Chapter 20: Man On The Run
Morning ended up being sooner rather than later, as Gus was awakened by a flurry of sirens seemingly next to her head and her phone simultaneously ringing. "Broussard, you okay?" her Lieutenant's voice barked over the line.
Gus flew into action, pulling on clothes before responding, "I think so. What's going on, Loo?" "
The gang hit again, in your 'hood, turn your radio on and get dressed" he barked.
"Gotcha," Gus said, hanging up, turning on her radio and pulling her hair back up.
"All units be advised, patrols in pursuit of a black sports sedan, last seen driving away from a burglary at 256 Gramercy" the radio squawked.
"256 Gramercy what? Gus called agitatedly, holstering her weapon and flying down the stairs of her building.
"West, Suspect vehicle heading southbound on Park Ave", the dispatcher replied.
"Heading straight for the Midtown Tunnel, I bet," Gus mused, stopping short at the crowd of elderly people in their nightclothes standing in the lobby.
"Oh thank goodness, Augusta, dear, please tell us what is going on," Mrs. Potter said latching onto Gus.
"There is nothing for y'all to worry about. Please go back into your apartments.
"But we just saw a bunch of police cars fly right past, did something bad happen?"
Gus knew that news would travel fast, but it was also part of an ongoing investigation. Regardless, she knew more than one little old man in the building also had a police scanner and it was a building full of early risers.
"There was a burglary on the West side, no one was hurt and they are chasing the suspects car. I can't tell you anything more, as it is an ongoing investigation. Speaking of which, I have to get to work."
The crowd looked at her for a long moment, like expectant children and then finally dispersed, shuffling back to their various apartments mumbling about what good did it do to have a detective in the building if you couldn't get the inside scoop.
Gus was trudging across the park from her building on East 20th when her phone rang again. "Broussard" she answered expecting Daddino or Sinclair.
"Just checking in," came Flack's voice.
"Just checking in, better be glad I wasn't asleep" Gus retorted, but couldn't keep the smile out of her voice.
"The spy gang hits less than a block from your place, didn't think they would be letting you sleep," Flack retorted.
"They didn't, mind you I was sleeping like a baby when Daddino called" Gus sniffed.
"Ah, poor thing" Flack said unconvincingly.
"You coming out?" Gus asked, trying to remain nonchalant and debating if she should duck back into her place depending on the answer.
"Yeah, as soon as I shower. Major Case is angling for this thing, and Sinclair very well may give it to them," Flack said.
"But you want in, don't you?" Gus picked up on what Flack was leaving out.
"Hell yeah, it is the closest I'll ever get to being a spy," Flack sounded like an excited boy.
Gus couldn't help but laugh, "I'll go beat them off then. See ya when you get here" she said hanging up.
Gus arrived at the stoop of the building, where a crowd was already forming. A normally quiet block, the sirens and car chase had brought out most of the neighborhood, or so it seemed to Gus as she pushed her way through.
"Sorry, miss, this is a crime scene" a uniform informed her as she was stringing out the tape in front of the building.
"Detective Broussard, homicide," Gus said flashing her badge.
"No reports of a body, but go ahead," the uniform said with a shrug, lifting the tape. "How did you get here so fast?" she asked Gus.
"Live over there," Gus replied, thumbing in the direction behind her.
"Detective, huh? Musta been hired on the old pay scale" the woman sniffed.
"Something like that." Gus entered the well appointed lobby and took in the frazzled looking doorman, concierge and security guard.
It amazed Gus the difference half a block could make in the real estate, but then again a couple of blocks from her place back in New Orleans had been a crack house, so it really wasn't much different.
Gus was not the least bit shocked that the burglary had taken place in the penthouse suite, she was taken aback by the young age of the victim and the fact that the penthouse took up the entire top floor.
"No one touch a thing," she ordered the uniforms that were standing and gawking in the foyer. "Crime scene is going to want to go over this place with a fine tooth comb" Gus ordered, holding her badge up.
