EPILOGUE

Nothing ahead but the open road. Lucy Preston was taking control of her life for the first time ever. Amy had always told her to make her own future and she had finally decided that she had had enough. She laughed at herself as she thought about how scared she had been to throw caution to the wind and chase her dreams, but now that she was on the road, she felt lighter than she had ever felt in her before.

She had always wanted to make her mother proud, always dreamed of following in her footsteps, but countless hours in the library, researching, writing, rewriting, and doing even more research was starting to take its toll and she wasn't even close to halfway done. She needed a break. She needed to do something crazy and irresponsible just once in her life. She had always loved to sing, always harbored a secret desire to headline at some concert with adoring fans cheering her on. Late nights singing into hair brushes with Amy had given way to such thoughts when she was a kid and she never quite outgrew them. So, when a group of her friends approached her about forming a band and cruising up and down the coast, she couldn't resist. Her mother, she knew, would be disappointed, but she was sure her father would be able to convince her to let her sow a few wild oats.

Lucy rushed home from winter break, just in time for Amy's birthday. She told her mother at dinner, only after Amy kicked her under the table mouthing behind her hand to "go ahead and tell mom already." Carol Preston was disappointed but as she had suspected, her father came to her rescue admonishing Carol that she had been young once upon a time and she had thrown caution to the wind when she married him against her parents' wishes. The ensuing conversation made them all laugh until they cried as her parents recalled the first time they had met at UC Berkley in 1979. It was love at first sight, Henry had purposefully bumped into her at the library knocking stacks of books and microfilm all over the research room claiming he was looking for the bathroom, but in reality, just hoping to talk to the pretty girl who sat in the front row of their shared history class.

Carol had finally agreed to allow Lucy to take a vacation from school to sing as long as she promised to go back and finish her studies. "I'll give you two years, and then you need to finish what you started." Lucy readily agreed. She had always wanted to teach…maybe at a small college, not at Stanford like her mother. She did love history, but she couldn't help but feel that if she didn't do this, she would regret it for the rest of her life.

Training had been no picnic, but for the first time ever, Wyatt Logan felt like he had his head on straight. After serving several years in the Army, he had been selected for Delta Force. He was finally finished with the grueling training and tonight he was going to have a drink in memory of his Grandpa Sherwin. He knew that wherever he was, he was looking down on him and smiling. Wyatt joined the Army to make him proud, to follow in his footsteps. He never dreamed that he would be selected for the elite force, but when opportunity came knocking, he thought of his grandfather and took the chance. Now here he was, in San Diego, kicking back with his fellow selectees.

He should've been overjoyed, relieved, and just damn happy that he had survived the training, but he had just gotten a letter from his on again off again girlfriend, Jessica, in Texas. They were off-again. She had just started dating one of their mutual friends from high school and while she said she was proud of what he had accomplished, she wasn't sure she could be in a relationship with someone who was a "state secret." Wyatt understood, though he was disappointed. He had fallen in love with Jessica the first minute he saw her, but he was so hell-bent on making a life for himself, he didn't stop to think about what it meant for them, as a couple. He was sure that if they ever became on again - again, he would ask her to marry him, because now that he had a career, he could support her and they could make a life together, away from Texas.

His buddy Dave Baumgardner, affectionately known as "Bam Bam" to their group, had cursed Wyatt for brooding on the night they had officially graduated from the brutal training for Delta Force. Wyatt needed a drink - hell, they all did - and so Bam Bam dragged them all to this seaside bar to celebrate…and to get Wyatt "good and drunk."

The group sat at a few tables pushed together next to a window. Half of the group were already on their way to being drunk. Wyatt, however, was still nursing his first whiskey. Bam Bam, being ever ready to take care of his good pal, had brought a few girls over to their table. Wyatt had no interest in meeting any one new tonight and he knew exactly what Dave was up to. After the third or fourth girl had asked for his number, Wyatt politely excused himself and decided he would step out and get some air.

He found a nice bench next to the bar where he could sit and listen to music mixed with the gentle sound of the ocean. Despite being in San Diego, he found this particular spot peaceful. He kicked his legs out in front of him, reclined a bit on the bench and tilted his head up to look up at the sky. He had just closed his eyes to let the sounds of the seaside wash over him when he was accosted by a hushed and nervous voice.

