Topic: Letting Her Hair Down

Colt Daniels

Date: 2012-08-23 07:56 EST
?Colt. You?re not a preteen girl. Texting in all caps is not necessary. If you don?t understand the booking system for your own business, call Summer. She set it up. Or Harper. She understands it too. Dylan told me she?d be more than willing to help you out answering phones. Just give her the business line. And tell Seth to watch his mouth or I?ll wash it out with soap when I get back. I?ll be back in a month or so. Be good. Give Ten my love.?

Colt frowned, striking the ?end? button on his phone a bit harder than necessary after replaying Austin?s voice mail for the fourth time in an hour. Her voice had been low. A near whisper. And it came without a hint of her natural accent. There was laughter and amiable chatter in the distance. A break room. It felt like someone sneaking a call in from a company break room.

There wasn?t anything the least bit foreboding about the message. He could tell by her tone that there was no villainous kidnapper in the background with a gun to her head ordering her to tell Colt everything was fine but he couldn?t help the suspicion nagging at him. Austin was hiding something from him and concern for what it possibly could be was starting to eat at him.

Having just returned from questioning Austin?s boyfriend, Slate, at Slate?s New Haven private investigation office, the blue pickup truck was still rumbling in the drive before his house as he set the phone on the dash. It vibrated with the grumbling of the engine but he didn?t lift his hand from his knee to cut off the ignition. Just leave it be, Slate had dismissed with a shrug before reminding him pointedly about his obligation to his ill girlfriend and then quickly switching topics to the start of football season. Slate had clearly not wanted him to go hunting after Austin... which, unfortunately, had only made Colt want to find her more.

With a huff of an exhale, he reached up to cut the ignition. His phone was lifted to his ear as he slid out of the truck after hitting a speed dial number.

?Hey, Dylan. I need a favor. Can you keep Ten entertained for the day so she doesn't overdo it?"

A grin formed at the response from the other end as he bounded his way up the steps and onto the porch of the cabin. "Perfect. You're the best, DeeDee."

Colt Daniels

Date: 2012-08-24 07:39 EST
Colt's twelve year old blue Dodge pick-up was the type of truck that should have a name. But it didn't. It did have lots of 'character' dents. One of those dents was situated on the passenger side of the chrome rear bumper where Jackie had allegedly been attacked by the side of a barn. There was another in the tailgate that had magically appeared once after Ten had taken it out with Vera. There was a scuff on the driver's side bedside where Colt had a close encounter with a tree after one too many beers. The truck was littered with them and each was associated with its own woeful tale.

But that was hardly all the stories in the truck's infamous history. There were nights of boozing that even the parties involved didn't remember, there were women that the truck's owner would rather not remember, and there were adventures.

Colt and his truck were in the middle of one of the latter and set on wrapping Chey into it as well.

The truck rumbled its way down Jackie's drive at a half past eight. The engine was killed after throwing it into park and balancing a box of doughnuts, Colt stepped out of the cab.

Inside Cheyenne had, regrettably, put on pants. She'd been waiting to hear from Colt all day. Not anxious, but curious. Well, perhaps both. Curious to hear about this potential road trip, and anxious to get over the nastiness of text dueling, the latter of which she had already more or less forgotten. That was Chey's way, to speak her piece and be done. The light above the porch was on, even though it wasn't completely dark yet. A peek out of a window (which she'd been doing for a bit now) put Colt in her field of vision, even if the truck hadn't warned her aurally first. Seeing the balancing act, she moved to the door and pulled it open so that she stood framed by the light from within the house.

A breath was drawn in through Colt's nose as he reached the doorway to confirm his sister's scent was not present. It was easier to apologize to Chey. He wasn't ready to face them both at the same time. After making sure he wouldn't run into Jackie, he allowed a warm smile and stepped in through the doorway. As his earlier tongue-in-cheek text message would suggest, it was water under the bridge and he was ready to move on. "Hey, Chey."

