Chapter 10: Facing the Past

Myles had been right. By ten a.m. Lyle Matthews was in custody. Now, the brothers stood just outside the interrogation room where Jack and D had the man.

Myles gave his twin a concerned glance. "Sam, are you sure you want to do this? I can't be in there with you - I'm not allowed to work directly on a case involving a family member. The closest I can be is on the other side of that window."

His brother nodded, albeit a bit hesitantly. "I need to, Myles. For myself...I need to..." Sam searched for words, and then started over, with a rigidly controlled calmness. "I need to do this for myself. So I know that he's not out there, anymore."

"For yourself, maybe. But not by yourself." The twins turned to find Bobby Manning walking up to them. "How about a backup?"

For a brief second, Sam looked terrified, and then it passed and was replaced by confusion. "I...well...uh..." He looked over to Myles for guidance, shooting Bobby an unsure glance.

Bobby grinned amiably. "I promise, mate, you won't have to worry about getting strangled from behind. Just don't ask me out again, okay? Darcy's starting to get a little jealous."

Sam looked at Myles again.

His twin was giving the other agent a thoughtful gaze. "Okay, I'll bite - what happened?"

Bobby shrugged. "Does a guy have to have a reason? I just thought maybe a little support would help, and I knew Myles couldn't go in with you..."

Sam nodded softly, and glanced at Myles before replying. When he saw that his twin was returning the glance, and leaving the decision up to him, he spoke. "Yeah...I'd...appreciate that. Thanks..." The final word was a mere whisper, and Sam's eyes were downcast.

The door to the interrogation room opened, and Jack stepped out. "He's all yours. Just reign in that temper, ok? This guy's a real winner."

Bobby nodded, then turned to Sam. "Righto. You ready, Sam?"

Sam swallowed hard, and stepped forward, nodding.

Myles placed a hand on his brother's shoulder. "I'll be in the next room. You can do this."

Jack opened the door to the viewing room, with the one-way glass, and stepped in behind Myles. On a sudden impulse, Sam walked in after them just enough to see through the window. There, he got his first look at Lyle Matthews in twenty-two years.

Sam stopped dead in the doorway, and stared at the captured form of his long-time phantom. He took a deep breath, clenced his fists, and stepped back.

Bobby looked at him for a minute. "You can ID him from in here, if you want. We just thought maybe seeing you after all these years, and knowing that we can put him away for snatching you, would prompt him to cooperate a little faster."

Sam shook his head in a little jerk-like motion, and exhaled slowly. "I need to face him." He said, quietly determined. He left no room for argument, as if he was afraid that he himself would try to argue.

Myles locked eyes with him for just a moment before he turned away, and silently tapped his chest. Sam nodded, drew himself a little straighter, and returned the gesture.

"Righto," Bobby said with a smile. "Let's do it." He opened the door and they walked in. Dimitrius was leaning against the far wall, his arms folded across his chest and an expression of contained anger and utter disgust on his face as he looked toward the table.

Lyle Matthews sat at the single table, his wrists chained with handcuffs. At the sight of Sam, he first looked puzzled. After a moment's careful study in silence, there was a storm of horror on his face, and then a cocky grin replaced it. "Well, if it isn't little No-Name, all grown up..."

Jack watched Myles' face reflected in the glass of the viewing room. The taller agent was outwardly calm, but Jack caught the slightest narrowing of the blue-grey eyes; Myles leaned forward, placing his hands on the sill.

"My name is Sam..." Sam growled, fighting a tremor in his tone.

"And behold!" Matthews mocked, "It finally tells me. And I could have been addressing you properly, instead of calling you No Name all that time. Pity." He clucked despairingly, and shook his head at Sam. "Too bad."

"I wasn't stupid." Sam retorted defensively.

"Just inept." Matthews chuckled, "I remember. And you could have done so well if you had just stayed with me. We had a real thing going on, you and I. Another few months and we could have found you a playmate. I was getting lonely, with just you around. You did come in handy, though, I'll admit. The ladies thought you were adorable. I never did get to thank you for that, did I?"

"Shut up." Sam ground out between tightly clenched teeth. "Just shut up." He closed his eyes briefly, and Matthews jumped on it.

"Aww...you didn't like me? And here I thought we were old pals."

"I hate you." The icy words came out in a barely audible breath of rage, and Sam's fists had clenched so tightly that his fingers were white. Bobby heard in his voice a touch of the small child, and knew Sam was starting to waver.

