Laws of Motion – Book 3
Written by: Ms. Maggs/Edited by: KJT
Chapter 11
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
LVPD – Lobby
5:33 p.m.
Walking toward the exit with his mother and Nick, Ryan worked up the nerve to ask his big question. "Mom…would you volunteer to be Celine's foster mom? I think you'd be great being like a mom to her, and I'm great at cheering her up. Sean could tutor her and McKenna could be like the sister she lost, only McKenna would actually be nice to her. Please."
Proud of the boy's chivalry, Nick burst into a smile, "That's really sweet, Ryan, but your mom would have to be licensed by the state and…"
"She is."
Nick glanced over at Wendy who was still in shock from the question. "You are?"
The teen answered for his mother, "On the way over I asked mom if foster care was evil and she told me that lots of nice people do foster care and she said that when she and Dad thought they wouldn't be able to have more kids after Sean and me, they applied and got licensed. They had a little girl for about six months while her mother was in rehab, but before the next placement, Mom found out she was pregnant with McKenna and stopped doing foster care."
"I like you even more now, Sis," Nick sweetly announced. "That was a real generous move on your part. Yeah, I agree with Ryan, I think Celine would recover much faster if..."
"See, Uncle Nick thinks it's a great idea, so it is!" Bursting with excitement, Ryan said, "She can have my room. You can fix it up girly and I can share a room with Sean like I did in the old house."
"You know he's serious if he's willing to bunk with Sean." Tossing his arm around the boy, Nick laughed, "I'm sure Carrie would volunteer to buy the girly room stuff and…"
"What!" Wendy finally managed. Staring at the impulsive little boys in front of her, she could finally see the resemblance her father-in-law had mentioned on several occasions. "You're both acting like you found a stray puppy you want me to take in."
"Uh….is that a yes?" Ryan queried while staring at his mother's knitted brow.
"No, it's not a yes."
"Why!"
With his hands in his pockets, Nick bit his tongue and watched mother and son argue in front of him.
"Please, Mom!" Ryan begged for the third time. "How can you not want to do this?"
"I can't, Ryan."
"Yes, you can! You're licensed, we have room, and you like kids." Taking a cue from his Sunday School loving brother he played the religion card, "What would Jesus do, Mom! Huh! WWJD!"
"Ryan! This isn't like bringing the class turtle home for the weekend. Celine is a young lady with a lot of serious issues to deal with, and Nick…I can't believe you'd encourage him."
"Uh." The sound of Celine's sobs still echoing in his ears, the cowboy who could never resist helping a damsel in distress, quietly replied, "Sorry, Wendy, but I think Celine really needs to be somewhere she feels comfortable for a little while and if you had seen her cryin'…"
"Would you stop and really think about the situation for a minuteplease!" Wendy snapped in frustration. "Ryan and Celine have fooled around on more than one occasion and it would be highly inappropriate to have them living under my roof together."
"Then I'll move out so she can move in with you!"
"What!" Wendy and Nick echoed each other.
Ryan calmly explained, "I'll move in with Uncle Nick and Aunt Carrie, so Celine can live in my room. It'll be great, she'll have a family and I'll get to eat meat all the time and not have to listen to McKenna whine. It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make for a while, Mom."
Realizing she was yelling, Wendy pointed to the chairs in the corner of the room. "Have a seat, Ryan. Nick and I are going to step outside for a moment."
Feeling it was a better answer than 'no', the teen walked over and plopped in a chair.
Once outside, Wendy dropped onto the nearest bench and held her head. "This is crazy. He's only thirteen, he's not supposed to care deeply about a girl." Glancing over at Nick she groaned, "This is all your fault by the way…bringing the two of them together…you and your romantic ideas. You know he idolizes you. Ugh, I just realized that you lied to me about why you wanted me to bring Ryan back here."
"Not really…I still had him file stuff before Celine showed up and..." When Wendy gave him the same look as his mother, Nick gulped, "Sorry, I shoulda told you the truth, but I was afraid you'd say no."
"Which means deep down you knew it wasn't a good idea!"
"Yeah…uh…sometimes I ignore that little voice inside that says 'don't do it, Nicky!'." Things would have gone a whole lot better at the meeting yesterday, if I was a little better at listening to that little voice. Dropping his head, Nick sighed, "Sorry, Wendy, I was only trying to help the girl, but you're right, I wasn't thinkin' of the consequences. It's totally not cool to have the two of them under the same roof."
Wendy dropped her head against the back of the bench. "Only because I know you're still hurting from last night, I won't strangle you."
