Corinne (Book One of The Red Diamond Saga) (7 page)

“I was too late.” He gasped as he ran his hands back through his blonde hair and tried to slow his anxious breaths.

“You don't know that.” Lisa said as she reached out to try to comfort Aaron. “I am sure she will be fine.” She could not hide a twinge of jealousy at Aaron's concern. For so long it had just been the two of them, and now there was Corinne. Of course for many years she had known that Corinne would eventually be a part of their lives, she had just never realized how much animosity she held toward the other woman.

When the door to the small office burst open, both Aaron and Lisa jumped and shrunk back away from the furious presence that was Conner.

“What have you done?” He growled at Aaron as the man, who by all accounts was more physically capable than Conner could ever be, shuddered like a little boy anticipating discipline.

“I had to.” He whispered without lifting his eyes from the floor he was staring hard at.

“No,” Conner hissed as he prowled closer to Aaron. “You did not have to defy me, and risk all of our safety to do something so blatantly stupid.” He lifted his hand as if he might strike Aaron, but after a moment of thought he let his fist fall back to his side.

“I could feel her.” Aaron confessed as his body tensed in expectation of physical punishment.

Conner's anger abruptly diminished at those words. “You what?” He asked in a hopeful tone.

Aaron hesitantly lifted his gaze from the floor, but he did not meet Conner's eyes. Beside him Lisa glanced between the two with concern. The tension between them had been building over the past few years, as Aaron questioned more and Conner grew impatient with his subtle rebellion.

Lisa had become somewhat of a peacemaker between the two, though she struggled with empathy for others, she had a special affection for Aaron.

“She was in so much pain.” Aaron breathed as he recalled the heat that had burned through him, as if he was Corinne. “Was I supposed to let her suffer?” He asked, though he already knew the answer to the question.

“I told you she would return to us, the easy way, or the hard way.” Conner said firmly. “Because you decided to interfere, now we may have to take more drastic measures.”

“She was going to die.” Aaron insisted as he finally looked directly up at Conner. The moment he met the older man's eyes he regretted it. They were ice cold with dominance, and at the same time a heat brewed deep within them that warned of consequences for his defiance.

“No, Aaron, she was going to beg.” He spoke in a soft tone, but his voice was so controlled that it seemed as if he had never felt an emotion in his life. “She was going to need me, us, to help her. I knew once the injection Lisa gave her awakened her senses fully she would grow violently ill.” He ran his hand along the curve of Aaron's cheek as he looked more deeply into the man's eyes.

“What I did not plan for was you ruining it all.” He lifted his hand and let it fall in a swift but forceful smack along the man's cheek.

Aaron ducked his head to the side in reaction to the pinpricks of pain that rose in his cheek, but he instantly returned his eyes to Conner's.

“You did something wrong.” He insisted, despite the fear that he felt for Conner. “The pain was killing her.”

Conner smirked faintly as he glanced from Aaron, then to Lisa. “He's not the smartest, is he?” He asked Lisa, keeping his gaze to her, though his entire focus remained on Aaron. “Well that's something you have in common with your sister.” He sneered, and the force of the back of his hand swung into Aaron's cheek, knocking the man off balance with the surprise strike and sending him tumbling to the floor.

When Aaron moved to stand, Conner was already towering over him. He gazed down at Aaron with such intense disapproval that Aaron felt as if he was being crushed by the glare that fixed upon him. He managed only to get to his knees before Conner lowered his hand to the top of Aaron's head, and with no physical pressure whatsoever was able to restrain him in that position.

“You do not tell me, what I do right or wrong.” Conner explained in a patient tone as Lisa watched anxiously. Though Conner usually did not allow his emotions to overcome him, when it came to Aaron he sometimes grew so furious that Lisa worried he would do more than hurt him.

“If you had not given her a dose of the medicine to ease her pain, she would have had to turn to us. She would have realized that she does not have a choice but to be part of this family.”

He paused and glanced over at Lisa as he sensed her displeasure at how Aaron was being treated.

“Lisa understands that, don't you Lisa?” He asked the young woman gravely.

