Second Chance:

[hawkhunter]

Grand, thanks again for the link. Looking forward to the chapter a day but not wanting thr story to end.

[Grand58742]

CHAPTER 57



“You have your cell phone on you, right?” asked Charlie after the ball game.

“I have my cell phone,” said Cindy as she looked over at Portia waiting with her parents.

“You call me if anything, and I mean anything happens. Understand?” asked Charlie.

“I will,” said Cindy. “No big deal.”

“It is a big deal, but we can talk about it tomorrow,” said Charlie. “Also, if I call you and use the phrase we came up with, you call Mister Tilson right away. Understand?”

“Call Mister Tilson if you call and give me the run phrase,” said Cindy. “Is there something going on I should know about?”

“No, we’ll talk about it tomorrow,” said Charlie as he tried to put on a brave face. He and Mitch had worked out the details with Jeff Tilson if they ever needed Cindy to run and they both were compromised. Jeff would go to wherever she was at and take her deep into the southern end of Unicoi County where it would be almost impossible to find her. And Jeff knew folks all over the county in case he needed someplace other than with his family.

“We can drop her off in the morning,” said Greg Foster.

“I’ve got to head into town first thing. I can swing by,” said Charlie.

“Okay, what time and where?” asked Greg.

“Liberty Lumber at nine sound okay?” asked Charlie.

“We’ll have her there,” said Greg as they departed. Charlie watched as they departed the area as Erica came up behind him.

“Now you get to tell me what’s on your mind,” she ordered.

“Let’s get started back towards the house,” said Charlie.

“Bad?” she asked.

“It’s a long story,” said Charlie as they departed. The drive was filled with the explanation of what Anderson had told him. After arriving at the house, Erica was suddenly frightened at the prospect of being a target for Federal law enforcement.

“Honey, isn’t this a bad thing?” asked Erica.

“I don’t know to be honest with you. I don’t want her to go back to an environment where she is going to be abused. And the Feds taking New York’s side of this isn’t helping much. But I hope I am placing the correct faith in our Governor and the State. And I hope they don’t fold into the pressure,” said Charlie.

“I just want us all to be safe,” said Erica as she opened the door.

“I trust Mitch and the rest of the county to keep us safe. The wild card is the Governor,” said Charlie.

“I wanted us to have a nice evening here together, alone for a change. But now I’m frightened,” said Erica.

“Come here,” he said and gathered her into a hug. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you or her. I’ve come too far to let anything bad happen.”

Erica sighed as she tightened her grasp on Charlie. He looked down at her and smiled before giving her a quick peck on the lips. They walked inside, hand in hand and kicked off their shoes once in the door.

“When you do have to pick her up?” asked Erica.

“Nine in the morning,” said Charlie.

“Eleven hours to ourselves? Whatever are we going to do?” said Erica with an impish smile.

“I can think of a few ways to pass the time,” said Charlie as he closed the distance to her and forgot about the troubles they were facing for a little while.

********************

“Toby is the cutest,” admitted Portia as she and Cindy were busy listening to the radio and talking about everything under the sun to include boys. Cindy told the story of their first kiss.

“No boyfriend for you?” asked Cindy.

“Who has the time for a boyfriend when there are so many men?” laughed Portia. “I’ve got a question though.”

“What?” asked Cindy.

“What’s the deal with you and your uncle? I mean, you said your family was having troubles, but that’s been a while,” said Portia.

“My Mom and Dad are still working things out,” said Cindy.

“A long time, why don’t they just get divorced?” asked Portia.

“I don’t know. Probably because Mom still loves him I guess,” said Cindy.

“And your uncle? Which side of the family is he on?” asked Portia.

“Mother’s side,” said Cindy. “We kind of just found him.”

“Lot of trust don’t you think?” asked Portia.

“What do you mean?” asked Cindy as Portia finished up painting her toenails.

“Okay, you are now totally cute. I can’t believe you’ve never had your toenails painted,” said Portia. “I mean, they barely know your uncle, but sent you to live with him for a while.”

“I’ve never had my toenails painted because my family was really religious and believed it was…I don’t remember the word my father used,” said Cindy.

“He’s a real winner isn’t he?” asked Portia.

“He isn’t too bad I guess,” said Cindy.

“Painting your nails? I mean, that’s a little extreme,” said Portia.

