A Fresh Start
Chapter Two Hundred Fifty Nine
Josh is in the living room when Reva comes in from the Beacon. Putting her purse on the counter, she walks over to him as he looks up. "Hi." He says, as she sits down beside him.
"Hi." She replies, leaning in to kiss him. "What are you doing?"
"Just looking over a bid for a new project on Union St. How was your day?"
"Oh the usual, getting the Beacon ready for Christmas, running into Marah, overseeing..."
"You saw Marah, when?"
"This morning, she came... well actually it was around noon. I saw someone else today as well." She says, sitting back.
"Really, who?"
"Dj." She says, as he looks at her.
"You saw... Did he say something to you? I don't know what I'm going to..."
"Relax Josh, I didn't actually speak with him. He was there to meet someone else actually."
"Oh, okay." He says, looking back at the papers in his lap.
"You're not curious as to whom he was meeting."
"No, should I be. It wasn't anyone bad or anything was it?" He asks, looking at her.
"No, it wasn't anyone bad. Although it could be bad for us."
Josh looks at her and finally realizes that she's dying to tell him something. Something he's fairly sure will surprise him, if not upset him. "Alright, what is it?"
"What is what?"
"You want to tell me something and from the expression on your face, it's going to be something that's either going to surprise me, or hurt me."
"I don't think it'll hurt you, but it'll definitely surprise you. Marah was at Olivia's today."
"She lives there. I'm sure she's..." She looks at him. "Alright, finish."
"So! She was at Olivia's today with Dj." Reva says, as he looks at her, trying to figure out if she was serious or joking around
He finally decides that she's not kidding. "So he can't be happy with making his mother or myself unhappy. He's going after his sister."
"I don't think he was there to go after his sister."
"How do you know that?"
"Because when I say her walk in and go into the Beacon after seeing Dj come in earlier, I went to see about her and I found them sitting at the same table. At first I thought the same thing you thought, that he was trying to cause trouble, but she shut me down, told me that she had asked him there. Said that she went to see him that morning and asked him to lunch."
"I told her not to do that. Did you speak to her while she was with him.
"Not more than I just told you."
"Was she upset?"
"No, she was more determined, like she used to be when she didn't want us to embarrass her in front of her friends."
"How long did they talk?"
"I don't really know. I was busy but I looked up and saw her walking across the lobby."
"So you don't know exactly what they said to each other?" He asks, looking at her.
"Actually I do, when I saw leave Olivia's, I caught up to her and I asked her."
"So what did she say?"
"That she wanted to talk to him. That she has some idea of how he feels."
"Is that all she said?"
"No." He looks at her. "She seems to think that he's not mad at you. He's more mad at his mother. She told that she told that he can either hang onto his anger and let it eat him up or he can accept the situation." She says, as he looks at her.
And then he sits back. After a few moments, he asks. "Do you think he'll listen?"
"I don't know. He would be smart if he does. He's fighting a battle he can't win and maybe she made him realize that." She says, moving to get up.
"Where are you going?"
"I want to take a shower and then I'll come down and start dinner."
"Alright." He says, watching her get up and walk upstairs.
Cassie is in their closet when Richard walks into the bedroom. Walking over to the closet, he stops and leans against the door frame. Crossing his arms, he watches her as she takes each of her formal dresses down and then turns towards the full length mirror beside her. He watches her for several seconds before she pulls out one of the dresses she brought with her from San Cristobel. Pushing away from the door, he walks over to her. "I always liked that." He says.
Jumping, she closes her eyes, as he slips his arms around her pulling her back against him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."
"I wasn't expecting you. Did you get off early?"
"No, it's after five." He says, smiling as she looks at him.
"It can't be that late. The boys..."
"I just brought them home. I picked them up from school."
"Why?" She asks, hanging the dress up again before she turns to him.
"Because I thought I would spend a couple hours with them. They are downstairs doing their homework while I check on you."
"And what about their chores?"
"They'll finish them after they finish their homework." He says, slipping his arms around her waist. He leans in and kisses her. After a moment, he steps back and shrugs out of his suit jacket, laying it down beside them. She picks it up and hangs it up as he pulls his shirt free. "How was your day?" She asks, turning to him.
"It was busy. I had meeting this morning and then a luncheon for the campaign this afternoon."
"Should I have been there?" She asks, picking up his shirt and tie next.
"No, you didn't have to be there. But Kevin will likely want you to be more involved after the fund raiser." He says, turning towards his dresser. He pulls on a polo as she turns to watch him. He turns around and catcher her smiling at him. "What are you smiling about?"
