A/N. Phew that was a relief. Thought I might get flamed for sending Russ off with Mac ... now what trouble can I get them into? ;-)
Chapter 10
"Twenty couples?" Mac felt sick as he finished listening to Russ' explanation of how he came to be there. "And you say he killed the journalist too?"
"Yeah. Looks that way." Neither man said another word as they threaded their way through the trees. Russ wished fervently that he had dressed a little more comfortably for woodland terrain. He watched Mac ahead of him looking totally at ease in torn jeans, heavy boots and dark green lumberjack shirt, a far cry from the city suits Russ had seen him wear before. At Jo's insistence, Mac was also now sporting Steve's camouflage vest, a total contrast to Russ' own city shoes, shirt and tie and dark blue Chicago PD vest. They had been going at a steady pace along the eastern edge of the lake for almost an hour when Mac stopped. He signalled to Russ to be quiet and he slowly made his way to the edge of the trees where he dropped to one knee. Russ bent down beside him and they looked out over the camp ground, a wide open space in front of them and, some twenty yards away, a series of dark shapes arranged in several rows.
"There are about twenty cabins." Mac raised a hand to indicate a larger wooden structure at the far side of the clearing. "And there are rest rooms and showers in that block at the back for the campers with tents."
"Are you sure he's here?"
Mac nodded. "Only logical place for him to be if he's been keeping an eye on us. His mother's place is too far and she told me yesterday she hasn't seen him in weeks. I believed her. Also I thought I saw a light moving round over here last night. That's why I took the other side of the lake to get Jo out."
Russ nodded and silently berated himself for having thought that Mac would take Jo into danger. "Okay what now?"
"Now we need to figure out which one he is staying in. I suggest we make our way round behind the shower block and approach from that side." Mac pointed up at the moon. "More shadows," he added by way of explanation.
Russ nodded as he followed Mac, both men holding guns loosely in their hands. Russ was more than happy to let Mac take lead. He had to admit to feeling more than a little uncomfortable as he pushed through the dense foliage, not because of Stein but because he wasn't used to chasing his perps in a manner that he could only describe as jungle warfare.
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"CSI:NY – CSI:NY – CSI:NY"
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Jo Danville was not a happy woman. She was angry and frustrated. Here she was being carted off to hospital for a ridiculous twisted ankle while her partner and her ex-husband were playing GI Joe in the woods chasing a serial killer who, according to Don, was something of a hunter if the photographs in his office were anything to go by. She should have been there. She should have been the one to go. If only she hadn't been so stupid as to hurt her ankle. She was also angry that Don and Detective Brennan weren't there either. They should have gone. Why did Mac have to go? Why did Russ? As if sensing her thoughts, Steve turned around in the front passenger seat and smiled.
"You okay Jo? She nodded. "Don't worry. Mac knows what he's doing. He'll look after your ex." Jo snorted and Steve smiled. "Or is it Mac you're more worried about?" Jo's mouth dropped open. Steve hooted with laughter. "Thought so. Quit worrying. He may be getting a little long in the tooth but he's still got what it takes."
"It's not like that." Jo muttered but Steve laughed all the more. Jo closed her eyes. Oh Lord was she that transparent?
Meanwhile Don, although not happy at being side-lined by Mac, was enjoying himself. He leaned forward and took another cookie. "Apple and cinnamon," cooed the old lady. "I do like to see a man with a good appetite. Now do help yourself Beatrice." Don grinned at he watched BB shuffle uncomfortably at the use of her given name and glare daggers at him. "It's so nice to have some company. I don't see many people any more. Of course that nice park ranger comes by now and again and it was so nice of Mr Taylor to come over. I had no idea there was a cabin at the other side of the lake. I don't get around as much as I used to."
Don smiled at BB which she returned as the old lady prattled on. Occasionally one of them would get up and wander over to the window but all was quiet. BB took her turn around the room. As she did so she paused in front of a faded photograph of two young boys in bathing costumes with medals around their necks.
"My boys at the swimming gala..." Don and BB looked at Bertha Stone. "My Curtis is dead now. He's with his angel in heaven." Don felt his stomach lurch at her words and a wave of pain flooded through him. He looked at BB not quite sure what to say. BB didn't fail to miss the look that passed across his face as she sat down next to Bertha again.
"Do you mean Maria?" she asked gently.
For a moment the old lady didn't say anything. "He loved her so very much. We told him that they were far too young and that he should wait till he was older but he was so very much in love." Mrs Stone looked up at her. "The police said that Curtis killed her ... Maria … but he didn't. He wouldn't hurt a fly. Such a good gentle boy. It wasn't Curtis." BB shuddered at the tormented look in her eyes as she saw the truth.
"Bertha, did Alexander kill Maria?" she asked quietly.
