THE ELIZABETH SERIES

CHAPTER EIGHTY

MANHATTAN COUNTY VERSUS THE GORDONS

by JoLayne

RATING: PG

CHARACTERS: Methos, Duncan, Amanda, Joe, OCs Elizabeth, Nick, Dr. Freelow , May, Rodney, Cops

SUMMARY: Methos and Elizabeth have a surprise waiting at the hospital for them when they finally returned to Claire.

DISCLAIMER: All characters and concepts you recognize from Highlander: The Series are owned by Panzer/Davis, and maybe Greg Widen. Just using them for fun, no profit is expected or pursued.

~~~~~

FEBRUARY 20, 2013

The last time Elizabeth had entered St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital, she had been in a frantic state. It had been just after her initial session with a psychiatrist, following which she had purchased medication from a pharmacy for serious mental health disorders, when Duncan had called her cell phone to say that Claire had been hurt. It had felt as if the walls were closing in on her then, but now, as she walked through the front door with Methos, her state of mind was a bit better. Of course she was nervous about how Claire had endured the last 24 hours without her parents, she worried about her being in a lot of pain or being scared, but now that Methos was with her and they had talked some things out she was handling this trip much better. The fact that his hand was on the small of her back as he directed her to the elevator made a shock of excitement flowed through her instead of the overwhelming dread she felt last time.

Both of them were quietly weighing their expectation as the elevator rose too slowly for her taste. To think, her daughter was just a few floors away. It had been a long trip back to her, and Elizabeth couldn't wait to feel her pre-immortal presence. From the look on Methos' face as he stared down the floor numbers slowly counting up, she knew he was just as excited. Feeling quite a bit more bold than she had the day before, Elizabeth took hold of his hand just before the doors opened on the pediatric intensive care unit.

"Made it," Methos said with a smile as he gripped her hand and walked out of the elevator. Assuming Claire was in the same room as she had been the day before, Methos and Elizabeth nearly ran down the hall that was scattered with child patients walking slowly and probably in pain, doctors making rounds, and nurses filling out charts. A woman pushing a food cart came off the service elevator, and Elizabeth almost crashed into it. If not for a quick yank by Methos to get Elizabeth out of the cart's course, she would have.

When they turned the corner and went past the waiting room where she and Methos had spent their worrying night, the first thing Elizabeth noticed was that there were a man and woman in long coats standing just outside Claire's room. Elizabeth could feel her daughter's pre-immortal hum and anxiousness to see her had her ready to burst. It certainly made her run faster.

As they reached the door, Methos said, "Excuse me," to the two people and started to push his way past them into Claire's room. He got his hand on the door before the man stopped him from opening it.

"What are you doing? Who are you?" the man called.

"I'm Claire's father. Let me through."

The woman, with short brown hair in a camel winter coat carrying a clipboard, asked, "Daniel Gordon?" She looked to Elizabeth and asked, "Elizabeth Gordon."

"Present and accounted for," Methos said impatiently since the man still wouldn't allow him access to Claire's room.

"I'm your daughter's social worker, May Nash, Mr. Gordon," she said holding her hand out to shake theirs, while the young man glared at them but stayed silent.

"My daughter doesn't need a worker, but if you've made sure she's comfortable while we couldn't be here, thank you." Methos again tried to walk past them through the door, but no dice.

The man took Methos' arm and motioned to the family waiting room back down the hallway. "My we have a word?"

"I can take care of this, Rodney." May said almost as if the young man had a temper and needed to be reminded that she was decidedly in charge. "I'll do the talking with Mr. and Mrs. Gordon."

"Talk to us about what?" Elizabeth thought she would burst if she didn't see Claire soon and she had no idea what these people wanted. She was so sick and tired of people getting between her and her family.

The man took the hint and said, "You have my cell number if you need me," but he didn't leave. He just glared at Elizabeth and Methos.

May asked, "May I talk to you for a moment?" She too motioned to the waiting room.

"No," Methos said. "I want to see Claire. She's right in there, and she wants to see me too, I assure you."

Rodney warned, "You're not going in there." Elizabeth held onto Methos' hand so he couldn't punch the man, against her better instincts, since Methos looked as if that was what he would do. She didn't want anymore disruption. If she could figure out what was going on, that would be great.

"Mr. Gordon," May said. "Claire's in the temporary custody of Manhattan County."

"What?" Methos and Elizabeth both reacted in shock. "Why?"

"Since she was deserted, Social Services were called in by her doctor, Dr. Freelow ."

"She wasn't deserted!" Elizabeth cried out; she couldn't believe what was being said.

"May we please talk in private?" May asked. Rodney sole purpose in sticking around seemed to be to make sure they didn't get any closer to Claire's room than they were.

"Your credentials. Now," Methos demanded.

Both of them showed their ID cards with their pictures, a serial number, and Manhattan County Social Services written across the top. Seeing one such card after so many years made her heart constrict. She had a student while teaching at NYU who had her children removed. It seemed like an eternal nightmare to go through the system to get her kids back. Methos seemed to be doing a slow burn, and Elizabeth now wanted him to start punching. For Social Services to confuse her and Methos will immature or negligent parents was beyond exasperating. But, true to his nature, that she knew like the back of her hand, Methos seemed to heed their advice and said, "Fine. Talk. But you better make sense. Talk fast, then go away so I can be with my daughter, where I should be right now."

"This way, please," May said, starting hesitantly down the hall, as if she wouldn't go any farther if they didn't follow her. When Elizabeth and Methos followed suit, with Rodney taking up the rear, they walked into the waiting room and took seats at the round table with the out of date magazines spread out upon it.

"What's the meaning of this charade?" Methos demanded as Rodney shut the door and sat down between May and Elizabeth.

"This 'charade,' as you call it, is serious business, Mr. Gordon," Rodney said haughtily and took a straddled seat on a backwards chair as if he were mounting a horse.

May shut down Rodney with a raised hand. "I can understand that this may be alarming to you," she started.

Methos interrupted, "'May be'?"

"Let me explain the sequence of events."

"Is Claire all right?" This was so unbelievable that there had to be some reason officials had gotten involved with her daughter's care and Elizabeth finally had to ask. She had felt her daughter's hum, but that didn't indicate that she hadn't taken a turn for the worse.

"Yes, Elizabeth," May said, then paused. "May I call you Elizabeth and Daniel?"

"If you tell us what's going on here," Methos grunted.

"We received a call yesterday at 5 o'clock from Claire's doctor informing us that he had a patient whose parents may have abandoned her."

"What?!" Methos darted to his feet.

May reacted with surprise, but calmly said, "I was given the call by my superior, and Dr. Freelow explained that Claire is ten years old, is still in critical condition, and her parents hadn't been seen most of the day. I came to the hospital only as a cautionary matter, to introduce myself to Claire, and talk with the nurses to acquaint myself with her case."

"She doesn't have a case. We were here."

"No, you weren't," Rodney challenged.

"There was a very good reason why we weren't here last night," Elizabeth said, but left it at that not wanting to bring up the start of what they'd have to fudge so soon. She just wanted to see Claire.

May continued, "When you didn't come back by midnight, I investigated the information on her file."

"Sit down, Mr. Gordon," Rodney demanded as he himself got to his feet.

Methos slowly sunk back down on the chair, but he was furious, and Elizabeth saw that he didn't care to hide it. Elizabeth didn't know how she appeared to either of them, but realized they were probably judging everything about them. She had heard horror stories about Social Services being lapse in protecting children over the years. Her Claire would never be one of those children, and she was more than put out that it would be assumed she was.

May continued as she referred to the clipboard papers, which Elizabeth surmised was Claire's file, "Claire is still in critical condition; there were parental releases required before tests that Dr. Freelow needed to have performed could be done. Claire has no insurance-"

"What sort of tests?" Elizabeth asked.

"That's for the doctor to tell you," May said.

"She has no insurance because she doesn't need it. I have money. I'm paying the bill. They know that," Methos charged. "Some investigation."

"Claire's current residence is a hotel room," May continued.

"Not a room, a suite," Methos responded.

"You seemed to have skipped from there as well."

"We did no such thing!" Methos again rose to his feet, again Rodney followed suit.

"Tell the hotel that," May stated, her voice still calm. "They didn't know if they should pack up your things since you had told them you were vacating."

"No way. I may be shaky on some activities of the past few days, but I know I gave them my credit card and said I'd give them two days notice before leaving and they should just keep-" Elizabeth quickly began to explain.

"Not you, Elizabeth." May looked up to Methos. "You, Daniel."

Elizabeth spun her head to Methos and wondered how he could have screwed up such a simple task as keeping your hotel room available for as long as you want it. But still, because of that, Social Services was called?

Methos looked as if all air had left his body as he sat back down. How did they know that? Who had they talked to? Elizabeth was confused as to how they came about that knowledge, and then her mind wandered to what Methos had told the admitting nurse about their marriage situation. Of course, he was still quite pissed with her at the time. She had still been the harlot that almost took his head, not the one who had saved it. Twice.

Methos' mouth clenched as he explained grudgingly, "I was going to take Claire on a vacation to Disney World. Now that I think about it, I did tell the desk clerk I'd be checking out... yesterday."

"You were?" Elizabeth asked him, as this was complete and utter news to her.

"Claire got hurt, then after everything, I forgot. But I didn't sign anything. They didn't get confirmation of that."

"Once again, Daniel," May said. "You'll have to talk to the St. Regis to straighten that out."

"Yes, Daniel," Elizabeth said bitterly. "You talk to them."

"This isn't my fault," he retorted.

"Is it mine?"

"It's no one's fault," May replied.

"Butt out of this," Methos said.

"We need to thoroughly investigate the matter."

Methos' voice rose more and more as he said, "I mean butt out completely. We're here now. You better have been nice and helpful to Claire, and if you were, thank you, but we don't need you anymore."

"I assure you, Mr. Gordon. You have my pledge that this case will be investigated with common sense and great care. I don't want to just take Claire away, but I have to look at this with an eye on everything to make sure what's in Claire's best interest.

"It's in Claire's best interest that she be with her parents. We're here now. You can go."

"It's not that simple, Daniel. Once we're called in, we must do our job."

"Why were you called in anyway?" Elizabeth asked as her heart started pounding she dreaded the fact that a panic attack could be on it's way. Why now? I was fine after being kidnaped, tortured, and shooting people. I was even fine during the at times turbulent talk with Methos. Why now when I need to be clear headed? she asked herself as she clenched her hands to stop them from shaking.

"I agree this happened quickly," May said in a soothing manner, probably from years of working with neglected and indigent children. "But look at this from our side: a ten year old is left in a hospital, her parents can't be found, there is no stable residence, and there is no insurance. The hospital, rightly so, is leery about such cases. There have been incidences where parents have just left a child in the hospital because they can't pay the bills, or there's a warrant for their arrest, or something. Maybe you've read about such cases in the newspaper during the last couple of years. Social Services has received extra funding in the past months to deal with getting to children before they're in extreme danger or dead. You would agree that it's horrible when children fall through the cracks. I'm also sure you are comforted that there is indeed a system, and your daughter hasn't been alone."

"Well, bravo." Methos clapped his hands slowly. "All this over a bill.... Do you want a bank statement to prove I can pay however high the bill will be? Do you want me to buy an apartment just so you feel happy? Which neighborhood would suit you? Hm? Central Park West? Will that make you feel more comfortable and prove that Claire's parents can parent her?"

"Let me ask the questions, Dan," Rodney snidely remarked. "One in particular: if you're such a caring father, where have you been?"

Methos sneered at him and said, "We were kidnaped."

Elizabeth's stomach fell; the news was now out in the open and she worried about how they would have to lie about most of what had happened. She hoped she wasn't too shaken up to get her lies straight. She had always hated lying, and it seemed that in the past ten years, she'd done more lying than her previous 170.

Because the two social workers fell silent, obviously digesting that and looking at each other, Methos leaned back in his chair and let them weigh that news. Elizabeth reached for Methos' hand as she needed to be calmed before her body failed her and fell into the deep-seated panic attack that she now knew was brewing just under the surface.

Rodney shook his head slightly then snidely remarked, "I'm sure you have proof of that. Did you call the police?"

"No," Methos said. "We came right back here to our daughter as soon as humanly possible, seeing that our daughter is in the hospital."

Elizabeth couldn't reach Methos' hands folded between his legs, so she put her hand on his right leg, and he covered it with his. He told the workers, "If you don't believe me, the car we stole from our kidnapper is just outside the front door of the hospital."

Rodney dismounted his car and went immediately to the window. From Elizabeth's sense of direction, she guessed they were just to the right of the front doors. Rodney looked down and to the left, and then relented, "There's a Mazda being towed out there."

"Yeah," Methos told him. "It's a 2008, has about 81,000 miles on it. Brakes stick a little."

May exhaled deeply and looked at them with wide eyes. "Well, this puts quite a different slant on things."

"I told you I have money, and someone else must have found that out as well."

"Someone else?" Rodney inquired.

"One Anthony Pantagllio, who is from Miami, who owns that car and kidnaped us with help from.... another fellow."

Elizabeth knew that he might have accidently said something along the lines of 'fellow watchers,' but caught himself. It was in her best interest for him to do the talking since she wasn't sure she could even utter a coherent word right now.

"Did the kidnapper just tell you his life story or something?" Rodney accused, and May put her hand on his arm, which made him pause instead of continuing his interrogation.

"No, we had hours in that car, and my wife looked in the glove compartment and found the title."

That Methos had referred to her as 'my wife' gave Elizabeth a burst of adrenaline that helped fend off the bubbling shake of anxiety. May asked, "How did you come to get away from your kidnappers?"

Without letting Methos come up with an answer, which Elizabeth hoped he would, Rodney asked, "Where were you held? Who was to deliver the money? How much did they want?"

Methos simply smiled at him, whereas Elizabeth wanted to collapse from the difficult questions needing answers. She didn't know how Methos could show such a calm exterior. The only indication that he wasn't as cool, calm, and collected as he seemed was that his hand was sweating.

May said, "Rodney. Please. One step at a time. Obviously we'll have to call the police so you can file a report, and we should also get a trace on that Mazda." She wrote furiously on the paper on the clipboard.

"You've been awfully quiet," Rodney said referring to Elizabeth.

The frog in her throat was overwhelming, but she finally said, after a long pause which caught everyone's attention, "It's been a long day," with a half-hearted chuckle. "I just want to see my daughter. Is that at all possible?" She was irritated by the need to ask to see Claire, but looked to May. "Please?"

"Yes, eventually, Elizabeth," she said, which made Elizabeth feel worse. What strings would be attached, Elizabeth didn't even want to think about. May told her in a soft, caring voice, "Dr. Freelow told me not long before you arrived that he needed to speak to you 'when and if you showed up.' I should have him paged so he can fill you in on Claire's condition."

"Regardless of her condition," Methos said almost as a demand, "We have to see her."

"I realize that, Daniel; I'm not trying to make this difficult," May said. "I'm very sorry for your ordeal, and our intrusion, but there are obvious questions that need answering before that can happen. When there's a clean investigation, we will all disappear."

"Do you have children?" Elizabeth asked her.

"Yes. Two teenagers. I can relate, Ms. Gordon," May said. "I really can. Just give us a couple of more hours to cross the t's and dot the i's, and we'll get out of your hair. I promise by suppertime, you'll see your daughter."

"Why can't we just see her, and then answer your bloody questions?" Methos asked, which Elizabeth definitely had to agree with.

"She's asleep. I checked on her just before you arrived, and she needs quiet. She's a very sick little girl."

"She needs us," Methos said under his breath. He sat back on his chair and sighed at Elizabeth. His green eyes seemed defeated. "All right, bring it on. Do what you need to do, just hurry up. We'll cooperate, but only for so long."

