Disclaimer: Totally don't own these characters, or this world. I just like to be a part of it.

Author's Notes: Heads up – time shift again.

Sorry about the lag in an update. A last minute business trip derailed everything for me. But, back to our regularly scheduled programming…

A New Discovery

Juliet was probably more excited about the wheelchair ride down to the car than anyone Nathan had ever seen. She definitely didn't seem like either his or Audrey's daughter in that moment, because both of them always fought tooth and nail about being wheeled out of the hospital, even though both had reluctantly done so during their respective major trips to the hospital – his after the gun battle at the Barn, and hers after Juliet's birth.

Juliet however, was having the time of her life. It probably also helped that Duke was pushing the chair – Nathan was terrified of tipping it over since he couldn't feel again, and Audrey had just given over the reigns – and was racing her through the halls, pulling wheelies, and generally making Nathan's heart constrict in his chest, even if he couldn't feel it. But it was filling the hallways with gleeful giggles and shouts of, "Do it again! Do it again!" from Juliet, so Nathan was letting it happen.

The doctor had insisted that Juliet stay in the hospital for a total of four days, and Nathan was so happy to be finally bringing her home. Trying to keep a six year old little girl in the same bed for multiple days was exhausting. Thankfully Duke had taken it upon himself to relieve both Nathan and Audrey for hours at a time so they could alternate going home to freshen up, and to just get outside in general. Aside from that first day, Audrey had avoided the station and had been at the hospital almost non-stop, but Nathan knew that she had been working on the sly whenever he hadn't been watching her. He wanted to be upset about her split focus, but he knew that she needed that distraction, or she would have driven herself (and him) mad.

As soon as they made it out front, Duke leaned down and whispered something in Juliet's ear that left her bouncing in the wheelchair as he ran off to get his jeep. Nathan shook his head and snorted. "What did he say baby girl?"

Juliet looked up at her father, crossing her arms and shaking her head. "I'll never tell Daddy. It's a secret between me and Uncle Duke."

Audrey chuckled, and grabbed Nathan's hand, tugging it so that he would look down at her and give her a kiss. "Leave it be, daddy. I'm sure it's nothing scandalous."

Nathan grinned against Audrey's lips, and leaned his forehead against hers before sighing. "You never can tell with that guy." He heard the car pull up, and pulled away from Audrey to look at Juliet. "Ok Juliet, you ready?"

The little girl looked up at him and nodded vigorously. "I want to sit up front with Uncle Duke."

Nathan scooped Juliet up in his arms and shook his head. "Juliet, you know you can't sit up there. It's not safe for you to sit in the front. You can sit in the back with Mommy." Audrey had already climbed in behind Duke, and was reaching for Juliet.

"But Uncle Duke always lets me sit up front with him."

The look that Nathan gave Duke had daggers shooting out of his eyes. For his part, Duke smiled uncomfortably and shrugged his shoulders while giving the most annoying smile ever. "Kids just say the darndest things, don't they?" Nathan narrowed his eyes at Duke while passing Juliet back to Audrey, who he looked at for support, but could see she was fighting a losing battle to suppress a grin. He didn't even have her for backup on this one.

"You do know it's illegal to let a child ride up front, right?" Nathan wouldn't even look at Duke as he reached back for his seatbelt.

Duke leaned back towards Juliet and whispered, "Hey Bug, I thought we agreed that was our little secret."

A red blush blossomed on Juliet's face, and she looked down into her lap. "Sorry Uncle Duke."

Audrey rubbed Juliet's arms and leaned in close to her. "Don't worry baby girl. I'll make sure Daddy forgets he heard you say that." When her daughter looked up at her with relief flooding her big, blue eyes, Audrey had a brief moment when she felt that absolutely everything would be ok in the world. And for good measure, Audrey leaned across the seat and flicked Nathan's ear. He immediately reacted from the unexpected pain and pulled away, while Juliet laughed. Crisis averted.

When it came down to it, Audrey felt guilty about not feeling guilty about being at the office instead of at home. It was really against her nature anyways to be at home all day, but with Juliet still recovering, she really should be working from there instead of at the office. But, here she was, and she knew that this is where she needed to be. And frankly, after the argument she and Nathan had had, she felt even better being away from him for a while.

After Duke had dropped them off the day before, Nathan had gone next door to retrieve Peanut, while she got Juliet cocooned in a blanket on the sofa in front of the TV. The family had been content to just relax with each other that night, and called it an early night.

Sleep had not forthcoming to Audrey though, because her brain was firing on all cylinders, trying to come up with a reason as to why the Troubles were back.

