Disclaimer: I don’t own these characters, except for the obvious ones. This story was simply written for the pleasure of it and no money was made from it.

Written by: Sylvie L.

Summary: The sequel of "Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover". A.J. tries to cope with the events surrounding the murder of a university student. But his recovery is headed for a bumpy road. Will he be able to overcome his physical and mental injuries or will his family and friends loss him forever?

It was Christmas Time in San Diego. Everyone in the city was in the festive mood. In less than two weeks, the whole city would be in celebration. The Santa Claus parade was to pass through the streets in a few hours. It was a time of sharing and goodwill towards man.

Standing on a ladder, A.J. Simon was trying to attach some Christmas lights over his garage door. Every year, he had the habit to spend an entire day completing his decoration inside and outside, and this year was no exception. Christmas was his favorite time of the year. A.J. stumbled as the ladder shifted under his feet. "Rick, will you stop daydreaming and hold the ladder like I asked you?" he screamed as he regained his balance.

Clearly taking aback by the accusation, Rick yelled back. "I am! You should watch what you’re doing!" Decorating wasn’t exactly one of Rick’s favorite pastimes, unlike his brother’s. However, since A.J. was still recuperating from his car accident injuries, he had decided to lend a hand this year. Replacing his Cowboy straw hat on his head, he grabbed once again hold of the ladder. He had offered A.J. to change places, but his brother had declined the offer stating that he could do it himself. Rick wasn’t about to insist.

"Rick Simon, old buddy!" Came a voice behind Rick, which made him jerk and coincidentally let go of the ladder. The voice was so familiar, but he couldn’t put a face to it. As he turned around, he stared at the late-thirties man with piercing brown eyes and dark brown hair for a few moments. The man was wearing a light brown suit with a yellow tie. Suddenly, his face lit up as he recognized the man.

"Adam, is that you?" Rick asked as he slowly approached the man. When the man nodded in response, Rick gave Adam a bear hug. It had been such a long time. "How are you doing, man?" Rick asked as he grinned.

"Great, how are you old friend?"

Before Rick had the chance to answer, A.J. angrily called him back as the ladder was about to fall. With one long stride, Rick reached the ladder and stabilized it. Fed up, A.J. came down as fast as his lingering injuries allowed him. After a couple of months of recovery and physiotherapy, he still wasn’t fully recovered. His pelvis and leg were healing at a slow rate. As he limped favoring his left leg, he approached the decoration boxes while giving his older brother an annoyed glare. Clearly he was mad. Putting the remaining lights back in the box, A.J. finally acknowledged Rick’s friend.

"Is that you, A.J.?" Adam asked as he offered his hand.

"Yes." A.J. replied as he shook Adam’s hand. Having not paid much attention to the conversation Rick had with this man, A.J. was oblivious to his identity.

Rick had simply ignored his brother’s annoyance as put his arm around his friend. "A.J., you remember this old buddy of mine, Adam Hines. We used to hang out together in high school."

Suddenly A.J.’s face lit up in recognition. "I’m sorry, I hardly recognized you. It’s been such a long time."

Adam smiled at the remark. "You guys haven’t change. Especially you Rick, you were always the black sheep." He said as he made a note of Rick’s clothes – cowboy hat with matching boots, jeans, a light blue flannel shirt, and a dark navy blue bomber jacket. Rick simply smiled ignoring the intended pun. It was great to see his friend again.

"Where have you been? You moved away so suddenly." Rick asked as he led Hines to the house leaving A.J. to his decorating.

Hines was silent until he was properly seated on the living room light brown sofa. ‘Apparently, these guys are doing well,’ he noted to himself as he glanced through the house. The house was impeccable with the exception of some Christmas boxes placed on the dining room table. ‘Must be A.J.’s house.’ Hines thought knowing Rick so well. "Marie and I eloped and moved to Milwaukee. Her father gave me a job at one of his car dealerships." Hines said as he accepted the beer that Rick offered him.

Taking a seat in the adjacent chair, Rick took a sip of his own beer. "You are one lucky man. I don’t know anybody who didn’t fight for Marie Lewis’s attention."

"Including you!" Adam said with a smirk on his face. Rick couldn’t help but smile back. ‘God, was it ever good to see him again?’ Rick thought. Hines continued. "So, what happened to you? Knowing your background, I always thought you would either become a police officer or a criminal?"

"Private investigator." Rick said, as he felt a little embarrassed. His early adulthood had been rocky and that was putting it mildly. Luckily time had matured him and had healed all painful wounds.

"Close enough." Hines smiled to himself.

"I have to admit that it was rocky at the start. Since you left, a lot has happened." Rick said as took another sip of his beer. Noticing that Hines was purposely silent; Rick felt the need to elaborate. He sighed. "I went to 'nam. It gave me a new perspective on life."

Hines noticeably groaned as he agreed. "War can do that to a man."

The house was silent for several seconds. "So, what made you come back to San Diego?" Rick asked as he smiled at his friend in an attempt to change the dreary subject.

"My mother past away last week."

"I’m so sorry, Adam. I know all too well how it feels." Rick had lost his father so long ago, but could still feel the pain when memories resurfaced.

"Thanks. Mom was ill for some time." Once again, the room was silent until A.J. entered the house. Ignoring both Rick and Adam, he staggered through the kitchen towards the nook. The pain was becoming too much to handle. A.J. found his cane leaning against a chair. His doctors had encouraged him to use it less and less. Unfortunately, some days, the cane was his only way of transportation. Then, A.J. left as quickly and silently as he had entered. Giving a quizzical and concerned look at his friend, Hines asked. "What happened to him?"

Rick noticeably shifted in his seat. "He was in a car accident a couple of months ago. He hasn’t fully recovered yet."

"Will he be okay?"

"Yeah." Rick said, trying to be confident but feeling the opposite. A.J. hadn’t really mentioned anything about the accident since it had occurred. That deeply bothered Rick.

A few hours later, A.J. once again entered the house. Unfortunately, this time Hines wasn’t present. He had left a few minutes earlier. As he removed his light jacket and threw it on a living room chair, he noticed that Rick was watching television; so, he joined him. Taking a seat on his brother’s left while placing his wooden cane on the coffee table; A.J. spoke. "So, what did Adam have to say?"

While giving A.J. his partial attention as he watched one of his favorite shows, Rick answered. "His mother passed away last week. He wants to hire us."

"For what?"

"There’s a man, William Curtis, on his mother’s will that can’t be found. Somehow, the lawyers and Adam haven’t been able to track this Curtis guy down." Rick turned around to smile at his brother. "I was able to convince him to forget hiring anybody else for the job." Strangely, A.J. didn’t smile back. He was staring straight ahead. The blank look gave Rick the shivers. "What’s the matter?" He managed to ask. Noticing that A.J. was focusing his attention on the TV, Rick spared a glance towards it. On the screen, an anchorman announced the news brief of the day; it was discussing the lingering trial of a local mob boss named Luciano Cabriani. Cabriani had been directly responsible for A.J.’s injuries, as he was the one whom had ordered the hit. Instinctively, Rick located the remote control and turned the television off.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Angrily asked A.J. as he forced himself off the sofa.

Rick was speechless. He had no reason for what he had done, except that he intuitively wanted to spare anymore grief to his brother. Cabriani’s face would simply bring too many bad memories to the surface. "Er…." Was the only sound that came out. Noticeably angry at his brother’s silence, A.J. simply took his cane and limped upstairs. Rick was spellbound. Since A.J. was a baby, he had always wanted to protect his brother. Unfortunately, an inner voice was telling that maybe shielding A.J. wasn’t exactly the best remedy in this case. However, he knew better than to approach A.J. now; he needed some time alone to calm down.

Foregoing supper, A.J. remained in his room for the remainder of the night. After seeing Cabriani’s face on the TV, he had loss his appetite. Since the incident, he never really dwelled on the situation or was it better to say that he never allowed himself to. After changing into his casual nightwear and his housecoat, A.J. silently took a seat in his bedroom’s only chair. He simply starred at the water canal outside in his backyard. It took several seconds before A.J. even noticed that someone was knocking on his bedroom door. Shaking his head in order to clear his mind, he spoke. "Come in" He knew who was about to enter. His guess was found to be true as Rick slowly entered. A.J. noticed that his brother was nervously silent. "What do you want, Rick?"

As Rick stopped next to A.J.’s bed, he finally talked. "I made some supper if you want some. Why don’t you come downstairs?"

"I’m not hungry."

"Look A.J., I am sorry for what I did earlier. I shouldn’t have done that." Rick was clearly remorseful as he took a step forward.

"I’m not hungry."

"Come on, A.J.. You haven’t…"

"I told you that I’m not hungry." A.J. interrupted as he turned his attention back outside. Clearly, A.J. wasn’t in any mood to talk. Rick wasn’t able to read his brother’s face; this made him very worried. After a moment of dreaded silence, Rick finally gave up and left. ‘Maybe a good night sleep will help him.’ He thought as he went downstairs.

A.J. remained in his chair for a few more hours before finally giving into sleep. Laying in his bed, it didn’t take long before he fell asleep. All the Christmas decorating had been quite exhausting. It didn’t help that he still wasn’t able, after all the physio, to accomplish his normal activities and duties. It frustrated him. After only a few hours of sleep, he woke up in a sweat. He had had a terrible nightmare; one where he got in a unmarked car just minutes before it blew up. The only difference was that in this nightmare, he could see himself dead at the wheel. No help in sight. A.J. quickly wiped the sweat off of his forehead as he seated up in his bed. He didn’t dare turn on the light. The darkness of the night blinded him, which was strangely comforting. This was the first time he had ever dreamed of the accident and the last he hoped. For the remainder of the night, A.J. simply stared at the ceiling above his bed. He wasn’t about to allow himself to dream again.

