Disclaimer: I do not own Rookie Blue or any of the characters….
Sorry I'm updating this later than I said I would. It was not from lack of trying. It is another long chapter so that might make up for it :)
Thank you to the people who continue to read, fav and follow. Nice to hear from the guest who has just discovered and is liking this fic. It's great that people are still stumbling across it. A big thank you too to everyone who posts a review. It is so lovely when people take the time to leave a comment. I always love to hear what you think! It definitely provides incentive to keep writing.
To the guest who wants to see Gail in the supportive role that will happen once she and Holly are done with this case. I won't give anything else away though! And to the other guest, Part 2 of this story starts about four months after Holly returns to Toronto.
Snarcasm, just like in the last chapter of Freedom's Just Another Word, Holly will do some sticking up for Gail. Hopefully it's different enough to what you've done in your story.
Apologies for mistakes - I've done my best to proof this.
Hope you enjoy this.
….
By the time they left the station it was late and Gail didn't actually have the heart to make Chloe go to Dov's place. When she and Holly had appeared in the detectives' pen, Chloe had given them a meaningful look as if she knew exactly what they'd been up to in the interrogation room. It flustered Gail a little and she stammered something out about finding Holly in the corridor and how she needed a ride home, which only seemed to increase the knowing expression on Chloe's face.
'Courier sick?' Chloe inquired innocently.
Gail reddened, cursing her fair skin and the fact that she'd told Chloe about that one night when Chloe got her drunk on apple schnapps of all things. They were already three sheets to the wind, as Chloe so quaintly termed it, when Gail, still sober enough to use her phone, decided to google cocktails that could be made with schnapps. Her delight, when she stumbled across one called 'Drunk in the Graveyard', was immense. She had that huge grin on her face like a child discovering something for the first time, that mixture of eagerness and glee that, even in her inebriated state, had a guilelessness to it that made it impossible to resist. And like a child Gail insisted they make the cocktail at once, in fact wouldn't let it go until Chloe had agreed.
Drunk in the Graveyard consisted of apple schnapps, blueberry schnapps, vodka and rum and a bunch of exotic liquors as well as cranberry and orange juices. Although the way Gail made it, it was mostly alcohol with a bit of juice splashed into the mix. It had necessitated a rather unsteady trip to the liquor shop, which fortunately was walking distance from Gail's house, particularly as a good amount of schnapps had already been consumed. It was when they were both single. Chloe recently separated from Dov and nursing a broken heart and Gail certain she would never see the love of her life again. Which is how, now well and truly drunk, she had described Holly. Chloe had beamed and then made some weird little clucking noises of sympathy before clapping her hands together and saying 'I knew you two where meant to be together'.
When Gail woke in the morning, her head pounding from a monster hangover and her mouth dry and tasting bitter and grimy like an ashtray, even though she didn't smoke, in fact hated smoking, she dimly recalled her confession to Chloe about the interrogation room kisses. Worse still, she was fairly certain she'd spent a great deal of the remainder of the night saying 'I fucking hate San Francisco' or variations of that. Groaning, Gail had buried her head under her pillow. She just hoped Chloe was too drunk to remember. When Chloe didn't mention anything over the next couple of days, Gail assumed she was safe. Still she had a distinct memory of Chloe gushing 'oh, how romantic', when she'd got to the bit about Holly saying the courier was sick. Clearly Chloe had saved that particular tidbit for a special occasion when she could cause Gail maximum embarrassment.
However, Holly laughed at Chloe's comment, completely unperturbed. Gail realized that shouldn't surprise her. She guessed exchanging confidences with friends wasn't unusual for Holly. Besides, it was better that Chloe thought they were just kissing in the interrogation room than doing what Holly clearly had in mind. Since they had got back together, nothing much seemed to faze Holly, except if Gail was in danger and hadn't that always been the case. Holly was happy a lot of the time and Gail found it infectious, which was another novel thing to chalk up to this relationship.
As Gail reasoned this all through, Holly started asking Chloe regular questions about how it felt to be out of uniform and how the review of the surveillance footage was going and became quite excited when she heard they had spotted the killer.
'Well, unless it's some guy who's been duped into dumping the suitcase,' Gail said, 'but from the way he's hiding his face I'd say it's the killer and he knows he's on camera.'
Holly had insisted on seeing the footage then. After viewing it the first time with Gail and Chloe pointing out when the killer came into the frame, and how you could tell from his build and the way he walked that he was male, how his trousers were the same as the ones worn by the bus drivers, and outlining Chloe's theory about the pink suitcase, Holly asked to watch it a second time without interruption. On the third viewing she paused the video as the man hefted the suitcase into the locker.
'Look,' she said, 'he's wearing gloves.'
'Damn, so he is,' Gail said, 'you're probably not going to get any fingerprints off that suitcase.'
Holly shook her head.
'He's got that hood pulled down so far his face is almost completely hidden. You can't even tell his ethnicity.'
'Our media unit has been fielding calls about this all afternoon,' Gail said, 'I'm in half a mind to release this footage to the media. See if anyone in the terminal noticed him.'
'Maybe you should,' Holly said.
'And be inundated with thousands of calls from idiots who weren't even in the vicinity of the terminal when the killer dumped the bag, but a year ago put their Aunt Betsy on the bus to Montreal and thought there were some shady types hanging about. And it's probably nothing, but just in case they thought we should know, because you never know. After that they'll ask if there's a reward for providing information. And then there are the ones who'll claim to have been at the terminal two days ago and to have seen the killer, even spoken to him. It will all sound quite plausible until we check out their story and find that they were actually in a session with their therapist discussing their delusional disorder.'
Holly chuckled. 'You could have just said no, Gail.'
A small smile indicated that Gail got the reference to that day in the lab when Christian was missing.
'It's hard to get the personnel for something like that. We usually only do it as a last resort if none of our other leads pan out,' Chloe explained.
'But we can show this footage to the staff at the terminal see if they recognize him,' Gail added, 'which they may well do if he's a bus driver.'
'Wait, if this guy was so careful to hide his face, why wear those pants? They immediately identify him as a driver,' Holly pointed out.
'Unless, the pants are a disguise to throw us off,' Chloe suggested.
'Nah, I still think nothing about this feels that thought through,' Gail said, 'what if he kills the victim, panics about what to do because he's due at work and so has the bright idea of stuffing her in a suitcase and leaving it in a locker. Then he gets on a bus and drives out of there. And he had to wear his uniform because there wasn't enough time to change.'
'It's possible,' Chloe conceded, 'that means we need to look at drivers who clocked on not long after the body was dumped.'
'Yep, that would be a good place to start.'
'What if there was some urgency to get rid of the body,' Holly said, 'some of those bus drivers travel long distances and are on the road for several days. What if he couldn't risk leaving the body at the crime scene, especially if he was scheduled to be on the road for sometime.'
'Of course,' Gail said excitedly, 'that could narrow the search even more. We need to look at drivers rostered to be away from Toronto overnight or longer.'
'Maybe the killer even planned on collecting the suitcase on his return and finding a better place to dump the body,' Holly suggested.
'That's possible too,' Gail said, 'the terminal manger had to override the locker to open it. The locker wasn't due to expire for another 22 hours. We need to look at drivers who were due back at the terminal before the locker was due to expire. So roughly midday tomorrow.'
