Author's Note: Huge thanks to notesofwimsey for her help with this chapter. There are two more chapters (already written) plus and epilogue (about to be written) after this one. The next one will, internet access permitting, be up between Christmas and New Year!
Merry Christmas!
Chapter 28 - Vengeance
Vengeance has no foresight.
Napolean Bonaparte
'We could stay at my apartment or a hotel if you prefer.' Despite his best efforts, Hawkes couldn't stop the fear and frustration he was feeling from showing in his voice. 'Please, Lucy. Mac's agreed to me taking some time off but I have to be in court today.'
He was pleading now, desperate for her to acknowledge the danger, desperate to be able to keep her safe. He carried a gun but only because it was a requirement of the job. So far he'd never had to use it; in fact, he'd often privately doubted his ability to be able to shoot another human being. Until now.
'You know I can't go anywhere until this afternoon at the earliest.' She was on sick leave until her blood pressure was back under control, but paperwork didn't respect anyone's health status and the hospital was sending over some charts for her to sign.
She moved into his embrace, speaking softly. 'I won't open the door to anyone I'm not expecting, I promise, and if you are still worried we can check into a hotel for a few nights, maybe even go out of town for a few days.' Her tone was conciliatory: a vain attempt to calm his fears.
He tightened his arms around her, breathing in her scent. 'You should have someone here with you –'
The sound of knocking stopped his words. He pushed her gently away from him and with a wave of his hand indicated she should wait in the bedroom. Once he was certain she was staying put, he moved to the front door, gun in hand, and looked through the spy hole.
Mac and Lindsay.
He let his breath out in a hiss and opened the door. If either were surprised that he had a gun in his hand, neither showed it. He stepped back to allow them to enter as he called to Lucy.
She emerged from the bedroom, a wary look in her eyes: an expression mirrored by Lindsay.
Mac didn't bother with pleasantries and, ignoring the tension between the two women, spoke directly to Hawkes. 'I understand that the hospital is sending over some paperwork for Lucy to sign later today. I've talked this over with Flack and we don't think it's a good idea for Lucy to wait on her own, so Lindsay will stay with her until you get back from court. Then we are going to move you both to a hotel.'
A faint sound of protest from behind him told Hawkes what Lucy thought of this idea. Judging by the studiously neutral expression on Lindsay's face, she was feeling the same. He groped for the right words to suggest to Mac they find someone else but before he could speak Mac continued, this time addressing Lucy.
'I know things are difficult between the two of you but it's only for a few hours, and Lindsay is the only detective available.'
Hawkes turned to look at Lucy. She looked as if she was about to protest until she caught the expression in his eye. The moment between them stretched; then she shrugged her shoulders in acquiescence. Mac nodded and turned to Lindsay.
'No-one comes in unless it is one of the team. When the courier arrives the doorman will take the package, bring it to the door and then wait in the hallway while Lucy signs the charts. Then the doorman will take the signed paperwork downstairs to the courier.'
Lindsay nodded then jumped as Lucy began to crash dishes together in the kitchen. If he needed any proof at all, Hawkes was now certain that Lucy was seriously pissed off. He smiled weakly. 'Coffee?'
xOx
Stella couldn't keep the smile from splitting her face as Doug stepped out of the elevator. Two hours ago she had been breaking her golden rule of always eating breakfast, preferring the feel of his hands and mouth on her body to cereal and juice. Now he was here at the crime lab with, hopefully, the answer to why the killer had targeted Helen Young.
He was smiling as broadly as she was as he dropped a quick kiss on her lips, but didn't waste any time. 'Here it is.'
Stella took the manila folder he was holding out to her and began to read rapidly as she led Doug towards her office. As she reached her office door she heard a familiar voice.
'Stella.'
Flack and Danny were heading towards her. Danny acknowledged Doug with a wary nod of his head whilst Flack smiled broadly at him.
'Hey Monroe, what brings you here?'
