The Rival

by Arnie

"Pet! Get out here, Pet! Now!"

Blair Sandburg heard the yelling and slowly pushed himself up from the floor of the closet, wincing as his still-healing body protested the movement. Alex, 'his' Sentinel, was calling. He didn't know why she needed a Guide; she had fairly good control over her senses, and it was rare for her to enter a zone out. However, she'd decided that she needed one and that he was the one for her, hence his current position in her closet. Kidnapped and beaten into apparent servility, he bided his time. Sooner or later she would fall into a zone out and when she did, their 'relationship' was history. Hearing her call again, more impatiently than ever, he pushed open the door and stepped out, his eyes fixed on the floor. As expected, she was waiting for him.

"There you are, Pet." Her hand reached out and touched his face.

As his eyes flickered up to meet hers, he could see that they were as hungry as the mind he felt pressing against his barriers. Dropping his gaze, he stared back down at the floor.

"Okay, Pet, have it your way. But you'll cave, sooner or later." Grabbing his arm, she hauled him towards the sitting room of her hotel suite. "Sit down and take me through that hearing exercise again. I want to practise it before my...friends arrive."

Waiting until she'd taken her seat, he sank to his knees by her side, his face carefully blank. No matter what he thought or what he felt, he'd do this and hide every trace of hatred for her. For some reason she was unable to force a bond upon him, although he'd heard that it was fairly easy for a Sentinel to force their way into a Guide's mind. He didn't know why she couldn't overcome his barriers but he was grateful for the reprieve.

Leaning forward, he dropped his voice into a lower tone than his normal speaking voice, and started talking her through the exercise. For a second her eyes met his, blue on blue, then she looked towards the door.

"Stretch out your hearing, go through the door and down the corridor. What can you hear?"

She smiled. "Your heartbeat." Her eyes returned to sweep his face hungrily. "We could be so good together, Pet. You and me. Bonded forever." Her hand stroked his arm gently, before moving up to grab his chin. "Why do you fight it?"

He ignored her words. "Concentrate on your hearing. You're through the door and at the elevator, what can you hear?"

"Such a professional."

For a second her eyes hardened and he thought she was going to strike him again, but instead she released him and looked towards the door.

"I can hear the elevator moving. It's stopped on this floor - they must be early." Pushing him away she stood up. "Get back into the closet and don't listen if you know what's good for you."

He rose obediently - two weeks of beatings had taught him the value of doing what she said - and went back into the bedroom. Opening the closet door he stepped inside and shut it again, thankful that he wasn't claustrophobic. He'd seen more of the inside of her closet than he had of the hotel room - and considering that being in the hotel room meant being with her, he much preferred the closet.

The murmur of voices reached him and he settled himself down on the floor, leaning his head back as he listened intently. It was possible that anything he found out could be used against her. He wasn't a fool; he knew how difficult it was to escape from a Sentinel and, once he was away from her, he intended to make sure that he stayed well away. But if she caught up with him, he'd need some kind of insurance, and information could be that insurance.

He could have gained more information by using his empathic abilities, but there was a risk that Alex would realise he was reading her and her guests and react accordingly. Although he'd never linked with her, she'd tried to force her way into his mind more than once. Each time she'd been met with a stone wall which had frustrated and angered her, but her fury hadn't been enough to overcome his barriers, so she wouldn't recognise the touch of his mind. However, as he was the only empath in the hotel suite, it wouldn't take a genius to work out who was picking whose brains if he started reading people.

Suddenly his head jerked up as he heard a yell. It wasn't Alex; it was a man's voice. Pushing open the closet door he crept out slightly and listened harder. There were two men with Alex. One of them was groaning in a way which suggested that he was hurt and on the verge of passing out, while the other was shouting almost hysterically.

"Shut up, Guide!" There was the sound of something hitting flesh, a thud of something hitting the floor, and the man was silent.

Blair couldn't stay back any longer. If these men were enemies of Alex's, then they were potential allies of his. He burst through the door and careered into Alex. She fell back, then swung around to face him, a gun, complete with silencer, clutched in her hand.

For a second he stared at her, then he turned to look at the two men huddled near the wall. Both of them were unconscious. One of them had been shot in the shoulder while the other one had a large red mark, a forewarning of a huge bruise, on his face, indicating that Alex had hit him with the gun instead.

"Decided to come out and play, Pet?" She smiled, apparently unconcerned by the sudden appearance of her chosen Guide.

"You...what are you doing?" Carefully he stepped away from the door, towards the window, which meant that she had to turn her back on the two men to face him. They couldn't stay unconscious forever, well...unless they died, he mused, so if she was kept busy they might be able to do something. He wasn't sure what, yet, but as one was a Guide, the other had to be his Sentinel - and as the Guide had been attacked, he figured that the Sentinel should be angry enough to try anything.

