Molly sat cross-legged on the kitchen floor, with both elbows propped on her knees and her chin resting on open hands cradling the sides of her face. She wasn't happy and extremely bored as she watched Chip Morton mix up gallons of paint.

"I'm so bored." she signed, drooping her shoulders. "How much longer are you going to mix that stuff?"

Chip was leaning over a gallon can of pale yellow paint. He stirred it carefully and pulled the paint paddle up, watching the paint ooze back into the gallon can. "It's almost ready." he told her.

Molly's face brightened, "Hey, Surfer, why don't you use NeNe's blender?"

Chip stuck his finger into the paint and touched the end of Molly's nose. "Because we would be covered with yellow dots like that!"

Molly wiped the end of her nose on her arm, examine the color of the paint, "This isn't pretty." she announced. "When's the Captain coming back?"

"He's gone to get a few paint rollers." Chip told her. "You can help us paint when he's back."

"I want to paint my room." she pouted.

"We're doing the first floor." Chip reminded her.

"Can I paint my room red?" Molly asked her expression perking up.

"You had better ask the Captain that question." Chip suggested.

"He said 'no' but his car is red." she grumbled. Molly rolled her eyes at Chip, "It's suppose to be my room."

Chip quit stirring the paint, "Well, Molly, we are ready to paint the kitchen."

"We're not talking about the kitchen." she sobbed, rising from the floor. "We're talking about painting my bedroom."

Chip caught her arm as she started to rush from the room. "What about another color?" He suggested as he indicated the color samples on the table.

Molly jerked her arm from Chip's grasp and ran from the room. Chip had heard from Lee that Molly had been experiencing some temper outbursts. They had both agreed that it was due to her parent's deaths and the new environment that she was now in.

Despite her outbursts, Molly remained devoted to Nickolas and would cling to Mrs. Crane on her moody days. Her nightly ritual of visiting the den still continued regardless of her mood during the day. She would cuddle up against Lee's side and would listen to whatever he talked about until she could stay awake no longer. He would carry her up to bed and tuck her in and then Lee would go visit with Nickolas for a few minutes.

Lee returned to the house from his shopping trip into the city. He carried a bag of paint rollers in one hand and he had swung by the condo and picked up Nickolas from his mother. As he entered the front door he saw Molly sitting on the lower step of the staircase.

"What's wrong, Molly?" he asked closing the door behind him. He still had Nickolas in his arms as he walked up to her.

She looked up with red-rimmed eyes and tear stained cheeks. She reached up for Nickolas and hugged him against her chest.

Nickolas nestled against her but then squirmed to get out of her arms. "Down, Molly!" the small boy demanded. He was released by Molly and he scurried over to the couch and climbed up on it. He had his stuffed dog with him and a toy car that he sat on the couch playing with.

Lee returned his attentions to Molly. He reached out and put his hand under her chin forcing her to look up at him. "Molly, what's wrong?" he repeated to her.

"Chip hurt my arm," she complained as the tears came spilling out of her eyes.

Lee sat the bag on the floor and sat down on the steps next to her. He tried to pull her close for comfort and she moved away from him, huddling on the steps as large sobs shook her body.

Nickolas heard her sobbing and climbed down from the couch, bringing his stuffed dog. He shoved it to Molly and looked up at his father with his large green eyes. "Molly cry." he whimpered. Nickolas reached over and patted Molly's leg, trying to comfort her. His father placed his hand on his shoulder.

Chip had heard the sobbing from the kitchen and came into the front part of the house looking for Molly. He walked over to where Lee sat on the steps beside the crying girl.

"What's wrong with Molly?"

Lee looked up at Chip, shaking his head. "You hurt her arm," he repeated. Watching the horror cross Chip's face, he held up his hand and shook his head again. "She's angry about something."

"Lee..." Chip started.

"I know." Lee interrupted. He reached over to Molly. She stopped crying as he pulled her to him.

"My arm hurts," she complained, struggling to get away.

"Which arm was hurt?" Lee asked, gently. He did not let her move away from them.

Molly stopped struggling and looked at him and Chip. She looked at her arms, the back at Chip. "I don't remember." she whispered.

"What were you doing when Chip hurt your arm?" Lee continued to question.

"You won't let me paint my room red." she answered in a low voice.

"Molly, are you hurt or mad?" Lee asked.

"Mad." Molly answered. Her eyes blazed at him as she scooted to the other side of the stairs. She regarded Lee and Chip with an unhappy frown.

"Did Chip hurt your arm?" Lee asked her.

Molly looked over at Chip, who was still standing over Lee. She lowered her eyes to the stuffed dog in her lap. "No." she whispered.

"Molly, it's not right to try to get someone in trouble when you're mad. You are mad at me, not Chip." he explained.

"I know." she answered. She looked up from the stuffed dog to Chip. "I'm sorry." she whispered.

Nickolas had been holding on to Chip's jeans leg as he watched Molly and his father talk. He noticed that Molly had stopped crying so he reached out and pulled his stuffed dog from her lap. He went over to Lee and tried to climb in his lap. He was rewarded by his father picking him up, and Nickolas leaned against his father's chest watching Molly.

Chip walked over to Molly and stooped down to her level. He reached out and took her hand in his, "Molly, let's go look at the other colors." he suggested. Chip was pleased to see her nod and then get up to walk with him back into the kitchen.

Lee relaxed against the stairs, realizing how tightly he was holding on to Nickolas. As he released his hold to Nickolas, his son looked up at him smiling. Lee was surprised to see Nickolas offer his daddy his worn stuffed dog and gratefully Lee accepted it.
 
 

Molly climbed up on the stone wall at the edge of the cliffs and looked back at the house to make sure that no one was watching. They had told her to stay off the wall but she felt comfortable enough to be out there and she did want to watch the ocean.

"Why did you want it red?" A voice demanded behind her. Molly turned around to see a young girl standing behind her. She had dark curly hair, but was a couple years younger. She was wearing a white dress, covered with a white pinafore.

"Who are you?" Molly asked the little girl.

"I'm Bessie." the little girl answered. She seemed quite annoyed to have to answer questions from this annoying little creature when she had so many questions of her own that she needed answering. "Why did you want it red?"

"Want what red?" Molly asked. She noticed that the girl was holding the rag doll that Lee had found on the mantle and had given to her. She reached for the doll, and the girl stepped back.

"The room...you wanted the room done red."

"That's none of your business...you have my doll!" Molly declared.

Bessie smiled at her and then looked at the doll. "This is Amelia...you are only borrowing her. Amelia is my doll. My Papa gave her to me."

"She's mine!" Molly demanded.

"Do you always want things your way, Molly?"

Molly stopped and turned to look at the little girl standing on the ground before her. She was beginning to wonder where this new stranger in her life had come from and if she even liked her. Molly turned with her back to the sea and looked back at the girl before her.

"Why did you ask me that question?"

"Because someone needs to ask you what you want, Molly, and you need to know so you can tell them. Why was it so important that the bedroom was painted red?"

Molly looked back to the house, almost hoping that Lee or NeNe would come out on the porch and yell at her to get off the wall. If they did maybe this person would have to do home and she would not have to talk to her.

"Why red, Molly?" The girl insisted again.

"How do you know what I wanted?" Molly asked her. "Only Surfer and I was there."

"I was there." Bessie answered. She walked over to the swing and sat in it. She cuddled up the rag doll in her lap and then turned her attention back to Molly.

"I didn't see you."

"You see me when I want you to see me." Bessie answered as she began to swing in the swing. "I didn't want you to see me, but he knew I was there."

"Who?"

