The Next Ten: Beginnings Series Books 11 - 20

by Jacqueline Druga

  Setting his glass straight, Jess watched Ellen. “Excuse me, Denise.” He hurried and caught Ellen before she got too far. “Wait.”

  “What?”

  “Was that on purpose?”

  “Absolutely not. Was the grandmother remark on purpose?” Ellen asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Why are you pissed at me? You’ve avoided me all day . . .”

  “I was busy.”

  “Too busy to say hi when you saw me a minute ago?”

  “You didn’t.” Jess came back.

  “I see you are moving onward with your romantic scholastic knowledge.” Ellen peered at Denise. “Don’t you feel a little pedophilic?”

  “You would think that I would since I sag everywhere, but no.” Jess folded his arms. “Actually, the youthful company is refreshing.”

  Ellen bit her bottom lip. “Yeah it’s always good to communicate with someone on your own ‘special education’ mental level.”

  “I’m not with her for the conversation.” Jess flashed his eyebrows.

  “So you’re going home with her.”

  “That’s none of your business.”

  “You are going home with her.”

  “It’s still none of your business.”

  Just as Ellen was going to say something else, she felt a familiar squeeze on her arm. She smiled when Frank winked as he passed her. “Ah, Frank. Never mind, I think . . . I think I’ll chase him down so I can have sex with a real man. Excuse me.”

  Jess cringed in an ‘ouch’ and twitched his head as Ellen walked by him.

  “Hey Frank.” Ellen caught up to him. “What uh, what are you doing here.”

  “Me?” Frank smiled. “I have a date with a woman.” Before he could laugh, he swore he heard a growl come from Ellen and he knew she made some sort of anger based noise when she was nothing but a blur moving from him. “El?” He saw the door to the Social Hall close. He hurried after her. “El.”

  She stopped in the street. “Go back to your date, Frank.”

  “El, I’m kidding.” He approached her. “Wasn’t that what Elliott did to you. I thought I’d do the same. Forget it. It’s not funny.” He placed his hands on his hips.

  Ellen lifted her lowered head with a slight smile. “I guess when you think about . . . no. It’s not funny.” She walked to him.

  “So we’re having sex tonight? Huh?”

  “You heard?”

  “Hell, yeah.” Frank chuckled. “I know now that the so-called lover that you have is imaginary.”

  “Where do you get that?”

  “You told Jess you’re gonna have sex with a ‘real’ man. That means you’ve been having sex with a fake man which means . . . oh, man, El, you should have called me to watch.”

  “Huh?” Ellen got his perverted reference. “Oh. God, Frank.”

  “And no, El.” Frank held up his hands. “As much as I’m the stud and would love to be the real man you have sex with, I can’t. It’s the Dean word thing, So. Oh!”

  “What?”

  “That’s why I was at the Social Hall. I was looking for you. I have to go to work. Josh is at your house with the kids.”

  “O.K., I’ll head on home.” Ellen started to walk and she stopped. “Frank.” Her voice softened as she neared him. “So you know ahead of time. Robbie . . . Robbie is going to be my new primary.” Just as she took a step, Frank grabbed her arm.

  “Tell me . . .” he spoke with graveled tone. “Tell me I didn’t hear you just spurt those words to me as if they meant nothing to me.” He saw when her eyes looked up to him, there was seriousness behind them. “Hell of a way to tell me. Hey, Frank, how are you, O.K., I’ll head home. Oh, by the way, I’m going to be fucking your brother.”

  “Frank.”

  “Does my brother know this?”

  Ellen thought of what the best answer would be. “No. I’m going to ask him.”

  “Then let me give you a little advice.” Frank lowered his face closer to hers. “Knowing how much I love you, knowing how much I want you in my life, the most fucked up thing you could do to me would be to end up with my brother. Fucked up, El. So if you care even remotely about Robbie, don’t ask him. I’ll make his life a miserable hell if he accepts.” Frank finally released her arm. “And that’s a promise.”

  Ellen stood speechless as Frank moved on.

