Inside he'd found a plane ticket to Seattle, keys to an apartment & car, a credit card in his name, and a handful of photographs. There'd been no note, no indication of who had sent the package or why. The ticket's departure date didn't leave him much time to consider his move- it had arrived on the 29th and was dated for the 31st. All he knew was someone had found Emily for him and given him the means to get her back.

Once he landed in Seattle he had no trouble finding the car that went with the keys he'd been sent- an unremarkable compact car with very little mileage parked in a corner of the long-term parking structure at the airport. In the sun visor had been directions to the apartment in a place called Deception Pass, some one hundred miles from the airport.

The heavy fog draping the area that night had made him feel claustrophobic in the strange apartment, so he'd hastily dropped off his luggage before heading out into the unfamiliar town. He managed to find his way to a club that seemed to be having a Halloween party of sorts, filled with people in a wide range of costumes. He'd hoped to find her there- it seemed the kind of place she'd hang out in -but of course she hadn't shown up.

In the weeks that followed, he managed to track her down- spotting her out with some new boyfriend at an all-night diner. He'd intended to confront her that very night, but changed his mind at the last second, uncomfortable with the number of people around. He wanted her alone.

In the days after first seeing her, he felt a sort of desperate sadness boiling up inside- he wouldn't admit it to anyone, but it hurt seeing her with another man. How could she do that to him? Leaving him had been bad enough, but the worst part was realizing that she hadn't felt the same loss as he had.

More time went by, and he considered giving up completely and just leaving town. It had begun to feel like a fool's errand- a hopeless thing that was going nowhere. On the morning he'd planned to leave, he'd picked up the local paper and spotted her instantly- this time on the arm of yet another man.

Later that afternoon he spotted her in a crowded shopping area uptown trying on dresses he couldn't believe she could afford. He resolved then to stay in town a little while longer, to follow her more closely and get her alone.

The answer had come to him a few days later as he drove around the art district. The sign was small- it was no wonder he'd missed it on his many trips through the area. Laine Photography. He'd turned around and driven back, slowing to look through the windows this time. When he caught a glimpse of her working on a computer, he sped off and headed back for his downtown apartment. Once there, he'd rummaged around for a phonebook, quickly finding the number for the studio. With shaking hands he'd dialed the number, doing his best to sound casual as he made an appointment.

Ian now sat in his car waiting for the appointment before him to leave. It had been dark for at least an hour now, and he was beginning to feel anxious. Finally, a couple came walking out of the building together as he watched Emily make her way over to her desk, absently glancing at the clock that hung on the wall.

With a deep breath, Ian got out of his car and walked through the front door of the building. Weeks of watching from a distance were coming down to this one moment- he was finally going to see her face to face. He couldn't help but smile as he opened the door to her studio and found himself in the same room with his wife at long last.