Hi guys,
Sorry for the delay, but this was a pain of a chapter to write. I hope you all enjoy it!
Is that a loose thread? Oh god, that's a loose thread! Dammit Jessica, why didn't you check this dress out before you bought it?
Because it cost fifteen hundred bucks that's why! It's not supposed to have a loose anything!
"Aunt Jessica?"
"Huh, what?"
"Why are you pulling your dress up like that?"
Looking up from trying to sever that damn thread from the bottom of her dress, Jessica wasn't above admitting she looked ridiculous. Long, toned legs poking out of the bottom of a beautiful blue dress…bunched up around her thighs while she attempted some running repairs on the garment in the back of a company car sent to pick her up.
Still though, it was pretty funny the way Amy was looking at her, like she was as much of an idiot as she felt right now, so much so she laughed wholeheartedly and returned the garment to it's proper state.
"Oh, no reason, sweetie. Just your Aunt being a goof that's all."
"Huh…your dress looks really pretty, if that's what you're worried about."
Tilting her head slightly at the perception of the young girl beside her, the corner of Jessica's mouth quirked up of its own accord at her compliment, "Thank you. I love yours too, and I wish I had pigtails like that."
As Amy watched Jessica's fake pout, she couldn't help but wonder just how in the hell Derek had managed to snag this one. She was the sweetest, nicest, most considerate…not to mention drop dead gorgeous human she knew. She was way out of his league. "Thanks Aunt Jessica."
"So, are you looking forward to today?" Jessica asked with a smile. She didn't think she'd ever get used to being called 'Aunt' all the time.
"Uh huh!" Amy answered gleefully, bouncing in her seat a little, "Will there be other kids there? Oooh, and a swing set, and a jungle gym?"
Nodding her head with her eyes wide, Jessica's smile stretched across her face as she watched the hyperactive ball of energy sitting next to her, "Yeah, I'm sure there will be!"
The smile that greeted her answer sent a flutter up from Jessica's belly right to her heart…God, she wanted one, she wanted one so bad. "Listen, Amy…"
"Miss Grey?"
She looked up at the driver who'd interrupted her, "Yes?"
"We're here."
"Oh," She looked out of the window, recognising the familiar front entrance of her father's building. Only today, it had a distinctly more friendly appearance to it. Gone was the boring, dull, grey exterior. It was instead replaced by bright colours everywhere, people milling around, bouncy castles, balloons, stalls, kids…so many kids.
Before she'd even had a chance to take it all in, Amy had already unbuckled her seatbelt and was fiddling with the door handle trying to get out. Fortunately enough, this particular car featured childproof locks controlled by the driver. She flashed a knowing smile at said driver in his mirror as he unlocked her door and she climbed out, trying to keep her dress in check. The last thing she wanted was a Britney Spears moment.
By the time she rounded the car, she was greeted with the sight of two palms flat against the glass, accompanied by a squished up nose and an adorable pout. Chuckling to herself, she opened the door and let the straining Amy out, slightly worried she was going to tumble rather than climb out of the car.
When she'd managed to just about stay upright, Amy brushed past Jessica like she wasn't there, intent on getting in as much playtime as she could…and this looked like one helluva playground.
What the hell happened to 'Thanks Aunt Jessica'?
Unable to entirely hide the hurt look on her face, Jessica called out to her, "Amy, could you come here please?"
Torn between the sweet, sweet candy of the playground and her desire to acquiesce to the simple request of her Aunt, Amy literally leaned both ways. Her upper body leaned towards the bright lights of the bouncy castle, while her feet remained rooted to the spot.
Taking pity on the girl, Jessica casually strolled to meet her halfway, her expensive heels clicking on the sidewalk. Once there she crouched down in front of her girl and gently placed her hands on her upper arms.
"Aunt Jessica…I wanna go plaaaaay!" Amy whined adorably, bringing a sympathetic smile to Jessica's face.
"I know, sweetie. But I have to talk to you first, then I'll let you go, okay?"
At Amy's reluctant nod, she continued. "I want you to be a good girl for me today, okay?"
Amy merely tilted her head to the side curiously.
Why wouldn't I be a good girl?
"Your mom is showing a lot of trust in me, letting me take you out for the whole day. I know she cares a lot about you, and it means a lot to me that she let me take you. Do you understand?"
Oh if only Jessica knew what was going through Amy's mind. The complex calculations and lines of coding doing their job, it all resulted in a slow nod from the girl, who found herself smiling sympathetically with the human. Sarah's effect on her was so intense that she desperately wanted not to piss her off by letting anything happen to her 'daughter' on their big day out together. It was sweet, really.
"Okay Aunt Jessica, I'll be good." Amy answered after a moment, Jessica hanging on her every word. She got the sneaking suspicion that Jessica was trying to prove something to herself today too, as well as Sarah.
