Sacrifices of the Soul, Chapter Twelve
 

Sam is in the Property/Equipment closet at the Youth shelter. He told Luis that he would do this, since Luis had been working on the fundraiser. He was verifying his number, and making a list of needed equipment when he heard a ‘click’ at the door. He turned around to..

" Ivy! What are you doing here?"

" I was thinking that you needed help with your ‘Inventory’."

" No. I can do it by myself. Now, leave Ivy."

" I don’t think so, Sam."

" You don’t think so?", Sam crossed the room and went to throw her out when he realized,

" This door is locked!"

Ivy  smiled. " Ooops! I guess turning the lock with the key will do that."

" Gimme the key, Ivy."

" No, Sam. If you want the key, you’ll have to do a body search to get it."

" You’re insane."

" Maybe I am, but, I can wait." Ivy proceeded to sit on one of the desks in the room.

" It’s not going to work, Ivy. Why are you doing this?"

" Because, I love you, Sam. You know that you love me too. I can feel it when we’re together."

" You’re dreaming, Ivy. I’ve told you. I love Grace. Only Grace. She’s my WIFE, and I’m always going to be faithful to her."

" Always is a very long time, Sam. How can you be so sure?"

" Because, you mean nothing to me, Ivy. You did, once upon a time, but, you threw ME away, and never looked back."
" That’s not true! I had no choice."

" We all have choices, Ivy. You made yours. Live with it."

" Sam, please. All I’m asking for is one night. Give me one night, and if you don’t want me, we’re finished."

" You know, Ivy, for all your talk of loving me, you’ve forgotten one thing: if I actually DO sleep with you, then, I cease to be the man that you supposedly love."

" You’re wrong."

" No, Ivy. Sleeping with you will strip me of the core of who I am. How could you love the man that WOULD sleep with you?"
 

" Sam, stop  making it to complicated. I love you. You can keep your marriage. I only want a little of your time. Your love, your heart. Moments that can keep me going. Memories that can sustain me. "

" It’s not possible, Ivy. What you’re asking, I can’t do. Now, please, if you respect me at all, give me the key, so I can open the door and you can leave."

" You know how to get the key, Sam. "

" FINE."

Sam grabbed Ivy, and with a little force, pushed her against the wall, face forward. He placed his leg in between hers, forcing hers open.

" Go for it, Chief Bennett.", Ivy teases.

Sam begins at the bottom of her legs, and starts to pad Ivy down, looking for the keys. Ivy’s grinning from ear to ear, as Sam keeps a stone face. A face that doesn’t betray the truth. The truth being that his fingers are on fire, with every inch that he touches of Ivy. The speed that he begins this task slows considerably. And, Ivy notices. When Sam gets to her hips, Ivy swivels them back and forth. As he reaches her stomach, Ivy lets out a moan.

Sam proceeds up her front, and tries to move around the chest area, but, Ivy deftly moves her body so that Sam’s fingers will be caught at the top of her jacket, and with the connection, the semi-loose button opens. Sam knows that he’s opened the jacket, but, doesn’t realize what it means until he turns Ivy around, and she’s facing him. The button held together more than he had thought, and with it open, Ivy’s bra was completely exposed. Ivy stood there with a devilish smile on her face, and Sam spoke to her again:

" Give me the key, Ivy.", the rage rising with every syllable.

Ivy shakes her head, and gives a downward glance to her chest. Sam knew that she wasn’t going to give up. If he wanted the key, then he had to do it. He traced the outline of Ivy’s bra, trying to find the key. He went over her breasts and finally found what he thought was the key. Sam was trying to not show Ivy how touching her was affecting him. But, he wasn’t fooling Ivy. She knew that she was getting to him…the same that she knew she got to him at the Ski Lodge. Sam’s lust was growing, and Ivy knew that she was inching closer to her goal.

Sam involuntarily took a deep breath, and went inside of Ivy’s bra. Touching Ivy’s skin after all these years; it was so familiar to Sam. He flashbacked to the first time he and Ivy made love, and how beautiful he thought her body was. Feeling the breast in his hand, he had to rush to the place in question, and the rushing made it seem almost as if Sam was groping Ivy. Her eyes closed, she had only wanted to concentrate on how Sam’s hands on her felt. The moments seem to linger on forever, until she realized that Sam had gotten to the place where the key was. When he got his hand on the key, only then did Ivy open her eyes, and directly stared into Sam’s.

She saw the hunger in his eyes for her, and while he was still thinking about getting the key, Ivy made her move, pulling his face to hers and kissing him. Before she knew it, Sam’s tongue was inside of her mouth, and they were engaged in mutual exploration. Sam never thought that he’d be back in this position, and it felt so comfortable, the walls that he had built around his passion for Ivy were slowly coming down.

Then, his phone rang. It startled him back into reality. He hurried to answer it.

" Hello?"

" Hi Sam. I was wondering if you could pick up some ice cream for dessert."

" Dessert?", Sam sputtered, caught between the phone call, and still in the haze of what was just happening with Ivy.

" Yes, dessert with TC and Eve? They’ll be over in about 45 minutes."

