I was going to post this as two chapters, but decided as it was complete, and I had always intended Smoke and Pain to be 12 chapters, I might as well post it all in one go. So here it is, the last part. I hope you like it.
This is for Kimmy, as Smoke and Pain has pretty much always been for Kimmy, who has beta-ed above and beyond the call of duty on most of my fic.
The snow crunched and slid under his feet as he pounded after Simeon and he was glad he had forgone his usual shoes in favour of the hiking boots Camile had recommended before they came.
A slamming noise from round the corner of the building suggested that Simeon had gone back into his motel room. The door was a little open, as if it had banged shut and bounced, rather than the lock catching. Cheap assed hardware here, Brody's mind threw out the thought, slightly inappropriate for the situation, how many fire violations would I find in this building if I looked?
Brody approached the door cautiously, listening before looking round the edge, gun raised. The room was simple, bedroom with a double bed, bedside cabinet, desk and chair, not even a wardrobe. A bag of clothes and other items had been upended, strew across the bed. Brody ignored it and focussed on the door, slightly ajar, which led off the back wall no doubt into a bathroom. There was a crashing sound from behind it and Brody swung into the bedroom, striding for the door, but by the time he kicked it open, the bathroom was empty.
The bathroom window was open, almost wrenched off it's hinges where Simeon had evidently forced it off it's hinges further than it should go. Well it should open fully to allow escape from fire…Brody shoved the thought down and left the room running out and round the edge of the building.
At the end of the parking lot Simeon had disappeared into the woods. Following, Brody struggled over a slight bank only for his feet to slide out from underneath him as the flat snow on the other side turned out to be covering a ditch.
"I'm going to break a leg or kill myself!" He thought, hauling himself out.
A wallowing hole in the snow not ten feet away suggested Simeon had done the same as him and he followed the footsteps in the snow into the woods. From the marks in the snow it was clear where Simeon had floundered and he was able to avoid some of the obstacles though not all. The constant scanning from path to woods slowed him down and made it hard to focus on either where he was walking or where Simeon was.
The shot missed him by inches, striking chips of bark from a tree beside him. Brody dropped reflexively. Damn he wasn't cut out for this. This was not good, not good at all. He scrabbled crabwise, sideways into better cover. Where the hell was Simeon. Now he was not moving he realised that they had been moving parallel to the interstate, his sense of direction finally kicking in in the thick woods. He hated the woods, why the hell couldn't Simeon have stayed in a town, or a city. He moved sideways towards the interstate, keeping low, trying to work out which of the mounds ahead of him where humps in the ground, and what was snow covered bushes.
He heard movement ahead of him and froze, ducking behind a snowbank, wishing to high heaven it was a solid lump of ground and not a snow covered bush. As he ducked another shot rang out and slammed through the snow covered bush, shaking snow from it and revealing leafless branches.
"Holy fuck!" Brody swore.
He stood and took a shot, the cover in front of him useless, trusting the shots would make Simeon duck and stop firing long enough for him to find better cover, get behind a tree. However, as he stood firing he saw Simeon twisting off into the trees again and he slid out from his cover to follow before he lost him.
Stumbling over obstacles concealed under the snow he tried to keep Simeon in his sights, but the man was evidently more practiced at running through snowy woods, or probably woods at all than he was. Somewhere behind him he could hear more footsteps and swearing, in two voices that he thought was almost certainly the Sheriff and Camile, probably following his backtrail, he had left a big enough one. He did not dare turn to look at them though as he was struggling to see Simeon and would not risk losing him.
Ahead of him Simeon disappeared. Brody cursed and ploughed on faster. He was going to get himself shot like this but at this point frankly he did not care, he was going to get that murdering bastard.
As he bulled his way through snowy brush, already partly cleared by the passage of another body, the ground suddenly opened out ahead and below him. He grabbed wildly for a branch and narrowly missed sliding down an incline into a moderate depression in the woods. The muddy skid marks in the snow, mustard yellow smears of clay in the white, showed where Simeon had slipped and stumbled down, and smashed ice showed at the bottom where he had gone through the ice of an apparently shallow pool. Faster than his brain could process the sounds he was hearing, Brody's eyes followed the scrapes and footprints where Simeon had pulled himself out and staggered across the ice to the other side and saw Simeon hauling himself over the lip of the depression.
He fired without thinking, his shot going awry from his poor balance and bad position, but saw the man flinch and red bloom on the snow as the shot caught Simeon in the thigh. Simeon dragged himself out of sight over the muddy edge.
Brody ducked back out of sight, before Simeon could turn and start shooting from cover. He had hit the man in the leg, but he was pretty certain Simeon was crazy enough not to let that stop him turning round and shooting Brody rather than do anything about it. He considered his options, going across the pond was likely to get him shot, so his only option was to circumnavigate. He pulled back through the brush a little and looked around.