"That's my girl." Wrapping her arms around her girl in a relieved hug, she smiled when she felt Amy's small arms wrap around her neck and squeeze back, although she did sense an impatience on her little friend's part.
"Alright, now you can go play. That bouncy castle looks like it has your name on…"
"Jessica! Jessica! Can I have a few shots for Fashion Today?"
The photographer was already fumbling with his camera by the time Jessica had even realised what was going on. Just in time she managed to plaster on her 'model smile', happy to oblige the guy…most of them didn't even bother to ask. "Sure," She answered as she stood.
"Great, thanks!" Snapping several shots with the always open to the press Jessica, the photographer glanced down when he had to make a few adjustments to his lens. "And who is this?"
The next thing Jessica knew, she felt a small body press into her side. Looking down, she found Amy burying her face in her side, her tiny hands clutching at her dress. Without even thinking, her maternal instincts kicked in and she shielded the girl with a hand on the back of her head.
With a sympathetic smile towards the photographer, she started to answer, "She's shy. This is…"
Not that she was exactly Tyra Banks or Giselle Bundchen famous, but Jessica did occasionally grace a few local tabloid gossip pages. She wasn't ashamed of her new life or her new man in any way, but she could just picture the columns that would be printed. 'Jessica Grey has new mystery beau'. 'Mystery man sweeps Jess off her feet'.
It was a pain, but she knew it came with the territory.
Apparently she was taking a little too long to answer, as even Amy was looking up at her with a questioning expression, the photographer patiently clearing his throat. Finally making her mind up, she smiled down at Amy while slowly playing with one of her pigtails, "This is my boyfriend's niece."
There, it was out and public knowledge. She looked up and could almost see the guy's mind processing what he'd just been told.
Oh well, I guess that's a column of page 43 taken care of.
"Is that right?" The guy asked, still fiddling with his camera as he watched Jessica crouch down to the little blonde. In truth, he was already halfway to his cell phone to speak to someone from his magazine.
"Amy, sweetie," Jessica tilted Amy's chin up with her finger. Now down at her level, she smiled warmly, "Would you like to take a few pictures with your Aunt?"
Amy shook her head quickly as she eyed the photographer warily. Jessica put it down to her being shy around strangers and the camera. Odd. She'd always assumed Amy would love the camera based on her personality.
"Are you sure?" She offered again.
Amy nodded, looking certain in her decision. In truth, despite her ridiculous excitement levels about the great day she was sure she was about to have, she wasn't stupid. As Sarah Connor had put it so many times, 'Do nothing that gets us on the radar'. Getting her face, no matter how sweet and innocent, plastered over the tabloids was a surefire way to piss her off, and Amy did not want to take that risk.
After all, the entire family were still wanted fugitives.
"It's okay sweetie." Jessica smiled and smoothed her hair behind her ear before she stood. Eyeing a couple more photographers coming her way, she hugged Amy into her side and cut them off before they even had a chance to speak, "Look guys, let me get this little one off to play and then I'll come take some pictures with you, okay?"
Several impatient nods greeted her as she ushered Amy away. Once out of earshot, she gave her niece's hand a squeeze to get her attention. "Hey, have fun today."
When she got a smile in reply, Jessica crouched down again, "If you need anything just come find me. I'll come get you when it's time for lunch, 'kay?" Her eyes sparkled as she reached down to tie one of Amy's laces. A maternal glow sweeping through her body as she completed her task, her radiant smile fully in place.
Amy noticed and nodded happily, "Okay," She leaned forward and kissed Jessica's cheek quickly before turning and sprinting away towards the other kids, "I'll see you later!"
Gently touching her cheek, Jessica felt a warm glow as she stood. If Derek didn't want kids…tough, because she did, and she would have his babies someday. He wouldn't have a clue what hit him when they got home.
"John? John, wake up!"
Slowly blinking his eyes open when Cameron's angelic voice filled his ears, and her remarkably soft hand gently nudged his shoulder, John responded with a less than pleasant groan. Burying his head back in the pillow, he tried his very best to pull the sheet over his head for just a few more minutes of shuteye. Unfortunately for him, there was a smiling cyborg weighing it down, making his task all but impossible.
In the end he gave up, opened his eyes and rolled flat on his back to look up at his infuriatingly refreshed and awake looking girlfriend for the first time that day. Despite his mood, he couldn't help but grin at her expression of endless patience. When he reached out a lazy hand towards her bare thigh, she playfully swatted it away with a stern look, earning herself another disapproving groan.
"Morning, Cameron."
He was so not a morning person.
"A very good morning to you too, John."
Does she sound…perky? Again?
"I've fixed you breakfast." Before John could respond, she'd already stood up and was halfway across the room to the desk where she'd left the tray upon entering the room and found her lover still slumbering.
Sitting up against the headboard, still complete with two chunks the size of Cameron's hands missing out of it, John smiled as he watched her retrieve the tray and set it down in his lap. Again he barely had a chance to tear his eyes away from her proud face and down to the tray when she sprang away and started drifting around the room, picking up various items of laundry and other household mess.
