The Call That Changed Everything

Written by: HoshiHikari

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI NY

Summary: The team was devastated after the loss of Jessica. When Danny ended up in a wheelchair, the team became even more depressed. The night Stella failed to return Mac's call caused a rift to form between them, a rift that might not only destroy their friendship, but might also be the very thing that destroys the team forever.

Warnings: Spoilers from Season 6!

Chapter 1 The Phone Call

"Taylor," Mac answered his Blackberry as he stood in the middle of his office. Both the solid walls and glass windows which surrounded his office were covered with photos of possible suspects or other information that was related to the case at hand.

"Sorry for calling so late, Mac." Danny's voice came from the other end.

"That's alright, I'm at the office." Mac replied.

"I got a possible tip from an anonymous caller about the case. She asked to meet up."

"Where are you?" Mac asked.

Danny gave him the address.

"Alright, I'll pick you up. Would you mind if I call Stella? Besides she'll probably scold me later if I don't."

Danny couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah I don't mind. I wouldn't want you to get into trouble with your old lady."

"Danny!"

"Seriously Mac, when are you going to tie the knot? Everybody knows it's inevitable. So why not get it over with already?"

"Danny!"

"You never know what's going happen. Look at Flack and Jessica…" Danny's voice softened. "Besides a women is only going to wait so long. You've known her for at least a decade, 8 of which Claire wasn't even in the picture…" His voice trailed off as he if he suddenly realized what he had said. He took a deep breath and continued anyway. "She would have wanted you to be happy."

"Danny." Mac said with a tone of annoyance.

"Just let her know. Chasing after her to Greece was something…"

"Back to the case Danny." Mac said in a tone that left no room for argument.

"Right, I'll see you in half an hour?" Danny asked.

"Yes. I'll call Stella now and we'll be there soon." Mac confirmed. After hanging up, he picked up his jacket and headed out of the office. Once he got to his car he dialed Stella's number. He frowned when he was immediately greeted by voicemail.

"Hey Stell, Danny got a tip. I know you're off today but I thought you'll like to know since this is the first sign of progress in this case. Anyhow I'll give you the details after I pick you up. Give me a call soon."

He then proceeded to call her home number but frowned again when he was answered by the answering machine. Again he left a message. Figuring that he should pick Danny up first as he had no idea where Stella was, he gave the man a call.

"Messer." Danny answered on the first ring.

"I'm going to pick you up first. Stella didn't answer her cell or home phone." Mac said. "She'll probably call back by the time I reach your place."

"Alright then, I'll see you soon."

Fifteen minutes later Mac arrived at the Messer residence. Danny, Lindsey and Lucy were waiting outside for him.

"Hey Mac." Lindsey greeted.

"Hi Lindsey, Lucy." Mac greeted in kind. "Didn't have to come out."

"Suppose not." Lindsey agreed. "Just couldn't resist."

"Resist what?"

"Oh, I don't know Mac. Hmm." Lindsey pretended to think hard. "Overhead you talking on the phone with Danny. Something about tying a knot? So when's the big day?"

"Lindsey!" Mac's face flushed red. "I said nothing like that. I..er…"

"I'll just ask Stella." Lindsey interrupted, peaking over Mac's shoulder, expecting to see the women sitting in the passenger seat of his car. She frowned when she didn't see Stella.

"Where's Stella?"

"She hasn't called back yet." Mac said quietly, suddenly quite serious. "I know she's off duty and not on call, but…"

"She knows you wouldn't call her, unless it was important. At least at this hour at any rate." Lindsey finished off his sentence. "Could she be asleep?"

"Who's gotten any sleep since Angell…" Mac countered.

A heavy silence fell over the gathered.

"Lighten up Mac." Danny said, rolling his wheelchair towards Mac's car. "You're the insomniac. Everyone else needs sleep to survive. We could head over to Stella's where you can play the prince charming who wakes up Sleeping Beauty and then we can held over to the meeting spot."

"Very funny."

"Come on, you know you want to do that."

This time Mac didn't reply. He merely smirked in response.

"I'll call Stella and let her know you're coming." Lindsey offered as Mac helped Danny into the front seat. He then folded up the wheelchair and placed it in the back.

