The grunts growls raging thrusts against the bag never faltered never lessened as she punched harder with a furthered aggression. Each pound into the bag with a clenched jaw wild furious eyes warranted another reaming flashback
"Punch" (the snow, the silent deadly fall)
"Punch" (red staining the ground around the scene)
"Punch" (her smile, laughter, dancing)
"Growling punch" (her broken lifeless body half covered by the coroner's bag)
"Sickening punch" (one...last...embrace between her and her best friend)
The final hit stirs a deeper pain stinging her busted knuckles feeling the tear of her own skin under the black workout gloves lifting her hand palm away watching mesmerized as red trickles out of the material down her wrist tilting unable to pull gaze away hypnotized by the sight of her own life flowing out of her staining her arm.
The sudden buzz of her phone snaps her out of that dark place glancing over seeing Voight's name pop up on her screen almost tempting to pick up but when she thinks back to the last couple weeks; the manhunt, the final showdown with that sick...no. Hazel eyes held no mercy no sympathy nor want to answer. No weak emotions would be shown, only the stronger one...rage.
"Screw you Hank." Erin growled heading for the shower as her phone flicked over to a missed call sending the caller to her voice mail that no doubt was full by now. She walked down the hall of the deserted gym carrying her anger with her, a constant reminder of where her head was at these days. Luckily, Dawson had given her a key and open invitation to use his facility after hours the hours when she needed it most. After the chaos of the department had died down after a country wide search for Yates when all she wanted was to throw herself back onto the streets and busting the bad guys, Voight had plucked her right out again slapping her with a mandatory two weeks off to take time to "heal" and to add insult to injury, a psych eval which Erin had angrily refused to attend.
Obviously with her cell blaring to life her two weeks was up and he needed her back onto the field. Fuck him, he'd had his chance and she was in no mood nor rush stripping down stepping into the pouring rain dousing her body and mind trying to desperately to cleanse the horrific images from her skull knowing they were far too embedded in her memory to ever leave willingly. Pressing her palms against the wall she forced her head further under the rush of heat clenching her eyes shut as the blood washed down her hand onto the tiled floor into the drain.
By the lockers another name popped up with a message, the same as usual from her friend over in New York "If you want to talk...my phone is always on..." and just as the message came the screen blacked out once more fading like the dim lighting shutting off around the place on it's usual timer shadowed even more by a gloved hand and vibrant cell screen placed over Erin's own as a bar flickered full and the word "sync" popped up on the second cell pulled away leaving just a hinted leaving form that too faded into the blackness.
Coming out of the shower with a pair of black work out pants and a dark blue tank Erin attempted to dry her hair with the gray towel pulling open her gym bag looking down at her phone pressing the button on side flashing three missed calls, two voice mail messages and one text. Ignoring them all she sighed at the time on the screen '1:25 AM' contemplating heading to the local bar open til 4 but skipped the idea yanking out her zip up dark gray sweatshirt sliding it over her shutting lockers beside her tossing towel into hamper by bench gazing briefly at the badge barely visible in her bag. She could play crime fighter another day. Lifting her hand studying her busted knuckles the detective caved, grabbing up her bag and keys heading out surrendering to exhaustion preparing to head home...what ever home she had left. Lately all it was to her was four walls a prison to her constant thoughts, doubts, deceits. Would it ever feel safe to her again? It was a search and rescue for another day. Beer and bed, here she came.
