To those who are curious about what Harry took out of Dempsey's room, I can tell you that... No, that would be too easy! Maybe you'll find the answer in this chapter, or you'll have to wait for (one of) the next?

Anyway, have a nice weekend!

Chapter 11 : Like a Bolt from the Blue

After she'd had an extremely restless night, Harry was awake exceptionally early that morning. It had been a while ago, but that night she'd had the most dreadful nightmares again about Dempsey being shot by Crazy Joe, mingled with images of him lying motionless in a hospital bed, a large red stain at the height of his chest contrasting strongly with his snow-white shirt. The line between fiction and reality had been so thin, it had completely shaken her. The entire night and early morning, she had the most discomforting feeling she couldn't shake off. As it was way too early to get up, she stayed in bed, desperately trying to get some more sleep. But her mind always took her back to these horrible scenes. Eventually, around 6AM, she gave up and got out of bed.

Lord Winfield was usually first in the dining room, leafing through the newspaper while waiting for her and Dempsey to join him for breakfast. Great was his surprise that morning, when he opened the door to the dining room and he saw that his daughter was already sitting at the large table, sipping a cup of hot tea while reading the newspaper that Abbott normally placed neatly on the table next to his lordship's plate.

"Good morning, my darling. You're up early." He greeted his daughter and gave her a kiss on top of her head as he passed her on the way to his place, opposite her.

Harry looked up from the newspaper and offered him a warm smile. "Good morning, Freddy. I know I'm rather early, but I couldn't sleep any more. And you know what they say: The early bird catches the worm!"

"Ain't that the truth!" a voice resounded in the doorway, where a seemingly good-humoured Dempsey appeared. "Good morning, early birds. Hope you left me some worms too," he joked as he took place beside Harry.

After he had eaten too much of the hearty breakfast, Dempsey rose from his chair, announcing that he was going outside to stretch his legs. When he saw that Harry also got up in order to accompany him, he protested vehemently. Not because he didn't appreciate her company. Quite the contrary actually, as he had began to enjoy their walks together. But there were still times that he preferred to be alone. Such as now, after he had been mulling all night about the conversation he'd had with Spikings yesterday evening and he needed to clear his head.

"Where d'you think you're goin'? I thought we agreed that you'd give me some more breathing space from now on? I told you yesterday that I feel fine and I'm perfectly capable of defending myself, with the help of my good old buddy here!" he tapped his hand on the Magnum under his armpit. It had cost him a lot of trouble and pain to put on the holster that morning, but feeling the gun on its familiar place made him feel more secure and less 'naked'.

"I'm sorry, Dempsey. I know what we agreed yesterday, but that was before we knew about the meeting. I promised Spikings I would see to it that you stayed here, and that's exactly what I am going to do, whether you like it or not." She stated firmly.

"And you're always such a good, obedient copper, aren't you, Sergeant?" he mocked her.

"Of course, Lieutenant, unlike some of us. I hope I can count on your full cooperation, and that I won't be forced to take any harsh measures!" she threatened.

"I can't believe this! Look Harry, I already told ya I wasn't goin' to that damn meetin'! So there's no need to follow me like some puppy all day! Just gimme some space, will ya?" he began to lose his patience.

Harry bit her lip. Oh dear, this wasn't going to be easy.

Since she had promised Spikings to keep Dempsey in Winfield Hall, she knew it would be a great issue for him to feel her breathing down his neck the whole time again, certainly after their earlier agreement to give him more space. Curtailing Dempsey's freedom now would be like trying to prevent a bird from spreading its wings. And he definitely wasn't the kind of bird that would let this happen without a struggle. But there was no way she would let him wander around unsupervised, either. As much as she wanted to grant him more freedom, she knew he couldn't be trusted, especially when the temptation to start interfering in the investigation was increasing by the day. She knew she had to approach him in a more subtle way.

"How about a compromise? Let's stick together until 2PM, and after that I'll give you some more space. What do you say?" she suggested.

After a brief silence, he let out a deep sigh. "I guess I can live with that. As long as you don't expect me to sit on my butt until that time!"

"The doctor said you still have to take it easy for a while, so I thought we could have a nice, relaxing day. According to Freddy, it will be very hot today. I suggest we could read a book on the patio with a nice glass of wine, or we could do some sunbathing on the side of the lake and take a refreshing dive from time to time..." but then she suddenly remembered something. "Oh no, I almost forgot! You're not allowed to swim in the lake yet, with your injury! Instead, you can paddle a bit in the water, if you like!" She looked at him teasingly, barely able to hold back her laughter as she knew very well how much he detested the proposed activities.

