And here ist the next part of our journey. A huge thank you to all those who left reviews. It's wonderful to see one's story is well received.

Chapter 2

Callen sidestepped to let a paramedic and two police officers pass by, then entered the ER. His gaze took in the divided room until he glimpsed a slice of his partner and his charge through the curtains.

"What the hell…" his voice trailed off while he took in the scene in front of him. Sam stood beside an examination bed occupied by their liaison. Deeks looked like the victim of a hit and run and should be treated by some doctors, but they all seemed to be wary of him. Some of the nurses were busy cleaning up the place which looked a bit as if a fight had taken place.

"Is anyone going to treat him soon?" the agent barked, his mood still sour after his interview with the righteous witness. That guy hadn't been worth the trip. Full of attitude but no worthwhile information.

The sound of Callen's voice snapped Deeks' head up and Callen found himself in the center of Deeks' piercing look. Those blue eyes held no hint of mischief or laughter, only fear and distrust.

"Who are you?"

The question and the lower tone of Deeks' voice took Callen by surprise and his foul temper evaporated. After exchanging a quick look with his partner who just gave a small shrug, Callen answered "I'm Sam's partner, G Callen." The team's leader thought that any more information would overwhelm the detective right now. Coming closer Callen noticed the grip Deeks had on Sam's wrist and smirked.

"I told you he would grow on you." Callen whispered teasingly, when he finally stood by his partner's side, but he knew that Sam could tell how worried he was.

Callen held firm through Deeks' scrutinizing gaze. The younger man seemed to come to a decision, lowered his head after giving Callen a slight nod and started to fidget with the hem of his dress shirt. If one could call the nervous movements his swollen fingers were able to fidgeting. Both agents turned as one to glare at the doctors.

An elderly lady with short grey hair and spectacles finally ventured closer, shaking her head in annoyance at her colleagues. Sam tried to leave Deeks' side to give her some room to maneuver, but it didn't do any good as Deeks still hung on for dear life.

"It's fine. Whatever makes him calm." she stated with a surprisingly nice smile given what had happened. "I am Dr. Munroe." she introduced herself politely and gave the patient some time to get used to her proximity. "May I have a look at this?" she asked before carefully reaching for the head wound after snapping on some gloves. This time Deeks accepted the touch of a stranger, although his discomfort with the whole situation was obvious. Even more so when some of the nurses joined the doctor who now looked at his leg.

"You okay here?" Callen checked with Sam.

"We will need a crowbar to get him off my wrist." Sam groused without heat while Deeks was distracted by the activity at his leg. Callen grinned and turned around to find someone to answer his questions. He saw the paramedic from before and caught up with him.

"Excuse me, I am Agent Callen, NCIS, Sam Hanna over there is my partner. Detective Deeks is our liaison. Do you know what happened? Can you tell me, please?"

The man stopped, gaze venturing back to the ER. "Sure, over there?" he pointed to a small waiting area further down the hall. At Callen's nod the paramedic led on and sat on one of the chairs. He brushed off his trousers in a nervous manner and shook his head in disbelief.

"It was an accident. Some jackass not paying attention ran a red light. Deeks and a mother with her child were just crossing the street." The paramedic gestured at an Asian woman with a maybe five year old girl at her side Callen had noticed in passing. It seemed she was being interviewed by the police officers. One of the men noticed Callen's gaze and nodded curtly with a grim smile. The agent returned his attention to the paramedic "He jumped forward to shove the two out of danger but got hit himself. He could have jumped backwards, to save himself, but he didn't. Not that I'm surprised, Marty's just not that kind of guy."

"You know Deeks?" Callen interrupted surprised. The paramedic smiled.

"Yeah, from way back when he was still working as a lawyer. He helped me out of an embarrassing mess pro bono and we kept in touch ever since. Not really much more than birthday and Christmas cards, a beer every few months, but still." The man shrugged. "It was a shock to see him lying lifeless on the street bleeding all over the place. He was still unconscious when we took him to the ER and woke up only moments after we got here. All of a sudden he jumps up going totally berserk. No idea, how he managed that given his state. He didn't recognize me, wouldn't let anyone touch him, no way of calming him. Until your partner came." The paramedic smirked "Well, Marty held him at gunpoint first."

