A/N: All right, I don't know why I'm feel so immensely generous - probably because everyone left such shiny comments!

Here is chapter 11 ... I hope you still stick with me ... As my 350 page sequel is going to need some readers as well ...

Thanks to Leiasky for just aobut everything - including the great late night chats and laughs!

Enjoy and leave me comments - I mean it! I will pull the plug!

***

A NEW LIFE, ch. 11: Not That Girl

***

Alicia watched as Simon came to and held her breath. She feared his reaction when he found out what she had done, but she feared for his health even more.

Bringing heavy eyes to look at her, Simon tried to shake away the fogginess that permeated his entire being, but it was no use. Finally bringing his friend into focus, Simon realized he was lying on her couch, and he was incredibly tired.

Working his overly dry mouth, it took him a few minutes to speak. Finally he managed to croak out, “What did you do?”

Alicia went to his side and sat gingerly on the edge of the couch. Taking his hand in hers, she told him, “I gave you something, so you could sleep.” She watched as his face contorted into a protest and she silenced him by explaining, “Simon, you need to sleep, you need to rest. If you are really accessing repressed memories the one thing you cannot afford is exhaustion. Your mind is already taxed enough.”

Simon was still angry. The one thing he did not want right now was the chance to not understand. “You shouldn’t have …” he managed to get out and Alicia guessed at his meaning.

Turning a steely gaze on him, she said, “I told you, you can trust me, do you remember that?”

He nodded once, and knew that she was only trying to help; he had been right to come to her. “Then you’ve got to trust me, Simon. I’m going to do everything I can to help, but we’ve got to keep you healthy first.”

He nodded once more and than was again asleep, his body and mind unable to fight off the drug she’d administered. She watched as he slept, taking his pulse and keeping a close eye on his breathing. She was consumed with an irrational fear for his safety, but she would stay with him through all of this. He was her friend, no matter what else was happening, and he deserved her help.

***

Getting back to her childhood home was not difficult. River remembered the way, each step bringing her one pace closer to a place she had sworn to never see again. But if that’s where Simon was, than that was where she needed to be.

Standing in the long shadows cast by the moon and the occasional street lamp, River gazed at her family’s home, a large, imposing building of dark brick and little else. The outside was meant to intimidate, meant to scream to all who passed by that this house held wealth, prestige … trophies. Trophies like Simon and River.

Simon had always been a shiny trophy, sparkling in the glow of his parents’ care and adoration. River had been the runner-up award, a dinky treasure with very little sheen that was banished to a dark corner. While Simon had always done exactly what was expected, River had always done the exact opposite. She supposed, now that she had the benefit of hindsight, it was because she had always known what was expected of her, and she had found it incredibly boring. Of course, her odd behavior just made her parents angry and uncomfortable.

Sighing with a bit of regret, River pushed these memories away and stealthily jumped over a weak spot of the security fence – still there after all these years. She circled the house in the dark for a moment and content that no one was stirring, made her way inside.

She was into the upstairs hall and heading for Simon’s room when a sound behind her froze her movements. Reaching out, she felt the person’s presence and realized that this confrontation would be inevitable. Besides, if she wanted to not only rescue, but help her brother, she would need the insight only a parent could provide.

Turning slowly, she met her mother’s shocked gaze. Her pale face held wide eyes, at least twice their normal size, as they tried to comprehend the sight before them. Taking a step towards her, her mother stayed where she was, rooted to the floor in terror as River said, “Hello Mother.”

It took the older woman a full minute to form a word. “River,” she questioned tentatively, stepping forward finally to reach out a hand to her daughter. Just as her brother had a few nights before, River backed out of the touch.

“Yes,” she answered, standing resolutely in the middle of the darkened hall, her eyes cold and steely. “Where is Simon?”

Inhaling sharply at the question, Regan Tam whispered, “How could you possibly know he’s here?”

Shrugging slightly, River answered simply, “He’s my brother.”

Regan stared at the young woman before her, still in a state of complete disbelief that she was her daughter, her baby, grown tall and strong. Regan had wished for this day, but had honestly not allowed herself to believe it was possible. Now, the appearance of her daughter had startled Regan more than she could ever admit.