  ^^^^

  Joe’s hand smoothed across the papers that signified evidence covered. He leaned over them as they were spread out on his coffee table. “So that’s it then?” He looked at Danny.

  Danny nodded then glanced at Andrea who sat quietly. “That’s it. Tomorrow is closing arguments and the jury goes out.”

  Andrea sipped her tea. “Be honest, Danny, how do you think it will go?”

  “I think . . .” Danny exhaled. “I think we did the best we could and I think that we did well.”

  Andrea nodded and grabbed Joe’s hand. The destiny of her fate was closer than she wanted it to be.

  ^^^^

  Going home alone was something Ellen could do, but preferred not to. She had exercised all her options--that she wanted--for company. Curiosity brought her back to the Clinic before going home, but the sight of Dean moving sadly around his lab as he worked made her stop there. No matter what had transpired between them, all always seemed to be forgotten every once in a while when one of them silently, perhaps psychically, called out for comfort or help. “It’s only me,” Ellen announced softly as she walked into the lab.

  Surprised, Dean turned around from his work. “What are you doing back?”

  “I just wanted to check the penis patient. And no, not look. And . . . I wanted to see if you wanted to come with me. See the kids. Help get them in bed and maybe we can play some cards. Pick up our ongoing gin game. I still have the score card.”

  “Seriously?” Dean asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Thanks, but . . . no. Thank you though.”

  “You’re welcome. Just thought I’d ask. Frank had to work early.” She moved to the door and stopped. “Oh, by the way, I want you to know I’m sorry that Danny made you look so bad on the stand.”

  “That he does. I can’t figure out how he knew about the hand on the belly . . .” He saw Ellen look away. “You told him.”’

  “Well, Dean, it’s Andrea’s line of defense.”

  “He tore me apart.”

  “You’re not on Danny’s favorite person’s list.”

  Dean chuckled. “If it’s a male, I’m not on their favorite person’s list. Frank and Henry are the only men that talk to me. Joe hasn’t spoken to me in weeks, Robbie either. Hal, every time he sees me, I think he’s contemplating beating me up.”

  “He is.”

  “Swell. But . . .” Dean spoke through a breath. “I plan on showing all of you who lost faith in me, especially you El. Even if I never get you back, I need for you to know I never dogged you.”

  “Thanks,” Ellen said softly and tried to leave.

  “El.”

  Ellen stopped and turned around.

  “I’m curious about something. When . . . when do you plan on getting a divorce from me? Not that I want one, but I want to be prepared for the self destruction pity I know I’ll get thrown into.”

  “When?”

  “Yes.”

  Ellen slowly shook her head. “I’m not.” She turned and walked out.

  Dean was stunned and then he hurried and darted across the lab and into the hall. “El.”

  Moving toward the door, Ellen turned. “Yeah?”

  “You know what. Can you wait? I . . . I think I may just take you up on that card game. Just . . . wait.” Dean held up his hand and flew into the lab.

  Ellen stood there waiting and watching as the lights in the lab slowly got dimmer until it was finally dark . Running to her quickly, Dean flew from the lab.

  “Ready?” he asked as he caught his breath.

  “Yes.”

  “This just sitting together an
d playing cards . . . is going to be nice. Thanks.” Dean held open the door for her.

  “You’re welcome.” Ellen left first then, for the first time in a long time, Dean and Ellen walked home together.

  ^^^^

  Quantico Marine Headquarters

  George’s eyes were starting to burn as badly as the midnight oil as he stared for hours over design plans for airplane engines and tried to figure out why he couldn’t get a reaction out of the left engine. Not a function or reaction, nothing.

  He knew it wouldn’t be long before everything in one aspect of his plan would come to an end and another phase would immediately begin. But there was still a chance that everything could blow up and not go accordingly. George did not want that to happen. So aside from trying to determine how to fix that plane engine, George sat trying to determine how to insure the viability of his plan.

