Happier Days Are Yet To Come
Monica Harper sighed as she inserted her key in her front door lock. It had been a long day. All the others had someone to go home to. Cory had Will, TC had Chris, and Bobby was now staying with Russ and Jaime. She was coming home alone to an empty house.
She walked upstairs to her bedroom. She turned on the lamp by her bed, ignoring the open window through which she could see into TC's room. She had no desire to see him with Chris. She had been ecstatic when Chris had left, but was now cold and bitter because Chris had returned, at least for now. When Chris wasn't here TC had been in good moods. He had paid more attention to her feelings. Now he was going to start dismissing them again.
If it wasn't bad enough that Chris was back, then it was bad enough that her first assignment was with Monica. That meant Monica had to live with it. The assignment had been to find out what was going on with all the suicides in town recently. They all seemed to be connected with a club called Get In Touch. Monica and Chris had joined the club undercover and were supposed to get to the bottom of the whole thing. The club was supposed to be therapeutic.
Again, Monica sighed as she climbed into bed. The last girl to commit suicide had been very much like Monica. She had been wrongly abused by her mother. Molested by her father. Monica had gone through the same thing as a child. For five years she lived with the abuse and being molested by her stepfather. When she was 12 she went to live with her grandmother. When she was 19, her grandmother had been beaten to death by a robber who had entered her home. That's when Monica decided that she wanted to go into law enforcement. To avenge her grandmother's death.
Monica walked side by side with Chris as they neared the Get In Touch center. Chris hadn't tried to make conversation and Monica had no desire to try. She was perfectly content with ignoring Chris.
Most of the girls came to the center regularly. The ones that showed up every day were already here. Monica and Chris went their separate ways. They had each befriended different people. Chris had gotten to know the girls that were a good way through the healing process and took on the role herself. Monica, meanwhile, had befriended the girls who recently joined the program. She was acting as a survivor of being molested and raped by an unnamed family member. Not too far off the truth, she thought. Monica was the closest to a girl named Hope. Hope was tiny and shy. She was 17, but she didn't look a day older than 14. Monica wondered how she could have possibly survived the abuse she had sustained.
Gary, the man in charge of everything in Get In Touch, walked into the room and sat down on the floor near Chris. The rest of the girls quickly scurried to make a circle around him. He seemed to be the only force behind GIT. He cleared his throat, the signal that he was ready to start.
"I think we should hear from the new members of the group today," he said in his gentle voice. He looked directly at Monica. " Will you start, please?"
Monica snuck a look at Chris, who looked mildly amused. "I'm Monica Lake, and I'm a survivor of rape," she said quietly.
"That's nice, but that's not what I wanted. True, you did admit it. But we need to know your whole story. This is Get In Touch, not rape survival." Monica must have looked surprised, because he quickly added," Keep going. You're doing fine."
"Um, OK. I was molested and raped by a certain member of my family." She stopped, but went on when he gave her an approving nod. "I survived. End of story."
"How long did it go on?" Monica hesitated because she and Chris hadn't bothered to work out that little detail. "Monica?"
Monica just decided to go with the truth. "Five years," she said quietly, trying hard to keep the pain out of her eyes. Chris, across from Monica in the circle was trying to look bored. She searched Monica's eyes when she brought her head back up. Yes, Chris thought. Something is definitely going on there. Have to talk to TC about it later.
Later, as Monica and Chris walked toward the car they brought, Chris thought about the session. Monica wasn't sticking to the details they had worked out ahead of time and Chris wanted to know why.
"Monica?" Chris asked. Monica stopped and turned to face her. "Why have you been changing our stories? You changed all the details we already worked out."
"Oh, did I? I'm sorry," Monica said as she started walking to the car again. She opened the driver's door and got in. When Chris got in she started the car and drove off in the direction of the firehouse.
TC Callaway was working at his desk when someone knocked on the door. "Come in," he said, not even looking up. Chris entered the room.
"TC. We need to talk about this case," she said. He looked up at her for the first time since she'd come into the room. She looked upset. "I don't think that this is the right case for Monica to work on."
TC looked at her in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me, right? You despise Harper so much that you need me to take her off this case?"
"No, TC, that is not what I meant. True, I don't like Monica, but this has nothing to do with that, "Chris said. "Monica has something personal with this case, I know she does. She has changed almost every detail that we worked out previously."
TC looked agitated. "Don't you think you should take that up with Harper? Look, Chris, I have a lot of work to do. And these teenage girls' suicides really aren't helping the amount of sleep I get at night. If you have a problem with Harper, take it up with Harper." Chris closed the door, seething with anger.
"Hello," Monica said groggily as she picked up the telephone. The clock on her bedside stand read 3:00 AM.
"Monica? I'm so glad you're home." It was Gary's voice on the other end of the line. "I'm glad you're there. I need to talk to you."
Every bone in Moncia's body told her to put down the phone and never pick it up again, but her mind was telling her differently. His voice was so hypnotic. She would hear him out and then go back to sleep.
Monica picked up the telephone five hours later, the tears still streaming down her face. She dialed the firehouse. Russ answered.
"Hey, Russ, it's Monica. Can you tell TC or Cory that I won't be in today?" she asked. She hoped he didn't ask any questions.
"Uh, Monica I have to go on patrol. Here's Chris." With that, Russ handed the phone to Chris, who was standing nearby.
"Russ? Russ? Don't you dare...." Monica started to say.
"Monica?" It was Chris's voice. "Granger had to go on patrol. Do you have a reason for not coming in today?"
"Uh, yeah" Monica said. "PMS. And I have a major migraine," she lied. She knew they could never know the real reason.
"PMS, huh? When aren't you PMS-ing, Harper?" Chris asked snottily. "I'm not calling you off. You have 5 minutes to be here." Chris hung the phone up.
Monica stared at the phone receiver with disbelief. "That bitch," she muttered as she walked to her closet. Now Monica had to go to work. She would need plenty of make-up.
TC came out of his office and saw Chris still standing downstairs. "Harper not here yet?" he asked.
"Nope. She just called. She wanted the day off, but I wouldn't give it to her," Chris said.
"Why in the hell not? She's certainly got the vacation and sick days to take," TC said.
Just then Monica walked through the door. She was pale, despite the make-up she had obviously piled on. Her eyes were red and puffy. She looked like hell.
"Let's go," she said to Chris. "Since you couldn't give me the day off, you should at least be ready to go when I get here."
"Boy, when you said you were PMS-ing you weren't kidding, were you?" Chris asked. TC watched the exchange with mixed feelings of amusement and feelings of worry. Harper looked really bad. Like she was up all night being sick. He hoped Chris wouldn't give her a hard time.
Monica followed Hope out of the GIT center. It had been a killer meeting. Gary had seemed to pick on Monica again. She hated the way he looked at her. It was like he knew she was a cop and he was punishing her by bringing up her childhood traumas.
"Monica!" He was right on cue with his call. She was looking forward to going home, taking a nice hot bubble bath, and having a much needed cry. She seemed to be crying more and more since she was assigned this case.
"What?" She asked as she turned around. Gary had this dumb smile on his face. She had seen that smile before. It's the one he gets on his face when he thinks he's going to help someone.
"I was thinking that maybe you could stay awhile," Gary said. " You know, so we could talk some more about what happened."
Monica was very tempted to say no. But once she looked into his green eyes, she forgot all about her bubble bath. Besides, she told herself, you can cry anywhere. She smiled at him. "All right." Hope gave her a small smile.
Chris saw Hope walking toward her car. She stopped her, wondering where Monica was. She wanted to compare theories.
"Hope," Chris called out. Hope turned to face her. Chris could see that the girl was smiling. "Have you seen Monica?"
"Of course," Hope said, her grin widening. "Gary asked her to stay and talk with him and she accepted. I think she's finally ready to get help."
"Wait, you're saying she went with Gary by herself?" Chris asked. "Did she look like she really wanted to?"
"Chris, I don't see what the problem is," Hope said. "She looked like she was going to protest, but Gary probably wouldn't have taken no for an answer." With those words, Hope turned and got in her car. She drove off before Chris could respond.
Chris got to the nearest pay phone. She started to dial the firehouse, but decided against it. TC had been in such a huff lately that he'd probably accuse her of paying Gary off to take Monica to talk. She'd give Monica an hour. If she wasn't back by then, Chris would call TC. She settled onto a bench with a magazine from her car to wait.
"Where are we going, Gary?" Monica asked as she followed him back toward the center.
"Ssshhh. Don't you trust me, Monica?" he asked. "We're going to talk. Except it may not seem like talking. But don't worry. This will be very therapeutic for you."
Monica felt a shiver make its way up her back. She didn't like the sound of this. Suddenly Gary turned right, making them head off to one direction of the center. They came upon a light green minivan. Monica tried to memorize the license plate in case she'd need the information later.
Suddenly Gary pushed her from behind. As she went tumbling into the back of the van, she heard him mutter something to her. "You've been a very bad girl," Gary said.
Chris checked her watch for the tenth time in five minutes. It had been almost two hours since she'd sat down on the bench. Still no Monica. Chris went to the pay phone and called TC.
"All right, Gary is supposedly the last person who was with her. And since he's our prime suspect in all the suicide cases, we have to assume that Monica's in danger," TC said to all of his officers at the briefing later that evening. Almost all of my officers, he thought bitterly. Monica's not here. "If you find them, radio for backup immediately. No heroics. Everybody hear that? No heroics! Now, I want Gary's office searched, his car, and his house, everything he owns. I want her found!"
Chris and Bobby were assigned to Gary's house, Cory and Russ to the GIT center. TC would stay at the firehouse and dig up what he could on Gary.
As Chris and Bobby entered Gary's house, guns raised, she knew that they wouldn't be there. In almost all kidnapping cases, the kidnapper had never yet been dumb enough to take the victim back to his house. Probably because that was almost always searched first, other than the crime scene.
Cory and Russ walked through the Get In Touch center. Cory couldn't help feeling sorry for the girls who got sucked in by Gary's mysterious charm. They couldn't possibly know what they would be in for. It hadn't been proven yet, but Cory was sure that Gary was doing something to make the girls want to die. She was almost positive.
