Life with My Girl, Reyes
Rescue Me: Chapter 8
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Rescue Me: Chapter 8



Just Outside the Door to Little Elisa Garcia's Hospital Room
Louisiana Medical Center – New Orleans, LA
1:43 AM (CT):



Thirty minutes later, Reyes collapsed her cell-phone, turned it off, then returned it to its leather pouch along her hip, then leaned up against the outside of little Elisa Garcia's room for a moment trying to decide whether to peek in on the little girl and her family one last time before leaving to go home or not. After all, it was half past 1:00 in the morning, almost a quarter to 2:00 - on this very early Sunday morning - and the little girl and her family were exhausted, not to mention how exhausted she was. The hesitant brunette glanced down at her watch once more.

Oh," she sighed wearily closing her eyes and leaning her head up against the back wall.

A couple of hours earlier, Agent Brown had driven one of the Bureau sedans over for her to use to drive home in from the hospital, just for the night, so she could bring it back to the office sometime tomorrow morning, and then pick up her own vehicle. The young Agent Brown seemed very nice, and seemed to be a very conscientious agent. But then she had thought the same thing about Agent Pierce, her own partner. She shook her head again in bewilderment. A part of her was still in-shock with what all had happened out there in those swamplands tonight. But it had helped talking to Agent Scully. The little redhead had helped calm and soothe her frustrated and perplexed state-of-mind over these last forty minutes.

She reached down and gently caressed her leather-covered cell-phone thinking about the other agent. Yes, it had helped to talk to Agent Scully – with the redhead only being a phone-call away - and that only-being-a-phone-call-away status was going to have to be enough for right now, and for the next several hours, at least until Scully could catch a flight down to New Orleans later in the afternoon.

"Mmm," she sighed again rolling her neck around and around in a semicircle, the bones crackling at the movement, a she tried to force the bone-weariness out of her bone-weary body.

A nurse soon walked up, "Miss? May I help you?"

"Oh!" the bone-weary brunette jumped. "I um, yes! I was hoping to check in on the little Garcia girl before I left if that is okay."

The nurse smirked. "Visiting hours are over at 9:00," she stated rather brusquely.

…Hah No shit. Duh… Reyes smirked herself. She could always pull her FBI Wallet ID out and end this conversation once and for all with the smarty-pants nurse. But she really did not feel like doing that at the moment. "I um, I realize that, but…"

"Wait. You're the agent that rescued her, right?" the nurse said suddenly recognizing the tall brunette from the earlier TV reports.

"Um, yeah," the agent nodded rather shyly.

"Wow! Okay," the nurse smiled instantly. "Yeah. I think she's asleep but…"

"Well, the main thing is, how is she doing? Her blood-sugar levels and…"

"Oh, she's fine, just fine."

Reyes nodded. "And what about the burns? The contusions on her…"

"Oh no. She'll be fine. No third degree burns, so…"

"Will they leave a scar?"

"Um, possibly. But you'd have to speak with the doctor about that."

"Oh. Of course, I… I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking, I…"

The nurse smiled again, "Well, Agent Reyes, if you'd like to step in for a moment that would be fine."

Reyes smiled, too. "Thank you. And yes, I would. I…"

The nurse began to shake her head, "Oh no, darlin', no need to explain. You go on in. We rolled a cot in for her grandmother, and her dad is using the chair so…"

Reyes smiled again.

The nurse then winked and walked away, heading down the hallway to go and check in on another patient just down the corridor.

Reyes inhaled a deep breath, brushed her palms down her pants-legs for a moment, then gently opened the slightly ajar door. She glanced into the darkened room then looked over in the corner to find little Elisa's father still awake and watching the news with the volume turned down into a muted position.

He smiled then quickly stood up and motioned for her to come in.

She quietly tiptoed in then cast her eyes towards the older woman lying on the cot by the bed but still semi-awake as well.

"Agente Reyes," the older woman whispered cheerfully.

"Señora Garcia. I um. Hi. I just wanted to check in on her before I left. Make sure everything is in order, no problems," the brunette said as she walked over to the slumbering little girl's bed then rested her hand along the edge.

"She's fine. You… You saved my daugther's life," the adorable little girl's father said beginning to choke up with pent-up emotion.

"Oh I… Well… She's one brave little girl, Señor, very brave," Reyes replied beginning to choke up with more pent-up emotion herself.

"Please, sit down, stay with us for a while," he said as he pulled up one of the other, smaller, plastic chairs next to the bed.

Reyes smiled then sat down in the offered chair. She then leaned in against the bed, studying the little girl's closed eyes for a moment, then her slightly bruised cheek before reaching up and running a thumb gently along that same soft, bruised-up cheek. "Oh goodness. She's so adorable. Such a breath of pure innocence," she whispered as her eyes watered-up yet again.

"Gracias," the happy and relieved father replied as he then sat back down again in the other nice, big, plush, comfortable chair. He was planning to sleep through the night in that nice, big, plush, comfortable chair, while his mother slept in the provided cot.

Reyes glanced up at the muted TV for a moment ever-so-thankful that the kindhearted man had seen fit to change the news channel from all the recent, more excitingly breathtaking events that had happened only hours before inside the swamps of Southern Louisiana to one of the more boring, regular, everyday sporting events being broadcast on one of the sports channels. She had instigated and lived through most all of those excitingly breathtaking events, but she did not want to be reminded of them any more tonight. She had had enough for this night and wee hours of the morning.

She glanced over to him, winked in silent appreciation, then leaned down a little farther against the bed, and then gently kissed his rescued little daughter on the forehead. Elisa stirred slightly then rolled her head in closer to the source of that gentle and easy kiss. Reyes grinned then eased her head down next to the little girl's pillow, leaning her whole upper body up and over against the very nice, comfortable bed.

A few minutes of peaceful silence passed.

The older woman, Señora Garcia, then chuckled, motioning quietly to her son and getting his attention. He looked up. She then nodded over towards the bed. He glanced over towards the bed, too, and towards the tall, weary agent, then chuckled, too, grinning from ear-to-ear. The young, brave and courageous agent - the rescuer of their brave and courageous little family member - was about to fall asleep herself, still half-sitting in a chair and half-leaned-over a bed, with her upper body resting comfortably in close next to Elisa.

Reyes then shifted slightly, opened, then closed her bone-weary eyes one more time for the night, before finally wrapping her protective arm more comfortably around the little girl's torso, then unconsciously snuggled in even closer. Little Elisa then shifted once more in her sleep, snuggling in even closer to the warm, motherly embrace as well. Within seconds, both brave and courageous young raven-haired beauties were sound asleep.

The abuela and the padre grinned quite happily, looking at each other and then winking in quiet approval. They felt honored to have the Special Agent care so much about their little Elisa, to the point that she had come by yet again to check on the little girl's condition and then ultimately fall asleep resting just next to her, protecting her even now as she slept.

