Title: Niflheim
Authors: RivErStaR and Sylphide
Rating: PG-13 to R - this chapter does contain some very minor swearing so you have been warned.
Disclaimer: *looks around* Nope I can't find that winning lottery ticket anywhere. Damn so that means I still don't own anything remotely related to LOCI so screw writing another disclaimer because there's one in the first two chapters. But still, Lars and other original characters are mine, so there :P
Replies: First off, how come I didn't get as many for my first chapter? (Don't mind me I just whinge about everything *lol*) Emily3147: I'm glad we're both appreciated and yeh Syl does great work hey ( Kylie: I'm really pleased that our little collaboration was enough to get you out of "lurkdom" as I like to call it. Thanks for your review and I'm glad that you like how we've made Alex the stronger force. That's what we were hoping to do. Black Storm: Don't fall just yet because I need your review. Anyway here's your updated chapter three. Daf9: Thanks for the review. I love Syl's work and her chapter was just the best. Gin: Thanks for the "Bobby on top" and I'm sorry for taking so long updating it. Uni's been a bitch lately. And thanks for saying how much you love the fic. Fashionably Stupid: I'm glad you like how we've written Bobby and Alex's relationship. It's hard trying to work out a believable back-story, especially since we're not told very much on the show. Glad it works well. Willows: Thanks for the review and glad you like it Barbara: Wow you seem as excited over this story as what I am. I did try to update as quick as I could but well, it's done now and I hope you like KitKat: Am glad that you're enjoying it. I love writing it too. Alex: I know you said you wanted more than one chapter posted at a time but with both Syl's and my very busy schedules it's more than likely not going to happen. However we do try and make each chapter as long as we can so that it makes up for us posting a new part only like once a month. We do try to get it done faster but it just depends on our workloads. Romanov979: Thanks for your comments and although I can't let you know what's going to happen to Alex (and that's partly because even I don't know what's going to happen) keep reading and I hope that what we do write satisfies your curiosity.
Author's Notes:
RivErStaR: Just want to say another brief thanks to all of you who reviewed; and an even bigger thanks to those of you who reviewed to ask when the next chapter will be up. You kept me motivated and for that I thank you. I must say it's been hard and it will only get harder as the semester continues because doing two English subjects and one history one at university, I have seven (that's right seven) 2000 word essays to write and no fewer than 10 Victorian and Renaissance novels to read. But I will try to keep my chapters coming but unfortunately uni work does come first. Now I'm going to apologise for this chapter not being as spectacular as the previous two are. Now I know that's just my opinion but my muse has once again taken a holiday to Russia and trying to write without a muse is just. You just can't do it! So yeh, sorry if this sucks but if it makes you feel any better, Syl's doing the next chapter ( Until then, I hope this satisfies some of your curiosity until next time.
Sylphide: Yo yo yo! Sorry, I think I've been watching way too much TV. Anyway, wasn't this chapter fabulous? Terrific job, Amy, I love it. Anyways, thanks to everyone who reviewed MY chapter and glad you liked it! (If only I could say the same for chapter four!) Now I'm really loaded down for chapters. Draugr chapter 10, is it? Pieces (Smallville, my new fic), chapter two, and now Niflheim chapter four. Lol. Anyway, you all love Amy, right? Then what the hell are you doing reading some crap that I wrote? LOL! Look down and you'll see greatness at work!
~*~*~*~* Chapter 3 *~*~*~*~
It was by now very obvious to Lars that this was not going to be the easy game of cat and mouse he had first thought it would be. His 'captive' Alex had proved to be more of a handful than he had hoped and being completely honest with himself, her unyielding strength in the current situation scared him. 'I refuse to be the perfect victim,' she had so calmly informed him and looking at her now, the cold, hard, ever determined expression on her face reflected these words like an illusion in a mirror. Yes it was true, Alex Eames was no Michael Simone or Andrew Vartan and this fact alone had ceased his original plan.
Being an overly anal-retentive organised criminal, Fenaisyn always made sure that back-up plans were available in case something went drastically wrong with the original. He was well aware that in this day and age, the twenty first century, nothing ever went 'according to plan;' and this was just such an occasion. The plan was to lure Robert Goren into his den using his partner Eames as bait however with Alex being a very unco- operative and unwilling participant he had halted all such conspiracies. It was also partly due to the fact that Goren had cunningly and perceptively hidden the true identity of his partner from Lars that he scratched his plan. After all, Robert Goren was a living legend for his profiling and detective skills and trying to outsmart a genius was like planning your own funeral. Only very careful and long hours of surveillance had revealed detective Eames' true identity; Goren had kept her well hidden until a few weeks earlier.
