Encountering Evil: Dark Horse Guardians Book Two (34 page)

Bettencourt embraced her and in the safety of his arms Lara wept uncontrollably. “Oh
God, Bett, why did this happen? He was coming here to have lunch with
me
. Why did this happen?” Bettencourt comforted her and moved into one of the small side offices in the bungalow. “Don’t blame yourself, Lara. It was an accident. He was driving a car he hadn’t driven for a long time. It had nothing to do with you.” Bettencourt sent a text to Ben. “Come right away to the bungalow. Lara needs you. Eliot Stone died in a car accident.”

~Ben~

Shocked when he read Bettencourt’s text, Ben dropped everything and jumped on the Indian motorcycle and drove directly to Lara’s bungalow. He could only imagine how overcome with grief she would be hearing
that
news. Ben had to wrap his head around the fact that Eliot was dead. He was curious about the details and would get what he could out of Bettencourt when he arrived. His first concern was how this would affect Lara. She liked Eliot, even though Ben hated him. She considered Eliot a friend and a mentor, even though Ben knew he was a snake. There would be no tears shed by Ben for Eliot Stone’s unexpected demise. But he wanted to be the shoulder Lara leaned on.

As he hastily entered the bungalow, Ben found Lara crying on Bettencourt’s chest in the small side office. Bettencourt was handing her tissues and she was blowing her nose. When her eyes met Ben’s he stepped in and wrapped his arms around her. Ben’s eyes locked on Bettencourt’s, “What happened?” The officer recounted the details, ending with the statement, “It was an accident.” Ben thanked him and said, “I’ll take it from here. Thanks, Bett.”

Ben’s attention turned to his grief stricken wife. “Oh darlin’ – don’t cry, don’t cry.” He held her for what seemed like an hour as she sobbed off and on. “Let’s go home for the day…” Finally, after talking with Monique and some of the contractors on the phone, Lara acquiesced. “All right, Ben.” He gazed into her red swollen eyes, “Are you all right to drive home, or do you want me to drive you?” She sniffed and said, “I’m okay. I’ll see you there.” Ben followed her Fiat as she made the journey home to Falmouth and Clearwater Farm. Einstein was happy to see her and she buried her face into his short thick fur. Ben encouraged Lara to sit at the water’s edge with him and toss the tennis ball for Einstein. It was therapeutic for him and he figured it would help to alleviate her sadness. It seemed to work for a while, then he brought her gently into the house to cook dinner for her.  At least she was talking and interacting with him and the dog.

~Lara~

Four days later, Lara and Ben were dressing in somber black clothes to attend Eliot Stone’s funeral. Lara had a phone call from Eliot’s attorney John Maxfield, asking to meet with her after the service. She assumed the meeting with the attorney would be about the status of the extensive renovation she was performing at Eliot’s mansion. As she slipped into a black pant suit, she gazed into the mirror of the vanity thinking how fragile life really was. Eliot was there one day taking her sailing, eating a picnic dinner, full of life – and
in a matter of days he was gone. His death affected her in that it highlighted the fact that every part of life cannot be planned on a calendar. The loss served as a reminder that each day was a gift and she promised to accept things as they happened. It was time for her to acknowledge that she was not in control. There were other forces at work that mystified her.

“Ready?” Ben appeared behind her gazing at her image in the vanity mirror. “Yes, I’ll be right with you.” she replied flatly. Slicking on a nude lipstick, Lara slung a black leather bag over her shoulder and slipped into comfortable black flats. Wearing the
dark sunglasses helped to conceal her red swollen eyes. She had been sobbing off and on for several days unable to shake the deep depression when she thought of Eliot’s untimely death.  The last time she was in a funeral home, it was to attend her father’s service.  She remembered the bleak pit of darkness and didn’t want to go there again.

~Ben~

Genuinely worried about Lara’s sinking mood, Ben sli
d his muscled form into the Dodge pick-up and drove her to the funeral. Although he was supposed to be mourning, he thought Lara looked lovely in the all-black attire. She did not speak but stared out of the window as if in a trance. The funeral was brief. Eliot had no siblings and his father had recently passed away. His mother attended the funeral along with a group of Stone and Associate employees and contractors, and the crowd from the yacht club. The ceremony was without pomp and circumstance and lacked religious overtones.

After the burial, Ben drove Lara to the luncheon at Eliot’s mansion. Attorney Maxfield approached Lara and Ben. “May I have a few moments with you?” Eliot’s faithful servant, Raphael, brought the trio into the library and closed the door. Maxfield continued, “Have a seat. This may take a few minutes and you may be a bit shocked.” Ben guided Lara to the settee and held her hand, not knowing what to expect. The attorney sat at Eliot’s desk piled with paperwork and looked at them with a steady gaze, “This may come as a surprise, but Lara has been named as Eliot’s sole heir. He had no children, no wife, and no siblings. His mother, Agnes, has a tremendous fortune inherited upon Eliot’s father’s death last year.”

Ben sensed Lara’s surprise. She held his hand tightly. Ben suspected she did not know what to say, so he spoke first, “Exactly what does this mean? What will be conferred to Lara?” Maxfield replied, “Everything. Stone and Associates, this property, his 40-foot Hinckley sailboat, a property in the Caribbean, his fortune of sixty million, and of course the Bentley and all of his personal belongings. He has an extensive art collection being appraised today.”

~Lara~

Lara was shocked and confused at the same time. Why would Eliot leave everything to her? She finally asked John Maxfield that exact question, “
Why?
” Maxfield hesitated for a moment as he stroked his dark beard, “There’s a letter here attached to Eliot’s will. It’s addressed to you, Lara.” The attorney handed the letter to her in a sealed envelope and she opened it slowly.