Amazing. How in the heck had Reyes managed to fall asleep so soundly with the lower half of her body still sitting in a chair and the upper half of her body leaned up over a bed? Well. That's what happens when one is so sleep-deprived for days and days and days, never stopping, and never taking the time to get a full-night's rest in until the job is done, and the ultimate goal is successfully accomplished.

Señor Garcia then turned the TV off and began to wriggle his own tired butt down a little more comfortably into the big, plush chair just as that same nurse that had spoken to Reyes earlier stepped into the room.

"Oh," she gasped quietly then glanced over at the family.

They both grinned in quiet approval, then motioned for her to keep quiet and let the two much-deserving dark-haired beauties sleep. She smiled, then nodded in understanding, then left the room leaving the door slightly ajar. Within minutes, all that were in the dark, quiet room were sound asleep.


Scully's Apartment – In The Bedroom – Georgetown, Washington, DC:

"Crap," the rather frustrated little redhead fussed again. She then collapsed her cell-phone down and turned it off. "Hum," she grunted again. She was just having no luck at all in getting a flight out by later this afternoon. Everything was booked solid. Moreover, she really did not feel like waiting until Monday, but then if she had to, that is what she would do, wait until tomorrow, and fly out Monday afternoon instead of later today - this Sunday afternoon - to see her baby in New Orleans. But first, she wanted to talk to her baby one more time before changing their agreed plans. But, obviously, Reyes must have turned her cell-phone off – undoubtedly, as soon as they had hung up - because she just could not get through anymore, not even to Reyes' voicemail. Or, maybe, it had to do with Reyes still being inside the hospital and possibly inside one of the elevators or something. …Oh well… the little redhead thought. She was worn out herself, so she quickly decided to just start calling the airlines again first thing when she got up in the morning.

She then rolled over in the bed trying to decide whether to just stay where she was or get up and go get her mother, then let her mom sleep in the bed while she took the couch. …Hum… She got up heading for the living room. She entered the large room to find her mother sound asleep on the couch. …Well, crap… She wasn't going to wake her mother up, just so she could get her up, and have her move to the bed. That would be senseless. Especially since her mother appeared to be sleeping very comfortably on her nice, big, plush couch.

She then padded back down to the bedroom, closed the door and hopped back into the bed, rolled over into Reyes' side of the bed - …Mmm, Moni's side… she smiled – then clutched Reyes' pillow squeezing it tightly against her chest. …Oh baby, I'm working on it, trying to get a flight out. Crap. But I'll see you soon, very soon. And then we'll be together and you'll be holding me so close, so very close. God, I miss you… she mused as she rolled over even farther in the bed, hugging the pillow tightly against her chest and imagining her baby still in the bed with her. "Oh," she sighed contentedly from her musings, then, within seconds, she was peacefully sound asleep herself.


Employee Parking Lot Area - Just Outside the FBI New Orleans Field Office - New Orleans, LA:

Police Sergeant Eric Mason scanned the big empty parking lot once more searching for his girlfriend's vehicle. …Finally… He spotted it then sped his own big vehicle over to it. He then got out of the big truck and walked over to the locked SUV. He quickly peered inside. "Well, shit!" he fussed again. "Where the hell is she?" he fussed again as he retrieved his cell-phone, hit the redial button, and began to put a call through to the hard-to-find-special-agent once again.

He had been calling Reyes' cell-phone off and on for the last two hours trying to locate her and at least talk to her after everything that had gone down so badly out there in those swamps. He had heard about the shooting through the local-law-enforcement grapevine. It had spread through the ranks of the local police precincts like wildfire; and to think that his own girlfriend had been the one almost been killed by her own partner.

"Damn!" he fussed again. "Damn bastard!" he fussed again as images of Agent Brian Pierce began to flood his thoughts once more. …God!... He wanted to talk to Reyes so bad. But all he was getting was a Out of Service Area message – again. He then collapsed his cell-phone back down and shoved it frustratingly back inside his pocket. "Damn, Monica. Shit!" he fussed again.

Moreover, according to the Security Guard inside the FBI building she had not even come through the front doors tonight after the gallant rescue she had successfully completed - whether her empty vehicle sat outside in the parking lot or not - so, where was she? Although the Security Guard had mentioned to him that the young rookie, Agent Brown had driven an extra Bureau car over to the Medical Center just a few blocks down the street for her to use later in the night. So maybe that was where she was, still inside the hospital. Maybe she had not been checked-out yet; but then he had just come from the Medical Center Emergency Ward; and the nurses at the front desk had told him that she had already been released for the night. So, where the hell was she?

The handsome, young Brad-Pitt-look-a-like was so frustrated as he stood there by his girlfriend's locked vehicle worried sick.


SAC Reigel's Office - Inside the FBI New Orleans Field Office:

Reigel continued to study his notes then discuss the three former interrogations he had administered with ASAC Cunningham. All three eyewitness accounts had led to the same conclusions. Of course, ole George Clayton's story could not really be considered an eyewitness account given that he had been the shooter. But Agent Gordon and the young Tavares kid's accounts matched almost perfectly to what ole George Clayton had said about the events leading up to the ultimate shooting. Reigel would need to interview Reyes, too, but he would wait until sometime tomorrow morning before doing that. Her weapon was still in lockup and secured, but she should have her weapon back by sometime tomorrow morning as well.

Cunningham then got up to leave and go back to the hospital to sit vigilantly with their fallen comrade. Of course, Agent Pierce had brought the grave situation, and his probable death, upon himself. After some searching and more in-depth background checks, Reigel had found some very disturbing information linking Special Agent Brian Pierce to Lt. Jerry Manning, Det. Bradley Moore and a fourth man, Sgt. Pete Graham; and all four men were dirty in their mutual shenanigans – drug dealing, drug trafficking, animal abuse and child abduction – it was almost unbelievable that all four men had managed to hide their illegal shenanigans around their mutual law enforcement peers. But the other three men's motivations seemed to be centered around money, power and prestige within the underground world of crime. Whereas Pierce - Reigel was not quite sure. His motivations seemed to be much more elusive and obscure, almost as if he had somehow – and just recently by all indications - affiliated himself with some deep, dark, sadistic, circle of pure evil posing as some type of crazy, fanatically-religious, dangerously-misguided zealots, believing in some type of bizarre ritualistic worship towards the clairvoyant - telepaths, shamans, spiritualists - and burning anyone whom they considered to have those types of powers and abilities at the stake – figuratively speaking - sacrificing them as living human sacrifices, not because they were considered evil, but – ironically - because they were considered supreme, the very champions of the world, born into this world to ultimately die for the "Master" of this crazy, fanatical, horribly-misguided religious group and make this world a better place. It was crazy, simply nuts! But Reigel and Cunningham had haphazardly found some of Pierce's scribblings inside his vehicle from over the last few weeks and it had been downright mind-boggling - along with appalling - some of his crazy, asinine scribblings. Ironically, Reyes' name had shown up several times within his crazy handwritten ramblings. The frustrating thing was it was simply preposterous that the man had managed to hide his true motives from all of those around him inside the Bureau. That had been the most disturbing thing of all, to think that such a dangerous man as that could lurk around and actually work for the Bureau pretending to be such a good man of prominence and reputation. It was downright frightening how he had managed to get by with it over the last few weeks.

