CHAPTER TEN
GET THE HELL OUTTA DODGE

Martha was anxiously waiting in the office doorway when the Major appeared with the visibly shaken Dorian. He led him to the cot and helped him to sit down. Martha snatched up the blanket Dorian had used the night before and went to wrap him in it. The Major took it from her hands and gave her a steady look. “Would you get Lord Gloria some tea, please?”

Martha frowned. “Tea?”

Klaus gave her an angry glare and Martha straightened. “Of course, Major, some tea,” she said and quickly vanished through the door.

Dorian pulled the blanket around himself as the Major placed it over his shoulders.

After a momentary silence, Klaus asked mildly, “Did they hurt you?”

Dorian shook his head. “No,” he said quietly. “They just scared the hell out of me.” He gave way to an involuntary shudder and put a hand to his head. It was all he could do not to burst into tears. “God, it was so…humiliating.” He found he could not stop shaking and drew his knees up to his chest to pull himself into a tight ball on the cot.

Klaus leaned back against the desk but did not reply.

“No wonder you dislike me so much,” Dorian went on shakily. “Having to come to my rescue every five minutes…”

The Major gave a derisive snort. “I don’t come to your rescue every five minutes, Lord Gloria.”

“I wish I could believe that.”

“Do you think I’m lying to you?” the incensed officer snapped.

Dorian looked up sharply, a stunned look on his face.

“Lord Gloria, I haven’t lied to you this whole time.”

“You haven’t exactly been truthful either, now, have you, Major?” Dorian countered in as forceful a voice as he could manage.

The Major’s eyes narrowed. “Believe me, you do not want to know the whole truth.”

“Why?”

“You idiot!” Klaus snapped. “You’ve just seen what happens when—”

“Why are you blaming me?” the incensed Dorian snapped back. “That was one of the most…degrading experiences. How can you even think to blame me! I did absolutely nothing wrong! I made one innocent remark and suddenly I’m a pariah. No, I’m worse than a pariah. I’m a leper.”

The Major sat on the edge of the desk as the Earl ranted on.

The Major folded his arms, returning the steady look. “Lord Gloria, my opinion of you hasn’t changed. You’re a selfish, self-centered, narcissistic son-of-a-bitch,” he stated succinctly.

“Oh, thank you—”

“But,” the officer went on, “you’ve just proven that you are by no means a lower class of human being.”

Dorian’s mouth dropped open. Despite the fact that he did not remember anything, but knew enough to realize that this was not an easy admission for the Major to make. He sat staring at him for several seconds. “Do you really mean that?”

“I never say anything I don’t mean,” the Major replied tersely.

“Now that I believe.”

“You idiot.”

Suddenly the phone rang, causing them both to jump. Klaus snatched it up and listened a moment. Then he was rattling off in German again as someone gave him the message he had been waiting for. When he hung up the phone, he was actually smiling.

“Pull yourself together, Eroica,” the Major said happily. “We’re leaving.”

“Leaving?” This was Martha, who had just returned with the tea.

“Yes, leaving. They’re sending a helicopter for us from the nearest Military base.” The Major looked at his watch. “One of my men will be meeting us there. He estimates it’ll be about an hour before they get here.” He looked around the office. Then he remembered his procured Nescafé in the kitchen. There was no telling if he would be able to get anymore before he got back to Bonn and he dashed off to retrieve it.

Martha sat down beside Dorian, holding out the tea. “Do you want this, dear?”

“No, thank you, Martha.”

“I didn’t think so,” she said as she put the cup on the desk. “The Major just wanted to get rid of me so he could make sure you were alright.”

Dorian gave a snort. “He hates me.”

“Of course he does,” Martha laughed. “That’s why he’s been watching you like a hawk the whole time you’ve been here.”

Dorian laid his head on top of his knees and gave her a searching look. “He was ordered to.”

“Of course he was,” Martha said sardonically. She shook her head. “And if you believe that…”

“What?”

“Never mind. You need to get this stuff packed up so you can get the hell outta Dodge.”

Dorian frowned. “Am I supposed to understand that?”

“Probably not,” Martha laughed. She gave him a steady look. “I know I said this before,” she began slowly, “but I am sorry about all this. You’re really not seeing my town at its best. There are a lot of very good people here.”

Dorian gave her a watery smile but did not reply, watching as she got down on the floor and started folding the clothes he had pulled out earlier. “Is all this yours?” she asked.

“Apparently.”

The woman looked up, giving him an appraising look. “You need a better tailor.”

Dorian’s eyebrows went up. “What? Do you have any idea how much those cost?”

“No. Do you?”

Dorian opened his mouth only to close it again. Then he laughed. “No. But I’m sure it was a lot.”

Klaus appeared at that moment and nodded approvingly when he saw Martha packing the Earl’s belongings. He gave Dorian a steady look. “Well? Will you be able to get yourself to the helicopter unassisted?”

“I don’t know, Major,” Martha cut in before Dorian had a chance to reply. “He’s still pretty shaken.”

Dorian’s eyes widened when he saw a concerned look flash briefly across the officer’s face. Then the Major was waving a hand at the desk. “No wonder,” he snapped. “I told you to drink some tea.” He picked up the cup and handed it to the Earl. “Bloody Englishman and their bloody tea,” he grumbled as he grabbed the garment bag containing his suits and strode out the door.

“Still think he’s just following orders?” Martha asked knowingly.

Dorian actually smiled. He took a sip of the tea and winced. It was little more than brown water with sugar in it. He put the cup down again. “That’s the happiest I’ve seen him since I arrived,” he remarked.

“I think he’s happy to be getting the hell outta Dodge,” Martha grinned as she jammed the last of the clothing into the case and struggled to zip it closed.

“Here, let me do that,” Dorian said, pushing down on the top of the case. Within a minute, the zipper finally closed.

Martha stood up and gave the Earl a steady look. “I’m not letting you go without a hug, you realize?”

A dazzling smile lit up the Earl’s face and he accepted the hug, closing his eyes at the same time. “Thank you,” he said quietly. “This will sound ridiculous, but…I won’t forget you.”

“Harrumph!” came the Major’s disapproving snort from the door. “This is not getting us out of here, Lord Gloria.”

“I thought you said we had an hour,” Dorian countered.

The Major snorted again, grabbing the freshly packed suitcase and striding off.

“I’d better get the rest of this out before he decides to leave me behind,” Dorian said with a grin.

Martha grabbed a smaller case and followed. “I don’t think you have to worry about that, Dorian.”

“I d’know,” the Earl replied playfully. “What if he was ordered to and just hasn’t gotten around to telling me?”

* * *