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Chapter 253
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2024-10-29 19:42:56[Cordelia]
"But not here," I constantly look over my shoulder. Never knowing when Magnus might be watching puts me on edge. What if Magnus harms my baby because I dare to tell my husband the truth?"
"Where do you need to go?" He leans in. "Tell me, Cordelia, how can I make this right again between us."
"Take me somewhere private, someplace no one else can see," I request. His eyes light up and he reaches for me, pulling me into our first kiss in weeks.
His soft lips next to mine make my heart race and my eyes flutter shut. I had almost forgotten how good it feels to be loved by him. "I know a little place, not too far from here, that is closed to everyone" he whispers against my neck. "But I know how to get in, and nobody will bother us there."
"Take me," I breathe, meaning both the words and the implication behind them. My body aches so much for his touch that just the promise of it makes things deep within me clench. "Please."
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[Cordelia]His hands cup my face tenderly as he bends forward and we come together in a crash of lips. I open to him and he moans as we deepen our kiss. He has missed me as much as I have missed him it seems because it doesn't take long for us to begin peeling our outer layers."Swim with me," he smiles as we stand in our underwear, waiting to see what the other one does. "The ocean is gentle today and we won't go deeper than we can stand.""I don't know if that is a good idea," I look at the gentle waves rolling in. "I don't know how to swim, and the last time I entered the ocean I almost drowned."His face colors with memory, growing red and angry. He wasn't there, but he heard about it later. It doesn't matter if, in the end, I was safe, just the thought of Jude trying, and failing, to teach me sours his expression.I reach forward and kiss him. "You won't let me go, right."A smile relaxes his face as he hears me
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[Atlas]As we lay nude next to one another, wrapped up together in a couple of oversized blankets, we hid ourselves from the world and Cordelia shared all of her secrets. The lies she had told, the words she was too afraid to say.And of course, the person behind it all. Magnus. "Every time I tried to say something, a new threat would come through my phone," she explained as she continued her confession. "I have been trying to tell you for weeks, but even notes could be seen somehow. I'm still not sure how he is monitoring me. Maybe my phone, my clothes...I just knew we needed to get away from everything if I would have a chance to tell you."Her heartbeat underneath my hands is faster than a hummingbird's wings and I worry it will stop if she doesn't calm down. She's so frightened, she's been so frightened for so long, that even now as she tells me everything, she is trapped in fear. "I'm afraid I just killed our baby," she cries into my chest and I hold her close. "But I can't do t
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[Cordelia]Once the sun set, the beach became too cold, so we made our way back up to the car, doing our best to remove as much sand from our bodies and clothing as we could before getting back into the car. It was a losing battle. "I think there is sand stuck to my scalp," I observe."Which one," Atlas smirks. "I'm pretty sure I have sand in all sorts of unmentionable places.""It was your idea," I smirk back. "Besides, I can assure you I have sand in more hidden places than you do," I grimace hoping that whatever hotel we stay at has a clean tub and one of those detachable showerheads."How does Napa sound," Atlas changes the subject as we put the top up on the car and bundle up against the cold."For what?""Our wedding of course," He then reveals his whole vision of tomorrow--we stop in San Francisco to get a wedding license at City Hall right before heading to Napa. We'll check in and wake up to the beautiful rolling hills of the California wine country as we prepare for our intim
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[Cordelia]An oversized spotlight flashes on the two of us and Atlas moves to block my body, shielding me from the glare."Get a room, you two!" The booming voice demands of us before driving away slowly. Atlas helps me up and laughing we get into the car. "Do you think he was going to arrest us?" I look over his shoulder in the direction of where they vanished."Nah," Atlas says with certainty as he gives them a little wave. "They just wanted to flex a bit." Feeling like a couple of teenagers, we head north toward Napa. Attached to the vineyard is an elegant resort with a full spa and spacious suites tailored towards refined elegance. Atlas booked the entire resort. We don't need that much space, but he wanted the privacy. "This moment should just be for us and the people who love us the most," Atlas explained as he brought me inside. The staff welcomed us at the front door and within moments we were swept into our rooms. Exhausted after our long day, we kick off our shoes and pl
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[Cordelia]As the sun sets a bit lower, she declares it's time to "get me ready for my big day," and we head back to my suite which has been transformed into a bridal studio including a full hair salon and makeup booth. "What is all this?!""My girl is getting married and you didn't think I'd bring a bit of LA up here to help you," she rolls her eyes. "I brought my usual photoshoot crew with me. Everyone wanted a little wine country vacation, she grins as she introduces the four ladies in charge of making the two of us look like movie stars. "Before they get started," Tilly pulls me in the opposite direction where she has a wall of mirrors arranged, "I need you to try something on." She opens up a garment bag and inside on a silk-wrapped hanger is the wedding dress I had tried on all those months ago, the one Atlas purchased for me the day that Angelica dragged me to the bridal salon when she was planning her wedding to Altlas. I had been pregnant then, so the dress fit a differen
