Title: And the Thunder Rolls
By: duffshel
Author's Note: I tried to update this all damn weekend! Just was able to do it now. Wanted this up Sat. afternoon, but NO! Arggg...Never had so much trouble before. Going to be wrapping this up soon. Few more things to do with it, but this was never meant to be a long one. Besides, I have to start working on that sequel. So, hope no one is too disappointed. This is going over better than I could have hoped for, but everything must come to an end. Thanks as always to everyone. And let me know what ya think. Always makes my day to hear from readers. See everyone soon!
#13: Cause tonight will be the last time…
Warrick's eyes immediately sought out his friend. It appeared that Nick wasn't any worse, but Andy didn't look good at all. He started to take a step forward for their stopped position, but a cluck of a tongue stopped him.
"Hey, hey now. No more walking," Kevin smirked as he walked to stand next to the taller man, "Your precious friends are just fine. Not dead, yet."
"Then step aside, kid."
Derek sighed and marched over to the new group to the room, "Just shut up. Get them all together. It'll be easier to hold this together."
"Oh, so now you're in charge here? Since when, dude?"
"You two shut up," Natalie barked out, waving her gun in the air, "Just shut up. God. What is with boys! I swear."
"Oh yeah, like chicks are all that much better. Shit, we'd never have gotten this far on just the two of you."
There was a jab of a barrel in Greg's back. It forced him to walk forward. But his own anxiety had him moving quickly, dropping to his knees next to Nick. He ignored the bickering from the four teenagers in the room.
"How is he?"
Nick could barely hear the words over the louder ones being tossed around elsewhere. He closed his eyes, needing a moment to collect himself. Something was being torn open inside of him, but he wasn't man enough to let it open. It would be kept in, bottled, and shaken at a later date.
A gasp for air, a pull for a voice, "I'll be fine. Just need a drink."
"Sure Andy. I'll buy the first round," Warrick tried to keep his voice calm as he moved close enough to see what had happened to the cop.
Brass was the only one not sharing jabs and comments with the others. He didn't want to take his eyes of the kids for any amount of time. They were still arguing with each other. There were plenty of questions, and now he wanted a hell of a lot of answers. He would let the other men chat and catch their breath a little. His ears were forward.
"So, you couldn't kill them all. What the hell. We should'a went in a different direction."
"Oh yeah, like this was planned. Shit, we went with the wind here."
"And look where it got us. A bunch of damn cops."
"Hey, you didn't watch the weather either. How the hell?"
"Someone should have checked on this."
"Yeah, I can just see it. Gun, check. Knife, check. Doppler equipment, oops. Fuck off, man."
"So now what?"
"We have to kill them. All of them. Anymore bullets?"
"Yeah…but they're cops."
"And they know everything."
"Not everything, but enough. Shit, they have our damn prints."
"Nah, destroyed in the storm. Just names and images of our faces. We could do it."
"You first."
These were rushed and whispered words, but the detective picked up on every one of them. None of the kids had what seemed to be a solid plan anymore. Every one of them was trying to gain the upper hand on the others. Something might be able to make them crack. Brass was willing to try.
!#$&()!#$&()!#$&()+
Andrew was swimming in a sea of blues, reds, and yellows. It all hurt his eyes and he had to squint against the colors. The waves lifted him, moving him around as if he was nothing more than a feather. It was liberating. He could feel his entire being yearn for it.
Something was up with his back though. With every move he tried to make, there was a pull, a stretch. There really wasn't any way to describe it. He had never felt anything like it. But when he tried to reach his hands back to touch the area, the limbs would be suddenly sucked under the water. It was safer not to try.
Voices were on the wind, but he couldn't figure out who would be in the middle of nowhere with him. It was illogical when there wasn't a single piece of land or a boat. No, he was completely alone. The voices weren't human. Andrew leaned his head back, only birds would be here.
It was warm and cold all at the same time. Parts of his body felt like it was on fire, others as if he were put on ice. The more he fought against everything, anything, the more the feeling intensified. Unpleasant and unexpected. All he could remember of swimming before was calm and weightlessness.
Here, there were too many things happening. He felt relaxed, but yet in so much pain. The colors became brighter, pounding through his skull. Something was poking into his hip. With a quick stroke, he pushed his body into another direction.
Immediately he was taken into a new swell, thrown around like a rag doll. Pain radiated through his body, starting in his back. His mouth opened in a scream, no sound allowed past his lips. It was pulled right out of existence, into nothingness.
But then things calmed down once again. Heat and freeze were back. It was all he could wrap his mind around anymore. And those voices, they were back.
