This is me taking my first crack at my new favorite show (DVR=greatest invention ever). I haven't been watching long, so if I don't quite catch the correct tone for character, feel free to blame me…gently. lol
A sad story traded through the ages, author to author…I don't own Cold Case. Still brings a tear to the eye, huh?
1954
Detective Tommy Blaine popped his head up from his paperwork and took a quick look around the pen to see if the coast was clear. A quick left, a quick right, and it was like the path straight ahead was lit by the big man himself despite the late hour.
God, she was a looker. Even in the piss poor lighting of the precinct, she seemed to shine brighter than a candle-twice as pretty too. In his heart of hearts he knew it wasn't the right time, and it seemed there never would be one, but his heart of hearts also seemed to be falling shamelessly in love.
There was a ring in his desk drawer. He'd bought it the day she finally admitted who put those ugly marks on her flawless skin. Fooled himself into thinking he just wanted to play the white knight, but that almost seemed funny now. Being the white knight was okay, but now he knew he wanted it all. That gorgeous diamond that shone bright as her eyes belonged on her finger, his lonely apartment needed an upgrade to a little something with a fence out front, and that pretty little girl that looked so much like her mama needed to ponder calling him "daddy" instead of "Uncle Tommy".
After casting her eyes around much like Tommy, she finally lifted her head to give him a quick grin when his hip landed against her desk and a handful of candy spilled over her work. Just as fast, she centered her eyes on the keys in front of her before answering.
"You're gonna spoil her."
"Not a crime the last time I checked."
"I suppose you would know, wouldn't you detective?"
"The way I see it, you know just as much as me. Means you know every girl needs a little spoilin'. Good for the soul. And when those girls get older, its good for the fire in their gut. Makes 'em good and uppity in case some fool gets it in his head that he wants to be fresh with her."
A red rosebud fell from his fumbling fingers into her eye line.
She raised her eyes to his, beautiful blue holding a private dance for embarrassment and delight.
"Tommy! Not here! You're going to get us into a whole heap of trouble!"
"Are you more worried about the trouble, or that bright red blush on your cheeks?"
"I'd recommend you watching out. My gut is fixing to boil."
"That's good. Real good."
"Mmhmm."
"Like it or not, you're my best girl, Ellie."
In the most subtle exchange, his hand slid towards her, and one delicate pinkie left the keys to touch his bare ring finger. After a beat, she resumed her typing, and swallowed the lump threatening to choke her right then and there.
Eleanor didn't need her eyes to see that his darker ones were brimming with all the things she couldn't bare to accept. She could have gone mad and blind, but she would never be able to erase that man from her mind. He was as handsome as they could come with those dark sympathetic eyes, and short tufts of black hair that seemed to perpetually hang on the ledge of unruly-at least in cop standards. But it was his heart, so full of all the good things in the world, made to find all the good in the worst. She could never forget the one person on the planet that found something worthwhile in her besides her precious daughter.
"Well, maybe that's what you think Detective Blaine, but I know someone who'd beg to differ."
"Yeah? And who would that be?"
"This spoiled little girl running rampant around my home, doped up on sugar, thinking the Earth starts and stops with Uncle Tommy."
"Very true. Proving yourself to have that sharp eye again Miss Collins. What would you say if I decided I've got two best girls?"
Her eyes closed, and she let out the smallest sigh before she attempted to redirect the road this conversation was taking.
"That I appreciate everything you…"
"Not this again. What we got ain't something you appreciate like a nice lamp, or a boy scout that carried your grocery bag. This isn't the kindness of my heart Ellie, this is my heart, and I am a very patient man. Maybe you can't give me yours yet, so you just wanna be friends…that's fine by me. But you might as well accept that you're mine no matter what you wanna call us, and I take care of mine."
"You shouldn't be talking this way…"
"I could shut my mouth, but the truth would still be screaming from my face."
For the first time since approaching her, he bent his head down and away. He didn't need to rush her like this. All he intended was to give her the treats and see if he could weasel himself a few moments of time with her, and maybe even little Nancy. With his composure back in place, he nudged her chair teasingly.
"So I was thinking it's awfully late for a gal like you to be wandering home alone."
"I live two blocks away. The walking is good for me."
"Didn't hear anything about how doing it alone is good for you."