~*~*~*~* FLASHBACK *~*~*~*~
It was twilight when detectives Goren and Eames exited One Police Plaza and they were both so caught up in something that neither of them noticed the inconspicuous character standing but a few feet away. Fenaisyn, watching them both intently with piercing green eyes took a few steps back as he saw Goren climb into the passenger side of a vehicle obviously belonging to the unknown female.
As the car's taillights disappeared into the dusky hue of the evening, Lars turned and stalked off in the opposite direction, all alone in his thoughts. The mystery woman had him confused as he was trying to work out the identity of Goren's new work partner, however the image of the petite blonde woman kept dancing through his mind. As he arrived 'home,' Lars had come to only two conclusions as to who the mystery woman was. His first theory, as he poured himself a glass of good strong scotch, was that she is a reporter for some media company and that she was trying to get an inside scoop on Goren's latest case. The second theory of his, involved partners of a different kind; to his unexperienced observation skills, Fenaisyn had wrongly deduced that Eames was Goren's 'significant other.' For Lars, this was by far the most likely explanation because he knew first hand that Goren had this 'thing' against all forms of media and that he would have to be unconscious before he would ever set foot in the vehicle of a reporter. Yes, he was very satisfied with knowing who the woman was. Now all that was left was to discover the true identity of his partner so Fenaisyn could put his plan into action.
~*~*~*~* END FLASHBACK *~*~*~*~
Lars looked over to where he had tied up Eames and smirked at her.
"What's your problem?" she asked him, catching his expression. Her gaze met his with a fierce 'don't get any ideas' look.
Glaring straight back at her, not backing down and attempting to win her silent challenge Lars gave her an answer. "I was just thinking about the very first time I saw you and Robert together. His reply to her was spat out with such ferociousness in an attempt to make his dominance over her more pronounced. All he succeeded in doing however was to spur her on further.
"Interesting," was her reply as she cocked an eyebrow and tilted her head ever so slightly to the left. "Do tell me about it. I'm just dying of curiosity over here." The mocking tone in her voice and her cockiness earned her another violent slash with the whip across her thighs. As much as it hurt, Alex never battered an eyelid or made a sound. She was damned if she was going to let him know she was hurting badly.
Lars stopped the whip lashing and once more smiled evilly at her. "Maybe now you've learnt to shut that mouth of yours," he warned her. "I'm in control of this situation, not you."
Not about to hand over her position at the top of the ladder just yet, Alex couldn't help but goad him on further. "Don't count on it Fenaisyn," she mocked. "I'm not going to be your victim and don't think I'm going to behave myself for you either."
"You really don't know when to quit do you?" he snarled at her, venom poisoning his words. "How in the name of Satan does Robert put up with you? If I didn't need you as bait, I'd have killed you hours ago."
"I'm really not scared of you and do you think I act like this to all men? If you do you're a lot dumber than I originally thought. It's only to pricks like you that I act this way. And no that doesn't mean you're special either. You haven't been the only one."
Alex was making Lars very agitated with her incessant gibing and it was not a safe thing to piss off known murderers like this, but she had planned in her mind that the more pissed Fenaisyn became, the more likely it would be that he makes a mistake. Her ploy seemed to be working too, although she had no idea how much more physical abuse she could take. Her entire situation was both physically and mentally draining for both parties and it was simply a matter of her outlasting him. So taking a deep breath, Alex continued her tirade.
"So you said earlier that you were remembering our first meeting. Tell me about it."
"Why?" he cautiously asked her while regarding the innocent expression in her face. It was the genuine tone in her voice that had confused him.
"Oh I don't know," she said smiling sweetly at him. "A way to pass time. Plus I'm interested to know how you worked out who I was."
He smiled back at her, completely unaware she was playing him. "I must say you both had me fooled for a while."
"Really? Why?" Alex knew that if she wanted answers she'd have to drag them from him, word for word, but she was more than prepared to play this game of twenty questions. If it got him talking, score one for her.
"Your Robert is very good at hiding the truth," Lars explained to her, offering no real answer. "I had been tailing the two of you every night for a week and I was convinced the two of you were romantically involved."
Alex had to hide a grin and stop herself from bursting into a fit of giggles. "Interesting," was all she could say when she found her voice. She was having way too much fun playing this game.
"It was then I decided that instead of kidnapping his work partner, it would be more worthwhile taking his 'other partner' so to speak." He took a brief pause before continuing. "Little did I know that I'd be killing two birds with one stone, if you'll pardon the expression."
Alex laughed softly at the absurdity of his words and actions. "You think that Goren and I are intimately involved?" she asked him now completely amused. "Whatever gave you that idea?"
"You're telling me that you aren't?" asked an extremely confused serial killer. "I could have sworn the two of you are involved. Tell me then, if you aren't involved, why did you stay with him every evening two weeks ago after work."
