Chapter 21 - Home

"Mom, I'm home!" Julia yelled from the doorway and despite still being angry, the simple fact of being able to state that out loud, made her feel so damn good.

She'd call her mother from the car, explaining everything. She'd wanted to save her the shock she would have probably gone through if Julia had shown on her doorstep unexpectedly.

Mrs Stiles ran out of the kitchen and closed her daughter in an enthusiastic embrace.

"Oh, my darling..." she started sobbing. "Oh, my dear darling. I'm so happy. You are finally free. You are finally safe."

"Mom..." Julia whispered, realizing that Nicholas' death was also a game changer for her mother.

"I baked your favourite apple pie!" Her mom wiped the tears off her face and pulled Julia to the kitchen.

"I can smell that."

Julia decided to make the time all about her mom. The last year had also been nerve wracking for Mrs Stiles, with its peak being the letter from Nicholas that her mother had read.

The next morning they took a trip to visit the grave of Julia's grandad, then had a long walk in the park facing the graveyard. This had been their routine every time they had come here on grandpa's birthday.

Julia had forgotten how good, how natural it felt to just walk out in the open without constantly looking over her shoulder. Now, just strolling along the endless lanes, she finally appreciated the regained freedom, she could finally breathe.

What if you are free, because Jack is behind Nicholas' death? The quiet voice in her head asked.

Julia pushed the thought away, not ready to dwell on that possibility just yet.

"You alright, hun?" her mom asked. Julia could see her mother's questioning look; she must have been suspecting that not everything was as it should have been. Julia didn't feel like talking about Jack though.

"I'm kind of hungry, if you must know," she answered instead, knowing what would be her mom's reaction to that.

"Well, we cannot have that! Let's go grab something to eat at that diner your grandpa liked so much."

"Great idea, mom."

"And then... if you're up to it, we could go shopping?"

Julia did not feel up to it, but she could clearly see the hope in her mom's eyes.

"Sure, I'm up to it!" She lied. "But you need to feed me first."

When they returned home, Julia's mom rushed to the kitchen. Julia followed, raising her brow as her mother started taking out food from the fridge and piling it on the table.

"Roger is coming over in an hour. We're having a barbecue..."

"We are?"

"I thought you being here, officially, is a great reason to celebrate, darling... And since Roger was in on... well, your situation, I thought he would be a great dinner companion..."

Julia sighed. She couldn't help but laugh at her mom. Her enthusiasm was simply something Julia could not fight with.

"Well, if you think you will surprise him with me being here, mom, you're wrong. I called Roger on my way here and related everything to him."

"Then you ruined the surprise, my dear!" her mom exclaimed. It seemed though that her good mood could not be fazed by anything. "But I guess Roger deserved to know. He's been such a great support to me in the past year."

Julia just nodded. Roger had indeed been there for Mrs Stiles whenever the situation with Nicholas was becoming too much. He'd organized the police patrols in a way that they passed by her mom's house daily, he'd been checking up on her mom regularly. He'd proven a real friend.

"Let me help you with the salad then," Julia offered and sat at the table.

"Shouldn't you go upstairs and get ready?" her mom asked instead.

"Get ready?"

"Well, to look nice when Roger gets here..."

"Why would I...?" It took Julia a moment to connect the dots. "Mom!" Julia couldn't help but laugh at her mother's naïve expectations. "First of all, last time I checked Roger had a girlfriend..."

"Not any more..." her mother whispered with a grin. "They broke up last month."

"Second of all, Roger is a friend or actually like a brother, there is now way he and I..."

"Auch!"

Both women turned at the sound of Roger's voice. Julia felt her face turning crimson.

"Roger! You're early," her mom exclaimed too enthusiastically.

"I'm glad I am. At least I know where I stand," Roger answered, shooting Julia an amused look.

"Roger...I'm sorry. I..."

"Julia, don't sweat. I'm just glad you're here and that you're safe. Here," he handed her a bouquet of flowers. "These are for you; for a new beginning."

Julia got up from her chair and gave him a hug.

"Thanks, Rog. I'm really happy you're here."

They both looked at Julia's mom and bursted out laughing simultaneously, seeing the disappointed look on her face.

"You would make such a nice couple..." she said more to herself.

"Will you finally tell me what's wrong?"

After dinner Julia was sitting on the grass, resting her back against a tree in her mom's garden. Roger approached her and sat down next to her.

