Henry sat on the fur-covered sofa smoothing his hands over it and finding the feel of the material's delicate softness pleasant and the motion surprisingly calming. He placed his hands back in his lap over his crossed legs when Lucas reappeared in the room with a stack of slim books sheathed in protective plastic coverings. He sat next to Henry and placed them on the coffee table.

"I assume this is just part of a very large collection of graphic novels you have?" Henry asked politely.

"Comic books, Doc," Lucas dryly countered as he sorted through the pile and settled on one in particular. "No use in making them out to be more than what they really are." Henry nodded, hiding a smile at the incongruity of how this Lucas referred to his favorite reading material as opposed to the Lucas he knew.

"Here. Here's one that explains pretty much what you say you're going through." He thrust the slim book into Henry's hands. Henry grimaced at the cover's title, The Deadly Spiral, along with a counter-clockwise spiralling vortex that seemed to be pulling a very upset-looking teenaged boy and girl into it. Flipping quickly through the pages, he grimaced more and clamped it shut, handing it back to Lucas.

"Forgive me, but is there one with a less dismal storyline?"

Lucas chuckled softly and took the book from him, placing it back near the pile. "Here," he said, passing another one to Henry. "This should do just as well without giving you the willeys."

"Remarkable Journey," Henry read out loud. He flipped through the pages and saw scenes that closely mirrored what he was going through. When he dove in to read it from the beginning, his stomach growled loudly.

"Whoa, sounds like someone missed the taco truck," Lucas playfully assessed. Henry smiled weakly in response, wistfully recalling a surly Abe and the lemon chicken dinner that never happened. He perked up when he realized that Lucas was on a French-provencial-designed landline phone calling for a meal to be delivered. Lucas put his hand over the receiver and turned to Henry, asking if chicken marsala was to his liking. He nodded enthusiastically, smiling. Lucas relayed the request to the party on the other end and hung up. "Be here in 20 minutes, they say." He settled back on the couch with his arm stretched out across the back, his fingers rubbing the fabric back and forth just behind the back of Henry's collar.

Henry blinked and sat forward a bit, clearing his throat. "Ah ... Lucas ... "

"Yeah, yeah, I know, I know, I promised to keep it together," Lucas sighed as he removed his arm and clasped his errant hand with his other in his lap. Then he raised his arm again, bending it and supporting his chin on his palm. "It's just that you're so damn pretty!"

"You are referring to the other Henry ... right?" Henry asked, side-eyeing him.

"No. Yes. Well, him, you," Lucas babbled. "Whether it's his look or yours," he clarified. "I'm lookin' at a beautiful man."

Henry felt it was best to change the subject because he had no plans to satisfy Lucas' longings for either of them. A decision best left to the other Henry, he concluded. "Lucas, ummm, might I ask, if it's not too personal, how is it that you came to acquire such wealth? I mean you can't possibly afford to live in this style on your salary," he reasoned.

Lucas laughed both at the abrupt subject change and at the question. "On my salary? You're right. I can't. But back when Yahoo came on the scene and challenged Google as King of the Internet, my father had the guts to switch his stock holdings over. At the time, a lot of people thought he was crazy to let go of his Google stock and buy into a new and untried startup but," he spread his hands motioning them around at the room, "it paid off."

"So you inherited this wealth?"

"Not right away," he replied. "When he died, I was 23 and I only got $10,000. According to my dad's will, if I didn't return to college and finish within two years, I had to find and maintain gainful employment until my 30th birthday, which was this past December, in order to inherit the remainder of his estate. See, I was kind of banging around aimlessly after dropping out of college in my last year and he almost disinherited me. Which, I can't blame him, really. He sent that message in his will to give me one last chance to grow up and become a responsible contributor of society," he said as if quoting the last few words like he'd heard them many times.

"I see. And did it work?" Henry asked, genuinely interested.

"I'd like to think so," Lucas replied. "At least ... I'm giving it my best shot, you know? Hard to be this tall, this noticeable, and not be pulling your weight, you know what I mean?"

Henry tilted his head to the side and pointed out, "But you're past 30 and still working at the OCME, am I right?" Albeit mixing up bodies.

"Yeah," he chuckled. "About that. See, I had planned to take the easy way out and quit whatever job I'd found after the courts officially granted me the rest of the estate. But my boss was this weirdo strange-o ME who saw a lot of things that others didn't and who had an endless supply of knowledge that helped put away more perps and solve more cases than anyone had done in years. Decades. No matter what anyone thinks of Henry Morgan, it was a gift from providence when he walked into the morgue and started doing his thing. Made me want to stay and learn as much from him as I could. Never met anyone else - besides my Dad - that I wanted to emulate."

