'To Forgive Your Partner'
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Disclaimer: I own nothing relating to Law and Order: Criminal Intent.
A slightly AU scene for 'Astoria Helen'. (Season 8, Episode 6)
Extended Summary: I was intrigued by Nichols going into Stroup's cabin unarmed and without letting Wheeler know beforehand on-screen. What if she hadn't appreciated being left behind and in the dark?
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After the end of a long and trying day, it was almost a relief for Detective Zach Nichols to sink into the passenger seat of the black SUV. The transport van would take Frank Stroup back to holding in the city, and the local police would filter back to the surrounding towns. Kevin Bramer had fallen asleep in the backseat shortly after they had pulled out of the parking lot. Zach didn't blame him for being exhausted.
At first, the quiet in the car seemed to be for Kevin's benefit. However, after thirty minutes of absolute silence from his partner, he knew she was angry. Wheeler was keeping her gaze resolutely on the road and her hands clenched tightly on the steering wheel.
"Are you mad at me?" The question slipped out after ten minutes of fidgeting on his part.
"Gee, I wonder why you'd think that."
Nichols sighed. "I'll take that as a yes. Can I ask why?"
Wheeler finally glanced away from the road to nail him with a withering stare. "You have no ideas why I would be upset with you? No Freudian techniques to discern my motives?"
Zach knew he was treading on shaky ground and chose his next words carefully. "I'm going to guess it has something to do with the standoff in the cabin, but I'm not a psychic."
There was another stretch of silence, and he thought she had closed off from him again. Finally, she turned onto the exit towards the city and broke the silence.
"Did you just temporarily lose your mind back there?"
"What is that supposed to mean?"
Megan finally looked him in the eye, her anger notching up to fury. "You waltzed into an unsecured cabin without a weapon to go and chat with an armed kidnapper. That doesn't seem like a bad idea to you?"
"I was doing my job, Wheeler," he replied quietly.
She snorted. "A job that doesn't need a partner. Wait a minute--"
"Hang on," Zach interrupted her. "I had to go and convince Stroup to let Kevin go. I also needed backup outside to get Kevin to safety."
"Oh, so, that was the plan," Megan continued acidly. "Why am I just finding this out right now?"
"It was spur of the moment," he admitted.
His partner shook her head and returned her gaze to the road. "I guess Ross wasn't kidding when he said you are crazy."
For the first time that day, Nichols laughed out loud. "He really said that? Danny would."
Wheeler didn't share in his laughter. "He won't find it funny when he reads the case file."
"He'll be on my case, not yours."
"Oh, gimme a break! Ross will be all over me for your stunt. Damn partner politics! Junior partner takes the heat for the senior partner's stupidity."
He didn't really have a response for that. His experience in the NYPD and with Ross told him she was right. Still, debating the merits of negotiation techniques and the hierarchy of blame in the department was obviously not an option. The drive continued through the rural counties of New York in frosty silence.
It wasn't until they approached the city limits that Wheeler caught his eye. She looked visibly upset. "Look, we need to get some things straight."
Zach nodded.
"Going in, I knew you were going to be different--"
"Ross warned you."
She didn't seem to mind his interruption, even though he knew she disliked him finishing her sentences. "His words were 'a real departure from Logan'. Me, I like a more... text-book approach."
"Nothing wrong with that," he assured her quietly.
"Why, thank you." Wheeler smirked. "I just mean that jumping into situations without information isn't something I enjoy."
"Captain did mention you worked extensively in undercover," Zach mused aloud. "You relied on Intel to get your job done."
"Exactly. I just need to be kept in the loop, to borrow a favorite phrase of our esteemed captain."
He smirked. "Guess I should have picked up on that. So, I should warn you before we bust potential suspects."
"A little heads-up would go a long way," Megan replied, a small smile on her face.
"Well, then, I apologize for not letting you know that I was heading in. And for making you worry."
She laughed aloud at his extension of the apology. "God, you make me sound like a mother hen. However, the apology is most certainly welcome."
"Good," Zach replied. "I'm glad we can hammer out problems without resorting shouting matches."
"What, is that how you and Ross settled things?"
"Yeah. I would throw out crazy ideas, he would nix the ideas. I would usually be right with crazy ideas, and Ross would get angry."
Wheeler pulled into the parking lot of One Police Plaza. "Good to know some things never change."
"Good to know some can," Nichols replied. He turned in his seat to face the sleeping kid. "Hey, Kevin. We're home."
The little boy woke gradually, shifting his stiff muscles. "Where?"
"We're back at the police station," Megan replied with a gentle smile. "You hungry?"
"Yep!"
"We'll hit the vending machines when we get inside," Nichols assured the boy. "And my partner will call your mom to come and pick you up."
Kevin grinned. "Anything I want from the vending machine?"
"Within reason," Wheeler replied. "I'm sure Detective Nichols can decide what's best."
"I wouldn't bet on that," her partner commented in a low voice. "Come on, inside."
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Wheeler let Kevin and Zach race ahead of her in the parking lot. The kid seemed fine after his ordeal, which would be a relief for his mother, Helen.
Her own feelings had gone from anger to relief by the end of the car ride. It was nice to know he could recognize when she was angry or upset and would make an effort patch things up. Logan and Ross sometimes had a tendency to be unobservant when it came to her feelings
The captain meet the pair in the squad room. "Helen Bramer is on her way to pick Kevin up. Apparently, she's resigning from DBC."
Wheeler blinked. "I guess that's understandable, considering her track record with the company."
Kevin ran past the pair with Nichols on his heels and several candy bars in his fists. Ross gave him a small smile. "He seems no worse for the wear."
She nodded. "He slept most of the way back."
"I'm sure his mother will appreciate us spoiling his dinner," Ross commented as he strolled to his office.
Megan chuckled at the captain's dry humor before heading towards her desk. Kevin was snacking contentedly on a bag of Skittles, while her partner flipped through his notes. She sat down and happily listened to the little boy talk about his favorite TV show. Zach shot her smile over the little kid's head and got to the case file.
She let him work for a while until Kevin was engrossed in a computer game. "Do my eyes deceive me or are you actually doing paperwork?"
"I've found that apologies usually need to be cemented with some groveling."
"Good to know. Next time you screw up, can I request certain favors?"
He glared at her. "No. And please refrain from telling the Captain."
Wheeler stifled a giggle. "The thought hadn't even crossed my mind until now."
Nichols made a face at his partner. "You're mean."
"I won't tell Ross," she assured him. He looked at her skeptically. "I won't!"
Zach returned to the paperwork. "Says here we have to rate our performance on the case. How should we? Favorable, unfavorable, or not applicable?"
"Everyone just marks not applicable," she replied with a raised eyebrow. "You know that."
"Thought I might run it by you first," he replied with a smirk. "In the spirit of forgiveness."
Megan pretended to think about it. Her small grin widened to a real smile. "Favorable."
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