I'm not sure what I think of this. I don't know whether I like it or not. But I hope at least you will.
Someday, I will stop hurting James. But it is not today. This one is a bit dark and there's a bit of violence. And also the discussion of the murder/disappearance of young people. Hopefully though, there is a bit of fluff. Thank you to princessozmaofoz for her help :)
Any medical things in this are written with a bit of research, but are in no way accurate. Don't use them for medical advice, because its most probably wrong.
I apologise for the length of this one...I got a bit carried away.
Enjoy :)
Lewis was at his wits end. James had driven to Bristol to meet a man he'd been in university with, who said he had information. They were investigating the murder of two young women and the disappearance of a student from Oxford. James had informed Lewis that he was going to drive there via the sites that the bodies were found, to try and work out a possible route the killer could have taken. Robbie had been a bit apprehensive about James going alone, but the younger man had shrugged him off with 'Harry was a mate, he's not going to do anything. If anyone should be scared, its him, especially if he's going to give me the name of the murderer and his associates.'. Robbie hadn't been happy about it at all, but nonetheless, James had left at half one that afternoon. It was now half ten at night. According to google maps (as he been shown by Hathaway) it should have taken James a little over two hours to get there, and another two to get back. Add another hour and a half for parking and meeting his friend, and checking out the dump sites, and that would have taken him to seven pm. Even adding an hour for traffic, and James should have been back two hours ago. Even if he was being waylaid, James would have let him know. He'd never knowingly make him worry.
Robbie had tried James' phone every half an hour, since the time he should have been back. Each of the four times, it had rung onto voicemail. At first, he'd just assumed that James was driving, but he knew that the younger man wouldn't ignore four missed calls. He'd pull over and return them as soon as he could. Ordinarily, Robbie wouldn't have been too worried yet, but he didn't really know who James was going to meet, and he knew how out of the way the body locations were.
Even so, there was nothing he could do for the moment, it had only been two hours. No matter how much she also cared for James, Innocent just couldn't spare the resources for a man that could just be in a pub, having lost track of time.
Robbie would just have to wait, and try and do some paperwork.
.
Maud and Fred Richardson were driving back from their son's house, after visiting him and their grandson. They had intended to leave earlier, but they'd lost track of time. And so it was that they were driving home in the dark at ten pm. They were trying to avoid the traffic, so they were using the back roads.
"Its going to be a cold one tonight Maud, did you put the heating on a timer?"
"Yes, it should have come on half an hour ago dear. It'll be nice and warm once we get home"
"40 years of marriage and you've never forgotten the heating yet."
"Oh shut up you old softie," Maud smiled as her husband drove them homeward. It started to snow and they were both grateful for the heating, both in their car, and waiting for them at home.
"I think a cup of tea is-" Maud broke off as she saw a car seemingly abandoned by the side of the road. Normally, she would have dismissed it as some kids playing, but something about this pricked her instincts. "Fred, love I think we should check that out." Fred slowed down a little as he got closer, but he was reluctant to stop.
"We've still got an hour and a half Maud dear, its probably just a stolen car some kids have abandoned."Maud was about to agree with her husband, until she saw a dark lump lying a few feet away from the front of the car as they drove past.
"Oh Fred, I'm sure there was a man lying near it. Turn around."
"It was probably just shadows dear."
"Maybe, but what if it wasn't? Its snowing Fred, whoever it is will freeze." Despite his eagerness to get home, Fred Richardson was a kind man, and he wouldn't have forgiven himself if he'd driven away. As soon as it was safe, he turned his car around, and headed back towards the abandoned (or so he hoped) vehicle.
To their dismay, the lump by the side of the road was indeed a person. Calling for Maud to pick up the torch from the glove compartment, Fred hurried over to the prone form as fast at the ice and snow would allow. He bent down to the figure and turned him slightly, dislodging snowflakes from the short hair.
