Sins of Another Father
By phillydi
Chapter 4
From the Journal of Karl Brandel
October 8, 1946
I was working the late shift tonight when I got the call on the police radio. I knew right away it had to be Marina. She was due to give birth to our child any time now, and I hated to leave her alone at night.
I had been sent out to investigate a barn burning in the early hours of the morning. The Johanna's were a hard working Amish family. The lost of livestock and farm equipment would be devastating for them. It looked like a suspicious fire, but that would have to be confirmed in the morning by the arson unit.
After I finished at the farm, I rushed over to the county hospital and found that Marina had just delivered our baby. He was 7 pounds, 11 ounces! A big, health boy! I was so proud when they brought my newborn son to me. He looked just like his mother. We named him Gordon Erik after Marina's father. I brushed the tuffs of hair gently over his head and placed a kiss on his forehead before I gave him back to the nurse. They say a child will change your life. They are so right, because tonight I am the proudest papa in the world!
"Mrs. Carter!" Jesse screamed. Deeks rushed over to the old woman lying on the floor and checked her pulse. The woman was alive but her pulse was erratic.
"Call an ambulance!" he ordered. "She's needs to get to a hospital…NOW!"
The next 15 minutes were a blur as Deeks and Jesse made the old woman comfortable. Deeks went outside and waited for the emergency medical team to arrive. When they finally pulled up, he escorted them to the reception area and quickly stepped out of the way. He wasn't sure why the woman claimed he was dead, but she certainly recognized him right away.
Mrs. Carter stirred and opened her eyes as they lifted her on the gurney and whisked her through the foyer. Deeks stared intently at the woman as she went by. She turned her head and looked over at Deeks as if she had seen a ghost. Her eyes were wide open in fear as she moved her mouth but nothing came out. Deeks suspected she may have had a stroke. He watched as the ambulance raced off down the dirt road, sirens blaring and the dust still swirling in the road behind it. Deeks was still deep in thought when he sensed someone standing beside him.
"Boy, that's the most excitement we've ever had around here!"
Deeks turned to find a tall, lanky girl of about fifteen standing beside him. Hiding behind her was the little girl he saw in the in the upstairs bedroom. She peaked at Deeks from behind her sister's robe.
"Come along Samantha, go back up to your room," Jesse said as she touched the child's shoulder and guided her back into the house. "Mrs. Carter will be just fine."
Deeks wasn't too sure about that. He looked back at the pretty teenager.
"You're cute," she blurted out. "Are you staying here at the Inn?" the girl asked.
Deeks smiled and stuffed his hands into his back pockets and nodded.
"You the Maroon 5 fan?" he asked.
"Yeah, do you like them? I think they're awesome!" she said excitedly.
Deeks leaned down and whispered into her ear. "You have good taste in music despite what your mother says."
"Thanks! My name's Lindy." She hadn't stopped smiling since she first started talking.
"I'm Deeks," he said. "But you can call me Marty."
Jesse came back outside. "Lindy, time to get back up to your room, too," her mother scolded her. "You are supposed to be recovering from a stomach virus. Up to bed, young lady."
"See ya around Marty!" her eyes twinkled mischiviously as she waved at Deeks and ran back into the house.
No doubt about it, Deeks smiled and shook his head. She is definitely going to be a heartbreaker when she grows up.
"Come back inside and I'll get you signed in," Jesse said as she opened the screen door and rushed to the desk. "I hope Mrs. Carter will be alright. I've just notified her family." She checked her reservation book and found an open room. "Once I get you checked in, I'm going to head over to the hospital." She stopped and looked up at Deeks.
"I wonder what upset her so much and why did she think you were dead?" Jesse said with a concerned look on her face as she pulled the key off the wall board and handed it to him.
"Good question," Deeks wondered out loud as he took the key and leaned down to pick up his bag. "One more thing, can you tell me where I can find the closest library in this town?"
"Well, the county library is further up on Rt. 30. Just turn left on Wilson Blvd. You can't miss it."
"Thanks." Deeks could still hear the strains of Maroon 5 coming from the down hall on the second floor as he climbed the stairs to his room.
After his long journey, the canopy bed with its mounds of lavender scented pillows couldn't have been more inviting. As he entered the room he threw his bag on a chair and flopped down on the bed. Like everything else in the house, the room was a throwback to an earlier time. Lace was hanging off of every ledge and counter in the room and the ornate mahogany furniture had surely been hand made more than a century ago. No plaster board here.
