'Leese, honey?'

'I don't want to talk, Dad,' came a sniffling voice from inside the dark bedroom.

Looking in, Joe couldn't see a form in the bed, so he stepped in, quietly closing the door behind him. He took a few hesitant steps forward, looking for his daughter only to find her on the floor beside the bed, Alfie held tightly to her chest. He bent down to her, immediately putting his arms around her shoulders.

'Dad,' she cried, trying to pull away from him as she let the cat go.

'Leese, just calm down. We're going to work this all out,' he said reassuringly. 'Let me help you up into bed and—'

'I'm so sick of this!' Lisa gasped, sobbing against her father's arm. 'I'm clumsy, everyone has to help me with everything, and I thought that Jackson would be here to support me, but instead he's sitting on the couch talking about how some other woman lets him do things he wants to do!'

He didn't have any response other than to just hold her closer. She grabbed the other side of his arm with both hands, pressing her face into his shirt as far as she could.

'I feel like an invalid,' she said. 'When I was pregnant with Jonathan, I was still able to do basically everything, but this time—'

'You're having twins,' her father finished, smiling against her hair. 'I know it's stressful, Leese, but you just have to just go along with the flow of things right now and trust that we'll all work out everything for you. You have a lot of people supporting you even if Jackson isn't all here.'

'I love him, Daddy, even when he's like this,' she sniffled, looking up at him with her nose still pressed to his arm.

'I know you do,' he said squeezing her tighter.

He just held her for a minute or so until her breathing returned to normal.

'Now that you've calmed down a little, why are you on the floor?'

She pressed her face back down into his arm with a little laugh. 'I tripped on the rug.'

Joe tensed, trying to scan over her to see if she had any apparent injuries. 'Are you hurt?'

'I hurt all over,' she admitted. 'But I hurt before falling. My back has been giving me trouble, not surprisingly.'

'One of the reasons your doctor has recommended bed rest. Now come on,' he said, lifting her up from under her armpits. She leaned against him, her head on his chest with her stomach awkwardly situated between the two of them. 'Okay, now lay back.'

She fell straight back, her legs still hanging off of the bed. Although he knew she hated it, Joe reached out and rubbed her stomach softly, smiling as he felt his next grandchildren flutter beneath his touch. A moment later, he put his arms under her legs and turned her onto the bed. Groaning, she held her stomach and turned onto her side so that she could face him as he sat in the chair across from her place. She got comfortable, laying her elbow in the curve of her waist as she reached out and rubbed her stomach. Joe pulled the chair right up beside her, propping his legs on the bed.

'Do you want to talk now?'

'I think I got it all off my chest,' she replied, smiling down at her stomach. 'And I think these two aren't going to give me the end of it for yelling at their daddy.'

'They have to be happier than they were when he was gone.'

'I think so,' Lisa smiled. 'Now if they'd show their love for all of us by descending ever so slightly and being born, that would be fabulous.'

'You're at twenty eight weeks,' he said back with a laugh. 'Let's try to at least make it another ten weeks, okay?'

Lisa groaned but then grew quiet, listening to the mêlée going on two floors down. After a few seconds, she looked at her father. 'What are we going to do with him?'

'You want me to go ask Augustine and your mom?'

She shook her head. 'Stay here with me, Daddy. I want some company. It's very lonely in bed, even when Jackson's in here.'

He smiled at her sadly, reaching out to rub her face with the back of his fingers. 'I'm so proud of you, Leese.'

'Da-ad,' she said, rolling her eyes.

'You realise most people would have given up now, right?' he asked. 'No one would put up with this like you have. And being able to move beyond the rape like you have, to be able to give us grandchildren, it's incredible. There's no way your mom and I could be any more proud of you than we already are.'

Even in the dark, he could see her blushing as she pressed her face into the pillow. With a contented sigh, Joe leaned back in the chair, smiling as a loudly purring Alfie jumped up into his lap. They sat in the quiet for several minutes, just listening to Alfie purr, but both of them tensed when there was the sound of someone running up the stairs, Lisa squeezing her eyes shut and covering her face with her pillow when the door was thrown open.

