Title: The Day We Died
Author: Shannon – shannyfish
Disclaimer: I do not own "Haven" or its characters, Syfy and other people do. This is merely for entertainment purposes only.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: When Duke is confronted by friends of Reverend Driscoll that promise to give him the answers he so desperately wants, will he sacrifice everyone and everything he holds dear? How will the town of Haven be forever changed? Audrey/Nathan
Warning: All of Season 2 is fair
Author's Note: This fic takes place after the events in 02.10 "Who, What, Where, Wendigo?" Reviews make me happy :D And I'll write faster too! So, keep that in mind! And yes…I totally stole the title from the Fringe episode!
. . .
Chapter 9 – "Vague Answers"
Their return to Haven was a silent one. No words were exchanged between them. There were brief glances, but Audrey was still upset. She stared off at where she was hopping to see the outline of Haven's harbor soon. She was sure that Nathan would prefer that she call in and let him know what was going on, but she didn't. She'd gone down below just lone enough to collect her bag and then had been sitting up on the main deck.
Time seemed to pass slowly, but it felt cathartic. Occasionally tears would fall again as she thought of what Duke had said. Was the world really coming down around them? Was her destiny to die? For Nathan to die too? She couldn't accept that. She wouldn't.
Eventually, Haven came into view and she felt her body tensing up. Worry filled her. What if Duke was right? Audrey closed her eyes and covered her face with her hands. Why couldn't the world just slow down? Maybe she and Nathan just needed to go on their vacation now… To just get away… Maybe things would calm down while they were gone.
If only things worked like that. With their luck, things would be worse when they got back. They really needed to figure out how to turn things around… For the troubled in Haven…for everyone in Haven.
As the Cape Rouge approached its slot, Audrey noticed that Nathan was there waiting for her. No doubt that Dwight had called ahead and had told him that they were heading back for Haven. He'd want answers. She wasn't sure that she really had the answers… Everything was vague…
Vague answers…
Would the ones that she had from Duke really help them? Would it make things worse? Could she really tell Nathan before she knew whether or not Duke could be trusted? She was still alive; she supposed that that was a big step for Duke after everything. She looked over her shoulder at him. He was staring off in the distance as he guided the ship in. He could probably do it with his eyes closed. Could she trust him? Could she chance trusting him?
"You're back early."
Audrey's train of thought was broken and she turned towards the voice. She got up and took her bag with her. Carefully, she made her way off of the Cape Rouge. Her feet met the dock and she stood there besides Nathan. "Can we just go?" she asked quietly.
"What happened?" Nathan asked. He looked from Audrey to Duke and then back to Audrey. There was clearly something wrong. She'd come back two days early and she really wasn't saying anything. He wasn't sure what to think.
"I just want to go…" she repeated and looked up at him.
He could see that her eyes were stained red from tears. He looked back over at Duke briefly before nodding to Audrey and putting his arm around her. He guided her to where the Bronco was parked and opened the door for her.
. . .
"Are you going to talk to me?" Nathan finally asked. They'd returned to his place an hour before and Audrey had remained silent the whole time. It scared him. What had Duke done? What had Duke said? Why hadn't she called to say she was returning back sooner? He wasn't angry with her, he was concerned about her…Audrey wasn't so closed down like this normally.
He'd given her the space she apparently wanted. She'd dropped her bag down by the door and she'd just been sitting on the couch zoning. Since it was about dinnertime, he'd gone to work trying to put together dinner. He figured that she needed to eat; he had no idea if she ate while she was out with Duke. Whatever was going on, she'd had her space and now he'd try to gently pry it out of her.
Pasta had been an easy thing to throw together, but still it had taken him some time. He'd boiled the water, thrown the pasta in, stirred here and there, and then had drained the water. Nathan had mixed the pasta, a jar of alfredo sauce, some frozen peas, and chunks of chicken he'd cooked up really quick into the pot the water had boiled in. It wasn't fancy, but it had food groups in it, so Nathan was sure that that counted for something. He dished up for two and then had pulled two wine glasses. Nathan didn't drink very often, but he figured that after everything maybe they could both use a glass of wine.
