Special Note: I feel like I'm getting into a better groove when it comes to writing this story especially with Reid, Tyler, Pogue and Caleb. I felt like I was struggling before, but now I think I'm getting a grip on their personalities, or at least my interpretation of their personalities. Oh and Martin's back. I know he had tons of fans from Proof and he hasn't changed. I enjoy writing him so much and I'm going to have a lot of fun weaving him into the new adventures of Chase and Claudia. Enjoy and please REVIEW.
This Is Absolution
Card 4: Four of Wands
Claudia tapped the stirring wheel of her black C230 Mercedes as she sat at the loading curb of the tiny Long Beach Airport.
Martin waved at her from the baggage claim before grabbing his few pieces of luggage and strolling over. She hit the trunk release, but didn't bother to get out and help and when he came around to the passenger side and peeked in the window, he saw one of his closest friends with her hair in messy ponytail and big, dark sunglasses taking up half of her face.
She looked like she hadn't slept in days. She looked like she'd gotten the shit beaten out of her.
"What the hell happened to you?" Martin frowned as he opened the door and plopped inside the car.
Claudia shook her head and started to turn out from the curb and into traffic to exit the airport, "It's complicated. I'll tell you when we get home."
He looked at her for a long moment and felt an intense sense of worry creep up and out of his pores, "What the hell is going on?" he said, his voice a soft, stern whisper.
"I told you, I'll tell you when we get back to the apartment. I live on Ocean blvd, it's not far," she said softly.
Martin whipped his head around in frustration, turning away to look out of the window.
He'd been in California all of five minutes and already Claudia was giving him the silent treatment although it was obvious something was wrong. He could hear Jack in the back of his head telling him to let it lie, but he couldn't. She was his friend and they had bonded in Ajo. He cared about her and wanted her to be okay.
He knew that the thing she'd gotten into with Chase wasn't exactly the smartest move in the world and he knew that he'd encouraged her to pursue the "Putnam Boy", or at least open herself up to his pursuing of her, so there was some guilt there… However, he stood behind his initial actions because he knew in his heart that Chase really did love her and that she needed love regardless of where it came from, as long as it was honest and deep.
But he didn't want something that, had circumstances been different, been a lovely and normal relationship to take this kind of toll on her. In fact he hadn't expected it to, but by the way she looked he knew that the whole thing was ripping her apart. He couldn't stand it.
It hadn't been a long drive at all and Claudia pulled into the driveway in front of her apartment facing the ocean and turned off the ignition. Before Martin could even get a word out to interrogate her about what the hell was making her look so haggard, she'd hopped out of the car and started getting his suitcases out of the trunk. He got out of the car too and went around the back to grab the heavier pieces and without a word, she headed up the stairs to her apartment, swinging the screen door open briskly.
She tossed her sunglasses on the end table haphazardly and then dragged Martin's suitcases into the living room and sat them in front of the coffee table before staggering around it to fall on the sofa like a sack of potatoes.
Martin followed after her, putting the rest of his luggage in front of the coffee table and slipping his sunglasses up to sit on top of his blond head. He put his hands on his hips and watched her as she sank into the sofa.
Without her sunglasses she looked even worse with dark purplish circles under her eyes. Her skin was still smooth and flawless, but she looked sallow like she'd lost too much blood. He narrowed his eyes and then let them shift about the apartment; leather furniture and dark wood shaped into art deco pieces, books and tasteful art, yet not too cluttered with stuff. It was typical Claudia.
"When was this apartment built? In the 30s maybe?" he asked settling into one of the overstuffed leather chairs, an exact replica of the one in Arizona.
Claudia's eyes flickered open and yawned, "Yeah… that's why I like it."
He tapped his manicured fingers against the arm of the chair, "You like things with history; things that have a story. Is that why you like Chase, because he's from one of those old Colonial families?"
At the mention of Chase's name Claudia groaned and turned over onto her side, "I don't want to talk about him."
"Things with the "dark horse" gone sour already?" He smirked.
"I haven't talked to him since I sent him back."
"Then what's the problem? You look like shit. This isn't from you missing him that bad, is it?"
"No," she said slowly and then fell into a pause.
She put her hand up to her mouth and turned over on her stomach, hanging over the side of the cushions as if she would fall to the floor. Then she slid off the sofa onto her knees, sprouting up and running to the bathroom in the hall, barely having enough time to turn on the light before she was over the toilet bowl hurling up what little she'd had on her stomach.