~~~~~

Duncan finished off the burrito he picked up at a Taco Bell while he was on the cell with Joe. Joe was just about to get on a plane bound for Paris with Liam and Guy when Duncan had called. His's cell beeped, which meant it was getting low and he needed to recharge it. "We're on our way back to New York, Joe," Duncan said. "I'll charge my phone, see Claire, and get some rest." He had already filled Joe in on what happened in Philadelphia, and Joe said he'd make sure Mankowitz and any of his buddies were thoroughly investigated.

Duncan felt sorry about the altercation with Joe back in Shiloh and hoped the grizzled Watcher knew that Duncan counted him one of his best friends. It was just the idea that the Hunters and men like Joe's friend, Jack, could still be embedded within the Watchers that he found chilling.

His phone beeped again, so Duncan hurriedly said, "Give a call to either Daniel or me when you land."

"Nah, you sleep, Mac," Joe said. "I'll call you after I know you've all had enough rest."

"I can't sleep, Joe," Duncan bite back.

"We can't be walking zombies. There's plenty of work, and fighting to do, and you have to be in top shape, Mac. I'm getting mine on the plane. I've called an emergency Board meeting, and I tell you, Mac, the shit is going to hit the fan."

Duncan knew Joe was right and none of them had probably slept for over 36 hours. "Good luck, Joe. I know that meeting is going to be hard for you." After the verbal sparring back in Shiloh and his snippy response to the simple suggestion that he should stop and sleep Duncan was trying to show Joe he was no longer bothered. He was on Joe's side to the bitter end, and hoped he knew that.

"Why's that?"

"You've been with them for so many years."

