Chapter 10
"Rei, I know it's difficult, but you have to calm down. Sit down and rest for a few minutes, and–are you listening to me?" Rei ignored Kunshan's efforts to reassure her, the tears streaking down her cheeks, and everything else going on around her. Ami was missing, and nothing in the world was going to be right until she was found again.
Janus, Zoite, and Nestor were currently searching the woods with torches, although they suspected a kidnaping. Ami wouldn't have gotten lost, and she would definitely have stayed put to wait for Zoite if he had told her to. She wouldn't be so stupid as to wander around in the dark anyway.
The three men had insisted that Kunshan stay in the house with the women. His arm was currently around Mina, who was looking extremely distraught. Her face was a very pale, alabaster-white, but she wasn't crying. It brought his admiration for her up quite a few notches. Lita was alternately raging and threatening to go after them, banging her pots around in the kitchen, and making too many cups of tea.
Finally, the two blond-haired men and the brunet returned to the house, looking extremely upset and worried. The minute they entered the door, Rei leapt out of her seat to confront them. The hope on her face faded when she realized that Ami wasn't with them, unexpectedly extinguished. "How could you have come back without her? How could you leave her out there with–with goodness knows what?!"
There were deep shadows under Zoite's eyes, and he looked down at her mournfully. And yet, he kept his temper in check. She loved Ami just as much as he did. "Rei," he began softly, "I'm sorry. Don't think I've given up on her; I love her. She means everything to me, but I'm not going to be much good to her now, searching for hours and wearing myself out. She's not in the forest anymore." With that, he collapsed in the nearest chair, grabbed the nearest cup of lukewarm tea, and downed it in one go.
Rei whirled on her heel, the tears starting again. She swiped at them angrily with the edge of her sleeve and went to check on Xander. She was standing over the bed, looking at his peacefully-slumbering form, when Janus tapped hesitantly on the door. When she merely looked at him, with nothing other than pleading and desolation in her eyes, he put his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head. After a few minutes, she turned around, clasped her arms around his neck, and buried her face in his shoulder, tired of being strong. She had had to be strong for years, alone, for the entire family, and she couldn't stand it anymore.
Janus sighed deeply, and when she fell asleep in his arms, he carried her to her bed. He stood in the darkened room for a few minutes, making sure her breathing was deep and steady. Then he closed the door, his heart full of turmoil for Ami, for Zoite, for Lita and Mina...and Rei, of course. And he wondered why it took a disaster to make her accept him.
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Ami woke up in a room that was pitch-black, and her head was throbbing. She put a hand up shakily to touch the side of her head and felt a tender lump. She winced as it throbbed warning in warning when she applied gentle pressure. Her hands felt around her frantically, and because she was on top of something that was giving under her weight, covered with rough cloth, she figured it was most likely some kind of bed. Unsteadily, she got to her feet and cried out when she stubbed her toe on something hard and tripped over a large, solid, rectangular object in her path.
The door creaked opened with an ominous squeak, and a harshly-bright crack of light crept in. She blinked furiously and retreated to the bed, her heart pounding. She was in deep trouble...Gregory had found her somehow, halfway across the country, and she didn't know what he was going to do to her.
He entered, carrying a lantern, and she saw the desk she had bumped into and the chair that had been in her path. Her captor was wearing a smug, malicious grin. "So you're awake," he drawled, "not enjoying my company, dear Ami?"
"You're a criminal, and you're a kidnaper. The law will be on you in an instant. Let me go!" she ordered, trying to reason with him.
"Oh, no. I'm not about to do that, Ami. You see, I've heard some rumors from an old friend of mine...he told me his brother had some interesting new clients out west. He was only telling me how strange it was that a will should dictate that its inheritors marry before they receive the money. But then, when I heard the name, I knew that luck smiled upon me. Does your little sheriff know about that clause of the contract?"
Her chin thrust defiantly in the air, and her eyes sparkled angrily in the weak light. "Yes. He knows."
