The first thing Tommy felt before he had even opened his eyes was pain. It was worse than the time he had gotten beat up outside IRL. He tried to go back to the sleepy haze of sedatives but it was too late, he was already at the surface, loud voices pulling him out, the voices becoming clearer and more distinct. They sounded like they were arguing. One was an older woman's voice who he couldn't place and the other one sounded a lot like Lindy.
"You're not supposed to be in here. He needs to get his rest," said the unknown speaker.
"Well, I'm not leaving." Yup, that was definitely Lindy.
"Only family members are allowed to be in here. Are you a family member?" The woman's voice sounded condescending, like she already knew the answer.
"I'm…" Tommy was sure the woman was going kick her out, "…his fiancée," she finished.
Tommy's eyes flew open at that. The sudden movement sent a dull pain shooting through his head, but somehow he managed not to make a sound despite it. He quickly took in his surroundings and saw that he was in a hospital room. Luckily, Lindy and a nurse- who he now saw was the unknown voice- were busy squaring off and didn't notice he had woken up. He quickly closed his eyes again and pretended he was still sleeping.
"He's your fiancé?" The woman didn't sound like she believed her.
"Yes I am." She was? "If you don't believe me you can go and ask the cop standing outside the room. He can back me up." Yeager must be outside if she was so confident someone would lie for her about that. He heard the sound of Lindy's heels clack toward him and then felt the smooth skin of her hand in his. Tommy almost opened his eyes to look at the expression on her face. He knew from her tone and from experience that it was defiant, but he didn't because he could feel the nurse's gaze on them. "Go on, ask," Lindy challenged.
"That won't be necessary," the nurse said grudgingly. "You can stay." He heard the door to his room open and shut after her. Tommy opened his eyes. Lindy was looking at the door the woman had just gone through and didn't notice him looking at her. He smiled. She looked tired, her hair was in slight disarray, and her dress was rumpled, but she still looked beautiful to him.
"So when's the big day?" Tommy asked. Lindy gaze cut to him, startled.
Her face turned a nice shade of red which secretly pleased Tommy. He had never been able to make her blush before. "How much of that did you hear?" she asked nervously, not meeting his gaze.
"Enough. You know you could have at least warned me. A groom's got a right to know when his wedding day is."
Lindy realized her hand was still in his and used it to smack his shoulder. "I just wanted her to let me stay," she said defensively. "Besides, we've used that excuse on the hospital staff before." Her face changed from indignant to one of worry when she noticed the look of pain flash on Tommy's and mentally cursed herself. How could she have been so stupid? He had a head injury and she had just smacked him. "Tommy, I'm so sorry. I forgot. How could I have forgotten? I mean you have that gauze wrapped around your head which should serve to remind me." She was babbling. Tommy put her hand on hers and she instantly quieted. "I'm sorry," she repeated.
"It's fine. It'll pass. It already is," he told her reassuringly.
"No. Not just that," she said quietly, looking out the window beside Tommy's bed, at the bright city lights. She turned toward him suddenly. "I'm sorry I left you to fight off those goons alone. I shouldn't have." She could still picture the way they had found Tommy lying on the ground unmoving, with the blood pooling beneath his head. She felt tears prick her eyes but fought them off. When she had seen him like that she had assumed the worse, all the while hoping for the best.
"Hey, I'm still here. I'm not going anywhere," he promised. She smiled although she knew it was forced. He fixed her with a serious look. "Lindy, I know you would have fought like hell. I have no doubt about that, but I didn't want you to get hurt. They had guns and hammers…that's why I wanted you to go." He had wanted her to go because he wouldn't have forgiven himself if they had done anything to her while there was something he could have done to save her. The way that guy had stood over her with the gun in his hand, he had no doubt about what he would have done. His stomach churned at the thought. He would take being the one in this hospital bed with a head injury any day rather than to have her be the one that was hurt.
She realized then how often he did that. How he was always making her leave, risking his life so that she could get to safety. She knew he was a cop and that was his job, but still. She wanted to ask him about that but another question was pressing her.
She sat down on an uncomfortable looking plastic chair beside his bed and scooted closer to him. "What's the last thing you remember, Tommy?"
