A/N: Let's see how this goes, shall we? Happy reading. Hee Hee.
Stuck With You
Chapter 22
Arizona, Agent Derek Shepard, and various other men and women in suits were all gathered in the Seattle Police Department conference room. Arizona sat amongst them with her mind poised and ears open. Ready to contribute to this case anyway she could. Derek had introduced the blonde to the task force team and then dove into the details of the case.
She learned that the mysterious driver that was tailing them was identified by dental records as Bill Ferton. He was a business man and part of society years before, but had lost everything and ended up on the streets. Living in homeless shelters or cardboard boxes, he was down on his luck. It was theorized that Dmitry approached Mr. Ferton, offering money perhaps, to have him follow Callie and Arizona's vehicle. Dmitry knew who to prey and manipulate someone who was desperate and vulnerable. He used Mr. Ferton like a pon in his sick game.
They also went through Dmitry's history of crime and how he thinks. Dmitry worshiped his older brother Vlad and looked up to him. He tended to hop from city to city, country to country, never in the same disguise. At times he may have long hair or short hair dyed a different color. Or he may even wear glasses. Dmitry was a calculating and tricky criminal. On top of being an explosives expert, he also was a wiz at technology… computers, phones, gadgets, you name it. This was why he always managed to get away. He was always two steps ahead. Despite the different covers Dmitry would use, Arizona could see the similar physical traits between the two brothers as Derek when through the slides. She stared the picture of the man projected on the screen. Anger and hatred swelled in her heart. She was going to catch that son-of-a-bitch.
Derek went on to assign everyone their tasks in order to research what little leads they had so far. The group dispersed. Arizona stood from her seat and noticed that Derek motioned for her to come over to him.
"Agent Shepard," Arizona nodded as she walked over to him.
"Sergeant. I just wanted to say I'm glad you changed your mind."
"I want to do all that I can to help, sir."
Derek gave an approving nod, happy Arizona was on board. "How is Sgt. Torres?"
Arizona sighed. "She's… she's doing okay. A little wound up but, she's strong. The strongest woman I know."
Derek nodded in understanding. "Well, you keep me updated on anything you find."
"Yes, sir."
Arizona went to her desk and started going over her case file. Not five minutes later, she felt a presence standing in front of her desk and she looked up. A light smile spread across her face. "Teddy."
"Hey stranger."
"Hey. How's it going?"
"I should be asking you that," the honey-blonde stated, sitting in the chair across from Arizona. "Are you and Callie, okay? What the hell has been going on?"
"So, you've heard about Dmitry and the F.B.I. circus we have running around here."
"A car blowing up in an alley and an officer hospitalized? How could I not hear it?"
"Well, usually when you're in your little forensics bubble you don't pay attention to the troubles of the big bad cops."
"I do pay attention if someone is trying to kill my best friend with bombs," Teddy pushed. "All I know is... I haven't heard from you in a while and I've been worried about you… and Callie."
Arizona sighed, hating that she had somewhat abandoned her friend. "I'm sorry, Teds. Callie and I have been laying low. I didn't want to bring you into this mess. We're dealing with a dangerous man and Callie is in a safe house right now as we speak."
"Jesus," Teddy breathed. "Well, why aren't you with her?"
"I would be. But I was asked to be on this F.B.I. task force."
"I mean, why aren't you hiding also? You were there for his brother's arrest."
The blonde shook her head slightly. "In some sick, twisted way, Dmitry only targets people individually. And between Callie and I, he chose Callie."
"Oh..."
"I'm going to do everything in my power to catch this guy, Teddy. To protect Callie." Teddy saw the raw determination in Arizona's eyes and understood her friend clearer than ever before. "I wish I could be with her right now, but she's kind of pissed at me right now anyway."
"Why?"
"Because I'm still on the case. She was taken off and stuck in a safe house 24-7. It's not in Callie's nature to be restricted like this."
"But it's for her safety."
"She knows that. I'm sure she knows that. But Callie is the type to react on what she's thinking in the moment, you know? So, when she found out I joined the task force, she kind of went off on me. Next thing you know, we're yelling at each other," Arizona finished, lowering her eyes in defeat. "I left and came here."
"I'm sorry you guys fought. But everything will be okay. Like you said, Callie reacts in the moment. I'm sure she didn't mean it."
"Yeah…" Arizona muttered, flipping a pen in her hand.
"Well, I did come down here to see if you wanted to join Addison and I for lunch, but I see your hands are full."
Arizona raised her eyebrows and looked up at her friend with a smirk. "You and Addison?"
"Yeah…" Teddy murmured, eyes shifting slightly.
"What happened to calling her Detective Montgomery?"
Redness formed on Teddy's cheeks. She shrugged, trying to cover her sudden blush. "Addison and I have had lunch a few times and she's a nice woman."
Arizona suggestively smiled at her friend.
"What?"
"Nothing, nothing. Just making an observation," Arizona smiled, teasingly.
"Well, stop it," Teddy stood up from her seat, suddenly feeling anxiety under her friend's stare. "I know what you're thinking and we're just friends."
"I didn't say anything," Arizona shrugged.
