Chapter 6: Crime Scenes, Discoveries and Shopping

~ M ~ T ~

We were walking through the car park where Lieutenant de LaRossa and Chief Mayer would provide us with a car. They had already handed a pair of keys to us. The walk to the car was spent with talking about our Crime Lab in New York and Chief Sinclair, who turned out to be an old friend of Chief Mayer. Maybe that, too, explained why Chief Mayer had been asking Stella and me to do that undercover project. Against the strict political façade Sinclair had when they were working together, Chief Mayer told us that he actually was a nice kind of a guy. Honestly sometimes I found myself actually liking my boss and I mean, except for our little differences when it comes to politics we were getting along. Not quite the best friends though. I had to drop my thoughts because we were now standing in front of a dark blue Nissan Primera, the car which will be ours for our time in Chicago.

"Well, it's not the newest car, but it's not too old. It was one of our civilian cars for the detectives, but this one doesn't have the police radio. But otherwise you won't need it… I hope you're okay with it?" Steve de LaRossa said. Stella nodded her head with a smile.

"Sure. Thanks for the effort." I said.

"You're welcome Detectives. Well, Detective Taylor… I heard your mother still lives in Chicago?" the Chief said and I looked at him in surprise. What did my mother had to do with all that? I nodded my head.

"Well, feel free to go and visit her when time permits. I guess you don't come here very often. And since the weekends are all yours… Just to tell ya, you're free to go anywhere. And I also heard that Chief Sinclair wants you in New York once a month. We already talked with Amy… she'll stay with Detective Bonasera. I don't want her to be alone in the house at night, because it's the time the vics were killed. She'll play your wife's sister." Chief Mayer said and grinned slightly.

"Alright. Where do we go first?" I asked.

"First crime scene." Steve said. "We'll do it chronologically."

We agreed and After Steve de LaRossa and the Chief left us to go to Steve's car I turned to look at Stella. She gave me a small smile and walked to the passenger's side, obviously she wanted me to play cabbie. But for her I didn't mind. I would always play cabbie for Stella. I mean… she was a woman, right? And she was my best friend, so…? Mac Taylor, stop thinking such garbage and get your ass into the car! My brain scolded. I quickly shook my head and got into the car. Of course, Stella was female, but she was one of the most confident and strongest women I ever met, so why playing hero if it's not necessary, besides I didn't like the sound of hero. I started the engine of the car and quickly followed the Lieutenant and the chief who led the way.

xXxXxXxXx

The first crime scene was on the other side of Centennial Park, across from where Stella and I would be living. It was a small, white villa, with a red tiled roof and a small front yard. Although Dr James Button had been quite wealthy he and his wife lived quite modest. No reason to waste money for big villa if you only need a small one. We got out of the car and followed Steve and Chief Mayer inside the building. Mr. and Mrs. Button died in their modern and bright kitchen. There was no blood left and no signs of a struggle. The Crime Scene Clean Up's did a good job with cleaning the scene. I looked around. It seemed that nothing had been taken from this house since the murders happened. But since I only knew the crime scene photos I couldn't be sure about it.

"And nothing had been taken away from the house?" I asked Steve.

"No. Everything is still the same." He answered with a soft smile. My gaze turned to Stella. Her emerald eyes were looking at me in a questioning way. I started my way into the living room and looked around, the book shelf on one of the walls caught my attention. I went through the names of writers and the title of the books. Suddenly I stopped. "Michael McKenzie – The Red Ribbon". That was only one of many books by Michael McKenzie.

"Found something of your interest?" Stella asked quietly as she stopped next to me. I pointed at the book in front of me.

"Does that name ring a bell for you, Stell?" I asked, only for her to hear.

"Michael McKenzie… it's the second couple's male. You think it's a connection?"

"Don't know yet. But definitely caught my interest." I said before I turned around to ask Steve: "Did you guys take a look at the books here?"

"I don't think so, why? Found something?" he asked curiously as he came walking toward us.

"Maybe. Obviously Mr. and Mrs. Button knew Michael McKenzie… or at least his books. There are a few of his books here."

"You think there's a connection between them?"

"I don't know yet. Just caught my attention. What about the lists of clients who came to see Dr. Button?"

"Well, Dr. Button knew Loretta Sanchez. That's marked in the case file. She came to see him… her file said she was fighting her shyness and she seemed to do good progress. That's all that Mr. Button's secretary could tell us. But there is no connection between the McKenzie family and the Buttons. Except for these books, but then it could just be an interest. We checked the mail accounts, contact lists and the family's phone books, nothing."

"Well, then maybe this is just coincidence. I don't believe in coincidences but this time it might just be one. I think we should take a look at the third crime scene's bookshelf."

