Christian

I look at Welch's ragged face on the screen in front of me, in the other windows Taylor and Barney are waiting in silence. Barney obviously keeps on tapping away on his keyboard but I'm not concerned, he will give us his full attention when we need it. Welch takes a sip of coffee before he starts talking. "When we did Ms. Steele's background check, there were some things missing. Some things that in hindsight shouldn't have been. I didn't think much of it at first, but when Mr. Grey informed me that Rob Thomas had assaulted her and had never been charged about it, I dug in deeper." I look at my most trusted team, and notice Taylor's expression darken as he hears about Ana being assaulted.

"Ana told me that her step-dad, and I'm using that term very vaguely, tried to touch her in a sexual manner when she was still living with her mother. She was about 12 years old at the time. It did not progress to rape, but his intentions were clear." My gut wrenches with disgust as I go through the details Ana told me.

"Why wasn't he charged?" Taylor asks and I ask Welch to tell us what he has found out.

"Rob Thomas, Ms. Steele's step-father, is an ex-cop. He got fired as he had and apparently still has, a severe drinking problem. We are not sure if he still had friends on the force, or if he held some kind of leverage over certain high ranking officers" Welch frowns at the thought before he continues. "The file was shredded, the officers that took the report were reassigned, and Ms. Steele's case vanished into thin air. That's why it did not appear on her back-ground check."

"Do we have any information on who helped him and why? I can't understand how they could've just looked the other way, Thomas assaulted a child for fucks sake!" I ask, my tone harsh but I couldn't care less.

Welch taps on his keyboard and a picture of a tanned, grey haired, chunky, older man in khakis and a dark jacket walking on the sidewalk in front of a Starbucks appears on the screen.

"This is Chief Maurice Petersen" Welch continues. "The picture was taken yesterday in Portland to where he has moved since his retirement." Welch taps on a few keys and a picture of Petersen in police uniform is placed next to the picture from Portland. "He was Thomas' boss. All evidence points at him being the one who ordered the reassignment of the officers…" Welch looks down at his papers before he says the names "Gate and McPhee to be reassigned." A few more taps on the keyboard and the pictures of the two officers pops up on the screen below Petersen's picture.

I stare at Petersen's face and the anger boils in my veins. He's just as much to blame as Thomas in my books. One glance at Taylor and I know he feels the same.

"Can we get Gate and McPhee to talk?" Taylor asks. Welch shakes his head. "No". "Why the fuck not?! I don't care if you have to torture the answer out of them I want to know why they agreed to hiding it." I yell at the screen in front of me, tugging my hair.

"They are dead." Welch says and a heavy silence falls upon us. "Dead?" It seems hard to grasp. "Six feet under and all that shit" Welch adds. You've got to be fucking kidding me.

Barney starts typing away on his computer and within seconds he says "I've got their death certificates in front of me. Both died about 10 years ago in car accidents." They both died in car accidents, talk about coincidence. I can't fucking believe it. I guess Barney sees my confusion as he adds "Sorry, let me correct that, they died in a car accident." Barney becomes silent for a few seconds, clearly reading something on the screen in front of him. "They were out patrolling and apparently there was some sort of drive-by shooting, the papers wrote about some gangs settling their issues at the time. Gate and McPhee were somehow caught in the middle of the shooting, their car was hit and by bad luck the gas tank exploded." He continues reading the report but I'm not listening. What a freak accident. A small voice in the back of my mind speaks up.

"What if it wasn't an accident?" I ask. "You mean someone blew up their car?" Taylor asks, and I nod. "It is possible, but highly unlikely, as there wasn't any sign of explosives when the forensics team checked the site. The bodies of Gate and McPhee were so badly burned that they could only be recognized by dental scans. A few witnesses spoke of hearing the gunfire, but no one had actually seen anyone shooting." "How's that possible? If it happened in the city there has to be an eyewitness." Barney looks towards the camera and it feels like he is looking straight at me. "It was after midnight and in an industrial area, so there wasn't anyone around."

The questions running through my mind are driving me crazy; were they killed on purpose, who killed them, why? I've got to find out, but we need to get back to the matter at hand. "Welch, find out what you can about their deaths; if the police couldn't find the killer, I'm sure it is because they were not allowed to do their jobs properly." My trust in the police has crumbled since I learned what happened to Ana.

Welch presses a few buttons and the pictures disappear from the screen. Just the serious faces of Welch, Taylor and Barney are left.

"Ok, so let's get back to Rob Thomas shall we?" Welch asks, not expecting an answer from anyone. Rob fucking Thomas. "After Ms. Steele was attacked the second time, her grandfather took her to the police station to file a report. Officers Gate and McPhee were the ones that talked to them, who took pictures of her bruises and her cracked lip to go with the file." "So far it went by the book, right?" Taylor asks and Welch nods. "So far so good. But it seems Thomas found out that the Steele's had filed the report. Who told him, we don't know. It could have been Carla, or maybe Mr. Steele made it clear that they had filed the report, there's no way to know. Then there's also the question of who shredded the file, but at this point I'm assuming it was Petersen."

I sit and listen to Welch go through the details of Thomas' pathetic life before meeting Carla and after the incidents with Ana. I have got most of this from the emails he sent, and the phone call that kept me preoccupied in the car. Thomas did eventually end up in jail for DUI, he had his mug shots taken and he spent the night, but the following day he was let free. I shamelessly wish someone had beaten him in jail, but no. The fucker probably got to be alone in his cell, his fucking police buddies kept him safe. I feel the bile rising in my throat.

