Note: Sorry for making you all wait! To be honest I've been VERY lazy hah hah! ^^; So….whatever happened to Ian when he drove off with Diana? Did he REALLY leave the city to another state? What about Squall and Rinoa? Will they be able to find the happiness they deserve? Find out on this FINAL chapter! ^^
Chapter 34 – Free
"I wish I could control whatever happened," he whispered to her, raking his hands gently through her long, dark tresses. 'But fate never allows anyone to do their own bidding,' he added in his head. The figure beside him shivered, knowing that the words he had spoken had hit her rougher than he thought. Silence around the room was the only thing that calmed the both of them, but he knew that deep down inside, Rinoa Heartilly was screaming as much as she could for the daughter she just recently lost. Sighing, Squall leaned down and kissed the top of Rinoa's forehead. "I have to go, but I'll be right back soon," he spoke quietly.
Rinoa nodded slowly, the first sign of life since he came to her two nights ago. She must have realized that having her unable to talk was hurting Squall a whole lot. "Okay," she replied, as simply as that. She moved slowly so that Squall could move and once he was able to get out of bed, she crawled back, moving to his spot and sighed, now sitting on her back to see him standing there.
Squall leaned down and kissed her forehead and covered the blanket over her. He turned and was about to leave when he heard the dark haired young woman call his name.
"Squall?"
The brown haired youth stopped and turned around. "Yeah?"
"He'll bring her back right?" From the way she looked at him, Squall could tell she was still holding on to that hope he thought she lost and Squall was relieved to hear those words from her own lips. It made him feel a lot more confident in whatever he was going to do.
Squall nodded. "I'll make sure he will." With that said, he turned and left the room.
******************
He knew he was going too far. It's been two days since he lost his wife and his son over a dispute that could've led to happiness if she only allowed him to keep his other child. Diana was special to him, even though part of him felt guilty for not being there for his daughter. But what could he do when Rinoa didn't even tell him SHE had HIS child? Now thirty, Ian Adamms was on a run from the police, since he already knew from the beginning that Squall, Rinoa's boyfriend was the son of the Mayor of Seattle. He might send a squad to hunt him down and adding a commotion was not going to be good in his resume.
The black BMW sped along Highway 62, a familiar route that led to the next city, towards the Oregon coast. It wasn't that long of a drive (an hour), but at least it would be far away from the city where he knew Rinoa and Squall were going to be waiting for him. Diana cried beside him and Ian quickly reached over with his one hand to rock the baby seat back and forth until she quieted down after a couple of seconds and went back to sleep. The sudden roar from a dark blue Honda's spoilers that was driving pass them, probably woke up the baby from her peaceful slumber.
The road was as usual, the quietest he has ever seen it. Since it was the weekend, he figured that trailers, trucks with bikes strapped at the back and vans with camping equipment would be passing by him every second to reach the end of the road towards the camping sites and the beach area where most of the tourists come and go during the weekend. However, he was beginning to get suspicious of the fact that NONE of those vehicles could be seen around him. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a police siren nearby. Ian reached out to hold the baby seat back with one hand and pressed his foot firmly on the break, where the BMW immediately halted to a complete stop. "What the hell?" he spoke, his teeth gritting with annoyance. Ahead of him, a police car was driving on his side of the lane, towards him. Ian cursed under his breath and pulled his gear into reverse. He pressed on the gas and the car sped along backwards. The sound of the screeching tires woke Diana up from her sleep once more and the young infant opened her mouth and let out a horrific cry. Irritated, Ian glared quickly at the baby and hissed, "SHUT UP YOU STUPID BABY!!!!"
Not good. The crying got louder.
Suddenly, the sound of another screeching car alarmed him. Ian looked up and noticed that the police car driving towards him was speeding up to catch up to him. "Dammit!" he roared, turning the wheel at the right time so the car wouldn't fall at the side of the road. At the right moment, he turned the wheel at a 180 degree angle and the car screeched around the other way. The sirens grew louder as the police car began to tailgate him, trying to make him to stop, but Ian was too stubborn to listen. He hit the gas hard and sped along the highway, passing cars that finally showed up to confirm they were all going camping and hearing the cars honk angrily.
