Wow I can safely say I went overboard with the word count. the public demanded and the public has received! it's almost 3 am, and i creeped myself out writing the end hahaha.
Chapter 21- Amusement Park Romance
May 20th, 2006.
The school year at NYU had ended, and everyone had gone back to their respective home states.
Well, almost everyone.
For almost the past 24 hours, Paige had remained in New York.
FLASHBACK
"So once Greek Week ends, that's it," said Paige.
"That's it?" said Don.
"Yeah," said Paige. "It's kinda annoying 'cuz Violet won't even be out of school till June."
"What about your friends up there?" said Don.
"Summer time is party time – I'll be holding Candace's hair while she goes down on a strange toilet," said Paige.
Don laughed.
"Strange guy, strange toilet – you crank out the best jokes," said Don.
"Not to mention I called my dad and he and my mom are still schlepping Violet to Boston for her weekly ballet lesson – and then there's the camp she goes to at Julliard every summer. Makes my head spin," said Paige.
"Have you bought your train tickets yet?" said Don.
"No… why?" said Paige.
Don leaned over and kissed her. Then when he pulled away he looked her right in the eye.
"How about you stay with me?" said Don.
He hoped she would say yes, because he loved having her around and waking up next to her the nights he took her to his apartment.
"How long?" said Paige.
"Till you wanna go back up north," said Don.
"Yes – and I'll come up and visit, so don't think you won't see me the entire summer when I do leave," said Paige.
END FLASHBACK
Paige was glad she had said yes. Today Don was taking her out on a date, but she didn't know where – all she knew was how Don had told her how to dress, which was to stay comfortable during the nasty heat wave that had begun right after Aiden's death and was still going strong up and down the east coast. Paige was wearing a blue tie-dye tankini, denim cutoffs, a green halter top with white flowers on it, and a black pair of vans with skulls that Rhonda affectionately referred to as the "Day of the Dead Kicks". A white scarf with skulls on it was tied as a headband on her head to keep stray hair off her face – regardless of the product she used her wavy hair always became a frizzball in heat like this. A visor with a beach scene went over the ponytail her hair was in and a pair of silver aviator sunglasses were clipped on her top. Money and her cell phone was in the miniature white purse she had, the one that was a better wallet and had a big green flower on it. That along with a big bottle of sunscreen and clean underthings went into a multi-colored checkered knapsack that always seemed to come in handy for stuff like this.
Paige sat on the couch, waiting for Don and checking the mani-pedi of coral nail polish she had done with Amelia after celebrating the end of finals. The only other makeup Paige currently sported was tinted lip balm – not even waterproof mascara could hold up in this heat. She heard the door open – Don had woken her up with a kiss and told her he was going to get breakfast and coffee. She had no idea how he could drink regular coffee in this weather. She had been drinking iced coffee since April.
"I'm back – got enough bagels and shmear to last us a month," said Don.
He took two out along with a jar of cream cheese. Paige thought he looked sexy in the denim shorts and dark blue t-shirt he wore, it brought out his eyes.
"Egg for you, Everything for me, and your iced latte from Starbucks," said Don.
"Thanks," said Paige.
"Gotta beat the heat somehow," said Don.
Paige grinned and sipped the iced latte. They both ate their bagels then made their way to Don's car. Once they got in he turned the AC on.
"Close your eyes," said Don. "I want you to be surprised."
"Alright," said Paige.
Don started the drive, the radio playing classic rock but not too loudly as he thought she might want to talk on the ride over. He was right.
"So what do you think about October?" said Paige. "I – I know you're not so nuts about weddings and marriage and… sorry I'm rambling again, I do that when I get nervous."
"It's 'cuz Ma wants grandkids – I wasn't gonna make a hasty decision just to pop out a couple pups," said Don.
