Twenty-eight paces, twenty-eight paces from his seat to the rear of the airplane and another twenty-eight back again. Sam had paced that distance long enough to memorize every pattern, every nuance in the floor of the aircraft. He should be running over plans, making decisions about what to do when he arrived but for some reason, for the first time in his life, he just couldn't do it. He dropped back into his seat once more, motioning with one hand for the attendant to bring him the phone. Surely by now they would have heard something.
"Tell me she called," he barked the second Cosmo answered the ringing cell phone.
"No news from Cath yet, Sam," Cosmo said, an apologetic tone in his voice that caused the other two marshals to look up from what they were doing raiding Sam's closet. After a moment of awkward silence, he continued on. "Frank did finally get hold of someone at the courthouse just a few minutes ago, though."
"They don't know where she is?" Sam asked, quietly but with an intensity to his voice.
"Frank said it sounded like things were totally crazy there, Sam," Cosmo told him with a shake of his head. Sam wouldn't show it, he knew, but he had to be concerned that Catherine was apparently still missing. "They're lucky to know where they are, let alone anyone else. Odds are that Catherine's somewhere trying to find a phone and get through to us to let us know where she is."
"Any idea how bad it is?" Sam asked slowly, knowing Cosmo was trying to offer him some comfort but at the same time....
"No fatalities so far. Lot of roofs off, couple of buildings had trees go through them. They're still working on search and rescue." Cosmo paused for a minute, not sure of exactly how Sam would react to the next bit of news given the circumstances. "Sam, the deputy that talked to Frank said that they had a couple of prisoners that look to have escaped right after the courthouse got hit. He was hoping we could give them a hand in rounding them up."v "Tell Frank to call New York, have them send someone down to manage it." Sam paused for a moment. "Too personally involved in this one, Cosmo." Awww, Cath would just love it if she could hear him saying that especially after what had happened the last time he had got himself personally involved in something.
Cosmo stared at the phone in his hands stunned for a moment, not quite believing what he had heard, that Sam Gerard, the most dogged marshal in history once he was on a fugitive's trail had just turned down a hunt. He shook his head to focus, motioning to Bobby and 'Vannah to keep packing, before starting to talk again. "I'll tell Frank to let them know. Oh, and Sam, he's got us on the next flight out. You'll probably have Catherine safe and sound somewhere by then but..."
"I'll let you know if you don't need to come out," Sam said quietly before cutting off the connection. He knew he had shocked Cosmo with turning town the chance to chase a fugitive but he just couldn't do it, not now. For the last three years, he had been a marshal and nothing more. Now he needed to be a man, though, the man who loved Catherine. He closed his eyes again, very tired, as his thoughts drifted to Catherine and then to Noah. He knew he had hurt her, had hurt everyone with how he had cut them out ever since Noah's death. At the time, it had seemed best but now....
He started to silently pray. Just let him find Cath, he didn't want her to be hurt, he just wanted to be able to gather her into his arms and make her forget how he had treated her for the last three years had ever happened, but if she was hurt.... He would do anything, he would accept any sort of injury.... It didn't matter to him as long as they could be together and he could hold her once more. He swore silently that when he found her he would do whatever it took to make things up to her. They would make a fresh start of it.
He felt himself smiling slightly despite the situation. Never thought he would be willing to do that after so long and being so set in his ways. Who knows, maybe even kids? He wasn't sure if at his and Cath's age, but if she wanted to try.... His mind unconsciously wondered to Noah as he thought of children, boy had been all he could have asked for in a son. He felt a familiar stinging in his eyes that always accompanied any thought of the young marshal they had lost so tragically.
'Noah, you were the best son any man could have ever wanted. Just take care of her for me, son. Take care of her,' he silently prayed.