Chapter Ten
(The Black Private Jet)
Belle returned from the back of the plane and sat with Shawn, Mimi and Phillip on one side of the main cabin, while the four parents sat in another area together. She threw tiny silver bags at each of them and grinned.
"Here, I brought you airplane peanuts on my way back from the bathroom."
Mimi looked at hers curiously. "I still think it's funny that this is a PRIVATE airplane, but your dad makes sure to stock up on those little bags of peanuts."
Belle shrugged nonchalantly. "What can I say? He loves that honey roasted goodness."
Phillip put the papers he was holding aside and smiled at Belle. "Belle, your research is like... amazingly thorough."
"Thanks... I just hope it's enough. We only had a few hours to basically get everything we could about the more obscure islands in Greece."
Shawn interjected, "Hopefully, they'll let me take a look at the maps and charts that Brady left on the boat. It'll give us an idea of what course they were headed on. Then we can know what islands to start looking at..."
Belle smiled and laid her hand on Shawn's arm. "Well, you taught my brother everything about sailing... I'm sure he kept very detailed charts and maps."
"I hope so, because that's our best shot at not having to examine every single tiny island in the middle of the ocean before we find them. I'm hoping that Brady's notes will lead us right to them. Or at least pretty close."
Belle spoke through a yawn, "I'm sure it will. I just want everyone to promise me that none of us will ever go NEAR deserted islands again. We seem to have bad luck with them."
Phillip nodded in agreement, "Yeah, no kidding."
Mimi shook her head. "Even when we don't go to islands, bad things happen. Like when we decided to take a big fun trip to Greta's coronation. Getting shot is more fun than, oh, let me think about it... ABSOLUTELY NOTHING."
Belle chuckled softly and nodded. "I guess bad things just follow us everywhere."
Shawn looked at her strangely. "Not all the time. We've survived all of the bad things before, even when we thought we wouldn't. And this time is no exception. My mom always says what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger."
"Your mom may definitely be right."
Mimi nodded happily and spoke low enough so only they could hear. "Plus, when all this is finally over with, we have something really great to look forward to. The birth of Brady Jr."
Phillip grinned at her. "Or it could be a Chloe Jr., you never know."
Shawn nodded in agreement, "I bet it's a girl. And, she'll have Chloe's beautiful dark hair... and of course, the brightest, bluest eyes like both of her parents."
Belle smiled wistfully and continued, "She'll have Brady's smile... and his attitude."
Mimi sighed thoughtfully. "Does anybody else besides me think it's weird that in less than nine months two people from our little group will be PARENTS?"
Phillip threw an arm around her shoulder and grinned. "We're getting old, Meems. Eventually we'll all be married with babies and mini-vans and those, 'I'm A Proud Parent of a Salem Honor Student' bumper stickers."
Mimi cringed and shied away from him. "Gross... I don't think so. If I ever buy a minivan, please kill me."
Belle laughed and rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, we'll make sure that never happens. And, I wouldn't jump the gun too soon Phillip... none of us exactly have prospects in that arena right now."
Mimi frowned slightly. "That's so true... But, you were the closest, Belle. You almost had a ring on your finger."
"I DID have a ring on my finger, Mimi."
Shawn stared at her in complete shock. "You did?"
Belle shrugged nervously, "For about thirty seconds, then I took it off."
Shawn inched away from her slightly and raised both eyebrows, "Tom?"
"Tim. His name was Tim."
"Right, I know. Was it him?"
Belle nodded. "Yeah. He asked me, slipped the ring on... I said no. End of story."
Mimi rolled her eyes, "You make it sound so magnificently uncomplicated. I know the real truth though. Either way, you're still the closest out of the four of us. I don't think any of us have had any long term or significant relationships to speak of."
"Well, there's still plenty of time. We're still in our EARLY 20's, not quite at the retirement home yet. Besides, sometimes the perfect person is right in front of you the whole time, and you just can't see it." Belle winked slyly at Mimi and continued, "Who knows, Mimi? You could know him already..."
If looks could kill, Mimi would have split her best friend in half right then. "Oh Belle... I think you're talking crazy again. Besides the only single guys I know are Shawn... and uhm, Phillip here."
Phillip grinned and Mimi and nudged her gently in the ribs with his elbow. "Hey Meems... Maybe you and I should make one of those pacts that they always make in the movies. You know, if neither of us is married when we're 35, then we marry each other. You can be my hot, sexy little trophy wife, and I can be your hot, sexy business tycoon husband."