"None of your business, sweet pea," she told him, her gun steady as she aimed it at him. "Now be a good Guide and go sit in the closet."

He swallowed, then shook his head. "You don't want to do this, Alex." He dropped his voice to the soothing Guide-tone once more. "Whoever these people are, you don't want to kill them."

"Don't tell me what I do and don't want to do, Guide!" Her voice made an insult of the description. "I make the decisions around here, remember?"

"I know that, Alex. But this is a mistake."

"Oh, the Guide has decided that this is a mistake. Just who do you think you are?" Her voice was scornful, her eyes intent. "While you hide in your closet, I work to earn the money to support us. While you murmur sweet nothings in my ear, I use my senses to help us both. While you refuse to bond with me, ME, I protect you and keep you safe."

"Safe from whom?" Blair's temper was rising. At no point had it been his idea to sit in her damned closet or try to help her with her senses. "Look around, Alex. You're the one who's been beating me. You're the one who kidnapped me. You're the one who stuck a gun in my face and forced me into your car so I could sit in your fucking closet playing nice while a psycho Sentinel demands that I bond with her! Bond with you, Alex? Not now, not ever!"

Her eyes widened as the Guide's voice rose, getting louder with every accusation, and the fury in her face was replaced with a hard determination. "You will bond with me. You won't have any choice. Sooner or later your barriers will fall and when they do, Pet, I'll be there in your mind every minute of every day. So you better play nice with me now or I'll turn your mind inside out and leave you gibbering in a corner!" She leaned closer to him, and inhaled his scent loudly, ignoring it as he moved back again. "I can do it, you know. You won't be the first Guide I've taken in and spat out."

Behind her, Blair could see that the taller of the two was starting to come around. 'C'mon, Sentinel, get up and protect your Guide...and this Guide.' The Sentinel wasn't fully conscious yet though, and Blair realised that he was going to have to keep Alex busy for a little while longer. "Easy to say but not so easy to do when it comes to me, is it, Alex?" he asked hurriedly as she started to turn to check on her other prisoners.

Her attention snapped back to him. "And what exactly do you mean by that, Pet?" She stepped forward again, every inch of her a hungry predator.

He backed off once more, moving closer to the window and the balcony beyond it with every step. Shrugging, as though unconcerned with her anger, he said, "Well, you've had me here two weeks and all you've managed to do is beat me every time I refused to bond with you. Seems to me that if you were able to bond with me and turn my mind into Swiss cheese, you'd have done it by now." He stared her in the eye, refusing to adopt a submissive position. If these were his last moments on earth, he wasn't going to be ashamed of himself.

She screamed furiously and lunged at him, the gun raised to snap across his head with brute force. Blair shrank back instinctively, falling onto the floor and scrabbling backwards away from her until his shoulder hit the door onto the balcony and his escape was blocked. The gun flew down towards his head and he ducked, wincing as it whipped across his hair but before she could strike again the door burst open and she swung around to face the new threat.

There was a single shot and she fell, crashing onto Blair as she went. Her head landed in his lap before his frantic hands pushed her off. She rolled and lay still, heavy across his legs, as a pool of blood spread from beneath her face.

Blair yanked his gaze up, away from the red pool, to the gun that had ended Alex's life. For a second it remained still, pointing directly at him, then the tall man holding it moved forward to collect Alex's gun and drop it into an evidence bag. Once Blair had apparently been judged unarmed and not dangerous, the gun that killed Alex was slowly lowered before being tucked away out of sight. For a second Blair's gaze caught that of Alex's killer, then the man swung around to check out the downed Sentinel and Guide.

"You okay, Edwards?"

"I will be. David's still out of it though."

The growled answer got Blair's attention and he looked over to where the Sentinel was. Fully conscious now, he moved to be closer to his Guide, ignoring his own injury. "I told you I shouldn't have brought him," he added, glaring at the tall man who was standing over him.

"She insisted on meeting both of you, you know that. If you'd refused to bring David, she would have got suspicious and cancelled the deal."

Blair's eyes slid from one to the other, wondering if the man who'd shot Alex was also a Sentinel - he didn't want to chance anything by trying to read the man. Glancing around, he realised that there were quite a few people in the room, some of whom were heading in his direction. Pushing at the dead body, he managed to get his feet free and he rose to his feet, his back pressed against the window. He didn't know who the hell any of these people were, and he was damned if he was going to sit on the floor while any of them loomed over him.

"So who's the kid?"

"Alex's Guide," Edwards answered, before adding, "well, attempted Guide. He liked her just about as much as we did."

The taller man stalked across the room towards Blair, the other people stepping out of his way apparently automatically. Blair's deductive reasoning kicked in. From the way they were all acting, this guy was obviously their leader, and it didn't take much deducing for Blair to realise that the guy didn't trust him.

"So who are you?"

Tilting his head back, Blair met the guy's gaze head on. "Blair Sandburg. And you are...?"

