2002
He stared at her, then back at the dashboard clock. Why was he doing this to himself? He was listening to a crazy guy from the CB who was claiming to be him.. from the future... and that Faith was going to..
He looked back at her.
"Stop."
"Faith I said I was-."
"Sorry. I know, I get it. You've been telling me all day."
"Faith If I had to pick out a mom for my kid I'd pick you. Hands down." Her green eyes turned to him for the first time all day. "I don't know why you let him convince you that you're a bad mom. I don't know what he does to you to make you so insecure."
"I don't even see them durring the-."
"Faith we took Third Watch so you could be at home for Charlie when he was little. So you could voulnteer for Emily's field trips and be there when she got off the school bus from half day Kindergarden." He took a deep breath. "If you wanna try and make the switch to second we could ask-."
"No, Boz. I-." She put her hand on top of his. "I don't know why I let him do it either."
Tomorrow she'll be gone.
"You know you're the best friend I ever had right?"
"Where did that come from?"
"Faith? You know that don't you?"
"Yeah." She looked at him puzzled. "I know."
"Kay." He looked at the clock.
At 2248 tonight, she gets shot in the chest and she dies.
"Let's go get some food."
"It's ten thity!"
"There's an all night diner up the street. Come on Faith I'm starving."
She was so scared. I'd never seen her so..
"We'll pick something up."
"I wanna go in someplace."
"It's almost time to go back."
"Faith.."
"Fine."
"This is 55-David we're going 10-56."
"55-Charlie Copies that 55-David, nothing like waiting till the last second."
"Come on Sully it's a quiet night." Faith giggled.
"55-Charlie out."
"55-Charlie requesting back up. Shots fired behind O'Leary's Bar and grill on 6th and Mulligan." Bosco looked at his radio in shock. 2248.
"We gotta go." Faith said urgently. Bosco starred at her. "Boz come on the guys need our help!"
"55-Charlie this is 55-David we're about five minutes away from your location. We're on are way." Faith told him calmly slidding into the RMP.
Bosco didn't say a word. He just starred out the dashboard. It wasn't until they got there that he panicked.
"You get him?" He asked Davis roughly.
"No." Sully panted. "I chased him about two blocks but-."
"We came around back and he just started firing." Davis muttered. "Then he looks at me and says 'Not you' like he was dissapointed or something and takes off runnin'"
"You get a look at him?" Bosco yelled, his head darting around the area, as he moved closer to Faith, positioning himself between her and the wall.
"No."
"No? Come on Davis the guy carried on a conversation with you!"
"He had a hat on!" The young officer yelled. "It was dark."
"Come on Boz leave him alone." Faith sighed.
"I'm telling you, there was something familiar about the guy.." Sully muttered. "The bartender's gonna come down and look through the books."
"I want him to see the sketch artist." Bosco decided.
"What?" Faith looked at him like he was nuts.
"This guy shot at Davis, Faith?"
"Still."
"No. Bosco's got a point. It's a good idea." Sully said softly looking at Bosco's protective stance around Faith. "He shot at a cop."
"Thank you." Bosco sighed looking back at his partner. "Let's go."
2007
"Bosco!" The banging on the door got louder. He stumbled away from the bed and into the hall. "Bosco open up!"
"Hell, Sully what the hell are you doing here?"
"What am I-?" He shook his head turning back to study Bosco. "Emily called me in tears last night. She thinks your falling apart. Says you were up all night calling for Faith, then you ran out the door at four in the morning and didn't come back till after midnight. What the hell Bosco?"
"She was worried?"
"Bosco, I know Saturday's going to be hard for you but-."
"Saturday? Why Saturday?"
"Five years." Sully looked at him carefully. "Bosco you're scaring me."
"What's today?"
"The 22nd."
"Faith died on the.."
"24th.." Sully whispered softly. "She died on the 24th Boz."
"No." He shook his head. "No. No. No. This isn't.. this isn't supposed to be-."
