Chapter 38: Morning After

Note: Thanks once more to all the people who are taking the time to review and let me know what you think about the story. Your feedback is very important to me and of course also very appreciated! Of course also a big thank you to my beta Forest Angel.

Disclaimer: CSI:NY and the associated characters are property of CBS, A. Zuiker and other people whom I have no connection to. This is fan fiction and not for profit…

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What happened so far…

Mark Parker, CSU supervisor for the Bronx Crime Lab has brought over the files for the Bryant Park Case so that Mac can check them out for any references to the two murder cases, the Manhattan Crime Lab is currently processing. He also had some news about the group who had taken Mac and several others hostage. Obviously they send in a tape to Major Case in which they demand once more the Councilman to be brought before them. They're further asking for him to be put to justice for the 'sins' he has committed. While Mac is intrigued by this news there isn't much he or anyone else at the lab can do at the moment. So he takes the time and invites Stella over for dinner. Unfortunately, for him, his still recuperating body gives out on him way too soon and he falls asleep on her.

And now the story continues…

The next time Mac woke up, dawn was already claiming the city once again. He yawned and slowly turned around to this side. It seemed that this time he had managed not to aggravate his injury any further. Good, that way he wouldn't have to lie to Stella when he saw her on shift. Sighing he got up in slow motion, his back briefly seizing at the cramped way he was holding himself. Damn, he had never felt this old before. With a short push against his lower back he forced himself to stand up straight and felt much better right away. This protective stance his body was automatically taking to accommodate for his bruised ribs, wasn't good for the rest of his weary frame - forcing his body to sleep in a position he normally wouldn't hold for very long hadn't helped either. Taking a deep breath he forced himself to walk into the bathroom. Another hot shower would hopefully cure most of the stiffness in his muscles.

True to his hope, he was feeling much better after the shower. Since he was now officially back on duty he chose his regular suit shirt and pants, opting for blue today. Slowly his hand slid over the soft material of the shirt when he checked over his appearance in the mirror. He really liked this shirt - not just because it was very comfortable. The light blue pastel tone actually looked a bit too casual on some occasions but that wasn't why he liked it either. No, the reason why wore this shirt quite often during the last two and a half years was that it had been a present from his best friend. After losing his luggage during the flight back from London he had been short on plain shirts, so he had went shopping. Granted, the black silk shirt she had liked most wasn't something he was wearing too often at work, since he always got some funny looks from his staff in that one, but the light blue shirt was by now well worn and would probably need some replacement soon.

For a moment the idea to ask her if she would go shopping with him once more was crossing his mind. Smiling he shook his head. Not a good idea considering their working relationship. Last time she had driven him to the store after work and opted to drop in with him. But this time he would actually have to ask her if she would come with him. That wasn't something you're supposed to ask your subordinate. Grinning at his reflection, Mac wondered if there was a special section in the sexual harassment prevention memos they got every month that would apply to this situation. Although he knew Stella wouldn't see it as that and would more likely laugh out loud at the mere suggestion.

He sighed and finally turned away from the mirror. Time to get some coffee and breakfast before he went in to work. He had thought about going for a run first but with his ribs still hurting from last night's awkward sleeping position, he'd rather not injure himself any further. Additionally this would make sure Stella didn't kick his ass for not taking care of himself the few hours he had been on his own.

That thought send another stab of pain through his stomach. Maybe it had been a mistake to invite her over. As good as it had felt, Mac knew that maybe it had felt a bit too good. It wasn't as if she would all of a sudden start to stay over here. It had taken her weeks if not months to visit him in his new apartment because either of them had always been busy.

Shaking his head, he made his way over to the kitchen. The plates they had used were still in the kitchen sink, reminding him that he hadn't cleaned up the night before. Mac quickly put the coffee pot on and then started to put the plates in the dishwater. It was still early but if he took his time with breakfast he would be just on time for the dayshift. Knowing Stella, she would probably come in earlier just to make sure he didn't come in before their shift began.

When he started to get the glasses from the living area, he suddenly saw something he hadn't expected. Frowning he walked over to the couch and picked the item up. Wondering what Stella's purse was doing in his living room, he looked around but couldn't see any other sign of her. Geez, she had probably left her purse when she went home last night.