“It is I guess,” said Cindy. “But that’s just him being him.”

“And your uncle? Is he strict?” asked Portia.

“Uncle Charlie? No, he pretty much lets me do my thing,” said Cindy.

“That’s cool,” said Portia.

“What brought you here, like to Erwin anyway?” asked Cindy.

“My Dad got a job at Nuclear Fuels,” said Portia.

“Where were you at before?” asked Cindy.

“Dothan Alabama,” said Portia.

“Why there?” asked Cindy.

“My Dad worked for the nuclear power plant there,” said Portia. “We had to move because he lost his job.”

“Sorry about that,” said Cindy.

“No, we actually like it here except for the lack of a Starbucks in this town,” said Portia.

“At least there’s a Wal-Mart,” laughed Cindy.

“Hope for civilization,” laughed Portia. “So nothing more with Toby than a kiss?”

“No, I think he’s afraid Uncle Charlie will cut off body parts or something,” laughed Cindy.

“So sneak out,” suggested Portia.

“I couldn’t do that. Charlie would kill us both,” said Cindy.

“You have to be a bit daring in this life,” said Portia. “I mean, take chances, hop in a car with someone you don’t know and go on a road trip. Something out of the ordinary or you’d go insane!”

Cindy kept from laughing out loud at the example Portia gave, but managed a giggle anyway. “Yeah, crazy stuff.”

“Or something!” said Portia. “Just live in the moment!”

“Maybe someday,” said Cindy. “But for now, I take it one day at a time.”

“And tomorrow?” asked Portia.

“Who knows what tomorrow brings?” asked Cindy as she wondered what would happen tomorrow with her conversation with Charlie.

********************

“Good morning lady,” said Charlie as the sunbeam came through the window waking him out of a deep slumber.

“Mmmmm,” grunted Erica. “It’s early.”

“Six-thirty,” said Charlie who was already up and at it.

“Early,” grunted Erica. “Go back to sleep.”

“Sorry baby, when I’m up, I’m up,” he said and rolled over to trace a circle on her exposed shoulder and added in a kiss for good measure. “And are you up?”

“If you keep talking I suppose I am,” she groaned and rolled over to face him. “Morning love.”

“Sleep well?” he asked.

“Like a baby,” she smiled at him. “And discovered a few things about you last night as well.”

“Such as?” he asked and kissed her on the lips.

“You snore,” she giggled.

“I do not!” he protested and gave her another kiss.

“You most certainly do!” she laughed and kissed back at him.

“And how would you know that?” he asked.

“Because I stayed up looking at you and wondering how in this life I was ever so lucky to find a man like you,” she smiled at him. “And I found out something else.”

“What’s that?” he asked.

“You’re special,” she smiled.

“Special how?” he asked.

“I’m a doctor, I can tell,” she giggled. “I did a quick check on you in your sleep.”

“And I snored the whole time?” he smirked.

“Until I rolled you over. That seemed to do the trick,” said Erica with another giggle. “Was I able to divert your attention off your problems for a while last night?”

“And I thought I was diverting your mind,” said Charlie with a smile.

“Maybe we diverted each other?” asked Erica.

“I think that was the case. And it was a nice diversion. Last thing I knew you were sleeping like the dead,” said Charlie.

“I did sleep good, especially after the performance,” she smiled and gave him another kiss.

“Takes two to tango,” said Charlie as he rubbed at her arm again.

“Want to try a different dance this morning?” she asked with a grin.

“I’ve got two left feet,” he said with a grin.

“Don’t worry, I’ll lead,” she grinned and pushed him over on the bed.

********************

“Sorry for calling you this early on the weekend, but you need to come in and make contact with Tennessee,” said the U.S. Attorney General.

“Has a decision been made?” asked the Director of the Civil Rights Division.

“Either they give her up or several plans are to be put in motion,” said the Attorney General.

“Specifically?” asked the Director.

The Attorney General spent several moments explaining what the ramifications were going to be for not agreeing with the instructions of the Federal Government. And furthermore, just how far they planned to take those ramifications.

“And this is coming from?” asked the Director.

“The highest authority,” said the Attorney General.

“I’ll pass on the message,” said the Director as he rolled out of bed.

“Make sure the message is clear. We don’t want any more trouble,” said the Attorney General.