He almost had – Katie. Then the shooting in the Bronx had changed everything. After Katie had dumped him he had gone through more women than socks until Paige had come into the picture. He had hoped to get through the master plan AKA first date her friends had set up by holding his phone hostage intact, dreading a college student who would gossip about drunken friends. Instead he had spent a great night with a young woman who had big dreams of a career in the city and family up north, and despite loving them had had to spread her wings and fly. As things had gotten more serious, they had shared past hardships – Gavin, Josie – and had gone through some present ones themselves. They had met each other's families and were cool with each other's friends.
Over all, the one thing Don loved the most was knowing that even if all the scumbags were running around the city wreaking havoc, Paige was living proof that there was still some good left – hence the reason why he always called her after a case wrapped up, so he could be reminded of that.
"Ever done it using your handcuffs?" said Paige.
"No," said Don.
"Maybe one day before I leave, we should," said Paige.
"Deal," said Don.
"So you're sure that Mac is Rhonda's dad? Like, you can tell just by looking at them?" said Paige.
"It's pretty obvious," said Don.
"Abs is gonna die!" said Paige.
"Abs? That's the kid you and Rhonda hang out with?" said Don.
"I hang out with him but Rhonda is now dating him," said Paige. "I kinda caught them together during Greek Week."
"There's a rumor going around the precinct that Scagnetti and Maka are together," said Don.
"Aren't they partners?" said Paige.
"Yeah," said Don. "We're here."
"Where?" said Paige.
She heard Don open his door and then come around, opening hers and helping her out of the car – she felt for her knapsack and grabbed it on the way out.
"You can look now," said Don.
Paige opened her eyes – and squealed right on the spot.
"Oh my god!!!" said Paige. "I can't believe we're here!!"
She gave Don a kiss – she was so excited, his surprise had apparently been a daytrip to Six Flags Great Adventure. When they pulled apart, Don pulled two tickets out of his jean pocket and gave her one.
"Let's go – thought it might be best to get here a little before it opens," said Don.
"Good, we'll get to Kingda Ka faster!" said Paige.
They only had to wait at the gate a few minutes before it opened – the park wasn't too crowded at this point so when they got stamped and Paige grabbed a park map they headed into the Fantasy Forest section. Seeing the Fantasy Fling, a round-up ride, had no line, they headed straight for it. Don realized if it was anything Paige would run for, it was to beat a line at an amusement park – she took off like a shot. They got on the ride and soon the ride was started. It was pretty fast, so Paige was glad that they had ridden this before lunch. They also rode a pretty bizarre but fun ride called Houdini's Great Escape that played psychological tricks of whether or not the riders were upside down, as the whole ride was encased indoors no one could tell. Afterwards they went onto the Sky Ride, a gondola lift that would take them to the Frontier Adventures section. After it started, Paige took her top off and stuffed it in her knapsack.
"This is awesome," said Paige.
When they got off on the other side they ran straight toward Kingda Ka – there was a line but luckily it wasn't too long.
"How tall is this?" said Don.
"Over 400 feet and over 100 miles per hour," said Paige.
"That's crazy," said Don.
The line moved as people rode – Paige told Don it was slow because the trains seated 18 people apiece.
"Have you done your homework on this thing or what?" said Don.
"Not literally, that wouldn't be possible," said Paige.
Don laughed and put his arms around her, pulling her close to him. Her five foot seven frame always seemed to fit so easily in his arms whenever they embraced. They kissed off and on as the line moved. Soon they were at the front and beat a couple guys out for the front seats.
"Where's the chain lift?" said Don.
"Hydraulics," said Paige. "We're gonna get shot out of here like a bullet."
A guy behind them kept saying 'Madre' over and over.
"Someone wants their mommy," said Paige.
Don let out a nervous laugh. He had let Paige talk him into this really weird roller coaster – not that he was scared of them but this was weird.
"This isn't normal!" said Don.
"That's half the fun," said Paige.
The horn went off.
"Oh my god," said Paige.
The train took off and shot up the hill then went down the other side just as fast.
"Whoa!" said Paige.
They went over a smaller camel hill and caught a glimpse of another roller coaster when they got on a flat section of track right before they got back to the station. They got out of their seats and held hands on the way out.
"I always wanted to ride that thing!" said Paige. "Okay, how about the one we saw? Great American Scream Machine?"