"What are you doing out here eh son? No place to be taking a nap" he joked, hoping in vain for a response. There was none forthcoming. He felt for a pulse as his wife shined the torch on them both.
"Is he..." Fred paused, willing there to be a pulse under his fingers. Thankfully, he felt one, although he was under no illusions that the young man was in a bad way.
"No" He breathed out in relief. "No he's alive Maud. I don't know how though." Now that the young man was illuminated in torch light, they could see the state he was in. His face was bruised and there were a few cuts peppered across his cheek. His lip was split, and he had the beginnings of a black eye. What was worrying the old man most though, was the hue of his skin. The young man was pale, almost blending in with the snow that had fallen around him. He was cold to touch, and when Fred pulled a hand away from his head, he was shocked to see some blood on his fingers. By the torchlight, he could see short blond hair that appeared to be matted with blood.
"Stay with him Maud, I'm going to see if we still have that blanket in the car."
.
Robbie tried James' mobile again, but either it was switched off, or it had no signal, because it wasn't even ringing any more.
"Where are you kidda?" He glanced at his watch; eleven o'clock. Right. Sod it. He got up and walked purposefully to Innocent's office.
Knocking on the door, he was relieved to find that there was no one already in there. Jean looked up straight away and she must have seen the worry on his face, because she gestured for him to sit down immediately.
"Robbie, what is it?"
"James ma'am. He was supposed to be back at seven."
"Traffic?"
"For three hours? Nah. You know him Jean, he'd have called the station to let them know. Or he'd have called me."
"And you're worried."
"Its not like him." Robbie ducked his head. "I've tried to call him five times now. The first four rang out, and now its not even ringing. Jean, something must have happened to him." Innocent sighed. "Technically, I can't do anything yet-" She held up a hand to stop the angry outburst that she knew would be coming. "-But, you are right, its very out of character for him. Go and find some officers that aren't doing anything and tell them James' route. Have them go and look for him Robbie."
"Thank you ma'am." Robbie bit back what he wanted to say; If he's near Bristol, he's two hours away ma'am, we may not have that much time. He didn't say it though. He knew Jean was doing everything that she could, he see how worried she was. It would be unfair to have a go at her.
He got up and after giving her a nod, he walked out to find some idle coppers.
.
Fred brought the picnic blanket back to his wife and the stricken young man. It wasn't much, but it would provide an extra layer, and he figured this kid could do with it. Kneeling down beside his wife, he tucked the blanket around the man.
"There you go lad, might keep you a bit warmer don't you think?" Still no response.
"What do we do Fred?" His wife asked. "There's no signal here, and we can't leave him to get help."
"I'm not sure. We definitely can't leave the poor young sod here, he'll freeze to death or someone will run him over."
"We've got to do something dear. Look at him, there's nothing to him as it is."
"Maybe we should wait a few more minutes, just to see if he comes round, and then we'll drive him into the nearest hospital."
"Five minutes then. He needs to be in hospital Fred. They need to be getting him warm, never mind anything else." Fred patted this young man's leg and elicited a sharp gasp from him. Looking down, he saw blood on the trousers. "Christ Maud, his leg is broken. Dammit, I should have checked. Go and get some thick sticks please. I'll try and splint it." He looks down at the man, who seems to be climbing into consciousness. "I'm sorry lad, I should have checked. How long have you been awake and in pain eh?" Maud heard this as she returned with a few thick sticks and rested a hand on her husband's shoulder.
"You're not in the army any more Fred, its ok to be out of practice." A pained groan splintered the moment and they both turned their attention to the young man lying next to them.
"Hello son. Its good to see you awake. I'm Fred, this is my wife Maud." The man starts trying to move and jars his leg, ripping a hoarse scream from his throat.
"No, don't do that. Can you tell me your name laddie?"
"J-James..." the man gasps out, and Fred smiles.
