Rita almost ran up the steps to Eric's apartment, eager to tell him what Cap had told her. She opened the door, then held onto it in shock as her mind tried to process what she saw. The apartment was totally empty. Not even a piece of dust was left. Rita choked back a sob as she realized what had happened. Eric had left her, without even saying goodbye. Just like so many others in her life that she had loved.
Rita ran down the steps to her car, almost blinded by tears. She went to the one place she could for comfort. Knocking on Chris' door she wiped the tears off her cheeks and hoped she didn't look too miserable. She was surprised when Jillian opened the door. "Rita!" exclaimed Jillian, with a fake smile. "How nice to see you. I'd guess you're looking for Chris?" Rita nodded, sniffing. "Well he's not here." "Could you tell him to call me as soon as he gets home please?" "Of course Rita," replied Jillian as she shut the door. Rita sighed and headed home.
Several hours later, Rita figured Jillian was conveniently forgetting to tell Chris she had been by. She slipped a sweatshirt that used to belong to Chris on and headed down to the beach. Sitting in the sand she watched the moonlight bounce off the waves and felt so lonely. She kicked off her shoes, digging her toes down to find the warm sand. The night was cooling quickly, but she didn't really care. An hour later when it started to rain, she didn't even flinch as the cold drops hit her skin. She simply wrapped her arms around her knees and buried her head in her arms, crying.
Meanwhile, Chris was getting ready for bed, after a wonderful dinner, and dessert, with Jillian. As Jillian climbed into bed beside him, she said "Oh I almost forgot. Rita came by earlier, and said to have you call her." "What?" Chris sat up in bed. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner?" A hint of anger crept into his voice. Jillian tried to sound innocent. "I forgot Chris. I'm sorry." Chris didn't buy it because he knew Jillian hated his friendship with Rita. He grabbed the phone and dialed Rita's number. After a dozen rings, he hung up and tried her cell. After another dozen rings, he got out of bed. "Where are you going?" Jillian asked. "To find Rita, she won't answer her phones." "Chris, it's late, why not just talk to her tomorrow?" Jillian pleaded. Chris looked at her. "Because if Rita came by here and told you to have me call her, then something is wrong. And now I'm worried since she won't answer my calls." Jillian replied by turning her back to him and pulling up the covers. Chris stared at her a moment. Shaking his head, he slipped on his shoes and headed out, grabbing his jacket when he saw the rain.
As he drove, he wondered what had Rita upset. He guessed it would be something to do with Eric. For some reason, she loved the man. But Chris couldn't stand Eric. He didn't treat Rita like she deserved to be treated. If he had hurt her… well, he let that thought fade away as he pulled in next to Rita's Jeep. He took the stairs to her apartment two at a time and banged on her door. He knocked for a couple minutes, then pulled out his key and opened the door. He searched her apartment but she wasn't there. He was worried, and then he happened to see a figure sitting on the beach as lightning lit the sky. "Oh, this is bad," he murmured to himself as he headed towards the beach.
When he was a few feet from Rita, he called out to her so he wouldn't startle her. She looked up at him as he crouched beside her, and his heart broke at the sadness and pain he saw in her eyes. "Oh Sammy, I'm sorry, I came as soon as Jillian told me." Fresh tears fell from her eyes. "She doesn't like me, does she Chris?" He knew she didn't really expect an answer to that question. He saw her shiver and reached for her hand. "C'mon, let's get inside and dry." He helped her up, noticing her clothes were totally soaked and she was cold. He led her inside and straight to the bathroom where he turned the shower on hot. He met her eyes as he ran his fingers down her cheek. "Ok Sammy, you get out of these wet clothes and into that hot shower. I'll put some dry clothes on the counter for you and I'll be waiting downstairs. Ok?" She nodded and he left her.