Stepping towards her daughter again, Regan said, “You can’t leave here with him, River. He doesn’t belong with you anymore.”

Fighting back sudden tears at the conviction of her statement, River shook her head and told her firmly, “No. He doesn’t belong with you anymore. Hasn’t for a long time. I’m here to take him home.”

“He is home,” her mother countered, allowing an edge to creep into her voice. “This is his home,” she repeated gesturing around her. “It was your home too once, you’ve just chosen to forget.”

“You’re right,” River said, jarring the woman with the admission. “I did choose to forget. This place and you.” River let her voice grow harder at each word. “If I had my way, I would never have seen you again. But you took something that’s not yours and it’s time to give it back.”

The two women held each other in a fierce stare for a full minute, neither one willing to back down. Regan could see the determination in her daughter’s face, the way her jaw set, the way her eyes smoldered with a deep-seated fire. She had not come back to this house looking to lose. Not when the person at stake was the only family she had in the ‘verse.

Waiting another second, River broke the silence first. “Where is he?”

Sighing heavily, Regan guessed that this was a fight she could not win. Not tonight anyway. She did not want to turn this into a sparring match that would only prove to drive a larger wedge between her and her daughter. And she had known for some time now, as Simon’s grasp on his current reality had started to slip, he was still as far away from her now as he had been in the black.

“I don’t know,” she admitted.

River could tell it was the truth, but it was still unacceptable. Stepping closer to her, River allowed herself to tower over her mother as she asked, “Then give me a hint.”

Looking up to the girl, Regan was afraid of her. Shivering unexpectedly, she whispered, “He’s probably with Alicia. They’ve been seeing each other.”

Trying to ignore this new information, knowing it would only make her heart break a little more for Kaylee, River again focused her thoughts on her brother, again trying to seek him out. “Last name,” she demanded, not turning her gaze from her inward search.

“Sampson,” Regan said without hesitation, watching in awe as the girl seemed to withdraw into herself one moment and then emerge anew the next.

Without another word, River walked away from her mother, away from her childhood home and away from the life that had once stifled her – for good.

***

Gabriel had not expected Keller to show up on his doorstep. He ushered the young idiot inside, securing them both in the study before addressing him. “What?”

“Nice to see you too,” Keller responded, helping himself to a brandy despite the hour of the morning. Taking a nice swig, he rolled the rich liquid around on his tongue and then said, “I found him.”

Rushing to the younger man, Gabriel fisted his hands in his shirt front and said, “Where?”

Pulling the man’s off of him, he said, “Relax, would ya? He’s with Alicia. They’re fine.”

Sighing slightly, Gabriel did feel some of his anxiety drain away at this realization. Perhaps he and Regan had jumped to conclusions, maybe the boy just needed some time, maybe he was coming around to the Sampson girl after all.

“Does she know anything,” he asked, trying to judge how severe the situation was.

Shrugging slightly, Keller took another drink and answered, “I don’t think so. I don’t think Simon knows anything either. I think he’s just having a rough time re-adjusting. You know, the honeymoon period is over, reality’s starting to set in?”

Gabriel thought on the other man’s assessment, trying to determine if it was legitimate or just an attempt at the little rat to cover his tracks. “Perhaps, but I still think we should trail him.”

Turning an incredulous look on the other man, Keller had to wonder if all rich fathers were like this. “The boy is already paranoid, Gabe, I don’t think giving him a tail is going to do anything to ease his nerves.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, he asked, “Fine, what do you propose?”

Giving him a look of mild surprise at actually being asked for his opinion, Keller downed the rest of the expensive liquor. “I don’t know, leave it be for a while?”

Snorting derisively, Gabriel headed for the cortex screen in the room. “I don’t think so.”

“Look, Gabe, I’m not going to pretend to understand why you did what you did,” Keller told him, stepping into the other man’s path and ignoring the scathing look he got. “But the agents told you this would be a rough transition. And I’m pretty sure they also told you that there could be some hiccups along the way. Jumping at every bump in the road is bound to put anyone on edge, least of all Simon.”

Gabriel thought about it for a moment, realizing with disgust that the other man might have a point. “So your plan is to do nothing?”

“No, my plan is to drink more of your fine whiskey,” Keller told him proudly, pouring another full glass. “This do nothing thing is just part of my schedule for the day.”

