Chapter 16: The Second Forty Years
Jack and Kate toasted the New Year with ginger ale and a kiss while snuggling with Mason in Kate's hospital bed. They both laughed as the baby yawned and squirmed then fell back to sleep. They were entranced with their new son. All of the pain and the fear of a few hours ago were forgotten. All that mattered was that they were together and they had a healthy child.
Bob Warner had gone home after spending some time with Kate. He knew she needed to rest and she needed to spend some time with Jack. He had teased Jack on the way to the hospital. "Gee, Jack, not every couple gets to spend their wedding night in the hospital. It sounds romantic to me!" Despite his teasing, he was keenly aware that the couple had not had any time to themselves and he was going to make sure that they got some, even if it was in the hospital. So he kissed Kate and Mason goodbye and shook Jack's hand and went home.
Giving Kate and Jack some space wasn't Bob's only motivation for heading home. Grace was at his house helping Kim and Michelle clean up. He had only met Grace that day, but found himself attracted to her in a way he hadn't felt since his wife died. He felt tongue tied when he tried to talk to her. He was amused at the fact that he was 65 years old and acting like a kid.
When he got home, Bob was happy to find that the clean up was finished and the others had gone home to their own New Year's Eve celebrations. Grace had changed into some casual clothes and was in the kitchen helping herself to a cup of tea. "So how are mother and baby?" She asked as Bob walked through the kitchen door.
"They're both fine, Grace." He smiled at her. "Thank you so much for being here. Kate really needed you."
"I'm glad I was here. I'm not sure I did all that much, but I'm glad I was here." She sipped her tea. "Oh, can I get you something to drink?"
Bob looked at his watch. "We've got a little over an hour until midnight, let's see what I have in here to celebrate with." He walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of fine champagne. "How about this?" He said as he popped the cork.
They sat in the kitchen and drank champagne and talked. Bob found he was no longer tongue tied, he assumed that the champagne was helping a bit. He enjoyed his conversation with Grace. As midnight approached, they took the glasses out near the pool. The evening was cool, probably around 55 degrees, but clear and pleasant. They could hear the fireworks in the distance that marked LA's New Year's celebration. They toasted the New Year with champagne and a soft kiss.
Kate and Mason were discharged from the hospital less than 48 hours after his birth and they returned to Bob's house. Jack went back to rehab where he continued to work tirelessly to regain his strength and mobility. Kate and Mason visited him every day. Jack was sure he could see his new son growing and changing daily and he couldn't have been prouder.
On February 1st at 10pm, as planned, Marie Warner was executed. Bob and Kate respected her wishes and were not present. Jack and Tony, as the prosecution's key witnesses against her, were asked to attend and both did so reluctantly. Jack's presence made both Kate and Bob feel better, as though they had a representative there for them. The press had a field day when they found out that Jack was not only the key witness against Marie Warner, but also, now her brother-in-law and they hounded him mercilessly as he entered the prison.
Bob and Kate spent the emotional evening sitting in Bob's den waiting for Jack to call and say it was over. Kate held Mason and watched him sleep, refusing to put him in his crib. At the moment, he was her only link with reality, the only reason to put any hope in the future. She looked at his innocent face, so pink and chubby, and wondered how she would ever explain all of this to him. Jack finally called around 10:30. His voice was flat and emotionless as he reported that Marie was dead. Kate knew how hard this was for Jack. He was very torn. On one hand, he nearly died because of this woman and some of his colleagues did die; there was no doubt in his mind that the punishment was just. On the other hand, Marie was Kate's sister, Bob's daughter; these two people loved her and would grieve for her when she was gone. It saddened him to see two people he loved in such pain.
Jack eventually arrived at Bob's house after midnight. Bob and Kate were still waiting up for him. He convinced them that they all needed to go to bed even if they didn't get much sleep. When Kate finally got into bed with him after feeding Mason, she broke down and began to cry. Jack held her much of the night just listening to her cry. There was nothing he could say or do to make the situation any better, so he just held her.
