*U.S. Marshall Jack Carter (Colin Ferguson) is sharp and charming, with a quick wit and a street-smart edge. Dedicated first and foremost to his career, a recent separation from his wife has left him at odds with his teenage daughter, Zoe, whose brushes with the law keep Carter nearly as busy as his day job. In fact, Zoe's latest escapade has Carter transporting her home in his custody when their car crashes outside the town of Eureka, ultimately leading to his "promotion" to town sheriff.



Allison Blake is the government liaison between Eureka and the Pentagon and the head of Global Dynamics, an advanced research facility responsible for all major technological breakthroughs for the last 50 years. Charged with reporting on the progress of Eureka's citizens as well as their temperamental innovations, Allison grapples with an endless stream of crises and moral dilemmas.



Nathan Stark is a Nobel-prize winning mathematician, Eureka's head researcher and Allison Blake's ex-husband. Charming to a fault and keenly brilliant, he gives Jack Carter a run for his money in the contest for Allison's romantic interest, but Stark's professional desire to push the boundaries of science eventually compromise his personal integrity.



Josefina "Jo" Lupo is Eureka's deputy sheriff, a New Jersey girl and former U.S. Army Ranger. The eccentric residents of Eureka try her patience, but they've grown accustomed to her bluster and appreciate her dedication to their safety. At first, Jo is resentful of having to report to an outsider when Jack Carter is given the sheriff's job, but she comes to gain respect for his talents and becomes his trusted partner in maintaining the peace.



Henry Deacon is a true jack-of-all-trades. Masquerading as the local mechanic, his feats of engineering are a constant source of wonder and amusement. Whether outfitting Eureka's police cruisers with the latest and greatest gadgets or inventing a global air-conditioning system, Henry has the keen ability to figure out the mechanics of nearly any contraption. So why is Henry such a dedicated do-gooder? Perhaps he sees his work in Eureka as a chance to redeem himself for the sins of a mysterious and complicated past.



Douglas Fargo is the funny, lovable and put-upon executive assistant to the director of Global Dynamics. Blessed with great intelligence but cursed with terrible luck, Fargo seems forever stuck in his subservient role, even as his pet projects showcase his unlimited potential. Fargo's inability to control his curiosity frequently lands him in trouble, much to the chagrin of his disapproving mentor, Nathan Stark.



Zoe Carter is Jack Carter's defiant, delinquent, and also terribly intelligent daughter. Though Zoe tries to keep up her "riot grrrl" image, behind her attitude and piercings she's just another young woman who wants her absentee father to pay her some attention. And what's the best way to attract a cop's attention? Consistently put oneself at odds with the law—something that Zoe has become quite adept at doing.

*Character Summaries from Eurekapedia*

Then

“I don’t see it.”

“Just concentrate. It’s there, I promise.”

Jack Carter stared up at the sky and tried to do what she asked. But the truth was he couldn’t concentrate. She was too close, and the smell of her perfume kept filling his nostrils.

He wanted to kiss her.

“Do you see it?” Allison placed her hand on his forearm, giving it a slight squeeze. He turned to look at her, and she returned his gaze with an eager eyebrow life and a nod towards the sky. “Well?” She bit her lip waiting for his answer.

He wanted to tell her that yes, after twenty-odd years of never being able to make out a single constellation, with her help he had finally realized why the hell people pointed at five stars in a line and called it a bear.

But then he’d be lying. And the last thing Jack wanted to do was lie to Allison.

And he still wanted to kiss her.

“I see—“Carter paused, squinting up to the sky, his azure blue eyes alight with mischief. “—pollution.”

Allison slapped his arm and shook her head, exhaling a puff of frustration. “Stop it. There’s no pollution in Eureka.”

“Right,” Carter said, nodding his head with slow exaggeration. “I’m sure it’s all turned into puppy chow or toilet paper.”

Allison laughed and the sound crawled up his skin and made him shiver. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d gone a day without that laugh. Didn’t want to remember.

“Okay, so you’re not Galileo. I get it.”

“No, but on the bright side I’ve actually heard of that guy. So—“Carter tapped his forehead and raised his eyebrows,”—apparently there’s more up here than baseball stats. Which is—“Carter frowned, “—surprising—actually.”

“You have the most beautiful eyes,” Allison said. Carter looked at her a warm grin spreading across his lips. Allison blushed slightly, a pretty shade of pink that complimented her almond colored skin.

“Whoa, Allison Blake? I never took you for a fast woman.” He wrinkled his face in mock horror. “Complimenting my eyes? How easy do you think I am?”

“Oh shut up and kiss me Carter,” Allison groaned, leaning into his body. Carter reached up to cup her cheek, stroking the smooth skin with the pad of his thumb. His eyes lingered on her lips and rose to meet her warm brown gaze. He lowered his lips to within inches of hers, and smiled.

“Hussy,” he whispered, at her impatient grunt, just as he covered her lips with his own.

Now

“Wake up Sheriff Carter.”

“Oh goddammit!” Carter grabbed the pillow nearest his head and slammed it over his ear. He didn’t bother to look at the clock. The clawing ache of fatigue currently pounding inside his head told him all he needed to know. It was four in the morning. And his Self-Actuated Residential Automated Habitat’s clock was still broken.

It was one of the hazards of living in a smart house (although Carter had began to question that title since apparently the bitch couldn’t tell time) and in a town that was run by citizens that thought regular alarm clocks were for poor people and pussies. Carter was neither. But hell if he wouldn’t trade every rookie baseball card in his collection (even Sammy Sosa’s which still made him tear up every time he held it) if he could get one night’s sleep without hearing that fucking voice four hours before he had to be at work.

Carter flipped over onto his back and stared at the ceiling.

“Sheriff Carter?”

It wasn’t SARAH’s fault she was the broken. And yet Carter refused to respond, since he’d lost a debate the previous morning over whether she needed fixing or not. He’d left the house, halfway convinced that he was the one who couldn’t tell time until his Deputy, Jo Lupo had pointed out that his pants were on inside out. He couldn’t remember a time in his life when he had been so bone achingly tired. But that was life in Eureka. His time as a U.S. Marshal seemed positively spa like in comparison.

Carter looked at his nightstand and scowled at the telephone. He shot up in his bed and with a determined growl he picked up the receiver and dialed zero on the keypad. The dial tone was the Buffy the Vampire theme song which just pissed him off even more.

The music stopped and Carter waited through a series of groans and at least five “shits” before Douglas Fargo spoke into the receiver. “Sheriff Carter?”

“Who else would it be Fargo?”

“Oh—she’s still broken.”

“Yep.”

“I guess you want me to come down there—“

“I think that would be best.”

“Uh Sheriff?”

“Yeah.”

“You gonna do this every morning?”

“You bet your pasty white ass I am.” Carter slammed the phone down on the receiver and lowered his face to his hands. It was going to be another long day, filled with coffee runs and migraines. That was the last thing he needed. Particularly today of all days.

Carter rose to his feet, stretching his lanky frame as far to his ceiling as possible. He rubbed his eyes and stumbled towards the bathroom, his thoughts shifting to all of his carefully made plans for the evening. He’d been working on it for a while, changing his mind so many times Zoë had begun to look at him as though she was starting to question her parentage. Again. But he couldn’t help it. It had to be just right.

“Would you like a newspaper Sheriff Carter?”

“Stop trying to butter me up SARAH,” Carter replied, his irritation clear in his voice.

“I’m doing nothing of the sort. Reading while one conducts their bodily functions has been scientifically proven to increase memory and critical thinking proficiency.”

“Oh—“Carter said, pushing open the sleek glass bathroom door. “—so I’m stupid now.”

His house paused. “I was merely expressing a benefit—“

“Stupid old Sheriff Carter…” Carter mumbled the word with a singsong melody and his house paused again.

“I am sensing some hostility Sheriff Carter.”

“Well at least that part isn’t broken.” Carter shook his head and stepped into the bathroom, grabbing his toothbrush off the sink. The faucet automatically began to run, sensing his presence and adjusting the water’s temperature according to his personal settings. Carter stared down at the running water its soft flowing rhythm lulling him back to sleep.

“Douglas Fargo is at the door Sheriff Carter.”

Carter snapped his head back, and dropped his toothbrush in the toilet. He stared into the bowel, visibly shaken by his loss. “Fuck,” he whispered.

“There’s an electric toothbrush in the—“

“I know, I know! Look, my toaster is voice activated, the carpet shampoos itself, and my refrigerator tells me the number of calories of every fuckin’ thing I put inside it. Excuse me if I would rather brush my own damn teeth—“

“Ahem.’ Carter paused mid-tirade to find Fargo hovering around the doorway of his bedroom. “You really shouldn’t yell at her like that,” Fargo said. “She gets depressed when she thinks you’re not happy with her.”

“Hey, do I come into your smart house, tell you how to raise your computers?”

“Well—technically this is my smart house.”

“You wanna get arrested today Fargo?”

“No.”

“Then just fix the damn clock.”

Fargo ducked his head and scurried out of the room. Carter sighed, and looked up at the ceiling. “SARAH.?”

“Yes Sheriff Carter.”

“I’m—sorry I yelled at you.”

“It’s okay Sheriff Carter. I can tell by your vital signs that you are excessively fatigued and your blood pressure has risen significantly. Is there anything you would like to discuss?”

Carter’s lips curved into a reluctant smile and he shook his head. “No,” he said. “Unless you know Allison Blake’s ring size.”

“That would be a size 7.”

Carter laughed and spun around, reaching into his medicine cabinet for the reviled electric toothbrush. Even the obnoxious roar of its motor couldn’t wipe the grin that had planted itself firmly on his face. He’d stop by the jeweler and make sure he had gotten the size right. Vincent, Eureka’s resident culinary savant and executive chef at Café Diem, had gone over the menu with Carter five times before he’d finally kicked him out, grumbling something about having the palate of a cow.

But Carter refused to leave anything to chance. He’d been through enough disasters as sheriff of a town populated with geniuses long enough to know that if something could go wrong, some atomic physicist could make it even worse. But if all went as planned, there wouldn’t be a thing in the world that could bring him off his expected high.

Assuming she said yes.

Carter shut off his toothbrush and studied his face in the mirror. “Of course she’ll say yes,” he told his reflection.

“It’s time to wake up Sheriff Carter.”

Carter rolled his eyes. “Fargo!”

“It’s time to wake up Sheriff Carter.”

“Wake up Sheriff Carter.”

“Wake up.”

*****

Allison’s sat up in her bed, her body covered in sweat. She brought trembling hands up to her chest and closed her eyes and willed her heart to stop it erratic pounding in her chest.

Take a deep breath Allison. Get it together.

She breathed in deep, letting the air out in a slow steady stream between her lips. Her pulse began to return to normal and she opened her eyes to stare in the dark shadows of her bedroom, rubbing her arms against a sudden chill.

It had been years since she’d had these types of episodes. After she’d finished medical school and began working for the Department of Defense, she’d had them every night. A dream or nightmare, so vivid and real that her body physically recoiled from the images while she slept, would slip away when she finally pulled herself from its grasp. Even today, she had no idea what they were about. All they left behind was an intense sense of loss. Like there was something she’d forgotten or left behind.

“Stop it,” she said. “Just stop it.” Allison pushed her comforter off of her legs and slid out of bed, placing her bare feet against the hardwood floors. The shock of the cool surface calmed her, and she lowered her face into her hands, her hair falling forward onto her knees.

It had to be work. Ever since she’d been promoted to Director of Global Dynamics, she’d barely had time to even think. Every day it was some new disaster, some dire emergency brought on the latest discovery, invention, useless bullshit that she had to fix right now or the world would explode. Those people had no idea how many times she wanted to grab them by the neck, shake the hell out of them and tell them to stop fucking with shit.

And then there was Nathan. Her ex-husband had taken to skulking around the facility and shooting her resentful glares mixed up with his usual undisguised longing. Allison had responded by hiding in the ladies room during her lunch breaks, and then scavenging desperately for old slim fast bars in her desk just to avoid him. Since their last attempt at reconciliation had ended with her awkward denial of his marriage proposal, they could barely be in the same room without the conversation devolving into a shouting match. Douglas Fargo, her assistant had even pulled her aside and asked her whether it was that time of the month. She’d replied by snapping the Doctor Who figurine perched upon is desk in half.

Allison rose from her bed and made her way out into the hall. She paused outside Kevin’s bedroom, leaning her ear close to the door. There was nothing, only silence on the other side and Allison stepped back, lowering herself to the ground. She pulled her knees up to her chest and stared at the white painted wood, aching to hold her son. But she didn’t want to wake him and frighten him with the anxiety she knew showed clearly on her face. Though his severe autism limited the amount of insight she had into his inner thoughts, the panic in his eyes whenever Allison became upset or angry was more than she could take right now.

‘What is it,” she whispered. The first time it was the stress of choosing the DOD over a safe, secure family practice. After that it was marrying Nathan (which should have set off all types of bells in her head) and then their painful divorce. The logical choice would be the headache involved in running Global Dynamics and dealing with its eccentric population. Maybe it was all becoming too much for her, and this was her body’s way of telling her it was time to move on.

But this had seemed different somehow. Allison frowned down at her feet, struggling to remember her dream. But like before, it remained out of her reach, just beneath the surface of her conscious.

“What is it,” she whispered, folding her arms over her chest. “What did I forget?”

Then

“So this is like our fourth date right?” Carter leaned over and whispered into Allison’s ear, his hand buried into a large bucket of popcorn. The movie floated above them, cast over their heads as a digital hologram image so clear it was as though the actors were flying above them in person. Carter glanced up at Nicole Kidman’s high pitched scream and lowered his eyes back down to Allison’s profile. “I mean, not that I’m counting or anything—“

“You’re not?” Allison looked at him, raising a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. Carter’s mouth opened and closed, and he shook his head with a nervous laugh.

“See there? Almost caught you sleepin’. I was just making sure you—could—count.”

“Ah,” Allison said, biting down on her lower lip to hide her smile. “I see. I can spell too if you were worried.”

“Actually I was, so I’m glad you cleared that up.”

“Shhhh!” Carter turned around at the vicious whisper emanating from the back row. He pulled out his badge and raised it high into the light of the hologram, the gold shield glinting brightly for all to see.

“Sorry Sheriff,” said an apologetic voice.

He lowered the badge back down to his pocket and found Allison watching him with an amused expression. “You use that that thing for parking too?”

Carter looked at her in surprise. “Don’t you?”

“Weren’t you in the middle of counting our dates?”

“Oh right. So like I was saying, this is our fourth date right?”

Allison nodded slowly. “Right.”

“So I was thinking. Fourth dates a big deal. I mean I ate spaghetti in front of you and you didn’t even flinch when that meatball landed in my lap. That means something Allison.”

Allison tilted her head and smiled. Carter always had this affect on her. The minute he was around all the stress of the day just melted away, she was like a giddy teenager with a crush on the cute new boy in town.

And dear God he smelled good.

“What exactly does that mean, Jack,” she said. Her voice was intentionally suggestive and Carter’s face grew serious. He cleared his throat as she leaned forward her eyes on his lips.

“It uh—means that—oh fuck it.” Carter closed the distance between them and Allison took a deep breath before his lips covered hers. He kissed her with a slow patience that left her shivering. He lowered his head slightly and captured her bottom lip in his mouth, sucking gently before he touched the tip of his tongue to hers’. Allison grabbed his forearms, stifling the moan that had risen to her throat. Carter leaned back with a quiet hiss of breath his eyes tightly closed. “Okay, I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Why not,” Allison asked, her own voice low and breathy.

“Because I really, really, really want to make love to you right now.” Carter lifted his hand to stop her from speaking. “And I know it’s soon—you probably want to wait and that’s fine. I can wait but—“

“Wait. So just now when you were talking about this being our fourth date. That wasn’t about sex?”

Carter paused. “I—uh—no. I was going to ask you go away with me next weekend—camping.”

Allison leaned back. “Camping.”

“Wuss!” called a voice from the back row. Carter stood up and scanned the audience.

“How does camping make me a wuss?” Carter gestured towards the crowd with a roll of his eyes. “Well—yeah—if you go camping with a computerized tent with a flat screen TV and a full kitchenette then yeah, I guess that would be a little less than manly—“

“Carter,” Allison said. She pulled his arm and he looked down at her as though he’d forgotten she was there. He was immediately contrite, and lowered himself back down to his chair.

“Sorry about that—“

“I think we should go back to my place.”

Carter looked at her. “Your place?”

“My place.’

“Kevin—“

“Is at a friend’s.”

“So it’ll just be—“

“You and me.”

“Are you sure because—“

“Shit man, just go!”

Carter stood up, his badge in hand. “Okay that’s it---“

“Jack!” Allison looked up at him with wide eyes and Jack nodded, stuffing the badge back into his pocket.

“Right. Let’s get out of here.”

Allison stood and grabbed his hand and the theater burst into applause. Carter waved at the crowd and ducked his head. “Yeah, yeah, okay. Ha ha—“

“Don’t forget to glove it Sheriff!”

Carter ran a hand over his face and closed his eyes tight. “This is not going how I planned.” His phone ran and he looked up at the ceiling. “Really not how I planned.”

“Answer it Jack,” Allison said. She watched as he pulled the tiny phone from his pocket, silently praying it wasn’t some imminent catastrophe.

“Jo, I’m kinda in the middle—“ Carter paused and gave Allison a tense smile. “Well no, it’s not—“ he laughed and shrugged. “Well it can’t be that—“Carter frowned. “And they’re all upside down?”

Allison’s hope sank. She lowered her eyes to the ground as his voice grew low with resignation. “Okay,” he said. “I’ll be right there.”

“Awwww” the crowd groaned in unison. Jack stuffed the phone back into his pocket and gestured towards the crowd. “Thanks for the concern about my love life people. Thank you. It’s been really—creepy.” He grabbed Allison’s hand and led her out of the theater. She closed her eyes while he wasn’t looking and concentrated on the warm strength of his hand on hers.

It made her feel safe.

“I’m sorry Allie,” Carter said turning to face her. Allison looked up quickly, embarrassed at the prospect of being caught. Jack looked down at her and gave no indication he’d seen her daydreaming. She sighed with relief.

“Rain check Carter,” she said. Allison was shooting for nonchalant, but her resolved crumbled the minute he pulled her into his arms.

“Tomorrow,” he whispered. He reached up to cup her chin, stroking the underside of her lip with his thumb. “Not a damn thing is going to keep me away from you Allison. I promise okay?”

“Okay,” she said. She believed him. Jack always kept his promises.

Now

“I don’t wanna go to school,” Carter groaned. He woke with a start, blinking in the bright lights of his living room. He was dressed in his uniform, his keys clutched in his hand. “SARAH?”

“Yes Sheriff Carter?”

“Was I on the way to work?”

“Yes Sheriff.”

“But I fell asleep.”

“You said the pillow on the couch was uneven. I believe you tried to flatten it with your body weight.”

“Uh huh.” Carter rose to his feet, staring down at his keys. “Hey SARAH.?”

“Yes Sheriff Carter.”

“Could you call me a cab?”

“Yes Sheriff Carter.”

He heard a dial tone and walked towards the door, his shoulders slumped with fatigue. It opened with a loud hiss as SARAH began to recite his address to the cab company. Carter’s feet were heavy on the stairs leading up to the grassy woods surrounding the former fallout shelter that had been converted into his home. He paused on the last step and bent over to grab his knees. “Christ this gets old.”

‘You shouldn’t say Christ like that.”

Jack looked up at the unfamiliar voice. He looked around the area and found it empty. “Who said that?”

“I did.” He stood straight and turned around, squinting in the bright sunlight shining through the trees surrounding him.

“Who’s I—who are you?”

Something touched his hand and he jumped, startled at the sudden sensation. Jack looked down to find a young girl staring up at him, her brown eyes wide an unblinking. He took a step back and frowned. “Where the hell did you come from?”

“You shouldn’t say hell either. Not like that.”

“Not like—are your parents around?” Carter leaned over and the girl scowled up at him, hunching her shoulders defensively.

“That’s condescending.”

“What?”

“They way you bend over to talk to me--like you’re trying to bring yourself down to my level. It’s irritating.”

“How—how old are you?”

“Ten.”

“You sound thirty.”

“You look fifty.”

Carter clenched his jaw and straightened with a short nod. “Yep. Definitely local. What are you—chemistry whiz? Biological prodigy? Oh wait—“ Carter said snapping his fingers. “You’re wondering out in the woods. Plant genius.”

“You mean Botany.”

“Is that plant science?”

“Yes.”

“Then don’t talk back.”

The girl rolled her eyes and began to walk towards the woods. “Hey,” Carter called. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“Why do you care?”

He stalked after her, pointing at his chest. “You see the badge? I get paid to care.”

“Yay for me,” she droned. Carter frowned, studying the girl’s face. Her curly brown hair was clean, pulled back into a neat ponytail at the nape of her neck. Her tank top and jeans were in good condition, and there were no visible signs of trauma on her skin. He decided she probably wasn’t a runaway, but had no clue as to how she’d ended up in the woods near his home.

