Authors note: The story was originally published 2014. Long before Peter Lenkov came up with a female serial killer plot for H50. Chapters total: 6
Chapter 1
Steve sat on the couch in his apartment. He wore a black suit with a white button down shirt. The tie dangled around his neck. He watched the last beams of the setting sun. The dust shimmered and reminded him of sparkling little diamonds. He swallowed convulsively. His service gun lay heavy in his hands. He rested his head on the backrest of the couch and stared at the ceiling. From the beach, he could hear music and laughter, proving to him that life was still going on, no matter what.
He lifted his hand and pressed the gun against his temple. He squeezed his eyes shut. A voice inside of him yelled: STOP! He brushed the barrel of the gun down his cheek and finally dropped his hand.
"Easy come easy go. That's just how you live," the lyrics crossed his mind. His beeper went off.
He swallowed hard. Laughter and music mingled with the cacophony in his head. His forefinger caressed the trigger.
He broke out in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. The noise in his head grew louder and louder. The whole scenario was kinda sick. And sick was what his life had been over the past few weeks, anyway. Steve's face went blank, and in a liquid motion he lifted the gun, put it into his mouth and fired.
A hoarse scream escaped his throat. Steve jerked upright and blinked. He was surrounded by darkness, except for the candle on the coffee table. Its flickering light was throwing dancing shadows on the wall. His head was killing him. He got up and went into the bathroom. He quickly dropped his cargos and stepped under the shower.
Half asleep, Danny went down the stairs. It was the season of suffocating humidity and hot, sleepless nights. The air condition had died an early death this morning. Naked, Danny had been lying in bed watching the glowing green digits turn. Waiting for Steve to join him but in vain. Instead, Steve had a damn shower in the middle of the night. Danny shook his head, put on his shorts and followed the noise of running water.
There Steve stood. Turning his face into the spray, bracing both hands on the tiled wall. Danny watched him bow his head and let the water run down over his hair, his broad shoulders, along with the outline of his body and finally down the drain. Steve and water were usually a guarantee for an instant hard on. Even under these circumstances, he felt like a rabbit in front of a snake. Danny couldn't take his eyes off his lover's body. For another minute or so, Steve just stood there with his head bowed, his hands braced against the wall, letting the spray beat down on him.
Of course, Steve had noticed Danny watching him. Could sense his arousal a mile off. If only he could erase his memories, if only he could just turn around, grab Danny and have hot sex under the shower right then and there. Finally, he sighed and stepped out of the shower. While trying to avoid the shower door, he slipped on the tiles. Before Danny could reach him, he caught himself on the sink.
"You're alright?" Danny hoped Steve wouldn't hear his accelerated heartbeat and the worry in his voice. He knew how on edge Steve had been since he came back from his trip to hell.
To his surprise, Steve nodded briefly, "Yeah, thanks. I'm … I'm fine."
He slung a towel around his waist and dragged his hand through his wet hair, leaving it in dark spikes. Then he brushed past Danny and went to the porch, grabbing the banister with one hand. The air was heavy and smelled of rain.
It had been his first day back on the job. The doctor had told him he needed another week or two on sick leave, but at his growl had just shrugged and finally signed the release form. Thoughtfully, he ran his fingers over the scar. It began left of his sternum, carved a naked path through his chest hair, arched, and then arched again back down to its origin point. It was shaped like a leaf. Or to be precise, it was shaped exactly like the leaf of a Betula lenta, also known as Sweet Birch.
"Nothing that happened to me in the past weeks could even remotely be called sweet," he thought and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"You and me eternally, you and me eternally."
He snapped his eyes open and found himself still on the porch, gripping the banister with both hands now.
He panted heavily, knuckles white.
"You and me eternally, you and me eternally."
The eerie voice in his head made him nauseous. A choked cry fought its way past his clenched teeth. His eyes were brimming with tears.
Images flooded his mind.
He woke on his back. His mouth was taped shut. Still groggy, he tried to move, but his hands and feet were tied to a stainless steel table. He was shirtless and barefooted. Suddenly he remembered the last article about this serial killer. All of the victims wore their trousers while the naked rest of their bodies had been mutilated. Panic-stricken, he turned his head from side to side.
A stench hit his nostrils, made him gag. He wasn't alone but whoever was with him … wasn't alive any longer. Heat flushed his body. He pulled hard against the bindings until his skin broke.
Steps. A stunning beauty entered his living nightmare. Isadora Birch.
"Steve, relax. You're at home with me," Danny's voice jolted him back to reality.
"I know, I know. Sorry, I didn't mean to ... It's just … I'm not really used to it … used being home … here with you." Steve swallowed hard.
"We've talked about it. It's okay. Really. Take all the time you need, Steve. I was already tossing and turning when I heard the noise. Didn't know what was going on. So I rushed downstairs."
"What did you expect?" Steve snapped. "Me in the tub with slit wrists?"
When Danny put his hand beneath Steve's shoulder blades his partner's body went rigid. But he left the hand in its place. "Don't go there Steven, please." Danny gulped, having a conversation with Steve these days was like crashing into a wall at full speed. But he was convinced that time was a healer and that Steve's anger was nothing more than a protective shield. He decided not to argue and put on a cheerful face.
"You know what, let's have a beer," Danny suggested and went over to the kitchen, thinking Steve would join him. Instead, his partner headed upstairs into the bedroom without further ado.
Danny shook his head, heaved a loud sigh and poured himself a glass of cold water instead of beer. Thoughtfully, he took a sip. Steve hadn't talked much since he had come back from wherever and was acting more and more like a zombie these days. He drained the glass and put it in the sink. Maybe he should talk to Steve?
