The hand tightened around her little wrist, squeezing harder and harder. She pinched her eyes shut, tears beginning to roll down.

"Let go!" her little voice squeaked as she pulled away from the man breathing down on her.

"Don't squirm," he ordered as he yanked her toward him. Her wrist began to turn red, showing the irritation of the skin. She cried harder. The man raised his free hand into a striking position. She shrieked…

Jesse sat up in a cold sweat. Her breath came labored and quick. She looked around the darkened bedroom. Everything was in its place; Flynn's back was to her as he slept inches away on her right. Her right hand gently rubbed her ever increasing stomach. She closed her eyes and swallowed a moment. As she opened them, she rolled her eyes to the side to look at the clock- 2 am.

"Ugh, what do you say we try this again?" she whispered to her stomach. After a sigh, she lay back on the pillows and attempted to sleep once again.

Next to her, Flynn lay staring at the wall, not giving any sign of his awakened condition. His red eyes cried softly as he sighed at the helpless feeling overwhelming him.

"Parker!" Hardison shouted from his seat in the brew pub. He stared across the pub at the thief pinching a peanut from the container on the counter.

"What? I'm hungry," she pouted as she dropped the nut.

"Then take it from the back stock not the serving bowls… and get over here so we can settle this," he explained.

"What are you two arguing about?" Eliot muttered as he exited the backroom, his hands full of empty glasses.

"Nothing," Hardison swallowed.

Eliot spotted Parker swiping another peanut while Hardison was distracted by his entrance.

"What!?" she mumbled with a full mouth. Eliot muttered under his breath. Hardison stared incredulously at her, causing her to hang her head in shame. She shuffled over to take the seat next to him.

After placing the glasses on the counter behind the bar, Eliot looked into the container at the handful of almonds left behind. He picked it up and rolled it side to side to be positive.

"So much for mixed," he sighed and pulled it down behind the bar before beginning to rinse the glasses.

"You ate everything but the almonds again, didn't you?" Hardison groaned. Parker grinned sheepishly. He shook his head.

Eliot rinsed the last glass and wiped his hands on the bar towel by the sink. "Well, I'm outta here, you two don't forget to clean this up before you go," he chimed.

"Have fun," Parker smiled.

"Yeah," Eliot scrunched half his face in the awkward moment and exited the bar.

"Have fun? The man's getting tires not going to the movies…" Hardison sighed. Parker shrugged.

Eliot approached the door of his challenger, fumbling for the keys in his pocket. The phone in his pocket vibrated as it began to ring. He opened the door, pulled the cell from his pocket and answered as he climbed behind the wheel.

"Yeah?"

"Eliot? Did I call at a bad time?" Flynn's voice was meek on the other end.

"No, I'm on the way out to get new tires for the car is all, why, what did you need?" Eliot pulled the door closed and switched hands holding the phone to start the ignition.

"I was hoping you could help me out."

"You're not in trouble again, are you? Donnell have friends?" he paused his movements to wait for an answer.

"No, no, nothing like that… it's Jesse," Flynn swallowed.

Eliot held his breath a moment, "What's wrong?"

"I'm not sure exactly. She's not sleeping and she barely eats."

"That's pretty normal for pregnancy, isn't it?"

"It's not just pregnancy. I know she's having nightmares- she wakes up shaking like a leaf, covered in sweat… and I think she's starting to have them when she's awake too."

"I'm not sure what I can do about it, maybe a softer touch…" Eliot began.

"She won't talk to me or anyone else about it. I've asked her what the nightmares were and she says nothing."

"Why do you think I'll have better luck?"

"Because she's talked in her sleep when she's having them… and your name comes up. You're in the nightmares… so maybe you can understand them. All I know is I'm at wit's end here. The lack of sleep and food is getting bad for her, let alone the baby. I'm terrified and don't know what to do anymore. If you can help, please try," Flynn pleaded.

Eliot swallowed a deep sigh, "Okay, I'll give it a shot."

"Thank you," Flynn breathed.

Jesse stared at the array of beverages in the vending machine. The hubbub of the hospital echoed up and down the hall but she felt alone in the niche against the stairwell doors. As she reached out to push her selection, she felt a presence behind her. Before she could turn, an arm wrapped around her ribcage, trapping her arms. A hand covered her mouth and jerked her head back violently. She kicked out, but the man had turned her, allowing her legs to kick open the stairwell fire door. He threw her against the railing, bruising her ribs and forearms. Jesse scrambled to gain her feet as the door closed behind the man. He reached out toward her face, cupping the cheekbone, and shoved her down the flight of stairs…

"Mom?" Dillon's voice broke the image. Jesse looked up to see her son standing in the kitchen doorway. She stood at the island, her vegetables in a mangled heap and one finger bleeding from a slice across the lower knuckle.