It was Joe's turn to sound grouchy when he said, "The Watchers as they seem to be today, or at least that part of them... I never signed up for. We're going to clean house, Mac."

Duncan smiled, realizing at that moment that Joe was probably actually going to enjoy the meeting now that he had time to think about it, and was going to mention that when his cell went dead. He turned to see Amanda sleeping, her head against the door window. He couldn't imagine what terror they all must have gone through, and there she was sleeping like a baby. Nick called out, "Mac!"

"Sh," Duncan admonished him. "Can't you see she's finally asleep?" he whispered as he took off his coat and covered Amanda with it. "I'm pretty tired too, why don't you drive for a while?"

"Like I've slept?"

"Ok, fine," Duncan whispered and twisted himself into position to drive again. "Just put it down, give it a rest, just for a bit. You sleep so you can cover for me when it's my turn."

~~~~~

After Rodney had thankfully left, probably to see that Peterson couple May had mentioned when Elizabeth and Methos had first arrived, Elizabeth thought Methos was ready to punch him, they sat silently in the waiting room with May. Elizabeth watched her as she went over the notes from their discussion and made more. She was going to ask May what she had written but knew she'd have been shot down. She knew that the woman was nice and trusted that she wanted to help them, believed their story, and was horrified about the explanation for their disappearance. It was the long wait for Dr. Freelow that had silenced everyone. The nurse, about whom Methos had muttered 'Nazi' under his breath to Elizabeth, said that he had a Code Blue and would be a while. In the meantime, May had called the police so they could fill out an official report that would be attached to their county file.

Since Dr. Freelow was a pediatric doctor, Elizabeth hadn't wanted to think about the baby or child whose heart had stopped. She felt she had enough to worry about, and had been ecstatic when she had asked if it was Claire, and the nurse had huffed, "No."

The heavy depths of exhaustion were closing in on her, but Elizabeth was glad that she wasn't as shaky as she had been while filling May in on what happened, skirting around the details. Methos had just said they were distraught and hadn't taken notes, which seemed to have stifled May's pointed questions. Elizabeth was also glad that she was never asked to fill in details or expand on Methos' answers, to give an account from her side of things. She just nodded when Methos came up with a plausible chain of events. To help her get through dissecting what happened, she didn't think about the chairs, the room, the torture, the attempted rape, or shooting so many. She came to think that things happened just as Methos had described it.

His scenario went like this: when he had returned to the hotel to change clothes, distraught over his daughter's condition, he had been drugged and kidnaped. The only thing that Elizabeth had added during the entire conversation was that she had been standing outside the hospital to use her cell phone when the same thing happened to her. When they had woken up, they were in some room with no furniture or toilet, only a window that was too tall for him to look out of, and there was certainly nothing to break it with. Before long, this Anthony Pantagllio and a cohort came in with a tray of food and again left. Elizabeth was surprised Methos remembered the owner of the car's name, but then again, he did have a fantastic memory. She just wished it was more accurate at times, but in this case, she was a silent cheerleader while he took the lead in fabricating their lie convincingly.

When asked what they looked like, Methos had said one was tall and blond. Elizabeth hoped that was correct. All they had was a name and address of the car's owner and he could have looked like a troll with red hair for all they knew. Methos had offered without asking that the cohort was shorter and had dark hair. She guessed that he was hedging his bets. One of those vague descriptions had to be close to whatever Pantagllio looked like. When asked how many had been in the ring of kidnappers, Methos had said, "We just saw the two," and May had written that down.

Methos said that they were there for what seemed like weeks, and were surprised to see that it was still the same day when he had overtaken the short, dark haired man when he came to collect the untouched food tray. "God was on our side," he had said, which caused Elizabeth to gawk at him in surprise: Methos didn't believe in any god. "When I took my wife's hand and the gun off that man, Pantagllio or whomever, and got the hell out of there. We didn't see anyone in the house and ran outside. The Mazda was parked outside, along with a pickup, which didn't have any keys. We tried the Mazda, and the keys were right there in the ignition. All I could think about was getting back here to my baby girl, so we got in the car and drove to beat hell back to New York."

There were a lot of holes in Methos' story, but then again, May wasn't a policeman. She just needed to be convinced their story was true. Elizabeth supposed that the manner in which Methos had related the story, filled with dread and determination, had sealed the deal. Methos could convince Eskimos they needed refrigerators if he set his mind to it. The look of torment on her own face might have helped. Methos had continued, probably before May could ask where they had been held, "that was about dawn, and I found a highway. Just luckily, or God's hand was still with us, I found a sign that the turnpike was ahead, and that we were somewhere in New Jersey. I have no idea where."

May had taken her notes, and said, "We'll just wait until the police arrive, and I can get a copy of their report. Also the doctor so he can fill us in on Claire's condition and prognosis."

Elizabeth had asked once again, "Can we just see her? We won't touch her or even talk to her. I just need to see her."

May had looked sorry, but said they couldn't. Claire was asleep, and she reiterated that they would see her soon. So the silence was overwhelming as all three waited in the room with the only sounds a distant buzzer, the beeping of a machine or a car honk outside, along with May's pencil scratches on the legal pad. Methos had paced the room slowly, and Elizabeth could see that he was probably prepping himself for the police and whatever details he might have to fill in. Elizabeth just hoped they wouldn't be separated and made to tell the story to see if the details fit. If that happened Elizabeth knew she would be a crumbling mess.

Suddenly, the doorknob turned and Dr. Freelow walked in. "Sorry about the delay," he said before quickly taking a seat at the table. He reached to shake Elizabeth's hand, which she returned with a hard grip, thankful to finally see him so the ball could roll a little faster and she could see her daughter. Methos shook his hand and sat down excitedly at the table.

He started right off with information so Elizabeth didn't ask if the child he was working on was all right. "Yesterday, I wanted Claire to have a cat scan to check for bleeding. When you couldn't be found, I called in Social Services to get their permission. I felt it was mandatory to do the scan, and really didn't need your signature to have it performed, since there was no trace of you, that's what I did."

Before Methos could jump into it, Elizabeth asked, "What did she need the scan for? She's bleeding?"

"That's what I needed to find out. She started vomiting yesterday morning, I think the nurse said it was just after you had visited her."

"I didn't do anything to her," Elizabeth said offended.

"Of course not, but if a concussion patient vomits on an empty stomach, that's the time to watch her closely. She's been monitored to make sure she didn't lapse into a coma, and we put her on an IV to administer fluids and some pain relief for her arm and probably a whopper of a headache."

"Why did she throw up," Methos asked.

"There's a condition called post-concussion syndrome, where the patient will get an overwhelming headache and that makes them nauseous. It's really nothing on its own, but can lead to problems if not monitored." He sifted through the paperwork attached to a clipboard, and Elizabeth could read "CLAIRE GORDON" across the top of the top sheet when he flipped it up. "We had x-rays of her neck and head right after her admittance, and didn't see anything. Rest assured, I got the CT scan results back just a moment ago and it looks good."

He dropped the pages on the clipboard and set it on the table. "Plan for now is the keep Claire in the hospital one more day for observation and every two hours to check her pupils and also to give her arm one more day of total immobilization."

"She can come home with us, then?" Elizabeth asked filled with hope for the end of this long-drawn out nightmare.

"If Social Services gives the go-ahead. Either a foster home or with you, that's not up to anyone but them."

When all three eyes looked to May, she said, almost in self-defense, "I'll talk with the police after they talk to you and give my report shortly after."

"My daughter is not going into a foster home," Methos said with great indignation.

"That's for her report to decide, Mr. Gordon. In terms of Claire's arm," Dr Freelow said with authority. "I'll have the nurse give you instructions on how to care for it. Claire doesn't have a cast, but pins. I believe that was explained to you before. It's important that her arm isn't jostled, and she will get a sling. She won't need prescription pain relief, just a children's Tylenol if she has arm or head pain will be fine. The main thing is to keep her quiet and make sure she doesn't move too much, but then again you must walk a fine line. She needs exercise so the rest of her body doesn't suffer. Walking about ten minutes every three hours would be excellent and don't cater to her hand and foot. Make her do things for herself with her right hand as much as possible, but be careful her left arm remains immobile."

"Sounds like she'd be better off with us than in some foster home," Methos said.

Elizabeth was elated when May nodded at that.

"There will also be a checklist sent home with her: precautions for her concussion, such as every two hours checking her pupils. If they're unequal in size or she has vision problems, a severe headache, dizziness or weakness of her legs, irritability, anymore vomiting, and so forth. Those are reasons to bring her back in. After the pins are removed, or come out on their own, Claire will need physical therapy to regain flexibility of the arm."

"Oh, she'll receive it," Methos said with confidence. Elizabeth agreed. Claire was still a pre-immortal, but she needed to stay in shape for the day she turned. It was always best to train while in shape rather than have to get in shape before training could begin.

"I'll go through all this in more when she's released." Dr. Freelow stood up. "For now, Claire is settled, stable, and I see no reason why you can't see her now." He looked to May.

"With the doctor's okay, yes. Go see your daughter." May seemed happy to say that, which made Elizabeth feel more assured that this would all work out in the end. She didn't know where she got her strength from, but thought it had to be because Methos was on her side now. Elizabeth hated to think what sort of mess she'd be in if Methos was still disappointed and angry at her, and hoped she could believe that he had seen things from her side and would as he had said in the car, " Look at all this twice," this being the events since leaving the ship that in retrospect was their heaven on earth.

Elizabeth and Methos jumped up, hastily shook hands with the doctor, smiled at May, and tore down the hall to Claire's room. Methos almost ran over Rodney, who had just turned the corner of the hallway. Methos' pace didn't slow, so Elizabeth just ran after Methos to Claire's room.

