Disclaimer: I don't own anything WAT-related, not even a red push pin!

Each of us angels

Summary: Can Danny Taylor ever admit that he needs someone? Danny-centric.

"We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another." - Titus Lucretius Carus

Again, I cannot thank enough all the wonderful people who responded to this story. Especially considering how slowly it builds up. I swear, I meant it to be a short one, but it seems to have its own will and there's nothing I can do but write it the way it wants to be written. :) Anmodo, Fionaf20uk, yaba, Mariel3, Jacks Girl formerly Mrs Malone, rozzy07, SpyMaster, Politik - my debt of gratitude!

And, anmodo, I promise that I meant this to have a plot, but it seems to want to hide in all the dialog! I am helpless. :)

"Oh, good, you're here!" Jack said it as if he didn't really expect Danny to show up at all.

"Jack, I'm sorry, I don't know what happened. Well, that's not true. My alarm didn't go off, and I simply didn't wake up." Danny was officially 12 minutes late. Not an earth-shuttering lateness, but Danny was known for being the first one in, usually way before the official time, and, therefore, today's tardiness stuck out.

Jack waived his hand in dismissal. "Don't worry about it. We've got what looks like a tangible lead. Finally."

They've huddled around the conference table and Jack slid a piece of paper in front of them.

"A phone call. Yesterday. We've followed up and it looks promising. Someone is coming forward and it's about time: Kevin Markham's face's been plastered all over the media for four days now!"

He lifted a piece of paper and revealed the photo underneath.

"David "Moses" Selby. Has a photo-processing lab in Yonkers, and has made himself comfortable on the local PD's "shit" list for a while now. No hard evidence to haul him in, but it is well known that his specialty is forged documents. Passports. Drivers licences. Birth Certificates. You name it."

"Moses?" Vivian lifted one quizzical brow.

"Yeah, because he helps people to the promised land."

"I get it. Cute. And how does he connect with our guy?"

"We have someone who claims to have positively seen our guy on two separate occasions entering Moses' lab in the past month."

"This could be something. This could explain the thrown out wallet. New identity?"

Sam shook her head. "Why? Why would Mr. Markham need a new identity? There's absolutely nothing in this guy's life that would suggest he was running. There are no financial entanglements. There are no run-ins with either side of the law. There's nothing criminal, suspicious, or otherwise questionable anywhere! Why would he need to walk out on his life with a whole new set of documents? It just doesn't make sense."

Danny sat there silently for a while. "You know, not for nothing, but sometimes people want to change their lives, not because they are running from something criminal or otherwise bad, but because they have reached a dead end. I mean, how many cases have we had with people who just walked out? Now, admittedly, this guy is not the type, but what do we really know about him? About how he felt and what he thought? We have the facts, but are we interpreting them correctly? I think we were looking at this all wrong."

Four faces turned to Danny. Vivian with concern and understanding, Sam with attention, Martin with a slightly perplexed look, and Jack, as always, unreadable.

"We have talked to the numerous people in his life and all of them say basically the same thing: well-adjusted, well-meaning, caring man, who's spent his life in the service of others. Nothing earth-shuttering has happened to him in the past months. No single event, no crimes committed either by or against him. Soft-spoken, easygoing, well-meaning. Reliable. Always there when you need him." Danny paused, not for effect, but to think through how to best put it.

"What if that's the reason. Nothing happened to this man in the course of his life that didn't involve benefiting others. Nothing happened lately but the fact that he is 78, and his health is deteriorating rapidly, more so recently than before. And everyone around him is so used to him being a rock, taking care of them, helping with work, with money, with time. . . . What if no big event was necessary, but the sum total of his life just caught up with him? We are looking for a proverbial last straw, but, really, that could be anything. A littlest, insignificant thing that finally did it."

"So, what you're saying is the guy got sick and tired of everyone's needs and expectations and decided to just walk out?"

"Not as simple as that, but, yeah. We looked at his financials: they are in order. A little too much in order. Every "t" is crossed and ever "i" is dotted. His daughter's house, the one he gave a down-payment for? It's almost payed off now. By Mr. Markham. His apartment in Forrest Hills? The lease runs out at the end of next month. He's been sent renewal papers, but he hasn't signed them. Over the last year he has closed his two bank accounts and opened a new one. Joint one with his daughter. He also opened a small market account in his sister's name. My first thought was: they guy was preparing to die. But then, why not simply make a will, leaving various things to various people. Why do it that way? And, given his medical records, he had a lot of ailments, but nothing that spelled imminent demise."

