Author's Note: I'm home sick today. Bad for me, good for you. I'm bored and I felt like updating, so you guys get to find out what went down with the Bang. Bang. Bang a day early. Next update will probably be Thursday if I think enough people are up to date. Otherwise, Friday. Maybe both. We'll see. Enjoy the chapter.
Oh, and in a bizarre fit of boredom this morning I did a statistical analysis on a random sample of CI oneshots and determined that CI oneshots on this site average 8 reviews with a standard deviation of 6. The practical upshot of all this is a C2 I created that will only contain stories that fall in the top 2.5 percent in review volume. It's called CI Bellcurve blowing oneshots. Check it out. I am working on cataloguing. Any oneshot that has 20 or more reviews makes the cut.
Disclaimer: Law & Order: Criminal Intent belongs to Dick Wolf, NBC, and Wolf Films, et al. The characters and setting are borrowed without permission. This is a work of fan fiction. The plot belongs to me. I am making no money from this. I humbly request not to be sued.
Title: The Ivy Green
By: Marion
Chapter: 36
Alex had picked back up her gun and was reinserting the clip. She turned at the sound of the shots. Ambrose Roberts stood in front of the dais, in front of his child in her coffin, a gun in his hand.
Things seemed to go in slow motion for Mike Logan. The prisoner he was guiding through the bathroom door jerked violently as two bullets ripped through his chest. Aaron Marsen fell forward, his blood seeping out all over the floor. His life seeping away with it. Logan knelt and felt the boy for a pulse.
"Drop your weapon and put your hands up," Alex shouted at Mr. Roberts. He let the gun slip from his fingers and he raised his hands.
"He's dead, Wheeler," said Mike. He turned toward his young partner. "Wheeler?"
She was sprawled on the floor where she'd fallen back into the men's room. Blood was seeping out of her side. The third bullet had missed Aaron and hit Megan Wheeler just below her bulletproof vest.
"Call a bus," Mike shouted at the top of his lungs. "Wheeler's been hit!"
An officer near him called for the ambulance. Mike knelt beside his partner. She looked blearily up at him. He tried to find the clasp for her vest. When it didn't immediately present its self he took out his pocketknife and began cutting though the straps. "Stay with me, freckles," he yelled. He tore the vest away. He ripped the sleeves off his shirt and balled them up. He clamped the wad over the bullet wound, holding it in place with one of his long hands.
He slid his other hand gently beneath her head, trying to give her a better pillow than the cold floor of the men's room. "Talk to me, Wheeler," he commanded.
"It hurts," she managed to gasp out.
"I know honey," he said. "Bus is on the way. You're gonna be fine."
"Why'd you do it?" Alex asked, jerking Ambrose Roberts toward another officer.
"He killed my little girl," he said.
"Read him his rights," she commanded the other officer. Then she sprinted toward the men's room.
"How bad?" she asked, kneeling beside Mike.
"Depends on what it hit," said Mike. "The gut is a bad place to get shot. She's losing blood fast."
Wheeler moaned slightly. "Megan," said Alex. "You're going to be okay, you hear me?"
Wheeler's eyes began to roll back into her head, her eyelids drooping shut. "Stay with me, Wheeler," Mike shouted. "I'm not losing another partner this way, you hear me! Open your eyes."
An officer held open the door as paramedics rushed in with a backboard. "How hard did she fall?" one of the paramedics asked, taking over for Mike putting pressure on the bullet wound.
"She fell backwards when she was hit," said Mike.
"Put a neck brace on her," the paramedic said to his colleagues. "Let's get her out of here. She needs surgery. Call ahead to St. Vincent's. Tell them to have an OR ready."
They hoisted Megan Wheeler on the back brace and headed for the exit. Mike jogged after them. "Can I ride with you? She's my partner." The paramedics agreed.
xxx
Alex met Bobby and Ivy outside.
"Is Wheeler okay?" he asked. "How bad was she hit?" Ivy was clinging to his arm.
"She took one to the gut, just below her vest," said Alex. "She's being taken to St. Vincent's. Aaron's DOA."
"Roberts was the shooter?" he asked. He'd missed the shooting but he'd seen Roberts ushered into a police car.
