So just a little one-shot that popped into my head...needed to clear the deck to get back to my other story. Enjoy...although if you are a Roman Fan I'm pretty sure you won't like it, but hey...
He was starting to work on her last nerve. Initially she was happy to see Roman again, despite the fact that Adam was obviously pissed. She didn't blame him although did ask him to rein it in a little and be the adult in the room. Of course he took it to heart and was not only shitty with her but refused to even acknowledge Roman's existence. When he was in the bullpen he just completely ignored anything he said. It wasn't exactly being the 'adult' but he reminded Kim when she cornered him in the locker room just before they headed out that his mother had always told him that "if he didn't have anything nice to say to say nothing at all."
So he said nothing.
At all.
"So you and Ruzek?"
"What about us?"
"That little pow wow in the locker room?" Roman was either completely ignoring Kim's obvious discomfort and unwillingness to discuss anything outside of the case with him. "Lover's tiff?"
"This address we are checking out…why do you think they know anything?"
"I don't. It's a hunch that's all."
"A hunch. Then why am I here?" Kim snipped at him. It was cold out, not freezing but if she didn't have to be out right now she preferred not to be.
When she had asked Voight why she had been assigned this particular case when she should be on desk duty he had told her that she was the only one who wouldn't butt heads with him and had some chance of keeping him under control. They were just chasing up a couple of leads and it shouldn't be too dangerous or intense. The idea was to keep Roman busy and out of the way so they could do their jobs.
"Or would you rather I sent Ruzek?"
"Oh God no, someone would die."
"So, you are it. Just keep him on a tight leash."
Kim smiled. "Who's your money on?"
Voight just stared and Kim turned to leave, she was worried she'd overstepped the mark. You never quite knew with Voight, he did have a sense of humour, it was just buried way deep inside. "Ruzek of course. The better man always wins in the end." When she glanced over her shoulder Voight had a slight smile on his face.
"That they do."
Kim sunk down in the front seat of the car. She grateful for one thing, wearing her puffer jacket offered her some privacy. It hid her every growing bump. It wasn't that noticeable at the moment, although by the time the evening came around and she got out of her jeans and into something more comfortable it was usually a little more pronounced. Adam joked that she had beer belly now as he stroked and talked to their little accidental miracle.
The first house they went too was a bust but Kim had a growing sense of unease. Roman wasn't listening, he was overstepping the line, threatening people and Kim had to remind him when they got back in the car that he wasn't a cop and she could pull the pin on this with one phone call.
"It's easy for you isn't it?" Roman snapped. "You're still doing the job that you love. Me, I've got fuckin' nothing and you know how many people bothered to check in to see how I was coping? Not one fuckin' person, including you."
"And you called me how many times? You told me when you left that you needed space and would call, and you never did." Kim rubbed her temples, this whole day was stressing her out. "So don't sit here and pretend like everyone did you wrong."
"Whatever Kim." He snatched the file off her lap and looked up the next address. It was just as fruitless as the last and Roman was getting more pig headed.
"Let's get a coffee." Roman pulled up outside a coffee shop, he was pissed.
Kim reluctantly followed him into the café and ordered herself a Decaf, which raised his eyebrows especially when she knocked back a cream filled éclair and grabbed a banana and apple instead. "You going healthy?"
"Yeah."
"Never thought I'd see the day you'd knock back an éclair."
Kim shrugged. "Yeah well, it's a new me."
Heading back to the car he offered her half his chicken sandwich. "No thanks." Even if she could eat a cold chicken and salad sandwich they were way past the point of sharing food. Everything had changed, the least of all being that they weren't partners anymore nor even friends. The longer they spent together the more uncomfortable it was becoming.
"You've changed and not for the better." Roman sulked in the front seat.
"Gee thanks." Kim was a nanosecond away from calling Voight and putting an end to this. It was a bad idea and she should've told Voight from the start. "Are we going to finish this so I can go home?"
