Chapter 12

Totally focused on the image on the screen, Charlie unconsciously shifted into a more comfortable sitting position in front of the TV as he bumped up the volume a couple more times with the remote.

"Guess this blows your theory that you didn't have a shot at winning, huh?" Michelle teased from behind the camera.

"Yeah, yeah," Don grumbled, but his smile belied the gruff tone.

"Okay, let's hear your acceptance speech. Go!" she commanded.

Don groaned, "Gimme a break. I'm in for enough of a hard time as it is, alright?"

Michelle laughed and started playing with the zoom feature on the camcorder.

Suddenly, Don stood up. "You know what? Gimme that thing," he demanded as he came around the desk.

The view shifted as she rapidly backed up out of reach. "What? Who says you get a turn?"

"Come on. Hand it over." When that failed to work, he jokingly added, "Hey! A little respect for an award-winning agent if you please."

Michelle stayed safely out of arm's reach and scoffed, "Pfft! Call someone who cares!"

Don chuckled at that and held up his hands to concede defeat.

"So what's the story with the camera, anyway?" he asked as he settled onto the edge of his desk.

"Like it? It's from a secret admirer. How weird is that?" she replied.

Don's posture shifted immediately and his relaxed mood was gone. "Um… pretty weird, Michelle. That's an expensive present."

"I know…" she grumbled, with the sulky tone of a child who knows she's about to be told to put down a toy.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you not to accept presents from strangers?" Don teased. The comment was joking, but his tone was serious.

Her voice held a smile as she shot back, "Nope, just candy. She never barred the acceptance of camcorders. Besides, I think I know who sent it to me."

Don crossed his arms and waited.

Michelle sighed. "Okay, okay. A few months ago, I dated this guy. We only went out a couple times before I figured out he was a little too 'out there' for my taste. Anyway, ever since then he's kind of hovered around in the background. Hangs out at places he knows I like to go, leaves messages on my voicemail, that sort of thing."

Don's frown deepened with each sentence.

"Oh, don't give me that look! Trust me, he's harmless. A little weird, maybe, but harmless."

"Okay. So tell me about Mr. Harmless. What's his name?"

Michelle jeered, "Forget it, Eppes! I'm not gonna tell you, so just knock it off with the overprotective big brother routine."

Looking nonplussed, Don opened his mouth to say something when she cut him off.

"Uh-uh. I'm serious. Just drop it, okay? Or I'll tell everybody that when you found out you won, you were so moved you cried."

Allowing himself to be cajoled out of pursuing the matter further, he gave a mock gasp. "You wouldn't!"

She taunted, "Oh, yeah. I'll tell 'em you cried like a little girl."

"Yeah?" Don growled playfully, "Maybe I'll give you somethin' to cry about." He faked a lunge toward her and she darted away with a loud shriek of delight.

The camera swung around crazily for a moment.

Then the image suddenly shut off and static filled the screen. Only this time, the loud accompanying hiss wasn't just in Charlie's imagination.

Charlie fumbled for the power button on the remote. But it was too late. Standing in the now-open doorway of his bedroom, Don glared down at him.

Charlie swallowed nervously and could feel his heart pounding. His mind scrambled for a good excuse and came up empty.

Don closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The tightly clenched fists at his side suggested he was struggling for patience. But when he opened his eyes again, all he said, in a voice still rough from sleep, was, "You always go through my stuff."

Recognizing the familiar complaint from their childhood, Charlie responded automatically, "You always had cool stuff."

Don stared off into the distance over Charlie's head, shaking his head slowly and seemingly engaged in some inner debate.

Unable to stand the silence, Charlie cautiously said, "I'm sorry I woke you."

When Don looked confused, he gestured toward the TV and explained, "The um, the TV was loud. I'm sorry I…" he trailed off uncertainly and wished he could fade into the walls.

Don rubbed a hand through his hair, making his hair stand up at odd angles. "For a second there, I thought I was dreaming again."

Charlie tilted his head slightly, curiosity pushing aside his fear momentarily. "You dream about it?"

Don nodded. "Sometimes," he sighed. "In the good dreams, I get to warn her and things go differently, you know?" he added with a sad smile.

It felt like the start of a joke, the way you know something else is coming. So he quietly prompted, "And in the bad dreams?"

Don looked down at his feet. "She asks me why I didn't do anything to protect her."