'Is it worth checking the surveillance footage,' Chloe said, 'see if the killer comes back to retrieve the suitcase.'
'Yeah, but this has been all over the news and the crime scene tape is still blocking off the walkway. I doubt he'd risk coming back,' Gail said and then yawned.
'We should get you home,' Holly said softly. Standing, she reached out her hand to pull Gail up.
Which is how the three of them found themselves sitting around Gail's kitchen table drinking chamomile tea.
'It will help us sleep and switch off, stop the brain ticking over,' Chloe said as she placed the cups in front of them.
Holly had nodded in agreement.
'Hippies,' Gail couldn't stop herself saying.
Holly had given her that lopsided smile and then of course Gail had to lean across and kiss her, even though Price was there. It was just on the lips but Gail lingered long enough for it to be somewhat more than chaste. See how the Disney Princess likes that, she thought. However when she leaned back in her chair, Gail saw that Chloe was beaming at them like a benevolent ruler watching over her subjects.
'What?' Gail demanded.
'Nothing,' Chloe shrugged her shoulders, but then couldn't hold back, 'you're just so cute.'
Holly stifled a laugh and Gail scowled.
'Hippies,' she said again, 'and I'm not cute, Price.'
This time both Chloe and Holly laughed indulgently.
'Yeah, Gail you're totally bad ass.'
'Definitely,' Holly agreed, taking Gail's hand. It was then that she noticed the bruising on Gail's knuckles. 'Oh my god, Gail. What have you done to your hand?' Holly's face was creased with concern.
'Nothing.' Gail shrugged and tried to pull her hand away, but Holly wouldn't let her.
'It's quite red and swollen,' Holly said as she began to examine the hand carefully. 'How did this happen?' Her voice was firm but gentle.
'It was nothing,' Gail said dismissively.
'Gail,' Holly said warningly.
'Oh, alright. It came in contact with the glove compartment,' Gail huffed.
Holly narrowed her eyes, clearly not satisfied with this explanation.
'We overheard the interns talking about Gail and her professionalism. Dr Wilson made some assumptions about the Peck name,' Chloe supplied.
'The jackass,' Holly said, her lips drawn in an angry line. She turned back to Gail and her expression immediately softened, 'I'm sorry honey. I did talk to him. I hoped he'd let it go.'
Gail shrugged again, but Holly could tell she wasn't as an unaffected by Wilson as she was trying to make out. Well, the bruised hand was proof of that.
'We need to get some ice on this.'
'Isn't it too late,' Gail said.
'No, anyway I'm invested in keeping these hands in good shape,' Holly smiled and brought the injured hand to her lips and kissed it softly.
'Holly,' Gail hissed, making exaggerated eye movements in Chloe's direction.
'Please, Gail,' Chloe said, handing Holly an ice pack she had retrieved from the freezer, 'I'm so shocked.'
Gail rolled her eyes.
'So did anything happen at the scene to get Wilson so out of sorts?' Holly asked, as she placed the ice pack across Gail's knuckles.
'Nope,' Gail said with finality.
'He heard, well we all heard, Gail speaking to you. And then she took the photo and sent it to you. He seemed unhappy about that. I guess it could have looked like Gail was talking to someone unconnected to the case. There was a fair amount of flirtatious banter on Gail's end.'
'I was not flirting,' Gail said, sounding a tiny bit outraged at the suggestion, 'I was just explaining why I had to cancel our plans.'
'It wasn't exactly the way you'd speak to a colleague.'
'I often banter playfully with the people I work with,' Gail insisted.
'Uh, no you don't Gail,' Holly said, giving her a lopsided smile, 'at least I've never you heard you speak to your colleagues that way'
'Oh whatever, I guess so,' Gail flapped her hand, as if to move on from the topic.
Holly smiled again. Gail really was quite adorable when forced to concede a point. 'Wilson overreacted,' Holly said, 'he's been here a week. He should ask questions before jumping to conclusions.'
'Exactly what I told him.'
'Gail you didn't, uh, you spoke to him about this?' Holly said, imagining all the ways Gail would have torn strips off Wilson and thinking it a miracle that the intern was still in one piece after Gail left the morgue.
'Holly why are you looking at me like that? I was courteous.'
'In that sickly sweet deadly assassin way of hers,' Chloe said.
Gail rolled her eyes again. 'Is he going to be a problem?' she asked.
'God, I hope not.' This time it was Holly who yawned and Gail suggested it was time to call it a night.
Despite Holly's amorous intent in the interrogation room, by the time they made it to bed they were too exhausted to do anything other than pull each other close. Yet in that moment the presence of the other was enough. Gail relished the feeling, the comforting weight of Holly curled around her, one arm circling her waist and their legs entwined.
For a moment Gail couldn't decide where her body ended and Holly's began. It was like an invisible charge flowed between them. This was an entirely new feeling for her. Pecks were, after all supposed to be entirely self-reliant. It wasn't that she and Holly were suddenly like one person, somehow blurred. No, they were still quite distinct and yet there was this synergy that before Holly would have freaked Gail out. Made her jump out of that tree. Damn, Gail thought, why do I keep using that stupid analogy?
As Holly pulled her closer, Gail inhaled that scent that was so distinctively Holly. That mix of cinnamon and vanilla and something she couldn't quite pinpoint, but which was heady and piquant and full of promise. Enticing yet somehow soothing. It settled over Gail and with it a calm, a sense of rightness, as if order had been returned to her world.
Gail had never been particularly attracted to the smell of the men she'd been with. She hadn't minded it. Just it wasn't this. With women it was different. Not that any of the women she had slept with had the same smell as Holly. A few came close, but with Holly it was like another layer of arousal, another part of what drew Gail inexorably to her. It was probably pheromones. Holly would know, but Gail decided against asking her because she liked the idea that it was just another sign that she and Holly were meant to be. Then Gail's last thought as she gave into sleep was that she really was a giant sap but then who wouldn't be if they were lucky enough to have Holly as their girlfriend.
Gail woke to a trail of kisses on her neck. They started gentle and light, barely a brush against her skin and then as she stirred became more insistent until they were hot, opened mouthed and somewhat wanton. Holly was pressed up against Gail, in much the same position as when they had fallen asleep the night before, although now her hand had moved from Gail's waist to the underside of her breast, her fingers delicately teasing. It was, Gail decided, the most delicious way to be woken up. She moaned a little and pushed herself back into Holly.
Taking this as encouragement, Holly moved her hand downwards and beneath the band of Gail's sleep shorts. Gail shifted back, almost reflexively, so her ass was pressed against Holly's center, pleased when she heard Holly's sharp intake of breath at the contact. Not to be outdone, Holly slipped her hand down further, smiling as she felt the wetness between Gail's legs.
'Holly, I can't do this,' Gail breathed out, but made no attempt to pull away.
'Can't,' Holly bit down gently on Gail's earlobe, 'are you sure about that.'