"What is it, honey?" she answered as she turned and thrust her finger under the faucet and turned on the water.

"Do you want me to help with that?" he offered.

"No, no, I got distracted was all. I'm okay."

Dillon frowned. "Okay, but I can help if you want."

"I appreciate it, but really, I'm fine. Go finish your game."

He sighed and trudged back to the living room. Jesse shut the water off and grabbed a napkin off the rack on the counter. She wrapped it around her finger tightly.

A knock at the door startled her, causing her to let go of the end and unravel the napkin. She snorted and began to rewrap as Dillon answered the door.

He peeked through the peephole and pulled back with a grin. The door was open in a second.

"UNCLE ELIOT! HI! Mom didn't say you were coming!" he shouted with glee.

"Hey kiddo," Eliot pat Dillon's head, "She didn't know, it's a surprise visit." Dillon turned to look at his mom who scowled at them.

"I think you're in trouble…" Dillon whispered. "That's her mad face."

"Was expecting it. Can you give us a minute?" Eliot replied.

"Sure," Dillon shut down his game and disappeared toward his room. Jesse waited for the door to click shut before speaking.

"I'm fine, you didn't need to concern yourself with me," she hissed.

"Yeah, looks fine…" Eliot snarked as he rolled his eyes across the island top- spotting the bloody knife blade.

"Flynn needs to stop worrying over every little thing. He's driving me crazy."

"This isn't a little thing," Eliot insisted.

"So I'm having a little trouble sleeping… it happens. It isn't that big of a deal."

Eliot's eyebrow rose as he grasped her wrist and lifted the bloody napkin wrapped finger up between their faces. "Yeah, nothing big about that." He released her hand.

"You never cut your finger in the kitchen before?"

"No, I have, but not because of a nightmare."

"What makes you think it was a nightmare?" She kept her eyes averted to prevent him from reading them.

"You're sweating- it's freezing in here. Your hands are STILL shaking. You're pale. You're eyes are blood shot… and I already know you're suffering from them day and night."

"I get it," she barked.

"Do you? How is it affecting your…"

"YES, the blackouts are getting worse, okay? What do you want, huh? Why are YOU here?" she huffed.

"Flynn said you were talking in your sleep. You've said my name a few times so he figured I may be of help since I'm in those nightmares."

"He's not sleeping through them… lying little…"

"That's why you need to deal with this. It isn't affecting just you… or even you and the baby. Flynn can't sleep, and I'm willing to bet you'll find Dillon missing a few hours too."

"Thank you, because I needed my brother to show up and tell me I'm being a lousy mother…"

"That's not what I said…" he growled.

She pinched the bridge of her nose with her good hand. "I know. I'm just… frustrated."

"I can understand that, but that doesn't change the fact that you have a problem you aren't dealing with."

"I don't know how!" she relented.

Eliot took a deep breath and let it out. "Well, let's figure it out together. Why don't you tell me about them."

Jesse walked over to the breakfast nook and sat down. Eliot slid the table over to sit next to her.

"How do I start?"

"Breathe." She took a breath and let it out slowly. "Good, now what are they about?"

"Different things… "

"Okay, well let's break it down. Flynn said you say my name. Let's start there. How am I in one?"

"Frank…"

"Frank?"

"Yes, Frank. You remember that night. Mom and Dad left us with Frank for their anniversary dinner. He got upset about something and knocked your face into the wall. I saw it all and the shiner on your cheek as you sat stunned. I started crying and Frank grabbed my wrist so tight it turned red and told me to stop crying that you tripped because you were horsing around. He shook me so hard and I couldn't stop crying. I was terrified."

Eliot swallowed as the image played back in his head. "We were kids… you've been dealing with this for that long? Why didn't you say something? Mom and Dad could have gotten you some help back then before it got so out of hand…"

"It wasn't a problem before. I had the occasional flashback but it was momentary and didn't hang on my mind."

"When did these start… the bad ones?"

Jesse cast her eyes to the floor and rolled her head away from him. "A few weeks ago, when we came back from the doctor."

"Your ultrasound."

"Yes, when they told us it's a girl." She pulled her head back forward but kept her eyes averted.

"I remember. Flynn was ecstatic on the phone. You both wanted it to be a girl so much."