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[Atlas]Cordelia's screams shock me, sending my heart into a frantic rhythm as I think of a dozen possibilities. "Wait here," I tell our guest who just arrived. "Let us check on her." Looking at Clark, he nods and we both rush towards the suite to find Cordelia on her knees sobbing, a velvet box lying on the floor nearby along with a card stamped with Fisher Pharmacuticals' double fish insignia. "He sent her a present," Tilly reveals showing us the necklace and earrings Magnus sent, clear indications that he knows where we are and what we are doing. Kneeling beside my bride, I hold her tight, struggling to put her back together. "We won't let him take this day from us," I say as I rock her through her tears. "We won't let him break us." "Atlas, what if he...what if he..." she sobs around her words unable to say what we are both thinking. What if Magnus hurts our son? What if he kills him? What if he's already done so?What if he heard about our plan? "This is just the sick basta
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[Cordelia]Atlas called my Dad. Of all the people I expected to see on my wedding day, he was not on the list. Stephen Greyson, the man who helped raise me but was never really my father. This man and his wife, Meghan, let me believe for 25 years that I was their daughter and that because I couldn't live up to their expectations of being just like my "sister" Angelica, never good enough. "Why are you here, Mr. Greyson," I cross my arms glaring at both Atlas and the man I once called father, equally upset with both of them. "You aren't welcome." He holds out his hands, in one of them is a velvet box not unlike the one that Magnus sent me. "Cordelia," his tone is sad. "Please, give me a chance to explain." Atlas leans in. "It's your call. If you want me to make him leave I will."I didn't think it was possible to love Atlas more than I already did. I was wrong. "I'll speak to him," I concede.Mr. Greyson's tight posture eased."But that doesn't mean you get to stay," I express with
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[Cordelia]If this crazy world has taught me anything, I have learned that you should never throw love away. So few of us find family even when we are born into one. Stephen Greyson didn't need to come to Napa from LA to give me a necklace. He came because he cares. He could have said everything he just did over the telephone or via video conferencing, but he didn't. Vulnerable and brave, he came to me "Wait," I call after him and he stops, his back turned. "Can you help me put these on?" His expression is carefully blank as he asks, "Are you sure?"With a tiny smile, I nod and he lets himself relax. Coming over to me, he moves aside the veil and clasps the beautiful necklace around my neck while I adjust the earrings. Giving my shoulders a gentle squeeze he places a kiss on the back of my head like he always did when I was a little girl. My heart feels heavy as I watch him walk away again. "Hey, Dad?" He turns, "Yes Cordy?""Did mom come too?"He is very silent, his eyes shifting
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[Atlas]Delilah Fisher steps around the corner in a long, silver gown, her makeup flawless, and her smile large and welcoming.She looks so much like Angelica did when I first met her that my heart stutters. I love Cordelia with my entire being, and yet a part of me still reacts to the memory of the shining girl who captured my attention almost a decade ago. But this isn't Angelica. Delilah, while beautiful and poised, lacks the immaculate grace that Angelica exuded. Each of the sisters has a unique nature that shines through, despite having almost identical faces."Atlas Steele," her heels click in the silent room as she steps into the light. "Why is it so hard for you to believe your brother? Haven't you seen enough wonders in this world yet to understand that anything can be possible?""There's no such thing as mind control," I repeat. "Believing in psychic powers is for fools.""And you pride yourself on not being one," she smirks, amused. "But a true wise man would keep his mind
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[Atlas]I twist my arm away from the guard in black. His face is blank as he reaches forward again. "Don't." My voice carries forward, and although it isn't loud, it holds a note of command that makes the armed guard pause."Sir," he blinks retracting his hand. "You are trespassing. I was ordered to take you into holding." My face remains still as my voice rings out again, "You will not touch us. You have no right." The guard swallows, taking a step back, my words hitting him with the force of a slap. "We will leave," I inform him. "You will report our apologies to your boss." He nods, accepting my command. "Atlas," Clark calls my attention to our situation. Blinking I snap awake, and pull my gaze from the guard. As soon as I blink, the guard stumbles backward shaking his head in confusion, as if my words and stare alone were enough to entrap him in some kind of trance. Around the edges of my vision, I see more guards headed in our direction. If we are going to make it out of h
