I hope that you will forgive the delay in posting this chapter, but my annual holiday took place last week, and I didn't have the chance to post. I plan to put a chapter up each day now, and hope you will enjoy it.

Thank you for the reviews so far, they mean a great deal to me.

Tracy

Missed the Target

Steve shot up in bed, a cry of 'No' escaping his lips as he did so. Suddenly realising where he was he turned to see if he had disturbed Jo, but the bed was empty. He got shakily to his feet and went into the hallway, just in time to see his dad open the door to his room, and Jo come rushing out of the nursery.

"Honey, are you all right, I heard you cry out?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry; I woke up with a start… What are you doing in an empty nursery?"

"Nothin'. Mark, I'm sorry we woke you."

Steve turned to his dad and looked astutely at him. "We didn't wake you, did we?"

"No, Son, I have been awake for a while, I guess it's not a night for pleasant dreams."

"Maybe I could provide everyone with a hot beverage before you all re-retire, Madam?" Michael appeared at the shoulder of his employer.

"What time is it?" Steve looked at his watch, "Oh, great, two thirty, no thanks, Michael, I'm going to take my luck with the unpleasant dreams, but don't let me stop anyone else." Steve quickly kissed Jo on the lips, and then went back into his room.

"You won't, Michael, thank you, I'll come with you, Mark, do you want anythin'?"

"No, thanks, Sweetie, I'm fine." Mark watched as Jo followed Michael down the stairs, and then he moved over and tapped lightly on Steve's door.

"Yeah, Dad, come in."

"And how did you know it was me?"

Steve smiled, "Because you knocked. Michael clears his throat and knocks, but you just knock."

"You'll miss me when I'm gone." Mark smiled as he watched his son head towards the bathroom and return with a glass of water. "What's up, Steve? I haven't heard you call out in your sleep for a long time, not since …"

"Not since Ellen left?" Steve sighed, he hadn't thought of her in a long while.  "No, I know, but today was a rough day, and I have a lot on my mind, I guess I'm over tired … or something."

Mark smiled at his son. Steve seldom if ever mentioned the woman he had almost married. Ellen had left Los Angeles about six months before Rae arrived, and then Jo had come into his life. Mark wasn't sure when he had last thought about the female journalist who had turned Steve inside out for a while. At the time he hadn't known how Steve would deal with life on his own once again, but now with Jo by his side he knew that everything had been for a reason, the right reason.

"Dad?" Steve placed a hand gently on his father's arm and smiled at him."

"Sorry, Son, so, what made you cry out?"

"It was just a combination of a case I'm working, shared with the funeral today and Eliana being sick…" Steve paused for a moment, and then with a deep breath asked a question that he had meant to ask Amanda earlier in the day. "Dad, how can you tell if a limb is severed when the victim is alive?"

"Alive, you mean like an accident at work, that kind of thing?"

"No, I mean like I'm gonna cut your arm off and put it in the trunk of a car, but I'm not gonna kill you first, kind of thing."

"Oh." Mark paused for a moment, not quite knowing what to say to his son's statement. Then he decided to go with the original question. "Well, for a start it would bleed, a lot, and it would also bruise the skin. Until the victim was dead all the normal preservation reflexes would also cut in…. "

"Dad!" Steve pulled a face, and Mark realised belatedly what he had said.

"Sorry. Steve, put it away for now, you can't think things like this over in the middle of the night, and normally you don't."

"Yeah, I know. But the guy sent me a note, after the second limb turned up, and I just know I recognise the name from somewhere, but it won't come to me, and I hate it when that happens." Steve stood up and began to walk around the room, for a minute Mark sat on the end of the bed and watched him, then with a smile he put his hand out and stopped his son as he walked close by.

"So, what's his name?"

"What?" Steve had moved on to other things in his mind, and had no idea what his dad was talking about.

"His name, what's his name? Maybe if you recognise it, I will too. We do have a history, you and I."

Steve laughed, it was short and hard, but the smile that accompanied it reached all the way to his eyes. "Todd, S. Todd, nothing else, no address, nothing, just S. Todd… Oh no, don't do this to me! You know, don't you? Straight off, bingo, and you know."

"Attend the tale …" Mark stopped for a moment and looked at his son, but Steve just stared back at him. "'His skin was pale and his eye was odd. He shaved the faces of gentlemen, who never thereafter were heard of again. He trod a path that few have trod, Did Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.'"

