Chapter 26

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Martin stood at the counter stirring cream into his coffee. He let out a small yawn when Sam walked up next to him and softly asked, "Restless night?"

He turned to face her and it looked like she got as little sleep as he did. Martin decided to put on a brave face and smirked, "You know how it is out clubbing with the boyfriend. It's just party, party, party."

Sam gave him a lopsided smile and nodded her head. "So, when are we going to finish our discussion? I was hoping you would call me when you got home last night."

"Sorry, I was tired. We got home pretty late." Martin replied. The truth was he was home before 11:00 p.m. but he spent the entire night contemplating what he was going to do about Sam. The idea of not being with her tore him up inside but the thought of never having a family was just as gut wrenching. So he decided to just avoid having to make a decision for another day.

She looked at him disbelieving. "Okay, maybe later then."

"Yes, later." Martin looked at her and their eyes gazed unsure at one another until Martin couldn't take it anymore and said, "I better get back to work and try to track down a lead."

Sam cleared her throat and asked, "What lead?"

Martin filled her in on what he learned at Rick's Tiki Lounge the night before as they walked together back to the bullpen when they heard Viv yelp.

"I found him!" Viv announced from her desk. "Adam Weller checked into Somerset Meadows Rehab Facility the Monday morning Jeremy disappeared."

"That's the same day Jeremy disappeared." Danny commented from his desk.

"It gets better: the treatment was paid for on Jeremy Owen's credit card." Viv looked up and met the boy's eyes. "Apparently the center took their sweet time processing the card."

"Really, so Jeremy is Adam's sugar daddy?" Danny asked.

"It appears so." Viv replied.

"But if they were broken up why would he agree to pay for his treatment?" Sam asked.

"Maybe he felt guilty." Martin guessed.

"Well, what do you say we just go ask him?" Viv asked, smiling.

XXXX

Martin and Viv walked down the hall of Somerset Meadows Rehab Center. The walls were painted soft hues of blue. Martin guessed that blue was supposed to be a soothing color. They approached the check-in station and flashed their badges.

"We'd like to see Adam Weller. We understand he's an in-patient here." Viv said in that calm motherly tone she often used.

The nurse eyed them suspiciously before saying, "I'll need to check with the director first. You can wait over there." She pointed to a row of plastic chairs lined up against the wall.

Martin and Viv nodded and walked over to sit down. While they were sitting, Martin looked over at Viv. He realized that he never asked her how she was doing, he was so caught up in his own drama that he forgot she had plenty of her own as well. Cursing his selfishness he turned to Viv and softly said, "How are you doing, Viv?"

"Good." She replied casually.

"No, I mean, how are you doing? You know: health wise." Martin said tenderly.

Viv turned and eyed him carefully. He kept his eyes focused on her as her features softened and she replied, "I'm good, better. There are good days and bad days." He suddenly felt very sad for her and she must have sensed it because she smiled at him and said, "Don't worry; a majority of the days are really good. I just have to keep checking in with the doctor but so far it looks like the procedure was a success."

Martin nodded in understanding. "How are Marcus and Reggie?"

"They're great. I honestly don't know what I would do without them. You know how it is after a major health crisis: you really learn to appreciate the simple stuff in life. And those guys remind me what really matters."

Martin gave her a sad smile knowing she was right.

"Hello." Martin and Viv turned to find a forty-something balding man approach. They both stood up. "I'm Dr. Nolan."

"Hello, I'm special agent Martin Fitzgerald and this is special agent Vivian Johnson. We understand that you have a patient by the name of Adam Weller. We need to talk to him about a missing person."

"This is highly unusual and I will have to check with Adam to see if he wants to talk to you. Can you tell me what his relationship is to the missing person?"

"How is that relevant?" Vivian asked.

"Well, I just want to know how to prepare him. He's in a very fragile state right now. He's only just come out of the initial stages of detox. I just worry that if it is someone he is really close to that it could cause a serious setback."

"The missing person is Jeremy Owen. He was a close personal friend of Adam's. In fact, he is the one paying for Adam's treatment." Martin supplied.

"In that case, I'd prefer to be there when you talk to Adam if that's okay." Dr. Nolan said.

Viv spoke up, "If it's okay with Adam."

Dr. Nolan nodded his head and motioned for the agents to follow.