"Izzy, whatever Mr Kirk said to you or did to you when he came to your house, you do know it's not your fault don't you? None of this, not what happened to you and certainly not Dawid's disappearance are your fault." Jo spoke quietly and gently to the teenager sitting on the sofa across from herself and Sam.
"But I left him there. I knew he was coming and I didn't want to do it again so I ran off to meet my friends." Izzy cried, covering her face with both her hands, her whole body wracked with her desperate sobs.
"Didn't want to do what again? What did he make you do?" Jo pressed, knowing they needed Izzy to share with them exactly what had been happening to her at Kirk's hands.
"He came to the house, at first we just talked and watched DVD's. I thought he liked me as a friend. Then one day, he put some music on, really loud and said we were going to have some fun. He put a DVD on that he'd brought with him, it showed lots of people taking it in turns to have sex with a young girl. She looked scared, she was only my age I think. I told him to turn it off, I asked him to leave, said I wasn't like that. He put his hands round my throat and told me if I ever told anyone, he'd get me killed just like my Papa." Izzy gulped a mouthful of her drink down as she recounted her tale of woe for the first time.
"You're doing really well, Izzy. You can tell me as much as you want to, no matter how long it takes ok? We do this on your terms. When you've had enough, you tell me and I'll get your Mama in here to take you home." Jo reassured the young girl soothingly, knowing that her mother was watching the video feed in another part of the station, with Izzy's consent, and so would know exactly what had been happening to her daughter under their own roof.
Jo and Sam listened intently for a further hour as details about the abuse and degradation came to light, at which point the DC gently advised Izzy that she had given them enough for one day.
"How the hell did he get a job working with kids?" Mickey stormed as Jo finished relaying the details of Kirk's months of abuse of Izzy and Dawid. "And when she left, why didn't she take Dawid with her? Why leave him there to that animal's mercy?"
"She's fifteen years old Mickey, she was scared, she was ashamed and she thought if she wasn't there that Dawid wouldn't open the door, that he'd be safe." Jo implored Mickey to understand what had driven the young girl to act as she did, to realise that no amount of finger-pointing would undo the damage caused to her or her brother.
"She had good reason to be scared." Grace crossed to the board at the front of the incident room, tapping a copy of the grainy picture of their main suspect. "Andrew Kirk, real name Andrei Kruk, convicted in Poland of paedophilia and murder of a five year old girl in 1989. He is suspected of being involved in the disappearance of no less than twenty other children who were reporting missing in the same province during his time working at a local school but there's never been enough evidence to link him to the disappearances. There was a moratorium on executions imposed on 1988 so Mr Kruk had what he might class as a lucky escape. If he had been caught and convicted before that, undoubtedly he would not still be roaming the streets today." Grace recited from the printout she had had faxed over from Interpol. "This guy's a serious player, suspected of being one of the main men in the operation being investigated by the Polish authorities, the same investigation which cost Niko Podowski his life. So why did he get sloppy enough to post pictures on the internet with his face showing?"
"Maybe he's arrogant enough to think that we can't touch him," Jo suggested.
"Or dangerous enough to know he has unlimited resources to make those who challenge him disappear," Sam rejoined. "How did he get out of prison in Poland? And when?"
"According to Interpol, there's some mystery surrounding that. There was a riot at the prison he was being held in, chaos broke out and in the confusion Kruk somehow managed to escape. There's a strong suggestion he had help on the inside, there was no sign of him, it was like he just vanished completely. He'd served only three years of his fifteen year sentence and he's been on the loose ever since. It doesn't sound like there's been too much of a concerted effort to find him. Interpol have had reports of him popping up in Portugal, France, Belgium and, most recently, back in Poland but he's changed appearance a lot in the last nineteen years, no one recognised him until it was too late. By the time they did realise that he was within their grasp again, he'd skipped town and vanished." Grace filled them in on all she had found out, having received a lot of assistance from their colleagues at CEOPs. They were still tracing the origin of the website on which the photographs were posted, the route a long, complex and tortuous maze of servers and dead ends.
"Or maybe he's got friends on the inside, people who don't necessarily want him to be recaptured. A lot can happen in nearly twenty years, people can move on to jobs where any suggestion of being involved with a fugitive could have tremendous consequences." Mickey suggested, sensing that this case was much larger than one missing child.
