AAAAH!1! I don't know about any of you, but I've been going crazy this past week... Fan-effing-fiction was broke pretty bad. Couldn't upload new chapters, couldn't (evidently) get new reviews. Mayhem and madness.

So I have no idea if people liked Chapter 10. I don't even know if everyone got a notification for it. If you haven't read and/or reviewed it yet, please put me out of my misery and do so NOW. Then swiftly do the same for this chapter! :) K thanks bye.

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Chapter 11 – Affidavit

What began as a passionate kiss ended in an innocent nap. Jack and Sue had passed out on her bed, snoring until late morning. Sue drowsily rubbed her eyes and saw the red digital clock slowly come into focus. With a jolt that woke Jack, she leapt up and raced to the window, fumbling for the binoculars.

"Not good… I hope we haven't missed it…" she hissed through her teeth.

"Wha…?" Jack blinked groggily.

"Joseph… where is he?" Sue scanned the adjacent yard. "Come on, it's noon, time for your phone call!"

She waited breathlessly until at last he appeared in her scope. Jack froze, letting her observe.

"Yes… the cargo's still on schedule… coming Friday… I can't tell what time of day he said…" Sue relayed. "But it's definitely Friday at the Brownston docks."

Jack watched her in open admiration. He loved her for so many reasons, her usefulness just the least of them. But his praise would have to wait – the doorbell rang. Levi, of course, snapped to action; he escorted Jack and Sue downstairs, leading them to the front door where the humans realized they were still in wrinkled pajamas.

No matter, it was only Lucy for the second time in as many days.

"Long time no see!" Sue laughed.

"Hey Sue, Jack," Lucy paused, looking them up and down. No… it couldn't be. Myles can't be right, not already…

"Rough night," Jack explained. "We both slept in late."

Lucy swore she saw a look pass between them, but she dismissed it. "Yeah, I heard. I swear I knew nothing about that statute. I'm still kind of in shock, but not half as much as you two must be! How are you holding up?"

"We're still… adjusting to things," replied Sue.

"So what brings you here today? Dropping off an invitation to our wedding shower?" Jack goaded.

"Could be for all I know," Lucy handed them an envelope much slimmer than the first. "Whatever it is can't be any worse than yesterday's bomb, right?"

Her cell phone started buzzing before Jack or Sue could answer. Recognizing the number, Lucy started backpedaling down the front walk.

"Sorry guys, I have to take this. I'm late for a meeting. Call me if you want me to stop by later, okay?"

Jack gripped the envelope with one hand and waved with the other. "That girl… always on the move."

Sue eyed the package nervously as they returned inside. "I'm afraid to open that."

"Nah, like Lucy said, it couldn't be any worse," Jack winked at her, slitting it open. "Not that it was entirely 'bad' to begin with."

She smiled coyly, sidling up and linking her arm in his before reading the document. There were only two pages, one of which was legal size. The top sheet was a crooked copy of a statute page. They both squinted at the uneven lettering, trying to interpret the convoluted phrases.

When at last comprehension dawned on Jack, he inhaled sharply. It was visceral enough that Sue felt it.

"What is it?" asked Sue, who hadn't read quite as far.

"Here," he pointed to a chunk of lines halfway down the page. "Lucy guessed wrong."

Sue peered closer and read the text aloud:

"At the Executive Director's individual discretion, the persons legally bound by the enactment of Statue 545 may at any time be required to produce a signed & notarized affidavit stating under oath that the marriage has been validated."

"Validated?" she frowned slightly. "What does that mean? We've got a small book of paperwork proving it's valid and legal."

Holding his tongue, Jack flipped to the second page. There his suspicions were confirmed. From the base of his neck to the top of his forehead, he grew a warm shade of red.

"That's apparently not enough," he coughed nervously.

"Why not? What is this?" she snatched it to get a better look. Glancing sideways at her, Jack watched and waited for realization to strike her next. It didn't take long. Sue's mouth fell open in a black, astonished hole, which she promptly covered with one hand.

"This… it's asking… they want us to…" she was too aghast to form a complete thought.

Jack nodded with regret. "Again, I had no idea this law existed. From the date on this page, it looks like the addendum was added just a few months ago."

"But how can they do this?" Sue's eyes had never been wider. "How can the FBI force us to consummate a marriage they arranged?!"

"Whoever makes the rules is either a sociopath or a pervert."

"It says we have to sign this by five pm Friday under penalty of law! It's an affidavit! If we lie, we'll be committing perjury!"

Slowly, as if possessed by an unseen yet calm force, Jack took back the papers. He fixed Sue with a stare so mesmerizing she lost her breath.

"Shh," he touched her lips with one finger. "No need to get so upset."

"We could go to jail, Jack!"

His hand slid across her cheek and under her chin, holding it there so their eyes were inextricably locked.

"Then the only responsible thing to do," he murmured before pressing his mouth against hers, "is behave as law abiding citizens would."

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