Marshall rushed into the ER. He broke numerous traffic laws on his way to the hospital. He got caught at the crime scene for twenty minutes. The local police stopped him and asked a million questions. They wanted to know why the U.S. Marshals were breaking down doors without alerting them.

Lucky for him, Dershowitz saved him from the rookie detective and assured him he would call to check on Mary soon.

"Hey, Im looking for U.S. Marshal Mary Shepard," Marshall flashed his badge and the young woman at the desk started typing. Marshall fidgeted nervously. Last he saw she was falling in and out of unconsciousness in the back of an ambulance. The head injury and the pain in her chest and wrists were just adding to the exhaustion.

"Yes, she's in emergency bay 4..." The woman didn't have a chance to finish her sentence before Marshall ran around the desk towards the back.

"Wait Sir you can't go back...there.." She sighed and sat back down when he was out of sight.

Marshall maneuvered the hallways. He passed curtain after curtain. He pulled the fabric back as he passed each one. He didn't care if it got him in trouble.

"Oww! Shit, you know it's broken. What makes you think it's a good idea to poke it?!" A voice wafted down the hallway. Marshall's ears immediately perked. He knew that pissed off growl. That same growl had been directed at him countless times over the years.

He pulled the curtain back and let out a sigh of relief. Mary sat on the edge of the gurney, in a hospital gown. The young man next to her was trying to clean her arm up. Her hair was mess and she had smears of dirt and blood on her face. He didn't care what she looked like. He was just glad she was alive.

"Mare," he breathed. Her head popped up and she smiled, a real grin.

He walked quickly over and sat on the bed next to her. He gently wrapped an arm around her and used the to cradle her head against his chest. He kissed the top of her head and Mary let him.

"Im fine Marshall, really."

"Sir, are you okay?" The PA asked. Marshall just looked back a little confused. The man gestured down to the growing blood patch on his chest.

"Oh, I must have torn a stitch..." Marshall observed the spot on his chest trying to remember when it started bleeding.

"I'll call someone in to check you out while Ms. Shepard goes for X-rays."

"Marshall Thomas Mann!"

Marshall sat straight up in his chair. He was still in the emergency bay while Mary was having a cast put on her wrist. A nurse had just left after re bandaging his wound.

Marshall knew he was in trouble. He hadn't heard that tone of voice since he was fifteen and he shattered the windshield of his mothers car. Marshall took a deep breath as the curtain he was behind got pulled back. His mother stood in front of him. Her eyes were red and you could see the remnants of tears on her cheeks.

"Mom, I'm so sorry. I didn't even think when I left!" He stood up. He couldn't believe he forgot to call his mom. She didn't say anything she just walked up and hugged him.

"What happened? You had me worried. I had to call your boss to find out you were back in Albuquerque." She asked.

"Mary..." As he started the curtain moved again and an orderly pushed Mary in a wheel chair back into the room. She winced as she stood up from the chair and the orderly hurried to help her. He grabbed her by the arm to steady her and Marshall's eyes widened. This couldn't possibly end well.

"Kid, if you don't move your hand I'm gonna shove it so far up your ass that you can scratch your tonsils..." Mary snarled.

The young mans eyes almost popped out of his and his hand flew away from her. Marshall couldn't help his snicker, even when Mary glared at him.

"Mary sweetie, what happened? Are you okay?" Charlotte let go of her son and went to fuss over Mary.

"I'm fine Charlotte, really." Mary tried to reassure her partners worried mother.

"Oh honey, you have stuff all over your face. Did they not even bother to help clean you up? That's just not acceptable!" Charlotte disappeared into a bathroom and reemerged with a wet paper towel. Mary glanced at Marshall unsure of what was going on.

Charlotte began gently wiping the blood and dirt from Marys face. Mary flinched back as the towel touched her face.

"Sorry," she handed Mary the paper towel. "My motherly side can be a little insistent. Sometimes I don't think before I act." Charlotte took a step back with a hint of sadness on her face that she she covered quickly.

She looked at Marshall who shrugged and mouthed, sorry.

Mary took a deep breath and smiled shyly. "It's okay, Jinx was never much of a mother so it caught me off guard." She held the wet paper towel out to Charlotte who smiled and happily started cleaning up Marys face. Marshall slipped out to find a doctor.

While Mary didn't need another mother hen to worry about her, she didn't like that she inadvertently hurt her new friend. She knew Charlotte wouldn't hold it against her. Mary knew from their conversations that Marshall had told her all about Jinx and her father.

Marshall walked back in with a doctor. He had pulled some strings to get her released. He knew Mary would be ready to leave, and it was time to put this all behind them.

"You are free to go home Ms. Shepard. Mr. Miller, you will need to wake her every hour for twelve hours. Other than that, rest, allow those ribs to heal. No work for two weeks and no field work for six. I want you to follow up with your doctor in the next week. Be sure to come back if your symptoms get worse." The doctor bid his farewell, leaving the three alone.

"You ready Mare?" Marshall asked.

"Damn right I am." Mary smiled and looked at the two people with her. She decided that maybe being cared for wasnt so bad after all.

The End

I have a sequel in mind, but I'm not sure if it's something I'm going to follow through with or not. It would focus more on Mary and Marshall's relationship as well as some young witnesses. Anyways, thank you all for reading and a special thanks to those who reviewed! It's been fun :)