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The rage and frustration on Simon's face had scattered everyone out of his path as he made his way through the building and even kept others from joining him on his elevator ride upstairs. Now, as he entered Major Crimes, even those who knew him well, and had seen him in this mood once or twice before, took a step backwards. Joel was the only one with enough guts to actually approach.
"Simon."
"Where is she?"
"Interrogation two, screaming and cursing anybody that comes near and demanding we let her go so she can go see Blair."
"My ass. I have my way she won't ever see him again. He may set that in motion himself when he can think clear."
"I had to send Connor home to keep Naomi's hide intact. You know how Megan feels about Blair..."
"He'll always be Sandy to her. He was her little brother the day they met. Okay... I'm going in. Make sure I don't get interrupted."
"Uh, no. Not the way you mean anyway."
Simon rounded on the other man, his expression, if possible, growing even darker and more intense and his voice dropping to an icy near whisper.
"One more time?"
"Nobody will be in the room with you... but I'll be outside watching. I trust you, Simon, with my life and everything else. Right now, with the knowledge of what she did so fresh for you... I just don't trust you with that sad excuse for a human being."
"I'd never hurt a suspect."
"Not on a normal day. This is anything but. You're dead tired, hungry and hurting over Blair. I don't really believe you'd do anything... but I'll be there just in case. Family stands behind family, man."
Simon dropped his head and rubbed his hands over his face, much as Jim had in the hospital.
"Yeah... I hear you. I admit, I'm not sure I'll do when I actually get in there... especially if she starts spouting the twisted reasons for what she did. Thanks."
"Got your back, Simon. Always. You know that." Joel assured him, gripping the other man's shoulder tightly in support as they trudged off toward the interrogation rooms.
As he'd promised, Joel stayed outside, watching through the two-way while Simon went in to confront Naomi. He stood just inside the door for several minutes, pushing away her hectoring, irritating voice and slowing his breathing in a determined effort to keep control. He spoke to her only when he was sure he wouldn't be wrapping both hands around her throat just to shut her up.
"Naomi. Naomi! Sit down."
"I will not! Let me out of here this minute!"
"You're delusional. Sit. Down."
"You can't think I'm actually scared of you? I've been intimidated by pigs all my life. You don't even make the top one-hundred."
Simon forced himself to breathe deeply one more time before he responded, but the anger still leaked out in his words. Knowing it probably would, he deliberately kept his voice low enough so only Naomi would hear.
"Luckily, Blair didn't lose any blood. You don't do as I say, bit... lady, I can't guarantee the same end result for you."
Naomi, her mouth slightly open, stepped back once then slowly dropped into the chair she'd occupied since they'd dragged her into the station and locked her in the small room.
"You wouldn't dare. Despite what you do for a living, you have morals. I know that."
"All the cops here do, otherwise you would've been dead the minute Blair's friends found out your part in all this."
"I did nothing wrong, I committed no crime."
"You set Blair up to be kidnapped and raped. You got a better word for it?" Simon countered, silently reveling in the gradual flush of color the accusation brought to Naomi's cheeks.
"It wasn't supposed to be like that. You couldn't possibly understand..."
"Probably not... but try me anyway."
"Useless. You don't know what Blair is... what he's destined to be."
"I know what he is to Jim."
"No! Jim is nothing! Alright, so he helped Blair learn his nature... learn his path and how to walk it, but my child is ready to move on. This was supposed to be his next step and you... you ignorant fools had to rush in and destroy everything!"
"Destroy what? You just said it wasn't going the way you planned it." Simon tossed back, moving to sit across from her at the table. Now that she was talking and giving him relevant information, even if she wasn't totally aware of it, he felt safe in nudging the conversation more toward the direction he needed it to travel.
"I would have made it right... I could have convinced them if I'd just had enough time. I could have made Blair see the truth..."
