Chapter Knight of Pentacle part 2

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The sun was just starting to lighten the sky. Seeing, the snow went up to the rail of the deck outside, Tim knew riding home would not be pleasant because the large half-draft did not like to walk in deep snow. He heard Cassandra walking around in the kitchen and smelled something like waffles or pancakes mixed with the scent of brewing coffee. He was surprisingly comfortable despite the fact his feet were hanging off the bed. Something soft and warm was draped over them, and when he turned his head toward the kitchen, he discovered not one but two felines in bed with him. He closed his eyes and laid very still do not disturb them because he did not know how tame the bobcat laying on the other side Cassandra's house cat was. 

"Miss King," he murmured softly. "Do you mind calling your cats? I don't want to startle them."

Cassie gasped as she walked around the bar dividing the kitchen from the living room. Tim was laying on her couch pull-out with Miss Priss and Niko only inches away from his face. He was very still with his eyes closed and she knew it was because he wasn't sure Niko or Priss wouldn't hurt him. She giggled as she moved them away from him.

"I am so sorry. I promise they aren't trying to hold you hostage."

"I won't press charges if I can get a cup of coffee." He sat up and grinned reaching for his glasses.

She was shocked at how handsome he looked with his mussed blond curls and trim beard so she turned away quickly and went back to the kitchen. She set the mug on the bar with the cabinets between them. "I hope you like waffles. Some people don't but I do. Erin like them a lot and calls them polite pancakes because they have pockets to hold the syrup." Suddenly she realized she was rambling and stopped talking as she pulled another waffle from the maker.

He watched her ladle and scoop of batter into the hot appliance and wondered how many she expected him to eat because there was a stack of at least ten on a plate. "Waffles is fine, thank you. I'll just have two."

He must have had a tone because she looked at him oddly then at the plate of waffles and laughed. Her voice was so musical as she responded, "I can only make them in dozen waffle batches, so I freeze them."

"Ahh, that's smart." Tim noticed his shirt and jeans had been laundered and folded neatly. "Thank you for washing and drying my clothes too. Did... did you sleep at all?"

"I did but... I'm sorry, I know you won't hurt me, but I was still nervous." She apologized like she had done something wrong as she set a plate of two golden waffles down. "Do you want maple, butter pecan, or boysenberry syrup?"

"Just butter please," Tim answered, "I lost my taste for processed syrups a long time ago."

"Honey?"

"Excuse me?" He almost choked on his coffee. 

"Do you want honey instead?"

 "No but thank you." He watched her as he ate. 

She also plated two waffles for herself, and carefully poured the syrup so it ended up in each square. They ate in silence.

"Thank you for the waffles," he said at the same time as she asked, "Do you want another?"

"No, I'm full. Those were the best waffles I have ever tasted. How do you get them so fluffy?" Tim praised the food.

"I beat the egg whites then fold them into the batter," Cassie revealed as she clutched her coffee cup.

Tim looked at his empty mug and plate then said, "I need to get Audie back to the ranch. Thank you for taking good care of him when he visits." Tim didn't say anything about the bull getting overweight because she smiled so brightly. He didn't want to hurt her feelings. He went into the bathroom to change clothes. They smelled of the same detergent and softener sheets as the blankets and pillow. He dressed quickly and went out. It was going to be a hard ride back to the main part of the ranch and he was not looking forward to it.

"I'm happy to have him visit, he is a sweet bull." Still, keeping a piece of furniture between them, Cassie was sad to see him leave, but also happy to have him out of her home. She enjoyed the company and playing cards with him had been fun. Tim listened intently as she explained Cartomancy with Tarot, and what it meant to her; he didn't mock or judge her, and he asked intelligent questions. He seemed to understand that her tarot cards were more like guided meditations than some mystical or metaphysical practice of divination which dictated her life and actions so that she had no control over. However, he was very curious about how the cards foretold some of the events in her life that she had no idea were coming.

She watched him wade out through the snow to the garage. He used the snow shovel to clear in front of the garage door and the walk back to the porch, before he opened it. She couldn't figure out what he was doing but then she realized he had scooped up the livestock poop and dumped it to the side of the building. He saddled his horse and attached a rope to the harness Audie wore before closing the garage door and coming back to the house. He pushed the button on the box instead of coming in.

"Thank you for the bed and breakfast, Cassandra. I enjoyed talking and playing cards with you," he admitted.

She blushed as she nodded. "Would you like one of my business cards? You know, just in case you want to talk or something?"

"I would like that very much," he admitted. It had been a long time since he had a new friend who wasn't also an employee.

She went to the room past the pantry then came back with a pale-yellow card that matched her sweater. She cracked open the door and passed it through with a shaking hand. Taking out his wallet, he tucked it safely behind his driver's license then put it in his hip pocket.

"You were very brave last night, thank you for the card s and conversation. Have a good day," he said as he tipped his hat.