She smiled again; after all, she had seen this question coming. "The case we were working was an extremely tough one and neither of us slept until it was solved. We stayed up most nights working on it. Here's a tip I learnt a while ago. Never assume, it can get you in trouble or lead you down the wrong path."
"And what," Lars started. "I suppose you want me to walk down the path of righteousness instead?"
"You?" Alex guffawed. "You're so far gone that even death couldn't save your ass."
This set Fenaisyn into a laughing fit. "You crack me up, Alexandra, and I thank you for it. You're by far the most entertaining 'guest' I've ever had."
"Well it wasn't hard," she said snorting. "You're already cracked."
Her last remark didn't sit well with Lars though as he once again reached for the whip. Alex prepared herself for yet another lashing however it never came. Instead, Lars had coiled it up and replaced it with two fierce looking twisted swords. Eying the vorpal blades on the table Eames couldn't help but wonder how sharp they really were.
"Let me demonstrate their power," Lars said indicating to the swords as he picked one up.
Grabbing a sheet of paper from his pocket, he held it out and brought the blade down through it slicing it in half. It was obvious to Alex before the cut half of the paper hit the ground; the swords were well looked after and sharp enough to cut through bone.
Fenaisyn was immensely proud of his newly found dominance however looking at his watch he knew it was time to leave Alex alone and prepare for part two of his plan. Replacing the sword back on the table Lars walked over to Alex and checked over her binds. He didn't want her escaping just yet; it would ruin his plans. Once satisfied that the knots in the rope and the handcuffs were securely binding her to the metal chair he had bolted into the concrete floor, he left the room, locking it as he went, leaving Alex all alone in the dark.
~*~*~*~* THE NEXT DAY *~*~*~*~
Back at the office, Bobby was freaking out in his unusually calm manner. To an untrained eye, one would think that he didn't give a rat's ass about his partner's disappearance; to anyone who knows him, his calmness was a sure sign of panicking. Goren's earlier scope of the area surrounding the building had turned up nothing. It was as though Eames had vanished into thin air and she was certainly gone without a trace; this was a real worry. After all, Fenaisyn wasn't just good at what he did, he was one of the best, and as the minutes ticked by, so too did the chances of finding Alex alive.
"Damn it," he swore, slamming a book on his desk. "Where the hell are you?"
The comment, directed at no one in particular was heard by the majority or other officers on the floor. They knew Goren had always looked out for his partners, but it was no secret that he was overly protective of his petite colleague.
Bobby put his head down and massaged his aching brow. Since her kidnapping the previous day, he had gone without much needed sleep trying to find even the most minute clue as to her whereabouts, and until he finds something, there will be no rest for the wicked, or good in this case. This affected even Deakins in his own way and Carver was yet to be informed. It was true; Alex Eames had touched so many lives and none more so than the men around her.
Emerging from the confines of his office, Deakins spotted Goren with his shoulders slumped and his head down.
'This is not a good sign,' he thought as he approached the broken man. "Have you found anything yet?"
Deakins sat down opposite Goren, a place normally occupied by Alex. It was just hard to fully comprehend that she was indeed truly gone. He secretly kept hoping that he would wake up and find that this was all just one horrible nightmare; but he was still waiting for that wake up call. Even though she had been missing for just less than twenty-four hours, it felt like days, weeks even since they had last seen her smiling happy face. A happy ending was what Goren needed here for Deakins doubted that Bobby would be able to cope with the death of yet another partner. The only thing different this time, is the fact that to Bobby, Alex wasn't just a partner, but a close friend too; to good a friend to loose in circumstances such as these.
Bobby looked over to Deakins sitting across the desk in his partner's seat. His eyes were ever so slightly glazed due to the lack of sleep and they no longer had their bright sparkle. It was as though he had truly lost his soul, and a very haunting thing for Deakins to see in his best detective's face.
"No nothing yet," came a half enthusiastic reply. "We're not giving up and I'm putting all my money on Eames in this one. She'll give Fenaisyn a run for his money."
James smiled and nodded. "That she will."
Bobby returned his smile as they both remembered just how tough 'their little woman' really is. Even now she still managed to surprise them both with her inner strength. It was a trait that Bobby truly admired in his partner. Her ability to function well in the most difficult of situations and she always kept her cool.
"I know it's only early days yet," James started. "But I've made arrangements for a detective Nicolas Parker to step in and help you with your investigations."
"But Captain," Bobby retorted totally in shock from this proposal.
"He's not a replacement for Alex," he quickly explained. "You're just going to need all the help you can get and Parker's come highly recommended from the Commissioner's Office. Just give him a go, that's all I'm asking."
All Bobby could do was slowly nod his head.
"And when we find Alex, everything will be back to normal."
