Chapter Six: Life's Too Short for This

Fortunately, the Jackals' visit didn't result in any reports of mayhem that Peter would have to suppress.

Jake Lofgren, Gregory Hanson, and Winston Greene didn't stay in town long after the partying, but they promised to return. (Vince was at least as anxious about this threat as Peter as they claimed to have incriminating photographs of their old captain to show off.)

Tom Hartman, meanwhile, would have to wait awhile before his next Skype session. His computer privileges had been suspended after the orderlies put out his latest fire.

~PV~

Deveraux, in Peter's opinion, does not bitch about the morning sickness nearly as much as you would expect.

"This isn't my first pregnancy," she reminded him one day, alluding to her supposed status as his ancestor. Peter remained skeptical.

They were sitting on the couch in the living room of Deveraux's ARK Tower apartment. A member of Peter's staff was currently dealing with the unenviable task of cleaning the bathroom.

"And I suppose you're going to tell me that with repetition one gets better at retching?" the billionaire asked.

"Very funny, Peter. No, but you do get used to the idea that it's part of the process."

Peter shook his head, convinced, more than ever, that their surrogate was insane.

He decided Vince could tend to Rebecca's morning sickness from then on. Perhaps as a bonus Vince would realize what he put Peter through on the occasions he was hung-over and decide to give up alcohol altogether. He would prefer not to have to deal with vomit ever again.

Then you really shouldn't be having another child, Chess observed.

Peter sighed and silently conceded the point. Although, he was pretty sure that Jamie had kept most of her food down as a child.

There is a huge difference between 'most' and 'all,' Peter. Babies throw up. It is right up there with crying and needing their nappies changed. Which reminds me, you won't need to have a shrink beg me to shut up and go away. I will happily keep to myself for a while after the brat is born.

Peter sighed, as if he had needed further proof that Chess was evil.

~PF~

"Are you sisters?" the clerk, 'Megan' according to her nametag, asked. Jamie was accompanying Deveraux on a trip to buy maternity clothes.

"No," Jamie scowled. She hurried on before Rebecca could claim to be her mother. "This is my aunt."

"Ah, my mistake," Megan apologized.

Jamie, towing several potential purchases along, ushered Deveraux towards the changing area and away from the salesperson.

"She was just noticing the family resemblance," Rebecca said softly.

"Okay, first of all, what she was doing was looking for a commission. Second, you are way too old to be my sister, so it's far from a compliment from where I'm standing. And thirdly, the resemblance still creeps me out, couldn't you, you know…?" she made a vague gesture towards her face.

"Sorry, I make it a rule not to shape shift while I'm expecting," Rebecca replied. There might not be any studies on the subject, but she doubted it would be good for the baby. "Look, believe it or not, I haven't tried to imitate you. You resemble me because you inherited some of my genes."

"Dad always said I took after my mom," Jamie murmured. She didn't really remember her mother, but she had much preferred to believe she was like her, rather than her father.

"Her, too," Rebecca acknowledged. "You certainly didn't get your eyes from your father."

"Well, I wouldn't have. Blue eyes are recessive—"

"It's been awhile since I had to try clothes on," Rebecca interrupted the younger woman. "I mean, normally, if clothes don't fit, I just make them fit." The immortal went into a stall, tried on an outfit, and emerged a few moments later. "What do you think?" she asked.

"I think that I shouldn't have been roped into this little shopping expedition." Neither Vince nor her father had expressed any interest in accompanying Deveraux. Jamie hadn't been any more enthusiastic about it, but did anyone care? No.

"I meant about the outfit, Jamie."

"It's too colorful if you ask me," she answered, wrinkling her nose at all the pink.

"Hmm," Deveraux headed back into the stall to try on something less loud. "Have you given any thought to having kids of your own, dear?" she called out.

One of Jamie's eyes twitched.

"No, I'm too young."

"You say that, but you're not immortal. Before you know it, you'll be in your thirties. Women younger than you have given birth. And I know Peter's going to want grandchildren soon."

"Then maybe my sibling will oblige him. I don't have any plans for settling down with a husband and making babies. Now change the topic or I'm leaving without you."

"Fine; is this one better?" Deveraux asked, reemerging. The top was nearly identical to the one before, but unlike the offending garment, this one was a deep green.

"Yeah, that'll do."

"Great! I hope there isn't a long line at the checkout. I want to hit the food court next. I'm starving."

~JF~

"We need to talk about names," Vince said towards the end of Deveraux's second trimester. He and Peter had retired for the evening. Fleming had been gazing at the ceiling, but he turned and faced his spouse.

