Date: Thu, 22 Aug 1996 16:26:45 -0600 (MDT) From: "Katherine R. Freymuth" Subject: Theresa - Chapter 9 Message-ID: Chapter 9 Rewards "You ready?" Theresa gulped silently. "I'm not sure. Where's the pilot?" She looked about, standing beside a small one engine plane. "I'm flying," Al told her.. "Let's go." He took her bag and put it in the plane. "Where's your bag?" she asked. Al smiled and opened the passenger side door for her. "You'd better get in. I have to ask for clearance before we take off." He helped her into the plane, went around it and got in himself. He put on a headset and started the plane. "Control tower, this is Calavicci. Over," he spoke into the headset. "Calavicci, this is Control. Hear you loud and clear, Admiral. Welcome back, Al," a man's voice responded. "Thanks, Jim. Am I clear for take off?" "It'll be a couple of minutes. I'll tell you when you're clear." "Thanks. Calavicci out." He turned and smiled at Theresa. "You seem to know everyone," she told him. "Rank has its privileges," he told her with a smile. "Calavicci," Jim's voice came over the radio, "what is your destination?" "Flagstaff with a stop at Phoenix," Al answered. "Phoenix," Theresa repeated Al to herself with suspicion. "Roger that," Jim replied. "You're clear for takeoff on runway seven. Have a safe flight, Al." "Thanks again, Jim,"" Al answered as he started the plane forward and brought it to the proper runway. Within minutes, the plane was in the air and was safely gaining altitude. "We're stopping in Phoenix?" Theresa asked, having to shout to get her voice over the sound of the engine. Al nodded. "We're going to pick up Susan, aren't we?" Theresa said knowingly. "Yes. How'd you know?" "She goes to Arizona State. She's working on her Master's Degree in Psychology." "You keep up on her, don't you?" Theresa shook her head. "That's the last I knew of her when I left Flagstaff." "Well, then, I think you're in for a few surprises," Al told her. There was a brief silence between them. "You haven't answered my question," Theresa told him. "What's that?" Al asked her, not quite able to hear her over the engine. "Where's your bag?" "I'm not staying." "What?" Theresa exclaimed. "Al, I can't do this alone!" "You won't be. But I can't stay over night. They're going to need me at the Complex," he told her. He looked at her and saw the uncertainty in her face. "They love you. Nothing's going to go wrong." "Right," Theresa said softly to herself. She wanted nothing more right now than to return to Albuquerque. ******************************************************************* "Admiral Calavicci, it's so good to meet you at last," a woman about thirty years old told him with a smile, shaking his hand. "Pleased to meet you, Dr. Cunningham," Al responded. As Al spoke, Susan Cunningham looked over Al's shoulder. "Oh, my gawd," she said to herself as she went around Al to Theresa. Without a word, she hugged her younger sister firmly. "Gawd, it's good to see you!" she exclaimed, holding Theresa gently.. "You look terrific! Haven't you anything to say to your big s ister?" she asked, noticing Theresa was keeping quiet. Al watched silently behind Susan, waiting for Theresa's response. She didn't say a word but hugged Susan as tears came to her eyes. That one action said a lifetime's worth of "I'm sorry"s and "I love you"s. Al smiled gently and went over to Theresa. He gently touched her shoulder. "We'd better go. Doctor, let me take your bag for you and, if you ladies would get into the plane, we'll be on our way." "Doctor?" Theresa asked Susan. Susan nodded. "I just got my doctorate in psychology a month ago." The two sisters got into the plane while Al loaded Susan's bag. "Congratulations," Theresa told her. "Thanks." "Are you ready?" Al asked as he got into the pilot's seat. Both sisters were in the back seats. "Yes," Theresa told him. "Control tower..." "This is Control. You have permission to land on runway nine. Hangar 3 is clear." "Thank you, Control," Al responded as he brought the plane in for a landing. He brought the plane into Hangar 3 before stopping and helping his passengers disembark. He then got their bags and led them into the airport's main terminal where a brown-haire d man greeted them with a smile. "Hey, Susan," he greeted his sister, kissing her on the cheek. His attention was then focused on Theresa. "Theresa," he said, looking at her with a loving smile. Theresa walked up to him. "Kevin," she greeted with a hug. She gently pulled away and gestured towards Al. "This is my friend, Al Calavicci." "Good to meet you, Admiral." Kevin shook Al's hand. "Here. Let me take one of those for you." "Thank you," Al told him. He, Susan, and Theresa followed Kevin out to his car. Susan and Theresa for into the car while Al and Kevin put the bags into the trunk. "Jarold is five and Kate is nine already," Kevin told Theresa as he drove to his house. Both Al and Susan sat in the back. Every once in a while, Theresa would look back towards Al, gaining moral support from his smile. "And Janet is three months pregnant with our third," Kevin continued. "The kids are going to love seeing you. So, tell me what you've been up to." "It's a long story," Theresa told him, looking out the window. "Well, we've got all two days," Susan told her. "Thanks but I don't want to talk about it right now," Theresa answered softly. This trip wasn't going as she expected it to. She didn't want Kevin and Susan to be so concerned about her. It made her feel all the more guilty for leaving Flagstaff. "Al, this isn't going to work," she whispered when the two of them were finally alone in Kevin's front yard. "Give it a chance. It will work." "They aren't the same people they were four years ago." "Neither are we," he pointed out. "People are constantly changing, Theresa. The trick is to adapt yourself to those changes." "But..." "There's no turning back, Theresa. You turn back now and you'll probably regret it for the rest of your life. You have to abandon your past and start fresh. Now, come on. Let's go," he told her, leading her inside the house. "We have a guest bedroom over here," Kevin led Theresa down a hallway, entered the bedroom, and put her bag down. "Janet's still at work and Jarold and Kate are at school. They should be home in an hour. I thought you'd like to freshen up before they got here." "Thanks," Theresa told Kevin with a slight smile. Kevin left her alone