"No, but you're thinking it," Teddy proclaimed, pointing an accusatory finger at Arizona. "You be safe." The honey-blonde began to leave.
"Have fun on your lunch," Arizona called after her.
Teddy made a sour face at the blonde before leaving the bullpen. Arizona chuckled lightly and went back to work.
Hours later, there was still very little to go on to catch Dmitry Petrov. Captain Webber had given the task force an area of the department to work in. They were in an isolated area with equipment, computers, and a bunch of other high-tech devices Arizona had never seen before. Taking a short break, the blonde stepped out of the room and went outside to the back of the station. It was partly cloudy and a slight breeze in the air. The blonde pulled out her cell phone and navigated to her phone book. She had been given a number that reached the safe house cell phone. Blowing out a nervous breath, she hit 'TALK' and waited for an answer.
"Hello?"
Arizona's heart jumped slightly at the sound of Callie's voice. "Hey, it's me."
There was a short pause. "Hey…" came a hesitant reply.
"Um, I was just calling to make sure the stakeout officers had given you the cell phone," Arizona lamely said.
"Oh… yeah, they gave it to me this morning."
"Good."
Another pause. Neither one of them knew what to say to each other, especially after their yelling match this morning. The tension was still there, even through a phone line.
"So, how are things going at the station?" Callie finally asked.
"Okay. We just went over a few details on Dmitry and still putting together a plan..." Arizona's heart felt a little lighter, seeing that Callie was trying to break the ice between them. "How are you doing?"
Callie could tell by Arizona's tone of voice the blonde was being sincere and loving. "I'm doing better," she softly replied. "Um... will you be coming back here tonight?"
"I would… but I don't think that's a good idea."
"Right, of course…"
"It's not that I don't want to... I just don't want to risk Dmitry following me back there and…"
"Yeah, I know… you're right, I wasn't… thinking..." Callie's voice trailed off.
Another pause.
"So, can I call you later?"
"Yeah, I'd like that…"
"Okay..." the blonde breathed with relief.
"...and Arizona?"
"Yes?"
"I'm… I'm just… about this morning-"
"Calliope… it's okay. I know…"
Callie sighed heavily. Arizona understood what she was trying to convey without her even saying the words. "Okay…"
"Okay. Talk to you soon."
"Alright."
"Bye…"
"Bye."
Arizona hung up the phone and leaned back against the brick building behind her. She had hated how they ended things this morning, but just with that short conversation with Callie, Arizona knew things were okay between them.
Just when Arizona thought things were looking a little brighter in her world, it all came crashing down again as soon as she walked back into the task force room.
"Listen up, people!" Shepard called over the busy room. Everyone froze and gave the lead agent their full attention. "I've just been given some disturbing news. Vladimir Petrov has been killed in a prison riot just a few hours ago."
A few murmurs and conversations erupted over the room. Arizona felt panic overwhelm her. When Dmitry finds out about his brother's death, he would go berserk.
"Now, the media has already caught wind of this and I'm sure it's appearing as breaking news as we speak. This means Dmitry will know about this at any moment now."
One of the phones in the room rang and one of the task force picked it up. Everyone in the room was silent the woman took the call. After listening to the voice on the line, she looked at Arizona and then to her superior. "It's a man. He wants to speak to Sgt. Robbins."
Arizona stepped forward and took the phone that was handed to her. "This Sgt. Robbins."
"Sgt. Robbins, I'm…" Heavy breath. "I'm deeply disturbed right now..." a shuddering voice spoke.
"Oh, yeah? Why?" Arizona asked. She snapped a finger at the man by the phone tracing equipment and he quickly scrambled to connect to the line. Derek picked up a phone and listened in.
"You know why you cunt!" He shouted. "My brother! He's dead... He's dead because of that, that bitch!...And I'm done. This ends now." A distressed strain in his voice.
"What do you mean, Dmitry?"
The man was breathing heavily into the phone for a moment and then finally spoke. "This is a fine place your department picked to stash, Sgt. Torres."
Arizona's heart stopped and she could not breathe. Was he really at the safe house? "What?"
A chilling laugh escaped Dmitry's throat. "I wished we could have played longer, but I'm afraid I've been forced to go to the final round. You can try, but you won't make it here in time. Goodbye, Sergeant."
As soon as Dmitry hung up, Arizona was already on her way out of the room.
"Sergeant Robbins! Stay put!" Shepard yelled to her.
Arizona spun around on her heel, facing him. Fear and desperation chilling those blue eyes. "He's going to get Callie!" she shouted.
"You don't know if he is really there. He may be leading you astray into a trap!"
"I'm will to take that chance! With or without you. He's going to kill her!"
"What do you have on that trace?!" Derek demanded towards one of his team members.
"It's scrambled, sir. No exact location of the call could be traced."
"I'm going," Arizona spoke with finality, before rushing out of the room.
"Damn it!" Derek ordered six other agents to follow Arizona to the safe house. As the blonde ran to her vehicle she pulled out her cell phone hoping to reach Callie before it was too late.
