Don got all the way into the elevator when he remembered that he didn’t have anything to write with to fill out all the paperwork. Jumping out of the elevator at the last second, he strode back down the hallway to the nurses’ station.
One of the women there looked over at him and asked, “Yes, Mr. Strachey?”
“I’m sorry, could I borrow a pen? I just need to fill out some forms,” Don asked, holding up the clipboard.
It looked like she wanted to roll her eyes, but she just smiled politely and rifled around for a pen. As she did, Don heard an odd noise coming from Tim’s room and turned with a frown. Walking over to the room, he opened the door and instantly ran across to where Jamie appeared to be smothering Tim with her hand. Even though she was smaller than both of them, it was a real effort to yank her off Tim and throw her across the room.
Tim hauled in a huge breath, coughing and choking, so Don spun away from him to go after Jamie. The woman bared her teeth at him and something weird happened to her face, as if it rippled or something. Don stayed between her and Tim and tackled her against the wall, shoving an arm against her windpipe and snarling, “What the fuck are you doing?”
Unbelievably, Jamie shoved him away hard enough to send him staggering several steps back. In that short span of time, as he got his bearings, she was on Tim again. Moments after her hands wrapped around Tim’s throat, a gunshot cracked and a bullet hole struck her in the back, blood splattering across Tim and the bed. And then, even more bizarrely, she just dissolved with a shimmer and loud hiss.
Shaking himself out of the shocked stupor, Don ran across the room and hauled Tim into his arms. Tim clung to him, shaking violently, and Don realized that he was shaking too. He looked back at the door to find a large black man standing there, holstering a gun. The man nodded at him and then just walked calmly away.
“Oh my God, Don, oh my God, what just happened? Why did she attack me? What, what happened to her?” Tim demanded hoarsely.
Don kissed him on the temple and answered, “I don’t know, Timmy, I don’t know.”
He did, though; or at least he had an inkling. Jamie had been an alien and the man who’d shot her one of Cade Foster’s friends, either Joshua or Eddie. There was no point in telling all of that to Tim, not just then. He was freaked out enough as it was.
“What happened in here? The nurses heard gunfire!”
Looking over at Dr. Thomas, Don answered harshly, “Your nurse, Jamie, she just went crazy and attacked Tim!”
Dr. Thomas’ eyes widened in shock. “What? No, that’s not possible!”
“Oh no? How long has she been on your staff, huh, doc? How well did you know her?” Don demanded, going on the offensive. “Did you even do any background checks? Find out if she was mentally unstable or had a thing against gays?”
When all else failed, it was best to play the prejudice and hatred card. It made others so uncomfortable and on the defensive that they were more than eager to both change the subject and do whatever you wanted.
Paling, Dr. Thomas exclaimed, “I can’t believe it!”
Tim gently pushed at Don and then pointed to his throat. Even though Jamie had had only a few seconds, there were already livid bruises darkening at the base of his throat. He coughed and then rasped, “First she tried to smother me, but Don showed up and he got her away, only she got loose and tried to strangle me. Don shot her, a warning shot, right Donald? But she moved and got hit. That’s the blood here.”
Don nodded and agreed, “I shouted at her to move, but she rushed me and got hit.”
“Oh my God, Tim…” Dr. Thomas’ voice ran out, clearly aghast. He rallied a few seconds later and said, “I am so, so very sorry. I’ll inform security and have them call the police. Are you all right? Let me examine you.”
Don had to force himself to stand back and let the doctor examine Tim. He stayed right on the other side of the bed, though, holding Tim’s hand. It hurt to see every wince his lover made and he wanted the chance to wring Jamie’s neck personally, even though it wasn’t possible.
Finally, Dr. Thomas said, “I don’t think there’s any permanent damage done. I want to give you an x-ray, just in case. How’s your head? Did you bang it in the attack?”
Tim shook his head. “No, my headache’s back with a vengeance, but I don’t think I struck it on anything.”
“Good, good. Okay, I’m going to get security in on this. I’ll be back shortly,” Dr. Thomas said, hurrying from the room.
Sitting on the bed, Don held both of Tim’s hands in his and swallowed against a tight throat. Twice in three days, he’d almost lost him.
“Don? Donald, look at me, baby,” Tim ordered gently.
Don raised his eyes and found a knowing, worried expression on Tim’s face. “I can’t lose you, Timmy. I just, I can’t.”
Tim pulled him in close and Don let out a shuddery sigh, holding him tight. Tim kissed him just at the corner of his jaw and then said softly, “When we get home, you’re telling me everything. I don’t know why we just lied and I don’t like it. I’ll accept on faith that there’s a good reason though, because it’s you.”
