23. Chapter 23 #2
They sat around till the clock struck midnight before heading up to bed. She didn’t think any one of them were ready for tomorrow to come. Half the team went to relieve those already on shift and the rest headed for a few hours of sleep.
Mitch and Isla walked upstairs together, not talking. When he got to his door, he looked over his shoulder. He met her gaze but didn’t say anything.
“Goodnight, Mitch,” she said, finally.
“Goodnight, Molly,” he said. “Sleep well.” He walked through his door and closed it behind him.
Isla went into her room, then stood with her hand to her heart. It ached. She whispered, “Goodnight, my love.”
Then she closed her door.
Isla pulled out a duffel bag from the closet and filled it with the clothes that weren’t her own. She placed it next to her door and went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. She was standing under the spray letting the tears flow when she heard her bedroom door open and click shut.
“Lara, is that you?” she called.
But it wasn’t Lara who stood in her doorway. It was Mitch. They stood and stared at each other through the shower door.
Isla opened it and walked out. Standing in front of him, she pulled the tee he was wearing over his head, while he pulled his sweatpants down his legs.
She took his hand and led him into the shower.
Without saying a word to each other, they explored each other’s bodies, memorizing every inch, kissing each other with urgency.
They made slow, beautiful love to each other knowing this would be the last time they held each other.
After the water cooled, they dried each other, and Mitch carried her to the bed and laid her gently in its center.
“Isla…”
“Shh, no words, no promises,” Isla said, knowing full well that he couldn’t make any promises. “Let’s just have tonight.”
They woke to a gray, cold December morning.
Isla lay in Mitch’s arms, her ear to his heart.
She memorized its rhythm, beat for beat.
He swirled her hair around his fingers. Neither one of them had said a word all night.
They didn’t need to. They knew how each other felt, like they knew that the inevitable was going to happen whether they wanted it to or not.
No one could take away their memories. She was his forever and he was hers.
She would let him walk away without tears being shed.
She would stay strong for him and she would make him proud by doing the right thing.
So many lives depended on her doing the right thing and she wouldn’t let him down.
He slid out from under her and pulled on his sweats and his tee.
Then he took her in his arms for one last kiss. It would have to last them the rest of their lives. They pulled apart and he turned and opened the door quietly. He left the room while she stood there with tears in her eyes.
She dressed and went down to make one more meal for the people who had become so important to her.
Isla did the only thing she could think to do—she cooked breakfast. Eggs, meats, rolls. Everything in the fridge. She made a feast for the people she cared about.
Lara came into the kitchen first. “It smells wonderful in here. You’ve outdone yourself. I’m going to miss your delicious meals.” She looked at her with a gentle smile. “Are you okay?”
“I’ll be fine. I promise I’ll find my happy again once this is all over.”
“I worry about you,” said Lara. “But I also want you to know that it’s okay to not be happy all the time. People will still love you.
Isla pressed her lips into a tight line. She looked down at her feet.
“And Molly,” Lara said, her hand on Isla’s arm. “I know you think you need to earn your keep by cooking for us. Self-preservation, I know. But all you ever had to be was yourself. I want you to remember that wherever you go next.”
Lara made up a plate, handed it to Isla, and pointed her to the table to sit down.
The rest of the team soon followed. The reserves had taken over their duties so they could all join her on her final journey with them.
They all sat around the table and enjoyed their last meal together.
Mitch sat at her side, his hand on her thigh under the table.
Its warmth gave her the courage to make it through. They all cleaned the kitchen together.
Then it was time to go.
The trip to Richmond was quiet. Mitch drove with one hand and their fingers entwined the whole trip. They pulled into the private airport two hours later. The private jet that would take them the rest of the way sat idling on the runway.
Mitch led her up the stairs. The rest of the team followed quietly behind.
Four hours later, they landed in New Mexico.
A new place for a new chapter in her new life.
The ride to the US Marshals’ office was uneventful.
Her heart pounded in her chest and her body trembled as Mitch led her by the hand into the elevator that would take her away from him forever.
They walked into the office of Chief Wade Kosta.
Stocky and graying, Wade rose from his desk and introduced them to Inspectors Ciara Knight and Steven Grant.
Ciara, blond and willowy, shook Isla’s hand with surprising strength.
Steven, with his dark hair on pale skin, just nodded in her direction, seriously.
They would officially become her handlers.
Mitch handed over his files and asked if there was someplace private where he and his team could say their goodbyes. After many hugs and tears in an empty conference room, her team left. Everyone but Mitch.
Isla threw herself into his arms. “Mitch, know that I will never stop loving you.”
She pulled his face to hers and kissed him gently on the lips. Then she turned away and walked out the door and into Chief Kosta’s office.
She was on her own again.