He could not hear the voices behind him anymore, but could hear the interstate off to his left. It was not far distant from the sound of the cars, which seemed to be moving surprisingly fast considering the snow, or maybe they just sounded that way. The sound would have given him better cover to try and sneak up on the criminal, but the brush was simply too thick to get through and he knew Simeon would already be on the move. He went right, trying to move as quietly as possible, testing his footing as he put each foot down, listening hard for the sound of someone moving.
He heard nothing, no voices no footfalls. The only sound he could hear was his heart hammering in his chest and the sound of his laboured breathing. He tried unsuccessfully to calm it as he pressed on through the silent woods.
It was hard to judge how far round the pond he was, failing to guage his distance he was reduced to waiting to see where the snow was disturbed, to hear a movement or a shot.
The red in the snow cut through the otherwise monochrome landscape, a bright indicator shouting it's presence in his vision. It was a significant pool in an area of pressed snow, scraped and compacted where a body had fallen then pulled itself up. The footprints moving away from it were decorated with red spatters and showed drag marks where an injured leg had struggled to perform.
His heart surged, maybe now he'd have a chance to catch the bastard. He moved faster, worrying less about getting shot, following Simeon's now even more obvious trail. It was pulling to the left and he realised that the man was making for the road. Simeon needed out of here, needed a car. He needed to catch up with him before Simeon added car jacking and hostage taking to his list of offences.
The brush thinned and as it had before, suddenly opened out onto the snow covered shoulder of the interstate. Simeon was standing ahead of him, gun pointing directly at him. Behind him two cars passed, seemingly ignorant of the danger he posed.
"Officer." Simeon called. He had a strange accent Brody couldn't place.
"Agent." Brody called back, keeping his own gun trained on Simeon.
"Interesting." Simeon called. "It's been a while since I have had any dealings with the federal authorities."
"Your sister did though."
"Not Kiva, she's too smart."
Brody laughed. "Smart enough to let her people take the fall for her."
"Well, it was not as useful as it should have been." Simeon said. "The Armstrongs do not intimidate easily. As a distraction it failed."
"Distraction for what?" Brody asked.
"Uh-uh Agent," Simeon's voice held humour in the negative tone, "I am not going to let you keep me busy till your friends arrive. This time I got what I wanted, and now I am leaving."
"Give up, Simeon." Brody called. "Turn yourself in and don't make me have to shoot you."
Simeon laughed harshly, flinching slightly as his injured leg gave a little. "I think not Agent!"
He fired at Brody. Brody threw himself to the side, knowing it was too late anyway, but Simeon had missed him, unsteady on his feet and as he moved up to take his own shot Simeon was staggering away so Brody could see the large red stain on the snow where he had stood.
Brody took his own shot, but Simeon's lurching pace meant he caught him in the arm. It knocked Simeon sideways a little, but simply seemed to spur him to greater effort. With a roar, Simeon picked up his pace and ran into the road, pointing his gun at the driver of the next car approaching.
Brody saw it all as if it was in slow motion. The terrified look on the face of the driver, the jerk as the man slammed on his brakes in horror, the twisting, sliding spin of the car as it succumbed to physics and spun desperately out of control -
The crunch as it hit Simeon, crushing him under it's unstoppable motion.
Brody ran out into the road, approaching the man cautiously. Simeon lay on his back on the dirty asphalt, as Brody stood over him, gun pointed at the man's head. There was blood everywhere and as Simeon took a wet, bubbling breath, more dribbled from his mouth. Brody took a deep breath, and watched as the life faded from the man's eyes.
Behind him he heard movement and Camile and Young pushed their way through the brush onto the verge.
"Are you alright Adam?" Camile called.
Brody suddenly felt his shoulders slump with exhaustion as the adrenaline ran out all in a rush. "Yeah." He called back. "But you should check the driver of the car, he spun out and hit Simeon."
Camile immediately made for the car, where the other driver was now struggling out through the passenger door.
"That him?" Young said, walking towards him.
Brody nodded. "He's dead. Not me, I only hit him in the leg and arm. The car hit him."
Young looked at the car then down at Simeon.
"He tried to car jack him." Brody said. "Driver panicked, slammed on the breaks and lost it."
"Go sit down." Young said.
Brody nodded. He looked at his gun, still in his hand, then unloaded the clip and handed it to Young, before walking away and collapsing to sit on the edge of the asphalt.
The two state police officers, Mackie and Lougheed, arrived, followed by more, and scene of crime. At some point someone moved him to sit in the open door of a police cruiser and brought him a cup of coffee which he drank. He gave a description of what had happened from when he to Camile and a state police officer and was given a brief check over by a very blond, very pretty paramedic, who told him he was just all worn out with stress and exertion, and needed to eat and sleep.
xxxoooxxx
"What happened to you?" TJ asked him.
"I got shot in the arm." Young said, gritting his teeth as she moved the pad over the wound.
"Okay, relax." TJ said. "I'm going to cut your shirt away."
"Damn." Young said.
"Why?"
"I like this shirt."
TJ smiled. "Maybe I'll buy you another as a present."
Young heard a snort from Cole, TJ's partner and when he caught her eye over TJ's shoulder, Cole was grinning as she checked over the driver of the car, who luckily was more shaken than anything.