Henry felt an odd surge of pride at Lucas' description of the other Henry. Finally, an encouraging word heard about the man. He stood up and walked a few paces back and forth on the other side of the coffee table, his hands shoved down into his pockets. "I'm sure that you do your work quite well in the OCME, Lucas. Just as the Lucas that I know does. But how I wish that I could take back just a little of your good fortune to him. He hides it well and never complains but I know for a fact that he continues to struggle with his student loan debt. Even a sliver of your wealth would do wonders toward his financial stability."

Lucas stared at him, mesmerized, with his mouth slightly ajar. "You know when you talk like that it makes me almost believe your claim about being from another dimension."

Frowning, Henry took his hands out of his pockets and spread his hands. "You mean after seeing me with your own eyes how different I am from the Henry you know, you still have doubts?"

"Uh, well, you have to admit it sounds so utterly implausible. You could have had plastic surgery to remove the scar on your neck and," he frowned, confused, "have one made on your chest ... ? Like that makes any sense," he said, shaking his head. "But, Henry, people don't just walk in from other dimensions! It's something that scientists have talked about for nearly a century - "

" - more than a century, Lucas," Henry corrected him.

"But it sounds crazy!" Lucas exclaimed. "And that talk about you and him (now I'm doing it) being Immortals. That's doubly crazy! And impossible!"

"Does the Henry you know have any arrests for public nudity after swimming in the East River?" he asked testily.

"Yeah, but I figured the midnight skinny dipping was just part of his weirdo strange-o-ness. Wait. You're saying that you do that, too?"

"Has he ever offered any explanation for the midnight skinny dipping, as you call it?" he asked with a smug I-know-something-you-don't-know look.

"No. He's never wanted to talk about it," he blew out in frustration. "Gets upset if pressed." Lucas sat back and looked Henry over from head to toe. "Why does it happen?"

Henry took a deep breath and blew it out through his puffed cheeks. "It's what happens every time after a death. I, and apparently, he, come back to life right after we've breathed our last breath. And it's always in the nearest large body of water and we're always naked."

The doorbell sounded, signaling the arrival of their meal as the two men silently stared at each other. Neither made a move until the doorbell sounded a second time and Lucas rose and went to open the door. He continued to eye Henry closely with a considering look on his face while the delivery person set up the meal for them on the dining room table. Henry's eyes pleaded for Lucas to believe him. Once the delivery person departed with a handsome tip from Lucas, he motioned for Henry to be seated at the table. Both men sat down; Lucas at the head of the rectangular table with a white, linen tablecloth on it, Henry on his right.

"Well, dig in," Lucas told him, a grin of acceptance spreading across his face. "Later on, we can get to work on getting you back to where you came from." They dug into their meal, grateful to each other for different reasons. Henry was grateful that Lucas finally seemed to believe him and wanted to help him. Lucas was grateful for finally learning more about his enigmatic boss even if it was by proxy. Another dimension he could take. But immortality? That remained to be seen.

vvvv

"Thank you for that wonderful meal, Lucas," Henry told him appreciatively as he patted his full belly. He then pulled out his pocket watch and checked the time. A little past 11:00 PM. He could take a cab back to the shop but it was late and his key didn't work to unlock the shop's door. Before he could gather the courage to impose any further on his young host, he heard Lucas telling him that it might be best for him to spend the night because of the late hour.

Henry hesitated for a second before replying. "I was just working up enough nerve to ask you if that were possible. I do so hate to impose but since I don't have a working key to the shop and Abraham is sound asleep, disturbing him may only fuel further discourse with him."

Lucas laughed and repeated, "Fuel further discourse. You see, I just love that kind of talk that just rolls off your tongue. Fuel further, ha ha ha. You mean he'd kick your ass if you woke him up and it sounds like you've already gotten on his last nerve, fr."

Henry joined him in laughter and Lucas directed him to the guest bedroom that boasted a circular bed, and a raised, oval-shaped, in-floor tub. It was also three times the size of his own bedroom. "Makes me wonder what the master bedroom looks like," Henry pondered out loud. He undressed and changed into the cotton (thank you!) pajamas Lucas had placed on the bed for him. He neatly hung his clothes up in the walk-in closet before climbing into bed and snuggling under the covers. It was hard for him to believe that he had started his day's journey in one dimension but was actually going to sleep in another. The room gradually darkened after he remembered Lucas telling him to say "Lights", and he drifted off to sleep.

vvvv

A cab deposited Henry in front of the antiques shop that was, thankfully, already open for business so he could just walk in without fiddling with a key. Abe looked up at him from where he stood at the back of the shop behind the retail counter. As Henry nervously approached him, Abe finished a ledger entry and closed the book, setting it to the side. He placed his hands on the counter and, leaning on them, watched Henry as he drew nearer. Besides the awkward silence between them, there was something else that Henry sensed, for Abe's expression was not so unwelcoming now and more open but still questioning.

