I meant to upload this like a week ago, I really did. As soon as I finished the other story, I was supposed to post this. But.. well, a new school yeah started, and since I teach, things have been busy for me. So, yeah, not really any excuse this time. But rest assured, I won't abandon this story. Length wise, we're more than halfway through, just a heads up. Chapter title by Plain White T's.
Chapter 21: Our Time Now
Lilly had barely put down her travel bag when her cell phone started buzzing on her hip. She knew who was calling, had known the call would be coming soon, and she almost - make that really, really - didn't want to pick up. Glancing at the caller ID to make sure, Lilly held her phone out in front of her like it would detonate, biting nervously on her bottom lip.
"What is it Lil?" Kat asked, no doubt noticing her worried expression as she put down her own overnight bag with a sigh of exhaustion. More bad news? Could they really take any more?
Lilly blew out a deep breath, "It's boss." She ran a hand through her hair, preparing herself for the earful she was no doubt about to receive. Never had the words, 'Stillman, J' looked so ominous on such a small screen.
"Shit…" Kat mumbled. "Do you think he know?" Her question was unnecessary. Of course he knew.
Lilly took another second to steal herself and flipped her phone open just before it went to voicemail. "Boss…" She muttered tentatively.
"Rush. Where the hell do you think you are?" Stillman yelled.
Lilly winced, her boss sounding no less stern over the phone than if he'd been in the same room, staring her down. She felt not unlike a child, being called to the principal's office. Quickly, she racked her brain for the excuse she'd come up with. "I'm, uh, in New York." She managed. "Did you, get my ema-"
He interrupted. "Bullshit."
Lilly sent Kat a glance, nodding slightly and confirming her fears. She waited in silence for her Lieutenant's next words, half-hearted protests of innocence dying on her lips.
"I know where you guys are, so you better get the rest of the ass clowns on the phone. Now."
She nodded, beckoning Kat toward her and indicating that they should go to the guy's room, now.
"Rush, you better not have hung on up on me."
Realizing her mistake, Lilly quickly backtracked. "No. We're, uh, going to get the rest of them."
"You do that."
Nick and Scotty had just cracked open their second beers, after settling who would be paying for the overpriced, subpar hotel alcohol with a fierce game of Rock Paper Scissors when they heard someone banging on their door.
"What the hell?" Nick said out loud, but Scotty was already halfway to the door, the possibility of Lilly being hurt immediately jumping into his mind. What had he been thinking? Leaving her alone in the town a killer was known to be lurking? Was he really that stupid? How could-
He threw the door open and stood aside as Lilly and Kat barreled into their room silently. Kat pointed frantically at the phone, mouthing something in a panic, while Lilly's calm exterior seemed uncharacteristically flushed.
"I'm, uh, going to put you on speakerphone, alright Boss?" Scotty and Nick jumped to attention at her words, and Lilly put the phone down on a round night table. The four of them gathered around the small phone, trepidation filling their hearts.
"The four of you listen closely." Stillman commanded quietly, his voice managing to infiltrate the entire room anyways. "I don't know which of you idiots had the harebrained idea to ship out to Portland and I don't care…" He paused for the dramatic effect, "I want you all to turn around and get your asses back to Philly. Now."
The four of them looked at each other, swallowing hard and nervously wondering what to say next. Kat decided to break the awkward silence, "Boss… we're already here… so…" She gave Nick a mean glare that requested - no, ordered - him to back her up.
"So maybe we can just look into the case?" Nick finished for her quickly, squeezing his eyes shut.
"Boss, this is really important to us." Lilly added quietly, "And it was all my idea, not theirs. I'm the only one you should be pissed at."
Immediately, Scotty came to her defense. "Nah, Boss. It was my idea. But, like Miller said, we're here, so we might as well kick some doer ass."
"Okay all of you just shut up for a minute." Lieutenant Stillman sighed. He shouldn't allow this. There was no way this was advisable, especially if they wanted co-operation with the feds in future cases. But his detectives were adamant - stupid, naïve, disobedient, and harebrained - but adamant. They were holding on to this case. Like it or not, this man had hurt one of their own, and they were following this through until the end, come hell or high water.
"Boss?" Lilly asked tentatively, "You, uh, still there?"
They heard a long sigh. "This time, and this time only, I'll allow it. But I want you all back here the minute he's behind bars again."
There was a flurry of movement on the younger detectives' side of the phone line. Vera and Miller high fived each other triumphantly and Scotty caught Lilly in an unexpected hug. Laughter bubbled out of her throat. They were off the hook. They had free reign from Philly. They were ready to kick some ass.
Their boss's slightly amused voice brought them back to earth. "Don't celebrate too early. You're all on desk duty for a week when you get back. And I'm sending Jeffries up there to keep an eye out."
"Sure thing, boss." Scotty chuckled, as Stillman hung up.
