Hello lovelys!
I really can't wait to be done with this fic. Not because I'm bored or its dragging out or anything, I just find it extremely weird to be writing so much and never getting any feedback. Soon! There should only be about 5 chapters left now! Also this chapter took a turn I did not plan, but it's fine because I've adapted.
Sorry for uploading late. Maybe you haven't even noticed, I usually update Thursdays, but I had computer issues yesterday hence why it's late. Anyways, hope you like it, please let me know if you do!
Shawn arrived at Maria's house on his bike, with little Daniel clinging on behind him. It had only taken him ten minutes to clean up his house, and less than fifteen to drive to Maria, but the woman in question was already outside eagerly awaiting their arrival. The second that Daniel realised where they were, he became fidgety. He wouldn't sit still anymore, and while driving, Shawn even had to slow down and warn him not to move so much. Once he drove up the driveway of the house and parked the bike, Daniel jumped off the bike and ran to Maria's arms, crying as he did and helmet still fastened tightly on. Maria kneeled down to greet him and embraced him with open arms in a tight hug. Shawn observed still on his bike with a smile on his face. The kid may have had a messed up childhood, but at least he had Maria.
Shawn took his time unfastening his helmet and locking his bike. He then grabbed the bags he had packed in a haste out of the compartment in his bike. He then happily strode over towards the front door. Maria was standing now, with Daniel hugging her leg. Shawn smiled at the kid and then looked up to meet Maria's gaze. He almost stopped dead in his track when he noticed her expression. She did not look impressed.
"You drove your very dangerous motorbike… with an eight year old hanging on behind you?" Maria demanded.
"I didn't exactly have another choice," Shawn defended. "That bike is the only vehicle I own."
"You couldn't have called a taxi?"
"Now where's the fun in that?" Shawn teased, but when Maria made a move towards him, he had to raise his hands in defence and laugh. "Come on, Ria, I was in a bit of a hurry. I couldn't exactly wait for a cab to arrive."
"What?"
"Huh?"
"What did you call me?" Maria asked. Shawn scrunched his eyebrows then realised what he said.
"Oh, sorry. Daniel talks about you a lot and he always calls you Ria."
"Yeah, he's the only one that does," she said sternly.
"Sorry," Shawn said again, trying make peace.
Maria nodded and gestured for the psychic to follow her and she moved for the front door. They moved towards the door together, Daniel clinging onto Maria like his life depended on it. She opened the front door and the young boy stared at the inside in wonder for just a moment before smiling and running in. Shawn and Maria smiled after him, simply happy to see the kid with a smile on his face. Maria shifted her smile to the pseudo-psychic and then held the door wide open for him. Shawn shot her a charming smile and walked in.
"Thanks," Shawn said as he gave the house a quick look over. "Ria," he added quietly.
Maria froze for a second, but shut the door behind them. "Asshole," he heard her mumble. Shawn chuckled and quickly admired the house.
It was a small detached house, only one story which was to be expected from a single woman in her early-thirties. The living room was just ahead with its own backdoor leading to the garden. It was a modest room that was clearly equipped for a child as there were more toys than any kid could want. In fact, Daniel could be found playing with his toy cars in the corner. Shawn smiled as he noticed one of the cars in the kids hands was the car Shawn had bought him not long ago. To the left were two bedrooms, one at the end of the hall covered with pink and purple – which Shawn assumed was Maria's room. Just to the right of the front door was the door to the garage, which Shawn made a note to put his bike into. And finally, the last room was just beyond the garage, to the right of the living room, the kitchen. It was the highlight of the house, with counter lining every wall and a small island in the middle. A small dining table was found in the corner, just big enough for three people.
"Daniel and I will share my room," Maria explained. "And you can take the guest room."
"Oh no, don't worry about me, I'm happy to sleep on the couch if it's easier," Shawn said.
"No I…" Maria paused and looked towards Daniel. "I want to be close to him." she admitted. She sighed and looked up at Shawn. "I thought he was lost. I didn't think I'd be able to see him again, and if I'm honest, I'm still worried he's going to be taken away. I want what's best for him and maybe… that's not me."
"What, are you kidding me? You've been so good to Daniel. He's been talking about you nonstop since I found him," Shawn assured her. "Ria this, Ria that… he really loves you."
Maria smiled up at him, "Really?" she asked.