He cast his mind back. He remembered questioning Richard, the lights going out, and trying to make his way out of the dark auction room with Lindy. He remembered how the man was going to attack Lindy and how he had knocked him down before he could get any closer. When she left he had fought off the guy, but then another one had come out of nowhere, and the last thing he remembered was hitting the floor.
Lindy was studying his face carefully. "That bad, huh?" she reached over and squeezed his hand, surprising him. She looked down at their intertwined hands, surprised by how normal it felt. He didn't say anything. He didn't need to.
"Aw, well aren't you two adorable?" They both turned to see the nurse who had been arguing with Lindy earlier smiling at them. They hadn't heard her come in. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you, sweetie," she told Lindy with an apologetic look on her face. Lindy was surprised. She definitely hadn't expected the nurse to apologize to her, especially since what Lindy had told her was a lie. Somehow, they were still pulling off the couple thing. She almost pulled her hand out of Tommy's but she knew that would look suspicious.
"It's okay," she said faintly, tightening her hold on Tommy's hand instead.
The nurse gave her a bright smile before turning to Tommy. "Okay, good you're awake now. I'm Katy, your nurse. How are you feeling?"
"My head hurts."
"Yeah, you banged it up pretty good, but it'll heal. You got some stitches for that cut on your head and you do have a small concussion, but it's not too serious. You'll feel better in a few days. In the meantime your friends are outside your room screening everyone, so you'll be safe. We're all going to take good care of you." Her smile reminded Tommy of the one his mother gave him when he was little and she told him his night light would keep the monsters away. Katy checked his vitals and looked over his chart. "If you need anything just holler, or actually, just press that button by your bed," she told him before leaving the room, but not before throwing them another smile.
"They're guarding my room?" he asked Lindy.
"Yup. You didn't think that after what happened they were just going to leave you here on your own did you?" she said raising an eyebrow up at him. Tommy scowled. "If you say you don't need a protective detail one more time Tommy, I'm gunna make sure you stay here longer," Lindy threatened. Tommy couldn't help but laugh.
"Don't test me," she said, pointing her finger at him.
He raised his hands up as if to ward her off. "Okay, I won't, but I'm not happy about it."
Lindy huffed impatiently. "Tommy-"
The door to the room swung open to reveal a frantic looking Dr. Wells. "Tommy!" she exclaimed, breathless. She looked like she had run all the way here. She narrowed her eyes when she saw Lindy with him. "And you. It's Linda, right?"
"Lindy," she said with more force than was probably necessary. She had always had the feeling that Dr. Wells didn't like her, but she had never understood why. Last time they were here she had given her subtle put downs that most people listening might not have noticed, but Lindy had.
"Right," she turned to Tommy, ignoring Lindy as if she weren't even in the room. "A nurse friend of mine told me you were here." She took in the gauze around his head and the cuts and bruises on his arms and face. "She told me you were hurt. I rushed over here as soon as I found out, I was so worried."
Lindy stood up stiffly. "I'm going to go get some coffee. I'll just leave you two alone."
"You don't have to go," Tommy said at the exact same time that the neurosurgeon said, "That's probably for the best."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Lindy asked her indignantly.
"Nothing personal. I just meant you've been with Tommy most of the night. I'm sure you'd like to take a break." She knew that's not what she had meant. Lindy stared at hard into Vivian's eyes, making her feel as though they were facing off. Something flashed in them. It looked a lot like…jealousy? But it was gone so fast that Lindy wasn't sure if it had been there at all. Vivian looked away first.
"I'll be back later," Lindy told Tommy. Vivian watched her go and then sat down on the chair that Lindy had just vacated, taking Tommy's hand in hers. It felt strange to Tommy to be holding her hand again. It just didn't seem to fit right in his own.
"What happened to you? My friend told me you'd come in with a head injury. Then she told me that you're fiancée was with you?" she questioned. "Are you guys undercover again? You both seem to use that excuse a lot. Are you sure there's nothing going on between you two?"
"Nothing," he said flatly. It was the truth after all.
"Then why did she say-"
"We were acting as a couple at the event we were at to blend in. That's all." His voice came out harsher than he had meant it to, she flinched and withdrew her hand.
He sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just been a long night."