Nodding, Don agreed, “I will, I’ll tell you everything. Just, for now, can we just sit here?”
Tim kissed him again, on the temple this time, and promised, “For as long as you need.”
It usually drove him crazy when Tim took control of stressful situations, as if Don weren’t capable when he was, but for the moment he was perfectly happy to let him do so. All he wanted was to crawl into bed with Tim and hold him tight, but this would have to do for the time being.
“Jesus, Strachey, the shit you get into.”
Don let out a huff of a laugh and reluctantly pulled away from Tim. Running a hand through his hair, he glanced over at Bailey and retorted, “Your life would be dull without me, Bailey.”
“Some dullness, I could use,”
Bailey countered dryly, stepping further into the room. A uniformed cop stood
with him and moved to the bed at a gesture from the detective. “
Don hadn’t even thought about the blood-sprayed blankets and moved aside for the officer to put the bedding in an evidence bag.
Once the cop was gone, Bailey continued, “So. What the hell happened?”
Tim squeezed Don’s hand in warning and took over, just like he always did. He gave a succinct version of events, the same he’d told to Dr. Thomas.
When Tim was done, Bailey shook his head and said, “Spare me from the religious. No offense, Callahan.”
Tim smiled faintly. “None taken.”
“All right. I’ll write this thing up and put out an APB and a warrant on this nurse, Jamie. I’ve got her info already, talked to your doc on the way in. Do yourselves a favor. When you go home, use your damn security system for a change, okay?”
Don nodded and firmly said, “We will, believe me.”
Although not for the reasons that Bailey was thinking.
Bailey nodded. “Good. Take care of yourself, Callahan. Strachey, can I talk to you outside a second?”
Don figured that the cop wanted to warn him off going after Jamie himself, so he stood and told Tim, “I’ll be right outside.”
Tim smiled at him. “I’ll be right here.”
Don kissed him before following Bailey out of the room.
Before he could say a word, Bailey held up a finger and ordered, “Shut up and listen.”
Glaring, Don folded his arms over his chest and waited.
“You are not going after this woman, Strachey, and if I find out you do, I’ll arrest you for obstruction. You are going to look after Callahan and keep your ass on the sidelines for this one. You want to know why?”
Don gave him a sour look, not having to fake it in the slightest. Tim could order him around without too much ire, but coming from Bailey, it just made him want to do what he was being told not to do. “Why’s that, Bailey?”
“Because crazy people aren’t like other people,” Bailey stated flatly. “She’s going to try again. For whatever reason, she’s fixated on your partner in there and she’ll do whatever she can to get to him. You are what stands between him and violence or worse. You can’t protect him if you’re not with him. So get your head screwed on straight and watch his back.”
Relenting a little, Don let his arms drop to his sides and said, “I will, Bailey, believe me.”
Bailey squinted at him as if in disbelief that it had been that easy. “Okay then. You want a lift back to the house? I can leave a patrol car.”
Don shook his head and replied, “No, but thanks. Doc wants to do some more testing to make sure Timmy’s okay after that. No idea how long that’ll take.”
“All right, but I’ll leave a couple of my men with you and Callahan to keep an eye out until we catch this woman.” Bailey gripped his shoulder, cleared his throat, and then left muttering about psychopaths and stubborn detectives.
Surprised by the rare display of emotion, Don smiled fondly. He was about to go back into the room when he spotted Kelly walking towards him.
She gave him a baffled look after taking in the uniformed policemen nearby and demanded, “What’s going on?”
“Don’t freak out, but someone attacked Tim, one of the nurses,” Don told her.
Kelly gasped and exclaimed, “Is he all right? Where is he?”
Don took her hand and led her inside, where he watched their second reunion in twenty-four hours. Kelly was horrified by the bruising and it took Don and Tim both to convince her that everything would be okay. Dr. Thomas came in with a wheelchair about twenty minutes later to announce that it was time for the MRI and CAT scans.
“I thought you were just going to do x-rays?” Don questioned.
Dr. Thomas nodded and replied, “I was, but on second thought wanted to be more thorough than that. It doesn’t seem as if the oxygen deprivation did any damage, but better safe than sorry.”
The cynical part of him was sure that Dr. Thomas was trying to avoid a lawsuit by being overly helpful. Not that the doctor could’ve known he’d hired an alien out to kill Tim. Don helped Tim into the wheelchair and then pushed him out of the room. Outside, he spotted the black man from before standing down the hallway as if waiting for him. Thinking fast, he said, “Timmy, I want to get that paperwork done so we can just take off when you’re ready. How about Kelly goes down with you and I’ll wait here?”