Martin rushed after her and instinctively pulled her hair out of her face and held it back. He turned his head away at the sound of her vomiting and opened his mouth to ask if she was sick before another possibility dawned on him.
"Jesus Christ, Claudia! You're not… I mean… It's called a condom!" He sneered with disappointment. "What the hell were you thinking?"
"I'm not pregnant, Martin!" she said harshly as she fell back against the bathtub surround. "We never… you know. And I'm hurt that you'd think I'd fall into bed with a Son of Ipswich and not take… precautions."
Martin shrugged and helped her up off the floor, "Well, he is awfully cute. I don't know how you avoided sleeping with him," A smiled spread across his face. "I would have… the first chance I got."
Despite feeling like she'd been run over by a very large truck, she smiled, "You're such a whore. I should tell Jack on you and for the record, it was extremely hard. I wanted to… really, really bad."
He snorted with amusement, "You can tell Jack all you want, but he's crushing on your boyfriend too. He keeps going on and on about how beautiful his eyes are."
Claudia rolled her eyes and turned on the faucet at the sink. She splashed her face with cold water and then rinsed out her mouth before brushing her teeth vigorously and swishing Listerine between her cheeks to kill the taste of regurgitated food. Martin handed her a towel and stepped back as she headed to the living room and plopped down on the sofa once again, completely exhausted.
Martin went into the small, open kitchen and hunted for a glass. He poured Claudia some water from one of the bottles in her refrigerator and handed it too her. Then he made his way back around to his chair and sat there starting at her.
"Are you sick?" he asked flatly.
"Sort of," she replied.
"I mean with the flu or something," he said a little frustrated.
"No," she replied shortly.
"Then what," he said. "And stop beating around the freakin' bush. What's going on with you?"
Claudia was silent for a long moment and turned her head away, closing her eyes, "I took his withdrawal when I sent him back. He wouldn't have been able to handle it right now and it would have slowed things down. I need him to go back to Ipswich as soon as possible."
"You did what?" Martin asked rhetorically. He'd heard her just fine, but didn't believe it. Why would she do something so stupid?
Claudia turned her head to face him, "I had to. He has to break the addiction if he's going to be able to use the way he needs to in June and if everything goes right, it won't be an issue anymore."
"Exactly! HE needs to break the addiction, not YOU!" Martin shook his head in disgust. "What the hell is wrong with you? Three months ago you never would have done something so stupid. Their Deus is cursed; it's dark. You taking even a little bit of it into yourself like this could hurt you... badly. You're not thinking, Claudia!"
She sat up, "I'm thinking that I love him and I need to help him anyway that I can!"
"Okay, than tell me this. How the hell is he supposed to learn his lesson about overusing if you take all the consequences for him? He's been a power junkie for months, having a good old time using and feeling the high. That's all he's ever known and the ONE chance he had of finding out how the curse really works; what could really happen to you if you don't check yourself and slow down has been thrown out the window by you thinking you're helping him." He stood up from his chair and started to pace back and fourth down the length of the living room. "Shit, I bet he's in Haversfield right now feeling right as rain and wondering why he's not craving magic. Stupid boy!"
"It's not his fault," Claudia whimpered. "He doesn't know what I did. If he knew…"
"If he knew he'd wring your fucking neck! That's what would happen if he knew!" Martin scolded her, still pacing up and down the length of the room.
Claudia sat herself upright on the sofa and watched him pace. He had no idea how she felt about Chase and how she hadn't thought twice about doing what she did because in the long run, it would save them both.
She loved him. She'd do anything for him. She'd die for him.
Martin paused at the window and then whirled around to face her, "We'll do a dispensation spell and get rid of the affects of withdrawal for both of you. Despite your lack of judgment concerning him, you're right about one thing: He's not strong enough to handle the effects right now and he does need to convince the other Sons as soon as possible."
Claudia shook her head in protest, "Not a dispensation spell… no."
"Look, it sucks, but it's the easiest and fastest way."
"No!" Claudia insisted. "It will just send the original spell out into the ether. It could affect someone else, an innocent, or it could come back years from now and threefold. It's better if I just ride it out. It's not as bad as it was before. The seizures have stopped. I think maybe a week or two and it will be gone."
"A week or two," he hissed. "Brilliant."