'Oh god, Holly. I can't. I told Chloe we need to be back at the station by 7.30,' Gail said, her words labored as she tried to ignore the feeling that was rapidly building up inside her, the anticipation of what was to come because she knew all too well the effect Holly had on her. Already she was aware of the coil of excitement low in her belly and of the way her skin was literally shimmering - she could think of no other word for it - at Holly's touch. Then there was the steadily increasing throb of her clit, which couldn't be ignored, which in fact was fast threatening to become the most delicious of aches needing relief.
'I'm the lead detective on this case. At least until Frankie gets back, I can't,' Gail's words were cut off as Holly pushed her flat against the bed and moved to straddle her.
As Holly sat upright, she pulled off her t-shirt. Gail's protests were immediately silenced by the glorious sight above her. Holly looked so beautiful. Curvaceous yet toned, with that lopsided smile and those brown, brown eyes hooded with lust and want and love. All Gail wanted to do in that moment was fuck her. To touch and kiss those perfect breasts, to take those dark nipples between her lips and then bite down gently so Holly would moan and pull at her hair, and then Gail would press lingering kisses to those impossibly flat abs before moving further down.
Gail smiled at that thought.
'Did you just lick your lips?' Holly asked, her tone amused and teasing.
'Uh huh,' Gail nodded. No use denying it, even if the action was involuntarily, even if she'd been unaware that she'd licked her lips until Holly drew attention to it. 'It's your fault.'
'Is that right?' Holly smirked, running her hands up Gail's sides to her breasts.
Gail shuddered a little then.
'I still can't do this.'
'I'll be quick,' Holly said, dipping her head down to kiss Gail and finding no resistance there, in fact finding Gail eagerly returning the kiss.
As they continued to kiss, Gail pulled Holly down flat against her. It was then that they heard the knock on the door. Tentative at first and then louder and then the door was opening. They both froze, Holly still astride Gail and Gail with her hands now on Holly's ass.
'Sorry, sorry,' Chloe said, 'I'm not looking'
'What the fuck, Price,' Gail said, 'this better be good.'
'Yeah, Gail sorry but the Superintendent is downstairs and insists on seeing you. If I hadn't stopped her, she would have come up here herself.'
'Fuck. It's only just past 6.30.' Gail groaned. She threw her head back against the pillow. 'Okay, tell her I'll be down in a minute.'
Holly sat up again and Gail moved her hands to her hips.
'I'm sorry,' Gail twisted her mouth in annoyance, 'my mother always has lousy timing. Can we see each other tonight?'
'Yes, we already plan to,' Holly titled her head to one side, 'have you forgotten it's Lisa's birthday. She's invited us out to go drinking and dancing.'
'Ugh,' Gail bounced her head back on the pillow again, 'why couldn't you have stayed in San Francisco until tomorrow. Then I wouldn't have to go.'
'It won't be that bad,' Holly reassured Gail, 'and how about we stay for just long enough to be polite and then you can have your wicked way with me.'
Gail looked up at Holly's smiling face and grinned back.
'I'm holding you to that promise, Stewart.'
…..
Elaine was seated at the kitchen table and tapping her foot impatiently. The wood floor amplified the sound of each tap so that when Gail walked into the kitchen she wondered where the hammering sound was coming from.
'You weren't up,' Elaine said by way of greeting. It was a statement not a question and the censure in it was plain.
'We had a late night,' Gail started to explain and then stopped herself. Fuck it. She wasn't going to react defensively to her mother.
'When I was lead detective on a case I always made sure I was the first one at the station and the last to leave. I would have expected you to be at 15 by now.'
'Well, if you expected that, why are you here mother, and not at the station?'
Elaine pursed her lips. 'Well, clearly I know you too well.'
'If there is no other reason for you being here other than being my personal alarm clock, I really should get going to 15.'
Elaine laughed. 'I forgot about your sharp tongue. How does Holly find it?'
Gail's eyes widened. 'How does Holly…' she trailed off. Should she tell Elaine that Holly found it most agreeable. In fact more than once may have referred to Gail's tongue as very talented. That Gail could do things with her tongue that made Holly come over and over and that if Elaine hadn't interrupted she would be putting it to good use right now. Somehow, though, she doubted Elaine really wanted to know any of these things.
In the silence that followed as Gail stopped speaking, Elaine must have realized how what she had said might be construed because she flushed, her face suddenly quite red.
'Well, um the reason I'm here is to let you know I'm going to visit Steve for a few days.' Elaine said, with considerably less composure than usual.
'Yeah, he mentioned that,' Gail said, wondering why her mother would bother making a special trip just to tell her this.
'Well Gail, hard as you find it to believe, I keep an eye out for you. This is your first case as lead detective. The unusual circumstances in which the body was found make it a very high profile investigation, and with Detective Anderson away until the end of the week, and Detective Price being so inexperienced, I'm wondering if someone more senior should be called in to work with you.'
Here it comes, Gail thought. Elaine didn't believe she was good enough to head an investigation. Couldn't risk that she'd fuck it up and sully the Peck name, especially as her mother had worked so hard in policing circles to restore faith in the Peck brand. She guessed she should be thankful Elaine had come to tell her first and hadn't just appointed someone over her head. There was that at least.
'Who are you proposing?' Gail asked.
'Well, Swarek's been at a loose end ever since he was transferred to 27 and he knows all of you, so I think we should second him, at least until Detective Anderson's return.'
'Swarek?' Gail said.
She hadn't been too concerned when Swarek got a promotion and moved to 27. Andy didn't like it, of course. Swarek wasn't all bad, but Gail found he could be somewhat arrogant and overbearing when working a case. Never a great listener, he wasn't much of a team player, more interested in acting on his gut feeling than getting input from his team or in methodical police work. Even though the betrayal had hurt at the time, with hindsight Gail thought Andy might have been better off with Nick. At least he was good in bed. If Swarek was anything like he was at work, it would be all about himself. Still, she guessed Andy seemed like she was happy.
'Yes,' Elaine said impatiently, 'Sergeant Shaw agreed he was a good choice, but we decided I should speak with you first.'
Interesting, thought Gail, was her mother offering her the option of refusing?
'Actually, Superintendent,' Gail said, taking a punt. She deliberately used Elaine's rank to convey her seriousness, even though it seemed ridiculous to be so formal when she was standing here barefoot in sweatpants and a t-shirt. 'I'm confident that I can lead this investigation. Detective Price and I have made a lot of headway in a short time and I expect we'll make an arrest before Detective Anderson's return.'
God, she hoped she wouldn't live to regret that last statement.
'Very well,' Elaine said, surprising Gail at how quickly she caved, 'but if you need to talk over anything, you have my number.'
Gail nodded, doing her best to conceal her astonishment. It actually sounded like a genuine offer.
'Thank you,' she said quietly.
Elaine nodded briskly.
Holly appeared in the kitchen then. Freshly showered and dressed for work, her hair pulled back into a ponytail.
'Holly' Elaine greeted her, 'You got back yesterday.' The way Elaine said it she wasn't expecting an answer. Since Holly had returned to Toronto, she'd reluctantly become used to Elaine keeping tabs on her as well as Gail.
'Yes,' Holly nodded, 'it took longer than expected, but we got a conviction.'
'The defense should have known better than to question your findings.'
'I guess that's their job, isn't it.'
'True,' Elaine said.
'I need to shower,' Gail said, 'mother I'll see you in few days.'
