Disclaimer: I own nothing from the TV show, Psych. Its characters belong to the cast and crew as does the producers of Fear Itself. Any copyright infringement is unintended and may be reported to me.
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2. Psychoanalysis
Something was definitely off about Juliet. She'd been working past her limits on the wedding details. The added worry of Father Chris seemed to be taking a toll on her.
Shawn wished he could do something about that. Maybe he could visit the priest and get an update. Or maybe he could help Lassi with the case. Juliet was probably interpreting it as a bad omen. Shawn would prove her wrong.
"Take a right." He told Gus. The Blueberry turned smoothly after which the driver questioned, "Wait, I thought Cho's was Fifth on the Main."
"Yeah, but I want to drop by the hospital. Jules' been worried about the Father."
Gus frowned. "That's understandable. The Church's street is supposed to be very safe. That's the place with the least number of road accidents accounted for."
"That's not it." Shawn argued, remembering his fiancée's tense expression. "She's not telling me something. I bet it has to do with the hit and run case. I'll visit Father Chris and check in on Lassi to see how the investigation's going."
"Now? Shawn, I need to finish this route! You told me to drop you by Cho's."
"Fine. Leave me at the hospital and I'll walk to the station."
"Once when I left you on a half empty road, you got assaulted and got a black eye." Gus reminded him. "If something like that happens again, Juliet will torch my company car."
Said car slowed down in front of the hospital. Shawn got out and displaced Gus' hesitation with a well worn grin, "Maybe it's time you got a new car. Get a Cranberry."
"You blew up that rented Cranberry, Shawn! You're not getting anywhere near another one."
Shawn pouted. "Why did you park it right next to the explosives?"
Gus set his jaw and drove away.
Spoilsport, Shawn thought, walking inside the building. It wasn't as though he had planted the bomb in the red car. Although, having split the Blueberry into halves on the same day did not appeal Shawn on Gus' good side. Luckily, their friendship was worth more than both cars.
Shawn found the doctor who had been in charge of the Father's surgery. He was stable for now. They had shifted him to another room to keep him under observation. No immediate danger.
That was good. He considered waiting around or calling Juliet but decided that he could tell her later in the evening. There was no hurry. Plus, the chances that someone had intentionally wanted to hurt the Priest were low. Working for the church helped one earn a good spot in almost everyone's belief.
But it wouldn't be too over the top to check on the case. Plus, Juliet would feel better if they caught the culprits.
Shawn left the hospital and walked two miles to the station. He had plenty of time to think about a revolutionizing pineapple flavor for Jerk Chicken spicing (one that would work better than the previous ambitions.)
He was just a half a mile away from the police station, when he felt someone watching him. He turned around. The morning was filled with a few loiters, mostly couples, visiting the sparse shops scattered in the area. Nobody seemed to be looking his way.
He thought back to Gus' comment of him being attack while working on the Veronica Towne case.
But that had been in the night. Nobody would jump him in broad daylight, right?
Shawn picked up the pace. The feeling wouldn't leave. Trying not to feel too disturbed by it, he dug his pockets for his phone. Best to call someone to throw off a potential attacker.
Juliet didn't pick up the call. She was probably busy with Marsha. Gus would not answer his phone during his route works. Shawn sighed and dialled up his father.
There were seven rings before Henry picked up the call. "What is it, Shawn? I'm in the middle of –"
"Hey Dad. I was just thinking how much I hate pineapples."
There was silence on the line. Shawn thought he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around, his heart hammering. He was alone on the street.
"Shawn, talk about Hawaii if you think you're in danger."
Henry was good at picking up clues. Of course, anyone who knew Shawn would realise that something was wrong. He started to walk ahead, "Yeah, well. Hawaiian fruits are much more delicious."
"Where are you?"
"Heading for Lassi's place. I'm just around the corner, actually."
"I'll call the Chief. Don't hang up, Shawn."
Shawn swallowed. His movements felt stiff. He could still feel a sharp gaze on him. There was definitely someone tailing him.
He continued talking as though nothing was wrong. "Anyway, I was wondering how much would a cake like that cost?"
