Assassin Deception Read online

  “I hurt all over, Salvator,” Chloe sobbed. She felt so vulnerable without her vision, without Damien’s arms wrapped around her. Her head was pounding, her ribs ached. It seemed all of her bones throbbed, as her mind cried out its misery and fear.

  An odd feeling of entrapment encompassed her. Even if she wanted to leave she would be unable to. There would be no escape to anywhere that wasn’t supervised, controlled.

  “Chloe, I’m going to give you something to help you sleep, to help with the pain you’re in. Don’t be afraid, someone will always be close by. Trust me, honey. You trust me, don’t you?” Dirk soothed.

  Chloe nodded with a soft affirmative, then felt her arm held gently but firmly in large hands. She felt the coolness over her inner arm from a sterilizing pad and Dirk slipped a needle into her vein.

  A fuzzy sensation flowed into her mind as the liquid flew through her blood. She grew groggy; her tongue felt thick, her limbs heavy, her thoughts a sea of rolling fog. The tenacious grip on her surroundings slipped.

  Her father had drugged the frightened woman before he had killed her. How would he have known to do that, how much to give her? Had Dirk taught him? Who had taught Dirk?

  Her mind battled the thought. She was loved, wanted. Not one of their hits, a mark. She quashed the thought angrily. Her father was the evil one. Instead a distant, hazy memory of when she was younger drifted into her confused mind.

  She was six and her bones hurt. She didn’t understand why her father had been so angry, she had done nothing wrong. She had been playing with her dolly on her bed, chatting to it about her upcoming birthday, the cake and presents promised to her. James was giving her a white Shetland pony; Dirk had promised her a porcelain doll to add to her collection.

  Chloe’s father had stormed into her room, bursting through her door, and he grabbed her up from the bed, a crazed, angry look on his face. His furious eyes settled onto her and he pounced. Her mother, her face bloodied and ashen, was screaming at him, terrified. She pleaded it wasn’t worth it, they would work it out.

  Chloe had added her own howls of terror when her father struck her behind the head painfully, pulling at her hair, slamming her onto the bed. His slap to her face had drawn a fine line of blood from her tiny nose. Her mother was pulling at his arms, begging him to stop, saying she was sorry.

  Chloe’s father had never hit her before, even when she was naughty. Why would he hurt her now? Why now? And why did he look like he was crying? Her daddy never cried.

  Chloe had been vaguely aware when the agony of the blows had ceased, and yet her body felt as though on fire. She was covered in a blanket and Granny was racing her to James’ home. She was too afraid to even whimper. No noise! The words slammed into her head like an explosion.

  The hurt of her father’s betrayal confused and hurt her far worse than the beating. Didn’t Daddy love her anymore? She had cleaned her room like he said; she had been quiet like he asked. Didn’t he want to play with her later like he said he would? He had promised. But she wouldn’t be able to play now; it hurt too much to move.

  “She needs to go to a hospital.” Samantha’s voice sounded frantic to Chloe. Chloe shook her head. Samantha was dead, she had been for over three years now.

  “You know as well as I do what will happen. The police would be called, Child Services. I can’t risk it; we are under enough scrutiny because of his ranting. He thinks he’s invincible because of his connections with me.

  “He botched the last hit, Samantha. He took out the wrong man! Brutally killed an innocent in front of his wife and young son; they're traumatized! Thank God the woman was able to escape with the child or she would have been next. In his condition he might have even done away with the boy! Thank heaven we were able to locate their hiding place first before the police could contact them.

  “Now I have to deal with the woman and boy, find a place for them out of the way. You know what that means. I can’t risk them exposing our family by identifying that menace. You know how I feel about holding innocents against their will…”

  “Please, James, what are you going to do to him?”

  “I’ve called for the doctor. Her father is drunk again. I will take care of this…but it must stop!” James snarled.

  “James, be careful, please don’t kill him! Think of the mother!” Samantha called frantically, racing after his retreating form.

