It had been another rough day. Earlier that morning, Shep Cale's truck had been discovered, windows broken, key in the ignition, Shep nowhere in sight. Instead, a wallet had been found for a man named Victor Miller: the man with the radiation poisoning, the man who was now dead. Jake had questioned him along with Robert Hawkins, discovering that Victor never laid eyes on Shep. He had found the truck on the side of the road, running, in its current condition, and decided to take it to get help. After further questioning Jake had discovered that Victor's daughter was at Bass Lake along with other people.
Upon hearing Victor's mention of his daughter, Jake's paternal instincts had kicked in. He knew what he had to do. After finally convincing others to accompany him, Jake headed to Bass Lake to rescue Victor Miller's daughter. The sight in front of him immediately propelled his mind back to Iraq and to the first mass grave they had discovered during his first tour. The dozens of people at Bass Lake had radiation burns. The bodies of the Iraqi civilians showed evidence of having been subjected to one of Saddam Hussein's most grotesque torture methods: acid baths. The sight of the naked, abused bodies of the women and children had been especially difficult on Jake and he still found himself suffering from nightmares and flashbacks of that day, even four years later.
Squatting down, he had picked up a doll and his mind traveled to his daughter. He wanted to do nothing more than go home and hug her, never to let go. It wasn't all that long ago - or so it seemed - that Elizabeth carried around a doll, insisting that Jake and Eric play house with her. A queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach overtook him. What if Elizabeth had ended up like Victor's daughter? The thought was too frightening and he forced himself to focus on the situation at hand.
They buried the twenty people in a solemn ceremony. The entire time it had been eerily quiet. Jake hadn't even bothered to try to gauge how Emily, Heather, and the rest of the town members were taking their discovery. He just wanted to finish and head home to spend time with his mother and Elizabeth.
When they finally made it back to town, Jake raced home, where he found Elizabeth in the kitchen helping Mom make dinner. He hugged them both tightly, only letting go when Elizabeth said she couldn't breathe. Elizabeth had looked up at him, recognizing – but not questioning – the look in Jake's eyes. She turned around and continued peeling potatoes. As Gail joined Elizabeth in her efforts, she noted that Jake remained in the kitchen, never taking his eyes off of Elizabeth. Despite the many unknowns regarding Jake in the last few years, one thing remained the same: his immense love for his daughter. Jake may have made a lot of mistakes in his time, but he had never thought of Elizabeth as one of them. He loved her, and in some ways, that made up for all of the stupid things he'd done as a punk kid.
The family ate quickly before heading to the church for a memorial service for the people at Bass Lake. The pews were filled to the max. It had been the first time Jake had entered a church since last Christmas, and even then he had only done so because Elizabeth had asked him to take her to the midnight service.
Now here he found himself, inside the church, Elizabeth and Gail on either side of him as Johnston walked to up to the lectern. Jake was worried about Elizabeth; she hadn't said one word at dinner and his mom had told him she had barely spoken all day. He didn't know how she was handling seeing Victor Miller last night. He'd make it a point to try to talk to her later, if she'd let him.
Johnston reached the podium and began to speak. "Earlier today, we buried 20 people. Refugees from Denver. People we didn't know, but were prepared to welcome into our town. Unfortunately they died of radiation poisoning before we could reach them." He looked around the room, making eye contact with everyone seated before him. "For those people from Denver, and for our own people, for Sheriff Dawes and Deputy Riley. For Deputy Connor and Deputy Salem. For people out there somewhere we know nothing about who might be suffering and dying right now, I ask that we take a moment of silence." After a moments' silence, he continued. "If you've lost a loved one, would you please stand?"
Elizabeth turned in her seat to look towards the back of the church. Looking over his shoulder, Jake saw the Casey family, a few pews back, stand, along with several others scattered throughout the church. Jake did not miss the look that passed between Elizabeth and Jordan; one of concern, compassion, pain, and a little bit of what Jake interpreted as fear. Jordan gave her a small smile of gratitude and she turned back around.
"If someone you love is missing, would you join those standing?" The entire Green family stood, joined by the rest of the congregation. Johnston glanced over at his wife, his thoughts taking him to the same place hers were: to Gail's close cousin Margaret who lived in Lawrence and the rest of her extended family who were scattered across the continent. He looked at Jake, and to his right, Elizabeth and immediately thought about Tim and Cynthia Jacobs, Elizabeth's maternal grandparents, who last he heard had moved to Salt Lake City. Not knowing anything other than Atlanta and Denver were attacked, he wondered if they were still alive. He didn't consider them loved ones and it still upset him the way they had abandoned their pregnant daughter all those years ago, but, because of Elizabeth, he was connected to them and couldn't help but wonder about them.
