Dedicated to KungFuNurse, my Moonridge auction story winner, 2006.

 

Thanks to: Nancy, who stopped me from using any Britishisms and provided unfailing encouragement in the face of writer's block; Georgie, who beta read this for me, despite her busy schedule; Fluterbev, who pointed out some flaws to me and stopped me from being repetitive; Susan who created the wonderful Cascade Clan universe and is generous enough to allow others to play in it, and Eileen who takes the time and trouble to post this on her and Susan's site.

 

Warning: AU bonding fic, swearing, and the off screen rape of an OC, mentioned but not described.

 

 

Reversal of Fortune

by Arnie

 

Jim readjusted his earpiece and stopped himself from swearing.  While the majority of the team were Sentinels and their Guides, a few members were non-Sentinels complete with ordinary hearing - hence the earpiece that was giving him feedback along with a headache.  For a few seconds, he allowed his mind to dwell upon the mayor and his policy of "let's all get along together and prove it by working together", regardless of the fact that the majority of Sentinels, Guides and non-Sentinel/Guide people got along just fine...as long as non-Sentinel people didn't try to interfere with Guides.

 

Simon, his own captain in Major Crime, had seen the sense of just sending in a Sentinel and Guide team.  After all, the people locked in the cells who were about to be hauled to the block and auctioned off to the highest bidders were all Guides and the majority of the bidders were unbonded Sentinels.

 

Jim shook his head at the thought.  Guide auctions had been outlawed for years but, as usual, there were always those who were prepared to ignore the law for a profit.

 

From his vantage point, he had a good view of the walkway between the cells and he signalled to his team as the guards began to open the doors and haul the Guides out.  Many of them were petrified, and the smell of their fear was almost overwhelming, while a few of them were angry, which added to the overall eye-watering stink.

 

"Get your hands off me, man!  This is wrong!"

 

The words were angry, the voice furious; nevertheless it was the most alluring voice the Sentinel had ever heard.  Abandoning his attempt to wrench the damned dial on his sense of smell as close to zero as it would go, Jim leaned forward slightly, trying to catch sight of the angry Guide who was being so vocal.

 

A curly-headed figure was hauled into view, and displeased Sentinel eyesight picked up on the raw welts where the Guide had fought against the restraints on his wrists.  As the Guide continued to resist, he was jerked forward, and the Sentinel's fury rose to unprecedented levels as he saw the bruises that marred the pale face.

 

"You can't do this!"

 

The guard evidently believed he could as he continued to drag the Guide along the walkway.

 

Pushing himself away from the wall, the Sentinel stalked towards the rest of his team.  Forget waiting for a signal; they were going in now.

 

Naturally, the career-oriented officers who'd been assigned to them argued but, as Senior Sentinel Prime and a detective in Major Crime, Jim outranked them.  Ignoring the muttered threats about what the police chief would say when he heard, Jim gave the signal himself and rushed in with the rest of his Clan to put a stop to the atrocity.

 

Afterwards, when the injuries and losses were tallied up, the Cascade Clan definitely came out on the winning side.  There were a few injuries; the most serious was the bullet wound suffered by Karl, Sentinel Pais' Guide, but he would recover, and the Clan suffered no losses.  They'd even gained a few members as unbonded Clan Sentinels laid claim to a few of the imprisoned Guides.

 

A certain curly-haired Guide, however, was nowhere to be found.

 

~'~

 

Blair regarded the back of the blonde head, confusion warring with anger for the upper hand in his psyche.  When he'd been dragged from his cell, he'd felt the empathic buzz of a compatible Sentinel nearby.  With his wrists chained to his waist, and his ankles chained together slowing any escape attempt to a quick shuffle, he'd had no chance to fight.  His only hope lay in escaping before the Sentinel bonded with him - preferably even before the Sentinel imprinted on him.  He hadn't been able to tell from that quick surge of connection what was wrong with the Sentinel - there had to be something wrong or he or she wouldn't be trying to buy a Guide at a black-market auction - and he knew that he really didn't want to find out what the problem was.  He'd been surprised, therefore, when, instead of being dragged to the auction block, he'd been handed over to a tall, blonde Sentinel and her well-muscled sidekick, who'd promptly hauled him outside, cuffed him heavily across the head when he'd tried to talk the guy into not kidnapping him, and stuffed him into the backseat of a large, expensive car.

 

Driven away from the auction hall, Blair could only stare at his two kidnappers and wonder what the heck had happened.  The blonde Sentinel hadn't bothered to introduce herself or her companion, not that Blair was surprised, but she was certainly far less compatible than the other Sentinel.  Blair was also musing on whether the damaged Sentinel back at the auction hall had felt that empathic buzz, and what he or she would do to the auctioneers when it became obvious that Blair wasn't going to make an appearance.  He sincerely hoped the Sentinel managed to inflict a lot of damage before being contained.

 

~'~

 

"What do you mean, you saw him being put into a car?!" Ellison demanded, his eyes rock hard as he glared at Sanford Milton.  "Why didn't you stop them?  Or call for back up?"

 

Sanford straightened to his full five foot ten and glared back at the taller detective, annoyed that he'd allowed himself to be intimidated into stepping backwards.  Ellison was just a detective - it wasn't like he was Chief of Police.  And he'd bungled the entire raid by sending the signal to start the raid himself.  Oh no, Detective James Ellison wasn't coming out of this one cleanly, not if Sanford had anything to do with it.  "I was waiting on the signal to go in!  I figured that saving those Guides was more important than one guy being taken off in a car."  Not that Guides were worth saving, although you'd never be able to convince a Sentinel of that.  Freaks, the lot of them.  "Anyway, I don't even know if the guy was a Guide.  He could have been anyone."

 

Sanford hadn't thought that Ellison could look more angry.  He was wrong.

 

"In restraints?!  Anyone in that hall who was in restraints was a Guide - so anyone outside the damned place in restraints was a Guide too.  Did you, at least, get the number of the car?"

 

He bristled at the sarcasm.  Sanford had done his job - which was more than Ellison had done.  "Yes, I did."  Pulling out a notebook, he flicked through the pages only to have it ripped out of his hand.

 

"You had time to write a novel but you couldn't call for back up to stop them?"  Ellison looked through the notebook then shoved a page in Sanford's face.  "Is this it?"

 

"Yeah, that's it."  He held onto his temper with an effort.  Ellison was Banks' pet Rottweiler and there was no point getting into an argument with him; let the brass deal with them both.

 

The page was ripped out and the notebook tossed back to him before Ellison turned away.  "Trace the number."

 

"Yes, Senior Sentinel Prime."

 

Sanford glared at the back of Ellison's shoulder as Edwards, yet another pet Sentinel, headed towards the phone.  He guessed he was dismissed.  Clamping his mouth shut, he turned towards the door.

 

"Milton."

 

"Yes, Detective Ellison?"  Sanford was damned if he'd call the guy 'sir'.

 

"Don't get in my way again."

 

Ellison turned his back on him again, and Sanford left, fury filling every inch of him.  Just let Ellison wait until the Chief of Police heard about all this; he'd be sorry then.

 

~'~

 

"Are you sure you need him?"

 

Blair glanced at the back of the dark head, then looked at the Sentinel before staring down at his manacled wrists.

 

"Yeah, I need him.  Don't worry though," the Sentinel stroked the man's cheek, and Blair cringed as the man's emotions flared in response, "he can't take your place."

 

The man grinned at her, before throwing a glance over his shoulder at Blair.  "Just make sure he knows that."

 

"He will.  He's just a tool - something to keep my senses balanced.  You know how my senses bother me, Carl."  Her voice turned sultry as she leaned into him.  "You don't want me to be bothered, do you, babe?"

 

Bolstering his barriers as much as he could, Blair ignored the banter, shut his eyes and hoped Carl was paying enough attention to the road.  Then again, a car crash might be just what he needed to escape.  The car swerving took him by surprise, and he hurriedly opened his eyes again and stared at the large, ornate gates they were passing through.  Looking around, he began to assess the estate they were on.  The walls were high, but there were some trees growing close to the walls...maybe if he got out, he could get over the wall that way.  If not, he cast a glance at the gates and turned back to face the front, the wrought iron scrollwork would provide enough footholds for him to climb up and over.  Assuming he could get out of the house...and out of his restraints.

 

Blue eyes met his, and he leaned back against his seat, licking his lips nervously as the Sentinel's nostrils flared slightly.  No matter how good or how lax the security in the house was, it would be harder to get away from the Sentinel.

 

The car stopped in front of a large house and the Sentinel got out, pulling open his door and looking down at him with a predatory smile on her face.  "Okay, out of the car."

 

He looked up at her and decided to give it his best shot.  "You know, you don't need me.  You seem to be doing really well with your senses, and we're not that compatible."

 

"If I had a dollar for every time I've heard that, I'd be a rich woman."  She smiled suddenly, as if amused, and gave a half-laugh, "Well, I am a rich woman.  I asked for the strongest empath, and you, babe, are it.  Now get out of the car."

 

If he'd had a choice, getting out of the car wouldn't have been his first one, but he didn't, so he began to manoeuvre himself out, the chain between his ankles making it more awkward than it needed to be.

 

Obviously deciding that he was too slow, the Sentinel stepped back and waited as Carl dragged Blair out and set him on his feet.

