~Disclaimer: I own none of them, I'm just playing with them, and I'll be returning them when I get through. I also stake no claim to any episodes that I use for the Flashbacks. They belong to the writers and FFC. I do however own Alex Wallace, his father and his secretary Connie.~
*From now on, I'm going to put (~) around dreams.
*And I'd like to ask Jen NOT to threaten me again. I'll get them up when I get them up
~If you haven't found anything worth dying for, then you have never truly lived.~ Unknown
The phone was passed almost immediately. 'I guess I said the secret words.' She joked to herself. She could hear Alex's breathing before he even said a word. Alex on the otehr hand was debating whether or not the girl he was talking to would in fact BE Shelby. There were at least three other girls in the Patty's building who knew his number and that he was trying to locate Shelby. Three or more that knew that Slate hung on the same circut as Patty. It coulod literally be anyone. "How do I know you're the real Slate Harding?" He asked quickly. "There were at least four other girls in the building who called themselves Slate when it was convient for them."
Shelby glanced around the spotless kitchen. Juliet had done her job cleaning well. "I'm the only one who wouldn't sleep with you." She said seriously. She knew she would have to come up with something better than that, she had to think of things that only Patty and Alex knew. Then it hit her. "Eight forty-nine p.m." She said quickly, making sure no one was listening to her conversation. The numbers didn't click in Alex's mind. "Shelby Merrick was taken into custody and returned to her mother's care at eight forty-nine. On a Wednesday. She went without a fight. Her only request was a good-bye kiss from the man that she thought knew her best." She waited for all the information to sink in. "No tounge." Alex laughed nervously on the other end. "Do you need any more?"
"Not really, Slate," Alex laid the files out on his bed. "I think you are who you say you are. No one else on Earth could tell me that Slate's last request was a kiss from her best friends supplier." To tell the truth, Alex vaguely remembered the memory himself. She had been so strong during that time. "I do however have one more question to insure that you are who you say you are..." He lloked over one of his pictures of the two of them. "What was the only noticably mark on Patty's body when she died? What did the coroner have to show her parents when they came to ID the body?"
Shelby actually had to think about his question. "Patty had TWO marks when they found her body." She walked herself through the night she found her firend. "The scar on her back from your cigarette on my birthday. She had gotten thrashed and started to try to trash the apartment, but you stopped her and she ran into the ash tray on her way down to the floor.....Then there was the K that Patty had carved into her ankle her first few weeks on the streets. It stood for two things. One: she wasn't brave enough for a tatoo, and the K was for her middle name, Kathrine. Two: Her mother's name was Kathrine. She kicked Patty out of the house when she was twelve to survive on her own. Patty never forgot that." She called up a picture of Patty in her mind and something hit her. "But your forgetting what you of all people should know. Patty was never ID'd. She was creamated as Jane Doe." Her heart was pounding. She'd passed the test.
There was a long pause. It was if he didn't know what to say to her. He finally had what he wanted, but it wasn't enough. He needed more, but of what he didn't know. "Shelby?" He asked in disbelief. He wasn't even sure that he said it. Connie was lounging on the couch watching him intently. She didn't know what reaction to expect, but she was sure this wasn't it. "Where are you?"
"Stupid question seeing as though you're the one who tried to contact me." Something hard hit her arm, and she watched her bottle of medication fal onto the floor. There waas a note attached from David that read: TAKE THREE OF ME! Shelby laughed as she took three pills out and swallowed them with a few sips of the tea the Juliet had set on the counter for her. "I'm at this great school the assistant DA found for me. It puts me out in the wilderness with all sorts of other weirdo's and it forces me to talk about my problems. Half the time I feel like I'm sitting in Dective Jop's interrigation room." She looked over to Dasiy, who was watching her intently. "Other than that I'm perfectly fine. Haven't tried to kill myself in AT LEAST twenty-four hours." Neither one knew whether or not she was joking. Shelby never tried to look at the bright side of things, so that was the only conclusion.
"Can you get visitors?"
Shelby had to hold onto the counter to keep the room from spinning. "You want to come visit me?" She remembered his promise to Patty. 'Maybe he's trying to make good on his promises.' A small voice told her in the back of her brain. "You'd actually come up here, to the middle of nowhere in weather that doesn't even resemble the stuff you're used to in Santa Monica, to visit a girl you haven't seen in what three years? And they call me twisted."
'There's my girl.' He thought nodding his head. 'She never see'd things at face value. There always has to be some sort of hidden agenda.' "Yeah, well an asociate of my dad's has a kid up there, and he wanted to come visit. My father of course wants him to be a part of the meetings that are going to be held that week. So, I opted to come with him." He hadn't yet told her that it was her boyfriend's father, or even the fact that he was aware of her boyfriend. Martin had asked for company at breakfast. He knew a few good bed and breakfasts up there that they could stay in. "That is if you want me to come up"
"Sure."
