Chapter 21

I


Krysta waited for the door to open, having heard heavy footsteps inside walking toward the summons.

A man in his fifties opened the door, and looking at Krysta asked,

"May I help you?"

"Are you Eric Hope?" asked Krysta.

"I am," Hope said; "And you are...?"

"Mr. Hope, my name is Krysta Banks, and I have news of your daughter, Kathryn."

Eric looked at the young woman standing at the door, and guessed that she was about the same age as his daughter was now. What possible news could she have that Kathryn's therapist didn't have? he asked himself.

"Do you work for Cameron Chang?" asked Eric.

"No, Mr. Hope," Krysta said; "I actually work for Kathryn's alter, Chastity Edwards. I met Kathryn after who I thought was Chastity returned to work after being injured."

"I see," Eric said, though he really didn't understand why the woman at his door was there. "Please, come in. I know it's cold as crap out there."

He stood aside so that Krysta could enter. Once inside, Eric took Krysta's coat and put it on a coat rack by the front door. After he offered her a seat, he asked,

"What news about my daughter do you have, Ms. Banks?"

Krysta sighed, and Eric knew the girl was nervous. She said, "Kathryn is in the hospital in Buffalo because Cameron Chang is trying to communicate with Chastity and any other alters that may exist. Ms. Chang has managed to bring Chastity forward under hypnosis, and is trying to bring the two parts of Kathryn's personality together. Chastity is making that difficult."

"Is what Ms. Chang said about Kathryn true?" asked Eric; "That her development stopped at age 15 because the Chastity personality took over?"

"I believe that it is," Krysta said; "When I first 'met' Kathryn, she had taken a cab to the office because she cannot drive. She spoke about you and her mother as though she didn't know that her mother had died; and she spoke about going to her high school prom."

"Kathryn has selective memories of her life before Chastity took over?" asked Eric.

"I've seen videos of Kathryn and Chastity arguing about who is the dominant personality," Krysta said; "Usually, Cameron Chang has to slap Chastity down so that Kathryn can retake her own body. Kathryn gets frustrated very easily about this."

Eric sat there, wishing he'd never sent Kathryn away. I wish I'd known she was so sick, he thought.

"Ms. Banks," he said, "it hurts me to my soul that I sent my child away because I thought she was being difficult. She had threatened her mother on several occasions and my wife had to be hospitalized because she'd become profoundly depressed. I had no idea that Kathryn had an alternate personality who was actually doing these terrible things. Had I known, I would have gotten her help."

"Kathryn knows that, Mr. Hope," Krysta said, sensing the older man's regret over something he couldn't control because he'd had no knowledge of it. "She realizes that Chastity did some terrible things."

"I want to go see her," Eric said. "I want to apologize for the way I treated her."

"I sense that you do," Krysta said. "But it's probably not a good time to see Kathryn right now. She's still in that state of trying to get Chastity to conform to her life. It's been a difficult process. I do have a couple of videos on my computer I think you should see."

"Of Kathryn?" asked Eric.

"Yes," Krysta said; "They show both of her personalities, and there is a stark difference between the two."

"I would like to see them," Eric said, wondering to himself if he was ready for it. "I have to know how her two personalities make up one person."

Krysta was getting her tablet computer out of her bag. She wondered about Eric Hope's mental state. How would he react seeing his daughter again after sixteen years?

"Before I show you these, I wanted you to know that Kathryn is very vulnerable and very confused," Krysta said; "She sees me as a friend who is trying to help her, but she also acts towards me like I'm a surrogate mother. I am four years younger than Kathryn is."

Eric looked at Krysta a little more in depth. She was a beautiful girl, he thought. She's had a hard life, and probably harder having to deal with Chastity. I want to know more about this woman who is trying to help my daughter.

"Tell me about how you met Chastity, Ms. Banks," Eric said.

"I'm not comfortable with that part of my life, Mr. Hope," Krysta said, taken aback by Eric's request. "I've only just met you."

"I'm sorry," Eric said; "You're right. It was untoward of me to think you'd unburden yourself to a virtual stranger."

Krysta looked at Eric. He was a handsome man who was clearly anguished about his daughter. Krysta felt towards Eric the way she usually felt for women. She was shocked that she was actually physically attracted to a man for who he is, and not because he paid her to sleep with him. She felt her demeanor soften.

"First of all, please call me Krysta," she said; "Second, I'm sorry if I came on like I had something to hide. I am not proud of some of the things I've had to do in life to simply survive. One of those was where I met Chastity."