Not smiling at the obvious sarcasm, Gabriel dismissed him with a wave. “Fine, but you know that if anything happens to him, it’s your head,” he threatened.

Heading for the door, the full glass in hand, Keller was all too aware of what was at stake. “Thanks,” he grimaced, turning to go. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Leaving the way he’d come, Keller really hoped that his friend was just getting whatever this was out of his system. And he really, really hoped that regardless of the outcome, he didn’t end up in the crossfire.

***

Jayne awoke in the wee hours of the morning, feeling rested. Rolling over onto his side, he flopped his arm out, searching for the young woman he’d had the pleasure to snuggle with all night and found an empty bed instead.

Eyes instantly wide, Jayne snapped up, looking around the room for River. She was no where to be seen. Swearing under his breath with a ferocity that could curl a preacher’s hair, he threw on his pretty fits. Another scan of the room told him that River had left willingly, her jacket and gun were gone, which also meant she had probably trudged off looking for a fight.

Releasing another violent curse, Jayne considered his options. He could wave Mal, tell him he’d lost his lil’ albatross and end up dead, or he could look for River, not find her, go back to the ship without her and end up dead. All in all, his options were pretty limited. Deciding the former was the lesser of two evils, he called up the firefly and was greeted with his captain’s disheveled mug.

Steeling himself for the coming confrontation, Jayne bit out, “We gotta problem.”

***

It had not been difficult to track down her brother once she knew where to look. Still conflicted with memories he could not fully comprehend and realities he could not reconcile, his tortured spirit cried out to her, and led her straight to him.

The building was one of the finest in Capitol City and River would have been impressed by it under any other circumstance. But now, she just saw it as an obstacle, the last barrier between her and her brother.

Arriving at the door to the apartment where Simon was, River considered knocking. It would probably be the most polite thing to do, and fighting against her better judgment, she did.

The woman who opened the door was very pretty, to River’s way of thinking. Maybe not Kaylee-pretty, but still pretty all the same. Even at this early hour and obviously with very little sleep, her hair was nicely brushed and her face was clean and open, if showing a bit of distress.

“Can I help you,” she asked, her voice belying her tension.

“I’m here for Simon,” River told her simply, her stance leaving no room for argument.

Her eyes widened slightly and River thought for a split second she saw a hint of recognition, then nothing. “I’m sorry,” the girl told her, moving to shut the door. “I don’t know anyone named Simon.”

Stopping the door with an outstretched and firm hand, River growled, “Yes you do,” and pushed her way inside.

Rounding the corner into the living room, River stopped, dead in her tracks, her legs almost growing too weak to keep her standing. She had known he would be here, would known he would be alive, but seeing him, sitting there, his face contorted with fear and doubt, caused her chest to heave with sobs. Reaching out a hand to him, she moved in his direction and whispered, “Simon.”

At the sound of his name, his head whipped up and his face turned the palest shade imaginable as he stared at her. At his look of horror, River halted her movements, not wanting to cause him any further anguish, but knowing that the next few hours were going to be undeniably hard. “Simon,” she said again, willing her voice steady.

He could not form words, there were no words, not for this. What could he possibly say that would make any of this more believable. He was scared to death and he didn’t know what to do about it. Looking at her was like staring at a ghost from a dream. Shaking his head slowly from side to side, he bolted off the couch, running to a far corner of the room, and crouching into it, trying to make himself invisible. River recognized his actions, it was almost the exact same behavior she had exhibited when he’d first found her at the Academy.

“You need to leave,” Alicia finally said, stepping between Simon and River once she had watched their initial meeting play out. “You can’t be here.”

Turning cold eyes on her, River did not have time for interlopers. “You’re wrong,” she said simply and stepping around the girl, headed for her brother.

Crouching down to his level, River sat on her knees, tucking her feet underneath her. She sat close to him, but kept her distance trying to be as non-threatening as possible. His mind was fragile now, she could feel the tenuous hold he had on it, and she knew, with certainty what would happen if that hold broke. It couldn’t.

“Simon,” River whispered, trying to keep the tears from marking her voice. “Simon, do you remember me? Do you know who I am?”