As Rick poured himself some coffee, Marlowe, his large, light brown dog of unknown heritage put a paw on his leg. Noticeably annoyed, Rick spared a glance at his dog. "No, Marlowe. I already gave you a biscuit. Eat your food." Slowly, Marlowe whined as he headed for the living room. "Yeah, go sulk." When Rick sat down at the kitchen table to read the morning paper, he noticed another presence in the room. Noticing dark lines under A.J.’s eyes, Rick deduced that the night wasn’t exactly a restful one for his brother. It was pointless to ask A.J. how he had slept; the answer was clearly visible. "Want some coffee?" Rick asked as pointed towards the half-filled coffeepot on the counter. Without responding, A.J. poured some coffee into a mug. Hoping that A.J. wasn’t still mad from yesterday, Rick went on. "Are you alright, A.J.? Not still mad at me?" Once again, A.J. remained silent as he took a seat on the sofa. Knowing that A.J.’s silence was out of character, Rick slowly got up and approached his brother. He stood behind A.J. for several seconds waiting for a response.

"You are making me nervous, Rick. Sit down." A.J. finally said without looking back.

"What’s wrong?"

"Nothing, I simply didn’t sleep well last night."

"Want to talk about it?" Rick asked as he walked in front of A.J. in an effort to read his face. Lately, he was having a hard time reading his younger brother.

A.J. slowly shook his head declining Rick’s invitation. "There’s nothing to talk about."

With that, Rick knew that the conversation was over. He could see in it his brother’s eyes. Accepting defeat, Rick went back to the kitchen table. ‘I’ll try again later,’ he thought to himself, ‘After all, A.J. may have won this battle but the war isn’t over yet.’ In the hopes of lifting his brother spirits, Rick changed the subject. "I was thinking that maybe after we finish the case for Adam, we could go fishing. You know spend some time together."

"I don’t know, Rick. Frankly, I don’t think that your boat is sea worthy. It’s not called ‘Hole in the Water’ for nothing."

Smiling to himself, Rick turned the newspaper’s page. A.J.’s joke was a good sign; the dark cloud that had been hovering over his head was finally starting to go away. "We have to meet Adam in about 25 minutes. He’s supposed to give us all the detail about the case."

"Leave without me, Rick. I have to go to physio at 9." A.J. got up from the sofa and slowly walked back upstairs. "I’m going to take a shower. I’ll meet you back at the office for lunch." With that, he was gone.

A.J. simply stood in the shower, letting the water caress his naked body. He didn’t move an inch. He simply wanted the hot calming water to erase all his doubts and troubles. Being totally unaware of his surroundings. Unfortunately, it was only successful for brief moments before reality suddenly crept back. After a few minutes, he turned the tap off. As he was about to take a towel off the wall rack, he slipped on the wet bathroom floor. As he fell on his hip, he screamed in agony. Sharp pain raced through his lower back and leg like daggers. The pain was unbearable. After a few moments of trying to regain his senses, he slowly and painfully got up as he put his entire weight on the bathroom doorknob.

"Rick! … Rick!" A.J. screamed hoping that his brother was still home. Unfortunately, there was no response to his cries for help. As he glanced across the bathroom, he remembered that he had earlier left his bathrobe on the counter. With a quick agonizing leap, he was able to reach it. Once again trying to appease his excruciating pain, he remained hunch over the bathroom sink for several minutes. Finally, after finding the courage, A.J. quickly put his robe on. Sighing in his brief moment of relief, he made the decision to call for help. His best choice was the telephone in his bedroom. Usually, it only would have taken him a few seconds to reach it; unfortunately, in his present shape, he was looking at a few minutes maybe more. As he painstakingly limped towards the bedroom, he couldn’t help but feel really stupid. ‘I’m as fragile as a 80 year old man.’ He angrily contemplated. Trying to remain focus on his mission, he blocked out all negative notions from his mind. After a few minutes, he finally reached the phone on one of his night tables. It took him a few seconds to decide whom to call for help. After making a decision, A.J. quickly dialed.

"Hello!" Cecilia Simon said as she put her phone to her ear. She was about to leave the house to meet some friends when the phone had rang. She almost decided to let the answering machine get it.

"Mrs. Cecilia Simon?" the voice on the other line said.

"Yes, this is she."

"Mrs. Simon, it’s about your son Andrew."

"What’s wrong?" Cecilia painfully said as her heart became suddenly stuck in her throat.

"Nothing major, Mrs. Simon. Unfortunately, your son has had a setback in his recovery. He was transported to the Memorial Hospital a few moments ago."

"I’ll be there as fast as I can." Cecilia said instants before she hung up. Her friends would have to wait. Her son needed her now.

When Cecilia reached the hospital, she was finally starting to calm down. ‘A.J. will be all right.’ She told herself. ‘Just a minor setback. Nothing that A.J. can’t handle.’ After asking at the desk for the location of A.J.’s room, she headed for the main elevators. As she reached the intended floor, she walked down the corridor. She was looking for room #515. When she found it, her heart skipped a beat. ‘I have to remain strong for A.J..’ She said to herself. After taking a couple of deep breaths, she knocked on the door. After hearing a faint reply, she walked in. Her younger son was alone in bed. His left leg was once again in traction. However, this time there were no bandages. Noticing that A.J. looked pale, she forced a smile on her face as she approached. "How are you doing, honey?"

Surprisingly A.J. didn’t smile back; he simply gave her a harsh look. "How do you think I’m doing? I fell on the bathroom floor like a goddam invalid."

Taking aback by A.J.’s bizarre rude behavior, she remained silent for a brief moment. ‘This was definitely not my son speaking.’ Cecilia told herself. She never had seen him so full of rage. "Honey! What’s wrong?"

"What’s wrong?" A.J. repeated as he sarcastically chuckled. "What’s wrong is that I am stuck in this stupid hospital…. again."

"You’ll be fine. This is just a minor bump in your road to recovery."

Once again, A.J. sarcastically laughed at her remark; however, this time he remained silent afterwards. He simply folded his arms around his chest and brooded. Cecilia was totally shocked at A.J.’s reaction and attitude. Giving up, she said her good-byes as she exited the room. A.J. was definitely not in any mental shape to talk reasonably. She would have to leave him alone. As she walked back to the elevators, she met Rick in the hallway. He quickly walked faster as he approached his mother. Before he could pass her, she stopped him.

"Don’t go in there, Rick. A.J. is definitely not in any mood to talk." Cecilia said as she spared a glanced back at A.J.’s door.

"What do you mean?" Rick quizzically asked.

"I mean that your brother isn’t good company right now. He’s mad at the world."

It took some moments before Rick accepted his mother’s explanation. ‘Must be pretty bad if he scared Mom away.’ He thought to himself. He had heard about A.J. predicament from Town. Apparently, A.J. had called 911 for help. Somehow, Lt. Downtown Brown came into contact with this information and informed Rick immediately. "What happened? All Town could tell me was that A.J. was back in hospital." He said as he joined his mother back down the elevators.

"He fell on the bathroom floor. That’s all he told me."

"Must be when he was taking a shower this morning." Rick cursed under his breath. "I must have left the house minutes before it happened."

"Honey, don’t blame yourself." She said as she tried to reassure her son. As usual, somehow Rick always found a way to blame himself for his brother’s injuries. Cecilia couldn’t help but smile to herself. ‘How did I singly raised such caring sons. If only Jack could see them now.’ She thought. "Look, I am going to talk to A.J.’s doctor. Why don’t you go back to what you were doing? I’ll keep in touch." With that, Cecilia gave her older son a kiss before he begrudgingly left.

It was a few minutes past noon before Rick had the chance to get back to the office. Earlier, he had the chance to talk to his dear friend, Adam. As planned, he was able to give Rick all the necessary information in order to locate William Curtis. Going through the mail, he noticed bills and two letters addressed to A.J.. "Nothing for me, as usual." Rick disappointedly said. He decided to pay the bills before starting work. Once again, they were able to pay them on time. This was thanks to their last high profile case; their client, Gabrielle Vanier, had given them an extensive bonus at the completion of the case. The money had been properly distributed, most of it to pay A.J.’s medical bills and rent. The remainder was left for a party in Barbados once A.J. fully recovered from his injuries. However, considering A.J.’s setback this morning, Rick had the awful feeling that once again the trip would have to be postponed.

Shaking his head in order to clear his mind, Rick decided to get the present case started. ‘The sooner I start, the sooner it will be completed,’ he thought. A.J. needed his help now, so he had to hurry. Apparently William Curtis had left San Diego five years ago and had no immediate family living in the city. At least, that was what his last superintendent had told Hines. Rick’s best bet was to search through both the State and Municipal archives and phone records. He’ll maybe even have to collect on a few debts from certain influential friends whom owed him or A.J.. ‘Hopefully, this Curtis guy didn’t move very far.’ Rick thought as he locked the office’s door behind him and approached the elevators.

Just before lunch was to be served, a short middle-aged nurse named Elizabeth Van Oosten with graying black hair and beautiful gray eyes, entered A.J.’s hospital room. It was time for some of his painkiller and anti-inflammatory medications. Noticing that her patient was asleep, Van Oosten decided to simply add the medication through the butterfly IV tubing in A.J.’s right hand. There was no need to waken him. As she was about to release the needle from the tubing, A.J. started to moan and jerk. At first Van Oosten thought it was a reaction to the medication, but after a few seconds, she could tell that he was simply dreaming. Smiling to herself, she said. "Must be quite a dream." As she was recording the medication and time on A.J.’s medical log, she was startled by an awfully loud scream. After regaining her composure, Van Oosten noticed that A.J. was awake and that his face was full of sweat. "Is everything all right, Mr. Simon?" She asked.