 

"Move it, shorty!"

 

The shove between Blair's shoulders got him moving, and he followed the Sentinel up the stone steps to the imposing front door.

 

"Good afternoon, madam."

 

Blair almost rolled his eyes.  The house came with a butler, complete with a pseudo-English accent.

 

"Finlay."  As she took off her coat and dumped it into the servant's arms, she jerked her head in Blair's direction.  "This is my Guide.  He's not to be harmed but he isn't allowed to leave the house without me."

 

"I shall inform the staff, madam," the butler replied, making it sound as if the Sentinel gave that order every day.

 

An uneasy feeling crept over Blair and he wondered if maybe she did.  How many other empaths had protested their lack of compatibility?  And what had happened to them afterwards?

 

"Bring tea to the library."  The Sentinel glanced at Blair.  "And a first aid kit."

 

"Very good, madam."

 

As Finlay turned away, Blair dropped his shields slightly, then raised them as he picked up on the man's disdain.  There'd be no help from that quarter.

 

Another shove to his back told him that they were moving again, and he shuffled after 'madam', keeping his eyes low and his barriers high.

 

As the woman reached a doorway, Carl spoke up again.  "Alex, where do you want me to put him?"

 

She turned, one eyebrow arching as if amazed he was questioning her.  "He'll be sitting with us."

 

"What, you need him every minute of the day?"

 

"Hey, I don't mind sitting somewhere else," Blair put in.  Hopefully, somewhere he could escape from.

 

He was ignored as Alex turned to face Carl, her stance signalling her annoyance.  "I need him when I say so, and that just might be every minute of the day, so get used to it."  She reached out, grabbed Blair's arm and yanked him forward.  "Get in there."

 

"You're not even bonded, yet you won't let him out of your sight?"  Carl dragged Blair back and shoved him to one side.  "What is with you, Alex?  You never treated the others like this!  I thought he was a tool, something to use - not a pet dog!"

 

Her surging fury took Blair by surprise as she pushed Carl back.  "Never touch my Guide!"

 

"Babe -"

 

Alex stepped between them, blocking Blair's view of the large man.  "Don't make me choose between you and him, Carl," she snarled, warningly.  "He's my Guide, and no one but me touches him."

 

'Oh, God, she's imprinting already.'  Blair tried to move away from her, but her hand clamped onto his arm and held him in place behind her.

 

"I can't believe you, Alex!"

 

Blair decided that it must have been Carl's macho-man looks that attracted Alex to him.  It sure as hell wasn't his intelligence.

 

"You've only had the runt five minutes and you'd choose him over me?!"

 

"In a heartbeat!"

 

"So what's so special about him, Alex?  You never would've chosen the others over me!  What makes him so fucking necessary?"

 

"He's my Guide!" the Sentinel retorted.

 

"And what were the others?" Carl demanded, furiously.  "They were your Guides - until you killed them that is, and left me to dispose of the bo -"

 

Alex moved suddenly and Carl screamed in response.  "Shut up, Carl!  Now get out of my sight!"

 

Stumbling footsteps told Blair that Carl was moving away, and Alex relaxed a little before hustling Blair towards the door again.  Glancing over her shoulder, he managed to catch sight of Carl's face, the gouges in it dripping blood, and flinched as he saw the hatred in the man's dark eyes.  Alex had killed her previous Guides, and it was obvious to Blair that Carl would prefer him to meet the same fate - even if Carl had to be the one doing the killing.

 

~'~

 

"Alicia Bannister, 3461 Hampton Way.  Apparently, she's an artist."  Edwards handed over an open file and Jim glanced at the photo inside.

 

Tall, blonde and lovely, with her artwork in display in numerous galleries, nevertheless, there were a few questionmarks about the talented Ms. Bannister.  She'd been questioned more than once about international weapons trafficking, but there had never been enough evidence to hold her.

 

"Do you think she's a Sentinel?"

 

Jim looked up.  "If she is, it would give her the edge when dealing with ordinary cops.  She'd see or hear them coming in plenty of time to get clear."  He stood and reached for his jacket.  "We'll stop off at Milton's desk before we go out there - make sure she is the one he saw."

 

"I still can't believe he didn't do a damn thing," Edwards growled, wrapping an arm around his Guide.  "He saw the kid being taken out."

 

"Maybe he thought it'd blow the bust if he did anything?" David offered from the shelter of Edwards' arm.

 

Jim snorted.  "More likely he didn't care that a Guide was being sold into slavery."  His Guide, whoever the kid was.  His gaze met Edwards', the Sentinel Prime's anger evident in his eyes.  "We can deal with that later.  For now, let's go make sure this is the woman."

 

~'~

 

"You know, I'd take these off you if I could trust you to stay put."  Alex trailed her finger over one cuff, then traced the welts on her Guide's wrists and smiled as his heartbeat sped up in response to the pain.  "As it is...."  She unlocked one manacle and put the key out of his reach on the coffee table.  "We'll just have to make do."  Opening the first aid kit, she pulled out antibiotic cream, some gauze and bandages.  The restraints could be left loose enough to fit over the bandages, but tight enough to keep him bound, and once they were bonded, he wouldn't be going anywhere.  Well, he wouldn't go anywhere anyway, if he knew what was good for him.

 

"Alex?"

 

She glanced up at him, then turned her attention back to his wrists.

 

"We're really not that compatible, you know.  You could find someone who's a lot more compatible than me and..." the kid paused as he glanced around the room, "I'm sure they'd be thrilled to bond with you."

 

Alex glanced around as well.  Material trappings were all very well, and she'd worked hard for them, but she'd never met a Guide yet who didn't object to her way of earning those very same things.  "What's your name, Guide?"

 

His body rhythms leapt again, betraying his nervousness.  She guessed he didn't want to be a Guide but it was just tough luck.  She'd never wanted to be a Sentinel; the idea of tying herself down to a Guide for the rest of her life didn't appeal in the slightest.  However, she was a Sentinel, and her senses came in handy; it was hard for people to double-cross her when she could tell in a heartbeat if they were lying.  And, to keep those advantages, she needed a Guide.

 

Realising that he still hadn't answered her, she smiled.  He was stubborn, she'd give him that.  "You know," she murmured, holding the bandage tightly in place by putting pressure on the welts, "we are going to bond.  Want me to go looking for your name while I'm in there?"

 

"Blair," he finally answered, his voice tight with tension.

 

She waited, raising an eyebrow enquiringly.

 

"Blair Sandburg."

 

"Well, Blair Sandburg, in my line of work it's hard to meet Guides.  And the ones I've met seem to have a problem with what I do."  Alex smiled.  "Money doesn't grow on trees; I've earned every bit of what I've got."

 

"And uh...what do you do?"  From the smell of his fear, Blair knew that he wouldn't like it either.

 

"It's quite simple, Blair.  I acquire the latest in high-tech and biological weapons and sell them to the highest bidder."  She almost laughed at the look of shock on his face.  Guides were so predictable.

 

"To kill people with?"

 

"That's what people do with weapons, isn't it?"  Alex finished with one wrist and locked the restraint back in place.  "But you don't need to worry; my contacts will let me know if any of them are going to be used here."

 

"That's not what I was worrying about!"

 

She glared at him.  "You have nothing to worry about, Blair.  The rest of it is my business.  You just do what you're supposed to and keep my senses balanced."

 

He stared back for a moment, then his gaze dropped and she relaxed slightly as she reached for his other wrist and unlocked it.  At least he wasn't going to be foolish enough to challenge her.

 

It was only the tightening of his muscles that gave her warning, and she managed to duck the fist that flew towards her face as his restraint came off.  Knocking his arm to one side, she threw herself forward and used her weight to pin him to the couch, her hands easily forcing his free wrist up over his head.

 

His body bucked and twisted in an attempt to move her, but she had the advantage and held him in place, listening to the grunts as he struggled in vain.

 

"Stop it, Blair, I don't want to hurt you!"  Leaning down, she breathed on his neck and laughed as his panic increased.  "I could bond with you here and now, Guide, so you'd better stop struggling before I let my instincts get the better of me."

 

He stilled, the tension in his body betraying his fear that she'd do that very thing.

 

"That's better."  Smiling again, she sat back and pulled his wrist down to rest it upon his chest.  Alex wasn't angered by his attempt to break free.  She needed a strong Guide; one who'd do whatever was necessary to keep her safe, and once they were bonded, he'd be forced to protect her for his own sake.  "Let me see to your wrist before I start with your face."  She smoothed some cream over his wrist and gazed at his profile as he glared to one side, doing his damnedest to ignore her.  "You must have tried to fight the guards to get in such a bad state."  Alex traced the edges of a particularly vivid bruise, feeling him flinch as she touched him.  "What did you do?"

 

Furious eyes turned her way.  "I hit one of them over the head with a trashcan lid when they jumped me."

 

No wonder his face was covered in scrapes and bruises, she mused.  "And you'll do the same to me if you get the opportunity," she added, smiling.

 

"In a heartbeat," he replied, echoing her words to Carl, his tone coldly determined.

 

Her smile grew.  She'd known this was the Guide for her as soon as she saw him.

 

~'~

 

"Jim?"

 

On his way out of the door, Jim stopped and turned around to look at the captain of Major Crime.

 

"Can I have a word?"

