Fic: Taken, Colby/Charlie, Cassy27, Chymom,
Title: Taken
Authors: Cassy27 / Chymom
Words: 960
Characters/parings: Colby/Charlie
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Numb3rs!
Chapter 5
Colby stood rooted in his spot. He knew that David and the team where asking the officers questions about what time the picture had been taken, but for some reason, Colby couldn't get his head around what was going on.
He knew that Mike was aware of his feelings for Charlie. Mike had been mad when he had revisited him and he had appeared heartbroken when Colby had chosen Charlie over him. Was this some kind of payback? Was Mike the one who had taken the man that made his life worth living? Colby was snapped out of his thinking as David touched his shoulder.
"Let's not jump to anything here." David said as if he could read Colby's mind. "Mike might just be helping Charlie get back to us."
David's cracking voice showed that he didn't believe what he himself was saying. Colby's eyes filled with anger and rage and David had to hold on to his shoulder as he spoke to Don who came to stand with them.
"Don," Colby said, seeking support with his boss, "you know that the last thing that Mike would do, is help Charlie. Going south certainly isn't bringing Charlie back to us. He's heading the opposite direction."
Don could only agree and then to add more to it, he held up the picture. Pointing to his brother, his next words where chosen very carefully.
"What does it look like Charlie is doing to you?" he asked David, showing him the picture again.
"Sleeping." David answered, not understand where Don wanted to go with this.
Colby let out a small 'yeah right' that he meant to be under his breath, but the whole team heard.
Megan turned her head to look at the picture one more time and then she thought about the times she has been with the young math genius. In this picture, something else was playing.
"Charlie gets car sick when he sleeps in a car." Don's voice hit a nerve in Megan as if she suddenly understood.
"It almost looks like he's trying to get out the door, but he can't." Megan had hit the nail on the head. That had been what Colby and Don had both picked up on as soon as they had seen the picture.
"Now why would a man who loved and grew up with Colby want to hurt him this way?" Megan went in to her profile mode, ready to find the hidden answers that she knew where there.
"It could be that I chose Charlie over him." Colby sighed, dropping his head and walking to sit in the SUV.
Megan followed him close-by for different reasons. First of all, she wanted to make sure Colby would be alright. She could see in his eyes that he was handling this in a hard way, a difficult way. She also needed more answers, however. Making a profile of Mike was one of their only chances of figuring out what he was up to or where he would be going.
"So Mike wanted to be your boyfriend?" Megan asked, knowing she needed to handle this delicately.
"Yes," Colby answered, opened the driver's seet's door and sitting down. The engine had been turned of by now, but Colby could still feel its warmth. He leaned his head back, closing his eyes. He would give anything for a good night's rest, but the only way he was going to get that was when Charlie would be back home with him.
"And you chose Charlie," Megan said, more a statement than a question.
"Charlie is my life," Colby said, opening his eyes again, "he's my future. I just want him back, Megan."
"I know," Megan said, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, "we all do."
"Mike hated me," he said, "when I told him that I wanted to be with Charlie, I thought he absolutely hated me. I would have never thought though..."
He couldn't finish that sentence, but Megan understood him. "You never considered that Mike was capable of hurting Charlie."
"He is a good man!" Colby said, still trying to get his head around everything. "When we were friends, I always thought he would be a friend for life, you know? Now, I can't even begin to imagine what I would do if I saw him again."
"You have to think, Colby," Megan said, "is there anything that you know of that could help us find Charlie? Can you think of a reason why Mike would head South?"
Colby shook his head and he could see the disappointment in Megan's eyes. She took in a deep breath as she turned around. She was needed elsewhere and Colby could only feel relief. He was finally alone and he had a car at his disposal.
Turning on the engine, he quickly drove away, making sure that nobody could follow him. He had lied to Megan, but there hadn't been an other choice. There was only one reason why Mike would be heading South and that was because only Colby would know where he was heading.
Soon, Colby thought, he would see Charlie again.
AN: So this chapter arrived a little later than anticipated, but it is here and we hope you enjoyed it. We're getting closer to Charlie, but how is he? What did Mike do? What can Colby do? The answers will soon be here...