A CHOICE

Chapter 5

It had been one whole month

So far, Kate had been unsuccessful in getting Alexis to talk. She was turning out to be one tough nut to crack.

Alexis was in the kitchen watching Kate put together something to eat. They were both interrupted when Rick climbed the stairs with a fairly large box. And every staff member he could steal was also carrying at least one box and following him.

"The first boat loaded with everything we packed came in. There should be another boat later today," Rick announced. "Just put them anywhere," he told the others as they each came up the stairs.

They did just that and then left. Rick found a knife and opened the first one. "Yes! Alexis' school books! I've delivered them, but I need to get back to work. Open the rest of them or not. I'll leave it to you. There will be another boat later today. When I get off later, I'll help you unpack. Your motorcycle is another two weeks out.

"You be a good girl." Rick kissed his cherished daughter. "And you, take care and be careful. Don't stress unpacking. It all doesn't have to be in one day." Rick kissed her on the cheek and left.

Once again, Kate was left standing there in stunned surprise. She really needed to work out what these little kisses meant.

"What are you looking at?" Kate asked Alexis, who just smiled at her and giggled. "So you think it's funny, do you? Maybe I should kiss you." Kate caught her and kissed her, followed by another.

She was all set to give her another one when suddenly, Alexis latched onto her and sobbed. Kate could only hold her and let her cry.

"Are you okay now? Do you want to tell me about it?" Kate felt her shake her head. "All right, but you're going to have to talk eventually." Kate still held her.

"Do you want to help me unpack?" Kate asked her but got nothing in return. "I'm going to let go now and start to unpack." Kate released her and felt awful about that, but it was necessary. "Why don't you go to your bedroom and read a book, or play with your toys?"

~oo0oo~

Kate found that some of the boxes were her mother's stuff. She kept some of it but needed her dad. So using a cart, she took one to her dad.

"Hey, Dad, some of our stuff arrived today. This one is yours, and I have others that are also yours. If you want to give me a hand?" Jim picked up the box and took it into the Cabana. He set it down and Kate watched her dad open it.

"Your mom's good china. It's service for twelve. Not sure what I'll do with it since I don't have a dining room or a kitchen, but I'll take it. Though you might want it since you have a dining room. You do, don't you," Jim asked.

In the end, they took that box back and opened more of them. Jim picked and chose what he wanted and could handle, and what he couldn't.

~oo0oo~

The three of them were sitting and eating dinner when Rick showed up again with a box and a trail of staff carrying more boxes.

Jim, Kate, and Alexis were eating dinner when Rick showed up again with a box and a trail of staff carrying more boxes.

"This is it. You've gotten pretty far." Rick was very impressed.

Kate shrugged tiredly. "I couldn't help it. Some of it belongs to Dad."

"I have to get back to work. I'll be late, and I'll eat in the Restaurant, so don't make anything for me." Once again, Rick left them.

Jim rubbed the back of his head as he stared at the remaining stacks of boxes. "Looks like we got our work cut out for us."

"Yeah. But we have help, right?" Kate looked at Alexis, who nodded.

~oo0oo~

Kate was waiting up for Rick to come back. Now, he could go directly to bed, and she would miss him, but she was betting he would come upstairs first. She was proven right.

Rick bypassed her, headed straight to the kitchen, and poured himself a glass of Scotch. Then he sat down next to her. "What a day," Rick sighed and swallowed part of his drink.

He looked around. "You got pretty far; I'm impressed."

"I got my dad to help since part of it was his," Kate mentioned. "I even got Alexis to help."

"How are you and Alexis getting along?" Rick wanted to make sure.

"Pretty well, actually. But I can't get Alexis to talk to me and it's starting to get to me," Kate admitted.

"Welcome to my world, Kate. I've dealt with this for far longer than you have. But I have hope. She talked to you once, so she'll talk to you again. Honestly, it's why I offered you this job. She spoke to you, and even though it was just one word, it was something I haven't heard in a long time.

"Have faith and don't give up on her. She'll come around." Rick finished the rest of his drink and yawned. "I'm beat, so I'm going to bed. I'm off all day since Mikhail's day is tomorrow. Have a pleasant sleep." Rick kissed her cheek and got up to rinse out his glass.

