Chapter Nine

It was past noon when Trixie, Dan, Jim and Annie finally entered Crabapple Farm's kitchen. Several pairs of eyes stared at them as they crossed the doorway. All of the BWG's were there, plus Mrs. Belden and Miss Trask.

Exhausted as they were, they knew their friends had a right to know what had happened that morning. And so they summarized the events which had led to David's arrest. After scolding Trixie once more, Captain Molinson had agreed to leave Annie with the Wheeler's for the time being, provided the Social Services were warned. There was still the matter of Annie's uncle to be solved. The girl had been very excited when she'd heard she had family and Trixie couldn't help feeling as glad as she did.

But finally they were through with their story and the group split up. As Jim was setting up to take Annie up to Manor House, along with Miss Trask, he managed to place an envelope in Trixie's hand. She stared at him waiting for an explanation but he merely smiled. She stood there, holding the envelope in her hand, watching him slowly walk up the hill. When they finally disappeared from her sight, she lowered her eyes to her hand. With trembling hands she opened the envelope. Inside was a sheet of paper half covered with Jim's even, strong handwriting.

"Dear Trixie," she read "I know these last few days have been hard on both of us. I didn't make it easier on you with my proposal. But I guess we've waited long enough to make a decision about the two of us. I love you, Trix, I probably always will but I don't want you to say yes just because you're afraid to hurt me. Not knowing hurts a lot more. I've been thinking and I guess that if we try to talk about this some more we'll end up screwing things up... again. We're better with actions than we are with words, so I thought of a way you could tell me your decision without actually speaking. Remember the ring that belonged to my aunt? Wear it tomorrow, at the party, if you're answer is yes and you're willing to give us a try. If you don't wear it... Well, I'll get the message. Please, Trixie, listen to your heart and do what it tells you to, whatever it may be. Love, Jim. P.S.: And this has nothing to do with you working with me. That offer still stands, no matter what your decision may be."

Trixie folded the letter and slowly walked up the stairs. Tomorrow. Jim wanted an answer tomorrow. And she knew that ring thing meant he wanted a yes or a no. There was no in between. It was fair enough. They had been in between for far too long.

She closed her bedroom door behind her and sat on her bed. Her heart was at peace for the first time in weeks, which was strange enough considering all that was still to happen. But now Trixie was very sure of what really was second best to her and she wasn't going to settle for it. No way.

Honey woke up as the first rays of sunlight came through the curtains of her bedroom window. She stretched and rubbed her eyes, still dreamily. Today was the day. She and Brian would become officially engaged. It was almost too wonderful to believe. But she had never doubted it would happen one day. And soon enough they would be man and wife.

Humming a tune, Honey jumped out of her bed and headed to her bathroom. She heard the water running in Jim's room, just beside her own. A hint of concern tainted her happy thoughts. Honey knew how important this day would be to her brother. Oh, how she hoped everything would turn out right for them! There was nothing that would make happier than seeing Trixie and Jim together at last. But there was nothing she could do. Just pray.

Trixie's heart was beating fast when she picked up the phone and dialed the number Captain Molinson had given her. She wanted to give the good news to Annie herself. The phone rang a few times before it was picked up. "Hello?" a man's voice said on the other side of the line.

"Hello, Mr..." Trixie glanced at the paper she was holding to confirm the name "Mr. Dugan. My name is Beatrix Belden and I'm calling in regard of a photograph you left at the Police Station."

"You've seen my niece?" the man sounded anxious. "I've been trying to find her for years now! How is she?"

Trixie smiled. "She's all right. She's been through a lot, but she's fine."

"Well, could we set up a meeting? I'm very anxious to see her... You see, her mother was my only sister and when I last saw her we weren't in the best of terms. I thought about looking for her for a long time but I never did. And when I heard of her death..." Mr. Dugan voice faltered and failed.

"I understand, Mr. Dugan. Well, Annie's staying with some friends in Manor House, up Glenn Road, a few miles from Sleepyside..."

Dugan interrupted her. "I'll find it, don't worry! I'll be there in a few hours."

Mart was coming down the stairs, just as Trixie was hanging up the phone. "Who was that?" he asked, leaning against the railing and staring at his sister.

"Annie's uncle. He has been looking for Annie for a long time and he finally tracked her down to Sleepyside."

"Oh, I guess that will be nice for the kid." Mart didn't say another word, but Trixie knew him well enough to know there was still something in his mind.

"What, Mart? Just say it."

