"He didn't want you guys to know about any of this, especially not Mike. Stephen knew well enough that something like this could be enough to distract the Lieutenant when he could least afford it. And he didn't want to take that chance. I guess I couldn't blame him at the time."
Barb's voice had fallen quieter, almost remorseful as she explained to a stunned Dan what kind of a whirlwind of a commotion had happened over the past month and a half. Leaning against the outside wall, with his arms crossed and head bowed as he listened; his active mind tried to come up with the most soothing way to relay the frightening news to Mike without upsetting the Lieutenant any farther.
So far, he kept drawing a blank on that one.
"I can't believe he did this! I really can't! ...Barb, as much as I understand his…his hesitation, I am not sure how his behavior is going to make things any easier. Mike isn't oblivious. He's a very sensitive man and he picked up on it right away. And until Steve is willing to open up and get past this…incident…I am worried about his role in our investigation. He's…he's not his usual self at all."
Dan bit the inside of his lip when he said that, knowing he'd never dare to do so in front of Mike. And yet, questioning Steve's ability to look at their case from a neutral perspective was becoming even more important after the latest revelation Barb had thrown in his lap.
"I am not disagreeing with you at all, Daniel.", the Records Keeper said cordially and took a deep breath, her eyes drifting across the shelving units full of teaching supplies, "As a matter of fact, I am quite annoyed at his decision to take on even more responsibility, when he should be scaling back. I had hoped he learned from what happened last time. Sometimes he reminds me of my son Richard when he was a teenager. Always wanting to push the limits. Sometimes…in the most catastrophic way."
"That sounds about right.", Dan added and shook his head in sheer frustration, "Last night he flew off the handle over something quite benign. Mike tried to calm him down but it didn't work. Do you think it would make any difference if you tried to talk some sense into him? Make him understand what needs to happen and that he can trust us?"
"I'd be happy to try if I see him, Daniel, but he's been avoiding me and Carmen every time be comes in. See, he changed so much after all this happened. He became distant. Irritable. Impatient. That sweet, lighthearted personality and cheeky smile disappeared. It seems that this experience made him feel…I guess…out of control, insecure…it took all his confidence away. Scared him to death even. And in return, he became edgy and ill-tempered and defensive with a lot of people around here. Max loves him and tolerates it so far, but eventually, he's going to go up against the wrong person and I don't want him to endanger his career over something that he had no control over."
They both fell quiet for a long moment as Barbara began to pace the confines of the small room in obvious worry, one hand in front of her mouth as she pondered away.
"You know Daniel, I just wish he'd let Mike help him through this. Pretend that things are like they were in the olden days. Mike's the only person who's ever made is through Stephen's thick skull. You can see that boy's eyes light up when he talks about him. But now, for one noble reason or another, he'd rather suffer alone than open up about things."
"It's frustrating for sure. And unfortunately, once Mike finds out what's been going on, he'll go nuts. Or become furious. Or obsessively worried.", Dan mumbled and checked his wristwatch, ruefully aware of that fact that he was due back downtown any minute to meet with his partner, "I've got half an hour to come up with a good way to break the news to the Lieutenant. Wish me luck."