Chapter 13 - Parole Possibility
Piper stood in the bathroom on a stool and lifted her shirt up to her bra. She looked down at her stomach then up at the mirror, where she could see the scars better. She held her shirt up with one hand and gently touched the scars with the other. She ran her finger along one.
The door opened and Piper jumped. Her hand flew to her heart and her shirt fell back down. "Oh, it's just you," she said.
"Just me?" Leo teased.
Piper smiled. "You know what I mean."
Leo stepped inside the bathroom and closed the door behind him. "What're you doing?" he asked quietly.
Piper sighed. "…They're kind of going away…" she whispered about the scars, lifting her shirt up again to look.
Leo, eye-level with Piper's stomach since she was on the stool, reached up and touched one of the scars. "It's been a year, Piper…I don't think they're going to fade anymore…"
Piper sighed, knowing the truth. "You're right, I know…"
Leo could see that knowing that bothered her, so he added, "They might, though…You never know."
Piper smiled slightly. "Thanks." She let her shirt drop back down. She held her arms out to Leo and stepped off the stool into his arms. He set her back on her own two feet. "Thanks again."
"Anytime. Now I have to go to work." Leo opened the bathroom door and left the room.
"Hey!" Piper yelled, following him. "Did you eat breakfast?"
Leo grabbed a black bag from a stool in the kitchen. Letters were embroidered on it that read: San Francisco Police Department, Precinct 12—Wyatt, Leo. He turned around. "Toast."
Piper smiled. "That's not breakfast."
"Fine, I'll get coffee and a doughnut at work. Look, I'm a stereotype!"
Piper laughed. "Wait up!" She ran to catch up with Leo, who was putting his coat on. She grabbed her coat, too.
"Where're you going?"
"Inventory at the club. I'll walk out with you."
"Okay."
"Whatcha need, Kid?"
"I want to know about a Daniel Gordon."
Amy looked up. Adam, who was leaning over her shoulder helping her find something on a computer, straightened up. "What about him?" Amy asked.
"What prison is he at?"
"Leo told you about him?" Adam asked.
Mike nodded.
"He moves around."
"How long is he in prison for?"
"…He's uh…" Adam paused.
"He's up for parole next week," Amy said quietly. "Don't tell Leo. Ron is telling him tomorrow night."
Piper smiled when she looked out the kitchen window. It was dusk, and the light was going away, but she could see clearly out the window into the backyard. The Wyatt brothers had started some sort of strange football game in the backyard. Right now they were huddled together in a circle, arm over shoulder. Piper watched as they exchanged a few plays, nodding sometimes and breaking the circle to act out a play.
They suddenly shouted, "Break!" and ran off in different directions. Piper saw that they left the football where their circle was. They all turned around and counted out loud in unison. "One...Two..."
Before they could shout "three", Jake took off for the ball. Ron and Leo exchanged a quick glance before sprinting after Jacob. Leo tackled the youngest Wyatt brother first, and Ron piled on top of them both.
Piper laughed. She pushed the window up and stuck her head out. "You boys are crazy!" she yelled.
Leo untangled himself from the mess. Jake jumped up with the football and held it over his head. Leo pushed him away and stepped in front of his brothers. He held his arms out and started singing. "You may be right! I may be crazy!"
Ron and Jake jumped up with Leo. "But it just might be a lunatic that you're looking for!" they all sang.
Piper laughed and shook her head. She closed the window.
"You may be wrong but you may be right…You may be wrong but you may be right…" the brothers sang loudly.
The next day, Ron pulled Leo away and into his office. He sat Leo down at his own desk and stood in front of him.
"What is this?" Leo asked, confused.
"The rest of the station decided I should be the one to tell you…" Ron started. He closed his eyes briefly, knowing that the fun they had yesterday may be the last time they have fun in a while.
"Tell me what?"
Ron sighed. "Dan…"
Leo abruptly stood up. "What about him?"
"They…He's up for parole."
"What? What the hell do you mean 'he's up for parole'?" Leo demanded, knowing full well what parole was and what it meant for Piper.
"Don't worry, his chances aren't good. He's just been a good prisoner and they wanna take a look."
"Don't worry?" Leo scoffed, throwing an arm in the air. "Why shouldn't I worry if the man who tried to rape and kill my wife has a chance of being on the streets again? Ron, he soaked our room with her blood! How can they let him back on the street?"
Ron sighed. "I don't know. If it was up to me…" He shook his head.
"Oh my God," Leo groaned, running a hand through his hair. He fell back into the chair. "What am I gonna tell Piper?"
"Don't tell her until anything's final. She doesn't need the stress of worrying about it."
"And I do?"
"One of you needed to know. It's only fair…"
Leo nodded. "Thanks," he said honestly.
Between shifts, Piper called from her restaurant to tell Leo her car broke down and she needed a ride home. He waited in the parking lot for her and watched her run out with a laptop bag slung over one shoulder. A wide-spanning thundercloud had rolled over the sky, and as Piper stepped outside, there was a boom and the thunder dropped its rain on her.
She jogged up to the car and tried to open the door, but it was locked. She looked up at Leo, who was avoiding eye contact with her, beating his hands on the steering wheel rhythmically to a song on the radio.