Chris gathered up some dry, clean clothes from Rita's bedroom. As he headed back down the hall, he happened to glance up at the open bathroom door and catch a glimpse in the mirror of a very naked Rita stepping into the shower. Flustered, he almost dropped the clothes. He stood still a moment to compose himself, and then silently placed the clothes on the bathroom counter. He closed the door behind him and went downstairs. Slipping his jacket off, he hung it up to dry. He started to grab a bottle of wine, but then thought better of it and put on some coffee. As the coffee brewed, he pondered his relationship with Jillian. He thought he loved her, but the little stunt she pulled tonight had really pissed him off. None of his girlfriends had ever liked his relationship with Rita. It wasn't that they didn't like Rita, they just didn't like how close he was to her.
Rita called to him from the living room, bringing him out of his thoughts. "Just a minute!" He quickly fixed two cups of coffee and carried them out. She was towel drying her hair as he walked in, and he couldn't help but notice how cute she looked with her hair wet and wearing yet another of his shirts. He also noticed the tension in her body and the hurt in her eyes. He sat the coffees on the table and stepped in front of her. He took both her hands in his. "Alright Sam, it breaks my heart to see you so sad. What's wrong?" Tears fell from her eyes, and he pulled her into his arms as she started to cry. He helped her over to the couch and sat down with her, holding her and waiting patiently for her to regain control of herself. After a minute she pulled away from him, grabbing a tissue to blow her nose. He kept one hand on her back, lightly rubbing her shoulders and neck. She took a deep breath then filled him in, telling him about her talk with their Captain and how she went to Eric's after. Tears filled her eyes again as she told him she'd found Eric's apartment totally empty. "He left me Chris." Chris pulled Rita to him again as she sobbed uncontrollably.
Awhile later, her tears stopped, but she stayed in his arms for a bit. Chris didn't mind at all. When she finally moved away from him, she only moved enough to look into his eyes. "Thanks," she said, shyly. He smiled at her in reply, as he gently wiped the remaining tears off her cheeks. "Anytime partner," he said quietly. She gave him a slight smile, then looked away. "Well, I won't keep you Sam, it's almost midnight, and Jillian's waiting for you." "Yea," he simply said, as he watched her. He was torn between saying the heck with Jillian and spending the night here, or being the good boyfriend and going home to apologize. Rita must have sensed his indecision because she turned to look him in the eye. "Go Chris, I'll be ok. There's no reason for you to upset Jillian any more than she is already." Chris stared into her emerald green eyes. "You sure Sammy? I'd rather risk Jillian's wrath than leave you when you need me." Rita's eyes filled with tears at his sweet gesture. She sniffled, and smiled at him. "I'll be ok Chris, really. Go home." He stared into her eyes a minute longer before pulling her into his arms again. He held her tight, telling her to call him if she needed anything. She promised to, and he kissed her forehead before heading home.
Rita sat curled up on the end of her sofa after Chris left. She didn't want to be alone, but there was no way she'd ask Chris to stay. Jillian and her might not like one another or get along too well, but she knew Chris belonged home with her, not on her sofa. Sighing, she got up and headed to bed.
Chris drove home slowly, not really wanting to go home. He had seen the hurt in Rita's eyes as she told him to go home. She didn't really want him to leave, but knew better than to ask him to stay. He knew she had sent him home to try and keep him out of trouble with Jillian, but he wasn't sure he cared what Jillian said anymore. He finally pulled into his parking spot a little after midnight, and went up to his loft. The lights were off and Jillian was asleep. He slipped quietly into bed, without waking Jillian, and was soon asleep.
When the alarm went off the next morning, Chris groaned and hit snooze. Sensing the quietness of his place, he glanced over to the other side of the bed and noticed Jillian was gone. He wasn't surprised, since she had to be at work way before him. And considering what had happened last night, he wasn't surprised she hadn't woken him to say goodbye. He crawled out of bed and turned on the coffee pot as he headed towards the shower.
