Maison Blanche Revisited

Chapter 12: True Lies

ENTERING THE HOSPITAL CHAPEL, Caroline thought, was like being transported into another world. Outside, were the technological marvels, clinical brightness and antiseptic smells of late 20th century medicine. Inside, it was dark and serene, the dim lighting, stained glass windows and lush wood paneling instantly easing strained eyes and providing a welcome sanctuary for aching hearts and wounded spirits. I wonder if I could stay here forever? she pondered briefly, moving to light three candles. I'm so tired. These last two days have been so hard. Marlena, John, Shawn, and now dear Tom. Oh, heavenly Father, hear my prayer. Please let Marlena be safe and bring her home to us. But if you have a different plan for her, Lord, then please, please give me the strength to help Roman and my grandchildren deal with their loss, and with mine. And please, Lord, heal my son John from his terrible wounds. Restore his mind and his body. Make him whole again, so he can return to the children who need him so much...to the family that needs him so much. And Father, you have a new angel with you today. The kindest, gentlest man I have ever known. If anyone deserves the rewards of heaven, it is Tom Horton. Shower him with your love and your grace, and bring comfort to his family...to all of us who called him friend. In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen.

"Caroline? Ma? Are you all right?"

She turned to find Billie standing at her side, concern written all over her expressive face. "Yes, dear. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You're crying."

"I am?" She reached up to touch her cheek. Sure enough, it was wet. "I didn't even realize," she said slowly.

Billie put an arm around her. "Come sit down," she urged, leading her to a pew. "You look like you're about to drop. Just close your eyes and rest for a few minutes."

"All right," Caroline acquiesced tiredly. "But only for a few minutes. I have to page Shawn in the cafeteria, and call Victor and Kate at the hotel. They found a four bedroom suite just a few blocks away. I have to tell them about Tom... Dr. Horton."

"Let me do that," Billie offered. "You sit here and rest, and I'll make the calls. I'll ask them to come here to the chapel. Okay?"

Caroline looked at her gratefully. "Thank you, dear. I wrote the hotel number on the back of an old birthday card in the zipper compartment of my purse. I left it in the bottom drawer of the bedside table in John's room. It's room 806."

"I'll find it." As Billie hurried up the aisle toward the door, Caroline sat down on the cushioned pew, leaned her head back and closed her weary eyes.

"Do we really have to do this, bro? I don't like lying to the family." Bo shouted his appeal to Roman over the headset while clinging to a safety strap. The chopper was fighting a headwind, and even being buckled in, it was a bumpy ride. It was nothing compared to the trip with the comatose John though, so for the most part, he just took the buffeting for granted. They were still about 15 minutes away from the hospital.

"I don't like it either," Roman retorted, "but it's the only way. You know it is. Anyway, it's not really lying. We'll tell everybody straight out what we saw: Marlena was shot in the back. We just won't tell them we think it was all a setup."

"It's lying by omission and I don't like. But I'll go along. We will have to tell one other person though."

"Who?"

"Victor."

"What!? Why him for Pete's sake!?"

"Because he's gonna figure it out, Roman. I did, and so will he. Everyone else'll believe Stefano's little death scene if you say you do, but Victor knows exactly how Stefano's mind works, and he'll question it immediately. And our dutiful little bug here--" he patted his pocket, "--will pick up every word. Then it's all over: game, set and match to Stefano. The only way to stop it is to warn Victor beforehand, before he has a chance to say anything. But there's another reason too. We're really gonna need his help, bro...now, more than ever. Because we won't be able to search for a dead woman through official channels. We're gonna have to do this so far underground we'll forget what the sun looks like. And the master of that underground is Victor."

"I already told you, Bo...we aren't going to search for Marlena at all. We're just going to search for Stefano."

"Get real, man. Victor's little reward is gonna generate thousands of clues, even after we withdraw Marlena's name. The police won't search for a dead woman, but those clues need to be followed up. It's just gonna have to be a lot less visible, that's all."

Roman stared at him for a long moment, then shook his bead in bemusement. "You make quite a case, little brother. How do you propose to clue Victor in?

He grinned, and pulled the notebook from his pocket with a flourish.

Some twenty minutes later, they were heading down a long corridor toward the hospital chapel. Their concern about telling the family of Marlena's "death" was now overshadowed by something else. They had headed directly for the ICU, of course, only to be informed by the desk nurse that their mother had requested they go the chapel if they showed up. Something about getting a phone call with bad news. The nurse had no idea what the bad news was.

As they neared the chapel, they saw Victor and Kate approaching from the opposite direction. They met at the door, and just before entering, Bo brushed up against his father and surreptitiously pressed a piece of paper into his hand. Master of the clandestine that he was, Victor reacted exactly as Bo had hoped and anticipated. Not even breaking stride, he palmed the paper and brought it up to his face under the guise of smothering a cough. The words he was reading were burned into Bo's mind.

