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Why was it that when you needed to find the phone you just can't. Annoyed Aiden searched for her phone in the dark until she came upon the glowing form that must have been hit under her bed. Crouching down, she picked it up. The screen read Flack.
Weird, Donald Flack Jr. never calls on days he works, when he wanted to talk to a friend he made sure there was time really talk if the need called for it.
"Hello." She spoke clearly into the phone hiding the irritableness in her voice.
"Aiden, hi, it's Flack."
"Yea, got that, caller id is an amazing invention." She snarked.
"Yea." Flack trailed off. He wasn't himself, something was up. He usually would have replied to that.
"Don, what's wrong. What happened?" Aiden asked getting a little scared in the process.
"You caught on, huh, ok..I a…I know you and Danny still talk."
"Don, what's up?" Aiden nervously laughed. She had no idea where this was going.
"Aid, Danny's brother…"
"Is back in town? Is what?"
"In the hospital, I can't talk about an open case, but let's put it this way…" Flack trailed off. Trying to keep his voice steady. Here his best friend was in the middle of a family emergency, and family he didn't think he even had anymore. "It has to do with tanglewood, Danny's on desk duty, and his brother has been beaten pretty bad…it doesn't look good, and well."
"Well...?" Aiden followed frantically. She needed to know/
"I know you helped him a lot after the Minhas shooting and was wondering if you'd."
"I'll be down there as quick as I can Don, which hospital you at?"
"Trinity."
It took her a little while to get from the Bronx traffic slowed the trip what should have taken 25 minutes took around 45. By the time she got through the hospital and found Flack sitting on a chair trying to not look into the room where Danny now was it had been an hour.
"Flack." Aiden breathed out as she reached him. "How is he?"
"Louie's stable for now, so Danny's as good as he can be given the circumstances." Flack said watching. Aiden followed his gaze looking through the glass windows to see a tiny brunette hand Danny a recording device.
He looked at it, then at her, then back to the tape. The brunette went to leave but, Danny caught her hand just as it was leaving his reach. She stayed, as Danny presumably hit play.
"She's going to be suspended for that." Don said watching in awe as Danny listened to the tape.
"What? Who is she?" Aiden asked. She assumed it was a girlfriend or doctor
"That would be Lindsay." Don explained running a hand down his tired face. "She has put her job on the line for him today." He continued, this time shaking his head and laughing.
"So that's Montana." Aiden said smiling while she watched with a new interest in the scene taking place. "She's not what I pictured."
"Montana huh, so he talks about her?" Don laughed this time more genuinely.
"Sometimes, sometimes I ask." Aiden shrugged. "She's pretty, maybe I was wrong, maybe she is out of his league."
"Oh believe me they are definitely in the same league. They may one up each other from time to time, but it averages out." Flack smirked.
"So you see him falling for her too."
"Now I see, before I just assumed." Aiden said slouching back and watching as Danny handed the recorder back and pulling Lindsay into a tight hug, before kissing her on the cheek and whispering something in her ear. "Yea, I give it 6 more months and they will be that sickening office couple."
"They already are, with the bantering, and the competitions." Don informed stopping when Aiden's phone rang and she had to step away. He watched her walk down the hallway before his attention was called back to the immediate area as the door to Louie's room clicked shut and Lindsay emerged.
"How is he Linds?" Don asked softly
"Well….the tape seemed to shed some new light on something or other between he and his brother, but, he's only known me for 8 months, I can't really tell ya." She shrugged.
"Ey, he shares more with you than most." Don clarified for her. "I don't get hugs." He said a little bitterly. Lindsay simply laughed and tiptoed up to hug him as well. "Better Don?"
"A little."
"SO who was the girl?'" Lindsay asked nodding in the direction of Aiden. "You get her number?"
"Already have it. That's Aiden."
"So that's Aiden." Lindsay said it all dawning on her. The stories Danny told coming back to her. She was a tad bit jealous. Then again, she wasn't, She had told herself from the beginning, it was just a little crush.
Lindsay was gonna say more when she got a call from Mac, and took it.
"Mac needs the tape back, says you're free to sleep Don, they got Sonny."
"Kay, I'm gonna stay put a little longer just in case though." Flack said as he watched Lindsay pass Aiden in the hall as she was coming back towards him, they seemed to share a smile.
"She's cute." Aiden smiled. "Even has all her teeth, wasn't expecting that." She joked. Danny had always said she was a real country girl.
"Ha ha." Flack humored her, "Go check on Messer, I need food and a nurse's phone number." Flack said before taking off towards the cafeteria.
Aiden knocked on the door and poked her head in. "Ey, Messer."
"Aiden." Danny said jumping up and making his way over to her. They met in the middle of the room. "what are ya doing here?" he asked.