"Definitely," Shawn said. "Plus, look at this place. Any kid would be happy here."
Her smile widened. "Well, in any case," she said. "I certainly won't be considered as a parent figure if the cops think I killed his parents."
"I'm working on that," Shawn promised.
"Daniel doesn't know," Maria continued. "And… I think I'd like to keep it that way for a bit longer. At least until this calms down a bit."
"He already knows."
"What? How?"
"Well, I'm pretty sure he witnessed Sofia's murder, he was hiding in her closet when it happens. Which reminds me, I'm going to have to talk to him about that, so I'm glad we were able to find a comfortable place for him – "
"Now wait just a minute – "
"As for Richard's murder, I told him about that yesterday."
"What?!"
"He didn't take that one particularly well, but he's a trooper – "
"How dare you! He's just a – "
"Yes, I know," Shawn cut her off irritated. "He's just a little boy. An eight year old boy. I know, I'm not blind. Or deaf, for that matter. But he's been through a lot already and as a result he's a lot more mature and capable than you give him credit for."
"You don't even know him."
"Admittedly, no. I don't know him nearly as well as you do. But I do know that he is a very smart kid, capable of living on his own for days on end and navigating his way alone around Santa Barbara to find a pier that he only knows through his father. And I know he understand more than what's expected of him on what's going on around him, certainly enough to know how to blackmail me into helping him out." Maria was silent, so Shawn continued. "He's a young kid, who in many respects missed out on his childhood, and I'm glad he's got you to provide that. But like it or not what he's been through has changed him. He's handling these deaths remarkably well, and there's no doubt in my mind that he fully understands what's happening. I mean hell, he even understands that there's someone out there who may try to hurt him. And he figured that out without my help."
"You still had no right to tell him," Maria said quietly.
"Maybe not, but I had a responsibility to. He was lost and scared and looking for Richard. What was I supposed to do, keep on lying to him?"
"Please stop fighting," they both heard a small voice plead. Shawn and Maria slowly turned their head towards the living room where Daniel was sitting staring right back at them with his hands on his ears.
"Oh, sweetie," Maria didn't even hesitate as she strode towards Daniel. She kneeled down and held him tightly in a hug.
It took Shawn a bit longer as he stared at the scene for a moment. He then slowly walked towards the two of them and ruffled Daniel's hair. "I'm sorry, kiddo," he said. When he made a move to remove his hand. Daniel grabbed hold of it. Shawn and Maria exchanged a look, both surprised that not only did Daniel not flinch away from his touch, he actually wanted it. So Shawn kneeled down as well and rubbed circles in the young boy's back.
They sat like that for a while, waiting for Daniel to calm down. Shawn supposed there were multiple reasons for Daniel's breakdown, not all of them due to their fighting. He had just heard some terrible news the day before and now he was practically on the run, that much he understood. He was in a familiar place, but everything was different. Add to it two people arguing, which he hated, it must have confused him. it might have even reminded him of some arguments he was previously forced to witness and do nothing about. So Shawn and Maria were patient with him. When Daniel had recovered, Shawn and Daniel played with his toys, while Maria went to make pancakes.
The rest of the day, upon Maria's insistence, was spent more or less the same way. The way she saw it, Daniel had been through enough the past week and he needed some normalcy in his life. Shawn couldn't find the will to argue against that, so he didn't. He just enjoyed the time they all spent together and was happy to see the small smidge of a childhood he remembered hoping for the young kid who lived in the Brooke's residence.
It wasn't until just after dinner at six that their peace was disrupted. Daniel was complaining and trying to convince Maria that he didn't need a bed time anymore, seeing as during his time away he slept whenever he wanted. Yes, that included when Shawn was taking care of him. Maria was about to turn her playful argument to Shawn when a phone call saved him. Shawn excused himself and checked his phone, seeing that it was his father who was calling him. He got up away from the small table in the kitchen and walked to the living room.
"Hello?"
'Shawn, where the hell are you?' Henry Spencer responded on the other end.
"Why hello, father, I'm doing well, how are you? It's so good to hear from you at a time like this," Shawn continued his make believe conversation.
'Stop messing around, kid. You've messed up big. Wanna tell me why I had two detectives show up at my door an hour ago demanding to know where my son was?'
"You know, ordinarily I would love to tell you, but something tells me my minute is up and I should be wrapping this lovely conversation up right about now – "
'No one's tracing this call. I covered for you, this time Shawn!'
