Chap.4
"This is not good" Horatio said looking at a bloodied body of in front of the gates of Caesare Paciotti's home.
"Tell me about it, gunshot wound to the head same caliber to Rob Conway's and smashed up face" Alex said while examining the renowned designer's body.
"All eyes are going to be on us now, come to think of it he was one of my mother's close friends." Gabe said sadly as she photographed the dead body.
"You okay with this Gabe, you know this guy. Calleigh asked concerned, as she examines the bullet.
"I'm fine, a job is a job right? Besides this means we are going to get this guy and he's going to go down hard" Gabe said switching from sad to spiteful.
"I hope you're right' Alex said as she bagged the body.
After wrapping up the crime scene, Horatio approached Gabe with worry in his eyes.
"You okay with this?" as he put his hand on Gabe's shoulder giving her a worried look
"I'm fine boss don't worry." She reassured as she put her things on the back of the Hummer
"Good, cause we really need you on this one." He replied giving her a smile, relieved that this one did not affect her greatly.
"Of course, I want to be there when he gets caught." She said in a more steely tone.
Back at the Lab....
"Hey Speed, we have another one this time he's high profile. Caesare Paciotti, the same guy we met on the party." Eric said as he enter the lab where all the gathered evidence on the case are studied.
Speed gave a concerned look "So, how is Gabe? Is she okay when she found out?"
"Yeah, Cal said she was. She reacted that nothing happened?" he replied
Horatio came in giving the cartographic sketch of their killer to Eric and Speed.
"He got sloppy guys, the neighbors saw him shooting Mr. Paciotti as he entered the gates after buying magazines and newspaper from the newsstand near his home."
"Okay, I'll go look it up on the database." Eric replied and immediately went to work
Hours later Horatio found his underlings examining the real-live version of their perpetrator.
"H, his name is Andrew Cortez, first time offender" Eric greeted
"A real heartbreaker, a thespian during high school days you know typical cool kids wnet homicidal as he grew older." Speed lamented
"Mother deceased; father was a drunkard eventually child services took him to the Our Lady of Mercy orphanage "Calleigh added
Horatio noticed Gabe sitting quietly staring at Andrew Cortez's picture
"Where there he learned the teachings of Christ, ran away became a gigolo since he cannot give up on the dream of being famous and successful. He took drugs and became a man-whore, snapped when he just became a lowly waiter in catering services that serve the rich and famous which he completely abhorred. Despised them for being the only thing he wanted to be." She narrated breaking the silence.
"That's about it H, with a bonus Freudian analysis of our guy" Speed added with sarcasm
"Okay, here is what we are going to do. Gabe and Eric you to meet up with priest that raised little Andrew, background info. Calleigh and Speed check the catering service he was working for; page me about his given address. We are going to hunt this one down; we need all the manpower we can get." Horatio ordered coolly
As his underlings went about their assignments, Horatio approached Eric "Watch out for her okay, I have a bad feeling about this."
"I know H." Eric replied assuring his superior.
"It says right here that, Fr. Alba was transferred to Our Lady of Guadalupe parish up south of downtown. He transferred after Andrew ran away, get this father was charged with harassment filed by 5 different altar boys but were dropped eventually due to lack of evidentiary" support and testimonies." Gabe said to Eric as they drove of to the said parish.
"Maybe, he was the one who made him snap, if these accusations were true?" Eric replied
"I hope were not too late, my intuition tells me that he is out to get Fr. Alba" Gabe said worrying; Eric sped off to their destination.
Meanwhile Horatio, Calleigh and Speed is rummaging through Andrew's apartment finding newspaper and magazine clippings off his victims
"Man, this guy is really sick" Speed exclaimed
"Tell me about it." Calleigh replied as she shuddered at the sight of the apartment
"He's that twisted isn't he?" Horatio said coolly as he analyzed the room, then his cell phone rang.
"Eric talk to me" he answered
"We are at the Our Lady of Guadalupe parish; Gabe is talking to Fr. Alba right now she says that our guy might be coming for the priest with a history of misconduct."
Then a gunshot pierced through the priest's office where Eric and Gabe were followed by
"FR. ALBA punishment is at hand. I have come to punish you!!!"
Horatio's nightmare has come to reality "Eric, don't do anything brash we'll be there" he immediately hung up the phone and called for back up.
"Guys, he's at the Our Lady of Guadalupe" he said sternly and drove off like a madman with Cal and Speed immediately followed him.
Eric and Gabe pulled out their handguns and motioned Fr. Alba to reason out with Andrew
"Andrew you're confused, ask forgiveness and He shall forgive you." Fr. Alba talked nervously
"Tell me has He forgiven you?" Andrew replied crying
Fr. Alba was ashamed and stunned he cannot speak anymore, Andrew shot Fr. Alba in the heart. Eric and Gabe holstered their guns to negotiate with him
"Andrew, we're here to help. Drop the gun and we'll help you" Gabe said with her hands up as Eric checked the body of Fr. Alba
"You, don't understand he betrayed me, he used me every night." Andrew crying pointing the gun at her
"I know, I understand that is why we need to get you help. Drop the gun and we will forget about this Eric there will call for help, once you calmed down and drop the gun" she reasoned out
Then he got agitated as he saw Eric talking to 911 and heard the sirens surrounding the church. He pulled the trigger but Gabe tackled him, the bullet just scraped Eric's shoulder.
She knocked out the gun from Andrew's hand, he got angry and attacked her sending her gun into the air, and she punched him in the face sending him in on the floor. He tackled her sending them crashing through the stained glass window of the church. Eric ran out, bleeding she saw Gabe knocked out cold Andrew struggling to his feet, Eric attacked him punching him, they rolled on the grass. Cops can get a clear shot of Andrew then Horatio came immediately jumping out of the Hummer.
Andrew was too strong for a wounded Eric he eventually won knocking him unconscious. He smiled dementedly and turned his eyes on Gabe who was struggling to her feet when Andrew got hold of her hair.
Horatio was driven to madness "Andrew let her go or I'll never let you out of this alive "he shouted as he pointed his gun at him
Andrew did not listen instead he took a piece of broken glass and threatened to slit Gabe's neck with it as he faced Horatio and the Miami Dade police. Infuriating Horatio even more, Andrew pierced the jagged glass to Gabe's neck bleeding her. She was too dizzy from the fall out of the window, but felt the cold glass bleeding her the night's air giving her chills as Andrew's hold of her grew tighter.
"I have to fight back." Gabe chanted on her head until she completely had shaken off the dizzy spell.
She gave him a head butt so strong that it broke Andrew's nose letting go of her. She administered one of her aikido maneuvers sending him flying into the air breaking his arm knocking him unconscious.
She touched her bleeding and aching neck, Horatio approached her immediately "Medic here" he barked as he got hold of bleeding and bruised Gabe who fainted in his arms
To be continued ……..
Note: chap.5 will be the ending, how come I feel that it didn't turn out as I imagined oh well, tell me what you think guys!!!