Depth of Night
By Arianna (aka wavBec)

Their plane landed at JFK airport at 9:30pm and thanks to the light Monday evening traffic on the freeway, they were home at Julian's house in Hastings-on-the-Hudson in only two hours. Breakfast in London had been over 12 hours ago, and they were both very tired. Feeling too lazy to bother with unpacking, Arianna borrowed another pyjama top from his bureau, and crawled into bed while he took a quick shower. She'd almost dosed off when he joined her, but craving the warmth of his just dried skin, she snuggled against his side and purred like a kitten as they both fell asleep.

At first light, she woke to the feel of Julian's warm body moulded against her back with his arm wrapped around her waist, and grinned, thinking no matter the location, as long as they were together it was 'home'. It felt good to be able to lie with him again, and not worry about hurting him in the night. He'd been a much more co-operative patient the last 4 weeks in London than he'd been when she tried to take care of him in Paris. She imagined a couple of cracked ribs were easier to deal with than a bullet wound. Or perhaps, the opposite was actually the case.

When they'd finally gotten back to the Chelsea flat after the long flight from Bangkok, he was pretty much out of it from the painkillers. The next morning, when she'd pulled open the velcro fasteners and helped unwrap the stiff fabric rib support so he could take a shower, she'd cringed to see the ugly, dark purple bruises along the right side of his ribcage and hip. Those first few days, he'd done as he was told and taken the pain tablets like a child obeying Mother, then over the next couple weeks had been quite willing to let her play nurse and pamper him. The bruises were gone now, and the gash on his forehead had healed without a trace.

When she carefully tried to turn over without waking him, he was watching her and smiling. "How long have you been awake?" she asked.

"I woke just a bit before you. It's the change in time zones, in London, we'd have been up hours ago," Her skin tingled as he traced a finger along the side of her face and down the side of her neck, pushing the pyjama top collar aside so he could softly kiss her shoulder. "and I agree with your thoughts about 'home'," he whispered.

There was only one eating place in town open at 6am, Zaro's Bakery. When they picked up their pot of tea, the plain bagels were hot out of the oven, and smelled wonderful. Nothing else in the bakery counter could quite compare with the taste of a hot buttered bagel and the distinctive flavour of Earl Grey. After breakfast, the next stop was the grocer's to restock the kitchen pantry, and then on to the post office. After six weeks in the UK, the box of mail waiting for Julian was enormous, she dreaded the thought of how much mail would be waiting for her in the city.

"Looks like you've got enough to keep you out of trouble for the day, mind if I borrow the car to go get some things at my place, and pick up my mail from Ann?" she asked, taking a grocery bag to the kitchen as he carried in the box of mail.

"Sure, the keys are in my pocket," he grinned.

"Are you going to make me frisk you to find them?" she asked playfully.

"Sounds like fun." He put the box down on the coffee table and went back to the car for the last bag of food as she picked up the phone to call her friend in the city.

"Hi Ann, it's Arianna.......yes, finally back in the country, we got in last night. No, I'm up in Hastings. How big is my mountain of mail?.....Oh, very funny, I'll be down this morning if that's okay with you......Great, we can go out for lunch.......Yes, I'll tell you all about the trip then......Bye now."

Standing in the middle of the kitchen with his arms clasped around the last overstuffed grocery bag, he raised an eyebrow and looked at her questioningly, "Tell her *all* about the trip?"

"Not all, don't worry. Ann is easily pleased with just a few sordid details," she teased.

He just stood there waiting expectantly as she moved around behind him and ran both hands down the sides of his chest before she slid her hand into the left pocket of his baggy chinos to find the car keys.

"Maybe I'd better go with you," he snickered.

"No thanks, you've got your own pile of mail to take care of today. It'll just be an afternoon of girl talk, honest. I'll be back by seven, in time for dinner, I promise."

"On second thought, can I drop you at the metroNorth station? I've a couple of errands to run this afternoon. There are trains to the city every half hour, and that way, you could bring your car up here as well."

"Good idea," she answered as she put the fresh broccoli and snow peas into the vegetable drawer of the refrigerator.

* * *

"Hi Frank, what's new?" The doorman smiled wide to see her.

"Why, Miss MacDuff, you've been gone a long time, travelling again?"

"Yes, in England. How are the kitties?"

"Oh, they're wonderful, expecting a new litter soon, sure I can't interest you in a pet?"

"No thanks, I'll probably be here even less now than before," she laughed.

"The building manager had to let the electrician into your apartment for some repair work the other day."

"Thanks Frank, I'll see if Ann knows anything about it."

When she got off the elevator, Ann was watering a potted palm in the hallway corner by her front door. "Ari! - it's good to see you." She set down the watering pot and came at her for a big hug. "We've got a lot to catch up on."

"You could say that," Arianna grinned. "Want to go to lunch early, before everywhere in the city gets crowded?"

