Chapter
One.
One
year later...
Elle set her son, Noah Gray, in his rocker on her kitchen floor. She pulled a bottle from the tiny fridge and put it in the microwave. When the temperature was right, she gave it to him to drink.
"There, you go, Baby," she said, sitting down to stare at Noah. Elle loved her son very much; she would do anything for him.
Elle glanced at the tiny tree in her living room. It was decorated simply, with only a strand of lights and a baby's first Christmas ornament. She didn't mind, though. Elle was excited for Noah's first Christmas, although she wished his father was here to share it with him.
"Noah looks just like Gabriel," Elle thought, but quickly pushed the thought from her mind. It'd been a while since she'd last seen him, and her search had come to a standstill in the last three months or so.
When Hiro transported Elle away from the Bennets' house, she ended up in a grassy field, all alone. She hadn't had a clue where she was, or where Gabriel was, so she walked until she reached civilization. Luckily, she was in a small town of the outskirts of New York City. Elle caught the next train into the city, using what little money she had, then walked around until she found Gabriel's old apartment.
It was exactly the same as Elle remembered it - books scattered throughout, dishes done and waiting to be put away, the small, properly made bed, in the also small, neatly kept bedroom - save for a dried bloody hand print on the door. Drained, emotionally and physically, she left it there and laid in Gabriel's bed. After so long, it still smelled like him, she noted. Elle fell into a restless sleep, plagued by nightmares of her lover's demise. Since then, Elle had tried desperately to find Gabriel, to no avail.
"Elle." A kind, elderly voice came from the other side of Elle's back door, knocking the young mother out of her reverie. She crossed the short distance to let her friend in.
"Thank for coming on such short notice, Anna," Elle said, leading Anna to Noah.
"Anytime, dearest." Anna lived by herself in the house behind Elle's. She was in her mid-sixties, with short brown hair and bright green eyes. She came over every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to watch Noah while Elle worked. When Elle had first moved here, week old baby in tow, she had no idea what she was doing. Anna taught her the basics and helped out anytime Elle needed her. She, too, had been a single mother. Anna's children had left her ages ago, and had never been back, so she enjoyed helping Elle with Noah whenever possible.
Today, Elle wasn't going to her agency; she had an appointment at Angela Petrelli's.
Elle hadn't heard from anyone with abilities since the last time she saw Gabriel. The fact that Angela called for her made Elle scared. But not for her, for Noah. She could care less what happened to herself, Elle just wanted her baby to be safe. She was so afraid that Angela wanted him for some twisted plan. Whatever happened, Elle knew that Noah would not be involved in anything Angela wanted him to be a part of.
She was not comfortable leaving Noah here without any "special" - Elle winced at her own thought - protection, but Elle was even less comfortable taking him with her, and not going was not an option when a Petrelli was in the mix. She settled for the lesser of two evils and packed her bags for Primatech's New Jersey headquarters.
"You have my cell phone number, right, Anna?"
"Yes, dear. Don't worry, Noah and I are going to have a wonderful time," Anna said, picking him up.
"Okay, just call me if there's any trouble, or if he can't sleep, or can't eat, and don't forget-" Elle said nervously.
"Relax," Anna cut her off. "We'll be fine. I'll call you every day."
Elle nodded nervously and kissed Noah on the forehead.
"I love you, Baby. Mommy will be home soon. Be good for Grandma Anna."
"I'll take good care of him," Anna offered.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Elle kissed Noah again and made her way to Primatech's headquarters.