CHAPTER 2.

"Thank you." Serendipity took Fraser's handkerchief gratefully and wiped her eyes as Ray handed her a glass of water.

"I'm sorry you had to hear about it this way," said Fraser.

"Yeah," agreed Ray. "We kinda hoped the message would've gotten through."

Dippy shook her head sadly. "If I lived in, like, a normal place I'd have a phone and you could've just called me," she said, "but I live in a stupid frozen hellhole in the middle of nowhere and all I got was a scribbled note from Albert at the post office!" She broke down again.

Ray felt sorry for her. From what little he'd seen of her she did not seem like the kind of person who would live in the same place that Fraser loved so much at all. She'd seemed so excited just to be in Chicago. Chicago had been the only place Ray had ever called home and given the choice he'd rather be anywhere else, but to Serendipity Turnbull it was a place of wonder and amazement. Suddenly she'd learnt that her brother was clinging to life in the ICU and her bubble had burst. Ray put a gentle hand on her arm. "Hey, look, he's doin' OK, right Fraser?" he said encouragingly.

Fraser nodded hesitantly. If by 'OK' Ray meant Turnbull was still alive then yes, he was. "He has proven himself to be stronger than anyone could have expected," Fraser said, choosing his words carefully. He didn't want to give Turnbull's sister false hope, the young Constable was still in a critical condition. "He has shown some small, but encouraging signs today," he added.

"Can you, like, drive me to the hospital, please?" Dippy asked tearfully.

"I'm sorry, it's too late tonight, visiting hours are over," explained Fraser with an apologetic smile. "I'll take you there first thing in the morning, though."

Dippy nodded. "I wish Mum and Dad were here," she half whispered.

"Do ya have any idea how we can, er, contact them?" asked Ray.

Dippy shook her head sadly. "Nope," she replied. "They're probably in, like, some igloo somewhere watching some stupid polar bears, or mountain goats eat leaves. Like, how dull is that?"

"I take it you don't share your parents' love of nature?" offered Fraser.

"No," replied Dippy. "Well, kind of, I guess. I mean, animals are cute and all that, but, like, why can't you stay indoors and see them on TV? Or at the zoo? Or just look at pictures in a book, coz at least you can put a book down and go pee or something when you need to, y'know. You can't do that out there in an igloo, or you'll freeze all, like, down there, if you know what I mean, so you have to use one of those dumb peeing things that I hate."

Ray had no idea what she meant by a 'peeing thing', but she was off again and he didn't get an opportunity to ask.

"And plants are really boring!" she continued. "They don't even do anything. I guess they, like, grow or whatever, but that's about it. I like pretty flowers, I guess, but Mum just stares at leaves sometimes and Dad, like, talks to trees. I mean, oh my god! How weird is that, right?"

Fraser opened his mouth to speak, but then thought better of it. He didn't see anything weird at all with the things Mr and Mrs Turnbull did, in fact he was somewhat envious of their lifestyle.

Diefenbaker yapped and Dippy's head snapped round to look at him. She hadn't even noticed him since she'd arrived. "Oh my god!" she exclaimed. "It's an arctic wolf! We used to have a wolf, I called him Billy. Your wolf has different markings though. Is he, like, only half wolf or something?"

Fraser smiled; at least she had acquired some knowledge from her parents. "That's correct," he replied. "This is Diefenbaker."

Dief yapped again and approached Dippy gingerly. He wasn't sure about the new arrival; she reminded him of Constable Turnbull and that particular Mountie made him very nervous.

Dippy smiled a small smile. "Thanks," she said to Dief. "It's kind of you to say so, but I can't help worrying. I haven't seen my brother in, like, months."

Dief made a throaty noise and pawed at her arm.

"OK, I'll try," she added smiling down at him.

Ray's face fell into a confused frown. "Wait, er, you can understand him?"

Dippy laughed. "Of course," she replied, patting Dief on the head. "I mean, like, I only know a little wolf because my Mum taught me when I was a kid. Oh and some caribou and a bit of elk – although once you know caribou then elk is, like, easy to pick up, right?"

