Disclaimer:  Howdy, Folks, the characters portrayed in this story
aren't my own, except for Joey Rice.  They belong to Alliance and due
South, a now (and sadly)defunct series.  I loved that show... and now
it's gone, so I'm forced to write fan fiction.	I hope you enjoy, I liked
writing it. 

From around season I, with the original Ray.

In Sickness and in Health

By:  Franklyn Wright

Joey's head was on fire.  They tried to keep her in the hospital,  but
she hated it.  The fever was burning away at her,  her face was filmed
with a thin layer of sweat,  and her lips were cracked.  She wanted water.
Lots of water,	but they only gave her precious little at a time.

"Lie STILL Joey."

"No,  I hate it here- and I'm- getting out!"  She fought to sit up, 
but two large orderlies held her down,	one on her shoulders,  the other
held her legs down.  "I'll kill you all!  I swear to God!  If I die,
I'll come back and kill you all!"

"Does she have family?"  The orderly on her shoulders asked the nurse.

"A sister.  A father."

"Stepfather,  and he's a bastard.  If you send me there I'll-"

"Calm down sweetie."

"Don't- call- me- sweetie."  She struggled harder and managed to pull
a hand out from under the strong grasp of the orderly and push the cooing
nurse away from her. 

"You have to sedate her,"  The orderly above her head said to the nurse.

"Intravenously?"

"No, no, Goddammit,  I won't let you!"

"Just give her the pills."

"Okay, kid,"  One of the orderlies said.  "Just take these pills." In
a sing-songy patronizing voice he then said, "You get a cup of water
with the pills."  He shook a small paper cup of the crystal, cool liquid.
Joey stopped struggling for the first time since the nurse and orderlies
had come in.

"Water?"  She said weakly.

"Uh-huh."  He handed the pills over to her, which she put in her mouth,
then she gulped the cup of water.  All of it.  A few moments later, her
eyelids lowered and got heavy.	Then she lie still.

"Good.	Finally asleep."  The nurse and orderlies moved away from the
bed. Joey was still dressed in her street clothes.  "Hopefully we can
get something to break that fever." 

"What is it?" One of the orderlies asked.

"I don't think anyone's sure yet. It isn't Scarlet Fever... maybe it's
a virus, or an infection her body's trying to fight off."

"Sad."	They shook their heads in pity, and clucked their thick tongues.
The orderlies left.  The nurse lingered a few more moments.  She smoothed
the child's hair down gently,  then left to get a robe for her.  The
one provided in the room was much to big for this patient,  and the least
she could do was to try to make the girl as comfortable as possible.
The nurse left.  

Joey opened one eye and saw she was at last alone.  She sat up and spit
the two pills out into her hand.  She put them into a small zippered
pocket in her jacket,  and slid off the bed.  Joey was dizzy on her feet
and it took her a few moments to steady herself.  She pulled the IV out
of her hand and half ran, half stumbled out of the hospital room, down
the hall to her right, the way she had come in. She pushed nurses over
and skimmed past orderlies, Trying to make it out of the excruciatingly
hot hospital.  The air in the hospital was hot, stifling, in fact.  The
air seemed to burn her lungs and sear her throat as she gulp in breath
after breath.  Her feet searched for steady ground to tread on, but only
found the twisting, shifting floor that eternally ran away from her feet.
The sliding doors to freedom were so close now, and she feared she
wouldn't
make it, that the heat would overtake her, and she would pass out again.
That's how she'd ended up at this place of medicinal hell in the first
place.

When she was hit with the first cool blast of wintry air from outside,
she nearly wept with relief.  But she kept herself composed, and started
running, and didn't stop until she felt she was a safe distance from
the hospital.  Far enough away so she couldn't see it. She stood, panting,
hands on her knees, in the middle of a public park.  Snow covered the
ground,  and no one was out. She stood up and took a deep breath. 

The air stung her lungs and her raw throat, and she coughed.

She coughed again,  and again, until she couldn't stop.  She could hardly
get a breath in from one spasm to the next.  She dropped to her knees,
her body wracked in the effort of the next coughing spell.  She clenched
her stomach, her chest felt constricted and fiery all at once. Her breath
hung in her throat, and she fell onto the ground, in the fetal position,
her face melting the snow it came in contact with. The last thing she
remembered was the welcome coolness of the snow to her hot skin, then
nothing else.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Constable Fraser walked down the snow covered sidewalk after getting
off of work at the Canadian Consulate.	He was going home to check on
Diefenbaker, who had been rather discontent as of late. He noticed a
pair of footprints leading into the park, but not a set coming out. 
He wondered who would be sitting in a park in ankle deep snow in_
sneakers,
no less. Fraser turned into the park, following the prints. They were
a long distance apart, so the person had been running. It was a girl,
small feet, light in weight. He looked up to see a crumpled heap on the
ground about 50 feet away. He approached cautiously and knelt next to
the person. He rolled her over.  She was a thin, African American girl,
and she was unconscious. He felt her burning forehead.	The situation
didn't look promising.

The young girl's breathing was weak, and he couldn't detect a puff of
condensation coming from her nose, so he had to put his ear to her nose
to confirm she was still breathing. Fraser took off his dark blue
regulation
coat and wrapped it around her as he gently picked her up. "I'll take
you to the hospital_ if you can hear me.  I do know you can hear me,
but I don't know if you can answer.  If you can, it would be quite a
relief to- "

"No. No hospital." Fraser stopped, holding her tightly, but without much
strain since she was so light.

"Well_ you need to be somewhere warm."

"No hospital," She repeated.  "Promise.  No hospital." Fraser deliberated
over it for a moment, and figured it would be best to honor her wishes,
for now, at least.  

"I promise." After a few more moments Fraser decided he could just take
her to his apartment for the time being.  She needed to get warm, and
quick.	She was showing signs of hypothermia,  and it was getting worse,
already it was iffy if she would fully recover. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"There's no heat?" Fraser asked his super, sounding more like he had
just made a statement as opposed to asking a question. The super didn't
even look up at him. 

