SVS-18: Return to Clayton Falls by Ceares

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Blair watched the familiar terrain pass by and thought about how different his last trip here had been. That time he'd been trapped in the car with Simon. While he had listened to the Captain enthuse about surprising Jim by snagging the biggest fish out from under his nose, Blair's thoughts had been on whether or not his partner was getting tired of having him around.
Now he looked over at Jim, whose brow was furrowed in silent contemplation of... whatever. That same look of concentration had been on his face when they'd made love last night. A small, contented sigh slipped out of Blair with an accompanying smile. Any questions Blair had about whether or not he was still wanted were definitely gone. More than wanted, he was loved. The last few days had only reminded him of what a precious gift that was.
Sentinel ears picked up on the nearly silent sound, and Jim glanced over at his passenger, his own mouth tilting into a half smile. "What's up, Chief?"
Blair shook his head. "Nothing, man, just thinking how much better the perks are now that we're lovers." At his Sentinel's confused look, Blair grinned and made a general gesture out the window. "I finally get to find out where the secret fishing hole is."
Jim shook his head in exasperation, reaching over and yanking lightly on the soft curls. "Don't get too cocky, Junior. I'm blindfolding you once we get out of town." Jim reveled in the return of their familiar banter. Blair's renewed guilt and grief over Janet Myers had kept him unusually solemn since they'd left Ted's lodge.
"What! Come on, man, you can trust me."
"I don't know, Chief. Simon is your boss now. He could order you to give him the location."
Blair looked thoughtful for a moment, then grinned mischievously. "Yeah, but since when have I followed orders?"
"Well, there is that."
They passed the sign for Clayton Falls and Jim took the turnoff.
"Hey, I thought we were going straight through?"
"I want to stop in and see Linda."
Blair remembered the pretty vet who'd helped them out. "Oh, Linda. Should I be jealous?"
Jim glanced over at his lover with a smirk. "Definitely, Chief. She makes fantastic chili."
Blair punched him in the arm indignantly. "Nobody's chili is better than mine. Just ask Joel."
Jim continued, ignoring Blair, a blissful expression on his face. "She uses shredded cheddar, sour cream, and real meat."
"I use all that."
"No Sandburg, you use fat free cheese, cottage cheese, and some bird that sticks its head in the sand."
"You know, ostriches don't really bury their heads in the sand. They're looking for water."
"I don't care if they're looking for gold, Marlin Perkins. I still like to indulge in a little dead cow now and then."
He ignored the disgusted face Blair made at his choice of imagery as he pulled the truck into the gas station.
Sam, the owner, came out, a broad grin lighting his face. "Hey! Jimbo! Welcome back."
Blair looked over at his partner, mouthing "Jimbo" with a smirk, and getting a middle-finger salute in return.
Jim got out of the truck and walked over, shaking the older man's hand.
"I don't have to ask what brings you back up this way."
Jim grinned. "Best fishing in the Northwest."
Sam reached through the window and shook Blair's hand. "Mr. Sandburg, glad you decided to give us a second chance."
Blair nodded, smiling. "No offense, but I brought my own water this time."
Sam chuckled. "Can't say as I blame you."
They heard a door slam, and all three men turned to look as a very pregnant woman waddled her way towards them, a cooler in her hands. As she got closer, Blair recognized her as the waitress from the cafe.
Sam hurried over and took the cooler. "Jackie, you shouldn't be carrying this. What was Pete thinking?"
"Oh hush, Sam, Pete keeps me stationary as it is. My back was starting to hurt from sitting propped up in that chair. Doc told me to get some exercise anyway."
She grinned, one hand moving to the base of her spine, unconsciously massaging the area slightly. "Jim, it's good to see you back."
"Hey, Jackie." His eyes lit with genuine pleasure. "You look about ready to go there."
"Yeah, only another five or six weeks and I can see my feet again."
Watching the scene in front of him, Blair realized his partner had become very attached to the townspeople in his brief time with them.
"...so, I thought I'd stop by and see Linda on the way up to the cabin."
