Chapter 13
The morning sun scorched through the windows of the beach house as Masters peered down closely at the damaged lock. Cheryl and Mark had spent the whole night at the hospital, both trying to do their jobs whilst keeping a careful watch over Steve.
"He must have come here for me last night" Cheryl reasoned, wrapping her arms tightly around herself as a shiver ran up her spine. "When he didn't find me he went to the hospital for Steve instead."
Mark moved across the kitchen towards the two officers. "Good job Cheryl was at the station seeing as you, in your infinite wisdom, called the officers off here too."
"Dr Sloan, I made a mistake, I won't deny that" Masters replied hastily. "It would seem Peters was here, and when he found the place empty he went to Community General. Now that he has disappeared from the group home we need to figure out where he'll go next."
"Back to the hospital or back here" Cheryl reasoned. "From what Steve told us we were pretty much on the mark with motive. So I'm next on the list for giving him the time at the Bennet crime scene, and Steve's in danger because Peters sees him as a barrier to getting to me."
"Jesse could be on the list now too," Mark added.
"Jesse didn't really help him" Cheryl pointed out, "but killers are often drawn back to what they see as 'failings'."
"And you ought to be careful Dr Sloan" Masters observed sternly.
"And why is that?" Mark asked gruffly, having little time or respect for anything this man had to say now.
"Take your pick. You are Steve's father…"
"Which Peters may not know" Mark pointed out.
"None the less, you share this house with Detective Banks, you helped Peters at the hospital, and you were the one who stopped him from getting to Steve the first time around."
"He's right, you need to be careful" Cheryl nodded.
"OK, well I'll call somebody to come and fix that door if that's OK, and then I'm off to see Steve."
"I'll join you" Cheryl said, then looking at Masters added, "if that's alright with you sir?"
"Not a problem, I'll call if there are any more developments. And Detective Banks, watch your back."
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*Say something* Steve pleaded as he and Jesse sat in silence. *This is unbelievable, usually you can't shut Jesse up. *
Jesse shuffled in his chair, carefully cradling his arm, and smiled nervously at Steve.
*Say something or I'll scream! OK I'd better say something. *
"So" Steve began, "How's things?"
"Fine" Jesse replied, "things are fine."
There was a long pause. "The arm?" Steve asked.
"The arm, oh the arm's….fine."
*Great* Steve thought, *I get more conversation than this when I'm alone. *
"So" he hoped it would be third time lucky "how does it feel knowing a psychotic art student with a penchant for small dolls tried to stab you to death and is still running around out there?"
Jesse thought about it for a moment. "Fine."
Steve laughed nervously, "Ah Jesse, tell me this isn't as crazy as it sounds."
"Sorry, but it is." He ran a hand back through his hair, adding to the already bedraggled expression.
"You could have been killed" Steve sighed.
"I know, and I was only coming up here to get you to spill the beans on Cheryl!"
"Serves you right for being so damn nosy then."
"I can't believe he was in here with you, you must have been terrified."
"Understatement" Steve admitted.
"I was lying there in the corridor thinking about what I might find when I came into the room" Jesse recounted. "When I heard you scream I thought maybe there were two of them, but at least I knew your lungs were holding up."
"I can't tell you how useless I felt Jess, I was just stalling for time, stalling for time, waiting for something to happen, anything." He smiled, "usually, guys like that, situations like that, I just think about kicking their ass and cuffing them. I tell you it's a lot easier than all those mind games and steering the conversation."
"You don't like the idea of being a hostage negotiator or stopping suicide jumpers on skyscrapers?" Jesse beamed, back in his wannabe action man mode.
"I don't think I've got the patients or the brains for that work, I'd be goading them on, desperate for some action."
"Can we come in?" Mark asked as he stuck his head around the door.
"The more the merrier" Steve replied
"He's just licking my boots for saving him the other day" Jesse informed them, puffing up his chest.
Mark and Cheryl shuffled into the room.
"Any more news?" Steve asked impatiently before either could speak.
