A/N - Thank you so much for all your kind feedback. I'm leaving on a trip in a few days so I'll post what I can when I can. I hope you keep enjoying yourselves.

The mind is its own place, and in itself can make heaven of Hell, a hell of Heaven

11111

"Hi Charlie, what's up?" Don entered the garage, where Charlie was working on his boards.

"Just working on a problem for Larry. What's new?" Charlie stopped working and looked at his brother.

"Not much, I came by to watch the game tonight. Are you going to join us?" it was a long time tradition for father and sons to watch the game together when they could.

"I'll come when I'm done. Shouldn't take long." Charlie smiled at his brother.

"Be careful, Charlie," Don grew serious. "John's not stable and he's dangerous."

"I know, Donnie, but what should I do?"

"Hurry."

"What?" Charlie looked at his brother, confused.

"Wake up!" Don yelled.

Charlie sat up on the couch, startled. The game was still on, but John wasn't sitting on the couch anymore. It took Charlie a second to realize that John was standing over him, looking very angry.

"John?" Charlie tried to get a reaction from his jailor.

He never got an answer. Instead, John grabbed the chain and pulled Charlie off the couch. Charlie landed on the floor with a loud thud. He was trying to get his bearings when he felt John drag him across the room.

John let go of the chain as he reached the steps to the basement and grabbed Charlie by the collar, hauling him to his feet.

"Why are you doing this?" Charlie pleaded as he looked into John's crazed eyes.

Without a word, John threw Charlie down the stairs.

Charlie found the floor coming at him at an accelerating speed, and he did his best to brace for the impact.

He hit the concrete with his shoulder, sending pain all through his arm. His legs got tangled in the chain and hit the door frame at the bottom of the stairs, refusing Charlie's orders to move out of the way as John came towards him, and Charlie was left lying awkwardly at the bottom.

John grabbed the chain again, untangling Charlie, and dragged him closer to the bed. Charlie did his best not to yelp in pain as his injured ankle was pulled in this manner. John spoke for the first time when they were next to the bed, his rage somewhat tempered. "I told you not to do that. I warned you. He doesn't exist." John reached for another chain, which he attached to the same place at the bathroom wall. It was the smaller one he had told Charlie about – the one too short to allow his prisoner to leave the room.

"I don't understand." Charlie backed up into the wall when John came towards him. This time the chain didn't have an ankle bracelet.

"This way, you'll learn your lesson."

Charlie would have to wait for John's temper to subside before he would get some answers. He closed his eyes as John approached him with a metal collar.

"Please, don't." His neck was still bruised and sore from his time in the chair.

"It's the only way you'll learn." John put the collar around Charlie's neck, setting it much lower than where the chair had held him.

"What lesson?" There was no getting through to John who was completely set on his task. Charlie felt his hair being pulled away as the collar was clasped around the back of his neck, and tightened until it was locked into place. It wasn't a heavy burden, but it was uncomfortably tight, and gave him a terrible feeling of being dominated.

His task completed, John left the room locking the door behind him. Charlie stayed in his position on the floor, taking mental stock of his injuries. His shoulder and legs hurt terribly, but he knew nothing was broken and that he was lucky for it.

Charlie felt miserable. He didn't know how to process the events of the past few days, and wasn't sure he'd ever know how to deal with them. He wanted to see his father laugh as his brother teased him about something. He wanted to teach math and contemplate the mysteries of the world with Larry and Amita. He wanted everything but what he had. Charlie knew how his mind worked and he rarely feared it as he did now. He tended to panic and shut down when confronted with dangerous situations and this definitely qualified as one. He kept telling himself to go on, function, do what he had to do to exist and analyze the situation the best he could. He kept telling himself he was okay, he just had to survive, and Don would walk through those doors at any minute and when he did, Charlie would be able to break down and let his brother take care of him. He tugged unconsciously at the collar as the thought of his brother once again passed through his mind.

Charlie eventually dragged himself into the bathroom and climbed back into the wheelchair, still standing in front of the sink.

He starred at his image with the collar on. It reminded him of a dog on a leash, as he was sure it was meant to feel.

"Damn," he murmured to himself. "I'm never getting out of here."

He looked around the room and found everything he needed to turn in for the night. He performed the routine task, half expecting John to walk through the door and hurt him some more.