"Hum… Er… Just… a bad dream." A.J. said, as it was clear that he wasn’t fully alert. He was still somewhat groggy.

As Van Oosten put her hand on his shoulder, she tried to be comforting by saying. "Everything is okay. I’ll be at the nursing station if you need anything. Just ask for Elizabeth." Satisfied that her patient would be alright, she silently left his room.

A.J. remained silent in his bed for several minutes after his nurse had left. He had once again dreamed about the explosion. The dream was similar in content to his previous one, but this time he saw his friend Ray Smith’s face seconds before it happened. Even after Rick had told him of his friend’s involvement in the incident, he still had a hard time believing it. How could a close friend betray him in such a fashion? It just added more salt to the wound. Slowly and painfully, A.J. tried to move in his bed. He was attempting to get more comfortable; it failed. The pain and the brace on his leg weren’t cooperating. This made A.J. very irate; he couldn’t do anything. The fall had made him waste about two months of physiotherapy. A.J. was furious. He was then bothered by another interruption. Lunch was being served.

"Lunch" an aging man stated as he walked in holding a food tray. A.J. simply remained silent as the man placed the tray on the small adjacent table. As a friendly gesture, the man advanced the table and lifted the tray’s lid off so A.J. could have easy access to his food. Even without an acknowledgment, the man silently left the room.

As he stared at his tuna salad sandwich, coffee, and small cookie, A.J. was disgusted. ‘What was the benefit of this food, it’s not going to make me able to walk anytime sooner.’ He irrationally thought to himself. In a fit of wild rage and with a swipe of his right arm, A.J. shoved the tray of food onto the floor. As quickly as the rage had set in, he felt remorseful over his action. "Why the hell did I do that for?" He told himself. Shaking his head in disgust, tears started to form. All of a sudden, A.J. wept uncontrollably.

After several hours of searching through books and logs, Rick decided to leave the archives. He found what he was looking for. He had been able to locate three William Curtis still living in California that fitted the age description and had previously lived in San Diego: one in San Francisco, one in Riverside and, the other in Pasadena. Hopefully one of them was the right William Curtis. If not, he would have to look outside of the state and that would be a very hard feat, especially if he had to work alone. Rick could only hope that his brother would be able to come back to work soon. He was starting to miss his brother’s company. After making sure that he had their respective addresses and telephone numbers, Rick left. He decided to make all his phone calls from the office.

After opening the gate of the main elevator at his office’s building, Rick noticed that someone was waiting for him at the door. The man had his back turn towards him. Wearing a baseball cap, jeans, and a blue suit jacket, Rick couldn’t tell who it was even though he had his suspicions. Going on a limb, he addressed the man. "Town, what are you doing here?"

Turning around in disbelief, Lt. Brown said. "How did you know that it was me?"

"It’s the way you lean on your left foot when you stand." Rick joked as he unlocked the door and entered. Town followed him in as he frowned in reaction to the joke. "Like I said, what are you doing here?" Rick repeated.

"I came here to see how are you’re doing?"

Deducing the true intention of his friend’s sudden interest in his well being, Rick suppressed a smile. He knew his friend so well. "A.J. is going to be fine."

Completely taking aback by Rick’s statement, Town was about to protest but quickly changed his mind. Looking through his friend’s blue eyes, he could tell that he was made. "Ok, Ok, … you got me." He replied as he lifted his hands in a sign of surrender.

Noticing the Town wanted more information; Rick complied. "Apparently A.J. fell on his bathroom floor. I don’t know more than that. Mom told me that he was mad about his setback."

"Did you have a chance to talk to him yet?"

"No, I plan on going to the hospital later today." Rick said as he sat behind his desk. He had a few loose ends to tie up before visiting his brother. "I’m pretty busy right now."

Taking a seat in front of Rick, Town sat down. "I am on my lunch break. Need any help?"

At first, Rick was about to deny his friend’s help, but decided otherwise. If he had two people working on the case, he would be able to finish much earlier. After giving his friend a piece of paper, he said. "Use our other phone line at A.J.’s desk and call this number. Find out if the William Curtis, on your paper, ever knew a Virginia Hines or a Peeples family from Riverway Road here in San Diego. Peeples was her maiden name."

"Sure no problem."

After talking to Dr. Walters, A.J.’s doctor, Cecilia decided to try once again to reach her son. Somehow, he was acting very strange. As she approached his room, she took a deep breath. After allowing a few seconds to pass, she entered. Cecilia noticed that A.J., laying in bed, was simply starring out of his room’s only window. He didn’t acknowledge his mother as she approached the bed. Trying to be gentle, she put her hand on his shoulder in order to get a response. Strangely he didn’t jerk under her touch; A.J. simply turned his head to face her. Cecilia was taking aback by her son’s complexion. She could tell that he had been crying. "Honey!" was the only word that she was able to utter. A.J. kept silent. After regaining her composure, she continued. "Honey, is there anything that I can do for you?"

A.J. gently shook his head as he responded. "No."

"You can’t bottle up your emotions, A.J.." Cecilia gently smiled as she continued. "You know that I am a great listener. You’ve always came to me when you had something on your mind. Now, I am coming to you."

"There’s nothing to talk about."

"Come on! I can tell that something is on your mind." Cecilia pleaded.

A.J. gave his mother a sneer as he spoke. "I told you that there’s nothing to talk about. Don’t you ever listen." With that said, he jerked his head back towards the window.

Silently, Cecilia’s heart cried. A.J. was definitely not in any sane mental state. He was full of rage. She had hoped that this moment wouldn’t come, but it did. Like many of his doctors had silently predicted and secretly told Cecilia, A.J. was now a victim of post-traumatic stress disorder. There was no more denying it; he was expressing all the classic symptoms. He was now, after the last two months, finally trying to deal with the attempt on his life. Cecilia decided to try another angle in an effort to make A.J. realize that there were people who cared. "Your doctor told me that you will be back in your own bed very soon. Of course, you are going to need some bed rest and more physiotherapy; but that’s nothing that you haven’t coped with before." A.J. was still remaining silent. "A.J., honey! Please talk to me."

Without directing his attention back to his mother, he said. "Mom, I would appreciate if you left. I’m tired."

As any mother would have done, Cecilia objected. "Please, we have to talk about…."

"Mom!"

It was apparent that A.J. wasn’t going to renege on his words, but she had to try anyway. "A.J., I think it would…"

"Leave!" A.J. angrily interrupted as he pointed towards the door.

Taken aback by the brutality of A.J.’s tone of voice, she silently complied. ‘I must immediately speak with Dr. Walters.’ She told herself as she left.

With his mother’s absence, A.J. closed in eyes in relief. He couldn’t handle the pity that he saw in her eyes. He didn’t need any pity, but that was all that he was getting. ‘How dare she thing that a simple pep talk would solve everything.’ He angrily thought. "There’s nothing that can be done." He silently told himself. "Nothing and nobody can turn back time."

After spending the last hour on the phone, Rick needed a break. With Brown gone back to work, he needed some company. Unfortunately, he was only able to contact two of the three William Curtises. The phone number in Riverside was no longer in service. Since the other two leads were dead ends, this meant that he would have to physically go to Riverside and locate Curtis himself. ‘All this leg work better be worth it,’ he thought. In an effort to get away from work, he had decided to visit A.J.. Sure that his brother was feeling better, it had been almost a full day since he’s incident. As he approached the hospital, he saw his mother exiting. As he quickly parked his truck, Rick ran towards his mother. He reached her, as she was about to enter her own car. Rick gently took her arm to turn her towards him. His face suddenly dropped as he saw her face for the first time. ‘Oh! God, what happened?’ he internally said.

As Cecilia quickly wiped her eyes dry, she spoke. "Rick, I…" Unable to control her emotions, she sobbed as Rick delicately took her in his arms.

"What wrong, Mom? Is A.J. all right?" Rick said as he himself shocked back tears.

Cecilia slowly lifted her head. "He’s physically fine considering." She took a deep breath before continuing. "The doctor said that he simply re-injure his pelvic bone and compressed his sciatica nerve. He will need some bed rest and …"

"Mom, what’s wrong?" Rick was becoming insistent. He knew that she was withholding some information.

As she slowly lifted her head in order to meet his eyes, Cecilia finally confessed what was bothering her. "The doctor warned me about it. But foolishly, I thought it wouldn’t happen to my own son." Rick was becoming more and more curious. "Rick, your brother has post-traumatic stress. He’s trying to cope with the explosion. After several incidents, both his doctor and myself agree. He’s showing the classic signs." Slowly letting go of a confused and dazed Rick, she continued. "He’s going to need more than simple physio."

Still recuperating from the shock of hearing about A.J.’s mental state, Rick slowly shook his head in disbelief. "What can we do?"

"We have to support him and give himself time to heal. Unfortunately, he’s going to have to see some sort of support group or even a psychiatrist." Talking about it was making Cecilia feel much better. She knew that with Rick’s help, the son that she knew and loved so much would soon be back.

"I want to see him." Rick said as he was about to walked back to the hospital.

"Rick, I don’t think it’s a great time." Cecilia objected. She didn’t want Rick to see A.J. in that state. ‘How foolish of me?’ She thought. ‘I am still trying to protect them.’ Finally realizing that Rick needed to find out for himself, she changed her mind. "Fine, but be prepared." With that said and after giving his mother a kiss, Rick walked towards the main entrance.

