"HIDDEN FLAME" by Sarah Ryniker

STORY LAST UPDATED ON 20/05/2002

Hidden Flame Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Epilogue

CHAPTER SIX

The next day I slipped the barrette and note into my purse. I had a surprising bit of energy that day. I had a lot to do, so it was a good thing. First I would see the detective. The barrette and note, I knew, could make a difference in this case.
    I found him standing outside of the building. He looked down at the watch on his wrist and then looked back up at something. I knew he didn't see me coming, so I studied him. He was a handsome man. No more than thirty years old to thirty-two years old. His hair didn't have a trace of grey in its rich brown colour. He certainly had a movie star look about him. I had to admit he was better looking than any man I had ever seen, including my own husband. He was at least six feet tall, with a semi-muscular build. Handsome as could be.
    He was leaning against the wall, his legs crossed, his hands shoved into his pockets as I finally walked up to him all of the way. I had to admit seeing someone smile friendly at me, rather than threaten to kill me, was nice. He also had a very nice smile. Yet there was something in his eyes I just didn't trust. His smile was too easy, his personality not serious enough. I didn't know if I could trust him or not. I chose not to. Yet I knew I had to. I was hiring him to find out what exactly was going on, and to do that I had to trust him.
    "Hello, Phoenix. Have any new news for me today?" he asked, his smile never faltering. Somehow I had a feeling he knew that I had something for him only a day later. It gave me the creeps. How on earth could he possibly know?
    "Well, yes, Mr Fieldman, I do. How did you guess?" I smiled back, but the smile didn't reach my eyes.
    "Oh, just a guess," he said and held out his arm. I took it and he led me to the black Jaguar sitting outside of the building. I rolled my eyes. It would figure he would have a car like this. He seemed to be the type that did whatever he wanted with his money, including spending every dime of it, whether he needed what he was buying or not. He flaunted his wealth.
    He opened the passenger door for me and I slipped into the leather seat. The car was rather comfortable. I found myself liking the comfort of it. When he drove away from the curb, I found it to be a smooth ride that was relaxing.
    "So, Phoenix, what's been going on exactly? And why did you park so far away from the building?"
    I looked down at my purse that my hands clutched tightly. "I had to ride a bus here, actually. You see, I don't have a car of my own and I don't use Alec's cars," I admitted. I missed having my own car. I missed having my life back.
    He nodded. "That's understandable. And you didn't tell Alec to drive you here?" He raised his eyebrows in a question mark.
    "You told me not to say anything to him, didn't you?" I knew he was challenging me. Actually, he was teasing me. I had a feeling he was trying to make me feel more relaxed and friendly towards him, but I couldn't.
    He shrugged and looked forward. "You don't strike me as the type that obeys someone's orders. You only have your own reasons for doing the things that you do."
    "You know nothing about me, Mr Fieldman. Don't pretend to." I was irritated that I could be so easily read.
    "I'm not pretending to know you. I am observing you to be like that. It isn't a bad thing. You're independent. That's an admirable trait, no matter what anyone may tell you." He smiled at me. "And please call me Richard. I really hate the formalities."
    "Then why are you in this sort of business? Formalities are part of your job, aren't they?"
    "Not really. Actually, I'd prefer it that I am on a personal level with my clients. It helps them trust me more." He looked at me pointedly.
    "You will never fully earn my trust, Richard," I notified him, pulling my shoulders back and lifting my head arrogantly.
    He laughed. "I certainly didn't expect to, Phoenix. I certainly didn't expect to."
    He took me to a small restaurant in the middle of the city. Over the years I had become used to the ritzy Beverly Hills area. My family was rich, so seeing famous people wasn't a big deal. I saw them on the daily basis. At least I did before all of this had started happening and I had disappeared from society.
    "Well, let's get down to business, Phoenix. What have you got for me today?" he asked, turning serious.
    I looked through my purse and pulled out the note and barrette. His eyes widened as he took both of them from me. "I found the barrette on the floor near the door that leads to the stairway up to the attic. And Alec gave me the note after he came down from the attic." I quickly went into detail about what had happened yesterday afternoon.
    He nodded slowly. "Phoenix, why don't we go talk to someone that'll have information about where your girls are." He smiled at me. He didn't tell me what was going through his head, and I didn't ask.