"Don called me, figured you needed a support group behind ya, but I don't know, after seeing you with Lindsay I think my work here is done." Aiden smiled.
"What a..what do you mean?" Danny asked a little taken back. "no one can replace you babe."
"One, I'm not a babe, well ok I am a babe, but I'm not your babe." Aiden joked. "But Danny, you're in good hands with that one. I don't have ta worry about you guys, Stella has her back up." Danny laughed, yea. Stella team cheerleader, soccer mom, yea, with the lab guys she needed a backup. Batman needed her Robin. "but seriously Danny, how are you holding up?"
"I've been better." Danny admitted, "honestly, we just started talking again a few months ago, and it was…the same."
"Danny I know you were upset after the first 3 months of not hearing from him, then again when he got back in touch, but why, you told me you never got along."
"We used to, high school, when all this shit started, that's when it turned, and he's my brother, I can't help it, I need to look out for him."
"Danny you're the little brother shouldn't it be the other way around?"
"He set an example what not to do." Danny chuckled lightly, "I guess I learned from his mistakes, and I don't know…."
"As a thank you, you bail him out when he gets into trouble."
"Yea." Danny sighed "I guess so." Danny said completely defeated, his head dropping.
There was a knock at the door. Looking up, Danny found a doctor entering the room, a folder in his hands. "Are you the family for Louie Messer?"
"Um, he is." Aiden said "Listen Dan, it's getting late. Take care of Louie, call me if you need me Messer. Understand." She finished with a smile.
"Gotcha Burn. Talk to ya later." Danny said as she turned to leave.
"Mr. Messer, your brother's test results are…."
"Lindsay, have you heard from Danny?" Don Flack asked out of breath when she answered her phone.
"Not, since I left the hospital, why? What's wrong Flack? What's happened?"
"I don't know, last I saw, his parents were at the hospital, and Louie's condition isn't much better, Aiden can't get a hold of him, I can't thought you might know."
"Flack, I'm out of the lab, I haven't heard anything in two days, but what do we know? Have you talked to Mac."
"Just that Louie's condition was slipping last night and now no one can get through to him, we've all tried, I've left about 100 messages, and there's a big case came through and the lab is swamped and I can't get off work cause we're trying to catch a killer and he's my best friend and his brother is dying, his mom is laying on the guilt, and he really really needs me.." Flack gasped out, his hyperventilation slowing.
"Ok Flack!" Lindsay laughed lightly, "you're starting to sound like Adam, I'll find Danny, and give you a call."
"Mac will shorten your suspension." Flack said pleased and in a completely neutral tone, the exact opposite of his girly fast paced voice of seconds ago.
"Oh, that was an act! Don, I thought you had more respect than that." Lindsay laughed.
"Eh, I have my moments."
"Ok Don, his address hasn't changed has it?"
"No he's not moving again anytime soon."
"Alright, will call you when I find him."
"Thanks Monroe."
Quickly Lindsay grabbed her phone and dialed Danny's number…nothing. And the hunt began. She crossed town, and banged on his door for 10 minutes before the little boy from down the hall said Danny had gone out early that morning with a duffle bag. Well that narrowed the search.
She started with the gyms closer to his place before moving to the NYPD, still nothing, she dialed his number again nothing. Stopping at the hospital, she found a distraught older woman sitting in the chair in Louie's room. And older gentleman, almost an exact replica of Danny and Louie was standing outside looking in through the glass.
He must have caught sight of Lindsay out the side of his eye, because he turned towards her. "Sweetheart, who are you looking for." So that's where Danny gets it---Lindsay realized.
"Oh….um… Danny." Lindsay replied honestly, turning back towards Mr. Messer.
"He's not here."
"Ok, shoot, do you know where he might be sir?"
"I could think of a few ideas, but first who are you? And why are you looking for my son? Oh, and it's Sal."
"I'm sorry, Mr. Messer…uh Sal, I work with him, we're friends I guess, and…. Well no one can get a hold of him."
"So they send the pretty girl to find him, think he'll open up to you?"
"I'm off today, but maybe, but I doubt it. But Danny owes me." Lindsay shrugged,
"Owes you how?" Sal asked skeptical of this girl.
"I a…" Lindsay glanced at Louie then back to Sal.
"You're Montana." He said her identity dawning on him
"Oh god, yea." Lindsay said rolling her eyes.
"Ok, well, where have you checked so far?"
"His place, the gym(s), every place between his place and here." Lindsay rattled off
"Why the gym?"
"Rueben, the kid from down the hall, said Danny took a gym bag with him this morning."
"Batting cages."
"What?"
"Check out the batting cages two blocks south of his place. He's our baseball star, that's where he'd be, that's where he was after his grandmother died."