Charlie wheeled himself into the bedroom, and tried going all the way to the door in order to test the length of his new restraints. He wasn't surprised to find that he couldn't get within touching distance. He steered the chair back to the bed and set the brakes. The fall left him with aches and pains all over his body and he craved sleep desperately.

He climbed into bed and covered himself with the light blanket. Sleep came fast and he wished it would be a long one.

100000

Don and Alan sat together for a quiet dinner. Neither one of them felt like talking, or cooking for that matter, and they had ordered Chinese.

"You look tired," Alan eventually commented to his son.

"I've been having trouble sleeping," Don confessed.

"I've been dreaming about him too." Don looked up at his father, seeing that he looked just as tired. "You can stay here tonight." Alan suggested.

Don smiled half-heartedly. "I think that would be a good idea." He understood why his father had a hard time staying in the house alone, and he knew he'd feel closer to Charlie if her stayed.

Don took another bite. The rest of the meal passed quietly.

100001

October 31st

Charlie was thirsty. He woke up feeling like he had slept for ages, but had no idea how long he'd been out. Sitting up in bed very slowly, his body protested the abuse it had gotten from John the night before. Charlie put his feet on the cold floor, tugging unconsciously at his collar. He decided to test his strength and stand up, a task he approached with caution.

He smiled in relief when he saw his legs were holding him up, albeit shakily. His left leg throbbed from the encounter with the doorframe and wobbled quite a bit under him. He didn't think it was prudent to try and walk, considering the pain and weakness in his legs. He would need to save his strength. He set himself down in the chair, maneuvering his leash to his side, and started towards the bathroom.

The water felt great going down his throat and he washed his face, careful over the bruises.

He just sat there for a while, staring at the pale image in the mirror, before cleaning up and going back into the bedroom.

He decided to explore the closet and beside clothes he also found notebooks and pencils for him to occupy his time. Charlie found himself wondering just how much John knew about him.

Charlie lifted his pants cuff to examine his wounded leg. The bruising from the impact and the chain were dark blue and hard to miss. His left ankle was also swollen, indicating some kind of injury. He figured it somehow twisted when it got caught on the chain and was sprained. He knew it would get better if he stayed off of it for a few days.

He sat up in his bed with his back against the wall, his legs folded in front of him so he could lean the notebook on his knees. Charlie knew he needed to make sure his work wouldn't be understandable to John, but would make sense to him. That was never much of a problem in his line of work. He needed his math to keep him level headed and he decided to use it to analyze John's behavior and varying environmental elements. He could calculate the best time to make a break for it and the best way to do so. This kind of statistical analysis would take time, and that was the one thing Charlie had.

He just wished Don would get there before he would have to do something drastic.

100010

Alan stared at a picture of his sons climbing a tree when they were kids. He figured they must have been about eleven and six, and back then Charlie did whatever his big brother told him to do, eventually needing his father to help a panicked Charlie get down from that tree. The picture was taken while they were still climbing, and they both looked ecstatic. Life was so simple back then. Both his boys were yet to discover the difficulty of being a teenager and harsh sibling rivalry. They weren't yet fully aware of where Charlie's unique mind would take them all and they could just enjoy being kids.

His eyes rested on his oldest son, climbing to the highest branch on the tree, smiling like he just reached the top of Mount Everest. He seemed so worn out these last few days. Usually, when Don was working on a case he was energetic, but the lack of sleep and the fear and worry he had for his brother were taking a terrible toll on him. Whenever Alan saw him now, Don seemed depressed and almost lethargic. Alan worried that it was too much for him to handle despite his strength.

He shifted his gaze to his youngest and sighed heavily. It seemed that every time he walked into a room he expected to find Charlie concentrating on his math. Alan thought that Charlie's unwavering energy should linger in the house, fill every corner with him the way the house still felt full of Margaret, but he couldn't feel Charlie anywhere. The house felt cold; empty. It was where his baby boy got hurt, where someone took a picture of him bleeding on the floor. No, Alan couldn't feel Charlie, but it seemed that John was screaming at him from every corner.

Alan put the photo down and walked to the door, taking his jacket and keys along the way. He needed to get out of the house, quickly.

100011

Don sat uncomfortably in Walt Merrick's office waiting for his boss to get off the phone. Merrick wasn't a man known for his sympathetic streak but when he had called Don to his office, he seamed to be just that - sympathetic.

Hanging up the phone, Merrick said, "First, let me say I'm sorry for what's happening to your brother. Besides the fact that he's an agent's brother, he's helped us and been one of us for a while now."

