Title: "Shaz's First Case"
Fandom: Ashes to Ashes
Genre: Drama
Pairing: a bit of Chris/Shaz
Spoilers: Series 2, Episode 8, just to be safe.
Rating: T for subject matter involving rape investigation
Feedback: Please.
Disclaimer: I own nothing associated with Ashes to Ashes. Rights belong to Kudos, BBC, etc.
Summary: Follow-up to "Aftershock." While Alex is recovering from her injuries, Shaz is promoted to Detective Constable and faces her first case.
Shaz's First Case
Shaz tried to smooth out her clothes as she exited Chris's car. "How do I look?" she asked Chris.
"Fine."
Shaz gave her fiancé an exasperated look. "Do I look professional?"
"Yeah."
It was like talking to a brick wall. Shaz halted on the way into Fenchurch East and grabbed Chris by the elbow.
"Chris!"
Something in her tone made him pay attention. "Yes, lover?"
"It's my first day as a DC," she said. "I want to look responsible and professional."
Chris took a step away and gazed at her. As always, she took his breath away, no matter what she wore. He'd fallen in love with her the day they met, and Chris knew he'd feel this way for the rest of his life.
This morning Shaz wore a dark gray skirt and jacket with a red blouse and a black overcoat. She'd also put on some jewelry – though not what she'd usually wear. Chris frowned.
"What?" she demanded.
"I'm not sure about the pearls," he replied. "Makes you look like you're about to say, 'Class will come to order!'"
For a second Shaz appeared annoyed. Then she reached up to remove the necklace and earrings. "You're right," she said, tossing the items into her purse. "Anything else?"
"Undo the top buttons of your blouse."
"Chris!"
He raised his hand. "Teacher!"
Exasperated, Shaz undid the top two buttons. "No more than that," she said.
"Bloody right, no more than that!" Chris agreed. He smiled and leaned in to kiss her. "You're gonna be great," he added. They started up the back steps to the station. "The Guv'll probably start you out with something small. A blag, maybe. He'll send you out with Tim or Poirot. They'll be all right."
As he spoke, Shaz felt herself calming down. He was right. This would be fine. She'd follow the lead of the senior officer and do like every other detective before her. She'd learn as she went along.
**********
As they entered CID, Chris and Shaz were mostly ignored. Just a few smiles and "mornings" came their way. That was a relief to Shaz. She'd already dealt with the congratulations, good wishes, and teasing. Right now she just wanted to get on with her new job.
"Mornin', Chris, Shaz," Ray greeted, shrugging into his jacket. "Don't take your coat off, Chris," he continued. "We've got a body found in an alley. Let's go."
"The Guv's not taking it?" Chris asked.
"Nah," Ray answered. "From the report it looks like a vagrant died of exposure. And the Guv's got something else going on."
Giving his fiancée an apologetic smile and an encouraging wink, Chris followed Ray out the door.
Shaz's nervousness returned in full force as Chris left. Taking off her heavy coat, she hung it up and sat down at her desk. She took a surreptitious glance at DCI Hunt's office, wondering when he'd make his way out to give her some instructions for the day. The office door was closed and Hunt was talking on the phone and writing. It had to be something serious, judging from his frown.
There was a stack of reports on her desk, so Shaz began to sort through them. Since she didn't know when a PC or WPC would be assigned to her previous duties, Shaz figured that she should continue with the usual routine. It wouldn't do to let the paperwork pile up.
A few minutes later, the DCI's office opened and she looked up as Gene stepped out. "Shaz," he said softly. "Come in."
Shaz went in and was motioned to sit down. Gene closed the door and leaned against his desk. There was no "good morning" greeting. He simply started talking.
"I was going to give you a simple job today. Something relatively easy to investigate. Get your feet wet. But something's come up. Normally, I'd be giving this to Drake, but since she's out…" Gene picked up his notebook. "It's a sex crime," he said bluntly.