"Yeah, let's go. Or do you want to look around a bit more?" Steve asked and I shook my head. I thought there was no need to look around any further. So far the Chicago team made a good job. So we went outside and got into the car again, the third crime scene our next destination, after we agreed that I didn't want to look at the second one.

xXxXxXxXx

The house where Miguel and Loretta Sanchez lived didn't give us any new hints. This time we didn't find anything that would connect the Sanchez' with the McKenzie's. No books, no scripts or anything like that. Nothing indicated that they knew each other. So my guess turned out to be a dead end, but I wasn't really surprised by that. Stella hadn't said a word about my guess just talked to me when I was standing in front of that bookshelf. It worried me a bit, that she didn't say something. But as I looked at her she rewarded me with a barely visible smile. We walked back outside to the car and stopped in front of it. I turned around to the Lieutenant and the Chief. Both of them were looking seriously.

"Seems we're at a dead end again." Steve de LaRossa said sadly.

"Yeah… so the only connection is the picture and murder weapon." I said. I wasn't satisfied with that in any way. There had to be something. If the killer murdered the victims at night in their own houses how did he get in? How did he know when they would be home? How did he choose his next victim? Was it possible that he knew them and they trusted him? I haven't read anything about signs of a break in.

"Ποιες σκέψεις Mac?" Stella asked, but quickly regretted her choice of language as I look at her a bit perplex. "Sorry… was wondering what you're thinking about." She added quickly, as Steve and Chief Mayer gave her the same perplex expression.

"Was just wondering how the killer got inside and how he planned his murders. I am thinking that maybe the killer knew his victims…" my voice trailed off as another thought came to my mind.

"Or you think he probably worked as a locksmith?" she asked with raised brows.

"Either that or she has good lock picking skills."

"Either way it's not going to make it any easier to find our killer." Chief Mayer said.

"No, but we just arrived and we're here to work undercover, to play targets right? So we'll need more time and no one knows when the killer will make his next move and we also don't know if he'll take the bite." Stella said firmly. She was right, no one knew if the killer would take the bite and if he does when he'll act. It could be next week, it could be in two weeks, it could be in a months or even more. And we also didn't know how he chose his victims or how he knew where they lived. Maybe it was by coincidence? Maybe he planned it? Or maybe he really knew his victims. We couldn't ask the victims or their families as there were no witnesses, no cameras or anything else which could help us to identify the killer. All we could do was going through the evidence all over again and then hope and wait that the killer takes the bite.

"I know, sorry. It's just… ya know it's been so long that we're already chasing this guy with nothing in our hands." Chief Mayer said.

"Well, if you don't have any further questions I guess we can call it day and go home for the weekend. Detective Taylor starts his job at the music school on Monday at 9 am and Detective Bonasera… I'll pick you up at 8 am. You'll have the first shift in the morning next week." Steve de LaRossa said and we all agreed.

~ S ~ B ~

Mac and I watched as Lieutenant Steve de LaRossa and Chief Rainer Mayer got into the car and drove away. I knew that Mac was still thinking about the case ahead and I knew that something was still bothering him. I looked at him, his bright blue eyes were looking a bit frustrated. I knew he was pondering the same questions that I was trying to answer. And most of those questions began with the tiny little word how. After Mac noticed that I was looking at him his expression instantly softened and he gave me a small smile. Huh? I thought. Although I am wondering why he changed his expression so quickly, I didn't say anything. Silently we got into the car and Mac started the engine, before he looked at me in a questioning way.

"Shopping?" he asked.

"You sure you want to go shopping with a woman? Can take hours…" I teased him, forcing a small chuckle from his lips.

"I uh… didn't mean that kind of shopping… I was actually thinking about grocery shopping."

"I know, Mac. Lead the way, I'm not going anywhere."

Mac chuckled lightly as he pulled the car into the traffic and made his way around the town, our next destination the next grocery store. The ride took a while and was spend in silence which nearly killed me. As we entered the store Mac hadn't spoken another word and his expression was serious and thoughtful. I knew he was pondering questions and I didn't like the fact that he didn't share his thoughts with me. As he reached for a basket my hands stopped his actions by softly landing on his. He looked at me with a wondering and yet shy glance.

"What's still bugging you, Mac?" I asked softly.

"What?" he asked in a confused tone.

"Mac… you know exactly what I am talking about. Since we left the last house you haven't said a word and your expression is all serious and thoughtful."

"Stella…"

"Stop it, Mac! You know we have to talk about it anyways. We use to talk about it…" I lightly scolded and he looked down to the ground.

"Sorry." He said his voice full of remorse. "Just pondering questions that I can't answer and considering your look right now I have the same questions as you do."

"I know, but maybe we have different ideas, so why not talking about it?" I said as I let him get and carry the basket. Slowly we started our journey through the store.

"I just feel like I am questioning their work."

"You're still thinking about Amy Dubois?"

"That, too but I mean asking all those questions."

"Mac, they want us to help so we need to ask questions. Let me guess, you think the killer could have known his victims?"

"I'm not exactly thinking that, I'm just guessing. We have no evidence to prove it."

"And no evidence to disprove." I mentioned. He stopped and looked at me, before he nodded.

"So what are we going to make for dinner?" he changed the subject and reminded me of the fact that we were still in the story, but nothing was in our basket yet.

