All the basic disclaimers apply, I don't own them of course but I do love them.
AN: I know there are countless stories that I should be writing instead of starting a new one but this little idea wouldn't leave me alone. I'm just thorwing this out here to see if it sparks anyone's interest. I may take it down if it doesn't or I may finish it if it does. I'll see where the inspiration takes me. Please write a review and let me know what you think. Should I change the title? I'm not married to it. This story came to me while I was watching episodes for some reason I got this idea that what if Mac was a Bruce Wayne like character and Stella was a girl he'd found beside the road. I loved Fred Astair when I was younger and one of my favorites without Ginger Rogers was Daddy Long Legs so that's what inspired me to write this. I also took some inspiration from a Gary Sinise movie: Fallen Angel which aired on Hallmark cahnnel so you'll see a few of those characters pop up. Any other details you'll just have to read it to find out. Okay thanks to lily moonlight and rocksmacked who made me rethink the age gap a bit I'm changing the date from 1972 to 73 and in case the first sentance doesn't spell it out Mac Just turned eighteen and Stella is almost six. It's an Au and I am the author so I can strecth things a bit. ;-) lol thanks to all the wonderful people who have reviewed and please continue to enjoy the story.
CSINY *** CSINY *** CSINY *** CSINY
Daddy Long-Legs CSI: NY Style (working title)
By: VaniDot
Chapter One: The Meeting
1973
Two life changing events happened to him the year McKenna Boyd Taylor, Jr. turned eighteen. The first mile marker was the death of his parents when their Private Jet crashed into the ocean off the coast of Maine. The second took place shortly afterwards when he was on his way home from their funeral. It was when he was driving back to their summer cottage at Rose Point that he stumbled upon another horrific scene. A car accident involing a hit and run. There were no signs of the other vehicle and both the woman and her husband were dead.
His own grief hadn't prevented him from checking to see if anyone in the car was still alive. It came as quite the shock then when he heard muffled cries coming from the back of the station wagon. At first he though it was the couple's pet who had been in the back when the car flipped but what he found instead made his heart lurch in his chest. There under a mountain of pillows was a little girl.
The girl couldn't have been more than four or five. But the important thing was she was still breathing. He carefully checked for broken bones and sighed in relief when he didn't find any. He surmised from her surroundings that she had been asleep on floor of the station wagon when it tumbled into the ditch. Besides countless scratches on her face and arms from the broken glass, he was certain her relaxed state was what had saved her life. He scooped her up noting that she felt lighter than he expected and stumbled backwards slightly on account of it.
He cursed slightly wishing that he had access to a phone which wasn't likely seeing he was out in the middle of nowhere. He quickly assessed his situation and remembered that the local sheriff lived not too far from there. While the man and his family were possibly asleep Mckenna knew he could be trusted not to throw the blame on him for someone else's doing. He gently laid the still unconscious girl in the back of his vehicle and took off as fast as he dared to drive on the wet road. He didn't want to be responcible for the death of the girl he'd just saved but he knew time was precious.
He turned down the small dirt path leading to the local law enforcment officer's home and was glad when he saw a light still on in the kitchen of the modest home. A face he recognized appeared at the door currious as to who was visting this time of night. McKenna got out of the vehilce and beckoned to the sherrif as he opened the door to the back seat of his parent's Cadilac.
"Hey, what ya got there Son? Hit a dog on your way back to the Point?" The man asked curiously as he neared the vehicle.
"Hardly, there is an overturned car in the ditch just a few miles up the road. One male, Caucasian approximately thirty-five to fourty years old dead at the scene, also a female I presumed was his wife possibly twenty-five to thirty years of age also deceased." McKenna informed the man.
"When did this happen?" The sheriff asked taking his information seriously.