"Great idea, a friend of mine is working at the Russian Tea Room and promised to squeeze us in if we got there before 11:30. Come on in and see your mail mountain while I get my bag. It's taken on a life of it's own."

Sitting in one of Ann's stuffed chairs was a blue plastic laundry basket beginning to overflow with a staggering pile of mail. "Do you have an empty garbage can? I can probably get rid of most of it without even looking at it." Arianna flipped through the top few catalogues.

"Leave it for later, I'm starving, and dying to hear all about the trip." Ann popped her head through the crew neck of a sweater jacket and shook her short dark hair back into place.

True to her word, Ann's friend found them a quiet booth tucked into the corner of the busy restaurant. They each ordered salad plates, Ann chose tuna, while Arianna picked seafood.

"Now tell me about England. Did you get to see tall, dark, and mysterious? I can see from that smile you did! Come on, tell me."

"His name is Julian, but I don't know where to start."

"Well, last time I saw you, you'd been visiting someone up in Hastings."

"That was Julian. He had some business to take care of at his family home in southern England and asked me to come join him. We've been together the whole time."

"And? Come on spill it, I know something else happened, you're positively glowing."

"Let's just say your 'special occasion' gift was a quite comfortable." Ann's expression was priceless, and she understood completely. "We spent some time at his flat in London too." When Arianna picked up her waterglass, Ann noticed the new ring on her hand.

"And what is this?" she asked, touching the engraved gold band.

"A gift, from him." She slipped the ring off to let Ann see the inscription on the inside. "Now that you've seen it, I'm never going to take it off again," she smiled.

"Ooooh, I'm so jealous, tell me more about him?"

"I've never met anyone like him," she sighed. "It's as if we're somehow connected. I know it sounds strange, but we can tell what each other is feeling. It's spooky sometimes, but wonderful. I'm going to take most of my stuff up to his place in Hastings, we'll keep the apartment here for awhile and use it when we're in town."

"Aww, now who am I gonna sucker into double dates?" Ann pouted.

"I'm sure you'll find somebody." They both giggled.

After lunch, they walked through Rockefeller Centre and stopped in the Metropolitan Museum shop. Arianna found a William Morris print silk tie and had it gift wrapped as a surprise for Julian. By mid-afternoon, they were back at the apartment building.

"Thanks for everything Ann," she said, picking up the laundry basket full of mail.

"Ari, I've never seen you so happy, promise you'll keep in touch?"

"Of course I will, and we'll be in and out of here. You're not rid of me yet."

Ann's phone rang just then so Arianna waved and let herself out. With her coat draped over one arm and her wrist through the handles of the shopping bag, she shifted the heavy basket of mail against one hip so she could unlock the apartment door. As she kicked it closed behind her, a pair of strong hands grabbed her arms and pulled a black hood down over her head and shoulders. She dropped the basket and tried to fight back against her attacker but he pushed something against her nose and mouth, for just an instant she recognised a strange smell, Chloroform, and then all was blackness.

* * *

Julian wanted to surprise her when she got back from the city. Tonight would be a celebration. His ribs, and her wrist were well healed and they were home. He finally felt as if he'd put his past to rest and they were ready to get back to work as a team. Her bags were unpacked, and the vegetables for a stir fry were all cut, just waiting to be cooked. The CD player was loaded with soft, romantic music. There was wood stacked in the fireplace for a cozy blaze. The table was set for a candlelight dinner, and champagne was chilling. He'd even turned down the bed and laid out her white silk sleeping gown. All he needed now was a quick trip to the florist for a white carnation, to the bakery for some desserts, a change of clothes, and everything would be ready.

"Are you sure you want a carnathion? I have thom lovely long thtem roses," Malcolm Frobnitz lisped. One of the local oddities, he was the only florist in town.

"Just a white carnation thanks, it's the lady's favourite flower," Julian answered.

When he pulled back into the drive, he was glad that she hadn't gotten back while he was gone. He couldn't wait to see the look on her face when she came home. With the flower set into a cut crystal bud vase, and the creme rolls on ice, he went upstairs for a quick shower. Choosing what to wear was easy, he put on the golden beige linen suit she said brought out his eyes, with the charcoal black shirt she'd picked when they went shopping on Bond Street, London. He lit the grouping of ivory pillar candles atop the brass tray on the coffee table, leaving the dinner table tapers for the last minute. As he moved around the end of the sofa, he noticed the blinking light on the answering machine, indicating 1 recent message, and pressed the Play button.

"Julian, it's Alistaire........ God, I hate leaving this type of message on a machine but wanted you to hear this from me, before you see it in the papers. The Quartermaster got a call from the highway patrol, there's been an accident. They found Arianna's car off the road. Julian I'm so awfully sorry,....... I'm afraid she'd dead."

