Disclaimer: I do not own Rookie Blue or any of the characters….
Many thanks as ever for all your thoughtful reviews and follows and favs and for reading this. Your feedback is so very much appreciated.
Life has been extremely hectic so I've posted this in a bit of a hurry – apologies for any mistakes.
…...
'No,' Elaine said, 'There is no reason to suspect that Trent Savage has anything to do with this case so there is no point getting Detective Peck involved.'
'Gail had a feeling about him,' Frankie persisted.
'A feeling? Do you mean a hunch, Detective?' Elaine scoffed. 'It is not the way we solve cases. This is the police force. We meticulously gather evidence and analyze it. We are not living in the pages of pulp fiction where the gumshoe goes on gut feeling and little else. This is the real world, detective.'
'Gail is very good at reading people, and if that amounts to intuition then I'd count on it.'
'I don't think reading people has ever been one of my daughter's strong suits,' Elaine said.
'Maybe not when it comes to herself or people she's close to, but I've supervised Gail for the last year now, ever since she was promoted to Detective, and I've learnt to trust her instincts about people. It's helped us make a lot of collars.'
'Hmm,' Elaine said skeptically, twisting her mouth a little in displeasure in a way that immediately reminded Frankie of Gail. 'Let's say I indulge you. Get Detective Epstein to do some digging into Trent's past and if he turns up anything interesting I'll reconsider.'
'That sounds fair,' Frankie said.
'But Detective Anderson, don't think this a back door way of getting my daughter reinstated on this case. If, and it is a very big if, we decide Trent is someone of interest there are plenty of other ways to get to him, rather than send in my daughter.'
Frankie nodded. Just how the hell did Elaine think she was going to get to Trent without Gail? It wasn't like they had months or even weeks to send someone in undercover to gain his trust. If he was the killer they needed to act fast before he murdered any more women, let alone Gail.
The last thought made Frankie shudder internally. Elaine Peck didn't realize just how apprehensive Frankie was about pulling Gail back into the investigation and potentially making her an even bigger target, but she felt like they had no choice. Besides Frankie agreed with Gail. She'd be much safer surrounded 24/7 by police officers than banished to God knows where by Elaine.
…...
Gail lay stretched out on the couch in Holly's office. Her head still throbbed a little from the tequila she'd drunk the previous evening despite the pain killers and a glass of water Holly handed her when she woke and despite Chloe's 'hangover' breakfast of pancakes and maple syrup and crispy bacon and despite two very strong coffees. She was still wearing Holly's aviators, which she'd swiped off Holly as they left the house and stepped out into a day that Gail described as 'fucking blinding' and which Holly, under normal circumstances, would have thought a rather glorious spring morning.
'It's your fault, Holly,' Gail whined from her supine position on the couch.
'What is?' Holly asked without looking up from her computer. It seemed hungover Gail had regressed several decades.
'That my head hurts.'
This time Holly did look up and regarded Gail with bemusement. 'I don't recall forcing those shots down your throat.'
'No, Superintendent Mom had a hand in that.'
Holly gave Gail a sympathetic look.
'But it is still your fault because you wouldn't have sex with me this morning.'
'I'm not following Gail,' Holly said patiently even if she did feel a little exasperated. It was almost like talking to a small child.
'Sex. Holly. It's a hangover cure. Well, sex with you sees to work like that for me.'
'Well, there is a reason for that. We release endorphins during sex and endorphins act as natural painkillers on the central nervous system and so can lessen a headache. And being sexually aroused causes you to release a peptide called oxytocin, which increases your threshold for pain. During an orgasm your brain is literally flooded with oxytocin. It's sometimes referred to the love molecule, because its supposed to be crucial in human pair-bonding but it also helps us with trust.'
'And you denied me that pain relief knowing how bad I'm feeling,' Gail huffed dramatically.
