Dimension Two ...

Abraham had promised to explain everything to the other Jo about Henry's dying and vanishing in front of her, sending her into false labor. Who really was this man who looked and sounded so much like the Henry she knew? And where was the Henry she knew? But she realized that satisfying her curiosity might endanger the wellbeing of her unborn child.

vvvv

She couldn't put her finger on it, exactly, but something was up with Abraham and his mysterious houseguest. Okay, besides his apparent ability to cheat death. Call it a cop's instinct now enforced with not only a woman's but a mother's instinct, as well. Her stringent vow the day before not to risk taking in any more information that might jeopardize the health of her unborn son was all but gone as soon as she'd awakened that morning. Thankfully, Mama had left both breakfast for her and a note that she'd gone off to do more marketing to replenish their pantry. This gave her the perfect opportunity to slip out of the house and get back over to the shop for some answers.

"Jo! You shouldn't be out and about!" Abraham exclaimed as he met her at the shop's door, taking control of her wheelchair and steering her inside. He released the handles when she told him that it was motorized and she could handle it herself.

"Where is he?" she asked. They were at the retail counter at the back of the shop. She looked at Abraham then at the staircase. "I need to speak with him."

"Uh ... speak with ... uh, Henry's still not here, Jo," he stammered out.

"His cousin," she emphasized. "I need to speak with him now."

"W-why do you want to speak with him?" he asked. He walked around to the other side of the retail counter and placed his hands on the top of it, facing her. "I don't think you should do that, Jo. Think of your baby."

"I'm pregnant, not helpless or dumb!" she told him, raising her voice. "Now, do I file a missing person's report on Henry or do I get to speak with that cousin?"

"No need for that," a voice replied from the staircase. They quickly turned their heads in the direction of the voice and watched Henry descend the stairs and walk up to join them near the retail counter. Keeping his gaze locked with hers, he said, "She's right, Abraham. Withholding the truth from her may be more detrimental to her health and that of the baby."

A sigh of exasperation left the old man. "But what if something happens, I mean ... "

"I'm a doctor, Abraham," Henry quietly reminded him, his gaze never leaving hers. "Something tells me, though, that my services will not be needed."

"Oy, vey," Abraham grumbled, lifting one hand off of the counter to cover his eyes. He lowered his hand and followed them into the small room behind the counter. "Your mother's gonna kill us if anything happens to you," he bemoaned.

"Well, we all know who'd survive that, don't we?" Jo asked rhetorically as she steered her wheelchair into the room.

Two hours later ...

Henry and Abraham sat in uncomfortable silence as they watched her digest what they'd told her about him being from another dimension. The clock on the mantel chimed the hour for the second time as they'd sat there. After two hours of confessions, explanations, and surprisingly few questions, they looked uncertainly at each other, feeling they may have made a mistake in disclosing the supernatural news to her.

"It makes sense now," Jo finally said quietly and frowning, her eyes moving from side to side. She looked up at the two of them and repeated, "He makes sense now."

"You ... you already knew?" Abraham asked, incredulous.

"Well, not that you were his son," she admitted, laughing softly. "I actually had it the other way around thinking that you guys were living some kind of Tuck Everlasting kind of existence. But ... the more he hid from me about himself, the more I resolved to find out things on my own." She went on to tell them of how her suspicions about him had grown after one puzzling incident after the other. "Amazing," she said more to herself. "Simply amazing." She placed her hands on her round belly and looked down at it.

"Are you feeling all right, Jo?" Henry asked, beginning to rise from his seat.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," she replied, waving for him to sit back down. "We're fine." She bit her lower lip and said, "Just wondering if ... if immortality is hereditary."

Henry's shoulders drooped and he sat back in his armchair. "Even though I have raised a son, to the best of my knowledge, I have never been able to procreate; so I wouldn't know." Was Immortality hereditary? He wanted to say that he hoped not but opted instead to tell her that it remained to be seen.

She nodded, a thoughtful expression on her face, then asked, "So, what is this plan Lucas cooked up to get you and Henry switched back?"

Before they could respond, they heard banging on the shop's front door and a loud voice demanding that they "Open up!"

