An Hour Later
In all the years he has known Walker, Trivette never really took him to be the nervous type. And yet here was Walker sitting in the passenger seat, his right foot bouncing as he nibbled on his thumbnail. Did he know something about the attack that Trivette didn't know? He turned right then slowly made his way down Yearling Street which got Walker's foot to bounce even quicker. Man, this must be tearing him up emotionally. He has never seen Walker act like this before. Was this a mistake bringing him down here?
As he got nearer to the alley he could see John and Michael standing by a car with their arms crossed. Judging by the look on John's face, something wasn't right. He quickly turned his attention to Walker to see his friend had seen his son's look and paled considerably.
"We can go back…"
Walker quickly shook his head. "No, I need to do this." Once Trivette parked the car, Walker took his time getting out. "Hey John, what's going on?"
John shook his head as he approached his father. "There's a stain on the cement." He turned to Trivette. "I didn't know there was that much blood…" His voice trailed off as his eyes got slightly hazy. "If only I got there sooner."
"It wasn't your fault, John." Walker went up and gave his son a hug. "I'm here, because of you. If you didn't intervene like you did, I would have died." He turned to the alley and Trivette could have sworn he saw sweat beading on Walker's brow. "Okay, show me the way."
Very slowly John and Michael made their way down the wide alley till they stopped right before a door. Trivette had never been down here himself and when he glanced down at the cement he could easily see the dark stain that marked Walker's battle for life. His hand went to his mouth as images of Walker in the hospital went through his mind. His friend had lost so much blood that day. How did he survive?
He gradually turned to John and Michael to see both men with a grimace on their young faces. They had seen Walker at his worse that day, with his face sunken in from the brutal hits done by Brookdale. How do they live day to day with that image in their minds? He then turned his attention to Walker to see his friend leaning against the brick wall by the door, his breathing rapid. Did they make a mistake bringing him here?
He took a careful step forward as though he was afraid of startling his friend. "Walker?"
His friend's voice echoed as though it was caught inside a long thin tunnel. Since that day in the gym, Walker has had numerous flashbacks, some more brutal than his Vietnam ones. He stood there with his back against the brick, the smells in the alley triggering long forgotten memories. He swallowed hard as his head slowly rocked from side to side, his vision tunneling before him. No, this can't happen. Not here, not in front of his sons and close friend.
Shadows. Light. He stepped into an alley, and now he knew why. A young woman had been screaming for help. No, wait, the voice had belonged to a young girl. In the alley he saw her whimpering, cowering in a doorway of a building. He had bent down to check her out, she seemed scared and hurt.
"Run." She had said with tears streaming down her face. "Run."
He had felt confused then he had heard a rustle from behind him. He had turned to check it out and saw a large chunk of asphalt hurdling towards him. Then there was pain as the chunk slammed into the right side of his face. Unbelievable, unimaginable pain. He couldn't breath, couldn't see, couldn't even think. Footsteps. Voices. Somehow he had found the energy to open his eyes and saw a man. The man had an evil smile as he stood above him, in his hands he had the large stone chunk that had hit him in the face. Horror. Fear. So strong, Walker cried.
"No…" His voice came out in a choked whisper, it didn't sound like him. "Don't…"
The man raised the chunk of rock above his head. Time stopped as he lowered it upon Walker's face. He slammed the object into the left side of Walker's face, pain so blinding he had let out a blood curdling scream. This had gotten the man much angrier, the hits more brutal. Walker had heard his bones shatter, had tasted the blood that pooled into his mouth. The fourth hit had finally brought on numbness. Then blackness.
"Dad!" John's voice came through the fog. "Dad! Hang in there!"
Walker collapsed to the cement, his hands just inches away from where he had nearly bled to death five years ago. His stomach began to flip uncontrollably as his body began to shake. Never before had he felt this way before and he didn't know how to take it. His stomach suddenly lurched as he got violently ill, his right hand grasping his abdomen as he vomited up his lunch.
After he threw up he fell to his side as his sons ran up to him. "I'm sorry." Walker weakly went to his knees as he wiped his mouth. "I was awake during the attack." He took a deep, uneasy breath. Should he tell his sons and his friend what he had seen in the flashback?
Trivette knelt next to Walker, his arm quickly wrapping around his shoulders. "Let's get you home."