'Gail,' Holly drew out the word and sighed. Normally Gail's antics would have amused her, but Holly was due to meet Dr Carral in 10 minutes to interview for two new intern positions and she really needed to finish reviewing the applications before that. Perhaps it hadn't been such a great idea bringing Gail to work. With Gail banished from 15, Holly hadn't wanted to leave her alone at home to brood or worse to be a sitting duck for the killer.
'Who designated it bring your girlfriend to work day?' Gail had asked when Holly suggested it.
'Me,' Holly had replied brightly, adding 'can you do it to make me feel better.'
Gail had agreed with an 'oh, alright', but when they got to the office, much to Gail's chagrin, Holly banned touching or kissing, saying she couldn't have any distractions. Right now, as Holly launched into a dissertation on oxytocin Gail desperately wished she could kiss her. Even the constant thrum in her head didn't stop her finding Holly's geek out adorable.
'Wait, wait oxy,' Gail asked, sitting up suddenly and then cursing because the sudden moment made her head swirl and dip and pound just a little more. 'Like the stuff they gave me in hospital that makes me act kinda of weird'
Holly suppressed a smile, 'You mean weirder than usual.'
'Ha, ha. Very funny, Stewart.'
'But no Gail, that's oxycodone. It's an opioid, a narcotic and a very powerful one.'
Before Holly could continue, there was a soft tap on the door and Sally, Holly's admin assistant, bustled in.
'I've brought you a cup of mint tea, dear,' she said addressing Gail, having worked out from one glance at the blonde as she trailed Holly into the office that she was somewhat worse for the wear this morning. 'Best to rehydrate. So avoid coffee and drink water and herbal tea.'
Sally's tone was gentle and maternal. Most people who knew Gail Peck would have expected her to respond with a sharp retort but instead Gail started to nod but then thought better of it and instead gave Sally a genuine smile and took the proffered tea.
Holly watched fascinated, her lips quirking to one side as she gave into amusement. In the brief time Sally had worked for her, she seemed to have taken a shine to Gail.
In fact, Holly was the best boss Sally had had in her twenty-five years with the forensics department. The pathologist was conscientious, considerate, even tempered and never made Sally feel like an inferior, and it hadn't taken long for Sally to work out that Gail put a smile on Holly's face. If that hadn't been reason enough for Sally to have a soft spot for Gail, then Elaine Peck was. Over the years Sally had had her fair share of encounters with Superintendent Peck and she wasn't quite sure how any child could survive Elaine's harsh regime. As a consequence she felt obliged to mother Gail and for some reason Gail tolerated her fussing.
'And Dr Stewart, Dr Carral is ready for you in the conference room,' Sally said to Holly almost as an afterthought.
After Holly left, Gail pulled out her iPad and searched for the Toronto Star. The lead story was on the investigation. Serial killer stalks Toronto was the headline. Great, thought Gail, nothing like panicking the public. What struck her though as she read through the article was that it contained information that only the police were privy to. Elaine was right. They had a leaker. Gail had met Martha Fisher, the Star's crime reporter, on another case and the journalist had immediately tried to cultivate her as a potential source. Perhaps she assumed all the Peck's were unethical and Gail was an easy mark. But if corruption hadn't been anathema to Gail, Martha's fawning and flattery would have been enough to put her off.
Gail sighed as she kept reading. Elaine would be livid. The sensationalism of the coverage would only make their job harder. Well not hers. She was on indefinite leave. Finishing her tea, she went in search of Rodney, who she found in his office, a small space not far from the conference room where Holly and Rueben Carral were conducting the interviews.
'Hey, Rodney,' Gail said, leaning against the doorjamb.
'Uh, hi detective, I mean Gail,' Rodney said, looking up from his computer and reddening as he struggled with how to address Gail.
When they had worked together on the cold case they'd become improbable friends of sorts and Gail had instructed him to stop calling her detective and by her first name, especially as she always called him Rodney. But he was a stickler for protocol, a fact she'd discovered two years back when she'd tried to persuade him to rehydrate a thumb rather than fetch Holly, who Gail had been determinedly ignoring for weeks. That was a bleak time.
