Joe put a hand out to Brackett's shoulder to settle, stabilize, his friend. The movement wasn't lost on Roy either, the slight rocking movement like someone who had just been sucker punched and was having to struggle to stay on their feet. Before either of them could say or do anything, Brackett walked into the apartment. The record player was still playing, one of her favorites, a soothing jazz sound that calmed her after their long days. He'd heard it many times over the years and it brought back fond memories of dinners, of long talks, among other things, on that couch. He could smell something in the air tonight besides the delicate perfume she wore, light enough that none of the patients were affected by it, and the bath stuff she used: not bubbles though. Salt. That's what she called it, although it had always been a silly term for him to something you bathed in, almost like you were stewing yourself for dinner. The kitchen was immaculate, but she had gone to dinner with him and wouldn't have been hungry. Some vases, a lamp, were broken, the first sign of a struggle he'd seen. Had it been some sort of robbery, someone assuming she was still at the hospital and breaking in? No, nothing seemed to be missing, only broken. He found himself starting to clean the mess up, knowing Dixie would be upset when she came home to this mess. The cops were still there, saying things that weren't sinking into his brain, asking questions. Why were they still there? They should be out there in the night air, trying to find where she'd gone. She never would have left her apartment like this. Something horrible…the train of his thought stopped as he saw the picture on the floor. This he did pick up, gently, his fingers touching the shattered glass. She had art and pictures all over the apartment. Why was this one the only one destroyed, the picture of just the two of them at her birthday party they'd had at the hospital, the one where she'd actually been a patient instead of a nurse. He remembered that time well, how mad she'd pretended to be while he and Joe made fun of the story, her kicking the shopping cart. The injuries that day were minor and she'd been home in a few days. He remembered how frustrated he'd gotten at first when she refused to actually rest, trying to control things behind the scenes, even from her hospital bed. The nurse who she'd put in command tried, but no one else was Dixie. There was a reason why he relied on her as he did, why they all did. Mostly, though, he remembered the loneliness, even in the chaos of trying to do and be everything without her there. One of the other doctors had said that day they didn't know Dixie 'did all that stuff'; he and Joe had just looked at each other. They'd known; the woman was irreplaceable for a million different reasons./
Johnny Gage came out of the bathroom, seeing Brackett wandering around like a lost lamb looking for its shepherd. The police were actively trying to ask him questions as well as keep him from contaminating the scene, but the doctor didn't seem to hear them. It was more than just stubborness this time, but as if the voices weren't setting in. His eyes connected with his partner's just long enough to know Brackett was in shock. They all were, of course, but Brackett...was different. Nothing the police were saying was getting through, so Joe began to try to answer the questions, as much as he could, from the hallway where he was still standing with Roy. Johnny put a gentle restraining hand on Brackett, the only thing that caused him to stop where he was.
"Johnny…" It was Brackett's first word since he walked into the apartment. He looked around at the chaos as if he were seeing it for the first time all over again, stitching the scene together rather than just pieces of a puzzle. Chaos was nothing new to the head of emergency, but that was at the hospital. Dixie's apartment was a refuge, more so than even his own.
"We need to get out of here." The cops looked like they were getting upset. He knew he had to stop him from going into the bathroom at any rate. "You don't want to go in there." Gage told him, knowing even as the words came out of his mouth that, of course, Brackett would go in there, see what had made him sick, made his partner leave the room. The very thought of Dixie being in there chilled them all to their very core.
Brackett moved where he could see, staring at the sight. The tub was still full, although by now the water was tepid and splashed everywhere, as if she'd been surprised in the tub. Dixie's gown and robe were still hanging up where she could reach them, the silky pink ones that were so worn they were almost as smooth and soft as her skin. There was more broken glass, coming from the mirror as well as what looked like had been a wine glass. A paperback book was submerged on the bottom of the tub, still open, and there was blood. It wasn't just a drop or two, the floor was slippery with the dark substance. The only thing missing were the two towels that usually hung there. As much as he wanted to say Dixie had simply been frightened by an intruder, grabbed a towel, and ran out, that wasn't the case. He moved closer, careful of the blood, and saw it, a small tuft of fine blonde hair mixed with blood on her vanity.
Brackett felt like his legs wouldn't support himself and Johnny put his arm out again, just to catch him in case he fell. "She's gone." It was the first time Kelly had said the words, but something told him it wouldn't be the last.
Gage nodded, looking at Roy for help before back at Brackett. "She's gone." He echoed softly.
The two firemen moved their friend to Dixie's couch so he could sit since the living room had already been processed. One of the policemen came over and it occurred to Brackett that Dixie would know his name, but right now he just couldn't think of it. Joe saw them move Kelly and entered the apartment tentatively to sit beside him, remembering the parties that Dixie would throw for the 'family' as she called it. He would play the piano and sometimes, if they were lucky, she would sing. They all loved to listen to her voice. He remembered 'catching' her singing to some of the kids over the years at the hospitals, the ones that their parents couldn't be there for them. She was a comfort to the patients just as she was to the four friends here tonight.