    He pulled into a parking lot of a rather large building. When I looked at the sign on the side of the building I found that it was for many law things, including child protective services. I looked at him and he smiled nervously at me. I knew the smile was meant for comfort, but I was confused. Why did he seem so nervous and why was he trying to find some way of comforting me?
    We made our way through the automatic doors. The building was quiet and the sound of our footsteps seemed loud on the black marble floor. I tried to ignore my footsteps and his. They sounded so doomed, as if I were walking down the hall to another unhappy chapter of my life. The thought gave me a chill. I had no idea what to expect here.
    When we walked into the lobby of an office, a secretary looked up. She was a big woman. Her brown hair was tied tightly back into a bun, making her eyes look squinted. She looked at us as if we were evil, below her somehow. Her thin lips were drawn into a tight, straight line and she couldn't wait to be rude. "What do you want?" she snapped.
    "Well, miss, we want to see Mr Lawrence. And I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't look at me like that." He was so blunt I had to press my lips together to keep from laughing.
    "Mr Lawrence only takes appointments. Make an appoint-" She was cut off by a man who walked into the room from the door just behind her.
    "No, Madeline. Detective Fieldman here is a good friend of mine. He and his lady friend may come in." He ushered us into the room, not without a look of annoyance from Madeline. As soon as we sat, Mr Lawrence began. "How may I help the two of you?"
    "Well, this, George, is Phoenix Weston. Her children were taken from her because of abuse charges. We want to look into her case." Richard got to the point quickly, no chitchat like I had thought there would be.
    Mr Lawrence nodded and went to his computer. He typed in something and looked confused. "What is your maiden name, Mrs Weston?" he asked.
    "Parish. Why?" My heart began to pitter-patter a beat I knew all too well. It was my body notifying me that something was definitely going wrong again.
    He typed it into his computer and shook his head. "There is nothing on you, Mrs Weston. Not a single thing in your records. Your background is completely clean. You say your children were taken from you on abuse charges?" He was highly concerned and I felt very dizzy. I leaned back into the chair.
    Richard looked at me and to my surprise he took my hand in his. Then he looked to Mr Lawrence and explained what was going on. "So, how could there be absolutely nothing on her? She says there were police everywhere that wouldn't let her into her house. Her kids were taken away by some lady."
    Mr Lawrence shook his head. "I have no idea what is going on, Richard. I'll be on the lookout for you both, all right?" He looked at me sympathetically. "I'm sorry, Mrs Weston."
    I don't know how I managed to walk out of there. I barely did. The automatic doors had just opened when my legs went limp. Richard caught me quickly, holding me around my waist and keeping me on my feet. He helped me into the car and shut my door, and came back around to get into the driver's seat.
    Now there would be a new search. That search would now be for the truth and for my children. I had a feeling that my search for the truth would truly never end. And no matter how I tried not to cry, the tears came unwillingly.
    Richard let out a sigh. "Hmm," I heard him say as the sigh escaped his lips. "This is far more complicated than I thought it was going to be."
    "This is far more complicated than I thought it was. If the state doesn't have my girls, who does? Where could they be?" I knew I was becoming frantic, but the motherly instinct in me was pushing me over the edge. What if it was too late? What if the girls were already dead?
    "Only you can tell me that, Phoenix," he said, shooting a glance at me. "You know these people. I don't."
    I nodded in understanding. "So what exactly do I do?"
    "Well, first you have to have a backup plan. Where are you going to stay, Phoenix, when the good doctor gets scared, or you find out he is in on it?" It was a good question. I had no money, no car, no clothes of my own. I had nothing.
    "I have no idea," I admitted. "I have nowhere to stay around here."
    He pulled off the side of the road into a parking lot and parked. When I looked it was the police station. Before I could ask, he explained. "We're going to find out about the 'charge' against you." He stopped me before I could get out, though. He quickly got a pen and paper and wrote something down. He handed me the paper. "That's my home address, Phoenix. I never give it out, but you need it and I find myself getting deeply into this. If you need to leave there, come to my home. You'll be safe there," he assured me.
    I nodded. "Thank you, Detective," I said and got out of the car.
    When we left the police station, I wasn't just frustrated and scared for the girls, but I was angry. There were no charges against me. There was no investigation on Grandfather Gerald's death. So, I had to wonder, who were all of those policemen that had been outside of my house that day?