'I thought you were off the case,' he now said, a little warily, knowing Gail would not be happy to be removed from the investigation.
'Yeah. It seems that way but,' she shrugged, not wanting to reveal that she was here to stop Holly worrying, 'had nothing to do so thought I'd hang around and annoy you guys.'
Rodney gave an uncertain laugh but seemed to accept Gail's explanation.
'Soo, Rodney,' Gail said, a slight wheedling tone to her voice, 'anything new on the case from your end.'
'Um, Detective, Gail, I don't think I can, I mean I'm not sure I'm supposed to. You know the Superintendent was in here early this morning warning us not to talk about the case to anyone not working directly on it.'
Interesting, thought Gail and wondered if Holly knew about that. She wasn't going to push Rodney to tell her anything. That was her mother's style. If Rodney wasn't comfortable talking to her, she'd just have to accept that. Besides, Holly and Frankie were sure to tell her any way. Still she was curious to know more about the meeting.
'Bet she didn't say it that nicely and I bet she specifically warned you not to speak to me,' Gail said, imagining the wave of fury Elaine would have crashed down upon their heads. When Rodney looked at a loss for how to respond, she continued, 'It's okay, I know what my mother's like, believe me. So who was at the meeting?'
'Dr Carral, myself and the technicians who worked the crime scene and were present during the autopsies.'
'She thinks someone's leaking.'
'I guessed that,' Rodney nodded, 'I doubt it would come from here.'
'Doesn't matter. She'd still see it as her duty to dress you down. The Superintendent believes in a rule based on fear. What's so stupid is people are more likely to betray you if they feel bullied or intimidated.'
Rodney nodded again and then looked as if he were deciding on something. Finally he spoke.
'She wants Aaron Schmidt to take a DNA test. Officers Price and McNally are bringing him in. I'm on standby to take the sample if he agrees. Compare it with the arm hair we found on Patricia Weston.
'I wouldn't count on it. He's the type to lawyer up and there's not enough connecting him to the murders, at least to convince a judge to order him to do the test. It's hard to see how he could have raped those women and with such force when he has a broken leg and arm. Anyway, wouldn't the cast have left some sort of mark on the women's bodies?'
'Most probably,' Rodney agreed, 'and it would be hard to strangle someone with your arm in a cast.'
'I don't think he's the perp,' Gail said, 'although it makes sense for Elaine to rule him out. Rodney, you definitely didn't find any evidence that any of the women were drugged?'
Rodney shook his head. 'And none of them had head injuries or even bruising consistent with a blow to a head which might have knocked them unconscious.'
'So, if they weren't drugged and they weren't knocked out, why weren't they screaming? And why didn't anyone hear them? There's no indication they were gagged.'
'No' Rodney said.
'What if the perp had help? All you'd need is someone with a gun and the women would be helpless and even a guy with a broken leg and arm can wield a gun.'
Rodney was about to answer when his phone rang. After a brief conversation that consisted mostly of him saying, 'I see, yes, of course, yes,' he hung up and turned to Gail.
'That was Detective Anderson. You were right. Aaron Schmidt has asked for a lawyer and is refusing to cooperate.'
…...
'Ah Superintendent Peck,' Dov knocked on one of the partitions that had been arranged to form a sort of temporary office for Elaine in the Incident room. It hadn't gone unnoticed that when Frankie was in charge she'd felt no such need to separate herself and instead worked alongside the team.
'Yes, Detective Epstein,' Elaine said irritably, breaking off from her conversation with Frankie who had been arguing that they didn't have enough on Aaron to get a court order to force him to take a DNA test. Elaine had simply barked 'well get some more evidence'.
'I've found something on Trent Savage, well Savage and Aaron Schmidt.'
'What do you mean?' Elaine, just like Gail, had perfected that voice which suggested she was speaking to an imbecile.
'Trent and Aaron went to the same high school. Aaron was three years younger but he had a brother in the same year as Trent.'