Dear Lara,

If you are reading this letter, I am deceased. I bequ
eathed everything I owned to you because you are the only woman I ever loved. The two years you worked as my intern were the happiest of my life. Every moment I spent with you was beautiful and I treasure the memories we made together. Although I fell in love with your beauty, the fact that you were sweet and kind and highly intelligent was what really drew me to you.

I wanted to ask you to marry me but you married the Lieutenant. I didn’t move quickly enough to tell you how deeply I felt about you. I envisioned us as man and wife and wanted you to have my children. I will confess to you that there were times I wished the Lieutenant hadn’t returned from one of his assignments, then I might have had a chance with you. I know I should have accepted your marriage to Ben and moved on. I tried but I never could. Even though you were married, I still loved you. I tried to date other women but it was futile.

I hope you remember me with fondness in your heart. Please take my assets and do something meaningful with them. You are a thoughtful and intelligent woman; I trust you will do something wonderful with the legacy I am leaving you.

All my love, Eliot

For a few moments there was complete silence in the library as Lara read the letter; then she handed it to Ben
and started sobbing. Ben put his arm around her, “It’s okay, darlin’…it’s okay.” All business, Maxfield continued to speak, “We can meet in the next few days, Lara, and discuss the details. I know you must be overwhelmed today.” Lara agreed to meet with him the following week. Maxfield collected the paperwork and ushered them out of the library. As Lara was leaving she paused to watch the crowd admiring Eliot’s sailing trophies. They were laughing and enjoying the food and drink.
Nothing but the best
. Lara marveled for a moment how life continued on even though a beloved friend was dead.

~Ben~

Ben was not shocked by the letter but he was a bit surprised that Eliot left his
entire
fortune to Lara. He knew all along that Eliot Stone was in love with her and the letter certainly confirmed that. The ride home was short and silent. After changing, they sat on the beach and played with Einstein for a while as the heat of the day finally waned. Einstein eventually worked his magic on Lara bringing her a big dried sprig of seaweed. The canine dropped it at her feet as if to say,
look what I found for you
. Then, as if sensing her sorrow, the dog nuzzled her hand so she would pet him. After a few minutes, Einstein bounded off and dragged a piece of driftwood almost as big as his body and dropped it at Lara’s feet. Einstein looked at her and wagged his tail. “What are you doing?” Lara finally laughed at the dog’s antics. She examined the driftwood and decided to place it in the garden. She and Einstein played tug-of-war with the seaweed and Ben laughed at Einstein’s tenacity. "You’ll never win against him, Lara! They don’t call him a bull terrier for nothing!”

Although he was trying to keep the conversation light, Ben was concerned about Lara’s melancholy mood. He knew it would not improve without talking about her feelings, “What do you think you want to do with the fortune?” The question had been hanging between them for hours. Ben watched Lara’s face as she pondered the answer. “I’m thinking of setting up a trust fund to help wounded veterans…and possibly helping Nadia with her dream of becoming a beacon for repressed women. And, I want to do something for Hawk. Ben nodded, “All worthy causes. You have plenty of time to think about it, my darlin’…plenty of time.” Ben hugged her and put a freshly chopped salad on the table.
He was relieved as he watched her eat for the first time in two days.

Ben felt a strong sense of admiration for his wife as he realized how selfless she was. Her first reaction to inheriting a vast fortune was to give it away to those in need. He decided he could learn more about love from Lara. She had managed to become friends with his ex-wife and closer to his nine year old son than he had. Lara was trusting and open with people, perhaps too trusting at times, but he loved that about her, too. For all she had been through, she hadn’t lost her idealism, her hope, or her faith. He wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of his life loving her.

He tucked his beautiful wife into bed after dinner and told her he’d be right along after checking something on his computer. She looked up at him and smiled just before turning over to fall asleep. He knew she was exhausted from the events of the past few days. He stroked her dark hair and felt he couldn’t leave her ever again. Her breathing became relaxed and he curled up behind her and listened to her heart beat as she drifted into sleep. Ben realized more than ever that she was the only precious thing in his life; everything else was disposable, except for her.

The satellite phone chimed and he slowly moved off the bed so he would not disturb her. “Yes,” he answered. It was Kip Larson’s voice on the other end, “Are you satisfied with the payday for the last mission?” he quipped in a satirical voice. “Sure.” Ben sensed something else coming. He listened as Larson exhaled, “I have something you might be interested in…can you come down tomorrow?” Ben didn’t want to leave Lara just yet. The funeral was too fresh. Then a thought occurred to him, “Let’s meet up here. I
need to spend some time with my wife.” Larson was silent for a moment, “Really?” Ben whispered into the phone, “Yes.” Ben could sense Larson was mulling it over before he spoke, “I’ll be up tomorrow. I’d love to spend a few days in Maine. Actually, my wife has been hounding me to bring her there. Where do you want to meet?” Ben gave the address of Clearwater Farm. Larson replied, “Sounds good. I’ll see you in the afternoon. I’ll give you a call when we land.” The phone call ended.

As Ben prepared the coffee maker for the morning, he came across an ancient tattered book of Shakespearean sonnets sitting on the breakfast table. He opened it to Sonnet 116 and left it by her breakfast plate with a note
, “
This one reminds me of you
.” He went outside and collected some red and yellow wildflowers and picked fresh raspberries. Rinsing the berries, he put them into a bowl and slipped them into the fridge. He would serve them for breakfast in the morning. He arranged the colorful wildflowers in a clear glass jar with water and set it on the breakfast table for Lara. He glanced at the sonnet but knew it by heart. It certainly represented how he felt about her.

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark 
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks 
Within his bending sickle's compass come: 
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, 
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
   If this be error and upon me proved,
   I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

~
William Shakespeare