Chapter 6

Maddie called Sam while he had his arms up to his elbows in soapy water. "Fi, can you take over here?"

"Sure. It's about time you let me wash." She smiled as she stepped closer to him and he moved back so she could occupy his space. He quickly dried his hands on her shirt back.

"Sam!" She laughed.

"Sorry, the towel is too wet."

"Oh, just answer that phone! Maybe it's Michael."

After the outing to the mall and the beach the day before, Fiona had been in much better spirits. He was beginning to think that maybe her opinion of him had evolved for the better. Only one thing could shatter their fragile truce, and he was afraid that Maddie was about to take a hammer to it. He walked out to the landing to answer the phone.

"Maddie. What's up?"

Her voice sounded frantic. "Michael is coming home tonight, Sam. It'll probably be late."

"I'm surprised he didn't call me...oh wait...he did." He remembered the chirp letting him know about a voicemail on his phone. "Fi's just finishing up the dishes and I was planning on calling Mike when we were done."

"I don't think you should."

"Why not?" He paused. "You told him about Fi, didn't you."

"Well, not everything. I told him you two were in an accident and that you were recovering. He was so angry that I didn't tell him the first time we talked, he wouldn't let me get in another word." She sighed deeply. "Maybe it's for the best. He'll find out soon enough when he gets home."

"Thanks a lot, Maddie. I told you we should have been up front with everybody. Why didn't you want to tell him?"

"I didn't want him to worry!"

"So rage is better?" He let out a ragged breath. "You know what, I'm going to talk to Fi right now, tell her the truth. She thinks Mike didn't care and that he was taking his time coming home because he might not want to spend his life with a blind woman." Just thinking about what he said brought emotions to the surface. "This is all so royally screwed up, Maddie. I can't believe this was all to spare Mike."

"I really thought this would be all over by the time he came back and Fiona would be able to see again. She's no better?"

"No. I'm afraid this isn't going away. And I'm really afraid that Mikey is going to blow a gasket when he comes home and finds out. So if I talk to Fi, at least I can defuse a grenade before the atom bomb hits. I'll talk to you later." He paused. "Tell you what...I'll write your name and number on a piece of paper and stick it in my pocket, so when they find my body they'll have someone to call and ID it."

"Sam," Maddie wailed, but he cut her off. He ran a hand through his hair and groaned. He was not looking forward to what was about to come, but he no longer had a choice. He had to tell Fi that Michael was as much in the dark as she was. Yes, it was a job hazard being a spy with family. Too often you came home to surprises. Sam was familiar with that one from his SEAL days, when he discovered his wife couldn't wait for him, so she found another man. The truth cut like a knife, and in this case, it wouldn't be some little paring knife. Sam hurt for his friend. He never wanted to do this to him, but somehow he let Maddie talk him into it. Somehow he had to figure out a way to convince him of that. Maybe by working on Fi first, he could figure it out.

"Where were you, Sam? I was calling you."

"You didn't hear me go out the front door?" He crossed the room and sat in the chair next to hers at the round table.

"I guess I was too wrapped up in my thoughts." Her hands fidgeted and played with a braided cord embellished with beads. It was something she bought at the mall the day before because it was so tactile. "Was that Michael?"

"No, it was Maddie."

"Sam, why hasn't Michael called and asked about me?"

It was too hard to come right out and say it, so he evaded just one more time. "He's been working, Fi. Until a few days ago, he was out of the country, and after that, Maddie said he was heading home and stopping in Vegas to see Nate."

"If his mom told him about me...do you think that's why he hasn't called?"

Sam knew she'd been thinking that way. It was time to set her straight. He let out a huge breath and his entire body deflated. "Fi, Maddie didn't tell Mike what happened to us, and she swore me to secrecy not to tell him when I spoke with him."

"Why? That doesn't make any sense."

"I know. I really didn't want to hide this from him, Fi. It's not right that he had no clue. All he knows now is that we were in an accident and are recovering, but I don't think he even knows the extent of our injuries."

"Sam, how could you do this? After I was starting to...no, I did, I trusted you. You didn't just withhold information, you broke that trust!" Her voice shook with anger as she got up and approached him.

"I know."

"You should have just told him! You knew it was wrong to keep this information from him!"

"Don't tell me something I already know, sister! I've been kicking myself ever since."

"You've got a phone! You should have used it!"

"Don't get mad at just me. It wasn't my idea!"

"But because of you, this is going to be a lot worse than it needed to be!" She growled and kicked out, but she hit nothing but air. That only frustrated her more. "Dammit, Sam! Why did you do this? Why did you let me think that Michael was avoiding me?"

"I'm sorry, Fi! I...the last thing I wanted to do was hurt you or Mike. His mom wanted to protect him, and so did I. It was wrong, I should have said something right away, and I am truly, truly sorry that I didn't." He shifted in his chair. "I don't know what else I can do to make it up to you. I made a mistake. I acknowledge that I screwed up. All I can offer you is an apology, and if you won't take that, I don't know what else I can do."

