Stockholm Syndrome (17 page)

After their session yesterday, when she’d slept in his arms
on the picnic blanket, he realized that he’d fallen in love with her. Guilt had
opened a door and she’d slipped into his carefully guarded heart and stolen a
big piece of it. Buying her plane ticket almost killed him, but what choice did
he have? Nothing real could ever grow between them whilst he kept her prisoner.
He had to let her go and pray she’d come back to him of her own free will, even
though there wasn’t much chance of it.

But he couldn’t shake the thought that he could have done
more to further his own cause, to give her an indication of his feelings. Maybe
he could still take action. On impulse, he took out his phone and typed a text
to her.

Evvy, I’ve fallen in love with you. If there’s any chance
you feel the same, please call me. Mason.

He cringed at the thought of what her reaction might be, but
hit
Send
anyway. If he never heard from her again, it wouldn’t be
because she didn’t know how he felt. There was nothing else he could do right
now. Her phone was switched off and stowed in her backpack, so she’d only get
the message after she landed in Brisbane.

He left the airport building and walked slowly to the Range
Rover, aware that he wasn’t looking forward to returning home now that Evelyn
wasn’t at the house. He shrugged. He’d bury himself in his work. That’s how he’d
coped after Bianca. Work had kept him sane.

He called a greeting to Edna as he came in, and hurried to
his office, pausing when he saw the letter on his desk. It could only be from
Evelyn. His heart started to pound, and he picked up the envelope with a
shaking hand, hoping for a wild and breathless moment that she’d left him a
love letter.

He read it three times before the meaning sank in. He stared
in horrified disbelief at the harsh words then let the paper fall from his
nerveless fingers. This was worse—far, far worse—than he’d ever imagined.

He sat down behind his desk, fearing that his legs would
give way. She’d played him for a fool right from the start. But how had he
misjudged her so completely? He, who was such a good judge of character! Her
passion, her pleasure in what they had done, the orgasms he’d drawn from her
body—he could have sworn they, at least, were real. How was it possible for her
to have feelings so vastly different from his?

Coldness and pain swept over him, then anger. Hopes and
dreams that he hadn’t been aware of building up, came crashing down in pathetic
ruins. He lowered his head to the surface of his desk, pressing his forehead to
the smooth, cool wood. Goddamn it, he was such a fucking
idiot
!

And he’d sent her a text saying that he loved her. He pulled
out his phone and looked at the message again, nausea and disgust churning in
the pit of his stomach. In a sudden burst of agonizing rage, he hurled the
offending gadget across the room where it cracked into a bookshelf with a
crunch and burst into pieces…like his heart.

Not only were his feelings unrequited, she was also going to
the police. All his efforts had been for nothing. His family would be shamed
and, depending on what she told them, his brother might also be in trouble for
helping him kidnap her. It was time to stop thinking about himself and to focus
on damage control.

There was only one thing he could do, and he should have
done it right from the start. He’d go to the police and turn himself in before
Evelyn could press charges and have him arrested. If he explained his side of
the story first, and exonerated Owen from any blame, he might be able to
salvage some control of the situation. At least it would show the police that
he was willing to be cooperative. Then he’d hire a good lawyer and try to keep
the whole case out of court and the news, and himself out of prison.

He sprang to his feet. He didn’t know how much time he’d
have before she made her move, but he had a feeling she wouldn’t wait long. Now
that he’d decided on a course of action, he had to get busy.

He picked up Evelyn’s letter and went in search of George
and Edna. He found them at their cottage, preparing lunch. He showed them the
letter and outlined his plan.

“Are ya sure?” asked George, his weathered face creasing
into a worried frown. “Why not just wait and see what happens? Maybe she’ll
change her mind.”

“I don’t think she will, George,” answered Mason, squeezing
his eyes shut and pinching the bridge of his nose where a headache was forming.
“I’ve underestimated her in every possible way. I can’t afford to do that
again.”

“Well, I overestimated her,” snorted Edna. “I thought she
was smart enough to see what was right under her nose. She’s gonna be kicking
herself for the rest of her life over this.”

“What do you mean?” asked Mason.

