A/N: Yeah I know what you're thinking, "I thought she wasn't going to write anymore stories till after school was done." So did I lol. Though I don't think anyone will complain. Just a short Bill/Karen follow-up to the finale, so beware of spoilers. I might do another chapter with them both in D.C. but I don't have enough ideas to make it that long so suggestions are welcomed. Anyway, as always, enjoy and please review!
"We'll never find him. Not if he doesn't want us to. Let him go." Jack was gone, and Bill knew they had to let him go. He wasn't ever coming back and Bill knew that too. He'd disappear, start over again, get as far away from his old life as he could.
As Bill walked away from Nadia, towards one of the CTU lounges, he thought, He deserves so much more. With everything he's sacrificed for this country, he deserves more than he'll ever get back. But what could he do except hope that Jack would find happiness somewhere in his life. At least Bill was able to help him save Josh, that was something.
Bill opened the glass door to the lounge and flopped down on the large, navy couch, resting his head back and closing his eyes. He was lost in thought, contemplating Jack's future, in addition to his own future and that of his wife's. At least they had been able to make-up, and help Jack, even if it cost Karen her career. Deep down, he knew they had done the right thing. Better to face prosecution, he thought, than live with the death of an innocent boy.
The sound and vibration of his cell phone in his jacket pocket jarred him from his thoughts and he sighed as he flipped it open, not even bothering to check the caller ID.
"Buchanan," he replied, it was going to take some time for him to break his "CTU mode" habit of answering his phone.
"Hey, it's me," he heard his wife's soft voice reply on the other end.
"Hey," he replied, lovingly.
"Oh, Bill, I'm so glad you're alright. When I heard you and Jack took a chopper and were on that oil platform, I was so worried you weren't going to make it back." Her voice started to crack as tears began to form in her eyes.
"Shh, it's alright, sweetheart. I'm ok," he said soothingly, trying to reassure his wife.
"I know…I know, I just can't wait to see you. I miss you so much."
"I miss you too, and I'll be out in D.C. soon anyway now that we're both under arrest," he replied, completely unaware of what had occurred since the attack on the platform.
"No, no, Bill. We're not being prosecuted," she explained.
"What are you talking about?"
"Tom Lennox was able to convince Vice President Daniels that dropping the charges against us would be better for the administration and he agreed."
"Really?" he asked in disbelief.
"Yes, Daniels still expects us both to resign but they won't hold us accountable or press charges."
Even though his resignation would stand, Bill couldn't help but smile at the news he just heard. "That's…that's great Karen. I can't wait to see you, and I should be there sometime tomorrow."
"You're still flying out even though the charges have been dropped?" she asked. Karen had planned on heading back to LA as soon as Tom told her the good news.
"Well, the FBI kinda packed up all the stuff at our house." he said with a smile, "I'll tell you what though, if we ever need to move again, I'm calling in some FBI agents because they are much better than those idiots we hired after we got married."
Karen laughed at her husband's sarcasm and waited for him to continue.
"Anyway, it's probably easier for me to move out there than for you to come back here," he explained to her, "Besides, I booked a flight out to D.C. as soon as you fired me."
"You did?" she inquired, confused as to why he would want to be with her in D.C. if she just ended his career.
"Yeah," he answered, somewhat sheepishly. "After I left CTU, I knew that if I wasn't going to be director anymore, then there was nothing for me here. I wasn't angry with you for your decision and I if I didn't have a job here, I wanted to be with you. I still love you and whether it was my wife or some self-centered, power-hungry bureaucrat that had fired me, it wasn't going to change how I feel about you."
"Oh, Bill," Karen said softly, still amazed that she found a husband who was such a caring and understanding man. "I love you so much."
"I love you too, honey," he replied. "My flight's at 10 so I should be out there by this evening."
"Ok, I'm heading back to the house after I hand Daniel's my resignation so I'll be there when you arrive," she said aloud, as she planned out the rest of the morning in head.
"Alright," he responded as he saw Nadia approaching the lounge through the glass doors. "I have to go. Nadia wants me to be debriefed before I head out. I'll call you when I get to the airport, before my flight leaves."
"Sounds good, Bill," she said smiling. "I'll talk to you soon and I love you very much."
"Love you too," he said, matching his wife's smile. "Bye, sweetheart," he finished as he flipped shut his phone and stood to greet Nadia. The day had been hell, to say the least, but things were finally looking up for the Buchanans.