Alvin drove as fast as he could. He had contacted the Deputy Chief of Operations at Janesville to let him know what was going on. Even if the Deputy Chief had not been happy, he agreed to let Intelligence lead and he would supply them with backup. They were to meet and assess the situation a mile away from the address that Caitlin had provided.
Adam looked at Kim, Jay and Kevin in the back of the SUV. He then looked at Al. The silence was heavy.
"She's brought us here so far. She can defend herself".
"I know she can", said Al. "That's what I'm worried about".
"I get that getting punched or kicked is no fun, she's taken hits before Al".
"If she does, it'll all be over and I can't… I won't let that happen"!
"What are you talking about"?
Alvin kept his eyes on the road and held on tighter to the steering wheel as he thought about it. "Caitlin is 2,5 months pregnant with twins".
No one said a word. There was no lieu for congratulations as they realized how jeopardizing this was all becoming.
As she had gotten closer to destination, Caitlin had hit some major traffic jams. At exactly 2 hours and 15 minutes, she got a phone call.
"You're late Caitlin. Was I not clear about what I would do if you were late"?
She heard Hank groan as he took whatever Sam was sending his way.
Before she could say anything, Sam had hung up.
She pulled up to the old GM abandoned factory ten minutes later. It took her five minutes to find her way around and reach them. Her phone rang.
"I'm here", she said firmly as she looked at Sam.
"Hello Caitlin, how nice of you to join us". He looked at his watch. "Unfortunately, you're another fifteen minutes late"!
He punched Hank and pushed the chair over, sending it to the ground with Hank tied to it. He kicked Hank in the ribs and abdomen.
"Stop! Sam, please stop"! she said trying not to show that she was on the verge of an emotional breakdown.
"I have your money"!
"First things first, lift up your shirt slowly".
"What"?
"You think I'm stupid enough to let you get away with a hidden gun".
"And you think I'm stupid enough to know that you'd check. I'm not armed Sam".
"Just do it"! he said as he pointed Hank's gun at her.
She put the duffel bag down and lifted her shirt to show her waistline.
"Now turn around".
She turned around to show her back. "Satisfied"? she asked.
"Almost. Lift up the bottom of your pants, nice and slow".
Caitlin did as she was told. He came towards her. "Nice leather jacket. Spread it open so I can check the pockets".
He checked the pockets and smile deviously. "You've made this so easy Caitlin. I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed, I thought you'd put up some sort of fight".
He headed back towards Hank still aiming at Caitlin. Hank looked at her. "Caitlin, get out of here"!
"I'm not leaving without you".
"How sweet", said Sam smiling. "It's beautiful really. To see the family love".
"Look, just take the money. You got what you wanted. It's over", said Caitlin.
"It's over when I say it's over and you know what? It's not over"!
"Then what do you want"?! yelled Caitlin.
"Payback, revenge, an eye for an eye…call it what you want".
He moved back towards Hank. "10 years ago, you arrested my father because you found cocaine in the backroom of our general store. He hung himself a week later in his cell. We lost the store, my mother lost her job, people turned us away and we ended up in a shelter because we couldn't pay to keep a roof over our heads. From that moment, I promised myself that I would seek revenge for all the pain and suffering you put us through. My father was innocent"!
Suddenly, Hank remembered the case. "You're father was a drug dealer! His place was in jail. You were a kid, you truly think you knew your father? He was guilty and he was a coward"!
"Stop saying that"! yelled Sam. "I have been waiting for years, working hard so that I can be right here and make you pay what you did"!
Sam looked back at Caitlin. "Open the bag and throw it over"!
He looked at the amount of cash that was in it.
"That's for all the financial worries my mom and I had because of you. Now it's time for the emotional turmoil".
He slowly started to walk towards Caitlin. "Initially, I was going to kill you Hank. As simple eye for an eye. But then I thought, even if I torture you, you will never feel the pain I felt all those years. Then a young beautiful Instructor arrives at the Academy and she's a Voight, your niece. Or maybe you consider her like a daughter due to the poor tragedy that hit first her mother than father. Anyway, there was my answer. Imagine the years of suffering you'd go through, if you lost her"!
He reached Caitlin and pointed the gun to the back of her head.
"I swear before God, that if you touch her, I will hunt you down and rip your heart out with my bare hands"!
Sam caressed Caitlin's hair. She froze upon his touch. "I won't kill her right away. I confess, I find her extremely exciting. She's so beautiful and her skin is so soft". He looked at Hank. "I love the birthmark she has", he put his finger in between her breasts, "right there"!
She felt nauseous suddenly. The only way he could know, was if he had seen her naked. That son of a bitch had been watching her?
Sam started unbuttoning her blouse, from behind, with his free hand. As he did so, he smiled at Hank. "This is getting exciting"!
He then turned his attention to Caitlin as he passed his free hand in through the opening of the blouse. "I realize thought you'd fight me on this Caitlin. I'm disappointed you didn't bring a gun. It's too easy"!
"Never, ever, underestimate me"! said Caitlin as she pulled her right hand back up in the leather jacket sleeve and thrust it back out. Sam realized that he had indeed underestimated her when she thrust the knife into his thigh and turned it into the flesh. He yelled and pushed Caitlin away abruptly. Before she could recuperate her balance, he slapped her with the gun and she fell to the ground.
She was dizzy and lightheaded. Hank desperately tried to free himself but his attempts were vain. She stumbled as she tried to stand up.
"Watch out", yelled Hank as he saw Sam come up behind her.