"Well, gee." Matthews was pretending to look injured. "And I loved you like a son..."

"That's enough." Bobby's voice sliced through the air with the potency of poison.

Dimitrius walked over and placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. He felt the bone-deep trembling, and turned for a moment to where he knew Myles was standing not two inches from the glass. He gave another shake of his head. He's losing it.

Suddenly, Sam felt a soft voice in his head. Don't let him do this to you, Sam. You're stronger than he is. You have power over him, because you're going to send him to jail. He's admitted to taking you. The power is yours now. Stay calm.

On the other side of the mirror, Jack watched as Myles tightened his grip on the sill and closed his eyes. The blond agent's lips moved in a silent whisper, but it was too slight of a motion for Jack to pick up any of it. He watched in surprise as Sam straightened slightly, then cocked his head to one side, as if listening to something.

Meanwhile, Matthews had stiffened at Bobby's outburst, then forced another jeering smile. "What, now you have a bodyguard? How quaint. Maybe next time, the big bad guys won't be able to get you. I bet you just can't stand the fact that your Daddy was only yards away when I took you..."

"I said that's enough!" Bobby's temper roared up, and he leaned into Matthew's face. "You are treading very close to the edge here, mate, and you're gonna get shoved off in a minute. If I were you, I'd shut my mouth before I dug myself any deeper. I can think of at least three people at this point who'd be just as happy to shoot you and get it over with. And you're the one backing the hammer."

A hand on his arm pulled the tall agent back, and a calm, adult voice spoke "Bobby? It's ok. It's him." Sam nodded firmly; although the words were needed only for official reports, they also helped him get his thoughts back together. "Lyle Matthews. Can I go now?"

"Yeah, you can go, mate." Bobby glared at Lyle Matthews, and strode across the room to open the door for Sam to leave. Sam walked slowly and stiffly towards the exit, but paused in the doorway, and turned to give Lyle Matthews a killing look.

"Just so you know, Master Lyle," Sam spat, putting a scornful emphasis on the despised title, "I've just found out that there's no time limit on prosecuting kidnapping anymore. So guess what? You lost. I'm back, and you can't do a thing about it. And I'm going to see to it that you never do to anyone again, what you did to me or those girls. Because I know, and I'm not afraid to tell. See you in court, Master." His last view of his personal demon was a look of shocked realization. He smiled as he stepped out.

Jack and Myles were waiting for him in the hallway, the door to the viewing room open. Jack gave him a clap on the shoulder and a nod, then went back in with Bobby.

"How did I do?" Sam asked as soon as he was alone with Myles. "I'm shaking all over...and thanks, for helping in there..."

"No trouble at all," his twin replied. "And you did great. He thought he was going to intimidate you, and he ended up incriminating himself. If you can stare him down in court the way you just did in there, he won't be bothering anyone for a very long time."

A ghost of Sam's old grin appeared, and he looked in at Matthews again through the viewing-room glass. "I think I could do that, if you're there with me."

"I'll be there." He opened the door. "Let's go find Tara, huh? She's been pretty worried."

"She has?" Sam sounded surprised, but the ghost of a grin remained. "I hope she isn't mad at me, because I really like her..."

As they stepped into the hallway, the other door opened, and Jack led Lyle Matthews out. The man looked at the twins in shock for a moment, then a nasty leer spread across his face.

"Aww, look. How cute. No-Name has a twin. Too bad he took off after your daddy – a matched set would have been even better. He as hopeless as you?"

Myles took a step forward, a low growl escaping his throat, but Sam put an arm up to stop him and calmly faced his nemesis.

"My name is Samuel Nicholas Eric Leland. Not No-Name. And if I were you, I'd think twice before trying to take us both on."

-!-

-!-

Sam leaned forward in Tara's desk chair, and propped his elbows up on her desk, twirling one of her fuzzy pens between his fingers. Occasionally, a bit of feather would brush his nose and a bit of a grin would break the concentrated look on his face.

Lucy had run out on an errand, and Tara had stolen her desk, wordlessly granting Sam the safety of the small alcove her own desk sat in.

Myles and D had their heads bent together near the coffee station, and were talking in low, guarded tones; they took turns shooting concerned glances at Sam. Bobby was at his own desk, phone cradled against one ear, and Jack was in a position much the same.