"OK, all right, so he wanted to disappear. And it wasn't a spur of a moment thing." Jack was brainstorming. "He buys himself a new identity. He, probably, sets up some cash somewhere, he arranges the rest of his finances to benefit his numerous dependents. . . . Why not just retire to Florida? Why not simply say: family, I'm done. Why the elaborate ruse?"

"May be it's as simple as that he was embarrassed and couldn't face them?" Martin joined in. "I mean, the guy has spoiled them all their lives. Not intentionally, but that's what it comes down to. They knew he would always bail them out. He would always take on their problems. He would baby-sit their kids, and their kids' kids. I guess the guy may have had enough and couldn't just tell them so. Or, he knew - or thought he knew - that they wouldn't just let him walk."

"OK, at this point, it's all speculation. One good thing is that we may not be looking for a body after all. I'm going to go and see Moses. Tell him his 40 years are up. Martin, you are with me."

Jack grabbed his jacket. "Viv, Danny, Sam - you guys will have to re-interview all the relatives. I know we've talked to them multiple times already, but we are going to be asking different questions now. We need to know what and how often Mr. Markham did for them. And we need to know if he ever talked about places he would have liked to visit. I need to know if there's something, somewhere, he'd be running toward."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam shivered in the passenger seat. "God, when is this winter supposed to end! I hate the cold!"

Danny chuckled. "You know, for a Midwestern girl, you mind the cold a little too much."

"Oh, yeah? Well, for a Florida boy, you are way too tolerant toward it!"

They were on their way to Long Island, to interview, once again, Mr. Markham's daughter.

"I no longer consider myself a Florida boy. I am a New Yorker, and, as such, no weather is too bad, and no condition is too tough."

"Well, I am a New Yorker as well, and as such, I reserve my right to complain about all the fine weather and all the excellent conditions!"

They shared a laugh as Danny made for the High Way exit.

"So, Danny, who's the girl?"

He was startled out of his reverie.

"What girl?"

"Come on, Danny," Sam smiled up at him. "You overslept. You wear this goofy grin for several days now. Your mind wonders. And let me be the first to tell you: that shirt color doesn't quite cover the love bite on your neck."

"Oh, God!" Danny found himself actually blushing. "Is it obvious?"

"Only to people with eyes."

"OK, fine, laugh at me, I don't care. I am too happy to care. And no, I am not telling you about it."

"Because you don't kiss and tell?"

"Yes, that, and because this is too important to even speak of yet."

"Wow. I don't think I've ever seen you like this."

"You haven't. And let's drop it. Let's talk about something else instead. Let's talk about you and Martin."

"Right, because that's not an unsafe subject at all."

"Why should it be? It can't be trouble in paradise already?" Danny's serious eyes belied the flippancy of his tone.

"I don't mean to pry, Sam, and I don't expect you to give me the gory details. I just can't help noticing that Martin is troubled and you are edgy. I can't . . . I won't give you advice, because, goodness knows, I am the least qualified person to do so. But I am a good listener, and I tend not to judge. So, if you need to unload, you know I am there, right?"

She was biting her lower lip. "I know, Danny. And thank you. Honestly, I wish I could tell you what it is, but that would mean I can explain it. And I can't even explain it to Martin. Let's just say that I am trying. Trying my hardest to make this work. And the effort sometimes takes a lot out of me. And out of this relationship. I think, may be, it shouldn't be this hard, but then, I wouldn't know. I am not all that experienced in functional, positive ones. In fact, when things look like they can be smooth, that's when I tend to run. And I don't want to run anymore. . . . If this makes any sense."

"It does. . . . I hope it gets easier. Martin, doofus though he may be, is a really nice guy." Danny smiled. "He can be the One. . . . Or not. I bet those thoughts in themselves are frightening. Believe me, I hear you loud and clear. . . . I also think that you want to be damn sure, and you can't be, because what you know is good for you, and what you feel is good for you aren't always the same things. I had a lesson in that just last night. An interesting story you may get to hear some day."

They went the rest of the way in thoughtful silence.

XXXXXXXX

She was sitting on the floor mat by his door when he exited the elevator. Oscar - the traitor - was dosing comfortably on her lap.

"We have got to break you out of this cold floor-sitting habit." Danny felt a rush. A wave of happiness just from seeing her. And may be he wasn't so shocked by the feeling.