Mounting Thor, Tim pulled Audie's lead rope as he put his heel in the large horse's flank. The horse groaned as it stepped out into the snow up to his knees. Audie the bull followed in the horse's wake.

Cassie watched him go then she sat down in the sunroom and wept. She had only slept two hours by telling herself it was Nick on the couch. No matter how many times she shuffled the cards or which deck, the Knight of Pentacles kept coming up. Tim was someone stable, hardworking, and honest, who was going to be in her life. He seemed everything the cards said, and the ones about his life showed a shrewish woman who took much, a brother he was always struggling with, and a daughter in great poverty and pain. She wondered what happened to his daughter because he told her how he paid everything she needed but worried that her mother withheld things from her. Shuffling the cards again, she focused on the girl she had never met. The Three of Cups for friends celebrating together, Five of Pentacles for poverty worries, and the Four of Wands for celebrated achievements came up first again, then the Empress, beautiful and pregnant. It made Cassie wonder when Tiana would become pregnant, she was only seventeen. Cassie smiled at the thought of Tim as a grandfather, but it faded the moment she turned the next card. The Magician reversed meant an arrogant and cruel man would hurt her, then Death, then the Seven of Swords, the card which always appeared when Shivonne's killer was close.

"Oh no," Cassie breathed out. "Please, no... Please don't let him hurt Tim's daughter." She begged aloud. Trembling, she put the cards away, worrying for how she could warn Tim's daughter without sounding like a lunatic. She also had no idea how long it would be until the murderer came to Pagosa County.

Cassie dressed quickly and went outside. She shoveled the snow off the front and back decks then made a path across the meadow with the snowblower. She cleared the snow around the house and from the garage to the gate. She was grateful to see that Doc McConnell had kept his word to remove the snow to her gate. Now, she could escape if she needed to. By the time she finished, she was exhausted and sweaty despite the snow all around her. Going back inside, she locked all the doors, checked all the windows, and then took a long shower. Instead of making dinner, she warmed a waffle and some left over chicken strips, then folded the waffle around them like a pita and drizzled it with honey mustard. As she ate, she thought about Tim. Sighing because she probably wasn't his type, she finished her dinner and put the waffles in gallon-sized freezer bags. She dated them then put on bag in the house freezer and hurried out to the garage and tucked the rest in the chest freezer. Looking around, she appreciated Tim for cleaning then she turned off the light. Standing outside in the bitterly cold air, she exhaled a crystalline cloud. Looking up at the sky, she watched a shooting star streak out of sight as she hugged herself with her hands tucked in her sleeves.

"I know I'm early, but Happy almost New Year, Grandmother. I miss you. I'm sorry I'm such a coward. I'm sorry I can't get over this. I know he's out there. I know if I leave here, he'll kill me like he killed Shivonne."

Sobbing, she stood outside hoping for another shooting star until her face hurt, reaching up she realized she had tears frozen on her cheeks and went inside quickly. The warm air of the house felt like an open oven. It hurt. Looking in the bathroom mirror, she gasped in shock because her face was bright red like a sunburn. She googled frostbite then groaned at her foolishness before putting cool cloths on her face to slowly warm it. Thirty minutes later, she cringed as she looked at her face. She hoped she could cover it with makeup when Erin and Nick arrived day after tomorrow for New Year's Eve.

~~~~

Tim arrived at the dock and boarded the chartered boat to take him back to the oil and natural gas pumping rig group. He was glad his family didn't know how much his three and a half days home cost him. He was shocked that Chan was sitting in the lounge.

"How was your vacation? Did you have luck with the cards?" Chan's question in English held a disappointed edge in his voice.

Tim sat down across from him, not lying, "I found a game and had a lovely evening with a lovelier lady."

"You went back to the states."

"I did. My grandmother is dying of cancer and my sister's husband was murdered. I made certain I was back with a full day to spare," Tim revealed then he asked, "Am I fired? Because I can still make the flights home if I leave now."

"Don't be ridiculous." Chan rolled his eyes. "I was sent in case you didn't make it back. The bosses are very angry."

"Why? I only asked for five days off and got six. I spent one traveling, three on vacation, and one traveling, then I had one to spare. Where I went and who I spent it with is none of their concern," Tim argued.

"You know this isn't like working in your country. They feel like they own you until your contract is up." Chan held up his hands to forestall Tim's temper. "I am going out to the rigs to verify the quality of your work and the reliability of your reports."

"I am the hardest working geologist and petroleum engineer in this company," Tim declared, as he rubbed his forehead. "I do everything they ask, make things work on impossible deadlines, and now, because I was off lead for a few days, they are trying to fire me?"

"It's more than that. They are threatening to sue you for breaching your contract by abandoning your job."

Tim was flabbergasted. "I had approved leave and I came back. I didn't abandon anything."

"Tim, I know you weren't doing that but the new management... They are mostly from Korea and... to be honest all of us are waiting for our contracts to end so we can leave," Chan announced. "Times are changing. You need to write a letter of apology to the new board of directors, include the reason and details of how carefully you planned the trip with the assurances that you always planned to return and won't do it again."

"Okay," Tim nodded then asked, "How bad are things since the buyout?"

"They want to start drilling in the China Sea and putting in completely unmanned rigs," Chan revealed. "You are correct that you the hardest working single person in the company, yet they are planning on replacing you with programs." Chan stood up and started to leave. "I'll tell them to leave port. We have a lot of work to do and will both probably be unemployed by summer."

When he was alone, Tim leaned back and stared at the ceiling. Suddenly, he laughed. All his planning was perfectly set for exactly this scenario. In six months or so, he could go home without a worry in the world except where to write the check for Tiana's college. His luck was finally changing.

