Hi Everyone!
Here is the new chapter. Enjoy!
Sometimes Kurt was glad Finn stayed in the bureau after their cases to take care of the paperwork. Like right now. He wad dying to read the files he had 'borrowed' from Mercedes' computer and he knew he had to do it before Finn got home from work because after that, he wouldn't have any time alone. Getting home was hard and awfully slow, his broken leg set him back and he wasted too much time for his taste. But there was nothing he could do about it.
He almost fell through the door when he finally arrived home, his leg hurt like hell and he could barely stand on his feet. He quickly got himself a painkiller from the kitchen and then went to the couch, letting his hurt leg rest until he went through the files.
The first thing he realised was that Mercedes had an awfully lot informations about this case. Dozens of reports, photos, even a few audio files and God knew what else. He had to go through all of them. Kurt sighed as he looked up, desperately needing a coffee, but he shook his head as he looked at the kitchen's door, seemingly miles away from him or so it would be like if he wanted to make it on his already painful leg. So he had to make it without coffee because there was no way in hell that he could get up from the couch anytime soon.
Some of the informations he read first seemed familiar. It was a case from two years earlier. He remembered it, as much as he could anyway. He also remembered that Finn had been awfully quiet about that case and only shared a few things about it when it had been over. As Kurt went through the reports, he slowly understood why. His team had worked on the case of a man who called himself Cat and committed various crimes all over the states before settling down by killing people. The guy had killed seven people before the team had caught him, including Mercedes' boyfriend, Sam. Kurt gasped as he got to that information. He knew that Mercedes' boyfriend had died but he had no idea that it had to do something with this case. He also didn't know that the same guy was responsible for the death of the agent whose place Kurt had taken only weeks later.
He leaned back against the pillows and took a few minutes to only sit there and think for a while. It was a lot to take in. An awfully lot to take in, it changed so much, his entire relation to his team. He had had such a hard time trying to befriend them and he hadn't even known why. He had only thought that they were just like that, playing games with the new guy before letting him in. That was why he had helped Blaine so much at the beginning, because he had thought that it was all normal if it was about his team. But maybe they had acted so weirdly because they had just lost an important member and a friend on the top of that, or in Mercedes' case, her love.
A few old texts were what he found next and they broke his heart. It was a conversation between Finn and Mercedes and even after two years, Kurt could practically feel the desperation in Mercedes' words. He couldn't exactly understand everything but it was clear that she had blamed herself for the death of her boyfriend. She had thought that Cat had only gone after Sam because he had known about the case.
He stopped here again. When he had asked Finn about his secret, his stepbrother had tried so hard to not let him know anything about this case. Now Kurt knew why. Finn didn't tell him anything because he was scared that Kurt would end like Sam. He shook his head at the thought. It was so stupid of Finn, Kurt could have helped him. He was the best person for the job, he wasn't connected in any way and could think this straight without feelings. Finn should have asked for his help. He should have told him about this.
Things only got worse as Kurt went through the remaining files, the disappointment deeper and stronger with every single word. They had caught the guy, named Elliot Boyle right after the death of the FBI agent but he had escaped a few months earlier and now he was after their team. And Finn knew that. But it wasn't only him, seemingly everyone else knew the truth, except for him.
And maybe Blaine, he reminded himself as he went through Mercedes' notes. There was no sign that Blaine knew anything about this case. There was still a chance, even if it was hard to admit it. Blaine had gotten closer to him at the same time Finn had found out about Boyle's escape. Maybe it was just coincidence but what if it wasn't? Would Finn go so far that he asked the agent Kurt was interested in to distract his stepbrother? Would Blaine do that to him?
Kurt rubbed his eyes and pushed the laptop away. It was way too much for now. He had a lot of questions, maybe even more than answers. And he had no idea what to do with them.
~ o ~
Santana was more than glad when she could finally leave. It had been a long few days for the team again and she couldn't wait to go home and rest. Unfortunately for her, Finn had kept her back in the bureau for way too long, even long after he was gone. It was so not fair. Okay, maybe she had missed to write a few reports but they could have waited a few more hours until she got some sleep, right? But Finn hadn't let her go home until she was done with them, so she had to stay behind way after everyone was gone.
Now that she was finally ready, she quickly made her way to her car. She needed a hot bath and a few long hours of sleep before she could come back to work again. She understood that there were a lot of lunatics around but they could at least give them some time to rest. She didn't remember when was the last time she could have a few days just for herself. Probably months ago. Before Cat had come back. Because ever since the man had showed up again, they had no peaceful moment.
At least it seemed like they were getting close. They knew the man as much as possible, so it wasn't that hard to guess what he wanted to do this time. He didn't kill anyone, only played with their team. It was a good thing. At least they could keep everyone else safe. There was a chance that they would get hurt but it was still better than worrying about a possible blood bath. It was only about them this time.
She didn't agree with Finn about not telling Kurt anything. She didn't really want to tell Blaine either, knowing that it was better to not get too many people involved but Kurt would be useful. He knew them well enough, not to mention that he was rational and not involved in the case, he would have good ideas they could use. But Finn didn't want him to get involved and seemingly Mercedes agreed with him. She got it, really, it must have been horrible for Mercedes to lose her boyfriend because of the criminal but it had been years earlier and Kurt was an agent like them, he would be fine.
