Author's Note: Sorry there hasn't been an update in awhile!
My computer went through some reformatting and I'm still in the process
of looking for all of my files and getting them reuploaded. This
chapter is a bit of a filler episode. Thank you once again to all of my
loyal readers and who are worried about the direction this story is
going. Hopefully I won't disappoint and thanks for reading and
reviewing!
Chapter 8 – Salvage What You Can
Jack and Sylvia sat across from one another in Sylvia's hotel room playing a game of cards. They had been placed in rooms next to one another so that the security could keep a closer eye on them. They left the door in between the rooms open in case. After a bit of a silence Sylvia finally spoke up.
"So how does it feel to be back?" She asked without taking her eyes off her cards.
"Despite the really awkward circumstances? It feels really good."
Sylvia nodded. "I can tell you were close to your workmates."
"They were my family. It was hard having to leave them behind and end up living a life that was full of lies." Jack replied.
"Well not everything you told was a lie." Sylvia said referring to Sue.
Jack tensed a little and nodded. "Yeah…" Jack sighed. "Something happened last night. We went out to eat and afterwards…well we kissed."
Sylvia looked surprised but hid her disappointment well. "Oh…that's good right?"
Jack smiled fondly at the memory. "Yeah…it's what I've wanted for a long time. But…under all the pressure that's going on now it just didn't feel like I had any right to enjoy it. Especially after all those years we wasted before." He looked up at Sylvia and apologized. "Sorry, this probably isn't what you wanted to hear."
Sylvia shook her head. "I'm a romantic. It doesn't bother me, don't worry," she explained. "And listen…I don't think you should let what happened in the past affect what's going to happen in the future. If anything you should learn that you don't have a lot of time to waste anymore and just…cease the moment you know?"
Jack looked at Sylvia curiously. "You really think so?"
"I'm not a professional concerning the affairs of the heart, trust me," she insisted but smiled. "But…the way you talked about her…it'd be heartbreaking if you didn't at least try." She looked back down at her cards but quickly added, "But you should take it slow obviously…I mean it has been three years. Things are bound to be different and scary."
Jack smiled as best as he could. "I'm really sorry," he apologized sincerely. "This probably isn't how you pictured our relationship turning out."
"Life throws your curveballs sometimes. You have to roll with it the best you can otherwise you wouldn't be able to survive," Sylvia said. "Besides, I always do seem to fall for the guys with emotional baggage," she joked.
Jack smiled at her fondly and turned back to his cards as they continued onto the game. Sylvia snuck a glance at him through her cards before she spoke up again.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Yeah?"
"You don't have to answer if you don't want to." She replied.
"What is it?"
"Why…did that man try to kill you? Because I know this is bothering you a lot more than you're letting on."
Jack took in a deep breath. "It's been three years. You know, I can hardly believe nobody's mentioned what happened since that man was charged. The two incidences seem so…separated."
"What happened?" she asked gently.
"There was this immigrant family who worked for this man…Carlos Mintayga…he was the head of a very dangerous drug ring we had been trying to bust for a long time. This family worked in his home and they overheard some plans that were very…unsettling to them. They came to us despite knowing the danger it would pose to them," Jack paused and sighed. "I was working undercover for Mintayga. I managed to get really close to him and was about to bust him when he found out it was the family that told the F.B.I. about him. I walked in on him killing the family…the entire family." He paused and shuddered at the memory. "They had a daughter…no more than 6-years-old. She was dying and she didn't want me to leave her so I couldn't go after Mintayga. I promised her…he would be punished for what he did."
"Oh my goodness…Jack," Sylvia said. Jack looked at her when she said his name and he felt both relieved and nervous when she said it. "I'm so sorry."
"When Mintayga was in custody there were threats against me but I couldn't be bothered by them, I got them all the time. When the case went to trial Mintayga found out I was testifying and…he hired someone to kill me. I was with Sue at the time, we were on our way home from work when it happened."
Sylvia was silent, unsure of what to say to him, knowing that no words would be adequate enough. Tears swelled in Jack's eyes but he did his best to suppress them. "For a moment I really wish I hadn't promised that girl what I did. For a while I blamed her for being the reason I had to move away from my friends and my family." Jack laughed a little. "I was so resentful…but eventually I started to love it there. Just being able to escape all of the emotion and complication that came with a case. Life there was so much simpler…I mean I loved my job. But it was nice being able to escape from it all and forget everything. I didn't even have to worry about my relationship with Sue anymore because I knew there was definitely no way I could be with her." His voice started to sound more and more anxious.
Sylvia was taken aback. "Jack are you saying—"
"I don't know if I want to be here…Sylv. I don't know if I want this life anymore. I can't just be uprooted and expected to erase a life, friends, people that were so hard for me to grow to love and have it taken away again," he started ranting. "I don't want to sit in that court room and look at the man who made me live a lie that I ended up loving." He confessed.
Sylvia looked at him sympathetically, uncomfortable and unsure of what to say. She went over to Jack and placed her arms around him, giving him a hug and patting his back gently. Jack closed his eyes and rested his head on her shoulder, wishing in his mind for all of this conflict inside of him to go away. The two were interrupted with a sudden knock at the door. They sprung apart and Sylvia looked through the peephole. She looked through the door and opened the door for Sue and Levi in tow.
"Hey! Just thought we'd come and keep you guys company." She said entering.
