The hat never made it out of the living room, and Audrey found it there a few days later, tossed carelessly behind the couch. She rubbed the brim between her fingers, smiling indulgently at the dual memories it evoked. She let her mind linger in a few of the steamier details before setting it on the coffee table. As soon as she stepped away she realized it had given her another gift – her next course of action.

What she needed was something that helped her remember Lucy. A trigger, just as the hat had been for Sarah. That woman was still an enigma, when most frustratingly of all she should have been most in reach. Even though Audrey had found plenty of people who'd been helped by Lucy, none of them knew her secrets. Audrey needed to get those from Lucy herself.

Nothing had sparked in her when she'd sifted through Lucy's hideous clothing, but she was considering a little fashion show when she remembered she possessed something else of the photographer's.

The locket was tucked away in her jewelry box next to the mysterious ring. She handled it gingerly, half ready to be violently shoved into the past like she'd been when she touched Prudence's pendant. But there was no flood of recognition. It remained a simple silver locket with her cursive initials scripted on the front. There was nothing inside when she opened it. She wished there was a picture of Lucy and James. Even a picture of Lucy and Garland, the Teagues, someone. What good was an empty locket? She ran her fingers over the smooth interior, aggravated, but her nail caught on a nick she'd thought merely a scratch. She heard a faint click and the inside of the locket sprang forward, revealing a second compartment holding a single scrap of paper.

Audrey turned it over and read the tiny words scribbled there: Take Duke to West Docks.

The words meant nothing to her, and they spurred no recognition, but she grabbed her phone. Duke answered on the second ring.

"You busy?" she asked.

"I'm at the restaurant, but I may be able to get someone to cover for me if a favorable alternative presents itself. What's up?"

"Did Lucy ever take you to the West Docks?"

"Only if she was a terrible babysitter. I've told you, I really don't remember us hanging out back then, but if that place was anything like it is now it's definitely not a place to take a kid."

It was funny how clearly she could picture Duke's facial expressions even when they were talking on the phone. His irreverence steadied her, even as she felt the pressure of approaching deadlines and pieces that were taking too long to fall into place. Every day she grew more desperate – they were running out of time. "Can you meet me there in fifteen minutes?"

"Why exactly do you want to meet me at the shadiest part of town?"

She heard Duke's hesitance, but ignored it. "Because Lucy told me to."

Despite his reluctance, his answer was almost immediate. "I'll be there." She was grateful they didn't have to play the I don't help cops game today. She didn't have the energy.

Her GPS got her to the docks in ten, and she checked for other visitors as she waited for Duke's Jeep to arrive. He looked kind of squirrely when it did, five minutes late, and he kept scanning the area.

"There's no one here," Audrey assured. "I've already checked."

Duke ran a hand over his ponytail. "Yeah, look. It's the middle of the day so we should be fine, but I'd like to keep this little jaunt off the record. If anyone saw me here with a cop it'd totally kill my street cred."

She raised an eyebrow. "That kind of shady, huh?"

"Of course I'm going to say no, because I'm an upstanding citizen – but yeah." They began to inch around the perimeter. The whole place was eerily deserted. Haven was full of boats, but not a single one was tied here. Perhaps it had something to do with the ragged gap at the far edge of the platform, the wood mangled and half submerged in the water. In Haven, there were plenty of things that could have done that besides the ocean. What she didn't know was why no one had bothered to fix it.

"How exactly did Lucy tell you to bring me here?" Duke asked, eyes still shifting nervously.

"There was a slip of paper in her locket."

"It would have been too much to ask to tell you why, right?"

"It was a pretty small piece of paper." She smiled, but Duke didn't. "Are you okay?"

"I've never liked this place," he admitted. "Not sure why."

"What kind of shady stuff goes on down here?"

"You asking that as a cop, cause I'm not really comfortable disclosing—"

"I'm asking as a friend who's only got a month to figure out the central mystery in her life before all her friends, including you, get killed for it. If there was something going on down here, Lucy could have gotten wrapped up in it."

Duke nodded, relenting. "Smuggling, mostly. A little black market bartering. But the clientele down here, they don't want to be disturbed."

"So the less hardened criminals go to the East Docks?" she teased. Something about Duke's demeanor was throwing her off. He took most things so cavalierly. There had to be a reason this was different.

"As a matter of fact they do."

She wasn't entirely sure if he was kidding, but she supposed it didn't matter. There had been warmth in his voice again, and that helped.

"Any Troubled stuff?"