'Lisa, Joe, the ambulance is here to take Jackson to Manhattan Psychiatric,' said Augustine softly, holding on to the door handle. 'You guys just stay here and we'll take care of admitting him.'

'No,' Lisa said, her voice muffled by the pillow. 'Let me throw something on and come with you.'

'Lisa, you need to stay in bed,' Augustine said in a pleading voice, leaning forward. 'You've already had enough stress today.'

But Lisa was already sitting up. Her father got up, putting his hands under her arms and helping her off of the bed. She took a deep breath, leaning back to stretch her abdomen and pop her back. When she straightened up, her father was holding out a sweater for her to put on over her drawstring pants and t-shirt. She pulled it over her head and down over her stomach, smiling at her dad when she finished. He put his arm around her waist, guiding her over towards Augustine, who held the door open for them.

'They were putting him on the gurney when I was down there,' Augustine said, walking over to the elevator. 'They're waiting for me though, so they shouldn't have left yet...'

The elevator ride was tense as Augustine tapped her foot and watched the dial as they descended to the lobby. Once there, they watched the EMTs wheel the gurney with Jackson down the front steps toward the ambulance. Augustine ran after them, leaving Joe and Lisa in the lobby as she went to talk to the EMTs and Carol. Father and daughter stood just inside the doors, watching as Augustine explained something to the EMTs, pointing toward Lisa before walking back up the stairs and opening the door.

'Okay, Lisa can go in the ambulance, and the rest of us will follow in the car,' Augustine explained, taking Lisa's arm and leading her down the stairs. 'They brought IM haloperidol and already gave it to him, so he's probably a little woozy right now, but at least he's not violent.'

'Yeah,' said Lisa half-heartedly as the EMTs lifted her up into the ambulance next to Jackson. They closed the doors behind her and she sat down, looking at her husband as he stared up at the ceiling of the vehicle. 'Hey Jackson.'

He was strapped down at eight points: his wrists, his chest, his waist, his upper legs and ankles. Blinking slowly, he turned his head to look at Lisa, trying to reach over to her. With a smile and a tip of the head, she took his hand and leaned to the side, rubbing his cheek with the back of her knuckles. He watched her as the ambulance began to move, but once they sped up, his eyes closed and he began to give in to the haloperidol. His breathing evened out and he pressed against her hand.

'Leese?'

'Hm?' she replied, biting her bottom lip.

His eyes opened again and she saw that dark focus that she hadn't seen in years. 'This isn't over.'

'What?' she asked, dropping his hand, but in response, he just closed his eyes.

---

The Manhattan Psychiatric Hospital sat on its own little island between Manhattan and Queens. The facility was high security, the fences around it covered in coiled barbed wire. Not much else rose up on Ward's Island other than the Centre, and all around it was a state park. Augustine sat in the back seat of the Rippners' Audi Q7, leaning against the back of the seat Carol sat in. They were caught in traffic, not being able to siren their way through the streets. The car was now stopped in front of the Museum of Natural Sciences, and Augustine had her face pressed against the glass to look at Central Park.

'Gisa,' said Carol, using the new nickname she'd chosen. 'I'm sorry about getting snappy with you earlier.'

'You didn't know,' she replied with a smile.

'You probably don't want to, but—'

'Yeah,' Augustine said, still looking out the window. 'I was born in Ohio, but I went anywhere mom was sent. She was based in Geneva for a good chunk of time, like for six years after I was born. I grew up thinking I was Swiss, and Jackson and Lyna even used to have to babysit me every now and then. I would play in Poulain's office and he always smiled at me like I was a mistake, but a mistake that could be handled. When I was about seven, we moved to New York. I don't know if it was mom's idea or the patron's idea, but one night, she came into my room, and I thought she was coming to put me to bed, but instead she just took my pillow and shoved it onto my face. I couldn't breathe, it was dark, and everything got tingly and numb all at the same time. I don't really remember what happened after that.'

