Chapter Text
Charlie sighed as he sat back in his chair. He rubbed his eyes, which were starting to ache after staring at a computer screen for so long, and took a moment to gather his thoughts.
Nearby, Rex whined. Charlie moved his left hand to see the German Shepherd watching him from where the dog was lounging on his favorite window bench. Rex's dark eyes watched Charlie in concern, his head tilted to the side as if to ask what was wrong.
With a chuckle, Charlie dropped both hands and gave his canine partner a reassuring look. "I'm okay, buddy," the detective said soothingly. "Just frustrated with this dead end."
Something in the hallway behind Charlie caught Rex's attention, and Charlie turned to follow the dog's gaze. Two figures came into sight on the other side of the door to the Major Crimes office. Through the glass wall separating the large room from the rest of the station, Charlie and Rex watched a uniformed officer escort a brawny man toward the station entrance.
Rex huffed and looked back at Charlie.
"Yeah, I know," Charlie replied, shaking his head. "You did great catching him, pal. But he's got a solid alibi, so I can't hold him." He gave a small, wry chuckle as the dog barked in response. "Well, unless you can poke a hole in his story, I'm afraid there's nothing I can do."
Even though Charlie was… fairly sure dogs couldn't actually roll their eyes, he could have sworn he saw Rex give a dramatic eye roll. The dog sighed heavily and dropped his head back onto his front paws.
"You and me both," Charlie said. Rubbing a hand over his face again, the detective sighed and turned back to his computer just as he heard the door swing open behind him.
Rex's head went up, and his tail thumped in welcome.
"Hey, Rex!" Jesse chirped, taking the long way around to rub behind the dog's ears. "Good to see you."
Distracted from the text on his screen, Charlie glanced over at the younger man. "How'd it go at court?" He took in Jesse's excited body language. "Well, I take it?"
Jesse grinned widely. "Oh, it's a slam dunk. Not to brag or anything, but I did do a pretty good job on the stand if you ask me." His smile waned slightly as he caught the look Charlie was giving him. "I mean," he continued, rubbing the back of his neck, "there's some really solid evidence. I don't think the prosecution has anything to worry about."
Rex barked.
Giving the dog one last pat on the head, the technical analyst moved over to his desk, put a hand on the back of his chair as if to pull it out, and then paused. "Hey, did you guys eat yet?"
"As a matter of fact, not yet," Charlie replied. He glanced over at Rex. "What do you say, partner?" he asked. "Hungry?"
Rex scrambled to his feet eagerly and barked.
Charlie grinned and looked back at Jesse. "I think that's a yes. His favorite hot dog cart is just down the street."
"Sounds great!"
A few minutes later, the two men were strolling down the sidewalk. Rex stuck close by, sniffing along the path and investigating the grass on both sides. It was a beautiful day, with only a few clouds to hide the sunshine, and Charlie took a deep breath of fresh air. Jesse was going on about something to do with the case and court, but Charlie wasn't paying close attention. He was just enjoying being out of the office; after hours in the station, getting out and taking a break was nice.
Charlie put a hand in his pocket, fingering the tennis ball he'd grabbed from his desk drawer. Rex was also probably ready for some exercise after being cooped up in the station all morning.
At Charlie's whistle, Rex's head snapped up from whatever he'd been sniffing. The dog's tail started wagging, slowly and then faster, as he watched the detective wave the ball in the air. He shifted his weight in preparation for launching himself after the ball.
Jesse chuckled at Rex's excitement. "Man, he's really ready to be outside."
"Yep," Charlie grinned. As he stepped off the curb onto the crosswalk, he threw the ball across the quiet street toward a grassy area on the other side. The two men watched as the ball bounced and rolled down the small hill. "It's been a long morning for both of us."
Rex took off after the yellow projectile, his excited barks fading as he crested the hill and disappeared over the far side.
Just then, a car engine revving somewhere nearby broke the otherwise peaceful air.
Charlie glanced past Jesse, more out of instinct at the sudden noise than anything— which was when he caught sight of the black sedan racing toward them.
The car was traveling much too fast even if the traffic light hadn't been red, and Charlie was moving before he even realized his subconscious had put the pieces together.
"I mean, I feel you on that. It was a long morning for me, too—" Jesse's sentence was abruptly interrupted as Charlie slammed into him.
