After turning the lights on, Sue searched the rest of the main floor before taking the stairs two at a time. She hoped it had somehow been moved to one of the bedrooms, trying to loosen the panic that was gripping her. But behind each door she faced the same disappointment …no mirror. She had one last chance, the last door at the end of the hallway.

The two policemen who responded to the 911 emergency walked around the house. They immediately recognized the entry point.

The sewing room was small. Sue gazed around. It had a closet. She turned the knob and the door creaked.

“I heard something”, said the officer who was standing in the kitchen looking at the broken window and the blood.

“Yah, heard it, too”, whispered his partner, pulling his gun out. “It came from upstairs. The burglar is still on the premises. He may be armed and dangerous. Call for backup”, heading for the stairwell.

A sheet was draped over it, but she recognised its shape immediately. For an instant she wondered why it was hidden away. She tugged on the fabric, exposing the ancient mirror. 'Could it be that simple?' she pondered, a lump caught in her throat, while her fingers brushed the wings of one of the cherubs. 'Even if it's not Valentine day?' But as she recalled, it wasn't Valentine Day the evening she first rubbed it either. Did she jinx it like Tara predicted? “Jack”, she sobbed in despair. Using the discarded sheet, she carefully polished the same small corner. Even if the mirror had shown her reflection, she would have been unable to catch it through her tears. “Please”, she repeated over and over again, hysteria enveloping her, before collapsing.

AND????? Did it work????? ACK!!!! Marlene, I've sneaked into the computer lab to read - and now I'm gonna be left wondering! ACK!!!!

:hide:

Oh Marlène, I see your name down there. Please let us know what comes next. I can't stand to see Sue in so much pain.

please tell me when its safe to come out :hide: is sue going to be okay ...............marlo get back here.....

please come back Marlo.

You are just sitting there watching us squirm ARENT YOU!!!

Have you and Tina gotten together and bought out all the chocolate companies or something?!?!

Marlo...I can't believe you left us like that...stuck on a cliff with no way to escape. I don't know what to do, I can't leave my computer, you might come back and post and then I'll miss it!

please come back...

That's just mean Marlo..... Very mean..... Please come back and make it better...

I'm gonna have to say I agree with everyone else. That was not very nice of you, you know!!!

Jill

Technically, in order to watch you squirm, shouldn't I need to be able to see any of you ???

Okay, I got the message, I will stop and start instead

And Jill, of all people, you should know that is moi ->



Note to myself: Buy share in chocolate company

Very funny!!!

Jill

WOW,

Speech Less.

Angela

AND????

Whoa -- this is way creative. My head is still kind of spinning because I read it all in one go. I'm thinking that there is something significant about the paper heart Sue is carrying around her. And has anyone else picked up on the fact that if three agents went in and only two came out that means Bobby is the d word too?

kav

She moaned while slowly opening her eyes. She looked around, and gasped. She was lying on the floor of the formal living room, near the mirror. Outside the window, the freezing rain glistened under the streetlights.

“What a nightmare!” Sue sighed, her heart beating furiously against her chest. “But it felt so real”, shuddering at the memory. Not that she believed a mirror could give her a glimpse into her future. The notion was just too ludicrous to entertain. Her wild imagination simply ran away from her.

She pulled herself in a sitting position, and pressed her hand over her pounding head, only to feel the stickiness of blood. She looked in horror at the deep gash in her palm, experiencing the painful laceration a second time in her mind. She choked on her saliva when she noticed the Capri pants and the t-shirt she was wearing, still damp from the storm in the park.

Her teary eyes caught sight of the grandfather clock standing tall in the corner of the room. If the clock was right, she only had a few hours to change fate.

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to remain calm. She would call Jack and explain. Explain what? That she somehow jumped through time and saw her future …a future without him. He would think she was crazy! She was thinking she was crazy. No, Jack wouldn't. He would listen to her, she rationalised. But would he believe her? How should she approach him? She devised a plan in her mind while she cleaned and bandaged her wound.

well its a bit better anyway!

Thank you Thank you Thank you!


Phew! At least for now I can breathe easier.

