Someone You Know (In Between 8 and 9, PG)

[Shadow]

Disclaimer: Moonlight is not mine and no copyright infringement is intended.








IN BETWEEN
eight and nine






Someone You Know





The sky was dark rust, streaked with orange, and Mick stood silhouetted against it, looking out at the fading night. It was almost sunrise. Beth couldn’t help thinking of the day, not so long ago, when Mick had kissed her outside the hospital. In spite of the bright day he’d pushed his sunglasses aside, holding her tightly against him, losing himself in the kiss just as deeply as she had. But now he stood apart from her, stiff and uncertain, and he seemed to have closed himself off from her. How was I supposed to tell you? he’d asked, agonized, and she could imagine how difficult that would have been for him. But doesn’t he know that it’s all right with me? That I love him for saving me, that I love him for watching over me?

“First I murder my wife, then I stalk you,” he said, his voice ragged, and he put his hand to his face to brush away a tear. “It just gets better and better, huh?”

“No,” Beth said, shocked. How could he think of it as stalking? She’d found her guardian angel, and it was right, so right, that it was Mick, that her angel had always been Mick. She had to find some way to reach him, to make him understand what that meant to her. “I could have lived my life in fear,” she said, gazing steadily at him. “But somehow I always felt safe. Now I know why.”

Behind her the sun slid into a gap between buildings, and a sudden flash of light struck Mick’s face. He flung up his hand, blinking painfully, and she glanced back to look at the glow of sunrise. In her memory she saw the orange glow of a faraway fire; she saw Mick staring at it with tears running down his face.

Mick had told her that Coraline and Hank Mottola’s girlfriend had died the same way. In a fire. That woman was murdered, Beth had said.

So was Coraline, Mick had answered.

Beth remembered it now – her own small hands clutching Mick's jacket while he flung the lamp, the fire flaring, the dark shape of the woman disappearing within it. Mick had killed a woman he cared for – he’d killed his wife - in order to save Beth. And Beth was starting to remember everything that had happened that night. Mick coming into the room, lantern in hand, speaking to her so very gently. The terrifying tension between him and the woman in white. The fight, both of them with their faces changed, their movements too fast, too strange, a blur of motion in Beth’s eyes. Mick kneeling beside her, telling her that he was going to take her home. Mick holding her hand as they walked through the trees toward a little pond, where ducks paddled in the water or slept on the bank. Why, Beth wondered, had they been in the woods by a duck pond? She looked back at Mick. With his hand still held protectively in front of him, shading his face from the sun, he said, “Now you know why it can never work.”

Because we met when I was a child? Because we have a history I didn’t remember before? It couldn’t be impossible, not any more than it had ever been. Beth said quietly, “All I know is, ever since I met you . . . I’ve stopped using the word never.”

She’d been so worried, there by the pond, seeing her angel cry as if his heart had been broken. She’d put her arms around him to give him a hug, and he’d held her tightly in return, his tears falling into her hair. Now, standing in the sunrise, he was in just as much pain as he’d been then. How can I ease that pain? Beth walked toward him, putting one hand against his upraised one, resting the other on his shoulder, and touched her lips to his cheek in a gentle kiss. She was transfixed in that moment: a child in the night, holding her angel; a woman in the sun, giving a benediction to her love. Under her hand she felt a night-chilled leather jacket, a sun-warmed cotton shirt. A thank you kiss for my guardian angel. A promise of tomorrow for the man I love. All bound in this one touch of my lips. Slowly she moved away, lowering her hands, as Mick finally met her gaze. And she knew that she had done nothing to comfort him. Somehow, she had only brought him more pain. Oh, Mick, why is this hurting you so much? He was fighting back tears and she knew he was about to break down; she thought he might collapse where he stood, and fall at her feet. But instead he pulled away from her, as if it hurt him to be near her, and hurried away, disappearing inside through the roof door.

My guardian angel. Beth stood on the roof for a long time, thinking of how Mick had looked with the sunlight on his face. He’d looked just the same by the light of the lantern, on that long-ago night that she could now remember. He hadn’t aged a day. She’d realized that he must not have aged since 1952, but now that she remembered seeing him before, now that she knew, it felt so very different. She shivered, remembering how he’d fought with Shepherd, pale eyes and gleaming fangs and movements too fast to be believed. He’d fought Coraline the same way – Beth had seen it in her nightmares, but she hadn’t thought it could be a memory of anything real. Two vampires fighting. No wonder I didn’t believe it. She’d never truly seen Mick fight as a vampire, until tonight, and she hadn’t known how utterly inhuman he could appear.

Her file still rested on the wall, near her hand. Beth reached for it, opened it again, and looked at the pictures, but she didn’t see them. She saw only Mick. Mick, who had walked away from her, who had said, nearly in tears, Now you know why it can never work.

