I will remember you. Will you remember me? Don?t let your life pass you by. Weep not for all the memories.
---Sarah McLachlan---

Keir was actually silent for a few minutes until they'd walked a block or two away from the Inn. He was taking her in the direction of his cafe in hopes they could catch the sunset by the water. Fingers found the ever-present candies in his pocket and he spoke up as he unwrapped it. "What was his name?"

Hannah stepped out of the noisy Inn and into the Back Alley with Keir, her hands were tucked into her front jeans pockets and she let out an audible huff. Hannah breathed in the night air, and sighed a bit, stepping away from the door, allowing Keir to step out and not bump into her. Then she was following his leading footsteps towards wherever he was taking them. At his question, oddly enough she found that she didn't even blink to it, though there was the slightest of hesitations before she answered him, "His name was Mark."

Keir nodded and popped the candy into his mouth. As he directed her to turn down the street they'd just come upon, he offered her one of the wrapped hard candies. "Her's was Becky." A pained smile found it's way onto his face. "She was beautiful."

She turned down the street and blinked down towards the offered candy, taking it with a nod of thanks. Hannah unwrapped it and popped it into her mouth, sighing softly. "How long ago?" Subjects such as these were a touchy matter, and she hadn't really talked about her own pain, but she was good at listening to every one else's.

Keir had made the same mistake Hannah had in the beginning by not talking about it. Even went so far as to move out of state to escape it's reality. "A year and a half ago." Pain was fresh, but Keir wasn't a bitter man. He embraced his pain as evidence to how much Becky had meant to him. He stared ahead as he took a deep breath and began his story. "It was the middle of winter and Beck had been out picking up our 10 month old daughter from her grandparents house." As he spoke, the images of the car crash flashed through his mind. They were images that haunted his dreams often enough. "She had wanted to come straight home because Emma had an ear infection, but I called her saying we were out of milk and she needed to pick some up on the way home."

Hannah sighed a bit, walking alongside Keir, listening to his story. Did he blame himself? She already knew the answer to that question. She closed her eyes for a moment, and then shook her head. "And I assume that you lost them both, not just Becky?" She knew the answer to that one as well, without even needing to hear Keir's answer to the question, but she couldn't let him know that she already knew most all the answers to the probing questions that she had on her mind.

"Yeah." Hannah would easily see one of the things Keir had had to deal with. Guilt. "I was always worried about the streets in the winter, especially with Emma in the car." Keir chuckled mirthlessly. "I remember the last thing I said to her was to drive safe." He kicked at a rock in the middle of the road, causing it to skid several yards in front of them. "It didn't help. Not one bit because I had my entire life stolen from me because some guy didn't know how to drink responsibly." Only now did he look down at the woman walking beside him. "And you want to know what I did when they told me what happened?"

Hannah nodded. "I assume that he is still behind bars, yes?" She wanted to tell him it wasn't his fault, that he couldn't have foreseen the accident, couldn't have prevented it. She paused a moment in her steps, gazing up into his eyes. It was hard to bring herself to meet his gaze. The pain in her own gray-blue eyes was evident, she was tired of hiding it. "Hmm?" Though she had an idea what he had done, she'd remain quiet. She knew a lot about Keir, by just watching him, studying him and listening to him talk and converse. Watching his movements and his non-actions. Body language and demeanor told her so very much. But he wasn't supposed to know that she knew. Had Sev told him what they were? What they did for a living?

"I laughed." The pain in his eyes mirrored her own. That lump in his throat grew so big that he could no longer swallow it. While yes, he'd dealt with this, sometimes it still hurt so much. Emotion warbled his voice before he could regain control. "I actually laughed." Keir stopped talking to look away and reign in said emotions. After a moment, he looked back down at Hannah. "...and I left. Picked up and moved out of Texas, relocated to the opposite side of the country and tried ignoring the fact that I"d lost everything I'd ever loved." A bemused expression took the place of the pained one on his face. "It's funny how pushing everything so deep down inside that you'd think you've actually forgotten it." Keir turned them down another street and the smell of sea salt became more apparent. They were getting closer. "And it works for a while."

"To be quite honest, it is not an unheard of reaction to the news of such a tragedy Keir. And no one can blame you for moving." She shook her head as she ran a hand through chestnut strands, a stray strand of hair falling over her right eye. "You still had your family thought, didn't you? She had wished time and time again after Mark's death that she could have disappeared, walked away from everyone and everything she'd ever known in Baton Rouge, but she couldn't. She'd called herself weak over that fact, and others had called her strong for staying. Which one was she? She had yet to still figure that one out for herself.

Keir smirked. He knew she'd try to keep things directed on him. He was fine with that. Sometimes helping other's with their problems gave you insight for your own. "Yeah, I did. People kept saying how they knew what I was going through. That they sympathized with me." Another mirthless laugh. "But when people say that, they don't know. Not really."

