Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Two:
Moving Right Along

Bank of the Niagara River, Canadian side.

Lucky, carrying both his bags and Emily's in one hand, is pulling Emily along a dock with the other, while she looks over her shoulder back at the highway. She stumbles slightly, then looks back at Lucky, who stops to make sure she's ok.

Lucky: Feeling dizzy?

Em: Tripped on a loose board. I'm ok.

Lucky: Ok. Come on. (Lucky heads down to the end of the dock towards the boat housing over the end of the dock.) Cross your fingers, this one looks promising. (Emily nods. She's lost count of the number of docks and garages they've been staking out since dark. She looks around, then follows him into the housing. It's been a huge relief to be doing something else besides sitting in the car and feeling trapped. And Lucky was being even stranger than usual. Quiet. Not that she could really blame them. Being on the run from police was not his usual M.O. He was, predictably, adjusting, however. Emily blinks a couple of times, struggling to adjust to the complete lack of light in the housing. She can hear the water lapping against the dock, and feels a sudden splash come up from the edge of the boards she is standing on. She gasps and tightens her grip on Lucky's hand.) Just lean against the wall, It's ok. (Though he can't see her, Emily nods and steps back, finding the wall with her hand. She hears Lucky digging around and then hears a click and a beam of light appears against the opposite wall. Emily sighs, taking in the room. There is a parking area for two boats within the space with a stretch of dock running between them. There are, however, no boats parked. Lucky sighs heavily) Damn.

Em: It's still a little out of season. (Lucky nods. He's struggling not to let Emily know how frustrated he's getting. It's getting steadily later and he doesn't want to cut things too close with Nikolas. Emily slides down the wall, sitting on the dock, while Lucky methodically moves the light around the room looking for anything that might help. Emily leans back and rests her head against the wall and looks up into the rafters. It takes her a moment of register what she sees)

Em: Canoe. (Lucky looks over at her)

Lucky: Huh?

Em: (pointing at the boat up in the rafters) Canoe. (She stops, realizing how ridiculous that it. She laughs.) Hey. I know the jay stroke.

Lucky: The what?

Em: Jay stroke. It means I can steer.

Lucky: You can't take a canoe across the Niagara River, the current's too strong. You'd go over the falls.

Em: Joke, Lucky. (Lucky looks over at her) Ha, ha.

Lucky: (shaking his head) Sorry, I'm just getting… (He stops, the light hitting something he likes) Oh, don't tease me.

Em: (looking up) What?

Lucky: (smiling) Outboard motor. (He crosses to the other side of the house, examining the motor. It's not premium, but it looks workable. There's a tank of gas resting against the wall… A gift from God. He looks back up at the canoe.) I think I get this.

Em: What?

Lucky: There's a hook… (He stops and walks back over to the area under the canoe.) Yeah! Here it is.

Em: (lost) A hook.

Lucky: I don't know… A hook-type thing.

Em: Ok…

Lucky: I think… (He looks down at her) The outboard goes on the canoe. (Emily nods, not really caring at this point.)

Em: Uh huh.

Lucky: Emily. (She looks up again)

Em: What?

Lucky: Outboard goes on the canoe.

Em: I heard… Oh. (She rubs her forehead with her hand) So we have transportation. This is a good thing.

Lucky: Yeah, it's a good thing! (He stops. Emily is not acting like herself. Well, that's not really different, she's been strange since… Oh, God, who even knows anymore. Given what's been going down, he can't really be annoyed with her for it. And yet… He is annoyed. He takes a deep breath) Emily.

Em: Lucky? (Lucky over at her. She's hunched against the wall, her knees drawn up under her chin, looking at him with her eyes wide.)

Lucky: What?

Em: I… Can I ask you something?

Lucky: Yeah.

Em: Do you love me? (Lucky stares at her. Ok. Obviously this is more serious than he thought. He walks over to her, dropping to his knees in front of her)

Lucky: Emily. (Emily, beyond shocked at the complete neediness of what she just said, shakes her head)

Em: I'm sorry. You don't have to answer. I'm just…

Lucky: (quietly) It's been a long time since I've said it. (Emily closes her eyes and nods) I'm sorry.

