Planning, tinkering, plotting. Now they were ready. It had come to this. This was their moment. They knew how to get to Venman now all they had to do was seize the chance.
George Raft was the bait once more but only in name. Instead it would be Tamsin and Bo who would stand in his place. They were now the hunters and Venman the hunted. The mouse was finally the prey.
All it took was a seed to be planted. Williams had provided them with the name of his key police informant, Inspector Gordon Harker. Now they needed to play Harker and hope he'd set the wheels in motion.
Harker himself was universally liked within the TPS and both Bo and Tamsin had a hard time believing Williams when he said he was the reason that Venman knew their every move. He was a family man, unassuming and softer than some of the other senior officers and he was always more open to approach.
Open to approach
Harker spent time on the floor with the precinct grunt staff. He knew their names, their hobbies and the details of many of their cases. Bo had openly conversed and picked the mind of the man on multiple occasions and now she realized that she had essentially provided him with the mind map of where they were in the pursuit of Venman.
Harker was a daily visitor to the station and it would be easy for Bo to continue her loose dialogue with him on the progress of the case. They then needed Harker to relay the information to Williams and Williams then to Venman. In this entrapment they would have evidence of Harker's corruption and would lay the last trap for Venman to walk into.
Tamsin and Bo planned out the net with Internal Affairs and the Office of Prosecution. Only those who needed to know were included in plot, a handful of people in total. Once all was in place all they had to do was wait for one of Harker's daily visits.
The atmosphere at the precinct was jovial as Tamsin and Bo sat at their desk just a few days out from Christmas. The mood at this time of year was always upbeat though the job was typically busy due to the season being awash with alcohol and office parties. The two detectives were looking over the Venamn brief when Bo noticed Tamsin's eyes lift and her demeanor stiffen. Even with her back turned Bo knew that Harker had walked through the precinct doors.
"Relax Tam Tam." Bo said without turning to around.
"Yeah. I'm good." The blonde kept her gaze down as the rapid tapping of her pen against the grained desk began to draw attention from colleagues nearby. Bo leant over and plucked it from her hand causing the woman to look up sheepishly. "You're up." She muttered flatly but there was a final inclination wracked with anxiety.
Bo nodded casually and picked up her coffee mug before turning out of her chair and towards the front desk. Harker was leant against the reception area speaking to a junior colleague. He was animatedly laughing at something the young man had said. As he caught his breath he turned his head slightly still wearing a grin and noticed Bo's approach. She smiled at him and his face lifted on seeing her. The smile she held as she approached felt forced but then, it was. The genuineness of the smile returned told her that her ruse wasn't noticed.
"Inspector." Bo's arm outstretched and Harker grabbed her hand to shake.
"Detective." He held her eye and matched the firmness of her grip before letting go. "How goes your day?"
"Urgh we're up to our neck in Venman issues." She puffed out a feigned frustrated breath watching Harker closely to see if he had taken the bait. There was a glint in his eyes as his attention turned wholly to the brunette.
"Venman? Are you any closer to finding him?"
The brunette nodded her affirmation before lowering her voice slightly. "We're getting there sir. We're building a solid case for Lester Reed's murder, all we need to do is find the bastard."
Harker placed his hand on Bo's shoulder encouraging her to turn and walk alongside him as they moved away from earshot of the busy reception area. "Tell me about the Reed case. It doesn't sound like there's much physical evidence."
They stopped by the corner of the entrance and Bo pivoted round to face the man. "Not a lot but enough." She confirmed and Harker simply nodded in response. "But the evidence we do have coupled with our eyewitness makes it an open and shut case."
"Your witness is that George Raft fellow am I correct? Is he viable?" Harker asked.
"He's pretty clean," Bo confirmed. "He's got some petty stuff on his record but his testimony will be air tight. We're actually going to move him out of the country to ensure Venman can't get to him. Although we don't believe he knows that Raft is alive." This was the lineup. The lure was in the water and Harker was nibbling at the bait. Bo needed now to reel him in.
"Out of the country?" Harker's voice lifted, his features suddenly rinsed with panic. "Where? When? I haven't seen any paperwork for that."
Bo tried to swallow down the bile rising in her throat. It all seemed so obvious now as the man's desperation laid itself bare in front of her. "No sir. It's all been done on the quiet. I know you're cleared for this information but we've not gone through usual channels to get sign-off on this. We're worried there is a mole within the department here. We've needed to protect ourselves."
Harker straightens his appearance at the mention of an informant in a physical attempt to hide his crooked ways. In planning this conversation Bo and Tamsin had decided it was a good idea to play Harker straight. To tell him as much as Bo would normally tell him should they not know of his corrupt dealings.
Harker leaned in close, his eyes darting about to see who was watching and listening. "A mole? Here? You're kidding right?'
Bo shook her head. "No sir, we can't think of any other way Venman has known about our movements."
