TITLE: THE ONE CONSTANT
AUTHOR: MINN
DISCLAIMER: I STILL don't own nothin' - mores the pity - just playing. No character was really harmed during the typing of this nonsense. The creators of Third Watch are, of course, gods. And so are the actors who portray the characters!
I'M STILL foreign, so cut me some slack if I use a phrase or two that don't make no sense.
GREETINGS and huge thanx to Angie (I like Isabelle too! Well, Bosco reappears here but...aww, don't wanna spoil it for ya), Helena, Juls (I'm so glad you're the forgiving type!), DreamLoveBreathe, Winterwolf (the cracks are beginning to show, precious!), Lifesaver55, Kate Anderson (You wish Fr*d hadn't died? *lays hand on KA's forehead* you feelin' OK there babe?...and I must look that 'happy' word up in a dictionary...), Ljae (I'm enjoying it too!), Deliani, Meeko, mauriceboscorelli, AnnaDelAmico, Lauren Metal (Bosco's back, but...yes, I wanted to smack the kids, Emily especially!), Jazz (Ta Da! New update, just for y'all), and phpa (Bosco redeemable? Maybe...*cackles evilly* - and welcome!) - for taking the time to review so kindly - please forgive me if I've missed anyone. And to everyone else who's enjoying this as much as I am writing it - Cheers!!
AND IF you're ever on line over at 3rdwatch.net and see the thread "TWINZ talk crap Tuesday" is active, drop on in and say 'hi' 'cos that's where you'll find me hanging out - and I would love to chat!
Now on with the show...
----
THE ONE CONSTANT
Part 20
Faith was thankful to find herself partnered with Ty Davis on her return to work. His easy-going charm and sensible manner went some way to ensuring her job was not as hard on her fragile nerves as it had the potential to be.
Her grief over Fred's loss, the burden of guilt she still felt for what she had done and her children's continued refusal to have anything to do with her weighed heavily. Workin with Ty, along with her relatively idyllic living circumstances, gave Faith's life a much-needed positive balance.
Isabelle, ever the angel sent from on high, lifted her burden immeasurably by providing a safe and ever-welcoming haven for Faith and her daughter. The mutual adoration society Isabelle and Gracie had going meant Faith did not need to worry while she was working, knowing her little girl was safe with someone who loved her and would care for her well.
That knowledge, however, didn't stop Faith checking in with Isabelle within hours of her first shift beginning, 'just to see how things were going'.
"Missing her already?" Ty grinned as Faith pocketed her mobile.
"Yeah," Faith smiled. "Gracie's pretty special."
Ty nodded, and nervously began tapping the steering wheel in front of him.
Faith watched him, a small look of concern clouding her face. "Somethin' wrong Davis?"
Ty self-consciously ceased the tapping and gazed at her, his face a picture of indecision.
"You probably don't wanna hear this," Ty said after a while, "but I'd prefer you hear it from me rather than Cruz or someone. It's about Bosco."
Faith turned her head away and stared straight ahead.
Ty ploughed forward. "He's back in circulation and word is his little disappearing act was a drug thing."
He watched as Faith took a deep breath in.
"Is he dealin' or usin'?" she asked finally, the note of resignation in her voice agonisingly clear.
"They reckon he's usin'," Ty murmured, watching her carefully.
Faith stared ahead, lost in her thoughts for some time. Memories stirred in her mind of the wild-eyed look on Bosco's face the night he brought Emily back home. "Emily told me people think he's crazy."
"Pretty much what we've heard too," Ty said quietly.
Faith bowed her head and closed her eyes.
"That's not the Bosco I knew," she said softly. "The Bosco I knew, he had his problems, but he was workin' on them, you know? The Bosco I knew would never do drugs..."
"He's not the Bosco we knew, Faith," Ty said quietly.
Faith looked up and drew in another heavy breath. Ty could see she was mulling something over in her thoughts.
"He's Gracie's father," she murmured finally, her voice barely audible.
She turned to her partner and saw by the look on his face that Ty already knew.
"She looks a lot like him, Faith," Ty said gently. "Even Sully picked it."
"Bosco doesn't know," she murmured.
Ty nodded and thought a moment. "D'ya think maybe that's a good thing, given what's goin' on with him now?"
