Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24

" W ho, Mia? Who's coming for her?" Kyle asked in a whisper.

"Those men. I took her away to keep her safe, but it's not enough. They're going to find us. I know it."

He was sitting on the edge of her side of the bed now and she felt his hand reach for her shoulder. She knew that he was trying to reassure her, but there was nothing he could do to calm her down. She felt herself shaking and gasping for air, trying to regulate her breathing. Her heart was pounding, and she felt sweat form on the back of her neck. That dream wasn't a figment of her imagination, she was sure of it. It was a large piece of memory that had been unlocked, the true reason that she was on the run, and she felt the terror of it deep in her bones. Her daughter was the one in danger! But why…

"Tell me everything about that nightmare, Mia," Kyle said. "Every detail you can remember."

She struggled to keep her voice steady. "I was in a hotel room, Daisy was asleep. I saw two men through the peephole in the door and I knew they were there for her. They wanted to take her away from me."

"Was one of them her father?"

"No. No, they were looking for Daisy."

"And how did you get away from them?"

"I created a diversion. I lit a fire and the hotel's sprinkler system came on. The alarms started to sound. When I knew that lots of people would be in the hallway, I took Daisy and ran to the car. I got in and started to drive away, but then they were on the road behind me. I took the exit too fast, and… well, you know the rest."

He nodded his head.

"Mia," he began, taking her hands in his. "Please believe me when I tell you that there is no way those men can get to you or Daisy now. You're safe here with me. My brothers are here, my dad and Geoff. No one will hurt you."

"You don't understand, Kyle. They'll stop at nothing. I remember that much."

"Do you remember who Daisy's father is?"

She shook her head no and let him move closer to her. "That part still feels shadowy to me. I'm not sure. He's wealthy and powerful, or at least I think he must be for him to have those scary men hunting us." She watched a shadow cross his face.

"Mia," Kyle began, tightening his hold on her hands and looking directly into her eyes.

She heard the tentative tone of his voice, and it pushed her further to what she was pretty sure was the edge of what she could endure.

He squeezed her fingers and continued, "There are other small things that I might have ignored, things that might be clues. I mean, I don't know a lot about women's clothing, but yours have always seemed expensive. You had a good deal of cash on you. I think you might be wealthy, or at least have access to wealth. And, when I first met you at the scene of the accident, you had a British accent. Does any of this ring a bell?"

"Me? A British accent? No way. I mean, I'm American, right?" she said nodding her head as if that made her last statement true. "I have a state issued driver's license, for God's sake!" She pushed the blanket off and jumped out of the bed and began to pace back and forth.

"Anyone with residency can get one if they pass a road test," he said. "We've already determined that your papers are fake. I mean, the woman who lived at the New York City address, the real Mia Sawyer – we know that she passed away."

Mia could sense that there was something else that he wasn't telling her. She turned to face him. "Kyle, why is it that I feel as if you know more than you've let on? How would I have forged identification? Do you know more, something you haven't told me?"

He looked away then, and when he recaptured her gaze, she prepared herself for the worst.

"Okay, Mia, here it is. I was afraid to tell you, afraid that if I did, that you wouldn't be ready to hear it. I just don't want you to be more scared than you already are."

She looked back at him and saw nothing but true concern and care in his eyes. She drew in a breath and prepared herself for whatever was to come next.

"Just tell me, Kyle. I have to know. I have the right to know." She gathered her strength, stood up and turned to face him. "I'll be okay."

She could see the internal struggle he was having, whether to share what he knew or not. "Really, Kyle. If you know more, you have to tell me, you have to tell me right now!"

He drew in a deep breath and shook his head, as if he wasn't sure if telling her was the right thing for him to do. But she knew that he lived by a strict moral code. He wasn't going to continue to lie to her, even if it had been a lie of omission. In a rush, he said, "I know your name, your real name. It's Maeve Byrne. I found it on an Interpol alert about Daisy. The British government is looking for you and your daughter. I'm going to continue to assume she is your daughter, right?"

At that moment the room started to spin, and the next thing she knew, he was kneeling next to her, and she was sprawled out on the floor.

When Mia came to, there was a cold washcloth on her forehead. Kyle was holding her hand and whispering her name.

"Mia. Mia. Come back to me. It's going to be okay. We're going to figure this out."

Her eyelids fluttered open, tears spilling out immediately. She tried to sit up, but he gently pushed her shoulders back down.