"Broussard," one of the uniforms called out, crossing over to her.
"Isaacs," she called, happy to see a familiar face.
"Heard yous was back from your summer in the big sleazy. And taking over, huh? You can boss me around anytime" the man said, slapping her on the back.
"Good, I'm starting now. There is only one uniform outside, and that crowd is growing quickly. I am certain media outlets will be descending soon as will rush hour, we are going to need traffic control as well. The park is bad enough in the morning," Gus held up her finger as her phone started to ring, "Broussard."
"Detective," came Sinclair's voice, "I presume you are already on scene, as I told Daddino to call you and I know you lived close by."
"Yes, sir, I am here now, securing the scene and setting up the perimeter," Gus answered, wondering what else the man may want.
"Very good," he remarked.
"Just what the hell is homicide doing here, I don't think there was a body," came an angry shout of a Major Case detective behind her.
Gus whirled to stare the man down, "Sir could you define 'very good' for me?" she asked Sinclair.
"I take it Major Case has arrived? Let me speak to them, please" Sinclair demanded.
"Sure thing, sir," Gus said handing her phone over to the detective without telling him who it was.
The detective snatched it and bellowed, "bad enough we have the media all over this thing like it is a spy movie and the feds clamoring for some action, but now I've got homicide snooping around where there are no bodies!"
Gus watched as the blood drained from the man's face. "Sorry, sir, yes, Sinclair, I understand. No, no, yes, and again I am truly sorry." The detective sheepishly handed the phone back to Gus.
Gus stopped herself from sticking out her tongue at the first grade detective, though she thought about it long and hard.
"I don't know what or who you are doing, girly, but I am keeping my eye on you" the man warned, poking a finger into Gus' chest.
"Bite me," Gus yelled as the man stormed off back downstairs.
"Making friends with Major Case, huh?" Isaacs asked.
"You know it. Anyway, could you work on the crowd and traffic control, and send Flack up when he gets here," Gus said with a shrug.
"You two back together?" Isaacs asked.
Gus wrinkled her nose, "we are working together on this case, if that is what you are asking. Now go, before they eat the poor uniform down there."
Gus secured the apartment with the help of a couple of uniforms, while the owner went to "get pretty."
Gus was leaning against the wall of the hallway leading to the penthouse with her eyes closed when she heard Flack's voice whisper in her ear, "no sleeping on the job, Broussard."
"Very funny, Flack" Gus replied without opening her eyes, "I got a uniform parked just inside the door and Miss Thing is taking a shower. Wanted to look pretty for the Page Six reporter." Gus shrugged and opened her eyes with a yawn.
Flack just raised his eyebrows and handed her a huge cup of steaming coffee. "Bless you" she said, taking the cup and patting his face.
"Thanks for clearing the scene, Gus," Stella said, coming up with her kit.
"No problem. I'm going to go question the neighbors now," Gus said taking a long gulp of coffee.
"Shouldn't be hard since they are all standing in the lobby", Stella remarked, taking a long look between Gus and Flack.
"Have fun y'all," Gus said with a yawn.
"Gus looks beat," Stella remarked, heading into the apartment.
"I don't think she's been sleeping much. She was at the precinct all of the night before last and she didn't leave last night until after 3," Flack shrugged, running his hands through his hair.
"Why do I get the feeling she is still getting over this summer?" Stella asked, directing a couple of field technicians to start fingerprinting.
"Aren't we all?" Flack retorted.
"Some more than others," Stella remarked under her breath as she walked toward the open window and assumed escape route.
"Why hello," came a voice of a attractive blond woman dressed skimpily for 7am, "what happened to the other detective?"
"Detective Broussard is questioning your neighbors, I'm Detective Flack. Now why don't you walk me through what happened?"
Flack listened as the woman told a story remarkably similar to the one he had experienced first hand the night before last, minus the making out in the living room and car chase.
Flack caught one of the uniforms reading the New York Post out of the corner of his eyes. The cover had a photograph of their still unidentified body on the cover.
