Chapter Thirty-Seven
Niebos:

J. D. struggled to consciousness. He felt like he'd been sleeping for a long time. His right arm hurt… and his left hand hurt. Glancing at them… he noted the cool red cast on his right arm as he recalled the fall and the blood. Guess I broke it, he thought, and then glanced at his left hand.

He saw his mother, head resting on one hand on his bed, gripping his other hand tightly. He smiled. He hadn't meant to worry her. He truly hadn't. "Mom?" he croaked.

Eleanor lifted her head. He could see her eyes were puffy. She must have cried earlier. She looked pale and worried. J. D. smiled at her and tried to pull his left hand free of hers.

She let it go and then brushed his hair from him face. "You've got some color in your cheeks again," she said softly. Her voice held no recrimination… only a sense of wonder.

J. D. swallowed nervously. His throat was dry. "I'm thirsty," he managed to say.

She picked up a paper cup of ice from the bedside table, and spooned a few into his mouth. "Slowly, J. D.," she told him when he sucked them in and grunted for more.

"Sorry I fell," he finally told her. And he was sorry. Sorry for the fall… sorry for the injury… and sorry for worrying her.

"You boys shouldn't go up to the temple alone," she said softly.

J. D. nodded. Evidently she didn't know they'd been down to the cove. Chou and Denis had kept that secret.

"Won't happen again," he said. He looked around the plain hospital room. "Does Dad know?" he asked hopefully.

"I haven't told him yet. I wanted to be certain you were all right."

J. D. met her gaze. "He's busy isn't he? He can't be bothered with us when he's busy."

"Joseph Darius Pierson you are more wrong than you can possibly know," his mother lectured. "You are the most important person on this earth to him. He loves you."

"He loves you!" the boy replied angrily. "You're the important one. I'm a disappointment." He wanted to roll over on his side, but the cast interfered. He began to sob.

Eleanor set the cup down and rose to lean over him. "He loves you. He just shows it in a different way. You are still a miracle to him."

"Why?" the boy sniffed, and rubbed at his eyes.

"Because he never really had children before. He sees himself in you and he wants so much for you. He especially wants you to grow up and have a good life. He does not want to have to bury you."

J. D.'s face felt hot. If he'd fallen all the way down, would he have died? Would he have broken his neck or cracked his skull so that his brains spilled out? And who was the woman he thought he'd seen in the waves? "Would I come back?"

"Why do you ask?" Eleanor said with a sharp intake of breath.

J. D. tried to shrug and regretted the movement as it made his right arm begin throbbing. "I just wondered if I was like Chou and Denis?"

"They're immortals who will never grow up J. D." she replied flatly.

"But why do some grow up and others don't? You and Dad grew up!"

"Fate decides." Eleanor gazed at him sadly. "Please J. D., you're a little boy and we love you. Just be a little boy and bask in innocence a while longer. Live and grow up… don't court death… he might take you from us."

J. D. wasn't satisfied, but it was all he dared ask. They were keeping things from him… and he wanted… no… he needed answers. He lifted his left hand and curled his fingers around his mother's. "Okay. No more climbing the temple mount at night and jumping from the columns." It was a lie… but he meant it. He wouldn't do it again at night. Besides… there was still the cove path that he could use for a bit. His answers were in the cove. He smiled winningly at his mother, hoping that she would accept his promise and let it be.

She kissed him and smiled. "That is all I ask. Now I'll call your Dad." She straightened and gave him a wink as she left. "I won't be far. Push the call button if you need me."

J. D. settled back in the bed and stared out the window at the familiar landscape as seen from a new perspective. His door opened again. He turned his head toward it to see an unfamiliar face. He smiled. "Hi," he said to the blonde boy. "Who are you?"

The boy stared at him intently and then tried to say something. Nothing came out. He smiled and shrugged.

J. D. grinned. "Are you sick too?"

The boy shook his head. He glanced back into the corridor, then eased into the room and closed the door. Grinning widely... he approached J. D.'s bed and climbed up on it. He pointed at the cast.

J. D. shrugged. "I fell."

The boy nodded. He made a motion for J. D. to continue.

"Oh… cause you can't talk… You want me to?"

The boy nodded.

J. D. took a deep breath and let it out. "I was with Chou and Denis… do you know them?"

The boy nodded.

"Anyway, I fell. I guess I scared the grownups. Good thing they knew what to do."

The door opened and one of the day nurses entered with a dinner tray. "Eleanor said you were hungry…" She paused when she saw the other boy. "Oh… hello Kenny. Are you two getting acquainted?"

Both boys nodded.

"Kenny… huh. Nice name," J. D. said and held out his left hand. Kenny grasped it and shook it firmly. "I'm J. D." J. D. continued.

Kenny scooted off the bed and into the chair J. D.'s mother had just vacated. The nurse set the try on a table and pulled it over the bed. She adjusted the bed so that J. D. was sitting up. He lifted the cover and made a face. "Soup?"

"You need fluids."

"But I'd rather have a hot dog or pizza," he whined.

