Chapter three
Danny spent most of Saturday wandering around New York's rundown areas. He fitted in well with his dirty ripped clothes and unkempt appearance. He spent some money on a bottle of water and a sandwich, but he felt too sick to eat. He looked around the area, desperate to find somebody or something familiar, but he saw nothing that stirred any memories. He was well aware that somebody had been after him and they could still be looking. He pulled the hood of his sweat top well down over his face, partly to give a little protection from the rain, but mostly to hide his face.
Details of his life were very fragmented, somehow he knew his parents were dead, but he was positive he still had family. He sat for a while on a wall drinking a coffee, then made his way back to the abandoned apartment block he had decided would provide his shelter for the night.
Danny re-entered the building he had slept in and managed to find a small room with dust sheets that would at least provide a little warmth on the cold February night. He ran his hand threw his hair, flinching when he touched the lumps on the back of his head. His head was pounding, he lay down on the floor, covered himself in the sheets and tried to sleep. He woke up with a start, images flooded through his mind, he leaned back against the wall. It looked like it was the FBI that was after him.
Martin stayed in the office overnight on Saturday, Jack and Sam went home, but he doubted they would have slept well. He dozed on the couch in Jack's office and waited for news that never came. He made himself his third cup of coffee and sat with his head on his desk.
Early on Sunday morning came the news that Charles Norton had been found dead, his car having left the road and crashed just outside the city. No doubt he was fleeing to a location he had chosen some time before, where he could escape the consequences of his fraudulent and murderous activities. Charles Norton had been an insignificant looking man and Martin was sure he was capable of vanishing completely, especially with the resources he had available to him.
Norton's car had been thoroughly searched and no sign of Danny had been found.
Jack returned to the office, he could see Martin sitting at his desk, staring into space. The persistent ringing of his phone roused Martin from his stupor, seeing it was his father he took a deep breath. The last thing he wanted at the moment was more pressure from his dad.
"Hi Martin."
Martin was surprised. His father sounded almost jovial.
"Managed to get some people together, people you should meet. Is tomorrow evening alright with you?"
"No Dad, it's not alright. We're really buried at the moment here." Martin said firmly.
"Oh I know about Taylor being missing, but I'm sure he'll turn up. You could spare me a few hours, I keep telling you, you have to make more of an effort. I can't do it all for you." Victor replied sharply.
"As it's mostly for your benefit I suggest you meet the people." Martin said harshly and ended the call, he was furious with his father.
Jack walked over and perched on Martin's desk.
"Trouble?" he asked quietly.
"No. Just my father being my father." said Martin. "I spent most of Friday night telling him how much I enjoyed my job." He looked up at Jack. "And what a good team we have here. He knows Danny's missing and he doesn't seem to think that should concern me at all, just think about my career. He thinks I've spent too long here and it's time for a move."
"What do you think Martin?" asked Jack.
"I think when we find Danny and we know he's alright, things will be just fine."
Jack smiled softly and nodded his agreement, then headed to to his office to answer his phone. Martin watched him carefully as he talked, but Jack showed little emotion, he rejoined Martin a few minutes later.
"That was Leonard Shepherd, they've detected major discrepencies in their accounts, looks like Norton as been fleecing them for years. He wasn't terribly happy to know he was dead, I think he had plans to try and recover the missing funds."
"He doesn't know how lucky he is to only have money missing." said Martin bitterly.
Danny had drifted off into an uneasy sleep, images of places and people appeared and faded. He desperately tried to make sense of things, but he couldn't. He could see himself sitting on a couch fighting over possession of a cushion with a man, watched by a beautiful blonde woman. The cushion split covering them both in feathers and they all dissolved into laughter. Danny suddenly felt safe just seeing these images, they must be his family. Martin, the man's name was Martin. He turned his thoughts to the girl, Samantha and for the first time in 36 hours Danny felt hopeful that maybe somebody was missing him.
Martin stood on the balcony, it had been raining heavily on and off all day. He tried to stay positive, but it was difficult, he turned as Sam came out to join him. Martin reached out and pulled Sam into a hug. They stayed like that for a few minutes, Danny always teased him about his feelings for Sam. Martin accepted his teasing because he knew Danny was right, even in these circumstances it felt good holding Sam in his arms.
"Do you think he knows how much we love him." said Sam quietly.
"I hope he does." Martin surprised himself with the speed of his response. He wasn't even sure he would say he was fond of his own father, but he knew how they all felt about Danny.
"I miss him so much." added Sam.
Martin said nothing, but pulled Sam a little closer. When he first met Danny he doubted if he could work with him, let alone get to like him. They bickered constantly at first, but soon the bickering turned into an easy banter which they both enjoyed. They worked well together, their different styles of working complimented each other and produced good results. Danny was the closest friend Martin had ever had and he couldn't imagine not having Danny around.
On Sunday morning Danny stayed in the building well past mid-day, his headache had subsided into a dull ache. He hoped he would remember more about his life in the morning, but he had been disappointed, he still could only recall lots of disjointed facts that just added to confusion. The names Jack Malone and Viviene Johnson seemed to have popped into his head, he could visualise the dark suited man and the attractive black woman. Who they were remained a mystery to him, although he felt they played an important part in his life. He knew he had to eat so he spent the last of his money on some food, he would have to rely on the van that toured around with food and drink for the homeless. He kept the hood on his sweat top pulled up, still feeling anxious that people were pursuing him.
At FBI Headquarters, they checked the hospitals and morgues again, then tackled some of the paperwork that always needed attending to, just to keep themselves occupied. Martin and Sam checked through Norton's telephone and financial records, but they yielded no useful information that helped in their search for Danny.
At six o'clock, Jack joined Martin and Sam at an Italian restaurant near the office. They all picked at their food, feeling depressed that another night was approaching with no news on Danny, that finding him unharmed was getting less and less likely. When Jack's cell phone rang they all jumped, but it was a friend of Danny's in the police department asking Jack if there was any news. Jack said he would go home for a few hours and said his goodbyes to Martin and Sam.
"You having desert?" asked Sam.
"Not tonight." Martin had hardly eaten any of his pasta. "I'm not really hungry."
"You fancy a walk?" Sam knew that Martin was suffering and she didn't want to be on her own either.
Martin nodded. They held hands as they walked, needing both the fresh air and the physical contact. Sam invited Martin in for a coffee and they sat talking late into the night. Seeing that Martin was far too tired to go home, Sam provided him with a pillow and blanket so he could spend the night on her couch. Watching Martin settle down to sleep, Sam suddenly realised that she never even worried about Martin taking advantage of the situation. Always suspicious of people, she knew that he was too honourable to ever do that, despite the fact she knew he how he felt about her. Seeing him dozing on the sofa she realised her feelings were changing towards him. Danny was like a big brother to both of them, protective, loving and so annoying at times when he wanted to be.
"Marty." said Sam knowing she sounded vulnerable, but not really caring.
"Mm." mumbled Martin as he turned around to face her. She stood looking at him, he pulled back the blanket and patted the couch next to him. "Come here."
She smiled, but said nothing, he threw an arm around her and drew her closer. Pulling the blanket over both of them, they settled down and tried to get some sleep.