A Helping Hand part 1,2,3,4/8
Fandom: The Sentinel
Pre-slash

AU Blair and Jim have different reasons for hiding in the woods.

A HELPING HAND

ONE

Blair Sandburg trudged through the forest, his anger building with each step. Two months ago he had been a graduate student starting work on his doctoral thesis at the University of Washington in Seattle. Two months ago he had had a promising future in his field of anthropology. Two months ago he had had a job, a home, and a car. Now he was reduced to his laptop, a sleeping bag and the barest necessities for camping. All because some stranger had decided after twenty-three years to acknowledge him as his son and leave him his considerable wealth which he wouldn’t be able to collect until his next birthday.

Blair sat on a fallen log to rest and considered his situation. He didn’t like being angry but he liked being afraid for his life even less.

This whole mess had started almost three months ago when he had received a letter from a law firm telling him his father had died and his presence was requested for the reading of the will. For once he had been able to track down his mother Naomi who had always implied that she didn’t know who his father was. She admitted that yes this man was his father, she had met him at a commune and fallen in love with him and thought he loved her too. However, when she happily told him that she was pregnant, he accused her of being after his money (which she knew nothing about) and called her a slut (she’d been with him and no one else) then packed up and went back to his wealthy family in Seattle.

Outraged on his mother’s behalf, Blair declared he wanted nothing from this man but Naomi insisted that he deserved to inherit something so at her urging and against his better judgment, he agreed to attend the reading of the will. And that’s when he met the family. The Mathers. Delightful people. Since the man had never married and hadn’t even hinted about the existence of a child, they had expected to inherit everything. To their shock and anger, the lawyer smugly introduced them to the young man who would be the sole heir on his next birthday.

As the family stormed out of the lawyer’s office, Blair caught his cousin’s muttered “If he lives until his next birthday.” He wished now he’d taken the lawyer’s words more seriously. “Be careful, young man. I’ve known this family for quite a few years. They’re a greedy bunch and they’ll do whatever they can to cheat you out of your inheritance. You might be wise to hide out for the next few months.” But Blair had always looked for the good in people and refused to believe that they might try to kill him just so they could have money they really didn’t need.

Two weeks later the warehouse where he was living burned to the ground. Blair had been exhausted and was sound asleep. He woke to what he swore was the sound of a wolf howling and found the air thick with smoke, flames dancing everywhere. He barely had time to grab jeans, shoes, jacket and backpack and make it out the door before the roof came crashing down. He was further stunned when the police hauled him down to the station for questioning. By the time they decided he wasn’t the arsonist and he made it back to the site of his former home, he discovered that what parts of his car hadn’t been damaged by the fire had been totally vandalized.

A couple of days later, as Blair walked toward the homeless shelter where he was staying he was accosted by two muscle-bound men. One carried a baseball bat and the other brandished a rather nasty looking knife. “I don’t know how you managed to survive the fire. Too bad you won’t survive a mugging,” the one with the knife sneered.

Blair dodged the swinging bat and did the only thing he could do. He ran. As the two gave chase he dodged down an alley that led to another street. With his knowledge of the area, he hoped to find a safe hiding place before they caught up with him. Several alleys later, he ducked behind a dumpster and held his breath as the would-be muggers ran past. He was about to move when he heard them coming back.

“I can’t believe we lost that little bastard. That’s twice now he’s gotten away from us,” one complained. “That Mathers bitch is gonna be pissed when she finds out we missed him again.”

“Relax, will ya?” the other grumbled. “We got plenty of time before his birthday. We’ll find him again and next time he won’t get away.”

“He better not. I want my share of that twenty thou she said she’d pay us for offing him.”

As their voices and footsteps faded away, Blair huddled behind the dumpster and fought his panic. “My god, the lawyer was right. They are trying to kill me.” He thought of going to the police but then remembered how they’d treated him after the fire. They probably wouldn’t believe him and he didn’t trust them to help him. He recalled the lawyer’s advice and decided to get out of town and find a place to hide.

He waited until it was dark and after a furtive stop at an ATM made his way to the interstate where he found a truck driver willing to give him a ride. The friendly driver dropped him off in a small town just north of Cascade where he found a store that sold fishing and camping supplies.