"You didn't cover for me; you have no idea where I am."
'Even so, they wanted me to agree to calling you to get a location. Or setting up a trace on my phone in case you ever called me. I told them they didn't have any reason or warrant for that and told them to get out. So, in that respect, you owe me. Now tell me what messed up plan you've gotten yourself into this time.'
"This time? Why do you say this time as if this is some regular occurrence for me?"
'Are you seriously asking?'
"Dad, this is ridiculous. You're being insane. Have you ever thought maybe I'm helping someone? Or is the police department always so pristine and perfect that it can never do any wrong?"
'Shawn, that's not what I said – '
"No, you just assume if I'm involved it must be crazy."
'Will you listen to yourself?'
"Excuse me?"
'Look, just tell me, is it true? Are you really hiding a fugitive?'
"If by fugitive you mean innocent kid who's caught up in the contrived procedures of the police department? Then yes."
'Shawn…'
"Dad, I think the less you know the better."
'Huh… so it's true…'
"What's true?"
'No, nothing. Something Gus said.' Shawn said nothing. He really hoped he hadn't caused Gus too much trouble. First the cops, now his own father had gone to bother him? Shawn would have to apologise when this was all over. Henry continued talking on the other end.
'Every cop comes across a case like this, at least once in their life time,' he said calmly. 'You get personally invested in the victim and suddenly you find yourself incapable of seeing in black and white. Your whole life has been in the grey area, but I knew even you would come across a case like this. So long as you do what you feel is right… no one's really going to hold this against you.'
"That sounds eerily similar to some advice I got just this morning," Shawn muttered.
'Then maybe you should take it,' Henry said. He sighed on the other end of the call, 'I'll leave you to it then. Don't be afraid to ask for help every now and then from people you trust. I think you'd be surprised to find who would be willing to help.'
And with that last piece of advice, Henry hung up the phone. Shawn stared at his phone for a moment before shaking his head, tucking his phone into his back pocket, and moving back to the kitchen. Maria and Daniel sat where they were before, trying to hide the fact that they were listening into the conversation. Shawn sat down at his seat and picked at the bits of food he left on his plate. There was an awkward silence that enveloped the three of them. It was Daniel who interrupted it.
"Was that your daddy?" he asked. Shawn looked up and smiled and Daniel.
"Yeah, it was. Crazy old man," he said gently.
"Do you not love him?"
"Daniel!" Maria chastised him.
"No, it's alright," Shawn said quickly. "What makes you think that?"
"You were yelling at each other," Daniel explained. "You spent the whole time arguing."
"Ah, nah. That's just how we are as people. We're too stubborn to have normal conversations."
"I don't understand," Daniel admitted.
"Well… look, kid, relationships can be complicated. One thing's for sure, at least that I've noticed, is that just because someone yells at you, or just because someone's angry at you… that doesn't mean they don't love you. Sometimes, the fact that they yell at all is a sign that they care. Of course, that's not always the case, but… ah, take my dad for instance. Growing up, he'd get upset at me, lecture me, send me to time outs, and for the longest time I thought it was because he hated me. And in turn, I hated him. But as I grew up, I realised the only reason he yelled was because he cared. Because he wanted better from me than to be sent to the principles office for setting free my frog I was meant to dissect," at this, Daniel chuckled. Shawn smiled and continued, "It was my mother that made me realise. She'd never get mad at me, never be upset if I got a bad grade or anything. And for the longest time, that was why I loved her so much. But it was only recently that I realised that she never got mad because… she never cared. Do you get what I'm saying?"
Daniel slowly nodded his head. "I think so." Daniel paused for a moment, looking deep in thought. "So, do you love your daddy now?"
Shawn hesitated. He was never outright asked this question, but the answer came to him as clearly as Daniel's innocence did. "Of course I love him. and I'm sure he loves me too, even if we don't always agree."
Daniel smiled up at him and nodded. "So that means I can disagree with Ria's bedtime but still love her!" he exclaimed.
And so the positive atmosphere from before returned in an instant. Shawn joined forces with Daniel, insisting that late bedtimes weren't terrible. Maria glared and may have muttered "asshole" several times before lecturing Shawn for letting him stay up so late in the first place. The joking continued for the rest of the evening until Daniel finally yawned and conceded defeat. He crawled into bed, and Maria and Shawn sat in the living room chatting.