"Jesus. Are I.A involved?" The man's voice was anxious.
"Not yet, it's more a hunch than anything. Either way, getting George out of the country tonight is critical."
"Tonight?" Harker said, shell-shocked.
"Yes sir. Sooner the better. The longer Venman spends in the dark the less likely we'll be of knowing where he'll next pop up"
Harker turned Bo away from preying eyes so that the two of them were almost nose deep in the corner of the office. "What's your team like for tonight?"
"Skeletal." Bo said. "We need as few people as possible involved to avoid any leaks."
Harker's lips pursed and eyes lifted right to their corners. Bo could almost see the options racing through his mind, the good sorted from the bad. Finally this gaze returned to her. "I'm happy to be involved if you need it."
Bo resisted the urge to smile. Harker was officially a dead man walking. "Sir?"
The man laughed at Bo's calm reaction. "What? You think I can't take a bit of field action?"
The brunette shook her head. "Not at all. I've heard of your in-field antics. Impressive." She said allowing herself the smile she so needed to release. "I guess it would be good to have another set of trusted hands involved but I'd need to clear it with the Captain."
"Nonsense. He needs to clear things with me. Let's go see him and you can provide me with a brief."
The two walked from their corner hollow and towards the office of Bo's precinct Captain. The brunette cast her eyes to Tamsin who was looking at her expectantly. She gave an ever so subtle nod before turning her attention back to Harker. "Wonderful." She said. "It's great to have you on board sir."
Lauren was starting to become used to being scared. She opened the door to her apartment and saw a security detail waiting for her. They told her little other than she and Daniel were to pack a bag and that they were to be taken somewhere safe. They didn't allow any questions but Lauren so needed answers that their refusal made her blood boil. Fear could exist but it needed to do so within the context of something she could understand.
She and Daniel sat in the back of a black unmarked police car as it wound through dark streets and across busy freeways. They said nothing to each other as Lauren tried time and again to call Bo. Daniel watched her intently as she dialed for the fifth time in as many minutes. As she brought the phone down from her ear she simply shook her head and Daniel responded by squeezing her knee.
The car pulled up outside an old run down motel on the outskirts of the city not far from the airport. The parking lot was empty save for a few cars scattered intermittently. To look at them one would debate whether they had been abandoned so recklessly broken and rusted were they.
"This is safe?" Dan sighed out loud complaining to nobody in particular as the car came to a halt under the dim neon sign that sat at the roadside. "This looks like the type of place that Norman Bates might run." The words 'no vacancy' we illuminated in red and Dan squinted his eyes and shook his head on reading it.
The two passengers stepped out of the car and followed their security detail feeling an immediate harshness of the cold early evening air upon them. They were led straight to a room and could see through the cracks in the drawn blinds that the lights of the interior were on.
The taller of the two police officers walked them inside and Daniel was first to step in behind him followed by Lauren. Before they could question anything an interior connecting door to the next room opened and Bo appeared.
"Hey." The brunette swallowed hard as she saw Lauren's brief moment of relief turn to anger.
"Bo!" Lauren pushed past the loitering officer and pulled the brunette in for a hug holding her tightly for the briefest of moments before pushing away. "Why haven't you been answering my calls?"
"I'm sorry." The detective reached out and grabbed Lauren's hand pulling her back towards her a step so that they were inches apart again. "We have an operation tonight and I can't risk having my calls monitored. I knew all you'd want is an explanation and I couldn't give that to you over the phone."
Dan was watching the interaction from the doorway. "Can you give us one now?" His voice was short and a little caustic as the constant disruptions to his everyday life were chipping away at his normally sharp but always warm demeanor.
Bo turned to face him dropping Lauren's hand as she gave over her attention. "No. I'm sorry. Not right now."
Dan rolled his eyes. "Who else is here?"
Bo stepped out-of-the-way of the internal door and nodded her head in the direction of the other room. "Kenzi and Tamsin are next door."
Dan walked past Bo and Lauren barely making eye contact with the detective as he did. "I think I might go say hi. Excuse me." Bo sighed as he passed her by.
Lauren rubbed her forehead bringing her fingers over her tired eyes for a moment as the brunette watched on. "Bo, I need this to end. We can't keep living like this."
"I know that." Bo pulled Lauren in and held her to her body. "That's why we've been taking precautions tonight." She whispered the words into the blonde's ear. "We're almost through with this Lauren I promise."
Lauren leant her forehead on the other woman's shoulder. "So what is happening?"
"I can't tell you that."
Lauren pushed herself away from the arms around her, stepping back and growling like an animal trapped and caged.
"I know…" Bo said, reaching out but Lauren pulled her arm away. "Listen to me. I need you to trust me. I'm going to fix this."
Lauren put her two hands atop her head and tutted. "At what cost Bo?"
"What do you mean? No cost. My fixing this comes free."
The blonde threw her arms back down by her side. "And you won't be hurt or in danger."