 

"Can this wait, Captain?  I'm -"

 

"I'm afraid not."

 

Jim threw a glance at Edwards with a quiet, "Wait here," then headed towards the captain's office.  As soon as the door was shut behind him, he said, "I hope you can make it quick, Captain.  I need to be on my way."

 

There was sympathy on the captain's face, along with a lot of reluctance.  "Here's the search warrant but you won't be going anywhere, Jim.  The Chief of Police has convened a meeting to discuss what went wrong at the bust."

 

"What went wrong?!"

 

"I know, I know!  Only one Guide was lost and that was due to Milton!  But the Chief of Police isn't seeing it that way, and the mayor -"

 

"That figures!"

 

"- is expressing his concern too."  Simon wiped a hand over his face.  "And we all know what it's like when the mayor's expressing his concern."  Sighing, he leaned back in his chair.  "I'm sorry, Jim, but going after Bannister and the other Guide will have to wait."

 

Jim grinned.  "I don't think so, Simon."  He met Simon's glare with a smile.  "Sentinel law supersedes all other laws."

 

A smile split the other man's face as the statement sank in.  "I'll be sure to pass on your regrets to the mayor and the Chief of Police, Jim."

 

"Thanks, Simon."  He paused by the door.  "Oh, and if you see Milton, tell him that Sentinels don't like being interfered with, will you?"

 

Simon's distinctive laugh followed him out into the bullpen.

 

~'~

 

Blair watched as Alex poured two cups of tea, then glanced down at his securely restrained wrists.  How on earth was she expecting him to drink?  Even if she handed him a cup, he'd never be able to lift it to his mouth, and he wasn't fool enough to assume she was going to unfasten one of his wrists and give him a hot cup of tea to throw at her.

 

"So, tell me about yourself."

 

He pulled his gaze away from the two cups and stared at her.  His kidnapper wanted to make small talk?

 

She smiled encouragingly at him and waited.  Then, when it became obvious he wasn't going to play her civilised little game with her, she said, "You might as well tell me.  I'll find out all about you during the bonding."  Smiling even more, Alex leaned forward and stared him in the eye.  "As I said earlier, do you really want me to look through all your memories while we're bonding?"

 

Blair leaned back to avoid her, his mouth twisting with his fury.  "Blair Sandburg, twenty six, Teaching Fellow at Rainier University."  The words were clipped and his voice terse.

 

"Well, that was a potted history."

 

"What are you waiting for?" he demanded, his patience stretched to snapping point.  "You drag me in here and act like...like I've come to visit!  What is this?  A tea party with a minister?!"

 

"Believe me, honey, the minister doesn't come to my tea parties," she replied, the seductive glance she threw his way making his skin crawl.  "And I wanted to fix up your face and your wrists before we bonded."  One well-manicured nail touched the edge of his mouth before he jerked back out of reach.  "We don't want that face ruined now, do we?  As for the tea," she picked up a cup and sipped a tiny amount, "you'll probably spend the rest of the day sleeping once we've bonded, so I thought you might appreciate something to drink beforehand.  And it's just the right temperature."  Smiling, she held the cup to his mouth, her other hand closing around the back of his neck to hold him still.  "Drink up, Blair.  I don't want you getting dehydrated."

 

Keeping his teeth tightly shut, he replied, "I'd rather not."

 

Her eyebrow rose in surprise.  "There's nothing wrong with it, you know."  Her charming smile made its appearance again.  "I don't need to drug my Guide into submission, Blair.  You'll find that out."  Keeping her eyes on his, she drained the cup and swallowed.  "Let's go.  It's time you found out what it's like being a bonded Guide."

 

~'~

 

Naturally, her Guide struggled on the way to the bonding suite upstairs, but Alex had expected nothing less and, with his hands and feet shackled, Blair had no way to stop her from reaching their destination.

 

Pushing him inside the suite, she followed him in and slammed the door shut, then flicked the lock closed.  There had been no sign of Carl on the way to the suite, which surprised her, but she wouldn't put it past him to try something to interrupt her bonding.  However, if he did, she'd kill him.  She was pretty sure he knew that too.

 

Dismissing Carl from her mind, she concentrated on her Guide.  The scent of his fear was annoying her, and it grew as she pushed him down onto the bonding platform and flipped him onto his back and straddled him.

 

The Guide was panicking now, hatred mixed with fear blazing from his eyes, but she ignored that and revelled in his scent, filtering out the fear to find the pure, rich, alluring smell that called to her.  His hands scrabbled vainly at her, the short chains preventing him from being able to gain any advantage, and she smiled at his impotent fighting.

 

"It's all right, Blair.  Just relax," she murmured, stroking his hair.

 

He jerked his head to one side, the anger in his scent growing.  "Get your hands off me!"

 

She ignored that and lowered her head to sniff at his neck, then laughed as he tried to bite at her.  "I'll be doing the biting, Guide.  All in good time though."  Returning to his neck, she scraped her teeth along his jugular, then frowned as the only reaction was an increase in his struggling.

 

Deciding that it was time to end this, she bit hard at the base of his neck, and sent her mind surging forward to claim his.

 

To her shock, his barriers were still in place, and for a second, she could have sworn she could feel him, scurrying about behind his shields, fortifying them against her attack.  Growling, she bit again, and threw herself mentally against the barriers that refused to yield.

 

Straightening her arms, she stared down into his defiant eyes.  "What are you doing?" she demanded, unable to believe that this Guide, any Guide, could refuse her.

 

"Defending myself!"

 

Infuriated beyond belief, she slapped him.  "Drop your shields!" she screeched.

 

He shook his head, his blue eyes still hard with fury.

 

"How are you defying me?"

 

His face was taut with anger, the red mark from her hand standing out on the pale face, adding to the multi-coloured effect from the bruising and scrapes.  "You're just not my type!" he spat at her.

 

She pulled her hand back to strike him again, then stopped as a buzzer sounded.  Finlay knew not to sound the alarm unless it was important.  Rolling from him, she snarled as she headed towards the door.  If it wasn't a real emergency, Finlay would learn how angry she could get.

 

Stalking towards the top of the stairs, Alex paused and listened.  A few seconds of eavesdropping told her what she needed to know.  The Cascade Clan might have come merely to rescue the Guide, however, Alicia Bannister had been questioned a few too many times lately and if the Clan chose to search her home, there was too much evidence to be explained away.

 

She'd always been able to think on her feet and always had a stoic practicality where bad news was concerned.  Alicia Bannister would have to go.  The lifestyle had been good, but not good enough to go to jail for.

 

It also meant that, for now, her Guide would have to go.  She had no time to bond, and no time to force Blair to go with her; either of those options would see her captured.  However, she could escape and return later to reclaim her Guide.

 

Flinging the door open, she threw the key onto the bonding platform.  Blair was smart, if he could escape the Sentinels, he would.  "Time to go, Blair.  It's been fun!"  Ducking back out of the suite, she raced to the end of the hall and ducked down the backstairs.  While the Sentinels had the same senses as she did, she had one advantage they didn't; she knew the house like the back of her hand.

 

~'~

 

The door slammed shut and Blair stared at it, his mind whirling with relief and sheer disbelief.  She was gone.

 

Suddenly fearing that it might be a trick, he rolled and wriggled until the key was within his reach, and frantically undid the cuffs around his wrists.  Once they were off, it was child's play to remove his ankle restraints, and he flew towards the door, terror nipping at his heels.

 

Surprisingly, the door opened readily, and he peeked out into the empty hallway.  The sound of footsteps on the stairs, accompanied by Finley's outraged protests, galvanised him into action, and he scurried to another door and dived inside.  It was a bedroom, but a second door on one of the walls gave promise of an adjoining bathroom.

 

Bathrooms meant drainpipes and, assuming the window was big enough, that meant he could climb down and escape.  He didn't know why Alex had had a change of heart, or what was going on downstairs, and he didn't care.  He was getting out, and getting out now.

 

Blair was three-quarters of the way down the drainpipe when he felt that empathic buzz again, and he paused, holding on tightly as he looked around, trying to convince himself that it couldn't be the same one from the auction hall.  Could it?

 

Shaking his head to dispel the feeling, he hurried down the rest of the drainpipe, then dropped to the ground.  A sound above him caught his attention, and he stared up as the window, the one he'd carefully pushed to when he climbed out, was thrown open.

 

The empathic 'ping' strengthened as a dark-haired Sentinel leaned out, his intent gaze fixing on Blair in a way that made him nervous, then the Guide turned and fled.

 

~'~

 

"Damn!"  Growling to himself, the Sentinel quickly climbed down the drainpipe and raced off in pursuit of his Guide, ignoring the need to locate and arrest the elusive Ms. Bannister.

 

Bannister, and the Guide, would not be able to get far as various members of the Clan were guarding the house and grounds, but he suspected that if his Guide were scared now, he'd be panicking even more once faced with a bunch of Sentinels.

 

Jim was right.  The sound of that heartbeat going into overdrive pulled him on, and he rounded the side of the building just as Edwards, his Guide a few feet behind him, blocked the kid's escape route.

 

~'~

 

With a thick hedge on one side of him, the building on the other and a large Sentinel and smaller Guide ahead of him, Blair did the logical thing and turned to run back the way he'd come.  Only to skid to a halt as the way back was blocked by the Sentinel Blair had seen, only a few minutes before, leaning out of the bathroom window.

