A/N: HEY! Thanks again for reading and reviewing my story.

And no, there is no connection between Charlie´s accident and the problems Toyota has.. It´s all Mary´s fault.

A very special thanks to jonsmom14!You are the best!

The stalker

by elessar73

6 chapter:A nightmare comes true

Don turned off the TV and checked his watch-nearly 7.30.´Where was Charlie?´.

Charlie was supposed to be on his way. He should have been home at least thirty minutes ago. Don got up from the sofa to join Alan in the kitchen. After a moment of hesitation and an internal argument, he grabbed another beer.´A second bottle won´t hurt.´

Don peered over Alan´s shoulder. His dad was preparing a mixed salad. He was cutting up tomatoes and onions. Alan noticed the look on his oldest son´s face. He knew what would happen next and grinned in expectation. Don didn´t disappoint him. His nearly 34-year-old son childishly fished slices of red pepper out of a bowl with his fingers.

"Donnie!" Alan adomished him,trying hard to look stern." You know bettter than to put your fingers in the food, use a fork!"

Don smiled." I´m starving Dad."

Alan shook his head. " That´s no excuse Donald."

Don shot him an apologetic look and changed the subject." Um, I guess I´ll call Charlie again. I wonder what´s keeping him, he should be home already."

Alan lifted his head and turned to face his oldest. He noticed Don´s concern. The latest event hadn´t been forgotten.

" Yeah, but that´s typical. I bet he´s still in his office. Tell him dinner is almost ready and if he´s too late it´ll all be gone."

Both men grinned.

Don opened his cell and was just about to hit the speed-dial button when the door bell rang." There he is, just in time." Don placed his cell on the counter and rushed to the door.

Alan was left behind in the kitchen shaking his head. "Why should Charlie ring the bell-he has keys?"

Don opened the door with a hello on his lips. Instead of his brother,Don stared into the ice-blue eyes of Colby Granger.

" Oh, hey Colby, what is it- a break in the case?" Surprised, he stepped back to let the agent enter.

"No,it´s not the case." Colby entered the house. He clentched his fist unconsciously to prepare himself. The news he had to deliver wasn´t going to be easy.

Don sensed that something was wrong. Colby was tense and worried. Finally, their eyes locked and Colby found the courage to talk. He put his hand on Don´s shoulder in a supporting manner. Don felt his panic rising. " Man, you´ve got to come to the hospital!"

The older agent paled. His eyes became unfocused as he searched for the right words. "What are you talking about?" Don´s brain refused to work right. He was caught in a vacuum and swayed on his feet. Colby tightened his grip on Don´s shoulder."Charlie?!"

It was more a statement than a question.

"Charlie was in a car accident."Colby sighed.

Don stood in silence, searching for the next action to take. There had to be something that he was supposed to do, but he couldn´t seem to think clearly enough to know what that was.A loud bang exploded in the room.A bowl had crashed to the ground. Don spun around and caught the fearful look on his father´s face. Alan stood rigid in the middle of mashed potatoes, unable to move.

It was Colby´s turn to behave like a leader. He put the two men in motion and guided them to his car. Alan slipped into the backseat while Don sat in the front. Neither Eppes had said a word so far- they were in shock. After a while, Alan was still processing what had happened when Don came to his senses. His FBI training kicked in.

" What happened?"

Colby glanced at his´s boss. Don´s words were barley more than a whisper. Don´s eyes were full of unshed tears. Colby had never seen the other man so upset. He prayed that Charlie would be alright. He couldn´t imagine what would happen if Don had to face losing his brother. Colby shuddered.´Please let Charlie be okay.´

Colby cleared his throat. " All I know is that Charlie crashed full speed into a post."

A moan from the backseat made Colby jump. He had almost forgotten about Alan.

" Oh my god, how could this happen? Charlie is a very cautious driver!" Alan stared disbelievingly into Colby´s eyes through the rear-view mirror.

Colby met Alan´s sad eyes. He wondered if he should continue with his report. The following news may be too much at the moment, but what else could he do? They both had the right to know.

"It looks like it wasn´t an accident."

"What?" Don´s voice had gained back some of his strength."What do you mean ´it wasn´t an accident´?"

Colby shifted uncomfortably."Preliminary report says that the left front wheel came loose and caused the crash. It´s unlikely that it could happen without help; Forensics is on it."

Don clenched his fists in his lap and tried to calm down. Someone had deliberately tried to hurt his little brother. He wanted to be out there finding them, but first he had to check on Charlie. The fear of losing his brother made his heart skip a beat. Scenes of Charlie surrounded by roses flashed through his mind. There was more to it, more than he could see.´Please let Charlie be alright!´Don pleaded , knowing that his father was hoping for the same. The rest of the ride was spent in silence. There was nothing more to talk about. All three of them clung to the hope that everything would turn out fine.

When they reached the UCLA Medical-Center, Don was out of the car before it had stopped rolling. He ran towards the entrance, leaving Alan and Colby behind. Alan frowned, but didn´t say anything. He got out of the car slowly. He felt reassuring hands on his arms and the old man allowed Colby to lead him to his sons.

Don reached the front desk and tried to get the attention of the receptionist. She was studying a file and didn´t notice him. Don couldn´t wait. He slammed the palms of his hands on the counter to get her attention.

