thorneinlondon

Thorne in London

Continuing Toni & Terry Thorne in

the sequel to

The Alpha & Omega At The House of Four Seasons

By Atonia Walpole

Part One:

Toni did not relax until they were actually in the air. She was so worried about Terry’s passport and identification. So far he passed inspection but there was England on the other end. Terry didn’t seem worried about it at all.

“It’s valid, Toni. The only thing I have to worry about is not running out of places for them to stamp. They don’t like to see that many stamps. Brings you under suspicion.”

Toni lay her head back on the seat and closed her eyes, hoping she would go to sleep and wake on the other end. She’d never liked flying. Terry did the same but sleep was eluding him. He felt like he was flying home but had no idea what awaited him or, more to the point, what did not.

They took a train into London and from Victoria Station a taxi to the hotel where he’d made reservations. At least the hotel existed. Mark one up on the positive side. He got them checked in and their bags to their room.

“What do you want to do, Terry?” Toni was tired but she was up for whatever he wanted.

“Sleep. I saw you sleeping on the plane.” He set a suitcase up on the luggage rack and opened it.

“If you saw me that means you didn’t sleep. Am I right?”

“You’re right. Too much running through my mind.”

Toni was investigating the in-room tea and coffee service.

“Don’t drink that stuff, luv, order up…room service. Are you hungry?”

“No, I’m not sure what meal to eat anyway. I just thought a cup of coffee or tea.” She began taking things out of their bags and hanging them up.

Terry picked up the phone and ordered coffee and tea and buns.

She smiled and ran her hand down his arm. “I’m in your world now. You’ll have to lead me around.”

“I’m not sure if it’s my world or not. I know things about this city, or think I do.”

“There were no problems getting us here. I think you’re worrying too much about this, Terry. What is it you hope to find?”

“Something that I remember to be true.”

Toni closed the suitcase. “Something in particular or just in general?” She thought about the son.

“Anything at this point, anything. I’m a man with memories, Toni, and I may find that none of them ever happened, nothing before you was real.”

“And if that’s what you find out, then what?”

“At least I will know and I can start from there.”

“You’re already making memories, Terry.”

“I know, luv, with you.” He kissed her then broke away at a knock on the door. Room service with a tray.

The coffee and tea revived them enough to take showers and change clothes. Terry took her out on the streets and they walked.

He stopped in front of a tall building. “This is where I worked, in this building. Luthan Risk International. I was a K&R operative. But of course it isn’t LRI, is it?” But the building was there and as he looked around the area it was familiar to him. Toni slipped her hand into his and they walked a little farther and caught a taxi. He gave an address to the driver and was taken to a high-rise apartment building.

“I lived here. Had a rather nice flat up there on the fifth floor. It overlooked the river.”

“Do you want to go up and see if it’s there?”

“Yes, I do. I know it’s a valid address because it’s on my passport and driving permit.” They took the elevator to the fifth floor and he knew exactly where he was going. 510 said the plaque on the door.

“You don’t have a key. What are you going to do, knock?”

“I never had a key. You see, it’s a touch pad. I made up my own code.” He tried it and the door opened. Toni stepped back in the hallway, not understanding how this could be. He walked into the flat.

“Terry!” She ran in after him, suddenly frightened.

“What is it, luv?”

“I don’t know! How this can be? I’m afraid of…I don’t know what.”

“There is nothing here, Toni, to be afraid of.” He’d lived here for five years, he knew that, prior to going to Tecala. He walked over to the large expanse of glass that overlooked the Thames. The flat was rather Spartan but he never collected clutter. He’d bought it furnished. It was a nice flat, an expensive flat.

Toni walked around, checking it out, then moved over to him. “Nice view. This was never shown in the movie, was it?”

“No, it wasn’t. I guess it was back story for Terry Thorne.”

“This is something real, Terry. I don’t understand how it is but…this is your flat, right? These are your things?”

“Yeah, not very exciting, is it?”

“You weren’t here very often, were you?”

