Carriers [11/11]
Chapter 10
The next morning Brendon heard a shrill scream come from downstairs. He walked over to the stairs and squatted down, peering through the bars of the banister.
“They’re gone! They’re both gone and they took Bronx with them,” Ashlee’s voice screeched.
“What?” Keltie asked seemingly shocked.
“Pete, and that carrier, Patrick, they left and they took Bronx with them,” Ashlee cried.
Keltie pulled her into a hug.
“Oh Ashlee, I’m so sorry,” Keltie pulled her into a hug.
“I told him these carriers were a bad idea, I told him,” Ashlee cried, “you better watch your husband too.”
Keltie turned and glared in the direction of his room.
“What about the country?” Keltie asked turning back to Ashlee.
“Travis McCoy takes over tomorrow,” Ashlee said.
Brendon stayed at the staircase with a dumbfounded look on his face while Ashlee’s sobs radiated throughout the entire house. A few minutes later Brendon heard a knock from the front door.
“Hello, Miss Audrey, please come in,” Clara welcomed.
“Thank you,” a voice responded and Brendon froze.
He peeked at the intruder and couldn’t believe his eyes. It was Audrey, his Audrey. Well his Audrey with brown hair anyway and she was holding their baby girl, who had gotten very big. Audrey walked into the same room as Keltie and Ashlee.
Ryan came up behind him, “Brendon? Brendon, what’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong?” Brendon reiterated, “What’s wrong is that that’s my baby in there.”
“Who?” Ryan asked, intrigued now.
“That little girl Audrey carried. Her name is Rebecca, and she’s my baby,” Brendon said.
“You know Audrey?” Ryan asked.
“She was my girlfriend before this,” Brendon said, “we had a baby together, Rebecca, and then we were separated.” He noticed that Ryan wasn’t paying very much attention though.
“Baby, I have to go. This Pete mess is huge and they’ve called me in for a meeting, I have to
meet this Travis guy. I’ll be home late so don’t come down tonight, okay?” Ryan kissed
Brendon and left before he had a chance to respond.
Brendon watched the door that the women had gone into and walked downstairs to hide. She has to come out sometime.
After a few minutes of waiting, Audrey walked out of the room by herself and headed towards the back of the house carrying Rebecca. Brendon followed her when she got far enough so that no one would see or hear them.
“Audrey,” he said and she whipped her head around.
“Brendon,” she stared at him a few moments before throwing her arms around him, “Brendon, I never thought I’d see you again!”
“Becky,” Brendon said touching the little girl’s cheek.
Rebecca smiled and reached out for Brendon. Audrey let him hold her a few minutes and Brendon was elated. She reached grabbed Brendon’s face and kissed it.
“Audrey?” Another voice called, it was Keltie’s. Brendon hid before she saw him.
“What are you doing alone back here?”
“Ashlee’s cries are giving me a headache,” Audrey lied.
“Oh, well come back. I got her to stop crying, she should be okay,” Keltie pulled her back and Audrey whispered “bye Brendon” hoping that he would hear and Keltie wouldn’t.
*
After Brendon had seen Rebecca again he felt his insides being eaten alive. Brendon was sure he would never see her, or Audrey, ever again but now that he knew that they lived so close, Brendon knew that he would never be content with anything again. He needed to see them again.
*
A few days after seeing Audrey, Brendon was walking back to the kitchen with food from the grocery shops when Keltie stopped him.
“Take the food to the maidens and meet me in the family room,” Keltie whispered quietly to him.
Brendon nodded. When he dropped the food off in the kitchen Joanne gave him a warm smile. She
took Brendon’s hands in her own and told him, “This month is going to be a good one. I can just feel it.” Lucia patted Brendon’s stomach, as she had taken to doing, and took the bags from his hand.
Brendon gave her a half smile and turned towards the direction of the family room. He knocked three times before opening the door and walking in. He was about to kneel down next to Keltie when she took his elbow and pushed him to the chair opposite her own.
“Brendon,” Keltie started, “we have a problem. You’ve been here a long time and you’re not, you know, pregnant and I think I know why.”
Brendon looked at her questioningly.
“I don’t think- I don’t think that Ryan can- can get you pregnant,” Keltie said.
Brendon thought for a few seconds, “You think he’s infertile?”
Keltie nodded and then smiled, “So I have a proposition for you.”
“Okay,” Brendon gulped wondering what she was going to say next.
“I want you to meet with other men.”
“What?” Brendon nearly shouted.
Keltie glared at him, “I want this baby and I’m going to get it. You’re going to meet with Alex secretly.”
“And if I don’t want to? What if when your husband comes home I tell him everything you just told me?” Brendon countered.
“He would never believe you, you’re nothing to him,” Keltie smirked.
