Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mick, Beth, Josef, Simone, OC
Warning: First fic alert! Terribly contrived. May want to move on to my more recent work
Shadows of the Past
The past is our definition. We may strive, with good reason, to escape it, or to escape what is bad in it, but we will escape it only by adding something better to it. ~Wendell Berry
Mick stepped into his apartment and made his way to his office. He pushed the listen button on his answering machine to check for any new messages.
“Hey, Mick, came a voice Mick recognized to be that of a contact in the medical field, “I’m just calling to let you know that I think I found who you’re looking for. Call me for the details.”
Mick was genuinely surprised to have received a lead so quickly. Such things rarely happened in his line of work. He immediately picked up the telephone to return the call.
Forty-five minutes later, Mick found himself with Lauren’s phone number in one hand and the other grasping the receiver. He heard a quiet voice on the other end answer.
“Hello?” Lauren said. She sounded tired and disoriented. “No wonder,” Mick thought when he looked at his watch and realized that it was nearly midnight.
“Hi, it’s Mick St. John. Would it be possible for you to come to my office tomorrow morning around nine? I think I may have found your father,” Mick waited for a reply, but Lauren was silent. Suddenly, however, she seemed to find her voice.
“What?...Where?...So soon?” she asked, her voice much brighter and more alert.
“I’ll tell you everything tomorrow, that is if you can make it,” Mick replied.
“Of course I can make it!!” Her excitement was evident in her tone, “Thank you so much Mick!!”
The next morning at nine sharp, Mick heard a knock at his door. He opened it to find Lauren waiting expectantly for him. She seemed much brighter than on their last meeting. Her face was glowing, and she had a very pretty smile on her face. Despite her outwardly cheery attitude, Mick noticed that her eyes were dull and lifeless. In his life, Mick had learned to pick up on such things. Something about this girl was a little off. She was hiding something. He just didn’t know what yet.
“My friend dropped me off,” Lauren said quietly, “So, what have you learned?”
“Well,” Mick said, “I have located a Dr. Michael Barrett living just outside L.A. who used to be employed at the Memorial Hospital.”
“Are you sure it’s him,” Lauren asked, as if afraid to get her hopes up.
“Well, we’ll just have to see. I was able to acquire his address,” Mick offered her a piece of paper with an address scribbled on it. She accepted it hesitantly. “If you want, I could drive you to meet him,” Mick offered.
“Thank you,” Lauren replied quietly, “That is very kind of you,”
“I’m free tomorrow, if you are.” Mick added. Before she could reply, they were interrupted by the ringing of her cell phone from inside her purse. She answered it, and Mick noticed a look of concern cross her face.
“What’s wrong?” she asked the person on the other end, “Is she alright?” She listened quietly for a minute before adding, “I’ll be there soon…Okay…Bye.”
“Is everything alright?” Mick asked, “I apologize if I’m prying.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” she said absentmindedly, “I hate to ask this of you. You’ve done so much for me already. My friend won’t be back for about an hour. Would it be too much trouble if I asked you for a ride?”
“Of course not,” Mick assured her.
Very curious to see what happens next--this Lauren, what is she hiding? Hope it's nothing that's gonna harm our beloved hero! EEK! 
Probably because it's 11:00pm, and the later the day, the more hyper I am... 
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