Panic Switch

'Brady better not be dead,' Warren chimes sipping a beer in Chez Chez.

Brendan rolls his eyes and notices that the North wall leads into Ste and Amy's flat. He wonders when that occurred. Brendan tries to move forward but the flat seems to be drifting farther and farther away.

Warren laughs nervously beside him and hands him a gun.

'Safe keeping foxie?' Brendan quips taking the gun. Finally he reaches the flat, but his feet feel bare on the carpeted floor. He turns his head and sees Ste holding his shoes wearing a grey dress suit.

'Why so dapper?' Brendan asks.

Ste smiles, 'for you innit?'

A man Brendan doesn't recognize appears behind Ste and holds up the gun. His heart suddenly drops in his chest but he can't move fast enough. There is a loud bang and Ste begins to shout words Brendan cannot hear. Watching in horror the bullet pierces Stephen through the abdomen. As he tries to run towards him vines shoot up through the ground and twist themselves around his waist.

'No!' Brendan screams trying to break himself free. He can hear the bomb still ticking in the background. His body slumps forward the vines wrapping themselves tighter.

Stephen looks back at him with betrayed eyes slowly glazing over by death. Brendan shakes his head at Stephen wanting to tell him he was sorry. To tell him he never meant for this to happen, to meet him, to abuse him, as the beeping becomes louder in his ears the vines cut into his body sharply.

Suddenly Warren appears holding the bomb. He looks down at Brendan and frowns.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

Brendan groaned. His head felt like drawer full of spoons being hankered open and closed. A soft sound beeped beside him and the smell of fresh chemicals wafted into his nostrils that felt plugged with something else. "Where am I?" He thought. The room was dark and silent as he opened his eyes. As he became more awake, he became aware of the pain that coursed through his body.

He noticed the slits of light appearing through a window opposite him and the silhouette of body. He stared ahead trying not to feel afraid but a slow realization began to dawn on him. He was in the hospital.

Stephen stared through the blinds. Brendan had not been out for too long, a day at most. The doctor had assured them he would make a full recovery despite Cheryl's hysterical crying that he would not. Ste knew he had suffered a concussion, deep bruising, and ironically a broken rib.

The initial scene was far worse. Warren's shouting and blood everywhere. A broken, lifeless mess Brendan was lying in the alleyway. Even after the ambulance drove him away to the hospital Ste could still hear the siren vibrating through him. The loud shrill sound as he changed out of his bloody clothes and into sweats. Such a piercing sound that haunted him even now with Brendan looking at a full recovery.

Cheryl appeared beside him with a blank, makeup-less expression. She held a tea that had gone cold long ago in her hands and a weakened demeanor.

'He's going to be ok,' Ste said patting her arm.

She turned her head and gave him a small smile.

'It's Brendan after all.'

'I know dear,' she said quietly, 'I just… I have never seen him like this.'

Ste nodded. A man always in control, always one step ahead of everyone else was now sitting this one out. Ste desperately wanted to see him, touch him, and let him know he was here even if Brendan would never admit that's what he wanted. The doctor however insisted he be left alone till he woke.

'Do you want another tea?' Ste asked.

Cheryl shrugged her shoulders but Ste took that as a yes. He guided Cheryl to the seats across from the window and sat her down.

'I'll be back,' he said and then went in search for the cafeteria. Ste remembered the last time he had been here watching another friend recover from death. The fear had not worn off from that fateful morning when he found out Amy might die. The same moment he finally believed that Brendan might indeed be in possession of a heart. Ste stopped and reached out for the wall. Numbness had taken over him for the last twenty-four hours. A numbness that had helped him be brave for Cheryl when Warren couldn't be. A numbness that was managing to run his life even though he didn't want to had suddenly dissipated.

A cold terror ran down his spine at what was to come. The cryptic parting words with Warren after the ambulance took Brendan away shot to the front of his mind.

Warren analyzed the bloodstains on his sweater as the ambulance drove away. Ste had never seen him looking so frightened by what they both witnessed.

'This ain't no random attack.'

'What?' Ste asked attempting to control his shaking.

'You know what I mean,' he spat, 'this is Brendan Brady. Random assault? No. You should know better than anyone.'