"Give me that," Flack said, snatching the paper out of the uniforms hands.
"Hey," the guy protested, but walked away seeing the detective was in a less than pleasant mood.
"That was him, he was here, in my bedroom," the woman exclaimed as Flack handed her the newspaper.
"He was here, last night, that was the guy who was here?"
"That's what I just told Page Six," the woman smiled flirtatiously. Flack sighed in disbelief, grabbing the paper back and heading to where Stella was processing an open window.
Flack came out of the building a while later, as Gus was giving up on the other occupants of the building.
Once again, no one had seen anything, not even the early rising joggers. "Guess joggers only find bodies," she sighed, walking over to Flack's side, "How about you?"
"The vic id'ed our 24 hours dead body, hard to be a burglar from a tray in the morgue. And according to Stella somewhere in this city we got a glowing thief who may be our killer," Flack said with a note of weariness.
"Glowing?"
"Something about smart water, high tech security systems and what not" Flack shrugged.
"Exciting" Gus made a face, "I'm going to catch a shower, but see ya at the precinct."
Gus headed immediately toward the lab after getting to the precinct.
The case had gotten under her skin and not just because it involved Flack and his uppity new girlfriend, but also because Sinclair was overly interested in her involvement and now it had impacted her neighborhood.
She wanted it solved so she could get back to cold cases and on normal homicides that didn't feel like they were out of a movie. A happy surprise, she ran into Mac at the elevators.
"Gus," he said, still looking weary.
"Mac" Gus responded, studying him carefully, "did you go home last night?"
"Did you?" Mac retorted as they stepped on to the elevator.
"Yes, it was where I was when I got called over to the latest burglary. Good avoidance of my question though," Gus smiled up at her uncle with concern flooding her eyes.
Mac looked back at her, also concerned,."We should talk" he said gravely.
Gus pushed down feelings of fear, and nodded, "Yeah we should. You still getting calls?"
Mac started to speak as the elevator doors opened and Danny called out, "Hey boss."
Gus wandered slightly away, pretending to be interested in whatever was going on in one of the labs as Danny informed Mac of the car part and brake fluid he had found close to the scene.
She wished she had gone for coffee instead, when Flack came through and Danny teased him about his new girlfriend.
"Make that a real drink," she said to herself as Flack informed Mac that missing persons had finally gotten a hit on their vic.
"James Stanton, heir to the Stanton fortune. Parents reported him missing this morning. They had no idea their son had a dual career as a secret agent and a thief."
"Took 'em long enough," Gus said, "glad they called you."
"They called your desk, got kicked to me," Flack replied.
Mac wearily handed the file to Gus, "follow up please" he said.
Gus nodded and walked off, vowing to get together with her uncle sooner rather than later.
"How you doing?" Danny asked as soon as she rounded the corner.
"Be better once this case is solved, Messer," Gus replied with a wry smile and continuing back towards the pit.
Danny gripped her arm."I meant about Flack and the you know," Danny gestured.
"Ah, do you mean the girlfriend? Peachy keen, Danny, why wouldn't I be. Now if you don't mind, I got a guy to follow up on and you have a car to track down," Gus said, breaking loose and walking quickly away.
Gus was trying to run information on Stanton, when Flack came back down looking distracted. "What's up?" she asked as he sat down and immediately started working his phone.
"Just something I gotta work on" Flack said, meeting her gaze, "for Mac."
Gus guessed immediately that Mac had revealed something to Flack about his 333 calls, and wondered if he now knew more than she did.
'Lunch or dinner w/ Mac ASAP' Gus scrawled on her to do list.
"I gotta go talk to the tech guys about Stanton's computer in a bit, but I want to talk to you about Mac when you get back, okay?" Gus said a while later as Flack was leaving to go to a car guy that Danny had tracked down.
"Yeah, maybe we should," Flack said, before heading out.
Gus was trying to squeeze every last morsel of information about Stanton from IT when alarms started sounding.
