*****

Téa's heart was bursting with joy. She held Todd to her tightly. Her fingers ran through his hair. "Querido, I love you more than anything in the universe. You and Starr."

"Not as much as I love you. You're it for me, Téa. You're what I've been waiting for my whole life. You're the reward for having to go through everything else." He kissed her again.

She felt his passion. "Todd," Téa whispered to him. She closed her eyes. She opened them again and felt herself kissing Todd.

Then her eyes came into focus. "KEVIN! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!" Téa pushed him away from her.

"Hey, take it easy! I just sat down here to see how you were doing. You looked like you were having a nice dream. Then you pulled me to you and started kissing me."

Téa looked down and realized where she was. Her dream came back to her. She realized that the healthy, strong Todd standing there, holding Starr and kissing her, was just a dream. Tears escaped from her eyes. Téa got up off the bed. Kevin remained seated on it. She walked a few steps from the bed and faced Kevin. "What the Hell were you doing watching me sleep anyway? I came here for a little rest and privacy!" Téa was angry and she wanted to hurt someone. She succeeded. She saw the hurt look on Kevin's face.

"I wanted to fill you on what's going on with Todd. I saw you were sleeping and I . . . I . . ." Kevin didn't know what else to say. He didn't want to say that he was mesmerized by how beautiful Téa looked and by the peace and happiness in her face, as she slept.

It suddenly hit Téa. "Todd! Did something more happen to Todd? What happened to Todd!"

Kevin heard terror in Téa's voice. "He's all right. Shhh. He's all right. He woke up . . . sort of."

"What do you mean sort off?" Téa didn't like the sound of that. "He woke up and spoke, but he's still really out of it. They call it postictal. I didn't go in to see him. Mom and Sam did. Mom said his speech is very slurred and it's hard to understand him and he's very confused. He thinks he's back home in Chicago and Sam is his dad and mom is his mother. He's also very nauseous and keeps throwing up. He's weak."

"Is all that because of the seizures?" Téa asked. She was so afraid for Todd.

"They say it's more from the medicine. Mom is really upset because of the potential side effects of the Dilantin." Kevin saw the fear in Téa's eyes.

"Are there even more dangerous side effects than the ones Doctor Ascher told us about?" Téa asked Kevin.

"It has some real serious side effects, but most of them are not likely to happen. It still freaked mom out. One of them is lupus and my older sister Megan died from it."

Téa was shocked. She had no idea Viki had another child. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you had another sister."

"Yeah . . . didn't have her very long though. My mom never got a chance to raise her because my grandfather had my mom and the alter who gave birth to Megan hypnotized and brainwashed into forgetting about ever having her. Megan was in her twenties before she and my mom found each other and then she got lupus. Her kidneys failed and she died. My mom even gave her one of her own kidneys, but it didn't help."

Téa couldn't believe Todd had never told her about any of this. "My God! Todd's real father was almost as much a monster as Peter."

"In many ways he was," Kevin agreed. Kevin hated to think of Victor and was terrified of discovering ways that he was like his grandfather.

"Does Todd know about all this?" Téa questioned.

"I'm not sure. I guess my mom told him some. I have a feeling he doesn't know too much. Mom doesn't like to talk about it. I don't think she ever really got over losing Megan. She really freaked when Doctor Anderson mentioned that getting lupus is a very rare side effect of taking Dilantin. She was refusing to let them medicate Todd."

Téa had heard of lupus. She knew nothing about it. "Maybe Viki's right? If Todd can get a fatal disease from the drugs. . . "

"No! Téa, first of all, lupus isn't usually fatal. Then it is mostly women who get it. It is a rare side effect." Kevin emphasized the word rare. "Todd is in much more danger from the seizures than from the medicine."

Kevin didn't want Téa to end up as terrified as his mother. "Téa, Susannah told me a little bit about epilepsy. She said it shouldn't be debilitating. She said Todd will be able to function as well as anyone and do just about anything he wants once the seizures are controlled. They said this drug has been around for a long time and millions of people have taken it. It may make Todd feel really lousy at the beginning, but once he gets used to it he shouldn't feel so bad. They have to get it up to a certain level to be therapeutic. In the meantime it's possible he could still have some seizures."