Bertha Stone looked away not wanting to admit what she knew in her heart to be true. "Alexander always looked after his little brother. He said that it was all right. That they were together just like Romeo and Juliet. My Curtis and Maria. That's what he does you know. He's a doctor. He helps them." Her hand fluttered over the book on the side table. Slowly she got up. "I'm tired now. I think I'll go to bed. You young people can stay up as long as you like. There are more cookies in the kitchen." She paused as she reached the door and turned back to look at them. They could see the tears in her eyes. "Mac's gone to stop him hasn't he?"
"Yes."
The old lady nodded sadly and she looked frailer than ever, her small frame almost hidden beneath the shawls she wore. "He looks just like his sister. Same hair, same eyes. Even after all these years I knew it was him. I'm so sorry."
Neither of them said anything for some time after she had left then BB got up and moved over to sit beside Don. She could see the pain in his eyes. "You lost someone," she said simply. Don nodded and she waited for him to tell her.
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"CSI:NY – CSI:NY – CSI:NY"
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"Mac." Russ tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to the trees. Mac could just make out the outline of a car parked so as to be partially hidden by the undergrowth. They made their way over to it. "Is it his?" Quietly Mac tested the door. To his surprise it swung open and he reached in and opened the glove-box. He pulled out he registration and nodded. Russ disappeared round the other side and carefully opened the trunk. "Here." Joining him, Mac watched as he pulled out a bag and unzipped it. There was a laptop and a file and a cell phone. "The missing items from the journalist's place." Mac nodded and reached into the trunk and clicked open a large metal box. "Whoa! Do I want to know what was in there?"
Mac pointed to the various shapes in the foam interior. "Hunting rifle – stock, barrel, scope, ammunition, knife … probably the one he used to slash our tires." Russ nodded and gripped his gun a little tighter. Mac quietly closed the box and the trunk and they made their way back to the cabins. "Which one?"
"You pick. You've been right so far." Russ grinned at Mac who shook his head in amusement.
"Well if it was me, I guess I'd pick one closer to the lake so as to have a direct line of sight with my cabin over the water."
"Okay, you lead. I'll follow." Russ grinned again as he gestured for Mac to take point.
"Gee thanks." The two men crept up to the nearest of the cabins and edged their way to the corner. Mac ran quickly to the next one on the right while Russ mirrored his action to the left. They peered in through the windows, exchanged glances to indicate that there was nothing and then they continued on to the next. And the next. Then suddenly Mac held up a hand. He pointed both fingers towards his eyes and then to centre of the three cabins that stood between them and the lake just visible through the trees. Russ nodded and backtracked to join him. Russ squatted down next to Mac and peered across the gap wondering what Mac had spotted. Then he saw it. A milk carton standing upright in a bowl just under the steps to the cabin. Outdoor refrigerator!
They exchanged glances each knowing what the other had to do. Russ lifted his weapon as Mac sprinted across the gap. Suddenly a shot rang out, clipping the edge of Mac's vest and sending him spinning to the ground. Russ ducked out from behind the cabin and loosed off half a dozen shots in the general direction of the shooter thereby giving Mac enough time to scramble to his feet and take shelter by the cabin Stein was using. Russ pointed towards the trees. Mac nodded his thanks and motioned for Russ to circle round. Russ waited for Mac to give the signal. Mac nodded and he ran knowing instinctively that Mac would provide covering fire. Several shots rang out as he ran but stopped as Mac returned fire emptying his clip. The shooter turned his attention to where Mac was crouched and he was obliged to stop firing and take cover.
Russ kept moving hoping that none of the shots had reached their mark. He dashed back the way he had come and zigzagged among the cabins making his way ever nearer to the edge of the woods where he thought Stein must be hiding. He heard more shots and then all fell silent.
"I knew you'd come Russ. Where's Jo? Where are you hiding her? She needs to be here." Russ frowned as he heard Stein call out. His voice echoed off the trees and it was impossible to pinpoint exactly where he was hiding.
"She's not here Alexander. Give it up. We know all about the young couples you murdered. It's over." Mac's firm tone indicated that he was all right. Russ reckoned that he was still pinned down by Stein's cabin.
"Nooo." Stein's voice took on an eerie quality as he taunted Mac. "You can't have got her away. Where are you hiding her? She needs to be here with Russ." A burst of shots echoed through the trees but Russ spotted the muzzle flashes.
"Dammit!" Russ ran a hand through his hair. It looked as though Stein had got himself a perch up in the trees. He waited wondering what the next move should be.
"I went to your mother's." Mac's voice rang out clearly. There was another volley of shots.
Stein didn't answer but fired another burst in Mac's direction.
"We had tea and we talked about you … and Curtis … and Maria. Everyone blamed Curtis didn't they? ... But Curtis didn't murder Maria … did he Alexander?"
Stein's scream of rage echoed through the trees before he once more unleashed a hail of bullets on Mac's position.