" I´m here for Charles Eppes. He´s my brother. He was in a car accident." Don´s voice was clipped.

The receptionist looked up. She could see how upset the man in front of her was and gave him an encouraging smile."Let me look."

The woman typed on the keyboard of her computer." Here it is." Her voice conveyed sympathy as she shared the information." He´s still in the ER, nothing specific about his condition so far. You will have to wait until the physician is finished- I´m sorry."

Don heard the information, but he suddenly felt numb.

"The ER waiting room is over there." The receptionist instructed, pointing in the correct direction.

In a trance, Don mumbled a thank you before he turned around and bumped into his father and Colby.

"What is it, Son?" Concerned eyes scanned Don´s face hoping for good news, but all Alan and Colby could make out was worry and fear.

Don shook his head. "No news yet. He´s still in the ER. We have to wait."

Don put his arm around his father´s shoulder and guided him into the waiting room. They sat down side-by-side,held each other´s hand and waited. Colby took a seat on the opposite wall. He wanted to be close and at the same time far enough away to give them their privacy.

The time went by slowly. No word was spoken. From time-to-time Don raised his head and stared at the door in hope that someone would show up to deliver news about Charlie. During one of those occasions Don locked eyes with Colby and a thought flashed through his mind.

"How come it was you who brought the news?" Don´s voice was gruff with suppressed emotions.

"Well," Colby started."One of the police officer called to the scene recognized Charlie´s name from a case he had helped on several weeks ago. He knew that Charlie was your brother so he called the office, but you were already gone. I took the call,and well the rest...." Colby glanced down at his hands. He noticed a slight tremble. He clentched them into fists to stop it.

Don nodded."I see."

Just then, someone called from the enterance:"Family of Charles Eppes."

All three men jumped up from their seats and rushed towards the doctor standing in the door.

"I´m Alan Eppes."Alan introduced himself." I´m Charlie´s father. How is he?"

Although he noticed the impatience of the three men, the doctor kept to the protocol. He shook Alan´s hand and introduced himself." I´m Dr. Wayne Osbourne, the attending physician at the ER."

Don cut off the introduction. He couldn´t wait any longer. "How is Charlie?"

The doctor looked Don straight in the eyes,taken aback by the rudeness of the younger man. His voice was cold." May I ask who you are?"

Alan noticed the tension and tried to calm the situation down, knowing his son´s temper best when it came to Charlie. " This is my son Don-Charlie´s brother."

Dr. Osbourne nodded, but stayed cool towards him."Please, take a seat."

Don and Alan obeyed. Colby remained standing within ear shot. He didn´t want to miss a thing.

Don felt Alan´s hand clenched around his own, squeezing it tight in search of comfort. Don´s own heart contracted in fear, awaiting the news. He closed his eyes. When the doctor noticed their fear, he felt a wave of sympathy for the men. The previous episode was forgotten.

Dr. Osbourne cleared his throat." Charlie is stable and he is going to be okay."

Simultaneously Don and Alan looked up. That wasn´t at all what they had expected. The news was better than they had dared to think.

Dr. Osbourne saw the flicker of hope, which displaced the fear in the eyes of the Eppes men. He smiled in encouragement.

"Okay,"He selected the data from Charlie´s patient file. "He has suffered a concussion, several cuts from the shattered windshield- but they are mostly superficial and will heal properly. One deep cut on his forehead did need stiches. He has significant bruising on his upper body from the impact. There was one cracked rip and his collar bone was fractured."

The doctor finished his report. When he looked up again he saw two pale faces. He felt sorry for the men and hurried to add:" He will be okay. That all sounds worse than it is. We´ll have him on an IV with fluids to protect him from going into shock. He ´ll also be on painkillers and antibiotics to avoid an infection. Actually, he´s due to be realeased within the next twenty-four hours. He just has to stay overnight for observation."

Don and Alan´s eyes windened in surprise." Really?"Don stammered.

" I really mean it, he´s doing fine. He must have had a guardian angel."

"A special one." Alan whispered in Don´s ear.

Don understood.´Thanks Mom!´

Colby sighed in relief. Charlie was going to be okay. That´s all that matters right now.

Dr. Osbourne stood up."If you like, you can see him as soon as he is setteled. The receptionist at the counter can give you the room number." He informed them before leaving.

"Thank you very much!" Alan called after him.

The doctor was gone and slowly realization set in.´Charlie will be alright.´Don and Alan were overwhelmed with joy. They hugged each other tightly. Colby felt a knot in his throat and left to get Charlie´s room number.

When they reached the door they took a moment to compose themselves. Nobody knew exactly what they would find.

Colby laid a hand on each of their shoulders." You two go in, I´ll join you later. I going to try to get a hold of David and Megan to see what information they have about the accident and tell them the good news."

It was just then that Don realized that the rest of his team wasn´t there. "They are at the scene?"

Colby nodded." Charlie is one of us."

Don felt a warm sensiation ran through his body. His team was more than colleagues, they were friends and family.

" That´s good. I want every report on the accident-everything you can get." Don´s voice was that of a SAC again, determined and completely in charge. Little brother protector had turned into an FBI Agent again. Colby was relieved. Hopefully things would be back to normal soon. He turned and left them alone.

Don glanced at Alan. "Come on Dad, let´s see Charlie."

TBC