"Are you asleep?"

"No, ma'am" he didn't open his eyes.

"Oh, good. Um…Do you happen to know where The Roof is? I'm supposed to be meeting my -"

"No idea, ma'am." He kept his eyes firmly shut, hoping this girl would get the hint and leave him alone.

Her voice suddenly changed from anxious to irritated, "You know, we're pretty much the same age, so you can quit calling me ma'am."

That response made him laugh. He called every woman ma'am as a sign of respect, even more so since joining the military. He opened one eye to find himself face to face with a pretty brunette who at once looked like a complete ball of nerves and confidently determined. He smirked at her.

She gave him a wary glance in return and began shuffling though a notebook looking desperately for street signs that would point her in the right direction. Noting her mounting anxiety, he huffed out a breath and asked her to give him the directions she had and he would do his best to help her find her way.

"Thank you" she said breathlessly full of embarrassment. "I left my car at the hotel and the concierge must have given me the wrong address, because when I look at what my friends told me it says nothing about the harbor." She was rambling and she knew it, but her anxiety was mounting and she couldn't help herself. "I've never done this before..I mean, I've asked for directions before, I just have never done something this – crazy."

Wyatt had been looking at her incredulously as she spoke, but at her latest comment, he arched his eyebrow at her and asked, "What's crazy about getting directions?"

"Oh, it's not that. I –I really shouldn't even be here. I'm going to school to study history, like my mother. She's the Department Chair at Stanford, so ya know, big shoes to fill and all that." Wyatt's eyes widened at her rambling. "I decided, on a whim, to take a break from school to do this."

"What? Ask strangers for directions in San Diego?"

"Oh….No" she laughed nervously. "I left school to - ahem…sing with a band" she muttered that last part very quickly.

'I'm sorry, I didn't catch that." He leaned forward and tilted his ear towards her.

"I left school to sing with a band." she said more clearly with and in complete humiliation. Wyatt tried, but failed, to suppress a small laugh. "We decided to take a break from our studies and drive up and down the coast, doing something utterly….crazy….oh my God, maybe my mother was right, I should've just stuck to history. Who am I kidding?" Her hands were over her face now, she looked completely distraught.

Wyatt was at a loss of what to do. He was just looking for some peace and quiet and now here was this girl having a breakdown right in front of him. Wyatt couldn't help but notice that she was cute…and was amused by her openness and obvious apprehension. Looking at her, he could tell that she was not one for spontaneity, yet here she was. He was strangely impressed and entranced by this oh so honest young woman - he was positive he had never met anyone like her. He wanted to give her any encouragement that he could, she desperately looked like she needed it. He smiled and she almost became undone, he had a nice smile. "Listen, I just met you, but the fact that you just decided to up and leave school when you've got all this pressure from your mother – that's pretty brave."

Her eyes widened and mouth dropped open in surprise. "I've never considered myself brave." she scoffed. "I – I've just always just done what was expected of me and tried to make my mother proud. This – this is…"

"Something you always wanted to do?" Wyatt smirked at her. She nodded her head, smiling sheepishly. "I get that you want to make your mom proud, I always wanted to make my Grandpa Sherwin proud, but at the end of the day, you have to make you own future."

She gaped at him. "My sister says the exact same thing."

"Well, she's right." They stood there smiling and staring at each other for a beat too long, when Wyatt coughed and looked at her directions again. "What's the name of the place you're singing at again?" He looked through her handwritten notes. "Is it the Tin Roof?"

"Yes! that's it." She breathed out a sigh of relief.

"That's in the Gaslamp Quarter. It's a few blocks that way, near Downtown.

"Oh shucks. I thought it was over here by the beach." She checked her watch. "Well, my set is in an hour, I suppose I better get going. Thank you so much for helping me…." She held out her hand expectantly.

"Wyatt" he said as he shook her hand with a smirk.

"Lucy" she returned with a grin. "It was nice to meet you, Wyatt."

"It was nice to meet you too." He smiled at her as she turned and walked away. He would've instantly regretted not getting her number if fate hadn't stepped in and lent a hand. He was just turning to go back to his friends at the bar when he saw her stop short, heard her curse and then crouch down on the sidewalk.

"What happened?" he asked as he ran up to check on her.