Back at the firehouse, TC was having no luck at all. Frustrated, he slammed his fist into a nearby wall. It hurt, but it was better than going through record after record and coming up with nothing. It was hard to imagine what was going to happen to Monica. The first hour was probably up. It must have been up for a long time. Chris had called him almost 2 hours after Monica was last seen. The first hour was the most crucial time in a kidnapping case, and TC hoped that it was a good thing that she hadn't turned up dead in a ditch somewhere. He sat back down at his computer and started searching again.
Monica didn't even know she was unconscious until she awoke hours later. She was dismayed to find Gary sitting quietly on a chair near her, watching her intently. She was on a long metal table, strapped down so she couldn't move.
"Where are we, Gary?" she asked him. He smiled, seeing for the first time that she was awake. "Where did you take me?" She tried to keep the terror out of her voice, but couldn't tell if she had succeeded.
"It doesn't matter where we are," he said in a voice that was supposed to be calming. "All that matters is that I give you the help that you need."
Monica choked back a scream as he turned off the lights and came toward her. What is he going to do to me, she thought before she passed out from sheer terror.
"Bingo!" TC cried out softly. He had just managed to access Gary's file in a very complicated database. He didn't usually work with the really complicated computer things. Granger and Harper did that kind of work. But since Harper was gone and Granger was looking for her, he was the only one left. Now he really regretted giving Jaime vacation time to go visit her sister.
Someone knocked on the door to his office. He looked up as Cory and Bobby entered. He motioned for them to sit down.
"Chris and I didn't find anything at Gary's house," Bobby said. "It was completely clean. Not a speck of dust or a shred of hair out of place. But I got a forensic team over there taking fingerprints. Maybe she was there earlier."
"Good. Check his phone records. Maybe he had an accomplice that he called to plan with," TC said. Bobby nodded and left. TC looked at Cory.
"Granger and I got nowhere at the Get In Touch center, TC," Cory told him regretfully. "All the girls we talked to said that Gary was into taking his patients places to help them concentrate and to be at ease so they could talk easier. They all said they trust him completely."
"Damn!" TC swore. Cory gave him a look. "Cory, it's been almost 5 hours since she was last seen. Anything could have happened to her."
"I know," Cory said with a sigh. "But I have a feeling that he wants to keep her alive. She'll be all right."
Monica woke up and every part of her body ached. She was stiff and she was tired. With great effort, she turned her head to find Gary once again staring intently at her.
"What happened?" she asked softly. Gary smiled evilly in the still dark room. She could practically feel the evil vibes coming off of him.
"Oh, nothing much," he began. "I just gave you a little physical therapy, Monica Harper."
Monica froze. Chills ran down her back. He knows who I am, she thought. He knows I'm a cop. But the next thought that ran through her mind was completely different. He raped me.
Gary smiled again. "Now, Monica, you aren't afraid, are you?" he asked with mock concern and sweetness. "I'm not going to hurt you. But what better way to get the attention of the Santa Monica police department than to have one of their star officers help me?"
Three Days Later
TC Callaway sat on the top of Cory's desk as she explained her theory to him. There hadn't been anymore suicides so it was easy to believe her theory. Cory's theory was that Gary was telling or doing something to the girls that committed suicide. As soon as TC heard her theory, he became even more worried about Monica. They still hadn't found her and this guy was becoming even more dangerous by the second.
"TC!" Russ yelled. TC turned to find Monica strolling through the double doors of the firehouse.
"Thank God," TC muttered as he followed Cory and Russ, who were rushing to Monica. " Where have you been?" TC asked once he'd reached her, and Cory had let her out of an embrace.
"I, um, was with Gary," Monica said. She didn't say anything else. She just stood there looking at the 3 of them.
She looks different, TC realized. More vulnerable. He gave her the quick once-over. She didn't appear to have any injuries that he could see. And it was definitely a plus that she walked into the firehouse on her own free will.
"Where is he?" TC asked. "Is he outside? Did he drop you off? Are you hurt? What happened?"
"Uh, nothing," Monica said averting her eyes. "I, uh, I..."
Cory offered her a sympathetic smile. "Why don't you go home and get some rest. We can all talk tomorrow."
Obvious relief showed on Monica's face. "Yeah, okay," she said. Russ followed her out. TC heard him say something about giving her a ride.
"What are you doing?" he asked Cory when he turned back to her. She gave him a questioning look. "For all we know, he could have hurt her. And we need to talk to her tonight, before she has time to come up with a fake story."
"Come on, TC," Cory scoffed. "Physically she's fine. I saw you checking her over. And you didn't see any injuries, or you wouldn't have let her leave in the first place."
"Whatever," TC said before he stomped upstairs to his office. He wanted to do a little more research on Gary.
Monica walked in her house and gave Russ a little wave. He honked the horn and took off down the road. She was glad that Cory was sympathetic. She needed time to think up a story. She knew that TC wanted one tonight, but he'd just have to wait.
Walking to her bedroom, she felt uncharacteristically depressed. I just want to lay down and cry, she thought. And she did. At least until the phone rang. Drying her tears, she picked up the receiver.
"Hello, Monica," Gary said at the other end. "I know you need to rest so I won't keep you long. But don't forget our little plan needs to be set in motion tomorrow morning."
"I won't forget, Gary," Monica promised. She regretted saying it as soon as she realized that she did. Gary wished her good luck and hung up the phone. What am I going to do, she thought to herself as she sunk back into the pillows.
"Where's Harper?" TC said impatiently the next morning. "My shift starts in five minutes and she was supposed to be here an hour ago so we could discuss what happened." He shot a pointed glare at Cory, who looked defeated. TC knew he shouldn't have let Harper walk out last night without giving him the information he needed.
"Listen TC, you should get going. My shift doesn't start for another hour, so I'll stay and wait," Cory said. "Maybe she overslept."
TC fixed her with a yeah, right stare, but mounted his bike and exited the firehouse. He had gone four blocks before he caught up with Bobby. They rode together for about five minutes. Then the call came.
"Any Pacific Blue Unit respond to a suicide attempt at Devil's Point," came the dispatch.
"This is 1-PB 4 and 5 responding," TC said before he and Bobby started racing toward Devil's Point. TC signaled for Bobby to handle the people at the bottom of the cliff and TC would go try to talk the jumper down.
As he neared the top of the cliff, he felt the sense of dread rising within him. He could just make out the blonde head at the top of the cliff. For a fleeting second, he thought it was just a regular civilian. But then his senses took control away from his emotions and he realized that it was Monica Harper.
He pulled his bike to a stop once he reached the top and raced toward the edge. From the height of the cliff, he could see Cruz handling crowd control down below.
"Monica," he said softly. She didn't turn around. She didn't show any signs that she even show any sign that she knew he was there. He knew that he was treading on thin ice here.
"Monica, everything will be fine," he said, continuing the soft tones of his voice. "Why don't we go somewhere and talk, or-" He was cut off when Monica spun around.
"I don't want to talk," she said in a gravely serious voice. He felt a little pang in his heart at the sight of her tears.
He decided to try a new strategy. The only problem was, it could very easily backfire and send Harper over the edge. Literally.
"Monica," he began tentatively. "Whatever happened to you when you were a little girl, it's OK. It doesn't matter."
More tears started coursing down her cheeks. "You don't understand. It isn't that simple. It does matter."
TC decided it was time to push a little harder, for he could see her resolve crumbling. "No, it doesn't matter. Not to me, not to anyone at the department."
"You just don't understand," she said quietly, turning back to the cliff. A cold chill ran down TC's back. She's going to do it, he thought briefly.
"Monica, I know that Gary is telling you to do this," TC said just as quietly. "But you don't have to. You can fight him. You don't have to listen to him."
She turned to face him again. Her face was contorted in anguish. "I can't do it," she said. "Not by myself."
"You won't be doing it by yourself," TC promised. "I'll help you. You don't have to listen to him, Monica. You don't have to do what he says."
As if for the first time, Monica seemed to realize that she didn't have to die. It was like she realized there was another option.
"Listen, all we'll need is your testimony. Then we can bring him down," TC told her. He saw words of protest forming at her lips and cut them off before she could say them. "I know it will be hard, but we can do it. I'll help you."
"Promise?" she whispered. Tears ran down her cheeks and he reached out to wipe them off.
"Of course I promise," he said with a smile. He grabbed her hand and led her away from the edge of the cliff.
TC settled himself on the couch and waited. After taking Monica down from the cliff, they continued on foot until they reached Monica's house. They talked, but not about what had almost happened.
"I guess you want to know what happened," Monica said as she sat down beside him.
"Only if you're ready to tell me," he assured her. He knew that when she was ready to tell him, she would.
"Before I tell you what you want to know, answer me one thing," she said. He gave her a curious look. "How did you know what happened to me when I was a child?"
TC gave her a sheepish look. "Well, I really didn't know about any one specific thing," he said. "But after Chris told me you were changing details that you two had already worked out and that she thought you had some personal involvement with the case, I began to put the piece together. At first, I thought that Chris was just really fed up with you. But then I began to notice it too. I think that what really tipped me off was when I looked in your file again. So many stepfathers. You were always complaining about having so many. I figured one of them did something to really tick you off."
"Yeah, well, one did," Monica said. "The last one. Curt. He's the one I had the most problems with."
"What kind of problems?" TC asked, not wanting to pry, although very curious.
"Well, it all started with my mom," she said. She gave a little sigh but continued. "She worked in a bar. She started cheating and Curt found out. He figured, what better way to get back at her then to take away her only daughter's innocence."
TC stared at her for a moment, at a loss for words, not sure what to say to her. Luckily, he didn't have to.
"One night, when my mom was working a double shift, he came into my room. He said we were going to do things. Grown up things. He said I could never tell anyone about the things we did. Then he raped me."
"Did he do it every night?" TC asked. He was finding himself morbidly interested in what she was saying. He just couldn't believe that Harper, strong tough Harper, had once been at the mercy of a man.
"He did it every night he could. After a while, he didn't refrain himself to just nights. Every time my mom left the house, I would hide in my room, knowing full well that he would find me."
"How long did you put up with this?" TC asked. "How long did he hurt you?"
Monica looked at her feet. "Fiveyears," she mumbled quickly. TC gave her a look.
"A little slower, if you don't mind," TC said. She looked at him but looked down again quickly.