Elizabeth looked up at Jake, who wrapped his arm around their mother and kissed her on the temple, pulling her closer to him. She wondered how he was dealing with everything. He had probably lost more friends than anyone else in town. If Atlanta and Denver were hit with bombs, it only made sense to her that bigger cities like New York and D.C. were attacked as well. If so, that meant dozens of people Jake had worked and lived with were possibly dead. He was always so willing to comfort everyone else, even when he needed someone to comfort him.
She leaned her head against his arm. He looked down at her and wrapped his arm around her, hugging her close to him, her head resting against his chest. The feeling of knowing that the two people who mattered most to him were safe in his arms, made Jake forget - just for the moment - about the fatigue and tension that had plagued his body these last few days. It made him forget about everything outside of the church, everything going on in the world. All that really mattered was that his family was safe and sound.
Johnston returned his attention to the citizens of his town. "We stand because we know that every life matters. We have to fight for every life. Even when it seems hopeless. Even when we're afraid." His eyes filling with tears for the reality they were all now forced to live in, he continued. "Because the battle ahead isn't just for our survival. It's for our humanity."
The service finished, Johnston moved to rejoin his family but was soon distracted when Reverend O'Shea led him away to talk. The rest of the Green's waited in the pew for the crowd to disperse. Elizabeth slid past Jake and positioned herself by Gail. "Mom, can I go meet up with my friends?" She nodded in the direction of the back of the church, where Michael, Danielle, and Jordan were standing, each one sporting a somber expression. "We kinda need to—" she trailed off when she remembered Jake behind her.
Gail understood Elizabeth's unspoken need; the last time the town had been gathered in a memorial of this kind had been the week following the accident. Elizabeth, her friends, and the other survivors had all attended, each bearing physical injuries of some sort. Gail knew tonight was a reminder of that night, not too long ago. She knew Elizabeth needed to connect with her friends: to talk, to comfort one another, to cry if it came down to it. She nodded. "Three hours; then I want you home. Okay?"
Smiling, Elizabeth thanked her. Then, before pushing her way into the aisle, she hugged her. "I love you, Mom."
"Love you, too, honey." Gail stepped back to let Elizabeth slide past her. Jake reached out his arm and tapped Elizabeth on the shoulder.
"I'd like to talk to you when I get home tonight." Stanley had asked Jake to meet him at Bailey's after the service and he most likely wouldn't be home until after Elizabeth's curfew. He had a lot he needed to discuss with her - moving to the new place with him, Lauren and Sara, Jordan and her other friends - and he had reached the point where he could care less if she was willing to discuss it or not. He needed to know what happened to his daughter during his long absence.
"Sure, Jake. See ya later." She walked down the aisle. 'If I decide I want to talk to you.' Reaching her friends, they disappeared into the night.
After bidding his parents 'bye', Jake left the church ten minutes later. He was making his way through the crowd of people still standing on the sidewalk in front of the steps when Emily approached him. Placing a quick kiss on his cheek, she said, "You did a good thing today; trying to help people you didn't even know." Then she turned and walked away, leaving Jake momentarily confused. A smile danced across his face. Maybe she was starting to forgive him, finally.
He made his way down the street to Bailey's, spotting Stanley, and, to his surprise, Heather, in a booth in the corner. Signaling to Mary, he motioned for another round of drinks then climbed into the booth next to Heather, flashing a smile as he did.
"Hey, Jake," Stanley greeted. "Today couldn't be a better reason to drink, huh?" he continued, as Mary brought over their drinks.
Taking his, Jake nodded. "Yeah, one hell of a day." Turning to Heather, he asked, "How are you doing?" It had been bad enough for him to see all the bodies at Bass Lake; he couldn't imagine how hard it was for everyone who had never seen a dead body before.
"I'm okay, considering," Heather replied, gazing into his eyes. "I just can't imagine what they all went through. Those kids…" she trailed off, thinking about the bodies of the four young kids they had discovered. Her thoughts traveled to her students, silently sending up a prayer of thanks that none of them had to experience what those kids had.