The detective's shoulder hit Jesse in the chest and threw him backward. All of the air left Jesse's lungs at the impact. The tackle's momentum sent them back across the crosswalk and onto the curb.
Jesse felt the back of his right heel catch on the raised concrete lip. He grunted as he landed hard on the ground, his rear end absorbing the force of the landing and radiating it through his limbs. Pain shot up and down his spine, and his head felt like someone had taken it off and shaken it violently before putting it back.
His vision went spotty, and he coughed and gasped for air as he tried to regain control of his senses.
Nearby— too close for comfort —brakes squealed. Jesse put a hand to his left ear to block out the ear-splitting sound. He blinked blearily at the road where a dark sedan was speeding away. It was moving too fast for him to get more than a digit or two off of the license plate.
A furry blur raced past Jesse as Rex chased after the car, barking furiously.
Shaking his head, Jesse swallowed as his brain caught up with the moment, and he suddenly realized what had happened. "Wow, that was way too close," he gasped in relief, turning toward Charlie. "Thanks for—"
He broke off as his gaze landed on his friend. The detective was sprawled on the grass a few feet away, limbs at awkward angles.
"Oh my g— Charlie!" Jesse scrambled to his hands and knees, wincing at the twinge that shot up his back but ignoring it. He reached Charlie's still form in seconds and shook the other man's shoulder. "Hey, hey, Charlie. Hey, come on. Wake up."
Frantic barking grew louder as Rex, his pursuit of the car abandoned, ran back to join the two men on the side of the road.
Jesse barely glanced at the dog, his focus fixed on Charlie. A feeling of dread was growing in the pit of his stomach as he took in the way Charlie's pale face contrasted sharply with his dark coat and hair. "Charlie, wake up. Come on, man."
The grass under the other man glistened, and Jesse's stomach knotted even more as he realized it was blood. A lot of it. But they hadn't gotten hit by the car, Jesse was almost sure of it, so where was all the blood coming from—
Then his eyes locked on a sizeable gash along the side of the detective's head, which was bleeding profusely, and Jesse's stomach dropped even more. He swallowed hard, trying to tamp down on the panic quickly rising in the back of his throat.
Rex's whines, punctuated by worried barks, filled the air as the dog brushed past Jesse to circle his partner. The dog nudged Charlie's hand, which flopped limply against the grass. With a confused whine, Rex looked at Jesse in question before turning back to sniff Charlie's face.
"Rex, I'm sorry." Jesse reached out to pat the dog comfortingly. A wave of guilt washed over him as the pieces started coming together. The car careening toward them, Charlie pushing him out of the way, the screeching of brakes drowning out everything else as Jesse fell backward onto the grass and Charlie…
"Jesse!"
A woman's shout broke the air, and Jesse turned to see Sarah rushing across the road. She fell to her knees beside the two men, the quickness of her motions giving away just how worried she was.
"Charlie." The panic was evident in her voice. "Charlie, come on, talk to me." She put a hand on the detective's cheek as her trained gaze traveled over his closed eyes and still form. "Jesse, what happened?"
"I— I don't— there was, there was a car and, and, and Charlie—"
"Hey, take a breath." Sarah's eyes met Jesse's. "That's it. Did he get hit by a car?" she asked, her voice still low and steady but steely with worry.
Jesse gulped. "I, uh, I don't think so. But he was behind me. He, um, he pushed me out of the way… I think he hit his head on the curb when we fell."
Glancing over her shoulder, Sarah nodded. Jesse could see the worry flaring up in her eyes, and he followed her gaze to where a noticeable streak of blood stained the light concrete on the edge of the road.
"Jesse, call 911." Sarah's firm order brought Jesse back to the moment.
He looked up to see her pulling off her jacket, bundling it up to gently place it under Charlie's head. "Oh, right." Jesse fumbled in his pocket for his phone, embarrassment he hadn't already thought to do so coloring his cheeks.
With a sad sigh, Rex gently settled down next to Charlie. The dog tucked his paws under his chest, laying his head on Charlie's stomach with a small whine.
Sarah reached over to pat Rex's head. "It's okay, Rex," she said quietly, in a tone that told Jesse it was as much for herself as for the dog. "We're going to get him help."