"Hey, Colt," she said, giving him a smile and waiting until the linebacker body was clear of the door before shutting it. "Did you bring me one with sprinkles?"

"Of course. Chocolate with sprinkles. And I told the girl that these were apology doughnuts and she insisted on giving me these cream filled ones with smiley faces drawn in the frosting." He set the box down on the table along with the cardboard tray with two to-go coffee cups. "And then she jotted down her number on the back of the receipt. The women in this town have no shame."

She laughed, leaning over to give his arm a squeeze with her hand. "Maybe if you take her on a date we'll get doughnut discounts for the future."

Any lingering tension was gone with that squeeze. He was a physical sort of guy and that was just the sort of reassurance that he needed. His smile brightened further and he sunk into a chair, reaching one of the coffee cups up to her. "You're right. When it comes to datin' this family should think strategically. Think we can hook Summer up with a beer vendor?"

A grin, taking the offered cup and then sinking down into a chair opposite him. "Yeah, that's a great idea. An' maybe Jackie can date someone that sells that beer mix stuff they serve in th' little bowls. An' I'll date someone who owns cattle so we can have steak. Forever." Strategy!

"And DeeDee can marry a lawyer 'cause Lord knows we need that... or at least I tend to." Cheerfully, he sunk deeper into his chair. Not so smoothly, he changed topics. "So you heard much from Austin this summer?"

"Actually, no," she said after a sip of coffee, setting it down and reaching to open the box of doughnuts. Clearly they were crying out to her to be eaten. As she selected one, she continued. "I've texted her a few times but I guess she's busy." A small shrug. Her two siblings were older than her by a bit, so she was used to them not being around. Particularly Austin, with her wanderer's spirit.

He couldn't let Chey eat alone. That would be rude. And was that one doughnut's frosting in a kissy face? He gave a shrug and reached for it. After swallowing a bite, he played at thoughtful contemplation but acting just like lying wasn't something he did well. "Me neither. I was thinkin' 'bout it. Don't you think she's an awfully big pain for being so vague about her whereabouts and for, you know, not properly introducin' her boyfriend to the family and all?"

Her brow rose on that, doughnut halfway to her mouth. "Boyfriend?"

Had Austin still not told Chey? His brows knit together in confusion and maybe just a little guilt. After all, he had promised to keep his mouth shut. "Slate. He's one of my friends. Lives in the same building Austin does."

"Oh, yeah." A big bite was taken out of the doughnut and chewed thoughtfully before continuing. "I didn't know they were datin'. Last thing I heard she was bein' close-lipped 'bout him." A shrug. That was par for the course, too.

"You should go ask her 'bout him." Jackie wasn't the only one that could nudge Chey towards trouble.

"I tried! She wouldn't tell me anythin', though." She got a gleam in her eye, and a small upturn to the corners of her mouth. "But I bet I could make her." Schemes were dancing about her pretty little head. "Besides, I should know these sorts of things, as a concerned sister."

And schemes dancing in the heads of pretty little Daniels' girls was a beautiful thing to Colt. A grin formed at the mischievous look in her eyes. "Definitely. You should. And you know what? I was curious so I had a friend back home track down her last couple cell phone calls for me. I know the locations of the cell towers she's been using recently. And I think we should visit."

"Yeah?" She returned her full attention back to him, leaning in somewhat. "Where's she at? Let me guess. New York? Nashville? Somewhere she can sing, right?"

He knew he had her when she leaned in. His grin was expanding rapidly. "Cheyenne Daniels, how would you like to accompany me to Orlando, Florida?"

The grin on her face stayed there for a few heartbeats after he said it. The grin clearly said- 'Ok!' And then the expression changed to one of confusion. "Florida?"

((With thanks to the player behind Cheyenne Daniels!))

Colt Daniels

Date: 2012-08-31 07:48 EST
With heads both tilted to the same side, Colt and Chey stared up at the sign above the parking attendants as the pick-up inched forward in traffic. Silence filled the truck save for the low hum of Lee Brice coming from the radio. That Colt and Chey couldn?t tear their eyes from the sign had nothing to do with having trouble reading it and everything to do with being unable to understand why Austin Daniels would find herself here.