"There's no heat. The whole building's broken." He pulled his coat
tighter.
"No hot water, nothin'." He looked up at Fraser finally. "What's that?
Is she dead?" 

 "No, not yet.	She needs heat, and care."

"Can't get it here."

"I see, well, I'll have to improvise," Fraser said as he started up the
stairs. 

"Good luck."

"Thank you, kindly."

Fraser nudged open the door of his apartment and lay the girl on the
bed. He gathered up all the blankets he had to wrap her in, for he found
he could still see his breath in his apartment. "Well, if you can still
hear me, you are going to get severe hypothermia if I don't raise your
body temperature very soon, or in your slight condition, you'll definitely
never recover." Fraser took off his button down shirt. "The only way
to warm you up now is by body heat. So I hope, when you do come around,
that you won't think ill of me." Fraser draped his tunic on a chair and
pulled the suspenders off his broad shoulders, and then took off his
long sleeved white shirt. Then he took his coat from around the girl,
and took off her jacket and her oversized button-down, leaving her in
an army green tank top. Fraser pulled off his boots and crawled under
the covers. He wrapped himself around her small frame, her body cool
against his. He put his chin on top of her head and her forehead burned
hot against his neck. He could feel her body constantly shaking and her
heartbeat, faint, against his chest. 

Slowly, the heartbeat got stronger, and the shaking only in short spasms,
few and far between. The warmth under the blankets wrapped them both.
"Are you awake yet?" he asked now and again. She never responded. Fraser
began to quietly sing any song that came to mind. At long last, she
stirred,
pulling her head from against him. A sweat had popped out along Fraser's
hairline. She still wasn't awake, but moving. Fraser continued to hold
her closely. She turned her head up to him and opened her deep brown,
glassy eyes. It took her a moment to focus.

"Ssh," She said

"So you're awake now?"

"Stop singing." She whispered. She spoke like her throat hurt. "I can
feel it." She blinked up at him. She let out a slow breath and shut her
eyes again. She lay her head back down on his arm, but not against his
neck.

"Well, at least you're awake. I was afraid I might lose you."

"You never had me, how could you lose me?" She asked quietly.

"I thought you might- die."

"Oh_ we aren't in the hospital?"

"No, no you insisted I not take you to a hospital, and you were in dire
need of care. So I had no alternative but to take you into my home and
keep you warm until I was sure you would pull through."

"Good, I hate hospitals." Fraser looked down at her, eyes closed,
completely
trusting. 

"Why do you hate hospitals? They're places of healing."

"I don't believe in conventional medicine. Holistic healing, maybe."

"I too believe that natural remedies often surpass the effectiveness
of conventional means,"  Fraser said, generally happy that she was
semi-lucid.

"Hospitals make me sick."  She paused a moment. "You shouldn't have me
here. I'm sick. I don't wanna' give you what I've got."

"Oh. Well,  there wasn't much choice, as I explained to you earlier_"

"Thirsty," She whispered.

"Alright, just a minute."  Fraser pulled away from her, and pulled the
covers under her chin behind him. He went to the refrigerator and got
out a bottle of water.	Joey watched the muscles in his back tense and
relax as he walked. Not bad, not bad at all.  Waaait a minute, she
thought.
She looked under the covers to see she was mostly stripped to the waist.
"Well, I'll be damned," She said to herself.

"Here," Fraser said giving her a cup of water. She sat up a little and
took the cup. "Drink it slowly."  Joey drank it down in about two gulps.

"More," She said. He refilled it, and she drank it. "Thank you."  She
wiped her mouth while looking up into his thunderhead-blue eyes. "I'm
Joey Rice." 

"Benton Fraser."

"Benton?" She lifted an eyebrow.

"People normally just call me Fraser."	He pulled on his shirt and pulled
up his suspenders. Joey turned her attention to the dog, that sat silently
on the other side of the room, beyond the foot of the bed, watching her.
She stared into it's eyes, the way it stared into hers.  Their eyes were
about the same shade of brown, and  for a moment or two, she was lost
in the gaze, feeling as though she were having a staring contest with
the eyes in the mirror. Fraser looked between the two of them, waiting
to see who would break the stare. 

"I don't think your dog likes me."  She still stared.

"He's a wolf, actually. You aren't allergic, are you?"

"No, sir."

"I don't think he dislikes you. To a wolf, a direct stare by a stranger
is a threat, or a challenge.  But it doesn't seem he feels threatened
by you. In fact, he seems much more at ease since you've been here."
Joey shut her eyes a moment.

"Fraser?"

"Yes?"

"If I... seem really sick... swear to me you won't put me in the
hospital."

"Well it's unreasonable to be afraid of-"

"I'm not afraid. I just don't trust them."  Her eyes were still shut.
A drop of perspiration rolled off her forehead. "I don't want to be a
bother."  She swallowed hard. "I'd leave, but I can't seem to get up."

"No need to leave.  You aren't inconveniencing me in the least."

"You're Canadian, right?  I saw the jacket."

"Yes." She nodded once and smiled. Fraser rather liked her smile. He
sat down on the edge of the chest next to the bed. He put a hand on her
forehead.  "You're burning up." He got up and got a wet rag to put on
her head. As he pressed it gently onto her forehead, Diefenbaker got
up and came over.  He went to the side of the bed away from Fraser and
licked Joey's fingertips, then he lay down on the floor next to the bed.
"Diefenbaker, this is Ms. Joey Rice. Ms. Rice, that's Diefenbaker."

"Hey Dief." She reached down and gently rubbed his head. She stared up
at the ceiling for a little while. "I'm dizzy, blurry...I'm cold."  Fraser
guessed dehydration. He gave her the bottle of water to drink from.

"I'll be right back. Don't move."  

