Plans are made.
Sorry about this, I kind of lost inspiration. I'm not entirely happy with it. The pace has slowed a lot, I know. I will try and make the next chapter better. I also know it's a bit repetitive from the last chapter. Sorry again.
Juliet pretended to do her paperwork. She was unable to concentrate though. She sat there, staring at the office. What's happening in there? Shawn looked terrible! But Lassiter didn't look sick at all. And why is Shawn's dad here? She chewed on the end of her pen. There was something going on for sure. And they had cut her out of it.
"O'Hara!" Lassiter opened the office door suddenly and yelled. "Get in here!"
She couldn't hold back a grin as she got up and followed him back to the office. When she got there though, the smile faded. She had never seen Shawn look so sad and somehow small.
"Shawn, are you alright?" She put her hand on his shoulder. He opened his mouth to say 'I'm fine', but Chief Vick spoke first.
"Detective Lassiter has brought it to my attention that Mr Spencer has been harassed and assaulted by members of our own precinct."
"What? Oh, Shawn. Did they hurt you? Are you alright?" Shawn flinched a little.
"Jules, please. I'm not some four year old who's fallen on the play ground and skinned my knee. I'm fine. Really."
"Shawn..." His father warned at his tone.
"What, Dad? I am fine."
Lassiter snorted. But he didn't say anything. He knew that Shawn wasn't fine, and when they were done here, he was going to have another discussion with the psychic. Fake psychic.
"No, Shawn, you're not fine. You got beat up by a bunch of cops and then decided it was a good idea to cover it up." Henry said, folding his arms.
"So, Officers John Ellis, Colby Randolf, and George Truman. What do we know about them and why they did this?" Vick asked.
"John was a nice guy. But his wife died, and he found religion, and well... he got creepy." Jules said, shaking her head. "He's become super, super religious, and tries to tell everyone else how to live their lives. He told me the other day that I was going to go to Hell for tempting honest men."
"Jules, you are so not going to Hell. You're the least sinful... sinister.... hellish person I know!" Shawn defended staunchly.
"Thank you, Shawn." She smiled.
"Children. Back to the topic at hand." Lassiter scowled. "George Truman is a homophobe who worked for Drimmer."
"And Colby Randolf, he thinks I'm a fraud who shows up the police department." Shawn added.
"Do we know if they socialise outside the precinct?"
"No, Chief. That's what I don't get. They hardly know each other, but they all jumped me together."
"Hmm. So we probably won't be able to catch them that way. Lassiter, O'Hara, do either of you know them well?"
"No." They said together.
"They seem to think I'm gay with Spencer and that's why we still use him on cases." Lassiter filled in. "So they have the same problems with me that they have with Shawn."
Everyone considered this for a moment, then Vick slowly started to smile.
"Mr Spencer, how do you feel playing bait?" Vick asked, leaning forward.
The room erupted. Lassiter, Henry, even Juliet (and she hadn't even seen the results of the last beating) all began shouting and complaining at once.
"Karen, what the Hell? You want to put Shawn in harm's way! He's not a cop and he has no sense of self preservation...."
"Chief, Spencer is already hurt! We can't just let them jump him again to get evidence! He'll let them kill him if it gets them put away..."
"Chief, you can't ask Shawn to do that! You know what he's like...."
They all spoke over each other in a show of protective concern that sent a wave of warm fuzzyness through Shawn's soul. But did they have to do that now?
He opened his mouth to tell them all that his life was his life after all and he was living it not them, when he heard a familiar ring-tone. His ring tone. Well, more specifically, Gus's ringtone on his phone.
It was coming from Lassiter's pocket.
"Lassie, is that my phone in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" Shawn grinned. The tension was diffused nicely.
"Sorry." Lassiter said, flushing a little as he handed the phone over.
"Hello?" Shawn said into the phone.
"Shawn! Are you okay? I just turned my phone back on and you hadn't called me once!"
"Gussy-face! I missed you too!"
"Don't play with me, Shawn! What's going on with you? I usually get a hundred messages from you a day when I haven't seen you. The last time you didn't annoy me in this long, you were in hospital, in that coma from your bike accident! Oh my God! Were you in a coma? Did you only just wake up? Shawn, you know you shouldn't have your cell phone on in the hospital! I'll come home, there's only two more days of the convention anyway..."
"Gus! Easy, man. I am not in the hospital. I have not been in a coma. You need to calm down. I am fine. There's nothing going on here."
Henry snorted and grabbed the phone off Shawn.
"Hey!"
"Gus, it's Henry. Shawn has been beaten up by a bunch of cops. He's been harassed by them for weeks and he didn't say anything to us. Get your butt back here."
"Yes sir. I'm on my way." Gus hung up, and immediately began packing up his belongings.
Shawn, what the Hell, man? Why didn't you say anything? Or wasn't I paying attention? Did you try and tell me? Did I blow it off as one of your usual jokes? Here I was worried you'd be freaking out, obsessing over that case, the girl's death. That's why I turned my phone on. But no, you've been hurt by some cops. Our supposed friends. And I didn't know. Gus thought furiously. He shoved his clothes into his case, creasing his suits, and slammed it shut.
"Daaaaad! Why did you tell him? You know what a worrywart Gus is!" Shawn whined.
"He's also your best friend." Henry replied, raising an eyebrow.
They got back to plotting. It was several minutes later when the door to the Chief's office burst open and a uniformed officer was standing there, clutching a file. A wave of anger crossed his face as he looked at the group gathered there, then his face became an expressionless mask.
"Officer Randolf. What do you think you're doing, bursting into my office like that?" Vick growled. At least she had a legitimate excuse to let out her anger.
"I'm sorry, Chief, I just need you to sign off on a warrant for Detective Grimes."
She did so and he left.
"We got a problem." Colby Randolf said, bursting into the locker room where his associates were.
"What is it?" Ellis asked, lacing up his boots.
"I just came from the Chief's office and Spencer was in there, with Spencer Senior, Lassiter and O'Hara. He must have told them."
"He isn't even supposed to be in the precinct. I thought we'd made that clear." Truman frowned.
"What are we going to do?" Ellis asked, fingering his rosary.
"We're going to get him." Colby replied. "And his little friends too."
Okay, I will try and improve for the next chapter. I have been distracted by things criminal minds related. Reviews make flowers bloom.