One.
Two.
Three.
There were three hits behind his car from the bullets that came out of the police's gun. The tires screeched and the hands that went around the wheels were swaying from side to side, just the same time as the car swayed side to side.
Four.
A fourth bullet had hit the back of the car, through the glass. Ian dodged that bullet just in time and what annoyed him the most was that the cop, from what he could see from his rearview mirror looked like a rookie, shot at him dangerously, knowing full well that with that action, a baby could get hurt. Ian gave the young cop the finger through the window, which triggered another shot from the cop, barely missing his hand.
"YOU JACKASS!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, poking his head through the window. "You're going to hit the baby!!!!!!!!!" However, as soon as he turned his face around back towards the road in front of him, a car was coming towards him, head on. "Shit!" he swore, swerving his wheel to the right to avoid collision just in time. He passed the car just in time and the car made a complete stop behind him. Ian drove along, driving faster than the usual speed limit on the highway.
****************
"STOP! STOP SHOOTING YOU IDIOT!!!!!!!!!!!!" he screamed into the black, walkie talkie in his large hand. "God! Where did you get this GUY!?" Craig said to no one in particular.
Other cops around the middle aged man began to surround him, intensely listening to the car chase going on around Highway 62. One of them was Laguna Loir, who drove all the way from Washington, D.C. to Seattle to meet up with Craig Hamilton in the Seattle police department. He was an old friend of his, way back in high school and they have been keeping in contact ever since they graduated.
Another shooting could be heard through the radio. Craig slammed his fist down on the table and screamed, basically spitting into the radio. "I SAID STOP IT MCNAB!"
"Sorry, sir," came an answer from the radio. The young officer, twenty-three years old, was indeed a rookie. The rich son of a business man, David McNab was a force to be reckoned with. From the first moment Craig laid eyes on him, he knew he wasn't going to like the little rich kid who came out from his mother's womb spoiled and obnoxious. It wasn't luck that David got into the force so easily as soon as he graduated from the police force; it was pure bribery that got him into it. As soon as Matthew McNab offered the police chief twenty-thousand collars, he was immediately brought in as one of Hamilton's training officers. "I guess I got carried away," the young man added once more. Hamilton knew that from those words and from the tone of his voice that David McNab was mocking him.
He was starting to get irritated with this boy. "Are you MOCKING me, McNab!? Don't you have ANY idea that there's a kid on board in the car you're shooting AT!?"
Then there was silence. Immediately after that, there were no more sounds of shooting.
'Well, how about that? Mr. Spoiled McNab has a heart after all,' Craig thought. "Come back to the station McNab and-!"
"I think he's stopped, sir!" David's voice boomed through the radio. All of a sudden, they heard a car door being opened, followed by the sound of footsteps, preferably McNab's. "Hey! You in there! Step out of the car with your hands behind your back!"
"MCNAB! What the hell are you doing!? Get back in your car and-!"
"DAMN! He started the car again and he took off! That stubborn son of a-!" This time, the sound of gun shots could be heard, at the same time McNab's began to swear directed towards the person in the car.
"STOP SHOOTING!!!!" Chief Craig Hamilton slammed another fist down on the table angrily, but the young officer did not hear a word his higher ranking officer said and could be heard jumping back into his car. The screeching of the tires confirmed those back at the station that he had taken off again after the speeding car. "MCNAB!!! You stubborn ASS!" Craig turned around and kicked a nearby chair and it flew right pass Laguna's head. Without even giving an apology, Hamilton turned back around and said, "Jamieson, go after that idiot and make him come back to the station. I need to talk to him."
Michael Jamieson, a young man around the age of twenty-nine, with wavy brown hair, which kind of reminded Laguna of Squall, saluted and replied, "Yes, sir!" He turned and left for his car to fetch McNab.
Laguna sighed, rubbing the top of his nose irritably and said, "Where did you get this guy, Hamilton?"
Craig straightened up and shook his head. "His dad is a rich bastard who threatened to fire one of us if his son is not in the police force."
"I thought you'd fall for his bribery, but I guess I was wrong," Laguna replied, patting him on the back.