Quickly he scanned its content and found her wallet as well as her cell phone. Her keys – car as well as for her apartment – were missing though. Still frowning he looked around the room once more but there was nothing unusual, except maybe for the two wine glasses still sitting on the coffee table. Mac was sure he could remember having her at least three glasses, maybe four. While he knew she was a very safe driver he still felt uncomfortable at the thought she had taken the SUV and went home by car.

With only the keys missing and her wallet still here, that seemed like the most likely probability though. Damn, if he hadn't been so tired last night, he would have been able to make sure she either got home safe or… even crashed in his spare bedroom. Wasn't that why he had opted to look for an apartment that would still allow him to have a place where a friend in need could crash? Sighing he shook his head. He'd better make sure Stella had made it home.

Although it was still early, she was probably already up, as he was, and preparing breakfast or getting ready to go into work. For a moment he could feel his cheeks starting to burn when a flash before his eyes tried to piece together an image of how exactly Stella might get 'ready' at the moment. Definitely not the right thought about somebody who was working for him – and very clearly a thought that would fall under the context of their monthly harassment memos.

To get his head back to matters at hand, he walked back into the kitchen. Leaving the purse on the kitchen counter he walked around it to get his morning coffee. As nice as the hot shower had been, he still wasn't fully awake and the only thing that would change this was a steaming hot cup of Java. So Mac took a cup from the cupboard, his synapses firing already in anticipation of the upcoming caffeine. Sniffing the dark liquid he enjoyed the aroma for a moment.

"You going to drink or inhale that?"

Mac jumped at the sudden interruption, almost spilling the hot liquid over his hand in the process. Still breathing heavier due to the surprise he turned around and stared at the woman standing in the doorframe of his kitchen.

"What are you…? How did you get…?" he stammered incoherently.

"How about you take a sip first, so you're waking up for real?"

Without answering Mac automatically did as he had been told. As stupid as it might seem but Mac could have sworn, the second the coffee hit his tongue, he could feel the effects already. On a side note, this gave him also the chance to bring his thoughts back in order. The question why Stella was currently in his kitchen still remained unanswered though.

"Why are you here?" he asked once again, this time actually finishing the question.

Raising her eyebrow at him, Stella got herself another cup and poured herself some coffee. While she apparently didn't need the caffeine fix in the morning as much as Mac did, she'd rather go with the coffee than without it – and thankfully Mac had brewed enough for them both.

"I came over for dinner yesterday," she finally answered but only got a frown back from her partner. That had her suspicious herself. Quickly her eyes scanned over him but she couldn't see anything that hinted at his injuries getting worse. "Don't you remember?"

"Of course I remember!"

"So?"

Mac was still staring at her, not getting how them having dinner could account for her standing in his kitchen the next morning. Only then did the caffeine actually hit his brain and it slowly started to work. Was this the same top she had been wearing the day before?

"I had a bit too much to drink, so I crashed in the spare bedroom," she finally voiced what Mac's brain was still slowly putting together.

For a second Mac was assaulted with a… much less clothed Stella sleeping only a couple of feet down the hallway. Definitely not a thought he should indulge in while she was in the room – or anyone else for that matter. Mac took a deep breath and forced himself to smile back at her. No way would he let her see that little side of him.

Seeing Mac still a bit confused about the situation, Stella wasn't sure anymore if it had been a good idea to stay. Last night it had seemed like the right thing to do – especially after she had heard him ask for it. But now she wasn't so sure anymore. It might just have been the wine.

No, she slightly shook her head. She hadn't imagined it. He had asked her to stay even if he had already been halfway off to sleep and didn't remember it now. She did remember and she didn't regret staying one bit. Still, she wasn't sure if her partner thought so as well.

"That a problem?" she finally asked.

"No!" Mac shot back instantly. "No, god, no. Of course not, Stella. I'm… sorry, I-I just…"

"Hadn't had your morning coffee yet?"

Laughing he nodded and raised his cup in a mock salute. Well, even with the embarrassment and all… it was really nice to have somebody here in the morning. Even more so when it seemed to come to him this naturally. Sipping at his coffee he turned around and pretended to one handedly make himself some breakfast.

"You want something too?"

Watching him fill some cornflakes in a bowl, she nodded and Mac quickly got her another bowl filled. Together they sat down at the kitchen counter and ate their breakfast, an easy conversation about Mac's adventure with Lucy the day before keeping them both entertained. Time and again Mac's eyes swayed over to her though, scanning over her slim body for a split second before his consciousness pulled him back and told him to stop this nonsense.

