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She sprinted over the uneven ground, hugging her books to her. In her haste, she did not notice the tree root in her path and went sprawling. She lay on the damp grass, face and hands scratched slightly by the rough tumble. She struggled to her feet and felt a protest coming from the right ankle. She took a small step gingerly. "Damn!" Nykki swore as her ankle gave way beneath her. Of all the stupid things I had to do. "Damn, damn, damn!" she swore again. That will teach me to look at where I'm going. Why don't they ever mow the grass here anyway? She glanced back at the guilty tree root that had caused her fall, hidden by the long grass. She had been late for Hupperman's Con Law class, she had taken a short cut by cutting across the "forest" behind the dormitory - she had paid for her tardiness. Now, her books were scattered all over the place, and her ankle had decided to "take a break". Nykki tried to get up again and winced. She took off her track shoe and wound down the sock, then stared at the gradually swelling flesh and grimaced. It looked gross. She pulled the sock back up and put the shoe back on, wincing even more as she did so. Nykki suppressed another swear. She eyed the dark clouds dubiously. I hope Nick realizes that I'm not there and comes looking for me, I don't really want to be caught here when it starts raining.
About twenty minutes later, she heard someone shout her name. "Alex! Alex! Where the hell are you?!" someone yelled. Who the hell is that? That's not Nick, she thought... Who cares? "Here!" she yelled back. A dark figure appeared at the edge of her vision. She turned and waved wildly. And was dumbstruck when she realized that the person coming towards her was Christopher Wilder. "What happened?" Chris asked. "Wha... oh, I tripped and sprained my ankle." She answered hurriedly, trying her best to regain her composure after the surprise. Chris turned his head away, trying not to laugh at Alex's surprise, but his shaking shoulders betrayed him. Nykki glared at him. Finally, he spoke. "Come on boy, I'll get you to the doctor." Christopher went to gather her books, then slipped her arm over his shoulder and helped her up. Nykki was too stunned by Christopher's move to object. She felt as if someone had poleaxed her. Getting dumbstruck is becoming a habit, she thought wryly. Speechless, she looked up at her mentor. He met her eyes and for the first time, his blue eyes did not clash with her silver ones. Chris gave her a sketchy smile, and they moved towards the infirmary. Rain began to fall as they left the place, a cold, steady drizzle that soaked through clothes in minutes and chilled everything into lethargy. The low-slung clouds moved sluggishly, as if they were reluctant to hurry on. Nykki gave up trying to move by herself and not depend on Chris, and leaned wearily on him. His gesture of help was something new. She would have expected him to urge her up with the hard end of a stick rather than the strength of his arm. "How in the world did you manage to fall down like that?" Christopher said, looking at the scratches and bruises on her face from only a headspan away. The girl quickly turned her face away. If he was this close and watching so intently, he could notice details she did not want him to see, like the smoothness of her cheek. There was not enough dirt to disguise her skin and not enough tan to hide the softness at such a close range. The bruises helped a bit, so did the rain coming in between them, but Christopher was beginning to looked puzzled. "My own clumsiness and stupidity. I should never have taken that route," she replied, while thinking of a way to hide her skin. Suddenly, Nykki noticed the large puddle of mud they were approaching, and an idea blossomed in her mind. When they took the first step into the puddle, Nykki deliberately stumbled and slammed into Christopher's calves as she fell. He lost his balance and fell on top of her. She froze in fright as his weight crushed her into the mud, but that fear could not be compared to the fear of what he might discover as he lay on top of her. She had not meant to bring him down like this! "I'm sorry sir," she blurted out from under a tangle of bodies and books. Books! she thought anxiously, glancing around. Whew, there they are, out of the mud, the rain won't damage them... much. "Sir, I know you want to punish me for my clumsiness, but could you not do it using your weight? You're heavy," she said with a groan. Christopher moved off her. He stood up, picked up her books, and offered a hand to her. Once again, he surprised her - he was laughing. She staggered up and looked down at herself ruefully. Christopher would never cease to amaze her. Instead of berating her for her clumsiness, he was laughing as if it was a joke. They were both covered with mud - at least she did not have to worry about her face for the moment - yet Chris was not angry. Thank God he had not put his hands in the wrong places. "You know Alex, you are the most stubborn whelp I have known. That trait is infuriating, but it can be a good advantage." Christopher lapsed into silence, and they crossed the rest of the distance to the infirmary in thoughtful quiet.