"The one that you call Surfer. His name is Mr. Morton." Bessie answered. "Who is the other man that came in with the little boy? I saw Nickolas a few days ago. He's nice."

"That's the Captain."

"Does he have a ship like my Papa did?" Bessie asked her.

"It's a submarine." Molly answered, feeling quite proud of herself that she knew more than this rude girl did.

Bessie looked down at her doll, lost in thoughts that Molly could not understand. "What is a submarine?"

"It's a boat that goes underwater." Molly answered.

Bessie looked up at her and smiled slowly. "So it will not sink? Even during a bad storm?"

"They don't even know if there is a storm because it's quiet under the sea," Molly answered her.

"My Papa's boat is under the sea...it sank." Bessie told her. "Papa never did come home. That was a long time a long time ago." Her voice was little more than a whisper. "We went away. I kept hoping that he would come find us. He never did."

Molly watched tear run down the girl's cheeks and fall on the pinafore. Bessie made no attempt to stop the tears but she made no sound either.

"You're not that old." she stated.

Bessie looked up and looked around her. "I was this old when I last lived her. I liked being this old...it was happy. I was happy, I was happy later to but this is a special place." She looked at the house. "My Papa built the house."

"Is he your Papa?"

"Who?"

"That man...." Bessie asked pointing to Lee Crane as he stepped off the porch and walked toward Molly.

As Lee approached Molly, he looked about the yard. "Who are you talking to?"

Molly looked over to the swing; it was empty and hanging still. She looked up and into his face. "Do submarines ever sink?"

"Excuse me?" Lee sat down on the wall beside Molly. "Why are you asking me that?"

"I want to know if submarines ever sink...like boats do?"

"Submarines are made to go underwater..." Lee answered.

"No! Do they sink and never come up again?" Molly asked him.

"Molly why are we talking about this?" Lee asked her gently.

"Bessie's Daddy's boat sank during a real bad storm and it never came up...and he never came home...a long time ago." Molly repeated.

"Who's Bessie?" Lee asked.

"The little girl in the white dress." Molly answered.

Lee watched as Molly stared at the swing. She seemed upset to him but he had not seen anyone out in the yard with her when he drove up in the car. Molly hadn't even reacted when he tooted the car horn at her. "Molly, I think it's time that we go in for lunch." He rose and lifted Molly down from the stone wall, placing her on the ground.

She stared at the swing and then dashed across the yard, into the back door of the house.

Lee stared at the swing, saw nothing except for the rag doll that Molly had probably left in the yard. He picked it up and took in into the house.

Lee walked into the kitchen to see his mother standing at the sink. He walked over and watched her peel the potatoes.

She stopped and handed him the potato peeler. "You want to finish?"

"No," he replied, "just watching."

"What's on you mind?" she asked him.

"What makes you think that I have something on my mind?" he asked leaning against the counter and munching on a raw potato piece. As he reached for another piece, she slapped his hand with the flat side of the knife.

"Do you want me to cook these or are you taking us out tonight?"

"I should have thought that someone else was taking you out tonight...?"

"That's tomorrow night, and don't be so nosey."

"Well, it was obvious..." Lee answered. "Speaking of obvious...have you noticed Molly talking to herself?"

"Talking to herself?" Helen Crane turned from the sink and faced her son.

Lee stopped munching on the potato piece, "Bessie...a little girl in a white dress...I think she has an imaginary playmate. She was asking me some questions about the submarine." He explained, not going into detail.

"She's not imaginary." Helen answered. "Harry saw her upstairs when you and Chip were back east. Both Molly and Nickolas have seen her."

"Does she live around here?" he asked his mother. Not waiting for an answer Lee walked over to the table, where Nickolas sat in a booster chair, eating crackers and playing with building blocks. He sat at the table watching Nickolas concentrate on putting two blocks on something he was building. Lee picked up a block and tried to place it on the building, only to have Nickolas's little hand to reach out and stop him.

"Don't go there." he announced firmly.

"Where does it go..."

Nickolas screwed up his face in concentration as he looked over what he was building. He pointed to one area and looked triumphantly at his father. "There."

Lee placed the building block where his son pointed and picked up another one.

"No...not now." Nickolas stated, moving the structure away from his father. "Not ready."

"Okay...Nickolas, where's Bessie?" Lee asked his son.

Nickolas stopped building and looked around the room. "Not here." he answered returning to his building.

"Where does she live?"

Nickolas stopped again and looked at his father. Lee smiled to see those big green eyes peering at him as Nickolas sighed dramatically, "Upstairs."

Lee looked at his young son, puzzled, "Nickolas, we live upstairs..."

"Bessie does too!" He announced firmly. He bit into a cracker then looked over at his father and offered him the rest of it.

Lee turned to look up at his mother. "Bessie lives upstairs?"

His mother shook her head and shrugged her shoulders a bit, then turned back to the sink. This was one conversation that she was getting a bit uncomfortable with hearing.

"Yeah. The attic." Nickolas volunteered the information.

Lee looked over at his mother. "I'll be right back."

Lee left the kitchen and went to the front of the house and went up the stairs. He then went across the hall and up into the attic. There were a few boxes up there now but mostly it was still empty and Lee stood in the middle of the floor. What am I even looking for? What do I expect to find?

Closing his magazine, Lee looked at his watch and determined that Molly was about ten minutes later for her routine arrival at the den door. He was very concerned about her behavior over the last few weeks and decided that he should do something about it before it got any worse. He had asked Dr. Jamieson about some of the behaviors that Molly was exhibiting and he had asked that Lee bring in the girl to see him and they would try to figure something out that could benefit Molly.

He looked over to the doorframe hoping to find her there but she did not appear and he was concerned, as she had been avoiding him lately. Leaning over he picked up a book that he had been reading from off the coffee table when he heard a small sound at the door.

He looked up to see Molly leaning against the doorframe. "Hi, Molly, are you coming in?" he asked, smiling at her.

Molly nodded and walked slowly over to the couch. She sat on it and squirmed over to the corner opposite him and sat there staring at him. She reached out for the pillow and sat it in her lap and rested her elbows on it and put her hands under her chin and watched him quietly.

Lee laid the book back on the coffee table and putting his arm across the back of the couch he half turned to her direction. They both sat there regarding one another and then Molly was the first one to speak.

"Are you sending me back?" she asked quietly.

"Why would I send you back? Do you want to go back?"

"No." was her quiet reply. "This isn't for keeps, thought...it's not like it's really real."

"Why do you ask and why do you think it's not for real." Lee asked her.

"Because I was bad and told a lie." Molly said, looking down at the material on the couch. She was picking at one of the buttons on the couch cushion. "He did hurt my arm," she whispered.

Lee leaned forward without moving closer to Molly. "Do you remember when you and Nickolas were in the garden the other day and he nearly fell? Molly, how did you stop him from falling?"

She thought for a minute, " I...I grabbed his arm."

"And?" Lee prompted.

"He cried." Molly answered.

"Why did he cry?" Lee asked gently.

"Because I hurt his arm?" Molly asked, quietly.

"And probably, scared him too!" Lee added. "He was more scared than hurt. Perhaps you were more mad than hurt."

"Maybe..."

"I'm going to see a friend tomorrow." Lee continued. "Maybe you would like to meet him too?"

Molly stopped playing with the button on the couch and looked up at Lee. "Who is he?"

"His name is Will Jamieson. He's a doctor." Lee answered.

"I don't want to see a doctor!" she spat out at him. She started to leave the couch but Lee reached over and caught her shoulders with his hands, "NO!" she demanded as she tried to twist from his grasp.

Lee lifted the struggling little girl into his lap and held her until she quieted down, "You didn't let me finish talking."