Reigel then got up as well. It was getting late and he was ready to go home and call it a night himself. Cunningham would go back to the hospital and relieve young Agent Brown from sitting vigil outside Pierce's hospital room. All the agents were basically floating around in a daze from learning about what all had happened out there in the swamps, and then about one of their own cracking, and then ultimately trying to shoot another of their own in the back. It just did not happen very often inside the Bureau. But when it did, it was the most heartbreaking of things, because the average grunt special agent took pride in his or her job, his or her faithfulness, and the ultimate loyalty that each had for the other and their country as they battled "the enemies" that threatened the country and the everyday US citizen. Situations like these were just not supposed to happen within the Bureau ranks. But it had – tonight – and Reyes had almost lost her life in the process, along with an innocent little six-year-old child.

Reigel then cleared his throat as he opened his office door. "How's Reyes? How's she taking it?" he asked.

"All right. She pretty shook up, but, she's gonna be all right," Cunningham replied.

"Good," Reigel said as both men then began to leave his office for the night.


Still Outside in the Employee Parking Lot Area - Just Outside the FBI New Orleans Field Office:

Sgt. Mason paced back and forth for a couple of minutes trying to decide what to do. He then scribbled a quick note on his notepad, ripped it from its holder, quickly folded it, then placed it securely under the drivers-side windshield-wiper of Reyes' SUV. He then looked up one more time towards the dark window to Reyes' office inside the FBI building. The light was still turned off. Obviously, she was not inside her office. He then got back in his truck, cranked the engine, then sat there for a few more seconds trying to decide what to do, where to go, and whether to try her cell-phone once again. Within seconds, he saw her boss and Reigel walking out of the building. He quickly jumped out of his truck.

"Agent Cunningham! A word, Sir?"

Both Cunningham and Reigel looked up at the handsome young man sprinting towards them.

Cunningham smiled recognizing the handsome young man. "Sergeant. What can I do for you?"

"Sir, it's Agent Reyes. Where is she?"

"I would assume at home."

Eric nodded, "Well, Sir, I can't seem to locate her. She has her cell-phone turned off and… Well…"

Cunningham nodded again, "I'm sure she's all right young man, she's just tired."

Eric nodded again. "Well, um, did you see her? Is she hurt? Or…"

"No, she's fine, just tired, very, very tired."

"Yes sir."

"Why don't you go home and get some sleep. You're just leaving your shift, right?"

"Yes sir, about an hour ago. I had to work late."

Cunningham nodded. "Well, go home. She's fine. I'm sure she'll call you in the morning. She's just tired, very tired. I sent her home earlier, so…"

"Yes sir," Eric replied then nodded towards Reigel before sprinting back to his truck.

Both men smiled then looked at each other. Reyes had very good taste in men. He was quite a strappingly handsome young man and very polite. They were each surprised that she had not called him yet, but, after all, she was very, very tired, and had been through one hell of a night. She was probably home safe and in her bed sleeping the bone-weariness off.

They each said their goodbyes then called it a night. Reigel left for home as Cunningham left for the hospital.

Eric then pulled out of the parking lot on his way home to Slidell himself. He was tired, too. After all, he was a cop on the afternoon shift with the Slidell Police Department and he had just pulled a double-shift.


Little Elisa Garcia's Hospital Room – Louisiana Medical Center
Six hours later – 8:13 AM (CT):


Reyes shifted again in her sleep then rolled a little more comfortably to her side as little Elisa followed suit then snuggled in more closely against her. The morning nurse and several Garcia family members just smiled, whispering quietly to each other, as they watched the two worn-to-a-frazzle, dark-raven-haired-sleeping-beauties sleep.

Sometime, somehow, during the night, one of the night nurses had managed to ease the lower half of Reyes' body up into the bed, too, along with her top half, and roll her in closer to little Elisa, then pull the safety-railings up on each side of the bed, protecting them both from rolling out of the bed as they slept, without really waking either one of them up. Both were just too exhausted; and Reyes' bone-weary body had completely given in to the extreme exhaustion once it had found a bed.

The morning nurse grinned again then chuckled, "Well, I think I'll be bringing two breakfast trays in this morning. One for our little angel and the other for our Cajun City Hero."

The Garcia family members chuckled and nodded approvingly as they rejoiced in the unusual situation and treasured the very special moments their little rescued family member was experiencing with her brave and courageous rescuer.

Reyes then shifted slightly at the sounds of the light chuckles. Little Elisa then rolled in wrapping her little arms more snuggly around her.

Señor Garcia grinned again, then tiptoed over to the bed, then sat down in the empty chair that Reyes had first used when she had first entered the room last night. "Hum," he chuckled. This tall, dark-raven-haired, chocolate-brown-eyed beauty reminded him so much of his deceased wife. Additionally, if his wife were alive today, she would have done the very same thing. She would have crawled into the bed last night with little Elisa and slept next to her all through the night, comforting her, calming her fears, and wrapping her up so protectively close in her arms, as any tender and loving mother would do.

"Hum," he grinned again just watching and enjoying the tenderness and motherly-affection his little daughter was receiving from the tall, dark-raven-haired, chocolate-brown-eyed agent. Little Elisa had missed out on having a tender and affectionate mother. His mother had done an excellent job in raising his young daughter through the years, but no one can quite replace the love of a mother; and even this tall, dark-raven-haired beauty could not replace the love of Elisa's mother - a special and unique mother's love that little Elisa had missed out on since the day she had been born - but the little girl was soaking in some motherly tenderness and affection this morning, as Reyes gave of that love, tenderness and affection towards the little girl, sheltering her completely over the last few hours, even as they both slept together comfortably in the same bed.

Soon the morning nurse technician came in, rolling a small table with two breakfast trays full of breakfast foods into the small room.

"Oh! That looks great!" Elisa's older brother chirped.

"Shhh," his grandmother admonished.

"Well?"

"Shhh," his father admonished him, too.

"Hah," he huffed.

Elisa's older sister then began to giggle.

The young tech smiled then left the room.

Reyes stirred again from the sounds, soft giggles, then smells of freshly-brewed coffee, scrambled eggs, freshly-fried bacon and hash-browns as the wonderfully delicious smells caught her attention even as she slept. "Mmm," she moaned softly, shifting again in her sleep then suddenly opened her eyes.

Señor Garcia grinned again at the tall, dark and gorgeous agent lying so comfortably close to his little daughter and in his little daughter's hospital bed.

