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Disclaimer: I don't own the characters!

"Hellooo there!" a slurred voice called to Stella from across the street. The sun was fading fast but she could still make out the slim figure stumbling across the nearly empty road towards here.

"Don't ignore me." The obviously tipsy person slurred again before tripping over the curb and falling just inches away from her feet.

"Lindsay what are you doing here? You should be at home." Stella scolded helping her to her feet.

"You should be at home. Mac said that you should rest." Lindsay told her eyeing the butterfly stitches on her forehead.

"Well its not like he's going to find out. Anyway I just needed to grab something from the store." She added showing her the bag in her hand.

"Are you sure about that? Because I called you about ten minutes ago and guess who answered the phone?" Lindsay asked following Stella who had started walking down the street again. "Mac did! He told me that you'd gone out for a bit."

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Stella asked trying to keep the conversation from heading in the direction of her and Mac. Luckily Lindsay didn't seem to notice.

"I called Ashleigh." Lindsay told Stella who stopped walking upon hearing the name. "I couldn't get hold of her so I called Chicago PD, she took two weeks leave just over a week ago."

"Why did she take some leave?" Stella asked.

"I don't know…"

"Montana!"

Both Lindsay and Stella turned to see Danny running towards them closely followed by Flack and Hawkes.

"Stella what are you doing here?" Danny asked as he reached them.

"I live here Danny. What are you lot doing here?" She retorted as Flack and Hawkes joined them.

"Monroe escaped from us." Flack explained breathlessly.

"We saw her playing chicken with the traffic when we were leaving a bar." Hawkes continued.

"When she saw us she darted off so we followed her but then we lost her. We heard her shouting and here we are now." Danny finished. "How much have you had to drink Montana?" He asked Lindsay who was now trying to hide behind Stella.

"Only one little drink." Lindsay giggled holding up seven fingers.

"Come on Montana, let's get you home." Danny told her as he and Hawkes grabbed one of her arms each and led her back down the street followed by Flack.

"See you tomorrow Stella." Flack called over his shoulder as Stella reached the entrance to her building.

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"What was that all about?" Mac called to Stella as she entered the apartment seconds later.

"What was what all about?" Stella asked joining him in the kitchen.

"You, Lindsay, Danny, Hawkes and Flack were all out in the street. Lindsay had obviously been drinking and Danny, Hawkes and Flack were all running down the road. What happened?" Mac asked pouring her a glass of wine.

"Oh, that. Well yes Lindsay was a little drunk but nothing had happened. Danny, Flack and Hawkes just wanted to make sure that she got home alright."

"She called you just after you left, said she wanted to talk to you. She sounded completely out of it. What possessed her to drink so much and why did Danny, Hawkes and Flack let her?" Mac asked already knowing that it would have something to do with what had happened this morning.

"Were you spying on me?" Stella asked avoiding Mac's question.

"What?"

"How come you saw us all out in the street?"

"I wasn't the only person who went to look out of their window after hearing Danny shouting Montana at the top of his voice. And don't think I didn't notice you dodging the question."

"This isn't an interrogation Mac, can we drop it now? I thought tonight was supposed to be about you and me not you me and the New York crime lab."

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"Nice of you two to finally join us." Flack called to Mac and Stella as they emerged from the huge crowd that had formed at the edge of the crime scene.

"We only got the call thirty minutes ago." Stella told him as she assessed the scene.

"But we're four blocks away from the crime lab."

"What happened here?" Mac asked ignoring Flacks comment.

"Paul Randall, thirty-two, driver's licence says he is from Connecticut. Witnesses say they saw him being thrown from the back of a white van." Flack read from his notebook.

"The fall didn't kill him though." Mac informed them crouching down beside the body as Stella started taking pictures.

"Yeah, he was stabbed in the chest." Flack informed them turning the page of his notebook. "The ME places time of death at around 6am but he wasn't thrown from the van until 10am."

"The ME has already assessed the body?" Mac asked raising his eyebrow.

"Yeah, he's just over there." Flack told him pointing to a young man who was chatting to an officer next to the crime scene tape. "He was just waiting for you before he took the body to the morgue."

"Is he new?" Stella asked watching the man.

"Yeah, this is his third New York crime scene, he transferred from Chicago two days ago." Flack told her. "I thought you preferred older guys though." Flack teased earning him a slap on the arm from Stella.

Mac watched her closely, he could have sworn he had seen her stiffen when Flack was talking but whatever had bothered her seemed to have passed.

"Assaulting a police officer is a very serious offence Stel."

"Do you have evidence to back up that claim?"

"I have a witness." Flack mocked looking at Mac for support.

"I didn't see anything." He said taking a step back from the pair with his hands in the air. As he did an argument broke out in the crowd around the scene. Instantly Flack and Mac rushed over to help the officers keep the crowd under control leaving Stella processing.

"Detective Bonasera, it's great to finally be in your presence again." A voice whispered in her ear as she felt cold metal against her neck.

"What do you want?"

"Ashleigh Waring is dead and you and Detective Monroe are next!"