Who's the Real Todd?, Ch. 42

Todd grabbed the second jar and pocketed it. He wrapped the little implant around his finger and taking Blair's hand he took her downstairs so he could really see everything Blair had done to fix up their home. He walked from room to room and marveled how well Blair knew his taste. Then he took her outside and they walked the grounds around their home and he relished the freedom of seeing again. They walked around to the terrace area and looked down at Llanview. Todd swept the area with his eyes looking to see if there were any signs of Carlo's visit. He spotted another cigar butt and knew it belonged to Carlo. Going over to where it lay on the ground, Todd turned and looked toward the house. He was pleased to see there wasn't a good view of the living room so it was very likely Carlo hadn't observed a lot of Todd's movements around the house.

Once back inside, they sat down. Todd had been thinking about the idea ever since the small implant had wound around his finger. He wondered if he could get away with it. Blair wasn't going to be happy with him for even suggesting it, she really hated the object, but she was the only one he trusted to do it. Todd asked "Blair, could you make a ring that we could mount the implant in, you would have to design it so that my skin came in contact with the implant on the underneath side, but it could be disguised to resemble some caged jewel. With your design talent, you could give it an outer covering no one would suspect. Only you and I would know the implant was inside the ring. Then you could fashion some sort of locket that the second implant could be placed in, that I could wear around my neck or put inside my wallet or attach to the bottom of my watch. It would give me the means to carry both implants, keeping them within the range of each other so I could see again. Please, I'm begging you to consider it. With my sight restored, I could go after Carlo full bore. What do you say, Blair, are you game?"

He was so sincere and so endearing, he knew exactly how she felt about the implants, but he was right, he couldn't walk around with the thing just wrapped around his finger. If it should happen to get dislodged he could lose it and also his sight. She was still repulsed by the little machine and it probably was because of the fact that it was vibrating even as she looked at it on his finger. Just what had Kipling done to make the two parts seem almost alive, and why did they still have a connection to Todd and he to them. It was a question she was afraid to ask because she really didn't want to know the answer. This whole thing had a sci-fi aspect to it and the implications of this kind of technology and what it had done to Todd and Walker scared her to bits. She hadn't worked with designing jewelry for a very long time but disguising the implants as a ring and watch casing sounded interesting and maybe once disguised she could find it easier to think of him being in contact with them. Todd was looking at her and patiently waiting for her answer. She reached over and took the hand that had the implant. She tried to envision the implant wrapped in something like gold chainmail and realized it was very workable. So too would be making a watch casing to hold the other implant. She loved him.  She couldn't refuse him. "Todd, I'll do it but it's going to take time. Can you do without wearing it until its shell is ready? It would mean going without your sight a little longer. You can't take a chance you could lose the implant."

Todd glanced down at his hand and knew Blair was right until it could be mounted it wasn't safe for him just to trust it not to fall off. The loss of his sight again for a short time was worth it, if he knew the end result would be his vision restored. "Yes, you're right, as it is I can't just hold it all the time. If it got lost or damaged because of my eagerness to jump the gun and see again, I would hate it. I'm not a patient man, but even I know, after all these years, that to get what I want, I have to learn to be just that. Very well, they'll be put safely away until they are ready to be mounted in your jewelry but promise me, in the privacy of our room, you'll allow me to take them out so I can truly see you for a short time each night." He looked directly into her eyes and reached with his free hand to touch her face. He had so missed seeing her face.

Blair couldn't help but quiver as his hand gently touched her. She too had missed his gaze on her and loved the feel of his hand against her cheek. "We'll work something out Todd, I promise."

They walked upstairs and Todd took the smaller implant off his finger and walked to retrieve its jar. He dropped it into its jar and steeled himself for the loss of sight. For just a moment, his sight stayed clear, and then everything got fuzzy once more. He looked around and tried to pick out the container but after the clarity the few minutes before, his senses seemed to want some time to adjust and he found himself fumbling for the box. He sat on the edge of the bed with the box and jar in hand and put the jar away. Then he reached into his pocket and drew out the other implant. Blair had gone into another room as they had gotten upstairs and he knew he had only a few minutes before she would be back. Unsure what made him do it, Todd removed the lid to the bigger implant and tentatively reached in the way he had done with the smaller one.