Cheryl began recounting the details she had so far. "Masters called ten minutes ago, we've got enough from the group home and here to nail this guy."
"Like what?" Steve demanded.
"The photos for one. As predicted he didn't just leave one set at the crime scene, he took more home for his own gory album."
"Anything else?"
Cheryl sighed. She'd guessed Steve would want to know every last detail but given his condition was reluctant to tell him. "Security camera from the main door downstairs shows Peters entering with that rucksack, from other cameras we can track him right up to your room. The rucksack and his room at the group home contained dolls and the fabrics he'd used to make them. He left his camera in here too…"
"But took the knife with him" Jesse observed.
Cheryl nodded. "There were more knifes in the rucksack and his room along with notes and diaries, drawings and books, a whole load of stuff Steve."
"What did he use for breaking into the houses?"
"We haven't figured that out yet, but really, we have enough to get this guy." She hoped her smile would convince him of that.
"OK" Jesse began after a lull in the conversation, "you've got all the evidence you need, and I don't want to sound like a wimp or anything here but" he grinned nervously, "any chance of you actually getting the guy too?"
"They're working on it Jess," Mark assured him, though his words did little to comfort the young doctor. Mark shot a questioning look at Cheryl who shrugged in reply.
"Come on" Steve invited them. They both feigned innocence but Steve wasn't buying it. "I'm not blind, I saw that look!"
Cheryl smiled sweetly, hoping to soften Steve up before delivering the next bombshell to him. "There's nothing for you to worry about but" she began
"Oh god, we're all going to die!" Jesse shrieked. "It'll be like one of those bad horror movies, there'll be a power cut and…" Mark put a restraining hand on Jesse's arm, and his stern look told him to calm down. "Sorry" Jess apologised sheepishly, "but she did say 'but'."
Cheryl raised an eyebrow and attempted to pick up where she left off. "Before Peters came here yesterday, we think he went to the beach house."
"You think?" Steve asked, unconvinced.
"The lock had been forced, nothing missing inside."
"And Masters had released the patrol car that was supposed to be watching the place." He clenched his jaw tightly in frustration and fear. If Cheryl or his father had been in that house, he dreaded to think what could have happened.
"The patrol car is back" Cheryl reassured him.
"I don't want you going back there" Steve said calmly, "either of you. You can go to a hotel, or a safe house or anywhere until this is over." It was then that he noticed Cheryl's head drop and her eyes flick away. "Oh what?" he asked, but there was no reply. "Whatever it is, forget about it" he shouted.
"Steve listen" Cheryl tried desperately to explain.
"Maybe we should go" Mark suggested to Jesse.
"Stay right where you are" Steve insisted, "now tell me what's going on Cheryl!"
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Fifteen minutes and one huge argument later Mark and Jesse watched as Cheryl and Steve stared defiantly at each other. Their war of words had, in the end, boiled down to a 'should' verses 'should not' screaming match.
Cheryl, with Masters' agreement, had decided that she should return to the beach house, in an attempt to lure Peters out of hiding. Steve had decided that she should not.
"Dad, tell her it's too dangerous" Steve pleaded.
"You know I can't get involved" Mark reasoned. Though he agreed with his son and hated to see him upset he knew he had no right to interfere with Cheryl's decisions or official police work.
"There will be backup outside, there will be an officer waiting upstairs, I will be armed." Cheryl explained, but none of her assurances could sway Steve on the matter.
"It's too dangerous" he barked
"No more than other operations we've been involved in." She glanced at her watch and shuffled in her chair.
"I don't think you should do this" Steve huffed and Cheryl rolled her eyes to the heavens.
"It could be the quickest way to find him. Those incompetent fools at the group home have no idea where he went. I still can't believe they didn't know something was wrong, aren't they paid to keep an eye on these people? There were bloody clothes in his room and…."
"and you are changing the subject" Steve snapped. He took a long cleansing breath. Mark leant forward, worried as he heard Steve wheeze. "Dad, Jesse" Steve asked before his father could say anything. "Can you give us a moment please?"