 

"It's all right."

 

The Sentinel reached out a hand towards him, then stopped as Blair backed up a little, shaking his head in an attempt to clear it of the empathic buzzing that was starting to get rather annoying.  He knew the Sentinel was compatible, he didn't need telling again.

 

Stepping back again, Blair glanced over his shoulder, to make sure that the Sentinel behind him was keeping his distance.  He suspected that that was a temporary state of affairs.  He didn't have anywhere to go, and the Sentinel in front of him seemed unwilling to let him go so, sooner or later, one or both Sentinels would be getting closer.  A lot closer.

 

"It's all right, Chief; I'm a cop.  My name's Jim Ellison."  The compatible Sentinel held out his ID and badge showing that he was telling the truth.

 

With a tinge of hysteria, Blair guessed that that was better than an international gun smuggler.

 

"No one's going to hurt you."  The ID and badge were tucked away again, and the Sentinel asked quietly, "Do you want to tell me your name?"

 

Blair shook his head.  Hadn't he already had this conversation?

 

"Okay, Chief.  You can tell me when you're ready."

 

The Sentinel took another step forward and Blair took another step back, risking another glance over his shoulder.  He really was out of ideas.  That stupid hedge was too high to climb, and he didn't suppose that the Sentinel and Guide behind him would be kind enough to get the hell out of the way and let him pass.  As for the Sentinel in front of him, Blair could tell that the guy - Ellison - had no intention of letting him go.  Along with that aggravating 'ping', Blair was picking up a determination that rivalled Alex's.  Unfortunately for him, he doubted if there'd be a second wave of cavalry coming to save him from the first.

 

With all of his escape routes blocked, Blair did what he always did: he started talking.  And while his arguments hadn't worked with Alex there was a chance that this guy, this Sentinel, could be reasoned with.  In any case, it beat standing there in silence.

 

"What do you want?"

 

"I would have thought that was obvious."

 

The Sentinel moved closer, then stopped when Blair moved backwards again, although Blair could see the hunger in his eyes.  'Okay, that answers that question.'

 

"Look, man, I've already done the 'kidnap and bond with the Guide' thing today; do you think we could skip that?"

 

The fury that the Sentinel felt surged against Blair's barriers, and he took another couple of steps back quickly.

 

"You're not bonded."

 

It wasn't a question, it was a statement, but Blair answered it anyway.  "No, I'm not.  I guess I have you guys to thank for that.  Kind of ironic, in a way, huh?"

 

"Yeah, it is."

 

Ellison grinned suddenly, and Blair couldn't help but smile back, feeling, for a brief moment, a hint of a rapport.

 

That disappeared when Ellison sighed.  "I can't let you go, Chief."

 

"Look, man...Ellison...there are other Guides out there -"

 

"You're my Guide," the Sentinel interrupted, the possessive tone in his voice standing out a mile.

 

Annoyed, Blair snapped, "Alex thought that too and you can't both be right!"

 

"Alex?"

 

"Sentinel, this tall," a quick wave of his hand indicated her height, "blonde."  At Ellison's frown, he added, "Lives here?"

 

"Alicia Bannister?"  The eyes narrowed into an intent stare.

 

Blair shrugged.  "Carl called her Alex."

 

"Alex could be short for Alicia."

 

Jumping slightly in shock, Blair turned to look at the other Sentinel behind him.  He'd been so intent on Ellison, he'd almost forgotten the guy was there.  The crunch of footsteps on gravel made him turn back rapidly, and he hurriedly retreated as Ellison stalked towards him, the Sentinel's long strides bringing him far too close, far too quickly.

 

"Let's get you down the station and you can look at some mug shots, Chief."  A large hand closed around his arm as soon as he was in reach, and he was towed relentlessly towards the front of the house.  "I want to know who this Carl is."

 

Confused by the sudden switch in the guy's personality from pure Sentinel to detective-on-a-case, Blair only managed a token resistance as he was tucked safely into the back of a police car.  He struggled to stop Ellison from seat belting him in place, but failed, and immediately reached for the release button once Ellison's hands were out of the way.

 

"By the way, Chief, Alex was wrong; you're my Guide."

 

Blair's head jerked up and he stared at the Sentinel as the door slammed shut with an air of finality.

 

~'~

 

Loath though he was to leave his Guide outside, Jim forced himself to leave Edwards and David keeping a watch on the kid while he headed into the house to see if the rest of his Clan had had any success in locating the missing Sentinel.  She had to be here, somewhere...and the Senior Sentinel Prime had no intention of letting her get anywhere near his Guide again.

 

The butler had finally given up on protesting about the invasion, though Jim suspected that was because no one was listening to a word he was saying.  He hid his grin as he headed towards the study.  Sometimes, Sentinels were very good at not hearing things too.

 

As he came through the doorway, Niven turned, a pile of ledgers in his arms and a smile on his face.

 

"What have you found?"

 

The smile widened and the hint of a smirk joined it.  "Bannister should be proud of her accountant; her accounts are very easy to read."

 

"Oh?"  Putting on a pair of latex gloves, Jim picked up the top ledger and started looking through it.

 

"Unfortunately for us," Niven continued, "they don't show where the income is from; they just show a large credit every month but...."  He turned and looked at his Guide.

 

"You might find this book to be more interesting, Senior Sentinel Prime," Tina said, a smile on her face as she offered Jim a slim notebook.

 

Dropping the ledger back on top of the pile of books in Niven's arms, Jim took the notebook and opened it.  His eyebrows rose as he stared at the first page in disbelief.  "Alicia Bannister, Alex Barnes, Anne Bacharach, Alison Baker...."  His voice trailed off.  Each name had a list of banks and bank accounts numbers next to it.  "She left this behind?"

 

Niven shrugged as he deposited the ledgers on the desk behind them.  "Guess she never expected to have to move so fast."

 

Jim shook his head.  Cascade P.D. wasn't the only police department to show a great deal of interest in Bannister but no one had ever managed to get any kind of evidence before.  This was an amateur's mistake - and Ms. Alicia Bannister was no amateur.  "Is there a diary on that desk?"

 

Niven and Tina exchanged a surprised glance but forbore to comment as Tina handed over an appointments diary.

 

Flicking it open, Jim glanced down the pages filled with innocent-looking appointments that gave nothing away about the woman's other life.  "Look at the writing."  He held the diary and the notebook open, side by side so the others could see them.

 

"They're different!"

 

Jim glanced at Tina before closing the books.  "Yes, they are."

 

"You think someone left this here for us to find?" Niven asked.

 

"I don't know," Jim admitted.  "But my Guide mentioned a 'Carl' who was here too."  He handed the notebook and diary back to Tina.  "Make a copy of that notebook and I'll take it back to the station with me when I go.  I want the kid to look at some mug shots to see if we can identify this 'Carl'."

 

Leaving Niven and Tina to bag the evidence in the study, Jim headed off to find the rest of his Clan.  As he suspected would happen, they'd seen no sign of Bannister.  Finlay's attempt to stop them entering the house had obviously given her enough time to get away.  Jim was just relieved that she hadn't had time to take his Guide with her.

 

~'~

 

By the time Ellison returned to the car, Blair's temper had built up into a fine fury.  The other Sentinel - Neds, according to the Guide - had stopped him from winding down the window and opening the car door from the outside by the simple expedient of leaning against the car door.  When Blair had shot across the seat to the other door, Neds had arranged to have another Sentinel and Guide on that side of the car.  Therefore, Blair was not happy.

 

He glared at Ellison as that Sentinel asked in a casual tone, "Trouble?"

 

"Nothing we couldn't handle," Neds replied.

 

"Good."

 

Blair ignored the grin that was thrown his way and turned his head to stare at the trees, all the while listening intently.

 

"I'm taking him back to the P.D. to look at some mug shots and to get started on this."

 

From where he was sitting, Blair couldn't see what they were looking at but he heard Neds' murmured, "Interesting."

 

"That's what I thought.  I'll take Doctor Harvey and Jon with me; Jon should be able to stop the kid from climbing out of the window if we stop at a red light."

 

"I should think so!"  The laughter in Neds' voice was plain to hear and Blair frowned.  Jon had to be a Guide but why Ellison would think a Guide would be able to stop him, was more than Blair could figure out.

 

At least until he saw the huge Guide climbing into the backseat beside him.  This was a Guide?  His eyes opened even wider as he saw the not very tall Sentinel getting into the front passenger seat.  Blair hadn't met a lot of Sentinels before, but all the Sentinel/Guide pairings he did know of usually had the Sentinel being at least the same height as the Guide but these two....

 

He leaned his head back and tried to reconcile his expectations with the odd-looking pair.

 

"Do you have enough room, Jon?"

 

Blair opened his eyes again at the clipped, precise tones, and noticed that the Sentinel had slid her seat further forward in order to give her large Guide more leg room.

 

"Yes, thank you," Jon replied, his voice soft and quiet, then he turned his head to give Blair a friendly smile.  "Hi."

 

"Hi."  Blair forced himself to smile back, although his teeth were gritted as it sank in that he really wouldn't be able to get out of the back of this car until Ellison chose to let him out.

 

Just then the driver's door opened and Blair scowled at the back of Ellison's head as the Sentinel settled himself into the seat.

