Disclaimer: Lost Girl belongs to Showcase or SYFY and I am only playing in their universe.
A/N: Hey everyone thanks for the reads, reviews, favs and follows. We continue to follow Lauren's story ….
A hand snapped out from under the blanket like a snake attacking a mouse. Lauren slapped at the digital clock on the bedside table in a vain attempt to make the thing shut the hell up. After more than the normal time it took to render these types of electronics silent, she raised herself up and listened. With a groan she dropped her achy head back on the pillow. "Reveille?" the doctor thought to herself, was she truly hearing reveille. She looked at the clock and saw 5:00 a.m., "I'll be damned," she laughed. Her sleep had been better than expected. Meeting the Colonel and Lila, the funny little ceremony and then being put up for the night. She shouldn't have slept at all but she had. Lauren laughed that she still could have gone for a few more hours of shut eye.
"Shut eye?" Lauren groaned again at her own phrasing. Her life with the fae had been so all encompassing, it was like nothing had happened before she discovered their existence. Lauren rolled over and looked up at the ceiling. She thought back on her life that did not include the fae and smirked. She had always led an interesting life and she allowed herself to forget that. It had been a mistake. Lauren had become a civilian asset to the military right out of medical school. The sales pitch was made to her and a select group of doctorate students that were wrapping up their studies up early. They were told that they could get some good field experience, have their student loans negated and serve their country for a couple of years without any permanent commitment. It was also a great résumé blip her advisor had said. With a simple signature, the next six years of Lauren's life had been a whirl wind.
When the depths of her talents as a physician and scientist were discovered, the field experience opportunities she was assigned to took on a whole new level of interesting. Placed on assignment with a Special Forces group of mixed military, her team would go in undercover and scout out hot spots around the world checking out bioterrorism and chemical weapon threats. At first she had a role as a background support person, and it had been a steep learning curve for her coming straight out of a school setting. Even at a young age she proved herself invaluable as part of the team. Soon Lauren found herself in the field and part of the strangest scenarios in the line of duty.
Lauren snorted to herself remembering what Taft had shown her in her apartment one day. It was what amounted to a wanted poster with her picture on it. It had been on one such mission that her whole team had used an extremist group as a cover. They all had laughed as they made up names and took the mug shot type photos. How he had unearthed the false paperwork cover she would never know, it should have been a warning of things to come. She ground her teeth thinking back to how she was so blind to the trap the man was laying. Lauren let out a soft yelling groan and pushed the thoughts of the mad man out of her mind. The past had to stay in the past.
The job with her military team was dangerous, exciting and everything she could have asked for, at least for the first couple of years. After that the thrill was gone and the day in and out fight to stay alive became all too real as she experienced close call after close call as she gained more responsibility within the group. Her skills as a doctor were perfected in trench medicine. Her creativity and high level training allowing her to save the lives of her team members and other allies. At the same time her scientific background provided efficient and deadly ways to handle threats. The split in her duties was too much to handle at such a young age. Helping to save and take lives seemed to be crossing some line and her conscience had a hard time with that. The things that she did at Taft's compound were along the same lines. Now older and wiser she still couldn't get her head around being at cross purposes.
She had loved the people she worked with in the military and was honored to serve doing the work they had done. Lauren had felt that by the end of her tour of duty she truly was part of the military in every sense of the word, but her time was up and she did not reenlist. When given the chance to leave and join a scientific research group Lauren took it. There had been many times she wondered if she had never left the military how her life would have been different. The sound of that flat bugle splitting the peaceful morning would suggest she might have another chance to find out.
Rolling out of bed Lauren pulled on her jeans, boots and a sweatshirt. Throwing her hair back in a ponytail she walked to the door. Tossing it open, she made the short journey down the hallway between the rooms and opened the main entry way to the hut. Sunlight beamed in and she saw a group of five men around a flag pole saluting as the colors moved skyward. She snapped to and gave the proper respect. With the colors secure, she walked out as the men were separating. Seeing her approach the men turned and nodded or waved in greeting, "Lew, Good to have you join us." said the Colonel with a smile. "Coffee's on and it's time for a briefing," the old man shuffled off towards the Fort. Lauren looked around at the others and they just shrugged and followed him towards the building. To the morning briefing she went.