"Well, it was the Police Department itself who fell for that kind of trickery. I just love working here so much to risk being fired." He clenched his fists at his sides and fixed his gun on his holster. "Don't worry, Laguna, I'm going to do some talking with that kid."
****************
He sharply turned the corner, pressing the gas, which reached him now up to 130 km an hour, REALLY pass the speed limit. He could hear shots behind him once more, but Ian swerved left and right, using one hand to turn the wheel and the other to keep Diana steady on the seat. They were on the street now, back to the city of D.C. There were screams from people who jumped out of the way as Ian sped pass the busy street. He knew he should stop, he was violating at least fifty road rules such as running through a red light, not stopping on the intersection with the stop sign, almost running over an elderly woman as well as almost hitting another car when he decided to cut through a two way street. It was the same thing with the police car behind him and he was shocked to realize that even the young cop was risking other people's lives to catch him.
Diana's cries grew more intense as the chase went on. At the bottom of Ian's insides, his gut was screaming with guilt and thoughts of 'maybe he should not have run away' or 'if Rinoa had decided to sign the paper to share custody with their child, then THIS wouldn't have happened.' Suddenly, Ian felt the car stop. Surprised even at himself, he glanced down at his right foot where it was pressed gently on the brakes. He didn't know why he did it, but….he did. "Well, wasn't that a fun ride, eh Diana?" He glanced at the baby beside him and smiled. He reached out the unbuckled the seat belt around the young infant's stomach and picked her up in his arms and began cradling her. Diana surprisingly stopped crying. Ian heard the police car behind him stop as well, followed by the door opening and closing. He kissed Diana's forehead. "At least I was able to see you one last time." With one hand, he reached over and opened the driver's side door and stepped out with Diana still in his arms.
"Come out with your hands behind your back you bastard!" Officer McNab quickly ran up to him, with his hand still holding his gun and pressed the gun at his back when Ian didn't do what he was told. "I said hands behind your back!"
"I can't…I AM holding a baby you know."
"I don't care. Put her back inside the-!" He was interrupted when he heard the radio attached at the left side of his belt suddenly start to make an alerting sound, telling him that someone was trying to contact him.
"McNab!" a voice through his radio boomed. "This is Jamieson. The chief wants you to come back to the station right away."
Annoyed, McNab pressed the radio at the side of his face and said, "I caught the bastard! He violated many rules and I'm about to cuff him."
"I SAID RIGHT NOW MCNAB!" Chief Craig Hamilton's voice yelled over Jamieson's. "Let Jamieson handle the guy, all right!?"
McNab gritted his teeth and replied, "Yes sir. I'll wait for Jamieson here and I'll head on back." He turned off the radio and glared up at Ian, whose back was still facing him. McNab put the gun back in his holster and said, "You're lucky I'm being called back, or I would have shot you for not listening to an officer!"
"Then YOU would've been arrested for shooting an innocent father," Ian replied.
David McNab's eyes turned into thin slits. "Why you-!"
"McNab! You caught the guy, eh?"
David rolled his eyes and turned around. "Hey Jamieson, yeah I caught the guy. He violated so many driving rules, including kidnapping some woman's baby."
"She's MY daughter!" Ian hissed.
"Yeah well tell THAT to the court!" He turned and tossed the handcuffs to Michael Jamieson. "Good luck handcuffing him!"
"Uh…yeah," Michael replied, watching the other rookie cop hop back into his car and driving off back to the police station. "I hate that guy," he said out loud once David was out of earshot.
Ian gave a half-hearted laugh and continued to cradle his daughter.
**************
"What the hell were you doing back there, huh!? Are you trying to irritate me!?" As soon as David McNab stepped into the busy building of the police department, third floor, he was ambushed by a pair of large hands that gripped at his collar. He had stared straight into the furious eyes of Chief Craig Hamilton. "Why were you shooting at the car while I told you NOT TO!?"
David didn't answer, only stared back at Craig smugly.
"If something were to have happened to the baby and that man, YOUR head is on the line and I promise you…" He moved his face closer to David so that the younger man could at least smell his breath filled with coffee and bagel. "I won't be there to get you out, got that?"