"Well James, it seems you've got yourself into a bit of bother. You've been hit on the head. Your right leg is broken, and you've been a bit beaten about. I'm going to put it in a makeshift splint. Ok?" James nods and Maud squeezes his shoulder.
"He used to be in the army James love, he knows what he's doing." Another nod, and Fred talks to him again.
"Sorry kiddo, we don't have any painkillers, so this is going to hurt."
"B-been shot...felt p-pain...jus' do it."
"Army?" James shakes his head slowly.
"P-police. Oxford...CID"
"Good lad. Right here we go." Quietly, he turns to his wife. "Give him your hand to squeeze Maud, and try to hold him down if he moves too much." The old lady shuffled so that she was by James' head, and then took his hand, before resting his head on her knee to support him.
"Don't you worry about my fingers love. You squeeze them as hard as you need to."
"Might r-regret...saying th-that" James says with a small, pained chuckle.
"Nah, you ready?"
"Y-yeah."
As gentle as Fred tries to be, James is soon holding onto Maud's hand as though his life depended on it. As he starts to try and take deep breaths, he realises that his chest hurts. Fred notices and stops what he's doing.
"Does breathing hurt James?"
"Mmmm...Deep b-breaths...a lot."
"I think you've got a few cracked ribs lad. Let me check after I'm done with this leg of yours. Try to keep calm."
James grunts in pain as Fred jostles his leg a little, but he doesn't cry out again, instead he just clings to Maud's hand . He tries to use the pain in his chest as a distraction, but it doesn't work, he's not sure what hurts more, his leg of his ribs.
It soon comes to his attention that his leg is immobilised. He also realises how cold he is, unconsciousness and adrenaline keeping it at bay until that moment. He shivers violently and whimpers as it aggravates the pain in his ribs.
"I know James, I know. It'll be ok love," Maud soothes, with little success. Fred carefully feels along James' ribs, until he identifies which ones are damaged.
"I don't think they're out of place, just cracked. They won't be stabbing through your lungs any time soon. But we need to get you to a hospital my boy." James shakes his head.
"N-not hospital...need to...phone my boss...H-he'll come and p-pick m-me up."
"James son, you've got a head injury, a broken leg, and cracked ribs."
"B-be fine...not that bad...need...get back t'work...reports t'write." Fred shakes his head, and then something occurs to him. The boy is probably bordering on hypothermia, assuming he's not suffering from it already. It would account for the confusion and disorientation he's showing. And the aforementioned head injury isn't going to be helping.
"Maud dear, could you try and warm him up? Hug him close, but watch his ribs. And keep him talking. I need to check his head wound, but I don't want to alarm the poor bloke. We need to try and keep him awake I think."
"Of course I can." She looks down at James. "Well now love, why don't you tell me about yourself eh?"
"D-don't wan'...hosp...hosp'tal."
"I know. But while we're sitting here, we may as well get to know each other." She wraps the blanket around him more, and circles her arm around his chest, making sure that Fred can get to his head, but its still resting on her knee. "Tell you what James. Can you remember what happened to you? Why don't you tell me how you got into this mess?" James blinks up at her a few times, and then haltingly explains what happened.
.
Hathaway got out of the car at the second dump site. Tasmin Gibson had been 17 when she was murdered, and her body had been left in the woods, not far from the roadside on a remote stretch between Oxford and Bristol. Her body had been discovered by a dog walker, three days after the previous victim's body had been found. The post mortem had shown that both girls had died three days previous, and forensics had come to the conclusion that they were probably killed in the same place. A young man was missing from Bristol, and it was looking increasingly likely that he wouldn't be found alive. James had taken it upon himself to retrace the route, on his way to Bristol, and try and identify any areas in which the young man's body was likely to be found.
While he stood there surveying the scene, and trying to work out if its possible that there was a second body in this area, that had just been missed; a dark coloured car pulled up behind his. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up a little, and he walked closer to his own car, making sure he had easy access to the driver seat. As he watched however, three men got out of the car and started to walk towards him. James was fairly alarmed now; if they'd needed to ask him something like directions, or even for help, it wouldn't take three of them to do it.