“There might be, no matter what we say and do,” said the Director.

“We’re prepared for that as well,” said the Attorney General.

********************

“You look different today,” said Cindy as she put the landscaping timbers into the bed and bounced into the cab of his truck.

“Different how?” asked Charlie.

“Like relaxed,” said Cindy. “Just different.”

“Didn’t realize it. Only had two cups of coffee this morning,” said Charlie.

“So what was the important conversation you said could wait until today?” she asked.

“We had a visit from Agent Anderson last night,” said Charlie.

“And?” she asked.

“Are your toenails painted?” he asked.

“Yeah, the cutest huh?” she grinned. “And don’t change the subject.”

“Sure,” he said and continued with the story after seeing her attention wouldn’t be diverted that easily. He spent several minutes describing what happened with the meeting in Washington and what Anderson had relayed. Again, they didn’t know what the outcome was going to be, but knew it would be tough.

“I’m sorry,” said Cindy as they got to Unicoi. She didn’t seem worried about the conversation she just had with Charlie. Or she didn’t mention it.

“For what?” asked Charlie.

“For putting you in danger,” she said.

“You never did anything like that,” he said.

“But I did!” she exclaimed.

“Cindy, if I couldn’t handle the problems, I would have dropped you off on the side of the road the night I found you,” said Charlie.

“For the record, I’m glad you didn’t,” she grinned.

“I still might,” he said with a chuckle. “Anyway, chores need to be done early.”

“What’s on the agenda?” she asked.

“Football this afternoon,” he said. “And the Macks are coming over.”

“Okay, what do I need to do?” she asked, not mentioning it would be nice to see Toby again. Again, it was like nothing had happened the previous evening and she trusted Charlie to make sure she was okay. He wasn’t sure why she seemed nonchalant about it, but realized things were out of both their controls and there was nothing that could be done. He outlined her chores for the morning and once they arrived, she attacked them with the same vigor she typically did, getting done early and finding more to do along the way. The Macks came over in the early afternoon and Charlie fired up the grill as they got ready for football time in Tennessee. It was just another lazy fall afternoon in East Tennessee and the families mingled and ate lunch in the back yard. After they were finished and still talking of the little things, Toby motioned Cindy away from the group.

“What’s that all about?” asked Charlie.

“I think he brought her a gift,” said Erica.

“A gift?” asked Charlie. “What kind?”

“I don’t know,” said Erica. “Why worry about it?”

“Because I know what kind of gift I wanted to give a teenage girl back when I was his age,” said Charlie, watching the two disappear around the house.

“Charlie,” said Erica with a tone.

“What?” he exclaimed. “I’m just saying!”

“Leave them alone,” warned Erica.

“I didn’t say or do anything!” he protested.

“I can see it in your eyes,” said Erica.

“I…yes ma’am,” he said and dropped his head.

“What?” asked Cindy as they got to the Mack’s truck.

“Here,” said Toby as he handed over a gift bag.

“What?” asked Cindy as she looked inside. “How cute! I didn’t know you wore pink Toby.”

“Uhh, it’s not for me, it’s for you,” he said with a shy grin.

“How did you know I loved pink?” she exclaimed. “Let me go put it on!”

She bounded away into the house and came back outside wearing the pink Tennessee t-shirt he had bought her.

“I knew you didn’t have a UT shirt,” he said.

“It’s the cutest!” she said and gave him a hug. “Thank you!”

“I figured you needed something for the game today,” he said with the same shy grin.

[Grand58742]

CHAPTER 57 CONTINUED

[Grand58742]

What happened?
Thought everything was going alright on that front.

Answered in the Homestead forum.

[jbriii]

Hell Yeah!!! That's what I'm talking about, I wish our Governer had those stones...........

[overbore]

WOW!!!!! Not only have you evolved a good story into a current Good Vs Evil scenario but also you have captured the emotions of the South, who, by the way won the last battle of the War ( in Texas [ now isn't that a coincidence] ) but also won the reconstruction guerilla war; a harbinger within a magnifiicant yarn.
EXCEPTIONAL WRITING AND STORY TELLING; NONE FINER.

overbore

[Bear4570]

You sure do know how to escalate a story...in an awesome way...great work.

[Pop_45]

Another war of aggression? I'll be siting on the edge of my seat till I see what happens next. Thanks Grand.

