I have to thank you for the great encouragement you guys have left. Thank you! By the way, as obvious, I own nothing to do with the show (as you're reading it and not watching it on a Wednesday night), but I'm glad that someone does to feed my imagination.

Chapter 3:

Even as the movement and ruckus from the warehouse itself echoed in the little room, the sound of the door was deafening. Lindsay heard the door knob turn and watched as light appeared in the darkness.

Then spotted her phone lying on the floor where she had dropped it. Her breathing halted as she stared at it, then up to where she could see light. Would he know if he saw? She saw the officers shake then fall, the image rolling over and over in her mind as she waited. Feared. Hoped.

She held her breath, waiting and watching the light.

From the other side of the room, she heard a male voice call out above the noise. "Rudolf—we'll get that later. Come help me get this."

The door stopped, and the shadow that had been a man moved, leaving a thin strip of light.

Lindsay let out a breath, and fought against the voice from her past. The laughter of her friends that somehow mixed with the sounds of the men on the outside. The panic of gunshots, that wasn't in the present.

She blinked and listened to the noise outside, staring at the thin line of light that separated her from her safe place and danger.

Mac had been around for a long time, and was used to seeing the crowd of emergency workers. He wasn't surprised at the number of people or the flurry of activity, nor that Danny was out of the SUV before they were completely stopped.

He looked at the building, at the cracked glass of the windows. He'd once told Lindsay she was strong. He had to believe she was strong enough to survive.

Mac parked, and climbed out just as Hawkes stepped in front of Danny blocking him physically from moving out.

"You can't just go over there," he said. "They weren't firing handguns, Danny."

"Have you heard—" Danny asked, turning to Stella—though he was still braced to run. There was a panicked look in his eyes. He drew in a short breath, "Do you know if…?"

Her lips drawn in a firm line, eyes uncertain, Stella slowly shook her head. Danny looked down and held out his hand where his fingers still clutched around his phone. Hawkes put a hand on his back, but said nothing. They didn't know what to say.

Captain Lou Miller, from SWAT walked over. He had a distinguished service record with the NYPD. He knew negotiation and he knew action. They'd bickered at times over their careers, but Mac respected him.

Still, he looked wary, a more than a little tired. More than just a seasoned cop.

"We're getting ready to establish contact, find out why they will tell us."

"What do you know?" Mac asked.

"Not much," Miller motioned toward the inferred equipment they had set up. The concrete's pretty thick, our capabilities of getting a reading are limited. We've counted four or five people, but there is likely more. These areas on the ground… we're pretty sure they're your officers."

"That's in the middle," Hawkes said, crossing his arms as he studied the screen. "We left two officers searching that area together. Detective Monroe had moved off by that time."

"She didn't get out," Miller raised his eyebrows.

"No, but there's room to hide in that place. Stacked crates, piles of junk. A few doorways. The Fire Marshall would never had signed off on the inspection the way things are. If we move in, she could be caught in the middle."

"There was room for her to hide?" Danny looked back at the building, searched it as if he could possibly see inside. His voice held hope, though it trembled.

Stella looked at Mac, then back at Danny, swallowing hard. "Danny … she hasn't established contact."

"But she could," Danny turned on the man. "You've got to give her time. We can't just move in, take the chance nothing's going to happen."

"Son—"

"If there's anyone who can figure out how to get us a message—"

"We have a job to do—"

"Not," his voice rose to a shout, vibrating with anger, "until we know if she's alive."

Mac held up a hand and set a quick glance that moved Hawkes and Stella forward. They moved between him and captain Miller, though Danny's eyes remained stedfast as he allowed himself to be led away.

Mac turned toward the Captain, ignoring what was going on behind him. "Lou, Danny may have spoken out of turn, but he's right. You can't just move in there now. Not without proper understanding and knowledge of the circumstances."

"Mac, I'm not sure you understand the circumstances. Those men are not engaging in contact, so all I know is that area was zoned for residential years ago. We've got three schools within two miles that are in session. We have a Federal building left over from the Nixon years, not one mile north of here that's packed with government employees. We have three banks within walking distance, and we got families scattered throughout all of these buildings around this one. We can't clear them all out. We might not know what's going on in that building, but we do know those men are violent. Our analysis is, whether we know or not, that they're preparing for more."

Lindsay stared at her phone. If only she'd had a phone that night. If only she been able to call… someone. Would it have left her in the bathroom, cowering under the sink's shadow?

But it hadn't, and this wasn't who she was.

Slowly she stood, her breath short as she fought against a sudden wave of nausea. Her legs trembled, and she felt weak. She set a hand on the desk and waited a moment, gained her balance as she pushed against the memories.

She was a cop.

She'd probably become a cop that night, needing more, always needing answers. And looking for justice, for her friends and the others she'd met in the morgue along the way.

She stared at her phone that lay just inside the doorway, taking in a deep breath. Did anyone even know that something was wrong? That everything had fallen apart? Stella and Hawkes might need her help. They had to be alive. Whatever was happening out in the warehouse needed to be stopped.

There were so many questions and someone needed the answers. She wasn't hiding, she reminded herself. She was alive. She was here and in a position to so something. To find out.

And hopefully stop the next murder.

Uh oh. Please don't hate me … :p ha ha. J/K Honestly, I appreciate the reviews and I hope to get the next part up soon (as I work on a lit review for m research). You guys are awesome!