His fear was justified, as he heard one of the men whisper urgently 'Yeah, that's him' and he heard the unmistakable thump of someone hefting a blunt instrument. Shit James, what have you stumbled into, he thought to himself as they came closer. He attempted to get in his car, uncaring if they knew he was scared. Before he managed it though, one of them was upon him, and dragged him free of the door, shoving him into the clear space of the lay-by.
"Sergeant Hathaway I presume," The largest looking one said. James could see from the faint moonlight that the man was completely bald, and just behind his left ear, was a tattoo of a wolf fang, which was the main feature of the gang they were investigating. If he was wondering how they knew his name, he didn't have to wait long.
"Harry sends his regards. He can't make it I'm afraid. See, the boss doesn't like snitches. He doesn't like coppers either. So imagine his delight when he discovers that dear Harry is going to be talking to a copper about him. He wasn't best pleased, was he Sid?" James groaned mentally. They weren't trying to hide their identities, they obviously weren't worried about him being able to point them out at a later date.
"No John, not pleased at all."
"So he sent us to sort it all out for him. And that's just what we're going to do." James tried the first thing he could think of.
"My boss knows where I am, I'm expected back. Anything happens to me and they'll come and hunt you down so fast you won't know what's hit you."
"You don't really believe that do you sergeant? You're in the middle of nowhere and you're at least an hour and a half from your station. You'll have been here for nearly two hours before anyone even gets worried enough to come looking." Before James has a chance to answer, the one of them that hasn't spoken yet, darts forward and shoves him to the ground. A few seconds and they set upon him. Agility means that he dodges the first few blows, but one is landed on his rib and the air is knocked from him. There's a fist in his face, followed in quick succession by a few more, and he knows he's lost the fight. A ring scrapes across his scalp, and he can feel the tickle where blood is oozing slowly out. Knowing that there's no point trying to fight his way out, he gives up and awaits the next blow. Another hit to his ribs, and he closes his eyes; if he's going to die this way, he doesn't want to see it coming. Then as soon as the blows started, they stopped.
"I think he's copped it."
"Dead?"
"Yeah. And if he ain't, he won't last long out here will he? Come on, lets split. Its going to snow soon, we don't want to leave tracks for them to follow do we?". James, somewhere on the edge of consciousness, doesn't really pick up on all of this. What he does pick up on, is the lead pipe that's slammed into his tibia. He hears the crunch and pain overwhelms him, dragging him over the edge into oblivion.
"Fred. Fred he's out cold."
"Shit, he's getting worse. Right nothing for it Maud love, we'll have to drive him to hospital now, whether he likes it or not." He gently lifts James off Maud's lap, and lays him down on the ground. "Pack that blanket around him tighter. That's it. Now we need to get him in the back seat. Carefully though, too much movement will mess up his heart rhythm."
They get James into the back seat of their car without mishap. Maud almost wishes the young man was awake and moaning in pain. Almost. At least that way, she'd know he was alive. They decide that Maud will sit in the back with him, and then, they can rest his bad leg on the front passenger seat. It'll be a squeeze, but with a splint on it, they don't have much choice. Besides, one look at Maud told Fred that she wouldn't be able to be calm if she didn't have an easy way of checking on the young man they had brought into their care. He made sure his wife and the young invalid were settled in the back, and then he drove off, as fast as was safe.
.
Lewis looked at the screen of his phone, as it vibrated angrily, alerting him to the fact that someone was ringing him. Laura. As much as he wanted to carry on organising the search party for James, he couldn't ignore her call.
"Laura." He sighed tiredly.
"Its true isn't it? I've been hearing some rumours about a CID sergeant gone missing. Its-"
"-James. Yeah. Been out of touch for about three and a half hours now."
"That's not like him."