"Of course." She nodded her head vigorously. "I understand." She fidgeted with the edge of Tommy's blanket with her free hand. "I talked to the doctor. He told me you had a concussion and that you got some stitches for the cut on your head, but you should recover quickly. So that's good news."
He knew well she hadn't come here just to tell him about his condition. She twirled her hair with her finger the way Tommy knew she did when she was trying to phrase something and didn't quite know how to. He remembered she did that right before she had broken up with him. He knew firsthand how long that could take. He decided to make it easier on the both of them.
He exhaled slowly. "Why are you here, Vivian?"
"I was worried about you, Tom." He cringed internally. He hated that name. The only people who had called him Tom were his grandparents and even then that had been sparingly. She had called him that because she wanted to call him something no one else did. It was one reason he had been glad they had broken up.
"Why? There's nothing between us."
She looked at the floor and bit her lip. "I know," she said softly. "And that's my fault." Tommy felt uncomfortable. He just wanted her to leave him alone. The next thing she said shocked him. "I still care about you, Tommy…a lot. I shouldn't have broken up with you. I want you back." She said the last part in a rush as if to get it out in the open once and for all.
Usually he was good with words. He could come up with something quick and witty to say, but he had absolutely no idea what to say to that. He was trying to come up with a coherent sentence when she continued. "I've been thinking about this a lot since the last time I asked you for that favor." She looked away, and then said so quickly he almost didn't catch it, "And then I saw the way you were with Lily."
"It's Lindy," he said seriously annoyed, almost pissed. "It was thanks to her that we found out who was hacking the hospital. She saved hundreds of lives. The least you could do is remember her name." Vivian sat back stunned. Tommy knew he had never talked to her like that before. He made his voice softer.
"I'm sorry Vivian, but I don't think us getting back together is a good idea." He actually wasn't sorry, but it seemed like the right thing to say. "Besides," he added. "The reason we broke up is this right here. You were afraid I'd get hurt and since you'd seen too many people get hurt, you didn't want me to be one of them. You couldn't handle someone close to you having a line of work so dangerous and I respected your decision, but I wasn't going give up my job. I still wouldn't. I get to help people. Keep them safe. I'm sorry you couldn't understand that."
He looked into her warm brown eyes. He hadn't been in love with Vivian. They hadn't gone out long enough for that, but he had cared about her. Vivian on the other hand had fallen head over heels for him, she had told him so herself. But having him pick between her- who he wasn't in love with- and his job, that'd he'd worked hard to get where he was now- he'd chosen his job.
"This isn't just about your job is it? I realize making you pick between me and your job wasn't fair and I'm sorry I ever did that Tom, but this is about more than that." Tommy didn't know where she was going with this. "It's because of her, isn't it? You've fallen in love with her." It was a statement not a question. Tommy didn't say anything which only confirmed what she thought.
"I could tell you cared about her," she said almost to herself. "But I didn't realize you were in love with her." She looked him dead in the eye. "Are you? Are you in love with her?"
"Yes."
"Okay," she started to reach for his hand again but then thought better of it and drew it back. She stood up. "I lost you. I have to accept that." She sighed a little dejectedly. "Just promise me one thing, Tom."
"Vivian, please call me Tommy, and what is it?" It was so beyond weird to have a conversation with your ex about how you felt about someone currently that wasn't her.
"Tell her how you feel."
Tommy was momentarily stunned. "What?"
"Tell her. She deserves to know and you deserve to let yourself feel." She patted his hand and with one last look at him left the room.
X
Twenty minutes later Lindy came back in with a cold cup of coffee in her hand. She'd taken a few sips but she had mostly just sat waiting on a seat around the corner from Tommy's room waiting for Vivian to leave, and had then stayed outside a little longer talking to Yeager who was outside Tommy's hospital room helping guard it.
"Hey," she greeted. He looked up, startled. He'd been looking out the window deep in though and hadn't heard her come in.
"Hey."
"So," she said, placing her cup of coffee on the little table beside his bed and sitting down on the plastic chair. "Any dates lined up? I mean, I know they say a woman can't resist a man in uniform. I can't imagine what they say about a man wrapped in bandages."