"What the hell is that?" she asked one of the guys.
"Security Breach. Somebody has gotten past our firewall and are accessing the computers," he tapped away on the keyboard "in the Crime Lab." He tapped some more, "that's weird it seems to be coming from inside the building. Morris, call building security."
Gus mumbled a thanks to the guy about the information she had gotten and tore off towards the lab.
She arrived in the lab just as the power shut down and noticed a flickering coming from a lab table where Mac, Lindsay, and Hawkes were.
Feeling a bit like she was lost in the Twilight Zone, Gus hesitantly pushed open the door to the lab.
Hawkes appeared to be dissecting the tux worn by the victim that was still on the table. "What the hell?" she asked as Hawkes pulled out what looked like copper wire from inside the suit.
"It's micro-technology in the lining. Stanton and his cohort weren't just stealing jewelry, they were hacking into people's personal computers and electronics as well, and committing identity theft!" Gus explained excitedly to Flack back in the pit after getting the information from Hawkes.
"It wasn't about the money at all. They wanted identities and fame," Flack surmised and then read over the fax that had come in for him while he was out questioning Eliot Gano, the car guy.
"What is it, Flack, you look like you have seen a ghost!" Gus' asked, her eyes wide.
"Not here," he said, rising from his desk and motioning her to follow him. "What do you know about what's been going on with Mac?" Flack asked as soon as they were in a deserted hallway.
"I know he's seemed tired and Peyton is still in London and they lost his luggage," she cut off, seeing Flack growing impatient. "He told you about the calls, huh?"
"Yeah, he also had me run some information from JFK after another call. I just got the fax and it turns out whoever is calling him was on his plane back from London," Flack said, his jaw tightening.
"Do you think he's in some sort of danger?" Gus squeaked out, feeling a little light headed.
"I don't know. I am going to try to convince him to get a threat assessment done and have a duty put on him," Flack's jaw worked furiously, his protective nature showing clearly on his face.
"Good luck with that," Gus sighed.
"I know, maybe you could talk to him after I do. And keep your eye out for the passenger manifest, it's in the works."
"I will. And thanks Flack," Gus said, giving his arm a squeeze.
"Mac's a good guy" Flack replied, leaving unsaid how much the man meant to both of them.
Chapter 21: Misty Falls
Hours later, after going on a fishing expedition with Stanton's family to try to figure out why a young man of such means would want to steal other peoples' identities, Gus arrived back at the precinct and ran into Flack.
After doing a double take at his attire, she broke into a grin, "A little overdressed for the pit, don't you think there, James Bond?"
"What, you don't like it?" Flack grinned, smoothing down his tux jacket with his dimples clearly showing.
"You are such a boy," Gus teased, and leaned in to fix his bow tie."Another benefit?"
"Of sorts, trail led back to Rodrique," Flack replied, ignoring Gus' snort. "And Stella and I figure Stanton's partner is probably going to be at the mayor's shin dig tonight. Hence the penguin suit. You get anything from the parents?"
"Nope, normal grieving parents having the same hard time I am believing their pampered baby boy was into identity theft," Gus shrugged and then broke into a wolf whistle that startled Flack as Stella entered the pit. "Damn girl!" she exclaimed taking in Stella's low cut sequined get up.
"Told you formal gowns don't have to be fluffy," Stella said with a little twirl, causing every man currently in the pit to salivate.
"You win, but I am not even going to ask where your piece is," Gus laughed.
"Come on Flack, we got a bad guy to catch" Stella laughed back, twirling the car keys.
"She can do anything in heels," Gus exclaimed to their retreating figures.
"She can do anything she wants to me in anything," Montgomery gulped from behind her.
Bored of paperwork and stonewalled on the Stanton case, Gus called Lindsay to see if she wanted to go grab a drink. Gus was gathering her belongings to meet up with her friend, when she heard the radio relay yet another 10-31 called in.
She switched channels to hear Flack calling for deployment of security barricades. Figuring something big had to be going down, she headed up to the lab to break her much needed drinks date with Lindsay.