Blair bought a decent sleeping bag and two ground tarps, a collapsible fishing rod, some odds and ends for cooking and all the MREs he could carry. He looked wistfully at the hiking boots but they were too expensive. The hi-tops he wore were almost new and they would have to do. He added a pair of jeans, two flannel shirts and a package of heavy socks to his purchases.

He followed the store owner’s directions to a trail head and chose a path at random. After a short time he left the trail and headed off into the forest. He needed to stay away from other people. He didn’t know what kind of a search the family would make for him and he didn’t want to be recognized by anyone who might turn his location in for a reward. Above all, he didn’t want some innocent getting hurt or worse by the hit men sent after him.

The first few days saw him moving deeper into the forest until he found a decent spot to set up camp. After that he moved his camp every couple of weeks hoping to keep from being discovered. It had been a long two months and it was time to move again.

Blair was startled out of his thoughts when a raindrop landed on his nose. How long had he been sitting here? Obviously long enough for the sky to fill with grey clouds and rain to start falling. With a disgusted sigh, he pulled out one of his tarps and draped it over some branches to form a make-shift tent. This wasn’t the best place to set up camp, but it would have to do until the rain stopped.

Thank God for the expeditions he had been on that taught him how to rough it and live off the land or he wouldn’t have lasted out here in the forest as long as he had. The loneliness was the hardest part. Blair had always been a social person and he missed having someone to talk to. If he could just make it for another month and a half, he could hopefully sneak back into Seattle and collect his inheritance. The Mathers would call off the hit and he could get on with his life.

The rain stopped after an hour and Blair moved on. He needed to find a decent spot to set up his new camp, hopefully before it started to rain again. In his haste to beat the next shower, he slipped on some wet leaves and found himself tumbling down a slope. His progress downhill was halted by a large tree. He sat up dazedly and shook his head.

This was the last straw. All his frustrations and the anger he had been fighting boiled to the surface and exploded.

“Son of a fucking bitch!” he shouted. “Damn you dirty greedy bastards! This is all your fault! You’re sitting around in your fancy house with your fancy friends eating fancy food drinking fancy wine and I’m stuck out here in the woods scrounging for my next meal sitting in the rain! It’s not fair! I hate you! I hate you for making me angry! I hate you for making me hide in the woods! I hate you for making me hate you! If it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t have fallen down the damn hill! God, just kill me now and put me out of my misery!” He pounded his fists on the ground and let out a primal scream. He took a deep breath in readiness for another scream.

“You look like you could use some help,” a calm voice behind him stated.
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TWO

Jim Ellison wandered through the rain dampened forest near his cabin and contemplated his life. The shower had lasted for a little over an hour and now the air smelled fresh and clean. If only he could start his life over fresh and clean. He would go back five months to the time before he started losing his mind. To the time when he was a damn good cop, a detective with the Cascade police force.

To a time when the light didn’t blind him and when voices and everyday sounds didn’t make his eardrums feel like they were bursting. To a time when he could eat anything because food tasted good. To a time when he could stand the smell of the city and the people around him and his clothes didn’t make him break out in a rash. To a time when he was sane.

After his senses had started acting strange and he found himself losing time, Jim had gone to various doctors who had sent him to specialists. They all pronounced him fit and declared there was nothing physically wrong. The episodes were unpredictable but somehow he managed not to have them where anyone could observe them. Finally in fear of putting his fellow officers in danger and causing innocent deaths, he asked his captain for time off. Lord knows he had enough vacation and comp time coming to last six months.

When Captain Simon Banks refused his request citing case loads and lack of man power, Jim tried to resign. Only then did Simon take him seriously and allow him a one month vacation. That same day Jim closed up his loft apartment and retreated to his isolated cabin in the forests north of Cascade.

Things were better here. Oh he still had some episodes, but they weren’t as bad and didn’t last as long. Jim’s month was almost up and even though he felt better he knew he still wasn’t ready to return to the city. Simon wouldn’t be happy about that but too bad.

