The Whole Story

Emilio's

Monday, February 26, 2001

8:30 PM

"Dinner out was a nice idea," Amanda took a small sip of her wine. "It's been a
while since we've been here."

Lee smiled. "I just wanted us to have a nice meal together--without having to
worry about some drunken lout approaching us."

"The drunken lout was our contact," Amanda said. "I thought he was acting at
first--you know--part of a cover."

"I smelled his breath," Lee shook his head in disgust. "That was no act--the man
was lit--and he almost blew everything--if anyone had seen him hand off those
papers--"

"You managed to cover it though--no one suspected a thing."

"Only because he fell on me." When the man had pitched forward Lee had grabbed
onto the envelope, shoving it quickly under his jacket and out of sight before
helping their contact to his feet. "I was lucky."

His shirt hadn't been so lucky though--it had absorbed the entire impact of
Lee's manicotti formaggio and a half-bottle of wine. One of his favorite shirts,
too--vaguely he wondered if the Agency would reimburse him for it.

The dinner hadn't been enjoyable--but what happened after--he could still feel
his wife's touch running across his bare chest as she'd removed moved the
now-ruined shirt--his own fingers unbuttoning Amanda's blouse--his hands against
her heated skin, his kiss demanding as he'd lowered her onto the bed--he shook
himself out of these thoughts and saw his wife looking at him--her smile--she
knew what he was thinking.

'Maybe tonight--' Lee thought.

"You know--I still think we should've gotten Francine a little something more,"
Amanda said.

"Amanda--flowers and chocolates are just fine--Francine loves chocolate."

"I know that--it's just--she did so much for Jenna--with the spa day--and the
massage--even if the masseuse was a woman--for Jenna to trust a stranger enough
to let that happen--and to be able to relax through it--that was a pretty major
step."

"True," Lee said. "But it's still just one step--don't get me wrong, I think
that Jenna's moving forward, but she still has a lot to work through."

Amanda nodded. "We're not out of the woods yet."

"No--we're not." Lee thought of the upcoming hearing--the trial later on--they
had to start to heal her--help her to be strong enough to face what was coming.
"There's one more thing."

"What?"

"I think she needs to go through another hypnosis session."

"More hypnosis? Why? Lee, you don't think--"

"Amanda--honestly, I don't think there is anything else--but I don't know for
sure," Lee said. "And I think that for Jenna's peace of mind she really needs
to--know for sure, I mean--about everything that bastard did to her." He took a
deep breath. "Holding these things inside--repressing them--that will only make
it worse."

His wife looked at him silently for a few moments. "You still worry--that she's
going to end up with the same problems that you've had."

"Partly," Lee admitted. "Jenna is not me--Dr. Pfaff said--and I do know
that--but in a lot of ways she's like me--I look at her and I can see myself in
her--and I'd be lying if I said that doesn't bother me."

"In what way?"

Lee took his wife's hand, running his thumb along the top, not looking at her as
he spoke. "I just worry that she'll be forever changed--I don't want her to end
up with permanent scars as a result of this."

"There is one big difference Lee--Jenna has you and me, my mother, Phillip and
Jamie, Billy and Francine--even Dr. Pfaff--we're all here to support her. She's
not alone."

"Yeah--that's what I'm counting on." He drew in a deep breath. "She'll never be
able to forget it, unfortunately--but at some point I'd like her to be able to
put it behind her."

"I want the same thing," Amanda said softly. "I want her to be happy--to feel
safe--to have a normal life again-—she deserves that. Gary Johnston had her for
over two days, Lee --I don't want him have her future too."

Lee squeezed her hand. "He won't," he said. "I said we'll get her through
this, remember? And we will--I promise you that."

Amanda smiled. "I remember."

4247 Maplewood Dr.

9:30 PM

'She looks good,' Lee thought, as he looked down at Jenna. Sprawled out on the
bed--no longer curled up in that tight little ball--she looked relaxed. Her
breathing was slow and even--deeper now that her ribs were healing. She was
healing in other ways too--he could see it--it was slow, but she was getting
there.