~~~~~

Like seeing the light at the end of a very long tunnel with too many twists and turns, Methos breathed a sigh of relief when he finally laid eyes on his daughter. She was hooked up to more machines than he could digest on a quick sweeping look at the room. Claire's hair was slick back from her cherub face more than likely from a recent sponge bath. Methos devoured everything he saw and smelled in the room as he slowly made his way quietly to Claire's bedside. The grotesque quality of pins sticking out of her upper arm jarred him, but he chose to ignore them as they were helping heal her. Methos could feel Elizabeth right behind him. The left side of Claire's body was turned to her side, so he crept to the right side of her bed and touched his fingers to hers and noticed for the first time that Claire's eyes were closed.

Not wanting to disturb her sleep, he just knelt down to look at her and couldn't stop the prideful smile that he knew had overtaken his face. He was so proud of Claire because of how smart, pretty, and determined she was, and he knew that she had to have had strength to pull her through this far, and also knew that with a little bit of time and tender loving care, Claire would make it through this.

He felt Elizabeth's hand on his shoulder and looked up at her. She was hunched over a bit, her head to her side, and just watching their daughter sleep as he was. She whispered, "I can't believe it."

"Hm?"

"Her condition aside " Elizabeth continued to whisper such that Methos had trouble hearing her, "She looks all right."

Methos stood up and put his arm around Elizabeth's shoulders. When she tucked her head under his, he got the feeling that what he had always dreamt since those gray days in Kent could actually be coming true. He now realized why he had been so accommodating to Claire's wish to return to her mother. It was because he wanted to as well. After Elizabeth had explained her side of the days in Kent, he had come to see things from the other side of the fence. He never could digest that his wife, that he knew loved him, would have taken his head if not for outside forces. What had and still did shake him to his core was that even though he might have wanted to talk to her about it right away, she did in fact almost take his head. Misunderstandings, the paranormal, Pyrius, all that aside, if he hadn't woken up and rolled out of the way, he would have been beheaded. He held Elizabeth because it felt right but he knew there were still edges to smooth over. He knew they would have more to talk about. He had to know that he was truly not in danger just by being with her.

Claire's eyes opened and her face, so relaxed in sleep, instantly screwed up and she let out a grunt. She had to be in pain. "What is it?" he instantly asked her, and was just as quickly holding Claire's hand and had his face so close to hers he pecked her on the cheek.

"Dad?" Claire asked in a small, weak voice.

"The one and only, Little One. Are you in pain?"

"Everything hurts."

"Besides your head and arm, which are understandable, what else hurts?"

"My knee," she groaned.

Methos pulled the covers off her and saw that her right knee was bruised, but had healed some since the last time he saw it. "You took a tumble, Little One. It will be all right soon. Don't worry. You don't have to worry about anything else. I'm here now."

"Now?" Claire looked confused. "What's that mean?"

Methos looked to Elizabeth, who looked as surprised by that question as he was. He told her, "Well, it's been a while since I saw you last."

Claire shrugged, which made her wince because she moved her arm. "I was sleeping." She closed her eyes again, then mumbled, "Tell Mom... I want... pancakes..."

"Tell her yourself," Methos said, then moved over a bit so if Claire opened her eyes again she'd see that Elizabeth was right there next to him. When she didn't, he was going to wake her up so Elizabeth could talk to her. The gods knew Elizabeth had gone through hell and back to make sure they were both there to see Claire, she should talk to her. Before he could, as if she read his mind, Elizabeth took his hand and shook her head. She didn't seem upset.

"Don't wake her," she whispered so softly it might as well have been mime.

After Elizabeth ushered Methos to the door, as if she wanted them to leave Claire alone again, she said a bit louder, "I'm fine. I got what I needed." Methos could see a tear in her eye and didn't know why she had to play the martyr now. He figured she could wake Claire up just long enough to say she was there. Elizabeth opened the door and they walked outside.

Just as the door closed, he asked, "Why didn't you talk to her? Why are you crying?"

"I don't think she knows we were even gone." Elizabeth sniffed back some tears and smiled brightly before turning her head to look through the glass in the door at her sleeping daughter. "All I needed was to see her. She needs to rest up to get stronger... and she remembers pancakes." Elizabeth giggled, which flustered Methos, but soon he was chuckling along with her. "She's okay. She's beautiful and well taken care of. I couldn't be happier. We should just let her rest. We have plenty of time. Besides, I think for a little while longer, it's best I leave the talking to you. I don't want to ruin anything anymore."

Methos wiped the tear from the top of her cheek and held her. When her arms crawled around his waist and held him tightly in return, Methos came to know just what maternal feelings Elizabeth still had. That he had questioned it was beyond him now. "That's pretty selfless."

