Ch20-Tomarrow's Another Day

-Five Years Later-

"But Mama I'm not sleepy" Said 5-year-old Roselyn. After she finished her sentence she yawned hugely. Jack smiled and stroked Roselyn's fine black hair. "Of course you're not baby, but you should sleep anyway, now, I'm going to tell you a wonderful story about a beautiful princess with handsome knights and huge dragons in her golden castle" Jack said as she scooped her into her arms. "Can I have 2 stories Mama?" Roselyn begged as she looked up at her with her own sea green eyes. "You can hardly keep your eyes open for the ending of the first one sweetie" Roselyn gave her a smile that painfully reminded her of Riddick's and yawned again. "But it won't happen this time" Jack smiled and kissed Roselyn's pursed lips. As Jack put Roselyn to sleep, the young nursemaid that Jack had hired, Kathleen Archer, came around the corner. "I'm going to go to my room now Ms.Holms, is there anything you'd like me to do?" Kathleen was a willow-slim 21-year-old girl with flyaway dark brown hair and quiet hazel eyes. "No, go ahead to sleep Kathleen" Jack smiled. Kathleen was as shy as a mouse and just as quiet, no wonder Mark was head over heels in love with her. Mark was sitting in the living room nursing a snifter of brandy.

"Hey" She said softly when she saw him and sat in the big plush dark blue chair next to him and looked at him out of her eyes. He had strong set features and tanned skin. "You're a good man Mark," She said slowly and he turned to look at her. "You do know you can't lie right Jackie?" She smiled softly then said seriously. "No, I mean it. You've helped me so much over the past five years, I made a mistake though, I should have known not to fall in love with a murderer" She shook her head sadly. "I tried to tell you that remember? You wouldn't listen, you where convinced he was the one for you, that you would spend forever together" Jack's eyes welled with tears and they slipped over her cheeks in twin rivers. "Oh Jackie, I'm sorry, please don't cry" Jack lifted her chin stubbornly and wiped the tears off her cheeks. "No, I've finished crying over him, I'm a grown woman, I'm 23 years old alright Mark? I can choose my own destiny" She kissed his cheek goodnight and walked into her room to change.

She was about to fall asleep; the soft bliss of it was just starting to surround her when the phone rang. She willed it to stop, but when it didn't she reached over to the small bedside table and picked it up. "Hello?" She asked rather sleepily. No answer, "Hello?" She asked a little more forcefully, still no answer. Annoyed and tired, she slammed the phone down on the receiver and slipped into sleep like a hand into a silk glove. The night seemed to creep on forever, but that was fine with her, she had lost too much sleep worrying and crying about Richard Riddick, he lost the key to her heart when he decided to leave. Her dreams were a mix of color and sound that left her cold and a little frightened. She tossed endlessly and was forced to remembered years ago when she would be caught in a nightmare and Riddick would talk to her softly and sooth her until she would drift into a blissful sleep. Now she was caught in the wildness of nothing, with no to save her.

She was never so glad when she saw the sunrise the next morning. Mark and Kathleen were sitting at the kitchen table laughing about something softly over coffee and cinnamon rolls that Kathleen had just taken out of the oven that were thick with gooey pink icing. "Good morning" Kathleen said rising as she saw Jack walk slowly into the kitchen. Kathleen poured Jack coffee that she drizzled honey with in a thick stone mug and handed it to her. Jack smiled at her gratefully and pulled a chair up and sat at the table with the paper. Out of habit, she looked for any information about Riddick. Like everyday, nothing. She sipped the sweet coffee slowly, but the smell of it made her want to risk a scalded tongue.

She watched over the edge of the paper how Mark and Kathleen were looking at each other, she had to smile. She had adopted Mark as she brother; it made her laugh sometimes because she remembered the time when he had actually tried to pass himself off as Trevor Holms. But Riddick knew. She told herself, he knew right away. She shook her head and folded the paper neatly on the edge of the table. She took another sip off coffee and rose slowly from the table. "Is there something wrong with the coffee Ms.Holms?" Kathleen asked when she saw Jack get up. "No, Kathleen, it's fine, I'm just going to jump into the shower before Roselyn and Matthew wake up so I can take them to the park today" Kathleen smiled sweetly and said. "Of course, I'll tidy up here" Jack returned the smile and left to the bathroom. She turned the water on as hot it would go and stepped under the burning spray of water. She buried her face in her hands and finally let herself cry as brokenhearted again as she had felt for years after she swore to herself she would never shed another tear over him. Sobs racked her body and she curled herself into a ball in the corner of the shower until she felt like she couldn't cry anymore. She stood up 10 minutes later and composed herself. "Alright" She said to herself as she wrapped a rose colored bathrobe around her and went into her room to dress.