"Sliced banana with oatmeal and orange juice."
"What?" He asked, caught off guard by her sudden speech, so intent as he was on watching her feet move as she walked. Skynet really had created a perfect facsimile, right down to the way it looked like internal muscles were working so hard to propel her effortlessly around the room. That and her painted toenails too.
How did I not even notice those before?
She nodded towards the tray in his lap, "Your breakfast. Sliced banana with oatmeal and orange juice."
With the merest hint of a smirk, John looked between her and the tray, and the delicious looking first meal of the day she'd prepared for him. "You forgot the toast."
"I didn't forget. I just assumed you'd recognise the toast and query what was in the bowl." She glanced back over her shoulder as she leaned over his desk to adjust his laptop to an angle perfectly square to the edge of the cheap, Swedish made furniture. With a satisfied smile at her work, she resumed her task of cleaning up their room.
Over the past few days her standards had become somewhat lacking. Probably due to the fact that she hadn't been in the best of moods until recently, housework was the least of her worries…Sarah would likely not approve of her laxity.
As he picked up the spoon laid out for him, John had a tough time removing the smile from his face long enough to take a mouthful of the surprisingly tasty treat. "Are you putting me on a diet or something? 'Cause I gotta tell you, I'm not sure I need it."
"No, I'm not trying to make you diet. I just thought you might like something other than a fried breakfast today." Pivoting gracefully on a heel, she moved closer to the bed, over to the nightstand, looking at him the entire way. "Is it alright?"
Nodding enthusiastically, John smiled, "It's delicious. Have you eaten this morning?"
"No," She answered with a shake of her head, "I've told you many times, I don't need to eat."
"I know," John replied before taking another mouthful, "But you enjoy food sometimes, right?"
She nodded quickly as she adjusted the new bedside lamp she'd purchased and swiped her hand over some of the dust that had gathered on the shade with a disapproving frown, "I do. But I didn't feel like it this morning."
"Okay," John answered with a satisfied nod.
Smiling up at Cameron as she glanced at him to gauge his reaction, he happily tucked into his breakfast, content to watch her glide around the room. Although, he had to force himself to concentrate on his food, a difficult thing to do given her choice of attire.
He wondered if she had any idea just how sexy she was or if it was purely by accident, maybe a result of research and knowledge of his tastes and preferences. Her choice to wear nothing but one of his larger button up shirts just barely long enough to reach her thighs and a pair of her panties made it tricky for him to decide which it was.
Watching her lean over to collect a discarded shirt from the floor, John came to the conclusion that he didn't really care either way, he was just glad she was the way she was. "Did you go downstairs and make breakfast dressed like that?"
"Of course." Cameron answered with a smile while idly folding a t-shirt, oblivious to his staring.
"Did anybody see you?" John enquired, still unable to tear his eyes away from where his shirt ended at the top of her thighs, yoghurt comically dripping from the spoon hovering an inch away from his gaping mouth.
"No, Sarah is asleep and Amy is playing outside." As she turned around and caught his questioning look at that last comment, she shrugged, "It's hot out."
"Good. Remember that talk mom had with you a couple of years ago about walking around the house in your underwear?" John asked with a smirk as he took a bite of toast.
"Yes." Cameron smiled as she replayed the memory, seemingly lost in her chip for a moment, "She sat me down and talked at me for fifteen minutes about why it was inappropriate behaviour around you."
Snapping out of her momentary daze, she flashed John a smile, her eyes sparkling like they usually did whenever she was experiencing happiness, one of her favourite new emotions, "I didn't understand the issue she had with it at the time. It was simply logical to apply my makeup without the risk of getting any on my clothes…those stains are difficult to remove."
Chuckling around a mouthful of toast, John shuffled a little higher in the bed, "Yeah, I guess mom didn't really appreciate it when you told her that."
"No, she didn't. Human behaviour was very confusing to me back then." She deadpanned, idly stealing a chunk of banana from his bowl and popping it in her mouth.
"I thought you said you weren't hungry?" John asked as he looked between the bowl and the enigma he called his girlfriend with 'what the hell?' written all over his face.
"I'm not." With that, she surprised him when she leaned over and dropped a kiss on his forehead before floating away towards the closet.
Shaking his head with a slight eye roll, John returned to his breakfast and watched her. She was…glowing. Really, she almost danced around the room on the balls of her feet, no wasted movement or effort and yet still graceful, all in defiance of her weight and construction.
Her behaviour was baffling. It had been a couple of days since he'd discovered her…'on button', in the bedroom. Consequently, he'd also discovered that said button had painful implications, something he still hadn't brought up with her yet.
But ever since then, she'd been in what was probably the best mood anybody had ever seen her in. She'd made dinner for the family, and taken Sarah shopping without his mother coming home looking like she wanted to rip somebody's arm off and beat them to death with it. She'd gone out to the park at the end of the street to play with Amy, had an actual, pleasant conversation with Derek and even promised Jessica she would head out with her for a girly night out…provided she got her mom's permission of course.
