Steele Dreaming
by Tanya Reed
Disclaimer: Do I own Remington Steele? No, but I wish I did.
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It was dawn. The sun came up slowly, spreading a dark pinkness along the ground and through the clouds. Droplets of water sat everywhere, making the world sparkle. Birds were singing, and their trees threw quiet shade on the ground and grayness below.
Stones. Silent and somber. There were many of them there, shaped by careful hands into reminders for the people who would come later. Through the stones, a figure walked, slight and bareheaded. It was Sam, and in her hand was a single red rose.
Quickly, Sam walked; she knew the way well. Each heart, each dove was familiar to her. Closer and closer she got to the large black stone in the shape of two rings intertwined. Her heart saw it before her eyes did in the dim light of the morning.
When her eyes did see it, Sam slowed down. Dark hair fell over her forehead as she lowered her head and approached the stone. It was growing grass now, she noticed. Soon, it would look like the one just to the right. It would grow its own flowers, and the flowers would be more beautiful because they were together again.
Softly, Sam smiled as she whispered, "I always was the romantic one."
Then, she knelt. Gently, she reached out her fingers, noticing that they were trembling. Her fingers carefully traced their names-first his, then hers. Remington. Laura.
"I wish little Laura could know you."
With that, Sam softly laid the rose down between the fresh mound and the older less noticeable one. Tears came to her eyes and started to fall as she remembered growing up with them. So much love. So much happiness. She believed that if she could give her daughter just half as much, Laura would know that she was tremendously loved.
"I miss you," she whispered, her voice shaking, "and so do the others. We need your love and guidance. I'm alone. I've never been alone before. If it weren't for Chris and Laura…" She sighed. "I guess that means I'm not alone-not like Lettie. Oh, Daddy, she's taking this so hard. She won't let us in. We try, but you know how she is. She even broke up with Jared. Now she's completely isolated. She pretends it doesn't hurt and locks away her pain. It's even worse than when Mom died. I wish you could have stayed, just a little longer." Sam glanced at her mother's side of the stone. "He just couldn't live without you."
She became silent for a moment before continuing. "I don't want you to worry about us. You did enough of that while you were here. Just take care of each other up there, and we'll take care of one another down here. That's what sisters are for. We'll be all right, as long as we know that you're there watching, together. Together is the important part. I'm glad because I know Daddy is happy again."
Sam lightly kissed the index and pointer fingers of her right hand. Then she softly touched each of their names once more.
"I love you," she said.
She put her hand on his side of the stone and gently pulled herself to her feet. She turned from the gravesite, remembering the people that she had lost. The tears continued, silently falling down her face.
