Thank you all so much for your brilliant feedback. I hope this second chapter does not dissapoint.
Life in the warehouse seemed now pale, a Myka shaped hole had been punched in the group, and everything around them seemed more gray.
Wandering through the library, Helena let her fingers brush along the spines of the leather bound books. Pausing, she saw something bright sticking out of one of them; acting as a book mark. It was a copy of her book, The Time Machine. Sliding it off the shelf, she opened it to see a post it note. She choked up as she recognised the handwriting, but paused when she read it's message.
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. (3)
Stroking the small yellow square, she sighed, "Oh Myka." She could feel her eyes begin to fill, "I need your strength."
She had gone back to Boone, only to collect the few items she had left at Nate's house. Running a hand though her hair, she returned to cataloguing the archives; the scene playing out in her head.
Carefully opening the front door, Helena peered around before slipping inside. It was nearly two am. She had left without a word. Pete had still been on the phone, and she was already half way up the street in her car. There had been over twenty missed calls from Nate; she'd ignored them all.
Having spent the four days between Myka's death and the funeral in her car. She hadn't quite been able to bring herself to see the others.
Crossing the living room, she was aiming for the hiding place she'd built into the side of one of the sofa's, when a grunt came from the settee behind her. Spinning, as the light was switched on, she released a startled cry of, "Nate!"
Sleep clouded his eyes, wiping them, he muttered, "Emily, where the hell have you been? We looked for you, we thought..."
"I've been in South Dakota."
Sitting up, he woke himself fully, "What the hell were you doing in South Dakota?"
There was an edge to his voice that immediately put her on the defensive, "I had to go. There wasn't time to explain."
"And you couldn't have called?" Standing, he was looking down on her; it reminded her of the way her father used to chide her, "No word, you've been gone nearly a week Emily!"
Despite the concern in his voice, anger had overcome it, that coupled with his dominating body language just pushed her too far, "I'm a grown woman Nate; I don't need to report to you."
Straightening, his jaw set, "You were with them weren't you. The Agents who came a few months ago."
Her shoulders squared, the thunder was rolling and she could feel one hell of a fight brewing, "And if I was?"
His nostrils flared, "You know what hurts Emily? Is when you're in bed with the woman you love, and she can't even look at you because you know she is thinking about someone else. You were with him weren't you?!"
Helena was taken aback, but her vicious streak was in play and she found herself laughing at him, "How bloody typical! You assume it was Peter who was the one I loved! Men, you think the world revolves around you and your precious manhoods. Yes, I was with them; and I'm going back to them. Because do you know what hurts Nate? Turning away from a life you love, because you are afraid of losing the one person who tethers you to this planet. Terrified that somehow you'll let her down, again, cause her pain again..." Her voice had turned into a tearful yell, "What hurts Nate is knowing she loved you too, but I was too late to do anything about it. That she died and I never told her how she meant everything to be; how she pulled me back from oblivion when no one else could. She was the only good I could see in this God forsaken world; and now she's gone!"
Breathing heavily through gritted teeth, she could feel where her nails had dug into her palms.
Nate was momentarily struck dumb. His lips moved wordlessly for a while. As he struggled for words, Helena began hastily shoving her things into a duffle bag.
"Wait... What are you saying?"
Part of her wanted to snap at him, insult his intelligence and leave in a storm, another part of her remembered the kindness he'd shown her and felt a pang of guilt. But the need to escape overruled all else, and she said simple; without malice, "I'm leaving Nate."
"Helena?" A small face peered around the doorway, "You're leaving."
This was what she had been afraid of, the child was her weakness, intelligent eyes searching for answers, "Adelaide. I..." She couldn't lie, "Yes. I'm leaving; I have to darling."
The girl nodded, "I know. You haven't been happy since your friends showed up a few months ago. You tried to hide it, and ignore it; but there is a look you get... You miss them. Myka in particular." The girl looked guilty a moment, "I heard it all, you love her."
Nodding, HG admitted quietly, "Yes."
Adelaide nodded, "Then you have to go! If that life makes you happy, you have to go. It wouldn't be fair of us to hold you back; right dad?"
Nate's jaw was clenched, and he barely even acknowledged the question. Nodding to him, Helena whispered, "I'm sorry."
Walking towards the door, she paused to kiss Adelaide on the forehead, "If you need me, you only have to call. Goodbye my dear, and thank you."
Once again Helena found herself outside the dead agents' vault. Her hand was moving of its own accord as she turned the dial again.
The door in front of her opened, and she closed her eyes. Stepping into the room, she let the familiar scent wash over her. She had told the others that she had been sleeping in her old room in the vault. But as she had searched through the list of names, she found herself irresistibly pulled to select another.
Lying on Myka's bed, she buried her head in the crimson pillows, inhaling deeply. The scent of her perfume and the smell of her hair still lingered in the fabric. If she closed her eyes tightly enough, she could almost pretend that she was still here.