Hey, Sue, why don't you approach Jack and just lay a big, fat kiss on him? I'm sure if you do that, he'll be so shocked you could get him to do anything - including not going in that building!

You have taken us full circle, and now you're going to do it again, aren't you!!!

Jill

See, I told you that the mantra works. If everyone says it together, maybe she'll hear us. Ready? On three. 1, 2, 3. "I trust Marlene. Marlene is good. Marlene wants Jack and Sue happy."

Great suspense building and very creative.

We bow to your madness. But now that the nightmare is finally over, can we please get to the fuzzy parts?

THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!!! THANK YOU!!!!

Now, go to Jack and avoid him to go to the warehouse!!!!


We are waiting!!!!


Restie

marlo thank you so much you made my day...............today was horrible 6 hours of french ............sue you have to tell jack he won't think anything the man LOVES YOU... .....

I dunno, I have a feeling something bad is gonna happen....

Please put us out of our misery Marlo, the suspense (and snippets) is killing us

She took her blackberry and called his cell.

'Hudson.' When she saw his name on her screen, relief flowed through her. He was alive, she wasn't too late.

“Jack, it's me. I need to talk to you. It's important. I …” pausing when words appeared on her screen.

'Sue, we're on our way to …' The message abruptly stopped, and her screen went blank. She lost the signal.

How was she supposed to warn him? She went to Tara and Lucy's rooms. Both women were fast asleep. A gentle touch on her shoulder startled her.

“What is it, my child? Shouldn't you be in bed?” inquired aunt Gertie, examining her from head to toe, noticing her odd outfit, and her injury. “Did you go outside? What happened to your hand? Did you slip on the ice and fell?”

“Yes, no …”, panic rising again. “Emer …mergency”, she stuttered. The old lady stared at her, worry lines creasing her already wrinkled face. “Could you …could you do me a favour and check if the phone is working, please?” No point in waking her friends up if they couldn't contact Jack either. Sue knew Lucy forgot her cell at home, and drained Tara's battery when she borrowed it earlier on, Tara warning her too late that she left her charger at home.

“Sure, let's go in the kitchen, and I can make you something hot to drink”, taking her arm and leading her down the stairs. “You don't look too good, child, and you're shivering.”

The house was suddenly plunged in darkness. Tara's aunt patted her hand. Sue imagined she was telling her not to worry. After lightening a few candles, Gertie checked the phone. She was sorry to report the line was dead.

“Would you mind getting me another gown please?” needing a diversion.

“Of course. We need to get you out of those wet clothes. Just wait for me”, retreating in the hallway.

Sue snatched her coat and purse, and slipped undetected into the night.

Go Sue... but we don't know if they are really on their way to warehouse....

Go out and try to find signal again... go to warn Jack!!!!!

I hope, I won't have heart attack!


Restie

Wait I'm confused... Didn't Sue just break into the house? Or was that a dream? But if it's a dream then....

Oy! I think I'll just wait for Marlo to sort it all out

MARLO!!!

Yeah, Sue broke in the house... she polished the mirror again and then she collapsed... she woke up in the room with mirror BUT 5 months ago again... On Valentine Day... It was excursion to the future and she returned back...

I understood the story this way... I hope I am right...


Restie

O man! Please post soon! I gotta know if she get's to Jack in time, I mean of course she will right? It is after all Valentines day! Please post more to this magnificent story very very very very very soon! You will, right?! Just for me?!?!

i hope she gets to jack in time to warn him and others as well ................please marlo come back...........can't wait for more.......

Restie, you gave a perfect summary of the story ... I couldn't have written it better myself !

BTW, I was aiming for a short story, but I think that idea has gone down the drain ... the end is not in sight yet!

And we are supposed to be suprised!?

Slippery was an understatement. She had the best winter tires, yet they hardly gripped the ice. The rain was freezing over her windshield as soon as it touched it, her wipers barely able to prevent a built up. At the speed she was driving she knew she would never make it back to DC in time. Jack had been on his way when she talked to him, and she dreadfully imagined his destination. Early morning explosion, she recalled reading in the newspaper article. Early morning, glancing at the clock? Couldn't they have been more specific?

She picked her blackberry from the console. Still no signals.