She took the bottle out of her mouth. "Can do."  Fraser put on his tunic
and buttoned it up, straightening the lanyard.	He grabbed his hat, and
was walking towards the door.  "Fraser."

"Yes?"

"Your coat.  You'll catch cold."  She placed it near her feet.

"Oh, right, yes."  He picked up his coat from the foot of the bed and
left the apartment. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ray?" Fraser touched detective Vecchio on the shoulder.  He turned
around.

"Hey Benny! What's up?"

"Ray- where can I get something to break a fever... and soothe a cough."

"You finally get sick, Fraser?	You've never been sick a day in your
life." 

"Well, that's not true... but the medicine isn't for me."

"Then go to the drugstore down the block."

"A naturalistic drugstore."  

Ray frowned. "There's one Francesca always goes to,  but it's pretty
far away." 

"Can you- no I couldn't ask you to do that."

"What?"

"Are you busy? Could you take me over there?"

"Thought you'd never ask.  This paper work was boring me stupid." 

"Thank you, Ray."

"No problem, Benny. Anything for you."

In the car, Ray drove faster than necessary in the snowy conditions.
Fraser had to keep his hand on his Stetson, which was on the dashboard
of the car, to keep it from falling onto the floor. "So, Fraser,  who's
gonna' be takin' this medicine?  Your wolf sick?" 

"I have someone in my apartment who's quite ill."

"A neighbor?"

"No.  In my particular apartment. She was in the park, nearly frozen.
I had to take her in and warm her up.  When she woke up-"

"Woke up?"

"Yes, she was unconscious when I found her, Ray."  Fraser looked over
at him. 

"Oh, of course."

"So, I brought her inside and warmed her until she woke up. Now it seems
she has quite a fever and quite a cough, from what I understand."

"Uh-huh. So you need a fever reducer and cough medicine."

"Yes, Ray."

"We could get that at any drugstore.  And we're not because..."

"She doesn't trust conventional medicine. Only natural remedies." 

"Well tell her she's gonna' have to deal with it."

"We should humor her in some regard, Ray."

"Yeah, yeah.  So wait. When she woke up in a stranger's apartment, she
didn't flip out or anything?" Fraser frowned and thought a moment.

"From what I recall,  she first asked me to stop singing. It felt strange
to her." 

"It felt strange."

"I imagine that with her body against mine, whenever I spoke, or sang
in this case, it reverberated on hers-"

Ray's mouth was open in amazement. "Your body was where?!"

"I have no heat in my apartment, Ray. I had to warm her with body heat.
It's quite a normal practice-"

"In the arctic tundra!"

"Well it was the only way in this case."

"I bet." Fraser looked at him. "Here it is."  They were in front of an
inauspicious  shop. The two of them got out and went inside.

Ray went up and down the aisles picking out this and that and tossing
it at Fraser. He caught each one. "That should do it," Ray said. Fraser
walked up and put the items on the counter. The woman behind the counter
smiled at him.

"This'll be all?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Who's sick?  Certainly not a gorgeous husky man like yourself."  Fraser
blinked. Ray make an obvious sound of humorous disgust.

"Uh, no. It isn't me, it's a young lady I found nearly frozen in a park
nearby to my apartment. She's quite sick, and her fever has the potential
to do her some permanent physical damage. The heat in my apartment is
off_"  He looked at her rather disinterested face as she leaned on the
counter top. "I- I figured I was obliged to do something." 

"Uh-huh." She started ringing up the items, looking up at him now and
again with her big blue eyes. "You know, you could come to my place,
and keep me warm.  My heat's off too, you know."

"No, I was unaware of that."  Fraser paid for the items and took the
bag from the woman. "Thank you, kindly." He tipped the brim of his Stetson
and smiled. "Ray-" 

"Over here." He waited next to the door. Ray chuckled and opened the
door for him.  "After you."

"Thank you, Ray."  Fraser said as he walked pat him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Thank you so much for your help, Ray."

"No problem." Fraser got out of the car, his boots crunching on the snow
beneath them. "Do you want to come inside? I don't have any heat_ or
even hot water but-" 

"A tempting offer, but I'll pass."

"Alright. See you later, Ray."	He pulled away, onto the slushy road.
Fraser walked into his apartment building. He tipped his hat to his
neighbors
as he passed.  He walked down the hall to his apartment, 3J, and went
inside.  

Joey wasn't in bed. Diefenbaker whimpered at him from the far wall. 
Fraser walked around the bed and looked down.  She was in the corner,
curled up in a ball, Diefenbaker in close contact with her.  She was
shivering, holding her head. She wasn't sweating anymore, which could
be a sign that she was quite dehydrated. Fraser knelt next to her. When
he touched her shoulder she lifted her head and opened her eyes slightly.
"I'm so cold, Fraser." Her eyes were unfocused. "And I feel numb."

"Okay." He picked her up and put her back on the bed. He pulled the covers
up to her chin.

"Fraser, I'm gonna' die."

"You aren't going to die." He was looking in the bag of items he bought.

"Fraser,  I get sick a lot." 

"That so?"

"Yeah. I get sick a lot, and it's almost always bad_I always end up in
the hospital_ and that's why I hate hospitals so much. I always get an
IV in my hand, doctors squeezing me, nurses poking at me and always
cooing.
I'm 18 years old for cryin' out loud."	She didn't look 18, perhaps 14.
She was simply talking now. She probably had no idea what she was saying.
Fraser read the label on the bottle he held in his hand. He poured out
two tablets. 

"Take these."

"I don't trust pills."	She looked up into Fraser's placid, none other
than beautiful face, then at the pills he held out to her. She let out
a slow breath and took the pills from him. She downed them without water.

"You shouldn't talk, Joey.  Your voice is nearly gone already."

"I know,  but if I don't talk, I might fall asleep, and if I sleep-"
she stopped. 

"You're afraid you might not wake up?"

"More afraid I'll wake up in a hospital."  Fraser nodded.