Jim was living the simple life and found he didn’t need a lot. True he had a satellite dish for television and computer and his cell phone got a good signal but he rarely used any of them preferring the quiet peacefulness of his solitude. With a nice trust fund to fall back on for unforeseen expenses, he could afford to quit his job and that’s what he had decided to do.

He was enjoying his walk when he thought he heard a wolf howl. Startled by the unexpected sound he unconsciously listened harder and heard an angry male voice.

“Son of a fucking bitch! Damn you dirty greedy bastards! This is all your fault!”

Jim frowned and followed the diatribe until he made out a boy, no, a young man sitting by a tree at the bottom of a short hill. He noted the long curly brown hair, the torn and dirty flannel shirt and jeans, and the odds and ends from the half-opened pack that traced a path down the hill to the tree. He wasn’t sure what to think when the kid shouted “God, just kill me now and put me out of my misery”, pounded his fists on the ground and screamed.

“You look like you could use some help.”

He was unprepared for the reaction he got to his quiet words. The young man gave a startled gasp and twisted himself around to face him. Jim looked into the bluest eyes he had ever seen and saw nothing but terror in them.

Blair went from anger to near panic at the sight of the tall well-built man, barely taking in the short brown hair and blue eyes regarding him as he frantically tried to scramble backwards. For a moment he flashed back to the two thugs who had chased him through the alleys of Seattle.

“I’m sorry God! I didn’t mean it! I don’t want to die. Please don’t kill me! Whatever they’re paying you, I’ll pay you more! Just please don’t kill me!”

Jim took a step forward but stopped when the young man cringed. He crouched down trying to appear less threatening and held up his hands in a placating manner. “Calm down. I’m not going to hurt you.”

“I suppose it’s not going to hurt when you kill me? Isn’t that what hit-men do?”

Jim frowned in confusion. “Whoa. I’m definitely not a hit-man. I’m a cop with the Cascade police department and I’m certainly not going to kill you for wandering across my property.”

“Your property?”

“I’m Jim Ellison. I own this piece of land.”

“Oh great. Now I’m a trespasser.” He put his head in his hands but quickly pulled them away and stared at his red fingertips. “A bleeding trespasser. And the good times just keep rolling.”

“Looks more like a scrape than a cut,” Jim commented. “You’ll have a nice bruise though. It appears you took quite a tumble down the hill.”

Jim watched the kid’s expressive face as he finally spotted his scattered belongings on the hillside.

“Oh no!” Blair wriggled out of his backpack and frantically rummaged through it until he pulled out a laptop which he worriedly examined. “Oh God, please don’t let it be busted. That’s all I need.” Finally he sighed and muttered to himself, “I won’t know until I plug it in. At least it’s not dented.”

He started to stand but fell back with a grimace as he clutched his left ankle.

“Sit still until we see how badly you’re hurt.” Jim moved forward cautiously until he was close enough to examine the injuries. “Well it’s not broken. Just badly sprained.”

Blair eyed him warily, surprised at the gentle touch. “You can tell that just by feeling it?”

“I had medic training when I was in the army,” Jim shrugged and held Blair’s chin while he examined the scrape on his right temple. “Headache? Any blurriness or double vision?”

His attention seemed to fade away for a moment until Blair answered, “Slight headache but my vision’s fine.”

Jim nodded and stood. “Take it easy while I get your things. I’ll take you back to my cabin and doctor you up there.”

Blair watched Jim as he carefully moved around gathering up his strewn belongings. There was something about this big man that gave him a feeling of safety that he hadn’t felt since his home had been destroyed. His size? No, the thugs that had chased him were almost as big. Because he was a cop? No, the cops in Seattle hadn’t made him feel safe. Maybe it was the matter of fact way that he took charge of the situation. After two months of being totally alone, it was kind of nice to sit back and let someone else make the decisions for a while. Blair was so tired of being alone. He would enjoy having another human being to talk to even for a short time.

Jim returned with the items he had collected. “This looks like everything. Let’s get you back to my cabin before the next storm hits.” He peered at the overcast sky and took a deep breath. “There’s a big one moving in and I’d rather be inside when it arrives.”

Jim helped Blair to his feet and easily supported his weight as he hobbled along. “What’s your name kid?”

