Breakthrough

Chance chuckles and leads the way outside. "Maybe we'll get lucky and we won't have to share too much."

Getting to the pool , it was a pleasant surprise to find only a few people. Having come at just the right time, apparently, most of the few who were there were simply lounging and socializing in the patio area where there were tables and chairs.

Paying, entering and finding a good spot at a table for their things, Chance keeps an eye out, taking in all the people, who was there, what they looked like, and traffic on the nearby street. "Everything looks good," he comments to Destiny. Pulling off his shirt and shedding his jeans to be in his swimming trunks, he looks at the almost-empty pool. "Last one in is a rotten egg."

Making a dash to the diving board, he's up, on, bounces once and flips a somersault in the air before straightening for a sleek dive into the water. Surfacing, he finds Destiny and laughs. "Water's great."


Reese nods absentmindedly. "I think if we bring Trey officially to question him, we could get away with it. Perhaps under the truth, that your relatives contacted you, and it's a perfect 'in' for us to gain information on a drug ring that most assuredly brings drugs into the US at some point. Even though it's not a current case, why should we not follow up? No one should have a problem with us at least investigating this."

He thinks for a moment longer, truly wanting some way to work this out. He cared about Angelica and her sister and brother-in-law. He didn't know how someone could threaten that Bret or Charlotte could wind up in jail, but anything was possible with people as ruthless as this. "How are we going to get Trey back here though? Do you even know if he's a willing party?"


Justin stands at the window and sips a cup of coffee with ice. He'd been told he was strange, but he never had enjoyed hot drinks. It was the caffeine he wanted this morning.

A light fog had enveloped Brookshire, making it feel as though it were some fanciful wonderland.

Hearing movement, Justin turns from the window and sees Scott pulling himself up to sit on the bed. Zora hops off onto the floor, sensing her overnight duty was done. Justin wanders over and eases down next to Scott. "Morning." He cocks his head to study Scott's tired, dark eyes. "You alright?"

Scott nods numbly. He didn't remember Justin coming last night, but he remembered being calmed. "I think so."

"Want some breakfast?"

Scott shakes his head.

Justin looks in his cup. "Cold coffee?"

Scott glances at the ice and a slight laugh surfaces before he shakes his head again.

"Okay, well, why don't you get cleaned up and... I'll go get you some apple juice, alright? It'll be easy on your stomach, but you need something."

Scott nods obediently and stand a little unsteadily to head to the shower.

Justin finishes off his coffee then takes Danitza and Zora out, getting some apple juice from Jenny on his way back in.

Half an hour later, Scott is sitting on the bed again, cleaned up, clean clothes and working on keeping down the juice. Looking at Justin, who was now sitting on the floor with the dogs, Scott's eyes move to Zora and he lightly pats the bed. She obediently gets up and comes to him, wagging her tail and licking his fingers. He scratches her head and enjoys her pure affection. "I miss Domino," he mentions quietly.

Justin could understand. "I can bring her to visit if you want."

Scott shakes his head. "It would just confuse her." Sipping the last of his juice, he succeeds in finishing it, and sets the glass down on the nightstand. Thinking a moment and petting Zora some more, he finally looks back to Justin. "I want to play the matching game."

Justin tries to hide his surprise. "You sure?"

Scott hesitates then nods. "Yeah. I'm... I'm ready for the rain."

Justin's heart skips a beat. Scott had heard him. "Okay. You want to go outside?"

"Yeah. Can the dogs come?"

Justin smiles. "Sure..."


...The cards are spread face down on the table. One of Scott's hands rests on Zora's head, the other hovering over the cards. Justin sits across from him and waits patiently as the morning sun brings the warmth for the day. Scott's pulse races, but he knew he had to do this. Justin was right. He could either face this or let himself die.

Justin says nothing and simply waits. If it took Scott all day or even if he gave up before turning over a single card, Justin had seen a step forward today.

A bead of sweat rolls down the side of Scott's face, his hand still hovering. Whose face would he see? What kind of trigger would it be? What would he experience? Swallowing hard, his hand lowers, his fingertips resting on the smooth card. And finally, with great determination, the card is flipped over and Scott's hand retracts quickly as if the card were on fire.