"I would estimate around ten to thirty minutes before I arrived on the scene as the car's engine was still running. I turned the ignition off to prevent a fire. I didn't know what to do except come here and tell you but I uh…" He faltered the logic and reason he had clung to as his safe haven quickly slipped from his grasp when he looked down at the little girl in the back seat. "There was one other passenger in the station wagon, Chief Kane. A little girl I can only assume was their daughter… She uh…" He tried to explain but stepped aside to let the man have a look instead.
"Lord have mercy is she alive?" The local constabulary asked in shock and awe.
"She's breathing but I don't know… She hasn't made a sound except for one little whimper that helped me locate her." McKenna confessed.
"Get her to the hospital as fast as you can. I'll call ahead and let them know you're coming. Then I'll call my deputy out to where you said the accident happened and meet you there." The sheriff suggested.
"Yes, yes that's good. I'll do that then." McKenna nodded his head dumbly staring down at the little girl.
"You did good, Son. Most summer people wouldn't have even stopped. She was lucky you were still in the neighborhood though most of you city folk have returned to their jobs. I know the business which brought you here was a sad one but maybe there was another reason why you came back." Chief Kane expressed patting McKenna on the back for support.
"Thanks Chief, I'll uh… take her to the hospital and wait for you there." He answered.
"No need for you to put yourself out, Son. I won't be too long; the doctors and nurses will take good care of her 'til I do." The sheriff replied. McKenna shook his head.
"Someone aught to be there for her in case she does wake up." McKenna said softly his voice breaking a little. Thinking about the last words he spoke to his father. They had gotten into an argument when McKenna told his parents he was joining the Marines. His father had hoped he would go into the family business instead but McKenna argued that he wanted to serve his country and prove that not all rich kids were spoiled brats.
He'd seen what some of the older kids of their social group had done spitting into the faces of the men who survived the last war. McKenna didn't want to be like them. His father had argued that the Taylor's were one of the richest families in all of New York if not the world and he wouldn't have his son debase himself with menial labor. That was the last time he saw his parents as they had boarded the plane later that night. He had gotten the call the next day which changed his life forever. The best memories he had were all of them in Maine which was why he'd chosen to bury his parents there instead of taking them back to New York City. The funeral director arranged for a plaque to be placed on the family plot all the same as it would be expected by society.
McKenna waved goodbye to the sheriff and headed back towards the hospital with his precious cargo. For the first time in his life he prayed to whatever god was listening that he would make it in time. His prayer was simple; please don't let her die! True to his word the sheriff had called ahead and there were people standing outside with a gurney to take the little girl he had rescued. McKenna himself insisted on lifting her out of the car and carried her to the awaiting gurney where he safely deposited her. That was when he allowed the doctor's to take over and she was rushed into the inner workings of the hospital to be scrutinized.
"Mr. Taylor, are you willing to answer some questions?" he heard a female voice ask from nearby though he was still staring at the place where she disappeared. He felt a tug on his sleeve and that's when he realized she was talking to him and not his father.
"Uhm, yeah sorry I don't know much. I mean I've never met her." He answered.
"The doctor wanted me to get a statement from you so he can have a better idea of what he should be looking for." She explained. McKenna nodded and began to follow her inside but turned back to his car. "Don't worry about it Mr. Taylor, I'm sure hospital security would be willing to move it seeing as your father was one of our biggest contributors." The nurse answered his unspoken question. As if on cue a man in a uniform stepped out onto the curb and McKenna tossed him the keys.
"Just ask me or Al when you're ready to leave and one of us will fetch it for you. They say us country bumpkins don't know a thing or two about valet parking." The man chuckled as he got into the driver's seat of the car and took off.
"I know its hospital policy to limit visitors to just family but under the circumstances and seeing as how you saved her life I'm sure we can make an exception. You do want to make sure she's okay before you leave don't you?" The nurse asked. McKenna nodded absently and scratched the back of his head trying to make sense of everything. According to his mother McKenna thought too much, apparently he got that from his father as well as the man's stubbornness. "Follow me, I won't take up too much of your time and you can wait in the doctor's lounge until we see if she's going to make it or not." The nurse said.