A muscle twitched at the corner of the guy's mouth, although Blair couldn't tell if the guy was repressing a smile or a snarl. "Detective James Ellison, Cascade P.D."

Glancing around the big man standing directly in front of him, Blair looked at the other Sentinel who was arguing with the Paramedics who were trying to treat him. "I guess he's a cop too?"

"That's right. We're all cops."

"David isn't!" Edwards took time out from his argument to contradict him bluntly.

A half smile appeared, then disappeared. "Apart from David." The stern gaze looked him up and down. "And what exactly are you?"

"I'm a grad student and a Teaching Fellow at Rainier University."

The man nodded slowly, then reached out a hand, but Blair jerked away before he could touch his face. Indicating the bruising on his face that was courtesy of Alex, Ellison asked, "Do you need a doctor for that?"

Blair shook his head. "I'm fine," glancing down at Alex's body, he added, "now."

Ellison's head tilted slightly, reminding the Guide of Alex during a hearing test. "I think you'd better get checked out by the paramedics anyway." Turning, he waved one of them over, ignoring Blair's protest. As the paramedic reached Blair he continued, "And don't go anywhere. You'll be needed for questioning."

Blair watched as the detective strode back over to his colleague and started overriding his arguments. Surprisingly, Edwards caved and allowed the paramedics to treat him at the same time as some of them were treating David - he had been insisting that they treat his Guide first.

Turning his attention back to the paramedic who was attempting to shine a light in his eyes, Blair smiled. "I really don't need any help. I'm fine, honestly."

In an abstracted tone, the paramedic replied, "Uh huh. Do you have a headache or any pains in your head?" The light was discarded as he began to gently press on the bruising.

"Nope, not at all."

"Any pains anywhere else?"

Blair shook his head and smiled again, reassuringly. "Not a one. Thanks."

"Well, if you do develop -"

"He was being beaten. Check him over."

Ellison's voice was cold and disinterested, but the paramedic listened and turned back to his charge who promptly protested, "I'm fine!"

"Why don't we let me be the judge of that?" the guy asked. "After all, I'd hate for all this training to go to waste."

~'~

"I've heard from the hospital. Edwards is out of surgery and is going to be fine. David has a concussion and his face will look like a rainbow, but he'll be fine too. So tell me, what went wrong?"

Ellison looked at the police captain in whose office he was sitting. While he answered to no one as Senior Sentinel Prime of Cascade and the Northern Territories, as Detective James Ellison he answered to Captain Banks first, and Banks' superiors after. "It looks like Barnes intended to double-cross Edwards anyway." He accepted the mug Banks was waving at him and waited for it to be filled before he continued. "She had a contact in New Mexico who'd already paid her for the nerve gas she stole and, as his price was higher than the one she'd accepted from Edwards, I think she was prepared to sell to him. Well, unless she had yet another offer from somewhere. We haven't finished going through her papers yet."

"Do we have enough information to pick up the contact?"

Ellison shook his head. "Not yet. We're attempting to trace the cell phone number."

Banks nodded slowly. "So what about this kid? What's his name...Sandburg?"

"Henri and Rafe are taking his statement now. Seems that Barnes kidnapped him and was planning on bonding with him," Ellison frowned suddenly as he remembered part of the conversation he'd heard on his way to break up Barnes' meeting after the gunshot that took down Edwards, "only she couldn't."

"Couldn't?"

"From what Sandburg said she'd been trying to bond with him and he refused. That's why she beat him."

"But I thought that most Sentinels, especially one of Barnes' strength, were able to overcome a Guide's barriers?"

"We can." Ellison regarded the coffee in his cup. "If a Guide is unwilling to bond it is possible to...break through their barriers and bond anyway. But most Sentinels prefer a willing Guide." He didn't add that if a Guide was unwilling to begin with, the Sentinel could 'seduce' a compatible Guide into bonding. Given that most non-Sentinels or Guides had an odd idea of the non-sexual bond between a Sentinel and a Guide, he didn't want to muddy the waters by throwing around the word 'seduce', in spite of the fact that that was what it was.

While reluctant Guides were known for running from the Sentinels hunting them, once caught, pinned and bitten, the heat of bonding frequently took over, leading them to succumb despite the extreme reluctance they felt in the beginning. A Guide's neck was the way to overcome their barriers as the glands located there, once bitten, would release the pheromones allowing them to bond with a chemically compatible Sentinel. Mother Nature, being far smarter than the average human, had ensured that when a Sentinel bit his or her chosen Guide, the Guide's brain would be flooded with endorphins - and those pesky beggars had one job: convince the Guide they're having a good time. Therefore, while a Guide might start out unwilling, any Sentinel worth his or her salt would end up with an empath who would willingly and enthusiastically drop their mental barriers during bonding, regardless of how much they might complain in the morning.

