New
Arrivals
Author-Suzie
Titles
Now and Forever
by Suzie
Summary: Can Blair find Jim before it’s too late?
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: Thank you, oh wise and wonderful Beta Beast. Who is sooooooo good at keeping my butt outta trouble when it comes to this writing stuff. <G>
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost.
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
~~ J.R.R. Tolkien ~~
######
Daniel Johnson, age thirty-five, was paying for the two shirts and one tie he’d picked up at Men’s Wardrobe in downtown Cascade. He was just signing the credit card receipt when a hail of bullets came through the store’s front window. Johnson never knew what hit him and was dead before he hit the floor. Luckily there were no injuries to anyone else inside the store or on the sidewalk.
Detective Jim Ellison and his observer/partner, Blair Sandburg were assigned the case. Unfortunately, no one inside got a look at the assailants and none of the people that had been nearby were stepping forward. Without any witnesses, the case was at a standstill.
**********
Captain Banks caught Jim on the third morning after the shooting before he’d even gotten to his desk and sent him an hour’s drive to Larkspur to talk to Mr. and Mrs. Cummons. It seems that they were in the store across the street when the shooting had occured. The retired couple had seen the news report on the incident. They hadn’t wanted to get involved, but when they heard that no one else had stepped forward, Mr. and Mrs. Cummons felt a bit quilty and called the police.
“Where’s Sandburg this morning?” Simon asked after giving the detective the information and address.
“He’s in meetings at the university all morning and then he’s teaching two classes this afternoon,” Jim answered, dreading the boredom of making the hour-long drive alone. He’d gotten used to Blair keeping him company and helping out during questionings.
**********
Jim sighed wearily as he drove out of Larkspur the way he’d driven in. The Cummons’ information had been very helpful. They now had a description of at least one possible suspect, the driver of the car that had pulled up just before the shooting, and the car itself, though the Cummons’ had been unable to get a license.
Glancing at his watch as his stomach rumbled obnoxiously, Jim decided it was lunchtime. A sign on the shoulder of the road advertised *Cherie’s Diner* up the road a few miles. He thought, What the heck. He drove until he saw another sign instructing him to take the next left.
Larkspur was a beautiful one-hundred-acre, wooded area, where each home was built on a two-acre lot. You couldn't see your neighbor unless you cut all the trees down, and the covenant stipulates that only so many trees could be removed per two acres. Larkspur was also a relatively new area and the homes were well distributed throughout its one-hundred-acres, leaving it a quiet and relaxing setting to live in. With its strict covenant rules, it promised to not build up too quickly.
Mellow Lane. Kind of fits the area I guess, Jim commented to himself as he made the left turn. Nice and quiet out here. I could… At that moment he *felt* the right front tire of the truck hit something. If not for his enhanced senses, he would never had known there was anything there. It wasn’t big, probably a small rock or…
BANG!
“What the hell!” Jim cried out in surprise as the truck jerked to the right. He tried to control it, but the slick pavement had him sliding before he could straighten the vehicle out. The last thing he saw was the edge of the road disappearing from under him.
**********
“Blair Sandburg’s office,” he said, hooking the receiver under his chin as he continued to type.
“Sandburg… this is Simon,” the Captain said.
“Hey, Simon, what’s up? Jim’s not here.”
“I didn’t think I’d get that lucky,” Simon sighed. “Have you heard from him at all today?”
“No, I haven’t talked to him since breakfast.” Blair hit save and gave his full attention to the conversation. “Why… what’s going on?”
“I sent him out to the Larkspur housing area to follow up on a couple of leads on the Johnson case first thing this morning. I’ve been trying to reach him, but he’s not answering his cell phone or the radio. I contacted the Cummons and they said he was there and left a little after one o’clock.”
Blair looked at the clock above his office door. “Simon, it’s nearly five o’clock!”
“I know that! That’s why I’m getting worried!” Simon snapped.
“Something’s happened to him!”
“Let’s not jump to conclusions, Blair. Maybe he had engine trouble, or…”
“He would’ve called, man! He would’ve found a way to contact one of us!” Blair started shutting down his computer and putting things away.
“Sandburg, calm down!”
“I’m going home. Maybe he left a message on the machine.”
“Good idea,” Simon agreed. “Call me.”