'Yes, of course and Gail, I meant what I said. If you need to talk.'
After Gail left the room, Holly offered Elaine coffee, which she declined, saying she wasn't staying and in any case she was trying to cut down because her blood pressure was a little high. Holly had concurred that that was probably sensible and set about making coffee for herself.
'So are you still living at that plastic surgeon's place around the corner?' Elaine inquired.
'Yes,' Holly said, even though she knew that Elaine was well aware she was.
When Lisa had announced that she had brought a place two streets away from Gail's house, Gail had been irritated. She didn't want Lisa in her neighborhood. Didn't want to run into her at the corner store or at the farmer's market on a Friday or see her out jogging in her $600 running shoes and her Stella McCartney print tights and the pink crop top that revealed more flesh than was strictly necessary or in fact comfortable for someone supposedly pounding the pavement. Didn't want to turn around in the liquor store, after paying for a six pack of beer and a bottle of tequila, to find Lisa with a case of French champagne and a disparagingly look.
However, when Lisa announced that she'd be sharing with Holly, Gail's reaction was very different. They were at Rachel's and it was Holly who was now feeling irritated. She'd asked Lisa to let her tell Gail about the move, not sure how her girlfriend would react.
'So perfect for a booty call,' Gail beamed after Lisa dropped the news, looking deliberately at the plastic surgeon to see if she had got a rise out of her.
Lisa said not one word but turned on her heel and left the room. A moment later, she returned with a typed sheet of paper.
'Holly can only move in if you two sign this contract.'
'What contract?' Holly asked.
'It says you agree not to have sex anywhere in the house except Holly's bedroom.'
Gail burst out laughing. 'What about when you're away, Lisa?' she asked.
'I do not want you two defiling my furniture or anywhere else in the house for that matter. I can barely bring myself to sit on that sofa,' Lisa gestured to the sofa where they were now seated, 'since you, since you know.' Lisa shook her head as if trying to erase an image from her head.
Gail laughed again. Holly smirked. Not that she didn't feel a little bad that Lisa had walked in on them, but god the sex had been amazing. Actually, who was she kidding? Sex with Gail was always amazing.
'So not even in the shower?' Gail persisted, 'behind closed doors.'
'No. Just Holly's bedroom.'
Gail turned to Holly. 'I don't know, Holly. Maybe you should reconsider moving in. Shower sex is one of our favorites. That's going to be tough to remove that from our repertoire.'
Holly had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing. Gail clearly had no intention of adhering to Lisa's demands but she wasn't going to let an opportunity to wind up Lisa pass.
'Oh, okay then,' Lisa huffed, 'the shower, but you have to keep the door closed and locked and the volume down.'
Now, back in Gail's kitchen, Holly smiled to herself as she remembered that conversation. Then she became aware that Elaine was saying something.
'Sorry,' Holly asked.
'I was saying, I don't understand why the two of you don't move in together. You are serious about one another, aren't you?'
'Oh, very serious, but we don't want to rush things.'
'Oh,' Elaine lifted an eyebrow skeptically.
'Anyway, dating is fun. There's a definite frisson that comes from not seeing your girlfriend everyday,' Holly said a little wickedly, 'I'm not sure if we're ready to give that up right now to settle down.'
'Oh,' Elaine said again, rising out of her chair, 'well, I should be leaving.'
For a moment Holly worried that she'd gone too far, but that fear was quickly replaced by mortification when Elaine spoke.
'In my experience sex can be just as thrilling when you get to wake up with the person you love every morning. There is the added advantage that it's always on tap. So to speak. You can act on the urge when you feel it. Not be left wanting.'
Jeez, Holly thought, did she have sexual frustration written all over her face. Was it that obvious to Elaine that her unannounced arrival had interrupted Holly and Gail just when they were about to get down and dirty after nearly two weeks apart? Was there anything Elaine didn't know or couldn't deduce?
None of the mothers of Holly's previous girlfriends had talked to her about sex, well at least not the sex she was having or not having with their daughters. Holly was also fairly certain her own mother had never felt the need to raise the issue with any of those girlfriends, even though Becca Stewart had been a free spirited hippy in the 1970s and prided herself on having remained open minded.
It occurred to Holly that Elaine might be deliberately messing with her. After all Elaine was notorious for her physiological warfare and, as Gail could attest, wasn't above playing mind games with her own family. If Elaine was now giving her the same treatment, maybe Holly should take it as a positive sign that she considered her part of the family. Was that even a positive thing, Holly wondered?
'Uhh, yeah. I guess there's that,' she finally said when the silence in the kitchen stretched a little long and it became apparent that Elaine was expecting a response.
'Well, if my daughter is anything like me, I imagine she has a voracious sexual appetite.'
Holly tried to stop it but it was too late and she simply couldn't hold it in. She did a spit take of the coffee she'd just then drunk. It was barely a sip, luckily. So only a little liquid was expelled. Holly hastily turned towards the kitchen counter, grabbing a dishcloth to wipe her face, her back now to Elaine.
'Well, I really must be going,' Elaine said, 'and dear, you missed a little coffee on your chin.'
…..
'I can't tell who it is, sorry,' the bus terminal manager shook his head apologetically, 'though he's definitely wearing the same trousers as the bus drivers.'
'Would it help to take another look?' Gail asked.
The manager shook his head. They'd already been through the surveillance footage three times.
'Most of the terminal staff, myself included don't know the drivers that well. Only about a third of them are based here in Toronto. The rest come from all over Canada. The drivers have their own break room too.'
'So it's possible our guy isn't from Toronto. That he brought the suitcase with him from whatever town or city he's based in,' Chloe said.
'True,' Gail sighed, 'that will make the job of finding him even harder.' She turned to the manager. 'You okay with us showing this footage to the staff who are here now?' She didn't need to ask, but the manager might be more cooperative if he thought he had a choice.
'Of course. You can use my office again for the interviews.'
'Thanks,' As Gail began to nod, her phone pinged with a text. 'It's Holly,' she explained to Chloe, 'she's got some results for us. Do you want to stay here with McNally and Diaz? Get a start on those interviews.'
'Happy too,' Chloe said, appreciating the trust Gail was showing in her by leaving her to run the interviews when she'd barely made detective.
'I'll stop by the station on the way to the morgue and give Robinson the surveillance footage from the bus bays. See if she's had any luck tracking down CCTV footage from the street.'
…..
Robinson didn't have good news for Gail.
'No cameras on that part of the street,' she said, 'there is one about 400 meters down from the entrance to the terminal walkway. Do you want me to get the footage? It shouldn't be too hard to spot a guy wheeling a pink suitcase. If that's the route he took.'
'Definitely worth a shot,' Gail agreed, sounding a little distracted.
Robinson noticed Gail was chewing her lip. If she had still been crushing on the detective, she would have found it adorable. She realized that Gail, rather than being distracted, was mulling something over.
'Shit, your right Robinson, a guy wheeling a pink suitcase would stand out,' Gail said suddenly, her voice animated, her face lit up in that way when a thought suddenly occurs to you. 'How would the drivers get to work? They can't park their cars at the terminal, and anyway they can be away for several days.'
'There's a subway at the end of the street.'
