Desperate Times
Jesse had screamed, he hadn't wanted to but the pain had been so excruciating, so all encompassing, that he had been unable to stop himself. The sound had reverberated around the garage, and he had carried on screaming until he had no breath left, and then he had fallen to the floor, too exhausted, shocked and terrified to move.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Rae had, to her surprise, enjoyed her bath, and she had been quite sleepy when she climbed into bed and waited for Alex to come and see her. When she and Jesse had gone shopping to stock up on some of the things that they had lost in the fire, he had bought two multi packs of t-shirts. One of them had been in the laundry basket and Rae had pulled it out and used it as a nightshirt needing the smell of him next to her to help get her through the night. Now, it was discarded on the floor of her bathroom as she had an early morning shower, and tried to push the panic and despair she felt back down where it wouldn't be able to eat away at her, and stop her from doing all the things that she had to do.
Alex and Shannon had decided to stay in the house with her, and hadn't even let her make up the beds for them. Alex had slept in a room opposite the nursery, and told Rae that even if she heard both girls crying together she wasn't to get up. Either he, Shannon or Sally would deal with it. Rae smiled, despite her situation, she had a feeling that her daughters could have sat on the end of her bed and screamed the house down and she still wouldn't have stirred.
She made her way quietly down the stairs, not wanting to wake anyone, and went into the kitchen to get herself a cup of tea. As she did so there was a ring on the doorbell, and the Agent, whose name Rae knew was Perry, got up from the kitchen chair he had moved out into the hallway and unlocked the door.
"There has been a package delivered for Mrs Travis."
Rae's blood ran cold in her veins, and she had to hold onto the counter to stop herself from shaking. For a few minutes it was all she could do to just keep in that position, but gradually the strength returned to her and she took a deep breath and walked out into the hall.
"Agent Perry? What came?" Rae's voice came out in a whisper, not only because everybody else was still asleep, but because she was almost afraid to ask.
"A parcel, Ma'am. Do you know anyone in England?"
"Do I know anyone in England?" For a moment Rae was dumbfounded. "I guess I've lost the accent then? I am English, my family all live there. Did the parcel come from Britain?"
The FBI agent nodded and looked at the parcel that he had placed carefully on the chair. "It is from a Mrs Ashworth."
"That's my mum." Rae glanced at the young man, and receiving a nod of agreement, picked up the parcel and turned it over. It was square and heavy, and she had absolutely no idea what it was. "I guess I can open it, yes? It was posted before all this began; I don't think it will be anything … unpleasant."
Agent Perry nodded his head. "It was intercepted by the van outside, and they scanned it."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Jo had heard the gun as it was cocked, and then the feeling of it against her skull. She'd kept her eyes tightly shut and listened as Jesse begged their captor not to touch his hands, felt him gently lay her on the floor and then cringed inwardly as he had screamed in agony as he was tortured, and left, a quivering, hysterical wreck as the two men walked out of the garage, their laughter remaining to taunt them even more.
"Jesse? Oh, God, Jesse, it's gonna be all right, let me see what I can do about this." Jo carefully moved so that she was in front of the man lying beside her. His eyes were glazed over and she wasn't sure if he was even aware of her. She looked around for his bag and then searched through it, looking for something to staunch the flow of blood, knowing that she couldn't even begin to assess the damage until she had done that.
As she sat there Jo tried to remember what Jesse had done for her just the day before. She looked down at her hand for the first time. For a moment the world swam around her, and she had to grasp hold of the bars of her cage to stop herself from falling on top of Jesse. She moved all the fingers of her right hand and was relieved to be able to waggled the injured one just as well as the others. It hurt, and she knew that it probably would do so for a long time, but she also knew that Jesse had done a wonderful job of making it as neat and clean as possible. Suddenly she needed to do something to thank him, and so she leant over and kissed him gently on the cheek. The sensation seemed to get through to him, but his words broke her heart.
"Rae? Honey, I need you, hold me, please."