"She will make it!" He declared vehemently startling the woman who meant no offence. "I mean she just has to make it. I don't care about the expense just do what ever it takes to make sure she lives… I don't want another death on my hands." He mumbled under his breath the last part though the woman didn't seem to notice. He sighed and followed her to the lounge, answered her questions the best he could, and waited for news.
He lost track of time and couldn't count the number of cups of coffee he drank though it was bitter. Mostly he took a few drinks, stared helplessly at it until it got cold before repeating the process all over again. He was vaguely aware of the man's presence when the sheriff finally arrived but couldn't do much more than nod or grumble an incoherent response until the man just gave up trying.
He gave into the nurse who tried to induce him to rest but as soon as his head hit the pillow he was wide awake again despite dozing every now and then. It wasn't until the wee hours of the morning when dawn was just beginning to break that the doors opened and a doctor walked into the room looking as exhausted as he felt. McKenna jumped to his feet but stayed glued to the floor while the sheriff stood more slowly and approached the doctor.
"Well, Doc, is it good or bad?" Chief Kane asked calmly.
"We did the best we could. There was some internal bleeding and we had to take out a part of her liver but she's still young enough that it aught to heal up sufficiently on its own. It'll be a while but I expect her to make a full recovery. She'll be in ICU for now but if she wakes up today or tomorrow then I think it would be safe to move her to the children's ward." The doctor informed them before heading back to the nurses' station to write out instructions for her care. McKenna slumped back into the seat he had just vacated feeling limp as a flood of relief washed over him.
"I don't even know her name." McKenna realized.
"I guess you didn't hear me when I said we found the couple's Id in the car." The sheriff stated and McKenna looked up expectantly at him. "Mr. and Mrs. Edward Wentworth. The girl's name is Stella if the name on the backpack Tim found under all those pillows was hers which I suspect it was." Sheriff Kane explained patiently for apparently the second time.
"Stella," McKenna breathed her name finally being able to put a name to the face that refused to be forgotten. He sat there for several more minutes mulling things over until he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up at the sheriff once more.
"Why don't you go home, Son? There's nothing more you can do now. I'll see what I can find out about her folks and see if she's got any living relatives who can take her in. It's been a trying day for the both of you why don't you go home and get some rest?" The older man suggested. McKenna shook his head.
"I want to see her first." He insisted standing to his feet.
"She'll be out of it for a while, Lad. I'll call you the minute she wakes up if you want but there's no sense in you waiting here. Go home and that's an order." Kane commanded. McKenna nodded his head and looked at the door to where they had secreted Stella away one last time. "Al, Young Taylor here will be needing his car." Kane called out as they neared the emergency entrance. The man obediently headed out to fetch the caddie from the lot. "I'll see you later, McKenna and don't worry I'll call if anything should happen." The man assured him. He mumbled something incoherent again in reply.
"Want I should have Joe or Tim drive you back to Serenity Cottage? We might not have snow on the ground yet but there's ice." Kane asked. McKenna shook his head.
"No thanks, Chief. I was just thinking I'll be okay to drive." McKenna replied.
"You sure? You've had a long day yesterday and didn't get much sleep last night." Kane showed genuine concern but McKenna smiled and put a hand on the older man's arm.
"Thanks, but I just need to clear my head a bit. I promise I'll be extra precautious since the sun isn't up far enough to melt the ice on the road. I ran into a few patches last night. That could be what caused the accident but I noticed a few traces of red paint along the back bumper of the car before I got close enough to turn off the engine." McKenna told him. The sheriff shook his head and chuckled.
"Your father never forgave me for giving you that finger printing kit for your ninth birthday. Sure you don't want to go into law enforcement instead of the military? We could sure use a man with an eye for detail like yours then maybe so many bad guys wouldn't get away with stuff." Kane suggested.
