Keeping Katie Ch 8
Of all days that he couldn't get home! Don thought angrily. He knew he had to be here, but he sure didn't want to be. He tried to put his home life out of his mind. Elliott was talking to his wife, trying to explain why he couldn't come home tonight for the twins birthday, Olivia had to work instead of going to see her half brother who was in town for a short while, everyone was upset over having to be here. He wasn't the only one who didn't want to be here and Karen would be fine. She was one tough lady.
The only one who wasn't here was John Munch and Don had not been able to get in touch with him on his cell phone. That was unlike him, but it happened. "Let's run this and see where we are." he said.
"I gotta go, Kathy. I'll be home as soon as possible."
As they ran the case, it became evident that it was going to be a long one. "Where is Munch?" Fin demanded irritably.
"I think he had a date." Olivia said with a smile. "He was smiling when he left here."
"He needs to get his bony ass back here." Fin said, but he wasn't serious. He was actually pleased that the man had a love interest, even if it was temporary.
"We'll just have to do this without him until we can reach him. In the meantime, Fin, you and Lake go see what comes up at the Blue Tattoo Bar. That seems to be in the hub of the activity. Benson, Stabler, talk to the ME and see what kind of evidence she has for us. I'm going to check with the other precincts and see what they have to say. Something tells me that we aren't alone in this. Maybe they can make the case go faster."
Most of the squad were aware of the fact that Cragen had a new love interest and he wasn't happy to be here. They were also aware that he was going to get crankier as the case dragged out. Not that any of them wanted to be here. They had familys too.
Don went into his office and made the phone calls he said he was going to do. He also tried to call Munch again without success. He opened his desk drawer and removed some papers and smiled at the picture under the papers. It was a candid of Karen that Charlene had taken when they were outside. Karen had been watching the kids play in the yard, the sun was shining and the breeze was blowing because her hair was standing out from it and she was smiling. He even recognized the dress as one she wore in the warm weather when she had some time off. He remembered helping her take it off a few weeks ago...Whoa, don't go there. That was one memory he didn't want to have here at the office or he'd be sitting behind his desk for awhile.
Someone knocked on his door and he put the papers back. It was business. It was 3:00 pm. By 4:30, they were deep into the interviews and ready to go out and start knocking on doors. The case was taking some really odd turns and it seemed that they were going to be able to release their original suspect. Elliott came to his door. "His alibi didn't check out. He's still looking like our best best bet. We need a search warrant for his apartment. We think we can find what we need to put this creep away for a long time."
"I'll get right on it. Elliott, we'll get you out of here as soon as possible." Don added.
"I know, Captain. Same to you." he grinned.
Don picked up the phone and called for the information. He had it in half an hour and they were on the way to the perps apartment in ten after that. He wanted to go to the phone and tell Karen that he'd be home soon, but he held off. It was just as well he did. There wasn't any evidence in the apartment to prove their theories. They were back to the drawing board. Don scowled at the lawyer the perp hired and had fantasies of the man in shackles right alongside his client. He shook that out of his head. "Mr. Zilkis, your client is being held on rape and murder charges. He will not be going to a restaurant for dinner tonight and you cannot bring him food in here. He'll eat the same stuff as all the rest of the people in lockup."
"That constitutes unusual treatment, Captain. Mr. DeMarco is used to the finest food around on a regular basis."
"Human beings are remarkably adaptable creatures, Counselor. People have been managing on the plain fair we serve here for a long time. I'm sure your client will manage as well as the rest of us." Don didn't try to totally keep the sneer out of his voice.
"Captain, my clients family is used to the very best and when they had the governor came to dinner last month..."
"I'm sure he had a good time, but I wonder if he'd have been there if he knew he was sitting with a possible murder and rapist." Cragen told him.
"I find your assumptions offensive, Captain Cragen."
"I find you and your client both offensive, Counselor." Don said seriously.
"Your superior officer will be hearing about this, sir." the counselor huffed and left Cragens office.
"I don't doubt that." Don said softly after the man left.
Elliott was tapping his pen on his desk blotter indicating he was thinking about the case. A sure sign that he was onto something and someone had made a serious mistake. Too many people took one look at Elliott and thought only muscles or smile, very few looked beyond that to his very sharp mind and keen powers of observation. He was on the trail of something and Don had the good sense to leave him alone and let his mind do what he was best at. Olivia was busy working on something on the computer. For a minute it amused Don with the thought that if he went over there, she might be working on a puzzle or something. He was sure that wasn't the case, but it was an amusing thought.
The tapping of Elliotts pen ceased for a minute and he narrowed his gaze. He leaned forward and spoke intensely to Olivia. She listened and replied and went back to her computer. Elliott went back to his contemplations. For all intents and purposes, it didn't look like they were making any progress, but Don knew better. All the information had been gathered for now, it was only a matter of organizing it into a pattern. Not a visible pattern, one that only a trained detective could follow.