A hush fell upon the table; each falling victim to their own thoughts. Jake could not imagine what all the parents felt like during their walk from Denver. He'd be able to deal with knowing that he was dying from radiation sickness, but he'd never be able to handle knowing that his kid was dying, too. It had to be every parents' worst nightmare; children were not supposed to die before their parents.
"So, Heather," Jake said, "you've told me how you know Elizabeth, but I still don't know what brought you to Jericho. I don't ever remember seeing you around town before I left." Truth was, he was intrigued by Heather, more so than he'd been by anybody. Her upbeat personality, her smile, how much she cared about others, her friendship with Elizabeth; it all made him want to get to know her better.
Stanley started to laugh. The gleam in Jake's eyes told him that Elizabeth's plan would go easier than expected; Jake hadn't looked at a woman like that since Emily. Stanley stopped when Jake shot him a look. Heather looked at the two guys and asked, "What's so funny?"
"Nothing," Jake growled. "Right, Stanley?"
Stanley coughed. "Uh, yeah, right." Heather looked at the two guys again, finally deciding to just drop it. Before she had a chance to speak up, Stanley checked his watch. "You know what? I forgot that I need to be," he thought for a good excuse, falling short, "somewhere. I'll see you two kids, later, okay?" He scooted out of the booth and stood, waving them both bye. It wasn't lost on either of them that he wasn't in a hurry to leave as he found a group of people to talk to near the pool tables.
"I think we've just been set up," Jake muttered. Stanley had asked him to meet him here after the service and now 'had' somewhere else to be.
"I think so, too," Heather admitted. "He asked me earlier to meet him here for a few drinks."
Jake looked at her, noticing the slight blush that had appeared on her cheeks. "Same here," Jake told her, moving to the other side of the table so he was facing her.
"I think he and Elizabeth might be up to something," Heather told him.
Jake raised an eyebrow. "Really? Why? And, if so, I'm not sure that's a good thing. Those two are incredible schemers by themselves; we're in trouble if they're working together." The two were known for pulling practical jokes on unsuspecting victims. Back before he left town, Jake was their most popular target. One time Jake picked Elizabeth up from Stanley's after a fun day of making caramel apples. Biting into one, Jake got a mouthful of onion. There were other times of exploding shaving cream filled envelopes, whoopee cushions, saran wrapped toilet sets, and other equally harmless jokes.
"Well, yesterday, your sister spent a good portion of the day with me. You were one of the things she kept talking about," Heather informed him. "She kept stressing how good a guy you are and told me that you and I should try to hang out more."
"She did?" Jake asked, before apologizing. "Sorry 'bout that; I'll have a talk with her about it," Jake told her.
"You don't need to be sorry," Heather replied. "Besides, the best way to get back at practical jokers is to give them a taste of their own medicine." A suspicious gleam entered her eyes and Jake's interest peaked.
"What do you have in mind?"
"Ouch! Damn it!" Elizabeth gasped as she climbed the last rung and stepped onto the ledge of the water tower. She leaned against the tower and rubbed her injured leg.
"What's wrong?" Jordan asked as he joined her on the top of the tower. He stepped towards her, taking the backpack off of his shoulders and setting it against the tower. "You okay?"
"Just my stupid leg," she grumbled in return, grimacing. Her leg hadn't bothered her all day but she knew that was only because she'd taken it easy. She should've known climbing to the top of the water tower with her friends would've caused some pain, especially since she had opted to not take her pain killers today.
"You should've listened to me when I said—"
Elizabeth interrupted him. "I know, but we haven't been up here in awhile." When she had suggested that they head to the water tower, Jordan had argued that it wasn't a good idea considering the state of Elizabeth's leg. But, in the end majority had ruled, so he had given in to his friends.
"We could've waited until your leg was fully healed," he argued.
Elizabeth raised her hand to his cheek, directing him to look at her. "This is our escape, Jord, you know that. Besides, it's just a little pain; I'm okay." Noting the concerned expression on his face, she continued, "Really, I am."
Jordan sighed. "Okay. I just don't like to see you hurt."
"I know," she acknowledged. "And, it's really sweet of you." She leaned forward, brushing her lips over his teasingly then pulled away. He took a step closer, pinning her against the side of the water tower, and grinned before bringing his mouth down on hers. Her arms around his neck, she opened her mouth, inviting him to deepen the kiss. He was more than happy to oblige.
