Alexis

“You’re either going to answer my questions or I’ll go ask Alex and Frank.” I threaten Oliver and he grabs me by the arm and leads me to his bedroom. Oliver has avoided me for days and I don’t have the patience to deal with this any longer.

Oliver doesn’t want me asking questions, but he had to expect them. Noah is back in Chicago. I saw him and to make matters even more confusing, he was meeting with Oliver, Thomas, and Alex. I watched as they shook hands and I saw Noah walk into the building. I need to know why he’s here and why they suddenly appear to like each other and what the hell is in that building?

When I ask Oliver each of these questions, he walks away from me and shakes his head. I am shocked when Oliver starts to talk. Sam is being held at the abandoned office building and is being questioned. Oliver said she hasn’t cracked yet, but they know she is close. I can’t believe that Noah is involved with this, but Oliver assures me that Noah’s hands are basically clean. I am not sure what ‘basically clean’ clean means since Noah did bring her to Chicago. I close my eyes and picture Lola with the twins and I guess it doesn’t matter what they do to Sam.

“I want you to take me to her,” I whisper and Oliver’s eyes narrow.

“No.”

“Oliver, I want to see her,” I yell, and Oliver tilts his head in shock.

“Why? What could you possibly have to say to her?”

How could he not understand that this all started because of me? I had an affair with Sam’s husband. Nick was killed because of me. Chance was killed because of me. I will not sit by while Lola is killed because of me too.

“I can apologize for sleeping with her husband,” I whisper, and I hear him take a deep breath.

Oliver sneaks me out of the house a few hours later. We don’t talk as we both are deep in our own thoughts. I am wondering what the hell I will say when I am face to face with Sam. How does a woman apologize for being the ‘other woman’? If I had known Nick was married, I would never have gotten involved with him. The only problem with making that statement is, if I hadn’t gotten involved with Nick, I never would have met Noah.

Noah and I both have people in our lives that we thought we knew, but we didn’t. They each portrayed images of deceit. We soon pull to a stop in front of the building and Oliver takes the keys out of the ignition and stares at me. Oliver warns I won’t see anything pretty and I need to consider if I really want to see Sam. I nod, and Oliver sighs as he gets out of the car and comes around to my side to open the door.

The inside of the building is dirty and there is old, broken furniture scattered around. Oliver grabs my hand and leads me to the basement without turning on any lights. Downstairs, we go down a small hallway and he pulls a key out of his pocket. I gasp when he opens the door and turns on a light. My hands cover my mouth as I try to keep myself from throwing up as Oliver watches me nervously. He again asks if I want to do this and I nod.

Sam is tied to a chair and her head is hanging back towards the ceiling. The room smells like vomit, and you can tell she has been using the bathroom in here. Her shirt is have ripped off and it looks like someone took a chain and whipped it across her chest. Her pants have blood stains and I almost think I see handprints around her neck. When Oliver closes the door, her head snaps up and I can see her black mascara running down her face. Her hair was in a ponytail, but someone had pulled most of her hair from it. She had two black eyes and scratches all over her face.

Did the men in my family do this to her? I know she is a bitch, but she is still a woman. Sam’s eyes narrow at me and she glances towards Oliver. I am still standing by the door staring at her and my feet feel glued to the floor. I don’t want to go in any further. I start to feel myself suffocate remembering that Oliver closed the door.

“Isn’t this nice? My husband’s slut came to gloat,” Sam’s gravelly voice whispers.

“Are you happy to see me like this, Alexis? You spoiled bitch. You had Nick and now you’ll get Noah,” Sam continues while I just stare at this empty fucking vessel in front of me. Anyone else in her position would be asking for help. She is still spewing her hatred towards me.

“I’m sorry,” I shout since I am still standing across the room from her. Oliver puts his hand on my lower back to give his support.

“What?” Sam asks and even though I knew she heard me, I say it again. I tell her that I am sorry for what happened with Nick. I tell her that I would never have gotten involved with him if I had known he was married. I reach into my purse and pull out a bottle of water and I walk towards her. Oliver grabs my arm to stop me, but I shake my head and pull away from him. I lift the bottle as Sam narrows her eyes and tilts her head back to take a few sips. She is so thirsty that she tries to drink too fast and almost chokes. I lightly tap her back and she narrows her eyes at me.

“Sam… Lola has two babies. They cry for her every day. What did they do to deserve this?” I whisper as I move the hair away from her face.

“I asked for a trade. Nick’s body for hers,” she says, and I glance back at Oliver whose eyes have suddenly gone cold.

She wants proof that Nick is dead. I don’t understand it at first, but then it occurs to me. If Nick’s body is found, he can be declared legally dead. She wants his shares of Noah’s company and his money. I am positive that his body wasn’t put somewhere that could be easily accessed. It’s been over a year and no one has stumbled across it. I look over at Oliver and I am assured by the look on his face that I shouldn’t even think about making the request.

“If you tell us where Lola is, I can promise you that Noah will sign over Nick’s shares to you,” I offer, and I watch as her eyes widen.

“Do you think I would fall for that? Lawyers would have to be involved and none of them would let that happen without Nick being there,” she smirks.

“No ordinary lawyer would. You know who my brothers are, Sam. Tell me where Lola is, and I promise you that it will be done.” I reach into my purse and pull out a recent picture of the twins and hold it for her to see. “These babies need their mother, Sam,” I whisper, and Sam looks away from me. I start to walk away when Sam suddenly rambles off an address. She warns that we’ll need more people with us. A small tear falls on my way toward the door. I promised Sam that she would be given Nick’s shares of Noah’s companies. I promised her that Alex and Frank would make it happen for her. The truth is, I doubt that she’ll live through the night once we find Lola.

Oliver calls Alex and gives him the address. When we finally arrive Alex, Frank, and Thomas are waiting. Oliver and I jump out of the car and Alex and Frank look stunned to see me. When Alex starts yelling about Oliver putting me in harm’s way, Oliver shouts back that I am the reason they have the address. Frank reminds them both that there is no time for arguing and tells me to get into his truck and lay in the backseat as he pulls his gun out.

Several gunshots later, Frank walks out holding Lola in his arms. He gently lays her in the backseat with me and we rush her to the hospital. The doctors advise that Lola is severely dehydrated and malnourished, but she will survive.

The hospital lobby soon becomes a meeting place for everyone that was at the safehouse. Everyone waits until it’s their turn to see Lola. It doesn’t take me long to realize that none of the kids are here. I ask Adele who’s watching them, and she gives me a small smile. They were all in such a hurry that they had to get a spur of the moment babysitter, but she would greatly appreciate it if I can go relieve him.

I have been such a bitch to her and Lola that at this point I think I owe her this one. She gives me the key and I head back to the safehouse to watch the kids. Once inside I come face to face with Noah.