Russ smiled to himself as he heard the distinct click of a cartridge being changed. "Clever bastard," he muttered as he realized that Mac was goading him into using up his ammunition. Russ took the opportunity to make for the undergrowth just north of Stein's position. He winced as thorns tore at the material of his thin dress pants as he inched his way closer.
Mac leaned back against the rough wall of the wooden cabin and touched his cheek with his fingers. He felt the wetness there from where a chunk of flying wood had caught his face. He looked down at the blood-stained fingers impassively as he tried to draw Stein's attention. "It was you who killed Maria wasn't it? Not your brother. I could see it in your mother's eyes." Mac closed his eyes for a moment. He could still feel the touch of the old lady's hand on his as she looked at him and told him how much he resembled his sister. His stomach tightened and he felt a wave of nausea as he was forced to admit that he had killed the wrong brother. He had never even considered that Alexander could have been involved. He cowered as Stein answered with more bullets but every shot he fired left him with less ammunition and a chance for Russ to get closer.
"You killed her and your brother died for your crime..." Mac shouted hating himself as he did so knowing full well that he was to blame for Curtis' death.
"You don't understand anything." Stein screamed. "They were meant to be together. I had to ensure that they were together ... like Romeo and Juliet. "
Mac frowned. "What do you mean?"
"United forever in death, the way that they couldn't ever be in life. They would never have been allowed to marry. Our families would have seen to that. You would have seen to that. So I had to help them. I had to help my brother be with her."
Mac had to keep him talking and hopefully firing. "You didn't help him Alexander . He killed himself."
"Nooo. Don't lie. You pushed him into the river. I saw you. That's why I have to tell Jo. So she's knows what kind of man you are. So that she'll go back to her husband. Then I can help them too like all the others. I can help them be together forever."
Russ flattened himself against the tree. Stein's voice was loud now, right above him. The hide was good almost invisible in the moonlight. A perfect spot. He risked a quick look but there was no way up. He waited as he listened to the exchange with Mac. He had read the file and part of him had asked that same question. Had Mac had anything to do with Curtis' death? For some reason he found himself regretting knowing that Mac had pushed him but then …Russ started … how did Stein know that unless...
"You were there?" Mac's voice came hesitantly, uncertainty underlining the question. "If you were there why didn't you help your brother? Why didn't you save him?"
"I did save him ... don't you see? He had to die so he could be with Maria. So they could be free!" Stein unleashed an intense hail of bullets in Mac's direction. "And now … you need to die so Jo can be with Russ!" Bullets spat from the rifle and gouged chunks out of the cabin sending them flying in all directions. Russ raised his gun and sprang out from behind the tree emptying his clip in the direction of the hide. The gunfire stopped and all was silent.
"Russ?" Mac's voice had a slight edge to it.
"I'm good. You?" Taking cover once more, Russ changed his clip before stepping out cautiously his gun pointed up at the tree. Mac answered in the affirmative as Russ circled the hide but he was unable to see anything. There was no sound, no movement. Mac looked around the corner and spotted Russ emerging from the trees his gun still pointed towards the hide. Mac got up wincing from where the bullet had nicked his side earlier and dusted himself off. Stepping out from behind the cabin he took a couple of steps towards Russ when a single shot rang out. He felt a huge force slam into him taking the air from his lungs and the world tilted.
Russ' heart leapt into his mouth at the shot. Taking two steps back he emptied his second clip into the hide from the front. As the trigger clicked to empty a deathly silence took over. Slowly a hand slipped from behind the camouflage netting to hang immobile, a trickle of blood dripping slowly down the thumb to land on the damp ground below. Russ lowered his gun and let out a slow shaky breath. He turned to see Mac sprawled on his back in the centre of the cabins. "Shit!" He took off at a sprint slithering to halt beside Mac. He fell to his knees and pulled at the Velcro tabs on the vest while pressing a hand to Mac's throat. "Mac?"
"Oh God! That hurts!" wheezed Mac.
"Huh?" Russ looked down at Mac's face contorted in agony and suddenly burst out laughing as the tension that had built up burst forth. "Shit! Mac! I thought you were dead."
"You wish!" Mac grunted which seemed to make Russ laugh even more. "Oh … quit laughing. It's not … bloody … funny!" In fact every breath seemed to take a huge effort and Mac felt as though an elephant was sitting on his chest.
Russ sat back on his heels waiting for Mac to recover. "You know for a minute there I thought I might be in serious trouble."
"Huh? Why's that?" Although the pain was rapidly diminishing, Mac decided that attempting to move was a little too much so he was quite happy to lie there for a little longer.
"Well Jo would have never forgiven me if I'd let you get shot."
"Oh right!" Mac considered his answer for a minute then opened his eyes and attempted to focus on Russ' grinning face. "Wait a minute. I did get shot. Twice."
"Yeah." Russ grinned. "But I'm not the one who's going to have to tell her." Russ' grin widened as he stood up and stuck his hand out to help Mac up. "You are."
Mac looked up at him and shut his eyes again. "Oh great!"