It was a nerve wracking time waiting for the case to come together. Don went over to the door and checked the rest of the squad room. Sometimes seeing the "Old Man" looking out at them made the younger officers more diligent. It certainly used to work on him. And the older ones knew he was available to them if they needed him. It was a just an understanding of how a precinct worked. It was a comforting thing. And Don knew he had to appear calm and in charge for everything to stay on an even keel. A captain who was out of control was a detriment to his unit and would soon be replaced.
The evening dragged on and at 10:00 Don decided enough was enough. "Stabler, go home for awhile. Benson, you go home too. We'll pick this up first thing in the morning."
"I'm fine, Captain." Elliott said quickly.
"So am I." Olivia seconded.
"Go home, all of you. You'll think better with some shut eye. That's an order." he said.
"What about you, Captain? Are you going home?"
"Yes." Don said not mentioning that "home" for tonight was his lonely apartment.
"Really going home?" Olivia asked softly.
"No. When this case is over." he said.
"It might be worth the trip." Elliott said.
"Go home, you two." Don said with a tired sigh. He knew they were trying to help but it made things harder than it already was.
He shagged everyone out of the squad room and left himself. The apartment was close, but it was only a place to lay his tired body. It didn't feel like home anymore. He still had clothes here and there were dishes in the cupboard, but it was almost sterile. He considered calling Karen, but she'd be asleep and he didn't want to wake her. The kids would get her up early for school and she needed her sleep.
He took a shower and laid down on the bed. The expensive mattress he'd had delivered seemed lumpy and empty. Even cuddling up to the extra pillow didn't seem to help. He took his pillow and a blanket and went out to the couch. It wasn't as comfortable, but it did sooth his sense of it being just a matter of time until he was back home and he was able to sleep.
He was the first one there in the morning and he was ready for this case to be history. John Munch walked in looking too rested and relaxed just ahead of Fin who gave him a sourt look. "Where've you been, man? We been calling you."
"I had a date, thank you very much. What's up?"
Elliott walked in while Fin was filling his partner in on the case. Olivia strolled in minutes later having at least changed her clothes. It was an every damned day of the year thing that needled Don this morning. It wasn't every day of the year and he wanted an improvement. "Munch, go over every single piece of the case and get up to speed. The team that cracks this case gets an entire weekend off, no oncalls."
Some not so subtle looks passed between the team members. The captain had never offered that before, it wasn't unheard of, but it wasn't his usual style. This was serious. He had always depended on his detectives to give it their best irregardless. None of the other officers blamed him for his new life. He was a good commander and a good man. They were happy to see him smile more.
The break came suddenly. "I found it!" Olivia yelled, excited. "El, look. The indentation wasn't from the hilt, it was from the butt of the knife. A knife that is shorter than the one found at the scene was used and the butt of the knife was used to drive it home. That's why we couldn't pin it on him. He used the knife then drove it in with another and pulled it back out so it didn't match, but the tip of the knife has a knick on it. Right where it is on his hunting knife. We got him." She said.
"That figures. It's always the pretty ones who get the vacations." Fin said teasing her.
"Now all we have to do is prove it. Let's go see Warner." Elliott grinned happily.
"I'll think about you when I'm tanning at a spa." Olivia said to Fin.
Fin balled up a piece of paper and pelted Munch with it. "Hey, what's that for?" Munch demanded.
"For not being here." Fin snarled. "I could've used those two days off."
"Me, too." Munch tossed the ball back but his was done in teasing.
Don's whole day got brighter. It was going to take a while to get the confession wrapped up and the paperwork done, but it looked like he was going to get to go home tonight. He went into the interrogation room and watched them present the information to the perp who ended up singing like a canary. He was pleased and went back to his office to change the schedule so Olivia and Elliott had the weekend off as promised. He also called the down to the payroll department and had an envelope sent up.
It arrived in his office and he put it in his desk drawer. Elliott and Olivia came into his office and updated him on the case. He nodded and requested they get their paperwork in early so they could all go home early. They started to leave his office. "One more thing. Call whoever you want to, you both have the weekend off as promised."
"Thanks, Captain." Elliott grinned. "The kids wanted to go to a church campout this weekend but I thought I had to work. This'll be great. How about you, Liv?"
"I'm going to go see Simon this weekend and surprise him for a change."
"Have Fin step in here, will you?"
"Yes, sir."
Don felt good when they left smiling. He liked this business of rewarding his squad when they did well. "You wanted to see me, Captain?" Fin asked in his breezy, "not sure what I did wrong, but I'll take care of it" attitude.
"Come in and close the door."
"Somethn' wrong, Captain?" he asked complying with the request.
"Elliott and Olivia, busted the case open but you put a lot of time into it and I realize that."
"It's just breaking down the bastards, sir. No big deal." he shrugged uncomfortable with any kind of praise.
"Well, I want you to know I appreciate it. Here." Don dug out the envelope and handed it to him. "Use this with my complements."
Looking confused, Fin opened the envelopes. "Dinner tickets? What...?"
"Take someone to dinner and enjoy yourself on me."
"You don't have to..." Fin began.
Don held up his hand. "Don't make me regret it."
"I-Okay, thanks. Are you going to get out of here early?" he asked.
"I'll have to see. Get back to work, Tutuola."
"Yes, sir."