Jesse and Mark willingly complied, both breathing a sigh of relief as they left the tension filled room and stepped into the corridor. Inside the debate continued, but this time Steve changed tact.
"Please listen to me" he begged his partner. "I think this is too dangerous, too risky. You can catch this guy another way instead of using yourself as bait. I just have a really bad feeling about this."
"It's no more risky than a thousand other operations we've been involved in"
"It's different" Steve snapped back. "It's not we, I won't be there to…."
"Protect me?" Cheryl snarled.
Steve composed himself before speaking again. "It's different because it's personal"
"Because of the dolls and the photos, because he talked about me when he was here? Yes it's personal, that's why I'm a perfect set up for him."
"It's personal because of us" Steve whispered, feeling the sting of tears threatening his eyes.
Cheryl chewed over the statement a hundred times before croaking a reply. "I still have a job to do." She looked at her watch. When Masters had agreed to the set up on the phone earlier he'd told her to be back at the station before five. She was running out of time. "I have to go" she muttered, referring to the time. But Steve took it as a defence of her decision to participate in the set up.
"No you don't have to go" he implored her, "Masters can't make you"
"That's not what I mean Steve. Look, I have a job to do and I have to go, now."
"No" he replied weakly, the ears welling heavily in his eyes now.
"Mark and Jesse will be staying here, either with you or in the sleep room of the lounge. You'll all be together, safe." She tried to sound as professional and confident as possible.
"Please don't go" Steve whispered again as Cheryl stood and collected her coat from the back of the chair.
"You have no right to put me in this position Steve, you have no right to ask me to neglect my duties"
"No right?" he asked venomously as two perfect tears rolled down his cheeks.
"We're partners Steve, can't you trust me to take care of myself?"
"I thought we were more than partners" he replied without emotion, "I thought I could trust you to take care of me too."
The tension in the room was tangible. Steve's eyes stung with the tears he failed to fight back, Cheryl was flushed and shaking.
"Masters is expecting me" she told him after a long pause. "I'll update Mark when I can, and I can come in to see you tomorrow" she hesitated, "if you still want me to."
There was no answer to her question. She lent towards Steve with the intention of kissing him goodbye, even if the kiss were only that of a friend. But he clenched his jaw and screwed his eyes tightly closed. "Don't" he spat through gritted teeth and Cheryl pulled away.
As she reached the door she turned and raised her head. "I'm not doing this to hurt you Steve" she told him with conviction, but he didn't hear. Steve would spend the rest of the night locked deep in his own mind, silently praying for his partners safety.
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"You could at least pretend to be glad to see me" Amanda told Steve as she took a seat at his bedside.
"Just thought it might be….someone else" he explained glumly.
"Well, a little bird tells me that you and a certain someone may not have parted on the best of terms the other day."
"That little bird wants to mind his own business before I rip his goddamn wings off!"
Amanda mulled over the statement and the ferocity with which it was delivered. "You aren't very happy are you?" she asked playfully and an involuntary smile crept over Steve's face.
"She didn't come by at all yesterday" he sighed. "I don't suppose I blame her, I wasn't exactly…ah heck I was a total asshole."
"But you know that Cheryl is OK, and that's the main thing isn't it?"
"Yeah" he agreed weakly, "but you can bet she'll be pulling the same stunt again tonight, and again tomorrow, and on and on until this psycho does come after her."
"I won't tell you not to worry" Amanda smiled, "because I know it's all you've done this past two days. But Cheryl can look after herself, she won't do anything stupid."
"Unlike me" Steve mused.
"Mark tells me your breathing has improved"
Steve rolled his eyes, knowing full well that his friend was changing the subject. "Yeah, feels a lot easier" he replied, deciding anything but the investigation was a good use of his brain right now.
"CJ's got the new Harry Potter book you know, he's bugging me to bring him in again."
Steve smiled and relaxed as Amanda sat at his side. Together they chatted casually long into the afternoon, both blissfully unaware of the terror that was soon to strike.
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