He sat back against the arm of the sofa in a daze, hardly breathing. * No, it couldn't be happening again, not now, not her. * When the message stopped the mechanical voice announced "Tuesday, 5:05pm, that was your last message." The machine gave a loud click as it started to rewind, that brought him back to attention. The call had come in while he was at the florist. Grabbing his cellphone, he dialed headquarters. Her body had been taken to the morgue at Mount Vernon Hospital. He snuffed out the candle flames and drove off, scattering stones from the gravel drive as he quickly turned out onto the main road.

* * *

Dr Klaus watched as Julian 7 stepped off of the elevator. He was immaculately dressed and groomed, as ever-- not a hair out of place, not a stray thread or speck of lint. His clothing, in fact, had the appearance of someone who'd spent too much time on it.

She knew she hadn't changed much since their last meeting-- but he certainly had. It was the first time she'd seen him without a tie. The green eyes were sharper than ever; merciless in their observation. He looked down at her from his superior height, as if she might've been a member of another species.

"What are you doing here?" he asked coldly.

"I knew you wouldn't come to see me. And I still have to file a report on the incident in England."

"Well, you'll have a hard time getting her to answer your foolish questions now, won't you?" there was an icy edge to his voice that she remembered all too well.

"I'm here to help you deal with this tragedy," she pressed. "This is the longest you've gone without asking for re-assignment in years, I know you were fond of her, even if you won't admit it to yourself. You can't keep everything inside."

"Don't give me your smooth words again, *doctor*, because I'm not listening anymore." The words were laced with venom.

"Look 7, you've been avoiding talking to me for the past few years. I don't think, mentally you're in any condition to come back to work. You'd better listen, because I have the power to remove you from active duty if I want."

"Do it if you want, I'd rather keep everything inside than have it erased!" his words were clipped and short as he turned and walked away from her.

When she tried to follow him through the Morgue door, he slammed it in her face and turned the latch to lock it. Leaning his back against the door, he took a deep breath and tried to regain control. The urge to wipe that smug look off her face had been hard to hold back. Oh, how he hated that woman, always trying to dissect him, to find out what he was feeling, what made him tick. The worst thing was, she'd been right once in awhile. After mother's funeral, perhaps he had been trying to get himself killed when he took that assignment in South America. But still, he could never forget it was her recommended debriefing that had taken away the memories of nearly a year of his life. He was not going to let her do that to him again, especially not this past year."

"Can I help you?" the uniformed orderly took his feet down off the desk and hid his paperback book when he heard the door slam.

"You have a body I'm here to see - Arianna MacDuff."

"Are you family?"

"Ah, yes, I am."

He'd seen dead bodies before, but this time his hands were ice cold and his chest felt like it was caving in as they entered the examining room. Along one wall were the square stainless steel doors that housed the pullout trays of bodies. Checking the clipboard, the attendant unlatched door #5 and rolled out the shelf. After losing his sight for a few days, Julian's sense of smell had remained more sensitive. Mixed with the odors of disinfectant and formaldehyde he could make out a faint whiff of .... gasoline?

"Are you sure you want to see it? The accident report said the car caught fire after it went off the road. The body is kinda charred, it's not a pretty sight.

"I have to see her." Noticing the tight set of Julian's jaw the young man asked if he was alright.

"Yes, please can I be alone with her for a few minutes?"

The attendant shrugged, "Whatever you want, I'll be outside when you're through."

When Julian heard the door latch, he slowly pulled back the green sheet covering the body. The face was unrecognisable. Height and build were about right but fingerprints and features were gone. He'd thought seeing her would feel different, more final, but he was numb. While the part of him she'd opened up was dying, another part of him just couldn't accept that this blackened shape was his Arianna. Recovering what was once a face, he swallowed hard, and left the room.

"Uhm, were there any personal effects recovered from the accident?" he asked the orderly who'd gone back to reading his book.

"The police found her purse thrown clear of the crash, they still have it for evidence, but there's an envelope here with what was on the body, I guess if you sign for it and leave an address you could take it with you, since you're family." Julian handed the young man a calling card from his pocket and signed a receipt before taking the brown paper envelope. When he turned to go, he saw Dr. Klaus was sitting in the corridor with her back facing the door.

"Is there any other way out of here? I'd rather not deal with 'her' again right now." He waved a hand toward the door.

"Yeah, she looks like the Wicked Witch of the West. There's a service corridor through the exam room, just follow it to the first landing then up the stairs and you'll find a door out into the parking lot."

"Thank you." He shook the young man's hand, put the brown envelope in his jacket pocket and left quickly.

Julian must have driven home on virtual autopilot, before he realised it, he was sitting in the drive at the Hastings house, fingers tightly gripping the steering wheel, just staring at full moon reflected on the river. It just wasn't possible that once he'd finally found someone he could open up to, someone that could really understand him for the man he was, and not despise him, she'd been taken away in an instant. He slowly went into the house, got the bottle of scotch out of the liquor cabinet and went to his library. On the vinyl deskblotter, in front of the only framed picture of her he had, he set down the bottle, a glass, and his gun.