Mimi laughed loudly and shook her head. "I could never be anybody's hot, sexy trophy wife, Phillip. Besides, those pacts never work out. Because in our case, you'll find some other girl, marry her and leave me as the old maid with the 37 cats. I'll be in that house on the corner where all the kids walk by and say, 'Oh there's crazy old Miss Lockhart's house. I heard that if you knock on her door, she'll eat your eyeballs.'"
Shawn and Belle laughed at her, but Phillip just pouted and gave her the old puppy dog eyes routine. "Awww, come on, Meems... We'll never let that happen. Be my trophy wife, please?"
Mimi paused and looked at him warily. "Even though you dropped the hot and sexy part out of the description... I guess so." She begrudgingly held her hand out and Phillip shook it, the deal had been sealed.
Shawn laughed and shook his head. "You two... are SO weird."
The group was all smiles when John stepped in to speak to them. "You all look like you're in a much better mood."
Belle smiled at her dad and nodded. "Thanks to Mimi and Phillip... they are both completely nuts."
Mimi shook her head in disagreement. "No, because of YOU, Belle. You're the one that's kept us from giving up hope. The jokes are just so not everything is depressing and miserable."
John nodded in understanding. "Well, whoever did it... I'm glad to see it. All of us need to stay clearheaded right now, and not get depressed or withdrawn. Anyway, I came over here just to give you an update. I got us hotel rooms on the shore, right by the marina where they brought the boat into."
Shawn nodded and asked, "Are we going to be able to get onto the boat and look around? I think I might be able to find them if I know exactly where they were headed and where they had already been."
"I don't know for sure yet. But, I'm doing everything I can so we can have access to the evidence. They're treating this like a murder case, but to us it's missing persons. I called already and got a boat that we can use in the search. It will be dark when we get there, but it's all stocked and loaded so you can start searching the islands first thing in the morning."
Belle quietly asked, "And what do we do until then? Besides get completely screwed up by the time difference."
John shrugged slightly, "Hopefully get on that boat and see what was left behind. And, get plenty of sleep tonight."
Belle nodded and continued, "Tonight... which is tomorrow in Greece. Actually, maybe we should all nap right now because I know from experience how screwed up you can get by traveling through different time zones."
"Good idea, Izzy... There's plenty of room to stretch out around here. I'll be over there with your mom, if you need me."
"Thanks, dad... We appreciate the update." John walked back to his seat and Belle looked around the group with a yawn. "I think I had a great idea. A little nap sounds fantastic."
John had remodeled the area of the plane that they were in a few years back. It now had a two plush leather couches that you would more likely find in a living room, not a jet. Perfect for lying and relaxing on. Shawn scooted over a bit and patted his knee. "Here, you may use me as your pillow."
Belle smiled sweetly at him and laid her head in his lap. "Thanks Shawn..."
"No problem..."
Phillip and Mimi looked at each other for a moment and then let their seats back to attempt to catch a few winks as well. Belle lied comfortably on the couch, enjoying the closeness she had been sharing with Shawn since all of this started. But, deep inside she felt a gnawing fear that there closeness would end as soon as this ordeal was over.
***
Belle awoke slowly. Except for the noise of the jet in flight, and quiet voices coming from the directions of her parents, the air was extremely quiet. Belle's eyes fluttered open and she realized her head was no longer lying in Shawn's lap. He had decided to nap as well and had slid down so that he was lying behind her. His arm was wrapped around her waist to keep her from falling off. Belle slowly turned just enough so that she could look at him. His eyes were moving rapidly under his eyelids, and Belle could tell that he was dreaming about something.
Part of her wanted to slide away from him and stretch her legs, and especially to iron out that painful kink in her neck. Sleeping without a pillow always made her neck ache tremendously. But the rest of her was perfectly comfortable right here with Shawn. She figured that moments like these wouldn't happen very often in the future, so she might as well enjoy them while she still could.
She turned briefly and saw that Mimi and Phillip were both reclined in their seats and sleeping soundly. When she turned back to Shawn, he started to whimper quietly in his dreams.
"I love you..."
Belle's heart nearly stopped in her chest, until she told herself to remember that he could be saying that to anyone. It meant nothing, even though she was right in front of him. He kept on talking, so quietly that Belle figured she was the only one who could hear him. But the fear in his voice increased as he continued muttering.
"Don't go... please. I'm sorry. Don't leave again. I won't hurt you."
Belle furrowed her eyebrows together in confusion. She didn't want to wake him, but his cries were becoming more frantic and his hand was gripping on to her waist tighter, as if he was having a nightmare. Belle placed her hand gently on his face and quietly spoke, "Shawn... are you okay?"
Shawn's brown eyes fluttered opened and he groaned quietly. He squinted sleepily to look at her and whispered quietly, "Belle... you're still here."
