Hope Falls Season 2 - Eagle Valley Read online

  Susan put a hand to her throat. "Mother! You scared me half to death!"

  “Oh, darling girl, I'm sorry." Though from the sound of her voice, she sounded amused. "Come, sit with me. We haven't had the chance to talk about a few things, you and I."

  “Mother, why are you smoking?"

  “Why not?" Cleo said with a smile.

  “You know it's not good for you."

  “Yet you indulge as well?" Cleo said with a smile.

  “What did you want to talk about?" Susan said, reaching for a cigarette.

  “A few things."

  “I have something to tell you too." Susan said.

  “Oh, yes? What is that?"

  “Derrick and I are getting married!" Susan whispered.

  The silence in the kitchen was deafening. The clock on the wall tick tocked for exactly ninety-eight seconds. "I see." Cleo said.

  “Mother, are you not happy for us?" Susan said. "Don't tell me you're gonna rain on my parade here."

  “Do you really think it's wise?"

  “Wise? How can love not be wise?"

  “But we're in hiding, you could draw attention to yourself." Cleo began. "And than there's Sophie returning, and what about Miriam?"

  Susan looked at Cleo with a steely glare. "How dare you bring her in to this."

  “She is already involved."

  “On the happiest day of my life, you bring her in to this. You have no right."

  “I have just as much right as you."

  Susan stood and approached her mother who still sat, smoking her cigarette. "This is the happiest day of my life. I will not let you ruin it for me."

  “Oh, darling girl." Cleo said, "I am not trying to ruin it for you. I am merely trying to point out the practicalities. What is the point of doing otherwise? You know that something is coming, just as well as I do."

  “I don't want to talk about that."

  “Than what will you talk about?" Cleo asked. "Before, when you came in here, I wanted to talk to you about your father, about what happened. But you won't want to talk about that will you?

  Chapter Eight

  "Why would you want to talk about my father? Why now?" Susan said. She went to the fridge, pulled out a large jug filled with an orange liquid.

  “I thought you were having coffee." Cleo said.

  “I changed my mind." Susan said.

  “It's two o'clock in the morning Susan. You can't drink booze now."

  “Mai Tai's are healthy for you." Susan said vaguely, pouring a glass.

  “Healthy for you?" Cleo replied with a soft smile.

  “Yeah." Susan felt her mother's eyes on the back of her head. She took out another glass and poured another one full to the brim. She brought them back to the table and sat them down in front of them. Susan sat down and the clinked glasses. "Cheers." Susan said.

  “Cheers." Cleo replied and they both sipped their drinks.

  The kitchen was quiet for a moment. Silence filled the air; but instead of causing discomfort, both women knew that something was about to happen. Something was about to change.

  “So…" Susan said after a little while. "You said you'd tell me what happened. With my father." She looked away for a second. "With you. You said something about it before, I remember."

  FLASH! "Oh, darling girl, I've done some terrible things. I've done some horrible things. I couldn't live with myself, I just couldn't. We were so poor and you see you wanted a job on the television for so long. I cant' tell you what it was like, we never told you..."

  FLASH!

  "Mom, what are you saying?" Susan studied her mother intently. "Hope Falls was a snuff film studio." She narrowed her eyes at her mother. "What are you telling me?"

  Cleo was silent for a moment. "I never thought I would have to tell you this." Cleo said. "But we were so poor, darling girl. So we did something that no parent should ever do to their child. When you were seventeen, and you got that first job on All My Children?"

  Susan nodded. She had remembered the time with fondness. "I loved it; my first job. It was like a dream come true."

  “That's precisely what it seemed like to me. A dream. We never told you but your contract included a clause, much like Miriam's."

  “But Miriam's contract was a Lifetime Contract. I was just working for Passions, Mother. I was just an actress." She looked at her mother, her eyes colder than they had been in a while. She did not want to hear what she was about to be told.

  She knew in her gut what her mother was about to say.

  “Yes, but you were a Contract Actress. You were contracted out to different shows, remember? Your father and I were your agents, remember Darling?"

  “Yes." Susan said coldly. "I remember."

  “Well, your contract was owned by Hope Falls Studios." Cleo said softly.

  Chapter Nine

  "What the hell do you mean, my contract was owned by Hope Falls?"

  Cleo looked down at the kitchen table, her hands clutching her Mai Tai. "I never knew how to tell you…it was so hard, you see. We were paying for your acting classes and your education. We had to find a way to do it, to…" A tear slid down Cleo's cheek and she clutched a hand to her mouth. She took a deep steadying breath and continued.

  "…We had to find a way to do it, to survive. Every penny we had was going into your education. You wanted to be an actress so badly, Susan; I remember that day you told me you wanted to do that; we were watching a movie on television and you said you wanted to do that."

  Susan looked at her mother as if she were a different person, someone she didn't know. Who was this woman? Her mother was cold and distant; her mother was different. All her life, her mother had been different. Sensed things. It had set them apart; Susan never believed in what she couldn't see. Right now, her mother was hurting. "What happened, Mother?"

  "We were at an audition. You were eighteen. Your father and I were approached by Howard Kowalski."