Upon entering the Fort, Lauren wanted to turn around, somehow seeing it in the daylight made everything just that much worse. Her cleanliness, bordering on OCD, tendencies were kicking into overdrive. Someone was going to get hurt if she didn't leave soon or pick up a rag and start cleaning up the mess. The men pulled up around the nearest table and did their best to brush off any extras that had been left from the night before. Lauren tried not to look uncomfortable but it was pretty much impossible. She stood to the side and tried not to touch anything.
Breaking into her train of thought she heard the Colonel's gruff voice calling her, "Lew get over here for some coffee and an introduction to the crew. Finest damn group of soldiers a man could ever..." The others shifted uncomfortably as their leader gushed about them. A younger man who looked to be no more than twenty-five appeared from the kitchen with several mugs of what sort of smelled like coffee. Motioning her to a seat, Lauren joined the men and thanked the kid handing out the mugs. After a drink, Lauren could have sworn that if she left a spoon in the swill for more than five minutes the metal would be totally eaten away. As discreetly as possible she pushed the cup away from her and noticed that most of the others had done the same.
"First meet my boy Lew." The young man held out a hand, mouthed the word 'grandson' finishing with a broad good natured grin. "His name is Gunner. He's a metal smith. Finest damn metal smith in the …." The young man mouthed the word 'welder' as the old man went on for a bit with obvious grandparental pride. Lauren took the young man's hand and was engaged by his easy going demeanor. "He is the last of us to see action, this boy of mine." Lauren looked at the young man and he tilted his head and shrugged confirming that he was a solider too.
The Colonel continued by slapping the back of a huge man to the right of Gunner, "Cappy is this big guy." Lauren looked up into the older man's face and marveled at the mustache his lip supported. "There is no better solider, finest damn tactician and field medic there ever was. This one time…" the mustached man held out a huge hand in welcome. He rolled his eye as the Colonel kept going about a long past action that was special enough to be remembered by the crew and evidently repeated often by the Colonel.
"Now we have Roger here," the Colonel grabbed a smaller wiry man by the shoulders. "Finest damn communication officer I have ever seen. As I recall we were pinned down and …" Roger blushed and as he had little to no hair his whole head sort of glowed red. He nodded a welcome to Lauren and then the voice of the Colonel busted through, "and that is how he ended up with the General." He looked around and all the men started laughing. Lauren, who had not been listening, joined in but she had no idea why. It must have been one of the stories that just never died. All groups of friends had such tales. Lauren figured she would meet the General later and figure it all out.
"I'm Cook." Said a booming voice from behind them, "and if he says I'm the finest damn cook he has ever seen then he is full of bullshit." The other men in the group grinned and tried not to laugh, the Colonel just growled something about the lack of a proper brig. They all shifted as a tall well-built man came out of the kitchen. Not as young as Gunner but not as old as the rest, the man twinkled with orneriness, "Explosives and alcohol that is what I cooked up years ago. It is only after my retirement that I have been assigned other duties." He jabbed a thumb back at the kitchen. "Lew, you could be a man, woman, mouse or ... a whatever but please God tell me you can cook." The Colonel frowned like the man had taken something away from him but joined the others as they looked to Lauren with desperate hope in their eyes.
"She will not answer that question. I cannot believe you bunch of lazy old men." The voice of Lila filled the space. "Not including you Gunner, my boy, Good Morning." The young man smiled and waved while the others sulked. The woman approached the table at a good clip. "What did I tell the lot of you? I would speak to her but instead you ambush her at your morning gossip session. What am I to do with you all?" The men looked sheepish under the harsh stare of the older woman. "Go, all of you, you have a tee time at Red Valley country club in thirty minutes. When Lew and I are done talking I will let you know what we decide." The men shuffled off in as quiet, pouting mass.