His friend's voice showed his worry and it troubled Walker. He didn't want his friends or his family to worry about him more, he already had enough of that because of his epilepsy. Trivette helped him to his feet then patted his back.
"I'm okay, Trivette. Thanks." Walker took a deep breath then shook his head. "I needed this, really, I did." But the uncertainty showed in his voice which got Trivette to frown even more. He took a deep breath knowing he had to tell them what he saw. If he didn't, they will forever worry about him till he did. "I have something to tell you all…"
Wheels screeching quickly brought everybody's attention to the street and Walker saw a red pickup abruptly stop at the alley. The passenger window rolled down to show a man dressed all in black with a bandana covering his face. Trivette quickly reached for his gun as John and Michael tried to push Walker behind them.
"Thought you might want this back!" The man hurled an object out of the window with a laugh. "See ya around, Walker!"
As the truck sped off Trivette sprinted towards the object with Walker closely behind him. "Don't touch it, it might be evidence!" He knelt down to see a large chunk of asphalt with what appeared to be dried blood on it. Secured to it with tape was Walker's old driver's license. "You sick…" He let out a grunt of frustration as he turned to his friend. "You don't need to see this."
Walker's eyes locked onto the piece of asphalt, the weapon that made him who he is today. Instinctively his hand went to trace the scar on his left cheek as his mind replayed the images of the flashback. He felt somebody's hand wrap around his arm as it tried to pull him away, but his feet were firmly rooted on the cement.
"Dad, let's go." It was Mike and he had stepped in front of Walker. "Let's just get going."
He slowly nodded his head. "Right, let's do that." His attention went back to the alley as he took a deep breath. "Don't tell anybody about what happened here." He shook his head as he headed for Trivette's car. He then whispered to himself, "Don't want to get anybody worried."
Late That Night
Alex was rather accustomed to waking up in the middle of the night to check up on her husband, but tonight she found herself laying awake. Something was deeply troubling Alex, so much so all day she couldn't even look Walker in the eyes knowing he would see what she felt. She laid on her side staring at her husband as he slept. Walker has only had two seizures in his sleep, both times were rather scary for her.
From what Hayden had told her, most suffering from epilepsy die in their sleep. It was called, SUDEP or Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy and it was rather scary to know that at any given time Walker could die. Hayden and Miller didn't want to tell them about SUDEP, but after much persuasion from both her and Walker the doctors finally broke down and told them everything there was to know about his epilepsy, which included a long talk about SUDEP. Alex was very thankful, but scared at the same time.
She smiled as she watched him sleep, thankful to see his chest rising and falling evenly. When he had a seizure he will momentarily stop breathing for what seemed like hours to her then he would continue as though nothing has happened. Unfortunately she knew that there could come a day where he would stop breathing and he will never wake up again.
Without warning his breathing slowed down and Alex watched in horror as his hands began to shake. "Walker!" She quickly got up, ran to his side of the bed then grabbed hold of his quivering left hand. At least it wasn't a grad-mal seizure, it was just a localized one. "Hang in there, cowboy."
Finally after what seemed like hours to Alex's tired mind the seizure stopped. It took several agonizing seconds till his breathing finally returned to normal. After thirty minutes she gently nudged his shoulder until he finally awoke with a very confused and worried look.
He took hold of her hand as he slowly sat up in bed. "Is everything okay?" His voice was gruff from sleep, his eyes slightly glazed. "What happened?"
"You had a seizure." Alex saw his eyes get big and she patted his leg to comfort him. "It was a localized one and I'll jot down the time, the length of seizure and the type." She grabbed a steno pad by the bed and jotted down some quick notes. They had several of these laying around the house, a way to monitor Walker's epilepsy. "Lets try to get back to sleep."
Walker rubbed his face then shook his head. "Sorry to be putting you through this." He ran his fingers down his cheeks as he heaved a sigh. "Just wish things were normal."
Alex smiled up at him. "I made a vow, remember." She sat down on the edge of the bed and gave him a kiss, but he didn't return it. "Walker, what's wrong?"
His eyes lowered as he took a deep breath. "Alex, I…" He took another deep breath. "The depression, it's getting worse." She could tell this was really hard for Walker to say and it tore at her heart to see him like this. "I'm…" He shook his head. "I'm tired of being like this."