“Bl--BJ Sa--amuels. BJ Samuels. Nice to meet you, Jim. I appreciate your help.”

Jim decided to ignore the hesitation over the name for now. He’d have time later to find out the real name and who the kid was running from.
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THREE

They’d barely gotten inside when the sky opened up again. Blair was impressed by what he saw as they entered. The main room held a small kitchen area on the left and a comfortable arrangement of couch and chairs near a fireplace on the right. There was a short hallway in the back that he assumed led to a bedroom and bathroom. Everything was so clean and tidy it looked like a model home instead of a rustic mountain get-away.

Jim wrinkled his nose. “No offense, Chief, but why don’t you take a hot shower before I wrap your ankle and put some antibiotic cream on that scrape?”

Blair’s eyes widened. “A real shower with hot water? And real soap and shampoo and shaving cream?”

“You sound like it’s been awhile,” Jim chuckled as he steered him to the bathroom.

“About two months, as if you couldn’t tell,” Blair answered ruefully. “Soap, shampoo, and shaving cream weren’t on my list of things necessary for staying alive. A dip in a cold stream only rinsed off the worst of the dirt. I have missed being able to get really clean.”

Jim showed him where everything was and after being assured that Blair could manage on his own left him to his own devices.

As soon as Jim heard the shower start, he picked up his guest’s backpack and quickly searched through it until he found an old beat up wallet. Inside he found a driver’s license and a university ID. “Hello, Blair Sandburg from the University of Seattle,” he murmured and slid the wallet back into the pack. In addition to the laptop and some very basic camping supplies, he also found a few clothes in need of laundering, a notebook and two pens. Nothing to explain his unwillingness to trust Jim with his real name.

Jim took two steaks out of his freezer to thaw and started a fire in the fireplace. When the shower finally shut off, Jim knocked on the bathroom door and asked, “Are you decent?”

“No, but I’m a lot of fun,” came the unexpected answer as the door opened to reveal Blair with a towel around his waist and idly rubbing his wet hair with another towel. Jim found himself staring at the dusting of chest hair on the almost too thin body.

Blair belatedly realized that he was standing in front of a stranger in nothing but a towel, a stranger whose gaze was wandering over his semi-naked body. “Sorry. I’ve been alone in the woods too long. I need to get back into polite society mode. Just ignore anything weird I say.”

Jim closed his eyes for a second and cleared his throat. “That’s a nasty bruise on your side. Any trouble breathing?”

“No, it’s just a little tender. I think that’s where the tree jumped out and grabbed me,” Blair smiled self-consciously then froze as Jim’s hand touched his side.

Jim felt the warm skin under his fingertips and if he concentrated harder he could almost feel the broken capillaries that formed the bruise. Everything else began to fade away as he recognized the onset of one of his spells and with an effort managed to pull himself back. “Nothing’s broken. Just bruised.”

“How can you tell just by touching?” Blair wondered then remembered the other man’s words when they first met. “Oh right. Medic training.”

Jim became all business as he efficiently wrapped Blair’s sprained ankle and doctored his scrapes. When he finished, he nodded at the items he had placed on the counter. “There are clean sweats you can wear. They might be a little big but they’re warm. Why don’t you get dressed and shave while I get supper going?”

Blair blinked as the big man disappeared out the door. “Damn,” he thought. “What is going on? You spend all this time avoiding people so whoever’s trying to kill you can’t find you, and then you go home with a total stranger. And what is with him? That was really weird the way he seemed to fade out when he was checking my injuries. But still I feel safe with him. Why is that? Maybe I have been alone too long.”

He shrugged and decided to think about the puzzle that was Jim Ellison later.

Jim turned from the stove when the bathroom door finally opened and smiled as he listened to his guest’s muttering. “Damn! It’s not easy hopping on one foot. If God wanted me to hop he’d have made me a rabbit.”

He quietly helped the young man to the table then went back to the stove to retrieve their plates. When he placed them on the table, Blair’s eyes widened.

“Is that steak? Real steak? And real potatoes? Oh man, I love you. I want to bear your children.”

