The Sidenstrasse Tapestry: An Indiana Jones Fan-Fiction

Chapter 10: Wyoming, USA, 1960

Indy gulped, holding his hands high.

"Every time I think I can live without you – you come back through the door of my house -" Marion fumed.

"And you're proven wrong?" Indy asked.

"No!"

Indy watched the shotgun shake. "Marion, why did you leave?"

"You couldn't focus! Indy you're a complete workaholic! You couldn't focus on your family and all you could think about was Berlin!"

"Marion, I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it! I'm not coming back with you Jones! Even if we hadn't lost a child -" Her finger twitched on the trigger.

Indy knocked the gun out of Marion's hands and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Marion, calm down." Indy gently pushed Marion down on the couch and pulled out his wallet. Inside, tucked between several different currencies was a dog-eared picture. "Remember this?" he asked.

A happy family of four... two girls, a lovely dark haired smiling wife, and a caring father, in front of the Egyptian pyramids.

Marion took the picture. "Yes. I remember... the girls were trying to figure out why things were measured in feet. Because everyone's feet are different sizes, right?"

Indy smiled. "Yes." He glanced at picture sitting on the coffee table. A young girl pretended to smile, a dark black/blue spot by her emerald green eye. "What happened to Annie's eye?"

"Indy," Marion whispered, shocked. "That's not Annie – that's your granddaughter, Laurel. Annie said she ran into a doorknob."

"That kid's not tall enough to run into a doorknob! She's barely past my knee!" Indy turned. "Annie's married?" The color seemed to drain from Indy's clean shaven face.

"With two kids," Marion added. "Tyler, the boy is over there, with a friend of his father's."

Indy found the picture. "Marion, this 'friend' of his works for the KBG and ran me and Em out of Russia in '56!"

"Em?" Marion looked at Indy. "Emily's still alive?!"

"Yes."

There was silence.

"I'm sorry!" both Marion and Indy cried.

Indy reached over and wiped a tear from Marion's eye. "It's okay. I needed your leaving to help me learn about what a family really is."

"But I never came back!" Marion gasped.

"It's okay." Indy paused, feeling his face get wet. He reached in his shirt pocket and pulled out another picture. "This is Em."

Marion took the photo gingerly.

"She's reminded me of you every day of my life," Indy whispered. "I should have never left you after I found the Ark."

"And I should have never left you after the war."

"Marion – you never did. I spent most of my life on the run, and looking for you..."

"And raising a daughter," Marion smiled. "She looks so much like me. I never thought I'd see her again. Indy, it looks like you've done a wonderful job!"

"Uh... well..." Indy cleared his throat. "It'll be better if you just meet Em."

"Aren't you going to tell me about your pride and joy?"

"The 'pride and joy' you're referring to, well..." Indy grinned. "Let's just say she has her mother's temper." Indy winced. "And left hook."

Marion grinned. "Got you good, didn't I?"

"Marion, I love you and your cooking... and your punching, well, I probably deserve it."

Marion grinned. "I'll get packed."

"What about a...um, second honeymoon?"

"Forget it Jones. I want to meet my kid... you can wait."