Deakins hoped that Goren believed his words. They were as true as they could be and there was no way, come hell or high water, that he would ever replace Eames with anyone. She was so to speak, irreplaceable and he was not planning on splitting his best team over something like this.
"All right fine," complied Goren finally. "But he goes as soon as Alex is found and cleared for active duty."
"That was always the plan Goren," Deakins reaffirmed. "Now he should be arriving soon and when he does, fill him in on what you have, even if at this stage it is nothing."
Goren nodded his head yet again. "Will do. Although it's kind of hard to define nothing."
Deakins rolled his eyes but was saved from conjuring up an answer because his office phone rang. So James left Bobby to sit and anticipate the arrival of a fresh new face.
A few minutes later, interrupting Bobby's thoughts, a voice from behind startled him.
"Detective Goren?" it questioned.
He did a complete one eighty on his standard issue swivel chair and answered the voice as he looked up into the man's eyes. "Hi, you must be Nicolas Parker."
"The one and only," Parker said offering Goren his hand to sake.
As expected, Goren rose to his full height and towered above the new addition to Major Case. He firmly grasped Parker's proffered hand, shook it and immediately put his skills as a profiler to work.
Detective Nicolas Parker stood about five nine, or five ten and was dressed in an expensive dark grey Gucci suit with a bright emerald green tie. His black leather shoes were expensive too and highly polished as Bobby could see his distorted reflection in them even from such great height. Letting his eyes travel up to study Parker's face, he was met by a point nose, perfect white teeth, light blonde hair so fair it was almost white and a pair of the most piercing green eyes he had ever seen. They were so green in fact that they almost matched his tie perfectly.
"Nice to meet you," Goren told him still cautiously eyeing the shorter man.
"Likewise," Nicolas replied. "It's nice to be able to finally meet the legendary Robert Goren. I'm just sorry it had to happen under these circumstances." He gave Goren a sympathetic smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
This of course, did not go unnoticed by Bobby as he gave his thanks to Parker. Still weary of the stranger, Goren offered him a seat as he got down to business. As he sat, Bobby handed Parker the file on Lars Fenaisyn. After all, if Parker was brought in to help Goren catch the psychotic murderer, he would need to be well prepared.
Parker took it and quickly leafed through it. "So what do we have so far?"
"Unfortunately not much," Goren answered, sighing inwardly. "We have no crime scene. No evidence and basically all we know is that detective Eames was taken by Fenaisyn because he has contacted me twice now. One before taking Eames, and one after."
"So basically this guy Lars, is out to kill detective Eames like he did with your previous partners," stated Parker trying to gauge Goren's reaction. However he was disappointed. Goren's face gave nothing away.
"That's what we think," he replied. "However we're not going to let it happen again. Fenaisyn has killed his last."
"You seem very sure of that."
"I am," he told Parker studying him very closely yet again. There was just something irking Bobby that made him feel uneasy about Nicolas Parker. "We just have to retrace Eames' last steps."
"Sounds like a plan," said Parker enthusiastically. "Any ideas on where to start?"
"Central Park, if I know my partner well. She likes to walk around when she's pissed." Bobby groaned at his slip of the tongue and hoped that Parker hadn't picked up on it.
"Why was she pissed?" queried Nicolas innocently.
'Damn,' thought Bobby frowning. It was not a pleasant memory for him. She was pissed at him because he had been a total jackass and now she was gone. Removing any signs of emotion from his face, Goren answered.
"I said something I shouldn't have."
There, he admitted it finally and that was that; end of story. Parker wasn't getting any more information on the topic. Luckily for him, the answer he gave seemed to satisfy Parker as he got this almost eerie smile on his face. There was also an unidentifiable look in his green eyes that was so subtle Bobby would have missed had he not been paying attention.
At that moment, Parker seemed to notice Goren's inquisitive look so he abruptly changed the subject. "So Central Park; let's go."
Still looking at him through narrowed eyes Goren replied. "All right, hopefully we'll be able to find some sort of lead." With that he motioned for Parker to head toward the elevator.
Following at a safe distance away, left Bobby alone with his thoughts. He couldn't quite hit the nail on the head but he was sure there was something about those green eyes that he couldn't quite grasp a hold of; only time would tell. For now, he would have to trust his gut instincts and not fully trust the new recruit; and these were the last thoughts in his head before heading out toward Central Park.
~*~*~*~* END CHAPTER 3 *~*~*~*~
RivErStaR: There it's done. Hope it lives up to your expectations and answers some questions. Now it's over to Syl and I'll see you chapter 5. BTW don't forget to review or I'll send Carver after all of you who don't review (
Syl: AHHH! So good. Now where do I go from here? Damn her for being so pro! Anyway, I'll figure something out. See you all next chapter!! DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!!!