Gunner stopped and kissed Lila's cheek. "I'll keep a watch on them." he said and winked at Lauren as he followed the grumpy group out the door. Lila was making 'tsking' sounds as she pulled a set of travel mugs from behind her back. Lauren could smell the luscious aroma from her chair. "I have a chai tea latte or a hazelnut coffee latte." Lila tilted her head and enjoyed Lauren's smile. "What will it be?"
Reaching for the hazelnut coffee, Lauren said several thank-yous as she took the first couple of long sips. Between fast food coffee, bus stop coffee and do it yourself hotel coffee this was the taste of pure heaven. After a moment, Lauren said, "How about we talk in the apartment?" she wouldn't place the travel mug on the table as she was too busy looking at her forearms and wondering what had been so sticky on the table top. Lila face showed as much relief as Lauren's at the thought of leaving and almost beat her out the door as she agreed to the cleaner venue. The woman enjoyed their drinks around the hut's kitchen table and shared more small talk about the men Lauren had just been introduced to.
Lauren asked, "I can't believe that you are all still together here. I take it your husband served in the military with all of the crew I just met, except for Gunner of course."
"Of course," smiled Lila, "Yes, he has been their commanding officer for a long time." A little wistfully she added, "They're all that remains of his original unit." There was a sad touch to Lila's face and Lauren felt bad at having caused her to think of unpleasant things. Seeing the girl's expression, Lila patted her hand, "Oh Lew, it was a long time ago no worries, new topic, okay?" Lauren smiled and nodded. Lila continued, "I mentioned this last night and those brutes already got to you this morning, so this not going to be a surprise but we were all wondering if you would consider taking over as caretaker for this place… the Fort?"
Lauren knew this was coming and took a deep breath before she answered, "You know I'm on the run don't you." Lila looked the doctor in the eye and nodded that she had figured out that much. Lauren could see the older woman appreciated that she had not tried to hide that information and continued, "I thought as much from your comments last night." She cleared her throat and continued, "I am not a bad person. In fact, I believe I am a pretty decent human being all in all, but I was put in a no win situation and had to make a decision between bad and worse. I lived through it, but as I said it was a no win. My situation has forced me to leave everything behind me and to try to start over somewhere new." Lauren didn't look up but continued rapidly, "There are…people who are looking for me. Are you sure you want something like that, like me, messing up your life?" Lila grinned as if she had expected Lauren's concern and nodded that she still wanted Lauren to stay but remained silent.
It was so odd to have someone just listen to her, Lauren was a bit flustered not having to fight to get a word in or argue her point. Lauren rushed on and as if in her own defense said, "I can help you with this place. It is in my wheel house as some say. I have a thing about order and cleanliness. I know a thing or two about … chemicals… cleaning chemicals." She added hastily. "My friends used to tease me…but anyway." Lauren was babbling she paused and focused. "I need lots of control right now for my own sanity. So if I take this job I have some requests." Lila again remained silent as she sipped her latte but her eyes were alight with interest.
Standing up Lauren began to pace, "I will clean this place up. All of it, cabins, bar and kitchen and keep it that way if I can stay here with full use of the office and the workspace as well as this apartment." She motioned to the hut. "I will cook and manage the help. I don't need much in the way of pay but I will control the finances for this place with you or a person of your choice as my auditor." Lila nodded, Lauren added her last bit, "When it is time for me to go, I can leave without question or stipulation. My last…employer was not very understanding." The doctor ground out. After a pause she added softly as if she was ashamed of having to say this part, "And my private life is my own. I will share with you as much as I want. I will extend you and the crew the same courtesy of allowing you your privacy."
Setting her mug on the table Lauren waited to be told that she had ten minutes to get the hell out of town before the nice old woman called the police. Lila set her mug down as well and simply said, "That part about the pay will have to be amended." Lauren looked at the woman. Lila continued, "I have this feeling that you have never understood your worth Lew. Might just have played some part in how you found yourself in all this trouble. It will be fun teaching you to understand yourself a bit better. You will be paid as reflects your abilities. It will be a nice living for you." The old woman was positively beaming with happiness. "Your terms are accepted as much as older… people follow terms. Welcome to the crew …" Lila went to say Lew but was interrupted, "Lauren, my name is Lauren." The teary eyed younger woman said. Lila smiled, "Of course Lauren, Welcome to the crew, Lauren." Said Lila, "But I'm afraid here you will be called Lew no matter what you try to call yourself. My husband has this thing about nicknames." Lauren laughed and Lila stood.
