Author's Notes: We couldn't resist the pull toward the Averys. Again we are bringing another tale into play but we issue fair warning: This is the LAST in the arc. We may be prevailed upon for a challenge or a one-shot but otherwise this is it. That's the plan, people. Hopefully this one will be the best of the lot.--For those of you who have been reading this tale, I apologize in advance. The story has undergone a major overhaul and is being replotted in an effort to bring the entire series to a close. Thank you for your patience, this should be the last of edits I intend to do. I appreciate you, all my readers, I sincerely hope this pleases you. ES
Disclaimers: V for Vendetta, both movie and GN, belong to their respective owners/creators. I do not own them. I make nothing by writing these stories except a sternly disapproving glare from my ever-patient spouse.
V is for Vanished
Stephen and Evey went to the registrar's in the village the very next day.
The Avery triplets accompanied them as witnesses. Although they called Eric and invited him, he did not come to Gallowsmere. Instead, he sent Dominic Stone as his representative, citing an overload of work that prevented his appearance.
The young policeman was welcomed warmly to the ceremony.
Dom stood on Evey's side of the small office and listened to the official reading the marriage vows, although his thoughts were on the woman that had promised to marry him and the ceremony that they'd planned. He was the only person behind Evey and his gaze slid irresistibly toward the slender brown-haired girl who stood with three men behind Stephen. He recognized her, of course, could not forget her face even if he wanted to. Dominic stared at her, remembering the "workroom" and the sight of her burning Eric's arms. He frowned slightly, wondering why she was here and Eric wasn't.
The girl was as beautiful as ever, her pretty face composed into a polite mask of attention. She leaned upon the more muscular of the two younger men, her hand tucked into the crook of his arm trustingly. A sudden movement drew Dom's attention to the man supporting the girl. The young man's face was like Stephen's in a general sense, but the features were heavier, more brutish. His hard green eyes stared at Dominic in open irritation. The policeman swallowed at the expression and turned his full attention to the front of the room, where Stephen was slipping a ring on Evey's hand.
Evey smiled up at her husband, her face glowing with happiness, and Dominic remembered the moment to report it to Eric in detail. He hoped his own fiancé would look at him with that same adoration when they were to be married.
After the ceremony, Stephen took them to the nicest restaurant in the village and they sat drinking and eating with a number of townsfolk.
The girl ate little, Dominic noticed, although her brothers (she had brothers?) tempted her to eat more. The bigger brother plied her with food, doting on her with an obvious concern that she permitted but didn't seem pleased about. The other brother, his perfect features at odds with his wary expression, appeared to be torn between his sister and the delicate man with the big blue eyes who kept him company. The girl smiled at their attention but, when she wasn't being watched, Dom noticed that her face was shadowed and distant.
As Evey was pressed by the women in the restaurant to toss her little bouquet, the girl very quietly slipped outside alone.
Curiously, Dominic followed, acting as though he simply stepped out for a cigarette. In the quiet afternoon light, he was startled to find her right outside the restaurant. She sat perched upon a bench near the door, her head bowed, the long brown hair shielding her face like a curtain.
"Do you mind if I smoke?" he asked politely, tapping a slender cylinder out of his slightly crumpled pack.
The girl glanced up briefly and he realized that her dark brown eyes were full of pain. It shocked Dom for he'd seen the same look recently. In another pair of eyes, altogether different but with the same burning anguish, the same hopeless suffering.
He suddenly suspected where Eric's expression had come from.
The girl shook her head after a moment. "Certainly not," she said wearily. Her attention wandered away then returned to him, eyes narrowing as she watched him light the tobacco. She looked at him a moment more. "I remember you," she continued, the words soft. "You're Eri…Inspector Finch's friend, aren't you?" He marked the slip for future reference.
"I'm Dominic Stone, Eric's partner." She nodded, averting her face again, and Dom continued as though he'd just placed her. "You're Stephen's niece, aren't you?"
"Yes."
Her response was diffident. Dominic drew on his cigarette, watching her out of the corner of his eye. In the watery afternoon light, she seemed paler than was healthy, a tad too slender as well judging by the shadows under her wide brown eyes and the stark lines on her fair face. She looked... She looked as though she were in mourning. He frowned at the thought as he exhaled a thin curl of smoke.
Of course, Eric hadn't looked quite himself since his stay at Gallowsmere either.
The girl glanced up and caught his expression. "What is it?" she asked warily. He shook his head.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I was thinking that the last time I saw you, you'd just been shot. It must have been a...difficult recovery." She managed a faint smile that didn't touch her eyes..
"Really? Was that what you were thinking?" The question was light, almost wistful. She sighed a moment later. "I'm quite recovered now, thank you. The body heals despite what we expect to the contrary."
He mulled that answer over, watching her secretively as he smoked his cigarette. "I didn't know you had brothers," he said, a little desperate to keep the conversation going. She glanced over her shoulder toward the restaurant.
"They were…away a long time,returning only a short while ago." She looked down at the skirt that covered her knees thoughtfully. "Inspector Finch met them briefly but I rather doubt he would have spoken of them." A slight hesitation, followed by a curious glance, prefaced her next question. "Is he well?" Her voice was soft, a little sad and breathy.
"Eric?" he asked in surprise, although the question did not surprise him at all. "He's working too hard, of course. There have been more problems with the Fingermen in London and it's taking a lot of his time."