So, Sam aside, only Sue didn't appear to be working on anything. She was quiet, watching Sam twirl the pen, distractedly scratching Levi on the head. The golden retriever looked up at her and she nodded quietly, and the dog trotted across the room to rest his head on Sam's knee. He looked at the warm bundle on his knee, startled, and then relaxed and petted Levi on the head absently, continuning to spin the pen with just one hand.

"No, but thanks, Rick." Jack set his phone down with a sigh, and looked around the room before announcing, "No one has anything. The only lead we might have is Matthews; and he's saying he won't give us information unless we agree to not prosecute for Sam."

"Then no." Myles snapped, looking up, barely taking enough time to fully process the statement. "Tell him it's not a deal."

Sam looked a bit thoughtful, but he kept his wide eyes locked on Myles to see what his twin was going to do next.

"Maybe I could talk to Matthews." Sue offered, "See if I could get anything out of him."

She didn't even finish the sentence before four male voices replied at once, in varying degrees of tone and intensity. "No!" Even Bobby had paused in his phone conversation to say it.

Sue blinked, and Jack jumped in. "It's not that we don't think you can do the job, Sue...it's just...this guy is hopeless. He's sick, he's twisted..." Suddenly, Jack remembered that Sam was in the room. He stopped abrubtly, and hoped Sue would understand. He was saved, however, by a quiet voice from the other side of the room, and Sue's attention followed Jack's eyes over to Sam.

"He wouldn't think twice about hurting you, you know." The pen spun faster. "They're right. You don't need to talk to him."

Bobby slammed his phone down on the desk, and sat up in his chair. "Well, mates, we might not have to make a deal with the devil after all. We've got a sighting on Barizino. Possibly an apartment. Let's go..."

"Ride 'em, cowboy." D muttered, grabbing his coat and following Bobby. The two agents were gone before anyone else could speak, and Myles and Jack exchanged glances before starting to follow.

Myles paused at Tara's desk, and leaned over to talk to Sam. "I have to help with this one. Are you going to be okay?" There was a hesitant nod. "Okay. Tara's here. Talk to her if you need to. Alright?" With that, Myles was out the door.

Sam continued to pet Levi on the head, scratching behind the dog's ears and watching the empty doorway for a few moments afterward. He felt his twin's mind shift, all business, and he panicked for a moment. Then he realized that Myles hadn't shut him out completely; his brother merely had to concentrate on bringing this Barizino in, so that Lyle Matthews wouldn't ever win at anything again. He tried to focus on the pen and the feel of Levi's fur, so as not to distract Myles.

Sue stood, and walked over to the desk, and rubbed Levi's coat. "Are you okay?" She began, looking at Sam to see his reaction and whatever he was going to say in reply, if anything.

"Yeah..." Sue saw his lips move, but couldn't hear how soft the answer was. Tara had looked up from her laptop, and was watching. By some sort of woman's intuation, Sue's eyes met Tara's, and Tara shrugged. Try to take his mind off it...

"You want to learn some sign language?" Sue signed as she spoke, hoping to catch his attention; Sam seemed to perk up, and at least act interested.

"Sure." The response held some enthusiasm, not a whole lot— but the word was enough to convince Sue.

"Here...this is "Hi"." Sue motioned, and Sam repeated after her.

"And this," Tara shut her laptop, and Sam looked over at her, as her fingers moved through the air. "Is 'None shall pass'."

Sue looked remarkably confused, but Sam's eyes lit up.

"Monty Python! Do it again...how did you sign 'pass'?" He concentrated hard on moving his fingers in the right directions, his eyes on Tara's hands, Sue's hands, and his own alternately.

An hour later, they were still at it, Lucy having joined in when she returned. Sam was learning a lot of sign language, and Sue was learning a great deal about the Black Knight - the Leland twin had insisted on learning the whole scene. Thus far, his favorite line was "Come along, Patsy," and he kept signing it randomly at the air between other sentences, and once or twice he signed it to Tara, who had to bite back laughter. Sue made a mental note to ask Tara if she knew what it meant later.

They were practicing "flesh wound" when Bobby and Myles walked back in. The two men were grinning from ear to ear.

"I like those expressions," Tara said. "We got Barizino, right?"

Bobby flashed his grin at her. "We did indeed. And, as a bonus...Donny Wekenski had showed up ten minutes before we got there. Both of 'em, gift-wrapped slick as you please, ready for delivery to Marion." He dropped into his chair and put his feet up on the desk, still grinning.

