A/N: Ah, Ashes to Ashes. Definitely a great series, but so many scenes I would've liked to see...
I've not written anything for A2A before, but I recently rewatched it, and I realised that we only ever get a brief glimpse at Gene's protectiveness over Chris - something which I think could have been focused on more. So here is an example of how I think it could have played out, through the eyes of Alex Drake.
And yes, in true Ashes to Ashes style, the title is a David Bowie lyric from Let's Dance: 'And if you say run, I'll run with you.' Not that the story is in any way related to the song. It's just a good song. ;)
...
Alex wanted to be able to say that she'd known something was wrong from the instant she'd gotten into work that morning. But that was a lie; the truth of it was that Chris Skelton rarely bothered rolling out of bed to answer his phone, and was almost always late arriving at CID on a Monday anyway. Gene knew this. As did Shaz, and Ray. So it was only when they received the call that anybody even began to worry. They hadn't suspected a thing.
The Guv had slammed his office door open upon hearing the phone ringing, beckoning to Alex to follow with a grunt and a vague sort of wave. "DCI Hunt." He'd growled down the phone, rolling his eyes when nobody replied. He was half way to replacing the receiver when a faint voice spoke through it, barely audible.
"Guv?" It was Chris.
"Skelton!" Gene put the phone back to his ear. "Where are you? You're skinny behind was meant to be here hours ago!"
Alex could still hear Chris on the other end of the line; well enough that when he finally did reply, she could detect the slight tremble in his voice, and the reluctance with which he spoke. "I-I'm not supposed to answer any questions, Guv." He said slowly.
"Not supposed to - What are you playing at, ya div?" The Guv turned away from Alex as he leaned against the wall, and when everything clicked in her mind, she didn't have time to warn him before the next sentence came.
"I'm supposed to give you a message - that you're to come to Warehouse 13 at midnight tonight, a-and bring Robert D-Dashner with you."
"Christopher?" Gene's voice was now laced with a concern that hadn't been there before. He turned back to Alex for help, mouthing to her 'What's goin' on?' as he waited for his officer's response. She shrugged and went to mouth back, but Chris started talking again.
"If you c-come, with Dashner, you can exchange him f-for me..." He said thinly. "If you don't turn up, or if you turn up without Dashner, they'll k-kill me. The only people from CID who can come are you and DI Drake... If anybody else comes with you, they'll kill e-everyone, and take Dashner anyway." He trailed off, and Alex was sure the call was going to end soon.
"Chris?" She stepped forward, spoke into the receiver.
"M'am?"
"Yes, it's me, Chris." She said, sharing a look with Gene. "Can you tell us who exactly is making these demands?"
A pause, and then: "'Fraid not, M'am... Is the Guv still there?" He sounded hopeful, at least, that Gene and Alex were on the case.
"Yeah, I'm still 'ere. Thought you could get out o' completing last week's paperwork this way, eh?" Gene joked. Chris let out a strained laugh. Then he went quiet again.
"You've got fourteen hours." He told them shakily.
"We'll be there, Chris." Alex told him quickly. Gene shook his head, seemingly at a loss as to what he should say. Eventually he cleared his throat.
"Nobody's going to die tonight, Skelton." He said firmly. "I'm gonna do this the Sam Tyler way." That earned another gentle laugh from Chris, though it was nervous and supressed. "And it'd better bloody work."
The phone clicked off.
...
A/N: Well, I have ideas on how to continue this story (it wouldn't be very long, though; maybe three or four chapters?), so do let me know if you want to see how it plays out! :)
Oh, also - do I need a disclaimer?
Disclaimer: I obviously don't own Ashes to Ashes, or any of it's characters, or the song Let's Dance.
:)