“It’s only steak, Chief,” Jim chuckled. “I don’t think you have to go that far.”

“Hey, you try living on fish and rabbits and MREs for two months. A hot shower with real soap, now real food. I have died and gone to Heaven.”

They dug in and Jim found himself enjoying his guest’s appreciation of the simple meal even as he pondered the mystery that was Blair Sandburg a.k.a. BJ Samuels. He considered what little he knew. Blair had been terrified when they met, way beyond being simply startled by the unexpected appearance of a stranger. He had lied about his name. He seemed to be more concerned about damage to his laptop than he was about damage to his body. What was on that laptop? He was doing a good job of pretending to be at ease but his heart was still beating faster than it should be. Not to mention the fact that he was traveling light with only the barest minimum of supplies.

After the initial hunger pangs were satisfied, Blair swallowed a mouthful and casually asked, “So, Jim. You’re really a cop?”

Jim nodded. “With the Major Crimes Unit at the Cascade PD. I’m on vacation right now.” He hadn’t done it often, but he could play good cop when he had to and it looked like that would be the best way to get any answers in this case.

“So, BJ. What brings you out to the middle of nowhere by yourself?”

“Research,” Blair answered after a slight hesitation. “I’m going to use my experience to write an article on how to survive by living off the land. I figure I can sell it to one of those outdoorsman magazines.”

Jim smiled. “Considering how I found you, looks to me like you could use some more experience before you write that article.”

“Hey, I have plenty of experience. I’ve been on several expeditions to the jungles in South America to live with and observe the native tribes. Talk about living rough. They don’t have western world luxuries and that’s where I learned to survive without them. These last two months I made fish traps out of twigs and snares to catch rabbits and squirrels. I’ve been doing all right.”

“What about getting out of the weather? What happened to your tent?”

“Tents are bulky. Two ground tarps weigh less and can be folded small enough to easily fit in my pack.” Blair sighed at the look on Jim’s face and patiently explained. “You drape the first tarp over some low branches and anchor down the ends. Then you cut some pine boughs and lay them on the ground under the tarp, lay the second tarp on top of them and your sleeping bag on top of that. It’s not a feather bed but it’s not the cold hard ground either.”

Blair was obviously proud of his resourcefulness but Jim couldn’t resist commenting, “You still ended up injured and half-starved.”

“You know, just because I’m not some big muscle-bound macho man doesn’t mean I can’t take care of myself.” Blair was suddenly annoyed with his host’s attitude. “Yes, I’ve lost weight but I’m not weak from starvation. I wasn’t having any problems at all until I got careless. If I hadn’t been in such a hurry to find a decent camping spot I wouldn’t have slipped on those wet leaves and fallen down that hill. I have a first aid kit and I could have wrapped my ankle myself and done just as good a job. I could have managed just fine without anybody’s help.”

He grimaced and shook his head. “Shit, that sounds so ungrateful. The truth is I could have managed but it wouldn’t have been easy. I’m glad you came along when you did.”

“I tend to forget that appearances can be deceiving. I’m sorry.” Jim said quietly.

Blair sighed tiredly. “No, I’m sorry. Here you are nice enough to put a roof over my head for the night and feed me and I thank you by being rude. I really do appreciate your help even if I do sound like a two year old.”

“I think you’re just tired,” Jim graciously replied. “Get a good night’s sleep and tomorrow you’ll be a different person.”

He helped Blair get comfortable on the couch for the night then began to clean up the kitchen area. When he finished, he saw that his guest was sound asleep so he quietly stepped out onto his front porch and sat down.

The storm had finally blown over and the evening was cool but not uncomfortably so. Here and there the cloud cover was breaking up and a few stars were peeking bravely through. In the quiet peacefulness, Jim considered the earlier conversation. There was nothing in it that screamed ‘This kid is a criminal’, yet Jim knew he wasn’t being told the whole truth and that annoyed the detective in him.

“Who are you, Blair Sandburg and why are you hiding in the woods?” he whispered to the night. When no answer came he sighed and muttered “So much for good cop’s efforts. Let’s see what kind of a story he gives me tomorrow.”