Lindsay was just about to step on the elevator Gus was on when Danny came running toward them excitedly, "Oh Montana, hold up. Evidence is coming in on the James Stanton murder and we have a date with it."
Gus watched as Lindsay's face filled with excitement, "We got the car?"
"You make the coffee, I'll go get the Batmobile. Sorry Broussard, looks like drinks will have to wait until tomorrow night." Danny waved to Gus.
"I'm holding you to that, Danny," Gus laughed and headed back downstairs to observe the interrogation of whatever suspect Stella and Flack had collared.
Stella and Mac were already gathered around the mirror facing into the interrogation room. "Is that Maude?" Gus asked incredulous.
"Sure is. Found her with smart water all over her face at the mayor's benefit" Stella replied, poking at a hand held tablet in her hand.
"Lab get another new toy?" Gus joked, pointing.
Mac ignored the exchange taking the tablet from Stella. "We still don't have anything that directly connects her to the murder." Mac tapped the screen, "Airbag didn't deploy when the car crashed. Stanton's COD was crushed asphyxiation."
Gus looked on at Flack interrogating Maude, he was sticking it to her pretty good. Out of her periphery she heard Stella mention something about Maude fixing the airbag to kill Stanton and Mac arguing about brake fluid and how it seemed the line would have been cut, something Maude would have most likely done to herself.
Gus was asking herself who would then as Mac spoke up, "A Q wannabe. Always behind the scenes, never got to use his own inventions..."
Stella also perked up, "Which means there was a third gang member who wanted both Maude and Stanton killed."
"We need the science to prove it," Mac said before walking off, leaving the tablet with Stella.
"If she hasn't cracked yet, with as much force as Flack is putting into it, I don't think she is going to crack," Gus pointed out to Stella.
"I think I agree," Stella said with a nod.
"So other than catching your not quite a Bond girl, how was the Mayor's benefit, hot mama?" Gus teased.
"You know the scene. Though I think Flack may be in the dog house," Stella gestured into the interrogation room without thinking.
"What for?" Gus asked, curious.
Stella realized she was about to spill out the whole exchange she had unwittingly witnessed between Flack and Devon, but didn't want to crush Gus' already fragile spirits.
"I just don't know how long Flack will be able to run with the Uptown crowd, that's all," Stella said. "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go change."
"Probably better for the hearts of every man in here, Stel" Gus agreed with a smile.
Gus watched as Flack finished up with Maude and caught him outside of the room. "How was playing with the high rollers?" she asked, leaning against the wall, her legs crossed in a pose of relaxation.
"Would have been better if that one would just confess," Flack replied, fiddling with his tux studs.
"Would only work if she actually killed Stanton," Gus pointed out.
"You don't think she did?" Flack questioned.
"Nope, she did have the brains behind the operation, she was clearly the beauty with an inside track to the hot parties. Mac is waiting for science to tell us who 'Q' is, but it sure as hell ain't Maude," Gus sniffed.
"Put your money where your mouth is, Broussard?" Flack teased.
"One casino night and you think you can play with me? Fine, Flack, but let's keep it to food," Gus smirked.
Flack returned the expression, "dinner, not from a cart"
"Deal" Gus said, sticking out her hand, "now change out of your tux before you get too many penguin comments in the pit."
"Yes ma'am," Flack said with a mock salute.
"Any news from the lab?" Flack asked sliding into his desk chair some time later.
"Not yet, but check this out," Gus said turning on the tv mounted in the corner.
Flack rubbed his eyes as he took in the blurb about Sinclair, "Sinclair's caught up in sexual harassment and they think he had an affair? Where the hell did that come from?"
Gus chewed her lip, "Apparently an email got leaked, I am thinking it must have been from the break in at his house."
"Glad I'm not him," Flack said and then went to answer his ringing phone. "Flack, yeah, really? Are you sure? Yeah, I'll be right there." Flack hung up and gave Gus a look.