"He can still have seizures?" Téa was upset.

"He may not. In case he does, they wanted us to know that it's . . . normal . . . I guess you could say." Kevin shrugged and continued. "Most likely the anticonvulsant will control the seizures so that he stops having them completely or not as often."

Téa began to pace. "Even with a medication, that may be dangerous, he might still have seizures!" Téa could not believe it. "I hate this! Why is this happening to Todd? Didn't he have enough problems without this! Damn it!" Téa cried out angrily.

Kevin thought it best to save telling Téa that the medication may worsen Todd's mental problems.

"Is he still awake? Can I see him?" Téa asked hopefully.

"He's in and out. He mostly wakes up from the nausea. They are taking him for a CT scan soon. There probably won't be much time to see him anyway."

Téa wanted the CT scan done and over with. However she was also terrified that it would show something horrible, like a tumor. "Waiting for the results of medical tests has to be the hardest and most frightening thing in the world!" Téa exclaimed.

"You got that right," Kevin agreed. He was a frightened about the results too. "Doctor Anderson said he really doesn't think it's anything like a tumor or an aneurysm. They have to be sure."

"Todd will freak out in one of those tunnels," Téa stated.

"They'll make sure he's knocked out. Susannah promised. They'll take him to ICU after the test. We can go see him there." Kevin ran his hand through his hair. "Téa. I'm sorry about before. I-I didn't mean to infringe on your dream."

Téa shrugged. "I didn't mean to take it out on you."

"Looked like you were having a nice dream," Kevin observed.

Téa smiled. "I was. I was dreaming Todd was healthy and strong and he was home with Starr and me."

Kevin realized Téa had probably been dreaming she was kissing Todd. He made no reference to it. "Well, at least you'll get to see Starr tomorrow," Kevin pointed out encouragingly.

"Yes, unless something happ . . ." Téa cut herself off mid-sentence.

Kevin walked up to where she stood. He put his hands on her shoulders. "Nothing is going to happen to Todd. He will take this medication and it will help and he'll get back on the other medications that were helping him and he will be okay." Kevin was emphatic. He desperately wanted to believe what he said. He didn't want to say it out loud, however he was terrified Timmy would be out and have a seizure. Not that he wanted to see that happen to any of them, but the thought of his Timmy going through that killed him.

Kevin looked at his watch. It was nearly nine o'clock at night. "How about we go back to the ER and wait for them to take him for the test and then go get something to eat? Maybe we'll have some answers by the time we get back."

"I'm not leaving the hospital," Téa firmly declared.

"No. We'll just go to the cafeteria. They don't have much at this hour. We can get some sandwiches and coffee. You want to be in good shape to see Starr tomorrow don't you?"

A tear slid down Téa's cheek. "Oh God, Kevin. What am I going to say to Starr if she starts asking about her father?"

"You'll first have to find out what Blair told her. Then just tell her the same thing. I think Starr will be so excited to see you that she may not ask too many questions."

Téa hoped he was right. She didn't think so though. She knew that thoughts of Todd would never be far from his daughter's mind.

*****

Téa and Kevin saw Susannah sitting calmly at the nurses station talking to one of the nurses. They didn't see Sam and Viki. They assumed they were in with Todd. They figured nothing too bad was happening or things would have been more chaotic. They approached the nurses station.

"Hi, Viki and Sam are in with Todd. He'll be going for the CT scan in about fifteen minutes," Susannah informed them.

"How has he been? Any changes?" Téa asked.

"His pressure and heart rate have come up and that's good. His nausea has ebbed a little. He's still disoriented. He doesn't realize he's in the hospital."

"Is he still thinking mom and Sam are his parents?" Kevin inquired.

"Yes," Susannah nodded. "He becomes very agitated if they're not around during one of his waking states."

"I can understand him wanting mom to be his mother . . . why does he want his father around?" Kevin couldn't imagine.