"So why wasn't Barnes able to overcome this kid's barriers?"

Ellison shook his head. "I have no idea. From all indications, Barnes was a Dark Sentinel, and so far as I know - or knew - there's no Guide alive that can fend off a bonding by a Dark Sentinel." He noticed the way Banks' head had snapped up when he mentioned her being a Dark Sentinel, and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that his friend and captain was longing to comment, "Just like you!". Not giving Simon the chance to say anything, he continued, "The only thing I can think of is that they weren't compatible, although I've never heard of that mattering with a Dark Sentinel before - not that there's that much known about Dark Sentinels and Guides. Anyway, there's no indication that Sandburg was involved in the theft of the gas canisters or in any of her other crimes. It appears that he's another one of her victims - although he's certainly luckier than the other Guides she got her hands on."

Simon leaned back in his chair and raised his eyebrows. "There were others?"

The Sentinel nodded. Investigation into Alex Barnes' background had already turned up the fact that she had bonded with two Guides on separate occasions. Both Guides were now in mental hospitals, their minds fried beyond repair by the bonding they'd undergone.

"Two others." Ellison grimaced. "They'd be better off dead."

"So Sandburg really was lucky," Simon mused. "Is he strong enough to handle a Dark Sentinel?"

There was silence for a few seconds as the Sentinel regarded the face in front of him, his blue eyes meeting the dark brown ones that showed only concern for a Bondless Sentinel. "I don't want a Guide, remember, Simon?" The voice was soft but there was a warning tone within it.

"I'm not saying you should bond with him. He was able to work with Barnes in spite of the fact that he wouldn't bond with her - surely he'd be able to help you?"

The Sentinel shrugged. As a Bondless Sentinel he risked zone outs every time he stretched his senses, and being bonded to a Guide would give his senses a stability they lacked at present. However, the thought of laying claim to another human being in such a fashion appalled him. While the Sentinel might need a Guide, the human wanted no such permanent fixture in his life. "It's possible."

"Then why not give it a go?"

Ellison grinned suddenly. "There's no guarantee that Sandburg would want to help me. I didn't exactly lay out a welcoming mat last time we met!"

"You did save him from Barnes," Simon reminded him. "That might count for something."

The grin faded as Ellison considered that point. His senses had been bothering him for a while now, and maybe the kid could suggest something to keep them under control. "I'll have a word with him and see what he says."

~'~

The kid, Blair Sandburg by name, was currently sitting in Interrogation Room three being outstared by a pair of detectives who were obviously unconvinced as to his status as one of Alex's victims as opposed to being her co-conspirator. Blair's gaze drifted over the two men. He'd guess that they were partners, although their clothes and style were radically different. The perfectly cut suit of one was offset by the glaring Hawaiian shirt of the other. For a moment, Blair wondered if this was some new version of bad cop/good cop, where one cop wore clothes guaranteed to induce a migraine, then his attention was caught by the sound of approaching footsteps.

When the door opened, and the detective who'd killed Alex came in, Blair felt relieved. He hadn't seemed to see him as a co-conspirator - unless he'd changed his mind later.

"Brown, Rafe." The detective cocked his head towards the door and the two left quietly.

Blair glanced at him then at the large mirror at the back of the room. He could tell that there was now someone hidden behind the mirror, but he didn't think it was anyone he'd met so far, and he wasn't willing to scan anyone in case any of the much larger cops he'd seen took objection. He turned his attention back to the large detective in front of him and waited for the cop to make the first move.

Flipping open the file he'd brought in with him, the detective's gaze met Blair's. "Blair Sandburg, B.A., M.A.. Joined Rainier University at the age of sixteen. Grad student and Teaching Fellow there. And Dark Guide."

Blair's breath caught in his throat. That wasn't in his file - he'd made sure of that. A friend of his was a whiz on computers and had made short work hacking into the personnel files at Rainier and making sure that not one hint of a Dark Guide appeared in Blair's file. The file claimed, erroneously, that Blair was an Empath with a rating of eight on a good day. High enough to rate as an Empath, low enough to avoid attracting the gaze of anyone searching through the databases for a strong Guide.

"At least you're not denying it."

"What would be the point?"

A shrug and a half smile was all the answer he got to that. "You were working with Alex Barnes...."

"No!"

A raised hand silenced him. "You were working with her as a Bondless Guide helping her to control her senses."

"Not by choice!"

"But you were helping her to control her senses without bonding with her."

Blair frowned. The detective was oddly insistent on what Blair considered to be a minor point. He'd already told them everything he knew about her contacts, (not that that was much), and her future plans, (even less knowledge of them!), and yet here this guy was harping on about him being a Bondless Guide who'd worked with a Bondless Sentinel. He looked at the detective and realised that he'd been right earlier. "So you are a Sentinel."