Carefully Jo put her arm around him and pulled him close. "She'll be here real soon, cowboy, real soon. You stay with me, an' we'll be just fine."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Steve had woken up just after seven and stayed in the shower until the water ran cold. As he stood under it he let his mind wander back over the conversation he'd had with his son the night before, and he hoped that what he had said and done had helped.
"Dad?"
"Yes?" Daniel had sat down on his bed and Steve had kept his arm around him as he made himself comfortable next to him.
"How could someone do that? Hurt somebody like that, for no reason?"
"I don't know, I spend my life working to stop people I don't understand, from doing things that I can't comprehend. I wish I did know, maybe I could find this guy and get your mom and Jesse home."
"He's your best friend, isn't he?" Daniel had wiped his tears away now, and was trying to have as normal a conversation as possible.
"Yeah, but he annoyed the hell out of me when I first met him." Despite himself Steve smiled. Jesse had been so cocky, so sure of himself, so … young, but somehow there had always been something about him that had drawn them together. Even when Jesse wanted to latch onto him and follow every deductive step he made, Steve still found that he made him laugh and enjoy life more than he had in a long time.
"He'll look after Mom, won't he? I know he likes her, I heard her on the phone to him before they left, and she was asking for his help."
Steve looked at the boy, he hadn't realised that Daniel had heard Jo, hadn't thought to ask. "Do you know why?"
"It was something about a baby… Dad, if you have a baby will I have to leave?" Daniel looked into his father's eyes, and then turned away.
"No, of course not. Daniel, look at me." Steve waited and slowly his son raised his eyes to look into his own. "I call you son, because that is how I see you. I changed my personal details at work to say 'married with one child'. Daniel, you are part of my family, our family. I don't want you to ever leave, unless you decide to do so, and I know that your mother feels the same way. Now, you know that you have to get into bed soon and go to sleep." Steve knew that Jo wasn't pregnant, and wondered what she had been talking to Jesse about babies for. Part of him worried that he may never find out. The tears had rushed to his eyes then, and Daniel had stood up, surprising Steve with the speed of his movements.
"I need to go back downstairs, to finish what I started. They … they might think I don't care."
Steve had got up and walked over to his son. He had placed a hand on each shoulder and turned him towards him. "Oh no, that won't happen. All those people down there are your friends, one of them is your grandpa, they know how much you mean to us, and how much we mean to you. But, Son, even if they didn't, you have to be true to yourself, nobody else, I admire you for getting up and saying that you couldn't cope, that you had to step back from it all, it takes a big man to do that, and you need to remember that."
"I want her back, Dad, I miss her, and … and I love her." The tears had come in earnest then, and for a while they had cried together, but finally Steve had pulled back and let the boy climb out of his clothes and into bed.
He had stayed with Daniel watching as the boy had cried himself to sleep, unable to do anything to stop the tears, or tell him that everything would be all right. Steve had sat in the chair by his bedside for a long time after Daniel had finally dozed off. The thought of another night in an empty bed was not one he wanted to contemplate, especially as he knew that his sleep would either be full of dreams of Jo, or so fragmented as to give him no rest at all.
Daniel's sleep had not been peaceful and he had called out on a number of occasions. Each time Steve had taken his hand in his own and it had seemed to calm him down again. Finally, when his son had been quiet for just over an hour and the clock on his nightstand showed 3:47, he had moved out onto the landing and back into the deserted east wing of the house. He knew that David and Debbie would be arriving in a few hours and that, in all probability, a letter would be delivered somewhere that related to the hair and the finger that they had received. Even thinking of the events of the previous day made Steve's strength waiver, and he had lain on top of the covers for the rest of the night trying to think of anything and everything else so as not to delve into his nightmare world any longer.
The doorbell rang as Steve was on his way down the stairs just after half past seven. He paused, not wanting to be seen until he knew who was there. Michael came out of the kitchen and stopped, watching the FBI agent undertake duties he considered his alone.
