AN-Thanks for the alerts [plenty of those] and reviews [not so many of those:(]. I decided there is one more person that needed examining a bit closer in this story. Any ideas who? Reviews make my day. As always, enjoy!
God's Good Grace- Part 4
Detective Donovan Boyd. Good looking, strong, and exuding confidence. It had taken him several years to master his facade. Everything he did, said and wore was selected to give a subtle message to those around him. The leather jackets, the fast car, the fancy apartment, the attitude. He needed to validate his self worth, and the only way he knew how was to have an exaggerated sense of self importance. Every morning he would jog 5 miles, lift weights and most importantly 'visualise'. Visualising was something he had learnt at a life coaching seminar in his early twenties. It was all about self belief and visualising where one wanted to be several years from now. For those that knew him, it was fairly obvious. Donovan Boyd wanted to be the head of Guns and Gangs, and he was prepared to do what ever it took to get there. Whilst this was true to a certain extent, it was only a small feature of the bigger picture. In reality what he really wanted, no needed, was to be at Northvale High School class reunion, set two years from now, where he would wipe the smile of Corey Edwards face. Corey Edwards mercilessly bullied him throughout high school, and made his life a living hell. He actually went through several years of counselling to deal with the panic attacks as a result of it all. So yes, he wanted to be head of Guns and Gangs so he could show Corey that he was a success, had made something of his life and was worth something. He was no longer that tall, lanky kid with severe acne and a stutter. He wasn't 'Dorky Donovan' or 'Bubble-Butt Boyd' anymore. He was somebody important.
No need for revenge. Those that hurt you will always hurt themselves in the end, they said knowingly.
They had seen the effects of the bullying on a young Donovan, and held him to their bosom time and time again. The universe had long since dealt with Corey Edwards. Twice divorced, declared bankrupt and sleeping in his car, the last time they checked in on him. They didn't envisage him actually attending the class reunion, as his situation was unlikely to change anytime soon.
He now had a good resume building up over the years, primarily due to using Officer Samuel Swarek in most of his undercover work. Sam was the best, and if anybody could crack a case he could. He liked Sam a lot, and although he never vocalised this, he respected him. He was a bit of a maverick, and played by his own rules but always got the job done. Well almost. That rookie, McNally messed things up the last time he was undercover, she was a liability. That's why he had to get Sam under quickly this time, as he sensed some hesitation when he asked him to join the team again. So he fabricated the situation to separate them as soon as possible, he needed Sam to do this. If he could get Jaime Brennan sent away, for several unsolved murders he was sure to be considered for promotion. Sam could have gone under in three weeks time as originally planned but he could not take the risk. Anything could happen in three weeks, and he just had a strong feeling that McNally would use her charms and convince him to stay. Sure she was pretty, but what Callaghan and Swarek saw in her, he would never fully understand.
So the assignment was rushed, but the cover apartment, camera and wire were all in place, the major things were sorted. He made sure of that himself. There were a few minor things, but they could wait. He couldn't foresee any problems, nothing should go wrong. Could it?
Slow and steady wins the race, Slow and steady wins the race, Slow and steady wins the race, they said woefully.
Now Sam was gone, leaving a bloody trail in his wake. Nobody knew where he was. All they knew was that both Brennan and Sam had disappeared. Donovan was anxious and scared but refused to show it. Instead, he chose to berate everybody and anybody at arms length. He really wanted to scream at himself, somewhere he had made an error of judgement, but he did not know how. So when in dire straits, he did what he did best, blame everybody else, but never forgetting to look good, act strong, exude confidence and most importantly visualise.
Andy was alone, she was desperate, and she needed Sam. He would know what to do; J.D would know what to do. Why didn't she know what to do? She sat with her head hung low, trying to control her breathing and tears. She was scared, not for herself, but for Sam.
'What am I gonna do? Please tell me what am I supposed to do?' she pleaded, her eyes searching Traci for the answer. Traci looked at her friend, she did not know what to say. The universe had no answer for her either, for they were otherwise engaged. Not too far away they were keeping vigil in an uninhabited farmhouse, willing the captor to stop in his immoral intentions, and the captured to stay alive.
Steady, Steady, Steady, their whispering engulfing Sam with a sense of calm and resilience.
'Where the hell is Candace?' Most smiled, some sighed, a few cried at his concern.
'Dropped her off down town.' Brennan stated casually.
Steady and calm, Steady and calm, Steady and calm, they chanted. They knew things were bad, but needed to ascertain the severity of the situation.
'What are you doing?'
'Just looking for some answers.' Brennan was composed, he wanted to know. Everything.
'Answers for what?'
'Questions that I have…'
'And what makes you think I got answers?'
'God's Good Grace' he said slowly, without any doubt.
'My boat?'
The universe sucked in a sharp breath, and waited in anxious anticipation. Yes…things were bad.
Brennan continued to talk, in a low, but self assured way. He spoke candidly about his past life, the people he knew and what he knew. And he knew a lot. He knew about the boat, the one that was seized by the police department. God's Good Grace.
So there it was. Sam had been made; Brennan knew he was a cop. He had been caught out. Not because he was sneaking around with Andy, not because he made a mistake, but because of the boat. A boat that had been provided by Donovan Boyd. He thought about Andy at that moment, and how he would give anything to be normal with her, making out and drinking grapefruit juice in bed. He was certain he would never see her or any of his friends again, and resigned himself to a very slow and painful death. If the reputation of Brennan was correct, they probably wouldn't even be able to identify his body in the end. His thoughts were interrupted by an almighty blow, as Brennan struck him once, causing him to fall back on to the ground with a loud thud.
Brennan was a determined man, and J.D was his lifeline to the truth. He needed to know what happened to his family, in order to make sense of his life. He was on a mission, and he would not leave the farm house until he knew for sure what really happened. He would stay as long as it took. He didn't expect it to take as long as it did though; usually they broke a lot sooner. He didn't know where J.D was getting this inner strength from and he was finding it hard to break his resolve.
As more time passed, his hate for J.D was began to dwindle, and felt a new found respect for the guy. He stood for something, just like Brennan stood for something.
This was going to be a battle of wills.