A/N: Ok, first off I want to apologize for taking forever to post a new chapter, but unfortunately real life hit me and my family really hard about a week after I posted my last chapter. Some very close family friends of ours passed away suddenly and as a result their daughter has moved in with us. The past month and a half have been difficult to say the least. Unfortunately because the tragedy was very violent in nature, it has become incredibly hard to sit down and write this story without thinking about that horrible day. Anyway, that was my spiel. Thank you so much to everyone who has decide to stick with this story, you're all fabulous! On a lighter note, today is my 18th birthday, I'm now officially an adult! Now without further ado here is chapter 4, I do not own Fringe.
Enjoy!
Girl with the Broken Smile Chapter 4
"I didn't mention she is my step-daughter, did I? Oops,"
At that Peter froze as the cogs in his mind clicked together with the realization.
The Stepfather.
Right here.
Right now.
Sitting next to him in this lonely hotel bar, was Olivia's stepfather.
Fuck.
It was all Peter could do to not lunge at the sick bastard and beat him to a pulp. However, instead he smiled cynically and lightly took a sip of his drink.
"No, I'm afraid you failed to mention that." Peter chuckled darkly after a moment.
"Crazy, the amount of details you forget about when you get old," Chris remarked, staring at Peter intently.
"Crazy indeed," Peter said, refusing to break eye contact.
If someone were to walk upon the scene right at that moment, it would look as if two lonely men at a bar were having just a normal conversation. Maybe a little more so than average strangers, but normal just the same. Oh, how incredibly wrong they would be. Beneath Peter's calm and collected exterior, his mind was reeling. He sent up a silent prayer to whomever to thank them for his impeccable conman skills. He needed to warn Olivia and he needed to do it soon.
"Would you excuse me for a moment?"
"You leaving already?"
"Nah, I just gotta take a leak," Peter said as he got up from his stool, he would have to make this quick.
As soon as he was out of sight he pulled out his cell phone and dialed the first number that came to mind, Olivia's house.
It rang five times until he was greeted by her voice mail.
"Hi, you've reached Olivia Dunham, I can't come to the phone right now. Please leave your name and number and I will get back to you as soon as I can. Beep."
Dammit!
"'Livia, its Peter. Please call me, I really need to talk to you." He hung up and dialed her cell. If the house phone hadn't already woken her up, her cell definitely would. Peter put the phone back to his ear.
It rang once.
"Come on," He groaned into the receiver.
It rang twice.
It had just started to ring for a third time when Peter felt a slight pinch on the back of his neck.
"What the-" He started before he began to get extremely dizzy.
Within seconds the cell phone was wrenched from his shaky grasp and he hit the floor with a thud.
As his muscles went slack, Peter looked up and his sleepy gaze was met with a pair of beady eyes slightly concealed by thick glasses. He heard was a throaty chuckle and then everything went dark.
The first thing Peter noticed when he came to was the smell. It reeked of piss, shit and something slightly tangy, almost like sweat. The second thing he registered as he became more aware was that he was blindfolded and tied to the back of a chair with what felt like steel cables. His throat felt raw and his head was throbbing painfully. Jesus, what the hell happened?
"Good, you're up," A gruff voice said from somewhere behind him.
Peter jumped and craned his neck toward the noise.
"Listen up, asshole." Peter called hoarsely into the darkness. "I work for the federal government, the FBI as a matter of fact, and holding me here is a felony of the-"
Peter balked, who was this guy? One of Eddie's?
"Having a lapse in memory, are we? I suppose it's just a reaction to what I gave you, not your fault, should be temporary though. Let's see if we can retrieve it," The voice said and pulled the blindfold from Peter's face.
Instantly Peter's eyes filled with tears as his blurry vision was assaulted by a bright light coming from what looked like a naked bulb overhead. He tried to focus his gaze as best he could yet was failing miserably. All he could make out was a fuzzy outline of a person, no, a man.
"Still having trouble? I'll give you a hint, we have a mutual acquaintance." The man crooned.
"Look, I think you may have the wrong-"
"Long blonde hair, green eyes, and nice tits. You know exactly who I'm talking about. From what I understand, you're partners. Hell, maybe even a little more."
Peter tense and his eyes widened in realization as little by little yet all at once, the night came rushing back to him.
Olivia's birthday.
Bar.
The stepfather.
Olivia.
Olivia.
Olivia.
No.
"Gotcha,"
Peter's head began to whirl; why was the bastard still here? Did he do this every year? If not, what had changed? Even bigger question, what did he want with him? Why was he being held as a hostage?
"Alright Peter, now that we're on the same page, let's chat."
Hours later, Olivia woke from a rather peaceful and dreamless sleep. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept that well, not since she joined Fringe Division at least. Her feeling of ease was short lived however once she saw the tell-tale blinking blue light flashing from her phone. Shit, did she sleep through a call? She quickly grabbed it and relaxed slightly when she realized it was only a text from Peter.
Liv,
I have to go out of town for a little bit. Don't worry its nothing major, a friend of mine's girlfriend kicked him out and he needs help moving into a new place by this weekend. Also the cell coverage may be a little spotty, so if you try to call me I might not get it. I'll see you soon.
While she was happy that there wasn't a crisis that needed immediate eradication, she couldn't help but feel a little put out. As much as she hated to admit it, Peter's absence for the next few days would be, well, dull. But, nevertheless, he was only going to be gone for a few days. She had been just fine without him before he came into her life and that was what she would be for the next few days.
Just fine.
A/N: Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. Please remember to leave a review, even if you hated it!