"Just got that glass repaired!" Abraham wailed.

"Sounds like Mike," Jo said as they all peered across the shop's floor to the front door. "It is Mike." Her eyes widened in surprise. "And Sgt. Reece!" What were they doing here? they all wondered.

Abraham quickly went to let them in and led them back to the small room. Mike and Sgt. Reece quickly explained that they had received a frantic phone call from Jo's mother. They both had been so concerned for her that Reece had decided to accompany Mike after he'd tracked Jo's movements to the shop. Accusations, questions, and explanations were traded between them including the truth about the two Henry's conditions, their switched positions in adjoining dimensions, and Lucas' plan to switch them back. Mike and Sgt. Reece were skeptical, having never heard anything like this in their entire lives. But they chose to go along with the plan in order to placate Jo since she appeared to believe the two mysterious men's unbelievable tale. This guy, Henry, would simply board a certain subway train at a certain time later on that evening and their strange ME would emerge from it. Oh, sure.

"And then can we take you back to your mother's house?" Sgt. Reece asked Jo. "Great!" she said after Jo had agreed. "Okay, then," she said, looking around at all of them. "Let's get this show on the road."

vvvv

"Here," Lucas stated and came to a stop on the subway platform. He checked the time on his phone, 7:33 PM, then brought up the image of their Henry boarding car #1779 at 7:43 PM the previous Wednesday evening, and making sure that all the others saw it, too. Turning to Henry, he once again instructed him to "Just get on, sit or stand, probably doesn't matter, and ... ride it back home. We'll all board the train right behind yours and offboard at your stop. Hopefully, you guys will have switched places by then."

"Sounds so simple," Henry said. "This whole affair has turned my life upside down; his, too, I warrant, and it was all because he boarded a subway car branded with the same number as the year we were both born."

"Hey, maybe you could, uh, pay us a return visit someday, then," Lucas said with a big grin.

Henry chuckled and replied, "With all due respect, I'm perfectly content to remain in my own ... " he looked around and lowered his voice, "place."

The PA system announced the approach of the particular train and people began readying themselves to board. Henry bent down and grasped Jo's hand with and squeezed it.

"It was a true pleasure meeting you, Detective. Try to keep an open mind when my counterpart returns. He had to have met with as much upheaval as I have, leaving him a changed man. The man simply must now realize what a treasure you and the baby are. And if he doesn't - " he paused, looking up at the other Mike from under a furrowed brow and added, "Detective Hanson has plans to give him a good - talking to." He smiled and kissed the back of her hand.

"He used to do that, too," she said with sad remembrance. "He used to be ... such a gentleman." Jo quietly thanked him and lowered her eyes.

Henry then turned to Abraham. The two men embraced and pulled away from each other, smiling. "You remind me so much of my own son. He has to be very proud of you."

"Aw, well, I dunno about that," Abraham replied, rolling his eyes and blushing. "But if you ever get a chance, come back and visit anytime."

Henry then turned to a sheepish and slightly disappointed-looking Lucas, wanting to thank him but unable to find the right words. "Oh, bloody hell," he said under his breath. He placed his hands on either side of the young man's face, pulling it closer to him and planted a chaste kiss on the side of his mouth. He released him and smiled as he stepped back. "That's ... all I have. Sorry. I like women," he explained with a chuckle and a shrug.

"Hey, uh, more than I expected," Lucas replied, grinning and brushing his fingers over the spot where Henry's lips had been.

The others looked at each other with raised eyebrows and smiles but not only because of the sort of kiss. Of course, Lucas and Jo believed this man and his incredible story. But Mike and Sgt. Reece remained skeptical and were especially bewildered by Henry's remarks to Abraham that he reminded him of his son. Certainly, he couldn't have meant that he had a son the same age as the elderly man. He meant his personality ... or something. Right?

The train pulled up to the platform and slowed to a stop. Car #1779 opened its doors right in front of them and passengers offboarded, keeping to their right, as those boarding did likewise. Henry exchanged polite nods with the other Mike and Sgt. Reece, skepticism still evident on their faces. But before their very eyes, the number of the car changed from 1779 to 1814.