"I'm not going to the doctor!" she stated flatly.

"Do you want to go to school?"

Molly stopped struggling as she considered this question. "Maybe..." she answered. "Why do I have to see a doctor?"

"Because children need a check-up to go to school...maybe shots too." he answered.

Molly rolled her eyes. "I knew that!"

Lee had slowly released his hold on Molly, half-expecting her to spring up and dash from the room. His mother was the only person who could actually hug or touch the little girl without her withdrawing into some unspoken shell.

"Maybe we could squeeze in an art class." Lee suggested. Maybe some bribery wouldn't hurt. To his surprise Molly leaned against his shoulder and stayed still for a minute or two before moving back to her corner of the couch. "So?"

"So, what?" Molly answered.

"Are you coming with me in the morning?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"No, not really," he answered her smiling, "but I thought I would be polite and ask."

Molly was totally fascinated by the Institute grounds, with all the buildings and people hurrying around the sidewalks. She frowned at Lee when they stopped in front of the Medical Building and looked at him with a pout on her face.

He noticed her pout as he parked the car, but paid it no attention as he got out of the car and walked around to her door. Opening it, he said to her, "The sooner we get this over with, the sooner you can see the boat."

"The boat...?" Molly repeated, getting out of the car. "Oh, cool! You mean the submarine! Will it go underwater?"

"I certainly hope not, " Lee answered. "They are putting in new equipment. The hatches are open." he explained.

Molly stopped in front of the imposing brick building and looked back at Lee, Do we really have to do this?"

"We've come this far." Lee answered giving her back a small push. "Come on, Molly!" He smiled down at her only to receive one of her now famous eye rolls in return. He mounted the stairs and opened the door for her as she shuffled in to the entrance lobby.

To his surprise Dr. William "Will" Jamieson was standing in the lobby waiting for them. Lee had called him earlier in the week, concerned over the lack of any evidence of medical care for Molly. Molly's lawyer had gone through all his paper work and the few papers that the family had and found nothing to indicate medical care. He had even checked the local doctor's offices with no luck and faxed the results to Lee's office.

Will Jamieson looked at Molly as she and Lee came up to him. "I would bet that you are Molly." he stated smiling down at her.

Molly looked around the lobby then back at the doctor. "I would suppose so since I'm the only girl here."

She looked back at Lee, "You did tell him that I'm a girl, didn't you?" she asked fingering her jeans and tee shirt.

"Molly...." Lee warned her, looking down at her.

"Well, he started it...." she continued.

A wide grim broke across Jamieson face and he laughed, "I suppose that you are right. Would you like to come with me?"

Molly did not move from her spot despite Lee's gentle nudge from the back. She turned to Lee. "Will you please stop pushing me?"

Lee looked down at her in complete amazement as Dr. Jamieson laughed again.

"Looks like I have another Lee Crane on my hands," he commented as he led the way to his office.

Molly turned back round at Lee. "You are coming?" she pleaded.

"Let's go, Molly." he agreed. Her hand had found it's way into his and she clung to it tightly.

They entered Jamieson's Office and he indicated that Molly should sit in one of the chairs. He continued to chat with her about the Institute and what he did as he looked over her carefully without actually touching her. He handed her a few things that he had on his desk to look at while he continued to chat with her. Jamieson had noticed that Lee had taken up a position right behind Molly's chair and stood there leaning against the wall.

"What do you like to eat?" he asked her.

"Food."

Jamieson smiled, chuckling at her, "What kind of food?"

"Just food...not dead cows." she answered.

"Oh, no beef? How about chicken and fish?"

"I like those...and I eat veggies, fruit, bread and cheese." she was counting off on her fingers. Suddenly she looked up at the doctor, "and ice cream, milk with chocolate and ... I really love pizza!"

"That's good." the doctor commented. He held out both hands to Molly. "Can you squeeze my hands?"

"Why?" she asked.

"I want to see how strong you are." he answered.

Molly took his hands and squeezed with all her might, getting dramatic and making a face of sheer effort. She noticed Jamieson smiling at her and stopped, then smiled back at him.

"Do you have any blood?" he asked, writing something down on the clipboard. "I need to use a bit of it," he stated picking up some equipment off the desk.

Molly looked up at Lee, still standing behind her. "I don't want him to hurt me."

"Molly, he won't hurt you. It will sting for a few minutes, that's all." Lee told her, leaning over the back of the chair to talk to her.

"Yes, he will." she insisted. "Children always get hurt by adults and we can't say anything."

"Why can't you say anything, Molly?" Will Jamieson asked her. He leaned over to talk to her, looking up at Lee. He was expecting something like this but did not want to mention any possibilities to Lee until he had actually seen the little girl. Lee's explanation of her behavior had started bells ringing in his head but he had wanted to talk to Molly first.

"Because they hit you if you say anything." she explained. She followed the Doctor's glance up at Lee and misinterpreted his look, "No, not him. Nobody's hit me here except Nickolas and he doesn't understand because he's a baby."

Lee looked horrified and came around the chair and kneeled down in front of Molly, "Who hit you, Molly?"

"I can't answer that question." Big tears begin to run from her eyes. Turning sideways in the chair, she cradled her face in her arms and begin sobbing, "Momma...momma said...I can't answer...those quest...questions." She continued sobbing, refusing to look at the men.

Lee picked her up and sat down in the chair, holding the sobbing girl. She clung tightly to his arm, turning her head into his chest. Lee wrapped his arms around Molly and began to rock her gently as she cried.

Jamieson walked over and laid the equipment on the counter, returning to where Lee sat with Molly. He pulled up another chair and sat nearby which Lee continued to comfort the frightened child. Lee looked across at him, questioning him with his eyes but not saying anything.

As Molly's sobs quieted, he tried to get her to look up at him. He wanted to reassure her that everything was all right but he continued to cling to his arm with her face buried against his chest. He gently lifted her face, red and swollen, stained with tears. She struggled to break eye contact with him, then whimpered, "I wasn't suppose to tell..."

When Lee did not respond, Jamieson read the shock in Lee's eyes and spoke to Molly, leaving Lee time to accept what she was revealing to them. "It's okay, Molly," he assured her. "No one is angry or will hurt you for telling us. That won't be happening anymore." He quickly reached the intercom on his desk, "Linda, come in here please."

A side door opened as Dr. Jamieson's secretary opened the door and stepped into the room. She was a nice looking older woman, who smiled at the little girl in Lee's lap. She searched the doctor's face and seemed to find the answers that she was looking for and walked over and spoke to Molly. "Hi, Sweetie, do you want to come with me for a few minutes. I have something that I think you would like to see." She held out her hand to Molly.

Molly looked over at her and wiped her eyes. She looked up at Lee who nodded and then accepted Linda's invitation to go with her.

"Linda, Molly might want something cold to drink. I'll let you know when Captain Crane is ready to go."

Lee did not offer any resistance as Dr. Jamieson lifted Molly out of his lap. She continued to cling to Lee's arm, until Lee reached out and gently touched her face, "I'll be ready in a few minutes, Molly." he reassured her.

Molly looked back at the two men before letting Linda lead her out of the room.

As soon as the door closed, Lee walked over to the window and looked out. Dr. Jamieson leaned against the desk, crossing his arms over his chest, waiting. After several minutes of no motion, Lee fingered the cord to the window shade before slowly turning around to face Will Jamieson. He sighed deeply, and walked back to the chair and sat down resting his elbows on the arms of the chair.

"What was she saying?" he asked quietly.