'Could they be working together' Frankie said, trying to contain the note of excitement in her voice at the thought that this might be the break through they'd been looking for.
'Let's not jump the gun Detective Anderson. It could be pure coincidence,' Elaine warned although there was nothing judicious in her tone, rather her words were clearly intended to put Dov and Frankie in their place. 'Did you find anything interesting about Savage?'
'Above average student, a bit of a track star at high school but not enough to get him a scholarship. Spent two years at college before travelling and working in the US for four years. Mainly tending bar. He came back to Toronto four months ago and not long after got the job at the gym and as a bartender at the Cube. He runs free workout sessions for underprivileged kids once a week at the gym. He hasn't had any run-ins with the law. Not even a speeding ticket.'
'So community minded,' Elaine observed.
'It would seem so,' Dov replied.
'That doesn't mean anything. Plenty of serial killers hide behind a veneer of respectability. Some have gone undetected for years because the police can't believe such an upright citizen is capable of such atrocities.'
'I'm well aware of that, detective,' Elaine said a little coolly.
'There is something else,' Dov said, 'Trent's mother died when he was three and his father remarried not long after, to a Monique Becker. His father was killed in a car accident two years later and Monique brought up Trent. He came back to Toronto when she died. Take a look at her photo.'
With a slight flourish, Dov produced a color photograph. It was a studio portrait and looked to be have been taken when Monique was in her mid twenties. Her peroxide blonde hair had been swept into an up do with soft waves close to her scalp and her lips were pursed in a pouty bow and painted a bright shade of red. Blues eyes looked up from beneath hooded eyelids and lashes heavy with mascara. Her eyebrows arched seductively. It made Frankie think of a blonde bombshell from the golden age of Hollywood, although she noted there was a sharpness about Monique which had she been an actress would have seen her cast as the femme fatale.
With a start Frankie realized she had seen Gail look very like Monique did in the photo. It was back when Chloe and Dov took over the lease for the frat house and threw a party where everyone had to come as a film star from the past. Gail had grumbled about the stupidity of it but turned up as Marilyn Monroe. Frankie thought it safe to say most people's jaws dropped when Gail sashayed in wearing a red dress, the halter neck revealing more than a hint of cleavage and the silky material clinging revealingly to every contour of her body. Her hair was slightly longer then and she'd styled in big soft curls and lacquered her lips a bright red. With her cool beauty and the way she oozed an effortless sensuality, she looked every bit the film star.
Frankie couldn't keep eyes off Gail or it turned out her hands. It was when they were still occasionally sleeping together. She'd ended up fucking Gail in Gail's old room, pressing her up against the back of the door and pushing up Gail's dress and then moving a hand inside her lacey red underwear. Frankie was thankful that someone had turned up the music loud, not too concerned that a party full of cops would have trouble with a noise complaint. Still Chloe had given them a knowing look when they came out of the room.
Frankie shook her head. She hated the way this case kept reminding her of being with Gail, especially now she was completely out of Frankie's reach. But then Frankie had always known that it was never about love for Gail and she couldn't hold that against her, not when she herself had broken so many hearts. In fact, she knew Gail had put a stop to their arrangement as soon as she suspected Frankie was falling for her and there was something honorable in that. She became aware that the Superintendent was speaking.
'Gail's his type,' she said with a sharp in-take of breath and Frankie thought it telling that Elaine used Gail's first name.
…...
Gail was back in Rodney's office. Ignoring Sally's advice, she'd been across the road to a little hole in the wall café that made the best coffee in Toronto and came back with a cappuccino for Rodney and a double espresso for herself.
'You left the building alone,' Rodney said, and Gail could tell from the note of alarm in his voice that he actually knew why Holly was keeping her close.
'I'm a big girl, Rodney. I'm can cross the road by myself now,' Gail drawled.
'I know, it's just with everything going on Dr Stewart wouldn't like it.'
'I'm back now so no need to fret. Hey, Rodney why'd you talk to me about the case when my mother told you not to?'