"Todd wants his father's love and approval. He's hearing Sam's voice say the things he always wanted his dad to say to him. He's very vulnerable right now. Between the medication and the seizures his defenses are way down. His unconscious and conscious wishes for what he always hoped his dad would say to him are coming through," Susannah explained.

"Is all right if I go in and see how he's doing?" Téa asked.

Susannah thought about it for a minute. "All right, but if he's awake and he doesn't want you to see him, I want you to leave right away."

"Yes, of course," Téa agreed.

Kevin realized that if it were Todd who was out, he had better wait outside the cubicle and be there for his mother. He had no idea how Todd would react to him. Todd still did not know Kevin was involved in his therapy or that he cared deeply about some parts of him. Kevin realized that as far as Todd was concerned he was his enemy. He also realized, sadly, that Todd probably still hated him along with the rest of the Buchanans.

*****

Susannah walked Téa to the cubicle. They quietly stepped inside. Todd was awake and talking to Sam and Viki. They were doting on him and didn't even notice that Téa and Susannah had entered. Susannah and Téa stood with their backs against the curtain. They stayed quiet and did not say a word. Téa was surprised to see that Todd appeared relatively calm. Every now and then Todd's hand would reach for the oxygen mask on his face. Téa remembered how Todd hated to have anything cover his face. Either Sam or Viki would gently pull Todd's hand away from the mask. Téa was upset by how slurred Todd's speech was. She was having a hard time understanding what he was saying. Although she was able to understand the bulk of it.

"Dad, I got a B plus on that history test. I'm sorry. I'll try to get an A next time."

"B plus an excellent grade. I'm very proud of you," Sam went along with it.

"Mama, my head still hurts," Todd whimpered.

Viki stroked his head and kissed it. "I know, baby. It will stop shortly"

"Mama, when the lights come back on will you read to me?"

"Yes, sweetheart. I'll read you anything you like."

"I like that book about the lion who gets raised by people and then gets to go free at the end of the story. You know, the one you always read to me."

Viki thought for a moment. "Do you mean 'Born Free?'"

Todd looked puzzled and then he smiled. "Don't tease me Mama. You know that's my favorite book." Todd looked suddenly panicked. "Dad! Dad! Are you still here?"

He tried to sit up and reach out. "I'm here Todd. Shhhh, I'm right here." Sam put his hands on Todd's shoulders and gently pushed him back against the pillow.

"Please don't leave me, Dad. I'm being good."

"Yes. You're being very good. I'll never leave you," Sam promised.

Todd calmed down. Viki looked up and noticed Téa and Susannah standing there.

Susannah approached the gurney. "Todd, it's Doctor Hanen. Do you know who I am?" Todd looked confused. "Can you tell me where you are?" Susannah tried.

"In the living room." Todd's expression let Susannah know that he was wondering why she would be asking such a question to what he thought was obvious. If it weren't for the blindness, Susannah would have strongly suspected this was another alter. She still wasn't a 100 percent sure it wasn't.

"Todd, do you know who Téa is?" Susannah posed.

Todd continued to look confused. He didn't answer. Tears stung Téa's eyes.

"Téa would like to say hello to you. Is that all right?" Susannah asked.

"I don't want my mom and dad to leave." Todd sounded frightened.

"That's okay. They can stay if Téa says hello to you. Is it all right if she does?" Susannah pressed.

He nodded. This surprised everyone, especially Téa.

Téa approached the gurney. She felt suddenly awkward and did not know what to say to him. She finally came out with . . . "Hello, Todd. I'm sorry you're not feeling well."

"My head hurts and I feel sick to my stomach," Todd complained.

Téa had listened very hard to what Todd was saying. She was able to make out most of it. "Doctor Hanen told me you'll feel better soon." Téa tried to sound encouraging. She couldn't believe that Todd was talking to her so calmly. She wondered if he remembered any of the things she had said to him while he was sleeping. A part of her hoped he did and a part hoped he didn't.

