remember.  It was Jennifer,” she said
turning to Jeremy for confirmation.

He
swallowed, then nodded.

“What
happened to her?”

Jeremy
looked at the doctor and her mom.

Ryann
repeated her question.  “What happened to Jennifer, Jeremy?”

He
looked at her, “She’s dead, baby.”

Ryann
paused until it sunk in, then she nodded, “Ok.”  Pause.  “It was Michael?”

Jeremy
nodded.

“He’s
okay?”

Jeremy
nodded again, and kissed her hand.

“Thank
God.  And you’re okay?” she asked with a moment of panic.

He
smiled softly, and stroked her cheek.  “Yes, unless almost having a heart
attack when I saw Jennifer aiming a gun at you counts for anything,” he
mumbled, then seemed to be hit by what he said.  He shook his head and
closed his eyes to regain some control.

She
squeezed his hand, and he looked at her.

“How
did you get to the Institute?  How did you know to come?”

“Manny…you
hadn’t come out, and you didn’t bring your phone in with you, so he went up to
the door and looked in, but couldn’t find the security guard.  He called
me.  At first, I was completely confused because I thought you were in the
house, but Manny started explaining, so Michael and I took his dad’s car and
left immediately.”

Ryann
asked in a whisper, “Did they kill him?  The guard?”

“No,
they tased him, then tied him up.  He’s going to be fine.”

“That’s
right.  Jennifer told me that...I was so scared.  She shot Armand…”

Jeremy
nodded.  “We heard you scream.”  He was gripping her hand as if he
never wanted to let her go.  “No one is ever going to hurt you again,
baby.  I promise you that,” he said in a furious whisper.

“I’ll
leave you all to visit,” Dr. Huntington said quietly.  “Ryann, you’re a
strong woman.  You’re going to make a full recovery.  It might take a
couple of weeks, but you’ll be as good as new.”

Ryann
thanked him profusely for helping her, and he left.

Riley
leaned down and said to Ryann, “I’m going to let you and Jeremy catch up, luv,
and start calling some folks.”  She kissed her head.  “My strong baby
girl,” she said with a sniffle.  “I love you so much.”

Ryann
was crying a little too, and said, “I love you, too, Mom.  It’s all going
to be okay.”

Riley
beamed.  “Yes, it is.  In fact, it’s all going to be wonderful. 
You two have a good visit.”  She looked at Jeremy, then left the room.

Jeremy
looked at her with such pain in his eyes.  He was so quiet.

“Jeremy?”

He
laid down next to her on her good side, being careful not to hurt her, and put
his arm up over her head on the pillow, playing with her hair.  His face
was right next to hers, and he kissed her face softly.  His eyes were
closed.

“I’m
okay, Jeremy.  It’s going to be okay.”

“Ryann…Just
give me a sec.”  He lay there, breathing deeply, his lips on her
face.  After a moment, he said, “I have never been so scared in my
life.  I swear…when she shot you, I thought…”  He didn’t finish.

“I’m
here, baby.  I’m right here, baby,” she cried.  “I love you so much…I
love you so much… All I kept thinking about was that I didn’t want her to take
away this happiness that we found.  That I would do everything in my power
for you not to feel what I felt when I lost Brent.  I was prepared to
fight, but everything happened so fast…”

“You
were perfect.  You stayed alive long enough for us to get there.  As
soon as Manny called me, Michael and I left.  We were there in about 10
minutes from when he called.   At first, we weren’t even sure if
anything was going on, but we knew that Jennifer hadn’t been seen all week, and
neither of us wanted to take any chances.  We kept Manny on the phone, and
as he continued looking in the lobby, he finally saw the guard’s shoe peeking
out from behind the desk.  That’s when we started flying and Mike called
the precinct.  When we got there, we went in quietly, and the cops were
just arriving.  We heard the shot just as we walked in...and your
scream...”

He
got quiet. 

She
stroked his face, and whispered.  “I’m so sorry.  I can only imagine
what was going through your mind.  I shouldn’t have gone, or at the very
least, I should’ve told you I was going.  Our moms knew.  I didn’t
even think it would be a problem.”

“When
I think that you could’ve taken the subway...then we’d never have known...God,
Ryann.”  He snuggled her face.  She could feel his jaw tightening.

“I
went to get...oh!  My painting!  Do you know if anyone found my
painting?”  She continued to touch his face and smiled, “I painted you something.”

