Chapter Forty - Four

Aquæ furtivæ Tempus tecum'Stolen Moments with You'


September 22nd 2000

22.24pm

Elizabeth stepped out of her motorcade and headed towards the corner coffee shop where she was meeting Henry. Her figure hugging navy dress blended into the darkness of the night. As she walked the tranquility of the black night sky fell upon her, the air had a softness about it, and as the gentle night breeze ran through Elizabeths hair the softness almost commanded her body and brain to rest and let her heart go its steady rhythm. The peaceful night came as a reward of sorts, a restfulness setting in to calm the soul. Elizabeth couldn't help but wonder if it was that kind of night or was the calmness and ease more to do with who she was meeting.

She pushed the door open and smiled as she spotted Henry sitting in a booth. He stood as she entered and fiddled with his coat. He's nervous she thought to herself as she turned to face her DS agents, she gave them a small signal to stay where they are, wanting her and Henry to have a little privacy. She walked towards him, the sound of her heels echoing through the empty cafe as the butterflies grew In her stomach.

'Evening' he greeted her she let out a steady breath

'Evening Henry' She smiled as best she could, her own nervousness taking over as her eyes fell upon him. She swallowed a dry lump in her throat as the realisation she still found him attractive washed over her. Henry gestured for her to take a seat and she nodded simply, taking a moment to gather her thoughts.

'So, busy day?' He asked his eyes fixing onto her; oh those eyes…

'Hmm, yeah, well quite quiet for state actually, this evening was more of a pleasant gathering not too many negotiations were needed, sorry that I am a little overdressed, I didn't have time to change as planned' she admitted shyly, however Henry didn't complain.

'You look wonderful, you always do' the words fell from his mouth before he could stop them. Elizabeth looked up at him and narrowed her eyes a little as her head slightly tilted, a look of disapproval bounced back to Henry

'Please don't' came the firm reply. Henry raised his eyebrows at her as an awkward silence fell between them. Elizabeth placed her hands in her lap and looked down at them for a second cursing herself for being blunt with him, she actually loved the fact he complimented her, it wasn't something Thomas did often.

'So I supposed congratulations are in order, Dr Henry McCord?' She pressed on the word doctor, hinting she was intrigued by his achievements. Henry let out a small chuckle as she looked back up at him

'yes, I've been a professor for a few years now, I left the Marines after ten years, done some teaching with them for a while but then moved on to religion and ethics'

'Oh I see, your strong moral compass came into play' she teased

'Something like that, and what about you? Madam Secretary' he raised an eyebrow at her, she laughed and his smile widened oh that laugh…

'Yes, well I kind of got roped into it, didn't really have a choice. Conrad was my boss at the CIA and I left the CIA myself a few years ago, went into teaching myself actually and well, when Marsh died Conrad tracked me down and asked me, said, 'I won't take no for an answer' so that was that. Six months in and I think I am finally getting the hang of it' she laughed and picked up her coffee mug that was ready and waiting for her

'Wait, I thought you might need something stronger after a long day, so on the off chance I got this' he held out his hand stopping her taking a sip. He pulled out a bottle of scotch from his bag and two Tumblr glasses.

'Oh well played McCord' she teased and put the coffee down, taking a glass form him after he poured the brown liquid.

'Well what can I say, I had to make an impression'

'You didn't need to, you've already made one on my life' she admitted, letting her guard down around him was always easy, and for her it was true, Henry had made an impact on her life. Henry looked up at her and sighed placing his own glass down with a slight bang on the table, the curve of her lips dropped and she jumped a little

'Look I am sorry about all those years ago, and the hurt I caused you but can we please just have a friendly drink?' He snapped a little, the pain of the past still clung to him tight.

'Oh no Henry I didn't mean…Sorry' she plastered a smile on her face and it dropped as quick as it appeared. She reached for her glass and took a glue of the liquid as silence cast over them once again. Neither could maintain eye contact for more than a few seconds due to all the emotion and tension riding between them, the questioned that neither could answer was 'which kind of tension is it?' Elizabeth let out a deep breath attracting Henrys attention

'Lily is into Politics' he opted to change the conversation Elizabeths heart soared at the thought of that little girl.