Stella stepped into her office and the three men followed her. Once they were inside she waved the folder. 'Doug's friend has managed to find out why our killer believed that Helen Young had to die.' As both men's eyebrows shot to their hairlines as she continued, reading from the information in the folder. 'Apparently Helen Young was having an affair with the hospital's Chief of Staff.' She looked up. 'Who just happened to be married to the Police Chief's sister.'
Flack scowled. 'So they expunged the file of any reference to the affair to save her embarrassment?'
'Apparently she wasn't a suspect because she was in Los Angeles at the time of the murder and so when she begged her brother not to make the affair public knowledge he agreed.' Doug nodded toward the file. 'I don't know why they bothered because it seems to be general knowledge at the hospital.'
Stella looked thoughtful 'Well, Lucy isn't having an affair, so hopefully the killer doesn't have a reason to go after her.'
Flack considered this for a moment 'But the note the killer left suggested it was because she had sinned, rather than the specific sin of adultery, that had led to her being killed.' Three pairs of eyes looked questioningly at Stella. She tried again.
'What I mean is, it may not be adultery that is the trigger. It could just be that Helen Young had sinned.'
'You mean that if they believe that Lucy has sinned they may go after her.' Danny spoke slowly. Stella stared at him.
'What? Come on Danny. What is it that's bothering you?'
'When we were at the hospital yesterday Lucy had me recorded as the father of the baby and Sheldon recorded as her next of kin. The nurse who took the details was very….I don't know, disapproving.'
Flack nodded. 'Hawkes rang me this morning and told me about it. I'm having the nurse checked out.'
Stella was watching Danny. He was rocking back and forth on his heels, a look of intense concentration on his face. She glanced at Flack who was also watching Danny. He nudged his arm.
'What are you thinking?'
'The killer sent Lucy and Hawkes flowers to congratulate them on 'their' baby. If the killer works at the hospital they may have access to hospital records. What if they access the records and find out that Hawkes isn't the father of his fiancées baby? That might be a reason to target Lucy.'
Stella met Flack's eyes. 'We need to speak to Mac.' The two of them headed out of the office leaving Danny and Doug alone.
xOx
'Lindsay is with Lucy today.' Danny paced up and down as he tried to quieten the worry that was welling up inside of him.
'You think there will be trouble?'
'I know Lindsay is having a tough time coping with all of this and I'm betting Lucy can think of a few people she'd rather spend the day with too.'
'Lindsay loves you. Give her time – she'll be fine.'
Danny stared at him, suspiciously. 'You're being very understanding about this.' He watched as Doug turned away to stare out of the window for a few moments before he turned back to face Danny again.
'A few years ago, I was based in London. I was dating a nurse – Rebecca.' Doug paused for a moment and his face softened. 'We had a lot of fun but it was never really serious for me. About six months into the relationship I was offered a new assignment in Paris. When I told her she was really excited.' His voice trailed away and his face tightened.
Danny prompted, 'She thought you wanted her to go with you?'
Doug nodded. 'Yeah, I really fucked that one up. She was devastated when I told her that I wasn't ready for that level of commitment.' He pulled a face. 'Thinking about it now, I was a prize ass, but at the time I was just too full of myself and my precious career.'
He perched on the window ledge, his hands shoved deep into his pockets, his chin sunk into his chest. 'I'd been in Paris for 6 weeks when she called me to tell me she was pregnant, and that she was keeping it. She didn't want anything from me, just thought I ought to know. After I'd hit the bar and drunk myself stupid, I took a week off work, got on a plane and flew back to London. We spent some time together and by the end of the week I'd convinced her to come to Paris with me.'
For the first time he met Danny's eyes. 'So I do understand why you can't walk away from this child.'
'So what happened between you and Rebecca?' Danny had a feeling there was more to the story. Doug stood up, an inscrutable expression on his face.
'Funnily enough it was working well and I was even getting ready to tell my parents about her and the baby.' He paused and Danny waited, certain that there wasn't a happy ending to this story. 'But when she was four months pregnant she was knocked down and killed by a drunk driver.'
'That's rough. I'm sorry.' The words were inadequate and he groped for something else to say but couldn't think of anything. Doug didn't seem to mind. Instead he shrugged.
'It happened a long time ago. Anyway, like I say, I understand.'
xOx
'Who was that?'