Ste tried not to think what Warren said could be true. But he did know that Brendan had more enemies than friends. Taking a deep breath of air he moved away from the wall. He had to be strong for Cheryl.

'Ste,' a voice called behind him.

Ste turned around and saw Pete wheeling himself towards him.

'Pete,' Ste greeted.

'I heard about Brendan,' he began his face as pale as Cheryl's, 'is he ok?'

Ste cursed as his eyes stung with tears. Brendan was ok. The doctor had said so and yet Ste couldn't stop the tears from sliding down his cheeks. He was sure Pete thought Brendan had died.

'No…' Ste shook his head wiping away the tears, 'he is fine, bruised, but fine.'

Pete patted his arm, 'always is.'

'I need to find the cafeteria,' Ste said, 'tea for Cheryl.'

'I'll come with you Ste. I could use a cup me self.'

It only took a few minutes to find the cafeteria. They grabbed their tea and headed back to the room in silence. Ste could tell Pete wanted to say something to him, to comfort him. But what was there to say? Every relationship Brendan had was burdened by lies and secrecy.

As they reached Brendan's room they noticed the door ajar and Cheryl nowhere to be found. Had she gone inside? Ste wondered. Pete wheeled forward motioning for Ste to stay quiet. Ste tensed as low voices could be heard from inside the room.

'Is it Cheryl?' Ste mouthed to Pete.

Pete nodded.

Suddenly the door swing inwards and a man no older than Brendan walked out. His dark hair was brushed to one side perfectly and he adorned an expensive looking suit.

'Who are you?' Pete asked. Ste noticed he was gripping his wheels so tightly that his knuckles had begun to turn white.

The man frowned at them, 'I'm Detective Byrne.'

Ste raised an eyebrow at Pete. Detective?

'I have taken over Mr. Brady's recovery from here on out,' he explained as Cheryl appeared behind him.

'He came from Dublin,' she said appearing relieved.

Ste noticed Pete's continuous look of disapproval at Detective Byrne and he could not help but feel uneasy around the man as well.

'Why?' Ste asked.

'Because of the seriousness of the assault,' he answers, 'Mr. Brady is very familiar in some circles.'

Ste looked at Cheryl who seemed unnerved by this comment. He did not get what Detective Byrne meant but it seemed as though he might be one of those "old friends" who always seem to bring trouble back from Brendan's past.

'Do you know Brendan?' Ste asked.

Detective Byrne nodded his head, 'we go way back.'

Ste narrowed his eyes. The question now was is he a Macca or a Danny Houston? Ste smiled though, he didn't want the man to think he was suspicious. If Detective Byrne had another agenda, Ste didn't want him thinking that it was in any danger of being figured out.

'I'm Ste, by the way,' Ste held out his hand. Detective Byrnes eyes flashed for a moment and took his hand.

'Pete,' Pete said afterwards and they shook hands as well, 'also an old friend of Brendan's.'

Detective Byrnes eyes lit up as if something delightful had amused him, 'Brendan used to rave about you Peter. So sorry to hear about that nasty accident.'

Pete smiled tightly, 'yes. I'm sure you are.'

'I don't trust him,' Pete said to Ste in a low voice as Detective Byrne and Cheryl talked a few feet away. It had almost been two hours since he had arrived and Cheryl seemed smitten that he was going to solve the case right away.

'Why?'

'Burke? He knew Danny Houston as well.'

Ste's eyes widened, 'Danny Houston?'

'Yeah. I couldn't remember where I had heard that name before. Been thinking about it and then I realized… I had seen thier names a few times in the news paper.'

'News paper?'

'An friend of Brendan and me's… Vinnie, died in a car accident. Very suspicious at the time...'

'Yeah.'

'Well a detective on the case was named Anderson Byrne.'

'Detective Byrne?' Ste said fixating on him.

'Yeah spoke to the press and such. Well guess who Vinnie worked for before he died?'

Ste swallowed feeling his heart thundering in his chest, 'Danny Houston.'

'Right. Who only last week was thought to be alive.'

'And I found him in a pond.'

Pete licked his lips, 'yeah, murdered.'