Marcellus stood looking out of his office window. He could see Canada from this view. He had been standing in this very spot every day for the last three months. Darien had not called; she had not come by. No one had heard from her. Marcellus was no fool. He knew Rya knew where Darien was, but she would never tell him. He admired her will power. He had offered her everything he could think of to get her to release the info on Darien's whereabouts. She was not having it. Devin only knew that she was ok. She would only call him from her cell phone and it was always after nine at night. Darien knew Marcellus would contact Devin to get information. She also knew Devin would not be able to keep a secret, so she never told him where she was. Marcellus turned around when heard Church enter followed by Rya.
"What's up with the two of you?" Church motioned for Rya to say something. She bit her lip nervously. "Are you going to tell me what's going on?"
Rya inhaled deeply then sat up straight. She reached into her purse and handed Marcellus a piece of paper. "This is Darien's flight information. She will be arriving in an hour. I wouldn't share this info with you if I didn't think you had a right to know."
"A right to know, I have been asking you for information for three months, Rya."
"And you have it now, so go take care of your business." Rya stood and walked out of his office.
Church just looked at him. "Be easy, doc." Church left.
Darien walked toward the baggage claim. She saw a uniformed driver holding a sign with her name. She walked over to him and smiled. "I believe you are looking for me." The driver smiled and took her suitcase from her hands. He led her to the limo waiting outside. He placed her luggage into the trunk then opened the door for her. Darien got into the car and right away knew she was not alone. Marcellus sat on the seat facing her. She heard the doors lock and the car was in motion. "Hello, Darien." His voice was deceptively calm.
"How did you know I would be here today?" She was calm.
Marcellus did not answer her. He just sat and looked at her face. This was the face that had eluded him and his men for the last three months. This slip of a girl had managed to hide in plain sight. He knew she was still working for the same advertising agency. He knew she still leased her loft downtown. Where had she been? No one had seen or heard from her in the last three months. No one except Devin and Rya.
"Marcellus, I asked you a question. How did you know I would be here?" Still he did not answer. "Can you take me back to my apartment, at least?" Silence. Darien gave up trying to get him to answer her. She saw the way his eyes raked over her from head to toe. It made her nervous. She turned and looked out of the window and watched the scenery pass her by as they made their way to his home.
They came to a stop in front of his home. As always, it astounded her. She had always liked coming here. A few months ago, she had felt safe here, now she was apprehensive and unsure of what to expect. She hesitated before exiting the car. "Get out." Marcellus barked. Darien was startled by his tone. She got out of the limo and Marcellus roughly jerked her close to him.
"Be careful you ass, I'm pregnant." Darien had not meant to blurt out her condition to him, but he had grabbed her so roughly that she had almost lost her balance.
Marcellus was stunned. He loosened his hold on her and then led her into the house. His housekeeper appeared at the door and he told her to show Darien to her room and to make sure she had everything she needed. Marcellus could not talk to her right now. He just wanted her as far away from him as he could possibly get her. Pregnant. Now what was he going to do? He had told her that he did not want a wife or kids. Why had he not known this? This is why Rya said he had a right to know. How long had this been a secret?
Darien sat on the bed in the room. She looked around and remembered. She remembered making love to Marcellus on this bed, and then she corrected herself it was never love; just fucking for fun. Darien knew that Marcellus did not love her. When she thought about it, she had always known nothing would come of this relationship. Yet, she had dreamt that it would. Darien had wanted Marcellus to love her. But, could she say she loved him? Most of their time had been spent sexually. A real relationship could never be based on a beginning such as theirs. Now, she was pregnant. She had never meant to tell Marcellus of this pregnancy. She and Rya had argued their respective points repeatedly. She knew how Rya felt; therefore, she was not mad that Rya had snitched her out to Marcellus. She just had to figure out what to do. Darien knew she was trapped. Marcellus would never let her go now that he knew about the baby she was carrying.
Marcellus was in his office pacing. Darien was pregnant. He would not be able to do this. A wife and kids did not fit into his lifestyle. Once your enemies find out that you have a family or anything that you care about they did what they could to take it away from you. He could not subject Darien and his child to that type of danger. Why did he feel connected to this girl? Yes, she was smart. Yes, she was beautiful. Yes he could admit he cared for her, but love he would never admit that. He wondered how far along was her pregnancy. Marcellus had told the housekeeper to make a tray of fruit, cheese and some yogurt for Darien. Marcellus took the tray to Darien's room. She was asleep.
Marcellus placed the tray next to the bed. He watched her sleep, snoring lightly. He had read somewhere that one of the symptoms of pregnancy was exhaustion. Marcellus continued to watch her in this unguarded moment. God, she was beautiful, he thought. He wanted to touch her, but did not want to wake her. Eventually, he could not resist any longer and he lay next to her on the bed and wrapped his arms around her. He encountered her small bump and moved his hand over her belly. His baby was growing right underneath his hands. Marcellus was in awe of the creation process of babies. He had never been this close to any pregnant woman. There had been women over the years that had told him they wanted his baby. Those women had just wanted a free ride in life. He never fell for it. Darien stirred. One soft tendril of her hair fell across her forehead; Marcellus tucked it back into place. He inhaled her scent. He remembered the scent. It was Donna Karan Cashmere. He remembered when he gave it to her. She had tried to give it back, but he would not hear it.
What was it about Darien that made him want to give up his underground life, he thought to himself. There was clearly no future for them. He would want her to quit working and she would want to continue. He did not see marriage as an option for him, and she deserved better. Marcellus fell asleep with Darien in his arms.
It was dark when Darien awoke and found the tray of food next to the bed. She ate some of the fruit and drank the juice that was now room temperature. Before she could think of where Marcellus may be he was coming through the door. "You could knock." Her statement was bold.
"You've got nothing I haven't seen before." He looked at her as if to challenge her to argue the point. She only turned towards the window and continued to look out.
"What do you want from me Marcellus?" She had asked the questions without turning to look at him.
"I should be asking you that question. You are the one carrying my child. The same child that I told you from the beginning I never wanted." His words were like ice water splashed in her face.