Sam shook his head regretfully. "Doc's not here. She headed down to San Francisco for the weekend."
"Damn. Well, maybe she'll be back before we head back to Cascade."
Jackie nodded, "I know she'd hate to miss you. By the way, everybody loved that recipe for ostrich chili."
Jim ignored Blair's smug smirk, and the fact that he was whistling "Nobody Does It Better" under his breath, as he filled the gas tank and got back into the truck.

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"You okay, babe?" Blair glanced over worriedly at his Sentinel. Jim's hands were clenched in a death grip around the steering wheel, and a thin sheen of sweat covered his forehead.
Ever since they'd left Clayton Falls, Jim had been acting strangely. The farther they got, the slower he drove, until, at about thirty miles from the town, they were almost at a crawl.
"Something's wrong." Jim's voice was tight.
"What? Is it your senses?"
"Yeah, no... I don't know."
They were sitting in the middle of the road at this point. Blair laid a hand on Jim's thigh, rubbing back and forth in a soothing motion. He could feel the tensed muscle under his hand.
"Okay, just calm down. We'll work it out."
Jim relaxed slightly, tension easing from his muscles, as Blair continued his rhythmic stroking. "Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Now, try and concentrate and see if you can pinpoint what's wrong."
Jim looked over and gave him a wry smile. "You don't ask for much, do you."
"Only what I know you can deliver." He kneaded the firm flesh under his hand, his smile loving. "Your Spidey senses are tingling here, Jim; you just have to figure out what they are trying to tell you."
Jim concentrated for a moment, then sighed in frustration. "I don't know. I only know that the farther we get from Clayton Falls, the stronger the feeling gets."
"Okay, it's a start. So, let's go back."
Jim started the truck again and made a U-turn in the road.
A thoughtful expression crossed Blair's face. "You know, man, maybe it's your tribal protector instinct dinging."
Jim cocked an eyebrow. "Last time I looked, Chief, the only person I had that duty for was you."
"Not Blessed Protector, man. Tribal protector."
"What are you talking about, Sandburg?"
Enthusiasm lit Blair's face as he turned, as far as the seatbelt would let him, to face Jim. "See, I think that a protective instinct may be part and parcel of being a Sentinel, Alex notwithstanding, and that sometimes, you know, this little bell goes off when the tribe is in trouble."
Jim frowned. "If that's true, why hasn't it happened before now?"
"I think the better control you get over your senses, the more stuff is gonna show up, but also I think maybe it has happened before now, but that it's been all tangled up with your cop instincts and so we didn't really notice it."
"Oh, no you don't, Sandburg! First I'm stuck with these senses -- okay fine. But then that whole thing with Molly, and you tell me I've got some kind of sixth sense -- oh joy, I get to see dead people -- and now, all of a sudden I'm psychic as well?"
"Not psychic, exactly... more like a barometer for trouble."
Jim shook his head. "Chief, if that were true, I'd have gone deaf from the bells going off with you around."
Before Blair could say more, they arrived back in town.
The return drive had taken half the time.
"Now what?"
Blair looked around, hoping for a clue as to what was going on with Jim. "I don't know. How about we just drive around the town, and see..."
"Detective Ellison, Thank God!" Sam rushed up to the truck, the older man's face creased with worry.
"What is it?"
"It's Jackie! Right after you left she just... it's the baby."
They were out of the truck and following Sam now. "Why didn't you take her to the hospital?"
Sam shook his head. "We don't think she'd have made it, and we figured it was better for her to be here than on the road somewhere."
"Here" was at the back of the vet's office, where Linda kept a futon that doubled as an examination space for her two-legged patients. The pretty, dark-haired young waitress was stretched out with a stack of pillows propping her head up.
Blair winced in sympathy at the obvious pain on her face. A small, gray-haired woman held her hand, and two other elderly people hovered worriedly.
"You all remember Detective Ellison, and his partner, Mr. Sandburg."
After greeting them both, Marge, the lady holding Jackie's hand, turned back to Sam. "Any luck?"