"I've made up my mind, Chief. I feel like I can serve my country best by joining the Marines." McKenna replied just as Al drove up to the curb with the Cadillac that was his now; a lot of things were his by default. "I'll stop by the hospital later this afternoon." He added stealing a glimpse at the door behind them.
"She'll be fine; just worry about yourself right now, Kiddo. I'll be here." Sheriff Kane slapped him on the back. He took the keys from Al and pressed them into the palm of McKenna's hand and guided him to the driver's side. "You waste any more time around here I may just give you a ride down to the lock up and make you sleep there. That aught to give the rumor mills something to talk about." Kane chuckled bringing a smile to McKenna's face knowing the man would never do it.
"I'll go home and try to get some sleep… but don't count on it." He shot back as he got into the driver's seat, like everything of his father's it felt a bit too big for his liking.
"I'm sure sleep will come once you get back to what's familiar. Don't wander around the house pacing either. Have that Jenkins fellow drive you back to the hospital. I told him to make sure he tucked you into bed himself if he had to." Kane chuckled again though this time McKenna knew he was serious.
"I haven't had to be tucked into bed in a long time, Chief." McKenna retorted. The man just laughed and stared at him. "Okay maybe once when I was twelve but that was when I was sick." He admitted sheepishly.
"Uh-huh." The sheriff replied disbelievingly and closed the door once he'd started the engine. "Drive safe now I don't want to be scraping you up off the pavement." Kane told him after McKenna answered the tap on the window by rolling it down.
"I will, bye Chief!" McKenna said shaking his head at the older man as rolled the window back up and headed for home. Jenkins, the family butler/housekeeper/maid, fussed over McKenna as soon as he arrived at Serenity Cottage. McKenna let the man fuss and carry on because he was both too tired to complain. He also wouldn't have Jenkins when he went into the service though the family retainer would be in charge of keeping up the estates while McKenna was serving his country.
Despite what he'd told the sheriff McKenna was asleep as soon as he sank into the warm comfortable bed in his room. Regardless of Jenkins's insistence to the contrary, McKenna refused to take the master suite even though his parents weren't coming back. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. He wasn't sure how long he had slept but he felt only rested as he had tossed and turned most of the time.
"But Master McKenna, Sir…!" Jenkins tried to protest when McKenna came down fully dressed and prepared to return to the hospital.
"Jenkins, what have I told you about that 'Master' crap?" McKenna cut him off sitting down to put on his shoes.
"But Master Taylor always wished that I call him…." Jenkins came to his own defense.
"I don't care what my father wanted. I'm not him. I don't want anyone calling me Master anything. I'm just plain old McKenna Taylor, got that?" McKenna insisted. Jenkins looked about to object again but he threw the man a warning look. "I'll have to start calling you Alfred again." He warned referencing Batman's loyal servant. The other man cringed but said no more on the subject. McKenna hadn't been as interested in superhero's as much as he had been in his little green soldiers and G. figures, but he had called the other man Alfred for a while in his more…formative years. "You want to drive, Jenkins?" McKenna inquired as he stood up and pulled his coat on.
Ever willing to please his loyal servant smiled with the threat over. As they got into the car and headed into town to visit the hospital where Stella was it suddenly dawned on McKenna that he didn't know his driver's real name. As long as McKenna could remember they'd had at least five man servants, all called Jenkins. "By the way, Jenkins, what is you real name? I know you can't possibly be related to the first guy we had nor the second or third and unless you have some deep dark closet somewhere where you hide your family skeletons I doubt the last guys was related because he was black. You can't all be named Jenkins because the probability of all five of you having the same last name is astronomical." McKenna inquired.
"Your mother thought it would be easier to call all of us Jenkins as she wouldn't have to remember a different name every time someone was replaced. I'm not sure either of your parents would be pleased if I broke from tradition, Ma…cKenna, Sir," The other man replied. McKenna stared at the man's reflection in the rearview for a second and nodded his head. His mother had been a bit flighty at times though he loved her no less for it.