“No, not very.” He turned and walked into the bedroom, finding clothes in the closet he remembered wearing, socks in the drawer.

Toni noticed there were no photos or anything sitting about. The kitchen was bare except for a roll of paper towels. Being nosey, she checked the cupboards. They were empty except for dishes. She found the knife and fork drawer, pots and pans.

Terry, meanwhile, went into the second bedroom used as an office and opened a file drawer where he knew he kept his papers. He found what he was looking for and sat down at his desk. He didn’t understand this anymore than Toni did. He had the deed to the flat in his hand. He was almost afraid to look further in the drawer. There should be divorce papers, his son’s school receipts.

Toni found him staring at the wall with the folder in his hand. “Terry?” He handed her the deed. She looked in the folder and understood what it was. “We left all the magic behind. I don’t understand.”

“Neither do I. I didn’t expect to find this, Toni. There should be other things in the drawer, my divorce, my son’s papers.”

Toni sat down in a chair. He looked so very tired. “Darling, where were you when you knew, when Jack summoned you?”

He looked at her. “I was in a taxi on my way here. I was coming home to pack. I got out of the taxi somewhere on the street below and the next thing I knew I was walking up the driveway to the house.”

“You told me you went through a transition. What was that?”

“It was more of a realization that something was real. When I got out of the taxi I caught my jacket on the door handle. There was something sharp. I remember it pricked my finger and I bled a drop of blood. I didn’t think anything of it at first and then I knew and I was on the drive.”

“It was the blood and you were downstairs when you passed through whatever it was…”

“To become a real human being, a real person, and not somebody’s character in a movie. Maybe that accounts for this flat, but whether anything else is real....”

“We’ll have to find out but not today, Terry. We’re both tired.”

“I’m sorry, luv. Let’s go find a meal. What time is it, anyway?”

“Six thirty according to my watch.”

“There used to be a good pub on the corner. Want to find out if it’s still there?” he smiled, closing the door to the file cabinet.

“Yes, a pub sounds good, and then a good long sleep.”

“I wouldn’t attach any significance to this. There’s always a pub on the corner,” he smiled as they entered the pub and found a seat.

“Are you okay, darling?” She reached over and put her hand over his and he picked it up, kissing it.

“I’m apples. A little tired, that’s all. We’ll eat and go back to the hotel.”

Toni thought about his flat. “I was thinking…we could move into the flat if you’d like to.”

“You’re not asking me to move tonight?”

“Oh, no! I’m not asking you to move at all. I just thought you might want to.”

“You know what I want? To feed you, ply you with English pints and take you back to the hotel and take advantage of the situation.”

“Ah, hah! The man who never asked for anything is now…”

“You might be surprised at what I want.

“I would be. You couldn’t even tell me what you wanted for brekkie.”

“I want a lot more than brekkie, Toni. I want to make you happy, to make a life for us somewhere. I want to do something, contribute somehow to this life I’ve been given.”

“You will. I know you. My, but you’ve gone all serious!” Their pints arrived with a menu. They made their selections and Terry told the waitress to bring another round.

“I haven’t finished this one!”

“Yeah, but by the time she gets back the glass will be empty and there’s nothing worse than sitting in a pub with an empty glass. Toni, it’s been a good day, cause for a little celebration. We have a flat in London.”

“And I am married to the most wonderful man.”

“Are you just finding that out?” he smiled and squeezed her hand.

Part 2:

The next morning after having breakfast in the hotel dining room, they checked out of the hotel and took a taxi to his flat. Toni unpacked and as she did she examined his clothes in the closets, checking his pockets. Most were still in the dry cleaning bags and those she left alone, but she did find an airline ticket stub in the pocket of one of his jackets. He’d flown from Ecuador to London. She placed it on the dresser and opened the drawers. Everything was neatly folded and arranged. She added their clothes and closed it up. She was still lost in the mystery of his life.