* * *

Arianna opened her eyes to darkness, and pulling off the black hood didn't help. Wherever she was, there was no light at all. *Alright now, remain calm and try to think rationally* She took several deep breaths and began to feel the floor around her, it was a cold, hard, cement slab. Next, she cautiously got to her feet and reached out in all directions, her hands found nothing but air. Taking one, two, three steps to her right, she tripped and fell onto something soft and fuzzy.

Exploring with both hands, she identified a twin size mattress, blanket, and pillow on the floor in the corner. Having finally found a wall, she felt her way along it, working anti-clockwise around the perimeter of her enclosure. The only opening she found was a small ventilation grate set high up in one wall and the outline of a steel door in the wall opposite the corner where the mattress lie. The door must open outward, there were no hinges or handle on the inside. Judging from how many steps it took to walk the length of the walls, the space was about 9 feet wide by 12 feet deep. Pounding on the door and calling out brought no response, and the walls were quite solid. Whatever this place was, it was fairly soundproof.

As she felt panic starting to take hold of her, she felt her way back to the mattress and sat down against the walls in the corner. Drawing her knees up she put her arms around them and hugged them tight against her chest. When her hand touched her left wrist, she realised her watch was gone, and felt for her other jewelry. Her earrings were gone as well, but her necklace was still hidden inside her blouse, and she still had Julian's ring, at least that was some small comfort.

* * *

The sound of the ringing phone woke him with a confused start. Picking his head up off the desk, he fumbled blearily for the receiver, almost knocking over the near empty bottle. "Yes?"

Dr. Klaus's voice cackled through the receiver, "You are hereby suspended until you agree to a proper psyche evaluation. It's long overdue." There was just a dial tone before he could answer the annoying voice. He put the phone down and moved his hand to his Sig Sauer.

Picking up the pistol, he lovingly stroked the length of the barrel. The matte silver finish had an almost silky feel. He snapped off the safety and shifted it to his left hand as he looked at Arianna's picture. The only thought that stopped him was how Wilimena 'the witch' would gloat for months if he succeeded this time, and he didn't want to give 'her' any pleasure at all.

Rubbing his forehead and the side of his face he put down the gun and looked at his watch - after midnight. His back was stiff and his head pounding as he slowly climbed the stairs and flopped face first onto the turned down bed. In the dark, his hand touched the silk of her sleeping gown. As he rolled over and clutched it to his cheek, he inhaled the scent of her, and let himself cry for the first time in years. When he finally fell asleep he was thinking about the night they'd met and the personal journal entries he'd made that first week.

* He took a deep breath and knocked on the door to her flat. He should be used to first meetings by now, he'd had enough of them, but they still made him edgy.
** Monday: New contact Arianna MacDuff is an interesting woman with a quirky sense of humour. Believe she thought I was someone else at first. Suppose after all these years, Alistaire and I still look somewhat similar.

** Tuesday: She asks too many questions, and tries to analyze everything. On the other hand, easily adapts to any situation which will be useful in undercover work.
**Wednesday: Arianna is strong willed, stubborn and unreasonable, will ask for re-assignment next week.

** Thursday: Reconsidering yesterday's decision, something was different about her today, almost like there's some deeper understanding.
** Friday: Not sure if she's aware of it, but Arianna seems able to peer into the heart of a person and see what's really at the core. Not a learned talent, it's innate, and very rare. Need time to explore what other mental abilities she may not know she has, found an excuse to take her to a charity gig tomorrow night. Social occasion might prove a more relaxed atmosphere for closer observation.
** Saturday: Social evening was much better place to watch her, she does have untapped cognitive abilities, but the night was too enjoyable, can feel that she's getting too close. Need to break away before I get fond of her, can't risk letting that happen again.
** Sunday: Submitted request for re-assignment this morning and as soon as sent it was sorry. Two hours later, the e-mail bounced back for no apparent reason, just undelivered. If superstitious, I'd say it was a sign that this assignment was meant to be.

* * *

In the darkness she could hear no sound but the pounding of her heart.

Resting her head against her knees, Arianna tried to go to her safe place, the way Julian had taught her to do when frightened. *Julian - bloody hell - what time was it?* she wondered, he'd be expecting her home. With the thought of him there waiting for her, she couldn't hold back the tears. Even her safe place was all wrong, each time she got to the island, she was alone and it was Winter, cold, barren, and dark.

After what seemed like an eternity, when the tears finally ran out she was exhausted, and cold. Curled up in a ball, she pulled the blanket around her and tried to go to sleep. In her mind, she drifted back to the things she'd only told her diary that first week after meeting Julian.

Monday

Oh, this is going to be an interesting assignment. New liaison is nothing like I expected. When I first saw him, I nearly fell through the floor, he's practically Alistaire's double. They're both the same height and build (over 6' and strong), same soft wavy brown hair, and cheekbones that could cut glass. I've never seen anyone look quite as at home in an Armani suite before, he looks like he was born in one. But unlike Alistaire, this one is cold and unfeeling. He's a statue, lovely to look at, but nothing beneath the surface.