'Exactly. I bet most of them take the subway to work. See if you can get CCTV footage from the subway station as well the street. I'll ask Oliver if he can spare someone to help you. I need you to go through the surveillance of the bus bays as well.'
'No problem,' Robinson smiled.
Gail knew, now that Holly had filled her in on what she'd overheard at that award ceremony, about Robinson's crush. Not that Gail had picked up on it. These days, she was so wrapped up in Holly she didn't immediately notice when someone was interested in her. Didn't see the signs that in the past would have tipped her off. The smiles reserved just for her, the lingering looks, and the slight flush on the person's cheeks when Gail spoke to them, and sometimes even the stutter in their speech. Anna was acting quite normally, so Gail guessed she had moved on. She seemed like a good person. She was certainly a conscientious officer. Maybe Gail should see if Holly had a friend they could set Robinson up with. Sheesh, Gail shook her head, she really was turning into a sap, and it was all Holly's fault.
'Is there something the matter, Detective?' Robinson asked, noticing Gail shake her head.
'No, no. All good,' Gail replied, 'I'm going to the morgue.'
Robinson smiled. Was it slightly knowing, Gail wondered? It occurred to her, a little belatedly, that Robinson would think she brought up the morgue because she knew about the crush and wanted Robinson to know she was with Holly. It certainly hadn't been her intention to make the officer uncomfortable.
'To get some results. The toxicology and some other labs came in,' Gail explained, knowing it sounded awkward.
Robinson nodded.
'I'll get that footage from the subway.'
…
'Dr Stewart said she'll be down in a minute. Dr Carral wanted her for something,' Natasha explained.
They were standing in the same suite as that used for the autopsy less than 24 hours ago. There was no evidence of the postmortem. The stainless steel table in the center of the room and the benches lining the walls had been scrubbed clean, and all the instruments and other tools were neatly back in place. The body of the victim was safely stowed in one of the drawers of the refrigeration unit that took up one side of the room.
'So you here on your own,' Gail asked, 'where is Dr Wilson?'
'He went with Dr Carlowski to collect a DNA sample from a suspect at 27.'
Gail nodded again. She tried to think of something to say to Natasha. Really she wasn't very good at small talk, unless she was being snarky. That was her specialty. Gail wished Holly would show up and rescue her from having to make conversation.
'So,' Natasha finally spoke, 'you know Dr Stewart well. What's the best way to impress her?'
'I, uh,' Gail wasn't sure what to make of this question. Did Natasha realize she and Holly were together and, if she didn't, what exactly did she mean by impressing Holly. 'Uh, like anyone Dr Stewart appreciates hard work,' Gail said, deciding to take Natasha's question at face value.
'Oh, yeah I can see that. So this is your first case as the lead detective.'
Gail nodded.
'Well, if you need someone to talk the forensics over with, I'd be happy to help out.'
That was the second time today someone had offered to talk over the case with her, but Gail had a sinking feeling that Natasha's offer might come with more string attached than Elaine's.
'Thanks but Holly always makes herself very available,' Gail said, and as Natasha arched an eyebrow, she added 'to discuss cases.'
'I bet she does.'
They were silent again. Damn, where was Holly, Gail thought as the silence began to feel uncomfortable.
'So,' Gail said, finally settling on a safe topic,' how are you settling into Toronto?'
'Great. It's an amazing city. Not that I've had that much free time to explore it now I've started this internship.'
'Well it's good you have a cousin here.'
'Been asking around about me Detective?' Natasha said, moving a little closer to Gail, her voice suddenly lower.
'Lisa mentioned it,' Gail said, thinking surely Natasha's not flirting with me. 'I just meant it's good to have someone to show you around.'
'Is that an offer, Detective,' Natasha's voice had definitely taken a coquettish turn and she leaned even closer into Gail's personal space.
'I, um,' Gail edged back away from Natasha and towards the door.
Maybe the best option was to leave and go in search of Holly. It felt a lot like Natasha was flirting with her. Which was altogether confusing. Gail thought if anything the intern was interested in Holly. She'd been sitting fairly close to Holly at that bar. Then again surely Natasha must now realize she and Holly were together. Although that whole thing at the bar had been such a clusterfuck, Natasha could well have assumed that she and Holly were exes, especially given Gail's odd behavior that night. Maybe Natasha was just one of those flirty kind of people. Maybe she acted like this with everyone.
'A woman like you,' Natasha paused and let her eyes wander the length of Gail's body, 'I imagine you know your way around.' Natasha paused again and then smiled and Gail had a sudden flash of a wolf. 'Toronto I mean.'
'I, um, I'm going to see what's holding up Holly,' Gail said hurriedly, moving away as if she'd been singed.
With a measure of relief, she saw Holly standing in the doorway. Gail wondered how long she'd been there and if she'd overheard Natasha flirting, because who was she kidding the intern had definitely been flirting with her.
Holly had indeed heard the final part of the conversation. If she hadn't been so sure of Gail anyway, the almost comical look of confusion and annoyance on Gail's face would have been enough to reassure her that Gail had absolutely no interest in Natasha. She sighed inwardly. Just her luck to land two interns who in different ways were out to get Gail.
'Doctor Stewart,' Gail said, sounding exceedingly pleased to see her.
'Detective,' Holly smiled widely at Gail, 'I have a feeling you're going to be very happy with what I have for you.' She was holding a familiar blue folder in her hand, although Gail guessed that this time it did actually contain a real report.
'Oh,' Gail said, stopping herself from making a flirty comeback, conscious as she was of Natasha watching them.
'The toxicology tests showed the victim had a high dose of barbiturates – pentobarbital - in her system. Enough to knock her out. As well, she'd been drinking. Her BAC, blood-alcohol concentration was 0.08, above the legal limit. Even without the barbiturates her co-ordination, reaction time and judgment would have been impaired. I think it's safe to say she was unconscious when she was strangled.'
'Because of the combination of the two?'
'Yes, like alcohol, barbiturates depress the central nervous system. Taken in large doses with alcohol, will very likely lead to unconsciousness.'
'Barbiturates, alcohol,' Gail blew out a breath, 'that sounds planned. It doesn't fit with the way the body was dumped.'
'Unless the killer hadn't thought that part through. Maybe he'd worked out how to kill her, but hadn't then considered how to dispose of the body,' Holly said.
'That doesn't really make sense. If you're going to go as far as to plan a murder, to obtain pentobarbital to drug the victim, wouldn't you also figure out what to do with the body?'
'Unless, for some reason he murdered her earlier than he planned to,' Natasha offered, 'maybe something happened that made him kill her before he worked out how to dispose of the body.'
'That's possible,' Gail said, 'nothing about this fits the usual pattern. If he drugged her it suggests the murder was premeditated, yet strangling suggests he acted in a rage.'
'There were no finger prints on the plastic bag, and the only ones we found on the suitcase belonged to the manager and janitor at the bus terminal,' Holly said, 'it would be easy to wipe the case clean, and you'd expect most people to know to do that even if the murder was unplanned, but the fact that the plastic bag had no prints suggests he was aware enough to wear gloves.'
'Which again points to it being premeditated,' Gail sighed.