"Krysta," Eric said; "Please call me Eric. Nothing you could tell me would shock me. I've heard worse from some of the people I've had to prosecute, I'm sure."

"You're much nicer than I expected," Krysta said.

"I'm not an unfeeling man, Krysta," Eric said; "I do care about Kathryn's welfare. I'm glad that you came to visit. I would still like to see those videos you have. I have to know what Kathryn has had to deal with."

Krysta hesitated. She didn't expect nor deserve Eric Hope's kindness. She understood where he was coming from at this point in his life. His wife had died; his daughter was dealing with very real demons; and, Krysta suspected, he was lonely as well. The only person he'd dedicated himself to was his granddaughter, who was away at college.

She was lonely, too, she realized. And now, she could add confused to her list of mixed emotions. After a lifetime of being attracted primarily to women, Krysta found herself attracted to a man old enough to be her father. She was actually nervous in Eric's presence.

"I'll show you the videos, Eric," Krysta said; "Please don't be angry at what you see. Some of this is not easy to look at or listen to."

"I understand, Krysta," Eric said. "I'll watch them with an open mind. I'm afraid my mind has been closed too tightly as far as Kathryn is concerned."

Krysta brought up the first video and clicked on the play button.


===

"I love it when it snows," Julia said. "I've been entranced by it since I was a very little girl."

Jack watched as Julia looked out the window at the heavy snow falling. He could almost see the very little girl that Julia was, looking out the window at a winter wonderland.

"You were probably a very beautiful little girl," Jack said.

"That's what I've always been told," Julia said, looking at him. "But I think every parent, or in my case, guardians, thinks their child is special. I didn't meet my mother until I was seven or eight years old, after she escaped from prison and dealt with the aftermath of her incarceration."

"She missed a lot of your young childhood because of it, I know," Jack said. "I was a guard at that prison when she was there, Julia."

Julia looked at Jack. He'd told this story to her before about how he was one of many men who had brutally assaulted her mother when she was a prisoner. She knew he felt bad about it, especially as his feelings for Julia deepened.

"Jack," she said softly; "don't do this to yourself. You can't take back the past."

"I-I kept your mother from you...I hurt her. Julia, how can you love me knowing this?" Jack said, anguished and ashamed.

"Because you're not the same man now as you were then," she said; "situations like that make men do things they normally wouldn't do. They're not right, and most men don't have regrets about it. You do. But you can't torture yourself over it. It's done and it's over.

"When I first came home from the prison after you let me escape, my mother asked me why you were so kind to me. I told her what I tell everyone who asked me that: because I didn't show fear to you, and won your respect. She told me that she was scared that if you knew I was Jordan Terranova's daughter, that you'd do the same things to me that you had been ordered to do to her and other women at the prison. I told her the same thing I just said to you. She said she had forgiven the men who raped her years before because she realized that they were only doing those things because they were following orders and were probably scared themselves. Mob mentality and all that.

"Jack Coltrane, you are NOT the same man now. You've lived a whole other life, you've come to terms with some of the things you had to do. It's that man that I love. Please, darling, don't think those things. I know you've been struggling with them lately."

"I'm getting older and sometimes, those old regrets and the things I'm ashamed of come back and gnaw at me," Jack said; "Thank you for loving me, Julia. I don't deserve your love, but I ask for it anyway."

"Jack," Julia whispered; "you deserve to be happy. I just want to make you happy."

He fell to his knees suddenly. "Julia," he said, tears in his eyes, looking up at her; "I love you with everything I have and you do make me extremely happy. I've never known such love could be possible for me after all the wicked things I'd done in my life. I'm blessed that you love me, and blessed that our daughter knows about our love. You've given me so much, and I never want to disappoint you."

"You've never disappointed me, Jack," Julia said. "Please, honey, don't worry about that now. I want to be the one you come to when you're feeling weak; I want to be the one you can trust all your secrets to; I want to be the one who shows you that you deserve my love and everything I have to give."

"I love you, Julia," Jack said, standing up; "Next to Mirielle, you are the love of my life. I've been twice blessed with incredibly strong women. I will cherish you until my last breath."

Jack led Julia to their bedroom. He helped her get undressed for bed, working around the brace that she had to wear to help the broken collarbone heal. Once she was in her nightgown, she got into bed and waited for him.

When he joined her, he made sure she was comfortable. He lay next to her waiting for her to fall asleep. "Sweet dreams, sweet Julia," he'd whisper to her.