He crossed his arms behind his head and took a deep breath. He could see his reflection in the mirror across the room and the only thing missing in this picture was Kensi. If she was here he knew they would never leave the bed, let alone the room. He could almost feel her body next to his. Closing his eyes he gave himself permission to daydream. If truth be told, every part of him was missing her. Her soul has seduced him and his heart was totally hers. Yet, as much as he needed her right now, he still wasn't ready to share his family's past with her. Not yet.
He wanted a relationship with no secrets or skeletons in the closet. Now that Kensi has found out more about her father, it was his turn. But he has no idea where the discovery of the journal would take him and until he did, he intended on playing it close to the vest. Of all his friends, only Ray understood the feeling of embarrassment and hatred that Deeks harbored towards Gordon Brandel. But strangely, he never really knew why his father had been such a bastard. This mission could change all that and reveal a lot about his family history than he may not be able to accept. What really brought about his father's path of self destruction? Were the booze and drugs just the aftermath of a traumatic event that haunted him until his death? Or was it just in the genes? Deeks had to know what happen here in New Bern so he could face his fears. Because his biggest horror has always been turning into the cretin his father had become. And if his love for Kensi was going to survive, he had to be sure that this wasn't going to happen. He couldn't put it off any longer; he had to know the truth. Deeks dragged himself off the bed, collected his keys and headed off to the library to get some answers.
Kensi was twirling the bottom of her Corona bottle and staring at the piece of lime floating at the bottom. The noise level at the pub was at fever pitch and Callen and Nate sat next to her at the bar trying to hold a conversation over the loud music. Nate was on one of his infrequent visits back to the Mission and the crew decided to take him out in celebration. Kensi was watching the time and adding 3 hours every time she looked at her watch. It would be about 10 pm now and she was wondering what Deeks was doing. She had taken Hetty's advice and tried to wait patiently all day for him to return one of her text messages but he was still running silent. She couldn't stand it. She needed to hear his voice.
As if on cue, her phone vibrated in her hand.
"Oh my god, Deeks!" Kensi answered the phone. "It's about time!" Kensi left the pub to find a quiet place to talk.
"It great to hear your voice too, Sunshine," Deeks said flippantly.
"Don't start Deeks, I've been worried. Where are you?"
"Well, I'm lying in the middle of a four-poster canopy bed, dreaming how wonderful your naked body would feel on top of mine."
"So you're missing me?" Kensi beamed.
"I always miss you when we are apart, Fern."
"Good," Kensi purred seductively. "So have you found anything yet? "
"Only an old woman who seems to think I should be dead," Deeks said and he proceeded to tell her about his arrival at the Inn.
"That's odd. But you do look an awful lot like your grandfather, maybe she knew him?"
"I found out from the German Historical Society that has an office in the library that my family has had a presence here in New Bern since before the Revolution. So I probably resemble a lot of Brandels who have lived here during the course of the last 200 years."
"True, but if she was as frighten as you say she was, your resemblance to this dead person may be kicking up some unwanted memories."
"Yeah, maybe," Deeks pondered. "My first stop tomorrow is the local police to see if they still have any records of Karl's death. The only things I could find in the library were the clippings of his suicide and his funeral notice."
"Are there any family members still around?" Kensi asked.
"Yeah, there are a bunch of Brandels in the phone book I can visit," Deeks stopped. "Wait, who's leading this investigation, anyhow?"
"You need me Deeks, and you know it," Kensi insisted. "Just say the word and I'll be on the first plane out there."
"Don't worry. Besides, I have my What Would Kensi Do bracelet on. I'll be just fine," he teased.
"Real funny," Kensi said dismissively but stopped short. "Tell me you're ok, Deeks?"
Deeks ignored the question. "Let the gang know I was asking for them Kensi; sounds like I'm missing a good party back there." He was missing more than just the party. But if he didn't hang up now, he knew he would give in and ask her to join him.
"You'll call me if you need anything? OK?" Kensi asked him and realized he wasn't ready to open up to her just yet. She felt herself shiver despite the warm evening air.
"I love you, Kens," Deeks said. "Talk to you soon," he said and ended the call.
Suddenly a shattering of glass filled the room and a large object came crashing through the window.
"What the hell!" Deeks yelled as he flew off the bed and laid flat on the floor.
Deeks pulled out his weapon and crawled over to the window. He crouched down and moved the drapes cautiously to the side. Whoever had been out there behind the trees was long gone. He looked down at his feet and saw a large rock with a note tied around it with twine.
"Geez, haven't they ever heard of Twitter?" Deeks grumbled to himself. He pulled the note off and read it out loud.
"Karl Brandel died for a reason. Go home now or you'll be next!"
Thanks everyone for the kind words and encouragement. Keep 'em coming! Let me know what you think...