She reached her car and grabbed the handle when she had that weird feeling. She quickly let go of the handle and turned around, looking around in the deserted parking lot. It certainly felt like someone was watching her. Santana grabbed her gun and raised it in front of her.
"Who is there?" she asked.
She didn't move for a few seconds, although she knew very well that she wouldn't get an answer. If someone was watching her, they definitely wouldn't show themselves unless... Unless it was him.
"Okay, little bitch. Show yourself and act like a real man" she said and took a few careful steps away from her car.
She saw someone from the corner of her eyes and ducked her head just in time to avoid the first bullet. She crouched down beside a car, swearing quietly. It was certainly him.
She waited a whole minute but didn't hear any footsteps. He was waiting for her to move. Santana took a deep breath and slowly got back to her feet. It was risky but she couldn't stay down there forever and she wasn't scared of the man. She wanted to catch him and make sure he's locked up somewhere safe and couldn't escape in this life again.
Just as she stood up, she caught a glimpse of the man, making his way towards her. She didn't hesitate for a second, raised her gun and fired. She heard the man moan and fall and she smiled. She had him.
The agent quickly jumped out from behind the car and made her way towards where the criminal was supposed to be but to her surprise, she couldn't find anyone there. The man just disappeared.
"Impossible" Santana muttered to herself.
She heard noises coming from behind her but she wasn't fast enough to turn around. Just as she got ready to shoot again, the man fired, the bullet hitting Santana this time. She fell to the ground, dropping her gun in the process as pain spread across her right shoulder. She didn't stop to check her injury, though, she reached for her gun again but before she could grab it, a boot appeared in front of her eyes, blocking her way to the gun. Santana gulped as she looked up at the man, wearing that stupid cat mask he had had before.
"Agent Lopez" Boyle said with a slight nod. "It's pleasure to meet you again."
"Now you're shooting agents in empty parking lots?" Santana asked with a raised eyebrow. Maybe she was going to die but she wouldn't show any fear. She wasn't like that.
Boyle crouched down beside her, pointing his gun at Santana's head. Nothing happened for a whole minute. They kept looking into each other's eyes, Santana trying to figure out what exactly Boyle's plan was and the man... Well, she wasn't sure what he was waiting for.
Suddenly, Boyle raised his gun and hit Santana on her face with the handle, the pain he caused blinding the agent for a few seconds. When Santana's vision cleared enough to see the man over her again, Boyle's face was only inches away from her own. Even through his mask, she could see that he was smiling.
"The game is on, Agent Lopez" Boyle whispered into her ear. "And this time, I won't be as gentle with you as I was the last time."
Before Santana could reply, Boyle punched her again, hard enough to knock her out.
~ o ~
Kurt was close to panic when the doorbell rang. He had spent so much time trying to figure out who he could trust and what exactly was going on behind his back that it made him think that he couldn't trust anyone at all. He was lucky that someone chose that moment to disturb him because he was pretty sure that his thoughts would have driven him crazy. He stood up from the couch and walked to the door, careful to not use his injured leg. Unfortunately going through the whole city twice that day wasn't really good for his injury and even if he barely moved his leg, it hurt so much.
As he opened the door, he found Blaine standing in front of him. He seemed really tired but he was still smiling like every time he met Kurt.
"Hey" he said quietly.
"What are you doing here?" Kurt asked. Okay, maybe he was rude but he was still stuck at the thought that maybe Blaine was just playing with him.
"I want to say thank you?" Blaine said uncertainly. Kurt usually wasn't like this.
Kurt blinked in confusion. He had no idea what Blaine was talking about.
"You helped me save those people" Blaine explained. "So thank you."
Oh, of course. Mike and his father. It seemed so weird that it had happened only a few hours earlier.
"I didn't do anything" Kurt said and slowly took a step back. "Would you like to come in?"
"Only for a few minutes. I'm dead tired" Blaine said.
"Because of the case or... something else?" Kurt asked.
Okay, maybe he should stop this. As he watched Blaine's face, searching for any sign that he might know about Elliot Boyle, he only came to the conclusion that Blaine was absolutely clueless. There was no sign that he was hiding something from Kurt, he seemed genuinely confused, nothing more. Probably Blaine didn't know about Boyle at all. He wasn't exactly a great actor and certainly not that great that he was able to hide the truth from Kurt.
"What do you mean?" Blaine asked as he walked inside, helping Kurt get back to the couch.
"I don't know. You never talk about your private life" Kurt said.
"Because I don't have any" Blaine replied. "Is there something wrong?"
"Why do you think so?" Kurt asked.
"Because you're weird. Like really-really weird" Blaine explained.
"Well, I..."
Before Kurt could say anything, the door opened again and Finn stepped inside, looking pissed for some reason and also surprised to find Blaine in their home. Again.
"Are you living here or something?" he asked as he shut the door.
