[This story was inspired in part on a lyric from the song "Seattle"—"Like a beautiful child growing up free and wild." It was also based on my childhood desire to be part of the show in some way. I couldn't have Jeremy; I would never dream of breaking up him and Candy. Joshua was a bit too reserved for my tastes, and Jason was a father figure. So I settled for the next best thing. Read on and you'll see.]
The young woman's heart beat fiercely as she approached the wharf, but as the tangy smell of the sea reached her she smiled. In her mind, it meant one thing. Freedom.
The day dawned grey and raw, which matched Jason Bolt's mood perfectly.
Joan stood at the rail of the Shamus O'Flynn as it plowed its way through the calm Pacific.
Joan hurried through toward the brides' dormitory, her hood drawn around her face, thankful that it was still too early for most of Seattle's citizens to be up and about.
Predictably, it was Biddie who broke the stunned silence. "Jeremy, I think you're a bit confused. You don't have a sister, remember?"
Once the door closed, the murmur of voices began again, but they were subdued. Jason sat at the table, silent and stone-faced, a hundred conflicting emotions running through his mind.
"Mr. Stempel?"
Jason and Joshua, both bone-tired and hungry, stabled their horses and walked over to Lottie's for breakfast. She took one look at their unshaven, dispirited faces and promptly placed two mugs of strong coffee on the table.
He pushed down the plunger without hesitation, and several of the brides screamed at the sound of a deafening explosion very close by.
The tiny jail nowhere near large enough to hold all of Abigail's mercenaries, not to mention the crew of the Midas Touch, so the church was turned into a temporary prison while the townspeople met in Lottie's and decided what to do with them all.