"You already know the answer to that question." Jamieson answered gently. "Her parents have probably physically abused her. Maybe not her mother but she permitted it to happen. This could explain a lot of Molly's behavior problems and her imagery friend. Molly has created her own safety nets, her behavior, he attitude and her friend is an extension of herself, perhaps, minus the bad stuff."

"She's been abused?" Lee asked. His hands were gripping the arms of the chair as he fought to control his anger. "How could anyone do that? She is such a tiny little thing."

"I would say that she's been abused, but I would have to do a complete physical and some tests and have her to talk to a child psychologist. I wouldn't do anything to her medically, until we can sedate her a bit...she's terrified of being hurt and I don't want to be the one to cause more terror." He paused to watch Lee's reaction to his comments.

Lee said nothing but continued to stare down at the carpeted floor of Jamieson's office. Right now every color of the carpet was burning into his mind and he could hear Jamieson's voice but couldn't reply to the words. Molly's sobs echoed through his very being-not sobs of pain but of anger and frustration. Who would hurt a child? If anyone would hurt Nickolas...or Molly...Molly was his child now, too!

Later, Lee arrived back home with Molly shuffling in behind him until she caught sight of Nickolas coming out of the kitchen. Nickolas grinned widely to see his father and Molly coming in the door. He dashed up to them holding up a large metal airplane to his father. "Look, Daddy, Plane." he announced.

Chip was leaning against the kitchen entrance, grinning at them. "Where have you been?"

"A doll, Molly" Nickolas told her, grabbing her hand. "Come on!" he demanded, trying to pull her to the kitchen. Molly smiled and allowed Nickolas to drag her to the kitchen.

Chip stood watching Lee as he walked toward the kitchen. He moved to purposely block the door with his body causing Lee to stop and look at him, "Problems?"

"Yeah, but not now." he answered walking past Chip into the kitchen. Helen Crane was sitting in the breakfast nook, writing on a small tablet. Molly was sitting beside her holding a boxed Barbie doll, a gift from Chip. She looked it over carefully, before laying the box back down on the table.

"Gee...neat...a doll." she remarked.

"Molly?" Helen Crane only had to speak her name.

Molly looked up at Chip and smiled, "Thank you. Can't really say that I have had a doll like this."

"They're the rage with my sister's girls." Chip explained, smiling at Mrs. Crane. He then turned to Lee, "Your mom's invited me to dinner but it will be a while. Let's take a walk, shall we?"

Chip Morton walked along the sand, watching Lee Crane as he walked beside Chip. When Lee and Molly had returned from their visit to the Institute Lee had indicated to Chip that he wanted to talk to him. Now that they had gotten away from the house, Lee had hardly said a word as they strolled along the beach below the cliffs at the old house. Chip was determined that he wasn't going to pressure Lee into talking but he was getting concerned at his friend just picking up shells as they walked and tossing them back into the ocean.

They had walked nearly a mile from the house with Lee hardly saying anything. Chip had tried to initiate a conversation twice, only to have Lee to ignore him both times. As they walked, Lee reached down and picked up another shell and threw it out over the breakers before returning to his strolling as his eyes searched for another shell.

"I take it that our assignment to clear the beach of shells?" Chip asked as Lee threw another out into the sea.

"Huh?" Lee asked, stopping to turn to Chip.

"I think I've lost count." Chip replied. "What is that thirty...or maybe closer to fifty shells?"

Lee looked at Chip with annoyance etched into his face, "What are you talking about?" He had stopped walking to face Chip.

Chip faced Lee, his hands clutched in front of him, rocking slightly on the balls of his feet. "Why are you throwing the shells into the ocean?"

Lee looked at the shell he had just picked up from the sand, then dropped it where they stood. "I took Molly to see Dr. Jamieson today. Mostly to get her registered for school..." He turned and started walking along the sand and Chip moved in beside him. "...I was also concerned about the temper outbursts that she's been having the last couple weeks." He stopped again and faced Chip. "She has an imaginary playmate that Nickolas talks about too."

"The little girl in the white dress...?" Chip asked.

"Oh...so you have heard about her too?" Lee asked as he resumed walking. "Did Molly tell you about her?"

"Yeah, I heard about her, but it wasn't Molly who told me."

"Nickolas? Nickolas usually won't say much unless you ask him a direct question about her."

"No, it wasn't Nickolas." Chip answered. He noticed that Lee had stopped walking and was looking at him with a questioning look. "Lee, I really don't know how to say this but I think that Molly is really seeing Bessie. I'm just not too certain who or what Bessie is."

"What Bessie is?" Lee echoed back.

Suddenly Chip wished he had not even started this conversation about Bessie. Lee had not come down here to talk about Bessie, but that was part of Molly's problems, or perceived problem but Chip was certain that there was more to the story of Bessie.

"What do you mean, Chip?" Lee pressured him.

"Lee, there's something in the house. I knew it the first day I met you there. It was really odd...." Chip had stopped walking, as he turned back to talk to Lee. "Did I ever tell you about my grandmother's house...no, I doubt if I would have admitted even it to you."

"Chip, I really don't see how your Grandmother's house fits in to what is going on..."

Chip ignored the interruption and continued. "Each summer, we would go spend several weeks with my grandparents. They had an old house and we would stay upstairs when we were there. After I left for college, I never went back to that house...I would pay for my Grandparents to come visit me...pretending I wanted them to see other parts of the world. That wasn't really a lie because they had never left their farm up to that point and Granddad had retired."

"Chip...."

"Quiet, Lee, hear me out! Believe me, I have never told anyone about it...the house was haunted by a very violent, evil ghost...after it was dark, I would sneak downstairs to sleep because it wouldn't bother me down there. If I stayed upstairs I would hear all sorts of noises...it would say all types of things...it got to the point that I would feel it when it entered the room...it was very terrifying." Chip stopped speaking, if thinking back to the times that he had actually been in that house. "Right after I got out of school, my grandparents moved to a smaller place. They had gotten their stuff out of the house, had it up for sale and the house caught fire and burned to the ground. The police said that it was arson but they never found out how it happened. Over the years, I have provided them money for their loss and made sure that they were comfortable and never went without."

"You burned down the house?" Lee asked, looking at him with shocked eyes.

"Hell, yes, and no one will ever go through that again." Chip added with a faint smile on his lips. "I know what you are thinking, Lee. It really did happen. I spent my teenage years sleeping on the back porch. Once you go through that you never forget that feeling that there is something there. I felt that feeling in your house, there is something there but it's not evil, if anything it's quite scared..."

"Bessie is a ghost? Are you trying to tell me that we have a ghost in our house?" The corners of Lee's lips turned up and he actually stood there grinning at Chip.

Chip couldn't help to return the grin. Lee's humor could be infectious at times, since he was usually more serious and even grim at times. "I don't know, Lee...a ghost, a spirit...you have something in your house. I think it's Bessie, and I think she is just as scared as Molly is and that brings them together."

"Molly has every right to be scared...she told Jamieson and I about it this morning. She did not actually tell us...she's afraid of being hurt and started crying and sort of blurted out about being hurt in the past."

"Hurt? Hurt by who?"

"Her parents...I needed to get some medical information for school and her lawyer couldn't find anything relating to medical information. I thought I would check that and her mood swings...Jamieson was going to do a blood test and she totally lost it at that point." Lee stood there shaking his head, "I can't believe that Frank was such a total bastard! He wasn't like that when we were in school, a bit of a hell raiser, but not like that."

