18

The police cruisers in his driveway nearly sends him into cardiac arrest. His phone has all of a sudden stopped working and he immediately berates himself for not checking in before he left the hospital. He parks hastily and practically sprints up the drive and through the front door.

His living room is full of panicked gazes that almost instantly relax at the sight of him.

"Dad!" Nick jumps off the couch and barrels into him.

Sam catches him in his arms, staggering a little under the force of his embrace. "What's going on?" He questions.

"We thought something happened to you," Nick answers, pulling back. "Why haven't you been answering your phone?!"

He grips the back of his son's neck in an effort to comfort him and the tears that have welled in his eyes. "It's not working...I stopped for gas after leaving the hospital...I didn't think..."

Nick shakes his head and he pulls his son back into his arms. Grace wipes her eyes from where she's perched on the couch and his gaze connects with Cassie's.

She's fraught with worry.

"Sam, Cassie...I really need to speak with you both privately," Derek reiterates.

Nick pulls away again, wiping his eyes. Framing his face his lifts his son's gaze to his own. "I'm alright," he reassures. Nick nods. "I don't know what I'd do if you weren't."
His chest tightens.

Grace unfurls from the couch, heading upstairs and Nick follows her reluctantly. Cassie sweeps a hand down Nick's arm in comfort before embracing him tightly. Her eyes close and it's a long, reassuring hug and he can only imagine what they've all felt in the last few hours.

There's a bit of a shuffle as Nick and Grace head upstairs and the front door opens, bringing Brandon. Derek's mic erupts from his shoulder and he responds, taking a minute to debrief dispatch and his deputy.

Cassie's crossing the room towards him and he's got her next to him in seconds. "I'm sorry," he apologizes. "I should have called; I didn't mean to make you worry."

Pulling back, Cassie meets his gaze and it's then he realizes that this is about more than a dead phone. "What's going on?"

"They found Wells' car," she answers.

...

Brandon closes the study door behind them because whatever it is they've found, Derek doesn't want it to be overheard.

"We found Wells' car parked behind the brewery," Derek begins. "The owner doesn't recall it being there when he opened, but only just noticed it when he closed and it was still there."

"Is there any sign of him?" Sam questions.

Sitting in one of the arm chairs, she tries not to focus on the energy she's managed to keep at bay all day.

She can feel him.

Derek shakes his head. "We've got the entire force out patrolling...there were items in his car that are cause for concern."

Her stomach drops. "What did you find?"

Derek shifts uncomfortably on his feet. "Rope...zip ties. Duct tape."

Sam is next her, sitting on the arm of the chair. His hand slides up her back settling at the nape of her neck and she reaches for his other hand.

"He wanted us to find his car," Derek continues. "Which means he's hoping we'll be in a frenzy trying to find him, which we won't be. We've established a coordinated search; we've called in extra deputies from Blairsville and have notified the state police as a precaution. He's not going to be able to hide, Cassie, to terrorize you anymore than he already has."

Brandon looks to Derek before speaking. "...I know this isn't what you're going to want to hear, but it will be imperative that you don't change your schedule-"

"-absolutely not," Sam interjects. "You don't think he'll waltz right into the Bell Book? Follow her to Grey House?"

"No, I don't think he will," Brandon answers. "His M.O all along has been intimidation: the brick, the vandalism...following Grace, the car and all those items we found in the trunk; he wants you to be scared."

Derek nods. "We don't want him to think he's won; that's when his tactics will change, that's when he'll waltz right into the Bell Book, or worse."

She's heard enough for one night. Unfurling from the chair, she envelops Brandon into her arms, holding him close. "Promise me you'll be careful."

His arms band around her tightly. "I promise."

She gives him kiss on the cheek before pulling Derek into her arms too. "You too. Promise me."

Derek towers over her and he bends to accommodate her embrace. "I promise."

Rubbing her forehead, she lets the words flow out of her. "...I'm tired, Nick and Grace are not ok, and I almost lost the love of my life tonight for the second time. Everything else can wait until tomorrow."

Brandon blushes and Derek nods. "Of course. We'll touch base tomorrow."

She walks them out, closing the front door behind them firmly, turning the lock. Sam's hands slide up her arms, kneading her shoulders and she leans back into him. His chest is firm against her back and his arms slide around her shoulders, his lips at the crown of her head.

The weight of what could have happened tonight is starting to settle and she can feel the emotions creeping up on her.

Pulling away, she quickly wipes her eyes. "We need to talk to Nick and Grace. They've been beside themselves all night and they need to know that they're safe, that you and I've got this, Sam."

His hands frame her face. "We've got this," he reassures.

...

Nick looks up expectantly from his bed, while Grace halts her pacing. Cassie entires the room, sitting on the end of Nicks bed and Grace sits next to her, leaning into her side. He pulls the desk chair over.

"What did Derek and Brandon say?" Nick asks immediately.

With Grace tucked into her side, Cassie reaches across the bed to place a hand on Nick's knee. "They shared with us that they've established a coordinated search with help from the Blairsville PD and that they're doing everything they can to find Wells."

Grace's brows knit together. "That's it? That's what they didn't want us to know?"