Magic Kingdom, the great pastel sign read.

The trip had gone smoothly enough thus far. They made good time and after a couple passes around the blocks that Colt?s former Rhovnik buddy had narrowed the cell calls into, Colt caught Austin?s scent still lingering in the air and that distinct feeling that was Austin to him. It was like sitting on a front porch playing Sudoku during a gentle afternoon thundershower (one of those secret habits he prefered the Daniels? girls didn?t know about) -- warm, cozy, and safe but with that hint of a challenge that sparked his mental gears into movement.

And this had been part of his peace offering to Chey. Not any of his family had seen him track. He had never really sat down with any of them and explained how it worked. Chey was the first. She had been kept on the outside because he?d always seen her as one of his baby cousins but the grown twenty-one year old woman with him was no child. He could tell that by the questions she asked, by the way men?s eyes naturally followed her when they passed, and by the way she realized how much of himself he was offering up by letting her see him on the hunt. Whatever lingering tension and hurt feelings between them accrued from years of him treating her like a child began to die with every answered question about what he smelled or how people?s energy wakes felt to him.

From the apartment complex in which they assumed Austin was staying, it had not been difficult to track her to here. According to the fading energy signatures, this was a trip she made daily and, therefore, it had to be where she was working.

Chey gave Colt a confused shrug as he shelled out the money for parking and drove the truck through the front gates. He was as equally confused and neither knowing what to say, they remained quiet until the truck was parked in Ursula Row 91. After some eye rolling at the price of admission, Colt shelled out enough for two tickets and within minutes they were standing before the landscaped Mickey as the train pulled out of the station overhead.

Colt drew in a deep breath through his nose, trying to find Austin?s scent and sunk in deep to his surroundings try to filter out her energy trail from all the other?s. But it was no use. There were too many people. Maybe she hadn?t even come in this way. There had to be an employee?s entrance. After several minutes, his eyes drifted to Chey and he gave a frustrated shake of his head.

?It?s okay,? Chey reassured as she opened the map she?d been handed on the way in.

Colt exhaled heavily, forcing his mind to change paths with Chey?s. Plan B. ?I?ll cut down the left side and you take the right? We?ll meet up here.? His finger tapped a point on the map.

Chey squinted at the spot that was pointed at. ?What?s that??

A flick of a grin formed as his hazel eyes shifted to consult the map?s legend. ?It?s a Small World.?

His cousin gave a laugh and a nod as she folded up the map. After an exchange of partings and a synchronizing of watches, they parted ways with Chey heading down one side of Main Street towards Adventureland and Colt heading up the opposite towards Futureland. And while he was dedicated to the task at hand, he couldn?t help the slow pace at which he was crawling through the park. There was not only a crowd to maneuver through and quite a few faces to search but there was just so much to see.

It was nowhere near the great hunt through the Magic Kingdom that he had envisioned when they had stepped through the turnstiles. As Colt passed beneath the railroad tracks, he caught Austin?s scent. A specific mix of honey and vanilla. Or at least what those two things smelled like bottled as body wash. A note lower was the scent of the fabric softener she always used and her favorite shampoo. A glance over his shoulder showed that Chey had already disappeared into the crowd so he plunged ahead, deciding to call as soon as he put his eyes on Austin.

He drew in a deep breath, letting his nose guide the way in as direct a path as the crowd and the kids intermittently darting in front of him permitted. At the foot of the Town Square Theater with its Victorian-inspired columns looming overhead, a gaggle of little girls was surrounding a single woman a bright purple dress with a wig consisting of a over-the-top thick blonde braid falling over a shoulder. Stunned, Colt took rounded the grouping until he found the woman?s face. Distinctive denim blue eyes, a graceful easy-going air, and a bright warm Daniels smile.

There she was. Rapunzel. Austin Daniels.