"Good choice," said Don. "I used to come here with my family all the time. Jimmy and I would drag our sisters on that thing and they'd scream like when we were all watching horror movies."
Paige laughed as the two of them went to get in line – there wasn't really much of one.
"I guess everyone is waiting until after they eat lunch to come," said Paige. "Hahaha."
Don grinned and shook his head.
"I counted seven loops – awesome!" said Paige.
"You really love roller coasters don't you?" said Don.
"I love you more," said Paige.
They would've made out in line if the line hadn't been so short – they got on in record time. When the ride ended they then got in line for Superman: Ultimate Flight. The line was a little longer, so they made out until they got up to where they were able to board the ride. The train was inverted, which meant it sat below the track unlike the last two the couple had ridden. Once everyone was in their seats, the seats jerked back so all the passengers were lying on their stomachs.
"Another freak of nature!" said Don.
"Good thing I'm not wearing my sunglasses!" said Paige.
After getting off they did two pay attractions, Dare Devil Dive and ErUption, both of which sent Don and Paige into the air for a reasonable price. They then went on a ride called The Twister which flipped them around several times and made them grateful they had stuck to their plan of not eating before going on all the thrill rides. They then headed to Rolling Thunder. Paige got a good look at the racing wooden coaster and grinned.
"Wicked," said Paige.
"You're the only person I know who says that," said Don.
"Everyone in New England says it," said Paige.
They got to the front pretty quickly and got in the blue train. Blue had been Paige's favorite color since she was a child and it was a color Don had been familiar with since his birth – the color of the law, his father always said. The ride started up.
"Do you prefer wooden or steel?" said Paige.
"I don't really care either way – it's still a roller coaster," said Don.
"Me neither – the taller and faster it is the better," said Paige. "Wow, it looks like they're building a new one!"
Don saw the structure of a wooden roller coaster in the distance, almost finished but not quite. Paige let out a rocker-esque scream when the train descended the hill. After that ride ended – the blue train winning the race – they headed for Medusa next. When they got to the front of the line and were boarding the train, Don noticed the train was floorless.
"Look Don, no floor!" said Paige.
"It's gonna chop my feet off," said Don.
"No it won't," said Paige.
"Considering how much you have claimed to ride these things, I'll take your word for it," said Don.
"I've ridden one that when you're strapped in you're standing the entire time," said Paige. "Mantis at Cedar Point. Amanda lives in Ohio, so we all went there and King's Island… good times."
The ride started. When it was done, they both agreed it was fast – although not as fast as Kingda Ka had been. They went on another one, the Runaway Mine Train, that was more silly than scary, but the lap bars enabled Don and Paige to get close during the ride. After getting off they headed to another section that had three other roller coasters in it. The first one they decided to ride was Batman & Robin: The Chiller, being as it was actually open – Paige had heard the ride had been having problems and wasn't open often, so she was glad she was getting the chance to ride it.
"This one goes backwards," said Paige. "Fun huh?"
"Yeah," said Don.
They got in line on the Batman side because it was the only side open – Don was surprised to see lap bars as he had seen from a distance that this was a coaster that went upside down. When they got to the front they boarded the train.
"This is gonna rock my socks," said Paige.
Don laughed – then it launched. They got to a spike.
"This what you meant by backwards?" said Don.
"Yeah!" said Paige.
The train went backwards all the way back to the station.
"That was somethin' else," said Don. "And so are you – you're obsessed with these things!"
"I told you roller coasters are my major thing," said Paige.
"Why do you think I brought you here?" said Don. "And your friend Rhonda says men can't anticipate needs. Well, I anticipated your need for speed did I not?"
"You most certainly did," said Paige. "Nitro next."
They got on Nitro, which was supposed to be a park favorite – Don didn't know, as he hadn't been since 1996 but Paige was excited to ride and so was he. They boarded and went up the hill.
"Wow, you can see everything," said Paige.
The ride was fast but smooth, making it obvious as to why it was a park favorite. Afterwards they went on Batman: The Ride, one that was almost Don's favorite – Great American Scream Machine took that title.
