A very long day

Chapter 5: Now, about yesterday...

Tru watched Davis leave with a few kinds of panic in her system. The tight hold Harrison had on
her hand made her just a little afraid to be alone with him right now. And all her skin felt cold
because Davis had let her out of his arms. “Harrison, I...”

“Tru, don’t...not now.” Tightening his grip on her arm, Harrison pointed one finger at her. Tru had
never, ever seen her brother so angry. Never heard such pain in his voice. “Do not say anything to
me right now.”

She waited for the explosion she knew had to be coming. Tru kept waiting in nervous silence
through the short drive, through the unlocking of Davis’s door, and through Harrison’s rather
forceful manner of pushing her down onto Davis’s couch.

“How could you, Tru?” He stood in front of her, knees touching hers. “How could you look me in
the eyes today and not tell me you died yesterday?” Harrison dropped to the floor, Shaking her by
the upper arms. “How could you face me and say nothing bad happened to me yesterday?” He
suddenly stopped shaking her and moved to her side to pull her into his arms. “Damnit, Tru, how
could you think for even a second that I’d be okay without you. You’re my sister.”

“Har...” Blinking back tears, Tru hugged him back just as hard. “I’m sorry, Har. I ... I just
couldn’t face it. I didn’t tell anyone.” Rubbing her cheek on his shirt, she closed her eyes. “I
couldn’t tell anyone.”

A bitter but amused laugh vibrated Harrison’s shirt against her skin. “Davis is going to strip the
skin from your back for not telling us.”

Whatever that sound was, it wasn’t a normal laugh on Tru’s lips. “Or for leaving him alone with
Meredith for two drives across town.”

“That too, he might never forgive you.” Harrison pulled back enough to see he face. “Now that
we’ve hugged and made jokes, you gonna tell me what happened so it don’t happen again?” He
pointed a finger an inch from her face. “Not that I’ve forgiven you for not telling me before.”

Sitting up straight, Tru shook her head. “I don’t remember much.”

“At the morgue, right? It’s not like Davis invites us over all the time.”

“Yeah, it was at work. Davis caught me and asked for help.”

A puzzled look crossed Harrison’s face. “Davis asked for help, not a dead body. That ain’t
normal, is it?”

“What about me has ever been normal, Har?” Even as Tru could see the denial, false but well-
meant, climb onto her brother’s face, the door rattled and swung inward. //Davis,//

“Tru,”

The limbs that hadn’t worked right all day were suddenly working perfectly without any direction
from her brain. And Tru found herself in Davis’s arms just inside the open apartment door. Her
arms tightened around his neck, rubbing her cheek along the familiar warmth of his beard.
“Davis,”

“I’m here, Tru. I’m here and I’m not letting anything happen to you.” His hand curved along her
jaw to cradle the back of her head, pulling her closer and whispering in her ear. “I’m not losing
you, not now.”

Tru pulled back enough to see his eyes, biting her lip at the heat and concern in his face. The
memory of his lips touching hers made her fingers shake with the urge to pull him closer and feel it
again. The way his eyes dropped to her lips told her that Davis wanted it too.

And Harrison was a mere ten feet behind he on the couch. Distraction time. “What did you tell
Meredith?”

It was simply amazing how Davis could read her. Pulling back with an awkward smile, he led her
back to the couch. “I don’t know, really. Nothing that made any sense.” His hands guided her back
down onto the cushions, then one clasped one of hers as he sat down next to her. “But that doesn’t
matter right now. Tell me what happened, Tru. All of it this time.”

The touch of his skin steadied her like it had before and she leaned closer against his side. “I told
you, Davis. I got shot.” The fingers of her free hand rose to touch the spot between her ribs before
Davis caught them between his own and pressed the back of her hand to his cheek. “You caught
me before I could fall. You held me, asked for help for us. And... and then I woke up with
Harrison in my room.”

“There really wasn’t a dead body? But you’re always saving the dead people.”

“It’s Tru we need to save this time.” Davis didn’t even take his eyes off her face as he spoke to
Harrison. He didn’t know if he could look away. “That can’t be all of it, Tru. You were shot from
the front. Did you see them?”

“I–“ Had she? Tru’s brain had spent the whole day dwelling on or ignoring the memory of Davis’s
touch. The only face imbedded into her eyes was his. “I– I didn’t see anyone, Davis. I don’t know
who it was.” Davis rubbed his cheek back and forth against her hand and Tru had to distract
herself from the stroke of his beard along her skin or else. Or else she would kiss him, right there
in front of her brother. Harrison. Turning her head, Tru looked at him. “I swear I didn’t see who
it was, Har.”

“Doesn’t matter, Sis. We’re gonna keep you safe and you’re not gonna see him this time.”

“Did I see him?”

“Huh?”

“What?”

Both Tru and Harrison turned sharply at his question. Davis only squeezed her hands and pushed
on. “You said I caught you before you hit the floor, so I had to be close. Did I see the person who
shot you?” The eager hope on his face collapsed before Tru could get her throat to work. “Wait,
it’s not like I get to remember do-over days so it doesn’t matter anyway.”

Tru had to... had to chase that unreasonable guilt on his face away. Had to touch him. “Davis,”
Turning her hand in his, she pressed her palm against his cheek and leaned closer helplessly.
“You help me everyday. Do-overs or not.”

