DS#8 Uninvited Epilogue
By Carol M.
Note: Well we've reached the end of the road for this story. There will be more Devil's Silver stories in the future if you want them. I had a wonderful time writing this one and I hope you enjoyed reading it as well. Thanks for all the feedback, everyone! Enjoy the last part!
A week later
Arnaud sat on the deck of his newly purchased Mexican hacienda enjoying the sunset and smoking a cigarette. He had forgotten how much he missed color. Every free moment he spent was outside on the deck, admiring the colors of the sky at various times during the day.
He sighed happily and took a drag of his cigarette. Elizabeth had reversed his permanent invisibility with a few snips and tucks. They both could not get over how easy the solution had been. Easy and painless. The only reminder Arnaud had of the surgery that had taken place less then 3 days earlier was his shaved head. But his hair would grow back soon enough. Small price to pay to be visible again.
Everything was grand. He was out of jail, he was visible and he had customers lining up to buy the gland. All he needed to do now was to get his brother out of jail, but that was a problem for another day.
He absently thought of Jason Sullivan and a slice of regret tore through him. He really had screwed the man over. If Sullivan ever got out of his little drug-induced slumber, Arnaud was probably one of the first people he would go after. Right after Darien Fawkes that is.
He shook all of these thoughts out of his mind and took another drag of his cigarette. He felt arms wrapping around him from the back.
"Arnie," whispered Elizabeth into his ear. "It's so good to be able to feel the real you."
Arnaud nuzzled against her. "You too, my darling. Is everything set?"
Elizabeth kissed Arnaud's neck and nodded. "Yes, Mr. Winters will be here in an hour to discuss the purchase of a gland."
Arnaud smiled and turned his head to look at her. "Perfect," he said as he kissed her on the lips.
Claire opened the door to her and Darien's apartment eagerly, wanting to see how Darien was doing. He had been released from the hospital the day before and she was expecting to find him watching Wheel of Fortune in a drug-induced haze.
When she got through the door and heard no noise, she frowned in confusion. Then she looked at the bed and saw a large lump under the covers. She quickly ran over to the bed and found Darien curled up in a ball in his pajamas. His arm was tucked protectively around his ribs and his forehead was creased in discomfort.
Claire shook him gently. "Darien," she whispered.
"Hmmmm," murmured Darien.
Claire shook him again. "Darien," she said a little louder.
Darien slowly opened his eyes and looked up at her. "Hey," he said softly.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" she asked with concern as she pulled down the covers and started doing a cursory exam of his body.
"My ribs hurt," he moaned.
She looked next to the bed and saw that the painkillers she had left him that morning had not been taken. "Why didn't you take your pain pills?" she asked.
"I don't like the way they make me feel. All dizzy and out of it," he said.
Claire frowned. "Darien, you need to take your medicine, at least for the next few days."
Darien laughed slightly. "Yes mother."
Claire left him for a moment and returned with a glass of water. She picked up the pills and put them in his mouth. Then she supported his neck while he swallowed down the pills with water. He lay back down against the bed with a look of sadness on his face.
"What's wrong?" asked Claire with concern.
Darien shook his head. "It's nothing."
"Come on, spill it," urged Claire.
Darien took a deep breath. "I don't know… I just keep thinking about Jeremy. About what he did, what he said. I just, I just can't completely fault him for everything he did, you know. To him, I was Arnaud, and he was just trying to get revenge for his brother. That pretty much makes him just like me," he said sadly.
Claire put her hand under his chin and pushed his head up so he was looking at her. "No, it doesn't, Darien. You never killed Arnaud. You may have tried, but you never went through with it. You know deep down in your heart that that's not what Kevin would have wanted. You wouldn't hurt a fly Darien, not even Arnaud."
Darien nodded. "I guess," he said. He looked away for a second and then looked back at her. "I guess we're back at square one, huh. Arnaud's out there, free and selling glands, and Chrysalis is back with a vengeance, literally."
Claire smiled gently. "I wouldn't say we're exactly back at square one. We've got a perfect little person to look forward to meeting in a few months."
Darien eyes started to sparkle. "Oh yeah, that," he said teasingly as he reached out a hand and touched Claire's stomach. "How's our little Fawkesy doing?"
"Good. Perfect, just like her daddy," she said, emphasizing her.
"He," retorted Darien, "will be absolutely incredible. With my thieving skills and your good looks, this kid is going to be something else. Hobbesy will be teaching the kid kung fu before he's out of diapers."
"And Alex will be showing her how to shoot before she's four," added Claire.
Darien took a deep breath. "I guess we just have to be thankful for what we have and worry about all the rest of the crap when it smacks us in the face, huh," he offered.
"I guess so," said Claire as she climbed into bed next to him.
"Oh, are we having a little cuddle party?" asked Darien.
"You bet your ass we are. As soon as those painkillers hit, I plan on taking advantage of you," she whispered in his ear.
"Promise?" he said.
"Oh yeah," said Claire as she turned Darien onto his side and spooned him from behind. She brought both of her arms around and hugged him as tight as she dared. Then she moved one hand under his pajamas and let it rest on his stomach, feeling the motion of his breathing. She heard the sound of snoring several seconds later.
She let the reassuring sound and motion send her into a comfortable sleep that was filled with images of Darien playing with a little girl. Their little girl.
That's All Folks