"Hey, I've learned something in therapy." Elizabeth looked up at him lightheartedly. "Just think how smart I'll be after a second session."

~~~~~

Rodney walked to May, who was saying goodbye and thank you to Dr. Freelow in the hallway. "You let them see Claire?" Rodney asked after Dr. Freelow hurried down the hall.

May said, "Yes. Dr. Freelow gave us good news on her condition."

"There are always variables that can happen, but yes, the girl will be fine." Dr. Freelow had told May, "If you need anything more, call my nurse."

"I may want a written statement on your thoughts on their disappearance and a recommendation on whether you believe Claire should be reunited with her parents."

"No problem." Just then Dr. Freelow got a page, and said he had to take that call. "Just call my nurse," he told them over his shoulder.

Rodney asked May, "What was their story?"

"I believe them. They were kidnaped. None of this was their fault."

"I thought you might believe them."

From his snide tone, she countered, "Don't you dare say I have a bleeding heart. I've been reading people for almost 25 years, kid. They're not lying about being kidnaped. About all that happened, I think there's some fudging there, but that's for the police to dissect."

"I asked the police to trace that towed car, and we'll get information on who owns it. Who knows? They could have just taken off and stolen that car, then had second thoughts about being parents and came back."

"You're that jaded at 28 years old? I fear for your future," she said with a smile. "The owner of the car will tell us probably all we need to know."

"The mother, Elizabeth, is there something wrong with her?"

May was confused by that question. "She's just been kidnaped and her daughter is in the hospital, and we're involved. Do you need to know anything else?"

Rodney seemed proud when he related, "I did a trace on their credit cards."

"You what? That's not our job."

"Sure," he shrugged. "But I got some answers that might change your mind about the good couple Gordon."

"You shouldn't have done that. That's invasion of privacy." He only looked at the wall above her head. But, curiosity overtook her and she had to ask, "What did you find out?"

"Elizabeth Gordon has been seeing a doctor at the Uptown Clinic. Two mornings ago, she purchased Paxil, Librium, and Ambien at a pharmacy, medications one can only get by prescription. So, she's jumpy and can't sleep. I don't know what Librium is used for."

Just because one had mental health needs didn't a bad parent make, but May wondered why that wasn't brought up. She looked at the log Rodney presented her to see that Elizabeth had indeed had two sessions at the Uptown Clinic, one for one hour and another for an hour and a half. "I'll need her to sign a release so I can get those records."

"I think you should. Never know what all we're going to find out about Mrs. Gordon."

She hadn't noticed that Daniel and Elizabeth were in the hallway, and walked down to meet them, Rodney at her heels. She wished that he would just take things easy, but that was against Rodney's style. He had seemed to go straight from apprentice to bad cop to her good cop in a short amount of time. From the smiles on Claire's parents' faces, it seemed that a few minutes with Claire was all they needed to feel reassured and get into much better moods. May hesitated to ask, but had to, "Elizabeth, I just found out that you had two sessions at the Uptown Mental Health Clinic. Can you tell me why?"

Elizabeth lost her smile and looked at her husband, who asked, "How did you find that out?"

"We have our ways," Rodney said almost as a challenge.

"That's invasion of privacy," Daniel started, but was silenced by Elizabeth's tug on his arm.

"It's fine. I have nothing to hide," Elizabeth said matter-of-fact. "Daniel and I had some problems when we lived in England, and I've had trouble sleeping, and saw a commercial for the clinic, so I went."

"What sort of problems?" May asked as Liz was so amenable, having said that much already.

"Marriage problems. I was in a new community, foreign country, and didn't have much of a say on what house he bought, and... other things."

May noticed that Daniel shot her a look, and wondered what exactly the 'things' were. "Would you be willing to sign a release so that I can obtain your records from the clinic, which will be part of my final report?"

"Sure," she said, maybe a little too quickly. Elizabeth seemed to have second thoughts as May reached into her bag to pull out a release that she always had on hand, along with other papers that might be useful on the spur of the moment, and put it on the clipboard and presented her with a pen.

"Just a minute," Daniel said, holding his hand over the paper. "I'd like to know how you came by that information."

"Oh," Rodney said loudly. "Is it a deep, dark secret that's she's seen a shrink."

"No, of course not," Daniel seemed to hedge, then with more strength in his voice he said, "It just seems to me that since we didn't mention the existence of some personal problems that had nothing whatsoever to do with Claire and her care and only had to do with being married for a couple of years while living in a foreign land, that you shouldn't know anything about it. What justification did you have to look into it and what illegal methods did you use to acquire that information, if I may be so bold as to ask?"

"We have the information now, and it's up to you, Elizabeth, to sign or not sign." May again presented her with the pen and release.

"I have nothing to hide," Elizabeth said and hurriedly signed the release. She thought that it would negatively alter May's report if she didn't, and just wanted to get the investigation over with quickly.

Two uniformed police officers arrived, and May waved to them. "Douglas, over here." She took the clipboard back from Elizabeth and introduced the couple to the officer that May had known since she had babysat him as a child. "Douglas, this is Daniel and Elizabeth Gordon, the couple I told you about on the phone."

Douglas O'Malley still looked to be about fifteen years old, but he had been a police officer for over ten years and was quite adept at his job. Whether warding off hostile females during domestic disputes, receiving calls for liquor store robberies, and once even been held hostage during a bank robbery, Douglas had always kept a cool head and come out of each experience unscathed. When May wanted a police report filed, she immediately thought of Douglas and she knew that this was his beat. Since Daniel had said they had been taken to New Jersey, she knew the FBI would be involved, but Douglas would be the first step.

"Pleased to meet you folks," Douglas said as he shook their hand. "I hear you had some troubles."

His partner, who looked even younger than Douglas, just stood back with his hands on his hips. May wondered if he did it so his gun was visible. Douglas had told her, not long after getting his job, that he did that mainly for effect and respect.

"Some, yeah," Daniel said. "The least of which are those two," as he pointed at May and Rodney.

"Why don't we find a quiet area and talk about it," Douglas suggested, and then entered the waiting room May indicated. She would like to have been involved as well, but Douglas told her, "This is police business, and you'll get my report."

"Thanks, Doug," May said, hoping the sing-song Dougie she usually called him didn't show through. It wasn't as if she didn't have anything else do anyway. She would go to the Uptown Clinic and speak to whoever it was that Elizabeth had seen now that she had a signed release.

~~~~~

May shook Dr. Julia Stone's hand after being escorted to her office. "Thank you so much for seeing me. This is sort of an emergency. You could just give me a copy of her file if you're busy."

"That's quite all right. I had a no show so was free anyway. Sit down," Julia said cordially as she sat down behind her desk and May saw that Elizabeth Gordon's file had been pulled and was placed on Julia's ink blotter. Julia opened it and flipped through the tabbed contents. "Of course you'll explain this emergency."

"Elizabeth and Daniel Gordon were kidnaped and her daughter is in the hospital."

"God," Julia reacted. " Is Elizabeth all right? The daughter was hurt during the kidnaping?"

"Oh no, Claire was in the hospital before this happened."

"How did Social Services come to be involved?"

"When Claire Gordon's parents went missing, the hospital called in Social Services in order to obtain permission to perform necessary tests, they needed proper signatures as the tests are quite expensive."

"What happened to Claire?"

Julia was reading a stapled report as she asked the questions, and May itched to read it as well. "She fell down on some ice and sustained a concussion and broken arm."

Julia shook her head sadly, "Poor dear. She's only ten. They were kidnaped?" Julia looked straight at May with confusion ruling her face.

"I guess they're loaded and someone wanted a part of it." May looked down at her notes. "An Anthony Pantagllio. Have you heard of him?"

"No, why on earth would I have?"

May shrugged. It was far fetched, but so was the reality. "I just wanted to touch all the bases and see if perhaps Elizabeth had mentioned that name."

"You think this kidnaping was a ruse?"

"I honestly don't know what to think," May admitted. "They seem like loving parents who were kidnaped, and I don't belong butting into their lives. But on the other hand, it's so outlandish that..."

Julia closed the file and leaned back in her chair. "What can I help you with?"

"Information. How many times have you seen Elizabeth in therapy?"

"Once. I did the DA on her. She's to return in a week for continued therapy."

"She is also seeing a psychiatrist?"

"Yes. Dr. Bradford. In fact, we just case consulted Elizabeth's case in chart review this morning."

"She was put on medications. Can you tell me what her diagnosis is?"

"You have a signed release," Julia said sitting up again to open the file. "PTSD, some depression, and insomnia."

"Post Traumatic Stress Disorder?" May asked incredulously.

"Yes. I can't imagine how Elizabeth is coping with a kidnaping plot and a sick daughter on top of everything else."

"What everything else?"

"Marriage problems, separation from her husband and child. You said Elizabeth and her husband were kidnaped together?"

"Yes. They were separated?"

"Since last year."

"Hm," May thought about that and remembered how they had reacted to each other. "They seemed normal and somewhat loving and tender to each other."

"Wouldn't that be a kicker if this kidnaping is what brings them back together? I know Elizabeth wanted that but didn't see it happening. That could have been her depression talking, though."

"Why did they separate?" May asked, to which Julia sighed and sat back again in thought. May asked again when too much time had passed. "Why?"

Julia said, "I remember Elizabeth well, even though I only saw her the one time. She is very sad and regretful about what she did."

Okay, that was a fine introduction, but May was even more interested now about the reason. Just their being separated was shocking enough, she wondered if the reason for it would knock her socks off.

May waited a bit longer, and then Julia responded, "I feel Elizabeth is a good mother and had been a happy and loving wife to her husband before moving to England. Elizabeth realizes she made a mistake and came to me for help in order for her to atone and accept what she did."

May was ready to jump across the desk and pull the information out of the psychologist, but twisted her hands together with anticipation. "There must have been quite a heated argument, and Elizabeth attacked her husband. He left with their daughter."

That news sat differently with May as she reran her entire encounter with the Gordons in a new light. "Why?" was all May could utter.

"Elizabeth didn't get into details, but with her remorse and how she talked about her marriage and family, I do believe it was a heat of the moment situation." Julia folded her hands together and looked at the ceiling as if deep in thought. Whatever else she could relate about this woman that May had felt she had a handle on but who was quite different would be wonderful. "For her husband to act tender and loving, as you said... getting him back, so to speak... then you're going to decide if she's a fit mother?"

"That's my job. I should order Parental Capacities for both of them, but I've been so conflicted."

"Tell me why."

"They seem so normal, and the way they acted, I had no idea they were separated. This overwhelming situation of being kidnaped while their daughter is sick in the hospital... I just don't know what to do."

"If you want my advice, and granted, I don't truly know Elizabeth well and don't know her husband at all, but I think she's dealing with enough right now.... to lose her daughter as well. Since Claire is hurt, do you really think a foster home would be the best place for her?"

"If she's in danger with her parents, yes. That's what I have to decide."

Julia laughed. "Well then, your decision is easy. There has never been any indication from my talk with Elizabeth, as well as Dr. Bradford's, that Claire would ever be harmed by either of them. Domestic violence can happen any time any where. I do think it was an isolated incident, and from what Dr. Bradford and I gathered, Claire was never in danger. Now, if she witnessed the assault on Daniel Gordon, that might be a mitigating factor. I doubt that's true, but it could play with Claire's mental state."

"Last night while I was with Claire, she called out for her mother two times."

"Then I would say Claire never saw it. Elizabeth and probably Daniel Gordon need therapy, but they don't need their child to be taken from them. That's my honest opinion."

"May I get a copy of her file?"

"Of course. I'll have Marilyn copy it for you now."

"Is Dr. Bradford free?"

"He has a speaking engagement this afternoon, but I can leave him a message for you."

"Well, Claire's going to be released from the hospital in the morning. I need to make a decision quickly."