Then it hit him like a wave, the image of her on May 25th, on the floor of her appartment, beaten and six hours dead. His hands, fluttering over her, afraid to touch her, afraid to hurt her more. Not understanding how she could possibly be dead. Emily screaming. Charlie standing quietly in the corner. Fred, red eyed and pale faced against the wall."You slept through this? You..?" He'd whispered later, when the kids were gone, still kneeling beside her.
"I-." Fred had muttered half alert.
"Were you drunk?"
Fred's eyes welled up again with guilty tears.
"You're passed out in bed while someone's out here beating your wife to death?"
"Oh God.. Oh God.."
"You.. you did this.." Bosco had growled.
"I'm s-s-oo-."
"Get out."
"I-."
"GET THE HELL OUT!"
"It didn't happen like that." Bosco muttered, staggering towards the couch, trying to force the new memory of Faith's bruised and battered body. "That's not how it-." He swallowed against the sudden rush of bile, holding up his hand and staggaring towards the bathroom.
Sully stood in the door while he got sick.
"I have to get to the-." He moved back towards the door. Sully stopped him. "The bridge. I have to be-. I can warn them. I can warn them if I'm.."
Sully grabbed him.
"Bosco you have to get a hold of yourself."
"I.. God.. He.. beat her.. to death.." He muttered, looking slowly around the room. He took a few breaths.
"Lay down."
"Huh?"
"You look like you're going to pass out Bosco lay down! I'm calling Carlos."
"Carlo-." He flopped down on the edge of his bed. "Yeah.. maybe.."
An hour and a does of sleep aid later, he'd fallen into fitful unconcious, the swill of disjointed memories making there way around his head.
Two lines. I'm-. There are two lines.
I'm gonna be a dad?
Push Baby.
Annie.. Annie look at Daddy.
Daddy look at me!
Bang Bang Bang.
Faith! Faith... Oh God... I.. I..
This is 55-David I have an officer down. I have an officer down. Stay with me Faith. Faith, Honey stay with me.
Boz..
Shh shh just look at me.. stay with me..
Kids..
Shh. Don't try to talk just breathe.
I want to know.
No you don't.
Lieu I want to know.
Skull fractures, a ruptured spleen.
Internal damage to her liver and bladder.
Six broken ribs, a puntured lung.
Multifple contusions. Any of those things could have done it.
Defensive Wounds?
Yeah Bosco.
She fought..
Hard.
"I don't think we can just sit on this. He needs to be hospitalized."
"You know what happens if we take him in?"
"Sul.."
"Davis, Bosco was there for me when I quit drinkin'. We are gonna be there for him."
"It's not the same!" Carlos' voice was louder then the others. "This isn't detox. We can't just get him through.."
"We don't know what this is."
"Yes we do. It's PTSD. Emily said he had it after 9-11, and shit- after Faith."
Faith.. Bosco pulled himself off of the bed and made his way towards the living room.
"We don't know that."
He stood in the door way watching the three of them hover around the sofa.
"No. We arn't taking him anywhere."
"I.. I need to go to the bridge." He said softly.
"Bosco.."
"I need to warn him."
"Warn who Bosco?"
"I need to warn.. I need to talk to him. She knew him. She knew who it was!" He ran his hand through his hair roughly.
"It was a random thing that happened Bosco. He followed her home-." Davis explained remorsefully.
"No. It was the guy.. grom the alley behind the bar. It was him she knew him I have to warn them!" He made a break for the door.
"The guy who shot at me?"
"Ty don't play along." Carlos growled. "He's hallucinating."
"I wish." Bosco whispered. "It's real, now I know it's.." He looked around the room, his eyes falling on the full urn he'd emptied yesterday. "I gotta get to the bridge."
"He's suicidal." Carlos muttered.
"He's not-. Sul he's not suicidal is he?" Ty looked at his old partner.
