NOTE* Awww! Gotta love little Al and Mattie! Here is the next chapter! Enjoy!

Chapter Four:

Phantoms of the Night

Alfred ran as fast as his little legs would carry him. Shadows chased him through the streets and yet he couldn't seem to escape them, no matter how hard he tried. Running, running, running. He kept running until he couldn't run anymore. As he slowed down, the shadows grew bigger until they were right up on him. Their bony hands gripped his arms, cold chilling shivers ran up and down his spine. He struggled to escape them, trying, trying, trying to break free.

"Help me", he whispered into the darkness, "please help me."

"Alfred it's too late for you", a female voice snarled into his ear, "You are mine now and always will be."

Alfred whimpered beneath the evil glare of his step mother.

"Help me", he whispered again.

"No one will help you. No one can", his father's voice replied as he stepped beside his step mother, his own hand clenching roughly around Alfred's free arm. The two pinning him down.

"Please…" he cried out, "Mattie!"

"Mattie is the perfect son" another voice said in the deep black of night.

Alfred's eyes widened at the sound of his birth mothers voice.

"Mom", he whispered as he watched her draw closer to him, however she wasn't like in the pictures. Her skin was pale and discolored, with black and blue patches. Her face was deteriorating with every step she took and her eyes…soulless black voids staring at him.

"You killed me Alfred", she whispered as she staggered towards him, "You killed me as you will one day kill all those who care about you. You're a murderer. A vicious little boy."

"N-No…" he whimpered trying to back away, but his father and step mother continued to hold him down, both glaring at him with wicked smiles.

His mother's hands wrapped around his throat. The cold limbs completely devoid of any since of living warmth latching onto him, strangling him as they slowly tightened their grip. Her face leaned in closer to his.

"Die Alfred", she whispered, "Die…as you should have done the day you killed me."

"No!" he screamed, thrashing as he tried to get out of her grasp, "Help me! Please! Someone! Help me!"

He sobbed and shook, but the voices continued to laugh at him mockingly, shouting his name.

"Alfred", they chuckled, "Alfred!"

Al continued to struggled, however the voices faded and a different, more desperate warm voice caught his attention.

"Alfred!" it shouted.

"Mattie", he whispered as he snapped awake and bolted up and out of the bed. He stumbled onto the floor, his chest heaving as he fell to his knees. Matthew who was startled by the sudden awakening crawled out of his own bed, disconnecting the wires attached to him as he knelt on the floor beside his brother. He knew the nurse would be coming soon to find out what was going on, but nothing mattered right now but his brother.

Ignoring the slight ache in his stomach, he wrapped his arms in a protective cocoon as his brother cried and breathed fast. Too fast.

"Calm down Al", he whimpered to his younger brother, "you need to calm down or you are going to faint."

Alfred however was beyond hearing him as he continued to desperately breathe. However his mind was still caught in the nightmare he had just experienced and wasn't yet free of its horrors. Sure enough as Matthew suspected, a nurse came running into the room. She noticed the boys on the floor and quickly stepped forward. Like his brother, the nurse attempted to get his breathing calmed, but he refused to be comforted. Matthew noticing the sway in his brother quickly reached out and pulled him closer to his chest, shoving the nurses hands off of him.

"It's alright Alfred. Nothing is going to happen to you. I am right here. Its okay little brother. I got you, just as you have me. I will protect you. Always. I promise", he cried as he rocked his brother back and forth, his own panic beginning to rise as he felt the choking breaths of his brother.

Eventually Alfred's breathing finally calmed a bit and he collapsed against Matthew who was prepared for it. He had dealt with the panic attacks before and he knew most of the time it was merely a matter of waiting them out. Of trying to work through them the best they could. It scared him, but as much as his brother is there for him, he wanted to be there for his brother.

"I have you Alfred, everything is okay now" he whispered as he nuzzled his brother's neck, "please…wake up Al."

The nurse helped the two back into bed, reattaching the wires to Matthew before she left, leaving the door open to better hear should anything happen. Alfred was sound asleep once again and this time, nightmare free. Matthew however couldn't sleep the rest of the night as he rocked his brother slowly in his arms, trying to stay the nightmares from haunting him anymore.

"Everything will be alright", he whispered once again in the silence of the hospital room, but it was more to convince himself than his brother.

H~H

Arthur tossed and turned in the bed of his apartment. He had tried to sleep, desperately tired from the double shift he had pulled at the hospital, but the thought of those two boys kept pestering his mind. He knew getting too attached would cause problems. He also knew if he got caught up with that messed up little family something bad was bound to happen, but he couldn't get the fear in their eyes out of his head. He had to do something to help them, but what?

Giving up on the prospect of sleep, he climbed out of bed and grabbed his green and black robe. He wrapped it around himself as he headed down the stairs towards the kitchen. He stopped in surprise to see Francis, his roommate, sitting on the couch watching TV snacking on popcorn and drinking a can of sprite.

"Feeling better are we?" he asked.

Francis glanced up at him from his position.

"Oui", Francis nodded, his French blood making its appearance known, "You don't look like you feel very well. What's going on?"

"Just couldn't sleep", Arthur said shrugging as he began making a pot of tea. Setting it to boil, he stumbled out into the living room and flopped down on the couch beside his friend and co-worker.

"Rough couple days?"

"Yeah."

"Sorry about that my friend", Francis replied, feeling a bit guilty knowing it was partially due to him.

"Nah, its more about a case than the actual shift."

"Oh, what case?" Francis asked intrigued. It was unlike Arthur to bring up one of his own patients cases, especially to Francis who he argued with day in and day out.

"A couple of kids. They came in together out of the rain at one in the morning. The older, Matthew, was suffering from a stab wound to the stomach from what looked to me to be the remnants of a drunk's beer bottle. The other, Alfred, came in with several cracked ribs."

"Sounds like a cut and dry case of abuse", muttered Francis, confused at why his friend was so bothered.

"It should be, but the kids refuse to tell on their parents due to fear of being split up by the department of child services. The older is autistic, often protected by the younger who is reported to suffer panic attacks."

"Quite a mess there", nodded Francis.

"Yeah, but the parents are even worse. I met them today. They were awful. The woman wanted the kids out of the hospital for fear of spending too much money and the man, well…he acted alright, but you could tell he had a serious hangover. No doubt he was the one responsible for Matthew's condition. Possibly Alfred's as well."

"I see and there is no real evidence?"

"None. The social worker, without the admittance of the children and any real factual evidence, can't do anything to change the situation. It hasn't been the first time DCS has been called on them either."

"What a mess", muttered Francis shaking his head, "poor children."

"Yeah", Arthur agreed, their faces once again popping into his mind, "today I have to send the younger one home."

Francis frowned.

"Nothing you can do to keep him?"

Arthur sighed, shaking his head.

"No. His mother made it clear that once they were well enough they were to be sent home and legally, we must abide by her wishes and medically speaking, he was well enough yesterday to leave but I kept him under the vise of overnight observation in case of unforeseen complications."

"I see", Francis stated as he quieted, deep in thought. He sighed.

"You can only do what you can do Arthur", he said as he sympathetically patted his friend on the back, "Let me know if I can help."

Arthur nodded, as he leaned back against the couch, closing his eyes.

"Thanks Francis" he mumbled sleepily.

"Your welcome", Francis smiled sadly as he turned back to his television show, but his heart wasn't in it as he thought over what his friend had told him about. Poor children. He had known other cases that his happened. He only hoped sending the children back wouldn't result in the same ending.

Beside the Frenchman, the brit, born and raised in England, snored away as his mind sank into an abyss of unconsciousness, troubled by the day that lies ahead.