But on a personal level, she seemed completely enamoured with John, lavishing attention on him at every turn. All without a pout, a frown or even a single one of those disapproving silences she was so fond of. She hadn't even complained when he'd stayed up late working on his laptop, neglecting her for all intents and purposes.
When he finally did finish his work, he'd crashed pretty much straight away. She didn't even bat an eyelid when he crawled into bed beside her and closed his eyes. She'd simply snuggled against him and told him she loved him. Sex hadn't came up, not even once. Which was surprising given the fact that she'd been pretty blown away by the last time they'd partaken in it, he thought she'd have become even more demanding because of it.
Instead though she'd been happy, delighted, an absolute pleasure…and it made John's heart flutter whenever he saw her.
Through all his musing, his mind had drifted to the point he was no longer chewing, consequently he was caught by surprise when the object of his thoughts settled down on the bed beside him, leg tucked underneath her, a small tube clutched in her hand. After a questioning look from her, no doubt in reference to his zoned out look, John shook his head and smiled, "What's going on?"
Without a word, she unscrewed the cap off the tube and squeezed a small drop of the contents on to her fingertip. Before John realised what was happening, he hissed in a mixture of surprise and pain as she slowly started applying the cream to the deep wounds on his chest…the same wounds she left on him when she dragged her nails over his skin the last time they made love.
The sting subsiding after a few moments of her delicate fingers massaging gentle circles over the still tender skin, John looked at her face, her expression carrying a curious mix of concern and intrigue. Surprisingly though, John noted it carried no hint of regret or remorse, none at all, it was as if she didn't feel guilty for the damage she'd caused.
"What is that stuff?" John asked, trying to get a better look at the tube which apparently contained some sort of miracle pain relieving cream.
"It's Sudocrem." After a moment, she halted the movement of her fingers when she saw John's eyebrow creep up his forehead, "It isn't sold in the United States, but I ordered some from a web based store when I was restocking our medical supplies."
"Its primary purpose is to treat something called diaper rash, but its pain and inflammation relieving properties are second to none." Her explanation sounded suspiciously like the sales blurb from the website it was ordered from, but she seemed happy with it as she resumed her tender massaging of the scratches.
"Okaaaay," John replied with a chuckle. He watched her apply more of the cream to her fingertips, and then move onto the next major abrasion. He hissed when the cold substance came into contact, but it soon warmed and started to feel pretty good.
He studied her face carefully as she worked…mostly to stop himself from looking down at the top three buttons of her shirt that had either came undone or were left that way on purpose. He had a sneaking suspicion it was the latter.
Deciding he had to dig a little deeper, he very carefully asked the question that had been bugging him for the past couple of days, "Cameron, um…do you have any idea how I got these marks on my chest, and these on my neck?"
He gestured to the still fairly obvious bit marks on his neck that he'd somehow managed to keep concealed from his family since she left them on him.
Looking up from her task to his face and keeping up the movement of her fingers, she tilted her head to the side curiously, "Yes. You got them from your training with Derek."
Her simple clarification brought a frown to John's face. It was small, but it was there. "Is that what you believe?"
"Of course, that's what you told me." She answered without any hesitation, not quite understanding why John was doubting what he himself had told her. Perhaps this was yet another facet of human behaviour she was yet to understand.
"I know that's what I told you." Treading very carefully, he reached out and laid his hand on top of hers on the bed, "Princess, I need you to concentrate, okay? Can you…remember anything that happened the last time we made love?"
Glancing down to where his thumb was gently caressing her hand, Cameron's brow cinched together and her fingers stopped moving, "I told you I loved you."
Her token offering wasn't quite what John was looking for, but it brought a smile to his face nonetheless. "That's not what I meant. I love you too by the way. What I meant was, do you remember what we actually did? The way you were acting?"
Brow knitting even further together as she tried to access the memories of that night, Cameron's confusion only deepened when she found she was somehow unable to access certain files and memory clusters. Some things remained, her profession of love, her almost overwhelming climax. But for the most part she couldn't remember how she ended up at that point in the first place.
"I, I don't…" Looking like she was on the verge of some sort or confusion riddled breakdown, she looked up at John for answers, and then quickly back down to his chest where her fingers still rested. Feeling his heart thudding faster than it was a few moments ago under her fingertips, she again tried to access the memories she was looking for.
John simply waited and watched as a myriad of emotions played out across her face, confusion primary amongst them. Cameron just couldn't understand why certain things eluded her, she'd never been denied access to any of her files before. Her confusion was allayed however as she was finally able to open up a fragment of a memory, seemingly triggered by looking at the marks on her lover's skin. Immediately pulling her hand back from his chest, she looked horrified as the memory of her hands, her fingers, her nails scraped over John's skin.