[tech]

Whew...phenomenal writing Grand. Just fantastic.

[barfife]

Whew...phenomenal writing Grand. Just fantastic.

Amen brother

[jpr9954]

Whoa! That was some speech the Gov of TN gave!

[PJaster]

Grand, I must add in to the groups saying the story is moving along so fine!!!

I have been a little dis-abled of late, had a small problem of my right leg feeling like not being there...

Uh, I have discussed it, elsewhere, but my Lumbar #4... Did you know that is ~home~ to the famous "Sciatic Nerve", well. Let me say, that is ~some Nerve~!
as it travels down, it might have other names... For instance, the middle inside of my thigh, I would call "the Throbber" and it throbs somewhat, to early Calypso Music... Now then, as it travels further down, and goes to the OUTSIDE of the back part of the knee... well, I call that spot, "the Screamer" No, it does not keep time with the Throbber.... Darn....

And so on... down to... would you believe my Big Toe? it went numb, like after that dentist you don't like, gives you the shot of Novacaine? yah, numb....

But that was last week... today I am better, and Gee, a first for me: Four Chapters of Second Chance to read!!!!!!

I have to work, to my level.... still moving: ~small beginnings~ gets Parked Sept First, or 2nd.... as ever it goes.

Thank you, for giving me something to read, as I am flat on my back, RESTING!!!!

in HIM,
philip

[Grand58742]

CHAPTER 58



The former New York State Agent Steven Waters was relaxing on the beach in Greece after he had taken the advice of the Imam and skipped the country. In a rush, he had cleared his four bank accounts (TBI had missed one during their investigation), sold off his new car for cash and taken the remainder of the money he had hidden in his house. While $600,000 wouldn’t last him a lifetime, it would at least get him started on a new life wherever he happened to end up. Plus he had his various stock certificates, mutual funds and other items that would continue producing even in his absence. After being met at the airport by a friend of the Imam, he had been told to stay in the hotel room they had already paid up for a week and wait to be contacted for official travel arrangements to another country. He sincerely hoped he wasn’t heading for a strict Islamic country as he liked his beer and women too much and didn’t want to give them up so easily.

While he was busy sunning himself on the beach, surrounded by the tourists from the various European nations, he kept eyeballing the local women and wondered why he hadn’t noticed the Greek nationality before. The Mediterranean features appealed to him as he continued to watch them in the water and walking down the beach.

A nearby vendor brought over the drinks he had ordered minutes before, handing it down with a napkin wrapped around it. A double shot glass followed with a local liqueur he had not ordered.

“I didn’t order this,” said the former Agent.

“No sir, it is, how you say, a promotion item?” said the waiter in a heavy accent.

“What is it?” he asked as he sniffed at it. A fruit smell came from the shot glass.

“A special blend of one of our local people. Some say…what is English words…it is to die for?” said the waiter.

“Okay, I’ll give it a try, put the rest on my tab,” said Waters as he dismissed the man. His friends had put him up in fairly nice accommodations and he was taking full advantage of the beachside bar the hotel offered. Taking a sip of the mixed drink, he sat it off to the side and watched as the women continued to frolic in the surf and sand. He picked up the shot and eyeballed it before sniffing once again. A rich fruity smell gave him all the reason to give it a try and he swallowed the shot quickly. It was a mix of something apple and another fruit he couldn’t identify, but entirely yummy. It is to die for like he said. I need to find a bottle of this, he thought as he looked at the empty shot glass. He chased it down with a sip from the Bloody Mary and went back to his girl watching.

Several minutes passed and he broke out into a sweat. It was warm out that day, but he felt hot from the inside and out. Suddenly his insides felt like they were burning up and a pain was felt in his jaw. As he was starting to stand up, his chest became tight and he could feel his heart thump over and stop. Clutching at his chest, he couldn’t even draw in a breath to call out for help. He collapsed back into the chair, fighting for a breath and wishing for his heart to start beating once again. In a last struggle, he managed to roll out of his chair and onto the sand where a blanket sat for lying in the sun. Paralysis was quickly taking over his body and his vision was narrowing and becoming blurry. Before he slipped away into the darkness, his last thoughts were it literally was to die for…

“It is done,” said the waiter simply into the telephone before dropping the tray off on the outdoor bar and walking away. The remainder of the poison had already been disposed of in the sand and the ordinary looking glass bottle tossed in the nearby recycle can. He reached into his pocket and found the spare card swipe key for the hotel room they had passed on before the Waters had even checked into the hotel. After an extensive sweep of the room, he finally found the bag hidden with the nearly $600,000 in cash. Zipping it back up, he departed the hotel room to make his journey by boat back to Lebanon. Eventually after taking his quarter cut of the money, the remainder would be sent back to New York to the Imam. The man would wait for further profitable jobs as they came along and live his life in the gray areas he was used to.

