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Part XIII : Offside

John was surprised to find his boss in his car when he arrived. The window was closed and Bailey had apparently not seen him come. He knocked on the glass. Bailey turned his face to him and opened the door, but did not step out.

" He is inside, in the kitchen." he said with the voice of a robot. John immediately understood he was in shock and he put his hand on his friend's arm. " The back window is opened." Bailey went on. "I tied the dog to the fence.
- Did you call the police or the VCTF ?
- No.
- Ok, I'll call them." No reaction came from Bailey. "Bailey, I'm gonna have a look inside. You stay here and wait for the rest of the team, right ?". Bailey nodded.

John was not so sure he could leave him alone, but one of them had to go to the scene and make the preliminary observations. And Bailey obvioulsy couldn't.

While walking to the house, John called Grace at the VCTF and updated her about the situation. Then he called the Atlanta PD and asked for some back-up. He entered the house from the back, as Bailey had done before him. The smell in the kitchen was unbearable. John opened the window and held his breath for a few seconds before some fresh air came in the room. He looked around without touching anything, in order to leave the scene intact for Sam.

John understood a bit Bailey's reaction. Though he did not know the guy who was lying on the floor, the sight was difficult to stand. So imagine it's a friend ...

The police and its forensic experts arrived no more than 10 minutes after John. They did not notice Bailey and went directly to the house. John had opened the front door and let them in. He asked them not to enter the kitchen before his colleagues were there. They started inspecting the rest of the house, looking for clues. John knew by experience they were unlikely to find any, but he did not discourage them.

The first thing Sam and Grace saw when they arrived to the scene half an hour later was Bailey's car. He was still sitting in it, and, though he had recovered some, he was still very pale. The two women approached him carefully.

" Bailey ? Are you Ok ?" Sam asked. Bailey turned hid head towards them and nodded.
" I'm gonna be fine. I just need ... I just need a little time." he said. His voice was shaky.

Warned by John, Grace had brought her case with her. She pulled a little box from it and took out two blue pills.

" Bail, I want you to take these." she said.
" What is it ?
- It's gonna help you calm down.
- I don't need it. I can handle this without it.
- Bailey," Sam said " It's just a help. Everybody needs some help sometimes.
- I'm Ok, Sam. I'm not a child. I've seen worse before." His tone was harsher and Grace understood it wouldn't be so easy. But she knew him enough to see he was in a state of shock. First thing was to have him admit it, and he would never do so in front of Sam.

" Sam," she started, "I guess they're gonna need you inside. We'll join you in a minute." Sam looked at her, confused. She was about to reply, but she saw the appeasing sign Grace made.
" John's waiting for you." Bailey added " Probably having a hard time protecting the scene from the cops. We'll join you in a minute.
- Ok. If it's an order ..." She smiled, but Bailey didn't smile back at her. He was back in his thoughts.

Sam left Grace with Bailey and went to join the investigation unit.

Grace waited for Bailey to come back to reality. He looked at her with surprise, as if he had just noticed her presence.

" I'm not going back in, Grace.
- You don't have to. It's probably already overcrowded in there.
- We have to stop the bastard.
- We're all working at it, Bail." She paused for a few seconds and then went on : " Bailey, I want you to take the pills.
- I don't ...
- It's not a prayer, Malone. It's an order from the doctor."

Bailey took the pills she was handing him and swallowed them.

" Good boy." she said. " Now I'm gonna see if they need me there. Can you drive ?". He nodded. " Then get back to the VCTF. George can use you better than we."
She moved away from the car and turned to the house. She heard Bailey start the engine and go. She sure wouldn't like to be in his shoes.



To be continued ... R&R, Thanks.
Absolut.