"Perhaps you should try caffeinated coffee again."
Roman took the hint and checked the address of the next place. "So why the no caffeine? You pregnant or something?" He snorted and Kim just stared straight ahead and he looked at her from the corner of his eye. "Shit, you're pregnant?"
"Yes."
"Ruzek right?" Kim didn't answer, she didn't have too. "Explains a lot. Explained his shitty attitude at the very least."
"I know you've always had very little respect for Adam, but you are right about one thing. I have changed, I'm not as weak and stupid as I once was, I can't be manipulated by people like you who see women as a prize and something to be controlled, I learnt a tough lesson about who is actually in my corner and who is only looking out for themselves. And I am grateful that I have someone in my life, who wants to be in my life and who never ever let me down." Kim was not in the mood to put up with his shit again. "And I can't wait to raise this baby with him."
"Never thought you'd be stupid enough to fuck up and get pregnant. You were always so anal retentive about those things." He took a swing at her, during their brief fling she had been annoyingly pedantic about it.
"It wasn't a fuck up." Kim lied. "We are really happy."
"Good Luck." She couldn't help but hear the sarcasm in his voice. Sure his life wasn't going the way he planned or hoped but he didn't need to bring her down either.
"You've always been a miserable fucking git haven't you?" Kim snapped. "Fucking ray of sunshine, you always look for the bad in people, the misery in life. You suck the oxygen out of every room you are in. You always have." It was something that only time and distance had given her, perspective on how toxic he had been. When he arrived she was happy and her and Adam were doing great but he wore her down to the point that she was constantly looking for the worst in Adam and ignoring everything that made her fall in love with him. "Let's just get this over and done with so I can be done with this day."
While the next house didn't give them who they were looking for it did point them in the right direction. Kim had managed to calm down the whacked out looking girl and convince her to give up a name and address. It took a while because Roman had gone in hard and was in her face, wild with rage. Kim eventually dragged him outside. "Don't you ever fucking do that again." Poking him hard in the chest. "You are a fucking civilian and I will arrest you. Don't fucking push me Roman. This is your last warning."
She went back inside and talked the girl down, eventually re-emerging with the information they needed. Roman was pacing wildly and she did, for a brief moment contemplate not getting back in the car with him.
"We should call for back-up." She suggested as they headed to the house which was only four blocks away. His driving was erratic. "Slow the fuck down." She seethed.
"Nah, let's check it out first." Roman changed his tone slightly, realising that he was pushing Kim to the edge. "We'll just take a look and if we need to call it in we will."
"No, I'm calling it in." Ignoring his plea to just take a look Kim called dispatch. There was no we in this decision, it was her call and she was done with listening to him. Nothing he said had ever been a good idea.
Halstead responded and made it very clear that they were to wait until Back-up arrived. "We are all close by. Ten minutes Kim."
Roman went in anyway despite Kim's desperate plea to wait. "I'm not waiting for those idiots to come and stuff it up. I can handle it, if you don't want to come, don't come."
"Sean." Kim barked. "I'm giving you a direct order."
"Yeah but I'm not a cop am I."
"No, you are a nobody, and as a Police Officer I can tell you what to do."
He pushed past her angrily and Kim decided to let him go.
Suddenly there was yelling and screaming, the sound of glass smashing but still Kim hesitated. Atwater told her over her radio that they were five minutes out and to sit tight and that she couldn't go in and then a shot rang outside inside the house and she heard the desperate cry of a distraught female. She had at least three civilians in the house, help was minutes away but things could go terribly wrong in the mere seconds. They already had. Roman had a lot to answer for, he'd put her in an impossible position. "Oh my god, oh my god, he's been shot." The woman kept screaming and then she heard a child's voice.
Kim raised her weapon and entered the house slowly. "Roman." She called out but got no response. "Roman." Taking a few ginger steps until she saw the girl crouched over the bleeding body of an unknown male and a small child cowering in the corner. "CPD." Kim informed her. "Is there anyone else in the house?"