This was something that Shaz hadn't anticipated for her first day, but she didn't want to appear unsure to her DCI. "And you need a woman along," she concluded.
"In this particular case, yes." He paused. "It's a girl, seventeen years old. She arrived at hospital about an hour ago. Been beaten. Took them a bit to find out her name. Jane Ellis. Finally said she was raped. Doesn't want any of the male doctors near her. Even the female doctors are having a hard time getting her to allow an examination."
Shaz looked away and nodded. "She's traumatized. She's going to need counseling. There are services available."
"Right now we need to see if she'll give us a statement." Again, Gene hesitated. "Shaz, if I didn't think you could do this, I'd hand it off to Central. But you're a good copper. You're going to be a good detective. And you're sensible enough to know that cases like this are part of the job. If she's going to talk, it'll have to be with someone she trusts. You're not that far apart in age. At least, from her point of view. If she doesn't want to talk, there's not much we can do. But we need to give her the opportunity."
The DCI said nothing more, and Shaz understood that he was waiting for her to respond. She stood. "I'll get my coat," she said.
**********
At the hospital, Gene and Shaz met with Dr. Abigail Middleton. "Jane finally allowed me to perform an examination," she told them. "I followed the procedures for collecting evidence. I'm sorry to say I've had plenty of experience," she added. "Being one of the few female doctors here, I'm called on quite often." She looked at Shaz. "I'm sure you can identify with being called in for these things."
Not really knowing how to respond, Shaz just nodded. Dr. Middleton continued. "She's been beaten. Bruises and scrapes everywhere. She was raped. I've given her information about counseling. Maybe you can get more information from her. I think she was put off by the white coat." The doctor pulled open one side of the coat for emphasis.
Gene thanked Dr. Middleton who then left them to their own work. Turning to Shaz, Gene gave her a steady look. "Any questions?" he asked.
Shaz nodded. "Anything I shouldn't do or ask?"
He seemed to consider this for a moment, then said, "Don't hug her. She's not your friend. Don't personalize. Don't start thinking, 'What if this happened to my sister? My mum? Me?' The rest, I think you know."
Once again, Shaz nodded. Then she went in to interview Jane.
**********
Under normal circumstances, Shaz could see that Jane Ellis was a pretty girl. She had wavy chestnut hair and brown eyes. She appeared to be of average height and rather thin. But Jane was also clearly traumatized. She'd redressed and was lying on the bed, a blanket pulled up to her shoulders, her knees drawn up almost to her chest. Her face was bruised and one of her eyes was swollen nearly shut.
Jane looked up as Shaz entered. Even from several feet away, Shaz could feel the uneasiness in the young woman. Sitting up, Jane still held onto the blanket. She avoided looking into Shaz's eyes.
Smiling just a bit, Shaz approached the bed. "Hello," she said softly. "You're Jane, aren't you?" Not waiting for a reply, she pulled a chair close and sat down. "I'm Detective Constable Sharon Granger." The wary expression didn't leave Jane's face. "We had a call from the people here. They told us you'd been assaulted. Do you want to tell me what happened?"
Jane said nothing. Shaz decided for a more direct approach. "I can see that you've been injured," she said. "And the doctor says that there are other bruises. How did you get those?"
A tear slipped from Jane's eyes. "Are you one of them?" she asked in a broken voice.
Puzzled, Shaz asked in turn, "One of who?"
"Those counselors. The ones that doctor told me about." More tears were following the first and Jane reached for some tissues to wipe her face before continuing. "She said – never saw a woman doctor before – she said there was some kind of place I could call to talk to women who've – you know – had this happen." Sad brown eyes met Shaz's gaze. "So are you one of them?"
"No," Shaz replied. "I'm a police officer. A detective."
A short, humorless laugh escaped Jane. "Never met a woman detective before, either. So you going to tell me it happened to you and all?"