"That's what I said, Innocent as well. We've got officers on his last known route looking for him and-" He looked up as a young constable shouted to him, waving excitedly. "Laura I have to go, looks like something is happening."
"Ok, let me know what happens Robbie."
"I will, I'll keep you posted, promise. Bye Laura" He shut off the call and turned to the young copper.
"What have you got lad?"
"Traffic found Hathaway's car abandoned sir. Bout half an hour from Bristol."
"What have they said?" The youngster swallowed nervously.
"Sergeant Hathaway isn't there sir. The keys are still in the ignition, but he engine wasn't running when they got there"
"And James?" Robbie asked, even though he had a feeling that he knew was coming.
"No sign of him sir. But there's um...some blood at the scene. And an discarded length of pipe a few metres up the road, along with a set of tyre tracks. Forensics are up there taking casts as we speak sir, and our boys are combing the woods to see if Sergeant Hathaway is maybe taking shelter in them."
"Good man" Robbie said roughly. While it was good news that they hadn't found James' body, the idea of the man alone in the woods, and possibly injured, wasn't making him feel better about the situation.
.
Hathaway groaned in pain as they went over a speed bump.
"Hello dear, we were starting to get worried about you," Maud said to him as he tried to sit up. "No, no, you need to stay lying down love." She circled his chest again protectively and he quickly relaxed as much as he could.
"Where w'going?"
"Hospital James. We need to get you looked at."
"N-no."
"Enough of that young man. You need help." He coughed and it sent a spasm of pain through his ribs, which in turn set off a coughing fit. Each cough felt like he was being stabbed and there were soon tears in his eyes as he tried not to cry out.
"H-hurts" He managed through pained gasps.
"That's why you need to go to hospital James." He nodded as more coughs wracked his body.
"W-want...pain...t'stop."
"I know. Shhh love, its ok. It'll all be ok." She absently runs her thumb over the back of the confused young man's hand, continuing to murmur comfort to him. "He's still a bit out of it Fred, more like a child than a police officer, poor sod."
"Its ok. We're five minutes from the John Radcliff. We'll get him looked at in no time. "
"He's only a couple of years younger than our Rick, I reckon."
"Maud dear, he'll be ok, they'll sort him out."
"I hope so. I think I may have developed a soft spot for this young man."
.
Robbie had been updating Jean on the situation when his phone rang. Although Jean would ordinarily have given him an ear bashing if he'd dared answer it in her office instead of talking to her, she was aware these were special circumstances. She was also aware, that if the caller bared news of his sergeant, she'd have no power at all to stop Robbie taking the call.
"I know where he is Ma'am." He explained to her, and then hurried out, calling Laura to update her as he went.
Ten minutes later, Jean gathered everyone involved in the search into the office. Once the hubbub had died down, she spoke.
"I have received information concerning Sergeant Hathaway. The John Radcliff just phoned Inspector Lewis to inform him that they have James on their high dependency unit. From what I could gather, he's suffering from moderate hypothermia, as well as fractures to his leg and ribs after what looks to be an assault. They assured Lewis that he should make a full recovery in time." There was a ripple of relief around the room. The officers in CID may find Hathaway to be hard to connect to, aloof, or just a smart-arse; but you'd be hard pressed to find a member that actively disliked him. As always, when one of their own was in trouble, they banded together like nobody else.
"Now that we know James is ok, we need to concentrate our efforts on identifying and arresting the people responsible. That will be easier when Sergeant Hathaway is able to make a statement, but we can make a start by looking for any cars reported stolen that would match the tracks that Forensics uncovered. Thank you for your time and effort, I know some of you should be off duty now." She smiled and the officers went back to what they were doing, calling search parties back to base, and making inquiries into stolen vehicles.
.
Lewis hurried to the John Radcliff as fast as he could. James had jokingly mentioned that Robbie better be his listed next of kin once, since he spent the most time with him. This was after Lewis had complained about the difficulty in tracing them. He never thought that James would actually follow up on it. For that was what the call had been; the hospital calling him, not in a lawful capacity, but a personal one.