Myles' expression wasn't far behind. "D and Jack are currently informing Lyle Matthews that cutting a deal won't be necessary. I do wish I could be there to see the look on his face."

"I don't. They can deal with him all they want. I don't care if I never see him again, ever." Sam was staring at the twirling pencil again.

Myles' voice was soft as his smile faded. "You still have to face him in court, if you want to put him away. Remember?"

His twin's voice was firm. "I'll deal with that when I have to. I'm done with him for today."

Myles nodded. "You know what? You're right. I think, as soon as Jack and D get back, we should all go grab Elizabeth, Darcy and David if they're available, and D's clan, and go do something fun. Any ideas?"

Sam looked up, shot a glance at Sue, then grinned. "When do we have to have that movie back? On second thought, never mind the rental - I just added it to your collection."

Myles returned the grin. "Call up the pizza place and break out the popcorn. The Black Knight is back in action. None shall pass!"

-!-

-!-

Myles returned from taking Elizabeth home to find Sam and Tara cleaning up the last of the popcorn from the living room floor. He hung up his coat and wandered over. "Sorry to stick you with most of the cleanup. We got talking."

Sam smirked. "Talking. Right."

"It's okay," Tara replied. "We've been making plans for me to spend my next vacation time up at Sam's place on the Cape."

"You and Liz are welcome to come, too, bro."

Myles caught the don't-you- dare look from Tara and smiled. "Maybe another time. I think Tara Tech here wants you all to herself." He wasn't sure who blushed deeper, his co-worker or his twin. "I'll finish up in the kitchen. You two have done enough for tonight."

"Score!" Sam got Tara's coat for her and walked her out to the car. Myles cleared out the pizza boxes, rescuing a hidden and well-fed Glorfindel from the trashcan just in time, and was wiping down the counter as a final task when Sam came back in, a rather dazed smile on his face.

Now it was Myles' turn to smirk. "That expression tells me you got more than a hug this time. You can tell me all about it— tomorrow. I'm beat."

"Me, too," was the reply, as Sam looked back toward the front door, "But I think it's gonna take me awhile to fall asleep tonight, after that."

-!-

-!-

Silence. Absolute and total silence. Then, a child's voice shattered the still, and in the blackness was a light. Slowly, ever so slowly, he crept towards the light and the voice.

"You left me, you left me, you left me, you left me..."

The mantra went on, and he entered the pool of light to find a little boy, rocking back and forth, sheathed in shadow.

"Who left you?" He ventured cautiously, tilting his head and waiting for a response. The child's head snapped up, and piercing blue eyes knifed him in the heart.

"You did, of course." The small boy answered. "I was there with you, you know. It was me that he hit. It was me that you hid. And now I'm left, alone, alone, alone..."

The child moaned, and a single sob racked his shoulders as he buried his head in his arms.

"But...I'm here..." Sam lowered himself across from the child, and leaned forward quizzically. "What do you mean, you're alone?"

"You betrayed me." The child shot back, beginning to hum a haunting tune. "And left me here, alone." The head lifted once more, and Sam found himself staring into the sneering face of Lyle Matthews.

"What are you doing here?" Sam demanded, sliding back on the floor, wrapping his arms around his knees. He looked down at himself to find that he was in a child's body, small once again.

Lyle rose to his feet, towering above him. "I told you not to leave me, No-Name. I told you."

Lyle raised a hand, and brought it down, hard.

Crack. A scream. Slap. "Stupid..." Thud. "Please, Master Lyle, please..." Crack. Slap. Thud. Again. "Shut up!" More screams. Screams and red and angry, bitter words and more screams, more pain, never ending...another crack, another fall, another... another...another...then screams. …

His head moved back and forth on the pillow, trying to dodge the blows. "Please...no..." escaped his lips.

There was blackness again, but still the mocking, scornful voice persisted in his ears. Echoing, hateful laughter and cruel words rang through the blackness; the dark only broken by the glaring eyes of Lyle Matthews that occasionally floated towards him in the midst of his torment.

There was no safety, no rock he could find. Sam groped in the void, searching desperately for something to cling to, barely aware of the fact that he was still screaming at Lyle's voice to go away.

Other nameless, faceless phantoms flew at him in the unsheltered area, grinning sardonically at him, and muttering vague words of despair.