Joe was cut off and honked angrily. 'You said you have an adoptive mother?'

'Sort of a semi-mom. She's my godmother, but I call her Momma,' Augustine said simply, and it was clear from her tone that she didn't intend to expound on the topic.

After a long pause, Carol finally spoke. 'Are you going to stay with Jackson and Lisa once the twins are born?'

Augustine nodded. 'If they want me to.'

'I'm a realist,' Carol said. 'It could be a few years of therapy before Jackson responds and is able to integrate. Until then, Lisa will need as much help as possible, but I can't be here as much as I'd like.'

'Don't worry, Dr Bellamy, I'll take care of everyone,' she replied moderately half-heartedly.

The traffic finally started moving, and within a few minutes, they were driving on the bridge that led to the psychiatric hospital. Despite having a head start, the EMTs were just then pulling out Jackson's gurney. Lisa watched them from a wheelchair that was attended by a nurse, but as soon as Augustine got out of the car, she went over and took the other nurse's place. Carol and Joe walked along after Jackson's gurney to the admitting area, where they had three thick doors closed and locked behind them.

'It's basically a prison ward,' said the person leading them in. 'We have some very dangerous people here who are not ready to be in society.'

Augustine sped up and pushed Lisa's wheelchair next to the gurney so that the older woman could hold Jackson's hand as they rolled along. They took him to a white, padded room with barred windows and a hospital bed. The nurses lifted the stretcher and transferred him to the room bed, quickly closing the restrains before he could respond. Augustine pushed Lisa into the room, setting the wheelchair right next to Jackson's bed.

'We're gonna go get him checked in,' she said softly. 'Will you be fine in here?'

Lisa nodded, and with that confirmation, Augustine left the room, closing the door with a clank behind her. A moment later, there was the sound of an automatic lock slipping closed.

'Are they gone?' Jackson asked exhaustedly.

'Yeah, I'm the only one here,' Lisa said, pulling herself forward by grabbing on the edge of the bed. 'What's wrong?'

'Come a little closer,' he said, his fingers stretching.

Standing slowly, she took a step toward the bed, rolled the wheelchair closer and was about to sit down again when he spoke.

'No,' said Jackson, holding his hand up as best he could against the restraints. 'I'm going to be away for awhile, so I want to feel the babies.'

'Jackson...' Lisa said quietly, but regardless stepped close enough so his fingers could brush against her stomach.

'I can't...' he started, drifting off as he strained to flatten his hand against her stomach.

Lisa looked at him for a moment before blowing out a little puff of breath and reaching down to undo the wrist restraint, taking his hand and holding it against her. He gave her a little smile, but she realised that the smile didn't spread to his eyes as he flexed his fingers under her hand.

'Okay, let's go ahead and—'

In no more than a split second, he took his hand from her and rolled over enough to throw his arm over to the other wrist and free his hand from the restraint. Scrambling, she tried to grab him back and press him against the bed, but her stomach got in the way. After a few seconds of struggling with them, he'd managed to loosen both his chest and waist restraints, and before she was able to duck, he brought his arm up and connected his elbow harshly with her trachea. Coughing raggedly, she fell back into the wheelchair, her hands pressed up against her windpipe. He didn't even pay attention to her as he sat up, undoing the restraints on his legs and ankles.

'Thanks,' he said with a smile and a wink as he kicked the restraints completely off and slid off the gurney. 'Couldn't have done it on my own.'

A pitiful look came over her face as he looked at the door, then turned back to her. Tipping his head calmly, he stepped over her and put his hands on the arms of the wheelchair, slowly pushing her back to the wall with his face just inches from hers. Lisa stared at him as he took hold of her upper arms, brushing them up to catch the ends of her pinned-up hair and twist the curls around his fingers. She breathed in and out slowly and carefully, her entire body tense. His jaw set, his hands started to shake as he tugged on her hair before clasping her neck. Her eyes opened wide and she tried to kick at him, her hands flying up to claw at the back of his own.