Fiona walked away with confident strides toward the punching bag. Then he heard a rhythmic sound of her fists arms, legs and feet making contact with it. From across the loft he heard her breathing hard. Every blow, he knew it was meant for him. Yet instead of taking it out on his body, she transferred it to the punching bag. Maybe the trust and esteem she'd developed for him wasn't dead yet. Or maybe she was priming herself for a major butt kicking. She returned, and he stiffened in his chair. He should have taken off while she got out her raw emotions.

"Fi. I...I didn't want it to be like this."

He was surprised when she moved closer, knelt beside his chair, and placed her hands on his face. Since she couldn't see the sincerity on it, at least she could feel it. She nodded, removed her hands, and got to her feet. "I'm still angry at you."

"I would expect you to be, and I don't blame you. I just wish there was some way I could make it up to you."

A small smile flitted across her mouth. "If you're really sorry, you'll let me win at cards tonight."

"Sorry, Fi. I'm not in the mood right now."

"Ohhh, you've been beating me since you brought those cards home. It's my turn! If I can't kick your ass, the least I can do is win a few hands."

"Yeah, right. I know those babies better than you."

"That's just because you can see them, as well as touch them. Turn off the lights, Sam, and prepare to lose."

Michael parked his car behind Sam's and locked it. He looked up at the loft and saw that all the windows were dark. He wasn't sure why his friend was here. His mother said they'd both been injured in a car accident, so maybe he was helping Fi, giving her some medical care. His foot slipped on the wet steps, the aftereffect of a quick summer evening shower. The door was locked, so he stuck his key in and unlocked it. Fi must be in bed. Of course, if she's still recovering from... From what sort of injuries, he had no idea. Once he discovered that his mother, and Sam, withheld information from him, he was furious.

"I didn't want you to worry, Michael! I was afraid you'd speed home and get hurt...or killed...trying to get back to Fiona, when she'll be back to herself in no time!"

He also vaguely remembered her asking him how it felt to be in the dark, when he'd done a similar thing to her for ten years. He never thought she could be so petty, but there it was. In the morning, he would go visit her, maybe take Fi along as a buffer, and try to figure out why she did this to him. Until then, he stole into the loft and expected to find Fi asleep.

Sam's voice pierced the darkness. "Okay, Fi. Call."

Her voice sounded haughty as she replied. "Four of a kind, all aces." Something scraped across the wood table top.

"Uh uh, not so fast. Straight flush. Pay up, Fi."

"Let me see that!"

Puzzled, Michael turned on a light near the bed. Fiona sat leaning toward Sam, her fingers running over the cards, while Sam's head jerked around to Michael. He blinked at the sudden intrusion of light.

"Mike, what are you doing?"

"I was about to ask you two the same thing. Playing poker...in the dark?"

"Michael!" Fiona threw down the cards and jumped up from her chair, and she launched herself at him. Her mouth sought his, and he spent a few minutes enjoying the welcome home.

When they finally parted, he grinned as he smoothed the hair from the sides of her face. "Fi, you look great. I was worried about what happened to you. My Ma..."

"Didn't tell you everything, Michael." She pulled out of his grip, took his hand, and found the bed with the back of her legs before sitting.

Michael watched her with ever growing concern. When she faced him, he could see her much better in the light, and immediately, he knew something was wrong. "Fi?" He placed his hands on the sides of her face as he was suddenly overcome with emotion. The words came out in a whisper. "What happened to you?"

"I'm blind, Michael. Simple as that. If it hadn't been for Sam hanging out with me, helping me acclimate..."

"No, no, this can't be. My mom never said anything about you being blind!" He pressed his hands tighter to her, until she reached up to pull them away. Then he grasped her hands and held them in his. He turned to Sam, who could have easily slipped away during their reunion, but by the look on his face, he was ready to pay for his silence. "You knew about this and you didn't tell me when you had the chance! Why not?"

"Your mom asked me not to."

"So your loyalty to my mother trumps what we have between us?"

"No. Like I told Fi, I..."

"I don't care what you told Fi." Michael got to his feet and approached Sam, who thought it wise to stop making himself such an easy target and stood. "Did you think you were doing me a favor? Or did you just think I was too stupid to figure it out for myself when I got home?"

"It's not like that, Mike. We all thought this would be temporary, nothing to worry you about."

"You have my number. You could have called me when you figured out that you wouldn't be able to hide it from me."

"I wanted to tell you."

"Then you should have!" Suddenly, Michael's fist came out of nowhere, slammed into Sam's jaw, and sent his best friend sprawling to the floor.

Sam tasted blood and swiped some from his lip. "Yes, I should have, and I'm sorry."

"Get out, Sam. Just get out, and don't come back until I call you. Maybe in another decade or so."

"Michael, please!"

"Fi, stay out of this!" Michael stood over Sam, ready to strike again.

"My stuff..." Sam scrambled to his feet and made a wide berth around Michael.

"Leave it! Just get out of my sight, right now. I've had to deal with enough traitors lately."

The words cut him to the heart. "I thought we were friends, Mike."