"He did this for five years," she said quietly. "After that, I went to live with my grandmother."
TC stared at her, mouth agape. "You let him molest you and hurt you for five years?" he asked in disbelief. "Why?"
"What other choice did I have?" she asked him. "Tell my mother? Like she would actually believe me." She laughed bitterly. "Go to the police? Like they would believe a twelve year old girl."
"When did this start? I mean, how old were you when he started to, you know..." TC asked.
"I was seven when it started, and I was twelve when my grandmother got me away from them. I never said anything, but I think she knew."
TC just sat there for a moment, absorbing the information. It was no wonder that Harper had closed herself off to the outside world. She had been hurt very bad.
"Monica," TC said. She turned her head so that she was looking at him. "Did Gary hurt you? Did he rape you?"
Monica looked pained for a moment before she answered him. "Yes," she whispered. "Gary raped me." Tears started running down her cheeks. TC pulled her into his embrace as she started to sob.
Monica awoke the next morning in TC's arms. She was stiff, and every muscle in her body screamed in pain when she tried to move.
"Hey," TC said when he saw that she was awake. He has the most amazing brown eyes, Monica thought as he smiled at her.
"Hey yourself," she said back. "What are we doing up her? Last thing I remember is you holding me on the couch."
"Well, you looked pretty beat last night. You fell asleep and I carried you upstairs. I started to leave, but you wouldn't let go of me. When I pulled it away, you started whimpering so I decided to stay," he said with a grin.
Monica flushed. "Uh, sorry. You could have left anyway," she added as an afterthought.
"And miss that gorgeous smile when you woke up? Not on your life, Harper," TC said, making her get butterflies in her stomach.
"What about Chris," Monica asked with a hint of sarcasm. "Won't she miss you?"
"I called her last night," TC said. "I told her where I was and told her not to wait up."
"Trouble in paradise," Monica asked as she raised an eyebrow. She smirked before adding," I'm sure that it will be perfect again tomorrow."
"I doubt it," TC sighed. "I was ecstatic when Chris showed up a week ago. But she's different and I'm different. It's not gonna work out between us."
"Oh," Monica said, not sure of what else to say. TC seemed to sense this because he patted her hand.
"You don't have to say anything else," he said.
That evening TC persuaded Monica to call her doctor and make an appointment.
"You never know. This guy could have some disease," he'd said to her. So she had called Dr. Grace Williams and made an appointment for the next day.
TC stayed over again that night. They went to bed around 10:00. TC woke up four hours later and reached for Monica, but she wasn't there. He got out of bed and went down the hall to the bathroom. The light was on and he could hear someone retching on the other side of the door.
He lightly pushed the door open and held Monica's hair back from her face until she was finished. Then he pulled her to his chest as she began to sob softly. TC rubbed her back and neck while he whispered words of comfort into her hair. After a while her sobs ceased. She continued to sniffle, and TC picked her up and carried her back into the bedroom. He tucked her in and propped himself up on some pillows so he could keep a nightly vigil over her. As soon as he was settled, she curled her body around his and drifted slowly off to sleep.
When Monica woke up the next morning TC was still sleeping. She got up quietly, so she wouldn't wake him. She got out her clothes and went into the bathroom to get dressed. When she came out, TC was still in the position he was when she went into the bathroom so she went downstairs.
Monica thought about making breakfast, but the thought nauseated her. Thoughts of last night came rushing back into her mind as she pulled her shoes on. Then she heard it. Gary. His voice calling to her. She tried to shake it off, tried to block it from her mind, but it was no use. She had to get out of this house. She scribbled TC a quick note and bolted out the door, leaving Gary's cries behind her.
TC yawned and stretched out on Monica's bed. He didn't see Monica, so he figured that she was downstairs. He got up, put on a fresh T-shirt, and went downstairs.
Downstairs, he didn't see any sign of her. He was starting to get worried when he saw a note on the refrigerator. It said:
TC
Didn't want to wake you. I decided to go jogging. Be back later.
Monica
TC threw the note in the garbage after he read it. He got the orange juice out of the refrigerator and poured himself a glass. Then he settled in to wait for Monica to return.
Four hours later Monica walked into her house. TC pounced on her as soon as she was in the door.
"Where the hell were you?" he yelled. Monica was shocked by his attitude. She had spent the day wandering around, trying to get her thoughts organized.
"I was just walking around town," Monica said. "Why? What happened?"
TC looked at her in disbelief. "What happened? I'll tell you what happened. You left me a short little note saying that you'd gone jogging and you'd be back soon. Then four hours later you pop back into your house asking what's wrong," TC said. "I was worried, Monica. I called Cory two hours ago and told her to put every available officer out looking for you."
"Oh, God, TC, I feel awful," Monica said. "I had no idea that you would be so worried. Truth is, I completely lost track of time. I am so sorry."
TC's expression softened. "I'm sorry too," he said. "If you want to spend the day out, that's none of my business. But I was just so worried. I thought maybe...."
"No," Monica said firmly. "I won't, TC. I promise you, I won't ever do that again." TC hugged her close to him.
Monica walked into the firehouse and suppressed a sigh. It had been a week since the abduction and rape, but she had gotten sick every morning. She had talked to Russ about it and he said it was probably a reflex. But now Monica wasn't so sure. She raised her hand and knocked on the door.
"Come in." Monica opened the door and Cory looked up at her. She smiled warmly and motioned to a chair. She and Monica had become quite close.
Monica sat down in the chair and wrung her hands nervously. Cory was not going to take this well. But she'll have to do, Monica thought. Because TC will take this worse.
"What can I do for you, Monica?" Cory asked putting down her pen.
Monica looked at her feet. "Well, for starters you can take this and process it," Monica said handing Cory the papers. She cringed and waited for the surprised reaction. It was a little subdued, but it came.
"Resignation papers? You're quitting?" Cory seemed a bit shocked.
"Yeah, well, I need to move on," Monica said. "I can't stay here. I've been here too long already." She turned and walked out of the office.
Cory was shocked to say the least. Monica had been so sweet and nice these past few months and within seconds she reverted had back to bitch-mode. Or ice queen mode, as Granger called it.
Cory walked out of her office and went downstairs. "I'll process these," she told Monica. "And I'll allow you to burn this bridge. But don't burn them all. You may need to cross some of them outside of work." She nodded to TC, who was coming out of his office and down the stairs. "I'm not going to tell him," Cory told her.
"Well, I'm not going to either," Monica said. "He'll get the papers. He can find out then."
"Find out what?" TC asked coming over to them. Cory shot Monica a look. Monica didn't say anything.
"Find out that Monica's quitting," Cory said finally. TC's eyebrows shot up. Cory gave Monica a nasty smile.
"Quitting? Why?" TC asked Monica. "Why are you quitting?" He seemed unable to believe it.
"I'm bored here," Monica said, not lying completely. "I want to try something new."
"So try skydiving!" TC yelled, sounding exasperated. "Go deep sea diving or bungee jumping. But don't quit your job."
"Sorry. It's already done," Monica said. "I wasn't going to depend on Cory to process my papers so I took them to the Chief myself. As of now, I officially don't work here. See you guys around." She turned and walked out the door, leaving a stunned TC and Cory standing open mouthed in her wake.
Monica walked into Baywatch headquarters and checked her watch. She was five minutes early for her interview. She hoped this one would work out. She was tired of being turned down on the spot.
It had been three days since she had quit Pacific Blue. She had gone to the doctor, only to find out some shocking news. Granger was wrong about the retching. It wasn't a reflex.
Someone calling her name jolted her out of her thoughts. She looked up and followed Lt. Buchannan into his office.
"Your record looks pretty good," he said. "Looks like you've got yourself a new job, Monica."
"Lt. Buchannan," she began, but he cut her off before she could go on.
"Mitch," he said. "Call me Mitch. Everyone does."
She smiled. "Ok, Mitch. I think I should tell you this before this goes too far." He looked at her curiously. "I'm pregnant."
"Congratulations," he said, looking unfazed. "I'm sure you and your husband must be very excited."
"Actually I'm not married. I'm not even involved with anyone," Monica said. "I just thought having a pregnant lifeguard would be a problem."
"Oh, on the contrary," Mitch said. "It would be helpful. You could work the switchboard during your pregnancy. Then, after you have the baby, you could start training to become a lifeguard. That way you still have a job. You wouldn't believe how many qualified lifeguards have to be stuck with switchboard duty. It would be a big help to have you do it."
Monica was stunned, to say the least. This man was so laid back. Nothing was a problem. Nothing bothered him.
"Welcome to Baywatch, Monica," Mitch said reaching over the desk to shake her hand. "When can you start?" Monica smiled and shook his hand.
"Caroline will show you around," Mitch said. I have a board meeting in fifteen minutes."
"Ok," Monica said standing up. "And thanks again, Mitch."
"No problem," he said. Caroline came into his office. "Caroline, this is Monica Harper. Monica, this is Caroline Holden, a senior ocean lifeguard."
The girls shook hands.
"And this is where you'll be working," Caroline said when they came upon the switchboard desk. A young red head was sitting there, waiting for the next call to come in. "This is Jessie Palermo," Caroline said.
"Hi," the red head turned around. Monica shook her hand and racked her brain. She could have sworn she'd heard the name before.
"Hi. I'm Monica Harper." Jessie searched her brain. She knew that name. She just couldn't remember from where.
Caroline proceeded to tell Jessie about the arrangement. But neither girl was listening. They were each thinking about how they knew the other. Later, after Jessie's shift had ended, she and Monica were walking along the beach.
"So you're pregnant?" Jessie asked trying to make conversation.
"Yeah," Monica said. "I'm pregnant." They walked along in silence for a while.
Jessie snuck a peak at Monica's hand. "No ring?" she asked.
"No. I'm not married. Or involved with anyone, for that matter," Monica said.
"Then how can you be pregnant? Sorry," Jessie said when Monica gave her a surprised look. "I'm just curious."
"I was abducted and raped," Monica said quietly.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Jessie said. "I had no idea. Open mouth, insert foot."
Monica laughed. "Oh, it's OK. You didn't know. And anyway, TC and Cory saved me."
"TC and Cory?" Jessie asked. Monica nodded. "How do you know them?"
"I work, uh used to, work with them," Monica said. "Why? Do you know them?"