Beth’s own eyes burned with tears. She rubbed her sleeve across her face, pushed back her hair, and went down into the loft. There was no sign of Mick, but Audrey was sitting up on the couch, her arms wrapped around her knees. Beth went to sit beside her.

“I thought you were asleep,” she said.

“I did sleep for a little while,” Audrey said. “There’s a problem with sleep, though. You dream.”

Beth put her arm around Audrey. “Yes.”

“They executed Shepherd,” Audrey whispered. “I saw it happen. And he still came after me.”

“I told you,” Beth said softly. “When Mick checked the morgue, Shepherd’s body was gone. Someone must have made a mistake during the execution. Shepherd didn’t get a lethal dose.”

Audrey nodded, strained. “And I saw him die for real, by the elevator. But I’ve seen him die before, and I just can’t trust my eyes.”

“Then trust mine, and Mick’s. Shepherd is gone. He’ll never come after you again.”

“He didn’t even look human to me,” Audrey whispered. She swallowed, then said, “Neither did Mick.”

Beth felt herself freeze inside. Trying to reassure him, she’d told Mick that Audrey wouldn’t need explanations. And I believed that. Please, don’t let me have been wrong.

“The way they moved,” Audrey said. “It was too fast, it was wrong, no one could move like that.”

“Audrey, you were in shock. When that happens, nothing looks right. Everything moves too fast, or too slow.”

I’m in shock now, Beth thought, and I would be even if I hadn’t just been attacked by a psychotic vampire. So many memories, flooding over me. And I keep remembering more. Audrey’s in better shape than I am, by far. And Audrey, thankfully, seemed to believe that Beth’s explanation made sense.

“Everything did slow down when Shepherd killed my family,” Audrey said quietly. “I hid in that closet forever.” Beth could see Audrey thinking it through, accepting Beth’s judgment, and she let out a slow breath of relief. Then Audrey said, “Shepherd was going to kill us.”

Beth nodded. “If Mick hadn’t stopped him.”

“Mick won’t get in trouble, will he? With the police, I mean.”

“We didn’t call the police,” Beth said. Mick had called someone else, to take care of the body . . . and she didn’t really want to think about that. She thought instead of her attempt to call for help on the stairs, when she hadn’t been sure if Mick was even alive. Seeing Shepherd with Mick’s phone had nearly destroyed her; if not for Audrey, she might not have even fought back. Not that it would have done her any good to fight, if Mick hadn’t turned up after all.

“You didn’t?” Audrey looked startled.

“No. Audrey, listen. We shouldn’t tell the police, or anyone, anything about this. We need to keep this quiet forever.”

“But -- ”

“Shepherd’s gone now. He’ll never hurt anyone again. Telling the police what happened won’t help anyone, and it could be dangerous for Mick.”

“But we’d testify,” Audrey said. “That he did it to save our lives. It was self defense.”

“It would still be risky. And there’s just no reason to put him at risk. Please, Audrey.”

Audrey bit her lip, then looked up at Beth. “Mick has secrets, doesn’t he?”

Beth hesitated. “Yes.”

“They’re not anything that would harm anyone, are they?”

“No. Only Mick, if they came out.”

“Then I won’t say anything,” Audrey said decisively. “Not ever.”

Beth hugged Audrey, and held her gently. “Thank you,” she whispered. “Listen, do you want to come to my place? You could stay with me for a while.”

“I’d like to, but I’d better go to my grandmother. She’ll be worried about me.”

“I’ll give you a lift.”

“But I want to say goodbye to Mick first.”

Beth shook her head. “I don’t know where he is, or when he’ll come back. This was all really hard for him.”

Audrey frowned, reaching out to take Beth’s hand. “Something’s gone wrong between you, hasn’t it?”

“Not really,” Beth said, after a moment. Something’s wrong, but I don’t know what. Why is Mick so devastated by this, by me remembering the past? “It’s complicated,” she told Audrey. That much, at least, was certain.
















The woman was wearing black now, descending the spiral staircase in slow measured steps, and Beth huddled on the floor by the bookcase, trying to make herself even smaller than she was. “Hi, honey,” the woman said, approaching her, and she had a face now: Morgan’s face. Morgan smiled at Beth, a terrible smile, and picked her up, ignoring her desperate struggles to get away. Then Beth was in her own bed, safe and warm. She heard a sound and opened her eyes, but before she could move she was dragged from the bed, the woman’s hand clamped over her mouth. “You’re mine,” Morgan told her, showing her a beautiful, fairy-tale room full of unicorns and dolls. “Aren’t you glad? You’ll never need to see your old mommy or daddy again. You have me now. See what I can give you? It’s the prettiest room in the whole world.” And then they were in another room, and Morgan hovered near the ceiling, watching as the door opened and Mick came in. Morgan dropped to the floor in a graceful glide, smiling at Mick, holding Beth’s shoulders with both hands. Mick leaned past Beth to kiss Morgan, and then stood back, holding his lantern high. Morgan bent over Beth, her lips parted to show her fangs, and Beth screamed as Morgan struck, as those fangs drove deep into her small throat. Mick watched, his own eyes almost white, and then turned and walked away.

