Safe In Your Heart

Italics denote a Flashback

Back in Addie’s bedroom, Orlando laid her gently on the bed, sitting down next to her. He brushed a tendril of hair from her forehead, and smiled down at her. ‘You’re so beautiful, love.’

Addie grimaced. She hadn’t been bathed in several days, her normally tan skin was pale from lack of sun, her hair limp and lifeless. She certainly didn’t FEEL beautiful

Seeing her grimace, Orlando grinned; he had expected that. Silly women who thought beauty was on the outside. ‘Let me tell you a story, love. When Sam and I were kids, she saved up months to buy me a tape I had wanted. Mum refused to buy it for me, because she knew that Sam was saving for it. Anyway, Christmas came, and Sam gave me this package. The wrap job on it was horrid,’ he paused, chuckling at the memory. ‘You could not call it beautifully wrapped. But when I opened it, oh it was wonderful. Inside this horridly-wrapped package was the thing that, at the time, I wanted more than anything. D’you get what I’m trying to say?’

Grinning Addie said, ‘Never have Sam wrap a gift for me?’

Tickling her for her sassiness, Orlando fought back a grin, and said in mock-seriousness, ‘No silly, that the most wonderful things in the world don’t have to come in beautifully wrapped packages. I have received gifts that were wrapped beautifully and had no substance. And then there was that tape. Now frankly, I do think you are beautiful physically; but I know right now I’ll never convince you of that. But Addie, angel, it’s your heart that I am after. Not your body. . .,’ he paused. ‘Although I will admit that I do want that too ’ he exclaimed giving her a lecherous grin.

Addie appeared to ponder what he had said. Satisfied that he wasn’t talking just to be nice, she smiled at him–a smile that shone as brilliantly as the midday sun, her eyes sparkling with love and joy. ‘Orlando, every moment I spend with you I love you even more. I don’t know what I did to deserve this, but whatever it is, I am glad I did it.’

Hearing her say that she loved him, well he’d never tire of that. Smiling broadly, he whispered, ‘I love you, angel. You’re the light I’ve been waiting for.’ He leant forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Then to the tip of her nose. Desire flared in her eyes, but he smiled and shook his head. ‘Later, baby. You are exhausted; get your rest. We have the rest of our lives to love each other.’ He pressed one last kiss to her forehead, and stood to leave. ‘If you need me, holler. If I don’t hear you, Viggo, Sam, Dom, Billy, or one of the security agents surely will. I love you Addie.’ He left the room, closing the door half-way.

He went to the now empty sitting room and looked around. ‘Was there a bomb threat someone forgot to tell me about?’ he wondered half-jokingly.

‘Oi, Orlando, are you talking to yourself again?’ Sam teased. She was dressed in a pair of gym shorts and a cropped t-shirt, her hair wrapped up in a towel.

‘Heya, Sam. Where’d everyone go?’

‘The hobbits and filthy human,’ she started, using his nick-names for his mates, ‘are swimming. There won’t be a single un-broken heart on the beach by the time they’re done Jimmy is who knows where doing who knows what with the security team. . .’

‘No I’m not,’ he interrupted. ‘We’re all done. Sam, hon, don’t take this wrong, but I need to talk to Lando alone. I was wondering though, if you. . . well,’ he stammered, looking at his feet, his neck pink. ‘If you wannahavedinnerwithme?’ he finished in a rush.

She smiled beautifully, her face lighting up. ‘I’d love to, Jimmy. I’ll go get ready while you two talk. Casual or dressy?’ Jimmy indicated the former, and with a nod, Sam headed back to her room to ready herself, her heart pounding in her chest.

Jimmy indicated that he wanted to sit on the deck, so the two men headed outside. Once they were settled on the deck chairs, Orlando looked at Jimmy and said, ‘It’s Frank isn’t it?’