The young officer closed his eyes and pushed him off of him, brushing off imaginary dirt from his uniform which Craig knew he didn't deserve to wear. "Are you threatening me? My old man is the RICHEST man in this city and-!"
"Wrong!" came another voice. This time, it was Craig Hamilton's long time friend, Laguna Loire, Mayor of the city. "I AM the richest one here and your father KNOWS he can't do anything if I were the one to initiate the idea of you not working in the police force any longer."
David had no words to say. He was speechless.
It was Craig's turn to smirk. "So you're fired, McNab. You can give me your badge and your gun now." He stuck out his hand towards David.
"You…you can't do this!" the young officer said, glaring at both older men.
"Well too bad because we just did," Craig said. When David didn't comply with his request to give back his badge and gun, he reached out and ripped the badge off of his uniform and grabbed the gun from his holster. "Thank you very much David McNab, now you can leave through that door over there," he added, nodding his head towards the exit.
It looked like David wanted to say something, but he seemed to have changed his mind and decided instead to purse his lips. He turned and left for good. Soon after, Jamieson stepped in, holding in one arm a baby wrapped in a pink blanket, while the other was holding Ian Adamms' handcuffs. Craig nodded approvingly at Jamieson. "Good work Jamieson," he said to the rookie cop. Jamieson nodded back and walked pass his Chief, then by Laguna. Laguna stepped in front of the younger man and gave him a hard look.
"You know my son's girlfriend went through hell because of you," he hissed.
Ian smiled. "Well she wouldn't be if she only agreed that I could see my daughter once in a while," he said. "You can't deny that I am a good father."
"I didn't say you weren't."
The younger man turned away. "Then there's no point in giving me the hard time now is there?"
Laguna said nothing and stepped aside to allow Jamieson and Ian through towards the cell area. The long haired man watched as Ian's retreating form disappeared around the corner.
***************
There was no way to describe the feeling what he was feeling now. Happiness was one of them of course. He was happy now to see Rinoa reunited with her daughter again and to see her face bright up with her own joy as she cradled Diana in her arms. "Thank you," he said to the figure behind him.
"I think you should be thanking Ian," Laguna said, stepping in beside his son. "He was the one who decided to give up Diana even after that car chase he started."
Squall nodded. "Maybe I should…" He kept his eyes on Rinoa, tears of joy now covering her face. She gave Diana another hug before turning to give Patti a hug as well.
"So, what happens now?" Laguna suddenly asked.
"Rinoa will go back to school and she decided to share custody with Ian. Ian's wife decided to come back with their son and promised to help him take care of Diana while Rinoa goes off to finish school."
"That's a good bargain," Laguna replied, nodding in agreement. "But I meant…between us."
"I said thank you didn't I?" Squall turned his head at his father.
"Yes, yes you did." Laguna stuffed his hands in his pockets and sighed. "Well, I better get going then. I have to go back to work since I haven't been back at the office for two weeks now…." He took one more glance towards Squall before turning around to walk back into his car.
"…dad?"
Laguna stopped and looked at him. "Yes?"
Squall turned and walked up to him, also stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Um…We're okay now," he said.
"What?"
The young man shrugged. "I mean…Cloud has practice tomorrow at school and you know, maybe you'd want to come and watch him play I mean…if you're not too busy-!"
"I'll be there," Laguna interrupted.
With this reply, Squall was surprised. "Okay…Um…I'll see you there then."
Laguna shook his head and smiled. "No, I'll see you tonight at dinner."
"Yeah, okay I'll see you there."
"All right then." After that, he turned and left, hopping back inside his car.
"Hey, Squall?" Squall turned around. Rinoa was standing there with a big smile on her face and with her hands clasped behind her back, her head tilted to the side which Squall found rather cute. "So your dad left already?"
Squall nodded. "Yeah. He had to go back to work."
"That's all right with you?"
"Yeah, I think so."
Rinoa smiled. "That's good. I wanted to say thank you to him so I guess I'll say thanks to you as well. So um…" She went on her tip toes and gave Squall a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you."
"Rinoa…" Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into a tight hug. "I love you," he whispered in her ear.
Rinoa closed her eyes and returned his embrace. "I love you too, Squall."