Belle looked at him curiously, "Still? I uhhh... never left, Shawn. Are you alright?"
Shawn nodded and began to sat up, bringing her with him. "Yeah, I'm fine. I guess I was having a nightmare."
"I guess so... you were starting to worry me. I didn't mean to wake you up though."
Shawn shook his head nonchalantly. "No big deal... I'm fine."
Belle sat all the way up and looked around the cabin. Her father shouted across the cabin, "Put your seatbelts on, kids... we're going to be landing soon."
Belle adjusted herself and smoothed her wrinkled clothing. She looked at Shawn again and sighed. "Is it a nightmare you want to talk about?"
Shawn buckled his seatbelt and shrugged. "Not really. Just the same one I always have. Nothing you need to worry about."
Belle still wasn't buying it. Something was wrong, but Shawn didn't want to get into it. She shrugged it off and buckled her own seatbelt. Belle grabbed an unopened bag of peanuts off of the floo rbeside her and chucked them at Mimi. Mimi flinched at the impact and muttered sleepily as she woke up. "Five more minutes, mom."
Belle laughed and leaned over to tap her on the knee. "Mimi, wake up... the plane's about to land, you need to buckle up."
Mimi opened her eyes and yawned loudly. She glared at Belle and shook her head in confusion. "So... you threw peanuts at me?"
"Yes, but I threw them GENTLY. Please nudge Phillip and wake him up too."
Mimi did as Belle suggested and told Phillip to put his seatbelt on. Phillip woke up and begrudignly did as he was told. He rubbed his eyes blearily and looked towards Belle and Shawn. "So, what time is it?"
Belle looked at her watch, still set on Salem time, and replied. "It's almost six. And the best part? Tomorrow is now today."
"Huh?"
"It's Thursday. It was Wednesday when we left."
Mimi groaned in frustration. "That is still so weird. Even after you've done it a few times."
Belle nodded in agreement and looked towards the windows. The sky had already begun to dim, and it would be dark very soon.
***
Belle stood on the docks alone under the moonlit sky. She stood in front of the boat that Brady and Chloe had traveled on and looked at it sadly. The area was blocked off with police tape, since it was still considered a crime scene. Belle crossed her arms and shivered slightly. It was strangely cool for a summer night and she was starting to regret her short sleeves.
Shawn stepped up behind her and placed his hand on her elbow. "You okay? You want my jacket?"
Belle shook her head. "Nah, I'll be fine. It's my fault for assuming that June would be a HOT month. So, what did the detective tell you?"
"They've taken most of the evidence that they're going to take, so we get free run of the place. They've already dusted for fingerprints and taken blood samples. As long as we don't take anything OFF of the boat, we won't get in trouble."
John walked up with the detective and joined the conversation. "Detective Xanthopolous is going to wait out here while we look around."
Belle smiled appreciatively. "Thanks Detective, we really appreciate all your help."
The detective smiled and spoke with a thick accent, "No problem. You seem like very good people. I hope that you are right. That your brother is okay."
John nodded in agreement. "He will be." John pointed at Shawn and Belle. "Now, you two... let's get to it. We don't want to be out here too late."
Shawn and Belle nodded and stepped under the yellow tape, with John following. With flashlights ready, they began to quietly search the abandoned boat. Shawn went directly for the cabin to go over the maps and charts. Belle searched around the deck, most of it in disarray, obvious signs that a struggle had taken place. Belle had also noticed small blood spatters on the deck when she first boarded the boat. She searched aimlessly for at least fifteen minutes until she caught something surprising in the beam of her flashlight.
Her heart froze and she cried out, "Oh My God..."
Belle kneeled down to get a closer look at the deep red splash across this edge of the boat. Not only was it splattered with blood, there was a clear red handprint in the middle of it all. John came running over and kneeled beside her. "Did you find something, Belle?"
Belle shrugged slightly. "I don't know. When are they going to have those results on the blood samples?"
"Soon, maybe tomorrow..."
Belle sighed and held her hand up to compare it to the print on the wall. The hand was larger than her own, and most definitely male. She looked over at John sadly and spoke, "It's Brady. It's his handprint."
"You don't know that."
"Not for sure. But, that's what I would guess. My instincts tell me that Brady made this handprint, and nobody else."
John put his arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head. "But, you don't know what that means. We don't even know whose blood it is yet."
Belle nodded, but then paused when something else caught her eye. There was a silver glint in the floorboard between the inner wall. She shined her flashlight on it and quickly pulled it out, lifting it up in her hand to show her father. "Well, this means something."
