Okay boys and girls, this one is new. You'll see some of the characters that you've come to know and some new ones as well. Yes I know other people have done things similar but I wanted to try my hand at it. Now things are different here and I know that . . . but seriously I have to do something while I'm stuck in this damned hospital bed and none of my other stories are willing to cooperate so we got this. A few things to keep in mind. One-these chapters are being written randomly while I'm in between tests so some may be long, some more along the drabble lines. And the timeline is probably going to jump around. Thank you to all of the people who've stuck with me through the past few years-it means the world to me. Oh and Songorita? You got your wish! Thanks to Midnight for putting up with my idiocy!

I own nothing but my OCs and the ideas.

Decisions

March 2001

Memphis Raines sat listlessly beside the hospital bed his mother was all but confined to; watching the monitors and instruments blink and beep away the remaining seconds of her life. Because at this point-from everything the doctors had told him, Kip and Sway- this fresh white hell was going to be exactly that. The place where his mother spent her last few moments-seconds, days, weeks or maybe even months- before she died. In a tiny fucking hospital bed in so much pain she couldn't even stay awake. All because the treatments that would ensure she at least had some quality of life before she passed away were astronomical.

Even with her painfully outdated and dickish HMO.

He ran a shaking hand through his slightly longer blonde hair, uncaring that a new batch of tears was slowly trailing down his stubbled cheeks; dropping quietly to the ugly linoleum at his feet. He clenched and unclenched his hands, trying to force his sleep and sorrow addled brain to actually work. Everything in his life was supposed to be better now . . . not worse!

He'd gone clean after the fallout with Calitri-true to his word- and had used everything to throw in with his old mentor. He'd rebuilt his life, pulling the crumbled remains back together from the ashes and cinders his mistakes had left in their wake as he'd started to reacquaint himself with his family. Sway, Kip, Atley and Donnie had come to work with him at Halliwell Restoration-Sphinx even throwing in when they needed him- while the disbanded boosts that had fled from Calitri's insanity had started to slowly trickle back into Long Beach.

Hell, Hecksland Carmichael- who had become a pretty substantial runner for Big Eddie's group a little further South before Calitri's fuckery had sent them all away or into the ground- had even come to him almost four months before with an offer. He had a pretty good idea where Frankie the Fish and Santoro had hold up . . . and the crazed Irishman was more than willing to go grab the wayward boosts. He even drug Ripley- another of the boosts he'd worked with off and on in the old days- with him.

He smirked for a moment, remembering just how well Ripley had taken being told she was going with the Irishman to collect Frank and San. She'd moved between her brother's crew and his own pretty easily before, picking and choosing her marks before he'd left-much to the chagrin of the Sphinx and Frank (the only thing the two ever agreed on). He shook his head, his momentary humor fading as he wondered how they were doing. Ripley-despite her aptitude for Europeans and conning was still young and wiry; the rather odd girl one of the youngest of the Old School boosts still running- and she didn't do well with longtime exposure to Sphinx, Hex and Frank. Actually it usually ended in bloodshed . . . and now that Sphinx spoke-well some- he knew once the quartet got back that life was going to be interesting.

His smile fell completely as a beeping caught his attention, dragging him from his thoughts and back to the present. He watched the numbers change before steadying, the machines settling as he leaned back into the chair. He still couldn't believe all of this . . . not even two months ago his life had been pretty damn close to perfect. Now it was steadily circling the fucking drain. His mother had pancreatic cancer . . . and there was no possible way he could see for him to even attempt to make her comfortable. Otto had offered to 'buy out' his portion of the garage to try and give them something to go towards the bills and expenses-because he'd already refused the Halliwells offer of flat out giving him every spare penny they had more than twice- but even with that gesture it still wasn't enough.

She could be out of the hospital and doing home health for all of two months before she would go right back in . . . and they all knew that if she left and went back in she wouldn't be coming back out. He shook his head, letting his hands fall again as he stared at the floor. Maybe the ugly black and green blotched tile could show him a way out of all of this. A knock on the door made him look up slowly, his eyes focusing as light flooded the dim room.