As he finally arrived at his destination, he became nervous. Rick could only hope that his mother had exaggerated A.J.’s condition, but he knew better than that. With his heart in his throat, Rick knocked. After hearing no reply, he decided to enter anyway. He needed to know. As he walked into the eerie silent room, he looked around. A.J. had his face turned towards the window. Rick also noticed that his brother’s chest was rising at a slow steady rate. As he approached the bed, he could tell that A.J. was fast asleep. Taking advantage of the silence, Rick simply starred at his brother. Seeing his brother once again in a hospital bed, Rick couldn’t help but feel some all too familiar emotions creeping back into his conscience. "This isn’t something I want to get used too." He quietly stated as he took a seat next to the bed. For several minutes, Rick simply remained seated and contemplated. Somehow, he had known deep down that something was bothering A.J.. In fact, the night that Adam Hines had made a surprise visit was when it really hit him. A.J. had been silently brooding since a week before.

Suddenly out of nowhere, A.J. violently jerked in his sleep, which made Rick simultaneously jump in surprised. As Rick quickly rose from his chair, he noticed that A.J. was mumbling something inaudible. In an attempt to wake his brother up, he gently shook him. After a few attempts, he was finally successful as A.J. woke in a middle of a jerk. "It was just a dream, A.J.." Rick said trying to sound comforting.

"Wh… What?"

"It was just a dream." Rick repeated.

After regaining his senses, A.J. frowned as he turned his attention to his visitor. "Rick, what are you doing here?"

Rick couldn’t help but smile as he regained his seat. "What else? I’m here to keep you company."

"You don’t have to be here. I’m doing quite fine by myself."

"I want to be here." Rick said, as A.J. remained silent. It was obvious that he wanted to be alone, but Rick knew better. A.J. was most definitely simply depressed and Rick wanted to help in any way. In an attempt to change to subject, Rick thought it would be helpful to talk about work. "I have a few leads on the Curtis guy. It won’t be long before we can start a new one." Rick wanted to include his brother in any future cases.

A.J. angrily frowned at his brother as he crossed his arms across his chest. "Rick, look at me. I won’t be on any case anytime soon."

"Nonsense!"

"Don’t try that bullshit on me, Rick. It’s not working."

Clearly taking aback by A.J.’s choice of words, Rick kept on as he leaned back in the chair. "Come on, A.J.. You never gave up before, so don’t start now!"

"You’ve been talking to Mom, haven’t you?"

"Yes, so?" Rick played stupid; but he knew where his brother was leading.

"I knew it! She’s brainwashed you into thinking that something is wrong with me," A.J. was becoming agitated as he continued. "But I’m here to tell you that I don’t need Mom’s, yours, or anyone else’s help … or pity."

"You could have fooled me." There was some bitterness in Rick’s voice.

With that said, A.J. remained silent. With all the events that happened and these recurring nightmares about the explosion, the last thing A.J. needed now was someone at his neck. He didn’t need anyone’s help; he simply wanted to be left alone. As a way to protest, A.J. ignored his brother as he simply gazed at the window as a few raindrops collided with it.

As Rick shifted in his chair, he couldn’t help but feel helpless. He had never seen his brother so stubborn, even after their father’s death so long ago. He knew that deep down A.J. was crying for help and he wanted to be there when it would finally surfaced. However, Rick knew that it wouldn’t be today. As he got up, he said. "Look A.J., I have to go to Riverside. I should be back later tonight or tomorrow." As he was about to close the door behind him, Rick turned to face his brother. "You’re not alone." With that, Rick left.

As A.J. once again awoke, he noticed that it wasn’t yet dawn outside. He had fell asleep right after supper was served and slept right through until, as he looked at his clock, 4:30 in the morning. He had no recollection of receiving any visitors the previous night. All A.J. could remember was that for once, he had not dreamed. It was such a relief. Hopefully it was a good sigh for the future; A.J. hoped beyond hope that the nightmares were over. It had come to the point that he was afraid to even close his eyes in fear of recalling the dreaded explosion. He didn’t want to be reminded of how close he came to death that faithful day. As his eyelids became heavier as the seconds went by, A.J. fought off sleep as he thought of happy thoughts. Then, suddenly, sleep won the battle as he gently fell back to sleep.

It wasn’t until 9 o’clock that morning that he woke up again. However, as many times before, he had dreamed about the car explosion. He felt so betrayed. How could his mind play awful tricks on him; it was like his brain was teasing him. It was an awful feeling, knowing he had no control over his body or his mind. It just made him more depressed. ‘False hope.’ A.J. told himself as he shifted, with great effort, in the bed. With no notice, a nurse walked into his room. She was, like the previous one, middle-aged and of average height. "Good morning, Mr. Simon. I am Emily Gardner, your nurse for today. How are you doing this morning?" She asked as she looked at his chart.

"Could be better." A.J. simply whispered. He wasn’t interested in any company, legit or otherwise.

"Ah! We can change that." Gardner cheerfully said as she approached him. "Good news, your doctor informed me that the traction could be removed today." Noticing that her patient didn’t reply, she went on. "Isn’t that good news? We can start some exercises to help with your pelvis and sciatica nerve." Once again, A.J. remained silent; he wasn’t the least bit interested in what she was saying. All he could think about was the pain. Gardner, clearly getting frustrated, smiled at A.J. in a final attempt to cheer him up. "What’s wrong Mr. Simon? You should be happy. You will be able to go home tomorrow."

"It won’t make a difference."

"Now, Mr. Simon. That’s not true. Recuperating at home is always much better than staying cooped up in a hospital room. Don’t you agree?" A.J. didn’t reply. He knew better than that. At home, he would only get more unwanted sympathy. As he had mentioned before, he just wanted to be left alone. Giving up for now, Gardner gave out a sigh as she removed the traction on A.J.’s left leg. After making sure that her patient was sufficiently comfortable, she continued. "I’ll be back for your schedule medication injection. You are doing great. You should be proud of yourself." With that said, he silently left, leaving A.J., once again, alone.

Driving back to San Diego in his Power Wagon, Rick gently taped on the steering wheel to the Country music beat playing on the radio. Finally after practically 24 hours away, he was able to go back home, where he was most wanted. Also, thanks to some friendly residents of Riverside, he was able to find the William Curtis that he was looking for. Apparently, the reason why his phone was not in service was that Mr. Curtis had moved into a nursing home less than two months ago. His health had deteriorated so much that he needed constant care. After spending almost a full hour talking to the friendly old man, Rick left satisfied. He had the chance to mention the will to Curtis, whom was sad to hear of Virginia’s death. They happened to be very good friends, but unfortunately, had lost touch a few years ago.

Thankfully, the case was now closed. Rick could finally concentrate all his energy on A.J.’s recovery. There’s nothing more that he wanted to do, but also dreaded. Hard times were ahead. Rick had seen so many good friends suffer through post-traumatic stress as they came back home after their respective tours at Vietnam. Unfortunately, some of friends became victims of the mental disease, never able to again find true meaning to the world. Rick could only hope that wasn’t his brother’s fate. One thing was sure, he was going to try his best to help and support A.J., no matter the consequence.

Rick had made the decision that after giving Adam his final report on the case, he would go and see how A.J. was doing. He could only hope that his brother would be in a better mood than the last visit. "It won’t be long now." He told himself for reassurance.

Against his will, A.J. had been dragged to one of the physiotherapy exercise rooms in the hospital. His nurse, Gardner was the one that had brought him here. She had silently left as the physiotherapist named Fred Holmes had introduced himself. Since it was A.J.’s first session since his relapse, the exercise would be light and short. Many more were planned for the future. Both dressed in white shirts and shorts, they started the session with small bending of the leg at the knee. It was supposed to help ease A.J.’s pains due to his compressed sciatica nerve.

After the first bend, A.J. couldn’t help but protest. The pain was unbearable. It was bringing too many bad memories to the surface; all the wasted multiple hours he had earlier spend in a similar room were resurfacing, along with the pain. As A.J. grimaced in agony, he screamed. "Stop, I can’t do this."

Holmes respected A.J.’s wishes only for a brief second. "A.J., may I call you A.J.," He didn’t wait for an answer as he continued. "You have no choice if you want to get better." He, then, proceeded with the exercise.

"Dammit, I told you it hurts to much." A.J. said as he tried to move away, but was unable. The pain was immobilizing him to the matted floor. There was no escape. The wheelchair was to far away. "Can’t we do this another time?" He pleaded through grunts.

"Sorry, but tomorrow would be too late." Holmes said as he let go of A.J.’s left leg. "Your turn, A.J.." Seeing that A.J. was shaking his head, Holmes became somewhat frustrated. He had heard of difficult patients before, but this was taking the cake. "Come on, A.J.. It’s your turn."

Frowning at Holmes, A.J. gave in. All he wanted to do now was get it over with. The sooner he finished this stupid and useless exercise, the sooner he would be back in his room. With much effort, A.J. painfully lifted his left leg. After only one try, A.J. let himself fall down on his back. The pain was excruciating. ‘Why make me suffer like this?’ A.J. thought, as he knew very well that another stupid accident would only lead him back here. It was a vicious circle, why bother. As he was close to tears, A.J. quietly spoke. "I can’t!"

"Okay, let’s try your other leg. It should be much easier." Holmes said as he slowly lifted A.J.’s other leg. As he had predicted, the process was much easier and less painful. A.J. was able to endure the full ten minutes of the exercise. "You wanna try your left leg again?" He asked to his silent patient.

"No!" was A.J.’s only response.

"That’s no response. You should be looking forward to a full recovery."

"What’s the point? I’ll be back here in a few months, anyway." A.J. angrily stated as he sat back up on the mat. He wasn’t in any mood to be lied to.