"Yeah, I know them!" Jessie said. "My dad used to-"
"Be their lieutenant," Monica finished for her. "That's where I know the name from!"
Monica walked into her house. She had planned to take a shower, but she could do it before work tomorrow. She was too exhausted now. She and Jessie had talked for hours. Monica had never told anyone as much about her life as she had told Jessie. And Jessie had told her so many things. Jessie's father Tony had moved to Italy. But he came back. Jessie had transferred to the community college in Malibu so she could be close to him. They were living across town from each other. Monica told her about TC, her nights with him, her former crush on him. Jessie had readily agreed that he was cute.
The light on her answering machine was blinking. She pushed the button and began to get ready for bed. Soon TC's voice filled the room.
"Harper, I just wanted to see how you were doing, he said. Call me back when you can. Bye."
He sounded different from what she remembered. She sat down on her bed and began to cry.
Bang bang bang. Monica climbed out of bed, prepared to tell whoever it was at the door off. She opened the door to find Russ standing on the doorstep.
"Hey," he greeted her with a smile. He noticed her silk robe and cringed. "Did I wake you?"
"No, I had to get up anyway," Monica said. "Being late on the first day of a new job isn't exactly a good sign."
"New job?" Russ echoed. He hadn't thought Harper would be so ambitious to get a new job.
"Yeah," Monica said. "Although it was difficult to get. I'm working at Baywatch on the switchboard for a few months."
"Why the switchboard?" Russ asked.
"I don't think having a pregnant lifeguard on the beach is wise," Monica said.
"Pregnant? Did I just hear you right? You said pregnant?" Russ was shocked.
"Yeah," Monica said. "I'm pregnant. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready for work." She shut the door in his face and raced to the bathroom. She had barely pulled her hair back when she started heaving.
Monica arrived at work on time. Mitch showed her around and then she started at the switchboard, taking over for Jessie.
She had been working for an hour when she got her first emergency. It came on her headset.
"This is KMF295 to Baywatch Headquarters. Come in, Baywatch Headquarters."
"Baywatch Headquarters. Go ahead, 295," Monica said.
"We have a boat fire. It's a pretty big boat. Forty to fifty people in the water," Cody Madison said. "We need all available backup."
Monica got back on the radio after getting off with Cody. "KMF295 requested all available backup. Boat fire. Forty to fifty victims." Monica gave the coordinates and waited for backup to call in.
Mitch was standing in the doorway, watching her. "Just wait until you're out there and you get a call like that," he said. "It's a lot more stressful, especially if you get sidetracked on the way there."
"I can't even imagine it," Monica said. "I don't want to."
"You handled it like a pro," Mitch said. "You were really quick to catch on."
"Yeah, well when you work on a bike patrol, you hear those kind of calls all the time," Monica said.
Mitch smiled. "So now you've been on both ends of these things. Which end do you like better?"
"Honestly?" Monica asked. "I like getting the calls. At least I did as a cop. I'm not sure as a lifeguard."
"Everyone's that way," Mitch said. "But don't worry. We'll get you out there after you have the baby. How's that coming, by the way?"
"Oh, it's coming. Coming out," Monica said, making a face. "This baby is giving me hell."
"They usually do," Mitch said smiling. "They usually do."
"I swear, TC. She's got a new job, new friends, everything," Russ said in TC's office the next morning. He didn't work yesterday, which is why TC didn't know this yesterday.
"Where is she working?" TC asked. Russ had told him about Monica being pregnant. He couldn't see her working anywhere.
"Baywatch Headquarters. She works switchboard. From what I understand, her boss is very willing to work around her schedule," Russ said.
"I would have worked around her schedule," TC said bitterly. "Why didn't she come to me?"
"Don't feel bad, OK. I wouldn't have found out unless I hadn't dropped by her house," Russ told him.
"I've got to go see her," TC said. "Maybe I can talk her into coming back."
"I wouldn't count on it," Russ said.
"Oh my- Tony!" TC and Russ both turned at the sound of Cory's voice. TC was shocked to see his former lieutenant Tony Palermo.
"Tony!" Cory was hugging Tony, and TC hurried to be next in line.
"How's it going, guys?" he asked them as they seated themselves in TC's office. "How have you guys been?"
"Great," Cory said. "What about you? I thought you were in Italy."
"I was, but I came back," Tony said. "I missed Jess, too. She's in college and she's got a job now."
"Where does she work?" TC asked.
"Baywatch, I think. She's a lifeguard," Tony said.
"Small world," TC commented. Tony and Cory each gave him a strange look.
"You've never worked there, TC," Cory said.
"No, but according to Granger, Harper does," he said.
"Who?" Tony said.
"One of my officers, Monica Harper, quit the other day. My other officers tell me she works at Baywatch now."
"You know, you could pay her a visit. Without really paying her a visit," Tony said.
"What?" Both TC and Cory said this at once.
"You could come with me to see Jessie and maybe see Monica while we're there," Tony said.
"What are we waiting for? Let's go," TC said standing up.
"Sorry, guys, I can't go," Cory said. "I have a ton of paperwork to do."
"Oh, that was awful," Monica said to Jessie as they got out of the shower. "It's been such a long day."
"You think it's been a long day? Did you see those killer riptides today? I must have pulled six people out of the water today. And those are the people that I specifically told not to go in the water."
The girls talked a little more as they changed. Monica went over to the mirror while Jessie put her earrings back on. She turned sideways and sighed. It had only been a month since she had gone to the doctor, but she was already showing. Showing big time.
"Get used to it, girl," Jessie said coming up behind her. "You're going to look like that for a while, hon."
"Don't remind me," Monica moaned, rubbing her queasy stomach. "I have been so sick with this baby."
Monica and Jessie walked out of the locker room. They were working the graveyard shift and there was hardly anyone there. Which was why they were surprised to hear Cody talking to someone.
"Dad!" Jessie said and rushed to give her father a hug. Monica, meanwhile, stood with Cody off to the side and refused to look at TC.
"Harper." That was all he had to say. Tears sprang to her eyes as she ran back into the locker room. She leaned her head against the wall, trying to calm herself.
"I should go after her," Jessie said. Tony nodded.
"I didn't mean to make her cry," TC said. "I really didn't.
"I wouldn't worry about it, man," Cody said. "I heard that being pregnant really takes its toll on the hormones."
Jessie entered the locker room. "Monica," she called softly. She saw Monica sitting on the bench by her locker, sobbing.
"It's all right," Jessie said soothingly as she held Monica. But Jessie didn't know if it was. She didn't even know why Monica was crying.
"I'm sorry," Monica said, wiping her eyes. "I really am. I don't know what's wrong with me."
"It's just hormones," Jessie said. "But TC was really freaked out. He kept saying that he didn't mean to make you cry."
"He didn't. I'm just in a mood," Monica explained. "I guess I should say something to him."
"Not if you don't want to," Jessie said. "I'll tell him you're tired or something."
"Thanks, Jess," Monica said. "I really don't feel like talking to him."
All three men looked up as Jessie exited the locker room. TC was disappointed to see that she was by herself.
"She's tired," Jessie said to TC. "She says she's sorry, but she's really emotional, you know?"
"Yeah, I understand," TC said, keeping his voice light. When he and Tony were in the car, however, TC didn't bother to hide his anger.
"Damn it, why is she avoiding me?" TC said. "What did I do, Tony?"
"You heard Jessie," Tony said. "It's her. She's pregnant and she's emotional. No big thing."
"No, Tony, it is a big thing," TC said. "We were fine before she found out she was pregnant. We were getting really close. Now she won't even talk to me! This isn't right!"
"TC, calm down," Tony said in his rational and soft voice. "Maybe you should give her some space for a while. Maybe she needs some time to deal."
TC considered what his old friend was saying. "You know, Tony, I think you might be right."
"Monica Harper," The nurse called. Monica stood up and followed her into an examining room. She is now six months pregnant and she is getting her first sonogram.
The nurse got her situated and then left to get the doctor. As Monica lay on the table, she felt the baby kick. It was kicking really fast, first on one side of her growing stomach and then the other.
Dr. Williams came in and turned the monitor so she could see it. Soon Monica could see the large outline of a baby.
"Well, as you can probably see, you aren't having a baby," Dr. Williams said.
Monica looked at her, surprised. "What do you mean?" she asked in an alarmed voice.
"You're having twins!" Dr. Williams pronounced gleefully. "Congratulations!"
Monica's moth dropped open in shock. "Twins? Wow. I had no idea- I mean I didn't expect- This is a complete shock!"
"Would you like to know what they are?" Dr. Williams asked. "I could tell you today, even though they aren't totally facing us."
"Um, yeah, sure. Tell me what they are," Monica said uncertainly.
"You're having two little girls," Dr. Williams said. Monica's head swarmed with thoughts of raising two little girls, watching them grow, and being their mother. She had to tell Jessie!
"Oh my gosh, that's incredible!" Jessie screamed over the phone. Monica had called her that night to give her the good news. "This is fantastic!"
"I know, I can hardly believe it myself," Monica said excitedly. "I'm gonna be a mom!"
"This is so great!" Jessie exclaimed. "You're gonna be a great mom!"
"And you're gonna be a great aunt," Monica said. "Two little girls," she continued dreamily. "Who would have thought?"
"Everyone quiet," Jessie said loudly, trying to be quiet at the same time. "She can't hear us!"
"Cody, you're sitting on my hand," Caroline complained in a whisper. "Get off!"
"Sorry," Cody said. Jessie could hear him moving as he lifted himself off of Caroline.
"Cody, now you're sitting on my hand," JD complained. Jessie stifled a laugh. She heard footsteps and quietly shushed everyone.
She flipped on the light and everyone yelled," Surprise!" Monica stood in the doorway, looking stunned.
Cody took her and led her to the folding table full of wrapped gifts. Jessie looked around, but she didn't see the people she was looking for. Damn.
Monica opened gift after gift, exclaiming in glee and joy over each one. When she was done she hugged everyone and Jessie could see her eyes were misty.
Later that day, Cody, Jessie, Monica, and Caroline were standing on the outside deck of Baywatch Headquarters. They weren't doing anything, just watching the sun set slowly in the distance.
"Are we late?" Everyone spun around at the sound, though Monica tensed at the familiar voice.