"Yeah," said Alex. "He said he did it because Aaron killed Shyné. I think Wheeler got hit by accident." She knelt down to Ivy so she could look her right in the eye. "You were very brave," she said, reaching out to stroke Ivy's cheek. "How are you feeling?"
"My stomach's upset," said Ivy. "I… I'm trying not to throw up."
"Let's see if we can't find you some water," said Alex. "I'll be right back." She went to the bodega across the street and bought Ivy a bottle of water. She returned and gave it to her.
"I… I don't want to go back to Belleview," Ivy said sadly. "I want to stay with you." She buried her face against Bobby's midsection. He kept an arm around her.
"I want you to stay with me, too," he said. After the events of the day, he didn't want to let Ivy out of his sight, much less relinquish her back to the state mental health authority. "Ivy, stay with Alex for just a minute. I'm going to call my lawyer."
Ivy reluctantly let go of her uncle. He went off to the side where it wasn't a bustling hub of police officers. "Let's go sit on the steps," Alex suggested. Ivy nodded and followed her uncle's partner to the church steps to sit down.
"Hello," Bobby said into his phone. "This is Robert Goren. I need to speak with Jonathan Ryes please. It's urgent."
"Bobby?" Jonathan Ryes came on the line. "What's happened? My secretary said it was urgent."
"I took my niece to the funeral I told you about this morning," said Bobby. "I don't know if you've seen the news about the hostage situation that took place there."
"Oh, shit, that was you?"
"Ivy was the hostage," he said. "My partner and I, along with our backup, managed to talk the guy down. But Ivy is pretty shaken up. She doesn't want to go back to Belleview, and frankly I'm not ready to let her out of my sight. It's been a really tough day. Is there anything I can do to bring Ivy home with me tonight?"
"I could try to file for emergency temporary custody for you," said the lawyer. "But I'm going to be honest with you. You aren't her parent and the state isn't abusing her. You don't have much of a case to grant you immediate custody."
"Isn't there something we can do? Sending her back to Belleview is not in her best interest. She's had a terrifying ordeal and she needs emotional support," said Bobby.
"I can contact the social worker assigned to Ivy's case," said Jonathan. "She might grant you temporary custody, in light of the circumstances. If that doesn't work we can try to get a judge to assign Ivy a guardian ad liedum, who will decide what's in Ivy's best interest."
"So there's hope?"
"A little," she said. "Your biggest problem is that your niece isn't up for adoption. Your brother retains parental rights."
"Can he sign them away?" Bobby asked. "Can he give them to me?"
"He can, but the state will still investigate to make sure you are a fit guardian for Ivy," said Jonathan. "And if he gives up his parental rights, it will be difficult for him to get them back. You have other options, albeit more difficult and time-consuming ones. He may not want to relinquish his rights."
"Fair enough," said Bobby. "What are the odds I can take her home with me tonight?"
"I'm going to be honest with you," said the lawyer. "It's not going to happen. You have to take her back to Belleview. Compliance with the state's wishes will improve your chances of getting custody. Fight them and you'll be blacklisted."
"I understand," he said, sounding none too happy about it.
"She'll be living with you before you know it," Jonathan soothed.
"I hope so," he said. "Thank you for your help. I'll see you Friday about the paperwork we discussed."
"Bye, Bobby," he said.
He hung up the phone and gazed sadly at the little girl sitting with his partner. His instincts all said to keep her with him. Keep her safe. He hated that he had to take her back to the hospital. He walked back to where his partner and his niece were waiting on the steps of the church.
Ivy stood up when he came over to them. "Can I go home with you?" she asked. The hope that filled her eyes crushed something inside of him. She could tell by the look on his face that the answer wasn't yes. Her face fell.
"I'm sorry, kidlet," he said. "If I were to fight the state's wishes and break policies… it might keep them from ever letting me get custody of you. I… I have to take you back to Belleview tonight."
Ivy didn't say anything. She just wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her cheek against his chest. He draped his arms around her shoulders and held her close.
"I'm going to head over to St. Vincent's to check on Wheeler," said Alex. "I need to call Ross and make sure he knows where she is."
Bobby nodded. She laid a hand on his arm for a moment. "Bye, Ivy," she said. "I'll see you soon."
"Bye, Alex," said Ivy.
Authors note: Poor kid. As always, reviews are highly appreciated. You guys rock.