Em: I'm being stupid, I know. I just… I need to hear it right now. I know you do, but for some reason, I'm just…

Lucky: I love you. (Emily exhales heavily)

Em: For a second I thought you'd say something like “I'm here, aren't I?”. (Lucky sits back. Obviously he's missed a step here someplace)

Lucky: When have I ever said anything like that to you?

Em: (laughing, clearly anxious) You haven't. That's what I mean. I'm just… (She suddenly groans and puts her head down on her knee) I'm just loosing my mind. It's like I'm being invaded or something, I keep thinking things and listening to myself and saying “Emily? What the hell are you DOING?” I'm not me… I just… I need… (She stops, aware she's approaching hysteria again) Like you said, I'm picking on you, I'm… I'm… I don't know. I don't know! I just don't know about anything anymore. (Lucky grabs both of Emily's hands quickly. She's beginning to scare him)

Lucky: Em. Look at me. (Emily takes a moment before looking up at Lucky. She looks agonized, a mixture of pain, sadness, fear and frustration. He takes a deep breath) I love you. I really love you. (Emily feels tears come to her eyes. She swears at herself and tries to turn away. Lucky, aware that she's hitting a breaking point… one that's probably just been waiting for an opportunity since Hannah died… pulls her away from the wall and into his arms. Lucky holds her against him and feels her head burrow into his shoulder. He begins to rock her, feeling a sudden ache, something he hasn't been letting himself acknowledge. He lowers his head to whisper in her ear) It's ok. Just let it out. (Emily nods, but finds that she simply can't cry. That momentary flash of tears was all she had in her. She lets out a whimper/whine into his shoulder. Lucky continues rocking her, rubbing her back.) Em, you gotta let go, ok? (She shakes her head.)

Em: (muffled) I can't. I… (She pulls back and looks at him, pained) I just want to be across this river. One thing at a time, right?

Lucky: Yeah.

Em: One thing… (She looks up at him. Impulsively she reaches out and touches his lips with her fingertip. Lucky stares at her a moment, then leans in, almost on autopilot, and kisses her. It's a long, deep kiss, and in moments, Emily feels herself getting pushed down onto the dock. Not that she cares. She lets herself fall with him. She slides his hand up into his hair just at the moment Lucky pulls back from her. He gives his head a firm shake.)

Lucky: Uh… This is not a good place. (Emily struggles up onto her elbows).

Em: Ummm… You care? (Lucky sits up and takes a deep breath. Can't do this. Can't do this here. Can't get into that at all right now. Emily, for some reason, is not playing along, which is making things difficult. He looks back at her. She's still on her back, on the dock, staring up at the ceiling of the housing, a perturbed look on her face. He leans back over, forcing himself to keep his eyes on hers.)

Lucky: Emily… There's not good way to say this.

Em: (looking at him with dread) What?

Lucky: Uh… I need you to help me get the canoe down.

The Spencer House

Laura sits on the porch swing, rocking herself back and forth, arms wrapped around herself. She's feeling incredibly alone, and helpless, while at the same time, not wanting any company OR help, or comfort from anyone. A part of her has been idly calculating time zones in her head to see just what chance she'd stand of waking her mother up if she called now. The answer keeps coming back as “FAR too early”. And she's not really sure it would make her feel better. No. The only thing that's going to make her feel better is seeing Lucky again. Anywhere, anyhow. She sighs, and moves forward on the swing, about to stand up, when she hears a noise by the driveway. She freezes. Foster, at her feet, leaps up and jumps off the porch, barking wildly. She hears a noise as Foster approaches whoever it is, and stands up.

Laura: Foster! (The dog stops barking at the reprimand, but goes on guard, growling. Laura frowns into the darkness) Who's there?

Nik: It's me, Laura.