"I think you'll like this one," said Don.
"I think I will – I've only met two roller coasters I didn't like, one of them I got stuck on and it was a bad ride even after it worked again, the other was so slow I felt like I was on a kiddie ride," said Paige.
Getting up to the front of Batman, Don was glad he had done this – he was enjoying himself and Paige was happy. He had needed a distraction after everything that had happened recently, and he was also off tomorrow. Sundays he rarely got off, and it didn't look like he would be called in. If he wasn't, he planned to do it with Paige all day long – with breaks in between to eat of course. Having sex on an empty stomach was one thing he was sure he couldn't do.
They boarded the ride and were soon going up the hill.
"Woo! I love this kind!" said Paige. "There was this one in Virginia that was a total monster! Alpengeist at Busch Gardens! It kicked ass!"
When the ride was over, they headed for Stuntman's Freefall, a drop ride. It looked interesting so they got in line.
"Can't believe they still got it here," said Don. "This thing has scared my siblings to death."
"With Violet horror movies do the trick," said Paige. "She got scared watching Texas Chainsaw Massacre – and that was just the remake, which I had rented to see if Jessica Biel kicked butt on the silver screen, which she does. Original is better. Funny enough, I know a lot of people who like those Saw movies but won't even go near Texas."
"Does she like horror at all?" said Don.
"Yeah, just not the slashers," said Paige. "She's a big fan of anything and everything paranormal."
They got on the Freefall ride and were hoisted up to the top.
"Wow," said Paige. "Hey! Drop us already!"
"They can't hear you," said Don.
"Haha," said Paige.
It dropped, sending the couple and the teen girls with them careening to the bottom.
"Whoa! Sweet!" said Paige.
They went and rode the last coaster they hadn't been on yet – Skull Mountain, an indoor ride which was good for beating the heat wave that was still going on. They sat in the back, holding hands over the lap bars in the dark. After getting off, they took the Sky Ride in Fantasy Forest over to the Frontier Adventures section to get lunch.
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Back in New York, the heat wave proved to be unbearable.
"Well, at least the criminals decided to either stay indoors or swim," said Scagnetti.
Kaile Maka laughed then felt annoyed when she realized that her shirt was stuck to her, making it see-through. Every guy in the precinct could see her bra and everything else that went with it.
"What are we doing tonight, John?" said Kaile.
Scagnetti rolled his eyes. There were at least three other guys on the force named John.
"Sorry, Scagnetti," said Kaile.
"Here, sit," said Scagnetti.
He let her sit at his desk – the AC was right above it. He went to go get a chair and her paperwork – they would groan about their massive amounts of it together.
"Sullivan's at eight," said Kaile.
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"Best of the West is the best place in the park to eat," said Don.
The waitress brought over the cheeseburgers and fries they had ordered.
"This is one hell of a cheeseburger," said Paige. "Thanks for taking me here. You made me so happy."
"Anything for you," said Don.
After they ate they got some cotton candy at the Conestoga Wagon, a nearby snack cart. They then walked toward the Saw Mill Log Flume.
"Cotton candy rocks," said Paige. "One of my favorite memories involves cotton candy."
"Why don't you tell me about it?" said Don.
"Senior prom weekend – weirdest weekend of my life," said Paige. "Me and my five friends back home went – Jon and I were sorta dates by association given that he was gay and I wasn't with anyone at the time, although Candace wanted to be with Jon the hole night so I danced with her boyfriend Jeff… don't ask me why she wanted it that way, I can't figure out Jon and Candace sometimes, but they got my back. Then the ten of us go out to Hampton beach and we're all walking around the beach – they had all had stuff to drink but Jon and Candace were so blitzed I had to do damage control… they nearly got arrested for indecent exposure but I talked the cop out of it."
"You're kidding, right? You talked a guy outta arresting your friends for lewd behavior?" said Don.