He had refused to look at her as she approached, but now at her words and the tone of her voice, he pulled his eyes from the wall and looked into her face. She smiled at him slightly, holding her breath in anticipation. He wanted to believe, even as his mind tried to fight it, his heart wanted her to be real.

Reaching out a shaky hand to her, Simon placed it against her cheek and whispered, “River?”

She nodded, staying as still as possible. She wanted to throw her arms around him, wanted to hug him and tell him how much she had missed him, but it wasn’t that easy – baby steps.

“Who am I, Simon,” she questioned again.

“My …” His voice faltered as he tried to find the words. He knew if he said them aloud it would be true and he was finding it difficult to give in to what he’d thought had been a fantasy, until the dream had walked through the door five minutes ago. “My sister,” he said, the statement ending like a question.

She nodded to him again, and then asked one final time, “Do you remember me?”

Simon wanted to tell her no, so he wouldn’t have to feel this pain any more, this conflict. But he couldn’t. He did remember her, every childhood prank, every bad dream, every boring dinner party, every moment she’d spent away from him at that Academy – he remembered it all. And that meant she was real; she was real and his life, the one he’d known for the past five months had been a fraud.

Unable to speak, Simon could only nod his head once, before he broke down into tears. River cried with him and gently, reached out to pull him to her. She rocked him as they both cried, so grateful that he was back. It would still be a long road to travel and she had no idea how they would survive the journey, but she didn’t care. With her brother by her side, she could do anything. Now it was time for her to return the favor.

Alicia watched the siblings cry and felt her own cheeks run with tears. This was impossible, wasn’t it? A sister Simon had never known, a life he couldn’t remember; how could that be? But while Alicia wanted to believe she was crying for Simon, she knew it wasn’t true. These were selfish tears, tears of loss. She knew, with a certainty she could never explain that he was going to leave with this waif of a girl, he was going to leave her and it was breaking her heart.

River turned sad eyes to her then and Alicia was shocked at the depth of emotion they conveyed. “Not yours,” she whispered, trying to make the young woman understand. “Not yours to keep.”

She could not fathom how that made sense to her, but Alicia knew the girl meant there was someone else, someone in Simon’s other life whom he couldn’t remember, but had loved all the same. Be that as it may, she wasn’t going to let him go without a fight.

“Simon, honey,” she whispered, crouching at his other side. She wanted to be patient and sensitive to his needs, but he couldn’t just leave her like this. “Simon, look at me, please.”

With blue eyes that had not been so clear in weeks, Simon did look to her, and she noticed the sadness on his face. She knew what it meant.

“I’m sorry, Alicia,” he whispered, as he moved to stand, River supporting him the whole way. “I have to go. I don’t belong here.” Looking back to his sister, he knew that wherever she would take him would be home. The home he’d thought was his had been a lie, and although he couldn’t explain his devotion to the girl beside him, he knew he had to go with River. He knew he could trust her.

“Simon, you can’t say that,” Alicia told him, her voice breaking with the weight of her emotion. Throwing a cold glare to River, the other girl didn’t even notice. “You don’t even know her.”

Looking back to his sister for a moment more, he said, “Yes, I do.”

River could feel the tension rising in the room and knew that Alicia wanted to do something rash, something to stop this nightmare from playing out. But it was out of her hands now and she would eventually learn to accept that. However, River knew they were running out of time. Jayne was searching for her, and using his expert skills, he was getting close.

Tugging on Simon’s arm, she wrapped an arm around his waist to steady him and said, “Come on, Simon. We’ve got to go.”

Simon leaned onto her, his body sagging from the release of so much emotion, the adrenaline that had pumped through his system at the sight and remembrance of his sister fading until his muscles ached.

Alicia stood frozen for only a second, before she hurried to stand in their path. “No,” she said firmly, her eyes blazing with pain. “Simon,” she looked to him again and rested a light hand against his cheek. More tears fell as she said, “I love you.”

Simon smiled at her now, a genuine smile. Shrugging out of his sister’s grasp, River stepped back to give them the moment they needed. Taking Alicia’s face in his hands, he wiped a few of her tears away with his thumbs, as he answered, “No, you don’t.” As she was about to protest, Simon silenced her by saying, “You don’t, Alicia. You love the idea of me: the handsome, young doctor, from the perfect family, the right social circle, who would make a good husband. But you don’t love me.”