Reyes then focused her eyes a little more clearly, recognizing the room, then looked up at him.

He grinned, smiling with widening wonder.

"Oh... Whoa..." she reacted to his smiling face and the unusual situation she found herself in. …What the…? How in the…? Holy shit... she cocked an eyebrow at the smiling man then glanced back down at his little slumbering daughter all snuggled in against her chest. She grinned, instantly recognizing whom the little girl was, all snuggled in and holding onto her so tightly, then glanced back over to the small audience scattered all around the room. "I, um… Good morning," she whispered rather bashfully.

"Good morning!" "Morning!" "Morning!" "¡Buenos días!" all the family members responded.

"Well, um… Wow," she grinned again, feeling very embarrassed indeed with her present situation.

They all smiled, nodded, and then began to laugh at the unusual situation, too.

"I um, I had planned on giving Elisa her gold necklace back last night, but I… Wow! Guess I… fell asleep," she whispered shyly as she glanced back down at the dozing little girl all wrapped up and snuggled in against her chest.

All the family members nodded and smiled again.

Little Elisa then began to stir from all the light conversation, soft laughter, and smells of breakfast food in the room, too. She then opened her dark-raven little eyes.

Reyes grinned. "Buenos días, tesoro," she teased her.

"¡Oh! ¡Mónica! ¡Buenos días!" little Elisa chirped then hugged her so tight.

All the family members giggled and laughed as they instantly came over to the bed saying their good-morning greetings to their little family member, too.

***************

Within minutes, Reyes had moved herself off from the bed, eased the bed-railings down, straightened her wrinkled and slept-in clothes out somewhat, combed her tangled, sleepyhead hair out, then returned little Elisa's pretty gold necklace to her. The two raven-haired beauties then began to eat their breakfasts together, laughing and giggling and playing with each other between every bite.

The Garcia family just sat back and enjoyed all the playful banter, occasionally entering into the playful teasing, too, and thoroughly basking in the realization that their little family member really was save and sound now and would soon be released from the hospital and going home later in the afternoon, too.

Reyes continued to enjoy her time with the nice family, finished her breakfast, played and teased with Elisa a few minutes more, then finally excused herself to go home. She was still tired even after several hours' sleep. So she would stop by FBIHDQ, pick up her vehicle, talk to Cunningham or Reigel for a few minutes, then head home for her own wonderful, comfortable bed.


Traveling Northeast on I-10 towards Slidell, Louisiana
About an hour later:


Reyes pulled another cigarette out of her fresh, new pack. She had been smoking the nicotine sticks off and on all morning every chance she had. She just could not seem to get enough of her nicotine sticks this morning. Her nerves were shot and a good nicotine fix was all she really wanted to calm her nerves back down. Moreover, she had stopped by Pierce's hospital room again, ran into Cunningham, talked to him for a few minutes, then quickly entered Pierce's room and talked to the comatose man again for a few moments then left for HDQ, found Reigel, talked to him briefly about the case, and all the events that had led up to what had happened last night with Pierce, then picked up her own vehicle and finally left for home after her all-night stay at the hospital and in little Elisa's room, and then roaming around HDQ for part of the morning.

She had not told Reigel or Cunningham about her unplanned stay at the hospital last night either. Both men would think her silly for staying all night in little Elisa's room. Although, actually, it had not been in her plan to stay all night in the little girl's room. It had just worked out that way, but everything had turned out all right. She had just been so tired, and had ultimately fallen asleep, as soon as her tired ass had found a place to sit and rest.

She snickered shaking her head at the irony. Actually, it had been rather nice waking up to a small child snuggled in so close and depending on her so much to take care of them. "Hum," she chuckled as her thoughts drifted to her own little nephew, Jacob, back home in Mexico. Maybe one day she would have a child of her own instead of "borrowing" her younger brother's little son on occasion, helping to take care of him as her younger brother finalized his divorce, transferred jobs, secured his passport and visa then moved to the United States himself to be closer to his big sister.

She grinned again as she thought about little Elisa and how tightly the little girl had been holding onto her. It reminded her so much of her little nephew, Jacob, for he would do the very same thing every time he was allowed to come to bed with her and eventually fall asleep, as she would then gather him up in her arms, and then carry him back to his own bed for the rest of the night. …Hum, kids… She grinned again. She knew that she would make a good mother one day to a little child in need of a doting, loving and affectionate mother. She grinned again at the thought. Maybe instead of giving birth to her own child she should consider adopting an infant, a toddler, or maybe even an older child. She chuckled again sucking in a deep long drag off her cigarette.

…brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…

Suddenly her cell-phone began to vibrate along her hip. She quickly retrieved it, looked at the Caller-ID, grinned happily, then answered, "Hey beautiful."

Scully grinned, "Hey yourself. How'd you know it was me?"

"One guess."

"Caller ID?"

"Umhum. So whatcha doin', beautiful?"

"Oh, needing to talk to you about something."

"Oh. Uh-oh. What's wrong?"

"Well. I can't seem to get a flight out. Everything is booked solid."

"Oh. Ugh."

"Yeah. Any suggestions?"

"Well, what about tomorrow morning?"

"I can try. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Do you want me to try for mid-morning, late afternoon, or early evening?"

"Um, I'd prefer early morning. But, it doesn't matter. Just go with what you can get."

Scully chuckled, "Early morning, huh? Are you that desperate?"

"Oh yeah. Can hardly wait."

Scully chuckled again. She could hardly wait either.

They talked for several minutes, discussing their options, the flight departures and arrival times, which airlines, how many days Reyes could take off compared to how many days Scully could take off thanks to her bereavement time and possibly a few extra vacation days that she still may have available. Actually, she had most all of her vacation days for the entire year still available to her, for when was the last time she had taken any time off, gone on a vacation, or anything? She could hardly remember the last time. It was ridiculous. She had plenty of personal days left before the calendar year was up.

Their conversation then switched to more personal things – much more private and intimate things – as they began to tease each other, and give each other exactly what each other needed to endure the frustrating separation through such difficult times.

Reyes exited off the Interstate then pulled onto the main thoroughfare. She was within five minutes of home now. Her home was not that far from the main Interstate running through downtown Slidell. She lived in a very nice neighborhood with her backyard overlooking a very nicely-sized body of water. She even had a johnboat, boat ramp, canoe and a fishing pier off to the left of her nicely-sized backyard. It was great, the enjoyable access she had to the water, the streams and channels that led into the everglades and ultimately to Lake Pontchartrain a little farther downstream. Hence, she had spent many a night out on the water, floating quietly in the moonlight, steering her johnboat into hidden little coves or paddling her canoe through the streams and channels, basking in the peaceful ambiance of the late night moonlit sky, the quiet waters, and gentle ripples of the lake, becoming one with nature all around her. She loved to go it alone, and even jump in for a midnight swim at times, in certain sections of the water, where it was well substantiated that the alligators, and other rather dangerous swamp-critters did not come up that far into the areas of civilization. But one always needed to be vigilant and careful of the possibilities.