"Indeed," agreed Fraser.

"When my parents are away and it's just me and the animals it's nice to have someone to talk to, or, like, I'd go crazy on my own," she explained.

Ray shook his head in disbelief. All Canadians are freaks, he decided.

"So, er, d'ya watch a lot of TV?" asked Ray, desperate to draw the conversation away from talking to animals.

"Sure," replied Dippy. "I like to pretend I live in the cool places you see on TV instead of in stupid Canada."

Fraser was about to object to her insulting the land of his birth, but Ray jumped in before he had chance.

"What's your favourite show?" he asked. He didn't really care, but he was trying to keep the conversation moving.

"Well, I love anything set in California. That's where I want to live one day," she explained.

"That explains your accent," noted Fraser. She obviously watched a lot of television.

"Oh," giggled Dippy. "Yeah, people say that, like, all the time," she said. "So anyway, I figure one day I'll, like, go down to California and sign up to lifeguard rookie school, just like on Baywatch. Except I can't swim, so I guess I'd have to learn first, or something, but if I can't be a lifeguard then maybe I'll just hang out on Venice Beach and maybe a talent scout from a modelling agency will notice me and then I'll do some modelling and eventually get into acting. That would be, like, just the best thing ever!"

"You have no desire to follow your brother into the police, then?" Fraser asked.

Ray nearly choked on his own saliva. This girl couldn't be a cop, he thought, not in a million years!

"No," replied Dippy, incredulously. "Can you imagine? I mean, how often do you break a nail chasing a bad guy? It must drive you crazy!"

"All the time," replied Ray, sarcastically.

Dippy took a deep breath and stood up with sudden determination. "OK, so if I can't see my brother until the morning, can we go out?" she asked.

"Well it's a little late and rather chilly out there, but I understand your desire for some fresh air at this juncture," began Fraser as he stood up to join her. "And Diefenbaker could always use an extra opportunity to relieve himself before bedtime. We can walk around a few blocks, or across to the park."

"No, silly," giggled Dippy. "I don't mean go out for a walk, I mean out out!"

"Out out?" queried Ray.

"You know, like to a club or something," explained Dippy. "Come on you guys, this is my first night in a big city. I know there are some cool clubs and bars around here, I passed loads in the cab on the way from the airport. I've never been to any place like that, unless you count the Dancing Muskox in Moosejaw, but that place sucked. I only went there to see Banana Shoe playing – they're a band, if you haven't heard of them – but their bus got stuck in, like, a ten foot snowdrift or something and they didn't show which totally sucked after I'd gone all that way. So come on, what d'ya say?"

She waited for an answer, but was disappointed when none came.

"Please?" she begged. "I need to do something to take my mind off worrying about Ren," she added.

Ray sighed, feeling suddenly guilty. He could do with a beer, or two, himself; it had been a tough couple of days. "OK," he said. "I know a few places that are walking distance from here. We'll go and, er, check 'em out."

He hadn't been to a club in a while - not unless you counted the ones he'd busted for serving underage drinkers - and he suddenly felt very old. He took one look at Dippy in her high heels and short skirt and then his own outfit of tatty jeans and a t-shirt and immediately felt like his dad. What people were going to think when he walked into a club with Dippy Turnbull on his arm was anyone's guess.

"Thank you so much!" squealed Dippy and hugged him tightly around the neck. "Are you coming too?" she asked Fraser.

"Er, I, er…um…" Fraser most certainly did not want to go to a club. He found the volume level of the music almost unbearable for one thing and the crowds of people made him very uncomfortable.

Ray laughed. "I think Fraser here needs to hit the sack," he explained. "He's no fun anyway," he added with a wink. "See ya later, buddy," he added with a look of mild panic on his face. He was already regretting making the offer. "Pitter patter, let's get at 'er."

Dippy picked up her coat and they headed out of the door, with Fraser waving them off as they walked down the road. He closed the door and turned to look down at Dief. "Well," he said, glancing at the pink suitcase that was standing in the hallway. "I appears that we have a house guest."

xXxXx

"Hello son."

