Brother of Mine

Chapter 2

A/N: The sentinel universe in this story is AU as it takes place in the AU sentinel stories I've written entitled---"Blood and Friendship", in which Blair and Det. Rafe are brothers. Reading them, however, is not needed to understand this story; but if interested--- part one is posted in the sentinel section of this site, parts two and three are posted at the Cascade Library. This story is getting away from me and going in a completely different direction than I had originally intended !!!!!!

A/N--those were some interesting reviews, unlike some overly sensitive writers I can take "flames" and take great delight in giving as good as I get..so to reiterate what was in the author notes from part 1---the grammar police are INVITED and ENCOURAGED to stay home.if a few typos upset your fragile sensibilities so much I strongly suggest you stop reading **amateur** fiction and go to the library!!! The plot and characterization are what is important to fanfic!!!! Two, I did state that it was a X- Over....if you don't like Jim and Blair (and the rest of the MC team) don't continue because you'll be seeing a whole lot more of them!!!! And lastly-- I don't follow the shows timeline..this is TV fiction and has no bearing on real life....so consider this an AU and move on. Oh, and for all you Steve fans...sorry he has only a secondary role!!!! ( I am a Jesse, Blair, Rafe fan) Now that that is all cleared up if anyone wishes to continue reading and offer me *plot/dialogue/scene* suggestions I would love to hear from you!!!!

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Cascade PD

Thursday Morning

"Dr. Sloan, I appreciate you wanting to help with the investigation...."Simon said to the group assembled in his office.

"Captain Banks, if we don't get in there and have a look around we'll never find out who is behind this....now someone in that office is breaking every medical ethic a doctor is supposed to abide by....as well as breaking the law; that cannot be allowed to continue." Mark said sternly.

"We have enough for a search warrant Dr. Sloan...we'll get to the bottom of this." Simon tried to assure the older man.

"With only the information we have in these few pages of a patients medical records whoever is responsible could easily blame Dr. Roberts and we would have no way to prove otherwise." Mark continued. "Records can be manipulated...we need real proof...and the only person that can get that for you is someone who understands what's going on in there....a doctor."

Giving Steve a sideways glance and seeing that the LA detective looking equally frustrated Jim said. "Dr. Sloan, we are well aware of your consultant status with the LAPD, but sir, this is Cascade and well outside your jurisdiction."

"We are trying to catch a murderer here gentlemen...and I would think you would want to do everything possible to do that." Mark replied, waving a hand towards Blair he continued. "You work with a civilian consultant all ready, I don't see what the problem is."

"The phrase, 'you are not a cop' comes up a lot *around* here." Blair supplied with sarcasm, smirking at Jim and Simon.

"Sandburg!" Simon said in a warning tone.

"What! He's got a point, Simon...you're cops not doctors....what do you know about surgery and organ transplants..." Blair held up a staying hand when he saw Jim about to interrupt. "And somehow I don't think being an army medic will cut it this time Jim."

The three cops exchanged frustrated looks while Mark gave Blair a fatherly smile and a little wink of support--'we consultants have to stick together.'

Forgotten in the argument, Jesse pulled himself off the couch, his voice shaky and ragged with anger. "That clinic is performing illegal surgeries and god only knows where they are getting the good organs to do it; damn it, they....they killed my mother and you three are playing politics and worried about whose got jurisdiction in this case."

Steve moved toward Jesse to steady his friend. "Jess."

Jesse pushed Steve's hands away his and limped to the captain's desk, his face a mask of determination. "Guess what, Captain, Mark and I are civilians and don't fall under *anyone's* 'jurisdiction' and if we want to pay a professional call on some fellow doctor's you are in no position to stop us."

Emotions spent and his breathing pained and ragged, Jesse shook his head and sagged against the desk. Simon reached across the desk to steady the young man as Steve made it to Jesse's side, grabbing his shoulders to support him.

"Jess, calm down..we'll figure something out." Steve said as he helped Jesse back to the couch.

Simon came around his desk and bent down to look Jesse in the eye, his voice gentle. "Dr. Travis...Jesse....we aren't trying to play politics and we aren't trying to downplay your loss...we are however running an investigation and we don't want to jeopardize are chances of bringing in the people responsible for your mother's death or of getting anyone else hurt..."

Meeting Simon's gaze, Jesse intoned flatly. "Too late for that, Captain."

Simon shook his head and looked up at Steve who took up where the captain left off. "Jess, I promise you, we'll find out who did this.."

"How! By sitting here wasting time arguing about who gets to investigate?" Jesse replied angrily. "Damn it Steve, we know...we know what's going on and we....we know where it's happening.."