"Did you see that? It changed from the year of our births into the year of our first deaths," Henry whispered.

"Better get on before the doors close, Henry," Abraham urged him. Lucas, Jo, and even Mike and Sgt. Reece began to urge him to board the car, which he did and they boarded the car right behind his. The train closed its doors and pulled away.

The ride was as uneventful as before to Henry but he made a conscious effort to remain awake this time. The anticipation was building in him as the train approached his stop. To his wonder, the strange light in the tunnel appeared once again, swirling clockwise this time as an opening widened at the center. As before, no one else seemed to be aware of it except him. At least, no one else reacted to it. His heart was pounding loudly in his ears and he swallowed several times to undry his throat but he managed to stand as before, holding onto a hand grip. Was he going home or would he be pulled into yet another strange dimension? He started to squeeze his eyes shut as before but changed his mind. He wanted to see everything, anything, if there was anything to see and braced himself as the train passed through the center of the strange light.

The pitch, sway, and loud rumble of the train suddenly subsided. Still holding onto the overhead hand grip, he also became aware that his fellow passengers had become a muted blur. He watched in awe as a dark-haired man resembling himself appeared before him. They were surrounded top and sides by a smoky version of the lights and colors resembling the Aurora Borealis. The colors all changed briefly to red as they studied each other in stunned silence. Although neither man uttered a sound, there was an exchange of thoughts and feelings that made each understand the other. A trace of a smile was the last thing either saw of each other for in the next moment, the pulling and snapping effect was felt and the dark-haired man's face vanished.

Henry's senses were suddenly bombarded once again by the train's motion and its loud rumblings down the tunnel and his fellow passengers clearly emerged from their blurred state. The car slowed to a stop and at the sound of the alert that the doors were opening, he released his hold of the overhead hand grip and offboarded with the crowd. He managed to walk over to a pillar and huddle against it as he waited anxiously for a certain group of people to meet him from the car directly behind his. They'd boarded the car right behind the one he had rode in, right? Where were they?

The crowd on the platform eventually thinned out enough for him to cautiously round the pillar to see if the familiar group of people he longed to see was there. Filled with relief, a broad grin broke out on his face when he saw Abe, Lucas, and the others slowly walk out of the train car and onto the platform.

"H-hey, there, Henry!" Abe shouted with outstretched arms and a wide grin. The two men quickly advanced upon each other and embraced, laughing. Pulling themselves apart from each other, Abe patted his father on the shoulder and bid him "Welcome back! Welcome back!" to which he happily replied, "Great to be back!"

He looked around and his gaze fell on Jo. Lovely as ever. Not in a wheelchair. Not pregnant. His Jo. She returned his intense gaze then walked determinedly up to him and held her hand over his chest. He enclosed her hand in his and gently but firmly pressed it against his chest. When she felt the scar tissue from the wound on his chest through her hand, she smiled while struggling to hold back tears.

"It's you," she whispered. "It's really you."

He placed his hand on her cheek and brushed away her tears with his thumb. "Yes, Jo, I'm back," he chokingly told her, fighting against his own tears. "I've missed you so much." Inhaling and exhaling deeply, he told her, "And I have so much to tell you." Oblivious to everyone and everything else, their lips had barely touched when Lucas shouted.

"Look!" Lucas said, pointing to the car that Henry had been on. "The number was 1814 when it rolled up, then it changed to 1779 right in front of our eyes before the other Doc got on. Now, it's changed back to 1814."

A perplexed Mike slowly looked around at the others and announced, "I need a stiff drink. Who's with me?"

They all, including Reece, laughingly agreed to meet at McSorley's the next evening to truly welcome Henry back. But tonight a long overdue conversation between Henry and Jo was in order. As unbelievable as it was for them to find out about Henry and his condition, including elderly Abe being his son, and that he and a doppelganger from another dimension had switched places, it all seemed to fit with their quirky ME. And, boy, did they have a lot of questions for him to answer. A lot of questions.

vvvv

Dimension Two ...

The other Henry Returns from Dimension One Back to Dimension Two (Deleted Scene) ...