"Just some guy came barging in." She wailed. "He shot him. He shot him."
"Okay." She called it in and requested an Ambulance.
A single scream pierced the air and Kim was knocked forward. Scrambling to her feet she tried to defend herself as she was sent flying, crashing through the coffee table and landing face down on the grotty rug. Kim curled herself into a ball to protect herself and managed to move her head just before the boot came down glancing the side of her face. Instinctively her hands covered her head and she felt the warm trickle of blood on her cheek and it distracted her for long enough to miss the looming boot of her attacker as he laid it into her stomach. She groaned loudly, the pain rifled through her as she desperately tried to move away, curling into a ball to protect herself as best she could Again she was kicked, this time in the back, it didn't hurt any less though.
She heard the voices, Adam, Halstead, Atwater, then came the demands to stop followed by one single gunshot and then the thud of the body hitting the floor, the sound of life being thumped out of him as he died instantly and his blood started to pool out around him. It all happened quickly and she could barely make out what was happening.
"Kim." Adam's panicked voice jolted her out of dazed state. "Are you okay?"
"I don't know, I don't know." She cried weakly. "Adam, help me."
He scooped her up in one motion, his strong arms holding her tightly as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I've got you Darlin', I've got you."
"I'll call an Ambulance." Upton offered, reaching for her radio.
"No, I'm not waiting." Adam headed for the door with even stopping, Kim was cradled in his arms, sobbing into his neck and he wasn't waiting for anyone. He'd drive her himself if he had too. 'Help me Adam. Help me.'
It sliced through him like a hot knife. Her hot tears splashing on his neck like drops of lava.
Upton followed them out of the house, pausing only briefly to let her partner know they were going. "Let me drive you."
Climbing into the back seat he didn't let go of Kim. "Our baby." She sobbed quietly so only Adam could hear her. The sirens drowned out everything else. "I'm sorry." They hit a bump and Kim cried out in agony.
"Hurry the fuck up Hailey."
It was chaos in the house as the sirens blared and Cops started swarming the area. Atwater was trying to get the one witness to calm down and tell him what happened, while Patrol tried to calm the child and Halstead and Rojas searched the house for any more offenders.
Suddenly Roman reappeared, sucking in some deep breaths. "Can you put a BOLO out?" he gasped. "He got away from me."
"Where the fuck have you been?" Atwater advanced on him angrily.
"Doing your job." Roman didn't take a backwards step. "Where the fuck were you?"
"Fuck you." He shoved him hard in the chest and Roman came back itching for some action. He had a hair trigger, he always had and he was off the chain. Halstead stepped in between them.
"Kev. Cool it."
"Nah man, he had it coming. I'm just doing what everyone wants."
Halstead eventually talked him down and ended up forcing Kevin outside leaving him to deal with Roman. "What the fuck were you thinking going in alone?"
"They'd get away. Someone in this house knows what happened to my sister."
"Well right now we've got two dead guys and no fucking clues. You are not a fucking cop Roman."
The more than pushed back against him the harder he pushed back. He was sick of these idiots thinking they were better than him and he was only doing what each and every one of them would do if they were in this situation. "I wasn't going to let them get away, you weren't here, you don't know what went down."
"Burgess told you to stay outside, we all heard it but you just don't fucking listen do you."
"I told her to wait, I could handle it." He looked around the room, there were people swarming all over the place. "Wait where is she?"
"Sit your ass down." Halstead pointed to the chair in the corner. "Voight's on his way to deal with you."
"Where's Kim?"
"If you don't fucking sit I will sit you down and cuff you."
Voight looked like thunder when he stormed in. Roman had balls bigger than most and he never took a backwards step when he faced up to him but right now he knew that Voight held the upper hand. "Any news?" He asked Halstead, pausing briefly to survey the scene.