All the while, Waters continued to lie dead on the ground, looking for the world like he was sunning. He was eventually found in the afternoon by a tourist who was concerned about the sunburn on his back.

********************

“The dog problem has been taken care of,” said the Imam. “It had to be put to sleep.”

“It had served its purpose,” said Abdul.

“And the schooling for the family? How is that going?” asked the Imam.

“Fairly well. My little brother is getting the best marks,” said Abdul.

“And how long until he is ready to progress to the next grade?” asked the Imam.

“Soon. He is more or less ready now, but I would feel more comfortable with increased studies,” said Abdul. “And the search for a college?”

“It going slowly. We haven’t found the best location yet,” said the Imam.

“Perhaps I need to make a few visits myself,” said Abdul.

“Maybe, but we are still checking other schools,” said the Imam.

“Until then,” said Abdul and ended the call. He knew the chances of the call being traced were good and they planned to move the camp at this point. Heading inside, he found several of the man brought up watching an old TV show and drinking the majorly sweet tea. “We need to get ready to move.”

“Good, it is getting a little cold here,” said one of the group.

“And my problem?” asked Mohammed Hassan.

“Is no longer a problem,” said Abdul as he went to pack his things.

********************

“These people are not unusual if we were in Afghanistan or Iran. But here?” asked Rindo Chelki.

“Yeah, that’s why I brought you in on this,” said the contractor.

“We know the parents are missing. Your contacts in New York have said that much. We know there are two other children, but we are not sure where they are,” said Rindo.

“You think they would be in some sort of danger?” asked the contractor.

“Maybe the daughter. The son should be okay,” said Rindo.

“Why not the son?” asked the contractor.

“Because the son is a male and won’t have the harm put to him like the daughter would. She is coming of age and will be in a position to be wedded to one of those men before long,” said Rindo.

“So what should we do?” asked the contractor.

“Get the daughter and mother out if we can. Again, we know the parents are missing, but they might be hiding her,” said Rindo.

“Just like that?” asked the contractor.

“If it was your daughter in there and faced what those perverts would do to her, would you hesitate to remove her?” asked Rindo. “The same for the wife.”

“Yes, I see your point,” said the contractor. “So how do we do it?”

“I would go in undercover, but my face is on the news too much. Better to snatch her out and put her with someone you trust,” said Rindo.

“And this won’t cause problems with the current situation?” asked the contractor.

“Maybe it will…you are right, perhaps now isn’t the best time to remove the two from the equation,” said Rindo.

“But still, we should keep a close eye on the compound,” said the contractor.

“An opportunity will eventually present itself,” said Rindo.

********************

“How are things going?” asked the Governor of Tennessee.

“Pretty well all things considered. You never realize just how much in taxes you send to Washington,” laughed the Attorney General.

“So we are going to be okay?” asked the Governor.

“Our welfare programs were hit pretty hard, but we are squeaking by,” said the State Treasurer.

“And word from Washington?” asked the Governor.

“Steaming,” said the Attorney General. “They flat refuse to speak to us. They are also threatening to fine the companies withholding their tax money.”

“That’s a simple solution, tell them not to pay it,” laughed the Treasurer.

“Easier said than done. The Feds will go out and find courts loyal to them and force the issue through,” said the Attorney General.

“If the Federal Government can ignore a court ruling in the case of Cindy Grant, I’m sure we can do much the same thing,” said the Governor. “Speaking of which, is she okay?”

“Yes sir, but it appears Washington might be getting ready for some searches,” said the Director of the TBI.

“Such as?” asked the Governor.

“We are hearing rumors they are planning to stage a team in East Tennessee somewhere. We aren’t sure, but they seem to think she is in that location,” said the Director.

“Lot of ground to cover,” said the Attorney General.