“That girl’s in love with ya. I know it like I know my own
face in the mirror! But only God knows what’s going on in that head of hers to
write this rubbish!” She flicked the letter impatiently. “Ya should just wait.
She’ll come ’round.”

Mason laughed grimly. “I think she fooled you too, Edna.
That letter’s not confused or uncertain. She knows what she wants, and it’s to
see me strung up by my balls!”

“That’s your own hurt talking now, Mace. Ya got feelings for
her too, hey?” Edna’s beady eyes were knowing, and George was nodding in
agreement.

“It’s totally irrelevant,” snapped Mason. “I came to tell
you what’s going on so if I don’t come home tonight due to being fucking
arrested, you know what’s happened. I’m leaving now. And don’t bother calling
me, my phone’s broken.”

He stormed out of the cottage and gunned the Range Rover
down the drive.

***

Evelyn sat at the table and racked her brains. She’d packed
a suitcase and booked a taxi to the airport. Surely there was something else
she could do? She couldn’t just sit around for over two hours thinking about
Mason finding the letter. She’d go mad. Oh, if only she hadn’t written the
bloody thing!

Suddenly she remembered her new phone. Mason had said that
he’d added himself to her contacts. She could phone him, and tell him that she’d
made a dreadful mistake. Maybe she could even catch him before he read it.

Her backpack was next to the front door. She dug out the
phone and turned it on. His name was there in her contacts, and as she was
about to dial, a text message from him popped up, and the phoned pinged. She
opened it, and her eyes filled with tears as she read it. He’d come out and
said it—he loved her! He wanted to see her again! She checked the time on the
message; he must have sent it right after they parted at the airport. He would
never have typed such revealing thoughts if he’d seen the letter. It was going
to make things even worse when he found it.

She closed the text and pressed the green button to dial
him, holding her breath while it rang. His voice message service answered.
Damn! She dropped the call and tried again, but the same recorded message
greeted her.

This is Mason Brady. I can’t take your call right now.
Please leave a message and I’ll get back to you.

“Mason, it’s Evelyn. Please ignore that letter on your desk.
It’s a terrible mistake. I’m coming back to Rockhampton this afternoon and I’ll
explain everything. I love you too, Mason. Please,
please
forgive me.”

She hung up and swore. Couldn’t one damn thing go right? Why
was his phone off at this hour of the day?

Suddenly she had an idea. Returning to her computer, she
used her work email address and password to log on to the university intranet,
and typed “Owen Brady” into the search bar.

To her relief, his student profile popped up, and as a
member of the faculty, she could see his contact number. She dialed it, praying
that he’d answer his phone.

“Hiya, Owen speaking.”

“Oh, thank god!”

“What? Who’s this?”

“Owen, it’s Evelyn Maier. You know, Mason’s Evelyn?”

“Of course! How’re ya going?”

“I’m having a bit of an emergency actually. I need to get
hold of Edna or George really urgently. Have you got their numbers?”

“Sure.” His voice was concerned. “But are you all right? Is
Mason okay?”

“As far as I know he’s fine. Everyone’s fine—it’s not that
kind of emergency.” She prayed it was true.

“Oh, okay. I’ll send those numbers through to you now. But
if you’re not with Mason, where are you?”

“I’m here in Brisbane. But I’m going back to the ranch this
afternoon.”

“Well, I’ve obviously missed all the fucking action! Call me
back when you can, and tell me what’s happening?”

“Sure, but send me those numbers quickly, Owen!”

“Will do. See ya, Evelyn.”

“See ya.”

She hung up and stared at the phone, hoping Owen would be
quick and breathing a sigh of relief when his texts arrived almost immediately.

She tried Edna first, and her familiar voice answered on the
first ring.

“Hullo.”

“Hi, Edna. It’s Evelyn.” She rushed on, too anxious for the
usual courtesies. “I’m trying to get hold of Mason, but he’s not answering his
phone. It’s really urgent. Can you help? Do you know where he is?”

There was a long moment of silence.

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with that ugly letter ya
gave him would it?” Edna’s normally cheerful voice was icy with disapproval.
Mortification tinged with relief swept over Evelyn. How humiliating that he’d
shown it to them, but at least she didn’t have to beat about the bush.

