Free Fate and Destiny by Claire Collins Page B

all straightened out,” he told
her with confidence.
    Shaking her head, Destiny
sat back from Andrew’s arms.
    “ No! They will arrest me.
I don’t know how I can prove my innocence. After all the things
that Charles told that lawyer, they will never believe that I
didn’t kill Marcus. And I know my fingerprints are all over that
house. I was there that night. Charles took my papers. Those were
my only proof. I can’t prove that I wasn’t there to kill
Marcus!”
    Destiny was panicking, near
hysteria.
     “ Honey, calm down.
Everything will be okay. Somehow, we will prove that you are
innocent. I’ll get you the best attorney I can find. I’ll protect
you. I won’t let any of them hurt you anymore.”
    Although he heard himself
saying the words, he wasn’t so sure they could prove her innocence.
The mere fact that she was dumped unconscious on the side of a
remote mountain should be enough to make them go after Charles
instead of her.
    His words seemed to calm
her down somewhat, but the fear was still in her eyes when she
looked at him. Besides fear, there was also trust in her eyes.
Silently vowing to himself and her, he would keep her safe from
harm and protect her with his very life if he had to.
    Unwrapping himself from
her, rising to his feet, he left Destiny on the floor shaking from
fear. She was in her own little world and would not miss him too
much for a few minutes.
    In the kitchen, he prepared
a cup of hot tea with a shot of Jim Beam to help her relax. As soon
as he stood up, Shadow snuck over and stole his place next to
Destiny. He put his head in her lap, but instead of just doing the
required scratching of the ears, Destiny hugged the big dog
tightly, burying her face in the fur around his thick
neck.
    The dog looked sideways at
Andrew as if to say, ‘See? You just aren’t built right to make her
happy, you aren’t furry enough.’ Andrew smiled at Shadow, whose
tongue lolled out the side of his mouth in pure
happiness.
    Destiny stopped shaking
while she held onto the dog. Maybe he made her feel a little safer
than Andrew did. Sitting back down on the floor on the opposite
side of the dog, Andrew handed Destiny the steaming cup of tea and
whiskey. Relaxing her grip on the dog so she could hold the cup,
the dog laid his head in her lap. After a couple of sips, and a few
deep breaths, Destiny was ready to continue her tale.
     “ After Charles got
off the phone, he was leering at me. He was so proud of his little
scheme. He just had one problem left in the way.”
    She put her hand on her
chest.
    “ Me. As long as I was
alive, he knew there was a way to punish him for what he did. I was
the only witness. So, of course, he decided to get rid of me where
no one would find me. At that point, he wasn’t sure how he would
kill me, so he kept me sitting there for a while, tied to the chair
and gagged. Doug convinced him to let me use the bathroom, but of
course, Charles had to watch me to make sure I couldn’t run away. I
wasn’t allowed to close the bathroom door.”
    She shook her head,
remembering the embarrassment and shame.
    Andrew’s guilt at seeing
her in the shower surged as he watched her lift her head and
swallow her pride.
    “ They tied me back to the
chair again, and Charles, Doug, and the driver all went into the
hanger to talk while I stayed tied up in the office. I think they
said the driver’s name was Larry or maybe Lenny.”
    She was momentarily
distracted while she tried to remember, then she shrugged it
off.
    “ They started arguing.
Doug was saying something about how he couldn’t shoot me. He
wouldn’t be able to live with himself knowing he shot me, even
after Charles offered him a half million dollars to do the job. The
driver of the car, Lenny—”
    She nodded with
certainty.
    “ Lenny didn’t say much,
but he kept looking in my direction and staring at me. I felt like
a fly under a microscope. I was just waiting for him to come and
pull my wings off. They kept