CHAPTER NINE

At Trudy's insistance Lex spent the next few days on bedrest. At first he welcomed the opportunity to sleep and escape his thoughts. But by the third night he was sore and restless. It had been years since he'd spent so much time in bed. His muscles ached, his stitches pulled and he suffered from general irritation and boredom. The worst was he couldn't stop replaying the night of his attempted murder. The fear and adrenaline could still be felt in his veins. The sensation of falling... and dying. It wasn't in Lex's nature to let things go and it was driving him crazy knowing those people were still out there. Who knew what damage they would continue to cause. Lex knew he had to get back to the city as soon as he was able to make the journey. Though he guessed from Trudy's relentless nursing that she wouldn't give him the green light for another week.

He wasn't the only unsettled person in the house. Brady was dying of curiosity and couldn't wait for Lex to come out of "quarentine". As it was she wasn't allowed to go and see him and had to satisfy herself by sneaking peeks around his opened door when no one was paying attention. Trudy replied to her daughter's merriad of questions with short and somewhat vague answers. While she understood Brady's excitement over having a visitor, she didn't want Lex's presence to disrupt their reality. He would be leaving shortly so it was best to treat his stay as casually as possible.

On the fourth morning Lex awoke with the sun, determined to convince his keeper that he was well enough to get around. So he got out of bed early and forced himself to limp about the room on his bad leg. Lex found it ironic that when he was lost, at the very least the cold kept him from realizing how much his leg hurt. Now he could feel every twinge and despite his wanting to get around on his own, each step was an agony. But it was better than lying down and Lex continued to pace the small room allowing his body to build up a tolerance to the pain.

Soon he heard the others bustling about the house and the smell of scrambled eggs and ham came wafting into the room. The delicious scent was enough to cause Lex to charge downstairs. If only he were wearing more than just a pair of borrowed boxers. Escaping from potenial killers in one's underclothes was one thing. Confronting his hostess and her child in such attire was another. Luckily, Trudy didn't keep him waiting long and soon came in with his breakfast. She looked pleased to see him on his feet.

"Mornin'." She smiled.

"Hey," Lex suddenly felt self conscious for some unexplained reason and awkwardly sat on the bed.

"I guess you're sick of lying around." Trudy smirked and set the tray down. "Never thought I'd see that."

Lex chuckled at her teasing referral to his old behavior at the mall. If only she knew how little he even slept these days. For a moment he pined for those times when he could roll under his covers without any care for the outside world. Despite the chaos they lived in, some things just seemed simpler back then.

"I figured you'd be ready to get moving so I made a big meal to get your strength up."

"Thanks." Lex nodded at the plate of appetizing food. "I'm definitely ready to get moving."

"Eager to get home I'm sure." Trudy smiled.

Nodding again, Lex took a bite of his eggs. "Yes. There are things I have to take care of."

"Well, I don't know how strong you're feeling but it's a good day's walk to the city. I can give you some of Kye's old stuff to wear." She glanced at him from head to toe briefly. "He was only a little taller than you."

"Thanks."

There were a few minutes of quiet while Trudy watched her friend eat. She found it odd that his leaving was actually upsetting her somewhat. From the moment she'd found Lex in the field she knew he wouldn't be sticking around. And in some ways she preferred that he left quickly. But now she realized that just seeing him gave her warm feelings and a pining for a home long lost. The old Trudy inside of her was eager to sit with the former Mallrat and laugh about times past. Quickly she shook the vague desire from her head and stood.

"I'll get those clothes and let you eat."

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"But you can't be leaving already!" Brady stared at the man she'd just formally met in disappointment. "You just got here. You're not even better!"

"Brady," Trudy chastised gently. "Lex has a home to get back to. His family's waiting."

Lex gave Trudy a brief look, surprised that she assumed he'd finally settled down. Brady pouted in response and crossed her arms.

"But I want him to tell me about the Mallrats. You never tell me anything."

"I tell you enough."

"But I wanna know more."