Laura: (thinking she might be hallucinating) Nikolas? (Nikolas looks at Foster warily. This dog knows him, on good days even likes him, but he's a little… Unpredictable.)

Nik: Yeah… (Laura starts down the steps)

Laura: Foster! Foster, you KNOW Nikolas, come on. (Foster's demeanor suddenly shifts and the dog turns and trots back to Laura, flopping down at the bottom of the stairs. Nikolas approaches hesitantly)

Nik: I wasn't sure you'd still be up.

Laura: I couldn't sleep. Lulu's in bed already, though.

Nik: I'm not here to see Lulu.

Laura: I… I assume you're here to see me then?

Nik: Is that allowed?

Laura: Nikolas! Of course.

Nik: (Looking back at the driveway) Luke's not home.

Laura: No. No, he's not… He's staying at the club right now. (She studies Nikolas in the dark) Has he been to see you? (Nikolas doesn't answer) Nikolas? Did he say anything to you about…

Nik: Nothing happened, Laura. He's just worried about Lucky.

Laura: I know. I know.

Nik: How is Lulu taking this?

Laura: (smiling) Well… I think she'd benefit from a visit from her big brother.

Nik: Yeah… I… Actually, that's why I'm here.

Laura: (frowning) I thought you said…

Nik: I… I have to leave. (Laura stares at him, clearly stunned)

Laura: Leave?

Nik: I… I have some business out of town. I'm going… (He stops, sighing heavily) It's been a bad month, Laura. I need to be someplace that's… Not here.

Laura: Does this have anything to do with Lucky?

Nik: No.

Laura: I had to ask.

Nik: (a bit tense) There are some things, as unbelievable as it may seem, that have nothing to do with Luke or Lucky. (He looks at her) I need to go away. I just need to. (Laura nods, trying to read Nikolas' expression)

Laura: I know that you've been troubled.

Nik: Troubled. Yeah, that's a word for it.

Laura: (gently) Nikolas.

Nik: I don't want to talk about it.

Laura: All right. All right. But if you need to…

Nik: I won't.

Laura: (leaning back) I'm surprised your uncle is letting you go. (Nikolas glances up at her. She doesn't even seem aware of what word she used).

Nik: (a tinge of bitterness) Don't doubt he'll have me watched every minute. (He looks over to her) I'm going to Rome. I've decided that much. And I'm leaving tomorrow. After I see Lulu, I'll take the jet to Rome. It's all been approved.

Laura: How long will you be gone?

Nik: A month. Perhaps two. It's uncertain. (Laura exhales heavily, considering Lulu. Lulu is going to hate this. One more piece of her world slipping away)

Laura: You can have her all morning. Come as early as you want. (She looks over at him) Do you want me to explain what's happening before you come?

Nik: No. I'll tell her myself.

Laura: All right.

Nik: I know my timing it poor… But it can't be helped. If it could…

Laura: (quickly) I know. Oh, I do. I really do.

Nik: Ok. I just… I needed to make sure.

Laura: It's… She'll miss you.

Nik: She must miss Lucky.

Laura: (sadly) She… She's been spending time in his room, staring out his window… It makes my heart ache. (They fall into a long silence, Laura staring off into space).

Nik: Are you worried about him? (Laura shakes her head slowly)