One thought he couldn't shake though: It felt right to have her here for breakfast.

xxxxx

After a day off work, Don had woken up hours before his shift and finally decided to go into work early. When he got in, the bullpen was unusually quiet considering that it was a Saturday morning. Normally all the crazies from last night would have gotten their fair share of the 'fun' and night shift would have collected the most maniac ones by then. But it seemed their bad luck of boring cases was still lasting.

Grinning Don walked over to his desk and made himself comfortable. At least he himself seemed to have gotten 'lucky'. Although Don wasn't sure telling young girls their father would never return home actually made him the lucky guy here. Still, it was better than working a straight up car accident. Just then he noticed a small sheet of paper lying on his desk. Curious he pulled it closer and scanned over it.

He sighed and then crushed the paper in his fist. It seemed as if Miss Keller was getting cabin fever already. Only one day and she wanted to go home to check on her mother. Not a good sign for her future safety. But then, he had known beforehand that it wouldn't be easy to keep her in protective custody while her mother stayed at home. Maybe it would have been better to take a chance with her mom and take her as well. Don shook his head slightly. No, that would only have been cruel to the old woman.

"Hey, whatcha thinking so hard about, Flack?"

Surprised Don turned around, momentarily too distracted to think of Keller's mother any longer. "O'Reilly! You in early too?"

"Funny, Flack, very funny."

Frowning Don watched his colleague slowly make his way over to his own desk. For a moment he was tempted to ask what was supposed to be so funny but then he opted not to. When O'Reilly had a bad day, your only option was to ignore it or you would soon end up being the center of all his frustration.

"I had late shift yesterday, so I'm almost through a full shift of overtime. Damn it!"

Okay, definitely not the right time to ask questions at the man. The only two other detectives currently in were already turning away from them, probably thinking that now that Don had stirred up O'Reilly's bad mood, they better kept quiet to not alert him that they were actually present.

"Christy will be furious if I'm not home for breakfast." Don was still keeping quiet but it was getting increasingly hard not to tease O'Reilly about his wife. "Cat got your tongue, Flack?"

Sighing Don couldn't suppress the grin any longer that had threatened to overcome him for the past minute or so. Well, if confronted with a tired O'Reilly it was better to attack than be pushed into defense. "Just accommodating for your bitching, Pat."

"I'm bitching?"

"Yeah, you are, O'Reilly, so grab your stuff and head home before that little wife of yours get's a hissy fit as well."

It wasn't very easy but Don was quite sure he had managed to keep his eyes on his colleague without giving away how funny the thought the situation really was. For a moment O'Reilly only stared at him as if he had grown another head. Then, as if on cue, both suddenly started to laugh out loud. Don shook his head and averted his eyes. This was why he liked O'Reilly; they could always bitch at each other and in less than sixty seconds get back to normal anyway. Grinning he thought of another unlikely team that seemed to be able to do just the same. Mac and Stella were going on like this for years. So maybe he should ask Sythe if he could partner up with O'Reilly. Since Patrick's partner was on maternity leave they were both flying solo, which kept them away from the more intriguing cases most of the time.

A hand briefly connecting with the back of Don's head had the young detective back to the present. "You can say 'bout me all you want, Flack, but keep your foul mouth off my Christy!" O'Reilly hissed in his ear while passing bye. Looking after the retreating back of his colleague Don had to smile. "See ya tomorrow, Flack!"

"If you survive Christy's wrath, we might!"

Only when the doors had closed behind O'Reilly did a collective sigh go though the rest of the bullpen. The two other detectives grinned at Don but none of the three actually commented on it. Whatever it was that had O'Reilly in such a bad mood and him working nearly a whole shift on overtime… none of them wanted anything to do with it. Best case it might be an interesting murder, worst case it was another Necromantic party gone wrong. Still grinning, Don shook his head and finally pulled a folder closer that he would need to at least pretend he was finishing some long outstanding paperwork.

Half an hour later he noticed some voices in the background and when he looked up he could see that his two colleagues had turned on the TV and were watching the morning news. Not really interested in them he watched for a minute but when the commentary swayed to some festival out in Jersey, he decided it would be more productive to finish what he had started before Sythe got any more pissed at him.

He had barely started to fill out the next form, when one of his colleagues suddenly called for him. "Check this out!" the man called and gestured for Don to get closer to the TV.