Tommy rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but grin. "Like I said before," he said looking into her eyes. "A neurosurgeon and a cop, it's just not going to work out."
"Well, it's her loss." The tight feeling in Lindy's chest after she had left Tommy alone with Vivian lifted.
Tommy gave her a small smile but said nothing. After a while he was asleep.
X
"Okay, George. I'm sending it to you…now!" She hit the send button and waited for George to confirm he got the file.
Lindy glanced over to where Tommy and Yeager were sitting a way's away conducting their own investigation. Yeager was pointing something out on the computer screen they were both looking at. Tommy nodded absently, tapping out an angry rhythm with his fingers on the metal desk he sat at. Tommy had been released from the hospital after a day and had been ordered to take it easy but he had gone back to work on Monday, brushing off everyone's concerns. He was on the hunt and the fact that Bubonic had basically sent people to attack him hadn't deterred him in the least. In fact it had made him even more bloodthirsty to find him.
"Got it!" George exclaimed suddenly. "And now I'm going to work my magic." He wiggled his fingers to emphasize his point before they became blurs over the keyboard. Lindy watched over his shoulder as he took the still shot of Sara and her boyfriend Dylan, from the video Jake had given her and then watched as it appeared on the main monitor on the wall as the program ran their faces through the Cyber Unit's face recognition system. The software took their facial characteristics and tried to find if anything matched to any social network pictures and school or government issued ID.
"Have you guys found anything?" George and Lindy had been staring at the computer monitor so intently that Yeager's voice startled them.
"Sorry," Yeager chuckled, noticing.
"It's fine," Lindy answered, brushing a strand of hair back behind her ear. "And no, not yet." She looked over at the desk he and Tommy had been working at. It was empty. "Where's Tommy?"
"He's going over some stuff with Catherine. What have you guys done so far?"
Lindy gave an exasperated sigh. "More like what haven't we done?"
Yeager grabbed a chair and scooted closer. "We've watched that video so many times our eyes started to cross trying to figure out where it was taken, but as far as we could tell it could have been in any old parking lot anywhere. There were no flyers or billboards or specific landmarks that could have given us a clue as to where it was." Lindy paused, the clicking of the keyboard George was working on the only sound. "I've tried tracing the license plate on the 'kidnapper's van,"' she said making air quotes, "but I found the same thing the police did three years ago. It was stolen from another car and placed on the van, so that led nowhere. Next, I tried tracing Dylan's car's license plates and although it did lead back to his car it was found apparently abandoned a week after Sara's abduction in an old barn somewhere in the Oklahoma panhandle. There was nothing left behind according to the police report."
They had been doing this for days now and they still hadn't found anything solid that led to Sara. It was discouraging, but if there was one thing Lindy didn't do it was give up. No matter how much time had passed she still had faith she would find her even when the odds were stacked against her. At least now she knew for sure that Sara was alive.
"I'm sorry, Lindy," Yeager said. She shrugged. There wasn't anything that anyone could really say to make her feel better. That would only happen when Sara was safe in her arms.
"Sorry, Lindy." George piped up, looking between her and Yeager worriedly. "Nothing matched up with Sara."
"Figures," she muttered.
Yeager could hear the disappointment in her voice and squeezed her arm comfortingly. George started typing again. "I'm running Dylan's face now, see if anything matches up," he told her. Lindy nodded absently. Maybe Dylan was the key to finding her sister. A sudden horrible thought struck her.
"Yeager, what if they did escape together, but Dylan took advantage of her?" she asked him a little desperately. "He was older than her. What if she thought she could trust him, but he went back on his word? What if Dylan did something to her?"
"Calm down, Lindy," Yeager said soothingly. She looked at him with wide eyes and Yeager knew then why Tommy went along with whatever she wanted. He wanted to protect her and keep that terrified look off her face. He knew Lindy wouldn't want him to sugar coat anything now, she wanted honesty. "What you just said is a possibility. However, I don't think that's what happened. I think she just went off with him and they're just laying low, staying off the radar."
"How do you know that? She thought she was in love. She was so young. She was only sixteen. She had her whole life ahead of her," she said a little sadly. She had missed out on watching her sister grow up.