Once he reached the HDU front desk he asked after Hathaway as patiently as he could. He'd been told that James wasn't in any particular danger, but he needed to see for himself.
"He's in bed seven Inspector. I think his parents are with him now." His parents? James has never mentioned his parents, and Robbie now knows that he is listed as James' emergency contact. His parents have never shown up before. Not when James was shot at Creavecour. Not when he had arsenic poisoning. Not when James had nearly been burnt alive. Not any other time he had needed them. And as far as he is aware, James never asked for them. So what are they doing here now.
He rounds the corner and quickly makes out bed seven, heading over to it. There's an old couple sitting in chairs by James' bedside and if they are Hathaway's parents, they aren't what Robbie is expecting. For a start, they look a lot more homely and kind that Robbie ever thought James' parents were. As he stands there, he's aware he should introduce himself as James' boss. These two people don't know him from the next man.
"Mr and Mrs Hathaway?" he asks uncertainly, and they both look up.
"Gracious me no," The old lady says, smiling slightly. "Maud Richardson. And this is my husband Fred." Fred extends his hand and shakes Robbie's warmly.
"You must be his boss. He was adamant that we get in contact with you. Lucky that the hospital had your number really. He didn't even give us your name. Not that we can blame him in the circumstances." The confusion on Robbie's face must be obvious, because Maud takes his hand in her own and explains.
"We found young James by the side of the road and brought him here." Suddenly, she looks up at him, as if she's just realised something. "You seemed surprised to meet his parents. Are they on their way."
"Urm...N-no. I'm not even sure that they are still living. No love lost there if they are either, from what I can tell"
"Oh the poor lamb," Maud says sadly as she looks over at James. Its now that Robbie has a look as well, and he can't help but exhale softly.
James is lying, still as can be, with a blanket pulled up to his shoulders. His face is a map of bruises and cuts, and the swelling from earlier has become worse since Fred and Maud found him. His right leg is in a cast. The short blond hair is still stained slightly red above his ear, surrounding a shallow but painful looking gash. What worries Robbie most though, more than the injuries and the various medical sensors attached to James' arms and fingers, is the oxygen mask strapped to his face. The lad is supposed to be out of the woods, both literally and metaphorically. Why does he have breathing assistance? As if reading his mind, Fred gently explains.
"His breathing is fine Mr..."
"Lewis...Robbie." he says, chastising himself for not introducing himself like he'd meant to in the first place.
"His breathing is fine Robbie. But he's really cold, so they are giving him warmed air to get his core temperature up. That's what the doctor said anyway." Robbie nodded and lay his hand over James' substantially colder one.
"What happened to you eh kidda? You've had the whole station worried sick." Fred and Maud explain what James had managed to tell him about the incident before he passed out, and Robbie makes a quick call to the station so that the officers can use the information. They could be waiting a little while before James is able to make a statement and Robbie wants the bastards that put his sergeant in hospital caught. When he returns, Fred and Maud are getting up, and gathering their things.
"We really need to be leaving. We didn't want to leave him alone to wake up. But your here for him now."
"Thank you." And Robbie means it with all he has. "There are far to many people that would have just left him. More still that would have done once they found out he was a copper." He struggles a bit with what to say, knowing that really, its James that needs to hear this bit. Knowing equally that he'll never find the right way to tell him, he'll just have to hope James works it out.
"That young man has become a bit like a second son to me over the seven years that we've worked together. If you hadn't helped him, I'd have lost him tonight."
"We couldn't have just left him there. We'd never have forgiven ourselves." Maud scribbles a phone number and an address down on a little bit of paper, and hands it to Robbie. "We'd be really grateful, if you let us know how he gets on. Tell him to get in touch when he's feeling better." Fred rolled his eyes, but the smile showed his irritation was false.
