Okay so this chapter has taken me forever to get sounding right, and even now I'm not sure about it. If it's any consolation things will be more explained in the next update, hope you're willing to stick with me. Agh, this story's going to do me in I swear. Anyway, thanks so much Bookworm and Indigo. Your stories are happily distracting me from the insanity that's become mine. Can't wait for updates from you, in the meantime take this update as you will.

His eyes cracking open Brody squinted, let them adjust to the light.
"Carrie...Carrie?!", he muttered, confused. Her face was the last thing he remembered seeing before the world had gone black.
When his eyes fully adjusted he frowned at his cell like surroundings. He was in a dingy cinder block walled room with dim lighting, lying on a cot with an IV hooked to his arm and monitors bleating at him.

Seeing a pillow on the chair by his bed, with a gray hooded sweatshirt folded on it he recognized as Carrie's, he took comfort in knowing that she knew he was here. That she could be just down the hall from him.

Turning, wincing at he did so, he hit the call button only to spot something silver out of the corner of his eye. Handcuffs dangling off his bed post. If they'd been attached to his wrist they weren't anymore.

"Well how's our favorite patient?"
Shrugging, Brody frowned curiously as the older nurse flitted from one side of his bed to the other. Checking his vitals and scribbling on his chart.

"Excuse me ma'am?"
"Oh call me Nadine, dear. Everyone does.", she said sweetly as Brody managed a half smile.

"Where am I exactly, Nadine?"

"You're at the Naval Hospital. And from the looks of things, if you take it easy you won't be here too much longer."

"Are you the doctor who was assigned to me?"

"No, that would be Margaret, dear. Dr. Mathison?"

"Maggie. Okay.", Brody sighed, relieved he was being treated by someone he trusted, or someone Carrie trusted at least.
"She'd be here now but she had to go clean up some new mess that sister of her's got into."

"Carrie?"
"Yes, that's the one."
"What mess, what are you talking about?", he asked, trying not to get frantic as Nadine bit her lip. Then was bumped aside when the door opened and bumped into her backside.

"My goodness!", she exclaimed.
"Sorry, I..I'm sorry.", Dana muttered.
"Are you family?"
"Yeah, I am."
"Oh. Well I was just about to tell him-"

"No, you don't have to. I'll tell him."
"Tell me what?!", Brody sputtered, forcing himself to breathe and not get worked up. Even though the monitors signaled he was having a hard time of it.

"Dear, you need to relax. Your vitals.."
"My vitals are fine. They'll be better when someone tells me what the fuck is going on!"

Giving Nadine a look indicating she had this under control, when the older woman rolled her eyes, stepped out, Dana moved closer to Brody's bed.

"You look better. You're awake, that's good."

"Dana, I feel better than I have in weeks, alright? Just tell me what the fuck's going on with Carrie. I know she's been here."

"That could be my pillow.", Dana snorted as he shot her a look.

"It's not your sweatshirt though, is it? Now c'mon, has Saul taken a turn for a worse? Is Farrah.."

"No they're both fine, for now anyway."

"What does that mean?", Brody asked as Dana sighed, sat in the chair by his bed before grabbing her phone.

"Carrie, was up to some stuff while you were asleep. At least she got you out of those handcuffs though."

Handing him the phone Brody squinted at the video playing on the screen.

"What is this, is she giving a press conference...?"
"Here, I'll turn the volume up."

"In the months following the Langley bombing on 12/12 an undercover operation was set up overseas. While stationed in Iraq an Agency asset obtained a recorded confession from the now deceased Faruq-al Hadad, in which he explained in extreme detail his role in carrying out the attack."

"Jesus, that's the evidence. She got that recording from Hadad herself!"

"I figured. She talks about it for a few more minutes. I thought that was the end of the conference but then.."

As Brody watched intently the tape played on, and Carrie's emphatic speech turned from a defense of him to a confession about herself. One that sent the crowd into a frenzy and soon after, two cops who escorted her from the podium. Brody went paler than the bedsheets, clasped his shaking hand over his mouth.