"Just lie still."  Fraser went to the window and propped it open. 

"Won't you get cold with the window open?"  She whispered.

"No.  I tend to keep it open. It helps me to feel more_ at home." He
took off his hat and his coat, and tunic.

"Oh God. Fraser?"

"Yes ma'am?"

"I feel a cough coming on." Fraser looked at her in question. "Last time
I coughed, I couldn't stop_" her sentence cut off by the first spasm.
As she said, she couldn't seem to stop. She balled up, holding her stomach
and struggling for breath. Fraser lifted her upright by the shoulders.

"You need to straighten up, Joey." She was out of breath. Her chest had
constricted, and was all together painful. She felt light headed again,
and she was near panic. But the calm, steady voice of her fair eyed savior
knifed through the barrier of fear. "Hold your hands above your head."
She did so.  Fraser pulled her to her feet, standing behind her. He stood
head and shoulders above the top of her head. He used his feet to spread
her feet a steady distance apart,  then he held her arms, by the wrists,
at right angles to her body.  He bent his knees to get his mouth near
her ear.  She still wasn't breathing,  and soon she'd loose consciousness.
"Now relax. Don't think about being sick.  Don't think about coughing,
or any events of the day.  Just close your eyes and feel your heartbeat."
Fraser looked at Diefenbaker, who watched them with his head cocked to
the side. "Feel the cold air form the window?"	She reclined against
him a little and nodded slightly. "Good.  Your breath is just like the
wind. It flows easy, and nothing can impede it's intended path." Fraser
felt her take a small, labored breath. "The wind is stronger than any
illness, stronger than any remedy, even."  She took another breath, a
bit easier this time. "Good. You'll be alright." She took a few more
breaths,  leaning back into his chest.	She dropped her head in relief,
then pulled away from him and stumbled to the window sill. She leaned
on it, put her forehead against the glass, and took deep breaths of the
cold air.  The window fogged up around where her forehead touched the
glass.	Diefenbaker sat down with his body resting against her leg. 

"Always sick."	She said to herself, almost too softly for Fraser to
hear. 

"You're okay now?"  He rocked on his heels slightly.

"I'm alright.  You're good at that, the wind thing, I mean."

"It's an old ritual."  He turned from her and went to the stove.  "I
want to make you some tea, for your illness, it'll make you well faster."

"Echinasea?"

"Yes, how did you know?"

"I guessed."  Her voice was still extremely weak, hardly more than a
harsh whisper.	The water on to boil, he came back over and sat beneath
Joey, patting Dief on the head. 

"So, you say you get sick often. Do you have any idea why?"

"No." She said, still looking out at the snow, and not at him. "No, and
the doctors never find out what's wrong with me, I always just somehow
fight it off."	She looked down at him.  "I have a normal immune system,
and all, but they still don't get how I can get so sick so often." 

"I see."

Joey looked at, in, through his eyes that were clear and conveyed great
competence, knowledge and sincerity.  His close cropped hair was very
neat, and a requirement of his job, she assumed.  "I have scars."  She
held out her hands to him, and he took them. He looked at the symmetrical
scars on both the left and right hands.  "I pull them out.  The IVs,
I mean. That's how I get them." 

"Do you get sick around the same time every year?"

"No."  She smiled, "It's kinda' funny.	It's like I'm allergic to my
stepfather; every time he comes over, I get sick really soon after he
leaves.  He always comes in the summer, then in the winter."  Diefenbaker
whined, and Joey took her hands away to preoccupy them with ruffling
and reruffling the hair on the wolf's head and neck. 

"Your tea should be ready."  He smiled up at her, and went over to the
see how the tea was coming along.  Fraser was now mulling over what he
had in his head.  She was often sick, but she didn't seem to be a sickly
girl by any means.  In fact, judging by the muscle to fat ratio on her
body, he would assume that she was rather athletic, and shouldn't be
prone to illness.  Perhaps it was the drastic temperatures of summer
and winter that made her sick.	Maybe it was coincidence, maybe it wasn't.
"What is your stepfather's name?"

"Caine."

"Caine Rice?"

"No, Caine Duvall."  

Fraser nodded as he picked up his coat and his Stetson.  "Dief." He turned
to face the dog, but Dief wasn't facing him.

"He doesn't come when you call him?"

"He's deaf, actually, and he's facing the wrong way."  Joey reached down
and turned the dog's head to Fraser.  "Stay here with Ms. Rice." 
Diefenbaker
turned and looked up at Joey, as thought to make sure she'd stay put.
"I'll be back."

"When?"  Fraser turned his eyes up to the ceiling in thought, one arm
in his coat. 

"Before tomorrow."  He smiled.

"He reads lips, hunh?"

Fraser nodded.	"Completely self taught."  He then disappeared through
the doorway, shutting the door behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fraser trudged through the nearly knee high snow to the police station.
On the streets the snow was mostly brown and slushy, but on the sidewalks
it was as white as it was at home, in the territories.	He didn't at
all mind the walk, in fact, he enjoyed it.  The station was unusually
unpopulated. The blizzard outside deterred crime, and commerce, for that
matter.  He made his way all the way to the back of the station, near
the Lieutenant's office.  "Hey Fraser!"  Ray said as he caught sight
of him approaching his desk.  "Why're you still in your uniform?"

"Because, Ray, the person I told you about is wrapped in most of the
other clothes I own." 

"Really?"  

"Ray, I need your help.  I'm looking for a Mr. Caine Duvall."

"What'd he do?	Litter on the Consular grounds?  Jaywalk on Stetson
Avenue?"

"No, he's the stepfather of the young lady in my apartment."

"Doesn't sound like police work to me."

"I have a feeling_ I have a feeling it could be."  Ray got up from behind
his desk and accompanied Fraser to Elaine's desk.

"Hi, Fraser."

"Hello, Elaine."  He smiled down at her. "Is there anything in the
computer
about a one Caine Duvall?" 