*From now on, I'm going to put (~) around dreams.
*And I'd like to ask Jen NOT to threaten me again. I'll get them up when I get them up
~If you haven't found anything worth dying for, then you have never truly lived.~ Unknown
The phone was passed almost immediately. 'I guess I said the secret words.' She joked to herself. She could hear Alex's breathing before he even said a word. Alex on the otehr hand was debating whether or not the girl he was talking to would in fact BE Shelby. There were at least three other girls in the Patty's building who knew his number and that he was trying to locate Shelby. Three or more that knew that Slate hung on the same circut as Patty. It coulod literally be anyone. "How do I know you're the real Slate Harding?" He asked quickly. "There were at least four other girls in the building who called themselves Slate when it was convient for them."
Shelby glanced around the spotless kitchen. Juliet had done her job cleaning well. "I'm the only one who wouldn't sleep with you." She said seriously. She knew she would have to come up with something better than that, she had to think of things that only Patty and Alex knew. Then it hit her. "Eight forty-nine p.m." She said quickly, making sure no one was listening to her conversation. The numbers didn't click in Alex's mind. "Shelby Merrick was taken into custody and returned to her mother's care at eight forty-nine. On a Wednesday. She went without a fight. Her only request was a good-bye kiss from the man that she thought knew her best." She waited for all the information to sink in. "No tounge." Alex laughed nervously on the other end. "Do you need any more?"
"Not really, Slate," Alex laid the files out on his bed. "I think you are who you say you are. No one else on Earth could tell me that Slate's last request was a kiss from her best friends supplier." To tell the truth, Alex vaguely remembered the memory himself. She had been so strong during that time. "I do however have one more question to insure that you are who you say you are..." He lloked over one of his pictures of the two of them. "What was the only noticably mark on Patty's body when she died? What did the coroner have to show her parents when they came to ID the body?"
Shelby actually had to think about his question. "Patty had TWO marks when they found her body." She walked herself through the night she found her firend. "The scar on her back from your cigarette on my birthday. She had gotten thrashed and started to try to trash the apartment, but you stopped her and she ran into the ash tray on her way down to the floor.....Then there was the K that Patty had carved into her ankle her first few weeks on the streets. It stood for two things. One: she wasn't brave enough for a tatoo, and the K was for her middle name, Kathrine. Two: Her mother's name was Kathrine. She kicked Patty out of the house when she was twelve to survive on her own. Patty never forgot that." She called up a picture of Patty in her mind and something hit her. "But your forgetting what you of all people should know. Patty was never ID'd. She was creamated as Jane Doe." Her heart was pounding. She'd passed the test.
There was a long pause. It was if he didn't know what to say to her. He finally had what he wanted, but it wasn't enough. He needed more, but of what he didn't know. "Shelby?" He asked in disbelief. He wasn't even sure that he said it. Connie was lounging on the couch watching him intently. She didn't know what reaction to expect, but she was sure this wasn't it. "Where are you?"
"Stupid question seeing as though you're the one who tried to contact me." Something hard hit her arm, and she watched her bottle of medication fal onto the floor. There waas a note attached from David that read: TAKE THREE OF ME! Shelby laughed as she took three pills out and swallowed them with a few sips of the tea the Juliet had set on the counter for her. "I'm at this great school the assistant DA found for me. It puts me out in the wilderness with all sorts of other weirdo's and it forces me to talk about my problems. Half the time I feel like I'm sitting in Dective Jop's interrigation room." She looked over to Dasiy, who was watching her intently. "Other than that I'm perfectly fine. Haven't tried to kill myself in AT LEAST twenty-four hours." Neither one knew whether or not she was joking. Shelby never tried to look at the bright side of things, so that was the only conclusion.
"Can you get visitors?"
Shelby had to hold onto the counter to keep the room from spinning. "You want to come visit me?" She remembered his promise to Patty. 'Maybe he's trying to make good on his promises.' A small voice told her in the back of her brain. "You'd actually come up here, to the middle of nowhere in weather that doesn't even resemble the stuff you're used to in Santa Monica, to visit a girl you haven't seen in what three years? And they call me twisted."
'There's my girl.' He thought nodding his head. 'She never see'd things at face value. There always has to be some sort of hidden agenda.' "Yeah, well an asociate of my dad's has a kid up there, and he wanted to come visit. My father of course wants him to be a part of the meetings that are going to be held that week. So, I opted to come with him." He hadn't yet told her that it was her boyfriend's father, or even the fact that he was aware of her boyfriend. Martin had asked for company at breakfast. He knew a few good bed and breakfasts up there that they could stay in. "That is if you want me to come up"
"Sure."