AN: Wow this really took me long! Sorry! Anyway, hope you all like this cap and haven't forgotton about the story yet ;) Chapter 12
Stella stood outside Mac's door, her heartbeat was drumming in her ears. She tried counting the beats, but all that she established was that her heart was beating way to fast, for someone who was just standing in front of a door.
She was nervous more nervous than she had ever felt in her entire life, at least that's what it felt like to her at this moment.
What if he didn't want to see her? What if he didn't want to talk to her ever again? What if? God she could drive herself mad with all the what if's.
She had to try, she had to try to make it up to him. She had to, but she couldn't silence the doubts that ran through her head. Reaching up shakily she pressed the bell.
The noise of the bell rang inside his apartment.
The second that passed seemed to her like hours. In the end she had to look at her watch to convince herself that it really was just 5 minutes since she had arrived outside his door.
"Mac, are you there?", her voice sounded weak and scared and she could barely recognize it as her own.
"I have to talk to you. Please open the door!", she had tears in her eyes now, even though she desperately fought them.
But after another 10 minutes and another plea from her, Mac still hadn't opened the door.
What was she supposed to do now? She always had a plan, always knew what to do but that wasn't her anymore. She felt completly lost.
She sat down, her back to his door, hugging her knees to her chest and finally the sadness and despair she had worked so hard at keeping at bay crashed down over her.
Wrenching sobs escaping her throat and tears streamed down her face.
She didn't care that she was in a hallway where anyone could walk by and see her sitting here like this, didn't care who saw her this way. It didn't matter anymore, nothing mattered anymore.
Mac walked back into his apartment building.
He had to talk to Stella, but what was he supposed to say. He couldn't take back what he said. So where did they go from here?
His thoughts were interrupted as he approached his doorstep and spotted Stella, huddled against his door sobbing.
His heart broke at the site and he couldn't help but wonder if it was somehow his fault.
He walked over and knelt down beside her. He wanted nothing more than to take her sadness away and protect her from any hurt.
She didn't give any indication that she knew he was there. When he wrapped his arms around her, she finally looked up.
Her green eyes were wet with still unshed tears, but what troubled him most was what he saw in her eyes. Hurt, loss, fear and disbelief as if she couldn't quiet believe that he was there.
"Mac!" Her whispered voice was so quiet if he hadn't seen her lips move he wouldn't have been sure she had said anything.
In this one word he could hear an unspoken plea, please don't leave me.
He didn't know what to say, millions of possibilities crossed his mind, but he couldn't voice any of them, so he held her close to him, while she cried.
Their fight was still fresh on his mind, but all that mattered at this moment was that he was here for Stella.
Mac carefully lifted her to his feet and unlocked the door. Stella clutched her hands in his shirt as if to prevent him from leaving her alone, while he guided them inside his apartment.
He sat down on the couch pulling her down beside him.
How did it come to this?
After a few minutes Stella sobs subsided and she looked up at him embarassed.
"I'm so sorry, for breaking down on you like this and for everything", she whispered standing and putting as much distance between them as possible.
Mac tried to mask the pain her reaction brought him.
Why was she pulling away? Did he do something wrong? Maybe she was feeling uncomftable around him, because he told her he loved her. Had he lost their friendship by saying that?
"Stella, I'm sorry for what I said to you", Mac looked at her, trying to figure out what she was thinking, but couldn't find a clue.
"No, no you were right, I was acting like a bitch. I shouldn't have pushed you away and-"
Mac interrupted Stella's rant. "I should have been there for you non the less", he stood up moving towards her.
"Still I'm sorry and I would understand if you hate me now. I just...", she looked him straight in the eye.
"I just wanted to tell you, that I'm sorry and I love you."
Stella didn't see the surprised look in Macs face, because at that momentshe turned away from him looking round his apartment.
Her gaze fell on some photographs sitting on his shelf, they were of him and Claire.
Was he really ready to move on?
Mac was surprised to say the least, he had been sure she was mad at him. He had expected almost everything that she would say, except that.