"Maybe I'm used to it."
"Maybe you ought to get used to somethin' else. You ever think on that?"
"I tried to once, but then this sickly little puppy dog took to chasing after my heels, and won't give me a moments peace. At least not til I give him some of my pot roast and potatoes, then he tends to mind."
With a grin he picked up her coat and held it out for her to slip her arms in.
"Pot roast, huh?"
"Nancy made some cookies to go with it too. Oatmeal, your favorite."
"So maybe I can walk you home and have my favorite dinner?"
"It's what friends do, right?"
Tommy's fingers tugged at a lock of her golden hair still stuck in her collar, and smoothed her sleeves. He would've taken the chance to clutch her hands, but he could see that weary look in her eye silently pleading, "not tonight, not now", so he gave her wrist a tug, and a wink to be just plain ornery.
As they turned to leave, the detective's eye caught something glinting by the phone on her desk.
"What's that Ellie?"
She rolled her eyes, and pinched his elbow.
"Don't try and be funny wise guy."
He peeled away and made a grab for the object. It was a tiny golden bird with eyes of some blue stone, trapped in a crystal cage.
"Your sweetheart send you this?"
She took the figurine and set it back on the desk. Uneasily, she caught how impossibly small it looked in his large hand, but shook it off.
"This was just another one of your silly jokes, Thomas Blaine, don't you dare try to lie about it. While we're on the subject, you really shouldn't be so obvious here. I mean it. I'd lose my job, and I can't."
"Thomas? Well, Eleanor, your job is just fine, don't you worry on that. And I didn't send you that. Strikes me a little creepy actually. A caged bird? If I wanted to tease you in public, I'd just yank on your pigtails."
"But that note…"
"What note?"
Her hand dipped into her pocket, and she pulled out the card and began to recite, "So much like you my precious Ellie. Thinking of you, The Avenger."
"The Avenger?"
"Nonsense. Just like you.", she slapped the paper in his palm, "but a little extreme you know? Pull my pigtails anytime, Tommy, just don't pull a fast one like this again."
"What do I have to avenge?"
The air crackled briefly with discomfort.
"You tell me, Tommy."
"That wasn't me, Ellie. You have to know that. Gotta believe it. I wanted the bastard dead, but I kept my hands to myself out of respect for you and Nancy. Going after him would've made us the same, and I want to be better for you."
The truth swirled in the space between, and drove her hand up to his stubbled cheek.
"You are the better man. Always and forever. I should be ashamed for even thinking that."
His hand came up to cover hers. She felt cold beneath his fingers, and he wondered if he would ever be able to drive the cold from her heart.
"Not gonna know until I prove it, and I don't care if it takes til my dying breath, I'll prove it to you."
Lips ghosted against lips, then parted.
"Nancy is probably wondering where we are."
"We should get to her."
Eleanor moved ahead first, and Tommy took a minute to watch over her.
"Will you promise me something Ellie?"
"What is it?"
"No more walks alone, okay? Take your Pop, or give me a call. That goes for Nancy too. There are a lot of weirdoes out there anymore. Even in broad daylight."
"Is this about the note?"
"A little, but I'm just lookin' out for you. And to be fair, we never did find out who killed him, just that he was mixed up in a lot of crazy business. You can never be too safe."
"How about I promise to check all the locks, and make it in before dark? And I'll ask Mom to use her car to fetch Nancy from school if it will make you feel better. But I don't need an escort, Tommy. I just found my wings, and I can't have them clipped, even for a more honorable cause. Do you understand?"
"If I say "yes" will you understand that doesn't mean I have to like it?"
"Come on big guy, dinner is waiting on us."
The summer night was peaceful, and set a genteel air over their nightly walks until the season changed, and leaves spun about and nipped at their ankles as they made their way home. No, he wouldn't clip her wings, but every night after he made sure he was available in case someone else tried.
A month later the once playful leaves lay limp against the pavement, dampened by the first snow. Eleanor Collins also lay limp against the sidewalk, but with her blood tauntingly tinting the flakes around her. Her pretty golden hair had fought its way loose from her updo, and fanned around her in a frozen halo.