"Baby…" Bo reached out again but once more the blonde shifted her body away.
Lauren's eyes began to well with tears. She took a deep a breath and clenched her jaw. Bo was now stilled in her movements and Lauren shrugged her shoulders as she noted conflict in the woman's eyes. "What? Tell me Bo. Is there a risk to you? Could you be hurt or worse tonight?"
The brunette took a tentative step forward. "Lauren." The blonde's name rolled off her lips like a plea. "This is my job."
"And this is MY LIFE." The raised voice startled both women as the blonde threw her hands up in frustration before brining the palm of her right hand to settle over the left side of her chest. "And my heart." Her breath caught in gasps in her throat as she tried desperately to hold onto the emotions that sat at the brink of spilling over.
"Come here." Bo pulled Lauren in forcing her arms around her and through the dissipating reluctance. "By the time you wake up in the morning it'll all be over."
Lauren sniffled into Bo's shoulder. "That easy? So, why do I get the feeling there is something you're not telling me?"
Bo shifted back to see her girlfriend's face. Small trails of tears washed down her cheeks as she pressed a light kiss to the blonde's lips. "I'll give you all the gossip when I'm back in a few hours. I promise."
Lauren shook her head. "No. Tell me you'll be safe." Her was voice was cracked and torn.
"I'll be safe." Bo said before leaning in for another soft kiss. "Lauren listen to me. I'll be back here by morning and we'll be able to start planning for Christmas Day. I'll somehow convince you to cook the turkey 'cause Kenzi and I just can never make it like our parent's could. You'll scoff at my suggested playlist of old Nat King Cole songs and somewhere in the middle of it all Tamsin will manage to avoid being given any job other than ensuring our supply brandy doesn't run dry."
Lauren gave a light chuckle despite herself and rested her head back on Bo's shoulder. Bo squeezed her and held tight to the warmth of the body in her arms as the blonde let out a puff of frustrated air. Lauren conceded knowing in her own mind that she'd spend the next few hours in a state of worry and that there was nothing Bo could say that would appease her mind.
"I have to go." Bo whispered and felt a subtle nod from the head resting on her shoulder. Lauren pulled her face back and the two kissed again before breaking apart.
Bo gave the woman a reassuring smile and winked but as she turned to leave she hesitated and skipped mid stride before turning back to face the blonde. "Lauren I …" She wavered, catching words in her mouth before they were uttered. She collected herself for a moment as the blonde eyed her. "You know how much you mean to me right?"
Lauren nodded but said nothing.
"Good. I'll see you soon." Bo said, and gave the blonde a parting smile.
When the brunette reached the door of the apartment she called out to Kenzi who met her and the two hugged. Lauren watched as Bo loosened her grip on her sister, pulled away and walked out the door without looking back. Tamsin followed behind waving at Lauren and giving Kenzi a slap on the ass.
Kenzi stood cold by the door for a moment before slowly turning around. She and Lauren looked at each other exchanging a knowing glare. There was a chance however a small, a real chance, that Bo and Tamsin wouldn't be coming home.
The day had played out in a fashion that was almost too good to be true. The tight timeframe they had fed to Harker meant the man had little time to plan how to approach the situation of Raft's removal from Canada and he like Venman would be at risk of sloppiness. Harker made the call to Williams almost immediately after confirming his involvement in the evening move of Raft. Internal Affairs, who had managed a tap of his office phone and cell, were able to record his handing over of information. They had him.
Williams played his role perfectly too. He got in touch with Venman via an elaborate burner system that allowed gangster to change phones almost daily. Williams called a payphone, gave a code to the person at the other end and within minutes was provided with Venman's number for the day. He gave Venman an address, told him Raft was going to be moved between midnight and 2am and that Harker would support him in disposing of the small crew of officers involved. He also told Venman that Bo and Tamsin would be among the officers present. Critically, Venman would be forced to make direct contact with Harker to arrange the evening's raid and with phone calls being monitored everything would be on the side of the detectives.
So it was that the night unfolded. Bo sat inside the old log cabin that lay in the woodlands outside of the city limits. It was snowing heavily outside but the open fire that burned in the cramped and musty lounge had the chill away. Frost on the windows fought bravely against the permeating internal warmth. Bo stalked the small room as Tamsin warmed herself by the fireplace with hands outstretched. It was two hours before midnight, two hours before Harker was due to arrive with their precinct Captain. The hourglass was almost ready to turn and timer just about set for the final showdown. So convinced were they of their plan, so thoroughly persuaded by the infallibility of the rules of the game that they had created that they were truly surprised when the first molotov cocktail shattered the small window by the front door. When the second smashed through the rear window of the cabin both detectives were on the floor. Third and fourth explosions of fire and methanol burst around them with the noxious fumes blistering their lungs as the fire catching on curtains and carpets licked at their skin.