"Not yet, Upton said she'd call when she knew something."
Voight muttered some orders to Halstead and then turned his attention to Roman. "Get up." He barked.
"Sarge."
"It's Sergeant Voight to you." Voight shoved him hard in the chest and got up in his face. "I knew I was taking a risk letting you investigate this but I thought you'd show us all some respect. I did this as a favour to you and I know what it's like to lose a family member but you haven't changed one bit. You are an arrogant son of a bitch."
"Sergeant Voight." Roman snarked. "What did you want me to do?"
"Wait, you were told to wait." He dragged him out and shoved him into the back of a patrol car.
"Take him back to the District. Stick him in the cage." He growled at the two panicked looking Patrol Officers. Most people avoided Voight at the best of times but when he was on a tear like he was at the moment he was terrifying. Roman watched Voight talk to them outside the car but couldn't hear what was said. He had reminded them in no uncertain terms that he was to be taken in via the roll up and nobody was to talk to him. Their radios needed to be off for the trip back. He knew what the PD gossip train was like.
Two hours later he was still sitting there. He'd been escorted out once to use the bathroom and had some food and water delivered by Platt. "What's going on? Why am I being kept here like a criminal?"
"Don't know. I'm sure Voight will fill you in shortly."
Upton had called ahead to let Med know they were bringing in an Officer in medical distress. Ruzek refused to put her down until he could lie her on the bed himself. He knew she was in agony but Kim had gone quiet and that worried him more. She was burying herself in her own grief already. Without having to be told it was clear that they were losing their baby.
He refused to leave her side and just weeks ago that wouldn't have happened. They had come so far in just a few weeks, moving in together and putting their relationship back on solid footing. It was slow going, slower than Adam wanted but as far as the baby was concerned they were in a really good place.
"I'm sorry Kim. The pregnancy is lost. There is no heartbeat." Three small sentences that crushed them. "Do you understand? You've lost your baby, there was nothing we could do." It was delivered with such finality and brutality. Kim just stared into space, and once the Doctor left it felt like he took all the oxygen in the room with him.
"I'm here Kim." Adam sat up beside her, holding her hand and whispered into the stark emptiness of the room. Even though they were both there it felt empty. "I'm still here."
Eventually they came and gave Kim some medication to help her sleep and Adam sat with her until she had drifted off. He had left the room briefly to give everyone an update, knowing that they would be waiting, it was what they did. That was their family. "Ummm…" Adam didn't need to say anything, the look on his face said it all. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets, but even that couldn't hide the tremble in them. "…Kim's…she's okay but the baby…" He shook his head sadly. "She's…." his voice drifted off and everyone could see his tear filled eyes. Upton stepped towards him and he backed off sharply. He didn't want anyone to touch him right now. "…I'm gonna go back." He turned quickly and fled the waiting room.
Voight ordered Halstead to bring Roman up to the Interrogation room. The bullpen was a sombre place right now and they were up to their eyeballs in paperwork trying to fix this fucking mess he'd dropped them in. "Is someone finally going to tell me what's going on?" He snarked.
"Nope." It was the only word he got out of Halstead. It took all Halstead's willpower to stop himself damaging his fist on Roman's face.
"Where's Burgess?" Roman's eyes darted around the bullpen as he was bought through. "Is she okay? Why won't anyone tell me what's going on?" Halstead had to literally push him through the door. "Assholes." He muttered under his breath as the door was slammed shut.
Voight came in and sat quietly at the table, dropping a file on the table and leant back in the chair and folded his arms across his chest. "So, you wanna tell me what happened?"
Roman was smart enough to know this was his only chance of saving his ass. There was no lying to Voight, he was one of the cagiest and smartest cops he knew. It was fine line, he had to give him enough to satisfy him without hanging himself. "We got a tip that Sarah had been staying at that house so we went to check it out."
"And?"