He sighed and folded his arms across his chest. "Well, you might tell me to mind my own business, but I have to ask. What's up between you and Jim?"

To his surprise, Trixie walked up to him and hugged him. "I could tell you to mind your business, but I won't. I also won't tell you what's going on between the two of us. But relax... You'll know it before the day is through."

As his sister was walking away down the hall, Mart called out to her and asked: "Are you ok, Trix?"

The blonde girl turned to him and smiled. "Some decisions take a long time to be made. I was scared to leave some things behind. But you know what? I've just found out there's so much more ahead of me. Yes, Mart, I'm ok!"

Annie was fidgeting in her party dress. She wasn't used to such attire anymore. Besides she was very nervous. Trixie had just told her uncle was coming to see her. God, this was scarry!

"C'me on, Annie! Stop fidgeting!" Bobby told her, as she moved around on the bench.

"Bobby, I'm nervous! This man is the only family I have in the world! What if he doesn't like me?" she asked, in a trembling voice. The youngest of the Belden clan stared at his companion in awe. He found it hard to believe this girl beside him was the same he had wrestled with some nights before. It was as if her bravado had been thrown away along with the rags she had been wearing. He was glad though. This Annie was much easier to be with. Before he had to watch his every word, because of her being so touchy. With a reassuring smile, Bobby put an arm around her shoulders. "'Course he will, silly. Who wouldn't like someone as cute as you?" Annie looked back at him, surprised and then her face lit with a smile.

The sound of a car coming up the driveway startled them. The two kids got up and walked towards Trixie and Honey, who were standing at a short distance. Bobby's arm never left Annie's shoulders. As the dark blue old Sedan parked near Mrs. Wheeler's beloved rose bushes, Bobby felt Annie shoulders tense up beneath his arm.

"Calm down." He whispered. As he did so, he saw a tall, dark haired man in jeans step out of the car and hesitate before approaching them. "Annie, is that you, sweet heart?" the man asked, in a notorious Irish accent.

Annie gulped and stepped away from Bobby's embrace. She was trying to control herself, but Trixie could see that her eyes were welling up with tears. Slowly, the girl walked towards the man. "Uncle Joseph?" she asked, in a strangled voice.

The man's face lit with a smile and he crossed the space that still separated in one long, quick stride. Falling down on his knees, he hugged Annie tight. "Oh, baby, I've been looking for you for such a long time! When I found out my sister was dead, I... Oh, my God, I'm so sorry I couldn't get to you sooner!"

Despite the emotional scene in front of her, Trixie felt a cold chill run down her back. It was a sensation she hadn't felt in a while. Something was wrong. But what?

The sound of the car coming up the driveway had made Jim leave the stables to see who was coming. He had been jumpy all morning, which was natural since his sister was getting engaged that same day and that there was a 50 per cent chance he would too. And a 50 per cent chance he wouldn't. But something else was bugging him. After almost a decade of knowing Trixie, he had picked up a bit of her sixth sense, when trouble was concerned. Leaning back against the stable door, he watched the scene. Maybe this feeling was just him worrying too much about Annie's future. The kid deserved a break. She wasn't as tough as she seemed.

There was something familiar about the man that was driving the car, Jim thought as he stepped closer to the group, in an effort to see clearly. Hadn't he seen him around Sleepyside the past few days? There was a good chance he had, if the man had been looking for his niece as Molinson had stated. Suddenly, there was light in Jim's spirit and thousands of alarm bells rang in his head. "TRIXIE! NO! GET ANNIE AWAY FROM THERE!" Jim yelled as he started running downhill towards the group. That man was the same he had seen with David Halston outside the hotel in Hawthorne Street! And he hadn't witnessed just a random meeting. Those two knew each other very well!

By then, similar alarm bells had rung in Trixie's head as well. She hadn't seen him with Halston but she had heard his say he was Annie's mother brother. And he had said the same thing on the phone... That's what she had found strange about him! From what Annie had told her, her father was from Ireland, not her mother, who by the way was an orphan with no family! Trixie didn't have a clue as to why Jim was running towards them like a mad man, but she wasn't going to wait to find out. All her instincts were telling her that that guy was a crook!

'Uncle Joseph' hesitated when he heard Jim's words. Annie was staring at him in awe, but there was a hint of suspicion brewing in her eyes. Then he met Trixie's gaze and he felt his blood freeze. She knew! Without another moment's hesitation he turned back and started running into the woods. Trixie darted after him, leaving Honey and Annie completely bewildered. Bobby ran after his sister and Jim, who had just passed them, slowing down only to tell his sister to take Annie inside. Then the three disappeared into the woods.

