Gillian spent a lot of time pacing, looking intently out the window and watching Cal breath. Sometimes it seemed as if he struggled to bring in the occasional breath and that scared the hell out of her. He hadn't regained consciousness yet and that scared her just as much.
There was nothing in the room she could use to defend them either. She been through it from top to bottom and there were no loose boards, nothing under the sink in the bathroom, nothing in the closet. And she was starting to think that they really may not get out of this.
Biting the inside of her cheek, she sat next to him on the bed and lightly brushed his hair back with her fingertips before running them down his jaw. Shouldn't he be waking up already? She felt her throat start to close at the thought of losing him. He couldn't die. That just wasn't possible. He was Cal Lightman. Lie Detection extraordinaire. Brilliant, strong, assertive, abrasive, dedicated, unwavering, loyal…and also very human. The swelling in her throat almost turned into a sob, which she quickly swallowed down. No. She wasn't going to lose it again.
On impulse, she got back up, went into the bathroom, grabbed a washcloth and ran it under some cool water. Returning, she sat on the edge of the bed and gently wiped his face.
Cal flinched at the contact, moving his face away ever so slightly and Gillian's breath caught in relief. "Cal?"
He didn't initially react and she felt disappointment spiral into her stomach. She tried again. "Cal?"
"Mmm."
The breath rushed out of her and she closed her eyes for a moment.
"Colldd."
"Sorry. It was just worth a shot."
"Wha was?"
"You've been out a long time."
He didn't open his eyes, but he did frown. "Wherrre arrrre weeee?"
"Same place as before."
The frown deepened as his eyes slid partially open. He stared at her, puzzled, obviously not remembering.
"We were abducted." Gillian prodded, keeping her voice low.
Cal stared a moment longer before awareness settled into his features. "Shiiit." One shaky hand found his forehead and rubbed fingers across it. "Gillllian, ittt's reallllly hazzzy."
"They came to the office. Two of them." She turned away and casually tossed the washcloth on the nightstand. "They've been keeping you drugged."
"Sommethinn' to do with Bainnnbridgge." He looked up, his eyes widening. "Iiii missssed the trialll."
"Yes."
"He walkeddd."
Gillian let out a trembling sigh, picturing the handsome young man with the propensity for insatiable cruelty. "Probably."
Cal sat up too quickly and she watched as he whitened. She leaned forward to grip his upper arms. "Careful."
He stilled for a moment before continuing to slowly pull himself up, his back against the headboard. She scooted toward him, still holding on.
"Feeell like I'vve losst about a hunndred IQ poinntss." He looked at her through murky eyes. Blinking, he tried to clear them. Some part of his brain took note of her close proximity but couldn't come close to deciphering her expression. He could, however, vaguely smell her perfume.
"I'm sure they'll be back when you're feeling better." Gillian hesitantly let go but one hand ran down to rest on his forearm, squeezing gently.
He grunted, eyes closing.
A quiet shuffle outside had Gillian pivoting toward the door, heart suddenly galloping. No, no, no. Not again. Please.
There was silence but she couldn't shake the feeling that one of them was out there waiting. But for what? She stopped breathing just for that moment.
A low tapping sound against the floor and then something was slid underneath. Footsteps quickly moved away.
What the hell?
"Are they commming backkk?" Cal reacted to the sudden tension rolling off her. He forced both eyes open again, anxiety clenching his insides painfully. He was aware of the fear in his words and felt immediate disgust with himself.
"I'm…not sure." She got up, crossed to the door and stared down, confusion and fear at war.
A pocketknife with an elegant mother of pearl handle lay at her feet.
(BREAK)
"You realize that there's no way in hell that they're going to let you talk to him, right?" Reynolds whipped his head toward Torres.
"Yeah, I know. Don't want to see Junior, let alone talk to him." She squeezed her lips together in a straight line.
"We're just hoping to get something off the old man." Loker was in the backseat, hands folded across his chest.
"Sure. He's just going to confess: 'Yeah, I did have them kidnapped 'cause I wanted my mental case of a kid to walk away from four counts of torture with two counts of attempted murder.'" Reynolds blew air out in a huff. Lightman and Foster were missing without a trace and at this point they had nothing to lose. Didn't keep him from being pissed off though. "There's no guarantee that Senior Bainbridge will talk to us either."
"Have to try." Torres glanced over at the agent, face grim. "I can't help but think we're running out of time."
"This might prove to be a wild goose chase."
"We're just hoping that one good read could open the door for something more. The DA's trying to pull some strings for a search warrant but…"
"Ah, the joy of expensive lawyers."
"That about covers it."