"Good mornin', my name is David Walters; we are here to see Steve Sloan." The distinctive Texan accent floated into the hallway and Steve carried on down the stairs.
"I see, Sir, and you have identification to prove that?" The agent's voice was curt and businesslike, but not impolite. Steve moved behind him and could see Debbie almost bristling with indignation.
"Agent Whitlowe, it's ok, he is who he says he is." Steve walked closer to his brother-in-law his hand outstretched, but the guard blocked his way.
"I'm sorry, Lieutenant, but I need to see identification from both these people before I can let them in the house."
"Oh, for goodness sakes, the man just doesn't know who he is dealin' with, an' I tell you, Honey, if I don't get to the little girls room real soon, there is gonna be some cleanin' up to be done around here." Debbie glared at the agent in front of her, handed him her driver's licence and then watched as David did the same.
Once they had both been checked and their identities, licence numbers and addresses put into the database that Agent Whitlowe was keeping, the young man from the FBI moved aside and Steve was finally able to greet them both. "Debs, David, thank you for coming, I … I wish it were under happier circumstances."
Debbie stretched up and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Steve, Honey, I'll chat with you in just a little minute, but I wasn't jokin', this baby carryin' is already gettin' to me." Without another word Debbie hurried down towards the small room she knew was one of the downstairs bathrooms leaving Steve staring after her.
"Baby? Debbie is carrying… she's pregnant?" Steve turned to see David, despite the graveness of their situation, smiling at the retreating back of his girlfriend.
"It wasn't planned, but yeah, in seven months I am gonna be a daddy."
"Congratulations." Steve tried a smile, but he knew that it wasn't as sincere as he would have liked. He had a feeling that he knew now why Jo had been upset and talking about babies, maybe even why she had gone off with Jesse. It had been a big step for her to decide that she would try for a baby, but nothing had happened, and Steve was sure that she had blamed herself and her past for the fact that she hadn't conceived. He also knew that she didn't like Debbie, and so her getting pregnant, apparently without even trying, must have hurt her deeply.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Jo had searched through Jesse's bag and found a bandage and some antiseptic wipes. She had carefully cleaned the area using some of the water left over from the previous evening, as she thought she remembered Jesse doing for her, and then the medical supplies. As she had applied the gauze wrap she felt Jesse pull away from her. "Shh, shh. It's ok, I'm nearly done." Jo realised that between them they were coping with the other's pain far better than their own. She could remember nothing about how she had lost her finger, and she hoped that Jesse would have no recollection of that monster viciously removing three rectangular strips of skin from his arm. For a second her eyes rested on her hand. The index finger was now just a short stump and Jo knew that for the rest of her life, however long or short that was she would look at her hand and remember the nightmare that accompanied it.
Jo was just realising that she could keep her emotions under control when she felt Jesse begin to stir in her arms once again.
"Rae?" Jesse moved slightly and Jo caught sight of his face, and was alarmed to see sweat standing out on it.
"Jesse, it's Jo, Rae's not here." Jo put the back of her left hand against Jesse's forehead and was alarmed to find that he felt hot to the touch. Without thinking she plunged her right hand into the medical bag, crying out as her finger made contact with the side of it. "Arghhh, oh, God." For a moment all the strength went out of her, and she collapsed back against the rails, taking Jesse with her. The pain that was coursing through her hand was almost indescribable, and closing her eyes she forced herself to be calm.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Alex came down the stairs of Rae and Jesse's home and saw the guard at the door looking very concerned.
"Doctor Martin?"
"Yes, what's wrong?" As Alex spoke he heard the sound of sobbing coming from the room he knew Rae called the breakfast room.
"Mrs Travis had a parcel from her mother, she went in there," he pointed towards the sounds, "and has started to cry."
"Thank you, I'll go to her." Without another word Alex moved across and opened the door. Rae was sitting at the table, the contents of the package spread out in front of her, crying as if her heart would break.
"Rae, Honey, what's wrong?" Alex spoke softly and saw Rae immediately try to hide her tears.