Tuesday

What a control freak! - Every minute of today, he had to be in charge of what we talked about, where we went, and what we did. Any question he didn't want to answer, he maneuvered around or made a smart remark to change the subject. After two meetings now, I know even less about him than before, except that he's a master manipulator. Even his handwriting is tight and finely controlled. It's the neatest I've ever seen from a man, let alone a left-handed man! And Mr.Ice *only* uses a fountain pen.

Wednesday

Shouldn't have written Mr.Ice in here last night, it was cruel. But even worse, slipped and called him that out loud during a stupid argument in central park this afternoon. It's impossible to describe but got the strangest sensation afterward. It's almost as if he's built an unscalable wall around his feelings and any hint of emotion, but when I called him Mr. Ice, a few loose stones fell out of the wall. There was a trace of hurt in those deep green eyes.

Thursday

There's something weird going on with Julian. Since the argument yesterday, I'm starting to sense his cold, unfeeling exterior is a mask he's put on to keep people away. The loose stones in his wall are easier to pull out now, and I can almost sense what's really inside, it's sorrow. He fights any attempt at getting to know him but, that only makes him a more intriguing puzzle to solve.

Friday

All the red-tape is finally done. Hamilton's files are archived and everything set up so that now I work for the Cabal, with contact through Julian 7. Anytime we went to an office where there should have been other people. The places were locked and deserted, but Julian always had the keys and knew just where to find what we needed. AND - he asked if I'd join him for a gala event at Lincoln Center tomorrow night! Officially, it's work, he wouldn't tell me what, only that it was the end of his previous assignment, and he needs an escort, but who cares, it should be fun. I feel like shopping - going out tomorrow to find a new dress for the occasion.

Saturday

Found the perfect dress for tonight at Saks - I love it. It's black (of course) a strange material, lycra and nylon, slightly stretchy with soft nap. Just a basic sleeveless scoop neck with high waist and long gored skirt, but it has a rust, black and gold print jacket to go over it, and lots of other possibilities. Can't wait for tonight.

WOW - what a night!!! It was a cocktail reception to raise money for an international charity organisation for the protection of horses. When he came to pick me up, he brought a white carnation for a present, don't know how he knew they were my favourite flowers. J is the champion schmoozer. He can make light conversation as easily with a janitor as with a foreign dignitary. It was eerie though, circulating among the people, I could tell what he was really thinking about each one he stopped to talk to. Had to keep reminding myself we were working and not on the best date of my life. He made me feel like more than just the window dressing for a job. Never did figure out what the assignment was, he only said he was 'keeping an eye on someone' but never left my side except to replace our drinks once or twice. He's probably the most perfect gentleman I've ever met, and what a dancer! I feel like Elisa Doolittle, I could have danced all night. Well, actually we did, it's after midnight. I'm so wound up, I won't sleep at all tonight.

Sunday

Julian called this morning - he has to go out of town for a few days. Can't believe last night's high could turn into such an extreme low today. Hate to admit, but I'll miss him. Even an evening of videos and chocolate with Ann didn't help improve my mood. Oh snap out of it Ari, it's just work, - remember that.

Monday

Stayed in bed until afternoon, when Ann dragged me out to do some shopping. It didn't help, everywhere we went, something reminded me of Julian. She tried every trick in the book but nothing worked. Even ice cream was just cold and wet. I must be insane to get this upset over someone I just met and will only see when working. Still, hope he comes back soon.

Tuesday

Julian called this morning! He has a job for us and will be around to collect me first thing tomorrow morning - we're flying to California. Note to self: try to remember, it's just work, nothing more.

* * *

Julian woke with a splitting headache, and a bugger of a hangover, with no desire to get out of bed. Unfortunately, his stomach had other plans and the remnants of last night's binge made him feel quite ill. Stumbling to the bathroom, he found the aspirin and stomach tablets. After a hot shower and twice brushing his teeth, he felt almost human again as he dragged himself downstairs and made a cup of strong black coffee.

The living room and outside deck held too many memories of being here with her, so he retreated to the library once again. When he picked up his jacket from where it had fallen on the floor, he remembered the brown envelope in the pocket. Sitting down at the desk, he tore off one end and dumped it's contents. All that came out was a pair of gold button earrings and a watch with a metal expansion band. He looked inside the envelope but there was nothing else, no trace of the two things he was looking for, the two things she never took off. He picked up the phone and dialed the Mount Vernon coroner's office.

* * *

When she woke up, everything was still darkness, she had no concept of how much time had passed, whether it was day or night.

"Good afternoon Arianna" The voice seemed to come at her from every direction, echoing off the walls from a speaker somewhere.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"You don't remember me?"

"No. What do you want?"

"I just want you"

"People will be looking for me."