"No, I'm not going to tell you that, because it hasn't," Shaz told her. Be honest, she thought. "It's my job to find out what happened and who did it. I gather evidence and arrest the person responsible."
Jane nodded. "That's the problem," she said.
At that moment, Shaz understood what Jane's story would be. She'd seen it before, with girls in her neighborhood and even a friend from school. Still, she had to confirm her suspicions. "Why is that a problem?" she asked Jane. "A problem for you? Or a problem for the person who did this?"
"Both!" sobbed Jane. She lay down again and for a few minutes there was only the sound of ragged sobs and sniffles. Shaz gave her tissues and resisted patting her arm too much. Finally Jane spoke again. "It was Eddie, my boyfriend. I made him do it."
Shaz bit back an angry retort. The boyfriend had probably told Jane it was her own fault. Instead, Shaz asked, "Why would you say that?"
"I made him angry," Jane said. "We had a row. He called me a skank. I hit him. I mean—" She sat up and faced Shaz. "He's the only one I've ever – you know." Shaz nodded and Jane went on. "We've been together about six months and we argue a lot. He doesn't like me talking with any other boys. And he's hit me a couple of times. I mean, that's what men do, isn't it?"
Again Shaz had to stop herself from snapping, No! Real men don't do that! She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "So what happened last night?" she asked.
"We were at a club, dancing. I saw an old friend from school. Just said hello to him. Eddie dragged me out right after. When we got home, we argued. I hit him and – " Jane swallowed hard. "He started hitting me. It's never been that bad. He just kept hitting and hitting." The tears flowed again. "I fell down. He was yelling at me, telling me not to move. I don't remember moving, but I do remember wanting to get away. Maybe I tried to. I was on the floor. I think he kicked me."
It was hard to listen to. Shaz could see the whole incident in her mind's eye and had to keep reminding herself of the Guv's warning not to personalize.
Jane kept talking, as if she couldn't really stop now that she had a chance to tell it. "I was on the floor," she repeated. "Eddie – " She sobbed and lay down again, drawing up her knees again as much as she could before wincing in pain. "Eddie tore my clothes. He – he went at me. It hurt so much! He never hurt me that way before!"
Shaz gave the girl a few minutes to get her cry out. Finally Jane calmed a bit and Shaz took the opportunity to ask some more questions. "What did you do afterward?"
Blowing her nose, Jane answered, "I don't really remember. I woke up on the floor. Eddie wasn't there in the front room. I heard him in bed, snoring. I got up and washed my face. It was nearly 5:00. I changed clothes and left. Just walked around a while and cried. I still hurt, so I came to hospital."
"What's Eddie's last name?"
"Sloane. Edward James Sloane."
"Is he your age?"
"No, he's a few years older. Just turned 25."
"Where does he live?"
"I live with him. I gave the nurse my address. I – I moved in with him a couple of months ago. He said we'd be getting married soon. My parents didn't like it, but Eddie said if I loved him, we should just go ahead and be together." Jane paused. "He used to be so considerate. Always looking out for me."
Possessive and jealous. Things were adding up. "How did you meet?" Shaz asked.
"At work. First day I was at the store. He bought me a Coke at break time. He was so nice…" Jane's voice trailed off.
Deciding to give the young woman a moment to herself, Shaz told her, "I'm going to talk with my superior. I'll be right back."
Gene was standing directly outside. It was obvious to Shaz that he'd been listening. His eyes were blazing with anger. She didn't bother filling him in on what Jane had said. Instead she asked, "Anything else I should do?"
"Just hope that she'll want him taken in and she'll see it through," the DCI ground out. He put a hand on Shaz's arm. "How are you?" he whispered.
She shrugged a bit. "I'm all right. It was hard to hear."
As they spoke, Jane emerged from the examination room. She appeared red-eyed and a little shaky but said, "Is it all right if I leave?"
"Do you have a place to stay?" Gene asked gently and Jane started.