"Let's not jump to any conclusions until we have some proof. The last thing we want to do is create diplomatic tensions with unfounded accusations." Sam warned. Though whilst she suspected the DC could have a point, with nothing to corroborate those suspicions it was best not to tempt fate and start bandying about such statements. As all the officers returned to their duties, each following up leads and chasing down any information they could gather about the movements of Andrei Kruk, Sam noticed Jo slipping back into the squad room, having left a few moments before, a troubled expression on her face. With a tilt of her head as their eyes met, Sam invited the brunette into her office.
"I had a message on my voicemail from the hospital, I completely forgot about my appointment with them this morning." Jo volunteered, her mind reeling from how much the case had taken over her conscious mind.
"Oh Jo, I totally forgot you were due there too. Did Lucy not remember either?" Sam was shocked that it had been so easy to put thoughts of Jo being ill from her mind.
"I wondered why she wished me luck this morning but thought she was hoping I'd find Dawid. Even when she asked me to let her know how I got on, I thought of nothing except finding this little boy. What does that say about me, Sam?" Jo sounded so desperately confused that all Sam wanted to do was hold her and make all the pain and suffering go away. Unfortunately, she knew that no embrace in the world would achieve that for her friend.
"I would think it says you need to take more time for yourself and not let your job overtake your life." The diminutive blonde answered honestly. "Have you rung the hospital back? Explained why you didn't attend?" Jo shook her head in response.
"I didn't know what to say. How do I tell them I forgot I had cancer? Cos I did Sam, all day today, it's been almost like nothing's wrong, like it's all a horrible dream that I've woken up from and it's not true." Tears sparkled in Jo's eyes as she struggled to express how she had felt, the lightness and relief that came with a true belief that the diagnosis had been someone else's and not hers. This time Sam did give in to her urge and took the younger woman in her arms.
"You don't have to tell them that, love. Just tell them that you're a police officer and became caught up in a case, apologise for not telling them you had to cancel but you weren't able to get to a phone in time and ask them to book you in for the earliest available appointment they have."
"I am sorry for not talking to you about it, about how you found out. I never meant to hurt you." Jo felt all her fears threatening to surface and tensed against the onslaught, knowing she would never be able to hold her head up in Sun Hill again if she broke down in Sam's arms in the middle of CID.
"I know that Jo. I've done a lot of thinking about what I would have done in your situation and I can't say with any certainty I wouldn't have done exactly the same thing. Besides, I know how stubborn you Taureans can be!" Sam laughed, grateful to feel Jo let out a giggle too. "Now phone the hospital and get that appointment booked. I'll give you a few minutes to get it done, then we can book the time off in the diary. And I expect nothing – and I mean nothing – to come between you and this next appointment!" Sam gave Jo one last squeeze before releasing her and exiting the office.
"Guv, Andrew Kirk has a car registered to him, a black Honda CRV, licence plate DF51 KPD. I've asked Inspector Gold to get uniform to keep an eye out for it." Mickey informed Sam, his gaze surreptitiously flicking into her office where Jo sat head bowed talking on the phone. "Is Jo alright? I know I was out of order yesterday but Jo's my mate, I'm worried about her." Sam had been about to snap at Mickey for intruding but could see his concern was genuine.
"Right now Mickey, she needs our support, 100 per cent, not our judgement. If you want to be a friend to her, just do as she asks and treat her normally. Her diagnosis doesn't change the fact that she's still the same Jo she's always been and she's going to have enough battles to fight without us giving her any extra ones." Sam explained, imploring him to take heed of her words.
"She will get through it though, won't she?" He asked, now openly watching his colleague.
"None of us know that for sure yet, not even Jo. So let's just hope for the best ok?" Sam felt a lump threatening to close off her throat as she seriously considered that fact for the first time. Mickey gave a brief nod and returned to his work, a pensive expression on his face.
"Hi sweetheart, how long have you been home?" Jo wrapped her arms around Lucy's waist as she sidled up behind her in the kitchen.
"Not long." Glancing at the clock, Lucy amended, "probably around an hour I guess." The olive-skinned beauty loved the way Jo referred to her place as home for the both of them, it gave Lucy a real sense of belonging, something she hoped would last for life. She sighed contentedly as she felt her lover place tender kisses along the side of her neck, her pulse rate quickening at the simple yet erotic touch.
"Did you get caught up with your computer stuff?" Jo asked, loving to hear about what Lucy considered to be really mundane, boring work days, the normalcy of it often providing stark and much needed contrast to Jo's own shifts.
"Yeah pretty much. Anything else I decided could wait until morning when my eyes crossed and I started seeing things that weren't there!" Lucy turned in her girlfriend's arms so that they were facing one another, her hands travelling to the sides of Jo's face when she saw how ashen and tired she was. "Anyway, enough about my boring day, how did you get on this morning at the hospital?"