It was nearing noon by the time the four Philly detectives finally located the small, innocuous Central Precinct of the Portland Police Department, where the feds had set up base camp. Lilly looked around curiously, immediately taking stock of her surroundings. The normally hectic room was packed to the seams and bursting with activities. The federal detectives could be distinguished from the local ones, because they had a superior air about them and bustled about while the others hung around at the sidelines, afraid of getting in the way, but indignant that their case had been stolen out from under them at the same time.
Scotty was the first to approach and important looking official, the letters FBI all but emblazoned on his forehead. "Excuse me, you guys workin' the escape case?"
"… I want uniforms stationed at every exit and don't come back until it's done..." The man yelled over his shoulder before focusing his attention back to Scotty. "You say something?" He asked hurriedly.
Irritation surged through all their veins as Lilly put a calming hand on Scotty's shoulder, who looked close to punching out this federal agent already. "Yeah." Scotty bit back. "I was askin' if you're the ones who are responsible for puttin' Wayne Simms back where he belongs."
The unknown man nodded curtly. "Agent Nelson. And you are?"
Kat stepped forward to introduce them. "Detectives Miller, Vera, Rush, and Valens." She said, drawing herself up to meet Nelson's considerable height.
The federal agent looked at them condescendingly. "Right… Well, like I told your lieutenant, the Portland cops may be helping here, but escape from federal institutions falls under my squad's jurisdiction, so if we need you, we'll…"
"We're from Philly." Lilly cut him off. "Homicide."
Agent Nelson stared back blankly, "No offense, but what the hell's Philadelphia doing here? Ain't you guys a bit far from home?" He had the classic superior air of a federal agent, who liked stepping on the toes of the people who did all the work.
"Wouldn't be here if the feds did their job right." Scotty said, stepping in front of Kat and giving the agent an accusatory look of his own. Lilly and Kat rolled their eyes slightly. If the situation wasn't so pressing, this could almost be funny. Vera stood back, silently observing as the scene unfolded before him.
"Excuse me?" Agent Nelson asked lethally, narrowing his eyes at Scotty. "Where the hell do you get off talking to me like that?" He demanded gruffly, and Lilly noticed for the first time the worry and fatigue etched into his eyes as well. Immediately her heart soften considerable, and her boyfriend's next words made her cringe on this, near stranger's, behalf.
"Well, I dunno, maybe since we did all the work catchin' the guy and pinnin' him for murder, and all you feds had to do was keep him behind bars." Scotty retorted immediately.
Kat couldn't help but give this man a piece of her own mind. "Instead, we gotta haul ass up here to clean up your mess? Few screws loose at the federal bureau if you ask me."
Agent Nelson puffed out his chest importantly. "While federal jurisdiction covers both prisons and escapees, the FBI is only involved in tracking potentially dangerous escaped felons; we cannot be held liable…"
"Oh cut the bull already." Vera spoke up for the first time. "Enough with the cop mumbo jumbo. Have you found the creep or not?"
He sighed, appearing to deflate before them as the weariness of the past few days caught up with him. Agent Nelson was one who needed his rest, and the last 48 hours had been nonstop work. "Sightings here and there, but nothing more than that."
"So what've you been doing? Sitting on your asses?" Kat demanded angrily. She knew it wasn't true, that much was evidenced based on the slew of detectives bustling in and out of the overcrowded room, but she couldn't help her sarcastic comment. Had they really driven up here for nothing?
"No actually, we've been canvassing, getting police detail on all the places he's been seen and blocking border crossings." Nelson argued. "There's absolutely no through traffic between Canada and the US at the moment.
This made them all stop and pay attention, the battle of testosterone dying down for just a second. "And the Canadians are okay with this?" Lilly asked with confusion.
Agent Nelson turned his gaze to her for the first time since they'd arrived. He snorted, "You kidding me? They ordered it. Don't want a killer getting onto their land, especially with their anti capital punishment, extradition ways."
"Right." Lilly nodded. "Look," She lowered her voice. It was a tactic she used in interrogations. If you speak quietly, people have to pay closer attention to what you're saying. "We're not here to sandbag you. But you need to keep us in the loop. We're all cops, and standing here arguing about it isn't going to make it better."
He nodded. This woman, he realized, was one of the sane ones. Agent Nelson took a step back from Scotty, the tension between them dispelling itself somewhat. "Sooner the son of a bitch is thrown back in jail the better," he muttered, stalking back to the center of the room, where all the action seemed to be originating.
"Okay! Listen up everybody." Nelson's loud voice boomed out and immediately, all the action in the room stopped. "These detectives are from the fine city of Philly, they want to help. Now which team is short staffed again?"
A tentative hand shot up from among the crowd of suits. "Us, sir!" He called desperately. "The tip lines are ringing like crazy…"
Agent Nelson nodded, and the rest of them went back to work, "Why don't you guys go over there. They're the first to know anything anyways." He added at the detective's reluctance.
The four of them began walking toward the circle of people each talking fast on identical phones when Nelson caught Scotty's arm. "Could use you out in the field." He commented.
