The morgue

Phil feels a little like he's in a daze as he's asked about the accident. He really didn't know a thing, other than he'd seen the car, stopped, pulled the girl out and called for help. When the policeman leaves, he almost feels left out of the loop, now knowing no more than he had when he'd arrived. Who was the girl? What had really happened? Would she be okay?

Sighing, Phil watches the firemen for a few minutes before heading back to his pickup. Back on the road again, the radio is silent this time. Glancing down, he sees he's got blood on his sleeve, and for a moment, he sees the young woman's face again, and her eyes as she'd looked up at him.

Trying to move past the whole thing, he winds up at a gas station to fill up his truck and grab a snack to eat. Having worked later than normal, supper had been nonexistent and his stomach was reminding him that he better eat something. So after getting gas, he pulls to the side of the parking lot and just sits for a short while, eating a somewhat dry sandwich and downing a bottle of pop.

Once finished though, his mind was still wondering about the girl and if she was okay. It was common for him to be found visiting people in hospitals - him, Jen, Mike, and Kyle before as well. Even Jason got in on it now every once in a while through JetStream's continued Sunshine fund, though usually he couldn't get away from work as much as the others. In the end, it resulted in the small group being quite familiar with the local hospital.

Tapping his fingers on the steering wheel, Phil looks out to the dark streets. If he wasn't going to be home right away, he should probably call Kyle. Since he was back now, it was only right so no one worried.

It doesn't take long for him to let Kyle know what was going on, and Phil pulls out from the gas station and heads towards the hospital. His mind would rest easier if he could find out the woman was alright.

Once arriving at the hospital, Phil rolls up his sleeves to hide the bloodstains, not wanting to alarm anybody. He was a bit grimy from work, but it would have to do. Entering by way of the visitor entrance, he wanders over to the nurse's station and leans on the counter, waiting for someone free. A polite smile comes to his lips. "Hi... I'm looking for some information about a young woman who was brought in tonight from a car accident - an ambulance picked her up. I... don't even know her name or anything, but I was the one who found her and... I guess I just wanted to find out if she was okay."


Giving a bit of a start, Justin's eyes fly open an he raises his head a little to see Beth. A wry grin appears. "Sorry - didn't mean to look like I was dead. Though I guess it would be easy transportation for anyone taking me to the morgue."

Not having gained much rest or even succeeding in getting the pain and dizziness to subside, he sits up anyway, trying to shrug the whole thing off. No one need worry, least of all someone he hardly knew, and certainly no one should worry enough to take him to a hospital. Though in the back of his mind, he found it humorous that Beth would suggest taking him somewhere other than right here where there were medics on staff. He wondered amusingly if she could read his mind - he wouldn't want to be caught dead going to a medic in a mental facility.

With both legs now dangling off the tailgate, he takes a deep breath and runs a hand through his hair. "Naw, I'm alright. I just bonked it on a bench shortly before I saw you a while ago. I got a hard enough noggin that it would take more than that to put me out of commission."

Sliding off the bed of the truck, he stands up, though he suddenly finds it quite the task just to stand still and not stagger to the side. The world seems to flip one way then the other and his legs don't seem to jive with his brain for a moment, causing him to grab hold of the tailgate again so he doesn't fall over. "Whoa..." Even he had to admit that this just didn't feel right. A concussion was what was going through his mind, but that was the last thing he needed and not be able work for the next few days.

Justin blinks and tries to shake it off, but he couldn't deny any longer that his head really did hurt and if he hadn't received a concussion, it shouldn't be hurting this much after resting as long as he had. "Um..." Glancing to Beth, he really wasn't sure what to do now, and he was a bit embarrassed. "I guess you could go find Dr. Hawks for me. I don't want to make you drive me anywhere. You've got better things to do."


"But I-"

"No!" Reese slaps his papers down on his desk and turns with the same stern look as he stares Alec down. "I don't know how you've been getting out of here under our radar, but it stops now. I can't have you gallivanting around the city at night loose and unmonitored. If Brown found out, he'd have all our badges!"

Alec crosses his arms, his face wearing a scowl. He'd come back to TJY this morning, only to face a grouchy chief. "I was only at the McKade's - you know that!"

"Uh-huh. All night with a woman. Look, your personal life is your own, but I don't leave the door unlocked so you can go satisfy yourself with a woman and-"

"Oh, get off it," Alec hisses in defense. "Ryan's not that type of girl. Or hadn't you noticed? She'd beat me up herself if I tried anything, and if she didn't, her brother would kill me on the spot."

