I walked around the table and gave her the biggest hug I could muster. "I missed you. I am so happy I am here. I hope you don't get sick of me too fast."

Shaking her head and taking another sip of my water, she said she was just as thankful for my presence. "No way, I have waited too long. You're never going to leave. We can find some algae or other s.h.i.t for you to study."

Walking away with a chuckle, I said, "Some other s.h.i.t, please."

A month had pa.s.sed before I knew it. Summer was approaching and the humidity increased with the water temperature. To keep busy, I took a temporary job as a mate on one of my sister's boats. Giving tours of the mangroves was usually what I got stuck doing, but I didn't mind. The company owners loved my background and having a pseudo celebrity giving a spiel to the pa.s.sengers. I was hardly famous, yet Vivienne went on and on about how her sister created amazing drugs to make people happy. I would always have to step in and tell them what I did so they knew my job was legal and legitimate.

I loved taking the kids out to snorkel. That was probably my favorite part, next to swimming with stingrays. I made sure that at least three times a week, one of the captains took me to a spot they knew the Spotted Eagle rays frequented. With beautiful grey skin and white dots across their backs, they would play with me as I floated in the calm waters. I would chase them and they would circle around and dart beneath me and around, taunting me to follow them. I wondered if they remembered me as they came closer each time. Their sweet faces reminded me of a dolphin and manatee hybrid. Vivienne would join me occasionally and revel in witnessing me delight in the beauty of the reef.

After an evening of eating fried chicken over a hundred feet away from the sh.o.r.e on a sandbar, we returned to her house to find a large envelope waiting for me in the mailbox. Alessa was the only one who knew where I was and she was kind enough to check on my apartment. I had my mail forwarded to her indefinitely until I figured out what I would do. She sounded so elated, hearing my tales of adventure. I thanked her every chance I could for what she and Kimberly did. I needed this more than I realized. Inside of the envelope was a certified letter from a company called the Swiss Science Consortium, but mailed from Munich. Noting that it was dated a week previous, I carefully broke the seal to see what it was about.

May 9, 2012 To: Ms. Violet Phillips, PhD Greetings Doctor Phillips, It is our great pleasure to inform you that we have been following your work and are very impressed by your contributions to medicine. We would like to discuss with you in person the possibility of recruiting you to lead our growing department of Neural Science Medicine. Every expense will be handled by our financial department, including travel arrangements for you to come to Munich, Germany. You will also be compensated for your time without obligation to the position. Please take time to familiarize yourself with us through the included materials and our website. You may contact my a.s.sistant, Linbek Kretzer, through electronic mail or telephone to begin your journey. I strongly encourage you to consider this offer as it is not made lightly or without great deliberation on our part.

Sincerely, Viktor Balashov, PhD Director of Education "Holy c.r.a.p!"

My hand covered my mouth after reading the words in front of me. This was too good to be true. I didn't need to look into who they were a I already knew. They were on the cutting edge of research in Genetic Engineering. I followed them ruthlessly with every publication they released. If ever I was to leave Beacon, it would be for this reason.

I dropped the letter to the ground the second it hit me. It was him. Dropping to my knees, I wept heavily as Vivienne picked up the letter and read it.

"Violet, holy c.r.a.p, this is amazing! You need to do it! This is perfect. I mean, you don't have to, of course. You can stay with me as long as you want, but really, this is your life, right here. You can have a fresh start, and I can visit you!"

She mistook my weeping for tears of joy and I didn't correct her. There was no way I was going to crack now that I knew the end was in sight. After contacting Mr. Kretzer, everything was in place. I loaded up on German guidebooks and contacted my Aunt Hannalore to let her know what happened. She too was thrilled at the prospect of me living so close. In two more days, I would take a step that would irrevocably change my life forever.

Chapter 29 - The Catalyst.

The clicking noise of my foot tapping furiously against the mahogany barstool went unnoticed by the other patrons. It was a nervous tick that became present while deep in thought. The guidebook I was poring over was starting to resemble a children's coloring book with all of the highlighting over every page. I only had a week in Munich, which I was determined to make the most of.

