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A/N : All characters are presented in this way for the purpose of the story
Joey let his head flop back against the wall as he stifled a yawn. Despite the exhaustion that wracked his body, he would not let sleep defeat him. Temporary sleeping arrangement had been organised for the three of them but they'd denied the offer. Joe sat directly opposite him, staring vacantly out the window, an empty coffee cup clutched in his hands,
"What should we say to the others?" Joey asked quietly.
He got no answer. Joey had told Jaime there'd been a development with the case, but he hadn't gone into details as to how big a development it was. Brian(Rosenthal) had called earlier but again, he'd kept his words to a minimal. Brian had said Julia was in a bad state after the memorial and Joey felt guilty keeping this from her.
"Joe… we have to tell them," Joey insisted, his voice breaking.
Joe turned his head slowly and looked at Joey, however his gaze was empty and it was clear his thoughts were elsewhere,
"Tell them whatever you want," he growled, "tell them we lost her again."
Joey sighed at the bitter sarcasm laced in Joe's tone and decided to drop the matter. Joe stood suddenly,
"I'm going out for a cigarette."
"You don't smoke," Joey countered
"I'll get one from one of the officers."
As he stepped out, Joe drew his coat tightly around him. The roof overhang protected him from the icy rain but did little to prevent the biting wind from ripping savagely through him. He sat down on an empty wooden bench and watched as every now and again a car would drive past, their windscreen wipers swishing frantically back and forth. He took a long drag of the cigarette, coughing as the smoke burned his throat. He looked at its glowing tip. Lauren had always hated the habit. With a sigh he quenched the fag and flung it aside. The light from the street lamps looked like distorted balls of floating fire in the torrential rain.
He felt his phone beep, signalling low battery. Taking it out, he checked the time – 3.12am. He held the mobile in his hand, gazing at the lock screen photo. It was one of him and Lo in a bar dancing. She had her head resting on his shoulder and her eyes were closed. He remembered the night it had been taken and longed to be back there again, swaying to the soft music.
A tab popped up from the bottom of the screen alerting him to one new voicemail. He frowned as he recognised the message as being left by the same number that he'd ignored earlier. He held the phone to his ear, only half listening as the recorded voice went through the normal procedures.
The beep signalling the start of the message sounded and a second later a soft familiar voice started speaking hurriedly. Joe found himself gripping the phone dangerously tight as he hung on her every word. The message ended and he found himself standing. Without hesitation he sprinted through the pelting rain towards his car. He threw himself into the driver's seat, his hands shaking as he tried to insert the key. The engine roared to life.
He drove like a manic down the highway, the rain getting progressively heavier. He could see the speed dial showing a little red arrow as he reached 90 miles, then 100 miles an hour. As he nearer the motel, he slowed down and squinted out the front window searching for a large illuminated sign. There it was, just up ahead. Half of the letters weren't lighting but there was no doubt about it, it was Sunset Lake. Joe turned into the car park. He switched off the engine and took a deep breath. Suddenly he felt very much alone.
His phone had died on the journey so he had no way of knowing if Joey had tried contacting him. It didn't matter. He wanted to face this guy himself. He wanted to make him pay for everything that Lauren had gone through. He reached across to the passenger side of the car and opened up the glove compartment. He paused before reaching in and pulling out the small black gun. It felt strange in his hand, but he knew he wouldn't hesitate to use it if it meant protecting Lauren. He'd bought it months back, vowing to never fall victim again.
It was time. Rolls of thunder growled menacingly as he stormed towards the front door. His eyes narrowed as he noticed the woman behind the desk. She looked up upon hearing him come in and sat up, her eyes trained to the black gun in his right hand as he neared her,
"A young woman booked in here earlier tonight," he stated lowly, "she was with a guy. What room are they in?"
The receptionist sat unmoving as he glared darkly at her,
"Wha…what, what did they look like?" she stuttered, her voice trembling.
"The woman is small and slight with brown hair… latina," he added, his hand tightening around the gun as the woman nodded,
"Room 204… they arrived earlier tonight."
Joe almost felt bad as he saw the her shaking in front of him, however he didn't have time to dwell,
"Call Chicago Police Station and tell them to hurry," he ordered before turning his back on her terrified face.
He climbed the stairs two at a time, reaching the second floor quickly. He stopped as he came to room 204. The floorboards creaked under the weight of his feet as he adjusted his footing but apart from that the corridor was in complete silence. It was probable that most of the rooms were unoccupied. He raised his fist to the door and hammered on it, hearing the wood protest against the hinges. Silence followed. He raised his fist again, this time throwing his full force into each attack on the door. He waited and after a minute he heard the distinctive sound of footsteps on the other side of the door.
Lauren jolted awake as she heard a thunderous banging on the room door. Her heart was in her mouth with fear. Could they know about her betrayal already? She felt herself curl in on herself as the memory of the last couple of months played over and over in her head. They'd kill her, without hesitation this time.
Shane threw back the covers and looked over at her, frowning slightly as he saw her staring fearfully up at him,
"Get dressed," he instructed, throwing her clothes over to her. She tugged on her jeans, fumbling with the zipper and button, before pulling on her shirt. Another round of banging pummelled against the door frame causing her to jump. Shane crept forward towards the door, his gun hanging loosely in his hand. Lauren held her breath as he looked through the pinhole. She saw his shoulders tense as he turned his head slowly and looked at Lauren appraisingly before finding his voice,
"I think you have a visitor Lo…Joe,"
The venom in his voice sent shivers down her spine as a raging anger flared up behind his calm facade,
"What did you do?" he said slowly, coming towards her, noticing the lack of surprise at the mention of Joe's sudden appearance.
Lauren's eyes flitted between the door and Shane as she backed away. He foot caught on a loose bit of carpet and she felt herself crash down.
Shane loomed over her, his face a contortion of betrayal and rage. He grabbed her roughly by the upper arm and pulled her up, so that their faces were only inches apart,
"I'll kill him and you'll watch me."
"No," she whispered, her eyes widening,
Shane shoved her aside roughly and smiled bitterly at the look of complete terror on her face,
"You had that exact same look the last time, when he was bleeding to death in your arms."
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