Victor. Play along with whatever you hear. I'll explain later.

Victor glanced at him for confirmation, and when Bo reached into his pocket and stealthily displayed the tiny bug, the tycoon nodded imperceptibly. Mission accomplished, Bo told himself with relief as they walked into the dimly lit chapel.

His relief was short-lived. The moment he saw Shawn, Caroline and Billie seated near the altar, he knew something was dreadfully wrong. Sadness seemed to permeate the very air. Hurrying down the aisle (with Roman, Victor and Kate right behind), he rushed to the somber trio and knelt beside his mother. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her face was wet with tears. Shawn's distress was also apparent, though more subdued. Anxiety squeezed his heart. Had something happened to his son? Or one of the other children? "Mom, Pop, what's wrong? Did something happen to the kids?"

"Oh, honey, no," Caroline assured him swiftly. "The children are all fine." She paused, biting her lip, then continued in a hushed voice. "But we did lose someone. Someone very dear to all of us... Tom Horton passed away in his sleep last night."

Bo rocked back on his heels, stunned. Doc Horton dead? Impossible. But even as his mind struggled to accept the unacceptable, his thoughts went spinning in another direction and he glanced up at Roman. His brother's face exhibited the same shock he was sure must be on his own. Could Roman go through with his plan now? Could he hit these already devastated people with even more staggering news? Could he actually tell them Marlena was dead, without giving them some small glimmer of hope for the future? Roman met his eyes and must have intuited what he was thinking, because he gave a grim nod. He could, and he would. Bo braced himself.

"Ma." Roman's voice was hoarse, and Bo imagined what he must be thinking. In order to convince the family (and Stefano), he would be immersing himself in the horror of those awful moments from the video. Reliving the sound of the gun. The sight of Marlena's body falling to the floor. The scarlet blood staining her white blouse... "Pop." Roman tried again, but this time he sounded like he was strangling.

Shawn and Caroline looked at their eldest son, saw the dried blood on his mouth, heard the pain in his voice, and instantly realized something was wrong. Something much more than the dreadful news they had just imparted. And at this point, that could only mean one thing: Marlena. "What happened?" Shawn asked tonelessly, gripping Caroline's hand as tight as he could. "What happened to our girl?"

"They... they shot her," Roman choked. He continued over gasps of horror. "She tried to attack Stefano and they shot her in the back. She never had a chance." His voice broke on a sob. "They took... they took her b...b...body with them," he told his shattered parents. "I don't even get to b...b...bury her." Then he fell to his knees in front of the pew, and with tears flowing down their own cheeks, Shawn and Caroline gathered their weeping son into their arms.

Billie, Victor and Kate stared at the grieving Bradys in shock. "Oh, my God," Billie whispered, "I'm so sorry, Bo. What can I do? I want to help."

"I know you do, honey. Right now, there's nothing anyone can do." Hating himself with every word, he pulled her close to him. He desperately wanted to scream out the truth, to stop the pain, but he couldn't. Hiding his face in her dark hair, he tried to shut out the sound of his parents sobs.

"Bo?" As a hand touched his shoulder, a quiet voice murmured in his ear. With a sigh, he raised his head and met Victor's eyes. "What happened? How did you find out?"

He looked at the huddled Shawn, Roman and Caroline, then motioned toward the stained glass windows at the far side of the room. "Let's go over there," he told the others. When they had reassembled out of earshot of his parents and Roman, he began the grim tale. "We finally found the secret room," he explained in low tones." It's enormous. The access is through a steel door in a wardrobe in one of the upstairs bedrooms. They had to get a welder to cut it open. There are thousands of video and audio tapes inside, along with computers and communications equipment and banks of filing cabinets.

"A lot of the videos are of John and Marlena. Stefano had them taped around the clock, so we got a good, nasty look at what happened. While John was chained in his cell being tortured and brainwashed, Stefano was trying to seduce Marlena, but what he was really doing was blackmailing her. If she didn't let him touch her and kiss her, he was going to kill John. It was pretty horrible. Anyway, the day before Kristen and Tony brought us down for the cotillion, Stefano told Marlena they were leaving, but that John was being left behind to die." He paused, knowing that now he was the one who had to lie... lie to save his brother's wife, his good friend...

"Marlena went berserk," he finally continued with a heavy heart. "She grabbed a fireplace poker and ran at Stefano. She was trying to smash him in the head when a guard shot her in the back. Stefano just went crazy. He shot and killed the guard who shot Marlena, then he held Marlena's body and cried. This woman who seems to be his chief lieutenant took charge then, and had two of the guards take him to a helicopter. They took Marlena's body with them."