Setting everything out on the table, the proper one not the one in with the television, he made his way to where Audrey was planted. "You're going to eat at the very least," he told her and helped her to her feet and guided her towards the table.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
Nathan stopped and blinked. At least she said something! That was a start. "I don't think you have anything to be sorry about…"
"I started all of this…by shooting the rev."
"If we're going to go into this topic again, I swear I'm going to check you in to have your head examined. I told you that you did the right thing and you were cleared at work. How much more do you need to hear that your decision was right?" he asked as he guided her to her seat. He even pulled out the chair and then helped her push it back in.
"Duke…Duke's not in the middle of things," Audrey said. She wanted to be mad at him. She almost felt like she deserved to be mad at him. "He's been through a lot in the last couple of weeks…"
"Did he find his answers?"
"I don't think so."
"Did you find your answers?"
"About why he did it?" Audrey asked. She shook her head. "It's not an easy answer… I think he wanted to try to have a normal life… I don't think he's ever had that… I think that if Duke was troubled then maybe he'd feel more integrated…"
"Duke? I think he prefers to stand out," Nathan told her.
Audrey shrugged. "He said that he was trying to save us," she said finally. "They wanted to kill us both…"
"Why?"
"You're in a place of power and they can't control you… They've tried and failed to replace you," Audrey said. "You support a group in Haven that they don't support. You don't put the troubled up to hang or anything…you try to help them."
"That's what most of them need," Nathan told her.
"I know that," Audrey said quickly.
"It's like they want to relive the Salem Witch Trials or something… I won't allow that to happen," Nathan said.
"They think that if they kill me…that the troubles will stop…for good," she said and looked up at him. "They think that I cause them…"
"You help people."
"But what if they're right?" she asked.
Nathan shook his head. "They're not right. You help the troubled… Why would killing you mean that the troubles go away?"
"If they're right," Audrey said. She reached across the table and took his hands in hers. "You would be able to feel…anybody…not just me. All those who are troubled would be able to live their lives normally…"
"And it would only mean killing you…apparently?" Nathan asked. He shook his head. "I'd rather only feel you…this is normal for me… I don't think I could live life differently…"
Audrey frowned. She was sure that this was hard for him to take in. No one knew enough about the troubles and how they all worked. It wasn't like there was a big book somewhere that explained what each trouble was and who had it. If only it were that easy…
"Eat," Nathan said a bit harshly. He didn't like this conversation. He was suddenly weighing the idea of taking her in for psychiatric care…a seventy-two hour hold like he'd done with Duke. If she thought that her death would solve things…how wrong she was. He couldn't believe that, not after all the people she'd helped…including him.
"Nathan," she said gently.
"Please…eat," he snapped quietly.
Audrey shrunk back a bit. She didn't like the idea of him being upset with her. Though she really didn't like the idea of being the person that could destroy him. What if they did try to kill Nathan? She'd been one of the people to push him to be chief. She'd been the one that had apparently brought a bit of life back to him.
"I won't do it, you know…" Audrey said. And it was true, to an extent. "It's not like I'm going to commit suicide just to see if the rev's men are right…"
"They're not right," Nathan told her as he stared down at his food.
Audrey frowned. She got up from her chair and moved beside him. She put her hands on either side of his face and turned it so that he was looking at her. She kneeled down. "Nathan, listen to me. The only thing I kept thinking this whole time I was pretending…was you. I wouldn't just leave you like that… I can't…and I won't. I need you to know that."
"I worry about you," he said truthfully. "You can't take everything that is said to be truth."
She nodded.
"Things will work out," he told her and leaned in to kiss her forehead. "Though, be warned, I'm not letting you out of my sight for a while…"
Audrey smiled and blushed. She looked down for a moment but found Nathan lifting her face by her chin. He pressed his lips against hers and she welcomed the kiss. How she could live in these moments. They were precious and few right now, but she hoped for things to blossom. For life to continue on and to settle down…
"We'll figure everything out…after dinner," he said with a smile.
