C10

We drove until I saw the road that my house was on. I couldn't wait to curl into my bed and fall fast asleep. I got out of the car while the snow was gently falling, my phone buzzed and I looked down. It was a text message from Grace asking me to come back into the office. I dialed her number and waited while Alex unlocked my door for me.

"Russell."

"Hey Grace. I got your text, what's going on?"

"You remember that guy you asked me about? The Nelson McCormick guy?"

"Yes I do, why?"

"He just came in and confessed to a murder."

"Really?"

"Yes, he came in about an hour ago and said a name, it was jumbled and I didn't register it. I was hoping you or Alex could come in and see if you could get anything out of him."

"Yes, we both will come in, we will be there in a couple of minutes, you see Alex's car got snowed in and until about twenty minutes age we were both in it."

"Oh my gracious, I am so glad that you got out. Listen you don't have to come in, I'll hold him until morning."

"It is morning, we will be there."

"Ok, but your taking the day off after this do you hears me?"

"Yes and thank you."

I hung up. Alex looked at me and sighed.

"Well? Who was that?"

"Grace, we got a hit."

"That's great!"

"Do you want to come with me? You don't have to, it's been a long night and you look so tired."

"I am, but I'm not letting you go alone. We're partners remember."

"And partners stick together. Yea yea I know." I smiled. "So you're coming?"

"You betcha." He winked at me and threw me my keys. "You'd better drive; we all know what happens when I drive."

We pulled on our coats again and headed toward my Passat, which I was sure wouldn't manage well in the snow.

Driving took forever, forever in the snow, driving and driving, finally a break in the case and a break in Alex's and I relationship. Driving and having the man I loved sitting beside me was the best thing in the world and we finally may have gotten justice for Caroline.

-Caroline's POV-

Having someone to call your own in this world is a beautiful thing. But having two can be a horrible thing. Both Shane and Nelson cared for me, enough for one of the three of us to end up dead, unfortunately it was me. Not that any other one would be fortunate, it just didn't seem fair to me. I loved Shane and he loved me, I liked Nelson as a friend, like the brother I would never have, but he cared for me in a much higher kind of way. I didn't notice it until it was too late, Shane was a great boyfriend, but could Nelson be better? I would never know, never see if either of them would work out. But none of that mattered, because I was dead, and nothing was going to change that.

Driving until we reached the police station, actually it wasn't that bad, the anti-lock brakes helped a lot. Grace was standing in the lightly falling snow, the snow that had caused so much trouble and so much happiness.

"Grace?"

"Alex, Casey! You're both ok, she told me about the wreck and Lindsay also called and told me what was happening, thank goodness your alright!"

"Thanks Grace, so who are we working with this fine freezing night?" Alex was walking towards the door while he spoke.

"Casey didn't tell you? It's McCormick, he's confessed to a murder, we don't know if it's your girl or not, but he's confessed and asked to see one of you."

"He wanted to see one of us? Casey you're the one that talked to him aren't you?"

"Yes, but I don't know why he said he wanted to talk to us."

"It doesn't matter, he's here and he's confessed and that's all that matters right now, let's get in here and get some answers." Grace smiled at me.

We entered the building, Grace first, and then Alex and I. As soon as we walked in Alex's phone buzzed.

"Alex Donovan, oh hello Walter, what's up?"

He paused for a few seconds and then looked at Grace and I, he told Walter to hang on and pulled the phone away from his head and covered it with his hand.

"Grace, Casey, I have to take this, I'll be right back, you will be ok won't you Cas?"

"Yes, thanks for the concern, I'll be right in here with Grace, we're both cops you know."

"I know." He said as he pulled the phone back up to his ear and walked away. I heard him say "Walter, are you there? What's going on." And then he was outside.

Grace and I walked into the interrogation room to see Nelson McCormick sitting in a chair.

"Nelson? Hello Nelson, it's detective Ryan. Do you remember me?"

"Detective Ryan. Hello I was hoping you would come alone."

"Oh but I'm not, Alex is outside on the phone. Why would you say that you are glad I'm alone?"

"I did something horrible, and I needed to talk to a woman, someone that could understand what happened. It's about Caroline, I know who killed her."

"Do you want to tell me that name?"

"I can't, I'm scared and I am afraid that he would hurt me."
"He? So her killer was in fact a man?"

"Yes, one she was extremely close to."

"Extremely close, that would've been you and Shane, and these are the only names that have come up. can you rethink that while I go check on something, if you tell me that name, she can get the justice she deserves and you will be perfectly safe. I promise you that."

He nodded and I noticed that Alex had walked back in, and he was motioning me to come out. We were cops now, not a couple but cops, well at least I was, no love involved and that's what I loved about him, business time came first justice came first and then cuddling.

"Has he said anything?"

"I know that her killer was a male, and he knows who he is, someone extremely close to her also. He's scared to talk says that someone may be out to get him."