'Well, an examination of the stomach contents showed the victim ate pizza right before she died so she may have even shared a meal with the killer,' Holly pointed out.
'Which means she didn't see him as a threat, that it was someone known to her,' Gail said, 'so she probably also had a few drinks with him too. That's the most likely way he drugged her – by spiking her drinks?'
'Yes,' Holly nodded, 'and this is where it gets interesting. We found a hair that doesn't belong to the victim on the cord used to strangle her. We were lucky it included its bulb, or root, because it contains live cells so we were able to find DNA. Test showed it belonged to a male who was closely related to the victim, possibly a half-brother or cousin.'
'So the victim could be related to the killer,' Gail mused, 'or maybe she lived with a male relative. He owns the bathrobe and the killer murdered her using the cord. Which would mean she was murdered in her own home.'
'All possible, but why hasn't that relative come forward to report her missing,' Holly said. Her expression sympathetic because rather than bringing them any closer to the killer, the forensic tests had just thrown up more questions and more possibilities.
Gail frowned. 'If we could just identify this woman, then all of this,' she waved her hand at the report Holly was still holding, 'might mean something.'
'There is one more thing,' Holly said, 'we found dog hair on her clothing. It looks like it's from a least two different dogs.'
…..
After that Gail returned to the terminal to assist Chloe, Andy and Chris with the interviews. It was slow going. Nobody claimed to recognize the killer or thought he looked the least bit familiar. The rest of the day passed in a frustratingly similar fashion. By late afternoon they had interviewed most of the terminal staff and over half the drivers on the list head office had supplied, but all of them appeared to check out.
The four returned to the station in the late afternoon. Robinson and Duncan, who had been assigned to assist her, hadn't fared any better with the surveillance footage.
'So he didn't take the subway to work,' Gail said.
'Looks that way,' Robinson agreed.
'We'll have to widen the search then. Maybe the killer did drive to work or took a bus. Robinson, Moore can you locate parking lots within walking distance of the terminal and get a list of the local buses servicing the area.'
'I guess we know what we'll be doing tomorrow,' Chris said.
'Yep,' Gail said, 'more interviews. We'll need to talk to parking attendants and drivers on the local bus routes. Hopefully we can also catch the rest of the drivers in the next two days. Surely someone must have noticed a guy wheeling with a pink suitcase. It's not something you see everyday.'
….
'So Gail haven't seen you around for a while,' the woman said. Her jet black hair was shaved on both sides, and the rest was fashioned into a high quiff. The sleeves of her denim shirt were rolled up revealing one arm covered in colorful tattoos of such exquisite detail and beauty that Holly could tell they were the work of an artist of considerable talent. There was no doubt about it. The woman herself was stunning. Holly had to admit it, even though she didn't particularly like the way the woman was looking at Gail. Wasn't it enough that she had to deal with her intern making overtures to Gail, but now this?
She and Gail were standing at the bar in the club Lisa had chosen for her birthday celebration. Clearly they were the first to arrive. Somehow Gail for all her rebelliousness couldn't kick the punctuality habit that had been drummed into her by her parents.
'Oh, you know, I've been busy.' Gail said noncommittally to the woman, waving her hand around awkwardly.
'Yeah,' the woman raised a finely sculptured eyebrow, 'too busy to party?'
'Well, you know,' Gail shrugged.
She made no attempt to introduce Holly. In fact Holly had the distinct impression that Gail had no intention of making introductions anytime soon, so she stepped forward. 'Hi, I'm Holly,' she said.
'Hey, Lea,' the woman said with a curt nod, before turning back to Gail. 'So got any plans for tonight. Couple of us are heading back to my place if you want to come.'
'Thanks, but Holly and I are here to meet some people,' Gail said.
Lea looked from Holly to Gail with sudden understanding. 'Oh I see, sure. Another time.'
Once she left, Holly turned to Gail. 'You totally had sex with her.'
'Only once.' Gail admitted.
It wasn't exactly reassuring. The word 'only' suggested there had been more than one opportunity. Holly knew she shouldn't be peeved. She'd gone to San Francisco. They had broken up. Of course Gail would sleep with other women and of course someone as beautiful as Gail would have plenty of offers.
'I didn't think butch girls were you're kind of thing,' Holly said, hoping Gail couldn't hear the tetchiness beneath the teasing.
'Well Holly, you know you're kind of butch when it comes to sports,' Gail replied tartly.
Holly titled her head and regarded Gail wryly. 'Don't get me wrong, she was gorgeous.'
'Frankie said I was having my lesbian adolescence.'
'Ah, so a bit of experimentation and lots of sex. Well, I guess I should be thankful that at least you didn't sleep with Lisa or Jen Luck.'
Gail looked pained at that thought. 'I'd rather go back to boys. No, actually I'd join a nunnery first.'
'You Gail Peck give up sex. Can't see it happening.' Holly took a swig of her beer.
'I didn't say I'd give up sex. I'd take care of myself.'
'Uh huh, I'm pretty sure nuns take a vow of chastity, Gail.'
'I'd be one of those rebel nuns,' Gail decided.
'So, taking care of yourself. Sounds like you don't need me around then Peck.'
'I never said that. I just meant if Lisa and Luck were the last two lesbians left on the planet,' Gail pretended to huff but pulled Holly closer and kissed her. What began as a fairly innocent kiss soon turned a little heated and Gail thought if Lisa didn't turn up soon she'd be suggesting they leave.
'Oh god, you two get a room,' Lisa annunciated every syllable.
Were had she sprung from, Gail wondered. Without removing her arms from around Holly, she turned to Lisa and said 'Really, Lisa you've got to stop sneaking up on us like that.'
'Happy birthday, Lisa,' Holly said. She extracted herself from Gail and gave Lisa a hug and a kiss on each cheek.
'Well, at least you made it back from San Francisco in time,' Lisa said coolly, 'Rachel and the others are here too.'
'Others?' Holly asked.
Lisa pointed in the direction of the entrance to the club and they saw Rachel making her way towards the bar, followed by three very familiar women.
'You've got to be kidding,' Holly said.
'What do you mean, Holly?' Lisa asked innocently.
'What are you doing inviting Frankie and Alannah and Francine?' Holly sounded annoyed.
'Lisa's totally hoping to get lucky tonight, aren't you Lisa,' Gail said, realizing Lisa in inviting the three had simply been thinking about herself and hadn't deliberately meant to aggravate she or Holly. Though Lisa seemed to have conveniently forgotten, or put behind her, the fact that she threw Francine out of Rachel's apartment after Francine had tried to kiss Holly.
Lisa shrugged. 'They are single adult women. What's wrong with putting myself out there.'
'So no problem with taking Holly's cast-offs or my ex,' Gail said, with a nod in Frankie's direction.
'Oh please, Gail, as if you're so virtuous. When I stayed at your place, I had to listen to Chloe endlessly prattle about the incestuous goings on at 15.'
'Never slept with a best friend's ex,' Gail said firmly.
Lisa didn't reply, but plastered a smile on her face as Rachel and the other three reached them.
'Champagne all round,' Lisa said, 'or are you sticking with beer, Peck.' She sneered as she said the last bit.
'I'll take a beer,' Frankie said. It was then that Gail noticed that Frankie was a little glassy eyed, as if she'd already got a head start on drinking.
