A/N: Thank you for the reviews!

Martin looked up at Hellen, his hands on her hips, a smile turning up the corner of his mouth. "You're beautiful," he whispered.

Hellen blushed, still not sure about this or of what she was doing. "Martin, I…"

"It's alright," he whispered as he gently guided her movements. "That's it. Slow and easy."

"Mmm," she hummed as her body begin to react to her movements.

Skimming a hand up her side, Martin cupped a breast. "Gorgeous."

Hellen shook her head. "You say the silliest things."

Sitting up, Martin wrapped his arms around her. "Not silly. Truth, Love. It's all truth."

Nuzzling her face into his hand when he cupped her cheek, Hellen sighed as she settled against him, their bodies barely moving. "Is this what it's supposed to be like?"

"Does it feel good?"

"Yes."

"Then yes, this is what it's supposed to be like."

"I missed out on so much."

"No more thinking of it, Love. Only think about now, about us right now."

Hellen sat up and smiled as she pushed against him to make him lay back against the pillows. Holding his gaze she began to move over him again, smiling at the groan that slipped from his lips.

Vera whimpered as she tried to wake up, but the dream or memory, had a hold on her and kept her in its grasp even as she continued to struggle. Seeing the shadow fall over the couple, feeling fear, she struggled again, grasping at her neck.

VS

Billy raised his hand to knock but stopped at the sound of a blood curdling scream coming from the house. Turning the door knob, he found it unlocked and rushed inside, dropping the food as he ran toward where he heard another scream. He was sure he'd find Vera being attacked, but all he found was her sitting in a chair by the fire in the sitting room struggling against some unseen attacker.

"Vera!" he shouted as he grabbed her hands to keep her from clawing at her neck anymore than she already had. "Vera! It's Billy. Wake up!" he shouted again, shaking her as he continued to say her name. "Wake up!"

Vera's eyes opened and she stared at Billy as if she didn't know him before blinking and sagging against him. "Billy," she whispered.

"Yes," he confirmed as he wrapped her trembling body in his arms, holding her tight against him. Dear god what the hell? "What happened?"

Vera shook her head. She didn't want to talk about it. How could she tell her friend that she could still feel the arm wrapped around her neck? That she could smell the alcohol on the man's breath as it whispered across her ear with his words?

Billy felt Vera's fingers grasping at his coat and held her a bit tighter. "I can't help you if you don't tell me what's happening. I'm your friend, you know you can trust me."

"You'll think me mad."

"Vera, I would never think that." Billy pushed her back and cupped her face. "Let me get you a drink, hell I need one too, and then you'll tell me all about what I just walked into."

"I'll come with you." Vera looked around. "Where's the food?"

"I dropped it in my haste to get to you. I don't know if we can salvage anything or not. You go on into the kitchen and get our drinks. I'll go get the food."

Nodding, she stood and took a deep breath, tottering a bit on wobbly legs. Grasping Billy's arms, she looked up at him. "She's haunting me, Billy," she whispered.

Billy frowned as he stared down into his friend's frightened eyes. He'd never seen Vera this way before. She was the most fearless person he'd ever met. "Who is?"

"Hellen. My dreams, Billy. I see," she leaned against him again. "I see things like it's me living them. That's how I knew to ask about the therapist. But tonight," she swallowed. "So afraid. I've never felt fear like that before." Fisting her hands in the back of his coat, Vera whispered, "I watched Martin die. I could feel an arm around me neck, smell the alcohol on his breath…feel it against me ear."

"Shh." Billy soothed as he rubbed her back. So this was what had been bothering his friend and keeping her from sleep since this case came along. "I don't think you're mad, Vera. You've always had a way of getting inside the heads of the victims and the guilty parties."

"But I'm not inside her head! She's inside mine!"

Billy pushed Vera back and held her gaze. "Vera, this case is different than any other case you've ever had. You look like Hellen. You've been told you sound like her. You're not mad."

"I feel like I am. I can't sleep, Billy. She's there, always there."

Hugging her to him again, Billy pressed a kiss to her head. "And I'm here."

Vera smiled as she nodded against his chest. "So much for not telling you what's going on. You got your way after all."

Billy chuckled at the bit of cheek. "I suppose I did. Now come on. Go get the drinks. I'll see what I can do about the food."

VS

Billy gently cleaned the blood from Vera's neck where she'd scratched herself during her struggle. "There," he breathed as he finished and patted her hand. "Now, pour us another drink and we'll go settle on the couch and you'll tell me all about everything."

Vera sighed not having enough fight in her to argue with him anymore. "Fine then, but we'll just bring the bottle."

Knowing he should argue, Billy nodded instead, realizing that drinking was the only way Vera was going to keep calm and stay that way at least on this night. "I'm staying."