  At the sound of his name, Susan felt a chill go up her spine. "That man had nothing to do with me until Miriam."

  “That's not true."

  “Yes it is." Susan spat the words at her mother.

  “Darling girl, you have to listen to me. Did you not wonder how you shot to stardom so quickly? Why you never had any trouble getting a part in anything? Why all the soap opera's wanted to cast you and offer you parts?"

  Susan stared at her mother, shocked. She felt as if she had been slapped. She had assumed that she had gotten the work because she was a good actress. And now, her mother was telling her…

  “What are you saying, Mother."

  “You had a contract. Different than Miriam's. But you had a contract."

  Susan felt her skin pale. Narrowing her eyes, she leaned in closer to her mother. There was fury there. "What. Are. You. Saying. Mother."

  “You didn't have to stay in one show, like Miriam." Cleo said. The walls had tumbled and Cleo's outer hard shell was crumbling. "I don't know what to say." Cleo said.

  “I'll tell you what to friggin say!" Susan yelled. "YOU CAN START AT THE FREAKING BEGINNING!" Susan's temper had finally hit the breaking point. She grabbed her mother by the throat of her gown and hauled her to her feet. "You can start at the beginning." Susan whispered.

  Cleo chuckled. "God, Susan, you need to get laid badly."

  “Shut up." Susan snapped. And then Cleo started laughing. Soon, Susan could hold the laughter in no longer. She started laughing along with her mother until tears were streaming down their faces.

  Derrick came in and looked at them. "What's with all the racket? Did you tell your Mum?" he grinned at them.

  This only set Cleo and Susan off on another fit of laughter that left Derrick scratching his head in confusion. Women, he thought.

  * * *

  The room was dark, but warm. A fire crackled in a brick fireplace. Light from the flames flickered around the room, dancing. Erin watched them and wished she was anywhere but here. She waited for him to speak. She had been waiting
for twenty minutes.

  “Do you know why you're here?" he asked her softly.

  “Not really." Erin said. She slowly adjusted elastic in her short pink hair.

  “Did you not get the details?"

  “Yes, but I still don't understand what you need me to do."

  “I need you to find them." His voice grew colder. Erin wished he could give her the curtsey of turning his chair around. She hated staring at its red leather back. The gold finishing nails were like darts, or coffin nails.

  “I still don't see the point."

  “The POINT," he said, "is that I want them found. I thought that was understood."

  “I still don't know why you want them found. I think I should know why if you want me to do this." She sighed. "It kind of goes against the ethics of my profession."

  “But you already took the money." He said simply.

  This was true enough. Erin wasn't dumb. How could she turn down that amount of money? Only a fool could walk away from such a sum. "Still," she said, "I ought to know why I'm looking for them."

  “That's for me to know and you to find out." The man said. His voice was smoky. "You can show yourself out."

  Chapter Ten

  Derrick was sitting in the backyard, the night sky dark around him. He loved the quiet here; he loved the softness of the evening. He could actually see the stars here, not like in California. There, he saw smog. Here, he saw lights in the night that blinked at him.

  After they had left Burbank California, things had been hard. They didn't know what had happened to Miriam. She had gone into the studio, gone into Hope Falls. And she didn't come out again.

  None of the electronics had worked so they had not been able to contact her inside the studio. They had no idea how to find her, or find out if she was alive. They couldn't go into the studio, or they would all be dead. And everything would be for naught.

  So they chose to hide instead. Susan, Cleo and Derrick knew that they were all marked, that they would come after them soon. And there was still the chance that Miriam would show again, although Derrick didn't think that was going to be possible. Not that he wanted it that way.

  He had loved Miriam. Things between Susan and him had become entangled and had fallen in love with each other, but a part of him still loved Miriam, grieved for her. He had loved other women before, but never with the intensity that he had loved Miriam. His love for Susan, though strong and wonderful, paled in comparison to his love for Miriam.

  Not that he didn't love Susan, he did. But he still grieved for Miriam with half his heart. The other half belonged to Susan; it was as much as he could give her. She knew how he felt about Miriam, but didn't want to discuss it with him. The less said, the less pain there would be.

  So now they were hiding. When they could find no trace of Miriam and had thought the worse, they chose to hide. And had been doing so for three years. In that three years, love bloomed between him and Susan and a wall went up between Susan and Cleo. He hoped that some of the wall had tumbled down tonight. There was something about her mother that frightened Susan, though she would not discuss it. There were other secrets there too.

  Everyone had secrets.

  Derrick started when he heard someone behind him. He turned around to see Sophie, dressed in a flimsy nightgown. She was a shadow, but he knew it was her. She smelled lovely, like autumn, a soft woodsy scent. "What are you doing up?" He said.

  “I couldn't sleep." She said. She came closer to him and he saw she was smoking a cigarette. The heat of it blinked in the night like an eye. "Nightmares." She said.

  “I know the feeling."

  “Why you out here?"

  “Thinking." He said, which was true. He didn't want to tell her what he had been thinking about.

  Thankfully, she didn't ask. "Yeah, I've been doing a lot of that lately." She said instead.

  “About what?"

  “Oh, things." She smiled; he could see the white of her teeth in the darkness.

