"Tell me, Detective," Dante snarled, the words practically spat out at her.
"What you were doing at Irons' place for so long? Don't tell me you were
investigating the murders."
"I don't think what I do on my private time is any of your business," Sara said. She felt her anger rising, the Witchblade growing hot on her wrist.
"It's my business when you may be compromising my position; when there is the possibility that you may be covering up."
"I'm not covering up a damn thing," she said, her voice hot and angry. "My job is to investigate a couple of homicides and I have been doing my job."
"Then I ask again, what where you doing out there?"
"I was there to see a friend, nothing to do with the case."
"And what friend would that be?" he asked in a voice full of barely disguised derision. Suddenly there was a crack, gunshot loud as the door was flung open slamming back against the wall of the conference room.
"I believe that would be me," Ian said causally, framed in the opening, his elegant black attire standing out against the institutional grey walls like a piece of velvet on burlap. Burgess started to reach for his weapon but stopped, hesitating when no more threat was forthcoming.
Dante's colour rose to even more alarming heights as he took in the sight. His worst nightmare come true, his eyes flicked back and forth between them like a lizard watching a grasshopper. "Freak. What? Irons' got you holding his leash for him now?"
Sara's mouth opened as she flew out of the chair, but no sound emerged as her brain tried to process the situation. She needed to find someway out of the carnage she felt sure was to come. As the violence and hostility inside Ian boiled over, shredding her new formed shields like paper in a hailstorm.
In a blur of motion, inhumanly fast, Ian was before him,, palm still raised from the cobra strike as Dante hit the wall with a resounding thud. The Captain's high colour had gone from bright red to sickly green in the space of a heart beat and he gasped for air, as the rest stood frozen in shock. Red and green, like cheap Christmas decorations in the snow, she thought irreverently as she tried to will her frozen limbs into action. She took in the whole tableaux, Deputy Commissioner Harvey and Captain Siri, looking a touch winded in the open doorway, and Ian slowly lowering his hand, his burning rage receding from her mind, leaving behind only the residual heat. She started forward but the Deputy Commissioner was there before her.
"Mr. Nottingham, please accept our apologies, I am certain Captain Dante didn't mean to be offensive...the mitigating factors.so soon after your father's death.perfectly understandable that you." he rattled on, not completely sure what he was saying, what he could say to salvage this volatile situation. On the one hand Nottingham had assaulted a police officer, a Captain no less in front of witnesses. Still the provocation had been extreme and totally unprofessional in any circumstance. But then Dante has never been known for his tact, he thought in disgust.
"I want that man arrested.NOW!" Dante said, trying to put some authority behind his still weakened and wheezing voice. Burgess started forward again but was stopped by Deputy Harvey's upraised hand.
Taking control of the situation, he turned. "Siri, get the door," he commanded, his brain finally more or less in working order. "Mr. Nottingham, please have a seat, I am sure that this can be dealt with easily." He waved Ian into a chair and Sara slid gratefully into the one next to him as the adrenaline rush faded, all strength her strength suddenly evaporating. The Deputy motioned Dante to the other side as he claimed the top seat for himself.
Sara could feel the malevolent glare from across the table, and watched as for just a moment, Ian's masque slipped, the dangerous cold-blooded killer returning threat for stare before the civilized demeanor remerged across his handsome features. Joe Siri settled in on Sara's other sides, allegiances as clearly drawn as the lines on any battle field.
"Now, Captain Dante, there are certain facts which you are not aware of; facts which make this situation very unfortunate."
"The man attacked me, he works for Irons and he and the detective."
"Mr. Nottingham had more than sufficient provocation," the Deputy replied coldly. "And considering the recent death of his father and your implied insult to both of them, I don't believe you would find a jury willing to convict him. And to be blunt, the last thing the Commissioner wants is difficulty with the new owner of Vorschlag Industries." He gave the head of Special Investigations a hard glare as the information began to filter through the blocks Dante had built of anger and embarrassment.
"You.He." He started. Joe Siri lowered his head, trying to hide his amusement. For the first time in twenty years Bruno Dante was at a loss for words. And I was here to see it, he thought. The urge to laugh out loud was almost overwhelming.