"Thanks, but it's not really a good idea to strangle someone when you're at a police station anyway." When she scowled, Nick groveled further, "Seriously, you didn't see her…that kind of pain in a kid's eyes…it's hard not to want to help make it go away. A week ago she was an arrogant, spoiled teenager, but today…she was in a hundred pieces. Hell, if Carrie and I were licensed, I'd be askin' her. It would probably be good for her right now."
"I know you mean well, but you can't replace a lost baby with an orphaned teenager. Don't rush it, Nick." When he somberly nodded, Wendy's heart melted. "Sorry, I don't mean to sound harsh."
"No, you're right."
After a moment of silence, Wendy released a labored sigh, "I can't stay mad at you. I really want to stay mad at you…but I can't. You're forgiven."
"Thanks, Sis." Sliding closer on the bench, he whispered, "Hey, between you and me…Sara has a lead on Celine's birth mother."
"But Celine told the boys her mother was dead."
"Bruce Campbell's bodyguard told her that the woman faked her own death because she was sure her husband would kill her for not agreeing to give him full custody in their divorce, which sounds really off to me, and that usually means there's another side to the story. In any case…there's a chance the woman's alive and will jump at the chance to be reunited with Celine. Maybe, until we find out the deal there, we really could go with Ryan's plan just to give the girl a little nurturing while she's in intensive therapy. How about it? It might not be long at all."
"You're still asking!"
"Sorry!"
"You haven't even asked Carrie. Take note, Nicholas…when you're married, you can't make big decisions on your own, you have to discuss them with your spouse and decide together."
Nick placed his hand over his heart. "I confess I'm a sap for happy endings and I'm not thinkin' clearly, but c'mon, Wendy, the girl needs a place to go and recover…please."
"Does that actually work with the ladies?"
"You tell me."
"Ugh." Dropping her head in her hands, she groaned, "I'll have to talk it over with Paul of course…but if he agrees, then…okay…we can be her bridge home until she's permanently placed."
"Yes!" Nick jumped from the bench and flashed a thumbs up at Ryan who had his nose pressed to the glass. "I'm sure Carrie can make the paperwork fly through the system!"
As the two boys celebrated, Wendy felt the need to clarify, "But it's just temporary! Do you hear me! Temporary!"
Greg and Tawny's Limo - Maui
3:16 p.m. HST
"Forever!" Greg panted in his wife's ear in response to her ultimatum. "I promise I will never tease you about leaving me in the bathroom to crack my head open ever again if you'll be make super-naughty limo love with me right now." With their heated bodies slammed together, it felt deliciously scandalous and he was easily able to block out the pregnancy and be transported to the relationship's early days. For the moment she was an outrageously sexy exotic dancer who frequently partied passionately in the back of limos. A siren capable of accompanying him to the most taboo places of his wildest fantasies.
Fueled by second-trimester pregnancy hormones, romantic tropical breezes and sugary pineapple juice, Tawny had been raring to go since stepping foot in the limo, but in a moment of inspired genius she feigned reluctance and made her horny husband a proposition…steamy love making in exchange for permanent silence in regard to her role in his obtaining a head wound. "Hmm…maybe it's not enough of a trade, because I'm really not in the mood."
"I'll throw in a couple of pineapples!" Greg anxiously bargained. To make matters worse, the chorus of T Pain's I'm in Love with a Stripper echoed in his overactive imagination, stoking his desire. "Pleeeeeeeease!"
Deciding she couldn't wait another second, Tawny yelped, "Deal!" But just as Greg was about to dive in for a kiss, she remembered the issue of 'honesty in marriage' and pressed her palm over his eager mouth. "Wait!"
"Sorry, no take backs," he snickered upon moving his wife's hand. "You're mine in exchange for fresh fruit and a moratorium on head wound jokes."
"But I lied!" she exclaimed as she watched her sundress fly through the air.
Greg reluctantly lifted his head from his wife's chest. "Huh?"
"I really wanted to make love, but I pretended not to be in the mood so I could get you to agree to stop harassing me about your head wound." With guilt in her voice she squeaked, "Sorry, I'll understand if you lost the mood because I was dishonest."
Greg burst out laughing, "Sorry, but I don't have the luxury of having principles at the moment, because, as you may have noticed, my rocket's fueled and ready for launch. You could tell me you were really a sheep dressed as a hot chick and I'd opt to act now and ponder the ethics of the situation later."
"Then I'll count you down…t minus ten…nine…five...two…"
"Oh, yeah." Ready to enjoy what he figured might be his last private limo party for a very long time, Greg yanked his t-shirt over his head and turned up the radio volume. "Houston, we are a go for launch."
Crime Lab – Locker Room
7:04 p.m.
