The Right Side Of The Law Part 22

Two days later, dressed in a simple white sundress,carrying her daughter, Kristie Aldwin climbed out of the rented cab and headed for the boathouse at Paradise Point, and the old man who stood anxiously awaiting her arrival on the dock. She didn't recognize him as she focused on his bent-over posture, and that hurt, but it didn't stop her from moving forward, or from wanting to meet her grandpa.

Amanda was chattering, clutching Blu's old stuffed rabbit that Rose had given her. Kristie glanced at it now, wondering where he was at that moment. She hadn't seen Blu since all h.e.l.l had broken loose on the wharf and Salva had been hauled off to jail by Jackson Ward. She had planned to see him, but then Brodie had told her that Blu, after seeing to his two gunshot wounds, had boarded theNightwing and had taken off. Brodie had claimed that Blu had needed ... some air.

She wasn't angry that he'd left, more worried than anything. Brodie had explained that Blu's injuries weren't life-threatening, but that he had been expected to stay in the hospital.

Of course he had rejected that.

After two days the newspapers were still claiming that the Blu Devil was a hero, and Salvador Maland a modern-day pirate who would never see the light of day ever again.

She'd been asked to give a statementatthe police station about the past three years, and with Jackson Ward and Brodie Hewitt by her side, she'd managed to tell her story. Along with her confession, she'd learned that Amandawas Ben Frank's daughter, and though she couldn't remember him, she was confident that someday she would. She had also learned that she had never been married to Salva. That he'd lied about her being his wife, just as he'd lied about so many things.

If Kristie had any doubts that Perch Aldwin was her grandpa, the look on his face as he locked eyes with her convinced her otherwise. She saw his tears, saw him shaking as she closed the distance between them.

"I didn't believe him," Perch muttered as Kristiestopped on the dock next to the boat. "The Blu Devil,I mean. He came by and told me the story. I said he was crazy." He glanced at Amanda. "She looks just like you did when you were a baby."

Kristie wasn't sure what to say, so she chose to say nothing and instead wrapped her arms around her grandpa's aging shoulders and, with Amanda between them, hugged him.

She felt the air in his lungs rush out, knew he was crying again. She said, "It's okay, Grandpa. We've got lots of time to catch up. I'm not going anywhere."

Four days hadpa.s.sed since Bluhad surfaced in the river with a bullet wound in his leg an inch below last year's wound, and a shoulder contusion where another bullet had grazed him. Four days since he'd spoken to anyone after he'd made a stop at the hospital to see tohis injuries, then paid a visitto Perch, and then one to the jail.

True to his word, Jackson had looked the other way when Blu had literally beaten the h.e.l.l out of Salvador Maland. He had given the man a small chance to defend himself, but in the end, he had limped out of the precinct with his b.l.o.o.d.y knuckles jammed in his pockets, knowing he'd finished the job he had set out to do-Maland was going to prison with Blu's blessing,and Angel and Mandy were now free.

He docked the cruiser in the old slip that still had his father's name on it, not ready to see anyone justyet. He figured Margo and Ry were back by now and anxious to talk to him-especially since the newspapers hadgone wild with the story. He'd managed topick up a copy of theTimeseach day he'd been gone to keep abreast of the situation, and hadn't been surprised the headlines read, The Crescent City Devil is the Hero of the Day Once More.

Blu shook his head. He certainly didn't feel like a hero. He'd placed an innocent two-and-a-half-year old in danger, and had lied through his teeth to the woman he loved. He felt like sc.u.m, and he deserved to feel that way. He'd been way out of line, insisting to Jackson and Brodie that he wanted it all done his way or no way.

His thoughts returned to Angel. He was still having trouble calling her Kristie, and he supposed he alwayswould. He'd talked it over with Jackson when he'd decided to leave for a few days, and his friend hadpromised to stick by her while the whole mess got sorted out.

Blu headed below deck, limping as he went. His shoulder was doing fine, but his leg was sore as h.e.l.l. He'd have more of a limp than before, the doctor had told him, but the old injury had never slowed him down, so there was no reason to think this one would, either.

In the galley, he stopped and pulled a bottle of whiskey from the cupboard, then headed into his bedroom. Dropping the bottle onto the bed, he stripped off hisclothesand sprawled on the mattress. Tomorrow he would join his crew and get lost in work, but tonight he was going to get drunk.

An hour later Blu woke to the sound of theNightwing's engine winding up. He wasn't drunk, he hadn't even downed half of the bottle, but he'd had enough to slow his responses. It took him a minute to find his jeans and turn them right-side out. Then two minutes to pull them on-his d.a.m.n sore leg refusing to cooperate. By the time he'd climbed the stairs, the cruiser was on the move.

