Under The Waves

Chapter Five                 

(One month later - Salem U.S.A.)

Brady stood at the window of his office in the Basic Black building. He seemed to spend a lot of time glued to this one spot, watching the world go by outside. People were out there, living their lives as they did every day. Some were happy and some were miserable, all of them with their own highs and lows to deal with.

He often wondered why it was him that had been chosen to live this life. Sure, he had made plenty of mistakes in his rebellious youth, but he had spent a long time making up for them. Perhaps it was punishment for something done in a previous life, or perhaps he just had a dark cloud hanging over him, but either way, his life had definitely not turned out like he planned it.

The door to his office was wide open and he heard a soft knocking on the wood. Brady turned to see his father standing in the doorway, his usual look of concern on his face.

"Son... Maybe you should turn your desk towards the window. You spend enough time staring out of it."

Brady shrugged and walked towards his desk, sitting down in the black leather chair. "Maybe. It's just... Being up here, looking out... Gives you a different perspective on things."

John took the seat across the desk from him and leaned forward to look at him seriously. "Brady... You're going to have to move on with your life eventually."

"Dad... I have moved on... As best as I can."

"No, you haven't. You've gone through the motions of moving on, but you never really have. The world isn't going to stop because you lost her."

Brady frowned and looked downward. "I can't. As long as I know she's out there. As long as I know that there is still a chance, however slight, that she could come back to me... I can't give up."

Brady had only given his father a minimum amount of details about his brief captivity on the sub with Chloe. Brady didn't remember the first part of his time there, the part where his mind was under Chloe's control, but he continually replayed the rest of his time with her every single day. He wanted so badly to tell John that Chloe had somehow returned to her normal self, but didn't want to put Chloe or his family in any more danger than they already were. He had to be patient, waiting for Chloe to make the first move. Especially since Chloe herself wasn't even aware that he had figured out that her memories had returned.

John sighed loudly and replied. "I'm not telling you to give up. I'm just asking you to live the life you have to it's fullest. I pray that you'll get the miracle that you want, but it may never happen... That's the reality of it."

"I know what reality is. I know and I have known for the past there years that there is a chance that I will never be with her again. But... if you're telling me that I should go out with other women, date, fall in love, get married, start a family. I can't... I can't do it. No woman will ever compare to Chloe in my eyes. And it wouldn't be fair to some 'other woman' for me to pretend that I could possibly care about her as much as I loved, and STILL love, Chloe. My heart won't allow it... My heart is with Chloe, wherever she is."

"I'm sorry, Brady. I never meant to infer that you need to run out and marry the first woman you meet. That's not what I intended... I just want my son to be happy. Marlena, Belle, we're all worried about you. This last month has been pretty rough... You haven't been this bad since you first got back home three years ago."

Brady ran his fingers through his blonde hair and sighed in frustration. "It's... It just makes no sense sometimes. And, I know that I should look at the ways that I'm lucky, because there are people who have it much worse than I do. Your own history with the DiMera family is far more puzzling and more painful than my own. I have my health, and my family, and I'm safe right now... I should be grateful. But, I can't help wondering why... why this happened to me. Why it happened to Chloe..."

John nodded in understanding. He had questioned the same thing many times, and had come to the conclusion that sometimes bad things happened to the most undeserving people. "It's just a sick twist of fate. Chloe couldn't help that she is, biologically, a DiMera. It was out of her control... And you, you can't help who you fall in love with, son. None of the blame goes on you or Chloe. It's all that bastard DiMera's fault."

"I just... I wish that sonofabitch would die... and STAY dead. Maybe we would all could finally be free."

"I know this isn't easy, Brady. And even if Stefano was dead, it would never erase the misery he has caused entirely. You just have to ask yourself one thing..."

Brady looked at his father curiously. "And what's that?"

John leaned forward in the chair and raised an eyebrow. "Would you do it all over again? I -- I think about your mother, and how we lost her. I wondered once that if I had the chance to go back in time, would I not fall in love with her, get married, have you, knowing what I know now. And, the answer is no. I wouldn't change a single thing. So, no matter how badly it ended, I don't regret a single second of it... Especially the part about having you."

Brady smiled knowingly and nodded, listening as John continued. "So, you have to ask yourself... If you could go back in time, never fall in love with Chloe, never have that time together, to save yourself the pain you feel inside now. Would you do it?"

