Sam walked into the living room. "Fiona...you can go home for the night." said Sam.
The older man looked like a 100 miles of bad road. The last week had been hell on Sam and Fiona. The suits had whisked Michael away to some undisclosed location and Madeline was suffering emotionally but also physically. She had picked up some sort of infection while Vaughn and his men held her in the building. The infection was able to get into her system when she was hit in the back of the head with a gun.
"Madeline really shouldn't be alone, Sam. I don't mind staying here another night. Has her fever come down any?" asked Fiona sitting on the couch in the living room cleaning and reassembling a couple of her guns. The repetitive motion soothed her when she felt helpless.
"I will stay here in the guestroom tonight. There is no reason for the both of us to be here all night. If we hear from Mike or if Madeline's fever gets worse I will call you," said Sam walking into the living room and having a seat in his favorite chair. "Her fever is back down to 99. At least it is heading in the right direction."
"Have you heard anything from your government contacts about Michael?" asked Fiona reassembling a glock handgun. She had resisted asking Sam that question for days because she of course already knew the answer.
Sam shook his head almost sadly. "I haven't heard a peep and probably won't for awhile. They've got Mikey in some hole debriefing him on this entire situation. The sheer amount of information he has to relay is going to take weeks if not months for them to sort through and verify..."
Fiona nodded as Sam confirmed what she had already been thinking. "I hope Michael is okay. Listen, if you are sure about staying the night here with Madeline...I think I am going to go home for night. I could use a good night's sleep in my own bed. But I will be back over first thing in the morning." Fiona loaded the guns into her duffel bag and stood up.
Sam nodded and said, "Go home, Fi. I have everything under control here."
Fiona nodded. "Good night, Sam." Fiona walked out of the house closing the door behind her.
Sam got up from the chair with a groan. He locked the front door and turned out all of the lights in the house. He grabbed a beer from the refrigerator and plopped down on the couch in the living room.
Two hours later Madeline walked into the living room wearing her bath robe. A cigarette dangled from her lips as she chuckled softly seeing Sam asleep on the couch with a beer can clutched in his hand. Madeline took the can from his hand and set it on the table.
Sam woke up when Madeline turned the TV off. "I was watching Sportscenter," said Sam groaning a little as he sat up more on the couch.
Madeline had a seat next to him. "You were watching the back of your eyelids. I heard you snoring out here for a good hour before I decided to come turn off the TV. Why don't you turn in for the night?" asked Madeline taking a drag from her cigarette.
"I guess I am a little tired. I can't say that I've gotten a lot of rest these last couple of days. Speaking of...you shouldn't be out of the bed right now. You still have a fever." said Sam his concern for her obvious in his tone of voice.
"Correction...I had a fever. I took my temperature not long ago and I am a cool 98.3. I think the worst of it is over. But I will be following doctor's orders and finishing my round of antibiotics. Did Fiona go home?" asked Madeline. Madeline put her cigarette out in an ashtray.
"98.3?" asked Sam looking relieved. He hugged her. "That is amazing Madeline. I was starting to worry that those antibiotics weren't doing enough. Can I get you anything to eat? I told Fiona that she could go home for the night. I'd stay here to look after you."
Madeline shook her head. "No, I can't say that I have much of an appetite. I will probably try to get something to eat for breakfast in the morning."
Madeline fell silent for a moment trying to collect her thoughts. "I am so grateful that you have been here every day for me. You and Fiona have been life savers. Cooking my meals...getting my medication. Keeping me company so that I don't worry so much about Michael. You are a true friend Sam...a true friend indeed...when Frank was alive I didn't have many friends. I never wanted anyone over to the house because you just never knew what sort of mood he'd be in. He got worse once Michael left home. It has been so long...sometimes I feel like I've forgotten how to make friends."
