Rats in our midst
Sounds of vandalism and yells of anger echoed down the darkened corridor as Russell sat quietly in his office, hoping that no one would find him. He rarely ever worried about life, but as he sat in his armchair, though he looked calm, a maelstrom of emotions was swirling as thoughts of his teammates' safety send adrenalin rushing through him. Throughout his life Russell was faced with many trials and uncertain futures, but never this severe, never involving so many people he cared about. Andrea, Ace, Nat, Amy…oh Amy, Russell pictured. The young blonde haired girl, so innocent yet so strong, who managed to fill Russell with emotions he had never experienced before. Respect, trust, love, no not love, thought Russell, believing that such a man with his past and his experiences had no need or no ability to love such a tender person as Amy. As the rioters yelled and destroyed everything around them, Russell lay back in his chair, calmed by thoughts of the junior officer, her smile, her scent, everything about her. Thinking to himself, Russell decided that if the looters found him, he would die happy with his thoughts of Amy. Closing his eyes, Russell rocked his chair back in a more horizontal position, drowning in his thoughts of Officer Young, seeing her as he drifted slowly into sleep.
30 minutes later, Russell was still breathing and, to his surprise, his office was still intact. Rubbing his eyes, he slowly adjusted to his surroundings, taking note of the relative silence that filled the station. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, a flickering light caught his eye in the office adjacent to him as a lithe figure entered the neighboring room. Russell's heart nearly beat out of his chest as he realized whose room and the identity of the visitor was established, the woman who had encapsulated his heart and mind, a certain blonde haired officer had made her presence known. Unfortunately for them, they were not alone as another, taller figure entered the room behind Amy. Russell fumbled around in the dark, desperately searching for a torch, oblivious to the danger to both him and Amy. Reaching down into his desk drawer, Russell's actions became more frantic as he heard a muffled scream coming from the next room. Finding a little flashlight, Russell headed towards his door, muffling any sounds he might make and slowly opened it. Seeing a figure backing out of the room, Russell gave a cry of anger, causing Amy's attacker to rush towards the exit. Pleased that the danger was gone, Russell's feelings of relief soon turned to worry as he opened the door to Amy's office.
Russell noticed that the flickering lightbulb had gone dark, causing him to reach around for the desk lamp, customized for every office, praying that it was still intact. Finding the switch, Russell smiled in triumph until his expression changed to that of horror as he saw the sight that lay before him. Lying on the ground, Amy looked so peaceful, her eyes shut and her blonde hair flowing beside her. Fearing the worst, Russell knelt down beside her, laying his fingers on her neck, searching frantically for a pulse point. He let out a sigh of relief as he found it, looking at Amy's relaxed features happily. Her beautiful features never failed to enrapture Russell, but this time his attention was drawn to the ugly scratch on her left cheek filled his body with rage, but also compassion. His thoughts drifted to finding the identity of Amy's attacker through possible DNA left in her wound, to avenge his fallen angel. However, the thought of Amy being examined and prodded in order to get the DNA out made Russell sick to his stomach as he pushed a strand of hair behind her ear lovingly. Russell then determined in that moment, he would do everything in his power to show to Amy his respect and affection for her, starting in that moment.
Gently lifting Amy up, Russell carried her quietly out of the police station before rushing towards the Thunderdome. As he rushed through the vandalized streets Russell pictured a possible future with Amy in his arms, albeit more conscious of her surroundings. Amy's unconsciousness was now taking its toll on Russell, who had to move Amy's lithe body onto his back. Now stirred back into action, Russell sprinted the last few kilometers to the Thunderdome. Spotting Ace and Nat along with Frank, Russell rushed towards them calling out "Frank! Ace! Nat! Amy's been attacked!" in desperation. Ace and Nat both rushed over to the pair as Frank slowly waddled over. "I found her in the police station, I hope you can do something," he said in desperation. Nat looked up at him in determination as she leaned over Amy. "Amy? Can you hear me?" she said softly as Amy started to come to, pleased when Amy's angelic blue eyes opened, "Uh…I'm ok," she said softly as Nat and Russell rested their hands on her shoulders. "Do you remember anything?" Russell asked anxiously as Amy smiled at him. "All I remember is that someone came up behind me, saying that Ace needed to stop his investigation or else…and then…everything went black." Amy sighed as she finished, closing her eyes and lying back down. "She must have been attacked by the killer, Ace, Frank, go back to the station and try and find something, Russell and I will stay here with Amy," Nat ordered as the two men rushed out into the storm.