"Upon the recent death of my father, I am the new head of Vorschlag Industries," Ian confirmed, the very Irons like smile on his face giving his statement credibility.
"But that makes you."
"Yes, it does." The deputy finished. "As to any other questions you have regarding the investigation, that case is closed to the satisfaction of the Commissioner. I trust that the subject is also closed?!" He gave Dante a quelling look, holding his gaze until the other man nodded reluctantly. "Good, as Mr. Nottingham is holding off on the formal announcement until arrangements can be made, I expect that none of this will leave the room." Satisfied he looked at Ian for confirmation.
"That will be acceptable," he said. "I am sure you are men of honor." The emphasis on the final word and the quick flicker of his gaze were the only external signs of any reservations he had. Should there be a leak, no one was left with any doubt as to who he would hold responsible.
Ian rose, his participation clearly at an end, the others stood as well, as he offered Sara his arm. The deference did not go unnoticed by Dante, but he filed it away for the moment. I will get that bitch and her pet freak in time, he thought to himself as he tried to swallow his disgust and bruised ego and offered them a sour smile.
Satisfies that the situation was safely under control, Deputy Commissioner Harvey led the way out, Captain Siri by his side. At a nod from his commander, Burgess followed, praying desperately he could get far enough away from the blast radius before his boss exploded. Ian gestured for Sara to precede him with a reassuring wave and turned back to Dante. His Father's smile flowed across his lips as he took the man's hand in a crushing grip. "Remember Bruno," he said softly, "I know all about you. Should you ever try to cause difficulties for Sara again, or threaten her in any form, I will first see that everyone else knows all about you as well." He left the threat hanging in the air between them as he added in a conversational tone, "Good day, Captain." He released the older man's painfully throbbing fingers and turned to join Sara and the other two officers.
"Detective Pezzini," the Deputy said as they drew closer, "I have been speaking to Captain Siri. Considering the events of the day, why don't you take off early?" The smile was kind, but Sara still turned a suspicious look to Ian. She had never really felt comfortable about people taking advantage of their contacts, but she only had another hour on shift anyway and the confrontation with Dante and Ian's little emotional Armageddon had left her pretty well drained.
"Well," she said a little uncertainly, "I need to go back to the house to bring my partner up to speed, and get my stuff, but." She looked at Ian.
"If Captain Siri would be kind enough to give you a ride back, I will finish here and then meet you," he said easily. Joe looked at Harvey for conformation and then nodded. With a quick squeeze of her hand, Ian moved silently down the hall with the deputy, a smooth smile on his face.
When Ian tapped on Sara's office door, she was sitting at her desk, her jacket within easy reach, talking with Joe and Danny. It was obvious from the smiles and chuckles all around what they had been discussing. Sara rose quickly and grabbed a handful of files. "Just let me drop these off and I will be ready to go," she said, disappearing through the door. Ian walked over and reached for Danny's hand.
"I do not have the words to thank you," he started.
"Don't worry about it," the Asian detective told him. "Karma, I am sure it will come back around. Besides you have already done wonders for her mood," he joked. Ian grinned and reached into his pocket for a card, which he handed to Sara's partner. Joe looked on with a smile, happy to see Danny's approval. It would have been rough if the two men hated each other.
"Perhaps," Ian smiled. "But just in case." Danny looked at the card, seeing the cell phone number printed neatly on the back and nodded his understanding.
"Yeah, just in case." The two men shook hands again just as Sara reentered the room.
"Ok," she said, grabbing her jacket. They said their goodbyes and walked out, Sara slipping her small hand comfortably into Ian's as they headed for the door. Joe stood next to Danny in the office doorway watching them pass from sight.
"Think he loves her?" Joe asked.
"Yeah,"
"Think she knows that?"
"Maybe, whether she'll admit it." Danny left it there.
"Think he's told her that?" Danny thought for a moment.
"Yeah," he said certainly. They stood together in quiet reverie. Finally the detective asked his own question. "Think she loves him?"
"Yeah," Joe answered.
"Think he knows that?" Joe thought about it before answering.
"Yeah," he said finally.
"Think she's told him?" Danny questioned. The two men looked at one another thoughtfully.
"Nah," they both said together, smiling, before turning and going off their separate ways, both filled with hope.