"They won't actually, I've arranged things so everyone will think you're dead."

"Please, let me out of here." she begged.

"You're mine now."

"Why are you doing this?" she pleaded.

"We'll talk again later."

"No wait," she cried, but there was no other sound. She shivered with the idea of Julian's reaction to news of her death, and started to panic thinking of what he might do.

* * *

Julian took a deep breath and knocked on the door of the apartment. It had been a long day and he was tired. Though he knew who Ann was, they'd never actually been introduced, and this was not the best of circumstances for a first meeting.

When the door opened, she greeted him with puffy bloodshot eyes. "Good evening, Ann is it? My name is Julian. I'm sorry to bother you so late, but could I talk to you for a few minutes, it's about Arianna."

"I was wondering if you'd turn up to collect her things. Come in, please excuse the mess. I meant to clean up today but I haven't been good for much since I read about the accident in the newspaper this morning." He noticed that her flat was a mirror image of Arianna's but there were lines of drying photographs strung everywhere.

"That's what I want to talk to you about. The body in the car - it wasn't Arianna."

"What?" At that, Ann burst into tears and collapsed into a chair, burying her face in her hands. He went to the kitchen and found a glass to fill with water. When he returned, the initial shock had worn off and she had calmed a little.

"Here, drink this." He handed her the glass and sat down facing her. A fawn color Siamese with dark brown points jumped onto the back of the sofa and put one paw tentatively on Julian's shoulder. He reached his left hand up to stroke the silky fur and the animal climbed down into his lap while Ann regained some of her composure.

"The, the paper said her body was burned beyond recognition - how?"

"The only jewelry found on the body was earrings and a watch."

"But, there should have been a gold cross and a ring, she showed it to me yesterday."

"Exactly, but my word wasn't enough to convince the police. I spent most of today with the medical examiner. Photos from the scene of the accident showed the watch on her right hand. She broke her wrist while we were in England and switched to wearing it on her left . Then, the autopsy revealed whoever it was in the car had a child several years ago."

"Then that couldn't possibly have been Ari. Oh, did you know?"

"Yes. That was hard enough evidence for the police, at least now, it's been changed from an accident to a homicide. The big question is who would want the world to think she's dead, and where is she? Can you think of anyone from her past that might hold a grudge, or want to do something like this?"

"I can't think of anybody off hand," she shook her head.

"Have the police already checked her flat?" he asked.

"Frank said an officer came by the building this afternoon but he didn't go into her place. Do you think we should check it out?"

"Absolutely, if the police aren't going to do a thorough job, we have to. Besides, it would be perfectly natural for either of our fingerprints to be in her place."

Julian cautiously pushed open Arianna's door. In the middle of the floor was an overturned laundry basket full of mail, a plastic bag from the Museum shop, and the long black coat she'd worn yesterday. Moving to the side table, he pressed Play on the answering machine to listen to the 8 recorded messages. The first six were hang-ups, there was one heavy breather, and then a voice that made them both stop dead in their tracks. He rewound the tape to replay what they'd just heard. A nasal but gruff man's voice saying, "They may have locked me up for awhile, but I'm back now, and you're still mine, you have to come home sometime, and I'll be watching you."

"It can't be." Ann gasped. When Julian looked at her, she was as white as the envelopes scattered on the floor.

"Do you know who that is?" he asked.

"When we first met, in art class, there was another student who had a crush on Ari. When she told him she was flattered but really not interested in a relationship, it turned into an obsession. He kept bringing her roses and leaving little notes under her sculpting tools or in her smock pockets. In the end he was almost stalking her."

"In the end?"

"He was arrested on assault charges, something involving his ex-wife, that was about 18 months ago. We never heard anything about him after that."

"Do you remember his name?" He reached to his inside jacket pocket for his cellphone and dialed Cabal headquarters.

"Yes, uhm, Elliot, Elliot Chase."

"This is Julian 7, I need you to run a check for me - Chase, Elliot, arrested on assault charges approximately 18 months ago.......Thank you."

He pressed off and returned the phone to his pocket before looking back at Ann, she looked ready to collapse. "The assault charges were dropped and he was released, last week. They're trying to find a current address. It's late, why don't you go home and get some rest. I'm going to look through her mail, just in case there's some clue there. I'll inform you as soon as I know anything."

"I'd like to stay, but this has all been too much for one day. "

"Thank you for your help," he said as he watched to see her safely into her apartment before returning to the mail basket.

As he sorted the basket contents into piles on the coffee table, Julian was amazed at the amount of junk mail Arianna received. The expired sale fliers he put into the dustbin, but the pile of catalogues and envelopes addressed to occupant was still the largest. About halfway through the basket he needed a break. Rubbing the back of his neck and stretching his back, he looked at the VCR clock, it read 2:15am.

In the kitchen, he put some water in her electric teapot and plugged it into the outlet. In just a few minutes the appliance turned itself off and he poured the boiling water into a mug. There was no milk in the flat, so he'd have to settle for his cup of tea her way, black with sugar.