It was 7:33 PM Wednesday evening as the small group, including Lt. Reece, stood on the subway platform with the other Henry. Like their dopplegangers in Dimension Two, Reece and Mike remained skeptical of the other Henry's claim not only to living his life as an Immortal but living it in another dimension. They were there only to support the others until the truth unfolded, revealing this dark-haired man who resembled Henry so much, as some kind of outlandish fraud. They fully expected to eventually arrest him and have him checked out in mental institution. The image Lucas had shown them on his cell phone of their Henry boarding car #1814 at 7:43 PM the previous Wednesday evening, did nothing to sway them from their belief that this was some kind of trick or scam going down.

"Just get on, do what you did last time, I guess, and ... you should soon be back home. The rest of us will ride the train car right behind yours and get off at your usual stop. Hopefully," Lucas concluded, "you guys will be switched by then."

"Sounds so simple," the other Henry said. "All of this happened just because he boarded a subway car branded with the same number as the year we both first died."

"Maybe that would be a way for you to come back and visit us someday," Lucas said, grinning.

The other ME replied with a mock frown, "No offense, but I'd rather not."

As they waited for the PA system to announce the approach of the train, he turned to Jo and bowed slightly, smiling. "The best part of my visit here, Detective, has been to meet you. I'm sure that my counterpart has met with as much upheaval as I have, leaving him a changed man. He simply must now realize what a treasure you are." He smiled, took hold of her hand, and kissed the back of it.

"Wow, um, thanks," Jo chuckled nervously. "Such a gentleman." Jo quietly thanked him but her thoughts fell to Henry. A substitute Henry was not enough for her anymore. She prayed that this idea of Lucas' would work so that she could get her Henry back.

The other Henry sheepishly turned to Abe, who had been very vocal about being there only to reclaim his father. Not for this changeling. The two men had not really spoken but the other Henry felt compelled to mend this fence before leaving for his own dimension. Words failed him right now, though, and it didn't help that Abe chose to silently scowl at him with crossed arms like fixed bayonets. Henry cleared his throat and opened his mouth to say something but Abe cut him off.

"Whatever you have to say, save it for your own son when you get back home," Abe calmly advised him. "Seems to me like you and he have had some pretty rough times between you."

"You're right," the other Henry sadly replied. "We have. But I have been the unwelcome intruder in your home and I sincerely apologize and the fault falls squarely on my shoulders for what happened last week."

"It, it was an accident anyway. Ya scared me, dammit!" Abe quickly replied, uncrossing his arms and pulling back from his hardline stance a bit. "Look ... when you go back home just ... give him a hug and ... be a Dad again. That's what I want. I want my Dad back."

The other ME pursed his lips into a painful smile and nodded. "Sound advice," he said. "Wise. Like my own son." He then stuck his hand out and grinned broadly when Abe grabbed it and shook it.

Whether Reece or Mike still had their doubts or not, they were moved by the two men's interaction; especially by the elderly shopkeeper's admission that he missed his father. Henry. Their Henry. Was it really possible? they thought.

He then turned to an awestruck Lucas, who unhesitatingly flung his arms around him in a crushing bear hug. After a few uncomfortable moments, he began to pat his arm as a signal for him to release him from the embrace. Eventually, the others had to join in and help extricate him from Lucas' grasp.

The train pulled up to the platform and slowed to a stop. Just before the doors on car #1814 opened, they saw the number of change from 1814 to 1779.

"The number changed," Reece whispered, astonished.

"Yes," the other Henry said, just as astonished. "It changed from the year of our first deaths into the year of our births."

"Go, go, go, get on before the doors close, Henry," Abe urged him, as did all the others. He quickly stepped into the car and they boarded the car right behind his. The train closed its doors and pulled away.

The ride was as uneventful as before to Henry but he made a conscious effort to remain awake this time. The anticipation was building in him as the train approached his stop. To his wonder, the strange light in the tunnel appeared once again, swirling clockwise this time as an opening widened at the center. As before, no one else seemed to be aware of it except him. At least, no one else reacted to it. His heart was pounding loudly in his ears and he swallowed several times to un-dry his throat but he managed to stand as before, holding onto a hand grip. Was he going home or would he be pulled into yet another strange dimension? He started to squeeze his eyes shut as before but changed his mind. He wanted to see everything, anything, if there was anything to see and braced himself as the train passed through the center of the strange light.

