Disclaimer—Still own zilch here. Hardly likely to change anytime soon.
4—Turn of Events
"I hate to do this to you, Lilly, but until this guy's caught I'm afraid I'm going to have to assign someone to watch you," said Stillman softly.
"But, I'm fine! Really! How can we be so sure that Victor is actually going to come after me?" demanded Lilly from her spot behind her desk.
"Maybe 'because that lunatic tried to kill me to kill you," replied Scotty from his vantage point on the other side of her desk. He was quietly nursing his right eye with a bag of ice. Lilly glanced over at him and frowned as she caught sight of his left arm in a sling. She had almost forgotten about that.
"Seriously, Lil, we can't lose ya," started Vera joining the trio. "Who else is gonna do all the cold ones back there? Sure as hell ain't gonna be me."
"Ha. Ha." Lilly furrowed her eyebrows and turned towards Jeffries in a pleading manner. "Come on, Jeffries, you'll vouch for me, won't you?"
Jeffries held up his hands and shook his heads. "Sorry, Lil, the Mayor issued this order. Something along the lines of he received a complaint from some of the neighbors after Victor high tailed it outta his house and through their yards. They all heard his threats, you're a walking target."
"Great, how the hell am I supposed to get any work done with some underpaid cop trailing me around all day?" muttered Lilly crossing her arms across her chest.
Scotty snorted. "He's gonna be a cop, Lilly, not some kid dressed in black. The Mayor's got some class, right, Boss?"
Stillman gulped and looked down at the floor. "Actually," he murmured. "The department has no money to provide a twenty-four hour shadow until Victor's caught."
Lilly grinned in victory. "Alright then. It's the thought that counts in the end though." She sat up straight in her seat and began to organize the papers that were scattered across it. Scotty took the ice bag off his eye and studied Stillman carefully.
"So the Mayor left it at that, huh?" he asked cautiously. Lilly frowned at Scotty and looked over at her boss expectantly.
"Not really. He and I went over several…different options until he found one that he liked."
Vera chuckled as Lilly's face fell. "The Mayor's a real nice guy, Lil. He killed two birds with one stone."
"What did the Mayor say, Boss?" asked Lilly darkly.
"What better way to keep an officer out of your hair, and yet protects you at the same time than someone you already work with?" said Vera good naturedly. Jeffries rolled his eyes as Stillman groaned. Both Lilly and Scotty were staring with their mouths hanging open.
"What?" Scotty shook his head and put the ice back on his eye. "The Mayor wants Vera to watch her?"
"The Mayor wants you to watch her kid," snapped Vera hitting Scotty from behind the head.
"Me?"
"Scotty?" Lilly was dubious of the idea. It was hardly unlikely that she would need Scotty to baby-sit her, especially in his current condition.
She continued talking. "Did you mention what happened to Scotty today? That he looks like a piñata now? How does the Mayor think Scotty's gonna protect me with an arm in a sling?"
"Gee, thanks for the faith, Lilly." Scotty glared over at his partner with his visible eye.
"The Mayor figures that since the two of you are partners that you'll have no trouble getting along until Victor Glenrose is put behind bars. Remember, elections are coming up. He's ordering this to entice new voters to his side for another term as Philly's mayor. Humor him, will you?" replied Stillman eyeing both officers sternly.
"You mean I have to stay with Lilly? She has those furry cat things. They're gonna get my clothes all covered in hair," protested Scotty. Lilly smacked him in the arm.
"Hey, I'm not going anywhere without my cats! Since I'm the one being 'threatened' as everyone likes to put it, then I expect to be catered to. You can start by doing laundry, cleaning the house, and cooking dishes," teased Lilly giving in for a moment. "Or, you can talk to the Mayor and tell him I don't need a shadow."
Scotty scowled at Lilly. "Are you crazy? Victor thinks you look like Laura! The guy's obsessed with his dead sister, Lilly. He wants to kill you now…don't you remember him trying to choke you to death?"
Lilly placed her fingertips on her throat where hand-shaped bruises had begun to form. "I can take care of myself. I've never needed a baby-sitter before, so why start now? That's only going to prove to Victor that I'm helpless and afraid of him—both of which I am not!"
"Forget it, Rush. Tell the Mayor I'll watch Lilly like a hawk. There won't be a moment that she's out of my sight," vowed Scotty turning to Stillman.
