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Alexandria Virginia
Jonathan Molestador's apartment
This is the worst party I have ever been to. Reina told herself as she looked around Jonathan's living room. All of the men in the room, all of whom, with the exception of Richie, were colleagues of Jonathan's, were enthralled with the football game on the TV. What was worse was that Jonathan seemed content to watch the football game despite the fact that he knew she hated it. In fact, she'd hardly spent any time with him at all the whole day. She was starting to wonder exactly why it was he wanted her to come out here since it would appear that her presence wasn't necessary for whatever it was that he had on his agenda. At the moment, Reina was in the dining room hoping to get a reprieve from the sporting event only to be confronted by Sandra, who appeared to want to make small talk. Reina hated small talk almost as much as she hated football.
"I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't know. The Headless Horsewoman is a place a lot of agents go to after hours."
"Fine. Apology accepted. I don't want to talk about it okay?"
"Okay. I…"
"Look, if you're trying to get in good with Jonathan by getting on my good side it won't work. Jonathan doesn't respect my opinion. He's never gotten serious with any of the women I've liked and I've hated every woman he's ever seriously dated."
"I just thought we should get to know one another better."
"Assuming we know one another now?"
"Okay, then I think we should get to know one another. Period."
The two women sat in awkward silence for several minutes.
"I would really like it if we got along."
"I'm sure it'll be easy for us to get along since I'm clear across the country."
"I think we can do better than that. You know, it's okay to like me."
"How can I like you? I don't even know you?"
"Don't you think it's time we remedied that?"
Reina couldn't think of a way to get out of the conversation without seeming to be unreasonable. She shrugged.
"Jonathan says you live in Seacover," Sandra said.
"Yeah."
"It's some distance from home."
Home is where I hang my sword. "Home is where I say it is."
"I meant it's far from your hometown. You did spend most of your childhood in Brooklyn."
"Well in that case, yes Seacover's very far from home as it's clear across the country. What's your point?"
"You're far away from your support systems."
"I have friends in Seacover. I'm not alone."
"But your family is here."
"And?"
"Maybe this wasn't a good idea."
Reina shrugged. "Maybe not," she stood up. "I think the game is finally over. Maybe now we can change the channel or something. I heard there's a Star Trek marathon on the Sci-fi channel."
Reina and Richie were the last people to leave Jonathan's apartment after the party wound down. For some reason Jonathan was insistent that they stick around long after either immortal wanted to. The only reason for such delay tactics was that Jonathan wanted to force the confrontation that Reina had thwarted the night before.
"What's up with this Jonathan?" Reina asked. "I've been here all day you've hardly said a word to me and now that I want to go you've insisted that I stick around? Why?"
"I want to talk to you."
"We could have done that over the phone," Reina pointed out. "There certainly was no need to drag me across the country for that. And you definitely didn't have to keep me here until after all your FBI friends had gone."
"Sandra and I wanted to talk to you alone."
Reina eyed her brother suspiciously. Sandra and I is it? Hmmm. "You two getting married?" She asked.
Jonathan chuckled. "No. That's a little premature. It's about you."
"Uh oh."
"What do you mean 'uh oh?'"
"It means I'm about to be screwed."
"Must you be so vulgar?" Jonathan asked. Reina shrugged her shoulders but didn't answer him. Sensing he wasn't going to get an answer from his younger sibling he continued. "It's not like that," he said.
"Look Jonathan," Reina said interrupting her brother. "You're in a good mood I'm in a relatively good mood, let's end it like that and I'll see you the next time I'm in town. Okay?"
"I can't do that."
Reina sighed dramatically. "Of course not," she rolled her eyes. "Richie why don't you wait for me downstairs."
"You sure Rei?"
"Yeah I'm sure," Reina told him "But if I'm not down in half an hour come and get me."
"Will do," Richie eyed the mortal couple suspiciously as he left the apartment
"Okay," Reina crossed her arms and walked into the living room. "What gives? And what is all this 'we' business? Have you taken up French since I last saw you because if we're discussing me then we have one person too many in here."
"Sandra is a psychologist, she's my girlfriend and I asked for her help."
"Well that's all well and good for you now isn't it?" Reina asked snidely. "I on the other hand don't know her from Adam. So why should I be inclined to say anything in front of her?"
"Reina, she's a professional."
"And that's supposed to make me feel better? You make me promise to come out here and visit you then you try to take me to some tacky dive called the Headless Horseman or some shit. What the hell kind of name is that for a bar anyway and why the hell do you think that I'd be interested in going to a place with that name after Reynaldo was fucking beheaded? And then to add insult to injury after making me endure God only knows how many hours of parade footage and football; you spring this shit on me. I can't stand parade coverage and I hate football and the last thing I want to do is discuss anything concerning my innermost feelings with either of you."