He winced as she lifted his arm a little and cut away the sleeve of his shirt with emergency shears, the scissor blades cutting cleanly through the fabric like it was tissue. Young made a face.
"It does have a bullet hole in it already you know. " TJ said with a chuckle. She examined the wound. "Okay. It's a nasty bullet graze." She moved to get a better look and he hissed as her motion moved his arm again. "Sorry. The good news is though, that I can clean and dress this here and you'll be good to go. Up to date on your tetanus? You look like you've got some dirt in this."
"That'll be falling in a ditch in the woods, snow hides everything," Young said ruefully, "but yeah, it's good. How's Brody?" He asked, looking over at where the small man was sitting looking absolutely drained in one of the state cruisers.
"Just worn out." TJ said, wiping down his arm. "Physically and emotionally. He's had a hard stressful time, and I get the impression that he's not used to this kind of thing. Isn't he an FBI agent?"
"Yeah," Young said, "but he investigates fires, I don't think he has to chase homicidal gun wielding maniacs through snowy woods very often."
TJ nodded. She taped a dressing in place and stepped back. "Okay, I'm done here, and we gotta take Mister Covel here to the hospital for a proper check up."
"Okay." Young said. "I'll be in touch yeah?"
Behind TJ, Cole rolled her eyes. TJ blushed a little, the flush evident on her fair skin.
"Yeah," she said. "I'll look forward to it."
xxxoooxxx
Back at the office once evidence was collected, statements were taken and Camile had sent Brody back to the motel to shower, eat and sleep, Young and Camile sat down with coffee and turned on computer and lap top.
"How's Brody?" Young asked. "He looked pretty shook up."
"It's the first time he's had to shoot anyone." She said with a sigh. "He's seen a lot of bodies and he's been there when I've shot someone, but he hasn't had to do it himself before. He's certified on the range, but he's an engineer when it comes down to it, Everett."
"Harsh." Young agreed.
"I'll go check in on him later." She said. "After he's had some time to rest."
"You work together a lot?" Young asked.
"For the last three years. Mainly arsonists." She said. "But also mail bombs and the like. He's a good guy. We work well together."
Young nodded. "Friends then as well as colleagues."
She smiled. "He did last Thanksgiving with my partner and I." She said.
She opened her email and started to work through messages. Young stopped what he was doing as she sat back in her chair and looked at the screen with a slightly troubled expression.
"The first report is back from the crime scene people." She said. "I have an email from Vince Morrison."
Young stood and walked over to look at the screen over her shoulder. "What does he say?"
"Three useful pieces of information." Camile said. "He managed to take enough of a tread pattern from the partial shoe print to identify it as a womens hiking boot, size eight, made by Nike. Definitely not what Ruki Richmond was wearing."
"That narrows down the field a lot." Young said. "What else?"
"The bullet removed from David Telford was a positive match to one of the samples provided by Chloe Armstrong. It matches a hand gun provided by Icarus to Dr Caine."
"I didn't realise they kept records like that." Young said.
"It appears Icarus are very thorough."
"Or that they expect that their guns will be used in situations where their bullets will need identifying."
Camile turned her head and looked up at him. "I guess that's also true."
Young raised his eyebrows and shrugged. "So, what's the third piece of information."
"Tire marks." said Camile. "Morrison has identified the make of the other car that pulled up near Telford, there's only one registered in the district."
"Who's it registered to?"
"Chloe Armstrong." Camile said. There was a pause as they looked at each other. "I've already emailed back, we need a warrant to examine Chloe Armstrong's vehicle for direct comparison of the tire prints and evidence."
"Do we know what size shoe Chloe wears?" Young waited for the answer, as Camile scanned through information.
"It's in the exclusion data she gave for Rush's apartment. Size eight."
They looked at each other.
"This just doesn't make sense." Young said. "I'm going out on a limb here. But it doesn't make sense."
"Revenge for her father's death?" Camile asked.
Young shook his head. "That answers Caine and Rush, maybe if you squint would be a reason for Telford, but the Barasses and David Walters..." He paused, shrugged. "There's no connection that I can see to his death. And some how the way that Chloe is around Doctor Rush, I can't see her wanting to kill him either."
"I don't think we can connect Simeon Luciani to this either. I can't see any motive that he would have for these." Camile said.
Young wandered over to the coffee percolator and poured another cup.
"There's Patricia Armstrong." he offered.
Camile shook her head. "We hit the same problems with her that we do with Chloe Armstrong." She said, standing, hands on hips. "Revenge motive for her husbands death works for Caine, Rush and maybe Telford, but the Barrasses and Mr Walters are anomalies."
She proferred her cup and Young filled it.
"There's something we're missing here." Young ran his fingers through his hair and grimaced. "Something that we just aren't seeing."
"You think someone is hiding something?" Camile asked, tilting her head.
Young stared at the wall of notes and photos. "I keep coming back to what Brody overhead Telford saying on the phone the night Rush's apartment burned." He admitted. "If we take that as Chloe Armstrong he was speaking to, then maybe there is something she's hiding that would explain what we're missing here."