"Just a second."  Her deft fingers played across the keypad. "Um, Duvall,
Caine_ with an `E'?"  She looked up at him.

"Yes, I believe so."  She pressed `enter'.

"Well,	he's got petty theft and tax fraud under his belt."

"What is it he stole?"

"Well it says that he was caught stealing things from Chemisphere.  I
don't know what that is."  Fraser nodded.

"Ray?"	Fraser looked back at him.

"What?	I don't know what it is."  Fraser turned back to Elaine and looked
at the computer screen. He leaned down in order to see better, putting
his face in close proximity to Elaine's. 

"It could be hospital,	or a research lab,"  He mused, staring at the
screen as though some new information would appear as long as he watched
long enough.

"Could be,"  Elaine said, softly.

"Maybe it makes supplies.  It could be-"

"Dinner,"  Elaine blurted out. "We- you know- dinner." Fraser turned
to her, they were nearly nose to nose.

"Dinner?"  He asked. His gray eyes searched Elaine's as they seemed to
question, then ponder. "No, I don't think it sounds like a diner, or
makes supplies for such an establishment.  It sounds more medical." 

Elaine didn't move, holding the stare a little longer until she was sure
he didn't know any better. "Yeah," she finally blinked and shook her
head. "Yeah, you're right, definitely more medical." 

Ray cleared his throat. "Task at hand, people."  Fraser smiled slightly,
then went back to looking at the screen, memorizing the face. Dark eyes,
dark hair, light skin, very pale complexion, in sharp contrast to his
dark features, well kempt mustache and goatee.

"What'd he do?"  Ray asked again.

"I'm not entirely sure if he did do anything.  I may have to ask Joey
a few more questions." 

"Who's Joey?"  Elaine asked.

"That's a woman he's got in his apartment," Ray said.  "He had to warm
her with body heat earlier today."  Ray's green eyes laughed at the pure
innocence with which the act had been performed, and how different it
sounded when it rolled off of the lips.

"Oh."  Elaine looked quite disappointed. "I see."

"Yes.  It seemed she had hypothermia, and that was the only option I
had,"  Fraser stated. 

"What about taking her to the hospital?"  She asked.

"It seemed that she didn't-"

"Know what Fraser?"  Ray said. "I think we're boring Elaine, and we need
to get Joey in here for some questions."

"Ah.  I see."  Fraser tipped his hat to Elaine. "Thank you, kindly for
your help."  He exited with Elaine's eyes following him. "Ray?" He said
just before he left the station. "I do have to bring her here, don't
I?  For the statement?	I'm simply not entirely sure she should be out
of bed, and I'm reluctant to-" 

"Bring her in here.  I can drive the two of you, if you like."

"I don't want to put you out of your way, but it would be most helpful
if you could drive her." 

They started out into the snow, towards Ray's car. "Sure.  I'd like to
meet her anyway.  It'll give me time to talk to her before we meet on
business.  I don't make good first impressions when I'm working." 

"I first met you when you were working." Fraser said taking his hat off
and laying it on the roof of the car while Ray unlocked the doors.  He
looked up at the steely sky and watched the pieces of heaven floating
down to the earth.  A few flakes stuck in his eyelashes, and he blinked
them away.  He got into the car, placing his Stetson on the dash board.

"Yeah, and I bet you hated me then."

"Well, Ray, hate is such a strong word."  Fraser looked over at him as
he pulled into the street.  "But if I were to use my experience as an
indicator of the impressions you make while working..." Ray looked over
at him a moment, "I'm glad you're going to meet her in an unofficial
capacity first."  Ray looked back at the street in front of him and shook
his head.  "I think you two will get along fine." 

"Let's hope so."  The two men sat in silence the rest of the way to
Fraser's
apartment. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Joey?"  Fraser said gently as he pushed through the doorway.  The room
was empty, she wasn't there, and neither was Diefenbaker. 

"So where's the lady?"	Fraser frowned, then cocked his head to the side,
listening. "What?  What is it?"

"It's Diefenbaker."  He turned and stuck his head out into the hallway
and listened again.  "She's coming."  Joey staggered down the hallway,
her left hand skimming the wall all the way down for balance.  She was
dressed in layer upon layer of clothing and was wrapped in Fraser's quilt.
She wasn't walking perfectly upright, but a little slumped over. 

"That was some damn good tea,"	Joey said looking up at Fraser a moment.
"Both times."

"Ms. Rice, this is detective Raymond Vecchio of the Chicago Police
Department."

"Nice to meet you,"  She rasped, and managed to smile at him.

"You too,"  Ray said.

"Joey, we need to take you to the station in order for Ray to ask you
a few questions." 

"What kind of questions?"  She went back into Fraser's apartment and
lie down on the bed.

"About you stepfather."

"Oh no.  I don't talk about him.  He isn't worth the breath,"  She
whispered,
trying not to strain her voice.

"What?	What'd she say?" Ray asked.

"She said she doesn't want to talk about her stepfather."

"Tell her she has to.  Tell her-"

Then Joey said, as loud as she could, "Hey, you can't hear me, not the
other way around." Then, more quietly, she added,  "Jackass."

"What'd she say?"

"Uh_ it's not important."  Ray squinted at the two of them. "Joey, please.
I have an idea, and I can only explore that idea if you come down to
the station and help me."  Joey lay motionless on the bed and was silent
a few moments.

"Are you always so eloquent?"  She asked. "I mean, from what I know of
you, you're very_ very_"

"Very Canadian."  Ray finished. 

Joey's eyes shifted to Ray.  "Yeah."  She looked over at Fraser.  "Well,
for you, and only for you, I will answer any and all questions proposed
by the boys in blue."  She motioned Fraser closer, and he leaned in,
as though she was going to tell him a secret.  "Including this bozo."
She motioned with her head to Ray.

"Oh," he whispered, "he just makes bad first impressions."  Joey nodded
slightly in understanding.  "So, we can go, then?  Ray will drive us."