    When the bus dropped me off a mile from the house, all I had to do on my walk there was think. It was getting dark fast, the sun setting quickly behind the big, blue ocean that lay out hopelessly for miles and miles. I couldn't help but wonder how many people had tried to escape from here by swimming into the sunset, only to drown. Yet hadn't they been drowning, already, if they were trying to escape their misery?
    I walked into a very dark house. Well, it was dark except for the candles that were lit and lining every place that they could sit. I followed the line of candles up the stairs and down the hallway until I reached the master bedroom. The door was open so I went on in, my curiosity getting the best of me. It seemed Alec knew that my curiosity would get to me and I would come in. He sat out on the balcony, candles lighting the room and then the table outside. There was dinner set up for two.
    Alec got up from the table and came over to me. He was wearing a navy blue turtleneck under a black sports jacket with a pair of matching slacks. He looked absolutely dazzling to the eye.
    "What is all of this, Alec?" I asked. I couldn't hide my surprise, or the excitement making my heart pound double time. I couldn't stop myself from smiling.
    "It's nice to see your beautiful smile, Phoenix. I love seeing your eyes light up like that," he said as he pulled a bouquet of roses from behind his back and handed them to me. "I know life has been troublesome for you, Phoenix. That's what this is for."
    "Oh, Alec! You didn't need to do this, really. It's all so beautiful and magical looking!" I exclaimed, walking out onto the balcony and going to the side to look out at the ocean below. "I feel guilty for enjoying myself."
    "Never feel guilty," he whispered in my ear, putting his arms around me. I let him pull me against him. It felt good to be comforted and loved. "It's good to keep yourself sane. Keep yourself sane tonight, Phoenix. Enjoy this with me, please."
    "Yes," I whispered back. I felt as if he were wrapping me in a magical blanket that could take me away from all of the stress and frustration. I could, for a few short hours, forget everything that was going on.
    We sat down to eat the delicious dinner he had set out for us. He had cooked it himself, so it was a simple dinner, but looked fancy and beautiful. Each of us had three thin slices of roast beef with gravy spread thickly across. The mashed potatoes and spinach were delicious, especially the potatoes that were smothered in gravy. There was red wine with dinner.
    After dinner he brought out a silver plate. It was covered with a very fancy lid. When he removed the lid, a beautiful, luscious-looking strawberry cheesecake lay there. Strawberries and sauce were sliding seductively down the side. I felt like drooling. "It looks wonderful, Alec!" I cried.
    He smiled and without a word came to my side of the table and held out his hand. I looked up at him curiously and then gave him my hand. He led me into the room and sat me on the edge of his bed. He then placed the plate on the bedside table, and cut a small piece from it. He brought it over to me and slipped it sensually between my lips. He looked into my eyes as he did this and I felt my heart pounding throughout my body. "Even in sadness and misery you look beautiful, Phoenix," he whispered. His voice was low and as seductive as the cheesecake had looked, only it was sliding over me.
    I wanted to say something but I felt so strange, so dizzy and weak. I felt as if I were floating. When he kissed me, I kissed back. In the back of my mind, I couldn't help but wonder what was wrong with me. Why wasn't I thinking of the girls right now? I had just found out that the government didn't have them; that they were missing and could be in danger. So what was wrong with me?
    I knew he was trying to seduce me. I could feel his hands all over me. I felt him peel my shirt from me. I was in only my jeans and my white, lacy bra. It was see-through and the feel of the lace between his hand and against my breast brought me to a new high. I moaned and moved against him.
    When he began shoving me against the bed, something in me snapped. My eyes, that had been closed, flew open. I shoved at his chest. "No, Alec, I can't right now. You're taking advantage of me at such a moment in my life," I said, but my pushing was weak. My arms felt almost detached. It worried me. He didn't stop or say a word either, just continued to touch me. "Alec! Didn't you hear me? I said stop!" I cried.
    Fear was making my heart pound now. There was something wrong with me; all of my strength was drained. I was shaking now, my blood racing. He wasn't stopping. He unclipped my bra and was pulling it from my breasts. "Stop it!" I screamed.
    I wasn't expecting Richard Fieldman to suddenly come through the door. But he appeared out of nowhere, like an angel to me. He pulled Alec from me, punching him in his gut. I sat up, although weakly and managed to clip my bra. But that was all I could do before falling back onto the bed. The whole world was spinning and Alec and Richard's voices were muffled and far away. I closed my eyes. They didn't open again for the next few hours.

Hidden Flame Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Epilogue

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