I lay in Silas's arms, my head resting on his chest while my hands roamed around his abdomen. His chest rose and fell, so did my head with his every breath. His fingers played with my hair slowly, the tip of them brushing against my scalp and sending delicious warmth inside.
"Silas?"
"Hmm?"
"What did you see in that dream?"
He didn't respond right away. "Dad was asking for my help except I couldn't hear what he was saying. Deep down I knew he was asking for his emergency pills but I... didn't help."
"You know that wasn't your fault right?"
"I do, yes. That wasn't anybody's fault. Not mine, not Adrian's. That was just life being unfair as always."
"Am I unfair... to you, Silas?"
His hands froze where they were until he gradually recovered.
"No, you're not. If anything, I'm the one who's unfair to you. You sacrificed everything for me and you're the one who once said that your life doesn't revolve around me, that you have your own life too. But I stole all of your opportunities away. I won't lie, Dawn. I'm selfish. I don't want you to go back. I want you to have the life you deserve. But I also want to keep you here with me. I know I sound ridiculous. But, the thought of letting you go scares me a lot. Trust me, Dawn, whatever I'm doing is for our own good. If I have any secrets that you don't know, then it will be because you shouldn't. Some things are better as secrets. It keeps you safe." A sigh. "Now I'm just babbling on."
"I like to hear you talk like that."
"You know you're too sweet for me, don't you?"
"I do."
I smiled at his chest, feeling his smile on the back of my head. For a while, we let the silence sink in, far enough to make me wonder if he was asleep.
His voice startled me when he muttered, "Back when I told you that my world was dangerous, what did you have in mind?"
"Politics."
My shoulders lifted and I leaned on one elbow to look. His eyes gleamed in the dark, two twinkling green orbs that could frighten me into having nightmares.
"Well, you got close enough. It's mostly about crime," he spoke, his lips moving smoothly, catching my attention even in the darkness.
"Crime?"
"Yes, the drugs, my parent's death... my first time going completely to the ground, everything. In case, you're wondering, yes, there are things I haven't told you and they are irrelevant now."
A bitter smile crossed my face. "You're a man of many faces, Silas. You broke out of a prison. You left clues for me. You have several aliases. You kept the FBI off your trail. You're a lot more than a wealthy businessman, Silas."
"A criminal, you mean?" His eyebrows knitted together. Instinctively, my thumb shot up to trace them.
"What do you think?" My eyebrows rose, teasing him. "I trust you, Silas. I know you won't do anything without a valid reason."
"Have you ever wondered if I'm the bad guy?"
His question surprised me a little. But I got past it.
"It doesn't matter, you know. I'm blind. I only see you. Your flaws, your imperfection, they sum up who you are. I want you as who you are. So, It doesn't matter."
I knew I meant it. Even if he turned out wrong, I'd hate him momentarily for lying but I'd still be madly in love with him. It was unhealthy, almost suffocating.
"How do you do this?" He shook his head, pain subtly growing on his face. "How do you talk like that? I've always wondered from the very first of our marriage. You saved me in every way possible. Mostly with your words."
Yes, that was what I had. Words. I couldn't do anything to save you. I didn't mention it. He didn't have to hear everything.
"You saved me as well," I said because he had. Leaning over, I gave him a chaste kiss. He kept his hand on my cheek even when I had pulled away.
"We'll be back in New York with no targets on our backs. It just seems too good to be true," Silas whispered, the warmth of his breath hitting my throat, making my skin tingle. "I will try my best to give you back your life, Dawn. As normal as it can be."
"No one is pressurizing you, Silas. We can think about that later." I sat straight now. "These men, how are they going to help you?"
"If they succeed, you'll be the first one to know." He squeezed his lips into an assuring smile. "Oh, uh, I forgot to tell you this."
He continued when I hummed a 'yes'. "They are on their way. Probably will call us a few hours later."
"Who are they?"
"Feds." He didn't let me interrupt. "I know what you're going to say. But they are reliable."
"Well, if you trust them..." I only shrugged before lying back, my head on the crook of his arms.
"Dawn?"
"Hmm?"
"What do you want to do when we get back? And by getting back, I mean to the house and seeing everyone."
"The first thing I want to do is walk down an aisle."
"A traditional wedding?" His amusement was evident in his voice.
"Yes. Our friends and family. Even Adrian. We'll do it just the way you and I want." My smile had widened when I finally finished.
"I can give you a wedding ring then," Silas added as a conclusion.
"You can, yes," I grinned and planted a loud kiss on his shoulder. "By the way, about those men, should we call them middlemen? I mean, surely you are going to send something to someone through them."
Because that was what made perfect sense. Maybe he had some sort of evidence to prove his innocence. That was the only reasonable explanation I had in mind.
"You're very smart," he said the words with more surprise which couldn't be counted as a compliment. I thanked him anyway.