The warm night air, when it hit him in the face, took his breath, and Blu felt momentarily dizzy. He blinked and focused, blinked again as his gaze locked on Angel at the helm, her legs planted, her beautiful hair tied back in a long tail that had been cut to fall somewhere in the middle of her back. She was wearing the red-and-purple sarong Lema had given her, and her tiny feet were bare.

For a moment Blu couldn't move, then he limped to the stern and eased down onto the leather bench to watch her handle his boat like a racing pro. He studied her movements as she entered the narrows, watched as she eased off the throttle and maneuvered them through, then suddenly pulled back on the throttle once more and shot them into the Gulf at full speed. Ten minutes later she easedoff, then pulled on the wheel and let the cruiser spin into a tricky little circle before bringing her to a gliding halt.

Blu glanced around and saw that she'd brought him to the quiet cove where they had spent half the night driving each other crazy in his bed. His gaze went back to the helm. Waited.

Her shoulders moved up then down as she took a deep breath. Then, slowly, she turned. She didn't say anything at first, simply stood there studying him. Finallyshe said, "How's your leg and shoulder?"

Blu kept his gaze glued to her. "Fine. How's Mandy?"

"Anxious to seeDa."

Her answer threw him, and he sat up a little straighter. "And Perch? How's your grandpa?"

She smiled. "He's been refreshing my memory. I was a very curious child. By age ten I was driving the pilothouse."

"So you still don't remember anything?"

"No, not yet. But I'm okay with that for now. Curt-I don't want to remember him. But if and when I do, I'll deal with it."

"I'm sure you will," Blu said, believing it. She was stronger than anyone knew. "Jackson talk to you? Detail what was in the file?"

"Yes. But I think I would have preferred to hear all of it from you. How long have you known that I was never married to Salva?"

Blu studied her face, listened for the bitterness in her voice. When he didn't hear any, he said, "I never really knew for sure. It was all speculation. When I learned there was a good chance that Mandy wasn't his, it occurred to me that a man like Maland had no reason to marry someone he already felt he owned."

"And the reason you didn't tell me days ago?"

"If I told you that, you would have suspected there was more. I promised you that I would keep you safe. Keeping you safe meant I needed to also keep you in the dark, at least until we had Maland baited. You weren't suppose to know what I had planned for Mandy until it was all over."

"Mort explained how he went to the shelter dressed as me. When I dressed that morning at your mother's place into the disguise you sent with Brodie, I thought the other bag was a disguise for Amanda. Mort made me think she was going to leave the fish market dressed as a boy. But it was Mort's disguise in the bag. Very clever of you."

"If the wig and makeup worked that day, I knew it would work again at the wharf."

"And Amanda was the bait?"

Blu looked away."Oui, she was the bait."

"Then it was all about your promise to us? Me and Mandy?"

Blu was only half listening. He couldn't keep going over this. In his mind he had relived that moment a hundred times when Maland's men had drawn their guns. He'd had no right to play G.o.d with Mandy's life and he would never forgive himself as long as he lived.

"It's still bothering you-the decision you made-isn't it?"

He turned. "What?"

She closed the distance, came to stand directly in front of him. She looked beautiful against the night sky, her skin so soft, so fragile. "I brought you out here to tell you that I've been waiting every day for you to come home so I could apologize. I came every day to DuBay Pier, and then to River Bay to see if you'd come back. I've been a pest at the fish market. Oh, and I met your sister, and your brother-in-law. They're anxious to have you home, too. Grandpa's been worried I'm going to make myself sick if I don't start eating. And Mort and Brodie-I think they've started to avoid me since the only words I know how to say lately are, 'Have you seen Blu?' And Jackson's no help at all since he's been suspended."

"What's he done this time?"

"Something to do with Salva going into jail in one piece, but ending up with several broken ribs, a broken nose and two black eyes. I guess there are a few other things wrong with him, too."

She was gauging Blu's reaction. He remained sober. "So you're here to apologize? For what?"

"For telling you I hated you. I don't. Never have."

"Okay, so you don't hate me."

"Ah, there's something else, too. I'm here to ... to claim what's mine."