Brendon laughed at her in his head. If only she knew, he thought.
“Besides,” Keltie took his hand in hers, “I know you won’t tell after I tell you what you get in return.”
“What?” Brendon asked.
“I know. I know everything,” Keltie smiled.
“About what?”
“I know about you and Audrey in the time before. I know that Rebecca is yours,” Keltie told
him.
“How- how do you know?” Brendon asked worriedly.
“God, Brendon, it’s my job to know everything about you before I bring you into my home. I’ve known since the day you stepped into my house.”
“You’ve known this entire time?” Brendon gritted through his teeth.
“Of course I did. Now do you want to know what you get?”
Brendon nodded.
“Have sex with Alex and I’ll let you see Rebecca twice a week when no one is home,” Keltie said with a look on her face that knew that Brendon wouldn’t say no.
“Okay,” Brendon said quietly.
“Great,” Keltie said, “I’ll tell you when you meet him. He lives in the basement by himself.”
Brendon nodded and stood up. As he walked away Keltie beckoned to him, “If you do get pregnant Brendon, after you give me the baby, I’ll get you out of here. And I’ll make sure you leave with Rebecca in your arms.”
Brendon walked away without responding, ran up the stairs and cried until Joanne came up with his food.
He looked out of his window and saw that Alex was wearing brown shoes. Ryan was going to be home late then.
Brendon swallowed.
Tomorrow he’d tell Ryan everything.
*
The next night, however, Ryan had to stay late and was surprised to see Brendon waiting for him in the study.
“You okay?” Ryan asked when he got his jacket off.
“No,” Brendon responded.
“What’s wrong?”
“Your wife,” Brendon started, “is insane. She asked me to sleep with Alex because she thinks
you’re infertile. She told me that she’d let me see my baby if I did it.”
“See your what?” Ryan asked completely forgetting that Keltie had called him ‘infertile’.
“My baby, my daughter. The little girl I had with Audrey before all of this happened,” Brendon explained.
“Audrey,” Ryan looked confused, “Commander Johnson’s wife?”
“Yes, Ryan I told you all of this the other day. I knew you weren’t paying attention,” Brendon rolled his eyes.
“Brendon I was on my way out the door and you were panicking,” Ryan explained.
“So,” Brendon urged Ryan on.
“So what?” Ryan asked.
“Aren’t you going to help me?” Brendon asked.
“Help with what?”
“God, Ryan! I need to get out of here. Now that I saw her I can’t be here anymore. I need to have my daughter in my life. I can’t just sit here when I know she’s just across the street. I can’t be your wife’s puppet. I think we should go. We should leave like Patrick and Pete. And we need to take Rebecca with us,” Brendon’s entire body shook as he spoke.
Ryan stared at him like he’d grown two heads “What, are you crazy?” Ryan screeched.
“No. Ryan we need to go. I know you aren’t happy here. So why should we stay? We can leave like Pete and Patrick. We can take Rebecca. Help me get Rebecca and let’s go. We can be together far away,” Brendon pleaded,
“Brendon no. Do you know how dangerous that would be?” Ryan explained, “I can’t and won’t do that, and I don’t think you should either. You’re good here. You’re okay. You don’t know what’s going on outside of Chicago. You should just stay and do as Keltie says. She said she’d let you see Rebecca right? Good. You can see her that way.”
Brendon looked up in shock and felt his face getting warmed and he knew he was turning red.
“Fuck you,” Brendon spat.
Ryan looked up at Brendon with wide eyes.
“Stay here? You’re telling me to stay here? What the fuck is wrong with you?” Brendon yelled.
“Brendon…,” Ryan reached for Brendon’s hand.
“No, Ryan. You have no idea what it’s like to lose the most precious person in your life. You have no idea what it’s like to sit in a home that’s not your own and be fucked like a fucking doll. You did it to me once and you’re telling me to go and let someone else fuck me. I fucking hate you, you stupid asshole. I thought-” Brendon choked “I thought you loved me but I guess- I guess you lied to me. You used your charm and pretty eyes to get me so you could fuck me since your wife won’t. You’ve told me how much you don’t like her. How much you hate her. But you still stay with her. You just made your choice and you picked her. So much for our love,” Brendon turned and walked to the door.
Brendon turned the doorknob but before he walked out, with his back to Ryan, he said, “Don’t talk to me anymore. Don’t come looking for me. I never want to speak with you again.”
*
Two weeks passed and Ryan had tried to talk to Brendon every chance he got but Brendon wouldn’t go anywhere hear him. Ryan finished all of his work early every day in the hopes that Brendon would show up to his study.
But Brendon never did.
