Hey everyone, I'm back! Hope you enjoy this! One Second – Epilogue Author: Louise Email: lj_brown2@yahoo.com Disclaimer: I do not own stingers, etc, etc. Thanks: Special thanks to Catt who encouraged me, or should I say nagged me (j/k) to finish this! And also my nephew who gave me the idea for many of the events taking place in this fic!! Setting: Three years later. Hospital~ Pete watched the familiar figure sit tirelessly in one of the seats in the waiting room. "How did she hear about Angie?" He asked himself. "Senior Constable," the doctor began as he approached Pete. "You're colleague is in a critical condition at the moment. It seems both bullets are lodged in the rib area, one puncturing her left lung." Pete nodded as he half listened to the doctor, still keeping his eyes focussed on the woman in the waiting room. "We're taking her up to theatre now, so you can wait here until it's finished or leave and we'll call you once news has come through." "Ah, it's alright, I'll wait here thanks," he said. "They're taking Angie up to theatre," Pete said as he sat beside Mac. Mac's head shot up at the familiar voice. "Pete…what are you doing here?" "I came here in the ambulance with Angie." "What happened to her?" "She was shot. Isn't that why you're here?" Pete asked confused. Mac shook her head, "no, I'm here for a different reason." Mac stopped as another doctor approached her. "Ms. Callum…the wound seems to be quite deep, so it'll definitely need stitches. However, the fact that it is Thomas's head means we'll have to anaesthetise him in order to do it." "Are you going to do that now?" "It's better to wait until first thing in the morning seeing how he has already eaten, so if you could be in here at, say…seven. I'll give you a list of things that he can't have between now and then." Mac nodded, "thankyou, Doctor." Mac turned to Pete, "sorry, but I should get going seeing how I have to be here early." "That's fine…" but before Pete could asked who Thomas was, Mac had gone. Next morning~ Mac snuck her head into Angie's room making sure she was alone. Quietly, she walked in just as Angie was waking. "Hey stranger," she whispered, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. Angie smiled softly, "Mac?" Mac nodded. "What are you doing here?" Mac sighed, "my son had a bit of an incident with a knife." "You have a son?" Angie asked surprised. "Is he alright?" "Oh yeah, nothing stops Thomas. This is the fourth time I've had to bring him into casualty and he's not even three yet." "Sounds like a bit of a handful," Angie laughed slightly, before cringing in pain. Mac shook her head, slightly laughing, before turning serious. "No, he just takes after his father." "His father?" "Yeah well, you know what Pete's like – a wild horse!" "Pete?" Angie asked, stunned by Mac's revelation. Mac only just realised what she had said, nodding slowly. "When did the two of you…?" Mac looked down at her hands, a small smile appearing at the memory. "The night before I left. I wanted to tell him but it was just too risky and I couldn't expect Pete to just drop everything to be with me." Angie shook her head, "you know he would have." "Possibly, but I don't know…" Mac looked down at her watch, "I should get going, Thomas's probably in recovery by now." Angie nodded as Mac leant down to hug her, "it was great to see you Mac. I'd love to meet this son of yours…he doesn't look like Pete, does he?" "Yeah, he has a few of Pete's features." "Oh poor child!" Mac laughed, "but Thomas is better looking though." "Of course…see ya Mac." "Bye Ange." Pete was walking down the corridor towards Angie's room when he saw Mac exiting and walking away from the direction Pete was headed. "I believe you had a surprise visitor," Pete said with a smile. Angie raised her eyebrows, "surprise all right!" Pete knew Mac would have spoken to Angie about why she was there, so he decided to get as much information as he could without Angie knowing. "So, did Mac fill you in about Thomas?" Pete asked as though he already knew. "She's told you already?" Angie asked surprised. "I got the impression she hadn't." Pete nodded, "bumped into her last night while I was waiting on news of you." "How do you feel about it?" Pete shrugged, "okay I guess." "Have you seen Thomas yet?" "No, I might see him after seeing you," Pete replied. "Mac said he's a lot like you…in every way!" Angie smiled. Pete's eyes narrowed, "like me?" He asked, trying to not sound too suspicious. "Yeah. So, how does it feel to know you're a dad?" "A what?" Pete asked, taken aback. Angie realised Pete had been playing her to get information. "You don't know? You told me you did!" "No, I didn't." "Yes, you did!" "Okay, maybe I pretended to know something, but…Thomas is my son?" "I think you should go talk