“Mick! Don’t go! Help me!” Beth woke screaming, soaked with sweat, her blankets piled on the floor. Ghostly screams echoed and she clutched at her head, trying to cover her ears, but the noise wouldn’t stop. Where was it coming from? Was she awake now? She stumbled off the bed and realized that her phone was ringing. She looked at the red glow of her clock: 4 AM. Something must be wrong – Audrey, Mick – she grabbed the phone frantically and answered.

“Oh, Beth, it’s you,” a woman’s voice said tearfully. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to wake you, but I didn’t know what else to do.”

For a moment Beth had no idea who was speaking to her; she couldn’t make sense of the words or the voice.

“Beth? Are you still there? Please, don’t hang up.”

“Wait a second,” Beth said. “Julia?”

“Yes, it’s me.” Julia’s voice sounded strange, and Beth didn’t think it was just because of her own exhaustion and confusion – Julia’s words were halting, labored, as if it were painful for her to speak.

“Julia, what’s wrong?”

“Could you come over? It hurts, and I’m scared to be alone.”

“What hurts?” Beth sat up straight, shocked alert.

“Well, everything. It hurts to breathe.”

“Was it Dominic? Did he hurt you?” God, Julia had only met the man three weeks ago - how could things have gotten that bad so quickly?

Silence answered her.

“Julia, tell me.”

“Yes. He hurt me,” Julia whispered.

“Is he with you now?”

“No. He left.”

She shouldn’t need the police, then, at least not right away. “I’ll be there as fast as I can,” Beth said.


















She was trembling as she got dressed, shaking with the memory of the nightmare. It was only a dream. Not real. There had been pieces of her past in it, but it had all been wrong. It was Coraline who had kidnapped her, not Morgan. She supposed she must have put Morgan’s face on her kidnapper because of Mick’s words, she’s the spitting image of my ex-wife. And Coraline, for all the terrible things she had done, had never bitten Beth. I must have dreamed that because I found out my kidnapper was a vampire. But she’d dreamed that Mick had kissed Morgan, that he’d watched Morgan attack Beth. That he’d walked away. Why was that in my dream? He didn’t do that, he would never have done that. He saved me. He’s my angel.

And Coraline was his wife.

Beth was still shaking as she drove to Julia’s apartment, her hands clutching the wheel tightly. When she got to the door she took deep breaths, calming herself, trying to fight off her fear. She’d always felt safe, all of her life, as if she’d known that someone was watching over her. But everything felt different now. The nightmare was haunting her, filling her with fear and uncertainty, and she wondered if she would ever feel safe again.

It was only a nightmare. Calm down. Julia needs you. With one more deep breath, Beth rang the bell, and waited, worried about her friend. It was almost a minute before she heard footsteps, and heard Julia call out. “Who is it?”

“It’s Beth. It’s okay, open the door.”

“Oh, Beth. I’m so glad it’s you.” The door opened, and Beth hurried inside. Julia had her head down, her hair falling in her face, but Beth could still see the black eye, the purple bruise on her cheekbone, the blood in her hair. Julia was holding one hand to her ribs, hunched over in pain, and as soon as Beth was inside she limped to the nearest chair and sank into it with a stifled moan.

Beth knelt beside her, pushing back her friend’s hair, and carefully examined the injuries on her face. “This is bad, Julia,” she said. “I’ve got to get you to the hospital.”

Julia stiffened, looking frightened. “I can’t.”

“What are you talking about? Why not? You can’t possibly want to protect Dominic.”

“I don’t. But everyone will know! I’m so ashamed. I’m a professional woman, aren’t I? I’m a journalist, I should be smart enough to find a man who won’t hurt me – who won’t try to kill me – why am I attracted to men like that? What’s wrong with me?”

Beth put a hand gently on her shoulder. “Nothing’s wrong with you, Julia. You’ve just had bad luck. Nobody’s going to judge you.”

“Yes they are,” Julia said.

“Okay. Maybe they are. But you don’t have any choice. You know that. You have to tell the police what happened, or Dominic is just going to do the same thing to someone else.” Strange, she thought, hearing herself say the exact opposite of what she’d told Audrey. But it is the exact opposite. Shepherd can’t hurt anyone else, and Dominic can.

Julia groaned, and her shoulders slumped. But she nodded.

“Come on, then,” Beth said, and helped Julia outside to the car. Saint John’s, she thought. It was the closest hospital, and it was supposed to have a good crisis center for women, something which Julia would certainly need. I wish there was a crisis center where I could go, she thought, pulling her car out into the street. I wish there was someone I could talk to about these memories, these nightmares. I can’t talk to Mick; it would hurt him too much, and he’s already in so much pain. But there’s no one else I can tell.