"I understand you're feeling ambushed," Sandra said.
"Ambushed? Why would I feel ambushed? You clearly had this in mind for quite some time. Apparently, when you promised that you would respect me as an adult you were talking out of both sides of your face as usual," Reina snapped ignoring Sandra completely. "So what's next are you planning to have a few of your larger colleagues drag me out of here to lock me up in the fucking rubber room or is that what you've planned for my Christmas surprise?"
"This isn't going well maybe we should take a few minutes to calm down," Sandra said to Jonathan. "Reina is obviously upset."
"No shit! Is that your professional opinion?"
"I understand if this dredges up bad feelings for you."
"You don't know goddamn thing about me!" Reina shouted. "You certainly don't have a clue about how I feel!"
"You're right. I don't really know that much about you except what Jonathan has told me."
"Which means you don't know me at all."
Jonathan took a deep breath. "This isn't how I planned this. Look, Squirt, I didn't mean to ambush you but I want to discuss this properly."
"Discuss what?" Reina asked suspiciously. She didn't even take the time to scold him about calling her 'Squirt.'
"I want you to move to DC. So you'll be nearby."
"You want me nearby? Why? So you can keep an eye on me?" Reina raised an eyebrow at her brother. "I don't think so."
"Won't you consider it?"
"I have. The answer is no."
"It doesn't have to be permanent. Just until you get your head straight."
"Get my head straight," Reina repeated blandly. "That is the second time during this conversation that you have implied that I need professional help."
"I'm sure Sandra could recommend someone."
"I do not need professional help," Reina snapped. "And if I did I certainly don't want someone Sandra would recommend."
"After what happened since Ben's death I'm not so sure."
"Excuse me?" Reina snapped in disbelief. "You have no idea what I've been going through my head since Ben's death."
"I know you've been teetering on the edge and that Reynaldo's death has pushed you over the brink."
"You've hardly seen me since Ben or Reynaldo were murdered. What in the hell do you know about what I've been going through?"
"Look, Reina, we just want to make sure you're okay."
"I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me."
"You are not fine. If everything was fine you wouldn't have gone after Carrie."
"Excuse me?"
"You went after Carrie. You tried to kill her."
Holy shit! "Where did you hear that?" She asked aloud.
"I have my sources."
"Oh really? And who might those be?"
"I'm not at liberty to say."
"Well it doesn't matter anyway," Reina said dismissively. "You shouldn't believe everything you hear."
"Are you denying it? Are you saying you didn't break into her apartment and threaten to kill her?"
"If I say no, I end up in a psych ward. If I say yes, you call me a liar," Reina said crossing her arms in front of her. "What is a girl to do?" Deny, deny, deny.
"So you admit it."
To you? Not bloody likely. "I neither admit nor deny anything Jonathan. It's really none of your business."
"There's no need to be defensive," Sandra said.
"I'm not being defensive," Reina told her. "And this is even less your business than it is Jonathan's"
"Look, Reina," Jonathan started.
"No, you look, Jonathan, There's a lot of things that you don't know. And it's obvious that you aren't ready to hear about them now. Frankly, I'm not ready to tell you anyway and I certainly won't tell her."
"What are you talking about?" Jonathan asked.
"What I'm talking about is beyond your wildest dreams or your worst nightmare. It's…" Reina shrugged sheepishly. "It doesn't matter since I'm not telling you and you probably won't believe me anyway."
"You're not making any sense."
Reina shook her head sadly. "I guess from your end it would sound that way. Let's just put it this way. Unless you can show that I'm a danger to myself or anyone else you can't do a damn thing. And I assume by the fact that I'm not being arrested that you have no proof of this alleged threat to Carrie?"
"I just want what's best for you."
"I know," Reina sighed. "The problem is that you've never trusted me to determine what that is."
"If you acted responsibly, I wouldn't have to doubt your stability."
"We're not going to agree on this," Reina said. "Let's just drop it, okay? I'm going to go now. Goodbye Jonathan, Sandra," she walked out the door.
"What was that all about?" Richie asked as Reina came down the stairs.
Reina didn't answer immediately. She got into the car and pulled out of the parking area before she answered.
"Jonathan thinks I need to move out here so he can baby-sit. He thinks I need to see a shrink."
"Why?"
"Jonathan has always thought that I was unstable," Reina said. "It's his explanation for my quirky behavior. But this is different. Someone told Jonathan about my trip to Los Angeles."
"Who? The only people who know about that are you, me, Mac, and Scott's parents.
"And Carrie."
"You think she told Jonathan?"
"I don't know. It doesn't make sense. But when I get back west I damn sure intend to find out."
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