"Come on let's make a quick run to town for your first set of supplies. I want you to get started right away. The sooner I can sit at a table in the Fort and not worry about ruining my clothes the better." The older woman tossed a set of keys the Lauren. As they moved outside an older model truck waited in front of the hut. The words "the Fort" were neatly stenciled on the outside of the cab doors. "Red Valley is forty miles away we will have plenty of time to make a shopping list as we drive there." Lauren didn't know it but her life had just taken one gigantic step in the right direction.
Nine months later
Lauren rolled out of bed before sun up. If she wanted to get her run in this was her only time. Pulling on clothes she could peel off as she got into her run she layered, drank down two glasses of water and hit the trail. The desert was an interesting place and she had learned to love it. She ran various washes and hills; today the choice was the night escape route near a small ravine. As she moved at a rapid pace, she acknowledged her body had never been in such good shape. The quiet of the desert was relaxing and anything out of the ordinary was easily noticed. Lauren had been lucky enough to find a place to rebuild her life and she was not about to let anyone or anything screw that up.
Round off her morning run, she got back just in time for Reveille. She took a moment to join the rest of the crew at the flag pole before she opened up the Fort to set out the rolls and start the coffee. It was back to her quarters to shower and dress. Then it was back to the Fort to finish the set up for breakfast and the rest of the day. As Lauren entered the large kitchen, she stopped and glared. He was there again and had two of her caramel pecan rolls in his mouth. The large brown eyes narrowed as he turned to see her. He seemed to smile through the sticky bread that filled his maw. Lauren growled and raised her hand pointing at the door. With a sniff and return growl the invader left with Lauren hot on his heels holding the tray of contaminated rolls. There had been laughing around one of the tables but it stopped short at the sight of the huge dog being run out of the kitchen.
Without a word Lauren held up the tray and ever so slowly let the warm tasty rolls fall into the trash. The men at the table groaned as all that buttery goodness was just tossed away. Cook was the only brave soul to speak up. "Lew you don't have to waste your good food because the General steals a taste every now and then." There was a mass intake of breath as Lauren raised an eyebrow. All the crew learned very quickly that Lauren did not put up with much. She was kind and creative but tough as nails. The eyebrow raise was a tell that she was not pleased.
Roger picked that moment to come out of the men's room. He looked up and saw Lauren with the tray and then looked at the huge dog licking at his furry muzzle like he had just taken a bite of something sticky. The man's shoulders fell and he looked angrily at the other men as if to say, "Are you kidding me, I left for three minutes." Cook said in the table's defense, "Well how are we supposed to control the great beast? I mean really." Everyone turned, including the dog to let Cook know they didn't buy it. The dog was perfectly trained and would mind anyone. He would mind anyone who bothered to pay attention. Roger was the only one that ever did, and for that reason the crew's dog always stayed with the quiet communication officer.
"Roger this is not your fault so you get the LAST roll left and the rest of the crew will get whole grain toast, dry," snapped Lauren. The other men cursed under their breath starting to blame each other for their lost breakfast, "and then you all will join General outside on the patio." The dog chose that moment to hiccup. The whole bunch started to laugh and Lauren turned and mock stomped back into the kitchen, but she was laughing too.
The Fort was a far cry from what it had been. The community of Happy Meadows, unincorporated area to the north of Red Valley, could not have ever guessed the resource they found when Lauren Lewis entered their quiet little world. She had not only cleaned and repaired all the buildings on the property. She had created something of a community hub for the people living in the area. The woman had the Fort making money for the first time in all of it's existence. There were steady employees now and the food was out of this world. Even the four little cabins were rented out here and there as relatives of the locals would come to visit. She had put in a small convenience store business were people could stop by for the basics and not have to drive the forty miles to the "city" to grab some milk. She had lived up to her agreement and much, much more.