"Taking off for somewhere special, Boss?" Hodges queried when he entered the room and saw Nick buttoning a crisp grey dress shirt.
"Yeah, I'm takin' Carrie to dinner." That was the plan anyway, but he was having second thoughts. It didn't seem like the right thing to do after losing the baby, but sitting at home wasn't option either.
"Where?"
"The Eiffel Tower Restaurant."
"Tres romantique!" the lab rat replied with a horrible French accent. "I bet she'll love that."
"I'm hopin' so, yeah." Nick closed his locker and leaned against it. "Look, I know you know. You've known all day and keep lookin' at me funny, so just say it and then we'll move on, okay?"
"Okay." Shoving his hands in his pockets, Hodges cleared his throat, "Sorry to hear about the baby. I would have said it sooner, but I feel a little awkward because of all the things I said in front of you about not wanting kids and…well…that doesn't make me think that it's not a bad thing, in case you thought…I mean…"
"Thank you for your condolences, Hodges, I appreciate it." Nick pulled on his black suit jacket and changed the subject. "Got any plans tonight?"
"Really? Shoot, I don't have a jacket, and I'm pretty sure jackets are required at The Eiffel Tower, but I could swing by my place…" From the look on his boss' face he figured out he misunderstood the question. "Oh, you weren't asking me to join you, you were just being polite and inquiring about my boring life. Actually, I'm going to Big Brother volunteer training and couldn't have dinner with you and Carrie anyway…not that you really would want to have dinner with me."
"You, a Big Brother. Seriously? Why does a guy who can't stand kids, become a Big Brother?"
"I didn't do it just to suck up to you if that's what you think." Hodges followed Nick as he left the room.
"I'd really hope not for the kid's sake."
"Irving told me that moping isn't a productive hobby and suggested I do it. You know him right?"
"Yeah, we used to go to the same gym."
"And you used to do his woman." Hodges gulped. "Didn't mean to say that out loud. Anyway…Irving's huge and could kill me, so I agreed to volunteer."
"But do you like it?"
"Yeah, actually, I do. The kid assigned to me reminds me of me at that age, so I can relate."
"In other words, he's a dork," Nick joked, forcing the humor to get beyond any awkwardness left.
"Big time."
"Anything new with Celeste?" Fishing his keys out of his pocket, Nick walked out the front door.
"She called me today."
"That's good."
"Nah." Staring at the sidewalk as he walked, Hodges clarified, "She only called to arrange a time to pick up the box she left behind."
At his car Nick asked, "Did she specify if she wanted you out of the apartment when she came by?"
"No."
"Is there anything super important in the box? Something irreplaceable?"
"No."
"There you go." Nick unlocked his Armada and slid inside. "Have a good night."
"Wait! There I go where!" Hodges hurried to the driver's side door.
While turning the ignition key, Nick educated, "If she didn't say you had to be gone, that means you can be there…which means she wants you there…so you better be there."
"Really?" His hopes soaring, Hodges stepped back from the SUV as the door shut.
"With flowers," Nick added after rolling down the window. "Roses…a dozen red."
"A dozen red roses."
"And a handwritten card that says…'not an hour goes by that I don't think of you.'"
"Acutally, it's more like every twenty-four minutes."
"Hodges…"
"Right, right…an hour sounds much better…much less desperate…even though I am totally and completely desperate to get her back." Steadying himself with a deep breath, the unnerved man said, "Maybe I should have dinner reservations ready in case she says yes!"
"No way."
"No, you're right, that would be bad."
"Terrible."
"Right. Why is that exactly?"
"Because it would look like you were expecting her to say yes. That's way too presumptuous. Instead, ask her to dinner and when she says yes, get all flustered and say…'I was too scared I'd jinx things if I made reservations.'"
"Ooh, that's good."
Checking his watch, Nick started to reverse out of his space. "Have stuff on hand to have a carpet picnic and watch a romantic movie together."
"Carpet picnic, right." Remember that the guy had taken time to help him on what had to be a horrible day, Hodges shouted after the truck, "Thanks for the advice!"
The Four Seasons – Maui
4:09 p.m.
While Greg paced their room, Tawny sat on the bed with the phone in front of her. "Okay, Carrie," she switched it to speaker, "I need legal advice."
"Uh oh. What happened now? Please tell me Greg isn't in jail."
"No, I'm right here in the hotel room!" he laughingly replied. "My wife and I are having a contractual dispute and we need a neutral third party opinion."
"Here's what happened," Tawny struggled to stay serious. "Coming back from the pineapple farm…"
"Ooh! How was it!"
"Sweet!" Greg quipped as he crashed on the bed next to his wife laughing at his own lame joke.