 

"Doctor Harvey, Jon, this is my Guide."  There was a slight pause then Ellison continued, "Chief, this is Doctor Harvey and Jon."

 

Blair took a malicious glee in the enquiring look Doctor Harvey gave Ellison.

 

"He hasn't told me his name yet," Ellison admitted, his tone reluctant.

 

"And I'm not about to," Blair muttered under his breath.  He saw the female Sentinel's eyebrow rise and knew that she'd heard him.  Good.  It was about time that these Sentinels learned that not every Guide played nice.

 

~'~

 

By the time they reached the P.D., Jim had learned one thing about his Guide; the kid was chock full of stubbornness.  Even Jon, one of the friendliest of Guides and, beside Edwards' Guide, David, the most mild-mannered Guide around, had failed to find out his name.

 

"Okay, kid, c'mon."  Jim made sure to keep hold of his Guide's arm as they headed towards the elevators.  He didn't intend to lose his Guide now, or at any point.

 

Once up on the seventh floor, it was easy enough to find a free interrogation room and stash his Guide in there, leaving Doctor Harvey and Jon to keep him in place while he fetched a pile of mug shot books and arranged for some food and drink for the kid who had to be starving by now.  Unless, of course, Bannister had fed him.  The Senior Sentinel Prime refused to think about that Sentinel providing for his Guide, and he nabbed Rafe on the way back to the interrogation room.

 

By the time he got back, the smell of his Guide's anger was evident, and Doctor Harvey had a very unhappy look on her face.  Leaving the two Guides in the room, Jim followed the other Sentinel outside.

 

As soon as the door was shut, Doctor Harvey demanded, "Are you sure he's your Guide?"

 

Jim glared at her and waited.

 

"Senior Sentinel Prime."  She bowed her head.

 

He restrained the urge to smile.  It wasn't often that Doctor Harvey lost her cool and he wondered what exactly his Guide had done.  "What's the problem?"

 

She looked at him for a few seconds before saying, in a deliberately moderate tone, "I've never met a Guide who was so resistant to bonding before."

 

Jim couldn't help it, he smiled.  "Spunky little thing, isn't he?"

 

He got a snort of laughter in return, then her serious mood returned and she hesitated, clearly unsure how to voice her concerns.

 

"I know," Jim reassured her.  "He's going to be hell to deal with - even after we've bonded."

 

He turned towards the door and put his hand on the handle, ignoring the quiet, "Assuming you can get him to bond, that is."

 

~'~

 

Seeing as Ellison had left the mug shot books behind when he and the other Sentinel had left, Blair took a seat and started flicking through the pages.  The sooner he identified Carl, the sooner he could get out of there - he hoped.  His arguments, while Ellison was gone, had done nothing but annoy the Sentinel doctor and her massive sidekick so he gave up on trying to talk some sense into them and contented himself, for now anyway, with hoping that once Carl was found, he could leave.

 

Blair threw a glance at them as the two Sentinels returned.  The doctor seemed to have recovered her temper while Ellison had that determined gleam in his eyes again.  He didn't know whether to feel relieved or worried when Doctor Harvey bid him goodbye, collected her Guide and left.

 

Deciding that it was in his best interests to ignore the smirking Ellison for as long as possible, Blair turned his attention back to the books.

 

A knock at the door was the next interruption, and he looked up again as Ellison opened the door and accepted the tray being offered to him by a very well-dressed white guy with dark, perfectly styled hair.

 

"Thanks, Rafe."  The door was shut and the tray deposited on the table.  "Okay, we've got chicken, egg salad, and BLT.  Take your pick."  Moving a polystyrene cup over to Blair's right hand, he added, "And mind, the coffee's hot."

 

"Thanks."  Blair didn't even think of refusing this time; he was too hungry and thirsty for that.  As he picked up a chicken sandwich and opened the wrapper, he reflected that at least Ellison wasn't testing the temperature of the coffee for him.  Doubt swept in and he cast the cup a dubious glance.

 

"If you want to swap the cups, Chief, go right ahead."

 

The blue eyes held an understanding look, and Blair leaned back in his chair, shaking his head slightly.  He didn't trust this Sentinel that much, but he trusted him more than he'd trusted Alex.

 

As the first bite of sandwich slid down his throat, he realised how hungry he was.  His kidnappers hadn't exactly had the welfare of their victims at heart, and he'd had only one meal since he'd woken up in that cell.  His stomach woke up and rumbled, although he wasn't sure if it was hunger or in loud appreciation of food finally being provided.  Hoping Ellison was ignoring the noises his stomach was making, then deciding that he didn't care if the Sentinel did or not, Blair turned his attention back to the pictures in front of him.  He turned the page and nearly choked as Carl's face met his eye.

 

"You okay?"  In an instant, the Sentinel was behind him patting his back.

 

Blair nodded, and swallowed.  "That's him!"

 

Ellison leaned over his shoulder, "Carl Hettinger.  Are you sure?"

 

"Positive, man, I couldn't forget that face."

 

~'~

 

"Carl Hettinger."  Simon looked up at Ellison.  "Is the kid sure?"

 

"He says he's positive.  Hettinger has links to at least two known South American drug lords and has previous convictions for international weapons trafficking."

 

Simon smiled.  "Ms. Bannister keeps interesting company, doesn't she?"

 

"According to the kid, Hettinger and Bannister had a disagreement over him, and Bannister attacked Hettinger."

 

"And you think Hettinger left that notebook in her study on purpose?"

 

Ellison frowned.  "I would...but it doesn't make sense.  How would Hettinger know we were going to be searching the house?"

 

"He couldn't."  Simon sat back in his chair, rolling a cigar in his fingers as he thought it over.  As an unwelcome thought occurred to him, his eyes met Ellison's and he knew the detective was thinking the same thing.

 

"Unless he was warned."

 

"Damn."  Simon put his cigar down.  The day had just taken a turn for the worse.  "You think that's likely?"

 

"Bannister has always been one step ahead of the cops.  The easiest way to stay ahead of your enemy is to know what they're up to at all times."

 

The Chief of Police was going to love this, Simon just knew it.  "And we don't know who."

 

"Not yet, sir."

 

"And in the meantime, we don't have Bannister and we don't have Hettinger.  And we don't have any proof linking them to each other!"

 

"Except for an eye witness."

 

"The kid."  Simon scowled at his cigar, wishing Hettinger had left his fingerprints all over that notebook.  That would be better proof than a Guide who was refusing to tell anyone his name.

 

Ellison's gaze shifted and he stared somewhere above Simon's head.  "I think he should be put into protective custody, sir, at least until this case is over."

 

Simon hid his smile.  "You think Bannister could try to grab him again?" he asked, as if he believed that the case was the only reason for Ellison wanting to keep the kid under his thumb.

 

"I think there's that risk.  And Hettinger could try to target him."

 

"Okay."  In spite of the Sentinel complications, the kid was the only proof they had.  "Where is he now?"

 

"Edwards and David are keeping an eye on him for me."

 

Simon just bet they were; Sentinels stuck together.  "You're thinking a safe house?  Or do you want to keep the kid at the loft?"

 

"If there is a leak in the department, sir, all the safe houses are compromised.  The loft is on the third floor; that makes it easier to defend."

 

Simon grimaced.  A leak in the department was another complication - and he hated calling in the plumbers.  "All right.  You deal with the kid.  In the meantime, I'll have stakeouts set up on all of Hettinger's known haunts.  It's possible he won't realise we know he's involved."

 

~'~

 

"A safe house?!"

 

Ellison smiled down at Blair, a hint of the predator in his gaze.  "Well, you'll be staying at my apartment with me."

 

"No way, man!"

 

"Yes way, man."  Ellison's smile got bigger.  "Edwards and David will be staying with us until tomorrow morning, then Doctor Harvey and Jon will be joining us.  I know Doctor Harvey's looking forward to it."

 

Blair scowled at him.  He really doubted that.  "I refuse."

 

The smile disappeared and the eyebrows rose.  "Refuse what, Chief?"

 

"Police protection," Blair snapped, sure that he had the advantage now.  The police couldn't protect him if he was willing to take the risk of being a target.  And he had no intention of staying in Cascade long enough for either Alex or Carl to track him down.

 

"You don't have police protection, Chief."  The gleam in Ellison's eyes deepened.  "You've got Sentinel protection.  And that's entirely different."

 

~'~

 

By the time they arrived at the loft, Jim had made his plans.  The kid was bound to be resistant to any idea, so Jim might as well imitate a steam roller and deal with the fallout after Bannister and her cohort were captured.

 

There was a second bedroom in the loft, tucked away underneath the stairs, which would do for his Guide once they were bonded but, until then, Jim wasn't prepared to let one curly-headed, five foot eight, argumentative pain in the ass out of his sight.  Edwards would be on guard all night and David would stay with him, although he'd undoubtedly fall asleep at some point.  His Guide, on the other hand, would be sharing Jim's bedroom with him.

 

The Sentinel smiled.  He couldn't wait to hear the kid's reaction to that one.

 

While giving his Guide a quick tour of the loft, Jim kept on catching the considering looks the kid was giving to his surroundings.  Glancing around, Jim tried to see the place from his point of view.  His Guide was obviously looking for an escape route.  The bathroom was out of the question, as was the front door; even if the kid had a streak of foolish optimism a mile wide, he had to realise that he'd never get through two large Sentinels to get to it.

