Content Warning! Drugs, rape, and domestic violence are mentioned in this chapter.

It’s the same person who’s blackmailing you.

At the mention of the blackmail, Neil uttered a startled gasp. He thought of brushing it off and denying any such thing, but he was too far in to wiggle his way out. “How do you know about that?”

“I overheard him when he was doing it. I’ve seen his computer and phone setup. He has these different gadgets; some, I have no clue what they do. Others, I know a bit about. There’s one that sort of scrambles things so the number from his phone is a bogus one and appears to come from someplace other than where the phone actually is. There’s another that can make a call untraceable. There’s another gizmo that disguises the voice so it’s unrecognizable in order to throw off the person on the other end. I think he uses it for other bad stuff besides blackmailing you,” Valerie explained. “He is evil and crazy, but he’s not stupid.”

Neil blew out a long breath. “Who is he, Valerie?”

She looked down at her hands, hesitating.

“If we’re going to resolve this, I need to know everything,” Neil persisted.

Valerie bit her lip and wiped at the tears on her cheeks. “He…his name is Shane Clayton. He has a brother, Allen, who is…well, to be honest, Allen is a total headcase.” Now that the confession had begun, there was no turning back. Valerie locked intense gazes with Neil and launched into the whole disgusting tale. “So, Lenora’s alive, and he’s got me over a barrel. She’s my sister-in-law, Dr. Hughes. I love her and would never want to hurt her. I don’t remember doing it at all, but…but apparently, this is all my fault!” Valerie slammed clenched fists against her forehead as if trying to jar crusted memories loose, and growled.

Neil grabbed Valerie’s wrists and worked to unclench her fists. When she allowed her fingers to relax, Neil lowered her hands into her lap and patted one of them. “Beating your own brains out won’t solve anything. Oh, and under the circumstances, you’d better call me Neil. Look, Valerie, from everything you’ve told me and the evidence I’ve seen, you’ve been terribly victimized. You’ve been used, manipulated, and abused. It’s obvious, and anyone with a lick of sense can see that.”

“But–”

“But nothing!” Neil interrupted her. “Maybe you’ve made some unsavory choices, but that is no excuse for someone to take advantage of you like this.”

“Lenora basically told me the same thing.”

“From what I’ve heard and know of her, she’s a very wise woman,” Neil said. “You say she’s alive?”

“Yes.”

“This Shane went to a lot of trouble to have her moved and get a clone there in her place,” Neil mused. “Something didn’t add up from the beginning, but now, I’m putting it all together. They wanted the real Lenora because she’s obviously no use to them dead. Having her appear dead was the easiest way for them to get their mitts on her. And the clone…”

“It would look suspicious if the family didn’t have something to bury” Valerie replied.

“And the brothers have the real Lenora holed up,” Neil said. “What is her condition? How is she?”

“Whatever spell I…whatever Shane made me give her…well, she’s awfully sick. She’s weak and can’t hold anything down. I’m worried that if she stays there much longer, she…won’t be okay.” Valerie choked on the last few words and blinked furiously. “I don’t know what to do. He has us both stymied.”

“No one stymies me for long,” Neil said firmly, his expression growing dark. “I have a personal stake in this.. Ariadne helps those who help themselves, and that’s what we’re going to have to do.” Neil now knew what it was like to be frightened and feel powerless. It went against every part of his makeup to be in such a position, and it made him angry. Ever since he’d been forced into cloning Lenora and exchanging her for the real Lenora, his conscience had been beating him mercilessly. Preserving his mother’s life was the sole motivation in his cooperation, but he also knew that as long as he did cooperate, both he and his mother would be under a perpetually growing black umbrella. Blackmail didn’t happen only once, after all.

Endlessly mulling over the situation, Neil understood that there was more at stake than he and his mother. An innocent family was traumatized, and a presumed dead woman was being held hostage. Nobody deserved to be in such a predicament. Neil had been unable to help Lenora before, but perhaps he could now. He must help her somehow. Some strange force was telling him there was no other option. She’d haunted him from the moment she’d been brought to him. He was certain in his gut that somehow, someway, the Multiverse needed Lenora Landgraab, and if she wasn’t saved, they were all doomed.

“But how? I’ll just keep getting drugged, raped, and slapped around. You’ll get blackmailed again. It always happens that way.” Neil started, Valerie’s words bringing him back from his reverie.