Hannah sighed a bit and ran her fingers along the platinum chain and the rings it held. She looked up to the sky for a few steps. She seemed to be fighting an inner battle, whether to discuss the "incident" with Keir or not. And if she did, how much of the details should she divulge? Her family knew of course, her boss, Sev and of course Mark's family knew of all the details, but everyone else had been kept in the dark. "Sometimes, you find someone in that haystack, that needle.. That might actually know how you feel." Was she referring to herself, right then, in that moment?

"I have no idea what happened to Mark, Hannah." Keir gazed at the ground and then up again as they reached the street his cafe was located on. "But I do know how it feels to lose someone that you loved in that way. The only person you could ever see yourself with." He paused. "The only person you -want- to be with."

"Is there somewhere we can sit down at?" Hannah wasn't tired of walking, far from it, but if she was actually going to go through with this, for the first time since the week after the "incident" she needed to sit down.

"My cafe is actually just up the road." He pointed up the street, the last building--a white Victorian house. "We can sit inside or down by the beach." Just behind the Victorian house-turned cafe was the sea. There were tables and benches set up behind the building for the very reason of being able to sit and enjoy the view.

Gray blue eyes followed his pointing finger and she nodded a bit, blowing out a breath. "The beach looks fine to me, if that's alright with you." She was quiet a few more moments before she started to tell her story.

Oh beautiful release. Memory seep from my veins. Let me be empty. Ooo and weightless and maybe I?ll find some peace tonight.
---Sarah McLachlan---

Hannah shivered at the brush of his fingertips to her person, but she didn't jerk away. After Keir had glanced at the ring, she let it fall back into place as she pressed on. She felt the dire need to finish what she had started. Oddly enough, she felt as if it were really helping.. Hannah believed it really was.

"It was Valentine's Day of that year, 2005, about a month after he'd proposed to me. We'd decided to meet both of our families at A Taste of Italy for dinner to tell them the news." Hannah took a deep breath and closed her eyes as that night came back in a rush of painful memories. Tears were sliding down her cheeks now, but her voice.. She kept my voice as steady as she could.

"Mark had pulled the car up to the valet and had stepped around to open my door. I stepped out of the car and into his side, and after Mark had given Junior his keys, we turned together towards the door.. And that's when it happened. Tires squealed and then gunshots rang out into the night." Hannah let out a rather visible shudder, her eyes were still closed and she could hear the echo of the tire's squealing.. She could hear the gunshots being fired.. Could hear the screams of everyone that was there that night.

"I remember Mark yelling at me to get inside, and seeing Junior thrown back against the BMW with the impact of the bullet spray." Hannah shook her head, pulling her knees up to her chest and hugged them close to her body. Even with the salty breeze and smell of the ocean so very near her, she could still smell the blood. Feel the burn of the gunshot she'd taken.. She could still see Mark's blood all around her.

"I had time to fire two shots, one into the gas tank of the vehicle holding the shooters, and one into the back, rear tire. and I had time to call HQ, I'd been hit. There was so much blood all around. Mark.." She paused and swallowed hard, biting on her lip. "I'd passed out from the loss of blood due to the gunshot wound I'd received. When I came to, my Papa told me that Mark had been.. He'd been killed on scene. There was nothing that could be done for him. He was hit full fledge with the bullet spray. He took nine shots." Her body shuddered with the memories.

"They told me he didn't feel any pain, I guess that was supposed to comfort me." She took another deep breath and opened her eyes finally, but still she didn't look towards Keir. Her eyes were wet with tears, her cheeks stained from their salty caress. "I didn't believe them at first. How could I? I knew I'd slipped on his blood at the scene, knew I'd seen his body, but at that time, my mind was in a state of chaos. It took me awhile to realize he was really gone. I never let myself cry, never let myself grieve over him. Like Sev said earlier, I buried myself in work, and ever since have been pushing her on every guy that I thought was decent enough."

She ran a hand through her chestnut strands. "I didn't cry at his funeral. I became emotionless to a lot of things. Cut myself off from the world in that respect."

While Keir had expected some kind of horrific death after Hannah had told him she and Mark had been FBI agents, the terrifying details were shocking. He could only imagine what it must have been like to be right there in the midst of it all. Once more, the lump grew in his throat as Hannah shared with him the events of that night. This woman beside him had created a link between then by opening up just now and this sudden kinship Keir felt for her compelled him to want to comfort her. If this was the first time she'd actually confronted her past since it happened, Keir knew that no matter who the person was, it was nice to know that people were there for you. His hand found it's way to her back again, but didn't move. It was an open invitation, a friendly one, that if she needed a hug, he was there for her. Keir knew the few tears she'd shed over the past few minutes were only the beginning of a breaking dam. It would come sooner or later.

Hannah felt the hand against her back and sighed softly, tears were still sliding down her cheeks, and involuntarily, she found herself leaning towards Keir. Though for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to look at him. Was it shame on her part? Embarrassment? Or was she afraid of what he'd seen in her eyes? She let her head rest against his shoulder, the best she could offer him for now.. The best she could allow herself for now. And she sobbed, like a child right there, right then.