It didn't take Jim long to catch up with Trixie and Bobby. As they rushed through the woods, following the trail of broken branches 'Joseph' had left behind, he could hear Trixie trying to convince Bobby to turn back. "Bobby, go home! I don't know what this guy is capable of!"

"Not a chance, Trix. This is my case in the first place!" Bobby's determined voice said.

Jim grinned and approached them. "Guys, I guess we should split up" he said to his friends "Heading this way he can only reach the lake or the club house. He must be smart enough to know he's safer in the woods than in open ground. So, I guess you should head to the club house, Bobby, while me and your sister go over to the lake. Brian and Mart are at the club house and they'll help if there's any trouble. Take the shorter way over there, ok?"

To Trixie's surprise Bobby didn't question Jim suggestion and immediately headed to the club house. "How do you do that?" Trixie asked as they moved on into the woods.

"That's my job, remember? Deal with boisterous youths! But there is a chance that guy goes to the club house... And every chance that he'll find Mart, Brian and Dan over there. C'me on, let's catch this guy." Jim said as he grabbed Trixie's hand.

"By the way, how did you know?" she asked.

"I saw him with Halston, the day I got that bump on my head. I figured they had to be accomplices of some sort."

She nodded. "I should have known this was too much of a coincidence. You know, her long lost uncle appearing at a time like this... But I only figured it out when he said Annie's mum was his sister!"

"Hey, how could you know?" Jim said as he reassuringly squeezed her hand. Doing so, he suddenly felt a sharp pain deep in his heart. He didn't have the nerve to look down. Trixie's hand was small enough to fit into his own if there was any ornament on it he would have felt it. But he didn't. There was no ring on her fingers. Hiding his pain and trying to deal with the disappointment, Jim went on to the lake, hoping to God Trixie wouldn't see his eyes, from which tears were threatening to fall.

Trixie was too engrossed in their pursuit to notice his pale face. Now she could distinctly hear the sounds of breaking branches ahead of them. "We're getting close!" she told Jim as she let go of his hand and started running. Jim followed close behind her, clenching his teeth. Inside his chest was hurting.

Finally they got to the lake. Some yards ahead "Joseph" looked back and ran faster, as he saw them come closer. Jim darted after him, leaving a bewildered Trixie behind. She stood staring at him, wondering where that sudden rage had come from. Through the sandy margins the two ran, as "Joseph" supposedly tried to reach the road. But then he saw Mart, Bobby and Dan in front of him, coming out of the woods. He slowed down and looked around. His hesitation gave Jim enough time to catch up with him. Literally diving over him, Jim knocked the man over and punched him across the chin. He tried to fight back, but the red haired young man was like a wild cat. Jim had to let the pressure out or he would blow.

By the time the others got to them, they were still rolling around on the sand but Jim was undoubtedly winning the fight. Despite that, blood was oozing from a cut on his lip and his eye was already swollen. Mart and Dan finally managed to pull them apart. At that precise moment, Captain Molinson and Bill Regan appeared.

"Does anyone mind telling me what the hell is going on here?" Molinson bellowed as he looked from Annie's supposed uncle to Jim. But Trixie was the one who answered. "This man is not Annie's uncle. Jim saw him with David Halston. And the story he told us doesn't match Annie's."

Molinson gazed at the man with a raised eyebrow, but the other didn't say a word. He merely looked down, looking defeated. "Well, I'll have to talk that over with him, at the station." Handcuffing him, Molinson started leading him to his car, parked on Glenn Road. But before he disappeared into the woods, he turned back and said: "I know there's a party today, but you'll still hear from me soon. Depending on the talk I have with this gentleman here."

"All right, Captain." Trixie said with a smile. "But I bet he'll sing like a bird." She added, in a lower tone of voice. Turning to her friends behind her, she saw Regan looking into Jim's bruises.

"You better ask Brian to take a look at that, Jim. These look pretty painful."

"I'm ok, Regan. Don't worry." Jim answered.

"Regan's right, Jim..." Trixie said as she reached out to touch his bloody face. To her surprise, Jim gently pushed her hand away. "I'm fine, Trix, don't worry... I've been through more painful stuff. We better go check on Annie." Saying that, he walked away into the woods.

The group followed him on to Manor House, but Trixie couldn't help wondering what was wrong.

A/N: Only one more chapter left, two new reviews and I'll post it tonite.

Thanks for all the reviews so far!