"Well, if Jon hadn't decided to use the parking lot as a bathroom and Candace hadn't been so drunk and stupid to distract the cop by flashing him I wouldn't have had to," said Paige. "I told him I was sober and could I possibly bring everyone back to the motel we were all staying at and they wouldn't see us again for the weekend."
"You friends committed a misdemeanor and they agreed?" said Don.
"I let them test me as a sign of good faith," said Paige. "I had trouble blowing, how embarrassing – the one being a 'good girl' almost didn't work to my advantage."
The thought of Paige having difficulty with a breathalyzer test made Don laugh – then again, it had probably been the only one she had been given. As if reading his mind, Paige confirmed Don's suspicions.
"After they all sobered up the next morning the six of us went to Six Flags New England," said Paige. "We just hung out and took our minds off the horrible stuff that happened that spring – Josie and Evie betraying Candace and Jon."
"What did Evie do?" said Don.
"She used to be one of the group but it all went to hell," said Paige.
FLASHBACK
March 8th, 2004.
Paige was grateful that the weekend was over. She saw Jon and Candace and waved hello. They walked up, both were angry.
"What happened?" said Paige. "I'm sorry I wasn't reachable over the weekend but something came up."
That "something" had been a terrified Josie hiding from Trevor, so Paige had put on her MySpace that she was on vacation and would be unreachable until Monday.
"I got a good idea why, that meathead is a tool, I don't care if everyone thinks he's a good guy," said Candace. "That's besides the point – you aren't allowed to talk to Evie."
"Right!" said Jon.
Paige had a good idea why – Evie was "out".
"Not a problem," said Paige.
"Good," said Candace and Jon.
The bell rang and they went to their classes.
END FLASHBACK
Don and Paige had gotten in line for the flume ride, and Paige was still telling her story.
"Then everything with Josie happened and I was so upset, but I knew something was up with Candace and Jon," said Paige. "I found out that Jon had been put in lockup for being high on speed and driving – how he only got his license suspended is beyond me. The point is, Candace called Evie but she said she didn't have the money – a lie, 'cuz Evie lived in a friggin mansion. Evie had been having sex with her boyfriend – the rule is friends first and Evie broke that rule. Candace and I didn't have any cash to bail Jon out so he was in lockup for the whole weekend."
Don usually didn't feel bad for delinquents, but their friend had left them high and dry when they had asked her for help, which he thought was brutal.
"It was a nasty drama that went on until graduation," said Paige. "Boy was I glad to be outta there! Although, the senior trip to Disney World was nice – I helped planned it."
"That's terrible," said Don. "Kinda funny with everyone in a catfight, but still terrible."
"Yeah," said Paige. "Candace and Jon were so up to their eyeballs in the game it took them a while for them to realize I wasn't trying to climb the ladder. That's why I'm still friends with them."
"That's why I love you, you don't care what other people think," said Don. "You do your own thing and I admire that."
They kissed, and soon were able to get on the ride.
"This is great we're gonna get wet," said Paige. "That's why I love water rides. They come second to the thrills for me."
When they got off, they were slightly wet and decided to head for the Congo Rapids ride, which was another water ride.
"I love these, these are always wetter," said Paige.
When they got off, they were both soaked.
"I'm having so much fun right now!" said Paige.
They rode the last one, the Movietown Water Effect, before heading back to the places they had been and rode the pirate ship rides – the regular one and the one that went all the way around – the bumper cars, the tea cups, the swings, the musical express, the go-karts, and several other rides before making their way to Papa Johns for supper where they ordered The Works, a pizza with everything, to share with cheesesticks on the side.
"We have only the ferris wheel left," said Paige.
"Eh, let's do that last," said Don. "I was thinkin' we could play some games."
"Sounds like a plan," said Paige. "Ya think we could hit up some of the shops too? Don't worry I only wanna get a couple things. No mega-duty shopping I promise."
"No problem," said Don. "You got some sauce on your lip lemme get that off."
He kissed her. After finishing their food they went to a nearby restaurant, Cold Stone Creamery, to get some ice cream. They ordered Chocolate Devotion and decided to just split one. They shared it on a bench near one of the arcade games.
