Except for Me

Many people do not get to see what I do. The cracks in the tough facade, the chinks in the proverbial armor, but I do. The man, the myth, the enigma that is Jim Ellison does not normally shed his tough skin, except for me.

We have spent many late nights, stakeouts, game nights, together and neither of us do much serious talking. Not that we don't talk, but none of it is important. We talk about cases, the weather, the Jags, sometimes even his senses.

Last night something extraordinary happen. Jim and I were heading out of the loft when Marcus Todde came around the corner. Now mind you Todde is a very large man and is wanted in a string of burglaries. And the man did not want get taken in, so of course when he saw us he bolted and we gave chase. Todde took the wrong alleyway and ended up trapped. As I said he did not want to be taken in, and you know, with our luck, exactly what he did, yup he pulled a gun and took aim...at Jim. I know usually its me but I kid you not, this time he aimed at Jim.

Both guns fired at once. Both bullets found targets. One was critical, and one, thanks to a quick thinking guide, was not. Jim hit the ground with a thud but it was mostly because I gave him quite a shove. Todde's bullet grazed Jim's arm. I gave Jim my handkerchief to press over the wound, then I called for Simon and backup.

The trip to the hospital was silent, which is normal for us. Every time I looked at my partner to gauge his levels, I found him staring at me with the smallest smile on his face. Of course smiles are contagious, so I smiled back.

I stayed with Jim while the doctors and nurses came and went. Simon came in to give us the update on Todde's arrest. It was a good bust. Todde had stolen merchandise on him from his latest burglaries. He was going away for a long time.

As Simon drove us home, Jim sat in the back seat with me instead of in the front. And I kept catching his small smile. I couldn't guess what was behind those smiles. We were silent the whole ride home to the loft.

For a long time there was nothing said by either of us. Then Jim, my silent, stoic best friend, spoke. He told me that even though Steven was his brother by blood and he loved him, I was his brother of the heart and he loved me. I was deeply moved by that statement as I said Jim does not let anyone in, except for me.