He shares a glance with Cassie before nodding. "That's it...we're the adults; let us handle this, ok?"

Nick nods. "You'd tell us, if something were wrong, right?"

"Of course we would," he answers. "There's nothing wrong, nothing to worry about-"

"-but the fact that Wells is back in Middleton," Grace finishes.

Cassie fingers through her dark hair. "I have every faith in Derek, Brandon and all the other officers to keep us safe." Grace nods, and Nick exhales. "This has been a messed up night."

It's a bit a levity to the situation, and Sam smiles, rising from the desk chair. "All the more reason to call it a night. It's late." There's some shuffling around the room and he's got Nick in his arms again.
"I love you, Dad."

He kisses the side of his head. "I love you too...know that I'm not going anywhere, alright?"

Nick nods, moving to give Cassie a hug too.

Instinctually, he's got Grace in an embrace and she latches on to him tightly.

"I'm really glad you're ok, Sam," she says softly.

He squeezes her a bit tighter, planting a kiss on the side of her head too.

...

While Nick accepted the end of the conversation a little more readily, Grace, he can tell, is not convinced. Cassie had followed her into the guest room and he gives them space, heading to his room in search of his phone charger. His phone comes to life almost immediately after plugging it in, and he scrolls through the missed text messages from Nick and Cassie. There are several missed calls and voice mails, most from Nick, but a single from Cassie.

He clicks on it.

Hey...I'm sure that you're not going to get this, but in the off chance that you do...Nick loves you. He's worried sick... .I'm worried sick...call him...me, anybody, please ...I love you, Sam.

He stares at his phone, letting what's transpired this evening settle and his mind races with what could have happened.

What he could have lost.

Tossing the phone on the bed, he exhales rubbing the back of his neck.

His mind is racing, and he paces the length of his room.

He's a New Yorker transplanted into small town suburbia. He had trusted naively in the safety his life had given him up until now, believing that things like this happened in the movies, and if they did in real life, certainly not to him.

His skills as a surgeon are useless in this situation and he's frustrated with himself that he can't do more to ensure their safety.

He's stared mortality in the face on the operating table; it's a tougher pill to swallow when it's looking back at him.

Remnants of the hospital still cling to him and his clothing and he yanks his shirt over his head in frustration. His body is already tense from hours in the ER; this situation with Wells isn't making it any better. He's under the cascading spray of his shower, adjusting the water to coax out the knot he can feel between his shoulders.

He's terrified.

They've only known each other for a short while, been together even shorter but he knows. He can feel it in ever fiber of his being: Cassie is the love of his life. He's not second guessing himself and he's not gripped in fear of ruining it because he's more terrified at the thought of loosing her.

Of what Wells might do to her.

He plunges his head under the warm spray in an attempt to drown out the images of Cassie bound, duct tape over her mouth. Of her tear stained face, of her crying and screaming for help.

...

She closes the door to the guest room gently, careful not to wake Grace. There wasn't much she could say to her daughter to reassure her anymore than they already had, so she let her presence calm the worries long enough to allow her daughter to sleep.

As she makes her way down the hall, she takes a minute to peak in on Nick. He's sound asleep cocooned under the covers and she exhales. They had teetered close to a reality tonight neither of them were ready to accept, a reality that would have left them shattered.

The tears brim her eyes and she closes his door gently. Her feet are on auto-pilot, taking her to his room down the hall and the steam and scent of his soap wash over her and she closes the door behind her. The bathroom door is ajar and she can feel her chest tighten, the tears finally spill over.

He's there, under the spray and there's such an ache in her chest that she's sliding back the shower door and into him. She's caught him off guard for a split second, and then he's sliding the door closed around them, tucking her into his chest.

The water seeps into her clothes, into her hair.

The sob travels up her throat and through her lips. It reverberates around them, mingling with the water that hits the titled floor.

She buries her face into his neck, letting herself feel the devastation, the grief she narrowly escaped tonight.

He holds her so tightly next him and yet it's not close enough. She pushes into him and his steps falter a bit, before he catches himself.

"I'm here, Cass," he reassures. "I'm right here." His hand cradles the back of her head while the other slips under her shirt. It calms the riot of emotions inside of her.
"I'm here," he repeats gently.

Her clothes are heavy and he's reaching for the buttons on her top. His hands slide over her abdomen and up over her breasts as peels her top from around her shoulders, letting it fall to the titled floor with a slap. He's unhooked her bra and he peels that too down around her arms.

She presses into him, feeling her skin touch his and the warmth unfurls in her chest.

His fingers manage to wrestle her jeans open and he's bending to peel them down around her hips. When they're at her ankles, she steps out of them and he tosses them in the corner. His gaze lifts to hers and the thought of never seeing his face again, never feeling the warmth of his blue eyes causes a new bought of tears.

"No," he soothes, rising. "Don't cry." His hands frame her face just as his lips are descending on hers. "No more tears," he breathes against her lips.

His lips are gentle, soothing and it's everything she needs right now. Her spirit is restless with worry and anger and it's his calming presence that coaxes it to settle. When his lips finally pull away, she opens her eyes to his.

"I've got you."

Tbc