It was late morning before Blair finally woke. He glanced fearfully around the room until he spotted Jim and remembered where he was. He allowed Jim to check his ankle and help him to the table where he was handed a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

“Oh, man. I’ve missed having a cup of coffee in the morning,” Blair grinned as he inhaled the aroma.

“That’s the most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen,” Jim thought. “God, I hope he’s not dirty.”

Blair paused in his enjoyment of the coffee. “I really appreciate you letting me crash here for the night. As soon as I’m dressed, I’ll get out of your hair.”

“I threw the clothes you were wearing into the wash. I took the liberty of checking your pack and found the rest of your clothes. I tossed them in too.” Jim casually mentioned and noted the guarded look that crossed his guest’s face as if he were trying to remember if the pack held anything secret that Jim might have found. “For someone who is out in the middle of nowhere doing research for an article, you didn’t come very prepared.”

“The whole purpose was to live off the land,” Blair answered warily. “I only brought what was necessary.”

“A laptop is necessary for living off the land?”

Blair’s unease visibly increased. “Where are you going with this?”

“When we first met you weren’t just startled by my sudden appearance, you were scared to death of me. Why would you think I was a hit man? What’s your real story?”

“I told you my story,” Blair frowned.

“No, you told me a story. I don’t think you’re out here to do research. I think you’re living rough because you don’t have a choice. Want to try the truth this time starting with your real name?”

“Why should I trust you? How do I know you’re really who you say you are?”

Jim pulled his wallet out of his pocket and tossed it onto the table. His gold shield gleamed dully in the morning light shining through the window and confirmed his status as a detective with the Cascade police. He watched the young man examine it and could almost see his mind developing a new improved version of the story he’d already told.

“I guess you’re really not a hit man,” Blair remarked quietly.

“How about we quit playing games, Chief,” Jim demanded. “Who are you really? Why are you so convinced that a hit man is after you? Who are you hiding from? With all this traveling you’ve done, maybe you’ve been hanging out with the wrong people? Maybe smuggling something for them that you decided to keep for yourself?”

Blair stood and glared at his interrogator. “What is it with you cops? First arson, now smuggling? Man, I do not need this.”

“Sit down,” Jim ordered. “How far do you expect to get on that ankle? Just answer me one question. Are you running from the law?”

“No I’m not running from the law. I haven’t done anything wrong except get born and that was Naomi’s fault not mine.” Blair’s voice rose then he slumped back down in his chair and whispered, “Oh, God. I want my life back. I’m so tired of being scared and alone.”

“Then don’t be alone anymore. If you haven’t done anything illegal then you have no reason to be afraid of me. Maybe I can help you if you’ll give me a chance. Why don’t you tell me your real name and the truth about what kind of trouble you’re in? Let me help.”

Jim watched as the anger on Blair’s face slowly turned to resignation. Blair stared at the tabletop and took a deep breath. “My name’s Blair Sandburg. I got a letter from some lawyer telling me my father had died and I needed to attend the reading of his will.”

As the story unfolded, Jim was surprised at the anger he felt toward the people who had caused this innocent young man so much grief. He was especially angry with his brothers in blue. Yeah, they were in a different city but they were still cops and they had no business harassing a victim until he was too afraid of them to ask for their help. Even Blair’s mother had left him on his own to deal with the greedy relatives. He found it sad that Blair had gone into hiding simply because there was no one he could turn to.

“You don’t believe me,” Blair sighed dejectedly when he finished and caught a glimpse of the grim look on Jim’s face.

“No, I do believe your story. I’ve been a cop for eight years and I still can’t believe the things people will do for money.” Jim considered Blair’s situation for a moment. There was no way to prove that his relatives were trying to kill him unless they caught the thugs who had chased him and got them to roll over on whoever hired them. In the meantime, the kid needed protection and a safe place to hide out. What could be safer than a secluded cabin in the forest especially when no one knew he was there? Jim’s Army Ranger and police training more than qualified him to look after Blair. As long as he didn’t have one of his spells at an inopportune moment.

Just like that, his mind was made up. “Stay here with me. Nobody knows you’re here. I’m a cop but I was also Special Forces in the army. I can protect you. And when the time comes, I’ll personally escort you to that lawyer’s office. What do you say?”