"Arghhh, of course!" Steve shook his head; he had heard his dad sing that song many many times. It was a strange song to sing over and over, but there was something about the grisly lyrics and it had the type of tune that stayed in your head, and when his dad had a song in his mind you usually did too, because he would sing it incessantly. "But why sign himself S. Todd, he slit their throats and his lady love turned them into pies. I don't see the connection … at least I hope I don't. Maybe I'll stop eating in the hospital cafeteria for a while!" Steve slumped down on the bed, suddenly exhausted. "Dad, I'm sorry, but I'm beat, and I have to be at work in …" Steve checked his watch, "three hours!"

"Six start, huh? I know you just love them! Good night, Son, pleasant dreams." Mark stood up, and Steve could see that the pain he had been experiencing since his operation was much less now.

"I'm glad you're feeling better." Steve smiled and stood as well. He placed a hand on his father's shoulder, and was pleased when Mark's own hand came up and covered it.

"I'm gonna head back to the beach house at the end of next week, Steve, and I thought I would open up the house this weekend, so everybody could get together.

"I think that's a wonderful idea, as for going home, Dad, I'm too tired to argue right now, but trust me, tomorrow night, I will do just that."

"I guess I'll re-retire then!" With a chuckle Mark headed to the door, the middle of the night was definitely the best time to tell his son things he knew he wouldn't like very much.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The morning had come slowly to Rae and Jesse too. They had sat together in the children's ward watching their daughter sleep, dream, occasionally cough and toss and turn, for most of the night. At about one Eliana had woken properly and begun to cry, Jesse had picked her up, and a nurse had brought a bottle of formula for her. After that she had slept right through until after eight, but although worried her mom and dad had spent most of that time enjoying each other's company and feeling guilty about it. The sun coming up and in through the windows had been soporific for both of them, and when Alex arrived to check on his patient just after nine he found Rae and Jesse fast asleep and Eliana wide awake and happily gazing around at all the quiet activity.

Leaning over into the crib Alex picked up his goddaughter, and smiled at her. "Hey, beautiful, you don't feel so hot this morning, did you sleep well? I guess Mommy and Daddy watched you all night, huh?" Knowing that if either of them stirred and found their daughter gone they would panic Alex gently placed a hand on Jesse's shoulder and woke him.

"Mmm, Rae? Alex, sorry, hey, Sweetie!" Jesse's face broke into a grin as he saw his daughter studying him intently. "You look better."

"She does, doesn't she? I need to check her over, Jesse, and I was gonna change her diaper for you, but I didn't want to move away with her without you knowing."

Jesse smiled at the thoughtfulness of the young man and nodded his permission. As Alex walked to a changing table situated over to the side of the room Jesse ran a finger down the cheek of his wife, hoping it would be enough to wake her.

Rae felt the sensation of skin against her face, and a smile broke through her dreams. There was only one person who did that to her, she opened her eyes, as she felt the soft touch finish its journey.

"Hey, beautiful, how are you?" Jesse smiled at his wife, neither of them knowing that he had addressed her in exactly the same way as Alex had Eliana.

Rae considered the question. She tried to move and pain shot through her. "Oh, God, Jesse," Rae gasped for air for a moment. "Don't ever let me sleep in this chair again."

Jesse's face was instantly full of concern. "What can I do? Do you want to stand up, or I can take you back to your room? Alex is over there with Eliana, I'll get him…"

"Jesse, shhh, it's ok. Just give me a minute and then maybe you could help me to my feet." Rae carefully shifted her body in the chair again, but it seemed to Jesse that it was a less painful manoeuvre the second time around. She was still in a cream coloured nightie, the one Texas had lent her, but in the children's ward she was a little too hot in it. As Rae moved she became aware of the pains in her back and shoulders, but she was delighted to realise that they weren't any worse than they had been the day before. She guessed that the neck support which she had been leaning into all night had helped.  Slowly Rae straightened her legs out, so that they were in a horizontal line with the level of the seat, she held them there for a few seconds, and then lowered them back down, her knee definitely felt a little stronger. "Now, you can help me to stand up."

Jesse moved round so that he could take Rae by the right hand and arm and then he carefully and extremely tenderly helped her to her feet. "Ok, are you ok?"

"Yes, Jesse, I'm ok. My knee is getting better all the time, I guess it was just bruised after all, and, I'm almost frightened to say it, but so, I think, is my right arm." Rae smiled then, and she could see her husband beaming back at her. As they began to slowly move together over to where Alex had their daughter he turned and walked back over to where they were.