"If you need any more answers, you're welcome to call me, but I'm afraid Dr. Bradford is in Connecticut until late this evening. It wouldn't really be fair to him to get a call like this out of the blue."

"Yes. If I get a copy of his evaluation of her as well, I'm sure that's fine."

"No problem." Julia smiled warmly and checked her watch. When she stood up, it cued May that it was time to go. May thanked her and waited at the reception area for Elizabeth's file to be copied. May was just as confused after the visit with Dr. Stone than before. She knew she had a long night ahead of her in order to make a decision that would affect many lives.

~~~~~

If there isn't one trauma, there's another. The expression too many pans on the fire was an understatement with everything Elizabeth had dealt with in the last two days. After talking with Dr. Freelow one more time and taking another peek at Claire while she slept, just before she was scheduled to be woken up by the nurses to check her pupils and blood pressure, Methos had suggested they go back to the hotel and sleep. In the morning, they would both be refreshed and ready to check Claire out of the hospital.

Elizabeth hadn't really wanted to leave, but she knew she was a walking zombie so once again, since it had been so successful all day, she followed where Methos' led. After taking a cab to the St. Regis, she went to the desk to ask for her room key, and Methos asked for his. He was informed that his things had been packed up and stowed away until such time as he contacted them or returned for his belongings. Elizabeth stood back as Methos, who seemed to have developed the strength of ten men, began hollering at the desk clerk, who only listened patiently before stating, "I will have someone bring up your things, Mr. Gordon. However, for now, all our rooms are filled. It was you yourself who orally checked out two days ago."

Letting bygones be bygones, Elizabeth said, "Fine. Bring them to my suite."

"I'll have to charge you for two extra people."

"One. My daughter is in the hospital. I'll be sure to tell you when she's released, and if she's put into our care, and not a foster home because of you, then there will be another body for you to charge. All right?" Elizabeth was on a roll and lashed out with all she had in the words, "You know what? Ignore the fact that Claire is only ten and your advertising reads that kids ten and under stay free! You go ahead and charge me as if she's an adult! Does that make you nice and happy!?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am," the clerk said. "I didn't realize she was ten. Mr. Gordon had paid for two occupants."

"That was probably his lover he was paying for."

"What?" Methos groused.

"You checked in with Amanda, didn't you?" Elizabeth growled, "Besides, who cares?! I want my room and bring his shit up there. Okay!"

Before she could totally lose it, the result of being so quiet and obedient for so long had started to make her anger boil, she stalked to the elevator and punched the button. On second thought, she wanted to blow off steam and rushed to the stairwell. She would walk up the eight floors, and stomp her feet with every step. By the time she arrived at the eighth floor, Methos was leaning against the wall, having taken the elevator. "It's not good to exhaust yourself when you're already exhausted."

"Get bent." Elizabeth walked past him and wiped the sweat off her brow before sticking the room key into the slot. It was just then that she realized it was a keycard very much like this one that was so important to her survival back in Shiloh. When the green light came on, she could only stand there as shivers started to ripple up and down her spine.

"Open sesame." Methos reached past her and opened the door, then held it open, his arm stretched out above her shoulder. "Are you going in or do you have someone else to holler at?"

Elizabeth walked in and pushed the light switch, which was a button. Light flooded the living room and the first thing she focused on was the framed soulcatcher that had belonged to her teacher, it had been returned by Methos, and she'd had it framed by the gift shop downstairs. She rushed to it and took it down off the wall.

"Are you hungry?" Methos asked going straight for the room service menu.

"Yeah. I'll have what you're having," Elizabeth was surprised to have spoken without displaying the bubbling panic she was experiencing as she rushed into the bathroom and shut the door.

Elizabeth, hunched over on the floor of the bathtub with the shower pounding down on her, endured a full blown panic attack that had hit her full force. She didn't know how long she had been crying in the shower, but her hands were prunes, and her skin was red from the hot water she had used to stop her shakes. She still didn't feel any better. She was so sick of everything and everyone else controlling her life: from Methos to the kidnapers to May Nash. Even her love for Methos and his sudden reversal of feelings for her had scared her. If she did allow him in and they talked more about the past, he might leave her again and she couldn't let herself be sucked in only to find herself once again alone. Remembering her time in the torture room and the savage disregard the Crusaders had for them all only because they were different made her shiver even more. She had to remind herself that she wasn't an ogre, she wasn't lower than dirt, she finally yelled, "I deserve some happiness, God damn it!"

The pump of adrenaline helped her recover her breathing and feel as if she was getting control of the reverberations that flowed through her body. She thought of May Nash, who basically had her life in her hands. One bad judgement call from that woman, who didn't know them from a hole in the ground, could change not only her life but Methos' and Claire's as well. Trying to remember all that she had said to Dr. Stone and Dr. Bradford only made the panic worsen, so Elizabeth tried to only think happy thoughts. Otherwise she would never recover her sanity. Why she was going through this now, after so much had happened, she didn't know. Elizabeth had a sound mind and strong body when she was killing them all and freeing Methos, the one goal she had in her life during those dark hours. It floored Elizabeth to think that it had only been a day that she and everyone else had been in their control, it had seemed like a lifetime during the ordeal. The talk with Methos on the drive home, being confronted by a social worker and police officers hadn't made her fall apart. She was somewhat proud of how she had kept herself pulled together. As she crept toward the faucet, she realized that she had let go now because it was the safest time to do it. No one could see or judge her, there weren't any extraordinary deeds to be done or lies to keep straight. When she made that realization, she felt stronger and turned off the water. The strength it took to get herself out of the tub was another matter. She let the lingering heat and humidity massage her as she laid down in the draining tub, closed her eyes, and tried to clear her mind and find some peace. Just as she had when Hotohke had trained her mind as well as her sword hand, she breathed heavily and thought of white. She needed to let the bad thoughts go so good thoughts could take over. But she was trying too hard. The myriad of threatening thoughts wouldn't disappear.

When Methos knocked on the door and called out, "Food's here," she jerked up and hiked her knees to her chest. She hoped he hadn't heard her. She hoped he couldn't read her mind. She didn't want to have to explain anything else tonight. Either he was with her or against her. It was up to him now, but she wouldn't put her wants out there one way or another. For her own sake, she couldn't force anything or put herself out there too far and be shot down.

The room service cheeseburgers and french fries were cold by the time Elizabeth had come out of the bathroom, and Methos was sprawled on the sectional couch flipping through the channels so quickly, only seeming to pause on commercials, so she knew he was obviously deep in thought. She took a bite of the burger and it tasted so good, even cold, that she devoured it. For Methos to order cheeseburgers was weird, but she loved them. She wondered if that was why he had.

"What are you thinking?" she asked, which made Methos jerk, something she hadn't wanted.

After settling himself back in his comfortable looking position, he said, "Going over the ins and outs of breaking Claire out of the pediatric intensive care unit in a hospital in New York City."

She wondered if the police interview had made him leery of their chances to get Claire back in the morning when she was to be released from the hospital. Elizabeth thought the police interview had gone well. She mostly let Methos do the talking, and he only got into details when he was forced to. The details he had come up with were now seared into her brain in case she needed to remember them. The police had traced the car that was towed from the front of the hospital and they seemed pleased that the name Methos said over and over again matched the car's owner. There was another interesting point in their favor, half way through the interview, the lead cop, O'Malley, had taken a call and told them that Pantagllio was missing. He hadn't been seen at his apartment in Miami for three weeks, and the landlord was threatening eviction. Methos used that information to infer that he must have been planning this for a while and suggested they should probably watch his apartment for his return. Methos had to know full well that Pantagllio was dead, so was confident in that remark. To Elizabeth's mind, it all went well, better than expected. So well in fact that she now started to tense up and feel jittery inside about the future.

In order to put her mind on something else, she asked, "Making any headway?"

"Not at all," Methos quickly responded. "Considering Claire can't very well move very fast. Nope. Nothing comes to mind." He sprawled out a bit more and fluffed the couch pillow under his head as he drawled, "I must be too tired."

"You have to be. You haven't slept for a long time."

"You..." Methos said before yawning and closing his eyes. "haven't either..."

Soon, he was snoring softly, which he only did when he was totally exhausted. It was surprising to Elizabeth once again just how young, carefree, and almost naive Methos looked when he slept. With all the experience in his head, history he had witnessed, and the shocking situations that he had found himself in during the past couple of days, Elizabeth was surprised he could sleep at all, let alone look so content. Maybe he'd be more comfortable in one of the two beds that were situated in either of the two bedrooms. She was going to wake him to ask if he wanted to go to bed where he could receive the full effects of a night's sleep, but she didn't want to disturb him and didn't want to witness the decision process of which bed Methos would choose to sleep in. Elizabeth had taken the suite by herself and had slept in what was the master bedroom. If Methos wanted it, she would offer it to him, and a small part of herself, a part which she hadn't allowed to have full rein of her thoughts and deeds, wanted to share it with him. No, she could be laughed at if that was suggested but since she would never have enough courage to verbalize that fantasy in the first place in was irrelevant.