He'd already talked to Chin and Kono. The whole team had been on the case 24/7 and believed that Steve was still alive, hoping against hope when all other authorities had already given up on him.
They had talked a lot, also with Ava Lewis, the profiler from the FBI. She'd given them an inside look into Birch's mind. Ava was a first class profiler. She described the murder suspect as an astrophysicist, with a degree in psychology, highly intelligent and with an unhealthy obsession for Steve. Ava didn't believe Steve had been taken at random. Seven men had been killed, and at least three of them were related to Birch somehow. Furthermore, all of them looked quite similar to Steve. Ava had shown them a photo of the suspect. She had a flawless face, framed by long dark hair. Her blue eyes sparkled like diamonds in the sun. She wasn't ugly, didn't have any disfiguring scars or birth defects. Outwardly, Isadora Birch was perfect.
"You know what," Ava ended their meeting, "The previous killings looked like they were some kind of rehearsal. Like she was making sure, there would be no surprises when she went for her 'primary target.' If you know what I mean." Of course, they did, this psycho chick had given them the creeps, but everything about her was methodical in the extreme.
Danny still hesitated, but then he gathered up his courage and went upstairs.
Steve dropped the towel and slipped underneath the covers. He closed his eyes and tried to catch some sleep, his mind still spinning.
He switched on the bedside lamp when he heard Danny's footsteps. A fraction later, his lover showed up in the doorway, "mind if I come in?"
Their life had been kinda odd since Steve's return. They shared the same bed but behaved like strangers and from time to time Danny just had to back out and stay at his old apartment because otherwise, he knew he wouldn't be able to deal with their relationship any longer. Or the current lack thereof.
Steve drew a breath, "No. Wanna sing me a lullaby?"
"If it helps?" Danny curved his mouth into a smile.
"Nah, to be honest, I don't think so," Steve said grumpily.
Danny sat down. Silence fell. He fiddled with the sheets, feeling quite uncomfortable, needing something to keep his hands busy.
"And you came here for what exactly … aside from sharing the bed with me?" Steven muttered.
Danny turned his head a bit to look him square in the eyes, "what makes it so hard for you to talk about it?"
Suddenly Steve felt all the pain and guilt he kept so carefully under lock and key burning in his chest.
He licked his lips, "it's complicated."
Danny's left eyebrow shot up, "Really? You can spare us the ugly details but talk to me, dammit. Running and hiding is not the answer. Aside from Chin and Kono, I've spoken with Ava as well. You should go back and finish what you've started. Without her, we wouldn't have had a snowflake's chance in hell to save you in time. You owe it to her, to us and to the poor souls who weren't as lucky as you were."
Steve gulped. "Believe it or not, I already had this conversation today, WITH Ava. But I'm not sure if I can handle any more of it." The mere thought of facing Isadora Birch again made him shudder.
"You're making progress; Ava told us," Danny objected, "Just one or two more sessions and she might break through the barrier. Don't get me wrong; nobody wants to push you. But you must finish this. Don't let this bitch run the show inside your head."
If only you knew. Steve sat up straight, "I know that Ava did an excellent job and that I'm the only one who survived this madness. And I appreciate your concern as well. It's just … it's just that I need some time to think. Some time alone." His voice trailed off.
Another picture flashed in front of his mind's eye.
"Look at me, Steve," Isadora ordered. He squeezed his eyes shut. "LOOK … AT … ME!"
"… was the reason. Steve? Steve?" Danny shook him gently.
"Screw you!" He thought.
Without further ado, she stabbed him viciously in his side. His nasal passages had clogged with mucus; his mouth was still taped shut. He couldn't breathe. He howled against the duct tape, convulsing with pain. His eyes flew open as she held his head firmly by a fistful of hair. She twisted the scalpel deeper into his flesh.
"Good boy, it could be so easy. I hate to be ignored." She blew a kiss on his forehead, "Got it?"
He nodded weakly.
"Good boy," She pulled the scalpel out and dropped it on the metal tray. Then she left, humming to herself.
"Uhm, sorry. What did you say?"
"Nothing," Danny said dryly and yawned, "Let's go to sleep now."
He was just getting ready to lay down when Steve's cell phone shrilled. Both men were startled. Steve looked at the caller ID; it was Chin.
"Isn't it a little late for a call? What's up?" He tried to sound casual, but his gut instinct told him something was wrong, terribly wrong.
"I'm at the hospital where they had taken Isadora Birch."
Steve tilted his head a fraction, "And?"
"She escaped. We found one dead guard in his underwear. According to the ME, he died four or five hours ago. It looks like the trail is already cold. She's gone. I sent a team over to your house and one to Danny's apartment. Take care and watch out. Gotta goes now. Talk to you later."
Steve froze, and his face went blank as he snapped the phone shut.
Danny was alarmed, "Who was it?" he asked.
"Chin."
Outside, thunder was growling.
"Isadora escaped," Steve whispered.
Danny's eyes widened in disbelief, "What? How could that be? I mean, wasn't she supposed to be in critical condition?"
Birch should have been transferred to another prison. During this procedure, she somehow managed to take a bunch of pills. God only knew where she got those from.
"I guess she deceived us all," Steve muttered, "She's smart and she's has in-depth knowledge of drugs." He barked a laugh.
"Do you think she will return?" Danny asked, his concern clearly visible on his face.
Steve nodded slowly, "The last thing she told me was, "it's not over yet. We have a love that will last forever, and I want you to know exactly how I feel because I'm eternally yours."
About that time, the thunderstorm finally broke. Lightning struck, and you could feel the static in the air.