and returned back to the living room where Al was patiently waiting. "Please, take a seat," Kevin offered. Al politely accepted. "I noticed you didn't bring a bag. Aren't you staying?" "No, I'm not staying. Like I said on the phone, I'll only be here for the evening and then I'll be flying back to Albuquerque." "Your call didn't say much, Admiral. And it was unusual to say the least. I mean, calling and asking if it would be all right to come today. Very unexpected." "Mr. Brookner, I brought your sister here because she needs her family," Al told him honestly, looking him in the eyes. "Now it's up to here if she wants to tell you anything about herself. I got her here. Now, it's up to you three to reacquaint yourselves." He looked at his watch. "I have a friend who's going to pick me up at the corner in about five minutes. If you don't mind, I'll be leaving now." "Sure," Kevin said, standing as Al did. "Please, tell Theresa I'll be back at nine o'clock." "I'll do that. Thank you, Admiral Calavicci," Kevin told him as they shook hands. Al returned the farewell and left the house. He walked to the corner where a white Chevy convertible stopped to pick him up. "Thanks, Michelle," he told the driver with a kiss. "Don't mention it," Michelle told him with a smile. "Where to?" "Where did you have in mind?" Al asked, taking her right hand. Michelle thought for a moment, nodded her head, and started driving. "How long do you have?" "Until nine," Al told here. "I think we can find something to do until then." "I'm sure we can." "Where's Al?" Theresa asked, coming into the living room. "Oh," Kevin replied. "He had to go. He said he'd be back at nine." "He left?" Theresa said with concern. "Yeah. What's wrong?" Kevin asked. "Nothing," Theresa told him, hiding her nervousness. Theresa was actually beginning to enjoy herself as she, Susan and Kevin reminisced together. Neither Susan not Kevin pressured her into telling them what she had been doing in the past four years, even though it was obvious that they were extremely curious. Finally, at dinner, her trust in her brother and sister returned. "I know you've been wondering what's happened to me in the past few years," Theresa told them. "We thought you'd tell us when you were ready," Susan answered, lowering her fork. Theresa sighed. "There's no other way to say this," she said mostly to herself. She looked at Susan, feeling that that would be the best way to tell them. "I was a prostitute." There was silence in the room. Kevin dropped his glass, spilling water on the table. "What?" he asked, hoping he was just hearing things. "I was a prostitute," Theresa repeated. "I had tried to get a job in Albuquerque but I was young and poor so I just wound up on the streets. It's not as if I wanted to be one." "Of course not," Susan answered. "How'd you meet Admiral Calavicci?" "How hard did you try to find a job?" Kevin asked before Theresa could answer Susan's question. "Didn't you keep trying all this time?" "Kevin!" Janet, Kevin's wife, exclaimed. "It's okay, Janet," Theresa told her. "I was actually expecting worse from all of you. I have been trying all this time but nobody wanted to hire me because of what I became." Kevin was quiet after her response. "I'm sorry," he finally said. "That's okay. You're just doing your job as a big brother." "So," Janet spoke up. "How _did_ you meet Admiral Calavicci? I haven't met him but I did see him on the viewphone." Theresa smiled. "I tried to pick him up as a client. He was looking for a friend of his and I helped him find him in exchange for a place to sleep. He took me under his wing." "Sounds like he's a very nice man," Janet told her. "He is." She looked sown at her plate. "I can't eat anymore. I'll just go up and wish Kate a good night." She stood up from the table, took her dishes into the kitchen, and went upstairs. "Gawd, that must have been hard for her to say!" Susan commented Kevin started to stand up. "I'm gonna talk to her. Maybe she needs..." "She needs to be alone for a moment," Susan told him. Kevin nodded and took his seat again. ******************************************************************************* "Hey, lady. How's it going?" Theresa said to Kate, who was sitting cross-legged on her bed. Kate didn't answer. "Hey, what's wrong? Aren't we friends anymore? We were getting along so well." "Is it true?" Kate asked. "Is what true, honey?" "Is it true that you were a hooker?" "Now, when did you...? I see. You were listening in on our dinner conversation." "I heard Dad yelling so I spied on you." "Yes, Kate, it's true. I was a hooker. But I'm not anymore. That's why I'm here. I want to get to know you and Jarold and your new little brother or sister." Kate shook her head. "That's not why you're here. You're here because your friend brought you here." Theresa sighed. "You're right. But now that I'm here, I want to get to know all of you. Honest." She paused for a moment. "In fact, how about tomorrow after school I take you shopping." "A bribe," Kate huffed. "A very big bribe," Theresa smiled. "I'm never going to neglect you or Jarold again." "I'll think about it." "Okay, you think about it and get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning. Good night, Kate," she told the girl and left the bedroom. As she came down the stairs, she heard Kevin talking and then disconnecting the viewphone. "That was Admiral Calavicci," he told her. "He's going to spend the night at a friends house. Seems there's a problem with his plane." "Thanks, Kevin," she answered. "I'm going to go to bed. I've had a long day." "Okay," Kevin told her as she went into the guest bedroom and sat down on the bed. She looked down at her clothes. She was wearing the white suit that Al had bought for her. It was strange to her how anyone would give her such attention. Everything was so utterly different and it hadn't even been a week. For the first time in four years, she had a family. She had real friends, not competitors. And most importantly, she had confidence in herself. *Al was right*, she thought. *Coming here was the best thing I could have done for myself.* She smiled and stood up. She left the bedroom and went back to the living room. "I've changed my mind," she told her family. "I think I'll stay up a while." _____________________________________________________________________________ Chapter 10 coming as soon as I can type it. Kat Freymuth