The pitch, sway, and the loud rumble of the train suddenly subsided. Still holding onto the overhead hand grip, he also became aware that his fellow passengers had become a muted blur. He watched in awe as a dark-haired man resembling himself appeared before him. They were surrounded top and sides by a smoky version of the lights and colors resembling the Aurora Borealis. The colors all changed briefly to red as they studied each other in stunned silence. Although neither man uttered a sound, there was an exchange of thoughts and feelings that made each understand the other. A trace of a smile was the last thing either saw of each other for in the next moment, the pulling and snapping effect was felt and the dark-haired man's face vanished.

Henry's senses were suddenly bombarded once again by the train's motion and its loud rumblings down the tunnel and his fellow passengers clearly emerged from their blurred state. The car slowed to a stop and at the sound of the alert that the doors were opening, he released his hold of the overhead hand grip and offboarded with the crowd. He managed to walk over to a support column and huddle against it as he waited anxiously for a certain group of people to meet him. They were on the car directly behind the one he had ridden in, right? Where were they?

Just as Henry had when he'd returned to Dimension One, the other Henry offboarded his subway car and found himself in his own dimension again. As he waited next to a nearby support column for the crowd to thin out, he eventually was reunited with the group of people he knew, including his son and his Jo. The two most important people in his life at that moment. For soon there would be a third: his and Jo's unborn child. Seeing them again made his heart leap for joy. A joy he hadn't felt in decades; not since he'd been saved by Abigail and baby Abe and they'd spent years as a proper family.

Without hesitation, he gleefully threw himself into his son's arms gathering him into a crushing bearhug, apologizing for his past behavior and telling him how much he loved and missed him. Abe, at first startled, had gladly returned the embrace, forgiving his father, telling him that he'd never stopped loving him, and welcoming him back home.

Next was a huge embrace for Lucas. "Something told me that you would be the key to finding a way for the other fellow and me to return to our rightful places. I simply can't thank you enough, Lucas!"

"Um, well, the other Henry planted a big, sloppy one on me. You could do the same." Lucas waited hopefully with a bright smile.

After a moment's hesitation, the other ME released a held breath and said, "Well, why not? You basically saved my life, after all." He placed his hands on either side of the taller man's shoulders and kissed him on both cheeks ala the French. "Sorry," he said to a visibly disappointed Lucas. "My real kisses are reserved for ... " he paused, turning to look at Jo and continued, "the woman I love." His smile faded into a serious expression and he swallowed before adding, "If she'll forgive me." He took in a deep breath and exhaled. "I sincerely apologize, Jo, for all my bad behavior. I was a fool. You and the baby mean the world to me."

"Really, Henry?" she asked. He nodded in response, now on one knee in front of her.

"Let me make things up to you, darling. Please?" he asked. "I promise you, things will be different." He touched his hand to her round belly and added, "For the three of us." Abe cleared his throat and not missing a beat, he corrected himself. "For the four of us."

The others chuckled, even Sgt. Reece and even Mike. However, as they all walked toward the escalators (elevator, for Jo), Mike leaned over to him and confessed that he had been that close to being beaten to a pulp. But in light of recent events and because he'd apparently turned over a new leaf, Mike promised not to follow through on his previous threat. That is, as long as he kept his promise to never hurt Jo again.

"You have my word, Detective," the other ME assured him. "I have no desire to be beaten to a pulp, as you say. I love Jo very much and intend to prove that to her every day. Besides ... the Hudson is freezing at this time of year."

Over the next several weeks, the other ME worked hard to mend the fences of his broken relationships with varying degrees of success. It would take time, he realized, of which he had plenty. He and Abe's relationship was on a more even keel and he and Jo were back on track and planning for the arrival of their son. She soon gave birth to a healthy baby boy they named Joseph Henry Abraham Lucas Michael Morgan, incorporating all of their names. Life for the other Immortal ME was finally becoming good again.