Christopher helped Nykki down onto a chair. She felt an unexpected warmth for her mentor. It was the first sign of friendship he had offered since the start of the program, and the shield over her heart dropped a bit as he knelt down next to her, got a bowl of water, and handed it to her with a rag. "I'll find the doctor and page for your twin. Don't try to stand up, you'll hurt that ankle even more," he advised, before leaving the room. He returned a few minutes later. "The Doc will be here in a few minutes." The two were alone. For a moment, Nykki was bewildered, both at his change of attitude and his willingness to help. She thought he despised her. "Well... I..." she began. Nicholas suddenly rushed into the room. He took in the mud on his twin and Christopher with interest, and gave his twin a toothy smile. "Alex, are you all right?" He deliberately stressed the words "all right". Nykki gave him a killing look. Christopher looked at Nicholas and grinned. "I'm glad you turned up when you did because you saved your twin from a fate worse than death. He was about to have to say something pleasant to me." Chris said, grinning at him. She was about to retort when the doctor came bustling in. "Okay Chris, what's the problem?" asked Dr. Eric Larssard. "It's Alex," Chris replied, pointing at Nykki. "He sprained his ankle. I'll leave him in your capable hands," Christopher paused at the door before he left. A streak of mud creased his face and dyed half of his dark brown hair. More mud was smeared on his jacket and down his jeans. His high-tops were caked. "When you are through here, go and rest, but do not expect to rest for long. I'll be waiting for you." His voice turned glacial. The veiled threats had returned. Nykki stared after him as the door closed behind him. It was as if their moment of companionship had never existed. Christopher's coldness closed around her again like a trap. The girl shivered. For just a moment, she had nourished a hope that he would stop harassing her and be a friend as Nicholas suggested. But his confusing manipulations leaped ahead of her and blocked her speculation like a granite cliff. Richard O'Malley's head appeared at the edge of the door. "Is he okay? Is anything broken?" he asked anxiously. "He only sprained his ankle," chuckled Larssard. "No big deal. Now Alex, drink this, it will dull the pain so I can examine your ankle." Nykki accepted the cup and downed it in one swallow. "What is it? It tastes like unwashed socks!" she complained. "Just a strong painkiller. Be careful with it, it'll probably knock you out for an hour or so." Larssard replied as he looked for bandages. Nykki began to feel the effects of the drug. She grew very sleepy. Larssard turned to see her leaning back against the chair. Her legs were thrust out in front of her and her eyes were dulled with the drug and exhaustion. The doctor looked at O'Malley and Alex's twin sitting nearby. Without speaking, he eased the laces on his shoe and carefully removed it. He tried not to jar the puffy flesh of the injured ankle. The joint was purple and red. He twisted it slowly, feeling the tendons and torn muscles beneath the soft skin. Larssard glanced up at his patient's face. The drug had relaxed Nykki's muscles, her expression was slack and unwary. At that moment, the sun came out from behind the clouds, and the bright light poured through the window and illuminated her face. Larssard's hands froze; his body stiffened. Unbelieving, he wrenched his eyes from the face to the slim ankle in his hands, and the realization hit him like a blow. Nykki was gazing into the distance and did not see his horrified recognition, but O'Malley and Nicholas did. They watched Larssard closely, debating what his next move would be. Larssard rocked back on his heels, a thousand questions reeling about in his shocked mind. He turned round and stared at Richard O'Malley and uttered a single word. "Why?" "Because it was necessary. Now you know why I transferred over here. I just couldn't leave the two of them on their own, especially with one in such a disguise." O'Malley said. "But, who is she? And you..." Larssard asked, looking at Nicholas. "I'm Nicholas Storm, and that mud-covered waif you have there is my twin, Nicole." "Nicholas and Nicole Storm... you're Mason's kids aren't you? Weren't you supposed to have been killed along with your parents? What are you doing here?" Larssard stuttered, overwhelmed the whirl of questions going through his head. "They were, as you can see, not killed along with Mason and Jackie, they got away and came to me. I faked their funerals along with their parents', but whoever got Mason and Jackie knows they didn't get these two here. They've been after them ever since." O'Malley explained. "Who are you?" Nicholas asked curiously. "I'm an old friend of your father and Richard. I was the one who wrapped them up after many of their 'excursions'," said Larssard. "We're old friends. I've known Larssard since I was... what... fifteen?" Larssard nodded. "Fourteen, actually. Richard, you must tell me everything that's happened. I haven't seen you since your transfer from LA." "It's a long, long story, finish with Nykki first, then we'll go for a talk." Larssard bound up Nykki's ankle in three minutes flat, Nicholas helped his twin back to their room, while Larssard and O'Malley went somewhere quiet to have their talk.