Faith said nothing for a while. "I suppose it is," she said eventually.
----
Faith knew it was going to be a rough week the minute Cruz swaggered into role call to address them. She pulled no punches about the importance of the joint operation currently under way between the various departments, but on the subject of Maurice Boscorelli she was absolutely unequivocal.
"Under no circumstances are any of you to approach him or attempt to detain him in any way. If you see him in the course of your regular duties you are to report his movements to Central, but I repeat, under no circumstances are you to confront him. For any reason."
"But what if he's doin' somethin' that just begs an arrest? Won't he be suspicious if we all just stand around watching?" Sully asked.
"He's already suspicious. He already knows he's under surveillance. He knows we'd all like nothing better than to nail his sorry ass. So we're gonna go with that, keep him guessing," Cruz replied.
"So what's happening exactly?" Ty inquired.
"What's happening is that Boscorelli is even more unstable and unpredictable than before. Word is he now has a drug problem to go with his drinking problem."
Faith kept her eyes firmly on the floor.
"So sooner or later Boscorelli's gonna screw up and we're gonna be taking advantage of that to nail him and the bastards he works for. In the meantime it suits us to make him believe he's gotten the better of us, OK?"
"Because Bosco being the arrogant little asshole he is will start to think he's ten foot tall and bullet proof," Sully growled.
"And that'll make him over-confident and careless," Cruz purred. "We all know where that gets him. It's only a matter of time. But we need to give him enough rope to hang himself with."
Beside him Ty heard Faith shift around uncomfortably.
"You heard the Sgt," Swerskey said as he dismissed them.
"You OK?" Ty asked as Faith lingered in her chair while the room emptied out.
She didn't answer immediately. "It's one thing after the other for me just lately Ty," she murmured, slowly rising from where she sat.
"You hang in there Faith," he said quietly, following her out.
"That's all I ever seem to be doin'," she answered sadly.
Ty couldn't help feeling for Faith as all around her at the precinct preparations were made to close in on her former lover and his associates. As the days passed Faith's state of sad preoccupation intensified.
"You don't still have feelings for him do you?" Ty asked her one evening.
She simply looked at him and did not respond.
--
Ty was grumbling sourly to himself as they patrolled the area they had been directed to. "Could they have given us a vaguer description? I mean, what good does 'possibly wearing a leather jacket' do us out here?"
As had become her custom of late, Faith said nothing.
"Maybe they expect us to stop every guy in a jacket and say: 'Excuse me sir, but did you beat the crap out of your girlfriend this evening and leave her for dead in a doorway?'"
Ty slowed to have a closer look at a hunched figure moving hurriedly along the road just ahead of them.
"OK, male wearing a leather jacket - fits the description. Wanna check this guy out? Faith?"
Looking across to his partner Ty noticed she was staring fixedly at something on the opposite side of the street.
"Faith?"
Ty peered in the direction of her unflinching gaze and instantly understood the reason for her silent preoccupation.
Outside a bar was a gathering of men. Among their number were the brothers' Boscorelli.
"We're supposed to call this in," Ty murmured.
Faith said nothing, her eyes never leaving her former partner.
Ty watched her carefully as he radioed details to Central. "Copy that," he said as he was reminded they were not to approach.
Faith's eyes followed every overstated gesture, every agitated move Bosco made. He was never still and seemed perturbed, even wary.
As the small gathering outside the bar began to dissipate, Bosco and his brother broke away and headed in the opposite direction to the others.
Without warning Faith suddenly exited the RMP.
"What the hell?" Ty muttered, hurriedly following. "We've been told not to approach him, remember?" he said as his partner paused long enough by the car to await a break in the traffic.
"You don't have to," she snapped. "Stay in the car."
"Like that's gonna happen," Ty grumbled as he followed her.
Faith broke into a jog as soon as she reached the sidewalk opposite.
"Bos? Bosco?"
The look on Bosco's face when he stopped and turned to her was hardly welcoming. Mikey stood off a little, nervously glancing back and forth between his clearly agitated brother and Faith.
"What the hell do you want?" Bosco demanded.
Faith flinched at the antagonistic tone of his voice.
"We need to talk," she said.
"The hell we do," he muttered, turning away.
"Bosco, please."