Jack then laid awake for hours, trying to make the thoughts of the past go away. As he felt himself surrendering to sleep, he thought, you have to tell Julia about your illness, Jack. You need to be honest with her about it. Don't be so macho and spare her the gory details. Only the truth will do.

When he fell asleep at last, it was only to have tortured dreams.

===

He and four other men came to the prisoner's cell.

She blanched, knowing what awaited her. Each of these sadistic men would take their turns at her, then leave her to deal with the aftermath.

She always felt bad for the dark haired one who seemed to be in charge. He always apologized to her for what he was about to do to her.

Then he'd be just as brutal and cruel as the others before him.

This time was no different. Their orders were clear: assault the prisoner until she decides to talk. If she doesn't talk, repeat the assaults until she does talk.

As was his custom, the leader took his turn last. He hated what he had to do to this particular prisoner, because just four months before, she'd given birth to what she had been told was a stillborn daughter. She was still dealing with that loss when he and his men came to force her to talk.

Day after day it was like this; they'd rape her, and she'd still have nothing to say. She'd only beg for them to please leave her alone just this once.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered in her ear as he began his turn at her; "I'm just doing what I've been ordered to do. It's not you, it's the system."

He was always much worse than the others, which she recognized as his way of reiterating his power over her... and them. Still, the assaults hurt and the bleeding afterwards was relentless.

"Stupid whore," he'd sneer at her; "Fucking Resistance cunt. You're lucky we don't kill you!"

"I'd rather be dead than have to submit to your cruelty!" she spat back at him.

Soon, they'd leave the prisoner's cell to think about telling them what they wanted to know.

He'd go into the men's room and throw up. He hated what he had to do everyday, then go home to his wife and children and pretend that life was fine. It was never fine. He always felt like he was faking it. The only one who saw through it was Mirielle. She knew something was wrong with him that he couldn't, or wouldn't, talk about. She feared for him. She was scared she'd lose him to the hell he went to every day.

The assaults on the prisoner would continue, and he would learn to accept his job and move past his disgust at what he had to do.

On the last day his group was assigned to assault the prisoner, he'd learned quite by accident that her daughter was alive had been placed with a couple who were Resistance supporters.

Before he had a chance to take his turn with her, she had passed out from the pain. He ordered that the other men leave her cell and get medical attention.

"She must be kept alive," was all he said.

While they were gone, he leaned over and whispered to her, "Your daughter's alive and living with people you probably know. She's safe, Jordan. You have my word as a father and a husband."

The medics arrived and he left the cell. He felt the trembling start in his hands, move up his arms, and into his chest. He prayed to die right there.

Jack woke up and got out of bed. The dreams got progressively worse. He had hated his life in the New Army, and found, years later, that those memories came back to haunt him. His own personal hell on earth. Death would be a blessing, except for one thing.

Julia.

He got dressed and pulled on his winter gear to take care of the animals, because he didn't want the children to go outside that day. It was too damn cold.

As he was headed towards the barn, he looked back at the house, where Julia slept, unaware of his nightmares, or the illness he had been diagnosed with shortly before she re-entered his life.

"She's safe, Jordan," he said, echoing what he heard in his latest nightmare; "I love her with all my heart and would never hurt her. She is my lover, my confidant, my life, my world. I pray that one day, you'll understand why she kept Miri's true parentage a secret from all of you."

He then went into the barn to check on the animals. It was warm inside the barn and they all seemed to be well. He did all the chores, just like he did before Julia and the children arrived in August.

He would miss them when they left to return to Chicago in the coming months.

Jack then realized that they were his family now, and that he should do right by them by asking Julia to marry him.


===

Eric was aghast at the first video that Krysta had to show. It was the personality of Kathryn's that he knew well... the one known now as Chastity.

"She's the one who Kathryn became!" Eric cried out as he watched the video. "She's the one who threatened her mother, who abandoned her child, who I sent away because she was tearing me and her mother apart."

Krysta heard the anguish in Eric's voice, and she almost broke down. She hated Chastity for causing so much pain to the people who cared about her the most. How could I have loved such a woman? Krysta asked herself. How could I have trusted her with my feelings and my body?

She turned off the video of one of Chastity's outbursts, and selected the next video to play for Eric.

"This is Cameron Chang's last interview with Kathryn before I left to come here," Krysta said; "It's about a week old."

She pressed play, and the interview started immediately.

Kathryn, what would you like to do once you leave here?