"Paper, paper, paper everywhere! All the paper in the world must be here!" Nykki muttered irritably, "Don't you have anyone else to handle the paperwork?" she asked Chris. "Yes, we do have people to do, but since you can't do anything strenuous for a while, you might as well help us out," he answered, grinning. "Anyhow, you need to know how to handle the paperwork. More than fifty percent of your working time will be spent on it, might as well get you started early." They worked in companionable silence for a while. "Christopher?" "Hmm?" he answered, concentrating on the badly typed report in front of him. "Why were you transferred here?" Nykki asked him bluntly. He had known that Alex would ask him, but had not expected to be questioned straight out. It was his own fault for dropping the clue the last time. Christopher hesitated for a long moment, before speaking. "I graduated from Yale with a degree in criminal psychology when I was twenty-one. I enrolled in the academy that year and was posted to the Washington Field Office when I completed the course. My first partner was Marianne Winston..." The memories were still painful even after two years. He took a deep breath. "Marianne was eight years my senior, she took a new and raw rookie under her wing and taught me everything she knew. We fell in love and became engaged nine months later. What happened next was like a bad nightmare. It was a week before the wedding and we were staking-out the house of a criminal's girlfriend with some people from the police, when suddenly, all the lights in the house were switched on, and someone screamed. We all rushed into the house. Marianne and I split up - she went up to the first floor and I stayed on the ground floor. I was searching the kitchens when this sound came from upstairs. I ran up the stairs. When I reached the landing, there was this barrage of shots, I got a bullet in my arm and another in my left leg. I think I collapsed on the floor then. I guess I must have passed out for a while." "When I came to, I saw this person coming towards me. I was so blinded by the pain that I shot at him without seeing who it was ..." "It was Marianne," Nykki said. "The Met and the doctors at the hospital said that she had been killed before I shot her, that I wasn't the one who killed her, but..." his voice cracked slightly. "I developed this phobia of guns. The next few cases I had were all flops. Although we had caught the criminals, I couldn't find the evidence to indict them... I couldn't concentrate, so I was sent here, to 'take a break' as they put it." He was unaware of the bitterness in his voice when he spoke of the transfer. "It's been two years, they still feel that I'm still unstable." He gave a bitter laugh. "Well here I am, it's not an honor, it's a disgrace." Christopher stood up, careful to avoid Alex's eyes. Damn you Alex! Why did you bring up those memories I thought I had buried? "Stay here and finish the work, I've got to find someone." He walked quickly to the door, unwilling to face the mocking and condemnation he knew would be on Alex's face. Alex Mason would never do anything as stupid as that, he wouldn't understand..., he wouldn't have shot... He's always so cool and collected... damn the arrogant bastard! Christopher thought angrily as he stormed out of the room. If only he had turned back, he would have seen the compassion, and the look of dawning respect on 'the boy's' face.
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