"Good," said Stillman brightening up. "I already told the Mayor that you would."
Vera grinned at the look on Lilly's face. "Now this is gonna make our jobs a hell of a lot more fun. You gonna walk her to the bathroom too, Valens?"
"Don't push their buttons, Vera," warned Jeffries. "Lilly might want to prove she can handle herself and turn you into Scotty's long lost twin."
"Okay, you guys. Settle down, I don't need a riot in here," said Stillman. "Now, who wants to tell me why Victor attacked in the first place?"
Lilly pursed her lips in thought before speaking. "I think Scotty's right; Victor's still obsessed with Laura. He couldn't go a sentence without mentioning her in the interview. He definitely loved her in a twisted sort of way."
"Yeah," added Scotty, "no matter who asked a question, Victor only answered to Lilly. I think when he opened the door and saw her again he freaked out. There's gotta be another motive to Laura's death besides pregnancy."
"You guys went to visit one of Victor's old girlfriends, right? What'd she say?" Lilly turned to Vera and Jeffries for an answer.
"The usual. Victor had a jealous streak. Victor beat her a few times if she didn't comply with sexual favors. Normal abuse allegations." Vera shrugged.
Jeffries paused a minute before saying anything. "Though, Ms. Angela Ford did mention something of interest. Apparently Victor had a little side business going for some of his friends and sisters."
"A side business? Like drugs?" Scotty gave a confused glance over at the older officer.
"Nope. Vera?"
"Oh sure, make me the deliver the bad news. Victor was running a brothel whenever his folks were out of town."
Stillman, Lilly, and Scotty all froze in shock. Stillman was the first to regain speech. "A brothel? For his friends? With his sisters? A brothel?"
"Shocking, I know," mused Vera taking a seat finally. "Seems this Angela had been…involved while she and Victor were dating in high school, and off and on in college. She said she made some good money working for Victor, and only got out when she got engaged to some fellow or another."
"And that's not all. She remembers hanging out with Laura and a couple of other girls that she named whenever they were waiting for 'clients' to show up. Rumor has it that Laura was the favorite of a certain guy by the name of Carl Green. Angela was sure the two were falling in love, and that Laura had been considering ending her 'career' in Victor's little moneymaker." Jeffries eyed his comrades silently as he let the news sink in.
"So you're saying that Victor may have been angry that Laura was trying to leave his business arrangements for some guy…angry enough to kill?" proposed Lilly arching an eyebrow in astonishment.
"Sounds like a soap opera my mom used to watch," muttered Scotty tossing the ice bag onto Lilly's desk and rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand.
"Have you guys found anything on this Carl Green?" questioned Stillman.
"We were on our way to his place when Lilly called for back up at the suspect's home," replied Vera. Jeffries simply nodded in agreement.
"Alright," Stillman glanced down at his watch and shook his head. "Leave it until tomorrow then. There's not much else we can do today. Scotty, I want you to go gather your things with Jeffries, and meet Vera and Lilly at her place to get situated. Starting together we need to crack this case and find our MIA."
"Great," said Lilly without emotion. "I get a new roommate. Feels like summer camp all over again."
"Just keep your cats off of my clothes," warned Scotty getting to his feet.
"Keep your clothes away from my cat," returned Lilly as she too stood up.
"Now, now, kids," started Vera stretching his arms, "am I gonna have to separate you two?"
"YOU!" The shrill female voice echoed across the homicide department, stopping everyone in their tracks. All eyes turned to the entrance where a red headed woman in a dark green business suit and heels stood pointing directly at Lilly.
"Uh-oh, something tells me she's not happy," whispered Lilly as she racked her brain for a name.
"You scandalous vixen! You fucking little slut! Who the hell gave you the right to harass my fiancée?" screamed the woman taking steps towards Lilly and the group.
"You do know who that is, right, Lil?" hissed Stillman as the petite red head made her way towards them.
"I'm assuming she's Victor's fiancée, the girl he dumped his sister for," returned Lilly as nonchalantly as possible.
"Good guess, Lilly, did you come up with that all on your own?" murmured Scotty into her ear. Vera shot the younger officer a death glare before turning to Lilly.
"Lil, that's Corrina Fay—the number one defense attorney in all of Philly. You're screwed."
A/N—I sat down and just wrote at this horrible, horrible hour after work this morning. So, who knows how this is gonna turn out. Hope you guys enjoy, and thanks for being patient!