Surprises

Part Three

Dara paced the floor until she heard Marcus' key in the lock. Anticipation and dread had been her constant companions after she hung up the telephone. Now, that he stood on the other side of the door, unbearable sadness filled her heart. When he opened the door and stepped inside, Dara burst into tears and ran into his arms.

"Sweetheart," he said, his arms closing around her. "What's wrong, Dara? Did somebody die?"

That question touched her deep inside. Sobs shook her. She became lost in a storm of memories and emotions from the past. The strongest one being the awful pain of believing her baby was dead and being forced to move past it. In the farthest corners of her mind, she was only dimly aware of Marcus closing and locking the door, and then later, taking her to bed and crawling in beside her. His deep, rich soothing tones of comfort and love surrounded her and caused the tears to flow faster until she was finally spent.

"You wanna talk about it?" His large hand took her face and held it gently. "We don't have to. I'm just asking..."

Her throat scratched from the weeping. She swallowed hard. Shaking her head, she said, "In the morning. Can you just hold me tonight?"

Marcus gave her a half smile. "Nothing could tear me from your side."

He guided her head to his shoulder. Dara nestled against him. They lay together, their arms wrapped around each other, until the next morning.

# # #

Sonny received a call from Jason bright and early the next morning. He left the warmth of Carly and their bed to journey across the hall to Jason's penthouse apartment.

"What's happened?" Sonny asked. Jason's bearing was one of calm assurance. Whatever possessed him to call Sonny before the break of day wasn't so severe that it would cause the younger man to break his usual stoic tranquility.

"The army's been assembled," Jason said, "and the first report is in. Luigi and Sorel had a late night meeting."

Sonny shrugged and headed for the bar to pour himself a cup of coffee. "Big deal. They meet all the time. I know you didn't wake me up to tell me this."

"I didn't," Jason said, his voice typically unemotional. "After their meeting, Sorel sent two of his men out on errands. One of them was in a car parked at the curb in front of the building. The other went to ADA Jensen's street."

Sonny's hand faltered. Droplets of cream plopped onto the countertop. Awkwardly, he cleared his throat. "One of Sorel's goons was at Dar--the ADA's place? Did our guys grab him?"

Jason's eyes narrowed, as if he could read the depths of Sonny's soul. Abruptly, his expression softened, and the blank look returned. "No, I instructed them to hang back when Taggert showed up. Sorel's man left when he saw the detective."

"Did you question the one you found outside?"

Jason nodded. "He's not talking. Reynaldo worked him over pretty good. The guy doesn't know anything."

Sonny left the coffee on the counter and strode to Jason's front door. His gut instinct told him this wasn't an idle peeping tom job for Sorel's men. They were up to something.

After he opened the door, he glanced over his shoulder at Jason. "Put someone on the ADA. If Sorel or his men go anywhere near her, move in. Do the same for Carly."

Jason's brow knitted together into a worried frown. "Do you know what this is about?"

Sonny paused. He trusted Jason with his life and the life of his family. But he couldn't trust the younger man with this. Emotions from the past ran too deep and were too complicated to voice aloud. He said, "No. Just do what I said."