Amanda bent down, her lips brushing Jenna's cheek. "Good night, sweetheart."
She whispered.

"Good night, munchkin," Lee gently ruffled his daughter's hair. He and Amanda
left Jenna's bedroom and went into their own. Once the door was shut, Lee
wrapped his arms around his wife, pulling her close.

"Did I tell you that you looked absolutely beautiful tonight?" he murmured.

"Several times, Stetson."

"Oh, I did?" Lee raised his eyebrows. "In that case, maybe I should just show
you."

"That would be nice."

For a reply Lee bent down to nuzzle her neck, hitting the sensitive spot just
behind her ear. Amanda moaned softly and he felt her shiver in response-- at
the same time her hands roamed his back, pulling his shirt out of his waistband,
her palms touched his bare skin, sending tingles down his spine. He pulled back
for a moment--their eyes met--no other words were needed as his lips met
hers--he slowly lowered her down onto the bed.

 IFF

Tuesday, February 27, 2001

4:30 PM

"How do you feel today, Jenna?" Dr. Pfaff asked.

"All right," Jenna said. The blanket covered her legs today--it was snowing
outside and slightly chilly even in here. She could feel Dad's hand holding
hers.

"Any nightmares or episodes?"

"Just one episode."

"Tell me about it."

"It happened after the last session--Dad leaned over me to fasten my
seatbelt--and I guess I kind of panicked for a moment."

"Did you really think that your father would hurt you?"

"No, of course not--it's just when he leaned over me--I guess I didn't think--I
just reacted."

"What if you had thought about it?"

"I wouldn't have panicked--I know that I'm safe with dad."

"And what happened after that?"

"I fell asleep after that--I just felt so tired--I slept most of the day and
night."

"That's understandable," Dr. Pfaff said. "You've been through a lot. And you had
no nightmares?"

"No nightmares."

Her eyes opened--where--slowly she scanned the familiar bookshelves, family
photos--even the smell was familiar, comforting.

'Home--I'm home.' From the kitchen she could hear her dad--the sound of his
footsteps--that tuneless whistling that he sometimes did without even meaning
to. He was here--she was safe.

Consoled by that knowledge, Jenna allowed her eyes to close--letting sleep
overtake her once more.

"No nightmares is a good thing. Did anything happen on Friday?"

"Well I went back to school."

"How was that?"

"Pretty good--nothing special happened. After that we went to play Goofy
Golf--it was fun--Mom won and Dad got beaten by the Chipmunk of Doom."

"Chipmunk of Doom?" Pfaff repeated.

"Munchkin, you don't really need to--" Dad started to say.

"Lee--" Dr. Pfaff said. "Go on, Jenna."

"It's just a hole at the golf course--with a giant chipmunk--it's really easy
but Dad never beats it--it was so funny--the look on his face--I started
laughing really hard."

There was a brief silence.

"How did it feel to laugh?"

"It felt good--and Dad gave me a hug--I think he was happy too."

"Tell me about the weekend."

"Mom and Dad had to go on a trip--it was a location shoot--I went to stay with
Francine--she has a new townhouse and a room for me there--with a lavender
bedspread--it's my favorite color. My shoulder felt a little sore--Francine
thought we should go to a spa."

"Did you have a good time?"

"Yes--they gave me a manicure, a pedicure and a facial--Francine bought me some
more makeup--even some concealer for my scar."

"You still feel self-conscious about your scar?"

"A little--sometimes I think people are staring at it--and a girl at school
calls me Scarface."

"That isn't very nice."

"She isn't a very nice person."

"Was that all you got at the spa?"

"No—I also got a massage."

"How did that feel?"

"Scary at first," Jenna admitted. "I had to lie down on a table--the girl told
me that she would massage my back, neck and shoulders--and that she would stop
if anything made me afraid or uncomfortable."