Laura: (distantly) You can't worry about Lucky like you would about most children. (She stops, a long moment, lost in thought, then smiles) I lost him once in an airport. (Nikolas watches her, in silence. She glances over at him, and seeing the look on his face, which is open, perhaps even curious, she continues) Luke wasn't there, we were flying out of Madrid and meeting him in Amsterdam. And we were late. Or we would have been, but the flight was delayed. It was a pretty typical thing. I was rushing, he was beside me, and then… He just wasn't. He lost track of me just for a second and ended up following the wrong pair of legs. I don't know a parent this hasn't happened to. And… It was such a fast exit that time, I was harried, disorganized. It was all ready a mess. And then, he was gone, I just about had a complete breakdown on the spot when I realized it. He was only six… and we were in a country where we didn't speak the language… not fluently… and I was close to panicking completely. I had no idea where he was, or what to do to find him… I think for a moment I even forgot what name we were travelling under! But I remembered and I went to the desk… it was all I could do… and I asked to have him paged. Of course, I was upset, and my words were coming out all wrong, and they ended up sending out this man to talk to me, and tell that it was All right, when children got lost they got scared. They'd cry, they'd find a policeman or a security… And I knew Lucky wouldn't do that. He'd get scared, but he'd try to hide it. He wouldn't cry… How do you explain that? Yes. Most six-year-olds would, but not MY six- year-old. (She stops, remembering the complete helplessness she'd felt, then laughs suddenly, and looks at Nikolas) Do you know where he was? It came to me in a flash. Lucky was really proud of being able to find gates in airports. It was a game for him, to figure out where the gate was… And he'd asked me what gate we were departing from… He ALWAYS asked… and sure enough, I ran to the gate and he was there, waiting… FURIOUS at me for not knowing he'd be there…

Nik: Furious. I can imagine that.

Laura: Well… He was familiar enough with airports to know that they were calling the passengers and I still wasn't there. He was scared, that was just his way of showing it. HE held my hand all the way to Amsterdam. (Nikolas frowns, trying to imagine that. Lucky at six. He doesn't even know what Lucky LOOKED like at six. He looks back at Laura, who's head is bowed, her hair falling like a curtain down the side of her face, brushed away from the side closest him, so that the smile she's giving him seems very intimate… just for him) It's nice to be able to tell you that.

Nik: You said… You told me that you tried to mother both of us through him… I just wondered… What that would have been like.

Laura: It wasn't enough. Not for either of us.

Nik: No. (He takes a deep breath. Ok. This IS enough.) I should go… I walked here from the docks, and Uncle… Well. He'll be waiting for me.

Laura: I'm so glad you came, Nikolas. (Nikolas stands up and looks back at her)

Nik: (slowly) Yeah. So am I.

Bank of the Niagara River, American side.

Emily kneels behind a car that is parked along the roadside, messing with the license plate. She's having distressingly little luck, what with the lack of light and the fact that she's never, ever, in her whole life, had to remove a license plate from a car. This, however, is her job and she's glad to have one. The crossing was not good for it. For starters she was so violently cold that she'd shaken the whole way across. It had felt awful, but she hadn't been able to make it stop. But being back on American soil, oddly enough, is comforting. Being in the right state, even more so. She stops her fiddling and sighs, looking down at the gravel at the edge of the road again. They were nearly gone. They were nearly ok. She looked at her watch. After eleven. It was late, and they were going to have to drive all night. She runs her hands through her hair and is about to resume trying to remove the license plate when Lucky approaches.

Lucky: How's it going? (Emily laughs softly and turns to look at him)

Em: Ummm… I have no talent for this. Like, at all. (Lucky extends his hand)

Lucky: Give it up. (Emily hands him the screwdriver. Lucky hands her the item he's holding in his hand. She looks down at it. )

Em: What's this?

Lucky: (switching places with her) Hide-a-Key. I love rural communities.

Em: (smiling slightly) I assumed we were hot-wiring.

Lucky: Yeah, well… That's a last minute sort of thing, you know? (Emily nods)

Em: So what is it?

Lucky: Honda. Very innocuous.

Em: Innocuous. Cool. (She glances out at the river) So what do we do with this one when we're done?

Lucky: Leave that up to the God's will. Just park it someplace. If they're lucky, they'll get it back somehow. And start keeping better track of their keys.

Em: So we're abandoning this one too? (Lucky smirks as he continues to remove the plate).

Lucky: Emily. It was a boat. It doesn't have feelings. Besides. It's too easy a trail to follow. This is going to be a little “Hansel and Gretel-ish” anyway without leaving the boat out where someone can find it. That way it'll go over the falls in about an hour. Even if it doesn't, it'll hit the rapids pretty soon, and get smashed on the rocks. (Emily flinches slightly. It still feels barbaric to her) Point is… no one's going to be finding it.

