The Summer Deal (21 page)

“Look. We’re in Pappou’s house. Tony and Manoli are here with us and everything is okay.”

Her gaze darted around the room and when it settled on Manoli, she said in a small voice. “Yes, I remember. We were walking to the
taverna
when Tony and Teddy drove by. Then there was a gunshot—”

Turning her attention back to Demo, she ran her hands over his chest. Frantically tugging at his shirt, she searched for something.

“Oh my God! Did he shoot you?”

“He missed. We got him down before he could take aim again.” Demo spoke in a slow steady voice so that she would not misunderstand. From the corner of his eye, he saw his brother walk up behind them and drape a throw over her shoulders.

“She’s safe, Demo” Tony squeezed her shoulders, then adjusted the throw. “It’s just shock. She’ll come around in a few moments. I’m going to make sure the police have taken him from the village.”

Kissing the side of her head, Tony reminded his brother that taking care of Sammy was his immediate priority. “Put the anger aside for a moment. Your lady needs you here with her.”

Hearing his brother’s plea, Demo turned and guided the woman pressed against him to a more comfortable position. He looked into her face. Her eyes were enormous, but empty and glazed. Her normally rosy complexion was white as milk. Pulling the throw closer, he gathered her against him to find her skin cold and her body wilted. There was no reaction from her.

Grinding his jaw, he attempted to steady his breath and to slow his hammering heart. Every muscle in his body struggled against the restraint he was trying to impose. Burning eyes looked at his brother’s apprehensive face.

Demo swallowed hard, cleared his throat, and slowly spoke with as much tenderness as he could gather. “
Agape mou
.
Look at me, Sammy.”

She flinched when his fingers touched her face, and then dropped her cheek into his palm.

“He’s gone and you’re safe, Sammy. Do you hear me? You’re safe,” he repeated.

Pale green eyes stared past him. Demo filled with despair as he looked at the empty shell of the woman he loved. Rage burned in his soul as he began to turn away from her and spat Greek curse words.

“
Bastardo!
Look what he’s done to her. Don’t leave her alone.”

Tony’s fingers seized his brother’s forearm as he attempted to go out the door and confront the cause of her anguish. Demo stopped and looked at him, but could only see the picture in his mind of Daniels flying off a cliff, bouncing on the boulders, and scraping the jagged gorge the fifteen hundred meters down.

“She needs you here with her. Sammy needs you with her. Look at her! Think of what is in her head, her heart. She needs someone she can trust to come out of it.”

Demo yanked his arm away.

“What is more important? Your revenge or Sammy?” Tony asked, raising his voice.

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath Demo nodded. “Go, and come to tell me what is happening.”

With Tony and Manoli gone, he couldn’t change his mind and leave Sammy alone. Demo ached for the angel who filled his life with sunshine, as he walked back to the woman now crouching on her heels beside the couch and gazing into space with blank eyes.

“
Agape mou
, come back to me. You’re safe now.”

“Please.
Agape mou
, lean on me. Take my strength and fight. Tell me what you need me to do, and it will be done. Please don’t shut down, please.”

She could hear the hurt in Demo’s voice, but could not bring herself to ease it. Her legs shook, her eyes burned, and her body shivered, but her hollowed center ached. How could something that wasn’t there hurt so much?

Demo gently raised her to a standing position, and if it weren’t for his arm supporting her, her feet would not have sustained her weight. His touch did more than hold her up. It provided much needed warmth and connected her to the present reality.

“Let’s get you changed, and then you can lie down until you feel better,” Demo said. He guided Sammy towards the bed.

“No!” she screamed. “I don’t want to go to that bed. I won’t!” Then in a softer, more controlled voice she said, “In my nightmare, he was here.”

Universal words of damnation flew from Demo’s lips. His left arm went behind her knees and he swept her into his arms. His heart sounded in her ear as he secured her against him. Quick hot bursts of his breath stroked her cheek while he regained control. Sammy absorbed his love into her being and sank against the security of his body.

“Can I take you to one of the upstairs rooms?” Walking to the staircase, he placed a foot on the first step, but he did not start up the stairs until she’d nodded her consent.

He removed her shoes while he climbed the winding stairs and then brought her to rest on a large bed. An ambiance of assurance and comfort filled the room as he propped the goose feather pillows around her and tucked her under the layers of covers.

The angles and lines of his face were extremely pronounced as he removed her clothes, encased in dirt from when she’d fainted. Turmoil colored his face as he ran his fingertips over the sore skin of her upper arms and brought his lips to the sensitive area.

Sammy felt the streaks of moisture on her cheeks, but refused to breathe for fear of pushing him away. He went to move off the side of the bed, and she entwined her fingers around his shirtsleeve.

“Stay with me Demo. Please don’t go.”

“I’m not going anywhere. I’ll never leave you,
agape mou
. Never,” he repeated squeezing her hand. “I just want to get you something comfortable to wear. I’ll be downstairs for only a moment.”

She held tighter and adamantly shook her head.
No, don’t leave me. I need you now. Don’t be like everyone else. Please.

“
Sammy
,
Demo,
pou eisai paidi mou?”
Thea Eleni called from downstairs.

“Sammy, its Anna and Thea Eleni. Where are you, sweetie?”

Demo quickly pulled off his shirt and placed it over Sammy’s head. He gathered the sleeves around her shoulders, removing the dirty garments that hung on them. She lifted her arms and slid into the white cotton.

“Your jeans?” he whispered. She shook her head in comprehension and raising her hips, she unbuttoned the pants.

“Okay?” he asked as he removed the jeans from around her ankles. She swallowed hard and nodded.

Tucking the sheet around her, he called to the other women. “We are upstairs in the front bedroom.”