"You'd do the same for Jack if you were in my position," her voice dropped to a whisper.
"No I wouldn't! Girl, you are so backwards it's sick. I understand that you've never been in love before and you don't know how it works, but let me assure you, THIS is not how it works. Just because you love someone doesn't mean you have to put your neck on the block for them over trivial shit like this." Martin stopped and took a breath. He was so frustrated and angry with her. "Besides, you're holding him back by doing this. He has to learn on his own, you can't do it for him."
Claudia shifted her eyes away as she knew that Martin was right. He would have to learn on his own. She couldn't do it for him although she desperately wanted to. She wished that things had been different and they'd met under better circumstances. She wished that they were both normal; just a boy and girl who happened to meet and fall in love and be happy.
If only things could have been different for everyone.
"That's it! I'm telling him!" Reid said as he leaned against his locker. He pushed himself off the metal with a nudge and Pogue grabbed him by the collar and hauled him back.
"Can't you see he's busy," he flicked his head towards Caleb and Sarah who were hovered in the corner next to her locker.
They were deep in a conversation that seemed to be escalating by the second. Finally Sarah threw her hands up in frustration and pushed passed him, forcing the double doors to the quad open and letting them slam behind her as she stalked out. The sound echoed through the hall and the few students that were gathered at their lockers turned to look at the now slammed doors or at Caleb to wonder what he'd done to piss off his girlfriend so much.
Caleb grabbed a tuft of his hair as if he would pull it out with sheer frustration and then let his hand slid down his face. He looked at Pogue, Reid and Tyler who were watching him and then let his eyes shift away as he made his way in the opposite direction of his friends and his girl.
"Trouble in Paradise," Tyler said flatly and slammed his locker shut.
"I told you this would happen," Reid sighed and shrugged out of Pogue's grip. "The shit is starting to hit the fan."
'Shut up," Pogue hissed.
"Ooh," Reid breathed. "Getting a glimpse of the future with you and Kate? I have to admit, I don't envy you. Sometimes it's good to be a pimp."
Tyler chuckled instantly and then contained himself, swallowing hard as he saw that really was what Pogue was seeing… the future with him and Kate after he told her everything.
"Now obviously isn't the time to throw around your werewolf theory so back off it," Pogue hissed again.
"Alright I get it!" Reid conceded. "I'll let it go for now, but only because you out weigh me by like 50 pounds. Other than that, it'd be on."
"You wouldn't stand a chance," Tyler laughed and made his way around them toward the double doors. "Are we going to eat or what? I'm starving."
"We should probably find Caleb and ask if he wants to go too," Reid said matter-of-factly.
Both Tyler and Pogue looked at him a little shocked.
"What!" Reid demanded.
"Nothing," Pogue smiled, shaking his head. "Nothing."
"So what's it going to be? Pizza, burgers… Ooh sushi sounds good!" Tyler grinned as he opened the double doors to Dorsey Hall and headed out to the parking lot.
"Sushi?" Reid smirked following after him. "Would you like a side of quiche to go with that "Nancy Boy"?"
"Fuck you. You like Sushi just like the rest of us, so don't front." Tyler countered waving him off. "A sumo roll sounds really good right now."
Reid thought for a moment and then nodded in agreement, "Your right, we'll do sushi. Plus I can hit on that cute ass waitress that works there. Damn she's hot."
Pogue made his way around Tyler's Hummer, "She's constantly dissing you. When are you going to get—" He stopped as he spotted Caleb sitting on the brick planter under the windows of Dorsey Hall.
"Caleb!" Pogue called out to him.
Caleb looked up and saw his friends about to pile into Tyler's SUV and forced a smile.
Pogue walked away from the Hummer a little bit and motioned for Caleb to join them, "We're heading over to Ichiko's. Come with us."
Caleb thought about the fight he'd just had with Sarah and how she was constantly asking for space. He thought about how consumed he'd become with keeping her, to the point where he'd started to neglect the three people in his life that knew everything about him and would stand by him no matter what. He needed space just as much as she did. He needed time to clear his head.
He stood up from the planter and walked over to them, "Yeah, I could go for that. Let's get out of here."
Pogue nodded and opened the back passenger door, letting Caleb get in first. Then he got in as Reid hopped into the front passenger seat and Tyler started the ignition.
There seemed to be a weighted silence as Tyler backed out of his parking space. No one wanted to broach the subject of Sarah or what she and Caleb had been fighting about. But they were all concerned. It was a difficult situation.