--I want to go see my dad and tell him I'm sorry Chastity hurt him and Mom.

Would you like to meet your daughter, Kelly?

--Yes! I want to get to know her, and tell her that I wouldn't have abandoned her. Chastity did all that, and it hurts that she probably hates me because of it.

You realize that Kelly is sixteen years old now, right?

--Yes. (Kathryn sobs) Cameron, I'm so confused by all this. I feel like I'm just a spectator of my own life.

It's okay, Kathryn, to be confused. One minute you're a teenager, the next it's 16 years later and the world has passed by you so fast because Chastity kept you in that dark hole.

--I hate Chastity! She ruined my life!

"Stop!" Eric said, losing his composure. Krysta turned off the video, exited the program on her tablet, and put the computer away. Eric was fighting to compose himself, but couldn't seem to do so.

"I'm sorry, Eric," Krysta said; "I warned you they were hard to watch."

"That...that last one," Eric said; "That's my Kathryn. That's the girl who disappeared when she was fifteen and replaced by that disgusting Chastity! I wish I'd known what she was dealing with then, instead of sending her away!"

Krysta's heart broke for the man who sat before her, the pain and anguish clearly displayed across his handsome face.

"Eric, I've caused you nothing but pain by coming here," Krysta said. "I wish I had anticipated that before I came here."

"No, Krysta, it's okay," Eric said; "I had to see for myself what Kathryn is dealing with. Yes, it hurts to watch that, but as painful as it was, I had to know. What can I do to help her, Krysta? I can't take back what I've already done, but I can try to make her future better."

Krysta sat on the table in front of the chair where Eric sat. She took his hand into her own and said,

"When Cameron Chang says it's okay, go visit Kathryn. Say what you need to say to her; let her know that you still love her."

"I never stopped loving my daughter," Eric said; "It was Chastity I couldn't love. She's not Kathryn. She's not the girl I swore to my wife when she was expecting her that I would defend with my life. Kathryn is. I would give my life if it would make Kathryn whole again."

After a while, Krysta decided that she'd caused Eric Hope enough discomfort for one lifetime. "I need to get back to Buffalo, Eric," she said. "You can call me if you need to talk. I'll leave you my number."

Eric found that he couldn't bear to let Krysta go. He saw something in her, in just the brief time she'd been in his home, that he wanted to know more about. She was beautiful and caring. He could see that. She cared about Kathryn's welfare, and that's what prompted her to come seek him out. He was sure of it.

He took the slip of paper with Krysta's number on it and put it in his pocket. He helped her with her coat and her bag, then walked her to the door.

Once the door was opened, they both saw that Krysta wasn't going anywhere.

"There must be five feet of snow on the ground!" Krysta exclaimed. "I thought that storm wasn't coming until tomorrow night!"

"You can't drive out of here in that," Eric said. "You'll get stuck as sure as I stand here. I have plenty of room here, Krysta. Stay overnight. By morning the plows will have cleared the main roads and you can get home."

"I don't want to put you out, Eric," Krysta said.

"It's not a problem," Eric said; "I better call Kelly and tell her to not try to come home for Thanksgiving. She'll be spending it at the airport if she does."

"I don't have a change of clothes or anything."

Eric looked at her a moment, then said, "You're about Kelly's size. I'll see if some of her stuff will fit you."

"She won't mind?" asked Krysta.

"Hell, she'd have suggested it if I hadn't," Eric said. "You're dressed very nicely in that dress, but not for dealing with this weather. And those boots of yours won't do. Kelly always has a spare pair of snowboots."

"I don't know what to say, Eric," Krysta said; "Except thank you."

Eric nodded at her, then said, "Let's see what Kelly has that will fit you."

===

Julia awoke that morning, only to find that Jack was not in bed with her.

She got up and got dressed, then went out to the kitchen, where the kids were already fixing breakfast.

"We're making waffles, Mom!" said Rachel.

"Really, now?" Julia replied. "Where's Jack?"

"He's out shoveling snow with Zach," Jaime said. "Miri's in the barn getting eggs."

"What about your chores?" asked Julia.

"Jack said he did them all long before we got up," Jaime said; "He didn't want us to go outside today because it's like minus twenty today."

Miri came back into the house with a basket filled with eggs. "Fresh eggs, straight from the hens!" she called out.

"Good, now we can make waffles!" said Rachel.

"You mix up the batter, Rachel," Miri said; "Jaime, you work on the turkey sausage. Mom, you just sit there and watch."