He smiled meanly. "Ah, well. So much for the pleasure I was anticipating of him being so angry that you were using him to get that large sum of money... But your sisters, now. They're so much more proud than you ever were. They probably didn't tell their suitors now, did they?" She refused to answer, and his smile grew wider. "It doesn't matter. They're of no consequence. You're the one who's important to me now, Ami. You see, if you go along with my plan, I'll get my hands on one-fourth of that fortune you're aiming to inherit."
Coolly, she replied, "To do that, you'd need to marry me. And that's never going to happen, not in this lifetime, not in a million years, not ever!"
His mud-brown eyes widened. "So the pretentious little whore got a backbone. I'm so proud of you, Ami. But I don't think you really understand the situation here."
"I think you're the one who doesn't understand. If you want to legally marry me, I have to give my consent. You can't force those words out of my mouth."
"Really? I think I can, Amiliana Bliss. Because if you don't stand beside me at the altar and say yes, I'm going to put a bullet through that measly spine you managed to develop–and three other ones, too." When she gasped in horror, he smiled malevolently. It was good that she understood him. "And if I feel angry enough, I don't think Sheriff Janus Aureole or Masters Nestor Siriale and Kunshan Bayonne will survive, either."
In a quavering voice, she said, "If you kill me and none of us are alive, you'll be put into jail, or–or hung."
Greg smirked. "I don't think you have the guts to kill yourself and sentence your sisters and their nice little lovers now, do you? And in the unlikely event that you force me to go through with that plan, the money will all go to charity. You'll be happy with that, Ami; I know you like beautiful acts and nice works. It's probably what you and your empty-headed sisters were planning to do with the bulk of it."
Ami's eyes lit angrily with an inner fire, and she knew she had never felt more furious in her life. The shame and pain he had caused her came back tenfold, but the bitter feelings washed away as her temper rose. He had the gall to sit there and threaten her. He had been what she'd assumed was her first love, and he'd tricked her into thinking that he was wonderful and that they would get married. She hated him. She didn't think she'd really hated anyone until now, and if she had, that loathing was nothing compared to the unparalleled hate she felt for him. He'd kidnaped her in the dark, knocked her unconscious, and locked her in some godforsaken place. He'd called her a prostitute, insulted her and Zoite, and slighted her sisters just now. She, who had wanted to dedicate her life to saving the lives of others, wanted to kill him.
She leapt at him then, scratching, slapping, and hitting him anywhere, everywhere. She was screaming her rage, and her arms flailed dangerously. Greg had dropped the lantern in shock. Luckily, the fire had been extinguished when the glass shattered, so the whole place didn't go up in flames. Finally, when one of her wild blows actually hurt him, he grabbed her wrists with one hand and reached for his gun with the other. He pointed it straight at her so it was directly between her eyes, and she froze. Everything was quiet, and neither of them moved.
Finally, breathing hard, he bit out, "You've made me very angry, Ami. You're lucky that I'm such a forgiving man. But now things are going to change. I'm not going to bother making up some pretty little story and have you back it up for me. I'm going to invite your sisters, and their swains, and your own little lover to the ceremony. You'd like that, wouldn't you?"
She stared at him, her eyes wide, dark pools in her face. His face was in complete shadow to her, because his back was to the door.
Greg continued, "And I'll make sure they don't get there ahead of us and sabotage the wedding. We wouldn't want that now, would we, darling? But before we get married, you're going to tell this Zoite character that you love me and that you were only using him for the money."
Her voice was high and frightened as she asked, "Why? Why are you doing this to me? This isn't necessary. You don't need to do this, Greg!"
"I know it's not necessary," he said smoothly, silkily. "I'm going to do it because I can. I want to see him hurt. I want you to hurt him. Pain is exquisitely beautiful, Ami. I was hurt once, by a woman I loved. That pain was my first taste of what life is truly about. And I love you so much that you and your dear little paramour are going to experience it, too. So I'm going to leave you now. Don't bother trying to get out. While I'm making our wedding plans, why don't you think about your speech? I'm sure you'll want to spend a lot of time on it." With that, he shoved her hard so that she fell against the edge of the bedstead and onto the bed. He left quickly, and she heard him locking her in.
She threw herself against the door, pounding on it and trying to twist the knob open, but of course, it was no use. Ami sank to the floor, her torn, dirtied dress pooling around her. At last, her anger faded and gave way to a deep fear. In her despair, she began to cry, and thoughts of Zoite made everything worse.
