Far Away:

A Third Watch Fan-Fic.

I do NOT own, or claim to own Third Watch, or any of its characters. The only character's I own are the ones that are unfamiliar to the TV show. This story is rated NC-17 for adult language, as well as some content that may not be appropriate for those with weak stomachs, or sensitivity to extreme situations that some Emergency Services have to go through.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews as always!!

Thanks to my reviewers!!: Rubadubdubbs, Flutiegal and PeaceLion

Chapter 11

It had been almost three hours since the car accident. Carlos and I had already been on five more calls, and on our way to our sixth. I was still trying to catch my breath from the explosion earlier today, but very thankful that I got a full nights sleep last night for the first time in a long time. Today, I definitely needed all the energy I could get.

I was pretty disappointed that I hadn't seen Bosco since the car accident either. Also pretty nervous that he was mad at me. Well, I knew he was mad at me... I just wasn't sure what was going to happen because of it. So I had to constantly remind myself to think about working, and spend less time thinking about him.

We had just gotten to the hospital when I saw him. We were bringing in a little boy who had fallen and broken his arm at school (he fell off the monkey bars). Carlos brought the boy to the doctors as I wondered off to go talk to Bosco. He and Faith were both watching me, it looked like they wanted to talk to me anyways.

"Hey..." I said quietly as I walked up to him. I smiled when I looked at him, but he looked away. I felt my stomach drop. Crap... He really was upset with me.

"Hey, Dani. How are ya doin'?" Faith asked, trying to start the conversation I assumed. She had a small grin, trying to lighten the mood.

"I'm good... What's up?" I asked nervously. What was going on?

"Um, I'm gonna go get some coffee. You two want any?" Faith offered. Okay, now I was scared. I shook my head no, as did Bosco. "Alrighty... So I'm just gonna.... Uh, yeah..." She said awkwardly, and then finally left.

I rose an eyebrow, and then looked at Bosco. "Whats going on? Did you tell her about us?" I whispered to him, feeling my hear race faster by the second.

He shook his head no, but didn't look at me. We stood there quietly for a few moments until he finally looked at me, and began. "Malcolm White..." He said rather quietly.

"Who?" I rose an eyebrow. He looked around him, at all the people, and then grabbed my arm and took me into an empty room down the hall.

"Malcolm White... Does his name ring a bell?" He asked me again, still pretty quiet, as he shut the door behind him. Two minutes ago I could have sworn he was pissed off at me, but I suddenly realized his mood wasn't directed towards me, and it wasn't about the car accident.

I thought about the name for a minute... Malcolm White? I had known a few Malcolm's in my life time... but the last name didn't ring any bells. "No? Why?" I asked. That's when he pulled out his notepad from his pocket.

"I'm sorry..." He whispered as he flipped through the pages of his notepad, to read some notes I assumed. My heart was racing even faster, as I tried to read his expression. He seemed like he was going to regret what he was about to say. I had no idea what this was about, but I knew it wasn't good. "The guy you told me about.." He started. "You said he was short... Had chin-length dirty-blonde hair... a goatee..." He was talking in a very low voice, not looking in my eye. My jaw dropped, and I could feel a little sharp pain stab me in my stomach. "I put in your description into our database, and there were only three men that came up..." He paused, and looked directly at me. "Only one was charged with rape... and he was from Middleton." I tried to focus on my breathing as I tried to consume everything he was telling me. "His name is Malcolm White." I wrapped my arm around my waist, and tried to catch my breath. Suddenly I felt dizzy as the guys face popped back into my head. I heard Bosco wince as he watched me, and he put a hand on my arm to make sure I didn't fall. I looked up to see his face, and it looked like he was in pain too. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry. I have to..." He whispered, taking a step closer to me.

I tried to catch my breath. "You don't have to do anything!" I managed to get out.

"I'm trying really hard to find him, Dani... To put him away. So he can't hurt you again." He replied.

I shook my head, trying to make sense of everything. "Wait... did you tell Faith!?" I asked, panicked.

"No, of course not."

"Then why was she acting like she knew?!" I tried not to yell.

"Because..." He shook his head. "Look – I need her help. So... I told her that it was someone you know that was raped, not you. She thinks its your best friend this happened to."

I groaned, still trying to catch my breath. "Why did you even start this whole thing? I told you I want you to stay out of it."

"I know you did... but I'm not about to let him get to you. Not again... I'll do anything to make sure that doesn't happen." He said seriously. I shook my head in disbelief. "Dani, the thing is..." He froze for a moment and took one of my hands in his. "He made bail a few months ago. He got out of jail five years sooner than he was supposed to." I knew he was supposed to be in jail. That's why it didn't make sense that I saw him that one night. All the pieces began to fall into place as Bosco continued to explain this to me. "Dani..." He said, and looked directly into my eyes. "He not only got out of jail a week before you left Middleton, but he moved to New York the day after you did."

Just then, it felt like everything came crashing down. The room was spinning, and I couldn't breathe. Bosco was basically telling me that the man that raped me nearly four years ago has possibly been stalking me since he got out of jail? I couldn't even see Bosco's face clearly because I was shaking so bad.