Authors: RivErStaR and Sylphide
Rating: PG-13 to R - this chapter does contain some very minor swearing so you have been warned.
Disclaimer: *looks around* Nope I can't find that winning lottery ticket anywhere. Damn so that means I still don't own anything remotely related to LOCI so screw writing another disclaimer because there's one in the first two chapters. But still, Lars and other original characters are mine, so there :P
Replies: First off, how come I didn't get as many for my first chapter? (Don't mind me I just whinge about everything *lol*) Emily3147: I'm glad we're both appreciated and yeh Syl does great work hey ( Kylie: I'm really pleased that our little collaboration was enough to get you out of "lurkdom" as I like to call it. Thanks for your review and I'm glad that you like how we've made Alex the stronger force. That's what we were hoping to do. Black Storm: Don't fall just yet because I need your review. Anyway here's your updated chapter three. Daf9: Thanks for the review. I love Syl's work and her chapter was just the best. Gin: Thanks for the "Bobby on top" and I'm sorry for taking so long updating it. Uni's been a bitch lately. And thanks for saying how much you love the fic. Fashionably Stupid: I'm glad you like how we've written Bobby and Alex's relationship. It's hard trying to work out a believable back-story, especially since we're not told very much on the show. Glad it works well. Willows: Thanks for the review and glad you like it Barbara: Wow you seem as excited over this story as what I am. I did try to update as quick as I could but well, it's done now and I hope you like KitKat: Am glad that you're enjoying it. I love writing it too. Alex: I know you said you wanted more than one chapter posted at a time but with both Syl's and my very busy schedules it's more than likely not going to happen. However we do try and make each chapter as long as we can so that it makes up for us posting a new part only like once a month. We do try to get it done faster but it just depends on our workloads. Romanov979: Thanks for your comments and although I can't let you know what's going to happen to Alex (and that's partly because even I don't know what's going to happen) keep reading and I hope that what we do write satisfies your curiosity.
Author's Notes:
RivErStaR: Just want to say another brief thanks to all of you who reviewed; and an even bigger thanks to those of you who reviewed to ask when the next chapter will be up. You kept me motivated and for that I thank you. I must say it's been hard and it will only get harder as the semester continues because doing two English subjects and one history one at university, I have seven (that's right seven) 2000 word essays to write and no fewer than 10 Victorian and Renaissance novels to read. But I will try to keep my chapters coming but unfortunately uni work does come first. Now I'm going to apologise for this chapter not being as spectacular as the previous two are. Now I know that's just my opinion but my muse has once again taken a holiday to Russia and trying to write without a muse is just. You just can't do it! So yeh, sorry if this sucks but if it makes you feel any better, Syl's doing the next chapter ( Until then, I hope this satisfies some of your curiosity until next time.
Sylphide: Yo yo yo! Sorry, I think I've been watching way too much TV. Anyway, wasn't this chapter fabulous? Terrific job, Amy, I love it. Anyways, thanks to everyone who reviewed MY chapter and glad you liked it! (If only I could say the same for chapter four!) Now I'm really loaded down for chapters. Draugr chapter 10, is it? Pieces (Smallville, my new fic), chapter two, and now Niflheim chapter four. Lol. Anyway, you all love Amy, right? Then what the hell are you doing reading some crap that I wrote? LOL! Look down and you'll see greatness at work!
~*~*~*~* Chapter 3 *~*~*~*~
It was by now very obvious to Lars that this was not going to be the easy game of cat and mouse he had first thought it would be. His 'captive' Alex had proved to be more of a handful than he had hoped and being completely honest with himself, her unyielding strength in the current situation scared him. 'I refuse to be the perfect victim,' she had so calmly informed him and looking at her now, the cold, hard, ever determined expression on her face reflected these words like an illusion in a mirror. Yes it was true, Alex Eames was no Michael Simone or Andrew Vartan and this fact alone had ceased his original plan.
Being an overly anal-retentive organised criminal, Fenaisyn always made sure that back-up plans were available in case something went drastically wrong with the original. He was well aware that in this day and age, the twenty first century, nothing ever went 'according to plan;' and this was just such an occasion. The plan was to lure Robert Goren into his den using his partner Eames as bait however with Alex being a very unco- operative and unwilling participant he had halted all such conspiracies. It was also partly due to the fact that Goren had cunningly and perceptively hidden the true identity of his partner from Lars that he scratched his plan. After all, Robert Goren was a living legend for his profiling and detective skills and trying to outsmart a genius was like planning your own funeral. Only very careful and long hours of surveillance had revealed detective Eames' true identity; Goren had kept her well hidden until a few weeks earlier.