 

His mood perked up, however, when Jim showed him the smaller bedroom that would be his Guide's own once they were bonded.  Jim wasn't stupid enough to believe it was the prospect of having this room for his own that had caught the kid's interest.  No, Jim was well aware that it was the fire escape that was responsible for raising his spirits.

 

As soon as the brief tour was over, Jim suggested that his Guide might like to take a shower.  It wasn't just for his Guide's sake; the scent of that other Sentinel was driving Jim nuts.  Fortunately, the kid leapt at the offer and didn't even protest, although his face flushed with embarrassment when Jim handed him the bag of clothing Edwards had picked up for him at Jim's request.

 

Jim had laid out a safety razor and a spare toothbrush on the basin too.  He didn't know if the kid preferred being clean-shaven as he had the good beginnings of a beard on his face but at least he'd have the choice then.

 

By the time the clean-shaven kid emerged from the bathroom, clouds of steam wafting in his wake, Jim was convinced the hot water tank had to be well and truly drained, although he didn't mind in the slightest.  If he'd been held in one of those cells, he'd have wanted to scrub himself clean of the taint too and, Jim realised, he had no idea when his Guide had been captured by the slavers.  He could have been in there for a week although Jim doubted that it was quite that long; the kid had needed a shower but not quite that badly.

 

"Thanks, man."  The now clean-shaven face flushed again, and he avoided Jim's eyes as he spoke.

 

"You're welcome, Chief."  Jim sighed to himself.  He would have preferred to let the Guide go, let him return to his life but - Jim inhaled again, revelling in the pure, clean scent that was overlaid by the smell of his own soap and shampoo, and his resolve hardened once more - this was his Guide and the kid would see that, sooner or later.  In any case, with Bannister and Hettinger on the loose, he really was safer at Jim's side.

 

Taking advantage of the kid's temporary lack of resistance, Jim sat him down and replaced the bandages on his wrists, before checking over the injuries on his face.  The bites on his Guide's neck, he treated without comment, although the Sentinel within him was screaming with indignation that the other Sentinel had dared to mark his Guide.  Instead, Jim smeared antibiotic cream over the marks, as the other Sentinel was probably carrying all kinds of diseases.

 

After that, he refrained from hovering over his Guide, letting his inner Sentinel sulk as it wished.  Bedtime would come soon enough, and he was fairly sure the kid would be pissed at him then.

 

It wasn't until Edwards and David had settled down to take the night watch on the couch that Jim broke the bad news about the sleeping arrangements to his Guide.

 

"You've gotta be kidding me!"

 

Jim dialled his hearing down a notch or two as he gazed down at his Guide who seemed content to spend the night sitting where he was.  "No kidding, Chief.  I can't trust you not to skip out on me, therefore you'll be sharing my room with me."  He smiled.  "That's just until we're bonded, of course.  Once we're bonded, as I said, we'll fix up the spare room for you."

 

"Thanks for the offer but I have a place of my own!"

 

"Oh, where is that?" Jim asked, guilelessly.  "If it's bigger than the loft, we might consider moving there."

 

"It's bigger, all right -"  The kid's eyes narrowed as he glared at Jim.  Obviously, he'd caught on that if the detective got an address, Jim could find out his name.  "But you wouldn't like it, trust me."

 

Jim stepped forward and leaned down into his Guide's personal space.  "I do trust you, Chief.  Well, except for the whole matter of running out on me in the middle of the night."  Pulling the kid up from his seat, Jim steered him towards the stairs.  "Where that's concerned, I don't trust you at all."

 

Unsurprisingly, Jim met with resistance.  "I'm not sleeping with you!"

 

"Relax, Chief, you're not my type."  The kid's struggles grew as they neared the bottom of the stairs and Jim finally gave in and held his Guide tightly in a bear hug.  Murmuring quietly in one ear, he said, "You are going up those stairs, Chief.  It's up to you whether you go up them on your own two feet or whether I sling you over my shoulder and carry you up in front of Edwards and David.  Now make up your mind."

 

The figure in his grip stiffened.  "Fine!"  Jim let go of him and, his feet stamping on every step, the kid stormed up the stairs.

 

Jim smiled.  "Night, Edwards.  Night, David," he said, then followed his Guide up.

 

~'~

 

Lying flat on his back, fury seething through every inch of him, Blair glared up at the skylight.

 

"Go to sleep, Chief."

 

Ellison's voice was quiet and sounded drowsy, but Blair wasn't fooled.  He knew that if he made one move towards the window and the beautiful freedom that lay beyond it, that sleepiness would vanish in an instant as the Sentinel stopped him from leaving.

 

He took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds, then exhaled, letting his tension seep away.  There was nothing he could do right now.  It made sense to get a good night's sleep - assuming he could sleep when there was a Sentinel not five inches away from him - and gather his strength for an escape attempt the next day.

 

In any case, he was exhausted.  The bed, although that was far too grand a word, in that cell he'd been imprisoned in had made sleep difficult, even if the overwhelming fear from the other Guides who were trapped along with him, plus his own natural fears over the upcoming auction, hadn't made sleeping an impossibility.

 

And now he was warm, in a comfortable bed, and clean.  While he was still furious with Ellison for this whole situation, he was exceptionally grateful for the shower and clean clothes.  Alex hadn't been interested in his comfort at all and he hadn't expected that Ellison would be either.  If he ignored the whole 'unable to leave' issue, Ellison was treating him well - it was just that being unable to leave was a pretty big issue with him and it wasn't one he was going to get over any time soon.  Well, until he actually got to leave, that was.

 

Turning on his side, Blair shut his eyes and took another breath before exhaling carefully.  The next day would be full of possibilities, he hoped, and he didn't want to miss them by being too tired to take advantage of them.

 

Slowing his breathing, he deliberately relaxed his muscles, a group at a time, and allowed himself to slide into sleep.

 

~'~

 

Sighing as sleep slowly left him, Blair luxuriated in the warmth that surrounded him.  The warehouse had never been this deliciously warm; even in summer, his home had a dank chill about it that was undoubtedly due to damp in the concrete floor.  But this....

 

He sighed again and stretched, tilting his head into the pillow as he felt his Sentinel scenting at his neck.  Warm, safe, protected, he floated in that half-way stage between sleep and waking where dreams are real and the hard pressures of the day haven't yet begun to make their presence felt.

 

Blair's eyes flew open as consciousness returned and memory flooded back with a vengeance.  Panicking, he tried to roll his way free, but the arm across his waist held him in place for an instant before releasing him and he scrambled off the bed, almost overbalancing in his need to be free.

 

"You were s-scenting me!" he gasped, his voice breathless with the shock of realisation.

 

The Sentinel looked at him and smiled slowly, reminding Blair of a well-fed lion on a hot savannah.  "Morning, Chief."

 

"You were scenting me!" Blair repeated, indignation in every syllable.

 

"Yep."  Either not realising his sin or not caring - Blair suspected the latter - the Sentinel stood and stretched.  "Let's have our showers then we can feed Edwards and David before Dr. Harvey and Jon arrive."  Ellison paused at the top of the stairs.  "After you, Chief."

 

Glaring, Blair grabbed his clothes and made his way down the stairs.  Ellison really was paranoid if he thought Blair would take off through the window dressed in only boxers and a t-shirt.  Especially in Cascade, where visitors to the city were advised to pack warm clothing and a waterproof coat - and that was in the summer.

 

Edwards stood as they reached the bottom of the stairs and inclined his head.  "Senior Sentinel Prime, Se -"  There was a pause and Blair caught the smirk on Ellison's face.  "Guide."

 

"Sentinel Prime.  How's David?"

 

The other Sentinel threw a glance at the couch, his face softening.  "Asleep.  He lasted until about two then crashed."

 

Out of curiosity, Blair peeked over the back of the couch as he went past.  The Guide Prime was curled up on his side underneath a thick afghan and a jacket that Blair realised was Edwards'.

 

"Did you sleep well?"

 

Blair's gaze jerked up to meet the Sentinel's then he glanced around.  Intending to glare once more at Ellison, he realised the other Sentinel had disappeared into the bathroom.  "Yes, thanks," he murmured, irritated that Edwards was being polite to him.

 

"Good."  Edwards didn't seem bothered by his annoyance at all.  Which was another irritating thing.  Blair was beginning to suspect that nothing he could do would put them off.

 

"You can take your shower first, Chief."

 

Blair scowled at Ellison as the Senior Sentinel Prime left the bathroom but refrained from commenting.  Sooner or later, they'd be leaving to go to the police station, unless Ellison had taken the day off and, once they were out of the loft, Blair was positive he could and would find a way to escape.

 

By the time he emerged, he'd managed to get his temper pretty much under control, outwardly at least, although he suspected that neither the Sentinels nor the other empath would be fooled.

 

"Morning, David," Edwards said, giving a nod to Blair as he passed him on the way to the couch.

 

Looking around, Blair realised that the Guide Prime was awake...mostly, as David yawned and scrubbed at his face with one hand.

 

"What time is it?"

 

"Almost eight."

 

Edwards helped David off the couch, then stood over him for a moment, one hand running over the Guide's head and shoulders and down his back as David leaned against him, yawning again.

