Chapter Seven

John had ordered himself a quick drink and after making small talk with the bartender Mac he made his way to a secluded table, he hated that he couldnt think straight, this definitely wasnt like him, he was stronger than this, he was professional if anything and the last few days with his memory gone he was anything but that, he could still see her in his mind, her body, her lips, hell he could still taste her, he quickly slammed back his drink and got up to get another but as he stood he saw her, standing there at the door, she looked shocked..

She wasnt expecting to see him as she stepped into Rodi's, she was sure he had left town but there he was, but why, hell she didnt care, she was just happy and overwhelmed to see him and without thinking she ran up to him and hugged him tight, he was shocked by her emotions, it caught him off guard for a second..

"i thought you left, i did,...but your here...oh my god your here" she said with tears as she hugged him, he swallowed hard as he stood there, his body got stiff as he saw Mac look at him and some of the other patrons, he got paranoid, he pulled back..

Natalie saw something flash over his eyes, he didnt look happy to see her, he didnt look happy at all, she backed up some, he seemed different, colder.."im sorry i shouldnt have done that" she said low, embarassment washng over her, what if his wife was in the bathroom, she had just embarassed herself and him over nothing, she wanted to run away..

Part of him he hated that she looked at him like that, like a deer caught in the headlights, damn why had he let her get under his skin..He would have to end this quick, like pulling off a bandaid, it was best for both of them.."I got my memory back last night" he began as her eyes got wide, she had known there was something different about him, hell he even talked differently, she felt sick.."I didnt mean for you to get put in the middle" he spoke matter of factly, nothing soft about it, she was taken back..

"Oh" was all she could say.."well im...im happy for you" she lied..

"I dont think it would be a good idea for us to be around each other" he spoke so professionally, well she didnt know what to say, she couldnt believe this was the same man from yesterday..

"Of course" she felt her stomach twist as she stood there, a part of him wanted to reach out and touch her, she looked absolutely devestated as she stood there but he knew he couldnt jeopardize anything or anyone else,he left without saying another word as she stood there..

"hey sweetie, are you ok" Mac said as he came up to her and she jumped slightly as she looked at him..

"Yeah, im fine... i could use a drink" she said low, it was like having her heart torn out twice in 24 hours, the pain was unbearable..Mac nodded and made his way to the bar,she stood for a second and then followed him..

John made his way back to the motel as fast as he could with a casted leg, he saw a door inside that led to the roof, he headed up there..He was frustrated and angry as he got up there, his damn leg was killing him and he couldnt get her out of his head, when she had hugged him so tight he had felt how she felt about him even if she hadnt said the words and he remembered laying in bed with her the night before, he had made love to her, the emotions in him led him to grabbing a nearby chair and throwing it against the brick wall as it broke into pieces and then he sat himself on the ground and put his head in his hands..

"you cant tell her John, it would jeopardize everything" evangeline spoke..

"she's right, natalie cant know, i warned her about getting involved" Bo said as he shook his head, sure he didnt know this is what they would find out, that John was an FBI agent but still this made it that much more dangerous for natalie..

"but i think she would understand, she a forensic tech" he began..

"No" Bo and Evangeline said in unison..

"telling her put our lives in danger and hers, not to mention the numerous people in this town, we need to just go and now" evangeline spoke firmly..

"you dont know Natalie like i do, if she found out she would try and help, and i refuse to let her get caught up in all of this, she is my family" Bo said with concern in his eyes..

Natalie drank more than it was necessary for her body, but hell she felt numb and she hadnt even cared that she totally missed work, who cared about work anyways, her life was in ruins and she allowed it to be this way.. Everytime she closed her eyes she saw him, the way he had looked at her last night, the way he kissed her, made love to her, she wanted to take her glass and through it but instead she got up on wobbily feet and spun around, cris stood behind her, a look of dread on his face..

She couldnt believe he was there and she was pissed.."came to say told you so huh!" she yelled drunkingly at him..

"No" he said low..

"whatever, fuck you" she said as she tried to walk past him but he grabbed her arm lightly and she spun to face him.."Let go of me"

"your drunk, im worried about you" he said honestly...

"Oh please" she yanked her arm back.."your just worried about your own damn ego, well you know what fuck you and your ego, how about that" she snapped at him..

"Natalie stop this, ok.. your upset and drinking" he ran up to her and she turned and slapped him hard across the face, he stumbled back some..

