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A Jericho Fan Fiction Archive
Oh my! I think Trish's sister-wives needed another pair of hands to help around the commune. I always thought Eric was being led around by his--well, you know--but now I know for certain.
How funny that Trish goes to investigate the polygamists and becomes one.
Interesting chapter.
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Trish Merrick was a fresh faced kid when she came to Jericho. She had a job title, a cause, and a bunch of dreams about helping to fix the mess her country had become a few short months earlier. Eager to serve the greater good, she attacked each of the tasks assigned her with gusto, even when they were such thankless jobs as filing tax forms for reluctant landowners or processing medical clinic orders. It was with this same due diligence that Trish set out for the Richmond farm, armed with old records and new policies, all on J&R issued letterhead.
I thought this more than captured the enthusiasm we saw in Trish on the show.
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She had been grinning when Mimi Clark first met her halfway between the barn and the house, but at Mimi's curt greeting, Trish felt a slightly less giddy surge of apprehension, for reasons unknown to her. She explained quite brightly the purposes of her visit. Mimi kept her arms folded throughout, nodding at opportune moments, fixing Trish with a penetrating stare that would have stopped less perky relief workers dead in their tracks. As it was, Trish felt slightly less confident as she finished explaining that she would need to inspect the property and take inventory of its contents. As she glanced pointedly at the barn, she thought she saw a dark look steal over the taller woman's face, but the next thing she knew, Mimi was smiling at her.
Good thing Trish had her perkiness, she sure needed it to deal with Mimi. After reading the last chapter I get a really good picture of Mimi facing down Trish in this paragraph.
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"I wouldn't worry too much about Eric," they had chortled. "It's the wives you've got to watch out for."
That's for sure!
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Trish was slightly taken aback, but as they continued to sip tea, offer her cookies, and smile kindly, she found herself surprisingly at ease. She launched into her story: her childhood as an army brat, her father's death when she was twelve, her brief stint at a performing arts high school, her decision to major in social science, and her later decision to major in political science. Her internship in Bangladesh, the live-in boyfriend who broke her heart at age twenty-four, the interview for the dream job that she'd bombed, and then her subsequent employment at J&R. How it had changed from something to do while she figured out her next move to her reason for being after the bombs. April and Mary listened carefully and sympathetically, laughing at the funny parts, sighing over the setbacks, tearing up at the tragedies, and interjecting questions about Trish's family history, spiritual beliefs, child-rearing philosophies, and politics. Once she had finished, and they had gone through a pot of herbal tea, they cut to the chase.
I certainly got the impression that this was more of an interview than a talk among new friends.
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Eric smiled too, looking around at them. He really was lucky, the thought to himself, and he had a feeling he wouldn't have much say in the matter anyway, so he may as well just accept everything life was offering him. "I think so too," he said, offering Trish a grin.
LOL! I'm sure he won't have any say in the matter!
Reading this chapter was like watching a film noir with Mimi as the femme fatale - the part below especially made it feel like one to me.
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"No, it's...good," I said, watching her stand up to her full height. I'd only met Mimi Clark a few times before, and in fact, we'd never actually been formally introduced. I knew she was an attractive lady, but I'd never taken time to really consider her. I'm not sure why, I just always felt an instinct in the back of my mind that it would be better not to spend a lot of time thinking about Mimi Clark. Now, it was impossible not to look at her, and she filled my thoughts so that I could barely remember why I'd come in the first place. Her legs went on forever and those designer trousers clung in all the right places. She moved her hips like she knew they had the power to drive me wild, and she laid her hand on her heaving chest so casually, as if she didn't know I was imagining my own hand against her moist skin. I tried to remember again if I had come there for any reason other than to take in the delicious sight of Mimi Clark. The barn...the warrant.
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"I wanted a job where I could work for the town and I failed a fire drill once in high school. I ducked and covered instead of evacuating. I - I panicked," I choked out, "and the fire chief wouldn't hire me after that." Her face was inches from mine, her eyes boring into me, and I wondered if actual steam was issuing from my ears. She laughed again, and licked her lips. "That's sooooo interesting," she crooned.
