Title: Outside influences on their lives
Author: Loz
E-Mail: loz06(at)yahoo(dot)com
Rating: T
Category: Neil/Andrea…All Neil/Andrea
Series: Story number fifteen. What follows are titles and story ID numbers:
(1) After he's at her door – 2486705
(2) When the mighty fall – 2506192
(3) While his wife's away – 2525486
(4) While they're away – 2543010
(5) When love's not working – 2543013
(6) Boundaries when broken up - 2562611
(7) What happens on the train – 2579012
(8) When they work together – 2595808
(9) When she wants him back – 2598312
(10) When they're stuck together – 2611364
(11) When they're back together – 2619492
(12) Life almost in balance – 2630121
(13) Life under pressure – 2666280
(14) Trying to have a life together – 2699235
(15) Outside influences on their lives - 2704730
Spoilers: So minor it shouldn't ruffle any feathers.
Archive (if applicable): www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net.
Feedback: The good, the bad and the very ugly it's all appreciated.
Summary: A court case that both Philippa and Neil are involved in creates tension between the two, in the middle of celebrations of Andrea's birthday. Neil starts to wonder how long he can go on like this for.
Authors' notes: I totally couldn't wait to post another section, I've been typing madly and I've so missed this, totally addicted as someone recently said.
Thanks: Cheers to aerialplug and Lornz for the feedback, to Fabio here's another Xmas present for you and many more to come, to Meegan I totally agree with you about the golf lessons. To Gem6 enjoy your fluff now, I haven't written things in the future so rosy.
Disclaimers: Blah, blah, blah - we all know how it goes! Don't disclaimers get boring after a while and I'm tired of trying to be creative. I obviously aren't associated with the show cause you don't see such sun shine and blue sky happiness as you do in my fics…well for a little longer. Ooo a future story spoiler in the disclaimer.
Position vacant: The Bill advice.
Qualifications: Someone who is up-to-date with current UK episodes.
Role/Job: Someone who can tell me about what happened with/between Suzie and Neil… (There never has been or will be anything between me and Suzie.)
Applications: To loz06(at)yahoo(dot)com. Please don't be shy I really need to know so I can keep on writing with this story. Thanks in advance.
Neil doesn't notice her at first, taking careful steps, with his eyes reading from a cream folder.
"Hello." Andrea says causing him to jump a little.
"You scared me." Neil closes the door; interest lost in the work, Andrea does her best golf swing as he drops the work on his desk.
"I've been practicing." She laughs sitting in the visitor's chair.
"Tomorrow?"
"Free?"
"Couldn't think of anything better to do with my Saturday," Neil smiles over at her, a sharp knock on the door makes his smile fade.
"Good takes care of two out of three." Jack Meadows doesn't wait to be invited, doesn't have too. Andrea stands as if it might lessen any suspicions the DCI might have just acquired of impropriety. "Brian Carter just hired new counsel."
"Who?" Neil and Andrea ask simultaneously.
"One P. Pearson," Andrea can't find recognition of who the name is, but its obvious Neil knows as he sighs heavily.
"Thanks Guv," Andrea doesn't look at Neil till Jack Meadows has closed the door behind him.
"Damn." Neil curses, features hardening he stares out the window.
"It's alright we've got our evidence." Andrea tries to compensate, Neil turns back to her shaking his head.
"It's one step up from circumstantial; the DPS had to be really convinced to progress with the case, Philippa will drive a lorry right through the gaps." The penny falls for Andrea, realising why Neil is annoyed, it's the stuff of TV dramas. Just for a moment she ponders why Philippa would use her maiden name.
"Can she take a case you're involved with?"
"I'm not, this is Sam's case and I'm her DI. If that rule applied Philippa would never be able to touch anything that came from this station. Also you'd be surprised how many people don't realise the association because she uses her maiden name."
"You want to cancel tomorrow?" Andrea surprises herself at just how understanding she is.
"No, it's the last thing I want to do." Neil sits in his chair and forward across the desk to her. "Six at yours?"
"Eight thirty at mine."
"Much better," he says and Andrea laughs.
"Philippa!" Neil's not proud of yelling the moment he walks through the door.
"Philippa!" It's not necessary he thinks as he puts down his keys, she'll be in the office.
"I'm not talking to you when you're like this Neil." She doesn't put her head up.
"Well that's both convenient and unusual, a lawyer gagging themselves." Anger pumps through his veins.
"Is there any point in having this conversation?" Finally she stops work.
"We said we'd never do this, go head to head at work."
"You've been doing a lot of that lately – doing things you said you wouldn't." Neil's heart beats faster as he opens a potential bomb.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Whatever you like," across the hall Colin's bedroom door slams and the music goes up.