GoodGurl: WOOHOO! This chapter is FINALLY over! I hope you like and was quite satisfied with the ending! HEE HEE! REVIEW PLEASE! THANK YOU! ^^
Chapter 34 – Free
"I wish I could control whatever happened," he whispered to her, raking his hands gently through her long, dark tresses. 'But fate never allows anyone to do their own bidding,' he added in his head. The figure beside him shivered, knowing that the words he had spoken had hit her rougher than he thought. Silence around the room was the only thing that calmed the both of them, but he knew that deep down inside, Rinoa Heartilly was screaming as much as she could for the daughter she just recently lost. Sighing, Squall leaned down and kissed the top of Rinoa's forehead. "I have to go, but I'll be right back soon," he spoke quietly.
Rinoa nodded slowly, the first sign of life since he came to her two nights ago. She must have realized that having her unable to talk was hurting Squall a whole lot. "Okay," she replied, as simply as that. She moved slowly so that Squall could move and once he was able to get out of bed, she crawled back, moving to his spot and sighed, now sitting on her back to see him standing there.
Squall leaned down and kissed her forehead and covered the blanket over her. He turned and was about to leave when he heard the dark haired young woman call his name.
"Squall?"
The brown haired youth stopped and turned around. "Yeah?"
"He'll bring her back right?" From the way she looked at him, Squall could tell she was still holding on to that hope he thought she lost and Squall was relieved to hear those words from her own lips. It made him feel a lot more confident in whatever he was going to do.
Squall nodded. "I'll make sure he will." With that said, he turned and left the room.
******************
He knew he was going too far. It's been two days since he lost his wife and his son over a dispute that could've led to happiness if she only allowed him to keep his other child. Diana was special to him, even though part of him felt guilty for not being there for his daughter. But what could he do when Rinoa didn't even tell him SHE had HIS child? Now thirty, Ian Adamms was on a run from the police, since he already knew from the beginning that Squall, Rinoa's boyfriend was the son of the Mayor of Seattle. He might send a squad to hunt him down and adding a commotion was not going to be good in his resume.
The black BMW sped along Highway 62, a familiar route that led to the next city, towards the Oregon coast. It wasn't that long of a drive (an hour), but at least it would be far away from the city where he knew Rinoa and Squall were going to be waiting for him. Diana cried beside him and Ian quickly reached over with his one hand to rock the baby seat back and forth until she quieted down after a couple of seconds and went back to sleep. The sudden roar from a dark blue Honda's spoilers that was driving pass them, probably woke up the baby from her peaceful slumber.
The road was as usual, the quietest he has ever seen it. Since it was the weekend, he figured that trailers, trucks with bikes strapped at the back and vans with camping equipment would be passing by him every second to reach the end of the road towards the camping sites and the beach area where most of the tourists come and go during the weekend. However, he was beginning to get suspicious of the fact that NONE of those vehicles could be seen around him. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a police siren nearby. Ian reached out to hold the baby seat back with one hand and pressed his foot firmly on the break, where the BMW immediately halted to a complete stop. "What the hell?" he spoke, his teeth gritting with annoyance. Ahead of him, a police car was driving on his side of the lane, towards him. Ian cursed under his breath and pulled his gear into reverse. He pressed on the gas and the car sped along backwards. The sound of the screeching tires woke Diana up from her sleep once more and the young infant opened her mouth and let out a horrific cry. Irritated, Ian glared quickly at the baby and hissed, "SHUT UP YOU STUPID BABY!!!!"
Not good. The crying got louder.
Suddenly, the sound of another screeching car alarmed him. Ian looked up and noticed that the police car driving towards him was speeding up to catch up to him. "Dammit!" he roared, turning the wheel at the right time so the car wouldn't fall at the side of the road. At the right moment, he turned the wheel at a 180 degree angle and the car screeched around the other way. The sirens grew louder as the police car began to tailgate him, trying to make him to stop, but Ian was too stubborn to listen. He hit the gas hard and sped along the highway, passing cars that finally showed up to confirm they were all going camping and hearing the cars honk angrily.
One.
Two.
Three.
There were three hits behind his car from the bullets that came out of the police's gun. The tires screeched and the hands that went around the wheels were swaying from side to side, just the same time as the car swayed side to side.