Tim’s gaze narrowed at him suspiciously, but he only agreed, “Of course, Donald. But you had better be here when I get back.”
Flashing his lover a brash grin, Don opined, “Where else would I go?”
Tim made a neutral, yet somehow disbelieving noise as Kelly took Don’s place.
Don watched until the elevator doors closed and then grabbed the clipboard and pen from the nurses’ station where he’d dropped them. He walked towards the man who’d saved Tim’s life and then stopped about a foot away, taking in the broad frame and somber expression. “Who’re you? Eddie, or Joshua?”
“Joshua,” the man rumbled. “We should talk in private.”
Don stared at him for a long moment before nodding. “C’mon. We’ll talk in Tim’s room. They’ll be gone for at least an hour.”
As they walked back to Tim’s room, Don wondered how much more his life would change after this conversation.
* * * *
The tests went smoothly, which was a lot more than Tim could say for the rest of his stay in the hospital. Kelly was just outside in the hall, waiting, and pushed the wheelchair wherever Dr. Thomas needed him to be. It made him twitchy, not having Donald by his side, but he knew there had to be a reason the other man wasn’t there. He knew Donald too well to think that he would just up and leave for anything less than something to do with his safety.
All he really wanted to do was curl up with Donald in their bed and pretend none of this had happened. He hated not knowing what was going on, hated not being in control. Most of all, he hated what all of this was doing to his Donald. His lover would take every bit of this on his shoulders as if it were his fault.
“Okay, Tim, that should do it,” Dr. Thomas announced, entering the room.
The metal ‘bed’ on which he rested slid out from the machine and Dr. Thomas pulled the metal head-gear-cage-whatever apparatus off so that Tim could sit up. Offering the doctor a smile, he asked, “So you can let me go home now, right?”
Dr. Thomas shook his head and replied, “I need to go over the results first. Your lovely sister and that police officer will bring you back to your room. It won’t be long, I promise.”
Tim walked out to the viewing room and sat back in the wheelchair, smiling up at Kelly. “Onward and upward, James.”
She laughed softly and pushed him towards the elevator, the police officer walking ahead of them. It didn’t take long to get back to his hospital room and he was pleased to find Donald waiting for them.
“Hey there, gorgeous,” Donald greeted, meeting them halfway. He tugged Tim up from the wheelchair and into a hug, squeezing him lightly before pulling back to kiss him. “All your noodles in one place?”
Tim rolled his eyes and retorted, “As far as I know, yes. The official results will be a while yet.”
Putting an arm around Tim’s waist, Donald ushered him to the freshly made bed and told him, “Just as well. You need to get some more rest and I’m here to make sure you get it.”
Tim’s eyebrows lifted. “Is there a reason I wouldn’t?”
As if on cue, the door opened and his parents entered the room. A smile immediately pasted itself in place and he said, “Mother, Father. You didn’t have to come.”
“Of course we did!” his mother exclaimed. “Don’t be silly, honey. How are you feeling?”
Tim took her offered hand and accepted her kiss on his cheek. “Much better, thank you. They’re going to send me home shortly.”
“Why are there police in the hallway?” his father demanded.
Tim didn’t miss the look his father shot at Donald and hurriedly replied, “There was a minor disturbance earlier. It’s just a precaution.”
Kelly apparently didn’t want to treat it so lightly and added, “A crazy nurse attacked Tim! Nearly strangled him to death.”
Their mother gasped, her hand squeezing his and she exclaimed, “Oh my God! Timothy! Are you all right? What happened?”
Tim shot his sister an annoyed look, but only repeated firmly, “I’m fine, Mother, I promise.”
This time, the anger on his father’s face was plain as he glared at Donald and snapped, “Where were you?”
Donald’s jaw flexed as he stiffly answered, “Not here.”
Before his father could throw any more guilt Donald’s way, Tim exclaimed “Dad, leave it, please. Donald’s the one who saved my life. If he hadn’t shown up when he did, um, well.”
“Oh, Timothy!” his mother gasped, holding his hand tighter.
Tim accepted her hug and smiled a little more warmly when she pulled back. “Honestly, I’m fine and Donald’s going to take good care of me. Detective Bailey’s working the case personally and he’s assigned people to watch out for us. I couldn’t be safer.”
His father didn’t look as if he believed any of that and said, “I’ll hire someone to keep an eye on you privately.”
His mother added, “You could come stay with us, Timothy.”
Shaking his head, Tim countered, “No, I’ll be fine. Truly. I appreciate the offers, but no.”