"C'mon Mo, it's Faith," Mikey appealed. "It's Faith. She'll listen."
Faith watched, alarmed, as Bosco grabbed his brother and shoved him violently. "Shut your damn mouth, Mikey."
"Mo, c'mon..."
"This is a bad idea, Faith," Ty said quietly as he joined them, noting their exchange was being watched carefully by two men Bosco had been speaking with earlier. "Faith, I'm not kidding, this is a real bad idea on all sorts of levels."
"You should listen to your partner, Officer," Bosco said, fixing Faith with a chilling glare.
"There's something you should know," she said quickly.
"Faith, c'mon, this isn't the time or the place..." Ty protested, taking her by the arm. Faith shrugged him off.
Bosco shook his head and started to walk away. Mikey trailed in his wake, casting glances back over his shoulder at Faith.
After a moment's hesitation, and before Ty could stop her, Faith began to follow.
Realising that Faith was still pursuing, Bosco turned on her. Producing a gun from under his jacket he levelled it at his former lover, the expression on his face one of desperate agitation.
"Whoa!" Ty exclaimed, stunned.
Faith froze.
"Jeez! Mo?" Mikey whined, unsure where to look or where to stand.
"I'm gonna say this once, Faith, and you'd better damn well listen," Bosco said, his voice unsteady and thick with emotion. "Stay the hell away from me. You hear me?"
The hand that held the gun was shaking violently.
Ty took Faith's arm with one hand and pulled her backwards, his other hand raised in surrender.
"Bosco, man, it's cool. Just...it's cool..." he murmured.
The gun remained trained upon them as they backed away slowly. When they were at a distance Bosco felt comfortable with, he sheathed the gun and fled.
----
In the offices of the OCCB, Faith, flanked by Swerskey and Ty, faced Detective Bartell and an apoplectic Sgt Cruz.
"What the hell were you thinking?" Cruz's voice rang harshly around the office. "What part of 'do not approach under any circumstances' did you not get? He was under surveillance, for cryin' out loud! From BOTH sides!"
"Down Sgt," said the tall, smartly dressed detective who was perched calmly on the edge of the desk behind him.
Cruz muttered something Faith didn't quite catch and started prowling the office.
Bartell unfurled himself slowly from where he sat. "Officer Yokas," he said quietly, his voice honey smooth. "I'm wondering if you can appreciate how delicate this operation is."
Faith stared at him in agonised silence.
"We're close to a breakthrough here," the detective continued. "We don't need one of our own introducing an element of surprise into the mix. There are too many variables as it is."
"I'm sorry," she murmured despondently. "I wasn't thinking."
Bartell watched her for a moment. "Would you mind telling me what it was that prompted you to approach Boscorelli like that?
Faith looked away and took her time answering.
"They have history," Cruz announced dismissively, seizing her moment. "They were screwing each other."
Beside her she could feel Lt. Swerskey turn to her in disbelief. "You and Bosco?"
Bartell's eyebrows arched significantly. "You were involved with your partner?"
Faith stared fixedly at the floor. Bartell observed the look of intense distress that washed across Faith's face and proceeded as gently as he was able.
"I'm going to ask you again," he said softly. "Why did you approach him?"
Faith cleared her throat and raised her head to look the detective in the eye. "I needed to talk to him."
"Needed?" Bartell said softly.
"Needed?" Cruz snapped. "What, you hoping now hubby's out of the way you can pick up where you and Bosco left off?"
Cruz had made the mistake of ranging too close to Faith.
Driven by every ounce of the anger and grief she felt, the force of the connection Faith's hand made with the ACU Sgt's face was enough to send Cruz stumbling wildly sideways.
Bartell and Swerskey stepped between them and Ty took Faith's arm to draw her away. Cruz, however, was in no state to retaliate. She stood leaning on the desk with her hand on her cheek, stunned into silence.
"Does she have to be here?" Faith demanded angrily.
Bartell turned to her. "We need to clear this matter up, Officer Yokas," he murmured, guiding Faith across the room away from Cruz. "What was it you felt you needed to talk to Boscorelli about?"
Faith stared at him for some time before answering.
"I wanted to talk to him about Gracie."
"Gracie?"
"My baby daughter..." Faith said softly. "...our...daughter..."