"Can we walk?  I mean, I'd like the cool and I like snow, and I'd really
just like to walk.  I don't mean to be rude to- to-"

"Ray,"	Ray said.

"Yeah, Ray.  I don't mean to be rude, or anything."

"I'm sure he understands.  I often like to walk as opposed to any other
means to where I need to go.  We can walk."  Fraser stood up straight
and went over to Ray.  "Well, it's settled.  She will come down to the
station to answer any questions, but she really wants to walk as opposed
to driving."

"You think she can walk that far?"

"I don't think she'll change her mind come, excuse the language, hell
or high water."  He looked over at her as she looked around the room,
presumably for her shoes. 

"She's a headstrong one, is she?"

Fraser looked back at Ray.  "Yes, quite."   Fraser picked up her shoes
from next to the doorjamb.  "Ms. Rice, your shoes are right here."  He
approached the bed. "I took the liberty of stuffing them with newspaper
to help dry them out.  I'm not entirely sure they've dried in such a
short time, but-"

"I'm sure they're fine."  She took them from him and began pulling out
the paper.  "I'll be ready in a few minutes... if you gentlemen would
step into the hall." 

"Oh, yes, certainly."  Fraser said.

"Thank you, kindly."  She said, smiling as Fraser shut the door behind
them. 

 Ray laughed.  "Did you teach her that?  That's cute."	Fraser looked
blankly at him a few seconds.

"No."  

Joey appeared a few moment later.  "Let's go."	She said, and the three
of them started down the stairs.  Once on the street, Ray got into his
car and Fraser escorted Joey down the snowy streets.  Diefenbaker followed
behind them, in their tracks.  The snow had begun to fall steadily again.

"It's so nice out here."  Joey said to Fraser, once Ray had sped off.

"It is." 

"I love the snow, you know?  Too many people around here are going to
fast to look around and enjoy it."

"I understand."  He reached out to help steady her, but she refused to
let him help her. 

"I guess sometimes it's good to be 18, I mean on that borderline between
being a child and being an adult; I don't have to act grown up all the
time, and I can still stop and do childish things like smell the air
in spring, and pick up a feather I see on the sidewalk, and just stand
outside and look up at the snow as it falls down on me."  She looked
over at Fraser as he looked forward, eyes the same color of the sky above
them.  "You belong here." 

"Pardon?"

"You look like you belong here... in the snow.	It's like the outside,
here, is inside, there, in your eyes.  You and Diefenbaker too.  Do you
miss the snow?	You have a lot of snow where you come from, is that
right?"

"Yes.  There is always snow in the Territories."

"And, do you miss it?"	

Fraser was quiet a few moments, and he looked down at his boots as they
crushed the snow in front of him.  The flakes danced in the wind around
him, and Diefenbaker bounded through the snow next to him for a few steps.
"Every second."  Joey lost her balance and fell down into a snow bank.

"That's horrible, Fraser."

"Are you alright?"  He reached down to try to help her up.  He removed
his right glove and felt her forehead.

"I can't walk anymore.	My knees are shaking... can I just sit here a
moment?" 

"You'll get too cold."	Fraser was worried she was regressing, the fever
was undoubtedly back, and she was again beginning to babble. 

"Go back."

"Did you leave something in the apartment?"

"No, go back to your home.  Go back to your snow and your house and your
country of big evergreen trees and smooth gray skies.  Take your wolf
to where he can run around, and not be in an apartment all day... go
to where you don't have to be inside all day.  You belong outside, in
the wild. You're a wild animal, like him."  She pat Dief on the head
as he licked her cheek.  Fraser knelt in the snow next to her, trying
to coax her to stand up.  She could see that he wasn't getting at all
annoyed with her, but spoke in soft, calm tones, though she knew he must
be getting agitated.

"Please, Joey.	You need to get up out of the snow before you catch a
chill and make matters worse.  Perhaps I should just take you back and
tuck in." 

"No, no we're going to the police station, remember?  Do you ever get
angry?	Do you ever get annoyed?"

"I do, sometimes."

"But you don't ever show it.  You're a strong silent type_ like a Taurus."

"A Taurus?"

"The sign, after Aries.  Late April, early May."

"Yes, that's correct.  April 24th.  Now come on, stand up."  Joey took
his hand and he helped her to her feet.  She dusted off.

"Off to the station.  That's it, right?"  She pointed about two blocks
ahead of them. 

"Yes.  Can you make it that far?"

"If it kills me."  Fraser didn't at all like that choice of words, but
he tried not to show that.  For some reason, he felt that she knew anyway,
like she could see through him like not many people could.  He felt that
all people were born with an ability to sense how other people felt,
but it was often obscured by what life brings to a person.  Age wears
away at it, and it's hard to hold on to.  Joey seemed to have done a
good job at holding onto it thus far.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Okay, Fraser, you can put her in room one, and I'll be there in a few
minutes."  Fraser nodded.

"You should probably eat something,"  Fraser said to her.  "I'll bring
you something.	Perhaps Elaine can take you to the room."

"Who's Elaine?"  Fraser brought her into the squad room.

"Hey, Fras."  Elaine said, walking up to him.

"Ah, good afternoon, Elaine.  This is Ms. Rice.  I was talking about
her earlier." 

"Oh."  She said, looking relieved. "Nice to meet you."	She shifted the
files in her hands to be able to shake Joey's hand.  "So, are you going
to help in her case?"  Elaine asked Fraser.  He removed his Stetson.

"If there is a case, yes."

"You know, when I said dinner earlier?"

"Yes."

"Well-"

"Fraser, come on, I'm ready.  I got the kid a sandwich,"  Ray called.

"I'm not a kid,"  Joey mumbled.

"Alright Ray.  Good-bye Elaine.  Perhaps we can talk more later."  

"Uh_ yeah, later."  Fraser turned and walked away, Joey followed him,
looking back at Elaine a few times.