Julia sat hunched in the passenger seat, biting her lip whenever the car hit a bump, and Beth tried to pick the smoothest path possible. What could she do, if she couldn’t go to Mick? Suddenly, Beth thought of Mick’s friend Josef. She didn’t know how old Josef was, but he was certainly a vampire, and she’d gotten the impression that he was even older than Mick, that they’d been friends for many years. He would know about Coraline, wouldn’t he?

But Beth had also gotten the impression that Josef wasn’t anything like Mick, that he was a vampire who embraced his nature. She probably ought to be afraid of him.

Still, she’d faced down Shepherd, and after that experience, she didn’t think a meeting with Josef would be very frightening at all. As soon as I figure out the right questions to ask, I’m going to talk to him. Whether Mick would want me to or not.


















Beth’s memories were coming back in strange, stuttering steps.

She sat in the hospital waiting room, thinking of all she’d remembered so far, trying not to fall asleep in the uncomfortable plastic chair. They’d taken Julia back ages ago. How long was it going to take for them to treat her? I can’t fall asleep, not until I’ve figured out the memories, or I’ll be right back in that same nightmare.

She’d recognized Mick from the start – she’d known she had seen him somewhere before. After he’d carried her away from the wrecked car, she’d dreamed about him saving her when she was a little girl, and for a moment, when she woke, she’d believed it was true. But Mick had let her think it was all her imagination, and it hadn’t made sense at the time - he wasn’t old enough to have been the one who’d saved her. When she’d found out, later, that he’d looked the same age for the last fifty years, she simply hadn’t put it all together.

But when she’d seen the photographs in her file, she’d known it had been true all along. She’d been dreaming that Mick had saved her because he had. And minutes later she’d remembered what Mick had told her about killing his wife, that he’d done it to save someone. To save someone he loved. To save me.

Beth had realized then that Coraline was her kidnapper, and Mick had admitted as much. He married her in 1952. He was with her for some thirty years. He calls her his ex-wife; he must have left her at some point. And in 1985, he killed her. Or at least he thought he killed her – when Morgan showed up, looking exactly like Coraline, he wasn’t so sure. And that was why Mick had asked those strange questions about Morgan. How do you two know each other? How long have you been working together? Are you absolutely sure that you never met Morgan before a few months ago? Beth dreaded the thought of seeing Morgan again, now that the woman had haunted her nightmare. Would she ever be able to look at Morgan without seeing Coraline instead?

Another hour passed, and Beth, exhausted, couldn’t stop herself from falling asleep. “You need to get some sleep tonight, you know why?” the woman said sweetly. “Because tomorrow is a big day. You’re going to meet your new daddy tomorrow.” Beth cried and cried. She didn’t want a new daddy! She wanted her own daddy, her own mommy. She wanted to go home. But Morgan took her somewhere else, where the windows were fenced shut and the light switches didn’t work. Mick came in with a lantern, raising it high to stare at Beth in its pool of light. Morgan glided down to land between them, taking Mick’s other hand in hers. “It'll work, Mick,” Coraline said, holding his hand tightly. “One happy family. You, me, and baby.” She kissed Mick, and they were both vampires, kissing through fangs in the middle of a deathly fight, their faces covered in blood. Then Coraline was holding Beth, lovingly pushing her soft blond hair aside, and when the fangs struck her throat Beth screamed for Mick, reaching out for him desperately. But she couldn’t find him, couldn’t even see him – he had gone, he’d left her behind.

“Mick! Mick!”

“It’s okay. Really, it’s okay. Are you awake?”

Beth gasped, and looked up in terror. Coraline . . . it’s Coraline. But it wasn’t. The person leaning over her was only a teenager, a plain girl with straight dark hair falling from a center part. The girl was frowning down at her, thoughtful and worried.

“Oh no,” Beth said, suddenly realizing where she was. The waiting room, the hospital, Julia. Her head and neck ached from sleeping in the chair. “I’m sorry. I must have fallen asleep, I had a nightmare. Was I screaming?”

“Yeah, you were. Must have been some nightmare.”

“It was.” Beth sat up straight and looked around the room. There was a family nearby, parents and four kids, and they were making enough noise that she could hope no one else had heard. “What did I say?”

The girl shrugged. “You were calling for someone. Mick, I think. Does that mean anything to you?”

“Yes.” Beth rubbed painfully at her neck.

The girl said, “You really seem familiar. You’re not on TV, are you? Or wait, the net. Buzzwire?”

Beth smiled ruefully. “Yes, Buzzwire. I’m surprised you recognized me; I must be a wreck just now. I’m Beth Turner.”