"Nothing … it's nothing, I'll … I'll be fine." Rae wiped her eyes with the hem of her t-shirt and tried to collect herself.
"No, it's not nothing, Rae, it's ok to cry, but something started you off, what was it?" Alex pulled out the chair next to Rae's and sat down so that he was at her level.
For a moment it looked as if Rae was going to refuse to tell him, but then without a word she slid over the book she had been looking at and as Alex opened it he could tell immediately why she was crying. "Oh, Rae, I am so sorry, you would have been delighted to get these if Jesse was home." Alex flicked through the pages, looking at photo after photo. There were ones of Rae and Jesse as they got married, when Eliana was born, and then Anneya, pictures of when they had been in London, just after they had got away from Levington the first time, even some of a day they had spent at the beach when he and Shannon had walked in on a store hold up.
"I told my mum how we had lost all the photos that we had ever had taken together, or with the children, and she didn't say very much. But she must have gotten copies of every picture I have sent to her over the years and put them all together in this book… Oh, Alex, what if Jesse never sees them?" The tears threatened her again, and this time Alex held out his arms and she leant into him and cried on his shoulder.
"Shhh, it's ok, Honey, he will see them, we'll get him back, and Jo, and you will sit here and look through these together."
"You can't promise me that though can you?" Rae looked up into his face, for a second, before lowering her eyes again.
"No, I can't, but you have to be strong, and believe that, because if you don't then, well, you will be letting both of them down." Alex ran his hand down her hair, he had been in the position to advise and help her many times since he had qualified as a doctor, but he wasn't sure how she would take what he had just said.
"I … I want to be, Alex, I want to be strong, to believe that I will see them again, but when I am on my own, or I see how much Steve is suffering, it's just so hard, you know?" Rae lifted her hand and placed it over his as he stroked her hair back.
"Rae, when … when Levington had you, and Jesse, well you know what he did, the feelings that we all had were awful, I don't think any of us had realised quite how much Jesse needed you. We knew he loved you, but, Honey, his whole life revolves around you, this time none of us are gonna let you suffer on your own, ok?"
"Thank you, Alex, but … You don't think I would … no, Alex, no!" Rae suddenly realised what Alex was trying to say. "You think I would try to kill myself?"
"Rae, no, I don't think so, but then I never thought Jesse would either, don't keep anything in, promise?"
Rae tried to smile and she nodded her head. "Alex, I have two children upstairs, and another three in England. Jesse didn't have that, and he thought that I was dead and his baby too. I can't begin to understand that kind of desperation, but however bad I feel I will still be here when this is all over. Either to …" Rae closed her eyes for a moment. "I will be here when he comes home." Then she lifted her head again and kissed him gently on the cheek, and, as he watched, Alex saw her pull herself together and get ready to face the world once more. "Right, I am going to start breakfast, Alex, I know you and Shannon have to go to work, but please, come see me again, I need you around."
"I will, don't worry, soon you will be begging me to leave." Alex stood up also. He towered over his patient, and so he leant down and kissed her on the top of the head and then held open the door so that she could precede him into the hallway.
Eliana and Anneya came down with Sally just after eight thirty. They had both been asleep when Rae had checked in on them as she made her way downstairs, and now she was glad that that had been the case. Breakfast was put on the table, and for the next half hour Rae concentrated on her children, knowing that there was nothing else she could do.
As Rae was eating with her daughters Steve was showing David everything that they had received so far. He had paled visibly when shown the picture of the finger, but he had insisted on continuing with the unpleasant task.
Debbie had retired to her room once the formalities had been dealt with, and Steve hadn't seen her since. He had, however, heard Daniel's music suddenly disappear and knew that the mother-to-be was getting her own way in that department.
The two men had eaten breakfast together in silence; there wasn't anything that they could say. Daniel had come down and said hello to David, but then he had grabbed some toast and disappeared back upstairs again. He was due back at school the next morning, and he wanted to think things through before he went.