Terry hung up the phone. He’d been on the line with the bank. All records of the transfer of money he’d made last year at the house should be online now. He still had an account set up to take care of his expenses. A deposit had been made to that account when he returned from Tecala. He ran his hand over his face. Only there was no such place as Tecala. That was a fictional country created for the movie. LRI was a fictional company and yet they paid him for his time in a place that technically did not exist.

“Are you winning?’ she asked, leaning in the doorway.

“Yes and no. It may always be that way, Toni.” He told her about the bank and the deposit.

“I found a ticket stub in one of your jackets where you’d flown from Ecuador to London.”

“Traces of a life not really lived. He looked down at the other two folders on his desk. I haven’t, um, looked into anything else yet.”

Toni glanced at the folders. She knew what they were. “There was a little grocery up the street. I thought I might go and pick up a few essentials. Do you want to go or do you trust me on my own?”

“I trust you, luv. I’ll be here.” He met her eyes and she came over and kissed him softly and smiled.

“I’ll go then. Back soon.” Toni found her purse and left the flat.

He picked up the phone, dialed the number he knew by heart and waited. On the fourth ring it was answered by a man.

“Terry Thorne. Is, ah, Liddy there?”

“Liddy? No, she’s meeting some friends. Terry, this is Frank. Haven’t heard from you in a while.”

“I’ve been out of the country. What time do you think she might be back?”

“I’d say around three.”

“I’ve a new cell number.” Terry gave him the number and after exchanging a few pleasantries, hung up.” What would he say to her when she called? He remembered Frank Barstow, her fourth husband. He felt for the guy. If Liddy was real then so was Henry. There was a gladness in his heart mixed with apprehension. How many years had passed, if any? It was a time issue now. He’d spent four seasons with Toni. Four years if that meant anything in the fucking time warp he found himself in. He was getting a headache and fingered the scar above his eye. That had been real enough. He still had the scar, something the house never took away.

He looked down in the bottom of his desk drawer and took out the framed photo of his son, setting it on his desk. He had hopes of establishing some kind of relationship with him now, maybe even get to know the young man. He placed a call to his school and, as was procedure, left a number for Henry to call him back. Unless it was an emergency they would not put him on the phone. He thought about Toni. How would she react to the fact he did have a sort of life here? He had an ex-wife and a son. He studied the photo for a minute. Henry looked like his mother. Probably a good thing he reckoned. He heard a knock on the door.

Toni had struggled with the two large canvas bags for a block and a half then dumped them on the floor in the hallway. Terry was going to have to give her the code to get in.

“What all have you bought?” Terry picked up her bags and carried them to the kitchen.

“Well, I was only going for coffee and tea things but I went on a bit of a shopping spree.” She set her shoulder bag on the counter.

“They will deliver, luv.”

“I didn’t know that, did I? Next time I'll ask them to.” She began unloading the bags and Terry leaned against the counter.

“Something else is real, Toni, my son Henry.” He watched her face

“Oh, Terry, I'm so glad! I knew that was in your mind.”

“You never said.”

“I know and neither did you. Have you talked to him?”

“No, I called his school and left word for him to contact me. That’s the way it’s done. I didn’t know how you would feel about that.”

“You should know. I love you, Terry, and anything or anyone to do with you is important to me.”

“It may complicate things for us. I intend to make time for him, something I’ve not done while he was growing up.”

“How old is he?”

“Thirteen, I think. That’s something else I don’t know, how much time has passed here. I’m thinking we had four seasons. That’s four years but he’s still at the same school, had the same number, same head master.”

“You have plenty of time, Terry, to participate in his life, all the time you want. I’m looking forward to meeting him. I’ve wondered about the time thing myself. I thought I was at the house for six years and during that time I lost my grandmother.”

“That was last year.”

“You remember the year I went back to the house in spring before you came in the fall? I’d written her a letter before I left. I found it in her things in the bedroom. It was dated last year, 2008. I think we must have been living on Magic time.”

He looked at her a moment. “I’m glad that’s over. I never understood it, never liked it.”

“But I have you. Something good came out of it, Terry.”

