Abbie picked up Crane and they headed to Julie's place. After what happened it was understood that Ichabod would not be going back until Abbie was able to go with him. Irving authorized them to work one day a week at Julie's until they either found something else or were fairly positive there was nothing else to find.
"You look like hell, Crane."
"And a joyful 'good morrow' to you as well, Lieutenant."
"Hey, I'm just concerned. I noticed yesterday you didn't look so great but I just thought it was because you missed me."
Crane managed a half-hearted smile as his eyebrow raised over the high collar of his frock coat. "I haven't been sleeping well since last week."
"Because of what happened with Julie?"
"No, my pillow is just a bit uncomfortable. Of course it is due to what happened with Ms. O'Connor. I betrayed my wife."
Abbie made a mental note: Lack of sleep equals sarcastic cranky Ichabod. "I understand that you feel guilty, I really do. But you obviously regret what happened. You need to stop beating yourself up over it. That's what I meant yesterday when I said you were human. You're fallible. You try to pretend you're not but you're just like the rest of us. We ALL make mistakes, even Ichabod Crane. You can't let it get to you like this."
Crane said nothing.
Abbie pulled in to a convenience store. "I'm stopping for a coffee & an egg sandwich. Want anything?"
"I am not hungry."
"You need to eat. You're looking a little skinny, even for you."
"I do not wish to eat, thank you."
"Suit yourself."
Abbie went inside and walked out with two coffees, her sandwich, and a bag of donut holes. She tossed the bag on Crane's lap. "You're not starving on my watch."
"You look after me, Miss Mills, and it is much appreciated." He gave her a slight bow of his head.
"And here." She handed him one of the coffees. "If you're not sleeping well you're gonna need caffeine. We have a long, boring day ahead of us."
"Thank you."
They drove into Pennsylvania and made their way to Julie's. They pulled up in front at about 10:00 and Crane didn't see her car. They were just about to call her when she came pulling around the corner. Crane and Abbie got out to greet her.
"Hey, sorry about that," Julie said as she got out of the car and popped her trunk open. "I dropped the kids off early and tried to get some grocery shopping done before you guys got here. My timing was a bit off."
"No, its fine. We just got here," Abbie said, as she and Crane walked toward her.
He introduced them. "Lieutenant Abbie Mills, Julie O'Connor." They shook hands and exchanged pleasantries.
"Shall we help you with these?" He lifted some grocery bags out of the trunk. Among the three of them they managed to get everything in one trip. They set the bags on the island in the kitchen.
"You two go down. I'll be there after I get all this put away." Julie said.
"No, I'll help," Abbie offered. "We'll be down in a few," she said to Crane. He went down to the library, leaving the ladies to get acquainted.
"So, Crane tells me you lost someone, too. Seems to be a theme with us." Abbie began taking items out of the grocery bags.
"My husband, Eddie." Julie nodded. "Car accident. Drunk driver, who didn't have a scratch on him incidentally."
"It happens that way all too often. I'm sorry for your loss. How long were you married?"
"Almost eight years. Hang on a sec." Julie went into the living room and returned with a photo album. "Here we are."
Abbie looked at the open page and saw Julie and Eddie's wedding photo. He was a handsome man with green eyes and black bed head style hair, and a light scruff on his face. Even without the last name O'Connor Abbie would have guessed he was Irish. "You two look so happy."
"We were. We had our moments like any couple, but at the end of the day we always kissed good night and said 'I love you.'"
"What did he do for a living?"
"Advertising. Suit and tie every day type job. Not that I complained about that. He wore them well."
Abbie smiled. "May I?" she asked as she began to flip though the pages of the album.
"No, go ahead! It was nice of you to keep me company up here, by the way. Thank you."
"Well, I figured if we're going to be working together we should probably get to know each other a little bit, right?"
"Sure." Julie smiled, as she continued putting away the groceries.
Abbie turned the page. There was a picture of the wedding party, including best man Captain Irving. He CAN smile, Abbie thought, laughing to herself. She flipped through the book and saw a lot of great, happy photos of Mr. and Mrs. O'Connor and their son. The last picture was of the three of them, with Eddie and the son - Abbie guessed about three years old - touching Julie's very pregnant belly. Their faces were beaming. There was a wooden sign on the floor in front of them that read, "Coming Soon" in pink writing. Abbie noticed the rest of the blank pages.
"I just couldn't do it." Julie said. "The accident was a week after that picture was taken. I didn't even have the prints back yet. It was the last photo I could bear to put in there. I know it's not fair, especially to my daughter that she's not in there but I can't. Not yet."
'I can't even imagine." Abbie's heart broke for Julie. Her original intent was to stay upstairs and talk with Julie to test her about Crane. What would she reveal? How would her story of what happened compare to his? But Abbie couldn't press that issue now. There would be time for that later.
After the groceries were put away, they went downstairs and began helping Crane with the research. Abbie observed Crane and Julie throughout the day. They were polite to each other, but there was obvious tension between them. They were extra careful not to come in any type of physical contact with each other. Julie would set a book down, step back, then Crane would come over and look at it. At times it was so awkward Abbie wanted to laugh. They actually looked frightened of each other, like if they touched they would turn to stone or something.
A few hours into the work day Julie asked about lunch. "What do you two want? I could make some sandwiches."
"Please, allow me." Crane offered. "My eyes need a rest."
"Oh, OK. The meat and cheese..."
"I can figure it out, I'm sure. Thank you. I shall return shortly." He went upstairs.
"That was, umm,"
"Weird?" Abbie finished Julie's sentence.
"A little, right?"
"Yeah, you get used to it from that one."
Julie gave an awkward smile.
Well, no time like the present, Mills. Time to put your detective hat on and find out what this girl's about. "So, what do you think of Crane, anyway?"
"He's great. I mean, it's interesting - to meet him, you know. Someone from the past. Especially given my line of work."
Mm-hmm. "Irving said there was some weird thing about a Guinness Book taxi ride. What was that all about?"
Julie looked upstairs to check if Crane was within earshot. She walked over to Abbie and spoke softly.
"Listen, I don't want to say anything because if anyone is going to tell you it should probably be him. But he won't, because he's...him."
Here we go... "What is it?" Abbie played dumb.
"That night, when he first came here, I did something really stupid."
"You did?" Abbie asked, emphasizing the 'You.'
'Yes. As you can see by looking around I'm kind of obsessed with colonial history. Meeting Crane was a little overwhelming. A lot overwhelming. I kind of lost my head for a second and...well, I kissed him."
Abbie stayed silent and let her continue.
"I really don't want you to think less of me, Abbie. I really like you. I mean, I don't have a lot of girlfriends and I'm not saying that we should hang out and do each other's hair or anything, but I like you. However, I know how important you and Crane are to each other and I understand if you don't understand, if that makes sense."
"You know how important we are to each other? You mean because of the Witness thing."
"Not just that. He told me all about how you take care of him, teach him things, help him adjust to his new life. He told me how much he trusts you and cares about you. He didn't say it in so many words, but I could tell he thinks of you as his family."
It made Abbie very happy to hear that, but she would have to process that later. Task at hand. "So you kissed Crane."
"Yeah." Julie shook her head with self-disappointment.
"What was his reaction?"
"He left. He grabbed his coat and just left."
"That's it?"
"That's it. I feel just awful about the whole thing."
Abbie didn't normally like being lied to, but she really appreciated Julie's willingness to protect Ichabod. Abbie decided she does trust her, for now. She didn't believe it was her intent to hurt or manipulate Crane. She was just a lonely woman who found Crane attractive. Not completely ridiculous. God help her if she does hurt him, though, Abbie thought. She considered him as her family, too.