"What?"
"Looks like you win dinner," Flack sighed.
Gus refrained from being a sore loser, "Oh really?"
Flack couldn't hold back his smile, "Yes, really. Turns out the air bag was rigged to not deflate and that was what killed Stanton. Danny and Lindsay found traces of cayenne pepper on it and the brake calipers. Stella remembered that a guy from the car shop had a nail biting problem."
"And pepper is used to stop nail biting, except in the swamp where it wouldn't deter you from eating your own hand," Gus pointed out.
"Well luckily we're not here, so we have a suspect and they are bringing Mr. Rody in now."
"Back to interrogation then?" Gus asked.
"Back to interrogation," Flack said with a smile.
Gus observed as Flack played the friendly car aficionado with Rody, chatting about the modifications expertly made to the car.
Gus ignored the punch she felt as Flack brought up his girlfriend again, though she couldn't push back the annoyance at his unprofessionalism at mentioning her in to a suspect in the first place, and watched as Stella moved in for the kill.
It didn't take long for Rody to crack, with the young man bemoaning the lack of being able to 'wear the suit and get the girl', and under better circumstances Gus may have felt for the guy, but not tonight, not after all the news about Flack and his apparently heating up relationship.
"You want that dinner now or later?" Flack asked after a uniform had taken Rody to be processed.
"I'm going to go with later," Gus said with a yawn, "I feel like I am dragging big time."
"Can't blame you there. Between you and Mac, it's like we got a zombie pack walking around here," Flack said, his eyes softening the words.
"Always with the flattery," Gus dripped, "I'll let you off on dinner if you buy me a couple of drinks tomorrow night. I think the whole gang is going out, you know to celebrate and to catch Adam up on all the action he missed since he took his little cruise."
"I've missed that little geek," Flack admitted, "though I suppose he more than deserved a vacation." Flack looked at Gus for a long beat, thinking about going down the road of deserved vacations, but thought better of it.
"Drinks tomorrow could be fun," he said instead, and then remembering the text message he had gotten earlier, "but I am sure I have plans to be trotted out tomorrow that I just don't know about yet."
Gus snorted, "I think I am going to buy you a Burberry leash for Christmas."
"Laugh riot, Broussard," Flack said, trying to ignore the pain that was clearly displayed on Gus' face, despite her desperate attempts to remain jovial and unaffected.
"Real dinner it is then" Flack said, after clearing his throat, "soon, that way we can talk about what to do with Mac."
"Works for me" Gus said turning away. Turning back with a playful and wistful smile she quipped, "Good work out there, Flack...Don Flack."
Flack's reply was to playfully throw a wad of paper at her and say, "get some sleep, Gus, you have obviously gone delirious."
Chapter 22: All American Man
Gus' next day brought a fruitful session with Lyons that helped solidify her feeling that she needed to be back in the field and additional discussions on her latest crop of jealousy about Flack and his 'girlfriend'.
"Is it any woman or something about this one?" Lyons fished.
"Oh I am sure it would be any, but this one takes the cake. The only thing worse then this plastic Uptown girl would be someone else on the force. At least with this Devon character, I can pretend he is working out some latent fantasy," Gus retorted, angrily shredding her tissue.
"And if it was someone else on the force?" Lyons pressed on.
"Don't even think about making me go there, Doc, I can barely deal with what is in front of me as it is."
"And what about you and this firefighter?"
"A relentless game of phone tag. I know I should just get back in the game, so to speak, so maybe I should force an opportunity with someone not in a civil servant position," Gus said with a smile, "or an attorney or a shrink or..."
"You keep adding to that list and you are going to run out of eligible men in the city," Lyons joked.
"I clearly know that no one is going to be able to compare to Don at this point, as much as I know that he needs to work through this little affair on his own. Maybe we can try to patch things up in the future, but for right now, I just want to be able to work with him on a daily basis."
"You feel you have reached that point?"
