New
Arrivals
Author-Suzie
Titles
Kelsey's Nightmare
by Suzie
Summary: Need I say more? #3 in Writer's Block Series #1.
Disclaimer: Some of the characters in this story belong to the UPN Network and Pet Fly Productions as part of the television show The Sentinel. I do not claim these characters as my own. No money has changed hands.
Notes: I'm not sure where this came from, but it started in the shower. If you haven't formally met Kelsey, you might want to read Witness.
The first scream had Jim sitting upright in bed before his eyes were even open. The second scream had him scrambling down the stairs from his bedroom with his gun to meet Blair running across the loft to the living room.
The tangled mess of blankets on the sofa cried and kicked madly. "NO! LET ME GO!" Kelsey screamed hysterically.
Resetting the safety on the handgun before setting it on the table, Jim moved quickly to grab the bundle and was met with a wild struggle. "Kelsey, wake up now! It's Jim ... you're okay!"
"NONONONO!"
"Blair, get the blankets off her head!"
Blair pulled at the heavy material as he tried to untangle the small woman. "C'mon, Kelsey, wake up!" Frustrated, he pushed at Jim's left arm, saying, "Loosen your grip a little, man, so I can pull it out!"
"Please! Help me!" Kelsey cried between sobs.
Jim kept a grip around her middle with his right arm and was able to loosen his hold enough to allow Blair to yank the blankets out and over Kelsey's head. From there Blair was able to untangle the rest fairly easily as Kelsey started to come awake.
Kelsey opened her eyes, but could see only dark shapes moving around her and felt that she was being restrained. She tensed; ready to renew her struggles when a familiar voice broke through her sleep-clouded mind.
Jim's senses told him she was awake. "Shh ... shh ... you're okay," he said gently. "It's Jim and Blair. You were having a nightmare."
Blair reached behind Jim and turned on the lamp.
A sheen of sweat and tears on her face, total horror in her wide eyes as she peered through wild hair. "OhmyGod!" Kelsey whispered as she started to cry again.
Blair pushed the hair off her face and whispered, "It's alright now. You're awake."
Jim pulled the shaking Kelsey onto his lap and wrapped her in a gentle embrace. She clung to one of the big bare arms and pressed her head into his chest. Blair moved to sit beside them and took Kelsey's other hand and felt the fingers curl around his own. They sat that way for long minutes.
**********
"How 'bout some hot cocoa, Chief?" Jim said.
Kelsey still huddled on Jim's lap. Her crying reduced to sniffles as she began to relax.
"Sure," Blair replied as he started to scoot off the sofa.
Kelsey's grip tightened on his hand and she whispered, "No ... stay."
Blair smiled reassuringly and moved back. "Okay. I'm not going anywhere."
Jim smoothed Kelsey's hair and rubbed slow circles over her back. "Wanna talk about it?" He felt her shrug against him and lightly kissed the top of her head. "It might help."
"It was awful," Kelsey said quietly.
"Tell us."
Kelsey sighed. "There were lots of people, but I couldn't really see them 'cause of the dark. They were just like ... shapes. They ... They kept grabbing me ... pushing and pulling. There were voices."
"What did the voices say?" Blair asked.
"I couldn't understand at first. They were like far away echoes."
Jim felt the small body shiver and turned to Blair. "Got a blanket there, Chief?"
Blair wrapped one blanket around Kelsey and settled back down, pulling the second one around his shoulders.
"Go ahead, sweetheart, you're doing fine," Jim prompted.
"It seemed like forever, but the voices finally got to where I could understand them. They were repeating the same thing over and over."
After a moment of silence Blair asked, "What were they saying, Kelsey?"
An arrant tear slid down one cheek and Kelsey said, "They kept saying ... 'Your fault' ... over and over like a chant." She took a deep breath in an effort to keep from crying. "Then there was a gun going off ... and the shapes started falling." Kelsey swallowed hard. "It got quiet ... and ... when I looked ... I was holding a gun and I realized that *I* had been the one shooting." The efforts failed and more tears fell as she sobbed, "Then there was a net ... or something ... over my head. I couldn't get away. I kept trying, but I couldn't get away!"
"Shh ... shh," Jim soothed. "It was a nightmare. It wasn't real."
Blair cupped her face in his hands, brushing tears off her cheeks. "The 'net' was the blanket. You were tangled up in it, and the more you struggled the worse it got."
"Oh ... that makes sense ... I guess," Kelsey said, feeling a little embarrassed.
"Have you been having nightmares lately?" Jim asked.
"No ... the last ones I had were when I had the flu. But, those were nothing like this."
Resting a cheek against the top of her head, Jim carefully asked, "Kelsey, are you still having problems with the Wheeler incident?"
Kelsey tensed for a moment at the mention of *that* name. "No ... I mean ... I find myself thinking about it still once in a while. But, I don't have guilt over it anymore."
The therapist had done wonders with her. Kelsey no longer blamed herself for Wheeler's death. She no longer considered herself a murderer. It was self-defense without question.
Kelsey looked at Blair, but spoke to both men. "Do you think I'm going crazy again?" she asked quietly with a hint of fear in her voice.
"No, of course not!" Jim said quickly.
Blair gave a gentle smile and said, "You were never crazy, Kelsey. Dr. Shawn said you had very normal reactions to something very terrible that happened to you. He also said you'd have an occasional flashback or nightmare that would somehow resemble the incident."
"And he said that it would go away in time," Kelsey added.
"That's right. It's only been six months. Be patient with yourself, okay?"
Kelsey managed a small bit of a smile as she nodded.
Damn, Chief, you're good, Jim thought to himself as he felt Kelsey relax further.
Trying to snuggle closer into Jim, Kelsey said, "Sorry I woke you guys up."
"Don't worry about it. Just get some rest now," Jim whispered.
**********
Jim woke to bright sunlight streaming in through the balcony windows. Still on the sofa in just his boxers with Kelsey sleeping on his lap still wrapped in the blanket. Her warm breath tickling his chest. Jim tightened his embrace slightly and sighed, smiling into Kelsey's soft hair.
Something shifted slightly and Jim looked to find Blair snuggled against his left shoulder. One hand still holding Kelsey's, though the fingers were now lax with sleep. Blair's breath caught for a second, then he let out a quiet snore that made Jim shake his head and chuckle silently.
Jim sighed again, feeling a sort of contentment. Happy and satisfied to just sit still with his friends ... his family ... safe and close. And they wonder why I treat them the way I do?
**********
end