Unable to speak, Alicia could only listen to each painful word. “If I really do have another life out there, even one I can’t remember, then I deserve to know about it.” Leaning down, he placed the gentlest of kisses against her lips and then whispered, “And you deserve to know the real me, not the man I’ve been conditioned to be.”

Crying with abandon, Alicia watched as he again hugged his sister to his side and started back for the doorway. Burying her face in her hands, she could only sink to the floor as she heard the door to her apartment open and close. Certain that she had just lost the love of her life, she wailed with a pain so deep, she was sure it would never go away.

***

Riding down in the elevator, away from prying eyes, River finally turned on her comm and was immediately greeted with an aggravated voice. “-Iver, gorramit, where are you?”

Throwing a sweet smile up to her brother, she answered, “I’m here, Jayne.”

Silence, filled with meaning was the only response, until finally the man said, “’Bout damn time. Where’re you at?”

“I’m leaving the northeastern quadrant of the city now. We need to head back to the ship.”

“You sure?” Jayne’s tone told her he was more than confused. But he trusted her and so he would do what she asked, even if it made no sense.

Looking to Simon once more, she was rewarded with a tiny smile and answered back, “I’m sure.”

***

Keller was more than surprised to get a wave from Alicia. The girl rarely, if ever, sought him out. He was even more surprised to see her disheveled appearance as he answered the call.

Immediately on edge at the sight, he asked quickly, “Alicia, what is it?”

Turning empty eyes to him, she said simply, “She took him.”

His heart in his throat, Keller knew that Simon was in trouble and that meant, he was in for a world of hurt. “Who took who,” he questioned, trying to play his part as his heart thudded in his chest.

Sighing, Alicia tried to collect herself to no avail. Still crying, she said, “Simon. That girl, his sister, took Simon.”

“You saw River,” Keller asked, unable to mask his disbelief.

Her eyes widening as she recognized his familiarity with what was happening, she went from sad to angry in a second. “How do you know her name?”

Cursing his carelessness, but not having time to worry about it, Keller told her, “Alicia, listen to me, this is very important. When did she take him and where did they go?”

Her eyes burned into him as she became more and more convinced that he was in on something that had caused Simon to leave her. “They’ve been gone for a couple of hours,” she told him, not willing to give him the whole truth. If she was right, and Keller did know what was going on, then she couldn’t trust him. How he could have kept something this, such an unbelievable secret from her, she didn’t know, but she would find out. “They said something about a ship.”

She watched him closely for his reaction and saw as he accepted this information with little concern. Anger welling in her chest, she exploded before she even knew what she was doing. “You knew! You knew about this, about what was happening to him. And you didn’t tell me?”

Keller did not have time for a scorned girlfriend, not now. “Alicia, I’ve got to get Simon back. I’m sorry you’re hurting, but there’s nothing I can do about that now.”

He flipped off the screen and sat back heavily. This was so very, very bad. Simon was gone, taken off planet by his sister, whom he obviously remembered. Which meant the neural reprogramming had been completely ineffective … which meant it would only be a matter of time before Simon remembered all the aspects of his previous life.

This meant he had failed … which meant his timely death was inevitable.

***

Alicia paced her apartment in a rage. How could Keller have kept something like this from her, from Simon? How deep had he been involved?

Her mind was reeling from questions she had no answers to and her lack of control over a situation that so deeply affected her. If Simon had forgotten a sister, his memories augmented to the point where he could not recognize a member of his own family, was it possible he’d forgotten more? Or been forced to forget?

And what of his parents? She had always found Regan and Gabriel to be polite, high class people, a typical product of their environment. But if Simon had been forced to forget a sister, his parents must have known. And if they hadn’t, it meant they had been forced to forget a daughter and Alicia could not even fathom the complexity of that set-up or the amount of power someone, some phantom person, was wielding over the Tams.

Alicia had no idea how any of this possible. It was beyond her grasp for a person, especially as one as kind and caring as Simon to be violated in such a way. Sinking back into a chair, she cried more tears, her faith in people completely shattered.

***

The next installment promises more angsty goodness, but only if you comment!