" Oh yeah. I’ll bring it."

" Thanks. Love you."

" I love you too, Grace.", and Sam hung up the phone.

Sam said nothing to Ivy as he crossed the room, and unlocked the door and left. Ivy stood there, lazily touching her bra, closing her eyes, and remembering their kiss.

" See Sam? I knew you still loved me. It’s only a matter of time before you will be unable to deny the passion that we share. I’ll have you back in my bed, and you can comfort me. Love me. The way it should have been."
 

When Sam gets home, he sees Eve sitting in the kitchen alone. He quietly as possible comes into the kitchen and signals to Eve with a ‘sshhhh’ motion not to alert anyone else about his arrival. Eve gets up from the table, and follows Sam outside.

" Sam? What’s this about?"

" Where are TC and Grace?"

" Grace got in the new shipment of Black Collectibles that she and TC had found on the internet, and they’re over at the shop now, inspecting them."

" Good.  I can’t face Grace right now."

" Why not?"

" Smell me."

" What?", Eve says in confusion.

" Smell me. Do I smell like……Ivy?"

Eve went over to Sam and took a whiff. " Oh My God! Ivy’s perfume is all over you, Sam! What the hell happened?"

" SOMEHOW, Ivy found out that I was doing inventory at the Youth Center."

Eve looked away at this statement, but, Sam didn’t notice because he’s too into the story.

" She did?"

" Yes, she did. She showed up and locked herself in the closet with me. She buried the key on her ‘person.’ "

" Person?"

" I had to do a body search."

" Oh, I BET Ivy just loved that."

" Yes, she did."

" Was she the ONLY one who enjoyed it?" Sam hesitated in answering. " SAM?!?"

" It just got….out of hand, Eve."

" Out of hand. NO…tell me that you didn’t.."

" No, I didn’t. But, Eve, I could have."

" SAM!"

" I know that this is hard for you to hear. After all, like TC, you’re a paragon of virtue, but, I guess I’m not the man I thought I was."

Eve looked at Sam with a combination of heartache, shame, guilt and sympathy.

" Why can’t she leave me alone, Eve? Why is she pushing this? Why doesn’t she understand that I love Grace? Why does she get to me?", Sam sinks his head into his hands.

Eve puts her hand on Sam’s shoulder. " Sam, you ARE a good man. You’re just going through this period of temptation. Everyone has their trials that they must endure. Ivy is yours. But, Sam, you can’t forget about Grace and the family that you’ve built. Everytime Ivy throws herself at you, you’ve got to think about what you would lose. And, you would LOSE them, Sam. Grace….your children.."

" I know..I KNOW! I love Grace! You KNOW I do! It’s just everywhere I turn it seems, there’s Ivy. Like tonight? HOW could she know where I was?"

" You know the Cranes…they have people everywhere."

" But, doesn’t this spy KNOW that I have a family? Know what could be lost?"

Eve felt sick to her stomach.

" Sam….you have to go shower. I’ll tell Grace you got dirty from the equipment."

" Thanks Eve…for being a friend."

Sam went inside and upstairs. Eve stood in the kitchen and put the ice cream in the refrigerator. When she closed the door, she came upon a picture of her, TC, Sam and Grace. The shame and guilt came over her once again. She shook herself, and knew that her plan for Ivy HAD to work. Whatever harm came to Ivy was her own fault. She just didn’t know when to leave well enough alone.
 

Ivy was dreaming of Sam. It was a wonderful dream. They had taken his boat out onto the sea for a weekend, and they spent it making love. Above board, below board, the shower. They couldn’t get enough of one another.  Ivy kept the smile on her face. She was dreaming of her and Sam, and nothing could awaken her from such a happy dream. She felt something prick the back of her neck, but, when she put her hand back there, there was nothing and her sleep continued until she heard a voice.

" Hello Ivy."

Ivy’s eyes opened with a start.

" Eve", her mouth began to form the name, but, not only was she unable to form it in her mouth, she was unable to say it either. Panic overcame  Ivy and she tried to get out of the bed, but, couldn’t.

Eve smiled at Ivy.

" Cat got your tongue? Not really, Ivy. Medicine is such a fascinating field, Ivy. You can’t possibly imagine all the different medicines that are out there. The kind of experimentation and research. Now, the medicine that you’ve got coursing through your veins is the very latest in experimental neurological research. I know how to use the internet too, Ivy. And, it IS fascinating what you can find. Drugs for anything."

Eve came up and sat on the bed. She drug her nail down the side of Ivy’s face.

" Would you like to know what’s happening to you, Ivy? The drug you have, the first shot immobilizes a person completely for 4 hours. Now, if during anytime in that four hour period, I give you a second shot, or it, death is instantaneous. "

Eve pauses there, for effect.

" Now, you’re probably saying, ‘Eve, you’ll never get away with this.’ But, I already have. A) I have an airtight alibi. B) The security system is down, and a new one is being put up, but, I’ll be long gone before that happens. C) This is the servant’s morning off. D) Everything will look like a heart attack, and by the time an autopsy is done, probably by me, since I have the Coroner’s rounds this week at the morgue. Did you know that I knew forensics? I chose it because of the stability of the hours. Everything seems to be for a reason, doesn’t it? By then,  the drug will be untraceable, unless you’re looking for it. Nobody will be looking for it. See? All it took was a little planning."

