He placed her up in his lap. Max's mind: Ms. Fine! What did you do this time? My daughter never gets this upset unless something happened to you. He looked down at his daughter. He saw a tear slid down her cheek.
"What's the matter?" with that Gracie looked up at her father. "There, there." He stroked her face. "Tell daddy all about it." Max's mind: This must be really bad. I'm not good at comforting people, especially my kids. That was the nanny's job.
"They were..." she swallowed. "Curled up in the bed together this morning."
"They were what?" Max's mind: Did I just hear my daughter right? Ms. Fine and
Niles in the bed together? Na. Can't be. Can it? They wouldn't do that to me. Not in my house they wouldn't.
"I walked passed..." She sniffed. "Passed Fran's room and saw them." She sniffed
again. "I thought it was you." Max's mind: Thought it was me? Where did she get an idea like that? I mean I would never do that to Ms. Fine. Not like that. What did she walk in on? I hope that they where not, should I say it, doing it with each other. "So I went in closer." What? I don't think I want to hear the rest of what she is going to tell me. "I saw Niles...holding her in the bed. So I ran to you. I had to tell you." He placed his daughter back down on the floor. "And I thank you. Now run along. Everything is going to be fine."
"Niles," yells Max. "In the office now!" He fires Niles right on the spot. Niles begs for him not to fire Ms Fine telling Max that it was all his fault for starting it all.
"How could you after all we have been through?"
Niles' mind: I have no excuse except for being a man with say needs. "The better part of me took over.
She..." he sighed knowing this would deeply hurt Max even more. Max's mind: What else could be worse then a loyal friend back stabbing both of the people he cared for?
"She what?"
"She didn't really resist the chance to you know."
"No I don't."
Niles' mind: Look around you stupid idiot. Are you that dumb?
"You know be with a man."
"How dare you say that? You're fired!"
"You already did that sir. I'm leaving anyway." He lowered his head. Tears dripped from his eyes. He didn't even try to stop them. "I've hurt you all."
"That you have."
"Good-bye sir." Niles slammed the door to the office. He sighs, "He'll never understand her. She'll never be happy here." More tears were welling up in his eyes. Niles' mind: I better go before CC gets here. I don't think I could face her either. He feels his heart break. What have I done to this family? What are the kids going to think? What am I thinking? Gracie is the one that turned me in. How could she? What did she tell him? Does he know the whole story or just what he wants to hear? It doesn't matter. I hurt this family, my family to bad. I have to get out of here and I guess go back to London. No one would want me to stay around here. I love you guys. I really do.
Niles sees Fran dozing on the couch. He doesn't have the heart to wake her up to tell her he's leaving. His heart sank even farther. How could I? He writes her a letter, which he places, on her. This way she will be sure to see it. He starts to walk out when CC starts up the driveway. Oh no. I don't think I can handle this. She sees him carrying a small piece of luggage with him.
"Where you going?" she asked.
"Away," he hugs her. Shocked at his behavior hugs him back. "Good-bye Ms. Babcock. I'm going to miss you." He waves as he hails a cab.
"Bye." Still confused as ever. Not only that he was leaving but the way he was talking to her. He was never nice. He always had something to say about her. She watches the cab till she can't see it anymore. Did I miss something here? She shook off the thought as she entered the house.
"Hello, hello."
"Uh..." Fran wakes up, the letter falls to the floor. "What's this?"
"It's a letter, read it."
"Ms. Babcock..."
"I understand. I understand." She walks to the office.
Fran opens the letter and begins to read it to herself.
Dear Ms. Fran Fine,
Sorry about last night. It started out as an innocent kiss and it should have stopped there but... anyway Max knows about it and he fired me. I told him that it was all my fault. Which, mostly it was. I saw you sleeping out in the living room this morning after all this took place. I didn't have the heart or courage at that time to wake you and tell you I was leaving for good. I've betrayed not only you but the only real family that I had so I can't tell you were I'm going. I'll call you when things especially things with me clam down and we can talk. I hope we still can be friends but I'm thinking that's too unlikely anymore. So I wanted to say bye and take care.
Your best pal (and always will be, hopefully)
Niles,
"MR. Sheffield!" Fran screams headed to the office. But Max beats her and is standing at the edge of the den.
"Yes, Ms. Fine." Fran's mind: How can he be so calm after just firing his butler? How did Max find out? Did Niles tell him or was it one of the kids? But how would any of them know.