"Shhh! Order in the court!" Tawny cleared her throat. "During the limo ride to the airport, Chuckles got excessively horny."
"Shocking!" Carrie teased in Jim Brass' tone.
"That hardly makes me a freak when I'm on my honeymoon!" Greg pleaded as he kicked off his shoes. "Ooh, sorry…continue making your case, wife."
"I made Chuckles a deal that I'd make love with him in the limo if he stopped giving me crap about leaving him alone in the bathroom to crack his head open. I fulfilled my end of the bargain…very well I might add."
"I concur," Greg sighed at the pleasant memory he was hoping to repeat in the near future.
Tawny threw a pillow at her husband's grin. "Yeah, but now Mr. Satisfied is saying the contract is void because I misrepresented myself!"
"Why are you saying that your wife misrepresented herself, Mr. Sanders?" Carrie queried in her most professional tone. "Explain."
"Because she pretended she wasn't in the mood to have sex when I asked if we could. That's when she came up with the deal." He mocked Tawny's voice, "Ugh, okay fine, I'll have sex with you but only if you promise never to harass me about your head wound ever again." Then, in a move of utmost maturity, he stuck his tongue out at his wife and said, "Liar, liar, pants on fire!"
"Uh, no…it was your pants that were on fire."
"Oh, like you didn't like it when I…"
"Focus, Chuckles!" Carrie scolded. "I don't need those details."
"Okay, here's my take, I say because she lied about being horny to get me to comply, so the deal is void even though we had sex. Therefore, I can still harass her about my head wound."
"You two are really odd sometimes."
"Thanks," the newlyweds gushed simultaneously.
"Sorry, Mr. Sanders." Carrie declared, "The terms of the contract were that if your wife made love with you in the limo, you'd stop harassing her about your head wound. She put out, therefore you need to shut up."
"But she lied about not being horny!" he protested as Tawny cheered and bounced on the bed. "She wasn't sacrificing anything! That's not fair!"
"Mr. Sanders, you had the option to renegotiate the terms of the verbal contract after she declared her horniness, but you chose not to and continued on with the sex when the original terms were still in effect."
"I was mentally impaired by lust at the time."
"Doesn't matter."
"Yessssss!" Tawny whapped her husband's head with a pillow. "That's what I said! Thanks, Carrie. What do I owe you?"
"A case of pineapples."
"We shipped plenty," Tawny assured her friend. "But get this…a lady at the gift shop told me that pineapple juice in large doses can cause uterine contractions, so don't eat too much."
"Um…okay, thanks for the warning."
"Don't worry. I Googled it," Greg announced, "it said you'd have to eat like seven of them and even then there's no documented proof it causes miscarriages. So the baby will be fine if you only scarf one or two."
"Speaking of babies, we bought the cutest little pineapple teddy bears for the twins!" Tawny excitedly spilled the beans regarding what was supposed to be a surprise souvenir. "I got one for Baby Gris and Baby Stokes too I want to take a picture of you, me and Sara holding the bears by our bellies for the scrapbook."
"Sorry, I hate to cut you short, but…I have to uh…"
Tawny's smile faded upon hearing her friend's voice crack. "Is something wrong?"
"I'm just…"
"Are you crying?"
"I…we'll talk when you get back, okay?"
Tawny and Greg exchanged worried looks as they heard Carrie sniffling.
"Did you and Nick have another fight?" Tawny quietly asked as she took the phone off speaker. "It's just you and me on the line now. Greg's on the balcony." She shooed him away.
"I really don't want to bring you down on your vacation."
Clutching the phone tighter, Tawny whispered, "There's no vacation from friendship, Sweetie. It's okay, tell me what happened."
The Blakes
7:14 p.m.
"You did what?!" Paul huffed in his wife's direction. "How could you offer to be Celine's foster mom just because Nick and Ryan kept needling you!"
"I didn't." Wendy continued cracking eggs into a blue ceramic bowl. "I told them I'd have to discuss it with you first."
"Well, my answer is no, and we both know Dr. Phil says important decisions in a marriage require two 'yes' votes...at least that's what you told me when I wanted a new car." Grabbing a beer from the fridge, Paul's irritation grew. "I can't believe Nick sided with Ryan and worked you over about this. I know this will sound horrible, Wen, but I think the miscarriage was a blessing in disguise. That guy is not ready to be a parent and neither is my sister."
"Paul!"
"I'm not displacing my own son and disrupting my entire family just so a girl who's caused us nothing but grief can take his place. It's insanity, Wendy, and I don't understand why you think it's remotely a good idea."
"Keep your voice down."