Julia laughed, saying, "Yes, ma'am!"

Miri took off her coat, hat, gloves and put them on the coat rack by the back door. She then went back into the kitchen and started rolling out dough for biscuits. Tripod, who had been sleeping by the fireplace, poked his head up and sniffed the air. He got up and sat, tail wagging, at the end of the counter in the kitchen where Miri was cutting biscuits. She noticed the yellow lab and said,

"Oh, you want left over dough, do you? You'll just have to wait until all the biscuits are cut, and if I have any left over, I'll bake it up just for you, okay boy?"

Tripod barked happily and wapped his tail against the side of Julia's stool.

Jack came into the house, and hearing Tripod barking, said, "Jesus, boy, you have a big mouth on you!"

Zach was right behind, mumbling while taking off his coat, "I hate snow, I hate snow, I HATE ALL THE DAMN SNOW!"

"There is a lot of it, isn't there Zach?" asked Jack.

"I've never seen so much snow!" the boy said; "It doesn't snow this much in Chicago!"

"We'll be good and snowed in for Thanksgiving then," Miri said.

Zach just shot his oldest sister a dirty look, then took his wet coat, hat, and heavy gloves to the coat rack.

"Zach, actually it did snow quite a bit when I was about nine," Julia said; "Peter and Kiera made us shovel snow, and we all complained about it. Joe and I did the front of the house, and Nik and Jeremiah did the back of the house. But there was breakfast waiting when we were done."

"Miri, I'm done with the batter," Rachel said; "Can I make the waffles?"

"You can help," Miri said, "but I'll do all the hard stuff. This waffle iron gets really hot!"

Jack sat down next to Julia. She looked at him and smiled, then leaned against him as much as her brace would allow.

"We got quite a family here, don't we?" she asked him.

Jack kissed the top of Julia's head. We sure do, he thought.

===
II


Nik and Jeremiah were working on a plan to find and eliminate, by force if necessary, all the A.R.M. "Holdouts" that were stalking their families.

"I have contacts on the police force," Jeremiah said; "They've been keeping an eye out in my neighborhood for people who don't belong there. They've arrested about four of them so far."

"How about on the old compound where Julia's house is?" asked Nik; "I know that the city doesn't really have jurisdiction there, but maybe they can contract with Cook County to see if their personnel could patrol that area. It's getting rather pricey to hire private security guards and retired military to do it."

"I can look into it, Nik," Jeremiah said; "I know that the cost is prohibitive and you have two kids in not so cheap colleges to worry about."

"Great! Anything would be a load off my mind. And my wallet!"

"Now, what about this plan for when we find Holdouts?" Jeremiah asked; "Do we kill them outright, or wait til they threaten us?"

"Remember what Peter taught us," Nik said, "'Only shoot if there is no other alternative. Then shoot to kill, not shoot to maim.' Though, maiming them means they can be sent to jail or prison. We still have to obey the letter of the law, Jere."

"I know, Nik," Jeremiah said. "But when people are following my kids or my wife around just to get to me, that pisses me off. Why can't they just come to me with their grievance and not involve my family in it?"

"Because they're chickenshit, Jere, that's why!" said Nik. "These people are not playing with a full deck here. They're just as crazy as the woman they work for!"

"And what about her?" asked Jeremiah; "Is this 'medical issue' thing we keep hearing about legit, or is it a ploy to throw us off their trail? Information on her, and her group of whackjobs, is nearly non-existant. They've just now started using a press liaison named Krysta Banks. She seems to be the only sane person within the group."

"Have you tried talking to her?" asked Nik.

"She's out of town on personal business," Jeremiah said. "I left a voicemail to have her call me when she returns."

"That ought to freak her out," Nik said, laughing; "One of the people they're trying to get rid of is calling for a statement. I'd love to be a fly on the wall when she returns your call."

"I'll be happy if she does return my call," said Jeremiah; "I have my doubts she will."

"Yeah, they're like that, aren't they?" Nik said.

"They hate confrontation. They like doing their shit the cowards way."

"Just like the Occupational government," Nik said. "One day, I'm just going to call their bluff and tell them I can find where they are within 'X' feet, like Julia does. I still don't get how she does that."

"With her computer knowledge, I'm sure that reading all those codes tells her something about where anyone on earth is at any given moment," Jeremiah said. "I'd love to be able to do that, too."

From behind the two brothers, they heard, "I know how Aunt Julia does it."

They turned to see Peter standing there. Jeremiah still couldn't get over how tall the boy was at fifteen.

