Disclaimer: Once more, don't own Numb3rs or the characters, just Jasmine! Enjoy. :)
Chapter Fourteen – Over?
Colby had been staying in the safe house for 2 weeks. He had been attending the hospital every other day and had finally been completely discharged, his stitches were gone, though he was still not being allowed to return to work. Doctor Vassen had told him and Don, who happened to be with him, that he shouldn't go back to work for at least another 2 weeks, she wanted to ensure that he allowed his body to fully regain it's former strength. Sadly for Colby the FBI, and Don, agreed with her wholeheartedly, leaving him stranded at the safe house. There wasn't just his health to consider, but his safety and that of those he worked with. The team ensured that he was never alone, at least one of them was always with him now. David had returned to work the week before, he had recovered from his encounter with the letter bomb quickly, but Don had made him take a week off so that he could sort his apartment out. He assured Colby that the repairs were underway, in the meantime he was either staying with him or going back to Claudia's.
He had heard nothing more from Jasmine, and there had been no luck with locating her. She had seemed so helpless at times, clinging to Colby for all she was worth. Clearly she was more resourceful than he, or the team, had given her credit for. Another attempt to get Rutherford to provide further locations had failed. He was refusing to co-operate further, probably thinking that if the FBI couldn't find her then she was safe from his other enemies.
There had been no further threats or attempts to harm Colby. He had finally allowed Don to ask Charlie for his help in connecting the attacks. Much to his distress the results of Charlie's work showed that all that had happened could be connected to Jasmine via Rutherford. This still didn't tell the team whether he was the intended target or if it was Jasmine. Also they were no clearer on whether it was Rutherford or the young woman that was behind it. The whole team were at a loss.
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"Hey David, why was the front door unlocked?"
"Hi Megan, was it, could have sworn I locked it."
"How is he today?"
"He's been driving me crazy. He's bored. I wish Don was able to let him back to work, even if it was just to sit at a desk."
"Where is he?"
"He went upstairs a little while ago." Replied David. "Colby, Megan's here." He called up the stairs. There was no response. "He's sulking, we had words when he started complaining for the hundredth time today!"
"Seriously, the two of you are worse than a couple of kids when you get started." She headed up the stairs and knocked on Colby's bedroom door. She got no reply, she knocked again. "Colby, come on, it's Megan." When she still got no reply she opened the door. The room was empty, she quickly checked the other rooms but there was no sign of him. "David, he's not here." She hurried back down to where he was standing in the sitting area.
"Dammit, I bet he went out without saying anything."
"He knows that he shouldn't be going out without someone with him."
"Yeah, well what he knows and what he does are totally different. I'll try calling him." He quickly dialled number 2 on his speed dial, only to hear the phone ringing in the sitting room. "He didn't even take his phone with him!"
Megan pulled out her cell and called Don to break the news to him. David could hear his boss swearing emphatically at the other end.
Thirty minutes later there was the squeal of tyres on the road as Don came to a rapid halt outside the house, both he and Liz jumped out and jogged up to the house where Megan opened the door.
"What the hell is he playing at?"
"He and David exchanged words, I think he's just frustrated with being shut away."
"Well frustrated or not he's being reckless."
"Don, I understand that you're angry with him, but look at it from his point of view. He's been shut away in this house for 3 weeks now, only going out when one of us took him to the hospital. No time on his own, no privacy. Not only that but no chance of returning to work for at least another week. Imagine how you'd feel in his place." Liz tried to placate the senior agent, who was clearly ready to strangle Colby if he got his hands on him.
"Look, we can worry about what he was thinking when we find him." Chimed in Megan.
"OK, lets split up. David you stay here. Megan take a drive around the area. Liz go to the left on foot and I'll take the right. Call if you find anything." They all hurried off in their separate directions.
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Colby was feeling guilty for slipping out whilst David was in the garden getting some air after they'd had a heated exchange. He just needed to get out, used to living on his own and having his own space the proximity of others had finally gotten to him. He hadn't meant to snap at David, none of this was his friend's fault, but he had no idea how he felt. Jasmine had declared her feelings for him and disappeared, he had been shut away from his normal life for weeks when he considered the time he spent in hospital before the bomb at the apartment. His life wasn't his at the moment and he was fed up with it, only going out when someone was with him, being driven to the hospital, not allowed to make decisions for himself. After arguing with David he had gone to his bedroom, all he wanted to do was put his fist through the wall, he was so frustrated. Hearing the door to the garden open, Colby quietly crept down the stairs, peering round the bottom of the stairs, seeing David's back was to him he went to the front door, unlocked it and stepped outside, pulling the door shut quietly behind him. Once out of what he had come to see as his prison he drew in a deep breath. Looking around he decided to head to the right, he thought he had seen a park nearby when Don was driving him back from the hospital one day, he needed the open space.
It was a good thirty minute walk to the park, entering through the gate he saw that it was large with extensive paths. Picking one he carried on walking for another 15 minutes. He had forgotten that he wasn't up to full strength and was starting to tire, coming up on a bench he sat down and closed his eyes, enjoying the freedom, whilst knowing he'd pay dearly for sneaking out. He would be getting a well deserved lecture when he returned, he had no doubt. Another week and he had a medical with the FBI doctor to see if he was fit to return to active duty, but he couldn't have gone another day in that house without getting out, he just hadn't been able to explain how he felt, nobody would understand.