Shaz stepped in. "I'm sorry. Jane, this is DCI Hunt, my superior." She nodded toward the young woman. "This is Jane Ellis."
Jane kept quiet. Gene eased back a bit to give her more space. "Is there someone you can call?" he asked again. "Some place you can stay?"
At last she replied in a small voice, "My parents."
"We can drive you, if you like."
Before she could respond, a man's voice came from down the hallway. "Jane!"
They all turned to see a young man hurrying toward them. He was average height and slender, with brown hair and hazel eyes. He carried a bunch of flowers. "Sweetheart," he said, approaching Jane. "You weren't there when I woke up. I called around, no one knew where you were." When he got within a few feet, Gene put a hand out and stopped the man from getting closer. Giving Gene a quick look, the man returned his attention to Jane. "I finally decided to try here and heard someone say your name. Are you all right?"
So this was Eddie. Shaz moved closer to Jane. To her astonishment, Jane didn't seem to react to the man's presence.
"Is she all right?!" Gene spat out. "Look at her! Does she look all right to you?!"
Eddie looked stricken. "I'm sorry, Jane!" he said "I'm so sorry! Please! I've got no excuses. Please forgive me."
Surely she won't fall for that! Shaz thought. Glancing at Gene, she saw resignation in his face. He expected Jane to cave.
"Can we just talk?" Eddie went on. "Just for a minute?"
At this point, Shaz shouldn't have been surprised, yet she was when Jane nodded. "It's all right," the young woman said. "Let him go."
"Are you sure?" Shaz asked her quietly. "We can keep him away from you. Take him in for questioning."
Jane shook her head. "No. I want to hear what he has to say. He's not going to hurt me here." She moved toward Eddie. Gene let go of him and stepped away. Eddie gave Jane the flowers and they walked down the hall.
"I don't believe it," Shaz said to the Guv. "She's going home with him, isn't she?"
"Yeah," Gene replied. "She is."
"How can she?"
"That's one I've never been able to work out."
Eddie made a good show. He got down on his knees, clinging to Jane's hands and kissing them. Jane was crying and pulled him to his feet. They kissed and held each other. Shaz felt slightly disgusted with the performance. Gene had simply turned away.
Finally the couple came back down the hall. Jane broke away from Eddie to speak to Shaz. "Look, this has been a misunderstanding," she said. "We're going home to talk about it."
Shaz held the young woman's gaze. "Are you certain about this?"
Jane nodded. "It'll be all right. He was drunk last night. Men do things like that when they're drunk, don't they?"
This time Shaz didn't hold her tongue. "No. They don't. Not the decent ones."
Jane looked away and then returned to Eddie. She knew that, Shaz thought. But she's going with him anyway.
**********
Shaz watched Jane walked away with Eddie. Her heart sank, knowing that the young woman was returning to a situation that would find her hurt again. She felt Gene coming up to stand close beside her.
"What can we do?" she asked.
"Nothing," he said flatly. "She said it was all a big misunderstanding. She'll tell their friends that she tripped and fell and that's how she got all those bruises. And she'll start telling herself that he really didn't rape her." Shaz heard a deep sigh come from her DCI. "Same story I've heard over and over again." Silence fell between them, then he asked, "How are you?"
Not looking at Gene, Shaz said, "I don't know. It's just so… disheartening." Blinking away tears, she shook her head. "Trying to help someone and they just don't want your help."
"Until next time," Gene responded cynically. "Then we go through it again."
Shaz finally turned around to face him. "So what happens now?"
"You'll write up your report. We'll keep the evidence, just in case she changes her mind in the next few days. And we'll wait for a new case." Placing a gentle hand on her shoulder, Gene steered Shaz toward the exit. "Let's go."