“Elaine Grace,” the girl said, putting out her hand. Beth shook it. “Are you okay, then? I was worried about you. I thought maybe the doctors needed to get to you a little bit faster.”

“Oh, I’m just waiting for a friend. I’m not here to be seen.”

“Oh. What happened to your friend?”

“She got beaten up by her boyfriend,” Beth said with a sigh. “She has a talent for finding men who end up hurting her.”

“I think men always end up hurting you,” Elaine said, her gaze faraway. Beth felt herself shiver, watching the girl. Elaine looked about seventeen, but there was something much older in her voice now. “The evil ones attack you physically. The good ones hurt your soul. They don’t mean to, but they do.”

Beth shivered again. The evil, cruel ones like Lee Jay Spaulding and Julia’s Dominic and that awful boy she’d gone out with – once – in high school. The good, kind ones, who tore out your soul when they stood by and didn’t rescue you. But that was only a nightmare. Mick did save me; he was there and he saved me.

“He saved me,” Beth said aloud.

“Who did?”

“Mick. He was there for me. He’s always been there for me. But in my dream, he left me behind. He left me to die. He kissed her, and he walked away. Why would I dream that?”

Elaine looked bewildered. “Who did he kiss?”

“Coraline. His ex-wife.”

Elaine said cautiously, “Well, when exes are involved, it’s always more complicated.”

“Complicated.” Beth laughed, and heard the hysteria in the sound. “You don’t know how complicated this is.” Wasn’t falling in love with a vampire strange enough? Did it have to be even harder than that? She rubbed at her eyes and said, “I don’t suppose you’ve ever fallen in love with someone when you shouldn’t have.”

It didn’t seem likely, at Elaine’s age, but the girl bowed her head. “I have, actually,” she said.

“Were you with someone else at the time?”

Elaine shook her head. “No. But it still ended badly.”

“I’m with someone else.” Beth groped in her bag for a tissue, and finally found one. “Sort of. Josh is off on a business trip, one he didn’t need to take. He just wanted to get away from me. And I don’t blame him. He thinks I’ve fallen for Mick.”

“Have you?” Elaine was oddly intent.

“Yes. Oh, yes. I love him.” Beth knew she should have broken it off with Josh after that day at the county hospital, when Mick had kissed her and she’d believed that anything was possible. Josh had still been in town then; she could have gone to him and done it. Why hadn’t she? Was there something in her subconscious that had stopped her? Had it been the hidden knowledge of a nightmare past with Mick?

And why am I having these nightmares? I used to dream about Mick saving me. And he did save me. He gave up everything for me. He had to kill his own wife for my sake, and that’s haunted him ever since.

But why had Coraline kidnapped her in the first place? Why had Mick been the one to find her? Coraline was Mick’s wife, for God’s sake, how could it possibly have been a coincidence? Beth’s mother had told her, when Beth asked, that she’d hired a private investigator. That must have been Mick. But how did she choose him? Beth’s mother had told her that she didn’t remember the investigator’s name. Beth suddenly realized, with a sickening lurch, that her mother had been lying. There was no way that a mother would forget the name of the man who’d saved her child’s life.

“Excuse me,” Beth said, pulling out her phone and checking her watch. It was barely past seven, but her mother was an early riser. Beth punched in the number and put the phone to her ear.

“Beth! You’re calling early, dear. Have you become a morning person?”

“No, Mom. I’ve been up all night, actually. A friend of mine’s in the hospital.”

“Oh, no. Is it anyone I know?”

“Julia, the journalist. You met her the last time you were here.”

“I remember her. Will she be all right?”

“Yes, but she’s going to be hurting for a while. Her boyfriend beat her up.”

“Oh dear. What an awful thing to happen. Are you all right, Beth? And how are things with Josh?”

“I’m fine. We’re fine.” She and Josh were far from fine; she had a sick feeling about their relationship, as if it were something entirely out of her control. And she was far from fine herself; there was a tension building in her, a kind of horror, something – she remembered Mick’s word – insane. But she couldn’t say any of those things to her mother, didn’t even know how to speak of them. “Mom, I just need to ask you one thing. The private detective you hired to find me – what was his name?”

A long silence, then, “Oh, Beth. It’s been so long. I don’t remember.”

“Mom, please. That’s not true, it can’t be. He saved my life! You can’t possibly have forgotten his name, and I need to know.”

“Beth -- ”

“Please, Mom!”

“Beth, I can’t tell you. I just can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because that was the only thing he asked for!” Her mother’s voice rose, became shrill and tearful, and Beth shifted the phone at her ear. “He brought you back to us, he brought you back to us alive, and safe, and he wouldn’t even let us pay him. All he wanted was to stay unknown. I never told anybody his name, not you and not anyone else.”

“But how can it matter now?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know why it mattered then! But the way he asked – it was important to him, it was so important. Beth, please, don’t ask me to break my word.”