A look of pure astonishment crossed Bartell's face. Behind him both Swerskey and Cruz looked equally astounded.
"Maurice Boscorelli is the father of your child?"
Faith nodded mutely.
"Does he know?" Bartell asked gently.
She shook her head.
"So that was what you wanted to talk to him about." Bartell drew in a deep breath and regarded Faith sympathetically. "This whole situation must seem like some kind of nightmare to you."
Despite promising herself she would not succumb, Faith could feel tears beginning to brim her eyes.
"I wasn't thinking clearly...it was the first time I'd seen him since..." Her gaze travelled to the wall upon which several large surveillance photos of Bosco were pinned. "I know it's ridiculous to still have feelings for him after everything he's done, but...I knew a different Bosco."
Bartell held up his hand to silence her. "You don't need to explain," he murmured. Turning away from her the detective stared at the wall of photos. After considering them for some time, Bartell faced Faith once more, his face grim.
"I don't like having to do this, but given the circumstances I think it might be an idea if you were stood down from duties for the next couple of weeks."
"What?" Ty protested. "Oh come on..."
"Faith's a good cop," Swerskey chimed in, "one of the better ones. Given what's coming up her experience would be invaluable out there..."
"We can't afford to have someone this emotionally involved anywhere near this thing. I'm sorry, but there's just too much at stake here." Bartell's voice rose above a soft murmur for the first time.
"He's right."
Ty and Swerskey turned to Faith and stared at her.
"I'm only just holdin' it together," Faith continued quietly. "What I did today kinda proves that. I think I'd be a liability out there. Especially if..." She let the sentence trail away. The looks on her colleague's faces told her there was no need to explain further.
"Yokas can work the desk until this is all over and done with," Swerskey suggested. "Though I still don't like the idea of such an experienced officer being benched with something like this about to go down."
"It can't be helped given the circumstances Lieu," Bartell said, rubbing his right temple as if the whole thing was giving him a headache. "You understand, don't you Faith?"
Faith gazed at the detective in sad silence for a moment and then slowly nodded her head.
----
TBC - I'm sooooo looking forward to writing the next bit...
AUTHOR: MINN
DISCLAIMER: I STILL don't own nothin' - mores the pity - just playing. No character was really harmed during the typing of this nonsense. The creators of Third Watch are, of course, gods. And so are the actors who portray the characters!
I'M STILL foreign, so cut me some slack if I use a phrase or two that don't make no sense.
GREETINGS and huge thanx to Angie (I like Isabelle too! Well, Bosco reappears here but...aww, don't wanna spoil it for ya), Helena, Juls (I'm so glad you're the forgiving type!), DreamLoveBreathe, Winterwolf (the cracks are beginning to show, precious!), Lifesaver55, Kate Anderson (You wish Fr*d hadn't died? *lays hand on KA's forehead* you feelin' OK there babe?...and I must look that 'happy' word up in a dictionary...), Ljae (I'm enjoying it too!), Deliani, Meeko, mauriceboscorelli, AnnaDelAmico, Lauren Metal (Bosco's back, but...yes, I wanted to smack the kids, Emily especially!), Jazz (Ta Da! New update, just for y'all), and phpa (Bosco redeemable? Maybe...*cackles evilly* - and welcome!) - for taking the time to review so kindly - please forgive me if I've missed anyone. And to everyone else who's enjoying this as much as I am writing it - Cheers!!
AND IF you're ever on line over at 3rdwatch.net and see the thread "TWINZ talk crap Tuesday" is active, drop on in and say 'hi' 'cos that's where you'll find me hanging out - and I would love to chat!
Now on with the show...
----
THE ONE CONSTANT
Part 20
Faith was thankful to find herself partnered with Ty Davis on her return to work. His easy-going charm and sensible manner went some way to ensuring her job was not as hard on her fragile nerves as it had the potential to be.
Her grief over Fred's loss, the burden of guilt she still felt for what she had done and her children's continued refusal to have anything to do with her weighed heavily. Workin with Ty, along with her relatively idyllic living circumstances, gave Faith's life a much-needed positive balance.