'Make that two, or three I guess with Gail,' Alannah said.
'Four,' Holly added, holding up her empty bottle.
Lisa rolled her eyes contemptuously. 'Francine, perhaps you could give me a hand getting drinks.'
'So what happened to your vacation Frankie?' Gail asked curiously, 'get sick of all that sun and sand?'
Frankie hadn't said much about her holiday before she'd left. Only that she was going to the beach. Still she wasn't due back at work for another three days.
'Something like that,' Frankie said evasively, 'and who wouldn't pass up an opportunity to attend a Lisa farce.'
Gail laughed and Holly suppressed a smile, noting that Rachel and Alannah were doing the same. Francine then appeared with the beers, which she handed around, giving the last one to Frankie.
'We haven't met,' Frankie said as she took the bottle, 'I'm Frankie.'
'So what is Frankie short for?'
'Francine.'
God, Gail thought, Frankie must be drunk. She usually would only reveal her proper name under duress. In fact, Gail had to find it out by hacking into the Departmental files, with Dov's help of course.
'Really, Francine.'
'Yeah, my mother was in one of her pretentious phases,' Frankie replied.
Gail had just taken a swig of beer and as Frankie said this she couldn't help but guffaw with the result that the liquid she had been in the process of swallowing spurted out through her nose and sprayed in Francine's direction. Gail could have sworn a few droplets even landed on Francine's expensive looking silk shirt. Francine regarded her disdainfully and Frankie looked perplexed.
'It wasn't that funny, Peck,' she said.
'Frankie or should I say Francine meet Francine Hart. Dr Francine Hart.' Gail said.
'Okay, that is funny,' Frankie said, giving Gail a meaningful look. It made Gail realize that Frankie knew exactly what she was doing. That she'd done that whole name thing on purpose. Gail had told Frankie about the doctor and how Lisa seemed to be championing her cause when it came to Holly. Clearly Frankie had decided to bring Francine down a peg or two. She wouldn't have admitted it to Frankie, but it made Gail feel absurdly appreciative.
'So, I was promised dancing,' Frankie said, clapping her hands together, 'Peck, Stewart you up for it.'
When it became obvious that Gail and Holly were only really interested in dancing with each other, Frankie returned to the table Lisa had snagged. From where they were sitting they could see the dance floor and Holly and Gail, who weren't actually doing a lot of what you'd call dancing. They were more or less shuffling around while grinning like idiots at each other, although at one point Holly appeared to be doing the Macarena, which had Gail doubled over with laughter. Frankie knew that she was supposed to hate romance on principle, but she had to admit it made her happy to see Gail so happy.
'Who would have guessed two such hot women would be such dorky dancers,' Frankie said, with a nod in Gail and Holly's direction.
'It is a little painful to watch,' Lisa said scathingly and Francine laughed.
'They're in love,' Alannah said, 'I don't think they care what anyone else thinks.'
'I think it's adorable,' Rachel said.
'Yep, I'll drink to that,' Frankie held up her beer bottle and clinked it with Alannah's.
As the night wore on, whenever Francine and Lisa got up to dance, Holly would drag Gail back to the table, and whenever Lisa and Francine returned to the table, Holly and Gail would be up dancing or over at the bar. Frankie noticed it with some amusement. She had anticipated Lisa's do would be entertaining. And there was the added benefit that Alannah was here too. The doctor really was quite lovely. Not only that, she'd stood up for Gail and Holly. It took Frankie a little by surprise how much she approved of that.
Now Frankie found herself seated alone with Holly, while the others, with the exception of Gail, were dancing. Gail had stopped to speak to someone on her way back from the dance floor.
'Who is Gail talking to?' Holly asked, trying to sound casual. She'd seen the woman greet Gail with a quick kiss on the lips and a hug, which unusually Gail had reciprocated and then smiled genuinely. The woman had shoulder length curly black hair cut in a funky style and a wide face with two dimples either side of her mouth and an easy smile. The whole effect was attractive, confident and, if she had been Holly's type, which she definitely wasn't, somewhat sexy.
Frankie looked up.
'Oh, that's Olivia. Gail's ex. Well, one of them.' Frankie said, knowing she was being slightly provocative and that Holly of all people didn't deserve that.
'The architect,' Holly asked, but didn't add the one that Gail said she could have fallen for but for Holly.
'Yeah, you haven't met her?'
'No,' Holly shook her head.
'She fell for Gail hard. I think Gail broke her heart.'
'That's beginning to sound like a broken record.'
'Well, Holly can you imagine what it was like letting Gail loose on Toronto's lesbians. Let's just say there was something of a stampede.'
Problem was Holly could totally imagine. And she really didn't want to. Andy had told her the story of the visit to the women's prison, when Nick thought the prisoners were whistling at him, but of course it was actually Gail who was turning heads. Gail was still talking animatedly to Olivia and Holly felt a stab of, was it jealousy. She shook her head slightly. She didn't understand why she was reacting this way.
'You should go and say hello,' Frankie said, 'You totally want to check her out, don't you.'
'No, no it's fine. I don't need to meet everyone of Gail's exes.'
'It's quite a list so don't hold your breath,' Frankie goaded, but when she saw the look of alarm cross Holly's face, she relented. 'Really, it wasn't that long. It could have been.'
'I don't doubt that,' Holly winced.
'Here,' Frankie said, downing her beer and holding out the empty bottle towards Holly, 'we need another round. It must be your turn to buy the drinks.'
'Um, I'm only half way though mine,' Holly said, knowing she'd bought the last round. Not that she'd mind buying more drinks, but it was weird that Frankie was making such a big deal out of it. Normally the detective's mind was like a steel trap so it was surprising she'd lost track of whose turn it was.
'Clearly you're not versed in the art of social subterfuge,' Frankie said, 'I know it's my turn to buy drinks but I'm just giving you a chance to interrupt Gail and her ex.'
'Oh,' Holly said, feeling a little foolish, 'oh I see.'
'Geez how did you and Peck ever get together.'
'If it hadn't been for me rambling and then Gail kissing me it might not have happened.'
'Wait Peck made the first move?' Frankie asked.
Holly nodded. 'Well, we'd kind of been dancing around each other for weeks. As far as I knew she was the straight.'
Frankie laughed. 'I don't believe there was anything ever that straight about Gail.'
'Yeah, look at the way she's friends with all her exes. That should have tipped us off.' Holly grinned.
'I've always wanted to thank you.'
'Thank me?' Again Holly was puzzled.
'For being an amazing teacher,' Frankie arched one eyebrow, 'Gail's sensational in bed.'
Frankie must be really drunk, Holly thought. She frowned slightly. This wasn't a conversation she particularly wanted to be having.
'Oh shit,' Frankie slurred a little, 'that didn't come out well. I meant it as a compliment to you.'
'Gail was a natural.'
'Yeah?' Frankie arched her eyebrow a little higher this time.
'That's not to say I don't have some skills in that area,' Holly said and then realized she was more than a little drunk too. Was she flirting with Frankie? God how did that happen? She wasn't remotely interested in the woman, but around Frankie somehow every conversation took a flirtatious turn.