Desperate to break the discomfort, Reid turned his head toward Tyler and smiled, "I'm telling you ladies, persistence is a virtue. I'll have that hot little waitress dropping her panties for me in no time. Shit, she'll be turning tricks for me on the track by the time I'm done."
The sheer ridiculousness of the statement seemed to thin the air and all of the sudden the SUV was filled with laughter
"Oh my god! Bullshit!" Tyler howled as Pogue doubled over, trying desperately to contain the roars of laughter that were escaping him.
Caleb laughed too and for a moment he forgot about his fight with Sarah and his desperate need to hold onto her. For the moment he was just Caleb Danvers, on his way to lunch with his boys, talking about ridiculous things, laughing about Reid's extreme cockiness and just being a teenager… like they once were.
"You're fucking insane," Pogue said, shaking his head, still chuckling with laughter. "Completely insane."
"Here, drink this," Martin said, offering Claudia a glass.
It was a thick, pink looking liquid that was a bit frothy. Claudia immediately twisted her face up with distrust, "What the hell is it?" she said pulling the blanket that Martin had draped over her up to her chin.
He rolled his eyes, "It's an old hangover recipe I got from my grandmamma back in Savannah. I think it will help you feel better and keep some food down."
"It's disgusting, isn't it?" she frowned. "I can tell just by looking at it. Those home hangover deals never taste decent. I'll pass."
"No," Martin said pulling the blanket off her. "You won't pass. You need to feel better. You promised to take me to The Community libraries tomorrow and show me around the place. You promised to show me around L.A. and that is exactly what you're going to do. I didn't fly all the way out here for nothing so you better fucking drink."
Claudia sighed heavily and took the glass. She pinched her nose shut with her index and thumb fingers and then gulped the pink liquid down in one forced motion. She slammed the glass on the coffee table and held her hand over her mouth to keep the drink down, swallowing hard and refusing to throw up for the third time that day.
Martin sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her protectively, "Keep it down. Trust me, it will make you feel better. I put a little extra something in there. I'm no potion master but I have my tricks."
Claudia let out a breath as the contents of the glass settled in her stomach, "I knew it wasn't just some down south recipe you got from your grandmamma."
He shrugged, "I had to do something. You need to be healthy and clear in the head. Remember why you're doing this; to save Chase… plus, you're not going to ruin my trip."
She let out a quiet laugh, "So selfish," she breathed.
"Whatever," he answered and then looked down at her. "Are you feeling better? You look better."
She nodded, "Yeah, actually I am. What did you put in that stuff."
"Oh, just a little bit of this and little bit of that. It's a family secret that I cannot reveal," His silky southern accent intensified. "My grandmamma was a kitchen witch from way back. Even after she married my granddaddy and came into money she still made her potions and what not. Like they say, you can take the hillbilly out of the backwoods…"
"I'm gonna go take a shower and then we'll get something to eat, okay?" she asked getting up from the sofa.
He nodded, "Sure thing. It's about time you started treating me like the tourist I am."
"You're no tourist," she said waving him off as she rounded the corner to the hallway. "You've been to L.A. before."
"I can pretend if I want to!" Martin countered and then fell back against the sofa cushions. It had been an exhausting day.
Chase stood in the specialty foods department of the upscale grocery store with two rolls of polenta in his hands.
Leona had sent him to the store for the third time that week. It was her way of getting him out of the house, but each time she'd sent him she'd requested more and more bizarre ingredients for increasingly imaginative meals. He didn't mind, the food was good, but he had a sneaking suspicion that this time, she'd deliberately given him a vague request to keep him out of the house... and out of her hair for as long as possible.
He weighed the polenta in his hands like a scale; two different brands, two different prices, slightly different ingredients. Which one did she want?
"Chase fucking Collins!" a voice called out from down the aisle.
He looked up in the direction of the voice and his eyes widened, "Alison? Alison Talbot?"
She ran up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her body against his in a tight embrace. Then she pulled back and put her lips against his, kissing him fully.
She came down from her tiptoes with her arms still wrapped around his neck and looked up at him, "You look really good," she smiled. "Where the hell have you been. Dan said you just took off after the funeral and you weren't answering your phone. You had everyone worried sick, you ass."
He darted his eyes away and forced a smile, slipping her arms from around his neck.