A sheepish look spread slowly across Jo's expressive face, "I missed the appointment." Before Lucy could say a word, although her expression must have given the brunette a fair idea of what was coming, Jo continued in a babble, "I didn't do it intentionally, I promise. I was just so wrapped up in finding this missing boy that I literally forgot about it. And for a while, it was nice to feel normal again; to only have my job to worry about; to be a hundred percent focussed on catching the bad guys."
"Baby, you are normal, no matter what. You might have an illness but that doesn't make you abnormal, not by any stretch of the imagination. People who are convinced they've been abducted by aliens are abnormal; people who wear socks with sandals are abnormal; cheese sandwiches without pickle are abnormal! Hell, people who think the shower running this country are the greatest thing since sliced bread are abnormal! You on the other hand may be stubborn, you may be so committed to your damn job it's almost difficult to see where DC Masters ends and my Jo begin and you may also be going a little senile with your Swiss-cheese memory but I can assure you, you are definitely not abnormal." Jo had to laugh in spite of herself at the things Lucy considered to be abnormal.
"Well if you can put up with sharing a meal with this senile old workaholic, how about we order a Chinese? I don't know about you but I am starving!" As if to emphasise the point, Jo's stomach rumbled loudly, protesting its need for food.
"That sounds good but are you sure you can remember where you put the menu, dear?" Jo stuck her tongue out at Lucy's continued ribbing, crossing over to the noticeboard beside the fridge which contained all manner of useful leaflets and menus. After only a few moments of looking, she picked out the one she was looking for and returned with a very smug expression on her face to her awaiting lover.
"Let me guess, you don't need to look at the menu, you already know what you're going to have; Szechuan chicken with Singapore fried rice." Jo teased, her lover having developed a taste for the spicy dish from their local Chinese and rarely straying from her tried and tested favourite.
"So sue me for liking what I know and knowing what I like! Which weird concoction are you sampling tonight? Chicken with tomatoes and special fried rice? Or are you feeling in the mood for chicken curry, rice and chips instead?"
"It wasn't all that weird and it tasted good!" Jo defended her own choice of delicacy. "I think I'll stick to mixed vegetable curry with fried rice and chips tonight."
"Well how about, you put the kettle on and make us a brew, then go and put your feet up while I order? You look about fit to drop." Lucy patted Jo's behind affectionately as she shooed her in the direction of the kettle. "And don't, in all your senile older years, put the milk in the kettle will you darling?!" Once both had recovered from the indignant look on Jo's face and the subsequent laughing fit, both women set about making arrangements to begin their evening.
"Urgh, I don't think I can move, I'm so full." Jo groaned from her slouched position on the sofa, the remains of her curry on the coffee table in front of them.
"No one said you had to eat all the chips!" Lucy fired back jokingly.
"I seem to recall I had a fair amount of help in that department young lady. You weren't too shy about helping yourself, do I take it the curry was to your liking too?" Jo asked, loving this easy camaraderie that flowed between them; such simple moments like this giving her more pleasure than any elaborately planned evening.
"Hmmm, I think you may have converted me." Lucy made a move to clear their plates, hoping to talk to Jo more about her missed appointment and the need to put herself first once the washing up was done. Jo caught the subtle change from flirty to distracted in her lover's mood.
Following her partner into the kitchen, Jo once again wrapped her arms around her waist from behind, whispering in her ear, "where did your mind just take a detour to? You got that look in your eye again."
"What look's that then?" Lucy asked, genuinely interested in Jo's ability to read her so well that even the tiniest change in mood was like a neon sign.
"The one where your eyes go a stormy dull colour rather than the sparkling bright hazel that they usually are." Jo murmured, gently massaging the shorter woman's shoulders, feeling the tension ebb from the supple muscles beneath her ministrations.
"I was thinking about your hospital appointment." Lucy stated simply.
"I made another one, they have a cancellation for Monday." Jo informed her, hands never ceasing their tender caresses. "Will you come with me?"
Lucy spun around to face Jo, her expression registering her surprise at the turnaround in her partner wanting her company at the hospital. "Of course I will sweetheart."
"Good cos, you know, my Swiss cheese memory might forget it again and I'm on a promise that I'll be kicked into next week if I miss another one, care of Sam!" Jo grinned, the smile not illuminating her eyes as she tried to make light of the situation.
"We'll get through this baby, you're going to be ok." Lucy assured the taller brunette, pulling her in close for a long, lingering kiss filled with every ounce of love she could muster.