Nik looked at his son, then said, "How does Aunt Julia do it, Pete?"

"Uncle Jere, you were right about the code thing," Peter said; "All the codes from secure cellular phones pinpoint a person's location to within five to ten feet. That's how much the technology has improved even from when Aunt Julia first learned how to do it. If Internet Protocol addresses can find a computer network's location, then Secure Cell Protocol can find a phone and its user's location."

"So if someone calls, say, from Massachusetts or New York or down the street, you can find them, Pete?" asked Jeremiah.

"Yes, I can. It's not really that hard once you know the code."

"My question is, Pete," his father asked, "is how did you learn the code?"

"Uncle Ryan started teaching me when I was ten, Dad. After he died, I kind of figured out the rest on my own," Peter said.

"Can we test your knowledge?" asked Nik.

"Sure," Peter said; "Call someone and have them call you back. Don't tell me who you're going to call. Once the call is completed, the code that transmission is assigned is saved for a short time. All I have to do is decipher it. I can find that person's location with in a matter of feet. And it works with some land lines, especially if they're using cell technology."

Nik knew who he was going to call, so he left the room to call that person and ask them to call him back.

Twenty minutes later, Nik's secure phone rang, and he answered it. He said a few words to the person who made the call, then hung up. He handed the phone to Peter and asked,

"Where was this person calling from, Pete?"

Peter pushed a few buttons on his father's phone, got a series of numbers, letters and symbols. Then he wrote down the caller's location.

On the piece of paper Peter had written: Headquarters of Central Intelligence, Langley, Virginia, USA. Office of the Director.

"You called Natasha's boyfriend?" asked Jeremiah.

"I called our boss, Jere," Nik said, laughing; "He's Natasha's boyfriend when he's not being our boss."

"So you really can do it, Pete!" Jeremiah said; "When you start training again, you're going to be a force to be reckoned with."

"I'd like to kill the asswipe who put me in a back brace," Peter said; "He is still out there."

"Sound like anyone you know, Jere?" asked Nik.

"Yeah," Jeremiah said; "You, when you're pissed."

===

Aaliyah was out in the backyard, taking target practice.

Her mother was watching from the living room window as her youngest child expertly lined up her shot and fired. Jasmine was both impressed and scared.

Another Julia, she thought. That's Aaliyah's goal, to be another Julia.

"But you're only eight years old," Jasmine said to herself; "You're just a little girl."

Arielle walked by where her mother was standing and she, too, saw Aaliyah taking her firearms training seriously.

"I'm still not as good as Aaliyah," Arielle said, "and I've got a two year head start!"

Jasmine turned to Arielle, saying, "She is taking the training seriously. I think all the adults underestimated both her and Rachel. They're both very good with weapons and survival training, even at their young ages."

"She has been out shooting both me and Adriana lately, Mom," Arielle said; "I don't know what's gotten into her, but I wish it'd get into me, too."

"Do I detect a little jealousy, Arielle Antonia?" asked her mother.

"Yeah," said Arielle; "I'll admit it. I wish I was as good as my baby sister."

Just then, Aaliyah came in and put her gun away in the gun safe and closed the door. She saw her sister and her mother standing there, looking at her.

"What are you guys looking at me like that for?" she asked.

"We were watching you take target practice, Aaliyah," Jasmine said; "You've become quite proficient in the short time you've been training. You must have a natural affinity for it."

"Dad says I have a gift," Aaliyah said. "Rachel has it too."

"Mom, it might be best not to mess with baby sister," Arielle said. "She and Rachel are going to be dangerous when they grow up."

Jasmine only nodded in agreement.

Aaliyah was a little confused by Arielle's statement, but let it drop. Instead, she went to her bedroom and started reading "Wuthering Heights" for her literature class in the morning.

===

Viktoria "Vixen" Vincent felt a little uncomfortable walking home from school alone.

Usually, Nikolai was with her, but he'd been staying home sick for the past two days, so she had been making the half mile trek on her own.

The recently turned thirteen year old was certain she was being followed. Her mother called it her sixth sense. Vixen wanted to be wrong this time, but she wasn't.

She had only one more block until she was on her street, and she walked as quickly as the snowy sidewalk would allow her to go. When she sped up, so did whoever was following her. She then remembered something her mother taught her and her brother long ago, when they were still little kids.

Vixen turned around to face the person who was following her.