"We need to get out!" Tamsin screamed at Bo through coughs and wheezes as black smoke curled about them.
"He's outside T, he's flushing us out." Bo reached Tamsin and both women were on their stomachs on the floor.
"We can't stay we'll be fried." Tamsin spluttered.
There could have been just two of them outside, or there could have been a dozen. There was no way of knowing. It would be two hours until support arrived and by that time the cabin would nothing but smoldering ashes.
"There's two doors. Whoever is out there will have both covered. We need to get out some other way." Bo's voice was fast and her mind working with it just as quickly. "The roof. We need to get to the attic and onto the roof."
Tamsin nodded her agreement. There was a small pull down latch that led to an attic that had a small window. The two detectives raced through the lounge, the fast burning fire singing their clothes and hair. The pull string was lightly burning but still attached to the attic door. Tamsin pulled it with her sweater wrapped around her hand. The stairs fell and two alighted into an unbearable heat that sat in the roof.
"Fuck Bo, this is too much." Tamsin yelled, and it was. The roof was like an oven, with the floor black as the ceiling began to become scorched.
"Get to the window." Bo pointed and Tamsin rushed over and open the latch. "Careful Tamsin, we need to get out quietly."
Tamsin pushed through and squeezed her body out onto the roof where the freezing air provided a temporary reprieve from the heat inside. The blonde scurried down the roof, keeping low as Bo followed out behind her. From their vantage point up high Bo could make out one figure near the back door.
"It's Harker." She groaned under her breath.
"Venman must be at the front." Tamsin replied.
"There." Bo pointed to the side of the Cabin. "If we jump down there the snow with break the fall. You make it around to Harker and flank him. I'll go to the front and look for Venman." Tamsin pulled her gun out and shuffled down to the edge of the roof before dropping into the snow below. Her fall was quiet and couldn't be heard above the sounds of cracking and smashing glass and the roar of the fire that had now well and truly caught hold on the interior and was spreading up to the roof. Bo watched Harker whose eyes remained locked on the door but the man was becoming agitated as the officers didn't exit.
Following her partner, Bo leapt off the roof and into the cold damp snow below. She moved out towards the surrounding trees, finding cover as she circled to the front of the cabin. There standing with his gun drawn was Venman. Watching the front door with a frightening intensity. He appeared mesmerized by the blaze. The brunette took slow steps through the crunching snow on approach, her gun drawn out in front of her.
"Hands up Venman." She called when she was a few feet away from him. The man didn't seem to register at all. "I said hands up now or I shoot." This time Venman's hands slowly raised straight up in the air. "Now ditch the gun. Do it, throw it away." She yelled and Venman complied. "Turn around asshole. Slowly."
Venman slowly shifted his body around, a smug look of contempt plastered his face as they lock onto each other. Tamsin rounded the cabin with Harker, his hands too up in the air. Venman's head turned and upon noticing them he growled before turning back to face Bo and lifting his knees high as he dove towards the detective.
"Bo watch out!" The call came from Tamsin as Venman crashed into her partner.
Bo and Venman were flayed out in snow. The man turned quickly on top of the detective and stuck her forcefully with a fist to the face. The shock of the strike buzzed like radio static in Bo's ear and burned like acid on her skin. She responded instinctively, striking Venman hard with the blunt of her gun, hitting the side of his head with such force that she could track the line of blood in the air that sprung from his wound. The man collapsed on top of her, dead or knocked out cold, it didn't matter. He was stilled.
"Bo!" Tamsin called out once more as she kicked the back of Harker's knee and the man fell face first into the snow. "Are you ok?"
Bo pushed Venman off of her and checked his pulse. He was alive. "I'm ok. Let's call this in."
Harker lifted himself to his knees and looked at Bo. She shook her head. He was finished. They were done. It was over. Now all she really wanted was to go home.
Dan was sleeping heavily on one of the single beds in the motel room still fully clothed. His snoring was guttural and held no rhythmic motion at all. In the bedroom next to where he slept Kenzi and Lauren were sat at a small table playing cards and could hear the man's rasping through the wall.
"Don't you think you should check on him Doc? It sounds like someone is choking him." Kenzi slammed down a card while Lauren kept her focus on the game at hand.
"He'll be fine, it's when her stops snoring I begin to worry."
Aside from Dan's snoring there was a quiet in the room that was only interrupted by occasional cursing from Kenzi when Lauren played a card she didn't like. Outside of that they both just fidgeted and watched the clock. A habit was forming between the two, waiting together again for Bo and Tamsin to come home. They consoled each other with glances but mostly they tried both to concentrate on a card game that neither was particularly interested in.
As the clock ticked over midnight Lauren threw her cards on the table. "I don't think I can play anymore."
Kenzi dropped her cards too. "Thank god, I wasn't sure how many more hours of losing you wanted to put me through."
