A tickling sensation on her left cheek woke Helen up from her deep sleep. Slowly opening her drowsy eyes, she discovered that Patricia was standing at the foot of her bed.

“Rise and shine, princess,” Patricia spoke loudly as she smiled down at her little sister. “Old habits die hard, don’t they?”

“Old habits?” Helen asked in a voice hoarse from sleep.

“Yeah, you like to sleep late.” Patricia’s smile turned into a grin. “It’s almost 1:30.”

“I was too tired.” Helen maintained, rubbing her blurry eyes. Patricia was about to come with a rebuttal, when she looked out her sister’s window, to the left.

“That cabin at the edge of town.” She spoke in a mild tone, pointing at the same time. “That’s James Farrell’s place, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Helen croaked. “Why?”

“Someone’s over there.” Patricia’s short sentence made her sister’s eyes snap open. Helen sat bolt upright, unable to believe her ears. Unfortunately for her though, she could not ask anything further. James’s cabin was more than two miles away; Patricia could simply not describe to her anything else. Swiping the sheet away, Helen jumped out of bed, looking for her clothes. “What is it?”

“James is in California.” Helen spoke too fast, pulling her jeans up. “It can’t be him.”

“Then, who the hell is at his place?” Patricia asked.

“I don’t have time to explain.” Helen stated with a smile of content forming on her face, as she buttoned up her pants. “Let’s just say he’s not a burglar.”

“So, you know him!” Patricia’s eyes flashed with excitement. “What’s his name?”

“Not now…” Helen gave a short laugh, as she put her red, t-shirt on. “I’ll tell you later, ok?”

“Oh, come on!” Frustration was lingering in Patricia’s voice. “You’re not going to give me his name?”

“Marcus.” Helen’s response was sharp, as she put her sneakers on. “It’s got to be him.”

Without wasting any time, she stormed out of her house, with the keys to her pickup truck in her hand and her heart pounding in her chest. Helen hopped into her car, in the hope that Patricia had noticed her boyfriend, even though such a thing sounded very unlikely to say the least. It was humanly impossible for anyone to ride across the states in less than three days and Michelle’s next venue was only two days away. James would not leave his protégée back in California. Her heartbeat quickened, as she approached the cabin. Marcus’s motorcycle was nowhere to be seen, but, on some level, Helen expected that. The tires screeched, as she brought her truck to an abrupt halt, right outside James’s house. A simple glance to the left gave her the answer she needed to have. Indeed, it was Marcus. He had brought outside a large amplifier and he was about to strap a black, electric guitar around his neck. Helen’s heart fluttered, as she jumped out of her truck. His face was lit up with a huge smile, as their eyes met. Immediately, she started running towards him, as a sense of happiness rushed through her. Marcus opened his arms, as Helen lunged towards him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, laughing heartily as she planted short kisses all over his face.

“Oh, you crazy little devil,” Helen spoke in her sweetest voice, as she rested her head on his shoulder. “How did you get here so fast?”

“I got your message.” Marcus sighed, caressing her back. “I talked to James. I know.”

“You know about…”

“Yeah,” he interrupted, as she leaned back. “I was just outside New Mexico, when he called me last night. I had to act fast.”

“You flew to New York…” Helen concluded, her voice lowering to a soft, loving whisper. “What about all that stuff you said the other day, about avoiding cameras?”

“I figured ‘what the hell’. My country girl needs me.” Marcus said, soothingly.

“What about your b…” He didn’t allow her to finish her sentence. Tilting his head forward, he pressed his lips against her mouth, as his grip around her became tighter. In spite of her surprise, Helen kissed him back, gripping the back of his neck, as she stroked his upper back. Drowning in his manly scent, she savored his kiss, enthralled by his gesture. Marcus had risked exposing himself, just to be there as quickly as possible. That simple move had made her heart melt. It was by far the noblest thing anybody had ever done for her. Helen’s hand crept around his head. Her fingertips explored the rasp of his beard, as she laid one last kiss on his lower lip.

“It’s in a parking lot in Mexico City airport.” Marcus said, with a wily smile on his face, as she pressed her forehead into his.

“I really don’t know what to say.” Helen whispered, gazing deep into his eyes, as she stroked his face. “I mean, you fl…”

“Yeah, I did.” He interjected once more, easing her down onto the ground. “You don’t have to repeat it every two seconds.”

“And the guitar?” She posed yet another question, pointing down at the instrument.

“I wanted to surprise you.” Marcus shrugged his shoulders. “This amp’s pretty powerful; I’m sure you’d hear it.”

“I kind of…” Helen paused, “… spoiled it. My sister saw you.”

“So, this is Shandaken,” he said, looking around him, “Lots of greenery. The view from up here is amazing.”

“Has your friend told you anything about this cabin?” Her last question made his eyes glint with amusement.

“Ten years, full of agony and fantastic music.” Marcus spoke, nodding at the same time. “Up until he met Olivia. I also know about the time you kissed him.”

“Oh…” A gasp of surprise left her lips, as she dropped her gaze from him. “I’m not really proud of that.”

“It’s ok.” He assured, tipping her chin up. “You just did what you thought was right.”

“I was totally drunk that night.” Helen said, as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. “I wasn’t thinking straight.”

“Nah, forget about it.” Marcus waved his hand in front of his face. “We all make mistakes. Let’s go inside. I want to know more about your father’s problem.”