"Stella, I...", Mac was speechless.
Tell her you love her too, you idiot! The little voice in his head was screaming again.
But he didn't, instead his phone started ringing.
"Taylor", he answered his phone. "Yeah we'll be right there, you and Aiden process the scene." He closed his cell.
"Stella", he started again but before he could finish she interrupted him.
"What scene are they processing?"
"Robert Norman is dead, Danny and Aiden found someone at the scene, he's on his way over to the station. I told Danny we would interview him."
"Then let's go", Stella said making her way to the door.
She knew he wanted to say something to her, but she couldn't handle his rejection right now. That he didn't say anything was answer enough for her.
"So what does the almighty FBI want from the NYPD?", asked Flack in a mocking tone.
"Someone used your computer to look at the personal information of Robert Norman", stated the FBI agent, ignoring Flacks tone.
"That would have been me, because Robert Norman is a suspect in a murder inverstigation, so now if you would excuse me, I have work to do", said Flack turning back to the computer.
"Just one more thing, stay away from Robert Norman. Are we clear?", threatened the agent.
Up until this point Flack had been indifferent to the FBI' s interest but the implied threat in the agents voice turned his mood in a heartbeat and even he was surprised at how angry he now felt.
"No we are not clear. He is a suspect in our inverstigation, so we have the right to run background checks on him. And the fact that he seems to have no past makes me kinda suspicious", Flack had stood up as his anger grew and was now eye to eye with the FBI agent who had still to identify himself.
They glared at each other.
"Fine, then I will get back to you with a court order", The agent retorted turning around and leaving before Flack had a chance to respond.
"Yeah do that", muttered Flack "until then I can do what I want."
Stella and Mac entered the interview room. Behind the desk sat the man Danny and Aiden had caught at Normans apartment.
"This is Detective Bonasera, I'm Detective Taylor", introduced Mac as he studied the suspect.
"So what about your name?", Stella asked him.
"Mike Townsend", he glared at her, drumming his fingers on the table.
"So Mike Townsend, wanna tell me why you killed Robert Norman?", asked Stella in a sweet voice, that Mac knew never meant anything good.
"Woah, me?", he asked making a face that was supposed to look inoccent.
"Yep, you buddy", asked Stella glaring at him.
"No no no, I'm just a concerned neighbour."
"And a bad liar", Mac interrupted taking lead in the interview. "So what were you really doing in his apartment?"
"I told you I just wanted to check on him. I haven't seen him in a few days",
"So you broke into his apartment, because you're such a good person?", Mac winced at Stella's sarcastic tone .
"Tell us what happend in the apartment", Mac asked as he sat down opposite him.
"I went in there and I found him, in his kitchen", Townsend said shrugging his shoulder, his tone telling them that it hadn't bothered him at all that he had just found his neighbour dead on the floor.
"So you found him already dead and instead of calling the police, you searched his apartment for money?", asked Stella.
"I wanted to call the police-", he stated.
"Before or after you took his wallet and watch?", Stella leand in closer.
"Ok, ok", he said raising his hands in defeat, " he was dead and I figured he would want me to have something to help me over the traumatic exsperience of finding his body."
"Yeah sure", murmured Stella, making a disgusted face at then man, that nearly made Mac laugh. He decided that this wasn't the right moment though.
"So you stole from a dead guy?", asked Mac.
"Well he didn't need it anymore anyway", Townsend shrugged "and I deserved some credit for being such a good neighbour to him."
"Scumbag", cursed Stella, when they closed the door of the interview behind them.
"Yeah but he didn't kill him", Mac said.
"Norman still could have killed my sister", said Stella a sad look crossing her face.
"We have to wait on the autopsy to see that", he put his hand on her shoulder for reassurence. "We are going to get whoever killed her, I promise."
AN2: Ok as usually thanks to my betareader fruitbat00, don't know what I would do without you. And I would be really happy about reviews. Please?
They don't even have to be good...