Yawning widely, Mark poured the water on to his coffee and gave it a quick stir. Sitting down at the table he absentmindedly opened the morning newspaper, skimming the headlines. Taking a sip of the coffee he grimaced – it was stone cold! He'd forgotten to boil the kettle! 'You're getting old Mark' he told himself with a wry smile. He yawned – certainly too old to get up in the middle of the night and go chasing off to a crime scene!
He knew Steve worried about him, but when there was a murder to solve he just couldn't resist. Already he'd planned on asking Jesse to cover, so he could return to the campus and take a good look around. He was itching to get started, there just had to be some clue as to who was behind this. The killer was working to a pattern, he was certain of that, and despite what Steve believed, all his instincts told him that if they looked into supernatural rituals and beliefs they'd find some sort of explanation. It was just a case of where to start - who to talk to?
A noise at the door startled him from his reverie. He looked up in surprise.
'Hey' Steve sighed wearily as he entered the kitchen.
'Hey' Mark replied with a smile, then looking at his watch 'Is this you just getting in?' he asked incredulously.
'Uh huh' Steve groaned collapsing into a chair opposite his father 'I'm so tired I can hardly keep my eyes open' he admitted.
'Well I hope you've come back here to get some rest' Mark said sternly
'Don't worry Dad' Steve smiled ruefully 'Bed sounds pretty good right now' He rubbed eyes that were itchy with fatigue 'I've given Tannis the rest of the day off and I'm gonna grab a couple of hours sleep before I head over to the hospital, check in with Amanda'.
'I'm glad to hear it' Mark replied, unsuccessfully smothering a yawn.
'Hey', Steve interrupted with concern 'Seems like I'm not the only one who could do with some sleep'.
'You know, you're absolutely right' Mark agreed 'I'll see if I can get off early today – maybe Jesse'll cover for me'.
'Good idea' Steve replied through a yawn of his own, moving his hand to support his head, which suddenly seemed way too heavy to support itself.
'And on the way home' Mark continued casually 'I thought I might call in at the University and ….'
Steve looked up sharply 'Since when is the University on the way home?' he asked, shaking his head wryly.
Mark smiled sheepishly 'I just have a few things I wanna check out and then I'll come straight home'.
'Mmmmh' Steve replied, raising his eyebrows. He didn't believe a word of it, but was too tired to argue.
'Anyway' Mark changed the subject smoothly 'I have to get to the hospital, but .. ' he looked at his son with fatherly concern 'do you want some coffee or something to eat before I go?'
'No thanks' Steve replied 'I think I'm just gonna go straight to bed.' He groaned 'Just as soon as I can work up the energy that is'.
'Did you find anything interesting last night?' Mark asked hopefully.
'Not really' Steve sighed 'I spoke to Anderson, the porter who discovered the body, but he was pretty shook up'
'Mmmh' Mark nodded sympathetically. He didn't envy the man his gruesome discovery. Even forewarned as he himself had been, Schwenk's corpse had been a grotesque sight. To stumble upon it unsuspectingly – he sighed; undoubtedly it would be something that would haunt the man for the rest of his life.
'Anyway' Steve continued 'Last time he saw Schwenk alive was around 9.30pm. Seems that academics often work late, so there was nothing unusual in Schwenk being around out of office hours'.
Turning to Mark he sighed heavily 'As far as he knows there was no one else in the building. Nate Johnson and Natasha Summers had both been in the department earlier on, but they'd left around 8 o'clock. His shift finished at 1.30am so he went back to check on Schwenk, and that's when he discovered the body'.
He shrugged his shoulders defeatedly 'So far we have no suspects – no one we can actually place in the building at the time when the murder was committed'.
Mark stroked his moustache thoughtfully 'So it's another conundrum, like the Peterson killing?'
'I guess' Steve groused 'We do have the key chain – it belongs to the porter, but he says it went missing some time after 9.30pm'. He looked at Mark meaningfully 'Along with his keys'.
Mark raised his eyebrows 'Now that sounds promising'.
But Steve refused to be shaken from his black gloom 'Don't get your hopes up yet Dad' he warned. 'It sounds promising until you consider that he could have dropped the keys at 9.30pm, the first time he saw Schwenk and they could have just laid there until forensics picked them up'.
''Did the porter see or hear anything unusual?' Mark asked thoughtfully.
'Apparently not' Steve replied dolefully 'Seems he's also responsible for a couple of the other buildings, so he wasn't even in the archaeology department round about the time the murder took place'. He sighed 'He's gonna give me a list of the people who were there last night though, the times they arrived and left'.