Blair studied the other man’s face then smiled shyly. “It’s really weird. I’ve been so scared of everyone since this started but I feel safe with you in spite of the way I was acting before. I’ll take you up on your offer. Thank you.”

The two were shaking hands on their agreement when Jim tilted his head as if he were listening to something.

“There’s a car coming up the road,” he announced.

“I don’t hear anything.” Blair listened carefully but it was a few moments before he barely heard a distant engine. “How’d you hear that from so far away?”

“I have good ears,” Jim answered uncomfortably then added quickly, “Go wait in the bedroom until I see who it is.”

He hustled Blair out of sight before he could ask any more questions and stepped out onto the porch. It only took a moment for his vision to locate the vehicle and he immediately recognized the driver.

“Aw, shit,” Jim whispered disgustedly.
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FOUR

Captain Simon Banks prided himself on a well-run department and no one from the mayor on down could say that his Major Crimes Unit with their high solve rate wasn’t the best run department in the city. And right now he needed his top detective back on the job not loafing around in the mountains.

“Play time’s over, Jim. Time to get back to work,” he muttered as he maneuvered his car up the winding dirt road that led to Jim’s cabin.

He hadn’t been able to see the cabin until he entered the clearing where it sat so he was surprised by the sight of Jim standing on the porch as if he were waiting for him. However, judging by the man’s posture and the look on his face, his detective was not pleased to see him. Simon parked next to Jim’s truck and waved as he got out of his car.

“Your time off seems to have done you some good, Detective. You look a hell of a lot better than you did the last time I saw you.”

Jim nodded in acknowledgement. “Captain. Come on in.”

Simon’s smile disappeared as he followed him inside. “Why do I get the impression you’re not overjoyed to see me?”

“You should have called before driving all the way up here.”

“Well if you’d returned to work yesterday like you were supposed to, I wouldn’t have had to drive all the way up here.”

“Yesterday? It’s been a month already?” Jim was surprised. It hadn’t seemed like he’d been here that long.

“Yes it’s been a month. I need you back on the job, so let’s get you packed and back to Cascade where you belong.” Simon rubbed his hands together and glanced around the room as if deciding where to begin.

“I’m not ready to come back.”

As Jim’s quiet statement registered, Simon frowned and studied the other man more closely. “All right, Jim, what's going on? You threatened to resign unless I gave you time off, so I okayed your vacation. I know your last case was a bad one and you were under a lot of pressure to solve it but you’ve had plenty of time to rest up. So what’s the problem now?”

“I need more time off,” Jim shrugged.

“Are you nuts?”

Jim ran his hand over his hair and sighed. “I don't know. Maybe. I had a blood test run to see if I'd been drugged, but I'm clean.”

Simon raised his eyebrows. “Hey, what are you talking about? What drugs?”

Jim turned away and shrugged again. “How else can I explain what happened to me when the Switchman got away, Simon? I didn’t tell you that I fell off the back of her bike because I was seeing things.”

“Look, you were stressed, okay? You saw something. You smelled some fumes that made you dizzy and you fell off the bike. You still caught her before she could blow up those people on that tour bus. And now you want more time off?” Simon was clearly annoyed.

“You just don’t understand.” Jim tried to explain. “I went to all kinds of doctors and specialists before I requested this time off and they all said there’s nothing physically wrong with me. But I’m seeing and hearing things that aren’t there. Half the time I can’t eat because the food smells and tastes horrible. Some days my clothes give me a rash. I even have spells where I lose time. All I know is I can't do my job this way. I'm losing control of my senses, Simon, I don't know how else to describe it. It's scaring the hell out of me.”

Simon shook his head in disbelief. “All right, so let me get this straight. This is all about you being scared?”

Jim sighed in resignation. “Yeah, I’m scared that somebody’s going to end up dead.”

“Oh, come on. Is this the guy that toughed it out in the jungle for a year and a half?” Simon rolled his eyes. “All right, look, you can take another week off. But that's all the slack I can cut you, Jim.”

“Well, that's not enough. I need at least another month, maybe longer.”