Brady felt his eyes begin to water, but he held back the tears, not even hesitating for a second with his answer. "No, I wouldn't. From the day I met her on the pier, until the day that DiMera kidnapped us... It was the best four years of my entire life. I can't even imagine living those years without her there. Those memories, the love that we had... It keeps me going, even when I don't want to go on anymore. It gives me hope... hope that love will win over evil someday."

John eased out of the chair and Brady stood along with him. "Good... I just... I worry about you, kid."

"I know... So, was that your idea of a pep talk? Because it wasn't all that peppy."

John laughed and walked towards the door. "No, I just wanted to make sure you're going to be okay..."

Brady shrugged slightly, not really knowing the answer to that question. "I will be... At least, I will TRY my best to be okay."

"You know, you've got a lot of people who love you, Brady. And, we're here for you... Me, Marlena, your sister... If you need us..."

"You're there. I know. And, if it wasn't for all of you... These past few years would have been even worse. Someday... I will be okay again. I'm trying..."

John winked at him and smiled before heading out the corner. "Okay... Just don't stare out the window too long, you've got work to do."

Brady chuckled as his father left to walk down the hallway. He sighed loudly and walked towards the safe hidden in the wall, the one that only he had the combination to. His fingers tapped out the code, and the safe opened with a soft whoosh of air. Amongst a stack of important documents, the tiny vial sat safe and hidden. He only glanced at it for a minute each day, a reminder that Chloe had saved him, and that someday she might be able to save herself as well. He had spent three long years trying to save her, but now it seemed it was out of his control. Chloe's bid for freedom seemed to rest in her own hands now.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(Paris)

Chloe glanced at her reflection in the mirror of the entryway. Her long hair was straightened, the sides pinned up, and the rest flowing neatly down her back. Her crisp and clean suit in the browns of autumn made her the perfect picture of tailored refinement. Exactly the image her father had molded her into. She had spent the last month in Paris, playing a game, pretending to be everything her father wanted her to be. Surely, if there were an Oscar for acting in real life situations, she would be the unanimous winner.

Her father's maid came down the hallway and smiled sweetly at her. "Miss DiMera... Your father is in the dining room waiting for you to join him for breakfast."

Chloe turned away from the mirror and nodded. "Thank you, Lana."

She smoothed down the edges of her jacket with her hands, and took a deep breath before heading into the dining room. Stefano DiMera sat at the end of the table, looking as malevolent as always, and Chloe's stomach turned each time she had to be near him. She hid it well though, walking towards to give him a kiss on the cheek and her best imitation of a smile from a loving daughter. She took a seat near him, and poured herself a cup of coffee.

"Good morning, Father... You look well."

"Thank you, my dear. And, how are you this morning?"

Chloe sipped her coffee and smiled over the cub. "Very well... A little surprised to be asked over here this morning, though."

Stefano grinned at her curiously. "Surprised to be asked to breakfast with your Father?"

"Well, no... Just, this particular morning. I thought you were in Barcelona until tomorrow."

"I came back early... I've got news to share, and I wanted to tell you right away."

Chloe grabbed a croissant off one of the platters of food and began lightly nibbling at it. "News? Is this good news?"

Stefano paused to consider it and nodded. "It's excellent news. But, it can wait. First, tell me... Are you feeling well? You seem very distracted."

Chloe shrugged nonchalantly and swallowed a bite of her croissant. "I'm fine, Father. Perfectly fine. I don't know why you're worried..."

"Ever since you returned to Paris from your vacation in the Pacific, you've seemed a little under the weather. You didn't catch a virus when you were in the Islands were you?"

"No, no, I didn't. I assure you that I am exactly the way I was before I went on vacation. Even better, in fact... I think you just haven't seen me look this well rested and relaxed in a very long time. You're not used to it, Father."

Chloe smiled sweetly and gave him her patented look of reassurance. "You're so used to seeing me tense and busy, that when I finally have some downtime, you think I'm ill. It's understandable."

Stefano looked her up and down thoughtfully, as if he was trying to put a puzzle together. He smiled back at her and nodded in agreement. "You're right. You're right. You do not take enough time for yourself, my dear, you should take more vacations."

