Last chapter! Reviews mean a lot... would love to know what you think. Hope you enjoyed the story, and thanks for reading! 24 forever!

Chapter Eight

Michelle

The roar of the crowd was unforgettable. The movement of the players, each ball that connected with the bat, and every impossible catch made Tony's blood rush. With his leg still bandaged and crutches leaning against the bench, he couldn't stand up with the other fans every time his team scored a run. Richard stood for him, pumping his fists in the air and whooping and hollering like a boy first discovering the use of his lungs.

He sat back down and smiled at Tony. Safe and content. Tony smiled back, his dream fulfilled. He could finally see Richard happy and know that he had made him feel important.

He could easily put himself in the boy's place — sitting with his father, loved and protected, watching their team lose but cheering them anyway. His father left no doubt in his mind that he was loved, in spite of his flaws and his mistakes and his strong sense of mischief. His father chose to love him with a love he never earned, and Tony wanted nothing more than to share this kind of love. He knew it wouldn't always be easy, knew he would slip up and even hurt others, but by grace he was loved, by grace he was forgiven. He sighed in relief. Good thing he didn't have to try to earn love; he was too much of a mess to succeed at that.

That day and that baseball game meant the world to Richard. He cherished it in the midst of his difficulties, remembering that he wasn't alone in the storm. He wouldn't let Tony face it alone either. Now whenever Max blew a fuse and began smacking Tony across the room, Richard ran in to stop him. "Don't hurt him! He's my BROTHER!"

Eventually, Max started to listen.

Miguel served some time in juvie, and Tony finished high school alongside Curtis. When he enlisted in the Marines, he knew he had family to come home to. He stayed in close touch with Richard as the boy grew up and went to medical school. He visited Miguel in prison now and then, even though his presence was unwelcome. He came to see Tina and helped her run errands. He went to the Mannings' frequently for dinner and always hung out with Curtis between deployments. Curtis, who got him his first job, now talked about an opportunity with some little-known counterterrorist agency in Los Angeles, and he wanted Tony to come along. That's not for me, Tony always said.

He also found his mother and came to see her, dressed like a Marine, a mirror image of his father. She wept and apologized, but it was clear that she had moved on. Tony tried to build a relationship with her, but she felt it was too far gone, and quietly, gradually, she slipped away into oblivion.

The final member of his family Tony made a point of staying close to was Max. It took him years to get over his fear and anger for the man, and even longer for him to accept that he was a grown man now; he didn't have to cower and plead and take a beating over the littlest provocation. Now he could sit with the graying man in the dank apartment where he grew up, and he could have a cup of beer with him, his hand steady on the white mug. Max often dissolved to tears when Tony came, riddled with guilt over the past. But still Tony sat with him, drank with him, and forgave him.

"I want to be like you," his stepfather admitted.

The highlight of Tony's family was yet to come. The only woman he truly loved, the one who stood up for what was right and stood by him during some of his most trying days. Michelle Dessler embodied all the grace Tony never deserved, a beacon of light in the darkness of his world. Every day of his marriage, Tony wondered how she loved him. He would never let her go.

— — —

The fog of his dreams slowly dissipated, and Tony Almeida took in the sterile hospital room. His memory was groggy, something about a virus, a Mexican cartel... Kyle Singer...

He winced at the pain in his neck and fingered the fresh bandage. So he really was shot. How long had he been out?

The nurse pulled back a curtain partitioning Tony's bed. "You have a visitor," he said.

Then she entered. Michelle, as beautiful as ever. Michelle, his miracle.

He smiled. "Hey."

Her face glowed as she leaned in. "Hey." The word was still on her lips as she pulled him into a soft kiss. The sweetness of her mouth drew him from the daze; he was awake now, he was with her. Their foreheads touched, he breathed in her warmth.

"How you doing?" he whispered.

She gave a short, nervous laugh. "You scared the hell outa me."

He considered her words, felt her pain. "I know. I'm sorry."

Her eyes were filled with forgiveness and love.

He could have spent the rest of his life in that moment, his face pressed against hers. Safe. He gradually remembered the details of the Cordilla virus and the Salazars, but he tried to push them aside. The world could wait. Michelle was here, and Tony knew she would always come first in his life.

For better or for worse, he loved his family and gave them his devotion. Let Jack Bauer save the country; Tony's priorities were humbler. He knew he might be wrong, but he also knew he wasn't prepared to go as far as Jack could. He would do his duty, but family came first.

Who could fault him for that?