Finally Ryan cornered Brendon one afternoon when Keltie wasn’t home, “Please,” he whispered but Brendon didn’t look at him once. Instead he looked over Ryan’s shoulder the entire time at anything that wasn’t Ryan.
That night Ryan waited for Brendon. Every time he heard a noise from outside the study he hoped it was Brendon walking towards the study. But Brendon never showed up. Ryan was about to give up and go to his room to sleep when three hard knocks came at the door.
Ryan quickly got up and opened it. Brendon slipped by Ryan and entered the room.
“What do you want?” Brendon asked harshly.
“Brendon,” Ryan began, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything I did to you. I really am. I do love you.”
Brendon glared at Ryan, “Whatever. Is that it? You made me come here so you could spew out more lies?”
“Brendon, no. I’m sorry. I’m sorry I told you to stay and listen to Keltie. I was, and I still am scared. Do you know what they’d do to you if you escaped and they caught you?” Ryan asked.
“I don’t care. I at least would know that I tried, that I haven’t given up like you,” Brendon said.
“Brendon, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something happened to you. You’re the only person that makes me feel okay. I’m only myself when I’m with you,” Ryan confessed.
“Then why don’t you want to leave with me?” Brendon asked.
“I’m scared Brendon,” Ryan said quietly. He was about to say something else when a baby’s soft cry cut him off.
Brendon ran around Ryan and saw Rebecca in a car seat moving uncomfortably. He picked her up and cradled her in his arms.
“Ryan,” Brendon began.
“No Brendon let me go first,” Ryan cut him off, “Brendon I love you more than anything. You said that I never knew what it was like to lose someone so precious to me but that night when you told me to never talk to you again, my heart broke. Brendon I need you. And I am scared. Scared of seeing you hurt if we get caught. But I’m more afraid of you leaving me, and me not knowing if you’re okay. So we’re leaving.”
Brendon smiled, “Really?”
“Yes, and we’re taking her with us,” Ryan said smiling down at Rebecca.
“How did you get her?”
“Alex and I were going to break in to take her but Audrey was waiting up. She handed her over and told us that she’d been expecting someone to come get her for you. She said you would be a better parent to Rebecca than she ever would,” Ryan explained.
Brendon smiled.
“She knew. She knew about me and you. How?” Ryan asked, “Did you tell her?”
“No,” Brendon replied, “But Audrey’s always had her way of finding out things.
Ryan smiled, “We’re leaving.”
“When?” Brendon asked.
“Right now,” Ryan informed him and picked up a baby bag.
Ryan opened the safe that was hidden behind a painting on the wall and began taking wads of money and shoving them into another bag.
“What is all of that for?” Brendon asked.
“To get us by until we settle down,” Ryan answered, “Let’s go. Alex is outside waiting.”
Ryan shut off all of the room lights and opened the private door.
They ran across the driveway and slid into the seats of the car. Brendon settled Rebecca into a car seat. When he sat back he saw Spencer sitting across the seat smiling.
“Spencer!” Brendon whisper-yelled and pulled him into a hug.
“Greta had the baby,” Spencer whispered into his neck.
The car started and crept down the neighborhood slowly but roared to life once they were out of sight from the house.
It was quiet but Brendon still had one question on his mind.
“Alex?” Brendon asked.
“Yes?” Alex replied from the front seat.
Brendon crawled over and stuck his head over the seat, “Why did you agree to what Keltie said?”
Alex sighed, “I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have. But she told me she’d ‘fire’ me and help me pay so I could go back to school. We really wouldn’t have done anything though. I probably would
have asked you to play cards with me the entire time or something.”
Brendon smiled, satisfied with his answer and sat back. Keltie really was desperate to have a child, but Brendon was done feeling sorry for her.
“Where are we going?” Brendon asked after they’d been in the car for a few hours.
Rebecca was getting fussy but Spencer was making funny faces to try to get her not to cry.
“With Pete and Patrick, they’re living in Denver,” Ryan said.
“How do you know?” Brendon asked.
“Pete had a letter hand delivered to me since the post office reads everything,” Ryan replied, “Patrick is pregnant.”
“Oh,” Brendon said and smiled, happy that he would see Patrick again.
“But why Denver, that’s still in this country,” Spencer said.
“Further out west small militia groups revolted. They’re gaining power and trying to restore
things. Pete says that Denver is safest place right now,” Ryan answered.
“How far is Alex taking us?” Brendon asked after a few minutes.
“He’s just taking us to the Illinois border. We’ll meet a man named Jon Walker there who will take us the rest of the way,” Ryan responded.
“Jon Walker?” Spencer asked and his eyes shined.
Ryan nodded, “Do you know him?”
Spencer smiled, “Yeah, I do.”
Brendon curled up by Ryan, who put his arm around him and kissed his temple.
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