Jesse was suddenly having a very difficult time catching his breath.

"That's enough...everybody." Mark ordered, kneeling in front of Jesse. "Jess? Jess, I need you to calm down...I need you to slow down your breathing...you're starting to hyperventilate."

Seeing that the young doctor was trying to heed his words he gave an encouraging smile and continued. "That's good Jess..now, take it nice and slow.....you know it's not helping anything for you to get upset like this..."

Jesse just nodded. "I..I know..it's just...it's just hard..."

"I know son, I know." Mark answered, rubbing a hand over Jesse's shoulder.

Breaking the uncomfortable silence that followed, Blair went to his backpack and began rummaging through it. "Listen, before we decide what we're going to do..I pulled some stuff off the web last night about the clinic and the doctors that run it, maybe we could go over it now and see if we can come up with anything useful?"

Pulling out a handful of printouts, he continued. "Now, it seems to be an upscale, private clinic..there are five doctors, well four now, that own and operate it."

Giving Jesse a comforting squeeze on the shoulder, Mark stood up. "What we really need to find out is where they are getting those organs? The clinic base isn't big enough to be harvesting them from their other patients.."

"But a 'hospital' *would* have a large patient base..." Blair chimed in. "Maybe the clinic uses the same hospital or lab...."

"That's a good place to start a cross match for blood type and genetic compatibility of donor organs." Jesse added further.

"My thoughts exactly." Mark said with a smile. "I'm betting all of those doctors have privileges in at least one of the area hospitals. A transplant isn't exactly something that can be done in an office."

"So we find out what lab the clinic uses and get an employee list.." Jim interjected.

"And do what with it exactly....it's a lab tech's job to run blood samples and give them to the doctor....there's nothing unusual or suspect in that." Blair reminded Jim.

"Yeah, but with all the new privacy laws you need a very good reason to send them to anyone other than the patients primary care physician.....if the doctor's at the clinic were being sent lab reports from patients not listed in their records then we might have somewhere to start." Mark said.

"Even if they found a compatible match..how are they convincing these people to give up an organ?" Blair asked.

"I doubt they are giving them up." Mark mused.

"How about buying them?" Steve put forth.

"Maybe, but I don't think so....that would be an awful big risk of exposure if someone decided to report the clinic...." Mark said. "But they have to be getting these people to willingly and unsuspectingly give up a perfectly healthy organ."

"Well, why do people have organs removed" Blair asked knowingly.

"When they're diseased or not functioning properly." Jesse answered absently as he skimmed through the documents Blair had printed.

"So what are you getting at here, Dr. Sloan? Are you suggesting that these doctors are what, lying to these people, telling them that the organ in question is damaged and removing it to sell to the highest bidder?" Simon asked, incredulous. "That's a little out their Dr. Sloan."

"Can you think of any other way a doctor could convince a patient that they needed surgery?" Mark asked. "Maybe we need to check on referrals made to the clinic."

"This is getting awfully complicated dad." Steve said.

"Yes it is.." Mark agreed. "Even if we find all this information we still don't know who's behind it...no one signed their names to the transplant forms, and the surgeries for the actual removal of the organs are made to look like legitimate surgeries....they could still claim that it was all Dr. Roberts doing.."

"Second thoughts about getting a look around?" Jim asked.

"No...any bit of information we get will be helpful." Mark answered absently his brow furrowed in thought.

"Dad, I know that look...." Steve warned.

"That look?" Blair asked.

"He's cooking up some scheme he thinks will catch them in the act." Steve said.

Blair gave a little laugh. "Catch then in the act? But that would mean we'd need someone who needed an organ transplant..*and* a compatible donor..not exactly something you just find on the street."

"No. No you're right, it's not something you find on the street.....but it is something we can create." Mark said with a grin.

"Create?" Simon queried, looking over at Jim.

"Dr. Sloan, this is a police precinct not Frankenstein's lab." Jim commented.

"Do you have anyone on the force...brother's or sister's.." Mark asked.

"I get it! You want to set one up as a potential recipient and another as a patient..." Blair exclaimed.

"Why go through all that trouble. Can't we just cook up some fake medical records?" Steve asked.

"We could, but it could trip us up later if the doctors decide to do their own tests..besides if they are getting their unwary donors from hospitals we need to have matching blood types and the like." Mark explained.

"But we need to catch them harvesting the organs illegally...siblings would more than likely serve as a living host." Jesse pointed out.

"Not if the doctors didn't know the patients were siblings." Blair said with a smile. "Simon..Brian and I, we could do it..I'm sure we have enough of the same genetic markers..."