Despite himself Lex found Brady to possibly be the most amusing little creature he'd encountered in a long time. He still couldn't believe that the preschooler he'd last seen had grown into such a tall, lithe young lady. Though only eight years of age she was already quite beautiful with a face as striking as her mother's. Her hair fell down her back in a mass of wind blown, wheat colored curls. There was a maturity in her light eyes that was far too old for a child so young. She wore a ratty pair of denim overalls which had been patched with endless swatches of material in all colors and patterns. Around her thin neck was a tarnished silver chain and like Trudy, the Mallrat pentagram was painted on her right hand.

"I wanna know about the other Mallrats you don't like to talk about." Brady continued. "I wanna know what they're all doing now. I wanna know about the city..."

"Brady," Trudy's tone was gentle but stern. "He has to leave."

Giving her mother an annoyed look, Brady fell into a chair with a defeated sigh. "Fine."

Satisfied the brief tiff was over Trudy turned to Lex. "I'm packing you a lunch."

She turned away before Lex could nod and neither of them noticed the wistful way Brady was staring at the dark haired man. He was the most handsome male she'd seen and already the young girl was smitten. She liked everything about him: from the way his choppy black tresses sat on his head to the exotic look of his eyes. She even liked the way he looked in Kye's old dungarees and boots. She had been so excited about sitting down and learning more about him. He was the only one who might answer her many questions. Questions the Gaians couldn't answer and questions her mother wouldn't answer. It wasn't fair that he was leaving so soon.

It only took Trudy minutes to stuff a small sack full of edibles good for traveling but it was during that time Lex had a strange revelation. He didn't want to leave. At least not right away. What exactly was he rushing back to? He had no more answers for Mega now than he did before his "adventure". And in his injured state, he would be forced to stay on leave until he was well enough to walk his beat. Even if he went back now and the killers returned for someone else, there was little he could do to stop it.

Lex glanced at Brady's dejected form and then at Trudy who was now clearing breakfast dishes. He wondered if his mind was making up excuses to stay. The truth was, this was the first time in many years he'd felt truly comfortable. Though he'd never been there before and Trudy and he was nearly strangers after their long separation, there was a familiarity in that house. During his short stay he'd felt a sensation other than regret and melancholy. A warmth that could be felt under his skin. It wasn't something he wanted to walk away from just yet.

"What's wrong?"

Trudy's voice shook him from his thoughts and Lex realized she'd noticed his solemn expression. He looked back at her puzzled face, not exactly sure how to say what he was thinking.

"Uh..." He paused and then gently set down his lunch sack. "Ya know I was thinking. It's been a long time since we've seen each other. And well... who knows when we'll see each other again. Not to mention you saved my life and I don't feel right just leaving this way." He glanced into her eyes nervously. He wasn't certain why he was finding this so difficult to say. "I guess what I mean is that I don't have to go right this minute..." Lex paused awkwardly searching for the right words to continue.

Trudy stared back in surprise. "You don't? Are you saying that you'd wanna stay awhile?" She asked tentatively.

"Well yeah," Lex nodded, grateful that she'd been the one to say it. "If you don't mind putting up with me a few days."

The smile sprang onto her face before Trudy could stop it. "Of course not. You're welcome to stay. I'll admit I was a little disappointed that we wouldn't get a chance to catch up."

"So you're staying?" Brady, who had been watching the conversation like a tennis spectator perked up. "You're gonna stay longer?"

Lex shared a quick smile with Trudy before nodding. "Yeah."

"Perfect!" Brady squealed and jumped from her chair and grabbed Lex's hand. "I can't wait to show my goat. Her name's Thumper and she's white with this one big, brown spot on her chest. She's the cutest thing."

"Okay," Lex glanced at Trudy as Brady began tugging him toward the door.

"I'll show you how to milk her."

Trudy stifled her laugh as she watched Lex dragged from the house, Brady's animated chatter leading the way. Guess the two old friends would have to catch up later. She took a moment to watch Lex limp after Brady toward the pen through the window. Her daughter was talking so fast it was a wonder if Lex could understand a word. Trudy shook her head in amusement at the two of them before turning back to her dishes. As she washed she hummed and wasn't aware of the large smile playing on her lips.