She had expected him to protest, but instead he was listening to her, fascinated by her bright blue eyes and her sweet voice, and in particular by the teasing smile on her beautiful, full lips. "Finished?" he asked, as he leaned closer to her and said with low voice. "In that case, I would more than happy to rub your back with sun oil. And of course, I'll be looking forward to see what you'll be wearing while sunbathing ... or rather what you won't be wearing." A smug grin appeared on his face when he saw her indignant look.

"Dempsey, you're a pervert!" she slapped him on his uninjured shoulder. Her apparent indignation melted like snow in the sun when she heard his infectious laughter. "Seriously, what would you like to do this morning?"

There was a short silence in which his smile faded and gave way to a serious expression on his face. "We could pay a visit to a couple of our informers..." he started cautiously "to ask them if they have any information about our American friends," he continued. Harry didn't even have to answer, as one look in her bewildered eyes already told him enough. "Guess not, huh?" he sighed. "Ah well, it was worth a try."

When she saw his crestfallen face, she put her hand on his arm. "You can't take the risk, Dempsey, and you know it! You'll have to rely on Spikings and the rest of the team to find those guys. It's far too dangerous for you to go snooping around in London now. And besides, you're still recovering."

"Oh, c'mon Harry, what does it take to convince you that I feel fine? I've got enough energy to climb a god damn mountain!" he stood up and made his way to the window. "Maybe I could go jogging in the woods. It sure would be a good exercise to get back in shape..." he murmured as he looked outside.

Although she'd barely heard his last words, Harry instantly knew what he had in mind. She rolled her eyes. "If Doctor Potter would hear you say that, I think he'd give you a sedative to make you sleep for the rest of the week! And I can't say I would blame him. In fact, I think the idea is rather tempting…" she said threateningly.

Jesus, couldn't he at least come up with one reasonable proposal?

Before he had the time to reply, she came standing beside him at the window. "How about taking a long walk in the woods? You'll have more than enough exercise with that, believe me!" She took his hand, and led him away from the window, towards the door. "Come on then, the forest is exceptionally beautiful at this early hour!" she handed him his sweater and dragged him outside. She thought it was best to give him some distraction as quickly as possible, before he would try to convince her of doing something she would regret later.

When she stepped outside, Harry inhaled deeply, filling her longs with the fresh, healthy morning air. It brought back some happy memories of the early morning walks she used to do with her mother, when she was a little girl. Funny, how just the smell of the morning air at Winfield Hall could bring back some long forgotten memories. The grass, the trees and bushes were still humid from the morning dew, which provided the forest its unique scent. High in the trees, there were a few birds twittering excitedly, welcoming the new day after the quietness of the night. Dempsey strolled with his hands in his jeans pockets and repeatedly kicked a pine cone on their path. Harry walked beside him and, without really thinking about it, she slipped her arm casually through his. She didn't even pull back her arm when she noticed her father looking down at them through a window upstairs.

By the time they were heading back to the house, the sun was already high in the sky. The sunrays made their way through the roof of foliage, and started warming up the entire forest. As Lord Winfield had predicted, it promised to be a warm and sunny day. Harry suddenly took Dempsey by his hand and guided him to the side of the lake, knowing it was his favourite spot. They sat next to each other on the shore of the lake and let their gaze wander dreamily over the water. The peace and quiet intensified the serenity of the moment.

"Are you nervous?" Harry broke the silence after a while, her bright blue eyes searching his.

"Nervous 'bout what?" he frowned and turned his head to look at her.

"About whatever may happen this afternoon," she clarified.

He let out a chuckle. "Why would I be nervous 'bout that? I mean, I'm over here, miles away from the meeting place. If anyone should be nervous, it's Spikings."

"Do you think they will show up?"

"Nah." He shook his head thoughtfully. "They'll probably be watching the place on a distance, but I don't think they'll show their faces."

"And what do you think would happen if you did go to the park?"

"I dunno…" he looked at her through narrowed eyes. "You wanna find out?"

"No, absolutely not!" she reacted shocked, cursing herself for her stupidity. "Forget I even mentioned it!"

To her relief, he didn't dwell on the subject any further. Dempsey kept his word and stayed in his partner's sight the entire morning, without grumbling. He didn't even try to sneak away once! Harry, at her turn, left him some more space after 2 PM. Later that afternoon, Spikings called to brief them about the result of the meeting. As Dempsey had predicted, there had been no sign of the gunmen in the near vicinity of the park.