The gin and tonic that I was nursing diluted quickly from sitting stagnant for so long. I never took my eyes off the pages while taking sips through the short black c.o.c.ktail straw. The wet napkin that was stuck to the bottom of the gla.s.s, adhered by condensation, fell into my lap, breaking my concentration. At the same moment, an announcement came over the intercom. "This is AeroEurope regarding flight 2219, Chicago O'Hara to Munich. Due to a storm coming in from the Atlantic, we are being instructed to remain grounded until further notice. We are working on alternative routes with the FAA. We will begin boarding once it is finalized. If you need to adjust your travel arrangements, please approach the gate for a.s.sistance. Thank you." Immediately a mad rush descended on the poor flight attendants. I couldn't imagine having to deal with angry pa.s.sengers on a daily basis. I remained comfortably at the bar, savoring this time to myself. I had two days to complete my travel; a few hours did not bother me.

There were no more labs, no lectures, or empty apartment. My mind filled with images of what Bavaria was promoted to be...romantic castles, lush rolling hills, beer and pretzels. Streets would be filled with tightly corseted women and strapping men wearing leather lederhosen. I laughed to myself at the stereotype in my mind. It was one that was perpetuated by glossy brochures and the multiple festivals held year round in Cincinnati. I knew better. Germany had become an industrial powerhouse. One word described the country: efficient.

After World War II, they brought in immigrants to rebuild after it was nearly decimated. Now, Germany boasted fast sleek cars, gorgeous alpine vistas, and an economic infrastructure that not only cared for its citizens, it pursued progress relentlessly. A few of my coworkers tried to tell me that Germans were not friendly, but I never found that to be true. My Aunt Hannalore lived in Lindau near Lake Constance in the South. When I asked her about why that rumor persisted, she simply told me that Americans are rude travelers with a superiority complex. It was simply different there, and I would see it for myself.

As a scientist, I would appreciate the way of life over there. She responded excitedly to the email I had sent to tell her I was going to be close for an interview. I wished she could have picked me up from the airport, yet she a.s.sured me the public travel was not like the United States; there was nothing to be nervous about.

I slurped the last bit of drink I had left and set my gla.s.s down. Feeling someone walk up next to me to order something, I kept my eyes glued forward towards my book, feeling it awkward to turn immediately at the stranger. He smelled delicious. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. Hints of cedar and leather; it was intoxicating.

"What can I get you, sir?" the female bartender said cheerfully while wiping the spot in front of him.

I looked up at her face to see she was blushing. I smiled slightly and looked back at my book, yet wanting to see whom this was next to me, causing such a reaction.

Clearing his throat with obvious exaggeration, he replied, "Bourbon, neat."

The girl blushed again and quickly turned around to grab the bottle from the far side of the bar. I still refused to take my eyes away from the spot in front of me. Absentmindedly grasping for the gla.s.s and mouthing for the straw, I remembered again it was empty. I set it back down and turned the page, trying to appear uninterested in the man next to me. She set down his gla.s.s as he slid a credit card across the bar to start a tab. As she started to ring in his drink, he motioned for her to come back.

"I would like to buy this lady a drink; she seems to have finished hers."

I looked up at the girl who now held a scorn beneath her smile. Instantly, I waved my hands in refusal.

"I am good, but thank you."

The bright smirk reappeared as her eyes danced back to the gentleman. Feeling increasingly curious, my body turned to see who was attempting to be charitable. It wasn't liquor coursing through my veins, but sheer shock as I reeled backwards, grabbing for the top of the bar as I started to fall off the stool. This was graceful, yeah right...I felt his strong hands grab my wrist to keep me from going any further. It happened so quickly, I could not help but laugh loudly as I positioned myself into a more stable spot. He started to join in at the dramatics quickly unfolding, and then I stopped.

My face tightened and contorted into a strange shape that he mirrored from my reaction. I looked down at the hands that caught me, still gently placed around my wrist.

Barely a whisper, all that could come out was a small "hi".

His fingers gently swiped along the curve of my jaw before pulling me into an embrace as the reality of him being there set in. My face nuzzled into the corner of his neck. Arms wrapped tightly around my waist as I felt his cheek press deeply into my hair. The scent was no longer a hint, but an overpowering wave, devouring my senses. I felt the white cotton shirt start to soak with tears. I pulled away with embarra.s.sment, realizing there was also pink lipstick and black mascara along his collar.