"Thanks Lindsey." Mac acknowledged and then climbed into the driver seat. He made sure Lindsey and Lucy were both inside before driving off. The two rode in silence as they headed to Stella's apartment.

"Call her again Danny." Mac said as he parked in front of Stella's.

"Voicemail." Danny murmured. He raised an eyebrow when he watched Mac pull out his gun. "Mac?"

"I got a bad feeling about this Danny." Mac responded. "Stella has never failed to return my calls, let alone so many calls. Even when we had arguments…."

"Help me into that damn chair Mac, I'm coming with you."

"No, you're staying here."

"But…"

"Stella's got a no man rule." Mac responded as he pulled out a key. "After Frankie…"

"Yet you have a key to her apartment?" Danny raised an eyebrow.

"There's always an exception to every rule." Mac replied as he got out of the car. Danny could have sworn he saw Mac smile before his face was once again replaced by a look of utmost seriousness. "Be back in ten minutes. If I'm not back by then, call for back up."

"I am backup." Danny argued as Mac shut the door behind him. He flung his hands up in frustration. He really hated being disabled. He felt so useless especially now when all he could do was watch Mac walk into possible danger. He fingered his phone and gun as he waited anxiously for Mac to return. He was surprised when Mac returned within minutes, his face filled with anger, frustration and fear. Mac was talking on the phone, his lips moving rapidly as he tried to convey his message to the other person on the line.

"I'm heading back to the lab." Mac said. "Flack said there was another shooting at a bar. Another officer was gunned down."

"and Stella?" Danny asked hesitantly.

"Missing. There were no signs of struggle. In fact there was nothing unusual about the apartment." Mac replied as he picked up his cell again to call Stella. He cursed heavily when he was once again directed to voicemail. He left a quick messaged and then turned his attention onto Danny.

"Tell Adam to meet me at the lab. I need him to help me run a trance on Stella's phone. Tell Sheldon and Lindsey to head over to the new crime scene. Flack's going to meet you at the place where this anonymous tipster is going to show up. We're working around the clock till this case is solved."

"Gotcha." Danny replied. He immediately began dialing numbers as Mac drove to the destination where he was suppose to drop off Danny.

"Adam's cell went directly to voicemail." Danny said anxiously. "The other's are heading towards their respective destinations."

"Leave a message. If he's not there by the time I reach the lab, I'm running a trace on both of their cell phones."

"You don't think something happened to him too, do you?"

"I don't know Danny. First with Angell, then with the shootings and with Stella missing." Mac said as he pulled to a stop in front of Don.

"What's this with Stella missing?" Don asked through the rolled down window. "You didn't say anything about that Mac."

"I'll find her Don. I'll find her before dawn breaks." Mac swears trying to convince himself. "I can't lose her."

Mac and Don helped Danny into his wheelchair as Danny explained the situation to Flack. After exchanging a few more words, Mac sat back in the driver seat and headed towards the lab. By the time he had gotten to his office, Adam still hadn't shown up. Dread and fear began to grip him as numerous scenarios formed in his mind. He forced himself to concentrate as he imputed Stella's cell onto one computer and Adam's cell onto another, typed in a few more items and then waited for the computers to turn on both phones. After that was done, he imputed the numbers again and let the computers find the location of the cells.

"They're together." Mac spoke up in wonderment as he stared at the computer screens with a surprised expression on his face. "But why is Stella at Adam's place? And if they're safe, then why didn't anyone answer their phone?"

Of course no one answered his questions. He didn't like the idea of them together, especially because there wasn't any reason to, at least not at this hour.

"But maybe they couldn't answer the phone. The phone's off because someone else is there. Someone who is probably holding them as hostages. Yes, that would make sense. Neither Stella or Adam are people who would turn off their phones at night. There's probably someone else threatening them. They're probably the same people behind these shootouts."

Making sure he had an extra pack of ammunition, Mac quickly closed the computers and headed to his car. He drove quickly, making reckless turns here and there as he rushed towards Adam's place. His heart was pounding quickly as he double parked in front of Adam's place. Pulling out his gun, he made his way swiftly and silently to the door. He frowned when he didn't hear any noise coming from inside. Deciding that his best approach was to remain silent if there really was a hostage situation going on, he decided to turn from cop mode to marine mode. Shoving his hands through his pockets, he found a paper clip, bent it out of shape and then easily picked the lock. As quietly as possible, he pushed the front door open and immediately became on guard.

