A/N – Hello! I'll bet you were thinking that I had forsaken you all. The new job is going well. I switch to the night shift tomorrow night. This chapter was supposed to be the final chapter with maybe an epilogue but you have all waited so patiently that I decided to post it in two parts. I just finished what I am putting here now. I'll keep working on the rest of it and get it up as quickly as I can. Thank you so very much for being patient. I truly appreciate it.
Alice I

Chapter Fifty

Don was anxious to leave early for the hospital the next morning. He had contacted Larry the previous evening to talk with him about the conversation he had with Charlie. This served a dual purpose for Don. Larry was able to alleviate some of his concern about his younger brother's despondency over Dan Hodges death while also giving the agent a more detailed picture of the events surrounding the raid.

A small voice in the back of Don's mind found it a little odd that he was getting details of an FBI operation from a civilian physicist but neither Megan nor David had been able to get away from their work to brief him. Evidence was still being collected and catalogued from the crime scene as well as DiBenedetto's holdings. Megan was working on her report concerning her side of the operation while David wrote his own report of the events associated with Pretoria's death.

Charlie assured Don that he was fine when he, Trip and his father arrived at the hospital but none of the men were totally accepting that as fact. Charlie was too quiet. The next two days were an exercise in frustration for the young mathematician even though he never let on that he felt any sort of aggravation.

It was clear that he wanted to go home but the doctors wanted to keep him for another forty-eight hours to be sure that there were no latent effects from the concussion, and because he had an appointment with the plastic surgeon about his eye.

The broken ribs, while not life threatening, were causing enormous pain. Every time he moved it sent white hot daggers through his chest and back yet he refused the pain medication that was offered to him claiming that the pain was manageable. Don got the impression that Charlie was refusing out of some warped sense of penance but his younger brother adamantly denied that any time Don brought the matter up.

When Don spoke to him about Dan, trying to gauge his feelings, he came away satisfied that his brother no longer blamed himself for the agent's death, but he still had the feeling that there was something else under the surface that was bothering Charlie; something he wouldn't talk about.

Charlie easily obeyed the nurses and doctors regarding his care and that set off a few alarms in Don's mind. Charlie had never been a particularly good patient. Even their mother had difficulty getting her youngest to take his medicine when he was ill or staying down and quiet when he needed to. Except for his polite refusal to take the proffered pain meds, Charlie had meekly complied with all of the breathing exercises and concussion checks that he had been asked to do. The repeated questioning about the date, who the current president was, his full name and that of his parents should have irritated him to no end but he quietly and patiently answered these questions as if by rote.

None of this sat well with Don. This behavior was uncharacteristic but when ever Don tried to talk to Charlie he would simply shut down and claim fatigue. Don needed answers. Even though both Larry and Trip had told him everything that they knew it wasn't enough. There was something about the events of that evening that were burning a hole in his brother's heart. It was time to call Megan and David.

She and David met Don and Trip in the main floor cafeteria late in the afternoon the day before Charlie was supposed to be released from the hospital. As he listened to his fellow agents give their accounts of what had happened during the raid at Saborgia's mansion, Don felt himself becoming more alert.

He hadn't realized how much he missed working. Taking in the details of the case presented in a briefing format awakened his investigative instincts that had lain dormant for the last few weeks. Even though he was still plagued by dizzy spells, headaches and nausea he was able to compartmentalize those irritants as his training kicked into gear and he focused on the matter at hand.

Don heard regret in Megan's voice as she described her side of the tactical operation. He knew that she was questioning her decision to engage DiBenedetto's men while half of her team didn't have adequate cover.

"Megan you can't beat yourself up over this. There are many instances that call for engagement without cover. This was a tough call that you had to make quickly. If I had been in tactical command I don't think I would have done anything differently."

"I know, Don. It was a bad situation all around, and I know that Dan and Crystal knew the risks going in, it doesn't make it any easier to deal with though."

"How is she?"

"Crystal is doing very well. The bullet missed anything vital. She had a bone chip removed from her hip and she should be released sometime today. She'll be out for another week and on limited duty for another two weeks."

Don turned to face David who had been sitting quietly listening to the exchange between Don and Megan.

