Turmoil

By:  M. J. Cogburn and C. E. Krawiec

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Previously:

Vaughn's temper was bubbling as he held the glare at his observer then stepped back and swung around to leave.  The sooner he got away from Gillis Woods, the more likely it was that the aggravating bastard wouldn't end up with the imprint of the leaper's fist on one of his jaws.  "Remember what I said, Woods," he snapped, flinging one last glare back over his shoulder at the man in the still open doorway then faced forward to continue down the hall...and came to a halt in his steps.  At the end of the hall stood Inmon Fitzpatrick who, by the way he was standing, had spent some time in a cell recently.  However, that wasn't what grabbed his attention; what did was the startled expression on his friend's face.

Inwardly, Vaughn cursed; he hadn't expected there to be anyone else around this area at this time of day.  He didn't know how much Inmon had heard, and frankly, he didn't much give a damn.

"What are you doing here, Inmon?"  When the security guard didn't respond quickly enough, Vaughn roared, "I asked you a question, mister. I better get an answer and right now!"  The only answer, if it could be called that, was when Inmon broke gazes with him, his glance shifting to look at something behind him.  Figuring that it was Gillis moving into the hall, Vaughn's already hot temper blew the top off the thermometer.  Spinning around, expecting to find the aggravating observer at his back, he roared, "Dammit, Woods, I told you...don't get in my way..."  Whatever else had been about to spew out of his mouth vanished into thin air as Vaughn Rickar froze in his steps, his eyes widening in disbelief at the sight of Johanna Royden standing barely ten feet away from him, in front of the door into Central Control.  The stunned expression on her face and the disbelief in her eyes stripped him of the ability to think let alone speak.

 Silence, massive and overpowering, flooded the hallway that led to Central Control.  Inside that protected inner sanctum, Lothos watched, waiting to see which of the four people in the hall would break that silence.

PART ONE

Inmon Fitzpatrick regarded the leaper before him who was now dividing looks between himself and Johanna Royden for several long moments before his thoughts shifted back to his duty.  The short explicit instructions he had been given to escort a leaper back to their quarters, while he was in the elevator, was enough to spur him back into action toward Johanna.  The last thing he needed as he cringed slightly at the memory of his recent correction was to land in a cell again.  Licking his lips, he started down the hall.

As he met up with the senior leaper, he wasn't surprised when Vaughn caught his arm tightly stopping his slow but steady progress down the hall toward the young lady.

"Dammit, Inmon," Vaughn snarled, "I asked you a question."

Inwardly, Inmon flinched from the pressure upon his arm and before he realized what he was doing, he quickly twisted, grabbed Vaughn and pinned him against the wall.  Meeting his friend's heated gaze, Inmon's eyes narrowed.  "When it comes to my job, I owe you no explanations."  Keeping his gaze on the leaper for an additional few seconds, he let go and stepped back before slowly and painfully moving toward Johanna.

Blinking at her, he offered his left arm to her noticing how she was leaning against the wall supporting herself, paused, and then offered his right arm.  If he had to pass by the irate leaper again, he didn't want Johanna to be within reach.  He was to protect her, period.  Seeing the look that she gave him, he said softly, "Please, Ms. Royden, allow me to help you back to your quarters."

Johanna divided a gaze between the security officer before her and her partner who had taken a few steps after him.  Finally, nodding her head, she interlaced her arm in his.  "Thank you, Mr. Fitzpatrick."

As they started slowly down the hall, neither was expecting the explosion that was about to happen from the irritated leaper.

Within the hundred years that seemed to encompass the moment when he'd turned, shouting at, he thought, Gillis Woods, Vaughn felt his control of the situation beginning to slip when he found himself glaring at his partner.  The stunned look on her face had rendered him immobile.  Only seeing Inmon Fitzpatrick start past him to go to Johanna provided the needed impetus to get him moving, but even that backfired on him.