“And if we find them, the Sheriff First legislation comes into effect,” said the Governor.

“That will raise the stakes big time,” said the Lieutenant Governor.

“We’re already in a standoff with Washington. A few more pieces of wood on the bonfire aren’t going to make this any worse,” said the Governor.

And as fate would have it, the Director’s cell phone rang while they were still in the meeting. He listened for several moments before asking a few questions. After he finished he turned to the Governor. “The FBI just landed.”

“Who and where at?” asked the Governor.

“Hostage Rescue Team out of Quantico. They are in Knoxville,” said the Director.

“Any reason they are here?” asked the Lieutenant Governor.

“There is only one reason why the HRT is here,” said the Director.

“Make sure we get there before any problems come up,” said the Governor. “And make sure the plans we came up are stuck to.”

********************

“We’re getting this done pretty quick,” said Cindy as she looked over the half completed rifle stock. The basic shape was set now and the fine detail work was being done.

“Easy part’s over. Now we have the hard part of the details,” said Charlie as he took a sliver of wood out of the piece.

“And I can’t help with that?” she asked.

“Hang on…” he said and took one final sliver. “Okay, grab the fishtail gouge right there.”

“Which one?” she asked.

“The one with the…” he started to describe it and got it himself. “This one.”

“And what am I supposed to do with it?” she asked.

“Start taking off small slivers down to here,” he said as he indicated a mark on the wood. “Just lightly go over it.”

“You think Toby is going to be happy with the stock I’m making him?” she asked.

“I think he’s happy any time you do anything for him,” laughed Charlie.

“I never thought of making a gun for a boy before,” she laughed.

“I’ve got another one to make as well,” said Charlie.

“Oh, your friend at the store?” she asked.

“Yeah, that one,” he said and avoided the subject again.

“When are you going to get started on that one?” she asked.

“Very soon,” he said.

“You guys got a minute?” asked Erica from the house.

“Sure,” said Charlie. “Come on Sparky, break time.”

“Sparky?” she asked.

“Have to call you something,” he laughed.

“You call a dog Sparky,” she objected.

“Skippy? Slappy? Squirt?” he asked with a grin.

She growled and rolled her eyes at him as they went inside to see what Erica called them in about.

“I was checking the net and found this,” she said and pointed at the screen of the computer. They saw it was on a social networking site and the name “Support Cindy Grant” was at the top of the page.

“What is this?” asked Cindy.

“Apparently, someone thinks you are something special and dedicated a page in your honor. Looks to have plenty of folks that support you in this,” said Erica, checking to see the seven million “likes” she had received. The wall was filled with messages of support from random people across the nation and even from around the world.

“What’s going on here? I didn’t do any of this!” she protested.

“I know, someone else did. Someone apparently thought it would be nice to show you how much the people care about you and support you,” said Erica.

“This is…I don’t know how to describe this,” said Cindy.

“Be happy folks are paying attention to your story. It helps you in the long run,” said Charlie.

“Seven million people like me?” asked Cindy.

“No, seven million people…and probably more support your cause. Even if this is a sampling of ten percent of the population, that means seventy million people believe in you and support your stand against what happened to you. And that’s just a sampling of the public. The press reports the numbers in their polls which say the majority of Americans want you safe and your father brought to justice along with the Imam. That’s pretty significant as we typically can’t agree on much,” said Charlie.

“So I’ve got over a hundred million fans?” she said with a cheesy grin.

“I guess so,” he laughed as he saw she was joking.

“Maybe I should go on tour or something,” she laughed.

“Or write a book,” he suggested.

“Now that I could do,” she said. “Write about the adventures of Cindy Grant and her quest to fight injustice.”

“Yeah, we need some good comic relief,” he laughed, bringing her back to reality.

“Seriously, it would be nice to write out what I’ve been through,” said Cindy.

“Well, get on it. You don’t live forever,” said Charlie as he waved his hand at the computer.

“I’d like to read what people are saying first,” said Cindy as she and Erica settled into the seats to read what people were saying. Cindy for the support and Erica to see if anyone recognized her and spilled the beans.

“By all means,” he said. “I’ll be in the shop if you need me.”

[Grand58742]

CHAPTER 58 CONTINUED

********************

The senior agent of the FBI

[610Alpha]

Got to love a 4 Star that has got a pair and not in his wife's purse!!!