"i told you to stay away and i meant it, every single word" she snapped as she walked past him and out the door, she looked at her car and thought twice about getting in it, she was drunk but not stupid.."fuck it i guess im walking" she shouted drunkingly as she stumbled...

The sound of her voice was enough to snap John out of his heavy thoughts, he had been on the roof for hours now just thinking and then suddenly out of no where he heard her voice and she was drunk, he couldnt help but get himself up and look out over the roof and there she was stumbling down the road..

Natalie yelled drunkingly and kicked stones as she walked down the road..She laughed to herself at how this is how she ended up meeting him, maybe this time she would get hit by a car she laughed to herself, anything had to be better than this..

"FUCK MY LIFE!" she yelled out in drunken laughter as she walked..She could hear a car coming up behind her and she didnt car, she didnt move from the middle of the road, hell maybe she would be locked up for drunken disorderly conduct that would be the icing on this fucked up cake,she thought to herself.."go around asshole" she yelled as she wave her hands but instead of the car going past her it pulled up next to her.."i said" she began to yell then she saw the car, a black charger, the window was down.."You" she said coldly..

Joh couldnt believe how drunk she was, he was amazed she could actually walk, her eyes barely open, hell she was in the middle of the road for god sake.."get in" he said to her and she laughed..

"fuck you, hell fuck everyone,how about that" she said as she contiued to walk, she as angry as hell and drunk..

He kept driving next to her.."Natalie dont be stupid just get in the car" he said a bit more sternly, he was worried about her, she was being incredibly reckless..

"stupid huh... now that is a word i can relate to, hell i bet you would find my picture under it in the dictionary" she said sarcastically as she walked..

"Damn it" John yelled as he stopped the car and got out as quickly as he could, his leg was screaming at him now as he walked on the cast fast..."damn it natalie just stop" he yelled as he grabbed her arm and she spun around to face him, her eyes bloodshot and red..

"wheres your wife" she snapped him as she grabbed her arm back and he bit his lip as he moved the wrong way and shooting pain went up his leg, she saw the look of pain on his face.."Your leg, is it ok" she immediately softened up and he straightened himself out some..

"My leg is fine, what the hell are you doing out here, are you trying to get yourself killed" he said with anger..

"if i wanted to do that i would of drove my car" she snapped at him now, the softness leaving her..

"Just get in the car alright, let me drive you home" he began and she laughed..

"why are you here still, i dont get it, is it to rub everything in my face, is it" she finally yelled out as she looked at him..

"No thats not it" he began as she looked at him...

"then what the hell is it, why are you here" she yelled again..

"its complicated" he said honestly as he looked at her..

"isnt everything complicated these days, you know what just do a both a favor and go away" she said as she turned from him..

"i never meant to hurt you damn it" he yelled and she stopped now, her eyes filling with tears..."Listen this is not what i thought would happen, everything is just so fucked up right now" he felt tired, defeated...

"but it is like this and i knew it would come to this" she said low, her emotions getting the best of her.."and im happy for you ok, you got your memory back and your wife, you have everything now" she said with tears..

He ran his hand over his face, he couldnt tell her thr truth, it was eating at him, seeing her was eating at him..."its for the best" was all he could say...

"Yeah, it is" she said as tears began to stream down her face.."im sorry, i seem to do this alot lately" she said as she wiped her face quickly, she hated to be an emotional wreck in front of him..

She had finally agreed to a ride home and she didnt say anything in the car ride, she just stared out the window, looking at him would just make her cry all over again, he pulled up in front of her house and she opened the door..

"natalie" he said low and she turned to face him.."would it be too much to ask you to be careful"

She felt her heart sink in her chest, for a second there she thought he was going to tell her that he made a mistake and that he wanted her, needed her as much as she needed him..

"I wont go walking around drunk anymore if that is what you mean" she said low..."I should go" she said as she stepped out of the car and he watched her, unable to say anything else, he made sure she got in and then he drove off..

Natalie began to get back into her normal daily routine over the next few days, her heart was hurting like hell but life went on and it would go on with or without john, her family had even softened up to her, everyone seem to look at her with that sad face, they knew she was hurting, she was just glad no one talked about it, cause she didnt want to talk about it...

Cris had even came to her house the other day and surprisingly made amends with her and not even in a selfish egotistical way, she honestly believed he was genuine and even though they agreed that being apart was for the best he did offer a shoulder for support if she needed it..