  ^^^^

  New Bowman, Montana

  Judge Grace was truly surprised as she awoke from her dream of being Daisy from the Dukes of Hazards. But it surprised her more to find out it was for a phone call of ‘extreme importance’. Not knowing and unable to figure out who would be calling her at the late hour of three-something in the morning, Grace placed on her robe and stumbled from her bedroom down the hall. Monica lifted the receiver from the table and handed it to Grace.

  “Thank you.” Grace took the phone, covered the mouth piece, and cleared her grogginess from her throat. She put the phone to her ear. “This is Judge Grace.” Grace’s heart thumped and her eyes grew wide with terror. “Oh, My God.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  October 30

  Beginnings, Montana

  Complacent.

  Dean was home. Even if only briefly, only short lived, he was back home and to him there was nothing in the world like it. A part of him wished he hadn’t spent the rest of the evening and then the night at the house with El and the kids. It made matters worse. It made him miss them so much more.

  He couldn’t recall the last time he had an evening like he did the night before, sitting with the kids, playing, talking to Josh, and then with Ellen. It had been long before their break up since that had happened. There wasn’t any, ‘Honey, watch, Daddy’s trying to work’. Or, ‘El, can you keep the kids from my office please?’ No requests for privacy. No wishing for peace. Dean had participated in something he had so much taken for granted, that it only took one eye-opening night for him to realize how much time he actually spent not doing it.

  Home. But not for long.

  He had to get to work. They were behind at the clinic, especially with Andrea being gone for her trial. Fall colds were setting in, stomach virus were plenty with all the new people that seemed to make it into Beginnings and New Bowman, and Dean did not look forward to the penis surgery he had to do at first light.

  Stealing a shower in the quiet morning, Dean contemplated blowing off everything until he got to see his family one more time. Maybe he could even go through the old hecticness of rushing about, getting them to school, and then himself to work. But he couldn’t. He had to go.

  Still damp and wearing only his jeans, Dean emerged into the master bedroom. He lifted a tee shirt from the back of the door, put it on then stared at a sleeping Ellen. Had it been that long? Had she changed that much? Oddly, she laid on top of the covers, not under. And the quilt that covered her, Dean didn’t recognize. Nor did he ever remember Ellen falling asleep while reading, let alone a book entitled ‘Butterflies in the Field’. He was sure he was going to ask her when he saw her at the lab. But at that moment, he had to leave.

  He so badly wanted to lean over her, kiss her on the cheek, brush her hair, and whisper goodbye, attaching the stock ‘love ya.’. With everything he was, he wanted to pull an ‘old days’ and slip up behind her, close his eyes, snuggle, and catch a few moments with her, along with a couple extra minutes of sleep. But Dean couldn’t. All he could do was be grateful for the evening, the couch he spent the night on, and the eye-opening revelation of a situation he would have to work on to be better at, when, not if, he got his family back.

  ^^^^

  Andrew’s Air Force Base

  Sputter. Sputter. Sputter . . . engines started. George grinned widely and then . . . sputter. Sputter. Silence.

  “Fuck. Shit. Goddamn son of a bitch bastard.” George threw his tool. The bases were found. Things had been calm. He couldn’t take a chance on waiting for the Savages to attack somewhere else again. Yet he couldn’t get the plane to work.

  Knowing what he had to do, and hating to do it, George folded and gave in.

  ^^^^

  Beginnings, Montana

  “No.” Henry was adamant, folding his arms. “Absolutely not. I’ll talk him through it, Joe. I’m not going.”

  Joe sat behind his desk with a phone call on hold. He first glared at a snickering Frank then back to Henry. “We have to solve this problem. Wiping out the two camps simultaneously is a way to insure there is, or at least limited, no retaliation. We know there are going to be Savages still wandering around. but the bulk are situated and we need that other plane up and running.”

  “No.”

  “Henry, you are going to one day be leader . . .”

  “Exactly. I can’t chance going to the Society. No. What if they kill me?”

  Frank rolled his eyes. “You suck. Baby.”

  “Easy for you to say. Tell him I’ll talk him through it but I’m not going.”

  “Going where?” Robbie asked as he walked into Joe’s office.

