Chapter 18

Chloe had found a robe on the back of the bathroom door and cloaked herself in it before looking at her wan appearance in the mirror. She had a nice bruise down one side of her face, and the shadows under her eyes made her look haunted.

A quick search of the drawers revealed a comb that she used to fight the tangles in her hair. Washing it was out of the question since she couldn't get her hand wet. Once she had it under control, she felt better, and with a quick tightening of the belt on her robe, she exited the bathroom.

Chloe immediately saw Valentine sitting on one of the two chairs in the room. On the table between the chairs was a tray of food and a computer that Valentine was staring at with an intent look.

"Is something wrong?" Chloe asked as she sat in the chair opposite him.

He looked up at her, taking in her tamed hair and oversized robe. "You mean other than the fact that you were kidnapped?" His eyebrow raised in question as he looked at her.

Chloe had nothing to say for herself, so she reached for some of the food on the tray.

"So what's next? Lada thinks I'm dead. How long am I going to stay that way?" Chloe took the first bite of a sandwich and closed her eyes. It was either the best thing she had ever tasted, or she was starving.

Valentine poured her a glass of water and pushed it towards her.

Taking the hint, she took a sip, only to find she was extremely thirsty, and drained the glass.

"Slow down, or you will make yourself sick," Valentine said as he turned his attention back to his computer.

"Am I not allowed to know the plan?" she asked around a mouth full of sandwich.

Valentine leaned back in his chair and looked at her, and then he gave her such a tender smile that it almost made Chloe choke on the emotion she suddenly felt in response to it.

"You were trouble at nineteen, and you're still trouble now." He shook his head.

"And you want me gone." Chloe couldn't keep the sadness out of her voice.

"No, I want you to be safe, and that means that I need to get you away from here as quickly as possible." He leaned forward and took a sandwich.

"When you're done eating, you will go put that uniform back on, and then we will go to the dock again. There is a boat waiting there that will take you to safety."

"My father, do I get to say goodbye to him?" she asked with urgency.

"No, you don't. It's too risky. He will reach out to you when it is safe to do so."

"When will that be?" Chloe asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"When Lada is dead." His voice was hard again, and it made her shiver. She didn't doubt for a minute that he meant what he said.  "I'm not going after her with the end goal of killing her, but she won't stop willingly, and I don't doubt that she will fight until either she or I am dead." His tone was so dry, so matter of fact, that it made Chloe cold.

It was all her fault. If she had never come here, none of it would have happened.

"It's not your fault, Chloe. You only sped up the process. Lada and I would have had this fight eventually, but hopefully, I will have the edge of surprise by having Dimitrie on my side."

He rubbed his fingers together, brushing off the crumbs from his sandwich.

"Tell me about your life in Savannah, Chloe," he requested as he leaned back in his chair. "I'd like to have something to think of that's not war from time to time."

"I wish you could come with me," Chloe whispered.

"I wish I could, too," he responded, but he didn't smile.

Chloe cleared her throat and took another sip of water. "I have a lovely apartment in the heart of downtown Savannah. It's in a 19th-century building that has the feel of a different time to it. It reminds me of some of the buildings here. A balcony looks over a square that feels like my own personal garden. Sometimes, when I have the night off from the hospital, I sit out there and enjoy the couples walking and holding hands, and I think of you and me, wishing we were one of those couples." Chloe took another sip of water, watching Valentine. He was staring at the table in front of him as if visualizing the world she was describing.

"Lia, Faye, and I have a favorite restaurant we like to eat at when we get the chance. Sometimes we allow Ben and Silas to join us. It's in a partial basement, and you can watch people's feet as they walk past the windows. There are mirrors that reflect the candlelight at night, making it cozy and romantic." Chloe bit her lip as she thought of the idea of her and Valentine having their own dinner there.  "Lia and Ben are always the first to leave because they have to get back to their crazy dog Huck. He tends to eat Ben's stuff if they're gone too long. Faye is always tipsy after one glass of wine, so Silas often has to prop her up on the walk back to their house."

"And you, who takes you home?" Valentine asked in a rough voice.

"Sometimes, I leave with Ben and Lia, but I take myself home most times." She shrugged.

"Why haven't you moved on. Chloe? You are so young and beautiful. You should have found someone to walk you home by now." Valentine stood, closing his computer with a snap.

"I have only ever wanted you." Chloe's eyes met his. "I've tried, Valentine. I've tried being sad and angry, I've attempted to forget you with logic and reason, but none of it works. I take you everywhere with me, and I have from the moment I met you." Chloe stood. "I'll go get dressed so we can leave."

Valentine didn't say anything. Chloe got dressed; he still said nothing. They walked through a deathly quiet house and loaded up into the truck, and he remained silent.

When the truck pulled up to the dock, Chloe felt her heart squeeze in her chest as she looked at the dark boat in front of her. It was as if it was twelve years ago all over again, and it hurt just as much. To keep her sanity, Chloe started to name cats in her head, but she didn't realize that her lips were moving as she did it.

There was a small flash on the boat, and Valentine opened his door, then came around to her side and opened hers.

"What are you whispering?" he asked as he took her elbow in his and started the long walk down the dock.

"I'm naming my cats," she whispered.

"You have cats?"

"Not yet, but all old maids do. They have cats, and they smell like mothballs." Chloe didn't even realize she was having the conversation as she watched the boat get closer and closer as they walked. She only had a few more moments with Valentine. Then she would probably never see him again.

They reached the boat and stepped up onto it.

"I have heard that if you visualize something enough, it will eventually come true. Do you believe that?" Chloe asked as she stopped and looked up at Valentine.

He pushed her into the shadows at the back of the boat. "No, but I know it can give you comfort in times of sorrow and loneliness." He took off her cap, releasing her hair. "What are you visualizing that you want to come true?"

"Us walking together in my square," Chloe whispered.

"I'll visualize that as well. Maybe if we know we are thinking about the same thing, it will comfort us more." He cupped her face as he studied it one last time. "You have my heart Chloe Lockwood and you always will." Then he kissed her lips gently, and her world exploded. It was the first kiss he had given her in over twelve years.

A little kiss wasn't enough, and she pressed her lips to his as her tears mingled there.

"Please, please live, find a way to find me," she pleaded. "It's you or no one, even if I have to be the crazy cat lady who smells like mothballs."

Valentine smiled at her words as he rested his head against hers for a moment, then he was gone.

Chloe didn't turn as she heard the motor of the boat start, and she saw Silas step from the cabin below and join her in the shadows. He didn't say anything as the boat pulled away from the dock, he only handed her her cap back with the hint that she should put it back on.

There were no words that would comfort her.