He got a full smile for that, one with a hint of a predator in it. "Yes, I am. To be specific, I'm a Dark Sentinel."

~'~

Ellison watched as the colour drained from the kid's face. He hadn't been looking particularly colourful, apart from the bruising - being held captive by a Dark Sentinel for two weeks had obviously been no holiday - but now he was looking positively ashen. Standing, he moved around the table and pulled the kid's chair further out before pushing the Guide's head between his knees. He ignored the involuntary flinch the kid gave when he touched him. "I'm not going to hurt you, kid. Keep your head between your knees until you feel less like fainting."

Leaving him to it for a few minutes, Ellison left to fetch him a cup of coffee. Any possible working relationship between them would be bound to go wrong if he made the kid faint on their second meeting.

When he got back the kid was sitting up again. He didn't look much better but he accepted the coffee Ellison offered him and leaned back against his chair, his eyes wary.

"So what do you want with me?"

The Sentinel could hear the tension thrumming its way through the Guide's body. "I want your help. I don't want to bond - and unless I've suddenly become irresistible, I'm assuming you're not looking to bond either - but I do want some help with my senses. You managed to help Barnes without bonding with her, that's all I'm...asking for. I'd pay you for your time, of course - you wouldn't lose out." He managed to stop himself from grinding his teeth. He didn't like being a Sentinel and he sure as hell hated asking for help, but if the kid could help him control his senses even a little bit, it'd be worth it.

"There are plenty of Guides out there -"

"Who are all looking to bond. As I said, I don't want to bond, I just want to control my senses."

"Bonding would give you control over your senses."

Ellison regarded him steadily. "Are you offering?"

Sandburg stiffened, and the Sentinel could smell the fear that flooded through him. "No! I'm-I'm just saying -"

"Don't."

He watched as the kid licked his lips and swallowed nervously. "Am I gonna be arrested if I say no?"

He couldn't help it, he grinned. "I'm not a bent cop, Chief. You say no, you walk out of here. You say yes, I'll give you a lift home."

He won an answering grin at that. "Well, that's tempting."

~'~

Blair regarded the older man steadily. If he really didn't want to bond, and he had no reason to lie as Blair was reasonably certain that no one would try to stop him from taking a Guide by force, then the job offer was genuine and extremely tempting. As his tutors at Rainier wouldn't have been able to reach him for the past two weeks, the summer classes he was scheduled to teach would undoubtedly have been reassigned and he might have trouble getting them back. A summer job was his other option and with bars and cafes flooded with students, teaching assistants and Teaching Fellows looking for jobs, finding one might prove difficult. The main risk, of course, and it was a big one, was that the Sentinel would probably become possessive of his Guide and want to claim him. Could they work together? He bit his lip and considered it. No, his situation wasn't that desperate yet that he could risk it.

"Sorry. I think the risk's too great."

"What risk?" Ellison looked puzzled.

"The risk of your Sentinel side deciding to bond." There was a flash of anger in the detective's eyes that Blair couldn't miss, and he knew it was because the man hated being reminded that his Sentinel side could and would influence his actions.

"I've already told you -"

"I know." He shook his head again. "I'm sorry. No."

"Fine, kid. You're free to go." Ellison stood and slammed his chair back into place before leaving. The only reason the door didn't slam behind him was because he left it open.

Blair sighed, then looked up as an even taller man entered the room. He met the dark eyes steadily, not sure what was going to happen next.

The dark man leaned forward on the table. "Mind telling me why you said no?" a deep bass voice rumbled, the tone demanding. "He did save your life."

Blair stood up. He knew the detective had saved him from Alex, he just wasn't sure the detective could save him from himself. "He doesn't want to bond, I don't want to bond. Our working together would be a big mistake."

"Because you think that Jim can't control himself, is that it?"

"It's not a question of Jim's control. The Sentinel side takes over completely and no amount of 'control' is going to stop a Sentinel who's determined to bond with his Guide." Blair sighed and ran a hand over his face. "The man isn't given a choice. Ask any of your Sentinels how much control they had when they found the Guide they wanted."

"Fine. As the man said, you're free to go. Where can we reach you if we need you?"

Reaching inside his backpack, Blair grabbed some paper and a pen and hurriedly scrawled a few numbers. "That's my office at Rainier, and there's my cell phone number."

"Home address?"

Blair paused, not really willing to give his address out, then capitulated as the large man stood back and crossed his arms, making it clear no one was going anywhere until he had the address.

Another quick scrawl on the paper and Blair put his pen away. "Okay?"

"You'll be hearing from us."

"I'm sure I will be." Gathering up his backpack, Blair left, totally unaware of a pair of intense eyes that followed his progress down the corridor and into the lift.

~'~

Getting back to Rainier wasn't a problem for Blair, as there were plenty of buses that went to the university. Finding his car was a problem though, as the green Corvair wasn't where he'd left it in the parking lot on that fateful day when Alex had decided to snatch the Guide she saw as hers.