Detective Tommy Blaine used to tell her she reminded him of winter. Her eyes were ice blue, and she was a stubborn as the first frost when she decided to go cold, but her heart was as warm as a fire when you finally made it inside. The first time she heard that she didn't know if she should be pleased or angry, so she made him go think about it on the front porch. Ten minutes later the irony of her behavior sent her into a fit of giggles, and she let him back in. It was the first time he got to feel that fire first hand.
The first time he saw those crime scene snaps of his lovely Ellie frozen in the snow, he knew he'd never feel warm again.
Finally acknowledging what he had ignored all along for Tommy and Eleanor's sake, Lieutenant Pete Framingham took the Collin's case like he would for any of his own. Tommy was his detective, and even if they weren't married, she was family too. It was five years before he told Tommy it was time he put the box away and they accept the job had gone cold. It was ten years before he could actually stomach the notion, and not until the day of his retirement that he did.
2014
Lilly Rush stared into her computer screen blankly. Sleep had eluded her once again, and now she was paying for it.
Distantly, or so she thought, she heard her partner's voice chattering to an unseen visitor. Once tapped upon her shoulder she realized the distance must have only accounted for roughly three feet.
Great.
"Ma'am, this is my partner Lilly Rush. Lil, this is Nancy Collins. If you'd like to take a seat, you can show us what you've got."
Lilly mustered a smile for the stranger, and offered up her own seat.
"Oh thank you, honey. I really hope this isn't wasting your time."
Scotty's eyes caught Lilly's for a moment, offering a silent "we'll see", and then went back to the woman in front of him.
"This is about a Cold Case?"
"Yes, my mother, Eleanor Collins. She was murdered in November 1954, when I was eight years old."
"And you think you have something after all this time?"
"I think so."
Nancy reached into her bag, and produced a yellowed note card that she offered to Scotty before returning to Lilly.
"Her things have been packed up for fifty years. My grandparents didn't have the heart to actually go through them, so they put them in cartons and never looked again. To be honest, I kind of forgot they were up there in the attic until I went to do some spring cleaning. I was young when she died, and I only knew her through the eyes of an adoring child, so I thought maybe it was time I got to know her as she was now. I didn't find anything very telling, just some knick knacks, and musty clothing until I found that note in the pocket of her favorite dress coat."
Scotty placed the note in Lilly's hand, and continued the questioning.
"Do you know of anyone who'd want to hurt your mother?"
"Just my father, but that monster was killed about a year before she was. Mom was a pistol, but everyone I knew loved her."
"Except maybe this Avenger? Had you ever heard her call anyone that? Did she seem worried before her death?"
"I never heard of whoever it was, but that doesn't surprise me. She'd be beaten black and blue, and would get up at seven in the morning, put on her pearls, and make my favorite waffles. At the time I was too scared to mention it, but now I can appreciate that kind of moxie. She was so strong, she never let on."
"My Dearest Ellie, you love me, not him. My golden bird, with the sapphire eyes, I'll get my chance to cage you and make you mine. I've cleared the way for you and I, it's just time you accept it. The Avenger"
"Do you think this person meant your father? The other man she loved?"
"My bet would be on Uncle Tommy if she got this before she died."
"Uncle Tommy? "
"He used to be a homicide detective, but somehow had found out about what was happening to my mother, and tried to personally run the case against my father. "
"Any chance he could be The Avenger? Maybe your mom was still hung up on your father?"
"Not a chance. He was the first good I'd ever known, maybe even the first good she'd known. It's funny, she hated being called Ellie, said it made her sound like a hick, but she never did stop him. Oh, she'd carry on about it, but I think she let him so he would know she was sweet on him too."
Scotty looked to Lilly, all traces of her fitful sleep had been cleared by the sparkle of a hunt. He didn't listen as she took down Nancy's information, and gripped her hand. Accepting the job was a formality once Lil got that look, and his mind was already on a box hidden in the darkness of storage waiting to be thrust back in to the light.
__
So yeah…I hope that's a satisfying start to a (hopefully) long and exciting tale. The plots to both the investigation, and our favorite detectives have been swimming in my head for about a day. All the details and quotes are pinging about in my head, and if someone would like to message me and be a sounding board so I can organize this chaos…lets just say I'd love you for life.
Until then, thanks from the bottom of my heart for taking a chance on my story. J