"Oh Walker." She quickly took a deep breath as she fought off the urge to cry. "How long have you been feeling this way?" She asked knowing the answer already.
"Since I left the hospital…" He sighed heavily then shook his head. "Sorry, Alex. I don't want you to worry about me." He gave her his trademark smile then glanced at the clock. "I'm going to go on a walk."
Alex got up as Walker slowly stood to his feet which showed her his bare chest. She could see the many scars that traced his chest, one in particular was where he had the tube put into his lungs while he was in a coma. Then there was another one which ran across his stomach, both scars reminders of a time they both wished to forget. He turned to her and she could easily see where the doctors had put the tube in his throat. Though it has been five years the scar was still slightly pink and rather thick which makes it quite noticeable.
His medical alert necklace glistened in the low light and she reached out to finger it. He took hold of her hand, kissed it then went to put a shirt on. Once he got his running shoes on he smiled back at her then walked out of the bedroom. This always worried her when he went on his walks around the ranch. Being alone there was a higher risk of him dying from a seizure. She took a deep, uneasy breath then got up to grab her robe. Might as well get up herself.
The day seemed to go by in a blur for Walker as he went about his daily routines. It seemed his body was on autopilot as he did his workbooks, ranch chores and other mundane activities. Before he knew it, it was time for him to make his way to the middle school to get everything ready for the Kickstart program. As he packed his gym bag he could have sworn he heard footsteps on the gravel just outside the living room window. Curious he checked his watch to see that it was still pretty early in the evening and none of his family was expecting to arrive till later.
Swiftly he went to the hall closet where he kept one of his guns high up on the shelf. Very quickly he unlocked the child protection, put a clip in then made his way to the front door. He took a deep breath as he pushed the screen door open and stepped onto the wooden front porch. His good eye scanned his lawn, his pistol at his side.
"Anybody out here!" He crept down the stairs till his bare feet hit the gravel. His one good eye swept the lawn as he crept forward. "Mike! John!"
He swept his entire front lawn and found nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe his daughter was right, maybe he was getting slightly paranoid. He took a deep breath then tried to relax his body even though his brain was still very much on alert. It was possibly just a wild animal, there have been sightings of a mountain lion in this area.
After several minutes he decided to go back inside and finish packing his gear. As he walked up the porch steps he heard laughter from behind him. He swiftly turned around, but didn't see anyone. Was he going crazy? He stepped down from the porch once again to get another sweep of the yard.
"Show yourself, now!" Walker yelled out, his heart racing. "Who's out there!"
His good eye spotted something on the rental car parked in his drive-way. Quickly with his gut out in front of him he want to check out what it was. As he got closer he could see a piece of paper sticking out from under one of the windshield wipers. He glanced around once more before he snatched the paper. As he unfolded it, he saw several long words that he knew he couldn't read no matter how hard he tried to.
This got him furious and he nearly crumpled the paper in his hands. However, he knew it would be considered evidence to his case, so instead he just glanced at again. There was a time in his life where he was able to read letters like this. To only have those days back. He took a deep breath then made his way back to the house.
"What, you can't read it?"
Walker swiftly turned around to see Harris leaning against the fence. "Harris!" He raised his gun and took aim at the man's right shoulder. "What do you want!"
"To finish what Brookdale started." He pushed off the fence then raised his hands high into the air. "Now, I know for a fact you can't shoot me. That, will be murder." He laughed harder this time as he shook his head. "You know, I've been scared to meet you, only because I knew that if I did get brave enough, I would get caught." He glanced around him, his arms spread wide. "I got a call from my man saying all your family is occupied right now. If you only knew who that man is." He kept one hand in the air as he dug into his coat pocket. "There, that shows you I have two men very close to you that are working for me." He threw an envelope to the ground then shook his head. "See ya around, Walker."
When he was sure Harris had left his property Walker went to pick up the envelope. It was rather thick and as he opened it and saw what was inside his heart began to pound against his chest. Pictures, this time of himself, five years ago when he was first admitted to the hospital after the first attack that nearly killed him. He had been told CSI had taken pictures of him the day he was admitted so as to have images on file for evidence. However, he hasn't seen them till now. And what he saw got his stomach to lurch and before he could control it he fell to his knees as his breakfast and lunch came back up. Boy, was this ever embarrassing.