"Alright, you two lovebirds. Get a room, will ya?" Jordan and Elizabeth groaned and broke the kiss. Looking past Jordan, Elizabeth saw Michael and Danielle finally stepping onto the platform.
Turning around to face his friends, Jordan returned, "And what exactly took you two so long to start climbing up here?" His friends blushed; Michael tried to come up with something to say but couldn't. "Yeah, that's what I thought." Jordan turned back around and kissed Elizabeth once more, for good measure. He grinned at her, reached for her hand and turned around once again to face his friends. Seeing the blush on their faces, he couldn't resist the temptation to tease them again. "You know, I think I see the beginning of a hickey," he observed, pointing at Danielle's neck.
Self-consciously Danielle's hand went straight to her neck and looked at Michael, glaring softly. "My parents are going to freak if they see it."
"He's kidding," Elizabeth assured her friend. Despite his teasing, Elizabeth knew Jordan was happy for their friends; Mike and Danielle had just recently realized their feelings for each other and had been dating for three weeks. "Besides, even if he's not I know several ways you can cover it up." Jordan snickered, proud of the many love bites he'd left on Elizabeth's neck during the last nine months. Elizabeth dropped his hand, resorting instead to a soft kick to his shin.
"Ow!" Jordan exaggerated, rubbing his leg.
"Serves you right," Elizabeth glared, hands on hips. "I almost didn't get that last one covered. If my Dad or Eric had seen that, you'd've been facing the end of one of their double-barreled shotguns."
He shrugged. "You'd never had told them it was me."
"That's what you think," she disputed. "You've never been on the receiving end of one of their interrogation methods."
"No, I haven't," Jordan agreed. "And maybe you never would be either if you were the good girl you're supposed to be." The teasing smile on his face brought some levity to the conversation. If he knew anything, Jordan knew that Elizabeth hated being told what she was supposed to do, how she was supposed to behave. He knew that while being the mayor's daughter had many perks, it also meant there were more expectations placed upon her. Plus the town biddies were always looking for something - or someone - to gossip about, and many times, the subject of interest was the Green family, especially the Mayor's youngest child. Elizabeth was a lot like her oldest brother - whether she admitted it or not - and it seemed like everyone in town was waiting for her to screw up as badly as Jake had when he was a teenager
"You like that I'm not a 'good girl'," Elizabeth noted, dropping her arms to her side and taking one step closer to him. They stared at each other across the ten inch space that separated them. If Grandpa Green were still alive and could see them now, he'd call it 'eye-flirting'; she remembered him using that term several times with both Jake and Emily and April and Eric. 'I wish Grandpa was here. He liked Jordan; he understood me.' Grandpa had helped her throughout the duration of her recovery period, and he had been one of the few people who had been able to help her deal with the immediate PTSD symptoms she had experienced in the weeks and months following the accident. When he died, much of the progress that she'd made died with him; she'd lost her sense of her security, her safety net, a major source of comfort. His death only six months ago had triggered her anger; it was the catalyst for much of her negative behavior. She hadn't been prepared for his death; she'd already lost so many people close to her, she was angry that he'd been taken away from her, too.
"If you two want to flirt you could choose a more traditional way to do it," Michael said, rolling his eyes only so Danielle could see him. Danielle smirked. Usually Jordan and Elizabeth were respectful of their friends, but sometimes they made her feel like she was around a newlywed couple; they were hot and heavy and sometimes found it difficult to restrain themselves. Normally she'd join in on teasing her friends, but tonight she opted to not.
"Did you guys bring everything?" Danielle's question was directed towards the boys. Leaving the church, they had split up; the boys headed to their respective houses to gather what they would need for the evening, the girls had headed directly to the tower, waiting at the bottom for the boys.
Reluctantly breaking eye contact, Jordan replied, "Yeah, I have the blankets." He squatted in front of his bag and opened it, pulling out several fleece blankets. It really wasn't that cold, but the girls claimed to get cold easily, which was fine with him. It gave him an opportunity to snuggle up with Elizabeth.
"And, I've got the beer," Michael added, removing his bag from his shoulder. "'Though, I could only manage to steal two without my dad noticing."