Lee turned away from Chip and was looking out over the ocean. "If he wasn't already dead, I would kill him. Her sobbing nearly killed me, Chip. It wasn't like she was just crying, it was like she was just sobbing her little heart out and there was nothing that I could do. All I did was hold her, I couldn't say a thing...I think I was in shock. Jamieson had Linda take her from the room and I couldn't even deal with him for the longest time." He paused still looking out to the ocean. "Cathy's death was bad enough to deal it, but you go on and the pain settles down and finally becomes a dull ache. It's still there but you have to accept it and go on...only sometimes do I see her in Nickolas's eyes."

Chip continued to say nothing, letting Lee talk out his grief, not for himself but for this little girl that had entered their live so abruptly just a few months before.

"When someone dies, it's over...you cannot change or make it better. How do I change this or make it better?" Lee was shaking his head, "...And you now tell me that I have a ghost to deal with too?" He turned to face Chip, his face was pale and his eyes a bit red. "I don't know what I can deal with."

"You deal with one thing at a time." Chip answered slowly. "Right now you deal with Lee Crane...then you move on to the next problem."

Lee Crane woke up early the next morning and went in to the Institute to see how the upgrades where going with the Seaview. It was one of the few times that he had seen all the hatches open at once and he was always surprised to see all the ways that the sub had for loading and unloading of equipment as well as men. It was odd to see the sunlight streaming down into the missile room. The deck was covered with wires and spare equipment and Lee noticed the Admiral standing in the middle of the room looking over notes that he had attached to a clipboard.

"You're off today." the Admiral spoke as Lee approached.

"Yeah, I know." Lee answered looking around at the workmen who were welding something in place over on the far wall.

"For more storage..." the Admiral answered Lee's unasked question as he followed his stare at the wall.

Lee Crane did not answer but continued to look about the huge room. It was odd to see all the usual equipment and racks out of the way while the workmen did their upgrading. He turned to the torpedoes, to see that they had been removed, and even the storage devices were gone as men worked in that area too.

The Admiral looked up from the clipboard and watched as Lee continued to look about the room. Lee's expression was one of complete seriousness and his eyes looked very troubled.

"Lee, what's wrong with you, son?"

Lee looked over at the Admiral, his expression did not change, "Oh, nothing...just tired, I guess."

"You are suppose to be on vacation. I can't have you coming back to work more tired than when you left."

"Well, it's been a strange one..."

"Why don't we go out and get some breakfast?" The Admiral suggested cheerfully.

"Thanks, but I'm not really hungry." Lee answered. "I'm going to see what they have done to the Control Room." He turned and left the missile room, as the Admiral watched after him.

Admiral Nelson laid the clipboard down on the workbench and decided that he would try to find out what was bothering his friend. He knew that there would be other ways to get answers so he turned the opposite direction outside the missile room hatch and decided that he was going to the SickBay to talk with Dr. Jamieson. He walked down the corridor trying to miss all the wires and equipment and all the open panels.

Arriving at the SickBay door he entered to see Dr. Jamieson and one of the orderlies putting up some new equipment.

"Frank, why don't you get a cup of coffee and let me talk to the Doctor for a minute or two, please?" Nelson suggested.

Frank turned to the Doctor who nodded to him. Jamieson then turned to Admiral Nelson, and smiled, "Running off my help?"

Harriman Nelson laughed at the comment, "Actually, I do have a concern about something and I need you to help me out with it."

"Sure, you know that I will." the Doctor answered.

"What's bothering Lee, Jamie? You know that I don't like seeing him upset like this."

Dr. Jamieson sat down and motioned the Admiral to another chair. "Lee brought Molly in for her school physical the other day and we had some problems to develop. Nothing that I wasn't expecting but it took Lee by surprise and he's having a hard time dealing with it." Jamieson looked around the room. "I blame myself as I thought I knew what was wrong but I guess I should have prepared him for the shock. Sometimes I think that I have been a doctor too long as I forget that some things still come as a shock to people. I handled it badly."

"Handled what badly?" Nelson asked, alarmed by the Doctor's words.

"Molly was badly abused by her father. She admitted it during the examination and was very upset. Apparently her mother knew and covered up for the father also. Lee was shocked by what Molly said and her reaction to it." The Doctor leaned back in the chair, "I think he's also upset knowing that a friend of his would have been capable of doing that."

"Lee doesn't need this," the Admiral added quietly.

"I know." Jamieson agreed. "It happened so quickly and Molly was so upset...we have put off her starting school for a while...Lee needs to adjust to it also. I think it will benefit them both to go into therapy about this."

"Why does Lee need to do therapy over this?" Nelson asked. He clearly wasn't too happy about this idea. "Lee's not crazy."

Dr. Jamieson laughed at that statement, not realizing that the Admiral was angry at the suggestion, "Harry, sometimes it's therapy that keeps us from being crazy. You will have to remember that Lee is a single parent with two children, a demanding job and now this...he's not really dealt with Cathy's death. Now he has a badly upset little girl to deal with and Nickolas is going to begin asking questions someday..."

"Do you really think that Lee needs to deal with all this now?" Nelson asked.

"Of course not. No one needs stress in their life...it is going to get much worse for Lee before it starts to get better. We will just have to do what we can to help him, no matter what he thinks. You know how stubborn he can be."

The Admiral nodded in agreement. "I know what you are saying, Jamie. We just might have to help him over the rough spots even if he doesn't like it."

"Well, that's what friends are for." Jamie agreed.

Little did Jamie know what he was agreeing to as the Admiral began to start thinking about ways to help Lee with the problems that Lee was having. Admiral Nelson rose from the chair and turned to Jamie, "I have a few things that I need to work on and maybe it will end up helping Lee. He may not like it but I think that it will help."

Admiral Nelson left SickBay and walked along the passageway and up the ladder until he came to his cabin. There is something that I can do to help Lee with one of the problems.Molly is a cute girl but Lee doesn't need the responsibility of one so young with so many problems until he gets his own problems and life back on track. Nelson sat down at the desk and picked up the telephone. "Sparks? This is Nelson, put me through to a land line and hold all my calls for a while, okay?"

Morning came early to the Crane household. Lee Crane never slept late when he was home as Nickolas was always in the bedroom at the crack of dawn trying to make his father get up.

"Daddy, I want something to eat!" the small boy announced bouncing on the bed before falling down at the pillows. He ruffled his father's hair as Lee turned his face away from the insistent little boy. "Now, Daddy! Now, Daddy!" he chanted as he bounced his rump up and down on the pillows.

"Nickolas!" Lee growled, grabbing the small boy and tucking him under the covers. "Go to sleep!" he ordered, smiling at his son.

"No!" Nickolas crawled out from under the covers. "I want some cereal."

"All right!" his father agreed. "Put on your shoes and get the paper for me and I'll see if we have any food in the house."

"We have food!" Nickolas told him, sliding to the side of the bed. "Can I have coffee?"

"Oh, sure." Lee agreed, sitting up in the bed as the Nickolas dashed from the room. Where does he get that energy?

It was several minutes before Lee dressed and got down to the kitchen to find Nickolas sitting on the floor crossed-legged before the paper, which he had spread out all over the floor. "I'm reading the paper."

Lee walked over to the cabinet and pulled out a box of cereal and a bowl for his son. He poured corn flakes into the bowl and went to the refrigerator for milk and juice. Looking down at his son he asked, "Are you wanting your breakfast on the floor or at the table?"

Nickolas smiled, "The floor?"

"I don't think so. Now get up here." He pulled out the chair as he set the bowl on the table.

"I want to eat here."

"I don't think so." his father repeated.

Molly ran into the kitchen, "There's a car in the yard. I don't know who it is."

"Good morning to you too." Lee answered. "You sit down and get some cereal and I will attend to the car in the yard."

"But it's a lady...." Molly answered, pouting.