Conversation was stilted after that, but fortunately they were only there for another ten minutes or so. Kelly went with them, promising to call later that afternoon. The family reconciliation was coming slowly, so having everyone in one place for any real amount of time was a little overwhelming. Once his family had left, Tim let out a short sigh, smiled at Donald, and quipped, “Alone at last.”
Donald half-smiled at him, but it didn’t reach his pale eyes. He sat on the bed and laced their fingers together, asking, “How are you, really?”
Bringing his hand up to kiss the back of, Timothy said, “Same as before the tests, sore and a little headachy. I really will be fine, honey. Now. Do you want to tell me what’s going on?”
Donald opened his mouth, but the door to the room opened again to admit Dr. Thomas. Donald gave Tim a wry grin and then said, “Hey, Doc.”
“Don, Tim. So it looks as if you didn’t sustain any additional damage in the attack. You can go home whenever you like,” Dr. Thomas told them.
Relieved, Tim said, “Thank you, Dr. Thomas, that’s great.”
Donald nodded agreement. “Definitely.”
Dr. Thomas smiled and said, “If you need anything, don’t hesitate to call. And if the headaches get worse or you get dizzy or nauseas, come back right away.”
“I will,” Tim promised. “Thank you.”
Waving a little, Dr. Thomas said, “Good bye. And good luck.”
“Okay you, let’s get you home,” Donald announced, smiling.
Tim let Donald help him get dressed, even though he didn’t strictly need the help. There were gentle touches and smiles as he finally got rid of the gown and put on real clothes. A shower would feel even better, that was for sure. It felt very odd, having a police escort, but not any safer. It was Donald’s arm around his waist that made him feel protected, much more so than the two armed men walking with them and he leaned against his lover.
Putting his arm around Donald’s waist in return, Tim felt the tension in the other man’s body without even trying. It was also easy enough to see Donald continuously scanned the area around them. Whatever he’d done while Tim was getting his tests, it hadn’t reassured Donald in the least.
Keeping his silence, Tim let Donald bundle him into the car and even buckle his seatbelt. He grinned up at his lover and asked, “Overprotective much, my love?”
Donald kissed him on the nose and didn’t answer, instead closing the door and walking around to the driver’s side. After he settled in and turned on the car, Donald pulled into traffic and told him, “So we’re going to have some guests when we get home, but I want to explain things to you before we get there.”
He sounded so serious, almost sad, that Tim said, “All right. I’m listening.”
The story took surprisingly little time, considering how life altering the narrative was. He believed Donald without even needing to try. Something about the story just sat right in his bones, even if he didn’t remember Cade Foster or any of the other players Donald spoke about. When the car parked in their driveway and their home stood waiting, Tim stayed exactly where he was. He couldn’t remember Cade Foster, but he couldn’t deny feeling different since the head injury, either. As if something deep inside were trying to come out.
“Are you all right?”
Tim nodded slowly and said, “I am, actually. I think…you know, ever since Zailian, something’s been going on with me, but I, I couldn’t place what.”
“And now you know?” Donald asked.
He sounded so hesitant, maybe afraid, that Tim immediately turned in the seat and reached out to cup Donald’s face. “I don’t know, I don’t remember anything but you and our life together. My life as Timothy Callahan. I just know that there’s more to me. It doesn’t make sense, I know. Maybe I’ll remember later, maybe I won’t. I don’t know. What I do know is that I’ll never leave you, baby, or abandon our life together.”
Donald smiled that crooked smile of his and said, “When you’re him, you don’t love me, Timmy. You’re not even gay.”
Tim blinked a few times in surprise. “You didn’t mention that.”
“Yeah, well, not exactly something I wanted to talk about, but it’s true,” Donald replied, dry.
Gripping the back of Donald’s neck, Tim told him, “We’ll figure this out, Donald, I promise,” and then kissed him, strong and hungry. Donald kissed him back, just as eager, and they made out like teenagers for a few minutes. When Tim pulled back, he found a wistful look on Donald’s face and repeated, “We’ll figure it out.”
Donald half-smiled at him and nodded. “Sure. C’mon, we have people waiting to say hello inside.”
“They just let themselves in?” Tim questioned, surprised.
Nodding, Donald replied, “I told them to, since they needed to be inside before the cops got into position. Ready?”
Tim sighed briefly and said, “I guess.”
He got out of the car and Donald jogged around to meet him, taking his hand again. They walked up the front path together and Tim almost stopped at the last second when they got to the door, not waning to go inside to whoever waited there. He took a deep breath as Donald opened the front door and motioned him to stay behind him, stepping in first. It took all Tim had to follow his lover into the house that was no longer a sanctuary, but the start of something else.
What that something else was, he had no idea.