"Not that I'm aware of. But I have no idea what was happening thirty years ago, and that's not the kind of thing you advertise even in this line of work."

The place didn't look particularly familiar, but truth be told she didn't like it much either. There seemed to be something sinister in its decay. The ocean lapped at the abandoned posts, which were crusted with barnacles. The place wasn't very large, and she could see it all from the edge of the wooden planking, which was faded gray and heavily weathered. She felt exposed, their cars conspicuous in the gravel parking area just as they stood conspicuously in the center of the dock. If someone else showed up, there'd be nowhere to hide. It seemed a poor venue for deeds that were meant to be hidden.

There was some sort of stain near the center of the dock. "You probably don't want to think too much about what that is," Duke advised. Audrey ignored him and crouched near the spot, which was about two feet in diameter and roughly circular. It was dark and faded, but she could imagine it had been crimson once.

"I think it was blood," she said, reaching out to touch.

Suddenly the light changed, the sun sinking further down the horizon, the sky darkening with clouds.

There was a man on the docks in front of her, clutching the shoulders of a boy, one who she recognized both from a photo and from the man he would become.

"Your time is coming to an end, Lucy." The tone of his voice set her on edge. He wasn't threatening her – yet – but he certainly wasn't friendly. Even young Duke seemed to realize something was wrong.

"You're right, Simon. The Barn comes tomorrow, and I'll leave Haven. But I'd like to go knowing what happened to James."

"We all leave this world wishing we knew something we don't."

"You don't know who killed him, do you?"

"Course I don't. But I saw the picture of you and Duke in the paper this afternoon. Don't know what you think you're playing at, hanging around my son, but I figured I might at least make the most of it. I knew you'd come here if he gave you the message. You could never stay away."

"What do you want?"

"There are those who say if I kill you the Troubles will end for good. Not just for twenty-seven years."

Ice ran down her spine. As much as she should at least entertain the notion, she couldn't. "They're wrong."

"Don't lie! Neither of us know if that's true or not. What I do know is that you killed my father. He was a good man, and times got tough after he was gone. He deserves to be avenged."

"He came after Sarah. She didn't want to. It was self-defense."

"Then maybe that's what this is," Simon raved. "Self-defense. Because it's always you or us. The Crockers, or the girl in the middle of the Troubles. Doesn't matter what name you carry. You're poison to this town."

Duke pulled on Simon's sleeve. "Daddy, why are you yelling at Miss Lucy?"

"Send him away, Simon. Whatever happens here, he doesn't need to see this."

"But he does. He needs to be prepared. This is his legacy. Either you die here today for good or one day it'll be him, staring you down right before you put a bullet in his heart."

"It doesn't have to be this way. I'm done with this town. I just want to go."

"You didn't want to go. You ran away. You were going to leave us to our curse!"

"I came back."

"Only because someone was smart enough to put a bullet in your son. Wasn't me. But I commend their planning."

Wasn't marked down in no record book, but Garland had given her a gun when people in town started to get cranky. She pulled it out of her coat now and pointed it at Simon, unable to stand his taunting. She could still see James on that beach, so pale in the midst of all that bloodstained sand.

Simon grinned, the savage glee transforming his face into something devilish. "There she is. Do you see that, son? She pretends to be a healer, but when it comes down to it she's a killer just like us."

"I'm not a killer."

"But I am."

Lucy cocked the gun as Simon pulled a knife from his belt, but instead of threatening her he jerked Duke into a stranglehold and held the knife against his throat.

"What are you doing?" she shrieked, the gun trembling in her hand.

"You don't know what it's like to carry my Trouble. The thrill when the Troubled blood hits my skin—I had some pretty good drugs back in my day but none of them compare. The rush. The power. The strength. And the knowledge that I can save whole families from repeating terrible fates. Hurting other people. My family has done a lot of good to this town."

"Let Duke go," she pleaded. "He's your son."

"Exactly. This will be his job one day. But will anyone thank him for it? No. He'll be an outcast. Distrusted. And with good reason. Because this Trouble, it's terrible to control. The hunger is always there. And in this town there are so many places to feast."

"That's why I always find your family. Because sometimes you need to be stopped."

"Precisely. The cycle will continue unless we change the pattern. I can protect my family for all generations to come. Free us, like I've freed so many others."

"Daddy, I'm scared." Duke's voice wrenched something in Lucy. Had James been scared, or had it happened too quickly for him to anticipate what was coming?

"There's nothing to be afraid of Duke. This is for your own good."