"Mama's gonna let me stay home from school tomorrow because I don't feel good and she's gonna read to me when the lights come back on. Dad's gonna come to my game because he's proud of me."

Téa noticed a small smile on Todd's face as he said that. "They love you very much, Todd. They want to be with you more than anything." Téa hesitated for a minute. "I love being with you too," Téa cautiously admitted.

"How come?" Todd asked calmly.

Téa looked at Susannah and then at Sam and Viki. She was thrown by Todd's question. "I like being with you because I love you."

Todd smiled and reached out for a hug. Téa was completely taken back. She lovingly took him in her arms and hugged him.

"You're a nice lady. Are you a friend of my mom or my dad?" Todd inquired.

Téa was crushed. Tears immediately sprang to her eyes. She didn't know how to respond.

"Téa came here especially to see you, Todd," Susannah quickly told him. She saw that Téa had was too upset to answer.

Todd looked frightened. He let go of Téa and reached out for his father. "Dad is it all right if the lady came to see me. I didn't ask her to. I didn't mean to disobey you. Dad, honest I didn't."

"It's okay, Todd. It's okay. It's fine that Téa's here. I want you to have friends."

Todd calmed down. "Téa," he called out.

Téa wiped her tears away and cleared her voice. "I'm right here, Todd." She took his hand.

"My dad says it's okay for you to come to especially see me." Todd reached up and tried to pull the oxygen off his face again.

This time Téa took his hand. "That's helping you breath. You have to leave it on."

Todd reached up to Téa's hand and held it for a minute. "You have on a married people's ring. Are you married?"

Téa swallowed hard. "Yes. I'm married to someone very special and wonderful."

Téa's answer didn't seem to have any emotional impact on him. "Do you have any kids?" he questioned.

Téa hesitated for a moment. "My husband has a little girl from his first wife. Her name is Starr. I consider her my little girl."

They all watched Todd as Téa mentioned Starr. He didn't flinch. "My dad likes that I'm a boy. He plays catch with me and tosses the football around with me. You can't do that with a girl." Todd nervously reached out for Sam again. "Dad! Dad!"

"I'm here, Todd. I've been right here by you all along," Sam comforted.

"Dad, I catch the ball good, don't I? Even when you throw a long pass I catch it. Right? And when we play baseball in the summer . . . I can hit and catch the ball real good. Right Dad?"

"Yes," Sam stroked Todd's head. "Téa, Todd is the best ball player I have ever seen. I'm very proud of him." Sam praised.

Todd reached out to Sam for a hug. Sam happily took him in his arms and held him tightly. None of them could get used to this very affectionate Todd. If it was Todd. They were all having their doubts. Todd yawned. Sam carefully laid him back down. Susannah noticed the medication had finished. She went to call the nurse in and then asked her to please call Doctor Anderson and let him know that Todd was ready to go up for the CT scan. Susannah knew that even though he was calm now, he would still have to be heavily sedated for the test. He didn't even realize he was in a hospital. His agitation would quickly escalated if he thought he was being separated from his mom and dad. She would wait for Doctor Anderson to assess him and decide how much sedation he would require.

*****

"Hello, Todd. It's Doctor Anderson. Do you remember my being here a little while ago?"

"Mama!" Todd reached out for Viki. "Mama, I don't wanna doctor. I wanna go to my room." Todd tried to get up.

"Sweetheart, shhhh. Relax. Doctor Anderson won't hurt you."

"How come Doctor Evans isn't here?" Viki didn't know what to say to him.

"Doctor Anderson is taking care of you tonight, pal. It'll be all right. Just lie back and let the doctor examine you," Sam coaxed.

"Dad! Dad! Please don't be mad at me. I won't talk to the doctor. I won't. Please. Dad, don't leave." Todd's breathing was becoming erratic.

"Todd, listen to me . . ."