There was a sudden screech of tyres. Shawn nearly dropped his phone as he looked back. There was no one following. Just a black Prius with tinted windows, speeding towards him.
The car jumped up the footpath, running over a few cycles parked together. Shawn couldn't see the driver, but that didn't matter. Even though his mind was working furiously and his skin felt hot, he stood fixed to the ground.
"Spencer!" Someone shouted from behind. That got him moving. Shawn braced his knees and leaped sideways and out of the way. He hit the wall of the closest building. The car missed him by inches.
Chief Lassiter and a few others came running around the corner. The former took out his gun and aimed at the vehicle, but before he could say anything, the car disappeared down the road.
Shawn groaned. He had not landed well.
"I got the license plates! McCarty, run them down, now! Spencer, it's just road rash. Up you get."
His ankles hurt, but not too badly. Shawn shook his head to assess himself.
Alright, he was almost run over by an unknown assailant. Gus was right. He couldn't escape safely after being dropped off somewhere. If he were superstitious, Shawn would have attributed the attack to karma.
They walked back to the police department. It took a while to get used to the slight burn. He'd probably need ice.
Shawn watched as the others started running around the station. A female officer was nagging one of her co-workers in front of his computer. Two others were rushing around with papers. Lassiter was behind his desk and on the phone with Henry.
And a woman who looked a lot like Juliet O'Hara was leaving the station as discreetly as she could.
Shawn stared from his spot on the chairs. He was right outside the Chief's office and could see all the activity. He had nearly forgotten that Juliet was here. He was about to call her out when another thought crossed his mind. Why didn't she come out to get him along with the others?
He got up (grunting at the flash burn of his ankles) and started walking towards her.
Juliet hadn't noticed him. She hurried down the steps and started walking south. In her beige coat and scarf, it seemed like she was trying on a disguise. Shawn stared after her and then took out his phone. Deciding to fool around, he gave her a call.
In the distance, he saw Juliet, reached into her pocket. She answered, "Oh hey, Shawn. Did you catalogue all the dishes we'll be needing?"
"I thought Marsha's supposed to do that. Anyway, I was wondering where you were."
Shawn watched. The sky grew cloudy and the wind was cold. Juliet replied, "I'm on my way. Just had to stop by the hotel to check on the reservations. Could you pick up some celery from the grocer's? I want us to keep up the salad regiment."
Shawn didn't respond. Juliet was still walking. She was a tiny figure on the horizon. She was lying to him.
"Yeah. Sure. See you back home."
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Dinner was a strained situation. Shawn couldn't get it out of his head. Someone had tried to kill him. Juliet was keeping something from him.
They ate quietly at the table. It felt wrong. Just the previous evening, Shawn had been blabbing about fantastical circumstances of the Mentalist episodes and Juliet had been laughing and contradicting him at every turn.
The couple stabbed at their salad. Shawn glared at the leaves. It wasn't even a fulfilling dish. He really hated the 'wedding weight idea.'
"What's wrong?" Juliet asked out of the blue. He saw her staring at him. She looked weary as though he had unpredictable intentions against her. He knew it was the other way around.
What was she thinking? He wondered what she did during the day. Aside from the station, did she go anywhere else? Did she have secrets from him?
Shawn swallowed the stiff food, "Just a little unhinged." He smiled.
She nodded and gave a weak smile. "Uhuh? Anyway, tomorrow will be a busy day. We have to pick up our dresses from Lauren's Boutique and hopefully, Marsha will call about the new Priest. And you have the list of the guests arriving tomorrow. Henry and Gus are in charge of picking them up."
He nodded, looking down at his plate. She was just worried about the wedding. Shawn berated himself. What was he thinking? That Juliet would start hiding things from him? There had to be a reason for her to do that. And it would be a good one.
He sighed and gave her a genuine smile. It seemed to relax her. "Yeah. Two more days, Jules."
He extended his hand across the table and she clasped it, beaming at him.
He was being paranoid. Shawn could see that now. Her actions were hers alone. He had to be a little mature about this. So, it was just a little lie. She was probably just looking into the Father's hit and run case and didn't realise that his dad had called the department to search for him just before his own almost-hit and run case.
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