"You're up for pasta?" I asked him and he answered with a nod. "So then we're going to make Carbonara, but a bit different. Not just the version with bacon, eggs and cheese…"

"Hope you know that I don't have any idea what you are talking about." He said in a mocking tone.

"Well, Mister Taylor, then you have the opportunity to learn something today." I said teasingly.

"I am all ears, Miss… es Taylor."

I turned around to face him with a soft smile. He avoided my gaze so I simply grabbed his hand and let him through the store and while we were looking for all the kind of grocery we would need this week I told him about the recipe I tried a few months ago. Those were Carbonara with sweet pepper and onion, which was way different compared to the original recipe. Of course I didn't tell him what to do but I told him what we needed, since we wanted to make dinner together. I grinned inwardly. I knew that Mac Taylor could be a great cook if he wanted to. All he needed was a little practise and I was going to make sure that he got it. I thought this was going to be fun and we would learn a lot about each other during the next few weeks and I was more than curious about what qualities and secrets my best friend held captive in his very mind and soul. Gee, that sounds like a teenager with a crush Stella… you don't have a crush on him… I thought.

"So, strawberries, huh?" Mac asked as I put a small package with strawberries into the basket. I looked up into his blue eyes which tried to hide a mischievous expression. Was he actually trying to flirt with me? Mac Taylor flirting with his best friend? Never…

"What's wrong with strawberries, Mac? Don't like them?" I asked innocently.

"Actually I love them it's just that… you know… last time I had them they were used to… uhm… differently."

"Look at you Mac, you're seriously blushing…" I teased him and he blushed even more. "So… I assume you got some experience with strawberries in a differentuse…"

"Uhm…" he started only to stop with a shy chuckle.

"Don't worry Mac, those were for dessert. And not a dessert of thatkind." I said with a soft smile and he gave me a sigh of relief.

"So… how about finishing the shopping and then get something nice for lunch?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Sounds great, but since I know you'll insist on paying the groceries… I'm buying."

"Agreed."

xXxXxXxXx

After we finished the shopping Mac and I had started our way home and stopped at a small diner on the way there. Since Mac and I agreed that I would be paying for lunch since he already paid the groceries we won't have to argue on that. We were now sitting at a small table at the wall, which added some privacy to our conversation. Our lunch was modest, but it was delicious. And so we enjoyed our lunch in silence. I was thinking about the small scene in the store a few minutes ago. Did he really want to say something about the things he did with one of his ex girlfriends? We have had that flirty banter a lot of times before, but somehow I was wondering if I had been out of line earlier. He hadn't said anything about it, but… Oh c'mon Stella, you've done that a thousand times with him…

I let a small sigh escape my lips as I took another sip from my coffee. Mac looked up from his cup of coffee he was looking at, while he seemed to be lost in thoughts, too. He gave me a questioning look.

"Was just thinking." I said with a small smile and he nodded his head knowingly.

"Pondering thoughts about crossing the line between us?" he asked and this time I rewarded him with a surprised look.

"How did you know?"

"Just a feeling, besides I know my beloved Stella."

I looked down at the cup in my hands. Right… how could I forget that? But still it was surprising how well he actually knew me.

"Stell… we did that so many times before. I think you don't have to worry about crossing a line that doesn't really exist." He said quietly, causing me to look at him even more surprised.

"What?" he asked with a shy glance.

"Just surprised you just rubbed out the invisible line we always respected."

"Doesn't mean I don't respect your privacy and intimate life. I just want you to know that you don't have to worry about it. Besides… I started that conversation, right?"

"I didn't even ask questions."

"But you could have, if you weren't as respectful as you are." He said quietly and smiled lightly.

"True. So strawberries remind you of something you tried with someone?"

"They do remind of something I was seduced to try. Not that I mind, but it just brings back memories of things I pushed aside for a long time." He said, frowning a bit.

"I'm sorry, Mac." I slightly whispered.

"Don't be. It's okay." He smiled. "So… I gotta remember that place to take my lovely wife out for lunch or breakfast."

"Please do." I smiled, glad that he changed the subject.

We stayed a bit longer, before I paid for our lunch and then we head back to our new home, putting the groceries away and then settling in the small office to go through the case file again, reading autopsy reports, looking at crime scene photos and reading reports about the findings and evidence, before we go and dress in something more comfortable and going into the kitchen, to make our first dinner in the new home.

Alright... so I hope you all liked this 'little' chapter and their playful banter and how I wrote them both... hope I kept them in character and everything's fine for you...

Let me know what you think, will you? You really keep me going with reviewing this story and I really appreciate it! It means so much to me! THANK YOU! Hope you're still interested in what's coming next? and I might add this here for you... this story will contain a lot of SMacked moments, since they're living together and basically wait for the killer to target them, so... well, hope that's okay for you. I won't forget about the case so stay tuned for that, okay?

A/N: and don't forget to vote in my poll... still a lot of votes missing... What is it? Don't want to read any new SMacked stories? PLEASE let me know okay? Won't hurt you...

Have a great Friday and a great weekend!

blackrose538