So funny - Bill's story and Mimi the classic femme fatale.
This exaggerated view of Heather as woman who can do anything on her own was so comical. I couldn't stop laughing. I also like how you portrayed Gail as a super sensitive, super tactful friend. Not surprised, though, that it's not working.
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Gail had asserted that it was only Heather herself who could make her decisions, and that they should respect the ones she'd made. Privately, though, she'd resolved to go check in on the new mother herself.
Why am I not surprised that Gail decided to go check up on Heather after hearing what her daughters-in-law were talking about?!
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"No, they've got it into their heads to start making clothes. They've got this big batch of green dye. Something about it being easier to dress them all the same," chuckled Gail, though she'd actually been impressed with her daughters-in-law and their latest enterprise.
LOL! What other color could it be but green!
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"Oh, I'd never mix them up," laughed Heather. "Kids are like cars. They've all got their own distinct personality. I feel like I already know them all so well. Johnny hates it when I leave the room for a second, but Georgie hates it when any of the other babies are out of sight. Abby loves peekaboo, but Betsy gets scared when I jump out at her. TJ always falls asleep when he hears me using power tools. And Libby, she watches everything I do in here. Look at her." She motioned to the bouncy seat where the blond baby was indeed staring at them with big eyes. "I wouldn't trade this time with them for anything in the world."
I can't help but think there are some hints in this paragraphs as well as other places as to who the father is to each of the babies. I have a few guesses after reading this but think I'll keep them to myself for now.
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"Usually, they don't," I answered, unable to keep the amazement out of my own voice. Heather had fashioned herself a baby carrier, just like the kind I'd seen Eric carrying each of his successive children in at town events, only unlike that knapsack, this one was designed to seat six. Somehow, Heather's knapsack had six rotating seats, suspended around her like a ferris wheel, so that she could get to each child if she needed to. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would never think such a thing could work, but Heather had designed it so well, she could easily support it as she walked, turning to look around and wave to friends and acquaintances.
I couldn't stop laughing at the picture that came to mind when I read this.
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I agreed with him out loud, that it certainly was intriguing, but I was remembering another mysterious workshop that was even harder to penetrate. I didn't know exactly what it housed at the time, but I'd had a suspicion it was something a lot bigger than some childcare devices. I had to keep that one a secret from Jimmy, so I stayed quiet, but my mind was going back to another warm day, out at the Richmond farm...
Great way to hook you into the next chapter.
This chapter was very amusing!
Kenchy, who I remember wallowing in self-pity at Bailey's the day Emily was supposed to be married, as a matchmaker is so funny! I enjoyed how you poked fun at Emily and Jake's relationship. And how when you got to the part about Kenchy trying to find a match for Bill that you interjected Bills thoughts in the middle of what Kenchy was saying. I'm left wondering if Emily and Kenchy end up together and whether or not Kenchy will ever find a suitable mate for Bill.
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Jake's jaw clenched automatically. "I'm not lookin' for a date," he repeated. "And, if you're thinkin' of dating Emily, just be careful," he advised, blatantly changing the subject. "My advice: avoid actual conversation, though I didn't know sports was such a touchy subject. Used to just be the weather, politics, religion, grades, music and Keanu Reeves." Kenchy's eyebrows rose. "Don't ask," Jake grumbled.
So funny. I can easily see how you made the leap in Emily's character here.
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"I already failed once," Kenchy argued. "But that was Beck, and he's insane and nobody likes him. The Terrestrial Mentalists can have him, no loss. But people like Bill."
So funny!
An unexpected take on Mimi and Stanley. Like Sandra I'm guessing your poking fun at the stories who bend the characters to fit into the story the author wants to tell. So now that we know Mimi's and Stanley's story I can't help but wonder where you're going with all this.
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Stanley Richmond was unlike any mark she'd ever been sent to investigate. She wasn't sure why. There seemed, on the surface, to be nothing remarkable about him at all. She could hardly believe he was the dangerous force she'd been anticipating as she went over the briefs she'd been given in the plane's bathroom. His laid back, fun-loving persona threw her off. It was surprising how well he had constructed his cover. Most surprising to her, she was forced to admit as she lay awake in her room at the bed and breakfast, was how she didn't want to believe it was a cover.