She didn't have to say what she and Jesse were both thinking. Help couldn't come soon enough.
'Where am I?'
Waking up in a dark room was disconcerting on a number of levels, and Charlie struggled to place his thoughts. He felt like he was at the bottom of a deep well, stuffed down under layers of fog and cotton. His body felt strange, like he wasn't quite connected to the real world at the moment. Hadn't he just been at the station? Then… where was he… and— wait, why was he in bed?
But the harder he tried to think of why that could be, the more difficult it became. His thoughts felt dim and muddled as he struggled to process everything. The last he could remember, he had been at work… he certainly didn't remember going home.
And then, just as suddenly, he realized it wasn't his bed. Everything felt… just a little off. It certainly didn't smell like his house, and there was a quiet, repetitive beeping somewhere nearby…
Charlie frowned. 'Wait. I'm in a hospital. Why—'
And then a face popped into his mind.
'Jesse!'
No memories came rushing back, but a feeling of overwhelming urgency washed over him. Charlie wasn't sure why, but he had a feeling he couldn't shake that something was wrong.
He needed to check on Jesse.
With that, his thoughts started tumbling through his mind faster and faster, one after another after another. He winced at the rush of them all, trying to focus on just one at a time, but it was like trying to grab water flowing from a faucet. His thoughts just kept flashing past him, slipping through his hands no matter how hard he tried to hold on.
Okay. He was in the hospital. Why was he in the hospital? It was clearly late because everything was dark, but— 'OW' —his head was pounding, so that was probably a good thing. He'd need to remember to thank the nurse; the last thing he needed when he had a migraine was for the lights to be on. He knew from unfortunate experience just how badly that hurt. Not that he could imagine his head hurting more than it was at that moment because it was killing him.
"Charlie?"
The sound of his name made him start in surprise. "…Sarah?" he asked, wincing at the hoarse sound of his voice and how it grated in his throat.
He wasn't so much surprised she was there but that she was still there so late. The last time he'd been admitted to the hospital, the nurses had strictly enforced visiting hours. Not that he was complaining. He was glad to have at least one of his friends there when he awoke instead of being all alone.
"Yeah, hey, Charlie," Sarah said gently. "How are you feeling? You took a pretty good hit to the head back there."
Oh. That certainly explained why his head was pounding so hard and why he needed another dose of whatever meds they had him on at the moment.
Charlie took a breath and shifted on his pillow, trying to find a comfortable position. The temptation to ask for more meds was wrestling with his desire for no lights anytime in the near future.
"Shh, hey, it's okay," Sarah told him, keeping her voice low. There was something in her tone that Charlie couldn't quite place; it was worry but tinged with something else. "Hey, Charlie, look at me."
He frowned. That was certainly hard to do with the lights off.
"The… lights aren't off, Charlie," Sarah replied slowly, making Charlie realize he must have been thinking out loud.
But if the lights weren't off, then why…
The bandages around his head wound must've slipped, Charlie decided. Although why Sarah hadn't fixed that already, he had no idea…
Charlie reached a hand up tentatively. A feeling of dread was screaming at him from the back of his mind, but he blocked it out.
His fingers touched his bare cheeks, venturing up to his forehead, where he felt a patch of gauze on one side.
Charlie's blood ran cold, his heart dropping into his stomach.
There was nothing over his eyes. And, he strained to confirm, yes, they were indeed open. But if his eyes were open— and the lights were on —then why was it still so dark?
His sinking feeling turned into dawning horror.
"Charlie?" Sarah asked. "Charlie, what's wrong?"
He could hear her moving, fumbling for something, but his brain wouldn't process anything. It was stuck on the terrifying realization.
He couldn't see.
"Joe!" Jesse greeted his boss as the superintendent strode into the Major Crimes office.
"Please tell me you found something," Joe said, pausing mid-stride, coffee cup half-raised. The worry over his lead detective being in the hospital creased his forehead.
Jesse nodded quickly. "Remember how I was thinking that the car that tried to run us down had to have been caught on camera at some point? But then there were no cameras recording where the accident happened, so I started expanding the search thinking that, since the car didn't vanish into thin air, it had to have passed a camera at some point—"
"Jesse."
Joe's warning tone caught the younger man off-guard.