As per her request, she had been allowed to live as if her life started when they all met her the night she drove up with the Colonel in tow. It was a kindness she greatly appreciated. The crew had worked to cure her loneliness and she was always made to feel part of their little family. She did her best to let the crew in as much as she could but there was always going to be a distance with them. What she could not tell them about herself and her old life, she made up for with hard work. She took time for each of the crew members. She wanted them to feel valued by her. Lila was right, she needed to take care of people so she did.
The small group was so funny how they stuck to their roles for the old military days and held the interests they developed there. Lauren helped Cook with his still and microbrewery. Cappy was her chess nemesis and late night deep discussion partner after the bar closed. Roger was thrilled to have someone to watch movies with and enjoyed it as she taught him all about the things he could do with his computer. As the communication officer he was feeling out of touch. Gunner was her work buddy and right hand. Lila and The Colonel were just family. Truth be told they took care of her way more than she could care for them. Her effort with them all had brought them all close in a very short period of time.
As a personal project in her off hours she had cleaned out the workshop of the hut. It was like a gold mine to her and Gunner. The young man had quite a way with metal. As his grandfather always said, "The finest damn metal smith…." Lauren was in total agreement. She had him help with all her special projects.
Lauren was a genius. It wasn't just a funny nickname used by her friends. She was damn smart and even though she had focused most of her life on medical pursuits she was a talented mechanical and electrical engineer. She would draw up plans and turn them over to the young man to build. With his easy going nature he never asked what he was making. He just went with it and enjoyed it when Lauren's crazy designs where brought to life. "If the kid had only known what he was really building," thought Lauren.
It was never far from Lauren's mind that she was a fugitive. As she built new relationships, she now had even more reason to look out for fae. If these people got hurt in the crossfire she would never forgive herself. Lila and the Colonel were almost like parents to her and the rest she considered friends. Well she just would not let anything happen to them, so she worked even harder. The workspace behind her apartment was now her arsenal. She had three modified vehicles and specialized tools that doubled as weapons. She had plans to handle various types of attacks and she practiced them all on a regular basic. The crew thought she was just into some crazy fitness routine, and she did her best to make it look that way.
Lila had not been lying when she said that Lauren would be paid well and the money had been put to good use. The money from Taft's accounts could remain untouched for some time. Any fae that came at her would be facing weapons that could and would kill them if they threatened her or her new family. They would also be facing a unique compound with a great many hidden features.
The Fort and consequently all of it's outlying buildings were solar powered and reinforced. Making use of the desert sun, the place could go entirely off the grid as needed. The last couple of months, Lauren had put in two large green houses. They would have access to fresh vegetables year round. The water tank and well had been fortified and both were regularly tested and the tank topped off. Lauren had taken the idea of the Fort literally. She had reworked the facade of the buildings and used reinforced materials where she could. Since she did the special orders no one knew anything was unusual about the supplies she used.
The thing she was most pleased about was the internet connection she had secured. As isolated as she was, on-line information was essential. The desert area was crisscrossed with signal towers. Lauren gridded out the towers and figured out a way to tap into the various signals. The local provider ran the internet connection but Lauren could manipulate how others would see their internet usage, bouncing from tower to tower the signal area could not be traced. She had made the community's on-line searches including her own, virtually invisible to anyone tracking her. Illegal yes, would Lauren do it again, absolutely.
Her life was as secure as it could be but her attention to details would be what caught any threat. So like clockwork as the breakfast rush, all ten of them, left. Lauren pulled up the area newspapers and the national papers that were on-line and went through them line by line. She had worked her vigilance into her everyday life and she hoped she disguised her concern with everyday activities. This was more of a challenge that she could have ever imagined, with ever questioning senior citizens around she never knew what to expect next. Her past was left alone but her present life was fair game.
