@hispartner  //  every breath you take sends you further back. Â
   heâs safe now.  his mindâs telling him otherwise, still caught so deeply in the bloodbath heâd just walked out of, but the flashing lights of the police cars and the paramedics tending to Emily and Shelby  ( heâd insisted they be taken care of first )  help cement the reality that, yes, heâs safe and sound.  there wonât be any more blood spilled tonight, his or otherwise. Â
   his abdomen is still throbbing from the incision, the key that has yet to be removed, and post-surgical stitches, but his other injuries have been banished from the forefront of his mind.  right now, they donât seem that important, even the bones beneath his palm that have splintered from the metal rod heâd willingly forced through them, or the hand-sized patch of skin thatâs been scalded from his neck.  itâs only when the young agent before him repeats his name that he glances up, taking a sharp inhale as he jolts back to reality. Â
    â iâ  iâm sorry.  i didnât  ââ  wasnât listening. â
   sheâs never been good at this; being on the scene, surrounded by bodies being wheeled out in bags and the smell of blood and sweat permeating the air. sheâs been at it for five years, and as much as sheâd like to be, sheâs still not immune to it all. especially when she has to handle it on her own and without the strong stoicism that sheâs used to having by her side.Â
   itâs a lost feeling -- standing in the middle of it all and wondering where to start and what to observe. itâs been some time since sheâs been on the job again after the incident that had immortalized itself in the scars on her face and neck. itâs good to be back, but itâs almost as if sheâs new to the job again. itâs her first time back on her feet.Â
   focus. brown eyes observe the man in front of her, shaken, burnt, and bleeding. William Easton is gone, and Lindsey canât blame him for trying to escape reality at a time like this -- after all that heâs gone through.Â
   â no, itâs alright, take your time, â itâs a gentle urge, â Special Agent Lindsey Perez... is there anything i can get for you--? â