Chapter 17: The Chase

I had to stop driving my car for awhile... the tires got dizzy. -Steven Wright

"What the hell is he doing?" Nate was trying to see what was going on in front of him but despite Gibbs' insane driving they were still a good distance behind Sterling.

"He's swerving all over the place." Fornell summed, squinting from the back to see a car in the distance clearly having trouble staying on the road.

"But why?" Nate barely got out before nearly smacking his head on the windshield at Gibbs' sudden acceleration.

"I think the girls fighting him but I'm more worried about him making it past that turn up there.
If he gets into that clearing it's gonna be a hell of a time catching him before he gets back onto the main road and disappears into traffic." Gibbs explained doing his best to catch up.
He really wished he had his own car at the moment and not this LVPD piece of junk.

"Damn." Fornell cursed hitting the back of their seat.
Sterling had just made it to the clearing Gibbs had mentioned and just their luck he of course turned into it.

"Look" Nate pointed as they too followed.

"He isn't going to... He wouldn't would he?" Fornell was disbelieving as he watched the scene play out before him.

"He killed six people Tobias." Gibbs reminded, though he too hoped what they were seeing wasn't what they thought.

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"You've gotta go!" Sterling yelled, checking his mirrors for what seemed to be the hundreth time.
They were still being followed and the cops seemed to be getting closer.

"What?" Abby cried. She had been doing her best to stay calm after she had been dragged
down the alley and thrown in this car but now he was getting angrier and she just wished she could disappear.

"Open that door!"

"Why?" She sniffled. That did not sound good and she was starting to panic.

"You're my ticket out of this. Now open the door." Sterling ordered again.
This was the only idea he had that would let him get away clean.

"NO" Abby pulled hard on the edge of the steering wheel praying they would just crash and stop.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sterling pried her hands away but the girl wouldn't stop pulling on the wheel and he was having a hard time keeping the car on the road.

"You're going to kill me anyway so why does it matter which way it happens!" She started hitting on him and trying to pull his hands off the steering wheel.

Grabbing for his gun Sterling was happy to see that Abby automatically stopped and stiffened.
"Sorry" he mumbled as he swung the end of his gun full force hitting her in the temple, effectively knocking her unconscious.

Watching as the door was pushed for the third time it finally caught and stayed open.
The three had no other choice but to watch as Abby was pushed from the car and began tumbling away as Sterling continued to speed off.

"Stop!" Nate yelled itching to jump out of the car.

"If we stop we lose him." Fornell disagreed.

Slamming on the brakes Gibbs hurriedly stopped the car before running out and to the unconscious girl.

"You think he would have kept her to insure his safety." Tobias huffed out as he finally reached where Gibbs had kneeled next to the girl.

"He knew if he tossed her we'd have no other choice but to stop so I think he just did." Nate was annoyed at Fornell's blatant disregard for the girl and just with the situation itself.

"We've got to get her to a hospital." Gibbs ordered, slowly lifting Abby and starting his way back to the car.
She was still breathing but it was shallow and uneven at best and he honestly didn't know if she'd make it.

Jumping in the driver's seat Nate waited for Fornell to settle in the back with Gibbs before speeding off.
It had taken nearly four months and six bodies later but he finally knew who his murderer was and yet he still couldn't claim the satisfaction of saying he caught him.
Pressing just a little harder on the gas he silently vowed that he wouldn't lose a seventh person to that bastard.

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"Any news on the girl yet?" Munch questioned from his spot against the brick wall.
He had once again been left to babysit the crime scene and he was starting to feel like a rooky instead of the detective he had worked hard to become.

"She was bleeding internally when we got there; she was rushed right into surgery." Gibbs informed.
He had made sure Munch was informed on their current situation about an hour ago and now he had finally made his way back to the crime scene.
He hated hospitals on his best days and there was no way he was going to spend the night in one with a killer on the loose.
This may not have been his case but he was knee deep in it now and there was no way he planned on backing down; things had become almost personal.

"What's going on here?" Nate had noticed things were particularly quiet for everything that had gone down.

"I rounded everyone up and got them taken to the station, the man who was shot went to the hospital, he passed out from too much blood loss.' Munch answered as he began to rub his arm.
"The woman I presume to be his lady was near hysterics. By the time I got her away from him so the medics could do their job she had dug craters into my arm."

"What about him?" Tobias jerked his head in the direction of the man cuffed to a pole a few feet away.

"If it wasn't for him I wouldn't even be here. Apparently my key doesn't work in your cuffs."
John spoke straight to Nate as he pushed himself off the wall and toward Rossi who looked to be close to shivering.

"How longs he been there?" Gibbs followed taking a bit of satisfaction from Rossi's discomfort.

"Not long, maybe two, three hours tops." Nate couldn't help the sardonic smirk that began to appear as he took his time searching for his keys.

"You wanna hurry up." Rossi growled.
He was sore and cold and most definitely angry.

"Pipe down." Fornell said disgustedly.
The guy was slimy and shaky; just like a wet rat.

"When I get done with you you'll regret the day you were born!
I'm gonna sue the whole LVPD!" Rossi pulled on his cuffs; they weren't even attempting to take them off!

"Good thing I don't work for the police department then." Gibbs shot back.
He couldn't believe this scum's daughter was in the hospital right now and all he was doing was tossing around empty threats.

"I'll sue the city itself then! I don't care if I have to sue the whole state, but by the time I'm done you can
guarantee you won't find work anywhere around here again!" He was not going to be mocked like this. They were going to pay.

"I can give you the numbers to some great lawyers if you're in search of one." Munch threw in laughing as Nate finally uncuffed him.

"How about you stop with the empty threats and start worrying about your daughter and the situation you're in." Gibbs advised taking the lead in escorting Rossi to their car.

"I haven't done anything!" Rossi protested, trying not to stumble as he was nearly dragged by the neck.

"It's always nice to see such a concerned parent." Munch was nothing if not seeping sarcasm at the moment.
The man had heard their whole conversation and knew how poorly his child was doing and yet he cared for nothing more than saving his own skin.

No one noticed the man lurking in the shadows listening as they continued to bicker before finally getting in the car and driving off.

"You have to ask yourself, what kind of father you want to be, and when you figure that out, then you'll know what to do."- (David Rossi Criminal Minds)