"Sorry," he whispered after a long swig of beer.
"Would you please listen to where I'm coming from for a second? Our usually self-absorbed son was standing there being compassionate and offering to make a personal sacrifice to help a girl who has lost her entire family in forty-eight hours and suddenly I couldn't figure out why I was discouraging that instead of encouraging it."
"Wen…" Paul cracked up, "Sorry, I don't mean to laugh, but come on…Ryan's thirteen and the Celine gives free BJs. I think you're reading much deeper into the scenario than me. Of course he wants her around! Imagine what she'll give him after he gives up his room and family for her."
"I can't…ugh." Wendy flung her dishtowel on the counter. "If you really think our son's motivation is sex from a girl he knows is emotionally devastated, then I have a lot more faith in Ryan than you."
"Sorry, I'm a guy. I know how guys think."
"Was that your motivation when you met me?" she asked, trying desperately not to scream. "You knew I was an emotionally devastated girl. Is getting into my pants all you were thinking about when you asked me out to dinner and acted like you cared!"
Gripping his head, Paul groaned, "No, of course not, Wendy, but I wasn't a horny teenage virgin when I met you, I was an adult."
Tears filling her eyes, Wendy said, "Today, I thought I was seeing you in Ryan. I thought I was seeing a guy who wanted to help a broken girl who needed someone she could trust when she has no family to turn to, but instead you want me to believe that the son we raised is nothing more than a callous, horny, user…which would make me a complete failure as a mother. Thank you."
Damn, you're getting better at that guilt thing every year, Honey. "It's official…I hate me. You win.." Dropping into a kitchen chair, Paul released a tortuous sigh, "Sorry for being such a jerk. I was already on edge about the baby and then I had a shit day at work. The thought of bringing Celine home just…you really caught me off guard and…" Watching his wife blow her nose in a paper towel, he caved like he always did when she cracked. "What do we have to do to get her here for a temporary stay? Is all our old stuff still on record? Do they have to do a new home visit since we moved? What?"
The Four Seasons – Maui
4:24 p.m. HST
"What happened?" Greg asked when Tawny walked onto the balcony. The light rain falling outside was no match for the tears streaming down her cheeks. "Damn, they didn't really break up this time," he gulped, "did they?" When she shook her head in lieu of words, he only grew more confused. "I…"
"They lost the baby."
That's when he noticed Tawny's hands were on her belly. "No, really? I mean, of course it must be real because you wouldn't joke about something as serious…wow…Nick must be…he wanted kids so…"
"Much more than you?"
"What?" he inhaled sharply, not wanting to admit the statement was true. "I was going to say 'so much and Carrie did too'."
With the back of her hand she wiped her face. "You were just saying last night how you'll be paying for your mistake the rest of your life…the cost of all the diapers…the loss of freedom, the…"
"But I didn't mean…"
"You said it again in the limo today. You said how we'll never get to be spontaneous and…"
"It doesn't mean that I really wish you weren't pregnant!"
"Honestly?" she cried as the confession bubbled up within her. "Because…I've had that wish a few times and I'd feel a whole lot less guilty about it, if you did too sometimes."
The declaration rocked his peace of mind harder than anything his mother had done of late. "I wasn't expecting you to say that."
"Me either." Trembling, Tawny's tears grew stronger. "After talking to Carrie, I feel so guilty for ever thinking it. They wanted it so bad, while we didn't want it to happen at all. We almost had an abortion, Greg."
"No, we talked about it for like ten seconds, that's hardly the same thing."
"The other day, at the honeymooners party…for a split second I wished I had miscarried that night in the ER, so we could be starting out like them. Starting out without worrying how we'll manage with twins, and with me going to college and getting a career like Sara and Carrie, instead of being handed jobs by people who feel sorry for me. Listening to Ron and Drew talk last week…I couldn't understand any of the business stuff. I hate feeling like the dumb blonde."
Rising from his chair, Greg huffed, "Stop it. You're not dumb, Tawny, you're under-educated because you had a shit life. Drew had two parents who cared about him and an all-expenses paid college education."
"Ron had a shit life," she countered in a sniffle. "And he's a bazillionaire."
"He's seventy!" Greg chuckled, desperate to get her to lighten up. "You have forty-eight years to catch up to him, Princess."
"We're so not ready." Out of breath, she squeaked, "I know I'm doing a great job faking it, but I'm terrified. Talking to Carrie I kept thinking, 'why them? They're so ready and we're not."