"She was only sixteen," he pointed out gently, "but she's smart, Lindy. She came up with a kidnapper's plot to get you, the police, and whoever was after her off her tracks. If she thought she could trust Dylan there was probably a good reason for it." Lindy nodded knowing he was right. She looked over her shoulder towards Catherine's office where she could see through her windows Catherine and Tommy having what looked to be like a heated discussion.
"So how's your investigation going?" Lindy asked Yeager, changing the subject with a change in her tone. She sat back down and started to run a search on Dylan's car herself. She didn't doubt George's abilities in the least. She just wanted to run another scan to keep herself from thinking too much about the fact that Sara's investigation was going in circles and to keep from going crazy.
Yeager watched her. He couldn't even begin to imagine what it was like to go through something like Lindy had. To be lied to that way. Obviously, this was upsetting her more than she let on, but he knew she wouldn't want to talk about it with him. He let her change the subject. "Well," he began, "you know things took a turn for the worse when we found Richard's body in the alleyway behind the museum." Lindy nodded. "But since then Bubonic's been lying low right now. He's gone silent again and honestly, we have no leads." Yeager rubbed his temple. He looked tired. Clearly, he'd been working on the Bubonic case as much as she had been working on Sara's.
"I'm sorry." Yeager shrugged. Clearly, there was nothing she could say to make him feel better either. It seemed they were both stuck in their investigations. She nodded her head towards Catherine's office. "What's up with them?" Lindy asked. Yeager looked where she indicated and shrugged. "It's the protective detail isn't it? He still won't take it."
"Yeah," he said sounding disgruntled.
"Why is he being so stubborn about it? It's for his best."
Yeager crossed his arms and gave a long tired sigh. "I've tried reasoning with him, but he won't listen. He gets angry and defensive whenever I bring it up." He lowered his voice so that only Lindy could hear. "I think he's scared. There's no way he'll admit it, but I know he is and he doesn't want Bubonic to know it either."
"But he's putting himself in danger!" Lindy exclaimed, frustrated. "He's been attacked multiple times by him. Does he need Bubonic to come and knock on his door for him to finally get it?" She stopped when she realized Bubonic had practically done that. He'd already shown up at Tommy's apartment.
Yeager smiled ruefully. "He's stubborn."
"I know. He's the most stubborn person I've ever met." Yeager smirked. George who'd overheard snorted.
"What?"
"Nothing," Yeager and George answered at the same time.
"Now you guys have to tell me," she said, looking between the two of them.
Yeager and George exchanged a look before George said, "Weeelll, you definitely give Tommy a run for his money on being stubborn." She was about to protest when she realized they were right. She was always doing her own thing no matter how many times someone told her it was a bad idea.
"Tommy should still take the protective detail," Lindy mumbled.
"I completely agree," Yeager told her, smirking, knowing she had realized how stubborn they both were. "But he's not going to listen to me. Maybe if you were to talk to him…"
"Me? Why would he listen to me?"
Before Yeager could answer George, who'd gone back to his search on Dylan, suddenly exclaimed, "I've got something!"
Lindy whipped around. "What? What is it?"
George pointed toward the monitor. On it there was an image of a California state driver's license. It was issued to Brian Carson but the picture on it was definitely of Dylan. The best thing of all though was that there was an address. "It's him. It's really him," Lindy said softly, not quite able to believe that they had finally found something solid Ben had told her "It takes only one to show you the way." Well, Dylan-or Brian now- was going to lead her straight to Sara. "I have to go there guys. I have to go see if Sara is with him. He's my best chance at finding her. He has to know something." She wouldn't let herself believe otherwise. "I'm going," she repeated.
"Going where?" Tommy asked, having heard her last remark. He looked at George and Yeager but they wouldn't meet his eye. "What's going on?"
"We found a lead, Tommy," Lindy said eagerly. She pointed to the monitor. He recognized the young man as the same one Sara had kissed in the video. Lindy had told him that she remembered his name being Dylan Stone. Lindy had never really liked him because he was older than Sara. He'd been nearer her age at the time than Sara's. "I've got to follow it up," she was saying. "There's an address that I could scope out. They have live there."
