Acrophobia – Started as an NFA challenge on what McGee does on his weekends and expanded to three chapters.
Acrophobia
It was McGee, diligently cataloguing evidence at the crime scene, who spotted it first. Just a subliminal flash of dark blue against the mottled brick wall tickling his peripheral vision, but it was enough to rage him into action. Before he knew it, he was away, tearing through the alley with no regard for the angry refuse that snarled and whipped at his legs.
In his earlier days, he could never have achieved such speed but over the years McGee had honed athletic skills to the point that no fleeing criminal could hope to achieve freedom in his presence.
McGee's excitement heightened as he drew nearer to his target. He could see him clearly now: early twenties, slight build, mousy brown hair – unremarkable in almost every way except the savage manner in which he had killed his victim. McGee was going to enjoy bringing this one down.
Up ahead, a shear building wall loomed promising to trap the low-life like the vermin he was. McGee swore as a ladder appeared out of nowhere, stapled crudely to the side of the building. Like a shot, the criminal was barrelling up the ladder as though it were level ground. A moment later, McGee was aboard too, climbing hand over hand like a man possessed. To his disappointment, McGee saw the young man above him was pulling away. No matter: he'd catch him on the roof. In fact when he reached the top, he'd radio for help. Tony had gone to search the higher floors of the building and it was quite possible that he was close to the roof. A fresh pair of legs couldn't hurt on the chase either.
Suddenly he froze mid stride, the metal ladder shuddering under the change in momentum. He ran the words over again in his mind – "top", "higher", "roof". His eyes dragged his field of view irretrievably downwards to the ground far below.
McGee let out a completely un-manly screech, squeezed his eyes shut and wound his arms tightly around the rungs. His legs, moments ago study pillars of pursuit, became rubbery at the knees. Strong draughts of air shrivelled to ragged gasps of fear.
It took several seconds of blind panic before he managed to pull himself together. Carefully loosening one arm, eyes still closed in denial, he groped for his radio with a sweaty palmed hand. Success! He eased the device from its cradle, mindful that his hand was near paralysed with fear, and slowly raised it to his mouth.
"Tony," he wavered.
"McGee," the hearty voice reverberated around his head. "You sound like you've wet your pants again."
McGee ignored the jibe; there was no way Tony could have known that. "I found him," he said as calmly as he could manage. "In about two minutes he's going to pop up a ladder on the western side of the roof. Are you anywhere near that?"
"Yeah, I'm up here. Too scared to climb the ladder, McGee," Tony scoffed.
"No Tony," McGee started.
Tony cut him off with a yell of, "Got him!", and the transmission cut out.
McGee stood, frozen against the ladder with the radio glued to his ear. He worked on slowing his breathing, imagined he was in a nice safe ground-level place. Tony should have caught the guy by now, he reasoned. Maybe the team would take the bad guy away, forget all about looking for him and he could live out the rest of his life as a wall hermit….
"Where are you Probie?" asked Tony through the radio.
McGee gulped down his fear and tried to answer as casually as possible, "On the ladder." He cursed the unintentional squeak in his voice.
"You're stuck, aren't you?" Tony demanded.
"No," McGee denied. "I'm, not stuck, I'm just …..resting."
"Halfway up a ladder."
"Yes."
"Are you going to be resting long?"
"Um, what year is this?"
"Probie!"
McGee cringed. The voice was not through the radio but spoken directly above him. He didn't dare look up; he could imagine the expression that would greet him. He waited for the taunts but they did not eventuate.
"You're more than halfway up," Tony said pragmatically. "It's easier to come up than go down."
"Not for me."
"You'd rather go down?"
McGee heaved a hopeless sigh. "I don't know….I don't think I can go anywhere." He really didn't want confirmation that his regular nightmares of riding plummeting ladders to the ground were realistic.
"I'm coming, Probie."