Kate and Jack, along with their new son, moved to Seattle eight weeks after his birth. Moving days are trying under the best of circumstances, but moving with an eight week old and a husband who was still not doing everything for himself had exhausted Kate. She was tired, but so happy to finally be home with Jack. In bed together, in our own home, she thought happily. Jack was sitting up in bed reading when Kate finished in the bathroom, checked Mason for the tenth time and got into bed beside him. Neither said a word as Kate turned off the light and they moved toward each other. In the eight weeks that they had been married, other than the night Marie was executed, this was the first night they had shared a bed. They sat in the center of the bed kissing and caressing, undressing each other, both moaning uncontrollably. Jack laid Kate down kissing her body tenderly. As he stroked the inside of her thighs, he could feel her raise her pelvis, silently letting him know how much she wanted him. He continued to stroke her, teasing her. He felt her hand slide down his chest and abdomen, past the scars that no longer mattered to him. All that mattered was that she loved him and they were here together. He groaned as she took him in her hand and began to stroke him. The feeling was overwhelming to the point that it took his breath away. He took his hands off of her and lay back on the pillows. Now Kate sat up and began kissing him and rubbing her body against his while she continued to stroke him. He lay on the bed limp and moaning until he could take no more. He reached up and pulled her down to him. They kissed deeply and at the same time, Jack rolled her over. Slowly he climbed on top of her and eased himself inside of her as they both groaned. Their need for each other was so great, they immediately picked up a fast rhythm which they maintained until they were both spent. They lay in bed, both smiling in the darkness. On a cold night in Seattle, their bodies were damp with sweat, the room perfumed with the musky sent of their love.
They settled in quickly. Jack continued in rehab in Seattle but had made enough progress that he could live at home and go to the facility during the day for therapy. He could now walk well with only a cane and could make the stairs with some difficulty. They expected that within the next six months he would no longer need the cane.
Kate went back to work in April. She hired a housekeeper who also watched Mason while Jack was in therapy, but when he was home, Jack was reveling in being a stay-at-home dad. On nice days he put Mason in the stroller and took him to the park or sometimes they would drive into the city and meet Kate for lunch. Everyone was amazed at the change in Jack. He was not the same person who ran CTU with an intensity that was sometimes frightening. He had become warm and gentle, a side of him that only a few had ever seen. When Kate told him all those months ago that maybe it was good that he could no longer run he had been terribly hurt by her words. Now he understood what she meant. His slower pace, in all aspects of life, allowed him to see and enjoy his world as he never had before.
Jack still had a number of contacts from his CTU days. He received a call one day from an official at a midsized regional airport near Seattle. The man found out from a mutual friend that Jack was in Seattle and he wanted to know if Jack would be interested in reviewing the airport's security protocols. Jack initially turned him down, but the man persisted and was willing to pay Jack a large consulting fee. Jack and Kate certainly didn't need the money, but this seemed an interesting diversion. It was something he could do at home while Mason slept or after Kate got home in the evening, so he eventually agreed. It didn't take long for word to spread that Jack was available for security consulting. He was inundated with calls and, although he enjoyed the work, he was determined to spend as much time with his son as possible, so he agreed to only the local jobs and he carefully guarded his time with his son and wife. He was just about to turn down a major consulting job offer at the international airport in San Francisco when he thought about Tony. Tony was still working with the software company and claimed to enjoy it, but Jack thought his talents were being wasted. He asked the housekeeper to watch Mason, something he rarely did, and called Tony. Let's meet for lunch, he said. I've got a proposal for you.
They met and Jack outlined the proposal. He easily was getting enough offers to employ Tony full time and himself part time and still ensure a good salary. Jack would take the local jobs, that would leave Tony the better paying big jobs that sometimes required overnight travel. Tony wasn't sure at first. He admitted that he was sometimes bored in his current job, but the pay was great and so were the hours. Michelle was bringing in some money with her new business, but, as even she admitted, not enough to pay the mortgage. When he considered that their first child was due in the next few days and Michelle would not be working at all for a while, he wasn't sure he wanted to chance it.
