As Sam attempted to deepen the kiss, she was halted initially, her tongue fighting to enter Jo's mouth but not quite succeeding, though a moment later Jo opened her mouth, allowing Sam to intrude her mouth, the blonde relaxing even more into Jo's embrace.

As the kiss continued to intensify, and Sam felt Jo's hand slip up the back of her top, she withdrew, breaking the spell both women had been placed under.

Feeling Sam pull away and then move out of her arms, Jo felt she could kick herself. 'Sorry.' She whispered.

Sam paused, shocked at Jo's apology, 'Why?'

'I got carried away. I shouldn't have done that.'

'Oh, well if that's how you feel.' Sam mustered, her eyes obscured by impending tears she was fighting to hold back, though not really making much difference to her vision given the current lighting condition.

'No, I don't, it's just, you… you pulled back.' Jo managed, her hormones working in overdrive, doing nothing to help her figure out what was going on in Sam's mind.

Sam took a step forward, not allowing any bodily contact between her and Jo; yet standing close enough for Jo to realise she was there. 'It's just not the right time Jo, you've got so much going around in your head; you don't need me adding to it.'

Jo reached out in front of her, arms gripping at air for a few seconds before finally resting on Sam's hips. 'Don't think that. I need you Sam, now more than ever.'

Sam placed her hands over Jo's, allowing them to rest there a minute longer before removing them, taking Jo's hands in her own. 'You need me to be a friend for you Jo, not a complication.'

'What does that mean?' Jo asked, wishing she could see Sam's face and attempt to read what she was thinking, 'Do you not want to be with me, is that it? Is that why you'd complicate things?'

'No.' Sam stroked Jo's hands, moving one up towards her mouth, kissing the brunette's knuckles before lowering the hand again. 'Jo, I think I'm in love with you. You don't need that kind of thing right now. The best way I can help you is to stay as your friend. When you're cleared, I'll be waiting for you, I'll still be with you up here in Manchester, and I'll be waiting to hold you, to love you. But right now what you need is a friend.'

'I think I've fallen for you too Sam, and that's the only thing keeping me going at the moment, the thought of you, even when I thought you weren't interested it was you that got me through each and every day.'

'And I'll still do that Jo, I'll be right here with you.'

'But how can I stay the same now? I've realised you care for me, how can I just act as if everything's normal?'

'Because when you're cleared I'll be here for you, that thought'll get you though.'

'And what if I'm not cleared Sam? Or if it takes years and years of appealing from in prison? What will you do then?'

'You will be cleared Jo, I promise you.'

'You can't promise that Sam, you know you can't. Stop trying to avoid the question, you just wouldn't be interested in me if I was banged up, would you?'

'That's not true. I wasn't avoiding it. And if you were sent to prison I would still be here for you.'

'But only when I'm released yeah? Of course, how could a copper be dating a convicted criminal?'

'No, not when you get out Jo. As soon as this whole thing is over. I don't care if you're banged up and never getting out, as long as I can visit you every fortnight, I don't care. I don't care about being seen dating a criminal Jo, because I know you're not a criminal. That's what matters. I care about you Jo, I don't care what brush society paints you with, I know the truth.'

'Do you mean that?'

'Yes. Of course I do, I think I'm in love with you, no prison wall is going to stop that.'

Jo was for once relieved they were in pitch black, it meant Sam couldn't see the tears running down her cheeks at this very moment.

Sam heard crying, and knew instantly it was coming from Jo, pulling one hand out of Jo's grasp, she moved it up to Jo's face, stroking the tears away as best she could. When she could no longer feel any, she stilled her hand, leaning in slightly and placing a short kiss on Jo's lips, 'I'm not going anywhere Jo. Think of that kiss every time you feel low, and remember I'm here for you.' Since Sam's hand was still resting on Jo's cheek, although Jo made no sound, Sam could feel her nod her head against her palm and wrap her arms around her waist.

