DEMONS
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Danny/Mary; slight Danny/Other
Disclaimer: I don't own Las Vegas. Things would be a lot different if I did.
Summary: Mary confronts one of her demons.

Chapter 1

The incessant pounding woke Danny from a sound sleep. Pulling on a t-shirt, he quickly headed towards the door. It was almost 4AM and Danny couldn't imagine who would be knocking at this hour. When he glanced through the peephole his heart leapt into his throat. He unlocked the door and had her in his arms before she even realized he was there.

"What happened? Are you alright?"

Mary was sobbing so hard she could barely catch her breath. Danny realized he was supporting all her weight so he quickly scooped her up and carried her to the couch.

"Mary, you've got to calm down. Tell me what's going on. Are you hurt?"

Mary shook her head from side to side, but it remained buried in Danny's chest. He stroked her back and whispered what he hoped were comforting words in her ear until she calmed enough to lift her face to look at him.

"My…," Mary's voice drifted off as she caught sight of the figure emerging from Danny's bedroom.

Danny noticed Mary's eyes were focused behind him and he turned his head to see what had distracted her.

"Oh, God. I'm so sorry," Mary stuttered as she quickly pulled herself from Danny's embrace and stumbled for the door.

"Mary, wait. Don't go. Just tell me what's going on."

"I'm so sorry. I never should have come here," she said as Penny came to stand next to Danny, putting a possessive hand around his waist.

Danny stepped away from Penny and reached for Mary's hand which already had a firm grasp of the door handle.

"Danny, please let me go," she begged.

"Mary, just give me a second and I'll drive you home," he turned towards the bedroom to get his shoes and Mary took that opportunity to run.

She ran as fast as she could for her car, Danny following close behind. His bare feet slowed him down on the loose gravel and he reached her a half a second too late. Danny's frantic pleas for her to stop were drowned out by the sound of screeching tires as she pulled out of the parking lot and sped off into the night.

"What the hell was that all about?" Penny asked as Danny returned to the apartment a few moments later.

"I don't know. I have to find her," was his terse reply as he pulled on his jeans and sat on the bed to tie his shoes.

"Danny, it's the middle of the night. I'm sure whatever it is can wait until morning."

"Are you serious? You saw her just now, Penny! I haven't seen her like that since…" his voice trailed off as he remembered the last time he'd seen Mary so upset. He shuddered at the thought of anyone hurting her like that again.

"Since when?"

When it was obvious Danny wasn't going to answer, Penny continued, "Sweetie, it's not your job to take care of Mary anymore. Don't you think it's time you realized that? I'm sure she's just upset seeing that you've moved on."

Danny ignored Penny's comments as he headed for his car. The sound of the apartment door slamming and something glass shattering told him he'd probably be hearing about it later.

Once in his car, Danny decided to try the Montecito first in case Mary had gone to talk to one of the girls. Mike was working the late shift tonight so Danny called the security room.

"Mike, it's Danny. Have you seen Mary?"

"No, why? I thought this was your night off?"

"Mary showed up at my apartment almost hysterical. When she saw Penny there she flipped and ran off before I could find out what was wrong."

"I'm pretty sure she hasn't been here, but I'll run a check."

"Thanks. I'm going to call Jake and find out what the hell is going on."

"I don't think he's gonna know."

"What do you mean? She lives with the guy. I swear to God if he's hurt her…"

"I don't think this has anything to do with Jake," Mike's reply was hesitant.

"Mike, what do you know?"

"I promised her I wouldn't say anything."

"Mike, I'll take the heat, just tell me what the hell's going on," Danny demanded.

"Mary's not living with Jake anymore. She moved out about three weeks ago."

"WHAT? Why am I just hearing about this now? And how do you know?"

"She needed help moving her things so she asked me. She made me promise not to tell anyone, man. I'm sorry."

"Where did you move her to?"

Danny took down the address and made a quick turn off the strip to head towards Mary's new apartment, praying she would be there.