"I bet that's something new to you."

Alec's scowl remains. Reese might have been right on that one - his relationship with Ryan was just about as opposite as he could get from the ones he'd had with other women, but that wasn't the point here. "You can't keep me locked up in here like an animal! I'm tired of it. I said I'd help you out and I have and I will. But everybody else comes and goes... why not me?"

Reese sighs and shakes his head. "Has it ever occurred to you that you belong in prison? That if it weren't for the Elite, you would have been tried and gone to prison for life, if not received the death sentence yourself?"

"Yeah... yeah, it has." Alec didn't like admitting that one, but he did know good and well how fortunate he was. He hadn't viewed it that way in the beginning... he would have gladly taken any sentence and faced it with as much ire and stubbornness as ever. But now... he was just starting to see what life was really about, and he knew that if he were to go to prison, he'd wind up finding an out, even if it would be taking his own life. He couldn't stand to be locked up. Not there, and not here. "Look, you let me have some free time. Great. And I'm grateful. But what am I supposed to do all day while I'm not needed? I'm sitting in the basement and rotting! How come Gage was let loose, huh?"

Reese's eyes narrow as if to say, "You've got to be kidding me." He shakes his head. "First off, Gage was an Agency baby, not a coldblooded killer. Second, he doesn't have quite the record you do. Third, he has a good attitude. Forth, he was willing to go out and do community service for as long as needed, and now he's doing his best to get a job and get on his own feet. Now... you tell me how that differs from you."

If Alec had ever had a father around, he imagined this kind of tongue-lashing was about the same kind he would have gotten as a kid for acting up. "I'll get a job," he states flatly.

"Got a place to live?"

"N- well, no. But-"

"What if the Elite supplied you with your own place like we did for Gage? Would you keep it up? Prove it's to our advantage to have you loose on the streets?"

Alec's temper had suddenly fizzled as he was faced with this very real decision. He had longed for freedom. Begged for it. Wanted it so badly that he could taste it. Yet now as he stared freedom in the face, there was something about it that evoked fear. He grits his teeth and stands straighter. "Either put me in prison, or set me free."

Reese cocks his head, studying the younger man and trying to come up with the right solution. But what was right? All of these cases... from Gage to Thirteen to Phinox, to Alec... they were all so different, and Reese still believed that each should be treated differently as well. But what was right for Alec? "What about community service?"

"I'll keep coming here," Alec barters. "You threw Gage on street duty because he didn't have any other service to give. You know I can still help you out here. I still got things you want and information you can use. Give me a set number of hours to come in every week and I will. Just give me time to look for my own income and get me a place I can crash until something better comes along."

Reese sighs deeply. He really did want to help Alec. Coldblooded or not, even Alec deserved a second chance. He was a killer. A liar. A thief. But mercy shown to the least of these would not go unseen. "Alright. I'll talk to Brown."

"But-"

"That's the best I can do, Alec. You know you're on a thin line here - don't push it. I know you want out and I know you want freedom. I want that for you too because I believe you're not really a killer and I don't think you want that life anymore. But if you push too fast, other people aren't going to understand and they'll just be harder on you. Let me talk to Brown and see about getting your case rolling through the system."

Alec thinks it through before nodding. "Why hasn't my case moved to begin with?"

The corner of Reese's mouth twitches. "Why haven't you been as willing to shape up to begin with?"

Alec gives half a sheepish laugh. "Point taken." But as he thought about it, he suddenly saw more than he had before. "You've been the one holding up my case, haven't you? So they wouldn't put me in prison."

Reese nods. "Both you and Gage. Blame it on the system, but most of it was me, yes. I knew that given time, we could find solutions for almost every case. Gage was willing to start over, so it was just a matter of convincing Brown and the Elite board to accept my proposal of a new rehabilitation program. And you... there wasn't much hope there for a while. But I didn't want to give up. So instead of pushing them for a decision, I let them forget about it, while keeping my eye on you."

"And now that I'm not trying to kill anybody, you think it's safe for me to be out and about."

"In a manner of speaking." Reese looks Alec in the eye. "We're not the enemy, Alec. I'm trying to help. But in turn, we need your help too. Give me a little more time and I'll see what I can do."

"And in the meantime?"

"Just stay out of trouble, will you? And go talk to Hal about a cell phone - I need to be able to find you without running all over town."