Grabbing Tawny's hand, he soothed, "Look, just because it's scaring us, doesn't mean we can't do it. And just because we sometimes wish you weren't pregnant, doesn't mean we really want that to happen. It's just a nervous reaction from being overwhelmed." Framing her face with his trembling hands, he whispered, "Even though I've sometimes wished the pregnancy never happened, not once did I ever wish I hadn't met you, and no matter how hard it gets, I never will."
"I'm still terrified."
Embracing his turn as the optimistic one, Greg enthused, "We can do it. I know we can!"
"But every honeymoon couple we've met here looks at us like 'they're never gonna make it' or 'better them than us'."
"Strangers! Who cares what strangers think? They don't know us."
"But our friends look at us that way too…even your dad." Bordering on hysterical she said, "No one believes we can do it. No one."
"You're right. But just think how cool it will be when we prove them all wrong!" Watching fear flicker in her eyes, he dug deep for optimism. "The joke will be on them, Princess, because we'll do it, and we'll be great at it, and then they'll all owe us an apology. We'll get to say the biggest 'we told you so' ever."
"I think all that pineapple juice has gone to your head."
"Come here." Taking her to the edge of the balcony, he faced her towards the ocean. "Since we're in paradise I feel it's acceptable to be sappy and melodramatic."
"How can it be paradise if it's raining?"
"To flowers, rain is paradise."
"Good point."
"Thank you." Pointing to the vast ocean before them he doubled the optimism in his voice. "It's you and me against the world, Princess, and we'll show 'em all." He gave her a little shake. "All you have to do is throw your doubts into the sea and believe it can happen. On the count of three, we'll toss them in together…one, two, three!"
After nearly a minute of silence Tawny sniffled, "Be honest, did it work for you?"
"No, I'm still scared shitless."
"Me too," she said before smiling. "But I feel better now that I got all that off my chest."
"Good." His hands sliding from her shoulders to her womb, Greg whispered, "Consider this, since I've met you, I've managed to do way more than people ever expected of me. I got you pregnant with twins on our first date, right? Hell, just the fact that I got you to sleep with me is more than any of my friends thought possible!" He laughed with her. "And let's not forget that I knocked your socks off with my singing proposal and then came up with wedding vows that moved you and every guest to tears. Last, but not least, I faced off with a psycho and came out alive…actually I've done that twice if you count Tucker Mifflin and not justmy mother."
"God, I love you."
"Excellent, my plan's working," he teased. "I'm brainwashing you."
"Keep at it."
"Come what may," he softly sang to remind her of their vows. "We're a long shot, Princess." In the gentle breeze, he swayed her to the rhythm set by the palm trees. "I don't ever foresee our odds changing, but the good news is, long shots have the biggest pay offs."
The Townhouse
7:34 p.m.
Seated at the kitchen counter, Gil informed Scott Sanders, "He's calling it a payoff." His voice was thick with irritation. "It chafes me every time I say it."
"A payoff?" Scott echoed as he poured two hefty glasses of wine.
"He accused me of letting Greg live here rent-free in exchange for doing my bidding during the Rodgers case."
Handing over a glass Scott said, "As if my son doesn't have enough crap to deal with thanks to Bev, now he has a father-in-law who intends on doing everything he can to cause him grief."
After a sip of merlot, Gil clarified, "The official line is 'Mike wants to be a caring stepfather to Tawny'."
"A caring murderer…nice oxymoron." Setting down his glass, Scott said the obvious, "So, I'm guessing you came here to tell me they'll need to move."
Hating to do it, but knowing it was necessary, Gil nodded. "I'm sorry, but, yes…as soon as possible. We can say it was just a temporary arrangement until they found a place. I'll need them to write a small check for rent too, just to be safe."
"It's not like they won't understand."
"Unfortunately, that's not making it easier." One hearty swig later, Gil said, "Here's my concern, because Greg and Tawny will have to move ASAP, I know they'll need financial help, but it has to be from someone not associated with the department, which means Nick can't help him, or Becca, because she's married to Vartann."
"They have nothing to fear," Scott said with a smile. "They've got me, and after years of being told to 'stay out of it', I'm happy to help." A devious chuckle escaped his lips. "I'll make sure Bev finds out I'm playing the hero. That'll piss her off real good. Sorry…I've never been a vindictive person until the Ex inspired me. I just can't get over the years I lost with Greg because of her manipulations. I honestly don't think I ever will."
"I've been there myself with my father. Surprisingly, things are finally working out…forty years later."
"Forty years…wow."
Gil reached for his wine glass. "Carl Bard said, 'Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.'. That's how I feel about my father and me, but from what I've heard, I think it fits nicely for you and Greg as well."
"Hey, since Sara's on her way out of town and we're both on our own tonight, do you feel like grabbing a bite?"
"You like steak?"
"Love it."