'Don't fight it, Leese,' he hissed through his teeth. 'Come on, sweetie.'

'Jackson...' she managed in a breathy voice.

He shook his head. 'Not now, Lisa.'

Stressful tears rolled down her cheeks as the room and her husband became blurred. If her husband weren't holding so tenaciously to her neck, her head would have fallen to the side, but all it did was just loll a bit. Her eyes half closed as Jackson squeezed tighter, and she was about to completely pass out when there was a click and her father appeared in her sight, moving to her seemingly in slow motion and grabbing Jackson's hands and prying them from Lisa's neck. As Lisa fell to the side, Joe shoved Jackson away.

'We need help in here! Code A!' yelled Augustine from the door as Carol and the check-in nurse moved past her to help pin Jackson to the floor. 'Bring haldol!'

After yelling, Augustine went into the room and over to Lisa, tapping the side of her face in panic. On the floor, Joe and the nurse had thrown themselves over Jackson's legs, trying to hold him at bay as Carol pinned down his arms. After less than a minute, though it seemed like forever, a team of psych ward nurses and orderlies burst in, helping them lift Jackson onto the bed. The seven people strapped him into the bed, Jackson fighting against them even after he was completely strapped down. He yelled and tried to move away from Carol as she came up to him, one syringe held between her fingers and the other poised ready to inject. Without much ceremony, she harshly stabbed it into his upper arm, quickly injecting all of it before preparing the other and doing the same. He glared at her with his jaw tensed as his movements slowed to something resembling twitching. Slowly, his eyes closed and he fell completely still.

Carol stood by Jackson, staring down at him as she breathed heavily with the second syringe still clasped in her hand. After a moment, Joe turned from the group and walked to Augustine, who was in the process of triaging Lisa.

'Lisa? Can you focus on me?' Augustine asked, holding a finger up to her nose as she supported Lisa's head.

'God,' murmured Joe, bending down and grabbing Lisa's hand, setting it up on the arm of the wheelchair instead of hanging to her side like it had been.

'It's going to be easier for us if we can lay her down,' said Augustine absentmindedly, looking back and forth until turning to look at the remaining psychiatric staff. 'We need a gurney.'

'Should we call the hospital?' asked Joe, rubbing Lisa's knee.

'For now, just get a gurney to stretch her out on. I think she's a little shocked,' Augustine replied, smiling at Lisa encouragingly as she held the side of her face.

Once the staff wheeled in the gurney, everyone helped Lisa onto it before wheeling her into an unoccupied room. Carol brushed her daughter's hair from her neck before examining the heavily bruised area with knit brow. Her fingers went lightly over the skin, trying to determine if Jackson had managed to damage the tracheal cartilage or perhaps even fracture Lisa's hyoid bone. She pressed against Lisa's neck slightly.

'Can you breathe for me, baby?'

Lisa breathed, and Carol visibly relaxed. She smoothed back Lisa's hair from her face, smiling at her daughter.

'It's gonna be all right, honey,' said Carol. 'Just lie here for as long as you need to so you can calm down. Jackson's asleep now, and he's strapped down very securely. You don't have anything to worry about.'

'We should probably take her to Metropolitan just to be safe,' said Augustine, shaking her head and putting her hands on her hips.

Carol held up her hand, gesturing to Augustine and walking out to the hall. Once outside, she leaned against the wall, crossing her arms and watching Augustine close the door behind her.

'I want you to call Metropolitan and explain to them what happened. It's not an emergency, but Lisa does need to be checked out by a general practitioner and probably an OB-GYN. She's been under a lot of stress the last couple of days and I want to make sure that hasn't had any adverse effects on the babies,' said Carol, looking at Augustine intently. 'Can you handle that?'