'Gosh, how is she? She must be very grown up now' she leant forward, her body demanding more from the conversation

'She is seventeen-'

'Wow'

'Yeah, I know so grown up, Maureen has two other children, Patrick who is 15 and Jane who Is 12. Lily is wonderful, she is fascinated with a certain Secretary of State. I don't think she has made the link that it is you' he admitted

'I doubt she would even remember, she was four I think the last time I seen her, when I returned from Baghdad, you'd just been deployed overseas again' Henry nodded as he recalled Maureen telling her 'I lost touch after that, went back to Baghdad and other places constantly, finally returned to American soil about five years later, by then it was too late to make contact with people' she sighed heavily, the weight of what she had missed out on pushed down on her. Henry watched, his eyes casing over her it was evident to him that she hadn't given herself an easy time over the years

'Well she can come and visit anytime she likes' Elizabeth shook her thoughts away and smiled

'Thank you, I am sure I'll be the best uncle in the world when I tell her that' he laughed and she playfully rolled her eyes

'Top up?' He asked holding up the bottle to pour another drink

'I best not' she covered the top of her glass with her hand and looked at him sadly 'It's already late enough and I drank a bit earlier' she lied and watched as Henrys face fell leaving him disappointed. Once again a silence fell upon them, this time a silence so loud it was deafening, a silence so toxic its uncomfortable upon the skin. Elizabeth shuffled in her seat trying to shake the silence, her eyes closed tight; this was never the reunion with Henry she had planned, but what else did she expect?

'I need to go' he admitted and cleared his throat, he fumbled around and reached for his coat

'Henry?' She quizzed him, his sudden need to departure unnerving her.

'This is too painful, I can't do this' he admitted defeat, his words lingered in the air as they fell upon her ears, she watched him put his coat on and watched as his face flushed with panic. She slowly stood and placed a hand on his arm, a soothing gesture. She felt a warmth flood within her and her stomach flipped as he turned to face her

'It's painful for me too, let me go, you finish your drink' she smiled sadly, her eyes heavy with sadness. She reached in and kissed him softly on the cheek, her lips lingered at the touch of him sink as she inhaled his scent, intoxicated by the past. She stepped back and nodded goodbye as she walked towards her DS agents, out of the door and towards her motorcade which was a little down the street. She heard the door fling open in the distance and turned as she spotted Henry come out and walked directly to his car, head hung low. Her heart ached as she watched him drive off; she always wanted him to come back for her, even Fifteen years later, but he never did. Maybe he wasn't the one for me after all…

'Madam Secretary! Madam Secretary!' A voice behind her called, she turned and looked confused as a man running began to approach her. Her DS agents stopped him getting too close to her

'It's ok, I just wanted to give you this, I am the owner of the cafe, this was on the floor. It's got your name on it' He panted as he handed a envelope to Elizabeths DS agents she smiled

'Thank you, and thanks for letting me use the cafe' she reasoned before leaving to get into her motorcade. Her DS agent handed the envelope through to the back

'All seems to be ok Ma'am' Elizabeth looked up and took the letter from him, she ran the envelope through her fingers and caressed the writing with her thumb.

'Henry' she gasped as the reality hit her; this was the letter from Henry she always wanted, a letter from his time in the marines. Without thinking she flipped it over and broke the seal, desperate to find out what it said. She removed the old withered paper from the envelope and stopped; she stared down at the folded letter; was this intended for me? He didn't give it to me, can I read this? Should I read this…? Elizabeth sat consumed by her thoughts, she rubbed her temples as she sighed heavily placing the letter back and putting it into her handbag.

Darkness can add calmness into life, but only if your familiar with it, if its new and unknown it can add a sense of confusion and fear, darkness has the ability to obliterate light, to engulf your known surroundings and turn them all dark; making them appear warped. The dark of the night can be a great time for things to hide, and sometimes it best for things to stay hidden in the depths of the blackness, just like Henry's letter.