"So did I," Michael shot over his shoulder as he turned back to envelop Fiona protectively in his arms.

"Friends listen to each other and try to forgive."

"Friends also don't lie by hiding the truth from their friends! Get out, Sam, before I hit you again."

"Fine." He looked past Michael at Fiona, who stood hunched into Michael's chest, sobbing. "I hope you two have a nice life. Fi, I don't know what you were waiting for, but I hope that whatever walked in the door tonight was not it." Before he could make it to the door, Michael was there, probably just so he could have the last word, or another shot at him. Sam pushed him out of the way, but he stepped back into Sam's path. He shoved Mike into the workbench, turned the knob, and pulled on the door, and Michael simply stared at him. "Bye, Mike."

When he got downstairs, Sam realized that Michael's car parked him in. He shook his head and sighed. There was no way he was going back up there to beg Mike to move his car. He pulled out his phone. "Maddie? Can you come and pick me up at Mike's?"

"I can't believe he decked you," Maddie said as she handed Sam an ice pack and a beer.

Sam accepted both, dropped the ice pack on the table and twisted the top off the beer. He held it against his jaw for a few moments, wincing at the pain and feeling it throb as it swelled. Then he tipped the bottle up and finished it off in three big swallows.

"Hit me again, Maddie." He cringed. "Not like...you know what I mean."

Maddie set another cold one in front of him. "Sam, drinking isn't going to solve your problems."

"No, honesty from the start would have. Actually, it would have prevented this from ever happening." He pointed to his jaw with the bottle and then took a long swig. "Thanks a lot, Maddie, for the bright idea of keeping things from Mike."

Maddie finished off her own beer. "It's a poor excuse, I know. I really didn't want him to worry about something that was supposed to be temporary! But I guess I was also mad at him for running off again with no word of where he was or when he would be back. The stress of Fiona and you being hurt...I wasn't thinking, Sam. And now I've ruined your friendship."

"No, you didn't, Maddie. I did. Nobody put a gun to my head making me keep quiet. I thought it was best for him and his mission to not say a word." He sighed and dropped his forehead onto his arm, then raised it and stared at her. "He called me a traitor."

"He didn't mean it, Sam." She placed her hand on his arm and rubbed it gently.

"Oh, yes he did. You didn't see the look in his eyes. At that moment, I wished it had been me who was blind, because I never, ever wanted to see that look on Mike's face. Ever." He drained his third beer. "You know how he is, Maddie. He means what he says, and says what he means." The alcohol was starting to have an effect, and he began to slur his words. "I guess I'm right back where I started...the day the U.S. government gave me a one way ticket to Miami, a clean outfit, and...oh, I forget. Oh yeah, that crappy pension." He took a drag on beer number four. "The one they keep trying to take away for some stupid reason or another."

"Gotta love the government. They're what made my son the fine, upstanding, perfectly self-righteous...man...he is today." Maddie was on her third beer. "You know Sam, you should have kicked his ass for being such a jerk. Here you spent how many days watching over Fiona, by yourself, taking care of her, when he wasn't around. I can't imagine that had to be a picnic! He should have been grateful for everything you did."

"She wasn't so bad, once we had an understanding." He paused, drooping over the table, eyes heavy. "You know, Fi's actually kind of fun to be around sometimes."

Maddie saw the mournful look on his face and chalked his words up to his being inebriated. "The point is, you did a lot for that girl, and how did she show her appreciation? She let Michael whale on you!"

"Ma...she was hardly in any position to get between us at the time. I'm glad she didn't. I was afraid she'd get hurt."

"Michael doesn't deserve you for a friend. You're too good for him, Sam. Don't ever let him make you think otherwise." She shook her finger at him like it had a mind of its own.

Sam fell silent, his fuzzy brain thinking about all that he and Mike had been through over the years. "How could he think of me as a traitor? I've done nothing but back him for years. I could have rolled on him to the FBI, but did I? No! I gave them false or crappy intel to throw them off the track time and again. And the one time I take the wrong side, he crucifies me. If he's willing to throw our friendship away over that, then he isn't worth having as a friend either."

He had no idea when he went to bed, but Sam found himself lying on his back the next morning on top of the covers, fully clothed. He heard someone in the room. His eyes fluttered open, and he was grateful that the light filtering in the window wasn't the harsh early morning sun. As it was, the light knocked on his head, sending an annoying staccato through his skull.

"Mike?"

"Get up, Sam."

Sam got up slowly, anticipating more blows. Michael stepped back and waited for him to get on his feet. He stared at Sam, his focus on the jaw that was dressed in an ugly shade of purple that morning.

"Yeah, thanks for that, Mike. Too bad I don't own a shirt to match!" Without warning, Sam slugged Michael and sent him flying into the wall.

"I deserved that." Michael winced as he peeled himself off the wall.

"Damn right you did." Sam turned and walked out of the bedroom and the house, and he kept going. He had no idea where he would end up, probably his apartment. He wished he had his sunglasses, because it was a long walk and his head was killing him now.