Home is Where the Heart is?
Lucky awoke to an empty living room. He stretched out his stiff muscles on the floor before standing up to look out the window. It looked as if an angry storm had never been there. The bright rays of the sun were piercing down through the treetops just beyond the small yard. He smelled breakfast being cooked and turned toward the opposite end of the cabin to see Addison, dressed for the day, turning a skillet over in her hands as she attempted to not burn some eggs.
"Good morning," she chimed with bright eyes and a smile. "Thought you'd never wake up. I'm making eggs and bacon for breakfast."
"Sounds wonderful," he said with a smile. "Do you need any help?"
"Not that I'm complaining," she started with a giggle. "But you may want to put your clothes on before coming in here near a hot skillet."
Lucky looked down to see that he was in the nude. He was still trying to shake the sleep from his head. He remembered the previous night like it was a dream. First Terra trying to seduce him, then Addison saving him. Then he remembered the assassin and what she had done. Where was she?
"Where's Black Heron?" He asked, feeling completely ridiculous for saying the name. It sounded like some cheesy superhero.
"She was already gone when I woke up," Addison claimed as she'd scooped a fried egg from her pan and onto a plate. "I checked for Terra, but our assassin friend cleaned any evidence up."
"Well I'm glad it's all over," he said as he pulled his pants up and buttoned them. "All of it, you know?"
Addison turned toward him with a plate in each hand. She walked over to the small circular table and sat the plates down before returning to the refrigerator to retrieve a pitcher of orange juice. She poured two glasses out and set them on the table before setting down on one of the chairs and gesturing for Lucky to take the other seat.
"I know what you mean," she finally said after taking a bite from her fork and making a funny face as if she didn't approve of the taste. "But remember, there are more members of the organization and just because they don't know where you are doesn't mean they won't be able to find you."
"I know," he admitted with a sigh. "But I can relax for the moment at least. I have time to make a plan and hopefully, no one else will get hurt because of me."
"I hope so too," Addison agreed as her face looked up at him with doubt.
He doubted it too. There was too much effort put into making him by the terrorist organization and he knew better than to think they were finished with him just because the head was cut off. There's always a new head when it comes to people and their greed.
He took a bite of the eggs and had to hold back from spitting them out. He turned them over with his fork and could see that the bottom was black.
"I'm not exactly a good cook," she stated with a shrug of defeat. "I tried though so that's gotta count for something right?"
Lucky leaned over the table and kissed her. He sat back down and the two started laughing.
Weeks went by as Lucky and Addison grew closer to each other. She claimed to have enough saved up paid time off to take an entire year off if she wanted to. She said that she wanted to spend her free time with him. He grew to really enjoy her company. They grew to understand one another and he felt a genuine compassion for her like he had never known.
Their time together was interrupted from time to time as Cheryl would call from the hospital to check on him. She always wanted to talk to him and tell him how much she missed him. He missed her too, but he couldn't help but feel a sense of dread when she would tell him how fast her wounds were mending and that she would be out and taking him home before he knew it.
His days were spent doing random things with Addison. They frequently walked through the surrounding woods as they explored the areas. Once they found a river that led to a small waterfall with a five-foot deep cave behind it. They spent hours in that cave.
The sex grew more and more amazing as well. They seemed to find the time to have sex just about everywhere they went together, the waterfall included. She would occasionally bring up a random location and they would go there to check it off the list. It almost became such a second nature that there was no lead up to it. They would find a place, give each other a look and just start right then and there.
The only thing between the two that didn't get better as the days turned into weeks was their cooking. They took turns attempting to impress the other, but neither person seemed to have the knack for it. Burnt, undercooked or just plain bad was on the menu every day. It didn't bother him though. It was just another endearing quality that made them what they were.
Jean Steller had called Addison in hopes of setting up a followup interview with Lucky, but he just turned her down. There was no reason to continue down the path with Terra exposed and gone. And besides that, by doing the interview he would create the risk of the organization finding him.
Everything was incredible just the way it was. He didn't want to change anything.
Then the phone rang.
Addison answered her phone and Lucky could tell something was wrong. She was trying to put on a happy tone, but he knew her far too well to believe it. He could tell that her world had been turned upside down in just a five-minute conversation.
"What is it?" He asked once she hung up the phone. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," she said, forcing a smile. "Cheryl's out. She's on her way here to get you."
What?! So soon? He thought he would be ready for this moment. He kept reminding himself that his time in the cabin was only temporary. It seemed that no matter what he attempted to prepare himself for this moment, it wouldn't stop the heartache that he felt now. Addison looked away from him and walked toward her bedroom.
"What can we do?" He asked as he followed her into her room. She was folding his clothes and placing them in a suitcase on the bed. "This isn't right."
"There's nothing we can do Lucky," she stated with a quiver in her voice. "You belong to Cheryl and she is well enough to go home."
"Addison," he whispered, but she didn't answer. "Addison!" He shouted.
"What?!" She shouted back as she slammed the suitcase shut and snapped the latch.
"I love you," he admitted. He could feel his own tears running down his cheeks. This couldn't be over. This had to stay the way it was somehow. Maybe there was something she could do. Maybe she could explain to Cheryl what had transpired between them. Maybe Cheryl would sell him to her.
"Don't say things like that," Addison said as she looked up at him and he could see tears running down her own face. "It just can't be. We both knew that when this started. This was going to happen. Cheryl is coming to get you." She pushed the suitcase against his stomach and held it until he grabbed the handle.
"Fine," he stated angrily. He couldn't believe that she wouldn't even try anything to save them. She would just give him up. Maybe he was just an object to her anyway. Maybe she would just move on with her own life and never think of their time together again. Maybe that's what he should do as well. He should just enjoy Cheryl. Cheryl was the one that actually wanted him anyway. Cheryl would have done something. At least tried.
He walked out of the cabin with the suitcase in hand and sat down on the porch while staring down the long driveway. He could hear Addison moving about the inside of the cabin as she cleaned up.
How could she be so cold?
It wasn't long until Cheryl's car pulled into view and pulled into a stop. He stood up and started walking toward her car as her door opened. She stepped out with a stretched out a smile. She was so beautiful. She was shorter than Addison and lacked the curves, but carried her small frame with so much grace that she really didn't need the wider hips or larger breasts.
"Lucky," she shouted in glee as she ran down the rest of the driveway with her arms spread out. She jumped into his arms and he caught her in the air and held onto her while she began kissing his face neck and lips with small and quick pecks. "I missed you so much!"
"I missed you too," he said. In truth, it wasn't a lie. He did miss her company even if he didn't feel about her the way he felt about Addison. "Let's go home."
"Wait," she stated as she dropped back to her feet and gave him a quick squeeze on the arm. "I want to thank Addison for keeping you while I was away."
"I'll wait out here," he stated coldly and carried his suitcase to her car.
It didn't take long before Cheryl came skipping back out of the cabin and toward the car with the same happy facial expression.
"Now let's go home," she said as she pulled her door shut and spun her body around to where she was straddling his lap with her arms stretched over his shoulders. "You know what I want to do first?" The car pulled out of the driveway and down the streets on its way to her home.
"I have an idea," He answered with a smile. It felt weird at this point. He had grown so used to Addison's body. Her kisses. Her warmth. Her smell. Her taste. Something about being with someone else just felt strange to him. All that aside, he did feel some excitement to be with Cheryl physically again though.
"It's been so long," she said as she pressed her lips against his. He could feel her tongue stab into his mouth immediately as her hands ran through his hair. She moaned as she ground her hips around on his lap. "I want it so bad."