"How could you do this? How could you fire him?"
"You're the one who knows. You know the rules of this house." He slams the door to the office scaring CC half to death. She jumped. "Sorry CC. But I think I want to be alone today. Take the day off." She takes the hint and leaves him. Both her and Fran hear him crying his eyes out.
"He's right I do!" Fran sniffs and runs up stairs. "I have to leave here too." Now CC was really confused first Niles then Fran were leaving, and Max was crying. What was going on? CC's mind: Something major happened just a little while ago but what? She wondered. As Fran is packing she starts to think of Niles. Fran's mind: I have to find him. She races to the airport but sees no one. Ask the sturdiest when the first flights out are.
"We have many flights that have left today already." Fran tries to find out which flight that Niles would have taken. Fran's mind: Where would he go? Would he go back home to London or to Paris or where would he go? I don't know. She thinks that she can narrow it down if she knew which ones have left in the last hour.
"What flights have left in the last hour." The sturdiest looks at the computer screen in front of her.
"Let's see, we had one to Paris, two to London, three to California, one to Denver and one to Chicago." Fran's mind: What all of those he could have taken? How on earth am I going to know which one he was on? He has been to all of them. Now what? Still seeing her confused look. The sturdiest asked, "Which one were you looking for?"
"Any of them. Oh I don't know? I was looking for a friend. I guess he's gone."
"Without saying good-bye uh."
"Yeah, I was going to try to stop him."
"What's their name? Maybe I can look him up."
"Would ya do that?"
"Well we aren't supposed to but I will." She winked at Fran. "Husband?"
"No just friend. Good friend at that."
"Name?"
"Oy," Fran had to think about that one. "I only know him as Niles."
"Let me see what I can do ma'am."
"Oh thank you."
"It will take a little while to search." Fran thanks the lady again. Then goes to
some of the empty chairs to sit and wait. What else can she do at this point? Fran's mind: We have been though too much together for him just to tell Max what happened. What would drive him to do that? I guess he was so loyal to Max that he could stand living with himself. Out of the corner of her eye she thinks she spots someone she knows sitting at the bar. No can't be? But I have to find out. She walks over to the bar and sure enough it is.
"Ms. Babcock."
"Nanny Fine." CC turns around on the stool.
"Where are you going?" CC's mind: What does it look like Nanny Fine? Getting
me some booze. Trying to calm my nerves.
"Little vacation. Let Max get over this, what ever it is. What's it to you?" Fran's mind: Yeah right she's running from something but what? She did the same thing before. She did get the day off so maybe she does have a good reason but I doubt it. She's to complicated for me to understand her. Fran sits down on a stool next to her.
"What can I get you ma'am?" the bartender asked Fran.
"Nothing, thanks."
"And you?" now attending to CC.
"Anything hard." Fran stares over at her. Fran's mind: Something was really bothering her. She never drinks the hard stuff unless something is wrong. What is going on with you CC? Talk to me. Yeah, right CC open up to me. That will be the day that hell freezes over.
"So where you going so fast?" Getting a little annoyed CC made something up.
"Paris maybe. Or London? Haven't decided Nanny Fine. What's it to you? Can't someone go somewhere without all the questions? And besides what are you doing here? This is not the place I suspected to see you."
"I was...Wait a minute. You're not looking for Niles by any chance are you?"
"Niles?" CC tried to ask surprised as she could. "What about Niles? What happened to him?" CC's mind: Hell yeah I want to know what made Maxwell fire him all of a sudden. Was it something she did? She couldn't live with herself if it was. Or was Nanny Fine to blame for this? Or was it that Maxwell felt threatened by Niles? She had to know, this would drive her crazy not knowing the whole truth. And she wanted to know about the attitude that he was giving to her. Had given her. "I'm glade his gone. One less thing for me to worry about." Who was she kidding? She had never been so worried about someone in her life before. CC's mind: Where did he go? Was he going to be ok out on his own? Was he coming back or was he gone forever?
"Ms. Babcock you are cold hearted. You don't care about anyone." And with that Fran left the bar.
"Nanny Fi..." CC started but Fran kept walking off. Fran's mind: The nerve of that woman, all she cares about is herself and her booze. We don't need that Niles do we. She look up towards the ceiling and shook her head. She could feel the tears running down her face. Fran's mind: Will I ever see him again? Why didn't I do more the stop him? Why?