"Well, I am here for you Maddie. You've been an amazing friend to me too. You took me in when I didn't have anywhere else to go. You let me drink your beer and eat your food. But most importantly you are a kind ear...I can trust you...and I haven't had that in a very long time either," said Sam.
"It's just nice to not feel lonely anymore. And just when I thought that things were on track...now Michael is..." Madeline trailed off feelings tears slip down her cheeks. "All these years I wanted Michael to be home with me again. I never realized how dangerous his life was and how many sacrifices he made."
Sam hated seeing any woman cry. He hugged Madeline and said, "Mikey is a survivor. He can make it through anything. He'll come back home to us, Maddie. I believe that and you need to believe that too."
Madeline sobbed against Sam's chest her tears soaking into his Hawaiian shirt. She clung to him as if he was a life preserver. She couldn't imagine what she would do without Michael in her life. For years he had been away and she had lost so much time with him. She wasn't ready to lose her son again.
Sam pulled back slightly to look into her eyes. "Maddie...please...don't cry." said Sam lightly wiping away her tears with his thumbs. "Please..." murmured Sam hating to hear her pained sobs. And then Sam did something that shocked even him. Sam pressed a kiss against Madeline's surprisingly soft lips. What started off as a kiss to comfort a friend turned into something much more passionate. Sam pulled back from the intense kiss with an almost sheepish look on his face. "I'm sorry Maddie...I don't know what came over me." said Sam
"Sam...I..." Madeline trailed off not being able to form the words in her mind at the moment. Instead she leaned closer to Sam and kissed him.
Three months later Michael climbed out of a cab and walked up to his mother's house. There had been a time in his life when he had never wanted to see this house again. But he had to say right now this place was a beautiful sight. It was 6:00 in the morning and the sun was just starting to rise. Michael fished his keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door going inside. Michael stretched out on the living room couch figuring his mother would be asleep for a few more hours.
30 minutes later he heard shuffling in the kitchen and the distinct sound of pots clanging. Michael smiled and got off of the couch. He walked into the kitchen. "Mom, I'm home…"
He stopped in his tracks seeing Sam Axe standing in the kitchen dressed in a pair of polka dot boxers.
"Fly me to the moon. Let me play among the stars." sang Sam in his best Frank Sinatra. Sam was clutching a skillet in his hand and nearly dropped it hearing Michael's voice. "Mikey...it is damn good to see you, buddy." said Sam with a grin. It was only after seeing Michael's expression that Sam cleared his throat nervously. "Uh...I've been staying here with your mom...helping her through the hard times...she was sick with an infection for a week or so..." Sam tried to search for an explanation of some sort.
Madeline walked into the kitchen and spotted Michael straight away. She rushed over to Michael and hugged him tightly. "Michael! I never gave up hope that I would see you again and now you are back home."
Michael returned Madeline's hug but kept a suspicious eye on his best friend. "I think we have a lot to talk about mom…"
"Where have you been all of this time, Michael," asked Madeline in a worried voice as she looked him over for signs of injury.
"Let's have a seat at the table," said Michael walking with her to the table. Michael didn't want to give her details but he had been trying not to shut her out as much. "The people that I used to work for questioned me for quite some time and then they verified all of the information I had given them and they offered me my old job back."
Madeline's face fell like a ton of bricks. She nodded slightly and said, "I suppose that is what all of this has been leading up to since the day Fiona phoned to tell me you were in Miami after you were first burned. I know this might sound selfish but…in some ways I had hoped that you'd never get back in." Tears welled up in Madeline's eyes but she refused to let them fall. She didn't want Michael feeling bad for doing what he loved.
Michael shook his head and said, "That's just the thing…I turned them down. Running around the globe was fine when I felt like I didn't have a family or roots. But my life is different now. I have you and Fiona and I can't see leaving the two of you for months at a time."
"You turned them down?" asked Madeline shocked.