This was the second time in just two days he had thrown up all because of what had happened to him. He wiped his mouth then grimaced at the sour taste that resided on his tongue. Shakily he went back into his house, put the envelope on the table by the door then went to the kitchen to get something to drink. As he chugged down a large glass of orange juice he dialed Trivette's number. His friend answered on just two rings.
"Walker, what's up?"
Walker placed the glass in the sink then shook his head. "Harris paid me a visit today."
"What! Are you okay? What did he do?"
"I'm okay, he dropped another package off." Walker leaned against the counter, his right hand going to his forehead. "Trivette, it's pictures of me from the CSI files." His voice nearly choked in his throat which made him slightly embarrassed. "I'll meet you at Jefferson Middle School and I'll give you the envelope."
Trivette sighed heavily. "Are you okay, Walker?"
"Yeah, I'm okay." Walker lied. "I'll see ya in thirty minutes."
Company B
When Trivette got off the phone with Walker he quickly grabbed his hat then went to Billings desk. After he told the younger man what had happened he to quickly got up and grabbed his hat. This was huge news, it showed that there was a person inside the police department that had connections with Mandarro and Harris. Which wasn't good, it meant all the Walkers lives were at risk. But who could be doing such an evil thing to one of their fellow officers?
Billings briskly walked to the elevator, pushed down then turned as Alex approached them. "Hey, Alex." He gave her a friendly hug. "What's going on?"
"I saw you two leaving in a hurry. Is it Walker?" Her voice showed them that something was seriously wrong. "I just got one of my feelings…"
Trivette turned to Billings, knowing by now to trust Alex's instincts when it came to Walker. "We should get moving. Alex, I'll call you later." He gave her a friendly hug.
Once in the elevator Billings shook his head as he leaned against the brass railing. "Something's not right. Why would Harris show pictures like that to Walker? Is he trying to spoof him?" He sighed heavily and shook his head. "If so, they don't know our friend, do they?"
"No, they don't." Trivette's voice trailed off as he remembered the way Walker sounded on the phone. "But this is really getting to him. You should have heard him on the phone."
Billings shook his head. "I don't blame him. I mean, what Mandarro and his goonies are doing to Walker right now, it's digging up old memories. And what he went through was hell, pure and simple." The elevator doors opened on the first level and both of the men walked out. "I can't wait to catch that bastard. Give Walker and his family some much needed peace."
Trivette nodded in agreement. "Well, hopefully there's something inside the envelope that will help us out." He stepped outside and pointed to his left. "My car is parked right over there." He took out his keys as he descended the courthouse stone steps. "I'm just ready for all of this to end, Billings."
"I hear that." Billings stopped in his steps as his head slowly angled to the right. "That looks like Williamson in that car."
"Where?" Trivette followed his partner's gaze till he spotted a pickup parked at one of the many slots on the downtown street. "I see it. You really think it's him?"
"I'm not sure. But let's see if he'll follow us, let's go."
Jefferson Middle School
The parking lot was empty as usual as Walker pulled into the middle school grounds. Usually the teachers and other staff parked on the other side of the building closer to the front entrance. From here, he had access to the gym which made it easier to haul equipment inside. He parked the car, got out then opened the back driver's side door. He couldn't wait to get his pickup back from the shop, he hated driving a car, not enough space.
Footsteps sounded from behind him. "So, ya the Ranger that has been takin away our business?" Came a thick southern voice from behind him.
Walker sighed heavily as he turned around to see a young, white kid around fifteen years old standing behind him. "What do you want?"
"I want ya off this turf! This is our domain!" The kid slapped his white tank top then gave Walker a slight nod. "Thought we gave ya enough warnings, pig!"
"A little bit of graffiti and egg on my truck isn't going to stop me."
Walker spotted blurry movement out of his right eye and slightly turned his head to get a better look. What he saw wasn't good. A dozen or so Hillstreet Mafia gang members came seemingly out of nowhere, all of them carrying various weapons of some kind. He took a deep breath then turned back to the one that seemed to be the leader.
"We're here to give any officer who dares to trespass on our turf, a warning!" The teen lunged at Walker which got him to move to the side and out of the way of the punch. "He's weaker on the right side! Attack the right!"