The urge to help her friend was overwhelming and Daphne tried to concentrate on her dishes. But with each sound of a swear word, falling object or shattering glass, she flinched. The tears were relentless as were her sobs, and she leaned against the island for fear of collapsing.
"DEAR GOD!"
The sound of Frasier's voice was at that moment, the sweetest that she'd ever heard and she slowly walked to the doorway, overcome with relief at the sight of him. But she should have known that his homecoming wouldn't be a happy one.
"NILES! What in the hell have you done to my apartment?" Frasier yelled. "Put that down!"
"NO!" Niles shouted.
Daphne's eyes widened in horror. Frasier's impeccably neat living room now resembled a war zone. And in the middle, two brothers, fighting like enemies.
"Damn it, Niles, stop it! Now!" Frasier yelled.
"NO! You can't tell me what to do!" Niles shot back. "I hate you Frasier! I hate-"
"His older brothers hand swung around smacking Niles squarely in the face and knocking him to the ground.
Daphne, meanwhile, gasped in sheer terror, unable to believe that she could become even more frightened. It was like watching one of Mr. Crane's monster movies, of which there was no way to turn it off.
"Dr Crane..." she said hesitantly, not really caring who responded. Anything to get them to stop fighting.
Niles rose from the floor, angrier than she'd ever seen him and threw a punch at Frasier. Unfortunately he missed his brother, but hit Daphne's cheek causing a burst of pain that sent her to the kitchen once more. It was like a nightmare come true. And just when she feared that the worst was over, she heard the rattling of the lock. When the door burst open, Eddie began to bark wildly while Martin stood watching in disbelief.
"WHAT IN THE HELL?" He yelled. As fast as he could, he hobbled into the living room, trying his best to get his sons off of one another.
"DAMN IT, STOP IT RIGHT NOW!" Martin yelled, louder than Daphne had ever heard him. "What's wrong with you two? Have you gone completely out of your minds? What happened out there?"
With fire in his eyes, Niles stared at his father. "H-He started it!"
"Well, Niles I don't give a damn who started it! I'm thinking of right now!"
"But... my carpet!" Frasier protested.
"Oh the hell with your damn carpet, Fras! Now both of you sit down and shut up! I just came back from a walk with Eddie and all I want to do is watch my television program in peace!"
Daphne sat on the kitchen stool, crying harder than before. Her cheek stung badly, but the fact that Niles had hit her hurt even more. The pain that resonated in her chest was so great that she felt as though she might faint.
"Where's Daphne?" Martin asked, receiving no response from either of his sons. In disgust he shook his head. "Fine, I'll find her myself! You two are worthless! If your mother could see this... I don't even want to think of what she'd say about your behavior! You should be ashamed of yourselves! Now, get me the hell out of here because I need a beer!"
With Eddie scampering by his side, Martin hobbled into the kitchen. Daphne quickly turned away, praying that he hadn't seen her. But she should have known better. Martin Crane always saw everything.
"Damn, can you believe those guys?" Martin muttered. "Two grown men, fighting like imbeciles! I thought I raised them better than that! What in the hell could have brought that on?"
Daphne began to sob into her dishtowel once more and she flinched at the throbbing pain. And when Martin moved toward her, she saw his eyes widen.
"Oh my God, what in the hell happened?" He asked. "Your cheek is purple!"
She began to cry harder. "D-Dr. Crane..."
"Frasier did this? Damn him! What in the hell was he thinking?"
Her sobs became more prominent as she watched Martin hobble to the freezer and grab an ice pack, handing it to her. "Here. Hold this against your cheek. I'm going to give Frasier a piece of my mind! Damn him!"
But before he could move, Daphne's hand went to his arm. "It wasn't him. He didn't do anything!"
"But you said-."
"I know, but-."
"Then who did this to you?"
She opened her mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't come. "Damn it Daphne, tell me! Now!"
"It was... Niles." She whispered, her hushed voice breaking at the sound of his name.
"NILES?" Martin yelled, the word making her flinch. "Damn him! What in the hell-."
"It's all right, Mr. Crane. I'm fine."
"The hell you're fine!" Martin yelled. "I'm going to give that boy a piece of my mind and then he's going to apologize to you! How dare he-."
"No! It's all right! I'll be fine!" she insisted.
"The hell you will! Niles should be ashamed of himself!"
"It's all right, Mr. Crane! He didn't know what he was doing!"
"Well he should have! He had no right to hit you like that! I've told my boys time and again it's never all right to hit a woman! Never!"
"But it was an accident!"
"As Frasier says, 'There are no accidents'!"
Daphne watched helplessly as Martin headed for the living room and turned to face her in the doorway to the kitchen. "You mark my words, Daphne. As soon as I get through with Frasier and Niles, they'll give you a raise like you've never seen before! Not that you don't deserve one, believe me!"
The kind words made her smile, but did little to soothe her aching cheek or her aching heart. "I'll be fine, Mr. Crane. I'm just going to lie down in me room."
"That's a good idea." Martin said. "Can I get you anything?"
"No, I-."
When she looked up, she saw that he was holding glass of water and some aspirin.
"Take these and keep that ice pack on your cheek while you rest."
She smiled and kissed his cheek, surprised at how much it hurt to do so.
"All right. Thank you, Mr. Crane. I love you."
She knew he wouldn't return the sentiment but the way he touched her back as she turned to leave spoke volumes. And then she heard her name.
"Daphne, I'm sorry."
She turned around and smiled at him. "Mr. Crane, you didn't-."
"I don't know what's gotten into Niles but this isn't like him at all and it has me worried as hell! I've never seen him like this and I know that there's no way he would lay a hand on you the way he did! I don't understand it! There's just no excuse for it whatsoever and I feel responsible!"
His sweet words made her cry and he hugged her awkwardly.
"Aw, come on now, Daphne. It'll be all right. Just rest for a while. Everything will be fine. I promise."
She nodded wordlessly and slowly walked into the living room, feeling strangely relieved to find it empty. She felt an obligation to clean up the mess that Niles had made but she was simply too exhausted. But before she returned to her room, she found the first aid kit and handed it to Mr. Crane. "Here." She said smiling at his surprised expression.
"What's this?"
"For Dr. Crane. He cut his hand and I don't want it to become infected. Just put this antiseptic on it and bandage it for me. I'd do it meself but he's so angry and-."
She began to cry once more, prompting Martin to hug her. "I'm so worried!" she sobbed. "This isn't like him at all!"
"NIles will be fine, but he's definitely going to get an earful about this from me, you can count on that!" Martin said. "And don't worry, I'll take care of his hand. But it serves him right, for what he did to you! Now go lie down for a while."
She smiled at Martin's order, feeling a little like the daughter he never had and she kissed his cheek. "Thank you." Her cheek throbbing, she returned to her bedroom and culred up in her comforter, with Eddie at her side. The ice soothed her cheek and the aspirin slowly worked at reducing the pain to a dull it was her heart that was hurting the most; not for the injury she'd sustained at the hand of her friend, but for the man she cared about so much.
Mr. Crane was right. It wasn't like Niles to get so angry, or lash out the way he did. His hitting her was an accident, of that she was certain. But it was also a sign that his hurt and pain was much deeper than anyone could have ever imagined. And she feared that if something didn't change quickly she'd lose him forever.
She was exhausted as she laid her head onto her pillow. But instead of sleep, there were only tears.