Pain so intense ripped through his body as his hand clenched tightly around the jar. Todd screamed and dropped to his knees no longer in his house but strapped to a chair and being wheeled through someone's family home. Whoever was pushing him, paused to open an elevator door and wheeled him inside and then they were going down and he found himself once again in that corridor. There was the painting and several feet ahead, the elaborate door. Just as he was being taken in, the pain ceased and everything went black.

Blair heard the scream from just outside the suite and rushed in to find Todd lying by the bed his hand clutched tightly around something. She couldn't get a response from him and then noticed the container missing the second jar. "God, Todd what did you do?" She knelt down and began trying to free the jar and it's contents from Todd's hand. Working feverishly she had to literally pry each finger away from the jar and worked to pull his last two fingers free of the implant in the jar. Even as she pulled the fingers from the jar she watched as the implant came out with them, somehow attached. Gingerly she reached for the implant and tugged it free noting the tip of one of Todd's finger bleeding. She hurriedly dropped the offensive implant back into the jar and closed the lid. Then she turned to her husband.

"Todd, please be alright." he was stirring, she ran to the bathroom and got a wet cloth. She came back and laid it on his head watching as his eyes fluttered open. "It's alright, just lay there till you feel like sitting up. Whatever possessed you to open that container? Sometimes I feel you deliberately look for ways to hurt yourself. You know what those things did to you. Why Todd, would you take such a stupid chance?" She knew she was being brisk with him but he had scared her to death with his scream.

Todd's head felt like mush and he was only able to make out half of Blair's words. He lay there trying to make sense of what she was saying, something about the implant, and then the memories of the last couple minutes began filtering back into his head and he recalled reaching in for the implant just to see what would happen it he touched it. His head began aching and he realized Blair was right. It had been foolish to think that the implant would have been as harmless as the smaller one. Obviously, it wasn't. He closed his eyes again as everything he had seen, came to him, and he knew he had the answer to the whereabouts of Kipling's lab.

Seeing his eyes close, her anger evaporated and Blair worried he had lapsed into unconsciousness again. "Todd don't you zone out on me. Come on stay with me, let me know what's hurting."

He reached up and captured her hand "I'm alright, just remembering." He looked up at her and focused as best he could. "Help me up!" he then began pushing himself off the floor and Blair aided him till he was again sitting on the bed. "I'm sorry. You're right I'm an idiot. I just never expected that to happen." he began rubbing his fingers and came away with blood on his hand and looked at it shocked. "What happened did I cut myself."

Blair took the wet cloth and cleaned his hands and said. "No, the implant had attached itself to you." She wiped the finger that was bleeding and noticed three tiny puncture marks. "You must have stabbed into the prongs on the implant when you spasmed in pain." she preferred to believe that was how he had become attached because the other thought floating around in her head was horrific. She didn't want to think that the implant had deliberately attached itself to him. "This has got to stop Todd, you must stop taking these risks. When you screamed my heart stopped and I was sure I was going to find you in here dead. I don't think I can take much more of this. Please stop it." she got up to go get a bandage for his finger but he caught her, stood up and pulled her into his arms. She gave way to the tears she had been holding in.

He held her, needing her close and knowing he had screwed up again. When was he going to stop making these stupid decisions? She was right, he could have killed himself. She stopped crying and he released her reaching up to wipe her tears with the uninjured hand. " You know me, Blair, I promise to not do anything stupid like that again. But I'll ask for your forgiveness now because I have a feeling it won't be long before I do just that." he grinned ruefully and she chuckled in response.

Blair kissed his palm and walked to get the bandage and returned to find him staring out their bedroom window. She walked to him and picked up his hand that was still bleeding slightly. Wrapping the finger up she asked. "What is it, Todd? What did you remember?" Todd was still lost in thought and barely heard her question. She turned him toward her and asked again. "Todd?"