"The search and rescue chopper is out in the field. They said they'd get it here as soon as they could, but..."
Pete, the owner of the cafe, nodded. "They're sending an ambulance down as well, but we know that's at least an hour away. Her doctor is standing by."
Jim and Blair went over to Jackie. She gave them a weak smile. "Boy, we seem determined to ruin your vacations, don't we?"
"The trout will still be there. What happened?"
She shook her head. "I don't know. My back has been hurting all day, but then, all of a sudden, the pain was excruciating. I'm not due for another six weeks yet. It's too soon."
Another contraction struck, and Jackie stifled a scream as she rode through it, Marge's skin was white where Jackie's hand gripped hers. When it was over, the young woman fell back against the pillows, panting softly.
Jim frowned. Catching his partner's eye, he tilted his head, motioning him out of the room. They eased out as Pete stepped forward with a wet towel to wipe Jackie's forehead. Jim closed the door behind them.
"Something's wrong, Chief. During that contraction, the baby's heartbeat went haywire."
"Shit."
Jim nodded, his own face reflecting the worry in Blair's. "Exactly."
"You've had medic training though, right, man?"
Jim shook his head. "Blair, that was almost ten years ago, and this wasn't exactly an area they concentrated on. The only thing I know about delivering babies is to move out of the way and let nature handle it."
Blair ran a hand through his hair. "Well, nature is obviously falling down on the job this time. We have to do something, Jim."
"I know."
Sam came out, closing the door behind him. "What's going on?"
"Sam, could you clear the room, and get Jackie's doctor on the phone?"
The older man's weather face took on a woeful expression. "Is it bad?"
"I don't know."
"Jackie was born here, you know. In the same house she lives in now. She's one of the few young people that stuck with this town after the mill closed."
Blair put a hand on his shoulder. "We'll do everything we can. I swear."
Sam nodded, took a breath to collect himself, and went back into the room.

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"We're in trouble here, aren't we?"
Blair wrung out the towel and gently wiped the sweat from Jackie's forehead.
"It's going to be okay."
Jackie's body clenched in another spasm of pain, and her nails dug into Blair's hand. He felt the skin tear, and Jim glanced over worriedly at his small gasp of pain. He absently monitored his partner even with the majority of his attention centered on the doctor's instructions and the baby's heartbeat.
"Blair."
Blair leaned in closer to hear the raspy, pain-filled whisper. "Promise the baby will be okay no matter what."
"Jackie..."
"Please. If it's between me or him, promise he'll be okay."
Blair tightened his hand in her clasp. "You both will." He prayed it was true. Not just for Jackie and the baby, but because he couldn't imagine how devastating it would be to the Sentinel in Jim not to be able to save these members of his tribe. And they were. For whatever reason, Jim had imprinted this town, and its residents.

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Jim knelt between Jackie's legs; all thoughts of the intimacy of the situation were absent as he focused intently. He'd described the elevated heart rate, but the doctor was at a loss without at least a visual. One that Jim, despite his abilities, couldn't provide.
Following the doctor's instructions, he carefully eased his hand inside Jackie. The baby was definitely in the birth canal, and not breech, which was what the doctor had him checking for.
His fingers ghosted over the baby's head and touched tiny shoulders. He was pulling out when he felt it. Shit! "The umbilical cord is wrapped around the baby's neck."
He heard Blair's heartbeat speed up, only to be overshadowed by the drumming of Jackie's. He knew his own heartbeat would have been just as loud to anyone with Sentinel ears. He shook his head to clear it, focusing on the doctor's detailed instructions. "Jackie, I need you not to push through the next contraction."
She nodded, gritting her teeth, as Jim once more eased his hand inside and gently down around the baby's neck. The irony of it was that if the baby had been full term, he'd probably have been too large for Jim to have access. He carefully began to loosen the link between mother and child.
Jim could feel Jackie quivering, every muscle straining as she struggled to give her baby a chance to live. Blair's murmurs of encouragement, her whimpers of pain -- all were a distant drone as Jim worked.