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Several hours later–or so she thought, she had no idea of what time it was–Greg unlocked the door. Ami was sitting in the chair, looking perfectly composed. The tear stains on her face had made her skin reddened and puffy, but he forced her to a standing position, pushed her out the door, thrust a washcloth into her hand, and pointed to the water basin. "Go wash up," he ordered curtly. When she was done, she turned to face him slowly, feeling numb.
He threw a plain white dress at her and directed, "Change into this and meet me at the front of the house." He pointed to the front door and added, "Don't you dare try to run, Ami. It'll only make me angrier, and we don't want that now, do we?"
She looked away and said nothing.
Greg's eyes narrowed; he was suspicious of this quiet obedience and resignation. Grasping her chin roughly, he forced it upwards and pressed his lips to hers, hard. "Don't forget anything, now. I want everything to be perfect."
She closed her eyes, and he left. Once she was sure that he was gone, she slipped into the white dress quickly. When she looked down at herself, she sighed. The bodice was too tight, and the shirt was too long.
Ami searched frantically around for a weapon of any sort in the main room, but there was nothing–of course. Gregory might be mad, but he wasn't an idiot about details like that. She only had a few seconds before he would be suspecting that she was up to something, and she rummaged through the cabinets hastily.
At last, she was forced to stand outside the little shanty built of wood that had long begun rotting and decaying. She was surprised, looking at if from the outside, that it still stood. He appeared a minute later, leading an old horse with a drooping head. She didn't dare to run from him as helped her up, but her eyes looked beseeching at the surrounding nature. The woods were empty of humans and help; Greg mounted behind her, and he shook the reins sharply. The horse starting plodding with a dismal sigh, and with each of his heavy hoof beats, Ami felt her heart grow heavier.
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"Why the hell would Greg even want to kidnap her?" Janus demanded, his eyes burning fiercely. He suspected that there was something they were keeping from him, and he wanted to know what it was. It could be the key to solving her mysterious disappearance! There was really no reason for him to be looking for her, but it was improbable that a random axe-murderer had snatched her without asking a ransom yet.
The girls were convinced, somehow, that it was Greg. Rei, who was awake now, closed her eyes briefly and told him the story of the will. Their negative reactions were to be expected, but Rei had hoped it wouldn't be as bad as this.
Nestor was looking stunned. Was this the reason Lita had been so incredibly angry at him for not coming sooner? Because she had feared the deadline would be over before he arrived? He was shaken, and he turned his head away from Lita's pleading eyes.
Kunshan was glaring at Mina, whose eyes were on her hands in her lap, feeling a sense of betrayal wash over him. He had always known women were like this: greedy, grasping, malicious, and lying. He was a fool to have thought that Mina could be any different. Mina, with her beautiful soul, bright smile, and happy nature. Everything must be a facade. She was shrewish and cold-hearted in reality...and he had put all his hope into her. Kunshan had truly thought that he would have asked to court her if this hadn't come up.
Janus was, if possible, even more hurt than his friends. He was wondering if, during those eighteen, he had really glimpsed the true Rei. He was wondering if the woman he had fallen in love with was real. Janus had always been confused about her reasons for marrying Chad. He had thought everything was going fine for them now. He wanted to marry her, and he had tried to be the girls' friend and protector once they had met up again. How could they have kept something so important from him?
At last, Janus turned woodenly to Zoite. "Did you know?" he demanded.
Green eyes met blue ones, and Zoite nodded slowly, his skin growing ashen. "Yes," he whispered. "Ami told me a while back. I thought that you all knew...I thought you'd told them," he finished, looking at Rei, Lita, and Mina.
Before the situation could escalate into pandemonium and chaos, a knock was heard at the door, and a little boy sucking on a sweet was standing there. Mina tried to smile at him, but her heart wasn't in it. "Yes? Is there something you wanted, or someone you're looking for?"
"Are you a Miss Bliss?" he asked shyly. When she nodded wordlessly, he handed her a folded piece of paper. "This is from a man."