Fraser sat bolt upright in his red long johns. The camping bed he used to sleep on in his office creaked with the sudden movement. "Dad!" he exclaimed, panting to catch his breath. "I was just drifting off to sleep."

"Sorry son," replied the ghost of Bob Fraser.

Benton was suddenly very worried that his father had chosen to appear at this hour. "What is it? Is it Turnbull?" he asked nervously.

"No son," Bob shook his head. "At least, not as far as I know. I just wanted to see how you were holding up."

"I'm doing just fine, thank you kindly," replied Benton. "Now I am really rather tired…" he began, but Bob interrupted him.

"I see there's another Turnbull sibling," he said. "I thought one was quite enough for the world to cope with."

Benton frowned. "Dad, considering the circumstances, that was highly inappropriate."

"Of course, sorry," replied Bob. "But she does seem rather, um…"

"Worried about her brother?" offered Benton before his father could say something rude.

"Well, yes, naturally," agreed Bob, "but I was going to say excitable."

"It's her first time in Chicago – her first time in any big city, I believe," explained Benton. "It can be a little overwhelming, take it from me."

"Oh, I know that," nodded Bob. "You can certainly tell she's from the same gene pool, though, can't you."

"Yes," agreed Benton. He couldn't really argue with his father there. Serendipity's excited ramblings had reminded him so much of Constable Turnbull when he'd just got hold of a rare Clint Black recording, or after a soufflé he'd made had risen perfectly. "I…I hope Constable Turnbull is going to be alright," he said quietly.

"Me too, son," agreed Bob. "He's a Mountie, he doesn't deserve this."

Benton shook his head. "No one does," he said.

"Do the Yanks have any leads yet?" asked Bob.

"Unfortunately not," replied Benton. "But there are a lot of people working the case. The Chicago Police Department don't take kindly to people shooting police officers, no matter which side of the border our allegiance lies."

"As it should be, son," smiled Bob. "As it should be. Goodnight." He turned and walked into Benton's closet.

Benton sighed and tried to go back to sleep.

xXxXx

"C'mon, Enrique, ya must've seen her. Long legs, short skirt…" Ray trailed off and looked around the bar again, desperately hoping that Dippy might reappear. "I was only in the can for two minutes!"

In those two minutes, Serendipity had vanished. They'd been having a good time, although the younger Turnbull sibling apparently had less of an attention span than Ray. This was the second bar they'd visited and that was after dancing in two clubs – she did not like to stay in one place too long. Ray thought that Dippy had been enjoying herself. She'd certainly been chatting enough, Ray had hardly got a word in edgeways all night. Now, without any warning, she'd vanished.

"Sorry, Ray, didn't see her leave," replied the barman with a shrug.

"This isn't police business, Enrique," explained Ray. "This is personal, OK? Now try to think. I went to the can, she was sitting at that table over there…did anyone go over to her?"

"I already told you, I didn't see nothing," reiterated Enrique. "You know I'd tell you if I did."

Ray nodded. Enrique was a good guy, he had no reason to lie. "She probably just wanted to go to a different place," he said. "She liked the neon sign outside The Boardwalk, maybe I should try there?"

"It wouldn't be the first time a girl's run out on you, Ray," grinned Enrique as he dried some freshly washed glasses with a cloth.

"Hardy har har," sneered Ray. "We're not on a date, not that it's any of your business. Her brother is a Mountie, the one who got shot yesterday. It's her first night in Chicago."

"And you brought her to my establishment? I'm honoured."

"Cut it out, Enrique," snapped Ray. "This is serious, she doesn't know her way around. She could wind up anywhere, we've gotta find her quick before she lands herself in big trouble." Ray's blood ran cold as he thought about all the lowlifes out on the streets at this time of night.

"Sorry," mumbled Enrique. "If I hear anything I'll let you know, OK?"