Todd cut Sam off. "I won't talk to him dad. Please! Dad, don't leave me!" Todd was starting to cry. He felt the warm tears drip down his cheeks. He reached up and pulled the oxygen mask off his face before they could stop him. "I'm sorry. I know I'm acting like a little girl. I'm sorry, Dad. I'll stop crying. I'm sorry. Don't leave! DON'T LEAVE! MAMA! DON'T LEAVE. PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Hearing Todd's plaintive cries, Téa and Viki started crying. Sam and Kevin, who heard Todd's cries from the waiting area, both had tears in their eyes.

"Let's give it another minute and see if we can get him calmed down. I would really like to assess him before we sedated him for the CT scan," Doctor Anderson whispered to Susannah.

Sam hugged Todd as tightly as he could. "Todd. I'm here. I'm here."

Viki joined in the hug. "I'm here too, baby. Shhhh, we're not leaving you. No one is leaving you. You don't ever, ever have to be afraid of that."

"Mama, make the doctor go away."

"Sweetheart, I promise you Doctor Anderson won't hurt you."

"I don't want any shots," Todd whispered to Viki.

"No shots, Todd. I won't give you any shots. I promise," Doctor Anderson assured him.

"Dad? Is it okay?"

"Yes, Boomer. I want you to let the doctor examine you."

"Okay," Todd agreed, "But no shots."

Todd was still fearful. However with tender words of persuasion from Sam and Viki and lots of hand holding, he tolerated the exam. He even giggled, at one point, when Doctor Anderson ran a broken off wooden Q-tip across the soles of his feet.

"You are doing very well, Todd," Doctor Anderson praised. "We're almost finished here." About eight minutes had gone by since anyone mentioned Doctor Anderson by name. "Todd, do you remember my name?"

Todd thought. They could tell he was confused. "Doctor," Todd answered.

"That's right. I'm a doctor. Do you remember my name?"

"Mama, I'm tired. Can I go to my room?" Todd's chin started to tremble. He was afraid he was in trouble for not remembering Doctor Anderson's name.

"You can rest right here, baby. "Is it all right if he lies back now?" Viki asked.

"Sure," Doctor Anderson answered. He could see Todd was still very confused. He helped Viki lower the back of the gurney a little. "Todd, I just want to ask you a couple more questions, okay?" Doctor Anderson pressed.

"Dad?" Todd turned in the direction Sam's voice had come from.

"It's okay, Boomer. You can answer the questions," Sam stroked Todd's head.

Either Todd's speech was improving or they were getting used to it. Although it was still quite slurred, they didn't have as much trouble understanding him. "Todd, can you tell me who Viki and Sam are?" Doctor Anderson asked.

Todd rolled over on his side and pulled his knees to his chest. "My head hurts," he whimpered.

Susannah and Doctor Anderson both theorized that if this were Todd, he either was too confused to know who Sam and Viki were or he was blocking out the present so he could give himself the parents he always dreamed of.

"Okay, Todd. I'm going to let you rest." Doctor Anderson patted Todd's shoulder and stepped out of the cubicle. Susannah joined him. Viki and Sam stayed behind. Sam was stroking Todd's head and Viki was rubbing his back. Téa stepped out behind Doctor Anderson and Susannah, Kevin joined them.

"His responses are improved. I'm not sure how much of his confusion is medication related and how much is due to mental illness. Are you sure this isn't another alter?" Doctor Anderson asked Susannah.

"No, I'm not sure. He's acting nothing like Todd," Susannah frowned in frustration. "But he is blind. If it weren't for that I would be convinced it was another alter." Susannah sighed. "I'm beginning to think it very well may be a handicapped alter . . . a blind alter. I don't know," Susannah confessed.

"Could there be a physical reason for his blindness this time?" A frightened Téa asked.

"No. His pupils are reacting normally, given the situation. His retina looks okay. I see no physiological reason for his blindness."

"It may be that Todd, himself, has regressed to a more childlike state," Susannah remarked.

"He doesn't remember any of us, not even Starr. You saw him. I mentioned Starr and he didn't even blink. Todd would never not react to Starr!" Téa exclaimed. She was very upset.

"If this isn't an alter, then is Todd still in that postictal state? Is that why he's so confused?" Kevin inquired.