Hours passed as Russell paced back and forth in worried confusion as Nat remained seated near to Amy's sleeping form. A gale passed through the Thunderdome, making everyone shiver, particularly Amy, who then moved towards Nat. Seeing this, both Russell and Nat respectively took off their jackets, putting them over Amy's sleeping form. After he deemed Amy suitably covered, Russell's hands remained on Amy's jacket clad form, looking down on her in concern. Seeing this, Nat spoke up, "She's gonna be alright Russell, I promise you," smiling compassionately at the profiler. Russell, distracted by the brunette's voice, looked up at Nat, before saying "I don't know what's gotten into me, I've…I've never felt so protective of anyone before," looking down on Amy's peaceful features once more. Nat recognized the behavior immediately and, smiling in understanding, spoke up, "Forgive me for asking…but…you have feelings for her?" in a compassionate tone. Russell, not looking up, nodded in sadness as he looked at Amy, hoping to protect her from whatever danger may arise in the future. Nat smiled as she leaned over to Russell, "It's ok, I know what this is like, wanting to protect…those close to you from whatever may arise, I'd say Amy's pretty safe with the both of us and Ace looking out for her," as Russell smiled back at her. After a few minutes, Russell stood up, saying "I can't take this anymore, I need to see if Ace has found something," Nat nodded in understanding saying, "Ok then, keep me updated, and I'll look after Amy. Oh, and your secret is safe with me," she finished, smiling.
Rushing back to the station, Russell had seen Ace holding what appeared to a copper mask, causing his mind to go back to that night and why he wondered he had never seen the person's face. Seeing Frank talking to Ace, Russell barely managed to hear "Maybe we should get this to Yann," as an idea formed in his head. At first he thought it was ludicrous, but then his mind flashed back to Amy and realized she was worth any effort in the world. Walking up to the police officers he said, "Or you could give it to me. There's a way we could use the mask to jog Amy's memory of the attack, see if she remembers something else about the killer," seeing Frank's confused and slightly suspicious face, Russell's signature poker face returned, saying "I've never done this before, so I'll need a few hours to read up on the technique. Leave that mask with me Ace, I'll figure something out," in earnest, looking into Ace's face as he smiled before saying, "well it sure beats Yann's time, sure, just let me know when you're done, we're just as worried about Amy as you are," as he passed the mask to Russell. I highly doubt that, Russell thought internally, as he made his way to his office. Dropping the mask off on his desk, Russell quickly pulled cushions and blankets out of his cupboard, laying them down onto the window ledge, wide enough to fit a person on before rushing out of the station in the direction of the Thunderdome.
When he got there, Amy was still lying in the same position as he had left her in, Nat maintaining a constant vigil over her. Nat looked up as Russell passed her the jacket she had loaned Amy, before scooping her up once more. Nat stood up, asking, "do you need any help?" as Russell carried Amy towards the exit, causing his to swivel around, shaking his head. Nat nodded, saying "Ok I'll meet you at the station," before making her way to her motorbike. Russell then continued his sprint towards the police station, more driven than ever to avenge Amy's attack, as Amy continued to sleep in his arms. Nearing the police station, Russell saw Nat rushing towards them, saying "I've made sure the place is secure, you're good to go," as they all rushed into the wrecked station. Nat opened the door to Russell's office as soon as they got there, with Nat saying, "I'll stand guard, Ace and Frank should be here soon," before shutting the door. Russell gently removed his jacket from Amy's shoulders, rolled it up and placed it on the window sill before placing Amy on there, pulling a blanket over her lithe body. Russell looked down on Amy's sleeping form, softly patting her silky blonde hair. Unable to resist the urges any longer, Russell placed a chaste kiss on Amy's cheek, lingering for a moment before coming to his senses. Realizing she was only sleeping, an embarrassed Russell returned to his desk to get to work.