"I want to see!" Nickolas shouted, getting up from the floor, only to be captured by his father and placed in the chair at the table.

"You two eat breakfast and I will see to the visitor." Lee answered as the doorbell sounded. Molly started to leave the table but was stopped by his quick look her way.

Lee crane left the kitchen and walked to the door. Looking through the glass in the door, he could see it was a lady, but one that he did not recognize. He opened the door. "Good morning! May I help you?"

"Good morning!" the woman answered back. "I'm Jackie West, from St. Elizabeth's Girls School in San Francisco. We received a recommendation about a Ms. Molly Thompson."

Lee stopped and looked again at the lady. She was quite young and dressed in a smart suit and carrying a briefcase. She took a step toward the door, as thought expecting to be invited in. "St. Elizabeth's Girls' School in San Francisco?" He turned back to the kitchen, with his hand still on the doorknob, What on Earth is Molly up to now? "I'm sorry, but I have to check something first, could you please have a seat on the porch and I will be right with you?" Lee indicated the porch chairs and smiled at the visitor. Stepping back into the house, he shut the door and went into the kitchen.

Molly was still sitting at the table, reading the comics in the paper and eating her cereal. She looked up as Lee entered the kitchen, "Who was that?"

Lee sat down at the table, pulling the paper away from Molly, "What is this about St. Elizabeth's Girls School? The lady is from there and wants to talk to you about going to a girl's school?"

Molly looked over at Lee, "I don't want to go to school. I don't want to go to a school for girls!" She jumped up from the table and started from the kitchen.

Lee grabbed her as she dashed by and pulled her to him, "Molly, I'm not saying that you are going. I just want to know why the lady is here." He waited for a minute, expecting Molly to tell him that she had filled out one of the cards that she was always finding in magazines and mailing off.

"You don't want me anymore!" Molly sobbed out and jerked away from him, running toward the stairs. Molly sobbed loudly as she dashed up the stairs. Arriving at the top landing she ran into her room and slammed the door shut.

"You made Molly cry!" Nickolas announced as tears starting running down his cheeks. "That's not nice!"

Lee looked over at his son in amazement, what on Earth was going on? "Nickolas, go talk to Molly." Lee suggested getting up from the table. He walked back through the house and stepped out on the porch closing the door behind him.

If the young lady sitting on the chair had heard Molly's outcry, she gave no indication. She smiled brightly at Lee as he can up and took paperwork out of her briefcase. Removing a file, she opened it and began speaking to Lee. "I will need to go over some of the paperwork with you."

"No....that's not necessary! There's seems to be a mistake here and I'm not sure how it happened."

"Oh, no. There is no mistake." She answered. "The arrangements and tuition has already been paid for the first year through the Institute."

"Institute?" Lee echoed.

"Oh, yes. Admiral Harriman Nelson has been quite generous and has insisted that we get Molly settled in right away to begin her studies." She removed a letter from the file on official Institute letterhead.

Lee immediately recognized the signature and put his hand on the file. "Ms. West, there seems to have been a mistake. Molly is not going to St. Elizabeth's Girls School. She will be starting school here in the fall."

"But her grandfather...."

"Her grandfather?" Lee asked, smiling. "Her grandfather and I have not discussed this. Leave your card and if I have need of your services, I will contact you."

"But, I have driven from San Francisco..."

"Have a nice drive back, Ms. West. I do apologize for the inconvenience." Lee picked up the card and the letter.

"The letter is mine..."

"No, this letter now belongs to me...I will return it to the gentleman who wrote it." Lee stepped into the house and closed the door. He did not wait for Ms. West to leave the porch. She had made it up on the porch without his help she could damned well make it back to her car.

Lee went up the stairs. Nickolas was sitting outside Molly's door and turned to his father. "She's crying and told me to go away."

"I know. Let me talk to her...there has been a mistake." Lee answered. He folded the letter and put it in his pocket with the business card. He then opened the bedroom door and went inside, closing it behind him.

Molly was sprawled out on the four poster bed, sobbing into the pillow. She felt Lee sit down on the bed and she moved away. "Go away!" she demanded.

Lee reached down and picked Molly up off the bed, cuddling her in his lap. She struggled to get away from him, but he held her gently until she stopped struggling and started sobbing again. He said nothing but held her closer, rocking her a bit as she sobbed. He knew it would do no good to try to talk to the angry little girl while she was crying. As he sat there, he noticed that the curtains were blowing gently into the room and he could see the shape of something at the window. Turning slowing he watched the shape fade away, as the curtains returned to their place beside the window.

Molly had stopped crying and lifted her face up from his shoulder. She looked over to the window, "She lied."

"The lady lied?" Lee asked.

"No, she said that I would stay here." Molly answered, pointing to the window.

"Who was at the window, Molly?"

"You are making me go away." Molly stated.

"No, I am not making you go anywhere. The lady had made a mistake. She thought that you might want to go to their school since you were not in school but she's gone. I told her that you would be going to school here in the fall." Lee explained.

"I don't want to go away...I don't want to go to school." Molly stated, pushing away from him.

Lee released her and she crawled back to the bed, hugging one the rag dolls that Uncle Chip had given her.

"You are not going to have to go away, Molly, but I do want you to go to school. Would you think about that for me?" He wanted a minute until she looked up at him, "Why don't we go see if your cereal is soggy yet?"

"Okay..." she responded, offering her hand to him.

Lee was surprised with the strength that she clung to his hand. They paused at the door and he offered his free hand to Nickolas, "Come on, Son, do you want to join us?"

Admiral Nelson and Lt. Commander Morton were sitting at the table in Admiral Nelson office, when the door was flung open and Captain Lee Crane stalked into the room.

"What in the hell is this?" he asked, dropping the folded letter in front of the Admiral.

Admiral Nelson looked up from the papers that he and Chip were working on and glared at the young man. "Where did this attitude come from, Mister?"

"Read the letter, Sir, and you just might find out." Lee retorted.

Admiral Nelson picked up the paper and opened it. His face softened a bit as he recognized the letter. He folder it and placed it on the desk before him. "I thought it would be a good idea to get Molly in school and give you a bit of a break too." He rose up from the table. "They were suppose to offer it to you without mentioning the Institute or my name."

"Well, fine...why don't I just send Nickolas away too...until he can eat without making a mess." Lee suggested, clearly still mad at the Admiral. "I'm sure that they have a boy's school up there too."

The Admiral held up his hands, trying to calm Lee Crane down. They had both forgotten Chip Morton who was sitting at the table. Neither the Admiral nor Lee did see as Chip reached over and picked up the letter. As Chip read over the letter, he began shaking his head and turned to the Admiral.

"Lee, it wasn't meant like that." Nelson explained. "I am concerned about the stress that is in your life right now with Nickolas and Molly."

"Are you saying that I'm not doing my job?" Lee confronted the Admiral.

"No, Lee." The Admiral answered. "I'm not saying anything like that. You just aren't getting the rest that you need, with Nickolas...and Cathy's death...."

Lee sighed, "Cathy died over 3 years ago. I have gotten over her death, but the rest of you aren't. Cathy is gone and I will raise my son and my daughter the way that I see fit. You are not to interfere with that aspect of my life, if it doesn't concern that submarine."

Chip looked in shock at Lee. That submarine? Lee has never described the Seaview as "that submarine" before.

Lee turned and left the room, slamming the door behind him and nearly running over Sharkey and Ski in the outer office. He did not even acknowledge them but stalked on out into the hallway.

Ski turned to watch Lee leave, "What was that about? Should I follow him?" He half-turned to follow Lee out of the building as Sharkey caught his arm.

"Stay out of it." Sharkey warned.