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Megan was driving around the neighbourhood surrounding the safe house looking for Colby, she had stopped and asked a few people if they had seen anyone fitting the agent's description, but she hadn't had any luck as yet. She knew that Colby would be in a lot of trouble when they finally located him, she just hoped he was in one piece when they did. She couldn't believe the young man had been so stupid, he could have talked to her, maybe she wouldn't have been able to understand fully, but she may have been able to help him come up with a better way to deal with the issues he was facing. She had really liked Jasmine, she seemed to be a perfect match for Colby, she was kind and gentle, unfortunately she had come with a lot of baggage in the shape of Jason Rutherford, that was probably what had prevented him from falling for the young woman straight away. If only they could figure out how she was involved with all this. They were currently unsure if she was the reason for the attacks, or indeed if she had orchestrated them, though Megan didn't like to think that her instincts were that far off. She shook herself from her reverie and continued her search for her troubled friend and colleague.
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David sat on the sofa in the safe house, his head rested in his hands. He wished he hadn't snapped at Colby earlier, then his friend would still be here and not out on his own somewhere. He couldn't fathom what his friend was going through, but he wanted to be there for him, it's just he had been so wound up about being shut away. They normally got on so well, but he supposed, like any siblings, they were bound to have their fights. That's how he saw Colby, like a younger brother, somewhat annoying at times, but someone he wanted to look out and be there for. He had failed him, there was no doubt in David's mind of that. He should have seen the effect all this was having, then he could have spoken to Megan or Don about how best to broach the subject. Now here he sat waiting to hear from the rest of the team, hoping that Colby was OK, but wanting to kick his ass for worrying everyone at the same time. He was not used to such conflicting emotions when it came to his friend, at least not since they had all thought he was a spy, they're friendship had been rock solid ever since he had forgiven Colby for lying to him about the whole Chinese debacle. He felt helpless sitting waiting for news, but Don had ordered him to stay put and he wasn't about to defy his boss.
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Liz headed off in the direction Don had ordered. Colby had at least a 45 minute head start on them, but as he wasn't fully fit she hoped they'd catch up with him quite quickly, he was still a little slower than normal. She didn't know Colby as well as the others, having only been on the team for 6 months prior to the spy incident, then she left the team after breaking up with Don just 6 months after that. She missed the closeness of the team and the way they looked out for each other. She could look at the situation with Colby more objectively than the others. The guy was obviously struggling to cope with the events of the past 3 or 4 months, she couldn't really blame him, it must feel like he was going mad and he didn't know which way to turn. There was a store up ahead, she stopped and spoke to the staff, they hadn't seen anyone matching Colby's description. Thanking them, Liz carried on down the street, though she thought the search was fruitless, there were too many side streets that he could have gone down. The man would return to the house when he was good and ready, but they also couldn't just sit and wait for him, what if something had happened to him, no, she would continue looking until she received a phone call telling her to stop.
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Don was livid, he couldn't believe Colby could be so thoughtless. He should have told them he was having problems. Don was used to his youngest agent being strong and independent, somewhat stubborn but never so reckless as to purposely put himself at risk needlessly. He got that Colby was frustrated by the recent turn of events in his life but going AWOL was not the way to handle this. Sighing with his own frustration at his inability to pick up on the signs that one of his team was struggling, he should have seen that Colby wasn't dealing but it was easier to convince himself that everything was fine. He had been too busy with work and trying to figure out what had been behind the series of attacks. Though, of course, that was important, so was taking care of the individual team members, that was part of his job as their supervisor. He had to find Colby and get him to talk things through, he couldn't let this fester any further. Don started to jog, hoping that he would be able to close the gap if his agent had indeed come in this direction. Up ahead he could see some children playing in a park, their parents watching them closely. He approached the adults, showed his FBI badge and asked them if they had seen Colby. One of the parents nodded, she had noticed the man because he was on his own walking passed a children's play area, but he had carried on, heading deeper into the park. Don thanked the woman and pulling out his cell called Megan and Liz, telling them to meet him at the park entrance. Whilst he waited he called David to let him know that Colby had been seen, telling him to stay put and he would call once they had found him. As he hung up the phone Megan pulled up, she had picked Liz up on her way to the park.
"One of the parents saw him walk down this path over here." Said Don to the two women as he headed in the direction he had indicated. They soon came to a fork in the path. "You two head down the right one, I'll take the left, call if you find anything." And off the three went to start searching again.
Don walked quickly, scanning the bushes on either side, in case something had happened and Colby was laying in them. He'd been walking for about 10 minutes when he saw a man sitting on a bench, he figured he could ask if the man had seen Colby. As he got closer he realised that he wouldn't need to ask that question, it was his agent. First he breathed a sigh of relief to see him sitting there, clearly all in one piece, then he felt anger take hold, before he had time to get the emotion under control Colby turned towards him, he'd obviously heard his approach. The younger man turned a little pale at the sight of his boss standing there, he opened his mouth to say something, but Don never found out what that was, he allowed his anger to get the better of him.