Zoite was reading the note over Mina's shoulder. It read:
‘I can assure you that Ami is unharmed. If you'd like to see her again, come to the church right away. -Gregory.'
Fear washed over him, but he pushed aside his dismal thoughts. Surely they were just in a church so Greg would feel that he had protection from them...there was no brawling done in a church, not ever. "Who gave you this?" he demanded of the young messenger.
He quaked before them. "I–I don't know!" he burst out. "This man–a stranger, he had brown hair–he gave me this message and asked me to deliver it to a ‘Miss Bliss' here...he said there were four...or if a man answered the door to tell them it was for the Blisses. He gave me this candy for payment."
"It's all right," Mina said soothing. "Thank you for the note. Why don't you run along now? I'm sure your mamma is missing you very much at the moment."
When he left, Zoite let them pass around the note, but he didn't bother to wait for the discussion. They would only bring up a million more things, like the possibility of this being a trap. He didn't care. He was going to do anything to bring her back, and if it involved endangering himself...well...to hell with his own safety. He had risked it for countless other people already, and none of them had been as important to him as Ami was.
Just as he finished saddling up his horse, Rei blocked his path. "Wait. You're not going alone; I'm coming with you."
He decided not to argue with her, suspecting that his friends and most likely Lita and Mina would be after than in an instance. He smiled a quick smile at her. "You're amazing, Rei. Thank you."
"She's my sister," she said softly. "She's my friend. She's been everything for me, and I can't lose her." After a few minutes, she asked quietly, "Do you hate me for not telling Janus?"
Zoite sighed deeply. "No. Not one bit," he answered firmly. "Although it might've made things easier if you told Janus beforehand, but I think I can understand why you didn't."
Rei bit her lip. "He's accused me of marrying for money and being a gold-digger already. I just couldn't tell him, and I know Lita felt so unsure of Nestor's love that she didn't want to bring up any problems. Mina just felt so incredibly guilty and uncomfortable about the whole deal, and I'm sure she wouldn't have minded giving up all the money if the man she loved didn't come along...but then again, she probably would have married–for us. But the money never occurred to her when she began taking a fancy to Kunshan. I promise."
He looked at her steadily and replied, "I believe you, Rei. I just hope the others aren't foolish enough to throw away their love. As soon as we get Ami back safe and sound, I'll try to talk to them. Janus first."
"What are we waiting for?" Lita called. "Let's get going already, before it's too late!" They rode off on four horses, Mina and Lita riding together, Rei riding behind Zoite. Janus, Nestor, and Kunshan rode three separate horses, and they raced towards the tiny chapel, where they hoped to find Ami.
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AN: I apologize for the lengthy delay. Hopefully, Chapter 11 will be written much more quickly...I was stuck in a rut, trying to figure out some things. Thank you to Yoshi for all her help!! She was the one who suggested that Greg kidnaped Ami for the inheritance ^^. Everything managed to work out so nicely!
Addressing the question of names (Innocent Dreamer)...I'm sorry if they're a bother! I happen to really like strange names ^^;; but the real reason that I choose to rename the senshi in each of my stories is because I want to differentiate between their characters. In each new story, I tend to portray them a different way, or with more depth, and it helps me keep track of things to think of "Reiliana Bliss" for this story and "Reisha Zuriel" in Soulmates, for example. I know the generals have very odd names, and I apologize for this. I try hard to keep the first letters of their mineral names the same, but I figure my strange names are better than parents having named their kids after stones. But because I try to keep the first part of their name the same, it limits my choices. I can't pick very normal names to fit Jade, Neph, Zoi, and Kunz. Please forgive any awkwardness and problems this has caused in the reading; I'll try to refer to the girls as Rei, Ami, Lita, and Mina as much as possible.
~Ice
P.S. Sorry about the cliffhanger ^^:; and the long time it's taken me to update. After the whole Ami/Zoi fiasco, I promise to tie up all loose ends and problems now running around with Lita and Nestor, Mina and Kunshan, and Rei and Janus–everyone's universal favorite, it seems. Mm...longer chapters. Well, longer chapters means more time, so you can tell me whether you want longer chapters and longer waiting periods or more chapters out in a shorter length of time. ^^
The House of Bliss