With a heavy sigh, Jimmy nodded. ‘With a small amount of bribing, his cellmate talked. Frank has planned a revenge on Addie almost since the cell door first shut behind him. We also got the photographer–he sang like a canary, with no pressure whatsoever. He was hired by a detective Frank had hired to find Addie. He somehow heard about you, probably someone at the hospital, and decided to get pictures that he might be able to use against her.

‘The film has been destroyed, and the photographer threatened with promises of IRS audits, FBI investigations, and probably even body cavity searches,’ Jimmy joked humourlessly.

Looking up, he waved someone over. Two men dressed casually approached the deck. ‘Lando this is Mark, and this is Peter,’ Jimmy indicated each man as he spoke his name. ‘Peter is Addie’s bodyguard, Mark is yours.’

Orlando greeted the men, albeit rather lukewarmly. Looking around, he saw several of the security agents working on the grounds. A couple were clearing away vines and brush from the privacy wall; another was making notations on a palm pilot. Several more were fiddling with electronic equipment; Orlando could see a couple of cameras and several things he couldn’t identify. Another team was inside the house, setting up alarms on every window, and on all exterior doors. His sitting room now looked like ‘command central’ with a bank of video monitors that would, he presumed, be hooked up to the cameras the other agents were working with.

Jimmy saw him eyeing those, and understood his friend’s thoughts. ‘They will be moved, Lando. They are testing them right now, plus, they need the space in the spare rooms that they will be using, to get other things set up. I PROMISE you that within a few days, the only agents you will really notice are Mark and Peter.’

Orlando nodded and seemed about to respond when a scream pierced the air.

Whipping around, both men cried out ‘Addie ’ Wasting no time, Jimmy ran into the house, gun drawn, Orlando, Mark, and Peter close on his heels.

Running up the hallway toward Addie’s room, Jimmy almost collided with Samantha, who was also tearing toward Addie’s room. When they got to her room, Peter ordered Orlando and Jimmy to wait in the hall.

‘Like HELL!’ snarled Orlando, pushing past the man, who shot an exasperated look at Jimmy.

Stepping inside, The men, and Sam, found Addie curled up in Orlando’s arms, sobbing. ‘He was here,’ she cried, voice shaking. ‘I saw him He was at the window looking in at me!’

Jimmy waved all the men out to the hallway. Stepping out he said, ‘It is probably just a nightmare, but I want you to look around outside just in case. I know I can trust you all to preserve a crime scene should there be one.’

Sam stepped out, closing the door softly behind her. ‘She’ll be okay–my brother’s good at calming people. He said from what she was telling him, it was a nightmare.’

Adam, one of the security team, came into the hallway. ‘Everything is clear outside. There is no footprint in the dirt around the window, nor leading up to it. I did a quick pressure test and there would DEFINITELY be footprints had someone been there.’ Jimmy thanked him, and turned to go into the bedroom before pausing.

‘Samantha, if you are up for going out, we can. I know Addie; she’s going to cry herself out–thank God she has Lando–and then she will sleep.’

Sam pondered the disguised question briefly; she nodded and said, ‘Either way we are going to go nuts with worry. We may as well be together, and occupied.’

Jimmy nodded. ‘Okay; go ahead and finish getting ready; I’m going to see Addie real quick.’

Orlando looked up when the door opened. Addie had pretty well cried herself out; every couple minutes she let out a small, hiccupping sob but that was all. Her breathing was evening out, her damp eyelashes lay heavily on tear-stained cheeks. He lifted his finger, signalling Jim to be quiet, and shifted positions, to lay Addie down. She stirred, whimpering slightly, so he gently rubbed her back, whispering to her, until she settled again.

Jimmy knelt down in front of the bed, and spoke quietly, ‘Sam and I are going out. We’re just going to The Salty Dog, down on the eastern shore. I’m going to bring one of the security guys, but the other 15 will be here. They are working all night, until the security system is set up; this scare caused that. Viggo, Dom, and Billy just got back, Sam is filling them in on what happened. They’ll be here too, so I suspect all of you will be safe.’ Jim’s voice turned grave, ‘One thing though. . . if any of the security team gives you an order, OBEY IT. Disobeying a directive from them could well be the last earthly thing you do.’