Inside, Chloe was grinning with satisfaction, if there was one skill she had obtained recently it was the ability to create a believable lie. She nodded in agreement and continued smiling at Stefano. "I agree. I certainly wouldn't mind a lot more vacation time. Now... Please... don't leave me in suspense. What's your big news?"

"I have decided that I am tiring of Paris. It's time to move on for a while..."

"Where to? Switzerland? Italy? Spain?"

Stefano shook his head, his lips curling up into a grin. "Salem. U.S.A."

Chloe had to grip on to the armrest of the ornate wooden chair to keep from falling over. Her inner self was a swirling mess of emotions and shock, but outside she could only pretend to be moderately surprised. "Salem? But, after everything you've told me about that place, and the people there. Why would you want to go somewhere where all of the people hate you and are out for your blood?"

"Salem is like a second home to me. Plus, I have something very big planned for all of those Salemites who have tried to oppose me for so many years."

"Well... I wish you well, Father. I will miss having you here in Paris. Lexie will be happy to have you home again, I'm sure."

Stefano laid his hands on to the table and stared at her intently, his eyes practically boring a hole into her forehead. "My dearest, Chloe... You have misunderstood me. It is not just *I* who will be returning to Salem. *You* will be coming with me."

Chloe sat back in her chair in surprise, her blue eyes widening as she looked at Stefano. "But... Why? I've got a life here in Paris and... I don't understand."

"You don't need to understand. Your 'life' is with me, your father, and when I ask you to come with me, I expect you to say yes. Besides, I think you might enjoy what I have in store..."

"But -- I..."

Stefano looked at her with a tilt of his head, like a father scolding his toddler. "Chloe, I am telling you to come to Salem with me, and you will come. There is no protesting of my decision."

Chloe frowned at him, her eyes flashing with insolence. "Father -- I am 24 years old. I think I can make my own decisions."

"But, you are still my daughter... And you are a DiMera, and your place is beside me. You and your sister Alexandra will be by my side again. I do not care how old you are or what you want to do."

Chloe nodded slowly, her mind racing with fear as she thought of returning to Salem. She would have to play the good daughter, despite being faced with a memory of her true past at every corner. And, Brady... she could hardly even begin to think about him being in the same city with her. It was too frightening, too risky, but she had to follow Stefano no matter what. Besides, maybe she could find a way to work it to her advantage, putting the plan she was cooking up into action in Salem would work just as well as it would in Paris.

"Yes, Father... I will go. I'm sorry for questioning your decision."

Chloe sank into her chair and absentmindedly nibbled at her breakfast, her stomach churning all the while. Stefano began giving her the details of their travel plans, but of course leaving out whatever grand surprise he had in store for his least favorite Salemites. She hardly listened to him, only hearing that they were leaving in two weeks, which did not give her much time to prepare.

She was going home finally, but not under the circumstances that she would want it to be. Salem was home in her heart, but she had wanted to return happily, to reunite with her loved ones. But, now she would return under the guise of Daddy's little girl, ready to wreak havoc on the people she truly cared about.

She ate her breakfast mostly in silence, only speaking when Stefano asked her a question. Finally, she excused herself and told her father that she was going to head back to her apartment to begin preparing for their trip. Stefano understood and bid her goodbye without questioning the uneasy demeanor that she had displayed since he broke the news to her.

Chloe grabbed her purse and went out in to the hallway. Her stomach was turning cartwheels inside her so she ran to the bathroom at the end of the hallway and closed the door behind her. She kneeled in front of the shiny porcelain toilet and proceeded to lose her entire breakfast in the bowl. Her hand found a sheet of tissue and she wiped her mouth off, as her whole body trembled. She sat on the floor and leaned against the wall, reaching out to flush the toilet.

She fought back tears and ran her fingers through her hair with a sigh. Chloe was afraid right down to her very soul. She was afraid of what would happen with her arrival in Salem, hoping that Brady would not seek her out and discover her true identity. Afraid that Stefano would figure out that she had regained her memories and was back to the way she was supposed to be. But, more than any of that, she was afraid that Stefano's plans for Salem would destroy everything and everyone that she held near to her heart, and that there was nothing she could to do to stop it.

Chloe felt another wave of nausea roll over her, but she fought back the urge to vomit again. She suspected that her sudden sickness was brought on by Stefano's surprise news, but then another thought hit her. Her fingers dug into her brown leather purse and found the small calendar she kept with all of her important things to remember. Her fingers ran over the red X's that she marked each day with for the past month, and she leaned back into the wall in shock.

