Chapter Sixteen

Soon after the fire was extinguished and Hunter and his men were in jail, the faire council heard the news and decided to suspend the faire until the police investigation concluded. Although many of the players and guests who had come from miles around to attend had complained about the sudden closing they all eventually understood the circumstances. Patricia Hawkley was immediately removed from the council once it was found out that she had kept certain issues from the others on the council including the fact that she had cheated the year before with the royal family votes. Winston Hawkley arrived as well and took her home to deal with her in private. The town itself seemed to move on only hours after all the drama unfolded.

Hunter and his men were interrogated by Chief Durham and the Milford Point Police Department but none of them said a word except to ask for a lawyer. Statements were taken from each of the Hardys and the Benders along with Nancy and Parker throughout the night. The police had enough evidence from the statements alone to convict Hunter and his men. Carson also made sure that his friend at the Secret Service knew what was going on and he too would be arriving to take the men into federal custody.

It was nearly noon the next day when Frank stood outside the hotel looking at the now empty park. Tents were still visible and people milled around but no one was dressed Renaissance garb. Most of the people walking around were loading their cars to go home. He felt like the few short days he was there that everything that happened was all a blur, including the night before.

Frank looked down at his bandaged hand. He had received second degree burns from touching the hot door knob but the doctors at the hospital had deemed him capable of taking care of himself and sent him home before midnight. It might have also been because of the fact that Joe complained the entire time they were sitting in the emergency room waiting. That is until Vanessa told him knock it off in which he quickly shut his mouth.

Thinking about the past few days, Frank wanted nothing more than to forget everything that happened at the faire; forget that he embarrassed himself by putting the blame onto two people who were completely innocent; forget that both his father and Nancy almost lost their lives in a fire; forget that he probably ruined any chance he had with Nancy by sticking his foot in his mouth. What he wouldn't give to have a second chance but after what he saw the previous night, Frank felt that his hopes were gone.

When Nancy was escorted to the ambulance, Parker was right there with her. After Carson stepped away, Frank watched as the couple talked alone while the paramedics tended to Nancy and finally sharing a tender kiss. He turned away and went to be with his father, not witnessing what continued between Nancy and Parker.

After the hospital, he wasn't able to crawl into bed until after midnight and even then he had a hard time sleeping. His mind was rolling through everything and he was trying his best to think positively. Well, you're alive and so are your father and Nancy, he thought. What else could you ask for?

Sighing, Frank turned back into the hotel and was about to cross the lobby when his eyes fell upon a familiar face. It was one of the few people he dreaded to have to face but he knew it was inevitable in the end. He just wished it wasn't so soon but he made the decision to get it over with and headed in the direction of where Parker was.

He sat alone at a table in the dining room, a cup of coffee and a half-eaten sandwich sitting in front of him. He looked deep in thought making Frank wonder what the young man was thinking about and if he should disturb him.

Taking a deep breath, Frank walked the final few steps to the table where Parker sat and didn't even notice him as he approached. "Do you mind if I join you?" he asked cautiously.

Parker looked at him, blinking several times as if seeing Frank for the first time. Frank's confidence suddenly faltered when Parker didn't immediately respond. He was about to turn away when Parker finally said something.

"Wait, Frank," he replied softly. "I'm sorry. You just took me by surprise. Please, sit down."

Frank nodded then sat across from him. A waiter came by with a coffee carafe and a menu which he graciously accepted, his stomach rumbling loudly. The moment the waiter was gone, an awkward silence rose between the two men, neither one of them wanting to begin the inevitable conversation that was looming ahead. After a few agonizing minutes, Parker finally broke the peace, startling Frank.

"So…how's your hand?"

"It's okay," he shrugged raising his bandaged hand. "Throbs but it'll heal but more than likely I'll have a scar of some sort."

"Ouch," Parker cringed. "At least it was only your hand, right?"

"Yeah," Frank laughed. "It'll prove to be a difficult few weeks though since I write with it but I think I'll manage."

"How's your dad doing?"

"He's good…good." He rubbed the back of his neck before continuing. "How's Nancy?"

"Good," Parker nodded. "She's good. At least, um, I think she is. I haven't seen her yet today. I think they got in really late."