He was in pain, he hissed, he grimaced, and yet she carried on. She was hurting him and she…she was getting off on it!
"Honey? Are you alright" John asked, his voice filled with concern as he reached out and took her hand in his, starting to regret pushing her like this.
"I…I…" Was all she could muster before she seemed to freeze for a split second. It was barely noticeable, imperceptible really, but to a highly aware John Connor the momentary flash of blue behind her usual chocolate eyes was as bright as a sixty watt bulb.
Just like that, it was like a switch had been flipped. Cameron's crushing grip on his hand relaxed, her expression melting into a warm smile as she resumed her gentle ministrations to the scratch marks that had been tormenting her a moment ago.
"We made love. I enjoyed it very much, and then I told you I love you." She said it without any hint of the inner turmoil she'd been through only a short time ago, sounding completely convinced that everything she'd just said was the truth.
Thrown totally by her schizophrenic like behaviour, John didn't know how to react. "And…and these?"
He gestured to the marks she was tending to with his free hand, nervously biting the inside of his lip while he waited what seemed like an age for her to answer.
Cameron looked down to where her fingers rested and frowned momentarily, "Derek should be more careful with you. I'll have a talk with him next time he is here."
Unsure if he should push any more, or be really worried about this development, John sat up in bed, ignoring Cameron's confused look as he gently removed her fingers from his chest and held her hand in his.
Slowly, he laid his free hand on her cheek and smiled when she tilted her head into the contact instinctively. Searching behind those deep, dark and impossibly expressive eyes, he looked for any sign. Something that might give him a hint as to what was going on in that chip of hers.
"What's wrong?" She asked suddenly, startling him as she watched him with unending curiosity and unlimited intelligence, hidden beneath a veneer of the most beautiful pair of eyes he'd ever seen.
Finally breaking into a half hearted smile, John decided it might be best not to press the issue for now. Whatever it was that was going on, it wasn't hurting her, or at least it didn't seem that way. "I'm just thinking about how beautiful you are."
As if on cue, her eyes flashed the merest hint of blue again, letting John know just how happy that little comment had made his Cameron. "Thank you."
Giving his hand a squeeze, she leaned forward and dropped a soft kiss on the lips of the man she cared for more than anything or anyone else, "I love you."
"I love you too, Cameron," John said with a grin as she resumed gently applying the wonder cream in silence.
Whether this development was going to be a good thing or a bad thing, he was pretty sure this was going to be a good day regardless.
How come the press seemed interested in every little thing she did today? Weren't they supposed to be there to cover the fun day, get her dad's company some good publicity?
Was it really all that interesting to watch her eat a hot dog with her niece? Apparently so. It made it kind of difficult to enjoy it, despite the fact Amy couldn't stop giggling when she got tomato sauce on her nose.
Eventually though, they lost interest when she ushered Amy off to play again and sat down at a picnic table to check her phone. She had a feeling these new fangled smartphone things would really catch on. She could do everything on it, check her email, have a check of her 'Twitter' thingy. Even get in some shoe shopping!
Tongue poking out between her lips as she considered placing an order for an eight hundred dollar pair of strappy heels, she had to glance down and check that they weren't exactly the same as the ones she had on. Satisfied they weren't, these had sparkly bits decorating them, she placed the order. Smiling wide at her successful capturing of her new babies, she barely noticed the grey haired man that sat down beside her and had been watching for the past thirty seconds as she concentrated entirely on her screen.
"Hi Bunny!"
"Jeez, dad!" Aiming a chastising swat at his arm, Jessica tried so stop her heart from pounding out of her chest, "Don't scare me like that!"
Chuckling to himself, he leaned over and pulled her head in close so he could drop a kiss on her forehead, just the way he always did, and knew she hated because it messed with her hair, "Sorry, Baby. I couldn't resist, you were just so engrossed in what you were doing."
"Daaaad!" Whining, she shrugged his hand off her head. He knew she hated it when he did that…or at least, that's what she wanted him to believe. She secretly loved it, despite the hassle of having to fix her hair each and every time. "How many years have I been telling you not to do that?"
"Hmm, how old are you now?" He asked with a smirk, holding his fingers out ready to count on them.
Rolling her eyes, Jessica allowed the smile that was threatening to break through her mock irritation out into the open. "Twenty four, and you well know it!"
Counting off his fingers with a grin and pulling them out of her grasp when she reached for them, Donald counted off the years, "Well then, I guess you've been telling me for twenty years."
"And you're still not taking any notice!"
"I'm a slow learner." Smiling wide, he pulled his little girl into an enveloping hug, his much larger frame dwarfing her.
Cuddling herself in, she gave him a tight squeeze as she kissed his cheek, "You know it musses my hair, daddy. It's not funny."
"Then why do you keep laughing?" He asked, letting her go with a chuckle.
Despite the fact she was laughing, she sighed to herself. Her eyes dropped to her lap where her hands were neatly folded.