Isabelle, ever the angel sent from on high, lifted her burden immeasurably by providing a safe and ever-welcoming haven for Faith and her daughter. The mutual adoration society Isabelle and Gracie had going meant Faith did not need to worry while she was working, knowing her little girl was safe with someone who loved her and would care for her well.
That knowledge, however, didn't stop Faith checking in with Isabelle within hours of her first shift beginning, 'just to see how things were going'.
"Missing her already?" Ty grinned as Faith pocketed her mobile.
"Yeah," Faith smiled. "Gracie's pretty special."
Ty nodded, and nervously began tapping the steering wheel in front of him.
Faith watched him, a small look of concern clouding her face. "Somethin' wrong Davis?"
Ty self-consciously ceased the tapping and gazed at her, his face a picture of indecision.
"You probably don't wanna hear this," Ty said after a while, "but I'd prefer you hear it from me rather than Cruz or someone. It's about Bosco."
Faith turned her head away and stared straight ahead.
Ty ploughed forward. "He's back in circulation and word is his little disappearing act was a drug thing."
He watched as Faith took a deep breath in.
"Is he dealin' or usin'?" she asked finally, the note of resignation in her voice agonisingly clear.
"They reckon he's usin'," Ty murmured, watching her carefully.
Faith stared ahead, lost in her thoughts for some time. Memories stirred in her mind of the wild-eyed look on Bosco's face the night he brought Emily back home. "Emily told me people think he's crazy."
"Pretty much what we've heard too," Ty said quietly.
Faith bowed her head and closed her eyes.
"That's not the Bosco I knew," she said softly. "The Bosco I knew, he had his problems, but he was workin' on them, you know? The Bosco I knew would never do drugs..."
"He's not the Bosco we knew, Faith," Ty said quietly.
Faith looked up and drew in another heavy breath. Ty could see she was mulling something over in her thoughts.
"He's Gracie's father," she murmured finally, her voice barely audible.
She turned to her partner and saw by the look on his face that Ty already knew.
"She looks a lot like him, Faith," Ty said gently. "Even Sully picked it."
"Bosco doesn't know," she murmured.
Ty nodded and thought a moment. "D'ya think maybe that's a good thing, given what's goin' on with him now?"
Faith said nothing for a while. "I suppose it is," she said eventually.
----
Faith knew it was going to be a rough week the minute Cruz swaggered into role call to address them. She pulled no punches about the importance of the joint operation currently under way between the various departments, but on the subject of Maurice Boscorelli she was absolutely unequivocal.
"Under no circumstances are any of you to approach him or attempt to detain him in any way. If you see him in the course of your regular duties you are to report his movements to Central, but I repeat, under no circumstances are you to confront him. For any reason."
"But what if he's doin' somethin' that just begs an arrest? Won't he be suspicious if we all just stand around watching?" Sully asked.
"He's already suspicious. He already knows he's under surveillance. He knows we'd all like nothing better than to nail his sorry ass. So we're gonna go with that, keep him guessing," Cruz replied.
"So what's happening exactly?" Ty inquired.
"What's happening is that Boscorelli is even more unstable and unpredictable than before. Word is he now has a drug problem to go with his drinking problem."
Faith kept her eyes firmly on the floor.
"So sooner or later Boscorelli's gonna screw up and we're gonna be taking advantage of that to nail him and the bastards he works for. In the meantime it suits us to make him believe he's gotten the better of us, OK?"
"Because Bosco being the arrogant little asshole he is will start to think he's ten foot tall and bullet proof," Sully growled.
"And that'll make him over-confident and careless," Cruz purred. "We all know where that gets him. It's only a matter of time. But we need to give him enough rope to hang himself with."
Beside him Ty heard Faith shift around uncomfortably.
"You heard the Sgt," Swerskey said as he dismissed them.
"You OK?" Ty asked as Faith lingered in her chair while the room emptied out.
She didn't answer immediately. "It's one thing after the other for me just lately Ty," she murmured, slowly rising from where she sat.
"You hang in there Faith," he said quietly, following her out.
"That's all I ever seem to be doin'," she answered sadly.
Ty couldn't help feeling for Faith as all around her at the precinct preparations were made to close in on her former lover and his associates. As the days passed Faith's state of sad preoccupation intensified.
"You don't still have feelings for him do you?" Ty asked her one evening.