  It was so typically Beginnings behavior for someone waltz’s into Joe’s office in the middle of a conversation. Joe peered up with irritation. “George can’t get the other plane running. He needs Henry. I thought since the trial’s wrapping up, we’d send him there. One day. That’s it.”

  Robbie shrugged. “I’ll go.” Amongst the ‘nos’ of Frank and Joe, and the ‘yes’ of Henry, he sat down. “Why?” Robbie lifted his hand. “I can handle myself better than Henry. I know how to get the jet running. I can leave the Dean missile there so we’ll eliminate the meeting drop off. Fuel is good. Tankers reloaded. Is that him on the phone?”

  “Yes.” Joe said. “But . . .”

  “Tell him I’ll be there by late afternoon. I don’t think he’ll try anything funny. This is his problem too. Tell him, Dad,” Robbie said seriously. I just got back from surveillance and that’s why I’m here. I saw a small stabilized camp about 150 miles south east from here. The computer says four hundred and twenty. That’s a lot. That’s a building camp and that’s . . . not far. They are stabilized. We have to take all three out. Soon. Tell him.”

  Joe stared at the faces in the room after the news of Robbie’s recent find. With reluctance and apprehension, Joe picked up the phone.

  ^^^^

  ‘Because I wouldn’t feel right if you didn’t know. No, I did not go home with her. Jess.’ There was something about that note left on her computer that made Ellen smile as she pulled it off, stared at it briefly, and placed it in her lab coat pocket.

  “Morning,” Dean spoke in his entrance into the lab.

  Ellen turned around. “Hey. Morning. How did the penis surgery go?”

  Dean paused to snicker. “Fine.” He moved closer to Ellen. “How are you?”

  “Good.”

  “El.” He stepped even closer. “I can’t tell you how much last night meant to me.”

  “Dean.” Ellen chuckled. “You make it sound like we had sex.”

  “It was better than that. It was bitter free. We talked and hung out as if we never missed a beat.”

  “I’m glad you liked it.” Ellen tried to get back to work, but Dean gently took her arm. “Dean, what’s wrong?”

  “Do you think it would be asking too much to have that again some time? It felt really good.”

  “Dean.” Ellen dropped her head. “I’m trying to . . .”

  “Move on. Yeah. But they’re my kids.”

  “I gave them to you.” />
  “You’re my wife.” Dean’s raising eyes met hers. “And by what you said, you will always be my wife.”

  ‘That’s because I’m tired of getting divorced.”

  “I don’t believe that.”

  “Dean. You got another woman pregnant. You refuse to own up to an affair. You lie. You lie badly.”

  “I resent that, El.” Dean said with an edge. “I don’t. I swear to you I don’t lie. I have never slept with Bev and I have nothing to do with her.” He softened his voice, reached up to her cheek, and let his finger graze against her skin, “Believe me. I know in your heart you believe me.”

  He was so close to her that if Ellen didn’t remind herself that she hated him, she would have kissed him. And they drew closer. Was it unintentional? She felt herself moving into him.

  “Dean!” Bev scolded loudly as she stepped into the lab and stopped. She had to keep her scouring face despite the fact she hid the smile that crept upon her from the thought that she couldn’t have planned the interruption better. “If you aren’t going to come home all night, I wish you would let me know.” Knowing it was perfect, she folded her arms and walked out.

  Ellen stepped away and walked to her computer.

  “El, you don’t . . .” Dean looked at the door and to Ellen who suddenly turned cold. “Don’t tell me you believe . . .oh, forget it.” Tossing out his hand in defeat and knowing he couldn’t win anyhow, Dean started to work.

  ^^^^

  New Bowman, Montana

  The silence in the courtroom said as much as the solace expression on Judge Grace’s face. Danny Hoi knew something was up and he wished he could speak to Henry about it, because he saw it on Henry’s face too. What was the delay? Why was she staring at her hands as if they held the answers to the world? Quietly, a semi-crowded court sat with anticipation, waiting for the dramatic closing arguments to a short trial that dealt out more information than a lot of people wanted to know.