JOSI

"Penny, slow down!"

Aspen comes to an abrupt stop and picks up the kickball. They've been on a search for the cardigan she arrived in, but after minutes of no answers, they'd given up. Clothes are merely accessories. It will be replaced in a matter of days.

What Aspen will not surrender, however, is the free time she's been granted. "We're done already? But we just got here."

"You've been running the entire three hours we've been here." Josi tells her. The park has been thinning out for minutes now. Any more delay and they would wind up resembling trespassers, which is the excuse Josi fabricated for Aspen.

And Aspen accepts the lie as true. She gives Josi a look that borders on disappointment, but it has been exaggerated so greatly that Josi ends up taking it as comic relief. To tie loose ends, she promises Aspen a quick stop by a restaurant the seven year old has had more interest in lately. Josi doesn't know much about it, but it figures. She's missed out on a whole lot.

Josi squats down to her sister's level, then as carefully as she can, begins to pick the strands of grass off her hair. An attempt that soon falls short. The straws are everywhere. "You look like you just came out of a fight."

"Well . . ."

"You actually fought?"

Aspen laughs and ends it with a sigh. "It was a joke. You're so ambiguous."

Josi stifles a laugh of her own from the misused vocabulary. "Dad again?"

"Yeah."

The two make it back to where their car is in the deserted parking lot. All the while the seven year old has taken it upon herself to pluck each dandelion she sees. The season of spring is upon them, the change Josi can tell Aspen has been impatiently waiting for. Not so much on her part, though. The pollen is as poisonous as it gets.

"Can we go get ice cream instead?" Aspen says, now in the back seat.

Josi brings the car to life and drives off. "Dad says you're not allowed more than one treat a day."

"You mean the key lime pie I had hours ago? I barely even ate any, Josi. Can I have something else?" Aspen pouts. "Please?"

No reply at first, and Aspen smiles, knowing she has her sister right where she wants her. "Alright, but don't tell dad."

"Promise. I haven't even told him about the box of chocolates in my closet."

Instant regret at having revealed such classified information, because she freezes up as soon as she says it, and Josi has to look at her through the rear view mirror. "What?"

"What?" Aspen echoes.

Josi dismisses her attempt at feigning ignorance, but also presses no further. The ice cream parlor comes into view much later than expected, largely due to the road stuffed full of cars trying to weasel their way by. But the trip is worth it. Aspen holds the cone of ice cream like it's the only thing that matters.

Then comes the journey back home. The one Josi has come to dread because what awaits her there is a dismal farewell.

"You're ready to go?" Her mother says, the same question she always asks.

Josi plants a kiss on her temple. "I'll be back soon."

In three months' time that is. That's the next date set for a visit home. How considerate. She should get down on all fours and thank Idris Verdonni for granting her so much generosity. After all, he had no obligation. But he did it out of the goodness of his heart. How caring he is. The ideal boyfriend.

Her father brings her in for a hug, because time is painfully running out. "Take care of yourself, Josita."

"You all sound like I'm leaving forever." Josi says as an attempt to lighten the mood. But its effectiveness runs dry. "I'll be back before you all know it."

This piece of knowledge hangs in the air for the rest of the family to cling to. It isn't a permanent goodbye, but it certainly is a glum one. Even Aspen who was fawning over the sweet treat minutes ago is now dejected. She gives Josi an embrace, then pulls her ear closer for one last message. "I want chocolate truffles next time."

Josi laughs, promises her sister a box of those sweets, then begins her journey back to New York. It starts off with a train ride which had taken a lot more convincing on Josi's part. Idris wanted her in an escorted car ride, but for reasons tied to escaping all things Verdonni related, she'd turned down the favor. Three days of complete freedom is an opportunity Josi will not pass up.

Only when she arrives at the train station does she allow the escort. In spite of its magnitude, the car brings Josi no space for pondering. The disappointment is too suffocating for her to dismiss. Three days. It's been three fleeting days. What can one accomplish with a family they don't see often in just seventy-two measly hours?

