Chapter 3

That Day

"That day, that day,

What a mess, what a marvellous mess….."

Natalie Imbruglia, That Day

"What the hell do you want from me Claire?" He said angrily. "One minute you hand me divorce papers and the next you wont sign them!"

"I just don't know anymore! I thought maybe you might think our marriage is worth saving!" She screamed.

"What do you want me to say?" He asked quietly.

"If you don't know then I don't want you to say anything. I want you to go off with your whore and have a nice life. Ben treats me better than you ever did anyway." She hissed.

"So I guess you'll sign the papers when you get home, will you Claire? Honey?" He yelled after her before she slammed the door behind herself. That was the last thing he ever said to her while she was conscious.

"Stella" He said croakily.

"I know baby, I'm on my way." She said and pressed her foot onto the accelerator a little harder.

One thing she had always respected about their relationship was their ability to change it at the drop of a hat. When they were lovers they were still best friends but right now his wife was dying and they were best friends, nothing more and certainly never anything less.

There would be no time spent worrying about their own relationship because he needed her, and when she heard that tone in his voice, that desperate pleading tone that was his way of saying 'jump' she didn't ask why, she asked how far and how many times.

"What should I say to her?" He asked, puffy eyed and raspy voiced.

"Tell her you love her." Stella said quietly with a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"I…I'm not…." He gave up and shook his head.

"Tell her about all the good times. Tell her how grateful you are for them and how she changed you." He nodded and swallowed as his eyes brimmed with tears and he blinked them back fiercely.

"Oh, Mac." She whispered and hugged his head to her body.

"I'm going to get you some coffee." She kissed the top of his head and walked to the door.

"Talk to her okay? She needs to hear that you're not going to leave it on bad terms." She said and walked out the door.

When they were really stuck on a case they said they were caught in the Twilight. Right now Stella had the sickening feeling that they were going to be caught in the longest Twilight of their lives but she was damned if she wasn't going to be fumbling around for the answer half blind with him.