“You never told me your name.”

The girl didn’t answer. She stubbed her shoe into the ground and glared at a large tree in front of her.

“Okay,” Carter said. “If you don’t tell me your name I’ll have to arrest you.”

“For what?”

“Trespassing.”

“You wouldn’t arrest a kid.”

“I’ve arrested my own kid. Twice.”

“She’s older.”

Carter paused. “You know Zoë?”

“Everybody knows Zoë.”

“And you know me?”

She nodded and Carter moved closer to where she stood. “Hey, look. Why don’t you let me call your parents? I’m sure they’re worried about you.”

“My parents are gone,” she snapped. The girl kicked a branch at her feet and Carter watched it fly into a nearby shrub.

“Gone where?”

“Don’t be stupid.”

“Hey!” Carter said. “Enough with the attitude. I’m just trying to help.”

The girl folded her arms over her thin chest and lifted her chin defiantly. “I’m hungry.”

Carter stared down into her brown round face and sighed. “Okay. Well—how about we trade? You tell me your first name—“The girl opened her mouth to protest and Carter held up his hand to stop her. “First name, that’s all. And I’ll get you some food. Deal?” He held out his hand and she looked at it, distrust clear in her eyes. She finally accepted with a firm grip.

“Faith,” she said.

Carter frowned. “What?”

“My name. It’s Faith.”




Faith

Now

‘Where’s Carter?” Allison walked down the hall of Global Dynamics with a purposeful stride, her heels clicking loudly on the polished floor. Deputy Jo Lupo walked beside her, struggling to keep up with her pace. Allison was still exhausted from the previous night and had resorted to drinking large amounts of espresso and green tea energy drinks just to stay alert. Plus she never did figure out what the damn thing was about. Joe cleared her throat and Allison glanced at her irritably.

“I’m—I’m not sure Ms. Blake. He didn’t come in this morning and he’s not answering my calls—“

Allison stopped mid stride causing Jo to stumble. “Is he okay,” Allison said, her voice significantly softer. Jo opened her mouth and closed it, raising her hands in a frustrated wave.

“Honestly Ma’am. I have no idea. Carter hasn’t really been himself lately. He’s—well he’s been falling asleep. A lot. In the bathroom sometimes. It’s—awkward.”

Allison sighed and shook her head. “Fargo told me SARAH’s clock is broken. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t been sleeping.”

“Maybe,” Jo grumbled. Allison resumed walking at a rapid pace, impatient with the woman’s obvious hostility toward Carter. Ever since she’d been passed over for Sheriff in favor of an outsider (a term the locals used for anyone not born and raised in Eureka) she’d been sullen, grumpy and at times openly hostile to her new boss. Though things had gotten better between the two Jo would probably be perfectly happy to see him replaced with someone local. Of course if she got the job that was all the better. It was why Allison didn’t have much use for Jo Lupo and why she didn’t bother to slow down when the woman was forced to break out in a jog to catch up with her.

“One of our engineers has gone missing—“ Allison paused mid-sentence at Jo’s derisive snort.

“Is something funny?”

“No, I uh—well…you people do disappear a lot. I mean a lot. It’s weird that—“Jo cleared her throat, looked down and began an intense study of her shoes. “It’s just something I noticed.”

“Well,” Allison said. “I know we have our share of problems, but if you can stomach the weirdness one more time, I’d like you and Carter to look into it for me.”

“I can handle it Ms. Blake.”

“I’d like Carter’s help on this Deputy Lupo. No offense, but he has a bit more experience with missing persons than you.”

Jo straightened her back, her mouth tense. “What’s his name?”

“Dr. Riley Porter.”

“Was Dr. Porter working on something important?”

Allison sighed, her expression pained. “I—well that’s just it. I don’t know. Henry was his supervisor and he’s not here. He was invited to speak at some top secret sabbatical the DOD reserves for their high ranking engineers.” Allison mentally chastised herself for not forcing Henry to brief her on his current research projects before his trip. She generally preferred not to micromanage her people, but Henry’s projects were all so top secret and on the very cutting edge of developing technology, she sometimes had him update her as to what projects they were developing just to be on the safe side

“So you want us to figure that out too?” Jo had taken out a pen and paper and looked at Allison expectantly. Allison blinked hard and struggled to focus on what she was saying. “What he was working on I mean.”

“Uh—no,” Allison said. “I’ll have Nathan look into it.”

Jo’s demeanor turned even colder and Allison felt a slight pang of guilt. She hated restricting local law enforcement’s access to information that might actually help them find her missing employee. But she also had no idea what type of security clearance was required for the research Doctor Porter was conducting at the time of his disappearance. Allison rubbed her temple as the memory of the Dr. Porter’s ransacked office flashed before her eyes. His wife had called her private line, hysterical and barely coherent, finally crying out that Riley hadn’t been home in three days. Three days without her husband before she’d started to panic.

Another way this job twisted its way into your life.

“Look, I know I’m not making this easy for you,” Allison said. “I’d like to give you full access but right now my hands are tied.”

“They usually are,” Jo grumbled as she scribbled notes on her pad. Allison stared at her bowed head, debating whether or not grab the woman’s tight chignon and tackle her to the ground. Jo looked up and Allison pasted a smile on her face.

“Could you please tell Carter to stop by my office if you see him? I’d like to brief him on this myself.”

“Of course you would,” Jo replied. She turned around and walked down the hall, her hand hovering as always, near her sidearm. Allison closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, mumbling to herself.

“Just get through the day Allison. That’s all you have to do. Just deal with this shit and it’ll all be okay—“

“Are you talking to yourself now Allie?”

Fuck.

Allison’s hands stilled and she looked up to find her ex-husband looking down at her, with an amused expression on his face. She crossed her arms over her chest in a protective gesture and returned his gaze.

“Did you need something Nathan?”

“Maybe that’s what I should be asking you,” Nathan replied. He stepped closer, until the scent of his cologne filled her nostrils and his body heat radiated on her skin. His lips were curved in a half smile that always tied her stomach in knots. It was moments like this that used to get to her—made her wonder what the hell she’d been thinking letting this man slip through her fingers. He was brilliant, charming, and one of the sexist men she’d ever laid eyes on….

“I was going to ask you that very thing Allison. Since apparently you’ve forgotten how to run this place.” Nathan laughed and reached up to touch her hair. “Or let’s face it—maybe you never knew in the first place.”

….and also a raging dick.

Then

“It’s okay Carter.”

Carter shielded his eyes against the bright blue lights flooding Fargo’s house. He could hear the man’s hysterical babbling from his position on the front lawn and so he switched his phone to the other ear and moved further away, determined to escape Fargo’s pleas to “cut me out of this shit.”

“No, it’s not okay,” Carter said. “I promised you I’d be there tonight and I’m stuck here cutting Fargo out of sky blue electricity conducting Jell-O.” Allison laughed and Carter’s shoulders instantly relaxed. “Tell me you don’t hate me right now.”

“I could never hate you Carter. Fargo on the other hand---“

“Just say the word and I’ll switch on the sprinklers.”

He could sense her smile through the telephone. “Aww, Jack. You’d really electrocute Fargo--for me? You say the nicest things.”

“What can I say,” Carter replied, smiling. “I’m a romantic.”

“Call me in the morning.”

“Count on it.” Carter paused and listened to the sound of her breathing on the other end of the line. “Allison I—“he hesitated, the words stuck in his throat. He’d almost told her. He wanted to tell her. He was just….

“You what Jack?”

“I just wanted to say have a good night.”

“You too.”

Carter heard the distinct click of her disconnecting, and lowered the phone down in front of him, frowning down at the dark screen. “Right,” he whispered. “Carter!” He looked up at the sound of Jo’s voice. She jogged towards him, her face rigid with annoyance.

“Yeah Jo,” Carter said as he closed the distance between them.

“We got a problem. None of Henry’s tools are working. The gelatin keeps spontaneously regenerating every time he tries to cut Fargo out. The only thing we can do is try to melt it down, which could take over an hour.”

He shrugged. ““So what’s the problem? Just light him up and---“

“Fargo has to pee.”

Carter’s mouth slammed shut with surprise. “Oh,” he said. His face wrinkled with disgust as he pictured the result of such an attempt while suspended in the middle of an eight foot tall mound of jelly. “Oh—that’s—that’s just gross.”

Then

Allison was pulled from her sleep by the sound of the phone ringing on her nightstand. She pushed her hair from her face and squinted at her clock.

2:00 a.m.

“What the hell?” She groped for the receiver and lifted it to her ear. “Hello?”

“Oh good you’re up.”

“Carter?” Allison propped herself up in her bed and pulled the covers higher to her chest. “It’s 2 in the morning.”

“Yeah I know—I just—well I just got done melting Fargo out of Jell-O and I—well I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”

“I can see how Jell-O could bring that on.”

“Ha—you’re funny when you’re sleep deprived.”

Allison smiled. “Where are you now Carter?”

“Guess.”

She frowned and reached out to turn on her lamp. “I don’t know,” she said.

“Come on Allie. Where do you think I’d be right now?”

Allison paused and then slid out of her bed, her satin nightgown falling down around her ankles. She made her way down the hall and into her living room, pausing at her front door. She placed her hand on the doorknob and hesitated, her lips curving into a soft smile. Allison pulled open the door to find Carter standing on her front porch, his eyes red with fatigue and his arms filled with her favorite white lilies.

He lowered the phone from his ear and shrugged. “I promised I’d be here.”

Allison lowered the telephone and her eyes bright with unshed tears. “And that’s why I love you.”

Now


“Fuck you Nathan Stark.” Allison slammed her hand on her desk and closed her eyes against the memory of his taunting voice. She new he’d only done it to get to her—his ongoing punishment for breaking his heart. It was the reason Allison couldn’t bring herself to hate him—though her palm was still itching with the impulse to slap that smug grin off his face.

“What is wrong with me,” Allison whispered. Nathan had taken great pleasure in reciting to her in excruciating detail just how much she’d fucked up in the past week. She’d forgotten to approve funding for two different departments causing development to shut down for three days. Then she’d neglected to tell security about the new genetics specialist they’d acquired, causing the poor woman to be harassed the minute she’d tried to enter the building. Add that to misplacing one of her top engineers and Allison had begun to think something was seriously wrong with her.

“Allison!”

She looked up as Carter entered her office and rose to her feet, glaring at him with irritation.

“I called you—“

“I know! I’m sorry.” He moved around the desk and slipped his arms around her waist. Allison’s eyes widened and she looked down at his hands as he pulled her against his body.

“Carter! What—“

“God I missed you last night,” he whispered. Allison gripped his arms and gasped in surprise as he lowered his lips to hers. Carter plunged his tongue into her mouth, tasting her with a long hot stroke. Allison sighed, her eyes fluttering closed as a slow throbbing began to pulse between the thighs. He lifted one hand to the nape of her neck and tilted her head so he could deepen the kiss, the hand on her waist moving lower to the curve of her behind. He pressed her hips against his and Allison’s eyes flew open at the hard length of his erection pressed against her stomach.

“Oh,’ she gasped as he moved his lips down to her neck. “Carter—“

“I feel like it’s been a month since I was inside you Allison,” he mumbled against her throat.

“W-What?” Allison’s voice was a hoarse stammer.

“You’re so tense,” Carter said. He moved his mouth to the spot on her neck beneath her ear and teased the skin with a flick of his tongue. Allison moaned and he smiled, leaning back to meet her eyes. “Come on. Fifteen minutes and two orgasms in the file room and you’ll be good as new.’

“T-Two—Carter! What the hell is wrong with you?” Allison pushed at his chest and untangled herself from his arms. Carter looked at her in shock.

“What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you? Why are you acting like this?”

“Why am I—you just told me you want to have sex in the file room,” she whispered harshly.

“We always have sex in the file room,” Carter whispered back.

“No. We don’t.”

“Yes. We do.”

“I think I’d remember if we had Carter.” Allison’s voice was almost back to normal, a small tremble the only sign of her agitation.

“Well—last time you came three times—so yeah. You sure as hell would!” Carter said leaned forward, drawing out his words for emphasis. Allison glanced at the door and then glared up at him.

“This is insane.” Allison gestured towards Carter, her gazed fixed somewhere on the front of his Sheriff’s uniform. “You come into my office and—kiss me---like—you--what were you thinking Carter?”

“What was I---“Carter paused and frowned. “Wait—you called me Carter.”

Allison shrugged and lifted her hand in exasperation. “I always call you Carter.”

“No—I mean yes you do. But—,” He paused, staring at her in confusion. “You haven’t called me Jack since I stepped in this office.”

“What in the hell has that got to do with anything?”

Carter stared at her, his eyes frantically searching her face. “Oh my God,” he whispered.

“What? What is it?” What’s wrong with me?

“You—you really don’t remember.”

“Of course,” she said gesturing towards him. “You might as well have a turn too. Tell me, what awesomely important, earth shattering thing did I forget this time Carter?”

Carter shook his head, his face etched with fear.

“Everything.”

 

Then


Allison loved him.

She’d said it—right there on that porch. No stuttering—no liquor involved. She just—said it-- like it was the most normal thing in the world. Clearly the woman had no idea what she’d done to his heart, which at the moment felt as though it were about to burst out of his chest or the effect she’d had on his knees which threatened to give out on him in her living room. Carter’s palms were covered in sweat and he watched her put the flowers he’d brought in a vase in silence, his tongue suddenly to big for his mouth. His body was a wreck and all because of three little words---

Carter frowned at the memory of Allison’s declaration, his eyes growing wide with panic as she calmly arranged the flowers in the vase on the other side of the room..

Three little words that he hadn’t said back.

Fuck. How did he miss that? He’d had the perfect opportunity to tell her how he felt and he’d done what? Nodded like a dumbass and shoved some fucking flowers in her hand.

“Nice one Jack,” he mumbled under his breath.

“Jack, these flowers are beautiful,” Allison said. “Where did you find them this late at night?” Allison turned around and set the vase on a small table near her couch. The generous curves of her body were clearly visible through her thin satin nightgown and her hair spilled over her shoulders in a silky toffee colored fall. He struggled to focus on her question as his mind warred between his idiotic fuck up in missing the perfect opportunity to reciprocate her feelings and his growing arousal at the sight of her practically naked in front of him.

It wasn’t like he could just blurt it out and fix everything. She’d know exactly what he was thinking—she could see right through him.

“I uh—found them at a garden,” Carter said.

Allison raised an eyebrow. “A garden?”

“Uh huh.” Jack gestured towards her front door. “Down the road.”

“You mean the botanical garden two blocks away? Did you steal these flowers Carter?”

Carter scoffed at her question and waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. “I left a fifty.”

Allison bit her lip to keep and he could tell she was trying not to laugh. She moved towards him, the nightgown sliding over her body in a hypnotic rhythm which caused Carter’s brain to shut down even further. His only thoughts were how beautiful she was—and how long it would take him to peel the flimsy satin from her body.

“Carter,” Allison said. She reached out and slid her arms up onto his shoulders and sighed. “Those are lilies of the valley.”

“Are they? Good to know,” Carter mumbled, absently fingering the thin straps on her shoulders.

“That bouquet you brought? It’s probably worth around five hundred dollars.”

“Uh huh. They—“Carter’s head snapped up quickly, his arousal instantly abated. “How much!”

Allison smiled and lifted her lips to his. She kissed him gently, ending with a lingering sweep of her tongue across his that caused Carter to pull her closer against his body. He stroked his hands across the small of her back, the satin gathered in his fingers and lowered his lips to her neck.

“Let’s go to bed Jack,” Allison whispered. Carter lifted his head to meet her gaze and reached up to stroke her chin.

“Okay,” he whispered. Allison took his hand in his and he followed, his eyes never leaving the soft sway of her hips as she guided him down the hall and into her dark bedroom.

“I’m just going to make sure Kevin is asleep. I’ll be right back,” Allison said.

Carter nodded and watched her walk out the door and disappear into the dark hall. He turned around and looked at the large bed, his heart back to its erratic pounding. “Okay Jack,” he said. “Remember the rules—no lying on her hair, make sure the condom close by and keep the dirty talk to a minimum.” He paused and tilted his head thoughtfully. “This time at least.”

Carter unfastened the buttons of the tan shirt of his uniform, slid it from his shoulders and placed it on a nearby dresser. He took off his shoes and socks and sat down on the mattress, turning to eye the bedroom doorway. “Guess he was awake,” Carter mumbled. He lifted his legs on the bed and lay back on the pillows, frowning at the cushion of warmth that instantly enveloped his head. “What the—“he shifted and the pillow cradled his neck, propping his head just high enough for maximum comfort. “Why the hell don’t I have one of these?” Carter turned to his side, the pillow soft against his cheek. He folded his arms over his chest and stared at the empty doorway, waiting for Allison’s return.

Two minutes later he was sound asleep.

Now


“This is insane.”

Carter threw his hands up in frustration at Allison’s declaration. “That’s what I’ve been saying.”

“No,” Allison snapped. “You’re insane. You think you can just come into my office and screw with my head like this for—for what—shits and giggles?”

Carter narrowed his eyes and looked and looked at her in amazement. “You think I’m making this up? Why the hell would I do that Allison?”

“You tell me!” Allison shoved her hand into her hair, loosening tendrils from her carefully styled chignon. She shook her head and leaned forward to rest her hands on her desk and fixed him with eyes filled with hurt and confusion. “I thought—I thought you and I were—friends Carter—“

“We’re not friends Allison,” Carter snapped. “I’m in love with you.”

Allison’s mouth opened with shock and she blinked hard two times before speaking. “Why did you just say that?”

“Because it’s true.” Carter moved closer to the desk, leaned forward and placed his hands inches from hers. “I’m not lying to you Allison. I would never do that.” He held Allison’s gaze and willed her to believe him as the panic that had begun as a knot in his stomach steadily rose to chest and gripped him in a painful vice.

“You’re not lying,” Allison said after a long assessing stare. Carter almost collapsed with relief.

“No,” he said. “I’m not.”

“Then you’re obviously sick.” Allison lifted her hands from her desk and walked towards him, her furious expression replaced with concern. “We’ve got to get you to the infirmary—“

“No—no--” Carter shoved his hand through his hair and gestured towards her with an upturned palm. “I’m not sick Allison--I’m telling you the truth. If anyone needs to get checked out, its you.” Allison paused and looked away, but not before Carter saw a flash of doubt in her eyes. “You know there’s something wrong, don’t you!” Carter grabbed her arm and she closed her eyes tight. “Allison—“

“It’s not—,” Allison sighed. “I’ve been forgetting things and—but nothing like this—you’re telling me I’ve forgotten part of my life.” She shook her head sadly. “I’m sorry Carter but I just can’t believe that.”

Carter relaxed his grip and placed his free hand on her other arm, leaning down slightly to look her in the eye. “Look, I know you’re afraid—but Allison you have to trust me. I wouldn’t make something like this up Allie—I couldn’t hurt you like that.” He reached up to stroke her cheek and Allison lifted her hands to his arms. “Please, tell me you believe me,” Carter pleaded.

“I—“Allison closed her eyes tight and groaned with frustration. “I don’t know.”

“Okay,” Carter said. He pulled her into his arms and reached up to stroke her hair. “You’re not sure—it’s a start. We just have to figure this out—you and me—we’ll fix this Allison. I promise.”

“Okay,” Allison whispered. She encircled his waist with her arms and Carter closed his eyes then planted a soft kiss on the top of her hair. He wanted to be brave for her—that’s what she needed—but he was about two minutes away from losing it himself. What the hell had done this to her?

Or who?

Carter gently pulled her from his embrace and gave her a nervous smile. “Okay so—first things first. Let’s get Henry on the phone and—“

She shook her head and cut him off. “Henry’s gone. He’s speaking at a sabbatical and I can’t reach him.”

“Oh.” Carter frowned. “Really? Seem like he would have mentioned it. That’s weird—“

“Nathan.”

Carter blinked hard and looked at her in disbelief. “I’m sorry?”

“Nathan can help us,” Allison said. “If anyone can figure this out, he can.”

“Whoa, whoa,” Jack lifted his hands, palms up and shook his head. “Now let’s not get too excited here—”

“Carter this is serious,” Allison snapped. “If what you’re telling me is true—“

“I know, I know, I’m sorry.” Carter clenched his jaw and his hand drifted absently drifted down to his gun holster. “I just—really—don’t like him.”

That wasn’t completely true. Carter’s feelings for Nathan Stark were more of an intense loathing punctuated by moments of homicidal fantasies, prompting him to empty his gun of bullets whenever he knew he would be within one hundred feet of the guy for any extended period of time.

But all that was kind of a mouthful.

Allison pressed two numbers on her phone and sighed. “Trust me. The feeling’s mutual.”