Monica Harper sighed as she inserted her key in her front door lock. It had been a long day. All the others had someone to go home to. Cory had Will, TC had Chris, and Bobby was now staying with Russ and Jaime. She was coming home alone to an empty house.
She walked upstairs to her bedroom. She turned on the lamp by her bed, ignoring the open window through which she could see into TC's room. She had no desire to see him with Chris. She had been ecstatic when Chris had left, but was now cold and bitter because Chris had returned, at least for now. When Chris wasn't here TC had been in good moods. He had paid more attention to her feelings. Now he was going to start dismissing them again.
If it wasn't bad enough that Chris was back, then it was bad enough that her first assignment was with Monica. That meant Monica had to live with it. The assignment had been to find out what was going on with all the suicides in town recently. They all seemed to be connected with a club called Get In Touch. Monica and Chris had joined the club undercover and were supposed to get to the bottom of the whole thing. The club was supposed to be therapeutic.
Again, Monica sighed as she climbed into bed. The last girl to commit suicide had been very much like Monica. She had been wrongly abused by her mother. Molested by her father. Monica had gone through the same thing as a child. For five years she lived with the abuse and being molested by her stepfather. When she was 12 she went to live with her grandmother. When she was 19, her grandmother had been beaten to death by a robber who had entered her home. That's when Monica decided that she wanted to go into law enforcement. To avenge her grandmother's death.
Monica walked side by side with Chris as they neared the Get In Touch center. Chris hadn't tried to make conversation and Monica had no desire to try. She was perfectly content with ignoring Chris.
Most of the girls came to the center regularly. The ones that showed up every day were already here. Monica and Chris went their separate ways. They had each befriended different people. Chris had gotten to know the girls that were a good way through the healing process and took on the role herself. Monica, meanwhile, had befriended the girls who recently joined the program. She was acting as a survivor of being molested and raped by an unnamed family member. Not too far off the truth, she thought. Monica was the closest to a girl named Hope. Hope was tiny and shy. She was 17, but she didn't look a day older than 14. Monica wondered how she could have possibly survived the abuse she had sustained.
Gary, the man in charge of everything in Get In Touch, walked into the room and sat down on the floor near Chris. The rest of the girls quickly scurried to make a circle around him. He seemed to be the only force behind GIT. He cleared his throat, the signal that he was ready to start.
"I think we should hear from the new members of the group today," he said in his gentle voice. He looked directly at Monica. " Will you start, please?"
Monica snuck a look at Chris, who looked mildly amused. "I'm Monica Lake, and I'm a survivor of rape," she said quietly.
"That's nice, but that's not what I wanted. True, you did admit it. But we need to know your whole story. This is Get In Touch, not rape survival." Monica must have looked surprised, because he quickly added," Keep going. You're doing fine."
"Um, OK. I was molested and raped by a certain member of my family." She stopped, but went on when he gave her an approving nod. "I survived. End of story."
"How long did it go on?" Monica hesitated because she and Chris hadn't bothered to work out that little detail. "Monica?"
Monica just decided to go with the truth. "Five years," she said quietly, trying hard to keep the pain out of her eyes. Chris, across from Monica in the circle was trying to look bored. She searched Monica's eyes when she brought her head back up. Yes, Chris thought. Something is definitely going on there. Have to talk to TC about it later.
Later, as Monica and Chris walked toward the car they brought, Chris thought about the session. Monica wasn't sticking to the details they had worked out ahead of time and Chris wanted to know why.
"Monica?" Chris asked. Monica stopped and turned to face her. "Why have you been changing our stories? You changed all the details we already worked out."
"Oh, did I? I'm sorry," Monica said as she started walking to the car again. She opened the driver's door and got in. When Chris got in she started the car and drove off in the direction of the firehouse.
TC Callaway was working at his desk when someone knocked on the door. "Come in," he said, not even looking up. Chris entered the room.
"TC. We need to talk about this case," she said. He looked up at her for the first time since she'd come into the room. She looked upset. "I don't think that this is the right case for Monica to work on."
TC looked at her in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me, right? You despise Harper so much that you need me to take her off this case?"
"No, TC, that is not what I meant. True, I don't like Monica, but this has nothing to do with that, "Chris said. "Monica has something personal with this case, I know she does. She has changed almost every detail that we worked out previously."
TC looked agitated. "Don't you think you should take that up with Harper? Look, Chris, I have a lot of work to do. And these teenage girls' suicides really aren't helping the amount of sleep I get at night. If you have a problem with Harper, take it up with Harper." Chris closed the door, seething with anger.
"Hello," Monica said groggily as she picked up the telephone. The clock on her bedside stand read 3:00 AM.
"Monica? I'm so glad you're home." It was Gary's voice on the other end of the line. "I'm glad you're there. I need to talk to you."
Every bone in Moncia's body told her to put down the phone and never pick it up again, but her mind was telling her differently. His voice was so hypnotic. She would hear him out and then go back to sleep.
Monica picked up the telephone five hours later, the tears still streaming down her face. She dialed the firehouse. Russ answered.
"Hey, Russ, it's Monica. Can you tell TC or Cory that I won't be in today?" she asked. She hoped he didn't ask any questions.
"Uh, Monica I have to go on patrol. Here's Chris." With that, Russ handed the phone to Chris, who was standing nearby.
"Russ? Russ? Don't you dare...." Monica started to say.
"Monica?" It was Chris's voice. "Granger had to go on patrol. Do you have a reason for not coming in today?"
"Uh, yeah" Monica said. "PMS. And I have a major migraine," she lied. She knew they could never know the real reason.
"PMS, huh? When aren't you PMS-ing, Harper?" Chris asked snottily. "I'm not calling you off. You have 5 minutes to be here." Chris hung the phone up.
Monica stared at the phone receiver with disbelief. "That bitch," she muttered as she walked to her closet. Now Monica had to go to work. She would need plenty of make-up.
TC came out of his office and saw Chris still standing downstairs. "Harper not here yet?" he asked.
"Nope. She just called. She wanted the day off, but I wouldn't give it to her," Chris said.
"Why in the hell not? She's certainly got the vacation and sick days to take," TC said.
Just then Monica walked through the door. She was pale, despite the make-up she had obviously piled on. Her eyes were red and puffy. She looked like hell.
"Let's go," she said to Chris. "Since you couldn't give me the day off, you should at least be ready to go when I get here."
"Boy, when you said you were PMS-ing you weren't kidding, were you?" Chris asked. TC watched the exchange with mixed feelings of amusement and feelings of worry. Harper looked really bad. Like she was up all night being sick. He hoped Chris wouldn't give her a hard time.
Monica followed Hope out of the GIT center. It had been a killer meeting. Gary had seemed to pick on Monica again. She hated the way he looked at her. It was like he knew she was a cop and he was punishing her by bringing up her childhood traumas.
"Monica!" He was right on cue with his call. She was looking forward to going home, taking a nice hot bubble bath, and having a much needed cry. She seemed to be crying more and more since she was assigned this case.
"What?" She asked as she turned around. Gary had this dumb smile on his face. She had seen that smile before. It's the one he gets on his face when he thinks he's going to help someone.
"I was thinking that maybe you could stay awhile," Gary said. " You know, so we could talk some more about what happened."
Monica was very tempted to say no. But once she looked into his green eyes, she forgot all about her bubble bath. Besides, she told herself, you can cry anywhere. She smiled at him. "All right." Hope gave her a small smile.
Chris saw Hope walking toward her car. She stopped her, wondering where Monica was. She wanted to compare theories.
"Hope," Chris called out. Hope turned to face her. Chris could see that the girl was smiling. "Have you seen Monica?"
"Of course," Hope said, her grin widening. "Gary asked her to stay and talk with him and she accepted. I think she's finally ready to get help."
"Wait, you're saying she went with Gary by herself?" Chris asked. "Did she look like she really wanted to?"
"Chris, I don't see what the problem is," Hope said. "She looked like she was going to protest, but Gary probably wouldn't have taken no for an answer." With those words, Hope turned and got in her car. She drove off before Chris could respond.
Chris got to the nearest pay phone. She started to dial the firehouse, but decided against it. TC had been in such a huff lately that he'd probably accuse her of paying Gary off to take Monica to talk. She'd give Monica an hour. If she wasn't back by then, Chris would call TC. She settled onto a bench with a magazine from her car to wait.
"Where are we going, Gary?" Monica asked as she followed him back toward the center.
"Ssshhh. Don't you trust me, Monica?" he asked. "We're going to talk. Except it may not seem like talking. But don't worry. This will be very therapeutic for you."
Monica felt a shiver make its way up her back. She didn't like the sound of this. Suddenly Gary turned right, making them head off to one direction of the center. They came upon a light green minivan. Monica tried to memorize the license plate in case she'd need the information later.
Suddenly Gary pushed her from behind. As she went tumbling into the back of the van, she heard him mutter something to her. "You've been a very bad girl," Gary said.
Chris checked her watch for the tenth time in five minutes. It had been almost two hours since she'd sat down on the bench. Still no Monica. Chris went to the pay phone and called TC.
"All right, Gary is supposedly the last person who was with her. And since he's our prime suspect in all the suicide cases, we have to assume that Monica's in danger," TC said to all of his officers at the briefing later that evening. Almost all of my officers, he thought bitterly. Monica's not here. "If you find them, radio for backup immediately. No heroics. Everybody hear that? No heroics! Now, I want Gary's office searched, his car, and his house, everything he owns. I want her found!"
Chris and Bobby were assigned to Gary's house, Cory and Russ to the GIT center. TC would stay at the firehouse and dig up what he could on Gary.
As Chris and Bobby entered Gary's house, guns raised, she knew that they wouldn't be there. In almost all kidnapping cases, the kidnapper had never yet been dumb enough to take the victim back to his house. Probably because that was almost always searched first, other than the crime scene.
Cory and Russ walked through the Get In Touch center. Cory couldn't help feeling sorry for the girls who got sucked in by Gary's mysterious charm. They couldn't possibly know what they would be in for. It hadn't been proven yet, but Cory was sure that Gary was doing something to make the girls want to die. She was almost positive.
