Everlasting (Unrestrained 6)

Instead of being just delusional, I suspected she was also a sociopath and just didn’t think anyone was as smart as her. Sociopaths often thought everyone else was stupid in comparison. They over-estimated their own intelligence and underestimated everyone else's. It was a very dangerous combination because they didn't know how much they didn’t know.

That was Lisa's failing. She was arrogant and thought she knew better than everyone -- including the police, the prosecutor, her own lawyer and the judge.

When the cross examination was finished, I was dismissed and asked to remain available in case there was a need to have me testify again. I left the courtroom, glad to be out of that environment.

I heaved a sigh of relief as I walked down the long hallway to the front entrance, but wasn't ready for what awaited me. At the bottom of the steps leading from the courthouse stood a gaggle of reporters with their associated camera operators, waiting for me. They approached me when they saw who I was and I wished I had someone with me, but I'd assured my lawyer that I was fine and could handle myself.

"Do you have anything to say about the trial, Dr. Morgan?"

"Why did you continue to work at NYU if you didn’t want a relationship with Ms. Monroe?"

"Did your wife know about your affair with Ms. Monroe when she married you?"

I stopped for a moment, and they crowded around me. When they were silent, their microphones shoved as close to my face as they could get without blocking their camera's views of my face, I spoke.

"I feel very bad for Ms. Monroe's family. She and her lover killed Derek Richardson and almost killed my wife and unborn baby. She most likely encouraged her boyfriend to commit suicide. She's hurt many people and will have to pay for her crimes. That's all I have to say."

Then I pushed past the reporters and made it to my car without feeling the need to respond to any of the questions they shouted after me.

"Dr. Morgan, there are reports you were forced to quit your position at San Francisco General Hospital because of allegations of harassment on the part of the nursing staff supervisor. Do you have anything to say?"

I frowned and turned to face the reporter.

"That's completely wrong. I left voluntarily to spend more time with my family."

Then, I got inside my rental car and slammed the door, glad of the car's tinted windows.

As I drove away, I had to acknowledge to myself that I had given the typical excuse used when someone was forced to retire or quit their job due to a scandal. At that moment, I had to admit that I quit because of a scandal. In my anger, I drove a bit too fast and had to slam on my brakes when a pedestrian stepped out into the crosswalk and I didn’t see her until the last second.

Luckily, I stopped in time but I got a real glare from her. A well-deserved glare.

I pulled over when I got far enough away and tried to calm myself. I texted Kate to let her know my testimony was done and that helped. After my pulse calmed down, I continued driving.

Back when I first considered getting involved in BDSM, I never truly thought it would mean I had to give up my career. Lara warned me of the need for the utmost discretion in my dealings with people in the lifestyle, but I always trusted myself to make the right decisions and use good judgment in my participation in BDSM. You could control yourself, but ultimately, you couldn’t control other people.

I had the bad luck of running into a very damaged sociopath who fixated on me and could never take no for an answer. Little did I know when I had sex with her at Derek's dungeon party that I was laying the foundation for my future – a future where I almost lost the love of my life and my daughter. As it was, Kate was damaged and had PTSD. Although she was better than she had been, she would be affected by the attack for years. I had a future which was increasingly looking like I would not be able to work as a neurosurgeon again – at least for a few years.

That hurt more than I realized. I'd often thought I could do whatever I wanted, when I wanted – that I had so much freedom due to my specialty in neurosurgery and my wealth, but I was realizing that the publicity from the trial and my past in BDSM might take away that freedom.

I arrived back at the apartment on 8th Avenue and sat in the car for a moment, trying to let go of my stress about the trial. I didn’t want to bring that negativity into our home, so I sat in the car for a few moments and just breathed in deeply. It was at that moment that my cell dinged and I checked to find a message from Lara.

LARA: How are you doing?

I remembered seeing Lara leave abruptly and was surprised that she left in the middle of my testimony. I thought she would have stayed for the entire time and waited for me afterwards, but she didn't.

I texted her back right away.

DRAKE: I'm fine. I saw you in the back of the courtroom. Why did you leave?

LARA: Someone I didn't want to see came in and so I left at the first chance I had. Sorry about that. I wanted to stay but believe me, I didn’t want to stay and have this person do anything to disrupt the trial. Let's just say he's a bit of a nutcase about BDSM. I'm surprised he didn't disrupt the trial anyway. He usually raises a stink and is taken out by security guards. If he saw me there, he would have gone crazy.

DRAKE: He did nothing while I was there.

LARA: That's good. I'm glad. If he saw me, he might have interrupted your testimony. I suspect he's really more interested in Lisa. He's on some kind of crusade... Listen, I'm busy the rest of the day today but I want to meet up with you two. Can you and Kate meet with me for dinner? I'll be in meetings all day tomorrow but afterward, I would love to relax with the two of you and have a drink, some good food and catch up.

DRAKE: I'm sure Kate would love to see you. I'll talk to her and if we can get Dave's aunt Karen to sit for us, I'd love to. I'll let you know as soon as I hear back from Kate and Karen, okay?

LARA: Sounds good. Take it easy.