DISCLIMER: in the first chapter...
A/N: Warm brownies for C.I.TigerFan and LOCISVU... thank you for reviewing and I hope you like this new chap.
HEARTS UNDEFINED
by bloodymary2
CHAPTER 7: Do not look into the abysm, it might look back.
Three days passed by slowly, no new clues or addictions to their theories making a timely appearance; their suspect's list remained blank. Three days crawled by, sleep eluding Bobby Goren like a master pray he could not capture. Eyelids heavy and a scruffy shadow covering his cheeks contrasted starkly with the clean and crisp suit he was wearing.
Alex divided her time worrying about the case and worrying about Bobby.
The blond woman, brow furrowed, opened her mouth to call her partner, so she could reassure herself of his well-being. She was timely interrupted, however, by their Captain bellowing their names. Bobby didn't react at all, so lost was he in the mystery of his unfinished paperwork. No amount of noise from her part seemed to draw his attention.
So Alex rose from her soft, pinkish chair and went around their joined desks, coming to stand beside the silent giant. She reached out a hand and placed it gently on his shoulder, calling his name.
No response.
Shaking his shoulder, none too gently this time, Alex leaned forward, until her lips were only inches from Bobby's right ear. Loudly she called him again.
He didn't jump in surprise and the small detective had to admit she was a little disappointed by that. He had heard her, though. A large hand enveloped hers, deep brown eyes turning to meet her worried ones.
For a second, which felt to her like an eternity, Bobby held her gaze, seeming to be looking for something. Whatever it was, he seeked to find it buried within her lighter eyes. Then, he smiled that disarmingly charming smile, the one he used to appease nervous, uncooperative witnesses, and pushed his chair back.
"Sorry… I was spaced out. We got something?" She nodded weakly, her now empty hand falling limply to her side. A chill rose up her spine and Alex held back a shudder.
What was that?
"Captain was calling us over…" Bobby proceeded to Deakins' office, without pause; no acknowledgement to their previous stance.
Eames, realizing her own delayed response, shock her head promptly from left to right a couple of times, eyes closed, and straightened her back. Then she followed after her partner.
Captain Jimmy Deakins slipped her a piece of paper with an address scribbled down, as soon as she entered his domain. Breathing in deeply, he fixed both his detectives with a serious stare.
"We've got another two." Bobby nodded, clearly already expecting something like the sort. Alex sighed. "The press is already there and I got a call from the Chief of D's, so I don't have to remind you to behave and solve this quickly, but I will anyway. Okay?"
They left the glass office, grabbed their coats and made for the elevator.
--
Central Park
Date and time
Creating a path for one's self in a sea of screaming, overcrowding and pushy reporters was never a pleasant experience. Microphones were continuously shoved in his face, lights attached to eager cameras flashed on his eyes and the only sound available was the indiscernible noise of too many voices speaking at once.
When presented with this, sometimes inevitable, kind of situation, Bobby focused on two things: keeping his eyes focused in the distance and Alex. The latter, he usually didn't have to worry about; she was never more than a step behind him, always making good use of the path his much larger frame left in its wake.
Suddenly, Detective Goren stopped in his tracks and did a 180 degrees turn; he had immediately sensed her absence at his back. A young, blond, cocky and possibly suicidal reporter had stepped in between Alex and Bobby, his tall stature overcrowding the petite detective. He was firing questions relentlessly at her, not seeming to notice the annoyance painting his target's face or his very precarious position in regards to said detective's partner.
Bobby ignored all others around him and inched closer to the eager man. He was being careful not to touch the reporter, but there would be no denying his presence for long. Alex, on the other hand, relaxed her features and crossed her arms over her chest. She uttered no word. The amused woman had seen her partner take his overprotective stance and decide to halt any response she had planned for the annoying man before her.
Under normal circumstances, Eames would have been annoyed. This time, though, she was actually looking forward to see what sort of 'alpha male protecting his territory' display Bobby would engage in. The smirk that had grown on her lips must have shown, because the reporter stopped talking.
It certainly hadn't been the reaction he had been hoping for when the idea to intercept the smaller of the two detectives graced his mind.
His senses suddenly flared.
Bobby could tell, just by looking at the man's slouched back, the moment the weasel had followed Eames' line of sight; his spine straightened up in anticipation. The reporter had finally realized that his rear had been left completely unprotected.
The world slowed to a halt.
Turning his head to the right, body still tensed, the tall man took in Goren's taller frame, looming. It was hard to miss the detective's menacing aura. Conscious of his inferiority in a match between himself and Goren, the reporter shrunk sideways and smiled weakly.
"Detective" he nodded apologetically. "Any comments?"
Bobby smiled innocently. Only after Alex sidestepped their surrounding audience and came to stand at his side, did he respond.
"Not yet…" no more was said.
Bobby turned back around and continued onto his previous path, his partner following silently in his wake. She was still sporting a smirk. The reporters who had noticed the interplay didn't bat an eye and continued shouting out questions that would, for the moment, remain unanswered.
The world resumed, unchanged.
A pair of sad, yet calculating blue eyes, though, fixed themselves on the perfectly mismatched pair of detectives and followed intently their progress towards the yellow police tape, which cordoned off the crime scene. It saw the way they separated ways without exchanging words in flawless synchrony. It watched, fascinated, as the graying man examined the loving couple in their eternal rest. Even from a distance, it could see that the tall man took quick notice of the nuances most people never took the time to grasp.
Pose…
Smell…
Perfectly applied make-up…
Jack's worried face, even in death…
His arm around Mel's smaller frame, protective…
Mel's head resting trustingly on her companion's shoulder…
And the single red rose petal, almost being blown away by the wind, as it rested at their feet…
Light cerulean blue followed the detective's every move as the man placed the petal on a transparent plastic bag and handed the newly acquired piece of evidence to one of the crime lab technicians standing nearby. The eyes sparkled, attention never wavering.
The pale skin surrounding the blue iris crinkled in joy; a smile.
Seamlessly, like they parted, the strong man and the petite woman came to stand together once more, always under the watchful blue gaze. The proximity of their bodies and the unspoken words exchanged called out to their observer. It watched, satisfied, as the woman strained up and the man bend low; a perfect compromise.
Every picture told a story and this particular one, clearly on display, shouted a thousand different words to anyone willing to properly listen. And someone was taking great delight in the wonderful, harmonious symphony this picture portrayed.
When they left, these curious eyes and the tired body that carried them, there was a sliver of hope shinning in their blue background. And it had been such a long time since hope has been able to reach them…
Alex and Bobby, for their part, already crowded by one too many reporters, finished their work at the scene without ever suspecting the intense scrutiny they had been under since their arrival. With clues gathered, bodies being wheeled away by the Coroner's office and witnesses already interviewed, they left.
New crime scenes brought with them new possibilities, unfortunately, and these two cops wished that Jack Andrews and Melinda Koji would bring the authorities that much closer to finding the monster responsible for their untimely departures.
Their eagerness to look into the abysm made Goren and Eames good cops.
But light never walked a one way path…
And the lines between hunter and prey blurred a little bit more.
Uh-oh... am I serious? Well, yes... REVIEW!