Both Susannah and Doctor Anderson shook their heads. Susannah spoke first. "Todd is still postictal, however this is not confusion. He has regressed. This is more of a dissociative amnesia. If I were to speculate, I'd say Todd was acting as a nine or ten year old right now. He wants the kind of nurturing Sam and Viki are providing, only he wants it from his parents," Susannah theorized.

"So, he turned mom and Sam into his parents," Kevin commented. He nodded slightly. He was starting to understand a little.

"Yes. They are giving him the responses he needs to hear Peter and Barbara say. He needs that level of affection and caring from them."

"You're saying it's Todd . . . he has blocked out everything after he was about ten years old . . . he's believing that his parents just suddenly turned into these kind, loving people?" Téa looked confused. She was still trying to grasp this.

"Basically, yes," Susannah responded.

"Then why does he still want to be blind?" Téa was having a hard time with this.

Susannah did her best to explain. "I'm not sure at this point. If it is Todd, it may simply be that just hearing and not seeing Sam and Viki, make it more believable for him. In any case, hopefully, it is a temporary situation brought on by the trauma of the seizure and the medication."

A nurse interrupted. "Excuse me. Doctor Anderson, radiology is on the phone."

"I need to take this," Doctor Anderson told them.

"Kevin, Téa, will you excuse me for a few minutes too. I want to let Sam and Viki know that we'll soon be sedating Todd and taking him up to radiology for the CT scan." Susannah told them and headed into the cubicle.

Téa and Kevin listened as Doctor Anderson spoke to radiology.

"In about ten minutes . . . Multiple seizures . . . No, he never came to full recovery . . . With contrast . . . Not that we know of . . . He's been loaded with Cerebyx . . . Two milligrams lorazepam . . . No. He's going to need more than that . . . Right handed. Actually ambidextrous . . .Yes, the left temporal lobe . . . There's a history of brain trauma . . . Okay. Thanks we'll be there in ten." Doctor Anderson hung up and began writing in Todd's chart.

The words, "a history of brain trauma," went through Téa like a knife. Despite Todd's long history of brain injury, Téa was convinced that her hitting Todd with the shovel was the cause of his seizures. Guilt washed over her. She wanted to run to him and tell him how sorry she was.

Kevin saw the distraught look on Téa's face. "We'll know soon. They seem pretty sure it's not a tumor or anything like that."

"I know. They believe it's an old injury to his brain. Like someone hitting him on the head with a shovel!" Téa said bitterly.

"Téa, you did not do this to him."

"Oh how do you know that! Did you crawl inside Todd's brain and see a sign that said Téa didn't do this? I hit him Kevin! I knocked him out and tied him up and threatened to burn him." Téa's face was etched in horror. "I threatened to burn him. Just like his father did. My God! What was I thinking?"

Kevin knew what Téa and the rest of them had been put through in those months following Georgie's death. Yes, the one who had been most severely traumatized and put through hell by Georgie's death had been Todd. That didn't lessen Téa's suffering.

"Téa, he held you hostage. He kidnapped you. He abused you. You had every right to be furious with him. You had every right to want to get back at him." Kevin hated that he still felt rage towards Todd when he thought about being locked in the wine cellar with Barbara Graham that night. He knew that had been the beginning of the problems he and Cassie now had. Of course when he was being completely honest with himself, he admitted he had been attracted to Barbara before Todd ever came near them and his life had been spinning out of control since the fire. Kevin could still see Todd holding a knife to Viki's throat. Kevin knew now that Todd would never have hurt Viki. Nevertheless, his behavior to her was still abusive. Kevin couldn't face the negative feelings he still had for Todd. They terrified him. He was still so afraid that he was capable of hurting Todd and thus hurting his beloved Timmy. Kevin quickly put all those thoughts out of his mind.

Téa had been over and over that night in her mind. Yes. There was truth in what Kevin said. Téa told herself the same things many times. Right now all she could think of was that she might be responsible for causing Todd to have these seizures. "Kevin, I don't want to talk about this anymore. I just want to hear them say that Todd doesn't have something like a tumor or an aneurysm."