Lindy had no idea what could happen. What kind of dangers could lay ahead. She didn't know what she was getting herself into. Tommy couldn't just flat out say no even though that was exactly what he wanted to say. There had to have been a good reason why Sara fled across the country. There had to. She wouldn't have just run off like that. Tommy sighed. "How about me and you go and get some coffee, Lindy?" Yeager nodded that this was a good idea.
"We just found her, Tommy!" She felt like her chest was stretched tight. She finally had a good solid lead on her sister and Tommy felt like getting coffee now?
"Lindy," he said trying to calm her down. "Your sister has been gone for nearly four years. Going to get coffee for like twenty minutes is not going to change anything."
That made Lindy angry. Now that she had a lead she wanted to follow up on it, but she knew Tommy was right. Getting coffee for a few minutes wasn't going to change anything. She took a deep breath to try to dissipate her anger. "Okay," she agreed, "but fast."
X
"I'd like two Americanos." Tommy ordered from the barista on the other side of the counter. He'd ordered coffee with Lindy enough times to know what she wanted without having to ask her. Back on the street Tommy tried to figure out how to broach the subject that she shouldn't go to California. He shouldn't have bothered. Sara was never far from Lindy's mind.
"I can't believe it. We finally found her," she was saying. "It's a solid lead, Tommy."
"Lindy-"
"I mean all this time. I should have figured it out sooner. She'd always said she'd like to go live somewhere sunnier and she talked about going on a road trip to California someday."
"Lindy-"
"To think that I could have her in front of me soon."
"Lindy," Tommy nearly yelled.
"Yeah?" She asked startled.
"I don't think you should go to California," he said quietly.
Lindy couldn't believe what he had just said. She couldn't have heard right. All this time, she had been searching for Sara for years. Did Tommy really think she wasn't going to follow up on this? He had promised her they would find her and now that they were so close he didn't want her to go?
"What?" she hissed, angry.
Tommy swallowed. He had known this wasn't going to be easy. But until he looked into her eyes he hadn't known how hard. "Lindy," he said gently. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into. What if they just put a fake address? What if it's someone else's they're using? You're willing to fly across the country and throw yourself into something you have absolutely no idea about. God knows what can happen."
Tommy could see Lindy's breathing come quicker, her face flush. "I cannot believe you," she almost spit out. "You said you'd help me find her and now that I'm so close you're going back on your word."
"I am not going back. It's just you don't know what's going to happen or what Sara was running away from. What if that creep is watching you, waiting for you to find her and go and meet her? You can end up leading him directly to her."
Lindy froze. She'd never thought of that which only made her angrier. She just wanted to go and find her. Another thought occurred to her. "I think I'd notice if someone was stalking me," she grit out. "I think I've had enough experience in that area with Jake." Passerby were staring at them facing off, looking at them like they were crazy. Their coffees were long forgotten. "I just want to have her in front of me. I deserve an explanation. As long as I find Sara I don't care what happens to me."
"But I do!" Tommy screamed. He knew he'd said too much when she saw her eyes widen. He desperately tried to backtrack. "I can't just let you go headfirst into the unknown, Lindy," he said. "Ben would never forgive me if I let anything happen to you."
She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "This is about more than just Ben, Tommy." She was getting too close Tommy thought in a panic. He couldn't let her figure out how he felt about her. How if anything happened to her it'd be like someone had taken a vital piece of him. "There's something you're not telling me, isn't there? Do you know something I don't?"
"It's not that I know something, Lindy. I can't let you go without you knowing what you're getting yourself into."
"What aren't you telling me, Tommy?" she demanded, not buying it.
He was not going to tell her. He couldn't. If he stayed here one more minute he ran the risk of telling her something he wasn't going to be able to take back. It was his secret to keep. He couldn't burden her with it. "Nothing," he said through grit teeth. "Forget it. I'm done talking about this."
He turned on his heel and left her standing in the middle of the sidewalk with a cold cup of coffee in her hand. She felt incredibly wrong footed. She hadn't done anything wrong, had she? She watched his retreating figure get smaller, putting more distance between the two of them. He walked away quickly as if she were the plague.
How many times had she walked away from him angry, leaving him behind with words left unspoken and questions burning the back of his mind? She knew there had been many times and she found as he rounded a corner and disappeared that she didn't like being on the receiving end.