Jack understood but offered to get Tony more information and work up the hard numbers. Tony agreed that he would talk with Michelle. That night, Jack told Kate about his discussion with Tony. She went to her desk and pulled out a calculator and some ledger paper. Then she asked Jack some questions and started jotting down figures. Before long Jack was showing her contracts he had been offered and payments he had received. Until that moment Kate really hadn't paid much attention to the work Jack was doing or what he was being paid. The truth was that she liked that he had something to do other than take care of himself and the baby. She was afraid that being a house husband and full time daddy would lose its appeal after a while. He enjoyed the work and she didn't care how much he was being paid because they didn't need the money. Now she realized how lucrative this business could be. A half hour later she looked up from her calculations somewhat surprised.
"Jack, when I annualize these figures for you working twenty to thirty hours a week and Tony working forty to forty-eight hours, you guys could gross almost half a million dollars a year. Even when you deduct expenses like mileage, travel, some marketing fees, a small office and a secretary, Tony would probably bring home $200,000 a year. Obviously there are no guarantees, but I can't believe my calculations are off by a lot." She stopped to think for a second. "Call Tony and Michelle and invite them over for dinner this weekend. We can talk about it. I can sweeten the pot a little and that may convince him."
"Sweeten the pot? How?"
"Well, Warner Enterprises owns some office space that was recently vacated, so I was planning to rent it out. I can give it to you guys for a while so that all you are covering are the taxes and utilities. I can't do that forever, we have stockholders that will eventually complain, but I can do it for the first six months. And, if the business fails, which I don't think it will, I will guarantee Tony a job with Warner Enterprises. I can always use his computer skills. It may not be exactly the job he wants, but it will tide him over until he finds what he is looking for."
Jack showed the proposal to Tony over dinner that weekend. He and Michelle agreed that this was too big an opportunity to pass up. Jack and Tony would meet Monday with a lawyer and draw up a contract. As they sat in Kate and Jack's living room eating dessert that night, they had no idea that meeting would mark the start of a 25 year partnership; one that lasted until they both decided it was time to retire. After a couple of years, they had so much business that they needed to take on a partner. They offered the position to Chase, but he declined.
Chase was moving up through the ranks of Division and District. He and Kim were married a year and a half after Jack and Kate and settled south of LA. Neither of them liked the weather in Seattle and decided that they would stay where they were. They added to their family when Kim gave birth to a daughter, Theresa Marie, named in memory of Teri. Neither Jack nor Kim could bear to call her 'Teri' so she was nicknamed 'Tess' instead. They had a son three years later who they named Jackson Chase.
Just a few days after Jack and Tony signed their business contract, Tony and Michelle had their first child; a son they named Ricardo Antonio. Ric and Mason grew up together as best friends only seven months apart in age. The two looked like polar opposites. Ric had Tony's dark complexion, eyes and hair while Mason was blond and blue eyed and fair skinned. Ric was joined less than two years later by a baby sister, Lucia Ann, who everyone called Lucy. Tony and Michelle completed their family with a second daughter, Carmen Michelle, who was three years younger than Lucy.
For the first few months after Kate and Jack moved to Seattle, Bob Warner shuttled back and forth regularly between Los Angeles and Seattle. He found he was only happy when he was with his family in Seattle. He enjoyed spending time with Kate and Jack and Mason, who had his grandfather wrapped around his tiny finger. Los Angeles had become a grim reminder of all of the sadness in his life. It was filled with memories of his late wife and Marie and all of her horrible crimes. Additionally, he had started dating Grace, which made Kate enormously happy. After several months of commuting between the cities, Bob moved to Seattle and transferred the headquarters of Warner Enterprises there as well. He and Grace were married the next New Year's Eve; one year to the day after they had met.