Rita pulled into the Palm Beach Police Department's parking lot a full hour early. She hadn't gotten much sleep, and rather than sit around at home she had decided to come in and get a start on some paperwork. Grabbing a cup of coffee, she sat down at her desk, groaning at the pile of paperwork that waited for her. She was intently filling out the forms on their last case when Chris came in an hour later. He walked up behind her and leaned over her shoulder. "Someone's here early today! Morning Sunshine," he said, grinning as she jumped. "Chris! Don't sneak up on me like that," she chided, as she returned his grin. He turned serious for a minute. "How are you Sammy?" Her smile faded, but she nodded. "Ok I guess. Couldn't sleep very well, but that was to be expected." He nodded. "You know where I am if you need me, partner." He winked at her, and headed to his chair.
The morning went by pretty quickly, with only one murder to investigate. And that one went easily after a witness pointed out the husband. Upon questioning, the husband confessed, was arrested, and another file was added to the paperwork on their desks. Chris stared at his pile of paperwork, and sighed. Then he noticed it was almost noon. He started to open his mouth to ask Rita if she wanted to head to lunch when his phone rang. He glared at it before picking it up on the third ring. "Yea, Lorenzo." "Hi sweetie, it's me." He sighed again at Jillian's voice, but at least she wasn't yelling. "Do you have any plans for lunch?" He glanced at Rita, but she was intent in her paperwork again. "No, no plans." "Good! How about the park, and I'll bring a picnic? I have some wonderful news to tell you!" "Ok, sounds great," he replied, trying to put some enthusiasm into his voice. They hung up and he noticed Rita watching him. "Lunch with Jillian?" She asked, when he met her eyes. He nodded. "This should be fun!" Rita grinned at him. "Cheer up Chris, it's just lunch." He grumbled as he stood. He stopped by Rita's desk on the way out, leaning down to gently kiss her cheek. Rita stared after him as he walked out the door, surprised by the sweet gesture.
Chris drove to the park, dreading what Jillian might say to him. He figured she wanted to talk about last night, so he was totally unprepared for when she met him with a big hug and kiss. She grinned at him and he hesitantly smiled back. "What is this all about?" He asked innocently. "Remember that job I applied for?" "The one that was a promotion?" Nodding, she replied excitedly, "Yea, I got it!" "That's wonderful!" he exclaimed, hugging her. He was sincerely happy for her. "You know what this means," she continued. "We get to move to Boston!" "Boston?" He pulled away from her and sat down at the picnic table. Sitting across from him, she pulled out a bottle of champagne. "Boston. It's wonderful, have you ever been there?" He shook his head, a stunned look on his face. "No." "Well you better go shopping for some warm clothes, they have real winters up there. Snow and everything!" Jillian was truly excited, but Chris wasn't so sure he liked what he was hearing. "Jillian, we need to talk about this. This changes things for us." "Of course it does Chris! We're moving!" "We?" he questioned. Her smile fell. "Are you not happy about this Chris?" "I can't just leave Palm Beach Jillian. I have a job here." "You can be a cop anywhere Chris." As soon as the words left her mouth, Jillian regretted them. Chris didn't let her apologize however. "Jillian, I have 10 years of my life invested in this department, I don't want to just give that up." Jillian's excitement turned to hurt and anger. "Come on Chris, at least admit it. It's not the job you don't want to leave, it's Rita isn't it?" Chris stared at her a second before replying. "I need to get back to work." He stood up and left. Jillian fought back tears as she watched him go.
Rita looked up as Chris returned to his desk. She noticed he looked deep in thought. "What's up partner?" she asked as he sat across from her. He took a deep breath then relayed the entire conversation to her. "Wow," said Rita, at the end of the story. "So, what is it that's really keeping you from moving?" Chris looked at her, confused. "You say you don't want to go because of the job, but Jillian is right Chris, you could get a job in Boston, most likely as a homicide detective too. It can't be because of me, we're best friends, but I know that wouldn't keep you here if you really wanted to go." Chris nodded. "You're right Sammy. I think it's the who, not the where." Rita arched an eyebrow. "Are you saying you don't want to be with Jillian anymore?" "I don't know Sam. Things have changed between her and I. And I don't like some of those changes." He ended the conversation there, digging into his pile of paperwork. Rita watched him for a moment before going back to her own pile.