"If that young man isn't careful, she'll have adopted him before the end of the month." Robbie smiles.
"I'll make sure to tell you. Thank you again. I really can't thank you enough."
.
Four weeks later and James is mostly recovered. His ribs still hurt a little, but its manageable with painkillers. He's given up the plaster cast and crutches in favour of a walking boot, which he's finally got the hang of.
Standing in front of the street door, he turns to Robbie.
"I don't know what to say. They saved my life, what can I say to that?"
"Well, you've said thank you over the phone so many times, I suspect they're beginning to think that's the only word you know. Hello would be a good place to start" Robbie smiles. "Just go in James. Give me a text when you're leaving and I'll come and pick you up. I know you're getting good at that boot thing, but the doctors will kill you if you walk across the whole of Oxford on it. And they'll kill me for letting you." James grins. The grin is quickly wiped from his face as Robbie reaches out and pushes the doorbell, before wandering back towards his car. Bastard, James mutters under his breath, but he doesn't mean it really. He only just has time to turn around and scowl at his governor, before the door opens.
"James love! You found us ok then?"
"Yeah, Robbie gave me a lift. He's had to go and do some shopping but he says hello."
"Come in lad. Maud, move and let him past" Fred grumbles good naturedly from the hallway. Once James has crossed the threshold, Maud stands back to get a good look at him.
"Let me have a look at that handsome face now its not all covered with bruises eh?" James smiles shyly. He can't remember the last time he was fussed over like this. Although he feels slightly awkward, he also feels loved and for that, he'll put up with the awkwardness.
"I wanted to wait until everything was all healed," he says apologetically, pointing at his booted leg. "But this doesn't come off for a while yet. And I'm back at work next week, so I don't know how much time I'll have free. I doubt Robbie's done any paperwork while I've been off." Fred smiled. Robbie had already told them that he'd saved some of the non urgent documentation to stop James being bored when he returned.
"Oh its great that you're well enough to go back James. I'm so happy for you love. But you mind they don't send you out chasing people with that ruddy great boot on your leg eh?"
"I'll be on desk duties for the next few weeks Maud, no running I promise."
"Well, you just see that you stick to it. If your boss sends you out on raids and whatnot, you tell me, and I'll have words with them." James grinned. He knew full well he'd be kept on desk duties for ages. He'd have to beg Jean to let him do anything more interesting than filing for a bit.
"Yes Mum." He mumbled facetiously, and Maud clipped his playfully around his uncut ear.
"That's enough of your cheek young man." She smiled at him, and then suddenly threw her hands in the air. "Oh goodness me, where are my manners? I should have offered you a drink. Tea James?"
"Yes please Maud. That would be lovely."
An hour and a half later, and James was full up on tea and home made Victoria sponge. Robbie had come to get him and they'd both been waylaid by Maud, who seemed intent on giving them all their weekly calories in the form of jam and cream.
When it finally became time to leave, Fred had shook Robbie hand and then James'.
"Its good to see you up and about my lad. You gave us a bit of a fright back then."
"I'm sorry. And thank you. I can't begin to know how to repay you. I owe you both my life." Maud had flapped her hands at him then, shooing him towards the door, eyes watery.
"Oh don't you start all that James Hathaway. You don't owe us nothin'. Just you look after yourself y'hear me." She sniffed at him and tried to wipe her eyes subtly. "You both look after each other now alright? That's all the thanks we need." After James and Robbie had promised to keep each other out of trouble and to keep in touch, they finally managed to leave.
Once settled in the car, Robbie turned to James.
"I do believe she's adopted you kidda." James chuckled softly.
"I think she's adopted you as well." Then the chuckle turned to a gentle smile. "There are worse things to happen to a man."
"Aye lad, that there are." Robbie said, squeezing Hathaway's shoulder. "Come on, I'll drive you back home and we can sit with a cuppa and that bloody Blues Brothers film you've been on at me to watch."
"Sounds like a plan."