Steve was just pouring two more cups of coffee when Michael entered the room. "Excuse me Sir, but I thought you would wish to see this." The butler handed over a copy of the morning paper and then stepped back.
The headline that screamed out at them made both men gasp in horror, and it was all that Steve could do to keep a hold on the newspaper in his hand.
Multi-millionairess taken by Todd Case Killer.
First part already received.
An unofficial Los Angeles Police department spokesman suggested last night that the wife of one of its officers had been kidnapped by the man who describes himself as S. Todd.
Body parts have been left in various locations around the city over the past year or so, addressed to Lieutenant Steve Sloan, of the North Hollywood division. This paper understands that it is his wife, society hostess, and one of America's richest citizens, Josephine Walters-Sloan who has been taken.
Although there was no one available to comment on this it is also our understanding that the husband of Detective Reagan Yeager, Doctor Jesse Travis has been abducted as well.
The article went on to detail all the information that Steve had given out since he had been in charge of the case, and there were pictures of himself, Jo, Rae and Jesse, together with the one of the four of them and Daniel taken at the Fundraising ball the week before.
"I need to call Rae, this will really scare her. She isn't good with things about her family appearing in the paper."
"Then maybe you better carry on readin' a little bit more, look." David pointed to the line of bold print at the bottom of the article. The Unluckiest Family in Los Angeles? P13.
With a heavy heart Steve turned the pages until he got to the article mentioned, and then he just stared. There were pictures of Rae, Jesse and Eliana. Further down were ones of Leticia Howard, Phillip Levington and Louise Willis. The headline shouted out at the two men, and although they were both repulsed by what they saw they had to keep reading.
The Unluckiest Family in Los Angeles?
You decide.
Ever since she set foot in our fair city Detective Reagan Yeager has been beset by bad fortune. Attacked and almost killed by a homicidal teacher who was already responsible for the deaths of two children in her care, Yeager was only saved by the prompt actions of Doctor Jesse Travis, her then significant other, and business associate of her partner Lieutenant Steve Sloan.
Almost immediately after she returned to work following her recovery from that she became the target of a deranged stalker, Phillip Levington, who tried to kill Lieutenant Sloan, and kidnapped Doctor Travis before coercing the English policewoman into his lair.
She managed to get out of that situation, but after being attacked, and suffering a brain injury from which she has reportedly completely recovered, she was targeted by her stalker once again, and this time kidnapped, forced into marriage, and raped. He also shot and left for dead Doctor Travis, who was by this time engaged to the detective, and the father of the child she was carrying.
Levington was killed in a hallway of North Hollywood police station, in full view of Yeager, and to gain her revenge, his lover, Louise Willis, began to target the hapless cop, framing her for three murders, and snatching her daughter, Eliana.
Now, it appears that Doctor Travis, who, amazingly, is still in love with the detective, is married to her and has a second daughter Anneya with her, has become the target of one of her cases once again.
One wonders whether there is anything left for this family to endure, but I'm sure that if there is, this paper will report it first.
The two men finished reading at roughly the same time and Steve took another look at the pictures. He shook his head, as he realised that the newspaper probably had more Travis family photos than Rae did.
"I can't call her with this; I need to go see her. David, will you be all right here on your own?"
"Yeah, they don't live far away do they? I think I can cope while you are two doors down!" David smiled a tight smile. "Anythin' I can do, you know that. A reward? We put one up when Eliana was taken, maybe we should do that again."
"No, thank you, but no, we know who has them, not his name, but it is Todd, and a reward isn't gonna make any difference, not this time."
David nodded his head, and with a heavy heart Steve left him and headed out into the hallway. He ran up the stairs and knocked on Daniel's door.
"Yeah." Daniel's voice was quieter than normal, and Steve opened the door and went inside.
"Hi, Son, how's it going?" Steve knew it was a lame start, but he didn't know what else to say.
"I've packed my backpack ready for tomorrow, and you'll take me, right, not M, I need you to take me."
