Cliff swallowed but the lump in his throat made it difficult to complete the task. He couldn’t believe someone would do that to a young child, would harm a single hair on her head. If he ever got his hands on her father, Cliff vowed to himself that the man would pay for his sins. Every last one of them.
“Can I. . .Can I see it?” His voice sounded strange to his own ears. He couldn’t imagine what Alexis was thinking at his request.
She surprised him by lifting her and raised it just under her good arm, all the way to the crease where her arm met her chest showcasing the pink scar. It was no bigger than a quarter, with eight lines crisscrossing almost resembling a three-dimensional triangle, except one of the lines continued a bit longer than the others. It was definitely a branding for the cartel, but as Cliff studies it farther, something peeks in the back of his mind. It seems familiar somehow.
Without a second thought, he reached out and traced the lines with his fingers, smiling when Alexis gasped for air at his touch. His lips begged to touch the skin, but the scar was in such an odd place that he held back. But that didn’t mean when he got a chance to explore her skin fully, he wouldn’t work to make it happen.
“This. . .um. . .scar was the last thing I remember about my father. Though my mother stayed silent throughout the entire process, she dropped me off at a group home the next morning.
“You know, I always wondered why my mom left me instead of packing her bags and taking us away. But now that I know what my father has been up to all these years, I’m sure she was doing what she thought was best.”
“Have you thought of looking her up?” Cliff asked, brushing her hair over her shoulder.
“I did when I joined the FBI. Both she and my father disappeared without a trace. We knew where my father had been, obviously, but I wonder if he did something to my mother.”
“After what we’ve learned, that seems like a distinct possibility. How do you feel about that?”
“I don’t know. It is hard to mourn someone you haven’t seen since you were seven, you know?”
Cliff understood that she wasn’t waiting for a response from him as she peered out over the lake. The sun began to peek over the horizon, instantly warming the air around them. He stared at her in awe, his eyes drawn to Alexis’ chestnut hair glimmering in the early morning light. She entranced him. By her strength, her wit, her beauty, Alexis was a woman that deserved far more than Cliff could give her. She deserved a gentle man that could fill her days with romance and love. Cliff’s heart lost the ability to provide those things more than ten years ago.
“We should probably head inside. I’m sure Amy and her family are on their way over. Cassidy was supposed to bring you some clothes.”
Cliff rose from the dock first, holding out a hand to Alexis to assist her. She struggled with the crutches, a set he had in his closet leftover from one of his missions that didn’t quite go as planned. He didn’t want to hamper her independence, knowing that she would rather persist through the pain, but as she struggled with every step, Cliff hold back any longer.
“Hold those crutches,” he commanded as he swept her effortlessly into his arms. The fact that she didn’t argue shocked him. She must have been in more pain than she let on.
Cliff continued to trek up the hill trying to find a balance between moving too fast to get her back to his house and settled in bed and moving too slow just so that he could keep her in his arms. He didn’t know how long he was going to have her and he selfishly wanted to enjoy every second.
The forest blocked out the light of the sun, launching them back into the bleakness of the early morning. Alexis’ hold tightened around his neck, but Cliff wasn’t afraid. Not of these woods. He’s walked them so many times he could find his way through them blindfolded. So many of the trees had cameras installed from his security system that he knew if something was nefariously lurking around.
“You know, I made it down here in the dark without a single worry, but now that I’m able to fully take it all in, I just want to say, I was an idiot.” Cliff joined in her chuckle. He understood what she meant. Venturing out into the woods of an unknown place wasn’t her smartest decision.
“Yeah, but you have good instincts. And you did find me.”
“That’s true.”
She nuzzled closer to him, adjusting the crutches in her hold. Something was weighing her down though, he could sense it by the way she wouldn’t make eye contact with him.
“Cliff?” There it was.
He could feel her stare pinned to the side of his face, but he made no move to turn his attention toward her.
“Yeah?”
“I have a question about one of the photos. The one on your mantle,” she began and Cliff’s heart began to seize. Sweat gathered along the back of his neck, right at the hairline. If he were carrying anyone else, he would drop them on their ass, pack up his things, and move to a new town to start over again. But he couldn’t do that to Alexis when she needed him most. “Who is the woman in the photograph?”
She sensed his uneasiness at the question and tried to backpedal, stuttering an apology, but the wound has been freshly opened. They stepped through the edge of the woods, the cabin in view, and from across the field, Cliff could make out a caravan of cars and trucks heading their way. Their time of solitude was about to be broken. But her question weighed heavily on him. Cliff was alarmed at his desire to share this secret with her, to share a piece of himself that she wouldn’t find in any of his files, he had removed them himself on purpose.
The words tumble forward, surprising him. “That woman was my wife.”
Her grip around his neck tightened and he wished he was able to read her thoughts, but as Cliff took a second to peer down at her, he could read it clearly on her face. She was so expressive. A mixture of anger, confusion, and joy all gaped up at him through her eyes. They were wide like a child’s. Her lips parted with her slackened jaw, but it was the slight tilt at the corner of her mouth that had him explaining more.
“Being a military wife wasn’t easy, and Stacy couldn’t handle me being gone for so long. She began abusing prescription medications thinking that she could keep it hidden. It wasn’t something like heroin or cocaine, but opioids are just as powerful.”
“What happened?” Alexis whimpered against his neck.
“She wanted her next fix more than she wanted her next breath, and she was willing to do anything and everything to get it. The police were never able to determine if it was murder or suicide. It happened when I was on my first tour.”