Author's note 1 : This is a translation/adaptation of my epnym fanfic. Hope this isn't exactly a break in the rules of engagement but although I am French and therefore write more in French, I enjoyed a lot translating this into English. I hope it is readable for the native English speakers.
Author's note 2 :This my first DIP fanfic. I wish I could say that I am first hour fan but I discovered the series visiting my mom while the 4rth series was already airing. But when I saw a replay of the 1st season I immidiately related to poor Richard as, like him, I was posted to the Caribbean and the 3 years I lived and worked in St Lucia have been the hottest of my life ! I don't hate the beach as much as him, and was quite happy with discovering the island and enjoyeing the beach parties on Friday nights... I spent the first 18 months wishing to wear a sweater and sit by a roaring fire in winter which I finally did when I first came back home for the holidays. So Richard Poole rules and Camille is his queen !
Hope you enjoy !
Camille parked the Defender in front of Richard's cabin. The afternoon had passed quickly after the failed murder attempt on Richard and now it was dark already. The team had arrested the perpetrator and questioned the witnesses and the defendant. The paperwork that had followed had taken up the rest of the day and had interfered with most of the evening as well. While the rest of the island was going about their Saturday night business, Richard and Camille were still refining their reports, putting all the dots on the i's and the bars on the t's. Richard, who had just escaped an attempted murder by his own college friend, was his usual self, concentrated, meticulous and picky to the point of mania in writing his report. Camille who had prevented the worst to happen was watching him in disbelief. He was showing no feeling of rage, or fear or relief while the whole event must have shaken him up pretty well. His apparent detachment only added to the confusion of her own feelings.
Camille who had witnessed the whole scene and had barely stopped the killer's arm, was seething. She had been very surprised and delighted that Richard had invited her to the little reunion organized by his college friends. She had thought it was a significant step in their relationship, as unlikely as that word might define exactly what bounded them in a way other than their professional relationship. She had wondered why Richard had invited her though. At first she had thought it was to show off a bit in front of the others, so that they would know that Richard had grown and that he was no longer alone. When Richard's ex-colleague and bully, Doug Anderson, had come to Sainte-Marie for vacation and murder his wife. During the inquest he had bullied Richard and Camille had regretted not having intervened in a way or an other. So this invitation had been an opportunity for her to play for him. And she had thought that if, in the meantime, she could also glean some information and anecdotes on young Richard, then it would be a win-win for everyone.
When they had arrived at the rented villa, her instinct had immediately sensed that there was something strange about the assembling of this group of forty-year old. Richard had introduced her as a friend but soon abandoned her without further explanation to go and read by the pool. She had stayed with his friends, trying to get to know them while watching him out of the corner of her eye and cursing him for dragging her into this comedy where she was playing solo. As she had been playing charades and getting to know his friends, she had been imagining as many scenarios as possible to get revenge for his foul play.
Taking a break from the charade and guessing games they were entertaining themselves with, she took the opportunity to observe each member of the small group that Richard called his friends. They were nothing like him. While Richard had not been making many efforts to mingle with them, his friends had not taken much interest in him either. Except maybe for this Sacha who had talked to Richard and then had changed attitude quite suddenly. It had aroused Camille's interest who then had never took her eyes off her. So when Camille had seen Sasha approaching Richard with such a determination and her arms outstretched alongside her body, she had immediately spotted the weapon Sacha had been holding firmly in her hand and she had come running just in time to immobilize and disarm her not without encountering some resistance from her adversary.
Some chaos had followed suit caused by the shock of the attack and the revelation that Richard had admitted to having had suspicions from the start and that was why he had agreed to come to the reunion and why he had invited Camille to assist him. While admitting to all this, Richard had probably just lost his only English friends. Camille couldn't believe her ears and was fuming that she hadn't been told in advance. Then, Dwayne and Fidel had been called in to take the depositions and process the crime scene.
On their way back to the police station, Camille had called out to Richard about his negligence which had almost cost him his life, but he had not seem to really care. He'd been even calmer than usual and that had made Camille even more angry.
At the police station, once the shock had passed and peace had returned, Camille had gradually realized that they had come close to a disaster. She had almost lost Richard, right in front of her own eyes, and she couldn't figure what troubled her most: that he hadn't confided in her on his suspicions or that she had had nearly lost him. So when it had all been written down and wrapped up, and Dwayne and Fidel had returned to their Saturday occupations for the first and family for the other, Camille had insisted on escorting Richard home, determined not to let him go unscathed for his behavior and to have an explanation.