"He's a murderer Philippa, killed a sixteen year old boy and a twelve year old girl because their ball was kicked into his yard one too many times. He's sick; he needs to go to an institution."
"You've got this one wrong; I've seen your evidence. You know all your soldiers aren't in line." Within the station to his colleagues he'd say touché.
"The money goes to charity or something." Neil seethes.
Philippa laughs amazed. "You've never worried about where the money comes from before.
Neil glares unwilling to be drawn into a debate over the request.
"It's a pro bono case." Philippa tells him like he asked for the time.
"Pro bono!" Neil roars. "This is not some hard done by family from an estate."
"Would you feel different if it was?"
"It's because its high profile isn't it?" Neil's words drip with cynicism.
"You're a hypocrite Neil, you don't think I and everyone else I know, knows you've got your eye on Jack Meadows job, next stop after that look out Adam Okaro."
"I'm not defending psychotic murderers on the way up."
"No, you're just fitting them up." It's a low blow but before he can reply she cuts him off. "Everyone has the right to counsel and it's my job to do my best to defend Brian Carter, regardless of his colour, gender, age or crime."
A hostile calm descends as Neil stews and Philippa goes back to work.
"You've got a week to get used to the idea, I'm asking for an extension on Monday because I've just taken over the case."
Neil reminds himself to tell Andrea this fact the next morning.
Neil watches as Andrea lines the club up to the ball with all the concentration of a school project. She swings and misses the ball entirely and although she dissolves into laughter he just can't find it in him.
It doesn't go unnoticed by her. "You're thinking he's going to walk aren't you?"
"No, I was thinking we're going to be banned from coming here if you keep hacking up the course." But it's not convincing and after a moment he tries again. "We have the best case possible."
Golf isn't having its desired effect today, Neil's head is still at the station, Andrea pulls up her tee and ball dropping them into the bag before swinging it over her shoulder.
"Try not to think about it." She steps off after his ball.
"Are you going to be alright on Monday with Philippa questioning you?" Although he follows her it's clear he's still lost in thought.
"You mean am I going to break down and confess all…no." It gives Neil one less thing to worry about.
Jack Meadows waits outside the courtroom, unaccustomed to being still he paces slowly in front of a bench until Neil slips out of the double doors.
"What happened?" He immediately latches on not noticing as the rest of the courtroom starts to file out.
"The defence were given an extra week to prepare." It's as Philippa predicated.
"A week that's all?"
"The case has attracted a lot of media attention, there's public pressure." Both men glare as the editor of the Daily News saunters out through the double doors. "Where does he get his information?" Neil mutters to himself more than anything.
"I've got to get back." Meadows' indicates and Neil searches for Andrea in the crowd of others who thought they might have been called to the stand today.
He spots her alone but she shakes her head as he steps towards her, he follows her eyes that are on Philippa. He misses the opportunity to talk to her in the car when Sam needs a lift, left high and dry by the DCI.
"What did Philippa say?" At the station Andrea steps out of the car, door still open she looks over the roof back to the lot gates. Sam had been keen to get back to her desk.
"We're not talking." Neil says still in the driver's seat with his door open. The words strangely provide no hope.
"You shouldn't talk to me at court." His sigh tells her he knows.
"See you Wednesday night?" Andrea closes the car door, wondering why she's not happier about the prospect.
"Yeah."
"Food's here." Andrea calls as she closes the front door to her flat with her foot.
"Mmm-Hmm," Neil says still surround by work. In the kitchen she puts her meal on a plate.
"Where's mine?" Neil asks looking up finally when she sits down with her food.
"Something's got to get you away from that work." Andrea grins knowing she's got him.
"Are you ready for Monday?" Andrea sits back into the depth of her chair as he calls from the kitchen; she knows she shouldn't have been scanning the documents in front of her just then.
"I haven't been given much prep time."
"You're o.k. but?" Something in his voice urges her to lie, like he couldn't handle another weak point in their case.
"I guess." Although she feels uneasy.
"It's not the first time you've been to court?"
"No." Andrea puts her fork down and stares across the room.
"Andrea?" She shakes herself out of the stare, picking up her fork again her eyes cross a scrap of paper on top of a pile of folders.
"Honestly everything's fine." She smiles to reassure him and reaches for the paper. Folding it open she notes his handwriting and the subject.
Things to get for Andrea's birthday
1 Biggest diamond in the world
2 100 year lease on an island
3 Fast car
4 Private jet
"What's this?" Andrea holds the paper between her index and middle fingers. Neil plays cool despite her look that says, 'you're up to something.'
"Just a list," he says with all the enthusiasm for paying tax.