 

Realising that the Sentinel was sensory scanning his Guide, Blair glared suspiciously at Ellison.  "Don't even think it!"

 

"Wouldn't dream of it, Chief."  Ellison turned back to the stove, radiating smug satisfaction.  "Toast and eggs all right with you?"

 

Blair narrowed his eyes as he stared at the Senior Sentinel Prime.  He hadn't, had he?  The memory of that early morning scenting came back, and he gritted his teeth in annoyance.  "You scanned me, didn't you?"

 

Ellison's face was the picture of innocence, but Blair wasn't fooled in the slightest.  "If you want me to scan you, Chief, you only have to ask."

 

Blair kept the kitchen island between them.  "No.  I don't want you to," he said, emphatically.

 

"Then I won't."  A plate of toast and eggs over-easy was put on the counter top.  "Eat your breakfast."

 

~'~

 

The inner Sentinel gloated as his Guide ate the food he was providing.  So far, he had provided safety, warmth, clothing and food for his Guide; it was only a matter of time before his Guide accepted the bond too.

 

The ringing of the phone jerked Jim out of his contemplative state and he grabbed for the receiver, handing the spatula to Edwards so the other Sentinel could give breakfast to his own Guide.

 

"Ellison."

 

"Morning, Jim."

 

"Hey, Simon."

 

The police captain sounded rather pleased about something, and the pleased tone in his voice deepened as he continued, "We've had an interesting missing person's report and I thought you might like to hear about it.  Blair Sandburg, a grad student at Rainier University.  Five foot eight, a hundred and fifty pounds, brown curly hair and blue eyes.  Sound like anyone you know?"

 

Jim grinned as he regarded the dark-haired, blue-eyed Guide sitting at his table.  "Yeah, I think I might know him, this...Blair Sandburg."

 

The kid jumped and his fork clattered onto the plate, knocking his knife off it.

 

"Thanks, Simon.  Gotta go; Sandburg's spilled egg on the floor."  Putting the phone down, he grabbed a cloth from the sink and scooped up the knife before scrubbing away the smear of food.  "Nice to meet you, Blair."

 

"I wish I could say likewise, man!  How did you find out?"

 

"A missing person's report."

 

The kid - Blair - slumped in his seat.

 

Unable to stop himself, Jim laid a hand on his shoulder.  "I would have found out sooner or later, Chief; it's no big deal."

 

From the annoyed look on his Guide's face, it was a big deal, but he didn't comment on it, instead changing the subject to ask, "What time are we leaving?"

 

"Leaving?"  Jim put the knife and cloth in the sink, then added the dirty plates before turning the hot water on.

 

"For the police station?  Don't you have a job to do?"

 

"It's Saturday, Sandburg.  I don't have to be in the P.D. until Monday - well, unless Bannister or Hettinger turn up."

 

As his Guide's heartrate shot off the scale, Jim turned.  Immediately, he assumed it was their names that had upset him, but then he heard the whispered, "Saturday?" before Blair started hyperventilating.

 

Grabbing him firmly, Jim reached for the paper bag offered by Edwards and held it over the kid's mouth and nose.  "Just breathe...slowly."  It wasn't working; Blair was panicking too much to listen, let alone slow down his breathing.  Manhandling him over to the couch, the Sentinel got them both seated and tilted his Guide's head back, scenting at his neck with the age-old instinct of how to calm a frightened Guide.

 

For a moment, Blair fought him, then the resistance seeped away as he accepted the comfort being offered and his hands came up to grab at the Sentinel's shirt and hold on tightly.

 

~'~

 

As the panic left him, Blair gave in to the arms that were holding him.  While there was no way he would have wanted the Sentinel to hold him, and rock him, and croon reassurances to him, the Guide within him needed all of it and more.  As he let his head droop onto the inviting shoulder near it, he felt as though his limbs had turned into over-cooked spaghetti and realised that it was due to shock.

 

It couldn't be Saturday - there was no way it could be Saturday.

 

"Chief?"

 

He raised his head and stared into the Sentinel's eyes, seeing the concern and worry.  Vaguely, he realised that the Sentinel could easily have taken advantage of him.  If he'd tried to bond at that moment, it would have been impossible for Blair to fight him off.  But he hadn't.  It was, Blair knew, yet another difference between this Sentinel and Alex.  There was no doubt in his mind that if he'd flipped in front of her, she would have used it against him ruthlessly.

 

"What is it?  What's wrong?"

 

The Sentinel was still waiting for an answer, and he finally roused himself enough to whisper, "It was Tuesday."  His throat felt strained, as if he'd been yelling for hours, and the words came out in a hoarse croak, but the Sentinel understood.

 

"What was Tuesday?"

 

"Here, give him this."

 

Edwards' hand appeared in his line of sight, holding a cup and Blair stared at it.  While he'd love to drink whatever was in there, at the moment his limbs weren't cooperating enough for him to take the cup.  He needn't have worried; Ellison took the cup, and took a sip, before nodding and holding it to Blair's mouth.

 

Even in his present half-befuddled state, a small bubble of indignation surged up at the babying treatment.

 

"Don't worry, Chief; you can shout at me later."  There was a gleam of humour in Ellison's eyes, and Blair felt his mouth twitch into a half-smile in response.  "Just drink this for now."

 

Tiredly, he obeyed; finding relief in the soothing feel of the warm tea as it slipped down his throat.

 

All too soon it was gone, and Ellison put the cup out of sight.  "What was Tuesday?"

 

"When they kidnapped me."  Blair shook his head slightly in confusion then felt one of the Sentinel's hands begin to massage the back of his neck.  "It can't be Saturday.  It was Tuesday."

 

"Don't worry about it, Chief."  Ellison's voice was soothing, and Blair's eyes began to slide shut as he gave in to the tiredness that was tugging at him.  "We'll find out what happened."

 

Whether it was the shock, the tea or the gentle stroking on his neck, Blair never figured it out, but he turned his face to the warm shoulder beneath it, and let the darkness take him.

 

~'~

 

"Afternoon, Chief."

 

Blair opened his eyes and looked at the Sentinel who was bending over him.  "Hey."  He felt like an idiot.  First of all, he'd hyperventilated himself into a panic attack, and then he'd grabbed onto the comfort offered like it was the only lifeline saving him from insanity.  The Sentinel had every reason to believe that Blair was going to bond with him - he'd all but thrown himself on a bonding platform and exposed his neck to the guy.

 

"How are you feeling?"

 

He grimaced at the gentle tone.  "Fine.  Thanks.  Sorry about before."  Pushing the afghan back, he sat up, surprised to hear Doctor Harvey's quiet voice in the kitchen.

 

"A cup of tea will help him feel better."

 

Ellison grinned down at him.  "I swear she's part English; her answer for everything is tea."

 

Blair smiled in return, the embarrassed feeling fading slightly.

 

"Tea contains various antioxidants that are very good for you.  If you had Green Tea, Senior Sentinel Prime, I'd recommend that he drinks that.  But this tea will do."  Just like Edwards, Doctor Harvey handed the cup to Ellison, who handed it straight onto Blair.

 

"I thought you might object to me testing the temperature again."

 

Blair's glance flicked up, then fell to stare down into the cup.  "Thanks, man."

 

"Jim," Ellison prompted.

 

He felt his cheeks redden.  After all the guy had done for him, keeping him there notwithstanding, the least he could do was use the guy's name.  "Thanks, Jim."

 

"You're welcome, Chief."

 

Avoiding the Sentinel's gaze, he stared around the apartment.  Apart from Doctor Harvey, the only other person present was Doctor Harvey's huge Guide.  "Did Edwards and David leave?"

 

"They went this morning."  Ellison settled himself on the couch next to him.  "You've been asleep for hours."

 

Blair sipped his tea, feeling his face flush again.  "Sorry."

 

"You must have needed it, Chief."

 

He shrugged, embarrassment still the overriding feeling.

 

"You want to talk about this?"

 

Blair didn't, really, but he wanted to know what had happened and, for all that he hated that thought, the cop in front of him was probably the only way he was going to find out.  "It was Tuesday when they grabbed me."  He glanced up into the Sentinel's eyes, then stared at the coffee table.  "I only spent one night in the cell."

 

Glancing up again, he caught the frown on Jim's face as he asked, "Where were you the other two nights?"

 

Finally forcing himself to hold the Sentinel's gaze, he said, "I don't know.  I woke up in the cell, only," his voice rose in spite of himself, "I thought that was Tuesday night."  His voice grew louder as the worry burst out, "They handed me over to Alex the next day - which was Friday!  I must have woken up on Thursday night, so where the hell was I before then?!"  He pushed the Sentinel away and threw himself off the couch, needing to not be touched, not be near any of them.  He heard the cup break as it hit the floor, and felt his control shatter along with it.  His skin crawled as his panic rose.  They could have done anything to him before he woke up.  Anything, any number of times, and he wouldn't know.

 

"It's all right, Chief!"

 

Predictably, the Sentinel was trying to grab him again, and Blair tried to swing away.  He didn't want to be comforted, he wanted answers.  He wanted to know that nothing had happened; that wherever he'd been, whatever they'd done, they hadn't done anything to him.

 

"It's all right; we'll find out.  Just calm down."

 

Yanked back into a bear hug, he finally gave into it, and let the Sentinel hold him; burying his face against Jim's shoulder as he tried to hold in the terror that was threatening to rip its way out of him.