Rodney shrugged. 'Dr Stewart and Detective Anderson would have told you anyway. And I sort of owe you, after that bet in Chicago.'
Gail laughed. 'Rodney really, you're still worried about that.'
Rodney swallowed. 'Ah, should I be?'
Gail laughed again and didn't reply but instead she looked out the glass wall that divided Rodney's office from the corridor. She observed a tall geeky looking man with a pronounced overbite and limbs that seemed to be a little out sync with one another being ushered out of the conference room and escorted down the hallway by Sally.
'One of the intern applicants?' Gail asked and Rodney nodded. ' I wouldn't trust him to have a steady hand in an autopsy.'
Rodney stifled a laugh. He really should have some sympathy for the guy. He was a massive geek himself, but somehow he was always drawn in by Gail's irreverent humor.
A few moments later, Sally reappeared with a woman and headed towards the conference room. The woman, who Gail guessed to be in her early twenties, was tall, with long black hair, olive skin, a perfectly shaped oval face and lips with just the right amount of fullness to give them a permanent pout that was sultry rather than sulky. Even more striking were her green eyes, which even from this distance Gail could see had a diaphanous quality that instead of making her gaze insipid, surprisingly, intensified it. She looked like she worked out just enough to be toned but not enough to take away curves that seemed to be in all the right places. Gail could tell by the way she walked with a confident swing of her hips that she was well aware of her attractiveness.
'Wow, she's um,' Rodney said but then stopped.
'Hot, you can say hot Rodney,' Gail teased, 'or are you worried you're being unsound.'
'Um, it's not appropriate, you know in the workplace,' Rodney said, rebuking himself more so than Gail.
'I won't tell. Will Holly have much to do with these interns?'
'Ah yeah. The first three months they'll shadow Dr Stewart on any autopsies she performs. She and Dr Carral take the program very seriously.'
'Uh huh. Well, I hope the guy with the weird walk gets the job then,' Gail said and then brightened as an idea struck her, 'hey Rodney, let's say we take bets on who gets the job.'
Rodney swallowed and tried not to look pained.
…...
'We need Detective Peck to meet with Trent,' Frankie stated firmly.
'No, not till we find out more from the profiler,' Elaine said. She had used her contacts to arrange for a profiler to be flown in from Quantico. Given there were so few cases of serial murder in Canada, she decided it best to bring in an expert from the United States.
'But he's not due here for another two days. The interval between kills is getting shorter. We can't afford to waste any more time,' Frankie insisted.
'We could speak to Aaron's brother first and then decide,' Dov offered, looking between the two women and trying not to shrink before their ferocious expressions he knew were directed at each other and not him. 'I checked Aaron's Facebook and they're not friends. Aaron is openly contemptuous of his brother. His whole family in fact. He refers to his brother as Danny the do-gooder.'
'It's worth a shot,' Frankie said, 'we need to find out more about his relationship with Monique. How long ago did she die?
'Four months,' Dov said.
'So, right before Alison and Elena were killed. Could Monique's death have been the trigger that set off this killing spree?'
'I still say we wait until we gather more information. If Trent is our killer we don't want to alert him that we're on to him. How do we know that Danny Schmidt is not in contact with him,' Elaine said, ignoring Frankie's question.
'There is no evidence they're in contact on any of the social media platforms Trent uses. Besides Danny's a pastor at Unity Church. He followed in his father's footsteps,' Dov explained. 'The Church preaches clean living. Its followers don't drink or smoke. And Pastor Danny and his wife Ellie see it as their mission to work with the homeless and victims of domestic abuse.'
'My, you have been thorough in your research and in such a short time too,' Elaine commented, the sardonic edge to her voice belying the apparently complimentary words.
Dov looked over at Frankie quizzically but she gave the slightest of shrugs. She couldn't explain why Elaine was being so intransigent. Surely the threat to Gail was even more reason for the Superintendent to follow up a lead like this. Was Elaine so fearful of Gail being dragged back into the investigation she was blocking any lines of inquiry that could lead to Gail going undercover to entrap Trent.
