It was late, and he was sleeping again. This case had taken more out of him than she had ever imagined. His injuries had wiped out an already utterly exhausted body. She walked into the bedroom, setting the bottle of medicine and a fresh glass of water on his bedside table. She brought the other glass, which was almost empty, into the kitchen.

Back in the bedroom, she looked out the window. A heavy wind was blowing, whipping tree limbs into a frenzy. Green leaves were torn from their branches and blown down the street or carried up toward Heaven. A storm was in the air, and it looked like it was going to be an intense one…not unlike the storm that raged in her partner's soul, thanks to Rodney Morrison. A flash of lightning lit up the street, followed eventually by the low rumble of thunder. It wasn't close right now…but it was coming.

Turning from the window, she looked at her sleeping partner. Unlike the night before, when his sleep had been riddled with nightmares, he seemed to be sleeping peacefully. She walked over to his dresser and found his shirt drawer. Pulling out a dark blue t-shirt, she went into the bathroom and changed into it. Returning to the bedroom, she climbed into the bed beside him. It didn't take her long to drift off.

She opened her eyes suddenly, not sure what had woken her. Slowly, she became aware of her surroundings. The room was dark and quiet, until a flash of lightning brightened it for an instant. A few moments passed before thunder rumbled. She relaxed. The storm would soon be raging overhead. Beside her, he groaned and changed his position, rolling toward her and draping his arm across her waist. She shifted her body against his, and, in his sleep, he tightened his arm around her, pulling her even closer. She lightly kissed his cheek, sliding her lips across unshaven stubble to his. More lightning and thunder intruded into the night as the storm encroached upon the city. He began to respond to her. His hand slid up along her back until he buried his fingers in her hair. The night before, pain and anguish had dictated his actions, and he'd been rough and intense. Tonight, there was none of that. Tonight, there was only tenderness…and love.

Settled in his arms, she listened to the storm rage across the city outside. The lightning was almost constant; the crashing thunder was exploding overhead. His hand gently stroked her skin. Pressing his forehead against her temple, he whispered into her ear, "That was how it should have been, how I meant for it to happen to begin with. Last night…"

She laid her fingers across his lips, silencing him. "You needed it to be the way it was last night. And I let you, because I understood that. It's over and it's done with, and that's how tonight could be the way it was." She kissed him again. "I love you."

He nodded, "I know. And I love you…"

She silenced him again with a soft kiss. He didn't say any more. Enjoying the feel of her in his arms, he tightened his arms around her and before long he was sleeping again. It didn't take long for her to drift off as well.

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The sound of her phone ringing pulled her from her sleep and his arms. She walked to the dresser and picked up the phone. "Eames."

"Where's your partner, Alex?" It was Deakins and she did not like the sound of his voice.

She looked at the bed. "He's sleeping. Why?"

She slipped from the room as he said, "I do not want him to find out about this right now. Meet me at St. Cecelia's. They found two more bodies."

"What? And you don't want me to tell him? Captain…"

"I'm serious about this, Eames. He's off duty. Period. Now get down to the church."

She snapped the phone shut and looked toward the bedroom door. "Fuck!"

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She pulled up to St. Cecelia's and slammed the door of the car. She was directed into the rectory. Walking into Father Sean's office, she stopped and froze. Deakins looked up at her. "Do you understand now, Alex?" he said softly.

"Oh, God…"

Father Sean lay on the floor behind his desk, a bullet in his chest. In front of the desk was a woman, bullet in her head, gun in her hand. Eames looked around the room, speechless. Deakins appeared at her side. She looked at him. "What happened?"

"The secretary found them this morning when she came in. She's been taken to the hospital. The woman is Sally Mason, widow of our third victim." He handed her a piece of paper. "We found this."

Eames read the note. 'Father Sean, I can never forgive you for harboring the monster who killed my Herb. I cannot live without him, and neither will you.'

Deakins said quietly, "I don't suppose there's any way we can keep him from finding out about this at all, is there?"

"This is Goren we're talking about, Captain. Be real."

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

"Let's get busy so I can get the hell out of here and be back before he wakes up."

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It took longer than she expected to process the scene. She was leaning over Father Sean's body when the room suddenly fell dead silent. She looked up and all the color drained from her face.

Standing in the doorway to the office, his face dark and stormy, was her partner.