Mortified, McGee felt the ladder shake as Tony began his descent. In seconds Tony was above him. McGee chanced an upwards glance and, to his horror, witnessed Tony swing around to the back of the ladder to be sandwiched between the ladder and the wall and continue his climb until they were face to face.
"If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would never have believed it," said Tony incredulously.
"What: me getting stuck on a ladder? Surely you must have…"
"Not that: you're even whiter…like a ghost. Even your ears are white. You gotta agree this height thing is crazy."
"Acrophobia is one of the top 10 phobias, Tony. Studies have shown that it might be innate – other animals suffer from it. It's a survival mechanism to stop us falling off cliffs. It occurs in people who are overly reliant on visual cues or have vestibular issues. When my visual cues diminish at heights, my visual cortex overloads and my balance goes out of whack and.."
"Only you could rationalise an irrational fear."
"I've just been telling you: it's not irrational. There is a perfectly simple, scientific explanation why I can't ever, EVER, go any place high."
"You're ranting, you know that."
"I'm just expressing myself in an exuberant manner."
"Well, McExuberance: no matter what you say, you are still stuck."
"I think the rungs are starting to rust."
"That's because the sweat from your palms is eating away the metal."
"You know that sort of makes sense."
"Hey!"
"What?"
"Stop talking."
"OK."
Tony took a moment to evaluate their position. "I hoped I wasn't going to have to do this again," he said with a resigned tone. "But…"
McGee watched as Tony climbed back up the ladder a few rungs and dug out his mobile phone. He did not use it to make a call, however, instead he focused the camera on McGee.
"I'm going to film you, Probie," said Tony, matter-of-factly. "And you are going to climb up this ladder."
"Give me that." McGee took one step up the ladder before realising what he was doing and melding to the rungs again.
"I'm filming it all, Probie," Tony taunted.
"Stop it," growled McGee through gritted teeth.
"Come and get it. I can put 10 minutes worth on YouTube."
McGee's mouth set in grim determination, his eyes staring daggers at Tony who was standing with one leg on the ladder, gripping the ladder with one hand and filming with the other hand held off to one side. The sight sickened him and he closed his eyes again.
"Come on, Probie," Tony sang. "You know you want it."
McGee carefully executed a deep breath, making sure not to wobble the ladder, then, in a sudden flurry, he wrenched his eyes opened and took three steps towards Tony who scampered nimbly out of harms way.
"Nice try Probie. Tell you what – if you get to the top before the battery runs out, I'll delete the video."
McGee scowled up at Tony and steeled himself for the chase. Another burst and he was almost at Tony's feet before the older agent flitted lightly ahead again.
"Ohhhh, so close, Probie," sang Tony. "You almost had me there. One more…"
McGee howled a war cry and lunged at Tony, catching him unawares. His flailing arm made contact with Tony's legs and for a moment, he thought he had caught him. Then suddenly, Tony disappeared. McGee screeched to a halt, horrified momentarily that Tony had fallen.
"You're at the top, Probie," said Tony above him.
"I am?"
McGee tiled his head up slowly to see Tony's face peering over the roof of the building.
Tony held out a hand. "Come on."
Slowly McGee climbed the last few rungs feeling Tony's hands reassuringly stabilising him as he climbed over the top of the ladder.
McGee crawled away from the edge and sat with his head hanging between his knees drawing deep shuddering breaths. Cold sweat drenched him and deep tremors resonated through out his body.
"You need help, you know that," said Tony, sitting beside him and placing a friendly hand on his shoulder.
McGee hoped Tony couldn't feel how much his body was shaking.
"Yeah, I know," he admitted quietly.
"Or at least get a better phobia."
"Better?" McGee queried, raising his head slightly to look at Tony.
"Yeah I've been looking them up – McGeniophobe has a nice ring."
"You want me to have a fear of chins?"
"Just fits better with your name."
McGee frowned as Tony's face became blurry around the edges.
"Probie?"