"Ugh, these heels. I'm stuck in the grate."

Wyatt bit back a laugh. "Here, let me help you." He wrapped his hand around her foot and yanked it up, throwing her off her balance and causing her to topple over on top of him, her shoe flying off in the other direction.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay?" She said as she straightened herself up.

"Yes, ma'am." Wyatt said with a sigh.

"There's that ma'am again." Lucy said with mock annoyance. "What's up with that, anyway?"

He stood up and brushed himself off with a shrug. "Comes with the territory, I guess."

"Oh, are you military?" her eyes widening in surprise as she leaned on his arm to put her shoe back on.

Wyatt bowed his head and gave her a humble smile, "Yes ma'am, just got selected for Delta Force."

Lucy gasped, "Delta Force? You're actually in Delta Force? And you called me brave?" She chuckled to herself and shook her head.

"What?" Wyatt chuckled back at her as he adjusted the collar of her coat which was had flown up during their accident.

"Nothing, It's just that….I mean, of all the people that come to my rescue in San Diego – I get Delta Force, I just think it's kind of….like a modern day fairy tale." Lucy said with a sheepish smile.

Wyatt laughed and almost couldn't believe the words that were coming out of his own mouth. "Well, I'd be a terrible knight in shining armor if I didn't see you safely to your destination, ma'am.".

Lucy looked surprised, "Don't you have friends to get back to?"

Wyatt shrugged. "I'd rather be here."

They talked the whole way to the club. She amazed him with her knowledge of Delta Force, not even hesitating when he challenged her with the question about what the first mission was, she went on to talk about the history of San Diego and about the various missions that began settlements throughout California, before she suddenly stopped – "I'm sorry. I know I sound like a Professor."

Wyatt shrugged as he looked at her "You're going to be a good teacher. I never even liked history before, but you make it interesting…and I promise, I'm not just saying that to impress you."

"Thank you, Wyatt." she said with a grin. "Well, this is me" she looked up at the sign outside. "Wanna come in and have a good laugh at my expense?"

Wyatt didn't laugh – he was blown away by Lucy Preston. She was smart, talented, a bit of a klutz, but absolutely adorable. When her set was over, he approached her nervously and asked her if she wanted to go grab a bite to eat. By the end of the night, he had completely forgotten why he had been brooding in the first place, but he was so very glad he had been out there on that park bench. Meeting Lucy was one step above being selected for Delta Force.

11 years later (2014)

The moving truck pulled away and Lucy turned to face the never ending sea of boxes that awaited her in their new California home. Leaving Ohio had been hard, but now that her mother was sick, Lucy and Wyatt had decided that they would move back West to help out. Now that her father was dead, Amy was the only one that could be there for their mother and she was finishing up college. Lucy didn't want her to have to carry that load all on her own.

Wyatt had fulfilled his enlistment requirement and rather than re-enlisting in military service, he switched to a civilian career with the Department of Homeland Security. His new boss, Agent Denise Christopher, had come by with a housewarming gift and Wyatt had just left with her to get acquainted with his new field office.

Lucy sighed as she began unpacking their old life. She never thought that she would be back in California. She loved her home state, but she much preferred a quieter life in Ohio. She had only been back in town a few days and her mother was already insisting that she take up a position at Stanford. "I built that Department, it's my legacy. I want you to follow in my footsteps, Lucy." The guilt was eating away at her, despite arguments from both Amy and Wyatt that she should make her own legacy. Lucy, still, after all these years, wanted to make her mother proud – but an offer from the local community college had just come in and she was ready to accept it.

Her doorbell rang and she ran to answer it, at a loss for who it might be. She was greeted by the sight of a pretty brunette woman and a small little girl holding a plate full of cookies. "Do you have any kids?" The child asked.

Lucy blushed and laughed. "No, not yet…I'm sorry to disappoint you." She looked up at the child's mother who was smiling in apology.

"I'm so sorry for Iris, she has been so excited since she saw the moving trucks."

"No, it's' fine" said Lucy. "We're just moving back here from Ohio…my mother is sick." Lucy explained. Iris was looking disappointed. "But we're hoping for a little one soon." Lucy added as she winked at Iris. "I'm Lucy."

"I'm Lorena. Lorena Flynn. We live a few doors down."