Neil rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “For blackmail to work, there’s always something hanging over the victim’s head. What we have to do is eliminate that so the blackmailer has no leverage.”

“But how?” Valerie asked again.

“I’ve got some ideas, Valerie, but it means we’re going to have to work together. We’re going to have to be in constant communication, and we must always be truthful with each other. Is that clear?” Neil said, a grim expression furrowing his brow.

“I’ll do anything to try to make this right.”

“Okay, then. I’ll be Clyde if you’ll be Bonnie.”

Despite the bleak situation they were in, Valerie let loose with a gusty guffaw. “You’re on, Clyde. Partners in crime to dissolve a crime. Who’d have thunk it? So, what’s our first move?”

“Remove the leverage, of course. We need to reverse your condition, and I need to somehow get my mother safe where nobody can touch her.”

For the first time in a long time, a victorious light glinted in Valerie’s eyes. “I can help you with your mother. My family owns quite a bit of real estate jointly as well as individually. I bought this beach house and hid out in Sunlit Tides after my marriage broke up. See, my ex went on this Reality TV dating show after we divorced and got some notoriety from it. Before and after it aired, the show tried to interview me, but I wanted nothing to do with it. To garner sympathy for Caleb, I was raked over the coals and vilified for quite some time. It was madness! I asked my mother to ward the place so nobody could find me while I was there. It’s still warded and completely safe. We can put your mother there until it’s safe for her to return. Can you convince her to go?”

“Yes, yes, I think I can. My mother has been talking about taking a tropical vacation now for a while.”

“Good! Talk to her as soon as you can. It’s best to get her there under the cover of night. If you can get me shipshape, it’ll make it easier for us to smuggle her out,” Valerie said.

“I can reverse your condition. Your blood tests showed exactly what was being given to you. A Cure Elixir will take care of it, but the bigger concern is making sure you don’t end up in the same condition. There is a spell I can cast on you that will minimize the effects of the mind control and neutralize the drugs instantly once they hit your system. The mind control will still put you a little under. I’m sorry, but that can’t be avoided completely. In a way, it’s good because he will get suspicious if he realizes it’s not working anymore. What will happen, however, is that you will remember the hypnotic suggestions he gives you. You’ll be able to stop yourself from acting against your morals.”

“What about my transformations? They’ve been impaired, too, as you know.”

“Since the spell is eliminating the drugs causing the blockage, you will be able to transform again. Just make sure you get out of dodge before the full moon or you’ll have a lot of explaining to do,” Neil replied. “Now, let’s get you fixed up.”

Neil chanted quietly, moving his hands deftly over the injured areas on Valerie’s body. The afternoon waned as he worked, the sun dipping lower into the horizon. When he was finished, Valerie looked at her watch and frowned. “I must get going or Shane will get testy. How much longer?”

“Just one more thing. Drink this,” Neil said, handing her a goblet. “This will help with any remaining discomfort you feel.”

Valerie obeyed, setting the goblet on a nearby table once emptied. “What next?”

“I’ll speak to my mother tonight about the trip. In the meantime, you should try to convince Clayton to let me examine Lenora. She needs seeing to, and I need to see what we’re up against. Here, let me give you my personal phone number. It’ll be best if you call me so as to keep suspicion at bay. Think you can make that happen, Bonnie?”

Valerie’s lips curled in a slight smile. “I’ll do my best, Clyde. The shape she’s in, I doubt it’ll take much convincing. If nothing else, Lenora being sick will distress Allen, which will make a huge difference in swaying Shane. I’ll call you as soon as I can tomorrow.”

By the time Valerie left, the heaviness weighing on Neil’s soul was somewhat lessened. Perhaps there was still hope for his humanity and career. If Ariadne was willing and merciful, both he and his mother would come out of this unscathed, Valerie would get the help and understanding she needed, and Lenora Landgraab would regain her health and be returned to her family where she belonged. For all three of these to come to pass, Neil would have to work hard, tread carefully, and be as crafty and cunning as he possibly could.

Author’s Note: Sorry if both this chapter and screenshots seem a bit boring. Not too much action happened, but I felt this chapter of dialogue was needed to form this “Bonnie and Clyde” partnership thingy. 😀 You can be certain that a lot of action will be happening in the near future.

As always, thank you all so much for your support. It means the absolute world to me that there are folks who enjoy reading my story as much as I love writing it. Thanks for reading, subscribing, commenting, liking, and lurking.