"Rick, can you wait?" Kate was ready to call him out on his little kisses. "Sit." Kate patted the space next to her. She waited, and he sat beside her.

"I, I mean..." Why was this so hard? "Why are you kissing me? I mean, you're kissing me but not kissing me."

Rick's face flushed, and he looked away. "I'm sorry, I'll stop."

"NO!" Kate said loudly. "I mean, that's not what I'm asking. I want to know why. You can keep kissing me. I don't mind."

"I don't really know why I'm kissing you on the cheek. I'll stop," Rick said again.

"NO!" Kate didn't know what to do, so she kissed him, really kissed him. "I probably shouldn't have done that," she murmured into his lips. "I should probably go." Kate quickly retreated to her bedroom.

Rick was left sitting there, unsure just what had happened.

Kate closed the bedroom door and leaned up against it. She noticed Alexis asleep in her bed. "What did I just do?" Kate was both afraid and worried about what she had done. She waited at the door to see if Rick would come.

After about five minutes, she decided that Rick wasn't coming after her, so she went into the bathroom. She stood in front of the mirror, looking at herself. She needed to figure out why she did that.

She smiled because she liked it. If she hadn't caught Rick off guard, their kiss might have been even better.

Kate eventually cleaned up and went to bed. But sleep became difficult for her because of that one kiss.

~oo0oo~

Come morning, Kate woke up and found Alexis standing next to her bed. "What, sweetie?" Except all she got was her staring at her.

Kate stretched, got up, and sat on the edge of the bed. "What is it? You need to talk to me, sweetie. Please talk to me. I want to help, but you need to talk to me. Please talk to me, Alexis. I know you can do it."

Kate waited for her to say something, anything. And then she heard it. It was just a whisper, but... "Please."

Kate's heart beat faster. "Please? Please what? Please, help you do something? Please what, sweetheart?" Kate was ecstatic that she had gotten her to talk, but she needed more.

"Please, don't leave."

"'Please, don't leave.' I'm not going anywhere." Kate needed to think. "Please don't leave you?" She thought she got it and was relieved when she saw Alexis nod. Kate reached out to hug her tight against her. "Oh, Alexis, I'm not leaving you. I swear, I'm not leaving." Kate held her close.

Eventually, she moved Alexis back a step, but didn't let go of her. "You're afraid I'll leave you like your mother left you. I'm not your mother, but I swear I'm not leaving. You're stuck with me. Understand? I'm not leaving you. Not ever." Kate could see her crying and nodding her head.

She pulled the little girl back against her body. She had broken through to her and now understood what her problem was. Kate let her cry while she held her.

After short time, she picked her up, put her on her lap, and looked at her. "You believe me, right? That I'm not leaving you?" Kate watched her nod again. "That's good. Now how about we get you into the tub and get cleaned up? We have a big day today." Kate escorted her into the bathroom where she filled the tub and helped the child undress.

~oo0oo~

Alexis dressed herself. Kate took a shower and came out wearing a towel to find the little girl sitting in the sitting room waiting for her. She gathered up her clothes and retreated to the bathroom. She came out, dressed like always in shorts, a t-shirt, and flip-flops. The room had A/C, but it was warm outside. Alexis was dressed similarly. Kate brushed her hair and braided it for her. It was necessary given that her hair was so long and because it was so warm there.

"You understand everything, right?" Kate asked and watched her nod. Kate tried to get her to talk to her again. "You can talk to me, Alexis. No more nodding your head." Except she got a shake of the head from the little redheaded.

"Why? I don't understand. You were talking just a little while ago." Kate needed to think. "Is it that you don't believe me? Do you need me to prove it? Okay, I'll prove it to you. Come on, let's go have breakfast." Kate took her upstairs to the kitchen.

In the kitchen, they found Rick cooking. "Let's not tell your dad you're talking, okay? We'll take him by surprise." Kate saw a smile and another nod.

Kate greeted him. "Hi. You're cooking?"

"Contrary to what you're thinking, I do know how to cook. I'll remind you that I had to feed a little girl all alone," Rick told her and kept an eye on the stove.

"Point taken," Kate conceded. "So what are you making?"

