John and Marlena (Finally) Get a Q!

Chapter 65 - Cuts Both Ways

At four in the morning, Salem is a lonely place. There are a few stirrings of life, the rustle of stray cats behind dark buildings, the low rumble of a solitary taxicab. A few hardy souls stare at TV screens as insomnia burns the midnight oil. A child stirs in her bed, cocooned in a deep and dreamless sleep, while above, icy stars glitter, oblivious to the staccato bursts of human life below.

John Black's loft is particularly deserted now. Devoid of life for days, it sits empty and quiescent, as though waiting for a family to bring it that spark of animation again. The sound of a telephone disturbs the silence, harshly discordant against a lifeless backdrop. The machine picks up and a woman's voice echoes into the empty void. Tears fall, and then there is silence once again.

******

John woke the next morning to the sound of childish voices in the adjoining room. He rolled over and looked at the clock. It was barely seven in the morning. He groaned, having barely slept at all the previous night. The question of what to do about Marlena had revolved in endless circles through his mind, and sleep had been elusive, to say the least. He closed his eyes and rolled over again, pulling the sheet up over his chest as he searched desperately for several more minutes of broken sleep. Nevertheless, he was thwarted as the childish voices were replaced by soft sniffles, and his protective heart was broken by the sound of misery.

Quickly he swung his legs out of the bed and threw the hotel robe on over his shoulders. In three strides, he was in the children's bedroom where he found Belle in tears on the floor. Brady, in the loving act of a big brother, had his arm around her and was comforting her as much as he could.

"Belle baby, honey, what's wrong?" John asked as took her into his arms. Belle looked up at him, her tiny angelic face stained with tears, but she remained silent. "Belle?" John entreated gently. "Sweetheart, please tell me what's wrong. Did you hurt yourself?"

Belle looked at him for a moment and then her mouth set into a stubborn line. She shook her head, her blue eyes suddenly flashing with a four-year-old's ire, and he could feel her body tense against him.

"Then what is it, baby?" John asked again. When she did not answer, he looked back at Brady. It seemed obvious that Belle was angry and upset over something. Maybe Brady knew what it was.

"Brady, can you tell me what's upset your sister slugger?" Brady looked uncertainly at John and then at Belle. The little girl said nothing, and Brady looked back to his father.

"Belle wants to go home," he said tentatively. John looked at him, in surprise as he digested Brady's words. It was suddenly obvious to him that Belle was not the only one who felt that way.

"Is that it, Belle?" John asked her quietly. "Do you want to go home?"

"Wanna see Mommy," Belle said, her bottom lip quivering as she nodded.

"Oh, you miss your Momma?" John was rewarded by dispirited nods from both the children, and he suddenly felt dreadful.

In his despondency over Marlena, he had barely stopped to think how this was affecting the children. A sudden stab of guilt accompanied the realization that he had done exactly what Caroline had warned him against. Taking the children away had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, based partly on the fact that he missed them so much. But now he realized he'd subconsciously had an agenda, and he'd convinced himself that the children were having a wonderful time to further that agenda.

With hushing sounds, he rocked Belle as she began to cry again, the sounds of her sobs tearing at him.

"It's okay punkin' girl," he cooed gently. "If you want to go home and see Mommy, we'll go home."