I like how this left me wondering exactly who Stanley is and what he is hiding.
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She continued to play her part convincingly, publicly clinging to her role and principles as a government employee, pretending grief, horror, and shock at the destruction of her hometown, and most importantly, continuing to get closer to Stanley Richmond with dogged determination.
AND
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She couldn't tell if he was catching on to her or not, he played his part with such equal ease. He continued to send her irritated glares when she showed up on his property, agreed grudgingly to host her when she claimed to have been evicted from the bed and breakfast, and found ways to subvert her investigation with seemingly innocent obstacles and objections.
I thought that this was an effective way to bridge Mimi's and Stanley's personality/actions in the show to the way they are portrayed in this story.
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Her exhaustive search turned up nothing, and the next morning, when he questioned her, she was almost certain that under the joking response he gave to her quick story about reorganizing the 'triangle', he knew exactly the game they were both playing.
LOL! I like the reference to the kitchen triangle!
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At eight years old, he confronted them with what he had heard. They were only mildly surprised; they had truthfully expected him to catch on quickly, he was such a smart child. He sat up late with his parents that night, discussing the family business.
AND
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He continued to work on the farm, play with his friends, and even learned to limit himself in science class, getting C's, so that no one would ever become suspicious of the vastly superior intellect he had inherited.
Okay, this might sound a little strange but here goes. I like how you mentioned how smart Stanley is here. I happen to think he's not all fun and games unlike, I think, a lot of writers.
Even though I'm having trouble wrapping my head around Heather's story in this chapter there were tidbits about the other characters that I did enjoy.
My two favorite tidbits:
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She wondered vaguely where they had gotten the paper, having not signed up with J&R, but she'd also heard rumours that DD had been supplying a lot of people in the area with the fruits of their evening ransacking the offices in town hall after the liberation.
AND
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The door was open, and balloons cascaded out from the interior. "Look what they did! Filled my car with balloons! Who does that?"
Good to see that the DD is hard at work and play. I like to think the play side of the DD is in recognition that they are still just kids and want to have a little fun despite the times they find themselves in.
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There was something menacing about the IRS agent's stance, her intense gaze, and the way she was now turning a pen over in her fingers, but Heather sensed underneath it a vulnerability.
This was my favorite part of the chapter. I like the image or Mimi that came to my mind. What I liked about the description was that I could see the leap from how Mimi really is to this exaggerated version of her.
I really enjoyed the take on Eric.
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By the first night, he was cold. His coat no longer seemed as sturdy as he'd thought when the winds whistled through him, but he still hadn't figured out what to do. By the second night, he was hungry. His stomach twisted in knots and his Power Bar supply was gone, but he still didn't know what to do. The third night it rained. He lay on the rotting log, holding a thin plastic sheet over his head and wishing he could sleep, or make up his mind.
The next morning, he woke to find that he'd rolled off the log and landed on the ground. One side of him was covered in mud. All of his belongings were soaked and a November wind was chilling him to the bone. He still didn't know what he would do, give up on the new love he had with Mary or leave April - whom he still cared for deeply - to raise a child alone. But the cold, the rain, and the mud were not helping him see a solution. He decided to go back to town. He could still ponder his problem in his office, and at least it was dry.
The image of this really got me laughing! Not surprised that Eric resolve his problem. I have a feeling, though, that it's going to be resolved for him.
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April and Mary stood, their arms linked, looking down at him.
"Eric. We heard you were back," said April.
Eric merely sputtered. He wondered briefly how long he'd been in the woods. He instinctively clutched at his face. His beard didn't seem to have grown exponentially.
AND
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April. And Mary. Standing together. Saying 'we'. What had happened while he was gone? Had he come back to a parallel universe? What did they want to 'discuss'? He considered the possibility it was some kind of trap.."
Eric gulped, but stepped forward.
Too funny!
Mary and April, friends? An interesting concept. The part where they were comparing notes on Eric over a game of darts really cracked me up. I can just imagine what Eric's life is going to be like living with two such strong women!