------

The sun was just coming up as Danny returned to the Montecito, no closer to finding Mary than when he started.

"Any luck, man?" Mike asked as soon as Danny stepped off the elevator into the security room.

"She's not there. Did you ask the girls?"

"Yeah, no one has heard from her since about two this morning. Delinda said she got some sort of package after the concert and then she just took off.:

"Can you run a check on her credit cards? I'm going to talk to the front desk and see if they can tell me who dropped off the package."

Ten minutes later Mike came barreling through the lobby where Danny was on the verge of losing his temper with one of the early morning desk clerks who refused to give him the information he needed.

"Danny, she bought a plane ticket to Baltimore this morning," Mike yelled as he hurdled a pile of luggage in the middle of the floor.

"Baltimore?

"Yeah, it left at 6:30AM and is scheduled to arrive in Baltimore at noon our time."

"OK, keep running her cards. She's bound to use one for something when she lands."

"Where are you going?"

"To pack."

-----

Danny took the steps to his apartment two at a time. The next flight for Baltimore left in a little less than two hours and he needed to hurry if he was going to make it.

"Did you find her?"

Penny's voice startled him as he walked past the kitchen.

"No. I have to go out of town and I'm not sure how long I'll be gone," Danny didn't even stop to look at her as he hurried into the bedroom.

"But I made an appointment for us to look at that apartment tomorrow at the new Trump Building."

Danny pulled out his duffle and began filling it with clothes.

"Penny, I told you I don't want to look at anymore apartments until I decide what I want to do with the house."

"I know, sweetie, but $2 million is a lot of money and you really should start thinking about these things. Real estate is the hottest investment in Vegas right now," Penny called out from the kitchen as she poured herself another cup of coffee.

"I know, but I just can't deal with that now. Besides, only half of that money is mine anyway."

Penny stopped what she was doing and walked into the bedroom, a confused look on her face.

"What do you mean?"

"Only half of that money is mine. My dad left the other half to Mary."

"Danny, that's ridiculous. You're his son."

"Mary was very important to him and he wanted to make sure she was taken care of."

"What is it about this girl?" Penny muttered under her breath.

"What?" Danny was searching for his extra razor blades and only half listening to what she was saying.

"I said 'I'm sure your father meant well' but you should really look into contesting the Will."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because that money is yours! Mary doesn't need it. The Porter family has more money than they know what to do with and if she plays her cards right she'll be set for life."

Her last statement finally got his attention and he replayed the entire conversation in his head. In fact, he began recalling every conversation he'd ever had with this girl. The realization hit Danny like a ton of bricks and he could have kicked himself for being such a fool.

Danny took a deep breath and considered his next words very carefully.

"My father wanted Mary to be taken care of and I intend to honor his wishes. And even if he hadn't made provisions for it in his Will, I would have done it myself."

Penny realized she'd said too much and quickly tried to backpedal.

"Danny, I'm sorry. I know she's important to you, it's just…"

Danny held a hand up for her to stop.

"She's more than that, Penny. She is now and always will be the most important person in my life."

Penny stared at Danny in shock, not knowing how to respond to his stunning revelation.

"I think you should go. I won't be needing your services anymore," Danny's words were harsh, but he was beyond caring.

"You'll be sorry for this, Danny McCoy. You're making a huge mistake," Penny spat as she quickly gathered her things.

"Nope, for once I know I got it right. Now, you've got ten seconds to get your gold-digging ass out of my life and if you try to cause trouble for me or anyone else, you'll be the one who's sorry."

Penny let out a frustrated screech as she stomped through the living room. Danny winced at the sound of the knob crunching through the sheetrock as the front door was thrown violently open.

"You break one more thing and I'm going to send you a bill," he called after her as she made her way into the hallway. Penny's only response was a wave of her middle finger and then she was gone.

"What did I ever see in that girl?" Danny thought to himself as he closed the door and rushed to grab the last items he needed for the trip. Mike would be there any minute to take him to the airport. He just hoped that Mary would be okay until he could get to her.