"Right." Jesse blinked. "Well, anyway, my hunch paid off! Turns out the driver was in such a hurry to get away after nearly killing us at that crosswalk, he was speeding when he drove off."
Joe tilted his head. "Meaning he was caught on a camera nearby?"
"Exactly!" Jesse exclaimed, waving his tablet at his boss. "I have footage of a sedan speeding away from the area."
Crossing the small space to Jesse's desk, Joe raised an eyebrow in question. "And you're sure it's the same vehicle?"
"It has to be," Jesse replied, nodding. "It's the only dark-colored sedan leaving the area within that window of time."
Joe leaned in to look at the screen over Jesse's shoulder. "Were you able to get a plate?"
In response, Jesse shrugged one shoulder. "Not the whole thing. Hopefully, it's enough to get us at least a few results we can follow up on." He tapped a few keys. "I'm running a search now; it's just a matter of waiting to see if any results come back."
He shifted in his chair and winced, immediately trying to hide the reaction from Joe. However, it was a futile effort, and the older man looked over at Jesse's small groan.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Joe asked, worry dancing in his eyes as he studied Jesse.
"I'm fine." Jesse waved off the concern. "Just bruised from that landing. A few days, and I'll be good as new."
"You know you can go home and rest," Joe said gently. "I can get someone else to run this search for you."
"Nope," Jesse replied quickly. He shook his head. "I really need to be the one to do this, Joe. I'll be fine; I promise." He didn't add there was no way he was going to call off while this case still needed solving, not after what Charlie had done to save him and the price the detective was now paying for that rescue.
Charlie was still in the hospital— blind for who knew how long —because of what he'd done for Jesse. The least Jesse could do was find the person responsible for the accident.
Glancing up, he caught Joe watching him, and Jesse could tell from the look on the superintendent's face Joe had at least some idea of what Jesse was thinking. With a shake of his head, Jesse turned back to the computer. There would be time to dwell on everything later on. Right now, the only thing that mattered was finding the dark sedan and tracking down its driver.
He wanted to be able to tell Charlie they'd caught the driver who had put him in the hospital.
"Well, let me know when you have something," Joe told him, giving Jesse a pat on the shoulder before turning toward his office.
He passed Charlie's desk, where an open laptop with a dark screen, several manila folders, and notepads sat alongside a long-cold mug as a testament to the fact that Charlie had left fully intending to return. Joe sighed as he glanced at the empty chair, making a mental note to have someone pick up where Charlie had left off with his current case.
A gasp from Jesse had Joe spinning on his heel.
"What is it?"
Jesse turned with a stunned expression. "I was thinking the car almost running us over was just a random accident," he said, the worry slowly building in his voice. "Like it was just some careless driver not paying attention and then driving off because they panicked. But this…"
"Jesse, whose car is it?" Joe demanded.
"Graham Thornton," Jesse replied slowly, gesturing to a mugshot of a red-haired man displayed on his screen. "He's the brother of Jimmy Thornton."
Joe's eyes widened with understanding. "The guy you testified against."
Swallowing, Jesse stared at the photo. "It was my fault," he whispered.
The entire hospital stay had been one big blur for Charlie. The only thing that had kept him grounded throughout was Rex's constant presence by his side. When the dog was absent because of needing to do his business outside, everything felt so much bigger and more empty to Charlie until Rex returned.
There had been countless visits from doctors and nurses, so many it had made Charlie's head spin. Somewhere in the barrage of tests and rattled-off medical terms was an explanation of what was happening to him, none of which Charlie particularly remembered. Losing your sight was quite the distraction.
The doctors had said something about brain swelling and bruising of the optical nerve… at least, Charlie was pretty sure anyway. Truth was, he'd stopped listening somewhere around the part where they'd said there was no way to tell how bad the injury was or how long it would last.
They might as well have told him he should just resign himself to a lifetime of darkness.
He didn't care about how different each body's response was or how they didn't know how long the healing process would take for him. All he cared about was if he'd ever get back to his job, to his normal life. He didn't know how—
"Charlie?" Sarah's quiet question came from somewhere to his right, and Charlie jumped at the sound. He'd been so caught up in his thoughts he hadn't heard her footsteps to know she was there.
He frowned. Nothing like another reminder of what he'd lost.