'Danny might be a good person to start with,' Frankie said mildly, not wanting to put Elaine offside. 'If he points the finger at Trent then we should start questioning his work colleagues, his boss, former teachers, classmates. Find out more about what he was doing when he was in America. Talk to Monique's relatives.'
Elaine waited a beat before replying 'Very well,' she said finally, 'I want you and Detective Epstein to question Danny. No need to alert the rest of the team just yet, although I suppose Officers Price and McNally already know.'
'A little,' conceded Frankie.
Elaine raised an eyebrow. 'God knows what binds all of you into this insular and incestuous fellowship,' she said, 'I suppose we have Sergeant Shaw to thank for that. Really, your loyalty needs to extend beyond this group to the whole force.'
'We're Gail's friends, of course we feel protective towards her,' Frankie said, and Dov blinked at her nerve in responding to Elaine's jab.
'And I'm her mother, Detective. Do you seriously think I don't care what happens to my daughter.'
…...
At 3.30pm Holly returned to her office. The intern interviews had taken a little longer than anticipated and she hoped Gail was okay with being left for so long. When she and Dr Carral had stopped briefly for a break at lunchtime, Sally had informed her that Detective Peck was having lunch with Rodney. She could just imagine how ruthless Gail would be in her torment of Rodney, not having completely let him off the hook for that bet in Chicago. Still Rodney didn't seem to mind Gail or her sometimes abrasive ways.
Holly rubbed a crick in her neck. God that last guy could talk and not much of what he said had any substance. Amazing how good some people looked on paper and how easily they were found wanting when they got to interview. Catching sight of Sally, she smiled and said, 'Gail in my office?'
Sally shook her. 'She must still be Dr Carlowski.'
'Oh,' Holly said, surprised, 'I'll just go let her know I'm finished.' She pointed awkwardly down the corridor in the direction of Rodney's office.
There was no one in Rodney's office, so Holly made her way down to the autopsy suites where she found Rodney preparing for an incoming body.
'An infant,' he said sadly, 'possibly cot death.'
Holly nodded sympathetically. Autopsies of children, especially babies, were always hard.
'Um, do you know where Gail went,' she asked, her need to find Gail overriding her guilt at not asking Rodney more about the case.
'Oh, she got a call from her brother. Went to visit him in the hospital.'
…...
Pastor Danny had Aaron's good looks but where his brother was dissolute and conceited, Danny was avuncular and genial. He was heavier-set with a rounder face and there was a warmth to his eyes that suggested he'd be just as likely to soothe your troubles by enveloping you in a bear hug as preach a sermon.
'Trent was a cold fish. Don't get me wrong, he was charming and he used that charm to get himself out of trouble on numerous occasions, but it was like he lacked empathy. He didn't actually care what impact his actions had on others. I know I shouldn't but I blame Trent for turning Aaron against the church,' Danny was telling Frankie and Dov.
'Why is that?' Frankie asked.
'Trent is very good at manipulating people and Aaron was in awe of him. He started hanging with Trent when he was 12 and he did anything Trent told him to, including skipping church. Most of Trent's friends were younger than him. They were wild, drinking, smoking pot. Aaron had a few run-ins with the police – mainly underage drinking, shoplifting, although once a bunch of them smashed up a kindergarten. Trent never got caught.'
'So is it likely Aaron would still be in touch with him?'
'It's possible. Trent left Toronto after he finished school and Aaron seemed to settle down for a bit. I got the feeling Trent dropped all his old friends when he moved away, but Aaron never came back to the church,' Danny said, shaking his head sadly.
'What about Monique? His step-mother.' Dov asked.
'They didn't have a good relationship. He had no other relatives so once his father Jim died, Monique was his sole parent and I think she resented that. She wanted to an actress and it was like Trent got in the way.'
'How do you know all this?' Frankie asked, 'I get the feeling you weren't that close to Trent.'