  “Like what?" he asked. He knew he was on thin ice here.

  “Lots of things." She shrugged. "What happened in the last three years. I've been told I've died, but I have no memory of it. How can I not remember dying, Derrick?" Her voice grew watery. "How can I be alive, here and now, if I was dead?"

  “I don't know." He said hoarsely.

  “Oh, God, Derrick, what's going on? Who's playing with us? Has it really been three years?" Tears welled up in her eyes; he could see them as they ran down her face, moonlight glinting off of them. Sophie began to sob.

  “Sophie." He said. He pulled her to him, wrapped his arms around her for comfort. It was all he could do. She had inner demons he had no hope of understanding.

  “I just feel so lost." Sophie said between sobs. "I, you make me feel safe, Derrick."

  Derrick felt a shiver go down his spine. "Sophie, don't." he said.

  “No, no, I have to say this. I've been waiting to say this." She looked up at him, her body pressed close to him. He could feel her naked body beneath the flimsy nightgown. "You make me feel so secure, so…" She stopped talking than and looked at Derrick, her eyes wide and bright.

  Slowly, slowly enough that Derrick could have stopped her if he had wanted to, Sophie leaned forward and kissed Derrick softly. Soon, the softness was replaced by need and she crushed her mouth to his.

  Derrick, stunned, felt himself grow hard; he felt her breasts pressed between them, could feel her nipples hard under the soft fabric. He kissed her back just as fiercely, all rational thought gone from his head under the heat of the kiss.

  Sophie pulled away slightly. "Make love to me Derrick." She whispered. "Make love to me."

  Derrick, feeling as if his hands as if they belonged to someone else, slowly began to lift Sophie's nightgown above her head. The sight of her, naked in front of him, made him forget all else. The sight of her was intoxicating and made his head swim, his heart beat loudly in his ears.

  "Make love to me Derrick." Sophie said again. "Make love to me."

  * * *

  Erin sat at the large desk in her office and leaned back in her old leatherback chair and contemplated the file folder in front of her. Her desk was large and took up most of the small office, but she loved it. She loved its many doors, it's scarred top and secret hidey holes. On top of the desk was the file folder and pictures of three women and a man.

  Being a private investigator didn't pay well, but it was what she loved to do. It also meant that she couldn't turn down a significant chunk of money if she was offered it. She was being paid to find Susan and Derrick and also had to keep any eye out for this Miriam woman. The third picture, the one of Sophie, had been provided as background material, but her employer had said there had been sightings of her.

  She just wish she knew WHY she was being asked to track these people down. She had actually already found them. It had taken a bit of fancy footwork, a few favors, but she found them. But now what to DO with that information?

  There was more going on here than she was being told; that much was obvious. She had earned her money, she had found them. Whether or not she told her employer was another matter all together. She wanted to find out ALL the facts; that was after all what a private investigator did, they gathered all the information possible.

  And the only way to do that would be to go to Eagle Valley. Sighing, she picked up the phone and called her travel agent. It looked like she was going to be taking a little trip.

  Chapter Eleven

  Derrick looked at Sophie bathed in the moonlight.

  She was as lovely as a Goddess and just as intoxicating. He lay her down on the grass, just beside the big palm tree that grew in the backyard. They were covered by the darkness around them and the only sound was that of the water and surf, washing up against the sand.

  Sophie bucked her hips toward Derrick. "Please, Derrick…" She whispered. "Please…"

  Derrick made quick work of his clothes and was holding her naked body close to his in se
conds. And as they slipped towards that edge, when Derrick dove into her and they were about to tumble over it, Derrick did not think of Susan. In fact, he could think of nothing at all.

  When Sophie felt Derrick begin to shudder, she smiled. It was not a happy smile, but one of mischief.

  * * *

  Susan was in the small library of their house.

  Actually, it was just a small room that they could think of no use for. So Susan had started filling it with books. If they were going to spend large chunks of their time in hiding, they were going to want to do something. She kept the window open most times, so that the room would not become too hot in the New Mexico heat. But the room retrained the warmness.

  Thus, the little book filled room was a good place for Susan to go to get comfort and to relax. She needed to relax. The conversation with her mother had left her drained. She had looked for answers for so long and to get so many shocking ones in one evening.

  And yet, those answers just spurred more questions. There was still more talking that needed to be done between Cleo and her. How did her father die? WHY did he die was more the question. There was still so much she didn't know. And there was the other issue, the one that bothered Susan more. Her mother was psychic.

  She knew that there had always been whispers in the family. There had always been stories of how Mother had known things when she shouldn't of. Some treated her like a wise woman. She remembered when Cleo had appeared in her life those three years ago. FLASH! "I don't believe you." Sophie said.

  "I tell you, it's true. I am Susan's mother. Let me in. I have to see her."

  "I don't care." Sophie said, "You've done enough damage already, do you realize what we're going through?" Sophie shook her head. "She's under enough stress."

  The woman looked Sophie over. "You carry your own pain too." The woman said. Sophie looked at her again. She was tall, stately. She was not beautiful, but very striking. Her face was lined, as if life had been unkind to her. But there was a savageness there that would eat at a man's heart.