~*~*~*~* FLASHBACK *~*~*~*~
It was twilight when detectives Goren and Eames exited One Police Plaza and they were both so caught up in something that neither of them noticed the inconspicuous character standing but a few feet away. Fenaisyn, watching them both intently with piercing green eyes took a few steps back as he saw Goren climb into the passenger side of a vehicle obviously belonging to the unknown female.
As the car's taillights disappeared into the dusky hue of the evening, Lars turned and stalked off in the opposite direction, all alone in his thoughts. The mystery woman had him confused as he was trying to work out the identity of Goren's new work partner, however the image of the petite blonde woman kept dancing through his mind. As he arrived 'home,' Lars had come to only two conclusions as to who the mystery woman was. His first theory, as he poured himself a glass of good strong scotch, was that she is a reporter for some media company and that she was trying to get an inside scoop on Goren's latest case. The second theory of his, involved partners of a different kind; to his unexperienced observation skills, Fenaisyn had wrongly deduced that Eames was Goren's 'significant other.' For Lars, this was by far the most likely explanation because he knew first hand that Goren had this 'thing' against all forms of media and that he would have to be unconscious before he would ever set foot in the vehicle of a reporter. Yes, he was very satisfied with knowing who the woman was. Now all that was left was to discover the true identity of his partner so Fenaisyn could put his plan into action.
~*~*~*~* END FLASHBACK *~*~*~*~
Lars looked over to where he had tied up Eames and smirked at her.
"What's your problem?" she asked him, catching his expression. Her gaze met his with a fierce 'don't get any ideas' look.
Glaring straight back at her, not backing down and attempting to win her silent challenge Lars gave her an answer. "I was just thinking about the very first time I saw you and Robert together. His reply to her was spat out with such ferociousness in an attempt to make his dominance over her more pronounced. All he succeeded in doing however was to spur her on further.
"Interesting," was her reply as she cocked an eyebrow and tilted her head ever so slightly to the left. "Do tell me about it. I'm just dying of curiosity over here." The mocking tone in her voice and her cockiness earned her another violent slash with the whip across her thighs. As much as it hurt, Alex never battered an eyelid or made a sound. She was damned if she was going to let him know she was hurting badly.
Lars stopped the whip lashing and once more smiled evilly at her. "Maybe now you've learnt to shut that mouth of yours," he warned her. "I'm in control of this situation, not you."
Not about to hand over her position at the top of the ladder just yet, Alex couldn't help but goad him on further. "Don't count on it Fenaisyn," she mocked. "I'm not going to be your victim and don't think I'm going to behave myself for you either."
"You really don't know when to quit do you?" he snarled at her, venom poisoning his words. "How in the name of Satan does Robert put up with you? If I didn't need you as bait, I'd have killed you hours ago."
"I'm really not scared of you and do you think I act like this to all men? If you do you're a lot dumber than I originally thought. It's only to pricks like you that I act this way. And no that doesn't mean you're special either. You haven't been the only one."
Alex was making Lars very agitated with her incessant gibing and it was not a safe thing to piss off known murderers like this, but she had planned in her mind that the more pissed Fenaisyn became, the more likely it would be that he makes a mistake. Her ploy seemed to be working too, although she had no idea how much more physical abuse she could take. Her entire situation was both physically and mentally draining for both parties and it was simply a matter of her outlasting him. So taking a deep breath, Alex continued her tirade.
"So you said earlier that you were remembering our first meeting. Tell me about it."
"Why?" he cautiously asked her while regarding the innocent expression in her face. It was the genuine tone in her voice that had confused him.
"Oh I don't know," she said smiling sweetly at him. "A way to pass time. Plus I'm interested to know how you worked out who I was."
He smiled back at her, completely unaware she was playing him. "I must say you both had me fooled for a while."
"Really? Why?" Alex knew that if she wanted answers she'd have to drag them from him, word for word, but she was more than prepared to play this game of twenty questions. If it got him talking, score one for her.
"Your Robert is very good at hiding the truth," Lars explained to her, offering no real answer. "I had been tailing the two of you every night for a week and I was convinced the two of you were romantically involved."
Alex had to hide a grin and stop herself from bursting into a fit of giggles. "Interesting," was all she could say when she found her voice. She was having way too much fun playing this game.
"It was then I decided that instead of kidnapping his work partner, it would be more worthwhile taking his 'other partner' so to speak." He took a brief pause before continuing. "Little did I know that I'd be killing two birds with one stone, if you'll pardon the expression."
Alex laughed softly at the absurdity of his words and actions. "You think that Goren and I are intimately involved?" she asked him now completely amused. "Whatever gave you that idea?"
"You're telling me that you aren't?" asked an extremely confused serial killer. "I could have sworn the two of you are involved. Tell me then, if you aren't involved, why did you stay with him every evening two weeks ago after work."