John sighed softly. "Brady's wedding band."
Belle laughed quietly, but she had a tinge of sorrow in her eyes. "Chloe told him to get it adjusted before the wedding, but he kept forgetting to go to the jeweler. I guess it must have slipped off. He should have listened to Chloe."
"Don't worry about it, sweetie. This doesn't mean that he's dead or even injured. We don't know yet."
Belle stood up and sighed. "I know, I know... I'm just... I'm going to go see what Shawn is up to."
John nodded. "Alright, I'm going to keep looking around up here for awhile."
Belle went down the stairs and into the cabin. Shawn was sitting at the table surrounded by maps and charts.
"Hey, Shawn... look what I found." She held out her hand so that he could see the ring in her palm.
Shawn smiled slightly. "Well, I would recognize that ring anywhere. Chloe told him to get it resized, but he never did."
Belle chuckled and nodded. "That's exactly what I said. Should I give it to the police?"
Shawn shook his head and closed her hand tightly around the ring. "No, hold on to it. Give it to Brady when we find them."
"Do you think we will?"
"Belle... of course I do. And you do too. Don't doubt yourself. Besides, you were right... Brady kept everything very detailed. Let me show you..."
Shawn inched over and Belle sat on the bench beside him. Shawn began to point at places on the map and explain. "See... This is where they were headed to." He pointed again, "This is where they found the boat." Shawn grabbed the Captain's log and pointed at it next. "The last thing that Brady recorded in the log was that they were about here on the map." He pointed to the map again. "My guess? They ended up on the island right next to where the boat washed up. The winds were just enough to nudge their boat to that other island."
Belle nodded, and looked at him like she was very impressed. "Wow... that was almost TOO easy."
Shawn sighed and nodded. "That's what I'm worried about. It COULD be the island I pointed to... Or it could be 15 other ones. I wish I could be completely sure. I'm going to take all this with me though, so I can go over them tonight and in the morning."
"Have I thanked you lately, Shawn Brady?"
"For what?"
"For everything."
Shawn shrugged nonchalantly. "No need to thank me. Brady is like a brother to me, and Chloe is like family too. There's no way I'd let you all do this without my help."
Belle shook her head. "That's not what I meant. I mean... yes, thank you for that. But, also thank you for how caring and gentle you've been with me. i may seem strong, but I need people to lean on sometimes... Usually, I lean on Brady, but he's not here. So, you have no idea how much it means to me when you hold my hand or hug me, or just the fact that you're just here.."
"It's not a one-way street, Belle. Sometimes I need a hand to hold too. I'm glad it's yours."
Belle smiled and laid her head on his shoulder. "I'm starting to wonder how I got through the past five years without you."
Shawn nodded in agreement. "Me too. But, I do know how. If it wasn't for my friends, and your brother especially, I would have never survived the hell that I was putting myself through after... after you left."
Belle lifted her head and looked away painfully. "I'm so sorry. I didn't want to hurt you."
"Belle, stop... I didn't mean to go down this road again. Most of my pain came from what I was doing to myself, not what you did. My point is, we were both hurt and we both got through it. We learned how to live without each other and we moved on. Stop blaming yourself for all of this."
Belle looked back at him and nodded. "I know... it's just a bad habit. I spent a lot of time blaming you for everything, and then I realized that I was MAJORLY to blame too. But no matter what, I always missed you. I'm glad you're here."
Shawn smiled and kissed the top of her head. "I missed you too. I may have learned how to live without you, but I did miss you and all your stupid little quirks."
Belle backed away and gasped. "Stupid? My stupid quirks? I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Okay, silly... that's a better word for it."
Belle grinned at him. "Silly... I can accept that. I guess I even missed your insults too. For five years I haven't had anyone to tell me how goofy my hair looks."
He looked at her in surprise, "You haven't?" Shawn paused and pointed at her current hairstyle, "Even with it looking like THIS?
Belle giggled and rolled her eyes. "See... I did miss that. Thanks, Shawn."
"No problem. Anytime you need a knock to the ego, just call me."
"Well, that's good to know... but I'm going to go back up on the deck. Look around until you guys are ready to go."
Shawn nodded and started to fold up the maps in front of him. "Well, I should be ready soon. Just want to make sure I get everything I need."
Belle turned towards the stairs and yelled back. "Alright, we'll be up top waiting for you."
Belle stepped back on to the deck and looked up at the sky. It was already a blanket of dark blue, but filled with stars. She sighed as she looked at the twinkling lights above her and quietly spoke to herself, "Brady, Chloe... I know you're out there looking up at these same stars. Just be strong, and we'll be there to get you as soon as we can."