"My wife's a vegetarian, you know. I can only go to a steakhouse when Sara won't smell it on me."
Scott lifted his glass. "As soon as I polish this off, we'll go. I'd love to tap your brain about rebuilding a father-son relationship from a son's perspective." Enjoying his status as 'Involved Father', Scott raised his wine glass "Here's to Carl Bard and his take on happy endings from new beginnings."
Paris, Las Vegas
7:58 p.m.
Standing in the spot where it all began, Nick anxiously awaited Carrie's arrival. On the drive over, he had a brainstorm, and couldn't wait to see if she'd go for his crazy idea. "Damn." He checked his watch. "Where is she?"
While the tense cowboy continued to fret, his fiancée was making her way through the crowd milling about faux-Paris. On the drive over she wondered what Nick's plans were for the evening. Whatever they were, she was grateful to be out of the house and away from the memories of baby planning.
A hundred yards away, Carrie spotted her man pacing the sidewalk holding a single red rose in his left hand. Thank you, she thought, as she watched him through glassy eyes. When Nick glanced over and cracked a smile, she gasped, wondering if he really read her mind.
Our life really is a beautiful ride, Carrie realized upon arriving at the base of the tower, the place where their journey had begun. "I love you, Nicky," she exhaled on a breath while her fingers coiled around the delicate flower her fiancé was holding in his shaky hand.
When their fingers touched he felt a familiar current surge through him, the same one he had felt the first time they stood at the tower's base together. A current that signaled 'this is it, she's perfect'. "I love you too, Sweetheart." They had come there on his birthday to mark five wonderful months of cruising smooth and bumpy roads together and tonight, he wanted to acknowledge they had come full circle. Even though life had been cruel lately, he hoped she was looking forward to the future as much as him. "I hope comin' here's okay, Darlin'." When she melted into his embrace, the tourists bustling around them blended into the bright lights and disappeared.
"It's exactly where I need to be."
Grazing her earlobe with his lips, Nick whispered, "Wanna do somethin' radical with me tonight?"
"You mean…"
"There's no reason why we can't now. I mean…if you want to…because I really want to."
A serene smile glided across her face. "I really want to."
Pressing a kiss to her engagement ring, Nick gushed, "We're talkin' about forever here, Sweetheart. Don't say yes just because I'm excited."
"I'm excited too…and nervous, mostly because I think my father will be so ticked."
"Not as ticked as my mother."
"We don't have to tell them."
"We have a lousy track record with secrets, Darlin'."
"Very true. Oh well, they'll get over it." Pointing to her fitted black designer dress, Carrie giggled, "I'm not really dressed for the occasion."
"For the record, you look perfect to me, but I booked it for nine, so there's time to run home and change."
"You booked it!" She cracked up. "You were that sure I'd say yes, huh?"
Thinking back to his earlier coaching of Hodges, Nick sheepishly grinned, "Yeah." Taking her hand, he led her past the tower. "And it felt great."
Flight 5389 to Pittsburgh
9:26 p.m.
It felt strange to be traveling alone again, Sara thought as she reclined in the First Class seat Gil had reserved for her. It wasn't just a plane ticket her husband had given her that afternoon, it was a chance to be a part of a happy ending, or so they hoped.
On her way to confront Sally Wells, Celine's birth mother, Sara planned on passing the time reading crime fiction. During her single days, whenever she was maxed out on overtime and banned from the lab, she would pass the time devouring books, sometimes polishing off two or three a day. But as she turned to the second page of her novel. Sara felt her mind drifting toward the Campbell case and her conversation with Ivan Radko about Celine's mother.
"It's your typical sob story," Ivan explained as he sat in the interrogation room enjoying the attractive woman's company. "Sally was a sixteen year old virginal hayseed when she ran away from home. Her father was an alcoholic and beat the crap out of her. She had enough and ran. She took a job at one of Bruce's clubs. I was a bouncer at the time."
"Were the two of you friends?"
"Yeah." Ivan's face exploded into a grin. "I friggin' loved that girl…literally, but when the boss found out, he took her."
"To piss you off."
"To teach me my place," Ivan corrected. "Bruce saved my ass in Jersey and brought me to Vegas to work off my debt. I had no right touchin' something that belonged to him."
"Belonged?" Sara rolled her eyes. "Sally was property."
"We both were." Ivan's smile returned. "She was gorgeous. Fantastic smile…tits. A real looker." He shrugged. "But I bet you figured that already. Ain't no way Celine or Nina got their looks from Bruce. He married her on her eighteenth birthday when she was already pregnant with Nina."
"Mr. Radko," Sara turned the page in her notebook. "What happened in the marriage to prompt the divorce?"