Lauren got out of her seat and stretched by arching back with her hands on her hips. Bones creaked and air popped. She paced the room a little before returning her attention to the table where Kenzi was packing up the cards. "Tell me about what she was like as a sister when you were growing up"
"Who Bo?"
"Yeah." Lauren returned to her seat in front of the smaller woman.
"Oh god she was awful. And I mean that with love. Ma and Pa Dennis they were a bit older you know. There's no way a 13 year old kid was going to see them as anything other walking corpses. Bo was already in the academy and that made her the worst person in the world, a cop or at least a wannabe cop
Lauren laughed a little but said nothing, instead she waited for Kenzi to consider her own next words.
"She was around the house about three of four times a week and we'd fight like cats and dogs. She wouldn't let me play any of my little games, she'd seen it all before." Kenzi shifted in her seat as the memory of that life sat uncomfortably on her. "I don't know when it started, but one day we just began talking about stuff. Not just her being the adult and listening to a kid but she started to tell me stuff about her life and I'd tell her stuff about mine. It kinda all happened quick. She's easy to open to."
A silence settled over them again but it was comfortable. Lauren began to pack up the cards in front of her, shifting them into a neat pile before sitting back into her chair. She looked up at Kenzi who was watching her movements.
"I suppose Bo told you what happened a few nights ago?"
"Yeah, doing the nasty bit didn't get to the doin'."
"Yeah, less doing and definitely more nasty." Lauren sighed.
Kenzi gave her a knowing smile. "You two will work it out."
"I hope so."
"I'm glad to hear that doc. It's nice to know you feel strongly enough about her to want to try."
"Yeah, there's that." Lauren smirked. "And I'm horny as hell and I can't think of anything else."
"Damn doc" Kenzi laughed. "There are electrical devices to help you take care of that."
"They've not been helping." Lauren said with a straight face.
"W-What? Shit doc you are a dark horse aren't you?"
The two women began to laugh and the mood in the room lifted just for an instant. They both leaned back into their seats and revisited the silence they'd enjoyed together earlier before one the of the members of their security detail walked in.
"We need to wake Dan up. You're being moved. It's over, they got Venman."
Kenzi opened the door to her apartment and when she and Lauren walked in they could see Bo stood over the kitchen sink with a bag of peas push up against her face.
"Bo Bo!" The petite woman found speed as she ran across the room and wrapped her arms around her sister tightly. "You did it?"
Bo clung to her but her eyes fixed across the room on the concerned face of the doctor who was hesitantly making her way towards them. "Yeah, we did it. We got him. He'll have the night in hospital tonight under guard and we'll arraign him tomorrow formally."
Kenzi released her and walked towards the kitchen. "So, are we celebrating tonight?"
Bo groaned, throwing down the bag pf peas on the counter-top. "Actually Kenz, I'm kind of beat. It's been a big week for me and I think I'm ready for my first night sleep without this asshole's movements hanging over me."
"Of course. But celebrating will happen right? There will be drinking and merriment?"
The brunette laughed. "Yes Kenz, I promise. Just not tonight."
"Alright. Well, you heard her right Doc? She's agreed to a celebration and she's paying."
Lauren rubbed Kenzi's back in support. "Ha. Sure Kenz, that sounds verbatim what I just heard."
"Good. I'll leave you two to it then." She placed a kiss on Bo's cheek and winked at Lauren as she walked away.
Lauren moved into Bo's space, lifting her chin with her index finger as she considered the angry purple bruise that sat on her cheekbone and under her eye. "You're hurt."
Bo reach up and took Lauren's hand from her face and pulled it away but the blonde resisted looking up into her eyes. "Hey." Bo said leaning down a little to capture her sight. "I'm fine Lauren."
Lauren shook her head gently taking Bo's hand in her own and noticing the grazes and red small burns that littered her skin. "I thought you said you'd be safe?"
"I am. I'm here aren't I?"
Lauren finally lifted her gaze. "Tell me the truth."
There was a pause. A silence that sat heavily between them as Bo shuffled where she stood. "I was scared." The brunette shrugged lightly.
Lauren swallowed hard as her face cringed at the words. "Thank you." She whispered as she lay her forehead on Bo's shoulder. "Was that so hard?"
Bo pulled the woman in holding her flush against her body. A weight felt lifted and disposed of. "You're safe now. We're all safe now Lauren."
Lauren rolled her head on Bo's shoulder, nuzzling into her neck. "You know I'm a big girl right? I've been well able to look after myself before you brought a whole world of drama into my life." She smiled before placing a gentle kiss on the brunette's soft skin, trying now to lighten the mood. "And I survived a category 5 hurricane." She pecked again at the woman's neck. "…plus a mugging." Bo cringed a little at the mention of Lauren being attacked.
"Then there was the psychopath with a desire to destroy not just me but all the people I care about." Bo added as she squeezed her eyes shut at the continued touch of lips against her skin.