"OK thanks, and nice meeting you." Lindsay called back as she ran towards the exit.
Sure enough there he was, hitting ball after ball, taking his anger out on each speeding pitch that came his way. His t-shirt was soaked, a clear indicator that he had been there awhile.
"Put the bat down Messer." Lindsay shouted after a pitch he hit particularly fiercly.
"Lindsay!?, what are you doing here?" Danny asked turning off the machine, and exiting the cage.
"Looking for you. Danny, why haven't you been answering your phone?" She was concerned, but couldn't help but be a little turned on as he brushed the sweat from his forehead.
"It's in my locker, and how'd you know I'd be here?"
"Well, you have, I'm guessing, about 100 missed calls, and your dad told me to check here." Lindsay told him, she was a little sheepish, about having talked to his father.
"You went by the hospital?"
"For a second."
"How is he?"
"I didn't check, was more concerned about finding you." Lindsay said honestly.
"Why?"
"Why, because, Danny I've been in situations pretty damn close to this, and well, we're all worried about you. You're our friend."
"We're, Our?"
"What, you didn't think I'd leave 100 messages did you?" Lindsay joked. "I don't like you that much." She couldn't keep a straight face as she said it, she couldn't be mean/sarcastic.
"Thanks Linds." Danny blushed ever so slightly one couldn't even tell, he was still flushed from the workout.
"No problem, So how are you?" she asked watching as he hit the start button.
"Well, Louie isn't getting better." *ping* he hit the first pitch that came his way, "…he's in this position to save my ass." *PING* "You got suspended for helping me." *BING* "For believing I had nothing to do with this, for being a good friend." *PING* "My ma is throwing all her grief at me." *PING* "And why I don't settle down and have kids." *BING* "And I've been here for three hours." *PING!*
"Ok, turn off the machine Danny." Lindsay laughed, grabbing a helmet and stepping inside the cage. "First of all, the suspension is nothing. Actually for finding you it's getting cut down." She took the bat away from him and hit start while he backed away. *PING* "Second, your brother knew what he was doing." *BING* "Third, everybody gets that grief." *BING* "Believe me it's worse when you're a girl." *PING* "And last." *BING* "It's only been a day, give Louie time to heal." *BING!* She then shut it down.
"Shit Montana, where'd you learn to hit like that?"
"Softball through college." Lindsay shrugged off, "Forgot how good that feels." She smiled.
"Now come on, let's get you home, you stink." She said pushing him out of the cage.
"There's nothing for me to do at home. I can't go home Linds, I'll think too much."
"Bull, there will be a pizza there as soon as I call Flack and tell him I found you, plus a shower, and a bed."
"A bed Montana?" Danny winked.
"Oh, keep dreaming." She laughed. "But come on, it looks like you haven't slept in days."
"three." He supplied. "and why do you need to call Flack."
"He was hyperventilating when he called to tell me you were M.I.A…the kid can act."
Lindsay had gotten Danny home. Danny had jumped into the shower, and Lindsay began straightening up, How guys could live in such messes was beyond her. She had just seen a glimpse of Danny's naked torso head towards his bedroom when the pizza arrived.
Being a good friend, and currently not having any work to do, Lindsay complied when asked to stick around and watch a movie, keep his mind off his brother. Quarter of the way into the movie Danny fell asleep on her shoulder, half way through she followed suit, only to be woken up at the ending credits by a cell phone.
She answered without looking to see who's it was, or who was calling. "Hello." She spoke groggily into the phone while moving out from under Danny's form and to the kitchen where she started making tea.
"Hi, who is this?"
"Shoot, this is Danny's phone!" Lindsay realized. "Sorry this is Lindsay, can I ask who's calling?"
"It's Aiden." Aiden couldn't help but smile, if she's groggily answering his phone things were moving in the right direction. "Is Danny there."
"He is, but he finally fell asleep."
"Ok, well, don't wake him, I know after Minhas, he went 5 days straight the fact that he's sleeping…"
"Yea, I caught him at 3 today."
"Alright well tell him I called, and I'll call back tomorrow."
"Actually Aiden, I was wondering if you could give me some more information on Pratt, I promised Danny, I'd back down from this case, but I just can't let it go. "
"Okay, well first don't plant any evidence. And ….." the conversation went on for a good 20 minutes and Lindsay was well versed on DJ Pratt when they finally hung up. Yea she had a feeling Aiden was still working on the Pratt case herself.
A/N: So long...wow, well hope you enjoyed, i'm a review junkie, hint hint, and I'm sorry, but it'll be at least a week till the next chap. =( school and my teachers need for "2 midterms and a final" its called a trimester dr! agh. =) hope you enjoyed the chapter.
