AN: The parts after the break in each chapter are switching to first person to help them make more sense, but this from the POV of the same man. I hope that makes sense. Also, warning for anxiety/panic attack.

As always, thank you so much for the reviews, support and thoughts. Shout out to Naquada, runrenyarun, Dee, as always, and all the others who have made my day many days over.

ring, ring*

I wake again, and it's dark. The lights from the machines I'm hooked up to provide enough light that I can see OA asleep again in the chair, though this time, it's pushed farther back from my bed. The analog clock on the wall tells me it's just passed 10 pm. I can't help but wonder what the team has discovered about what happened to me and why.

I must have gotten lost in thought because a nurse comes in to check my vitals and pain level, and I'm surprised to see fifteen minutes have passed in what feels like seconds. I see OA shift in the chair, and, knowing he isn't one for small talk, will 'wake up' once the nurse leaves. She gives me something to lessen the pain, says she will be back in a few hours, and tells me to get some rest. Normally they never would have allowed OA to stay, but I 'need' protection with this guy still out there, and when I argued, OA said he would stay instead of having someone else come. I had felt guilty when he offered, but one look was all I needed to know he preferred it. When I asked him later, he just shrugged. "At least this way I know you'll be safe instead of trusting someone else to do it." The matter of fact nature to the statement had made me smile.

As the nurse walks out the door, OA sits up, and I laugh to myself that he is already so predictable to me, that I know him that well.

"How you feeling?" he asks quietly.

"Better now that the meds are kicking in," I sigh looking at him.

"Well, I have some pictures for you to look at if you don't mind. I know things are still a little foggy from the attack, but Kristen sent a bunch of pictures she found from security cameras in the area a couple hours ago. I'm hoping one of them will be familiar..." he looks at me hopefully.

"OA, I know what the guy looks like. I won't forget. No matter how hard I hit my head, I won't forget his face," I said forcefully, and I was surprised by how defensive I sounded. Apparently it surprised OA, too, but he recovered quickly saying, "I'm not questioning your ability, Maggie. I'm just trying not to force you into anything too quickly. Honestly, I'm not really sure how to act or what to expect. I don't want to make anything harder for you. At the same time, I know you don't want me to treat you like you can't handle this. We all know you can, I know you can," he pauses for a moment. "Now you are looking at me like I'm crazy." He shakes his head, a small smile playing on his lips at my expression.

"I just don't think I've ever heard you say so much in such a short period of time. That was like three hours worth of conversation from you," I tease with a gentle laugh. It gets the attention back off me and, even though I'm more than comfortable with him, I don't really know how I will react or what to expect.

He lets out a laugh, too, and I'm glad. He hasn't done much laughing or even smiling for that matter.

"Really, though," I continue with a sigh, "I know you are trying. You're still here, and I am thankful for that. You have been great, OA, and I probably owe you my life. So, thanks. Thanks for, well, everything. And, I'm sorry for snapping." My eyes flick toward him for a minute as I shrug, and he is just staring at me, listening. But when I finish, a small smile spreads across his face.

"What?!" I ask perplexed.

"Now who won't shut up?" he jokes.

He's lucky I don't have anything within reach because I would be throwing it at him in faux annoyance, and I tell him so with a dramatic roll of my eyes. This is one of the reasons why I am so thankful he stayed. He makes things seem normal even when I'm laying in a hospital bed and he's stuck here guarding me.

I remember the task at hand and my smile fades. I hold out my hand and look at the decent stack of papers sitting upside down on the small table near OA. With a sigh, he grabs them, hand them to me and then picks up his chair to move beside me so he can watch me while I look at the people, the faces in the pictures.

Each page has four pictures on it, and there is roughly 25-30 pages. As I reach page page 12, I start to wonder if he's here, wonder if I really will recognize him. The thoughts start to build, and I begin shuffling through them faster, missing some or moving fast which causing me to have to backtrack. My breathing becomes shallow, and I can't get a deep breath even when I try. My heart is pounding and I'm sweating. This happens in less than a minute and I realize I'm panicking. I close my eyes gasping for breath, and I feel OA take the pages from me and grab my hand in his. I don't know what's happening, but the monitors start to beep which makes things worse. I feel tears forming at the corner of my still closed eyes as OA starts to speak.

His voice is calm and warm, inviting me in to what he's saying. "Maggie, take a deep breath. You are okay. You are safe. You are having a panic attack, but it's okay. You're okay. C'mon, Mags. Breathe with me."

A nurse rushes into the room in the middle of his words, but he breaks his sentence for a minute to quickly say something which gets her to step back. I can't make my brain hear what he says. I can't make anything out at first, but slowly the things he says begin to form words and the words into sentences that my brain can make sense of. My chest is still tight and my heart beating too fast, but I can breathe again. I'm suddenly more exhausted that I can comprehend. I lean back so I'm resting against my bed which is halfway into a sitting position realizing with a painful breath that I had curled myself into a ball with my knees close to my chest. Despite the intense pain from that position, I focus on his hand and his breathing to normalize my own, and, as his murmurs quiet, he whispers, "rest."

With that, I'm out. The embarrassment and doubt delicately balanced on the edge of the darkness that had pulled me under, preventing me from a completely restful sleep.

BREAK~

It wasn't hard to find out where Maggie was staying. Just a few calls to the hospitals in the area. I make one more phone call to Gorgehearing the familiar ring, ring as I wait for him to answer. When he does, I tell him it's time to initiate the first part of the plan.