Faces began to pop up in different areas of the purple sky. He knew those people. They were his friends. It was calming to see people he cared so much about around him in a time like this. The water lapped at his shoulders and neck almost like a lover's caress. Andrew leaned his head back a little more.
Suddenly different faces showed up. These were not friendly. They sneered, laughed, tortured. He seized up, tensing at the sudden images. Young faces, blocked out at times from flying bricks, trees. It was confusing.
Once again, he tried to scream out his pain, his confusion. Something touched him, rested on his arm. It wasn't wet or fluid. Solid and strong. Flesh. Blackness hit him full force. He lost to the darkness.
!#$&()!#$&()!#$&()+
"Come on Andy, stay with us," Nick leaned forward to chant at the man.
He could feel the body tremble underneath his hands. Andrew's mouth moved, but no words came out. The cop was fighting the pain, lost in a world that could only make sense to another person in the same amount of pain.
Nick had been there once upon a time.
He shook his head and took his thoughts from those. This was not a time to get lost in the past, in old pains. Nick had to be here for his friends. There would be plenty of time to kick his own ass later. He placed a strong grip on Andrew's arm so the man would know he wasn't alone. Nick could feel the body relax into unconsciousness.
Greg's wide eyes jumped to his as the younger man watched Andrew's head roll completely. The lean body was tense. The former lab rat was in complete survival mode, ready to jump up and flee in a moment's notice.
"He okay?" Warrick asked as if afraid to curse the man into death.
"Just passed out. Probably better. Less pain."
"But he's gonna live," Greg shifted his weight, "Right?"
Both the older CSI's exchanged a look with each other. They knew what might happen, would most likely could happen. Warrick had been watching the kids as well this entire time. Granted he hadn't listened as well as Brass currently was, but he had a gist of what was going on. These kids wanted them all dead now.
Neither managed a word before the kids decided they had enough time to reconnect. Derek marched over, steps loud. The gun in his hand was forward, pointing straight at Nick's head. In fact, a gun was trained on each of the four.
"Al'ight. Leave the cop on the floor. Everyone in chairs, hands on your knees. And no tricks."
He sounded like he had read a movie script. Brass snorted under his breath at the command the kid tried to pull off. No one talked like that. In events like this, professionals wouldn't have let them live past five minutes ago. This mess had thrown the kids for a loop.
"Move!"
The order was bellowed, making Nick's ear ring slightly. With as much care as he could managed, he arranged Andrew on the floor in order not to pull at the wounds on his back too much. He listened to the sound of scrapping chairs and realized one had been placed closer to him. By looking at the shoes, he had Warrick to thank for that.
He frowned to himself at that. The other man was always willing to care for him, help him out. Nick just pushed him too far away. After thinking long and hard over their fight, he knew he had completely stupid and out of line. It was just a blind date. Not everyone out there was crazy.
A tiny voice cracked up at that thought and he was suddenly assaulted by high pitch laughter. He could almost see the tiny person rolling around on the ground, clutching at their stomach as the pain from the diaphragm ran through the tiny body. Nick shook his head trying to dislodge the intruder, but knew from experience, that voice was there to stay. It was part of him now. Sadly, it was almost a comfort on some days. But he could still make up with Warrick. No need for this pettiness between them.
Thought right now, he had to concentrate more on getting up off the floor and into the chair. He shifted his weight and groaned as every muscle seemed to pull in a different direction. The cut felt wet and hot again. Adhesive from the tape pulled at the tiny hairs on his stomach. His ribs shifted and tightened against tired lungs. A dark. lean hand appeared in his line of vision.
"Here. Let me help," Warrick kept his voice soft, clear of all emotions. He just wanted to help his pained friend out. From the fact that Nick's face dropped all color in the matter of milliseconds, he knew there was no way in hell the other man was getting himself into that chair, especially not from the great distance the floor offered. Nick had forgotten all about his own pain in the adrenaline rush of everything. It was clear as day to Warrick.
Nick wanted to push the hand away, keep going on his own. He bit the inside of his cheek at these thoughts. The teeth pushed in hard enough to create a new rush of pain into his already overloaded system. But it also forced him to reach up for the extra help. It was a beginning to offering an apology for being such an ass.
As he was gently pulled to his feet, Nick could see Amber moving closer from the corner of his vision. He wanted to yell at her, tell her to go away. But then he saw the gun and remembered he didn't have his. Chills ran through his entire being, centered at the body hole in his hip. He had these before, when she was leaving through that hole. Women are always told to trust their gut feelings. Well, guys should learn to trust their chills. Nick shook his head again, bangs flapping against his forehead.
