Looking Glass – Chapter 2

Bette was sitting up alone in the bed that she and Jodi were supposed to have spent the day in. She had just finished the meal she ordered from room service, pushing the tray across the bed, when her thoughts drifted to her relationship with Jodi. Even though Bette had been looking forward to the day, she had to admit her relationship with Jodi was becoming more than she could handle. Although she struggled to not journey to the past, her thoughts still drifted to the times she shared with Tina in numerous hotel rooms and she smiled, despite herself.

Even when things were at their worst with Tina, Bette always knew that deep down their love was present between them. Admittedly, there were times it was hard to find, but there nonetheless. Bette sighed loudly, giving in to her instinct, knowing she had to venture out and find Jodi. She walked into the bathroom and pulled on her jeans and t-shirt. Just as she was about to put her hair up, her cell phone rang loudly in the other room. She quickly threw her hair into a loose style, piling her curls on top of her head, and grabbed her phone from the bedroom. She glanced at the caller id before smiling and eagerly flipping her phone open to greet her friend.

“Alice?” Bette smiled.

“Porter,” Alice said in reply.

“To what do I owe this pleasure?”

“You went and did it didn’t you?” Alice asked.

“Did what?” Bette asked confused.

“You moved to a commune in up state New York, quit shaving your legs and armpits, and became the high priestess of some druid cult didn’t you?”

“Nice Alice, did you write that out before you called me?” Bette asked with a laugh.

“No, not exactly. I just figured that since you haven’t called, written, or otherwise communicated with anyone since you ran after Jodi that we might never hear from you again.”

“I’m sorry. I should have called, but I . . ., “Bette started.

“Yeah, yeah, I see how it is,” Alice interrupted. “Abandon the ones that have been there for you. Anyway, when are you coming back to reality in L.A.?”

Bette sighed, truly not knowing how to answer that question.

“Soon Alice, very soon. Are you having issues functioning without me?” Bette teased trying to keep the conversation light.

“Well, I got the best phone call,” Alice said, barely able to hold back her excitement. “Tasha is coming home!”

“Really? Oh my God Alice, that is great! When is she going to be home?”

“I’m not sure, I know she was going to be leaving the hospital and going to Washington before she gets home. I’m so excited. I was thinking about . . . “

“Wait Alice,” Bette interjected. “Did you say hospital?”

“Yeah, that’s what she said. But she said she was okay and frankly I was just so glad to hear her voice that I didn’t get to ask many questions other than if she was ok.”

“I’m so happy to hear she’s coming home and is okay.”

“If I believed in God I would believe she was answering my prayers,” Alice continued, “Now, I’m actually calling because I want to throw her a welcome home party. It would mean a lot to me if you were there and you should bring Jodi.”

Bette ran her fingers through her hair. The last thing she wanted right now was a social engagement. However, she could tell by Alice’s voice that she was excited and it would indeed mean a lot to her if Bette were there.

“Absolutely Alice, we’ll be there.”

“Really? Great. When I know more I’ll let you know so you can get back here in time! I’ll even pick you both up at the airport.”

Bette smiled again.

“Alright, I’ll take you up on the ride. I’ll call you later.”

“You better Porter!”

“I promise”

Bette closed her phone, dreading what she knew was the next agenda item on her day. She put her phone in her pocket, grabbed her coat, and headed to the site to deal with Jodi.

***

Tina’s thoughts were spinning in her head. She couldn’t believe that she was standing in front of Bette’s mother. In all the years her and Bette were together, Bette didn’t often talk about her mother. What she did share, Tina used to create an image of the illusive woman and it dawned on her quickly that her image was wrong. Kit stood in front of Maxine with a look of shock on her face. Tina, sensing the tension, broke the silence.

“Uh, it’s so nice to meet you Maxine,” Tina said.

As Maxine’s warm and gentle hand touched Tina’s, Tina felt as if she were no longer in the present moment. It seemed like she had just stepped into some kind of parallel universe, not even feeling Maxine shaking her hand.

“Likewise Tina, I’ve read so much about you and Bette that I feel like I know you already,” Maxine said with total sincerity.

“Oh,” Tina struggled even more to find the appropriate words to express herself. “I didn’t realize there was so much information out there about us.”

“Well, I’ve tried my best to keep track of Bette over the years. It’s been difficult sometimes, but I’ve managed to keep an eye on her.”

“You ever hear of a phone?” Kit asked in a venomous voice.

Tina and Maxine turned to look at Kit, both shocked when her tone and words registered in their minds.

“Katie…” Maxine began.

Kit sat back down at the table and stared at Maxine coldly.

“Well why not take the easy way, since it’s what you do, and just pick up a phone and call instead of sneaking around to keep tabs on my baby sister?” Kit questioned.

“Katie, I can understand why you’re angry, but the reasons behind my absence aren’t as simple as you seem to think they are.”

“They never are, are they?” Kit shot back.

“You need to learn to respect even the things you don’t understand. It isn’t always black and white Katie, life hardly ever is. But now I finally have the chance to try to reconnect with you and with Bette and whether you believe me or not, it’s what I want more than anything else in this world. All I’m asking for is for you to keep an open mind, is that possible?”

Kit rose from her chair and pushed it under the table. She placed her hands on the back of it and leaned down toward Maxine.

“I’d say it’s a little late for that,” Kit said as she started to walk away. “About 30 years too late.”

With that, Kit walked away and went back to work. Tina felt awkward understanding the reasons behind Kit’s anger, but searching for something to say to break the silence, since it was clear Maxine wasn’t leaving The Planet regardless of Kit’s desires.

