Unspoken

Bret rolls his eyes. "I didn't mean everyone but me knew you had a job. I meant any other husband with any brains will know that his wife has a second job!"

He takes a step closer to Charlotte, gesturing with his hands. "I don't care what color fingernail polish you got and I don't care what brand hotdogs you get from the store. But you'd think that if you went out and got a second job, you'd have the decency to tell me about it, instead of hiding it!"

He snatches the paper back from her. "At a nightclub! What were you thinking?!" His temper rises with his voice. "Of all places, you had to choose a nightclub! 'Hey, Bret, what's up?' 'Oh, nothing, just my pregnant wife is singing at a nightclub without my knowledge.'"

Throwing the paper back down, he starts to stalk away, then turns around again. "You didn't want to make me feel bad. So instead of talking to me about finances, you decide it would be easier just to hide a job from me. Were you ever going to tell me? Or were you just going to find out what a fool I really am to be so blind? I'm your husband, Charlotte! I have a right to know about these things. This isn't just something little that doesn't matter! It isn't the same as 'Oh by the way I bought a new dress.' We're talking about a job and our family's income."

Bret pauses, staring Charlotte in the eye. "And you deliberately hid that from me."

It hurt. It hurt deeply and Bret felt betrayed. If only she'd told him. If only she'd discussed it with him. If he'd known their finances were so bad when he was in the hospital, he would have figured something out with her, and he might not have minded her taking on a second job for a while. But at least he would have been in on it. At least he would have had a chance to give his opinion and help make the final decision. But instead, it had been hidden from him.

Spinning on his heel, he heads to the kitchen, limping as his leg throbs. Arriving to the tiled floor, his foot hooks a chair leg, cranking his knee. Already in enough pain, Bret lets out a howl. Too angry to care, his good leg swings around and gives the chair a swift kick. It flies away from the table, clattering on the floor and banging against the wall, breaking one of its legs.

Bret limps to the counter and grabs his car keys, then heads for the front door. Donning his leather jacket, he throws one last glare over his shoulder. "Don't wait up for me."


Sparky continues to walk, his pace much slower than normal on his evening rounds. He glances down at Faith, his eyes curious. "I got the time," he admits. "I'm not the greatest teacher in the world, but I could probably get you started at least."

He checks a gate then keeps on walking. "Takes time though. There's a difference between getting on a horse and going, and learning how to ride. If you want the first, I could throw you on a horse tomorrow. If you're interested in really riding though, I'm assuming you won't be around that long. You're going back to Thailand, aren't you?"


I know... the Agency scares me too. If it was just me, I wouldn't mind so much, but knowing they're after you too... I don't like that at all.

Rick heaves a deep sigh and turns back around to see Katie. "I know you don't like being in the dark, Katie, and I'm sorry. I just wanted to give you time to rest."

Jason looks to Katie, then back to Rick. "Tell us what you're planning and then we'll rest."

"Okay. I want you to blow something up for me."

Jason's eyebrows rise. "You what?"

"I want you to blow something up. Nothing big, but I don't want you spending your energy on that right now."

"Um... and why do you want me to do that?"

"I want to tape it. And I want to study how the item bursts. Before we can investigate your marks further, we need to understand how you work naturally. It's just something I want to see."

Jason eyes him suspiciously. "You don't think it's a brand, do you?"

Rick hesitates. "No. I know it seems to be, and I know the Agency shot you with something that caused the chain of events... but I don't think they knew you two would end up with a permanent mark. Just let it go for now, rest, and when you're both feeling better in a couple days, we'll continue the research."

Jason sighs, but gives in.
I'm too tired to care at this point. Let him do his thing. We'll find out what he means soon.
Thanks for hanging in there with me, Hero. I love you too.


Eli shuffles the deck of cards in his hands, leaning back in the living room chair. There was an awkward silence. There wasn't normally between him and his sister. But there was now, and he knew that she could tell there was something he wasn't saying. She was back on her feet, back to work, and he'd seen her race. Yet he still stayed. He had not gone back to Florida yet, and though he was living out of the same small duffel bag, he hadn't made mention to leaving either.

The tv was on, but Eli wasn't paying attention to it. Supper was undecided. They might do takeout Chinese. But for the moment, his mind was far away. He needed to tell her.

Glancing up, he catches Ryan's eye. The stare that looked back at him told him that she knew something was up but was respecting his privacy. "I suppose one of these days I better head back cross-country," he muses. "I think I've mooched off you long enough." A grin seeps out, showing that he knew Ryan didn't think of it that way. But there was still more... there was still more he wasn't saying.