Four.
A fourth bullet had hit the back of the car, through the glass. Ian dodged that bullet just in time and what annoyed him the most was that the cop, from what he could see from his rearview mirror looked like a rookie, shot at him dangerously, knowing full well that with that action, a baby could get hurt. Ian gave the young cop the finger through the window, which triggered another shot from the cop, barely missing his hand.
"YOU JACKASS!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, poking his head through the window. "You're going to hit the baby!!!!!!!!!" However, as soon as he turned his face around back towards the road in front of him, a car was coming towards him, head on. "Shit!" he swore, swerving his wheel to the right to avoid collision just in time. He passed the car just in time and the car made a complete stop behind him. Ian drove along, driving faster than the usual speed limit on the highway.
****************
"STOP! STOP SHOOTING YOU IDIOT!!!!!!!!!!!!" he screamed into the black, walkie talkie in his large hand. "God! Where did you get this GUY!?" Craig said to no one in particular.
Other cops around the middle aged man began to surround him, intensely listening to the car chase going on around Highway 62. One of them was Laguna Loir, who drove all the way from Washington, D.C. to Seattle to meet up with Craig Hamilton in the Seattle police department. He was an old friend of his, way back in high school and they have been keeping in contact ever since they graduated.
Another shooting could be heard through the radio. Craig slammed his fist down on the table and screamed, basically spitting into the radio. "I SAID STOP IT MCNAB!"
"Sorry, sir," came an answer from the radio. The young officer, twenty-three years old, was indeed a rookie. The rich son of a business man, David McNab was a force to be reckoned with. From the first moment Craig laid eyes on him, he knew he wasn't going to like the little rich kid who came out from his mother's womb spoiled and obnoxious. It wasn't luck that David got into the force so easily as soon as he graduated from the police force; it was pure bribery that got him into it. As soon as Matthew McNab offered the police chief twenty-thousand collars, he was immediately brought in as one of Hamilton's training officers. "I guess I got carried away," the young man added once more. Hamilton knew that from those words and from the tone of his voice that David McNab was mocking him.
He was starting to get irritated with this boy. "Are you MOCKING me, McNab!? Don't you have ANY idea that there's a kid on board in the car you're shooting AT!?"
Then there was silence. Immediately after that, there were no more sounds of shooting.
'Well, how about that? Mr. Spoiled McNab has a heart after all,' Craig thought. "Come back to the station McNab and-!"
"I think he's stopped, sir!" David's voice boomed through the radio. All of a sudden, they heard a car door being opened, followed by the sound of footsteps, preferably McNab's. "Hey! You in there! Step out of the car with your hands behind your back!"
"MCNAB! What the hell are you doing!? Get back in your car and-!"
"DAMN! He started the car again and he took off! That stubborn son of a-!" This time, the sound of gun shots could be heard, at the same time McNab's began to swear directed towards the person in the car.
"STOP SHOOTING!!!!" Chief Craig Hamilton slammed another fist down on the table angrily, but the young officer did not hear a word his higher ranking officer said and could be heard jumping back into his car. The screeching of the tires confirmed those back at the station that he had taken off again after the speeding car. "MCNAB!!! You stubborn ASS!" Craig turned around and kicked a nearby chair and it flew right pass Laguna's head. Without even giving an apology, Hamilton turned back around and said, "Jamieson, go after that idiot and make him come back to the station. I need to talk to him."
Michael Jamieson, a young man around the age of twenty-nine, with wavy brown hair, which kind of reminded Laguna of Squall, saluted and replied, "Yes, sir!" He turned and left for his car to fetch McNab.
Laguna sighed, rubbing the top of his nose irritably and said, "Where did you get this guy, Hamilton?"
Craig straightened up and shook his head. "His dad is a rich bastard who threatened to fire one of us if his son is not in the police force."
"I thought you'd fall for his bribery, but I guess I was wrong," Laguna replied, patting him on the back.
"Well, it was the Police Department itself who fell for that kind of trickery. I just love working here so much to risk being fired." He clenched his fists at his sides and fixed his gun on his holster. "Don't worry, Laguna, I'm going to do some talking with that kid."