Billie and Kate stared at him aghast, but Victor's look was more speculative. Please, Bo pleaded silently, catching his eye, Remember the note. Don't say anything. Not now. His throat tightened as sudden understanding lighted Victor's eyes and his lips parted as if to speak, but then closed again. Breathing a sigh of relief, Bo mouthed the word, Later, and Victor dipped his head slightly in acknowledgement.

From the corner of his eye, Bo saw signs of movement from the huddled little group across the room. Trailed by the others, he hurried back to his family. Roman was now sitting on the pew beside Shawn, wiping his eyes on his sleeve. He was much calmer, and Bo realized that his loss of control had been cathartic, as well as convincing.

Roman looked up as the group approached. "Victor," he asked quietly, "could I use your jet? I have to get back to Salem as soon as possible. I have to tell Sami and Carrie about Marlena before the news leaks out. I can't do it over the phone."

"Of course," Victor said instantly. "I'll call the pilot right now." Moving several yards away, he pulled his cell phone from his jacket and raised it to his ear.

"Roman?" Shawn touched his arm, drawing his attention. "What do you want us to do, son?" He indicated himself and Caroline. "You know we want to go with you, to be there for you, but John needs us too. Maybe one of us could go with you, and the other stay here..."

Roman shook his head. "No. John needs both of you here. And Bo has to stay to keep track of the investigation. I can manage on my own."

"You probably can, Roman, but you won't have to." The voice was firm and determined, and everyone looked at the speaker in surprise.

"What do you mean, Kate?" Roman asked, startled.

"I mean I'm going with you. Marlena was my best friend...her children are staying in my house. You're going to need someone to help arrange the memorial service. I'm volunteering."

"So am I," Billie seconded. "This is gonna hit Carrie really hard. I can help look after Belle and Brady so she can spend more time with your family."

Roman appeared stunned. "I don't know what to say. Thank you. Thank you both."

Bo put his arm around Billie and gave her a tight squeeze. "Thanks from me too," he whispered. "You're wonderful. I knew there was a reason I love you so much." He was rewarded with a fleeting smile and a kiss on the cheek, and felt even more guilty for his deception. He prayed she would forgive him when she found out the truth.

Victor closed his phone and rejoined the group. "The plane will be ready in about an hour. The helicopter will take you to the airport."

"Thank you, Victor. After all the bad blood between us, I wouldn't blame you if you didn't want anything to do with helping me. I'm very grateful."

"John loves Carrie and Sami very much, Roman. I'm simply doing what he would want me to do: to help them in any way I can."

Roman nodded his understanding, then turned back to his parents. "Mom, Pop, I'm going to call Marlena's parents and Eric before I leave. Will you take care of calling the rest of the family?"

"Of course we will, honey," Caroline responded. "You just get on that plane and leave everything else up to us. With God's help, I know we'll make it through this."

Nearly three hours later, at almost 10:30 in the evening, Roman, Kate and Billie arrived at the Kiriakis mansion. Roman had decided to tell Carrie first, and then go over to the pub and talk to Sami. He was certain his younger daughter would take more comfort from his presence than the elder, given Carrie's current hostility toward him. Hostility that was sure to increase when she learned her beloved step-mother was dead.

All his plans went out the window, however, when Kate unlocked the door and they entered the house. Hearing voices from the living room, they went to investigate, and walked into what at first glance seemed to be a party. That was just at first glance though. A closer looked revealed a gathering of five very worried young people (Carrie, Austin, Lucas, Sami and Jaime) sitting around talking, desperately trying to cope with a distant terror they had no control over.

Sami saw them first. "Daddy!" she squealed, leaping to her feet and flinging herself at him. He caught her in a tight hug, cursing himself for what he was about to do to her. She trusted him completely, and he was about to destroy that trust in the most despicable way imaginable. His other daughter stood by the fireplace, staring at him with hate-filled, despairing eyes. Much more than Sami, she knew there could only be one reason for his unannounced arrival back in Salem...bad news. The worst possible news.

Kate and Billie quietly spoke to Austin, Lucas and Jaime, ushering them from the room, leaving Roman alone with his daughters. "Cm'on, Peanut," he murmured, "let's sit down. I have to talk to you and your sister." He led her over to the sofa and sat with her, then motioned for Carrie to join them. Glaring at him, she stiffly approached and perched on the opposite end of the sofa, as far away from him as she could get and still hear. With an inward sigh, he knew it would have to do. God help me, he prayed.