“Yes, it’s about that letter. Listen, Edna, it was a huge
mistake. I didn’t realize it until I got back here, but I’m in love with Mason.
I don’t know how I didn’t see it before! And I’m not going to the police, I’m
coming back to the ranch. I need to fix this somehow. Can you help me, please?”

Her desperation must have reached Edna, for she sounded less
censuring when she finally replied.

“I’m not sure anybody can help. He’s gone off to turn
himself in at the police. I’ve never seen him so upset.”

“What? Oh god, why would he do such a thing?”

“Like I said, he was too upset to listen to reason. He’s
hoping there’ll be less trouble if he owns up to it and cooperates. We tried to
talk him out of it, but he was hurting badly and I think he’s decided that he
deserves
to be punished for what he did to ya.”

She wouldn’t have thought it possible to feel worse, but she
did.

“Can you get hold of him, Edna? He’s not answering my calls.
Maybe if he sees it’s you—”

“’Fraid not. His phone’s broken. There’s nothing we can do.”

“Can you go after him?”

Edna hesitated. “He’s been gone for nearly an hour. Must be
in Rockhampton by now so there doesn’t seem much point.”

“Please, Edna… Please just go after him. Anything could
happen! He… He could get a flat tire, or stop for fuel. You might catch up with
him.”

He might just change his mind, or have second thoughts, but
she didn’t say that to Edna.

“He won’t be happy if we interfere.”

“He won’t be happy if he turns himself in to the police for
no reason either!” She let all her emotions, all her needs and regrets, creep
into her voice. “When he brought me to the ranch, you wouldn’t help me get
away, Edna. You said that he deserved a chance to fix his mistakes, and you
made sure he got that chance. Now
I’ve
made a mistake. Why don’t
I
get a chance to fix things?” She took a deep breath and played her last card.

“He loves me, Edna. He sent me a text telling me that he
loves me. He’d want to know that I love him too. It’ll break his heart if he
finds out too late. It’ll break
my
heart.”

She held her breath, waiting for the reply. It was such a
thin hope, but it was all she had.

“Oh, all right.”

Evelyn shut her eyes and gulped in a huge breath.

“We’ll leave now, but don’t get your hopes up.”

“Thank you, Edna. Phone me when you get to him.”

The call ended, and she sat slumped at the table. If Edna
and George caught up with Mason in time and if he actually agreed to see her
again—that was a big
if
—she would have to come up with some way to
convince him that she was sorry, and that she loved him. After her Stockholm
syndrome ploy, she’d have a hard time persuading him that her feelings were
genuine. He’d probably never trust her again.

***

Mason sat in his Range Rover under a shady tree in the car
park across the road from the police station. He looked at his watch for the
umpteenth time. A quarter to two. He was waiting for Shane Colwell, his new
lawyer, to arrive, before going in.

While driving, he’d ruthlessly subdued the hurt and calmed
down enough to think through his plan a little better. He was still convinced
that taking the initiative and going to the police before Evelyn pressed
charges would allow him more control of the situation, but he decided it would
be better to have a lawyer right from the start. Using the integrated satellite
car phone, he called Bob White, who handled all the legal matters for his
business and family trust, and asked him to recommend a good criminal lawyer.
Obviously curious, Bob suggested Shane, who had an excellent reputation.

Mason rang him immediately. Not surprisingly, Shane was keen
to take on a member of the Brady family as a new client and agreed to meet him
outside the police station at two o’clock, the earliest that Shane could
manage. Mason had killed time, dropping in for a quick workout and a shower at
the gym where he was a member, and grabbing a meal at a nearby food court. He
could hardly stomach the food, but anything to keep busy and not think about
Evelyn.

A big white ute with a growling engine pulled up next to the
Rover. Mason paid no attention until the driver got out and he saw it was
George. His surprise doubled when Edna climbed out of the passenger seat and moved
’round toward the Rover. Now what the devil were they doing here, he thought
with irritation. No doubt they wanted to try to talk him out of his plan again,
but to follow him into Rockhampton was presumptuous. He got out of the Rover
and squared up to George.