She then turned off the main thoroughfare and onto the beginning streets of her neighborhood as Scully told her more about a time when she and Mulder had been on a fascinating case involving a very large alligator, but how that the townspeople were just sure that it was some type of swamp-creature, or even a lake-monster like the legendary Loch Ness Monster of Scotland. Reyes giggled as she told her about Slidell's own legendary swamp-creature, the Honey Island Swamp Monster, the swamp tours and folklore surrounding the elusive creature. And then there was the famous Southern Louisiana swamp werewolf Loup Garou, or the Voodoo Zombies or the ghoulish creature Letiche, that was supposedly an abandoned, illegitimate child who was reared by alligators, and now had scaly skin, webbed hands and feet, and luminous green eyes. Then there was Jack O'Lantern, the malevolent spirit who was thought to lure humans into dangerous swamplands with his mesmerizing lantern. Oh yes, the Cajun everglades and Louisiana swamplands were full of tall-tales and Cajun Folklore but that was one of the many reasons why Reyes had enjoyed living in Cajun Country and all the fascinating folklore surrounding the region. Both women chuckled at some of the wildly vivid imaginations a village of people could have, and yet how those types of legends and folklore could also help define a community, bringing them together, and unifying them, if things were handled in a positive way.

Reyes then pulled onto her street. She glanced down to the very end of the long street at the familiar vehicle sitting in her driveway.

"Oh shit," she whispered quietly under her breath.

"What?"

"Um. Nothing, I… Baby, I need to go, okay?"

"Okay, but why so suddenly?"

"I um… Company."

"Company?"

"Yeah. Unexpected."

"Oh. Well that's not very nice," the redhead said.

Reyes snickered then chuckled, "You've got that right."

"Okay. Well, I'll let you go then. Go take care of your 'company'."

"Hum. No fun. But I'll call you back as soon as I can."

"Okay. I'm gonna call the airlines right now."

"Okay. Great. Talk to you soon?"

"Yeah. Soon."

"Okay. I love you."

"Love you. Later."

"Later, alligator."

And with that, they both hung up.

Reyes then pulled into her driveway parking just to the side of Eric's big truck. …Shit… Shit, shit, shit… Damn!... she mentally fussed. She was not in the mood to be dealing with her soon-to-be-ex boyfriend right now; and especially since she was planning to break up with him some time tomorrow. But now might be as good a time as any, she quickly realized, as she sat there with the engine still running for a few moments then put the transmission into park. …Hum… Although, she was still very tired to be dealing with such a subject as this right now, it was a very serious subject, something she could not just blow off as if it was not a big deal. Feelings could be hurt, and probably would be hurt. She never enjoyed hurting anyone's feelings; and especially someone's feelings that she cared about. And she did care about Eric. She was just not in-love with him. …Oh frig… And she probably should have called him last night, too, but she had forgotten all about him as she had talked to Scully, needing to hear her voice, her sweet and gentle words of encouragement, and imagining that she were here to hold her and comfort her last night. Yep. She was most definitely in-love with the little redhead at this point, and not Eric, never Eric.

She quickly glanced at the small handwritten note he had left for her last night. …Shit… shit, shit, shit… It had been a very nice note. He had been very worried about her, so no wonder he had shown up on her doorstep and had obviously let himself in last night, as she quickly perceived just how long his truck had been parked there. Some of the leaves from her front yard trees had fallen onto his truck and were still clinging to the leftover remnants of an early-morning dew.

"Oh frig," she finally verbalized as she turned off the engine, then sat there in her vehicle for a few seconds, then finally opened the door. "Um," she sighed again. This was not going to be fun. Nope. This was not going to be fun at all. She gently shut the door then walked up onto her porch. At first, she considered ringing the doorbell, but then was that not the silliest thing? It was her house after all. She quietly inserted the key into the door lock, gently unlocked the door, then quietly stepped inside her abode.

"Eric?" she called out.

No answer.

"Eric?" she said again as she walked farther into the living room.

No answer.

She glanced over to the right into the kitchen area then on back into the den and entertainment room area. …Shit. Where is he?... She wondered. … Oh God, don't tell me… she thought again as she walked the short distance over to the staircase and then began to climb the one-story staircase up to her bedroom.

She hit the last step then walked down the few feet to her bedroom door then peered inside. …Oh, for Godsakes… There he lay, in her bed, on her side, sound asleep. …Oh, for Godsakes… she thought again. Now what? ...Jeez! For Godsakes!... she thought again shaking her head at the irony. She then tiptoed into the room so as not to awaken him until she could figure out exactly what she wanted to do next.

Suddenly her little kitty came scampering out of nowhere and jumped up onto the bed. "Me-o," she chirped.

"Shhh, hey girl, whatcha been doin', hum?" she barely whispered rubbing her little kitty underneath her chin.

Xena began to purr rubbing her head and cheek against the all-too-familiar hand.

Eric then rolled over, squinted his eyes then focused more clearly on her. "Babe? You home?"

"Yeah. Sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"Where've you been? I've been worried sick," he said beginning to rise up into a sitting position.

"I… I know, I… I stayed at the hospital last night, and I…"

"But, damn! Why didn’t you call me? Shit Monica," he said as he reached out to hug her.

"Oh, I… I don't know, I…"

"God, Monica. Come here. Jesus. Are you okay?" he said as he wrapped his strong, burly arms around her.

"I um… Yeah, I…" …Oh God… She closed her eyes then leaned into his warm embrace.

How in the hell was she going to break up with him? He was so sweet, so kind, so loving; and yet, she didn’t love him – not in the way that he deserved - and she was more sure of that now than she had ever been before as he held her so close. She knew now what it felt like to be hopelessly and helplessly in-love with another; and those wonderful, incredible, undeniable feelings of unquenchable love were just not there for him, not like they were for a wonderfully darling and gorgeous little redhead back in DC.

She inhaled deeply then leaned her head down along his shoulder. …Oh God… She was still so tired. All she wanted to do was crawl into this nice, big, plush and comfortable bed of hers and sleep, and not deal with him or break up with him today, but just sleep. She wondered if she could pull it off and put the breakup off until sometime later tonight or even tomorrow morning before hitting him broadside with the news.

"Come on, babe, lie down, I know your tired, need your sleep," he said as he scooted over in the bed then gently laid her down next to him.

…Oh jeez, Eric. Why can't you be an asshole? And make this a little easier on me?… she thought as she lay down in the bed next to him and then wrapped herself up in the blanket lying on the bed then rolled over with her back facing him.

He then curled in next to her wrapping his big, burly arms around her waist.