"Rae, Jesse, I think that she should stay here until after lunch, just to be on the safe side. She sounds fine to me, a little congested, but nothing like as bad as her notes indicate she was before. But it was a serious attack last time, and I don't want to send her home too early and have to re-admit her later today. Now, there is a mom's club on this morning, maybe you could take her to that, Rae."

Rae smiled. "Oh, lovely, yes please. She needs to go and see other children. What time is it, Alex?"

"What now? Half past nine."

"No…" Rae had just looked at her doctor, and blushing suddenly he had realised what she meant.

"Oh, sorry, ten thirty to twelve, then it's lunch time, I'll come back after that and check her over again. And I think her mom needs to be looked at too. If you leave Eliana here to have some lunch and return to your room, maybe you can both go home together." Alex smiled at Rae and was gratified to see her smiling back.

"Really? Oh, Alex, thank you…" Rae leant closer to him and kissed him quickly on the cheek.

Alex blushed again, but looked anything but embarrassed.  "I heard you say that you were never to be allowed to sleep in that chair again, I'm guessing you feel a little sore?"

"Yeah, but I'll get over it. I was able to be here for my daughter, and that is definitely worth a night of discomfort." The smile on Rae's face convinced both her husband and her doctor that she was speaking the truth.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Steve had worked steadily for three hours before the squad room seemed to begin livening up. Almost as if the world realised that at nine o'clock mayhem was allowed to commence, all the phones began to ring, faxes started to arrive, and Alison came up the stairs with a wad of messages and post in her arms.

"Hey, Steve, mail." There were three letters actually addressed to him, plus a package.

"Are you sure this is for me?" Steve looked at it. He didn't touch it, but lifted its end with his pen.

"Yep, just in the mail with everything else. It has your name on it, even your rank."

Steve checked the typewritten label on the front of the box. For some reason he knew that there was no danger from the package, but he wasn't expecting it so he also knew he really needed to be careful with it. "I think I'll open my letters first, thanks, Alison."

The new desk sergeant turned and headed on round the room with the mail. Steve smiled to himself. As much as he had liked and enjoyed working with Bob, he knew that the sadly missed man would have stood and watched until he had opened his package, unable to tear himself away until he knew just what was inside it.

The first envelope was to remind him that he would be due to renew his Police Benevolent Association sports club membership by the end of the month. Steve shook his head, he hadn't had the time to even drive past the place in six months, but he would renew anyway, he knew they needed the funds. The next envelope was from a student at one of the local colleges, who asked him to help her on her course by filling in a questionnaire about his job. Steve put it to one side, if he could assist her he would, but first of all he needed to call and make sure that the request and the student were genuine. The last envelope was hand written, and Steve recognised the writing straight away. Pulling on a pair of gloves from the box on the windowsill behind him, Steve picked up his letter opener and began to carefully peel back the flap. There was a stamp and a postmark on the front of the envelope, which meant that it had arrived in the mail, and not by hand, the postmark was smudged, but that didn't surprise Steve, he looked at the other two envelopes he had received, and saw that they were smudged too.

Alison moved back into his eye line, and seeing that he had gloved hands came over to his desk again. "Steve, do you have a problem with your mail?"

"No, I'm just a little wary about this one, I think it relates to a case I'm working."

"The shootings?"

Steve shook his head, "Nope, body parts in cars."

"Eww, I'm so glad I asked. Well, I guess I had better get back to the front desk, I'll see you later."

Steve just nodded, and then carefully finished opening the envelope and slid out the single sheet of paper. Before he read it, he opened an evidence bag and put the letter inside it, then he placed it on his desk, went and got himself a cup of hot coffee and picked it back up again.

Well, well,

Did you like your gift? Have you opened it yet? Anticipation is a wonderful thing, unfortunately for one of my victims he knows exactly what is coming, and he isn't enjoying it at all. Have you worked out my next move yet? Have I? This is so much fun I plan to make it last as long as possible. So many body parts, so many cars, or maybe I won't use cars, there are plenty of other places I can find for a foot, or a leg, or even … a head.

Enjoy your day.

S. Todd.

Steve looked at the package that was still on his desk. He didn't know whether to just open it, or call the bomb squad. In the end he picked up his phone and began to dial.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Mark found that he couldn't get the words from the Ballad of Sweeney Todd out of his mind, and he had been singing snippets from it all morning. Just after midday Michael had asked him if he knew where Madam was, and Mark had headed upstairs to try to find her, having an idea where she would be.