Shawn informed her of how Daniel had come to find him in the first place, and Maria told him all she could about the death. That in itself was not much news to Shawn, as he had been listening in on her first interview at the station, but he didn't interrupt. It got the stage that even the two adults became sleepy and finally said goodnight, before crawling into bed themselves.
It was nine o'clock the next day when Shawn woke up. he groaned when he noticed the time, dreading having to be up this early for the second day in a row. But, he did manage to crawl out of bed and put on some clothes. He looked in the mirror of the guest room and frowned at his hair, giving it a last minute fix up before walking out his room. He made his way to the kitchen, where Maria was making waffles and Daniel was smiling and sitting at the table. Shawn casually made his way to join the young kid, mumbling a good morning to Maria.
"My, are you always in this good a mood in the morning?" Maria asked sarcastically.
"Only when I wake up at stupid o'clock," Shawn responded.
"It's past nine," Maria noted.
"I know."
Maria rolled her eyes and poured a cup of coffee, quickly placing it in front of Shawn. "Here, you big baby."
"Thanks, Ria," Shawn said. Maria glared and looked like she was about so say something, when suddenly she smelled her burning waffles. She groaned and ran to her breakfast. Shawn and Daniel exchanged a look and chuckled.
The morning proceeded in the same care free manner. There was lots of laughing and fun all around, and all the while Shawn had a sad thought lingering in the back of his mind. He'd have to talk to Daniel about what he saw, and soon. After all, they did still have two murders to solve. He only decided to bring it up once Maria started to pick up all the plates on the table and bring them to the sink. Shawn sighed and looked at Daniel. There was a smile on his face, and Shawn really hated to be the one to take that away, but duty called.
"Daniel," he said in a serious tone. "We uh… we need to talk again."
Daniel looked up at Shawn with a confused look. "About what?"
"About what you saw when you went to visit your mom."
Plates dropped in the sink and Maria turned towards them quickly. "Is that really necessary?" she asked annoyed.
"Yes," Shawn answered simply. "Two people are dead. I may not agree with how the cops are choosing to deal with Daniel, but that doesn't mean I'm not concerned with catching the killer."
"He's just a boy – "
"A boy who witnessed a murder." When it looked like Maria wasn't going to say anything else, Shawn turned to Daniel. He was now looking down at his hands in his lap. "Kid, I know this is tough, but don't you want to find the bad man?"
"I don't want to find him," Daniel said. "He's scary."
"Okay… then I'll go look for him and send him away somewhere he can't lay a finger on you," Shawn promised. Daniel looked up with a smile. "But in order to do that, I need your help." Daniel's smile faded immediately.
"Do I have to?" he asked.
"No, you don't – " Maria tried to defend, but Shawn just shot her a look and she was quiet.
"She's right, you don't but it would really help if you did," Shawn said gently. Daniel looked deep in thought, before he nodded and looked up at Shawn.
"What do I have to do?" he asked.
"I need to tell me everything you remember about that night," Shawn said. Daniel pressed his lips into a line and looked into the distance, trying to recall his worst memories.
"I… I got home and mommy was mad and sad. She went to bed early, without even tucking me in, so I tried to sleep but I couldn't. I went to mommy's room and went to her closet to sleep. I woke up when I heard her door open, I looked out and there was a bad man with a knife. He hid it under mommy's pillow and then left. I went out of the closet once I heard the front door close, and mommy was covered in blood. she wouldn't wake up. Then I saw the knife under the pillow covered in blood so I threw it out the window, because blood is bad and dirty and we couldn't have it in the house. But there was too much of, so I thought I'd go out and find daddy. And then I met you."
"How did you see the blood?" Shawn asked.
"The light was on," Daniel explained simply. "Mommy always preferred sleeping with some of the lights on."
"Was the light on when the bad man came into the room?" Shawn asked. Daniel nodded in confirmation. "Then… did you get a good look at the bad man? Could you describe him?"
"He… was a cop. He had the uniform on. That's why I couldn't go to them, they hurt mommy," Daniel explained as if it was nothing, but Shawn's eyes widened in shock. A cop? A goddamned cop was involved?!
"Were there any letters on his shirt? Maybe SBPD?"
"I don't know… I can't remember."
"That's fine," Shawn assured him. "Can you try to remember the man's face?" Daniel frowned at Shawn.