"Truth." He encouraged, praying she wouldn't choose to get suspicious, instead surrendering to her obvious need to convince him how rational and logical her thought process had been.
"About his life, his future... the great things his kind are going to do and be in the next few years."
"I know something about what Jim and Blair are... and I can see that you had one idea and someone else took control and turned it into a huge mess. Explain your theory to me, Naomi. Help me understand what you were hoping for out of this..."
For a long, tense moment, Simon was sure that Blair's so-called mother was gong to shut down, refusing to say anything more, but then she sighed and began to speak haltingly about the house and how everything she'd believed in for so many years had gone so terribly wrong. Simon sat back in his chair and let the story flow without interruption, hoping against hope that something she was saying would result in enough charges to put her in prison and keep her out of her unfortunate son's life for a long time to come.
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THE HOSPITAL: A FEW MINUTES LATER
Megan slipped quietly into Blair's room and eased the door shut behind her, concerned that Jim was asleep. He had been until she had approached, but the moment he'd sensed someone nearby, with the intent of getting close to Blair, the Sentinel's eyes had popped open and he was instantly on full alert. He dropped his guard when he realized there was no threat, but only slightly.
"Easy, Jimbo. Just me."
"Shouldn't you be working?" he asked flatly, his eyes shifting back to Blair.
"Something came up about Sandy's case... I was pretty well ready to kill a certain person so Joel sent me home. I started out to head there, but... I had to see the young one for myself. Had to know he's really safe..."
Jim's gaze drifted back to Megan and she stepped back once, faintly shocked by the sharpness and pure focus that he was turning on her.
"What person?"
"Jim..."
"Tell me, damn it. Now."
Though she was suddenly frightened and unsure of what Jim would do with the information once he had it, Megan understood that his reaction would be ten times worse if she refused to tell him what he demanded to know. After a few deep, steadying breaths, she finally spoke.
"His mum. Naomi... she was part of all this somehow. Didn't Simon tell you what was going on before he left? He swore..."
"No. He didn't say anything. He was probably afraid for her... and for me after I killed her with my bare hands." Jim responded, not a trace of humor to be found in voice or expression.
"His intuition served him well, then, didn't it? I understand, believe me Jim, I do. Like I said, I wanted to take her out myself... and you know I could have if anybody gave me half a chance. Problem is, somewhere deep down in him, Sandy'll always love her. Naomi in prison he can learn to live with after enough time. Naomi dead... and havin' to face who did for her... that'd kill him and you know it."
Slowly, inexorably, Jim's face developed more animation and everything he was repressing so brutally began to leak out. Rising, he shifted to sit on the edge of the bed, facing Blair and reaching out to grasp his young partner's hand. Megan stayed back, unsure what Ellison needed or if she would be able to provide it, even if she knew. A moment later, however, when his head dropped forward slightly and his whole body began to tremble, her supportive, nurturing instincts utterly overwhelmed her fear and indecisiveness. Moving swiftly to perch just behind Jim, she wrapped an arm around him and rested her chin on his shoulder.
"It's alright, Jimmy... nobody here to see... let it go. Let all the weight drop right off. He's home safe and he wasn't hurt... "
"Bullshit."
"I know, Jim... I know. I'm just sayin' the wounds those bastards left Sandy won't be healed in hospital. That'll be up to his family... the ones who really love him will see him through."
Jim nodded. Megan waited, but he said nothing further, so she settled for simply squeezing his shoulder. He returned the gesture, briefly wrapping the fingers of his free hand around her forearm, seeming to have been calmed somewhat by her comfort and strength. Inwardly, however, he railed and raged at the universe, cursing abilities that would do Blair no good. His sight, hearing, touch... none of them would convince Blair he was safe; that he had been rescued and the torture planned for him would not come to pass. All Jim could do was wait for Sandburg to acknowledge the outside world and pray that, when it happened, his Guide still resided behind the intent blue eyes Jim had grown to love.
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TBC...