"What's wrong?" Donald asked, immediately filled with concern for his daughter. He didn't like it when she wasn't happy, as most father's don't.
"I dunno." She admitted with a shrug, "I guess I'm just a little disappointed Derek isn't here. Seeing you has just reminded me you were supposed to meet him today."
"Oh yeah. Why isn't he here?" Donald asked, his first thought being a fear that she'd been let down by yet another asshole guy.
"He promised John he'd take him fishing this weekend, couldn't get out of it." In truth, Derek simply made an excuse to get out of it and John reluctantly backed him up. He had absolutely zero intentions of being stuck for a day with screeching kids and one particularly annoying example of the liquid metal variety.
But her being the nice, kind soul that she was, she believed his hastily sputtered out excuse. When John nodded in agreement Derek knew he was off the hook, even if he did feel a little guilty for letting her down.
"Oh, well then I guess I'll see him some other time." Somewhat disappointed that he'd once again missed out on meeting this guy, Donald smiled sympathetically.
"Yeah…" Sucking in a deep breath, Jessica forced a smile and scanned around the place, locating Amy and making sure she was okay, "Today seems to be going well."
"Yeah," Donald agreed with her observation, looking around at what had become of his empire for the day, "My publicist tells me it's a rousing success."
Rolling his eyes, he winced when a kid ran past the picnic table, wailing at the top of its lungs, "Although I'm kinda glad it's a one off."
"Mmm, it must be hell. Your office is as quiet as a grave most of the time." Grinning, she leaned over and bumped his shoulder with hers, "I bet you're just loooving this!"
"It's not very often a weapons manufacturer gets to put on a friendly face," He shrugged, knowing it was a necessity, albeit a loud and annoying one. "I've heard you're helping with that by the way."
"Me?" She asked like it was nothing, "I get paid to have my photo taken every day. If taking a few shots for my dad helps then who am I to argue?"
"I also hear you have a little friend keeping you company."
"Amy?" A delightful shy smile found it's way to her lips as she thought about the girl in question, "Daddy, she's the cutest little thing…doesn't like the camera though."
"So she's not like you then?" At her questioning look, he got a smile of his own as he thought back to his daughter growing up, "You've loved the camera ever since you were a little kid, and it's loved you too."
"What can I say? I'm photogenic!" She fluffed and shook her hair out dramatically, complete with a model pout, immediately followed by a burst of giggling, accompanied by her dad.
"That you are," He replied with a smile. "So, which one's yours?"
Quickly trying to locate a telltale streak of pink and blonde that signified her Amy, Jessica's eyes lit up as she leaned close to her dad and pointed her out in the crowd. "You see the little blonde over there?"
Following where she was pointing, Donald's eyes immediately widened in surprise, "You mean the little blonde shoving the older boy's face in the dirt?"
"That's my girl." Despite her proud smile, Jessica realised she was supposed to be proving her responsibility today. "Um, I should probably go stop that shouldn't I? That boy is almost a foot taller than her."
"Uh huh, not to mention he's the son of one of my main suppliers. Last thing I need is somebody tattling."
"You wanna meet her?" Jessica asked excitedly as she rose to her feet, ignoring the implications her dad obviously saw.
"Um, sur…" Before he could even finish speaking, he found himself being pulled up to stand by his surprisingly strong and overly excited daughter. Being dragged across your own front lawn by a waif of a girl was one thing, but having to dodge flying kids at every step was just a little too much.
"Amy! Could you come over here please?"
Pulling her tongue back into her mouth, Amy finished her taunting of the boy she'd left in tears. She did warn him to stop pulling her pigtails, he got everything he deserved, including the mouthful of dirt…and the bug down his shirt. She hated having her pigtails pulled.
Still though, she looked a little busted when Jessica called for her. Suddenly her promise to be a good girl wasn't looking so healthy. Skipping her way over, her targeting systems quickly identified Donald Grey, CEO of Aegis. Jessica's dad.
However, in keeping with her cover, Amy skidded to a stop a few steps short of what was apparently going to be an introduction and shuffled nervously on the spot, eyeing the 'stranger' warily.
Sensing Amy's hesitance, Jessica kneeled down beside her and started brushing the dirt off her dress. "Who's that?" A small voice from beside her asked, Amy's stare focused solely on the older man.
"Amy, I'd like you to meet my dad." She beckoned the older man over with a wave, but had to glance down at the firm grip Amy had on her arm, and she didn't fail to notice the way the girl had moved closer into her side. She had to admit, her dad didn't look the most appealing if you didn't know or love him. He did have more of a look of a rugged scoundrel about him, rather than an upstanding businessman.
"Mommy says I'm not supposed to talk to strangers." Bottom lip poking out far enough for a small bird to land on it, Amy really, really enjoyed playing up to her little girl image. Based on way Jessica's face melted, so did she.