to Mac," Angie replied, looking down at her hands, disappointed she had told him. Pete saw Mac leaning against one of the beds in the children's ward and walked up to her. "So, you've changed back to your original name?" Mac nodded with a slight smile. "Yeah, I kept my witness protection name for a little while but changed it as soon as I knew Marks was behind bars. I might change it back to my work name, I don't know." "Who's Thomas?" Pete asked suddenly. Mac avoided answering him as orderlies wheeled her son into the room, followed by the surgeon. "Hey baby," she whispered, brushing his forehead with the palm of her hand. "Mummy, I got a teddy," Thomas replied, showing Mac a fluffy little teddy bear. "I'll leave you to it," Pete said, walking out. The surgeon cleared his throat. "Ms. Callum, I'm glad we decided to fix Thomas up that way. There appears to be more damage than first thought." "How serious?" Mac asked worriedly. "The force of him pulling the knife out himself has resulted in the muscle just above his eye tearing and some nerve damage as well as the skull bone chipping." "So, will Thomas have permanent damage?" "He may not be able to fully raise his left eyebrow because of the damage to the muscle. However, the nerve should regenerate." Mac nodded, looking back down at her son. "Once he's had something to eat and the nurses are happy with his recovery, you'll be free to go." "Thankyou doctor," Mac smiled. Eve's house~ Mac had finished bathing her son and was carrying him out to the lounge, wrapped in a towel when the doorbell rang. "Pete," she said surprised. "I thought you might be here. I needed to talk to you after my talk with Angie." "I bet she told you everything!" Pete grinned, "wasn't her fault. I pretended to know who Thomas was." Thomas was getting fidgety in Mac's arms, so she gave up and put him down. As soon as she did that, he was running around Eve's house. "If he hurts himself again, I'm not taking him back to hospital!" Mac sighed walking into the lounge, followed by Pete. "Been in a few times?" Mac held up her hand, showing four fingers. "Shit! What's he been up to?" "Do you really want to know? It could take a while." Pete nodded, "well I would like to know about my son." "Thomas, settle down, please?" Mac said trying to grab her son as he raced past her. Instead, he turned around, laughing and continued to run. Mac sighed. "Do you want a drink?" "I'd love a beer thanks…I thought he'd be too tired after having anaesthetic." "So did I, but he's been the complete opposite ever since we got home. I just can't settle him." "Thanks," Pete said as Mac handed him a stubby. "So, how did he manage to get a knife in his noggin?" Mac shook her head, "I don't know how he got the knife, but he was just running around, like he is now, and jumping off the sofa. All of a sudden, he started screaming and the left side of his face was covered in blood. I thought he'd done something to his eye." "How sharp was the knife?" "That's the thing. It was a pâté knife, and you wouldn't call those particularly sharp." "They're as blunt as anything, aren't they?" Mac nodded, "the doctor last night said the weight of Thomas's head landing on it would have caused the knife to penetrate into his head." "Ouch, must be a pretty tough kid!" "Well, the only thing he hasn't managed to do so far is a break a bone!" Pete laughed slightly, "how serious have the other things been?" "He fell down the side of dad's trailer and cut his leg open and last time mum and dad's driveway gate fell and Thomas's head got stuck between some bars, dinting his head. But those incidents are nothing compared to this time and the first time he hurt himself." "What happened the first time?" Pete asked apprehensively. "I was cooking dinner and had water boiling on the stove and Thomas decided to climb on the oven door. The stove tipped and water splashed down the side of his face and shoulder. Thomas ended up with some nasty burns." Pete looked at his son, still running around, "you're kidding? His skin looks perfect." "It is. It healed in a matter of months." Pete laughed. "I know I shouldn't be laughing, but how can one child have so much bad luck?" "Well, he is your son." Mac picked up her son's towel and grabbed him quickly while he was staring at an ad on the TV. "Ha! Gotcha." "No," he cried, trying to squirm out of the hold. "Thomas, if you don't let me dress you I'll put you to bed without any dinner." "Nooooo," he continued, thrashing his arms and legs. Mac wrapped her arms tightly around Thomas's arms, whispering in his ear. "Alright then, if you let me dress you, I will tell you a secret," she said, looking up at Pete who was trying not to laugh. "Mummy, who's that?" Thomas asked, looking at Pete with his big blue eyes. "I'll tell