Camile nodded slowly. "I think we need to recheck everyone's alibis for Telford's attack."
"And hope Telford comes round and can tell us who shot him." Young said. "I think we need to have a serious discussion with Chloe Armstrong though."
"Let's run the alibis again, then go over and see Chloe Armstrong again in the morning." Camile said.
xxxoooxxx
By the time Young was back in the office the next morning, Brody was already there having a quiet discussion with Vanessa in back, both leaning on the counter by the coffee machine. Young could guess what it was about and he left them to it, running through some routine business with Becky while they chatted. Vanessa was a good listener when the time called for it, and Young guessed explaining it to someone who wasn't there but would understand why it had happened would be helpful. He finished up with Becky, asking her to phone the hospital to check on David Telford.
They appeared to be winding down by the time that Camile arrived.
"How do you feel?" She asked Brody as she walked in.
"Better." He admitted, ducking his head and looking embarrassed. "I'll be fine today."
Camile said nothing but smiled and put a bag of muffins on the counter and poured herself a coffee.
"Scott's gone out to look at the damage to the school." Vanessa told Young. "Sounds like kids again."
"Fine." Young said. "We're gonna go and see Chloe Armstrong again, speak to the staff at Icarus again. I need you to go and see Patricia Armstrong, recheck her statement about the night Telford was shot. And find out her shoe size."
"She didn't have much of an alibi." Vanessa said. "Not from what Adam said."
Brody flushed a little and Young stifled a smile at the news they were on first name terms.
"Yeah. If Telford comes around..."
"Uh..." Becky cut in. They all turned to look at her. "The hospital say Telford is conscious. He's asking to speak to the FBI, doesn't want to speak to the state police they've got guarding him."
Young looked at Camile.
"Adam can go with Vanessa." She said. "We can see Chloe Armstrong."
xxxoooxxx
The drive out to Icarus was fairly straightforward. The snow had stopped again and the day was bright and clear, forcing Young to pull out his sunglasses against the brightness of the sun on the snow.
"It's days like this I wish I had more time to appreciate the countryside." Camile said.
"You're a city girl?" Young asked.
"Yeah. Always have been." She said. "I like to ski though."
"You should try Novus, next town over. That's their big thing this time of year."
They pulled into the driveway leading to the Icarus plant. At the security post Carl Voss walked out of his booth. Young wound down his window.
"Hey Sheriff, Agent Wray." Carl greeted them. "I wasn't expecting you."
"We need to see Miss Armstrong again."
"I'll phone up to Stella." He said.
He disappeared back into the booth and through the glass they saw him pick up the phone. After a short exchange on the phone he replaced the handset and came out again.
"Stella says Miss Armstrong is on site but not in her office. She said to send you up. Miss Armstrong left instructions she'll make herself available whenever you need for the investigation."
He lifted the barrier and waved them through.
"Can he really be as young and innocent as he sounds?" Camile asked Young as they pulled away.
"Doubt it." Young said. "Probably ex-forces."
At the front of the building they pulled up and walked into the reception. The receptionist greeted them, but as soon as they reached the counter, Stella was walking out from the side door, greeting them.
"Agent Wray, Sheriff." She said smiling. "Is there any news?"
Camile and Young signed the book and accepted visitor badges from the receptionist.
"David Telford regained consciousness overnight." Young told her.
"Oh thank god." Stella said pressing a hand to her chest. "That takes a real weght off my mind."
She looked genuinely relieved.
"We need to speak to Chloe again." Camile said to Stella. "Is she available?"
"She's in the apartment." Stella said. "Talking to Doctor Rush."
Camile furrowed her brow. "Is that usual?"
"Oh yes. They often have informal meetings in the sitting room there. Especially with the research team. You can go along if you like. She knows you're here."
She led them through the plant, past the office areas they had met in previously and up two flights of stairs. Stella swiped her pass and tapped a code into a security door which opened to reveal a hall which looked like the corridor of an upscale hotel.
The floor was a complex pattern of inlaid wood, the walls were panelled in a matching wood to waist height and were a soft green above with tasteful glass shaded wall lights at intervals between the five doors that opened off the corridors.
"We keep two small apartments for general use of the senior staff and researchers, just small bedrooms and a living room kitchen." Stella said, gesturing at the doors on the left. "Then there is the apartment for the housekeeper, the guest apartment," a gesture to the right hand doors "and the Armstrong's personal apartment which is the largest."
She led them to the door at the far end of the corridor and knocked.
"Where's Doctor Rush staying?" Young asked curiously.
"Here of course." Stella said. "It's where he always stays."
Young raised his eyebrows, giving Camile a significant look. She nodded thoughtfully.
The door opened, Chloe Armstrong stepping back to let them into smaller hallway with several doors off it.
"Come in." She said.
"Shall I have the canteen send up refreshments?" Stella asked as they walked past her into the apartment.
"Yes please Stella." Chloe said sounding grateful.
