Disclaimer: I don't own anyoneother than Mak, Aiden, and the Luther guy.

Chapter 12

1st Tuesday, 3:40 p.m.

Lucy flung open her drawers and grabbed every pair of pants that she liked. She stuffed them into her suit case and began walking to her closet when the door bell rang. She went to answer it. "Hi Myles, Jack. What's up?"

"Nothing, we just figured that we might be able to help you ladies pack up a bit faster." Jack said.

She moved out of the doorway to let the men enter. "We still have half an hour until we need to get going."

"It never hurts to get there a little early." Myles said.

"I suppose so." She looked around. "I'm just about finished, I'm not sure how far along Sue is though."

"I'll go check," Jack offered a bit to fast, causing an odd look from Myles and a twinkle in Lucy's eye when she smiled at Jack, knowingly.

"Go ahead," Myles said, "I'll help Lucy."

Jack had already left. Lucy looked at Myles skeptically, "You're going to help me?"

"Don't look so surprised, I'm doing this for the sake of the case."

"Right," she peered at the back of his head as he made his way to Lucy's bedroom. She followed him. "You can get my stuff from my closet, just grab whatever you think I might need and stuff it in my suit case. I'm going to get my stuff from the bathroom."

"No problem." He watched her leave. He opened the closet and began transferring shirts to the large bag. He stopped when he saw a sexy black dress. He swallowed hard, forcing the lump to go down. He felt the silky fabric; it was soft against his finger tips.

Lucy's voice made him jump, just a little. "You can put that in, too. You never know when you'll need to dress up." She hooked a smaller bag that he guessed carried her make-up onto the larger one.

"Right." He took it of the hanger and folded it neatly into the suitcase. "Is that everything?" he asked about twenty minutes later.

"Yep. I think so. I'll go get Sue and Jack. Do you mind bring my bags to the front door?"

"No, not at all." Myles said, causing an odd look from Lucy.

She was at the doorway when Jack ran into her. He said, "I just got a call from Bobby, we need to go. Right now."
1st Tuesday 3:30 pm

Makenzee packed quickly. Not because she wanted to be stuck with seven other people in one house, but because she couldn't stand being alone with Bobby who was now waiting in the kitchen until she was finished packing. She wanted to stay mad at him, to hold onto the bitterness and cutting pain. She froze when she saw the barrette…

"Just wait right here for a second," Bobby instructed after they finished their dessert. He stood up and returned a few seconds later with a perfectly wrapped box the width of her hand. Makenzee opened it and what was inside took her breath away. A barrette. A gorgeous, fully bloomed rose. It began a dusty pink in the center, faded to a clean white and around the edges a soft pink made the whole flower shine beautifully. The entire barrette looked as though it was made of white gold but it was too light. Finally, she regained her breath and exclaimed, "It's gorgeous, Bobby! Wow, I'm just speechless. Uh, thank you so much! I can't wait to wear it!" She hugged Bobby tightly.

"I'm glad you like it."

"Like it? I love it! How did you ever afford this? It looks like it costs thousands!"

"I know people." He silently thanked Howie. "Here, let me help you get it on," Bobby offered. Makenzee pulled back her hair on one side, her wavy hair falling behind her shoulder which was bare except for a thin black strap tying around her neck . Bobby gently slipped it on and looked at the glowing Makenzee. "There. Perfect."

She squealed and jumped up. Makenzee ran to the bathroom and examined it for sixty seconds before skipping back to Bobby, who stood up and twirled her around in a circle. She held him tightly, still no feet touching the ground.

"Thank you so much Bobby. I absolutely, positively love it!" She kissed him, and he

returned the favor. Bobby ran his fingers through her long, silky hair, the other one holding her above the ground. Her arms were wrapped around his neck, and she refused to let go for the world. Makenzee tilted her head to move deeper into the kiss, but only for a few seconds. Finally, their lips parted, and Bobby slowly set Makenzee on the ground, her arms still around his neck, his hand still in her hair.

"I hope this never ends." Makenzee whispered.

The soft spoken words hit Bobby hard…

Makenzee wiped the tears flowing from her eyes. She muttered, "Make way for the water works." And boy, did they ever hit fast and hard. Sobs racked her body; her head tipped forward, hair falling over her shoulder. With slow, but determined motions, she stood up, off the bed that Makenzee had dreamt in so many peaceful nights. She gingerly walked to the full length mirror Bobby had moved into the bedroom for her. With the barrette in one hand, she pulled back her hair with the other. Flashes of Bobby's eyes and his smile distressed her mind. With a shaky hand she slipped the white and pink rose barrette on. When she looked in the mirror she cried even harder. She rested her back on the mirror and slid down to the floor, her hands covering her face.

1st Tuesday 3:40 pm

Bobby started to walk to the bedroom when he stopped dead in his tracks. Makenzee's hollow sobs filled the house. He leaned against the hall wall, his head hit it hard but it didn't even register. He pulled his hands over his face. Bobby whispered miserably, "What have I done? Makenzee doesn't deserve this." His hands dropped to his sides. He didn't know how long he was standing there, but the next time he opened his eyes Makenzee was walking past him, luggage dragging behind her. He straightened and went after her. "Makenzee, I need to talk to you. Please."

"Well, I don't need to talk to you, maybe to a psychiatrist, but not to you." Makenzee said. "I'm ready to leave." She plunked down on the couch.

"Makenzee, I'm begging you." He sat beside her, turned to face her.

A small voice inside of her shouted Yes! Say Yes! But no matter how hard she tried, Makenzee could not bring herself to even think of the possibility of forgiving Bobby. "I'm sorry Bobby. I just don't see what there is that we need to have a deep and meaningful discussion about."

"Mak…"

"Look, Bobby," Makenzee's voice grew an octave louder, "you just don't get it do you? I found out a few hours earlier that everything about you is a lie! You misled me, misused me, and down right ruined my life! You kissed me Bobby! Does that not mean anything to you at all? You deliberately led me to believe that my life could have finally gotten out the rut it's been in! But that was all a lie! A myth! How do you live with yourself knowing that you gave someone a chance to start over only to tell me that everything was bogus, a bunch of hog wash!" She stood up and walked away but Bobby followed, undaunted.

In a last ditch effort he reached for her hands, to hold them, to touch her skin. She responded quickly, not in the way he hoped though.

Anger surged through her body as she slapped him across the cheek with all the might she possessed. When flesh and flesh met, her hand immediately stung. It was safe to say that Bobby's did as well. He winced from the impact. Makenzee stepped up to him, faces an inch apart. With a set jaw she said, "Here's a lesson for you Agent Manning, when a girl tells you not to touch her – don't." She paused. "I'll be waiting in the car."

He watched her storm out the door carrying her luggage with white knuckles. He rubbed his cheek and frowned. He sighed and began packing at a record speed. It took him fifteen minutes to pack and he was out the door. He checked his watch on the way to make sure they weren't late. 4:00 pm. When he got to the parking garage he located his car without even thinking about it. He opened his trunk, then stopped dead in his tracks.

Makenzee's luggage was spilled across the cement. He ran to the passenger side and flung the door open. Makenzee wasn't there. She was gone. His worst nightmares came true; Makenzee wasn't only emotionally gone; now she was literally gone. He grabbed his cell phone and called Jack.

A/N: Review review review if ya want more!