Elisa pulled into a nearly deserted parking area of a small business complex.
She threw the car into park and turned off the ignition. She'd driven a ways away from the station, just to be on the safe side, and now whirled to look at her human formed husband in the back seat.
He… looked a little green.
"Goliath?" She asked, concerned.
"I have never ridden inside a car before," He said slowly.
Matt started laughing. "And you've never driven with your wife," He said. "Oh, man…"
Elisa glared at Matt. "Stay here," she said.
Matt raised his hands, "Not going anywhere."
Elisa and Goliath got out of the car, his complexion evening back out with his feet back on solid ground.
"Not that I'm not appreciating the surprise," Elisa said, giving him a quick once over, "But what happened?"
"I did not like the idea of you having to pretend to have someone else in your life," Goliath admitted, frowning.
"I work undercover sometimes," She reminded him, but had to admit, "but I wasn't exactly looking forward to it, either." She frowned. "Seriously, though, how did…"
"I spoke with Puck," Goliath admitted.
"I wondered."
Goliath pulled Elisa's chain and wedding ring from under the collar of his shirt, the stone of her wedding ring sparkling more than the limited lighting of the parking lot would have caused.
"He placed a spell on your ring, so I am able to remain human until I am no longer needed as such," Goliath smiled. "As long as I wear this around my neck, I am able to be with you here to help."
"Please tell me that this isn't going to be like last time," Elisa asked, "Because I do not want to have to break my ring."
"No," Goliath said. "It is only until I take this from around my neck." Goliath lifted the ring, still on its chain, so that it caught the light from the street lamps. "Once it is removed, the spell is done."
"It's nice, don't get me wrong," Elisa placed a hand against the side of his face, "But I'm going to be glad to have you, the real you, back."
He closed his eyes, and leaned into her hand. Turning, he placed a kiss into her palm.
Elisa gave a breathless laugh and gave him a gentle push back. "Alright, Big Guy. Let's get back to work."
-{- -{- -{- -{- -{- -{-
They were on their way to vandalism call when the dispatcher reached out to Elisa and Matt to return to the station ASAP.
Elisa shared a look with Matt. For a return call like that, something had happened and it probably wasn't good.
Elisa turned the car around at the first opportunity, and made her way back to the station.
The three of them re-entered the police station to a strangely subdued room. Normally, the reception area was a mass of people and noise. Today, the officers who were still there, were quiet. Some even seemed uneasy.
Elisa felt a tightening in her gut. Something was really wrong, and the three of them seemed to be the last to know. As one group, they wound their way through the maze of desks towards the Captain's office.
The door was open, so as the approached, they could see Maria at her desk, phone to her ear. Not breaking the call, she waved them all in.
Matt was the last in, and closed the doors behind them.
Maria finished her call, and with deliberate slowness, she replaced the phone on the cradle.
"Personal or business?" Elisa asked.
"Both," Maria said abruptly. "Matt, shut the blinds."
Matt raised his eyebrows. The only time that happened, according to the rumor mill, is when a severe ass chewing was imminent. He reached over to first one set, then the second set of blinds.
Maria leaned forward on her desk. "We got results back from the lab," Maria started, not mincing words. "We were able to narrow down where the card came from and are petitioning for the security tapes. We got a few prints off as well, and will hopefully hear back from the AFIS guys soon."
"That's a good thing, right?" Elisa asked.
Maria nodded, "It will be if this guy has prints on file somewhere," She said. "It's that bear that made me call you back, however."
Goliath frowned. "The toy?"
Maria nodded. "It wasn't just a bear, Elisa. It was rigged with a camera."
Elisa froze, Goliath frowned, and Matt swore softly.
"According to the tech guys," Maria went on, "It was transmitting both picture and sound."
Elisa mentally went back through everything that had happened in front of that damn bear since she'd gotten it.
"Luckily, I didn't take it up to my place," Elisa said slowly. "Liam was already on his way to the castle by then, so he didn't see or hear Liam. Other than that, it was in the box until it got here…" Elisa's head jerked up and she met Goliath's eyes. "It was on my desk when I told Charisse that Goliath was my husband."
"I was afraid of something like that," Maria said tiredly.
"So… The slow escalation we were hoping for…" Matt trailed off.
"Just got a powerful boot to the ass," Maria said. "If this person is as unhinged as it seems, then the situation just got a hell of a lot worse."
Elisa had a bad feeling. She took out her phone and dialed the security guard desk at her building.
"Tony," Elisa greeted. "This is…"
"Mrs Maza," Tony interrupted. "I was about to call you."
"Was there another delivery?" Elisa asked.
"Yes, ma'am," He replied. "Delivered by an overnight courier. It's another box."
"Tony, hold it there at the desk." Elisa instructed, watching as Maria picked up her phone and hurriedly dialed another number. "Don't touch it any more than you already have, and I'll be there soon."
"Alright," Tony said, tension in his voice. "It's here at the front desk."
"I'll be there in a few minutes," She promised.
As she ended the call, Maria ended hers as well. "There were some officers near your building on another call. They'll meet you there," She said.
Elisa nodded sharply.
"Let's go," Matt said, and the three of them were once more hustling out the door. "We'll take my car. I'm driving."
It was a sign of just how out of sorts Elisa was, that she handed over the keys without a fight.