"The reason why I wanted all of us to meet today is that it seems that Rob and Carla have seen the pictures in the tabloids." Welch says and the surprise is evident on Taylor's and Barney's faces. "How do we know this?" Taylor asks. "I asked Welch to keep an eye on their movements. Anastasia has closed them away from her life totally, and they have not even known where she lives for the last years, and I'd prefer to keep it that way" I say and Welch nods in agreement before I continue "but that's not why we know that they know about the pictures."

I pause as I look at the faces of my most trusted employees, and then I say "she got mail." Taylor frowns and asks "You've opened her mail?" I push my fingers through my hair as I wait for Welch to explain "The letter came addressed to GEH, with Anastasia's name written on the side, we took the liberty of opening it as we were sure Anastasia wouldn't mind" "But that's a federal offence, opening someone else's mail" Taylor points out and I'm sure if looks would kill, he'd be lying dead on his desk by now. "I don't fucking care if it's a federal offence or not" I hiss at him. "That fucker beat up my Ana, he was going to rape her. And that so-called mother of hers did nothing to protect her, she believed him over her own flesh and blood. They have no right to contact her. They are not worthy of even saying her name." I burst out and the men are wise enough not to say anything. Barney clears his throat before he points out "Technically, since the letter was addressed to GEH, it wasn't a crime."

"What did the letter say?" Taylor asks. Welch taps on his keyboard and a handwritten letter appears on the screen for all of us to see.

Anastasia, I know it has been years, but I've not had any means to contact you. I was impressed to see the pictures of your exhibition in the papers. I always knew you'd be a success, baby girl. I saw the other pictures as well, it seems you've made a good life for yourself. I know it doesn't change things, but I'm sorry things were left the way they were between us. Let's get together soon. Carla

I read the words and then I read them again. The letter seems so innocent, but as I read it again I start think to think about all the hidden meanings that are put between the lines. I can't quite make out if Carla is being sincere or if she is trying to lure her way back into Ana's life with some ulterior motive.

Carla doesn't mention anything about Rob, but the shadow we have put on them tells us that they are still very much together. How can she believe that Ana would want to meet her? She is her mother so it might happen but it'll be a cold day in hell that I let Rob Thomas in the same room with Ana.

Anastasia

I wake up all disoriented and it takes me a moment to understand that I'm in Christian's bed. The sun is still high in the sky so I've not been sleeping too long. I consider wrapping the sheet around me as I get out of bed, suddenly feeling modest. I decide against it. I walk to the bathroom and sit down to pee. I close my eyes and try to empty my mind from the myriad of thoughts. The brunch, the sex, the panty-gate, the car drive, the massage, the quick fuck and the distraught look on Christian's face as he was on the phone. It's all somewhat overwhelming.

I turn on the water and wait until it's hot; I step in and gasp as the scolding water touches my skin. It takes only a moment until I adjust to the heat and try to relax as the water is massaging my muscles. I wash my hair, and lather my hands, and run my hands smoothly over my body. For a moment I let my imagination run free and I imagine that it's Christian's hands on my body, running over my wet and soapy skin. I try catching my breasts as he does and pinch my nipples. It feels good, but not at all like his touch. I shake my head as I notice my reflection in the mirror, what has become of me?

After the shower I pull on a pair of shorts and Christian's t-shirt, it's a bit big, but I don't care. It smells like him, and as I have no idea how long time he'll be working I want the comfort his shirt is giving me.

I stroll over to the kitchen and decide to make myself a cup of tea. Maybe I should make him some coffee at the same time, he might need it. I inspect his high tech coffeemaker and as I have no idea how to even switch it on I decide to use the French press instead.

While I wait for the water to boil I walk through the empty apartment; it seems that even Gail is out. I go to the living room and sit on the piano chair. I lift the lid carefully not to make too much noise. I gently run my fingers over the keys, curious to see if I still remember the melody I learned when I was little, but the feeling that I'm trespassing doesn't leave me alone. I finally decide to close the lid without a single note played.

I return to the kitchen and pour the water into my mug, dunking the teabag for mere seconds before taking it out and discarding it into the sink. I measure the coffee and pour water into the French press. I search the shelves until I find the black and white striped mug I've seen Christian use on more than one occasion. I get a small trey and place a few biscuits on a plate next to the mug and the coffee. I know it's silly, but I feel happy doing this for him.

I carry the trey carefully, and knock gently on his office door. I don't wait for him to answer before I open the door. I see Christian sitting by his desk, his eyes dark, his hair in a mess, his jaw pressed tight as he's listening to a man talking. I can't quite make out what they are saying though and as Christian raises his eyes and sees me the sound stops total. I don't know if he signaled for the other one to stop talking or if he pressed the mute button. Either way, the meeting is paused because of me walking in.

He pushes his chair back, and gets up. He comes over to meet me with a few long steps; he doesn't even say a word. "I made you coffee, I thought you might need it" I say in a feeble attempt to explain my barging into his office. Christian takes the trey from my hands and places it on the table before he presses his forehead against mine, wraps his hands around my waist and finally pulls me into his arms and holds me tight. Then he tilts my face up to meet his, and he leans down to kiss me.

The kiss has a sense of emergency about it, his arms wrap around me even tighter as his tongue asks for entrance, and I'm more than willing to grant it to him. Reluctantly he detaches himself from me and says "Thank you". "For the coffee of the kiss?" I ask him, trying to lighten the mood. He gives me a crooked smile as he says "For you". That familiar warmth spreads inside my chest and I say the only thing that comes to my mind. "You are very welcome honey" I enjoy the big smile that lights up Christian's face. "I'll try to wrap this up as quickly as I can. Ok?" he says as he walks back around his desk and sits down basically dismissing me.

AN: I thought it'd be nice of me to let you of the cliff. We have still not quite reached the ground but getting there.

Again a warm thank you to all the readers and reviewers!

If you read it, please review it!

H xoxo