"Now, what kind of talk is that?"

"The truth."

Holmes was silent as he slowly acknowledged A.J.’s response. He could tell that A.J. was fighting more than pain at the moment. Looking at his watch, he noticed that his next appointment would start soon. Getting up from the mat, he said. "Okay, it’s enough for this morning. I’ll be back to see you tomorrow before you’re discharged. We should schedule more exercises."

"Later."

"Fine with me, I’ll bring a schedule sheet tomorrow." Holmes said as he fetched the wheelchair. Slowly, he lifted A.J. up and placed him in the wheelchair. As he was pushing A.J. back to his room, he continued with the conversation. "A.J., you know how much, at the end, this is worthwhile. I know for a fact that you want to walk again, the sooner the better, right! So, don’t fight it, it will come with time."

As A.J. looked at the lunch tray in front of him, he couldn’t help but feel sick to his stomach. He wasn’t in any mood to eat. After taking the glass of milk from the tray, he pushed it aside. He wasn’t interested in the spaghetti on his plate. As he laid back in his bed, A.J. sipped his milk. With the absence of the awful traction, he was able to move a little more in his bed, making himself more comfortable. He closed his eyes in an attempt to free his mind of all the conflicting thoughts swimming there. As he laid his now empty glass on the table, he heard a knock on the door. Even though he wanted to be alone, he answered. "Come." He slowly opened his eyes to reveal his mother. After how they had left the last time she had visited, he could feel the tension in the room. He was sure that she could sense it as well.

Slowly but surely, she approached the bed. "How are you doing, today?"

"Okay, I guess." He lied. Even though the medication was helping with the pain, A.J. still felt helpless and like an invalid. Seeing the long road ahead, he was already depressed and fed up. He could no longer cope with the sympathetic eyes or glances. No one could possible know what he was going through. Having someone almost succeed in their attempt to kill you was not something that the majority of the people could understand. Simply thinking about it was bringing back bad memories, which would lead to tears if he didn’t stop it right now. Trying to clear his mind, he again closed his eyes. Seeing her eyes was too painful.

Seeing that A.J. hadn’t touch his meal, Cecilia couldn’t help herself. "Honey, aren’t you going to eat?"

Keeping his eyes closed, he gently shook his hand as he answered. "No, I’m not hungry."

As Cecilia took a seat, anyone in the room could see that she was debating something in her head. She needed to apologize. "Honey, I’m sorry for pushing you yesterday. I know that you need time." A.J. simply shook his head. "A.J., if you need to talk about anything, and I mean anything, you know I’m here."

"There’s nothing to talk about."

"Honey, why are you keeping me out?"

"Because there’s nothing to talk about."

Frustrated, Cecilia remained silent. It was like hitting a brick wall. Unfortunately, A.J. had to open up by himself; no one could do that for him. She had agreed with Dr. Walters that A.J. should meet with a psychiatrist or maybe even a group therapy session. Cecilia could only hope that A.J. could also be convinced that it was in his best interest. She decided to approach her son with the idea. "A.J., maybe you would feel more comfortable talking to someone else."

Suddenly, A.J. opened his blue eyes in shock. "What do you mean?" he questioned.

After taking a deep breath, Cecilia answered. "I mean that … maybe someone more neutral and not so bias could help you." Seeing that A.J. wanted more information, she continued. "Like a psychiatrist," A.J. was about to protest when she went on. "… or even a group session."

"No, way! I don’t need a psychiatrist."

"Honey, can’t you see that you’re not yourself."

"Oh! That’s what you mean." Cecilia could see anger in her son’s eyes. If it didn’t mean so much to her, she would have changed her mind there and then. But she knew better than that as A.J. continued. "You’re telling me that I lost my mind. Right? That I’m crazy!"

"Nonsense! I’m only saying that maybe you could talk with someone. It would do you a tremendous good."

"For you or for me?" A.J. furiously asked. The look on his face was enough to make Cecilia shifted her seat. This was definitely not her son. Both remained silent for several minutes until Cecilia could tell that tears were forming in A.J.’s eyes. In an attempt to get closer to her son, she leaned in her seat. A.J. only brushed her aside as he was clearly losing his composure. Trying to hide his tears, A.J. once again closed his eyes.

"Honey!" Cecilia painfully whispered as she was also trying to control her emotions. Seeing her son in such grief was making her heart ache.

"Mom, I …" Was the only words that A.J. barely managed to utter before he silently sobbed. After all of this mess, it was clear that he was alone now. Even his mother didn’t have confidence in him or she wouldn’t have suggested outside help. ‘Help, I don’t need help.’ This inner voice kept saying. How could he ever silence all these voices in his mind? It was driving him crazy. ‘Maybe I do need to see a shrink?’ He thought, but instead said. "Please leave Mom, I want to be alone."

Cecilia was about to protest but changed her mind. She wasn’t going to leave today like she did the last time. She was willing to give her son room, for now. As she got up, she spared a glance back at her youngest son. Then, she opened the door and left. A.J. couldn’t be more relieved to be once again alone. He needed to settle down and straighten out his conflicting emotions. He couldn’t possibly tell anyone how much he had been frightened that faithful day or how much he had thought about death. He didn’t believe that he could possibly go back to his routine like nothing had happened. His life had forever changed and this frightened every inch of his body. Knowing how much innocence he had lost that day made him scared beyond comprehension. Slowly, A.J. raised his bed sheets to his neck; all of a sudden, he was terribly cold.

As Rick walked out of Adam’s mother’s condominium in downtown San Diego, he couldn’t help think that he hadn’t eating in several hours. His stomach was growling. He needed to make a quick stop before returning to the hospital. As he looked at his watch, he had decided to get some of Paco’s famous burritos as an early supper. Paco’s diner was only five minutes away by car. As he was about to climb into his truck, he noticed a familiar face crossing the street and approaching his direction. "We have to stop meeting like this, Town." Rick joked as he recognized Lt. Downtown Brown’s face.

Brown only responded once he had reached the Power Wagon. "You’re hard to find."

Somehow Rick knew it wasn’t a social call. "What’s the matter?" He asked his friend as he closed back the driver door, giving his friend his full attention.

"We found Oliver Tate."

Smiling, Rick couldn’t be happier. "Great!"

Surprisingly Brown didn’t smile back. "Unfortunately, he’s not going to be able to help in the case against Cabriani. He was found dead in the desert, less than 30 miles from Phoenix. Apparently, he’s been dead for weeks. Not a pretty sight."

Conflicting emotions swept through Rick, he was somewhat glad that Tate was dead since he got what he deserved, but also Rick was disappointed that he wouldn’t be a witness for the state. "What’s next?" He asked Town.

"Nothing. No suspects. No eyewitnesses. No connection to Cabriani; at least none that we know of at this time. Thankfully, we now know that Tate’s not making a new comfortable life somewhere else."

"Somehow Cabriani must have been involved." Rick said as he slightly shook his head in disappointment.

"As I said no proof leads to no case. The local police are investigating the case." Brown said as he was about to leave. "Are you going to see A.J.?"

"Yeah, wanna join me?"

Brown slowly shook his head in response. "I have to go back to work. Needless to say, I have some paperwork to fill out. Tell A.J. that I will come by later tonight. Anyway, I’ll keep in touch. See ya!"

"Bye!" Rick said as he re-opened his door and got in as Brown crossed the street to his car. His stomach started to growl once again. As he started the engine, he couldn’t help but think that Tate’s death was no accident. Someone wanted to silence him and that someone had to be Cabriani. Somehow Rick just knew that to be true.

A.J. was quietly seated in his bed watching the television. He had been the first time he had the nerve to turn in on. Somehow, he felt lonely and needed some sort of company. As he quickly glanced at his supper left untouched on the small table, A.J.’s stomach growled, but not out of hunger but disgust. Since being admitted to the hospital, he had lost his appetite. He didn’t know why but he simply lost all interest in food; in fact, it made him sick to his stomach. In an effort to appease his nausea, A.J. put the lid back on the food tray and moved the table farther away. Suddenly, a knock on his door was heard. Seconds later, his doctor, Dr. Walters appeared in the entrance.

"How are you feeling today, A.J.?" Walters asked as he neared the bed.

"OK" A.J. said not too enthusiastically.

Walters smiled at himself. He knew that his patient was lying to him; it was so evident in A.J.’s eyes. "Did you eat your supper?" He asked as he pointed towards the covered food tray. Feeling no need to lie, A.J. admitted that his food was untouched. "Come on, A.J.. You’re going to have to get something into your body. Your latest blood work wasn’t exactly great."

"I’m not hungry."

Walters moved towards the small table and moved it back to the bed. "Now, we can play this game the easy way or the hard way." He, then, lifted the lid off before giving A.J. his fork. "This is the easy way." Grudgingly, A.J. took the fork and picked at his mashed potatoes. "Now, this no play-do. Eat!" Walters told. Slowly, A.J. took a small bite. "Good, now the rest."

"This is making me sick." A.J. said between bites.

"Not eating is making you sick." Walters replied as Nurse Gardner walked into the room carrying a IV pole in one hand and an IV fluid bag in the other. "Nurse, …" Walters said as he acknowledge her presence. "you can do it now while I check Mr. Simon’s chart."

"Yes, doctor." Gardner said as she nodded to Walters before attending to her patient. "Mr. Simon, this won’t hurt a bit. Your body needs nutrients and it’s somewhat dehydrated. This IV fluid will help you." She said as she attached the IV to A.J.’s right forearm.

