Chapter 35

"Alright everyone, we all know the drill by now," Jamie advised as he held a crowded roll call meeting with his expanded platoon before their scheduled swing shift. It was Friday afternoon, a full week into the siege directed at the 3-5 and 12th precincts. Thus far there had not been one break in the case, but also thankfully no signs of any of the promised violence. All the ranking officers at each house were pulling daily double shifts as were at least half of the regular patrol men and women so that numbers were ramped up across the board. Everyone was tired and running on empty by this point, but the brain trust at 1PP was loath to dial back the response just yet as a second threatening letter had been delivered two days earlier with much the same message.

"We have a real-feel temperature outside of twenty degrees right now with another strong arctic front approaching," Jamie continued. "Temperatures are going to drop into the single digits within the next two hours and the wind chill will put us below zero so we are in a Code Blue. I want extra effort put into making sure every single one of the homeless in our district are in a shelter tonight. We've already seen three deaths this week due to exposure. I know some of them refuse to go, but pick them up anyway. There are warming stations set up at every available point. All officers are advised to be prepared for extreme temperatures. Be smart if you have to be out of the car people and keep your eyes open for any trouble. As we have seen, Central will dispatch two units to each call, and the sergeants and lieutenant on duty will be floating to each scene as needed." He paused to look up and catch the eyes of Lieutenant Carson and Sergeant Michael who were both standing in the back of the room and assigned to cover the shift with him. "Stay safe tonight, everyone. I know that the added hours are difficult in these conditions, and I appreciate the fine manner with which you have all conducted yourselves over the past week. That's all. Dismissed," he added.

Jamie made his way back to his office and paused to rub his hands over his tired face. He had already been on duty for the first shift and was looking at another eight hours before he could get some rest. As if things weren't bad enough, Kaylin's next and possible final court date was scheduled for the following Tuesday and he was afraid to request a continuance given Ms. Adam's assertion that he was already unable to provide a stable environment for the little girl. His soon-to-be official daughter was now permanently camped out at the family home with Henry and his father as well as a rotating contingent of the other family members who would come and stay with her as needed so that Jamie could concentrate on the difficult job at hand. He paused to glance down at his phone. There was a message from Mr. Gillespie that the engagement ring was finally done and ready to be picked up. Terrific. In addition to his own worries, he had found himself increasingly obsessed with Eddie's safety since as far as anyone was concerned she was also in added danger at the 12th, and he knew she was likewise on her second tour of duty that evening. The ring could wait, he waffled. It's not like he was planning on giving it to her just yet anyway... there were so many other things that needed to be orchestrated before that would happen, but for some reason he just wanted it in his hands… to have something real to hold onto while all of this other stuff played out. The decision was made to drop by on meal break and pick it up after a quick call to his brother confirmed that Danny was willing and able to do him a favor that night.

"You okay, Sarge?" George's voice floated in from the doorway as his rookie stood waiting for him. "I've got the car all warmed up." The young officer had grown by leaps and bounds in confidence over the past few weeks and Jamie had begun to trust him to ride out with other veterans although he found he still preferred to partner with him whenever possible. Tonight though all manpower was sacred, and he had some administrative duties to take care of before he could hit the street. Like it or not, even under threat, things like time cards and schedules needed to be approved and produced or he would have a roomful of angry personnel when payday arrived and there were no checks waiting, especially with the overtime everyone was pulling.

"Yeah, George, thanks," Jamie answered as he reached for his radio to call into one of his units before they left. "But I've got to take care of a few things here before I catch up with you. I'm gonna put you in the car with Patterson and Richards until then. No sense in you sitting around the precinct. You stick with Mike and keep your eyes open to help them. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," George responded. "Here's the keys," he added as he tossed them to his TO.

"Thanks, they're waiting for you out front," Jamie confirmed. "Be safe out there," he added as he watched the young man depart, not realizing that an interested set of eyes was still locked on the pair from across the room. Tonight was the night, as closing arguments were set to be heard in the big trial on Monday morning, and now the two main targets were splitting up. That was unfortunate and would make things more difficult Jimmy Michael thought nervously as he fingered a small device in his pocket and texted an accomplice to tell him to hold off on making an important call to set things in motion just yet. If push came to shove, it would be the rookie that found himself with wings tonight, as another dead partner would surely be enough of a distraction to the youngest Reagan to serve the intended purpose. Denison wanted both of them taken out though, and Jimmy was not about to cross that man who had shown no hesitation in ridding himself of anyone that got in his way.

###

Across town, another worried Reagan was also watching the clock as he remained in his office. Frank himself had not been able to rest while his officers and own son were under such a dire threat and he had grown frustrated with the lack of progress the CSI team had made in tracking down where the menacing letters had originated from. The fact that there was no tiny printer steganography or watermarks imprinted on the pages only reinforced the notion that whoever had done this was organized and well-versed in forensics… one of the NYPD own most likely. The lead supervisor was due to arrive within the hour for another update and the Commissioner was in no mood to hear any more excuses. With the holidays only three weeks away he wanted this crisis put to an end so that operations at the two precincts could go back to normal and his officers could get some rest. Even if no direct threat emerged, a tired workforce meant that mistakes were more likely to occur, and in this business that in itself could prove deadly.

