So, here it is-my violence bubbling to the top. I would like to thank my 10 reviewers for their wonderful support, and to say that I can't keep going without reviews because I won't know what you guys think or what I can correct…It goes like this:

reviews are oxygen

oxygen is essential to life

so…reviews are essential to life

Title: Live or Die

Summary: I want to play a game with you, Robert Goren…

Rating: T (violence, and more violence)

Archive: I'm still not sure what this means…AI probably

Disclaimer: No; just no.

Disorientation. Confusion. Pain. He moved his body slowly and sat up on the bed. Last night, what had happened last night? Images of Alex and red silk flittered across his mind, but stopped as his eyes scanned the room around him. Where was she? His heart contracted painfully, and he winced. This wasn't good. This wasn't like last night. Dread slid down his spine, and Bobby realized that this was probably what it felt like to have a rotten egg cracked on his head minus the growing feeling of pain and fear in his heart.

His eyes caught one lone tape sitting on the bed side table to his left. He traced it with one finger. This wasn't one of Alex's tapes. Oh no, this was a solid black tape with his name written on it in silver ink, and was not in his Alex's handwriting. He pushed it into the player and waited.

"I want to play a game with you, Robert. I've been watching you with your partner. Your games are very…Interesting. I'm just having trouble trying to figure out what draws you to her, but after watching you two last night it's no wonder that you're attracted to her. Does your new captain know of your exploits? Even if he did he probably wouldn't mind after her little adventure with your friend Jo. It's a shame Jo didn't get to finish her work."

Nicole's voice carried throughout the silent apartment, and Bobby's eyes were wide with fear. He didn't hear the last pieces of the tape filter through the air. He was already out the door.

"I've half a mind to remove her gorgeous apparel. What a shame…I hate seeing beautiful clothes go to waste because of some silly things like blood."

Bobby was already out the door, and ten minutes later another voice floated through the player's speakers.

"Bobby, please, it's a brownstone somewhere to the east of my place. She can't hear me. Please, don't freak out. It's underground. I'm okay right now, but-"

Alex's screams tore through the empty apartment. The tape played on in fuzzy silence.

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"Drip." It had slowed. She shook her head to clear the fog slowly invading her thoughts, and she counted the seconds in her mind. "Drip." It was slowing. That was good. That meant her bleeding had stopped, or slowed. She breathed easier. Shaking her head again she listened to the drops of blood and sweat slide out of her hair and fall to the floor. Her shoulders ached and her wrists were in pain. She took a deep breath.

'Do not scream. It isn't Jo, but Nicole will want a reaction. Do not give her that.' Her thoughts raced. 'Please Bobby, don't loose it. Just let Ross give it to Mike and Wheeler. Please.'

PLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASE

He reached up and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He didn't need this. After everything: Jo, Goren's fiasco, and the following weeks of emotional deadlock. He didn't need this now, and he didn't need the other half of this now. He sighed. The papers were going to love this. Maybe, maybe he could hide the actual affair, but then…

…The door slammed and a cold blast of air hit him in the face. He looked up at his hurricane of a detective. "Goren, sit down and shut up. I know what's going on, but you storming in here like that won't help. I've given the case to Logan and Wheeler, and you better leave them alone or so help me Go-."

"Captain, this isn't that. The lab-there was mo-where are they?" Goren's eyes flashed through the glass and scanned the floor for any site of Logan and his girl of a partner. His body flew across the room to the door. Ross reached out and managed to pull the giant into the room, and he threw him into a chair. Goren's eyes were wide as he looked up at Ross.

Ross was hit by it then. This wasn't Detective Goren, the hyper, quirky man that he had the fortune-and misfortune-to see every day; this was a man who was afraid for the woman he loved. Ross shook his head. How they had hidden that every day was beyond him since it was so clear in Goren's eyes now.

"Goren, whatever you have they'll have. You're going to sit there, ignore the lab and tell me everything. Now. And then, you're going to tell it to Logan and Wheeler. You might even tell it to a few other people after that. And then you're going home. You will not bother them unless you have something to tell them pertaining to the case, and you will not set foot in the labs. Is that clear?"

BEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEGBEG

"You know, that shade of red does go wonderfully with your hair." Nicole's voice drifted through the air until it met Alex's ears. "That little message you sent to Robert was very touching. I made sure he heard it and your little song at…" Alex heard Nicole's footsteps draw nearer to her spot. High heels; what an odd choice for a psycho…

"…Games you play were highly amusing for me. We're going to play a little game, Alex." Alex heard the 'snip' of shears before she felt their cold metal being traced down her face. "Declan was more than willing to discuss his daughter's work with me. Didn't she send a text to Robert about now? What did it say…?" Alex shook her head. Pale red drops hit the concrete floor, and the tears in her wrists screamed in protest. "What's that, Detective? You don't want me to call him? Why is that?" The shears slid down her neck. "Could it be because you know what he'll do? Afraid he'll lose it, and do something rash? Afraid he'll try to attack someone else? Yes, too bad I'm not around for him to strangle…Just that would be amazing-the feeling of his hands splayed out on the skin of my neck, his body agai-." The kick came suddenly and unexpectedly.

Alex's body found new power and she launched her legs into the air. She could feel her feet hit Nicole's chest. She could hear Nicole's heels as she stumbled back across the floor. Then, fire. Everywhere. It was racing through her veins, and Alex screamed. She had felt the shears slide into her legs, but it only started a second later. The fire spread out across her leg as Nicole separate the handles of the shears. Alex screamed again as she felt the jagged edges slide through her flesh and muscle. One edge hit done and knocked two bits of bone into her already torn leg. The copper scent of the blood hit her nose, and she could smell the metallic iron of the shears in her leg. Nicole's fingers twisted around the handles and pulled the sharp, metal tips out of Alex's flesh. Alex's breaths came in quick, small gasp.

"That wasn't very nice, Detective. What ever am I going to do with you?"

TBC

Thank you guys for reading.