Don ended up with an easy afternoon and decided at three o'clock he was going to cut out. He went out to the squad room and got the final report for the day. With a nod he left and didn't exactly tell the whole squad that he was going home. Though it would have been obvious to anyone who knew him that he was going home. He was early and missed the afternoon rush hour. He called Charlene and told her he was on the way home and could she watch the kids. (He wanted some time alone with Karen.) Unless he missed his guess, Charlene had a good idea of what he wanted to "talk" to her about. She did mention that Karen had a few things they needed to talk about too and it was good he was coming home. He could've sworn she was smiling.
The trip seemed to fly by, but it was too long for him. Karens truck was in the driveway and he pulled next to it and went inside. Charlene was in the kitchen making dinner. "Hi." he tried to sound casual.
"She's out in the barn. Why don't you go get out of your suit and then come back here. I have something for you."
"I wanted to..."
"Just do what I said. You won't regret it."
"Yes, ma'am." he said smiling.
He went into their quarters and quickly changed clothes and went back out to the kitchen. Charlene had a basket of food on the table and a couple of blankets rolled up in a strap. "She's out in the barn and she's really been missing you. Go find her. Send Joseph in here and I'll make sure he stays here with the rest of them."
"How is that going?" he asked.
"I'll let her give you the update. Go, before the kids get home and want to go with you."
Don grinned at her and headed for the door, stuff in his hand. It felt good to be home. He noticed the garden had been freshly picked, and there was quite a stack of firewood next to a pile of more firewood. He heard sounds in the barn. Karen was talking. "That's it, just gently. She likes that, see? She wants to smell you. She's just curious. She won't hurt you."
Don put the stuff down around the corner of the barn and followed the sound of her voice. They were inside the barn and Karen was showing Joseph how to pet one of the horses. He had a smile on his face of wonder and accomplishment and excitement. "That's it. Just go the same way as the hair on her neck. Feels good to her and she likes you."
"She's soft." Joseph said.
"She is. She has her summer coat on."
Joseph looked around. "I don't see it." he said.
"She's wearing it. She her hair is thinner and there isn't much of it. When it gets colder she'll lose this coat and get thicker hair and more of it for the winter."
"She'll be naked?" Joseph demanded horrified.
"No, the bigger hair will push the other hair out and then in the spring it'll do the same thing all over again. Joseph, look who's here. Hi, Don."
"Hi, Don." Joseph said.
"Hello, Joseph. How are you?"
"I'm petting Lucy. Karen said she likes me."
"I think she does. Charlene asked me to tell you that she needs you in the house."
Joseph looked confused at Karen. "Is it okay if I go? Lucy won't miss me, will she?"
"She understands. We can do more tomorrow."
"Okay." Joseph turned and walked toward the house.
Don looked at Karen and smiled. "Hi. I caught the zebra."
"I'm glad it wasn't hard to catch." she said releasing Lucy and stepping out of the stall to stand in front of him. "I'm glad you're home."
"So am I." he said softly touching her face with his fingertips. She closed her eyes and leaned into the caress. "I missed you." he said huskily.
"You're home now, that's what counts." she said opening her eyes to smile at him.
He put his arms around her and kissed her gently, then with greater feeling wanting to get as close to her as possible. She was just as eager as he was. After the first round of kisses, he gentled them and just enjoyed the feel of her in his arms. She pressed as close to him as she could.
"Let's go back to the house and get some dinner and we can spend the evening..." Karen began.
"Charlene was one step ahead of you. She sent me out with supplies." he said, indicating to her the stuff he'd stashed.
"Remind me to give her a raise." Karen laughed. "I see you've been in and changed."
"She can be a bossy woman." he agreed. "Shall we take advantage of her good will?"
"Oh, yes. Come with me." she took the blankets and his hand and led the way out through the back door of the barn. The door had a very old fashioned, wooden, hand hewn slide bold on it that was designed to be worked from either side of the door by humans. They walked across the pasture to a small path that led down into a small wooden enclosure that hadn't been grazed. She opened the gate and he closed it after them. She led the way through some tall grass to the small stream with sandy banks. It had trees around it and was completely secluded.
"This is great. I didn't know this was here." Don said.
"This is our private place. We all use this when we want or need to be alone. And in the summer when it's really hot we come down here to splash in the stream and cool off. It's a special priviledge place. And we keep it clean from the animals that's why we fenced it off."
"Do I get a special priviledge?"
"You are my special priviledge, Don Cragen. I missed you. I didn't think this would be so hard."
"I'm sorry. I wish I could say it gets easier, but I'm afraid it doesn't."
"Then I'll have to deal with it. You're here now, that's what counts."
"It is."
"Let's eat. I'm sure Charlene made something hot. She was planning a good dinner, so she probably gave us that to eat."
"She told me when I called her to say I was coming home that you had something you needed to talk to me about?"
"Over dinner."
They spread out one of the blankets and sat down. As they sat down on the blankets and Don felt the tension at work wash away from him. He ate the dinner that Charlene had so thoughtfully packed and Karen had served him, but what he wanted most of all was the way Karen felt in his arms and under him afterward. That made his whole battle to get home worth it.
TBC
