Disclaimer: I don't own Without a Trace, any of the characters, story-lines, or actors. However I do own my ideas.
Zai: Hey, This is my first Without a Trace fic. I'm relatively new to the show, but I hope you like it. I really appreciate reviews. Any feedback would be loved.
Special agent Samantha Spade sat on the edge of the bed, and fastened the final button at the top of her blouse, before turning to watch her companion. He was crouched at the side of his bed, half dressed, peering into the darkness under the frame. When he noticed Sam's gaze, he looked up at her with a goofy grin and produced the sock he had been searching for. Sam made a face, "Martin! That's disgusting."
"You sure you want to leave?" he asked, ignoring the comment on his personal hygiene. Sam only nodded and headed into the front room. Martin Fitzgerald grabbed a wrinkled shirt that had been careless tossed across a chair before following her. Sam gathered her belongings while Martin pulled the shirt over his bare chest. "I'll walk you down."
Martin held his apartment door open and then followed Sam into the deserted hall. Sam glanced at her watch. The small black hands indicated it was nearly half past twelve. Mentally she scolded herself, knowing she should have headed home nearly an hour ago. After all, they both had to work the next morning.
They took the stairs, walking hand-in-hand they descended to the ground floor in a comfortable silence. The lobby was, as expected, empty due to the lateness of the hour. Letting the stairwell door fall shut behind, Sam turned to her companion and tilting her head toward him, she brought her lips to meet his. Martin gently leaned toward her, his warm lips connecting to her soft delicate ones, deepening the kiss. He gently slipped his large hands around her waist and she broke the kiss murmuring, "I had a great time tonight."
Martin nodded and started to reply but she removed herself from his embrace and did not wait for his response. She turned, covering the short distance between him and the door leading into the parkade, then she glanced back, flashing him a sweet smile. The heavy metal door fell shut behind her, blocking the sight of the lobby and Martin.
After the echo from the door faded, the parkade was dark and silent. Sam's steps resounded eerily in the enclosed lot, as she headed toward her car parked in one of the designated guest parking stalls. As she neared her vehicle Sam reached into her jacket pocket to retrieve her car keys . . .
0-0-0-0
7 hours missing
Special agent Danny Taylor looked up from his desk to see a slightly dishevelled, unshaved, man appear in the doorway holding a steaming mug of coffee possessively. "Late night?" Danny asked with a grin.
Martin only glared at his co-worker in response as he plopped down in the chair in front of his own desk. With noticeable reluctance he placed his coffee down and tried to force his tired mind to concentrate on the papers that were spread, in no particular order, across his desk. Glancing up, he noticed Sam's desk was untouched. "Sam come in yet?"
Danny shrugged, "Haven't seen her."
Martin nodded and tried to push down the strange feeling that was beginning to make his empty stomach feel oddly unsettled. He wondered where Sam could be. Soon he found his mind wandering away from his work and trailing back to the previous night. Just the memory of her soft, smooth skin against his made it impossible to focus.
"Good morning," Agent Vivian Johnson said, repeating herself. Martin blinked up at her blankly as though she were speaking a foreign language. "You okay Martin?"
"Huh? Yeah, yeah, I'm fine..." Martin stammered fighting back a yawn while trying to look like he had been doing something productive. Vivian just shot him a quizzical look before heading over to her own desk. Martin ran his fingers through his hair and stared intently at the papers before him. He had to get caught up on this paper work sometime. But no matter how hard Martin tried to suppress the worry gnawing at him he just could not get on with his work. Finally he picked up his desk phone and swiftly dialled. Each ring was followed by dead silence on the other end until Martin heard a click followed by a familiar voice.
"Hi, this is Sam, I'm not in right now so after the tone leave your name and number and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."
After waiting for the tone Martin reluctantly complied with the message's request, asking Sam to call him if she got in. After replacing the receiver he waited a moment before dialling her cell. The result of his second phone call was even less helpful, as her cell appeared to be turned off.