.So there is no pat ending, no neat finale, no single final image.
FINIS
"I don't think what I do on my private time is any of your business," Sara said. She felt her anger rising, the Witchblade growing hot on her wrist.
"It's my business when you may be compromising my position; when there is the possibility that you may be covering up."
"I'm not covering up a damn thing," she said, her voice hot and angry. "My job is to investigate a couple of homicides and I have been doing my job."
"Then I ask again, what where you doing out there?"
"I was there to see a friend, nothing to do with the case."
"And what friend would that be?" he asked in a voice full of barely disguised derision. Suddenly there was a crack, gunshot loud as the door was flung open slamming back against the wall of the conference room.
"I believe that would be me," Ian said causally, framed in the opening, his elegant black attire standing out against the institutional grey walls like a piece of velvet on burlap. Burgess started to reach for his weapon but stopped, hesitating when no more threat was forthcoming.
Dante's colour rose to even more alarming heights as he took in the sight. His worst nightmare come true, his eyes flicked back and forth between them like a lizard watching a grasshopper. "Freak. What? Irons' got you holding his leash for him now?"
Sara's mouth opened as she flew out of the chair, but no sound emerged as her brain tried to process the situation. She needed to find someway out of the carnage she felt sure was to come. As the violence and hostility inside Ian boiled over, shredding her new formed shields like paper in a hailstorm.
In a blur of motion, inhumanly fast, Ian was before him,, palm still raised from the cobra strike as Dante hit the wall with a resounding thud. The Captain's high colour had gone from bright red to sickly green in the space of a heart beat and he gasped for air, as the rest stood frozen in shock. Red and green, like cheap Christmas decorations in the snow, she thought irreverently as she tried to will her frozen limbs into action. She took in the whole tableaux, Deputy Commissioner Harvey and Captain Siri, looking a touch winded in the open doorway, and Ian slowly lowering his hand, his burning rage receding from her mind, leaving behind only the residual heat. She started forward but the Deputy Commissioner was there before her.
"Mr. Nottingham, please accept our apologies, I am certain Captain Dante didn't mean to be offensive...the mitigating factors.so soon after your father's death.perfectly understandable that you." he rattled on, not completely sure what he was saying, what he could say to salvage this volatile situation. On the one hand Nottingham had assaulted a police officer, a Captain no less in front of witnesses. Still the provocation had been extreme and totally unprofessional in any circumstance. But then Dante has never been known for his tact, he thought in disgust.
"I want that man arrested.NOW!" Dante said, trying to put some authority behind his still weakened and wheezing voice. Burgess started forward again but was stopped by Deputy Harvey's upraised hand.
Taking control of the situation, he turned. "Siri, get the door," he commanded, his brain finally more or less in working order. "Mr. Nottingham, please have a seat, I am sure that this can be dealt with easily." He waved Ian into a chair and Sara slid gratefully into the one next to him as the adrenaline rush faded, all strength her strength suddenly evaporating. The Deputy motioned Dante to the other side as he claimed the top seat for himself.
Sara could feel the malevolent glare from across the table, and watched as for just a moment, Ian's masque slipped, the dangerous cold-blooded killer returning threat for stare before the civilized demeanor remerged across his handsome features. Joe Siri settled in on Sara's other sides, allegiances as clearly drawn as the lines on any battle field.
"Now, Captain Dante, there are certain facts which you are not aware of; facts which make this situation very unfortunate."
"The man attacked me, he works for Irons and he and the detective."
"Mr. Nottingham had more than sufficient provocation," the Deputy replied coldly. "And considering the recent death of his father and your implied insult to both of them, I don't believe you would find a jury willing to convict him. And to be blunt, the last thing the Commissioner wants is difficulty with the new owner of Vorschlag Industries." He gave the head of Special Investigations a hard glare as the information began to filter through the blocks Dante had built of anger and embarrassment.
"You.He." He started. Joe Siri lowered his head, trying to hide his amusement. For the first time in twenty years Bruno Dante was at a loss for words. And I was here to see it, he thought. The urge to laugh out loud was almost overwhelming.
"Upon the recent death of my father, I am the new head of Vorschlag Industries," Ian confirmed, the very Irons like smile on his face giving his statement credibility.