Great choice using Bill to tell the story it certainly gives us a different perspective on events!
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Jake would come back when he was good and ready, I assured my best friend. Jimmy still looked nervous whenever he brought up Jake, but he always listened to me when I told him Jake was probably somewhere nearby, waiting 'til his cuts and bruises healed. He wouldn't want to let anyone in town see him before that. Jake's a good guy, but he's always been a little into his looks.
AND
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I saw his wife coming back and forth from that direction out of town, and it would be just like Hawkins to set up a twenty-four-hour guard on a fugitive who was no longer wanted. Hawkins is a good cop, we were lucky to have him, but he goes overboard sometimes. All that time in St. Louis I think. I once saw him shoot at a squirrel that surprised him in his backyard.
Bill's take on Jake and Hawkins really had me laughing.
I can definitely understand Jake's pain over Gail and Gray getting married!
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As the beaming couple stepped over the threshold, streams of white cascaded down on either side of them, forming an archway and twisting in the summer breeze. The audience who had gathered exclaimed and clapped harder. Gray Anderson's eyes had gone wide, and in the second it took him to realize that it was toilet paper descending from the roof, he became infuriated.
LOL! I knew this was Dale and Skylar. I was glad to see that Gail invited them, even if Gray didn't want them there.
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"But..." Gray trailed off helplessly. "The Devil's Duo. At our wedding. I should have known something like this would happen..."
LOL! So now we know what the 'DD' stands for!
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"Stanley and Mimi!" I said. "Again!" I'd been trying to warn my boss for weeks that there was something suspicious about our long time friend and the strange woman he was living with, the way I'd see them turn up in odd places in town, and the way they'd dash away as fast as they could. I knew there was a sinister secret, a deeper story going on, but Jake only glanced up from the ground with an air of indifference.
AND
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"Oh, I'm - good. I am good," she stammered, though she didn't really look too 'good' as she struggled with a pile of papers. Her face was flushed and she was glancing back and forth between myself and Jake.
You really want to keep us guessing about what's up with Mimi/Stanley and Heather, don't you?
Eric with both April and Mary and I'm guessing Trish? A surprising (and funny) solution to his problem. With all the talk of Eric owing Gray, I'm wondering if he had a hand in this.
So many unanswered questions that I'm looking forward to getting answers to.
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In the darkness of his jail cell, Dale Turner sat with his head in his hands. He almost didn't hear the footsteps approaching - they were lighter than the guards' - but he knew it was her even before she came into focus amidst the hazy light streaming through the bars.
Why is Dale in jail?
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If Emily's first words had surprised her, Emily's reaction at her own words really shocked her. Emily's whole face broke out in a grin, and she quickly seized Heather in a hug that left her gasping for air.
"I'm so glad! I wouldn't want anything to happen to my best friend!" Emily exclaimed.
AND
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Emily was still smiling as she exclaimed brightly, "I have no idea!"
What's up with Emily? Here cheerfulness as she goes from place to place is so unusual. She obviously doesn't know Jake isn't around. I wonder what's up with that too.
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Stanley could hear her sniffling beside him. It went against all her training, he knew, to lose control like this, but they had both abandoned their training a lot these past few months. "Hey, Mimi, I know it's hard," he began. "I hate this too. But she died to protect something greater than herself. It's what she wanted, what we are all born to do."
"I should have protected her, and I should have protected the secret. That was my job," said Mimi.
"She loved you too, you know, and we are all in this together. For better or worse." He grinned through his own tears.
"I guess...I guess we have to carry on with the mission, without her. Make sure she didn't die for nothing," said Mimi.
AND
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Stanley was slightly annoyed that his ruminations on his family secret and the woman who had agreed, once again, to stick by him, had been interrupted.
This has me the most intrigued. Exactly who is Mimi? Is Stanley the fun-loving farmer that I always thought he would be? What did Bonnie die for?What is the Richmond family secret? How long has Stanley known Mimi?
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"She'd tied my shoelaces together. And I tried to run anyway, but someone had covered the floor in this stuff." He rubbed his hand across his knee, and held it up. The green liquid dripped off it. He gave it a sniff. "Laundry soap. Meadow fresh."