“Yes, sir,” Blair said. He hung up the phone, grabbed his keys and jacket, and headed out the door.
**********
Jim groaned softly as he began to regain consciousness. Something wasn’t right. He felt oddly heavy and something was tight around his waist making it hard to breathe. Jim finally managed to open his eyes and groaned again, as he looked at the world… fuzzy though it was… upside down. He shivered as a cool breeze flowed through the hole where the truck's windshield used to be. Moving his right hand to his forehead, Jim felt a large lump, and when he looked at his fingers they were bloody. Reaching across to unlatch the seatbelt, he realized he couldn’t get his fingers to work and an achy throb was working its way up his arm to his shoulder. Jim released the belt with his right hand and thumped down onto the roof of the truck’s cab with a curse. He lay there, trying to stay off the blackness that wanted to claim him. Jim's head was starting to pound. He righted himself and took stock of his injuries. The pain radiating through his arm helped him realize that his left arm was broken, and he could see the redness of blood soaking his left thigh. He took a deep breath and winced as pain stabbed through his chest. Looking at his watch, he squinted to focus enough to see the time. Jim realized he’d been unconscious for over an hour. He let his head fall back against the driver’s door as he leaned back. He was beginning to lose his battle with the black hole he was falling into.
**********
“Simon, he hasn’t called,” Blair said into the receiver as he paced the loft. “There aren’t any messages.”
“All right… I’ll put him down as officially missing. We’ll find him, Blair,” Simon said, hearing the worry in the younger man’s voice. “Don’t worry, we’ll find him.”
“Yeah… yeah, I know. I’m going to start calling around, maybe…”
“I’ve been doing that… no one has seen him. Two units are already out in the area where he was last seen. We’ll find him.”
“You already said that, Simon,” Blair mentioned.
“And I’m going to keep saying it until we do.”
**********
It was dark when Jim woke up again. Pain spiked through him like fire and he cried out as his eyes shot open. He tried to use his senses, tried to dial the pain down, tried to use his enhanced sight to see through the inky blackness, but he couldn’t concentrate. He couldn't get anything to work!
"Okay, don't panic, Ellison," Jim told himself. "One thing at a time."
Reaching up with his uninjured arm, Jim grasped the door handle and pushed back on the door. It wouldn't open. He fumbled for the lock and discovered the button was not pushed down. With a growl, Jim slammed his fist against the roof under him, which did nothing but jar his already pained body.
"Right, so turn around and try the other door."
Slowly, painfully, the big man turned himself around and scooted over to the passenger side of the truck. With a creak and a groan from the bent frame, the door opened and the small interior light came on. With a moan, Jim shielded his eyes from the sudden light, but since his senses didn't seem to be working it wasn't bad. Things were still blurry, which didn't really surprise him with the way his head was hurting.
Jim sat there for a minute, trying to think. He wasn't even too sure where he was and, other then knowing he'd been in an accident, he couldn't remember what happened. Squinting as he surveyed the cab of the truck in the dim light, Jim made out a shape dangling down from the dash. He reached out and took it in his hand. A microphone? He thought for a second before remembering the police radio.
Jim depressed the microphone's button. Click! "This is..." Jim blinked as he tried to remember his call-sign. "This is Detective James Ellison of the Cascade Police Department," he finally said. "I've been in an accident and need assistance."
Nothing... no response, no static. Just dead air.
ClickClick!
It should work even with the engine shut down, Jim thought as he turned the radio off and on several times. Though his vision was blurry, he saw the glow on its face disappear and then return each time he turned the knob. But the radio wasn't working, and the frustrating part was that Jim could’ve opened it up and possibly done something with if he could have seen it well enough. Anger surged for a moment and he threw the microphone against the truck's dash.
"Damn! Damn! Damn!" Jim leaned back and tried to control his breathing as the pain flared. "Cell phone!" he suddenly remembered. "Where's my cell phone?!" He patted his coat pockets until his hand came upon the familiar shape. "Ha!" Jim smiled triumphantly as he pulled the phone out. As he held it up to push in 911, the battery fell out onto his lap. "Oh shit," he whispered.