Rex's head left Charlie's lap with a quiet "Whuff," and Charlie could just imagine the dog's head going up in curiosity.
"Sorry," she added quickly. "I didn't mean to startle you."
He waved a hand absently in what he hoped was her direction.
Shoes squeaked on the floor as Sarah came closer to his bed. "Are you ready to go?"
Right. Time to go home. Because they were kicking him out of the hospital as if everything was just fine. Not like he needed to be worried he still couldn't see more than the vaguest of light and shadows.
"Now, you heard the doctor," Sarah chided, and Charlie wondered if he'd started thinking aloud again or if she was a mind reader. "Everything's fine other than your sight, and it'll be better for you to recover at home. It's just a waiting game for your vision right now, so there's no point in you lying around here in the meantime."
Charlie made a face and crossed his arms. It might have made him seem like a petulant child, but he didn't care. "The last thing I want to do is go anywhere."
Of course, he was sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting for someone to help him get to a car, but that didn't mean he was happy about it.
Going home was only going to underscore how abnormal things actually were. The hospital felt so insulated, so separated from real life. Here, he could more easily imagine his injury was temporary; after all, people went to hospitals when sick or injured. And then they recovered and went home. They didn't go home while they were still injured. Going home now meant he would have to learn to live with his injury rather than recovering at the hospital.
He'd heard the others whispering one night— although it may have been during the day; he had no concept of time anymore— when they thought he was asleep, asking the doctor for information to help him learn to live with his… Charlie didn't even want to think the word. It was a temporary injury, and that was all.
"Come on. It'll be much more comfortable for you to be in a familiar setting," Sarah said. Fabric rustled nearby.
Charlie felt a new weight in his lap that was different from the familiar, comforting feeling of Rex's head resting on him. Reaching for the new object, he immediately recognized the cool, smooth texture of his leather jacket.
"Here, let's get your jacket on, and then we'll get you out to the car."
Something squeaked close to the floor, combined with the sound of… was that rubber? Like bike tires.
He tilted his head. "Is… that a wheelchair?" He snorted. "I didn't lose my ability to walk, you know," he muttered derisively. "Just my sight."
He heard Sarah sigh, then clear her throat. "Hey, I don't make the rules, Charlie. They won't let you leave on your own two feet. They want to make sure you get safely to the car. Speaking of," she continued, "Jesse has the car waiting at the curb, and I'm pretty sure we have a time limit on how long we can stay." She laughed. "We don't want to be the reason he gets a ticket. We'd never hear the end of it."
The corner of Charlie's mouth quirked up in a half-smile. Next to his right leg, Rex whined. Charlie felt the cold and wet sensation of the dog nosing his hand before the shepherd gave him a few licks of encouragement.
"All right, pal," Charlie said, feeling along Rex's nose to pat his head. "What do you say we go home?"
Rex barked and pulled back, his fur ruffling under Charlie's hand as his toenails clicked on the tile. He nosed Charlie's hand again, then pressed up against his leg as Charlie slowly stood.
This time, Charlie heard Sarah's footsteps as she came closer. She took his left hand, and Charlie felt something hard slide into it.
Oh right. The cane.
Rex whined, and Charlie felt the pressure on his leg shift as the dog quickly moved behind him.
"What's with Rex?" Sarah asked quizzically.
Charlie chuckled. "He doesn't like the cane."
"He doesn't like it?" The frown was evident in her voice.
The jingle of Rex's collar came from behind Charlie's knee as the dog tilted his head at the sound of his name.
"I've already hit him twice with it by accident while practicing," Charlie explained sheepishly.
As if in agreement, Rex let out a low, growling bark and then whined.
"I said I was sorry!" Charlie protested.
Rex huffed.
Sarah laughed, and Charlie heard her patting the dog's side. "Well, then we'll just keep you on the other side from it, eh, Rex?" And then she laughed again in the way she always did when Rex licked her chin in response to something. "Come on," she said, her voice growing louder as she must have straightened up. Charlie felt her hand on his elbow. "Let's get you home. Jesse said he'd bring pizza over later as a little welcome home for you and Rex."
Charlie's stomach growled at the mention of dinner. The hospital food was pretty terrible, extra brownies Rex stole for him or not. Pizza sounded pretty good right about then.
"Yeah," he said, nodding slowly. "Let's go home."