Admiral Nelson turned back to Chip Morton who was still sitting at the table. He waved his hand apologetically, "I don't know what that was all about."

Chip looked down at the paperwork in front of him, "You need to butt out of his life." He mumbled.

"What did you say?" Nelson demanded.

Chip rose from the table, "I'm sorry that I mumbled, Sir. I said that you needed to butt out of that aspect of his life..."

Nelson frowned at Chip. "You don't even know what we are talking about."

Chip picked up the letter and then dropped it back on the table, "Yes, I do. I read it."

Admiral Nelson walked over to the table and snatched up the letter, "It's none of your damned business."

"Yes, Sir, you are right." Chip admitted. "But neither is it your business. Lee is right, we don't ever let him forget about Cathy. If he has a problem we throw Cathy's death back in his face and then try to get into his affairs...and then we say that it because he can't cope. We are the ones that can't cope and we put that on Lee and he ends up trying to carry all the guilt for everybody. Molly isn't any of our business."

"Do you remember who you are talking to?" Nelson demanded, slamming his fist on the table.

"Yes, Admiral, I know who I am talking to, but I can't let you continue to try to run his life. If Lee is going to make a mistake, he needs to make it and get out of it by himself." Chip looked down at the table, then back up at the Admiral. "I'm not too sure that Lee should take on the responsibility of another child yet myself, but that is Lee's decision, not mine...and certainly not yours."

Nelson turned to Chip, "Well, then you agree that Lee has taken on too much? It is our business..."

"I did not say that I agreed with you. I will agree that we need to stay out of Lee's business unless he asks for our help with something. Our help needs to be productive...if not, we are giving Lee the wrong message."

"And what in the hell is that message?"

"That we don't have faith in his ability to handle his own life. We need to back away."

"And when did you start issuing orders around here?" the Admiral asked.

"I'm not issuing orders." Chip answered the Admiral. He could feel the heat rising on his face. He knew that the Admiral cared greatly for Lee Crane, but sometimes the Admiral just did not know when to back away from something.

"It sounds like you are to me." Nelson challenged.

"No," Chip answered. He stopped, picking up his report from the table. "Maybe we could finish this later when things have cooled down and you aren't so angry."

"Angry? No, I'm not angry, but you will apologize to me before you step foot outside this room."

Chip looked up at the Admiral, "You screwed up but you want me to apologize for speaking the truth?"

He knew that as soon as he had said that he had stepped over the line but he wasn't going to back down now. He had seen this coming for the last couple of weeks since the Seaview was dry docked. The Admiral's beloved submarine was out of commission for the next several weeks and he had taken to minding everyone else's business. It was mostly Lee who had suffered in silence and Chip longed to say something.

"Admiral, I am sorry for speaking my mind in front of you, but I'm not going to apologize for what I said. I understand that you care very deeply for Lee, but this is something that only he can deal with."

"You will apologize!" the Admiral ordered. He picked up the letter and threw it into the garbage can. "I'm doing what I think is right and what will benefit Lee the most."

"I know that...look, we are both tired and irritable. Can we talk about this in the morning?"

"No, I don't think that I want to talk about it or to you again. You are fired." Nelson stated.

"You can't be serious!" Chip answered.

"Yes, I am! You are questioning my authority and getting into my business." the Admiral announced. "Get out of my office." Nelson walked over to the phone and picked it up, "Angie, get security in here!" There was a pause. "Send them in here. They can escort him off the grounds."

The door opened and Sharkey and Ski walked into the office expecting to find someone interfering with the meeting that Nelson and Morton had been in all afternoon. Nelson pointed to Chip, "get him off these grounds and keep him off!"

Sharkey turned to Chip with a questioning look on his face. "Sir?"

"Oh, come on, Chief" Chip answered. He dropped the paperwork on the table that he had in his hands. He glared over at the Admiral, "You know that I'm right, Admiral." Stepping away from the table, he remarked, "I'll be at Lee's, if you want me."

Chip walked out of the room between the two men. Once outside the room, he turned to Angie, "Angie, give Admiral Nelson a break from the calls for a while. He's having a very bad day."

Angie nodded at Mr. Morton, "Okay, will everything be all right?"

Chip smiled at her, "Yes, but he needs to let off some steam and I'm afraid that I got in the way. I'll be at Lee's if you need me."

He then turned and walked on out into the hall with Ski and Sharkey, "I'll be all right." Chip told them. "You really need to hang around here in case the Admiral needs you for something." Chip stepped away from them and went down the hall into the bright sunshine. He really did need a break as he and the Admiral had been going at it all afternoon and he knew that he was right and that the Admiral would be calling him back. Chip smiled, It was all Lee's fault as he knew that the Admiral hated to be pointed out as being wrong about something. Nelson had been wrong and it was Lee that pointed it out to him.

"Doesn't he have a name?"

"Huh?" Molly remarked, turning over in her bed. She had been woken out of a sound sleep by a voice talking to her.

"You call him the "captain"? Doesn't he have a name?" The small voice demanded again.

Molly reached over to turn on the light and squinted around until she found Bessie sitting in the rocking chair in the corner of the room.

"Oh, it's you." Molly answered. "You woke me up!"

"Will the boat sink?"

Molly stared at the little girl then remembered, "I asked him. He said that it was suppose to go under the water."

"Good." Bessie agreed. "But does he have a name, Molly?"

"Of course, he has a name...we all have names." Molly answered, propping herself up on her elbow so she could look at her visitor.

"Why don't you use it?" Bessie asked.

"I don't know." She answered. "Maybe if you don't use names of people they can move in and out of your life and not hurt you. If you don't name them, they never really exist and they can't ever leave you alone. I don't hurt that way." She explained, pulling the blanket over her head. She peeked out at the little girl. "You are suppose to go away if I do that."

"Do what?" the little girl answered.

"You are suppose to disappear if people do that. You are a ghost."

"No, I'm Bessie."

"But you are a ghost..." Molly argued.

"What's that?"

"I heard Grandpop and NeNe talking...you are a ghost and you died a long time ago."

"I'm looking for my Papa. He went away and never came back...he promised to come back." Bessie explained. "I have to wait here so he will find me."

Molly turned off the light and lay in the darkness watching the little girl. She did not remember falling to sleep again but woke up as the light was beginning to shine into her room. She looked over at the rocking chair and found it empty. Molly slipped out from under the covers and ran out into the hall. She quickly went to Lee's bedroom door and opened the door, seeing him asleep on the bed. Molly entered the room and walked over to the bed. She reached out for Lee's arm and shook it. When he did not immediately respond she shook it again.

Lee opened his eyes to see the young girl standing at the bed. He looked around the room then back at the girl, "What's wrong, Molly?"

"He can't find me here, can he?" she asked. Her eyes were huge and imploring.

Lee was a bit disorientated, "Who can't find you here?"

"That man!"

"Which man?" He remembered the problem in Dr. Jamieson's office. "Dr. Jamieson?"

"No, the man that hurt me."

"Your father?" Lee asked.

"He's not my father! Fathers would never hurt their children." Molly looked into his face as the tears started falling from her eyes. "Bessie says that she's going to wait for her father to find her...he's dead...so will he ever be able to find me?"

"Molly, let me get dressed. Can you wait out in the hall about two minutes?"

Molly nodded and turned and left the room. She sat down at the head of the stairs looking down at the darkened living room. It was just about a minute when she heard the sound of Lee's door opening and he stepped out into the hall. He walked over the girl and lifted her up into his arms and carried her down the stairs. He went out the front door and sat in the swing on the porch, still holding her, as she clung to him.