For the rest of the afternoon, Harry barely saw her father or Dempsey. Both men had retreated to Lord Winfield's study and denied access to any prying eyes. Her attempt to find out what they were doing had resulted in a fierce reaction of her partner, that she didn't live up to their agreement! She couldn't but admit that he was right and ceased all further attempts. At least, she comforted herself with the thought that she knew where he was, and that he was safe and sound. And she secretly counted on her father to keep her partner in line.

She took advantage of the situation, to finally spend a few hours doing things she liked at the family estate. She happily installed herself on the patio with a good novel and a nice glass of wine and enjoyed the warmth of the sunrays on her pale skin, which she thought could use a tan, no matter what Dempsey said.

That evening, Harry sat waiting impatiently at the dinner table, until her father and Dempsey finally made their entrance. They seemed to get along really well and were behaving rather strangely. Dempsey was louder than usual, and her father seemed extremely cheerful. She looked at them searchingly and tried to figure out what was going on with them.

As the staff started bringing bowls and plates with food, Harry didn't have time to ask them about it. It struck her however that, the more wine Dempsey drank with his meal, the louder he became. To make matters worse, her father seemed to be quite amused by her partner's exuberant behaviour. Slowly, it dawned on her what they might have been doing, that afternoon.

"Dempsey, are you drunk?" she asked him straightforward.

He looked up in surprise. "No, of course not!" he refuted, but he could see on her face that she didn't believe him. "Alright, I admit I had a few drinks, but I ain't drunk!" he tried to sound convincing.

"Oh really? And how much did you drink exactly?" she feared for the answer.

"Just a few glasses of wine…" he pointed at his glass on the table.

"And before that?" she asked sharply, her gaze still fixed on him.

"What is this? An interrogation?" he tried to parry the question, but she kept staring at him, waiting for an answer. He sighed and shifted a little uneasy on his chair. "Alright, I also may have had a couple o' glasses of scotch", he admitted. "By the way, did you know that your dad has the most amazing collection of whiskey's?" he asked, clearly impressed.

Her eyes widened. She turned to her father. "Freddy, why on earth did you let him drink that much, while you know that his life is at stake!" she exclaimed shocked.

Before Lord Winfield had the chance to respond, Dempsey stood up for the older man. "Harry, will ya please don't make such a fuss about it! Your dad didn't do nothing wrong, nor did I! We just had a bit of harmless fun and it helped me to forget about this whole mess for a while. Besides, I didn't drink that much!"

Relying on the way he spoke and the way he was behaving, she suspected he'd drunk more than enough. And when she saw him reaching for his glass of wine again, Harry quickly took it away and put it out of his reach. "Oh no, I think you've had enough for today! In fact, I think you've had enough for the rest of the week! The only drink you're getting from now on is water, and after dinner some strong coffee!" To suit the action to the word, she poured some water into a clean glass.

"Hey, what the hell d'you think you're doing?" He looked at her indignantly when she placed the glass of water in front of him on the table.

"Don't you think it would be more sensible to keep a clear head, with a couple of killers out there, looking for you?" she raised her voice.

"Let them come. I'll shoot their fuckin' brains out" he spoke with thick tongue.

"In that condition? You wouldn't be able to hit an elephant if he was standing right in front of you! I doubt you can even stand up straight!"

"You wanna bet?" Dempsey rose from his chair, but almost lost his balance. "Now, where's the elephant?"

Harry quickly jumped up too and held him steady. "Oh, for God's sake! Come on, let's take you upstairs!" She put her arm around his waist and led him to the door with firm hand.

A mischievous grin appeared on his face. "Woow, easy Tiger. I know you're eager, but shouldn't we at least wait until after dinner?"

She stopped abruptly and turned to face him. "You and your filthy mind! You're going to your room to sleep it off, so we can enjoy the rest of our meal in peace! Either you behave when I help you to your room, or I will ask Abbott to take you upstairs!"

She had been really patient with him so far, but now she started to lose her temper. Drunk or not drunk, she had enough of his insinuations and his annoying behaviour. He must have realised that she meant it as, from that moment, he followed her meekly, leaning on her shoulder to keep his balance.