Martin fidgeted, unsure of what to think. They all kept their phones handy in-case a case came in when they weren't at the office. Besides, she should have been into work by now. He pushed his chair back and stood up. Danny looked up questioningly, but Martin ignored him and headed off down the hall toward his the office of his boss, Jack Malone. He paused outside with his hand on the door handle, unsure of what he planned to say, but Jack motion for him to come in, and so he did.
Martin said nothing for a moment, not sure exactly what he was doing, Sam was fully capable of looking after herself. Jack had looked up from the files on his desk and was watching Martin expectantly. Martin cleared his throat and muttered, "Sam hasn't come in yet, and well, she isn't answering her cell. So, I was wondering if I could, uh, swing by her house, just to make sure everything's all right."
Jack watched Martin shifted his weight from one foot to the other. It was rather late, and Sam was a good agent, always on time, always called in if she wasn't coming. He had begun to wonder about her absence himself. Jack nodded slowly, "Make it quick."
Martin agreed and returned to his desk where he grabbed his jacket off his chair back. He tried to convince himself he was being paranoid - that everything would be fine. Despite his attempts to reassure himself, he was barely able to contain his urge to run down to his car and gun it to her house. Danny watched him go curiously, convinced, now more than ever, that Sam and Martin were involved.
0-0-0-0
8 hours missing
Martin parked his car on the curbside in front of Sam's house. Her car was nowhere to be seen and Martin headed up the drive anxiously. He banged loudly on the door. No response. He peered into her unlit house but could not make out much detail. Glancing around he noticed a car in the driveway of the house directly across from Sam's. Worth a shot.
After receiving no answer Martin headed back down the steps when the door opened behind him. "Can I help you?" A man asked from where he stood in the doorway, looking half asleep and wearing a bathrobe.
"I'm sorry to have woken you," Martin apologized, "I'm special agent Martin Fitzgerald, F.B.I." He added producing his badge.
"F.B.I.? How can I help you?"
"Your neighbour," Martin said gesturing to Sam's house, "she never showed at work this morning, I was just wondering if you had noticed when you last saw her."
"She's missing?" The man queried. "Well, I work nights, and her car wasn't home when I got home around three. I noticed 'cause she never stays out the whole night."
"She never came home last night?" The dread and unease Martin felt was noticeable in his voice and the neighbour looked at him curiously.
"Nah. Unless it was after three a.m. Sorry I can't be of more help."
"Thank you anyway," Martin said and hurriedly took his leave, pulling his cell out as he reached his car. He paused a moment before dialling.
"Taylor," The response came as the call connected.
"Danny, it's Martin. Sam never made it home last night, I have something I have to check out. I'll call you back in twenty, 'kay?
"Uh, sure," Danny muttered as the phone disconnected from Martin's end.
Martin pulled into the parkade nearly a half hour later, morning traffic in New York - something Martin did not want to deal with. He caught sight of the vehicle immediately and the knot in his stomach grew. Sam's car parked, where it had obviously been all night. Numbly Martin dialled his cell.
"Taylor."
"I found her car..." Martin's voice sounded faint on the other end of the call. "It's at my apartment." With that the call disconnected and Danny Taylor was left starring at his silent phone.
"Who was it?"
"Martin, he found Sam's car."
"That's great," Vivian said getting up, "Where is it?"
"His apartment," Danny said with a shrug as Jack entered the bullpen from his office catching only the last of the conversation.
"Martin found Sam's car at his apartment," Vivian said filling Jack in, "Should we head down there to help him out?"
Jack nodded slowly, "Check the car then canvas the building, if her car is there it's likely that's where she was last seen." Vivian grabbed her jacket even before Jack finished talking, she and Danny headed past him into the hall, "And Viv?" Jack said pausing as she turned to face him, "send Martin back."
Vivian looked like she was about to say something but only nodded instead and followed Danny down the hall to the elevator.