After several minutes of frantic attempts to replace the battery into the phone, Jim gave up and dropped both parts to one side. "Blair will know how to find me." Why? How? "I don't know... he just will." Shivering, he brought his coat closer around himself and pulled the door closed to shut out some of the chilled air, but with the windshield broken out it was still cold. "I just have to be patient and wait." Jim pushed the door open, just enough for the light to come back on. He reached up and flipped open the glove box, letting its contents fall out around him.
A small package of tissues, ketchup packets, paperwork for the truck, insurance card, a granola bar that Blair had stashed there, and what Jim was looking for... a small flashlight. At least he wouldn't have to sit in the dark. Jim clicked the light on and pulled the door shut again. Not that there was anything to really look at, but with his vision blurred and his senses on the fritz, it was nice to have the light there if he wanted it. A sort of security blanket thing.
**********
Blair paced around the loft feeling lost and angry... and worried. He stopped in front of the balcony windows and stared out over the darkened bay and the lights of the city. "Where are you, Jim?" Blair looked at the clock on the VCR. It said eight o'clock, three hours since Simon had called him at the university, seven hours since the last time Jim had been seen by anyone.
Simon called again a half-hour before to say that the patrol he'd sent out had found no sign of Jim or the truck.
"Where are you?" Blair repeated. "If you were kidnapped, we would've heard something by now... or at least found something." He frowned as he came to a decision. "No, you're alive, man. I can feel it. I just have to find you."
Blair dumped everything out of his backpack and began packing it with *necessities*. The big first aid kit he and Jim took camping, several bottles of water, a flashlight and extra batteries, and his cell phone. He grabbed several heavy blankets before heading out the door, closing and locking it behind him. Blair briefly thought he should call Simon. He's going to kill me. Blair headed for the stairs, not wanting to wait for the elevator, thinking about the hour's drive out to the Larkspur area. I'll call him when I get out there.
**********
The cold quickly seeped into the truck and through Jim’s leather coat. He was beginning to shiver and wondered how much of it was the cold and how much was shock. He thought about trying to get the first aid kit out from under the seat above him, but didn’t have the energy to pull himself up. The gash on his thigh had stopped bleeding and Jim figured that as long as he stayed still, it wouldn’t start up again. There wasn’t much he could do about his broken arm, and he knew he had a concussion. His chest ached badly, and he wasn’t able to take a deep breath with triggering a painful coughing spasm. Jim wondered about internal injuries and if he would survive the night, but then stopped himself and said, “Blair is going to find me before I worry about that.”
**********
Blair pushed his Volvo as hard as he dared to, shaving fifteen minutes off the one-hour trip. Realizing he didn’t know where the Cummons lived, Blair cursed and pulled over to the shoulder. He retrieved his cell phone and hit the speed dial for Simon’s phone. “He is sooo going to kill me.”
“Banks,” Simon barked into his cell phone.
“Hey, Captain, it’s me,” Blair said.
“No, I haven’t heard anything,” Simon said, tired frustration sounding heavy in his voice.
“Okay… um… sir, can you give me the address of the Cummons’?”
“Why?”
“Well… ah… I’m…”
“Sandburg, don’t you dare tell me you’re in Larkspur?!”
“Okay, I won’t tell you,” Blair said, sounding a little like a boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
Simon sighed, “I want you to go home, Blair. Now.”
“No, sir, I can’t do that. I have to find Jim.”
“Our people have been through that area… he’s not there. We’re doing everything…”
“I know that, Simon, but I can’t just sit at home and do nothing. I know he’s here… somewhere. I have to look.”
“Listen to me, Blair…”
“You can either give me the address so I have a place to start, or I can drive around all night in hopes that I’m at least in the right area.”
Finally, Simon relented to the desperate tone in Blair’s voice and gave him the address he wanted, along with directions. “Be careful… okay? I don’t want to have to come looking for you too.”
“No problem, Simon… and thanks,” Blair said quietly before clicking off the phone.
Following the directions from Simon, Blair found the address and drove slowly past. He had no intentions of stopping and bothering the Cummons. They would be of no help and he didn’t want to waste the time. Blair had this deep down feeling that Jim was in the area somewhere. Injured and alone. “Hang on, big guy, I’m coming.”
**********
Jim was fighting to remain awake. He had heard several cars pass by, but didn’t understand why no one was stopping to help. For some reason they aren’t seeing me, he thought. I have to let Blair know I’m here. Moving slowly and painfully to where he was closest to the steering wheel, Jim reached up and hit the horn.