"I let my old handler know that I wanted out. I just want a normal life. Well, my normal life. I still intend to help people in need. I have sort of realized that it is some sort of calling for me. I see these people in need and…I can't help but want to help them. Perhaps it is my way of reclaiming a failed childhood. Maybe helping each helpless person restores a piece of me that died along the way. I don't know…anyway the agency wanted me to do one last Op for them before I hung up my sunglasses. That is why I've been away so long. I couldn't have contact with any of you while I was conducting this Op it was classified."
"But you are out now?" asked Madeline incredulously.
Michael nodded and said, "I'm out…so I've told you about me…I think perhaps there is something you should be telling me about you." He glanced toward the kitchen where Sam was trying to appear busy.
"Sam has been a great help to me while you were away. I would have gone crazy with worry if Sam hadn't been here for me," said Madeline. "But more than that…I love Sam and I suppose that I have for awhile now."
Michael shook his head and said, "Mom…he's my best friend."
Madeline said, "That's just the thing Michael, he's my best friend too. And sometimes when you least expect it…"
Michael nodded and heaved a sigh. He understood all too well about falling in love when you least expect it. He never meant to fall in love with Fiona but he had and now he couldn't imagine his life without her in it. "As long as he makes you happy. I guess I don't really have a right to protest. Do I?"
Madeline shook her head and said, "You could. But you've always been a good son and you want me to be happy."
"I do want you to be happy. You've suffered a very long time." Michael fell silent for a few moments before saying. "How is Fiona?" asked Michael.
Madeline said, "I wouldn't classify my life as suffering. I did what I thought was best for my family. I don't know if I was right or wrong. I just knew that I had to keep all of us together." Madeline smiled at Michael and said, "Fiona is doing quite well. She's been staying here with us actually. She's asleep in your old room. You should go in there and see her."
Michael noted the strange smile on his mother's face but nodded. "You are right. I should be expecting a punch I think." He stood up and walked down the hall to his old bedroom.
Michael walked into his old bedroom quietly and stood in the doorway watching Fiona sleeping for a few minutes before he walked over to the bed. He had a seat on the side of the bed and lightly brushed her hair away from her face. "Fi..." said Michael.
Fiona stirred slightly and looked up seeing Michael's face. For a moment she had to do a double take to ensure that it wasn't a dream. "Michael!" said Fiona sitting up in the bed. Fiona threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.
As he hugged her all the things he loved about Fiona flooded his senses. The way she smelled of gun oil and lavender. It was a heady mixture he had come to love. "There is something I need to tell you."
"There is something I need to tell you too, Michael," said Fiona.
"Me first...I'm out..." said Michael.
Fiona pulled back slightly so that she could look into his eyes. "Does that mean what I think it means?"
Michael said, "I'm no longer burned. But I am also no longer a spy. I'm a free man."
A bright smile floated onto Fiona's face. "Michael..." Fiona froze wondering if he would regret his choice to leave the agency. After 4 long years of fighting and clawing trying to find the people who burned him. He finally had the opportunity to get his life back and he turned it down. "What if you miss it?"
"I like helping people on my own terms. I like not having to deal with the bureaucracy and red tape. And most importantly I gave years of my life to the company and one day because of a pack of lies they unceremoniously cast me aside like my years of service meant nothing. And what did I have to show for it...nothing? My time being burned was arguably the best time in my life. I was surrounded by the people who love me and the people I love," said Michael.
Fiona's smile brightened and then she chuckled. "Michael Weston giving up on being a spy? I never thought I'd see the day when you'd actually be able to walk away. I'm happy."
"I can't lie, Fi. I thought about how it'd work. Keeping my job at the agency. Running around the globe on missions. But I realized that meant leaving you and my mother behind for weeks or months at a time. You've both given me a second chance. I am not going to waste it. So you said there was something you wanted to tell me?" asked Michael.
Fiona said, "I'm four months pregnant..." She moved the blanket to reveal her growing baby bump.
"A...a...baby?" stuttered Michael in shock.