"She likes you," Joey said.

"Who, Elaine?"	His voice rose sharply at the end in question.	Joey
nodded slowly.	"Oh. No, Elaine and I have a purely professional
relationship."

"Maybe, one day, you should ask her."  Joey smirked and continued on
into the room she had seen Ray disappear into a few moments ago.  

Fraser stopped short and looked back into the squad room, then down at
the hat he held in his hands.  He nodded in validation to himself. 
"Maybe."

"Okay, Miss Rice, what's your step father's name?"  Ray asked.

"Caine Duvall."

"This is a file photo of him, correct?"

She leaned forward and squinted at the image.  "That's him."

"What's he do for a living?"

"I think he's unemployed."

"What was his job before he was unemployed?"

"Some glorified janitor."

"What?"

"Like, an orderly, but not really because he didn't work in a hospital."

"Where did he work."

"He'd never say_ Chemi-something.  I don't know what went on there, or
anything." 

"There's nothing of the establishment on record."

"It wasn't a place that was easily accessible, or even easily seen. 
It may have been a private thing."  She motioned Ray close as she leaned
forward and looked both ways as though confirming that no one she didn't
know was listening in.	"Or it's a government thing.  They do all kinds
a crazy shit no body should know about or be doing,"  she whispered,
then sat back in the chair.  "Think about it."

Ray smiled at her.  "Any idea where it was, or is?"

"Umm_ downtown?"

"And your stepfather.  He isn't living at the listed address.  Any idea
where he is?" 

"Yeah.	I'll write it down for you."

"Hold on, I'll get some paper."  He disappeared from the room a moment.
Fraser stood against the mirrored wall.

"Do any suspects just assume that mirror's there for aesthetic purposes?"
She asked him. 

"I'm not sure.	How's your sandwich?"  She had taken only one bite out
of it. 

"Not good enough to taste twice."  Ray returned with the paper, and Joey
wrote down the address.

"C'mon, Fras, let's go.  Elaine!"

"Woah, hey.  Don't need to yell.  Right here."	She appeared in the
doorway.

"Take Joey.  Let her lie down in a cell till we get back, alright?  Keep
an eye on her." 

Joey groaned and pushed the sandwich away from her.  "Where's your
bathroom?"
Elaine pointed, and Joey ran out of the interrogation room.

"You guys owe me for this."  Elaine looked up at the two of them. 

"Of course,"  Fraser said.

"And I bet you can't wait to get him alone so he can repay the favor,"
Ray said, smiling and sliding out the door.  Elaine glared at him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ray pounded the apartment door.  "Police, open up."  The man from the
file photo opened the door.

"Yeah?"

"You Caine Duvall?"

"Yeah, what's it to you?"

"Came to ask you some questions, can we come in?"

"Who's he?" He pointed to Fraser.

"That's a mountie."

"Constable Ben-"

"Not now, Fraser." Ray pushed past Duvall.  "Have a seat, Caine, relax."
He sat down.  "You used to work at a place named Chemisphere, right?"

"Yeah."

"Why don't you work there now?"

"I quit."

"You know, lying to a police officer is quite a punishable offense. 
With your small, but still significant record-"  Fraser began.

"Alright, I was fired."

"What for?"  Ray asked.

"I dunno... someone was stealing stuff .  Just because of that record
you mentioned, they assumed it was me."

"And it wasn't you?"  Fraser asked.

"No!  Why would I steal from that place?"

"What kinda' place is this?"

"Was.  It's defunct."

"Alright, what kinda' place was it?"

"It was a pharmaceutical place.  Very cutting edge."

"And where was it."

"Downtown, I can't really remember exactly where... it didn't have a
street sign or anything like that, but you could see the lake from one
side.  It caught fire not too long  ago, so I guess if you look for the
burnt out warehouse looking thing near Wabash, that's it."

"Alright."  Ray turned and walked out through the still open apartment
door. 

"Thank you, kindly for your time,"  Fraser said and followed Ray out,
shutting the door behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"This is it."  Ray said, stopping the car in front of a burnt out looking
building just off of Wabash and overlooking the Lake on one face.  It
was a short structure hiding among the high-rises all around it.  It
was a small wonder they'd never noticed it before. "Let's check it out."

The inside of the building still smelled of the fire that had eaten it's
insides.  In the waning light of day, the walls seemed to be alive with
intense shadows. There were only three floors to this structure, and
the top two little more than balconies all the way around.  They were
visible from the ground floor, and looked like they had held nothing
more than rows and rows of file cabinets.  The charred remains of tables
and chairs lay on the bottom floor and old refrigerators lined the walls.
"So, should we check the files?"  Ray asked Fraser.

"Yes, we certainly should."  Fraser began to climb the rickety staircase,
Ray behind him.  He ascended to the third tier, and Ray remained on the
second.  The files inside the cabinets were surprisingly well preserved,
but contained little more than scientific notes on strains of viruses,
and types of illnesses, and what they'd done to try to contain and destroy
them.  "Ray."

"Yeah, Fraser," he called up.

"I found the security files... fills an entire row of cabinets up here."
Ray responded by carefully climbing the stairs and helping him sort
through
the files.  They'd been thoroughly scrambled.  "There's a method to
everyone's
madness,"  Fraser said, more to himself than to Ray.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, there has to be a system to throw this off so drastically. 
If I'm right, and there's security information and clearance on everyone,
then Mr. Duvall's file should be right over..."  Fraser counted down
twelve cabinets, "here."  He pulled open the bottom drawer and removed
the second file back under "X".  It was the file they were looking for.

"How the hell did you do that?"

"First you take 32 and divide it by- never mind."  They sifted through
the information and found the paper stamped TERMINATED.  They read the
file carefully, straining to make out the small print in the inadequate
lighting.

"Oh my God,"  Ray said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Elaine, I need a warrant to break down Caine Duvall's door."