you when you've got your p.j's on." "But you said you'd tell me a secret after I let you dress me." Mac smiled. "That's the secret…there, done," Mac said, doing up the last button. "What's the secret, what's the secret?" Thomas asked, jumping up and down on the spot. Mac stood and sat on the sofa next to Pete, "come here sweetie." Thomas walked over and sat on his mum's lap, continuing to watch the strange man she was sitting next to. "Thomas," Mac began, taking a deep breath. "You know how I told you we were coming here to find your daddy, well…this is your daddy." "Oh…why?" Mac smiled, looking at Pete, "he plays the `why' game whenever I tell him something new." "He's a kid, they're all curious!" Pete replied as Thomas leapt off the sofa and began running around again. "And it's not always easy to tell the truth," Mac replied, her focus maintained on Thomas. "Had you mentioned me before this?" Pete asked carefully. Mac nodded, a smiling creeping to her lips. "Yeah. Actually, the other day, he said he loved me and then out of the blue asked me if I loved his daddy, I told him I do." "Present tone," Pete said, picking up on Mac's last few words. "It's the truth," Mac replied, this time looking directly at Pete. Their eyes met and they stared at one another for moments, until Thomas's voice interrupted them. "Mummy, I'm hungry," he sulked. Mac turned away from Pete, "okay, I'll see what nanny has in her kitchen." "Hey mate, do you like pizza?" Pete asked. "Yeah, pizza," Thomas screamed in reply, holding his arms up and running around again. "Pizza, pizza, pizza!" Pete looked over at Mac who hadn't quite reached the kitchen yet. "Is that alright?" He asked. Mac rolled her eyes, "well, too late now…you've got him all excited." "Sorry, guess I should have checked with you first," Pete apologised. "Pete, it's fine," Mac smiled. "Besides, it saves me having to cook." "I'll ring through the order and pick it up. Can I take Thomas for a drive?" "If you want," Mac smiled as she watched Pete pick his son, their son, up as he made the call. * Later on, Mac and Pete were sitting on the sofa catching up, Thomas fast asleep, curled between them. "Never thought he'd flake out," Mac said looking down at Thomas. Pete brushed his hand softly over his son's forehead, "he actually seems quite peaceful when he's asleep." "It's the only time Thomas is peaceful!" Mac stated, raising her eyebrows. "He can't be that bad can he?" Mac shook her head, "no, he's good most of the time. He just worries me when he's running around." "You saved me the trouble of having to track you down," Pete said suddenly. "What?" Mac asked, confused. "Remember, before you left, I told you I would find you once I knew everything was safe." "Pete," Mac whispered, tears welling in her eyes. "I missed you so, so much." Pete reached his hand out, holding it to Mac's cheek. "I missed you too." "I'm sorry Pete, I'm so sorry." "Hey, it's ok. You did it for very good reasons." Pete looked down at Thomas. "You want me to put him to bed?" Mac nodded, "thanks Pete." When Pete came back from putting Thomas to bed, Mac was lying across the sofa, sound asleep. He gently lifted her into his arms and carried her to bed. Next day - The factory~ Doyle stormed out of his office upon Pete's arrival. "Church, do you have any idea what the time is? You have a very important case to start working on!" He yelled, not noticing the little boy standing behind Pete. "Sorry, but I was waiting for further information on Angie." "The hospital said they would call here if there was any news." Doyle finally noticed Thomas. "What the hell? Church this is not a bloody crèche!" Pete picked Thomas up protectively, "sorry boss, but he is my son, and his mother, who, might I add, was the boss before you, and a far better one at that. She had to go into HQ about a job and didn't have anyone else to take care of him." Pete replied, before storming into the kitchen. "Bloody dickhead!" "Bloody dickhead!" Thomas repeated. "Shit," Pete cursed. "Mate, naughty daddy for saying that. You mustn't say that anymore, ok?" Thomas laughed as Pete put him down and he ran off into the desk area. Just then Danni arrived, bending over, cooing at the little boy. "Hello there, what's your name?" Thomas looked at Danni strangely before running back into Pete. "It's alright mate, she won't bite…you're too young for her!" Danni rolled her eyes, "very funny…cute kid. Who is he?" "Danni, I'd like you to meet Thomas, my son. Thomas, this is Danni, she works with me." Danni laughed, "c'mon Pete. Seriously, who is he?" "I told you!" "Yeah right, he's too cute to be." "That's not what his mother says," Pete replied smiling. "Oh yeah, and who is that?" Pete grinned, "Mac!" "What?" Danni asked excitedly. "Mac is back in Melbourne?" "What's