The living room was a mess. There were beer bottles scattered on the ground and paper that littered everywhere. A quick glance around showed that no one was in the room. Slowly he made his way through the kitchen and bathroom but still found no one. When he passed one of the home phones, he noticed it wasn't placed back correctly and so he could still faintly hear the operator's voice on the other end of the line. Slowly he made his way towards the bedroom where the door was left slightly ajar. From his spot, Mac could make out a human shape on the bed. The shape sat bolt upright and even though Mac wasn't sure, he thought he could see a gun in the person's outstretched hand. Taking a deep breath, Mac gripped his own gun tighter and then barged into the dark room.

Immediately he felt something cold and metallic touched the side of his neck.

"This is your unlucky day. You've got some guts trying to break into a cop's home."

"Adam?" Mac asked with surprise.

"Boss?" Adam's voice came from his side. The weapon was lowered and the lights were immediately switched on.

"Mac?" A second voice of astonishment and confusion spoke up.

Mac's attention was immediately drawn onto Stella by her question. She was on the bed, her hand now lowered and her gun lay on her lap. The blanket was pulled up to her shoulders. Her hair was messy and Mac could trace the sweat ticking down her face. A glance at the far wall showed him a pile of clothes that were hastily thrown aside. A side glance at Adam confirmed his suspicions when he noticed the younger man was only wearing a pair of jeans.

"Mac?" Stella said his name again but he completely ignored it. For a fleeting second, Stella saw the anger, betrayal, and pain reflected in Mac's eyes and then it was gone. It was all gone. All emotion was drained from Mac's face and Stella suddenly found herself unable to read her partner.

"It's not what it looks like." Adam was rambling. "Boss, I can…" He cut off when Mac suddenly spun around and fled the room. Adam stole a quick glace at Stella, quickly picked up a shirt from the pile of clothes on the ground and then quickly chased after Mac. By the time Adam caught up with him, Mac was opening the door to his car with one hand while dialing Danny's number on his Blackberry with his other hand.

"Hey Danny," Mac spoke once the line went through.

"Mac, just the man I was about to call."

"Don?" Mac asked, quickly checking the number to make sure it was Danny he had dialed. "Where's Danny?"

"He's alright. He just fell over. I just helped him back onto his chair."

"Fell over?"

"Someone shot our tipster during our conversation. She's dead. Danny fell over, but he's alright."

"and you?"

"Fine."

"Wait for me." Mac said. "I'll be right there."

"Did you found Stella?" Flack asked.

"Yeah, I found her." Mac grounded out, just as Stella approached him. She barely caught the door as he was about to slam it shut. "She's safe."

"Good. So where was she? Did you have to kick some ass to rescue…"

Mac didn't hear the rest of Flack's sentence. He pulled the phone away as he turned his attention back to Stella.

"Let go Bonasera." Mac shouted in a tone of voice that was louder and harsher then he had ever spoken to his partner before.

"Mac, let me explain." Stella tried slightly pleading.

"Mac?" Flack asked. He was shocked by how Mac had addressed Stella. "You okay? Everything okay?"

"I'm on my way."

"Mac?" This time it was Danny. "Those were some harsh words Mac. What happened to tying the knot?"

"The only knot I'm about to tie is the one I've learned as a Marine." Mac said. He suddenly jerked the car door hard and Stella gave a cry of shock. She immediately released her grip on the door as she was afraid that her hand would get caught. "You better find me the right bastard, least I wrap the cord around the neck of the bastard of my choosing."

"Mac?" Danny cried out in surprise. "What the hell is going on?"

Mac didn't reply. Instead he abruptly hung up his cell phone. He started the car, gave Stella and Adam a pointed look and then pulled away, not caring that he was in no condition to be driving.


Well here's the beginning of Epilogue with a twist. As you probably can tell, I'm quite upset about A/S, the way Mac should be when he finds out about them. Depending on my creative streak, the story may or may not follow the rest of the plot line. Anyhow, if you want to know more about what happens next, then please remember to Review!