"Only one way to figure that out, I suppose. And I do love my job and I want to get back to doing it," Gus admitted.
"In that case," Lyons said with a grin on his face and his pen poised, "looks like I have a couple of forms to fill out."
Back in the pit, Gus waded through the paperwork on her desk and tried to make sense of the cold cases.
A much needed coffee break in the lab solidified plans with Hawkes and Danny to go see a movie, but girl's night was once again pushed back because Stella and Lindsay were both working late.
"I feel like I haven't had a chance to talk to them in forever," Gus bemoaned.
"I think you will find a way to live. Especially since a little bird told me you were back in the field," Danny teased.
"By little bird you don't happen to mean a six foot plus former partner of mine, do you?" Gus shot back.
"Maybe. So are you two going to working back together?"
"I am certain we will be working on some of the same cases. Sinclair seems to have a thing with me working with the lab," Gus shrugged, evading Danny's true line of questioning.
Danny decided to not push it, "Huh, well, glad you are back. Meet you out front later, okay?"
"See you then Messer," Gus said, going back to her desk.
Later as Gus met up with Danny out front, he suddenly yanked at her wrist, spinning her away from the building. "Why don't we go this way?" Danny said nervously.
"What the hell, Messer?" Gus exclaimed, breaking free from his grasp and plummeting forward. Picking herself up from a heap on the sidewalk as Danny tried to block her line of vision, Gus saw what he had been trying to shield her from.
Gus forced her face to remain impassive as Flack bent down to kiss a gorgeous redhead in greeting. "Oh" she muttered softly, brushing herself off.
"Are you okay?" Danny asked carefully.
"Just a fall, Dan-o, I do it all the time" Gus joked.
"I meant..." he trailed off.
"That? It's my own doing, if you recall. I was the one who ran away, I am just getting what I deserve," Gus chewed on her lip.
"BB, come on, don't talk like that," Danny pleaded.
"Don't worry about it. He's moving on, time I did too. Now can we go? The movie is starting soon and I know how whiny you get if you miss the previews." Gus strode off with her head held high.
Danny cast another glance at Flack and his date, and then followed with a shaking head.
Flack caught Danny's glance over the top of Devon's head. Flack tried to focus on what she was saying, figuring it was something seductive by the way she had just licked her lips.
He also tried to erase the look he had caught on Gus' face. Anyone that didn't know her would have figured she could care less, from how little her face gave away.
However, Flack did know her, perhaps better than anyone else, and he knew that the more she cared, the more she shut down. And she had shut down completely in that look.
"Movie was good wasn't it?" Danny asked as they exited the theater.
"Except for having to temporarily suspend belief approximately four thousand times, it was quite enjoyable," Hawkes replied.
"Stop that, what about you, Gus, what did you think?"
"It was a regular cinematic masterpiece, D," Gus said halfheartedly.
Danny and Hawkes shared a look behind Gus' back. "Stop looking at each other like that, I'm fine. How about we grab a slice?" Gus replied with a roll of her eyes, knowing neither of them would argue.
On the way to their favorite pizza parlor, Gus caught the wistful expression on Danny's face.
"Why don't we call the rest of the gang and see if they are off yet?" she suggested, knowing full well Danny only cared about the scheduling of one of them.
She noticed they had been keeping pretty separate at work lately, and she was still unsure if it was the pair's own doing, or a little intervention from Mac.
Seated in a round corner booth between Adam and surprisingly, Sid, a while later, Gus bit into her pizza scorching the roof of her mouth like always.
Gus struggled to reach the pile of napkins and felt a wave of loneliness wash over her despite being in the crowd.
A feeling exacerbated by Sid innocently asking, "Where is young Detective Flack?"
Gus heard Adam make a choking noise beside her and mutter under his breath, "you really need to leave the morgue more, Sid."
Gus smirked slightly, taking in Adam's look of concern. Squeezing his arm, Gus turned to Sid with a false smile, "I think he had a date this evening."