Jo was sitting in the nursery, Eliana's soggy giraffe and soft doll in her hands, tears on her cheeks.

"Jo, Honey, let me help you." Mark came quietly into the room and sat next to his future daughter-in-law. For a moment Jo stiffened, but then her resolve deserted her, and she turned into Mark's body and let the tears flow freely.

For a while Mark let her cry, and hoped that it would do her good, but in the end he felt he had to speak.

"Jo, you aren't going to do yourself any good crying like this, tell me what it is, and like I said, let me help you, please."

Jo, seemed to pull herself together a little, and then she gently placed the two toys back in the crib. "Mark, what if the only child that ever sleeps in this crib isn't mine?"

"Then you will have missed out on some of the most wonderful times that any person can spend. Jo, I know you're scared, but medicine has moved on since you lost your baby, and we will also know that you have a history of pre-eclampsia, you'll be monitored every step of the way."

"Can you promise me that I won't lose my baby?" The pleading in Jo's eyes was almost too much for Mark to bear, but he knew he had to be honest with her.

"No, you know I can't, life isn't like that. But there are far less deaths, infant deaths, for any reason now than there were ten years ago. The choice is yours, Jo, you know that Steve will go along with your decision, he isn't the kind of man to try to make you do something against your will, but he'll expect you to look at the facts, with him, before you do make that decision."

"I'm scared, Mark. When David died, part of me died too, I felt empty, an' a failure, I was gonna be a mom, but I couldn't save my baby, I couldn't carry him to term, an' he died. Women are designed to have babies, an' I failed. I don't think I can handle that again."

"Jo, listen to me, if the worst happened, and you lost another baby…" Mark put his hand over Jo's to stop her from moving away. "If, I said, if, do you think it would be something that you would have to face alone?"

"No, no, I don't, I know that Steve would support me, an' you, Rae, Jesse, everybody, but no one can understand it, Mark, not even someone who has had it happen to them, because everybody feels differently."

"Jo, I'm not trying to diminish what happened to you, but you do have, as you acknowledge, a family who loves and cares for you, who will be there every step of the way, whatever you choose, but you have to be prepared to listen to Steve, and see his side of things. Last time this happened to you, you were on your own. I know you had your grandmamma and your brother, but you didn't have the father of the child, Steve will support you, but you have to tell him more of what happened."

"How do you mean?"

"Michael told me what you planned to say to him, but I know you, better than you think, and I doubt that you have told him how hurt you were, how distraught, how you felt a failure, did you?"

Jo just shook her head and realised that Mark was right, her beloved grandmamma had loved and cared for her, but she had been a little formal, a little 'old south', and David, David was all business, even then, that had come first. This time she would have Steve to love and care for her, Rae to enjoy the pregnancy with; Mark to be her doctor, and Jesse, well, Jesse would just be Jesse. A smile formed on her face, and she turned towards her friend.

"Thank you, Mark, I … I love you very much, I hope you know that."

For a moment he was caught unawares, but then Mark held out his arms, and this time the hug between them was one full of hope for the future, and appreciation of what they had.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The crime scene investigators had checked over Steve's package, and decided that it was safe. Pleased that the decision had been made for him, Steve had finally opened the package to find a lock of blonde hair, and a clump of brown. The blonde tresses were long and had been cut, the brown was short, and had obviously been pulled out by the roots. Steve carefully folded the packaging around the contents, and then picking up the phone once again, requested a lab check on it as soon as possible.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When Alex walked into Rae's room, it was just after lunch, and Jesse had called down to him to say that she had returned to her bed, in an upset state after the mom's club. He could see that she had the tray over her legs, was deep in thought and was slowly writing down something on a piece of paper.

"Rae, are you all right, Jesse said you seemed upset."

"No, I just got a reality check is all." Rae looked up at Alex and then slowly handed the piece of paper to her doctor.

Alex looked at what she had written. It was very shaky, but he could see that the pen was held in her left hand. "Rae, you wrote all this with your left hand?"

"Yep, after what Doctor Tammai said yesterday I thought I would give it a go.  I have been doing some thinking, I have let myself drift, be walked all over, do what everybody else wants me to do, and that has to stop. However much mobility I have this is still my life, nobody else's and I have to live it for me and my family…" Rae averted her eyes; she had been talking passionately and was suddenly embarrassed.

The words were similar to what she had written and Alex smiled. "Rae, I have been waiting a long time to hear you say that. Now, how about we do this examination and then you can take yourself and your family home?"