Vera nodded. "I had no doubts. If you hadn't walked in on me screaming me fool head off, I might have managed to get you to leave, but…"

"But I did, and you wouldn't manage it." Billy finished for her. Holding out his hand, he helped her up and together, with the bottle of whiskey, they made their way to the sitting room.

Vera poured herself a glass of the liquid, amber courage before settling beside Billy on the couch. How was she going to start this?

"Start by telling me what made you go in the house to begin with." Billy smiled at her as he pulled her against him, quirking an eyebrow at her when she gave him a look. "I want you to feel comfortable and to remember I'm here. If you're off over there, and you get lost in a memory or the retelling of what's been going on, you might forget that you're not alone."

"Billy, I'm used to being on me own."

"I know that. I also know that this is different than anything you've ever dealt with. You need a friend, Vera. Let me be that friend. You know I won't tell anyone. Remember, I'm the one that threw them off when they were sniffing about wondering what the deal was with Stewart."

"And made them think I'd been having a fling with him!"

"Better than the alternative," he reminded her.

Vera nodded. "Peter," she whispered and finally settled against Billy.

"Now, tell me. Why did you go to the house? And what were you doing out there anyway? It isn't like you pass the place coming home."

"I'm not sure. I've thought back over that day and I really don't know why I was driving out there. As for why I went into the house," she sighed. "I drove by, thinking about the few details I knew about the place, which are very few. Suddenly something told me I should go in but I ignored it and kept going, but it wouldn't leave me be so I went back. Of course seeing the open door told me it was good thing because an open door on a place like that can only mean trouble."

"And it was some kind of trouble." Billy muttered. "Do you think Hellen was already haunting you then? Maybe she was what led you back?"

Vera shook her head. "No, I don't think so. I think it was just me. You know how I am. Always had a nose for trouble."

Billy scoffed at that. "And always getting that nose into said trouble."

Vera elbowed him for the comment. "It's what makes me good at the job."

"I don't know about that. Your mind is what makes you good at your job." Billy squeezed her then took a drink before prodding her to tell him more. "So? When do you think Hellen…" he shrugged. "…found you?"

"The minute I found her." Vera answered. "You saw her. I felt like retching when I found myself looking down into my own eyes only to find them staring back at me cold and lifeless." She shivered at the memory.

"Take a drink." Billy encouraged her. "And the nightmares started, when?"

"That night. I thought I was just dreaming. It wasn't until a few days ago that I finally admitted it wasn't dreams." She scowled. "I found myself yelling at her and asking her what kind of haunting sex dreams was."

Billy sputtered at that and nearly joked on the drink he'd just taken. "What?"

"You heard me."

"Sex dreams? Vera, that doesn't make any sense."

Vera rolled her eyes and huffed. "You don't think I haven't thought that? Of course it doesn't make sense. Except," she sighed. "It does. Billy, think about how they were found. This whole case revolves around sex. I'm sure of it."

"So you think she had an affair and it went wrong?"

Vera shook her head. "Not an affair, at least not that involved sex with another man. She did kiss another man, and probably enjoyed his flirtations, but she didn't sleep with him. I had thought that was where the dreams were going, but then," she bit her lip.

"What?"

Vera's finger drew aimless patterns on Billy's jean clad leg. "Then she let me see her confessing something that happened to her when she was a girl."

"Vera?" Billy gently nudged her. "What happened to her?"

"She was sexually assaulted and her mother," she swallowed then continued. "Her mother made her feel dirty. All she cared about was that Hellen was still a virgin. She didn't even care that her child had been…" her voice trailed off and she felt Billy rubbing his hand up and down her arm as he pulled her closer.

"Some women shouldn't be mothers," was his only comment. "So you think because of that she wouldn't have had an affair?"

Vera shook her head. "No. Hellen also took me to the day she told her husband the truth about the assault. It broke his heart, Billy, and it was clear how very much he loved her. She spent all their years of marriage not enjoying sex, and had even grown to dislike being touched by him or having him near, but after she told him the truth," she shrugged. "It was like a whole new world opened up for her. I haven't seen anything with the other man. I didn't even see his face tonight. Just felt his arm around me neck as he…" she shivered and shook her head.

"I know the rest from here." Billy whispered. "Drink the rest of your whiskey then try to get some rest. I'll be right here."

"Thank you, Billy. I know…" she started then stopped when he squeezed her and tutted.

"None of that. You've been," he shrugged. "You've been you. I would expect nothing less. Though it would be nice if you'd remember I'm your friend once in the while." He winked at her when she looked up at him with a lopsided grin.

"I always remember, Billy. Why do you think I put up with your cheek on cases?"