Beep.

Beep, beep.

Whir, hiss, and again: beep.

Somewhere there was a very large ow! going on inside him, but for some reason it just didn't register. Not much did register except the noises around him.

Okay, that meant that his eyes were still closed. Which was a good thing, because a significant part of the ow! was a headache the size of the state of Texas. Jesse had an uncomfortable feeling that as soon as his eyes were open the headache would become a realistic part of his world instead of this muffled faraway piece. Hm. Cancel the opening the eyes part of the process.

Little bits of memory teased the edges of his mind: Brennan's scared expression as he left the molecular behind in the salt mine, and Jesse's own belief that he would never see the elemental or, for that matter, any of Mutant X again on this side of Heaven. Then the remarkable sight of Brennan leading the group back at a dead run, Del Castillo among them—hey! Isn't that the guy who shot me?—and being dragged out of the salt mine between two brawny sets of shoulders, one tall and the other much shorter. In fact, Jesse remembered, the shorter set were just about the height of a certain avian feral…

The rest of his memories were thankfully blurred. He was clearly no longer in the salt mine, or even outdoors. All the noises around him had a significantly indoor sound to them, which suggested that the rest of Mutant X had dragged his limp carcass back to Sanctuary. Which also explained all the wires and tubes that were dangling off of him, creeping out from underneath meager covers, the mild adhesive patches itching in concert with all the painful spots.

Which meant that he wasn't dead yet, a fact that was only mildly comforting considering the various aches that swarmed over him. A hand rested onto his face and peeled back his eyelid, shining a bright light into the orb. Jesse yelped, or he thought he did. Nothing seemed to come out of his throat. Two hands, slightly different sizes, tightened on his in sympathy.

"He's coming around."

Even that didn't sound right. That was Adam's voice. And this was definitely reversed. Adam was the one whose heart had almost stopped. Shouldn't Adam be in bed with Jesse shining a light into his mentor's eyes?

All right, time to open the eyes. He couldn't put it off forever. Light poured in, but the scene refused to focus.

"Hey, sleepy head. I thought you were going to snore for the next century."

That was Brennan's voice. If he concentrated, he could almost make the man's features come clear, the dark hair, the dark eyes full of worry. No more sparks, thank goodness. Jesse had had enough of that to last for a lifetime. But something didn't look right. The dark face came closer. Jesse frowned; it wasn't Brennan. He thought he recognized the face. In fact, it almost looked like the picture of the man trying to kill Adam...

"I didn't want to leave without apologizing." Del Castillo's voice had just the slightest trace of an accent, warm and elegant. "Your ruse was excellent. I believed that you were Dr. Kane, unable to resist going after Mr. Mulwray once I was distracted by Ms. Fox's attentions. I was truly fooled. Not many people can say that, Mr. Kilmartin."

Jesse cleared his throat. "Lucky me." He coughed, not certain if he'd gotten the words out. Cool hands soothed him, stroking his hair back from his forehead. Another held a glass of water to his lips.

"That's enough water for now. Let's stick to ice chips," Adam warned. Spoilsport. "You're lucky to be alive, Jesse. An inch higher, and the bullet would've penetrated your abdominal aorta. You'd be dead, Brennan would be dead, and the girls and I would be trying to make nice with Mason Eckhart. How do you feel?"

"Like I've been shot." The water tasted good, even if his stomach did threaten to tie him up in knots. Emma eased Jesse back against the pillows, Shalimar tucking the cover in around him.

Adam moved on. "Carlos, clear something up for me. What happened to Ana? How did she die? Why didn't she come to me for help? I could have saved her."

"Ana? Dead? Not yet, Adam." The grin in the avian feral's voice sounded genuine.

"But… I thought…"

"My dear Dr. Kane." Del Castillo leaned back in the chair in the corner of the infirmary, crossing his legs. "You have the Underground for New Mutants, and you can still ask that particular question? Ana is living and well in another part of the world, raising several children quite happily, I assure you. She has made me an uncle several times over though none as yet appear to take after this side of the family. Although little Lupita may yet…" He trailed off, a reminiscence lighting his face.

"Oh." Adam tried not to sound miffed. Then—"She didn't want to go into the Underground?"

Del Castillo waggled a finger at the scientist. "Dr. Kane, you must admit, your parting with my sister was somewhat rancorous."

"She wasn't willing to—"

"She dumped you?" Emma broke in.

"You're kidding," Shalimar exclaimed. Brennan covered a grin. Even Jesse, eyes closed, allowed a small smirk to flee across his face.

Adam glared at Emma, letting some of the annoyance leak over to Shalimar. "Stop reading my mind!"

Emma held up her hand. "Not me, Adam. Honest."

"My sister," and Del Castillo's amusement was evident, "was not willing to play second fiddle to anything, including Dr. Kane's beloved research. After arriving late for a date for the fourth time—"

"It was only the third, and it was because the solution crystallized in the sink!"

Del Castillo ignored the interruption. "—my sister, who possessed an outstanding voice, let him—"

"—and the rest of the building!—"

"—let him know that such behavior was unacceptable in a suitor that aspired to her courtship, and that his attentions were no longer welcome."

Adam Kane sniffed, and tried to sound nonchalant. "Next time you see her, give her my regards."

Del Castillo regarded him with an expression caught halfway between rueful and amused. "I shall. And to my nephew who, coincidentally, is named Adam."