""Kel, they want to know if anything was going on. Did she mention any threats?" Joe asked softly, knowing his friend might respond better if the questions came from him. He still was acting like he was in shock, like some things weren't registering in his mind.
Kelly shook his head. "No. I would have had security deal with them. There weren't any lately." It was no unusual circumstance for him to hear yelling or scuffling from the hallway only to see the petite nurse trying to hold her own with a difficult patient. If he was aware of it, he always dealt with it personally, and here lately Joe and some of the other doctors had helped out, either themselves or by calling security.
"Anyone hanging around? Following her?" The policeman asked, sensing Brackett was able to talk to them now, although he still looked lost.
"No. No, we went out to dinner tonight." Had that only been a few hours before? Why hadn't he gone home when she asked him to? True, it might not have stopped this, but what if it had somehow? "There was no one. No one that I saw." Was there something he'd missed?
"Anything going on at the hospital lately that she could have been involved in?" This question was directed at the two doctors; the paramedics had answered what they could earlier.
"No." Joe shook his head. "No, there's been nothing." Being a public emergency room, there were always things happening, but nothing that would have brought this on, directed anyone's anger towards Dixie. He couldn't imagine what Brackett had seen in that bathroom; he didn't want to know. The living room itself was bad enough.
"I lost a patient a few days ago. Two, maybe three?" Brackett looked at Joe who nodded at the three before looking back at the officer. "But Dix didn't have anything to do with that. She wasn't my nurse and she wasn't there when I told the husband." It was the real reason he hadn't left the hospital earlier. He had trouble letting go of something like that, especially when it seemed so senseless.
The officer nodded, writing it down, but not thinking anything of it. Patients died in hospitals and, if McCall wasn't involved, it probably wasn't connected. "Anything else? Do you two see anything missing? Would you know?"
Brackett nodded. "I would know. Two towels are gone out of her bathroom, but her keys and purse are still where she leaves them. Everything in here looks all right, just…just broken." He stood, at the cop's urging, and went with him to check the bedroom.
Joe looked at De Soto and Gage. "It's bad, isn't it?"
"It isn't good." Roy answered cryptically, shaking his head. "It just…it doesn't seem real. I mean, I see that it is, but when you connect something like this to Dixie…"
"I just wanna know why." Gage spoke, as close to tears as he allowed himself in the field, in front of others. "I want to get her back and I wanna know why. It has to be someone who doesn't know her. Anyone who knows her wouldn't…" He paused. "Is Brackett going to be okay? Are you?" He directed at Joe.
"I will be. I want her back, like the rest of you, but…" Joe stopped himself, redirecting the statement. "I've never seen him shut down like that. If this doesn't turn out the way we all hope…" He shook his head, unable and unwilling to think of any other circumstances but bringing Dixie home. "Are they sending officers to the hospital?"
Roy nodded. "Yeah, I think so." He was quiet for awhile, trying to sort things out in his mind. "Did anyone see her leave tonight? Maybe someone followed her from the hospital? I'm not sure why if nothing's been happening there, but maybe something was and she didn't see it? Or didn't say anything about it?" They all knew how protective the doctors were, especially Brackett, of Dixie. If she thought something was minor, she didn't tell if it wasn't necessary.
"I didn't. I never saw her come back from dinner with Kel." Joe frowned. "Maybe whoever…whoever this is, they saw her leave?"
"Or it could have been a thousand different creeps in this city who saw a woman alone." Gage said bitterly as Roy looked at his partner. "Don't give me that. Trying to pick up women is different than what this guy did. Way different."
"Some guys don't take no as well as you do." Roy held up a hand to stop his partner's protest before it began. "I'm not saying it's okay. The fact that there are people in this world that can do things like this make me want to take Joanne and the kids and move far away, somewhere safe, but that's not the answer either."
"All I know is that I can't just sit here. Waiting." Gage stood. "You got Brackett?" He asked Early who nodded. "Let's go look for her. It's a big city. Maybe we can find something." Roy shook his head but followed his partner out.
Joe went down the hall, purposely choosing not to look at her bathroom, to check on Kelly. "Nothing's been touched." Brackett said, his focus on the bed that was still made from that morning.
"Gage and De Soto left." He would explain why out of the cop's hearing later. "I'll drive you home. There's nothing we can do tonight."
Kelly shook his head. "I don't want to go home." He was running on pure adrenaline; there was no way he could sleep. "Take me back to the hospital?" Joe hesitated, knowing it was the opposite of what Dixie would want, but at least there he could keep an eye on his friend. If they found Dixie, they'd bring her there anyway. "All right." The two friends walked out together.
****
I want to apologize. has been acting screwy lately, at least for me. Hope this solves the problem.