She had been laying on the couch when he had come by, she couldnt even bring herself to go into the bedroom, she knew she would have to move out of this place before the memories killed her..

She wasnt even going to answer the door when she heard the knock but she knew that whoever it was apparently wasnt going to go away and so she answered, annoyed it was him..

"Listen before you say anything i want to apologize" he began as she rolled her eyes, here we go again, she thought.."Its not like that ok,...you were right, i was selfish, immature and i lashed out at you and you never deserved that natalie, i saw the way you looked at him an di wished it was me, you never looked at me that way, not ever,..it...it hurt" he said with his voice trembling some and she backed away from the door a little and let him in..

Natalie sat in the forensic lab she was heavy into yet another case when her phone rang, she glanced at it.."hey Gi" she began, Gigi really had been there for her during her time of need, even Rex, they kept coming by the house, trying to cheer her up and well she enjoyed the company at times even though she was on the hunt for a new place..

"So i was thinking if your up for it me and Rex would like it if you would come out with us tonight, Capricorn has a band playing"

As much as Natalie was trying to get over all the things that had occurred over the past few days, well she wasnt really ready yet to go out..."i dont know Gi, today has been busy and im tired"

"Oh come on Nat, it's Friday night, please... we wont be late and i really miss hanging out with you"

"Gi im sorry its just" she began..

Gigi sighed heavily.."Nat im begging you, just a few drinks and then you can go if you still want to" Natalie knew Gigi wouldnt give up and honestly she would probably just end up showing up at her house if she didnt go and Natalie didnt want that either..

She gave him with a sigh.."fine, just a few drinks"

"you are the best, i cant wait this is going to be awesome" Gigi sounded happy as hell..

"alright well i will see you later, around 8ish"

"sounds like a plan Nat" she said as they hung up and natalie got back to work, her mind drifted to a few nights prior, when her and John watched that movie The Lake House, this life would of been so much easier if she would of just had a peek into the future, she would of changed so many things, she quickly snapped the memories from her head, John was married, he had his memory back, life would go on, it had too..

John actually felt nervous as he paced the small motel room, everything was going down tonight and if it all went as planned by midnight the latest Mitch would be in handcuffs..

"You seem tense today" Evangeline began as she walked over to him.."just think after today its over, finally over"

"yeah" he said low, he had more things on his mind then Mitch, he hadnt seen or heard from Natalie in days and even though he knew it was for the best, well it ate at him, she was much better off this way..

"You did the right thing John, i just want you to know that" she began as he looked at her.."come on John i have known you long enough, this girl really did a number on you"

"what are you talking about" he said defensively, he wasnt the kind of guy to talk about his problems.."I think you need to stay focused and stop concerning yourself with me" he walked away from her..

"you dont always have to take everything on yourself John, im here you know, i do have a shoulder to lean on" she walked over to him..

"I dont need a shoulder, what i need is to see Mitch in handcuffs" he said quickly.."now if you dont mind i need to get ready" he said as he walked past her and she sighed..

Natalie went straight home after work, she had jumped in the shower to work the days stress off of her and then she began getting ready to go out with Gigi, she wasnt really in the mood to go but at this point anything was better than sitting in this house, she couldnt even sleep in her bed anymore, just looking at it made her mind play tricks on her, she could see them in bed together, the way she fell asleep on his chest after a night of making love, being there was torture.

She quickly finished getting her makeup on in the mirror, she told herself she would have a good time tonight, she would make damn sure of it, she turned to grab her phone off of her dresser, to call Gigi and let her know she was on her way but when she turned it wasnt there..

She silently cursed herself for getting older and forgetting things, she headed out of her room, she must of left it in the kitchen, the sight of Johns old bedroom door being open caught her attention as she stopped, she didnt think much of it as she stepped inside, maybe the window was left open oddly enough when she stepped in the window was closed, thats weird she thought and she spun around to come face to face with a barrel of a gun..

John stared out the window with his headset on, he could hear everything going down with the undercover agents, it was all going as planned, the shipment had arrived, they were just waiting on the arrival of the man of the hour, Mitch Lawrence, he was late and that wasnt a good sign..

"he'll be there" Evangeline tried to be reassuring but he was already having his dounts, if Mitch some how figured out what was going on, he knew this could end up badly but they had been very careful as to not leak any information but the place was heavily surrounded, even Bo had put some of his undercover cops out there to help but time was ticking and no sign of Mitch..

"i cant juststand around here and wait, im gonna go there" John began to get impatient..