"I see." She lowered her head again. "I am sorry he didn't come out as well, Mr. Stone. Evey and Stephen will have missed him at this event."
He was tempted to ask her the one question only she could answer but it paused on the tip of his tongue, suddenly too intimate to be spoken.
In the sudden silence, she shifted in her seat, one bare arm lying in her lap. The smattering of scars was plain upon the light skin and Dom stared at them, remembering the matching scars on Eric's arms and mesmerized by his memories of their making. The girl looked up, realized why he was silent at the expression on his face, and the pain in her eyes deepened until her brown eyes were nearly black. She folded her arms across her midriff, hiding the scars. "I'm sorry," she said dully. "I should go back in, I suppose…" She rose and took a step toward the door.
"Why didn't you pick me?" he asked, blurting the question out, instantly appalled that he'd actually asked it. The girl tilted her head curiously, as though she hadn't quite understood. "That day…You picked Eric. Why not me?"
"I know what you meant," she said quietly. "I was simply surprised you asked me." For a moment longer, she waited but he didn't speak again and she shook her head before turning toward the door. Dom cleared his throat in a sharp bark, bringing her attention back to him immediately.
"I sometimes still think of that day," he retorted, flicking ash from the end of his cigarette irritably. "And I always wonder why."
"You won't care for the answer, Mr. Stone."
He lifted hard eyes to her. The deceptively gentle tone of her voice galled him, brought his anger to the fore. "Tell me anyway," he demanded. She hesitated then nodded wearily in surrender.
"Quite frankly, you would have broken too quickly, Mr. Stone. Your heart rate was through the roof, anticipation was driving you toward overload. Eric's heart was steadier, he had faith that nothing irreparable would happen before Stephen arrived. Had I begun with you, there would have been no time before I broke you.." Her voice changed, softened. "It was practical, Mr. Stone, not a personal decision…"
"It was the pinnacle of personal," Dom snapped. The girl frowned at his bitter tone.
"Perhaps you are correct," she conceded. "I... just knew he was the better choice." She shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. "This is neither the time nor the place to have this conversation." As she moved to pass him, he reached out and took hold of her arm with his free hand, fingers biting into her skin.
"You hurt him," he said angrily. "And I mean since then. What did you do to Eric this time?"
She lifted her eyes to his, the pain overwhelming in the chocolate depths, and, while her grief shocked him, her reply stole his breath away. "Pain is the most personal possession of all, Mr. Stone. If you want that question answered, you'll need to ask the one who feels pain. If they choose not to answer you, then you have to live with not knowing."
A movement behind them signaled someone coming out the door.
"Clair?" The interrupting voice was gruff. "Why is this man touching you?" Dom didn't need to turn to deduce that the muscular brother had just joined them. "Get your hand off my sister, cop, or I'll break it off your wrist."
Clarissa held up her free hand. "Caine, I'm fine. Don't start a fight today." She turned her attention to Dom, her expression suddenly careless and casual. "Mr. Stone was just offering me a steadying hand. Weren't you, Mr. Stone?" Dom released her as she presented a brilliant but false smile to her brother. "There, Caine, all is well. See?"
Caine stepped toward her, throwing an angry glare at the young policeman. "I came to see if you were alright," he said more gently. "Clair?"
"I'm fine, Caine." She offered her brother her hand. "I was just reminiscing with Mr. Stone. Old times, you know." She sighed. "I'm ready to go back inside now."
Caine touched her as though she were spun glass, his big hands gentle as he led her back inside. Dominic wondered at the care the big man took for it seemed at odds with his nasty attitude. Alone, Dom finished the cigarette, mulling over the conversation, and then went back into the gathering. Evey found him nursing a pint a little while later and sat down with him.
"Hullo, Dom."
"Congratulations, Evey." She frowned and he already knew what she was going to ask by the look on her face. He shrugged apologetically and lied to her. "He's fine, Evey. Just terribly busy with a rash of Fingerman activity. He couldn't get away."
She shook her head, sighing softly. "Thanks, Dom, but we knew the real reason. It's alright, really. It was just too soon for him." She sighed. "Please tell me: is he doing well?"
Dom lowered his eyes to his glass, debating between honesty and Eric's ego. "He'd rather I tell you that he's fine," he said softly. "But he's…angry all the time, Evey. He's sharp with everyone now, not the easy-going bloke I've worked with for so long." He looked up hopefully. "Do you know why?"
Evey's gaze swung toward the brown-haired girl seated at a table with the elegantly beautiful brother. Clarissa's face was drawn and her brother had his arm around her, speaking softly into her ear. "Yes," Evey said slowly. "I think I know why."
"She did something to him again?" The bitter question surprised them both, causing Dom to flush hotly as Evey turned toward him in astonishment.
"Yes." Evey whispered, looking back at the girl. "More than that I cannot tell you, Dom. It wouldn't be right." She flinched suddenly, her hands pressing against the mound of her belly, and she laughed delightly in surprise. "It's kicking!" She caught up his hand and laid it over the tight fabric of her dress. "Feel here?"
The baby kicked sharply, making Dom's eyes widen at the sharp thump against his palm. "Evey, you need to put that one into football right off!" She caught his hand in hers, smiling at him affectionately.
"So," she said eagerly, leaning in close. "Tell me about this fiancée of yours…"