"I was just thinking that is what you think of as casual." She says, nodding towards the polo and slacks he's wearing.
"What's wrong with this?" He asks, glancing at his clothes.
"Nothing." She says, walking over to him and slipping her arms around him. "It's just that most men come home and change into a pair of jeans or sweats. You never have."
He shrugs. "I guess it's part of the training. Would you like me to wear jeans or sweats?" He asks, putting his arms around her.
"I don't care what you wear." She says, leaning up to kiss him.
"Are you sure about that." He asks, after she pulls back. "I think you want me in jeans." He says, watching her.
"I like..."
"Cassie."
"No really, I like whatever you wear."
"Daddy." Will calls for him.
"We're in the closet, son." He says, stepping back but keeping one arm around her waist.
He walking into the closet as he says. "We're finished with our homework, so can we play now?"
"Have you done your chores?" Richard asks, as Cassie steps away from him. She finishes putting stuff away as Will answers him. "No sir." He says, his face falling.
"I think you should do that first." Richard says, as Will nods
"Yes sir." He says, turning around.
"And when you're finished then you and Rj can play."
"Yes." He says, as he runs from the closet.
"Walk, Will." Cassie calls
"Yes ma'am." He yells back, stopping to a very fast walk.
"What do you want for dinner?" She asks, taking his shirt and putting it in the hamper to be washed.
"I don't care."
"I'll go down and start dinner, if you want to start a fire we can relax in front of it after the boys go to bed."
"That sounds like a plan. I think I'll go out and check on the horses." He says, slipping on a coat.
"Alright." She says, as they walk out of their closet. He leaves through the back door off the laundry room as she goes into the kitchen to start their dinner.
Jeremiah walks up to one of the other prisoners. "What do you want?"
"I was told you're the man to talk to if I wanted to get something." Jeremiah whispers, glancing around.
"Maybe, what do you need and what do you got?" The man asks.
Jeremiah pauses for a moment and then he sighs. "I need something that will make it appear like I'm having some sort of an attack. It has to be severe enough to get me transferred to the hospital."
"You ever tried eating tobacco?" The man asks, looking around.
"What?"
"Eating tobacco, you only need to eat about six or seven cigarettes for mild nicotine intoxication, and it will give you symptoms severe enough to be taken to the hospital."
"How long will it last?" Jeremiah asks.
"Not long, if they run a toxicology test. Once they find the nicotine in your system, they'll treat you for it."
"Alright, so can you get me a pack of cigarettes?'
"Sure, but what are you gonna get for me?"
"What do you want?"
"Umm, I need someone taken care of on the outside."
"I..."
"Come on, we all know you got contacts. I don't want them killed, just convinced to do what I need them to do."
"Alright, I'll see what I can do." Jeremiah says. He walks away as a guard walks towards them.
Once his yard time is over, the guard leads him back to his cell. "I need to speak to my attorney, today." He says, as he sticks his hand through the bars to have his cuffs removed.
"I'll let the warden know."
"The warden can't keep me from speaking to my attorney." Jeremiah says, looking at the guard. The guard looks at him and then walks away. Jeremiah sits down on his bunk.
Richard and the boys come back in about an hour later. Cassie is finishing up dinner when they come in. "Boys go wash your hands for dinner." Cassie says, as they close the door in the laundry room.
Richard walks in after slipping off his boots. "What are we having for dinner?"
"I made some chili. I figured it would go well with the weather." She says, turning towards him. She stops for a moment to look at him.
"What?"
"Nothing." She says, walking over to him and leaning up to kiss him
Slipping one arm around her waist, he pulls her against him, deepening the kiss. When she leans back, he asks. "What was that for?"
"You just looked good." She says, smiling at him.
"I look good. I was outside, tending to the horses with the boys."
"You still look really good." She says, leaning up to kiss him again as Rj walks in.
"Eww gross." He says, catching them.
Chuckling, Richard steps back releasing her. "In a few years, that reaction is going to change, Son." He says, ruffling his hair as he opens the refrigerator for a soda.
He pops the top as Rj asks. "Can Jackson come over Friday night?" He asks, looking at both of them.
"Who is Jackson?" Cassie asks.
"He's the boy that tackled me so hard at practice a few weeks ago. His dad..."
"I remember. What about his parents?" Cassie asks.
"His mom is cool, and his dad is out of town till Christmas. He's a good kid and we've sort of became friends." Rj says, as he looks at them. "He apologize the next day." He says, looking at Richard. "He apologized for the hit and for his dad punching you." Rj says, as Cassie looks at Richard.