Lauren pulled her face around to meet Bo's. "Not to mention Kenzi's and Tamsin's drinking antics." This time the blonde brought her hands to the back of Bo's head and held their lips together sucking gently on the woman's bottom lip.
Bo whined a little when they separated. "You sound well set to be able to survive the zombie apocalypse."
"I think I could hold my own." Lauren laughed, her arms slipping to Bo's lower back and gripping the edges of her jeans. "Would be it weird if I stayed here with you tonight?" The brunette's eyes lit up and Lauren quickly corrected the point. "Just to sleep."
"Pfft." Bo smiled cheekily. "I wasn't even thinking about anything else. And no it would not be weird. It'd be nice. I want you to stay."
Bo led Lauren across the dark of the kitchen where just a few days earlier she'd sat devastated at the thought of never getting to hold the woman she needed so desperately ever again. The days and hours since had twisted and contorted the reality of their worlds. They no longer needed to be afraid now, they had all time the needed.
Christmas Day
Lauren had to buzz the apartment twice before a croaky Kenzi let her in. When she arrived upstairs she found Tamsin passed out on the couch and half drunk wine glasses strewn throughout the lounge room and kitchen.
"Doc." Kenzi groaned before gulping a glass of water down.
"What the hell happened here last night?" She asked staring about the apartment in disbelief.
"Well we gave Dan a send off, celebrated Venman not being given parole and got an early start on Christmas. Merry Christmas by the way." Kenzi muttered.
"Yeah..Merry Christmas. Dan got his flight this morning?"
"Unless he's in bed with Bo, I'm assuming yes, although I'm not sure what state he'll be in."
"Bo's still in bed?" Lauren sighed.
"We should all be still in bed." The smaller woman shuffled past Lauren and walked towards her bedroom.
"It's 10am, I need to put the Turkey in the oven." The blonde insisted.
"Oh god. Food? Smells? I'm not sure how much help I'm going to be."
Lauren shook her head and grabbed a glass of water before making her way to Bo's bedroom. When she opened the door she was hit by the warm smell of sweated alcohol.
"Oh my god, this room stinks." She opened the bedroom door wide to get some new air in the space.
"Lauren?" A voice from the bed groaned out.
Lauren crept over to the bed and sat at the edge. "Here, you look like you might need this." She handed Bo the glass of water and the brunette lifted her head to drink.
"Oh god my head." She moaned.
"Hmmm." A distinct lack of sympathy from the doctor was clear.
"Don't be mad" Bo husked. "It's Christmas. Give me a kiss."
"I'm not kissing that mouth until you've had a chance to brush your teeth."
Bo snaked an arm around Lauren's waist and pulled her down onto her in a quick and forceful movement. The doctor yelped but laughed as she suddenly found herself on top of the brunette.
"You smell." She said before placing a soft kiss on Bo's lips. "Merry Christmas."
Bo hissed and stretched as she attempted to lift herself from her pillow but immediately collapsed back down. "See the kind of trouble I get up to when you're not around to stop me?"
Lauren huffed as she moved a tuft of hair from brunette's face. "Some of us had to work so they could have the day cooking and eating and being full of festive cheer."
Bo grabbed her hand and pressed her lips to Lauren's knuckles. "Ah, well, some of us decided to get festive a little earlier."
"Well, now that I'm here you'll need to get up and get dressed and help me get into the festive mood." The blonde snatched her hand back and slapped the bed in encouragement.
"Ooooor we could just stay in here a little longer in the dark and get festive?" Bo looked hopefully up and Lauren rolled her eyes. "Ok, ok." The brunette conceded. "I'm getting up, but first, I want to give you something."
"I thought we'll do gifts after dinner?" Lauren said as she eyed Bo suspiciously.
"We are, but you get two gifts from me today."
"Two?"
"Yup." Bo tenderly pushed Lauren to one side as she stretched into the bedside table drawer. She removed a small wrapped box and handed it to Lauren. "I got you this four years ago but…" She hesitated as she watched the blonde's face for a reaction but the woman gave her none. "But I never got a chance to give it to you."
Lauren looked blankly at the gift in her hand. "You kept it all this time?"
Bo put her hand on her girlfriend's knee, releasing a heavy breath and shaking her head. "There's not a thing of you I didn't keep from then."
Lauren met Bo's eyes and smiled. A thousand unsaid words passing between them. She delicately began to unwrap the small gift, picking at the edges of the paper until a navy jewelry box was revealed. Bo watched her intently as she opened it, her eyes widening as she looked upon the contents for the first time.
Lauren lifted from the box an oxidised chain all silver and black and brought the rough handmade square edges of a pewter pendent to her line of sight.
"It's Saint Brendan." Bo said nervously as she tried to judge the blonde's almost frozen reaction.
"Yes." Came the reply uttered just above a whisper as Lauren held the pendent in between her thumb and forefinger. She gently rubbed the handcrafted image of a staffed man on a small boat set on high seas. It was beautifully flawed, old and worn as though someone had clutched at it for an eternity. She looked up at Bo, her eyes wide with disbelief. "Where did you get this?"