The two couples got situated; Jordan sitting with his back against the cold metal of the water tower, Elizabeth between his legs, her back pressed against his chest. Jordan situated a University of Kansas blanket over their legs. Michael and Danielle seated themselves similarly. Opening his bag, Michael took out two bottles of beer, passing one to Jordan, keeping the other for himself. They sat in silence, the couples sharing the contents of the bottles. When she had taken her last gulp, Elizabeth handed the bottle to Jordan, then slipped her arms under the blanket to warm them, shivering slightly as she did so. Jordan finished the last of the beer and set the bottle aside. He took off his jacket and draped it around Elizabeth's shoulders. He grabbed another blanket - this one sporting the St. Louis Cardinals logo - and wrapped it around his shoulders. Wrapping his arms around Elizabeth's middle, he hugged her closer to him, bringing the ends of the blanket to meet in front of them. "Any better?" he whispered, leaning forward so his mouth was grazing her ear.
She nodded. "Yeah; thanks." She turned her head and placed a quick, gentle kiss on his lips. She then settled back against him and the four teenagers turned their focus to the night sky. It wouldn't be long, they knew, that they'd begin talking about everything on their minds, but until then they'd just take comfort in each other's presence.
"Nice place you have here," Jake complimented. After talking with Heather for awhile at Bailey's, he had offered to walk her home. During the walk to the corner of Twelfth and Berce, Jake had found out more about Heather. Born and raised in New Bern, Heather moved to Jericho just over three years ago after receiving her teaching degree from the University of Kansas. She was a single child, daughter of a preacher father and schoolteacher mother, both of whom died in a car accident only a week after Heather's high school graduation.
Heather, the sole survivor of the three car accident, and recipient of a full-ride academic scholarship, delayed going to college for a year, opting instead to move to New Jersey and volunteering in the inner city of Newark. The experience toughened her up and opened her eyes to the world outside of her sheltered life. She overcame her grief. It instilled in her a passion for becoming an educator. She enrolled in school the following year and slowly found herself drifting further and further away from the place of her birth. She was destined to move on and that, as Heather put it, was what brought her to Jericho. She was now far enough away that she wouldn't have a daily reminder of the place her parents died, but close enough to occasionally meet up with the few friends she still had there.
"Thanks," Heather replied from over her shoulder as she stepped into the kitchen. "It's small but affordable. Plus, it's just me so it's all the space I need." Stepping back out of the kitchen, she handed Jake a bottle of water. Setting her own bottle down on the table, she excused herself and headed down the hallway towards the bathroom.
Opening his bottle, Jake was drawn to a series of framed photographs resting on the bookshelf. He crossed the room and examined the first picture. It showed a young girl standing with her parents in front of a building Jake recognized as the church in New Bern. He looked at the remaining photographs, noting one in particular that was unlike the others in that it did not show Heather with one or both of her parents. Instead, it showed a man with his arms wrapped around Heather, a boyfriend maybe? It really wasn't any of his business but he did wonder if Heather was in a relationship with anyone. Neither Stanley nor Elizabeth had mentioned one and, for that matter, neither did Heather.
Hearing Heather returning, he turned away from the bookshelf to face her. "You look just like her. Your mom."
"You think so?" she asked. "Most people say I look like my dad."
"It's your eyes," he told her. "You have her eyes and her smile. But mostly it's your eyes."
"Thanks. I always thought so, too." She sat down on the couch, putting her feet up on the matching ottoman. "So, Jake, I've told you a little about me. Now you have to tell me about you."
"Not much to tell," he replied, sitting down in the chair across from her.
Realizing he wasn't going to say anything more, she prompted, "C'mon, there has to be something."
Jake shrugged. "Not much. My Dad's been Mayor since I was seven. It was always hoped I'd follow in his footsteps but I was far from being a stellar citizen of this town. Had a few different jobs after high school but nothing really stuck with me until I was well into my twenties. I was offered a great job opportunity five years ago, took it, and didn't come home again until a few days ago. Like I said, not much to tell."
Heather looked at him curiously. "I've heard a few stories about your troublemaking days from Stanley. And I also heard that you – what was it he said? – 'cleaned up your act' before your sister was born."
"Stanley talks to you about me?"
"Not really. Only during the few times we've talked about Elizabeth," she answered. "He'd never admit it but I think he missed her when she was away visiting you. He missed you too, always wondering what you were up to."
Jake nodded, feeling a little better about Stanley talking about him. "Yeah, Stanley's family. El's like another sister to him. And, yes, I did straighten myself out before El was born."