Gus watched as Sid's expression turned to confusion, then flicked through whatever his peculiar cranium held, and register embarrassment, "I see," was all he said.
Gus caught Lindsay's gaze from across the booth, where she had been discretely nestled against Danny, and waved her off, mouthing "I'm fine."
"Does Mac or Stella ever come out with the rest of the team?" Kendall asked from beside Adam.
"Stella more than Mac, yous never really know what is going on with him," Danny replied.
"Unless it is a Cozy's night" Lindsay added. Kendall's forehead creased.
"Jazz club, Uncle Mac plays with the house band there most Wednesdays and the occasional Saturday," Gus supplied, noticing Kendall's forehead did not uncrease.
"Gus does too sometimes, though we haven't heard you in quite sometime," Hawkes supplemented.
"Yeah, what's up with that Broussard?" Danny asked.
"My muse got run over by a National Guard Humvee," Gus dripped.
Lindsay picked up on the new lab tech's continued confusion, "don't worry, Kendall, no one knew that Gus' was Mac's niece when she first came here either."
"Mac's wife was my aunt," Gus explained, "Mac dragged my ass up here after Hurricane Katrina."
"Right, New Orleans, you were there this summer, weren't you? Some kind of exchange program?" Kendall started putting the pieces together from what she had learned from Stella about the team or had heard around the lab. Adam hadn't told her much about Gus.
"Yeah, something like that," Gus and Danny dripped at the same time. Gus broke into laughter, "Thanks a lot, Messer."
Leaning over Adam, Gus filled in, "I tried to quit after a big bust at the beginning of the summer, but they wouldn't let me. I also wanted to see how my hometown was doing two years later. Short answer, great place to visit, avoid living there."
Kendall nodded, trying to take it all in, and also wanted to ask about Detective Flack, as she had heard something about the pair having been partners at one point, but she also got the impression that that was not a topic for open discussion currently.
"Whoa, look at the time," Danny exclaimed suddenly, with a large, and fake yawn.
"Bye you two, but don't forget to leave cash for your share," Gus teased.
"Funny, Broussard, real flippin' funny," Danny drolled, but smiled and rolled some bills out on the table.
"I should head home as well, my wife is probably thinking I have chosen d.b.'s over her again," Sid exclaimed, nudging Hawkes out of the booth.
"Curfew time again?" Gus joked, pecking Sid on the cheek.
A minute later Gus said, "I guess I am going to head home too. Got a long day of pawning off cold cases tomorrow," Gus said as she slid out of the booth.
Hawkes laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, "Can you make it home, alright?"
"Sheldon, I am fine. But thanks," Gus patted him on the cheek.
Kendall gave Adam another look, noticing he was also looking at Gus with concern.
The two men followed Gus with their eyes, both looking relieved when she caught up with Sid, who handed over his cab, despite her protestations.
Hawkes followed out next, catching Sid still on the sidewalk.
"That girl is carrying the world on her shoulders' isn't she?" he remarked as his former protégé stood beside him.
"And try to convince her that she shouldn't," Hawkes replied with a shake of his head.
"What is her deal?" Kendall asked Adam, trying to remain unconcerned about Gus, though she couldn't deny the pangs of jealousy that she had felt the first time she laid eyes on the woman in the canteen with Adam.
Adam shrugged, "She's had a rough time of it."
"Yeah, but everyone is acting like she is about to break, and she looks pretty tough to me," Kendall replied.
"Gus is one of the toughest people I know" Adam agreed, "and that might be her downfall."
"Anything ever happen between the two of you?" Kendall asked, her eyes grave.
Adam made a face, "Gus? No, no way, she's like a sister. She is a good friend, and she got a lot of what I was going through after the warehouse," Adam shuddered, and then covering it up with a smile, "Besides, Flack would have kicked my ass."
"Flack, the guy out on the date?" Kendall responded, "why is that?"
"Oh my dear Kendall, you have so much to learn" Adam smiled, leading her out of the restaurant by her waist, "luckily I will happily be your tour guide."