Chapter 16
"I don't want them to poke me, Bobby."
"I hear you, Ma."
"My skin is riddled with holes already. Look at this!" She said, shoving her arm in his direction. "All I did was pull a jacket on."
Bobby studied the bruise. "It looks painful, Ma."
"It doesn't take much anymore. I don't want needles, Bobby."
"There will be some. The chemo…" he said.
"Well then I don't want the chemo. You tell them no needles. If they want poison in my bloodstream they'll just have to mix it in a cocktail or something."
He grinned at her imagery. "It doesn't work that way, Ma," he said quietly.
"Don't fool yourself, Bobby. You're not doing this for me. Your motivations are completely selfish."
On another day, he would have taken it like a sucker punch, but today, he was strong. He simply looked at her. "Okay, yeah. Maybe so. Is it so wrong that I don't want my Mom to die?"
She blinked, and there was a long silence between them. "You wouldn't mind," she said, "getting the scrabble game down?"
Bobby smiled. He leaned over and kissed his mother on the cheek. Then he turned and pulled the box down from the topmost shelf. He cleared a spot at the table and set up the game.
Alex greeted him with a long, slow hug. Bobby sighed, and he could feel some of the stress easing a bit.
"How'd it go?" She asked him.
"Good," he said. "She was good today." Alex squeezed him more tightly, and then let him go. "And you?" He asked her.
The half-smile appeared on her lips. "I had lunch with my family," she said. "Liz still doesn't know what's safe to talk to me about, and Johnny looks at me like I'm from another planet. But Dad, he's okay."
Bobby grinned. "Our parents know us best," he said quietly. They held hands as they walked across the living room and into the kitchen. As she served up their dinner plates, Bobby grew thoughtful. "You okay?" she asked.
He nodded quietly. "It… it feels… safe… here, with you."
For the first time in a month, Alex's smile was full and rich. She stared at him with affection. "I never thought I'd be able to say the same," she said, looking around at the apartment where she'd been abducted. "Bobby, I can't thank you enough… for everything you've done…"
He shook his head, shrugging off her words.
"No, don't," she said gently, putting her hand on his forearm. "I know I couldn't have come this far without you. And I know it hasn't been easy for you."
His lips turned up slightly. "It was as much for me as for you," he said. "I needed you," he admitted. Bobby accepted her kiss, and as she sat back, he grew more serious. "I-I don't know what it'll be like," he said. "There's already so much to do… the insurance and the treatments and maybe I should move her back to the city… she wants to come back to the city."
Alex squeezed his arm. "You'll figure it out."
"I'm just saying, I may not be much of a… it may not be a great time for a relationship."
"Bobby, I'm not expecting you to spend all your time with me."
"Oh? Well, wh-what are you, uhm… expecting?"
Alex looked down, shaking her head. "A friend when I need it. To be your friend when you need it."
"Well, what about the, uh…" he glanced down at her bosom.
"Maybe now and then, when there's time."
"I might need to be alone, you know, when she gets—"
"It's okay."
Bobby pressed his hands against his face and sighed. Then he rubbed his eyes.
"Just tell me, Bobby. Tell me what's going on, how you're feeling about it all."
"That won't be easy."
"So I'll ask, and then you can answer. Same goes for me. Nothing is off-limits."
He nodded and replaced his hands at her hips. He gave her a quiet grin and bent down, tasting her lips.
He rose from the kiss, and Alex took him by the hand. "C'mon, dinner's waiting."
Alex heard him on the phone. It was well past midnight, and she wondered if her phone would be ringing soon, too. Only the call was taking too long. She could hear Bobby's voice in the other room. As he spoke, he got louder and louder with the aggravation. Alex rolled out of bed and went down the hall.
"Look, I already told you her name, Declan. Nicole Wallace. Yes. Yes. Well, I don't want to meet with you and… and… discuss her. No. I'm busy. I've got th-things to do." He nodded his head nervously as he listened, pacing back and forth in the living room.
"Oh, she is?" Bobby frowned, sighing. He turned and saw Alex watching him. He scratched the back of his head. "I'm sorry Jo isn't doing well. But, no, Declan. I don't have time. My mother—my mother has cancer. And I have to spend my time with her." He listened again.
"You leave Alex out of this!" Bobby shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck. "Just—she- no. No, Declan. I'm sorry. You'll just have to do your research the old fashioned way. Yeah. G-goodbye." Bobby ended the call and turned to stare at Alex. He had no idea what she might be thinking.
She only folded her arms and frowned, waiting for an explanation.
Bobby's nerves were on overdrive. "He s-said he noticed how poorly I worked the case… w-when Jo…" His head twisted back and forth in some kind of half-nod, half shake. "He says he's concerned about me, that I'm l-losing my touch."
"Bobby," Alex said, shaking her head.
"And then he talked about women serial killers. He heard about Nicole. He wants to study Nicole. He wants me to tell him about Nicole." His eyes met hers again. "I told him no. I don't want to—I can't go there."
Alex nodded in agreement.
"And then he said Jo's been asking about me, that she's not well… he wants me to visit her."
Alex paled a little.
"Well, y-you heard me. I'm not going to."
"You told him about your Mom."
"Just to get him to back off. I-I…" A shiver ran through him. "I don't want anything to do with him."
At last, Alex seemed somewhat relieved. She came closer. "You're not losing your touch, Bobby. Look how many cases we've solved since…"
He nodded, and when she was close enough, he put his arm around her.
"You could always change your number," she suggested.
Bobby chewed the inside of his cheek. What with his mother and his missing brother, that wasn't a good plan. "I don't want anything to do with him," he repeated.