After a few minutes, I had calmed down enough that Bosco and I went to find Faith. I couldn't find the words to speak, so Bosco basically told her that Malcolm White was most likely the same man that raped my 'best friend', aka me. She then made the point to explain to me that someone from the Sheriff's department in Middleton was supposed to send me a letter letting me know he had made bail. But that obviously never happened. I don't think I had ever been more frustrated, mad, and frightened at the same time in my whole life. I couldn't move. Just then Carlos came over to me to let me know we had another call. Bosco stared at me, and I could tell he didn't want to leave my side. I had to force myself to walk with Carlos to the buss, but I couldn't help looking back at Bosco as I walked away. He watched me leave, for a second I thought he would follow; but Faith pulled him into a different direction. I continued walking towards the bus, watching behind me as Bosco slowly walked out of sight. I couldn't help feel more and more unsafe the further I walked away from him.

During the rest of my shift, I constantly felt like someone was watching me. It was finally nearing eleven P.M., and as I started walking into the firehouse after our last call, I nearly had a heart attack when Bosco snuck up behind me and pulled me behind the firetruck.

"What the hell?!" I nearly jumped. I wanted to smack him.

"Sorry... I didn't mean to scare you..."

I tried to shake it off. "It's fine." I said breathlessly.

He looked around to make sure nobody was watching us, and then he handed me his car keys. "When you clock out, go sit in my car and wait for me. Lock the doors, and keep you're phone on. I'll be out as soon as I can. I know you don't want anyone to know about us... So this is the only thing I can think of that will keep you safe, but wont sacrifice that people knowing either. What I really want is for you to wait inside the station for me... but since that's not going to happen..." He trailed off.

I giggled at him nervously. "Bos, don't you think you're being just a little bit over-protective?"

He stared at me for a moment, with a very serious look on his face. "No."

I rose an eyebrow at him, and he groaned; obviously not wanting to argue. "Okay, okay... I'll wait in your car." I smiled.

He smiled to, and then looked around one more time. The garage was empty, as was the street outside of it. Nobody was outside at all. So he kissed me very quickly, and then winked before he turned around and jogged back across the street.

I found myself smiling as I shoved the keys into my pocket, and walked inside the firehouse and up the stairs. It was amazing how just seeing him for such a short amount of time could clear everything I've been thinking out of my head.

"Hey Dani?" I heard Doc call to me as I walked absentmindedly to my locker. It was pretty quiet, all the guys were watching TV and I could hear a few upstairs playing a game of cards, I assumed.

"Hmm?" I mumbled, trying to get Bosco out of my mind for a brief second.

"Here, have a seat. I need to talk to you for a second..."

Uh oh.

"Sure, what's up?" I asked, kind of scared.

"I found a new paramedic." He stated.

"Oh, really?" Ha, and I had thought it was going to be bad. I offered him a smile, knowing he had been looking very hard for someone new.

"Yeah, I'm pretty relieved." He chuckled. "Well, she's starting tomorrow, and I wanted to let you know that she will be pairing up with you."

"Whoa... me? Why?"

"Well, I believe you're gonna be the one that's easiest to get a long with, and make her feel at home. She's actually transferring from a different station, so she knows what she's doing; she wont need any training. She's technically a firefighter with paramedic training, but since we're short on paramedics she's going to fill the position. When we find another paramedic, she will most likely go back to firefighting here at the 55."

"Oh, well that's cool. She's starting tomorrow? What's her name?"

"Yes, she's starting tomorrow. Her name is Alex Taylor."

"Alex? Alright... So what's gonna happen to Carlos?" I was pretty relieved I didn't have to work with him anymore, but then again kind of disappointed because we were starting to get a long a little better.

"Carlos will be riding with me again. Joy." He said sarcastically. I couldn't help but laugh. "Thanks, Dani." He smiled as I was standing up from the table. I nodded and went to my locker to get changed.

After getting changed, I waved bye to everyone and very cautiously made my way to Bosco's car. As far as I could tell, no one was around. So I climbed into the passengers seat of his car, and locked all the doors behind me. As I waiting, I was constantly looking around outside to see if anybody was around. I couldn't shake the feeling of eyes watching me; but I knew Bosco would be here soon. That made me feel a bit better.

Trying to keep myself distracted, I tried thinking about my new partner. Alex, he said her name was? I was pretty excited to be paring up with a girl, but for all I knew she could be the biggest bitch in the world. Ugh, that's really the last thing I needed. To add more to my stress, a new bitchy partner.

Wow, I really needed to calm down. I had never even met her before! I had never heard any stories about her or anything. She was probably the nicest person in the world, right? I'd hope so. I was quickly drawn out of my thoughts when I heard footsteps outside of the car. Oh God, no. My breathing sped up as I frantically looked around, but saw nothing. I didn't hear anything anymore either. This is really starting to feel surreal. Like I'm trapped in some crazy, terrifying horror movie. I wasn't completely sure if those sounds were in my head, or really happening... but I was relieved when finally I saw Bosco and Faith walk out of the station. Thank God!