She smiled again; after all, she had seen this question coming. "The case we were working was an extremely tough one and neither of us slept until it was solved. We stayed up most nights working on it. Here's a tip I learnt a while ago. Never assume, it can get you in trouble or lead you down the wrong path."
"And what," Lars started. "I suppose you want me to walk down the path of righteousness instead?"
"You?" Alex guffawed. "You're so far gone that even death couldn't save your ass."
This set Fenaisyn into a laughing fit. "You crack me up, Alexandra, and I thank you for it. You're by far the most entertaining 'guest' I've ever had."
"Well it wasn't hard," she said snorting. "You're already cracked."
Her last remark didn't sit well with Lars though as he once again reached for the whip. Alex prepared herself for yet another lashing however it never came. Instead, Lars had coiled it up and replaced it with two fierce looking twisted swords. Eying the vorpal blades on the table Eames couldn't help but wonder how sharp they really were.
"Let me demonstrate their power," Lars said indicating to the swords as he picked one up.
Grabbing a sheet of paper from his pocket, he held it out and brought the blade down through it slicing it in half. It was obvious to Alex before the cut half of the paper hit the ground; the swords were well looked after and sharp enough to cut through bone.
Fenaisyn was immensely proud of his newly found dominance however looking at his watch he knew it was time to leave Alex alone and prepare for part two of his plan. Replacing the sword back on the table Lars walked over to Alex and checked over her binds. He didn't want her escaping just yet; it would ruin his plans. Once satisfied that the knots in the rope and the handcuffs were securely binding her to the metal chair he had bolted into the concrete floor, he left the room, locking it as he went, leaving Alex all alone in the dark.
~*~*~*~* THE NEXT DAY *~*~*~*~
Back at the office, Bobby was freaking out in his unusually calm manner. To an untrained eye, one would think that he didn't give a rat's ass about his partner's disappearance; to anyone who knows him, his calmness was a sure sign of panicking. Goren's earlier scope of the area surrounding the building had turned up nothing. It was as though Eames had vanished into thin air and she was certainly gone without a trace; this was a real worry. After all, Fenaisyn wasn't just good at what he did, he was one of the best, and as the minutes ticked by, so too did the chances of finding Alex alive.
"Damn it," he swore, slamming a book on his desk. "Where the hell are you?"
The comment, directed at no one in particular was heard by the majority or other officers on the floor. They knew Goren had always looked out for his partners, but it was no secret that he was overly protective of his petite colleague.
Bobby put his head down and massaged his aching brow. Since her kidnapping the previous day, he had gone without much needed sleep trying to find even the most minute clue as to her whereabouts, and until he finds something, there will be no rest for the wicked, or good in this case. This affected even Deakins in his own way and Carver was yet to be informed. It was true; Alex Eames had touched so many lives and none more so than the men around her.
Emerging from the confines of his office, Deakins spotted Goren with his shoulders slumped and his head down.
'This is not a good sign,' he thought as he approached the broken man. "Have you found anything yet?"
Deakins sat down opposite Goren, a place normally occupied by Alex. It was just hard to fully comprehend that she was indeed truly gone. He secretly kept hoping that he would wake up and find that this was all just one horrible nightmare; but he was still waiting for that wake up call. Even though she had been missing for just less than twenty-four hours, it felt like days, weeks even since they had last seen her smiling happy face. A happy ending was what Goren needed here for Deakins doubted that Bobby would be able to cope with the death of yet another partner. The only thing different this time, is the fact that to Bobby, Alex wasn't just a partner, but a close friend too; to good a friend to loose in circumstances such as these.
Bobby looked over to Deakins sitting across the desk in his partner's seat. His eyes were ever so slightly glazed due to the lack of sleep and they no longer had their bright sparkle. It was as though he had truly lost his soul, and a very haunting thing for Deakins to see in his best detective's face.
"No nothing yet," came a half enthusiastic reply. "We're not giving up and I'm putting all my money on Eames in this one. She'll give Fenaisyn a run for his money."
James smiled and nodded. "That she will."
Bobby returned his smile as they both remembered just how tough 'their little woman' really is. Even now she still managed to surprise them both with her inner strength. It was a trait that Bobby truly admired in his partner. Her ability to function well in the most difficult of situations and she always kept her cool.
"I know it's only early days yet," James started. "But I've made arrangements for a detective Nicolas Parker to step in and help you with your investigations."
"But Captain," Bobby retorted totally in shock from this proposal.
"He's not a replacement for Alex," he quickly explained. "You're just going to need all the help you can get and Parker's come highly recommended from the Commissioner's Office. Just give him a go, that's all I'm asking."
All Bobby could do was slowly nod his head.
"And when we find Alex, everything will be back to normal."