The cold air outside was refreshing and Shaz took a deep breath. As she got inside the Quattro, Gene stowed the evidence in the trunk for the ride back to the station. He got in, looking annoyed as Shaz fastened the seat belt. However, he didn't tell her to release it, so she let it stay. Instead he said, "You did well, Shaz. And your first case is done for now."
"Thanks, Guv," she replied. "I just wish I didn't feel so – I don't know – like it's hopeless. How do you cope?"
Gene shrugged. "Well, you've seen how a lot of us do it."
"Booze," Shaz said.
"Yes. But for you, I'd recommend counting your own blessings," he added, to her surprise. Shaz turned to look at her DCI. "Take for instance that young man of yours," he went on. "You've got a good one there, Shaz."
She smiled. "It's nice of you to say that, Guv, especially after, well, you know." Neither of them wanted to broach the subject of Chris's betraying Gene's trust, but the implication was clear.
Gene shook his head, as if to dismiss that topic. "Chris is a fine man," he repeated. "You'll never have to worry about him being like Eddie."
"You've know Chris a long time, haven't you?" Shaz asked.
"Since he was a kid," answered Gene. "One of the kids in the neighborhood. Used to follow me around when I was a flatfoot, walking the streets of Manchester. Couldn't miss him. One blue eye, one green." Smiling, Gene went on. "He was a nice kid. Always looking after the other, smaller ones."
Delighted with hearing about her fiancé's childhood, Shaz laughed. "I can believe that. He's got such a big heart."
Gene continued. "One day I came along and saw two boys fighting. Rolling around on the ground, fists flying. One boy was bigger than the other. There were other kids standing around, yelling as kids do. I waded in and pulled the boys to their feet. The smaller one was Chris, but the older, bigger boy had gotten the worst of the deal. Both of them had bloody noses, but Terry, the older boy, also had a split lip and his eye was swelling shut." Gene started laughing. "I was holding them apart. Terry was nine years old and wailing for his mam. Chris was seven and still fighting, trying to kick him!
"I can still see him. I shook them both and asked what was going on, but neither one would talk. Finally a little girl told me that Terry had been making fun of another kid, a boy who was a little slow. Chris lit into Terry and wouldn't let up. I sent Chris home and told him to tell his mam what happened and I'd be there shortly. Then I took Terry to his house."
Shaz kept laughing. "I can just imagine what Chris's mum did!" she said. "So did you keep an eye on him from then on?"
"Just so he didn't get in over his head." Gene sobered. "But I didn't have to worry about Chris. He had a stable home, good parents. No, it was Terry I worried about. His mam tried, but she was alone. Her husband had left her for another woman and barely saw his own kid." Gene rolled down the window of the car and lit up a cigarette. "Terry caused trouble at school. I tried to keep an eye on him. I'd take him aside and talk with him, try to keep him on the right path. But he'd get into trouble every now and then. His mother died when he was twelve and Terry went to live with an aunt and uncle in Sheffield. They seemed to be all right. I tried to keep up with him, but they moved to Canada about a year after that. I don't know what happened to him. I've tried to find out, but I just don't know."
In the silence that followed, Shaz considered the Guv's story. Two boys from the same neighborhood. One meant to do some good in the world. Gene hadn't worried about him. The other perhaps going to the bad. That was the one the Guv had reached out to.
The DCI went on. "I still think about Terry. You see, Shaz, that's the way it is. Every copper has a case that won't leave him. Usually more than one. And you never really know what kind of case it'll be. But if you understand that going in, you'll be one step ahead of the game. It won't be such a shock to you when it happens. Terry's one that won't leave me.
"Today was bad in its own way, just like every case. You'll face worse, most often the ones involving kids. But you're a sensible girl and you know that. Just take them one at a time."
Shaz wondered if Jane might be one that would stay with her. And she thought about what else Gene had just said. "Tell me, Guv," Shaz said. "Does it get easier, learning to deal with the really bad ones?"
Gene put out his cigarette and started the Quattro. He met Shaz's gaze. "I'll let you know."
End