"Come on, he's already given you enough," Maria defended from by the kitchen counter.
"If he's a cop, I may know someone who could help me identify him and this could be all be over," Shawn explained. "But in order to do that I need as much detail as possible." Shawn looked back at Daniel. "Do you remember anything about his face?"
"I… he had black hair," Daniel said. He looked up at Shawn, almost as if he was hoping that would be enough. Shawn nodded encouragingly, so Daniel continued. "Um… he was big. Very big. Very scary."
"What about his eyes? Did you see them?" Shawn asked.
Daniel nodded, "Blue," he said.
"Okay," Shawn nodded in response he really needed another method. Sure, he could do this all day, but that wasn't detailed enough. He needed more. An idea struck him and he almost wanted to pat himself on the back. "His face, was it kind of like Princess Leia in Star Wars in that it was round and with soft edges, or was it more like Han Solo, with more define structures?"
Maria looked shocked and immediately tried to hold back a laugh. Daniel raised an eyebrow at Shawn, but nonetheless thought about it and answered.
"Han Solo, definitely," he said. "He had a bigger chin than Han though."
Shawn nodded. "And what about the eyes? Were they clearly visible like Luke Skywalker or were they shadowed by his eyebrows and forehead like Han Solo?"
"Like Luke," Daniel responded.
The questioning continued like that. Shawn compared each facial feature to well known figures that Daniel would likely know. When he couldn't find a suitable Star Wars character, he'd move on to another show. It carried on until Shawn had a relatively good idea of how to describe the man. No, Shawn couldn't immediately put a face to all those feature, but he did have an idea of what to do with this information.
"Thank you, Daniel," Shawn said when he was happy. "That was really helpful. Why don't you go brush your teeth and get dressed. Ria and I will clean up." Daniel nodded his head and slowly moved out of his chair.
"I remember what his shirt said," Daniel suddenly said as he was leaving the room. "It had the letters GPD on it."
"Thank you," Shawn said. Daniel attempted a smile and walked towards the bathroom. He didn't quite so gleefully run off like he usually did, but that was to be expected.
"Colour me impressed," Maria said. "You did really well. Though I'm not sure how that will help. You didn't even write anything down. How are you going to remember all that? Or do you already know who did it now?"
"No not yet, it's all just a bunch of information in my head," Shawn admitted. "Don't worry, I've got a good memory. l'll remember it all. I've gotta go out. I'll be back as soon as possible."
"Where are you going?"
"Gonna talk to Jules, one of the detectives you're so fond of," Shawn said honestly. He'd rather she knew the truth.
"You mean one of the detectives who want to arrest you?" she asked incredulously.
"She doesn't want to arrest me," Shawn thought about it for a second. "Okay, maybe she wants to, but from what I learned from my dad yesterday, they don't have anything to arrest me for. They didn't find anything in my house."
"But they can still hold you for questioning," Maria pointed out.
"I'm hoping Jules will hear me out before she tries to drag me away," he said. "Though… that's why I'm telling you this. If I'm not back by five, I'm probably wrong about her. So it might be worth taking Daniel somewhere else. But I don't really see that happening. It's just a worst case scenario you should be aware about."
"Worst case scenario, huh?" Maria asked. She cocked her head to the side staring at Shawn. "You really trust her, don't you?"
Shawn shrugged his shoulders. "She's a good person. A really good person. She means well, honestly, she just wants to help and I know this case is getting to her. She'll want to help, it's just in her nature. Plus, she's not one to jump to conclusions."
Maria smiled at him. "You like her, don't you?"
"What?" Shawn responded too quickly.
"You do! You really like her!" Maria laughed.
"Ria! Stop!" Shawn said, starting to blush.
Maria finished laughing to herself, but her smile never faded. "I hope you're right about her. For your sake."
Shawn returned the smile before pulling out his phone and dialing the familiar number. Juliet O'Hara picked up after two rings.
'What do you want?' Juliet answered her phone. Thankfully, she didn't sound too mad, just exhausted.
"Jules, I have a huge favour to ask of you," Shawn started.
'A favour? Are you serious right now? You want to ask me for a favour?!' there was the anger. Shawn winced, but carried on.
"Yep," he said light heartedly. "Meet me at Java Juice by the Psych office in fifteen minutes. And please bring a sketch artist!" and with that, Shawn hung up.