"Dad, are you okay? Should I call the-"

"I'm fine. I...I'm fine.", he insisted.

"And you're getting me the fuck out of here!"

"No, Dad. Look you were just sedated for two weeks! I can't just-"

"Dana, if you get me out of here I won't leave the couch for two more weeks. I swear. I just need to go to Maggie's. She's a doctor, if anything's wrong she can treat me from her house."

"And if Carrie isn't there?"

"The cops wouldn't have released her to anyone besides her family, I'm positive."

"Alright, I'll take you. There's a way out through the back that we can use to get to my car."

"How'd you find that out?"

"I'll tell you on the way.", Dana said, going out to keep watch in the hallway while Brody disconnected from the IV's, dressed, grabbed Carrie's sweatshirt, and made his way to the door. He was moving slowly but looked more steady on his feet, thanks to his leg being properly stitched and having had time to heal.

Following Dana, Brody was surprised at how she'd found this back route outside.

"Hey, you said you'd tell me how you found this hidden exit."

"Thanks to all the construction and renovations it works as an entrance too. Someone showed me it."

"Which someone?", he asked curiously as Dana pushed open the door, led him out to the lot and her car.

"Carrie. We were both here last week after visiting hours and she was like, beyond determined to see you. So she found a way inside."

Pleasantly surprised that two of the women he loved more than anything had interacted without any bloodshed, Brody got situated in the passenger seat as Dana pulled out of the lot.

"Did anything else happen between the two of you that night?"

"She kept saying she had to get in to see you, that she was going to clear your name. When I told her visiting hours were over, that you were probably still asleep anyways, it was like she didn't hear me or she didn't care.
She ran around the construction site for ten minutes, kept saying she had to work around the fucking wall. It was like we were playing Storm The Castle or something."

"Jesus fucking.."

"The way that she was saying it, the way she was talking? She was all worked up. Acting like she did that day at the house, the day she told me to call you.", Dana said as Brody sighed, bit his lip before speaking.

"You're saying she was manic."

"Is that what it's called?"

"Yeah. It is."

"What causes it?"

"When she doesn't take her meds, or something traumatic happens to her she can go into these flights."

"Meds for what? I thought you told me she wasn't crazy.", Dana frowned.

"She's not, she...Carrie's got a mood disorder, Dana. She's bipolar. The meds she's on, lithium, clozapine, they're meant to keep her stable."

"You're saying she's gone off of them?"

"She could have. I don't know. Would you mind driving a little faster, please?", Brody asked, getting a glare.

"For fuck's sake, Dad. I mean I know you're desperate to get to her because you love her and you love her kid, but she made the choice to go off her meds and confess at the press conference and land knee deep in all of this shit. You didn't. You're not responsible for her."

"Dana..."

"Most of this she's brought on herself, but you're sitting here with this look like it's all on you. It's not this time, it wasn't even all on you the last time, not after she..."

Too angry now to even speak, Dana clenched her jaw.

"After she what. Dana, just tell me what you-

"She fucking spied on us, Dad!", she spat bitterly, pulling the car over as her hands shook.

"Three days ago she went on live TV and said she illegally surveyed our house for an entire month! She broke in and she put up cameras and watched you and me and Mom and Chris like we were some fucking reality show!

And you can honestly sit there and tell me it was all okay because you really were that fucked up and that what you did or didn't do or tried to do somehow cancels out all her bullshit? Are you telling me you can work past what she did! Because if you can, that's really fucking fantastic but I CAN'T."

"And I don't expect you to.", Brody assured, speaking calmly but his eyes were clouded with guilt, shame, unshed tears as Dana drove the remaining way in silence to Maggie's house. Parking the car in the street.