"No you cant if he sees you he will know" Evangeline stopped him..

"what if he already knows, its not like him to be late, i know him" John said honestly, he had worked undercover with Mitch for almost a year, he knew Mitch was always on time if not early, the fact that he was almost 45 minutes late now meant that something happened..

"just give it time, we cant go barging in there" she tried to be the voice of reason, his cell phone went off and he jumped slightly, he glanced at his phone, her name popped up, he turned from Evangeline...

"natalie" he said as he answered but for a second no one answered.."Hello?"

"hello John long time no see" he heard Mitch's voice and he almost dropped the phone..

"where is she" John felt his stomach turn as he clenched the phone, Evangeline looked at him confused..

"so you really thought i would fall for your tricks again, shame on you John you should know me better by now" Mitch laughed...

"where is she, what did you do with her!" John yelled now almost frantically, making evangeline look at him with wide shocked eyes as the realization of what was occuring hit her..

"so many questions, soo little time, if only i would of known it was going to turn out this way, i mean its so much sweeter for me but hey i dont blame you for getting close to sweet little Natalie, she is quite the prize" he laughed as he touched natalie face and she tried to scream but she had tape on her mouth.."fiesty too, i like it" John could hear someone muffled in the background, he could only assume it was her, he felt sick to his stomach..

"if you so much as" John began to threaten him and Mitch laughed some more..

"oh come on John i think we both know better than to threaten me, especially when i have something you care about, we dont want a repeat of last time, do we" his voice made John stiffen as he stood there.."now thats a good agent, lets see if we can come to an agreement, shall we?"

"I'll do whatever you want" John said seriously..

"thats more like it, now you do as i say or well lets just say that this wont be quick and easy like last time" Mitch smiled at Natalie..."i want Walker in exchange for her, plain and simple, no cops involved, no feds, no games"

"he's on death row, how the hell do you expect me" John began and Mitch laughed..

"Oh please John use your imagination and did i mention time is ticking, you have exactlly 3 hours from now"

"3 hours! " John yelled into the phone, he wanted to rip this man to shreds..

"i could make it 2, would that be better?" Mitch said seriously..

"how the hell am i suppose to do this" John said frantically..

"Oh i am sure you will figure it out unless you want more innocent blood on your hands, 3 hours...i'll be in touch" he said and the line went dead as John stood there in shock..

"he has her doesnt he" Evangeline said with fear in her eyes, John didnt answer as he stood there.."we have to tell the others" she grabbed her phone and John quickly yanked it from her hand.."John we have to tell them!"

"No...he'll kill her" he said as his gut began to turn, he couldnt let this happen, not again.."i gotta get Walker, i have to get him and deliver him"

"John do you hear what your saying, Walker is under heavy security, Mitch cant be trusted, you cant just go in there and walk out with him, this is crazy!" Evangeline began to yell..

"do you not understand that he will kill her, he will just like he did with Cait, i cant let him do that, if its Walker he wants then Walker he gets" he said as he began grabbing his guns..

"No i wont let you do this, i cant" Evangeline stated firmly and he spun to face her..

"then you leave me no choice" he said as her eyes got wide...

Natalie tried to wiggle her way out of the cuffs she was in, but she was little handcuffed from her feet to her hands and tape over her mouth, she was scared for her life, this was Mitch Lawrence she was dealing with, she thought his son was bad enough but he had learned from the best..

"i think he may try and save you" Mitch grinned as he walked over to her and grabbed her chin hard.."but we both know i am not going to let that happen, right sweetie" she tried to yell at him but nothing came out over the tape.."oh so helpless" he pouted at her and began to laugh, she wiggle more with the cuffs and then he slapped her hard against the face, she literally saw stars.."dont fuck with me sweetheart" he snapped at her as tears ran down her face, her cheek literally felt like it was on fire as she sat there..

John put a gun under his shirt and another one against his leg, he hid a knife under his cast as he walked around the room, muffled yelling could be heard and he turned to see a handcuffed Evangeline leaning against the rooms radiator, she had tape over her mouth as she yelled at him..

"im sorry ok, i didnt want to have to do this but i cant afford to let you interfere with this" he said to her as she kicked at the radiator.."dont make me knock you out again Evangeline" her eyes got wide as she looked at him.."someone will be around soon enough" he said as he left, his mind swirling with ideas of how he was going to get Walker out of Statesville but he had an idea and it may just work..