Bored out of her mind, Callie was lounging on the couch in the small den, watching television. She wore an old pair of jeans and a t-shirt, along with shoes. In case something did go down, she wanted to be ready. The orange vegetable in her mouth crunched loudly as she ground it between her teeth. Carrots and dip was her snack of choice for the day. As she sat there, her thoughts went to Arizona. She wished she had reacted differently to the news of the blonde joining the task force. Realistically, Callie should have been happy, maybe even flattered that Arizona was willing to fight for her. But she wasn't. How could she be when Arizona was free to work and she was trapped like a caged animal. She knew it was not fair of her to go off on the blonde like she did. However, Arizona knew she was sorry. The blonde knew. That was one of the reasons why Callie loved her so much.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Automatically, on alert, Callie grabbed her gun that was on the side table and pointed it towards the source of the knock. Cautiously, stood from the couch and approached the door. Just then, the safe house cell phone began to ring. As she looked towards the phone another knock sounded at the door, distracting her.
Phone forgotten, she remained silent as she moved closer to the door. She wanted to ask who was there, but did not want to make her presence known for the wrong person. With her weapon tightly gripped in her hands, she leaned towards the peephole of the door. She let out a breath of relief when she saw Officer Percy. Her body relaxed and she lowered her weapon. Percy had come to the door earlier that day asking to borrow some ketchup for the fast food he had gotten earlier. He was a character and Callie liked the guy.
She unlocked the door and opened it with a smile. However, it faltered when she saw pure fear in Percy's eyes. Before she could question him, a bullet suddenly ripped through the side of the man's neck and made a bloody exit through the other side. Callie jerked backwards at the horrific sight and before Percy's body hit the ground, a man stepped in front of her, holding a gun point blank. Dmitry.
"Drop it, Sgt." The man calmly requested. His Russian accent strong on his tongue.
Callie's gun was held limply in her hand. She was too shocked to raise her weapon as she looked down at Percy's lifeless body. That had just happened. He was dead in a blink of an eye.
"Drop it…" he calmly stated. "And kick it away."
The brunette finally did as she was told and looked into the eyes of the lunatic before her. Pure evil was staring back at her. This man was clearly unfazed by the fact that he had just killed a man. He was heartless.
Dmitry's hair was dyed bleach blonde, in a military style cut. He wore black-framed glasses and had black stubble protruding through his chin, cheeks, and around his lips. His face looked gaunt and he had dark circles under his brown eyes. Eyes that looked very much like his deceased brother. He was dressed in all black from head to toe.
The cell phone on the couch was continuously ringing and it was getting on the impatient man's last nerve. With his eyes were poised on the woman he despised as he made a motion with a flick of the gun for her to back up. She did so with her hands up and he crossed the threshold, closing the door behind him. Keeping the gun pointed at Callie, he went over to the phone and smashed it on the ground. It shattered to pieces and the ringing ceased. With his eyes never leaving Callie he stood before her. The barrel of his gun aimed at her face.
"You know who I am, Sgt?" he asked.
Callie slowly nodded her head, yes. "Dmitry."
"And you know why I'm here."
The brunette swallowed the lump in her throat and tried not to let her fear seep to the surface. "To kill me…" she whispered.
A sneer was on his lips. "Turn around."
Callie's heart was pounding her chest as she slowly faced away from Dmitry. She was helpless.
"Down on your knees."
The brunette closed her eyes as her knees hit the ground. So this was it. This is how it ends. She never believed a person's life flashed before their eyes before death, but it was happening to her, now. It consisted of happy times with her family in Miami, her friendship with Mark, but most of it was of the woman she loved… Arizona. Those blue eyes, the blonde hair, the dimples. The way Arizona would look at her during a moment of passion. She saw what they had shared and what they could have become. It hurt.
Callie felt the barrel of the gun against the back of her head.
"You killed my brother. He is dead because of you!"
Callie's mind spiraled with confusion. "Dead?"
"You don't know? You should watch the news, Sergeant. Vlad was killed in prison. The prison you put him in!"
Fuck. The brunette had no idea. "Dmitry…"
"Shut-up!" snarled. "I have one last game to play with you… it's time to go."
Arizona brought her vehicle to a skidding hault in front of the safe house. Weapon in hand, she ran towards the house, full speed. Her mind swirling with horrible thoughts as she prayed for her partner to be okay. The blonde came to a skidding hault when she spotted Officer Percy's body lying awkwardly on the front porch. A pool of blood surrounded his neck and head. Her heart violently constricted in her chest as she raised her weapon towards the open front door. She slowly crossed the threshold.
"Callie!" She called out.
No reply. The place was deserted.
Arizona's eyes scanned the room and she noticed a note left on the dining table. She picked it up.
I have your girl, Sgt. Meet me at the place where my brother met his demise. Come alone or she dies. Hope you make it to the party. It will be a blast.
До скорого (See you soon),
-D
Tears of anger and frustration welled to the surface and Arizona's body began to tremble as her worst fear became a reality. She had promised to protect her; to keep her safe… but she failed. He had her. Dmitry had Callie. Her legs felt useless and she dropped to her knees. She gripped the note in her hand and crushed it between her fingers. Arizona's world had stopped.
"Callie…"
A/N: ?