Honk
It was weak, as if the battery was slowly going dead. Exhausted, Jim let himself fall back against the door, feeling some satisfaction. Now at least he could make some noise. Sweat trickled down his face and back, making him shiver harder. He knew his leg was bleeding again, but shifted around until he was in a decent position to reach the horn… and began to count.
“One… two… three… four… five… six… seven… eight… nine… ten.”
Honk
“One… two… three… four… five… six… seven… eight… nine… ten.”
Honk
Count… horn… count… horn. He didn’t know how long he could keep it up, but it gave Jim something to concentrate on other than the pain.
**********
Blair drove slowly with his window down, ignoring the cold air that was blowing over his face. He strained to see or hear anything that might be a clue.
After driving out of the area the most obvious way, Blair turned around and went back, taking any side streets along the way. Finally, Blair pulled to the side of the road and used the flashlight to start searching his map for any possible road that Jim might have taken. “Jim, where the hell are you?”
Several minutes later, Blair set the flashlight and map aside and scrubbed his hand over his face and through his hair. Jim was out there. He knew it. He could feel it. An exasperated sigh escaped him as he let his head fall back against the headrest. Staring out the windshield, Blair found himself looking at a sign lit up by the headlights of his car. *Cherie’s Diner* ~ Three miles ahead. There was something about that sign… as if it were trying to tell him something.
After another minute, Blair straightened up, still staring at the sign. “I went down this road… twice. I didn’t see a diner,” he said to himself. “It was after lunchtime when Jim left the Cummons’ house. Would he go to a diner rather than wait until getting back to Cascade to eat?” Blair thought for a moment. “He hadn’t eaten since breakfast. Knowing Jim, he was probably starving by the time he got back on the road.” He put the car into gear and pulled out onto the road. “It’s worth another look.”
Driving carefully, still searching the road ahead of him, Blair saw another sign. It was an arrow pointing left with *Cherie’s Diner* printed on it. “Huh, I didn’t see that before. Must have missed it in the dark.” He made the left turn and continued down the road until he came to the diner. *Cherie's Diner* was closed down. Probably bought out by the developers. Blair turned the Volvo around in the gravel parking lot and stopped. "Damn, now what?"
Honk
Blair's stopped and listened. What was that? He waited as the cold breezes rustled through the trees.
Honk
Blair's heart skipped in his chest. It had to be Jim.
Honk
Who else would be honking at regular intervals, in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere?
**********
Jim let his arm fall into his lap. Pain, exhaustion, and shock were all taking their toll on him. He had thought that if no one found him by morning, he could go out, surveys the situation and do something to get rescued. Now Jim was beginning to wonder if he would survive until morning. C'mon, buddy, where are you?
A few minutes later, Jim thought he heard a car. He listened to the slow crunch of tires of asphalt and noticed a slight chug in the engine. Even without his enhanced hearing it was familiar, and he'd recognize it anywhere. With all the strength left in his body, Jim reached up and held the horn button down for one last time.
**********
"Come on, man, where are you? Don't stop now," Blair mumbled to himself as he drove achingly slow down the middle of the road. "One more time, Jim... please." Running the flashlights beam along the shoulder, he saw the disrupted dirt and gravel.
A long blast sounded and Blair gasped. Throwing the car into park, he grabbed the backpack and blankets, and jumped out of the car, running to the edge of the road.
"JIIIM?!" Blair screamed into the dark.
Shining the light over the embankment, Blair's breath caught in his throat as it showed him a ruined blue and white truck lying upside at the bottom. "OhmyGod, Jim!" Without a second thought, Blair was slipping and sliding down the slope. "I'm here, Jim! I'm coming!"
Blair pulled on the driver's door, but it wouldn't budge. "Shit!" he cried in frustration, then made his way around to the other side of the truck. "Jim, I'm here, man! Hang on, buddy!" He yanked the passenger's door open and shined the flashlight inside, almost afraid to look.
"Hey, Chief... what took you... so long?" Jim whispered.
Blair scrambled inside. "Oh God, Jim!" He immediately began to take stock of his Sentinel. "Jim, talk to me. Tell me where you're hurting." Blair voice was trembling.
"Left arm... broken," Jim began softly. "Concussion... leg bleeding... chest hurts."