Lila stopped by and found Lauren reading the paper. "Lew, don't you know no news is good news." The older woman said pouring a cup of hot water and retrieving the canister of her favorite tea blend from a shelf in the kitchen. Holding the decorative tin up, Lila started shaking it in Lauren direction. The Fort manager looked up from her research and nodded that she would like a cup too. Lila continued, "The only new thing mentioned is that another couple of hikers have gone missing south of Red Valley. They were out-of-towners. It's a real shame." There was the tapping of metal on glass as the tea was set up.
"How many hikers go missing around here?" asked Lauren. "I swear it is one or two every couple of months. There should be a warning posted or something." Said Lauren as she clicked off her tablet and folded the paper shut. Lauren shook her head and then changed the topic, "I haven't changed my mind. We are not going to be decorating in here. The Greater Red Valley and Happy Meadow's Sunshine Festival is not a major holiday and…" Lila came out of the kitchen holding two mugs and a honey bear in her hands. She smiled sweetly and Lauren knew that she had been overruled.
Patting Lauren's cheek as she reached the table, Lila said, "This is not your shindig Lew. The Women's club has rented out the Fort. Like it or not, you are simply a name on the guest list tonight." Lila smiled and her eyes twinkled.
"If that is the case, I will be taking a long bath and turning in early." Said Lauren and then groaned as Lila once again smiled that sweet grin that told Lauren she would be at the party and be happy about it.
A short time later, the women of Happy Meadows and Red Valley descended on the Fort as if they were an invading army. Lauren had to watch as her once spotless orderly bar and grill was turned into some type of country barn yard, with hay bales and fake fence posts and so many flowers that the place smelled like floral shop. A big dance floor was cleared and a sound system was moved in. The women were decorating machines and within two hours they were fleeing to their homes to get all "beautified" for the night's event. Lila stood with her hands on her hips, "Not bad," she said. Turning to Lauren she looked her up and down, "Jeans and a nice shirt. Wear your brown boots." She tapped Lauren's nose and then walked out the door. "Well Crap," was all the beautiful blonde could think to say.
The Sunshine festival should have been renamed the Moonshine festival. The get together was nothing if not alcohol driven. One might think a Bingo game would be the highlight of a Women's Club party but no, this was a party in every sense of the word. Lauren should have known it would a hopping event. She had learned that the members of this community were not to be underestimated ever, and age was certainly only a state of mind. Right now the majority of her new group of friends were in the center of the dance floor line dancing. Truly the electric slide never lost it appeal after an hour or two of heavy drinking. The song ended and just like in junior high most of the ladies rushed the music booth and made requests for the next couple of songs. Roger, the communication officer, was in charge and by the deep red hue of his bald head this was a tougher assignment than he had anticipated.
A slow song came on and Lauren groaned as Gunner was walking a bee line right at her. "Lew, you have been sitting for far too long." He held out a hand and she had no choice but to accept. The man's callused hand felt warm and as he pulled her to him. It was nice to feel strong arms around her. Gunner had only the purest of intentions; this was only a gesture from a friend to include Lauren in the fun. Who was she to refuse? Lauren forced herself to focus on the here and now. No old memories were ever welcome, but her mind was on overdrive tonight. Far off nights of fun and dancing in her old life kept breaking her carefully constructed mind frame.
The couple was about the same skill set when it came to making their way around the floor. It was impossible to talk the music was way too loud. Lauren had laughed as most of the people in attendance had complained about the volume when they entered and stuffed their ears with tissue, then through the night had told the DJ to turn it up. It was truly a mystery of this age group. Gunner smiled and swung her out as they did probably the only fancy step either one of them knew. Lauren smiled and thought about how she always let Bo lead…she stopped herself. The music ended and Lauren said her thank-yous forcing a smile at Gunner. Moving to the bar, she grabbed a bottle and a glass then turned and headed for the door. Her party was over for tonight, just too many people and unwanted memories.
As the blonde moved through the doors, more than one set of eyes were focused on her retreating form. The most interested gaze belonged to the fae bounty hunter that settled in to watch his prey as she left the bar. It would only be a matter of time before he would make his move. She could be taken alive but where would the fun be in that?