Then


Allison closed Kevin’s bedroom door behind her and stepped into the dark hallway. He’d been asleep when she’d gone to him, but as always Allison had found herself watching her son, longing to know what he dreamt about if anything.. She’d stayed longer than she meant to—partially to watch Kevin’s steady breathing and partially to calm her frayed nerves about the man waiting for her in the other room. .

It had just felt right at the time—like not saying it would be lying somehow. Carter seemed pleased but had been quiet ever since—barely responding when she’d invited him into her bed. She knew he wanted her—his eyes had told her as much—but she still wondered if her spontaneous declaration had frightened him more than she’d anticipated.

Allison straightened her back, her jaw tightening with determination. She’d never begged a man to want her and she wasn’t about to start now. If he felt that like they were moving to fast, she’d just let him no in no uncertain terms that she didn’t have time to wait for him to catch up—he either felt the same or he didn’t.

All or nothing.

“Please, God, don’t let it be nothing,” Allison whispered. She took a deep breath and pushed open her bedroom door to find Carter spread eagle on her bed, his mouth open wide and the room filled with the shattering sound of his snore. “Right,” Allison sighed. “Of course.” She made her way to the bed and placed her hand on Carter’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Carter? Jack—“

“Mmmm,” Carter stirred in his sleep and turned over to his side. The snoring stopped and Allison shrugged.

“Well that’s something at least.”

“Allison,” Carter mumbled.

She frowned at his strained voice. “Carter? Are you awake?”

“Don’t go.”

Allison slid into the bed beside him. “Carter,” she whispered. She leaned down closer and Carter furrowed his brow, lost in his dream.

“Please. Allison, don’t go.”

‘I’m right here,” Allison said. “Wake up, you’re dreaming.”

“Allison!” Carter rose with a start and blinked at the gloom of the dark room. His brow was covered with a fine sheen of sweat and his breathing was ragged the sound loud in the silent house. Allison touched his arm he flinched in surprise.

“Jack,” she said carefully. “You were having a nightmare.”

“I was?” Carter gasped. Allison nodded cupped his chin, forcing him to look at her.

“Yes—a nightmare.” Her voice was firm and she held his gaze until he nodded, indicating that he understood. Allison looked down at his hands and frowned. “Oh God, you’re shaking.”

“Allison—“Carter grabbed her hand and pulled it to his chest. “I need to tell you—before when you said—I didn’t say it back—“

“Shhh,” Allison interrupted. She wiped the perspiration from his brown and shook her head. “Carter—“

“I love you Allison. I always have—“

“Okay,” Allison said with a soft smile. “It’s okay Jack…” Carter stared at her, his chest rising and falling erratically. He pulled her towards him and wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her tight against his chest. Allison returned his embrace, speaking low into in his ear as he buried his face in her neck. “It’s okay,” she repeated. Carter whispered against her neck, his words muffled and so low she could barely make them out.

“I thought I lost you.”

Now


“What do you mean she’s not there?” Carter yelled into his cell phone, causing Allison to jump in surprise. He grimaced and mouthed an apology which Allison waved away. “She was sitting on the couch when I left Jo. How could she just—“Carter paused and Allison watched him, taking in the tense set of his shoulders and the deep lines of worried firmly etched into his face. He had been that way ever since she’d pushed him away—bracing himself as though he were in physical pain.

“I’m not—look could you try to find her for me? She’s ten years old with curly brown hair, kind of light—shoulder length. Uh—biracial—major chip on her shoulder and talks like she’s seen too much Oprah.” He paused and rubbed his eyes, his shoulders tensing even more. “I told you before its Faith—her name is Faith.” Carter hung up the phone and Allison looked away, busying herself with pushing her pen holder to the other side of her desk.

“I’m sorry about that. This little girl just showed up outside my house this morning and wouldn’t tell me who she was or where she lived. I sent Jo to keep an eye on her—“

“Is that what you were talking about earlier,” Allison asked. “The thing you mentioned on the phone?”

Carter nodded. “Yeah—she was there when you called--kept fucking with me about watching too much Lifetime.”

Allison smiled. “Well you have seen Mother May I Sleep With Danger more times than any man I’ve ever met—“

“Hey, Tori Spelling was really underrated for that—“Carter paused and raised his hand with wide eyes. “Wait—“ he gestured towards her. “You remembered something—about me.”

“I already knew that Carter.”

“Oh, come on Allie, I never would have told you that unless we were dating.”

“You didn’t,” Allison said. “Zoë told me.”

Carter’s face fell and Allison felt something unravel in her chest as she wondered many more times disappoint him before all this was over.

“Oh,” Carter said. He reached up to shove a hand through his hair and looked at her through narrow eyes. “Remind me to ground her later.”

Allison looked up as the door to her office flew open and Nathan Stark entered with his usual arrogant flourish. His eyes moving back and forth between her and Carter with cold dispassion and his lips curved into a mocking smile. “Oh look—the star-crossed lovers reunited once again,” Stark laughed. “I hope I didn’t miss any embarrassing double entendres.”

Allison raised her hand irritably. “Not now Nathan—‘

“How many times you practice that in the mirror before you got here,” Carter asked. “Two—three?” Carter smiled and wagged his finger in Stark’s direction. “I liked the emphasis on entendre at the end--very Willie Lowman.”

“I try,” Stark said with an elegant shrug of his shoulders.

“Nathan, we need your help. Something—is apparently wrong with me—“

“Acceptance is the first step Allie,” Stark interrupted.

Carter rolled his eyes and fixed Stark with a hard glare. “Take a breath Stark and listen to her for Christ’s sake.”

“I’m forgetting things,” Allison said. “Lots of things.”

Stark paused and gave her a thoughtful look. “You have been a little scattered lately.”

“I know,” Allison replied. “I’ve also—had nightmares.”

“Like before?” Stark moved towards her, all traces of his earlier amusement gone.

“A little,” Allison nodded.

Carter moved forward, blocking Stark’s view of Allison and lifted his hand. “Whoa, wait,” he said. He looked down at her in confusion and Allison shifted her gaze in response. “You’ve had nightmares like this before? Why didn’t you tell me—“

“Shut up Carter,” Stark snapped. “It’s none of your business.”

“None of my—“Carter rounded on Stark and fixed him with a hard glare. “Everything that happens to this woman is my business.”

Stark fixed narrowed eyes on Carter, his tone dripping with disbelief. “Are you high?”

“Nathan,” Allison said. “Carter thinks—he told me—“

“She’s forgotten everything,” Carter interrupted.

“Carter.” Allison crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the back of Carter’s head.

“What do you mean everything,” Stark said.

“He means our relationship, “Allison said. “His and mine.” She gestured towards Carter with a shrug of her shoulders. “Carter told me that we’ve been together for over a year now—that we were about to get engaged.”

“Engaged,” Stark said. “Is that right?”

“Yes—engaged.” Carter snapped. “She doesn’t remember any of it—not our first date, not falling in love with me—“Carter paused and turned to looked at Allison. “Nothing.”

“Nathan—I thought he was crazy at first,” Allison said, smoothly avoiding Carter’s eyes. “But if I’ve really lost over a year of my life—maybe—“she hesitated, frowning down at the floor. “I’m the one that’s losing my mind.”

Stark paused for a moment and stroked his beard thoughtfully as he looked at Carter from the corner of his eyes. “You’re not crazy Allie,”

“I’m not,” Allison gasped with relief.

“No.” Stark pointed at Carter. “He is.”

“What,” Carter gasped.

“I don’t know what he told you but whatever it was is a lie.” Stark shoved his hands into his trousers and rocked back on his heels. He raised one dark eyebrow and stared at Carter as he spoke. “None of that ever happened Allison. He’s making it all up.”

Stark barely had time to blink in surprise before Carter’s fist smashed into his face and sent him flying to the ground.

Then

She had a faint sprinkle of freckles across the bridge of her nose. He’d never noticed it before—most likely because she was always so polished, not a hair out of place, her makeup flawless. But lying here now—her hair tumbling over her shoulders and her face half turned into the pillow—it was like he truly saw her for the first time. And he could watch her all day—this new rumpled Allie. And that’s exactly what he would have done if his phone hadn’t started vibrating like crazy in his pocket.

“Son of a—“Carter jerked upright in surprise and blinked hard against the lingering haze of sleep. The momentum of his movement tilted him sideways and sent him tumbling from the bed with flailing arms and legs. He hit the rug covered hardwood with a loud thump of his elbow and hip, which sent shockwaves of pain throughout his back.

“Shit,” Carter snapped. He pulled the phone from his pocket, where he’d apparently left it after he’d fallen asleep in Allison’s bed, erasing all hope of ending his one year, one-hundred and sixteen days long streak of celibacy (not that he was marking out the days on his calendar or anything). “Jo” blinked at him in large black letters and Carter rolled his eyes and stuffed the phone back into his pocket.

He pulled himself off the floor, his apology for waking her ready on his lips. Allison let out a soft snore and shifted onto her stomach, her heavy breathing signaling a deep and sound sleep. “Interesting,” Carter said quietly. “Glad we weren’t under attack.” Allison snorted and he flinched in surprise and then covered his mouth to stifle the laugh that threatened to erupt from his throat. He leaned down and picked up his shoes from where he’d discarded them the night before and grabbed the shirt of his uniform on his way out of the bedroom. Carter walked into the hall and shut the door slowly, letting out a slow breath at the sound of the soft click of the latch falling into place.

He turned around and was met by the dark brown and unnervingly aware eyes of Kevin Blake, Allison’s autistic son. He was clad in a pair of cloud covered pajamas and held a small computer in one hand and his toothbrush in the other. Carter smiled nervously as the heat of embarrassment crept into his face.

“Uh—hi Kevin.”

Kevin didn’t respond and Carter hadn’t really expected him to. Allison’s was brilliant—just like everyone else in Eureka—maybe even more so. On Carter’s first day in the town he’d come across the boy etching complex math equations into the sidewalk with chalk. But when it came to the simple task of communicating the thoughts in his head—his condition kept him mostly silent and uncommunicative.

“I was just—“Carter gestured towards the bedroom door behind him and cleared his throat. “Your Mom asked me to spend the night—“His eyes widened at his own words. “No! I mean—I slept over—we slept—but we didn’t sleep together—just--“Carter sighed and tilted his head at the wide brown eyes blinking up at him. “I know somewhere in that big brain of yours you’re laughing you ass off right now aren’t you?”

There it was—the faintest of smiles. Carter grabbed hold of the small gesture-- relieved that Allison’s son wasn’t traumatized by the strange, babbling and barefoot sheriff sneaking out of his mother’s room.

“Hey—I got a few minutes—“( lie. He was supposed to be at the station half an hour ago) “You want some eggs? I can’t cook much but I scramble a mean egg.”

Kevin didn’t respond, but rocked back and forth with his handheld computer clutched to his chest. Carter took his lack of repulsion as a “yes” and placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Come on—I’ll show you how to make Eggs A’la Carter. The key is to use everything in your spice rack.” Carter paused and fixed Kevin with a serious stare. “Except the turmeric. I don’t know what the hell that’s for but keep it far away from scrambled eggs—just trust me on this one.”

Kevin stared up at him silent and then did something Carter couldn’t remember ever seeing him do before.

He laughed.

Now

“Carter! Carter get off him—“

Faint—in the back of his mind—he could hear Allison’s protest. But his rage spurred him on as he sent his fists crashing into Nathan Stark’s face. The man pushed at his chest and sent his knee crashing into Carter’s kidney, but Carter held him fast, grabbing Stark’s collar and pulling his upper body up from the floor. “You sick, lying son of a bitch—“

“You’re the damn liar,” Nathan gasped. He spit out a mouthful of blood and glared up at Carter through swollen eyes. “Not me.”

“Let him up Carter.” Allison grabbed Carter’s arm and yanked hard, forcing him to release one hand while the other held Stark tight. Carter moved as though to resume his attack and Allison grabbed the other shoulder, her voice louder and demanding. “I said let him up now—or I’ll call security.”

Carter glared down at Stark and rose slowly to his feet. Stark wiped at his face and sat up on the floor, lifting an eyebrow in Carter’s direction.

“So---finally snapped under the pressure huh Carter? What pushed you over the edge—your self actuated toilet start talking back to you—“

Carter lunged forward and Allison stepped in front of him, her hand outstretched. “Don’t,” she said. “He’s just baiting you—‘

“Baiting me,’ Carter repeated. He pointed at Stark, who made a show of lifting himself from the floor. “That son of a bitch just told you I was crazy—that I made everything up—“

“You are and you did,” Stark interrupted. He pulled a handkerchief out of his breast pocket and began to dab at the blood on his nose. “Why the hell do you think I didn’t fight back?”

Carter laughed--a biting sound that made Allison flinch. “Because you’re a manipulative ass and wanted to make me look bad?”

Stark cocked his head thoughtfully, squinted at Carter and nodded. “That--plus you’re obviously insane and I’m pretty sure that gun is loaded.”

“Stop it,” Allison snapped. “Both of you—this isn’t getting us anywhere.”

“You don’t believe him do you?” Carter looked at Allison who opened her mouth and then closed it suddenly. He felt his heart skip a beat in his chest as she shifted her eyes from his. “No,” he said. “No, this guy—“Carter pointed at Stark who looked down at his finger with disdain. “This guy has done nothing but lie and manipulate you and everyone else in this place since he came here. You can’t stand there and tell me—“

“What am I supposed to think Carter?” Allison’s expression was pained and she crossed her arms over her chest like a shield. “What you’re asking me to believe is—impossible.”

Carter laughed harshly. “Impossible? You mean like nanoids designed to repair living tissue escaping from Global Dynamics and creating entire bodies that tried to take over the town? That kind of impossible?”

“So you got stalked by a few itty bitty robot cells,” Stark droned. “Crazy is still crazy—and you my friend—“Stark tilted his head with a mocking smirk. “Are rabid.”

“Fuck you,” Carter snapped.

“Look—“Allison held up her hand and took a deep breath. “There’s a way we can settle this.”

“I could hit him some more,” Carter suggested. “Bleed the truth out of him.”

“I was going to suggest we call a third—unbiased party. The two of you in the same room is giving me a damn migraine and if Carter’s right I don’t know if my flimsy brain can take the pressure.”

“Fine,” Stark said as he pulled out his phone. “I’ll call Fargo—“

“You mean your lackey,” Carter laughed. “Please—I’ll call Jo.” He grabbed his phone from his belt.

“Oh,” Stark drawled. “The woman you can fire if things don’t go your way? Yeah—that’s fair.”

“Actually,” Allison said. “I had someone else in mind.”

 Then


“So I reached up with my glove—the ball’s coming right for me now—and all these guys are just elbowing and shoving—trying to get it. But I didn’t move because I knew if I did some other guy was going to step in an catch my fly ball---“

“Carter?”

Allison stood in the doorway to the kitchen, startled at the sight of Carter and Kevin sitting on opposite sides of her table with large plates of eggs and toast in front of them. Carter leaned back and smiled and she tugged at her robe self-consciously. She had been sure he’d be gone to work by now—so sure that she hadn’t bothered to wash her face or brush her teeth before she’d made her way down the hall. She kept a safe distance from Carter and moved to place a hand on her son’s head. She stared down at his plate in confusion.

“You made him eggs?”

Carter gave her a wary nod. “Yeah—it’s all I can make.” He closed his eyes and swore under his breath. “He’s not allergic is he? I forgot to ask—“

“No! No, that’s not—it’s just that he never eats eggs. He refuses.”

Carter’s mouth formed an O of surprise and he glanced down at Kevin’s nearly empty plate. “Well—I guess he was just hungry.”

Allison looked at him with skeptical eyes. “What did you put in those eggs?”

Carter looked away and cleared his throat. “Oh you know—the usual—salt—pepper—Cornuts—“

“Cornuts!” Allison gasped in shock.

Carter nodded and gestured towards the open bag of Cornuts on the countertop. “They’re really good warm and they’ve got the salty corniness that just goes with egg—and you’re not buying any of this are you?”

“You fed my son Cornuts for breakfast?”

“And eggs—which he ate by the way—which—is—good?”

Allison covered her smile with her hand and struggled to maintain her serious glare. “No—I mean yes but—dammit Carter—“

“Ah—you’re not really mad are you,” Carter said. He rose from his chair and Allison stepped back.

“Yes. I am.”

“Nooo. I can see that twinkle in your eye. Kev sees it too—right Kevin?’

Her son looked up at Carter with such a wide eyed devoted expression that Allison’s throat tightened with both elation and fear.

“See,” Carter said.

“What—“Allison stumbled over her words as Carter slipped his arms around her waist. “What are you doing?”

“Kissing you good morning.”

“But—I’ve got morning breath.”

“That’s my punishment for the Cornuts.”

Allison glanced down at Kevin and Carter followed her gaze. “You don’t mind if I kiss your Mom do you Kevin,” he asked. Kevin covered his mouth with his hand and looked away, his eyes bright and sparkling. Allison looked at Carter with disbelief.

“How do you do that? He’s never like that with strangers—“

“Well,” Carter lowered his lips to hers and kissed her gently. He leaned back slightly to look into her eyes. “I guess it’s a good thing I’m not a stranger,right?”

“Right,” Allison whispered.

“Right,” Carter repeated, slowly finding her lips once more. “That—and I’m pretty sure knows how much I love you.”

 Now

“Okay, I know I shouldn’t have taken the video camera to school—but it wasn’t supposed to rain yesterday and how was I supposed to know the thing wasn’t water proof? Isn’t everything in this town supposed to be new and improved anyway?”

Carter leaned forward and squinted in confusion, his hands perched on his hips as he tried to decipher his daughter’s latest confession.

“Huh?”

Zoë paused. “You didn’t know about the camera did you?”

“You took my video camera with out asking?’

“Technically it’s Fargo’s.”

“Technicalities like that are what landed you in jail before we came to this town.”

“Really Dad, how am I supposed to grow and learn from my mistakes when you keep reminding me every time I turn around that I got arrested four times?”

“Easy, you—“Carter’s eyes opened wide. “Four times?”

“Okay, can we get on with proving Carter is a nutjob so we can all go home,” Stark groaned.

“What?” Zoë frowned in confusion. “What’s going on?”

“Zoë,” Allison hesitated. She had been about to just blurt out the words but embarrassment over their predicament stopped her. How do you ask someone whether you have sudden onset amnesia with a straight face? It was like something out of a bad soap opera—corny love triangle included. “We think there might be something wrong with—your father--or me.”

“Something wrong?” Zoë’s blue eyes flashed with fear “Oh my God, are you both sick?”

“No—,” Carter said. “Not like you think. Allison’s had some memory loss—“

“Possible, memory loss,” Allison clarified with a pointed glare at Carter.

“And this slippery son of a bitch,” Carter said, jabbing his thumb in Stark’s direction,” has her convinced that I’m making everything up—that I’m the one who needs help.”

“That’s crazy,” Zoë said shaking her head. She turned to Allison and spoke with a clear determined voice. “My Dad wouldn’t lie—especially not to you.”

“Thanks Zoë,” Carter said. Allison shifted her gaze from the hurt she saw in his expression, his daughter’s confident trust a sharp contrast to her own indecisive wavering. How could she not trust Carter after everything he’d done for the town—for her? He wouldn’t lie about something like this because he wasn’t that kind of man. Nathan however, was exactly that kind of man—someone who would use this type of situation to his advantage. As noble as her ex-husbands intentions could sometimes be, his ruthless streak was just that--ruthless. He could very well be lying to her out of some misguided attempt at revenge or out of jealousy over her relationship with Carter. But then again, if she gave in and accepted Carter’s version of the truth—she’d have to accept that something was seriously wrong with her head.

She had to be sure.

“Zoë,” Allison began. “Carter says that he and I—well that we have feelings for one another—“

“Oh well, duh,” Zoë said with a laugh. “You going to ask me if the sky is blue next, ‘cause I know that one too.”

“Zoë, stop being a wise ass,” Carter said.

“That’s rich coming from you,” Zoë responded.

“So Carter’s not lying then,” Allison said. “There is something between us.”

Zoë frowned. “Well yeah—I mean—the whole town knows that.”

“She’s lying,” Stark snapped. “She’s his daughter—what did you expect?”

Zoë’s mouth fell open in surprise and she placed her hand over her chest as thought Stark’s words had wounded her. “Me—lie for my Dad? What kind of teenager do you take me for?”

Carter’s phone began to vibrate loudly and he pulled it form his belt with a frustrated frown.

“Nice of you to answer that thing—it’s been ringing like crazy for the past fifteen minutes,” Stark said.

Carter looked up at him, confused. “No it hasn’t.”

“Yes it has Carter,” Allison said. “Answer it—it could be important.”

Carter looked down at the small display on his cell phone and frowned when he realized the call originated from his home. He pushed the answer button and quickly lifted it to his ear. “Hello?”

“Did you talk to Allison?”

His eyes grew wide and he gripped the phone tighter in his hand. “Faith?”