She was younger than Corinne and Aaron by two years, and though she had been a twin as well from different parents, both babies had not made it to full term. Her twin had died during birth and she was left. As a result she had formed a strong bond with Aaron, which was often tested by Conner to be certain of who she was most loyal to.

“Of course.” She responded casually. “Aaron, you really should not have interfered.”

Aaron frowned, but he ducked his head to hide the expression.

“Now, I must clean up your mess.” He hissed at Aaron as he lifted his hand from the top of the man's head. Instantly Aaron stood up, but he was careful not to show any hint of displeasure.

“I'm sorry.” He stated mechanically and folded his hand behind his back. “I thought she was going to die, I should have trusted that you would not have let that happen.”

Conner nodded confidently and with one more disapproving rake of his gaze over Aaron he turned and left the office. Once outside he sighed with relief. He had no idea Corinne would have such a strong reaction to the resurfacing of her abilities, or that she would be alone when the illness struck.

In truth, if Aaron had not gone to her and dosed her with a medication to limit her body's physical reaction she might have died alone on the bathroom floor. As it was, he was not sure if she was still alive.

In the hospital Daniel was pacing back and forth in the waiting room. He had been told that everything possible was being done for Corinne but had heard nothing else since. He could not get the memory of her nearly lifeless expression to leave his mind, no matter how hard he tried to replace it with a memory of her vibrant smile.

Again it haunted him that he may have arrived too late. He had awoken from a nightmare with a strange fearful sensation. When he tried to reach Corinne repeatedly and she did not answer, he assumed she was still sleeping.

When hours went by and he had not been able to reach her, it reminded him of how she had been snatched off the street without him ever knowing. He had rushed to her apartment.

After she did not answer the door and he heard her cell phone ringing inside of the apartment, he had let himself in. Now he could only think of the moments he wasted calling and knocking. If he had just gone sooner, perhaps she would have been okay.

“Daniel?” The nurse who had led him to the waiting room was standing in the doorway. She was pretty and young, but as she looked at him, her face grew weary. “You can see her now.” She said softly with a hint of sadness in her voice.

“Is she okay?” He asked desperately as he followed the nurse.

“Her father's with her.” The nurse answered, without actually answering her question.

“Her father?” Daniel asked, puzzled by her words. When the nurse opened the door to Corinne's room, a man was standing beside her bed. He had one of Corinne's hands curled in his own. His hair was thinning on top and full at the base of his neck. He wore dress trousers and a plaid button down shirt that resembled another era of style. When he turned to glance over his shoulder at Daniel his expression was grave.

Daniel recognized him immediately from the mug shot he had seen.

“Conner Mitchell.” He said flatly. Before the nurse could sense the quick anger that rose through Daniel she was shoved out of the way and Daniel had his hands around Conner's shoulders. He shoved him hard against the hospital wall, wrenching Conner's hand away from Corinne's.

“Did you do this to her, you bastard?” He demanded as he slammed the older, physically more fragile man against the wall. The nurse had alerted security, and despite the fact that Daniel was a police officer he knew that he would be held responsible for his actions and likely arrested if Conner decided to press charges.

However, he did not care. The moment he laid eyes on the man who had claimed to be Corinne's father he wanted to tear him asunder. He wanted to break every bone in his body to make him pay for the terror he had put Daniel through in the past when he had taken Corinne, and now, he was certain that he had something to do with the illness that Corinne was suffering from.

“Daniel.” The man managed to breathe out through gasps of pain. “You are making a mistake.” Daniel shook his head as he glared directly into the man's eyes.

“No mistake old man, you are not Corinne's father. I know exactly who you are. Now tell me what you did to her, so we can fix it.”

“Daniel?” Corinne's faint voice rose from the hospital bed as she finally found it again. Ever since arriving at the hospital and being hydrated, the pain had continued to subside. She felt remarkably different though, as if she was slightly detached from what was happening around her.

“It's okay, I'm okay.” She insisted as Daniel turned to look at her.

He was so startled by the color in her cheeks that he let go of Conner. He was kneeling beside Corinne when security arrived at the hospital room. Conner waved them away, and observed as Daniel looked deeply into Corinne's dark green gaze.

“Are you sure?” He whispered as he reached up to trace the lines of her features, seeking within them some promise that he would never again have to be afraid of losing her.