“Okay. I won’t. But I have another question.” Beth swallowed, and took a deep breath. “Why did you choose him? Out of the phone book? Or did someone recommend him to you?”

“It was a recommendation,” her mother said, sounding relieved. “I was out walking, looking for you, and a woman stopped me and asked why I was crying. When I told her, she said I should hire a private detective, she said the police were useless, and she gave me his card.”

“A woman? Do you remember what she looked like?”

“She was about my age, I suppose. Dark hair, slender. Pretty. That’s all I remember.”

Coraline got my mother to hire Mick. She used me, to get at him. Why, why? Why did I have to go through all that?

One happy family.

She was Mick’s ex-wife. She did it to try to bring him back to her. She did it because of him. And he knows it. That’s why he couldn’t face me. That’s why he walked away.

“Thanks, Mom,” Beth whispered. “I’m sorry I upset you. Listen, I’ve got to go. I’ll call again soon.”

Shakily Beth put away her phone. Elaine looked up at her and said, “Is everything okay?”

“No.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.”

Some are evil, Beth thought, and some are good, but they still tear out your soul.

In her dream, Morgan and Coraline had been the same person. Mick had believed that Morgan was Coraline, even though Morgan was human and Coraline was not, even though Coraline was supposed to be dead. He’d believed it until he’d seen her bare shoulder; Morgan didn’t have Coraline’s fleur-de-lis tattoo. But tattoos could be removed, they could be hidden. Maybe a person’s vampire nature could be hidden as well. If Coraline had found a way to conceal her scent, then how would Mick be able to tell?

Beth was suddenly, horribly sure that Mick had been right after all, that Coraline was alive and well and pretending to be Morgan Vincent.

Mick had wanted Morgan to be Coraline. He’d wanted Coraline to be alive. He’d been married to her for decades.

Oh, Mick. My guardian angel. You loved her, you loved my worst nightmare. You know what she did to me, and yet still you love her.

How can you? How could you?

“Beth?” It was the teenager’s voice, uncertain and worried. “Beth, don’t pass out, okay?”

Beth blinked, and forced herself to look at Elaine. “What?”

“You just went really pale. I thought you were going to faint.”

“No,” Beth said, her voice gaining strength. “No. I’m going to fight back.”

“Fight who?”

“I was kidnapped when I was a little girl.” Beth swallowed, closing her eyes, as the memory of her abduction washed over her - not a fleeting whisper any more, not a dream image, but a memory as powerful as a scream.

“Kidnapped?” Elaine was staring at her.

“Yes.” Beth pushed her fear away, replacing it with fury. “And I’ve just realized who the kidnapper was.”

“Oh!” The girl’s eyes widened. “Who?”

“It’s someone I know,” Beth said. She thought of all the months she’d worked with Morgan, how she’d treated the other woman as a friend, and she shuddered. “She’s using a different name, but it’s got to be her. All I have to do is make sure I’m right.”

“How will you do that?”

Beth smiled grimly. “I just happen to know a private investigator. And he just happens to know this woman. So he can help me find the proof. Once and for all.”

I spent so long hiding from my past. Ignoring the whispers. But I remember everything now, and the screams are the only thing I can hear.

Beth thought of her angel, of how safe she had once felt, and wished, hopelessly, that she could forget again.













-

[francis]

Love love love this! How you tie in the sunrise with the fire, the fight with Shepard and the fight with Coraline. Everything is seamless.
I could feel Mick’s pain and Beth’s helplessness on that balcony.

Beth was so smart in what she told Audrey.

Oh poor Julia! It’s true, some women always manage to fall for men who are abusive. It’s even worse when children are involved. I love Beth’s rationale for going to Josef, it makes sense.

Beth meeting Elaine, oh that’s great!!! And Elaine has that kind of wisdom that makes Beth open up, without revealing a secret. She doesn’t know that Elaine would recognize the names.
Beth found out it was all Coraline planning and executing her kidnapping. That must sting somewhat fierce, and Mick is so ashamed about it.

This story connects the episodes emotionally and suddenly it makes sense why there is an episode without Morgan, and the next one she’s the focus. I didn’t really see that.
What really pains me is that Beth lost trust in Mick. That’s why she’s not going to investigate WITH him, but around him, parallel. And that might be just why he fell for Morgan again and kissed her. Wonderfully twisted tale, wonderfully complicated emotions, and still you make it all make sense.

Maybe you could write my biography and my own life would perhaps suddenly make sense too…
but that's what makes fictional characters so enticing...

[allegrita]

Oh, Shadow. Of course this one is from Beth's point of view. It has to be.