Back at the firehouse, TC was having no luck at all. Frustrated, he slammed his fist into a nearby wall. It hurt, but it was better than going through record after record and coming up with nothing. It was hard to imagine what was going to happen to Monica. The first hour was probably up. It must have been up for a long time. Chris had called him almost 2 hours after Monica was last seen. The first hour was the most crucial time in a kidnapping case, and TC hoped that it was a good thing that she hadn't turned up dead in a ditch somewhere. He sat back down at his computer and started searching again.
Monica didn't even know she was unconscious until she awoke hours later. She was dismayed to find Gary sitting quietly on a chair near her, watching her intently. She was on a long metal table, strapped down so she couldn't move.
"Where are we, Gary?" she asked him. He smiled, seeing for the first time that she was awake. "Where did you take me?" She tried to keep the terror out of her voice, but couldn't tell if she had succeeded.
"It doesn't matter where we are," he said in a voice that was supposed to be calming. "All that matters is that I give you the help that you need."
Monica choked back a scream as he turned off the lights and came toward her. What is he going to do to me, she thought before she passed out from sheer terror.
"Bingo!" TC cried out softly. He had just managed to access Gary's file in a very complicated database. He didn't usually work with the really complicated computer things. Granger and Harper did that kind of work. But since Harper was gone and Granger was looking for her, he was the only one left. Now he really regretted giving Jaime vacation time to go visit her sister.
Someone knocked on the door to his office. He looked up as Cory and Bobby entered. He motioned for them to sit down.
"Chris and I didn't find anything at Gary's house," Bobby said. "It was completely clean. Not a speck of dust or a shred of hair out of place. But I got a forensic team over there taking fingerprints. Maybe she was there earlier."
"Good. Check his phone records. Maybe he had an accomplice that he called to plan with," TC said. Bobby nodded and left. TC looked at Cory.
"Granger and I got nowhere at the Get In Touch center, TC," Cory told him regretfully. "All the girls we talked to said that Gary was into taking his patients places to help them concentrate and to be at ease so they could talk easier. They all said they trust him completely."
"Damn!" TC swore. Cory gave him a look. "Cory, it's been almost 5 hours since she was last seen. Anything could have happened to her."
"I know," Cory said with a sigh. "But I have a feeling that he wants to keep her alive. She'll be all right."
Monica woke up and every part of her body ached. She was stiff and she was tired. With great effort, she turned her head to find Gary once again staring intently at her.
"What happened?" she asked softly. Gary smiled evilly in the still dark room. She could practically feel the evil vibes coming off of him.
"Oh, nothing much," he began. "I just gave you a little physical therapy, Monica Harper."
Monica froze. Chills ran down her back. He knows who I am, she thought. He knows I'm a cop. But the next thought that ran through her mind was completely different. He raped me.
Gary smiled again. "Now, Monica, you aren't afraid, are you?" he asked with mock concern and sweetness. "I'm not going to hurt you. But what better way to get the attention of the Santa Monica police department than to have one of their star officers help me?"
Three Days Later
TC Callaway sat on the top of Cory's desk as she explained her theory to him. There hadn't been anymore suicides so it was easy to believe her theory. Cory's theory was that Gary was telling or doing something to the girls that committed suicide. As soon as TC heard her theory, he became even more worried about Monica. They still hadn't found her and this guy was becoming even more dangerous by the second.
"TC!" Russ yelled. TC turned to find Monica strolling through the double doors of the firehouse.
"Thank God," TC muttered as he followed Cory and Russ, who were rushing to Monica. " Where have you been?" TC asked once he'd reached her, and Cory had let her out of an embrace.
"I, um, was with Gary," Monica said. She didn't say anything else. She just stood there looking at the 3 of them.
She looks different, TC realized. More vulnerable. He gave her the quick once-over. She didn't appear to have any injuries that he could see. And it was definitely a plus that she walked into the firehouse on her own free will.
"Where is he?" TC asked. "Is he outside? Did he drop you off? Are you hurt? What happened?"
"Uh, nothing," Monica said averting her eyes. "I, uh, I..."
Cory offered her a sympathetic smile. "Why don't you go home and get some rest. We can all talk tomorrow."
Obvious relief showed on Monica's face. "Yeah, okay," she said. Russ followed her out. TC heard him say something about giving her a ride.
"What are you doing?" he asked Cory when he turned back to her. She gave him a questioning look. "For all we know, he could have hurt her. And we need to talk to her tonight, before she has time to come up with a fake story."
"Come on, TC," Cory scoffed. "Physically she's fine. I saw you checking her over. And you didn't see any injuries, or you wouldn't have let her leave in the first place."
"Whatever," TC said before he stomped upstairs to his office. He wanted to do a little more research on Gary.
Monica walked in her house and gave Russ a little wave. He honked the horn and took off down the road. She was glad that Cory was sympathetic. She needed time to think up a story. She knew that TC wanted one tonight, but he'd just have to wait.
Walking to her bedroom, she felt uncharacteristically depressed. I just want to lay down and cry, she thought. And she did. At least until the phone rang. Drying her tears, she picked up the receiver.
"Hello, Monica," Gary said at the other end. "I know you need to rest so I won't keep you long. But don't forget our little plan needs to be set in motion tomorrow morning."
"I won't forget, Gary," Monica promised. She regretted saying it as soon as she realized that she did. Gary wished her good luck and hung up the phone. What am I going to do, she thought to herself as she sunk back into the pillows.
"Where's Harper?" TC said impatiently the next morning. "My shift starts in five minutes and she was supposed to be here an hour ago so we could discuss what happened." He shot a pointed glare at Cory, who looked defeated. TC knew he shouldn't have let Harper walk out last night without giving him the information he needed.
"Listen TC, you should get going. My shift doesn't start for another hour, so I'll stay and wait," Cory said. "Maybe she overslept."
TC fixed her with a yeah, right stare, but mounted his bike and exited the firehouse. He had gone four blocks before he caught up with Bobby. They rode together for about five minutes. Then the call came.
"Any Pacific Blue Unit respond to a suicide attempt at Devil's Point," came the dispatch.
"This is 1-PB 4 and 5 responding," TC said before he and Bobby started racing toward Devil's Point. TC signaled for Bobby to handle the people at the bottom of the cliff and TC would go try to talk the jumper down.
As he neared the top of the cliff, he felt the sense of dread rising within him. He could just make out the blonde head at the top of the cliff. For a fleeting second, he thought it was just a regular civilian. But then his senses took control away from his emotions and he realized that it was Monica Harper.
He pulled his bike to a stop once he reached the top and raced toward the edge. From the height of the cliff, he could see Cruz handling crowd control down below.
"Monica," he said softly. She didn't turn around. She didn't show any signs that she even show any sign that she knew he was there. He knew that he was treading on thin ice here.
"Monica, everything will be fine," he said, continuing the soft tones of his voice. "Why don't we go somewhere and talk, or-" He was cut off when Monica spun around.
"I don't want to talk," she said in a gravely serious voice. He felt a little pang in his heart at the sight of her tears.
He decided to try a new strategy. The only problem was, it could very easily backfire and send Harper over the edge. Literally.
"Monica," he began tentatively. "Whatever happened to you when you were a little girl, it's OK. It doesn't matter."
More tears started coursing down her cheeks. "You don't understand. It isn't that simple. It does matter."
TC decided it was time to push a little harder, for he could see her resolve crumbling. "No, it doesn't matter. Not to me, not to anyone at the department."
"You just don't understand," she said quietly, turning back to the cliff. A cold chill ran down TC's back. She's going to do it, he thought briefly.
"Monica, I know that Gary is telling you to do this," TC said just as quietly. "But you don't have to. You can fight him. You don't have to listen to him."
She turned to face him again. Her face was contorted in anguish. "I can't do it," she said. "Not by myself."
"You won't be doing it by yourself," TC promised. "I'll help you. You don't have to listen to him, Monica. You don't have to do what he says."
As if for the first time, Monica seemed to realize that she didn't have to die. It was like she realized there was another option.
"Listen, all we'll need is your testimony. Then we can bring him down," TC told her. He saw words of protest forming at her lips and cut them off before she could say them. "I know it will be hard, but we can do it. I'll help you."
"Promise?" she whispered. Tears ran down her cheeks and he reached out to wipe them off.
"Of course I promise," he said with a smile. He grabbed her hand and led her away from the edge of the cliff.
TC settled himself on the couch and waited. After taking Monica down from the cliff, they continued on foot until they reached Monica's house. They talked, but not about what had almost happened.
"I guess you want to know what happened," Monica said as she sat down beside him.
"Only if you're ready to tell me," he assured her. He knew that when she was ready to tell him, she would.
"Before I tell you what you want to know, answer me one thing," she said. He gave her a curious look. "How did you know what happened to me when I was a child?"
TC gave her a sheepish look. "Well, I really didn't know about any one specific thing," he said. "But after Chris told me you were changing details that you two had already worked out and that she thought you had some personal involvement with the case, I began to put the piece together. At first, I thought that Chris was just really fed up with you. But then I began to notice it too. I think that what really tipped me off was when I looked in your file again. So many stepfathers. You were always complaining about having so many. I figured one of them did something to really tick you off."
"Yeah, well, one did," Monica said. "The last one. Curt. He's the one I had the most problems with."
"What kind of problems?" TC asked, not wanting to pry, although very curious.
"Well, it all started with my mom," she said. She gave a little sigh but continued. "She worked in a bar. She started cheating and Curt found out. He figured, what better way to get back at her then to take away her only daughter's innocence."
TC stared at her for a moment, at a loss for words, not sure what to say to her. Luckily, he didn't have to.
"One night, when my mom was working a double shift, he came into my room. He said we were going to do things. Grown up things. He said I could never tell anyone about the things we did. Then he raped me."
"Did he do it every night?" TC asked. He was finding himself morbidly interested in what she was saying. He just couldn't believe that Harper, strong tough Harper, had once been at the mercy of a man.
"He did it every night he could. After a while, he didn't refrain himself to just nights. Every time my mom left the house, I would hide in my room, knowing full well that he would find me."
"How long did you put up with this?" TC asked. "How long did he hurt you?"
Monica looked at her feet. "Fiveyears," she mumbled quickly. TC gave her a look.
"A little slower, if you don't mind," TC said. She looked at him but looked down again quickly.
"He did this for five years," she said quietly. "After that, I went to live with my grandmother."
