by Lindsay, *O’Sullivan and Zanh
90314.18
Soundtrack: Somewhere Only We Know by Keane
…continued from part one…
-=/\=-
90314.18
Soundtrack: Somewhere Only We Know by Keane
…continued from part one…
-=/\=-
It was a slightly awkward moment as no one spoke, but was mostly shrugged off as the two men took their seats.
Will offered no argument as he let Keiran take the front and took the seat behind Liis. He was mostly out of sight in the back, a position where he could easily be forgotten, though he’d rarely wish for or even allow that he knew right now there was a benefit to being able to disappear when necessary.
Liis placed the key in the ignition and brought the car to life, its soft hum a clear contrast to the tension in the air.
Keiran took the clock that had been resting on his seat into his hand. He didn’t question it being there, nor did he even really wonder, he simply placed it on his lap as he did up his seatbelt.
Will followed suit, knowing what to expect from her driving, and soon Liis O’Sullivan had them speeding off into the distance.
She pointed the hood of the vehicle toward the most flat and empty patch of land she could see.
The engine roared as she accelerated and the force of the wind on her face and in her hair seemed to only encourage her to go faster.
Keiran watched the needle indicating their speed for a bit, then decided he had seen enough to know they were traveling ridiculously fast. He tucked the clock under his seat to free his hands. One rested on his knee, and the other slowly curled around the molded door handle into an iron grip.
Liis ran her fingers through her hair and feasted on the rush of adrenaline. The car rumbled gently over the small imperfections in their path. She felt the sudden urge to simply let go, just for a moment, just to let the car glide over the land without any control from her.
She let go the wheel, and the car stayed straight for a bit, then rumbled towards the edge of their path.
Keiran was about to suggest she get her grip back on the wheel, when he hands snapped down and eased them back to the center of the road. Lindsay sat in the rear, blissfully unaware of Liis O’Sullivan’s little experiment.
“Are we headin’ an’a’where in particular?” Keiran shouted over the wind.
“You tell me. I’ve passed so many forks in the road I really don’t know where the hell we are.”
“Grand,” Keiran said sincerely. He really didn’t care where they were going. He was loath to ask William what his plans were, as far as the continuing investigation of the bombing at TI Headquarters. So he framed his question in the form of a statement, as he turned in his seats and leaned back to address Will.
“Watch out for yourself, when you go back.”
It did not take a detective to deduce that someone had intended to hit Will Lindsay specifically and take his life. Someone who was willing to go to the trouble to ensure casualties in the building were at a minimum, but willing to murder none the less.
Still, Will sat comfortably in the rear of the racing vehicle, taking delight in the rush of the air and the turned up corner of the mouth and gleaming eye of Zanh Liis O’Sullivan that he could make out in the edge of the rear view mirror.
He gave Keiran a quick nod, indicating that he understood.
"What he's trying to say, William, is that we're rather fond of you and prefer you in one piece. See to it that you stay that way." Liis interjected, proving that she had been paying attention to every word spoken and every unspoken glance the entire time.
"I'm rather fond of me, mehself." Will sighed dreamily, casually buffing his fingernails against his shirt. "After all, I am the only me there is. The Universe would be lost without me."
“It’s good to see that your lifetime of experience has given ya a deep sense of modesty.” Keiran laughed.
Liis laughed as well as she glanced down from the steering wheel, attempting to hit the 'on' button on the stereo.
"Whoa, there, darlin’! Keep yer eyes on the road and hands on the wheel willya eh?" Keiran exclaimed, unable to contain his nervousness any longer in view of her singular driving technique.
"Then find me something to listen to, damn it. I think my coordination is suffering for the lack of a beat to drive to." Liis requested.
"Now Liis, we had the radio blarin' ta Hell an' back when you were drivin’ us around Scotland and your skills were exactly the same." Will laughed.
"Doesn't he ever shut up?" Liis asked Keiran, ignoring Lindsay's statement.
"No." Keiran replied simply.
"We'll just drown him out with the music then. Come on, O'Sullivan, you can read a temporal compass but you can't turn on the radio?"
"Workin' on it right? Bloody thing has more settings than the helm of a Jump ship." Keiran shook his head. The trouble he was having was actually reaching the buttons as his seatbelt kept snapping him back against the interior of the car with greater force as Liis continued to accelerate.
"Demandin' little thing isn't she?" Will shook his head, garnering a laugh from Liis and a stare from Keiran.
"Now that's my wife yer talkin' about, Lindsay. And mind she's six feet tall there's nothin' little about her-"
"Hey now." Liis wasn't sure she liked where this was going.
"Yes, your wife, O'Sullivan, I am aware. I was there when she became that. In fact I think I performed the service."
"Who the hell'd be crazy enough to trust you to perform a legal ceremony?" Liis deadpanned.