Bob and Grace bought a large condominium in Seattle where they spent their week days. The weekends were spent at a house on Puget Sound that they always referred to as "the cottage." The cottage was a six bedroom ranch style house that fronted the water and had its own pier where Bob could keep his boat. It was the perfect place for everyone to get together. Grace had three children and seven grandchildren, they, along with Kate and Jack and Mason, were at the cottage frequently. Weekends and holidays often saw the blended family, which regularly included the Almeidas, (since they didn't have family nearby) celebrating together.
By the time Mason was a year old, Jack and Kate were already talking about having another child. A second son, Ryan David, was born a little more than two years after Mason. This baby was named for Ryan Chappelle and former President David Palmer. Jack and the former President remained friends and kept in touch. Palmer's health had deteriorated after he left office. The after effects of the assassination attempt and the emotional trauma he had suffered from the murder of his ex-wife and the ensuing legal investigation, in which brother was found guilty of obstructing a police investigation, all played a part in his decline. Sherry's role in the death of Allen Milliken was never discovered but David was always plagued with guilt for lying to protect her. In truth, had he not lied, she probably would have been in police custody that morning and would not have been killed by Julia Milliken.
The boys grew up happy and fun-loving. Mason had Jack's impetuous streak, but a business sense that clearly came from the Warner side of the family. Kate and Jack both missed him when he left for college in Chicago. He was majoring in business but had a freshman English class with a pretty computer science major named Laura Wilhelm. The two dated throughout their college years and decided to marry soon after graduation. Mason had been accepted at the prestigious Wharton School of Business in Pennsylvania, so the young couple moved there. Once Mason finished his MBA, they moved to Seattle and he began working for Warner Enterprises where Kate had succeeded her father as the CEO following his retirement at age 72.
Bob and Grace enjoyed their retirement. They spent time traveling and keeping up with grandchildren. Bob died following a brief illness when he was 85. Grace, who was six years younger than Bob, lived less than three years following his death. She had now been widowed twice. The first time she was forced to go on because she had children to raise. This time, it seemed that the life had been taken out of her once Bob was gone. She simply lost all will to live. He had made her incredibly happy in the twenty years they spent together and she was never able to reconcile herself with his passing. Grace retreated into her own world and eventually died quietly at the cottage, the place she loved most in the world.
Ryan left for college shortly after his grandfather died. He was a quiet, studious young man that reminded everyone of Kate. He went to Stanford and majored in economics, just like his mother. He eventually expanded his major to include education. He loved teaching and was soon enrolled in graduate school to get a Ph.D. in economics. After graduation, he got a position as an assistant professor at a small college in Washington State. By then, Mason was CEO of Warner Enterprises and begged his younger brother to come on board with him. Ryan refused; he loved teaching too much he said, maybe someday, but not now.
Holidays were always special for the Bauer family. Ryan was home for Christmas, just shy of his 29th birthday. He celebrated at the cottage with his parents and his brother and sister-in-law, who now had two children, a son Justin and a daughter Katie. Kim and Chase were there with their children who were now grown and had families of their own. Somehow everyone always ended up at the cottage for at least one holiday every year. Included in the mix were Grace's family, although she was gone now, and the Almeidas. It was there that Ryan seemed to notice Carmen Almeida for the first time. He had known her since she was born, but she was always just Ric and Lucy's kid sister. Ryan and Lucy were the same age and Lucy was a tomboy who took pride in her ability to keep up with Ric, Mason and Ryan. Carmen was quiet, like Michelle, with pretty brown curls and dark eyes. She always played on her own with lots of dolls and girl things. Ryan could honestly say he never paid any attention to her.
After the party broke up and everyone had gone, Ryan sat with his father and brother and Chase having a beer. Kate walked in and looked around the room. She eyed Ryan and casually said, "You and Carmen certainly looked like you were enjoying yourselves."
Ryan smiled, "We had a nice conversation. I didn't know that she is teaching high school Spanish and History. She looks great. I didn't remember her being that pretty."
"Ry, are you living on Mars?" Mason hooted. "Carmen Almeida has been gorgeous all of her life."
Jack was laughing, too. "Tony used to sit on the porch and clean his gun when all of the interested boys came over to see her. He started with a handgun and eventually moved up to a shotgun. I thought he was going to have to buy and assault rifle. I told him once he had the cleanest guns in the country. Half the boys in your high school were interested in her. You never noticed?"