"Deeks held Sam at gunpoint?" Callen tried to fit that piece of surprising information with Sam's 'I kind of found him'. He needed to have some words with his partner about this.

"Yeah, but Marty surrendered the weapon to him. Seems like he trusts him." The paramedic looked into the distance thoughtfully. "What happened to him, Agent Callen?" his gaze held earnest worry.

Callen knew the man wasn't asking about the accident. He was looking for an explanation for Deeks' reaction. "Sorry, I can't tell." The agent shrugged apologetically. That's when he noticed the name badge of the paramedic who hadn't introduced himself. "I'm sorry, but is your first name Jason?"

"No, it's Jonas, why?"

"Ah, nothing, Mr. Wyler, just curiosity." Callen turned to find Hetty at his side. His flinch was barely noticeable. She must either have driven like a maniac or been close by to reach the hospital this fast.

"I was already on my way here when I got your call, Mr. Callen. Lieutenant Bates contacted me right after his officers informed him about the accident. It happened practically right in front of the cemetery so luckily help was close by this morning. And as I heard Mr. Wyler's narration, you don't need to repeat it." The tiny woman smirked. Of course she had noticed the flinch, Callen thought.

"Thank you very much for that by the way," she added with a polite nod towards the bemused paramedic. "Shall we go and see if the doctors can tell us more about the state of Mr. Deeks?" she continued. As she had already turned heading towards the room that held Deeks, Callen knew the question was rhetorical. He nodded his thanks to the paramedic and followed. They were just in time to see the gurney with the again unconscious detective being rolled towards an elevator.

"Did they use a crowbar to get you free?" Callen asked with a grin.

Sam wasn't fooled by the friendly barb. With a nod to Hetty he answered the question Callen hadn't asked aloud. "The doctors needed to set the IV again, but Deeks freaked at seeing the needle. I know we made fun of him after he fainted when you inoculated him, Hetty, but this? He was on the verge of a panic attack. He said he would be good, please no needle." Sam shook his head. "He begged!" Sam whispered disbelievingly. "No grown man should…"

"Mr. Hanna?" Hetty interrupted calmly with a tiny frown showing on her face.

Sam checked himself, took a deep breath and continued. "They managed to sedate him, don't ask how, it wasn't pretty. Given the state he was in it knocked Deeks right out though that wasn't their intention. They wanted him calm but conscious for further examination."

At the grim look on Sam's face Callen came to stand a bit closer to his partner and put a hand on his shoulder, Callen's expression asking Sam to go on. Sam swiped a hand down his face in a weary manner before going on.

"They need to do some x-rays and more importantly brain scans to assess how severe he is hurt. The amnesia makes them fear some serious brain damage, though he doesn't seem to show any other signs." Sam looked as unhappy as Callen felt and their petite boss gave a grim sigh.

"So we will have to wait" she stated and the three of them headed back to the waiting area after consulting with one of the nurses. On their way there the mother Deeks had saved came over with a nervous smile. Her child was with an Asian man, probably the father, who kneeled in front of her and kept stroking her hair and her arms like he couldn't believe she was alright but for a few bruises and scrapes. "I am sorry, but the police officers told me you might know more about Detective Deeks? Is he hurt badly? Is he going to be OK?"

It was Hetty who answered "I am sorry, Mrs."

"Wong, my name is He Xie Wong. Those are my daughter Harmony and my husband Thomas." The man, hearing the words, looked up shortly and gave them a beatific smile, tears welling in his eyes, before his eyes were drawn back to his child.

"I am sorry, Mrs. Wong, but we don't know anything yet. We have to wait for the doctors to finish their examinations."

"Will you call me, please, when you know more? I would like to thank him. He saved my daughter. He saved me. I am so grateful." Her husband stood to stand beside his wife, their daughter between them, and hugged her close. "Yes, please, tell us. We need to thank him." he emphasized.

Hetty promised to do so and took the small slip of paper with the woman's name and mobile number written on it. Together with her agents she watched the small family leave the hospital. Well, they would have to stay so they finally settled down in the waiting area.

Hetty called Eric and Nell to inform them of the events. Both offered to join them at the hospital, but Hetty declined politely but firmly. It wouldn't do any good anyway given that the detective had no memory of them right now.