"Thank you." Don didn't expect the gentleness in Agent Merrick's voice. It was an unusual reaction from the supervising agent. An unusual response to an unusual situation.

"I called you here for a couple of reasons," he continued. "Of course nothing we say leaves this office."

Don nodded, trying to prepare himself for what his boss was about to say.

"Dr. Eppes has been a great resource for the government, much greater than any of us knew. Apparently, he assisted the FBI on some very big RICO cases in the past against some very big names. It seems that he also consulted for the NSA, DEA, NASA and the CIA." Don's jaw almost dropped as Merrick listed the agencies his brother had worked for in the past. He had no idea how great Charlie's involvement was beside his work with Don and his team. To Don's surprise, his little brother had kept a few secrets from him.

"No one's admitted their work with Dr. Eppes," AD Merrick continued. "And I don't know what he helped them with. I just know I've been getting some very concerned phone calls from very important people, both asking about the case and if there's anything they can do." He paused briefly.

"Someone from the NSA will stop by to talk to you and many people have offered to help if needed, both out of gratitude and because Dr. Eppes has been exposed to sensitive information. You'll have a lot of resources on this one, but it comes with a lot of pressure. I know you don't need it, that's why I'm telling you what's happening. A lot of people would like to step in on this one. I'll try to keep most of it away from you, but you'll feel it anyway. Some of them will use any excuse to get you off the case, and the fact that he's your brother isn't helping them trust you to use good judgment."

Don didn't know what to say. It never occurred to him that his brother's involvement with various agencies was this extensive.

"The second thing I want to talk to you about is a little more personal." Merrick hesitated. "I want you to go and see the department psychiatrist." Don was half standing when Merrick put his hand up to silence his objections. "I know what you're going to say. I think it's a good idea. You're obviously not sleeping well, and you're having some problems dealing with the situation. Anybody would, but like I said, this is a high profile case. I can't have an unstable agent running it, even if he is the victim's brother.

"Especially if he's the victim's brother."

Don nodded, surrendering. Hearing his brother referred to as 'the victim' took the fight right out of him. He could never let anyone else run this case.

"Let your team take over if the situation warrants it. Run this by the book, and I'll make sure you have whatever you need. Agreed?"

Don leaned in slightly. "I'll do whatever it takes."

"I know." He sighed. "I wish I could give you better news. Both the CIA and the NSA want to handle this case. People who've worked with Dr. Eppes feel like he's one of their own, and the fact that you're his brother isn't making any difference."

Don nodded, looking Merrick in the eyes. He understood exactly what the other man was trying not to say. Some very powerful people were trying to take over the investigation, and the only reason that it was still his case was that the crime was under FBI jurisdiction. They would fight for the case eventually, but for now they were manpower he could use.

"Why is the NSA coming to see us?" Don asked, curiously.

"Let me know when you find out." Both agents smiled. Don appreciated the warning his boss had given him. He just hoped he would be able to find his brother before anyone got in his way. He hated to think of what he would do to the man who tried to take this case away from him.

100100

Alan closed his eyes, feeling the cool breeze over his face. The place was peaceful - green grass as far as the eye could see with trees and flowers adding to the scenery. It was surreal that a place this alive was a home to so much sadness.

He opened his eyes and looked at the chiseled marble at his feet.

Margaret Mann Eppes,

Beloved wife and mother,

1946-2004

"Hello Margaret," Alan whispered to the wind. "I brought you some flowers." He knelt down and laid the bouquet of lilacs on the soft grass.

"I guess you already know what's happening. I hope you don't mind me telling it to you anyway. You were always a good listener." He smiled, remembering sweet nights spent in conversations.

"This is the fourth morning he's woken up God knows where. I worry. I know what you're thinking." Alan smiled through the tears that threatened to fall. "I always worry. And our boys always made sure I'd have enough to worry about. But this feels bad. It feels... he's hurting. I can feel it. He sounded so scared." Alan was openly crying now. "Our wonderful baby boy was so weak and frightened."

"What do I do? How do I get him back?" he pleaded to the breeze. "How do I live without him? How do I keep Don from leaving with him? You know him - he'd never be able to live with the idea of Charlie being... tortured." Alan found it difficult to even say that word.

He let his hand hover over the grass. "Watch over them, okay? You keep our boys safe." Alan paused, waiting for a response that would never come. He bowed his head in surrender, and let his tears fall.

100101