Deakins hoped that Goren believed his words. They were as true as they could be and there was no way, come hell or high water, that he would ever replace Eames with anyone. She was so to speak, irreplaceable and he was not planning on splitting his best team over something like this.
"All right fine," complied Goren finally. "But he goes as soon as Alex is found and cleared for active duty."
"That was always the plan Goren," Deakins reaffirmed. "Now he should be arriving soon and when he does, fill him in on what you have, even if at this stage it is nothing."
Goren nodded his head yet again. "Will do. Although it's kind of hard to define nothing."
Deakins rolled his eyes but was saved from conjuring up an answer because his office phone rang. So James left Bobby to sit and anticipate the arrival of a fresh new face.
A few minutes later, interrupting Bobby's thoughts, a voice from behind startled him.
"Detective Goren?" it questioned.
He did a complete one eighty on his standard issue swivel chair and answered the voice as he looked up into the man's eyes. "Hi, you must be Nicolas Parker."
"The one and only," Parker said offering Goren his hand to sake.
As expected, Goren rose to his full height and towered above the new addition to Major Case. He firmly grasped Parker's proffered hand, shook it and immediately put his skills as a profiler to work.
Detective Nicolas Parker stood about five nine, or five ten and was dressed in an expensive dark grey Gucci suit with a bright emerald green tie. His black leather shoes were expensive too and highly polished as Bobby could see his distorted reflection in them even from such great height. Letting his eyes travel up to study Parker's face, he was met by a point nose, perfect white teeth, light blonde hair so fair it was almost white and a pair of the most piercing green eyes he had ever seen. They were so green in fact that they almost matched his tie perfectly.
"Nice to meet you," Goren told him still cautiously eyeing the shorter man.
"Likewise," Nicolas replied. "It's nice to be able to finally meet the legendary Robert Goren. I'm just sorry it had to happen under these circumstances." He gave Goren a sympathetic smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
This of course, did not go unnoticed by Bobby as he gave his thanks to Parker. Still weary of the stranger, Goren offered him a seat as he got down to business. As he sat, Bobby handed Parker the file on Lars Fenaisyn. After all, if Parker was brought in to help Goren catch the psychotic murderer, he would need to be well prepared.
Parker took it and quickly leafed through it. "So what do we have so far?"
"Unfortunately not much," Goren answered, sighing inwardly. "We have no crime scene. No evidence and basically all we know is that detective Eames was taken by Fenaisyn because he has contacted me twice now. One before taking Eames, and one after."
"So basically this guy Lars, is out to kill detective Eames like he did with your previous partners," stated Parker trying to gauge Goren's reaction. However he was disappointed. Goren's face gave nothing away.
"That's what we think," he replied. "However we're not going to let it happen again. Fenaisyn has killed his last."
"You seem very sure of that."
"I am," he told Parker studying him very closely yet again. There was just something irking Bobby that made him feel uneasy about Nicolas Parker. "We just have to retrace Eames' last steps."
"Sounds like a plan," said Parker enthusiastically. "Any ideas on where to start?"
"Central Park, if I know my partner well. She likes to walk around when she's pissed." Bobby groaned at his slip of the tongue and hoped that Parker hadn't picked up on it.
"Why was she pissed?" queried Nicolas innocently.
'Damn,' thought Bobby frowning. It was not a pleasant memory for him. She was pissed at him because he had been a total jackass and now she was gone. Removing any signs of emotion from his face, Goren answered.
"I said something I shouldn't have."
There, he admitted it finally and that was that; end of story. Parker wasn't getting any more information on the topic. Luckily for him, the answer he gave seemed to satisfy Parker as he got this almost eerie smile on his face. There was also an unidentifiable look in his green eyes that was so subtle Bobby would have missed had he not been paying attention.
At that moment, Parker seemed to notice Goren's inquisitive look so he abruptly changed the subject. "So Central Park; let's go."
Still looking at him through narrowed eyes Goren replied. "All right, hopefully we'll be able to find some sort of lead." With that he motioned for Parker to head toward the elevator.
Following at a safe distance away, left Bobby alone with his thoughts. He couldn't quite hit the nail on the head but he was sure there was something about those green eyes that he couldn't quite grasp a hold of; only time would tell. For now, he would have to trust his gut instincts and not fully trust the new recruit; and these were the last thoughts in his head before heading out toward Central Park.
~*~*~*~* END CHAPTER 3 *~*~*~*~
RivErStaR: There it's done. Hope it lives up to your expectations and answers some questions. Now it's over to Syl and I'll see you chapter 5. BTW don't forget to review or I'll send Carver after all of you who don't review (
Syl: AHHH! So good. Now where do I go from here? Damn her for being so pro! Anyway, I'll figure something out. See you all next chapter!! DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!!!