She saw him from the corner of her eyes and thrust her leg, at his abdomen, in a back kick. Caitlin searched for the gun but couldn't find it. She headed for Hank. Caitlin ducked as Sam shot in their direction and moving towards them fast. He was enraged.
Hank looked at her. "Get out of here"!
"I'm not leaving you", she said.
"That's an order! Get out of here"!
She stood and ran further into the factory hoping to find another exit. She grabbed her phone and tried to call 911 but there was no coverage.
When the rest of the team arrived on site with the Janesville PD, lights flashing and sirens going, Sam was running past Hank. "You can run Caitlin, but you can't hide"!
Caitlin ran as fast as she could between the old abandoned assembly lines, cables and remaining car parts. The factory was pretty straight forward but it was huge and had two levels. She ducked again as Sam shot another round. She headed towards the stairs. She had heard the sirens, if she could just keep moving and keep enough distance between her and Sam, everything would be OK. What she hadn't planned on was that Sam had been coming to this factory for years and he knew it like the back of his hand, he knew shortcuts and dead-ends.
The team walked into the main part of the factory. Alvin and Jay ran carefully over to Hank.
"Where's Caitlin"? asked Alvin.
"She ran off that way".
"Where's Flanigan"? asked Jay.
"He's chasing after her".
"What"? said Al as he stood.
"He's behind all of this. Go"!
Kevin and Kim took over and helped Hank.
Jay and Alvin kept moving quietly but quickly through the factory. They heard a shot being fired from the upper level.
"That way"! said Jay.
Caitlin kept running. Suddenly Sam emerged in front of her, a few feet away. She took a left and headed down a walkway. It lead to a dead-end! Closed off by a single handrail and as she looked below, all she could see was void and the assembly lines much lower. She was trapped.
He walked over to her slowly still with the gun in his hand. He had been smart and hadn't removed the knife from his thigh, preventing too much blood loss.
Down below, Jay and Alvin arrived in that segment of the factory.
"And so it ends", said Sam satisfied. "I told you, you can run but you can't hide from me, Caitlin".
They both looked up in the direction of the voice. Al's eyes narrowed as he realized that Caitlin was trapped. He waved at Jay that he was heading upstairs. Jay headed to the other side of the factory, right across from where Caitlin and Sam were.
Caitlin knew she was running out of time. In the past she would have thrown herself on him head first in the chest and tried to neutralize him, but not with the babies. There was no way, that she was going to jeopardize them. She wasn't going to lose them!
"So you want to have a little fun before I kill you or should we get it over with once and for all"? said Sam still walking over slowly to her.
She looked around for anything that she could use against him or throw at him. Even if the catwalk was finished, the railing kept going a bit further towards a chain that was dangling from the ceiling to the lower floor. It was her only hope until someone found them. She passed her head and chest under the railing, then her legs. The soles of her flat shoes slid on the polished metal surface of the railing. As she held on, she shook them off her feet, landing 25 feet below.
Sam shot the gun in her direction but it was empty. He tossed the gun away and in one last big stride arrived at the railing and grabbed Caitlin's hands. She held on as tightly as she could as he tried to undo her hold, hoping to send her in a long deadly fall.
"Let her go and step away from the railing", yelled out Alvin from the beginning of the catwalk.
"You won't shoot me. It's too dark, you won't take the risk of missing and killing her". He returned his attention to Caitlin and resumed what he was doing.
Jay aimed the rifle. If he had one advantage, it was that Sam was way taller than Caitlin by a head. He had enough margin to shoot without compromising her. He pulled the trigger, the bullet blazed across the factory and with seconds, lodged itself in the middle of Sam's forehead. He collapsed instantaneously.
Alvin ran over to the railing. "I've got you. Nice and slow", he said as he helped her come back onto the catwalk. The minute she was safe, he took her into his arms. "Oh God"! he said as he held her tightly and kissed her. She felt her knees buckle from fatigue and strain. He lifted her up in his arms and cradled her.
Jay met them at the bottom of the stairs. "Is she alright"?
"Have the ambo get a gurney ready. She looks fine but I'm not taking any chances".
Jay ran ahead of them.
Alvin looked at her. "I thought you promised me you would never do something like this again"?
"I didn't have much of a choice".
"I know. Is there anyway I can ask you to retire from CPD"?
"No. But I do agree that I should take some time off".
They arrived into the main part. Hank who was being treated, for his various wounds, jumped off his gurney as Alvin sat Caitlin down on the free one. He walked over and took her in his arms. He then took Al in a brotherly embrace.
Kim walked up to Cat. "Are you OK"?
"Yeah. I'm fine", she said as the paramedic took her blood pressure.
Kim smiled. "Are they ok"?
Cat looked at Alvin. "It kind of popped up in a discussion earlier", he said in a nonchalant way.
"What are we talking about"? asked Hank.
Caitlin looked at him with so much love and tenderness he couldn't help but feel moved when she told him "In a little more than six months I'm going to be a mom".
"With twins", chirped in Kim, extremely excited for her best friend.
Hank looked at Alvin and tapped him on the back. "Congratulations"! He then walked over and took Caitlin into his arms again. "I'm happy for you. You're going to be a great mom, don't ever doubt that for a second".
"Thank you. There was some truth in what Sam said. You may be my uncle and I know that you will never replace dad, but that is who you are to me. Being a dad, is not just about conceiving a child, its also about caring for, raising and loving a child as your own, and that is what you have done all these years. I love you".
"I love you too kiddo"!