Em: (heavily) Ok. I get it. (She sits back and leans against the bumper, looking up and the stars and taking in a deep breath of fresh air) You were right.

Lucky: About what?

Em: Action. It helps. I think I was freaking out so much because I felt totally stationary.

Lucky: Well. (He looks up at her) Don't push yourself.

Em: (laughing) I WANT to push myself. God, I feel human right now, for the first time in so long, I can't even remember. (Lucky shifts to face her)

Lucky: Bit of a rush, huh?

Em: (leaning in) Just a bit. (She kisses him. Lucky drops the screwdriver in his hand a moment, letting her pull him into an increasingly passionate kiss. After a moment he forces himself to disengage.)

Lucky: (catching his breath) Ok. I, uh… (He looks down for the screwdriver.) I gotta do this, ok? (Emily rolls her eyes. This is getting incredibly frustrating. She can't help but think there has to be some way they could just KISS for God's sake. Just for a few minutes? She tells herself to get a grip, and looks away).

Em: Ok. (She grasps the trunk of the car and pulls herself to her feet, looking around. She feels a sudden wave of excitement. Calm down, she tells herself. This is illegal. This is going to be REALLY upsetting for these people when they wake up. She should care about that. She leans against the car and drums her fingers lightly on the trunk.) It's a ten-hour drive, right?

Lucky: Yeah. Give or take.

Em: Wow. That's really bad.

Lucky: It's doable. Sort of.

Em: TEN hours?

Lucky: I'll handle it. As long as we get there.

Em: (simply) Ok. I can take the first shift. (Lucky drops the screwdriver again)

Lucky: What?

Em: Lucky…

Lucky: You NEVER drive.

Em: But I can! I have my license.

Lucky: You've been seeing double for a week.

Em: Yeah, and… (She sighs) Lucky, I gotta do SOMETHING. I mean, I've got this stupid cheesy fifties pop song going through my head and it's about to drive me crazy if I don't do something to exorcise it.

Lucky: (warily) What song?

Em: (singing, in a high pitched, purposely squeaky voice) “I will follow him… follow, follow him… Follow him wherever he may go…”… You gotta help me.

Lucky: (cracking up despite himself) I don't think anyone can help you.

Em: I have to DO something. And I can do this. Really. I've been storing energy for three days. I'm seeing straight… hell I can even walk. Maybe I can't do ten hours… I probably can't even do five. But I can do two. That's gotta make a difference. (Lucky sighs and looks at her. Eight hours sounds a hell of a lot better than ten. Emily continues her pitch) PLUS… what's the longest drive you've ever had to do at once? I mean where YOU were doing the driving.

Lucky: Uh… six? Six and a half.

Em: Ok. So… That would leave, like… Three and a half for me. (She ponders this) I think I can do that. Maybe not all at once, but we could take shifts. (She drops down onto her knees.) We're supposed to be in this together, right? And it's my family's fault that we're doing things this way. We COULD be on a nice comfortable train, sleeping now. (Lucky shakes his head) Look. You gave me the key, all right? Don't fight me on this.

Lucky: You scare me sometimes, Emily.

Em: Oh, I scare YOU.

Lucky: You're too… Calm.

Em: I've swung back up. (Lucky shakes his head)

Lucky: You're making me dizzy.

Em: You should talk. (Lucky pries the license plate, finally, off the bumper.)

Lucky: Ok. By the time they put this all together, we should be about a million miles away.

Em: You're so smart. So I'm taking first shift, right?

Lucky: (heavily) Ok, ok, ok. Just don't… Stay safe, ok? If you get tired, or… (Emily puts her hand up, palm facing him).

Em: I swear to you, honest to God… I will not do anything stupid. I'm just trying to do my part, ok?

Lucky: Fine. (He sighs. She smiles at him and Lucky finally returns the gesture)

Em: New York, here we come. (She takes his hand) I don't know about you, but I really can't wait to get some place new.

Lucky: (pulling her up) That can be arranged. Come on.