"Someone out to get him?"

"That's what he said. I'm trying Alex I really am."

"I know Casey, I know. You're doing a hell of a job of doing it to."

"Thanks Alex, that means a lot to me."

Grace broke into our conversation. "Alex do you want to try?"

"what? Me? You never let me interrogate before now. Why the sudden change?"

"He only wants to talk to Casey and you're her partner so give it a go."

"Right ok, Casey come on well get him talking."

We walked in and Nelson perked up when I walked in, I had no idea why but it didn't matter, I wanted to get him talking.

"Hello Nelson, remember me?"

He nodded a no and continued to look into Alex's intense face. I would hate to have been interrogated by him when he WAS a cop.

"I'm Alex, Casey's 'partner' oh come on you know the quiet guy that listened to your story?"

"I know who you are, but I'm only talking to her." He pointed at me.

"Why is that?"

"She's a woman and they can take sympathy for what is going on. I have a problem and I need it to be solved."

"Well, how about this, you tell her what you know and I will be right out there can't hear can't see, can't anything, just tell Casey everything, it won't matter if someone is out to get you, she'll protect you with the entire Chicago police department, ok? Can you do that?"

"I guess so."

"Ok, Casey, work your magic."

I stood up and Alex left, I took his place at the table and sat down, Nelson looked at me.

"Nelson tell me what you know, what did you see, let me know everything please, not just for me, but for the woman you loved, Caroline, you loved her didn't you."

He flinched when I said loved.

"I did care for her, but she loved Shane, he was so wrong for her, very wrong, I could've been better. I could've been there."

"What do you mean, been there for her? Did she ever come to you for help, financially, physically, anything?"

"She did come once. It was a long day at the café and I heard arguing one night."

"When was this?"

"About three days before she went missing, it were her and Shane, after he left, they were in the freezer where we store our ice cream for frappichinos, imagine this room cut in half, not very big and they were both crammed in there, all I heard was yelling so I checked it out naturally."

I listened with interest and glanced back at Alex who gave me thumbs up and a keep going look. He couldn't hear what we saying like he had promised and he could tell that I had him talking.

"Please go on, please I need to know all the details."

He looked around warily and continued his tale about the fight.

"I opened the door and saw Caroline backed up against the storage shelves and Shane was approaching her. I asked them what was going on, he told me to leave and she said nothing, I was smarter than that, I asked again and they both just looked at me, I left because things were looking like they were simmering down, I left the door open and waited for about five minutes, and she never came out, so I called for her and she came out, she looked like she had been crying, a few minutes later Shane came out, looking angry but not harmful, he left after he ordered some coffee, but not before he told her that everything would be taken care of."

I was trying to process what Shane could've meant by we will take care of it.

I looked at Nelson and he continued with his story.

"That night when I was closing up and I heard a knock at the door, it was raining so I let whoever it was in, and it was Caroline, she was wet and not looking to happy, so I sat her down and listened to what it was bothering her, she told me Shane and that was it. I looked at her and she grabbed her side."

"Did she say anything else, about Shane and hers meeting in the freezer?"

"No but she said that she was very sore because a child had been kicking her, I figured she was pregnant, but she corrected me and said that she adopted a child that had no hope of getting adopted, she wanted a child to have and to hold and she wanted one with Shane but he kind of had commitment issues, so he argued against it the entire time, she also said that the fight was about Keith, the boy she adopted, he was from New Zealand, very sweet kid, but Shane didn't want anything to do with him, he wasn't his father he wanted to not take care of him. She loved them both but he didn't want anything to do with him."

"Do you think Keith may have something to do with this?"

"I know he was causing issues, and Caroline hadn't even talked to Shane about adoption, or even babies themselves, I really think that they were talking marriage but, you know things come up."

"Did you care enough to take care of Keith?"

"If the need came up of course. I'm guessing that need has come up?"

"We're going to need to speak with him. Can you help us find him."

"Yes, hang on I can find him in just one moment. He's probably with Shane."

"Shane."

"Yes, Shane."

"Excuse me, I need to talk to my partner."

I ran out of that room and noticed Alex's face, this case wasn't making any sense. Any sense at all.

"What's the matter?"

"We need to find Shane, he has Keith, the child Caroline adopted, I think he is going to try to kill him."

"Why do you figure that?" we were walking out towards the car.

"Call it women's intuition but I just have a feeling, we need to find him, it's almost four he's at the café."

"Ok, ok I trust you but why do you think that this about the kid?"

"He never liked Keith and he was driving Shane and Caroline apart, and he didn't want that, something happens to Keith and it's an 'Accident' Caroline couldn't prove anything against him, then the one problem that was driving them apart would be gone."

"I think I know what you're getting at." He hit the gas and drove towards the café as fast as he could.

We got there pretty quick and sure enough there he was, in his waiter uniform with a little boy at his heels. Keith, we were going to rescue him, we had to.