“I didn’t mean it like that. You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Toni. In more ways than one I couldn’t live without you.” He pulled her to him and hugged her tight.

She wiped her eyes. “Whew, I think we need to put the kettle on. Where is it, Terry?”

He blinked his wet eyes. “Should be under here.” He pulled out an electric kettle from under the counter and filled it. “There’s something else, too. I have an ex-wife. Her name is Liddy Barstow now. She’s on her fourth marriage. I called and left a message with her husband, Frank.”

“You’re full of surprises today,” she smiled.

“Yeah, well, I couldn’t have a kid without an ex.”

Later over a coffee at the table, Toni had a few questions. “Spending time with Henry is going to mean spending time in London.”

“Is that going to be a problem for you?”

“Not necessarily, but I would like to know where I’m to hang my hat, so to speak.”

“We’ll figure that out, Toni. I don’t know myself and it might depend on where I find work. We have a place here and one in the states. Maybe we can divide our time up somehow.”

“I once said I would go anywhere to be with you. I mean that.”

His phone went off, and Toni listened to the one-sided call. It was Henry and Terry was letting him know he was in London and wanted to see him. He had to explain that. It wasn’t a long conversation.

“He has a game coming up, last one. I missed all the rest. Would you mind going to a football game on Saturday?”

Saturday they were due to fly back to Virginia, but she let it go. “I would love to come.”

He hadn’t forgotten. “I’ll call the airline and get our tickets changed. Another week?”

“Another week will be fine. Maybe you can take me sightseeing? My first time in England, you know.”

“I’ll do that,” he smiled.

Liddy called him around 4:00. He told her he was back in London and asked about Henry. It was another short conversation but he did tell her he was married. She’d been surprised but happy for him. Perhaps they could meet for a drink sometime.

Toni was dreaming she was back at the House of Four Seasons. She was in his bed, could feel his hands on her, and she moaned in her sleep. She breathed in his scent, knew that touch so well. He was here…Terry…she moaned again, whispering his name. She felt his tongue on her lips and opened her eyes. He moved on top of her and took her.

“Mmmm,” she murmured against his neck when he rolled her over with him. “You’re a pervert, Terry.”

“No,” he kissed her, “I like to play with you.”

“When I’m asleep?”

“Sleeping, waking…all the time. I’m going to run. Stay where you are.” She grabbed his pillow and pulled it to her, watching him dress in shorts and a tank top from half- opened eyes. He had such a beautiful body. She smiled, feeling like a cat in cream. The door closed and she drifted back to sleep.

He ran the track he knew so well, down to the bridge and across to what used to be an old warehouse district but now an up and coming neighborhood, past the coffee shops and pubs, the little boutiques that had sprung up. It was almost as though he had never left, never been to the house. But the woman he left in bed was proof of that. An hour later he was running back across the bridge, racing the sunrise.

Part 3:

“It’s the only way to get around other than the underground,” Terry said of the taxi.

“You never had a car?”

“Not in London. If I needed one, I would hire a car. You have to understand I was mostly driven, company car and driver. There is a parking problem here of unknown proportions.”

“What is this place?” she asked when they were on the sidewalk in front of an unassuming brick building.

“I knew it as Vanguard. Whether that’s a real name or not I don’t know, but I do know the company exists. I’m just going to have a poke around.” He turned, raising a brow.

“What kind of company is it, Terry,” Her suspicions were.growing.

“Insurance business,” he smiled. Toni narrowed her eyes.

Toni sat in the visitor’s room leafing through magazines while Terry went through the receptionist, another office manager, to a secretary, who sent him to someone else to talk to. After a brief conversation an appointment was made for him to come back on Tuesday for an interview.

He came back into the visitor’s lounge feeling pretty good about it all. Toni looked up from her magazine. “You don’t look like an insurance salesman, Terry Thorne.”

“Ah, but looks can be deceiving.” He took her hand, pulling her out of the seat.

“Yes, they certainly can…deceiving, that is.”

“Come on, I’ll show you where the Queen lives.”