"It's time for some new rules around here and I won't have someone who goes by an alias work for me. Name please, Alfred." McKenna smirked as that earned a glare from the other man.
"Sidney Hammerback." His driver answered after several suspenseful minutes. McKenna climbed over the front seat much to the other man's chagrin and smiled at him holding his hand out.
"Well Sid, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm… Mac." McKenna declared.
"Heavens Sir, your parents would not have approved!" Sid exclaimed ignoring his own loathsome nickname.
"I'm sure I'll be doing things my parents would never have approved of from now on Sid, you're just going to have to get used to it. If you aren't comfortable with them I could always find someone else to replace you but to be honest I'm tired of throwing away servants like they were bad cheese." McKenna replied still holding his hand out. Sid looked at it dubiously for several seconds before finally giving in.
"I need this job… Mac and quite frankly Sir I'm tired of breaking in new bosses." Sid accepted. McKenna smiled and slapped his driver on the back earning another glare from the older man.
"I think we're going to get along quite well from now on, Sid. Now when you park the car I want you to come upstairs to the children's ward, there's someone I want you to meet." McKenna requested.
"Yes Ma…c." Sid answered still having trouble getting used to not adding 'Master' as a prefix to the beginning of his name.
"I'll bet you aren't even British!" McKenna surmised and watched a small smile creep across the man's face.
"Actually, I'm Canadian." Sid replied dropping the false pretence.
"Another one of Mom's odd quirks?" McKenna inquired.
"Good guess." Sid replied. McKenna smiled and pressed back against the seat a bit more noticing he liked the view from the front seat better than the back.
"Stella Wentworth," McKenna repeated what Sheriff Kane had told him earlier that morning.
"Pardon?" Sid wondered.
"The girl I want you to meet." McKenna clarified realizing he'd spoken loud enough for the other man to hear him.
"A new love interest perhaps?" Sid asked in a teasing tone. It was weird getting used to the man's voice without the accent but it seemed more natural that way.
"Hardly, Sid she's only five years old at most." McKenna shot back though he couldn't get the sight of the bloody little girl out of his mind.
"Stranger things have happened. You know I once knew a girl who married a man 60 years older than her. Of course he was dead a few years later but…." Sid began. McKenna sighed thinking maybe he had made a mistake giving Sid too much freedom; the man could talk.
"You got a point to that Sid?" McKenna interrupted his driver.
"Oh, only that you're barely thirteen years older than her. Not now of course but you never know maybe you and she were destined to meet." Sid got to the point.
"I don't believe in destiny Sid and cradle robbing is illegal." McKenna huffed.
"It won't be cradle robbing if say you happen to meet twenty years down the road now will it?" Sid gave a quick rebuttal.
"Doesn't matter I'm still too old for her. In twenty years she'll find someone who's right for her in her own age bracket. Besides I'll still be in the marines." McKenna persisted and saw Sid shrug his shoulders out of the corner of his eye. They didn't speak again until they reached the hospital. Sid said he'd be right up and McKenna got out at the curb to head upstairs.
When he got to the floor of the children's wing he frowned; the sheriff was no where in sight. He asked at the nurse's station which room was Stella's and went to find her immediately. His heart beat faster as he neared the room and he hesitantly looked in the door. He felt some relief when he spotted the sheriff's wife sitting beside the bed. She looked up when he entered and smiled standing up to meet him halfway.
"Sorry, John wanted to make a few phone calls concerning Stella so he asked me to sit with her. He figured she would be more comfortable if the face she sees when she wakes up was a woman. The nurses are so busy with the other kids they can't just sit with her. I knew she'd be upset if she woke up alone so I volunteered. The kids are in school today so I could get away for a while. Tim's wife said she'd sit with her a little bit after she got off work and Natalie, that's Joe's wife, said she'd also help." Eileen explained. McKenna nodded in understanding and gave her a grateful smile.