"So David, what happened on your end?"

Partway through David's report Don held up his hand to stop him.

"Hold on, didn't you say that Pretoria was driving an Escalade? How did he end up flying through the windshield? That vehicle has a driver's side airbag standard on all models."

"Yes well that particular series had a recall out due to a defect in the driver's side airbag. Apparently they weren't deploying duringhead on collisions. Either Pretoria ignored the notices that were sent out or he never got them because he moves around so much. The vehicle was registered to him but the address on the registration is a PO box in Long Beach. The recall notices were sent there. We have someone going out to that address to collect all of the mail in that box this afternoon."

Don sat back looking from Megan to David.

"OK if Pretoria's dead, Saborgia's dead and DiBenedetto's in custody where does that leave us? Is there still a contract out on Charlie and me?"

The two agents glanced at each other before Megan answered Don.

"David and I are the ones who conducted the interrogation of Alto DiBenedetto. Because we found GSR on his hands and the weapon that killed Anthony Saborgia in his position covered in only his finger prints we are charging him with Saborgia's murder. David let it slip that we were there serving a warrant on Saborgia and Pretoria and that he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. He has no idea that we even know about Charlie or the encounter he had with him earlier that evening. What ever agreement DiBenedetto and Charlie came to should still be intact but I want to keep both of you under protective custody for the time being."

Trip who had sat back so quietly that the other agents had almost forgotten his presence spoke up at this point.

"Agent's Warner, Parker and I will be staying with you at least until Charlie is released from the hospital tomorrow. Once you are all settled at home the others will be reassigned but I willstay longer depending on how the FBI investigation wraps up."

Megan nodded her thanks to Agent Niagara. "There will also be two agents stationed outside the house when you and Alan are home."

"Yeah thanks, I saw them. So how much longer do you think it will be before you get this sorted out?"

David smiled broadly as he opened a thick folder.

"We're still collecting evidence from the homes and businesses of Saborgia and DiBenedetto. We also found the disk that Charlie gave to DiBenedetto. Now we can't use that disk as evidence but our forensic accountants are using it as a guide to reconstruct the money flow for the entire family. They aren't finished by a long shot, but it looks like we will be able to tie all the key players to money laundering, smuggling, extortion, drugs, guns, the whole gambit. Don, we have enough to shut down the most powerful crime syndicate in southern California largely due to Charlie's work. That disk of his is highlighting the connections that our people could not have found without it."

This was a far better outcome than Don could have hoped for. He sat there dumbfounded at the turn of events and Megan smiled slightly at his expression.

"We have warrants being generated as we speak. Merrick has the entire division dedicated for the next week to making arrests. This is huge Don! Once we have the major players in custody we should be able to take the agents off of you and your family."

Don smiled the biggest smile he had felt in weeks, but it faded slightly when Megan spoke next.

"So how is Charlie doing? Can we go see him?"

Both David and Megan saw how the smile left Don's face to be replaced with a look of concern.

"What is it, Don?"

"That's just it, David; I don't know. Something is eating him but he won't talk about it. At first it was because he felt responsible for Dan Hodges death."

"He's not responsible!" Megan interjected vehemently. "There was no way he could have known what was happening. If anything we faced a smaller hostile force after the shootout between DiBenedetto and Saborgia."

"I know, Megan and after Larry spoke with him, I think he knows that too. Something else is wrong. I was hoping that after speaking with you I might get a better idea as to what is bothering him, but you haven't told me anything that would explain it."

Megan reached across the table and squeezed Don's hand.

"Charlie has been through a lot, your whole family has. Give him time, Don."


Charlie was actually pleased to see Megan and David and smiled when they entered his room. It seemed to have been ages since he had last seen or spoken to the agents who worked so closely with his brother. Charlie had maintained consciousness, the nausea had abated and he was able to move his eye much better as the swelling from his injuries began to subside which boded well for his release from the hospital.

After their brief visit with Charlie, Megan once again reassured Don that she felt that Charlie would recover from his experience given time and love from his family yet Don still felt a gnawing doubt in the pit of his stomach. Charlie's words from the other morning echoed in his mind adding strength to his reservations.