For a moment Flack was tempted to ignore the detective but then his curiosity got the better of him and he got up anyway. When he got closer to the TV he recognized it was Chief Sinclair holding a press conference of sorts. In the background Don could see two detectives of the Major Case Squad he had met before. The younger one was called… Ryan or something like it. The other one's name he had conveniently forgotten already. Wasn't Ryan supposed to be working on the Bryant Park case? On the other side of Sinclair there was another man, who Don had met only briefly; the head of the Bronx crime lab, Mark Parker.

"Turn the volume up," he told his colleague who promptly grabbed the remote.

"This is about the hotel case," the other one explained what was probably clear to all three of them already.

"I can only repeat," Sinclair told the journalists meanwhile, "that there is no reason for concern. The situation at Bryant Park was an isolated incident."

A voice from the off interrupted the Chief: "What about the men who fled the scene? Can you guarantee for the hotel guests safety?"

"There is no indication that any of the hotel's guests were ever in any real danger."

Another microphone was pushed towards Sinclair and once more Don couldn't see who was asking the question: "What about Councilman Baxter? There are rumors he's missing and that this has something to do with the hostage situation?"

Don frowned and quickly glanced at his colleagues but neither seemed intrigued. Didn't he know this voice though? He could have sworn he knew that woman but then he had talked to many reporters in his time as a homicide detective. She was probably just one of those story-happy women who kept showing up at his crime scenes; hoping that a little eye winking and a short skirt would bring them the story of their career.

They could see Sinclair frown on the screen, clearly not happy about the question. Well it had only been a matter of time before everyone would pick up on the fact that Baxter hadn't just been absent from his party was had indeed not shown up in his office since Monday. "No comment," Sinclair finally answered and looked towards the cameras expectantly.

"What about the tape?" This was the same woman again. The frown on Don deepened and he looked at his colleagues confused. What tape was she talking about?

Sinclair on the other hand seemed to know what she meant because his eyes darkened instantly. Ryan, his partner and Parker in the background, looked at each other and frowned as well. Something was going on here Don didn't know about yet. He would have to check with Mac when he came in. Mac had wanted to check in with Sinclair about the Bryant Park files and maybe he had already had the opportunity to talk to Parker or MCS. Maybe he knew something about this. Meanwhile Sinclair denied once more any comment and suddenly closed the press conference as a whole. Instantly several journalists tried to either catch the Chief or one of his detectives by throwing random questions at them but all they got was another 'no comment' line or outright silence.

"You know something about this?" one of Don's colleagues asked him but Flack only shook his head in reply. "I know Ryan from when we were both in organized crimes and he looked everything but happy about that tape comment."

"Well, I don't know the guy but I can tell you none of the four was happy about that," the other detective added. "If this was about the Bryant Park thing, they're clearly hiding something from the public and it somehow got out."

"Ya think there's a leak at MCS or the Bronx lab?" Don wasn't sure what he should think of all this but he didn't like the idea of a leak anywhere in the investigation. If he had to bet some money on it, he'd rather go with the lab though. MCS was too proud of their elite status to give out information without an added agenda.

One of the other detectives nodded slowly. "I've worked with Bronx homicide a few weeks ago and Parker's team was handling the evidence." Intrigued Don turned to him and waited expectantly. "They're not like the lab here," the man continued. "Much more fluctuation and at the moment Parker's fighting to actually keep a whole team together. He's already down at least two detectives and therefore short on staff."

"So they're short on hands, what's new?" Shrugging, Don didn't understand why that could be a problem. It wasn't as if Mac's team was under no pressure at all. In fact, Don knew quite well that the Manhattan Crime Lab was just as shorthanded most of the time as any other CSU in the city.

"Parker's only getting total newbies if any. Imagine you get all the new kids on the block and no time to train them accordingly..."

Getting the picture, Don nodded in agreement. "You mean, one of those could have had a loud mouth with one of his friends and the press got wind of it." That sounded a lot more likely than Ryan or his partner gossiping on the street about a case they had been assigned to by the mayor himself.

"I'm sure Sinclair is fuming about this already."

Grinning Don nodded. "You can bet on it!"

With that he turned around and left his two colleagues alone with the TV. He had seen enough for now to know that something fishy was going on. Question was if there was any way for him to find out what it was about. If he wasn't allowed to investigate the Bryant Park case maybe there would be something in the files Mac had requested from Sinclair. Major Case could hardly send over only the stuff about the dead boys and black out anything that went beyond that in the files. Grinning Don fetched his memo book from his desk and headed towards the elevator. Time to check if Mac was in already and to see if there was anything about a tape in those files from Major Case.