Audrey nodded after a moment. She got to her feet and made her way back to her seat. She wouldn't mind not being out of his sight. It would actually be reassuring. She needed to catch up on some time with him anyways. It felt odd being so far away from him. Sometimes she wondered how she lived before Nathan. There was something about how she needed to be close to him. It was like a longing. Had that always been there? He was like a drug.
. . .
"Why are we working on a weekend?" Audrey asked from across from his desk.
"Well, actually I'm working…I needed to catch up on some paperwork… You're here for moral support and company," Nathan told her with a smile.
She laughed. "Is that the excuse for bringing me?"
"Hey, I told you that I could stop and get a box from Rosemary's, but someone didn't want to stop…"
"Maybe I don't feel like being in a self-induced sugar coma today," Audrey told him. "It's nice to just relax here… We don't get to do that too often."
"Well, it's work…I don't think we're supposed to be that relaxed," Nathan told her. "Plus, I've seen you sleeping at your desk…"
"That was one time!" Audrey argued. "And I was exhausted…and that wasn't my fault…"
"Still…you were sleeping on the job," he teased with a bright smile.
"Do your paperwork," she chastised. Audrey shook her head. She couldn't believe how much she was enjoying just sitting there. After a moment of silence between them, she spoke up again. "You know I could help you with your paperwork and then we could be out of here sooner…"
"Are you saying I'm slow?" Nathan asked, trying to sound insulted.
"Sometimes," she teased with a smile. "The sooner we get done…the sooner we can return to what we were doing this morning…" she reminded with a grin.
Nathan didn't even need to think about that. "Okay, I suppose some help wouldn't hurt."
"Good!" Audrey said and moved her chair to the other side of Nathan's desk so they were sitting next to each other. She started to go through the stack in his 'inbox' on his desk. She really needed to make sure he stayed on top of these things. Of course, she was pretty sure part of it was because he'd been distracted. She couldn't blame him for that.
A knock at the door interrupted them their laughter and fighting over paperwork. Nathan called out before he looked up. "Come in!" he said.
Audrey looked up and froze for a moment. She hadn't expected to see him, not for days at the very least. Why was he here? Was he crazy? No, they'd had that sorted out. He was supposed to be fine. "Duke…" she said quietly.
Nathan's head flew up and he tried to quell the anger that was rising up in him. He really didn't know what to think about Duke right now. He really didn't want to see him though. Protectively, he grabbed on of Audrey's hands that had been resting on her leg and held it. He wanted to be able to keep a hold of her…just in case. "Why are you doing here?"
"I've come to turn myself in… I'm sure you can think of some charges…" Duke said.
"Turning yourself in?" Nathan asked shocked. He honestly hadn't thought about tracking Duke down and throwing him in jail. Okay, so maybe he'd thought about tracking him down and slugging him, but that was a little different. "I don't think I have reasons to throw you in jail…"
"I'm sure you can think up something," Duke said.
Audrey stared at him. "Why are you doing this?"
"I told you, I wasn't trying to hurt either of you," Duke said. "I was never not on your side, Audrey." He paused for a moment. "I'm sure neither one of you are willing to trust me after everything, but Nathan…you were right. Audrey's made me a better person…for the most part. I'm trying to prove that."
"By turning yourself in?" Nathan asked confused. He wasn't sure if this was a game or if Duke was actually being sincere. That was an odd thought, Duke being sincere.
"Yes," Duke said.
"We don't have any reason to throw you into a cell," Audrey said. She looked over at Nathan. "Do we?"
"Nope," Nathan replied and looked from Audrey to Duke.
Duke just stared at them both. "I'm not leaving Haven."
"I didn't ask you to."
"You're both in danger, you know that right?" Duke asked.
"We'll deal with what comes our way," Nathan said.
. . .
TBC…