"Soup and lemonade and ice cream this meal. If all goes well… maybe something more to your liking for dinner."

"Does that mean I'm stuck here? Why can't I go home? I feel fine."

"Maybe later she said. If you need anything, ring the bell. I'm Diana." She waved and left.

J. D. grimaced as he picked up a spoon and stirred the soup. "At least it's chicken noodle," he sighed and began to slurp up the noodles.

From the chair, Kenny watched him with a smirk as well as a very predatory gleam in his eyes.

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Eleanor tapped Methos' code on her phonecard and waited. She'd been so focused on J. D. and on staying positive that she hadn't even let herself consider calling Methos until she was certain that their son was out of danger.

"Hello?"

She saw him in the small photo. She smiled. "Where are you?"

Methos looked around and blinked his eyes. "Sorry. We're in Paris. I needed to see Joe and we were up late last night." His hair was ruffled. He rubbed his eyes. "What's up? You were humming so contentedly last night I wondered what you were up to."

"Setting a broken arm," Eleanor replied.

Methos stared at her across the miles. "What? Who?"

Eleanor shrugged with a smile. "J. D. fell. He's fine and chomping to be up and running again. I didn't want to worry you in case you were driving."

"You're certain he's all right?"

Eleanor nodded. "He's fine. He misses you. He has the strangest idea that he's a disappointment to you… that you don't love him."

Methos lowered his head, running a hand through his hair and sighed. Finally he looked back at her. "I must be a most disappointing father if he feels like that."

"He misses you terribly. I miss you." She laughed when she said it and bit her lip, shaking her head. "I do you know."

"I'll be home soon. I'm taking Robert with me to London. MacLeod might be there."

"Joe doesn't know where he is?"

"No… " He briefly filled her in on what he'd learned about MacLeod and his search for Kate and Alistair Craille.

Eleanor paled. "You don't suppose he and they…" She stopped, unable to voice her fear.

Methos nodded. "Knowing the Scot I'd say yes. He's always felt guilty about Kate and would do anything to make it up to her."

"But he knows this is dangerous. Surely he told them the dangers."

Methos shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe he just feels the need to be there and share this time with them."

Eleanor rubbed her brow, feeling very cold and uncertain of things. "He should have waited. He should have spoken to us. It's not safe for her out there. You know that."

Methos nodded. "That's why I have to follow-up on this. Tell J. D. I'll be there soon… and we'll go riding or even fishing. Whatever he wants… as soon as he's better."

"He's fine now. I have a feeling he'll be hard to control once he's no longer in pain."

"Was it a bad break?"

Eleanor nodded. "Compound."

"What was he doing?"

Eleanor shrugged. "The boys say they were fooling around on the temple mount but I think there was more to it than that… and so does Phillip."

"They were at the cove," Methos said flatly. "It's the only thing that makes sense."

Eleanor rubbed her brow. "That's what we think. Phillip has promised to have a talk with Chou and Denis later today. We may need to do something about Valeraine sooner rather than later… despite Phillip's objections."

"What do you propose?"

Eleanor sighed. "I don't know. Have you seen Alisaunne?"

"Recently. She's fine."

"I worry about her being all alone."

"I do too," he replied wistfully.

"Sometimes I hate Darius for taking her away from us," Eleanor said.

"Sometimes I do too," Methos replied honestly. Between the miles their walls fell and they felt each other's sorrow.

"We weren't ready," Eleanor whispered.

"No… we weren't and he knew it."

"And we can never go back and recapture that."

"No… we can't."

Each stared morosely at the other, their pain and sense of loss palpable to the other.

"I'll be home soon," he finally said. His thumb caressed the screen, obliterating his photo. Eleanor laughed. "Tell the kids I love them," he added.

"I will." She tapped off the connection and lowered her head into her hands. She hadn't slept much last night, fearful of the walls crumbling while she was still worried. But now… she could let them crumble away and feel him with her, holding her in his mind like some precious jewel. Come home soon! she thought as she let sleep take her for a little while. We miss you!

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Phillip paced back and forth before the two silent boys. "Were you at the cove?"

They glanced at one another and slunk lower in their seats.

"Do you know what's there?" Phillip demanded.

The boys nodded.

"I will not lose another of you to that monster! Listen to me… you will never go there again. And you will never allow J. D. to go there. Do you understand me?" He was desperate in his words to them. "No more victims! I've lost too many people I care about to him. No more!"

The boys nodded sheepishly.

"We will speak no more of this. But if I ever hear of you two or J. D. ever being there again… it will not go easy on you."

Chou rose and cast his arms about the swordmaster's waist. Denis followed suit. "We're sorry," Denis mumbled.

"I will not lose anyone else," Phillip reiterated and hugged the boys who were not really boys to him. He meant it. Nestor would not take another one… even if he had to encase Valeraine in steel-enforced concrete and bury her in the deepest part of the ocean or a volcano's fiery depths. He would not see another of those he cared for change and become the thing he hated. He'd sworn it every day and every night at low tide. He would not allow the monster out… no matter what.

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