“Yeah it’s me—you have a lot of beer in your refrigerator. I hope you don’t drink all that alone. That’s kind of sad--”

“Where the hell were you? Deputy Lupo said—“

“She didn’t see me—I was hiding. Why do you keep your neckties balled up under your bed like that? Don’t they get wrinkles?”

Carter closed his eyes and took a deep breath, his jaw clenching and unclenching as his hand tightened on the phone. “Faith—listen to me carefully. Do not move—I’m coming to get you.”

“Ooo—can we get ice cream?”

Carter hung up his phone with a hard punch of a button. He looked up to find three pairs of eyes staring at him in confusion. “Uh—“Carter paused, the thought of Faith, alone in his house, roaming around his bed room and touching his beer colliding with his rapidly growing fear that the blank expression in Allison’s eyes when he told her that he loved her wasn’t just a bad dream. “I have to go—I’ll be back but---that’s a little girl in my house—“

“Interesting,” Stark said.

“It’s not like—“Carter glared at him, his hand hovering around his gun. “It is loaded by the way.”

“Dad,” Zoë said. “Can you please tell me what’s going on? Why did you drag me out of school—“

“Nothing,” Carter said. He walked over and held her by both shoulders. “It’s nothing—just—go back to class. I’ve got to go handle something and then I’ll straighten this out,’ Carter said. He gave Allison a pointed look. “And then everything will be like it was before.” He turned back to Zoë and smiled. “I promise.”

Jack always kept his promises.

Then


Carter leaned back in his chair and stared at the phone resting silent on his desk. The Sheriff’s office had been eerily quiet for the last forty-five minutes and it had him on edge. Normally a forty-five minute jag of tranquility in Eureka would put him in a giddy, semi-comatose state of happy. But today wasn’t just any old day—Eureka High School’s Science fair was supposed to officially kick off this morning.

As Carter had been informed his first year in the town, Eureka’s Science fair wasn’t just your average baking soda and vinegar volcano shindig. The winner was virtually guaranteed a free ride the Ivy League school of their choice—followed by a lucrative position with Global Dynamics after graduation. Everyone in town would know who won the damn thing—and their name would be framed on a plaque high above some important trophy case that Carter would barely notice on his way to the john.

While this time of year got the genius-lites all giddy down at the high school, it was Hell on earth for Carter and Jo. Though the teens competing had inherited their parents’ immense intellect, they were still kids—willing to take risks with their inventions and experiments that their older wiser counterparts would shy away from. Risks that Carter and Jo would inevitably have to clean up—sometimes until 3 in the morning.

Like last night—and the night before that. For the past week and a half it had been non-stop disasters. Flying cars that exploded over the neighbors’ garden, synthetic human tissue that went rancid and sent an entire block to the hospital with uncontrollable vomiting—but Carter’s favorite was the human bubble shield whose inventor, after encasing himself in the bouncy clear ball—realized he’d neglected to invent a way to get out of the damn thing. It should only have taken a few minutes to cut him out—but Carter got such a kick out of watching the kid bounce all over his back yard that he let him stew a little longer than necessary.

Got to get your kicks where you can find ‘em.

Unfortunately, the long hours at work meant long hours away from Allison. She’d been busy as well preparing for some weeklong Department of Defense inspection that could make or break next years’ research budget. They’d barely even spoken aside from the occasional phone call during a short lunch break or a brief visit at one another’s office on the way to some emergency or conference. The whole thing was really starting to get to him. He’d even snapped at SARAH twice this morning for no other reason than he was frustrated and horney. The fact that he’d yet to sleep with his beautiful and incredibly hot girlfriend kept him up most nights wondering if he’d been cursed when he wasn’t looking—because surely God wouldn’t do this to him on purpose.

Right?

Carter pushed away from his desk and planted his hands flat on the surface. He rose to his feet and leaned forward to glare at the phone. “Ring damn you,” he grumbled. “Go ahead and fuck my sex life up some more.”

The phone ran with loud peel of noise and Carter jumped in surprise. He grabbed the receiver and spoke in a rush. “Sheriff Carter.”

“Dad!”

Carter frowned. “Zoë?”

“Dad you—you have to get down here—the school—“

“Zoë, please—slow down. What happened—was it the fair.”

“The school—Dad it exploded. It blew up—“

Carter slammed the phone down on the receiver, his keys already in hand as he ran out the door.

Now

“SARAH door!” Jack barked the words outside of his house and the door slid open almost instantly. He walked inside, scanned the living room and frowned at a soft whir of a motor coming from inside his bedroom. He walked down the hall and stood in the doorway, confronted with the sight of Faith’s thin frame jogging in place on the hovercraft based treadmill he’d refused to go near ever since he moved into the house.

“Hi Sheriff!” Faith was only slightly out of breath, her skinny legs pumping easily on the rotating belt. The treadmill hovered almost a foot above the ground, a fact which had always unnerved him about the thing. She wobbled slightly and he stepped forward, his arms outstretched.

“Okay, get down from there.”

“Why? Exercise is good for you—this thing was covered in plastic, don’t you use it?”

“I will next time Doc Brown swings by with the Delorean.”

Faith slowed down and frowned at him. “Does he work at Global Dynamics?”

“Just get off the thing please?”

She stopped running and the motor stilled, the belt sliding to a gradual stop. The treadmill floated to the ground and she hopped off with a small skip onto the carpet. “Are you one of those old people that are afraid of computers---cause if so you may want to relocate.”

“Why did you hide from Jo?”

“Because I didn’t want her to find me.”

“Okay that’s enough,” Carter snapped. “A lot’s happened in the past few hours and I don’t have time to play these games anymore. You need to tell me your name.”

“What happened?”

“Tell me your name, now.”

“I told you my name.”

“That’s it,” Carter said. He pulled out his phone. “I’m calling child services.”

“There are no child services in Eureka,” Faith said. Carter leaned forward, his eyes wide with shock.

“Excuse me?”

“They don’t have that here—they don’t need it.”

He stood silent, digesting the reality that he’d never taken the time to acknowledge. Parent’s didn’t abandon their kids in Eureka—not willingly anyway.

“What about child abuse,” Carter asked. “I mean if someone hits their kid—“

“Hasn’t happened,” she said with a shrug. “Not yet anyway.”

“But so—who am I supposed to call about you?”

“How about Allison?” Faith clapped her hands. “Oh, that would be so cool—you could be the clueless goofy single Dad and she could be the beautiful single Mom that helps you take care of me---like in the movies.”

“No way—“

“We could break into song and dance at weird moments just to make it interesting—“

“Focus Faith—I need to find your parents or your guardian or whoever it is that takes care of you. You can’t stay here.”

“Is this because I said you look fifty—because I was just upset—you really only look forty-five.”

“Why don’t you want to go home Faith? Did someone hurt you or something?”

Faith shook her head and walked over to Carter’s bed. She plopped down on the end and stared down at her hands. “Why does it always have to be something bad? Maybe I just wanted to be somewhere else.”

“Because people don’t leave when they’re happy,” Carter said. He moved closer and shoved his hands into his pocket. Faith looked up at him with wide eyes.

“They do if they can’t stay.”

Then

“I don’t know what happened,” Zoë cried. Carter pulled her into his arms and ran his hands over her back. She shook in violent spasms and leaned back to look up into his eyes. “Toby Mitchell was moving his entry and it just exploded. It was so loud—everybody got out—but Daddy—“

“Shhh,” Carter kissed her forehead and looked up at the high school building. The part that once housed the gymnasium was gone—gaping holes surrounded by large pieces of plaster and cement rubble stood in its place. The fire department milled around the grounds, their hoses still dripping from where they’d put out the small fires spread throughout the destruction. “It’s okay,” Carter said. “Everyone’s okay Zo.”

“Carter!” He turned at the sound of Allison’s voice. Zoë untangled herself from his arms and Carter turned around, shaking his head as she approached.

“It’s okay, “he said. “Everyone got out safe.”

“I can’t find Kevin,” Allison said in a rush.

Carter frowned. “’What?”

“He was—in there--with his teacher—she lost him in the commotion—“:

Carter grabbed Allison’s arms. “Wait—slow down. Are you sure he’s still inside?”

Allison nodded, her eyes glistening with panicked tears. “Cater you know Kevin—he doesn’t trust anyone and he would come when the firefighters called for him—he probably hid inside—“

Carter released her arms and took off running for the crumbling gymnasium. “Carter,” Allison screamed. “Wait!”

Carter kept running. A firefighter yelled his name as he reached the front door of the school and Carter ignored his pleas to get way from the building. He shoved the broken door aside and ran into the hall, squinting at the dust filled air that greeted him. “Kevin!” Carter covered his mouth and nose and made his way farther into the school. “Kevin it’s me! It’s Sheriff Carter—can you hear me?” Carter heard no response and clenched his jaw against the surge of fear that threatened to overwhelm him.

What if he couldn’t find him?

Carter turned a corner and paused at the pile of fallen plaster and concrete in front of him. The damage was so extensive he figured it had to be what was left of the gymnasium. “Kevin—please—if you can hear me—make a sound—do something.”

There was a faint noise—unrecognizable. Carter stood still and held his breath, listening for it again. He heard movement to his left and turned to see a blackened door to the boy’s locker room. He pushed his way inside and was greeted by a pile of overturned lockers. “Kevin? Are you in here?”

He heard the sound again and this time identified it as a locker door opening and closing. Carter crouched down and scanned the room then began following the click of the metal latch. He paused when he heard it again and turned to his right. He could barely make it out but it was there—almost blending into the chocolate brown of the locker room carpet—two small fingers.

“Kevin?” Carter leaned down and pulled the locker door open. Kevin looked up at him with frightened eyes, his face dusty with tear tracks streaking down to his chin. Carter smiled and held out his hand with a nod.

“Hey Kev—you ready to get out of this place?”

Kevin stared at his hand for a moment and then accepted, grasping Carter’s fingers like a life line. Carter pulled him up with a gentle tug and wrapped his arms around the boy’s waist. He hoisted him in his arms with ease (he was surprisingly light) and Kevin wrapped his thin arms around Carters neck as he buried his face in his chest. Carter patted Kevin’s back as he made his way out of the locker room with measured steps, retracing his path through the smoky halls of the school.

“You know,” Carter said. “Whoever did this was probably terrified of taking you on in a brain fight.” Kevin shifted in his arms and pressed his face harder against Carter’s chest. “I mean, I know whatever you came up with scared the hell out of ‘em.” Carter pushed a piece of plaster out of his path with his foot. “What was it—self molding clay or calculators that talk?” Carter turned around and pushed against the front door with his back. “Wait—they already have those don’t they?”

“Kevin!” He heard Allison’s voice from across the parking lot. Carter smiled from the doorway and lowered Kevin to the ground. The boy looked up and pointed at Carter’s head.

“What,” Carter asked. “Do I have something on my—“

He felt a sharp pain on his forehead and then everthing went black.

Now


“I’m sorry Allison, but can’t seem to find anything wrong. I’ve run every test I can think of—“

Allison ran her hand over her face and held it out towards Dr. Peterson, palm up in a pleading gesture. “Can you run them again? Something is wrong with my memory and it’s got to be serious—I’ve lost an entire year of my life.”

The doctor sat down beside and took a deep breath. “Well—I’m not saying you’re wrong. We don’t talk much besides the occasional check up so I don’t have much inside knowledge about your life or what may or may not be missing.” He smiled, his wrinkled face crinkling into soft lines etched deep into his ebony skin. “But you can believe me when I say you’re not sick—no tumors, nothing like that—so that’s something right?”

Allison nodded, her brow furrowed with frustration. She was relieved to find out there was no life threatening illness eating away at her brain---but it left her right where she started---a big gaping hole in her memory with only Carter’s claim of some grand romance to guide her. Nathan blasted her after Carter left—raving about how she was a fool for believing him. Zoë ducked out pretty quickly—visibly uncomfortable with the screaming match taking place in front of her. They’d gone at one another’s throats for a ten long minutes before Nathan threw his hands up and walked out on her. She let him go—ignoring the guilt that ate at her conscious. He’d seemed genuinely concerned—going so far as to offer to take her to the doctor himself—but Allison refused, still unconvinced the whole thing wasn’t some grand manipulation on his part. Nathan could see her doubt. The pain that flashed in his eyes told her just how deep it had cut him—and he’d walked out without a backwards glance. Allison let him go, wondering how many more people she would disappoint before the day was over.

“You say it’s not physical,” Allison said. Dr. Peterson nodded. “Could it be mental,” she said, rubbing her hands along the wool of her skirt.

“Possibly,” he replied. “The brain is a complex organ—does things even this place hasn’t figured out yet.”

“So,” Allison frowned. “Maybe my subconscious made me forget on purpose—maybe there’s something I don’t want to remember.”

He touched his bottom lip and squinted in concentration. “It’s possible—but it would have to be something big—a little bit of stress wouldn’t cause something like this Allison.’

“Something big,” she mumbled, her thoughts drifting towards her dream. “Something I forgot.”

“Allison,” Dr. Peterson sighed and looked gave her an intense stare. “I hate to go here but—I’ve got to ask.”

“Go ahead, please.”

“There’s a lot of—excuse my French—freaky shit that gets done around here. Are you sure someone didn’t do this to you on purpose—make you forget something they didn’t want you remembering?”

Allison paused. She thought about Dr. Porter and how he’d disappeared without a trace, right in the middle of highly classified research so secret even she was having trouble figuring out what it was. For the fifth time that day she longed for Henry Deacon’s presence, cursing herself for not demanding an emergency number for him while he was away. Henry could fix anything, figure out everything, and was generally stumped by nothing. Plus Porter was in his section—if anyone could help her figure out why he’d gone missing, he could.

What if Dr. Porter’s disappearance and her memory loss were connected? She’d assumed he’d left of his own volition---but what if she was wrong? What if it was part of some cover-up? A cover-up that also included impairing her memory.

“No,” Allison said. “I’m not sure at all.”

Then

No concussion—just a deep cut over his forehead. The loose beam in the doorway had knocked him out cold for five minutes—long enough for Zoë to have a small panic attack and for Kevin to lean over his chest and began heart palpitations. He had awoken to sore ribs and a hysterical teenager, with Allison standing close by, her face tight with worry.

He protested the trip to the hospital but they all had insisted—Allison going so far as to literally shove him into the back of an ambulance. A few stitches and a shitload of tests later, he was given a clean bill of health and told he had the hardest head they’d ever seen. Carter informed them that it was inherited from his father—who never seemed to hear a word his mother said in the fifty years they were together.

Carter pulled his uniform pants up over his hips and rose from the hospital bed which sat in the center of a large room decorated in various shades of pale lavender. Dubbing him a hero, the hospital staff refused to treat him downstairs and instead gave him a cushy private room with HBO and those heated contoured pillows Allison kept on her bed. It would have been a nice setup if the entire place didn’t smell like Lean Green environmentally sound floor cleaner.

The door opened and Carter turned around, his shirt in his hands, embarrassed to be caught in a state of partial undress. Allison peeked inside and smiled.

“Hey you,” she whispered.

Carter smiled in return and lowered his shirt. “Hey—I thought you were the nurse.”

She moved though the door, closed it behind her and walked towards him with a small smile. “Should I be jealous?”

“Oh yes—Berta has a way with a needle that makes you forget all about the fact that she’s sucking blood from your vein.”

“I bet,” Allison said. She walked to him without hesitation, reached up to cup the nape of his neck and pulled his lips down to hers. She brushed her mouth against his and then kissed him with a slow deep passion that took his breath away. Carter slid his arms around her waist and pulled her against his body, coaxing her lips open with his tongue and then plunging it deep inside her mouth. He curled his tongue around hers’, teasing it with the tip and then tasting her in a hot wet stroke. Allison moaned and slid her hands down over his shoulders and then back up to tangle in the short hairs at his nape.

“Door,” Carter mumbled against her lips.

“Locked,” Allison replied.

He kissed her again, his hands threaded through her hair as he tasted her mouth and took her bottom lip between his teeth. He bit down gently and she jerked against him as she tried to press her body even closer. Carter tilted his head and deepened the kiss, leaving her gasping for breath and whimpering in his mouth.

He reached down, grabbed her hips and nudged her backwards until she sat on the bed. Carter lowered himself to his knees, placed his hands on the skirt of her dress and pushed it up over her thighs, letting his fingers linger over the smooth brown skin. She shivered and fixed him with a heated stare as he reached for her underwear and slid them down over her legs. Carter looked up at her as the wispy satin dropped to the floor, his hand already on her thighs, nudging them wider and exposing her to his gaze.

“Allison,” Carter whispered as his head plunged between her thighs. He licked her sex in one broad stroke and Allison gasped with pleasure. His tongue teased the swollen lips then burrowed between them to tease the rigid nub from its hiding place, and caress it with a soft, wet flick. Allison sighed with pleasure and parted her legs wider as he began to swirl his tongue around her clit.

“Yes,” she whispered, her hands cupping his head to her mound. “Jack—that’s so good.”

He took the nub in his mouth and rolled it around with his tongue, causing Allison to whimper with pleasure. Carter groaned against her and the vibrations sent shockwaves of pleasure throughout her body.

There was a knock on the door.

Carter ignored the sound, and slipped one long, thick finger inside her slit. Allison bit down hard on her lip and leaned back on the bed, resting her weight on her elbows.

“Sheriff Carter?”

Her voice was muffled though the door but Allison recognized it immediately.

“Just a minute Jo,” Allison yelled, struggling to speak the words through her aroused haze. Carter didn’t pause in his task, lowering his mouth to her slit and plunging his tongue deep inside.

“Oh God,” Allison gasped.

“Ms. Blake—is something wrong? I just came to check on Sheriff Carter—“

“The Sheriff is busy,” Allison snapped, glaring at the door as Carter’s tongue thrust in and out of her. She lifted her hips to his rhythm, her body growing tense with her oncoming orgasm. He found her clit with his damp fingers and began to massage the swollen nub in a firm circular motion, his mouth still working below. Allison threw her head back and moaned, a loud primal sound that almost made him pause.

Almost.

“Jack,’ she gasped. “Oh—I’m—I’m coming—“Her voice grew louder and Jack looked up at her as her body went rigid. His mouth was flooded with her cream as she grabbed the back of his neck and screamed with her release. Jack’s eyes widened and he raised his head from between her legs as his fingers continued to stroke her through the orgasm.

“Okay—someone might have heard that,” Carter said as he rose to his feet. Allison pushed herself up to a sitting position and reached for the waist of his pants. Carter shook his head and smiled. “Maybe we shouldn’t—“

She kissed him hard and he closed his eyes as he became lost in the warm cavern of her mouth. She tasted sweet—like some decadent dessert, and he knew she could taste herself on his lips. The thought made his already painfully swollen cock even harder and he released his breath in a slow hiss when she reached into his pants to wrap her hands around his shaft.

Allison’s eyes widened. “Oh,” she said. She looked up at Carter who lifted his eyebrows and tilted his head. “Oh,” she repeated with a slow smile. She lifted her legs up and around his waist and pulled him towards her. Carter cupped her face in his hands and kissed her as she nestled the tip of his cock against her sex.

“We should—“Allison cut off Carter’s words with a kiss. She lifted her hips until his tip found her slit and pushed forward until the head was buried inside.

“Oh—God,” Carter moaned as he thrust forward, sinking himself deep until he felt nothing but the warm wetness of her body gripping his cock. He moved inside her, rolling his hips as his hands holding her hips steady. Allison met his grinding rhythm with her own, until their bodies moved in a frantic rhythm, desperately in search of their impending release.

Another knock sounded at the door. “Ms. Blake? We heard a scream—“

“She’s busy,” Carter yelled, never hesitating as he began to pound inside her with increasing force. He could feel her muscles gripping his shaft in a pulsing rhythm and knew she was getting close.

“Jack,” she gasped. “I’m com—oh I’m coming—“Carter cupped the nape of her neck and whispered in her ear.

“Quiet—you’ve got to—Oh God—you can’t—“

Her moans grew louder and Carter glanced back at the door.

“Jack---Jack!”

“Shhh, Allison—“

She opened her mouth to scream and Carter covered her mouth with his hand, muffling the sound as he pounded inside her, his hips pumping rapidly as she convulsed on his cock. He replaced his hand with his mouth as her body jerked with the orgasm, his own taking hold in a sudden rush, bowing his back as her body milked him dry.

They came down gradually and Carter kissed her damp forehead. Allison gave him an embarrassed smile.

“I forget to tell you—“

“That you’re a screamer? Yeah—I kind of figured that one out for myself.”

Now


Carter and Faith sat side by side on the couch, both silent, their eyes lowered to the floor. “So are you going to tell me about it,” Carter asked.

“Maybe,” she replied. Faith scratched her knee and looked up at television. “Can we watch a movie?”

“Maybe,” Carter said.

She grew quiet and resumed staring at the floor.

