After they'd finished their video game, after Ralph fell asleep, Walter carried him to his bed and tucked him in as Paige watched from the doorway.
Walter smiled as he stood up facing her.
Paige closed the bedroom door quietly before walking with Walter to the front door.
"Thank you for this opportunity Walter." Paige smiled as they stopped at the door.
"Thank you for your assistance today. You were invaluable to the success we had." Walter told her.
"You're welcome." Paige said prettily just before Walter pressed in and kissed her.
Paige's eyes opened wide in shock, but quickly closed as her hands rose up around Walter's shoulders. Their lips parted as their tongues moved across each other.
Paige whimpered as Walter growled.
Walter pushed Paige backwards until his hands bumped the small island cabinets. He picked Paige up and sat her on top of the cabinet, their lips never breaking contact.
Walter forced himself to break the kiss finally. He pushed his forehead against hers as he stood there, his eyes closed, trying to slow his breathing. His desire was rampant and Paige could feel how hard he was becoming.
"Walter." Paige said softly, a hint of need in her voice. Her hands fell to his sides and pulled him even more solidly between her legs.
"I've missed you. I've never been so glad to break up with someone in my life as I was today. I've wanted this all day." Walter said softly.
"You just met me." Paige breathed into his ear as she moved her head beside his.
"Don't." Walter told her, his fist thumped the top of the counter. "You did an amazing job hiding, concealing the money movements. I could never find you. But even without the blue contacts, fake red hair and ski mask. I recognized you the minute I saw you in the diner. It was all I could do not to take you in my arms the second I saw you."
"Oh Walter." Paige said as she pulled back and they stared into each other's eyes. "I've missed you so much, every single day." She kissed his lips lightly. "When I saw you walk into the diner I was beyond shocked. I wanted to run into your arms, to kiss your face, over and over. When that bitch insulted you, I wanted to hurt her so bad, you might be different from normals, but you aren't that far from normal. I struggled so hard to control myself, acting as if I didn't know you. Questioning you as you interacted with Ralph."
"For a moment, I was worried when you came back with the Fed. But then I thought you hadn't recognized me as you discussed things in such a way as if I was a stranger to you. The questions about my fingernail polish, how tired I was, Ralph's shoes. I know we didn't really know each other that long, barely four weeks and then we shared that amazing evening. I wish you had escaped with me." Paige said with longing.
"You know I couldn't have done that. You were protected enough, no one would recognize you. The government would have found me easily in comparison. Besides, I had to make sure that what little of your trail I could find, couldn't be followed by anyone else. I'm sorry, I couldn't act like I knew you in front of everyone, Toby and Cabe would have picked up on that fact. Raising questions before I was ready to answer them. I had to remember my CIA training to fool everyone." Walter told her.
He looked past her, in the direction of Ralph's room. "I hadn't really thought about it until now, Ralph's age based on his size…Is he…" Walter froze, unable to finish his question.
Paige nodded as a tear ran down her face.
"He's so much like you Walter, the touch sensitivity, though I had thought he wouldn't have it with me, like you. I hadn't stopped to think his problem was he was a genius, I listened to the doctors and he's suffered with it all this time." Paige shook her head in sorrow. "I had planned to set my network back up, but that was before I found out I was pregnant. I knew then I couldn't. I was going to be a Mom, I couldn't do to my child what my Mom did to me. It was going to be up to someone else to expose the truth about the people directing the country." Paige told him before they kissed again. "So I played it straight, mostly. I had to work a few angles to use the money from the account you left for me."
"After I found out I was pregnant, I tried to find you several times in April and May, but I couldn't locate you. I had a picture of you on my phone, using it I had found out your real last name. Still I couldn't find you. I did find out where you worked out of, but when I saw your building had been repossessed, I thought maybe you went back to Ireland. I almost went there looking for you. By August, with no sign of you, I gave up hope you'd resurface." Paige told him.
"I was in ADX Florence during that time period." Walter told her softly.
"What? What for? I didn't see any court proceedings against you." Paige demanded.
"The former FinCEN director used the Patriot Act and had me imprisoned. He felt I was lying about not knowing what you looked like or where you were." Walter explained.
"That bastard. Why didn't you tell them the truth? That I wore contacts and a wig?" Paige asked softly.
"Because, I knew you were different…to me…what you meant to me…it was different. I never believed in romantic love before you. So I wasn't about to tell them you were using colored contacts and a wig. I also told them you had a skin complexion like mine." Walter smiled before he kissed her again.
Paige grinned at his deception of her skin tone.
"Spend the night." Paige whispered when he broke the kiss.
Walter stared at her for over a minute before he stepped back from the counter. His arms pulled Paige along with him, until she was at the very edge. And then he lifted her up off of the counter and he carried her to her bedroom, her legs locked around his waist.
"Did Walt say anything to you?" Toby asked Happy as she worked on her project.
"Nope, the last thing he said was that he was going to see that waitress." Happy told him.