 

"It's okay."  The voice was softer now, now that he'd stopped struggling.  "We'll find out what happened."

 

Blair took a deep breath and held it, before letting it out.  He was losing it, he knew he was, and he didn't want to lose it here...not again...not in front of them.  Taking another breath, Blair reassured himself that he didn't know that anything had happened - he didn't feel any different - it was just...two whole days.  He felt the panic begin to rise up again, and swallowed it down.  He wasn't going to flip again; he wouldn't let himself.

 

~'~

 

Holding his Guide tightly, the Sentinel pushed his fury down and locked it in place; saving it for later when he was facing the animals who kidnapped and hurt him.  Blair was upset enough, he didn't need Jim's anger feeding his emotions and forcing him back into a panicked state of mind.

 

"Okay, here's what we're going to do."  Jim pulled back a little so he could see Blair's face, holding onto his arms in case the kid kicked off again like a skittish colt.  "Doctor Harvey's going to make you another cup of tea."  She'd have to; the last one had ended up all over Jim's knee and the floor.  "You'll sit on the couch and drink it, while I clean up the last one.  Then we'll go to the P.D. and find out exactly what happened."  He tightened his grip on Blair's arms as he said it, and held his gaze firmly.  He wanted, no, he needed the kid to know that he wasn't alone in this.

 

Blair's face reddened again.  "Man, I'm sorry about your cup."

 

"It doesn't matter, Chief; it was just a cup."  Jim was pretty sure that if he'd just discovered he had two days missing from his memory, he'd have smashed a few things himself.  He got the kid to sit down, then picked up the shards of pottery before running up the stairs to change his trousers.  The sooner they found out the truth, the better it would be for all concerned.

 

~'~

 

By the time they reached the P.D., Blair was looking better and, so far as a Sentinel scan could tell, he was feeling better too.  Unfortunately, now that he'd got a hold on himself once more, he was also back to his normal argumentative state.

 

"I want to be there."

 

"That isn't a good idea."  There was no way that Jim wanted his Guide, bonded or not, in the same room as any of the men who had kidnapped him, beaten him and sold him to a psychotic Sentinel.  Staring down into the kid's stubborn face, Jim cursed to himself.  Of all the Guides in all the world, he had to choose this one.  If Blair were David, he'd accept the 'no' and go wait in an interrogation room quietly.  Of course, if Blair were David, they'd already be bonded.

 

He bit his lip to stop himself from smiling, despite the serious situation.  Stubborn, aggravating, argumentative, pain in the ass of a Guide...and Jim wouldn't swap him for anything.

 

"I don't know what you find so funny, Ellison!"

 

Jim's attention snapped back to the annoyed Guide in front of him.  "Just thinking, Chief.  That's all."  He laid a hand on the kid's shoulder and steered him towards the room where the most nervous slave trader was waiting for them.  Outside the door, he stopped and turned Blair to face him.  "Don't say anything, and don't go near him.  I won't be responsible for my actions if he touches you, understand?"

 

Blair nodded.  "Got it."  His face was paler now, and the Sentinel could smell his fear, but his jaw betrayed his determination to face this.

 

"Okay, let's go, and whatever I do, just play along."

 

He waited for another quick nod, then, opening the door, the Sentinel went in first, one hand holding his Guide's arm and keeping him close behind.  Niven was already there waiting for them, while Tina, his Guide, was in the room that overlooked this one, out of sight of the slave trader.

 

As they went in, Niven looked up and Jim saw the surprise, and annoyance, in his face as he saw Blair.

 

"Senior Sentinel Prime."  Niven's tone was carefully even, but Jim could hear the disapproval.  Well, when Tina developed the streak of stubbornness that Blair possessed, then Niven could criticise him.

 

"Niven, this is my Guide, Blair.  Blair, this is Sentinel Niven."  He hadn't looked at the weaselly faced guy at the other end of the table, but he smelt the increase of fear on him.

 

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Senior Guide Prime."

 

"Uh..."  Blair stopped as Jim tightened his fingers slightly.  "Sentinel Niven."

 

Tugging Blair in tighter behind him, Jim smiled.  If the slave trader believed that he were facing a newly bonded Sentinel whose Guide was recently sold by them, he'd be far more likely to answer Jim's questions.  If only out of a sense of self-preservation.

 

Reaching out, Jim grabbed a chair and moved it back against the wall, so Blair would be sitting behind him, hidden from the slave trader's sight.  Blair might insist that he had to be there, but that didn't mean that the Sentinel would have that slave trader looking at him.

 

Once Blair was seated, Jim took his own seat and stared at the nervous man in front of him.  The guy's face reddened under the accusing glare and his gaze slid past Jim to where Niven was protectively standing by Blair's side, before his eyes lowered to stare at the table.

 

Jim flicked open the file on the table in front of him and glanced over the information inside.  "Derek Matthews, twenty four.  No previous convictions," he read aloud.  "Well, that's going to change, isn't it?"  Jim didn't bother waiting for an answer; he continued, "I see you know my Guide."

 

"Yeah, so?"  Derek's eyes finally met his but, while he might have been trying to appear hard, his voice betrayed him.

 

"You kidnapped him on Tuesday evening."

 

The slaver shrugged, although Jim could see the beads of sweat on his forehead.  "It's hard to remember individual faces."

 

"You remember his though; I could see it when he came in."  Jim turned and gazed at Blair, giving him a reassuring smile, then he turned back.  "And while I think he's quite memorable, I want to know why you remember him in particular."

 

Derek shrugged again.  "I don't know, man.  Uh...pr-probably the curly hair."  He nodded.  "Yeah."

 

Moving forward, Jim perched on the edge of the table and stared down at the top of Derek's head.  "You're lying."

 

The kid gulped as his heartbeat sped up even more.

 

"You know I'm a Sentinel.  You know I'm the Senior Sentinel Prime.  And he," Jim pointed to Blair, "is the Senior Guide Prime.  What do you think my Clan will do to you for kidnapping their Senior Guide Prime?"  He spoke slowly, giving the last three words the emphasis they were due.  Then, after giving that a few moments to sink in, he added, "And whatever they do to you, it's nothing to what I'm going to do to you for kidnapping my Guide."

 

For a second, Derek's eyes met his, the stark terror in them standing out, then he started babbling, "Look, man, he wasn't a bonded Guide when we took him!  And - and...he's fine, look at him!"

 

"Don't look at him!"  Jim's voice snapped out like a whip.  "You don't have the right to look at my Guide.  Look at me!"  Ignoring Niven as that Sentinel blocked Blair from view, Jim demanded, sarcastically, "You mean he's fine apart from all the bruises you gave him?"

 

"I didn't hit him, man!  I remembered that we weren't supposed to hit him, just - just take him down.  He wasn't supposed to be bruised!  He had to look pretty for -"  From the way Derek broke off, Jim knew he realised he'd said too much.

 

"Pretty?  Pretty for what?  Or whom?"

 

Derek shook his head, but the stench of his fear was almost at eye-watering level.  Turning his dials down, Jim leaned in and whispered, "Where was he from Tuesday evening to Thursday night, Derek?"  As the smell of urine reached him, Jim smiled.  "Tell me, Derek."

 

Tears filled Derek's eyes, and he burst out, spraying saliva as he cried, "He was in the medical room!  We didn't touch him, I swear!  He was supposed to look pretty so the doc was tryin' to fix him up.  But he wasn't going to look pretty in time so when she came and wanted the strongest empath, Nick sold him to her!"

 

"What happened to Blair in the meantime?"

 

"Nothing!" Tears and snot ran down Derek's face.  "The doc kept him sedated!  It wouldn't have been worth his job to try out the merchandise, you know?  Plus, he doesn't swing that way!"

 

"But the one who was supposed to buy Blair, did?"

 

There was a pause, then Derek wiped at his face with his sleeve.  Finally, he muttered, "He wasn't a Sentinel."

 

Jim nodded, understanding the oblique answer.  Few people apart from Sentinels had a use for empaths...well, few non-perverted people, anyway.

 

"Who was it?"

 

Derek looked confused, so Jim clarified his question.

 

"Who was it who originally wanted to buy Blair?"

 

"I don't know, man, I swear!  He picked Blair out, said he'd pay good money if we could get him - but if we couldn't, he'd take another, just so long as he was male and good looking."  Sniffling, Derek added, "I never knew his name, man, only Nick knows it."

 

"Niven."

 

"Yes, Senior Sentinel Prime?"

 

"Get him out of here."  Turning away, Jim added, "You might want to let him...freshen up before he goes back in his cell."

 

"Yes, sir."

 

He waited until they were both gone, then turned his chair around to face Blair.  "You okay?"

 

"No."

 

"I didn't think so."  Jim didn't blame him for that.

 

"Someone picked me out, Jim...Jesus!  What am I?  The latest 'must have' accessory?"

 

"Chief -"

 

"He picked me out!  He saw me...somewhere and decided that I was the one - the toy! - he wanted!"

 

At least the kid wasn't upset - yet.  He was too busy blowing his top.

 

"Wow, I guess I was lucky that Alex wanted me, huh?  Or I could have been shipped off to him already!  In fact, I guess I'm lucky they beat me up in the alley, so I'm not so pretty any more!"

 

"Blair -"

 

"And what happens w