all this commotion? Church, if he is going to cause this kind of disruption, take him home to his mother where he belongs." Pete looked at Danni, rolling his eyes. "Bloody dickhead!" Thomas giggled. "Oi, what did I say, Thomas?" "Sorry." "What happened to his head?" Danni asked, noticing the bandage just above Thomas's left eye. "I'll tell you in a minute…you want a coffee?" "Yeah, thanks." "Thomas, do you want some milk?" "Yes please," he replied as Pete sat him at his desk. Pete walked into the kitchen with Danni, ready to fill her in about Thomas, when a loud smash was heard. Pete turned to see Thomas lying on the floor between his desk and Danni's. "Shit," he said running over to the now screaming Thomas. "Mate, what happened?" Thomas was crying out in pain as he showed Pete his arm. Danni looked up as she heard Doyle's office door open. "What the? Bloody hell Church!" "I'll have to take him to the hospital," Pete said to Danni, reaching into his pocket, pulling a piece of paper out. "Here's Mac's number, tell her to meet me there." "Sure thing." Pete carefully picked Thomas up and carried him to the car. "When are you planning on actually working today?" Doyle asked Pete. "Shut it Doyle! I've missed out on over two years of my son's life and I'm not going to let that happen again. I'll work when I know he's going to be ok." With that, Pete hurried off in his car. The hospital~ Pete sat in the waiting room for Mac to arrive, while Thomas was being seen to. "Pete, what's he done now?" Mac asked, worry in her voice. "It looks like he's broken his arm." "What? How?" Pete shrugged, "I don't know…one minute he was sitting in my chair, and then the next thing I hear is this loud crash, and he's lying on the floor between my desk and Danni's." Pete looked apologetically at Mac, "I'm so sorry." "Pete, even when you have your eyes on Thomas, it's not always enough to stop him." "I still feel pretty bad about it though." "Maybe it's my fault, last night I said at least he hadn't broken a bone." Pete laughed slightly before they went to find where Thomas was. * "Mummy, mummy, look," Thomas said holding up his arm that was in a cast. "What are we going to do with you," Mac said leaning over the bed to give Thomas a hug and a kiss. "Put him in a bubble if you ask me," Pete replied with a grin. "Mummy, daddy's boss is a bloody dickhead!" "Ssh, Thomas!" "What?!" Mac asked, turning back around to Pete. "Doyle the dick - " "Pete!" Mac said, cutting Pete off. "Sorry…ah, the guy that took over after you left, we kind of got off on the wrong foot right from the beginning and now, every opportunity he gets, I'm in the shit." "Daddy's in the shit," Thomas laughed. Mac glared deeply into Pete's eyes, annoyed with the new vocabulary her son had picked up that day. "Anyway, this morning he had another go at me and I sort of mumbled something under my breath and Thomas picked up on what I said." Mac looked down at Thomas, "sweetie, that's naughty ok. I don't want you repeating that again. If you do, I'll smack you." "But daddy said it," Thomas replied. "I know and every time he says it and every time you say it, I'll smack him too." "I'll say it as much as I can!" Pete grinned. * "Come in," Angie called to the light knock on her door. Mac walked in first, followed by Pete who was nursing a sleeping Thomas. "Is this him?" Angie asked Mac, smiling. "Angie, this is Thomas." "If you want you can put him on the bed with me," Angie offered. Pete set Thomas down carefully next to Angie. Angie looked strangely at the cast covering his arm. "I thought he cut his head?" Angie asked confused. "He did. This, Thomas did today at Pete's work," Mac replied rolling her eyes. "What? So, how bad is it?" "Greenstick fracture," Pete replied. Thomas woke, holding his arm in pain. "Are you right sweetie?" Mac asked concerned. Thomas nodded slightly, before looking at Angie. "Hello Thomas," she beamed. "Hello," he whispered quietly. "Mummy," he cried, trying to stand up on the bed and climb onto Mac. Angie looked at Pete. "You took him to work? What did the boss say?" "Ah, not much," he replied, avoiding Mac's eyes. "Yeah, right," Angie laughed. "Doyle is a - " "Bloody dickhead," Thomas cut in. Mac smacked him lightly on the bottom, Angie covering her laughter with her blankets. "Like father like son," Angie said. "Where's mine," Pete whispered in Mac's ear. "I'll deal with you later." "Where are you staying Mac?" Angie asked. "At Eve's. She's away on a photo shoot, but I am looking for somewhere more permanent for when she gets back." Pete looked at Angie, raising his eyebrows. "Mummy, I'm hungry," Thomas whispered. Pete grabbed hold of Thomas to give Mac a break. "We'll get going anyway, because Auntie Ange needs her rest." Pete looked over at