"Oh God!" It was a muted scream as Jackie fought the urge to push.
Jim thanked God for long fingers and a delicate Sentinel touch as he eased the cord over the baby's head. He slid his hand out once more, sitting back on his heels. Blair caught his eye, and Jim nodded the okay. Blair flashed him the look -- the one he hadn't seen in a while. The one that made him feel like going out and buying tights and a cape.
"Okay, here we go."
Jim caught the faint wail of the ambulance siren, knowing it would be at least another ten minutes before the others were aware that the cavalry had arrived.
A few minutes later, the newest resident of Clayton Falls entered the world, watched over by his Sentinel.
"He's not crying. Is he okay?" Worry laced the weariness of the new mother's voice.
Jim looked down at the bright brown eyes staring up at him. "He's beautiful." He eased the baby up and laid it on Jackie's stomach. She gently traced her new son's delicate features, a tired smile on her face.
"Thank you."
Blair leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Congratulations, Mommy."

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They watched as the paramedics loaded up mother and child.
"That's a beautiful thing, man."
Jim thought so too, but couldn't resist ragging on his partner. "If you say so, Chief. Personally, I thought it was just messy."
"Oh come on. You can't tell me that didn't move you, Jim. The miracle of birth. A new presence in the universe. Michael James Blair Clark. Of course Blair James would've been cooler, but..."
"It was hokey, Chief. I feel like I'm in some sitcom episode or something. The only thing cornier would have been if she had gone into labor in an elevator or something." The relief and pleasure in his expression belied his words.
Blair shuddered. "Don't say that, man. I don't have the best of luck with elevators." The smile he gave his friend said that he was aware of Jim's ploy. "You are such a cynic, Ellison."
Jim cuffed his partner lightly on the side of the head before wrapping an arm around his shoulders. "And you are a softie, Sandburg."
"Maybe. But still, it made me think, you know."
"So what else is new?"
Blair rolled his eyes at Jim as they got into the truck, but then his expression turned serious. "I was thinking about Janet, you know, and the whole cycle of life thing. About everything happening for a reason, even us being here, now, when we needed to be."
Jim reached over and laid a hand on top of Blair's, squeezing slightly before starting the truck.
"I was also thinking about mothers and sons."
Considering both their situations, it wasn't exactly a topic Jim wanted to delve into. He gave his partner a wary look. "And?"
The slightly cautious look Blair cast in his direction should have warned him.
"Have you ever thought about looking for your mother?"
Jim shook his head, expression frozen. "We are so not going there, Chief."
Blair put a hand on his arm. "Come on, man, all I'm saying is that it wouldn't hurt to know where she is."
"I already know, Freud."
"What?"
Jim was already regretting letting the information slip out. Blair would worry him about it until they were old and gray. "I said I already know. I've known for years. Now back off of it, Sandburg."
"But..." Blair cut his response short as Jim's face took on the shuttered look that Blair hated. He knew the topic was closed for now, but he also knew there was no way he could let it rest.
He waited until their last day at the cabin to bring it up again.

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"I don't want to talk about it."
Blair sighed at the unyielding look on his lover's face. "Which it?"
"Either. I don't want to hear your theories on my Blessed Protector instinct, and I most definitely don't want to answer any questions about my mother."
"We can't avoid talking about it forever, Jim. Stuff we don't deal with usually comes back to bite us on the ass. Hard. " Blair pulled back the covers and slid into bed, rolling over to face his partner.
"I know, Chief, I know. But right now, I just want to relax, hold you, and enjoy this last little bit of our time here." Jim's voice reflected the weariness that shone from his eyes.
Blair reached over and tenderly smoothed away the furrow that had settled on the other man's forehead. He slid into his lover's arms and rested his head on the broad chest, subconsciously adjusting the rhythm of his breath to match Jim's. Listening to the familiar and beloved tha-thump in his ear, he quelled the scientist, the partner, and even the friend that clamored for answers, and just let the man, who loved this man, take over.