***
(The Black Private Jet)
Belle returned from the back of the plane and sat with Shawn, Mimi and Phillip on one side of the main cabin, while the four parents sat in another area together. She threw tiny silver bags at each of them and grinned.
"Here, I brought you airplane peanuts on my way back from the bathroom."
Mimi looked at hers curiously. "I still think it's funny that this is a PRIVATE airplane, but your dad makes sure to stock up on those little bags of peanuts."
Belle shrugged nonchalantly. "What can I say? He loves that honey roasted goodness."
Phillip put the papers he was holding aside and smiled at Belle. "Belle, your research is like... amazingly thorough."
"Thanks... I just hope it's enough. We only had a few hours to basically get everything we could about the more obscure islands in Greece."
Shawn interjected, "Hopefully, they'll let me take a look at the maps and charts that Brady left on the boat. It'll give us an idea of what course they were headed on. Then we can know what islands to start looking at..."
Belle smiled and laid her hand on Shawn's arm. "Well, you taught my brother everything about sailing... I'm sure he kept very detailed charts and maps."
"I hope so, because that's our best shot at not having to examine every single tiny island in the middle of the ocean before we find them. I'm hoping that Brady's notes will lead us right to them. Or at least pretty close."
Belle spoke through a yawn, "I'm sure it will. I just want everyone to promise me that none of us will ever go NEAR deserted islands again. We seem to have bad luck with them."
Phillip nodded in agreement, "Yeah, no kidding."
Mimi shook her head. "Even when we don't go to islands, bad things happen. Like when we decided to take a big fun trip to Greta's coronation. Getting shot is more fun than, oh, let me think about it... ABSOLUTELY NOTHING."
Belle chuckled softly and nodded. "I guess bad things just follow us everywhere."
Shawn looked at her strangely. "Not all the time. We've survived all of the bad things before, even when we thought we wouldn't. And this time is no exception. My mom always says what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger."
"Your mom may definitely be right."
Mimi nodded happily and spoke low enough so only they could hear. "Plus, when all this is finally over with, we have something really great to look forward to. The birth of Brady Jr."
Phillip grinned at her. "Or it could be a Chloe Jr., you never know."
Shawn nodded in agreement, "I bet it's a girl. And, she'll have Chloe's beautiful dark hair... and of course, the brightest, bluest eyes like both of her parents."
Belle smiled wistfully and continued, "She'll have Brady's smile... and his attitude."
Mimi sighed thoughtfully. "Does anybody else besides me think it's weird that in less than nine months two people from our little group will be PARENTS?"
Phillip threw an arm around her shoulder and grinned. "We're getting old, Meems. Eventually we'll all be married with babies and mini-vans and those, 'I'm A Proud Parent of a Salem Honor Student' bumper stickers."
Mimi cringed and shied away from him. "Gross... I don't think so. If I ever buy a minivan, please kill me."
Belle laughed and rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, we'll make sure that never happens. And, I wouldn't jump the gun too soon Phillip... none of us exactly have prospects in that arena right now."
Mimi frowned slightly. "That's so true... But, you were the closest, Belle. You almost had a ring on your finger."
"I DID have a ring on my finger, Mimi."
Shawn stared at her in complete shock. "You did?"
Belle shrugged nervously, "For about thirty seconds, then I took it off."
Shawn inched away from her slightly and raised both eyebrows, "Tom?"
"Tim. His name was Tim."
"Right, I know. Was it him?"
Belle nodded. "Yeah. He asked me, slipped the ring on... I said no. End of story."
Mimi rolled her eyes, "You make it sound so magnificently uncomplicated. I know the real truth though. Either way, you're still the closest out of the four of us. I don't think any of us have had any long term or significant relationships to speak of."
"Well, there's still plenty of time. We're still in our EARLY 20's, not quite at the retirement home yet. Besides, sometimes the perfect person is right in front of you the whole time, and you just can't see it." Belle winked slyly at Mimi and continued, "Who knows, Mimi? You could know him already..."
If looks could kill, Mimi would have split her best friend in half right then. "Oh Belle... I think you're talking crazy again. Besides the only single guys I know are Shawn... and uhm, Phillip here."
Phillip grinned and Mimi and nudged her gently in the ribs with his elbow. "Hey Meems... Maybe you and I should make one of those pacts that they always make in the movies. You know, if neither of us is married when we're 35, then we marry each other. You can be my hot, sexy little trophy wife, and I can be your hot, sexy business tycoon husband."
