Mike felt his heart skip a beat as they approached the dark alley ahead, knowing instinctively that it was a dead-end. Part of him felt relief, but the other part knew that the fifteen minutes weren't over by a long shot, even wondering if the relentless running might make the drugs ineffective altogether.
Then there were Lenny's haunted words burning in the back of his mind, the notion about an injured animal that was getting cornered. And in such a desperate predicament, there were only two possible outcomes.
Fight or Flight.
For the past couple of city blocks, he'd noticed Steve slow down somewhat, undoubtedly growing exhausted from the hell he'd been through in the past twenty-four hours, combined with the endless marathon they'd both put up. Mike had stopped yelling his name and resorted to following him at a slower pace, leaving a hundred yards between them as he tailed his partner through the assortment of backyards and side streets.
As they entered the dark alley surrounded by run-down apartment buildings on either side, Mike could see his partner hesitate, then turn around, hoping to have enough room and time to change directions. Once he realized he was cornered, Steve stepped backwards, his eyes frantically searching for an escape route.
"You don't have to run anymore…"
Mike's quiet voice caused his partner to flinch and retreat farther.
The startling reaction didn't make much sense until the Lieutenant glanced around, noting that the sun was out, turning him into a grotesque looking shadow for somebody who's eyesight might be compromised.
"Calm down…", he urged again, when Steve scanned the nearby walls, his eyes suddenly glued to a fire ladder behind a rusty dumpster.
Not waiting for Mike to make another move, he rushed over, reaching the bottom rung with one powerful jump, and using the side of the container to get his legs up.
Cursing inwardly, Mike followed suit, his advantage in height coming in handy now, as he pulled himself up on the ladder, catching up with his partner faster than he did on the ground.
Steve was one set of stairs ahead, diligently rushing up the metal steps before crossing the plateau to the next level, one hand on the railing to keep his balance.
Taking two steps at a time, Mike was slowly decreasing the distance between them, as both detectives rose in elevation.
By the time they reached the ledge of the roof, he'd gotten close enough to grab Steve's pantleg, causing the young Inspector to lose his balance and crash hard onto the gravel ground below.
Enjoying the momentary success, Mike held onto the metal railing as he swung his legs over the sill, trying not to have the height of three stories off the ground get the better of him.
Knowing that the Lieutenant was in an unsteady position for a few moments, Steve took advantage and rose back to his feet, his movements becoming more sluggish as the seconds ticked by.
Getting off the ladder in time to watch the young Inspector stumble across the roof, trying to put some distance between them again, Mike held his breath, when he saw him come to a stop dangerously close to the edge.
"Slow down…", the Lieutenant yelled against the upcoming breeze, "You're going to be alright."
Steve turned around to face him, his wavy hair blown all over the place by the strong winds coming off the Bay. From his distance, Mike could see his partner starting to sway, as the young Inspector widened his stance to keep his balance.
Glancing back and forth between Mike and the one-hundred-foot free fall onto Lombard right behind him, Steve weighed his options as his partner slowly encroached on him.
"Think about this, Stephen. If I really wanted to hurt you, don't you think I would have done so by now? Think about this long and hard…I am here to help you…to stop you from running, because you are safe now. We've got the situation under control. I am here to protect you…to keep you safe. Trust me…please!"
In one last act of despair, Steve pulled out his .38, aiming it at Mike's chest in trained precision despite his shaking hand.
Freezing in his spot, the Lieutenant swallowed hard, one hand over his own revolver, willing to add another scar to Steve's assortment of old gunshot wounds if it meant to keep both of them alive and safe.
"Now, you don't have to do that, Buddyboy…and you know that. I am not the enemy…"
Watching Steve stumble backwards a couple more steps, his feet getting far too close for comfort to the ledge of the roof, Mike tensed up, trying to keep his features calm as he slowly approached.
With the sun to his back, he smiled genially, hoping the gesture would confuse his partner enough to lower his defenses. Even from his distance, he saw the unbridled fear in Steve's eyes, his pupils so large that there was no green left in them.
"It looks like you're getting pretty tired. How about we take a break from all this and sit down for a minute? Do some talking."
"Mike…?"
"That's right. Lower your gun, Steve. You don't need it. Just…remember how I said we wear the same armor...remember that. We're partners, best friends even. I would never allow for anything to happen to you. And you know that. That's why you've been calling my name, isn't it? You remember that much despite all that…all that fog clouding your judgment right now."
Running a hand across his face and rubbing his eyes, Steve was having an increasingly hard time staying upright. From his distance, Mike could see his legs threatening to buckle, as the strong meds finally began to take effect.
Finally, another bout of dizziness sent the young Inspector swaying forward, collapsing onto his right knee, the gun in his hand now lowered to the ground.
This time around, Mike didn't waste a single second.
Bridging the remainder of the distance to his partner in a dead run despite the slippery gravel below, he stopped right in front of Steve, his hand instinctively grabbing the .38 and sliding it into the pocket of his black overcoat, his partner never taking note.
"You're going to be alright…", Mike said calmly and knelt down to reach his partner's eye level, surprised to find the young Inspector staring past him, even though there was nobody else on the roof.
"Those things you are seeing…they're not there…they came from the drugs these…these terrible people put into you."
The momentary confusion on Steve's face was replaced by terror when the wind picked up a bit, causing the nearby metal AC towers to creak in protest.
"Shhhh, it's alright, this is just the breeze coming off the bay…there's nothing up here that can hurt you. Just the two of us…look at me, Steve."
Carefully grasping the young Inspector's chin to force him to acknowledge his words, Mike knew he was fighting a losing when he saw Steve's eyes turning glassy and unfocused.
"Michael…"
This time, the young Inspectors voice sounded slurred, and yet desperate, as if he was using his name to stay awake.