"We did. I was happy too when they told us, and then Flynn made a comment about how she would be blessed to be just like her mother." Jesse sighed. "And that was when it all changed. All the joy that was bursting out of me suddenly drew together and dropped like a stone into the pit of my stomach. I couldn't explain it. Every thought made me ill, my mind began dwelling on every memory it could conjure up from the vile and painful file. Frank, Chattum, Brixton… they play over and over in every nerve shuddering detail."

Eliot gave a soft frustrated snort. "We have had a rough go of it, haven't we?"

"We?" Jesse glared at him before reconsidering. "I guess you were hit by them too, weren't you?"

"Maybe not the same degree, but yeah, I have. We've both had our dark history that is never gonna go away no matter what we do."

"But how can I do that to her?" Jesse rubbed her stomach. "How can I so readily bring her into that darkness? What right do I have to do that?"

"You don't…" Eliot replied dryly. She stared at him incredulously. "You aren't bringing her into that darkness. You're bringing her into a life. The darkness is something that happens, and you do what you can to protect her and teach her how to protect herself so she can enjoy what you ARE giving her."

"I can't protect myself from it, how can I protect her?"

"Yes, you have… protecting doesn't mean you completely avoid altogether. It isn't possible to avoid everything in life. Sometimes protecting is simply keeping the darkness from being able to swallow you completely. You've been able to do that better than anyone I've ever known and you've passed that on to Dillon just like you'll pass it on to her. Jesse, all that darkness is only a curse if you let it be one. Trust me, I did for a long time."

Her teary eyes took in his face, every inch, every scar. "How do I stop it?"

He gave her a soft smile. "That's something you have to figure out for yourself. I'm still learning it myself. I do know you have to face it and take control."

"Take control?"

"Yes, take control of the fears and nightmares."

"Easy for you to say when you aren't the one dealing with them."

"Who says I don't?"

Jesse's eyes widened slightly. "You? My big badass brother deals with nightmares?"

A quick laugh escaped Eliot's mouth. "Yeah, I do. I have plenty of files in there too. Frank still creeps in momentarily, Brixton when that knee hurts, or any of the thousands of things I've done or seen the last 15 years. Hell, Ron held me captive until a couple years ago."

"Ron?" she furrowed her brow.

"Nevermind," he replied.

"Wait, Ron… Ranger Ron? Really?"

"Don't…"

"Wow, I don't feel so bad," she breathed.

"Thanks a lot," he muttered. "Leave it to you to make me feel like a wimp."

"No, I didn't mean it that way… well maybe a little. But if something like that stuck with someone like YOU for so long, then I guess I'm not horrible for letting any of this get to me."

"It can get to anybody. The trick is to figure out how to keep it from taking over. You have to remember that it's the past. It can only hurt you if you let it. You can either fear it or you can use it to your advantage."

"How do I use it to my advantage?"

"Learn from it. Use it to know how to prevent and handle similar situations. It isn't any different than anything else in life once you figure it out."

"I understand using fear to my advantage- I'm a mom- but I'm not sure how to control this."

"When you see Frank, how does it end?" Eliot asked.

"His hand coming for my face… I usually wake up at the impact." She swallowed as her breathing quickened and her pulse rose.

"Yeah, the height of the intense fear. Let me show you something. Picture it now…"

"You WANT me to enter that nightmare?"

"Trust me. Just picture it in your head right now."

Jesse took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She fought herself to bring the image to her mind. A shudder ran down her spine as she saw the hand come toward her face.

"Good," Eliot breathed. "I'm right here, remember that. Now, let it come."

She breathed a moment and finally allowed the image to continue. The hand made contact and cast her aside. She shuddered and flinched in fear, Eliot placed his hands around her shoulders to prevent her from hitting anything.

"I gotcha, I gotcha. Let it keep going," he soothed.

The pain ran across her face, the tears falling. Her bottom lip quivered as she fought the urge to scream. She drew into herself, trying to become as small as possible but Frank lifted her wrist into the air.

"See what happens when you aren't a good little girl?" he demanded.

"Let her go," Eliot's voice was meek but determined. Frank turned back toward him. He had stood up, the shiner running from his temple half way down his cheek. The swelling pushing the eye partially closed. Fresh tears still filled his eyes, but his fists clenched tight.

"Don't be stupid, boy," Frank laughed. "Sit down."

Eliot marched up to him, his head hunched down in nervous fear.

"We'll need a bigger story, won't we?" Frank hissed as he shoved Jesse's wrist down, knocking her on her butt, so he could face the shaking eight year old calling him out.