"The Boss wanted a babe, not a woman whose body was trashed from birthing babies. Bruce likes his women physically unflawed. He used Sally to give him kids and then wanted her gone. The problem was, she wanted money and the girls."
"Did he have her killed?" Sara quietly asked. "How did she die, Mr. Radko? Were you there? Behind the trigger maybe?"
Ivan broke out laughing. "I just realized, I don't have to keep it a secret now that the boss is dead. Yeah, when she was pushing about custody, he told me to get rid of her, but I couldn't do it."
Staring at the cold-blooded killer, Sara asked, "Because you still loved her?"
"What the hell can I say? I'm a sap for pretty woman…like you, CSI Sidle." He snickered, "That's where Sally got the idea…the Pretty Woman movie chick…Julia Roberts. She was in another flick, about a woman in a screwed-up marriage. I don't remember the title, uh…"
"Sleeping with the Enemy."
"Yeah! That's it. She made me watch it"
Sara remembered Brian had taken her to see the movie when they were dating at Berkeley. After watching the second abusive husband scene, one that reminded her of her mother's former plight, she lied about having stomach cramps, and rushed to the theater bathroom to get a grip on her emotions.
"Sally had seen the movie and decided to do the same thing…fake her death. That movie was like a friggin' How-To manual when it came to a wife leavin' her psycho husband. Sally did it the same exact way as Julia Hottie Roberts. She went sailing and everyone thought she drowned…even Bruce, he never suspected a thing. I was waitin' in a boat to pick her up."
"Oh!" Sara's knee-jerk reaction sent her unread book flying. "What if…" The movie played in her head…the scene of the shocked husband standing on the deck screaming his wife's name. Suddenly the actor's face morphed into Mike's and turned into the newspaper photo Gil had of Mike standing on the shore sopping wet after his wife's accidental demise.
"Are you okay?" Dirk, the silver-haired male flight attendant hurried over to check. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
Sara's heart raced. "Oh my God."
The Gilded Rose
9:32 p.m.
"Oh my God!" Carrie shrilled, before covering her mouth. What the hell was I thinking! I can't do this!
"You can change your mind, Darlin'," Nick reminded her. "I don't want you to…"
"No." After a deep breath she glanced over her shoulder and smiled at Kyra, the tattoo artist who owned the shop with her husband, Tanner, had been highly recommended by Irving. "I can tough it out. I can! Really! Sorry for shrieking."
"Not a problem," Kyra calmly replied. "And don't feel too bad, when Irving brought in your friend Sofia, she bawled like a baby getting one in the same place."
"Thanks, that makes me feel better on so many levels."
From his table five feet away, Nick winked at his fiancée, who was lying on her belly getting a Phoenix tattooed to the left of her lower back while he got one above his heart. "Thanks for hangin' in."
"There's no way I'm letting you do this alone," Carrie panted. "I'm with you, Nicky…one hundred and ten percent…forever…OH! Sorry. Uh…do you have a stick I could bite down on?"
"How about if Tanner moves your fiancé's table a little closer and you hold his hand? Think that will help?" Kyra was taking extra care with the endearing couple who had very sentimentally explained the symbolism behind their Phoenix Rising tattoos.
When she saw her man's hand reaching out, Carrie bit back her tears and grabbed it. "Much better."
"Hell, yeah." Breathing deep, Nick tightened his grip on his fiancée's hand and confessed, "I was ten seconds away from screamin' like a little girl."
Pittsburgh Airport
4:30 a.m. EST
"Gil!" Sara anxiously yelled into her cell. "What if we really have it wrong!
"What?" the groggy voice replied. "Are you…"
"What if Mike really didn't kill his wife! They never found her body. There's only a Presumptive Death Certificate. What if she faked her own death and she's really alive somewhere? Somewhere we can find her."
Author's Notes:
I thought it was time for Sara to get a little intrigue and road trip that will lead her to all sorts of questions both professional and personal.
I thought it was the perfect time for Nick and Carrie to get the Rising Phoenix tattoos.
Tawny finally cracks and although Greg floundered momentarily, I wanted to give him a turn at being the grown up especially after his 'old Greg' behavior in the limo. Of course he doesn't realize he's being evicted as he speaks. Doh!
I hope there was enough levity and sweetness within to help those who need an angst break. The next chapter has some serious scenes, but also a bunch of funny stuff throughout.
Next Chapter: Sara meets with Celine's mother. Catherine panics when she finds two co-workers in a compromising position. Carrie breaks the tattoo news to the family among other things. Some nice father-son moments. Posting: Thursday, August 17.
Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts,
Maggs