Sammy couldn’t speak again. She locked her gaze on him and hoped it was strong enough to will him to stay. She sighed when he sat on the edge of the mattress, took her hand in his, and murmured against her ear.

“I’m right here.”

He wasn’t like the others. He wasn’t going to leave her. She loved him so much.

Quick footsteps sounded in the hall. Thea Eleni and Anna came into the room and went to Sammy’s side. The older woman spoke soothing Greek words and kissed Sammy’s tense brow while smoothing her hair with warm, caring hands. Anna shook her head and hugged Sammy tight.

“I shouldn’t have let you come for the key. I could feel something was wrong.” Anna sobbed and tears ran down her cheeks. “He’s so ugly. Such a dark soul. I had to look away from him. He could have killed you.”

“He didn’t,” Demo interjected.

“No, thank the Lord, he didn’t,” Anna said and held her friend’s hand against her chest. Anna bit her lip and her chin quivered.

Demo stretched his neck in a circular motion until a crack sounded, and then stood and paced at the foot of the bed.

“The police insist on coming to see you. They need your statements. They will be here in a few minutes.” Anna’s body drooped lower with each word. “Sammy, they got him. And they made the pig wet his pants when they threatened him. He came to the square in soiled jeans.”

A small smile curved Sammy’s lips at the image Anna’s words relayed and brought a smirking Demo to her side.

“That’s my Sammy. My strong, beautiful Sammy.”

“She’ll need to be,” Anna added. “The police lads aren’t the only ones coming. Demo, your whole family is heading to the village.”

“Everyone?”

“Yes. Your parents arrived in Crete an hour ago, and Athena and her fiancé are probably landing as we speak. They are worried about Sammy. They’ll be here tonight.”

Family. It was the foundation of this man. The man Sammy loved, the man who wanted to marry her and for her to do the improbable: to have his babies. How could she rob him of a family of his own? The opportunity to father the children he so wanted?

Thea Eleni had opened the balcony doors and disappeared downstairs. She returned with fresh orange juice and water. Placing the tray on the bedside table, she brought the juice to Sammy’s lips as her hand lifted the young woman’s head.

Not wanting an argument, Sammy swallowed a sip of the tasteless orange liquid and thanked her. Too much would turn her sensitive stomach, and Thea seemed to accept the small attempt Sammy had made.

“
Ligo, ligo paidi mou
.” Thea Eleni said, bringing her thumb and finger close to indicate a little bit.

People entered the house and spoke at the base of the staircase. The older woman raised a hand and went to see who had arrived.

“It sounds like Manoli and Tony are back with the police,” Demo said. “Can you go downstairs to talk with them?”

Sammy wasn’t sure her legs would hold her. There were many voices, many strange voices. No, she didn’t want to meet them. Her eyes locked with Anna’s and the other woman nodded knowingly. Pulling the covers up around her neck, Sammy turned on her side and stared out the open doors to the balcony overlooking the mountain gorge.

“It’s okay Demo. A female detective can speak to Sammy right here while you give your statement downstairs. I’m sure they need to talk to you separately.”

“No, I’m not leaving her,” he said.

“You need to. She can’t handle being with so many strangers at this moment. There are too many officers, and I’m sure an evidence collection team is here, too.” Anna whispered something Sammy could not understand. Maybe it was in Greek. Sitting on the bed, she laid her arm across her friend. “I’ll stay with her. Now go and get this over with.”

*****

The sun was low in the sky when Demo returned. He sat in a chair and listened to Sammy’s soft breath as she slept.

“
Agape mou
, never again will you be vulnerable to such hurt. I promise. I’ll take care of you,” he whispered and caressed her hair as he bent over her. “Sleep and get strong again. I’m here.”

He didn’t know if she heard him, but she rubbed her cheek against his palm and then turned to kiss it. Her breathing was steady and slow. She kept sleeping.

His family had arrived an hour ago. His mother and sister had wanted to come up and sit with him, but he didn’t allow it. Sammy was in shock, and she needed time to heal. He assured the family he would call them when she was ready or if he needed their help.

With respect for Mama and Baba Lakis, who were the official owners of the home until Demo would inherit it as the first-born son, the sleeping arrangements for the night had been decided. On the first day each of the Lakis children had started high school, they were informed that only married couples slept in the same bed under Baba and Mama’s roof. Period.

Athena and Zoë would sleep in the back bedroom on the second floor next to Sammy’s. Refusing cousin Manoli’s invitation to stay at his house, Alexandros, the soon to be son-in-law, would sleep in the living room on one couch, with Tony on the other. Demo smiled as he pictured the two men with their feet hanging over the ends and their shoulders scrunched onto the narrow, stiff, and itchy couches. They were antiques with wool coverings. Demo guessed they would end up sleeping on the balcony in the hammocks.

The parents took the main floor bedroom Demo and Sammy had been using. Thea Eleni had helped him clean and empty it as soon as the police had left. Their clothing was now in the closet in the room where Sammy slept.

Demo refused to leave her and no one dared discuss his sleeping arrangement. Mama had sent up an extra sheet set and two blankets before going to bed. Was she really expecting him to sleep on the floor?

It was midnight and Sammy continued to sleep. Demo closed the bedroom door and undressed. He lay down on the bed, secured Sammy against his chest, and tried to rest. Tomorrow, or as soon as she felt strong, he would take her to the beach. She loved the sea, and she would be able to recover faster there.

Eventually he too fell asleep.

“Demo, are you sleeping?”

“No
, agape mou
.”

He welcomed her as she snuggled close and cradled her body inside the crook of his left arm. His right hand caressed the arm across his chest. She was warm and soft again. Comfortable in his arms.