"The same people crazy enough to trust me with the Director's role of the very agency entrusted with governing time itself."
"No one's that nuts." She teased.
As Keiran analyzed the dials on the stereo, Will leaned forward, pointing at the dashboard.
"Second button from the right, K. I put a little somethin’ in there in anticipation of this request from the illustrious Captain Zanh."
"Oh I can't wait to hear this." Liis raised an eyebrow as she turned the wheel sharply, following the first true curve in the road ahead they'd encountered since they started driving. She'd actually taken a turn at some point without any of them really noticing, and the bend of the road ahead now took them back in the direction from which they'd come.
"Keiran used to play this endlessly, to the point I swear, I wanted to delete the file." Will elaborated. "Am willin' to bet ya've heard it before."
What Liis heard, and felt, when the music began to play nearly stopped her heart.
It was a song she remembered instantly- though she had no recollection of it until the moment she processed the melody.
As the intro played on she felt her eyes begin to sting and she instinctively slowed the speed of the vehicle. As clear and wide open as the road was, she didn't trust herself to drive if she couldn't see through tears to do it, and she didn't know how long she could keep from falling apart.
She bit the inside of her cheek, hoping the pain would distract her from her rising emotions but it was no use.
A conversation needed to take place, and it needed to happen now.
Both men sat up straighter in their seats as the speed of the car sharply decreased, and Liis' grip on the wheel increased.
"Liis," Will again leaned forward, putting a hand on her shoulder from the back seat. "Are ya all right?"
Keiran found for the moment that he couldn't quite speak, and merely stared at her.
Liis pulled the car over to the side of the road, and without a word, brought it to a stop.
She threw it into park but didn't turn it off, leaving the engine running and the music blaring as she walked off on her own into the tall grass of the fields lining either side of the dirt road.
Keiran reached over and turned the key, shutting off the engine. "Will,"
"S'ok, Keiran. I know, you need time. I...have work to do back at HQ an'a'way. Just, let me say something to her before ya go after her?"
Keiran nodded. He turned the key again, running the stereo on the car battery as he waited for Will to say what he needed to say.
The grass was still wet from recent rain and came up past Will's knees, making any sort of speedy pursuit impossible.
With the music behind him fading in volume and Liis getting further away, Will was quickly realising that it was hopeless to continue on like this.
Liis wasn't realising anything, because she didn't want to realise anything.
Finally Will had enough. He shouted and cut through the still air "Will yeh slow down? Yer actin' crazy!"
Though she heard his words loud and strong they didn't truly register, just made her aware that the lyrics being repeated so clearly were now all in her mind; merely echoes through time.
The knowledge made them quieter but could not make them silent.
She gave up trying to walk away because she knew no distance would be enough and just stopped any outward movement even as inside she felt like she was collapsing.
She felt a complete mess as tears streaked down her cheeks. It wasn't right; she was stronger than this. No song, not even that song, should have been able to do this to her. She wasn't even sure how she'd ended up here; standing waist deep in soggy grass in the middle of some stranger's field she'd never even seen before today and feeling so far away from everything she knew about herself.
Will's squelching footfalls were getting closer and she demanded of herself that she pull it all together.
Realising how very cold she was, she crossed her arms over her chest and hugged them in tight. She longed that at times like this that she could be that bit more like her first officer and force the emotion away.
She felt a hand touch her shoulder and she jumped as though it were a much bigger shock than it should have been.
"What is it William?" She demanded without turning around, it was hard to miss the sound a man Keiran's size storming through the grass so she knew Will was alone. "Just say it."
Seeing her reaction to his proximity Will brought his hand down to his side and took one step back. She clearly didn't want to face him, perhaps she was too proud to be seen, but that was fine by him.
He cleared his throat and let her wait, just long enough to ensure that impatience would grab her attention.
"Stop running from him, Liis," Will said calmly, pausing and adding truthfully "That's all I wanted to say."
Liis was momentarily dazed; she'd expected so much more. She wasn't sure if she'd been expecting to hear him yell at her to see sense or if instead she'd expected him to plead, but she was sure that what he'd said couldn't be all.
Though inside was a battle nowhere near its conclusion on the outside there was only one decision that could be made. Without even thinking she turned with a thousand thoughts to what she would say, but was forced to settle on silence when she saw Will was already walking away.
Captain William Lindsay
Interim Director
Temporal Investigations
Commander *Keiran O’Sullivan
Security Liaison
The Alchemy Project
and
-=/\=- Zanh Liis O’Sullivan
Commanding Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
Interim Director
Temporal Investigations
Commander *Keiran O’Sullivan
Security Liaison
The Alchemy Project
and
-=/\=- Zanh Liis O’Sullivan
Commanding Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
NRPG: Thank you, gentlemen. Brilliant. ~ZL