After making some alterations to A.J.’s chart, Walters went back to A.J.’s bedside. "Now, I want you to eat all your meal. I don’t have to stay here and make sure that you do, do I?" A.J. slowly shook his head in response. "Good, I’ll be back later to check on you." Before Walters left, he whispered something into Gardner’s ear. This made A.J. suspicious.

"Mr. Simon, if you want to leave tomorrow, you have to be cooperative." The nurse said as she smiled and left the room.

A.J. was able to once again give the television his full attention. The 6 o’clock news was about to come on. As A.J. bitterly ate his supper, he turned the volume up with the remote control. "Let’s hear other people’s misery." He said hoping that somehow that would make his worries less troubling. A familiar face was on the screen, Temple Hill’s. He hadn’t seen her in quite some time. Unbeknownst to him, A.J. was delighted to see her face.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I’m Temple Hill and this is the 6 o’clock news." She said as she gave a slight smile before going on. "Top news tonight: Some new development in Luciano Cabriani’s drug trial. Phoenix’s local police force made a grizzly discovery earlier this morning. Oliver Tate, an alleged accomplice in Mr. Cabriani drug trade was found dead." A.J. couldn’t help but gaze in astonishment. "The exact cause of death is not yet determined but fowl play is suspected. This brings another twists to the long and tedious case against Mr. Cabriani. We will have more information later on this broadcast. Now onto international news, President Reagan is in London, England today concerning the … "

With that A.J. put the television on mute, he had heard enough. He couldn’t help but think that maybe Cabriani would come back and finish his job, meaning killing him. A part of him knew that it was only an irrational thought, but A.J. couldn’t stop thinking about it. ‘If Cabriani can have Tate killed in Phoenix, why not come here and finish me off.’ He thought. After shaking his head in an attempt to clear his mind, A.J. could almost feel much better. ‘If Cabriani wanted to finish his unfinished job, he could have done it long ago…. or maybe he’s waiting for me to forget about him before he strikes.’ Closing his eyes, A.J. took a deep breath. He shouldn’t have turned on the TV; it was making things much more complicated. A.J. jumped when his door suddenly opened. When he noticed his visitor, he somewhat relax as he took a deep breath.

Probably noticing his brother’s fear, Rick’s smile quickly vanished. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you." He said as he came to A.J.’s side. "The nurse told me that you were eating your supper." A.J. shook his head in dismissal. As Rick glanced across the room, he noticed that the television was on. Quickly, A.J. took the remote control on his lap and turned it off. The abrupt action took Rick by surprise but he remained silent anyway.

"So, how have you been?" A.J. said, trying to be social. He had to calm down, he was still fidgety by the news of Tate’s murder.

"Great! Finish the case and all." Rick could have sworn that he saw his brother slightly smile, but he couldn’t be sure. It was so sudden and short-lived. "How are you?"

"Could be better." A.J. admitted. For once, he didn’t feel like or have the energy to lie about his feelings. Noticing that his plate was finally empty, he gladly pushed it aside.

Seeing the disgust in A.J.’s eyes, Rick couldn’t help but smile. "Come on, hospital food can’t be that bad."

"No, it’s worst." Was A.J.’s only comment on the subject.

Rick slightly laughed at his brother’s remark. Hopefully, seeing A.J.’s joking around was a good sign for the future. "I heard that you are going to be discharge tomorrow. That’s great news." Noticing A.J.’s lack of enthusiasm, he went on. "Come on, A.J.. It’s a great opportunity for you relax and finish your Christmas decoration. Look, I know that I have been somewhat of a party pooper these last few days, but I swear that I’ll help you decorate the tree."

"Rick, don’t you get it? That’s all I have been doing for the last few weeks. I want to do something different, something … like work." A.J. was getting frustrated. How can he ever expect his brother to understand his predicament? Rick wasn’t stuck in the house or even worse, bed ridden.

"I know it’s frustrating, A.J.. You have to be strong." Rick said as he took his Cowboy hat off and twirled it in his hands. This action was a good way to avert A.J.’s pleading eyes. Somehow, he couldn’t meet them.

"I’m sick and tired of taking it easy and being bed ridden. I don’t want to feel like a goddam invalid anymore. I want to enjoy life again." Clearly A.J. was on a roll. He was finally opening up to Rick. "I don’t want to feel like this anymore. I… " A.J. couldn’t take it anymore as he broke down and started to weep uncontrollably.

Clearly taking by surprise by A.J.’s outburst, Rick remained stunned in his tracks for several seconds. After finally snapping out of his dazed state, he approached and took a seat next to the bed. As he took A.J.’s hand in his, Rick had a hard time controlling his own emotions. "A.J., it’s all right. I’m here." He simply said. It took several seconds before A.J. even acknowledged Rick’s words. "A.J., let it out."

"Rick, I… I…"

Rick, then, got up from his chair and sat on the bed. As he took A.J. in his arms, Rick closed his eyes. He had never seen his brother in so much grief. It was almost unbearable to simply sit there and remain silent. "Just let it out, A.J.." He whispered.

Rick gradually woke up the next morning on one of A.J.’s sofas. He had taken advantage of A.J.’s absence to sleep inside the house instead on his boat. For a few moments, Rick simply remained on the sofa. He had quite an exhausting day; he could only hope for a better one. Marlowe quietly approached his master. "What do you want?" Rick asked his pet dog. Marlowe simply put a paw on Rick’s chest and panted. Knowing very well what his dog wanted, Rick got annoyed. "For crying out loud, I just got up. Give me a break!" In response, Marlowe barked. Pulling the blanket off, Rick got up and walked towards the patio door. As soon as he opened it, Marlowe was gone. Closing the door, Rick grunted as he looked at his wrinkled clothes. Last night, he hadn’t bothered changing. "A good shower will make me feel better." He told himself as he rubbed his forehead and walked up the stairs. Surprisingly, he had woken up with a headache.

Grabbing A.J.’s housecoat and putting it on, Rick ran downstairs as he heard the doorbell ring for the third time. As he reached the door, he glanced at his appearance. A.J. would have been mad if he knew how Rick left multiple puddles of water across the house. Before opening the door, he tightened the housecoat’s belt. "Mom, what are you doing here?"

"‘Hi! How are you doing?’ I’m fine by the way." Cecilia sarcastically said as she entered. She loved playing games with Rick. Under that staunch and tough appearance, her older son was a softhearted man. Rick simply frowned at his mother before closing the door. She gave him a brief smile before continuing. "It’s about A.J.."

"Yeah."

"Well, I was thinking that maybe he would …" Cecilia stopped as she noticed Rick’s clothing. "Isn’t that A.J.’s housecoat?" She asked.

"Yes, it is. I bothered it for a few minutes." Rick said as he sat down in the living room. He couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

"Anyway," Cecilia went on, she wasn’t going to bother to say anything else on the matter. "as I was saying. Maybe A.J. would like a welcome home party. You know, like an early family and friends Christmas party." She gently shook her head before continuing. "I think he needs something to lift up his spirits."

"I don’t know, Mom. I personally think that he would rather spend some time by himself, try to settle everything out." Rick said. After last night, he didn’t think that A.J. would appreciate company. But maybe his brother would surprise him.

"I thought about that too, but after talking to a psychiatrist about A.J.’s situation, I changed my mind. He needs to be surrounded by the ones who love him." Rick simply shrugged his shoulders. "Since he’s going to be discharged later today, I thought that we could arrange the party for tonight. I already made some plans. If you want, I could take care of everything if you distracted A.J.."

"It’s okay with me, Mom. What do you have in mind?"

With the help of Holmes, A.J. was finally walking. It was still painful and tedious but luckily the medications was working. After one lap across the room, A.J. was already exhausted. "I need to sit down." He pleaded. Holmes respected his wishes. After all, his patient was much more cooperative this morning then last. Something must have happened in between, but Holmes could tell that not all of A.J.’s inner demons were yet slain.

"Listen A.J., I know it’s frustrating but you are on the right track. It’s only a matter of time." Holmes said in order to boost A.J.’s confidence. "Maybe you would like to talk to some of my other patients before you leave."

A.J. slightly shook his head. He knew all too well what they would say. ‘All the same stuff.’ A.J. thought to himself.

"That’s fine. But if you change your mind, just remember that the offer is always open." Holmes replied as he put a mat on the exercise room floor. "When you’re ready, I would appreciate if you give me ten minutes of knee bends for each leg." A.J. was about to protest, but Holmes interrupted. "Listen, you want to feel better." A.J. slightly nodded. "Then, it’s best if you cooperated."

"How are you doing?" Rick said as he entered A.J.’s room, without bothering to knock first. As he glanced through the room, he could tell that his brother was feeling a little better. A.J. was siting upright in his bed, reading the newspaper. "Who gave you a paper?" Rick asked as he took a seat.

"It’s yesterday’s newspaper that my nurse gave me." A.J. said as he put the newspaper down on the table. He could finish it later.

"After leaving last night, I was a little worried about coming in today. But I can see that was for nothing."

A.J. gave his brother a slight smile. "Yeah, I had the same doubts." As he leaned back in his elevated bed, A.J. went on. "Everything is happening so fast." A.J. was silent for several seconds, as if debating something in his head. "Rick, can I tell you a secret?"

Rick was suddenly curious and delighted at the same time. It wasn’t everyday that A.J. would confide in him. It was an honor. "Sure, go ahead."

A.J. closed his eyes for a brief second. "I heard about Oliver Tate." Rick simply remained silent. "I know that Cabriani is somehow involve in his murder. I… I have the awful feeling that he will come back and… and finish what he started."

Rick was totally struck by surprise. He never saw his brother so scared. "Cabriani’s not going to hurt you again. That I promise you."