Orlando nodded; he felt bad about ignoring Pete, but when he’d heard Addie scream, it was like someone punched him in the throat. He made a mental note to find the man once Addie was well-settled and apologise. Jimmy rose, and smiled at Lando. ‘Don’t feel too bad, mate–I was ready to barge past him too.’

With that he left the room, and Orlando relaxed. He pulled the covers back, and slid into bed next to Addie, pulling her in close to him. She stirred, opening her sleepy eyes. ‘Lando?’ she whispered.

‘Yes baby, it’s me.’

‘Thank you, for not making fun of me. I know now that it was a nightmare.’

‘Angel, I’ll never make fun of you. Whether the threat is real or not, your fear was; that is all that matters, honey.’

She smiled at him, her eyes grateful. He dipped his head and brushed a feather soft kiss across her lips. With effort, she raised her hand to his face, gently cupping his cheek. After a moment, her strength gave, and her arm dropped, but he could still feel her hand on his face, and he cherished the sensation.

Wide awake now, Addie gazed up into Orlando’s eyes. His velvet gaze caressed her face, the look one of pure love. Holding her gaze, he lowered his mouth to hers, capturing her lips gently. Eyes still locked, he kissed her, gently, sweetly, but thoroughly.

She could feel his weight pressing on her side, comforting and warm. With a moan, she opened her mouth to his exploring tongue. Invading her mouth, his tongue slowly thrust against hers, in and out, mimicking what he wanted to do with his manhood.

He pulled back and looked deeply into her eyes, assessing the emotions he saw there. Satisfied that he wasn’t rushing her into something she didn’t want, he lightly kissed her lips, then pressed a kiss to her jawbone, near her right ear. He slowly, gently kissed his way down, to her chin, then down her neck. Ever-so-gently, he nipped at her neck with his teeth, eliciting a low moan.

Continuing his downward trek, he kissed–over her shirt–her breastbone, feeling her heart pounding against his lips. He placed his hands on either side of her waist, splaying his fingers across her back, thumbs brushing up her rib cage. He kissed his way down, lifting the hem of her shirt. With a sly grin he zerbered her belly [blew a raspberry against her tummy] drawing a peal of laughter.

He started kissing and licking his way back up her tummy, this time his lips meeting her bare skin. The laughter died in her throat, replaced by a low moan. Her lips parted, and she drew a ragged breath. ‘Lando. . .’ she whispered, her eyes locked on his.

Orlando felt her moan with his lips, and smiled. He resumed kissing her tummy, working his way up. Slowly he pushed her shirt up, slightly ahead of his hot, exploring mouth. Exposing her breasts, he pulled back, taking in her beauty. The pink nipples were stiff, begging for his tongue; her chest heaved, as she gasped for air. His assault on her tummy was an assault on her senses.

Gazing hotly into her eyes, he leant down, never breaking eye contact. He took her nipple into his mouth, causing her to cry out. Throwing her head back, she moaned, the heat of his mouth, the gentle roughness of his tongue, causing exquisite pleasure throughout her body.

She thrust her hand into his dark hair, tugging, pulling him toward her for a kiss. He moved up, and kissed her, at the same time, laying his body out across hers, resting his pelvis on hers. She gasped when she felt his hardness pressing her soft, hot, core. Involuntarily, her hips shifted, creating friction and a better contact between them.

Tearing his lips from hers, he stared into her eyes, breathing raggedly. He gently shifted his hips, causing more delicious feelings. Then she moved, making a routine between them. He would move, then she would, creating a hot friction that made them both giddy with desire. She felt herself building up toward an orgasm–the realisation made her even hotter. The next time she shifted her hips, she rotated them a little, increasing the feeling even more.

Orlando felt the slight change in her rythm, and looked at her face. He saw the excitement there, and the change in her pupils; she was close to coming. He changed his rythm to match hers, helping her along.