She looked strained and worn to Young, as if she had not had much sleep in the last few days. She led them towards the only open door which led to a sitting room. It was large and open with big windows down one wall, three large couches and two armchairs arranged in an arc around two big coffee tables, facing what appeared to be a large entertainment system.
Doctor Rush was sitting in one of the armchairs, drinking coffee. The coffee table in front of him held the remains of a continental breakfast with two plates, and a laptop. As they walked in, he did something to the laptop and the picture on the wide screen television in the entertainment system changed from what had looked like a set of graphs to the Icarus logo in 3D, gradually rotating in space.
He looked annoyed, and Young realised as Chloe sat down that the source of their tension appeared to be each other as if they had been arguing before Young and Camile had arrived.
"Sit down." Rush said brusquely.
Next to him, Young saw Camile look from Chloe to Rush and back again.
"Is this a bad time?" She asked. "We can wait downstairs to meet with you once you're finished."
"No." said Chloe, firmly although her voice was a little strained. "We can talk to you now. There isn't anything more important than you finding who is murdering people."
There was a strange emphasis in her voice, and she looked at Rush not Camile as if she was making a point to him.
"Has anything else happened?" Rush asked. "Not another fire or attack."
"This time we both have an alibi." Chloe said with a weak smile. "We both stayed in the apartment last night." She sat down on the end of the sofa nearest to Rush.
Young caught Camile's eye momentarily before she continued.
"We need to talk to you about the attack on David Telford."
"Whatever you need." Chloe said. "Please, just ask."
"Your BMW has been identifed as potentially being at the scene, we're awaiting a warrant to take it in for examination, but it's the only car of it's make and model registered in the district."
Chloe looked confused. "I haven't driven it in over a month. You don't need a warrant, you can take it if it will help you."
Next to her, Rush had tensed and his face appeared almost carefully blank.
"Thank you." Said Camile, that's very helpful. "Now we need to know who has or would drive it."
"Well, me, Doctor Rush, my mother, I think I loaned it to Doctor Volker once to take his wife out to an anniversary dinner as it looks very nice, David's driven it and a couple of the security staff have taken it to be serviced before."
Camile nodded. "Where are the keys kept?"
Chloe shrugged. "I have a set here, there's a set at home and there's an emergency set in the security office here."
"And where is the car now?"
"At home in the garage as far as I know." Chloe said. "I've been driving the SUV because of the weather, but mostly I've been staying here anyway."
"With Doctor Rush." Camile asked.
"Well yes, since his apartment was burned down he's been living here."
"But you both stay here a lot anyway?" Camile pressed.
Rush sat forward angrily. "Say what you're getting at Agent Wray, stop beating around the bush."
Camile sat back in the chair, face pleasant and body relaxed. "We are trying to work out what is happening here. There is something that we have missed, somethiing that you aren't telling us and it appears it may well have something to do with your relationship."
That was a bit of a stretch. Young thought, but he was willing to go with it as a line of discussion.
"Relationship?" Chloe asked. "What relationship?"
"They think we're having a sexual relationship." Rush spat the words out.
Chloe looked horrified. "With Uncle Nick?" She stared at them. "He's been practically a second father to me."
Rush was about to speak again when Young's mobile rang, followed by Camile's. They locked eyes and Young pulled his out, standing and taking a few steps to the other side of the room while Camile continued to talk to the now somewhat irate scientist and CEO.
"Young."
"It's Vanessa."
"Telford?"
"Patricia Armstrong shot him. Telford just told Brody."
"Find her. We're with Rush and Chloe. Try the house first, that's where the car is, she might try to destroy evidence."
"Will do sir." Vanessa rang off immediately.
Young walked back over.
"Camile," he interrupted, "if I may?"
She looked at him, pausing.
"Chloe, where would your mother be at the moment?" He asked.
In his peripheral vision he saw Camile grasp the import of his question and she stood and walked away, pulling out her own phone.
"Why?" Chloe asked.
"It's important." Young said. "Where will she be."
"At home." Rush cut in. "She's at home today. She called to speak to Chloe earlier."
"Yes." Chloe agreed. "Today's not a day she has any of her groups or activities." She went to stand but Rush caught her wrist. "What is going on?" She pleaded.
Young took a deep breath. "David Telford regained consciousess overnight. He told Agent Brody your mother shot him."
Chloe gasped and swayed in her seat, and it was only Rush sitting forward and putting a hand on her shoulder to steady her that appeared to keep her up. Behind him, Young could hear Camile telling Brody Patricia Armstrong should be at home.
"Do you know why your mother would want to kill David Telford or any of the other people who have died."
Chloe looked faint.
"Get her a glass of water." Rush snapped, leaning Chloe forward and putting her head between her knees. He gestured at a door on the other side of the room.
Young looked at Camile who nodded and he walked through the door indicated into a large kitchen. There were a large number of cupboards, but someone had left a glass on the draining board by the sink and he filled it with water and walked back out.
When he came back through, Rush appeared to be calming Chloe down and Camile was still on the phone, but watching the pair intently.
