Firstly, I need to apologize for making you lovely people wait so long for this update. I'm really disappointed in how this turned out - basically it's crap so profound apologies. I promise to make chapter 5 better. Unfortunately, my laptop had the ' blue screen of death'. I had not heard of this before but it is very bad and all my work was wiped. I know what you're thinking bad writer always blames her laptop but it meant Chapter 4 had to be rewritten, hence why it took me so long to update and why it is crap. Your reviews, good or bad, are always so gratefully received; they make me want to be better.
Chapter 4 - Repercussions
Jules sat in the passenger seat; Ed was driving and Leah sat silently in the back. All of the teams were leaving the scene, each SUV carrying exhausted SRU personnel back to base.
There had been little or no conversation between any of them since hearing the news about Andrew.
Jules eyes were closed; her head leaning against the side window. The noise of the rain beating down on the SUV and the windscreen wipers going back and forth filling the silent void.
"I need a shower" Jules finally said breaking the silence.
"Me too" Leah replied. Then the silence returned.
Ed was trying to concentrate on diving through the city, but his mind was elsewhere too. He couldn't believe what had happened today: A police sniper being killed by another sniper - what were the odds? He would have Googled it, had the circumstances not been so mind-blowingly tragic.
Everyone's mood was somber back at the SRU. Winnie's eyes were red and swollen and there was a distinct sadness in her voice when she spoke.
Jules walked through expecting Sam to be around somewhere but Winnie had told her he had not returned, and hadn't called in.
Jules knew he had probably gone straight home from Olivia's. Her stomach flipped when she thought about Olivia and Sam having to break the news of Andrew's death to her. They were such a cute couple; she and Sam had gone out with them often and she liked them both immensely. There would be no more double dates and no more funny stories over dinner.
Jules decided against showering; she wanted to get home to Sam as soon as possible.
The debriefing had been scheduled for the following morning and Jules was especially grateful not to have to sit around for hours discussing the events of the day and what little information and evidence they had actually gathered from the endless hours of searching.
Greg knew every single one of them had given their all under the most trying of circumstances. He knew also that everyone was grieving the loss of a colleague and although they needed time to come to terms with Andrew's death in the privacy of their homes with family and friends, time, unfortunately was a luxury they didn't have. There was a killer loose on the streets of Toronto, possibly targeting the SRU. Greg sat at the large briefing table and wondered what lay in store for his team and the other members of the SRU in the coming days and how many more lives would be lost before the killer was caught.
Jules was exhausted; both emotionally and physically. As she turned the key she hoped Sam would be home.
She saw him as soon as the door opened and he immediately came and wrapped his arms around her.
Jules hadn't realized until then how completely drained she actually felt; she had been running on adrenalin since hearing the news of Andrew's death. She felt herself relax for the first time in hours and didn't want to break free from his embrace. Sam always made her feel safe and she needed to feel safe; she hadn't felt safe all day - wondering if the shooter was still there and if she was to be his next target.
"How are you feeling? " Sam asked still holding her. It had been one hell of a day for all of them but all of them weren't pregnant just his wife and she looked completely shattered.
"I'm OK; tired but OK"
"I've ran you a bath" Sam added.
"You are a mind-reader, I've been dreaming about a bath for the last two hours; how was Olivia?"
"Go and have your bath, we can talk over dinner".
"That was the second thing I have been dreaming about". Jules slowly climbed the stairs unbuttoning her shirt on the way.
She slipped into the hot soapy water and immediately felt her muscles start to relax. She laid back and let the day's events wash over her. She stroked her tummy; there was no bump; no evidence to show that a baby was growing inside her, but she was already completely in love with her unborn baby. "I'm going to keep you safe little one and daddy too, I promise".
Over dinner Jules told Sam Team 3 had found the bullet embedded in a brick wall behind Andrew. It was a 50 caliber and was low-lying indicating the bullet was travelling in a downward trajectory. The teams had searched every surrounding building up to a half a mile radius and nothing else was found. The unrelenting rain most likely a contributory factor as any evidence would have been destroyed or washed away under its torrential onslaught.
Jules noticed Sam had not eaten anything. He had moved some vegetables around his plate but nothing had actually reached his mouth.
"How was Olivia?" Jules finally asked and knew this was going to be a difficult conversation for Sam.
Sam placed his fork on the plate; he couldn't eat; there had been a permanent lump in his throat since he had told Olivia.
"She's pregnant Jules, a few weeks further along than you".
"What? Oh God No".