"A guy in Honiara who had a whole heap of old World War Two artifacts. I guess one of the sailors based on the islands owned it."
"Patron Saint of Sailors." Lauren said still not taking her eyes off of it.
"And divers and travellers." Bo added quickly drawing a smile from the blonde. "He is also the Patron Saint of Navigators. Maybe that's why we found our way back to each other?"
Lauren looked up at Bo and nodded as a smile crippled by a sudden wash of emotion reached the corners of her lips. "Yes, maybe." She said before she leaned in to capture Bo's lips fiercely.
"I hope that means you like it?" Bo asked as they pulled away from each other breathlessly.
"I love it. Thank you." There was an earnest emotion to her words that made Bo's heart swell.
"Merry Christmas Lauren."
The blonde grinned. "Merry Christmas Bo." She then pulled back the duvet and slapped the woman's leg. "Now up you. We need to start getting this apartment cleaned and our dinner ready!"
Somehow four people, three of them nursing hangovers, managed to get the apartment spotless, a turkey and ham cooked and gravy mixed without a single lump to show. The day was filled with Christmas music and Tamsin's insistence on the tradition of the hair of the dog meant they were all drinking again by lunchtime.
Lauren and Bo worked together in the kitchen, stealing glances and kisses. Tasting each other's food and distracting each other. Tamsin made sure everyone's drinks were always full and mixed a special Christmas cocktail that was barely drinkable.
When they sat down to eat together they wore crumbled crowns unwrapped from bonbons. They shared terrible jokes and ate until they felt sick. In the hours afterwards they lay on the couch and watched It's a Wonderful Life. It was the first time that Bo, Tamsin and Kenzi had watched the film since the Christmas directly after the return from the Pacific.
By midnight Tamsin was back where Lauren had found her earlier in the day, asleep on the couch. Kenzi was still finding room for food and was eating a plate of leftovers.
"Where the hell do you put that?" Bo scoffed as Kenzi returned to her seat in front of the television.
"I burn it baby, aggressive gaming. It's a work out I tells ya." The small woman slouched down in the couch placing the plate on her stomach. "So what movie now?"
Lauren looked at Bo who stood up and put her hand out and pulled the blonde to her feat.
"Goodnight Kenzi." Bo walked over to her sister and leaned in placing a kiss on the top of her head.
"What?" The small woman screeched in complaint. "It's early!" She looked up to Lauren who smiled down at her.
"Night Kenzi. Thanks for having me today." The blonde said as Bo took her hand and pulled her towards the bedroom.
"You guys! Come on…" The dark-haired woman huffed, looking over to the snoring Tamsin and rolling her eyes. "Guess it's just me and Robot Zombies."
Bo turned the lamp on next to her bed as Lauren ruffled through an overnight bag she'd brought with her.
"You brought your own t-shirt to sleep in?" Bo said as she watched Lauren pull a top from her bag.
"It's Christmas themed." The blonde smiled as she pulled the white shirt with a green pine tree across her chest.
Lauren undressed with her back turned slightly but felt Bo's eyes on her. They both slipped into bed, Lauren lying flat on her back and Bo her side. They talk casually about the day's events, about the success of dinner and the decadent desserts.
Bo's hand lay on the doctor's stomach atop her t-shirt. Slowly her fingers began to creep under the hem of Lauren's top. A gentle graze of fingers settled on her skin and Lauren responded with an audible breath, it's an almost moan that encourages Bo on. A stillness sets between the two before Bo's fingers begin a light movement across the doctor's stomach. Lauren moves to turn, rolling her hips so that they are face to face. Bo's hand slides from stomach, to hip, to the small of the woman's back. They lay a breath away from each other, their eyes wide in waiting.
When they kiss it's like muscle memory enacted, effortless and synchronized. Bo's hand reaches further under Lauren's t-shirt and is positioned on the blades of her shoulders. She grips at skin and Lauren curses into her mouth. They separate, the blonde's eyes conflicted and confused.
"Roll onto you back." Bo purrs as she lays a gentle kiss of persuasion on Lauren's lips before the woman turns back. Her hand returns to the doctor's taut abdomen and her fingers drift upwards towards Lauren's breasts. The blonde moves into the connection as her soft skin is palmed and a thumb squeezes her nipple. Their mouths meet again and Lauren lifts her body in a languid attempt to roll over.
Even though subtle Bo senses the movement and puts her hand hard against the doctor's shoulder. "Don't." She says as they disconnect. "Just let me touch you. I don't want you to do anything." Her fingers ghost across Lauren's skin before her hand settles between her thighs. "I want you Lauren." She mutters as she gently pushes the woman's legs apart. "And I want you to want me too."