"Yeah, Joe and I left before midnight and they were all still there then," the young man stated. Frank was surprised to hear that Parker wasn't with Nancy all night and he wondered about it. "Mom and Dad didn't get back until early this morning so I assume that's when Mr. Drew and Nancy returned as well."

"Oh, right, right. They probably did leave at the same time," he nodded. Parker paused, picking at the food on his plate. "You're probably wondering why I wasn't with Nancy last night."

"Oh, no," Frank lied, shaking his head. "It…it's none of my business."

"Lying doesn't suit you, Frank," Parker mused. He sniffed and looked away. "We, um…had a talk last night, right before she left for the hospital. The paramedics were a little irritated and were adamant about her wearing that oxygen mask but you know Nancy. Something was on her mind at the time and she wanted to get it off her chest."

"What was?"

"I knew you wanted to know," he smirked. "She...she asked me to go back to the hotel and wait. I agreed that it wasn't necessary for me to be there considering that Mr. Drew was there too. I just can't seem to win though."

"I don't understand. What do you mean?"

"Nothing. It's nothing."

Frank had a feeling there was something more to what happened the night before but didn't push it and another awkward silence rose between them. When he was ready, Frank cleared his throat to speak but was interrupted by the waiter who returned with his lunch and placed the plate in front of him. He waited until the waiter was gone to speak his mind, his food and hunger forgotten for the moment.

"I'm sorry, Parker," he said genuinely.

"For what?"

"For just about everything, I guess," Frank laughed nervously. He bowed his head. "I treated you pretty badly yesterday and before. Hell, you weren't the only one but you seemed to get the brunt of my frustration and you sure didn't deserve it. No one did. I guess my jealousy and anger at my own insecurities got the better of me and it jeopardized our friendship. I wouldn't blame you if you were angry with me and wanted me to leave."

Parker nodded in acknowledgement the leaned back in his chair, his eyes boring into Frank. "Frank, if I wanted you to leave I wouldn't have offered you a seat at the table a few minutes ago. I honestly didn't expect to hear any of that from you. The jealousy and insecurities part, I mean."

"You…you didn't?"

"Of course not," he shrugged. "When we met months ago, you seemed like a take charge type of guy and I admired that. You are intelligent and know what needs to be done and how to do it. From what I've seen of your family, I understand where it comes from. But everyone has insecurities. I do. I keep meeting the wrong women, whether they are a complete disaster or someone I feel is right for me at the moment but turns out is not. Do you get what I mean?"

"I think I do," Frank said though he was still confused.

"Take Nancy for example. She is beautiful, smart, funny, and has a penchant for helping people," Parker described, "qualities that any guy would kill to find in a girl. Well, at least a normal guy."

"Now, I'm confused."

"Right," he nodded. Parker reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small box, placing it on the table in between them. Frank's eyes went wide, knowing what was inside. "Go ahead. Open it."

Frank obliged and his mouth fell open when he saw the large blue diamond ring nestled inside. There were no words to speak so he just stared.

"I bought it for Nancy," Parker announced. Frank looked up in alarm, his heart pounding. "Before everything happened, I thought I knew what I wanted. Nancy and I were getting close but pressure was mounting from my mother. She wanted me to not only run for office here in town but to also get married and quickly. So it played with my heart, toying with the idea of being married to someone like Nancy. It made me think that I was ready to take a step toward commitment with her.

"After my mother made that announcement during the opening ceremonies, I realized my mistake," he continued. "Nancy wasn't ready and her reaction showed me that. To be honest, I don't think I'm ready either."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because you were honest with me and I feel that any man deserves a second chance even if he was being a royal douche." Frank stared at him and Parker laughed. "I have this sneaking suspicion that you like her a lot."

"I…I'm not sure," Frank shrugged.

He laughed again. "Keep telling yourself that. I told you. Lying doesn't suit you. I noticed it back at the party in June but then again I think we were both falling over ourselves to get her attention."

Frank laughed finally giving in. "Somehow I got the feeling Nancy was enjoying the attention no matter how hard she tried to ignore it."

"I think you're right." Parker paused, looking at him seriously. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Would you?"

He thought about it for a moment. "I get what you're saying and I probably wouldn't either."

"I thought I was letting Nancy make her own decision," Frank admitted.

"By taking yourself out of the equation? Geez, Frank. I thought you were the smart one."