"Weird." Toby frowned while scratching his head. "Hey Sly, check the local hospitals, let's make sure he wasn't in an accident."
"On it." Sylvester told him before grabbing his laptop.
"Who died and made you the boss?" Happy asked.
"Hopefully no one died." Toby looked over at her. "But it is unlike Walt not to be here when we get here. So I'm delegating to make sure he's okay."
"Whatever." Happy rolled her eyes.
"There are no hospital admissions under his name. No traffic or arrest records either." Sylvester said as he looked up from his laptop.
"Thanks Sly, I guess that means it is a random event." Toby told him.
"Or maybe Homeland already had something and he couldn't wait for us." Happy shrugged.
"That's possible." Toby nodded.
"Well if he had an emergency call, maybe I could ping his phone." Sylvester volunteered.
"Or you could just try calling him." Happy pointed out.
"Good idea, try it." Toby told him.
"Where's the fun in that?" Toby asked Happy as he moved over to Sylvester's desk.
Happy shook her head.
"Well, that's interesting." Sylvester said looking at his laptop. "According to this he's at Ramona Elementary School."
"Elementary School?" Toby frowned and looked at the laptop. "Wait, didn't that waitress have a kid? Ralph, right?"
"Yes, he's a genius. Maybe his Mom's car broke down so Walter went to pick her up?" Sylvester looked at Toby.
"Might be." Toby nodded. "Though isn't that showing him in the drop off lane?"
Sylvester frowned and pulled up a satellite map and double checked.
"Yes, that would be the drop off lane. And now his car is moving." Sylvester pointed.
"Good, they should be here shortly then." Toby nodded and walked over to the couch.
"What are we doing here?" Paige asked as Walter pulled into a parking spot at Kovelsky's restaurant.
"Breakfast, and I wanted to talk with Cabe before we go on to the Garage." Walter smiled. "We need to be honest with him. I'll make sure he won't disclose anything first. If he can't assure us, then we won't tell him."
Paige looked a bit scared but finally nodded.
"If you trust him, then I do too." Paige told him as they got out of the car.
Walter took her hand and they walked into the building.
Cabe raised his hand and Walter walked with Paige to the booth he was in.
"About time you guys got here. That Mrs Kovelsky is a predator." Cabe complained.
Paige laughed as she sat down before Walter.
They ordered coffee just to get rid of the waitress before Walter looked at Cabe.
"Remember what we said yesterday? No more secrets going forward?" Walter asked.
"Of course." Cabe nodded.
"I've something to share with you, but it has to be kept a complete secret between us. If you think you can't separate out being law enforcement, I need to know now." Walter told him seriously.
Cabe waited until the waitress dropped off their coffee and left with their orders. He pulled his credentials out of his pocket and put them face down on the table and slid them to the side.
"Whatever it is, it stays between us." Cabe told him.
"Paige gave me permission to discuss this with you, she said if I trust you, then she trusts you." Walter told him as Paige nodded.
"Thanks kid, I won't betray that trust." Cabe gave her a slight smile.
"While Paige has been living the last nearly ten years obeying the law, that hasn't always been the case. There is absolutely no proof Paige has done anything wrong." Walter stressed. "So this is just between us. But, Paige was Marcella."
Cabe gasped.
"H-how did you find out? I thought you didn't know who she was?" Cabe demanded.
"I didn't." Walter told him. "Until I met her yesterday. The shape of her eyes and mouth told me all I needed to know. Not to mention her voice."
"But she's not a redhead and she doesn't have blue eyes either." Cabe pointed.
"A wig and contact lens." Paige smiled. "When I found out I was pregnant a few weeks after Walter destroyed my network I knew I had to give all that up. So I tried to adopt a law-abiding life."
Cabe kind of frowned as he looked from Paige to Walter and then his eyes opened.
"Are you saying that Ralph is…" Cabe paused as Paige nodded.
"Walter's son." Paige smiled.
"First, congratulations son. So…what does this mean for the two of you now? Are you going to get a DNA test to prove it?" Cabe asked.
"I'm not worried about a DNA test, but for legal reasons I don't want to have to get one done." Walter told him. "It would be questionable if the timing got to any law enforcement. With me having been locked up starting in mid March. We discussed the possibility of me adopting Ralph in the near future to cover for it. We'll let Ralph know the truth when we find out for sure."
"That is understandable and it would be amazing for you to adopt Ralph." Cabe grinned. That would completely bypass the problem while still giving you parental responsibility that you should have."
"So, you're okay with who I really am?" Paige asked.
"Kid, I did something horrible myself and it hurt Walter fiercely." Cabe said sadly. "I'm not about to do something that can hurt him again, my badge be damned."
"Well, we'll be moving forward as a couple for now." Walter told him. "As we navigate the complexity of the situation I hope we'll move in together. I've spent far too much time away from Paige and my son." Walter told Cabe.