After a moment, Richard says. "I don't mind if he comes over, if it's okay with his mother."
"Thanks." Rj says, hugging Richard before he turns and runs for the living room.
"Walk, Rj." Cassie calls. He stops instantly, walking towards the living room where Will is watching Scooby Doo.
"He apologized to both the hit and his dad's punch." Cassie says, looking at Richard. "Did you know..."
"No. nothing." Richard says, taking a drink of his soda.
Ten minutes later, Cassie calls. "Boy's it's time for dinner." They both walk over to their places as Richard brings their bowls and glasses. When everything is on the table, they set down to eat.
William spent most of the day with Ava and after a day of coughing and sneezing, he's decided that she needs to see a doctor. Reaching for the phone, he dials Dr. Sedgwick's office number. "Dr. Sedgwick's office." The receptionist says after the second ring.
"Yes, this is William Winslow. I'm calling about my fiance, Ava Peralta."
"Is she a patient of Dr. Sedgwick's?" The reception asks.
"Yes ma'am. I'm worried about her. She's been coughing and sneezing for the last couple days. I think she needs to see Dr. Sedgwick." He says, watching as Ava shifts to her other side coughing slightly. He holds his breath, hoping she won't wake up. She settles again.
"Sir, did you hear me?"
"I'm sorry, no." He says, turning his attention to the call.
"Dr. Sedgwick is with patients this afternoon, but she can see you first thing tomorrow morning."
"You can't see her today. She's five months pregnant." He says, turning to walk back into the living room.
"I'm sorry but she has patients for the rest of the afternoon."
"Alright, thank you." He hangs up and then stares at the phone before he dials Sam's clinic.
"Dr. O'Neill's office." Leah says.
"Yes, I need to speak to Sam." He says, getting up and walking over to the windows.
"She's with a patient right now. Can I take a message?"
"Could you have her call Will when she's finished with her patient. It's about Ava, please?"
"Of course, I'll give her the message as soon as she's finished."
"Thank you." Will says, hanging up the phone as Emma comes out of her room.
"Is Ava feeling better?"
"I'm afraid not, sweetie." He says, turning to her.
"Are you going to take her to the hospital?" Emma asks, walking over to him.
"No, I've called Sam and we'll see what she says. Did you finish your homework?"
"Yes, I'm through and I'm hungry."
"Let's go see what we can find to eat." He says, turning away from the window.
Thirty minutes later, his cell phone rings. He reaches for it as he puts Emma's plate in front of her. Gently stroking her hair before he answers. "Hello, William speaking."
"William, it's Sam."
"Sam, thanks for calling me back.
"My nurse said it was about Ava, is something wrong with the baby?"
"No, I don't think so, but she's sick."
"What kind of sick? Is she cramping, bleeding or spotting?"
"No, nothing like that. But she's been coughing and sneezing for a couple days now and she's got a temp."
"How high?"
"Last time I check, 100.3."
"Has she taken anything?"
"No, she won't take anything because she afraid it will hurt the baby."
"Has she eaten anything?"
"A little bit, along with drinking some water as well."
"Alright, I'm finishing up here. I'll bring Julien and we'll come over. Just let me call Jeffrey to let him know where I'm at."
"Thanks Sam." William says, sighing softly.
"It's probably nothing William, most likely a cold but it could be the flu."
"It's bad if it's the flu." William asks.
"Well, it's not life threatening unless it turns into something more, but if she takes care of herself she should be fine. I'll be over in about ten minutes."
"Thank you." William says again, hanging up as Emma is finishing dinner.
"Is Aunt Sam coming over?" She asks, as William walks back over to her.
"Yes, she'll be here in about ten minutes." William says. "Are you finished?"
"Yes."
"Go take your plate to the kitchen. Rinse it out and put it in the dishwasher." He says, as she pushes her chair back and gets up. Taking her plate, she nods as she walks into the kitchen.
Ten minutes later, there's a knock on their door. He gets up from the couch and walks over to the door. Opening it, he lets Sam in with Julien. "Thank you for coming again."
"I'm glad you called me. Do you know my bodyguard?" She says, nodding to Julien.
William holds out his hand and they shake hands. "We met at Reva's for Thanksgiving." William says, as Sam nods.
"Is she upstairs?"
"Yes, she's sleeping as long as she's not coughing." William says.
"I'll go up and check on her." Sam says, turning for the stairs.
"Do I need...?"
"I'll be fine. Stay down here and I'll come down after I've checked her over." Sam says, smiling softly at him and he nods.
