Subj: DS: Future Imperfect 5
Date: 6/25/02 12:46:40 PM Central Daylight Time
From: Aesgaard

David Collins came down the back stairs of Collinwood into the kitchen He grinned as his daughter Carrie and William's two little girls sat at the table eating ice cream and sharing stories.

"Dad," Carrie looked up. "Can I have my allowance ?"

"I guess so." He rubbed his goatee as he poured coffee with his left hand and pulled out his wallet with his right. Elaine and Georgia looked like two precocious fairies as they sat eating their ice cream with their legs dangling from their chairs.

"Your father here ?" He asked them as he gave Carrie her fifty dollars.

"No," Georgia replied. "But mommy is."

He grinned and patted her head as he thought over his errands. He still wanted to call Hallie to get custody of his son for a while, he wanted to go by his restraunt to check the books and he still had his work as a freelance web designer. In his role as the head of the New England Ghost Hunters Society, the agency that William worked with him in, he had other more interesting endeavors in the works.

Crossing from the dining room to the drawing room, he noticed Ally and Carolyn sitting on the sofa, drinking tea and comparing stories."Ladies," He strolled in non-chalantly and stood before them. "Carolyn, did you sign my check ?"

"It's on the desk." She answered as David looked over and picked up his check from the estate that covered his living expenses. It was only slightly less than his computer firm turned out, but still enough to support his team of ghost-hunters and parapsychologists.

"Ally," David turned to her as he put his check in his wallet. "Tell William I've got a week scheduled at Calvados Castle in France and then a return trip to the Hotel Overlook in Sidewinder, Colorado. I'll need to know if he wants to go with us."

"I don't think so." Ally replied still sipping tea. "I want him to stay home for a while."

"Atta girl." Carolyn applauded her.

"Next time ?" David grinned and turned out. He took his jacket and was pulling it on as he stepped outside and turned for the garage at the end of the veranda stretching the length of the main house. He skipped down some stairs and strolled the walk to the driveway as he looked up and saw a set of legs wearing hot pants sticking out from the hood of a convertible volkswagon.

"Hi, Uncle David." Amanda stood up straight. Her red hair pinned back, she twirled a wrench and replaced a gasket in her car.

"Hi," He hovered over her handiwork. "I didn't know you knew cars."

"Cheaper than a mechanic..." She replied wiping dirty oil on her t-shirt.

"You know, my brakes are making this noise...."

"Now, you know why I don't tell anyone." She beamed. "My brakes aren't very good either. I replaced the pads and changed the oil, but I still can't...."

"Check the bleeder valve ?"

"The what ?" She asked as he took the wrench, reached far down under the engine and twisted something.

"Just a little loose." David grinned as the proud uncle, but then unconsciously hated himself for checking her out her figure.

"How did you know that ?!" She grinned.

"When I was a kid....." David made a embarrassed smile. "I was a bit of a brat. I removed the bleeder valve in my father's car to scare him, but almost killed him in the process."

"You did that to Uncle Roger ?!" Amanda grinned at the dirty little memory. "I bet he tanned your hide."

"We didn't speak for a long time." David passed the wrench back. "Keep it real." He wiped his hands on a napkin from his jacket, slipped into his van and pulled away as he drove down the driveway.

As Amanda watched him, her eyes drifted to Ally's Lincoln town car."Bleeder valve, huh."

Dark Shadows is a Dan Curtis Production.