Kevin backed down. He knew Téa needed some time to herself. Kevin pointed to some chairs in a waiting area. "I'll be over there if anyone needs me."

"Okay, I'll let Viki and Sam know," Téa responded wearily.

Todd had fallen into a fitful sleep. Every few minutes he would wake up in a panic and call for his mom and dad. Once Sam and Viki verbally assured him and offered some physical assurance as well, he would drift off again.

Susannah motioned them off to the side. "The nurse will be coming in to sedated him in a couple of minutes. The test takes about an hour but with the prep and all Todd will be upstairs for about ninety minutes, possibly two hours. When it's done he'll be going directly to ICU. I think this would be a good time for you and Sam to get something to eat and then some rest. I'll get you as soon as he's settled in the ICU."

"Susannah, you'll be there with him the whole time?" Viki needed reassurance.

"Yes. Both Doctor Anderson and I will not leave his side," Susannah promised. "Relax. He'll be fine. He won't even know he's been through it."

A nurse came in and did vitals on him and hung another bag of normal saline.

"How is he?" Viki asked anxiously.

"He's doing good. BP's one ten over seventy. His pulse is seventy and regular." Viki and Sam breathed a sigh of relief.

"Mama! Dad!" Todd had woken up with a start and reached out for them.

"We're right here, sweetheart," Viki comforted.

"Todd, it's Doctor Hanen. How are you feeling?"

Todd rolled over on his back. He tried to sit up. "Mama." He reached out for Viki. Once he felt her arms around him he snuggled into her.

"Sweetheart, did you hear Doctor Hanen's question?"

"She's not the same doctor. The other one was a man doctor. He promised no shots"

"Apparently his short term memory is fine," Susannah commented and smiled. "I won't stick you with a needle either Todd. I won't do anything to hurt you." The nurse returned with a syringe full of sedation. "Todd, do you know what an IV is?" He shook his head. "It's a line that's attached to a needle that's in the back of your arm." Todd immediately started to feel for it. Sam and Viki each took one of his hands. "It doesn't hurt Todd. "You've had it in all along. As long as you don't tug on it, it won't hurt," Susannah assured him. "It's a way to give you medication so that you don't have to get stuck every time we do."

Todd started to panic. "Mama! I wanna go upstairs to my room. I don't want any medicine!"

"Shhhh, baby. It's all right. It won't hurt you," Viki comforted.

"Dad, I don't want medicine," Todd cried out.

"We're right here with you, Boomer. We won't let anything hurt you," Sam assured him as well.

"Todd, I promise this won't hurt. The medicine is going to make you feel very sleepy. You may start to feel a little dizzy. It's nothing to be afraid of. I don't want you to fight it. I want you to relax and go with it," Susannah kept her voice soft and soothing.

"Mama!" Todd held on to Viki tightly.

Viki rocked him and rubbed his back. Sam held his hand and stroked his head. The nurse injected the medication into the IV. Viki and Sam continued to speak reassuringly to Todd and continued to comfort him with touch. As the sedation began to put him to sleep, Todd's grip on Sam's hand loosened. Viki felt his body start to relax and then go limp in her arms. Gently, she laid him back down. She kissed his forehead.

Doctor Anderson came in. He checked Todd's eyes. "Okay, let's go," he said to the nurse and Susannah. Viki brushed Todd's hair back from his face as they wheeled him out.

Téa and Kevin watched as they wheeled Todd down the hallway. Sam and Viki joined them. "We're going to the lounge to try to get some rest," Sam informed them.

"Kevin, Téa, you don't have to stay. I'll let you know as soon as we get the results," Viki told them.

"No. I want to stay," Téa insisted.

"So do I mom." Kevin turned to Téa. "So, are you ready to take me up on that sandwich and coffee in the cafeteria?"

"I'm not sure about the sandwich. I sure could use some coffee," Téa agreed. They all headed for the elevators.

Secrets 87, Page 2