This is a bit shorter than I anticipated but I promised to get it up this
afternoon. I'm glad you all enjoyed the last chapter. I think this one is
pretty cute too. The concert last night was wonderful. It was a really
small venue and Daniel is a great performer. Okay, more soon!
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~* Michael walked in the door Tuesday evening and announced, "We're going away!"
Sydney sat up on the couch where she had been resting to get a better look, trying to decide if he was kidding or not. "Really? Where to?" He seemed serious.
"A lakeside cabin in the mountains. It's about three hours from here."
"Any particular time for this excursion?" Sydney asked, her voice tinged with amusement.
"We could leave tonight, but it would be too late by the time we got there. I was thinking first thing tomorrow."
"Really?" she was beginning to get excited about the idea. They had only been away once since their honeymoon. Her constraints at school and his projects hadn't allowed them time out of the city. "How did you work this out? What about your project?"
"We finished up the bulk of the work this afternoon and the junior analysts have full instructions on what needs to be done to wrap it up in the next few days. As to the cabin itself, I saw Dr. White today for my Med-Services work up and we got to talking about you. He mentioned that now would be a good time for a little vacation, since you're almost out of the first trimester and the discomfort of the later months is still a ways off. So I checked around for a well located safe house and found this place." Michael pulled a computer printout from his jacket pocket. "It's ours till Sunday."
Sydney liked the little wood cabin with a porch right against a lake. "Well, Boyscout, I guess you've got it all figured out. But how did you get personal use of agency property approved?"
"Easy, I mentioned it to your dad."
"Ahhh." This was the new side of Jack that Sydney was enjoying discovering. "Well, since he's being so helpful, maybe he can water my plants a few times while we're gone. I'd like my first attempt at a garden to be some modicum of a success."
"Why don't you call him while I make a list to go grocery shopping?" Michael helped her up from the couch so that she could get the phone and he pulled the notepad from its drawer and began taking stock of the cupboards. He had just finished pulling a box of saltines and a few cans of soup out when Sydney finished with Jack.
"Dad says he'll come by to check on the house and water the plants after work each day we're gone. He's really glad that we can get this time away, and I am too. Thank you." She punctuated her statement of appreciation with a deep kiss.
"Syd," Michael groaned as he pulled away. "If we don't go shop and get packed, we'll never get out of here by morning."
"Okay," she reluctantly agreed. "Besides, there'll be plenty of time for that when were sequestered away in the mountains. I'll just grab my purse and then we can head for groceries." She headed down the hall, calling over her shoulder "make sure you have ice cream on that list. Your baby wants mocha almond fudge."
Michael chuckled as he added it to the list and grabbed the car keys. "Yes dear."
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Alek searched through the database, trying to find the CIA safe house meeting the description he had overheard Sydney and Vaughn discussing. Finally, a cabin on a lake outside Carmel came up that met the specs. He put in a call to his operative, requesting the gear and supplies he would need for five days out of the city and began a second search for places where he could stay nearby. He was in the process of booking a room at a small inn across the lake when his phone chirped.
"Sark."
"Alek, how are things proceeding?" Irina's voice, steady and controlled, still had a purring quality to it as she spoke.
"Sydney and Vaughn will be leaving in the morning for a CIA safe house outside Carmel to spend five days on vacation. I have plans in place to follow and monitor them there."
"Good. As we discussed, Sloane is beginning to move assets and personnel back to Los Angeles and there is reason to believe he'll be making his presence known soon. If he doesn't act in the coming weeks, then in the next few months. I trust you, but you need to be careful. His plans and ambition will not harm my daughter or her child."
"Of course, Irina. That's understood."
"Alek, if we can get her through this, I'd like to find a way to explain to Sydney about our family. It's important to me that we honor your mother's memory and hopefully we can begin to heal some of this rift."
Alek's heart clenched at the mention of his mother. "We'll have to talk about that, Irina. With a new child, it could be overwhelming."
"The birth of a child creates the greatest need for family. I remember." Irina's voice was slightly wistful. "We'll talk later. Finalize your preparations to leave the city and I'll speak with you once you're in place tomorrow."
"Good." Alek replied before breaking the connection. It had been a long while since he had such a personal conversation with Irina, and he took a moment to steady his mind again before returning his attention to his computer. ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
"Come on, sleepy." Michael's gentle voice pulled Sydney back to consciousness. She opened her eyes and saw his face bent over hers. She smiled into his green eyes, shaded with sporty sunglasses, and stretched a little.
"Are we there?" She looked past where he stood in the car door and saw trees and water bathed in sunlight.
"Yep. You slept most of the way. You can finish your nap inside now if you want." He pulled her out of the car.
"Mmmm. Only if you join me," Sydney teased. "I've got energy now."