"She was a freshman when I was a senior, Dad. I wasn't particularly interested in the freshman girls." Ryan said sheepishly. "I wonder what she's doing New Year's Eve."
"Well, if you are interested, you better call her soon. That's less than a week away. A girl likes a little notice." Jack teased him.
"Yeah, like getting engaged on Christmas and getting married New Year's Eve." Ryan needled right back.
"Something like that." Jack laughed.
Ryan called Carmen who was more than happy to spend New Year's Eve with him. They started dating steadily and were married a year and a half later. They settled down near the college where Ryan taught about two hours outside of Seattle. Eventually Mason wore him down. Ryan and Carmen moved back to Seattle and Ryan became Chief Financial Officer at Warner Enterprises while teaching part time at a college in the city.
When Jack turned 80, Kate had a huge party at the cottage. All of their friends and family were there. Everyone told their favorite Jack stories and Tony had the crowd nearly doubled over with laughter as he recounted some of Jack's CTU antics. CTU was a subject that Jack, Tony and Michelle rarely broached, they had too many bad memories, but that night Tony regaled everyone with some of the more light hearted moments.
Later, Jack lay in bed with Kate in his arms as he had for the last forty years. He liked this part of the day best. Kate always fell asleep quickly which allowed Jack to spend a few minutes before he fell asleep just watching her, feeling her warm breath on his bare chest, enjoying the soft pressure of her body against his. He often kissed the top of her head as he thanked God for letting him be a part of her life. Tonight as he lay with his sleeping wife, he began to compare the first forty years of his life with the second forty. What an amazing contrast. To begin with, for most of the first forty years, he never thought he would live to see the second forty.
Jack's first forty years were marked by an unhappy childhood. A sensitive child of unloving, alcoholic parents, he quickly developed a hard shell to fend off the hurt. He told himself he didn't need love but that was far from the truth. His teenaged marriage to Teri was evidence that he wanted love more than anything. He was an impetuous 19 year old college student and she a rebellious 18 year old looking to free herself from her parents rule when they ran off and got married. Jack was an English major with dreams of being a college professor but those dreams were derailed when they had a child. If Jack wanted to finish college he would have to join the army to help pay for it. That was the only way they could make ends meet. He got his degree but was committed to the army for four years. He could reduce that to three years if he volunteered for the Special Forces and he did so gladly.
He spent most of the three years deployed in hot spots around the world rarely seeing his young wife and daughter. He came home a different person. His outer shell hardened even more by what he had seen. Teri noticed the difference. He still loved her and Kim, but had even more difficulty accepting their love than he had before. After his actions in the Special Forces, he was sure he no longer deserved to be loved, that his parents were right. He joined the LAPD and enrolled in a master's degree program in criminology. It was his vain attempt to provide some justice in an unjust world. He worked days and went to school at night, spending little time with his family. He had to give Teri credit. She stuck by him through it all. She even took him back after asking him to leave. Then she was suddenly gone, dead. He didn't know how he would go on. He limped along, barely functional until he met Kate. She saved him but he didn't realize what she meant to him until he pushed her away, still believing he neither needed nor deserved love. It wasn't until he was critically wounded and lay near death in the intensive care unit that he realized how much he longed to be loved. He wanted Kate's love and his daughter's love. He just wanted to be loved.
He often credited the terrorist who shot him with giving him his life back. Instead of being instruments of death, the three bullets that nearly ripped him apart became seeds of a new life. He was reborn as the surgeons put him back together in the operating room.
Soon he had Kate back in his life and they had a family. Jack Bauer had finally gotten off the carousel. It no longer took him around and around. It had stopped and he had stepped off. He no longer ran in circles immersing himself in work trying to avoid relationships. He treasured his wife and children and enjoyed his friends and eventually his grandchildren. He kissed the top of Kate's head, thankful for all she had given him, thankful for the chance to have the second forty years.