A soft sigh escaped Orwell's lips as she turned her face into the soft warmth of mid-morning sun. She allowed her eyes to drift close and her mind to empty as she listened to the sounds buzzing around her. The rustle of the wind through the branches of the trees...the soft musical trickling of the fountain beside her…the excited yells of children playing punctuated by the distant shrill of a whistle…the laughter and chatter of people enjoying the day...all swirling together in a rhythmic symphony of life. She embraced it fully, letting it chase the lingering memories of the silence of her nearly permanent tomb back into the far recesses of her mind.

She smirked lazily as she felt the weight of Vince's gaze from across the park. He had barely left her side since his return to Trolley Park in the early hours of the morning. The stubborn man still labored under the belief that he had been responsible for the attempt on her life…despite her firm insistence to the opposite. It was her fault if it was anyone's, but it was over now…and she was wiser for it. The soft rustle of newspaper drew her thoughts to the story Vince had recounted…a story radically different from the one in this morning's early edition of the Palm City Times. According to the paper, a daring would-be thief had died in the midst of a gun battle with the Ark Corporation's highly acclaimed security team during an attempt to rob the museum. The man had not been named. Not that there had been a lot of space with all of the promoting of the Ark Corporation and Peter Fleming. Fleming had further increased his standings among the city fathers by offering to cover the cost of the damage out of his own pocket.

Orwell grimaced at the thought. Lemmings, the lot of them…listening to the tune of their piper. The story Vince had recounted had been very different. It was difficult for her to fully grasp what he had described of the showdown in the grand hall and the death of Gregor Molotov. It sounded like more like a plot of a B-rated horror film. However, while she would not have wished such a violent death on anyone, she could not help but feel a little relieved that the man was no longer a threat. She brushed aside the small feeling of guilt at the thought as she focused on the musical chimes of the ice cream cart as it moved along the path nearby. Her mind drifted to the mysterious Shadow and his role in the drama…particularly the fact that he had been the one to rescue her from the crate. It was as if the final pieces of a puzzle were falling into place…to reveal a very interesting picture. One that involved her new friend, the mysterious Davis Cranston.

"The sun is shining."

Speak of the devil. A smile tweaked at the corners of her lips as she opened her eyes slowly and looked up at the man standing before her.

"So I noticed." She stated dryly.

His soft laugh washed over her as he sat down on the edge of the fountain's ledge beside her. "That's not how it goes." He replied with a grin. His eyes were lined with dark smudges and a fine dark stubble graced his strong jaw, but the cobalt eyes were clear and warm as they smiled down at her.

She shrugged lightly. "I've never been one to follow the rules."

His grin widened. "Where's your bodyguard?"

Orwell smirked and turned to look back over her shoulder at a man seated beneath a tree across the park, his attention split between the children's soccer game on the field below him and her current location. "He had a game to catch."

Her eyes wandered out over the field, easily picking out Vince's son from the pack of children moving quickly up the field In pursuit of the black and white ball. Vince had spoke of nothing else but Trip's game for days and, despite the events of the previous night, she had insisted that he still make it…though at the moment his attention seemed to be solely fixated on her now that Davis had joined her. She turned back to Davis, in time to catch the trace of a smirk slide quickly from his lips behind a warm smile.

"I heard what happened. Are you alright?" He asked as his eyes swept her features.

Orwell dropped her eyes for a brief moment in an attempt to halt the blush she felt rising to her face in response to his concern. She let out a soft sigh and smiled wearily. "I'll be fine. It's not my first near death experience…though it was the first time I nearly brought it on myself. Taught me not to leave my gadgets lying around where crazy mad-men might run across them."

She raised her eyes to meet his and the words dissolved as she was lost for a moment beneath the intensity of his suddenly dark gaze. Orwell shivered slightly though she knew that the anger she saw was not directed at her. Davis shut his eyes tightly and turned his head away, his jaw tight and his body rigid.

She watched him for a moment, then gathering her courage she plunged ahead. "I heard your voice in my head, encouraging me not to give up…you gave me the strength to hold on, before you freed me from the crate." She remained silent for a moment as she allowed her words to sink in. "Thank you. You saved my life…Shadow."

The name fell quietly from her lips, nearly without sound as she watched the man beside her. He remained silent for a long moment before finally letting out a soft huff of laughter. "Well this certainly makes things a little more interesting."

Orwell reached out hesitantly and placed her hand on his arm. "I won't reveal your secret…if that is what you are worried about." She felt the butterflies within her stomach take flight as Davis covered her hand with his larger one and turned to face her. His eyes softened as a weary smile graced his lips.

"I never thought you would." He said softly, his smile widened as she blushed lightly.

"So what happens now? You perform some sort of Jedi mind trick and wipe my memory clean?" she asked half teasingly.

She smiled in spite of herself and the seriousness of the situation as Davis suddenly threw his head back and exploded with laughter. After a moment, he managed to quiet it into a soft chuckle. "No, I have a better plan for you." He stated with a wide grin as he reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a small velvet drawstring bag.