  “Let’s see how well the bastard does with no hospital and a few broken bones of his own!” Chloe heard James thunder as he left the room.

  Chloe was frightened to be left all alone. She whimpered. And then Dirk was there before her. Smiling down on her. His caring, beautiful blue eyes searched her own. He reached for her tiny, limp hand and kissed the palm gently, fondling her fingers, lacing them through his own tenderly.

  He told her she was a brave little mite while stroking the hair from her bruised face. His deep concern radiated from within. Yet something more troubled him. Chloe knew they were about to share another secret. She looked up at him with trusting eyes. She loved him.

  “I want you to do me a favor, my precious little one. I want you to forget what you just heard. Will you do that for me?”

  “I will, Dirk. I promise.”

  “Why will you forget, honey?”

  “Because I love you and you love me,” Chloe whispered aloud, her hand went limp in Damien’s grasp. Her breathing deepened.

  She felt warm lips kiss her cheek. The scent of Dirk’s cologne once more drifted to Chloe’s nose. It was the aroma of safety, just like her Damien’s. Chloe then fell asleep.

  * * * *

  Chloe lay in her bed, staring at nothing. The darkness was frightening, all encompassing. Her tears fell from her eyes. She willed them to stop, but felt their telltale trailing down her cheek. The endless darkness represented endless aloneness. How was she ever to cope with this?

  Everything would change now, she was changed. How could she never again set eyes on Damien? Her handsome Salvator. Nor would she ever again see a simple sunrise. Then she realized there was nothing simple about a sunrise.

  She had taken so many for granted, so many little things for granted. Lights on beautiful Christmas trees, a stunning flower in full bloom, the feeling of quiet calmness when she gazed over the ground freshly dusted in the first snow of the season. Moonlight. Autumn’s colors that looked to be painted by a gifted artist. It was gone, all gone in less than a heartbeat. She wept at the unfairness of life. The hand dealt to her had been so harsh.

  “Chloe?” She heard James’ weary voice. The bed dipped when he sat down beside her. Her hand searched the air for his. James captured it, and clasped it between his own two. She felt her fingers dragged across the contours of his rough, unshaven cheek.

  “James?” she whimpered. “What will I do?”

  “It’s all right. You will always have a place here. You are home, safe. I’m here. I will always be here for you, no matter how you feel about me,” James replied.

  Confused, Chloe detected an air of sadness to his voice and words. Chloe knew he would always be there for her. He always had been. Did he feel a sense of guilt? This wasn’t his fault. It wasn’t as if a hit had been ordered against her. It was then she remembered her father’s black book. She needed to tell him about the book; she couldn’t let it fall into the wrong hands. She also needed and wanted him to soothe her fears, especially now while she felt so vulnerable.

  “James, before this happened I wanted to talk to you, I needed to talk to you,” Chloe began in an urgent voice.

  “Oh?”

  “Yes, but you were gone when I got up. You see, I found something the other day, something that upset me. I should have told you sooner, but I was afraid. I’m sorry.”

  “What did you find?” James asked, with an air of eagerness.

  “It was a book, my father’s book, a horrible book filled with hideous lies. It had been taped to the back of a picture frame. It gave vivid descriptions of brutal, inhumane executi
ons. Oh, James, my poor mother, he traumatized her up until the day she died, soiled her mind with his filth.”

  “It’s all right,” James soothed. He pulled her into his arms and cradled her against his chest.

  “The things he wrote. It was no wonder my mother feared you, feared for me. He must have purposely left it out so she could find it, read it. He had been manipulating her until he died, even after he died. It’s in my pocket, James, the back one. In the jeans I was wearing when the house blew. I wanted to show it to you the minute I saw you, but then the house exploded. He made it sound like he was trying to protect us. That he hurt us and drank for a reason. That he needed to beat me to save me. That everything was entirely your fault.”

  “I’m sorry he hurt you again, sweetheart. If I had known there was a book I would have destroyed it,” James said angrily.