The past few days had been a whirlwind. The first morning Juliet had been in the hospital, Audrey had snuck out early, because she had to see if Duke and Dwight had learned anything overnight. She had travelled with Duke to the site of the Barn, and confirmed her assumptions that nothing was there. Not even a depression in the ground suggesting that it had been there recently. Duke had put his arm around her shoulders and held her close, telling her that this was probably a good thing. She wasn't so sure though. To her, all that meant was that she wouldn't have to leave at that exact moment. Not that anything had come back.

Next up was the station, where she and Dwight had started the morning fielding various phone calls – both simultaneously hoping that one would be Troubled, but at the same time finding relief when none were. She had been ready to pack up and get back to the hospital, giving up on anything happening for the day when a call came in that peaked her interest. She grabbed Dwight, and the two of them drove out to the town line where a mist was emanating from the ground. As she looked out towards the water, she could see the mist hugging the borders of the town, and it reminded her of when Haven was trapped in a snow globe.

The mist hadn't seemed dangerous, or all that threatening, but it was their first solid evidence of a new Trouble in town, and they had spent the next few hours tracking down the person causing it. Turns out, the local elementary school was having a science fair, and Jim Jackson was helping his daughter with her volcano, but couldn't get the dry ice to work properly. He had gotten so worked up about failing his daughter since he only had custody of her for a couple of weeks each year that he had ended up creating a dry ice effect all over town. Once Dwight had gotten the volcano working, the mist had dissipated, and the Trouble was over for the day.

And with that over, Dwight had shoved Audrey into her car, shooing her to the hospital, with a promise that he'd call her as soon as he heard a report of another Trouble. So, she had stayed at the hospital with her family, constantly checking her phone for a call, but nothing ever came. Both a blessing, and a curse.

So when Audrey had woken up early this morning, and had tried to sneak out from under Nathan's arm, his newly heightened senses had roused him, and he had tightened his grip on her and had asked just where in the hell she thought she was going. She tried calmly explaining that she needed to get back to the office, but he wasn't buying it, and they had ended up arguing. He fully felt that she needed to be home with her daughter, and anything she could do at the station, she could do at home, while she fully felt that Nathan should be the one to stay at home with Juliet, because he would be able to answer any of her questions much more intelligently than Audrey ever could, so not taking this opportunity to be at the station was stupid. Essentially, they were rehashing the same argument they had at the hospital on Juliet's first day there.

Their voices had obviously risen to the level loud enough that they had woken up Juliet, because suddenly she was standing in their bedroom doorway, Peanut dancing around her feet, and the glare between the two adults promised each other that this argument wasn't over. Nathan got out of bed to make breakfast for Juliet, and Audrey had slipped into the bathroom to get ready for the day.

And so here she was, feeling guilty about not feeling guilty about being at the station. She and Nathan rarely ever fought, but they seemed to be doing a lot of it the past few days, with each argument more tense than the last.

"What are you still doing here? It's late. Shouldn't you be at home?"

Dwight's voice pulled Audrey from her musings, and she looked up to see him standing in her office doorway with his arms crossed over his massive chest. She couldn't help but notice that he once again had his bullet proof vest on, and it made her heart twist a little in her chest.

"Nathan and I decided that it was probably best he stay home with Juliet today while I come in here to see if I can make any progress on what's going on." She didn't sound convincing to even herself, so she knew that Dwight wouldn't believe her either.

"Mmmhmm."

Nope, not at all, which only made her feel that much guiltier. So she did all she could do, which was sigh.

"I know, I'm a horrible person, but I need to figure this out, Dwight. I mean, what exactly is going on?" Audrey put her elbows on her desk, and dropped her head into her hands, pushing her hair out of her face so that she could look closer at the files in front of her. If she could just find some piece that would link something, anything together, then maybe she could figure it all out. At that moment, her computer beeped, and Audrey straightened up. She scanned the email she had just received, and couldn't stop herself. "Holy shit."

Dwight straightened himself in the doorway and took a step towards her. "What is it?"

Audrey pointed at her screen, while waving Dwight over so he could see what she was looking at. "Is that…?"

Dwight quickly scanned through the arrest report that was on the screen in front of him and his heart both leapt and dropped at the same moment. There, standing in a mugshot, was a man that looked very similar to the Colorado Kid. Someone who could have easily been his twin. Someone who may as well been him. "It can't be him."

Audrey looked up at Dwight as he hovered over her shoulder. "You're kidding me, right?"

"Audrey, you shouldn't get your hopes up." Dwight pointed to the screen. "Look, the arrest records list this guy as Cole Hather. And this guy has long, dark hair. He could almost be related to Duke if you look closely."

"So you're saying it's not him just because his name and hair are different? Dwight, come on. Mine are different every time I come back too. This is him, I know it. I need to get down there and see him." Audrey quickly stood up and moved around her desk towards her jacket, but was stopped by Dwight's powerful hand on her arm. "What are you doing?"

"Audrey, you can't go there."

"Why the hell not?"