After standing in the same position for about ten minutes, both in comfortable silence with each other, they broke apart, Jo destroying the stillness of the place. 'It's lucky I came prepared, isn't it?'

Sam stood confused for a few seconds before finding herself temporarily blinded. When she finally opened her eyes she saw Jo's figure standing facing her, a torch in her hand, now pointing at the floor as a pose to Sam's eyes.

'Torch? My you are prepared.' Sam replied, blinking a few times to de-fuzz her vision. She suddenly became aware that they weren't sure if they were alone, her sight flicking quickly around the room, relieved to find it empty with the exception of herself and Jo. Though her relief was short-lived as she realised that meant they were no closer to finding Jo's father and getting her cleared.

Sighing to herself, she took the torch from Jo's hand, briefly brushing her fingers against the brunette's palm, before heading over towards the pile of things left in the corner of the lock up. Riffling through it, she was annoyed to find nothing of importance, and given it was the only thing in the room, that meant they'd not found anything useful. She was about to give up hope when a box fell from the pile, hitting her foot.

'Ouch!' she exclaimed, annoyed to see it had opened and the contents spread across the floor. She bent down to pick them up, gathering up what looked like a pile of old clothes. She was about to stuff them back in the box when she noticed a stain on one item.

Pulling it out from the rest of them, she examined it carefully. It was a green t-shirt, and if she wasn't very much mistaken, it had blood splatters on the front of it. Smiling to herself, she shone the torch on it, confirming what she'd presumed when the light defined the markings more clearly, showing blood splatters right across the shirt.

It didn't take Jo long to join Sam, standing behind her and wrapping her arms around the blonde's waist before leaning over her shoulder.

'Is that you're father's?'

'Yeah, it was his favourite t-shirt.' She replied hesitantly, noticing the blood covering it.

'Are you sure?'

'Yeah, he was never out of it, loved that shirt he did. That's blood, isn't it?' she asked cautiously.

'Yeah, I think so. The police need to see this Jo.'

'Not 'til we've found him, please. You can bag it up and everything, and then give it to them when we give them him.' Jo had an ounce of spite in her voice, not having believed up until now he would do something like this, now she had evidence he did, she couldn't hide from that.

'All right.' Sam agreed reluctantly, 'But no more rule-bending, okay?'

'Yeah, okay. Thanks.'

Sam smiled slightly, worried by the expressionless face Jo had. 'That's okay. Come on, let's get out of here.' She added, shoving the shirt in an evidence bag she'd brought with her, steering Jo out of the room and into the open. Both women blinked rapidly the moment they hit the sunlight, their eyes having adapted to the darkness of the lock up.

Pulling up outside her house, Jo stopped the engine and climbed out of the car, still acting on autopilot from the shock of what they'd found at the lock up. So much was flying around her mind after finding the blood on the shirt, that her kiss with Sam had been pushed right to the back of her mind and almost forgotten.

Sam jumped out of the car, still slightly alarmed at Jo's seemingly non-existent reaction to their find. She followed Jo into the house, forcing her into a chair the moment they got inside the kitchen. 'Sit there.' She commanded, the brunette not having much choice as she'd already been pushed into it by the blonde. 'Right, you need a coffee. That must have been a bit of a shock.' Sam commented, hoping to get some reaction out of the brunette.

Jo looked up, having been completely lost in her thoughts, 'Hmm?'

'I said that must have been quite a shock.'

'Oh, yeah, I suppose.'

'Jo, you just found your father's shirt covered in blood. Is that all you can manage, you suppose?'

'What do you want me to say Sam, I'm in deep morning for the loss of my father as I knew him? I can't bear to think of my father as a murderer? What?'

'I just expected at least a little emotion. That's all.'

'Well I can't do that Sam. What are you even doing here? Why did you come up here in the first place?' Jo snapped, their previous encounter wiped clean from her mind.