…Oh jeez… This was just not going to work, and yet she was so tired she could hardly protest for she just did not have the emotional energy in her right now to deal with the serious subject until she got a little more rest.

He then leaned over and kissed her on the cheek then pulled her in a little closer to his body.

…Of frig… "Eric? We need to talk. I need to…"

"Why? There's nothing to talk about."

…Oh God… She cocked an eyebrow. "Yes. Yes there is. I… I need to…"

"No. Not now, just go to sleep. Xena and I'll watch over ya."

She snickered then smirked, "You and Xena?"

"Yeah. Me and the cat are getting along better nowadays."

"The cat? Since when?" she retorted rolling back over.

"Since you chewed my ass out the other day," he grinned.

She chuckled again then began to laugh.

He chuckled, too. "See? I knew I could make you laugh," he teased as he tucked his hand in underneath her shirt and began to rub his hand along her bare, flat stomach.

"So it takes me chewing your ass out for you to like my cat?"

He chuckled again. "Yeah. Guess so," he said as he moved his hand down and began to rub his palm along her tightly-muscled bare abdomen, then play with her belt buckle tugging on the belt loop. "So. Why don't you get out of these clothes and…"

"Nope… Nope, nope, nope. No Eric," she said quickly rising back up into a sitting position and grabbing onto his mischievously wandering hand. "Nope. Now look. We need to talk, okay? And I'm too damn tired right now to hardly even think clearly. But…"

"But what?"

"Oh gosh," she groaned then peered into his pretty blue eyes almost the same pretty blue as Scully's but not quite. They didn't have the same piercingly intense - piercing right through to the very depths of one's soul - gaze that Scully's had, nor the sparkling blue hues of a deep ocean blue, or a deep blue sea, or a bluish green rainforest, or the little specks of a deep midnight blue sky as Scully's had.

He continued to watch her. "Monica? What's goin' on?"

...Oh crock... She sighed.

"Monica? Just spell it out," he said.

She glanced down then closed her eyes. …Oh, God help me...

She really did not want to hurt him. But maybe now was the time after all. Yes. Maybe it was the time to tell him the truth. She looked back up at him. ...Oh Eric... The pain in her eyes said so much.

The handsome young man furrowed his brow. "What?" he said.

...Oh God... "Um, Eric?"

"What?"

"I…" she hesitated then looked away. "I need to... tell you something."

"Okay. Spell it out."

"I um…" she stammered again then looked back up at him. "I... Eric?"

"What?"

…Oh God, help me. How do I put this?… she mused. She sat quietly for a few seconds, then said, "It's over." Just like that - pure and simple - that's how she put it. She then glanced back down at her little kitty sitting comfortably next to her.

"What?" he quipped in disbelief. "What do you mean it's over?" he said furrowing his brow yet again.

She sighed heavily. "I mean, just that. It's over."

"Hah," he huffed again in disbelief. "Just like that. It's over. After we… After you… After the other night when you…"

"When I what?" she watched him closely

"When you… Ngh," he grunted again in disbelief.

"When I what, Eric?"

"Ngh!"

"What Eric?"

"No. I don't believe you," he said.

"Eric?"

"No."

"Eric?"

"No."

"Eric?"

"No!" he argued as his eyes began to water with tears.

...Oh no... "Eric? I… I'm sorry. But I… Oh God," she whimpered seeing the pain and hurt filling his watery tear-filled eyes; and she had been the one to cause all of the hurt and pain in his tear-filled eyes. …Oh jeez, Eric…

"Monica? I love you. And I…" he whimpered.

…Oh jeez, God! Don’t say that... This was so hard to do, hurt somebody when they had done nothing to deserve it. But sometimes relationships just did not work out. She didn’t respond as she just starred into his tear-filled eyes.

"You… Is there... someone else?"

She sat silently starring into his watery eyes not responding.

"You… Am I right? You've found someone else?"

She continued to sit quietly starring into his tear-filled eyes not responding.

"Well? Am I right?" he queried again.

"Yes," she finally admitted feeling the guilt of breaking that unspoken commitment they had made to each other deep down inside her very soul. They had only been in a committed-relationship for about three months. Plus, they didn't live together. But still, Reyes believed in committed-relationships; and yet here she had broken one with Eric; and for another woman, no less.

"But who? How?"

"I… It… It just… happened, and I…"

"It just happened," he repeated.

"Yes. And I… I'm… I…" she stuttered around not knowing how in the world to tell him the whole truth.

"Is it Doggett?"

"Doggett. John?" she cocked an eyebrow.

He nodded, "I know you like him, got a thing for him."

"I… No, I… I don't have a thing for John. He's just my friend."

"Then who? I mean, you go out-of-town to help him out on a case for a week, and suddenly you come home telling me there's someone else? What...? I don't... I don't understand that. I… How can you…? I don't understand that," he said again rising up from the bed.

…Ring…Ring…

Just then, the table phone by the bed began to ring breaking into the ultra-tense moment.

He looked at her. She looked at him. Her eyes had begun to water, too.

….Ring…Ring…

She quickly answered, "Monica Reyes."

"Moni?"

Reyes' heart about stopped. "Um. Yeah. Hey," she replied. It was Scully again.

"Hey. Sorry to bother you, but I just called the airlines and you're not going to believe this."

"Okay. What?" she said glancing back up at the heartbroken Eric for a moment.

"Monday. Booked solid. No flights out."

"What? Shit. You're kidding me."

"Nope."

"Oh God. Well, what do you want to do?" she said as she got up from the bed then walked out into the hallway glancing back at Eric one more time before walking quietly back down the stairs.

He just stood there in the doorframe of her bedroom reeling with emotion.

She then made it down the stairs, entered her kitchen, then the den and entertainment room, then stepped out onto her screened-in back porch and closed the door. It was still a little cool outside, but not nearly as cool as it was inside the house at the moment.

"So what do you think?" Scully questioned.

"Well? Why don't I try to get a flight back into DC? I can fly back. It wouldn't be a problem," the brunette offered.

"No, we're only talking about one day. Tuesday. There's a flight open for Tuesday morning arriving in New Orleans at 10:25 your time. Or I could catch the mid-afternoon flight arriving at 3:39. Whichever is best for you."

"Honey they're both fine with me. I just wish you were here right now, that's all."

Scully chuckled at her lover's impatience. "Well, sweetheart. It's up to you. What hours are you going to be in the office?"

"Oh it won't matter. I've got those three vacation days coming so let's make it Tuesday morning. How about that? Will you get enough sleep?"

"Sleep?"

"Yeah. It won't be too early for you will it, to get up and make it to the airport?"

"Oh baby, good grief. No... God."

"Okay. Tuesday morning then?"

"Yeah. Tuesday morning. Halloweeeeeeen," Scully teased.

"Yep. Halloweeeeeeeen," Reyes giggled, too. "Just wait. Halloween in Cajun Country. You haven't seen anything yet, honey. It gets wild down here in the city."