"Rick, he already did and you couldn’t do anything about it. What if he strikes when I least expect it?" A.J. said completely terrified at the possibility.

The words stung Rick. Since childhood, he had always tried and usually succeeded in protecting his little brother. A.J.’s accident was just a blow below the belt to his big brother syndrome. Knowing A.J. meant no harm, Rick tried to appease his brother’s worries. "A.J., you mean nothing to him. You have nothing to hang him with. Tate did! That’s the difference between the two of you."

"Rick, I was so scared that day." A.J. was close to tears, but continued. "I have never been so scared in my life. I never want to cross that bridge again,… ever again."

Rick lowered his head. He knew all too well what A.J. was talking about. He crossed that bridge every day when he fought in ‘Nam. "I know." Rick said as he locked eyes with his brother. "I know."

A.J. closed his eyes as he said. "Tell Mom that I’m sorry."

"For what?"

"I knew that you would understand, but Mom wouldn’t have. She desperately wanted me to open up to her, but I simply couldn’t." A.J. regretfully said.

"Don’t worry about Mom."

"Talking about it makes a world of difference, but I can’t shake this feeling that… that I will never be the same. You know, being the A.J. that I used to be."

"Unfortunately, you’ll never be the same. After spending those two tours in Vietnam, everyone knew, including me that I wasn’t the same person when I came back. It took a lot of persuasion and encouragement from my fellow marines for me to believe that I could make it in the world… again." Rick gave his brother a smile as he went on. "Hopefully, I came out a better person." It took a lot of guts for Rick to open up about his tours; it wasn’t something that he wanted to share. "It’s completely natural to feel that way, A.J., but you have to let go of your fear before it controls your life."

A.J. suddenly smiled at his brother. "Since when did you become the philosopher."

Rick grinned, as he was about to respond, when suddenly they were interrupted by the nurse’s entrance. Nurse Van Oosten’s face lit up when she noticed that her patient was smiling. "You…" She said pointing to Rick, whom stood up. "have to come here more often. I haven’t seen Mr. Simon smile before."

"Elizabeth, this is my older brother Rick." She smiled as she shook Rick’s hand. "Rick, this is Nurse Elizabeth Van Oosten."

"I’m touched that you remember my name, Mr. Simon." Van Oosten said as she approached the bed to look at A.J.’s IV.

"Please call me A.J.." The middle-aged woman simply smiled in response.

"So, how’s my brother doing?" Rick asked.

"He’s doing great. I can see that he has had a moral booster also." She said as she took the IV out. "You won’t be needing this anymore." Before exiting the room, she spoke. "I’ll see you later before your discharged. Better take care of your brother there and nice meeting you."

"I will and same to you." Rick said with a smile.

Cecilia had arranged everything for the party. She had invited all of A.J.’s closest friends; but somehow, she was having conflicting emotions. After Rick told her about A.J.’s openness of the previous night, she felt delighted that her son was finally coming out of his dark and gloomy period. However, a part of her couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe her rejoice was premature. A.J.’s complete healing would take time, and Cecilia wanted to play a major part in that healing. She couldn’t leave her son to face his demons alone; she had to do something. She could only hope that bringing his friends together would help in his convalescence. As she was about to put her cake in the oven, someone rang her front doorbell.

Before opening the door, Cecilia patted down her apron and passed her hand through her hair. As she opened the door, she automatically recognized a good friend of her sons and consequently one of hers also. Temple Hill, the steady girlfriend of Downtown Brown and one of the most famous newscasters in the city smiled as she remained at the front step while holding a large container in her hands. "Hi, Cecilia!" The beautiful black woman said exuberantly.

"Well, hello! Come on in." Cecilia responded as she automatically moved aside to let Temple enter. "What did you bring?" She asked the young woman as she pointed to the container.

"This is lemon meringue pie. I know that A.J. enjoys it and …" She lowered her voice as she continued. "it’s the only dessert I can make from scratch."

Cecilia smiled back until she thought about the whole situation. "Why didn’t you bring this later at the party?"

"I have to work today until 7, so I’ll be a little late. I brought it over, so that your guests can enjoy it even without my presence." Temple explained as she laid the container on the kitchen counter. Changing subjects, Temple frowned as she asked. "How is he?"

Knowing very well whom Temple was referring to, Cecilia displayed a reserved smile. "Rick told me that he’s doing better, but… frankly I haven’t had the chance to talk to him today."

Seeing some grief in Cecilia’s eyes, Temple slowly gave her hug as she said. "Don’t worry. Knowing A.J., he’ll be fine. Besides, this party will do wonders to his morale."

"That’s what I’m hoping for."

While heavily leaning against his hospital bed, A.J. slowly tried to get dressed. Of course, his nurse had offered to help but he had made the decision previously that he needed to help himself. So, stubbornly, he went on painstakingly with the process of putting his black pants on. As planned at the end, A.J. was quite gladdened about his success until suddenly he noticed that he had forgotten about his socks. Letting out a loud sigh, A.J. slowly sat on his bed. As he was about to bend over in order to put on one of his socks, the door opened. A.J. smiled as his visitor entered the hospital room. "It’s about time you arrived." A.J. jokingly said.

"Wouldn’t miss for the world!" Rick mentioned as he closed the door behind him. Noticing his brother’s predicament, Rick approached the bed as he asked. "Need my help?"

At first, A.J. was going to refuse any help, especially from his brother, but he quickly changed his mind when suddenly some slight but sharp pains raced through his upper leg and lower back. "Sure." He plainly answered.

As Rick slowly helped his younger and only brother finishdressing, some five minutes had passed. Satisfied that all of his belongings were properly packed, A.J., with Rick’s help, quietly sat down in one of the chairs. All that he needed now was a wheelchair. As if his nurse had read his mind, she walked into the room, wheelchair in tow. "Are you ready to leave this place?" Nurse Van Oosten pleasantly asked her soon to be ex-patient.

"As ready as I can be." A.J. said as he semi-joked. Sure, he was finally ready to leave the hospital, but he was still uncertain about being back at home. Even though he had previously gotten most of his inner troubles off his chest, there were still nagging thoughts that kept creeping into his mind. Thoughts about his uncertain future as being a private investigator. Without mentioning anything to either his mother or his brother, A.J. felt somewhat troubled about his physical competence. Not knowing when he would be able to start a new case with Rick was frightening him. The last thing he wanted to do was to leave Rick in the cold. He needed to get back to Simon & Simon Investigations as soon as possible. However, even though his mind knew that very well, it seemed that his body wasn’t yet willing to co-operate.

"Mom is waiting for us at the house." Rick said, trying to be as nonchalant as possible, while carrying A.J.’s suitcase.

"Oh, great!" A.J. responded as his nurse pushed him through the hospital corridors. He knew what it meant; his mother was at the house to once again try to baby him. He would have to insist, once again, on doing it by himself. "Prepare to be pampered." He sarcastically whispered to himself.

"What are children for?" Nurse Van Oosten said with a grin.

Driving through the city in Rick’s Power Wagon wasn’t exactly the most comfortable or the smoothest way of travelling. Thankfully, with the help of some previous physiotherapy and medication, the travel was somewhat bearable for A.J.. As A.J. stared through the passenger side window, he contemplated on his future. His future employment. Knowing very well that Rick would never let him quit; A.J. knew that he had to get better or else. However, that much pressure wasn’t helping the situation. Somehow, he had to get his act together. Begrudgingly, he couldn’t help but believe that some sort of counseling and other sessions of physio could only aid his situation. It was, especially for him, hard to accept defeat and to ask for help. But seeing his silent brother behind the wheel, A.J. knew that something had to be done. Even though, he knew that no matter what happened, Rick would be supportive. However, it was best to not prolong it any longer. The sooner he found out about his physical agility, the better.

Noticing A.J.’s purposely-silent attitude, Rick thought best to encourage him to talk. If the party was to be a success, it was best if A.J. was prepared for it. "A penny for your thoughts." Rick pleasantly said as he spared a quick glance at his brother.

"What?" A.J. confusingly asked.

"What’s wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Come on, A.J.! Let’s not go through this again. Tell me, what’s wrong?" Rick asked, trying to be supportive and insistent at the same time.

Lowering his head, A.J. answered. "I was just thinking about… about my uncertain future as a private investigator."

"What do you mean?" Rick was clearly taking aback by A.J.’s words. He couldn’t understand why his brother would doubt his ability of being a private eye. Even though he had never mentioned it to A.J. before or ever would, Rick had always believed that his little brother was one, if not the best private detectives in the city of San Diego. Seeing that A.J. was not answering, Rick became insistent. "A.J.!"

"I mean, maybe I’m not fit to be one. How am I suppose to be your partner when I can hardly move?"

"A.J., of course, you’re feeling this way now. It’s because you’re not looking at the big picture. The doctors already told me as well as you that your chance at a full recovery are very good."

"And what if they’re not?"

"Come on, stop being such a sourpuss." Rick said as he was starting to lose patience. "It’s just going to take time."

A.J. slowly nodded his head as he answered. "I know, it’s just that…"

"It’s just that what?" Rick stated, as he wanted his brother to finish his sentence.

"It’s just that I don’t want to… to disappoint you."

Rick couldn’t help but giggle. "Disappoint me? A.J., you’re disappointing me right now by acting so foolishly. You’re going to come back to work soon enough." Trying to loosen up the atmosphere, Rick added. "Listen, we’ll be doing repos and serving papers soon enough that you would wish to be bed-ridden again just to avoid them."