He wandered into her bedroom and took a sip, without milk it was much too hot and burned his tongue. Setting the mug down on the dresser, he opened her closet door. Every hanger held an outfit that stirred a memory. Her red wool suit with the tailored jacket and long, side slit, skirt. He could see her wearing it in San Francisco on their first assignment, when she'd bluffed their way into the boardroom at TIA. The soft, nubbly, mint green turtleneck she'd quickly put on for the early morning flight to Paris. And the long black dress with the rust and gold jacket he remembered from the charity reception. As he ran his hand over the soft nap of the fabric, he closed his eyes and could almost feel her body against his when they'd danced the night away.

*This is getting you nowhere Julian* he chided himself. Picking up his tea, he went back to sort through the rest of her mail. By 4am, he could barely keep his eyes open but the sorting was finished. It turned out to have been a waste of time. Going back to her bedroom, he lay down on the bed and buried his face in her pillow. After barely two hours of sleep, his cellphone woke him. Research had found a current address for Elliot Chase, and the police had been persuaded to issue an all points bulletin to bring him in for questioning.

* * *

Arianna had never been so hungry, or thirsty, before. Her lips felt dry and cracked, but thinking about it just made it seem worse. Her grandfather's old traveling game had kept her mind off it for awhile. But after she'd made mental lists of animals, flowers, men's names, women's names, and movies beginning with every letter of the alphabet it was growing tiresome.

As a last resort, she started recalling song lyrics. All through school, studying had always been a chore, but even now, when she heard a song she really liked, the words were never hard to memorise, and some of them read like poetry as she softly hummed the music. One of the songs from a CD in Julian's collection was already in her memory, but considering her current predicament, the words of Sarah McLachlan's 'Possession' were a bit frightening.

Trying to think of a different song to calm herself, she remembered a rather obscure show she'd gone to with Mercy Lonejack the first time she'd been to a West End theatre. It was a bit strange to see a musical version of Around the world in 80 days, but one song from it had touched her like no other.

'You won't hear me sigh, when we say goodbye
I won't find it hard to forget
memories will fade, quicker than the shade
and I won't waste a day in regret ......and yet.

In the depth of night, I'll be thinking of her
walking where it's light, with the sunshine on her face
but in a place, so far .... away from here.

And when it grows light, she'll be sleeping softly
in the depth of night, with the moonlight on her hair
and that is where, my thoughts .... will stray from here

In the light of day, there are distractions
of another world that may, have it's attractions
there'll be other roads to take, and different plans to lay
and others who will make the night seem .... bright as day.

And in the depth of night,

it won't matter who was wrong, and who was right,
for there'll be no fiery spark, to spoil the dark .... in the depth of night.

By the early morning glow,
where nothing looks the same

I'll find it's time to go and play it safe again.

Still in the depth of night
I'll recall her eyes, both angry and alight
and I think one may surmise
I'll miss those eyes in the depth of night.

Gives way to dawn and in it's brightening
one can banish the forlorn, as quick as lightning
but in the very moment when, the night time falls again
until the early light comes creeping, someone somewhere won't be sleeping.

In the depth of night, I may wonder what she's doing in the light
and from time to time if she, might think of me, in the depth of night.'

Laying down to try and sleep again, she thought of Julian, and tried to imagine what he was doing in the light.

* * *

One call from the Quartermaster was all it took to convince the homicide detective he should allow Julian into the cheap hotel room they were searching.

The officer at the door handed him a pair of latex gloves when the detective nodded his okay.

"I don't know what you think you're going to find. We've already been over everything," the lieutenant shook his head.

Julian looked at him coldly as a uniformed officer came from the next room with a brown scrapbook. "We found this under the mattress boss."

"Is this her?" he asked as he opened the book and showed it to Julian. The pages were covered with candid shots of Arianna, taken when she was walking on the street, sitting in restaurants, working in art class, and through the windows of her flat. Her hair was longer, about chin length, with short bangs. All the pictures must have been from before he'd met her.

"Yes, that's Arianna, these pictures are at least a year old."

The detective picked up the phone. "This is all we need to bring him down, and this time we can make the charges stick." He turned to speak into the phone, "Tommy, we've got what we need on Chase, I'm bringing it in. He what? Oh that's just great, now we're right back where we started. Yeah same to you, " he slammed the phone down and turned to Julian with a disgusted look on his face. "Chase was spotted buying roses at a florist uptown, when two officers confronted him, he tried to run - across 5th Avenue - in front of a bus. He was dead on the scene. If he had your girl, I don't see how the hell we're gonna find her now."

Julian ran his hand through his hair and asked, "Can I stay here awhile longer?" as the detective and his officers moved to leave the rooms.

"Okay," the lieutenant shrugged. "I'll leave one of my guys to close up when you're done."