She stared at the numbers and letters on the calendar page for September and shook her head in denial. "Oh God... No... It can't be. It just can't be."

Chloe pulled herself up off the floor, straightening her hair and clothes before running towards the front door. She was almost there but heard voices behind a set of closed doors that led into Stefano's study. Her curiosities overwhelmed the other urgent thoughts in her mind forcing her to lean against the door and listen. Clearly, Stefano was filling Bart in on the plan to return to Salem, and Chloe crossed her fingers that Bart would keep his mouth shut about their kidnapping of Brady, as he had done for the past month.

"Salem? We're going to Salem... That's quite a surprise, Boss."

"Let's just say... It's a test."

"A - a test? For who? I'm not good at tests, I never tested well when I was a kid... And, I..."

"Quiet, Bart. It's a test for my beloved daughter and that damned Brady Black. Just like his father, that one."

"A test for Chloe? Why would you need to test Chloe?"

"The same reason I had to deactivate the chip in Brady Black's head three years ago..."

Chloe's eyes nearly popped out of her head and she laid her hand against her chest in shock. So, it had been Stefano that had sent Brady back to his true self after all. She had suspected as much since regaining her memories, but still wasn't completely sure until now.

"And what reason was that, sir?"

"I told you three years ago, idiot... He was getting too close to my daughter, too close to the truth... If they spent any more time together, they could have both gotten their memories back. And, my daughter is far too valuable for me to lose her loyalty. Brady Black was expendable, but I refuse to lose Chloe. Our return to Salem... is a test for Chloe. If she can be that close to Brady Black without reverting back to her former self, then I know that her loyalty is mine forever."

"Oh..."

Chloe closed her eyes for a moment, a few tears squeezing themselves out of her eyes. She knew at least part of what Stefano was up to now, but logic told her that this wasn't all he had planned for their return to Salem. She almost wanted to laugh at the fact that for someone so devilishly clever, Stefano DiMera was dumb enough to spill secrets in a place where anyone could overhear.

Her mind went back to what happened in the bathroom and she made a quiet exit out the front of the house, not wanting to alert Stefano and Bart to her presence outside the doors. She hurried to her small car and headed off towards her apartment, making one important stop on the way there.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(An Hour Later)

Chloe paced the floors of her bedroom nervously, chewing on to her nails even though they were neatly manicured. Fifteen minutes seemed to go by like an hour as she waited for the final verdict. She went over both possible answers in her head, trying to figure out which answer she wanted to see. But, she couldn't decide, her heart told her one thing, but her mind said another.

The kitchen timer went off and Chloe made a mad dash into the bathroom. She picked up the first stick and glanced at the box nervously. "Pink stripe... Positive. Oh God..."

She moved down the counter to the next box to inspect it. "Blue dot. Positive... Oh God, Oh God..."

She continued down the counter repeating the process for the three other tests she had. "Plus sign. Positive. Sh*t. Okay... Uhm... Pink dot. Positive. Damnit... Uhm... Blue square. Positive... Oh my God..."

Chloe laid the last test stick on the counter and stepped backwards until she was leaning against the wall. Five pregnancy tests, five positives, there was no doubting the truth now. She ran her fingers through her hair, and felt a slow stream of tears began to fall down her cheeks.

"I'm pregnant... A -- A baby... Mine and Brady's. Oh God... What am I going to do?"

Her entire body shook with worry and she wiped the tears off her face with the back of her hand. This wasn't how she wanted it to happen, wasn't how it was supposed to be. She was supposed to be married to Brady, conceiving their first child out of love. This was all wrong, a mistake. But, it was a mistake that her heart wanted to love anyway.

It would have to stay a secret though. If Stefano were to find out, then surely everything would be ruined. She knew she wouldn't be allowed to keep her child, and she knew that if he found out who the father was, then Brady would be a dead man. No, she had to push forward with her plan to destroy Stefano and now she wasn't just doing it for Brady and herself, she was doing it for the tiny life growing inside her.

Her hand rested on her belly, and as afraid as she was, she felt somewhat energized by this news. Even though she was separated from Brady, a piece of him was inside her now, urging her to fight harder for their future.

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