Back out on the sidewalk, she said, “Terry, we’ve had conversations about this. After what we’ve been through I can’t lose you in some far off jungle somewhere.”

“Hmm, I don’t think they have a branch in Faroff, Jungle.”

“You know what I mean!” She picked up her pace to keep up with him.

He pulled her over to the side of a building out of pedestrian traffic. “Listen, luv, I am not looking to go back into the field. My days of dangling off the side of helicopters in a rain of bullets is over. I’m thirty-eight years old. It’s time I looked at another angle. I’m looking at consulting or at least being the inside guy, the nine to fiver. I’ve already fucked up one marriage and one child. I feel like I’ve been given a second chance here. I won’t make the same mistakes again.”

“We’d be living in London?”

“Not necessarily. Everything is done by satellite now, phones, computers. I’ve not been hired, Toni, only granted an interview for Tuesday.”

Slightly mollified she accompanied him down the street. He was so good with words but she wasn’t sure she trusted him this time. She couldn’t imagine he would be satisfied sitting behind a desk 9 to 5.

He understood how it was for her. She’d spent all that time at the house and when he was with her it was playtime. The house in Virginia was much the same except for the magic. He needed to work. He had experience to offer and a desire to be of help to somebody other than himself.

One thing he’d found out was that Dino did not exist. All the phone numbers and email addresses he thought he had for him were not operable. That saddened him. He’d been a good friend and somebody he knew would watch his back in any situation, somebody he would lay his life down for...and he wasn’t real.

Tecala wasn’t real, either, and nothing that happened there had really gone down, including Alice Bowman. For that he was grateful, but he still remembered it as though it had happened. He had no friends and there was no one he could talk to about any of this except Toni. He felt she had enough to deal with right now and so he didn’t burden her with his thoughts.

A few phone calls back and forth and they arranged to meet his ex-wife, Liddy, and her husband, Frank, for drinks at a pub. It was a trendy place he noticed in her neighborhood. He’d had to practically dress Toni. She’d cried she hadn’t brought enough clothes, the right clothes, had nothing to wear out. He told her it was his ex wife not the Queen of England she was going to meet and he pulled out a simple black sheath that showed off her tits. He particularly liked her in that little dress.

“Liddy.” He took her hands and leaned over, kissing her on the cheek. She’d swiveled her bar seat around, watching for them to come in.

“Terry, you’re looking well. Only a small scar I see.”

Terry turned to Toni. “This is my wife, Toni.”

“Liddy, how nice to meet you.” Toni extended her hand and it was caught in both of Liddy’s.

“I'm so glad he finally found someone. You’re very attractive,” she smiled.

Toni thought she was, too, short blond hair tucked behind her ears and dark brows.

“Where’s Frank?” Terry asked.

“Gone to the little boy’s. Sit down. We saved these seats.”

Terry ordered their drinks and Frank came over. “Hi ya, Terry, good to see you.” He shook hands. “This must be Toni. I’m Frank Barstow.”

“Frank,” Toni smiled. He was a tall, dark-haired man with a little gray at the temples, still attractive.

Toni watched Liddy, listening to her talk and laugh. This was a woman who had loved Terry, given him a child, a woman he had once loved.

Terry was laughing with Frank about something. “Ah, you were lucky there, Frank.”

“Bloody hell! Luck had nothing to do with it!” he replied.

“What do you do, Toni. Do you work?” Liddy looked at her intently.

“I’m a writer but currently not writing. I worked for a local magazine in Boston and took some time off.”

“I’m not working, either, but I got made redundant. Tell me, where did you meet Terry?”

Toni had been afraid this was going to come up. “I met him in New England.”

“Really? I had no idea he was in the States. When was this?”

Using her letter to her grandmother as reference, Toni explained, “About a year ago. He was there for awhile and we met.”

Liddy turned to Terry. “You’re going to have to do better about letting me know where you are. I had no idea you were in North America.”

Terry glanced at Toni. “You could have reached me by phone anywhere in the world. I was also in South America. Did I tell you that?”