Though the card was now face up, Scott's eyes had closed and he just sits for another several moments before mustering up the courage to face this giant. Staring down, he sees a face that he would not recognize, had it not been for the Agency data. He had a rough look, and a jagged scar down the side of his face, adding to he glare he had for whatever camera had taken his picture.

Scott sucks in his breath. As the data emerges. Name, birthdate, rank, number, history...

Justin sees Scott getting lost in a stare. He remembered all Alec had told him about diverting Scott's mind and helping him concentrate on something else to keep him from going into overload or shock. When Scott remains motionless, Justin looks to Zora and give her several short nods while snapping his finger. She gets the signal and her ears perk up as she gives a short bark.

Scott is startled from his stare as the data vanishes. He blinks and tries to breath again, his hands having started to shake. "That's... that's Patrick Deluthe."

Justin nods. "Can you find him again?"

Scott knew the odds weren't good for him to find a match before any other cards had been turned over, so it takes him a few moments to gather his nerves once more. Turning over another card, this time, it's a woman. Again, the data surfaces, taking over Scott's thoughts as he begins to murmur. "Angela Hobring. Agent three three two. First of the-"

Zora's bark makes Scott flinch, though again, he's brought quickly back to reality. It was amazing, even to himself, that without having worked at this, he had no defenses built up at all. It was an instant reaction to the visual stimulations, over which he had no control. It was even more instantaneous than it had been before - a grim sign that time was running out.

Drawing in his breath, Scott turns the unmatched cards back over. "Your turn."

As long as Scott didn't back off, Justin would let the play continue. So he goes for his first card and quickly the second. Again, Scott has no control, automatically starting to rattle off information before again, Zora provides the distraction needed. Justin hadn't known if the dog would help, but seeing that it worked, he would continue to use her.

Back and forth, the matching game continues. By the last round Scott can take, he's managed to hold off reciting the data for a couple seconds after seeing the faces. It was just a little achievement, but it was an achievement nonetheless, and it brought something even more important than that: hope. Hope that eventually, he really could overcome this.

"I... I'm tired." Scott wipes sweat from his brow, still trembling as his stomach churns.

Justin immediately calls the game to a close by gathering up the cards. Looking to Scott, he offers a smile. "You did very well, Scott."

"Did I?" Scott licks his lips, not realizing his hand was still petting Zora's head. "I... I feel like I just got run over by a truck but... but I don't remember everything I talked about."

"It's okay. Your mind needs time to adjust. This is the first time you've used it like this."

"I didn't black out... did I?"

"No, you didn't." Justin smiles again. "No blackouts, and you didn't even run away." He knew this had been a very painful process, but he was proud of Scott. "Let's go for a little walk, okay? After that, you can go rest."

Scott looks up at him, fear in his eyes. "I'm going to have nightmares tonight, aren't I?"

"You might. But they're only dreams, Scott. They can't hurt you."

"But they can stimulate triggers and I could-"

"You won't," Justin states firmly. Scott had yet to fall into shock because of a dream. "Believe in yourself, Scott. You just proved you're strong enough to overcome this."


...An hour later, after a walk and getting Scott back inside, the sun had risen to welcome mid-morning. Justin was exhausted. He'd gotten little sleep last night, and this ordeal had drained him of all his energy. Scott's case was far from normal - if this morning didn't prove that, nothing would. No other case had worn Justin out quite like this before and he just hoped that he had the endurance to see it through, now that Scott was showing signs of improvement.

Justin walks wearily down the sidewalk, Danitza and Zora at his side. It was rare he used them with clients, but when he did, he was always glad he had put them through a training program. They could be troublemakers and goofballs at home, but once again they'd proven they could get down to business with the drop of a hat.

Needing to just sit and regroup before heading home, Justin finds the familiar bench along the sidewalk, and eases down with a sigh. The dogs lie down at his feet, yawning and panting just a little in the warm morning temperature.