Jack smiled. "Actually, you can keep Sylvia company. I'm going to turn in for the night." He walked over to Sue and the two stared at each other for a beat. Sue reached over tentatively and gave him a hug. "Good night." Jack said. Sylvia watched this exchanged and felt her heart wince a little.
Sue smiled tightly "Good night."
Jack patted Sylvia's shoulder lightly and smiled before he walked over to his room and closed the door in between. Sue sat down at the table across from Sylvia and smiled. "So, you knew Jack back in Hartbridge?"
Sylvia smiled a tight smile. "Yes…he was known as Trevor Tomlin there though."
"How did you guys meet?" Sue asked with interest.
"Through a friend. I'm an intern at the hospital and Jack was brought in. He got hit in the head with a puck." Sylvia explained.
Sue laughed. "That sounds like something that would happen to Jack."
"So um…you guys worked together in D.C.?"
Sue nodded. "Yes…we've been working together for a couple of years. He was the one who brought me into the team and really believed in me…at first when people weren't exactly enthusiastic about someone like me being on the force."
"Oh…right. Jack mentioned to me you were deaf." Sylvia said.
"Yes. At first I wasn't even sure myself that I would be able to do it. But Jack really believed in me and I owe a lot to him." Sue explained.
Sylvia smiled. "It sounds like you guys had a really good relationship."
"We were friends, above all else. It's…hard to find friends who will love you through thick and thin…especially when you're obviously different." Sue said.
Sylvia nodded. "I know what you mean." She said with a bit of a dry laugh.
Sue looked at her sympathetically. "Is that what you and Dylan were like?"
Sylvia seemed hesitant to open up and reluctantly nodded. "He was the one…significant relationship in my life that I could remember."
"It must have taken a lot for you to leave him."
"I had to. For my own sanity I had to. I knew I should have made him come with me or stuck around to try to…save him. But I was selfish and decided I needed to save myself. Maybe if I hadn't…he would still be—"
Sue stopped her abruptly. "No, you can't think that. You aren't responsible for what happened to him, Sylvia, not at all. You had enough faith in him to change that you tried to help him. Unfortunately, there's always going to be people in this world who make it hard for you."
Sylvia smiled fondly at the memory of her friend. "He was such a gentleman with me. He wouldn't even kiss me until I was 18. It drove me crazy," she laughed and Sue chuckled as well. "I knew what he was doing was wrong and I thought I could accept that part of him. Sometimes Sam would ask us to do awful things but he always told me not to and I was too precious to be tainted." She paused. "In a way it was kind of disturbing. The way how he almost put me on this pedestal…I think he was expecting me to save him."
"I'm sure he wanted to leave with you…he was collecting evidence against Sam to bring him down. That's why he stayed."
Sylvia started to cry gently. "I know…but if he would have just left with me we could have started over…together. I knew his feelings for me were built on false pretenses but the type of love he showed me…I didn't know if I could find it ever again." Levi strolled over and rested his head on her lap and whimpered lightly. Sylvia forced a smile on her face and gently started to pet the golden dog.
Sue reached out and patted Sylvia's hand gently. "You're still young, Sylvia. There are still so many chances available for you and you would have cut that short if you chose to risk staying with Sam."
"I didn't get a chance to say goodbye. When I heard he died I didn't even react to it because somehow I had gotten used to the fact that I was never going to see him again…" Sylvia turned to Sue in a serious manner. "I don't want that to happen for Jack…he's a very good friend and I see the way you guys are with each other."
Sue swallowed a little. "What do you mean?"
"I don't know the whole story. But…he's talked about you before and even the way he talks about you, you can tell…there's just something there."
"The future is definitely uncertain…but we make each other very happy. The thing is if he resumes his old job we won't be able to have a relationship anyways." Sue took in a deep breath. "We wanted this…the both of us for a long time. But it's been three years…we're both different people now."
"That's not the point. The question is are you really willing to risk a second chance at something you've always wanted?" She asked, leaving Sue with some food for thought.
From beyond the door connecting the two doors, Jack listened carefully. He knew he was acting like a teenager trying to figure out what his friends were saying behind his back, but for his own sanity he needed to know. He leaned against the door and let out a frustrated sigh before heading off to bed.
Sylvia woke up on the couch of the hotel room groggily and looked at the time. It was 3 in the morning. She wiped her face groggily and could feel her head pounding. After Jack and Sue left that night, she sat on the couch for hours repeating their conversation to herself and realized that she had just told the man that she might have been falling in love with to be with another woman. She regretted it, of course, but she knew it was the right thing to do. And like all those other times whenever she did something she wished she hadn't, she would drink herself silly and pay for it the next morning.
She wasn't sure why she woke up in the middle of the night when she was sure she drank enough to knock her out for at least another couple of hours. Reluctantly, she pulled herself heavily off of the couch and towards the bathroom to wash up. The cold water against her skin managed to loosen her body a little. As she exited the bathroom she thought she could hear rustling from somewhere in the room. Cautiously she walked around the room surveying the area. Once she was in the living area she felt someone grab her tightly against the waist. She managed to elbow her assailant in the gut and her assailant stumbled backwards. Her assailant once again lunged at her, which she managed to dodge. Thinking as fast as she could, she round housed her attacker to the ground and made a run for the door only to be knocked to the ground before she could exit. The figure dressed in black put a cloth over her nose and mouth and before she knew it, she had lost all consciousness.