~~~~

(Blue Water crossover)

Last week of February

"Ballard."

Tim looked up at the walkway above him. The other petroleum engineer Lalatos shouted at him over the noise of the rig. "Ballard, phone! It's home!"

Tim climbed the ladder two rungs at time with his fear for his grandmother weighing in his gut like a stone.

"Ballard here," Tim said in English, diving on the phone button, the speaker was loud as Lalatos closed the door.

"It's Camille Wallace."

"Camille? Uhm, ah, what's wrong? Is Tiana okay?" Tim was shocked to hear from his daughter's coach.

"No... she... oh gawd, there is no easy way to tell you this. Tiana fell off the boards because she fainted. She hit the water hard enough to get whiplash. The ER doctor found Tiana is suffering from low blood sugar and dehydration due to her pregnancy sickness. We need parental permission for the doctors to treat her, but we can't find Tonia," Camille paused then murmured quieter, "She is pregnant because someone visiting Tonia raped her."

Tim staggered and sat down as Lalatos gasped. "Whatever you need, Camille," Tim announced. "Email me the forms, I'll sign them and email them back."

"They have to be faxed," Camille revealed. Lalatos looked at him and nodded then she pulled the old machine out from under a cabinet and began hooking it up.

"Has she talked to Tank?"

When Camille said no, Tim promised, "I will fax permission for that too. Anything she needs, any test or treatment. I'll pay for everything." He told her the email to send it to. "Can I talk to my daughter?"

"Yes, let me go back in the room." Camille was silent for a few seconds then announced, "T, honey, it's your father."

"Daddy?" Tiana sounded so far away.

"Hey baby girl. How's my mermaid? Coach Wally said you hit the water pretty hard and that you fainted because you're pregnant. Whatever you need, whatever you want to do, I'll support you."

As Tiana talked about what happened in very little detail, he hand-wrote a permission letter for her to talk to the sheriff about her attacker.

"I wanna keep it, I'm sorry," Tiana cried.

"Listen, Tiana, nothing is your fault. If you want to keep your baby, I will cover any medical treatment you and your little one need to be healthy and strong." His soul felt like it was breaking but he only let his daughter hear him as a caring and supportive father, promising, "I'll come to see you as soon as this tour is up. I love you, mermaid."

"I love you too, Daddy." Tiana sniffed as she said it.

"Let me talk to your coach. Bye."

"Yes, Tim?" When Camille got the phone back, he asked, "Can you step out for a moment, Camille?"

A moment later, Camille suggested, "Rant away."

Tim unleashed a verbal tirade against Tonia that was the culmination of years of hate, he ended with, "I can't believe Tonia let that happen. Whatever she needs, I'll cover. She's my only child so, just... just take care of her. You don't know how much I appreciate you. You do so much more for Tiana than Tonia ever did." Tim gruffly thanked Camille for taking care of his only child better than her mother. "I'll fax everything you and Tank need to both the hospital and the sheriff's office. I will also send copies to my grandfather. Don't let Tonia keep her from getting what she needs." His voice was emotional and angry like he was on the verge of crying.

"Don't worry, Tim. Tiana will get all the support and help she needs. I need to get back to her, she's talking to Tank and Mrs. Pence from Social Services."

"Thanks, Camille, bye." Tim hit the button to disconnect the call. He put the papers on the fax and then typed in the numbers for the Mountain View Hospital, the Sheriff's Office of Pagosa County, and his grandfather's vet clinic. His anger made his hands shake.

His coworker looked at him with sympathetic eyes. She asked quietly, "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know, La. I can't leave and I can't bring her here." He put his head in his hands and breathed in through his mouth then out through his nose to keep from losing himself to the rage consuming him. He wanted to murder someone, and he was afraid if he went back out onto the platform, he might beat something into scrap metal. His sense of helpless futility made him feel ill as he admitted, "I can only pray that she and her baby will be okay, and they will catch the bastard who did it."