Eve gets off of the bed and begins to walk around the bedroom.

" I think you have a choice to make, Ivy. The only thing you can move is your eyes. So, decide your fate, Ivy. Do you want to live, or to die? I know all I need to dismantle the website is your passwords. All I want, Ivy. That’s all I want. That, and my pictures.  So, I’m going to go around the room and touch things. One blink, yes. Two blinks, no. "

Eve looks at Ivy.

" I know. You think I’m bluffing. That, I’m a doctor. I’m supposed to heal. After all, I took the oathe that begins, ‘First, do no harm.’ Well, this isn’t about Dr. Eve Russell, the woman I’ve worked hard to become. No. Your pictures are of another woman, in another lifetime. I’ve worked very hard to get rid of that woman, the woman in the pictures. But, you had to go and dredge her up…so, you get what you deserve, Ivy, for messing with things that you don’t understand. "

Eve sat Ivy up in her bed, so that she would be able to see where Eve was, around her desk. Drawer by drawer, Eve went. Looking back at Ivy, who gave a steady stream of ‘No’s’. Ivy came back and went over the nightstands on either side of Ivy, but, nothing there. Then, she took to Ivy’s closet. Eve went painstakingly slow in the closet, and received her first ‘Yes’ blink as she maneuvered Ivy’s shoe rack. Bringing the second row forward, she saw a break in the wallpaper and pushed on the wall. Up went the door, and inside were jewels, and the red envelope as Orville described. Also inside were scribbled the passwords.  Eve took them over to Ivy’s laptop, and went into the program for the website. Once she had rid herself of the site, she took the laptop over to Ivy’s bathroom and placed it in the sink.  Jimmying it open, she took out a vial from her pocket and poured the contents over the exposed circuit board.

Having obtained her objective, Eve went back into the bedroom, and  pulled out another needle. Seeing Ivy’s eyes open wide with fear, Eve shook her head and said,

" I’m not going to kill you. This is a drug that will have you back to normal in about an hour. Our business is concluded, Ivy. I’m not going to help you get Sam into your bed. And, you’re not going to say anything to anyone about my past with Julian. You don’t want me to come here a second time. I won’t be so nice."

With that, Eve stuck Ivy with the needle, and left. She exited the Crane Mansion the same way she came, and slipped back into the medical lab from the sabotaged emergency exit. She brought out the pictures and put them into a dish. Taking the strongest hydrochloric acid that she could find, she poured it over the pictures, and watched as they dissolved.
 

The hour had passed and Ivy could move once again. Her body was heavy, but, she could move it, and she did. She went into the bathroom, where she saw her laptop completely destroyed.

" Damn Eve!", she shouted. Ivy moved slowly and opened up the toilet. She had placed copies of the pictures in a waterproof package.

" A lot of good they’ll do me now."

Ivy had balls, but, she also had sense. And, if Eve was willing to do this, when she HAD something to lose, a chill went down Ivy’s spine about what would happen if she had NOTHING.

" Life’s too short.", Ivy said, putting the pictures back in their place. She didn’t need Eve Russell anyway. Sam would be hers soon. His behavior at the Youth Center told her as much.
 

Eve walked into her house, and was greeted by wonderful Italian aromas. Simone walked out of kitchen and saw Eve.

" Hi Mom."

" Hi. What’s going on."

" Well, you look like you’ve had a lot on your mind, so Daddy, Whitney and I wanted to surprise you with dinner. Because, you’re a great wife and mother."

Eve choked back her tears. She reached out and touched Simone’s face. " Oh honey."

" So, you just wash your hands and go into the dining room. We’re taking care of everything."

Eve did just that, and when she came into the dining room, the table was set, and the best china was out. At her usual place, was a glass of wine. Whitney peeked into the dining room, and then peeked back into the kitchen and whispered something. The next thing Eve knew, Whitney ,Simone and TC were coming out of the kitchen , all carrying her favorite Italian dishes.  They put the dishes down, and then, TC went back into the kitchen. He came out carrying a bouquet of flowers in Eve’s favorite vase that was a wedding gift from his mother. He put them as the centerpiece of the table, and took one out and handed it to Eve.

" I love you, Dr. Russell. We all do. And, we appreciate you in our lives."
Eve took the rose, an American Beauty, in her hand, smiling at TC, and reaching in to kiss him, when,
 

" Ouch!"

" Eve, what’s wrong?", TC asked concerned.

" Nothing. I was just pricked by a thorn. It doesn’t matter. This is the perfect end to a perfect day in my perfect life with you and the girls."
 

[END OF FLASHBACK]
 

Eve looked over at Dr. Collins. She wondered what he would say about the irony of the scene. Of the entire ‘episode’ of her life. After she had ‘taken care of’ Ivy, Eve thought that she was on Easy Street. Her life was perfect. She had designed it that way, and no one was going to take it away from her. Or so she had thought.