"Ok, only if you come to dinner with Shannon tomorrow night and I cook." Rae smiled at Alex and watched as he nodded his head.

"You have yourself a deal, now let's see if I can discharge you, otherwise I'll have nothing to eat tomorrow evening."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The letter, envelope and parcel wrappings came back contaminated, but no prints, apart from Alison's, on any of them that were recognisable. The inside of the wrapping was clean, as was the letter; the envelope and the outside of the parcel had what were probably postal worker's prints on them. The new desk sergeant's prints were the top ones on each item, and all the other partial and complete prints were being checked, but Steve wasn't at all hopeful of anything coming from them.

The hair had been sent over to Amanda because she had the limbs, and could try to see if it matched those on the arms. Steve wished that he could stop humming the opening song from Sweeney Todd as he went over the notes of the case so far, it didn't take him long, just about the whole song twice over. In the end he stood up and decided to head back to the hospital and see if Amanda had anything new, as he did so his phone rang and stopping in his tracks he turned and headed back towards his desk. "Sloan here… Yes, Sir, that's right, Sandy Breth … no, Sir, she could be using that name … we aren't completely sure what she looks like these days, but tall and blonde the last positive sighting we have… and you are where…? Ok, yes, I know where that is … so she booked for four this afternoon … thank you, I will send an officer over now, and I will join you myself just after three."

Steve put the phone down with a smile; at last something was going right. He shifted the paperwork on the Todd case to one side of the desk and pulled the tray with the drive by information in it over towards him. The tray was overflowing with files and folders, but the one that Steve wanted had just three or four pieces of paper in it. It was the notes he had taken when he had been with George Bannister and then afterwards. As he read through them he realised that any comments Rae might have had were missing, because you dropped her, you idiot. With a heavy sigh Steve stood up again, a trip to Community General was now a necessity. He needed anything that Rae could remember about the woman, George hadn't been very forthcoming, but Rae had always been able to read between the lines, and he was hoping that she would be able to do so again.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Mark had spent most of the afternoon organising the get together at the beach house. He'd called Wil Collins and arranged to go and see him the following day so that Steve would know he had another doctor's permission to go home and relax.  After that Mark logged on and began to order a week's worth of groceries, from Albertson's. It was a shame that many housebound or infirm people were so afraid of the beast known as the Internet, because it could open their lives up for them. As he ticked the box for a sack of potatoes he reflected that there was no way he would consider carrying that home himself, but this way he didn't have to bother anyone else, and everything would be delivered to his door, or if he asked nicely, straight to the kitchen for him. As he carried on ordering the groceries, he chuckled. He needed a week's groceries because Steve and Jesse would be there for one or two days. It would be good for them to be together, they needed some normality back in their lives.

Jo was also on the internet, she had locked herself away in the bedroom, and making herself comfortable on the bed she sat, crossed-legged, with her laptop on her knees. She typed in 'pre-eclampsia' and waited. After noticing that there were 43,300 hits, on the subject, Jo decided to go for the first two or three sites to start with and then see what information she still needed.

There was no printer upstairs, and so Jo sent all the information to the computer in the study and then she closed the laptop down and leaning back on the pillows she closed her eyes and began to cast her mind back to the day she had got in contact with Wayne to tell him about the baby. A copy of the letter she had sent, along with the reply was in with all the bits and pieces she had kept for her child. At the time she received it, David was still alive, and she had decided to let him see for himself that he wouldn't miss the father he was obviously never going to know.

Wayne had informed her, coldly, that they were both adults and knew what they were getting themselves into, which was a one night stand. He had dismissed the fact that they had been going out regularly before that, and had calmly stated that he was already married with two young children, and would make sure that she made no financial claim on him. Jo remembered laughing hollowly at that. She hadn't wanted his money, but she had a feeling that if he had known just how much of her own she had, he would have been knocking at her door ten minutes before she had sent the letter to him.

She knew that Mark was right, this time she would have a network of friends and family who would help and guide her every step of the way, and the only thing stopping her from putting the past behind her was her own cowardice. Tonight she would talk things through with Steve, and she would ask Mark to stay and listen too, maybe between the two of them they could allay her fears and help her to put the past where it belonged.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

By the time Steve had finished talking with Amanda, Rae had been discharged, and, noticing that it was almost three, he said his goodbyes and getting back in his car began to drive out to the gun club that had contacted him that morning.