He had actually turned out to be a barbeque master and as a result all three had eaten too much. Mrs Stiles rejected their offer to help her clean the dishes though.

"You kids go ahead and chat..." she'd just said, probably still hoping that something happens between Julia and Roger.

"Nothing's wrong..." Julia answered, hoping this would fool Roger.

Roger sent a smirk her way.

"A man that's been stalking you for the last year, who had his men follow you and hunt you down, is dead." Roger said, taking a sip of his beer. "When I came here, I was expecting to see a happy, carefree Julia, but instead I see a gloomy one... So, let me repeat my question." Roger turned to face Julia. "What's wrong?"

When she did not answer, he sighed.

"It's not like you miss the guy, so..."

"I feel like I can't trust people around me anymore, like everyone has their own agenda..."

"Is there someone in particular you are thinking of?"

Julia did not answer, but she could feel she was blushing. This did not go unnoticed by Roger.

"Ah, so there is someone..." Roger rested his head against the tree and kept quiet. Realizing that Julia had no intention of speaking, he turned to her again. "I think you are exaggerating... I mean it's to be expected that your... experiences will influence your judgment and how you see the world, but come on, Julia, the guy is dead! Try at least feeling relieved, instead of looking for excuses not to be happy."

"Auch..." Julia said, slightly bitter. But after a second thought, she had to admit, at least to herself, that ever since she'd learnt about Nicholas' death, she hadn't spent much time thinking of how this would positively change her life. Instead, she'd been thinking about Jack's potential involvement in Starr's death.

"There is someone..." she finally admitted.

"So what's the problem?" Roger asked, very to the point.

Julia sighed. She grabbed the beer Roger was holding and took a sip out of his bottle. Then she told him the story of Julia and Jack.

"Oh, God!" she exclaimed annoyed when she'd told him everything. "While I was telling you about Jack, I realized I somehow attract powerful men... First Nicholas, now Jack? What's wrong with me?"

"Julia, first of all, give me back my beer," Roger said with a wink. "Second of all, from what you are saying this Jack guy, despite being powerful, as you put it, seems to be a decent guy who loves you! And I think you are being extremely unfair to him by putting him in one line with Starr."

"Have you missed the part where I told you that he was thinking of killing Nicholas?!" Julia turned to Roger annoyed.

"No, I have not, but I'm sure he had nothing to do with it." Roger stated so matter of factly that Julia grabbed his hand surprised.

"How can you be so sure?"

Roger finished his beer, probably afraid that Julia would steal it from him again.

"Roger?"

"When you called me yesterday, telling me that Starr is dead..." he said looking a bit guilty. "I couldn't help myself, I had to know more. So I called that officer in New York, detective Rivera."

"How do you know her?"

"She called me some time back... after you had been attacked by Nicholas' men." Roger shot her an anxious look. "She was asking about you..."

"You knew about the attack?" Julia whispered. She turned to her mother's house. Through the kitchen window she could see her mom washing the dishes.

Roger must have guessed what she was thinking.

"I haven't told your mom, Julia."

Julia relaxed a bit.

"Thank you..."

"Anyway, I called detective Rivera yesterday and asked her about Nicholas' death. Julia, you clearly don't know the details, you don't know the circumstances of his death..."

"I don't want to know them, Roger!" Julia interrupted, clearly getting angry.

"You have to know them, Julia." Roger answered firmly. "You have to know them, to be able to move on."

Julia wasn't convinced that Roger was right, but she didn't object. She just sat there, under the tree and waited for his next words.

"Nicholas struck a deal with the DEA and was going to testify against Joe Pelosi, a mafia head. I can imagine with Starr's portfolio he must have been close with folks like Pelosi. He must have known a lot. So when he was about to testify, they shut him up... for good. Anyway, the guy who strangled Starr was one of Pelosi's men, sentenced for life anyway..."

Julia turned to Roger slowly.

"This means..."

"This means, Julia, that Jack had nothing to do with Starr's death."

Julia closed her eyes. You moron! She scolded herself. You basically accused Jack of murder. Way to go, Stiles!

"I think you just ran out of excuses, Julia. There is no other way, but for you to be happy now..." Roger smiled at her warmly.

"I think you are right, sheriff. I just hope that the mighty CEO, Jack Deschanel, will still be willing to forgive me..."