“No, but then you don’t tell me anything. Never did.”

“A need to know basis, right, Terry? That’s what I do,” Frank interjected.

“Right, need to know.” He took a drink from his pint.

“Henry has a game Saturday.” Liddy looked over the rim of her cocktail glass.

“I know. I spoke to him a couple of days ago. We plan to go.”

“Have you met our son?” she asked Toni.

“I’ve not met Henry but will on Saturday. I’m looking forward to it.”

“I hope to spend a little more time with him now.” Terry moved to Toni’s chair.

“What about your world travels? Have you quit your job?” Liddy asked.

“Yes, I have.”

Liddy’s eyes widened.

“Good for you, Terry! Wish I could do that.” Frank drained his pint and set it on the bar for another.

“Where do you work, Frank?” Toni asked.

“BA, British Airways.”

“That’s why Henry wants to be a pilot,” Terry remarked, setting his glass up for a refill.

“It isn’t, you know.” Liddy finished her drink. “Royal Air Force is where he wants to go.”

“I’m no pilot. I’m in the financial division,” Frank added.

“We should get together sometime since we’re both redundant, have lunch or go shopping.” Liddy looked at Toni.

“I’d like that,” Toni answered. “I’m not sure how long we will be here.”

“I thought you were back.” Liddy looked at Terry.

“That depends. We’re living at Toni’s estate in Virginia right now but that may change. Depends on where I have to go to work.”

“Ah, so you’re looking for a job.” Frank handed him his fresh pint. “Not so easy to find anything right now.”

“Oh, but he specializes.” Liddy picked up her drink.

“He’s also able to work from home if it comes to that,” Toni added and finished her own drink.

Liddy sipped her drink. “Not the kind of work he does.”

“We’ll see. I’m not looking to go back into the field.” Terry took a drink, noticed Toni’s was empty, and ordered her another.

“Ooh, Toni, you must have a big influence on him.” Liddy turned around.

“I hope so,” she replied.

“She does,” Terry added.

Frank drained his glass and set it down. “I hate to break up this little reunion but Liddy and I have reservations for dinner.”

“I’d almost forgotten. Won’t you join us?” she asked Toni.

“Some other time. Thanks for asking,” Toni smiled.

Terry breathed a sigh of relief.

After they left Terry pulled a chair up by Toni and sat down. “We haven’t done anything about dinner.”

“Are you hungry, in a hurry for it?”

“No, not especially.”

“How long were you and Liddy married?”

“Six years and, all in al,l I probably spent about three at home.”

“Is that what broke you up?”

“Bottom line, yes, it was. We never really settled into a life. I was always coming and going. I was still a soldier when we married and when I got out I went to work for Luthan. There were many, many long absences. She got tired of it. I don’t blame her.”

“How old was Henry when you divorced?”

“Three.”

“You’ve been single for ten years.”

“I’ve been alone for ten years. Until I met you, that is. Are you going to finish that?”

“I don’t think so. Want to leave?”

“Yeah, let’s walk.”

Part 4:

Toni sensed there was something bothering Terry. She thought it might have to do with what he was finding to be real and not. It was not an easy thing for him to deal with. One night he was going to take her to a restaurant he knew and it wasn’t there. They’d ended up with fish and chips on a park bench, which suited her, but it really bothered him. He could take nothing for granted.

Saturday morning they got ready to go to his son’s school. He hired a car for the day and drove out of the city towards St. Albans.

“It’s beautiful here, Terry.” She was admiring the scenery.

“England is a great country once you get out of the cities. When you’re in London you could be anywhere, New York, Tokyo, Milan, Paris. Tehey’re all just big cities with traffic and too many people.”

“Only the language and customs are different?”

“That’s it. Many times I would wake up in a hotel room and forget where I was until I looked out of the window and sometimes even that didn’t spark a clue.”

“You’ve spent way too many nights in hotel rooms. It’s good we have the flat.”

Terry glanced at her and then back at the road before him.