Garrett was respectfully quiet as he entered the room and made his way to the couch with some bags of takeout for dinner. He knew his boss's temper was short and had no intentions of exacerbating the situation. Frank was standing at the window and looking out at the nearly frozen city again, an almost constant state in the last week. He sighed as he pursed his lips and conceded the position to join his DCPI for a bite to eat while worrying if his son had thought to do the same recently. His only solace in this was the fact that by keeping Kaylin there, he had forced Jamie to stay at the family home when he wasn't on duty so that one of them could monitor his food and sleep intake to a degree. Even with that precaution, his youngest had taken on a gaunt look this week and Frank was growing concerned that the stress of this coupled with Kaylin's upcoming court proceedings was going to land him in big trouble soon.

"I checked with dispatch before I came in here," Garrett offered for a bit of small talk. "The radio's been quiet across the city tonight. No one's moving in this weather."

"That's a positive I guess," Frank mused as he took a bite of his sandwich. It would be a very good thing if it stayed that way, he thought although he wondered how many times the coroner would be called out for the unfortunate who had not found a warm venue. At least there was no precipitation coming with the front, just a bitter freeze descending on the whole region.

"Frank…"

"Don't Garrett... don't even say it," the Commissioner growled. "All I want to hear is that the CSI unit has figured out who's behind this or I swear to you I will rip this whole building apart one brick at a time until I come up with the answer myself."

###

Jamie glanced at his watch as he climbed into the squad car by himself outside of the precinct. The radio had remained essentially quiet all evening, and he had been able to clear the backlog of necessary paperwork off his desk while Carson and Michael covered the active scenes. It was now just before eight o'clock, and if he hurried he could meet Danny at the jeweler's before they closed and grab some food before retrieving George and finishing up the tour out on patrol where he belonged. He had just pulled his phone out to talk to his brother while the car warmed up when his radio crackled with a call.

"On the air… 12-Sergeant, 12-Adam, 3-5 Sergeant, 3-5 Adam, 3-5 Charles, 3-5 Edward, Central. Report of a 10-30 armed intruder at the construction project, Amsterdam and Bridge. All units respond."

"10-4, 3-5 Sergeant," Jamie keyed into his radio with a frown. "Not that place again," he muttered as he slipped his phone back into his pocket while hitting the lights and siren. So much for picking up the ring or dinner for the matter. Both would have to wait. At least it sounded like Eddie was staying warm as she and Wilson had been spared from this incident.

After a brief drive, Jamie found himself pulling up on the scene and parking outside of the perimeter fence at the same time as Renzulli. It was obvious that the lock to the walk-through gate had been cut and it hung open. "We've gotta stop meeting like this, Reagan," the older man joked as he got out of his car with Sam. The second unit from the 12th arrived soon after and Jamie could see that the RMPs for 3-5 Charles with Patterson, Richards and George as well as Sergeant Michael were already on site but there was no sign of the officers. He frowned knowing that Michael should have waited for the additional units to arrive before taking his men in there. "3-5 Charles, report," Jamie barked into his mic.

"3-5 Charles entering right building, Sarge," Patterson reported. "We've got a breached door in the back."

"Hold for an additional unit." Jamie ordered as Renzulli waved his second squad to follow in. "12-Adam is coming. 3-5 Edward, where are you Mahoy?"

"Far left building with Sergeant Michael, sir," George's voice reported. "We also have a breached rear door."

"Hold for backup," Jamie repeated with his sixth sense for danger flaring as he looked over at his old TO. They were both uneasy and thinking the same thing.

"What the hell is going on here tonight?" Renzulli griped as he drew his weapon out and looked around. "There's not much in those buildings yet, is there? Maybe someone's just looking for a place to get warm. What do you want to do, Jamie?"

"Something's not right, Sarge," Jamie said shaking his head. Part of him wanted to call for a bigger response, but the thought of his rookie out there in the dark with only Michael for backup drove him on. "You and Sam take a look at the middle structure. I'm going to go and see what Jimmy's doing with Mahoy over there. We'll rethink this maybe when we figure out what's happening."

"Watch your six, Reagan," Renzulli warned. "I got a bad feeling about this for some reason."

"Me too," Jamie agreed as they split up and he moved off to the side in the dark and quickly approached the building on the left. He was startled to find Michael standing outside alone on his phone. "Where's Mahoy?" he demanded as he glanced inside the open doorway with his flashlight. It was obvious from the drywall dust that had settled from the recent construction progress that there was only one set of fresh tracks in the hall and they led directly to the below ground stairwell.