"Oh yeah?"

"Oh yeah. Anything goes, if you catch my drift."

"Anything?" Scully chuckled again grinning from ear-to-ear.

"Oh yeah. Almost as wild as Mardi Gras," Reyes teased again then glanced up from her porch and through the French doors at the fuming Eric standing in her kitchen. …Uh-oh… "Um, honey? I hate to do this, but I really need to get off of here, and…"

"Why?"

"Well. It's Eric."

"Eric?" Scully choked out.

"Yeah, I, um. He's here and…"

"Oh." Scully felt an immediate sense of intense jealousy begin to creep in.

"Yeah, and I… I just broke it off with him, and..."

"What?"

"Yeah. I… I told him about… you… and… us."

"What?" Scully chirped again about to fall off the bed she was still sitting on.

"Well. I mean I told him that it was over, and that I had met someone else, and… but… I didn't tell him exactly who."

"Oh. Wow! Well um, okay," Scully replied just trying to get used to the idea that Reyes had actually broken it off with her boyfriend of three months in preference for her. "I, um, wow! Are you sure?"

"About what?"

"Me. And breaking up with him."

"Well, of course, I'm sure, Dana. Shit! Why wouldn't I be?"

"I… I don't know, I… Wow!" the little redhead chirped again in disbelief. After all, they had only met six days ago, and yet Reyes had just given up a three-month committed-relationship with her boyfriend for her. Three months might not seem like a very long time, but it was most definitely longer than six days, especially with all the time and effort one spent in getting to know another individual and invest of one's time and energy.

"Dana? Honey, I need to go, see if I can't calm his feathers down a little bit before he leaves, but, baby, yes, I'm sure, of course I'm sure, why wouldn't I be? You mean everything to me, okay?"

"Okay."

"I love you, baby. And I'll see you in less than forty-eight hours, okay?" the brunette teased as she glanced back through the French doors at the fuming Eric.

Scully giggled. "Yeah. Counting the hours."

"Yep. Counting the hours."

Scully chuckled again.

"Okay. You know what?"

"What?"

"You may have to file a MPR on me when you get here," the brunette teased.

"And how is that?"

"Well. He's not too happy with me right now, and..."

"Mon?" Scully was suddenly concerned for her.

"No, it'll be okay, but I really do need to get off of here, before he… Shit," she instantly stopped as he opened the door and came out onto the porch with her. "Um, gotta go."

"Mon?"

"Gotta go, te amo," Reyes quickly said as she instantly hung up.

"Who was that?" Eric asked fuming.

"A friend."

"A friend? What friend?"

"It's none of your concern."

"Who was that?!" he bellowed again loudly enough for the neighbors to hear.

"Eric? Stop. I am not going to talk to you about this until you can calm down. Now. It's over. I told you that. So when do you want to come by and get your things?"

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Monica?"

"Oh God. Let's not make this any harder than it has to..."

"Damn you."

"Eric?"

"Damn you, Monica," he said again so angry at how she could always remain so calm, even as his world began to crash in all around him.

"Eric? I…"

"Damn you," he said again.

"Okay," she said shaking her head in frustration. She had heard that one a few times already in the last twelve, thirteen hours from two very deranged men.

"Damn you!" he yelled again out of nothing but pure hurt. It's amazing what one can allow to spew out of one's mouth when one is so hurt.

"Eric? I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you. Honestly. But I… God… Never mind," she said as she began to walk past him, through the doorway and back inside her house.

"Fuck you!" he bellowed again.

"Oh yeah. Heard that one before, too," she quipped at the irony. "Just don't try to kill me, okay?" she quipped again almost as a joke.

"And what the hell's that suppose to mean?!"

"It means I'm ready for you to leave, set up a time to come get your things and then leave Eric, just leave."

"Bitch!"

…Oh yeah. Heard that one before, too… she thought. And damn! it cut like a knife.

He then stormed past her, slamming the French doors behind him, almost breaking the window pane and glass, then stormed into the living room turning around and yelling a few more angry, foul and derogatory words at her before finally leaving to go and lick his wounds.

She stood there in her kitchen feeling nauseous from all the emotional upheaval.

…Screech… Screech… Screeeeeeeeeeech…

She heard the wheels to his big bad truck squeal out of her driveway and then down the street.

"Ohhh."

…Ring…Ring…

"Oh God."

…Ring…Ring…

"Jeez."

…Ring…R…

"Reyes."

"Agent Reyes?"

"Yes?"

"It's Brown, Agent Brown."

"Oh. Hey Jim. What's up?"

"It's um… Pierce."

…Oh God… "Has he…?"

"No. Not yet. But they're calling the family in."

"Okay. Well…"

"Cunningham thought that you might want to know…"

"Right. Right, yes. I… I'll be there as soon as I can, okay?"

"Okay. And Agent?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry about what happened. I'll be here when you get here, okay?"

Reyes choked back her tears. "Right. Thanks, Jim. I… I'll need the support."

"You've got it. See ya when you get here?"

"Yeah. See ya."

And with that, they hung up.

Reyes then dropped the receiver down to the floor and began to cry all over again. The pain and inner turmoil of losing her partner, coming to terms with his ultimate betrayal, and then breaking up with her boyfriend was almost too much to deal with right now after everything else she had been dealing with over the last week. The entire week had been nothing but one big constant relentless nightmare of horrendous situations, life-threatening calamities and heartbreaking tragedies, with a couple of good things mixed within – meeting and falling-in-love with Special Agent Dana Scully, and saving three kids from ultimate death – but with all of the other difficult turns-of-events, life-threatening calamities and gut-wrenching tragedies pulling and tugging on her inner reserves, both physically and mentally, she had just about had it; and then this last night and early morning - finding out that her very own partner had betrayed her, and had been the very one working against her and her Taskforce, as they searched for the two little children, barely making it in time to save little Elisa's life, and then almost losing little Elisa again to him and her own life as well in spite of it all - well it was almost too much, just too much! for a sensitive, telepathic, empathetic soul such as hers.

The phone began to make that loud beeping noise signaling that it was off-the-hook. She then reached down and picked up the receiver, replacing it into its cradle. She glanced at her watch. 10:46 AM. …Oh crock… She had not even been home long - maybe fifteen, twenty minutes - and now she was going to have to leave again. …God, give me the strength… she prayed as she quickly decided to jump into the shower and get cleaned up, before heading back out to the hospital. If she didn’t make it in time, so be it. She would just do the best she could and hope for the best.


Traveling Southwest on I-10 towards Downtown New Orleans
Thirty Minutes later:


Reyes snuffed out her fourth cigarette into the ashtray then glanced out along the marsh - where she had almost met her demise last night - then retrieved her cell-phone from her pocket, scanned through the buttons until she found the Outgoing menu then hit the redial button.