"I can't expect you to. Ever. But you have to know, your feelings and her history with us aside, at that press conference three days ago Carrie sacrificed everything for my benefit. And I'm not about to take that as an act of deserved generosity. Not after what I've fucking done to her. Right now, all I can do, is let her know what she's done wasn't for nothing. I do love her, Dana.
As fucked up as we both are, as much as we've fucked each other over in the name of something we thought was bigger and more important than ourselves, the only time either of us feel free, like we have any fucking peace in our lives at all is when we're with each other. It's twisted and so fucked up I can barely explain it or understand it, but it's there. And I'll do whatever it takes to hold onto it. To hold onto her.", he said sincerely, swallowing hard before speaking again.

"I just wish that didn't have to involve conjugal visits to prison."
"Well she's probably out on bail by now.", Dana shrugged, getting a snort, then a sigh as Brody went to exit the car. Only to feel her hand on his arm.

"Look, I know you're angry about what she did and that your entire fucked up situation with her has come to this even more fucked up place, but aren't you even slightly relieved to not be public enemy number one anymore?"

For the first time since getting into the car with her, Brody smiled.

"It's given me time to make things right with you again, with us. I'd be a fucking moron not to be grateful for that."

"I guess you're about to tell me Carrie's responsible for that too."

"I think I've told you enough about Carrie today. Look, I'll be fine here. Why don't you go back to the community center, take a breather."

"Honestly, I'm a little too keyed up to drive back now. Is Farrah inside you think?"

"I'm sure she is.", Brody said, getting a half smile as he and Dana got out of, locked the car, then walked onto the porch and rang the bell.

Seeing who was outside, Maggie gave Brody a slightly sympathetic look, stepped onto the porch as Danny followed, looked on coldly.

"Can we come in?"
"I don't think that's a good idea, Brody.", Danny spat as Maggie sighed, turned towards him.

"Danny she's going to want to see him before..."

"Before what? She winds up in the fucking nuthouse again thanks to him?!", Frank snarled, storming onto the porch as Brody swallowed hard, took a step backward.
Meanwhile Dana stepped around everyone to get inside, muttering about going to see Farrah.

"Mr. Mathison, I.."
"You know you should just save it, alright? My daughter has been dragged through another goddamn shitstorm because of you, you lousy-"

"Look, I didn't know Carrie was going to do any of this!"

"The same way you didn't know she'd sign up for three fucking courses of ECT, zap her brain to rid it of you! I only wish it were that easy. Maybe she wouldn't be in half the mess she's in now!"

"Dad!", Maggie interrupted, pulling him aside.
"There's more going on here that you don't know. Remember, as Carrie's doctor I had a say in this!", she hissed as Brody frowned, shot her a look.

"What the fuck possessed you to if you don't mind my asking?", he asked sharply,

"Hey!", Frank scowled as Maggie sighed, shook her head.

"Dad, if you're going to defend anyone I'd rather it be Carrie. And Brody, if you're so curious about her go upstairs and speak to her. But you of all people should know I didn't want this to happen."

"Then why did you sign off on it?"

"Did you want her confession to land her in a jail cell?", Maggie snapped as Brody sighed, leaned back against the porch rail.

"But I don't understand. The fucking CIA found out about the surveillance. I told them and the police I wouldn't press charges. I thought it was settled!", he protested as Danny swallowed hard, spoke.

"Brody I'm not a lawyer but I'm pretty sure, you come forward with information that sensitive, that loaded, regarding the Agency, that was probably classified or even sealed, there's going to be legal consequences. Forget the fact that she's the newly appointed director."

"She wanted a scandal and she got one, Brody. All eyes are on her now instead of you and if I know Carrie at all it's what she wanted. The only thing I have control over is this nightmare landing her in the psych ward instead of the state pen."

"The psych ward..fuck me.", Brody sighed as Frank scowled, walked up and grabbed his collar.

"How about I just punch your fucking lights out instead you piece of-"

"Hey settle the fuck down. Both of you!", Danny yelled, jumping in to separate the two of them as Dana rolled her eyes at them all through the window. Then took Farrah by the hand.

"C'mon, we shouldn't be here for this."