"Whatever you're giving them, it's important, isn't it?"
"Yes," he sighed and reached down to wrap an arm around my hips. "And now you're not asking me what it is. Because I won't tell. Now go to sleep. We've been through a lot for one day."
I had a sudden realization that I was probably nagging him at this point. With fleeting guilt, I muttered, "I love you, Silas."
He said nothing, only squeezed me in his arms. His prominent heartbeat echoed in my head and I moved away a little to get my weight off his chest. He hadn't said a word about what was going to happen when those men would get what they wanted. Not even by mistake. It had been protect you and protect this and protect that. Yes, our marriage life wasn't like someone's day-to-day life but it didn't always have to come back and slap us with a reminder of being careful and not letting our guards down.
Even if this men were trustworthy, could they leave this place without leaving a trail? Could they prove whatever Silas had in mind before Megan turned that into something irrelevant? What would we do if we got back to New York with Silas still guilty for those crimes? He would serve a lot more for his stunt of prison-break. Worst case scenario would be him being locked away for more than a decade.
The picture of him locked away somewhere in the dark came to me faster and clearer than him in a suit waiting for me while I walked down an aisle.
I bit down on my lip, drawing blood subconsciously. Silas Dale, a man of questionable intentions, knowing questionable skills, having unexpected future written for him.
The thought hopped in my mind so suddenly that I didn't fathom how to shove it away quickly. I tried to sleep.
Silas's voice tickled my skin after an hour or so as a low whisper, "I love you too, Dawn."
I smiled knowing that he probably thought I had fell asleep. I only moaned in my sleep and smiled into the darkness.
I awoke slowly at the rustling of the bedsheets. The sound of footsteps was lucid, interrupted by a silding sound of a drawer opening.
I rubbed my eyes at the buzzing sound. Fortunately, it was still dark.
"Silas?" I moaned, turning on my side but found nothing but a warm vacant space.
"I'm here," he murmured from somewhere and his hand was in my roaming one to assure me.
"Yes, that's me," Silas spoke, certainly not to me. Lazily, I switched the bedside lamp on and squinted immediately.
"Yes... that was fast," he added, reminding me.
Dazed, I turned my head to see him blinking to adjust in the light as he talked over his burner phone. I looked at the bedside clock now. It was 4:38 AM. We had slept for almost three hours but it still felt like mid-night. My eyes focused on my husband now. He was still talking. As I stared, I realized, I was wide awake out of the blue.
"Yeah, sure. I'm on my way."
He hung up and before he could place it on the nightstand, instincts took over, making me snatch it from him and drop it into the jar of water sitting there.
"Dawn, it's okay. Don't panic." He looked at me, strangely calm for a man with short-temper.
It was silly of me. But I couldn't help acting before thinking. Truth to be told, I had become used to laying low so badly that I'd get paranoid easily.
"Where are you going?" I sat up, moving a cluster of curls away from my face.
"The gallery." He slipped on the nearest jeans he could find in his drawer. Unaware of my nudity, I sat there, frowning at him, the sheet pooled around my naked waist.
"At this time of the night?"
"Our middlemen are here." He flashed me a brief grin before shrugging on his jacket.
"It was awfully fast, wasn't it?" I smiled, my cynicism evident in my tone.
"I agree with you." He tied his shoelaces clumsily and took out a small batman key-chain I had seen him use several times. I watched him shoving his hand further near the nape of the back where he had sewn a pocket himself some time ago. As I reflected on whatever he was carrying inside that keychain, I instantly knew it was a pen-drive. This was an exchange.
"Silas, can I come with you?" I tightened the sheet around myself and swung my feet down the edge of the bed.
"No, you don't have to. Get some sleep. I'll be back in a hour."
"Please."
"No." He kissed me with closed lips, scolding me with his eyes. Before I could say anything, he was gone. Without overthinking, I went back to sleep.
It was most probably after twenty minutes when a phone rang to wake me up. It was mine, perched on the top of the nightstand in my right.
"Hello?" I groaned.
"Dawn Dale?" A man's voice said. "I hope I haven't disturbed you."
It was four in the morning. Seriously.
"No, you haven't." Now the fear of being recognized grasped me tighter than a deadly snake would. "How can I help you?"
"I had been trying to reach Mr. Dale's cellphone for the past twenty minutes. There had been a delay in our time of the exchange. We won't be able to make it today."
"But somebody already called him and said you were here. My husband has left already." I held my breath now.
"I'm afraid that's a—"
"Trap?!"
"Yes, ma'am."
"I'll have to go."
With that, I hung up and got on my feet. For all I knew, my husband was going to step into a death trap any minute.
____________
It has finally begun. We're on our way to the next twenty chapters of suspense.
What do you think, readers?
Leave some comments on your thoughts so that I can feel your excitement too. Gahh.
Hope you enjoy. Have a lovely day. 👽