He watched Atley push into the room, stopping right at the opposite side of his mother's bed; his eyes moving over her almost sympathetically before he turned back to him. All compassion and any human emotion drained from Atley's face as he nodded to him; the very sight making Memphis shudder involuntarily. Atley had always been a cold bastard but to watch the man's face go from expressive to stone in under a second was still unnerving-almost as much as when he'd seen it for the first time all of those years ago. He motioned his head to the hall, his voice cold and almost dead as he spoke; reaffirming that something pretty bad had happened. Atley rarely went Antifreeze on them these days-no need since they were all pretty much retired- and it was almost terrifying to see it now.

He pushed to his feet, casting one last glance at his mother before he followed Jackson into the hallway. The man moved to one of the smaller sitting areas, sinking into the uncomfortable couch before he kicked his feet onto the coffee table and pulled his cigarettes from his pocket. Memphis blinked as Atley lit up, exhaling a cloud of gray smoke even as one of the nurses stopped and glared at him. Jackson looked to her, leveling a frigid glare on the woman before she bristled and stalked of; muttering as she rounded the corner quickly. Atley waited until she was gone before he snorted and rolled his eyes, looking back to Memphis in exasperation.

"Some fuckin' people Raines. I mean Christ at least I didn't smoke in the room right?"

Memphis gave Atley a hesitant smile before he shrugged, not even bothering to mention the blatant no smoking sign not even a foot above the older boost's head. Or the fact that no one else in their right mind would smoke in such an oxygen rich environment. Then again Atley was many things but no one had ever accused him of being in his right mind. Probably why he was such a good damned boost. He shifted, sinking into the chair across from him as Atley grumbled and smoked.

"What did you need Atley?"

Atley seemed to remember himself, sobering before he sighed and leaned forward; cigarette hanging from his lips.

"Look. I know you're in a bad way with all of this. And I know that no matter what any of us say you're not going to let us give you anything. But I have an idea."

Memphis looked to him skeptically, brow raised before he nodded slowly for him to continue. He was almost afraid now but at this point he was willing to sell his soul to make sure his mom didn't hurt. He'd watched the nurses dose her before she passed out, screaming and writhing from the pain of the abnormally strong chemotherapy treatment coursing through her veins. If he could spare her any of that he would.

"Go on."

Atley nodded, leaning even closer as he glanced around.

"I got a call last week from the Cacuzza familia. They're apparently taking back everything that Calitri took from them now that the bastard's dead. And they extended a pretty fucking huge offer. If we agree to run for them exclusively- you know not taking anything from the Triads and Russians- then they'll match every other sheet we have to pass. And they offered to hand us a start-up bonus. That will pay for all of this and more . . . I know that none of us would say a fucking thing about you and Kip keeping it."

Memphis blinked, stunned as Atley hurried to continue. He hadn't even considered going back into boosting. Not after everything that happened . . . but if it could pay for this then maybe he needed to. Even if it went against everything he'd promised his mother he'd never do.

"I know it's not something you want to do but I figured . . . Raines all they want to do is meet and talk. If you don't want to no one's gonna push. They're not strong enough to and they know it. I just wanted to help."

Memphis nodded, suddenly grateful as he leaned back into the couch. This was a lot of potential money and with the way that they'd all run together the year before . . . this could work. Fuck it, old promises be damned. His mother wasn't going to hurt and they weren'tgoing to lose everything a second time. Not if he could help it.

"Tell 'em to pick a time and I'll meet. And let the others know if they want in, all they have to do is ask."

Atley nodded, leaning back into the seat with a relieved expression; smoking happily as he tugged his cellphone from his jacket pocket. Right before two rather large orderlies rounded the corner with their sights set solely on his grinning, smoking friend. Atley glanced up, spotting them before he rolled his eyes and groaned; grousing already as Memphis tried not to sputter and laugh. Jackson was the only person he knew who would bitch about being kicked out for disobeying the damn rules.

"Aw for fuck's sakes! Goddamn smoking Nazis! Let me go ya big idiots. I may be a gimp but I can walk out on my own."