  “James, was my father that evil? Did he really do terrible, cruel things, awful horrifying things to make people suffer while dying terror-stricken?” Chloe wept. “Are there really people out there like that? Was my father really one of them?”

  “Chloe, no matter how cruel or evil someone was, I would never order them buried alive, tortured. I would never allow any of my people to be so perverted. It was all lies,” James replied, his tone grim.

  Chloe stilled instantly. “You found the book,” she whispered in understanding. Now she understood where the underlying sadness in his voice was coming from. He already knew.

  “Dirk found it. We all read it. I was afraid you might believe it,” James said sadly.

  “Oh, James, how could you?” Chloe sobbed, trying to pull free from him, but James wouldn’t allow it. He pulled her closer with gentle, loving hands, holding her still against his chest. Carefully, he settled her head against him; she could hear his heartbeat.

  “Chloe, you must understand. He was, after all, your father. Why wouldn’t you want to believe he had your best interests at heart? He should have loved you, protected you and your mother, not terrorized you both,” James said raggedly.

  “You were more a father to me than he ever was,” Chloe cried. “Would my mother honestly believe him trying to assault me would be in my best interest? Do you think I would believe that? He knew he could get away with anything, anything, James! She was completely under his thumb. But he took it too far. He hadn’t counted on how protective you were. My real family stopped him for good. I just wish you had done it sooner, why didn’t you do it sooner, James?”

  “If you knew it to be lies why didn’t you bring the book to me sooner?” James offered as a rebuttal, instead of answering her question.

  “I wanted to understand why he was the way he was. I thought if I had insight to his frame of mind I could forgive him. But when I read the book I knew it for what it was, a book of deceptions, manipulation. He was a control freak.

  “I can’t begin to imagine the fear my mother lived with, and every day of her life! I’m so lucky I had you growing up. Granny was right to want to send me away; Mother might have given me the book in her fear of you.

  “While I was that young, who knows what she would have me believing? I might have ended up just like her. Twisted and terrified like she was. It would have killed me to question you or Dirk, to fear either of you when I love you so much. Granny saved me, you saved me, James. What would I ever do without you?”

  “You will never have to find out, sweetheart.”

  Chloe allowed him to gather her closer. His hands rubbed the length of her back. She felt safe, comforted. “James, why would someone put a bomb in that house, knowing it was empty?”

  “Perhaps it was meant for the man who was supposed to be living there, perhaps it went off prematurely. It has been known to happen for certain reasons. Perhaps it was a warning of sorts.

  “I’m sorry you were hurt because of it. You know our profession. All of us are targets. Perhaps it was meant for me, who knows? Dirk is looking into it. He will be relentless; the culprit will be found and dealt with. Have no doubt about that. Dirk is furious. He will not allow any who belong to us hurt.

  “You rest, sweetheart. You are safe here. No one would dare hurt you here. You won’t be left unattended for a second.”

  “You think it was meant for me, you think someone tried to kill me, don’t you?” Chloe said tightly. Suddenly remembering the threats in the note, she shivered with the thought. She did indeed feel broken inside, both body and being hurt.

  Had she been followed here? Was this just the beginning? Was she endangering the others? She couldn’t leave to save them anymore; they were as trapped as she was.

  She hoped James was right about Dirk, before someone else got hurt. They might not be as lucky as she was, though the loss of her sight had been extreme. Chloe realized if she had died she would have been too far from Damien for a very long time, perhaps forever. The idea was crushing.

  “Chloe, there are people out there who know I love you. They would hurt you to get to me. Just like they would hurt Dirk or Damien or Carrie, any one of them,” James began. “Hurting you hurts me worse than anything they could do to me; my loved ones are my Achilles' heel. Those with real powers of manipulation understand this like no other. They are the ones I fear the most. They are the ones who would harm an innocent for revenge or spite. They are the ones who are capable of truly wounding me.”