After half an hour of researching hypnosis, Russell was finding it hard to concentrate with a blonde haired angel lying so near to him. Sneaking a glance at her, Russell willed himself to concentrate once more, having immense difficulty in doing so as this had never happened before. Whilst reading up on the most effective methods in contrast to the least harmful, Russell was suddenly overcome with a strong urge to check up on Amy. Rising from his desk, Russell made his way over to Amy's sleeping form, gently placing a hand on her shoulder as he knelt beside her. Silently swearing to catch whoever did this to her, Russell began rubbing Amy's shoulder lovingly. Amy suddenly let out a little moan, snuggling closer to Russell's body, causing Russell's heart to skip a beat. Bringing his hand from her shoulder to her cheek, Russell looked lovingly at her soft features before softly kissing her lips, sparks flew throughout his body as his lips gently caressed Amy's before getting up to go back to his desk. Lying on the window sill, Amy smiled in her sleep as she heard Russell's footsteps receding back to his desk, as she relaxed into the pillows, falling back into her deep sleep. Russell slowly felt a smile creeping across his face as a jubilant feeling passed through his body, renewing his search of answers, as he cheerfully researched hypnosis.
Feeling the hour approaching, Russell deemed his knowledge suitable for the analysis task and, walking over to Amy, pendulum in hand, gently roused her. Amy came to, seeing Russell's kind face in front of her, smiling at him as he smiled back. Reluctantly, Russell held out the pendulum out in front of Amy, her bright blue eyes focusing on it almost immediately. Swinging it back and forth, Russell saw Amy lose focus in him and her subsequent surroundings. Seeing that Amy was now in a dazed state, Russell began to speak calmly, "Clear your mind Amy, cast your mind back to tonight, don't think about anything else," as Amy's eyes began to roll back. Hearing Ace's and Frank's voices down the corridor, he said to Amy, "now close your eyes," as Amy obeyed. Seeing Ace and Frank in the doorway, he gently motioned them over before continuing, "Now Amy, cast your mind back to earlier tonight, what do you see?" he asked gently as he sees Amy's face flinch. "My desk destroyed, my lovely office all in ruins, it's dark and scary, and I wish someone was here." Russell saw Amy's expression contort from sadness to fear, subsequently feeling his anger rise as Amy continued. "I…I hear something, behind me. Something just moved, someone is here!" she said as the panic in her voice became evident and Russell found it difficult to contain his rage for the barbarian who did this to his angel.
Russell then reached for the mask, reluctantly as he went, before saying, "Now Amy, open your eyes and tell me what you see," calmly as Amy's blue eyes, filled with fear, snapped open. "The killer! The killer is here! They're wearing a…horrible mask! All I can see is…these terrible green eyes!" she cried out in a panicked voice, on the verge of tears before Russell put the mask down, placing his hands on Amy's arms in an attempt to comfort her. "Wake up Amy, you're back, you're safe now, no one's going to hurt you," Russell said, consoling her. Ace, standing behind Russell, looked on in satisfaction as he said, "wow Russell, that was impressive, we now know the killer has green eyes thanks to you," before grabbing Frank and heading out of the door. Amy struggled to catch her breath as Russell pulled up his seat next to her, placing his hand on hers. Amy's blue eyes, filled with worry, looked back up into his kind green ones, her expression instantly turning into one of embarrassment. "Russell, I, I'm so sorry to inconvenience you," she said, stuttering between words as she got out of the chair. Russell moved, holding onto Amy's arm gently, looking at her kindly before saying, "It's quite alright Amy, I just hope that you're ok," he said before letting her go with a smile. "Oh, I'm much better now, thanks Russell, but I'd better get on," Amy said with a smile, a light blush spreading across her cheeks as she left the room, remembering what happened earlier. Russell's cheeks similarly turned red as Amy rushed out of the room, moving back into his chair, smiling happily to himself, hoping that Amy still remained oblivious to his affections.