"It's okay, Buddyboy. You're just getting very tired. It's been a long day. Time to get some rest…"
Slowly reaching forward, Mike got a hold of his partner's shoulder, grateful when he didn't flinch or retreat.
"Just remember, whatever it is you are seeing, it's not here. I promise you that. You can trust me."
As he felt his partner beginning to sway once more, Mike took advantage of the situation and pulled Steve into his arms. Not feeling any resistance this time around, he sat down on the cold ground, ignoring the protest of his tired legs from the long chase.
"There you go, I got you, I got you. You're going to be okay…", Mike whispered and pulled Steve's head against his chest, before wrapping his strong arms around the young Inspector's shivering body, "It's going to be okay…"
Whether it was from the sedation taking effect or the hallucinations, after a few seconds, he felt his partner's body twitch.
As a result, Steve pulled his knees closer, his boots digging into the gravel as if he was threading water.
The troubling image brought Mike back to the dirty wooden floor on Lombard, and the loneliness and despair those boot tracks conveyed.
Trying to control the reaction as best as possible, he shifted his leg across his partner's knees, effectively pinning them to the ground.
Glancing down, Mike noticed that Steve's eyes were still wide open, staring straight ahead, as his breathing became increasingly labored. And somewhere in the back of his mind was Lenny's voice, cautioning him of the terrible side effects the drug cocktail was having on his partner's mind and body.
"Don't believe the things you are seeing. Just listen to me…listen to my voice."
Doing the only thing he could think of to help with the situation, Mike moved his left arm up, gently covering his partner's eyes with his warm hand.
"Just listen to me, okay? Don't worry about what you see, just listen. You know who I am, Steve. I am your partner, Mike Stone."
As the shivering body against his grew heavier, Mike pulled the young Inspector's head closer to his chest, hoping to offer a small measure of comfort and warmth after the hell he'd been through.
"Michael…"
"That's it, Buddyboy. You recognize my voice, don't you? You know I am going to protect you…"
With one hand over Steve's eyes, Mike used the other one to slowly rub his arm as the stiff breeze chilled them to the bone once again. As if the sound of his partner's heartbeat helped him relax, Steve drew in a deep breath, then leaned into Mike's embrace, as he slowly succumbed to the sedative.
Swallowing hard, Mike brought his free leg a little closer, allowing him to balance his partner's weight better, before grasping Steve even tighter and resting his chin on top his head.
"We make quite a team, don't we, Buddyboy?", he sighed, trying to slow his rapidly beating heart as the adrenalin and stress left his body all at once, "We take over somebody else's case and no matter our best intentions, before we know it, we're neck-deep in trouble…"
Steve didn't answer, the slow puffs of warm air against his chest indicating that his partner was well on his way of losing consciousness.
"It certainly is an action filled life, isn't it? But some days, I think you are right…some days it gets to be too much. I guess that's the luck of the draw. It's what we signed up for, whether we knew it or not."
Glancing up when he saw Lenny appear in the corner of his eye, climbing off the fire ladder, he carefully nodded at the Psychiatrist, before focusing back on his partner.
"Times sure aren't getting any easier. I remember when Roy and I first switched to Homicide. We had a couple cases a month, nothing like what we're dealing with now. It seems that the respect for life in general is fading. And it worries me. I think people are becoming more willing to shoot and kill cops. In turn, we need to be more persistent, and sometimes violent, to stop them. It's not a trend I like seeing. And then there's this case…"
Drawing in a deep breath, Mike began to grind his teeth, his jaws trembling as he fought to keep his emotions under control.
"Leave it to you to singlehandedly stop two of the most notorious killers the Bay Area has ever seen…while you're all drugged up from some dangerous cocktail they put into your body just for kicks…God, I was so worried I wasn't going to find you in time."
As he let out a silent sob, Mike closed his eyes, unable to stop a tear from escaping, slowly taking the hand off Steve's eyes before soothingly running his fingers through his sandy hair.
Watching the powerful scene from afar for a few moments, Lenny approached slowly, his hands shoved into the pockets of his brown leather jacket to stay warm.
"You two gave all of us a hell of a scare…I followed you all the way to the alley where you tackled him, but then I lost you for a while. I've got a black and white downstairs calling in the troops, ambulance is on its way."
Lenny knelt down next to them and carefully reached for Steve's wrist to count the beats against his watch, then grabbed his penlight to check his pupils. Keeping up the tight hold on his partner's body, Mike stayed still, letting the Psychiatrist do his work as he vigilantly kept up guard over his best friend.
"He's unconscious, Lieutenant. You can probably lay him on the ground until the paramedics get here. I'll see if I can find a blanket."
"I won't let go of him until the paramedics get here.", Mike barked in protest, causing Lenny to glance up in surprise first, then understanding.
With a slight shrug, the Psychiatrist got back on his feet and headed toward the fire ladder, leaving Mike to clear his throat again, trying to shake off the overwhelming sadness that began to fill his senses.
As he glanced down at the curled-up figure he was cradling in his arms, as the week from hell slowly came to an end in the most dramatic way possible, the Lieutenant finally allowed himself to sob freely, letting go of the overwhelming angst and terror that had dominated his senses since the beginning of this case.
"Look at us two bullheaded fools…four years into this… and we can't let go of one another, even when others say we should. Lenny gave me all that psycho mumbo jumbo of what he thinks is wrong with you but he's mistaken. All you need is a reminder that you're not alone. That you have a friend. That things aren't as dark and dreary as they seem some days. And I know you think you're making the right decision wanting to teach at Berkeley to educate kids, make a difference that way…but I say we try and get things back to the way they were. Talk things through. Eat Tony's for dinner. Do what we do best. Because this city needs us more than ever, Stephen. And I need you. Because honestly, I don't know what I would do without you by my side."