She didn't know how Simon could be so damned calm. "You can't do this."

"Crockers have always had to make sacrifices for the greater good. That's the point of our Trouble – kill one to save all the rest. I know you've grown fond of Duke. Thought you could turn him against his family, I'm sure. But I've got another boy back home. What about the children he'll have some day? They'll be safe from you if I do this. They'll never have to be killers."

"What are you going to tell his brother when Duke never comes home? What are you going to tell his mother?"

"That bitch left me a long time ago. Couldn't understand what I had to do. Wade will, one day. He'll be grateful when I tell him his brother died so he could be free."

A mother would never be able to understand. "Let him go, Simon. This is your last warning."

"Or what?"

The bullet went through Simon's neck with a spray of blood. Father and son collapsed in a pile of red. Lucy dropped the gun and pried Simon's arms away from Duke. The knife had nicked him during the fall, but the cut didn't seem to be deep. Lucy pulled off her scarf and pressed it into Duke's shaking hands. "Hold this to your neck. It's going to be all right. Let's get you away from here."

Simon coughed, the sound gurgling through the hole in his throat. His voice had a terrible phlegmy quality and the wound bled profusely. "So the cycle continues. I don't think he'll have any trouble killing you now."

Simon's hand clamped onto Duke's arm and held fast. "You come back here, son. No matter how far you run, the next time the Troubles return you need to come back and avenge me. Do you hear me? Promise."

Duke's pale skin with spattered with blood, his eyes wide. "I promise."

"She'll turn on you one day. Never forget that. She can't be trusted."

Simon started coughing again, and Lucy pulled Duke away, taking him to the edge of the dock so he wouldn't have to see the light leave his father's eyes. "I'm so sorry, Duke." She wrapped her arms around the trembling boy. Shock was surely starting to sink in.

"Are you going to kill me one day?" There was no malice in it, just an exhausted curiosity that hurt almost more than if he'd been shouting at her.

"Never," she swore, pulling away so she could look him in the face. She wanted to dab at his cheeks like she had after he'd played in the mud, but the blood was already starting to dry and she didn't want any more of it on her hands. Her heart ached for this little boy, caught in something he should never have to understand. She could only hope what Sarah wrote held true, because she could easily see how he'd become exactly like his father after this, no matter how sweet a child he was.

She couldn't guarantee her next incarnation would keep her promise if he came after her.

"I'm sorry you had to see that. So sorry. I couldn't let you father hurt you. We're friends, Duke. I need to go away, but we're going to be friends again someday. Better friends, because you'll be older then."

"As old as you?" he asked with a wrinkled nose.

"Not exactly. But grown up. I'll have different hair and a different name, but it'll be me. I need you to remember that we're friends, no matter what anyone says."

"Friends."

"Yes. You're a good person, Duke. You need to remember that, whatever happens. You're not a killer like your father. You're better than that."

"Why did he want to hurt me?"

That question would be Simon Crocker's terrible legacy. "It's complicated. You'll understand one day. He had to make a terrible choice. But when it's your turn you can make a better one."

"I want to go home."

"I'll get you home in just a minute. I need you to do something else for me." She reached into her camera bag and pulled out a battered book and a silver locket. She ripped a corner from the book, wrote a quick note, and hid it in the locket's secret compartment. She'd planned on giving them to James, but it was too late for that now. This was the only option left to her.

She wasn't sure it was even worth it, anyway. All this planning for someone else's future and she'd leave with her life in ruins. Why hadn't she been allowed to live whatever time she had in peace? "I need you to keep these safe for me, okay? It's really important. I want you to give me the necklace the next time you see me. Tell me Lucy gave it to you, all right? And I need you to hide this book. You can't tell anyone you have it. Just stash it someplace safe, like a pirate. One day I'll ask you for it and I'll need you to give it back. Can you do that for me?"

He nodded.

"Good boy. Let's get you home."

Audrey's head was throbbing as she came to sprawled on the deck. As soon as her eyes locked with Duke's – still the same color though the features of his face had changed – the memory came rushing back.

"What the hell just happened?" he asked, sounding uncharacteristically vulnerable as he sat up and rubbed at his head. Apparently he'd collapsed too.

She pulled herself upright and clutched her knees to her chest. "Oh my God, Duke. I'm so sorry."

He narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "Sure we were watching the same thing? Because from what I saw you have nothing to apologize for."

She was half afraid he had seen something different – and half hopeful. "I killed your father," she whispered. "Right in front of you!"