Taking a blanket from a bureau drawer in the second bedroom, she walked back to where Methos was sprawled comfortably on the sectional. Because she didn't want to disturb him, she slowly laid the blanket over him and tucked it under his chin. The overpowering urge to kiss him was squelched as that could wake him up and he'd either want to talk some more about difficult subjects or would laugh at her. She didn't know which would be worse.

In order to make sure her urges did not rule her actions, Elizabeth turned off the TV and walked into the master bedroom and shut the door. Her purse was on the floor by the door to the bathroom. She had obviously dumped it there when she ran in to get some privacy and let out some serious pent up frustrations and frights. She ruffled through her purse with a mission. The pills. If anything could calm the still-ever-present shakiness from her, the pills she got from Dr. Bradford could. After finding her wallet, sans cash, checkbook, hairbrush, old tube of lipstick, and a few pennies on the bottom of her purse, she came up empty. Now, she knew why the Crusaders had taken her money, but she had no clue as to why they had taken her Paxil, Librium, and most importantly, her Ambien. She wanted to sleep more than anything else in the world. Not wanting to be undone, she opened the side zippered pocket to find a small framed picture of Claire and Methos that she had taken of them when they lived in Sintra not long after Amanda had gifted them with their little girl. She had the picture in that side pocket for she didn't know how long, and couldn't remember the last time she had seen it. She looked at baby Claire, sleeping soundly on Methos' chest as he reclined on the couch, not unlike how he was now at that very moment in the other room.

Claire's face was screwed up tight in the fit of sleep and Methos, who when Elizabeth always looked back on that time she had thought hadn't thought twice about Claire and didn't want much to do with her as a baby, had a proud glimmer on his face that was loving and enraptured with the sleeping lump on his chest. Elizabeth sank down on her butt as that picture and that time had her complete attention. That picture was taken when Methos had given her that camera, it's fate a mystery to her, so that she 'had something to do,' as she had trouble finding a job after moving to Portugal. Language barrier aside, they just didn't seem interested in an American history professor, who specialized in the Civil War. That picture was taken just after Amanda had found Claire as a new born and brought her to them to raise after taking a brief stab at it herself. Methos and Elizabeth had just gotten married for the first time after he began to have prophetic dreams that she was going to bite the dust. She knew that Methos only married her as an act of charity and because it would make her want to keep her life and fight back against whoever it was that threatened to take it from her. He came to love her; Elizabeth knew that Methos loved her more after their marriage than before. She believed him when he said he loved her, and was never more proud of her, after she had survived her days with Cameron James. Thinking about that immortal made her shiver again. All the deeds she had done while under his control were horrendous. Shooting Alex Mahoney point blank in the face was on a par with that blond Crusader wanting to take her and that large Asian... what was his name again?... she couldn't remember, but did remember with full clarity when he stabbed her in the stomach and twisted the knife to get Duncan's whereabouts out of her.

Elizabeth reflexively dropped the picture and ran to the bathroom to splash cold water on her face as her heart immediately started racing and she felt like she couldn't breath. Thoughts of choking to death were smothering her as she gulped for air and fell to the floor. It seemed like hours before the attack subsided and she hated herself for letting her mind drift back into dangerous territory. She curled up into a ball and wanted more than anything to sleep. The cold marble floor made that impossible. What she'd give for an Ambien about then.

She checked the drawers of the bathroom to see if by chance there were sleeping pills in there along with the shoe shine kit, hand lotion, bath salts, and shower cap. She decided that she needed something. Now. If she was to get through that night, she needed to be unconscious. There was no way she could get to sleep on her own. She didn't want to dream or relive any of the past months, certainly not the last day and a half since she received that call from Duncan that Claire was hurt.

She was going to call down to the front desk for someone to bring her some sleeping pills, but thought that her voice might wake up Methos and she'd have to explain herself. It was a wonder that he hadn't heard her so far as she knew she had been crying and had turned on the water to drown it out. Wearing only a robe, she tossed on the first clothes she found and slipped out the door, making sure she had a keycard to get back in silently. When she was in the hall, she realized she was barefoot, and hoped no one would make a fuss. All she wanted was sleep, not a lecture on having to wear shoes because of insurance concerns of the hotel.

The stores in the lobby were closed, and the only person she saw was a sleepy desk clerk who was different than the one she yelled at when they arrived. She didn't want to make anymore fusses, and didn't know what the hell she looked like, so she would be as nice as possible. "Excuse me," she said softly to the young man in uniform with his head resting on his palm, elbow planted dangerously close to the edge of the desk.

He jerked and snapped his eyes open, lowering his arm, as if she had caught him in something. "Welcome to the St. Regis," he said quickly in a high voice. He cleared his throat and his voice was now lower. "What may I help you with?"

"I was wondering if there was an open drug store, or a way to get some sleeping pills right away? I really need to sleep and am having a bit of trouble doing it."

"I don't think anything's open in the neighborhood now," he said, and Elizabeth got the feeling that he wouldn't need even a half of one to fall asleep himself. "Let me check Mr. Porter's office. The Concierge. He might have some. I'll be right back."

Elizabeth almost skipped to the elevator with the small bottle of Sominex in hand. Unable to help herself, she opened the bottle in the elevator and popped one in her mouth and swallowed it whole and dry. By the time the elevator opened, she ran down the hall, keycard in hand. She felt an immortal. Methos. If she could feel him, he had to have gotten a jolt from feeling her return. Because he didn't know she had even left, she might have to explain herself. She stuck the bottle in her pants and opened the door.

Sure enough, Methos was sitting up and his eyes blinked from the light of the hallway shining on them. "Sorry, was just gone a minute," Elizabeth said as she walked in and shut the door.

"What time is it?"

"Way too early to get up. Go back to sleep." Elizabeth walked fast into the bedroom and shut the door. She heard Methos grunt, probably as he situated himself on the couch, and then silence. She finally let out a breath. Happy with herself for accomplishing that overwhelming task, she smiled at the bottle of Sominex. She saw from the dosage information, that she should take two one hour before bedtime. She had only taken one. She went to the bathroom and got a glass of water. After popping another one in her mouth, she drank a full glass of water, as the pharmacist had told her she should whenever she took medication. The pharmacist had been quite confused by all her questions, as if she had never taken a pill before. Little did he know that she really hadn't.

An hour before bedtime, she rolled over in her mind. She wanted to sleep now. Another hour could induce another panic flare up. She took another one to see if that would make her fall asleep faster. She drank another glass of water then walked to the bed. Just as she was lying down, situated for a good night's sleep, she remembered that Dr. Bradford had told her that Immortals need more than the usual dose, usually double. She did a count of how many she took and came up with two. That was the usual dose for mortals. She got back out of bed to take two more.

After situating herself again in bed, waiting for sleep to overtake her, she felt she had to go to the bathroom. All that water, she grumbled as she flipped off the sheet and went to take care of it. As she was flushing the toilet, she didn't feel the least bit sleepy. She looked at the bottle. It wasn't prescription medication, so maybe it was weaker that what you would get from a doctor. Dr. Bradford had been talking about prescription pills when he said to take double the dosage. The bottle was quite small and there were only a few pills left. She started to get dizzy, and chalked it up to growing anxiety that the pills weren't working. She filled another glass of water and took it and the bottle to her bedside. Elizabeth turned over the idea of just taking them all or just another one, not knowing how many she had taken already. She sat them both on the night stand and thought that if she didn't fall asleep in a few minutes, she'd take them.

Elizabeth caught sight of the framed soulcatcher that she also had in her hands when she had ran for the bathroom just after arriving. She hadn't noticed it while going through her purse. She berated herself about not taking in everything around her as Dr. Bradford, Dr. Stone, and Methos had all tried to instill in her brain. Feeling stupid, and shirking Hotohke's memory, she got out of bed to get it. She tried to open the frame, but couldn't. She walked to the lamp to turn it on and sat on the bed to see how it came apart. It wasn't enough to just look at it. She needed to hold it, feel it, sense it. She didn't know why she was so clumsy with her hands, and was developing a headache. She chalked it up to frustration as she pulled and yanked at everything in the back on the frame to open it. They did too good a job framing it, she said, and soon when frustration got the better of her, took the rest of the pills and drank down the glass of water. When she got into bed again, the framed soulcatcher fell to the floor. She needed it. She got up and tried again.

With a good whack against the corner of the night stand, the glass of the frame broke, and she reached to snatch the soulcatcher. Just holding the old piece of leather again did wonders for her. She was sitting sideways on the bed, and lost her center of balance. Before she knew it, she was on the floor in an awkward position and couldn't move. Her head was spinning and she started to lose focus. Her shoulder was killing her, because it was carrying most of her weight after the fall, but there wasn't one thing she could do about it. Just as her mind was shutting down, the bedroom door opened.

She tried to look up to see who it was and what they wanted or if they could help her, but all she could do was silently stare.