Having walked through the parking lot three times to make sure that his car wasn't there, Blair headed for the campus security office. Maybe they knew where his car was.

"Great. Just great." Blair shut the door behind him and cursed under his breath. His car was in the police compound having been vandalised and reported as abandoned during his two week enforced hiatus. Deciding to check that his office was still in one piece before returning to the police station, he headed over to the main building.

"Blair!"

Blair flinched before he saw who'd yelled his name with such enthusiasm. "Oh, hey, Julie." For a moment he thought he was going to faint with relief. The sound of a woman calling his name brought back strong memories of Alex, even though she'd quickly decided that 'Pet' suited him far better than 'Blair'.

"Where have you been? Dean Edwards went crazy when she had to reassign all your classes because you were a no-show!"

"Uh...I uh...had some trouble. I guess I'm out of a job for the summer then, huh?"

"I'd say so." Julie's face was filled with sympathy. "And if I were you, I'd avoid her until the term starts. She's got her panties in a wad about something and she's looking for a target to take it all out on."

"Thanks for the warning!" Blair's thanks were genuine. The current dean was not a fan of his and had frequently taken any chance she could get to humiliate him. Leaving Julie behind he made his way to his office, thanking all the gods there were that Alex had left his backpack alone. As long as his office hadn't been re-assigned along with his classes, his keys would get him in there.

Stepping inside the small office was like stepping back in time. Blair rubbed a hand over his face and sighed. How could this small, untidy place look the same when his world had changed so much? For two weeks, he'd been held captive, at the mercy of a deranged Sentinel whose only thought was to subjugate the Guide she possessed. For two weeks, his life had not been his own and every breath he'd taken had been with the knowledge that at any moment the Sentinel could snap and turn on him, inflicting damage, inciting terror, demanding a total submission that he could not and would not give to her. Two weeks. And yet his office looked the same. Sure there was a little more dust here and there, and he was pretty sure that that coffee mug hadn't had a huge lump of mould in it the last time he'd used it, but the South American artefacts that surrounded him, the stacks of papers with important notations on them, they had all remained the same.

Moving some text books off his chair, he sank down onto the seat and looked around. He would get his life back, he would feel the same. He swore it. No Sentinel was going to have the right to control him. Not now, not ever.

~'~

Naturally, Simon Banks entered all of Blair Sandburg's details into the Cascade P.D. computer system. He was, after all, a witness to Alex Barnes' death, to say nothing of the fact that he had been with her for two weeks previous to that and had made a statement of all the information he had had about her. It only took a few minutes for someone with the right to access the Cascade P.D. computer system to enter their clearance code and read up on Blair's current address and status. It was child's play to a determined Sentinel.

~'~

Ellison frowned when he spotted Sandburg in the reception area. Had the kid changed his mind? He'd seemed pretty determined earlier. Debating internally as to whether to stop and talk to the kid, he eavesdropped on the conversation between Blair and the apparently less-than-impressed officer at the desk.

"I'm sorry, sir, but unless you can produce your registration documents, the car will remain in the compound."

"I've told you, the registration documents are in my car. If you check with the database you'll see that I'm listed as the owner!"

The officer shrugged, obviously not interested.

"Look, all I'm trying to do is get my car back. If you'd just check with the DMV you'll see that the car is registered to a Mr. Blair Sandburg - that's me."

The man opened his mouth to issue another brush off, but Ellison surprised himself by stepping forward. "What's the problem?"

Blair's startled gaze met his then slid away. The officer straightened up as Jim glared at him. Obviously, snubbing some civilian who looked like he was a poster child for the hippie movement was fine, but not in front of a Major Crime detective.

"Uh, nothing, Detective. I was just checking the database for Mr...." He looked at Blair almost imploring him to help him out.

"Sandburg."

"...Sandburg's car."

"And?" Ellison's gaze was as cold as his tone.

The fingers flew over the keys. "It's in the compound. It was reported as being abandoned." The officer peered at the screen for a second. "Uh...it was also vandalised, Mr. Sandburg."

Blair shrugged. "Yeah, so I've been told."

Facing the said vandalised car was another matter though. His jaw dropped as the saw the extent of the damage.

"Are you sure you want to pay to get that thing back?" Ellison asked, having insisted on accompanying Blair to the compound by the simple method of walking after him and ignoring any hints, subtle or otherwise, that Sandburg wanted to be alone. "It'd probably cost more to repair it than it would to buy another one."

"What did they do? Put it in a derby?"

"Either that or drop bricks on it from a great height. C'mon, Sandburg, I'll give you a lift home."

Blair followed Ellison back to the P.D. garage then stopped. "Uh...."

A grin flashed across the detective's face. "Don't worry, your virtue's safe with me. I'll try to restrain myself." He waited until Sandburg was in the truck and added, "At least until we get to a stoplight."