“I’m sure she doesn’t mean it Maxine,” Tina said. “I’m sure it’s just the shock of seeing you after so many years.”

Maxine sighed.

“Believe it or not, I understand how she feels,” Maxine said sadly. “As you can imagine, Katie and I didn’t always see eye-to-eye when I came into the picture. She was at a rebellious age when Melvin and I met.”

Tina sat silently listening intently to every word. Tina watched as Maxine fell into silence, staring at the table in front of her, deep in thought.

“I’m rambling on aren’t I?”

“No, not at all,” Tina said.

“Well your look would indicate otherwise,” Maxine offered a shy smile that reminded Tina of Bette when she would tease her.

“It’s just that I never thought I would ever be here talking to Bette’s mother. I mean, we’ve been together for…” Tina stopped mid-sentence. “I mean we’ve known each other, for eleven years now. . . “

“You and Bette are no longer together?” Maxine interrupted.

“Oh right,” Tina blushed. “You just said you kept up on Bette’s life so you would know we were once a couple. I was afraid I just ‘outted’ her.”

Maxine laughed.

“You certainly didn’t expose Bette as a lesbian because I did already know that. However, I am rather surprised you’re not together anymore. I mean, look at this beautiful angel sitting here. If she doesn’t draw a couple closer I don’t know what would.”

Maxine leaned over to Angelica and ran her fingers through her hair. Angelica looked up at her and smiled broadly.

“Yeah, she’s our baby,” Tina said suddenly protective if Angelica. “We’ve both made sure that our daughter is out first priority.”

“I’m sure you have. I’m sure Bette has become a great mother. She always made sure her dolls were well taken care of when she was a little girl.”

Tina couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Bette taking care of her dolls. It was a rare glimpse beyond Bette’s tough exterior.

“Well, I seem to have taken up half of your morning,” Maxine said as she stood up from the table. “I would love to see Bette though before I get settled, do you know where she is?”

Tina stood and picked up Angelica.

“She’s out of town, but should be back soon. I can certainly mention to her that you’re looking for her when she calls to check in on our daughter.”

“Please don’t,” Maxine said quickly. “I’ll wait to talk to her when she gets back.”

Maxine reached over and tousled Angelica’s hair again. Angelica smiled at her again and laughed aloud. With that, Maxine stood up making a quick exit.

Tina watched Maxine walk out the door and fought the feeling of dread that took over her stomach. As much as she wanted to get to know Maxine and learn more about Bette and her childhood, she couldn’t help but wonder how Bette was going to handle this.

Tina looked over at Kit to assess how well she was handling the sudden reappearance of her stepmother. She wasn’t surprised to see that Kit’s eyes were glued to Maxine and the path she made through The Planet on her way out.

***

Tasha felt the warm breeze from the open door of the chopper blowing through her hair. She and her team had finished their supply drop and were on their way back to the base. As she sat in the front of the chopper and closed her eyes, her thoughts immediately were of Alice. Tasha missed her terribly.

Just as she thought about what she would tell Alice when she called her from the sat-phone, bullets ripped through the bottom of the chopper and came in through the open door. Tasha heard the first screams from her post at the front of the chopper and quickly jumped up to find out what had happened. The first thing she saw was Private Dalton, one of the newest members of her team, laying face down on the floor of the chopper. She had been hit by the gunfire and was taken down immediately.

As Tasha tried to run to her team member, the chopper was hit with another round of bullets from an unknown attacker.

“Get down damn it,” Tasha yelled over the roar of the choppers blades.

No sooner had she given the command, the tail section of the chopper was hit with a rocket, destroying it instantly. Tasha was knocked backward and landed flat on her back. The screams she had heard earlier were now amplified as more and more of her team were being ripped apart by bullets or being thrown from one end of the disabled helicopter to the other as the pilot tried desperately to keep it in the air.

“Captain? Can you hear me? Captain?’

Tasha shook her head, trying in vain to see through the smoke that was rapidly filling the chopper.

“Captain, wake up, you’re dreaming.”

Tasha spun her head and realized where she was.

“Are we there yet? Tasha asked to medic that was traveling with her.

“We will be in about 10 minutes. We’re already cleared to land in Washington,” said the medic.

Tasha looked around and realized that she had already gone down in the chopper and was now on her way to Washington for debriefing. After that, she was going home, home to Alice. She looked down at her body and wondered if Alice would ever be able to accept her again.

***

Bette opened her car door and surveyed the site. She knew that she needed to talk to Jodi and try to clear the air. Even though she wasn’t sure what Jodi’s problem was, Bette was shocked to realize that deep down, she didn’t really care what Jodi thought. She was tired of having to apologize for unknown indiscretions and always being the one to patch things up after a fight.

Bette closed the door of her car and started out to find Jodi. As she did, her cell phone rang loudly. Bette jumped at the sudden loud noise emanating from her phone. She pulled the phone out of her pocket and looked at the Caller ID. It was Kit calling. As much as Bette wanted to ignore the call at that particular moment, she became worried that something was going on with Angelica. She quickly opened her phone and spoke into it.

“Hey Kit, everything okay?” Bette asked.

Bette heard a sigh on the other end of the line.

“No Baby Sis, not at all,” Kit admitted.

“What’s going on?” Bette asked urgently. “Is everyone O.K.?”

“I’m not sure how to say this Bette, so I’ll just spit it out I suppose. Your mother is in town and just left here,” Kit said.