'I bet you do,' Frankie gave her a knowing smile, 'why Doctor Stewart if I didn't know better I'd think you were trying to seduce me.'
'Not now, not ever, not in a million years, Frankie.' Holly said blithely and then seeing Frankie's crestfallen look, said. 'Sorry, you know my dance card is completely full.'
Frankie burst out laughing. 'I'm just messing with you, Stewart.'
Holly tried not to frown. Was she a character from a Jane Austen novel? Her dance card was full. Holly groaned inwardly. She knew Gail would tease her later for being such a dork. Oh well, it was the truth. There was no one else for her but Gail. It was as simple as that.
As if overhearing her thoughts, Frankie said, 'Yeah, yeah I know Gail is the only girl for you. Now go check out her ex but try and be cool, Holly.'
Holly stood. Would she have been attracted to Frankie if she'd never met Gail? The two women could both be caustic in a way that Holly found smart and funny and which she knew intimidated the hell out of most people. Both women were supremely confident about their desirability, which only added to their appeal.
Yet, Frankie seemed harder, more cynical than Gail. Right from the beginning Holly had sensed the vulnerability that lay beneath Gail's snark, the gentler, sensitive side, she rarely let anyone see. It was this as much as everything else that had made Holly fall for Gail. Besides, there was no denying it. She totally had a thing for blonde women, and if their hair was short all the better.
Olivia turned out to be very pleasant and Holly found herself liking her immediately. Which was surprising. Olivia was the woman Gail said she could have fallen for had her heart not already belonged to Holly. The almost, near enough who Gail had seriously considered making a life with before deciding it was unfair on Olivia because she couldn't give her her whole heart. Olivia who had said near enough was good enough and that she had enough love for them both. Olivia who was left shattered by Gail's leaving. But then Holly knew about that, knew how losing Gail could make you feel like you'd been cleaved in two.
'Oh, you're Holly,' Olivia said smiling warmly and without even a trace of bitterness in her voice, 'Gail said you were back in Toronto.'
Transpired that Olivia had recently met someone new and was in love and was loved back.
'You two should come round for dinner and meet her,' Olivia said, 'if that's not too weird.'
'Not weird,' Gail said, looking across at Holly for confirmation.
'That sounds great,' Holly said, finding it easy to say yes and amazed at how Gail seemed to be quite unfazed by a normal coupley thing like going to dinner with another couple.
It struck Holly that she liked Olivia for the same reason she liked Frankie. The two women cared about Gail. Even if Gail had broken their hearts, they had stood by her. For that Holly was grateful, especially as she couldn't make that claim for herself. Not that Holly had ever stopped caring, but she had abandoned Gail just at the time, as it turned out, that Gail needed her most. Olivia and Frankie's steady solicitude, their quiet support of Gail, surely had something to do with the way Gail had turned herself around, with the way she was learning to trust in relationships, to believe that what she and Holly had could last. For that, Holly realized she was inexpressibly grateful.
Soon after, Olivia left with her group of friends. Even though they had barely spoken to Lisa all night, Gail and Holly decided they'd stayed long enough too. While Gail went to the bathroom, Holly made her way over to where Lisa was sitting with Rachel. Francine was at the bar getting the next round, and Frankie was dancing with Alannah.
'Lis, we're heading home,' Holly said.
'Already.'
'Actually it's getting late. Gail and I are both working this big case so.'
'I get it, Holly,' Lisa interrupted, 'you two can't keep your hands off each other. But you know it won't last, don't you.'
'What won't last?' Holly asked, her voice flat.
'The sex,' Lisa said it like Holly was an idiot, 'Peck is obviously good in bed, but it's not enough to sustain a relationship. I know you Holly,' Lisa started jabbing her finger in Holly's direction, the action making it clear how drunk she was. 'You need an intellectual equal.'
'Lisa, you also know Gail. You stayed in her house. Presumably you had conversations with her. So you should see that Gail is smart and witty and generous hearted and she's actually interested in me and what I do and as far as I'm concerned I have found my equal.'
'Humph,' Lisa stood and swayed slightly, 'the trouble with you, Holly is that you've never been able to choose a girlfriend who's right for you.'
'And yet none of the set-ups you've arranged for me have ever worked out,' Holly's tone was cool, her anger barely in check.
'Francine is perfect for you. I don't know why you can't see that. And she's still interested in you, even after all this nonsense with Peck.'
'Lisa, Francine is a self-centered bore. If she has a sense of humor I certainly never discovered it. She literally only stopped talking about herself long enough to find out my name and occupation. I only slept with her because I was lonely and she was leaving for Africa the next day, and then, well, to put it bluntly, the sex was lousy. In fact I would rather tazer myself in the eye than have to speak to her again, let alone sleep with her.'
Holly turned abruptly then to find Gail standing behind her. Gail was completely still, her expression unreadable. Holly had no idea how long Gail had been there or how much of the conversation she had heard. Sometimes she is like a cat, Holly thought, the way she just appears suddenly without a sound. Then Gail's lips quirked and she bit them slightly to stop the smile that was threatening to break out across her face.
'That was mean. The last bit. That was mean wasn't it? I shouldn't have said that.' Holly gushed, 'it's not really cool to talk about whether people are good in bed but Lisa kind of drove me to it and'
Before Holly could finish speaking, Gail took her hand and leaned in to kiss her lightly on the lips.
'Oh,' Holly said, absently moving her hand to push back her glasses, forgetting she'd worn contacts, 'oh, I need to stop talking.'
Gail kissed her again.
'Let's get out of here, nerd. I believe there's a promise you need to make good on.'
….
The following morning Gail and Chloe found Dov in the detective pen. He looked up as they walked in.
'From the grin on your face Gail, I'd say you got some last night,' Dov said.
'Jeez, Dov,' Gail said, clipping the back of his head, 'mind in the gutter.'
'Ow, that hurt,' he said, rubbing his neck, 'I guess I'll just have to see if Dr Stewart has the same smile.'
'Jeez, Dov,' Chloe said, also clipping the back of his head.
'Chloe,' Dov whined, 'man you've been spending too much time with Gail.'
Before either Gail or Chloe could reply, they were interrupted by the sound of high-pitched yapping. In the next moment Duncan appeared with two longhaired toy dogs who were straining at their leashes and barking excitedly.
'Gerald, who told you it was bring your pets to work day?' Gail asked drily.
'Ah, these aren't mine Detective,' Duncan said, trying to rein in the dogs who were now wheeling in tight circles around his feet. 'Their owner seems to have disappeared. The neighbors heard the dogs barking for days before calling it in. There was no sign of the owner when we broke down the door. The place was a bit of a mess though. I've got to drop these two at the pound.'
'Oh, Duncan,' Chloe pointed to the officer's boot, upon which one of the dogs was now peeing.
'Oh, shoot. I'll get something to clean that up,' Duncan said, yanking the dogs to follow him out of the detective's pen.
'Wait Gerald,' Gail said, 'where exactly did you find these dogs and who owns them?'
'A woman,' Duncan used the hand that wasn't holding the leashes to dig his notebook out of his pocket, 'Rahmi Amir.'
Gail and Chloe turned to look at each other at the same time.
'I think she could be our victim,' Gail said, and Chloe nodded.