'What about finger prints?' Mark continued.
'None on the knife' Steve said bitterly 'But numerous sets in the office'. He let out a breath 'We're having them analysed, but I doubt they'll give us anything'.
He looked at Mark, blinking tiredly 'We're getting Schwenk's phone records too – it's a long shot, but just may be if we could find out who he's been in contact with recently, it'll help us to figure this out'. He yawned widely 'The station are gonna call me as soon as they have anything'.
'And in the meantime' Mark reminded him 'You are gonna get some sleep.'
Steve held up his hands in surrender 'Okay I'm going' he replied gloomily. Wearily pushing himself up and out of the chair, he waved his father a half-hearted farewell and trudged heavily down the stairs to his apartment below.
'Sleep well son' Mark called after him, his concern reflected in both voice and expression. Dumping his cold coffee down the sink and bending to place the cup in the dishwasher, Mark sighed, he hated to see Steve so dejected. Suddenly he paused, the cup hovering in mid air, as he was struck by a realisation that was altogether far more alarming. It wasn't mere dejection he had sensed in his son; it was defeat.
In his room, Steve struggled to kick off his shoes, fatigue induced clumsiness making him irritable. Frustration mounting, he clawed tersely at his badge and gun, with fingers that refused to co-operate. Finally tearing them free, he dropped both with a crash onto the bedside cabinet, upending the books and alarm clock stacked there. With a sudden rush of temper, he dragged off his shirt, wrenching buttons free in the process. Balling it up, he tossed it angrily onto a nearby chair where it slid unceremoniously to the floor.
'Damm it!' he swore.
Energy quickly spent he sank, drained and morose onto the edge of the bed, dropping his head into his hands. Despite his best efforts at the crime scene last night, they were no further forwards. Wyatt and the others – Steve knew there would be others, were right, he wasn't doing his damn job. He could imagine the conversations at the station, whispered in the cafeteria or the men's room; the suggestion that may be Steve Sloan wasn't quite up to it. Were they right? Should he go to the Chief, ask to be taken off the case? The press was having a field day, carnivorous reporters queuing up to sully the reputation of the LAPD. They had to find something and fast, but was he really the man to do it?
He wasn't usually plagued with such self-doubts, but right now, achingly tired, muscles screaming with fatigue, he was close to the edge. Far too often he knew; he was letting his temper get the better of him, preventing him from clear and rational thinking. He'd seen the way Tannis was looking at him, she was worried and with good reason. He wasn't stupid, he knew the score – burn out had ruined the lives and careers of too many cops.
Rolling onto his back, his squeezed his eyes tightly shut and berated his body for letting him down. Hard as it might be, Steve Sloan was no quitter. He had no option; he had to see it through. So maybe some rest right now would help? Was that the real problem? On too many occasions recently he'd felt groggy and confused, his mind refusing to process the crucial information that surely would enable him to crack the case. Drowsy and light-headed just wasn't gonna get the job done, and it had happened a couple of times in the last few days – this morning in Schwenk's office, the previous day in the path lab. He had to be alert, awake, in control - so far he was anything but.
Steve frowned suddenly, as something registered in his mind, calling for his attention - a sensation, a link that he could almost grasp and yet eluded him. He struggled to focus, but in his weary state the sensation was fleeting and in moments it was gone, lost in the jumble of thoughts that raced chaotic and unbidden through his head. Snatches of conversations, flashes of faces - there was no respite. The argument with Wyatt, Tannis asleep at her desk, his father's kindly and concerned face – it was impossible. He groaned, pressing his hands over his eyes, wishing he could switch off his mind in the way he could switch off his body. But his mind refused to co-operate. And although the images taunted him, his brain remained frustratingly unable to put the pieces together.
His rational side knew that as a cop it was imperative to remain detached and objective. His personal feelings had to stay separate from the case at all times. But he'd become a cop because he cared about people, just as his father cared. Whilst he couldn't save lives in the way his father did, he could still save them. So far three people had died – how many more lives would he fail to save?
His last conscious thought before he finally succumbed to exhaustion, falling into a brief and troubled sleep, was one of guilt
'You're sleeping on the job Sloan'
Author's note:
Just a quick note to say a big 'thank you' to everyone who is reviewing – it really is helpful in terms of keeping me motivated. I realise this is quite a long and drawn out story, so I really appreciate you all persevering with reading it!
PS. For those interested in 'Who dunnit' there are clues and the obligatory 'red herrings' throughout the chapters, and there will be more, so stay sharp!