Regardless of how many times she wanted to hold Myka's pillow, she would always move to the other side before slipping beneath the covers. Reaching over to the empty space, holding her breath for fear of crying. But it was a futile effort. Sobs began to shake her shoulders. On Myka's bedside table, Helena's eye caught on a book. Reaching over she carefully opened the book mark- another post it note- and read; Life is either a daring Adventure or it is Nothing. ~Helen Keller (1)
Her heart clenched as she recognised the words on the page, it was a copy of 'The Invisible man'.
"Hey Helena?"
The inventor jumped, "Steven! You startled me."
Smiling slightly, he moved further into the Warehouse library where Helena was currently curled, "I'm making Lasagne tonight. Do you want to come to the B&B and get some?"
Forcing a pleasant smile over her features, which seemed to be constantly forlorn, she shook her head, "No thank you Steven. I am perfectly fine here."
The force of the lie nearly knocked him over, but he managed to clamp down on the automatic reaction to blurt lie. Walking over, a hand went to the back of his neck, "Hey, I know we haven't really spoken, or anything; and it's probably not my place to say... But Helena, you haven't eaten for days; and by the bags under your eyes I would say your sleep patterns haven't been right either."
Crouching, he softened his voice as much as he could, "We're all worried. You've just withdrawn into the depths of the Warehouse, and..." He winced, "We've worked out it isn't your room you are staying in."
Helena found herself on her feet, "You are right Steven. It is not your place to say. If you'll excuse me; I'm tired."
Cursing under his breath, he followed her, "HG, wait."
She could hear him gaining on her, not thinking, she realised she was running.
Steve was completely confused, he heard the sound of electricity, and the artefacts on the shelves began to tremble.
Helena knew she was crying, her emotions seemed to be exploding like bombs around her as she raced through the aisles. This wasn't her, what was happening? The ground began to tremble and the air around her sparked. She needed to reign them in; but she just couldn't!
Tears streaming down her cheeks, her shoulder collided with a nearby shelf, jarring painfully and knocking her off balance.
Pushing himself faster, Steve managed to gain on the inventor as she stumbled. Spotting a neutraliser tank, he tackled her into it; covering them both in purple goo.
Lying on the floor, he was breathing heavily; the author only curled into a ball. "I'm sorry Steven. That was careless of me."
Pushing himself into a sitting position, he placed a hand on her shoulder, "I didn't mean to upset you like that... I should have been more careful. Are you okay?"
Sitting up, she sighed, wiping away goo and tears from her cheeks. "No. But there is nothing I can do about it; so I need to try and carry on."
Running a hand over his face, he nodded sadly, "I wish that was a lie."
Getting to her feet, she offered him her hand, "So do I dear."
In the end, she had joined them for dinner. She had managed to fix a worn smile on her lips, and traded hollow pleasantries; but she had only picked at her food.
Excusing herself, she retreated to the library; unable to bear the concerned looks any longer.
Even as she sat in the dim room, clutching a pillow to her chest, she could feel her world crashing down around her; who was she kidding? Her world was gone; Myka was gone. She had become everything, the only reason she had been able to function in Boone was the thought that the curly haired agent was alive, and safer being away from her. What was left for her? The Warehouse? That was only a ghost of a tether. She lay back on the couch, Myka asked her to cover for her; and she'd be damned if she was going to let her down again.
Pausing, she ran the thought again. Cover for her; they had been her words. Reaching to her breast pocket where the letter lay, she unfolded the already well read paper; if you'd cover for me I'd owe you one. Sitting bolt upright, she realised the danger of the line of thought blazing in her mind.
She had been down this road before, and she knew it lead nowhere good... But Myka had said cover for me. She wasn't just seeing things?
Pulling out the three post-its she had uncovered- having found another tucked between the pages of Myka's copy of 'The Island of Dr Moreau'.
Then it hit her like a train, the notes had all been in her books; in places Myka knew she would be.
The one person who knew her better than anyone else, it worked both ways. The younger agent knew her, in some ways, better than she knew herself.
Laying out the notes, she reread her most recent discovery, The Problems of Puzzles are very near the Problems of Life ~ Erno Rubik (2)
Running her fingers over the paper, her mind began to work overtime. "What Myka?" She muttered to herself, "What are you trying to tell me?"
Looking to the shelf above her, she spied the B&B's few remaining HG Wells novels. Standing, she reached out; but paused. "It can't hurt to look, could it?" Am I going mad? "Very probably." A slight smile threatened to tug at her lips as she recalled a film of Alice and Wonderland, she had watched with Myka and the others. That was before Yellowstone, before she ruined everything. Taking a steadying breath, she took hold of 'War of the Worlds' and planted her feet, "Then again, all the best people are."
And there it was; on the very first page. Myka's fourth note, Change the Rules. Bering and Wells, solving puzzles; saving the day.