Alison was still the dark haired, light eyed beauty who'd seduced him when he was 16 and she was 20. He'd always felt that their "affair" was slightly inappropriate considering their age difference, but then again that was what made it so sexy. He was the only one of his friends who was sleeping with a 20 year old woman and his best friend's sister at that. They'd had a good time for the 4 months that they'd messed around and she'd taught him quite a lot. He still had a soft spot for her.
She stepped away from him, "What's the matter? You used to like it when I did that."
"No.. It's just… things are weird right now," he shook his head.
She leaned into him and studied his face, "Holy shit! You've met a girl! Chase Collins is putting his player ways aside for a girl! Are you in love, Chase. Is she devastatingly beautiful. Is that where you've been all this time; Shacked up with some chick?"
"Not the entire time," he said dropping a roll of polenta into his cart and putting the other one back on the shelf. Which one he bought hardly seemed important at this point.
"I hope you didn't pick up one of those uppity chicks from… where was it they said you enrolled… Spenser. You belong with a Hastings girl," she said proudly of her Alma Mader.
Chase smiled, "She doesn't go to Spenser so no worries."
"Well, tell me about her," She pressed. "Is she as good as me?" she asked teasingly with a soft whisper.
He changed the subject, "So, what are doing back here? I thought you loved New York."
She shrugged, "I do, but Thanksgiving is next week. Trying to spend time with the fam, you know."
"Oh. I'd forgotten that Thanksgiving was coming up."
She looked at him again, her face turning serious, "Does Dan know you're here? He was really worried about you. If he finds out you're back and you didn't call he'll be pissed." She stuffed her hands in the pockets of her tweed Chanel jacket. "You know I'm going to tell him I saw you. He's already back form Hastings for break. They all are: Dan, Andy, Harris and Kent. They'll want to know that you're back in town."
Chase nodded, "I understand. That's cool. I'll call Dan tomorrow."
"Good!" she said happily. "You know he'll want you to come for Thanksgiving dinner. Everyone will be at our house this year and it wouldn't be right without you. I want you to come too and you can bring that girlfriend of yours. I'm desperate to meet her!"
"Oh, she's in L.A. She can't come, but she's coming for Christmas and New Year's." His demeanor lightened at the thought of Claudia coming to Haversfield for the holidays.
Alison noticed how happy he got at the mention of the mystery girl, "Wow, you've really fallen for this girl, haven't you? It's all over your face. She better be awesome or I'll be pissed."
"She's wonderful," he said as his thoughts drifted to Claudia. "She's the best thing that ever happened to me."
Alison narrowed her eyes. Chase had changed. There was definitely something different about him, but it wasn't some simple change. She was having a hard time putting her finger on it.
"But you ARE coming to Thanksgiving, right? I'm serious, Chase, I want you to be there. I won't take no for an answer."
"Leona might have something planned, so I'll have to see," he answered.
She rolled her eyes, "That woman never liked me."
"I think she suspected something," he smiled. "And she would have been right."
Alison blushed despite playing the part of the vixen, "Anyway, I'll let you go," she leaned up and kissed him on the cheek this time. "I don't want to piss off the invisible girlfriend," she remarked smirking. "You let her know I'll be watching her when she gets here. She has to be special to be with my Chase. You were mine first." She let a suggestive grin spread on her lips and then turned on her heel in the opposite direction, almost skipping down the aisle.
Chase watched her leave and he couldn't help but smile. Alison always had that affect on him and even after they'd called it quits and he'd crush on another girl, she'd be sure to pull him back to her just enough to remind him that she was still in control.
It hadn't worked so well this time though. He'd finally found someone that could rival Alison if not downright beat her. He'd managed to move on from that raging summer on Martha's Vineyard when Dan's older sister had set her sights on the grey eyed Collins boy with the killer smile. Those were sweet times and hot nights, but he was over it. He was ready to settle down and no matter how genuine Alison's feelings were for him, she wasn't ready to settle with one guy and they weren't meant for each other anyway.
His thoughts moved to Dan and the rest of his closest friends; his partners in crime at Hastings. He wasn't sure how Dan would react to him returning after vanishing so suddenly and then not returning his calls while he was gone. He had no idea how any of them would react, but he was sure that Alison would keep her word and tell her brother as soon as she walked in the door and it would only be a matter of time before he had to get over himself and face his friends. He had a lot of explaining to do and it wasn't going to be easy.