Ten minutes later, Sam comes downstairs. "Will she be okay?" William asks, as soon as he sees her.
"She'll be fine. She's got a nasty cold though. Keep giving her fluids and get her to eat as much as possible. If she's in pain or the fever comes up give her Tylenol. Also a nasal spray and Sudafed for a decongestant. Get some honey based cough drops for the cough, and make sure she gets plenty of rest. Being pregnant, it's going to take her longer to get over this. If things get worse take her to the ER or call me immediately or Dr. Sedgwick. You might also want to get a humidifier, it will help with the congestion. Have you all gotten your flu shots?"
"Not yet."
"Here." Sam says, reaching for her medical bag. "Roll your sleeve up." She says, taking out a vial and needle. William does as she says. When she's finished, she asks. "Has Emma had one?"
"I don't know."
"Okay, I won't give her one now. But I'll ask Ava when I come back in a few days to check on her. And when she's over this, I'll give her a shot too. You all really should've had these before now."
"We've been meaning to get them, but we've both been busy." William says, rolling his sleeve down.
"Next time, come to the clinic and I'll give you one." She says, putting the vial away and reaching for her purse.
"Thank you for coming over. How is Jeffrey?"
"He's fine. I told him I was coming over here so that he won't panic when he gets home and I'm not there." She says, slipping her coat on. William helps her and then they walk to the door.
He opens the door and Sam leaves with Julien behind her. "Thank you again Sam. I was worried and I tried to call Dr. Sedgwick but she was booked until the morning and I didn't want to wait."
"It's fine." She says, smiling as she puts her hand on his arm. "I'm here." She says, as he nods.
"I'll see you later." She says, turning to leave as he closes the door.
Richard is sitting on the couch when Cassie comes downstairs from putting the boys to bed. He lifts his arm as she sits down and she snuggles in beside him. Turning his head, he lightly kisses the side of her head and she presses a kiss to the side of his neck. "Are the boys asleep?"
"Yes. Rj's excited about Jackson coming over Friday night."
"He's a great boy." Richard says, playing with her hair. "He's friends with a kid that tried to hurt him."
"He has a good example." Cassie says, looking up. He looks down and smiles.
"I'm not sure Edmund would've said that when I stabbed him." Richard says, looking back at the fire.
"Edmund provoked you that night, we both know that."
"That may be so, but he was still my brother and I wanted to kill him that night. Let's not talk about this." He says, as she nods. "You asked me about my day, but what about yours?"
"Well, I spent most of the afternoon with Blake."
"Blake! Is she out of the hospital?"
"I guess so. She came over this afternoon, by herself."
"What did you talk about?"
"Everything, you, the boys, Harley, the baby, how we came to find out that Will's our son, just about everything that's happened since she went into the coma. We talked about the website she created and how it affected people. Harley's still mad at her. I invited her to the fund raiser. Is that okay?"
"It's fine. I'm glad she awake again."
"What time are you coming home tomorrow?"
"Umm, I have a short day because of the fund raiser. I should be home by one."
"I'm going to go to the Beacon tomorrow morning, but I'm only going to stay for a couple hours and then I'm going to spend the afternoon getting ready."
"Don't tire yourself out Cassie." He says, looking down.
"I'm not going to tire myself out." She says, leaning over to kiss him before she settles against him.
"I have to remind you, it's my job." He mumbles, kissing the top of her head. After a moment he asks. "What are you going to do about Harley and Blake?"
"She doesn't want me to do anything. She said that they would work it out."
"But you want to do something." He says, glancing down.
"Well, they are my best friends."
"So, you're going to be like Blake and invite them to the fund raiser without telling the other one, like Blake did for you and Reva." He says, smirking
"Well, that's something I could do. I've already invited Blake." She says, as he smiles, leaning in to kiss her neck.
"And how well did that go over?" He asks, nibbling on her neck.
"I have my sister back don't I." She says, leaning her head to that side.
He smiles and mumbles. "Yes you do."
"I think I'll leave the falling elevator out of the equation for this instance anyways."
"That's probably a good idea, considering one of your targets has just recently woken up from a two year coma."
"Yeah, it's probably best." She says, pulling back to look at him. His eyes are a dark green, light by the fires of passion and need. "Maybe we should go up to bed."
He looks at her and then slowly stands up, drawing her up beside him before he takes her hand and leads her to the stairs.
Sam is on the couch when Jeffrey comes in. "Hey." He says, hanging up his coat.
"Hi." She says, getting up and walking over to him.