Bo peeked into his parents' room in Victor's ornate hotel suite, then quietly closed the door. (After hearing the news about Marlena, the psychiatrist, Dr. Rosenthal, had banned the whole family from John's room for the rest of the night, saying they were so exhausted and grief-stricken they could seriously affect his recovery. The situation would be reevaluated in the morning.) "They're asleep," he whispered to Victor, his voice barely audible over the noise of an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie blaring from the TV in the sitting room. It reminded him painfully of a new Schwarzenegger movie he had seen recently. A movie called "True Lies."

True lies, he thought dismally. That's what we've been doing all evening. Telling the truth, but leaving out just enough to turn it into a lie. The movie currently assaulting their ears, (a typical Arnold flick full of gunfire and explosions) was playing not as entertainment, or even a distraction. It's sole purpose was to overwhelm the tiny bugging device which had been placed right next to one of the speakers, so he and Victor could finally have their long overdue conversation/explanation. "Are you sure the rest of the room's clean?" he murmured.

Victor nodded. "I had a sweeper disguised as room service go over the whole suite," he said just as quietly. "The only bug here is the one from your jacket. I gather you don't think Marlena's really dead. That the whole thing was staged, with her cooperation?"

"I told Roman you'd figure it out. It was just too neat, Victor. The drug courier leading Roman to Maison Blanche just in time to rescue John. Finding the tape of the shooting so we'd give up looking for Marlena. Roman and I believe Stefano made a deal with her: if she pretends to die, he makes sure John is rescued." Bo shook his his head tiredly. "It was so damned convincing--if it hadn't been for John's warning in that letter, I really would've believed it myself. What we have to do now is make Stefano think his plan succeeded. That's why I gave you that note, so you wouldn't say something to arouse the suspicions of the rest of the family or Stefano's people. Everyone except you and Roman and me has to believe Marlena's dead. The three of us are experienced enough at undercover work (albeit from different sides)--" he gave Victor a tiny smile, and received a wry one in return, "--that we can put on a convincing show. I hate putting the rest of the family through this, but if they thought she was still alive, they wouldn't be able to disguise it. Stefano would know in an instant."

"You did the right thing," Victor said approvingly. "And I assure you, you won't be disappointed in confiding in me." His face tightened and his eyes grew hard as diamonds. "We're going to find the Phoenix, Bo, and burn his nest to the ground. And this time, there won't be a resurrection."

Roman put his arm around Sami and held her close to him. He wanted to do the same for Carrie, but he knew she wouldn't let him touch her. "I have some news about your mother," he said gently. "I'm afraid it isn't good. She's...she's...gone."

"We already know that. Daddy," Sami said patiently, as if to a child. "Grandpa told me Stefano kidnapped her." She looked at him trustingly. "But you'll get her back. I know you will."

"Oh, my sweet Samantha Gene," he sighed. "I'm so sorry. I can't get her back this time. She's dead, Peanut."

"What..t...t.?" she quavered. From Carrie's end of the sofa there was grim silence.

"She dead, honey. I'm so sorry."

"Noooo!!" Sami wailed, her voice rising hysterically. "She can't be dead! I have to talk to her! I have to tell her I'm sorry!" She clutched at Roman's shirt, shaking him wildly. "Get her back, Daddy!" she pleaded. "Please, get her back!" Then she broke down in awful sobs, her face pressed against his chest, and all he could do was hold her, and consign himself to hell for the pain he was causing his own child.

His other daughter was staring at him with bitter eyes. "What happened?" she rasped. "How did Marlena die?"

"We found a videotape," he said quietly. "Marlena found out Stefano was planning to take her away and leave John behind to die. She attacked him with an iron poker and one of the guards shot her in the back. She died instantly."

Carrie nodded quietly. It made perfectl sense to her that Marlena would give her life to try and save John. Sami, however, was not so forgiving. She pushed away from Roman, her face flushed from crying, her eyes blazing with anger. "So John's still alive and Mom's dead!? It ought to be the other way around!" she raged. "John should be the one who's dead!! I hope he never gets out of that hospital! I hope he just rots away!"

"Oh, Sami," Roman sighed, drawing her to him again. "This isn't John's fault, honey. Stefano DiMera's the one to blame, not John. Someday, you'll understand that."

"Never," she vowed with a sob, her voice muffled by his shirt. "I'll never understand, and I'll never forgive him."

Carrie stared at Roman and her sister. She understood Sami's rage, because her own heart was burning white-hot with anger. Sami blamed John, but Carrie knew that someone else was ultimately responsible...and it wasn't Stefano DiMera. The man she held accountable was sitting just three feet away from her. The man she used to call "Dad."

to be continued...

© 1998 by Ruth Stout - All Rights Reserved

Background Image Courtesy of Proof New Media Inc. at freeimages.com

Next Chapter

Previous Chapter

Back to Prologue