"Has the Chief heard anything back yet?" McKenna wanted to know?
"Not yet I'm afraid. They couple was just passing through apparently as John can't find any trace of them owning or renting a cottage around here and no one remembers seeing them when he showed their picture around town. Their permanent address is an apartment in New York City so John talked to a friend of his in the department who said he'd canvas the area and find out what he could but that may take a few days." Eileen offered what little she knew. McKenna nodded dumbly again. "Can you sit with her for a bit? I just need to run down the hall to use the facilities then I'll be right back." Eileen requested. Again McKenna nodded dumbly and headed towards the bed near where she had been sitting.
If it hadn't been for that he would never have known the same little girl laying in that bed was the one he rescued from the wreckage last night. The blood had been washed off and her hair brushed. She could have been Shirley Temple if not for the darker curls surrounding her face in a halo and her skin he was sure was darker than that of his mother's favorite child actress. Despite the name like he might have guessed she was Italian as she bore an olive cast to her skin though he was sure with all that had happened it was washed out compared to what it could be. She would definitely be a heart breaker he thought to himself.
He reached out and touched one of the ringlets framing her face. He picked it up so enthralled by it that he was caught off guard when he noticed two green orbs staring up at him. His breath caught in his throat and he dropped the curl as if it had suddenly turned hot. She blinked a few times before holding her arms out to him. He took her hands and sat on the edge of her bed.
"You have to lay still okay." He told her. She gave a little whimper and squirmed in place but only a little. "I know you want to be held but the doctors had to fix you. You've got stitches so you have to not move around so they don't pull out. You don't want an ugly scar do you?" He asked softly. She just stared at him for a minute before shaking her head. "Good girl, Stella." He praised and stroked her hair once her hands dropped back to her sides. "Just go to sleep. I'm sure you'll feel better when you wake up." He urged her. She nodded and with a little pout closed her eyes once more. He sighed in relief feeling panicked that she would try to fight him but she hadn't. He smiled down at her and shook his head in amazement. He'd never seen anyone as beautiful as she was and she was just a child. He was more certain now that she would be a knockout when she grew up. He had the sudden urge to protect her but he knew that it wasn't his job to care for her which saddened him a little.
He heard footsteps behind him and turned to find Sid watching him from the doorway. McKenna motioned for his servant to approach and turned his attention back to the sleeping girl. She whimpered a few more times and her forehead creased into a little frown probably from the pain. He gently smoothed away the lines with tips of his fingers and she settled down again. He hated seeing anyone helpless but it was worse when it was a child.
"Wow, she's beautiful even if she is hooked up to all those monitors." Sid whispered softly.
"Don't start playing matchmaker with me Sid." Mac ordered.
"I was just saying how beautiful she is and thought how much of a knockout she'd be when she grows up is all." Sid said defensively. McKenna looked up at him and noticed the Sheriff standing in the doorway.
"Stay with her a second." He told his servant and got up to join the man in the doorway. "Any news?" He asked. Sheriff Kane nodded his head though by the look on his face it wasn't good news.
"It's just a preliminary report mind you, McKenna but… there's nothing on record or in their apartment to suggest an extended family. I can't find any information on the mother at all except her first name is Greek. It appears that Edward was the last of his family line as well no siblings, no parents still living, not so much as cousins distant or otherwise. It seems Stella's on her own." The man answered. McKenna's heart fell when his dream of her having a loving family to go home to was crushed.
"What's going to happen to her?" McKenna wanted to know.
"Well unless someone steps forward she'll probably go to an orphanage maybe a foster home or if she's lucky get adopted but she's gonna be in the hospital for a while at first. I hate to say it but you know most parents looking to adopt don't want to take in a kid who has problems, not that she's going to have any, but there's a stigma from having surgery at this young of an age. She may be one of those kids who gets lost in the system." The Sheriff told him. McKenna stared at him in disbelief granted he'd not had the perfect childhood everyone imagines a rich kid having but he couldn't imagine someone not wanting Stella. He'd always envied the close knit family that the sheriff and his wife had; they seemed to genuinely care about their kids unlike his own parents who he saw only at dinner and then only rarely.
