A/N: sorry for the long break, I was busy...but now we're back in business!

A/N #2: This takes place...just a few days after chapter 21. In the morgue for the most part...so yeah, I don't own them, I'm just using them for your enjoyment!

**********

Chapter 22

**********

~~Jordan~~ Everyone has been a bit...off lately. Well...except Garret, but hell, I have no intentions of finding out why. Speaking of Garret...where is he? Last time I checked he was in autopsy with Bug, but now Bug's in his office...oh well, no worries about it.

"Jordan, I have those lab results for the Peterson case." Peter walked into my office holding a manilla folder in his hands. "But, they're pretty inconclusive."

"So you were looking at my files?"

"I ran them...and I picked the papers out of the printer so yes, I looked at them."

I smiled at him. "Alright. You're forgiven. But--you have to be punished."

"What do you want? And no, I don't do dishes, laundry, or give massages."

"You, good sir, have to go with me to lunch." I playfully jabbed a finger at him.

"Jordan, I'd love to, but...I'm busy at lunch." He looked out into the hallway.

"With?" I followed his gaze, stopping at the lanky form of our resident Englishman. "Nigel?"

"He wants to talk about something with me. I have no clue...but he asked me to stay here at lunch and not go out."

"Well then...got any cash?"

"Yeah, here." He quickly forked over twenty bucks, smiling. "Treat yourself."

Snatching the money off my desk, I grabbed my keys and my purse, heading for the door. "Will do! You sure you don't want anything?"

"Positive."

"Alright then, see you later." I exited my office with a flick of my hair, pretending to be a world renowned model, and sauntered over to Garret's doorway.

"Knock-knock, delivery for a Dr. Macy." I grinned at him.

"Yes Jordan?" He leaned back in his chair, obviously tired of sitting and signing the latest stack of request forms piled on his desk.

"You want to come to lunch with me? Peter's treat." I waved the twenty in the air. "He lost."

Standing and pulling on his jacket, he shook his head. "I'm afraid to know what he lost."

"Awww come on Garret, I'm not as dirty minded as you think...besides you're the one sleeping with..."

"None of your business Jordan...you're stepping on some toes with that one."

We walked down the hall and waited for the elevator to arrive.

"You think that's stopped me before?" I winked at him.

As we got onto the elevator, he shook his head. "I can't ever stop you. But...how about Chinese?"

~~Peter~~ As soon as Jordan and Dr. Macy left, Nigel nearly pounced on me, practically dragging me to the staircase and up to the roof. I was pretty weirded out at first...I mean, he'd never been acting so weird, at least to me before. When we got to the roof, he checked to make sure no one else was up there--only then did he stop and breathe.

"What's all this about Nigel?" I glared at him.

"I need you to do me a favor, and nobody else can know about it."

"Why?"

"Because...it's complicated." He looked out at the midday Boston skyline.

"Well, dragging me up here to talk about sure seems like you were going to spill it. So go."

"I need you to cover for me."

I raised an eyebrow "Cover you? Like for a shift? That's not that secretive..."

"No. I'm going to go do something that I technically shouldn't be doing. You're going to know about it. And you're going to keep your mouth shut."

"So you can order me around now?" I had to admit, I was a little ticked at the way I was being treated.

"I'm not ordering you Winslow. I'm asking you. And I'll probably end up begging you in a few minutes."

After a few minutes of brief, awkward silence, he spoke again.

"I'm sorry mate...I just really need you to help me with this. You're the only one who I can trust not to tell Jordan or Garret.

"Nigel...what are you planning on doing?"

"Well...you remember that case I was working on right?"

I nodded. "The one with that kid?"

He nodded as he paced on the rooftop, kicking tiny pebbles with his feet. "Yeah, that one."

I nodded, attempting to get him to elaborate -just- a little bit more. I mean, hell, if I was going to risk my skin to save his ass, I wanted details. Just like any normal, sane person would want.

"I know where his dad is."

"That's great! Call the cops and bust in on him! You can finally get that case over with." I smiled at him, but I was a little worried when he didn't share the sentiment. "Nigel?"

"I want to catch him myself."

I stood and watched him pace, noticing the obvious change in his body language, his posture stiffening, his fists balled tightly. This was bad. This was REAL bad. If Nigel went out and tried to go vigilante on this bastard...Garret would have his head, and so would every cop within a ten mile radius. I nodded. "So what do you mean by 'catch him'?"

"I mean let that damn son of a bitch feel what it's like to be beat on...what its like to realize you messed with the wrong kid."

"That's what I was afraid of." I shook my head. "Nigel, you know you can't do that. You'll be in trouble from the moment you touch him. The cops will be on your ass...nevermind Garret and Renee. She'll dig into you faster than a cat grabs it's mouse."

"I know I shouldn't do it. But I can do whatever I damn well please. I'm going to do it, with or without your help. But your help will only make it easier."

I sighed. "Knowing you are doing this is going to kill me. If you were to...kill the guy I could be convicted of...reckless endangerment...conspiring to commit...or even murder. You want me to risk my job and pretty much my reputation to let you go kick some guy's ass?"

"Pretty much." He shrugged his shoulders.

"You have got to be kidding me! You're willing to lose your job, get thrown in prison...even get deported back to England just for this stupid kid?! You're crazy!"

Nigel walked over to me and stood up in my face. His eyes were red, his face tense. He probably would have hit me had I even breathed on him. "You take that back."

I glared up at him, fire in my eyes as well. Sure, he was a few inches taller than me, but I was just as mad. Here Nigel was, threatening me to keep my mouth shut...this was crap. Puffing myself up to nearly match his height, I shook my head. "No."

"Fine then. Don't help me. But when Garret gets chewing on your ass about you and your little drug habits...don't come crying to me for help."

I stood in shock. He had NOT just said that. With a quick twitch of my head, I shook his words out of my mind. I nearly growled my reply. "I don't do that anymore..."

"Still. Don't come crying to me." With that said, he turned and walked out, re-entering the building and heading back down to the morgue.

I quickly followed suit, yelling at him as he descended the staircase. "You're a stupid fool Nigel! You're gonna go get yourself hurt and it is ALL your fault for being an ass!"

"Just because I have morals and I'm not a little wanker like you, doesn't mean you have to be jealous!" He yelled back.

"I'm not jealous you prick! And YOU have MORALS?! You want to go beat the crap out of some loser and you think you have morals!"

Nigel quickly slammed the door to the ninth floor, where the morgue was, behind him. I was only a flight of stairs behind, but he was gone, and into a elevator by the time I got into the the main section of hallway. I quickly pulled my cell phone out and punched in Dr. Macy's number. I had to get this stopped, before someone else got hurt.

I impatiently listened as the phone rang, and I almost threw it across the room when it took him several rings to answer.

"This is Macy."

"Garret, it's Peter."

"What do you need? The whole morgue hasn't fallen into hell in the hour I've been at lunch, has it?"

I didn't answer him.

"Peter? What's wrong?"

"Nigel's in trouble."

TBC...

**thanks for reading!**