The chair was closer than he had thought. All he had to do was shift a little to the right and there it was. In another time he would chide Warrick for not thinking he could move even a couple of feet. But his body was glad for the back support once his weight was settled. He smiled his thanks to his partner.
Warrick nodded and sat in the chair he had moved close to Nick's. He placed his hands palms down on his knees and looked at the other two men. It was easier to ignore the sweat collecting on the thick skin of his fingers and palms with them pressed into his pants.
In almost a straight row, Greg was the closest to Warrick, just to his right. He could see the shakes and jerks as Greg fought his hardest to keep his cool. The taller CSI only hoped that it was to fool the kids, not him or Nick. Greg didn't have to prove anything to either of them.
Brass was about a foot away from Greg, turned in a little bit. His face was set in hard lines, shifting only slightly as his eyes studied everything going on around them. And there was plenty of that to do.
The kids seemed at ease more now that they had the adults in positions where they could watch them better. Each one picked out someone to guard it seemed. While most of the guns were held casually, Amber held hers true. Nick was getting really sick of looking down the barrel. Well, it was better than that toothy grin.
Being the closest to the two injured men now, she moved a little to peer down at them. It seemed that somewhere along this little trip, the music director gave up. His chest was still, skin a nice shade of gray. No threat left with that one. One plus in the scheme of things.
But the cop was still breathing, moving every now and then. Soft gasps and groans escaped his lips. Amber nudged him with her foot, but the only movement was from the force of her kick. His body fell back into position. Eyes didn't even flutter.
"Hey, leave him alone!"
Green eyes rolled over to meet angry brown ones. Nick was startled to see how alike they were to Warrick's. The shades were similar, but then he saw the differences. Never before and never in the future would he see such insanity or lust in Warrick's eyes. That chill was on the move, tiny spiders weaving their web across his skin. Coats of white strands kept him locked in this world.
"Now, you're in no position to say a thing, sugar. Besides, not a point to trying to protect him any longer."
Warrick growled, his fingers grabbing up bits of pant cloth as they tightened into fists, "Oh yeah. And why's that?"
"Cause you're going to die," Natalie huffed, "Why can't you fools get that through your thick skulls? I mean, come on!"
"Well, since you're so willing to kill us, you can answered a couple of questions then for me. Why Kayla? What was the point of that?"
The way the four suddenly looked at Brass, as if the man had spouted green hair and tentacles, would have been hilarious in another time, another place. Now all Greg wanted to do was kick the older man in the shin to attempt to get Brass to shut up and stop pissing the kids off. But from the tight lines in that face, Greg knew it would be pointless in the moment and a signature on his death certificate.
"What difference does it make?" Natalie's voice rose an octave. "She's dead. Nothing more too it. Your dead doctor will take her apart and figure it all out anyways. I watch T.V. I've seen Law and Order, thank you very much."
Brass let out a sly grin, "Just curious. Personally, I've never seen that show and don't know what our dead doctor will be able to tell us. Dead people can only talk so much. You guys are so much better with words. Could clear it all up for us right here and now."
Kevin started to shake his head. The boy was getting agitated by something. What it was, Warrick couldn't figure out. He glanced at Nick, question marks all over his face, but his friend only answered with slanted, wide eyes. The boy started to open his mouth, trying to get words out.
"Wha…what would we have…what do you want to know?"
"Simply how the four of you came together and why you killed Kayla. Doesn't seem that big of a deal to be in the same band as someone. Not a good reason to shot them from behind."
Their feet shuffled, guns moved a little. Amber kept strong on hers as always. It only moved from Nick's right eye to his left, not up or down. That girl was going to shot his in the face no matter what happened it appeared.
It was Derek that jumped forward, like he had when Brass and Greg had first questioned the kids back those so many moments ago, right in this room. "Why is it that kids can never seem to plan anything, follow through on anything in the minds and eyes of adults? It was worked through and we had everything down. But then the weather and you fucked it all up."
"Still doesn't explain why a girl died today?" Nick kept his voice soft, trying not to startle anyone by loud noises.
Amber's face went red and she darted out for one of the flashlights laying on the floor, "She was a bitch! I hated her. She stole my boyfriend!"
The light flared up underneath her face. It appeared to Nick that she wanted to turn this into some haunting story. Her youth was seeping in and taking everything away she was trying to pull. These were just kids. Nothing was going to take that away. They were kids that killed another kid.
"All this for a boyfriend?" Warrick was dumbfounded. He had seen plenty of shit go down over a date, but these kids were too young to even think seriously about something like that.
