Epilogue

It was one of those abnormally warm English summers, and the temperature was still rising. All around the little two story cottage, laughter could be heard, accompanied by splashing, the sound of wet feet slapping against tiles, the air filled with the scent of cooking food. For the few neighbors that were close enough to get a glimpse into the backyard of the Niccals' home, it was a regular little get together with friends, the backyard crowded. Quick glimpse of their son as he darted around the pool, leaping into the air and curling into a ball, slamming against the water and causing a decent little splash.

Noodle rocked the toddler in her lap, smiling down at her as she dozed peacefully. Tessie had gotten a bit fussy, clearly feeling left out of the fun around her. She looked up in time to see 2D launch into the pool, his gangly limbs folded against his reed-thin body. Another splash, some of it catching at Noodle and Tessie. "Hey now!" she barked, shielding the nineteen month old out of the line of fire. "Be careful, Stu!"

Hailey appeared out of the back door, carrying a small tray with glasses. "Drinks!" she cried out. Pausing by Noodle, she held out the tray. "Here, try one of these, Noods."

Noodle stared at the brightly colored drinks, her green eyes wide. "What are they?"

"Little Dinghy's," Murdoc chuckled, snatching a drink from the tray and taking a sip. He frowned, staring at the glass. "You put too much juice in there, babe."

"Not everyone can tolerate the amount of alcohol you put in your drinks, Muds," Hailey said, touch of annoyance just there. "At least I made them. You've only been bugging me about it for months!" Setting the tray on the table, she grabbed at the one drink that was a different color, sipping from it casually as she watched Alec climb from the pool and make another round, screeching at the top of his lungs.

Noodle leaned back against the padded lounge chair, putting her sunglasses on. "So, should I ask what possessed you to put a pool back here and extend the porch so far out?"

Hailey shrugged, taking another drink. "We just figured why the hell not, y' know? Seemed like something fun. Upkeep is a bitch, though."

Murdoc slumped down into an empty lounger, occasionally glancing at the massive gas barbeque as it cooked the afternoon's meal. Something American, Hailey had insisted. Ribs. Lots of ribs. Pork ribs, beef ribs, all kinds of ribs.

Okay, so ribs it was then.

Hailey veered around the lounger, watching as Alec climbed across 2D's back, venturing out into the deeper regions of the pool. In spite of everything that had happened, Alec had remained as sweet and charming as ever. The near watery demise didn't even seem to really phase him, but Hailey suspected it had more to do with the fact that he had been (and still was) too young to understand the impact of what had taken place almost two years ago. It was decided after that to avoid ever returning to Seattle again, the townhouse sold off and other than a single bank account that handled currency exchange, everything they had over there had been transferred over to the banks and accountants back home in London.

Murdoc reached up, hands circling her waist, pulling her across his lap. "Whatchya drinkin, poppet?" he muttered, resting his chin against her shoulder.

Hailey shrugged. "Pineapple juice."

A chuckle erupted from him, his hands sliding across her stomach. "Vitamin C is good for you. Dun' think you get 'nough of it sometimes..."

"Come off it, old man," she scoffed, leaning back against him. "You have no room to talk, yeah? Who's the one who bitches and moans about the steamed vegetables all the time? Certainly not Alec!"

His hands paused just at the peak of the small bump that had finally started to protrude over the waist-band of her knit pants. "Ever'thin' goin' good, yeah? Doc said all's well?"

"Rolling along smoothly," she assured him, resting the back of her head into his shoulder. "Four months on the dot. She's doing great."

He made a noise of acknowledgment, hands still moving over the tightened skin. Warm and soft beneath his fingers. Little late in the game for another, but whatever. He was still going strong and so was Hailey. The doctor's only real concern was Hailey's age, but the Little One seemed to be doing alright and all the tests came back perfectly normal. Not wanting to move, he glanced over at the barbeque. He was comfortable, warm in spite of the heat. He could take a nap at this rate. Finally, he shifted a bit beneath her, motioning for her to get up. "Lemme go an' check on the food. Think it's a'most done." Kissing the side of her head loudly, he rolled her off of him so he could get to his feet and make his way back over to the barbeque.

Hailey laid claim to his chair, nursing her juice and watching Alec play with 2D in the pool. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Tessie finally slide from Noodle's lap and start to babble at Alec and 2D, pointing towards the water and clapping her hands. Darling little thing, she was. Dark hair, almond shaped green eyes. Though it was hard for Hailey to tell, she suspected that the tot inherited her father's upturned nose and somewhat spacey looking smile.

Shutting the barbeque, Murdoc took another sip from his drink, setting it onto the table. "We might be goin' t' California next spring, Hailey. Just thought I would let you know."

"What for?" Hailey asked, now looking over at him.

"Oscar nomination," he said, flashing a smug grin. "Remember the work I did for that film, the one that took me so bloody long? Not only is the film one of the nominees for best picture, but the music also made the nomination list for best soundtrack."

"You're shitting me, right? You got nominated for a fuckin' Oscar?" Hailey sat up, staring at him.