"Hey, I said I would, and you know your mom would have come too … I think it will be best for you to go to school, take your mind off things during the day."
"But anything happens and you'll come get me?"
Steve nodded his head, part of him still wanted to keep the boy at home, but he knew that the longer he was away the harder it would be for him to go back to school. "Of course, nothing will happen that I don't tell you about, ok? Now, the case made the front page of the papers, I have to go see Rae, they have done an inside spread on her and she is gonna just hate it."
"Want me to come? I could play with the girls while you're talking." Daniel shoved his feet into his sneakers as he spoke, and Steve nodded.
"Yeah, that would be good. Thanks." Together the two of them made their way down stairs, and then with an FBI agent right behind them they walked the short distance between the two houses and rang the bell at the Travis residence.
Rae had finished breakfast, put the photos into the sideboard in the breakfast room, and was sitting at the same table as before working out a grocery list with Sally. Anneya was fast asleep in her stroller, a thumb in her mouth and a look of peaceful innocence on her face. Eliana had a pad of paper and some crayons and was teaching them both a lesson they wouldn't soon forget. Rae and Sally heard the door bell ring, but stayed where they were. They had got used to having it answered by Agent Perry.
Two minutes later there was a discreet knock on the door, it opened and the young man began to speak. "Lieutenant Sloan and his son are here to see you."
Rae smiled, and had to stifle a laugh. As serious as the situation was she couldn't help but feel that she had gained the butler that Jesse had wanted her to have. For a second she wondered whether he would have felt the same way had the situation been reversed and then Steve came into the room, she saw his face, and all traces of humour left her.
"What? Something's happened; did you get some more … some more mail?" Rae looked into the eyes of her partner, and then she got up and moved over towards him. The animosity of the previous day was gone, she was scared and she needed him.
"Rae, we made the papers."
"No." Her voice came out as a whisper, and all her colour left her face. She sat back down heavily and Steve put the Los Angeles Times in front of her.
"Rae, I'll be in the kitchen if you need me." Sally picked up the list and left the room, knowing that her presence would be a hindrance and not a help.
For the next ten minutes the room was quiet except for the sound of the pages turning and Eliana and Daniel drawing pictures in the corner of the room. Steve sat down opposite where Rae was sitting and studied her face the entire time. He knew how her life had been ruined before by newspaper photos and articles, and he had a feeling that it may be one time too many for her. Rae's expression didn't change the entire time she looked at the paper, but Steve could tell that some of the time she wasn't reading but disappearing into her mind and visiting with the unhappy memories that lived there.
Finally she looked up at him, and the pain and fatigue in her eyes seemed to have got much worse. "There's nothing we can do is there? All of it is true, but … but I wish they hadn't done it."
"I know, and you're right, there is nothing we can do, but I just figured it would be better that you found out from me, and not from some reporter trying to get an exclusive for his paper."
"Thank you, Steve, I appreciate it. I don't know what else to say." For a moment Rae's voice wavered, and Steve thought she was going to cry, but once again he saw her pull herself together, and refuse to let the tears out.
"David and Debbie arrived this morning, he offered to put up a reward, but I don't think that it is the right type of case for that."
Rae shook her head, "No, me either. He doesn't want money, he has what he wants, Texas and Jesse. Well, Texas, he never did want Jesse."
"Rae, did Jo ever speak to you about her past, and about having a baby?" Steve hadn't thought to ask before, but Rae was his wife's best friend, and he was sure they would have discussed it.
"Yeah, a little. She was so understanding you know, when Eliana was in the NICU, it was because she knew just how it felt to be pregnant and then have no baby at the end of it. I did, but I just couldn't hold her, or even see her … Oh, God, Steve, she isn't pregnant is she?"
To Rae's relief Steve shook his head. "No, she isn't, but Debbie is."
"Oh!" Rae was quiet for a while and then she looked at her partner. "You know, Jesse offered to run some tests for Texas, if she didn't feel that she could ask your dad to do them. Maybe that's why they were together."
