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Chapter 158 - The Lake House - Part 1
"You don't mind me asking Mason to come here?" Mary hung up and slightly guiltily looked at Sophia.
"No." Sophia shook her head. "I'm just wishing that my pride would allow me to ask CC do the same."
"You can call him," Mary handed her the phone.
Sophia hesitantly looked at her but then declined.
"I can not. I do not want to quarrel."
Mason booked a plane ticket to Pittsburgh, PA and quickly began to packing after instructing Mrs. Rold. Mary did not go into details but he felt that she's scared. Dammit, he should have push harder and went with Mary!
The doorbell rang. Mason cursed and went to open.
"Where's my wife?" CC Capwell bursts into the house.
"Father, were you got the address wrong? None of your wives live here."
"Where Sophia is?" CC snapped.
"I do not hide her in the closet," Mason gestured around the living room.
"But Mary certainly knows where Sophia went."
"I must say that at first I'm not Mary and secondly, stop yelling, please. You'll wake my children."
CC puffed fiercely and pulled himself together.
"Mason, be kind and call your wife."
"Mary is not here," Mason sweetly smiled.
"Really? She ran away from you?" CC Capwell ironically asked.
"No, just accompanies my stepmother."
"Where?" His father could not help.
"I do not sure if I have the right to inform you. Since Sophia did not tell you where she was going so she would not want you to know."
"So you're keeping her secrets?" CC blinked. "Since when?"
"Legal ethics."
"She's not your client."
"Are you sure? Your wife tends telling you not the whole story."
"Come on, Mason. Where Sophia went? I want to know now!"
Mason looked at his father in silence, assessing how much CC upset. By the way, why he was?
"Sophia got a new lover?" Mason blurted out and enjoyed seeing how his father's face turned red.
"How you dare!"
"Spare me, father. I have Mary. Why would I want Sophia also?"
"Do you say where did they go or not?" the patriarch asked through his teeth. The smart ass just mocks him!
"May be," Mason threw the bait. "If you explain me why you want to see your and mine wives."
CC looked grimly at him.
"Sophia was too concerned recently. By the way, because you and your investigation."
"I'm glad you finally admitted she's my client."
CC glared him and Mason finally shrugged: "Sophia has been visiting her childhood home and invites Mary to accompany her. It's weird that she did not tell you about."
"Pittsburgh?"
"Yes, of course. I'm just going to there. By the way, I think if we'll take your plane it's would more fast and comfortable."
CC chuckled. "Dream, Mason."
"Not at all. You owe me, father."
CC muttered something under breath and then shrugged.
"Wonderful. Give me five minutes," Mason said.
"You have none of them, Mason."
Half an hour later they were sitting in the private plane of the patriarch.
CC Capwell got in deep with his papers. First Mason pretended to be asleep but then he really fell asleep.
CC turned away staring out the window to the endless clouds. He was angry. Sophia was not supposed to leave saying him nothing. What on Earth she did like this? And why she's so deep digging in the damned past. He remembered how long she had been preparing for the meeting with her father and then they met just the abandoned house. It's empty. Sophia was almost broken by the trip. And now it started again. Mason will pay if anything happens to her! He can not lose her again.
The patriarch shook his head and looked at his eldest son. Mason's asleep putting his hand under his body. He often slept in that position as a child, CC suddenly remembered for no reason. And even more out of place resurfaced memories of the day when Pamela nearly drowned Mason. CC's grinding his teeth and forced himself to get in the papers again.
They drove up to Wayne's house early in the morning. Mason turned off the engine and got out. The door of the house opened almost immediately, and Mary runs out to the garden. Seeing Mason she rushed to him, throwing her arms around him. Mason was too happy to hug her and kissed her lips thoughtfully.
"Hey!" He barely pulled away.
"Hey! Thank you for coming."
"I'd need to go with you from the very beginning as I offered," he looked at her knowingly.
"May be," Mary was forced to agree. "But I never could have imagined..."
"What exactly? You barely said when we're on the phone. Something wrong?" He glanced up at Sophia.
"We found evidence that Mary was here once, in our house," Sophia said. CC put his hands on her shoulders and she gave him a look of surprise.
"Is it true?" Mason looked up Mary.
"Yes. There is the drawing with my signature. I've been here, Mason. But I do not remember how and under what circumstances I did."
It didn't take much time to bring the men up to date.
"You do not remember anything?" Mason looked the old drawing over.
"Absolutely. Although I aware it was drawn by me, of course. And I remember that room."
"Let's go in."
They climbed up to the second floor and walked in the ill-fated room. Mary shivered involuntarily. Mason watched her. "Are you okay?"
"Yes..."
"You remembered something?" She shook her head. "But you're slightly uncomfortable here. What do you feel? A fear? Or you were happy here?"
"No, I was not. If I know one thing about this place, is that I was unhappy here. Very, very unhappy."
Mason squeezed her shoulder. "Let's go."
Mary did not object, and they went downstairs. Mary shook her head at Sophia's questioning glance and then she offered Mason: "Let's go for a walk."
"Of course."
Mason and Mary went out of the house, passed through the garden and went down to the lake. They sat down on the hillside just above the glassy surface of the lake.
"It's good to have you here," Mary pressed her head against Mason's shoulder. Smiling he stroked her shoulder and touched her hair. But then his face darkened.
"I really do not want to upset you but I need to ask. Don't you think that someone held you against your in this house?"
Mary pulled away and looked at him in amazement.
"Of course, I do not."
"Are you sure? After all you're already experienced at least one kidnapping."
"Of course, I'm sure. In addition, it's case was happened in California when I was saved by Uncle Larry."
"You do not know this."
"I know. Mason, your thoughts are going in the wrong direction. What I remember about this room... what I felt... there, it was..." She hesitated, searching for right words. "It was my grief, Mason. Do not my fear, not my willing to run away."
Mason turned his thoughtful look to the house barely visible in the distance.
"Yeah, it's the puzzle of the century," he drawled. "How you feel, how old were you when you drew this picture?
"I do not sure... probably elementary school age."
"Did you like leopards?"
"I actually hated them. I can not even start to think why it occurred to me to portray one."
Mason watched over the lake and suddenly looked around.
"Did you hear?"
"What?" Mary looked back.
"A cry. Woman's screaming."
He quickly got to his feet and looked around. But there was not no a soul.
"I guess that you just thought that you're hear it." Mary scrambled to his feet too. "Let's go home."
Mason did not protest even he still thought deep down that there was really a cry. And just for a moment all around was darkened as if a storm was close. But now the sky shone unbearably blue without a single cloud. "I hope I'm not losing my mind," Mason thought walking the path beside Mary.
They came back... just in time to catch the kissing of Sophia and CC. At the sound of footsteps they jumped back from each other like thieves in the act.
"Sorry for interrupting." Mason's voice was full of irony. "However, you can continue. We do not mind. Right, Mary?"
Mary covered Mason's mouth with her palm, but he moved his lips to her cheek and kissed her, too.
"Stop it! Mason!"
Red as a lobster Mary pushed kissing Mason away and then dared to glance at the elder couple. Sophia smiled and the frankly mock smile played on CC's lips
Sophia finally took pity on Mary. "Look like all of us could use some coffee. Mary, you won't help me in the kitchen?"
"Of course," relieved Mary went with her.
CC stopped smiling and looked grimly at Mason. "So Mary did not remember anything?"
"No," Mason said shortly and after a glance toward the kitchen he unwittingly added: "And I do not like it. Really not like it."
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