But when he arrived on the 35th floor, Mac's office was suspiciously empty. Checking his watch, Don noted that it was still a bit early for the day shift to start. Frowning he turned to his right only to see Stella's desk just as empty. Where was everyone? It was an hour before shift and nobody was in early.

Don sighed and finally opted for the break room. Hopefully he would at least be able to score a decent cup of coffee while he waited for everyone else to arrive at work. He was already aiming for the coffee pot when he noticed somebody sitting in the back of the room. Smiling slightly he nodded at the man and then got himself a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

"How are you doing, Hawkes?" he finally asked when he was all set up.

"Everyone's busy with some car accident, so I get all the other cases," the former ME answered barely stifling a yawn.

"Anything interesting?" Shaking his head, Hawkes continued to sip at his own cup – although Don had the vague suspicion that Sheldon was long past the point where coffee could actually help a man to make it through the night. "So you basically get all the dump cases while we better kids get to play with the good case?"

"Yeah, yeah, Flack, just rub it in even deeper."

But despite their harsh words, they both grinned at each other, knowing that by keeping the other cases off their backs, Hawkes was helping them a hell of a lot already. Also Don doubted that his colleague actually minded working those cases. They might be boring for everyone else, but Hawkes had the strange ability to find something interesting in even the most boring case – even if it was just some minor autopsy detail everyone else would find even more boring or… yucky.

"So you've been the only one on shift tonight?" Don continued his questioning.

"Nah, Lindsay was in on a double shift. She's sleeping in the crib though." When the detective frowned at him Sheldon grinned and lightly shook his head. "You expect me to keep her up forcefully when it's a slow night and she has barely slept for two nights?"

Raising his brows, Don had to suppress an evil grin that started to slowly make its way to his lips. "You gettin' soft on me here, Hawkes?"

Shaking his head tiredly Sheldon leaned back against the chair he was sitting on. "To be honest, I'm too tired to actually think about any of this right now."

"Ya should go home. If anything pops up before next shift, I'll wake up Linds, so she can do her share of this shift."

Flack watched Sheldon turn his head and stare at him for a moment. He could see the hesitation in the former ME's eyes. After all the work he had put in for the team during the past few days, he was still not sure if he should have done more – even if it was practically physical impossible to do so.

"Come on!" Don urged him on once more. "Pack up your stuff and take care of driving home safely with all that coffee in your system!"

Sheldon hesitated for another moment but then he sighed and nodded. Flack was right, he was tired to a point where he didn't actually feel well driving home by himself. So it was even worse if he tried to work even more right now. And it was only one more hour. Lindsay would have to get up soon anyway, so Don was absolutely right that she might as well take on the next case that decided to come up before their shift ended.

"Okay. Tell Linds the analysis for our shooting is already in the system. She'll know where to look."

Hawkes was almost out of the door when Don called after him: "Who got shot?"

Turning around the other man grinned, probably getting the idea that Don was still bored, and shook his head. "Heroin deal gone wrong. Nothing there for you to take care of."

Don watched him finally retreat, leaning back in his chair even further. Hawkes was right, nothing he would have to take care of, not that he was complaining about his current case. Okay, so he still had his doubts about this Baxter connection. But if Mac seeing something there would give him access to the Bryant Park files, he'd gladly go with it. Because that was a case, he would actually love to get some insight on. Frowning he remembered the news clip he had seen on the morning. Maybe Mac was back by now.

Getting up he put his coffee cup into the dish washer and went back out into the hallway. Activity was already picking up, although it was still about twenty minutes before the next shift started. This time of the day was usually the most busiest one though, since some early arrivers from the next shift would always be in by now and the staff from the ending shift would try to get everything finished before they were off for some free time.

Slowly Don made his way through the hallway until he was back at the elevator. Stella's office was still empty, so he checked his watch. Only twenty more minutes to go, just like his gut had told him already. Where was she? She usually was in early, at least half an hour. Something must be holding her back. Turning to his left he expected to see the other office just as empty, but was surprised once more. Mac was in and he was already opening an evidence box. If Taylor's grin was anything to go by, this was evidence from the Bronx lab.

Well, time to start their shift for real.

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As usual… please take the time to write a comment and let me know what you think. I hope so far the case is still interesting!