Mimi laughed loudly and shook her head. "I could never be anybody's hot, sexy trophy wife, Phillip. Besides, those pacts never work out. Because in our case, you'll find some other girl, marry her and leave me as the old maid with the 37 cats. I'll be in that house on the corner where all the kids walk by and say, 'Oh there's crazy old Miss Lockhart's house. I heard that if you knock on her door, she'll eat your eyeballs.'"
Shawn and Belle laughed at her, but Phillip just pouted and gave her the old puppy dog eyes routine. "Awww, come on, Meems... We'll never let that happen. Be my trophy wife, please?"
Mimi paused and looked at him warily. "Even though you dropped the hot and sexy part out of the description... I guess so." She begrudgingly held her hand out and Phillip shook it, the deal had been sealed.
Shawn laughed and shook his head. "You two... are SO weird."
The group was all smiles when John stepped in to speak to them. "You all look like you're in a much better mood."
Belle smiled at her dad and nodded. "Thanks to Mimi and Phillip... they are both completely nuts."
Mimi shook her head in disagreement. "No, because of YOU, Belle. You're the one that's kept us from giving up hope. The jokes are just so not everything is depressing and miserable."
John nodded in understanding. "Well, whoever did it... I'm glad to see it. All of us need to stay clearheaded right now, and not get depressed or withdrawn. Anyway, I came over here just to give you an update. I got us hotel rooms on the shore, right by the marina where they brought the boat into."
Shawn nodded and asked, "Are we going to be able to get onto the boat and look around? I think I might be able to find them if I know exactly where they were headed and where they had already been."
"I don't know for sure yet. But, I'm doing everything I can so we can have access to the evidence. They're treating this like a murder case, but to us it's missing persons. I called already and got a boat that we can use in the search. It will be dark when we get there, but it's all stocked and loaded so you can start searching the islands first thing in the morning."
Belle quietly asked, "And what do we do until then? Besides get completely screwed up by the time difference."
John shrugged slightly, "Hopefully get on that boat and see what was left behind. And, get plenty of sleep tonight."
Belle nodded and continued, "Tonight... which is tomorrow in Greece. Actually, maybe we should all nap right now because I know from experience how screwed up you can get by traveling through different time zones."
"Good idea, Izzy... There's plenty of room to stretch out around here. I'll be over there with your mom, if you need me."
"Thanks, dad... We appreciate the update." John walked back to his seat and Belle looked around the group with a yawn. "I think I had a great idea. A little nap sounds fantastic."
John had remodeled the area of the plane that they were in a few years back. It now had a two plush leather couches that you would more likely find in a living room, not a jet. Perfect for lying and relaxing on. Shawn scooted over a bit and patted his knee. "Here, you may use me as your pillow."
Belle smiled sweetly at him and laid her head in his lap. "Thanks Shawn..."
"No problem..."
Phillip and Mimi looked at each other for a moment and then let their seats back to attempt to catch a few winks as well. Belle lied comfortably on the couch, enjoying the closeness she had been sharing with Shawn since all of this started. But, deep inside she felt a gnawing fear that there closeness would end as soon as this ordeal was over.
***
Belle awoke slowly. Except for the noise of the jet in flight, and quiet voices coming from the directions of her parents, the air was extremely quiet. Belle's eyes fluttered open and she realized her head was no longer lying in Shawn's lap. He had decided to nap as well and had slid down so that he was lying behind her. His arm was wrapped around her waist to keep her from falling off. Belle slowly turned just enough so that she could look at him. His eyes were moving rapidly under his eyelids, and Belle could tell that he was dreaming about something.
Part of her wanted to slide away from him and stretch her legs, and especially to iron out that painful kink in her neck. Sleeping without a pillow always made her neck ache tremendously. But the rest of her was perfectly comfortable right here with Shawn. She figured that moments like these wouldn't happen very often in the future, so she might as well enjoy them while she still could.
She turned briefly and saw that Mimi and Phillip were both reclined in their seats and sleeping soundly. When she turned back to Shawn, he started to whimper quietly in his dreams.
"I love you..."
Belle's heart nearly stopped in her chest, until she told herself to remember that he could be saying that to anyone. It meant nothing, even though she was right in front of him. He kept on talking, so quietly that Belle figured she was the only one who could hear him. But the fear in his voice increased as he continued muttering.
"Don't go... please. I'm sorry. Don't leave again. I won't hurt you."
Belle furrowed her eyebrows together in confusion. She didn't want to wake him, but his cries were becoming more frantic and his hand was gripping on to her waist tighter, as if he was having a nightmare. Belle placed her hand gently on his face and quietly spoke, "Shawn... are you okay?"
Shawn's brown eyes fluttered opened and he groaned quietly. He squinted sleepily to look at her and whispered quietly, "Belle... you're still here."