This chapter is so heartbreaking, and it works so perfectly to bring Beth from that sweet last scene of 12:04AM to the fever pitch of fury and determination at the beginning of Fleur de Lis. Beth has figured it out. She's put almost all of the the pieces together, and she's not gonna rest till she completes that puzzle. And when she does... that terrified little girl deep inside Beth is going to do something horrible.

I love the fact that Beth meets Elaine in this chapter. Elaine deserves to meet Beth for herself. And I really see how tonight, in Beth's fragile state, Mick's, Julia's, and Elaine's hopelessness and pain imbue Beth with an uncharacteristic darkness. Beth takes on the angst and fury of those around her who have been hurt and wronged. She is going to become an avenging angel herself, and somehow Coraline will represent everything wrong in the world, everything wrong in her own life that she can't fix.

This is the roughest, most wrenching transition between episodes of the entire series, and you have masterfully made it fit. I am so in awe of these stories.

[redwinter101]

Oh this has become a Saturday morning ritual for me - and the very best kind indeed. Logging in and finding a new chapter is such a thrill.

What I love so much here is that even though Mick only appears at the very beginning, in the final scene of 12:04, this piece is entirely about him. Even Beth's dreams and pain at realising who Morgan is and remembering what coraline did to here - it's all about Mick. He dominates in his absence. There is something about that absence that feels like abandonment - after so long guarding and protecting, Beth needs him now - and his pain has finally come to be too much for him. He is gone, for now - and she is alone, for the first time since she was kidnapped, she is truly alone and you showed that so subtly and powerfully.

I'm so thrilled about Beth and Elaine meeting - it feels like tiny pieces of a jigsaw coming together - the jigsaw of Mick: those he has loved, those he has hurt, those whose lives he has changed forever. And now that Beth has resolved to see Josef, we know that he is a part of that too - I loved the decision-making Beth did here. She's unsure and for the first time, truly scared, but it makes sense for her to seek him out for answers, so that's precisely what she's going to do.

I think most powerful for me, though, is Beth finally starting to gain some insight into what this all means for Mick - what it cost him, then, now, and probably forever.

Beautiful.

Red

[wpgrace]

Wow.
So now we've switched to Beth's POV... you made the transition for us. I get why the show did it... they needed to finesse how much did Mick know and when did he know it. Yet there was something lacking in her V/O... for one reason, I just don't think Sophia was as good at it as Alex was, but the dialogue that they gave her was also part of the problem. It wasn't as intimate as what they usually gave to Alex... we got far less insight into Beth, thru her own internal words, than we got for Mick, thru his.

So you've now filled in so much of that gap. I love how you walk her (and thus us) thru her realization process. It is step by step. Not sudden, tho it does happen over night. She gets bits and pieces of her memory back, and each time that happens, she gets some insight into Mick, into his relationship with her, with Coraline, and with himself. (And, btw, how much do I love that, while Mick isn't really IN this chapter, it's still all about him??? )

And I love that we get to "meet" Beth's mother... and I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE your amazingly in-character explanation for why Beth--so incredibly, really-- didn't know the name of the PI that rescued her... Mick begged for anonymity. Of course he did. And if that beautiful face and voice, with the pained eyes, asked any grateful mother for that, of course she'd keep his confidence to her grave.

And the piece de resistance? You have Elaine shadowing her ex at the hospital just at the right time to meet Beth. What a cool meeting. What an interesting bit of knowledge for Elaine now to have. What anticipation for a future scene... with Mick.

Tho, , now that Beth KNOWS about vamps, knows the PI is one, knows that Morgan MIGHT be Cora, well, Beth should be getting some clue that she might run into vamps in the oddest, most unexpected places. *Slaps Beth upside the head.* For example, maybe she oughta get a clue that she shouldn't assume 17-year-old-but-more-mature-than-her-years-girls really ARE just 17 year old humans.

[Shadow]

What really pains me is that Beth lost trust in Mick. That’s why she’s not going to investigate WITH him, but around him, parallel. And that might be just why he fell for Morgan again and kissed her.

What a great insight, francis .... it makes so much sense that Beth's distance from Mick here would drive his behavior in the next episode, as well as hers. I had not ever really put that together, but it explains a lot.
Loved what you wrote about doing a biography. I'm not too sure it would work on real life, though!
Thanks so much for the awesome comment.

[Shadow]

Of course this one is from Beth's point of view. It has to be.

Oh, I am glad you agree with that .... I decided to do it this way not just because the show went with Beth's POV here, but because that wrenching transition was pretty much all in Beth's mood - and Mick seemed at a loss as to why that had changed so violently.

Mick's, Julia's, and Elaine's hopelessness and pain imbue Beth with an uncharacteristic darkness. Beth takes on the angst and fury of those around her who have been hurt and wronged.

What a beautiful way to put this ... it was interesting, I was thinking at first that I would be doing my very first "Beth POV" story - but as Beth is really not herself at this time, I don't think I've actually done that yet .....
Thank you so much!