Steve nodded, gradually as they found out different things they were piecing it all together. For the first time he felt a stirring of hope. Together they would get them back.
Steve and Daniel had left Rae not long after, and she and Sally had continued their grocery list. Rae had asked Sally if she would mind going to get everything, and having seen the article in the newspaper she was glad that she had. The list was getting longer and longer, and, just after Steve had left, Eliana had said something that meant there were more things to be bought.
"Mommy?"
"Yes, Sweetie, what is it?" Rae crouched down so that she was at eye level with her daughter.
"Wet, Mommy." The face that Eliana had pulled had made Rae laugh, and she realised that the pleasures of potty training were upon her. The timing wasn't great, but Rae had no intention of not letting her daughter try knickers or pull ups if she thought she was ready.
So now on the list were the pull ups that hadn't even been thought of the last time Rae had toilet trained a child, three potties, and some small candy treats so that Eliana could be praised and rewarded if she got it right. They had also decided to get an extra pack of laundry detergent, just in case.
Sally had been gone a little over ten minutes when there was another ring at the doorbell, and Rae, who was playing with Anneya, waited to see whether her temporary butler would come into the playroom.
Once again there was a knock at the door, and then the young man spoke. "Chief Masters is here to speak with you, Mrs. Travis."
Rae gaped for a moment and then recovered her senses. "Oh, thank you … um, could you send him in?"
Rae was holding Anneya by the hands and she was taking very tentative assisted steps. She looked at her daughter, the little girl was almost eleven months old now, and she wanted to walk. As Rae looked into Anneya's eyes she saw her husband looking back at her, and she held her close for a moment, the emotions she was trying so hard to keep at bay threatening to escape.
"Detective, I hope I am not intruding, but I was passing, and I need to speak with you."
Rae took a deep breath. "No, not at all, Sir, won't you please sit down?"
The Chief pulled a chair out from the table. It was a little smaller than a normal dining chair, but he didn't seem to mind.
"How are you coping, Rae?" Her boss's voice softened, and for a moment the tears threatened her again. She knew that the answer she would give to any other colleague wouldn't work with him.
"It's hard … I miss him, and … and I know what this guy can do." Rae paused for a moment. "I wish I didn't." A tear escaped her then and ran down her cheek. Anneya saw it and reached out to touch it, and for a minute Rae wondered whether she would be able to keep control of herself, but with another deep breath she opened her eyes and smiled. "I'm sorry."
"You have nothing to apologise for. But maybe I should let you know why I am here?" Chief Masters smiled at his officer. He had a great deal of respect for her, and was extremely troubled by her situation. He knew that if things carried on as they were he would lose a valued detective.
"Yes, please." The relief that Rae felt at his tact was evident in her voice.
"I have finished my initial investigation into the officers in the vice squad, and now I plan to interview each of them, this afternoon as a matter of fact, and I would like you to be present."
"Me, why?" Rae looked on in astonishment. "Won't they think it a little strange that I am there?"
"No, because they won't know that you're there. You have knowledge of this case, and apart from Robinson, you don't know any of them. Rae, I value your experience, and I would like your opinions."
Rae felt herself blush. She knew that her boss had a reputation for being an extremely cold, hard man, who cared for nothing or no one except himself and his position in life, but she had never found him that way, and for reasons that she couldn't explain, he seemed to enjoy her company.
"Thank you, Sir. I, uh, I have to wait until my children's carer comes back from doing the shopping, you don't need me to come straight away do you?"
"No, that is fine, Detective."
"Would you like a coffee or a tea?"
Chief Masters smiled and shook his head. "No, thank you, Rae, it isn't quite time for that yet."
The two police officers sat in a companionable silence for a few minutes, and then as Anneya began to get bored Rae began to play with her again. She picked up a children's mirror and showed her daughter her reflection, then she moved it away again. As Anneya looked for it Rae gradually moved it back in front of her face and the little girl bounced with excitement. It was a game that they had played a lot, and neither of them seemed to tire of it. Rae saw the Chief smile and then he seemed to disappear into thought, and Rae, knowing that he wasn't uncomfortable with the scene carried on playing.