Jules pushed her plate away - her appetite gone. Tears started to cascade down her cheeks; she couldn't stop them. She had stopped them all day; kept her emotions in check and did her job, but now at home with Sam she could grieve the loss of a friend and the life he should have had with Olivia and their unborn baby.
Finally, when the crying had subsided Jules and Sam went to bed and even though Jules was more tired than she had felt in forever, sleep was slow to come. Finally, at 2.30 Sam noticed her breathing had slowed; and Jules was finally sleeping. For Sam, sleep did not come at all; events running through his brain over and over trying to make sense of a senseless murder; but the guilt he felt was playing far heavier on his mind. Too many people had lost their lives because of him and now another friend lay dead when it should have been him on the rooftop. He needed to make it right; make amends somehow and as Sam lay listening to the rain still beating heavily on the windows he knew what he had to do.
Sam had finally got up at 5 and went downstairs to make tea. He contemplated leaving Jules to sleep. He knew, however, she would be angry with him if he didn't wake her so he made her favorite cup of herbal tea and gently brushed her hair from her face and kissed her sweetly on the mouth. "Morning beautiful; it's a little after five".
Jules slowly opened her eyes and groaned "It can't be morning already."
"Why don't you let me call in sick for you today and just stay home and rest - everyone will understand."
"I don't want them knowing about the baby yet" Jules replied taking a sip from the tea Sam had handed her.
"They don't need to know you're pregnant Jules, I'll just say you are unwell"; you can stay in bed and catch up on that book you have been so desperate to read".
Jules hated to admit it, but the thought of staying in bed for a few more hours was very appealing. Her entire body ached and she felt exhausted. She could never have been talked into taking a day off before; but things were different now - she needed to consider the life growing inside of her.
Jules capitulated easier than Sam thought, but he was pleased she had agreed to rest for the day. By the time Sam was ready to leave, Jules was already sleeping again. She looked happy wrapped in her dreams as he kissed her softly before leaving.
The morning's debriefing yielded nothing more than they already knew. Andrew had been killed by a 50 caliber bullet and had died instantly. There had been no other evidence found and no one had any leads to the identity of the sniper.
Greg advised that all leave had been cancelled and SRU personnel would now be required to wear helmets on every call. Shields were also to be used and any sniper position would be held by a team of two; one to provide cover for the sniper holding the sierra position.
"Do we think this could be a person with a possible grudge against Andrew or Team 2" Spike asked the rest of the team.
"It is unlikely the sniper knew it was Team 2 on the call or that it was Andrew in the sniper position. If this is someone with a grudge, then most likely it is against the SRU, and snipers in particular- maybe a family member of someone who had been killed by the SRU?" Ed suggested.
"A good place to start - Spike take a look at old cases involving subjects killed by SRU snipers going back over the last six months". Greg asked.
Spike's eyes widened "That's a lot of cases boss; I'll start with those families who had lodged a formal complaint against the SRU"
Greg advised the team that the Mayor had ordered a news blackout of the shooting fearing it would fuel panic in the city. He hoped it was a one-off and had asked to be kept personally appraised of the on-going investigation. Greg had advised the Mayor that from his own experience a one-off sniper was unlikely and had warned of possible further casualties before the subject was caught.
Jules finally woke around 11; she felt a pang of guilt about her illicit day off; but Sam was right she needed the day. It had only been two days since she had found out she was having a baby yet it felt like an eternity so much had happened. She needed to rest and later she would call Olivia.
Jules kept looking at the phone debating whether to call Olivia or not. Jules decided she didn't want to say what she needed to say over the phone; she finally summoned up the courage and without waiting another minute picked up the keys to the jeep and drove to Olivia's house. When Olivia finally opened the door Jules embraced her and they both cried.
Olivia told Jules she was 14 weeks pregnant and although she was so happy to be having Andrew's baby, she felt completely lost without him. She told Jules Inspector Holleran and John Sullivan had visited her yesterday and told her Andrew had been shot and killed in the line of duty and promised the SRU and the Toronto Police Force would use every resource available to bring Andrew's killer to justice.
"I asked them what had happened and they said they couldn't tell me the details surrounding his death because it could compromise the ongoing investigation. Do you know what happened to Andrew, Jules?"
Jules looked at Olivia and wished she could answer her questions but she knew that even if she did tell her exactly what happened to Andrew, it wouldn't make her pain any less, and could make it worse - if that was at all possible. She hated not being honest with Olivia, but the rules were very clear and breaking them would land Jules in serious trouble.