****************
He sharply turned the corner, pressing the gas, which reached him now up to 130 km an hour, REALLY pass the speed limit. He could hear shots behind him once more, but Ian swerved left and right, using one hand to turn the wheel and the other to keep Diana steady on the seat. They were on the street now, back to the city of D.C. There were screams from people who jumped out of the way as Ian sped pass the busy street. He knew he should stop, he was violating at least fifty road rules such as running through a red light, not stopping on the intersection with the stop sign, almost running over an elderly woman as well as almost hitting another car when he decided to cut through a two way street. It was the same thing with the police car behind him and he was shocked to realize that even the young cop was risking other people's lives to catch him.
Diana's cries grew more intense as the chase went on. At the bottom of Ian's insides, his gut was screaming with guilt and thoughts of 'maybe he should not have run away' or 'if Rinoa had decided to sign the paper to share custody with their child, then THIS wouldn't have happened.' Suddenly, Ian felt the car stop. Surprised even at himself, he glanced down at his right foot where it was pressed gently on the brakes. He didn't know why he did it, but….he did. "Well, wasn't that a fun ride, eh Diana?" He glanced at the baby beside him and smiled. He reached out the unbuckled the seat belt around the young infant's stomach and picked her up in his arms and began cradling her. Diana surprisingly stopped crying. Ian heard the police car behind him stop as well, followed by the door opening and closing. He kissed Diana's forehead. "At least I was able to see you one last time." With one hand, he reached over and opened the driver's side door and stepped out with Diana still in his arms.
"Come out with your hands behind your back you bastard!" Officer McNab quickly ran up to him, with his hand still holding his gun and pressed the gun at his back when Ian didn't do what he was told. "I said hands behind your back!"
"I can't…I AM holding a baby you know."
"I don't care. Put her back inside the-!" He was interrupted when he heard the radio attached at the left side of his belt suddenly start to make an alerting sound, telling him that someone was trying to contact him.
"McNab!" a voice through his radio boomed. "This is Jamieson. The chief wants you to come back to the station right away."
Annoyed, McNab pressed the radio at the side of his face and said, "I caught the bastard! He violated many rules and I'm about to cuff him."
"I SAID RIGHT NOW MCNAB!" Chief Craig Hamilton's voice yelled over Jamieson's. "Let Jamieson handle the guy, all right!?"
McNab gritted his teeth and replied, "Yes sir. I'll wait for Jamieson here and I'll head on back." He turned off the radio and glared up at Ian, whose back was still facing him. McNab put the gun back in his holster and said, "You're lucky I'm being called back, or I would have shot you for not listening to an officer!"
"Then YOU would've been arrested for shooting an innocent father," Ian replied.
David McNab's eyes turned into thin slits. "Why you-!"
"McNab! You caught the guy, eh?"
David rolled his eyes and turned around. "Hey Jamieson, yeah I caught the guy. He violated so many driving rules, including kidnapping some woman's baby."
"She's MY daughter!" Ian hissed.
"Yeah well tell THAT to the court!" He turned and tossed the handcuffs to Michael Jamieson. "Good luck handcuffing him!"
"Uh…yeah," Michael replied, watching the other rookie cop hop back into his car and driving off back to the police station. "I hate that guy," he said out loud once David was out of earshot.
Ian gave a half-hearted laugh and continued to cradle his daughter.
**************
"What the hell were you doing back there, huh!? Are you trying to irritate me!?" As soon as David McNab stepped into the busy building of the police department, third floor, he was ambushed by a pair of large hands that gripped at his collar. He had stared straight into the furious eyes of Chief Craig Hamilton. "Why were you shooting at the car while I told you NOT TO!?"
David didn't answer, only stared back at Craig smugly.
"If something were to have happened to the baby and that man, YOUR head is on the line and I promise you…" He moved his face closer to David so that the younger man could at least smell his breath filled with coffee and bagel. "I won't be there to get you out, got that?"
The young officer closed his eyes and pushed him off of him, brushing off imaginary dirt from his uniform which Craig knew he didn't deserve to wear. "Are you threatening me? My old man is the RICHEST man in this city and-!"