"You leave her alone!" Eliot forced himself to yell through his quivering lips. He breathed loudly trying to make himself intimidating.

Frank shook his head as he laughed. "What are you gonna do, huh? Step on my toes?"

Eliot's fist flew, hitting Frank in the ribs. The man laughed it off.

"That all you got, kid?" He grasped the collar of Eliot's shirt, lifting him off the ground.

Eliot narrowed his eyes. He kicked his leg as hard as he could, his toe catching Frank's high inner thigh. The man jumped a moment protecting the sensitivity of the area.

"You little bastard… that wasn't polite," he growled in Eliot's face. The boy huffed and sank his right fist into the man's left eye socket. Frank dropped him instantly.

"Jesse, get the phone!" Eliot ordered. He could hear her sniveling and shaking on the floor. "Do it!"

"Don't you dare," Frank hissed. His bloodshot, tear-filled eye stared at Eliot.

"Do it," Eliot repeated. Jesse crawled to her feet and scurried to the phone in the corner.

"I'll make you pay for this," Frank roared, pointing at his eye. He grasped at Eliot, who dove under him. The man stopped and looked down. Eliot was lying behind him, rolled over on his back. Frank turned around to face him, giving Eliot a clear target. He kicked up again, this time hitting his target. The man dropped to his knees, howling. Eliot scrambled to his feet. With the man distracted in pain, Eliot took one quick jab at the nose before bolting away.

"What happened?" Jesse swallowed as she looked around. She found herself lying against Eliot's shoulder.

"Blackout," he replied.

"That's not surprising," she sighed as she sat up and rubbed her face.

"So, how did it end?"

"You stopped him," Jesse breathed. She opened her eyes and looked Eliot in the face.

"Nobody hits my little sister."

She bit back a laugh. "I don't know what freaked mom and dad more: what Frank did or what you did to him. I remember they never left us alone with anyone again until you were old enough to babysit."

Eliot laughed. "That wasn't fun."

She shuddered a moment before taking a deep breath.

"How do you feel now?" Eliot pried.

"Still shook up… but it is feeling better. You're right, that is the past. Frank can't hurt me, and he could only get that one slap in. You probably saved both of us that day."

"Maybe…"

"But what about the others? Chattum, Brixton… no one stopped their attacks. I can't do the same thing with them."

"No, not exactly the same, but you can do it. They may not have been stopped in their attacks, BUT they didn't kill you. Those were just battles… you survived and, hate to say it, but you won the war. They're gone, all of them, and you're still here. You're just going to have to find the balance that works for you on those. Focus on the end, not the struggle."

"You make it sound so easy…" she sighed.

"It's not. I know it's not, and I won't pretend it is," he replied. "I still struggle with it myself sometimes."

"Guess I have a lot of work to do, huh?"

"Yeah, you do. But you've got a great start already," he smiled.

"And you're right, I do know the dangers…"

"Yes, you do. You know more about what can happen than most parents- which makes you that much more aware and able to prevent those dangers. You have the experience and knowledge to make it stick rather than idle stories that most parents have."

"Ain't that the truth!" she laughed.

Eliot squeezed her shoulders. "Tell you what, I'll take care of this mess," he waved his arm around the room, "and YOU go try and get some shut eye."

She opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off with a raised finger. "No buts…"

"Yes, sir!" she teased. They stood up and made their way into the middle of the kitchen. Eliot paused and gave a little smirk.

"You know it isn't polite to eavesdrop," he sniped. They both looked at the doorway as Dillon slunk around the frame.

"How did you know I was there?" Dillon asked.

Eliot tapped his left ear, "I can hear those stompers coming down the hall. You're not that stealthy."

"Okay," Dillon sighed.

"It's okay, honey. Everything is alright," Jesse soothed.

"Mom's gonna go take a nap, and I'm gonna finish this up," Eliot explained.

"Can I help?" Dillon offered. Jesse gave Eliot a sly smirk.

"Sure, never a bad idea to catch a few pointers."

Jesse kissed Dillon's forehead and gave Eliot a pat on the shoulder. "I'll leave you boys to it. Don't forget to clean up!"

"We won't, Mom," Dillon smiled.

"Make sure you bandage that up first," Eliot reminded her. She looked at her hand, the finger still bleeding. A wave of it gave acknowledgement and she disappeared.

Flynn entered the apartment to find Dillon on the couch attempting to teach Eliot how to play the video game on the television. He placed his briefcase on the floor by the door and scanned the room slowly.