He wanted so badly to follow the security guard...his friend...and put him in his place, but there was something a bit different to the quality of Inmon's voice, the look in his eyes.  As Mister Fitzpatrick, now arm in arm with Johanna Royden, moved past him, the leaper resisted the urge to avoid the looks directed at him.  Inmon's look, he dismissed out of hand; the still stunned expression in his partner's dark eyes was a different matter. What stung more than he would admit was her reaction when he tried to speak to her.

"Johanna," Vaughn began, moving away from the wall to step in front of the couple, stopping them in their steps.  It both annoyed and rankled Vaughn when the security guard made a point of shifting his stance, subtly placing himself between Vaughn and Johanna.

"I just want to speak to her," he started to snap, just barely keeping his tone civil at the last second.  Vaughn's expression darkened at the sight of Inmon lifting his chin slightly and staring at him.  "Don't go getting your back up, Inmon," he bit the words off. "Like I said, I just want to talk to Johanna."

"And supposin' the lady doesn't want to talk to you?" Inmon responded, the edge in his tone unmistakable.

"That's for her to decide, now isn't?"

"Then listen to me, the both of you," Johanna spoke up, her tone one of coming straight to the point.  "I will decide, and I have decided."  She paused, splitting a telling look between the two men. "Right now, I don't want to hear anything from you...Mr. Rickar.  And you, Mr. Fitzpatrick, you were sent to escort me to my quarters.  Do so and right now.  I need some rest...and some quiet."

Vaughn's jaw tightened at his partner's blunt comment.  "Johanna...."

"No," Johanna bit the word of sharply.  "Not now.'

"Then when?" Vaughn demanded.

"I'll let you know."  The rather terse response was as good as slap in the face for the leaper, but he didn't have any options that he dared employ to entice or force his partner to stand still long enough to allow him to explain.

"If you'll excuse us."  The cool professional tone in Inmon Fitzpatrick's voice, matched with the steady gaze he aimed at the leaper was the goad that Vaughn Rickar had no alternative but to heed.  Without another word, he stepped back out of the way, allowing the couple to continue down the hall.  Not until the pair had turned the corner did he acknowledge the quiet steps that approached him.  He issued the warning without preamble.

"If you don't want to lose half of your teeth in the next ten seconds, Mr. Woods," Vaughn warned darkly, not once turning his head to look at the man now standing near him. "Then I suggest you keep your mouth shut.  Anything...any word that comes out of your mouth about this right now, and you'll be spitting teeth for an hour."

Gillis looked at the leaper before him and grinned knowingly as he watched the young man huff, shake his head then start down the hallway the same way that the others had gone.  As soon as the leaper rounded the corner and was out of sight, the older man headed toward Central Control to talk with Lothos about the events in the hall. He chuckled softly as he went along, quite pleased with the way the encounter had turned out.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Once in the elevator, Inmon looked at Johanna, watching as she softly shook her head at the situation just past.

Johanna couldn't believe how Vaughn had acted toward his observer. Though he was Vaughn’s observer for the moment, Gillis Woods was a most respected man within the leaper community.  'Is that how he'll act toward me?' she wondered as she dropped her head forward, looking down at her shoes for a brief moment. 

"Johanna?"

Johanna brought her head up to look at the man beside her.  "Mr. Fitzpatrick, I..."

"Johanna, please hear me out."  Hearing the sigh that she gave to him, Inmon knew that he was pushing his luck with the lovely woman at his side.  "I didn't mean to run you down this morning.  I was rushing a friend to the ER and I didn't realize that I had run you over.  I am so sorry.  Can you ever forgive me for being a rude bastard?"

It wasn't at all what she had thought Inmon was going to say, and so she was caught unawares for a moment.

"What?" she asked, not realizing that the elevator had come to a stop and the doors opened.

Feeling he was still on thin ice, Inmon repeated the apology and question.  Noticing the open elevator doors, he gently urged her to step out then followed her.  As the elevator continued on its way, he stepped in front of the Senior Observer. "Well?" he queried, keeping his tone quiet.