  “Because you love me, James,” Chloe said softly. His disclosure did not frighten her. She was a member of the family. She would have to take the good with the bad, though this was bad enough. Her risks were the same as every other family member.

  “I have something for you, dearest,” James said. She could feel him fumbling for a moment and soon a necklace was settled over her head.

  Chloe trailed the thick chain to thumb the rounded medallion that settled just above her breasts. With her fingers she could trace a protruding design on the front while the back remained smooth. It was perhaps the size of a nickel or slightly larger.

  “What is this, James?” she asked curiously.

  “I want you to promise me you will wear this at all times. I know I sound a bit fanatical, old fashioned, eccentric, when I say it will offer you great protection.”

  “Of course I will wear it,” Chloe promised. “What is the symbol?”

  “It is the horizontal number eight. The infinity sign. It and the chain are solid gold. Timeless precious metal lasting for eternity. I’m thinking of having one made for everyone in the family, our new symbol. We will always be connected; we will always go on together forever.”

  Forever. Chloe smiled; she felt wanted. She would stay within the security of her home. Dirk would keep everyone safe. Her sight would return, it must return. Damien loved her. James and the family would take care of her until she once more felt whole. Dirk would track down whoever was responsible and deal with him, or her, and that person would never harm Chloe or anyone else ever again.

  Chloe could feel James’ hand stroking her forehead, lulling her back to sleep. She clutched the medallion to her chest, her own heat warming it. She allowed her mind to drift while stilling her thoughts. Her eyes fluttered closed. Her breath deepened. Almost asleep, her mind returned to the one sentence she had been weaned on; James would take care of her, James would take care of everything.

  Chapter Five

  “I still don’t think this is such a good idea,” Chloe said fretfully. She was sitting at the vanity in her room; she could feel the bright lights bathing her face, warming her, making her sweat. Carrie, Candy and Casey had stormed in and declared it was time she got out of bed. She had been languishing for well over a week, insisting she was in too much pain to leave her room. At her doctor’s bill of good health the other women had pounced.

  Protesting, Chloe had been washed, shampooed, manicured, pedicured, and dressed in one of the stunning outfits the women had picked out for her before her arrival. Her makeup had been applied meticulously to cover the vivid bruising at her temple, now that the bandaging had been r
emoved. Her long dark hair had been brushed to a high glossy sheen, settling midway down her slender back, curling at the tips. The other women declared her to be gorgeous. Still, Chloe was apprehensive. She was afraid to leave the safety of her familiar bedroom.

  “Everything will be fine, Chloe; we are all family,” Carrie insisted.

  Chloe could picture the concern radiating from the tiny blonde’s sparkling, crystal-blue eyes, eyes that were the image of her father's, Dirk’s.

  Chloe was still amazed with the thought Dirk had had a daughter when he was barely eighteen. That the woman, Carrie’s mother, had taken her from him in her infancy must have almost killed him. She knew how possessive Dirk was, everyone did.

  Chloe was surprised Dirk had kept his word and stayed away from the child for as long as he had. Chloe knew Dirk had revealed himself to her only when he stepped in to rescue Carrie away from a slaver’s home just over two years prior. A home her husband, Tyr, had spirited her off to, with plans of setting her up with a new identity and freeing her.

  She knew of the perils the young couple encountered. She knew for a while Dirk had hated Tyr and the two of them had often come to blows over the incident. She learned of Carrie’s inner strength, and marveled at it. She must have been terrified in such a setting, surrounded by numerous heavily-armed and callous men. Thank heaven for Dirk’s persistence, cunning, and brilliant tracking.

  “Carrie is right, Chloe, you are family. I know we haven’t known each other too long, but I enjoy talking with you. We all want to see you up and around again,” Casey insisted.

  Chloe felt like she had known the woman forever. Casey had made a point of sitting in her room, talking well into the night to keep her company when Damien was unavailable. She was open and honest, friendly to the extreme.