Title: Date
author: Cindy Ryan
pairings: Stahl/Kennex
spoilers: all

As nice as Dorian was he was still an android. So having Valerie along on this stake out was a good change for John. Besides the obvious fact that she was prettier to look at; she was human. John hadn't had a human partner for a long time. It made him smile and added weight to his heart at the same time. Having the responsibility of another life was never easy. Especially when you cared about that other life and would trade yours for hers in a heartbeat.

It took all of John's will power not to order Valerie to stay in the car. It was a paradox John was still adjusting to. Probably a chauvinistic one. She'd had the same training he did. Was a better cop than he was. Part of John wouldn't have anybody else but Valerie or Dorian watching his back. The fact that Valerie had worked her way under his protective shell and into his heart was playing havoc with her being a colleague. Shoving the turmoil aside with a mental effort John glanced over at Valerie as they reached the warehouse door. She nodded that she was ready and he kicked the door in. The wood of the door was old and warped with weather and age. Did not make for a quiet stealth entrance by the time John was able to get through. Valerie checked the handheld computer she carried attached to her belt and frowned.

"Must've alerted his buddies; got two coming from the south."Stahl reported as they entered the building.

"Call for backup."Kennex ordered as he moved forward sweeping his flashlight.

Valerie's voice echoed weirdly in the nearly empty building as she radioed in. Confirmation of help being five minutes out was relayed back by a young male voice. Stahl came to stand at John's right as they continued towards the center. John's instincts were itching. Screaming at him that this was too easy. That the bad guys had something else up their proverbial sleeve. Footsteps echoed against a metal catwalk that ran along the left side of the warehouse. John yanked his light in that direction and fired at the shadow. Shots returned caused Valerie and John to split as they dove for cover. At almost the same time a wall appeared cascading down from the ceiling with a loud crash completely separating John from Valerie. The wall was metal but had new tech infused making it lighter weight but tough at the same time. Easy install, easy to hide and no way through that John could see. To make matters worse and his heart jump into overdrive he could clearly hear gunfire on the other side.

"Dispatch, where the hell is our backup?!"John thundered into his radio as he ran the length of the barrier looking for weaknesses. "We're under fire!"

"Less than two minutes."The youth responded calmly.

The calmness of the man's voice told John he was most likely an AI. Why John's brain decided to focus on that tidbit of information he didn't know. Perhaps as a calming technique. It wasn't helping. What also wasn't helping was the silence. The gunfire had stopped. However the footsteps clanking against the metal catwalk had returned giving John insight and a metal kick in the ass. He had a way to get to Valerie. He just had to find a way up. The shadow assailant resumed it's target practice and John ducked and dove sliding several feet along the metal wall. He returned fire finally hitting his mark. He heard the gunman cry out in pain and then saw a figure topple to the ground. Rising to his feet John checked his own hand held computer to find it still on his belt and still working. Unfortunately whatever the new wall was made of it was interfering with the heat readings. John had a brief glimpse of two blips moving away from the building and then nothing. The only way to know if his partner was alright was to physically see for himself. John planned on doing that anyway. Once confirming that the gunman was dead John found a old ladder with iron rungs attached to the exterior wall and quickly climbed to the skinny catwalk. He radioed dispatch with an update and kept moving. John ignored dispatch's inquiry of needing a medic. He was doing something he hadn't done in a long time; praying they wouldn't need one.

The wall slamming down to the floor had surprised Valerie. However, there hadn't been any time for her to wonder about the wall or worry about John. Bullets pinged against the metal surface above her and Valerie took cover against the right wall near where they had come in. There was no way out of course since the wall was between her and the main entrance. But there was a wood shelf along the wall about ten feet above her. It was falling apart from lack of use but it was enough cover for Valerie and that was all she cared about. Well almost all. Even as she returned fire Valerie kept wondering how her partner was doing and if he was alright. Distracting thoughts to have during a gun battle. Valerie did her best to shove her emotions aside. It was tough but doable.

The gunman moved and so did Valerie. She took three steps to the left when one of the shooter's bullets hit the shelf she was using for cover. It gave way with an ominous groan and crack. Valerie tried to get clear but she wasn't fast enough. The old lumber was thicker and heavier than it appeared and it caught Valerie on her left side trapping the detective. As she fell the wood shifted and broke. The part that broke free swung just enough to catch Valerie in the back of the head knocking her unconscious.

"Valerie!"John called as soon as he was around the barrier separating them.

When only silence answered him John skimmed the area with his flashlight. The light landed on a still human form under debris and John's heart froze. John gripped the short metal railing of the catwalk and it took him longer than it should for his brain to realize how high he was. Killing himself in a fall wouldn't help Valerie. Swearing loudly John found a similar ladder and descended it as rapidly as he could. Even dropping the last three rungs John still felt like it took forever to reach his partner.

Partner.
The word stuck in John's throat as he knelt by Valerie's still form. She had come to mean so much more to him. Lover, friend, and colleague blended swirled and didn't begin to cover what Valerie was to John. Dimly John heard the backup officers arrive and enter the warehouse.

With surprisingly steady hands John reached for his partner and felt for a pulse. He let out a long sigh of relief when a strong one answered his inquiring fingers. Almost at the same time Valerie groaned and began to stir. Even in the dim light of his flashlight resting next to him on the ground John saw his partner begin to stir. He gripped the wood and flipped it off of Valerie. It crashed against the wall with a thud. Valerie groaned.

"Easy."John soothed. "Help's comin' and we'll get you fixed up."

As if on cue the metal wall shattered and John found himself staring at a flood of light and his android partner. Dorian stepped through as if he'd just passed through a normal doorway absently shaking off metal fragments. The android was flanked on one side by Detective Richard Paul and two human medics on the other; one male one female.

"John, you okay?"Paul asked but Dorian quickly assessed the situation before Kennex could speak.

"Detective Stahl is the one injured though Detective Kennex's heart rate is elevated."Dorian reported. "Detective Stahl's injuries appear minor."

John bit back the sarcastic retort and remained silent as the medics surrounded Valerie. For once John was grateful for Dorian being a walking computer. In one second the AI had relieved John's worry and fear. In one moment Dorian had told John that Valerie was going to be alright. It was more reassurance than any human could give John right now.

Standing slowly John moved to Dorian and Paul as the medics put Valerie on a translucent gurney. He watched as they lifted the injured woman and carried Valerie through the opening Dorian had made and vanished from took everything in John to turn to face Detective Paul and not follow Valerie and the medics. Dorian's earlier diagnosis echoed through John's thoughts calming him. Helping him focus.

"Did we get the others?"Kennex asked crisply.

Paul shook his head."No, got past us but we got a hover following."

John picked up his gun and flashlight and turned back. "Let's go."