Corinne nodded, amazed that the movement did not cause her pain. “I am fine.” She said and lifted her hand so she could place the palm of it against Daniel's cheek. The warmth of her skin was reassuring. When Daniel turned back to face Conner, he found that the man had already left the room.

As the nurse walked back into the room Daniel grabbed her firmly by the arm. “I don't want that man in here again.” He said sharply.

The nurse glowered at Daniel as she twisted her arm out of his grasp. “Dr. Mitchell is the only reason Corinne is still alive.” Her tone was reproachful as she saw Daniel as just another hot headed police officer that was too quick with his hands and not very sharp in the mind.

“We would not have been able to save her if Dr. Mitchell had not suggested the treatment.” She paused and looked past Daniel to Corinne.

“It is none of my business, but your father saved your life, and this man,” She shot him a withering glare as if using the word very loosely to describe him. “Appears to have a temper problem.”

Daniel shook his head firmly. “No, Corinne, he must have done something to you to make you so sick.”

Corinne took a deep breath as if summoning all of her strength and sat up in the bed.

“Daniel, whatever he did, it helped me.” She brushed her hand along the needle mark on her arm, which the doctors had overlooked. She had assumed that her recollection of someone else injecting her with something had been the confusion of oxygen deprivation.

When she opened her eyes, she had seen Conner hovering over her, with a frazzled doctor standing beside him. Conner had smiled at her with such kindness that any fear she initially felt faded away.

Already the pain had subsided to such a degree that she felt as if she were floating, but he had requested a treatment that also restored her bodily functions so that she could survive the sudden onslaught of sensations that the exposure her true genetic talents had subjected her to.

“I am here to help.” He had said in a fatherly tone. “No strings attached.” He promised with a confident smile. She had smiled in return. Perhaps her first impression of him had been off base.

Sure he was secretive, but how could he not be? If everything he said was true, the rest of the world would never be able to understand it. He had pretended to be her father, a man she had never met. If he wanted to be her father, why shouldn't she let him? She was certain she could use one.

Daniel was not convinced. She could tell from the look of mistrust in his eyes. Still he did not want to upset Corinne. She needed to rest, and he needed her to recover fully so that she could realize the man she was defending was more dangerous than any criminal he had ever encountered.

He was charismatic and intelligent. He was capable of seducing the mind of the most suspicious woman in the world, and because of that, she was now vulnerable in a way that he never expected she would be.

“We'll talk about it when you're better.” He said with a gentle demeanor, though his tone was firm.

He was not going to let her fall into the hands of a predator, not again.

Two days later Corinne was able to leave the hospital. She had asked for Conner a few times, but he had not shown up at the hospital again, and no one knew of a way to reach him. She allowed Daniel to lead her to his car, but once she was inside, she turned to face him before he even started the car.

“I do not want to hear anything about it, Daniel.” She let her head rest against the passenger window as she turned away from him.

“Corinne I just want to be certain that you understand who this man really is.” Daniel insisted as he started the car. “I don't want to see you get hurt.”

Corinne turned to him with exasperation. “He saved my life, Daniel.” She paused and studied the strong line of his jaw as it clenched beneath her words. “I thought you would be grateful to him for that.”

Daniel abruptly hit the brakes just as he was about to exit the parking lot of the hospital. He threw the car into park and twisted in his seat until he could look directly at her.

“Of course I am, Corinne.” When his eyes met hers they were full of anguish. “I thought I had lost you, I thought-”

He grasped her hands in his own as if afraid she might still slip away.

“If he really saved your life, then of course there is nothing I can do to repay him.”

He drew her hands to his lips and kissed each one softly. “I just don't trust him.”

Corinne offered a wry smile at those words. Now the shoe was on her other foot, and she could not overlook that. “You don't have to.” She squeezed his hands in hers. “I know how hard it is to believe all of this, I still can barely believe it.” She sighed as a car behind them blared its horn. “He was there when I needed him Daniel. That has to count for something.”

Daniel did not say a word as he shifted the car back into drive and eased it out of the parking lot. She did not notice how her words were like blades slicing through him. Yet again, he had not been there when she needed him. Conner Mitchell had been.