He
smiled back, and cleared his throat to stop the emotion from taking over his
voice.  “I know.  The FBI thought it was somehow involved in some
way, until they unpackaged it.  When they saw your name on the front, they
gave it to Mike.  I was already on my way to the hospital with you.”

“I
need to see Manny...and Mike.  I need to thank them.”

“Manny
is going to have the biggest raise of anyone in the universe.” 
Pause.  “He’s blaming himself.  He’s wishing he went in with you.”

“No. 
He did absolutely the right thing.”

“Yes,
he did.”

They
snuggled each other some more.

“Armand? 
Is he…?”

“He
was still in surgery last I heard.”

Ryann
sighed.  “What a…crazy…thing.”

Jeremy
took a deep breath, then said quietly, “Look, as soon as the FBI knows you’re
awake, they’re gonna want to question you.  Emily said she would be here
for that, and I won’t be leaving your side either.  I don’t care what they
say.  You have nothing to be worried about, but I just wanted you to know
they want to talk to you about what happened.”

“Of
course.”

“I
need to talk to you before they come, because I have some things to say, and I
need you to hear me.”

He
was getting worked up about something, and Ryann looked at him concerned. 
“What’s wrong?”

“Listen,
I know you’re an independent woman, I know you just bought your first place in
the City, I know we’ve only been together for a few weeks, but when you were
shot…when I thought that I lost you, I swear Ryann… I…,” he stuttered. 
“Look, I’m not going to take no for answer on this, ok?”

Ryann
started to smile.  “Well, how can I answer yes or no, when you haven’t
asked me anything yet?”

Jeremy
took a deep breath, and held her face, looking deep into her eyes, and said, “I
want you to move in with me.”

Ryann
looked at him shocked.  Before she could respond, he continued in a rush.

“And
when you’re ready, I’m making you my wife.  But until then, I want you
with me.  I have tons of room, baby.  We can give you the whole third
floor.  You can use your living room furniture to have your own sitting
room up there, you can have your own studio… I just… I know this is fast.”

He
mumbled a curse, and Ryann tried not to smile at his discomfiture, or his
mandate that they were going to get married.  He was absolutely adorable
at the moment, in the midst of his sputtering.

“I
don’t want to live without you, baby.  I…can’t live without you.  I
need you with me.  I need to go to sleep with you at night, and wake up with
you in the morning.  I want you with me, to protect you, to love
you.  And I know you want your independence…I
know
this, but I’ll
give you whatever space you need.  Please, baby.  Just don’t say
no.”  Pause.  He swallowed and closed his eyes.  “Don’t say no,
baby,” he whispered with feeling.

Ryann
was so touched by his emotional, and ineloquent speech that her eyes watered
up.  She reached up and stroked his face.

She
couldn’t believe she was about to say yes, but she was.  Because being
with him was so much more important to her than staunchly protecting her
independence, or analyzing that they had only been together for a few weeks.

She
loved this man, and they both knew from life experiences, that it was extremely
precious and short.  She wanted to start living her life with him right
now.  She didn’t want to wait.

Ryann
lightly touched his closed eyes, then his cheek, and she leaned over to his
lips.  With her lips touching his, she whispered with a smile, “Ok.”

His
eyes popped open.  “Shit.  Really?  Are you sure?” he said, his
eyes lit up with hope.

“Well,
you did say you weren’t taking no for an answer,” she grinned.  “And what
kind of proposal was that, buddy?”

He
let out a whoosh of air, and kissed her hard on the lips, then looked at
her.  “That’s right.  I’m
not
taking no for an answer...and I
was giving you fair warning about making you my wife.  I’m not taking no
for an answer there, either.”

“You
didn’t even ask!” she laughed.

“That’s
because if I ask, you would have the opportunity to say no.  That’s why
I’m giving you the warning first so you can get used to the idea.”  His
eyes twinkled.

“Well,
then.  I guess that’s settled,” she said in a wry tone, but inside she was
doing her happy dance.

He
let out such a sound of relief, she thought he was going to start crying.

“I
thought you were going to fight me on this, and I didn’t want to lay down the
law, but there was no way you were going to win this fight.  I had all of
my arguments ready.” 

He
paused, looking like he was about to say something.  Then, “I talked to my
mom about you...that night I met her for dinner before leaving for Chicago.”