'My parents offered Monique pastoral care after Jim Savage died. He was a member of the church. Mom organized a few play dates for me and Trent, had him for sleepovers. We were the same age so she thought we'd get along. But even then I got the feeling that he saw people as objects, as a means to an end. He was a compulsive liar too.'
'How so?' Frankie said.
'When I was nine I saw him take my father's pocketknife and he look me straight in the eye and denied it. That sort of thing happened on numerous occasions.'
'So you said his relationship with Monique wasn't good. Did she mistreat him?' Frankie prodded.
'As I said, he was wild, even from a young age. She couldn't control him. My mother discovered Monique used to lock him in a room in the basement at night. She went away for a weekend and left him there. After that, we had Trent stay over more often, but then as he got older he drifted away. I was kind of relieved. He had my parents convinced he was a good guy, but I witnessed a different side and I could see the impact he was having on Aaron.'
Frankie nodded. She didn't have a degree in phycology but the way Danny described Trent he had all the characteristics of a psychopath.
'If you do speak to Aaron, we'd appreciate it if you don't tell him about this conversation,' she said.
'We don't talk. I've tried over the years to get him to come to family occasions, you know birthdays, christenings, that sort of thing, but he's not interested. Do you think Aaron and Trent are involved in these murders?'
'We're just checking out all leads at this stage,' Frankie said.
'Okay. If you need to speak to my parents they've retired to Kingston.'
'Thanks,' Frankie said, 'and if you think of anything else here's my card.'
Danny took the card and studied it for a moment. He seemed to be struggling with something before he spoke again.
'Trent was accused of raping a girl when we were seniors. The girl ended up withdrawing the charges but apparently Aaron was there.'
'He also assaulted the girl?' asked Dov.
'No, he watched and did nothing,' Danny said, the disgust plain in his voice.
…...
Gail looked at herself in the mirror. After rummaging through her closet she found a pair of yoga pants and a tank top. It would have to do. Her running shoes were a bit worse for the wear but she had told Trent she wasn't a gym junkie and this just proved it.
…...
At 5pm Frankie and Dov were back at the station filling in Elaine on their conversation with Danny when Frankie got the call from Holly.
'Gail left here at about 2pm to visit Steve and I haven't heard from her since. She's not picking up her cell phone,' Holly explained to Frankie
'Have you tried Steve's phone?'
'I don't have his number.'
'Okay, I'm with the Superintendent. I'll get her to ring him and I'll call you right back. It's probably nothing to worry about. Maybe she just turned the phone off while she's in the hospital,' said Frankie trying to be reassuring but knowing that Gail was unlikely to have done that given the circumstances.
Elaine looked at Frankie questioningly and Frankie quickly explained why Holly had called.
'I doubt Gail would be at the hospital,' Elaine said, her brow creased in concern, 'My husband is spending the afternoon with Steve. Gail and her father go out of their way to avoid seeing each other, but I'll call him'
Frankie and Dov waited while Elaine put the call through. They listened as Elaine asked if Bill had seen Gail, and then said impatiently 'does it matter why, Bill. It is important. Has Steve seen her at all today?'
Once she disconnected, Elaine turned to them. 'She hasn't been to the hospital,' Elaine said and Frankie could tell she was rattled.
…...
Trent greeted Gail with an easy smile.
'Glad to see you took up my offer,' he said smoothly.
'Well, I'm not going to guarantee that I'll come back after today. The gym is not really my thing.'
'I can see that,' Trent said, looking at Gail and her outfit appraisingly.
'Do I need to sign in?' Gail asked.
'Nah, the introductory session is free. Let's start by measuring your cardiovascular fitness,' Trent said leading Gail away from the reception desk to a small room just off the main part of the gym. As he opened the door, another gym instructor walked past and gave Trent a wink.
'How come you get all the beautiful blonde ones?' he said.
'Just lucky,' Trent replied.
'Yeah, I don't know what you do to them, but they never seem to sign up for any more sessions,' the instructor teased.
Fuck, thought Gail, maybe this was a really, really stupid idea.
