Couples
Chapter 12
As Rick and Alexis finish setting the table, Martha sweeps in with Craig close behind her. "Darlings, oh, you're almost finished. Is there anything I can do?"
Rick looks up, smiling. "You can get ready to greet the guests, Mother. Some of them haven't met Craig. And Kate isn't home yet. You can make the introductions and get our visitors started on the hors d'oeuvres. I just pulled them out of the oven."
Martha thrusts a hand through the air. "Of course, of course. We want everyone to feel welcome. I'll take care of it. Where is Katherine?"
"Tying up some loose ends to trap a killer. She should be home any minute." Rick straightens a place setting. "I hope," he mutters under his breath.
"Beckett, are you out of your mind?" Montgomery demands. "Where am I supposed to get the people to pull off that operation? It's not like I can call in O.S.U. Snipers aren't going to help you if you're shut up in some room with this woman and her needles."
"I don't want snipers, Sir, Kate argues. "I'll wear a com. A single unit can hear me and track me. And if I get into trouble, I have some interesting spots to hide a weapon. I'm not entirely convinced that the suspect knows she's doing anything wrong. If she wanted to go around killing people, she didn't pick a very efficient way of doing it. Ryan and Esposito, plus a marked unit for backup, should be more than enough to bring her in. And C.S.U. can check out the drug she's offering me to see if it's what killed Matteo Brunner."
Montgomery presses his palm over what's left of his hair. "Easy takedown, huh, Beckett? All right, but you watch yourself. Anything goes wrong; you get your ass clear. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Sir."
Montgomery checks his watch. "Damn! The wife wanted me to meet her at your place in ten minutes for Alexis's party. After all the work that girl did for our family, Evelyn will kill me if I'm late."
"I should be there already," Kate realizes. "Give you a lift?"
"Yeah, sure," Montgomery agrees. "Why not?"
Rising from his seat at the table, Rick raises a crystal flute of sparkling cider. "Treasured friends and family, we're here to celebrate an important passage in Alexis's life. In many ways, she's leaped further into adulthood than some with many more years ever will. At an age when many can barely choose which movie to see, she chose a career in which, with Dana, she's already a star. She's done more for a multitude she's never met than most of us will in a lifetime. As a father, I couldn't be prouder. To Alexis and her next step into the future."
Dana squeezes Alexis's hand as the dinner guests echo Rick's toast. Red suffuses her face as her boyfriend nods his encouragement. Giving herself a moment, the near-graduate takes a sip from her water glass. "I want to thank everyone for coming. The talent and accomplishment at this table blow me away. Holly's music would make an angel chorus jealous, and Mark keeps Imagination Patch as the special place Dad means it to be." She turns to her music teacher and her husband. "Your child is going to be amazing!
"Dr. Parish and Dr. Faulkner reveal the secrets death tries its hardest to hide," Alexis continues. "The Montgomerys have built a life of service wrapped in love. Gram and Mr. Daniels bring audiences to joy and tears. Mr. Beckett slays corporate dragons. Kate takes the deadliest of killers off the street, with Dad at her side, to chronicle their adventures forever.
"And what can I say about the Wygards? Dana's passion for seeking the truth revealed in the lab is as great as my own, maybe greater. His parents Bart and Ginny, have supported every move he's made separately and the ones we've made together. And Dr. Gilly has helped us both every step of the way. I'm incredibly honored by the presence of every one of you, but now we should do what we're all waiting to do – eat. I hope you enjoy the meal as much as I enjoy having you all here."
"You heard her," Rick acknowledges. "Let's dig in."
Jack stares up at the windows of the loft. There's obviously a party going on. That's hardly remarkable, but there have been a lot fewer of them since Lily was born. He can guess the reason. Richard and Kate were exhausted, keeping up with work and a new baby.
His older granddaughter graduates from high school tomorrow at the top of her class. He'd never doubted that she would. Alexis has the singleness of purpose that he's given to his work and Richard's given to his writing. She's already a force to be reckoned with, and that will only grow with time.
Martha is clearly still enjoying being on the arm of Craig Daniels. Jack feels a twinge seeing them together, as he did tonight, but he's happy for her. He caught her performance in The Music Man and laughed out loud, something he doesn't often do. She may be older, but her theatrical skills are undiminished. If anything, they've grown.
From the glances he's caught of Lily when she's been out with Rick and occasionally Kate, Jack's baby granddaughter is growing like a weed. Given her genetics, she'll probably turn out to be tall and gorgeous. He might even live to see that, but the odds are against it. He's already way past the expected lifespan for someone in his business. But he'll take what he can get. He's due for another assignment, but with any luck, he may get a chance to look in on Alexis's graduation before he goes.
Lyall gazes around the confines of her infusion room. It's small, but that only makes it easier to keep clean. The walls are painted a scrubbable semi-gloss white. She carefully bleaches the hard surfaces. Her gloves are sterile medical-grade, and she always wears a surgical mask.
She wishes that her brother could obtain more of the bio-similar from the lab in Scotland, but he only had access to two samples. They were identified by code numbers, not the drug's name, but only one type of medication was in production at the facility. They both had to be the right product. According to her brother, it was prescribed for types of arthritis, skin conditions, and digestive problems – all maladies plaguing her customers. Not many of them were willing to come up with the $500 she needed or trust anyone but a doctor or nurse to administer the medication.
In fact, Kate Houghton will only be the fifth one Lyall's helped, and the first three were from the other batch of the medicine. They came to the store to thank her and tell her they were doing well. She hasn't heard from Matteo Brunner, but it hasn't been that long. Maybe she'll see him next week.
She checks the refrigerator. Her brother had so much trouble getting the medicine to the U.S. because it had to be kept cold. But he was able to send a cooler on a private plane his boss used for a business trip, and she picked it up at the other end. The medicine seemed to be fine. The indicator tabs on the two lots' labels were slightly different hues, but she didn't know why that should make a difference. Anyway, Matteo desperately needed the medicine. So does Kate. Lyall would give it away if she could, but with maintaining this room, she's barely breaking even. Compared to the way the pharmaceutical companies gouge, $500 isn't too high, is it? Wholesome Sustenance doesn't pay much more than minimum wage, and she needs to eat too.