"I did do all that driving. I could use a 'rest'," Michael answered as they walked up to the porch. He pulled the key from his pocket and they let themselves into the small wood cabin. It was just two rooms, a small bathroom one the corner, a kitchen and living/dining room area to the right and a closet and large bed to the left.
"Maybe we should unpack first. I wouldn't want my ice cream to melt," Sydney said as they looked over the cabin. "And it's an awfully nice day to be spent inside." Michael wrapped his arms around her.
"Unpack. Rest. Then hiking or swimming or whatever else outside. That is my agenda." He began to nibble lightly at her neck.
"I like that schedule. Let me get the ice cream and we can go right to work on item two," she smiled as she moved back outside to the car.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
They lay in bed an hour later, Sydney's head against Michael's chest as he traced lazy circles down her arms.
"I think you're beginning to show." His fingers traveled lightly over her stomach and the slight bulge that had formed.
"I thought I noticed something yesterday, but I figured I was just overanxious and had imagined it."
"Nope. Our baby is definitely beginning to make their presence known. Aren't you?" he added, moving to speak directly to Sydney's stomach. "How's it going in there? Everything growing okay?"
Sydney smiled and ran a hand through his hair. "According to what I've read, your future hockey player is about the size of my thumb now."
"So tiny, but so loved," Michael murmured as he rested his head against her, staring up at her eyes.
"There will never be a shortage of love in this family. Our child will never doubt that they are loved and cared for.and worried about," Sydney added with a poke at the lines in his forehead. "Did you hear that?" she asked her stomach, "your Daddy will be worrying about every day for the rest of your life. Maybe you can get used to it early so by the time you're teenager, you won't be giving him gray hairs when you go to the movies or out on dates."
"Oh no," Michael corrected. "No dates for this one until they're thirty. At least." Sydney laughed and he felt the shaking where his head rested on her stomach, quickly followed by a grumble. "Hungry?"
"Yep. Let's break out some of that food we brought along. I think the baby wants grilled cheese."
"And tomato soup? Classic camping food." Michael said as he pulled on his pants and walked to the kitchen.
"Really?"
"Every time my parents would take Nenet and I camping, we'd have grilled cheese at least once. I think it was one of the only things my dad knew how to cook." He smiled at the recollection as Sydney walked over to get out the bread and cheese wearing only his t-shirt. "And here we are on our first family trip."
"It is, isn't it?" She smiled. "It's starting to get warm. How about a swim after lunch?"
"Sounds good," Michael replied as they continued to prepare the food. The meal passed with discussions of other vacation memories, both from childhood and their few travels together.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~* Michael walked in the door Tuesday evening and announced, "We're going away!"
Sydney sat up on the couch where she had been resting to get a better look, trying to decide if he was kidding or not. "Really? Where to?" He seemed serious.
"A lakeside cabin in the mountains. It's about three hours from here."
"Any particular time for this excursion?" Sydney asked, her voice tinged with amusement.
"We could leave tonight, but it would be too late by the time we got there. I was thinking first thing tomorrow."
"Really?" she was beginning to get excited about the idea. They had only been away once since their honeymoon. Her constraints at school and his projects hadn't allowed them time out of the city. "How did you work this out? What about your project?"
"We finished up the bulk of the work this afternoon and the junior analysts have full instructions on what needs to be done to wrap it up in the next few days. As to the cabin itself, I saw Dr. White today for my Med-Services work up and we got to talking about you. He mentioned that now would be a good time for a little vacation, since you're almost out of the first trimester and the discomfort of the later months is still a ways off. So I checked around for a well located safe house and found this place." Michael pulled a computer printout from his jacket pocket. "It's ours till Sunday."
Sydney liked the little wood cabin with a porch right against a lake. "Well, Boyscout, I guess you've got it all figured out. But how did you get personal use of agency property approved?"
"Easy, I mentioned it to your dad."
"Ahhh." This was the new side of Jack that Sydney was enjoying discovering. "Well, since he's being so helpful, maybe he can water my plants a few times while we're gone. I'd like my first attempt at a garden to be some modicum of a success."
"Why don't you call him while I make a list to go grocery shopping?" Michael helped her up from the couch so that she could get the phone and he pulled the notepad from its drawer and began taking stock of the cupboards. He had just finished pulling a box of saltines and a few cans of soup out when Sydney finished with Jack.
"Dad says he'll come by to check on the house and water the plants after work each day we're gone. He's really glad that we can get this time away, and I am too. Thank you." She punctuated her statement of appreciation with a deep kiss.
"Syd," Michael groaned as he pulled away. "If we don't go shop and get packed, we'll never get out of here by morning."
"Okay," she reluctantly agreed. "Besides, there'll be plenty of time for that when were sequestered away in the mountains. I'll just grab my purse and then we can head for groceries." She headed down the hall, calling over her shoulder "make sure you have ice cream on that list. Your baby wants mocha almond fudge."
