“Bette …” Jackson started.

“I feel utterly helpless,” she said quietly at first, and then her voice began to get edgier, “It just doesn’t make any sense, Jackson!  If Miller’s right about the shooter going after him, why would anyone want to kill Peter, who had a limited amount of time left, anyway? Alright … fine … not many people knew about how sick he was…I mean, I didn’t know, but his killing still doesn’t make any sense!”

“Who would want to kill Peter?” she asked aloud. It was a question she’d been asking herself and others ever since the attack. No one still had an answer.

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Two weeks later, Bette was back in New York, and packing for a trip to Hawaii.

“So Marissa is really having twins, huh?” she asked Tina, who was resting in bed, sipping on her tea while flipping through a script.

Tina looked up from what she was reading, smiled, and answered, “Yup. Due in a couple of weeks.” She paused, “But the past few weeks have been really tough for her.”

Bette stopped her packing and then said in a thoughtful voice, “The past weeks have been really difficult for our close friends here in New York, T.   It seems like the worst timing for me to go pursue this thing in Hawaii right now, and leave the scene while they’re struggling….”

Tina remained quiet, pursing her lips and then giving Bette a half-smile in sympathy.

Bette resumed packing, but more slowly, lost in thought, and then continued, “I apologized again to Marissa yesterday that I may not be here when she gives birth, if it happens earlier than scheduled. And I just had a heart-to-heart with Diane, too.”

She blew a breath out, “I mean … this is just a really tough time for Diane and Jules, T.”

She stopped packing again and heaved a big sigh, “Between you and me, T, I’m still in some shock myself, and from time to time, I remember the screaming when we were being shot at by that sniper, and then all the sirens, and the chaos in the hospital after.  I have clear memories of holding you close for what felt like hours, determined to keep you safe…. and you and I being covered in all that blood, you know?”