Ray nodded and slapped the palm of his hand on the bar in frustration. "I'm callin' Fraser," he said. It was the last thing he'd wanted to do, but he had no choice now. Fraser would probably be mad at him, he figured. They'd only been out for a couple of hours and he'd lost Turnbull's sister. How d-u-m dumb was that? With a heavy sigh he pulled his phone from his pocket.

Ten minutes later Fraser came running round the corner to find Ray standing at the entrance to Enrique's Bar.

"Thanks for coming out, Fraser. Still no sign of her," said Ray, clenching his fists in frustration. "I'm…I'm sorry, OK. I just left her for a minute while I went to the, er, the can."

"It's not your fault, Ray," replied Fraser. "You had to urinate. You couldn't very well have taken her with you to the gentlemen's restroom."

"Er, no," agreed Ray, momentarily smiling to himself at the term 'gentlemen's restroom'.

"I suggest we work on a basic search pattern starting from this point, her last known location," began Fraser. "Diefenbaker and I will…" but he was interrupted by the sound of a scream.

"Dippy!" exclaimed Ray and he, Fraser and Dief immediately raced off in the direction of the noise.

They ran into the alley behind the bar just in time to see Dippy struggling with a man. He had a tight hold of her arm and was trying to drag her through a side door into the building opposite.

"Get off me, you asshole!" exclaimed Dippy.

"Police, freeze!" yelled Ray, pulling his gun and aiming it at the man.

The man took one look at Ray, shoved Dippy to the ground and tried to run off. He didn't anticipate a wolf leaping on him, however and Diefenbaker knocked him off his feet.

In a split second Fraser was helping Dippy to her feet and Ray was dragging the man off the floor.

"Are you alright?" asked Fraser with concern.

"Sure, I guess," replied Dippy with a shrug. She was more shaken up than she was letting on. "This guy thought I wanted to, like, go to bed with him. Can you believe it?"

Ray could well believe it. "OK, scuzzbucket," he said, pushing the man face first against the wall and re-holstering his weapon. "You are under arrest."

"I mean, look at him! That sweater has a hole in it," continued Dippy as Fraser supported her by the elbow. "I don't sleep with guys who dress like bums! I don't sleep with many guys at all, actually," she added.

"Hey, lady, you were sure as hell giving me all the signals," shouted the man in his defence.

"Ray, you'd better caution this man at once," urged Fraser. The last thing they wanted was for anything he said now to be inadmissible in court.

Ray nodded and began reciting the Miranda Rights. Whether the man could hear him over Dippy's high pitched shouting was debateable.

"What signals?" screamed Dippy. "You, like, just came up to me in the bar. You said you had something I wanted. I thought you meant weed. That was, like, the only reason I went outside with you."

Fraser's mouth fell open. "You intended to purchase marijuana from this man?" He was stunned. He knew for a fact that Constable Turnbull would never touch drugs. He only had a small glass of wine on special occasions and certainly never smoked.

"OK, pal, you can add Intent to Supply to that list of charges," sneered Ray as he snapped handcuffs around the man's wrist.

"Relax, Fraser," said Dippy, shaking herself free from his grasp. "I'm not a junkie, or anything. I've never even tried it before, but I thought it might be fun, y'know? It's what people do in Chicago, isn't it?"

"I can assure you that not everyone in Chicago uses narcotics," replied Fraser sternly. "And I must say I'm very disappointed that you'd even consider such a thing."

"Fraser, maybe we should talk about this later?" suggested Ray. Now wasn't the time for Fraser to give Dippy an anti-drug lecture. She had been stupid and naïve and they would have to have a long chat with her about it, but right now he had to get his prisoner to the station for processing.

"Right you are," agreed Fraser. He glanced at his watch and sighed; this was going to be a long night.

xXxXx

"Oh my god, I'm so tired!" Dippy Turnbull slumped down hard onto the sofa at the Consulate. It was almost three in the morning and they had only just finished at the station. "I don't know why you guys are, like, making a big deal out of this." She had been really bored waiting around for someone to take her statement and had taken the opportunity to paint her nails. "Is this colour too dark?" she asked, waving her fingertips in front of Dief's face.