"Shut up both of you!" He looked at Bosco. "Tell me what's going on."
"You won't believe me." He yelled, pushing closer to the door. "I gotta go.."
"I'll go with you."
"It might not work!"
"What might not work?"
"I have to go! I've gotta-." He looked at Sully. "Come...if you want.. but I have to.."
"Okay.. Okay Bosco."
2002
"Where are you going?"
"The bridge."
"Why?"
"Cause."
"Bosco you've been acting like a loontic since yesterday."
"Davis got shot at Faith."
"We get shot at all the time. We're cops." He rolled his eyes at her. "What?"
"Nothing." He turned his face away hesitantly.
"Bosco.."
"It's.. nothing.."
"Is this about the guy on the radio?" She pointed to the transiver and he stilled.
"Why would you think-?"
"Cause you've been crazy since you talk to him."
"I have not."
"Boz!"
"Fine!" He cleared his throat. "He just lost his partner, she was killed." Her eyes flipped to him. "I guess it just made me think."
"Boz.."
"I wouldn't survive it Faith." He whispered slowly.
"You can be so damn sweet some-."
"Stop."
"Boz, I'm not going anywhere."
"You don't know that."
"I got you. You got my back Bosco." He looked at her when she said this.
"Yeah."
"Let's go check on your friend."
2007
"What now?" Sully said gently pulling Bosco's RMP into place under the bridge.
"We wait."
"And then..?"
"You'll see.
"55-David going 10-56"
Sully looked up at Bosco, his eyes squinting back as his hand started towards the reciever. Bosco shook his head, slowly pressing on his own.
"I copy 55-David."
"Good to hear your voice man.." His younger self whispered. "I took your adivice."
Sully looked at him with wide eyes.
"Bosco, it didn't work."
"What?"
"It just changed things."
"She's-. My partner's here with me now."
"Faith?" He pressed his eyes shut and leaned against the window.
"Hi.. I'm sorry I don't know your name.."
"Shit." Sully whsipered softly, pressing his hand over his mouth.
"Bob." Bosco said softly, shrugging his shoulders as the tears started again.
"I'm sorry about your partner Bob."
"Thanks Faith."
"You got Boz all sweet and protective over here."
"Heard you guys had a close call last night?"
"Yeah, our Buddies got shot at. We're all okay though."
"That's good news." He sniffed, holding the reciver away from his face.
"Your partner? What happened to her?"
"She was attacked in her appartment." He took a staggared breath.
"Shit." The other Bosco cursed.
"I feel like I failed her." He whispered softly.
"You can't think like that." Faith said quickly.
"I can't help it." He sniffed loudly. "Faith.. there was so mcuh I should have said to her."
"She knew. Partners know."
"She didn't know how much I loved her." He breathed.
"Yes she did." Bosco whispered softly. "She did."
"You sound so sure.." He breathed.
"Faith can I-? I need to talk to.."
"Yeah.. sure I'll take a walk. Night Bob."
"Bye Faith." He held in a sob.
"What the hell..."
"The twenty fourth... she was in her appartment.."
"I don't understand!"
"She knew him, or he knew her." He took a deep breath. "I remember it both ways.. all three ways.."
"Shit." The other man growled before starting again. "Okay.. okay.. I'll keep her out."
"No."
"I'll go home with her. I won' t let it.."
"Then it will just keep happening! We have to stop it."
"What if you can't?" Sully asked suddenly.
"Sul?"
"Sully's with me man."
"Shit."
"What if it's meant to be?"
"Fuck you Sullivan."
"It's not meant to be."
"How do you know?"
"Listen you son of a bitch-."
"It's not meant to be. We get married. We have a daughter.. I.. I remember."
"Since when?"
"Since it happened. I-. I thought they were dreams."
"Hey! Jack-off's! What do I do?!"
"You find out who this guy is." Bosco yelled. "You figure it out and you kill the son of a bitch."