Eliana looked at her mother, and then at the other adult in the room. She got up from where she had been drawing and picked up a reading book. She moved across to the table and pulled at the Chief's pant's leg.
"Aii, Yana want towee … peeze."
For a second the Chief looked a little nonplussed, but he recovered himself, picked the child up and placed her on his lap. Rae found that she had to concentrate very hard on moving the mirror, and then she heard him begin to talk.
"Once there were Giants in our house…"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Steve and Daniel had walked back home and finding that only Michael was downstairs they had gone out into the garden and sat themselves by the pool. They both had their minds full of thoughts of Jo, but neither of them wanted to burden the other with them. Finally Daniel could contain himself no longer.
"What happens if someone cuts your finger off? Can you die from that?"
"I don't know, do you want to ask Grandpa?"
Daniel nodded his head, not trusting himself to speak. He hadn't actually had the courage to call Mark that yet, but when he and his dad talked they always used grandpa.
Mark had gone home the night before after they had finished going through the information they had. When Alex had said that he was staying with Rae he had decided to return to the beach house, knowing that they hadn't cleaned the litter box, left Kira extra food and water, or done any of the other things he would have done had he planned to stay away.
Steve checked his watch; it was almost eleven o'clock, "I tell you what, we'll call through to the hospital and maybe he can come in on the way home tonight and explain it, is that ok?"
"Yeah, that's fine… Dad, do you think that people would think it wrong if maybe you and I went and used our gym?"
"Daniel, look at me." He waited while his son did just that. "You have to be true to yourself. Like you were last night when you couldn't stay with everybody else. You knew your limitations and you followed them. If what you want to do now is to work out then do it. And, yes, I will join you. There is no right way to behave in a situation like this. Hell, I don't even know how to describe the situation let alone behave correctly. True to yourself … and your mom, ok?"
"Yeah, ok, and thanks… Dad, I miss her so much, you have given me what I never had before, and I'm sorry I was such a pain when I first got here."
Steve smiled, but he couldn't resist asking. "What did we give you?"
"Family. I always felt, I don't know, a visitor, a guest… No, less than that, an outsider. But here, you treated me like I belonged. And … and nobody ever called me son before." Tears came up in Daniels eyes then and he practically threw himself into Steve's arms. "I want her back … I … I just got a family and …" he couldn't continue, and Steve, tears threatening him as well held him close until he felt the boy begin to calm down.
It was almost an hour before the two of them came back in from the garden. Steve had gone straight into the hallway to use the phone when he heard the front doorbell, so putting it back on its cradle he waited with his son to find out who it was.
"Good afternoon, my name is Karen Stonely, I would like to see Lieutenant Sloan."
Steve looked at Daniel. They hadn't seen his social worker for a long time, and he knew that he hadn't called her. "Did you get in touch with her?" Daniel shook his head.
"No, and I guess you didn't, so what does she want?"
The FBI agent checked Ms Stonely's ID, and then receiving a nod from Steve let her in.
"Good morning, Lieutenant, Daniel, is there somewhere private we could talk?" The woman was the epitome of her position, and Steve felt that something was not right.
"Sure, come into the morning room… Oh, Michael, could you please prepare some coffee?"
"Of course, Sir." The butler had appeared silently, as was his habit.
"Nothing for me, thank you, we won't be here long."
"We?" Steve looked round, but could see nobody else.
Once they were seated, Daniel as close to Steve as he could get, the woman began to speak. "Lieutenant Sloan, I am very sorry for the situation that you find yourself in, but our main concern has to be Daniel. The decision has been made to remove him from your care immediately."
Author's Note: The book that the Chief began to read to Eliana is just beautiful, it is called Once There Were Giants, by Martin Waddell and Penny Dale. I read it to my daughter when she was small, and it holds a special place in my heart.