LOL! Leave it to Skylar to come up with such an ingenious plan to break Dale out of jail.
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"What's DD?" asked the soldier.
"You haven't heard of them?" asked Eric. "How long have you been here?"
Good question. What is DD? I'm guessing it has something to do with Dale and Skylar.
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"Yeah," he whispered. "It's just too bad she missed this."
Mary sighed against him, but then leaned back to shake her head. "I know, but we should just be glad she's safe. And the baby."
So April and the baby are alive? There's obviously a connection between April, Eric and Mary. Interesting.
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"Hey," she patted his arm, letting her hand rest there for a moment longer than either of them expected. "What matters is that you came. When we needed you."
He turned to look at her. She looked up at him, a smile in those familiar eyes of hers. He felt a strange sensation within him, as though, for the first time since coming back to this bizarre place that had been his town, something was right.
AND
He glanced at her again. "I know," he whispered. He reached with a trembling hand and laid the heel of his palm against her cheek. Staring up at him, she reached her hand up and held it against his, steadying his whole arm with her touch.
Gail and Gray?? I never would have thought!
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Clutching the paper bag in one hand and the door frame in her other, she thought to herself, I wish I'd been more careful.
Hmm....is this why Heather wanted to find Jake? But then again she seemed really embarrassed when she bumped into Bill as she was coming out of the pharmacy. What a way to endthis part!
Oh my! Too funny! It looks as though Bill is in over his head.
I think my favorite line had to be this one:
She nodded, gripping my hand tighter in both of hers. "Why don't you come in for some lemonade? Or some Tang?"
Hilarious!
This was hilarious! Loved how you poked fun at how Heather is oft portrayed as a woman who can do anything...like raise six babies and still be the town's jack-of-all-trade.
Also like how you have Bill seguing into the next story.
Very amusing chapter! I especially liked the confusion over just how many times Jake and Emily had broken up. Too funny.
I also liked the addition of Kenchy to the story. Jake needed a sounding board, and since Mary's now confined to the commune, what better ear?
The matchmaking aspect of Kenchy's business was also hilarious to me, particularly the efforts to pair up "lone wolf" Bill with a suitable mate. LOL. What a catch. ;)
Looking forward to seeing where Deputy Bill takes us next. :)
This is certainly a new side of Stanley and Mimi. It's funny to think of them as spies, as neither of them seems subtle enough to sneak up on Helen Keller. (Yikes, that comment was definitely not PC)
Unless I'm missing my mark, it looks like you're poking fun at AU Jericho stories, or at the very least, those stories which make the characters bend to fit a plot.
I do have to say that like how you're answering the questions you drew from me in the prologue, though I have to admit that I keep finding more things to wonder about.
Looking forward to seeing how this plays out.
Eric has got to be one hen-pecked husband!
And what a name...Ruby Green! Is her middle name, perchance, another color? Too funny!
Oh my! I hardly know where to begin!
First off, it's interesting that Bill is the one telling us the story. That gives the story a rather unique voice.
QUOTE: Jake was probably somewhere nearby, waiting 'til his cuts and bruises healed. He wouldn't want to let anyone in town see him before that. Jake's a good guy, but he's always been a little into his looks.
This totally cracked me up. Bill's observations about Jake, how Hawkins was guarding him out at the cabin, etc. had me absolutely heehawing. It's a two-prong joke. Bill himself is humorous, but then there's what we as the audience know--that Jake was in Cheyenne.
It seems as though Eric has found quite an interesting solution to his women woes. That, in itself, is shocking, though the fact that everyone seems to regard it as normal is even more shocking. And funny.
Looking forward to seeing just what Stanley and Mimi are up to.
JAJAJAJA. happy april fool to you too. looking forward to the next chapter.
LMAO!!! I totally can understand Jake, I feel his pain. Now just prying that Penny Lane got some sense and decide next chapter that it was a dream Gray had. Jajajaja.
And eric with two wifes, woow, that's something I can tell that.
Good work, I like it. now going to read next chapter hoping to see that it was all a dream. :)
Ah, PennyLane, you've left with me so many questions!