He handed over the glass of water. Chloe sipped at it.
"Now," Young said, "is one of you gonna give me an explanation as to why Patricia Armstrong would want to try to kill David Telford, or you Doctor Rush or anyone else involved."
There was a long pause. Chloe put the glass of water down and took the handkerchief Rush held out to her to wipe her eyes. Rush sat up straight and looked Young in the eyes.
"Everyone who has been killed are among the people who knew I was having a relationship with Alan Armstrong." He said. His voice was tight and oddly flat as if he was holding in strong emotion. "There are others who know too, but..." He stopped, eyes bright and pained.
Chloe was staring at Rush in what looked like shock.
Out in the hall there was a noise of the door opening and everyone turned, Chloe wiped her eyes quickly. "That will be the coffee." she said.
The door opened and a woman stepped in carrying a tray. Young gave her a pleasant smile before realised the womans face was a mask of suppressed terror. Suddenly she was propelled forward in a crashing sprawl, tray of coffee going flying and the woman hitting the floor with a heavy thud.
Patricia Armstrong stood in the doorway, gun swinging for a moment before she focussed on Rush, swinging the gun round towards him.
"You fucking fag bastard!" she screamed. The gun wavered slightly, but not enough that Young, felt willing to risk going for his own weapons yet. Patricia looked drunk, and her eyes were red rimmed.
"You stole my husband, you got him killed and now you're trying to steal my daughter!"
"I didn't steal your husband." His tone was scathing and his pointing finger stabbed out, punctuating his words. "He was mine first." He stood and took a step to the right away from Chloe.
"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Thought Young.
"Don't move! Don't you move any more!" Patricia screamed.
Young could see Camile moving very slowly out of the corner of his eye. He hoped Patricia Armstrong's attention was completely focussed on Doctor Rush and she didn't notice.
"You just wouldn't get out of our life!" She shouted.
Rush's tone was scathing. "He didn't want me out of his life." He shook his head angrily. "I kept quiet! I stayed invisible! I worked my guts out for his company!"
Patricia took a step into the room.
"You used him!" she accused, gesticulating wildly with the gun.
Young fought the urge to duck. "For Christ's sake Rush don't antagonise the crazy woman." He thought.
"I loved him!" Rush shot back.
"You killed him!"
She steadied the gun pointing at him and Chloe stepped forward on shaky legs, facing her mother.
"No Mom," she said quietly, "I was there, Dad sent Uncle Nick out, threw him out of the room. It wasn't Uncle Nick's fault."
"She knows!" Realised Young incredulously. "She's known all along."
"No Chloe." Patricia Armstrong contradicted her daughter angrily. "It's his fault. If Alan had just done what he should have done, managed the business and not spent all his time in the labs with him, this would never have happened."
"Mom!" Young could hear the tears in Chloe's voice. "Why Mom? Why all the others?"
Patricia's aim didn't waver from Rush. "They covered it all up. All of them, hid his sordid little obsession with my husband, made it possible."
Chloe's breath hitched in a sob. "I knew," she said. "I knew Mom. I always knew. I went to dinner with them. I saw them kiss. I stayed over with them in the apartment at Icarus." Her voice was cracking. "I knew they shared a room."
Patricia Armstrong's face crumpled and the gun wavered. "You bastard." She said to Rush and her voice was cold, venomous and quiet.
She lifted the gun and pulled the trigger.
"No!" Chloe's voice was a strangled shriek as she threw herself in front of Rush.
The bullet spun her round and she crumpled to the floor.
"Chloe!" Patricia Armstrong's voice was a cry of horror.
Rush flung himself down, protecting Chloe as Camile Wray wrenched the gun from Patricia's slackening grip. She unloaded it, threw it onto an empty couch and handcuffed Patricia, who was staring horrified as Young and Rush rolled Chloe over to see her wound.
"Call the paramedics!" shouted Young at the woman who had brought the coffee.
The woman appeared to pull herself together and disappeared into the kitchen.
"Chloe!"
Young turned to Patricia. "You shot her in the stomach."
Rush was pulling off his shirt, wadding it and using it to staunch the blood pouring from Chloe's side. Chloe was making little crying pants of pain, and Rush looked to Young.
"Take this!"
Young took over applying pressure to the wound, as Rush stood wiping bloody handprints down the long sleeved white t-shirt he had had on under his shirt. He disappeared and came back with clean hand towels to replace the shirt.
When he looked up from where he and Rush were leaning over Chloe, Camile had Patricia Armstrong in one of the armchairs and was speaking urgently into her phone. There were more footsteps in the hallway and Greer appeared.
"What's going on?" He asked.
"Patricia shot Chloe." Rush said, without looking up from Chloe.
Greer looked at Patricia cuffed in the chair to Camile and then Young, evidently confused. Young nodded in confirmation.
"Shit." Greer said.
"The paramedics are coming." Said the canteen employee from the kitchen doorway.
"Stay here." said Camile. "Wait in the kitchen if you want." She turned to Young. "Brody and Vanessa are on route."