"Hi, Flynn!" Dillon grinned, keeping his eyes on the screen.

"Hi…" Flynn replied hesitantly. "So, uh, where's your mom?" He bit his lip.

"Napping."

"Napping? Really…"

"Yeah, Uncle Eliot said she was."

Flynn eyed Eliot who frowned at the game he was losing. A doomed sound came out of the television causing Eliot to drop the controller and snort. He sighed and turned his gaze to Flynn.

"We had a chat and I gave her a little something," Eliot answered.

"What do you mean gave her something?"

"A little something to help her stay asleep."

"But she's…"

"It's safe, don't worry, a little lemon balm with a dash of protein and a little extra. I picked it up just in case."

"So… she's actually sleeping?" he wondered, his brow raised.

"About two hours now," Eliot smiled.

Flynn laughed, "Amazing. Thank you."

"She's better, BUT she's gonna struggle with this for a while. It isn't over and she'll have her bad days, but I think she's gonna be able to handle it now."

"Not cured, but responding to treatment?" Flynn attempted to reword Eliot's response.

"Something like that. A lot of it she has to do on her own, but I think she understands how to do it now and that's most of the battle."

Flynn nodded his understanding.

Dillon's face lit up. "Flynn! I figured out that thing."

"That's great, kiddo, but don't tell me, we'll wait for your mom to wake up so you can tell us both together," Flynn smiled.

"Okay, but Uncle Eliot should know too."

"I should know what?" Eliot asked.

"Jesse and I are trying to pick a name, and we wanted Dillon's input. Guess he made his decision," Flynn explained.

"Sounds interesting…"

"Don't worry, we retain veto power…" Flynn laughed. Eliot grinned ear to ear.

"What is all the noise out here?" Jesse's voice startled them. She stood in the doorway rubbing her belly, her eyes wincing in the light.

"I'm sorry, we didn't mean to wake you…" Flynn fretted.

"I needed to use the bathroom anyway," she responded. "Baby and all."

"Mom, I decided," Dillon puffed with pride.

"That's wonderful…" she began.

Dillon grabbed a notepad off the table and scribbled down a name. He tore it off and handed it to her. Jesse read the name silently and inhaled sharply. She stared at Dillon a moment before rolling her eyes to Eliot and then to Flynn. The latter reached over and took the page from her.

"Wow, little man," he breathed as he read the page.

Eliot scrunched his face in confusion and worry. "Is that a good or a bad thing?"

"I think you need to read this." Jesse plucked the page back out of Flynn's fingers and passed the page to Eliot. He took a deep breath before he looked at the page.

A swallow choked him as his eyes blinked rapidly. "How… I…" he stammered. He looked at the page again. The ink staring back at him caused a storm of emotion for which he had not been prepared. Twelve simple letters rendered him speechless.

"You don't like it," Dillon's bottom lip curled to display his hurt.

"No, no…" Eliot choked. "I'm just surprised is all."

"I know that names are important and when you name someone after someone it is because you want to honor and continue the person's legacy. Grandma said it is bad luck to name a girl after a living female relative though," Dillon began.

"That's true," Jesse agreed.

"Well, my little sister is gonna be the prettiest girl and the strongest girl ever, right? So she should carry on a name that is beautiful and one that is strong- right? Since it is bad luck to name her after mom or grandma, I thought this was okay. I found a picture in the closet at Grandma and Grandpa's and asked them who it was. I thought she was the prettiest woman I've ever seen. Grandpa told me it was your mom," Dillon offered.

Eliot bit his lip. "That is a beautiful sentiment, Dillon. And I think Mom would have approved… but I DO have to worry about the middle name there. Are you sure that won't get her teased?"

"There are three girls with that name in my school, is that bad?"

"No," Eliot snorted. "That's a little awkward, but I guess if it isn't unusual then there is no complaint here."

Dillon's smile lit up his whole face. "So I did good? I picked the names I thought were the most beautiful and the strongest people I know."

Jesse squeezed him in a hug. "You did great, honey. And if your uncle doesn't mind, I think we've found the name." Flynn nodded in agreement.

Eliot stared at them all for a moment. "No, I don't have an objection. Come here," he beckoned Dillon over. The boy walked over and was wrapped up in a big hug.

"You did good." Eliot released him and rubbed the top of his head.

Dillon held up the note page to look at his new little sister's name.

"Vivian Elliet Carter… kind of has a pretty ring to it," Flynn smiled. Jesse gave a soft smile.