She waited for that to turn him against her, just as his father had predicted. But he merely frowned. "You saved my life. I knew he was a bastard, but damn."

Her stomach was still rolling at the thought of what she'd exposed him to. He'd been just a child. "I didn't have to shoot to kill. I could have given him another chance to step down."

"You did what you had to do. Now shut up and come here." He patted the deck beside him. She didn't feel like standing yet. Wasn't sure her legs would hold her if she did. But at least she felt stronger than the last time this had happened. If she gave herself a few minutes to recover she could probably avoid another hospital visit.

His tone booked no argument, so she scooted closer and leaned her head against his shoulder. He looped his arm around her in a half hug, and she took a deep, shuddering breath, willing herself not to cry. It was hard to accept forgiveness could be so easily granted. It was also strange being so close to Duke. Six months ago it had been rare for her to touch anyone willingly. But Nathan had taught her the value of human contact. This was different, of course - she cared for Duke, but not romantically. But there was something undeniably comforting about his embrace.

"Why didn't I remember that before?" he asked. "I knew I'd seen my father die. I came back to Haven because I remembered promising I would. But I thought he was lost at sea. I didn't know Lucy was there. I know the Barn takes all your memories but why are mine gone?"

"It isn't the Barn that takes my memories," she corrected, all the disparate clues starting to solidify with a blaze of clarity. As a cop she lived for these ah-ha moments where murderer and motive became clear. But rarely was it so personal. This time her life really did depending on figuring out the answers. "It's the people in the Barn."

"There's someone in the Barn besides you?"

She'd told Nathan everything she read in Prudence's journal, but she hadn't been able to admit to Duke that she'd chosen to give up her former identities.

"Yeah. Related to someone else we know who has a tendency to play around with people's memories."

"How come whatever we do those old men are always in the middle of it?"

"Maybe it's time to find out."

He twisted his head to look at her, shocked by the righteous anger blazing in her tone. "You're bleeding," she noted. In the memory blood had been speckled across his face but now it just pooled under his nose.

He wiped his sleeve across his face and grimaced at what he saw. "So are you, sweetheart."

She had tissues in the car. "Let's skip the hospital visit. We've got work to do."

"Want me to come with you?"

She shook her head, lifting it slightly so she didn't knock against his shoulder. "I need to do this alone." If what she suspected was true, Duke shouldn't be the first one to hear it. Though Nathan was definitely going to flip out.

Duke studied her with narrowed eyes. "If you're sure." There was something about his expression that reminded her of the child he had been and she grabbed his arm, hard.

"Hey."

"You have it!" she exclaimed, not believing she hadn't realized that immediately.

"Devilishly good looks? Cause that's not new, but I'm glad you finally realized."

She swatted his arm and then scrambled up, tugging him after her. "Lucy's journal! The one that was Sarah's. The one that might tell us how to stop all this."

"Yeah, I get the picture. Hold on a sec. I don't remember Lucy giving it to me."

"But you have it! You had the locket! Think, Duke. You were supposed to keep it safe."

He stepped out of her grasp. "It's very hard to be zen when you're shrieking at me. Give me a minute, okay?"

"You were supposed to stash it somewhere safe," she said desperately after an endless period of silence. Audrey Parker had never been good with patience.

"Like a pirate." The words seemed to stir something in Duke. "That's it! I buried a time capsule that year. Can't off the top of my head remember why."

"Do you remember where?"

"Nope."

"Duke!" She didn't know how he could sound so casual when their continued existence rested on this journal he'd hidden.

"Relax. All good pirates leave a map to their buried treasure."

"You have a map?"

"Yep. You know, it's funny. I dated the thing. Told myself to dig it up in thirty years. But I haven't had time with everything that's been going on."

"I need that book, Duke."

"I'll get it, Aud. You and Nathan will have your happily ever after."

There was something unsettling about the way he said that, but Audrey didn't have time to dwell.

"Call me when you find it? I have to go talk to Vince."

"Just Vince?"

She wasn't used to the fury being directed at that man. "Just Vince," she echoed darkly.

Sigh. This show. I suppose, just like after season 3 ended, I'm going to have to deal with my broken heart by writing fanfiction. The end's in sight, guys, but there are still more answers to be had where Audrey's original self wasn't evil, and I promise this at least will have a happy ending. Maybe even eventually some fluff that isn't inspired by angst. Because our poor OTP deserves it!

Also, I'm sorry for the delay in posting. I've been distracted by holiday stuff. Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates it!