Orwell accepted the satchel with a curious smile and opened it, tipping its contents into her palm. Her eyebrows shot up incredulously as she examined the object in her hand. "Why, Davis, I'm flattered but I don't believe we know each other well enough for this." She grinned foolishly as his responding laughter washed over her, happy to see the tension fade from his eyes.

He gave her a lop-sided grin. "We can discuss that later." He teased, causing the butterflies to launch into a frenzy.

In an effort to keep her composure, Orwell slid the delicate gold ring onto the ring finger of her right hand and studied the deep spectrum of color that danced within the opal beneath the light of the sun. "So does this mean I am one of your minions?" she asked.

Davis shook his head slightly as he met her eyes. "I was thinking more along the lines of trusted ally."

Davis felt her surprise wash over his mental shields as she raised her dark eyes to meet his in response. He felt her excitement and interest in joining him as an ally…then felt it faded as uncertainty began to creep in. She was concerned about something and he had an inkling of what it might be. It was something that he did not see as a problem, but in order to assure her of the fact, he had to first reveal of his breach the night before. He did not want to lose his chance but she deserved to know the truth.

He reached forward and gently took her small hand in his larger one, his eyes on the ring that graced her finger. "Orwell, there is something I need to tell you...something that I need to apologize for." He began softly. A slight smile graced his lips as her confusion at his statement slowly changed to realization. Of course she would have figured it out. She lowered her head, shielding her face behind a curtain of dark curls.

"You apologized last night." She whispered quietly as her face paled beneath the calm exterior she was attempting to portray. "What did you see?"

He felt her fear…not fear of him and what he could do. No…she was afraid that he would reject her after learning the secret she had kept buried for so long. Davis raised his eyes as he attempted to project a soothing assurance toward her. He gently brushed the loose curtain of hair from her face and placed his fingers beneath her chin, coaxing her to raise her head. She slowly raised her eyes to meet his as he replied.

"I saw a good person who is trying too hard to atone for sins that are not hers." He said softly. "You may share his DNA but you do not share the darkness that dwells inside him."

She closed her eyes against the tears that threatened to fall and he released her, allowing her space as she processed his words and the meaning behind them. Davis let out a slow controlled breath as he turned his attention outward over the rolling grassy fields of the park. Anger simmered deep within him at the man who had scarred her. He did not know much about her past as he had refrained from running what he knew through his powerful search engines the night before. He did know that Peter Fleming was a widower who had lost his wife roughly twenty years ago in a strange 'accident'. A small footnote had mentioned one child, who seemed to have vanished of the face of the earth after her mother's death…and now here she was, a grown woman who had made it her sole life's mission to bring down the man who had sired her – for lack of a better term – and expose his corporation for what it truly was.

He turned to face her as she drew a breath and let it out slowly. She met his eyes steadily, relaxing slightly as she found nothing but acceptance in his soft gaze. "How do you know I don't have the same darkness within me?" she asked softly.

A soft smile tweaked the corner of his lips as if in response to an inside joke as he replied. "I know."

She smiled despite the seriousness and cast a quick glance at the ring on her hand. "And you are still willing to have a daughter of a crime lord as an ally?"

"No." Davis continued quickly as her smile fell slightly. "I would like the mysterious and the incredibly dedicated Orwell, guardian of Palm City, to be my ally."

She let out a soft laugh and nodded. The meeting his eyes, she held out her hand. "I would be honored, Shadow."

Davis took her hand in his and gave it a firm shake, sealing the promise. "As am I..Jamie."

He held her hand securely as she stiffened slightly at her name, then he raised her hand to his lips and gently pressed a kiss to her fingers below the ring. He smirked slightly over her knuckles as his eyes met hers. Before she could reply, a soft tune began to play from his pocket. He released her hand with a sigh and retrieved his phone from his pocket. A message from his pilot. The plane was ready and waiting his arrival. As much as he preferred to remain in this place at this time with the woman seated beside him, he still had a mission to complete.

"Duty calls?" Orwell asked softly.

He nodded slowly. "Duty calls."

He stood slowly and turned to face her. A warm smile crossed his lips as she raised a hand and he let out a soft laugh as he pulled her up off the ledge and into his arms, hugging her close. After a long moment, he released her reluctantly. She smiled up at him and he felt hope as he sensed her reluctance to let him leave.

"Will I hear from you again soon?" she asked, as her smile reflected his.

Davis nodded slowly as his grin softened. "Count on it."

His eyes flicked upward over her shoulder as he sensed Vince's hard gaze. A smirk spread across his face as turned back to Orwell and swiftly bent down and brushed a kiss to her cheek. "Count on it." He repeated before straightening and tossed a sloppy salute in Vince's direction as he turned and strode away, laughing all the way.

Author's Note: And we finally reach the end…at least for this tale. Hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. A sequel may be in the future – though not for a while. Thank you for the many reviews from both Shadow and Cape fans – I tried to do them both justice and value your feedback. Thank you all for following this story to its conclusion. Sincerely, Red Fedora