"First of all, if you noticed the arrest date on the record, it was for yesterday. He was arrested for public intoxication Audrey. They would have held him in the drunk tank overnight, and released him today. He would already be long gone."

Audrey's eyes widened at Dwight's words. Dammit. She hadn't noticed what the arrest date was. Some detective she was. But she had been completely distracted by seeing James on her screen. Her son. Why had the email come in almost a day later? Damn Portland Police department. They're a big city. Shouldn't they have better records than that?

Dwight continued talking, but dropped his voice down so that it was much quieter than usual. Most likely for Audrey's benefit, as there were still officers walking around. "And second, as I'm sure you haven't noticed, it's almost 10pm. Shouldn't you be getting home?"

Double dammit. She hadn't noticed the time. Nathan was going to kill her. She pulled her phone out of her back pocket to see how many missed calls or texts she had, and seeing she had none from Nathan made her realize how angry he really was. She sighed, and felt Dwight loosen his grip on her arm. "This could be the key Dwight. I need to go to Portland to find him. He's there. This is the key we've been waiting for."

"Audrey, why don't we plan to drive out there tomorrow. We won't get anything done tonight. I would suggest just waiting, because you know if this is actually James, he's going to end up in Haven no matter what, but I know you won't wait that long."

Audrey wanted to argue, but knew Dwight was right. What would she do when she got to Portland? Pound on some poor guy's door at 2 in the morning and it end up not being James? That would not bode well. "Fine. We'll head out there tomorrow morning. In the meantime, I'm going to set up a search for people named Cole Hather. At least this is a thread we didn't have an hour ago."

Dwight gave her a quick nod. "Good. Don't stay too much later Audrey. This isn't your only family anymore."

Audrey had rounded her desk again, and was leaning over typing her query into her computer, but looked up at Dwight. "I know."

Nathan could count on one hand the number of times he and Audrey had fallen asleep angry at each other. He could add tonight however, to that tally.

No matter what they went through, or what they were arguing about, it had all seemed to fade away with the setting of the sun. Even if they were still pissed at each other in the morning, the night always seemed to alleviate their frustrations. For those few hours when it was darkest, they always seemed to find each other.

He had already been aggravated that he had had to spend his whole day at home with Duke of all people, but it bothered him more and more, the longer Audrey had stayed at the station. It was like she was unilaterally deciding he should be the stay at home parent, and that wasn't ok. Especially when they had already agreed to work together on whatever it was that was going on. And then, Duke had to leave to prepare the Gull for the evening crowd, and Audrey still hadn't come home. Then, Manny had dropped off dinner for Nathan and Juliet, courtesy of Duke, and still Audrey hadn't come home. Then, Juliet couldn't keep her eyes open any longer waiting for her mother to come home, and Nathan had given her a bath, carried her to bed and tucked her in, and still Audrey hadn't come home. He had finally given up himself and was getting ready for bed when she finally stood in the door of their bedroom.

He was both parts relieved and pissed when he saw her, but made no move to say anything to her. He could feel his eyes flare as they locked with hers for a brief moment, but then she was looking at the floor and brushing by him on the way to the restroom. And then the door had shut in his face.

Anger was definitely winning out, and for the first time in forever, Nathan had no interest in talking to Audrey. Because at this point, any interaction they were going to have would be in the form of yet another argument, and he didn't have the energy for that right now. Maybe in the morning they would be able to talk to each other civilly. So instead, he climbed into bed, and turned out the light. She could grope her way to the bed for all he cared. He stayed firmly on his side of the bed, turned on his side, with his back to the bathroom door and where she would eventually lie.

After a few minutes, he heard the bathroom door open, and as a slight sense of vertigo hit him, he vaguely remembered that feeling came as his position was moved by some way. In this case, Audrey must have climbed into bed, causing the mattress to move slightly. Unsurprisingly, he didn't feel her touch, meaning she had stayed on her side, and the distance between them seemed cavernous. It was ironic, really. Their daughter had recently been fighting for her life. It was now of all times that the two of them should be closest. Leaning on each other for support. Holding the other up as the gravity of the situation weighed them down. But instead, they were pushing each other away. Both trying to stand on their own.

So instead of reaching for his wife, he hugged himself, and after what seemed like hours, he let a sigh escape his lips. Sleep was not going to come easy for him tonight. It was always Audrey's steadying breathing that would lull him into unconsciousness, but he didn't even want to listen for her. It only made his lack of touch that much more terrifying. He rolled onto his back so that he could stare at the ceiling above him. Where had they gone so wrong? A few days ago, they had been so happy. He and Audrey had waved to Juliet as she drove off with Duke for a day of fishing, and he had kissed Audrey goodbye before climbing into the old Bronco to head off to Portland for a conference. He had actually been looking forward to it for a change, and knowing that Audrey would keep Haven running in his absence, he hadn't a care in the world. Then that phone call came and his world flipped upside down. If pressed, he wouldn't be able to pinpoint the exact moment his Trouble activated. It could have been while he was on the phone, it could have been on the endless drive back into Haven, or it could have been during the countless times he tried to contact Audrey and she wouldn't answer.