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[Atlas]Damn it, Cordelia!"Pick up, pick up, pick up," the phone rings but nobody replies. "This number is unavailable as dialed, please try again," the message on the other end informs me as my blood pressure rises and my hands shake.A moment ago I had been talking to my wife. And then the line was dead. I sent her to Canada to keep her and our children safe, and she chose to bring herself to Magnus' attention. Sending a quick message to the guards in charge of watching over my family, I stare at my screen waiting for word of their status. "Atlas, is there anything I can do to help?"Blinking away from the screen I look up at my brother as our rented van parks a few blocks away from the luau. Our driver informs us of our arrival and waits for further instructions."I'm sorry, Clark," I close my eyes, rubbing my temples. "You were saying something?""Is everything okay?" He tries again and I groan. "No." I groan honestly. "Or at least, I hope everything is fine. Lately, it seems
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[Clark]The message "Tilly SOS" flicked across the screen three times before winking out, leaving my screen blank. I open my email that I keep under an alias on a secure server. There is a single message alerting me to new information available on my server. I've used this system when working with people who needed to keep their identities safe and their messages secret. The last time I needed it was working with Jude while he was still under Magnus' watch.Even though it has been months since I used it, my fingers remember the passcodes. Soon, I'll be on the server. Two emails are waiting for me, both are from Tilly's parents. In the first message, they inform me that they have landed and are settling in their new place. It is a secure facility, surrounded by several acres of land, disconnected from the distant towns and cities. The Madisons, sparing no expense, went to extra lengths to include copious additional security.They are, after all, securing their legacy. Tilly is their o
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[Cordelia]There is a loud explosion just to the right of the airplane. "What was that," I lower the phone, turning it off as I gaze out the window to see what had caused the noise. "Nothing, Ma'am," the co-pilot says over his shoulder, "Just a little turbulence.""Turbulence?" I shout back as another boom resounds just outside the passenger's cabin as a curtain goes up between the pilots and the rest of the plane, blocking our view. "But we aren't even in the air yet!""Calm yourself, Mrs. Steele," Jake, the security guard, takes his phone from my numb hand. "Sit next to your children and trust your staff to get you out of here safely. We've got this, Mrs. Steele."He almost seemed offended in my lack of faith as he types into his phone what I'm guessing is a message to Atlas to calm his nerves and let him know we are alive. "But nobody is telling me what's happening," I grumble as I buckle in next to Jasper and the little girl I've decided to call Saphira until I learn her real na
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[Atlas]"What do you mean gone," I barked into the phone, my hand clenching it tight enough to hear it crunch. These new smartphones seem to get flimsier with each model. I've broken 3 in the last 6 months from anger or nerves. I love my wife, but I'm pretty sure she's going to stress me into an early grave. "Your mother created a distraction, Sir," my lead guard, Jake, apologizes over the phone, not making excuses as much as stating facts. "Mrs. Suzanna Steele arrived late last night along with a young man she called Sasha. The next morning, while your mother and Ms. Devaroux kept me distracted searching for a false threat, your wife and this young man escaped."Cordelia has always been sneaky when she needs to be, and until this point, he had been very good at keeping her from falling into mischief. I wasn't expecting my mother to be part of the problem. At least now I know where she ran off to. Her room had been empty when I returned to the boat yesterday. "Are you sure it is m
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[Clark]There are things that I need to keep secret from my brother, not because I do not trust him with my secrets, but because I do not want to burden him with them.Which is why I needed to get away. Without Tilly, there is no reason for me to stay on the boat."I'll meet you later, when it's time to go to the luau," I promise Atlas as I give him a hug and take my leave. I know that I could just stay at our family hotel, but I need to be somewhere else, somewhere that nobody recognizes me. And also, I want to ensure that what I am about to do is as untraceable as possible. "Mr. Janus," the man at the front desk smiles when I hand him a wad of cash in exchange for a key card. "Enjoy you stay. Please call down if you need anything."Adjusting my sunglasses, lower the bill of my baseball cap, grab my small bag, and make my way through the other guests milling around in the hotel lobby. Located along the beach it has a spectacular view of the the ocean.And the location of tonight's
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[Jude]Opening the door, I push back the clinician waiting for Angelica to rise. The poor man looks lost, most likely expecting Angel to greet him and not a gruff guard in black."Excuse me," he calls out as I walk down the hall. I don't owe him any excuses or explanations. I'm her bodyguard. I can be seen coming and going from her room. Besides, I don't have time for niceties. I'm already late reporting to work. The guards all bunk together in a large room on the basement level. There are beds and a shared shower as well as a kitchen so that we don't disturb the rest of the house as we take care of our daily necessities. There weren't any free bunks when I arrived, so I sleep on a camping bed on the floor. As I march down there, the leader of the group raises his eyebrow. He can tell by the unused state of my sleeping area that I haven't been back to rest."Late night?" he questions me as I walk down the stairs, "Whoever she was, she better be worth it." He smirks. "Mr. Fisher will