Belle looked at him curiously, "Still? I uhhh... never left, Shawn. Are you alright?"
Shawn nodded and began to sat up, bringing her with him. "Yeah, I'm fine. I guess I was having a nightmare."
"I guess so... you were starting to worry me. I didn't mean to wake you up though."
Shawn shook his head nonchalantly. "No big deal... I'm fine."
Belle sat all the way up and looked around the cabin. Her father shouted across the cabin, "Put your seatbelts on, kids... we're going to be landing soon."
Belle adjusted herself and smoothed her wrinkled clothing. She looked at Shawn again and sighed. "Is it a nightmare you want to talk about?"
Shawn buckled his seatbelt and shrugged. "Not really. Just the same one I always have. Nothing you need to worry about."
Belle still wasn't buying it. Something was wrong, but Shawn didn't want to get into it. She shrugged it off and buckled her own seatbelt. Belle grabbed an unopened bag of peanuts off of the floo rbeside her and chucked them at Mimi. Mimi flinched at the impact and muttered sleepily as she woke up. "Five more minutes, mom."
Belle laughed and leaned over to tap her on the knee. "Mimi, wake up... the plane's about to land, you need to buckle up."
Mimi opened her eyes and yawned loudly. She glared at Belle and shook her head in confusion. "So... you threw peanuts at me?"
"Yes, but I threw them GENTLY. Please nudge Phillip and wake him up too."
Mimi did as Belle suggested and told Phillip to put his seatbelt on. Phillip woke up and begrudignly did as he was told. He rubbed his eyes blearily and looked towards Belle and Shawn. "So, what time is it?"
Belle looked at her watch, still set on Salem time, and replied. "It's almost six. And the best part? Tomorrow is now today."
"Huh?"
"It's Thursday. It was Wednesday when we left."
Mimi groaned in frustration. "That is still so weird. Even after you've done it a few times."
Belle nodded in agreement and looked towards the windows. The sky had already begun to dim, and it would be dark very soon.
***
Belle stood on the docks alone under the moonlit sky. She stood in front of the boat that Brady and Chloe had traveled on and looked at it sadly. The area was blocked off with police tape, since it was still considered a crime scene. Belle crossed her arms and shivered slightly. It was strangely cool for a summer night and she was starting to regret her short sleeves.
Shawn stepped up behind her and placed his hand on her elbow. "You okay? You want my jacket?"
Belle shook her head. "Nah, I'll be fine. It's my fault for assuming that June would be a HOT month. So, what did the detective tell you?"
"They've taken most of the evidence that they're going to take, so we get free run of the place. They've already dusted for fingerprints and taken blood samples. As long as we don't take anything OFF of the boat, we won't get in trouble."
John walked up with the detective and joined the conversation. "Detective Xanthopolous is going to wait out here while we look around."
Belle smiled appreciatively. "Thanks Detective, we really appreciate all your help."
The detective smiled and spoke with a thick accent, "No problem. You seem like very good people. I hope that you are right. That your brother is okay."
John nodded in agreement. "He will be." John pointed at Shawn and Belle. "Now, you two... let's get to it. We don't want to be out here too late."
Shawn and Belle nodded and stepped under the yellow tape, with John following. With flashlights ready, they began to quietly search the abandoned boat. Shawn went directly for the cabin to go over the maps and charts. Belle searched around the deck, most of it in disarray, obvious signs that a struggle had taken place. Belle had also noticed small blood spatters on the deck when she first boarded the boat. She searched aimlessly for at least fifteen minutes until she caught something surprising in the beam of her flashlight.
Her heart froze and she cried out, "Oh My God..."
Belle kneeled down to get a closer look at the deep red splash across this edge of the boat. Not only was it splattered with blood, there was a clear red handprint in the middle of it all. John came running over and kneeled beside her. "Did you find something, Belle?"
Belle shrugged slightly. "I don't know. When are they going to have those results on the blood samples?"
"Soon, maybe tomorrow..."
Belle sighed and held her hand up to compare it to the print on the wall. The hand was larger than her own, and most definitely male. She looked over at John sadly and spoke, "It's Brady. It's his handprint."
"You don't know that."
"Not for sure. But, that's what I would guess. My instincts tell me that Brady made this handprint, and nobody else."
John put his arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head. "But, you don't know what that means. We don't even know whose blood it is yet."
Belle nodded, but then paused when something else caught her eye. There was a silver glint in the floorboard between the inner wall. She shined her flashlight on it and quickly pulled it out, lifting it up in her hand to show her father. "Well, this means something."