Young and Rush appeared to have staunched the worst of the bleeding, but Young only felt his almost panicky adrenaline begin to ebb almost ten minutes later as TJ hurried in followed by Cole, and started to treat Chloe.
Brody and James appeared in the doorway. "Take her away" He said in disgust gesturing to Patricia.
"Chloe!" Patricia called, anguished.
"You shot her." Young said without sympathy. He looked at Vanessa again. "Get her out of here."
Rush ignored everything, watching as the paramedics worked on Chloe. Young walked over to him.
"Why didn't you say anything?" He asked Rush.
"What choice did I have?" Rush asked him bitterly. "It would ruin Alan's reputation, and ruin Patricia's life. I've spent my whole life keeping us a secret for the benefit of his company and my career, and as the world changed, for her bloody benefit."
He put a hand on the man's shoulder but Rush didn't turn away from watching the paramedics on the floor with Chloe.
"How is she?" Young asked TJ.
"It looks like the bullet went through the muscle at the side of her abdomen." Said TJ over her shoulder. "It's ripped a hole through her side, she'll need some work done on it," she said looking back at Chloe, "but you should be fine." She told her.
"So she knew." Young said to Rush quietly.
Rush gave a short laugh which held absolutely no humour. "She figured out her parents marriage wasn't working when she was about six, then caught us kissing when she was about seven."
"And she didn't tell Patricia?"
Rush shook his head. "No." He sighed and turned to look at Young through his hair. "God I loved Alan, wanted him from the first moment we met. I was only eighteen and he was four years older, post grad." He paused. "Did anyone tell you what happened when she was born?" He asked with one of his lightning fast changes of topic.
"Stella told Wray that Patricia was sick." Young said.
Rush gave the same mirthless laugh. "Chloe was an emergency caesarean after Patricia had major complications. Patricia was sick in hospital for a month. Alan was left with a baby and no clue how to care for her." He looked to Chloe and then back to Young. "And there's me, oldest of eight, been takin' care of babies since I was six. So I took her on, how could I say no to him? And she was beautiful, perfect, almost killed me to give her back." He sighed. "Then Patricia had post-natal depression, and Alan was bringing Chloe in practically every day as Patricia couldn't cope."
They both stopped as Chloe cried out while TJ did something to her wound. Rush flinched at the sound and Young squeezed his shoulder.
"And she never really stopped coming in." Rush continued.
"Sounds like you had a big hand in raising her."
"Diapers and late night feeds, skinned knees and band aids and homework and boyfriends right up to 'Uncle Nick can I borrow your car?'"
Young felt him tense as Chloe was loaded onto a stretcher.
"She's going to be okay." TJ told them. "Really."
Rush's tension began to bleed away. Young patted him on the shoulder.
"Go with her." He said.
Young walked over to Brody and Wray.
"The missing puzzle piece." Said Camile.
"Yeah." Said Young. "Rush and Alan Armstrong." He exhaled. "Not something I'd have credited." He admitted.
Camile and Brody shared a look and Young guessed there was something there that he didn't understand, but they turned back.
"It explains everything." Camile said. "The will, his relationship with Chloe."
Young nodded.
"Sounds like he practically raised her with Armstrong." He said.
Wray nodded.
"Patricia Armstrong seems pretty unstable." Brody said. "I won't be surprised if they try to have her detained on the grounds of her mental health rather than convicted."
Camile shrugged. "I doubt that will come to pass." She said. "She knew what she was doing. It was revenge, pure and simple."
"Your professional opinion?" Asked Brody.
"My professional opinion." She agreed.
Feeling considerably better for a good night's sleep uninterrupted by emergencies or worries of more fires, Young drove to the County Hospital. He had a quick word with the nurse on duty, showing his badge and she smiled and let him know Miss Armstrong was accepting visitors.
Young wandered into the private hospital room. Chloe was propped up in the bed, Rush was sitting in the chair next to her.
"Sheriff." She said, smiling.
"Thought I'd drop by and see how you were doing." He said a little awkwardly. "Not an official visit, although we'll need to do that soon."
She nodded. "Of course. The doctors say I'm doing very well, I should be able to go home in a couple of days."
He proffered the large bunch of flowers. "Traditional offering?" He said. "The whole office and Agents Wray and Brody all contributed."
Rush, giving Young a measuring look, evidently decided that Young wasn't too much of a problem and stood. "I'll get the nurse to find some water." He said shortly, taking the flowers. "I'll be back soon Chloe." And tactfully, if with some irritation, he walked out.
Chloe gestured to the chair and Young sat down.
"He's a little protective." She said. "But you can see why."
Young nodded.
"I've had three parents all my life." Chloe said. "And in some ways I've been closer to Uncle Nick than to Dad or Mom."
Young wasn't sure what to say so he just nodded again. Chloe seemed deep in thought.
"Dad really wanted to do the right thing when he married Mom. I mean, he had to do it, get married and have a family, it's what was expected. He did love her," she said, a little defensively, then her face softened sadly, "but I guess just not enough."
