CHAPTER SIX
There was an all too brief moment as he drifted into consciousness when he wasn't aware of the pain and didn't remember what had happened to him. But he'd move an arm or leg or shift his body, and a stab of pain would hit, and he'd remember. Remember the blows. Remember the rage and hatred in Copa's eyes as the ex-cop swung the baton again and again. Remember the fear he felt when he saw Gyson at the end of the alley. Then he'd open his eyes and see Alex and Gyson. They'd both spring forward when they saw he was awake. And he'd see the pity in their eyes. He'd wish he could hide under the bed, or in the closet, or anywhere.
He felt so good as he walked to his appointment with Gyson. The sessions were tough, even brutal, but they were helping him. Alex told him they were, and he knew it too. He was sleeping and eating better—hell, he was eating and sleeping regularly for the first time in years. He looked better. He even looked forward to some of the sessions. He liked Gyson. The psychiatrist was smart, and he enjoyed sparring with her. But she wasn't competitive, and Bobby never sensed with her, as he had with many psychiatrists and psychologists he'd encountered, that he or his mother were some kind of trophy patients to prod and possibly even profit from. He looked forward to this particular evening's session in spite of the possibility Gyson might want to discuss Alex. He liked to talk about Alex, but he didn't like to talk about how he felt about Alex. He wasn't sure about his feelings about Alex, especially now that his sessions with Dr. Gyson had given him the right to think about his feelings about Alex.
He was thinking about how he thought about Alex as he passed by the alley and heard a call for help. As he stepped into the alley, he reached for his cell phone. He never got it out.
He tried to fight them off, but there were four of them, and, in addition to Copa's baton, at least one of the others had brass knuckles. He curled up in a ball and tried to shield his head. "I'm going to die in this alley," he thought. "And I'm never going to be able to tell Alex how I feel about her..."
One of his attackers ripped his jacket open to reveal his badge and gun. The beating stopped, and Bobby heard an argument he couldn't follow. It had something to do with his being a cop. He stared through the legs of his attackers to see Dr. Gyson at the alley's entrance.
"No...No...Don't come down here," Bobby thought. "No..."
The baton slammed against his back and drove away his thoughts. There was nothing but pain—red, hard, sharp pain. He heard shouts and sirens at the edge of his mind, and the blows stopped. There was an argument and a scuffle, and Copa swung the baton for a last blow. And then they were gone. He lay on the ground and tried not to move. If he didn't move and took shallow breaths, it didn't hurt as much. He didn't recall much of the ride to the hospital. Everything came to him through pain and the medication until he saw Alex in the ER. Then he late the darkness take him. He drifted for some time, until the painkillers and exhaustion and a desire not to deal with anything. Every time he woke, Gyson and Alex were by his bed. He tried to avoid their faces; he didn't want to see the pity and the fear there. He didn't tell Alex that Copa whispered into his ear that his next target would be Alex Eames.
"I'll get your pretty little partner," Copa muttered. "And you won't be able to do a thing about it."
Bobby managed some juice after he spoke with Alex and Gyson and before he fell back against his pillows. Drinking the juice had made them ridiculously happy. He was drifting into sleep when he heard Alex's cell phone ringing. He wasn't sure if he was dreaming as he caught bits of her conversation. He became fully awake when he heard Hannah's voice. He remained still but listened intently. He'd learned to play possum when he was a kid, where the difference between being asleep and awake meant remaining safe in bed and getting beaten with a belt. He'd also developed a keen ability to listen, which had saved him from the rages of the man he thought was his father, his brother's machinations, and his mother's delusions. He heard Hannah and Eames talking about Copa's presence in the hospital, and he nearly shot from the bed. Bobby realized he hadn't heard Gyson's voice in some time, and a heavy stone of fear settled in his stomach. He'd told Gyson and Alex that he thought Copa might not recognize the psychiatrist, but what if his stupid theories were wrong? What if because of him Gyson had walked right into Copa's hands? He was about to reveal he was awake when he heard Gyson's voice. She and Alex spoke softly, and he was exhausted and in pain, but he managed to gather enough to recognize Copa wasn't a danger any more.
"Good," Bobby thought. "But...I...We were lucky...Lucky..." He buried his face in the pillow. "I could've gotten you both killed."
END CHAPTER SIX