"I see," Dr. Pfaff said. "And how did it go?"

"It was nice--it didn't hurt--Francine held my hand--after that my shoulder felt
much better."

"And nothing caused you to flashback or panic?"

"No," Jenna struggled to put her thoughts into order. "I mean--Francine was
there, but not just that--she was gentle--I knew she didn't want to hurt me.
Gary--he just wanted to see how much he could make me hurt--I think it was fun
for him." Her voice trembled slightly--Dad squeezed her hand--the slight
pressure reassured her.

"Was the rest of the day good as well?"

"It was fun--we watched movies and ate popcorn--I had a nice time."

"I'm glad to hear it." Dr. Pfaff said. "Are you ready to go back to the
kidnapping?"

 Jenna drew in a deep breath and nodded.

"Just remember--that these are only memories--it's not happening to you
now--you're safe. Don't forget to concentrate on your breathing."

"I won't."

"The last time we were here you said that you remembered Gary tying your wrists
and ankles--and then you blacked out."

"Yeah--I think from whatever he gave me."

"What happened then?"

"I--I think I kept trying to wake up. I was on the floor of the backseat on my
stomach--bent over that--I don't know what you call it--that hump between the
seats. I could feel the carpet on my face--it was dirty--it smelled. My head
hurt and my chest felt like it was burning."

The odor of gasoline and grime assaulted Jenna's nostrils--her stomach
lurched--head throbbing--the carpet rubbed against her forehead--the fibers
rough against the broken, raw skin--Jenna bit her lip against the stinging
pain--even as she felt her eyes beginning to close--

"What do you mean about trying to wake up?"

"I just--the pain kept waking me up--but I felt all fuzzy--I couldn't keep my
eyes open but I couldn't really rest either. It wasn't until later that I woke
up all the way."

"And what happened when you woke up all the way?"

Jenna hesitated. "Do I need to talk about it? Dad already knows this part."

"I know it might be hard, but you need to talk about it as much as you can."

"I opened my eyes--I felt more awake--I could tell I was still in the car--I
could feel the motor. Then we went over a bump and my chest--I tried to hold
back but it hurt so bad--I couldn't keep from crying."

"You're awake, I see."

"He--Gary--he told me that it was almost over--for me, anyway. He had no
expression in his voice--so cold--I tried to talk to him--get him to let me go."

"Please--all I want to do is go home."

"Did he listen?"

Jenna swallowed. "No--he told me I was a whiner, just like Marcie. He said that
he hoped that I would've been different but that he was wrong. He didn't say at
first--what happened to Marcie but I knew then--I knew he'd killed her. He said
that he 'returned' her--that she was 'defective merchandise'."

"How did that make you feel--when he said that?"

"I was--I thought for sure I was going to die--I didn't think I was ever going
to see my family or friends--I really thought that it was all over." Jenna
could feel the tears on her face now--Dad squeezed her hand again--tighter this
time.

"And after that--what happened?"

"The car stopped--he grabbed my wrists and pulled me up--asked me if I was
excited--I was so scared that I couldn't even talk--he put a piece of duct tape
on my mouth."

"I don't think anyone would hear you scream--but just in case."

"He threw me over his shoulder," Jenna said. "That's when I heard a click--then
I heard Dad's voice, telling Gary to put me down--Gary dropped me and then Mom
was there."

"It's all right, sweetheart," Mom's hand smoothed the side of Jenna's cheek.
"You're safe now--everything will be all right."

"Did you feel safe right then?"

"Yes. I was still a little scared about Gary but I did feel safe--I mean, they
rescued me--if they hadn't been there--the same thing that happened to Marcie
would've happened to me too."

"Okay." Dr. Pfaff said. "Jenna, I want you to think back over the whole
experience again--is there anything else that Gary did to you--anything that you
haven't told us yet?"

Jenna shook her head. "No--there's nothing else."

"Okay--now on the count of three, when I snap my fingers--you will wake up. One,
two--"