Blair started wrapping the blankets around Jim's shivering body. "Okay, have you got the pain dialed down?"
Jim shook his head slightly. "No... senses."
Anyone else would have wondered at the meaning of that, but Blair knew what Jim was saying. "It's probably the head injury," he said, pulling the first aid kit out of his pack.
After wrapping Jim's leg as tightly as he could, Blair picked up his cell phone and dialed Simon.
"I've found him, Simon!" Blair said as soon as he heard the click of the phone being answered. "He's hurt bad..."
"Sandburg!" Simon cut him off. "Calm down and tell me where you are!"
Blair took a deep breath, then gave the Captain directions to his location. "Hurry, Simon!"
"Hold on, kid, we're on our way!"
Blair disconnected the phone and set it aside. "Jim, they're on their way. Just hang on."
Silence.
"Jim, don't go to sleep on me, man."
Jim opened tired, swollen eyes and managed and faint smile for his Guide. "I'm awake." A coughing fit shook the big man's frame with painful spasms.
"Oh, man," Blair whispered worriedly. He took Jim's hand and held it until the spasms stopped, then slowly and carefully slid himself behind Jim, letting him lean into Blair's chest. "Hang on, man. Just hang on." He wrapped his arms gently around his friend and prayed to any and all Gods that might be listening.
"For awhile... I wasn't sure... I was going to make it," Jim said softly and brought his uninjured hand up to grasp Blair's. "Now... I know I will."
Blair rested his head atop Jim's and closed his eyes, trying to hold his tears back.
**********
Jim was admitted into Cascade General’s intensive care unit with a concussion, badly bruised chest, broken wrist, and a four inch gash in his thigh. Blair stayed by his friend’s side until he was moved to a private room twenty-four hours later. That’s when Simon all but carried Blair out of the hospital and paid a cab to take him home to shower, eat, and rest.
“But, Simon…,” Blair tried to argue. “What if Jim’s senses start acting up?”
“The man is asleep, Sandburg,” Simon said, pushing the younger man into the backseat of the cab. “Which is what I want you to do as well. *If* anything should happen, I will give you a call.”
“Promise?”
“I promise, kid. I won’t leave until you get back… okay?”
Blair hesitated a second, then nodded, “Okay. I’ll see you in a few hours then.”
**********
Two days later ~
Blair sat next to the bed and held Jim’s hand, thinking about role reversals when he looked up to see Jim’s blue eyes staring intently at him.
“Are you okay?” Blair asked softly, seeing the drugged grogginess in those normally clear eyes.
“I can hear your heart beating,” Jim whispered. “I’ve missed that lately.”
“Things are coming back on-line then. How are you feeling?”
“Better… just achy all over.” Jim scanned his Guide’s face. “How are *you* doing?”
“Okay,” Blair smiled. “You scared the crap out of me, you know.”
“Yeah… I’m sorry.”
“Hey, none of it was your fault.”
“I still don’t remember the accident… but Simon said it was probably caused by the blown tire they found.”
“Yeah, he told me. He said it looked like you lost control on the slick road and went over that embankment.” Blair shivered.
Jim gave Blair’s hand a squeeze. “Hey, it’s over now.”
Blair smiled and nodded, not wanting to think about what he almost lost.
“You know what the worst part was?”
Blair shook his head.
“Not knowing if I’d see you again.”
Blair’s eyes widened.
“I kept telling myself that you’d find me… but towards the end…”
“Jim…”
“I knew you were coming… I really did,” Jim rambled. “But I couldn’t… *feel* you… you know?”
“Yeah, Jim… I know,” Blair said, trying not to let the tears start.
“I always know when you’re nearby…”
“Jim… shhh,” Blair said, putting his fingers against Jim’s lips to shut him up. “It’s over, man. We just need to get you healed up.”
“Yeah… you’re right.”
Blair could see that Jim was exhausting himself and needed to rest. “You get some sleep now.”
Jim gave a slight nod, “You going to stay a while longer?”
“I’ll stay as long as you need me.”
“Now and forever, buddy,” Jim whispered as his eyes closed and his breathing evened out into sleep.
“Now and forever,” Blair smiled, then laid his head down on the edge of the bed and followed his partner into slumber.
<>~~<>~~<>
end