Heather eyed him. He obviously didn't like talking about himself, but she couldn't deny that she was mesmerized by him. He exuded a sense of mystery, his dark eyes had a shadowed look to them as if he couldn't let go of some grim moment from the past. His shoulders were tense, like he were carrying too large of a burden. But his smile took away the seriousness of his features. The same way he seemed to relax whenever his mother and sister were nearby. Emily had mentioned him a time or two, always stressing the secrecy under which Jake operated. Now here he was, sitting in her living room, and he certainly was mysterious! "I think there's a lot more to you than that, but for now let's call it even. Maybe you can tell me more later."
Jake smiled. "Maybe." He stood up. "I'm going to head home. Make sure you lock up when I leave. Just in case we get anymore surprise visitors."
"I'm bringing your jacket back to you," Elizabeth said, approaching the guys and handing Jordan his jacket. Turning her attention to Mike, she told him: "Danielle wants me to tell you she needs you to warm her up," only altering Danielle's real words slightly. Mike grinned, a slight blush making its way to his cheeks, then he walked to the other side of the tower.
"You sure you're warm enough?" Jordan asked, offering his jacket to her again as he turned away from the railing and faced her.
She nodded. "I think I'll be okay," she told him, before grinning and adding, "as long as you help keep me warm."
"I think I can do that," he returned, putting his jacket on. He reached for her hand and began to lead her back toward their friends. "C'mon."
She tugged on his hand, stopping him. He turned to look at her. "Let's give them some privacy," she said.
"Them or us?" he asked, a smirk finding its way to his face.
"Both." She barely had time to reply before Jordan cupped her cheeks and brought his mouth closer to hers. He pulled back, though, before ever making contact.
"You've been crying," he observed, looking deep into her eyes. Her unnecessary nod confirmed it. He wrapped his arms around her in a hug. She slid her arms inside his jacket and around him, completing the hug. She laid her head against his chest, her head fitting perfectly under his chin.
Twenty minutes earlier, the group had split up with the boys heading to the opposite side of the tower. In the days and weeks immediately following the accident, the four teenagers had grieved and cried openly with one another, but over the years they had developed different ways of dealing with their pain. Michael and Danielle were more private with their emotions, whereas Jordan and Elizabeth were more open with theirs. At least when it came to their friends.
The girls spent the time talking and crying about the memorial service for the accident victims. The memories were so vivid in the minds of both girls and tonight's service didn't help any. Elizabeth wondered aloud about Sara and Lauren, what they'd be like today, if Sara would be on the soccer team, if Lauren would be on the debate team, if they would have boyfriends. Danielle, in turn, thought about her best friend Melissa, who also perished in the accident. They both still missed their friends so very much, but both were also very grateful for their friendship with each other. Had the accident never happened, the two would most likely not be anything more than classmates.
"You okay?"
Jordan's question broke her out of her reverie. "I am now. You?"
"Yeah, I'm good." He tightened his grip on her and sighed.
Dislodging her head from under his, she looked up at him. "What?"
Shaking his head, he answered, "Mike's not. I mean, with the accident he is. But not with the bombs. He just – I don't know, you know how he is."
She nodded. "Avoiding talking about it and denying his fear? Danielle, too. It's how they deal. Just like us in a way."
"No, you and I are different. The only person you avoid talking to is Jake. We talk to each other. That's more than they do," Jordan corrected. Kissing her on the forehead, he continued, "I'm just really happy we can talk about things."
"Me too," Elizabeth agreed, sighing and taking a step back. "I think you should walk me home now. It's time I stop avoiding Jake."
"Hi, honey," Gail said as Elizabeth closed the front door behind her. Gail checked her watch. 'Forty-five minutes to spare.'
"Hey, mom," Elizabeth replied, hanging her jacket up in the closet. "Yeah, I'm home on time," she said when she caught Gail looking at her watch. "Surprising, isn't it?"
Gail gave into a laugh. "Yes, it is. I was expecting to have to send Jake back out to look for you."
"Jake's home already?"
"For about an hour now," Gail told her as Johnston joined them on his way to the living room.
"Hi, sweetheart," he said when they joined him. "You're home early."
"Hi, Dad," Elizabeth answered. "Yeah, I came home to talk to Jake."
Gail and Johnston gave each other surprised looks. As adamant as Elizabeth had been about not wanting to Jake, they had not expected her to have a change of heart so soon after his return to town.
Johnston responded first. "That's great, honey. I'm glad to hear that."
Shrugging, Elizabeth said, "Yeah, we'll see." Glancing upstairs, she continued, "I'll let you know it goes later, okay?"