The officer who had visited the club earlier was Ben Chapman. Steve hadn't seen very much of him over the last year or two, he had suffered a family tragedy about eighteen months earlier, when his younger sister had been killed in a skiing accident, and he and his wife had spent the intervening time helping their brother-in-law look after three young children. Because of his time away from the station he was handed all the easy jobs to start with. He had been partnered with Sam Yip, and as Steve drew into the parking lot of the Big Bore Gun Club he could see their car parked under a beautiful cedar tree.

Walking into the reception Steve could see that it was nowhere near as sophisticated as the previous club he had visited. A young woman of about twenty-five walked over to him, and he was aware of her staring at him. "I guess you're the cop."

"My name is Lieutenant Steve Sloan, LAPD, and you do realise that I don't want my presence here announced." His eyes flashed as he spoke, and he was gratified to see her avert her gaze.

"Yes, Sir."

A dark haired man of about forty came out of an office behind the counter which stretched the entire width of the room. "Good afternoon, Lieutenant, won't you please come through."

Steve walked round the young woman and then, lifting the flap in front of him, followed the man he imagined to be either the owner or manager into a small office. Inside the room Chapman and Yip were sitting waiting for the clock to tick round to four. They both stood as Steve entered the room, and he looked over, hoping to hear what they had already found out. However, that wasn't to happen.

"Lieutenant, my name is Potter, Nicholas Potter, and this is my club. I was the citizen who contacted you this morning, this is the booking sheet that my receptionist filled in from the phone conversation yesterday, and then because the woman didn't have a credit card, and hadn't shot here before she came in first thing this morning to pay for her slot."

Steve hadn't realised that she had been there that morning, but maybe it was a good thing that nothing had happened, that way she would feel a little safer. "Mr. Potter, I would like my officers to be on the desk from now until we apprehend this woman. She is extremely dangerous, and your own clerk may be put at risk." Steve could see that the man wanted to object, but he had no intention of letting him.

"But …. But…"

"Sir, I am sure that you value the safety of your employees, and this way they will remain safe. I will be in your office, and Sam, keep the counter hatch open."

"Yes, Sir."

"Right, let's get in position."

The three officers spent the next half an hour making stilted conversation, and checking with the receptionist, whose name they discovered was Marta, for a more accurate description of their suspect.

At just before five to four a grey station wagon drew into the parking lot, and Marta, who was looking through the office window nodded. "That's her car."

Steve moved so that he was in between the club employees and the door and then turned slightly so that it looked as if he was working. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Sam and Ben both doing the same.

"Hi, my name is Sandy; I have a reservation for four o'clock. I already paid."

"Did you fill out all the necessary paperwork, Ma'am?" It was Sam who spoke to her.

"Yeah, some here this morning, and over the phone, it wasn't you though, a blonde haired girl."

Sandy looked around a little worriedly and Steve, watching her intently from his vantage point began to feel concerned.

"Is this your first time here, Miss …" Sam looked down; she knew that the woman hadn't used her real name, "Bannister."

"Yes, that was why I had to come and pay in advance." That was a slip, and Steve and Sam knew it.

"Oh, right, sorry. If you would like to take a seat for a moment, I'll get someone to come and show you round."

"Ok." Sandra sat in the chair nearest to the entrance, and as she did so Steve came out from the manager's office. He moved through into the main reception area, but the woman turned and spotted him.

Sandra Breth knew instantly that the man coming towards her was a cop; he had it written all over him. Realising that she was either cornered or free, depending on how quickly she moved, she stood and made a bolt for the door.

"Stop, police." Steve called as he followed her, but the door was slammed shut, and he lost precious seconds crossing the floor and opening it, and in that time she was able to get to her car and scramble in. Steve stood in front of the vehicle as it came towards him, it wasn't moving very fast, as it had been parked close to the doorway, but it was obvious that she had no intention of stopping and, as he went to leap out of the way, he felt the wing mirror clip him and send him sprawling.

"Damn it!"  Steve heard Ben Chapman shout out the oath as he came up to his boss. "Sir, are you all right?" Steve just nodded, not having any air in him to reply. Slowly he climbed to all fours, and then he gingerly stood up.

"Someone … please tell me … that they got the licence plate of that car."

There was silence in the parking lot then, and Steve realised that their best and maybe only chance to catch the woman who was one of California's most wanted criminals could have just slipped past them.

Sweeney Todd the musical was written by Stephen Sondheim.

It is wonderfully macabre and I am grateful to one of my beta readers for checking through this chapter for me earlier in the year and as a surprise sending me the CD.