Rick smiled. "Pancakes with a chocolate face. Alexis loves them."

"Before I forget to tell you, I unpacked all the school books you bought and looked through them, so I can start putting those to use tomorrow," Kate informed him.

Rick was pleased. "Good, she's fallen behind on her schooling because she refuses to talk."

Kate bit her lower lip to keep from spilling the beans about Alexis talking to her.

"Here you go, smiley face pancakes." Rick put a plate with one in front of Alexis, one in front of Kate, and two for himself. "With one sausage link for each of us. Plus toast and a glass of orange juice."

"This is nice, Castle." Kate taste-tested it first and decided she liked it, so she ate the rest of it.

She helped Rick clean up and load the dishwasher. While they were doing that, Rick mentioned, "We get to spend part of today with Inessa and her baby girl. I promised we would include them in what we did today."

Kate thought about it briefly. "That sounds nice. I look forward to using more of my Russian."

"You'll get your chance since her English isn't the best. Perhaps you would agree to teach her English while you school Alexis." Rick waited to see what she thought.

"I would be happy to." Kate smiled at him. "Right after you increase my pay."

"I knew there had to be a catch. I'll talk with Mikhail about that," Rick told her. "Let's get going and meet up with Inessa."

~oo0oo~

Rick knocked and waited. The door opened, revealing Inessa. "Richard. Come…in." Her English was accurate but broken.

"My rady, chto vy smogli prisoyedinit'sya k nam segodnya," Kate told her.

Inessa brightened. "That's right, Mikhail said you spoke Russian. That's good. My English is not good."

"You're doing well so far," Kate said approvingly.

She let them enter and retreated to a bedroom. "Please go upstairs," Inessa told them.

They went upstairs and saw that this place looked familiar. The décor was different, but the layout was the same.

Eventually, Inessa showed up with her little girl. "This is my Alina."

"She's adorable." Kate came up to play with her hand. "I didn't ask the last time I saw you. How old is she?"

"She is 7…how you say, mesyatsy." Inessa had her limits.

"Months," Kate said.

"We're thinking of heading to Glow for a start," Rick said. "If you're ready?"

"Da, I have sumka dlya podguznikov," Inessa said.

"Diaper bag," Kate translated.

~oo0oo~

"Where did you lean Russian?" Inessa questioned her as they walked.

"I spent a semester in Kyiv," Kate replied. "It was such a nice city, and I loved it. I was sad when I left."

"Ukraine. That is a drugoye mesto," Inessa stated.

"Yes, they don't really like Russians, but they were Russian decades ago. It was different. But I didn't get it much," Kate said.

"Da," Inessa agreed.

~oo0oo~

Mikhail spotted his wife and child. "Honey!" He came in for a kiss and stroked his baby's hair.

Then he caught Rick up. "We are expecting a supply boat, two boats with guests, and a seaplane of four. We are holding at three-quarters full."

"Hm," Rick said, considering. "It's early for us still, so three-quarters isn't bad."

"I agree." Mikhail checked his watch. "I have work to do. Enjoy your time with our friends." Mikhail kissed his wife again and was off.

"Supply boat?" Kate asked.

"Food boat," Rick explained. "We're actually making money."

"That's great news!" Kate was thrilled for him.

Alina started to get fussy. "Podguznik change." Inessa took the diaper bag and hurried to the restroom. Kate decided not to translate that, given she carried the bag with her, so it was pretty obvious.

When Inessa came back, she apologized for having had to leave.

"Nonsense, I remember when Alexis was that age. It comes with the job. She really is a cutey." Rick played with her hand. "You're a cutey, aren't you? Yes, you are." Rick succeeded in coaxing a smile out of her.

"Anyone interested in a game?" Rick knew an area was set aside to play board games in Glow. "How about a game of Exploding Kittens?" Rick didn't wait for them to say yes or no; he retrieved the game.

"How do you play?" Kate didn't understand the game.

"It's a lot like UNO, except there are goats, magical enchiladas, and kittens that can kill you. If you get an exploding kitten, you lose," Rick explained as he dealt cards to them. Even Alexis could play this game.

Rick got an exploding kitten right off, and he lost. "Dang it." He threw in his cards.