"I did," he said with a smirk.

Hailey laughed, sinking back against the lounger. Life was good, wasn't it? They had both started with nothing and now look at them. Granted, he was the money-maker, but she had her own savings still, the money slowly growing as it accumulated interest. Other than a few random withdraws to cover birthdays and holidays, the money had been sitting in the account, barely touched now for over seven years. Money she had been shoving aside when she had started at the ad firm.

She would never have believed things would turn out like they did. Well to do, living abroad, wonderful family and friends.

Murdoc was back at the side of the chair, kneeling down and pressing his lips against her stomach. "It'll be a Niccals world take over, love," he chuckled, pressing his head to her stomach. "You hear me in there, Amy? Your dad says we're gonna take over the world. You, me an' your big brother."

"What am I?" Hailey squeaked, mocking hurt. "Chopped liver?"

"I'm the king, love," he whispered, flashing a coy smile. "You can be my queen." Kissing her stomach again, he got back to his feet and jogged around the pool. "A'right you two...Make room!" Yanking his shirt over his head, he barreled into the pool, both 2D and Alec screaming as he missed them by mere inches.

Hailey lay against the lounger, dozing. The sounds of fun all around. Now Noodle was taking Tessie into the pool, leaving Hailey alone on the tiled patio. She let her hand hang listlessly off the side, grazing at some blades of grass at the edge of the patio. Talk about a lazy summer day. Great day to just have a little get-together with their friends. Too bad Russell missed it. And even Gina, who was actually in England with her family for their own little holiday, had so much going on, she even had to miss it.

Still stroking at the grass, her fingers connected with something smooth and hard. Hailey frowned, peering down at the ground. Her green eyes widened a bit at the sight of the object protruding from where the patio and grass met. Protruding enough to be able to tell what it was. Casting another glance at the little pool party, she returned her attention to the object, reaching down and grabbing at it with her hands, snapping it with a flick of her wrist and flinging it towards the woods. How did they overlook that? They had been more than careful when it came to building the pool and the patio. The whole point of it had been to cover up their "crime". Not that she saw it as a crime, but they still had to get what was left of the bitch out of sight.

Now only a jagged piece of bone was left, just barely sticking out of the ground, most of the cement and grout mix holding it firmly in place. Grind it down later, after everyone was gone. Nothing big. Probably just a finger bone or something.

Middle finger, perhaps? The final fuck you, right?

Hailey snickered, laying back in the lounger, drink in hand.

Dusk fell finally, everyone clamoring to finish their little party in the house. Dishes were gathered, the barbeque cleared and tucked away, kids were wrangled. Tessie had put up the biggest fight, darting away from a somewhat inebriated Noodle and rushing across the yard. Alec had complained, but went into the house with little reserve to fight. It took the better part of a hour, but the kids were finally asleep in Alec's room and the adults had gathered in the living room.

Murdoc excused himself once everyone was settled, muttering about having to piss. Slipping through the backdoor, he heard Hailey make a loud complaint about how the bathroom was only ten feet down the hall and what was it about guys just going outside to take a piss when they had perfectly good bathrooms. Ignoring her, he lit a cigarette and crossed the yard, heading towards the small cluster of shrubbery and trees just at the edge of the yard, where the woods started.

There was a small clearing in the midst of this vegetation, a few large rocks laying in what looked almost like a hap-hazard pile, but they had been placed strategically. He paused just at the clearing, staring at the ground. It had taken a lot of work to get it to look like this, to ensure nothing would ever be discovered. Hours of back-breaking work. Only a few people knew what lay beneath the dirt.

Hailey had spared no mercy on Alicia. He could even admit being surprised at the woman's condition. Butchered like a head of cattle, but still alive as Hailey taunted her. He felt a small shiver at the memory of that moment, when he had walked down to the basement and found Hailey examining one of the woman's eyes before dropping it into a jar. When he had peered further into the room and saw Alicia laying in the chair, groaning and gurgling, blood pouring from where her eyes had been, her mouth a jagged mockery of a smile, for the first time ever he was questioning his wife's state of mind.

In spite of that momentary fear when Hailey had looked up and smiled at him, he had also realized that he really hadn't felt any guilt over what his wife had done. Alicia had deserved it. So had that Chloe cunt, but Hailey was more creative in her abuse than he could ever be. He would never have thought of cutting off her fingers, her hands, her feet...

Disposing of her had posed a problem, which was why the pool and patio were suggested. The woman's hands, fingers and feet were covered up by the patio, the rest of her buried. Still groaning and bleeding as they rolled her into the hole he had dug out. Still groaning and bleeding as the dirt covered her.

Undoing his pants, he relieved himself, whistling loudly in the quiet night air. Chuckling, he tried to see if he could spell his name. Juvenile, yeah, but whatever. "I'm pissin' on your grave, Ali-dear," he snickered. "Nobody remembers you...Nobody cares where you went..." Giving himself a quick shake he zipped up his jeans. "Drink up, bitch." Spinning on his heels, he turned back towards the house, ready to resume their little party.