Disclaimer:

I do not own any of the Crossing Jordan Characters and this is meant only as personal entertainment.

PART THREE

By the time Woody was finished with his questioning, both men were totally exhausted. Nigel had found himself, more than once, screaming at the detective out of frustration. Woody kept his cool and focused on the answers he needed. He knew that much of Nigel's lashing out was not so much aimed at him, as it was aggravation at not being able to do anything for the woman he had cared for.

"Woody." Nigel said softly from the sofa. "You have to keep me informed. I have to find out."

"I'll do what I can Nigel." Woody sighed deeply. "I can't make you any promises but I will keep you as informed as I can."

"Thank you." Nigel leaned his had back and closed his eyes as Woody left. For a long time he remained alone, too tired to even think. His mind slowly was beginning to shut down, most likely to keep him from going insane. He felt tears slowly fall from his eyes, rolling down his cheeks as Christina's face appeared behind his closed eyelids. Disbelief and anger raged through his entire being as time ticked away slowly.

"Nigel." He opened his eyes suddenly as he finally heard his name. Somehow Macy had entered the room and sat next to him. Nigel wasn't sure how long Macy had been trying to get his attention but could see the concern in his employer's eyes. "Nigel?"

"What is it Dr. M." He sat straighter and wiped his face with the back of his hand. "What did you find out about Christina?"

"Nigel I…" Macy started, looking away suddenly. "Maybe you should…"

"Maybe you should just answer my question." Nigel snapped. The two men stared at each other for a silent moment as Nigel realized Macy was only worried about him. "Dr. Macy, please, I'm sorry." He sighed deeply. "I know you're only trying to…"

"She's a mess Nigel." Macy's face fell as he looked away from his friend.

"How did she die? What killed her?" Nigel urged, knowing he really didn't want to know, but needed to know.

"Her neck was broken."

"So it was fast." Nigel sighed deeply in relief. "Good."

"Nigel, I could let it go at that, but I know you. You'll end up reading the report, so there's no reason to lie." Macy took a deep breath, readying himself to deliver the rest. "Her death was fast, but she suffered a long time before dying."

"What do you mean?" Relief suddenly was replaced with dread. "What are you talking about?"

"There's no easy way to say it." He watched Nigel stiffen. "All indications point to her being tortured for hours before she was killed."

"Tortured?" Nigel's eyes narrowed as he tried to take in the information. "Oh my God." Fresh tears began to form in his eyes. "How…" Before he could finish his thought, a grief filled scream seemed to fill the whole floor. "Lily!"

"What?" Macy asked as Nigel suddenly stood and bolted out the door. "Nigel wait…" Seeing Nigel was not going to stop, he followed the tall man into the crypt where Bug stood, holding Lily tightly, trying to keep her from falling to the floor as she cried hysterically. "Get her into the conference room now!" He watched as Bug gently lead the sobbing woman out of the room, then looked at Nigel for an explanation.

"It was Lily that introduced us." He growled to himself. "How could I be so self absorbed that I didn't think about Lily."

"Don't be so hard on yourself." Macy felt he was loosing what little bit of control he might have had in this situation. "You're in a state of shock Nigel. You can't blame yourself."

"Who else can I blame Dr. Macy?" Nigel sounded resigned. "Excuse me, I need to check on Lily." In a daze he passed Macy and headed for the conference room.