"I like sitting on cold floors. It gives me an interesting perspective and toughens me up against the elements." Audrey flushed her dimples and extended her arm to Danny. He lifted her up and held on to her while opening the door.

"Why are you sitting here?"

"I was waiting for you. And before you scold me and tell me you would have stopped at my place, you should know that such rational thought is completely out of my reach right now. All I could think was that tonight is Thursday night, and that you had a meeting, and that you might not be in the mood to see me. So I decided to take that decision out of your hands. Yes, you might as well know right now: I am going to be a nuisance, and I refuse to apologize for it."

"I see. So, your plan to end up living on the floor in the hallway was never abandoned completely. Poor Stevie, he may yet lose his racing ground. Oscar, I notice, has already been won over." Danny took the sleepy cat out of Audrey's arms and deposited him on the floor. Then he enveloped her in a hug, kissing her face.

"I will live there if I have to." She was only half joking. "How was the meeting, or should I not be asking?"

"It's OK. I told you about it. You can ask anything you want. It was, to be honest with you, boring. But then, it's a reassuring boredom. The kind that fills you with contentment." He looked into her upturned face, his eyes sending a calming signal. "I am good, Audrey. I am better than good."

They stood, wrapped in each other, for what felt like forever.

"Are you hungry? I actually have real groceries today! I can cook you something mildly complex and marginally nutritious in no time at all!" She swang into action, but Danny caught her mid-stride.

"I am not at all hungry. AA treats - rock-hard bagels and stale coffee. It's enough to knock any appetite out of anyone. It's a great way to lose weight, actually. Have you eaten?"

Audrey made a thoughtful face. "I think so, some hours ago. Random sandwich, I believe. Or it could have been a muffin. I honestly don't remember, and I don't care. I am not hungry, either. I missed you!"

Danny picked her up, his intentions clear. But she stopped him.

"Wait! I've got some not so great news. When you left this morning, I ran to my place to shower and grab my books. There were 3 messages from my mother on my phone. And 3 more on my cell. Apparently, she called when we were out yesterday. And then she called late last night. And then again, very early this morning. Now, you may say I am 28, and my mother shouldn't be shocked that I spent a night somewhere other than my bed, but you don't know my mother. I won't bore you with details of our phone debates of today, but the upshot of it is that she is coming over tomorrow for a not-so-surprise-anymore visit. And for that read inspection."

Danny pressed his face into Audrey's golden hair. Apples. He missed that smell desperately all day.

"It's all right. She is worried about you. She will see that this is a safe place and that you are settling well. What's the problem?"

"The problem is, she meddles. Her last "surprise visit" resulted in my moving here."

"Well, then, by all means, I want to meet the lady and thank her personally!"

"You will do no such thing! You'll give her a heart-attack." Audrey sighed. "She showed up out of the blue in my previous place. I've been sharing an apartment with two other girls. Both from Columbia, both undergards. Found their ad on a bulletin board when I first got accepted. The place was tiny, but doable, and, by New York standards, inexpensive. Anyway, it was all I could afford, and they seemed like inoffensive enough girls. Granted, they were teenagers and in a major party mode, but I am used to dealing with teenagers, and, luckily, the apartment was way too small for any grand-scale partying. Their usual MO was a small shindig Friday night, followed by a weekend-long club hopping. It suited me fine, since I got the place to myself during those times."

Audrey laughed suddenly.

"The look on her face! You see, she showed up Friday night! Right in the middle of a shindig. And there was nothing I could do, no words I could use, to convince her that this "den of sin," as she so originally dubbed it, did not look like that all week. It was the worst possible time for her to come, but then again, she does have that going for her. Impeccably bad timing. Long and very graphic story short, and she found me this place thought a friend of a friend who knows a Real Estate agent. I went kicking and screaming, because I can't pay for this apartment myself, and she went and signed the lease and payed for a year in advance without so much as consulting me. But I went, because it is a nice place, and because she has already given them the check, and because I know how futile it is to argue with her sometimes."

"So, what are you afraid of? That she will consider it her right to tell you what to do, now that she has financial investment?"

"Well, there's no telling what she will consider her due. But she knows that I can be just as stubborn as she is, and that no matter what she says or does, I will do what I consider right in the end."

"Then, why are you panicking?"

"I am not panicking. I just really don't want to go 15 rounds with her right now. I don't want to explain myself, or you, or us, to her or anybody else. I just want to be with you."