There wasn't much in the room to look at, just the usual furniture found in most of the rent by the hour hotels in this part of the city. In the wastebasket he found the torn remains of several bills. Kneeling down to lay the torn squares out on the threadbare carpet, he began to match the bits together, reconstructing the pages one by one. There wasn't anything remarkable in the rubbish but he had an odd feeling as he found the last piece of an invoice from one of those store-it-yourself places in Yonkers. If Chase had been in jail the past 18 months, why would he have recently added a new unit to his rental. Leaving the apartment, he handed the invoice scraps to the uniformed officer and asked him to give them to the lieutenant.

Yonkers was over 50 miles away, but in spite of the late morning traffic, he found the address in less than an hour. It was a dead end road next to the interstate. A big painted sign hanging on the chain link fence read 'U-PAY-U-STORE 280 select units available'. He drove around the perimeter of the deserted place, it was a large open lot with seven long rectangular cinderblock buildings. The long sides of each building had twenty numbered steel roll up doors, each fastened with heavy padlocks. He parked at the low number end of building 1.

When he got out of the car, the hairs at the back of his neck tingled. It was the same feeling he'd had at the museum in Cambridge, she was somewhere nearby. Walking past the numbered doors, he tried to focus on the feeling but it was still too vague to be able to pinpoint her location. As he turned the corner after door #1-20, suddenly the strange sensation was stronger. By the time he reached door #3-4, he could sense the hopeless fear in her.

"Arianna are you in there?" he pounded on the door.

She whimpered in her dream. * The enemy was pounding on her chamber door, ready to break through at any moment. Everyone else in the castle must have been taken prisoner, or killed. Moving to the window, she looked down at the stone courtyard far below. She might survive the fall, but wouldn't be able to run away. Suddenly she heard the wooden door start to crack behind her and looked up to see Julian reining his big black horse to a stop right below her window. "Arianna jump."*

He thought he heard something inside. With one shot from his pistol, the padlock fell to the ground. He raised the door without thinking how bright the afternoon sun would be to someone kept in the dark for over 24 hours.

She put her arm up to shield her eyes as she saw his outline against the brightness of the doorway and burst into tears. Her last dream had come true. In an instant, he was holding her tight against him, shading her face with his body and softly stroking her hair. "Oh, thank God you're alright, the police found your car with a body in it, they thought you were dead." His voice sounded shaky and she could feel the enormous flood of his emotions pouring out as her arms wrapped around his chest.

"Oh Julian," she sobbed, "how did you find me?"

"I spent last night going through the mail at your flat. Do you really read all of it?" She shook her head, no. "There was a message on the answering machine, and Ann remembered Elliott Chase." He felt her tense at the mention of that name. "Don't worry, he'll never be able to bother you again." He brushed the hair from her eyes, while the sound of sirens echoed off the concrete walls.

"I didn't think I was ever going to see you, or the daylight again," she whimpered as he hugged her and softly rubbed her back.

"Sssssh, it's all over, you're safe now." When she looked up at him, he wiped her tears away with his thumbs and took her face in both hands, gently kissing her dry lips.

"Looks like you found her," the detective interrupted when he reached the open door. Her eyes were still not fully adjusted to the brightness, but improving when they moved out of the storage locker. "Do you want me to call the paramedics?" he asked.

"No, I'm alright," she stumbled against Julian. "Just take me home please?"

"If you need her for questioning in a few days, you know where we'll be," Julian said to the detective, in a tone that emphasised the words 'few days'.

They stopped at the first convenience store/rest area they passed and he bought her a large bottle of orange juice. Nursing it slowly, she finished it as they reached the house in Hastings. Julian turned off the engine, and let out a deep sigh of relief to have her back.

"I had a surprise planned for you when you came home, but I don't think you'll like it now."

"What was it?" she asked.

"You'll see, inside."

When he opened the door, she saw the candles and flower on the set table and her breath caught in her throat. He'd planned a romantic dinner.

"Oh Julian, I love it."

"Do you want to rest before dinner?"

"No, I slept too much in that dark hole. Right now, I just want to take a hot shower and eat, I'm starving."

"I'll make dinner while you get cleaned up." He kissed her lightly and pushed her gently toward the stairs.

When she passed his bedroom, and saw her white sleeping gown in a ball atop the rumpled covers and smiled. *He'd thought of everything* Picking it up, she suddenly could sense how exhausted and drained he felt. Hanging it on the hook at the back of the bathroom door, she undressed and put on her terry robe.

The tub in his master bath wasn't quite as big as the one at the Imperial Hotel in Paris, but it would fit two quite comfortably. She put in a capful of jasmine bath oil and turned the tap on to start filling it with hot water, then went back down to the kitchen. He was just standing there, staring blankly into the refrigerator when she came up from behind and wrapped her arms around him.

"You can ring Star of Siam to deliver later," she whispered. "I'm calling in your offer to wash my back for me."

Next Chapter: One More Try

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