Past and Present Danger, Chapter 11
by blueeaglex
 

You'll have the results right away?"

Ivy was speaking in hushed tones to the lab assistant standing at the counter of the hospital laboratory. He nodded, then Ivy added, "I can't begin to emphasize how important it is that this information be kept a secret," she added, handing over several hundred dollar bills to the assistant. "If you let anyone other than me discover this information, I'll have your head on a platter. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Mrs. Crane." The assistant looked down at the written instructions detailing what he was to do. "I can have the results for you in one week."

"One week?" Ivy put her head back and laughed. "This isn't the time for jokes. You'll have the results for me by tomorrow morning, or else I'll make sure you're fired. And if you're let go, you can be sure that no other hospital in the country will ever hire you again...nobody messes with the Cranes."

"Yes, Mrs. Crane." The assistant nodded, clearly nervous about the woman's ultimatums.

Ivy pranced away from the laboratory, excited about the possibilities. In twelve hours or so, she would have the answer to the question which had been puzzling her for over a year. Was Chad Julian and Eve's bastard love child? Ivy had only her gut instinct to go on right now, but her gut said that he was the bastard Crane child.

Ivy stopped to think about how much mayhem would be created if people were to learn that Chad was the true heir to the Crane fortune. No, Ivy decided, she couldn't have that...not even if it meant Chad would never know his parents. "He'd be better off without Julian in his life," she decided. As for Eve...she had two other children.

Ivy's stomach turned, recalling the revelation that Chad and Whitney were now involved. Knowing that Whitney could be involved with her brother almost made Ivy regret her decision to withhold the truth.

Almost--but not quite. As Ivy walked away from the laboratory, she decided that--if Chad was Whitney's half-brother--she'd make sure that Chad and Whitney were broken up. It was, she concluded, the humane thing to do.

***********

Simone walked into the Book Cafe, her smile brightening as she saw Chad waiting for her at a table. As she went towards him, Pilar approached her from behind. "I heard that Whitney was in an accident," Pilar said, a look of concern on her face. "Is she going to be all right?"

"Whitney's just fine," Simone said, hardly paying Pilar any attention. As she walked away, she muttered, "The snake that bit Whitney was just going after one of its own." Simone put aside all thoughts of Whitney as she approached Chad, who looked confused. "I'm so glad you could make it, Chad," Simone said, her eyes sparkling. "I've made reservations at the Seascape for two."

"The Seascape? Isn't that place kinda pricey?"

"Don't worry about prices; I have enough money." She neglected to mention that she had taken the money from her mother's secret stash; Simone silently promised herself she'd return the money once she earned enough from her allowance.

"I gotta say, Simone, I'm not sure why you'd want to go out with me, after what went down this afternoon."

"I don't want to talk about that," Simone said hurriedly. "I just thought you'd need a shoulder to lean on tonight, that's all."

"That's all?" Chad eyed Simone suspiciously, wondering if she was trying to be more than his friend here. He was still shaken up about her earlier revelation.

"That's all. Shall we go?" Trying to act as much like a lady as possible, Simone beckoned towards the door, and a nervous Chad followed closely behind.

**********

"Let's go home, Tabitha!" Timmy whined. He was sitting on Tabitha's lap, with Tabitha seated at a table in one corner of the jazz club. "The Bennetts and the Russells are never going to show up."

"Patience, Timmy, patience." While Timmy's eyes were focused on Eve singing at the front of the club, Tabitha had her eye on the door, eagerly anticipating the arrival of the Bennetts and the Russells. She vacillated between wanting them to arrive, and wishing the two couples would never make it. On the one hand, having two Eves could create lots of problems. On the other hand, if the two Eves were to see each other, the fun was over as quickly as it had begun. "It's rather how I felt at my coming out party," Tabitha mused to herself.

"Tabitha had a coming out party?" Timmy asked, perplexed, both that Tabitha was ever that young, and that she would bring it up now.

"I was quite the looker in those days," Tabitha said. "Oh, the stories I could tell..." She stopped her reminiscing as the door opened, and the Russells and Bennetts walked into the establishment. Her eyes jerked over to the other Eve, who had finished her set and was walking to the back. The Russells and Bennetts passed the other Eve, with no one making notice of the other. Tabitha breathed a sigh of relief. "That was close," she whispered to Timmy. "Too close."

Taking their seats at their table, Eve looked to her best friend and said, "Thanks for the idea of going out tonight. After the day I had, I need to relax."

"Trouble at work, Eve?" Grace asked. Eve shook her head, but didn't go any further.

"So who's the entertainment tonight?" T.C. asked, eager to move the subject away from bringing up Chad and Whitney's doomed romance. "Something good, I hope."

Sam reached for a paper in the middle of the table. Reading it, he said, "Some singer named Lilith. That's all I know."