TC stared at her, mouth agape. "You let him molest you and hurt you for five years?" he asked in disbelief. "Why?"
"What other choice did I have?" she asked him. "Tell my mother? Like she would actually believe me." She laughed bitterly. "Go to the police? Like they would believe a twelve year old girl."
"When did this start? I mean, how old were you when he started to, you know..." TC asked.
"I was seven when it started, and I was twelve when my grandmother got me away from them. I never said anything, but I think she knew."
TC just sat there for a moment, absorbing the information. It was no wonder that Harper had closed herself off to the outside world. She had been hurt very bad.
"Monica," TC said. She turned her head so that she was looking at him. "Did Gary hurt you? Did he rape you?"
Monica looked pained for a moment before she answered him. "Yes," she whispered. "Gary raped me." Tears started running down her cheeks. TC pulled her into his embrace as she started to sob.
Monica awoke the next morning in TC's arms. She was stiff, and every muscle in her body screamed in pain when she tried to move.
"Hey," TC said when he saw that she was awake. He has the most amazing brown eyes, Monica thought as he smiled at her.
"Hey yourself," she said back. "What are we doing up her? Last thing I remember is you holding me on the couch."
"Well, you looked pretty beat last night. You fell asleep and I carried you upstairs. I started to leave, but you wouldn't let go of me. When I pulled it away, you started whimpering so I decided to stay," he said with a grin.
Monica flushed. "Uh, sorry. You could have left anyway," she added as an afterthought.
"And miss that gorgeous smile when you woke up? Not on your life, Harper," TC said, making her get butterflies in her stomach.
"What about Chris," Monica asked with a hint of sarcasm. "Won't she miss you?"
"I called her last night," TC said. "I told her where I was and told her not to wait up."
"Trouble in paradise," Monica asked as she raised an eyebrow. She smirked before adding," I'm sure that it will be perfect again tomorrow."
"I doubt it," TC sighed. "I was ecstatic when Chris showed up a week ago. But she's different and I'm different. It's not gonna work out between us."
"Oh," Monica said, not sure of what else to say. TC seemed to sense this because he patted her hand.
"You don't have to say anything else," he said.
That evening TC persuaded Monica to call her doctor and make an appointment.
"You never know. This guy could have some disease," he'd said to her. So she had called Dr. Grace Williams and made an appointment for the next day.
TC stayed over again that night. They went to bed around 10:00. TC woke up four hours later and reached for Monica, but she wasn't there. He got out of bed and went down the hall to the bathroom. The light was on and he could hear someone retching on the other side of the door.
He lightly pushed the door open and held Monica's hair back from her face until she was finished. Then he pulled her to his chest as she began to sob softly. TC rubbed her back and neck while he whispered words of comfort into her hair. After a while her sobs ceased. She continued to sniffle, and TC picked her up and carried her back into the bedroom. He tucked her in and propped himself up on some pillows so he could keep a nightly vigil over her. As soon as he was settled, she curled her body around his and drifted slowly off to sleep.
When Monica woke up the next morning TC was still sleeping. She got up quietly, so she wouldn't wake him. She got out her clothes and went into the bathroom to get dressed. When she came out, TC was still in the position he was when she went into the bathroom so she went downstairs.
Monica thought about making breakfast, but the thought nauseated her. Thoughts of last night came rushing back into her mind as she pulled her shoes on. Then she heard it. Gary. His voice calling to her. She tried to shake it off, tried to block it from her mind, but it was no use. She had to get out of this house. She scribbled TC a quick note and bolted out the door, leaving Gary's cries behind her.
TC yawned and stretched out on Monica's bed. He didn't see Monica, so he figured that she was downstairs. He got up, put on a fresh T-shirt, and went downstairs.
Downstairs, he didn't see any sign of her. He was starting to get worried when he saw a note on the refrigerator. It said:
TC
Didn't want to wake you. I decided to go jogging. Be back later.
Monica
TC threw the note in the garbage after he read it. He got the orange juice out of the refrigerator and poured himself a glass. Then he settled in to wait for Monica to return.
Four hours later Monica walked into her house. TC pounced on her as soon as she was in the door.
"Where the hell were you?" he yelled. Monica was shocked by his attitude. She had spent the day wandering around, trying to get her thoughts organized.
"I was just walking around town," Monica said. "Why? What happened?"
TC looked at her in disbelief. "What happened? I'll tell you what happened. You left me a short little note saying that you'd gone jogging and you'd be back soon. Then four hours later you pop back into your house asking what's wrong," TC said. "I was worried, Monica. I called Cory two hours ago and told her to put every available officer out looking for you."
"Oh, God, TC, I feel awful," Monica said. "I had no idea that you would be so worried. Truth is, I completely lost track of time. I am so sorry."
TC's expression softened. "I'm sorry too," he said. "If you want to spend the day out, that's none of my business. But I was just so worried. I thought maybe...."
"No," Monica said firmly. "I won't, TC. I promise you, I won't ever do that again." TC hugged her close to him.
Monica walked into the firehouse and suppressed a sigh. It had been a week since the abduction and rape, but she had gotten sick every morning. She had talked to Russ about it and he said it was probably a reflex. But now Monica wasn't so sure. She raised her hand and knocked on the door.
"Come in." Monica opened the door and Cory looked up at her. She smiled warmly and motioned to a chair. She and Monica had become quite close.
Monica sat down in the chair and wrung her hands nervously. Cory was not going to take this well. But she'll have to do, Monica thought. Because TC will take this worse.
"What can I do for you, Monica?" Cory asked putting down her pen.
Monica looked at her feet. "Well, for starters you can take this and process it," Monica said handing Cory the papers. She cringed and waited for the surprised reaction. It was a little subdued, but it came.
"Resignation papers? You're quitting?" Cory seemed a bit shocked.
"Yeah, well, I need to move on," Monica said. "I can't stay here. I've been here too long already." She turned and walked out of the office.
Cory was shocked to say the least. Monica had been so sweet and nice these past few months and within seconds she reverted had back to bitch-mode. Or ice queen mode, as Granger called it.
Cory walked out of her office and went downstairs. "I'll process these," she told Monica. "And I'll allow you to burn this bridge. But don't burn them all. You may need to cross some of them outside of work." She nodded to TC, who was coming out of his office and down the stairs. "I'm not going to tell him," Cory told her.
"Well, I'm not going to either," Monica said. "He'll get the papers. He can find out then."
"Find out what?" TC asked coming over to them. Cory shot Monica a look. Monica didn't say anything.
"Find out that Monica's quitting," Cory said finally. TC's eyebrows shot up. Cory gave Monica a nasty smile.
"Quitting? Why?" TC asked Monica. "Why are you quitting?" He seemed unable to believe it.
"I'm bored here," Monica said, not lying completely. "I want to try something new."
"So try skydiving!" TC yelled, sounding exasperated. "Go deep sea diving or bungee jumping. But don't quit your job."
"Sorry. It's already done," Monica said. "I wasn't going to depend on Cory to process my papers so I took them to the Chief myself. As of now, I officially don't work here. See you guys around." She turned and walked out the door, leaving a stunned TC and Cory standing open mouthed in her wake.
Monica walked into Baywatch headquarters and checked her watch. She was five minutes early for her interview. She hoped this one would work out. She was tired of being turned down on the spot.
It had been three days since she had quit Pacific Blue. She had gone to the doctor, only to find out some shocking news. Granger was wrong about the retching. It wasn't a reflex.
Someone calling her name jolted her out of her thoughts. She looked up and followed Lt. Buchannan into his office.
"Your record looks pretty good," he said. "Looks like you've got yourself a new job, Monica."
"Lt. Buchannan," she began, but he cut her off before she could go on.
"Mitch," he said. "Call me Mitch. Everyone does."
She smiled. "Ok, Mitch. I think I should tell you this before this goes too far." He looked at her curiously. "I'm pregnant."
"Congratulations," he said, looking unfazed. "I'm sure you and your husband must be very excited."
"Actually I'm not married. I'm not even involved with anyone," Monica said. "I just thought having a pregnant lifeguard would be a problem."
"Oh, on the contrary," Mitch said. "It would be helpful. You could work the switchboard during your pregnancy. Then, after you have the baby, you could start training to become a lifeguard. That way you still have a job. You wouldn't believe how many qualified lifeguards have to be stuck with switchboard duty. It would be a big help to have you do it."
Monica was stunned, to say the least. This man was so laid back. Nothing was a problem. Nothing bothered him.
"Welcome to Baywatch, Monica," Mitch said reaching over the desk to shake her hand. "When can you start?" Monica smiled and shook his hand.
"Caroline will show you around," Mitch said. I have a board meeting in fifteen minutes."
"Ok," Monica said standing up. "And thanks again, Mitch."
"No problem," he said. Caroline came into his office. "Caroline, this is Monica Harper. Monica, this is Caroline Holden, a senior ocean lifeguard."
The girls shook hands.
"And this is where you'll be working," Caroline said when they came upon the switchboard desk. A young red head was sitting there, waiting for the next call to come in. "This is Jessie Palermo," Caroline said.
"Hi," the red head turned around. Monica shook her hand and racked her brain. She could have sworn she'd heard the name before.
"Hi. I'm Monica Harper." Jessie searched her brain. She knew that name. She just couldn't remember from where.
Caroline proceeded to tell Jessie about the arrangement. But neither girl was listening. They were each thinking about how they knew the other. Later, after Jessie's shift had ended, she and Monica were walking along the beach.
"So you're pregnant?" Jessie asked trying to make conversation.
"Yeah," Monica said. "I'm pregnant." They walked along in silence for a while.
Jessie snuck a peak at Monica's hand. "No ring?" she asked.
"No. I'm not married. Or involved with anyone, for that matter," Monica said.
"Then how can you be pregnant? Sorry," Jessie said when Monica gave her a surprised look. "I'm just curious."
"I was abducted and raped," Monica said quietly.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Jessie said. "I had no idea. Open mouth, insert foot."
Monica laughed. "Oh, it's OK. You didn't know. And anyway, TC and Cory saved me."
"TC and Cory?" Jessie asked. Monica nodded. "How do you know them?"
"I work, uh used to, work with them," Monica said. "Why? Do you know them?"