He shook his head and came back to the present. "Blair, I know where Kipling's lab is. Now I have to find where Carlo is hiding. We need to reach Tea and find out if Michael was successful with the operation. If Manning is free from their clutches then we can strike back." He made his way over to a chair by the window and sat down. "I talked to our undercover reporter earlier before Carlo showed up. He told me that the corridor I had been seeing wasn't in the facility. He's trying to insinuate himself into Kipling's inner group of orderlies. If he succeeds I'm pretty sure he might be able to get some information about those ambulances that were seen leaving Kipling's loaded down with electronics. Those ambulances had to have been carrying supplies to Carlo. Blair, the implant gave me some crucial information today albeit painfully. The Lab we've been looking for, it's under Kipling's house."

Blair just looked at him stunned. He had just dropped a bombshell. Somehow the implant had given him back more of his memories about the experiments and he had figure out that Kipling's own house was the site of the laboratory. "You're serious aren't you?"

Todd nodded his head, "It all makes sense Blair. Our informant said patients were being taken from the facility to Kipling's house on a daily basis. It was always the same patients and he even told me that they came back in worse shape than when they were taken. I'm positive now that I myself was taken to that house. He and Carlo were performing their illicit experiments under the guise of a reputable facility." he paused and rubbed his fingers absently particularly the one with the bandage. "I've got to find out where those ambulances took the equipment and I don't know why but I have a feeling it's somewhere here on Llantano Mountain. I think that's why Carlo's been making his own visits here, he's close."

Just then the phone rang and Blair went to pick it up. Tea and Walker had returned with implants in hand. Walker's had been slightly different and also placed strictly in the memory lobe. Upon their removal, Walker had spent the next few days separating his real memories from Todd's fake ones and exploring his real feelings for Tea. They had decided to stay married and they had returned because they both wanted in on the takedown of Carlo Hesser and Ivan Kipling. It was agreed upon that Tea and Walker would take their implants to John and tell him Walker's side of the story. Walker had regained the memory of the night he had been captured by Carlo's goons and beaten badly. He also had his memories of the experiments. After seeing John, they would all meet at The Sun.

Todd and Blair finished up a few things around the house and headed into town for that meeting. They arrived and Todd was forced to let Blair lead him as they entered the lobby of the Sun. There were too many people milling about for him to avoid on his own, and therefore it became obvious to some of the workers that Samuel Toddman was having a vision problem. By the time he made it to the executive offices' word had spread through the building the new owner was blind. Todd shrugged at Blair when she said "Samuel" in response to the whispers flying around them. It had been a foregone conclusion he wouldn't be able to keep it a secret for long once he came into town. He just wanted the news out there when he was ready, and now he was ready.

They entered Kelly's office and Todd made his way to a chair opposite Kelly and Blair took one alongside. Kelly had thought something unusual was up when Blair and Todd had entered. Then she had realized what was wrong. Blair hadn't said a word since they had returned from their honeymoon, so it came as a shock to realize Todd was blind. "Blair why didn't you tell us. Samuel, how did this happen?"

"I'll explain shortly Kelly, but there is something that needs immediate attention." They alerted Kelly to the rumors passing through the halls and Todd suggested they hop on the headline quickly saying New Owner Suffers Blindness From Freak Honeymoon Accident. They told her the story involving the horseback ride that culminated in a fall. They went on to say that the condition was serious at the moment but hope remained that sight could possibly be restored. Kelly wasted no time getting the article written and to the printers so it would be out in the next edition.  Then he and Blair filled Kelly in on everything.

By the time Blair had finished the story, Kelly was stunned. She looked at both of them and recalled how happy they had seemed on their wedding night and yet they had known their honeymoon might have been their last time together. She remembered how in love they had been the day of the gold balloon wedding. Everything had shattered with his shooting in Ireland, and now they had once again faced possible tragedy knowing the surgery might take his life. She actually felt tears welling up for them especially since Todd hadn't escaped unscathed.

While they were talking, Todd had handed Kelly a flash drive and indicated she should read it quietly just in case Carlo had his ears on. When they had told the story to Kelly they had talked about the surgery but had kept the implants out of it. Now Kelly was reading the true story and getting chills. She stared wide-eyed at Blair and mouthed "Seriously" and felt alarmed at Blair's nod. It was a story that would indeed break records when they finally could print it. Kelly's heart went out to her cousin-in-law as she realized that he had indeed been to hell and back these last years, and his torment still wasn't over, because thanks to Carlo, he was now blind.