Even with the gentle verbal nudge, it still took a moment for it to filter through everything else in Johanna’s thoughts then match up with the situation to which he was referring.

"Oh," she began, then, "Ohh...that was you?"

"Guilty as charged," Inmon responded, his voice light but not in a flippant manner. "I am so sorry."

Johanna searched her escort's expression and saw only honest regret there.  That, added to noticing the way he twitched a bit, shifting his shoulders a bit as if his uniform was uncomfortable, told her immediately that Inmon Fitzpatrick had already paid for his haste and unintentionally knocking her down.  She didn't need hearing it to know what the accident had cost him.

"I forgive you, Inmon," she said softly as she turned to continue down the hallway to her quarters.  She allowed him to take her arm again as they walked.  "Just...next time, take a half a second to make sure there aren't any innocent bystanders in your path."

"Count on it," Inmon replied lightly.

Inmon gently touched Johanna's arm as they continued down the hall.  As they went along, Inmon turned his head to the woman at his side and saw the reflection on her countenance.  "Johanna?"

Only silence met him, which made him call her name again, but still Johanna didn't respond.  It was noticing that they were about to pass her quarters that made Inmon put his hand on her arm stopping her progress down the hall.

"Inmon, why did we...?"

Inmon motioned to her door causing the woman to turn to it a bit surprised.  "Johanna, what's wrong?"

Johanna blinked up at the security guard for a moment.  "I..."  Johanna sighed as she dropped her head forward, her hands coming up as she began to fiddle with her fingernails.  "I don't know, Inmon.  Things are just... so confusing."

Inmon stepped in front of the lovely brunette and took her hands in his, effectively stopping her constant fiddling.  "Let's go inside and talk."

Nodding her response, Johanna turned and put her entrance code into the door lock then opened it.

Walking in behind her, Inmon frowned.  He knew all of whatever was bugging Johanna was Vaughn's fault.  Closing the door behind him, Inmon turned to find Johanna already on the couch.  Going to sit beside her, Inmon shifted a bit so he was facing her.  "What's so confusing?  What's wrong?" he repeated.

When she turned to look at him, her eyes were brimming with tears and Inmon's heart dropped.  He didn't like the sight of a woman's tears - especially the eyes of someone he was beginning to care so much for.  Without an answer from her, Inmon pulled Johanna into his arms as he felt her begin to cry.  He gently held her in his arms, hating to hear her soft gasps.  He wasn't sure exactly what he should do, so he did what he could.  He softly caressed her back, just holding her close.  It was spying a box of tissues on the coffee table before him that made him finally lean forward slightly and grabbed at the tissues.  He handed the tissue to her and said softly, "Here."

Johanna took the Kleenex handed to her and slightly leaned back in his embrace as she dabbed at her eyes and nose, then an ashamed turned to look up into his face.  "I'm sor..."

Inmon immediately put his finger on her lips silencing her apology.  "Everyone needs a good cry now and again.  There's nothing wrong with that."  He paused, feeling a bit uneasy as another thought crossed his mind.  He wanted to ask her if any part of this was his fault, if it had anything to do with him. Yet, for as much as he felt compelled to ask, he couldn't, wouldn't make her bring whatever was bugging her back up to the surface. If he did and she cried again, he'd never forgive himself.  Instead, he switched to, "May I make you some tea?"

Johanna smiled and nodded her head softly.  "That... really sounds nice right about now."

Inmon smiled as he stood.  His mother always had tea after a good cry.  She had said that it always helped to calm her down and finish off the emotions that were bugging her and helped to relieve the stress.  "You got it.  I'll be right back."

Johanna watched as Inmon stood and went to her kitchen.  She heard the small noises as he searched in various places then heard water being put into the teakettle.  Reaching over, she grabbed another tissue and gently blew her nose.  She was thankful that Inmon was here.  Getting up, she moved into her bedroom, crossed into the bathroom to use the facilities then washed her face.  Once done, she returned to the living room to find Inmon sitting on her couch with two cups before him.