Several hours later Rita watched the clock as it turned 5pm. She grabbed her stuff and walked around to Chris' desk. Leaning against his desk, she spoke softly, "It's 5 o'clock Sammy, go home." He didn't look up as he replied, "As soon as I finish this report Sam, I'm almost done." Rita stepped beside his chair and leaned down, putting her face next to his. Putting an arm around his shoulders, she spoke in a low voice, "I'll be home all night if you want to come over and have some miserable company." Giving his shoulders a squeeze, she placed a quick kiss on his cheek and left. Chris sighed, and touched his cheek where her lips had been. He wondered why Jillian couldn't be more like Rita. He realized then that there was nothing to do but end his relationship with Jillian. There was no way he was leaving Palm Beach, and he knew she wouldn't give up the job in Boston. He gave up on the report he was working on and left the station, heading straight to Jillian's.
Three hours later, after a lot of talking, a little bit of yelling, and a few tears, Chris wished Jillian the best of luck in Boston and hugged her goodbye. He headed to Rita's, stopping on the way for a quart of her favorite ice cream. He pulled in next to her Jeep and headed up to her place, whistling as he walked. His whistles stopped as he reached Rita's door and saw it was ajar, having obviously been forced open. He put the ice cream bag down and crept up to the door as he pulled his gun. He stood still, listening carefully. He heard Rita's voice inside. "C'mon, please answer… Chris…" He heard the fear and pain in her voice. He kicked the door open, rushing in and scanning the room. Rita jumped, then watched him, tears falling down her cheeks. "Chris… help me…" He looked at her then, saw the handcuffs hanging from one wrist, the blood that covered her. "Rita, what happened? Who did this and where are they?" Rita opened her mouth as if to answer, then he saw her eyes go wide. Before he could react, a heavy object stuck the back of his head, and he hit the floor unconscious. Rita's scream of warning turned into pleading. "No, please, don't hurt him." "Oh I have no intention of hurting him dear Rita." The man moved towards her, tucking a gun back into his waistband. He gripped Rita's face in his hand, forcing her to look upwards. "At least, not physically." He pushed Rita away, sending her falling onto the floor. He dragged Chris further into the room and shut the door.
Ten minutes later, Chris groaned as he woke. He tried to reach up to his head but discovered his hands were bound. Panic filled him as the memories came rushing back. Rita! He had to help Rita. He turned his head, trying to see. His vision was blocked as two feet stepped in front of him. Turning his head up, he rolled onto his side to get a look at his captor, and the one that had hurt Rita. "Glad you could join us Sgt. Lorenzo." Chris' eyes widened as he realized who stood there. "Charles Lampman! I thought you were in prison?" "Was being the key word there Chris. I got tired of being cooped up, and I missed little Rita here." He stepped to the side, and Chris saw Rita lying on the floor, not too far from him. He met her eyes. "You ok Sam?" he asked. Tears filled her eyes and she looked away. Chris knew that meant no. He looked back to Charlie. "Let her go, she never did anything to you." Charlie laughed. "True Chris, but she's the best way for me to get revenge on you." Charlie moved over to Rita, forcing her knees apart as he knelt between her legs. Rita fought as best she could. Chris yelled at Charlie, and pleaded with him. Charlie didn't listen, just turned his head to look at Chris as he unzipped his pants. He grinned at Chris as he positioned himself overtop Rita. Rita screamed as he forced himself into her. She cried and fought harder, until he slapped her hard. Chris cried out, fighting against his own bonds, to no avail. Rita turned her head to look at him. He met her eyes as tears filled his own. She held his stare as a lifeline.