“Two weeks and that’s the best I can do. That should give you more than enough time to get over - whatever this is,” Simon huffed as he stalked out the door. “I’m going back to Cascade. Some of us care about doing our jobs.”

Jim stood in his doorway and grimly watched as his captain drove away. “Thank you, Captain Banks for being so concerned,” he muttered.

“Man, talk about a condescending attitude.” Jim turned to find Blair standing beside him. “He’s not even trying to understand why you don’t want to go back.”

“And I suppose you do,” Jim frowned.

“Well yeah. He thinks you’re afraid for yourself but he’s mistaken. You’re afraid you’ll have one of those spells at the wrong time and someone else will get hurt.”

“How much did you hear?” Jim sighed.

“Most of it. Those symptoms you described sound familiar. I know I’ve heard about something like that. Give me a minute to think.” Blair limped to the couch and sat down. His brow wrinkled in concentration as he searched his memory.

“My symptoms sound familiar?” Jim asked skeptically as he put a throw pillow on the coffee table and rested Blair’s injured ankle on it. “None of the doctors seemed to know what was going on with me.”

Jim relaxed in the chair opposite the couch and contemplated his young house guest. Simon had been his friend as well as boss for several years now, yet he dismissed his problems as nothing more than excuses for not returning to work. He’d known Blair less than twenty-four hours and he was taking Jim seriously.

Blair suddenly sat up straight and snapped his fingers. “I know!” he exclaimed excitedly. “About a year ago, I attended a lecture given by Dr. Eli Stoddard. He’s a big name in anthropology. Anyway, his lecture was about a study he had done on people with heightened senses. He got interested in the subject after he read a monograph by an explorer named Burton. According to this guy, all ancient tribal cultures had a special guardian to watch over them, a person who Burton called a sentinel. This person could see farther and hear sounds before anyone else could. He could tell if food or water was tainted just by smelling or tasting it. He knew if a storm was coming and how bad it would be. This guardian was the most amazing person.”

“And you’re telling me this because?” Jim asked.

“I’m telling you this because,” Blair snickered, “Dr. Stoddard wondered if the gene for heightened senses was still around or if it had disappeared because it was no longer needed in the modern world. So he went looking and he found a lot of people with one or two heightened senses like people who work in the perfume and wine industries. He found a chef who could taste something and name all the ingredients in it. And he even found a doctor who could tell body temperature and vital signs just by touching his patient. He didn’t manage to find anyone with all five, but he believed that if the gene for one or two is still around, then it makes logical sense that the gene for all five is out there too.”

“And you think that’s what’s wrong with me? I’m one of these sentinel-type people?”

“There’s nothing wrong with you, Jim,” Blair smiled gently. “Your senses are heightened because of the genes you carry and that’s just as normal for you as it is for that doctor or that chef or those wine tasters.”

“Great. I had to leave Cascade because I couldn’t stand the noise and smells anymore. Things are better here but they still act up on me. There must be some way to control them,” Jim grumbled.

“According to what Dr. Stoddard said,” Blair continued thoughtfully, “every sentinel had a companion who watched his back and helped him when he used his senses. But ancient sentinels must have been able to control their senses on their own. I mean his companion was obviously with him when he was on duty protecting the tribe but I doubt that they were together 24/7. Even married couples need a break from each other now and then so they don’t drive each other nuts.

“I’m sure there were times when the companion wasn’t available, like when he was sick or injured or making out with his girlfriend. And I’m also sure that when the sentinel was in bed with his wife he wouldn’t want the companion standing there taking notes.”

“You mean the sentinel and his companion weren’t into threesomes?” Jim chuckled.

“For all we know they may have been into wife-swapping,” Blair grinned back at him for a moment then became serious again. “Give me a little time, Jim. I’ll figure this out.”

“Why are you so willing to help me?” Jim wondered.

“Why are you so willing to help me?” Blair countered. “I help someone, you help someone, that person helps someone else. Everyone needs a helping hand now and then. My mom would say we’re just making good karma, man.”

“Well if there’s a solution to be found, Chief, I believe you’re the one who’ll find it.” Jim smiled at his new friend. “Personally, I’m glad we found each other.”
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