"The sooner the better on that front." Paige said as she hugged his arm. "I've never liked where we live, but it was the best I could afford without attracting attention. While I could get a better place thanks to Walter's offer and the reward, I'd rather have the money back in case of emergencies." Paige said as she hugged Walter's arm again.
The waitress came back over and freshened their coffees.
"Wholly Hannah." Toby said as he looked out the window and saw Walter holding Paige's hand as she got out of his car.
Sylvester stood up and watched as they walked to the door, still holding hands.
"Morning." Walter said as he walked with Paige into the Garage. Everyone's eyes were on their every step.
"I trust that you all remember Ms Dineen from the diner yesterday." Walter said as they paused and Walter turned Paige around so everyone saw her. "Paige has agreed to come help us so we're not making so many mistakes with people who have better emotional quotient than we do, especially me."
"It's good seeing you all again. Please call me Paige." Paige told them.
"Hi." Toby and Sylvester said together as Sylvester waved.
"Good to have you with us." Happy said and turned back to her work.
"You both seem awfully chummy." Toby said, staring at their hands joined together.
"Walter and I knew each other about ten years ago." Paige told him. Calling on all of her skills, she obfuscated the truth enough to fool Toby. "There were some difficulties that prevented us from continuing our relationship. But after we bumped into each other yesterday, we've decided to give it another chance."
"There's something about you that makes me doubt the veracity of your statement. Especially since Walter didn't act like he knew you yesterday…" Toby told her.
Paige grinned at Toby before she looked over and saw a picture hanging on the column behind them.
"Walter!" Paige nearly squealed. "You kept it?"
"I told you, there was something about it that I liked." Walter smiled. "But it isn't the same one. That one got lost in one of the moves. But I remembered you said it was by Henrietta Asper, it only took a little effort to find the name, "Persiguiendo Colas"."
"You actually like that monstrosity?" Toby asked. "Walter I get, his EQ is garbage, but you seem fairly normal."
Paige turned back towards Toby with a glint to her eyes that made Toby take a step back. Marcella came out instantly.
"Let me make one thing perfectly clear to you." Paige told him in a voice Walter knew all too well. "I don't tolerate disrespect, especially against people that mean so much to me."
Paige's hand snatched a pencil out of Sylvester's cup holder as she stepped closer to Toby.
"Belittle the man I love again and Sylvester will tremble over the memory of what I do to you for the rest of his life." Paige told Toby as she stopped a few feet from him. "Do we have an understanding?"
Toby nodded fast with his eyes wide open, never leaving the pencil she held up in front of her.
"Good." Paige said before she turned and dropped the pencil back into Sylvester's cup and stepped back over to Walter.
Walter and Paige grinned at each other before kissing.
"You two really did know each other before, didn't you? And here I thought Walt was a virgin." Toby gasped.
"Just because I choose not to speak about matters that don't concern you, doesn't mean I don't have experience in something." Walter sighed.
Greetings! I hope this finds you all well and you all had a great holiday! It looks like I didn't do a good job concealing Paige's identity...LOL Been ensnarled in a new, new to me, game called Planet Crafter. Funny thing is I bought it a year and a half ago. Played it for the first time Saturday. Already put like 30 hours into it. *yikes*
Railman - Yes, this storyline has a much better outlook I think. We'll see how the Muse works with it.
Guest - Thank you so much! Many blessings and glad tidings are returned to you! I'm so glad you have enjoyed my stories.
LouBe - Did it go there? hehe I'm pretty sure it did. lol "O'Brien, Walter O'Brien." That could even work as a new teacher calling roll...lol Paige indeed took it to heart, she probably could have lived it up a little more but I won't second guess her.
James - So glad you like it. You'll really like "4th Highest IQ" when I post it. Yup, I'm sure in a future story it will be revealed that Walter is Ralph's Father here too. Sunday has come and passed and now you are a chapter behind! lol
Pearliegirl - Thankfully we got other writers, and some getting very prolific, to fill my shoes! I really need to get back to reading, I'm so far behind. So glad you guys enjoy my offerings! Nothing wrong with rereading! I reread my favorites all the time. David Eddings is probably my favorite to reread. LOL Deal, I won't hold my breath. lol It's a habit I've had for 60+ years and I have no desire to break it. hehe Christmas was nice, thank you, very quiet...Just my Mom and younger brother with me. Hope you enjoyed Christmas too! I really enjoy when the Muse gives me such motivation to write. I miss the old days of writing almost nonstop. I'll have to try and be writing as the New Year rolls in, my wife always said whatever you are doing at midnight on New Years is what you'll do the majority of time in the new year. Glad you have enjoyed the story, you're welcome! Yeah, coming up on the 6th anniversary of the cancellation in May, I've kind of given up hope they'll ever fix it. Wish I knew who had the copyright on the story...I'd try to write them and see if I could get permission to publish one of my stories as a real book. Not sure which one though, "Secrets", "Lawsuits", "Lycosidae" maybe "Donor"?
To the Adventure! -Tim