“Faith,” Carter said. “I’m sorry but, there’s a lot of stuff going on right now—“

“Is it about Allison?” Faith was suddenly animated, her eyes bright with curiosity. Carter paused and then nodded.

“Yes.”

“She needs your help doesn’t she?”

He frowned. “How did you know?”

“Because you look worried—and you love her. If you’re worried then something’s wrong.”

Carter looked away and then down at his hands. “She—she doesn’t remember me.”

“Sheriff Carter---Deputy Lupo is at the door,’ SARAH announced.

Carter rose from the couch and pointed at Faith. “Don’t move.”

“I have to pee.”

“Hold it—SARAH door.” Carter walked to the front door and waited as it slid open. Jo stood on the other side, a small manila folder in her hand.

“Have you just given up on the concept of the telephone altogether,” she asked. Carter looked down at his waist and frowned at the flashing light indicating a missed call.

“I think this thing’s broken—“

“Whatever,” Jo said. “Allison wanted you to have this—she gave it to me this morning.”

Carter took the folder and opened it with a flip of his thumb. “What is it?”

Jo opened her mouth and then closed it, her brow wrinkling in confusion. Carter waited and then waved it in her direction.

“Well?”

“It’s uh---hold on.”

“Jo—“Carter’s irritated stare turned to concern. “Is something wrong?”

“It’s—Allison gave it to me—it’s---dammit I knew before—I—“Jo looked at him and grunted in frustration. “I just—I can’t remember.”

Then


“Yes sir—we’re very aware of the risks involved in this type of energy conduction but if you refer to the data package I forwarded---“Allison paused mid-sentence and frowned down at the bright white screen of her blackberry, flashing on her desk. A text message appeared in bold black letters.

Allison. Are you there?

She glanced up at the projection floating above her where the DOD head of Intelligence Acquisitions waited impatiently for her to continue. “---the data package I forwarded clearly explains how much more cost effective this new system would be and it would double the strength of our EM field---“

Allison glanced down as another message flashed across her phone.

I know you’re there. I can see the back of your head through the window.

“Ms. Blake, I understand you and your people would like to make strides to be more eco-responsible---but as I understand, the current energy conductors hold the EM field just fine---“

Allison grabbed the phone and punched in a message, her fingers flying over the keys.

I’m working.

“Mr. Wise, Sir-----as you well know, our EM field protects the main server of Global Dynamics. It is the most important security feature of this facility. Though we’ve been lucky so far---“

The phone flashed again.

What are you wearing?

“---I can’t stress to you enough the importance of constant diligence in keeping the field safe from hackers---“

Allison typed as she spoke.

My bitch face.

“I understand that Ms. Blake but you’ve yet to convince me the current energy conductor isn’t perfectly capable of doing that.”

Is that like your O face?

Allison bit her bottom lip, her face warm from the need to laugh. “Mr. Wise, the data package---“

“Oh would you stop with the damn package Allison. No one reads those things---“

Allison sighed and rubbed her face. “Well maybe if you had, we wouldn’t be having the exact same conversation for the third time in a week.” She froze.

Had she said that out loud?

“Excuse me,” the stern voice floating down from the hologram snapped. “I don’t believe I heard you correctly Ms. Blake.”

The phone flashed again.

Come down from your tower princess.

“Mr. Wise---really, the material speaks for itself.”

Meet me at the park. 30 minutes.

The man sighed and shook his head. “I’m still not convinced---“

Allison glanced down as the phone flashed again.

Wear the bitch face. It’s hot.

“Mr. Wise, I’m apologize but I just received an urgent call from local law enforcement that needs my immediate attention,” Allison said. “We’ll have to continue this at another time.”

“What? But---“

Allison waved her hand and the projection disappeared. She picked up the phone and typed a response, a large smile spread across her lips.

Not as hot as the O face. See you then.

Now

“What do you mean you don’t remember?”

Jo frowned at the folder in Carter’s hand. She opened her mouth and then closed it with a small shake of her head. “I don’t remember what’s in that thing---I try---and there’s just nothing.”

Carter flipped open the file and looked at the small black and white photograph of a middle aged African-American man. “Dr. Riley Porter,” he read. Carter looked up at Jo. “Ring any bells?”

Jo shook her head. “Never head the name before.”

“Says here he’s missing,” Carter said. “Did Allison want us to help find this guy?”

“Carter---what part of I don’t remember do you not comprehend,” Jo snapped.
“And she gave this to you this morning?”

Jo nodded. “Yes---that part I remember clearly. It’s just---everything else.”

Carter paused. First Allison forgets an entire year of her life and now Jo can’t remember a conversation that took place a few hours ago. What the hell was going on? Jo jumped and grabbed her phone from her hip. A red light flashed in angry succession indicating an emergency call. She turned it on and spoke into the receiver. “Deputy Lupo.” Carter waited as she listened to whoever spoke on the other line. He wanted to grill her some more---see if she’d lost more than just a few minutes of the morning. If she had it would help make his case to Allison---and maybe help him figure out what had caused their memory loss or more importantly how to fix it.

“We’ll be right there,” Jo said. She hung up the phone and sighed. “We’ve got to get downtown.”

Carter shook his head. “I can’t leave---I’ve got to watch—“

“Someone at the electric company turned off the stop lights to recalibrate the sensors.”

Carter shrugged. “They do that all the time.”

“They removed the safety barriers and forgot to turn the traffic lights back on.”

Carter stared at her for a moment. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“There’s a pile up and a traffic jam leading all the way to the borders of Eureka. We’ve got to get down there now.”

“All right, all right,” Carter said. “I just got to figure out what to do with Faith.”

Jo frowned. “Who?”

“You know this memory thing is really starting to irritate the shit out of me. Maybe you should give me your gun before you forget I’m not a perp and shoot me in the ass.”

Jo’s face went flat—her eyes cold. “I never give anyone my gun.”

Carter paused. “You can be real creepy sometimes Lupo---you know that?” He turned around and looked at the living room, finding the couch where he’d left Faith empty. “Oh hell,” Carter moaned. “Faith!” He walked further into the living room, scanned the area and then made his way down the hall. “Faith---where are you?”

“In here!”

He sighed with relief at the sound of her voice. She’d yelled from the bathroom, the door shut tight.

“Faith---I need you to come out of there---you need to take a ride with me and Deputy Lupo.”

“Can’t I just stay here,” Faith pleaded. “I want to watch TV.”

“I can’t leave you here alone,’ he said. “The last time I did that you touched my beer.”

“I won’t do it again----please Sheriff? I hate police cars and guns scare me. I’m just a kid---I shouldn’t be around those things.”

Carter looked at his watch. “Okay---Zoë will be home in about ten minutes. Can I trust you not to get into any trouble before she gets here?”

“Uh huh.”

Carter paused. “You promise.”

“Uh huh.”

He hesitated. “Swear.”

“On what?”

“The bible.”

“You’re not supposed to do that.”

“Well---just---promise again.”

“Okay this is starting to get awkward.”

“Carter!” Jo’s voice boomed from the living room. “We need to go!”

Carter gave the bathroom one last look. “Okay---I’m leaving.”

“Bring back ice cream!”

Then

She left her heels in the car. Eureka’s public park was covered in an organic hybrid monocot as soft and giving as the average person’s living room rug. She’d shrugged off the constricting suit jacket as well, and padded barefoot under the clear night sky, towards the flicking light in the distance.

He stood with his back to the parking lot and didn’t seem aware of her presence. He’d changed out of his uniform and Alison took a moment to admire the broad set of his shoulders underneath his dark blue button down and how his hands rested on slim hips, his usual stance when deep in concentration. He was staring at the ground and she knew a familiar frown of frustration marred his handsome face.

“Something wrong,” she asked.

Carter jumped at the sound of her voice and turned around with wide surprised eyes. His lips narrowed and he looked up at the sky and sighed. “You’re going to laugh at me.”

Allison smiled. “I always laugh at you.”

“I know, but for real this time—not the ‘ah ha, Jack’s so cute’ way you do when I say something stupid at Global.”

“Oh like when you called the lunar mineraloids at in the petrology department kryptonite?”

“They were green rocks from the moon. What would you call it?”

“Moon rocks.”

“Well—“Carter paused and frowned. “Well yeah but---“ He waved his hands dismissivly. “Whatever--look, I had this entire night planned out.” He waved at the clearing—a small patch of grass surrounded by tall green trees. White candles were scattered about the area---a half-hazard pattern of light that just screamed Jack Carter. A flat silver disk lay at his feet, tilted as though it had been thrown there in frustration.

“What’s that,” Allison asked, pointing.

“That---is supposed to play music---and project—stars and flowers or---some shit. Fargo loaned it to me—said he built it for the high school prom last year.”

“You borrowed something from Fargo,” Allison asked. She walked towards him and picked up the disk, her feet sinking into the thick carpet of grass beneath them. Carter nodded, his eyes fixed on her toes.

“Yeah—well more like blackmailed---but after the jelly incident I was due.”

Allison looked at the disk with one raised eyebrow. “So I’m guessing you—“

“Can’t turn the damn thing on,” Carter snapped. “It’s in some kind of secret geek code that mere mortals could never begin---“Allison pressed a small red tab and the disk whirred to life, a beam of light shining from the top. Carter’s mouth opened and closed and reached up to rub his neck, his entire body tense with agitation. “I know it may not seem like it but I can tie my own shoes---honest.”

Allison laughed and threw the disk out towards the middle of the clearing. It floated in mid-air as it filled the area around them with white rose petals, so meticulously imaged that Allison felt the urge to reach out and touch one. They stared at the picturesque illusion---silent. Carter reached out and threaded his fingers through Allison’s.

“Music,” he said, his voice strong and clear. The disk shifted with a faint click and the soft tinkle of piano keys floated towards them. Allison lifted her eyebrows with an impressed purse of her lips. Carter shrugged. “Now that—I remembered.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Dance with me.”

Carter led her out a few feet into the clearing and slipped his arms around her waist. Allison lifted her arms to his shoulders and moved closer, until her body was pressed against hers, his warmth spreading over her skin. The top of her head barely reached his neck without her heels, and she pressed her face into his chest, and breathed deep—lost in his familiar scent.

It’s not the pale moon
That excites me
That thrills and delights me…

“I love this song,” Allison whispered.

“I know,” Carter said. “You told me along time ago---a few weeks after we met.”

Allison leaned back and looked at him in surprise. “You remember?”

Oh no.
It’s just the nearness
Of you…..

Carter reached up to brush a stray hair from her cheek. He fixed her with clear blue eyes, so warm with affection that her heart leapt into her throat.

“Allison, you should know by now,” he lowered his lips and brushed them against hers’ in a whispered of a kiss. He spoke against her lips, the warmth of his breath caressing her skin.

“I remember everything.”

 Now


“I don’t know what happened.” The electrician struggled to match Carter’s pace as he gestured towards the dark traffic lights. Cars filled the street, some damaged beyond recognition as angry motorist spat insults at the nearest driver in their path. To say the scene chaos was an understatement. Carter was pretty sure if the road wasn’t cleared soon they would start eating each other.

“I was gonna turn it back on---I was,” the man said, his voice pleading. Carter nodded.

“I know—Jo told me you forgot to do it.”

The man frowned and shook his head with such conviction that the movement set his hardhat ajar. “No---I didn’t forget to turn them on.”

Carter glanced back at Jo who looked up at him with a confused frown of her own. “But you said---“

“He said he forgot,” Jo interrupted. “That’s what was radioed in—“

“I did—“the electrician paused with a frustrated sigh. “I didn’t forget to turn the lights back on---I forgot how.”

Carter’s eyes flew opened and his neck flew back then forward as he stared at the man in disbelief. “Excuse me?”

“I forgot how to turn the lights back on,” he man said. He pulled the hard hat from his head and grunting with impatience. “Look, I’ve been the head electrical engineer in this town for fifteen years. I was only doing this job because one of my staff called in sick this morning.” He gestured towards the lights and shook his head. “I could fix those things in my sleep---always been able to but—“He shook his head again and glared down at the ground. “Something must be wrong with me.”

Carter paused--the man’s hopeless confession so much like Allison’s that gooseflesh rose on his arms. Carter placed a hand on the man’s shoulder and leaned down to find his gaze. “What’s your name,” Carter asked.

“Bob---Bob Hunter.”

“Well Bob---I don’t know if this helps any but I don’t think it’s just you.”

“Fire!”

Carter looked up at the sky and groaned. “Oh, come on!!”

“Café Diem! It’s—it’s on fire.” The frantic cries came from a few feet away. Carter recognized the man as once of Vincent’s waiters. He held his apron in his hand and waved it around like a flag—pointing in hysterical jabs down the road. “Sheriff,’ he gaped. “You gotta help.”

“Jo—“

“Fire Department’s on the way,” she said, her radio at her ear. Carter broke out in a sprint, heading towards the dark billow of smoke that had begun to rise into the sky. He dodged gawking pedestrians, screaming at them to clear the path to the restaurant. The roads were hopelessly blocked---the sidewalks were the only route to the blaze.

Carter turned the corner and stopped in his tracks. Vincent sat on the stoop of the Café--, coughing into his dish rag as the dining room was filled with black smoke. “Oh,” he croaked. “Hey Sheriff.”

“Vincent, what the hell---“

“I put it out.” Vincent eyed the screaming waiter and shook his head. “You have to excuse Larry—my waiter. Ever since his eyebrows got singed in a grease fire, he’s developed a flair for the dramatic.”

“What the hell happened,’ Carter said. He covered his mouth and pushed open a window, shaking his head at the thick black fumes.

“It was the weirdest thing,” Vincent said. “You know that gamma emission stove I’ve been using--the one that could—“

“Roast a turkey in the time it takes a fart to hit the wind,” Carter finished. “Yeah---unfortunately I do.”

“Well—I’m prepping fifty pheasants for today’s lunch special—“

“Pheasant,” Carter frowned. “Is that---like pigeons?”

Vincent paused and glared up at him. “Could you at least pretend to pay attention?”

“Sorry.”

“Like I was saying, I’m prepping a tray of pheasants and I’ve got them all ready to stick in the gamma oven. I turn around and reach out to set the thing and---“Vincent paused, his face flushing red with embarrassment.

“And?”

“I—I cant’ remember how to use it.”

Carter frowned. “What do you mean exactly?”

“I mean I don’t remember how the damn thing works---I just started pressing buttons—“

“Oh, come on Vincent, even I know doing that around this place is like having a death wish.”

“I panicked okay!” Vincent leaned forward, his round cheeks puffed with indignation. “I can recite 12,355 recipes I’ve been committing to memory since I was eight years old—I can tell you chemical compositions of very ingredient in my pantry---and the exact calorie count of all the dishes on the menu—plus a few that aren’t. I’ve used that stove more times than I can count---now all of a sudden I can’t even turn the thing on?” Vincent leaned back and shrugged. “Excuse me if I was in denial and took a damn guess.”

Carter looked up at the smoke. “Well—from the looks of things you must have---“

“Guessed too high.”

****

Allison rubbed her eyes, her head aching with fatigue. The frantic calls to her office about the traffic jam in town had finally been diverted to some other obscure public safety department she’d pulled out the recesses of her memory.

What was left of it anyway.

The more she’d thought about it, the more she’d become convinced that her memory loss wasn’t an accident. Someone or something had wiped her mind clean of a large portion of her life---a realization that frightened her so badly that she’d locked herself in her office, unplugged her phone and proceeded to look through every research file in the neurology department---certain there must be something that might help her figure out what caused it. But so far she’d come up empty. Though there were tons of studies about brain waves and memory function, there was nothing in development with the capacity to cause the type of complete amnesia she had experienced.

A year of her life---gone. The thought formed a ball of fear in her stomach that almost doubled her over with nausea. And it wasn’t just Carter who was suffering---what about Kevin?”

“Kevin,” Allison cried. What if she’d forgotten something about Kevin---something important that could be dangerous not to remember? Allison rose from her seat, knocking a glass of water onto the floor. She jumped at the loud shatter, shook her head and reached out to grab her purse from her desk. Her arm moved across her computer keys inadvertently hitting the enter button which caused her computer screen to flip rapidly through the neurology files.

“Shit,” she hissed. Allison moved her arm and looked up at her screen to find herself staring into the somber brown gaze of Dr. Riley Porter---her missing employee. She frowned. “Wait---he’s not in this department.” Her eyes moved lower to a small subtype beneath his areas of expertise. Her eyes widened as she read aloud. “Electro-neurologic Studies.” She reached out and scrolled the screen lower, only to grunt in frustration at the flashing red “classified” where his active research projects would normally appear. She printed the screen with a hard tap of the button and waited as her computer spat the paper out onto her desk. Allison moved to grab it and then paused, her eyes fixed on the name below Dr. Porter’s credentials.

“Direct Supervisor, Henry Deacon,” her eyes widened as she continued reading. “Special projects coordinator---Nathan Stark.” Allison slammed her hand on her desk. “That asshole!” She crumbled the paper in her hand and stalked towards her door. Allison pushed them open in a blind fury, oblivious to Fargo’s presence on the other side until he was sent crashing to the ground, the silver disk in his hands clattering to the floor.

“Oh,” she cried. “Fargo—I’m sorry---“

The hall was suddenly filled with rose petals that floated around the pair in a soft lilting dance that matched the strains of the music floating from the disk

It isn't your sweet conversation
That brings this sensation…

“It’s okay Ms. Blake---nothings broken,” Fargo said rising to his feet. Allison stared at the floating petals, her eyes wide. Fargo looked at her in confusion. “Uh---Ms. Blake---is something wrong?”

Oh no….

“No—I just,” Allison shook her head and turned to Fargo. “That’s my favorite song.”

It’s just the nearness
Of you.



The Nearness Of You

Then

If there was one thing Carter hated more than the ominous vibration of his cell phone, signaling the latest Eureka clusterfuckfest, it was shopping. He loathed the entire process of wading through rows and rows of the same shirt in five different shades of blue—sixty different types of soap that got you an equal kind of clean---and hundreds of cereals that touted amazing health benefits which apparently would make him live forever. But all of that paled in comparison to the hell he faced right now, surrounded by glittering rows of diamonds, sapphires and rubies, with price tags that made his head ache and his mouth go dry. Plus---there were just so damn many of everything.

“Well how about this one Sheriff---very elegant and simple—I think Ms. Blake would love it.” The store owner (Ted—world renown geologist and recent retiree from the bowels of Global Dynamics’ cutting edge geologic research department) held a sparkling diamond tennis bracelet with a platinum clasp. The stones were small but not too small and a peek at the price tag didn’t send Carter into respiratory failure. He took the bracelet from the man’s hand and eyed it warily.

“You really think she’ll like it,” Carter said. “It’s our one year anniversary---I’m not looking to get punched in the mouth—kind of ruins the mood.”

Ted laughed and nodded. “I think as long as it comes from you Ms. Blake will love it.”

Carter smiled and nodded, lifting the bracelet up to the light. He shrugged and handed it back to Ted, then pulled out his wallet. “I’ll take it, how much?”

“Oh, is it Zoë’s birthday already?” Carter stiffened at the sound of Nathan Stark’s voice. Stark strolled up to the counter--eyed the bracelet then reached out and poked it with his finger. “Cute bracelet---very appropriate for a girl her age.” Stark leaned against the glass and smiled. “My twelve year old niece has one in pink.”

“What are you doing back in town Stark,” Carter asked. “Is Eureka the only place you can keep yourself ass deep in monogrammed pocket watches and pinky rings?”

“So I hear you and Alli have been at it for a year now.” Stark glanced down at the bracelet and then back at Carter. “You know---we only dated six months before I popped the question.”

“Yeah?” Carter placed his hands on his hips. “And what’d it take—six more before she ran off to another state?”

Stark lifted his eyes to the ceiling. “Ancient history.”

Carter slammed his hand on the counter, his jaw clenched tight with anger. “Exactly.”

Now

There was something he was missing.

Carter stood across from Café Diem and watched Jo interview Vincent as the fire department milled around the area. More reports had slowly trickled in---teachers forgetting their lesson plans---cab drivers blanking on routes they had driven for years. Whatever was causing it was spreading all over the town at a rate that had his stomach tied in knots. He had to figure it out before someone forgot something even more serious than a traffic light. It was what they were all expecting---he could see it in the sideways glances people kept shooting his way. They were wondering why he hadn’t stopped this already---why he was just standing on the street staring at the trail of smoke still rising to the sky. He wanted to tell them he was trying his damndest, wracking his average brain for some clue as to what the hell was happening.

But right now he was at a loss---still trying to figure out what glaring, big clue he was missing.

“Missing,” Carter mumbled. He walked towards his truck and opened the driver’s side door. The manila folder lay in the back seat, flipped open to the photograph of Allison’s missing scientist. He scanned the report, his eyes zeroing in on the date of man’s disappearance. “Yesterday,” Carter said. “Right before all this started.” Carter pulled out his phone and dialed home, tapping the file on the top of his Jeep.