She simply looked at him and did not respond.
--
Ty was grumbling sourly to himself as they patrolled the area they had been directed to. "Could they have given us a vaguer description? I mean, what good does 'possibly wearing a leather jacket' do us out here?"
As had become her custom of late, Faith said nothing.
"Maybe they expect us to stop every guy in a jacket and say: 'Excuse me sir, but did you beat the crap out of your girlfriend this evening and leave her for dead in a doorway?'"
Ty slowed to have a closer look at a hunched figure moving hurriedly along the road just ahead of them.
"OK, male wearing a leather jacket - fits the description. Wanna check this guy out? Faith?"
Looking across to his partner Ty noticed she was staring fixedly at something on the opposite side of the street.
"Faith?"
Ty peered in the direction of her unflinching gaze and instantly understood the reason for her silent preoccupation.
Outside a bar was a gathering of men. Among their number were the brothers' Boscorelli.
"We're supposed to call this in," Ty murmured.
Faith said nothing, her eyes never leaving her former partner.
Ty watched her carefully as he radioed details to Central. "Copy that," he said as he was reminded they were not to approach.
Faith's eyes followed every overstated gesture, every agitated move Bosco made. He was never still and seemed perturbed, even wary.
As the small gathering outside the bar began to dissipate, Bosco and his brother broke away and headed in the opposite direction to the others.
Without warning Faith suddenly exited the RMP.
"What the hell?" Ty muttered, hurriedly following. "We've been told not to approach him, remember?" he said as his partner paused long enough by the car to await a break in the traffic.
"You don't have to," she snapped. "Stay in the car."
"Like that's gonna happen," Ty grumbled as he followed her.
Faith broke into a jog as soon as she reached the sidewalk opposite.
"Bos? Bosco?"
The look on Bosco's face when he stopped and turned to her was hardly welcoming. Mikey stood off a little, nervously glancing back and forth between his clearly agitated brother and Faith.
"What the hell do you want?" Bosco demanded.
Faith flinched at the antagonistic tone of his voice.
"We need to talk," she said.
"The hell we do," he muttered, turning away.
"Bosco, please."
"C'mon Mo, it's Faith," Mikey appealed. "It's Faith. She'll listen."
Faith watched, alarmed, as Bosco grabbed his brother and shoved him violently. "Shut your damn mouth, Mikey."
"Mo, c'mon..."
"This is a bad idea, Faith," Ty said quietly as he joined them, noting their exchange was being watched carefully by two men Bosco had been speaking with earlier. "Faith, I'm not kidding, this is a real bad idea on all sorts of levels."
"You should listen to your partner, Officer," Bosco said, fixing Faith with a chilling glare.
"There's something you should know," she said quickly.
"Faith, c'mon, this isn't the time or the place..." Ty protested, taking her by the arm. Faith shrugged him off.
Bosco shook his head and started to walk away. Mikey trailed in his wake, casting glances back over his shoulder at Faith.
After a moment's hesitation, and before Ty could stop her, Faith began to follow.
Realising that Faith was still pursuing, Bosco turned on her. Producing a gun from under his jacket he levelled it at his former lover, the expression on his face one of desperate agitation.
"Whoa!" Ty exclaimed, stunned.
Faith froze.
"Jeez! Mo?" Mikey whined, unsure where to look or where to stand.
"I'm gonna say this once, Faith, and you'd better damn well listen," Bosco said, his voice unsteady and thick with emotion. "Stay the hell away from me. You hear me?"
The hand that held the gun was shaking violently.
Ty took Faith's arm with one hand and pulled her backwards, his other hand raised in surrender.
"Bosco, man, it's cool. Just...it's cool..." he murmured.
The gun remained trained upon them as they backed away slowly. When they were at a distance Bosco felt comfortable with, he sheathed the gun and fled.
----
In the offices of the OCCB, Faith, flanked by Swerskey and Ty, faced Detective Bartell and an apoplectic Sgt Cruz.
"What the hell were you thinking?" Cruz's voice rang harshly around the office. "What part of 'do not approach under any circumstances' did you not get? He was under surveillance, for cryin' out loud! From BOTH sides!"
"Down Sgt," said the tall, smartly dressed detective who was perched calmly on the edge of the desk behind him.
