Chapter 21: By Your Side Always
Jesse got them onto the Helix snowmobile and all, where Adam was standing there waiting for them.
Shalimar took off her helmet shaking her hair loose and turned to Adam, "I'm glad to see you."
Adam smiled, "how did you guys get out?"
"It's a long story, right now you need to help Brennan," Shalimar got off the sled and moved over to Brennan slipping off his helmet.
He gave a small moan "my ribs are killing me," he said as Shalimar helped take off his jacket.
"Emma get us out of here!" Adam yelled.
"Okay!" Emma returned.
Shalimar and Jesse began helping Brennan off of the sled and to a place Adam could begin working on him. Adam followed right behind them, "Shal what happened to him?"
"They beat him up pretty bad with knifes, metal rods, and a just a regular ass whopping," Shalimar explained leaving out the part about when she thought he had died. "But the strange thing was it came on so fast, his fever at least."
"Alright, help me take off his shirt so I can take a look," Adam told them. Shalimar smiled to herself, thinking that was the like that millionth time she had to help get undressed or dressed.
"Ouch…" Brennan yelped as Jesse and Shalimar helped him lean back down.
Adam moved up next to Brennan's side, "okay Brennan I need you to tell me when it hurts."
Brennan nodded in reply as Adam gentle took his fingers and applied pressure in different places along his abs. He winced several times signaling where it hurt. Brennan opened up his eyes when he felt Shalimar hand grab a hold of his. "Ahh right there," Brennan whispered as Adam pressed down right below his sternum where two slash marks crossed.
"I think you were right Shal in assuming it was an internal infection," Adam huffed.
Shalimar looked up at him, "so what are you going to do about it?"
"Well I can't do much here so I'll just have to give him an IV filled with antibiotics," Adam replied then looked over at Jesse. "Can you get that for me?"
"Sure thing," Jesse moved over and found one for him. "Here." He handed it to him.
"Thanks," Adam said taking it from him.
Emma then suddenly appeared. "I put it on auto pilot…" she stopped and looked at Adam who was injecting the needle into Brennan's arm, "what are you doing?"
"I'm giving him some antibiotics." Adam explained finishing up what he was doing.
Brennan turned and looked at him, "can I sleep now?" He begged.
"Sure thing," Adam replied with a smile as Brennan slowly closed his eyes. "Come on let's leave him be for a while," he suggested.
Shalimar was going to protest wanting to stay with him, but Adam already knew she would, "Shal why don't you stay here and try to get some rest to, then you can explain everything when we get to Sanctuary."
Adam turned to leave with Jesse and Emma, slowly turned around, "I almost forgot something." He walked over to Brennan and grabbed something from his pocket. "Here," he took Brennan's free hand and placed it in his hand.
Brennan looked down and saw his ring; he grinned and slowly slipped in on loving the feeling of it again. "Thanks."
"No problem kid, now both of you get some rest," Adam ordered before walking out.
Shalimar smiled, as the three left her there be side Brennan and went back to the cockpit. She sighed leaning over placing a kiss on Brennan's forehead; she slowly sat back down and fell fast asleep.
Jesse was at the controls and set down the Helix in the hanger of Sanctuary. Then the three waked back to Shalimar and Brennan. Emma couldn't help but smiling seeing her friends. Shalimar's head was right up next to Brennan's chest where he had woken up sometime during the trip back and placed his closest arm around her shoulder, and his other free hand had twinned itself with one of hers.
They moved up gently shaking both to wake up, "huh?" Shalimar said lifting her head up.
"We're home," Adam whispered. Shalimar smiled, those words made her body feel warm. Adam looked over at Jesse, "help me with Brennan."
"Okay," Jesse moved up after Shalimar stood and walked over to Emma.
Brennan groggily woke up as Adam took out the IV. "Where are we?"
"Home," Adam whispered to him as he and Jesse carefully helped him up.
The five finally back together, maybe there way to the lab. Jesse and Adam placed Brennan in one of the chairs, and Adam moved over to the computer. "Stand back," he ordered. They all did what he commanded and took a couple of steps back and watched the golden beam come down and swept across Brennan's a few times then disappeared.
Shalimar quickly moved back over to Brennan's telling him that he would be okay. She was happy that his eyes were brighter then before but still not the same she had loved over and over again.
Adam walked back over to Brennan as the computer ran its test, "I'm going to give you another IV of antibiotics, okay?"
Brennan nodded yes in return and Adam slowly injected the needle into his arm. Adam stood back and looked at Shalimar, "this would be a good time to tell us how you escaped."
Shalimar smiled, "there were four other mutants that helped us."
"Four?" Jesse questioned.
"Ya, I was held in a cell with three hybrids," Shalimar explained.
"Hybrids?" Adam asked.
Shalimar shook her head eyes, "One Feral, Elemental, and a Psionic."
"Interesting," Adam rubbed his chin in thought.
"Then there was one from Crawford's own, she was a teleporter I think or something like that." Shalimar told her.
"Ashley?" Adam wondered.
Shalimar gave him a weird look, "ya how'd you know?"
"She is Crawford's daughter," Adam explained with a sigh.
"Daughter? Really?" Shalimar was surprised she didn't sense it before.