“Hello?”

“Faith—is that you---where’s Zoë?”

“She’s here---where are you? Did you find Allison—did she remember you yet?”

“No, I---Faith put Zoë on the phone.”

“Did you get my ice cream?”

“Faith.”

“Okay fine.” Carter waited, listening to the sound of rustling on the other end of the line. He closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose, trying to stave off the faint ache that had begun to pound at the base of his head.

“Dad—Dad can you hear me? Dad?”

“Zoë, I’m here,” Carter said.

“We must have a bad connection—I kept talking and---“

“Zoë, I’ve got to go by Global Dynamics---there’s something going on---“

“No kidding,” Zoë cried. “My history teacher blanked on the name of the first president of the United States this morning. I’m no genius but that’s just scary.”

“Stay at the house Zoë---just both of you stay there and I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

“Both of us---Dad, I don’t---“

“No time to talk sweetheart. Just do what I ask. I’ve gotta go.” Carter hung up the phone and let out a deep breath. He walked across the street and motioned towards Jo who moved towards him, tapping her notepad against her palm.

“This is really starting to freak me out,” she said, shaking her head.

“Do you think you can handle this for a while? I need to stop by Global.”

“Why?”

“Oh,” Carter lifted the file and waved it in front of her. “Just a hunch.”

****

Allison slammed her print-out on Stark’s desk, prompting a quick flick of his gaze in her direction followed by an irritated sigh. “Allison---I don’t have time for---“

“Make time Nathan,” Allison snapped. Stark looked at her, and she could see the wheels turning in his head---assessing her mood and planning his strategic approach to the situation---just like when they were married. It pissed her off then and it made her furious now. “Do you want to explain this to me?”

Stark look down at the papers she’d put on his desk and shrugged. “Looks like an employee bio---“

“Knock it off Nathan. That’s Dr. Riley Porter, the same man I told you was missing this morning.”

Stark frowned. “I believe you said something about it yes.”

“I asked for your help---and you looked me in the face and pretended to know nothing.”

“Is that right,” Stark said, lifting his eyebrows.

“His research Nathan.” Allison picked up the papers and pointed at the small typeface under Dr. Porter’s picture. “It says here he specializes in electro-neurological research.”

Stark frowned and reached up to scratch his head. “Remind me why that’s important again.”

Allison grunted, barely resisting the urge to stomp her feet in frustration. “You and I both know that electric stimulation of the brain can have a broad spectrum effect on neurological memory function.”

“Right” Stark said nodded. He paused and frowned. “Really?”

Allison stared at him a moment. His face was blank—not trace of his usual arrogance to be found. “Nathan---what’s going on---is there something wrong?”

Stark rubbed his head again and stared down at the paper in front of him. “Say’s here that I’m his special projects coordinator.”

“That’s right,” Allison said. “I need to know what he was working on before he disappeared.”

“Right.” Stark frowned down at the picture as Allison watched him---wary.

“Nathan---what was he working on?”

“It was top secret---experimental research that was ordered directly from the Department of Defense. I was given orders to oversee it---make sure everyone involved used the utmost discretion and kept it under the radar---I couldn’t even tell you,” he looked up at her, his eyes wide with confusion. “—and now, I honestly couldn’t if wanted to. I can’t remember a damn thing about it.”

Then

He hadn’t hit him and his gun stayed--safety on, snug in its holster. All and all Carter figured he’d done his good deed for the week. Stark had mumbled something about work and left—leaving Carter alone in the jewelry store with a jittery Ted and the bracelet Stark had mocked only moment ago. Carter asked for another one (that hadn’t been poked and prodded with asshole hands) and requested that date be engraved on the clasp. He planned to pick it up after work, but couldn’t resist the urge to swing by Allison’s office for a hello and some possible heavy petting if she was in the mood. Which, thank God, she always seemed to be.

Carter walked up the stairs to her office and paused outside her door. It was cracked and he could voices---the hostile tones indicating some type of argument taking place inside. Carter turned to walk away, then paused as he recognized he deeper voice of Nathan Stark. He didn’t want to eavesdrop---but after today’s confrontation he was wary of contact the man had with Allie. Carter leaned forward, and listened as Allison’s voice grew louder with each word.

“Did you really think you could just breeze back into town, barge in here and tell me what I can and can’t do with my life?”

“I’m just worried about you Allison. I may not be at Global anymore, but people talk—from what I hear you spend every minute with Jack Carter---“

“I’m here every day, working my ass off just like everyone else---“

“Oh, so I guess that wasn’t you and your new boyfriend Fargo saw coming out of the file room last week half dressed.”

Carter’s balled his hand into a fist and forced himself not to burst into the room.

“You’ve been spying on me,” Allison gasped. “My God, Nathan that’s low even for you.”

“I’m just trying to make sure this place is being looked after like it should be,” Stark said. Carter head him sigh and moved closer, his ear pressed against the door. “Which is why I’m coming back.”

“You’re what?”

“They offered me my old job back, and I accepted. The transfer was put through this morning---“

“Oh this is pathetic,” Allison snapped. “Are you really that determined to get between me and Carter?”

“I know this may come as a shock Allison, but everything I do is not about you.”

“Bullshit,” she snapped. “I am happy Nathan, don’t you get that? Really happy for the first time in a really long time and it’s because of him.”

“I find that hard to believe---“

“Believe it.” Carter smiled at Allison’s tone and looked down at the ground, his face flushed with pleasure. “He’s a good man Nathan. Kevin loves him and so do I. He’s kind, and brave and I trust him with my life.” She paused and Carter leaned forward to watch her through the crack of the door. “And if you do anything---anything to screw this up for me, I’ll make you sorry you ever stepped foot in this town again.”

Stark was silent and turned around to stalk towards the office door. Carter’s eyes flew open and he jumped to the side, pressed his back against the wall and held his breath, praying that his tan uniform blended in with the bland beige paint on the wall. Stark didn’t acknowledge his presence and Carter watched him walk away and disappear into the far corridor leading out of the building. He let out a deep breath and shook his head, and then grinned at the memory of Allison’s words.

He was kind. He was brave. And she loved him.

“You done playing wallpaper Carter,” Allison said. Carter turned to face her, his body still pressed against the wall.

“I was just,” Carter gestured towards the ceiling and Allison raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest. “I saw the—“Carter frowned and turned to look for the perfect lie in the cracks and chips of the wall behind him. He pointed at a small hole near the doorframe. “Was this always here?”

Allison smiled and shook her head. “Get in here and feel me up.” She turned around and walked into the office and Carter smiled as he moved to follow. His phone chirped and he pulled it from his waist, relieved to see the number of the jewelry store.

“Hello?”

“Sheriff Carter! Just calling to let you know the bracelet’s ready whenever you want to pick it up.” Carter stepped away from the office door and lowered his voice to a loud whisper.

“That’s great Ted, but uh---I need you do me another favor.”

“Anything Sheriff.”

“I need you to help me find a ring---money’s no object,” Carter said. He turned around and looked into Allison’s office, his gaze fixed on her bowed head and the soft curve of her cheek as she frowned at something on her desk. “It’s just got to be perfect.”

Now


Allison’s office was empty. Carter made his way down the halls of Global, the file clutched in his hand, intent on getting as much information out of her as he could. Plus he needed to see her--- he had to make sure she was okay.

He turned the corner and ran into Douglas Fargo, who dropped an armload of papers and grunted with frustration. “Why don’t I just wear a kick me sign and bend over,” he grumbled.

Carter frowned. “Okay, I was going to apologize but you just made the whole thing really weird, so let’s just act like it didn’t happen.” Fargo leaned down to pick up his papers and Carter glanced at the file in his hand. “Hey Fargo—do you know a guy named Dr. Porter?”

“Riley Porter,” Fargo frowned as he rose to a standing position. “Yeah---his office is right over there.” He pointed at the door to his right and Carter looked at the office, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

“Just right there huh?”

“Yeah,” Fargo said.

“So---“Carter shrugged. “Mind if I take a look around?”

Fargo paused. “You’re asking me?”

Carter rolled his eyes. “Right---what was I thinking?” Fargo shuffled past him, and made his way to the office, his eyes drawn to the plain black letters of the nameplate on the wall. “Riley Porter,” Carter mumbled. “That was easy enough.” He jiggled the doorknob and it clicked then froze in his hand. “Maybe not that easy.” He stared at the silver knob and reached up to rub the back of his neck. “Probably should get a warrant,” he said. Then he thought of Allison and the fear in her eyes when she realized she couldn’t remember a year of her life. He reached for a small pouch on his belt, pulled out a lock pick and made swift work of the simple lock.

“Huh,” Carter said. “Cutting edge technology my ass, sometimes a lock is just a---“he heard a clicking sound and then the whir of a computer as the room was cast in a bright red light.

“Intruder.”

Carter frowned at the sound of the computer generated voice.

“Please supply oral pass code in five…four….”

“Uh,” Carter’s eyes scanned the dark room, his mind frantically searching for something that wasn’t ‘open says me’. “Uh---Porter?”

“Three…two…”

“Oh for--,” Carter raised his hands to his head, which had begun to pound in earnest and looked up at the ceiling. “I hate this fucking place.”

“Access granted.”

Carter watched in shocked as the red light faded and a soft whir indicated the security system had shut down. He scanned the room until he spotted a thin laptop pushed back against the far wall. “Jack pot,” he whispered. Carter walked over to the desk, sat down in front of the computer and lifted the lid. He pressed the on button only to be confronted with a black screen with a blinking white cursor.

“Another password,” Carter grumbled. He drummed his fingers on the desk and typed in the same phrase he’d uttered to disable the security system. “I---hate---this---fucking---place.” The screen blinked and a welcome message appeared. “Looks like someone won’t be at the company picnic this year.” He began searching through documents, blinking at the complex equations and unfamiliar words that appeared before him.

“Electronic—neurological impulse emitters---slow wave deep sleep---electrical fluctuations in the neo-cortex,” Carter shook his head and stabbed the print screen button. “Yep---might as well be in Chinese.” The pages ejected on a small printer near the computer and Carter reached for them, his elbow bumping into a small black device, oval shaped and similar to a computer mouse. Carter picked it up and frowned, the considerable weight of the thing making him pause. “What the hell is this?” He turned and looked at the papers sitting on the printer. “What the hell does this shit mean?” Carter put the black device down on the desk and closed his eyes tight, rubbing his face with both hands.

“And where the hell is Henry?”

Henry

They called it a professional retreat but it was really just a way to get their head engineers away from the office for a few weeks to prevent exhaustion and burnout. Kim used to say it was just an excuse for a bunch of nerds to get drunk and imitate the frat boys and jocks they used to idolize in high school.

She would have hated every minute of it.

Henry didn’t love or hate the days he spent in seminars about even work distribution or in luncheons listening to the top minds in his field wax poetic about research breakthroughs and crushing failures. He just went through the motions as usual, laughing when they expected him too and staying silent when he could. He’d rather think about what he’d work on when he got back to Global, how much he missed those Philly Cheese steak sandwiches that Vincent made just for him at Café Diem, and of course---Kim.

Henry leaned back in his chair, eyeing the grey haired speaker at the front of the room and let his mind wonder as it so often did, to the day he didn’t save her. That thing---that artifact that Nathan Stark had been so determined pull apart and study---had taken the only thing in his life he’d cared about that couldn’t be plugged up to some socket or revived with a flick of a switch. For a long while---that rage had consumed him, made him do things that had very nearly destroyed Eureka and everyone in it in his desperate attempt to save the love of his life. And as always in Eureka, Jack Carter had saved the day---his Kim was still gone and Henry had never truly forgiven his best friend for that.

Bu over time, even that anger had faded leaving only numbness in its place. All he had left were his memories which he held on to with the desperation of a man who’d lost his soulmate and become disillusioned with everything and everyone else in his life.

Henry felt a tap on his shoulder and looked up to see a young man in a dark suit motion for him to follow. He stood up and walked out of the auditorium, and the man turned around and handed him a thick stack of post-it notes. “Mr. Deacon---on behalf of the staff here at the Rainforest Retreat I’d like to extend my deepest apologies---“

Henry frowned, looking down at the papers. “Apologies for what?”

“Our receptionist is new and didn’t realized the do not disturb order had some expceptions for emergencies.”

“Is something wrong?”

“Global Dynamics has been trying to reach you for the past twenty-four hours.”

“They have---what about?”

“It’s all there in the messages,” the man said, nodding towards the stack. He cleared his throat and forced himself to meet Henry’s gaze. “All---fifty of them.” Henry’s eyes widened with shock.

“Did you say fifty?”

Now

Carter stood on Allison’s porch and stared at the brass knocker. He’d been there many times before only this time felt different. It was that blank look in her eyes that made him pause---that cold edge to her voice when she’d pushed him away. He wasn’t sure he could face again. But he knew he had to. They still hadn’t heard from Henry and he sure as hell wasn’t about to got to Stark with anything. Allison was the only person he could trust right now. But still he didn’t move.

Carter’s phone vibrated on his hip and he jumped in surprise. The small stack of papers slipped from his hands and he lowered himself to his knees as he wedged the phone between his ear and shoulder. “Carter,” he barked, snatching the paper before they could blow away in the wind.

“You---didn’t ---bring---ice cream.”

Carter sighed. “I’m sorry Faith---I got held up.”

“It’s---okay---I’ll---wait.”

He frowned. She was out of breath and he could hear the rhythmic squeak of mattress springs groaning under the weight of a leaping ten year old. “Are you---are you jumping on my bed?”

There was a loud squeak and then a thump, like the sound of his headboard banging against the wall. “No,” she said.

“Look, ask Zoë to order a pizza and you two sit tight till I get there alright?”

“Are you with Allison?”

Carter looked up at the house and shrugged. “Ah---sorta.”

“Oh, you’re gonna help her remember right? Did you bring flowers---girls like flowers.”

“She’s not a girl and no---this is work related.” Faith groaned into the phone and Carter frowned. “What?”

“Sheriff Carter she’s never gonna remember if you don’t help her.”

“It’s a lot more complicated than that Faith---there’s some weird, scientific hoodoo going on. “

“That’s just an excuse---you’re afraid to try.”

“I am not,” Carter exclaimed. “Something zapped Allison’s brain and I have no idea how it happened. How is that making an excuse?”

“Memories are like water---it can be snow, or vapor or rain but it’s always there. You just don’t see it sometimes.”

Carter paused. “Okay, is that supposed to mean something?”

“It means you should have brought flowers.”

Carter looked up as Allison’s porch was illuminated in a flood of bright light. He blinked when she opened the door and stared at him in surprise. “Carter? What are you doing here?”

“Gotta go,” Carter said into the receiver. He snapped the phone closed, stuffed into his waistband as he held up the print outs and wondered why the hell he didn’t think to pick up her favorite lilies on the way over. “Hey Allison---I found something over and Global that might help with all of this---you mind if I come in?”

Allison paused and stepped back with a gesture towards her living room. “Of course not---please.” He walked past her with a quick glance at her profile. Her face was bare of makeup and he could see the familiar smattering of freckles across her nose. Carter turned away and smiled as he walked into the living room. Maybe Faith was right---maybe Allison’s memories were still there, like water vapor, just hiding beneath the surface. If that was true, if she really could remember with a little prodding, well hell—he’d do everything in his power to pull them out again.

Then

He couldn’t decide how to do it.

The first time with Abby, he’d done it on the fly after a night of a few too many beers and a sudden conviction that if he didn’t pop the question he could very well spend his life alone. But this was different. It was Allison---the woman he was pretty sure classified as the love of his life. You didn’t just suggest something like marriage over a Bud to the love of your life. You made plans—put on a production and got down on one knee. It all meant something---every word, every look was something she’d remember and tell your kids over and over when you both were middle aged and nostalgic.

And that memory was up to him---so he had to get it right. The only problem was that Carter had always been the guy who’d screw up a kid’s pajama party if left to his own devices. He’d finally broken down and told Zoë, eliciting stunned silence, a minute of sulky mourning for the official death knell in her parental reunion fantasies, and then an immediate order to find Vincent and ask him to prepare the most romantic dinner he’s ever made in his life.

Carter hesitated---the truth was half the stuff at Café Diem scared the hell out of him. But when Zoe asked if he’d rather make Allison suffer through his cooking before he asked her to suffer through it the rest of her life, he’d agreed without hesitation.

Some things are just better left for after the honeymoon.

“So tomorrow night’s the big night, huh Sheriff?” Vincent smiled as he slid a white piece of paper in Carter’s direction. They sat at the front counter of the restaurant and Carter sipped his coffee as he glanced down at the neatly typed menu.

“Yes it is, and I can’t wait—“Carter frowned. “What’s a white truffle,” he asked looking up at Vincent.

Vincent’s forehead wrinkled for a brief moment then faded into a broad smile. “It’s only the most decadent, most luxurious and sought after edible fruiting body of the subterranean ascomycete fungi from the Piedmont regions of Italy.”

Carter stared at Vincent. “Uh huh.”

“They retail for $1,300 a pound.”

Carter looked down at the menu. “Riiiight.”

Vincent rolled his eyes and sighed. “They’re mushrooms.”

“Ah!” Carter pointed at Vincent and smiled. “Mushrooms, got it. Can I substitute spinach instead?”

“Okay, that’s it,” Vincent grabbed the menu from Carter’s hands. “Out.”

“What?” Carter rose to his feet. “Seriously, you’re kicking me out?”

“Absolutely---and don’t’ come back until tomorrow night.”

“Oh come on Vincent,” Carter said. “Where am I supposed to get coffee?”

“I don’t know and I don’t care. But if I see your face even once before this dinner, you’ll be dining on goose liver pate and haggis.”

Carter paused. “Right.” He frowned and shook his head. “What’s haggis?”

“Out!”

Now


Carter watched Allison frown over the print outs in silence. Honestly, he’d forgotten what was on the things the minute she opened the door. Allison’s hair was pulled back from her face in a low ponytail and he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the soft skin on the curve of her neck. It conjured up all types of memories, most of which would probably make her blush and stutter with embarrassment.

Which would be sexy as hell.

“It looks like Dr. Porter was studying the affect on electronic pulses on certain regions of the brain. Particularly those associated with long and short term memory function.” Allison shuffled the papers and Carter struggled to focus on her words.

“Right,” he said. “Which would be---“He paused for a beat trying to pick up her train of thought. “Bad?”

“I’m not sure it’s bad or good to be honest,” she said with a sigh. “It’s good if we can find him and he can stop whatever’s going on around town. Bad if he can’t.”

“What if he’s the one that caused it---zapped your brain or whatever?” Allison looked up at Carter with clear irritation. “Sorry,” he said. “Your brain probably wasn’t zapped. Most likely it was---“Carter swallowed, looking up at the ceiling for inspiration. “Tickled---with electricity.”

“Oh shut up Jack,’ Allison said, rising to her feet. Carter looked at her, trying and failing to hide his smile. She frowned and shook her head. “What? What’s so funny?”

“Nothing,” Carter said. “You uh---you just called me Jack. You always call me Jack when you’re mad---”

“Stop it okay,” she snapped. “Stop talking to me about things I don’t remember. It’s bad enough the whole town’s losing their mind but I don’t need you---“

“No!” Allison froze at the sound of Kevin’s terrified voice. Carter rose to his feet as she moved towards the stairs. Allison stopped when he tried to follow.

“Carter, where are you going?”

“To check on Kevin.”

“I can take care of my own son,” she snapped. Carter frowned in confusion.

“Look, he’s obviously having a nightmare. Kevin knows me he---“

“God, would you cut it out,” Allison yelled. “Stop butting into my life like you belong here. I don’t know what happened before, or what relationship you think you have with my son but there is no way I’m letting you up those stairs. I cant’ deal with this Carter---not tonight.” Allison took a deep breath and gave him a stern glare. “I think you should leave now---I’ll call you in the morning about Dr. Porter’s research.” Carter didn’t speak as she turned around and disappeared upstairs. Her words cut him deep and he almost spun around and slammed the door on the way out. But instead he sat down and waited.

And waited.

Pushed the print outs around on the coffee table.

Picked them up and frowned at the word apraxia.

Put them down again.

And waited.

Allison walked down the stairs and took a deep breath when he rose from the chair. “Carter look---I’m sorr—“

“You don’t believe me,” Carter interrupted. Allison took the last few steps until she stood facing him in the living room, her arms crossed over her chest like a shield. “I mean,” Carter pointed at her. “On some level in that big brain of yours you know something’s wrong----but you don’t really believe you loved me do you?”

Allison blinked and looked away. “That’s not it,” she said, her voice so low he could barely hear. Carter moved towards her frowning.

“Well then what is it?”