This part always proves the most challenging. Abandoning serenity for a replacement that comes nowhere close. For a replacement that grants her a visit home three days tri-monthly, as if it's a treat she's earned.

Josi sinks back into her seat, as if to find some level of comfort, because the fact that she's heading back to that prison has stolen what peace of mind she had left. The scene outside the window becomes a blurry mixture of red and white lights, both creating a sense of solitude that plagues Josi. She should be accustomed by now. But some things time just doesn't fix.

The sun begins setting, bringing with it the colors of the sunset. Clouds in ripples paint themselves in those capturing tones. Josi wants to see more. "Can we make a stop?"

Croff comes to a stop at a red light. "Idris is expecting you."

"Idris wouldn't mind."

Croff studies her with the free time he has, trying to come up with an answer of his own, until the light turns green. Then he moves the car forward.

After mere minutes, Croff parks by a curbside and has Josi lead him to their destination. It's a hill with a trail that took them through some woods with sparse greenery. There's a fence separating the bulk of nature from the rest of civilization below, which Josi uses to support her weight. And now the sky seems much more accessible. Much more within reach.

The only one who seems to care enough about the sunset is Josi, though - because Croff has already moved on to a cigarette. He lights it up, then leans against a tree and begins surfing his phone.

The sky is too captivating to keep alive only in memories. Josi decides she will take some photos. Perhaps Idris will appreciate them. Perhaps he will disregard them and build up some other issue from scratch.

When the photoshoot is over with, she turns to see Croff who has already burned through much of the cigarette. "Does the nicotine help fill you up?"

Croff takes a drag. "Yes."

"What if I told you to stop smoking?"

"I only listen to Idris."

"And what if he told you to stop?"

Croff looks at her, clearly displeased at how pointless the conversation is. "Is there any point to this?"

"None." Josi tells him, though she leaves room for more questions. But Croff digs no further.

Josi doesn't think much of Croff. She sees him almost as often as she sees Idris, as he's the knight who has been tasked with keeping the peace at the Verdonni estate. He visits sometimes daily, then retreats back to his own home, which Josi now knows is located in the city. He seems to have the closest relationship with Idris besides her, and true to his words, he truly only listens to Idris. He takes orders from no one else, not even the capos or underboss. The perfect shield.

The wind sweeps past Croff's hair, leaving it disheveled and in dire need of fixing. He slips his hair tie out, gathers the hair all in one place, and tries tying it down once again. Except the hair tie snaps before he can do so. Croff curses under his breath.

But Josi is there to save the day. "I have a hair tie if you need it."

Croff is grateful, until it soon turns to doubt. "Let me do it." Josi tells him, which seems to leave him in a struggle with uncertainty. She steps up to him and waits for some sort of answer. But Croff makes no moves. "Well, I can't tie your hair with you standing."

Croff sighs, as if he really can't believe he's obliging. He squats down and gives Josi leeway to help his hair back into shape. She runs her fingers through his scalp - slowly and certainly with enough tenderness to promote stimulation - then pulls the hair away from his face, uncovering the black and silver cuffs on his ears that now glimmer due to the sleeping sun.

Josi steps back in admiration of her work once she's done. Much of the sun now remains hidden behind the horizon. Their sightseeing has met its conclusion. "I guess it's time to go."

Croff agrees. Josi turns to leave, but as if some force of nature has decided to rebel, the ground beneath becomes slippery, and the balance she once had is stolen from her. Luckily, Croff is there to catch her. He sends a hand around her waist and brings her close to his body, all under seconds Josi barely even recollects.

Time moves slowly from here. Croff inspects Josi, probably trying to find any signs of discomfort, because Idris will kill him if any harm is brought to her. And Josi scans him over just as much as he does, even meeting his eyes under a short, tense second. At last, he allows her go.

"Thanks." Josi says to him.

Croff gives her a nod for a response. She leads the way once again with the guard behind her, then has him take her to where she's supposed to be in a couple minutes' time. Josi spends the rest of the ride wishing the sun was still out.

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