"Just stay where you are for a minute. You fainted and scared the hell out of me. I was afraid you might have hit your head again, but I think I caught you in time."

She turned away from him, but he reached for her and said, "Mia. Look at me."

When she did, Mia could see the concern on his face. She raised herself by her elbows and said, "Kyle. Daisy is my daughter. I swear it. Please, help me get up."

He put a one strong hand under the small of her back and the other behind her knees, then he slowly lifted her off the floor, placing her carefully onto the bed. Once she was situated back against the pillows, she said, "Thank you. But tell me that you believe me. Daisy is mine, I promise you. I'm telling you the truth."

"I'm sure she is, Mia. I know you wouldn't lie about something so serious."

She watched him rake his hand through his sleep-riddled hair. Then she had a thought. "How could I be breast-feeding her if she wasn't mine?"

"I don't know for sure, but I think that's possible. I mean, didn't Victorian women have wet nurses for their children? I don't think you need to be a biological mother to breastfeed."

"Well, if that's not enough information for you, Daisy and I can each take a blood test. If our types match, will that convince you?" She looked down at her fingers; they were intertwined tightly, rapidly turning white. "No, now that I'm thinking about this, we can do a DNA swab. It's easier and Daisy won't even know it happened. We can go to a lab tomorrow and do it."

"Don't be ridiculous. I believe you," he said. "There's no need…"

"Yes, yes there is. You and your family have done so much for me. I don't want there to be the slightest doubt about what I know to be true. Please, Kyle, let me do this."

"We can discuss it in the morning. Let's try and get some sleep tonight. It's late and we're both exhausted." He pulled the blanket back and got into the bed next to her, wrapping his arms around her, pulling her tightly against his chest.

She felt the tears spring free once more and roll down her cheeks. "All I have to give you is my word, Kyle," she whispered. "The truth that I know deep down within every inch of my soul. You must let me do this. Please."

He sighed. "Mia, I need you to know that I believe you, but if it will make you feel better to have scientific proof, so be it. We'll figure it out together. Now go to sleep."

But try as she might, Mia could not close her eyes. She reached for her phone and started to google DNA testing. She was amazed to find that there were at home tests sold at the local pharmacy in Orleans, right near the Stop and Shop market that she knew Sibby had every intention of sending one of her brothers to with a list of stray items she still needed later today. She would volunteer to go with Kyle. That way, she could get a test kit and real answers, because that way she'd have concrete proof, and she needed it. Despite what she told Kyle, she wasn't sure of anything anymore, and now, more than anything else, she needed the indisputable truth.

Mia was up with the sunrise. She had been living on the Cape long enough now to know that it was cold outside; the color of the sky gave it away. She associated that deep pink hue with the first hours of a frigid morning and it was now peeking in from the small space around the window shades. She sunk down deeper into the warmth of the bed and the heat that Kyle's body provided. Even in sleep he responded to her, his growing erection poking at her from behind. It took a few moments for him to fully wake up, but when he did, he snaked one hand between her legs as his other hand found its way to caress her nipple.

She turned around to face him. "Good morning," she said. "I've done a lot of thinking and not a lot of sleeping."

"Sorry to hear that," he replied, his hands now on her rear end. "But what I have in mind right now won't require any thought at all…"

Mia knew that she should stop him, that they needed a plan for today so that she could have a definitive answer to the question that was now front and center in her brain. She still didn't have enough of her memory back to know who she was before the accident, but something deep down told her that she'd never take another woman's baby. Plus, how could she so readily breastfeed Daisy if she didn't give birth to her? Unless she gave birth to a different baby and had a milk supply… but then, where was that baby and…

It was becoming increasing difficult to concentrate based on what Kyle was now doing to her body with his fingers, making it come alive with sensation, erasing her need for anything more than him and the perfect fit that they'd become.

It's too early to drive to Orleans. Let him show you how he feels about you, she told herself. She wordlessly guided him inside her body and found a rhythm that matched his, delaying the inevitable start to their day, if only for a short while. Mia knew that she'd have to do the impossible later and test herself and Daisy. Even worse, she'd have to live with the results, whatever they might be. But for this moment, she was going to allow herself this pleasure and the chance to feel connected to this man who she now so deeply loved. She wanted to block out everything other than the building climax that she desperately sought, the affirmation that she was bound to him as he was to her, that he would stay by her side no matter what.

More than anything, she realized that her need for him went so far beyond the physical act they were sharing; she needed him to believe her. It was her only way out of the mess that was now her life.