"Yes, so what happened to Crawford?" Adam asked.
"Ashley said he was dead," Shalimar told him.
"Dead?" He was kind of shocked.
"Ya," Shalimar replied again.
"So do you know where all for are?" Adam didn't want to admit it but he wanted to take a look at the hybrids, since it was his last project before leaving Genomex.
"They're in Australia," Shalimar told him.
"Australia?" Brennan was the first to reply. "How did you know that? Cause Ashley wouldn't tell us."
"But she did," Shalimar answered with a smile.
"She did?" Brennan asked softly.
"She said the only mutant they would be seeing is Hugh Jackman," Shalimar shrugged.
Emma started laughing and the three men looked at Shalimar. "How did you get Australia out of Hugh Jackman?" Brennan still wondered.
"Well having watched X-Men several times, I knew that he is from Australia so I figured that was where they were going," Shalimar smiled giving them her analysis.
They all burst out laughing; Shalimar sat there looking very annoyed. "What?"
"It's nothing," Brennan grinned gently stroking Shalimar's hand with his thumb.
"Whatever," Shalimar huffed, not pleased that everyone was laughing at her assumption.
"It's okay Shal," Jesse told her.
Shalimar just rolled her eyes at them all, and was about to tell them all off when the computer beeped. Adam rushed over to the computer and stood there for a few minutes taking it all in.
"So Adam what's the verdict?" Brennan asked getting very impatient as the antibiotics finished entering his body.
Adam turned around and looked around at the people in the room, "well we were right about the internal infection, and with two more IV's it should kill it."
Shalimar spoke in between his pause, "is that it?"
"Ah no…" everyone turned their attention to Adam waiting for him to finish. "It's nothing serious," they all sighed in unison. "He just has some bruised ribs."
"So he's going to be okay," Shalimar sighed in relief holding back some tears.
"He's going to be fine I just need to wrap his ribs and then he can get some rest, but we'll have to keep an eye on him just to make sure." Adam explained walking over to Brennan gabbing what he needed to wrap his rib cage. "Can one of you help me?" He asked.
"I will," Shalimar volunteered standing up.
"Okay here," Adam said handed her the wrap, and took out the needle in his arm before helping Brennan lean forward. "Brennan you'll need to stand," Adam explained waving over Jesse to help him.
Jesse removed his arm from Emma and walked over to help. The two slowly brought Brennan to his feet. "Thank you," Adam said holding out his hand for the wrap, when Jesse moved back to Emma's side.
"Shal hold this," Adam motioned to the end of the wrap that he placed on Brennan's chest in the middle of his sternum.
Shalimar did what he said and placed her fingers at the end of the wrap holding it in place. Her touch sent his body into shivers, he just stared down at her their eyes locking. Adam walked around Brennan wrapping it around once, he came back around and excepted Shalimar to move but she didn't, she was frozen still looking up at Brennan who was doing the exactly same.
"Ahh hmm…" Adam cleared his throat getting Shalimar's attention.
"Oh sorry," Shalimar broke the connection with Brennan and backed off so Adam could finish his job.
Adam had wrapped from the top of Brennan's bellybutton to the middle of his sternum. "Could you hand me the medical tape Shal?"
"Sure," Shalimar grabbed the tape beside her and handed it to him.
"Hold this," Adam told her. She placed her fingers at the end of the wrap smiling up at Brennan who was standing like a statue. Adam ripped off several pieces of tape and secured the wrap tightly. "Done!" He announced, "so now you can lay back down and sleep."
"Can I sleep in my own bed Adam?" Brennan asked softly.
"Ahh…" Adam thought.
"Please Adam I need to sleep in my own bed," Brennan begged.
"Fine but one of us will have to watch you encase something happens," Adam explained.
"That's fine," Brennan replied.
"So who wants to take the first shift?" Adam turned to the others.
"I will," Shalimar, offered again starring at Brennan the whole time.
"Shalimar you should get some sleep as well," Adam disagreed.
"Adam I'm fine, I'm going to do it," Shalimar demanded.
Adam could tell she wasn't going to give up, "all right you can do the first shift, but he has to be back here in three hours to have the final antibiotic."
"Ok," Shalimar glanced at Brennan and smiled. "Come on," she offered Brennan her hand and began walking him out of the lab.
Shalimar felt Brennan let go of her hand and carefully slipped it around her waist, and the other three watched as they left the lab alone.
"I knew it," Emma stated.
"What?" Jesse and Adam asked a little confused.
"That Shal lied to me," Emma told them.
"About what?" Jesse turned his head towards her.
"Her feelings towards Brennan," Emma replied.
"Do you think they're together?" Adam asked her.
"I know they are," Emma gave a sly smiled.
"You read them, didn't you?" Adam glared at her.
"Me never," Emma answered in an innocent voice.
Adam shook his head and chuckled as Emma couldn't control her laughter any longer, and the whole room filled with laughter.
TBC
A/N: Aww, ONE chapter to go, and it's done. I know that some of you wanted more Jesse/Emma but I promise once I'm done the fic I'm writing now I'll write one with more of them… well and Shal/Bren but you get the point. LOL!! Hope you liked this one!! Don't forget to drop a review!!!!!!!!!