Lauren concedes without hesitation and groans into the light contact of fingers on the inside of her thigh. A million thoughts all at once and not one making sense as she's overcome with want. Every strike of flesh from Bo's hand and lips was leaving her kindled and ready to burn hot. Lauren lifts her shoulder attempting once more to turn her body into Bo's but Bo removes the hand resting between her legs and pushes her down on her back.
"Stay." She whispers again and Lauren whines just a little but stops when she feels a hand moving at the top of her underwear. Bo's fingers grip and she pulls the garment downwards. Lauren lifts her hips in assistance, exhaling loudly as Bo tugs the material down her legs, over her knees and off completely. When the brunette moves towards the pillow Lauren is sat up a little as she pulls her t-shirt over her head and throws it to the floor. Bo's eyes light up, pouring over every inch of exposed flesh now lying below her.
She lowers herself back to her side, pushing her still clothed body into Lauren's and moves her mouth to her ear. "I don't want you to touch me yet." Her voice is raspy as she breathes the words out. She moves her hand back to Lauren's stomach, gliding it over soft skin. She can feel Lauren's muscles twitch under the contact. "When I touch you, everything feels right." Lauren whimpers at the sound of Bo's voice and Bo captures her lips for just a moment. "I need you to feel that too. I think you do."
It's a supposition that can't be denied as Lauren gasps when Bo's hand slides over a hardened nipple but she feel compelled to speak anyway. "I…do." Two precious syllables that float from the blonde's lips and Bo squeezes her eyes shut tight on hearing them.
Bo hadn't acknowledged the anxiety buried deep in her chest since the last time they tried to have sex. The fear and overwhelming terror that perhaps that was the last time. "Tell me. Tell me this is what you want." She was begging now. Wanting desperately to be reassured as she moved her lips to Lauren's neck.
"I want you." Lauren whimpered.
Bo's teeth nipped at the skin of her neck as she brought her mouth back to Lauren's ear. "Tell me you need me."
"I…ne…need you." The blonde was gasping and murmuring between the letters of every word she spoke. Speech impeded and provoked all at the same time.
The brunette kissed her hard in reward as her hand glided down to Lauren's hip. Bo's heart was pounding so loudly in her ears she could scarcely hear anything else. She pulled away from the blonde, looking her in the eye as her hand once more returned to the inside of the woman's thigh. "I need you Lauren." Her fingers lightly drew over the woman's slick heat and the blonde moaned in approval or perhaps it was desperation. All the while they held each other's gaze. Investing themselves deeply until there was nothing left to see and think and feel but the each other. "I've always needed you. From the second I saw you."
Lauren's back arched and Bo slipped deeply inside her. Everything was for Lauren now and both could feel it. The noises, the panting, the begging, all of it belonged to her. When it didn't feel so completely overwhelming, when the heat swirling from her lungs to her core didn't feel as though it might burn right through her being, Lauren allowed herself to open her eyes. She allowed herself to see the eyes blazing erotic above her.
Things could not hold like this for long, not for Lauren. She'd thought about this, panicked about this, wished for it and pushed it away but in the end as Bo pushed into her she simply gorged upon it and unashamedly begged for more.
So Bo gave her more until a moan rose from the blonde's throat and clenching set around her fingers that told her relief was near. As Lauren came she finally got her way, holding Bo's hand inside her as she turned and flung her leg over the brunette's hip and rode herself to completion. Her teeth bore into the curve of Bo's neck, sucking and biting as she caught her breath.
Bo softly rolled Lauren back on her back and moved to her place lying next to her without once losing a physical connection. "Are you ok?" It was a tentative question born of still lingering doubt.
Lauren's mouth lifted to a wide smile before her eyes opened and looked at Bo. "I'm better than alright."
"Really?"
"Yeah, really." Lauren pulled Bo down for a kiss. "I forgot how good you were at that."
"Well I'm happy to keep reminding you." Bo began kissing the woman's neck again.
Lauren giggled. "Apparently I forgot how insatiable you are too." She pulled the woman's face up to look at her. "Thank you... For not pushing me."
"Come." Bo lifted her arm and Lauren moved into her embrace before resting her head in the crook of her neck. "Let's sleep. Right now that's all I want. This is all I want."
Lauren smiled into Bo skin and the two closed their eyes warm and content in each other's embrace. A first Christmas together, four years in the making, and things could not have gone better.
Benji Venman lay awake in his cot in a holding cell within a reprimand center while he waited to be moved to prison. It was Christmas and he was alone and captured. Thoughts of revenge were never far from his mind but on this day he plotted the final act of his life's tragedy. There would be blood but more importantly there would be reprisals and reparations made. He had begun to plan his new years resolutions in full.
A/N - Sorry for the delay folks, been on the road for what feels like a lifetime. Thank you so so much for the reviews and messages, for reading and just generally giving a shit about this fic, it means a mountain. *Big cuddles*. Like seriously big...you're struggling to breathe right now.