"Sam told me Team 2 was covering Team 1's shift. We should have been unpacking boxes and shopping for baby clothes - instead Andrew's dead because he had to cover your shift".
It had been the first time since Jules had arrived at Olivia's that she heard resentment in her voice. She understood why she felt that way; she just hoped their friendship would survive when the truth about what happened to Andrew finally came out.
It was getting on for six when Jules left. She had promised Olivia she and Sam would come and see her on their next day off and had volunteered Sam to do some heavy lifting for her.
Jules told Sam she had seen Olivia but hadn't said anything about her own pregnancy. Sam said he understood her reluctance to tell Olivia, but felt she should tell her soon. Jules knew Sam was right and wished she had been brave enough to have told her when she was there. She promised herself she would call Olivia when their shift finished tomorrow and tell her about the baby. The rest of their evening was more relaxed than it had been all week; they even managed to watch a film, or rather Jules watched it as Sam was asleep before it had even started and had woken when the end credits were rolling.
It was Friday morning and four days since Andrew's death when Winnie advised Team One of a possible sniper shooting in the city center.
Every team member was on edge when they arrived on the scene. Uniformed officers had assembled and the body of middle aged women lay dead in the street. She had been shot through the head; the contents of her shopping bag scattered across the sidewalk.
"Same guy?" Ed asked but knowing with a fair degree of certainty that this was the same guy. He had upped the ante: This was out in a public place there would be no way the Mayor could stop this from making the evening news and panic among the people in the city was now inevitable. It took a cold-hearted individual to shoot a defenseless middle aged woman in the head. Ed had never been completely at ease with taking a life, but he did so to keep his teammates safe or to protect innocent victims. As Ed crouched behind a SUV, he hoped it would be him who would be given the scorpio order and end the snipers life.
"Spike, any ideas where the shot could have come from?" Greg asked his technical expert as he looked at the surrounding buildings.
"She appears to have been shot face-on so he could have been in any one of the buildings on the north side." Spike replied pointing to a large group of tall building behind them.
"OK team, start searching the buildings on the north side and stay safe; he's probably long gone but let's not take any chances. Jules, Leah start interviewing witnesses".
It was two hours before the area was deemed safe enough to remove the woman's body. Greg was tired and angry; he didn't like the way this was being played out. He was a patient son-of-a-bitch, he would give him that. One kill every four days; no evidence, and plenty of time for him to be long gone before any police showed up. Greg hoped no more lives would be lost. If he was a creature of habit they had just four days to find out who his next target was and why: At the moment it appeared random but Greg knew it was seldom random; there had to be a link between the SRU and this woman, and they had to find it before he killed again.
Back at the SRU, Spike set to work; a large pile of buff colored folders sat neatly to his left.
"Need some help?" Sam asked as he made his way over to Spike.
"That would be Samstastic" Spike replied.
"What are we looking for?" Sam asked picking up the first folder.
"Any case which resulted in an official complaint being lodged against the SRU by family members."
"What about the woman this morning; do we know who she is yet?"
"Homicide has just sent over her details; Karen Jackson aged 52 - resident of Parkdale. She was in the city to meet her daughter".
Sam sat looking at the picture of the woman trying to understand why the sniper would murder a stranger walking along the street; Sam continued looking at the photograph. He knew for sure he had never met this woman, but there was something about her; her face was familiar.
"Did she work?" Sam asked Spike.
"According to the police report Karen Jackson was a housewife; married to John Jackson with two daughters both married with jobs in the city. No criminal record for anyone in the family. Why she was targeted is anyone's guess - maybe it is random?"
"If he is targeting his victims at random, we have no hope of finding out who he is" Sam said
"Unless he makes a mistake" Spike replied.
"We can't wait for him to make a mistake and I don't believe this is random" Greg interjected "He is too precise; too detailed. One kill every four days is not random. There is a connection between the two victims I am absolutely convinced of that; we just have to find it and the answer could lay in one of those files".
"Let's hope so" Sam replied as he and Spike began the arduous task of sifting through pages of case files.
"Want some coffee Sam - this could take a while".
Sam nodded and as Spike went to get the coffee Sam looked at the photograph of the woman again.
"Boss, can I take some personal time?" Sam suddenly asked Greg
"Is it important?"
"Very".
"OK, be back in one hour".
"Will do Boss, thanks".
Sam's heart was racing; if he was right about the dead woman, this was a whole different ball game.