"This is fun," said Paige. "It looks like its getting dark though."
"Doesn't matter," said Don. "We'll stay till it closes then we'll go back to my place."
Paige smiled. They both took a spoonful of ice cream.
"To us," said Don.
"To us," said Paige.
They ate the ice cream.
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Rock music blared in Sullivan's as Kaile challenged Scagnetti to downing shots of her favorite beverage: tequila. Scagnetti was mostly a beer and whisky type of guy but he wasn't the type to turn down a challenge.
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Don grabbed the hammer and hit the platform, sending it careening right to the top.
"Wow – I've never seen anyone hit it that high," said Paige.
They then went to another section to race remote controlled boats. Paige giggled when they both crashed into each other.
"Look, a ladder game!" said Paige.
Paige ran over and decided to climb it.
"Hey, careful!" said Don.
"I'm fine," said Paige. "I'm at the top, I get a prize! That's one prize each!"
"Not quite, I won that stuffed animal for you," said Don.
Paige kissed him. They played a few more games and wound up back at the Boardwalk section, which had a huge midway, and paintball.
"Paintball!" said Paige.
They shot the paintball guns at some targets. They played some games in the midway and wound up doing a dozen rounds of skee ball. Several huge stuffed animals later, they made their way through the shops. Don and Paige bought a couple cowboy hats at a store in the Frontier Adventures section.
"Think it would look good with my ties?" said Don.
Paige laughed so hard she almost fell right into her boyfriend.
"I'm kidding you silly girl," said Don.
Paige smiled. Armed with all their stuff, they took the Sky Ride back to Fantasy Forest, where the ferris wheel was. There wasn't a big line and considering how many seats there were they were able to board right off. Don and Paige snuggled into each other's arms.
"It's so beautiful out," said Paige. "The moon – I think it's full."
"It is," said Don. "I'm screwed."
Paige only found it slightly funny – the crazies Don dealt with weren't the silly homeless guys that hung around the NYU laundromat claiming that they saw aliens every night, the crazies Don dealt with were killers. She wrapped her arms tighter around him.
"Hey, I'm not goin' anywhere, okay?" said Don.
Paige smiled.
Unfortunately, after stopping to pick up their souvenir photos from the roller coasters and the flume ride, as well as a box of assorted fudge at a candy shop, the night ended too quickly and they made the drive back to Don's apartment. They cuddled on the couch and watched Letterman. Don's cell phone rang.
"Flack. Kaile, what happened? Oh, man! No problem, I'll cover his shift tomorrow," said Don.
He ended the call then busted up laughing.
"What happened?" said Paige.
"Scagnetti and Kaile were doing tequila shots – she got him so wasted he can't go in tomorrow!" said Don. "Darn! That means we can't spend tomorrow in bed. Sorry."
"It's okay, duty calls – in this case, literally," said Paige.
Don and Paige soon went to bed. Paige heard a cell phone ringing and realized it was her own. She picked up and answered.
"Who is this?" Paige whispered.
"It's me, Gary," said Gary.
Paige couldn't believe her ears. Gary Fleming, an FBI agent who was a friend of her mother, had never called her – ever.
"Why are you calling? Gabby's asleep!" Paige hissed.
That had been Paige's guise when she had called her dad explaining her longer stay – that she was bunking with Gabby, and she was going to use it with any and all family friends.
"Well, I'm actually in the city," said Gary.
"What?!" Paige hissed.
"Trying to fix what DHS screwed up – they had a laptop stolen and I tracked it to Queens so now I have to find the damn thing, why they can't watch their equipment better and clean up their own damn mess is beyond me," said Gary. "Be careful, whoever took this is dangerous."
"Okay," Paige whispered. "I'm tired. I'm going to sleep now."
"Goodnight," said Gary.
Paige shut her phone and let herself drift off to sleep.
She had no idea just how right Gary was.
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The man checked his device with a smile. Everything was in place.
Now it was time to show everyone just how vulnerable they were.
His lips curled into a sinister smile as he put his plan into action.
Tomorrow was a new day…
you know what's next, right?