Sam threw his hands over his ears, and tried to make it stop, but he could still hear them. Some distant part of him remembered, reached, called for...

"Myles! Myles, please...make them go away, I can't do it...Myles...come help me...please, Myles...I need you..." Sam batted at the ghosts in vain, but his hand cut empty air, and they continued to dance with Lyle Matthew's floating face. …

Across the hall, a second sleeping form drew in a sharp breath as he was sucked fully into a dream he'd already been experiencing flashes of. …

...Myles found himself standing in a blank void, surrounded by whispered voices and surreal phantoms. "Sam?" he called into the blackness.

"Myles?" Sam thought he heard a faint voice call his name, and he ignored the phantoms for a moment, concentrating on finding his brother. "Myles, where are you?" Lyle Matthews suddenly appeared, walking towards him, and Sam froze.

"Myles..."

"I said shut up, already, you stupid little brat. It's just you and me."

"Myles! He's back! It didn't work, it didn't work..."

"Did you really think it would?"

Myles heard Sam whimper again, and his rage at Matthews was so great it blew away everything in its path, like a great wall of flame. When it cleared, he saw the kidnapper standing over the huddled form of his twin.

"Sam."

"Make him go away, make him go away...please...I can't do it...he won't listen to me..."

Lyle whirled at the strange wind Myles had created, and glared at the other Leland twin. "What are you doing here? You can't be here!" Suddenly, he snatched up the small boy and held him between himself and Myles. A gun appeared, pointed at Sam's head.

"Too late, twin," he sneered. "He's mine, you're too late, he'll always be mine."

Myles' heart faltered for a moment; then Sam looked up at him, tears streaming down his cheeks. The rage faded until there was nothing but love toward his brother, and Myles found he could face Lyle Matthews calmly.

"Only if he allows it," he said, more to Sam than to Matthews. "He has the power to escape you. But it has to be his decision to believe it."

Sam glanced up at his captor's face, and then kicked hard, and broke away. Without a second look back, he ran to hide behind Myles, his true-to-form brother much taller than his present state. "You can't have me..." Sam began, lower lip trembling, as he spoke to Lyle.

Myles turned, and knelt in front of the seven-year-old image of his brother. "Sam," he said gently, "you can't hide anymore; not behind me, or the video games, or all the noise you've built up in your head. It will take some time, and some practice, but you can do this - you can make him go away once and for all. If you want to."

"I do." Sam nodded, and leaned over to shoot a fearful glance at Lyle Matthews. "I just...I don't think I can."

"Sam." Myles' voice was infinitely soft, but it echoed through his brother's dream. "You are no longer seven years old. You have the strength to do this. You're a Leland - and you're my brother. Face him as a man, and tell him to go away. You won't lose the child - but you'll master him."

Sam let the words seep into his mind, and he took in a deep breath. One blink, and suddenly he was no longer a little boy. His long legs ate up ground as he strode towards the shrinking form of Lyle Matthews. "I don't belong to you. I never have, and I never will." Sam growled at him. "You can't have me." With a terrified squeal, Lyle Matthews vanished from sight.

"Nicely done, twin."

Sam turned to face him, a vague look of shock gracing his features. "He's gone...I can't believe it...he's gone...finally."

Myles stepped up to put an arm around his brother's shoulders. "He may still show up from time to time, but now you know how to fight him. And someday he'll be gone for good. Come on, let's get out of here, huh?"

"Let's." Sam grinned, and reached out to open a door that hadn't been there a minute ago. He stepped through it, and faded away, a whisper staying behind. "Thanks, bro." …

...Myles opened his eyes to daybreak. He got up and opened the door, only to find Sam standing in the doorway of the guest room.

"Good morning." Sam mumbled, yawning sleepily. "Nice to see you again."

"You, too," Myles replied with a grin. "Guess we've got a story to tell Elizabeth, huh?"

"Yeah. I just hope this doesn't end up with us in some Twin Psych Ward..." Sam replied, a smile playing on his lips. "And does this mean I can't play MarioKart with Tara anymore?"

Myles laughed. "As long as you're not using it to hide, you can still play. And I think Tara would never forgive me otherwise. You want some coffee or something?"

"Coffee sounds good. Actually, it sounds really good. What time is it? I don't have a clock in my room..."

"There's a reason for that," was the sardonic reply. "It got dented worse than the ceiling."

-!-

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