She felt his lips move against her palm in an almost kiss even as his eyes dropped to her mouth.
Seeming to shake himself, Davis dragged his eyes back to hers. “It was probably someone you
know. Random violence just doesn’t happen that much.”

“You do have to miss people off.” Harrison leaned forward on his knees. “How many murder vias
have you kept alive? Someone’s got to be a bit angry about that.”

At Tru’s puzzled look, Davis jumped in. “They found you at the morgue. Anyone else would have
looked for you at your apartment.”

“Most of them never know about the morgue.” Tru laughed and it wasn’t a happy sound. “I gave
up explaining their deaths to people pretty quick.”

Harrison slipped a comforting arm around her shoulder. “But some of them must have known who
you are, where to find you.”

“I... I don’t know who...” Even as her mind whirled, Tru couldn’t recall anything of use.

“It’s probably a woman, about your size from the ... bullet’s path.” The hesitation in Davis’s voice
was timed with the tightening of his hands around hers.

Tru steadied herself with the heat and comfort of their touch, calmed herself in the knowledge that
these two men, her brother and her... Her Davis would do anything to help her. They cared about
her that much. For them she would and could figure this out. A woman would-be killer that knew
to look for her at the city morgue. Weirdly enough, that narrowed it down a lot. “The bride?” Tru
looked to Davis as if he could know any more than she could. “Alisa, the cop’s girlfriend, setting
him up. She knew the bride came to the morgue, both times.”

“She could have found out how her intended victim survived. You spoiled all her plans. Motive
enough.”

//Not alone,// “We, Davis, we spoiled it. You’re just as much of a target as I am, if we’re right.”
The nerves in her gut tightened, screaming at her that Davis had to understand. “You are in just as
much danger as I am.” He had to believe her or he would get himself killed trying to keep her safe.
And that would hurt more that getting shot could.

“But I’m not. I caught you, right?” Davis touch his lips to the inside of her wrist, over he pulse.
“I was right there. If she’d wanted to shoot me, she could have. She must not know I had anything
to do with it.”

//No, please, no.// “Davis,”

Gripping her hand tighter, he pushed on past her plea. “She shouldn’t know about Harrison either,
we can stake out the morgue and call the cops.”

“Call the cops from here, Davis,” Tru clutched at him, feeling his stubbornness crashing around
her. “I know when she’ll be there and then no one’s at risk.”

“You’ve changed the day already. We can’t know how much.” Damn him, he wasn’t about to
budge. Nothing she could say would change his mind.

Reinforcement time. Keeping her hands closed tight about his, Tru turned a pleading look on
Harrison. “Har, this is a bad plan. Too dangerous for both of you. There’s got to be another
way.” She could see him thinking by the wrinkle between his eyes.

“Actually, sis. It ain’t too bad.” Harrison touched her shoulder, a comforting expression on his
face. “And if we take my car, there won’t even be a morgue van to clue her in. We call the cops
when she hits the door.” He shrugged with a confident air. “She hits the slammer and we call it a
night. Sounds like a good plan to me.”

They were going and there was nothing Tru could say to stop them. And she could just feel
something bad coming. “Davis, please.” Davis just shook his head and buried his lips in her
palms. “Then I’m going with you.”

“No, Tru, you’re not.” Davis stood and pulled Tru to her feet with him. “Harrison, can you go get
the car, please?”

Shrugging at the pleading look on Tru’s face, Harrison dodged out the door. “But Davis,”

“No, Tru,” Catching her face in his hands, Davis leaned closer and made her meet his eyes. “I
will not lose you now. Do you understand me?” Now it was his eyes that were begging. “Stay
here, please, Tru. Let me keep you safe.”

Slowly moving her arms to curl around his shoulders, Tru swallowed hard and tried to speak.
“You ... you had both better come back without a scratch or I’ll kill you myself.”

“I promise,” Davis spoke with a half solemn smile before flattening both hands in the curve of her
back. “I’ll be careful.” Hesitantly, he dipped his head, slowly touching his lips to her. Giving
Tru all the time she could need to pull away... or rise on her toes to meet him halfway.

“Davis,” Tru lost herself in the warm grip of his arms and the soft press of his lips. But it still
wasn’t enough to kill the cold center of panic in her rips. Burying Both hands in his hair, Tru
pulled Davis closer and urgently deepened the kiss, needing him even closer. The taste of him on
her tongue and the brush of his beard on her skin were amazing. But still not enough. //Davis,//
One of his hands fisted in the back of her shirt as the other moved to cradle her head, holding her
closer still, almost close enough to warm her up.

“Tru,” Davis broke the kiss but held her even tighter for another minute more. And when their
arms strained and her ribs ached and air couldn’t fit between them, Davis was almost close
enough. And then he pulled away. “It’s time to go.”

Biting her lips, Tru made herself let go and step back. “Just come back, okay?”

His hand cupped her cheek and Tru’s eyes fluttered as she leaned into the touch. She kept her eyes
closed through the low rasp of his voice. “I promise, Tru.” She couldn’t look until after she heard
the door open and close... and felt the cold ache re-invade her skin.

//Please, I need him. Help him. Help us.//

***