III

The Love of My Life

The neighborhood still looked the same as it always had; Kay felt like he'd only been away for a few hours as he winded his way up through town, past the library, above the hill overlooking Dill's Bait Shop and Gardener's Hobby Lounge, onto the street that led up to where he had spent the better part of four years with a woman whom he'd given up thirty five year's memory for. The patched pavement covered in a thin layer of sand brought back memories he'd tried hard to forget in the lonely hours of twilight for the past three years. He'd walked home from work this way every day, smelling the thick ocean air, enjoying the way the wind ruffled through his hair, and anticipating an evening with the only woman he could ever truly feel at home with.

Of course, those had been simpler days, he thought to himself. Memories could be a burdensome thing, especially his memories. As he fingered the steering wheel while trying to avoid looking at the lighthouse which held the memory of his first kiss with lovely Elizabeth, he again wondered what exactly was going to happen once he and she were face to face once again.

But things had changed since the last time they were face to face, that was for sure. He wondered if he would even be the same man to her or if she would perceive the difference. He snorted at this thought. Elizabeth was no fool. She would want the full story, and he would certainly give it to her. She deserved that much. Besides, whatever she said to him couldn't hurt him any more than what she had already said during the divorce.

Another painful memory, he thought as he pulled to the side of the road to contemplate his entry strategy. After all, he couldn't just barge in after disappearing for four years from her life. "Three years," he corrected himself under his breath, remembering the final year after the separation before Jay's return. As the postmaster general of a small Massachusetts sea town, it was damn near impossible to avoid anyone, let alone your ex-wife. "Not ex-wife yet, divorce isn't final yet…" he again stammered to himself, running his fingers nervously over his lips. It hadn't been an altogether pleasant separation, but on the whole Kay couldn't blame her. "Hell, I would have divorced me too!" he cried out loud, smacking the dashboard for effect. Slow down, buddy. Take a deep breath. In. Out. He exhaled abruptly. This may be harder than originally planned. 

Kay took another deep breath and eased the car into a steady ascent of the final hill before reaching Elizabeth's house – their house. His eyes glazed as it loomed on the horizon, seeming to taunt him with memories of warm summer days, laying in the hammock, dancing on the back porch, and everything that had made those four short years the best of his life. The car slowed to a stop and Kay adjusted his tie in the mirror and smoothed back his hair. It was show time.

The front porch was a different color, he noticed as he climbed the sturdy wooden steps up to the door. The front door was open, with only a screen door to protect against mosquitoes and no-see-ums, which were thick this time of the year. He rapped the door frame briskly, and smoothed out his suit self-consciously. He heard footsteps somewhere within the house. Bare feet on wood floors. God, he missed those summer days.

The lady with the beautiful black hair who inhabited his memory stopped dead at the entry hallway once she caught sight of him. No, she thought to herself. It couldn't be…

"Elizabeth, I need to talk to you, dear," Kay said as ambiguously as he could, arms folded in front of him.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, not moving an inch. "You've got a lot of nerve, Kevin, coming back here like this – "

"Look, we don't have a lot of time," Kay said impatiently. "Can I come in?"

"Where have you been?" Elizabeth said, not missing a beat. "Three years ago you just walk out on your job, no one knows where you went. I was – "

"Worried sick?"

"No. Mad as hell. Kevin, when are you going to get around to signing those divorce papers, hm?"

"All in good time, darling, now come with me," he said, entering and taking Elizabeth by the arm. She tore away from him. "Now look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. You're in danger, and we've got to get you out of here."

"The only thing I'm in danger of is breaking your nose, buster. Who do you think you are, anyway?"

"Agent Kay, INS Division Six." Elizabeth shot him a bewildered expression. Kay smiled. "Come on Lizzy, I'll explain in the car."

"You're crazy," Elizabeth said, backing away towards the phone. "I'm calling the cops – "

"Won't do any good," Kay said reasonably, straitening his cufflinks. "Elizabeth, I'm not here to hurt you. You know me well enough to know I wouldn't do that."

"No, I don't. I don't know you at all. That's why we got divorced, dearest, don't you remember?" she said in a cynical voice as she picked up the phone. A stormy look surfaced on Kay's face that stopped Elizabeth dead in her tracks, and she didn't fight back as he placed the phone back on the receiver. Kay looked at her seriously for a moment before saying in dark voice,

"I told you that I won't hurt you, and I mean it. I told you I'd explain everything to you, and I mean it. But I need you to come with me right now. You're in trouble, and we're running out of time. Understand?"

Elizabeth was silent for a moment, studying his face carefully. She took a deep breath and said softly in a razor sharp voice, "You disappear for three years. No one knows where you are. No one knows how to contact you. Then you showed up in my home two minutes ago, and you expect me to come with you." 

"Elizabeth, this isn't about you and I. This is about something much bigger, and we just happen to be a part of it, that's all. Will you come with me peacefully?"

She smiled. "Not on your life, bud."

A quick hook to the right left Kay's nose considerably bloodier than before as Elizabeth tore out the back door. Kay flew out after her and tackled her to the ground. She struggled beneath him but was no match for his weight. "Always was better at pinning you, even when we were kids, right dear?" he said as he took a needle out of his jacket pocket. She began to scream at the top of her lungs. Kay cupped his hand over her mouth and sighed painfully. He hated this. The needle plunged in near the base of her neck and started working almost immediately. Elizabeth started to go limp as her vision clouded and became black, but she continued to struggle for as long as her consciousness would let her. Finally, the drugs won out and Kay stood over her, breathing heavily and looking around to see if anyone had seen them. When he was satisfied that they were alone, he hoisted her up over his shoulder and carried her back to the car, laying her down gently in the backseat.

Kay looked in the mirror to find his nose bloody and swollen. He dabbed at it daintily with a Kleenex, but it was too painful to do much more than that. He happened a glance back up at the house and an overwhelming sense of sadness suddenly came over him. Is this how it ended? A house once full of such life and love was now the scene of a forceful kidnapping, of all things? And not just a forceful kidnapping: a forceful kidnapping by a man who used to love and cherish everything that went on in this house? A forceful kidnapping where one lover kidnapped the other? Kay felt hot tears stinging at his eyes for the first time in years but wiped them away; he would not let heartbroken tears fall on the suit that dictated emotional stoicism. He cursed himself for getting affected by this situation; he had done hundreds of kidnappings just like this one. In fact, he thought, as kidnappings go, this was one of the milder ones. Why was this one so different? A quick glimpse to the lady laying unconscious in the backseat answered his question. "Because its Elizabeth." He sighed.

"Because it's the goddamn love of my life."