Months later, Wyatt awoke with a start. He kissed Lucy on the forehead and crept over to the window. Their street was lined with government vehicles and flashing lights. "What the hell?" he muttered as he pulled out his phone.

Lucy blinked awake, "Wyatt, what's wrong?"

"I don't know – by the looks of it, nothing good. You stay here, I'm going to find out."

Lucy pulled on a robe and went downstairs to make a cup of tea. An hour passed before Wyatt came back into the house, looking grim. She could tell that he had been crying. "Wyatt, what happened? What's wrong?

He pulled her into an embrace. "It appears Garcia Flynn murdered his family."

The next few days were a blur. Government agents, policeman, media swarmed their once quiet street. Lucy had grown to love Iris and she and Lorena had been warm friends. Garcia Flynn always seemed like the typical family man – devoted husband and father. He had been an NSA agent and on occasion, he and Wyatt had opportunities to work together. Not in an official capacity, but if Wyatt needed a favor from the NSA, Flynn was his contact and if Flynn needed something from Homeland, Wyatt was his.

Lucy found herself crying over the whole ordeal while she was at her mother's the following week. Carol Preston had just gone through a grueling chemotherapy session and Lucy was staying over to assist her mother in her weakened condition. Her mother was reclining on the sofa watching the news when Lucy brought her some tea. Lucy flinched as Lorena and Iris' pictures flashed on the screen. "Mom, do you mind…uh – can we change the channel?"

Carol looked at Lucy, "Sure, sweetheart." She handed Lucy the remote. "It's awful isn't it? You know, I knew his mother."

Lucy gasped, "Garcia Flynn? Why didn't you tell me before?"

Carol laughed, "Why on Earth would I do that? I didn't think it would signify."

"Well, he lived down the street from us. I was friends with his wife and daughter." Lucy said shakily unable to control her emotions.

Carol eyes darted upward in alarm, "You knew Garcia Flynn?"

Lucy was taken aback by her mother's reaction, "Yes…but you don't have to worry. Wyatt has installed every alarm system known to man since the murd - since that day." Lucy said as her voice caught in her throat. "If anyone so much as stepped in our front yard, Wyatt would know about it."

Carol smiled at Lucy, but she could still tell that her mother was unnerved by the idea that she had been friends and neighbors with the Flynn family. Lucy considered how she would feel under the same circumstances with her own daughter – she would probably be nervous too. "Mom, really it's fine."

"Lucy," Carol sighed. "Did you know anything about Garcia Flynn? His family? Who his parents were?

Lucy scoffed, "You're sounding like those investigators. No, I didn't talk with him much…mostly Lorena and Iris" she said sadly. "But you said you knew his mother – have I ever met her?"

Carol quickly shook her head, "No no no – I was just curious. It's ironic that I should know her from years ago and my daughter would be neighbors with her son. What are the odds?"

Lucy shrugged, "Kinda seems like fate, huh?"

2015

It was Christmas and Carol Preston was getting sicker by the day. The doctors were only giving her six more months to live making for a very somber yuletide.

Amy Preston answered the door of her mother's home to find an elderly man standing before her. "Can I help you?"

"Ah, yes, you must be Amy. I'm an old friend of your mother's, may I see her?"

"Um…let me ask her…can I have your name?"

"Benjamin Cahill"

Benjamin Cahill entered Carol Preston's bedroom and sat by her bedside. "How are we feeling today, Carol?"

Carol Preston, raised her eyebrows weakly at him and gasped a rasping breath, "I'm dying, Benjamin. What news do you have for me?"

Benjamin Cahill smiled at her, "You'll be pleased to know that the Mothership is nearing completion, however, we are missing a vital piece of the puzzle."he gave her a meaningful glare.

Carol sighed and shook her head, "I tried, you will have to find someone else. She is so headstrong – she didn't want Stanford, she wants to move back to Ohio after I die."

"She was born for this, Carol. She is too important, you know that." Benjamin Cahill stood up and began pacing around the room. "You should have pushed harder. You should have never allowed her to run off in the middle of her studies to – to go make a fool of herself all over California. And then she ended up marrying some nobody….you know we had plans for her. How could you let it happen?"

Carol closed her eyes and shook her head. "I know. I didn't think allowing her a little freedom would throw her so off-track."