"Yeah, I know them!" Jessie said. "My dad used to-"
"Be their lieutenant," Monica finished for her. "That's where I know the name from!"
Monica walked into her house. She had planned to take a shower, but she could do it before work tomorrow. She was too exhausted now. She and Jessie had talked for hours. Monica had never told anyone as much about her life as she had told Jessie. And Jessie had told her so many things. Jessie's father Tony had moved to Italy. But he came back. Jessie had transferred to the community college in Malibu so she could be close to him. They were living across town from each other. Monica told her about TC, her nights with him, her former crush on him. Jessie had readily agreed that he was cute.
The light on her answering machine was blinking. She pushed the button and began to get ready for bed. Soon TC's voice filled the room.
"Harper, I just wanted to see how you were doing, he said. Call me back when you can. Bye."
He sounded different from what she remembered. She sat down on her bed and began to cry.
Bang bang bang. Monica climbed out of bed, prepared to tell whoever it was at the door off. She opened the door to find Russ standing on the doorstep.
"Hey," he greeted her with a smile. He noticed her silk robe and cringed. "Did I wake you?"
"No, I had to get up anyway," Monica said. "Being late on the first day of a new job isn't exactly a good sign."
"New job?" Russ echoed. He hadn't thought Harper would be so ambitious to get a new job.
"Yeah," Monica said. "Although it was difficult to get. I'm working at Baywatch on the switchboard for a few months."
"Why the switchboard?" Russ asked.
"I don't think having a pregnant lifeguard on the beach is wise," Monica said.
"Pregnant? Did I just hear you right? You said pregnant?" Russ was shocked.
"Yeah," Monica said. "I'm pregnant. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready for work." She shut the door in his face and raced to the bathroom. She had barely pulled her hair back when she started heaving.
Monica arrived at work on time. Mitch showed her around and then she started at the switchboard, taking over for Jessie.
She had been working for an hour when she got her first emergency. It came on her headset.
"This is KMF295 to Baywatch Headquarters. Come in, Baywatch Headquarters."
"Baywatch Headquarters. Go ahead, 295," Monica said.
"We have a boat fire. It's a pretty big boat. Forty to fifty people in the water," Cody Madison said. "We need all available backup."
Monica got back on the radio after getting off with Cody. "KMF295 requested all available backup. Boat fire. Forty to fifty victims." Monica gave the coordinates and waited for backup to call in.
Mitch was standing in the doorway, watching her. "Just wait until you're out there and you get a call like that," he said. "It's a lot more stressful, especially if you get sidetracked on the way there."
"I can't even imagine it," Monica said. "I don't want to."
"You handled it like a pro," Mitch said. "You were really quick to catch on."
"Yeah, well when you work on a bike patrol, you hear those kind of calls all the time," Monica said.
Mitch smiled. "So now you've been on both ends of these things. Which end do you like better?"
"Honestly?" Monica asked. "I like getting the calls. At least I did as a cop. I'm not sure as a lifeguard."
"Everyone's that way," Mitch said. "But don't worry. We'll get you out there after you have the baby. How's that coming, by the way?"
"Oh, it's coming. Coming out," Monica said, making a face. "This baby is giving me hell."
"They usually do," Mitch said smiling. "They usually do."
"I swear, TC. She's got a new job, new friends, everything," Russ said in TC's office the next morning. He didn't work yesterday, which is why TC didn't know this yesterday.
"Where is she working?" TC asked. Russ had told him about Monica being pregnant. He couldn't see her working anywhere.
"Baywatch Headquarters. She works switchboard. From what I understand, her boss is very willing to work around her schedule," Russ said.
"I would have worked around her schedule," TC said bitterly. "Why didn't she come to me?"
"Don't feel bad, OK. I wouldn't have found out unless I hadn't dropped by her house," Russ told him.
"I've got to go see her," TC said. "Maybe I can talk her into coming back."
"I wouldn't count on it," Russ said.
"Oh my- Tony!" TC and Russ both turned at the sound of Cory's voice. TC was shocked to see his former lieutenant Tony Palermo.
"Tony!" Cory was hugging Tony, and TC hurried to be next in line.
"How's it going, guys?" he asked them as they seated themselves in TC's office. "How have you guys been?"
"Great," Cory said. "What about you? I thought you were in Italy."
"I was, but I came back," Tony said. "I missed Jess, too. She's in college and she's got a job now."
"Where does she work?" TC asked.
"Baywatch, I think. She's a lifeguard," Tony said.
"Small world," TC commented. Tony and Cory each gave him a strange look.
"You've never worked there, TC," Cory said.
"No, but according to Granger, Harper does," he said.
"Who?" Tony said.
"One of my officers, Monica Harper, quit the other day. My other officers tell me she works at Baywatch now."
"You know, you could pay her a visit. Without really paying her a visit," Tony said.
"What?" Both TC and Cory said this at once.
"You could come with me to see Jessie and maybe see Monica while we're there," Tony said.
"What are we waiting for? Let's go," TC said standing up.
"Sorry, guys, I can't go," Cory said. "I have a ton of paperwork to do."
"Oh, that was awful," Monica said to Jessie as they got out of the shower. "It's been such a long day."
"You think it's been a long day? Did you see those killer riptides today? I must have pulled six people out of the water today. And those are the people that I specifically told not to go in the water."
The girls talked a little more as they changed. Monica went over to the mirror while Jessie put her earrings back on. She turned sideways and sighed. It had only been a month since she had gone to the doctor, but she was already showing. Showing big time.
"Get used to it, girl," Jessie said coming up behind her. "You're going to look like that for a while, hon."
"Don't remind me," Monica moaned, rubbing her queasy stomach. "I have been so sick with this baby."
Monica and Jessie walked out of the locker room. They were working the graveyard shift and there was hardly anyone there. Which was why they were surprised to hear Cody talking to someone.
"Dad!" Jessie said and rushed to give her father a hug. Monica, meanwhile, stood with Cody off to the side and refused to look at TC.
"Harper." That was all he had to say. Tears sprang to her eyes as she ran back into the locker room. She leaned her head against the wall, trying to calm herself.
"I should go after her," Jessie said. Tony nodded.
"I didn't mean to make her cry," TC said. "I really didn't.
"I wouldn't worry about it, man," Cody said. "I heard that being pregnant really takes its toll on the hormones."
Jessie entered the locker room. "Monica," she called softly. She saw Monica sitting on the bench by her locker, sobbing.
"It's all right," Jessie said soothingly as she held Monica. But Jessie didn't know if it was. She didn't even know why Monica was crying.
"I'm sorry," Monica said, wiping her eyes. "I really am. I don't know what's wrong with me."
"It's just hormones," Jessie said. "But TC was really freaked out. He kept saying that he didn't mean to make you cry."
"He didn't. I'm just in a mood," Monica explained. "I guess I should say something to him."
"Not if you don't want to," Jessie said. "I'll tell him you're tired or something."
"Thanks, Jess," Monica said. "I really don't feel like talking to him."
All three men looked up as Jessie exited the locker room. TC was disappointed to see that she was by herself.
"She's tired," Jessie said to TC. "She says she's sorry, but she's really emotional, you know?"
"Yeah, I understand," TC said, keeping his voice light. When he and Tony were in the car, however, TC didn't bother to hide his anger.
"Damn it, why is she avoiding me?" TC said. "What did I do, Tony?"
"You heard Jessie," Tony said. "It's her. She's pregnant and she's emotional. No big thing."
"No, Tony, it is a big thing," TC said. "We were fine before she found out she was pregnant. We were getting really close. Now she won't even talk to me! This isn't right!"
"TC, calm down," Tony said in his rational and soft voice. "Maybe you should give her some space for a while. Maybe she needs some time to deal."
TC considered what his old friend was saying. "You know, Tony, I think you might be right."
"Monica Harper," The nurse called. Monica stood up and followed her into an examining room. She is now six months pregnant and she is getting her first sonogram.
The nurse got her situated and then left to get the doctor. As Monica lay on the table, she felt the baby kick. It was kicking really fast, first on one side of her growing stomach and then the other.
Dr. Williams came in and turned the monitor so she could see it. Soon Monica could see the large outline of a baby.
"Well, as you can probably see, you aren't having a baby," Dr. Williams said.
Monica looked at her, surprised. "What do you mean?" she asked in an alarmed voice.
"You're having twins!" Dr. Williams pronounced gleefully. "Congratulations!"
Monica's moth dropped open in shock. "Twins? Wow. I had no idea- I mean I didn't expect- This is a complete shock!"
"Would you like to know what they are?" Dr. Williams asked. "I could tell you today, even though they aren't totally facing us."
"Um, yeah, sure. Tell me what they are," Monica said uncertainly.
"You're having two little girls," Dr. Williams said. Monica's head swarmed with thoughts of raising two little girls, watching them grow, and being their mother. She had to tell Jessie!
"Oh my gosh, that's incredible!" Jessie screamed over the phone. Monica had called her that night to give her the good news. "This is fantastic!"
"I know, I can hardly believe it myself," Monica said excitedly. "I'm gonna be a mom!"
"This is so great!" Jessie exclaimed. "You're gonna be a great mom!"
"And you're gonna be a great aunt," Monica said. "Two little girls," she continued dreamily. "Who would have thought?"
"Everyone quiet," Jessie said loudly, trying to be quiet at the same time. "She can't hear us!"
"Cody, you're sitting on my hand," Caroline complained in a whisper. "Get off!"
"Sorry," Cody said. Jessie could hear him moving as he lifted himself off of Caroline.
"Cody, now you're sitting on my hand," JD complained. Jessie stifled a laugh. She heard footsteps and quietly shushed everyone.
She flipped on the light and everyone yelled," Surprise!" Monica stood in the doorway, looking stunned.
Cody took her and led her to the folding table full of wrapped gifts. Jessie looked around, but she didn't see the people she was looking for. Damn.
Monica opened gift after gift, exclaiming in glee and joy over each one. When she was done she hugged everyone and Jessie could see her eyes were misty.
Later that day, Cody, Jessie, Monica, and Caroline were standing on the outside deck of Baywatch Headquarters. They weren't doing anything, just watching the sun set slowly in the distance.
"Are we late?" Everyone spun around at the sound, though Monica tensed at the familiar voice.