After the initial shockwave going through the building, it was only the periodic beeping of the fire alarm that disrupted the eerie silence that had befallen the 4th floor.
Growing increasingly disheartened when his search for Mike yielded no successes, Steve headed for the last supply closet, double checking the small room for the sake of due diligence, before he planned to head downstairs.
For a while, the smoke had gotten thicker, unbearably irritating to his lungs so he'd covered his mouth and nose with a tissue, hoping to keep the toxins out until he reached safer ground. Then, once the explosion shook the building, the black cloud began to dissipate slowly, making him wonder if the fire causing it had been extinguished already.
With squinted eyes he headed for the last closet, ignoring the tears running down his cheeks as much as the voice deep inside telling him that Mike was probably downstairs already, going nuts looking for him.
But the miniscule chance that something had gone wrong during the evacuation ate away at his nerves relentlessly, forcing him to go the extra mile to ensure the Lieutenant was safe.
The moment he opened the narrow door next to the Bunko Bullpen, Steve was greeted with stacks of paper that reached the ceiling, making it impossible for any sized human being to fit in there.
With a sigh of relief that morphed into a painful cough, Steve retreated a few steps, then turned around to head toward the staircase.
Even though the smoke coming from the elevators had decreased somewhat, the entire corridor was still a maze of black billowing clouds impairing his vision. It was only when he passed the metal doors and felt the heat radiating from the shaft that Steve had a better idea where he was.
The napkin around his mouth and nose was beginning to wear thin as the sweat dropping off his forehead weakened the fibers, so he discarded it altogether and used the sleeve of his dress coat for protection as he headed for the wooden door ahead, hoping and praying to find his partner downstairs.
With his left elbow pressed in front of his face and reaching for the door handle with his right, Steve never had a chance to react when the door simultaneously opened from the other side, throwing him off balance.
Thankfully Mike was on the receiving end, reaching out a strong arm to steady his partner before he could stumble into him.
"What are you still doing up here? We've evacuated the whole building!", the Lieutenant questioned sternly, trying to disguise the terrifying angst clouding his blue eyes.
Behind him, Hassejian ran a nervous hand across his balding head, then wiped the sweat off his forehead.
"What am I doing up here?", Steve argued, just to cause another coughing spill, "You disappeared without a trace. How was I supposed to know you were downstairs?! I figured you were checking the whole floor, making sure nobody was left behind. So, I was looking for you because I sure as hell wasn't going to leave you behind."
As the candid words sank in, Mike's expression softened significantly, as he slowly cocked his head in gratitude.
"Let's worry about all of this later….", the Lieutenant muttered gently, his hand never leaving his partner's elbow as they slowly turned around to head back downstairs, Norm in the lead while they stayed a few feet back.
The toxic smoke was beginning to clear the further they travelled, almost completely disappearing by the time they reached the first-floor stairwell.
"You sure you're alright?", Mike nudged, after a while, his voice having returned to its calm and controlled cadence, even though the expression in his eyes hadn't changed one bit from the angst-filled, terror-stricken glare that had greeted him upstairs.
"Yeah, of course.", Steve said, trying to assuage his partner's worries with little luck, "I was about to head downstairs when you came up. Everything is alright."
"That'll teach me to run off on my own. All that and I still didn't catch Osorro. Damnit."
"Do they even know what's burning and whether or not this was arson? Looks like it's coming from the elevator shaft. It could just be some sort of electrical fire."
"An electrical fire? In the midst of an arsonist case? Come on.", Mike countered incredulously, huffing in frustration by the time they reached the main floor, where a handful of officers and members of the Brass remained to do a headcount.
Through the large windows in the foyer, Steve could see the entire perimeter parked up with fire trucks, as the evacuation proceeded in a steady and controlled fashion. Unfortunately for them, a stern-faced Olsen stood amongst a group of people by the entrance area, his expression darkening when he recognized his three Homicide detectives.
"Stone, Keller, what is it with the two of you and fires lately? And now you got Hassejian in the mix too? Get out of here. We need this place empty so that the guys from the fire department can do their jobs."