"What?" Scotty stared at his colleagues' retreating backs.
Agent Nelson shrugged. "Your temper, in here… it's gonna get people hurt, but out there…" He trailed off. "Well, let's just say we need some detectives who are used to beating information out of people."
Scotty nodded, grateful for the opportunity to do more than answer phones. "You mean, you want me out on the streets." This could be good for him. This could mean not sitting around going crazy while tip after useless tip came in, like Scotty knew they would.
The other man lowered his voice, the animosity between them from a few minutes later all but gone. "Between you and me, the local detectives ain't exactly used to this kind of action… I've got a couple seasoned pros, they're about ready to head out where he was seen last."
He pointed toward a gaggle of other muscled detectives. There was only one female among them, who, for her part, looked like she ate nails for breakfast. Scotty gave the FBI agent one last curt nod before turning and heading toward his apparent coworkers for the afternoon. About halfway across the room, he remembered to call after Lilly, Kat, and Nick, to let them know where he was off to, but when he whipped back around, they'd already disappeared in the crowds. Scotty paused for a second, hovering on the brink of indecision, then turned around and kept walking. They could wait until after the crisis. With his help, maybe they could get back to Philly by tonight. Maybe.
Several hours later, Kat slammed down the phone and threw up her hands in defeat. "That's it. I'm done. If I don't get some coffee and real food in the next ten minutes, I'm gonna go crazy. And not funny crazy, bad, serial killer crazy." She ranted. How long had they been doing this? How many hundreds of tips had she patiently listened to, explaining that they didn't think it was possible that he was disguised as a large black bear, but thank you very much and please check yourself into the nearest asylum.
Vera scowled at her from his spot across the long table. "Well sorry, your highness, if the accommodations aren't up to your usual standard, but if you haven't noticed the rest of us are swamped too."
Putting down her phone, Lilly groaned as well, "We haven't had a solid lead in hours. And my back is killing me."
"Bet Valens is having a much better go of it." Kat muttered darkly.
"Lucky bastard." Vera added in agreement.
Lilly sighed and ran a hand through her droopy blond hair. Someone had told them a few hours ago that Scotty had had the honor of being recruited for field team 6. While it stung a little, him leaving without dropping her a line on where the hell he was going to be, Lilly knew everyone was doing their best with a bad situation. The method to the feds madness was infuriatingly simple, yet proven time and time again. A group of people took calls from the public who had seen the warnings and announcements, then radioed the possible leads out to one of 20 field teams, who followed up on them.
It sounded foolproof right? If only they'd gotten a few decent leads.
"Lil." Vera nudged her elbow, cocking his head pointedly toward Agent Nelson, the leader of the operation walking toward them with a frown on his face. "That look like good news or bad news to you?"
Lilly studied the man striding purposefully toward them. The past few hours had obviously taken a toll on him. His hair was tousled and a sheen of sweat was showing on his cheeks. In addition, him muttering instructions to people left and right only added to his harried look. "Bad news." She whispered.
"Detectives." Agent Nelson greeted solemnly. "We've got a situation. You can stop with the phones now. We've located him."
There was a long pause in which the three exhausted detectives waited for information. It was like they were the only ones in the room that existed, then and the information they were about to receive from a man who would soon become faceless in the aftermath of this ordeal. They had info, it was over, or it would be soon… But it was information that Agent Nelson all of a sudden seemed reluctant to give.
"Well, spit it out." Kat demanded suddenly. "Where the hell is he and what's the situation."
A brief hesitation, and then he said, "Fairhill Mall, the largest shopping plaza in Portland, a field team responded to a possible sighting half an hour ago…"
"And you found the creep?" Vera pressed.
"He was there." Nelson confirmed, "SWAT is on the way, so is the bomb squad. We've managed to evacuate all of the shoppers, except for the ones in the small jewelry store he's holding up."
"Bomb squad?" Lilly repeated, feeling just a bit faint. Was she hearing him right? A major, metropolitan mall was rigged to blow, with customers inside, and this man was standing calmly before them? What the hell was he keeping from them? "What else is there?"
"One of our field teams is at risk." He continued edgily. "The team that followed the lead…"
"Okay, I'm getting tired of this. Either you say what you have to say, or get the fuck out of our way so we can go help." Vera burst out angrily, the tension of the moment getting the best of him.
"He's saying it was field team 6." Lilly said quietly. "Am I right? Agent Nelson."
"All 3 of the detectives on that team are still in the building." He confirmed with regret, watching as the color drained out of the blond detective's face.
"Field team 6…" Vera began hoarsely.
Kat looked around frantically, begging someone to contradict the disturbing thoughts, doubts, and first hints of fear swirling in her mind. "… isn't that?" When she met Lilly's eyes, she saw them wide with horror.
"Scotty."
Don't you love cliffhangers? I do. Well, I know what's gonna happen so its not a cliffhanger for me. XD. If you leave me a review, I'll get started on the next chapter right away. Promise. Seriously.