"Leo!" Piper cried.
Leo looked over as if he'd just noticed her trying to open the locked door.
"Leo, let me in!" Piper laughed.
"It's gonna cost ya."
"I am getting soaked out here!"
Leo leaned over to examine Piper's soaking wet body as best he could. When he was satisfied, he unlocked the door. Piper flung it open and climbed in. She slammed the door shut, then set her laptop bag in the backseat of the truck.
"Took you long enough."
He smiled, but had trouble looking into her eyes. Ron's news had troubled him, and he'd been on edge ever since.
"Why the off-duty truck?" Piper asked, mentioning the fact that Leo had picked her up in his own truck, not the squad car. He shrugged. Frowning, Piper asked, "Are you okay?"
He nodded, then switched to a different radio station and found a song to listen to.
My Lady D'Arbanville
Why do you sleep so still?
I'll wake you tomorrow
And you will be my fill
Yes you will be my fill
"What's the name of this," Piper asked offhandedly, trying to get Leo to warm up a bit.
"Lady D'Arbanville."
"Ah, I knew that. Cat Stevens…" Piper watched her husband for a moment, noticing how he never moved his eyes off of the road—which was fine, because it was raining, but it still seemed abnormal. He was wordlessly singing along to the words of the song.
My Lady D'Arbanville
Why does it grieve me so?
But your heart seems so silent
Why do you breathe so low?
Why do you breathe so low?
My Lady D'Arbanville
Why do you sleep so still?
I'll wake you tomorrow
And you will be my fill
Yes you will be my fill
My Lady D'Arbanville
You look so cold tonight
Your lips feel like winter
Your skin has turned to white
Your skin has turned to white
My Lady D'Arbanville
Why do you sleep so still?
I'll wake you tomorrow
And you will be my fill
Yes you will be my fill
La la la la la la…
La la la la la la…
La la la la la la…
La la la la la la…
La la la la la la…
My Lady D'Arbanville why do you grieve me so?
But your heart seems so silent
Why do you breathe so low?
Why do you breathe so low?
I loved you my lady, though in your grave you lie
I'll always be with you
This rose will never die
This rose will never die
I loved you my lady
Though in your grave you lie
I'll always be with you
This rose will never die
This rose will never die
As the song faded softly, Piper asked, "So how'd it go at work?"
"Fine."
"Anything happen?"
They made it into the downtown area and past two stoplights before Leo answered with, "Nothing much. The usual."
"…Oh." Piper sighed. "What aren't you telling me?"
"I didn't have the best day, is all."
"Leo…"
"Piper, please. Just leave it alone," he said sharply, but pleadingly.
She nodded slowly. "Yeah, sure. Okay."
Piper let the subject drop for two days, and observed her husband's behavior in that time. She noticed a change in Leo's attitude mostly. He was more nervous, more on edge. The night before, she half-expected him to pull a gun on a man who came up from behind him to ask the time.
"So what weren't you telling me earlier?" she finally asked. Leo's behavioral change was worrying her. For the past few weeks, Leo had been better about being able to sleep all night. But the past two days were another story all their own. He hadn't slept in thirty-six hours, and spent an entire night straight through working at the station.
"What?"
"A couple days ago. You were about to tell me something, I know it," Piper yelled from the bedroom of her house. She was fixing her hair in front of the vanity mirror, and Leo was in the living room. "Hold on." She finished and walked into the living room. "Now…Will you tell me what's bothering you?"
"Nothing."
"Leo…Don't lie to me. I know when you're lying, you know…"
Leo took his wife in his arms and looked down at her. "It's okay."
"No it's not. I know it. I know you." Piper's eyes were desperate. She wanted to know what was bothering him, so that maybe she could help. Leo sighed. He led Piper over to the couch and sat her down, taking his own seat beside her. "Leo…" she started, wanting to say something comforting.
"You know me too well…I wasn't going to say anything until it was final, but…" Sighing, he ran a hand over his hair.
"What is it?" Piper asked, moving closer to Leo.
"Ron came to me the other day and told me that, uh…" Leo sighed. "Dan…"
Piper breathed deeply. "What about him?" she asked, trying to stay calm, even though she was already panicking. She was panicking and all Leo had done was say his name…
Leo closed his eyes momentarily, then opened them again. "He's…He's up for parole in a few days."
Piper took in a sharp breath. "Oh." She nodded slightly. "Okay...How good are his chances?"
"Piper..."
"I said, how good are his chances? Will he make parole?" she demanded, not making eye contact with Leo.
He sighed. "They're not bad...My best guess is it's fifty/fifty..."
"But, Leo, how can they let him go after what he did?" Piper cried, standing up and failing her arms out.
Leo stood up as well and put his hands on hers to steady her. "Piper, listen. He's not going to get out. He's not," he assured her.
"...Why didn't you tell me until now?" Piper asked quietly.
"I didn't want you to be scared."
"Well I'm freaking scared, Leo!" Piper cried, throwing her hands up in the air again.
Leo took her in his arms. "It's okay, Piper...He's not getting to you. I promise. He won't hurt you."
Two tears slipped out of Piper's terrified eyes and trailed down her cheeks. She didn't want to relive last year. She couldn't.