"Wrong!" came another voice. This time, it was Craig Hamilton's long time friend, Laguna Loire, Mayor of the city. "I AM the richest one here and your father KNOWS he can't do anything if I were the one to initiate the idea of you not working in the police force any longer."
David had no words to say. He was speechless.
It was Craig's turn to smirk. "So you're fired, McNab. You can give me your badge and your gun now." He stuck out his hand towards David.
"You…you can't do this!" the young officer said, glaring at both older men.
"Well too bad because we just did," Craig said. When David didn't comply with his request to give back his badge and gun, he reached out and ripped the badge off of his uniform and grabbed the gun from his holster. "Thank you very much David McNab, now you can leave through that door over there," he added, nodding his head towards the exit.
It looked like David wanted to say something, but he seemed to have changed his mind and decided instead to purse his lips. He turned and left for good. Soon after, Jamieson stepped in, holding in one arm a baby wrapped in a pink blanket, while the other was holding Ian Adamms' handcuffs. Craig nodded approvingly at Jamieson. "Good work Jamieson," he said to the rookie cop. Jamieson nodded back and walked pass his Chief, then by Laguna. Laguna stepped in front of the younger man and gave him a hard look.
"You know my son's girlfriend went through hell because of you," he hissed.
Ian smiled. "Well she wouldn't be if she only agreed that I could see my daughter once in a while," he said. "You can't deny that I am a good father."
"I didn't say you weren't."
The younger man turned away. "Then there's no point in giving me the hard time now is there?"
Laguna said nothing and stepped aside to allow Jamieson and Ian through towards the cell area. The long haired man watched as Ian's retreating form disappeared around the corner.
***************
There was no way to describe the feeling what he was feeling now. Happiness was one of them of course. He was happy now to see Rinoa reunited with her daughter again and to see her face bright up with her own joy as she cradled Diana in her arms. "Thank you," he said to the figure behind him.
"I think you should be thanking Ian," Laguna said, stepping in beside his son. "He was the one who decided to give up Diana even after that car chase he started."
Squall nodded. "Maybe I should…" He kept his eyes on Rinoa, tears of joy now covering her face. She gave Diana another hug before turning to give Patti a hug as well.
"So, what happens now?" Laguna suddenly asked.
"Rinoa will go back to school and she decided to share custody with Ian. Ian's wife decided to come back with their son and promised to help him take care of Diana while Rinoa goes off to finish school."
"That's a good bargain," Laguna replied, nodding in agreement. "But I meant…between us."
"I said thank you didn't I?" Squall turned his head at his father.
"Yes, yes you did." Laguna stuffed his hands in his pockets and sighed. "Well, I better get going then. I have to go back to work since I haven't been back at the office for two weeks now…." He took one more glance towards Squall before turning around to walk back into his car.
"…dad?"
Laguna stopped and looked at him. "Yes?"
Squall turned and walked up to him, also stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Um…We're okay now," he said.
"What?"
The young man shrugged. "I mean…Cloud has practice tomorrow at school and you know, maybe you'd want to come and watch him play I mean…if you're not too busy-!"
"I'll be there," Laguna interrupted.
With this reply, Squall was surprised. "Okay…Um…I'll see you there then."
Laguna shook his head and smiled. "No, I'll see you tonight at dinner."
"Yeah, okay I'll see you there."
"All right then." After that, he turned and left, hopping back inside his car.
"Hey, Squall?" Squall turned around. Rinoa was standing there with a big smile on her face and with her hands clasped behind her back, her head tilted to the side which Squall found rather cute. "So your dad left already?"
Squall nodded. "Yeah. He had to go back to work."
"That's all right with you?"
"Yeah, I think so."
Rinoa smiled. "That's good. I wanted to say thank you to him so I guess I'll say thanks to you as well. So um…" She went on her tip toes and gave Squall a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you."
"Rinoa…" Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into a tight hug. "I love you," he whispered in her ear.
Rinoa closed her eyes and returned his embrace. "I love you too, Squall."
GoodGurl: WOOHOO! This chapter is FINALLY over! I hope you like and was quite satisfied with the ending! HEE HEE! REVIEW PLEASE! THANK YOU! ^^