Then it seemed like it was endless chaos, and during that time, Audrey seemed to be pulling further and further away from him. They had always been each other's rocks, but it now seemed like he was the last person on the planet she wanted to be around, and it tore at his heart. Here they were in the same room together - god, in the same bed together - but it felt like they had never been further apart. Even in those days he didn't want to think about, back when he had stumbled and ended up with Jordan, they had still somehow been closer than they seemed to be now.

He wanted this distance to end, but he was too stubborn to be the one to do it. He knew Audrey well enough that she would do it, or it would never get done. No matter how much he bugged her, and no matter how much it killed him in the meantime.

He couldn't believe that she could actually sleep right now. He wanted to roll over and shake her until she snapped back to reality, and since he was so engrossed in gearing himself up to do just that, her quiet voice made him jump.

"Nathan? Are you awake?"

God, her voice sounded so small and weak. It sounded like she had been fighting back tears this whole time they'd been in bed. All his frustrations towards her immediately flew out the window, and all Nathan wanted to do was reach out and pull her to him, gathering her body against his, and stroking her hair as he whispered words of encouragement in her ear. But he didn't. He knew it wasn't the time for that, so instead he nodded in the dark and answered her. "Mmmhmm."

There was what seemed like an endless pause, and tension filled the air. But he wasn't going to be the one to fill the silence.

When she spoke, he could barely hear her. Even in the absolute stillness of the night that can only be found in the early hours of the morning. "I'm sorry for being so distant lately, and being at the station. I know we've talked about working together, and I know I'm not doing that."

He expected her to continue, but when she didn't, he gave the only reply he could in that moment without starting an argument. He was too tired to argue. "Hmm."

The silence seemed to drag on, and weariness was finally winning over Nathan's frustrations. This obviously wasn't going anywhere fast, and he felt no need to propel it where he wanted it to go. He knew he'd have to get up early in the morning to re-practice making breakfast when not being able to feel anything. And at the same time, help his little girl learn about all these new experiences for the first time. Maybe her young age would prove to be an asset in this situation - she hadn't had a lot of time yet to be accustomed to too many things. Relearning may be easier. Either way, life was going to get a lot more difficult, and he needed to have a good night's sleep to even think about being able to tackle it. His eyes started drifting shut, and sleep started to overtake him.

"I'm scared Nathan."

Her voice had his eyes snapping open, and his heart starting to race, but he didn't dare move. He didn't even want to breathe and risk snapping the moment. He could hear her sniffle, and a fist tightened around his heart.

"I'm so scared that this might be the time I'll really have to leave. I want so bad to not let you and Juliet out of my sight, but all of a sudden she's Troubled. And you're...you."

He could hear her let out a watery sigh, and could hear her force a swallow down what had to have been a very dry throat. He licked his lips, wondering what she was going to say next. Damn Duke for being right. Why hadn't he been able to see how scared she was? She was his wife for god's sake.

"I just keep thinking that if I can put the pieces together fast enough, I can make it stop. I can stay. But I know I should know better. I know I should be letting you help."

She paused, and Nathan could hear her sniffle again. Once again, she was trying so hard to be brave, and to not break down and cry. And since she was his wife, he knew without a doubt that there were tears rolling down her cheeks at that very moment, and all she wanted was to be assured she was safe, and everything was going to be ok. But, as much as he wanted to believe that, how could he convincingly tell her that? He would though. He would, over, and over, just as he had done all those years ago, but deep down he was worried too. He couldn't imagine life without her. Just those few hours all those years ago when he had watched her walk into the Barn, and then his utter despair before he felt her in the hospital, had almost killed him. How would he ever be able to survive if she left permanently? How would he be able to look at their daughter, who was almost Audrey's clone? He didn't think he could, and that was killing him.

"I don't want to go Nathan. I can't leave you."

And that was it. As he heard her completely lose her resolve, the sobs wracking her small frame, he blindly groped his way across the bed until he felt something - until her felt her. He gathered her up in his arms and held her close, so close as her body shook from her fears. He stroked her hair and whispered encouragements in her ear. He kissed her temple and rocked her as he would Juliet until he felt her breathing steady and even out as she fell into a dreamless sleep.

Suddenly he was wide awake, and had a new resolve. He was not going to let Audrey leave. They were going to figure out what was going on, and they were going to solve it.

He stayed awake for another couple of hours, rocking Audrey as she slept, and stroking her hair. He had been wrong earlier. They would not fall asleep tonight angry at each other. And, in the morning, they were going to face this as a team, and they were going to win.