"But different last names." Simon finished.

"Chief." Came a blessed protector's warning voice.

"Jim, don't even start with me...this isn't dangerous at all...."

"Not dangerous! How can you say that...they cut up healthy people...."

"Hopefully the cavalry can swoop down before we actually get to the surgery part." Blair smirked.

"Who's Brian?" Steve asked.

Simon nodded towards the door and Blair went and called out to his brother.

"Captain?" Brian acknowledged as he stepped into the crowded office.

"Detective Brian Rafe..Lt. Steve Sloan, LAPD homicide, his father Dr. Mark Sloan and Dr. Jesse Travis." Simon made quick introductions. "Brian and Blair are half brother's, will that be a close enough match to what you need Dr. Sloan?"

"Same father, different mother's." Blair supplied.

"A few blood tests should tell us if there are enough genetic markers to convince the clinic that they could have a potential donor match." Mark said.

"Donor match? Uh, Captain, what's going on....is someone sick?" Brian asked.

Simon stood up and went to his detective, putting an arm around his shoulders. "You've been looking a little pale detective..not well at all.."

"It could be something serious.." Blair continued as he came up on the other side of his brother. "We shouldn't take any chances...we need a specialists opinion immediately."

"What? What specialist..there's nothing wrong with me." Brian said eyeing the two suspiciously.

"Nothing that a kidney transplant wouldn't take care of." Mark said, a twinkle in his eyes.

"A kidney transplant?" Brian exclaimed. "Captain?"

"Sit down detective...we have a very unusual case to discuss." Simon said.

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CPD Path lab

"I can have the preliminary information you want by tomorrow morning." Serena stated as she put the blood vials in the rack.

"Thanks Serena." Simon said. "Have the report sent to my office."

"Well that was fun." Blair groused holding his bent arm.

"All in the line of duty chief." Jim teased. "Besides I believe this was your idea."

"Listen it's been a long afternoon, why don't we call it a day." Simon said to the assembled group as they made there way out of the lab. "Rafe, let's go find your partner and catch him up to speed on your new assignment and have Taggert fill in with Brown for you on your other cases for now."

"Sure Cap, we can head up now and try to catch him tonight before he goes home. See you all tomorrow."

"Later." Blair called after his brother and Captain. "I don't know about anyone else but I'm ready for dinner."

"Sounds good to me..Jesse needs his medication and its time you got off that leg for awhile Steve." Mark directed.

"Dad, I'm fine, really...see, not even a limp." Steve said.

"What happened?" Blair asked.

"Grazed by a perp.." Steve downplayed.

"Grazed? I should say not..bullet went right through the muscle.." Mark said.

"Dad..I'm fine..could you just drop it!" Steve grumbled.

"That alpha male thing Dr. Sloan, they think a bullet to the chest is a graze." Blair said with a roll to his eyes.

"I wonder if that's just a cop thing?" Mark agreed. "Oh, and let's not forget stubborn. I know Steve is very stubborn.."

"Dad!"

"Jim's the same way..." Blair commented.

"Chief!"

"You know, I've always wondered how consultants were treated in other departments...maybe we could compare notes on some of your other cases over dinner." Blair said with a look toward Simon.

"I think we've created a monster." Jim grumbled as Blair and Mark walked off, deep in discussion. Looking over at Steve. "As long as they're going to talk about us we might as well get equal time and talk about them."

"Sounds good...at least if he's talking to *your* partner he's not hovering."

"Gotta be tough...this line of work and having your old man being a doctor." Jim said with an amused snort. "So what are you in the mood for?"

Looking back at Jesse, who was trailing behind, Steve frowned. "Jess, you all right?"

"Huh..I'm fine, Steve." Jesse said absently.

"Sure you are. Listen, how 'bout we go back to the hotel and order in...at least we can keep on eye on our wayward consultants." Steve suggested.

"Lead on." Jim said with a wave of his hands.

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After Steve had helped settle Jesse in the back of the car, he looked up to see Blair in the passenger seat and his father sliding into the drivers side seat.

Seeing his son's confused look, Mark said. "Oh, I thought you might want to ride with Det. Ellison...talk shop..."

"Gee, thanks, dad." Steve grumbled.

"Jim's truck is right over their...see you back at the hotel Steve." Blair said.

Jim watched as Steve came to his truck. "What was that all about?"

"It's the consultants verses the detectives it looks like." Steve said as he climbed into the passenger seat.

Jim just shook his head. "We're doomed."