"What?	What's going on?"  Joey demanded from her position, lying down
on a bench next to the entrance to the squad room.

"Since when did you get warrants?"

"The mountie needs to go by the books."

"Fraser, what's doin'?"  Joey sat up.

"Your stepdad's in deep, that's what,"	Ray called to her.  "I want you
to stay here and don't move, okay?  You don't want to see this."

"What??  I've been dyin' to see that bastard carted off for years.  I'm
going." 

"Perhaps you should heed detective Vecchio's warnings."  Fraser knelt
down next to her, and noticed that Diefenbaker was lying quietly beneath
the bench.  "I don't think you should see this."  Joey looked at him
in understanding and incomprehension at once. 

"I see.  You're trying to protect me.  I understand.  But believe me,
I've had to grow up fast, and I've seen some nasty things in the time
I've had here on earth.  You've got this paternal instinct thing... I
saw it when you first looked at me, when I was conscious, that is, and
I appreciate it.  But all fathers need to find a moment when they let
go and let their kids grow up.	Well, you need to let me see the one
person in the world I needed to have those paternal instincts towards
me, but didn't, get what they deserve." 

"But you don't deserve what you were handed.  I suppose I'm trying to
keep you from realizing-"

"C'mon Fraser.	Warrant or no warrant, I'm going to break that man's
skull." 

"That's quite probable, Ray."  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Duvall!  Police!  Open up."

"This is so cool,"  Joey whispered, looking from behind Fraser at Ray,
poised with his gun unholstered and ready.

"No answer."  Ray and Fraser stepped back and kicked the door open. 
The apartment was empty, the window open, letting cool brisk air into
the room.  Fraser wasn't able to identify the smell the first time he'd
come into the apartment, but now he recognized it. 

"He could never get rid of that hospital smell,"  Joey said, and
shuddered.
Fraser ran over to the window and looked out.  Three stories down, Duvall
was dropping into the alleyway.  "Ray, the alley."

"Right."  He disappeared.

"Joey, go back to the car."  Fraser pulled open Duvall's freezer door
once Joey had left and saw the dozens upon dozens of vials stored inside.
He shook his head and slammed the door shut.  He jumped out through the
window and began down the fire escape, jumping over the side railing
at the first floor.  He ran across rooftops and fire escapes, above the
alleyway, the way he'd seen Duvall go.	Fraser could hear him breathing,
laboring for the breaths of cold air that sliced at the lungs each time.
To his left, Diefenbaker growled and he knew Duvall was there.	Fraser
came upon Dief a moment later, Duvall was nowhere to be seen but he was
down there, alright, he could hear his thundering heartbeat.  Then he
saw him,  looking cautiously around the corner for anyone coming up on
him and Diefenbaker growled and barked at him.

"Ssh, ssh, doggy.  Nice dog," Duvall whispered.  Fraser jumped from the
rooftop, knocking Duvall hard into the pavement.  He stood up pulling
Duvall up by the collar then gripping him by the front of the shirt,
lifting him to his 6 foot height, while Duvall was only 5'9".  Only his
toes scraped the frozen ground.

"I don't usually get personally attached to the people I bring in.  But
you... you I am sorely tempted to deal with my self,"  Fraser said through
grit teeth, his breath pluming out in short burst.  He set Duvall back
on the ground but still gripped his shirt.  "And he's a wolf."

"O-okay."

"Do you want a chance to explain yourself?"

"Hey, I want a lawyer before I say anything to any cops."

"Not to me.  To her."  Joey, realizing that she'd been detected, though
she'd tried to be inconspicuous, stepped into view.

"Joey, honey," Duvall said.

"What'd you do, Caine?"

"I'm sorry, honey.  I'm so sorry."  Fraser let go of Duvall and pushed
him Joey's direction.

"What'd you do, Goddammit."  He winced at the scratchy and painful sound
of her voice. 

"I- I can't."  He looked back at Fraser.  "I can't,"  He said again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Caine Duvall.	Insurance fraud."  Ray said, while Fraser typed it into
the computer.  He shook his head and looked over at Joey, who sat wrapped
in a blanket on the other side of the room, trying to take it all in,
process it all. "Explain this to me again, Fraser." 

"Mr. Duvall used to work for Chemisphere, a `cutting edge' pharmaceutical
company.  He started stealing supplies... the diseases themselves, just
small amounts.	He started infecting Joey with them while she was a minor
and under his care, so she would go to the hospital, and he'd collect
insurance.  No cure meant longer stays, and longer stays meant more
money."
Fraser looked at her, she was absently petting Diefenbaker, looking
through
interrogation room one's window to see Caine being asked questions. 

"He intentionally put her life at risk for money?  Is he insane?" 

"Could be.  Or desperate.  Desperate men go to desperate measures." 

"Not that desperate,"  Ray said, looking at her too.  Francesca, Ray's
sister walked in through the squad room door.

"What're we all looking at?"  Neither of them responded.  "Anyway, Ray,
you have to baby-sit Louisa on Friday because I have a day at the spa
scheduled." 

He turned and looked up at her.  "And you came all the way down here
to tell me that?  You could've just called."  Francesca wasn't looking
at him, but intently watching Fraser as he resumed typing on the computer.

"Yes, but, phone calls are so-"  She sat on the edge of the desk and
stretched her upper body out, seductively, propping herself up with one
arm.  "Impersonal. Hey, Fras." 

He looked up and blinked a couple times, as though surprised to see her,
though mostly because of how she was looking at him, draped there on
the desk in front of him. "Francesca."	He smiled slightly.

"Do you agree?	About phone calls?"  She asked, smiling.

"Bye, Franny,"	Ray said, getting up and escorting her out of the squad
room.  Joey was smiling at him from across the room. She likes you. She
mouthed to him.  Fraser frowned and shook his head a little. Ask her.
Fraser blinked a couple times and pondered it a moment.  "Huh," he said
to himself. "Maybe." 

--END--
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