"Alright, how about Leorah for a daughter?" he suggested.

"Leorah," Vince tried out the sound of it. "Not bad; what does it mean?"

"It means 'light.'"

"Nice, but I was kind of hoping we could name her Cariana, after my mom."

Peter smiled. So they did think alike in some respects. Leorah had been his mother's name.

"I tell you what: How about you choose the name for a girl and I'll choose the name for a son?"

Vince's blue eyes narrowed in suspicion. It sounded reasonable, which probably meant Peter was up to something. Perhaps he'd found out the sex of the child without telling him.

"And what were you thinking of for a boy?" the vigilante asked. It would be just like Peter, he thought, to pick something horrible that would get a kid teased throughout grade school. If it was something like Quentin, Vince would have to veto it.

"Well, you must admit, 'Peter' has a certain ring to it." He would not smirk; it would not help his case any. Maybe just a little smirk…

"Peter!" Vince scowled.

"You've already got a son named after you, Vince," Fleming pointed out. "I'm sure someday when Trip is grown he'll go on to have Vincent Faraday the Fourth. Would you begrudge me for naming a son Peter Fleming the Second?"

"Yes, I would. First of all, this kid is going to be a Faraday."

Thus began the heated argument of whose last name the child would take, the upshot of which was that both surnames would be used. (The order of the names still had to be hashed out, but that was being tabled for another time.)

Vince still had misgivings about naming a boy Peter.

"Couldn't we just name him after my brother?" Vince asked.

"No and now you're making excuses. I can tell you weren't dead-set on the name 'Ian.'" Vince rarely saw his brother anymore and had had no contact with him back when he was faking his death. "What's really troubling you?"

"When Trip was born, I started telling him about his grandfather, his legacy. I wanted him to be proud of his name," which, they both knew, was Vincent Faraday the Third.

"I see. You don't think one could be proud of the name 'Peter Fleming,'" the billionaire rose from the bed, feeling stung.

"Peter, I just…"

"Just what, don't have any respect for me? You're just going to poison our offspring against me from the beginning?"

"Damn it Peter!" Vince thumped a fist against the mattress. "Don't make me out to be the bad guy! I didn't force you to kill your victims. I almost was oneof those victims. Forgive me for not wanting my son associated with that madness."

"Then we have a problem, Vince, because he wouldn't just be your son, but ours. I thought that would make you happy, that it was a brilliant idea. I see that I was mistaken." Fleming got dressed and left the tower.

He didn't come home that night.

It was one of the biggest fights they had had in months.

Vince supposed he should be grateful that Chess' regalia had been left behind. It meant the citizens of Palm City should be safe from the villain's wrath.

But it also meant Palm City's hero didn't have an excuse to chase after him.

~VF~

"Was I wrong?" a morose Vince asked his stepdaughter the next day as they sat in her kitchen. He hadn't gotten much sleep the night before. When he left the penthouse, Peter still hadn't returned.

"Vince," Jamie sighed. "It's not that you don't have a point."

"But?" Vince prompted her.

"But I ran away from home while I was just a teenager so I could get as far away from my father as possible. For years, I didn't speak to him and he didn't know if I was alive or dead. And that was without someone else being there while I was growing up to tell me that my father was a horrendous madman. Now imagine if there was, and that someone else was a parent.

"My father's barely gotten over the fear that he's going to lose you and not only did you renew it, but you've added the fear that he's going to lose a child all over again.

"Parents may not be allowed to choose favorites, but they don't treat all their children the same. I know he wants to try to do better by this child, Vince. He's petrified by the thought of creating another Orwell."

Vince swallowed under her gaze.

"You know you turned out okay in the end, Jamie."

"Maybe, despite all odds, but I don't blame him for not wanting to wake up twenty years from now to find out that his enemy is his son. He needs your support, Vince. He needs to have you believe in him."

~VF~

When the men came face-to-face again in the penthouse, Vince launched himself at Peter, who clung to him tightly.

In between showering Fleming with kisses, Faraday spoke.

"I'm sorry. If it's a boy, we'll name him Peter—"

"You were right," Peter interrupted him. "I tried to kill you. If I had succeeded—"

"But you didn't. I'm right here…"

"With a monster," Peter finished.

"No. The things you did, they were terrible, but you are not just the sum of your actions. You can be more. You are more. I wouldn't love you if you weren't.

"And our child will love you, too."

Author's Note: Chapter title from Pink's Blow Me One Last Kiss.

Thanks to Orwell and IronAmerica for reviewing!

I assume everyone understands the reference to Vince's brother?