It was only after the game that Terry stepped down the seats and walked out to the edge of the field to congratulate his son for a game well played. Toni noticed the body language and kept back, giving them time to talk for a minute. When he turned to look for her, she walked up to meet his son.

He was a tall boy, blond like his mother and with her eyes, his features still young and unformed, but he had his father’s smile.

“Hi, what do I call you?” he asked.

“Call me Toni. I’m very happy to meet you.”

“Yeah, me, too.”

“I’m glad we got to see you play. I understand this was your last game.”

“Yeah, and we won.”

“That’s the way to end it,” she smiled.

He smiled back.

“How old are you? You’re nearly as tall as your father.”

“Fourteen now.”

Toni glanced at Terry.

“We’re going to be here for at least another week, Henry. I thought we might come and get you for the weekend, if you don’t have any other plans.” Terry spoke to him.

“Well, Mom was going to take me and Peter…”

“Take you where?” he asked.

“To the RAF Museum.”

“I could do that. If I call her and arrange it, would that be okay?”

“You would?"

“Yes, I would. We would love to do that.”

“Okay, I guess. Thank you, sir.”

Toni had to look away.

“Saturday. We’ll pick you and your friend Peter up around 9:00.”

“Okay..well, I got to go now and get cleaned up. Having dinner with Mom and Frank.”

“Yeah, sure, Henry. Great game!” he called after him.

Toni kept her head down on the way to the car, not wanting him to see the tears in her eyes.

“He’s a great kid,” Terry finally said.

“Yes, he is.” She bit her lip.

He stopped by the car and turned her around. “What…what is it?”

“You gave him up for me, when we didn’t know…how could you do that?”

Something cold went through him. “I didn’t think any of this would be real, Toni. Nothing was real but you. I've seen Henry maybe twice a month, if that, in years…years. He doesn’t even know who I am.”

“If you hadn’t come back to London, if we hadn’t made this trip…Terry, what…?”

“That’s why it was so important for me to come. I had to know. I didn’t expect to find anything, Toni.”

“Oh, God, Terry! I wasn’t worth it!”

“You’re worth everything to me, everything!” He pulled her into his arms. “If I found nothing and had you, that would have been enough. Don’t you understand that?”

Toni regained her composure, aware people were returning to the car park. “Let’s go.”

“Toni?” He wouldn’t let go of her.

She looked up into his eyes. “I love you so, Terry! If there is anything I can do for you, I will. I’ll be right here with you, right beside you. I love you and anyone who is a part of you. Please, let’s go.”

He released her and opened her door.

“Think about where we were then, Toni. When you asked me about my son I told you I had lost him a long time ago. He talks to me like a stranger, somebody he met on the ball field. If he never saw me again it wouldn’t bother him.”

“That’s not true, Terry. He wants you. He knows who his father is. His mother is on her third husband since the divorce. He needs you. He has to be a part of your life from this day forward. I’ll make sure he is.”

He started the motor. “He may not want that.”

“Give him a chance. I think you will find he does.”

Terry went out for his run before daybreak the next morning and found the fog so thick he couldn’t see the ground in front of him so he walked along the river. There were some old pilings along the bank and he walked down and sat on one of them, lighting a cigarette. He hadn’t slept well last night. His mind was in turmoil. He knew Toni wanted to go home to Virginia but it looked like everything was pulling them here. Instead of flying out the next Friday he would have to put it off until Monday. Then there was the job interview. If he got it, what then? Once again he wished for somebody to talk to about it all.

He’d been staring at the ground around his feet, about the only thing he could see, and he dropped his cigarette, ground it out, and looked up. He could see the beginning of a dock and could have sworn it was not there before. He sat still and listened, oars in the water and muffled voices. He strained his eyes toward the river and stood up. Something was definitely on the water.

“Aye, and ye be careful there.” Terry recognized that voice…Bonden.

Soon he heard boots, the jangle of a sword and he shook his head. This could not be happening! He’d left all that behind…no…no!