"I…I was never good at talking to girls or expressing feelings like that before."

Parker blinked the burst out laughing. A few of the other patrons gave them a look of contempt but went about their business seconds later. He stopped the moment he saw the defeated look on Frank's face. "Oh, you're being serious. Wow. Really didn't expect that. After getting to know you and Joe, I would have thought you were like him since he's so…"

"Easy around girls?"

"Not exactly the words I would have chosen but yeah." Parker leaned forward so that only Frank could hear him. "So, what are you going to do about it?"

"About what?" Frank said in a low voice, giving him a blank look.

"About Nancy, you goof," he laughed. "What are you going to do now?"

"Nothing," the young man shook his head. "She already made her decision. I saw her last night with you and you have this ring so I assumed…"

"You assumed we were together. Did you hear what I said earlier?"

"What? About the ring? You said you weren't ready yet and neither is Nancy. I just thought that you were going to take it slower and work your way towards that." Frank tilted his head looking at Parker and the man smiled. "Wait…you're not together?"

"Nancy and I went our separate ways last night," Parker revealed. "She doesn't even know about this ring."

Frank was shocked. "I…I'm so sorry, Parker."

"Don't be. I'm not." The young man shrugged. "It was a mutual agreement but we're still good friends."

"Then why were staring into space earlier?"

"Oh, that. I was but I wasn't thinking about her," Parker smirked raising an eyebrow. Frank looked even more confused. "Well, maybe a little bit but I have a lot to think about, Frank. You just caught when I was so deep in thought that I didn't realize who was around me."

"So you and Nancy are…"

"Done," he nodded. "And somehow, I'm not really upset about it and neither is Nancy. But Mother...I think she'll be more upset than we are. Still, I want to let her down when the time is right. She's not really happy at the moment and neither is Dad. I wouldn't want to be around them right now but I know I have to get back to the house pretty soon to referee." Parker sighed and stared around the restaurant before returning his gaze to Frank who was still speechless.

"I was always taught to forgive and forget, Frank. Something my mother never learned or could ever comprehend which is probably why I didn't learn it from her. Advantages of being raised by a good nanny." Parker rose from his seat and was about to leave when he turned back toward him. "You are blessed, Frank. You have a family who loves and supports you no matter what you do. You have more potential than you give yourself credit for and I see you doing so much for people in the future. When I say that you are a better person than me, I mean it in every way. Don't take any of that for granted and certainly don't take a second chance for granted if you catch my meaning."

He turned away but Frank stopped him. "Wait." Frank rose from his seat, grabbing the ring box. "What about the ring?"

"I don't need it," he said vaguely. "I can't return it and it was meant to be for someone very specific. Not just any girl. One whose heart truly belongs to someone and whose eyes are bluer than the sky and deeper than any ocean. I wasn't meant to give it to her. Someone else was. But you keep it, Frank. Consider it a part of your payment and if you don't want it, do what you will with it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Parker nodded. "But do me a favor."

"What's that?"

"When you do finally decide to follow your heart, treat her right…or I may have to come after you." Parker gave him a sly smile then held out his hand. The two men shook hands then Parker pulled Frank into a hearty hug, thanking him for everything. To the eyes of those around them, the two seemed like long lost friends rekindling their friendship but they both knew that theirs would last for quite some time.

Author's Note:

I told you this one would come out fast! I only tweaked it a little since I wrote it a few days ago but it still remained the way I wanted it to be. It is shorter than normal but still important. Although this sounded like it should have been the last chapter, I wanted it here because chronologically it's where it should be. Plus I felt that Parker had run his course for this story. He does return though but not in the next story, which is titled The Ghosts of Wyvern Manor. Gets your brain moving as to what's coming huh? I'm really looking forward to writing that one as I always love a good ghost story and no, it's not going to be like a Scooby Doo mystery. There will be mentions of the other stories but it will mostly be its own entity within this universe. Anyway, thank you so much for reading the previous chapter and another special thanks to all my readers who left a review for it! The support has been amazing for this story especially considering that I had several moments of my own insecurity as to how you might take the direction I moved the story towards. I hope that you enjoyed the chapter and if you will, please leave a review to let me know you were here! Have a great weekend and until next time, God bless. Be well, my friends!