The next few days passed in a whirlwind of activity. He spent time with both Katherine and Patrick, getting to know all about them and the rest of his family. He learned that this side of his family was of English descent, and still had members living in England, though he wouldn't know them. Neither Patrick nor Katherine had had brothers or sisters, so there were no Aunts, Uncles or cousins to learn about.

His riding skills improved daily as he took to getting up early with Patrick and riding the perimeters of the property. Ellie, as Sam, had said that it was time for her to return to the ship, and Sean had come to get her the day after Lucas' first riding lesson. He took the opportunity to get sun and floated around the pool or lay on the deck for a little while in the early afternoons. In the evenings there were the small, intimate dinners, and then the time spent in the James' library, reading whatever he could get his hands on. At the end of it all there was the comfort and warmth of the feather bed, and the glorious silence of his surroundings. In all truth, he really didn't want to leave, and would have happily stayed on here forever.

He knew though, that his time here was growing short and that tomorrow Sean would come and it would be time for him to meet his other grandparents. Lying in bed, he wondered what they would be like. Would they be as warm and loving as Katherine and Patrick had been? He could only hope so as he drifted off to sleep.

In the morning he woke for his ride with Patrick. When they returned, they sat down to breakfast with Katherine, who looked so sad, even though she was trying to hide it.

"Something wrong Katherine?" Patrick asked.

"Oh…yes and no," she replied, trying to be vague.

"I'll miss you too," Lucas said, hoping that what was bothering him was also what was bothering her.

She smiled at him. "Thank you honey, you read my mind."

"I'll come back, I promise."

"I know you will, I just don't want to see you go. It's been such fun having you here."

"Lucas, I know that with this new situation with Lawrence, that you have no home to really call your own anymore. Your grandmother and I would be proud to have you call this your home, the place where you can come when you get time off or need a break." Patrick said.

Lucas sat back, astonished. "I'd like that. Very much," he replied. He had secretly wanted to ask them about this but had never found the right time or words.

"Excellent," Patrick said with a smile.

"I have a gift for you dear," Katherine said, sliding a box to him across the table.

"You didn't have to do that," Lucas began.

"I wanted to. Open it," she urged, smiling.

Lucas opened the box and looked inside. He gasped when he saw two small medals on a gold chain. Lifting it up, he looked at them. There was a person on each one and he wondered who they were.

Katherine seemed to understand. "I know that you don't know who or what these are, so let me explain. The medal with the man on it is a medal of St. Francis of Paola. He's the patron saint of those associated with the sea. For you to wear it is good luck and means protection for you. The other, the lady, is the Virgin Mary. It was your mother's, I gave it to her when she turned 16. When you wear them, you'll know we are always with you and you are always in our thoughts."

Lucas was speechless, and he fought back the tears that threatened. He had never felt so touched in his life, and it was only one of the very few times he had felt truly loved; though since Ellie had come into his life those moments were growing ever more frequent.

"Do you like them?"

"Yes. Yes, I do, thank you. Will you help me put it on?" he asked Katherine.

Smiling, she stood and came around to where he was sitting. She took the chain from him, unclasping it and putting it around his neck. She fastened it again, then lifted the medals and put them underneath his shirt where they were hidden from view.

"I know boys don't like to wear 'jewelry'" she said with a laugh.

Lucas chuckled. The metal was cool against his skin. "Yeah, I don't know what they might think of me if I show up wearing a necklace," he joked. "Seriously though, I've seen some of the other guys with chains and different things like that."

"Well good, you won't stand out then," Patrick said.

Lucas laughed and they proceeded with their breakfast. Afterwards, Lucas went upstairs to pack his things. He packed slowly, trying to delay the inevitable. As he packed the picture of him and Ellie, he felt the hidden picture of Ellie and Gavin that she had given him that first day. He took them both out and wrapped them in clothing to protect them from breaking.

He heard Sean's car coming up the drive, and he knew the moment to leave had come. He closed his eyes and sighed, for a split second considering the possibility of leaving the SeaQuest and just being here, in this place he now thought of as home, and being normal. He quickly realized that he considered both the SeaQuest and this place home, and that he could never just leave the SeaQuest. They depended on him to work with the ship's systems, it was his job. He would never be just a normal kid, but he could always come back here when he needed to escape from it all.

Sean's knock reverberated through the large house, and Lucas picked up his bag and headed down the stairs. He saw Sean enter just as he reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Hey! Lucas! Have a good time?"

"Yeah, almost too good I think, I don't want to leave!"

"Can't blame you on that one, this is a peaceful place."

Katherine and Patrick entered the entryway from the library and greeted Sean. Katherine, with tears in her eyes, hugged Lucas' tightly.

"Don't forget about us my darling boy," she whispered.

"I won't," he replied, hugging her in return. "I'll miss you both, I'll miss this place."

"It will be so quiet without you!"

Lucas pulled away and gave her a smile, squeezing her hand. "Do you have email?" he asked her.

"Yes of course."

"Here," Lucas said, pulling out one of the same cards he'd given to Jason Barnham that day at the mall. "My email address is on it, as well as any contact information should you need to get a hold of me. You can email me anytime you'd like, I promise I'll respond."

"Thank you Lucas, I'll keep this in a safe place," she said, hugging him again. "Have a safe trip and do call us when you get back to the ship to let us know you've arrived safely."

"I will. Goodbye Grandpa," Lucas said, turning to Patrick.

"Goodbye Lucas. I'll miss our rides in the mornings. Stay safe, don't get into any trouble or accidentally fire some torpedoes," he said with a wink.

Lucas laughed. "I can promise you on the torpedo thing, because I don't have access to those, but the staying out of trouble is a tough one. It always seems to find me, and besides, if I stay out of trouble all of the time it means I'm not having any fun."

Patrick laughed loudly. "Well said my boy well said. Have a good trip."

"I will thank you." Turning to Sean he said, "Ready?"

"When you are."

"Okay," he said, heading toward the door. He turned to look back at Patrick and Katherine one more time, waving to them. They waved back and he turned and walked out, shutting the door behind him, out into the real world once more.