Blu came to his feet slowly. "I don't think there's anything of yours left on the boat. At least, I haven't

seen anything." "Oh, but there is." She reached out and laid her hand on his heart. "This- This is mine, isn't it? Yougave it to me without telling me days ago. You didn't say the words, but you do love me, don't you, Blu? You love Amanda, too." "Don't." Blu backed away. "You know who I am, what I've done. You don't want-" "That's right. I'm no longer naive. I know exactly who you are, and I love who you are." Blu needed air. But h.e.l.l, he was standing outside and there was a slight breeze. Still, he felt almost dizzy. "Breathe, Blu. It helps if you breathe." He took a solid gulp of air, deciding that was the problem-he'd forgotten to breathe. "There, that's better." She stepped forward and rubbed his chest, her warm little fingers curling into his flesh. "I saw you. I made Brodie take me to the wharf, and I saw everything. I saw the way you called Salva's attention away from Mort and Amanda. I saw you sacrifice yourself to save them. I saw-" "Jeez! Brodie was supposed to keep you away until it was all over. I'm sorry. I had no right to play G.o.d with Mandy's life. I-"

"Shh. Don't be sorry. We're alive and free because of you. Don't be sorry."

Angry with himself, Blu growled, "Then what the h.e.l.l should I be?"

She hesitated. Stared up at him a long minute. "Can't you just be ... be mine?"

Blu could see tears had entered her eyes. His anger vanished. "Yours?"

"Mmm." She nodded. "Yes, mine. I know I'm really young, and that my memory is still gone for now.

But I've been remembering a few things. Grandpa says I've always been an honest person. A hard worker."

h.e.l.l, she was trying to sell herself to him. Blu didn't know what to say.

"Grandpa says, dance forward. Don't go backward. He says a man that is good bone-deep is hard to find, and when a woman is lucky enough to find one- Well, I thought maybe we could dance forward together. That's if you-"

"You've talked to Perch about me? About us?"

"Yes. I told him that you and I... We... Say you saved us because you love us, Blu. Say you saved us because you want me."

His hands had started to shake. Blu pulled her into his arms, sighed when her body melted against him. She felt so d.a.m.n good, he almost forgot what he was going to say. "I want you,fille. G.o.d, how I want you. It works both ways, though."

"Meaning?"

"What's mine is yours, and what's yours is mine. You know how that old saying goes."

"Yes, I think I know how it goes."

Blu bent his head and kissed her gently, then ran his hand down her back and pressed her against him. "You want to take a ride to heaven?" he asked. "I'll sharemine if you shareyours."

He felt her rub against him, felt her little breathy sigh escape her lips. On tiptoes, she looked him in the eye, then whispered, "I love you."

"I love you, too." Then he bent his head and kissed her parted lips. "Welcome home, Angel."

Slowly she stepped back and slipped the b.u.t.ton through the hole and let the sarong float to the deck. Standing naked in the moonlight, she said, "I've been home for a while. I've decided home is a feeling, not a place. And I've been feeling like I've been home ever since I saw your face in Salva's office. I truly am home, Blu duFray-" she stepped closer and snuggled against him "-and I'm going to stay right here forever."

Epilogue.

"He's actually holding her like he knows what he's doing. I can't believe it. If I wasn't standing here-"

"Peeking out the window," Ry pointed out from his position in front of their yellow kitchen stove. He glanced at Kristie, who had volunteered to set the table, and winked.

Kristie smiled, then watched Blu's sister squeeze closer to the window. It was Sunday, and she'd learned that dinner at Margo and Ry's had become a tradition for the Crew, as they called themselves-Blu's family and extended family included Rose and Brodie, Mort and Jackson. And of course, Margo and Ry.

"Margo, I just washed those windows this morning. Your nose is cute, but come on, baby. He's not going to drop her."

"Did I say he was going to drop Mandy?" Margo quickly glanced at Kristie. "He won't, will he?"

"No, he won't drop her," Kristie promised. "Blu wouldn't hurt a fly."

She saw Ry and Margo glance at each other, their expressions bothshowing concern.

"Maybe I should rephrase that. He wouldn't hurt a fly unless the fly had malicious intent on its mind, with its sights set on one of us." "Whew! You had us worried for a minute," Margo said.

"I've seen Rose's sc.r.a.pbook. I know who Patch Pollaro is. More importantly, I know who Blu duFray is." Secretly, Kristie wondered if she was the only one who really did.Her Blu was the gentlest man on earth.

"Oh, look. She's leading him over to the swing, Ry. Come look."

Ry stayed where he was at the stove, stirring a mixture that had just started to boil. "Margo, is this

supposed to look like this?"

She quickly glanced in his direction. "How should I know? It's a new recipe."

"We're never going to eat unless one of us gets serious here."

"Well, one of us is. And don't you dare let it burn."

"Remember, I don't cook, baby. We've got eight people for dinner and if you leave me in charge, h.e.l.l,

we'll all starve."

"Where's Jackson? Get him in here."

"Somebody call for me?"

From the window Margo said, "Jackson, help Ry. He's burning dinner."