Chance and Reason

Chapter Twenty-Nine

A/N: This is the longest chapter that I have written! I am utterly amazed; seeing this story clear 3K reads has made me so happy, and I am incredibly grateful to everybody who has stayed with it. Thank you so much!

For the first time in a long time, Lauren slept soundly through the night. She was used to waking up frequently in the early hours, struggling to drift off again at the best of times. Even when she did manage to sleep, she was used to her supposed peace being disrupted by nightmares that only fuelled her inability to rest. Yet, here she was, blinking in the strip of sunshine that had managed to find its way through a gap in the curtains.

When she moved to sit up, the body beside her mumbled drowsily, and cuddled into her. Glancing down, Lauren was met with the vision of Camila, napping soundly, using her shoulder as a pillow. She was still unclothed from the previous night, and the graceful curve of her neck, and smooth line of her collar bone, were accentuated by the sloping angle of the morning light. The duvet tucked beneath her arm covered her chest, and Lauren idly wondered how anybody could look quite so divine without even being conscious.

So lost was she in reflection, that she almost missed the buzzing of the phone on the bedside table. She had to carefully manoeuvre herself so as not to wake Camila to reach the source of the noise.

"Good morning, Agent Jauregui speaking," she greeted in a hushed tone.

"Hi Laur, it's Shawn... Why are we whispering?"

"Camila's sleeping," replied Lauren, hoping Shawn could fill the dots in for himself.

"I see," he chuckled, "I'm sorry to call so early,"

"I was awake anyway," Lauren assured him, "Don't worry about it. What can I do for you? Has anything more come out about Austin's list?"

"I'm afraid the Intelligence Department is still working on that one. The names are difficult to check; some of these people have very murky pasts so it's hard to get anything concrete on them. But, they are making some headway,"

Lauren knew just how complicated these processes could be. Her experience in the field had taught her that nothing was ever straightforward when it came to operations like this.

"So, what do you want to speak about?"

"It's your trial, Lauren," Shawn told her seriously, "They've announced the date for your final hearing,"

Taking a sharp intake of breath, Lauren held her mobile against her chest to hide the sound. She needed a second to collect herself.

"That's sudden," she murmured into the receiver once she had found her voice again, "I didn't know it had reached that stage already,"

"Neither did I," he said softly, "But they usually keep these things quiet,"

"When is it?"

The time it took Shawn to reply left her feeling like a lead weight was dropping in her stomach. Even in her sleep, Camila seemed to sense a tension, and she shifted, eyes still closed tightly. Reaching out, Lauren ran a hand through the silky brown hair splayed out on the sheets, and it helped to relax her instantly. Camila's presence was the perfect stress antidote.

"The final hearing is tomorrow, Lauren," Shawn told her eventually, "The inquiry will reach a verdict then,"

Lauren kept stroking Camila's head gently, letting the sleek waves thread through her fingers. If she could just focus on that, she could keep it together.

"Tomorrow. Right,"

"Are you okay?"

She sighed heavily, and leant back against, eyes raised to the roof.