He squatted down in front of her and put a hand on her wrist. “I need to take you back, pedhaki mou. It’s not safe for you to be out here,” he said gently.
She flinched at the endearment. It was Chrysander’s pet name for her, and she wanted no part of it. She shook her head and pulled her hand up in a protective manner.
He glanced down at her feet and swore under his breath. “It’s cold, and you shouldn’t be out here in your bare feet. Let me take you back home.”
She recoiled violently. “No.” She shook her head vehemently. “I won’t go back there.” She slid to the end of the bench, the rough stone scratching against her clothing.
Theron put a hand out to prevent her flight. “Marley, think of your baby. Let me take you back. You’re cold.”
“I won’t go back to that apartment,” she said desperately. She stood, prepared to bolt.
Theron look at her with regret. “I cannot allow you to run. You’re clearly upset and are not dressed for the weather.”
Tears filled her eyes. “Why do you care? I stole from you, remember? I’m just the harlot who snared your brother and tried to ruin his company,” she said bitterly.
Theron’s eyes softened. “If I promise not to return you to the apartment, will you come with me? I won’t leave you like this, Marley.”
She swayed, and he caught her as her knees gave out. He picked her up and began striding away.
She stiffened in his arms. “Please, just leave me alone,” she begged.
“I cannot do that, little sister.”
“I’m just your brother’s whore,” she said, allowing more of the anguish in.
His grip tightened around her. “Theos! Never say that again.”
She turned her face into his shoulder, and hot tears flooded her eyes. “It’s true,” she whispered.
She closed her eyes and allowed herself to drift away once again. It was easy to flee from reality when it represented so much she wanted to escape. She cursed that she’d ever regained her memory. Doing so had destroyed her.
Fifteen
C hrysander strode into the Imperial Park Hotel, waving off members of the staff as they hastened to greet him. The elevator was being held open for him, and he got in and rode it to the top floor.
A few moments later, he walked into the luxury suite usually reserved for VIP guests. His brother met him in the sitting area, and Chrysander scowled furiously at him.
“Why didn’t you bring her back to the apartment?” he demanded.
“She became hysterical at the mere mention of it,” Theron said. “She was set to run as far and as fast as she could. I had to promise I wouldn’t take her back to the penthouse.”
Chrysander swore and closed his eyes. He brought his hand to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers in a weary gesture.
“She’s about to break,” Theron said quietly. “Bring your therapist here to talk to her. Maybe she can help.”
Chrysander looked sharply at his younger brother. “You seem concerned about her.”
“She carries my nephew.” His lips pressed together in a grim line. “It is as you said. There is no guilt in her expression, her actions. She acts as though she has suffered the deepest of hurts. It was uncomfortable for me to see. I suddenly wanted to do all I could to shield her from such pain.”
“Where is she now?” Chrysander demanded.
“Asleep,” Theron replied. “She fell asleep on the way here and never stirred when I carried her up the elevator and put her into bed.”
Chrysander headed for the bedroom, determined to see for himself that she was safe. He made his way through the dimly lit room and stopped at the head of the bed. Even in sleep, her brow was creased in an expression of despair.
He reached down and touched her cheek, tucking a curl behind her ear. She didn’t stir. Her pale face lay against the pillow, framed by her dark curls. Deep shadows smudged her eyes, and he could tell from the redness that she had been crying. His chest twisted painfully at the signs of her distress.
As he walked back into the sitting room, he pulled out his cellular phone to call the therapist and have her come to the hotel. When he was done, he closed his phone and turned to Theron.
“Where did you find her?”
Theron handed him a drink. “She was in a garden a few blocks from your apartment.” He winced as he looked at Chrysander. “She was barefoot, with no coat or sweater. She looked lost and unaware of her surroundings.”
Chrysander swore. “It has been so since she regained her memory. Theos mou, but I don’t know what to do.” He’d never felt so helpless.
“Do you still believe she is guilty?” Theron asked quietly.
“I don’t know,” Chrysander admitted. “I think sometimes that it doesn’t matter.” He looked bleakly up at his brother, expecting to see condemnation. Instead, Theron looked at him with understanding.
“When I saw her on the bench, it did not matter to me, either,” Theron said softly.
The therapist arrived a few minutes later, and Chrysander filled her in on everything that had happened since arriving in New York.
Despite the discomfort he felt over providing such personal details to
the woman, he wanted her to know whatever she needed in order to help Marley. So he told her everything. From the confrontation he’d had with Marley so many months before, to the present.
To her credit, the woman did not react. She took the information in stride and asked to see Marley.
“She is resting, but you can go in and wait for her to awaken. I don’t want her to grow upset and try to leave.”
The therapist nodded and followed Chrysander to the bedroom. As they entered, Marley stirred. Chrysander automatically stepped forward, but the therapist held up her hand to halt him.
“Leave me to speak to her,” she said softly.
Chrysander weighed his desire to be near her with the therapist’s request. Finally, he nodded curtly and turned to leave. He didn’t go far, though. He stepped from the bedroom and closed the door, but left it slightly ajar so he could hear what was being said within.
There was a long period of silence, and then the slight murmur of voices filtered from the room. The therapist did most of the talking at first as she soothed Marley. After a long while, he could hear Marley’s trembling voice, and he strained closer to hear what she said.
“I went to the doctor the day Chrysander was due back from overseas. When I discovered I was pregnant, I was shocked. I worried how Chrysander would react. I wanted to ask him about our relationship…how he felt about me.”
“Go on,” the therapist encouraged.
Marley’s questions that night now made sense to Chrysander. And then he flinched at her next words.
“He told me we had no relationship. That I was his mistress. A woman he paid to have sex with,” she said hollowly.
He wanted to protest. He wanted to march into the bedroom and tell her that he’d never considered her someone he paid to have sex with.
“Then he accused me of…” Her voice trailed off, and he could hear a quiet sob rise from the room.
“It’s all right, Marley,” the therapist soothed.
“He said I had stolen from him. He said I took plans for one of his hotels and gave them to his competitor. He told me to get out.”
“And did you steal them?”
“You’re the first person to actually ask,” Marley said wanly.
Chrysander flinched. She was right. He hadn’t asked. He’d judged and condemned her.
“I was stunned. I still don’t understand. I’d never even seen the papers he threw at me. I don’t know why he thought I took them or how he could even think such a horrible thing.”
The tears he heard in her voice felt like little daggers to his chest. The tension grew until he felt he would explode. Dread skated up his spine. What had he done?
“And then…” She broke off as sobs took over.
There was another long period of silence as the therapist murmured words of comfort to Marley.
“Tell me what happened next, Marley.”
“I left the apartment, but I knew I had to come back the next day after he’d calmed down so I could make him see reason and tell him I was pregnant. I felt if I could just have the chance to talk to him that he would see what a mistake it was.”
“And what happened?” the therapist asked gently.
Chrysander pushed against the door, his body tense with anticipation.
“A man pulled a bag over my head and forced me into a car. I was taken to another place in the city and told that I was being held for ransom. I was terrified. I was pregnant and was so scared that they would hurt me or my baby.”
Chrysander’s hands curled into fists as he fought the rising rage within him.
“They sent two ransom demands,” Marley whispered. “He refused both. He left me there. Oh God, he left me to those men. I wasn’t even worth half a million dollars to him!”
Sobs ripped from her throat as she dissolved into tears. Chrysander stood in