What/who was in the picture on Gray’s desk? And why did he not have the heart to remove it? I suspect that if I knew the answer to one, I might be able to piece together the other.
Why is Dale in jail? (Hey, that rhymes!)
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He pulled his head away to raise his eyebrows. “I just feel bad that she didn't get to see this,” Mary said.
More questions! Are they referring to Bonnie not getting to see the flag? Is it someone else? Somehow I doubt they’d be referring to April. But then later they talked about her being safe with the baby.
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“Yeah, good thing I took that job, I guess. Earned some brownie points in case of arrest.”
Such a Heather thing to say. It cracked me up.
Emily's good mood as she flitted from place to place--not entirely welcome anywhere--also struck me as humorous. So I'm assuming that Emily is not aware that Jake went to Cheyenne. That doesn't bode well for their future; then again, I suspect that there's something else that doesn't bode well for that relationship. More on that later...
Quote: “I should have protected her, and I should have protected the secret. That was my job,” said Mimi.
Hmmm…Protected the secret? Just what is this secret to which Mimi refers?
And then
“I guess...I guess we have to carry on with the mission, without her. Make sure she didn't die for nothing,” said Mimi.
Join me for another hmmmmm…
Stanley was slightly annoyed that his ruminations on his family secret and the woman who had agreed, once again, to stick by him, had been interrupted.
Yeah, I would be annoyed if Emily snuck up on me, family secret or not. So I am once again intrigued. Mimi had agreed once again to stick by him?!?!?!
The soldier continued to look at the golf shirt hanging from the roof. “DD?” he asked himself.
Sandra continued to read the story and found herself asking, “DD? What is this?” Then she realized that PennyLane, being the brilliant writer that she is would explain this all in due course. For now, just enjoy the intrigue. And then Sandra realized that she was writing about herself using third person, shook her head in embarrassment, and continued reading….
Clutching the paper bag in one hand and the door frame in her other, she thought to herself, I wish I'd been more careful.
Argh, what a cliffhanger! Was this why Heather was trying to find Jake? If so, look out!
Well, I have to say that your prologue--as you can tell from my reactions--raises many questions for me. I look forward to going along on this journey with you. :)
Thank you SandraDee!
You, of course, ask some interesting questions, but I'm afraid the only answer I can give for now is: all in good time :)
Thanks for reading and commenting and I hope you enjoy the journey!
Well after reading it all again there are so many questions. I'm sure you would go on in those question as the story progress but I will ask anyway.
Mimi shook her head again, hoping the blond would take the hint and take off. Her mind was already racing through strategies and next steps she would take on her mission, and she couldn't wait to be alone with her love again. Mission? Next steps? I'm all ears.
Very funny all the situation with Dale and Skylar. But I'm intrigued too DD? And why is Dale in Jail?
Mary sighed against him, but then leaned back to shake her head. “I know, but we should just be glad she's safe. And the baby.” All right, who is she in who is the baby????
“What do you say we go check on them now?” she asked.
He nodded. “We have a lot to tell them.” Jesus!!!!!!!!!!!! who are they go to check on, what they have to tell? I¡m biting my nails now in anticipation.
He glanced at her again. “I know,” he whispered. He reached with a trembling hand and laid the heel of his palm against her cheek. Staring up at him, she reached her hand up and held it against his, steadying his whole arm with her touch. OK that was really really weird and intimate don't you think? shudering right now. I don't like Gray sorry I had to tell.
Bill laughed at his friend's earnest suggestions. “Nah, this lone wolf's not ready to settle yet. Not when I've got so many -” So many what? sorry a chuckle is coming right now ( I hope I spell right the word chuckle)
The thought of the pregnancy test inside it was only one of many thoughts swirling around in her head, making her dizzy. The one that seemed to be dominating, repeating over and over, was one sentence, one wish.
Heather is Pregnant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! what an ending!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great story I can't wait to see more, I've got the feeling that I'm gonna love this story. :)
Thank you! I'm glad I was able to provoke some questions for you. All shall be answered in good time. Thanks for reading!