A/N: I know I keep falling off the face of the planet, but here's another chapter! Sorry for the extended time between reviews! (Fanfiction was being weird and not letting me see my reviews so I decided to just go ahead and put it up instead of waiting.)


Someone was holding him down. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't run. He couldn't move. Something or someone was holding him down, not letting him move. He tried to claw at the thing on top of him, but he couldn't make his hands move. His legs wouldn't kick and the more he tried to struggle, the tighter the hold became. More things were holding him down. All he wanted to do was get away from all of this. The pain was excruciating. It was beyond anything that he had ever felt. It was like someone had released ground glass into his blood stream and it was coursing through his veins.

"Spike, please calm down. Buddy, please calm down. You are safe. We got you, you are safe." Spike felt his heart leap. That was a voice that he knew. That was a voice he knew meant safety. Those were the voices that kept him sane on his worst days and were there for him whenever he needed him. Could it be that the team rescuing him hadn't just been a hopeful mirage intended to rip his heart into smaller pieces? Could it be true that he was really somewhere safe?

"We're all here. You're safe. You're safe." Spike almost burst into tears of joy when he recognized the second voice instantly. If Wordy and Lou were here, then it must be true. He opened his eyes. The entire team was surrounding the bed, crowding in towards him. Their faces expressed worry and concern for their fallen team member. Spike felt a surge of relief and safety run through his body. He knew he was safe.

"Where am I?" Spike winced at how much pain was in his jaw. It was like a bolt of lightning struck his face every time he talked. He was fairly positive that he remembered hearing his jaw crack. "Where is Theo? What happened?" He looked around the room. He was still a little disoriented and wasn't quite sure where he was.

"The hospital." Jules had tears in her eyes. "We were so worried." She had both of her hands wrapped around his. "We were just so worried." She shook her head as her voice broke and Greg wrapped his arm around her. They had come so close to losing him. They had all been so worried that Spike wasn't going to be okay.

"What, what happened?" Everything about how he ended up in the hospital was a blank. All he knew was his body was on fire. He wasn't sure what hurt the most, but he secretly hoped the doctor would came in soon and he could ask for some pain relief. He hoped no one would think he was weak. His body had had enough of this pain and he wanted at least some of it to go away.

"We found you. The delivery man's conscious um, got the best of him." Sam answered. He looked a little sheepish and Spike made a mental note to ask Jules later what had happened. He figured that Sam had lost his temper, but Spike just hoped it wasn't anything that was going to end in suspension.

"Theo is never going to hurt you again." Ed's voice went so deep, it was almost a growl. Ed could taste the hatred and spite he had for Theo as he spit out every word. Spike was glad that he wasn't on the receiving end of Ed's anger. Ed wasn't a violent man by nature, but he was very protective. Spike knew that if Theo was left alone with Ed in the near future, Theo wouldn't walk away from it.

"He's going to jail for the rest of his life. His apartment had enough drugs in it to convict him even without what he did to you." Wordy said, his voice ringing with pleasure at the thought of Theo spending the rest of his life behind bars. At least Spike wouldn't have to worry about Theo coming back for him.

"I was worried I wasn't ever going to see you again." Spike dropped his eyes. He had never felt so helpless in his life as he did when Theo had him tied up. The fear and hopelessness had been completely overwhelming. He had felt like he could reach out and touch death.

"We never stopped looking. Stop talking though buddy, you have wires running through your jaw." Greg didn't want to voice the concern they all had, that they were all concerned they would never see him again. They needed to direct the focus onto prosecuting Theo and getting Spike nursed back to full health.

Spike gave a nod as he looked up into his boss's eyes and tried to convey just how thankful he was. Words would never be enough to express just how grateful he was for the fact that he hadn't died alone in that warehouse with Theo. He had been so sure that the last thing he would ever see was Theo's sneering face as Theo beat him to death. He finally felt like he fully understood why some of the people they had had to talk down from ledges or stop from going on shooting sprees were driven to the point they were. He understood the pain that they had felt from being hurt by someone who chose to hurt them and being kidnapped. But most of all, he had never felt so grateful for being alive.


"Constable Scarlatti, the wires will remain in your jaw for the next four to five weeks. This is a list of foods you should make sure you are including in your diet and a list of shakes that are easy to make." The doctor handed him a thick pamphlet. "I have given you the rest of the information that you will need for the next few weeks. I will see you for a follow-up appointment in two weeks." The doctor gave Spike a huge smile. He was happy to see his patient leaving. He had come a huge way from being barely alive when he had come into the hospital. Spike was still bandaged and casted, but the bruises were fading slowly and even with the wires in his jaw, he was still smiling.

"Thank you doctor. We can't thank you enough." Greg shook the doctor's hand vigorously as Lou started pushing the wheelchair down the hallway. The entire team walked behind Spike, glad that they were leaving this place. They all hoped to never return.

A/N: I know this chapter sums up a lot and is short, but there is one more chapter, which will expand on some things. Request what you would like to see if you want.