Lindsay clipped her cell phone back onto her belt and turned around to see that Lucy had come into the sitting room. Since Hawkes had left for court, any interaction between them had been restricted to the offering and acceptance of coffee and an explanation as to the location of the bathroom. The cloak of introspection Lucy had wrapped herself in was something Lindsay could identify with and certainly not something she was comfortable in attempting to pierce.
Lindsay hesitated. Hawkes had taken her to one side as he left, telling her about Lucy's high blood pressure and impressing on her how important it was that she stay calm.
Then again, you know how much you hate being kept in the dark.
'It was Mac. They have more information about Helen Young's death. He just wanted me to tell you that they will keep working on it and not to worry too much.' At Lucy's raised eyebrows she smiled wryly. 'I know: drives you mad when people tell you that, doesn't it?'
A momentary pause, then Lucy smiled, tentatively.
'Yeah it does.'
Silence stretched between them for a moment, and then Lucy stepped into the room. 'I couldn't manage any breakfast this morning but I'm feeling hungry now….can I get you something?'
Lindsay stomach rumbled gently. She smiled. 'I missed breakfast too. I'd love something to eat.'
xOx
'Sandra Farmer.'
'Huh?' Stella and Mac both looked up from where they were studying the psych profile the FBI had just sent back to them.
'Sandra Farmer is the name of the OB GYN nurse who gave Lucy a hard time at the scan yesterday.' Flack couldn't keep the faint ripple of excitement he was feeling from his voice as he continued. 'And get this; before the start of this year Sandra Farmer didn't exist. Her Social Security number, driver's licence, everything was issued a few months ago.'
'You have an address?'
Mac and Stella were on their feet, hands automatically checking their guns.
'Yep, and the car's downstairs and the engine's running.'
xOx
'How's it going?'
Adam sent Danny a frustrated look. 'It's barely moving. Getting the records from some of these agencies is almost impossible.' He indicated the pile of paper in front of him. 'I mean, in the age of wireless internet technology what sort of craptastic organisation doesn't have computerised records?'
Danny slipped into the seat next to him. 'You have to go through these manually?'
'Yeah, and have you seen how many of them there are?'
'Give me some, I'll help.'
Adam hesitated. 'Look man, there is nothing I would like more, but Mac told me that he wanted me doing it and that you and Lindsay and Hawkes were not to be involved.'
'Mac's not here and we don't have enough time for you to do this by yourself.' He held his hand out, as his voice took on a more urgent tone. 'I'll take the heat with Mac, but we need to find this woman before she kills someone else.'
xOx
'We can't find her. She was due to be on shift this morning but she swopped with a colleague last night.' Flack paused at the door to Sandra Farmer's bed sit and watched as Mac and Stella continued to photograph and process the room. 'You found anything?'
Stella stood up and handed Flack an open notebook, encased in a clear plastic evidence bag. He looked and saw a list of biblical references.
'Exodus 20:14. Ezekiel 16:38. Revelation 2:22. Leviticus 20:10.' He looked up, a question in his eyes. Stella picked up a bible.
'Exodus 20:14. Thou shalt not commit adultery.' She flipped the page and Flack noticed that some of the pages were marked with scraps of paper acting as bookmarks. 'Ezekiel 16:38. I will sentence you to the punishment of women who commit adultery and who shed blood; I will bring upon you the blood vengeance of my wrath and jealous anger.'
Flack let out a long breath 'She sounds like some sort of religious nut. But I don't understand the references to adultery – Lucy isn't married to Hawkes nor was she married to Josh so she hasn't committed adultery.'
Stella nodded as she flipped the page again. 'Yes, but some people would consider an engagement as good as a marriage.' She looked down at the bible she held and began to read again. 'Revelation 2:22. So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways.' The pages flipped rapidly again and Flack caught Mac's eye, a cold feeling in the pit of his stomach as Stella read out the final quotation. 'Leviticus 20:10. If a man commits adultery with another man's wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death.'
Flack stared, horrified, at Mac and Stella. 'My god. She's going after Danny as well.'