'Why do you think Jo? Did that mean nothing to you earlier?' Sam yelled before running from the room, Jo hearing a series of thumps as she ascended the stairs, before a final slam of a door, which she presumed to be the one to the spare room Sam was currently habituating.

As everything from earlier came flooding back into Jo's memory, the brunette jumped out of her seat, hitting out at the door handle before recoiling in pain, shaking her hand a little before heading up the stairs after Sam.

Chewing slightly on her bottom lip, Jo knocked on the door with her good hand. After hearing no response from Sam, she decided to take that as an invitation to enter, pushing the door open slightly and leaning around it. Seeing Sam lying curled up on the bed, she crept over, sitting next to her and resting one hand on her shoulder. 'I'm sorry Sam. I'm so sorry. With everything that… the blood, everything… I just forgot. I didn't mean what I said, I need you here, please don't go.'

Sam rolled over slightly, looking up at Jo, her eyes puffy. 'You forgot? How?'

'I don't know. There was just so much going around in my head, what with my father and everything, that, I don't know, I just forgot.'

Sam wiped a stray tear from her eye; 'Did I mean that little?'

'No.' Jo replied defensively. 'Of course you didn't. It's just, I don't know Sam, I can't explain it.'

'I don't know if I can do this Jo.'

'What?' Jo's voice was barely a whisper.

'Look how much you can hurt me when we're not even together. I don't know if I can set myself up for that much heartbreak.'

'I wouldn't break your heart Sam, I promise. I love you, don't leave me.'

'But that's the thing. I don't know if I can trust that, do I?'

'You can trust me Sam.'

'But we're not even a couple and we've already managed to split up, how is it ever going to work?'

'Because I'll make it work Sam. I'll make it work.'

'I don't think you can Jo. Thanks and everything, It was great while it lasted, but I just can't do this. Sorry.'

'Sam, don't, please.' The brunette had tears trickling down her face, rolling off and landing on Sam's below her.

'I can't Jo. I'm sorry, I'm so, so, sorry. But I can't.'

Jo stared into Sam's eyes for a few seconds before looking away, her eyes now flooded.

'Jo, please don't.' Sam begged, sitting up on the bed, her eyes immersed in tears. 'Don't leave it like this, look at me, please.'

'I can't Sam. I love you. I can't watch you drift further and further away from me, please don't make me.'

'Jo.' Sam mustered, at a loss for words on how to explain how she felt. 'Jo, I care too much about you. It's better this way, for both of us. This way our hearts don't get as damaged as they could three years down the line. It wouldn't work Jo; we're too similar, we'd constantly be arguing. I'm doing this for both of us. I'll stay; I'll clear you. I'm not letting you go to prison, but I can't be here for you afterwards, I just can't, I'm sorry.'

Jo turned her head back around to face Sam, 'Why? Why would stay when we're not… y'know.'

'Because I don't want to see you go down for something you didn't do.'

Jo nodded, turning back away from Sam, forcing her next words out of her mouth, 'What I said earlier, y'know, about love an all, I didn't mean it, y'know.' Jo concluded.

Sam nodded her head a few times, tears still creeping down her face. 'Yeah, well, I did so… yeah.'

Jo sighed; all this was killing her inside. She knew she meant it, she was just trying to make it all easier for Sam, why she didn't know when the blonde was breaking her heart, but she wanted to make it as easy as possible for her. 'Right, well, I'm gonna go make some lunch, you want any?'

'Yeah, yeah that'd be good. Thanks. I'll be down in a minute.' Sam concluded, allowing Jo to leave the room before she broke down in tears again. She couldn't work out if Jo had meant what she'd said about not loving her. If she didn't love her, why tell her that in the first place? But if she did, why tell her now that she didn't mean it? Had it all just been a lie to get her into bed? Well, whatever game Jo was playing, Sam knew she'd just have to ignore it for now if she wanted to prove her innocence before it was too late.