"What happened?" he asked gently.

Molly took a deep breath and then began talking to Lee, "Bessie is going to wait for her Papa to come back and get her. He promised her that he would be back...but he died, didn't he? Bessie said that his ship went down in a storm...it had big sails and rode the wind, but the storm made it sink..."

"Who told you this?" Lee asked the frightened girl.

"Bessie told me...will he find me here?"

"Molly, your mother and father died a long time ago and they cannot come her to find you." Lee answered. "You are safe here; and here you will remain as long as you want." He assured her, stroking her head as she lay against him.

"What about Bessie?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen Bessie." Lee answered.

"If Bessie's father doesn't come, can Bessie stay here?"

"We will have to talk about that; I can't have Bessie scaring you." Lee answered.

"She doesn't scare me. Other people scare me. Bessie can't hurt me and I want her to stay because she's unhappy too."

"How do you know that?"

"She said so."

Lee pulled the small girl in his lap and cuddled her closely, "We will see about what will happen. I don't want you to worry about Bessie or anything else. Okay?"

"I'll try."

Lee busied himself in the kitchen, turning as he heard Nickolas screaming from the living room, "Uncle Chip is here! Uncle Chip is here!"

Lee walked into the living room to see the small boy jumping up and down in front of the window. Lee pulled back the curtains, watching Chip coming up the stairs. Nickolas was struggling to open the door, when Chip pulled it open just a bit, knowing that Nicholas would be waiting for him. Seizing the small boy, he swung him up into his arms hugging him tightly.

"How are you today?" he asked him as he set him back on the floor.

"I got a new book!" the small boy announced, turning to go up the stairs to get it for Chip.

Lee stood in the middle of the floor, watching Chip. "Maybe I should ask you how you are doing?"

"Oh, I'm fine." Chip answered.

"Sure." Lee agreed. "You always come here in the middle of the day and you have that look on your face. What's happened?"

"Oh, that...." Chip smiled snapping his fingers like he just remembered something. "You need to find yourself an new Executive Officer."

Crossing his arms, and cocking his head to one side Lee stood there. "I think that you had better tell me about this..."

"You got coffee?"

"I always have coffee."

"Good. Let's go get coffee."

"Why do I always have to give you coffee to get anything out of you?"

It took several minutes for Chip to explain what happened to him after Lee had left the Admiral's Office. He was sipping coffee and holding Nickolas in his lap as Nickolas "read" the new book to Uncle Chip.

Lee was shaking his head as Chip relayed the story then stopped him in mid-sentence. "Chip, you really shouldn't argue with him over this. You know that he's very stubborn and you can't budge him when he thinks that he's right. It's always easier to just let him continue to do what he wants and stay out of the way until he's gotten it out of his system. It is best just to leave him be...but there isn't any way that the sub is going out without you on it."

Chip shook his head, laughing. "I made him pretty mad this time."

"Do you two take some perverse pleasure in this? I think you both do, you two fuss and fight all the time just for entertainment value...at least I know when to back..."

"No, you don't. At least I save him money on therapy. He can fire me two or three times a year and then he's happy again. You know that is his routine...he yells at Starke and fires me. It's a sure thing...watch the pattern."

Molly entered the kitchen and pulled out a chair at the table.

"Grandpa is here." She announced as she sat down at the table. "He just drove up."

Lee looked over at Chip as Chip started to get up from the table. "You stay there." Lee walked over to the cabinet, taking out a coffee mug. "I think we need to have a serious discussion."

"Oh, goodie!" Molly added. "I want to have a serious discussion too!"

"I want some coffee!" Nickolas demanded.

"I don't think you need any coffee," Lee answered. "Molly, why don't you and Nickolas go upstairs and play."

Molly turned at the table, rolling her eyes at him. "Which means that you are going to talk and I get to watch the baby. I always get told to go play when something important is going to happen. When will I be grown up enough that I can stay and give my opinion on things?"

"You got the general idea, but the joining in will be when you are 50, Okay?" Lee agreed. He poured coffee into the mug and returned to the table with it.

Molly rolled her eyes at him before getting out of her chair. "But what if I have the perfect solution?" She reached over and pulled Nickolas from Chip's lap. Nickolas let himself slide to the floor, frowning as Molly pulled his hand. "Come on, I will show you how to really read it."

"Thank you, Molly," Lee called to her as they left the kitchen

She and Nickolas ran into the Admiral as he came in the door. Molly stopped and turned to him, "They are waiting for you in the kitchen."

"Who is?"

"You will see." Molly sang back to him as she started up the stairs with Nickolas in tow.

Nelson shook his head, watching the children go up the stairs. She was a cute little girl but she wasn't Lee's natural child and now that there were so many problems developing. He was still concerned about Lee having all the extra stress on him and the two children were so active.

He continued through to the kitchen, stopping when he saw Chip Morton sitting at the table, talking to Lee. "I'll come back later."

Lee answered, "No, I have already poured you a cup of coffee and I think it is time that we have a talk. We all left our rank at the front door," he warned.

"I don't think that this is the appropriate time..." Nelson started.

"See, what did I tell you?" Chip butt in on the Admiral. Both men began to argue back and forth with one another.

Lee had his elbows propped on the table, his chin rested on his folded hands as he watched the two men bicker. As they continued to exchange barbs, Lee got up to refill his coffee cup. He returned to the table and sprawled out in the chair. Seeing a lull in the dispute he spoke up, "I think you both need to shut up."

Nelson looked over at the man who had been his closest friend for years. "What did you say?"

Lee continued to look at him, then smiled. "Sir!" He sat up in the chair, "Now that I have both of your attention, I have a few things to say. No, Chip!" He warmed his friend as Chip started to interrupt. Lee turned to the Admiral, "Molly will be going to school, but she will go locally and will be starting next week. I have already checked on that. And there is no way that the Seaview will go out without Chip being the Executive Officer. You two fuss and fight like an old married couple and couldn't stand it if one of you were gone."

He took another sip of his coffee. "Yes, I do have some problems going on right now...but they are my problems so I shall work them out. Until then you two will just have to bear with me and I shall just have to put up with the two of you." He got up from the table and put the coffee mug into the sink. "Now you two can fight it out if you want. I'm going down to the beach. If one of you gets mad and leaves that's okay but someone has to stay here and watch the kids until I get back...two kids and two of you...so try to work together on this, okay?"

He turned and went out the side door into the garden, smiling to himself. They were both stuck in the house until he returned. Maybe it would take him an hour to walk on the beach and they would continue to talk. He knew that they were really better friends then they pretended to be so he wasn't worried about what the kitchen would look like when he returned.

Turning to go to the walk down to the cliff he was surprised to see a strange little girl sitting on the wall. He started to just pass the child until he had a feeling that this was the little girl that the children and the Admiral had mentioned seeing. She was wearing a white dress and a blue sash. Lee stopped and walked over to her.

"Are you Bessie?"

"You're the Captain," the little girl answered him. "Are there really dragons over there like my Papa said?" She asked looking out over the sea.

Lee looked over at the spot that she was staring at and saw nothing but the expanse of the Pacific Ocean. "Dragons?" he asked, not really understanding what she was asking about.

"Will your ship sink too?"

"My boat goes under the waves." he explained. He reached out to touch her arm but there was nothing for his hand to rest on. Yet the little girl was still sitting on the stone wall.

The girl just looked at his hand. "Am I really here, Captain? Do you really see me or am I just part of your imagination?" She moved her head toward the horizon. "Are the dragons really there or are they just stories?"

Lee turned his head looking back out at the sea. It was calm in the late afternoon hours. He turned back to the stone wall, but the child was gone.