Surprises

Part Four

Sonny swaggered toward Marcus with a smirk on his face and contempt in his eyes. It was all Marcus could do to keep his rage in check. Throwing the other man to the ground and beating him senseless would have sated his rage, but Marcus was a man of the law. He couldn't succumb to his base emotions. That's what scum like Corinthos did. No, Detective Marcus Taggert was above that. He knew what he came there for and nothing would make him forget that.

"What's this about?" Sonny asked. "It's a little early in the morning for a donut run, isn't it, Detective?"

Marcus inhaled a sharp breath. He wouldn't allow Corinthos to get to him. Marcus remembered the law.

He whipped out his handcuffs and had them around Sonny's wrists before the man or his bodyguard could blink an eye.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"You're under arrest," Marcus said. "You have the right to remain silent--"

"I know my rights!" Sonny yelled. "I also have the right to know what I'm being arrested for! Where's the warrant?"

"You're under arrest for rape, and I don't need a warrant for that."

Johnny tried to block Marcus' path. He gave the bodyguard a hard glare that convinced Corinthos' guard to stand down. Marcus shoved Sonny inside the open elevator car. Just as the doors started to close, Sonny called out.

"Call Alexis! Have her meet me at the station!"

The doors eased shut. Marcus focused on breathing and remaining calm. The enclosed space was a strong temptation. He could do a lot of damage to Corinthos inside these tight four walls, but he wouldn't. That was the coward's way. And Marcus was no coward.

"What's this really about?" Sonny asked.

Marcus remained silent. If he broke his concentration, Sonny was a dead man.

"This is trumped up bullshit," Sonny said. "You fucked up today, Detective. I'm getting your shield for this one."

Marcus let Corinthos' idle threats roll over him. Nothing else mattered except making Corinthos pay for what he did to Dara. That lawless asshole would pay for ever putting his slimy hands on her.

# # #

Lois followed Dara into the dining room and gasped. "Look at all that food!"

"Lois, please," Dara said, tossing her friend an apron. "Don't start. Just help me get rid of it."

"Breakfast is one of my three favorite meals of the day," Lois said, "but I can't eat all of that."

Dara couldn't summon the energy to laugh at her friend's joke. Her emotions were too raw, battered, and bruised. All she could do was shrug instead. "Eat it, toss it. I don't care. But I can't leave it here."

"This is too much to waste," Lois said. She grabbed plastic storage containers from the kitchen cabinets. "We can take this to the homeless shelter on Eighth and Oak."

"Whatever."

The women worked in silence, packing the food into containers, and placing the containers into plastic shopping bags. Dara felt Lois' eyes on her, and she knew that Lois would soon demand to know why Dara called her over while bawling uncontrollably. Dara was glad that Lois came over without hesitation, but opening up to her was gonna hurt like hell. All over again.

"That's done," Lois announced as she filled the last shopping bag. She untied the apron and tossed it over the back of a chair. "You wanna tell me why you cooked enough to feed an army?"

The misery of the past haunted Dara. Heaviness centered in her chest, and she slowly found the words to answer Lois' question.

"I had to tell Marcus about Micha--my past."