It was Nick that got slammed across the cheek by the butt of a gun. Amber screamed as she swung. Nick groaned as his head was snapped on his spine. The dead percussion from the other room had now taken up residence inside his head. Copper trickled in to tease his tongue.
"Just was a boyfriend! You don't get it! No one does! No one ever will."
The outburst from Amber seemed to scare the others a little, though not nearly as much as it did the adults in the room. Derek and Kevin shifted closer together, Natalie moved a step backwards. The red headed girl was panting heavily, shoulders heaving. Now the gun was pointed at Nick's chest.
Brass smoothed his hands out on his thighs, "Why the four of you?"
Coughing erupted from Kevin, though it was fake to his own ears as everyone else's, "I was surfing the web one day, typing in random searches. Don't even remember what I put down, but a shit load of sights came up. Hers," he tossed his head at Amber, "came up, third from the top. She had detailed what she wanted and wanted help."
"So you knew she wanted to kill someone and you helped?" Greg almost jumped out of his chair at the admission. There was a fire going on underneath his chair and the flames were licking the back of his knees now. He wanted out. But he really wanted to hear more.
"Yeah, ya know. Gets boring around here."
It went silent for a few moments. Boredom was again blamed for the troubles raining down on the world. With all the crap kids had now a days, Brass just couldn't understand how in the hell they could be bored. He had much less when he was their age and did just fine.
"You two?"
Derek shrugged, "I'm her cousin. She asked for shooting help. I knew the girl. Seemed interesting enough."
"It was my idea for the cards," Natalie spoke up, "None of us could decide who would do it. I got my card deck and we chose that way. Highest card planted the dummy gun."
All four heads shot up, though Nick regretted it immediately. The gun they had found in the bathroom was a plant. It seemed these kids were watching more than law shows on television. They had gotten into some scary material somewhere.
"It was to throw the cops off. We get away. Water kills the prints, any clues. No one can point at us. We just happened to be in the room. Killer ran out and away." Natalie's voice was calm and even. It seemed that she had practiced this speech prior to this day. Probably in the bathroom mirror with a brush, like accepting an Oscar.
"Why didn't any residue show up? On any of you?" Greg asked.
Amber shook her head, "I changed my jacket. Wore my gloves. Not that hard to think of. Plenty of websites out there about what happens as you shot a gun. And what to watch out for."
Their case was officially a joke. Nick could feel the laughter and sneers they would get when they got back to the lab. 'Well, if they ever did anyways.' Here they had been beaten by a group of kids with knowledge from the web and crime shows. And, it worked.
"Alright. We talked enough. Now, since the weather had to go and mess things up, we've got a problem left in the form of you," Amber smirked as she leveled her gun at Nick's nose. "Never thought to plan for being trapped inside with tornadoes rushing around outside. I will not be arrested for taking out the trash."
She looked over her shoulder and nodded at someone. From his angle, Warrick couldn't tell with whom she was communicating with. The flashlights were all scooped up into the young hands. Extra ones were turned off. It was dim and deafening in that room.
"Alright. Let's do this. Make it quick. We have to get the hell out of here."
Derek frowned at Natalie, "And how the hell are we gonna do that? We can't fit through that damn hole."
"Just shut up," Amber snapped again, "We'll worry about that in a moment."
The guns were all aimed, ready to fire. Greg could feel the sweat running down his spine, pooling at the waistband of his pants. His skin itched, his breath hitched. Derek only could smile at his terror. He missed what Greg could see. That flash of movement no one was paying any attention to. His heart leapt with hope at this discovery. He had to bit his lower lip from shouting out that name.
Amber went down suddenly, unexpectedly. Flashlight went out, hit the floor.. Shouts echoed through the room, guns fired repeatedly. Beams of light danced around, following rains of death. Bullets flew throughout the room with no clear direction anymore. Chairs skidded, knees thudded. Plastic clattered. Heavy breathing filled the room. Pain filled moans sounded as hands reached for bloody wounds. Some were deep, others weren't. Three were missing all together.
A single beam was all the remained in the room. It pointed towards the door. Brass' sturdy hand groped for it, managing to hook it with one finger. His body hurt from his drop to the floor, but there weren't any bullet holes that he could feel in his person.
He lifted the light and moved it around back towards where he knew everyone had been. It froze in place as his brain accepted what he was seeing. There had been a lot of rounds popped off, but from what he was witness to, there might as well have been a machine gun in the room. Bile rose in his throat, eyes welled up with dampness. He pushed it down and fought to keep a clear head.
People were lying in pools of blood. He couldn't see any movement. Brass was the only one sitting up. Someone was dead, dying. He just didn't want to look to see who. It had happened so quick.
TBC…