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Blair was animatedly telling a tale of one of his and Jim's many exploits while working a case when he caught Jesse's eyes in the rear view mirror.

"Oh, sorry, man....bet I'm boring you to death..Jim says I get a little over excited...talk to much...." Blair said sheepishly.

"No, its not that...and I thought Steve and Mark had some adventures..." Jesse trailed off.

"Jess?" Mark questioned, looking at Jesse in the rear view mirror.

"It's just, well...I'm really sorry I blew up before..and I really want to thank you for what you did, going to bat for Mark and I like that... and what you're doing...you *and* your brother.." Jesse said quietly.

"Hey, no problem man...it's really not that different that what normally happens in Simon's office when I suggest something undercover; sometimes I can get the alpha males to lower that testosterone enough to listen to reason." Blair said with a laugh, adding seriously. "And besides, we really do want to help."

"Yeah, but..what these doctor's are doing and they don't care who they hurt..they're willing to kill! Your partner's right, it could get dangerous.....I don't want to see anyone else get hurt." Jesse continued

"Jesse, I told you, Steve and I would be here for you no matter what and we'll do anything to help you through this and find out who's responsible. We both know those doctors and what they're doing has to be stopped." Mark said sternly but gently.

"And hey, between Jim's blessed protector routine and big brother Brian...I'm lucky to go the bathroom without an APB being put out on me." Blair assured Jesse. "We'll be fine, a few blood tests, a few doctor appointments and we've got them."

"Little over protective, are they?" Mark said with a smile.

"Guy has a little bad luck.."

"A little bad luck?" Jesse queried.

"Well there was this time, right after Jim and I met; I was living in this warehouse.." And with that Blair was off on another tale of misadventure.

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"Blair must be regaling your father and Jesse with his many dubious exploits." Jim commented, nodding to the car ahead of them.

"How can you tell?"

"I can see his arms waving from here..he gets very animate when he gets excited." Jim said with a chuckle.

"I don't know who's going to be a worse influence on who with those two." Steve said.

"Does your dad work with you a lot?" Jim asked casually.

"More than he should..called him in once for some medical advice on a case and now..."

"Now it would be like getting off the roller coaster and spending the rest of his life on the merry go round." Jim mused aloud.

"What?"

"It's what Blair said after he got a taste of detective work..says life as an academic just seemed to tame, like riding a merry go round for the rest of his life." Jim explained.

"How did an academic ever become involved in police work?"

"Kid's working on some thesis for school...got a ride along pass and guess who didn't have a partner...." Jim said with a chuckle, the cover story coming easily to him. "Kid came up with some really brilliant ideas on some of our tougher cases...now, now he's like a permanent fixture to the unit."

"Sounds like he's been around for awhile."

"Over two years."

"He's had a ride along for two year?" Steve asked in surprise.

"Like I said, he's become a permanent fixture." Jim said with a shrug.

"Why doesn't he just get a badge?"

"Because with the badge comes a gun and the kid won't carry."

"He's never picked up a gun!"

"Would you believe the kid took out an armed terrorist with a vending machine?" Jim said. "A vending machine?" Steve looked at Jim dubiously for a moment. "You're not joking are you?"

"Nope." Jim said with a shake of his head.

"That might just beat out the time my dad faked his death when his car blew up."

"Someone blew up his car? I think, Detective Sloan, that letting your father and Blair Sandburg loose together, this city will never be the same again." Said Jim with a glum sigh.

"You know something Detective Ellison...I think you're right."

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Jesse went to bed shortly after dinner while the rest of the group sat around and visited.

"You two are really starting to scare me...have you heard these stories Sloan..I think these two are trying to one up each other....what was that about testosterone, Chief?" Jim teased.

"Now, we aren't that bad...are we?" Mark asked.

"I didn't hear anything about gun fights or car chases..just two intellectuals having a conversation about their work." Blair said innocently.

"About your work...I didn't hear anything the last two hours about anthropology or doctoring..did you Steve?" Jim asked.

"Nope! But I did hear talk about car thieves, murderers and drug dealers, *and* undercover work...and here I thought that was our job, Jim." Steve answered.

"I see you get as much respect as I do, Dr. Sloan..and from your own son even." Blair said with mock horror.

"I'll give you respect their Sandburg." Jim said, reaching over and grabbing Blair in a headlock.

"Hey..police brutality..." Blair yelped.

Laughing, Jim stood up, dragging Blair up with him. "Come on Chief, it's getting late...we need to get out of here."

As Steve and Mark stood with them, Mark glanced at his watch. "I can't believe it's gotten so late...we just got to talking and totally lost track of time."

TBC......