It looked like they were both walking towards the car, I ducked when I saw her walk right next to it. I could hear them talking, but couldn't understand what they were saying. I peeked up to see her open the trunk of the car next to Bosco's, apparently her car. She put her bag in, and then shut the trunk. I heard her say bye to Bosco, and then he was walking towards the driver side door. I quickly reached over to unlock it and then ducked back down so Faith wouldn't see me. He quickly got in the car and shut the door behind him, but I was still ducking down.

"She's gone..." He chuckled at me, throwing his bag into the back seat. I heard her drive away so I rose back up and saw him smiling at me. I sighed as I straightened up and buckled my seat belt. "Do we really need to do this everyday?" He giggled, as he started the engine.

I sighed. "Yes." I replied, but he shook his head. I was the one more against people finding out about us than he was. He didn't really mind people knowing that we were 'official'.

"Do you want to go get some coffee or anything?" He offered.

I shook my head. "Nah... I just kinda want to go home. I've got a bit of a headache."

"I wonder why..." He mumbled. I rose an eyebrow at him. "Besides everything going on... The explosion was loud enough, plus you smacked your head pretty hard against the concrete. I'm surprised you don't have a bump on your head."

I rolled my eyes. I was hoping he wouldn't bring that up again. "I actually think I do..." I whispered, rubbing the side of my head.

It was quiet for a few minutes, and I watched the lights of the city as we drove. Finally he spoke. "Why did you do that?" He asked. I stayed quiet. "Dani... why did you go into the car when you knew it was going to explode?"

"Because there was a man in there." I answered simply.

"Yeah, a drunk man who nearly killed a mother and her baby in that other car!" He yelled.

For crying out loud... can't we get through one night without arguing?

"Bos, drunk or not, that man still has family at home. A wife, maybe?"

He shook his head at my response, and looked ahead as he drove. "Promise me something, please?"

"What?"

"Never do that to me again. I'm serious. You really scared me." He said quietly.

I didn't say anything...Now I felt pretty bad. "I know. I'm...sorry." I managed to choke out.

"I want you to be safe... and with everything going on..." He mumbled. I rose an eyebrow at him again. "I got you something." He stated. What? He got me something? Suddenly I felt nervous again. "Grab my bag out of the back and open the front pocket..." I carefully lifted his bag up and opened the front pocket; when I did, I couldn't believe it when I wrapped my hand around the barrel to pull it out. In my hands, I held this silver, shiny, brand-new gun. "It's a Walther PPK/S. I want you to keep this in your purse until we know for sure you'll be safe without it. It's fully registered to me, and it's fully loaded. I'm going to take you to a shooting range this weekend to practice shooting and learn basic safety."

My eyes were bug like as I flipped this thing around in my hands, just looking at it. Was he serious? It looks almost identical to his off-duty gun. "Uh... Bosco.."

"I know, I know... I'm probably 'overreacting'. But I'm serious about this... I want you to be safe when I'm not around."

I couldn't believe he was taking it this far. Couldn't he be like any other boyfriend and just get me pepper-spray? But, I had to admit that it gave me a little piece of mind. I finally nodded and slowly slid it into my purse. "How long do you want me to carry this?"

"Mainly until we get this douche bag behind bars... after that, I want you to keep it in your night stand by your bed."

The way he ordered me around would normally piss me off, especially if anybody else were saying it, but I actually liked it. He was only doing what was best for me... I knew he really cared, so there was no use in arguing.

We pulled up to the apartments, and started walking inside. "Do you want me to come over?" He asked. We were inside the lobby now, but nobody was around. It was a little dark, only a dim light hanging overhead.

I smiled and nodded. He smiled back. "Alright, but I'm gonna run up to my apartment really fast and shower." He said, grabbing my hands.

"Or..." I bit my lip, moving a little closer to him. "We can go to my place and shower..." I whispered as stood on my tip toes to kiss him. I could feel him smiling as we continued. He was giggling as we backed up into the elevator.

"Well, I like the sound of that..." He mumbled as I was still kissing him. I pulled away to see him smiling at me, I pressed the button to my floor and he kissed me again. "I'm just gonna go get a change of clothes and a few other things. I'll meet you up there." He said, kissing me one more time.

"Okay..." I whispered. The doors opened just then and I got out. He stayed in the elevator to go back down to his apartment. I smiled at him as the doors shut.

Absentmindedly I walked towards my apartment, fiddling with the keys to open my door. Once I did, I knew something was wrong. The door was actually unlocked, when I could have sworn I had locked it. All the lights were off, when I knew I had left the kitchen light on when I left. That's when I heard something move in the corner near the window. I knew then that I wasn't alone.

Someone was in my house. It wasn't Bosco, because I had just seen him five seconds ago in the elevator. But nobody else had access to my apartment. I contemplated screaming, and running back to find Bosco; but then remembered something he just gave me. Something for situations like this. It was brand new... Never been fired. I had never even shot a gun before, let alone find the courage to even hold one; but I slowly pulled it out of my purse and aimed it towards the back corner where I heard the person moving... My hands shook as I prepared to pull the trigger.