Scared

Scott's eyes are downcast as Hope speaks, but it doesn't mean he's not listening. The tone of her voice was quiet and soothing. For a moment, Scott wishes he had that big window to stand at and look out, feeling the cool glass beneath his fingertips. In a strange way, that spot had become a form of comfort. But they weren't in Hope's office. They were here, now, smack dab in the middle of a reality that didn't feel good.

Her suggestion that there might be something that could help the case made Scott's stomach turn. If there was something that could help, and he was denying that, it made him a very selfish person. Was there something he knew that could help?

Hope's final statement brings Scott's gaze back up again. He looked into her eyes, searching to see if that really was the truth. And it was. Why did she enjoy his company? Had they really gone beyond the doctor/patient relationship and formed a friendship? She kept saying they were friends, but maybe Scott hadn't really believed it until now. But right now, in this sliver of a moment, he could see it. She really did mean it.

Dropping his gaze, a grin quirks just the corner of his mouth. He wanted to say that he liked Hope's company too, but for now, he bit his tongue. If he let the words come, they'd sound more like a flirt than intended... or would it be intentional?

Scott quickly concentrates on his coffee again. Where these thoughts had come from, he didn't know. He didn't know which was better - embarrassing himself, or fighting bad memories. Either way, it looked like he wasn't going to get much relief tonight. But... maybe this meeting really wasn't about relief.

Finally, he looks back up again. "I don't remember," he responds. "Everything I remember, I've already told you and TJY. I don't know where these..." He fishes for the right description - nothing seemed to fit right for what he'd been experiencing. "...these pictures... images come from. The faces I see... I've never seen them before. But... but they scare me."

He swallows hard. It was the truth. "But I don't know why they do, an that's what's frustrating. It's like every time I start to see those things, I just shut down completely."

He sighs and rubs his blind eye that was starting to hurt. "If there is something there to help Katie... it feels like it's locked away deep enough that I wouldn't be able to pull it out in time anyway." He knew that he was consciously fighting whatever this thing was, but he didn't know how not to.


Alec sets his jaw stubbornly and looks up at the ceiling. "Thinking is what got me in trouble in the first place. Besides, if I get myself killed, I'm better off. Here, as soon as that guy of yourse, Reese, gets all the information sqeezed out of me that he wants, it's off to prison. There's really not much to look forward to in that. Carson should have finished off the job. If anybody knows how, it's him."


Reese shrugs at Phinox. "I was thinking of going in about half an hour or so. Brown usually works late, but I don't want to get down there and have him already left for the night."


Jason sits in his chair, his arms folded on his desk, his face buried. He wasn't working. There wasn't anything to work on. He'd learned of their failure with Reiker. It had been his idea to go after him, and it had been a day's worth of a wild goose chase. It was his fault they were now behind, having to backtrack and start over again. Katie was one day further away from them.

He felt empty. Tired and empty. A portion of him felt a relief, not being so full of emotions constantly. On that level, he felt like a normal person again, just like he'd wanted for quite a while. But right now, he didn't care if he was empty or bursting with emotions - he just wanted Katie back. His lifeline and hero or not, he just wanted to see her safe again. Their connection or not, he just wanted to bring her back.

Katie, where are you? His question was only formed by simple words in his mind. The emotional charge to communicate was drained by the antidote.