This is not a resolution. This is a desperate bid for time.

Chapter 14: The Epilogue (For Now)


The Fentons arrive at the hospital just as William is leaving. It's four o'clock. The sky is grey, and the air is muggy. Finally, the predicted rainstorm is close to breaking. William pauses at his car, watching the Fenton's RV peel into the parking lot. It dings a few vehicles on the way in. Jack must be driving. Between Jack and Maddie, he is the faster driver, even if his driving is reckless. Somedays, William thinks the city ought to put out warnings if anyone knows Jack Fenton will be on the road. Reckless endangerment aside, if you need to get somewhere quick in an emergency, Jack is who you want at the wheel.

William winces with sympathy for the owners of the damaged cars but feels nothing for the Fentons. The RV screeches to a halt, the passenger door flying open before it has even stopped all the way. Maddie runs out. Jack follows her a moment later. They don't even lock the RV in their haste.

Seven hours. That is how long it has been since the school secretary first called the Fentons. Seven whole hours. They must have been busy with something important.

No, William doesn't feel sorry for them. They should have answered the phone.

He gets into his car, slamming the door closed a little harder than necessary. In the peace and quiet, William tips his head back and sighs. The bandage on his forehead is scratchy. He ended up needing a single stitch. Dr. Alejo concluded that he was stunned rather than knocked unconscious. He has no signs of concussion, but he will have a nasty bump for a few days. He was cleared to go home a mere twenty minutes after getting injured.

The Guys in White kept him for an additional hour and a half. They asked him the same questions over and over.

What happened when he was alone with Danny? We talked. I was comforting my favourite student. He has been through an emotional ordeal, you know, and needed someone to lean on. His family hasn't arrived yet. We only talked.

Did he say anything strange? No. He kept asking me when he could go home.

Did you see him when he attacked you? My back was turned.

Where did he go? I don't know.

Did he believe that was really Danny Fenton? I don't know.

William drags a hand down his face. What a day this has been. He might have to call out of work tomorrow and take a mental health day. After everything that has happened, he could use a break. He had promised Danny that everything would be okay, but he doesn't know how to keep that promise, especially not now.

With a sigh, William starts his car. "Time to go home."

The first raindrops fall as he pulls out of the parking lot. Within minutes, the oppressive humidity of the day turns to a bone-deep chill that William feels even within the safety of his car. He turns the heat up, but it doesn't help. Goosebumps raise along his arms and shivers plague him the rest of the way home. Every once in a while, he glances toward the passenger seat. The drive takes longer than it should, thanks to the evening rush. He ends up stopped at every light, boxed in by cars on either side. Even once he hits the highway, his car is surrounded. Despite the cold, William sweats every time he catches someone staring into his car. They are nothing more than bored passengers with idle stares, but his stomach twists into a tighter knot every time he notices them. It isn't until he's home, safely pulled into his garage, that he feels some form of relief.

The cold follows him inside.

William sets to work immediately, going to every window in the house and pulling the blinds shut. He starts at the back of the house with his office and moves on from there, making sure not even a sliver of light remains. From any angle, it's impossible to see outside. Most importantly, that means no one outside can see in. Just as he is debating how to cover the front door window, a car pulls into his driveway. He watches in silence, waiting for the figure inside the car to get out.

Dr. Alejo runs up the path to the front door. William opens it before she can reach for the doorbell and welcomes her inside. Her clothes and hair are soaked from the rain. She looks like a drowned kitten. Sounds like one, too, as she makes noises of frustration and wrings out her hair on William's front carpet.

"Please, make yourself at home," William says.

"Sorry," Dr. Alejo responds flatly. Leaning onto her toes, she peers around William's shoulder and scans the hall.

"This way." William leads her to his office. The air gets colder as they approach. He pushes open the door and motions for Dr. Alejo to go in first.

Danny waits for them on the couch. Dark bags rest under his eyes. They look like bruises against his pale skin. William isn't surprised. He did have to stay invisible for three hours, after all.

"Did it work?" he asks.

Dr. Alejo joins him on the couch, flopping onto the empty seat. Her wet clothes make the leather squeak. "Congratulations, you're possessed."

William is not naïve enough to say that Danny relaxes at those words, but there's a visible shift. He sinks into the couch and lets out a slow, controlled breath. There is still an immense amount of pressure weighing down on him—on all of them—but some of that burden has now lifted.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit you so hard," Danny says.

William shrugs. "I'm alright. It helped sell the bit." He sits down on Danny's other side. The couch isn't quite big enough for three people to sit comfortably, but no complaints arise.

Danny leans over and rests his head on William's shoulder. "Now what?"

An excellent question. One that none of them has an answer to. William meets Dr. Alejo's gaze over Danny's head. She shrugs back at him. No matter. They will come up with an answer eventually. For now, everyone thinks Danny Fenton is missing. They have all the time they need.


A/N:Thank you for reading! I had a lot of run with this fic. As I was writing, got a lot of great new ideas that I knew wouldn't work with the short, tense format I was using for this fic. So, In Case of Emergency is now something of a prologue to a much longer and more thought-out fic! This story still has a long way to go and I'm not ready to part with it yet.