Mac. "Unless you girls want to have a private chat." "No, you are looking a bit pale there Ange. Besides, we've got plenty of time for our girlie talks," Mac replied leaning down and hugging Angie carefully. "See ya Ange, don't give the male doctors too much grief," Pete grinned as he pecked her lightly on the check, holding Thomas to kiss her as well. "Bye gorgeous," Angie smiled. "Bye," Pete replied sarcastically. "She means me daddy," Thomas said, shaking his head. "Bye-bye Auntie Ange." Eve's house~ Mac was tucking Thomas into bed that night, but stopped when he started crying. "What's the matter baby?" "It's sore," he replied, holding his arm up. Pete moved from the other side of the bed, "I'll get the baby Panadol." "Thanks," Mac replied. "Pete, would you also be able to grab an extra pillow to put under his arm." "Sure thing." After Thomas was given another dose of Panadol, Mac and Pete waited and watched until he fell asleep. Pete quietly slipped his arms around Mac's waist. "Thankyou," he whispered softly. "What for?" Mac asked quietly, turning to face him. "For my son and coming back," Pete replied, pulling Mac closer to him. Slowly, he placed a hand on the side of Mac's face, as his lips meet hers. Mac pulled quickly from the embrace, heading towards the door, grabbing hold of Pete's hands and leading him out of Thomas's room and into the other room. "Are you sure?" Pete asked, wanting to be certain that Mac really wanted to do this. She nodded, unbuttoning his shirt, kissing his chest as she did so. Pete ran his hands up her skirt, getting used to the touch he missed so much. They quickly discarded their clothes, without breaking their embrace as their pace quickened. "I love you Pete," Mac whispered, looking into his eyes deeply. Pete rolled Mac onto her back, pressing further into her. "I love you too, Mac." Mac and Pete were so absorbed in one another they failed to notice the bedroom door swing open, nor the small figure walking towards the bed. "Pete," Mac cried out pleasurably, her cries increasing with every moment. "Mummy," the small voice called quietly. "Shit," Mac cursed, quickly breaking away from Pete and pulling the sheet around her tightly. "What are you and daddy doing?" Mac switched the bedside lamp on. "Thomas, what is it?" "I can't sleep, my arm is hurting," he replied in a sulky voice. "Why are you all wet and puffing?" "Ah, we just got a shock when we heard you," Mac replied, wiping away the sweat on her forehead. "What time was his last dose?" Mac asked Pete Pete looked at the alarm clock, "four and a half hours ago. It's amazing how time flies when you're having fun." "Thomas, daddy will go and get your Panadol and take you back into bed, ok?" "No, I want to sleep with you and daddy," he cried. Mac looked at Pete. "You'll be much more comfortable in your own bed sweetie." "NO!" He yelled back dropping to the floor and sitting there. Pete pulled his boxers on and walked to the other side where Thomas was sitting. "You can stay in here only if you come with daddy and have some medicine to make your arm better, ok?" Thomas looked up, nodding and taking Pete's hand. Pete turned back around as they got to the door, "it'll give you some time to get your pj's on." Mac smiled, shaking her head. "You reckon he'll get upset if I moved him back into his own bed?" Pete asked Mac as they lay awake, Thomas sleeping soundly between them. "Probably…although, you could go into work late tomorrow," Mac suggested. Pete grinned. "After today, I think Doyle will want my balls on a platter!" "Well," Mac began, carefully climbing over Thomas to snuggle closely to Pete. "He'll have to fight me for them!" Pete laughed quietly, kissing Mac before going to sleep for the night. Four months later: "Can we now have the rings?" The priest asked, looking down at Thomas who was sitting with Eve. Thomas, walked forward, smiling at Mac and Pete who were up on the alter with the Priest, not noticing the step in front of him. All of a sudden, he tripped up, the ring cushion and the rings flying behind his head as he crashed to the floor. Mac rolled her eyes at Pete, trying to stop herself from laughing while the whole congregation laughed. Pete looked at Angie helping Thomas up and holding him as the rings were retrieved. "Must be your son, Peter," the Priest whispered laughed while he waited for the rings. Mac turned around to where Angie was standing behind her, to make sure Thomas was alright. "Mummy," he cried. "I want up!" "In a minute sweetie, we've nearly finished." Pete leant in close to Mac, placing a hand over her abdomen, which was just starting to poke out a little. "I hope this one isn't like Thomas, we wouldn't be able to afford the medical bills!" Mac laughed, looking at the Priest who was ready to continue.