Within seconds, Scully answered, "Mon?"

"Hey," she replied.

"Hi. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Just. It got a little heated there for a few minutes. Sorry about that."

"No, it's okay. But, are you all right?"

"Yeah. Considering."

"Gosh. I guess I shouldn't have called you back so soon."

"No. That was okay. How were you to know?"

Scully grinned. "Well. You gonna finally lie down now and get some more sleep?"

"Nope."

"No? Why not?"

"I'm on my way back to the hospital."

"Monica!"

"It's Brian. Brian's about to… God."

…Oh no… "Oh gosh, Moni. I don't know what to say."

"Yes you do. But there's really nothing left to say, is there?"

"Yes, but, this situation is so different. With Mulder, it… Gosh."

Reyes closed her eyes for a moment, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter with her palm.

"Oh Moni, God. I'm sorry. What are they doing? Calling the family in?"

"Yep," the brunette squeaked out still gripping the steering wheel tightly in her hand.

Silence passed between the two agents.

"Mon? You're not blaming yourself are you?"

"Nope," she squeaked out again.

"Mon? Come on now."

"What?"

"Monica? I know better."

"No, you don't."

"Yes, I do."

"No, you don't."

"Yes, I do," they argued.

"And why would I blame myself?" the brunette asked.

"Because that's who you are. You take on the guilt, the blame, the shame, even when you are entirely innocent of the circumstances."

"Wow. So now you're my therapist?"

Scully smirked. "No. But I know you."

"You know me. How do you know me? How do you know me, really?"

"Well…" Actually, that was a very good question. But some part of Scully felt as if she had known the tall, dark brunette for decades - more like centuries, millenniums, thousands of years – cycling and recycling back into this world and meeting up with this sweet, sweet spirit, this gentle and tender soul, over and over and over again, as they repeatedly saved each other from themselves, their inner demons, and all their mutual inner turmoil and pain, hoping to one day get it right, and relinquish themselves from all their past mistakes, past misdeeds and past failures, so that they could one day live happily, peacefully and effortlessly together, actually enjoying a quiet and simple life together in their own quiet and simple way.

"Dana?"

"Yeah, I'm here, I was just… thinking."

"Thinking?"

"Yeah. I was just… thinking about something that happened to Mulder one time."

"Mulder? Really?"

"Umhum."

"Care to share?"

"Tuesday. Will talk about it Tuesday."

"Okay."

Scully then began to hear some shuffling and clicking on the other end of the line. "Sweetheart? What are you doing?" she finally asked.

"Oh, lighting up."

"Um. Should have known."

"Yeah. It's my vice, especially when I get wigged out."

"Well. Everyone has one I guess."

"Yep. So what's yours?"

"What? My vice?"

"Yeah. What do you do to relieve the stress?"

"Sex."

Reyes snorted, then began to cough, then blush three shades of red.

"Well? You asked."

"Yeah, but…"

"I fuck. Okay? That's what I do."

Reyes fell into another fit of coughing spells for a few seconds. "Yourself or…?" she hacked out.

"Both. Works every time."

Reyes then snorted again into a fit of giggles. "I guess so," she giggled and laughed thinking about the last few nights she had spent in DC with the lascivious little redhead. "So. Is it better alone? Or with a partner?"

Scully began to chuckle, too. "Depends."

"Depends?"

"Yep."

"On what?"

"How good the partner is."

"Oh. Okay. So. What about…?"

"Baby? You are the best lover I have ever had in my life, okay?"

"Really?" Reyes' eyes lit up. "I… I was?" she stuttered as her cheeks grew steamy hot from her bright red blushes.

"Umhum."

"Oh, I bet you say that to all the girls."

"Nope. I've only said it once before to someone else. But after you? She pales, okay?"

"Really?" Reyes' eyes widened again in happiness.

"Umhum. Really," Scully smiled on the other end of the line. Her baby was just so cute and unsure about herself when it came to loving women.

"Well. Wow! Okay," the brunette chirped hardly believing what she was hearing from the little redhead.

"Monica? Let me tell you something. No one has ever, in all my life, loved me the way you love me, okay?"

"Oh Dana," the brunette breathed.

"Yes. No one has ever loved me so fully, so completely, so unreservedly, as you, okay?" the redhead choked a little as her eyes watered up.

"Oh Dana, God. Well, no one has ever loved me quite like this before either. I can feel your love, your presence, even when you're a thousand miles away from me."

Scully cocked an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Yes. I can feel you, your love, your presence. I don't know how, but I can feel you, sometimes even hear you, hear your voice talking to me."

…Whoa… "Really?" the redhead cocked an eyebrow yet again.

"Yeah. I can't really explain it. I've never been able to explain it. But, it's like telepathy or something. Like, oh I don't know. But it's nothing to be afraid of. It's just a part of who I am. And Dana? Please, don't be afraid of it. Please?" the brunette pleaded suddenly feeling very anxious about revealing so much about herself to the little redhead.

"Oh, I'm not afraid of it, I'm just…" …Wow!… Slightly astounded? Because actually she had been doing the very same thing on occasion when it came to Reyes, and Reyes' love, Reyes' essence, Reyes' very presence and hearing Reyes' sweet, gentle and tender voice bouncing around inside her head as well.

"Dana? I swear it's okay. I swear. It's nothing to be frightened of. Please don't be frightened of it. I think it's just because I love you so much. And I've never loved anyone quite like this before either, and I… I don't really understand what has happened between us but, please, don't be afraid of it. It's just part of who I am. Okay? And…"

"Shhh, it's all right. I'm not afraid of it. I'm not. I'm just…" …Wow!…

"Dana? I love you. And it frightens me how much I love you, but…"

"What?"

"Well? I'm just gonna go with it, see what happens."

Scully chuckled as she wiped a few stray tears away from her eyes. That sounded like her girl. "So you're just gonna go with it, huh?" she teased.

"Oh yeah, I'm gonna run with it, baby. I'm gonna run with it to the highest mountaintop," Reyes breathed choking up herself with pure emotion.

"Oh Moni, God," Scully choked too, as more tears began to roll down her cheeks as well. …God… It felt so good to be so loved.


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LWMGR Home Page | | Chp 1 | Chp 2 | Chp 3 | Chp 4 | Chp 5 | Chp 6 | Chp 7 | Chp 9 | Chp 10 (Conc) | | LWMGR Stories Page


Or you may go to Dana & Moni: A Love Everlasting. Whichever you prefer.


Oh wow. Will the girls ever get back together? They truly do need each other right now, more than ever. But first, Monica has to deal with her dying partner and Dana needs to secure that flight into New Orleans for tomorrow. Check out Part 9 and see what happens next. And if you'd like to send me feedback, please send it HERE. Thanks! MGR

Plus a quick footnote. Just for clarification, when Monica mentions a MPR to Dana she is talking about a "Missing Person's Report"
.