SIX HOURS LATER:

Shuffling into the Keep, her hair lank with sweat and damp scrubs clinging to her skin in various places, Claire sighed and ran both hands over her face, struggling to fight off the bone deep fatigue that threatened to overwhelm her. When she pulled her fingers down, the sight that greeted her lightened her heart and gave her the strength she sought.

Not long after Claire had returned to the medical bay with her creation, Eberts, though perfectly willing to stand by her no matter what it might cost him, had allowed Claire to convince him that she would be safe and he didn't have to force himself to witness surgery just for her sake. Now he was curled up in the administering chair, sleeping restlessly, seemingly having a mild nightmare. Believing she knew what was causing his anxiety, Claire tiptoed up beside him, laid a gentle kiss on his brow and spoke to him softly.

"Darling... wake up. It's over, I'm here..."

Fully awake in mere seconds, Eberts sat up and swiftly wrapped his beloved in a fierce hug.

"Thank God. I dreamed...well, you don't need to know the details, I suppose. Suffice to say it wasn't pleasant in the least..."

"I could see that."

"What time is it?"

"Nearly four a.m."

"You must be exhausted! I knew I should have stayed to support you..."

"No, no. Look, don't worry anymore, alright? It's done and I'm out of it from here on. If he survives, someone else will be responsible for his care. I made sure of it..."

Gradually, Eberts pulled back, gazing at Claire with a concerned expression. Smiling warily, she questioned the look. "What is it?"

"I told you that I've seen the supply lists, the shipping manifests... this gland isn't like the first one, is it?"

"No." she stated simply, reluctant to go further and make him a party to the things she'd done and the secrets she'd been keeping.

"Claire, love... please. If I'm going to help protect you and the boys and Roberta..."

"I don't expect you to and neither do they, anymore."

"That won't stop me from trying to do it."

"Unfortunately..." she murmured, reaching out to stroke his face briefly and offering a wan half-smile. "I don't know if I can do this... I'm so afraid you'll hate me."

"Never. I could never hate you, Claire. No judgment, no recriminations. Please, just tell me."

Heaving a sigh, realizing he wouldn't stop until he heard everything, Claire dropped to sit on the edge of the chair, closed her eyes and gave in.

"This new gland... it was supposed to go to Darien too, but when Stark showed up, needing it so urgently... and now that the Quicksilver gland is repaired..."

"Oh... oh my Lord. Healing?"

Claire nodded solemnly.

"Borden practically threatened my existence if I didn't give it to Stark. I felt..."

"... no options. I understand. How long?"

"Six months... and I loathed every minute. I wanted to tell all of you the moment I started work, but the Official wouldn't let me. 'Keep it a surprise' he said. 'It may never pan out and you don't want to get Fawkes' hopes up'. I can't believe I actually *listened*!"

"You don't know that it has. Panned out, I mean."

"It will." Claire countered grimly. "Every test, every simulation I ran was perfect. The gland will do exactly what I designed it to. The only problem is that he's not supposed to have it, damn him!"

Eberts gathered her into his arms and rocked her slowly.

"Trade-offs, darling... trade-offs. Chrysalis influenced fifty children to destroy themselves. If we can stop that from ever happening again... we just have to accept things the way they are. For a short while, at least."

Claire pulled back slowly, gazing at Eberts in wonder and admiration.

"I could do that. Once we have everything he can give us... I certainly could."

"No one but Charles will try to stop you, and I'm sure Darien and Bobby can easily keep him in the dark long enough for you to succeed."

"No doubt. But the immorality... I'm a doctor, how can I even think..."

"Normally, I'd agree with you one hundred percent, but once in a very great while... principles and ethics have to be pushed down the list in favor of other concerns. Stark was the driving force behind all the evil Chrysalis has perpetrated so far. He's a heartless, soulless, poor excuse for a human being and he's not going to change. Think what will happen if we don't take action... and he finds out about Roberta. He'll take that information and his new gland straight back to them."

"And they'll welcome him with open arms. Oh, dear God..."

"Indeed. It has to be done, Claire. It must be."

"Yes... that doesn't mean I'll deal with it easily."

"Of course not. Neither will I."

"You know, because of this emergency, I'm taking tomorrow... correction, today off. I thought..."

"No need to even ask, love. Absolutely I'll stay with you. I won't leave your side and we'll talk about everything except what's happened here in the last few days."

Claire sighed once more and buried her head in his shoulder.

"Thank you."

4:30 A.M. : THE HOUSE

"Ari? Hell, not again..."

Bobby sat up in bed, sighed heavily and prepared himself for another rescue mission and furniture moving session in the living room. Before he could get to his feet, however, his vision adjusted to the dimness of their bedroom and he realized Darien was in the rocking chair by the window, holding Bobbi closely and cooing soft words to her. "What happened?"

"Not sure. The heating system made a loud noise, I think. Scared her awake an' she went see-through. Instead of just relaxing, she tried to make the QS let go, like she's seen me do... couldn't figure out how. The madder an' more frustrated she got, the less it worked. Once I picked her up, got her calmed down, it happened naturally, but..."

"Yeah." Bobby commiserated, moving to stand beside his husband. "She's better now... just about back to sleep."

"Can you get her back in her crib?"

" 'Course. Stay there, yeah? I'll be right back..."

It took only a few minutes for Bobby to return, a gentle smile on his face. Drawing Darien up and into his arms, he soothed him with caresses and silence then tugged him back to bed.

"This is so messed up, Bert... so damn messed up..."

"She's only little. Let her get a couple more years under her belt. Then you an' me... we'll start teachin' her everything she needs to know about the gift you gave her."

"Gift? How can you call it that? I've cursed that poor kid..."

"She don't see it that way."

"She will now."

"No. What she'll do is forget what happened by the time she wakes up again. Babies get scared, okay, but five minutes later they're laughin'. This won't stick in her head, Ari. I'm sure of it."

"What about Alex? Huh? And did you know the kid's aware that I sleepwalk? Our daughter gets more stuff than we can even guess at, Bobby."

"I know. Hey, it freaks me out too, but we can't just give in an' accept bein' edgy an' panicky all the time. That's no way for us to live... or Bobbi either."

"I can't help it..."

"You can, baby. Right now our little girl is happy, healthy, smart an' strong. If we ruin that 'cause we dump our worries an' fears out all over her... that really *will* be a curse. We're raisin' her the absolute best we know how. That'll be way more than enough. You gotta trust yourself... trust me."

Darien chuckled brokenly and swiped at a tear that had begun to trace down his cheek.

"More like she's raisin' us."

"Could be. I'm gonna call in and get us the day off, okay? I'll tell him the kid had a rough night, we didn't get much sleep..."

"Fabulous idea. I love you more than you'll ever know, Bobby Hobbes."

"Ditto, Ari. Ditto to infinity and beyond."

TBC........