5thprecinct, 8 pm.
Wednesday, January
Jamie was sitting in the interrogation room, completely alone and had been for almost two hours now. He had calmed down and the detectives had the courtesy of taking of the handcuffs, but not before marching him all the way through the precinct, parading the PC's son in handcuffs. Not a word, hardly even a glance had been shared in the car, when they drove from one house to another. At first he had been on the verge of panic, but then he had gotten a grip on himself and thought he looked like a damn criminal if he tossed and turned. Then he had almost been ashamed of his behavior at his precinct. Te chair he was sitting on was hard and bolted to the floor, like the table. There were rings bolted to the table and the floor, for prisoners in cuffs and chains. Jamie had forced himself to relax but he could feel the tension in his shoulders. He was leaning back with his arms crossed, waiting, wondering. He had realized that Sydney had been assaulted. He got that. And he knew she was fine when he left, maybe a sad and slurred by the alcohol, but alive and without a scratch. He too, had been a little influenced and confused by a complete mix of emotions. Sadness, betrayal, relief? The door opened and he shot up from the chair, ready for who ever came through. His shoulders came down when he saw the familiar face of his sister. He would have hugged her if it wasn't for the detective in the doorway.
"Give me ten minutes," Erin told the gold shield who huffed in response. Then she looked at Jamie with lots of questions – and disappointment? – in her eyes.
"I'm innocent," Jamie peeped and forced out a tiny smile with a strained short laughter. Erin sighed and her glare softened by the tiny voice of her youngest brother. She sat down and put her briefcase on the floor, resting against the table leg.
"I know you are innocent, Jamie. Dad's lawyer is on the way here and I could only talk the prosecutor into ten minutes.
"I don't need a lawyer," Jamie exclaimed. Geez, he was a lawyer himself, for crying out loud.
"Maybe you think that, but those detectives have some very compelling evidence, I would have put the case on trial already. Not to mention Sydney, who is in a coma at St. Vincent's right now, with swelling in her brain and a massive blood loss. Now, tell me, what happened last night?" Erin said, calmly and folded her hands on the table. She wasn't working the case, her visit was just the result of her abilities to pull strings and favors. Jamie had been surprised to hear about Sydney's condition and he swallowed hard.
SoHo, 10.30 pm.
The night before
Jamie was pacing the cramped floor space in ex-fiancée's new apartment. He had swallowed down the rest of the beer and two fingers of scotch in the last ten minutes and he was starting to feel the peaceful, numbing sensation and tickling fingers. Sydney was looking at him, shame in her eyes, more white wine in her glass.
"Jamie," she started, but he held up a hand, asking her to be silent for a moment. He walked to the bottle of strong alcohol and was almost about to pour himself another double, when he put it down again.
"Did your just tell me, that you were pregnant when you left me?" he asked. He rubbed his face and the back of his neck, when she nodded without a word. "And you didn't tell me this why?" he asked her after he sighed.
"I don't know… I thought of it, so many times, but I guess it just never happened," Sydney told him, looking at the glass in her hand, twirling its contest around.
"I can't believe it," he mumbled and ran his finger through his hair. Then he poured another measure and threw it down, grimacing at his now burning throat. "How long?" he asked when his eyes found hers. Sydney's eyes were rimmed with red and a little bit puffy from the few tears that had piled up. Jamie's eyes were glassy from the alcohol and a little bit distant.
"About three weeks, when we split up," she grimaced, she preferred not to use the term that she left him. "Two months later I fell down a flight of stairs and had a spontaneous abortion, and that was it," she continued, the pain was still evident in her eyes. Jamie sighed again and walked to one of the armchairs. He slumped down and rested his head in his hands. He felt miserable. How could he be so sad, for the loss of something he never had, he wondered. He felt like he just lost a big chunk of himself, knowing that he and Sydney had created a life that didn't make it. He was also disappointed and felt betrayed by Sydney. The fact that she didn't tell him when she found out she was pregnant and when she miscarried. Right now he couldn't put words on what was the worst. That, or that she talked about the miscarriage this casually. Was he offended too? How could she talk like this about his kid? His kid?!
"I need some air…" he said and stood up. He grabbed his jacket and looked at his shaky hands. Was it the grief, anger or alcohol showing, he wondered briefly before he looked at Sydney. "And time," he told her and she nodded from her seat in the couch. Jamie left her there, just like she had left him half a decade earlier. Right now he felt half a century older. He exited the apartment and walked out through the expensive looking lobby, thrusting his hands deep down in his pockets and pulling up his shoulders to shield his neck from the cold winter night breeze.
5th precinct, 8.15 pm.
Wednesday, January
Jamie rolled his shoulders and sighed. He hadn't felt this much since Joe died and now that it had dawned on him he was almost in a trance like state. He laughed shortly, like a crazy person.
"This morning," he started, starring at a spot in the corner of the room. "This morning I went to work, like last night hadn't happened at all. You know, working the streets, having lunch, laughing at jokes with Eddie…" he trailed off and stared into space. The door opened and the other detective towered in the door.
"We will sort it out, Jamie," Erin said and stood with her briefcase. "I promise," she said.
So... what do you think about Sydney's big revelation? And please, let me know how I'm doing with the English. Is it hard to read - any wording lost in translation? Psst... I'll let you know, that I got D's in my English lessons. Also, be sure to leave a review with your most honest thoughts about this storyline. You are more than welcome to leave ideas, as usual. Be good, out there, in the real world.
K.