Allison met his eyes and he was struck by how vulnerable she looked in that moment. “All this time we’ve known each other and you never once---“She paused and took a deep breath. “Well, call me old fashioned but you never even ask me out on a date,” she said with a laugh. “After a while I just figured you weren’t interested so I gave up----hoping.” Allison gestured towards his chest. “And then this morning you barge into my office and kiss me like---“she met his gaze, her lips parted and he knew she was remembering their kiss. Carter’s hands were stuffed in his pockets, balled into fists so he wouldn’t grab her and pull her into his arms. “You kissed me like I always wanted you to,” she said. “It’s not that I don’t believe I loved you Carter.” She smiled. “I just can’t believe you fell in love with me---that you wanted to marry me.”

Carter stared at Allison, his gaze so intense she looked away. “You were wearing a red dress with these little ties on the shoulder on our first date,” Carter said. Allison looked at him and he moved closer. “Your hair was longer back then---and you wore it curly and kind of---wild.” He paused and smiled. “You looked so beautiful I could barely talk for the first fifteen minutes at dinner.” Allison laughed and he reached out and took her hand in his. “Our second date was the night after that one,” he said. “And our third was the night after that. For two weeks we didn’t go a single night without being together Allie.”

Carter shook his head and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. Allison watched and he lifted her hand to his lips. He kissed the back of her hand with reverence and looked up at her. “Your favorite color is lilac because your mother made you a purple dress when you were five that was your favorite for years. Your least favorite subject in college was biology, but you took it because you had a crush on a power forward that was taking the same professor.” Carter smiled. “He flunked out and you aced it then turned pre-med.”

Allison’s eyes grew wider with every statement he made. Carter reached up and touched her face. “Your father died when he fell asleep at the wheel driving home from a bar----and you hated him for a long time for leaving you and your mother on your own. You’ve never been on a rollercoaster because you hate heights but want to climb Mount Everest someday.” Her breath quickened and he slipped his arms around her waist. “You’ve got thirteen freckles across your nose and your eyes turn this amazing shade of golden brown when you’re doing something you love.” Carter lowered his lips until they were a breath away from hers. “And when I kiss you,” Carter whispered. “You make the sweetest sounds I’ve ever heard.”

He kissed her gently, careful not to frighten her away, but making damn sure she knew how much he wanted her. And God, he wanted her. Just holding her again, breathing her scent---it had him hard and ready in an instant. She had to feel it---had to know what kind of affect she had on him. Allison whimpered and moaned, then parted her lips like she had so many times before. He accepted her invitation, and plunged his tongue inside, teasing her mouth with soft flicks before tasting her completely. She’d been eating something sweet (Skittles most likely---she ate them when she was nervous) and he reveled in the flavor, taking his time to explore her mouth with slow longs strokes.

He felt her hands rest at the small of his back, then move up his spine and back down again. Allison pressed her hips against his legs and he smiled at her obvious impatience for more. He caressed the nape of her neck and leaned back to look down at her. “This spot,” he said, finding the small indention underneath her ear. “Makes you shiver when I kiss it---like this,” he said, pressing his lips against it. Allison gasped and then shivered when he flicked it with his tongue. She pulled at the shirt of his uniform, and slid her hands underneath to touch his bare skin. Carter let his hands drop to cup her behind and he nuzzled her neck as he spoke.

“I love everything about you Allison,” he said, pressing her against him. “Especially how it feels when I’m inside you.” She was still wearing her skirt from work and he pushed her back towards the couch as he gathered the fabric in his hands. It slid up inch by inch, revealing smooth brown thighs he’d spent hours between---reveling in the warmth of her body. He lowered her down to the oversized cushions, slid between her legs and ground against her. Allison moaned as she spread her legs wider, her skirt hiked up around her waist. Carter kissed her again as he unfastened the buttons of her blouse, slowly revealing the white lace of her bra.

He ran his hand over her chest, tracing the rough edge of the fabric before he dove underneath to find one hard, sensitive nipple. Carter’s eyes found hers as he stroked the tip and traced the raised outline of her areola. A soft sheen of sweat covered her skin and she writhed against him, gripping his hips with her thighs. He loved her like this---frantic with need---none of her usual careful control. Carter lowered his lips to flick his tongue over her nipple and she gasped, then cupped his head to hold him close to her breast. He tended to dusky brown tip with care, swirling his tongue around it before taking it deep into his mouth. Allison mumbled his name over and over and a few other choice words Carter had trouble understanding. Her movements against his body became more demanding, and he knew from past experience that she was close to taking over----pushing him on his back and having her way with him.

Which he seriously enjoyed on occasion.

But right now he was determined to keep control. Carter leaned up and unbuttoned his shirt as Allison shrugged her blouse from her shoulders. He reached down to grab her skirt and she lifted her hips to help him slide it down her legs. He ran his hands over the her underwear, a satiny white pair that he vaguely remembered removing in the back of his police Jeep once or twice, and paused to stroke her mound through the fabric. Allison bit down on her lower lips, her eyes fixed on his hand which kneaded and massaged her with steady strokes of his fingers. Carter traced the edge of the panties near her inner thigh before diving beneath and sliding his hand along her sex. She was so wet it made gooseflesh rise on his arms. His hands shook as he pulled the underwear down her hips, revealing the dark shadow of her mound. Carter’s eyes flicked up to find hers for a moment before he lowered his head to her tempting folds, sliding his tongue along the swollen lips until he found sensitive bundle of nerves he sought. He took her clit into his mouth and Allison cried out---not as loud as she did when she came but loud nevertheless.

“Shhh,” he whispered, deliberately mumbling against her sex. The vibrations make her squirm and pant and Carter smiled before taking her clit into his mouth again. He teased and suckled the small nub---swirling his tongue in small circles around it before taking it into his mouth once more. His hand drifted to her slit, stroking the opening before exploring the warm wet canal that beckoned---begging for him to sink deep inside. Allison began to tremble and he added another finger, thrusting them deep and pressing against her g-spot as he lapped at her clit. She turned her face to the side, grabbed a large pillow and smothered her scream as she came. Her body arched off the bed and Carter never paused, his tongue still working her while the orgasm flowed through her body.

When she finally collapsed he lifted his head with a broad grin. Allison looked at him, her face sweaty and flushed---her cheeks read with embarrassment. “Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t tell you I---“

“I know Allie,” he said, in the middle of a trail of kisses he began to leave up her stomach. “That’s why we always went to file room.” He reached up and brushed her hair back from her face, lowering his lips to her neck. “It’s sound proof,” he mumbled against her skin. Her hands were at his waist, pulling at the thick brown belt looped through his pants. Carter’s breath came out in a long hiss as she pulled down his zipper and pushed his pants and underwear down over his hips. He lifted his gaze to meet hers as Allison rubbed her sex against the tip of his cock. “I love you Allison,” he whispered.

Allison’s eyes glazed with tears and she touched his cheek. “I know.” He thrust deep inside her, gripping her hips and lifting her pelvis at an angle. She moaned as he hit her g-spot, over and over with steady, hard thrusts. He made love to her the way she wanted----no hesitation, no fast and slow bursts---just steady deep, hard strokes of his cock coupled with the constant friction of his body against her clit. She was already pulsing on his shaft---so close that he covered her mouth with his to swallow the scream that could come at any minute.

Allison gasped, bucked up against him and clawed at his shoulders as she was gripped in the first wave of her release. She screamed, a low guttural sound from deep in her chest that was so damn sexy he lost what little control he had left. He pumped inside her in erratic, frantic thrusts of his hips and then came suddenly, his muscles clenched with pleasure. Carter collapsed on top of her, careful not to crush her beneath his weight, and waited for his heart to stop racing like crazy in his chest. Their breathing began to slow and Carter let himself revel in familiar feeling of her skin against his for the first time in what felt like a lifetime.

Then


“So what’s this big surprise you’ve got planned for tomorrow night?” Allison smiled at Carter through the video phone and he wiggled his eyebrows in his best Groucho Marx imitation.

“Ah you can’t stand it can you? Not knowing what I’ve got planned—“

She rolled her eyes. “You know how I am Jack---I can’t even keep wrapped presents under my Christmas tree for more than two days without tearing them open.”

Carter frowned. “Aren’t the gifts under your tree for other people?”

Allison lifted her hand and nodded. “I rest my case.”

“Don’t worry, it’ll be worth the wait, I promise,” Carter said. “Just make sure you show up at Café Diem around seven. Vincent’s already banned me from the place until then so I really need to get back on his good side.”

Allison smiled. “Oh don’t you worry---I’ll be here working into the wee hours of the night, so there’s not a damn thing that’ll stop me from making it to that restaurant on time.”

“Loud and clear beautiful,” Carter said. “I love you Allie.”

“I love you too Jack.” Allison turned off the phone and sat silent, smiling down at her desk. She glanced at her left hand, rubbed the bare skin on her ring finger, then shook her head and laughed. “Stop daydreaming Allison,” she said with a sigh. Allison glanced at the picture of her and Carter on her desk and smiled. “But maybe one day.”

Now

Carter opened his eyes slowly and was greeted with the back of Allison’s head. Her shoulders rose and fell with each breath, indicating she was still sound asleep. They’d moved to her bedroom sometime during the night---where he’d made love to her twice more before they both collapsed in an exhausted heap. His arm was wrapped around her waist and he moved to pulled her closer, but flinched as a dull ache at the base of his head blossomed across his skull.

Carter remembered the Advil Allison usually kept in her kitchen drawer, slid out of the bed, and grabbed his pants from the floor. He padded barefoot down the hall, his mind racing with all he had to do that day---including calling the florist like Allison asked him to and finalizing any leave he needed to take with the Marshal’s office. Carter groaned as he was gripped in another wave of pain, this one so intense his stomach rolled with nausea. “What the hell,” he whispered as he stumbled towards the kitchen.

Graduation---had he forgot to get Zoe a present yesterday?

“Sheriff Carter.”

Carter turned and squinted at the small figure standing near the large bay window in Allison’s kitchen. The sunlight hurt his eyes and he shaded them as he struggled to focus. Carter shook his head in confusion. “Faith?”

She stepped forward, her small face upturned to meet his eyes. “Did you make her remember?”

“Make who---what the hell are you doing here,” Carter asked. “How the hell did you get in?”

“She has to remember,” Faith said. “She loves you Jack.”

“Jack?” Carter turned at Allison’s voice. She wore thick blue robe which she belted at her waist and frowned at him, her eyes still foggy from sleep. “Who are you talking to?”

“Allison,” Carter said. He swallowed hard, his body breaking out in a cold sweat as another wave of pain attacked his skull. “Faith,” he said. “She’s---here.”

“Who?” Allison stepped forward and Carter rubbed his eyes and looked up at her again.

“Her,” he said, pointing to Faith. “I was talking to her.”

Allison stared at where he pointed and shook her head. “Carter there’s no one there.”

Carter looked at her and then at Faith who met his gaze with a blank expression. “She has to remember Jack,” she said. Carter turned to Allison, and his gaze drifted down to her left hand. He frowned, his voice hoarse as he spoke.

“Where’s your ring?”

Carter cried out as another wave of pain gripped him. The room started to spin and the floor shifted beneath his feet. He could hear Allison saying his name---but she sounded far away. Her face flashed in his mind like rapid clips from a movie---they came fast---so fast it hurt.

Carter felt the coolness of her kitchen floor tiles against his cheek and realized he was on the floor. He tried to speak but nothing came out. He couldn’t focus----so many thoughts in his head---too much to say---it was all too much.

Allison?

Then

He fidgeted through the entrée and talked so fast during dessert she kept asking him to repeat himself. But when he knocked his fork onto the ground for the fifth time she’d had enough. “Okay Carter,” she said. “What is this—are you dumping me?”

Carter’s eyes grew wide and his mouth opened and closed. “N-No, why would you think that?”

“Oh I don’t know, because of that maybe?” Allison pointed to his leg which bounced up and down at an inhuman speed. Carter followed her gaze and laughed.

“Ha—I didn’t even notice that. Weird.”

“Carter!”

“Right, uh—“Carter rubbed his neck and narrowed his eyes into clear blue slits. “This is harder than I thought it was gonna be.”

Allison gasped. “You are dumping me.”

“No! I—“

She rose from the table and threw down her napkin. “You know I’ve been dumped before but this is the first time a guy made sure he didn’t break my heart on an empty stomach.” She pointed at their empty plates. “There were truffles for shit’s sake.”

“Allison,” Carter rose to his feet. “You don’t understand---“

“Oh I understand perfectly,” she said. “We’ve been dating for a year and you’re terrified I’ve got marriage on the brain.” She put her hands on her hips and lifted her chin. “For your information, I’m too damn busy at Global to give a damn whether you propose or not Jack Carter. Plus I was married once before and it was right up there with shin splints on my list of things I’d rather not go through again. So you can save your sorry ass excuses and rest assured that I have absolutely no interest in ever having a ring shackled to my finger by you or anyone else.” Allison pushed past him and rolled her eyes at his deep sigh.

“Not even this one?” Allison froze. She turned around and gasped at the sight of Carter holding a black velvet box containing the most beautiful sapphire she’d ever seen. She looked at him with wide shocked eyes as he bent down on one knee. “So uh---“He cleared his throat. “I know what you just said about the---ring and the shackling and all---but I’m really hoping you were just really pissed off.”

Allison walked towards him, touching her hand to her throat. “You had that this whole time?”

Carter paused and nodded. “Yeah—that’s why I was so nervous.” Allison reached out and slapped his arm. “Ow!” Carter rubbed his sleeve and frowned. “What’d you do that for.”

“You let me yell at you like a dumbass!”

“Oh, but it was so cute---your nose did this wrinkly thing---“

“Yes,” Allison interrupted.

Carter looked at her. “Uh---yes?”

“Oh I was answering your proposal.”

“I didn’t propose yet,” Carter said.

“You’re down on one knee, holding out an engagement ring. I think that’s the universal sign for will you marry me.”

“God you’re pushy.” Carter rose to his feet and pulled the ring out of the box. Allison moved forward, smiling and bounced on her feet like an overeager child. He reached out and took her left hand, pausing with the ring touching the tip of her finger. “Allison Blake,” he said. “Will you be my wife?”

She smiled. “Absolutely.”

Now


He stopped breathing on the way to Global.

The paramedics pumped air into his lungs until he coughed and sputtered. Allison gasped with relief that soon faded back to panic as she watched him thrash against the gurney. His eyes rolled back into his head and his arms failed and flopped at his sides. He’d been that way ever since he’d collapsed in the kitchen after talking to someone that wasn’t there. She covered her mouth with her hands and said a silent prayer.

They rolled him into Global and she followed close behind. Allison ignored the shocked stares and questions thrown her way and followed them into the medical wing. Dr. Peterson rushed towards them and Allison snapped at a wide eyed nurse hovering nearby. “Get Dr. Stark, now.” The nurse moved towards the door and Allison held out her hand. “And call his daughter---tell her come as soon as she can.”

“Yes Dr. Blake.”

Allison moved towards Carter only to be blocked by two more nurses and a young doctor who looked all of fifteen. “Get out of my way,” she snapped.

”Allison,” Dr. Peterson looked at her over wire rim glasses. “We need room to work if we’re going to help him.”

“What do you mean if,” she yelled. “God---look at him, he looks like he’s—“Allison swallowed the word that almost slipped from her lips. Carter shook with erratic starts and spurts, his skin ashen and slick with sweat. He looked like he was dying.

“Allison?” She turned around at Stark’s voice and was surprised to see Henry Deacon at his side. Henry rushed towards Carter and Allison watched him with tear filled eyes.

“I don’t know what happened Henry,” she said. “He was fine and then he fell---“

“It’s his brain,’ Henry said. He reached out, grabbed a nearby machine and pulled out two long cords. “It’s overloading on electrical impulses directed at his frontal lobe.”

Allison frowned. “Electric---“Her eyes grew wide and she turned to face Stark. “You did this didn’t you?” She took a menacing step forward and Stark shook his head.

“Now hold on Allie—“

“Shut up,” Allison yelled. ‘Whatever it is you did is killing him right now.” She shook her head in disgust. “God Nathan I knew you were upset because I turned down your proposal but this? Attacking Carter---wiping away a year of my memory---“

“Whoa,” Henry rose from Carter’s side to look at Allison who spun around to face him. “A year of your memory?”

“Yes,” Allison said. “I’ve lost an entire year---Carter told me---“

“That’s not possible,” Henry interrupted.

Allison frowned. “What are you talking about?”

Henry looked at Dr. Peterson. “Can you get him stable?” The doctor nodded and Henry walked towards Allison, his expression grim. “Nathan told me what’s been happening---the memory loss around town.”

“Right,” Allison said. “It started with me and then---“

“No it didn’t.” Henry glanced at Stark and then looked at Allison. “Look, I’m sorry I had to keep this from you but the DOD insisted—“

“Keep what from me,” Allison demanded.

“Dr. Porter didn’t disappear---he was---moved for security reasons.”

“Moved.”

“Yes,” Henry rubbed the back of his neck. “He threatened to go to you with what we were doing and Stark reported him a few weeks back.”

“So they just took him,” Allison said. “Without telling his family or anyone else that he was okay.”

“I honestly don’t know what happened,” Henry said. “Maybe there was a mix up with contacting the family but the important thing is he’s fine.”

“No,” Allison said. “The important thing is whatever the hell you two were working on behind my back that fucked with my head, plus Carter’s and half the town.”

“Here’s the imager you asked for.” Fargo moved through the door pushing a large computer topped with holographic imager. “I haven’t used this puppy since my date with Tammy Clemmons last summer. “

“Hook it up to Carter,” Henry demanded.

Allison watched Fargo in confusion. “Henry, you need to tell me what’s going on.”

“It’s the EM Field,” Stark announced stepping forwards. “Henry explained it to me earlier---apparently I was involved in some attempt to---tweak the system.”

“What he means is,” Henry said with a pointed look at Stark. “The DOD found out about some work I’d done on the memory neutralizer Jason Anderson stole from me all those years ago.”

“You mean that thing that he used on Kim?”

Henry tensed at the mention of her name. “Yes. I’d modified it so it could pinpoint specific neural pathways associated with specific instances and time periods in the frontal lobe. Dr. Porter found out about it and came up with the idea to reverse the affect---enhancing memory instead of erasing it.”

“It was brilliant,” Stark said, walking to Henry’s right. “And it worked.”

“I was against it,” Henry said. “That thing caused so much damage before---“He swallowed hard. “But Porter went over my head---to Nathan, who told the DOD.”

“But I still don’t understand why all of this was done without my knowledge.”

“They wanted us to incorporate the technology into the EM Field protecting Global Dynamics would be hackers. It would send out an electronic pulse that would target the neural pathways of every citizen of Eureka that pertained to their vocation.” Henry shook his head. “They wanted to increase efficiency by improving the memory capacity of everyone in a hundred mile radius.”

“Oh my God,” Allison gasped. She looked at Stark. “Do you have any idea how unethical that is?”

“I was just doing my job Allie—“

“It malfunctioned didn’t it?” Henry nodded and Stark looked away. “That’s why all those people can’t remember anything.” Allison gestured towards them with disgust. “Because you assholes were fucking with their heads in the name of productivity.”

“I didn’t know they’d incorporated the thing into the system until I came back Allison,” Henry said. “I put two and two together after I found this in Dr. Porter’s office.”

He held up a small black device the size and shape of a computer mouse. “So that thing,” Allison said. “That’s why I can’t remember?”

“That’s what I’m trying to tell you,” Henry said. “The EM Field is sending out pulses that specifically target those memories related to your work---“

“Which is why you kept screwing up these past few weeks,” Stark pointed out.

Henry nodded. “Yes but the types of pulses emitted by the field aren’t strong enough to erase an entire year of long term memory.”

Allison shook her head. “No, but see I don’t remember anything about being with Carter.”

Henry paused. “I’m not following.”

“Jack and I---our relationship. We’ve been together a year and he was about to propose.”

Henry paused. “Allison, I can’t claim to know everything about Jack Carter but I can say with a good amount of certainty when I left for that retreat, the two of you were not romantically involved.”

Then

“Jack and Allison have written their own vows, today.” The minister smiled at Carter who cleared his throat and took Allison’s hand in his own. He stared at the smooth brown skin of her wrist and tried to pull something coherent out of the jumble of thoughts currently racing through his head. Allison gave his hand a soft squeeze and looked up to find her staring at him with warm eyes.

“Jack Carter---you are---one of the craziest people I know.” The wedding guests laughed out loud and Carter rolled his eyes as Allison’s smile broadened. “And you’re also the bravest---and kindest---and most loving man I’ve ever met.” Her smile faded slightly and she took a deep breath. “Sometimes I wonder, through all the craziness and drama, what my life would be like if I hadn’t stopped to take a moment--- and realize what an amazing man was standing right in front of me. A moment Jack---that’s all it took to bring us here. And it scares the hell out of me to think it might have happened any other way. But then I look at you and I just know---there’s no way it could have.” Allison smiled. “I love you so much---and today I vow to be your wife---to love and cherish you the rest of my life and to always remember this moment---this day---and the promises we made together.”