[Shadow]

Oh this has become a Saturday morning ritual for me - and the very best kind indeed. Logging in and finding a new chapter is such a thrill.

What I love so much here is that even though Mick only appears at the very beginning, in the final scene of 12:04, this piece is entirely about him.

It is getting to be a ritual for me to put these up last thing on Friday night. That's really cool that you're watching for them!

It was interesting seeing how much Mick did dominate the story - that absence, that abandoned feeling, seemed to be at the heart of the change in Beth. (I remember how shocking it was, the first time I watched FDL, when Beth said she didn't know if she would ever feel safe again.)
And there was no way to resist letting Beth and Elaine meet ... I'm so glad you liked that bit.
Thanks so much!

[Shadow]

And I love that we get to "meet" Beth's mother... and I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE your amazingly in-character explanation for why Beth--so incredibly, really-- didn't know the name of the PI that rescued her... Mick begged for anonymity. Of course he did. And if that beautiful face and voice, with the pained eyes, asked any grateful mother for that, of course she'd keep his confidence to her grave.

It always bothered me that Beth didn't know that name! So there had to be some good explanation for it; there are a lot of ways to explain it but I liked this the best. I could see just what you described here with Beth's grateful mother ... and exactly the way you described it, too.

What an interesting bit of knowledge for Elaine now to have. What anticipation for a future scene... with Mick.

Tho, , now that Beth KNOWS about vamps, knows the PI is one, knows that Morgan MIGHT be Cora, well, Beth should be getting some clue that she might run into vamps in the oddest, most unexpected places. *Slaps Beth upside the head.* For example, maybe she oughta get a clue that she shouldn't assume 17-year-old-but-more-mature-than-her-years-girls really ARE just 17 year old humans.

I expect this will come up in the future, between Elaine and Mick ....

You would indeed think that Beth would be starting to see vampires everywhere! Of course, during this scene, she isn't exactly at her best.

[lorig]

That was amazing!! I loved how...though the chapter was a Beth POV it was ALL about Mick. It gave us a deeper insight into the man Beth sees him as. Beth meeting Elaine was perfect. I wondered how it would go when or if they did meet. It went way beyond my expectations.

I love how Beth's fear of Morgan is manifesting itself, forcing her to go to Josef. I loved this chapter. By far my favorite....

[aolver]

Everyone's comments are so completely amazing. I've read all the chapters of this story and it finally hit me. You understand Moonlight. I mean REALLY understand it. I have seen the episodes dozens of times, and I thought I understood the parts of Moonlight that the writers left to our imagination. Maybe the writers left so much unfinished so we could put in our own interpretation. It seems the most complicated parts to fill in were the areas between episodes 7, 8, and 9. You have filled these in perfectly. This seemed like your shortest chapter, but for me, it was a revelation. Thank you Shadow, and carry on....

[Shadow]

That was amazing!! I loved how...though the chapter was a Beth POV it was ALL about Mick. It gave us a deeper insight into the man Beth sees him as. Beth meeting Elaine was perfect. I wondered how it would go when or if they did meet. It went way beyond my expectations.

I love how Beth's fear of Morgan is manifesting itself, forcing her to go to Josef. I loved this chapter. By far my favorite....

Thank you lorig! I really wanted to give Beth and Elaine a chance to meet, and I'm glad you liked that part so well. Doing a Beth POV for a change was a bit different here; I wasn't sure how that would work - it's so nice to know this was your favorite chapter!

[Shadow]

Everyone's comments are so completely amazing. I've read all the chapters of this story and it finally hit me. You understand Moonlight. I mean REALLY understand it. I have seen the episodes dozens of times, and I thought I understood the parts of Moonlight that the writers left to our imagination. Maybe the writers left so much unfinished so we could put in our own interpretation. It seems the most complicated parts to fill in were the areas between episodes 7, 8, and 9. You have filled these in perfectly. This seemed like your shortest chapter, but for me, it was a revelation. Thank you Shadow, and carry on....

Wow, aolver, that is completely amazing itself -- thank you!!

I also thought that the intervals between 7, 8, and 9 were some of the most complicated, and the 8 to 9 interval was especially jolting for me when watching the episodes. (This interval is probably what got me started on this whole series, trying to figure out how it might make sense! Oddly it wasn't one of the harder ones to write, probably because I'd been thinking about it for so long. )

[redwinter101]

Just a little

(Shadow, it'd be great for slackers like me if you could post a note in the update announcement thread when you post a new chapter - just to make it easier to find. Here's the link: viewtopic.php?f=493&t=5345 )

Red

[Shadow]

(Shadow, it'd be great for slackers like me if you could post a note in the update announcement thread when you post a new chapter - just to make it easier to find.

There's an update announcement thread? Wow, that sounds really useful....

I'll do that, Red - and thanks for letting me know about it!