Benjamin Cahill softened and he returned to her bedside. "I should have intervened sooner, I'm sorry. It shouldn't have all been left to you."

Carol gave a shuddering breath, "Well, we all have our regrets. It was just so hard to deny her anything when she was so happy."

"Imagine how happy she will be when you are well, and when her life is as it should be. When her success equals your own, and she is chosen to be part of history!"

Carol looked at Benjamin Cahill, "I think I should tell you – she's pregnant. She's very excited…they both are."

Cahill rolled his eyes. "She doesn't know what she could and should be. You failed in her education, Carol. She should have been told about Rittenhouse before she left for college. She should have been raised learning the finer points of what it means to be a part of this legacy. A legacy that requires her to be a bit more careful in choosing a partner."

Carol sighed, "You know, it was a burden for me…and marrying Henry was my way of rebelling. I suppose I just understood a little more than she realized I would when she asked me if she could take that break to go sing." She smiled at the memory. "And when she came back, so in love, and so happy….it made me happy too."

Benjamin Cahill gave her a pointed glare, "And look at you, Carol. Henry's habit ended up killing you. This was the price of your rebellion. What price will Lucy pay for hers?" He shook his head. "Would you wish your fate on her? Or something worse?" He sighed. "We cannot fix this without Lucy. It's the whole reason she was born. The whole reason we –" he stopped short. "We have to fix this."

Carol looked up at him in surprise. "Fix what? Fix Lucy?" she laughed.

Benjamin Cahill looked at her seriously. "Carol, you know what Lucy represents for us. You know why we have to fix this. She's it Carol. She is the last descendant of David Rittenhouse. The last full blooded relative of our founder. She cannot throw that away."

Carol sighed. "I know. You're right. Of course, you're right. She could have so much more and I – I want to be there, to see her shine."

Benjamin Cahill leaned over, "So…all I need is a date. I have a pilot who is willing to go back and reset, if you will, Lucy's path. One that puts her firmly on the road towards Rittenhouse and becoming the anthropologist and historian we always wanted her to be. This whole time travel initiative was created with her in mind."

Carol pointed to her desk, "In the desk drawer is a folder with her name on it." He stood up and walked over to her desk. She gave a shaky sigh "I took a picture the night she came home to announce her intentions to leave school."

Cahill obliged and flipped open the folder, smiling at all of the various honors and awards Lucy had won over the years. He handed the folder to Carol as he sat down. "I'm pleased to see she has done so well. She will be spectacular," He patted her hand. "once we get her head on straight." Carol pursed her lips and nodded. "Is that it?"

Benjamin Cahill was pointing to a picture marked December 13, 2003. Lucy, Amy and Henry were hugging and smiling next to the family Christmas tree, with a caption that read "Lucy makes her own future." Carol pulled it out of the album and handed it to Benjamin Cahill, not meeting his eyes. "Yes – she drove home from school that day."

He smiled at her as he tucked the picture into his breast pocket, "Thank you, Carol. She will make history….and you and she will have the time together that you deserve."

Carol smiled "That's all I want. More time with Lucy…and a chance to change history."

He was walking towards her bedroom door when she called him back, "Benjamin, who are you sending? Emma?"

He smiled, "No. Anthony Bruhl. He's a family man, has a daughter of his own. I trust him."

Carol nodded. "And Jensen?"

Cahill chuckled, "He'll make sure she doesn't get hurt. We've thought the whole thing through. You have nothing to worry about." He crossed back over to Carol, taking her hand in his. "We'll save her from herself and then, when she's ready, when she's on the correct path, we'll save you."

Later that evening, Benjamin Cahill entered Mason Industries. He beamed with pride as he admired the gleaming Mothership in the docking bay. Anthony Bruhl looked up from his desk, Benjamin Cahill was motioning to him from the conference room.

"Yes, sir?" Anthony asked as he entered the room. "Is there something you needed from me? The Mothership isn't quite ready, but we've made significant prog-"

"I have a special mission for you Anthony. It's extremely important and really, the first of its kind." Anthony raised his eyebrows in interest. "If you are successful, your family will never want for another thing….ever."

"What's the mission?" Anthony asked.

Benjamin Cahill pulled the photo from his chest pocket, "You're going to change my daughter's future."