A/N: Not only am I sorry for the belated update but I also want to apologize for an mistakes in my story up to this point. If I can find the time I will go back and fix them. And I will try harder in the future to not let them get by me!
Chapter Twelve: I Will Be There
Hot water flowed down over his body in small rivers. It dripped from the tip of his nose, matted down his hair. Washed away the scum of the day. He may have loved living in New York City but sometimes he felt grimy upon returning home. He was never sure if he should blame it on the crooks he hunted down every day or the constant stream of exhaust that seemed to linger in the air. Whatever it was he thoroughly enjoyed a nice warm shower to make him feel human again. And as he began to wash the shampoo out of his hair he found his mind wandering in a dangerous direction. Instead of thinking about the last morning he spent with Chandler he quickly turned up the temperature of the water until it burned, his skin turning red. Then he twisted the knob in the other direction gritting his teeth as the stream of chilly water soothed away the heat. Finally finished he stepped out of the shower, grabbing at the towel he left on the counter.
Standing before the mirror he tried not to stare too hard at the tired cloud looming in his eyes. Usually his blue eyes were vivid and filled with a burning light. Ever since the death of his lover, though, he noticed that the appeared dimmer, a little bit on the dull side. Sighing, he ran a hand through the slight covering of condensation on the mirror causing his reflection to be a tad distorted. A sad smile spread across his face as he thought back to those happier days. The magic of the mirror in the bathroom, who would have thought it would bring back such memories of happiness and thus a wave of pain? They used to leave messages written on the mirror for the other to find after a shower. Another one of the ways they let each other know how they felt every day.
"Get a grip, Don," he muttered under his breath as he began to dress. "Life goes on, don't you know that? If you can survive after losing Aidan and Angel then you can most definitely get beyond this, too." You weren't madly in love with them, he kept the unspoken thought to himself. Tossing the towel into the hamper he wandered into the bedroom without a stitch of clothing on, feeling a breeze from the open window. At least he took the time to put up curtains unlike a number of people in the city. Apparently they thought living in a high-rise kept out prying eyes. How many times had he entered an apartment only to find a telescope situated in front of a window? With the lights in the city he knew for a fact that nobody was gazing at the stars.
Still not allowed back at work for at least another day he put on a pair of boxers, gray sweatpants and a random t-shirt he grabbed from the drawer. From there he shuffled into the living room and flopped down on the couch flipping on the television for lack of anything better to do. While the day-time show played out he let his mind wander to other places. Try as he might he could not help thinking about Danny and his conversation with the gangster. What sort of angle was the guy working? Should he really put his trust in a guy that chose to hang out with someone like Sonny Sassone? He might very well be on the verge of ruining his career and helping in the process. Ever since the meeting the day before he had been thinking himself 'round in circles.
So what if Danny came clean to him about the plan Sonny cooked up, for all he knew it was part of Danny's way to get in close, start looking for whatever dirt he could use. Flack thought about his career. For the most part it was stellar, though there might be one or two things to give the right person a second glance, cause them to look a little dirty. At least he wasn't one of those cops that could be bought off with a bribe. He didn't mistakenly lose evidence. In fact, he always thought his good working relationship with the crime lab was a gleaming spot of brilliance on his record. It showed those higher up that he was capable of working well with others. He knew way too many cops that liked to work with cops and avoided getting involved with scientist or investigators from other departments.
"Going to drive yourself crazy," he muttered under his breath feeling slightly angry.
Despite his initial reservations he agreed to meet with Danny again. He checked his watch, expecting a call any time now. Once he got the phone call they would decide on the best venue for their private meeting. Danny promised to have the proof needed to place the guilt of the fire and the deaths of the firefighters in Sonny's hands. Flack tried not to get his hopes up too much, it could all be circumstantial and nothing more. Still, it bared looking into, especially since Danny was coming to him. Suddenly a thought came to Flack and he plucked his cell phone from where it rested on the coffee table. He should really let someone know what he was planning on doing. Maybe call Mac and give the guy a head's up, let him know where he was going, who he was meeting with. What if something should happen to him? What if this was all some sort of trap and Sonny was going to shoot him in the head the first chance he got?
Flack put the phone back on the coffee table.
No, his gut told him to go with this, to trust in Danny much the way he trusted the others, the way he used to trust Chandler. He couldn't quite put his finger on it but something about Danny made him believable.
His phone rang. He jumped at the sudden sound. Had he called Mac he would have missed the important call. Grabbing his phone he nearly dropped it in his haste to answer before his voice-mail beat him to it. "Hello?" Did he sound too eager?
"Meet me at the Irish pub two blocks over from the precinct," Danny said.
"Are you sure?" Flack wondered why Danny would choose such a spot. There might be a few cops lurking around, a few of Irish descent who wanted to get drunk and chat about their ancestors who ran around with the likes of actual mobsters.
"I'll be there."
The phone went dead.
Four hours later the sun began to disappear beyond the horizon, or at least that's how he liked to think of seeing as he couldn't actually see the horizon. One of these days he was going to get out of the city for a while, enjoy the beauty of the world around him. Maybe sit under a tree, inhale a breeze full of natural smells, sip a cool glass of lemonade, watch the sun set. One of these days. He checked his watch for the umpteenth time wondering where Danny had gotten off to. They should have been done with their meeting by now and working on step two of the plan, whatever that might be.
Instead it looked as though Danny might have stood him up. He should have known better, shouldn't have expected anything else. Slightly ticked off he slapped a few bucks on the counter and wandered toward the door. As he stepped out onto the sidewalk he heard the cry of sirens off in the distance. Figured. Wouldn't it be a wonder if they made it through the day without a single emergency call, without a single speck of blood shed? What the hell was the world coming to that violence was the way everyone wanted to solve their problems? He used to joke with Chandler that modern conveniences were to blame. Murder wasn't as big an issue back in the age of pioneers when neighbors actually spoke to each other, when an entire town relied on each individual. Everyone knew everyone.
Nowadays he knew people kept to themselves. The world was falling apart. Even good Samaritans ran the risk of being sued.
"What a wonderful world," he mumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets. At some point while he was inside having a few drinks a nasty wind had descended upon the city. It whipped trash up and down the sidewalks, brought a bit of chill with it. The closer he drew to home the more ill at ease he grew. He kept thinking back to the brief call, the conversation outside the cafe. Something in the way Danny spoke made Flack desperatly want to believe him. Danny meant to show-up at the bar. He knew deep in his heart that he wasn't being played a fool, though should he attempt to explain his reasoning to someone else the might not get it. Hell, he spent so much of his time around Mac he knew that it was always better to listen to the evidence over gut instinct. And yet...
Something had to have happened to Danny, that was the only plausible excuse he could think of. Sonny must have caught on to what Danny was up to, must have figured out that his plan wasn't going to work.
"Fuck," Flack swore as he realized how much trouble Danny would be in. And what did he really care? He hardly knew a damn thing about the guy. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket as he thought about the flash of trouble he saw in Danny's eyes while discussing Sonny's plans. There was more to it, something he didn't quite understand yet. He hit speed-dial, hoping for the person on the other end to pick-up.
He heaved a sigh of relief when he heard the all too familiar voice on the other end. "I need help," he said.