The fog cleared enough on the dock for him to make out Jack Aubrey coming toward him. “Tell me this is not happening!” he said aloud.

“Ah, Terry, how good it is to see you.”

“What are you doing here?”

“Trying to stay out of sight until I can reach my club. I might ask you the same thing.”

“ I came out for a run and found it too foggy.”

“But you’re in London?”

“Yes, we came a little over a week ago.”

“And Toni, is she well?”

“She is very well.”

Jack looked at him for a moment. “You, I take it, are not.”

“Not completely, no.”

“Come, there may be a place along here where we may talk. Damned fog.”

Terry walked with him a way and into the doorway of an empty warehouse where they sat on a wooden bench.

“Jack, how is it you come to be here?”

“Ah, that is a story! It seems I am to be brought up on charges, some mismanagement of monies of which I am completely innocent. I’ve come to state my case.”

Terry looked at him a moment and moistened his lips. “I’ve been wanting to talk to someone and here you are. It’s uncanny.”

Jack cleared his throat. “I should tell you this, my brother. We will always have a connection, the four of us who were her seasons. If you are ever in need, someone will come.”

“I thought I was rid of all the magic.”

Jack smiled, “You will never be completely rid of us, I’m afraid, however we will not complicate your life.”

“It’s complicated enough.” Terry gave him a rundown of what had happened since they came to London. “I never know what is real and what isn’t. I can take nothing for granted. And the longer we stay, the more this place is holding us. I know she wants to go home.”

“But where is home? She has elected to make her home with you wherever you are. I do not see that you are bound to live in Virginia.”

“She has said that, yes.”

“Well then, man, believe her i,f she will live here. I think, Terry, you are holding onto the past. You are looking for it, and I quite understand the reason for it, but you are going to have to move forward. I am very surprised at what you have found here. Had you stayed in the taxi you would have been driven to the gates of the House. You went through the transition whilst still in the taxi. When you got out what was there was real and you were at your flat, so what was there has remained. Perhaps that will explain a few things for you.”

“I figured that out. I remember pricking my finger and it bled outside the door of my building.”

“Do not fret so. Take each day as it comes. If it is not familiar then make it so. If it is, pass it by, take it in stride. So you have a son. I, too, have a son and two daughters and I do not see them sometimes for months, as long as a year sometimes, but when I am home I am Papa.”

“Toni said she intended to make him a part of our lives. I know she’s right.”

“Indeed she is. You, my brother, have never been a Papa. That is something you must learn. Women have a way of seeing things where we do not. I would trust her judgment.”

“Will you come up to the flat?”

“Ah, no, I cannot. I can come to you but not to her. You should be glad,” he smiled.

“I believe I am. I think you’re right about me clinging to the past, to what I knew instead of looking forward. It’s not so easy, Jack.”

“No, it is not, but I have faith in you, Terry. You have no fear that I have ever detected. Move forward, my friend. Do not look back. Now I must go before the sun is up. I have secretly arrived to confront my accusers face to face. I think it may give me the advantage.”

“The weather gage,” Terry smiled.

“Indeed! Take care, my brother.” Jack hugged him and walked down the street, disappearing into the fog.

Terry stood and looked up. Somewhere up there the sun was trying to break through the mist. He didn’t wonder at the absurdity of Jack appearing. He’d come when he needed a man to talk to. He walked back to his flat and noticed the fog was lifting with each step he took. He thought he might go upstairs and wake Toni. Pervert she’d called him. He smiled at the thought.

ON TO THORNE IN MOTION

BACK TO THE ALPHA AND OMEGA

The story of the House of Four Seasons continues with a new resident:

ON TO A PAINTERLY EYE ARRIVES

BACK TO EARLY SPRING

BACK TO SNOW MELT

BACK TO INTO FALL

BACK TO SUMMER SEASONINGS, PART 1

BACK TO SPRING LOVE BLOSSOMS

BACK TO PART 1 OF WINTER SOLSTICE

BACK TO BONFIRE OF THE HEART

BACK TO ETERNAL SPRING