--------------
His hands fly up, defensive, unsure how to end this, fix it.
"Whoa, Lambert, what the hell's going on?"
His hands shake as he points the gun at Bosco.
"Lambert? Come on, what the hell happened?"
"They set me up, they set me up..."
"Who?! Who, Lambert, dammit, who?!"
*
"Davis -- shit, Davis, come here."
Davis looks over Sully's shoulder at the object of his interest.
"That black van -- the one Bosco told us about -- it's registered to Detective Lambert."
"Oh God, he's been in on it this whole time."
"Why would he do that?"
"Why do people do anything they do? Who the hell cares, we gotta get to that location."
*
"He was supposed to be my friend, Boscorelli -- my friend. But then, he -- he took her. I think she's dead."
He lowers the gun, waves it around in frustration and defeat, but Bosco's hands remain up, ready to pounce if need be.
"Who, Lambert? Let me help you."
"Christopher. Sgt. Christopher -- he and I -- we grew up together, we were friends -- he said he needed a favor."
"What kinda favor?"
"He needed to cover up a murder."
*
"Whoa, Sully, look at this -- this van -- Yokas put it in her report, the drug bust her and Gusler stumbled onto last week."
Sullivan's eyes bug out as he stands up, hand against his closed locker.
"What the hell?"
"Yeah, says a van -- the one we found -- was parked at the scene of a drug deal, apparently they were staking it out, and -- not much else, she says they failed to apprehend the suspects. That's odd."
"Very odd."
"Yes indeed, " says a new voice from the shadows. Conveniently, it's Sgt. Christopher, at just the right place.
"You know anything about this, Sarge?" Sully asks innocently.
"Why should I, Sullivan? Think I was there?"
"Seems odd that you were the one to bring Lambert on and this van happens to be owned by him, the same van that also happened to be at the scene of a crime Yokas and Gusler witnessed last week. Gusler's dead, Faith's missing. Something's not adding up."
"Well, why don't I make it real clear for you, " he says, his eyes dripping with an evil aura neither men thought him capable of.
*
"This got out of hand, Boscorelli. It wasn't supposed to be like this."
"What happened?"
He sighs, lowering his gun completely.
"Christopher called me in. He uh -- he had apparently been making money off drug trafficking, helping to fund the campaign for Senator Graham. Apparently Graham promised to make Christopher, I don't know, uh -- chief of police or something important. Anyway, the two of 'em were in on this thing and it got out of hand and they were planning on takin' out this guy they owed money to. But they wanted me there -- this big detective -- so I could fix the crime scene, make sure they left no evidence."
"So you went along with it."
"I didn't know what it was all about until they had me there. It was nighttime, raining, last Wednesday."
"That's the night Faith and --"
"Yeah, I know. I know because -- because they were there, I saw them, they saw us."
"What?"
"Yeah. So, I didn't know what was going on, I pull up, next thing I know, Christopher shoots this guy. I see Faith and Gusler parked in an alley just watching, unnoticed, and uh -- waitin' for them."
"What the hell happened?"
"They run out of the car, guns drawn, pretty freaked out when they see it's Christopher. He threatens them, obviously. Their jobs, their lives. But what really got Faith, I think, was when he threatened you."
"You're shittin' me."
"No. I guess he knew her soft spot, said he'd have you fired, killed even, if she told. So we covered it up, but I knew she'd find a way to leak it, she's smart. But they needed to make sure I wouldn't talk, so they --"
"They what?"
"I lied, Boscorelli, when I said I didn't know love. I did, once, at least, I thought I did. But they took her, the night after it happened, they kidnapped my girlfriend, for their own protection, make sure I wouldn't blab. So I made a deal with them. I'm sorry -- God, help me, but I made a deal with them."
"What kind of deal?" Bosco asks, unsure he really wants to know.
"That I would help them kidnap Faith, cover it up, pin it on you, and -- oh God, kill her, and then I would get my girlfriend back."
Bosco's barely controlled anger erupts, his tightly bunched fists launching an assault on Lambert as he blindly rages against the man.
"You sonofabitch! You sold her out, you fuckin' let them take her. And if she's dead, if they killed her --"
"I know, I know! But I know where she is. They were supposed to kill her tonight, but -- I know where she is."
"You better pray she's still alive, because if she's not, I will kill you and I don't care if the whole fuckin' world knows."
"I know."
*
"You can't get away with this, Christopher, " Sullivan remarks as the man advances towards him. Davis creeps up behind the guy, pins his arms behind his back. Sullivan smiles at their own ambush.
"Not so tough, now, huh, Sarge?"
Davis leans close to the man, a smirk on his lips.
"Who's the loser now?"
"Now, you gonna tell us where Faith is?"
Christopher smirks.
"Not that it matters. My partner probably killed her already."
Sullivan's gloating smile drops away, anger unmasked replacing it.
"You're gonna tell us where she is now or I'll make you scream."
This surprises Davis for a brief instant until he realizes this is Faith they're talking about, Faith's gentle life that hangs in the balance, and tightens his hold on the squirming man.
*
The rain comes faster and harder and the brakes squeal as they park in front of the warehouse. Bosco's only function now is getting in there and getting her, it's his mantra, his focus. His arm grips Lambert's as he drags the man alongside him.
It's dark when they enter and Bosco pulls his gun out with his free hand, moving cautiously through the darkness.
"Faith!"
He hears the drips of leaking rainwater, the eerie silence of the abandoned tomb, and listens closely for the sound of her voice, her screams, her breathing.
"Faith!"
A noise, the scuffle of movement behind him catches his attention and he turns around quickly, just in time to see a man coming at him with a knife. He hits the guy on the side, knocking him down, and pulls a flashlight from Lambert's belt, shining it on the face.
The guy has a cocky grin, still gripping the blade of the knife in his hand as he runs it gently along his cheek.
"She was a good fuck, Officer. Real good. I had a nice time with her."
He cocks the gun, finger against the trigger.
"Where is she?!"
*
TBC...