"Oh honey, it's okay." Pulling her dad closer by grabbing the bottom of his jacket, Jessica gently rubbed Amy's back encouragingly, "He's not a stranger to me, and you know me, so that means he's not a stranger to you either…right?"
Face scrunching up like it was the most difficult thing she'd ever had to think about, Amy considered Jessica's words carefully, "I guess."
"So, I'd like you to meet my dad." Proud of her ability to cajole the kid into believing her, a hallmark of any good parent, Jessica smiled over at her dad, "Say hello."
Donald crouched down in front of the blonde, his bad knee creaking from the strain, and held out his hand. In truth he looked like he was about to greet a business associate rather than an eight year old girl, and Jessica rolled her eyes accordingly. "Hi Amy. It's nice to meet you."
"Um," Amy glanced at her aunt briefly before answering, "Hi, Mr. Jessica."
Chuckling to himself, Donald took Amy's, rather cold, hand and shook it gently. "Please, call me Donald."
Amy stubbornly shook her head, looking like that idea appalled her, "Mommy says I'm supposed to call grownups Mr. or Mrs. It's rude if I say your first name."
"Well, I won't tell anyone of you don't." Leaning close, he winked conspiratorially, bringing a wide smile to Amy's face.
"See, Amy? He's not so bad…once you get to know him." Flashing a grateful smile at her dad, Jessica stood up again and snagged Amy's hand. Catching the look on Donald's face, she stopped and tilted her head, mouthing 'what?'.
Shaking his head, he smiled dismissively and looked down at Amy, who seemed to be examining him with a keen eye. If he wasn't so sure she was a harmless little girl, he'd have been unnerved by the intensity of her stare.
"When Aunt Jessica marries Uncle Derek, will you be my grandpa?" Out of the blue as it was, the question caught both adults by surprise, especially Donald who laughed wholeheartedly, making Amy frown a little.
Jessica joined in, laughing along with her dad, despite Amy's apparent bemusement. "What? What are you laughing at?" She folded her arms across her chest in a huff, she hated being laughed at.
"I, I don't think it works that way, sweetie." Smiling apologetically, Jessica dropped a conciliatory kiss on her forehead, "I think he'd be your…great uncle, right?"
Donald shrugged, "Something like that. Definitely not Grandpa though…not for a while anyway."
The wink he flashed his daughter's way brought a smile to her face that would power Las Vegas for weeks. Amy though was unmoved and still kept up her pout and folded arm stance, "But I want a Grandpa. I've never had a Grandpa."
Jessica was pretty sure Amy was about to stamp her foot if she didn't get her way, so she pre-empted that by wrapping her up in a big hug. Despite an initial squirming from the girl, she eventually felt her tiny arms wrap around her neck and squeeze, but she still got the feeling it was a little reluctantly.
Donald watched the exchange with a smile on his face.
Huh, perhaps a grandkid might not be such a bad thing…if I could only meet the guy who'd be the father first.
"Hey, listen, Jess, I've gotta go meet a few more people. Are you gonna be around later for dinner maybe?"
Breaking the hug, Jessica frowned as she realised she wouldn't be able to make it, "Sorry, daddy, I have to make sure Amy gets home alright. Sarah will never, ever forgive me if anything happens to her. She can be…intense."
As Amy grinned up at her Aunt, intense was an understatement, several photographers headed their way. Just what was it with the human need to take pictures of everything and then splash it all over print for others to see? It was a baffling obsession that Amy didn't understand in the slightest.
Still though, Jessica seemed to enjoy it as she leaned into her father's side with her perfect smile in place, even going so far as to drop a kiss on his cheek for the cameras. Realising the introductions were apparently over, Amy took off running towards the slide.
"Amy! I'll come get you when it's time to go home, 'kay?"
Jessica watched as Amy barely nodded in reply. Returning to her smile and the camera, she whispered in her dad's ear, "Be careful with this journalist. She has a habit of…bending the truth."
Nodding with a smile, Donald let go of his girl and gave her arm a squeeze in appreciation, "I'll see you later, bunny. We'll catch up during the week."
"Okay daddy." Dropping one last kiss on his cheek, she separated from him and returned to the spot she'd left on the picnic table.
After barely a moment and only a single swig from her water bottle, a deep voice startled her from behind. "Excuse me, Miss Grey?"
He was nice. He loves Jessica, I guess that makes him a good guy, right?
As Amy climbed the steps of the slide, she mulled over her first meeting with Mr. Grey. She was satisfied the cuteness factor had worked the way she wanted, no problems there. Come on, who wouldn't that work on?
But the guy was important one way or another. She had a feeling having a major weapons manufacturer on side might help someday, even if only for his expertise in the future.
Ugh, there's that boy again. Is he still crying? What a wuss! I only pushed his face in the dirt, you'd think I'd grabbed and squeezed private places the way he's acting.
Wishing the boy would man up, Amy slid down the slide, coming clean off the end and landing on her ass in the dirt with a grin.