"You look like a crazy racc.o.o.n," he chuckled.

I reached for the bar napkin to wipe my runny nose and attempt to restore my face to a more reasonable state. My lips pursed into a pout as I tried to back into my stool to sit down. Hands swiftly grabbed my hips to pull me close again, causing a hitch in my breath.

"You look amazing."

I knew why the bartender was blushing like an idiot now. He was striking, no...he was gorgeous! Dark chocolate waves fell into place as he ran his fingers through his hair. Piercing blue eyes stared back at me lovingly. My hands ran along his broad chest, feeling the expensive wool of his coat beneath them. I was sure I was the blushing idiot, based off his smile. He reached in and pulled me into another embrace.

"G.o.d, I missed you."

I squeezed back. "I missed you, too."

I imagined this scenario in my head a million times; however, it always brought me pain rather than the elation I was currently experiencing. I waited to wake up at any moment, finding this another lucid dream that has haunted me for far too long. I felt the vibration of his Adam's apple against my forehead when he let out a deep growling sigh. I squeezed him tighter, unwilling to break the embrace first.

"Can I buy you a drink now?"

I pulled away to give him a grin. Breathing out in feigned exasperation, "I guess, if you must."

The bartender was now gawking unabashedly at our reunion, unsure of what to make of the situation. His hand rubbed my shoulder with familiarity I was no longer accustomed to. The muscles involuntarily flinched at his touch, causing him to stop and look at me curiously for a moment. Shepard then picked up the short rocks gla.s.s and swirled the amber colored bourbon before taking a sip.

"What do you want?" his eyebrows piqued at the loaded question.

Without a pause, I replied, "What do you have in mind?"

He nearly choked with laughter at my playful response.

"Well, since my flight just got delayed, I am sure I can figure something out, especially since we are on the same flight."

I was caught off guard; how did he know what flight I was on? Knowing what was running through my mind, he picked up the guidebook in front of me and tapped it on the bar.

"Oh, I see. Where are you sitting at?"

He pulled the ticket from his inner coat pocket and glanced. "Seat 4C. And you?"

"Not business cla.s.s, I know that. 26G."

He reached over and grabbed the ticket from my hand. "We will need to fix that then."

"What? Give me that back!" I jumped up to follow him as he walked towards the line at the gate, shoving all of my belongings into my backpack. They had worked swiftly to accommodate the pa.s.sengers so the line was considerably shorter.

"Get your pa.s.sport out, they will need to see it."

"Shepard, what are you doing?" I sounded irritated, but it was confusion at this sudden change in plans.

His voice took on a quieter tone as he gazed down at me. "Spending any moment I can with you."

I looked away to the gate agent who was waiting expectantly for our request. I reached into my pack for my wallet, which Shepard immediately motioned for me to put away. I frowned. "I can get this, you know. How much is it?"

"Violet, let me. I can expense it, and I'd like to do this for you."

The agent was already swiping his card, not waiting for my approval.

"It looks as though it's already been done." I couldn't hide the smile creeping across my face.

Shepard handed my pa.s.sport back with along with my new ticket. The expression in his eyes told me that this was going to be the beginning of a very interesting flight. His hand pressed lightly on the small of my back, guiding me back to the bar to wait for the boarding announcement. His whole demeanor had morphed into one of contentment. Internally, I grew cautious about this supposedly random encounter, yet I couldn't shake the feeling that was forming. My heart beat so strongly inside my chest, pulsing life back into my very being. I shoved the doubt down deep, only allowing these currents of antic.i.p.ation to flow through. Time could not diminish the effect he had on me.

Chapter 30 - Icarus.

"Pinch me!" I held my arm in front of Shepard as he was settling in his seat.

"You're holding out the wrong body part, Violet."