A.J. simply grimaced at his brother’s last remarks. Rick had always known how to cheer him up ever since they were both very young. A.J. felt a certain surge of pride go through his body. He had to admit that he couldn’t ask for a better brother or family for that matter. He felt very fortunate. A.J. suddenly realized that maybe that was the way he had to look at life from now on, as a gift. Smiling to himself, A.J. felt better already. Even though his future was indeed a complete mystery, he had to take one day at a time. ‘Impatience wasn’t one of my traits, so why start now.’ He thought to himself as he continuously gazed out the passenger side window. Knowing very well that even with all of his present courage, he couldn’t face this long diligent battle all by himself, A.J. turned to his brother as he asked. "Rick?"

"Yeah."

"I’m… thinking about joining one of those therapy groups at the hospital. It may help me after all."

Rick’s grin was from ear to ear. Finally, he felt assured that A.J. was going to make it and that he would finally get his little brother back. After a few false starts, Rick knew very well that this was the one. A.J.’s final acceptance of not only his physical and mental predicament, but also of his need for someone to share his pains and doubts was a tremendous relief for Rick. He couldn’t wait to tell his mother of A.J.’s first real step to full rehabilitation. Noticing that A.J. was waiting for an answer, Rick quickly indulged him. "I think it’s great, A.J.. Talking to someone or others is a great way to heal." While still grinning, Rick continued. "It’s your first step to put everything that happened to you during the past few months finally behind you and move on. You should be proud of your accomplishment."

Instead of verbally responding to his brother’s approval, A.J. simply grinned in relief.

As Rick drove up A.J.’s driveway and parked just behind his boat. Rick was starting to get nervous. As predicted, their mother’s car was the only visitor vehicle in the vicinity of A.J.’s house. Even though the urge to divulge the secret ‘Welcome back’ celebration was becoming uncontrollable, Rick knew that it was best to keep it a secret for a few more minutes. After the earlier conversation, he knew that deep down this party would be a great benefit for his younger brother. Their mother was right after all. "Well, we’re finally home." Rick mentioned through a subdued grin. As Rick took his brother’s suitcase and brought it to the door, A.J., wanting to conserve energy, patiently waited in the Power Wagon. On the corner of his eye, Rick could see that the guests were starting to hide inside the house. The decoration as he saw in a glance through the kitchen window was freely hanging across the whole living room and beyond. Desperately trying to keep his face unemotional, Rick kept a tight lip. Then, he helped A.J. get out of the high truck. A.J. visibly winced as he finally touched ground. With his left arm under A.J.’s, Rick slowly walked his brother to the main door. Knowing that the house wasn’t locked, Rick immediately opened it to let A.J. walk in, with the aid of crutches, first.

As soon as A.J. took a few steps inside, a moderate size group jumped out from behind furniture. They all yelled "Surprise!". Glancing through the house, a smile slowly surfaced on A.J.’s face as he recognized some old friends and his mother. A banner saying ‘Back home for the holidays’ was hanging just above the fireplace. Delighted to see A.J.’s positive approval of the surprise celebration, Cecilia was the first to approach A.J.. "Honey! Welcome back home." She said after giving her younger son a kiss on the cheek.

A.J. remained speechless for a few seconds; he was still in shock. Turning around to see his brother grinning, A.J. said. "I’m astonished, Rick." He said with a smile. "I didn’t think that you were able to keep a secret for that long." He teased his brother.

"Ah! Ah!" Rick jokingly remarked as he gently patted A.J.’s back. Seeing Lt. Brown standing near the patio doors, Rick could see that his friend was urging for Rick to join him. Walking by A.J., Rick whispered to his brother. "I’ll be right back." It took a few seconds for Rick to reach his destination as he tried to walk by various guests. "What’s up, Town?"

"I found out more about Tate’s murder. I thought I would tell you in private. I don’t want A.J. to overhear us." Brown stated after taking a sip of his red wine. Seeing Rick’s confused expression, Brown continued. "Phoenix P.D. called. They told me that they have some new information about the case. They got an anonymous call linking Cabriani to the murder."

Rick smiled in relief, but still somewhat suspicious. "Was this call legit?"

"Yes, the information was validated by the local police. After a few interrogations, someone cracked. One of Cabriani’s ‘assistants’ broke under the pressure. I’m telling you, for such a terrifying crime boss; he sure has back stabbers falling from the sky."

"What’s next?"

"Nothing concerning us." Brown shrugged. "Except that this anonymous call was from here in San Diego."

Rick couldn’t hide his surprise. "San Diego?"

"Yup. Makes you wonder who made the call."

"Hum… Yeah!"

After taking another sip of his drink, Brown said. "Anyway, like I said there’s nothing we can do. We can only hope that this new information is the final nail in Cabriani’s coffin."

"And with that…" Rick said as he looked at his brother mingle with family friends. Seeing A.J. smiling and laughing meant everything to Rick. He couldn’t ask for a better day. Looking as friends quickly surrounded his brother, Rick couldn’t imagine a more deserving receiver. After all that had happened, A.J. merited happiness and joy. Turning back to his friend, Rick concluded his sentence. "We can finally get on with our lives."

"Amen to that." Brown said just before they were joined by A.J., crutches included. As Brown had hoped, the younger Simon hadn’t heard their conversation.

Displaying one of his famous grins, A.J. said. "Town, it’s so good of you to come."

"Wouldn’t miss it." Brown simply said as he joyfully returned A.J.’s smile.

"I must say, this…" A.J. said as he glanced across the room. "is a surprise. I wasn’t expecting anything of this sort."

Noticing fatigue on his brother’s face, Rick stated. "You look tired, A.J.. Why don’t you sit down and enjoy some of the refreshments?"

A.J. didn’t resist as both Rick and Brown guided him to the sofa. For the first time since he had entered his house, A.J. noticed his Christmas tree in the corner of his living room. Surprisingly, it wasn’t the way he had earlier left it. Unbeknownst to himself, the tree was now fully decorated from the decorative skirt around the trunk to the bright star on top. Giving a strange look at his brother, he asked. "Rick? Who decorate the tree?"

Before answering his brother’s question, Rick gave A.J. a glass of orange juice. Even though A.J. would have enjoyed some of the red wine circulating though the room, he knew very well that alcohol and medicated drugs didn’t mix well. "Well, unlike other times, I kept my promise that I made to you at the hospital." Rick softly replied. After listening to Rick’s answer, A.J. couldn’t hide his skepticism as he almost choked on his drink. Clearly wounded by A.J.’s abrupt reaction, Rick quickly protested. "What’s the matter? Don’t you believe me?"

"No, no! It’s not that. I think it’s great." A.J. retorted, trying to appease Rick brewing exasperation.

"Then, what’s the matter?" Rick quickly asked.

Trying to suppress a laugh, A.J. said. "If you don’t go and stop Marlowe from drinking the water, our tree will be dead before Christmas even arrives."

As Rick finally realized that his dog was wagging his tail under the tree amidst the few Christmas gifts, he quickly neared his dog. "Marlowe get out of there. Get! Get!" Rick’s dog simply turned around to face his master and didn’t budge an inch.

Whispering to A.J., Brown stated. "Sometimes I wonder who’s the master." With that remark said, both Brown and A.J. silently laugh at Rick’s failure demand. To busy fighting with Marlowe, Rick didn’t even hear any of the snickers that traveled across the house.

After all of the party members had quietly left, A.J. simply remained seated in front of the burning fire in the fireplace while holding a final glass of juice in his hands. The celebration had ended earlier due to the long day. Seeing the mess around him made A.J. slightly depressed for a few seconds, but it quickly vanished as he realized that there was more to life than a clean house. ‘Besides, Rick would be probably responsible for that part of the evening,’ he humorously thought to himself as he took another sip. Deep in thought, it took a few seconds before A.J. finally realized that someone was speaking to him. Turning his head, he noticed that his mother had her coat on. "I’m going home now, honey. If you need anything, please call me." Cecilia said as she gently kissed her son’s forehead. "I’ll be back tomorrow."

"Thanks, Mom… for everything." A.J. said with a slight smile. Even with all the years ahead, he knew that he would never be able to repay his mother. From day one, she had always been there to support him in good and bad times. With the incident at the hospital behind them, A.J. still knew that he would have to make it up to her. She deserved so much. After giving her good-byes to Rick, Cecilia silently departed.

"I’ll sleep on the couch tonight in case you need me." Rick stated as he took a seat next to his brother. "And don’t worry about the mess, I’ll clean it up tomorrow." He added.

While gazing at his shoes, A.J. remained silent. He had something to say to Rick, but didn’t know who to phrase. After making a decision, A.J. slowly lifted his head up and looked at his brother. "Rick… I also want you to know that I truly appreciated everything that you have done for me." Noticing that Rick was about to shrug it off, A.J. lifted his left hand in protest as he continued. "I’m serious, Rick. I haven’t been the greatest person to live with these last few days… heck, it’s more like these last few weeks, but you have somehow manage to survive through it." A.J. took a deep breath before going on. Seeing that A.J. needed to talk, Rick didn’t interrupt him. "Being bombarded by Cabriani’s trial and Tate’s murder was so much to handle. I can only say now is that I’m relieved that it’s finally over. I can finally get back on track with my life while also accepting that it has aversely changed. Tonight, seeing close friends and family made me realize once again the true meaning of life."

"And what is that?"

Smiling, A.J. answered as he personalised one of Eleanor Roosevelt’s famous sayings. "Yesterday is history, Tomorrow is a mystery, and Today is a gift. That’s why they call it the present."

A grin suddenly surfaced on Rick’s face. "I’ll drink to that." With a click of their glasses, both Rick and A.J. knew that a bright new day led ahead.

To be continued……

There is a sequel to this story in the works………so stay tuned!

I hope that you liked the story. Please, send me your comments at danandsylvie@sprint.ca

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