"What if I take her?" McKenna spoke up not knowing where the words were coming from.
"Eighteen is a legal age, Son but only in the case of blood relatives can someone adopt their siblings. You'd have to talk to your family lawyer to see if you could set up a trust fund in her name so she's taken care of but I doubt she'll be able to live with you. What about you joining the marines? Who would look after her while you're gone?" The sheriff asked. McKenna nodded his head at the reasonable conclusion. McKenna was only eighteen, heading off to join the military, and didn't know a thing or two about raising a child.
"You're right Chief I don't know what came over me." McKenna sighed and turned back to look at the girl who Sid was talking softly to.
"It's natural to feel concern for someone especially one you've just saved. I know me and Eileen would love to take her in if we could but… honestly it's rough on all of us around here. Maybe she'd have better luck getting adopted in the city by rich folk who can give her a better life." Sheriff Kane said sadly.
"One of the charities my Mother donated to was ST. Basil's Orphanage maybe they'll agree to take her in. I'll see what I can do about setting up the trust fund like you suggested. The hospital in New York would be more suited to dealing with her care and she'd be closer to my lawyers. I'll see about getting her transferred there when the doctor thinks it's safe to move her." McKenna quickly worked out a course of action. "I'm supposed to be at the base in Quantico in two days. That's barely time to get all my affairs in order and hers as well. Who's going to tell her that her parents are dead?" McKenna asked with concern. He hated being unable to work out every little detail ahead of time.
"Leave that to me and Eileen, McKenna. You go do what you need to do. Me and the wife will be here when your representative comes to deal with Stella's relocation. You don't have to worry, Son, someone will be here when she wakes up and starts asking the tough questions." Kane assured him. McKenna nodded his head in relief.
"About that she was already a wake for a little bit. She wanted to be held but I was afraid of hurting her. She seems to be in a lot of pain can you ask the doctors or nurses if they can give her something for it?" McKenna couldn't help himself, worrying seemed to be in his nature.
"I'll let the nurses know she woke up." Eileen said rejoining them in time to hear the majority of the conversation before heading off again. She must have used the opportunity to grab a cup of coffee. McKenna sighed feeling torn about leaving Stella all alone and hated the vulnerability he felt in worrying about her.
"Take your time, I'll see you off when you're ready to leave. You'll be going back to Rose Point before you head out won't you?" The Sheriff asked. McKenna shook his head.
"Sid packed the car this morning while I slept. All that's left is for the caretaker to lock up and board it back up. Sid and I recovered the furniture we used with the dust cloths before we left." McKenna explained.
"Who's Sid?" The Sheriff wondered. McKenna chuckled and shook his head.
"Jenkins, turns out another one of my mother's odd eccentricities was to call all of our men servants by the same name so she didn't have to memorize new ones. Sid Hammerback is the most recent in a long line of servants we've had most of my life. Sid this is Sheriff Kane." McKenna introduced the man who approached. Sid smiled and held his hand out. McKenna slapped him on the back and nodded his head letting him know he wanted another minute alone with the girl he'd rescued. He left the older two men to talk and approached Stella's bed once more. The lines on her brow were back and he smoothed them away again before doing something unexpected; he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. When it came to her he seemed to loose all reason. "You get well, Stella Wentworth. I'll make sure you don't have to worry about a thing for the rest of your life but just get better please!" He pleaded quietly in her ear before he straightened up. He gently brushed a stray ringlet from her cheek memorizing every detail of her face before turning to leave, this time for good. He wondered if he'd ever see her again but he was determined to do whatever he could to provide for her. It was the least he could do.