John sighed softly. "Brady's wedding band."
Belle laughed quietly, but she had a tinge of sorrow in her eyes. "Chloe told him to get it adjusted before the wedding, but he kept forgetting to go to the jeweler. I guess it must have slipped off. He should have listened to Chloe."
"Don't worry about it, sweetie. This doesn't mean that he's dead or even injured. We don't know yet."
Belle stood up and sighed. "I know, I know... I'm just... I'm going to go see what Shawn is up to."
John nodded. "Alright, I'm going to keep looking around up here for awhile."
Belle went down the stairs and into the cabin. Shawn was sitting at the table surrounded by maps and charts.
"Hey, Shawn... look what I found." She held out her hand so that he could see the ring in her palm.
Shawn smiled slightly. "Well, I would recognize that ring anywhere. Chloe told him to get it resized, but he never did."
Belle chuckled and nodded. "That's exactly what I said. Should I give it to the police?"
Shawn shook his head and closed her hand tightly around the ring. "No, hold on to it. Give it to Brady when we find them."
"Do you think we will?"
"Belle... of course I do. And you do too. Don't doubt yourself. Besides, you were right... Brady kept everything very detailed. Let me show you..."
Shawn inched over and Belle sat on the bench beside him. Shawn began to point at places on the map and explain. "See... This is where they were headed to." He pointed again, "This is where they found the boat." Shawn grabbed the Captain's log and pointed at it next. "The last thing that Brady recorded in the log was that they were about here on the map." He pointed to the map again. "My guess? They ended up on the island right next to where the boat washed up. The winds were just enough to nudge their boat to that other island."
Belle nodded, and looked at him like she was very impressed. "Wow... that was almost TOO easy."
Shawn sighed and nodded. "That's what I'm worried about. It COULD be the island I pointed to... Or it could be 15 other ones. I wish I could be completely sure. I'm going to take all this with me though, so I can go over them tonight and in the morning."
"Have I thanked you lately, Shawn Brady?"
"For what?"
"For everything."
Shawn shrugged nonchalantly. "No need to thank me. Brady is like a brother to me, and Chloe is like family too. There's no way I'd let you all do this without my help."
Belle shook her head. "That's not what I meant. I mean... yes, thank you for that. But, also thank you for how caring and gentle you've been with me. i may seem strong, but I need people to lean on sometimes... Usually, I lean on Brady, but he's not here. So, you have no idea how much it means to me when you hold my hand or hug me, or just the fact that you're just here.."
"It's not a one-way street, Belle. Sometimes I need a hand to hold too. I'm glad it's yours."
Belle smiled and laid her head on his shoulder. "I'm starting to wonder how I got through the past five years without you."
Shawn nodded in agreement. "Me too. But, I do know how. If it wasn't for my friends, and your brother especially, I would have never survived the hell that I was putting myself through after... after you left."
Belle lifted her head and looked away painfully. "I'm so sorry. I didn't want to hurt you."
"Belle, stop... I didn't mean to go down this road again. Most of my pain came from what I was doing to myself, not what you did. My point is, we were both hurt and we both got through it. We learned how to live without each other and we moved on. Stop blaming yourself for all of this."
Belle looked back at him and nodded. "I know... it's just a bad habit. I spent a lot of time blaming you for everything, and then I realized that I was MAJORLY to blame too. But no matter what, I always missed you. I'm glad you're here."
Shawn smiled and kissed the top of her head. "I missed you too. I may have learned how to live without you, but I did miss you and all your stupid little quirks."
Belle backed away and gasped. "Stupid? My stupid quirks? I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Okay, silly... that's a better word for it."
Belle grinned at him. "Silly... I can accept that. I guess I even missed your insults too. For five years I haven't had anyone to tell me how goofy my hair looks."
He looked at her in surprise, "You haven't?" Shawn paused and pointed at her current hairstyle, "Even with it looking like THIS?
Belle giggled and rolled her eyes. "See... I did miss that. Thanks, Shawn."
"No problem. Anytime you need a knock to the ego, just call me."
"Well, that's good to know... but I'm going to go back up on the deck. Look around until you guys are ready to go."
Shawn nodded and started to fold up the maps in front of him. "Well, I should be ready soon. Just want to make sure I get everything I need."
Belle turned towards the stairs and yelled back. "Alright, we'll be up top waiting for you."
Belle stepped back on to the deck and looked up at the sky. It was already a blanket of dark blue, but filled with stars. She sighed as she looked at the twinkling lights above her and quietly spoke to herself, "Brady, Chloe... I know you're out there looking up at these same stars. Just be strong, and we'll be there to get you as soon as we can."
***