Meanwhile, a dozen patrol cars silently pulled into the lot outside. A neighbor had heard Rita's cries earlier and called the police. Capt Lipshitz had tried calling Chris before heading over, and when he got no answer he figured Chris was caught up in whatever was going on. Scanning the lot as he pulled in, his thoughts were confirmed when he saw Chris' car next to Rita's jeep. Gathering the swat team around him, he gave them their orders, and they headed up to Rita's apartment. Her door was shut, but Capt saw the broken lock. Using hand gestures, he positioned the men next to the door, and put his ear to the door. He heard Rita's sobs, and Chris' angry commands to leave Rita alone. He nodded to the men, and the front two slammed into the door, throwing it open as the following two officers rushed into the room, guns quickly finding their target.
Charlie was standing back from the two sergeants when the swat team entered. He made a move for his gun, and the four officers in the room quickly cut him down. Rita and Chris looked on, stunned. Capt moved to Chris, quickly undoing his bonds as he yelled for another officer to call an ambulance. He started to move to Rita's side, but Chris beat him there. He watched as Chris undid Rita's cuffs and pulled her into his arms. Both were crying, and Capt was almost afraid to find out what had happened. He knelt on the other side of Rita. Sensing him, the two broke apart, though Chris kept his arms around Rita, supporting her. "What happened?" Capt asked, his voice soft. "Long story Cap," answered Chris. "I'll fill you in as soon as we get Rita to the hospital." Capt nodded as he took Rita's hand in his. He squeezed her hand gently as he spoke again. "The ambulance is on its way, just hang in there, okay Rita?" She nodded in reply, and Capt moved off to leave the two alone.
An hour later, Chris and the Capt sat in the hospital waiting room while Rita was being examined and stitched up. Capt looked at Chris. Taking a deep breath, Chris began to fill him in. He told the Capt about his background w/ Charlie, and how Charlie thought Rita was Chris' girlfriend. He told him all that had happened tonight so far as he knew it. The Capt sat stunned afterwards. "Do you think she'll be ok Chris?" Chris shrugged, his worry evident in his eyes. "He raped her in front of me Cap." His voice broke as he spoke. Cap looked him in the eye and saw his anguish. Chris had been helpless as his partner and best friend was attacked. He squeezed Chris' shoulder and stayed silent.
Moments later, Rita shakily walked out of the exam room. She saw them both, and walked slowly towards them. Chris met her halfway, and gathered her into his arms. He knew she was fighting tears, knew she was close to breaking down. He wanted to get her out of there and to his place. Fortunately Cap seemed to sense what his two officers needed. He stepped up beside them. "I want you two to go home, take care of yourselves. Take a few days off, long as you need." He gently placed a hand on Rita's arm. "Rita, if you need anything, anything at all, call me." Rita turned in Chris' arms to look at him. She didn't speak but disentangled herself from Chris and hugged her Captain. Harry was surprised, but hugged her back. He walked the two out to Chris' car, and watched them drive away.
Chris took Rita straight to his place. The first thing she wanted was a shower. Chris reluctantly let her. Even though Charlie was dead, he didn't want her out of his sight. Forty minutes later he was starting to worry when Rita emerged from the bathroom. Her hair was wet, and she was wearing one of his t-shirts and a pair of shorts. He watched her from the couch. She looked so vulnerable. She walked over to the couch and stood there a moment. He shifted his position, so his back was at one end of the couch, one leg up on the couch and one on the floor. He grabbed Rita's hand and gently pulled her down to him. She sat gingerly, as if she hurt, and he was reminded of things he didn't want to remember. He pulled her into his arms, and felt her tremble. He felt her sobs before he heard them, her body shaking almost violently. He wrapped his arms tighter around her and just held her silently. It wasn't long after that he was crying too. He kept seeing flashes of Rita's face and eyes, especially her eyes, when Charlie raped her. That would haunt him for some time, but he couldn't imagine what it would do to her.
Rita felt Chris' soft sobs as he held her. His love and friendship for her was the only thing she had to hold onto right now. She wrapped her arms around him and held him like he held her. They cried together. Half an hour later, their tears had dried. Rita slept lightly, her head on Chris' chest. He gently ran his fingers through her hair as she slept.