~~~~~

What Methos saw when he opened the bedroom door almost gave him a heart attack. Elizabeth was sprawled awkwardly on the floor with shards of glass from the broken picture frame, a water glass, and small bottle around, on top of, and under her. To add to his disbelief at the sight, Elizabeth also had multiple smalls cuts that were bleeding, the worst on her lower right arm, which was at a haphazard angle from her body. After flipping the light on, he rushed to her to figure out what had happened and pulled her hair back from her face. Her left cheek was smashed into the glass covered carpeting and he saw blood on it as well. "What the blazes were you doing?" After getting no response from her, yet her eyes were open, he nudged her. "Hey. Liz?"

Her eyes held a distant look that could only mean death. It didn't make sense. How the hell could falling out of bed kill her. There wasn't even that much blood letting. Methos chuckled to himself at the thought that this amount of blood didn't even phase him after all she'd had on her before she cleaned up at the comfort station. He had seen blood many times in his long life, and this was not life threatening, even for an old mortal man.

Methos turned her over, careful not to make more cuts on her skin, and saw that she was clutching her soulcatcher tightly in her left hand. "Liz? What happened?"

Again, no answer. Methos could have sworn she was dead, but he saw now that there was a gentle rise and fall of her chest. He picked up the small bottle lying beside her and saw that it had at one time contained sleeping pills. Looking around on the floor near her and where the bottle laid, he saw no pills. She must have taken them all.

He rested back on his folded legs out of the way of the glass and sighed. Just when he had come to look upon her and her actions in a different light, she went and took a bottle of pills? "Was this a suicide attempt? What the hell do you want to die for? After all you've..." Methos was so overcome with the sudden onslaught of anger at her that he couldn't even continue, and knew she couldn't hear him anyway.

Just leaving her there was the first thing that crossed his mind as he got to his feet, crunching some glass under his still boot-covered foot. Complete confusion over why she would want to kill herself consumed him. Why she thought a bottle of pills would work better than slicing her head off with her sword that was resting against the wall of the bedroom, and why she never once thought of Claire or him when she did it crossed and overwhelmed his mind. He had thought she was getting more in tuned to him and loved her daughter so much... their talk had done wonders for him, why did it make her want to die?

Methos was ready to throw up his hands and finish his ties to her. She had done nothing but confuse him for as long as his mind was remembering. But, with the uncomfortable way she was laying, he couldn't just leave her in that position. He could at least put her back into bed. It didn't take long for him to lift her from the floor, she had to have lost more weight than had been noticeable from the baggy clothes she wore. Or, maybe he just hadn't been looking at her since he left Bethany Stone Manor behind.

As Methos laid Elizabeth's comatose body onto the bed, he screamed in his head, "I need you to take care of Claire! I guess that's not going to happen now. I was just going to leave her with you but now... First you get me swayed to your point of view, that it wasn't totally your fault and you saved my head with no thought to your own safety, then you take a bottle of pills?! For what purpose?! Shaking his head, he knew Elizabeth was too dangerous to even be around of late. He'd do the best he could when he talked to May Nash in the morning. He'd have to tell her that they were separated, but he could manage raising Claire very well alone. He had so far.

"Oh, look at her," he mumbled as he saw a piece of glass poking out of her arm and glass that had transferred onto the bed. She would probably keep bleeding and soil the sheets. The maids would probably want to call the cops if they saw the mess she'd make... Methos went into the bathroom to wet a washcloth, muttering and sighing that it was probably time to make tracks. He'd rent his own room; since he couldn't get one in the St. Regis, he'd get one closer to the hospital, as that's where he'd spend his time until Claire was released. If she was sent to a foster home, he'd camp outside.

He stalked back to the bed and brushed off the little pebbles of glass from the bed and her hair. Picked the glass out of her arm and found another piece in her leg and pulled it out. He cleaned off the blood that had clotted as best he could with the damp washcloth on her legs, arms, and face. He sat on the bed looking at her waiting for a healing that never came. He picked up the bottle the pills came in again and saw there had only been ten in there. Even if she took them all, could only ten kill a person? He lifted Elizabeth's hand and it fell back limply to the bed. She was out cold. Well, at least she's clean and won't worsen the sheets, he thought as he pulled the sheet and blanket over her.

His foot crunched some glass on the carpet again, and he thought the maids didn't need to clean that up as well. What if one of them cut themselves and sued him because he had money and people were just plain sue-happy these days. He picked up as much of the glass as he found and put in the garbage can and then cracked the pieces of wood that had constituted the frame into smaller pieces and deposited them into the waste basket as well, all the time fuming about having to do it.

Methos was just about to call it a night again as his neck and shoulders were screaming with exhaustion and kinked from having slept awkwardly on the comfortable sectional sofa. He stood at the door and shut off the light. Elizabeth hadn't moved since he had positioned her on the bed. Why did she do it? To want to kill herself? What was he missing?

Just then her voice filled his head. "You think I just flipped a switch and no longer loved you?" she had told him in the car on the drive back to New York. "Do you really think that was possible?"

"And then you left me," was something else she had told him in the car. The way she had said it, and how the words filled his head now, forced him to remember just how much pain was behind those words. During all the time that he wanted her to admit that his past did matter, she was holding back her pain of being abandoned when she needed him the most. A chill ran up his spine when he realized that was exactly what he wanted to do again, right that very moment. He wanted to turn away from all things confusing, dangerous, and tenuous. The reawakening love he felt for her while she had spoken those words, had explained most of what happened and how it all affected her, had been so far in the distance to him that he still wondered how it had happened. Elizabeth's behavior and actions aside, Methos really pondered all that he himself had done since she almost took his head. Sure his head was almost taken, but he had loved Elizabeth more than he ever loved before. He always fought for those he loved; danger and the unknown were never a barrier that made him hold back from going after and fighting for what he wanted. Hell, he wouldn't have gone to Chicago on the flimsy evidence that Elizabeth was still alive after he had thought he had seen her beheading at James' hand. The word of a Watcher, one that he had trusted, made him throw caution to the wind and enter the lion's den to get his wife back. Or, even more amazing to him was that he had entered the pitch black dojo with a reverberating immortal buzz just after Elizabeth had been shot and dragged inside. Because he went in there, Pyrius held him for three days, Elizabeth took a dark quickening, and he left her. He knew that from now on, since their talk in the car, that when he thought of those dark days, it would always come down to the fact that he had left her not that she had gone crazy and wanted to kill him.

Methos leaned back against the doorframe, never once diverting his eyes from Elizabeth crashed on the bed. If anyone had asked him what he wanted more than life itself before he fell asleep on the sofa, he would have said for Claire to get well, for Claire to be in their care not some strange family's, Social Services to butt out of their lives, and to live in peace, love, and laughter with Elizabeth. As they were watching TV, drinking beer, and she scarfed down that cheeseburger, it had felt as though they were back in Sintra or Seacouver with Claire asleep in her room and he was existing blissfully with Elizabeth.

Salty tears started to form in his eyes, and he brushed them away. It was silly to cry like a little girl or mope about what could or should be. This was what is. Elizabeth needs help. She's seeing not one but two doctors and had been kidnaped and there was a threat that their daughter, who was still hurt would be taken away, and also, he never did brush her hair back from her face when he wanted to as she was eating. He never did touch her, which was the impulse that he had suppressed. Why had he done that? He knew he was in no danger from her. She had saved him for the sake of the gods! Not once, but twice! As he berated himself, he walked into the bedroom and kicked off his boots. Walking to the opposite side of the bed away from the night stand where he had placed the bottle and water glass, he took off his shirt and lifted the covers.

Yes, he thought as he slipped between the sheets. Elizabeth needs help as much as Claire does. He was going to give it to her. As he gently lifted her head to slip his arm under, he noticed that she was still holding onto the soulcatcher tightly. If that worn old piece of painted leather gave her a sense of security, that was fine. But he knew right then and there that he didn't want her to just rely on that. He wanted her to rely on him, and he was up to the task. He laid down, with her head perched on his arm, and he spooned her as he held her hands and the soulcatcher in his own. He wanted that soulcatcher to give him the needed strength to see all three of them through the next hazy days that laid ahead of them. One thing was certain in his mind as Methos fell asleep holding Elizabeth. He wasn't going anywhere, he thought about the laughter and fun they had shared over the years. He made a vow to himself that however sticky or scary it got, he wanted to be able see her through whatever she was still dealing with. After all, when you're married, one partner's demons are also your own.

Continued