Michael chuckled as he added it to the list and grabbed the car keys. "Yes dear."
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Alek searched through the database, trying to find the CIA safe house meeting the description he had overheard Sydney and Vaughn discussing. Finally, a cabin on a lake outside Carmel came up that met the specs. He put in a call to his operative, requesting the gear and supplies he would need for five days out of the city and began a second search for places where he could stay nearby. He was in the process of booking a room at a small inn across the lake when his phone chirped.
"Sark."
"Alek, how are things proceeding?" Irina's voice, steady and controlled, still had a purring quality to it as she spoke.
"Sydney and Vaughn will be leaving in the morning for a CIA safe house outside Carmel to spend five days on vacation. I have plans in place to follow and monitor them there."
"Good. As we discussed, Sloane is beginning to move assets and personnel back to Los Angeles and there is reason to believe he'll be making his presence known soon. If he doesn't act in the coming weeks, then in the next few months. I trust you, but you need to be careful. His plans and ambition will not harm my daughter or her child."
"Of course, Irina. That's understood."
"Alek, if we can get her through this, I'd like to find a way to explain to Sydney about our family. It's important to me that we honor your mother's memory and hopefully we can begin to heal some of this rift."
Alek's heart clenched at the mention of his mother. "We'll have to talk about that, Irina. With a new child, it could be overwhelming."
"The birth of a child creates the greatest need for family. I remember." Irina's voice was slightly wistful. "We'll talk later. Finalize your preparations to leave the city and I'll speak with you once you're in place tomorrow."
"Good." Alek replied before breaking the connection. It had been a long while since he had such a personal conversation with Irina, and he took a moment to steady his mind again before returning his attention to his computer. ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
"Come on, sleepy." Michael's gentle voice pulled Sydney back to consciousness. She opened her eyes and saw his face bent over hers. She smiled into his green eyes, shaded with sporty sunglasses, and stretched a little.
"Are we there?" She looked past where he stood in the car door and saw trees and water bathed in sunlight.
"Yep. You slept most of the way. You can finish your nap inside now if you want." He pulled her out of the car.
"Mmmm. Only if you join me," Sydney teased. "I've got energy now."
"I did do all that driving. I could use a 'rest'," Michael answered as they walked up to the porch. He pulled the key from his pocket and they let themselves into the small wood cabin. It was just two rooms, a small bathroom one the corner, a kitchen and living/dining room area to the right and a closet and large bed to the left.
"Maybe we should unpack first. I wouldn't want my ice cream to melt," Sydney said as they looked over the cabin. "And it's an awfully nice day to be spent inside." Michael wrapped his arms around her.
"Unpack. Rest. Then hiking or swimming or whatever else outside. That is my agenda." He began to nibble lightly at her neck.
"I like that schedule. Let me get the ice cream and we can go right to work on item two," she smiled as she moved back outside to the car.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*
They lay in bed an hour later, Sydney's head against Michael's chest as he traced lazy circles down her arms.
"I think you're beginning to show." His fingers traveled lightly over her stomach and the slight bulge that had formed.
"I thought I noticed something yesterday, but I figured I was just overanxious and had imagined it."
"Nope. Our baby is definitely beginning to make their presence known. Aren't you?" he added, moving to speak directly to Sydney's stomach. "How's it going in there? Everything growing okay?"
Sydney smiled and ran a hand through his hair. "According to what I've read, your future hockey player is about the size of my thumb now."
"So tiny, but so loved," Michael murmured as he rested his head against her, staring up at her eyes.
"There will never be a shortage of love in this family. Our child will never doubt that they are loved and cared for.and worried about," Sydney added with a poke at the lines in his forehead. "Did you hear that?" she asked her stomach, "your Daddy will be worrying about every day for the rest of your life. Maybe you can get used to it early so by the time you're teenager, you won't be giving him gray hairs when you go to the movies or out on dates."
"Oh no," Michael corrected. "No dates for this one until they're thirty. At least." Sydney laughed and he felt the shaking where his head rested on her stomach, quickly followed by a grumble. "Hungry?"
"Yep. Let's break out some of that food we brought along. I think the baby wants grilled cheese."
"And tomato soup? Classic camping food." Michael said as he pulled on his pants and walked to the kitchen.
"Really?"
"Every time my parents would take Nenet and I camping, we'd have grilled cheese at least once. I think it was one of the only things my dad knew how to cook." He smiled at the recollection as Sydney walked over to get out the bread and cheese wearing only his t-shirt. "And here we are on our first family trip."
"It is, isn't it?" She smiled. "It's starting to get warm. How about a swim after lunch?"
"Sounds good," Michael replied as they continued to prepare the food. The meal passed with discussions of other vacation memories, both from childhood and their few travels together.