Carter stood silent, visibly stunned. Henry nudged his arm from his post as best man and Carter blinked hard and flushed with embarrassment. “Sorry I---okay, it’s my turn?” He glanced at the minister with the question and received a quick nod in return. “Allison I---“He paused, the words caught in his throat. “You---“Carter looked over at Zoe who cringed with embarrassment. “When we---“

“Good Lord, this painful,” Jo grumbled, crossing her legs and averting her eyes from the spectacle at the altar.

Allison threaded her fingers through Carter’s and he looked down at their hands and smiled. “You always do that when I’m nervous,” he said, looking up at her. “You know just what to do and what to say---you always have. I just---“Carter shifted on his feet and shook his head. “I could never figure out how you do it. Like just now---those things you said---I could never in a million years come up with something like that. Because there are no words---” Carter took a deep breath and lifted her hand to his lips. He kissed her fingers and held it close to his heart. “There are no words to describe what happens to me every time I look at you. How it feels to wake up and see your face---“Carter paused. “It just wouldn’t be enough. Not by a long shot.” Carter looked down at her hands. “And so instead I’ll just make this promise. To show you---everyday for the rest of my life---exactly what you mean to me Allison Blake.”

Jo nodded and looked at Zoe who leaned over to whisper in her ear. “Nice save.”

Now

Allison looked at Henry, her eyes wide with confusion. “You’re wrong,” she said. “No he told me everything---he knew everything about me he---“

“I tried to tell you,” Stark said. Allison looked at him and he shrugged. “I told you he made the whole thing up.”

“No,” Allison snapped. “He knew things I’ve never told anyone---not even you,” she said, pointing at Stark. “How would he have known that if we weren’t together?”

“What’s going on?” Allison looked up as Zoe walked into the room, staring at the group with wide eyes. “Is my Dad okay?”

Allison looked at Carter who still shook and mumbled on the bed, but seemed to have calmed in the last few minutes. “We don’t know sweetheart,” she said. Zoe moved towards him and Stark grabbed her arm.

“Hey,” he said. “Why did you lie earlier today?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, pulling away from him.

”When you said Allison and Carter were involved.”

“I never said that,” Zoe said, moving towards Carter. She knelt next to his bed and covered her mouth with trembling fingers. “Oh my God---“

“But you did say it,” Stark said. “You said the whole town knew something was going on between Allison and Carter.”

“I never said they were dating,” Zoe snapped. “But everyone knows my Dad is in love with Dr. Blake.” Zoe fixed her eyes on Allison. “He always has been.”

“Is she here?” Jo walked into the room, with her radio in hand. “Zoe, where’s the kid?”

Zoe looked at Jo in confusion. “What kid?”

“You’re talking about Faith aren’t you?” Allison turned to Zoe. “Carter told me he left her with you.”

“Yeah,” Jo said, nodding. “I was supposed to pick up her---he left a message on my phone and then I heard about his collapse—“

“Wait,” Zoe rose to her feet and held out her arms. “Will someone please tell me what’s going on here? Why is my Dad like this---why do you think I lied about him and Dr. Blake and who the hell is Faith?”

“The little girl,” Jo said, frowning. “She showed up on his doorstep this morning and wouldn’t leave. He said he left her home with you.”

Zoe shook her head. “Okay, I don’t know what you’ve been smoking but I would have known if there was a little girl in my house. It was just me---all night---alone.”

Carter

Carter’s eyes flew open and he stared at the beige sheetrock that covered his living room ceiling. He sat up and looked around, frowning at the familiar furnishings of his home.

How did he end up here?

He slid off the couch and stood, rubbing the back of his neck. The headache was gone but he still felt off somehow. He stared at the room and frowned, taking in the immaculate kitchen, the shining coffee table and sink completely empty of dirty dishes. “This isn’t my house,” he mumbled.

“Yes it is.” Carter turned around at Faith’s voice. She skipped towards him twirling a jump rope, her eyes bright. “This is really fun,” she yelled. “Why don’t grownups use these anymore?”

Carter stared at the rope, taking in the familiar blue handles and frayed red and white fibers. “That’s my jump rope.”

“No it’s not.”

“Yes---it is,” he said, reaching out to take from her hands. Faith paused as he stared at end of handle, his eyes fixed on the initials JC scrawled in black marker. “See—“he said, I wrote this myself when I was---“Carter paused.

“Ten,” Faith finished. “Okay so you’re right---my bad.”

Carter looked at the jump rope and then back at her. “This isn’t real is it?”

“What do you mean?”

“This place,” Carter said. “It’s all too---neat. And I haven’t seen this rope since I was twelve. This is—“He swallowed. “This is in my head isn’t it?”

“If it is then why are you asking me,” Faith said. “It’s your head.”

“So—if this is some kind of dream,” Carter squinted at Faith and shook his head. “Why am I dreaming about you?”

“Because I’m adorably precocious.”

“Faith.”

“Because you want to,” Faith said. “You need me to help you remember.”

Carter paused. “I’m not the one who forgot everything.”

Faith paused. “Are you sure about that?”

****

Allison looked away, remembering Carter’s confused expression when he’d told her Faith was standing beside him. “So let me get this straight---you’re telling me that Carter has been going on all day about this girl that showed up on his doorstep and no one in this room has ever seen her?” Zoe and Jo looked at on another and shook their heads. Stark shrugged and Fargo turned to adjust the imager linked to Carter’s neck.

“Earlier today,” Allison said, looking at Henry. “He told me she was in the room when there was no one there.”

Henry took a deep breath. “Allison, I think Jack’s having a bad reaction to the electronic pulses being emitted from the EM field. Judging from the effect on you, Stark and the rest of the town, it’s probably been happening for the past two days at least.”

“But he was fine,” Allison said. “He—“

“Made up some fantasy romance between the two of you,” Stark offered. “Oh yeah---he’s fine alright.”

“Stop it Nathan,” Allison snapped.

Henry looked at Stark and, his expression tense. “No, he’s right Allison,” Henry said. “This thing could have manifested in all kinds of ways---motor dysfunction---hallucinations----“

“Hallucinations,” Allison gasped. She clutched her stomach as the truth rolled over her in waves. “Oh God, there is no little girl was there,” she whispered. She looked up at Henry and shook her head. “Our past together----Henry, he was hallucinating the entire time wasn’t he?”

Henry looked at Carter and then at Fargo, who nodded and gestured towards the imaging machine. “I can’t be sure but it’s likely yes.”

“But why,” Allison said, as Henry moved towards the machine. “Why would it affect him like this when no one else in town had anything other than memory loss?”

Henry switched on the power and paused, staring down at Carter’s face. He mumbled under his breath and Henry leaned down to listen to his soft words. “Because it’s not the first time the memory neutralizer has been used on him,” Henry said.

Allison frowned and moved closer. “What do you mean it’s not the first time?”

Henry rose, his expression resigned. “I used it on Jack before, Allison,” Henry said, looking away. “I wiped his long term memory----over four years worth. And he has no idea.”

Then

“You look first.”

“No you look.”

“This was your idea.”

“It’s your body Allie---“

“Oh Carter, please, just look and tell me---I can’t.”

“Okay, but you owe me---this thing is covered in your pee—“

“Just pick it up Jack!”

“Blue line---what’s that mean?”

“It means---you done good.”

Now

“Why, Henry?” Allison stared at him in disbelief. “Why in God’s name would do that?”

“Because I did something---“Henry shook his head. “I did something very wrong----that would have hurt a lot of people if it hadn’t been for Jack.”

“Something’s wrong!’ Zoe stood up and Carter’s body began to jerk on the table, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. He was immediately surrounded by Doctors and nurses who cut off Allison’s view of his body. She ran towards Zoe and pulled her into her arms. Allison looked at Henry, with disgust.

“What the hell did you do?”

“He’s stable,” Dr. Peterson announced with a glance at Henry. “But I’m not sure for how much longer.”

“I know,” Henry said, walking over to the imager. “This thing is hooked up to his neuro-pathways---if I can see what’s going on in his head---figure out what’s happening to the paths I targeted before---then we should be able to figure out exactly what’s wrong.”

“What did you do Henry,” Stark asked, walking towards him, arms folded. Henry looked at him and then looked back down at the machine. “You obviously had something to hide---what was so important you had to fry Carter’s brain—“

“Nathan, please,” Allison said, stroking Zoe’s hair. “Not now—“

“No,” Henry said. “If I’m right you’ll all know the truth soon anyway.” Henry paused and took a deep breath. “After Kim died I used Walter Perkins’s temporal machine to create a rift in time---“

“Oh my God,” Allison gasped. “Henry that thing was—“

“Dangerous, I know. I knew then and I didn’t care----I saved Kim Allison---I went back in time and I saved her from dying,” Henry said.

Stark frowned. “But---Henry she’s still dead.”

“I know,” Henry snapped. He looked down at Carter. “Four years went by----four years I had her back. And you—“he looked at Allison, “You and Carter----you were married and expecting your first child.”

Allison looked at Stark and stepped out of Zoe’s embrace. “I don’t understand----I thought you said---“

“It was different timeline Allison,” Henry said. He grunted with frustration. “A different life---you and Carter had a life together---just like Kim and I until---“Henry looked down Carter. “Things started to fall apart---there was an anomaly, just like when Walter used the machine before. Time started to unravel---we all would have died if Jack hadn’t---“Henry looked at Allison.

“What,” Allison said. “What did he do?”

“He went back Allison,” Henry said. “He went back and stopped me from saving Kim---everything was back the way it was except---we both remembered.” Henry swallowed hard. “He remembered everything about that other life---and it was killing him because you didn’t.”

“So you made him forget,” Allison said.

“Yes.” Henry nodded and gestured towards the neutralizer. “With that thing----or one just like it. I had no idea the DOD would do this with the EM Field----“

“He’s saying something,” Zoe cried. Allison looked at Carter and rushed to his side. She leaned down, placing her ear near his lips as he whispered, his voice strained and weak.

“Faith.”

Carter


“Okay,” Carter nodded and waved his finger at Faith. “I’m on to you----you decided it’d be fun to screw with my head so you---“

“How can I screw with your head if I’m in your head?”

Carter’s mouth closed abruptly and he frowned. “Well---I don’t know but---“Carter waved his hands and shook his head. “Whatever---you said you’re here help me remember something, well what is it?”

“What’s my name?”

“Is this a trick question?”

“Your head---you tell me.”

“Well if you’re in my head, then why are you still being a smart ass?”

“Why do you keep asking me questions Jack?” Faith moved closer and he took a step back. “When you know the answer already.”

“God this is like that part in Amazing Stories where the guy dreams up the cartoon airplane wheel---“

“What’s my name Jack?”

Carter stared at her and frowned. “Why do you keep asking me that?”

“Why do you keep asking me things you already know?” She paused. “What’s my name?”

Carter stared at her, pain blossoming from his neck and spreading over his forehead. His eyes were blinded by light and he reached out to touch her, finding nothing but air.

“Faith.”

Then

Allison stared at the whirling lights of the temporal machine what would send Carter back to change what Henry had done four years ago. She felt a hard kick inside her stomach and swallowed the panicked sob that tightened her throat.

She felt like her entire life was being ripped away---her husband, her child. What if he changed the past and they never shared this future? What if she said no instead of yes when he asked out that day---what if he never did? Allison ran her hand over her swollen stomach as her eyes glazed with tears.

Carter approached her and she tried to listen as he explained what he was about to do. It was like something out of a bad science fiction movie except this was her life. Everything that mattered was about to disappear right in front of her.

“Aren’t you just a little worried,” she asked looking up at him. “About losing me, us---our life together?”

He smiled---that soft one that still made her knees weak, and cupped her face in his hands. “Listen to me. There is no time, no space, no way that we don’t end up together. You just gotta have some faith.”

Now

“Okay,” Henry said. “The imager is ready—“He gestured towards the machine and looked at Allison. “Now—this thing reads brain waves and converts them into light particles which creates images—‘

“We can see what he’s thinking,” Stark said. “Yeah---just turn the thing on Henry.”

Henry pressed a large button and a beam of light flowed into the air and spread into a holographic screen. Allison moved forward as her own face appeared in front of her eyes. “Is there sound,” she asked.

“Yes,” Fargo said. “The light waves are connected to his auditory nerve---“

“Fargo,” Henry, said, placing a hand on his arm. Fargo grew silent and pressed another button. Allison watched the images in front of her with wide eyes.

Her profile as she looked up into the night sky. “Do you see it?”

Carter’s voice. “I see---pollution.”

She rolled her eyes. “Stop it. There’s no pollution in Eureka.”

The image shifted without warning and her face appeared again. The room was dark with flickering light and Allison realized it was likely in a movie theater. “Weren’t you in the middle of counting our dates?”

Carter’s voice. “Oh right. So like I was saying, this is our fourth date right?”

Her own voice, laughing and flirtatious. “Right.”

Carter spoke again. “So I was thinking. Fourth dates a big deal. I mean I ate spaghetti in front of you and you didn’t even flinch when that meatball landed in my lap. That means something Allison.”

“What is this,” Jo whispered, walking forward to stand beside Zoe.

“It’s what he’s seeing,” Henry said, looking down at Carter. “Right now.”

Allison stared at the screen, her eyes wide and her mouth opened in amazement. The image changed again and she was standing on her front porch staring at Carter while he looked up at her from a short distance. “I promised I’d be here,” Carter said.

Allison took a deep breath, tears clogging her throat at the sight of her own face, soft and filled with affection. “And that’s why I love you.”

The images came faster. Moments of her sleeping and Carter’s hand brushing hair from her face----her own lips before a stolen kiss---a panicked embrace followed by a flash of her leaned back against a bed, her eyes glazed with what was obviously lust. The others in the room looked away but Allison stood entranced---her eyes shining bright with tears.

“I’m pretty sure he knows how much I love you.”

“I love you Allison. I always have—“

“Allison Blake---will you be my wife?”

“So these are more hallucinations right?” Stark looked at Henry who looked at Allison. She shook her head, and swallowed hard, tears flowing freely down her face.

“No,” she said. “They’re memories.” She covered her mouth with her hand to stifle her sob. “It’s everything he forgot.”

“There are no words to describe what happens to me every time I look at you. How it -feels to wake up and see your face--It just wouldn’t be enough.

“And so instead I’ll just make this promise. To show you---everyday for the rest of my life---exactly what you mean to me Allison Blake.”

“It’s going faster,” Allison said, blinking at the rapid pace of the images in front of her. She looked at Henry who frowned. “What does that mean?”

“His brain’s overloading,” Henry said. “It’s all coming too fast and not the way it’s supposed to---that’s why he didn’t remember all of it before---just the day he proposed.”

“Your neutralizer targeted specific pathways,” Nathan offered, walking towards the machine. “The EM field didn’t. His brain wasn’t meant to take that kind of heat.”

“What are you saying,” Allison said. “Is he---is this thing—“

“It’s killing him,” Henry said. “He won’t be able to take much more.”

“No,” Zoe yelled---running to Carter’s side. His mumbling grew even more rapid, his eyes fluttering in time to the images on the screen. “Do something---there’s got to be something---“

“We extract the memory neutralizer technology,” Fargo said. “I can---“

“That could take hours,” Henry said. “Hours we don’t have.”

“And any attempt to alter the makeup of the field could crash the entire thing,’ Stark said. “Global and everything it would be completely exposed---we’d be hacked and shut down within minutes.”

Allison stared at the rapid images silent. Her own face flashed in front of her, pale and drawn with worry. “Aren’t you just a little worried---about losing me, us---our life together?”

“Listen to me. There is no time, no space, no way that we don’t end up together. You just gotta have some faith.”

Allison turned to look at Carter, who spoke rapidly as he thrashed on the table. “Allison,” he said, her name bursting from his lips in a pain filled groan. I thought I lost you.

Allison took off running, swiping Jo’s shoulder as she burst out of the room. She heard someone yell her name---maybe Nathan but she didn’t slow. The sneakers she’d thrown on her feet before they’d rushed Carter to Global squeaked across the slick floors as she ran down the hallway, her arms pumping furiously, and made a sharp right turn into the stairwell. She took them two at a time, her hand grazing the rail as she reached the bottom floor, and opened the door to the basement of the building.

Allison paused a brief moment, disoriented by the large computers surrounding her. A technician looked up in surprise. “Ms. Blake---uh—“He wiped his hands on his jacket and smiled. “This is a surprise---“

“Key,” Allison said.

He frowned. “I’m sorry?”

“I need your key.”

The technician hesitated. “I’m not supposed to give that to anyone—“

Allison ran forward, grabbed his lapel and delivered a hard knee to his groin. The technician groaned and doubled over in pain, allowing her to unsnap his key ring from his jacket. She whirled around and scanned the room, her eyes falling on a pair of glass doors, fastened by a small lock. She moved towards it, sliding the stolen key inside and pushed through, her eyes on a black keyboard labeled with a bright red warning sticker. Allison didn’t read it---barely glanced at the bold letters before she began to type a series of codes she knew by heart ever since she’d taken over as head of at Global Dynamics. She pause over the enter button and took a deep breath and then struck the key with a decisive click.

“Warning---Electromagnetic Field Failure---Warning---Electromagnetic Field Failure.”

The room was filled with flashing red lights and Allison rose to her feet, staring at the computers blankly. She turned around, burst through the doors, and glanced at the wounded tech she’d left on the ground. He was crouched on his knees and looked at her in shock. “Why,” he croaked. “Why did you shut down the EM Field?”

Allison didn’t respond. She started to run again---past the flow of employees running to the room in panic. They’d try to bring it up again but would fail----the codes she’d entered were fatal---the entire field would have to be rebuilt. She had a vague thought of the enormity of what she’d done, but it faded under her desire to get back to the medical wing----back to that room----and back to him.

She’d almost made it when someone grabbed her arm. Allison looked up and saw Jo’s stern face, her grip iron clad and unyielding. “What the hell were you thinking Allison?”

“Let me go,” Allison said, pulling at Jo’s grip. “I have to see him---I have to make sure he’s okay---“

“Let her go Jo,” Stark said. Jo at him and shook her head.

“Stark, do you have any idea what she just did?”

“She saved his life,” Stark said. “Let her go.”

Jo hesitated, looked into Allison’s panicked eyes and loosened her grip. Allison broke way and ran inside the room, her eyes falling on Zoe who crouched over Carter’s bed.
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” Zoe whispered. Allison walked towards them slowly, her eyes on his fingers, resting on the white sheet of his gurney. They were still pale but had stopped twitching like before.

“Allison?” She closed her eyes briefly, her body practically collapsing with relief at the sound of his voice. Zoe moved to the right and Carter blinked up at her, his face a frightening shade of white but his eyes clear and alert. She reached out and touched his face as tears slid unchecked down her cheeks.

“You’re okay,” she said, smiling.

“Yeah,” he said. “Little tired but I’ll live---“he glanced at Zoe and then back to her. “Thanks to you.”

Allison lowered herself to her knees, leaned forward and pressed her ear against his chest, listening to the steady sound of his heartbeat. “You were right.”

Carter reached up to brush a stray hair back from her forehead. “About what?”

Allison lifted her arms and slid them cross his body, pressing her tear stained face into his shirt. “Everything.”

Epilogue

“Have you seen her yet?” Fargo clutched a large bouquet of tulips close to his chest as Jo rolled her eyes two steps in front of him.

“No Fargo----they just started to allow visitors in.”

“Oh there’s Zoe!” Fargo waved at Zoe who stood in the hallway, Henry at her side. They stared into a room with large grins across both of their faces.

“Is that Stark?” Jo frowned at the tall dark figured who approached Zoe and Henry.

“Hey,” Zoe said, waving them over. “You’re just in time---the nurse brought her down from the nursery a few minutes ago.”

“They named her already right,” Fargo said, angling for a better view of the room. Henry nodded and smiled.

“Oh yeah----Jack picked it out the minute he knew it was a girl. I don’t’ think they considered anything other than---“

“Faith,” Stark said, shaking his head. “Completely cheesy and obvious---just like Carter.” He squinted at the room. “Looks like she’s got his ears---poor kid.”

They stood huddled outside the room as Allison cradled her daughter close to her chest. Carter stood over her shoulder, a video camera trained on them both and a broad smile across his lips. He looked up and saw the group hovering at the door. “Well don’t just stand there---come in and meet the newest Carter.” They filed into the room, all smiles and Carter caught Stark’s eye. “Except you Stark,” he said. “You can wait in the hall.”

“Stop it Jack,’ Allison laughed. Stark strolled inside, winking at Allison and glaring at Carter.

“She’s beautiful Dad,” Zoe said, touching her sister’s finger.

Carter smiled and nodded. “Yeah she is.”

“What do you think she’ll be like when she grows up?”

Faith’s brown eyes, warm like Allison’s with her soft brown skin and his crooked smile and nose flashed before his eyes. “Oh,” he said, sitting down beside Allison and touching his daughter’s cheek. “I think I might have an idea.”

The End