"How are my two favorite people." He asks, slipping his arm around her.
"We're glad you're finally home. I thought you would actually beat me home." She says, leaning up to kiss him.
"I would have except that after I got off the phone with you, the deputy mayor came in to discuss the upcoming election, trying to sway me to his side."
"You stuck to Richard, right?" Sam asks, pulling back.
"Of course I stuck to Richard." Jeffrey says, releasing her. He walks into the kitchen for something to drink.
"You're dinner is on the stove. I felt like chili tonight so I made some."
"Sam, it's going to..."
"I took precautions." She says, opening the pot of chili on the stove. "It's cold outside and that always makes me want chili, or hot soup. I didn't have the stuff to make soup, so I made some chili."
"Alright." He says, reaching for a bowl. She takes it from him and dishes it up as he leans against the counter. "How's Ava?" He asks, taking a drink of his beer.
"She's got a nasty cold, but if she takes care of herself, or William takes care of her, which you know he will, she'll be alright. I'll check on her in a couple days, if William doesn't call me because she's worse. So, the deputy mayor is why you're getting home late."
"No, well he was part of it. After he left I was about to leave when a couple councilmen came in to discuss a new project they want me to support."
"Anything beneficial to Springfield?"
"It might be, but it's still in the planning stages." Jeffrey says, as she carries his chili to the table and he follows her. They sit down as he asks. "So besides Ava, how was your day?"
"Pretty much the same as Ava, there's a nasty cold going around. I gave William and Emma a flu shot, which reminds me, you need to come down to the clinic so I can give you one."
"I don't need a flu shot."
"Jeffrey, I know you hate shots. But your wife is pregnant with your son and it's not a good idea for her to be exposed more that she has to be to the flu virus." Sam says, looking at him.
"You do realize you're talking about yourself in the third person." He asks, looking at her.
"I'm your doctor at this point, not your wife or the soon to be mother of your child. It'll take two minutes, tops." She says, as he looks at her.
"Alright, I'll go down in the morning." He says, looking at her.
"Well actually, I have my bag upstairs and I have another dose..."
"Sam, I'll take the shot tomorrow morning." He says, looking at her as she smiles. "So how is my son doing today?"
"He's actually been a little active today. I think he thinks it's funny to kick my bladder." She says, laying her hand on her stomach.
"Be glad it's not your ribs." Jeffrey says, looking at her.
"Really, is there something I should know?" She asks, looking at him.
"Only that my mom said I loved to kick her ribs."
"I would prefer my ribs to my bladder." She says, as he looks at her. "There have been a few close calls while I was with a patient. It would sort of ruin my credibility if I peed on myself in front of my patients." She says, as he looks at her and smiles.
"I think, given your condition, they would understand."
"They might understand, but I would be incredibly embarrassed."
"Did you get a chance to go look for a dress?"
"Umm, no. The clinic was booked and we had a few walk-in's as well."
"Sam, you can't push..."
"I'm fine, J." She says, as he looks at her. "I am. I like being busy."
"Did you at least take some time to eat and rest during lunch?" He asks, as she nods. "Good." He says, leaning over to kiss her after swallowing his last bite of chili.
"Are you finished?" She asks, as he sits back.
"Yes. I'm going to go take a quick shower and maybe we can watch a movie or something." He says, standing up. She nods as he leans down to kiss the side of her head before he heads upstairs.
Sitting on his bunk, Jeremiah stares at the cigarettes in his hand. Beside him is a soda that he brought back to his cell after dinner. He quietly popped the top on the soda and then looks at he cigarettes. Reaching for one, he breaks off the filter and then crumbles the tobacco into the soda. He does that about four times and he gently swirls the soda, working to dissolve the tobacco. Sighing, he brings the soda to his mouth and the takes a sip. He wasn't quite sure what to expect, but the drink didn't really taste that different to him. He takes a drink.
In about ten minutes, he's drank about half the soda when the first symptoms hit him. Pouring the soda can down the sink, he hides the can and then lays down on his bunk. An hour passes, with the symptoms getting worse. Struggling to sit up, he calls out. "Guard."
Slowly the guard walks over to his cell. "What's wrong Whitmere?" The guard asks, looking into the cell.
"I don't feel right." Jeremiah mumbles.
The guard looks at him and quickly realizes something is wrong. Opening the cell, he walks inside. With one touch he realizes something is seriously wrong, reaching for his mic, he calls in the paramedics. Within minutes, Jeremiah is being loaded into an ambulance for emergency transport to Cedars.