Still listening in on the conversation, Tabitha leaned towards Timmy and confided in him. "The Eve from the past chose a very meaningful stage name, without even realizing it, Timmy."

"Lilith? Why Lilith?"

"Ancient folklore spoke of Lilith, Adam's first wife," Tabitha explained. "She was an independent free spirit, and refused to be tied down with Adam--so she left the Garden of Eden, and was replaced by--"

"Eve!" Timmy said excitedly, suddenly understanding.

"Yes, and most records of this Lilith were destroyed...just as Eve has done her best all these years to destroy any trace of her past."

Satisfied with the lesson, Timmy turned back to listen in on the Bennetts and the Russells.

***************

Chad cleared his throat. Simone was staring right at him, as though she expected he would say something. Having nothing to say, Chad reached for his glass of water to take a drink.

More silence followed, as Chad shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Despite the pleasant ambience of the Seascape, Chad felt as though something was amiss.

"You don't have to be so quiet," Simone said, playfully poking at Chad with a fork. "Say something."

"I'm sorry to be such a party pooper," Chad said, moving his food around with his fork. "Maybe it was a bad idea for me to come here and all, after what happened today."

Simone clenched her fist for a brief moment, recalling the horrible incidents which had occurred earlier. "Don't think about that," Simone advised, making a conscious effort to release her hand. "What's done is done."

"I'm just not so sure that what happened between me and Whitney is over," Chad explained.

It was a good thing that Simone hadn't been holding her glass; otherwise, she would have dropped it the ground. "But Whitney said--"

"I know what Whitney said. But--" He paused, then added, "Maybe we shouldn't be talking about this."

"You and Whitney are through," Simone whispered, as though saying those words could make the feelings between Chad and Whitney completely disappear. "Why can't you see what's right in front of you?" In took a Simone a few seconds to realize that she had uttered her thoughts, rather than keeping them to herself. She blushed, and, pushing back her chair, stood up. "I think I should go..."

"Simone, sit down." Simone obeyed like a puppy dog, pushing her seat back in. "I think we need to talk about what you said earlier today."

"You mean when I said I loved you?" The tension in the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Chad nodded, unsure as to how he could respond to that. "I meant it, you know, Chad. I do love you."

***************

So much to do, so little time. Tabitha wished she had some of the splitting potion left; she needed a second person to be able to handle everything that was going on.

Tabitha wiped her brow, sweating just thinking about the narrow escapes which had taken place during the last half hour. Grace had gone to the bathroom, narrowly escaping seeing the other Eve. Tabitha had stalled her by revealing herself to Grace. Then, Sam had gone to speak with a waiter, and had almost seen the Eve from the past. Timmy had saved the day then: he'd switched on a television at the back of the bar, and Sam's attention was diverted to a sports game. Now, Dr. Eve had gone to the bathroom by herself; Tabitha decided she had to deal with the other Eve now.

"I only wish the others could see the other Eve," Tabitha thought to herself. "But I can't risk them uncovering the truth, not before she's had her fun with Julian."

Tabitha cornered the Eve from the past in a back room. "You can't sing again tonight," she said defiantly, standing between Eve and the door out to the main part of the club.

"Why not?"

"Because...because...because I think it will damage your voice."

"I've been singing for years, I think I know how much my voice can take." Eve went to leave, but Tabitha stopped her from exiting. She moved right, Tabitha moved right; trying to go left, Tabitha followed suit. "Please, move out of the way!"

"Am I in your way, dear? I hadn't noticed." Then, with a quick flourish, Tabitha shoved Eve as hard as she could, sending the confused singer to the floor. Tabitha closed the door behind her. Timmy was at her side now, as they heard the other Eve bang on the door.

Tabitha held on to the door, not about to let Eve escape. "You can't keep it shut forever," Timmy pointed out.

"Hear me forces of evil, voices of doom, grant my wish and lock this room." As Tabitha finished with the spell, the doorknob glowed red for several seconds before returning for normal. Releasing the knob, Tabitha found it was still locked shut.

"I thought Tabby lost her magic powers?" Timmy asked, curious as to what had happened.

"I lost my witches' powers, but that was a spell any fool can use," Tabitha explained.

Timmy smiled. "Remind me that spell the next time I want to put Fluffy in the attic."

Glancing around, Tabitha hurriedly said, "No time for that. Coach Russell is coming, and I'd rather not be here when he shows up." Grabbing at her doll, Tabitha pulled Timmy up off the ground and scurried out of sight.

Looking for Eve, T.C. stopped in front of the back door which Tabitha had just locked. "Where could Eve be?" he wondered.

"Help me!" came the voice from the closet. "Will someone let me out?"

T.C. recognized the voice as that of his wife. "Eve? Is that you?"