"Good morning, Abe," Henry remembered to call him.

Abe bugged his eyes slightly and looked away from him. "Not so sure if it's a good morning or a bad one yet, to tell you the truth."

"Why? What's wrong, Abraham?" Henry asked, concerned, and letting slip his favorite way to address his own son.

Abe chuckled a bit. "It, uh, it's just that. You insisting on calling me Abraham. The other slight but definite differences in you now." He chuckled again but with a slightly worried expression. "Not sure if this is a good morning for me since I might be beginning to think that you are not the Henry Morgan I've known all my life."

Henry raised his eyebrows but a relieved smile tugged at his lips. "Glad to see that you're in a better mood, at least. So, what inspired this change of heart?"

"Just ... these little differences and the fact that you seem to be a more likable person than he is," Abe replied.

Henry frowned slightly. "That is troubling to know that he has deported himself in a less than gentlemanly fashion. Makes me wish that I could speak with him. Find out what's at the root of all of that misbehavior."

"Not your problem, uh, Henry," Abe told him haltingly. He wasn't quite sure what to call this other man. "Seems to me that your immediate problem is getting back to wherever it is that you came from."

"Yes. Well, fortunately, Lucas Wahl has been a great help in getting some or most of what happened explained to me and he's promised to help me get returned to my rightful dimension."

"Good. Good," Abe said. "Is, uh, that where you spent the night? At his place?" he asked, lowering his voice. "You know he has a thing for you. You guys didn't ... patch up your differences - Oh! You're not ... him ... my Henry," he said, realizing his error. Then he smirked a bit and lowered his voice again, and asked, "Or ... do you swing that way, too?"

"Swing? What way?" Henry asked, genuinely confused. "What are you asking me, Abraham? I mean, Abe."

"It's okay. You can call me Abraham," he chuckled, pointing a finger at him. "I've always preferred the long of it to the short of it. But you know Lucas is gay, right? I mean, you had to find out last night. So did you guys, uhhh ... ?"

Finally understanding what Abe was getting at, he rolled his eyes, dropping his shoulders, and replied, "No. Lucas is a good person, and, I believe a good friend, but, no. I do not 'swing that way'." He laughingly acknowledged to himself, though, that this man, Abe, was just as good at teasing him to the brink of discomfort as his own son was.

Abe simply shrugged and asked him about how Lucas planned to help him. Henry explained about the strange light that had circled counter-clockwise and opened wider at its center as the subway train he was on the evening before had passed through it. Lucas explained, with the help of his graphic novel, Remarkable Journey, that the pulling and snapping sensation he'd felt was the moment that he had switched places with the other Henry Morgan.

"So, that schmuck is in your shoes now, walking around messing things up in your life?" Abe asked, incredulous. "You're lucky if you still have a job and friends and a home to return to when he gets through mucking things up over there!" Abe shook his head, ramping his laughter down considerably at the worried look on Henry's face and when he heard him utter Jo's name softly.

Abe quickly pointed at him and asked, "Hey, do you and the, uh, your Jo have a ... thing?"

Henry breathed deeply a couple of times before replying, "No, ah, but," he swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. "I believe that we could have something if ... " his voice trailed off as he thought of the other, more callous man cozying up to her. And he, trapped in this dimension, with no way to protect her or warn her. "He wouldn't harm her, would he, Abe?"

"Look, Henry, if they know you for the good guy you are, they're gonna sniff out that rat before he has a chance to harm anyone. Besides," he reminded him, "you two are not exactly identical either physically or emotionally. And if she's as smart as the Jo here, she'll know how to handle that guy. You got a Mike Hanson and a Sgt. Joanna Reece there?"

Henry smiled at the mention of his trusted colleagues' names and nodded. "But our Joanna Reece has attained the rank of Lieutenant," he proudly informed him. "However, I'm sure it's only a matter of time before your Sgt. Reece becomes Lt. Reece," he quickly added.

Abe heaved a sigh of relief. "Then, your Jo will have a lot of help to deal with him." He put his hand on Henry's shoulder and added, "Don't worry. She'll be fine. They'll all be fine."

"You're right, Abraham," Henry replied. "Sorry. Abe."

"You can call me Abraham," Abe reminded him. "Sounds good coming from you. Now. Since, I take it, you're not going to try to report to work, let's close up the shop and I'll cook you that lemon chicken you wanted last night." Henry smiled and dipped his head in gratitude. Once Abe had locked the shop's door and flipped the sign to closed, the two of them climbed the stairs and went into the kitchen. Henry laughed again when Abe advised him that if he should meet Sgt. Reece before leaving, be sure not to mention that the other Reece outranked her.