"Ha ha. Funny, man."

Jim grinned in reply. At least the kid wasn't so wound up he couldn't respond to a little humour. "So where we headed?"

"The docks. I live in a warehouse over there."

"A warehouse?" Ellison was surprised. "Apartments too conventional for you?"

Blair grinned. "No. I was in a hurry to rent somewhere and I had a Barbary ape as a temporary roommate. A warehouse was all I could get. For some reason landlords found Larry off-putting."

"I wonder why. An anthropologist and an ape. It could only add a certain tone to the neighbourhood."

"Larry could do that all by himself, believe me!" He shook his head. "Anyway, now he's gone I can start looking for something more 'conventional', at least once I find a jo -"

His voice broke off suddenly and Jim saw the nervous glance that Blair shot at him. "Look, kid...if we did work together we could make sure it was always in a public place. That way you wouldn't have to worry about me jumping you." Ellison shrugged, his mouth twisting a little as he noticed the fear that was tainting the kid's scent. "I can understand your concerns, but, believe me, bonding is the last thing I want to do."

"I know that, Jim. I'm just...."

He waited a few seconds then offered, "Worried?"

"Yeah. I mean, you are a Sentinel. I know you say you don't want to bond but working with a Bondless Guide, it's gonna drive you nuts."

"Is that your official opinion, Professor?" Jim tried to keep his tone light.

Blair sighed. "As a matter of fact, it is."

"Then I guess we won't be working together."

"I'd guess not."

Ellison glanced at Sandburg's back as the kid turned to look out of the window, but he remained silent until they reached the docks and he needed directions. It wasn't until they'd arrived at a run down warehouse that looked like it had seen better days a long, long time ago, that Blair's eyes met his.

"Thanks for the lift anyway, man. I appreciate it."

"No problem, Chief. If you change your mind, you know where to find me."

"Yeah. Thanks again."

~'~

Leaving the truck, Sandburg expected the detective to drive away immediately, but he didn't. Shrugging a little to himself, and refusing to expend any energy on working out why the guy was sticking around, he headed into the warehouse and glanced around. At least his stuff was still there.

Moving further into the warehouse, he went to shut the door behind him and stepped back hurriedly at the sight of the tall, thin man waiting behind the door.

"Uh...look, man, I don't have anything of value, but take what you want and get out."

"I intend to, Guide." The unknown Sentinel's tone was husky, his eyes as hungry as Alex's had ever been. One hand slammed the door shut as the other reached out towards Blair's face.

Blair backed off out of reach, his stomach churning. He'd just escaped from one Sentinel, he was damned if he was going to submit to another one. "I'm not interested, man, okay? There are plenty of Guides available in the Guide programme, why don't you go ask one of them?"

The hand was still stretching out eagerly as the Sentinel advanced. "I'm not asking anyone, Gui -"

It was fortunate for him that he'd moved forward, otherwise he would have got the door in his face as Ellison threw it open.

Blair continued to retreat. Great, now he had two Sentinels to deal with.

"Becker. What are you doing here?" Ellison slammed the door behind him and faced the other Sentinel, his body language screaming a warning that Blair could hear very clearly.

Becker paused, and his gaze left Blair to turn towards the other Sentinel before it finally dropped submissively. "My apologies, Senior Sentinel Prime. I thought the Guide -"

"You thought wrong." Ellison's tone was harsh, a growl rumbling underneath the words. "He is claimed."

Blair swore silently. This was what he'd been afraid of. He wasn't even working with Ellison and here the guy was, verbally claiming him. And God alone knew what he'd do once this Sentinel had given in and gone away.

"M-my apologies, Senior Sentinel Prime." Becker's head drooped lower, his eyes staring at the floor.

"Get out."

"Yes, Senior Sentinel Prime."

The door closed behind him and Ellison's gaze turned to Blair. "Come here, Guide."

Blair continued to back up, his hands held up as he tried to placate the Sentinel. "Look, Jim, it's not that I don't appreci -" He hurriedly backed up again as Ellison stalked towards him, only stopping when his legs hit a crate. "Uh...Ellison!"

One hand grabbed his wrist and yanked him forward, while the other arm curved around his waist and held him tightly. "Stand still, Guide." Lowering his head, he scented Blair's neck loudly and growled, "My Guide, mine."

Trapped in position, every muscle straining to back away but getting nowhere fast, Sandburg waited for what felt like an eternity, wondering if Ellison's next move was going to be to pin him to the floor. Finally glancing up, he realised that the detective was listening to someone or something just as Ellison's arm relaxed and he was allowed to step away.

"He's gone." The Sentinel's gaze met his, and Blair was surprised to see a grin appear on his face. "Relax, Sandburg, I wasn't after your body, or your mind. Becker could hear us. I was just making sure that he got the message."