Against her better judgment she accelerated. In the distance, she could discern red and yellow flashing lights. Maybe they would be able to help? Maintenance crews carried radio, didn't they? A diamond shaped sign was lying on the shoulder of the road, the sharp curb ahead symbol looking down.

Having missed the warning sign, she entered the curb without decelerating. Her car swayed in the other empty lane. She slowed down, fighting with her steering wheel to keep control of her car. Just when she thought she miraculously pulled through, she spotted the array of stopped vehicles dead ahead. Veering abruptly to avoid them, her wheels lost their traction.

Her last conscious thought, before she crashed into a trailer, was for Jack.

marlo please come back!!!! i just caught up and now im off to hide until you let me know its safe to come out .. :hide: .. now where did i put all that chocolate??!!

Please make it better soon. Meanwhile I'll

I was gonna ask, Marlo, if you were doing a short story because of the SHORT posts! But since you aren't - WE NEED MORE!!!!!!

Are we in for a cycle of mirror encounters before Sue can finally make it back in time to warn Jack? I don't know if my heart can handle it all.....

*Flip runs off to read Jill's story for tension relief*

Aren't Valentine stories supposed to be fuzzy and fluffy and full of happy people?
Not full of death and carnage and angsty people ...

Okay, Oreolover said it the best: "I trust Marlene. Marlene is good. Marlene wants Jack and Sue happy."

Katinka

That's the last time I talk to you about females driving too quickly through curves in the road!!!!!


Jill

Goodness me! What twists and turns! I'm worried now about Sue!

Sairs

You are an inspiration, Jill !!!!

NO!!!! NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please let Sue and Jack be alright....

:hide:

OH MY GOD do you like making us squrem in our seats??

Beacuse you are doing a good job of it.

Angela

Did I miss the seat belt warning?

This is so angsty!

You have us tied up in knots...

Please post soon.


gracie

Marlène, you have to come back ...now... please!

Forget the freezing rain and the snow outside. Stay inside and write more posts, reassure us that Sue is ok.

Just to clarify this.........it wasn't MOI driving too fast through the curves!!!

Jill

“If I drink one more of those, I won't sleep for a week”, complained Myles, throwing his cup in the corner of the van.

“Hey, no littering, mate …unless you want to go to jail?” the tall Aussie teased.

“Be my guest”, rolling his blue eyes at him. “Maybe I could share a cell with your snitch and beat some real information out of him.”

“Slavik is usually reliable”, retorted Bobby, his frustration flaring up.

“Not tonight”, observed Myles, who was getting tired and cranky after a second worthless night of stakeout in a row, the two unrelated cases he was simultaneously working on taking their toll. And being crammed inside the surveillance van for hours with the heater at maximum wasn't improving his disposition.

“Guys, cut it off”, ordered Jack who was in no mood to listen to the bickering. Sue's call perturbed him. He regretted interrupting her, only noticing the infliction in her voice after he lost communication. It must have been very important for her to call him in the middle of the night. He sighed.

“Agent Hudson”, said the radio operator who was replacing Tara. “I hear something.”

“Something?” snapped Myles. “How about being more specific?”

“Voices, sir.”

“Voices?” Myles repeated. “And?”

“Keep at it”, Jack said to the young operator, while narrowing his eyes at Myles in a silent warning.

“Sparky”, interjected Bobby. “A shadow crossed the fourth window on the second floor …could be our guy.”

“Or could be our local homeless beggar stretching his legs”, countered Myles. “We have no positive identification.” His jaw dropped when he saw Jack donning his vest. “We're not going in, are we?”

“If it's him, we cannot risk losing him, Myles. Gear up”, Jack ordered.

Reluctantly, Myles put his vest on. He had a bad feeling about the entire operation, but Jack was his team leader, and he trusted him. With their FBI jackets zipped over, and their weapons in hands, Jack and Bobby were impatiently waiting for him.

“Ready”, Myles sighed loudly. Might as well get it over with, he thought, as Jack reached for the door.

MARLO!!!!!!! Come Back!!!!!!!

There you go again, Marlene!

let the cops call to tell Jack about Sue's accident BEFORE the men enter the building.

In the meantin I'll :hide: