I do not own Ashes to Ashes

Having mainly just been a frequent reader of fanfics on here (some utterly fantastic ones at that), I felt it was about time that I started to write my own interpretations of the fantastic fictitious world of Ashes to Ashes

It will be rather dark in some areas, and I will be exploring Alex and Gene's relationship as realistically as possible, without it taking the direct front of the story.

So anyway, here it is, my first fanfic, hope it gets some readers and I hope you enjoy it, reviews are very welcome, good or bad, hey at least I know people are reading it. I play in a band so I can handle constructive criticism :o) I will reply to ALL reviews very quickly.

Big thanks to Mage of the Heart for beta-ing :)

……

'We're waiting for you Alex'.

The voice echoed through the foundations of her sub-conscious, the point between reality and unreality, as darkness suddenly took the form of the inside of a car, the world flashing by the windows in blurred slow motion; there was someone in the driving seat with short hair, leather jacket. The car then began to fall through a pit of internal darkness before cascading into a river. Water began flowing in. She couldn't move, not a muscle, even as her mind pleaded for help. It was only then, after all the walls of her surroundings had closed in, and she was slowly suffocating, that the man in the driving seat, who despite the clear turmoil of the situation, remained resolutely calm, turned around to face her, as if the water that engulfed the car had no effect on him, before smiling at her. The face was that of someone she recognized, but the image began to fade, as did her surroundings as darkness began to take hold again.

In the distance, a shrill, pulsed ringing began to echo through her senses. The ringing became louder, her surroundings, darker…

Her eyes opened to the semi-darkness of her bedroom, a dull light barely breaching the contours of her curtained window offering the only clear source of reassurance for her eyes, as her body awakened and her mind began to resolve that this was indeed her actual reality, and not another random concoction of consciousness, to which she had just experienced in her sleep. The continued ringing of the telephone next to her was all that was needed to finish off the ritual of waking up and verify that she was indeed, still within her flat of her 1982 fictitious dystopia. She reached over to the phone and finally quelled the irritating sound that wasn't doing any favors for her hangover, only to be greeted by yet another, equally as irritating, sound.

"Drake! What in god's name are you playing at! I was two rings away from coming over and breaking yer door down yer dosy plonk!"

"I was asleep Gene…" she replied, the slight raspiness of her voice was evident of that, glancing over at the clock. Quarter past 7. 'Christ this better be good' she thought.

"We've got more important matters to attend to, like capturing murdering bastards, so I couldn't give two bloody hoots about yer poxy beauty sleep! Theres' bin' two juicy murders during the night. Lovely! Be outside in 5". The phone went dead.

As Alex rolled off the bed and made to get ready with more effort than she would have liked, her mind couldn't help but drift back to the dream she'd had, but by now all she could recollect about it was how real the danger of it felt, and the voice that had all but burrowed itself into her mind as a reminder of the past she would rather forget - the voice of the clown, her stalker in the first months of arriving in this strange place - a personified depiction of the devil within her father that was willing to take her life, along with her mothers and his own, merely because of Evan's proximity to his family. Despite the fact that her early tormentor had all but vanished since that fateful day months ago, along with the visions of her beloved daughter Molly, his face and, as with last night, his voice, were still there to torment her sleep, along with the dawning prospect that she would be forever trapped in this world of her making.

The rest of the details of this dream were however, now very hazy, including the identity of the smiling man… She didn't give it another thought as she left her flat.

……

The dull, grayness of the sky, despite being a natural sight in an October climate, was almost a clear reflection of the inevitable, repugnant day ahead. Alex glanced around the car as it rocketed through the near-deserted London streets to their destination. Gene's usual scowl was set straight on the horizon while his tightly gloved hands operated the steering wheel with near-perfect efficiency. She spotted Chris in the mirror sitting behind her, slowly devouring a kebab, which seemed to be his idea of a breakfast these days. When she came to Ray, he had that usual annoying smirk directed at her as his cigarette hung from his lips.

"And what are you smirking at?" questioned Alex.

"Did you find your flat ok last night?" teased Ray, talking as if she was a child. "Didn't wander off into any strange residences did we?" his grin only getting wider, his irritation greater.

"I haven't slightest idea of what you are talking about" retorted Alex, turning back to look out the window with a shrug. She couldn't escape the growing realization that she couldn't recall much of the previous evening, and the fact that she seemed to be consuming more and more wine as the nights went on; her headache only strengthened that realization.

"So you don't remember the fair haired prat you were having tonsil tennis with?" Chris by this point couldn't help but start laughing at the memory too; Gene gave her a sideways glance, his scowl deepening, but otherwise concentrated on the road.

"Yeah practically eatin' each other's faces off an' when ee' tried escorting yer to the door yer fell against the bar givin' Luigi the fright of his life, yer don't half know how to put on a show mam" snorted Chris as he continued to eat his meal.

Gene's grip on the steering wheel tightened as he overheard the events that took place after he left Alex at the bar the previous evening, intoxicated as usual. He had got bored of her continuous drabble about the meaning of her existence or whatever it was she was going on about, stated that she should get some sleep, and left. But it dawned on him that she had yet again pulled off another stunt similar to that night with the 'thatcherite wanker' and that she was falling back into old habits. He didn't know what he was most angry about; the fact that he was jealous of these tossers who kept taking advantage of her, or the fact that she was showing her lack of propriety in front of the officers who should be looking up to her, not laughing at her. He was just about to give her the shouting at of a lifetime before she cut him off.

"For your information, I woke up alone this morning, and I fell asleep alone last night, not that it's any of your business anyway", she stated with full confidence as she continued to look out of the window, deciding she didn't want to risk a glance in Gene's direction, the confidence disappeared as it hit home what she had just said. Alone. The sheer dominating aspect of her life here, especially since she had to witness the death of her parents again, and contact with Evan had all but ceased as he tended to the needs of her younger self most likely. She snapped out of her reverie by Ray's chuckle as Chris dropped a piece of the kebab on the seat. Gene's anger could no longer be contained.

"Maybe we can get back to the matter at hand?! The fact that two people av' bin' murdered on my patch within the comfort of their own bloody 'ome! And Chris, I swear to god! If I ever catch you eatin' another bloody kebab in my car again you will be eatin' all your meals through straws!"

……

Minutes later they arrived in front of a three story, semi-detached building, police cars and officers already parked outside. Upon parking, Gene got out and rested his elbows on the roof of the car, scanning the building with a determined pout, Alex appeared opposite him. He immediately noticed the dark lines now appearing below her eyes and as her gaze met his, he could see sadness, the exhaustion. Gene recollected that she never really was the same again after the Prices were killed, not only was she consuming enough alcohol that could even put himself to shame, she had lost that perky vibe, the iron will of getting the job done, the radiant glow that emulated off her. These days she didn't even challenge his authority and snap back at him when she disagreed with one of his calls, much to his disappointment. The call of one of the officers standing at the door drew his attention away.

"DCI Hunt? The bodies are upstairs, forensics have already arrived", declared the young officer. And with that Gene led the others up the stairs to the victims, passing a rather nervous looking man talking to an officer.

The door to the flat was open as the forensics team swooped around the spacious rooms, taking samples and pictures. The flat's structure was very similar to that of Alex's, the door opened up into a hallway with a finely equipped and stylish kitchen on the left and leading to a small living room to where they found the first victim. Arms and legs scattered as he lay on his back, two bullet holes carved into his chest at close proximity, one bullet hole right between the eyes with now dried blood protruding from it. Gene and Alex then moved through the living room to one of the bedrooms as Ray and Chris mingled about, to where the second victim lay, eyes open slightly, a long, deep gash across his throat, the white sheets red with his blood.

"Landlord found them.." they turned to see Tom Jutterson unsurprisingly; it was always him and his forensics team that got called to the murders in the area. "Was walking by the door early this morning and noticed it slightly ajar, he said this bloke on the bed had the pillow over his face when he found him, he called the police straight away, he's downstairs giving a full statement" He nodded back to the victim, "Seems he was most likely asleep when the attacker slit his throat, and then forced the pillow onto his face, most likely to speed up the suffocation process. It's a perfect clean cut right across the jugular". He then led them back to the living room where Ray was crouching over the second victim. "This one was most definitely shot at close range; attacker was probably in the living room at the time as he entered, judging from his position on the floor and entry points of the bullets. I'd take a guess that the attacker shot the victim twice in the chest first, and then in the head when he was on the ground to finish him off".

Gene looked back towards the front door and then back to Jutterson "Well if ee' were shot, then someone must 'ave 'eard somethin'".

"Technically yes, but there was something else that caught our attention", Jutterson led Gene over to the door and crouched next to the lock whilst Alex crouched down to examine the bullet wounds on the victim more closely, "The lock is broken off entirely from the outside, all the components for the locking mechanism have shifted through to the otherside. I have no idea how this could be done without creating a lot of noise" He stood "To be honest I am not sure how that can be done at all, some specialized equipment was definitely used".

"Ok thanks Jutters, continue sweepin' the room an' get those bodies back to base, I want a full report on yer findings pronto". Jutterson nodded and walked back to the bedroom, Gene walked back over to Alex and Ray. "So what do yer reckon Bols?"

"This certainly has an edge, to the likes we haven't witnessed before". Ray frowned at her as he continued to chew his gum.

"Yes in English if you would, if that's not too difficult?"

Alex sighed. "Well judging from the methods through which the victims have been killed I would say we aren't dealing with any ordinary killer." Chris re-appeared as she finished the sentence.

"Guv? Spoke to the landlord. Said the victims names are Charles Baker and Peter Grass, they were roommates, been 'ere for 7 months. Also said there are other residents living in this flat an' the surroundin' flats. Got his full statement right ere'", he said with a grin.

"Right! Ray? Chris? Notify plod outside to start questionin' everyone in the surroundin' area. Did anyone hear gunfire last night an' did anyone see anythin' out of the ordinary. Then I want you two to start questionin' everyone else in the flat with the same questions in mind. Me and the lady Bols 'ere will 'ead back to the station an' see if we can pull the files on these two dead tossers an' see if we can find us some suspects. Move!"

Ray and Chris immediately left the flat to attend to their new orders while Gene led Alex back to the car. "What did ur' mean Bols when you said we weren't dealing with any ordinary killer?"

"I meant… that both kills were done with perfect efficiency and accuracy, the same goes for method of his entrance. The bullet holes in the victim show it was an assassination style killing, someone who knows how to handle a weapon confidently…"

By now they had reached the car and Gene walked over to his side before glancing over at Alex "Anyone can point a gun at someone an' shoot Bols…"

"Gene, it was an assassination kill, two through the chest and one through the head. The victim in the bedroom, as Tom stated, had a clear, clean cut across the jugular so he was probably proficient in the use of knives too, and I bet you the team up there will not find anything on the identity of this attacker".

Alex glanced back up at the windows of the flat where the murders took place. "I think we are dealing with a professional killer…"