Kate was next to get an exploding kitten. So it was down to Alexis and Inessa.

Kate rooted for her girl. "Come on, Alexis, you can do it!"

Sadly, Alexis got an exploding kitten. "YA vyigryvayu!" Inessa celebrated her victory.

Kate shuffled the cards next and dealt them. And again, Rick was gone early. "I swear I'm cursed." He threw in his cards.

Alexis was next to get an exploding kitten, so she was out. It was down to just Kate and Inessa. Kate immediately got an exploding kitten. "YA snova vyigryvayu. YA lyublyu etu igru!"

"Okay, enough of that game." Rick gathered the cards, put them away, and returned the game. He came back with a different one.

Rick had had it with Exploding Kittens. "Jenga this time."

He stacked the blocks and let Alexis go first. She pulled out a block, and the tower didn't fall, so she smiled.

Inessa took out a block a little lower and declared victory.

Kate carefully took out a slightly lower block and smiled.

Rick removed a lower block and smiled a wide smile.

Alexis pulled out a higher-up block and smiled.

Inessa held her breath as she took out a block, and then, she declared victory again.

Kate studied the tower before she chose her block. She gingerly extracted it and smiled in relief.

That left Rick to take out his block. He chose his and barely breathing, he took it out. "Yes!"

Alexis was next and removed one up really high. Something safe, and she smiled.

Inessa contemplated which block to remove. It was getting difficult. She chose her block, and just as she pulled it out, the tower gave out and collapsed. "Blin."

She dropped her block and fumed. Just then, her husband showed up. "Glupaya igra. YA rasteryan," she complained. She got a little compensation when her husband kissed her.

"I came to join you for lunch," Mikhail said as his stomach growled.

Rick put the game in its box and returned it, and everyone ordered their lunch.

Unfortunately, Mikhail's lunch break ended up canceled when a supply boat showed up. "I hate to do this, but I gotta go." He kissed his wife and his daughter.

Rick got up from the table. "I think I'll join him. It's an important delivery," he mentioned, leaving Kate, Alexis, and Inessa and her baby.

~oo0oo~

Inessa had a seven-month-old baby, and that limited what they could do. Swimming was out, and using any water parts like Jet Skis was out. They had eaten lunch. "Come on! I have a plan!" Kate took off.

Her idea was playing the four-inch checkers like Rick and Alexis had done. But someone had beaten them to it. "So much for that." Playing tennis was out, and so was playing beach volleyball.

Since they were on the beach, they stayed on the beach. But they couldn't be there long because of the baby. In the end, they retreated to the Kuznetsov's Villa.

Inessa put Alina down for a nap and joined them, carrying the baby monitor with her. They sat at the pool and just talked. With the exception of Alexis, of course, who didn't talk at all. Kate silently willed her to speak, but she didn't.

They eventually left to go home. "Why didn't you talk?" Kate asked Alexis. "I know you can." She still didn't say a word and just shrugged.

Kate sat down with her and held her close. "You need to talk, Alexis. It hurts when you don't talk."

"Sorry," Alexis said apologetically.

"Maybe you just need to get used to talking since you didn't for so long." Kate came up with a way for Alexis to surprise Rick. "I tell you what, let's surprise your dad. You wait though dinner and then say something, anything. Your father loves you."

Looking serious, Alexis asked, "Do you love me?"

Kate opened her mouth and then closed it. She knew she had to get this right, absolutely had to. She got Alexis to talk to her because she said she wasn't going to leave her.

"Yes, Alexis, I love you." Kate kissed her cheek and watched a smile bloom on her face.

Now Kate needed to believe what she had told Alexis. Did she truly love the little girl or was it all only to get her to talk?

KATE: My rady, chto vy smogli prisoyedinit'sya k nam segodnya. - We are glad that you could join us today.

INESSA: Ukraine. That is a drugoye mesto. - Ukraine. That is another place.

INESSA: Da. - Yes.

INESSA: YA vyigryvayu! - I win!

INESSA: YA snova vyigryvayu. YA lyublyu etu igru! - I win again. I love this game!

INESSA: Blin. - Crap.

INESSA: Glupaya igra. YA rasteryan. - Silly game. I lost.