"He came to see me" Kurt explained.
"Again?" Finn asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I... I just wanted to thank Kurt for his help. Without him, I wouldn't have been able to save that family" Blaine said.
"Another stupid heroic act" Finn said with a nod. "Thanks for mentioning it. We have to talk about your behaviour because you not only risked your own life, again, but also everyone else's around you."
"What are you talking about? He stopped the unsub before he could kill his father and probably himself" Kurt said.
"He was stupid and selfish" Finn aid and turned back to Blaine. "You're suspended for two weeks."
"What?" Blaine gasped.
"Use this time and think about how a real profiler should act" Finn said. "Now if you're done here..."
"Of course" Blaine muttered and stood up.
"No" Kurt said and grabbed Blaine's hand. "He's my guest. He can stay as long as he wants."
"Kurt, it's fine..."
"No, it's not" Kurt said and turned to his stepbrother. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
Blaine was perfectly sure that there was a huge fight coming and to be honest, he wasn't sure if he wanted to be there when it happened. He knew way too much about the Hudmels' private life, he didn't want to get more involved.
"I have to go" he said hastily. "Uhm... I will call you."
"Blaine, you don't have to..."
"It's fine" Blaine interrupted Kurt. "I can't wait to have a shower and a good night sleep. Bye, guys."
Kurt looked after Blaine sadly. He was surely hurt because Finn was such an asshole and Kurt didn't even have the chance to talk to him. But once Finn shut the door behind Blaine and his eyes met Finn's, every other emotion disappeared and only the anger remained.
"What the hell was that?" he asked.
"He overstepped. Again. I had to do something" Finn shrugged.
"That's what the trainings are for. You can't suspend an agent, especially not now that we're one man down" Kurt said.
"We will be fine without you two for a few weeks" Finn said.
Oh, so it was about Boyle's case. Now Kurt was perfectly sure that Blaine didn't know about the criminal. Finn suspended him to keep him out of harm's way and it would have worked just fine, Blaine wouldn't have found out anything, just like Kurt hadn't found anything when he had joined the team. But Kurt knew his this team a lot more this time and he understood things a lot better.
"It's about Elliot Boyle, right?" Kurt asked quietly.
Finn who was just about to leave the room, stopped and turned back slowly.
"How do you know..."
"I know everything about what happened two years ago" Kurt said seriously and turned his laptop so that Finn could see it. "Just let me help you. Please."
Finn shook his head immediately.
"No" he said.
"But why..."
"Do you know what he did to Mercedes' boyfriend?" Finn asked. "He killed Sam in their apartment, then dragged him through the whole place and left him in their bed. Mercedes found him lying in his blood. Hell, the whole place was full of Sam's blood!"
"It doesn't mean I..."
"Why are you so stubborn?" Finn asked in frustration.
"Because I don't want you to get hurt!" Kurt shouted back.
"And I don't want you to get hurt" Finn replied. "So I won't let you work on this case."
"This is insane" Kurt shook his head.
"No it's not" Finn said. "I'm trying to keep you safe and I will do it, whether you want me to or not."
"An how exactly are you trying to stop me?" Kurt challenged.
"I'm your boss, don't forget that" Finn said.
"I can't believe you're doing this" Kurt shook his head.
"You're not allowed to help in the investigation" Finn said. "You're going to stay here until it's over. I don't want to see you near the bureau until I say it's safe."
"You can't..."
"I can and I will" Finn said determinedly. "Stay out of this, or I will ask Sue to reassign you to another unit."
"Why don't you let me help you?" Kurt asked quietly. "I'm worried about you. All of you."
"Because this is the only way to keep my family safe. Try to understand me" Finn said.
His phone beeped and Finn looked down the read the text message. Kurt could tell that something was wrong because Finn's eyes widened as he read the text.
"What's wrong?" Kurt asked.
"I have to go" Finn said and quickly made his way to the door.
"Finn!" Kurt called after him.
"Stay here" Finn said. "Don't leave unless it's necessary. And for the first time in your life, listen to me and don't do anything stupid."
He left, slamming the door shut behind him. Kurt stared at the door for a whole minute, sitting in stunned silence before reaching for his laptop again. There was no way in hell he would sit on his butt and let his team do something dangerous. Finn could keep him away from the bureau but he couldn't keep him away from his job. To his luck, Finn was in hurry and left everything behind for him.
Half an hour later, Kurt realised that he needed help. If he wanted to do this right, he needed someone who made sure he didn't go the wrong way. That was why they worked in a team and not alone, they were a lot more effective that way.
He grabbed his phone and sent Blaine a short text. He needed his help more than ever.
Unbeknownst to Kurt, there was a man on the top of the building across theirs, watching him. He had been there to listen to the conversations earlier, using his detectaphone to hear everything perfectly. Now he was just watching the young agent from safe distance. Finn Hudson's stepbrother. He had seen him before, the first time he had been caught. He hadn't paid too much attention to the boy then, he had been so young and uncertain and hadn't seemed important. But this time, he was perfectly sure that he wanted Kurt Hummel to join his game. And he had a great idea how to involve him.
