Heaven on Earth
by Darlene

Alexis rolled her eyes as she listened to her voice mail. It was Jerry – AGAIN. “Alexis, please, it’s imperative that I speak with you. I just need five minutes. I promise you I’ll leave you alone if you just give me those minutes. I’ll be on the docks at 8:00. Please be there.”

Alexis slammed her phone shut. “Damn you, Jerry,” she said aloud to her empty office. She mentally made plans to finally give him the chance to explain. She had continually refused to see him or speak to him for the last three weeks.

Jerry paced back and forth on the docks. He checked his watch for what seemed to be the fiftieth time in the last five minutes. She’s not going to show, he thought to himself. He sat down on the bench and put his head in his hands. He didn’t hear her approach.

“All right, I’m here. You have five minutes.”

He stood, relieved that she was going to at least give him a chance to explain.

“Alexis, darling, you look beautiful.”

“Cut the crap, Jerry. The clock is ticking.”

Jerry took a deep breath. “Ok. The entire thing with Sam was a way for me to distract Karpov. Yes, I’ve been working with Karpov, but only as a means to an end. It was the best way to keep you and your daughters- ALL of them - safe.”

“Jer-“

“Don’t interrupt. I’ve only got four minutes left. Shortly after I began working with Karpov, Sam began working for him. I realized very quickly that she was doing some sort of undercover work for someone, I don’t know who, maybe Lucky? Anyway, she was in over her head but she hates me so I knew that it would do no good to warn her. So, I just took a step back and let things develop. Surprise, surprise – Sam started coming on to ME. I figured she must have figured out that I was working for Karpov also and wanted to get some dirt on me, probably for blackmail purposes. In the meantime, Karpov wanted you out of the picture. He literally ordered me to kill you. Obviously, that was out of the question so I told him we just needed to get you focused on someone else.”

“Sam?”

“Yes, Sam. I realize now that she was a poor choice but at the time, she seemed to be the perfect choice. I quickly discovered that she would do anything to get me out of your life. Would she have slept with me? I think so but we’ll never really know. Please believe me when I tell you that I would NEVER have slept with her. I would never hurt you the way that Ric hurt you. And honestly, it horrifies me that Sam seemed willing to do so. I needed a way out of going through with her plans – that’s why I had you come over to her apartment and discover us. It also served the purpose of distracting you so that Karpov would calm down.”

“Are you done?”

“Yes, basically that’s it.”

“That is the craziest, most convoluted story I think I’ve ever heard. However, call me insane, but I think I might actually believe you.”

Hope soared in Jerry’s heart. “Really, darling? You believe me? We’re not through? I have another chance?”

Alexis let out a sigh. “Yes, Jerry. But we’ve got to take this slow. I’m not 100% positive that I completely believe you. But I’m willing to give you another chance.”

Jerry took her in his arms and breathed into her neck. “Thank god,” he said.

He was just about to kiss her when he heard a noise. He immediately knew something wasn’t right. “Alexis, get down on the ground. NOW!”

Alexis didn’t have time to react; Jerry shoved her to the ground just as a bullet whizzed past them. She watched as Jerry pulled out a gun and shot in the direction that the bullet had come from. She heard Karpov say something about Jerry not doing as he was told and killing her. He said that he’d come to do the job himself and if Jerry also died in the process, so be it. Alexis’ head was spinning; she almost blacked out but she knew that she couldn’t. She needed to stay coherent. Jerry was yelling something at Karpov but she couldn’t make it out. Jerry shot at Karpov several times. Karpov shot at Jerry just as many times. Alexis watched in a daze as Karpov started to fall to the ground. Just as he was almost there, he shot one last time. The bullet hit Jerry in the chest. Alexis screamed in horror.

“Jerry!”

She looked over at Karpov. He appeared to be dead. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed 911. She quickly gave them the pertinent information and went over to Jerry, who was bleeding profusely.

She tried to control her tears. “Jerry, help is on the way. You’re going to be ok.”

Jerry coughed and tried to laugh. “I don’t think so, Alexis. This is it. Just when I find you, I die. That’s how my life goes. Figures.”

Alexis was sobbing now. “Jerry, you are NOT going to die. You can’t. I need more time with you.”

There was too much blood. Alexis suddenly knew that she had to tell Jerry everything that she felt for him, about him, because too many people in her life had died without her getting the chance to show them her heart. Through her tears, she grabbed his hands and spoke from her heart. “Jerry, thank you for making me feel like a woman again. You came into my life at one of my lowest moments and made me feel ALIVE again. I fought you tooth and nail and luckily for me, you didn’t give up. I’m sorry I didn’t make more time for you, for us – but I was just scared. Scared of what you meant to me, deep down. I pretended to despise you when I should have been honest with you. I’m sooo sorry, Jerry.” She placed her head on her hands clasping his and sobbed.

He tried to lift his head. “Alexis, darling, I know I’m going to hell, so I'm glad that my last months on this planet have been Heaven on Earth.” He coughed again. “I should have told you this months ago when I realized it, but I love you. You’ve been the best thing to ever happen to me.” Tears streamed from his eyes and he moved in discomfort. “I can’t hold on much longer. Can I have one last kiss? Please?"

Tears pouring down her face, Alexis leaned down and gently placed her lips on his. Her heart was simply breaking. She started to pull away to say something.

"Jerry ... I -"

She stopped when she realized that he was no longer with her. She leaned down and in his ear whispered, "... love you, too." Soon after, she started to howl in grief.