Reynolds made a left and steered the car forward into the long driveway. About a quarter of a mile through twist and turns, the large colonial came into view. The estate was huge, with stables, swimming pools and a tennis court. Some people never seemed to have enough.
He parked directly in front of the huge front terrace and all three climbed from the sedan. Loker peered around, wearing his disdain like an army medal.
Torres commiserated with him but kept her expression neutral. "You might want to turn that down a bit." She nodded to Eli's face.
"These people make me sick."
"I know."
Reynolds was already ringing the buzzer and the other two hurried to catch up.
Just moments later, a young lady with dark doe-like eyes answered the door. Her smile was hesitant. "Yes?" She was actually in a maid's uniform.
Loker bit his tongue when Torres flashed him a look of warning.
"We were hoping to have a word with Mr. Bainbridge Senior." Reynolds kept his voice amiable.
The eyes shot between all three of them nervously. "Appointment?"
Showing his badge, he went for the bluff, knowing he couldn't just walk in but counting on the girl's ignorance. "FBI business."
"Oh. I see. One minute please?" She shut the door in their faces.
They were quiet for a moment before Loker stated what appeared to be the obvious. "Well, that went well."
The door was suddenly pulled open and Loker startled into silence as the girl peeked out at them once again. "Please, come in."
They stepped into a wide entry with marble floors that gleamed as if spit shined and followed her two doors to the right where they were deposited into a library. Warm wood and leather contrasted heavily with the cold entry.
"Mr. Bainbridge will be with you in a moment."
"Thanks." Reynolds glanced at both Torres and Loker, eyebrows up.
"He probably figures that it would look odd if he didn't talk to us. He'll try to avert suspicion." Torres hoped that she was right.
"Makes sense."
Eli roamed the room, peering at old books and naval memorabilia. He stopped at a stand-alone globe and gave it a slow spin with his forefinger. "Pricey."
"Then don't touch it." Torres hissed at him as the door opened.
"What is this all about?" Finnley Senior now glared at them from behind his rimless glasses.
"Sorry sir. We don't mean to interrupt but we were looking into the disappearances of Dr. Cal Lightman and Dr. Gillian Foster." Ben's voice was smooth like honey, used to placating people.
"And what do you expect from me?" His watery brown eyes moved between all three of them.
"We just thought it was interesting that the one man who could have put away your son for a very long time today suddenly disappears without a trace." Torres knew she was goading and ignored the glare Ben gave her.
"Young miss, I have no idea what happened." His eyes were on hers intently. "All I can figure is Dr. Lightman got distracted by some pretty tail and blew off his responsibilities."
"Even Lightman has his priorities. Work first, women second." Loker stepped forward. "Your scenario seems pretty unlikely."
"Well, what can I say? The man has a reputation for that kind of thing. It just happened to work out for my son, who by the way, was being railroaded by a farce of a justice system."
"So you have no idea where they might be?" The direct question came from Torres.
"Why would I? For all I know, they took off together. Pretty cozy aren't they?"
"Okay sir. I'm sorry we bothered you." Ria smiled.
Taking her lead, Ben pulled out a card and handed it to Bainbridge. "If you think of anything, please give me a call."
"Of course." He seemed puzzled by their sudden withdrawal. "I hope they turn up unharmed."
"Thanks. So do we." Ria passed by him with Reynolds and Loker following behind.
"He's involved." They'd barely gotten back into the car when Ria made the declaration. "Deflected a direct question. Lots of shoulder action, although he kept his face pretty neutral."
"I agree." Eli nodded from the back seat. "I think he's one slippery old bastard."
"May not be enough to help the DA though."
Reynolds was right. It would remain to be seen.
(BREAK)
Finnley Senior poured himself some cognac before settling into his favorite chair. The liquor pleasantly burned down his throat as he attempted to get a handle on his whirling thoughts. He'd be happy when it was all over with but he couldn't shake the feeling that things were heading off their current path. No. As long as he kept Finn inside, it should all be good. But what were the odds? The kid was a slippery little devil.
Gazing out the window, he watched the shadows grow long. It would be dark in an hour or so. Keep the kid contained for the night and he'd be on his way to Brazil tomorrow. Simple. Of course it was, his inner voice snapped sarcastically at him.
Taylor was keeping an eye on him, just to be sure. He could be trusted to do his job.
Still.
He poured another drink.
It didn't help dispel the deep feeling of unease though.
Maybe he should call Berkley. He'd always been reliable, even when Finn was not. Almost like a son. He sometimes secretly wished that Berk were his son instead. It would certainly have made things a lot easier.
But easy wasn't something his life ever was.
Still suspenseful or is it drawing out?