"Oh." Blair tried to calm his racing heart. "I - I think he got the message."

"If he didn't, he'll come back," Ellison told him, his gaze moving over the warehouse. "Do you have anywhere else you can stay?"

"My office at Rainier," Blair offered.

The detective shook his head. "He'll have got those details from the P.D. computer system along with your address. What about family, can you stay with them?"

"Last I heard, my Mom was in Mexico and I don't have any other family." Blair shrugged. "I'll crash at a friend's. It's not a problem."

"Grab whatever you need, Chief. I'll drop you off."

Blair's fingers reached for his cell phone before he remembered that Alex had smashed it. "I need to find a phone first. It's not a problem, honestly, I'll be fine."

"Here." Ellison shoved his cell phone into Blair's hand. "Let me know when you're ready to go."

~'~

"Edwards, David." Ellison took a seat by the Sentinel's bedside and looked at the badly bruised Guide. "How's the concussion?"

The shy eyes glanced up then slid away. "Fine. Neds will be discharged in a couple of days, then we can go home."

Edwards growled. "He should never have been there in the first place, Ellison."

"I know. But you know she insisted on meeting both of you." Ellison restrained a sigh. If he was bonded, would he be this protective of a Guide? For a second, the memory of Becker at the warehouse and his angry response to the situation flickered through his mind, but he shrugged it off. He'd just been protecting Sandburg as a police detective, not as a Sentinel, that was all.

"I know!" Edwards glanced over at his Guide. "If that kid hadn't been there, she might have shot David before you got up to the hotel room."

Ellison's eyes snapped up to meet Edwards' gaze straight on. There was no accusation in them, or in the tone he'd used, and his momentary anger dissipated. What was Edwards up to? "Yeah, I know."

"He kept his head. Kept Barnes talking, kept her away from David."

Jim smiled slightly. It looked as though Sandburg had acquired a friend. "He did good."

"So what happens to him now?"

Edwards' tone was casual in the extreme but Jim's thumbs pricked as he caught the hastily hidden smile on David's face. "Nothing, I'd assume. He's gone back to the university."

"Oh? Is he working there?"

"You know he is, Edwards. He said so."

"Oh. I thought maybe things had changed."

"Things don't change that much in two weeks, Edwards. It's not like he's been out of the loop for a decade or two." Jim decided to put an end to the game. "He doesn't want to bond. I don't want to bond. So whatever thoughts are in your head, just forget about them."

Edwards' gaze was steady, but there was a smile at the back of his eyes. "Yes, Senior Sentinel Prime."

Jim frowned and the smile vanished.

"Ellison?"

"I gave the kid a lift home yesterday. Becker was waiting for him."

"Becker? He's not bonded."

"No, he had plans though."

"I thought you said that the kid didn't want -"

"He doesn't."

Edwards frowned, a look of concern on his face. "Was the kid hurt?"

"No. I heard Becker's heartbeat in the warehouse and stuck around for a few minutes to make sure there was no trouble. I persuaded Sentinel Becker to look elsewhere."

"Jim, if you're not going to claim him, then, technically, he's up for grabs."

The annoyance on Ellison's face deepened. "He's not up for grabs at all, technically or otherwise."

"Says who?"

The face tightened into near fury, the tone harsh. "The Senior Sentinel Prime of Cascade and the Northern Territories, that's who."

There was no challenge from the Sentinel opposite him. "Then, Senior Sentinel Prime, you should tell the Clan."

Ellison stood and stalked to the door. "I intend to." He opened the door then stopped, his back rigid. Turning back, he gave a half smile. "Hope you're both feeling better soon." Then he was gone.

~'~

Edwards listened as Ellison made his way down the corridor, then nodded to David once he was sure they could speak freely without the Senior Sentinel Prime hearing them.

David smiled. "I wonder what Blair's like, well...under normal circumstances."

The Sentinel grinned in reply. "Why don't we go and meet him properly once we're out of here? I'd like to thank him for distracting Barnes for us and we might as well get to know him." After all, given Ellison's attitude towards the Guide now, it was only a matter of time before that slight protective stance turned into a possessive attitude and a determination to protect the Guide, his Guide, no matter what. Edwards shook his head as he considered the Sentinel's attitude towards bonding. While some Sentinels did treat their Guides with a near contempt that was painful to witness, any Sentinel with any sense, he cringed at his unintentional pun, knew better. Without a Guide, a Sentinel was faced with crumbling control over his senses, and even the possibility of madness if the sensory overload became too much for him. That was without even mentioning the risk of death during a zone-out. Ellison's stubbornness was legendary among the Clan, and Edwards would not be the only Sentinel to be relieved that there was now a crack in that attitude. Glancing at his own Guide, Edwards smiled. Maybe all Ellison had needed was to meet the Guide destined to be his; he knew that he hadn't struggled against fate once he'd found David.