She saw a grown man dash behind a fence, but he was not quick enough to escape Vixen's nearly photographic memory. About 5-foot-10, blonde hair, wearing a blue winter coat, black knit beanie, and dark colored gloves. He had a big nose and wore glasses.

"Viktoria..." Vixen heard from her left side. The side where the street was.

Almost no one called her by her given name. Everyone called her Vixen. People who called her "Viktoria" were either people she never met, or teachers whose classes Vixen had not yet been in.

There was a man in an old car, trying to entice her to him. Vixen was wise to that game. She just kept walking toward home. She saw enough of the second man and his car to give an accurate description.

As she approached her house, Vixen cut through the backyard of a neighbor who gave her mother permission for her and Nikolai to enter if they felt threatened.

She appeared in her own backyard and came in through the glass doors that led outside.

Vixen saw that Sandrina was home. Sandrina can draw these creeps for me, she thought.

"Sandy," said Vixen, "I was followed home by two men. One on foot and another in a car. Can you draw from my descriptions?"

"Yes, Vix, I can," Sandrina said; "Tell me what these creeps looked like." She got out paper and her pencils and drew the two men from Vixen's descriptions.

Sandrina looked at her work, then showed her cousin to see if she got them right.

"That's them, Sandy!" said Vixen excitedly.

"They followed you home?"

"Yes, and Mom said if that happened I was to call her and the police," the girl said.

"You call your mom, then I'll call the police, okay?" asked Sandrina.

Vixen was already on the phone. Natasha was at the doctor with Nikolai, and asked Vixen to have Sandrina call the police.

"I'll be home as soon as we're done here, okay Vix?"

"Okay, Mom."

Sandrina was already on the phone with the police, and within a few moments it seemed, they were at the front door. Natasha arrived a few moments later.

Sandrina gave her drawings to the lead investigator, and he got things rolling.

"This is stupid, Mom," Vixen said to her mother; "Why are we all being followed?"

"Honey, I really don't know," Natasha said to her; "but we always have to be on our guard. It could be because I once worked for the government that we're having all this trouble now, but I'm not certain. We have to protect each other."

Soon, the police found four men who had been canvassing the neighborhood and arrested them. Vixen still wasn't satisfied. She wanted to teach them a lesson they'd never forget.

Don't fuck with me or my family. You will not win, Vixen thought.

===

After Eric raided his granddaughter's closet for clothes for Krysta to wear, she went out with him to help shovel the front walkway and the drive way. They also removed what to Krysta seemed to be a ton of snow from her car.

Once back inside the house, Eric invited Krysta to make herself comfortable.

"Hopefully we can get you out of here tomorrow," Eric said; "but I'll need to check the weather radio to see what they're saying about how long the storm will last. You might want to check in with your office and let them know you might be gone longer than planned."

"That might be a good idea," Krysta agreed. "I'd promised Kathryn I wouldn't be gone more than a couple of days. She gets nervous if I or Cameron Chang can't be there when she needs us."

Eric said nothing. He thought all kinds of things. His daughter, now her true self, scared that her evil alter will return for good; the snow that came earlier than forecast; the stunning creature sitting in his living room, flipping through an old magazine.

He was feeling mixed emotions. Krysta Banks was a beautiful girl, and that was the problem he thought he saw-- that she was a girl young enough to be his child. Indeed, she was younger than Kathryn.

At the same time, he couldn't help feeling attracted to her. He thought he saw something in her eyes as well while they were out clearing the walkway. Maybe it is mutual, he thought; so why do I feel like a dirty old man?

Krysta caught him staring at her. "Like what you see?" she asked.

"I do indeed, Krysta," Eric said; "No one could deny that you're a beautiful woman."

Krysta, for the first time in a long while, blushed. What's wrong with me? she asked herself. This is Kathryn's father! I've never been this worked up over a man!

"Thank you," was all she said.

Eric sat next to her. "You're blushing, Krysta!" he said.

"I-I find you incredibly attractive, Eric," she stammered. "I can't seem to help it. You're old enough to be my father."

"Does age matter to you?" asked Eric.

"It usually doesn't," replied Krysta.

"Then don't let it now," Eric said. He leaned toward her to kiss her, and she met him part way. Their lips met and Krysta could feel him pull her to him.

She allowed him to take control. She wanted him to dominate her, to show her how to love him. Their kiss ended and he said, "My God... Krysta...what are you doing to me, darlin'?"

"I was going to ask you that, Eric," she said. "I can't think of anything right now but you loving on me."