Once they were in his room, she helped him take off his clothes down to his boxers. She felt her cheeks getting warm at the sight of his naked torso, and quickly averted her eyes. She cursed herself that this always seemed to happen whenever she gave him a clean bandage and helped him put on his shirt, much to her annoyance and his hilarity. Fortunately for her, this time he didn't make fun of her, as he was too drunk to even notice her flushed cheeks.

When she opened the door to leave the room, he stirred and she heard him mumble something that sounded like "Thanks, princess" or "Night, princess", before he turned to his side and fell asleep. On the way back to the dining room, Harry's blood was still boiling. This time, she didn't feel sorry for him, whatsoever. After all, it was his own stupid fault that he got himself drunk! If only he would think before acting, it would save her a lot of trouble!

Since she also blamed him for their little 'drinking party' and their irresponsible behaviour, she barely spoke a word to her father that evening. After dinner, she chose to continue reading in her book instead of playing a game of chess with him. From experience, Lord Winfield knew it was better to wait patiently until she had cooled down. Otherwise he risked that he would get the full blast, or that she would take off. With a sigh, he also took his book in hand. He began to read, but he couldn't concentrate and therefore didn't get past the first page.

Occasionally, he looked over his old but well-preserved book, to glance at his sulking, but ever so gorgeous-looking daughter. It amazed him again how much she looked like her mother. He felt his heart swell with pride when he thought about what she had achieved so far in her life, and how his brave girl could hold her ground in a mainly man's world. This past week, he'd had the privilege to see how she dealt with her partner. And the American definitely didn't seem like an easy guy! The old man couldn't suppress a smile when he thought of all the times the detectives had been quarrelling during their stay on the estate, and how his Harriet usually seemed to get the upper hand.

A deep frown appeared on his forehead, however, when he reflected on the nature of their relationship. He couldn't make head or tail of what was going on between his daughter and her partner, but it caused him great concern. One minute they were like cat and dog, while the next moment they seemed to get along really well. But Freddy could always sense a high degree of mutual respect and great concern for each other. He wondered if they were actually aware of it, themselves.

Since he stayed in Winfield Hall, Freddy also had the opportunity to get to know James better, and he couldn't deny that he had a lot of sympathy for the American detective. But at the same time, he was quite worried about the great influence the brash daredevil seemed to have on his beloved daughter.

All of a sudden, Lord Winfield became aware of the fact that a pair of bright blue eyes were staring at him with concern. Or was it rather curiosity? He had no idea how long Harriet had been observing him, but her piercing stare gave him an uneasy feeling as if she had caught him red-handed. Before he had the chance to say anything, however, she closed her book and informed him that she was going to bed. He wished her goodnight and responded he would also go to sleep after finishing his drink.

Soon, all was quiet and dark in the big, old mansion.

Harry woke up with a start, after she'd heard some loud noises coming from downstairs. It was still pitch-dark, and one glance at the clock told her it was barely 5 AM. She knew Abbott usually was awake first, but not yet at this early hour. Besides that, all members of the staff had their room in the other wing of the imposing castle, so it couldn't have been one of them either. She quickly got up and put on her dressing gown, before she cautiously stepped into the corridor, her gun firmly in her hand.

The moment she passed Dempsey's room, she considered waking him up to accompany her downstairs. But when she recalled his earlier condition, she had second thoughts about it. With a huge hangover, he wouldn't be of much use, anyway. Besides, on her own, she would be able to take a look without switching on the lights as she knew the mansion like the back of her hand. As she stood listening intently on top of the stairs, she could hear some muffled sounds coming from the kitchen. She swiftly descended the stairs in total darkness and tiptoed in the direction of the sounds.

She doubted very much that Mrs. Lipton or another member of the staff was already busy in the kitchen, at this early hour. Perhaps there was an intruder, who had forced his way into the mansion through the kitchen window? There was only one way to find out! With one swift move, she opened the door and aimed her gun at the man she saw standing near the cupboard, turned with his back to her.

"Freeze! Keep your hands where I can see them and turn around slowly!" she shouted. "And no tricks, cause I'm armed and I won't hesitate to fire my weapon!"

"Jesus, Harry. You scared the hell out o' me!" she heard a familiar voice. Holding his hands above his head, Dempsey turned around slowly. In one hand, he was holding a knife and in his other hand a jar of strawberry jam.

"Dempsey! What on earth are you doing here?" she exclaimed, as she lowered her gun.

"I was hungry, so I came downstairs to grab a sandwich," he explained. "Ya see, someone didn't let me finish my meal, yesterday evening!" he said accusingly. He sat down at the table, and put some jam on his sandwich. "Anyway, I'm sure Mrs. Lipton won't mind..."