"What the hell were you thinking? How could you be so stupid and reckless? Do you have no consideration for anyone other than yourself?"
Colby sat in silence, listening to the tirade, accepting that he more than deserved his bosses anger. He hung his head and waited for Don to finish. Seeing that the younger man wasn't arguing with him, he stopped, ran his hand through his hair and sat on the bench next to him.
"Are you going to tell me what is going on in that head of yours?"
"I dunno. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry anyone but I had to get out."
"Look, I am sure the last few months, and especially the last few weeks, have been hard on you, they haven't been easy for us either, but disappearing from a safe house is perhaps not the way to handle it."
"Yeah, it's been hard for me, you have no idea, but not easy for you? David I get, he did get caught in an explosion after all, but how has this been hard on the rest of you?" he was unaccountably angry at the words Don had used, he didn't know why.
"Oh, you think it was easy waiting for you to come out of the operating theatre, watching you fight for your life?" Don was angry again, he had been sick with worry when Colby had been in the hospital and he couldn't believe that a member of his team would think that something like that wouldn't affect them all.
"Oh man, I'm sorry Don, I didn't mean that. I'm just so…." He trailed off.
"What Colby, so what? Talk to me. It may or may not help, but what have you got to lose?"
He was horrified by what he had said, he knew that this hadn't been easy for anyone, least of all Don. His boss felt responsible for anything that happened to his team and the fact that he had not been able to find out who was behind what had happened weighed heavily. "I feel trapped and like I have no control over my life. I want to get back to normality, whatever that is. This is so screwed up."
"It is, you're right, but running away isn't the answer. Trust me, I tried it and ended up seeing a shrink. You're problems follow you, the only way to get through this is to confront what you're feeling."
"Wow, you've been spending lots of time with your shrink, or maybe with Megan."
"Hey, don't knock it! They both talk a lot of sense. I'm going to phone Megan, she's with Liz and they're looking for you. I'll tell them to go and wait in the car and we'll talk for a bit, how's that?" He pulled out his cell as Colby nodded. He assured Megan that they were fine and would meet them at the car, Colby looked exhausted and Don didn't think he'd be able to walk back to the house, so he had asked them to wait at the entrance to the park. He sat back and waited for Colby to marshal his thoughts.
"I haven't felt so lost since I started my undercover work for Counter Intelligence. At first that was easy, then I got to know you all, nobody knew that it would be 2 years before we got a chance to take the DOJ mole down. I made friends and suddenly I was lying to people I cared about. I was so alone, whilst being surrounded by people. It was out of my control. This is bringing those feelings back again, the only difference is I'm not lying to anyone this time."
"Yes you are." Stated Don simply. Colby looked at him, confused. "Yourself, you're lying to yourself. I think you've been telling yourself that you're fine and you can cope with all this on your own. You can't and more importantly you don't need to."
"I'm just starting to realise that. Shame it took so long eh?"
"You said it!"
"Can I ask you something?"
"Anything, anytime."
"Do you think it's over? The attacks I mean? It's been 3 weeks since the bomb and nothing else has happened."
"I dunno Colb. I hope so. I know you found Jasmine just vanishing like that really hard and that you had started to have feelings for her but she did what she thought was best, and so far it looks like it may be working."
"Yeah." Colby sighed, he felt drained.
"Ready to head back?"
"Yup, time to face the music." He grimaced at the thought of facing the rest of the team, but got up and walked out of the park with Don.
When they reached the park entrance Megan and Liz were waiting. He looked them both in the eye and apologised.
"Granger, don't do it again. I thought I was gonna have to lock Don up for assault when he found ya." Liz winked at him.
Megan wrapped the man in a hug. "We're here, you just need to let us in."
"Right, lets get him back before David sends out a search party for all of us."
The four piled into the SUV, and made their way back to where David was anxiously awaiting their return. Colby got out of the vehicle and headed inside, the others stayed put for a few minutes to allow the partners a little time to set things straight.
David dashed to the door as it opened, relieved to see Colby in one piece, if a little paler than usual.
"Man, that was not cool. I'm sorry."
"Me too. I'm just tired of hiding away." The two men clasped hands and bumped shoulders in their version of a hug. The other three agents entered the room and were pleased to see the friends had resolved any differences.
"You look done in, we'll be here when you've had some rest. Go and lay down." Encouraged Megan.
"That sounds like a good idea Colby. We'll order some food in when you get up." Said David.
"I have a better idea. I have some calls to make, but have no intention of going back to the office, why don't I call Dad and Charlie, see if we can impose on their hospitality for dinner? That way we get good home cooked food and Colby gets out of this place for a while."
"That's the best idea I've heard all day." Smiled Colby.
"OK, that's settled, go and get some rest." Don had decided that to keep Colby sane they would need to allow him to leave the house more, he watched as he walked up the stairs, then turned into the sitting room to make the calls he had mentioned. Megan, David and Liz sat quietly chatting, happy that the equilibrium between the team had been restored once more.