"It's been a long time since..." Eric began. He wanted nothing more than to make love to this incredible angel.

He got up and offered his hand to Krysta. She took it and stood up from the couch. He led her to his bedroom and undressed her. He marvelled at her perfection: the generous, taut breasts; her smooth curves; her soft as silk skin. Oh, God why have you blessed me with this perfect angel? he asked as he knelt before her to pleasure her womanhood, to taste her sweetness. He heard her cries of pleasure, of desire, of release.

"I want you, Krysta," he whispered to her as she undressed him; "God help me, I want you."

"Take me, please, Eric?" she asked him as he laid her on the bed.

"Anything you require, my angel," he said as he entered her.

===
III


Jack stood before the mirror and tried to gather the strength to do one of the hardest things he'd ever done.

To tell the woman he loved that he was seriously ill.

He'd known about his illness for a while, since before he and Julia re-established contact five months before. His treatment had been going well, even with the added stresses of Julia's family coming to stay with him and Julia's injury. But in the last month, he felt that something had changed. He started feeling weaker, and it took him longer to get things done. Then, there were the nightmares.

Julia already had to deal with her sister Niki's cancer, and Jack didn't want to burden her further by telling her of his own fight with the disease.

Most people still died from what he was dealing with.

Thanksgiving was that Thursday (which also happened to be Julia's twin half-brothers birthday), and Jack decided that what he had to tell Julia could wait until after that.

Though Julia hadn't noticed anything different about him or his behavior, save for the nightmares, their daughter had, and confronted Jack about it one afternoon before her mother's return from Denver.

"What's wrong with you, Jack?" Miri asked him when they were alone in the barn after the children's training was completed for the day; "I've never seen you so out of breath."

"It's nothing, Miri," Jack had said; "Just not feeling well."

"Bullshit, Jack," the girl had said; "I've noticed it for weeks now. There's something really wrong with you, isn't there?"

Jack sighed. Nothing got past this girl, he thought. She's very observant, just like Julia is.

"Miri, it's something I've been dealing with for almost a year now," Jack said; "Until recently, it's been being taken care of."

"Are you going to tell Mom?" asked Miri; "Or am I going to have to?"

"I will tell your mother about it when it's the appropriate time, Mirielle," Jack said; "She has enough to deal with now without me adding to it."

Miri just stood and glared at him. That made him nervous.

"And just when will the 'appropriate time' happen, Jack?" asked Miri; "When you're too sick to do anything else about it?"

"When I tell your mother about my illness, young lady, that's my business. Don't make it yours," Jack said, growing angry.

"She's my mother," Miri said, getting just as angry, "therefore it IS my business. Don't force my hand, Jack. I will tell her if you don't."

"I will tell her, Miri," Jack said; "When she's home from Denver, and not on a shitload of pain medication. Until then, this is just between the two of us, is that clear?"

"Crystal," Miri said and walked back into the house.


Now, Jack had to be strong, and tell Julia of his illness. After Thanksgiving. He would sit her down and give her the worst news of his life since Julia re-entered it.

She would insist on staying and taking care of him, and that's not what he wanted. The people who were threatening her needed to be neutralized or eliminated, just like the cancer that was inside him. Only she could take care of that, just as he was the only one who could fight the demon trying to steal his life.

===

The following morning, Eric woke up in his bed alone. He began to worry that Krysta had tried to leave before the roads had been cleared.

Getting out of bed and grabbing a robe, he was tying the sash when he came upon Krysta in the living room, staring out the window at the still falling snow.

"Krysta," Eric started; "I thought you might have tried to leave before the roads were cleared for travel..."

He then saw as she turned toward the sound of his voice that she had been crying.

"What's wrong, Krysta?" he asked; "You've been crying."

"I don't deserve you, Eric," she whispered; "I don't deserve a kind and caring man such as you."

"What? Why not?"

"I'm not what you think I am, Eric," Krysta said; "My life since I was 16 has all been a lie."

"I don't understand, Krysta," Eric said; "Did I do or say something last night that upset you, my angel?"

"I'm not an angel, Eric!" she cried out suddenly; "I'm the devil's whore!"

Eric wasn't sure how to take that. This beautiful, loving, giving woman he made love to all night was telling him now that she wasn't what he thought?

"Talk to me, Krysta," he said softly, leading her back to the bedroom. "Tell me what you really are, and why you think you don't deserve to be loved?"

She then sat on the bed and told the man who turned her emotions upside down her tortured history, starting with when she left home at sixteen.

===