Andrea turns the paper over deciding to make her own list. What Andrea wants for her birthday – me for a whole day. In her outstretched arm she holds the note in front of him.
"That's too easy." Finally his attention is taken from the work he's doing. Andrea leans over the desk and his work, standing on her feet.
"It's what I want." She whispers and takes the opportunity to tilt his chin up and kiss him.
"Then it's done." He says lips inches from hers but she's unconvinced, sitting back into her chair.
"That was too easy, you've got something planned, the list was just a sneaky way of getting me to tell you what I want."
"I'm not saying anything." Neil laughs her off. "Your copper suspicion is still on duty."
"You know I'm rostered on that day?"
"Uh-huh. I'm working too." Andrea smiles knowing she won't get anything out of him. She feels a little sad knowing this will be a two person party; such is the nature of their relationship.
"There better be lots of surprise witnesses and twists and turns from the prosecution or we're not going to get this one." Neil pulls the station pool car into a car park at the courthouse. Andrea stares at the back entrance doors, next to her Neil protests at the pain that comes as he attempts to get out of the car.
"You're not sixteen anymore." Andrea says absently.
"Indoor cricket Thursday night, golf Saturday and last night." He recounts their time together.
"You're talking about our sex life when I have to go in and face your wife today?" Andrea doesn't know whether she sounds serious or light-hearted.
"You'll be fine." Neil wishes as she gets out of the car.
Inside the courtroom from the public gallery, Neil watches as Andrea holds her own with the police prosecutor, his shifts uncomfortably as the prosecutor indicates he's done questioning Andrea. All morning his eyes have bored into the back of Brian Carter's head, he soon has an ugly distraction.
Philippa starts politely enough but she soon begins to up the ante and apply pressure. Neil changes the legs he has crossed as Andrea starts to falter. She asks Philippa to repeat questions, her answers are punctuated with large silences and for the first time she doubts herself and her actions. The confidence evaporates from her voice and she looks to the prosecution in desperation. Neil can't meet her eyes, it's too painful. When his phone vibrates in his pocket and he leaves the courtroom, Andrea and her evidence are in tatters.
Neil sees her come out of the courtroom but with Jack asking for an update in his ear, he can't call her name as she walks remarkably calmly to the ladies toilets. After being creative with the truth he snaps his phone closed wanting nothing more than to go to her, frustrated he knows he can't.
The doors push open again, this time everyone pours out, checking his watch he realises it's the midday recess. People don't gather for long, heading down the street to the nearby cafes. He catches Philippa's eyes, anger painted on his features, he's up for a fight. As she approaches he steps into a quiet section of the corridor knowing she'll follow him.
"You don't look happy." Neil's surprised it's phrased as a simple statement.
"You tore her apart, made her question why she didn't have a record of every sneeze and scratch."
"I was doing my job; your case has man sized holes in it."
"You didn't have to take it as far as you did, she was down and you just kept on…" Neil sighs feeling everything is out of his control.
"Are you going to be like this when Samantha Nixon gets on the stand or is this little show just for PC Dunbar?" Cooler heads no longer prevail. Neil commits the comment to memory.
"Of course I am, but Samantha has been to court more times than PC Dunbar, she won't let you do what you just did in there."
"We shouldn't even be talking about this, there's an element of conflict here." Finally she realises she's very close to not being eligible to take the case. "You're skating close to trying to influence me, but your PC was unprepared, unclear and she didn't know her stuff." Philippa drives her point home.
"She's a probationer." Neil clutches for straws.
"Well if that's the future I can only hope for your sake that every criminal confesses because I won't be loosing many cases."
Andrea clears her throat having heard the whole argument, husband and wife too caught up to hear her exit the ladies. Philippa transfers her glare from Neil to Andrea, Neil can really only look shocked and angry, sympathy and concern would be marital suicide. Andrea hasn't mustered her anger yet – still gutted by the accusations about her.
Later she realises this might by what it would be like if Philippa ever found out about the affair, a Mexican standoff with one angry party, another remorseful and a husband and lover torn.
Philippa stalks off; her only words the sharp tapping of her heels. Andrea waits till she's gone and her anger has built, she can't look at Neil – she decides to leave.
"Andrea." Neil catches her hand but she pulls violently away from him, desperation in his voice not to lose her. Turning she shows him the tears that have pooled along her eyelids, her tone leaves him in no doubt about her mood.
"Don't. Neil." She too stalks out of the courthouse. The last thing she wants to hear is Neil pouring bucket loads of sugar on his wife's words, in affect defending her. She's also angry he can't show his true emotion and support her when she needs it.
Gina Gold sends her straight home when she gets back to the station, she doesn't have to look twice to know Andrea won't be effective on the street that afternoon.