Dief growled and Dippy turned her nose up in disappointment. "Thought so," she agreed.

"A big deal?" replied Ray, incredulously. "It's a big deal because I leave you alone for two minutes and the next thing you're trying to buy dope!"

"Jeez, I thought you guys would be cool with it," she shrugged. "I wish, like, I'd never mentioned it now."

"We're policemen," Fraser pointed out.

"Oh," replied Dippy, her shoulders slumping as she realised the significance of his statement. "Look, I'm sorry, OK? It won't happen again."

"Damn right it won't," agreed Ray. "What did ya expect me to say to your brother when he woke up? I took your sister to a bar, but we lost her to some drug pushing bastard? Jesus, Dippy, anything could've happen to you! Do not go off with strange guys ya meet in bars and do not do drugs. Got it?"

Ray took a deep breath, he hadn't expected to be the one to give her the lecture, but her disinterested attitude at the station had wound him up to the point of explosion.

"He seemed like a nice guy," she replied, quietly.

"Yeah, real nice," scoffed Ray. "So nice he was gonna get you high and then…then…drag ya to bed." Ray was trying not to use language that would scare her. Dealing with Dippy could be a little like dealing with a child at times, he'd realised. She really didn't seem to have a clue of how the world worked. In a funny way, he envied her.

"I told him I didn't want to sleep with him," replied Dippy.

"Unfortunately, not everyone takes no for an answer," explained Fraser, sadly.

Dippy thought for a moment. "Oh…oh my god!" she said, eventually. "You don't really think…I mean, like, you don't think he was going to…?" Finally the seriousness of the situation she'd been in hit her and tears started to well in her eyes.

"Well he practically had his hand up your skirt," snapped Ray. "What d'ya think he was planning on doin' up there?"

"Ray!" Fraser admonished, frowning at his partner, although he could understand why Ray had finally lost his temper.

Tears rolled down Dippy's face now. "I'm sorry," she sobbed. "I was…was just trying to have a good time," she sniffed. "If you guys hadn't found me when you did, I could have been…I could have been raped…or killed…or raped and then killed…or maybe he might've raped me and then tortured me, or just left me tied up somewhere until…"

"Alright, there's no need to contemplate all the possibilities at this juncture," Fraser interrupted her before her own hyperactive mind scared her even more. "The important thing is that you're safe and we have the perpetrator in custody."

Ray sat down beside her on the sofa and put his arm around her shoulders. "I'm sorry I yelled," he said, his voice much calmer now. "It wasn't really your fault, but next time don't go wandering off, especially not with, er, with strangers. OK?"

Dippy nodded and then her face lit up. "You mean, there's gonna be a next time?" she asked, hopefully.

Ray realised how it must have sounded. He wanted to say 'No, not in a million years,' but considering the ordeal she'd just been through he couldn't bring himself to say it. "Er, maybe," he mumbled.

"Oh, thank you, Ray," she squealed, throwing her arms around him and almost pushing him back onto the sofa in her excitement. "Maybe tomorrow we could catch a movie? The last movie I saw on a big screen was Back to the Future. Y'know, with Michael J Fox? He's so cute, but it was, like, the most confusing movie I've ever seen and it probably didn't help that the projector broke down twice and we had to wait, like, half an hour for Hank the engineer guy to come fix it."

Ray looked helplessly at Fraser. He couldn't help liking Dippy, despite all the trouble she'd caused and he did feel really sorry for her. It sounded like she was quite unhappy in her life and if taking her to a movie would cheer her up, if only for a couple of hours, then he figured he could probably manage that. "OK," he agreed and was rewarded with another squeal of delight. "Now I've really gotta get going," he added before he got talked into anything else. "Get some sleep, OK. I'll see ya tomorrow, buddy."

As the front door clicked shut behind Ray, Dippy walked out into the hallway and picked up her case. "So, where do I sleep?" she asked.

Fraser smiled. "Upstairs," he explained. "In the Regal Suite."

Dippy's eyes nearly popped out of her head when she saw the room. She had never slept in such luxurious surroundings in all her life.