Cruz muttered something Faith didn't quite catch and started prowling the office.
Bartell unfurled himself slowly from where he sat. "Officer Yokas," he said quietly, his voice honey smooth. "I'm wondering if you can appreciate how delicate this operation is."
Faith stared at him in agonised silence.
"We're close to a breakthrough here," the detective continued. "We don't need one of our own introducing an element of surprise into the mix. There are too many variables as it is."
"I'm sorry," she murmured despondently. "I wasn't thinking."
Bartell watched her for a moment. "Would you mind telling me what it was that prompted you to approach Boscorelli like that?
Faith looked away and took her time answering.
"They have history," Cruz announced dismissively, seizing her moment. "They were screwing each other."
Beside her she could feel Lt. Swerskey turn to her in disbelief. "You and Bosco?"
Bartell's eyebrows arched significantly. "You were involved with your partner?"
Faith stared fixedly at the floor. Bartell observed the look of intense distress that washed across Faith's face and proceeded as gently as he was able.
"I'm going to ask you again," he said softly. "Why did you approach him?"
Faith cleared her throat and raised her head to look the detective in the eye. "I needed to talk to him."
"Needed?" Bartell said softly.
"Needed?" Cruz snapped. "What, you hoping now hubby's out of the way you can pick up where you and Bosco left off?"
Cruz had made the mistake of ranging too close to Faith.
Driven by every ounce of the anger and grief she felt, the force of the connection Faith's hand made with the ACU Sgt's face was enough to send Cruz stumbling wildly sideways.
Bartell and Swerskey stepped between them and Ty took Faith's arm to draw her away. Cruz, however, was in no state to retaliate. She stood leaning on the desk with her hand on her cheek, stunned into silence.
"Does she have to be here?" Faith demanded angrily.
Bartell turned to her. "We need to clear this matter up, Officer Yokas," he murmured, guiding Faith across the room away from Cruz. "What was it you felt you needed to talk to Boscorelli about?"
Faith stared at him for some time before answering.
"I wanted to talk to him about Gracie."
"Gracie?"
"My baby daughter..." Faith said softly. "...our...daughter..."
A look of pure astonishment crossed Bartell's face. Behind him both Swerskey and Cruz looked equally astounded.
"Maurice Boscorelli is the father of your child?"
Faith nodded mutely.
"Does he know?" Bartell asked gently.
She shook her head.
"So that was what you wanted to talk to him about." Bartell drew in a deep breath and regarded Faith sympathetically. "This whole situation must seem like some kind of nightmare to you."
Despite promising herself she would not succumb, Faith could feel tears beginning to brim her eyes.
"I wasn't thinking clearly...it was the first time I'd seen him since..." Her gaze travelled to the wall upon which several large surveillance photos of Bosco were pinned. "I know it's ridiculous to still have feelings for him after everything he's done, but...I knew a different Bosco."
Bartell held up his hand to silence her. "You don't need to explain," he murmured. Turning away from her the detective stared at the wall of photos. After considering them for some time, Bartell faced Faith once more, his face grim.
"I don't like having to do this, but given the circumstances I think it might be an idea if you were stood down from duties for the next couple of weeks."
"What?" Ty protested. "Oh come on..."
"Faith's a good cop," Swerskey chimed in, "one of the better ones. Given what's coming up her experience would be invaluable out there..."
"We can't afford to have someone this emotionally involved anywhere near this thing. I'm sorry, but there's just too much at stake here." Bartell's voice rose above a soft murmur for the first time.
"He's right."
Ty and Swerskey turned to Faith and stared at her.
"I'm only just holdin' it together," Faith continued quietly. "What I did today kinda proves that. I think I'd be a liability out there. Especially if..." She let the sentence trail away. The looks on her colleague's faces told her there was no need to explain further.
"Yokas can work the desk until this is all over and done with," Swerskey suggested. "Though I still don't like the idea of such an experienced officer being benched with something like this about to go down."
"It can't be helped given the circumstances Lieu," Bartell said, rubbing his right temple as if the whole thing was giving him a headache. "You understand, don't you Faith?"
Faith gazed at the detective in sad silence for a moment and then slowly nodded her head.
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TBC - I'm sooooo looking forward to writing the next bit...