She watched him take his first bite. "You were bloody drunk!" she accused him. Then she looked around in the kitchen. "By the way, did you make all that noise?"

He looked down at his sandwich but responded before taking another bite. "Yeah…" he sighed. "I didn't wanna wake anyone, so I didn't switch on the light on my way here. But I think I've bumped into an armour in the hallway… It may have lost its head or somethin'. But, don't worry, I'll fix it in the morning" he added quickly, and took another bite.

She rolled her eyes. Meanwhile he ate the last bit of his sandwich, and reached for another. "You'd better not eat too much now, or Mrs. Lipton won't be happy if you skip breakfast in a few hours!" Harry warned him. Then she studied him from top to toe. "Why are you fully dressed?"

"Well, since I don't have my robe here, what did you want me to do? Come down here in my boxers?" he asked her with a naughty grin.

"No, of course not!" she responded shocked, and quickly averted her eyes. The thought of him, wandering around in the mansion in nothing but his boxers…

Dempsey looked at her, amused by her embarrassment. "Are you blushing, Lady Harriet?"

"No, I most certainly am not!" she denied firmly.

"Really? I could have sworn you were blushing. Mind you, I would also be blushing if I were to think of you, standing here in your underwear..." he continued, meanwhile letting his eyes wander shamelessly over her body.

Shocked, she quickly closed her robe a bit tighter, which all of a sudden seemed to feel way too small and revealing. "That's enough, Dempsey!" she interrupted him. "You are absolutely disgusting! I don't know why I even bothered to come down here, and why I brought you here in the first place!" She paused to catch her breath, before she continued with lower voice. "I'm going back upstairs to try to get some more sleep. I suggest you do the same! After all, it's only 5 AM. Clean up your mess here first, and please, try not to make any more noise on your way up, alright Lieutenant?"

"I'll bear it in mind, Sergeant." He responded with a smug smile. He watched her as she turned around and headed for the door.

"Sweet dreams, Princes..." he said softly to the already closed door, after she had left the kitchen.

Once Harry had crawled back into bed under the still slightly warm duvet, it took her no more ten minutes to calm down and to doze off again.

"I think your friend still needs to recover from yesterday." Lord Winfield tried to lighten the mood, as he saw that his daughter became more agitated by the minute. The older man knew the signs very well: the angry glances at the door, the exasperated sighs while she shifted on her chair,… Oh dear, it wouldn't take long before she would explode. The American would better get down here quickly, or he didn't know what awaited him!

Like most times, Freddy had arrived in the dining room first, closely followed by Harry. Normally, it didn't take long before Dempsey also made his appearance, except for this morning. Father and daughter had already finished drinking their tea, and Dempsey still hadn't shown up. The longer it took, the more it got on Harry's nerves.

"For your information, he's not my friend, but my colleague!" She snapped at her father.

After another five minutes of shifting on her chair, she'd lost her patience completely. She stood up from her chair and strode to the door. "That's it! I'm going to wake him up. If we have to wait any longer, we might as well skip breakfast today!

A thought crossed her mind when she stood by the door. She turned to her father. "Mind you, I wouldn't be surprised if Mister Sleepyhead up there wouldn't be hungry. Do you know that I found him in the kitchen around five o'clock this morning, eating a sandwich? He said he was hungry because someone didn't let him finish his meal yesterday", she quoted her partner. "And now he's letting us wait for breakfast! Can you believe that?" the more she thought about it, the more it enraged her. "Oh, the nerve of that man!"

It only took her two minutes, to run up the stairs and go to Dempsey's bedroom. She took a deep breath, before she knocked rather harshly on his bedroom door. "Dempsey, are you awake?"

There was no response, so she knocked a little harder. "Dempsey, are you alright? Can I come in?"

Since there was still no response after the second knock, she decided to enter his room without his permission.

Who the hell does he think he is, anyway? First he gets himself totally wasted while he was supposed to stay alert, and now he probably has a huge hangover and is too groggy to get out of his bed. Well, I can tell him that if he doesn't get out of his bed within five seconds, he'll get a bucket of cold water over his head! That'll teach him to get drunk, and to make us wait for him for so long!

She pushed open the door and stepped inside, ready to give him the full blast! But the moment she stood in his room, she froze on the spot. Her eyes widened. All colour drained from her face as she was looking around in the room. She covered her mouth with both her hands. "Oh my God, this can't be true…!"

(TBC)