The Soldier and The Spy: Jay Halstead- Episode 2

Chapter 2

Tess was right.

He hated the wake just as much as the funeral. More so in fact.

At least the funeral had been mostly silent, but this? It was endless- person after person just kept coming up to him and by the fourth he was ready to blow. But he didn't. Partly because he kept thinking of his mom and the fact that she'd loved all the people who were here, well loved most of them and tolerated the rest, but mostly because of Tess. She spent the entire night by his side, minus the five minutes he'd taken to give himself a quick breather, but after he'd realized that his aunt had had Will lured away so she could corner her, literally, he hadn't let her out of his sight again. Not that she needed it. Canaryville wasn't known for being kind to outsiders, in fact it was known for outright disliking them but Tess could make even the grumpiest old men smile, and once the old ladies found out her family was from Beverly, another of Chicago's prominent Irish neighbourhoods they were practically doting on her.

It was amusing to watch, not only because it took the attention off him but because she handled it so well. When they had a minute alone she explained that it had been part of her training and he'd responded that he didn't know how the Farm worked but hoped that she'd gotten an A in that class.

He also found out that her cover was as a civilian contractor for the military, something he wished he'd thought to ask before he'd stood dumbfounded when his brother had but once again she handled it seamlessly. The three spent most of the night together, Tess taking her role as buffer seriously; she carried every conversation, steering them in the right direction when someone started getting too personal or ending them completely when she noticed either he or his brother getting upset. But more than anything she made them laugh. She told jokes, usually bad ones, and read the other guests' behaviours, guessing what they were thinking or talking about, and despite having never met any of them she was surprisingly accurate. At one point Will made some comment about how she was the only female who stayed outside so she'd taken a lap around the yard to demonstrate how easily her heels sank into the dirt, he was sure exaggerating her stumbles, but when she'd come back their way and listed to the side once more he'd caught her, and then kept her against him when she tried to step back. Jay could tell she was nervous about how it looked, that she was a 'distraction' as she said, but when he told her that he didn't care and Will told her that if it wasn't her people gossiped over it would be someone else she slowly relaxed and soon her fingers were brushing against his side just like his trailed down her arm, the action seeming to comfort her just as much as it did him.

He didn't understand where it came from, this connection between them, but he wasn't going to take it for granted.

Before he knew it Carol was shooing her from the kitchen where she'd insisted on helping with the cleanup and he was walking her out, taking deep breaths to try and let the cool air soothe his quickly rising anxiety. It didn't work. His mom had loved this porch. Loved to put flower pots on the railings and hang them from the ceiling, to settle in the chair in the corner when it was a nice day and chat with the neighbours.

Were they going to keep it? A permanent reminder of what they'd lost?

"You know I'm home for at least the next week if you want to do something?"

He blinked and realized Tess was speaking, gently squeezing his arm and right away he felt better, then worse as her words sunk in. He didn't want her to go.

"Maybe tomorrow?"

"Morning?"

"9am?"

The relief that washed over him actually made Jay tremble. "Thank you."

He was confused when her face twisted but then she yanked him into her, her arms wrapping around his neck and then he was holding her just as tightly, burrowing his face in her hair as he breathed her in. After a long moment she leant back and he swore he could've drowned in the blue in her eyes. "You can do this. You just have to keep fighting."