Kissing her, he whispered against her mouth, ‘cum for me baby. It’s okay to let go.’ Addie moaned when his hard cock hit her clit through her pants. The sensation was mind-numbing, and she felt pleasure coiling through her body like a spring winding too tightly. With a guttural cry, she let go; waves of pleasure washed over her, and she cried out with each one.

Smiling, Orlando kissed her again, tongue stroking hotly into her mouth. He continued rubbing against her, enjoying the pleasure she was getting as though it were his own. He felt the waves of pleasure through the contractions in her pelvic muscles, and just before the pleasure became pain from over-sensitivity, he stopped, pulling off her slightly, and rolling them both onto their sides.

Addie lay her head on his shoulder, gasping. ‘God Lando. . ., I. . . that was. . .’ She couldn’t finish. He smiled at her, kissing her forehead.

‘I know baby.’

Frowning Addie looked at him. ‘But you didn’t. . .’

‘No, I didn’t. This was about you, not me. I get off on getting YOU off. Oh, God Addie, you are so HOT when you get turned on. To say nothing of when you cum. I can’t wait to do this again ’ He smiled at her, lovingly, intimately. With a sigh, she nestled her head against his shoulder, forehead leaning on his chest. She closed her eyes, and was soon asleep, a smile on her face.

‘Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy!’

‘Addie, Addie, Addie!’

‘Miss Sanders said I’m the best reader in the whole CLASS!’

‘Oh that’s terrific Addie! Let’s go tell my mom!’

Nine year old Addie took fourteen year old Jimmy’s hand, and started up the long walk toward his house, unaware that a pair of gray eyes were glaring menacingly at her, through a window. They got halfway up the walk when a man’s voice rang out, ‘Adrianna, get in here!’

With a sigh, Addie looked up at Jimmy, who looked down at her, worry etched in his eyes. ‘Addie, if anything. . . if you. . . if he touches you, you are to come over to my house. I know what he does, hon.’

Addie just looked at him before the voice rang out again, closer this time, making her jump, ‘Get in the fucking house you goddamned bitch!’

‘That tears it! Addie, get in my house, now. You are NOT going in there!’

‘Like FUCK she isn’t!’ cursed Frank. Grabbing her arm, he yanked, hard, causing her to cry out in pain.

Addie saw something flash past her face, and felt Frank let go of her. Sobbing, she ran into the house, flew into the kitchen, nearly knocking Margrette over. ‘He’s gonna hurt Jimmy, Momma M, he’s gonna hurt him!’ she cried.

‘Not if I can help it child,’ she soothed. Picking up the phone, she called 911. The operator was well familiar with the situation, took a few specifics, and dispatched a patrol unit.

Officer Eric Matthews, with two-and-a-half years on the job, pulled up less than a minute later. Something had told him to stick close to the Rutherfords’ house today. He was glad he had followed his intuition. He thought he couldn’t be shocked much more than these sick assholes already had done; he was wrong. Young Jim Anderson was fighting with Frank Rutherford. Both men had blood on their faces, Jim’s lip was split, and Rutherford’s nose looked to be broken, Eric noted, taking small satisfaction in that fact. Pulling his baton from its place on his garrison belt, he approached the scene.

‘All right, break it up! Frank get away from him, NOW!’ ordered Eric.

‘Little sumbitch hit me first, ya pig!’

‘Frank, I don’t give a fuck who hit who first. You’re thirty-something, you DON’T hit a child!’ Levelling his gaze on Frank, he warned, ‘ANY child. Turn around, I think you know the drill.’

Frank sneered at Eric. ‘What are you gonna do pig, hit me with your nightstick?’

‘If I have to,’ Eric replied evenly.

Frank charged at Eric, fists up, and Eric brought the butt end of his baton up, allowing Frank to drive his gut into it. Grunting in pain, Frank dropped to his knees. Within seconds, Eric had him cuffed and on his feet. Leading him to the car, he called to Jim, ‘Son, I’m gonna have to take a report. Can you have Margrette bring you to the station?’ Jim nodded, and Eric loaded Frank into the police car, calling dispatch to notify them of his impending arrival.