"Hannah..." Keir breathed her name softly as she leaned into him, his own heart breaking both for her and for the memories that were now fresh in his mind. His arm wrapped around her tightly, his other hand reaching to touch her cheek. Gently, he held her face to his shoulder and wished to god that he could do something more. He only hoped he was helping enough. "That's it," he whispered, brushing hair from her wet cheeks.

Love can touch us one time, and last for a lifetime. And never let go till we're gone. Love was when I loved you. One true time I hold to. In my life we'll always go on.
---Celion Dion---

Hannah was more than welcome to remain in his arms. Keir had no motives other than to comfort her. In truth, she'd done a great deal of comforting him, strange as that may be. While he usually stayed away from talking of such things as lingerie, he actually chuckled. She'd had four grand worth of it? Amazing!! The sun had long disappeared below the horizon and so had it's lingering rays and they now sat beneath a vast sky of bright stars. Keir looked up and shifted against Hannah. "Reverse the situation, Han." He slipped and used the nickname he often heard Sev use. "What if you had died and you were looking down at Mark. What would you say to him?"

Hannah found her body moving against Keir's as he shifted, so that she could still comfortably lean against him in his offered embrace. A brow raised at his proposed hypothetical situation. At least Hannah was somewhat good at these! It fell into her line of work! She gave it some careful consideration and she chose her words wisely, and truthfully, felt from her heart... Her soul.

Her small hand gently wrapped around the two rings she'd worn since that fateful night. "I'd tell him that the time for mourning me is over. That it is time for him to start healing, to remember the memories that we had made together over the long life we did have together. To find that happiness again in someone else. That I know that he could. That I'd always be with him, no matter what.. Watching over him, and his new family when he found it." She sighed deeply and closed her eyes, new tears welled in her eyes and spilled over as her lips curved into a gentle smile.

"I'd want him to be happy in life, to have all the things that he and I dreamed of. Everything that we dreamed of doing, seeing and having. I wouldn't want him to remember me the way we had been that night. I wouldn't want him to dwell on that night and blame himself." Hannah paused for just a brief second to take a needed breath before pushing on, "I'd want him to find a woman that made him happy as happy as I had.. That brought him joy, and I would want him to pursue those dreams and wants with her. I'd want him to go back into life with an open mind and heart. I wouldn't want him to hurt for me this long." She let out a long sigh as she let her eyes open once more to look up towards Keir.

"He loved you and I can honestly say without a doubt, Hannah, that he'd want the same exact things for you." Keir was staring right into her eyes now, punctuating his every word, making sure she understood what he was saying. A shiver coursed through his body, but it wasn't due to the weather. It was relatively warm for being this close to the water this late at night. Her words had touched home and made complete sense. He decided in that moment to do exactly what she'd said Mark would want for her. He was going to move on. As soon as his mind wrapped around this simple little fact, it was like an immediate weight had been lifted from his chest. He even took a deep breath and felt for the first time like he could actually breathe.

"Your friends can help you. Sev seems like a close friend and I'd say she loves you too." He smiled and canted his head slightly to the side. "You and I can help each other," his words were soft. He was almost afraid to offer such a thing. He didn't want to step over any boundaries in this new, fresh friendship he'd found. "If you want, that is."

Keir's words caused another fresh set of tears to slide down her cheeks as she looked up to the starlit sky. She fleetingly wondered if Mark was really up in what most believed to be "Heaven," at any rate she knew he was somewhere watching over her. She sighed softly and closed her eyes. She could never stop loving him. That wouldn't be possible. She opened her eyes again and looked towards Keir.

What had caused Hannah to open up to him? She barely knew him, she only had known what she'd drawn off of him in his conversations with Sev and seeing him in the Inn. Yet something had told her in those moments of study that somehow, somewhere, something between them was the same. Could it have been this? This secret she'd buried so deeply inside her and kept away from the world. The amount of pain and grief she'd held inside for nearly three years? She shook her head, she analyzed herself and emotions way to much and way to often.

Hannah nodded to Keir. "Sev is great. One tough cookie, but she means a great deal to me." She paused a beat before continuing on. "I'm not so sure how I could help you with your own healing process Keir, I'm pretty messed up as you can see."

"I'd say I'm a little further along than yourself, but that doesn't mean you can't help me in some way." He shrugged faintly and looked up at the sky again. "Friends have a way with doing that. You can't have too many friends." Then, he looked down at her thoughtfully. "It won't be easy either, Hannah. There'll be rough patches. The dreams will surface again." He didn't even have to ask if she had them. He knew she did.

"As we proved tonight, sometimes it's nice to share things with someone who actually knows what you're going through. I suppose that if you're willing to listen to me when things get rough, I'll be here for you, too." It was absurd the way he suggested such a thing, them only knowing each other for a day, but when something is right, you just know it. And Keir knew this was right; this friendship. While it had been intense, he enjoyed this time they'd shared tonight. It was nice to have someone to open up to.