Matthew was playfully kicking his feet as Jack pulled a black t-shirt over his head and kissed him when she saw his innocent smile only a child could give. Roselyn, or Rozi, as Mark and Kathleen had taken to calling her, was happily playing with her dolls on the soft peach carpet that she talked Mark into putting in instead of the cold wood floors. "Now babies," She said with a smile and kissed both of them. "You stay right here, I'm going to go tell Uncle Mark that we're leaving okay?" They both nodded and Jack smiled again. When Jack walked into the living room where Mark was, she gasped when she saw Kathleen and Mark kissing each other. "Oh, sorry!" She said. Kathleen pulled away and blushed deeply turning her skin into roses and cream. Jack smiled at Kathleen's nervousness and Mark's guilty expression. "I'm taking Matt and Rozi to the park now, we'll be back in an hour or so okay?" Kathleen nodded without looking at Jack and quickly turned to mop the kitchen.

Jack loved taking Matt and Rozi to the park, but she was rarely able to now because she had gotten a job as waitress at a small café. It was all she could do because she never graduated from high school. Jack was wearing her favorite lavender silk sundress as she held Matt's hand and carried Rozi with the other arm. When they reached the playground Matt and Rozi squealed with joy and Jack set down Rozi as she began to struggle. "Be careful. Now go play" She said as they raced off to the big bright red and blue obstacle course. She sat on an ugly yellow and black painted bench and watched her children crawl over bars. But she couldn't shake the feeling someone was watching her.

An hour later, Rozi and Matt were all played out and Jack tightly put their seatbelts around them in the back seat of her black Mercedes Benz. Matt yawned and said. "Mummy, when I grown up, I want to be an astronaut" Jack smiled and looked at her son through the rear-view mirror and said. "Ok Mattie, when we get home and you're all showered up, I'll put you in your favorite space pj's and I'll tell you and Rozi a story about astronauts ok?" "What about space aliens?" He asked with a worried look on his angelic face. "Don't be silly baby, there are no such things as aliens" He smiled happily and propped his head in his little hand and watched the huge fluffy clouds go by.

That night after Matt and Rozi were asleep, Jack was sitting in the living room with a glass of brandy resting on the coffee table untouched. She stilled smiled about what she had told Matt, but now smiling took too much effort, it had turned into a hot and humid day and all she wanted was a cold bath, but couldn't force herself to get up. Mark came in the living room and kissed her cheek. "What are you still doing up?" He asked and took a sip of her brandy for her. "It takes too much effort to get into bed, so I'm just staying here" He smiled. "Mind if I stay with you?" She shook her head. "Are you sure you wouldn't like to go join Kathleen in the guest room?" She asked with a sly smile. Mark blushed considerably. "Um-I-Oh shit" He said as he gave up. Jack smiled and patted his hand. "Don't worry about it Mark, you're 25, I'd be worried if you didn't kiss her like that" He smiled through the blush and sipped her brandy again. "I called Shane" Jack said suddenly and softly to Mark. Mark looked at her out of the corners of his eyes and sighed. "He's not coming back, you know that right Jackie?" She nodded sadly. "She's going to be over soon, she's pregnant, with her first child, she's very excited. I didn't want her to drive far in her condition but she insisted that I was her brother's wife and it was her duty." Mark rose and finished off the brandy. "Well, I'll just get to bed then" He turned to see Kathleen wearing a nighty that color of pale gold and a soft smile on her lips. "I'll see you in the morning" Jack smiled and shooed him away.

There was a knock at the door and Jack rose. She smoothed out the soft cotton of her purple tank top and white boxers she slept in. She went to answer the door but there was no one there. There was a basket over-flowing with blood red and pink roses. She looked around but there was no one there. On the basket there was a note that to her surprise said.

Put these in water and cheer up Love, Kalina, Imam, Mark, Kathleen, Matt and Rozi



She smiled and lifted the slightly heavy basket and took it into the sparkling clean kitchen. She filled a crystal vase with icy water and began to clip the long stems of the roses and arranged them prettily. When she had only put the 5 rose in the vase, the doorbell rang. Probably something else from them she thought and went to answer the door. She looked down but saw Italian leather shoes, the shoes led to pant legs, which led to a black leather jacket, to something she had loved and dreaded. "Hi" Riddick said.