Unbeknownst to all, a little girl watched the whole scene, her nose pressed to the window glass, tears running down her eyes. Margrette appeared in the doorway, and scolded her gently, ‘Now child, you needn’t have watched any of that. Tis too much for some adults, much less a young girl such as yourself.’

‘He’s gonna hate me even more now Momma M. He’ll kill me now.’ Her face was white, and she was shaking.

‘No love, he won’t. You are going to stay with me and Jimmy for awhile. Frank won’t be able to hurt you now.’

The kitchen door slammed, and Jimmy stepped in, trying futilely to stop the flow of blood from his lip. Margrette greeted him with an icepack in one hand and a washrag in the other. ‘Now James Michael–that was the most foolhardy thing you’ve done yet,’ she said, but then she smiled. ‘And I am proud of you for doing it. Addie is going to be staying with us now. Today was the last straw, Officer Eric said if anything happened again we could take her in until the legal paperwork was handled. He said he’ll take any heat that arises from it.’ At the question in Jim’s eyes, she lowered her voice, but Addie overheard anyway, ‘It’s basically kidnapping love.’

Addie was crying. That was the first thought Orlando had, when he opened his eyes. His shoulder was wet from her tears. Cupping her cheek with his hand, he whispered, ‘What’s wrong love? Are you okay?’

Shuddering, Addie drew a great breath. She shook her head. ‘Just more dreams from the past. For some reason being with you makes the memories come back.’

Orlando looked at her, and something crossed his mind, ‘Addie, love, have you ever talked to a counsellor about what happened?’

Dropping her eyes, so as not to meet his gaze, Addie shook her head. ‘No,’ she whispered. ‘I just pushed them away. I didn’t wanna deal with them. I still don’t. . .’

‘Well you are going to have to. Because you say that I make the memories come back, and,’ he said, levelling his gaze fiercely at hers, ‘I am NOT going anywhere. I love you Addie, you aren’t getting rid of me now–or ever.’

He could see fear in her eyes. The sight tore at his heart, and he gathered her in his arms, hugging her tightly. ‘I will be here with you love. Forever. But we have to work through this, together.’

She smiled wanly. She was so tired, tired of being afraid, of ignoring her past. ‘Okay.’

Orlando held back his smile. One word, one very tiny word, but he knew it had cost her dearly. He kissed her, tenderly, expressing his love without words. He stood, picking her up. ‘Let’s go sit on the deck,’ he whispered.

He settled on the deck swing, holding her securely against him. It was still at least a half hour til sunrise, and the sky was still purple in colour. They could hear the waves lapping the shore, and the call of the earliest of the birds, looking for their breakfast.

Orlando sighed, he felt so at peace here, so relaxed. He didn’t have to listen to traffic, to sirens, to drunks arguing, as he did in LA. He glanced down at the girl he held, a smile teasing the corners of his mouth. It had been a LONG time since he had been this content, for sure.

Addie’s head rested on his shoulder, and he smoothed her hair back, before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. Sighing contentedly, he rested his cheek on the top of her head.

A gentle breeze blew across the deck, and Addie shivered. ‘Cold baby?’ Orlando murmured.

‘A little, but I want to stay out here. It’s so peaceful.’

The peace was suddenly broken by a woman’s laughter, and a man’s matching chuckle. Looking at each other, they shared a look of confusion. Orlando thought everyone else was sleeping. He wasn’t concerned, the perimeter guards were on duty, just surprised. He was even more surprised when he saw the source of the laughter. His sister and Addie’s brother were holding hands, and talking. Suddenly, Orlando’s jaw dropped. Jim had spun Sam around and, wrapping his arms around her waist, he kissed her; rather thoroughly if one could guess based on time.

Hearing Addie gasp, he turned wide eyes to hers. Obviously he wasn’t the only one not expecting this. Neither heard the other couple step onto the deck until Jimmy spoke, ‘Well, errr, isn’t this awkward.’