"And what? I could hear people in the house, I didn't want them to piss off out the backdoor, it was my only chance."
"So Burgess didn't tell you to wait for Back-Up? She was happy for you to go in alone? She had already called for Back-Up and you knew it was five minutes out."
"I didn't have five minutes." He didn't really answer the question.
"So Burgess told you to go in?" Voight repeated. He was unusually calm which he knew wasn't a good thing or going to last.
"No, I told her I was going in and she could wait if she wanted too."
Voight looked bemused, he wasn't really giving much away. "Ignoring the direction of a sworn Police Officer in the process?"
"It was time sensitive."
"And then you shot one civilian and took off?"
"No, I was shot at and I chased him out the back door, he scaled the fence and I chased him for ten minutes but lost him. I didn't shoot anyone."
"Probably not what the reports going to say to be honest." Voight slammed his hands on the desk causing Roman to jump. It erupted out of him. "I trusted you, I trusted you to do the right thing as a former member of this District and my team. I knew you were a loose cannon but I gave you the benefit of the doubt and gave you the respect I, to be honest, didn't think you deserved but I thought at the very least you'd respect Burgess enough to listen to her and do as your were fucking told."
"Where is she? Is she okay? Why won't anyone tell me where she is?
"Because you've lost that right to know anything." Voight flipped the cover of the file closed and pushed his chair back and left without a word. Halstead returned to take him back down to the cage.
Voight sat in his office and was surprised to see Ruzek heading towards him. "Hey Boss." He stopped at the door way. Everyone else had cleared out and gone home for which he was grateful, he wasn't really ready to talk to anyone just yet.
"How's Kim?"
"Sleeping."
"He's in the cage."
Ruzek nodded and turned on his heel. Voight looked at his watch, he'd give him a couple of minutes at most. Roman didn't even open his eyes when he heard the foosteps on the stairs nor the door open, he was pretty sure he was spending the night down here and didn't feel like engaging with any of those assholes upstairs. Nobody seemed to care about his rights or him in general.
Slowly he opened his eyes. "Gee this is a surprise." He rolled his eyes and sat up, of course this idiot was going to show up, he couldn't help himself. "What do you want?"
Adam didn't speak but the rage was burning deep within him.
Roman taunted him. "Why don't you come in here?"
"Okay." He unlocked the gate and ducked as Roman took a swing at him. Adam sat him on his ass with one swift punch to his jaw. He followed it quickly with another three. "You fucking piece of shit. You contact Kim, come near her or even show your fucking face in Chicago again you'll join your sister."
"You threatening me Ruzek?"
"Don't worry there is nobody here to listen to your pathetic begging."
It was only when Voight stepped in and grabbed Adam's shoulder that they both realised he was there, he'd seen it all and he wasn't going to step in until he thought Ruzek had gone far enough. If he let him go he'd probably kill him and while he wouldn't blame Ruzek he wasn't about to let him go down that road.
Adam had him by the scruff of his neck, his face was split open and blood poured from cuts near his eye, cheek and mouth. He shrugged Voight's arm off and bought his face close to Roman's. "You fucking killed my kid. Kim will never forgive you. I hope you rot in hell."
Ruzek suddenly dropped him, shoving him hard into the bench and stepped out of the cage. He turned and walked away out of the District and back to the hospital.
Voight closed and locked the gate behind him. "Guess that's your answer. It's your call now. You walk away in the morning like this never happened and never set foot back in Chicago or contact Kim again or you cop a murder charge and Ruzek takes a hit and gets a rap over the knuckles seeing as you resisted arrest and you, well Gen Pop is comfier than here….apparently."
Adam checked with the nurses on the way back to her room. He was happy to hear she had been asleep most of the time he was gone. He climbed onto the bed beside Kim and she reached for his hand. He grimaced a little and was glad there was no light in the room so she couldn't see his bleeding knuckles. "Just sleep Darlin', I'm right here."