"Sent him down to clear the basement," Michael grinned at Jamie's sharp look. This was going to work out perfectly and he had an open line recording the conversation with the precinct to give himself an alibi. "C'mon… there's no one else in there, you can see that. You coddle that kid too much, Reagan. He's never gonna be a cop anyone can count on. Some high and mighty training officer you make yourself out to be. Damn rookie's knees were shaking when I told him to get in there… he never even stopped to think that the building's already empty. Told him to stay down there until he checked every inch of that space since there was some kind of smell. He's too scared to even answer his radio now," Michael laughed out loud. "Why don't you go and see if you can talk him out of there while I go back up some real cops," he chuckled as he moved off while fingering the device in his pocket and watching Jamie's actions intently. Walter Denison had rigged the three large propane tanks on the outside of the far wall to blow in succession while a small fixed gas leak inside would ensure the whole building would flash and implode causing all four stories of the high ceiling brick building to come crashing down and bury the evidence along with anything, or anyone else who might be inside it. It'll take a week for them to reach the bodies down there, Michael chuckled as he moved off to safety.

Jamie was shaking his head and just about to lay into the other sergeant in anger when Renzulli and the other units all radioed in clear and his own phone vibrated in his pocket… a message and missed call from his father.

"119"

"AH, DAMN IT!" he muttered as he swiped the screen to call back as he walked into the building flashing his light and proceeded down the hallway to retrieve his rookie who probably needed to be peeled out of the basement by this point in much the same manner that Kaylin came out of her snow clothes lately. He'd had such high hopes for George but this looked to be a pretty bad mistake even if he was following orders. "MAHOY!" he yelled and proceeded down the steps after him when he didn't receive a response.

###

Frank Reagan had just started pacing after placing the unsuccessful call to his son before relief swept over him as it was almost immediately returned. The CSI supervisor William Reed sat nervously with Garrett on the chairs on front of the desk as they watched the Commissioner frown when he put the phone up to his ear.

"What is it, Dad?" Jamie asked somewhat irritably as he carefully worked his way down the steps and unto the uneven basement surface. Mounds of soft dirt were scattered about as the floors had been torn up and footers excavated for reinforcement. The temperature was hovering just above freezing as the propane-fueled heaters were set to keep the structure just warm enough to keep the heavy factory-grade pipes from being damaged during the extensive renovation. He covered the phone's microphone briefly to try another time to reach his rookie. "MAHOY! ANSWER ME NOW!" he ordered before returning the device to his ear as he walked towards the southwest side of the building.

"Jamie, where are you?" Frank demanded as the news the CSI had delivered had finally clicked all the pieces into place for him.

"The Bridgewater construction site on Amsterdam... why?" his son answered as he turned the corner and finally spotted his young officer, standing apparently frozen in the center of the dark cluttered area, staring blankly at his light shining on the ground. "Oh no, George," Jamie sighed as he quickly walked towards him, it was apparent from his shaking stature and rasping breaths that the rookie was in the middle of a full-blown panic attack… the battle with claustrophobia and his hope for a career as an NYPD patrol officer lost.

"SON, YOU NEED TO GET TO SOMEPLACE SAFE, NOW!" Frank ordered as he was already reaching for his overcoat and motioning Garrett to call for his detail and the car.

"WHY? WHAT'S THE MATTER?" Jamie paused as he was caught between two equally bizarre realities with neither of them making any sense at the present, but the tone that his father had in his voice was most unnerving, even above the fact that George had remained standing like a statue for this long with no response.

"JAMIE!" Frank yelled in a panic as he sensed that maybe the warning was coming too late based on his son's reaction. "CSI narrowed the paper and toner used on the threatening letters to the printer right here in the legal department at 1PP! You've been right about something being corrupt there all along! If anyone is in danger, it's you and your partner! Now get to your car and meet me at the precinct immediately! You're both being placed into protective custody until we get to the bottom of this!"

"Oh, shit!" Jamie muttered as his legs started to run towards the rookie while he made the connection to Denison and the fact that he and George had been sent down in this basement by Jimmy Michael on purpose. "George!" he yelled as he reached the young man. "GEORGE! WE'VE GOTTA GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE! MOVE!" he implored as he gave him a violent shove back towards the stairwell and their only avenue of escape just before the world flashed to a brilliant mind-numbing white and then faded to blissful black as the air left their bodies and the sky fell down on them.

"JAMIE!" Frank called frantically as he stood at his desk and the line went dead. He stared back blankly at the device in his hand and the shocked faces of Garrett and CSI Reed that mirrored his own.

"God... I think something's happened."

And that's not even the worst of it, believe it or not! We're on a real run now until the end, and remember the title of the story? There's more yet to come into play for our two favorite superheros, and it's going to take a whole team to try to save them both if that's even possible at this point.

Also, thank you once again to all my loyal readers and reviewers! You guys keep me motivated to keep writing!