There was a long pause. Chloe took a drink of water from a glass at her bedside before starting again.
"I think I always knew that Dad loved Uncle Nick." She mused. "I can remember them hugging when I was little." She smiled. "Do you know my earliest memory is being bathed by Dad and Uncle Nick, I must have been about three, playing with empty tubs in the bath, and I tipped a whole tub of water over them." She laughed, then sighed. "My mom, she didn't know what to do with me, and to me she wasn't so much fun. She was ill a lot when I was little." She paused. "Dad and Uncle Nick were always there, I always knew they loved me. I loved my mom, but we never really connected, and she was too scared to have any more kids. I feel kind of sorry for her, Uncle Nick got dad and me, and she..." Chloe paused, "she just didn't know how to be part of our lives."
Young patted her hand. "Your mom..." he started awkwardly.
Chloe interrupted "Is going to be charged with fourteen counts of murder, several counts of attempted murder on Uncle Nick, David and me, and several counts of arson, I know. We've employed legal representation for her." Chloe's face was drawn again. "I had to choose." She whispered. "I chose Uncle Nick."
"I understand." Young said.
"You know Mom only inherited an income from Dad." Chloe said quietly. "It's a good one, but even the house belongs to me and Uncle Nick inherited part of the company..." She stopped again. "I've ceased contact. I've instructed her legal team that any contact will be through my lawyers, I've written up my will to ensure she can't get anything and I've asked Uncle Nick to adopt me. Mom will still get the income, even when she goes to prison, but she'll never come back here." She took a deep breath. "I'm told she's pleading diminished responsibility."
Young nodded. "Yeah. I don't think it will work though."
"I don't care." Chloe said, and Young could see her eyes were tearing up. "I don't understand why she did it." She sighed. "I had three parents, I was happy with three parents. Now I've only got one."
Young reached out and squeezed her hand. "But I can see he loves you."
Chloe looked up gratefully. "Yeah." She said with a weak smile.
Rush walked back into the room and Young stood. "I'll have to come back with Agent Wray and interview you formally, Chloe, we can do that here if you want or wait till you're out. Doctor Rush we'll need to see you too."
"I can come to the station this afternoon." Rush said. "We need to get this over and done with as soon as possible, Sheriff."
Young nodded. "Understood."
"Come back tomorrow morning." Chloe said. "I'll be here."
Her voice hitched in a sob. Rush put the vase of flowers down on the counter, then reached out and hugged Chloe. Young slipped out quietly.
Outside the hospital he found TJ.
"Andy said he'd just seen you." She said. "I'm just coming off shift. How's Chloe?"
"Shaken up but coping. Doctor Rush is in there with her."
TJ nodded with a thougthful expression. "Yeah, wow, like that was a surprise." She admitted.
Young nodded. "I guess that's love for you." He said.
They were silent for a moment, awkwardly meeting each other's gaze.
"Hey," she said. "You never made me that lasagne."
He smiled, the smile strengthening as her expression replied in kind. "I'm sure I can manage that." He said. "I think things are going to quieten down around here for a little."
"I've got three days off." She said, a little shyly. "I wouldn't have to...run off early."
She blushed.
"I'd like that." He said. "Err, tomorrow night then? At my place?"
"Yeah."
She leaned in, putting her hands on his shoulders and kissed him. His hands developed a mind of their own, moving to capture her hips then sliding up to cup her shoulder blades as the kiss deepened. After long seconds had passed he pulled away a little breathless.
"I gotta go back to the station." He said apologetically.
"I know." She said. "But tomorrow right?"
"Tomorrow." He confirmed. ""Seven o'clock?"
"Lovely."
He gave her a final peck on the lips and walked back to his car, trying to supress the dumb grin on his face.
xxxoooxxx
The station was busy, Scott and Vanessa were there and the two FBI agents were going through paperwork with Becky, beginning to make up the formal case files that would go to the District Attorney.
"Doctor Rush will be here this afternoon." Young said. "To make a formal witness statement, and Miss Armstrong would like us to interview her at the hospital tomorrow morning."
Camile nodded. "How are they?"
"Coping." Young said with a sigh. "As well as can be expected. Chloe told me she's covering her mother's legal costs, but she's severed contact and she's asked Rush to adopt her."
"I'm not surprised. I get the impression he's been more of a parent to her than Mrs Armstrong."
"Do you think the diminished responsibility plea will help her?" Young asked, sitting down opposite the two agents.
"No." Brody said. "It rarely does. Certainly not with this degree of premeditation."
Camile nodded. "I agree. I don't think Miss Armstrong will have to worry about contact, Everett. I think Patricia Armstrong will be lucky not to get the death penalty."
Young frowned. "I can't say..." he paused. "I know it's law but..."
"Yeah." Camile said. "But it doesn't make anything better."
There was a long silence.
"So." Brody said finally. "It's over."
"Yeah." Young nodded and clapped Brody on the shoulder, putting his hand on Camile's. "It's finally over."