"When I was lying on the ground Alto put a gun to my head…
I wish he had pulled the trigger."

Dr. Belton stopped up once more after her shift in the emergency department to check on Charlie. Both Don and Alan were a little surprised that this doctor had taken so much interest in a patient that was no longer her responsibility when one of the isolation nurses told them that Dr. Belton was unique in that way. She felt a vested interest in all of her patients and it was not uncommon to see her away from the ER to see how a patient she had initially cared for was doing.

Don saw the first genuine smile grace his brother's face shortly after his visit with the ER doctor when he was told by his surgeon that he had been cleared for discharge. His surgery was scheduled to take place in ten days time and by then the swelling should have almost completely faded away. Megan's comments that Charlie just needed some time to recoup rang in Don's mind even though he still had lingering concerns. His brother's smile went a long way to quieting those fears and the fact that Charlie seemed to come to life with anxiousness to get the discharge process complete also helped to reassure the agent.

Charlie was quiet and pensive on the trip home which caught the attention of Trip who was still concerned by the young man's out of character behavior. Like Don he had felt a piercing dread when he heard what the mathematician had said about wishing he had been killed. That was so uncharacteristic of the man he had known for four years that he had difficulty reconciling it. He had contacted Director Thompkins shortly after he had spoken to Don. Matt Warner and Jess Parker were due to fly back to the east coast the next day but Bob Thompkins wanted Trip to remain in LA with the Eppes family a little longer and if he could wrap up his current project he planned to fly out himself to see his friend.

When they arrived at the house, Charlie relaxed visibly as he entered his life long home and made his way gingerly to the couch. It was so clear by his body language that Charlie felt a hundred percent better to be home that Don began to feel that perhaps Megan had been right and all Charlie needed was a little time.

Aunt Irene was at the house anticipating the arrival of the youngest Eppes. She gasped when she saw him and immediately began fussing over him even more so than she had done with Don. Irene cared deeply for both of her great-nephews, but she had a particular soft spot for Charlie and nearly fainted when she saw how dreadful his face looked with the injuries he had sustained. As different as her youngest great-nephew was from his mother, Charlie still always reminded Irene of Margaret.

Oddly enough the genius wasn't bothered by Aunt Irene's fussing for once he was comfortably situated on the couch he promptly fell asleep so she turned her full attention on Don.

"You, young man should also be resting."

Don began to protest that he felt fine but Irene cut him off quickly.

"Nonsense! You will come into the den and lie down. I'll wake you when lunch is ready in an hour or so."

Don glanced helplessly at his father for support but Irene, moving remarkably quickly for a woman in her late seventies, stepped in between father and son.

"Now don't go looking to him! I'll broach no argument on this matter; besides your father has to leave for the airport right now."

Alan rolled his eyes at Irene's commanding tone but made sure he had a straight face when she turned around to look at him.

"Don't you roll your eyes at me, Alan Eppes! Now scoot before you're late,"

Alan left his son's in Irene's care and wondered as he got into his car how a woman who had never had children of her own had developed the parental "eyes" in the back of her head. As he drove to the airport his spirits began to lift. His boys were home at last; safe if not completely sound. The man who had been hired to murder them had been unsuccessful and was now dead himself along with the man who had paid for the hit. He was on his way to meet his brother Mike whose presence would help to take the sting out of Irene's demanding presence. This whole nightmare was over and all his family needed now was peace and quiet and love to heal.

Alan was a little confused by the continued presence of the remaining NSA agent and the FBI guard posted outside the house until Don explained that they didn't want to take any chances until all of the arrests of the DiBenedetto mob had been successfully executed.

Alan didn't begrudge these men's presence; indeed he was eternally grateful for everything that they had done for his family, but he couldn't shake the uneasy feeling he had while still being guarded. As he thought this he glanced into his review mirror and saw the black FBI sedan that had tailed him from home and sighed.


PS: I have a web site now. It is just a shell at the moment but I do have pictures of my wee ones up on the pics page. The address is:

atylock dot googlepages dot com

I just figured that you all have heard so much about my little ones that you might be interested in seeing what they look like.
Have a lovely day folks.