"But that makes you."
"Yes, it does." The deputy finished. "As to any other questions you have regarding the investigation, that case is closed to the satisfaction of the Commissioner. I trust that the subject is also closed?!" He gave Dante a quelling look, holding his gaze until the other man nodded reluctantly. "Good, as Mr. Nottingham is holding off on the formal announcement until arrangements can be made, I expect that none of this will leave the room." Satisfied he looked at Ian for confirmation.
"That will be acceptable," he said. "I am sure you are men of honor." The emphasis on the final word and the quick flicker of his gaze were the only external signs of any reservations he had. Should there be a leak, no one was left with any doubt as to who he would hold responsible.
Ian rose, his participation clearly at an end, the others stood as well, as he offered Sara his arm. The deference did not go unnoticed by Dante, but he filed it away for the moment. I will get that bitch and her pet freak in time, he thought to himself as he tried to swallow his disgust and bruised ego and offered them a sour smile.
Satisfies that the situation was safely under control, Deputy Commissioner Harvey led the way out, Captain Siri by his side. At a nod from his commander, Burgess followed, praying desperately he could get far enough away from the blast radius before his boss exploded. Ian gestured for Sara to precede him with a reassuring wave and turned back to Dante. His Father's smile flowed across his lips as he took the man's hand in a crushing grip. "Remember Bruno," he said softly, "I know all about you. Should you ever try to cause difficulties for Sara again, or threaten her in any form, I will first see that everyone else knows all about you as well." He left the threat hanging in the air between them as he added in a conversational tone, "Good day, Captain." He released the older man's painfully throbbing fingers and turned to join Sara and the other two officers.
"Detective Pezzini," the Deputy said as they drew closer, "I have been speaking to Captain Siri. Considering the events of the day, why don't you take off early?" The smile was kind, but Sara still turned a suspicious look to Ian. She had never really felt comfortable about people taking advantage of their contacts, but she only had another hour on shift anyway and the confrontation with Dante and Ian's little emotional Armageddon had left her pretty well drained.
"Well," she said a little uncertainly, "I need to go back to the house to bring my partner up to speed, and get my stuff, but." She looked at Ian.
"If Captain Siri would be kind enough to give you a ride back, I will finish here and then meet you," he said easily. Joe looked at Harvey for conformation and then nodded. With a quick squeeze of her hand, Ian moved silently down the hall with the deputy, a smooth smile on his face.
When Ian tapped on Sara's office door, she was sitting at her desk, her jacket within easy reach, talking with Joe and Danny. It was obvious from the smiles and chuckles all around what they had been discussing. Sara rose quickly and grabbed a handful of files. "Just let me drop these off and I will be ready to go," she said, disappearing through the door. Ian walked over and reached for Danny's hand.
"I do not have the words to thank you," he started.
"Don't worry about it," the Asian detective told him. "Karma, I am sure it will come back around. Besides you have already done wonders for her mood," he joked. Ian grinned and reached into his pocket for a card, which he handed to Sara's partner. Joe looked on with a smile, happy to see Danny's approval. It would have been rough if the two men hated each other.
"Perhaps," Ian smiled. "But just in case." Danny looked at the card, seeing the cell phone number printed neatly on the back and nodded his understanding.
"Yeah, just in case." The two men shook hands again just as Sara reentered the room.
"Ok," she said, grabbing her jacket. They said their goodbyes and walked out, Sara slipping her small hand comfortably into Ian's as they headed for the door. Joe stood next to Danny in the office doorway watching them pass from sight.
"Think he loves her?" Joe asked.
"Yeah,"
"Think she knows that?"
"Maybe, whether she'll admit it." Danny left it there.
"Think he's told her that?" Danny thought for a moment.
"Yeah," he said certainly. They stood together in quiet reverie. Finally the detective asked his own question. "Think she loves him?"
"Yeah," Joe answered.
"Think he knows that?" Joe thought about it before answering.
"Yeah," he said finally.
"Think she's told him?" Danny questioned. The two men looked at one another thoughtfully.
"Nah," they both said together, smiling, before turning and going off their separate ways, both filled with hope.
.So there is no pat ending, no neat finale, no single final image.
FINIS