She loved playing. Ever since she'd first been shown how, it was a source of release for her. Cameron had her dancing and more R rated activities to help her relieve a little stress. Sarah had her punching bag. Jessica and Derek had each other, and she had her playtime.
She actually felt sorry for John, what did he have? Not much as far as Amy could tell. She could only imagine what he was like before he had Cameron. What did the future leader of all mankind do before she came along?
As she was contemplating that question, she found herself engulfed in a large shadow being cast from behind her.
"Miss Baum, could you come with me please?"
Turning her head around slowly to face the cause of the shadow, Amy rolled her eyes.
Seriously? Did that boy tattle on me or something? Jeez, what a girl!
"Why?" She politely enquired of the man in a black suit, clearly he was security judging from the earpiece and the obvious bulge in his jacket created by his sidearm.
"I've been asked to collect you by Miss Grey." His deep voice boomed out against the volume created by shrieking kids and chattering parents.
Standing up and brushing the dirt off her dress, Amy faced the large human, staring up at his sunglasses covered eyes, "Aunt Jessica? Why?"
"Unfortunately there's been an incident."
Amy's metaphorical heart leapt into her mouth at those words. Had something happened to Jessica? How? This place was full of kids and rich parents, it wasn't exactly Helmand province or anything.
"Is she okay?" Amy asked warily, not liking at all where this was going.
"Yes, of course, we're taking care of her. But she's refusing to leave the area until we collect you and bring you to her." Adjusting his jacket, the man held out his hand for the girl to take. "We have orders from Mr. Grey to get his daughter out of here. We can't do that until you come with me."
Eyeing the outstretched hand warily, Amy didn't know what to believe. On one hand, this guy as far as she could tell was telling the truth. He really had orders to retrieve her and bring her to Jessica. On the other hand, it seemed a little odd that only a few minutes ago everything was fine. Slowly, she took the hand and ran a quick scan. Yeah, the guy was definitely telling the truth.
"Thank you." Clearly uncomfortable, the man forced a smile as he took her hand and started leading her towards the main building.
"Where is she?" Amy asked, scanning her surroundings carefully for any signs of the danger the man was alluding to.
"She's in the building and waiting for you." He answered as he kept up the quickest pace he could with such a small person in tow. He hated assignments with kids, their little legs made moving quickly a real pain in the ass.
Something just didn't feel right about this for Amy. Alright, she understood that if there was any remote danger, then security's first job would be to secure the VIP's, that meant Mr. Grey and his daughter first and foremost. Looking around, there was no sign of Donald either. Knowing Jessica too, she was terrified of Sarah. If anything happened to her, Jessica would never forgive herself, so her concern was pretty obviously real.
Another thing was the guard who had collected her. He was being honest, truthful.
You're being paranoid, Amy. Snap out of it. Go see your Aunt, make sure she's fine and then get out of here. Think about all this later.
As they approached the main building, the guard veered off towards a side door, apparently the security entrance near the underground car park. He guided her in through the door as best and gently he could, given his obvious, massive size difference. Once there, they met with three other men, none of whom she recognised.
Stopping and feigning reluctance, Amy looked up at the man beside her for any reaction. She got none, he merely maintained his professionalism and nodded to the other men, "This is Miss Baum, as requested."
"Thanks, Jones." Nodding, one of the men stepped forward and held his hand out towards the centre of the room. A moment later the man, apparently Jones, let go of her hand and gave her a half smile before departing out the way he came.
"Where's my Aunt?" Amy asked, her voice quivering with apparent worry.
Glancing past her, the man who'd approached first made sure Jones was gone before shouting, "Now!"
The next thing Amy knew, her body was frozen in place by something strong, something powerful…a magnetic field.
Collapsing forward, she barely caught sight of the man in front of her stepping back quickly as her vision clouded with too many warning messages and alerts to decipher. The magnetic pull was so strong it forced her to the ground in no time, her liquid metal matrix already losing cohesion, losing her shape.
Forcing her head to turn, it was almost like watching in slow motion as all three men grinned triumphantly. Struggling to hold her shape against the powerful field, she watched as a fourth man emerged from a door at the back of the room…Quinn.
It was a trap all along. Jessica was the bait and she was the prey. How could she be so stupid?
Quinn stepped closer, his boots thundering off the ground with each step. Brazenly he crouched down by what was now a mass of liquid metal with little to no shape, mixed in with a few patches of pink of what used to be Amy's dress. The machine remained online long enough to hear Quinn laughing evilly before standing.
"Alright, let's pack it up and get out of here. Mr. Vasquez wants his new toy as soon as possible."
With that, Amy's consciousness blinked out, overcome by the strength of the magnet, her systems unable to cope and shutting down to protect themselves.
The last thing she remembered was feeling alone, vulnerable…afraid.
Next up, Jessica learns a terrible secret!
Thanks as always to Dekardkain.