Chapter 2

Audrey was tired, exhausted even, after having to fix the past. It had been strange seeing the old Chief again. Alive. The entire time all she'd been able to think was, Nathan deserves to see his father again, he deserves to be here.

But everything was back to normal, and that was the important part.

As she pulled off her clothes, she left them on the floor where they fell, unable to get up enough energy to put them in her clothes hamper.

As soon as her head hit the pillow, she was out.

Soon, Audrey was dreaming…and she was Sarah. She was on the beach that was all too familiar to her after being near it for a little over two years. She was sitting down on a blanket and someone was sitting next to her.

She turned her head slightly, noticing out of the corner of her eye that her hair was red, and was surprised to see herself locking eyes with her partner.

What was Nathan doing here?

In the back of her mind, she tried to voice the question, but it seemed she wasn't doing anything in her control, as instead she felt herself smiling at the soft look that was on her partner's face, one that she had only seen a handful of times before.

She felt her body lean in slightly, their lips millimeters apart, but he pulled away, saying, "I'm sorry. I should go." He was now up on his feet and walking away from her and she felt her heart fall. Why was he leaving her?

She then heard words falling from her lips, her voice slightly different than she remembered…was that a southern accent?

"Why do I always go for the shy ones?"

He paused from walking away, and then turned and fell to his knees and pulled her in for a kiss.

And she was drowning.

They were kissing, and he'd started it, and she didn't want it to end. But she wasn't in control of Sarah's body. After a few long, drawn out, sensuous, wet kisses, she felt him laying her back and her arms sliding around his neck, pulling him down over her.

Soon, her dress was moved slightly up her legs and he was pressing against her and he whispered against her lips,

"You're always the same…how is it you're always the same?"

She felt her body look up at him and then said, "What do you mean?", but he simply shook his head and they continued to do something that she was very familiar with.

And then she snapped awake.

Audrey felt her heart in her chest racing madly, and she could barely believe what she had just dreamed…but then she remembered. It was possible that it wasn't a dream...because Duke and Nathan had actually gone back to 1955.

Was it Sarah's memory? Was it possible?

Unable to fall back asleep, even though it was three in the morning, she threw on a thick robe and walked into the kitchen, making herself a cup of herbal tea, something to help her fall back asleep, but it didn't seem to be helping. Her mind was racing…and she knew who she needed to talk to.

Several minutes later, Claire was walking through her door, looking slightly disheveled, most likely because Audrey had woken her up at an ungodly hour.

Claire sat down on the small couch, but the female detective began to pace in front of her, nervously wringing her hands.

Finally, Claire said, "Audrey, you said it was urgent. What's going on?"

She stopped pacing and looked straight at Claire, her eyes boring into her, and she finally found the strength to speak.

"I…I had a dream," she said, her trembling voice betraying her true feelings. "I was Sarah…and Nathan was there. We were on a beach and we were talking. Well," she amended. "We were, uh, kissing, and, uh, something more…"

She let the sentence linger and gave Claire a pointed look, and the brunette nodded, silently encouraging her to continue.

"I think…I think it's a memory."

At this, Claire only seemed slightly surprised, but then motioned to the couch cushion next to her, asking her to join her, so she did. They sat there for a moment, and then Audrey spoke up again, explaining what she hadn't yet told Claire.

"I just found out that the Colorado Kid, James Cogan, is my son…well, Sarah's son; and now that I know that Nathan got stuck in 1955 and that he told me that he met her…I think that the dream was a memory. And that, that he's the father."

At this, Claire reached out and gently grasped Audrey's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Audrey…are you going to tell Nathan?"

There was a long pause, and then Audrey slowly shook her head.

"No. If my dream really was just a dream, then it'll be embarrassing not only for me, but for him as well, and we have enough awkwardness as it is." She paused, and then gave Claire one of her determined looks. "And, on the off chance that it is true, then the both of us already know. He won't know that I know and he won't have to feel obligated to tell me anything."

She looked for any sign of approval in the psychiatrist's eyes and was surprised to see Claire nod.

"I think you're right." She paused, took a deep breath, and then said, "Your reasoning is sound, and things between the two of you are very tenuous, at best. You should keep this to yourself, but…I'm glad you decided to confide in me."

At this, Claire gave her a soft smile, and Audrey inwardly sighed in relief.

It felt good to get it out, to not have the idea festering in her mind like a splinter that she couldn't remove.

She let out a long sigh and a small laugh as she came to a sudden realization.

"You know, now that I think about it, I feel like an idiot for not seeing it before. In my memory, in one of the ones I got on Halloween, I saw him in the mirror…and I can see now that he looks so much like Nathan. Tall, broad shoulders, dark hair, intense eyes…he even had his eyes."

At this, Claire seemed slightly surprised, and pulled her hands back, but then relaxed again.

"Well…are you planning on telling anyone else?"

At that, Audrey laughed out loud.

"Like who, Duke? No way, having just one other person know is enough. Besides," she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "You're bound by doctor-patient confidentiality, right? You're the only person that I can guarantee won't tell anyone."

She paused and tilted her head in that certain way of hers and gave Claire a small smile.

"Thank you for coming, Claire."

"Sure," she said as she stood. "I'll just show myself out."

With that she left, but Audrey felt an uneasy feeling settle in her stomach. She tried to brush it aside, but a thought kept on persisting in her mind. Claire knows something else, something that she's not telling me…she knows something.

Brushing it aside, she slid her robe off and slipped back under the covers, falling back to sleep in minutes.

Part 2/?