As I snapped my arm back, a deep belly laugh filled the cabin taking a few of the pa.s.sengers off guard. "You're going to have to keep it down mister; we can't get kicked off this flight. They may not let us on the same plane together." The flight attendant approached us with two gla.s.ses of champagne and warm towels. Taking one after buckling in, I held the flute stem and looked at Shepard. It had to be a dream. "This has to count as the drink you were going to buy me. It's technically breaking my one drink rule, but it was so expensive, it would be a shame to waste it. We should toast."

Looking off into the distance, I could tell he was thinking of something witty to say. Twisting his lips off to the side into a winked expression, he extended his gla.s.s towards me. "To hope."

Gently b.u.mping the rims of our gla.s.ses together before sipping the bubbly liquid, the tart sweetness reminded me of the bottle Alessa and I shared.

"To hope." Smiling into my gla.s.s while taking another sip, it was the same.

"Veuve Clicquot, fancy." Both of us turned to the attendant who was pouring another gla.s.s out of the trademark orange labeled bottle.

"Do you like it? You can have more if you want." His hand went up to call the woman over as she was looking around.

Lifting my wrist to raise the gla.s.s, I watched her grin as she carefully topped off the effervescent liquid. Cradling the sides with my hands, I peered at the tiny spheres rising rapidly to the surface.

"I had this for the first time not too long ago. We drank nearly a whole bottle in a half hour. It started out as such a happy day. It feels like a million years ago, not a few months."

"You say started. What happened?" Setting down his gla.s.s, he turned to give me his full attention.

My eyes began to water. I pursed my lips to breathe out and hold my heartache in. Giggling to lighten the situation, I shook my head and rubbed my face. "Sorry, I have been a bit of a mess lately. You always seem to appear when I am a train wreck. You should probably see if my seat is still available. Ten hours is a long time to be exposed to my current level of crazy."

Pulling the napkin from under his gla.s.s, he folded it and dabbed away at the tears falling down my face. "Ten hours is enough time for us to catch up. I used to love your crazy. From what I recall, I had a way of making you feel better. Maybe I can today, too."

His fingers went up and pinched my nose gently in a playful fashion. Smiling widely, he rested his head against the seat and looked at me, taking everything in.

"I already do feel better, Shepard, you have no idea. I'm still not convinced this isn't a dream."

He reached up to rest his palm against my cheek, and I didn't flinch. My eyes closed and memorized the weight and warmth of his touch.

The pilot came on over the intercom to tell the flight attendants to prepare for take-off and give the safety speech. The engines hissed loudly while the air pressure changed. Staring in silence at each other as we felt ourselves leave the ground, I wanted this moment to last forever.

Not much more was said as we were served dinner and a bottle of wine.

"I have been missing out my whole life. I don't know how I am going to sit back there in a few days."

Hiking my thumb and motioning to coach between mouthfuls of b.u.t.ternut squash ravioli, I saw his face drop.

"How long do you plan on being in Germany?"

Finishing my bite, I wiped my mouth, then set the napkin off to the side.

"A week. I have an interview in Munich. A prestigious research company approached me and I have been on leave from work, so I thought it was worth a shot." I picked up my fork and scooted the remains of my meal around the plate. The discussion I wanted to avoid was on the horizon.

"Why are you on leave? Are you sick or something?" Concern was washing over his face by the minute.

"A lot has happened recently. I felt it was best. I just needed a break."

His hand moved slowly across the armrest and captured my restless fingers tapping against the tray. Deep thumb strokes along the crease in my palm released a wave of calm. I had forgotten what this was like. I would try and recreate the motion when I was upset, but it was never the same.

"Tell me what happened." His voice caressed my ears, penetrating into my soul, the parched recesses of my being begging for relief.

"Where do I even start?" I wiped away the tears that seemed to never end.

His thumb continued the rhythmic pattern of pressure, ma.s.saging the rest of my hand with his other fingers.

"The beginning is always a good place."

I looked down at our hands, cradled in each other as if they were never apart. My heart stirred at the unspoken request. He wanted to know why I left. This wasn't about me. He wanted closure. Seeing me must have woken something in him, too, but not what I was feeling. My narcissism was unbelievable.

With a deep inhale, my side of our demise was about to meet his. The dream was slowly turning into the nightmare I feared. At least I knew when I got off this plane; we would both be able to go on, no longer carrying the questions that burdened us.