CHAPTER 11.
"Oh Ren, I was so scared. He had his hand round my throat." Dippy sat on the edge of Turnbull's hospital bed as she told him all about the day's events. "Then I totally thought I was blind," she continued. "I feel kinda silly, now especially 'coz Fraser was, like, real worried about me. I mean, I guess I was so freaked out I didn't think to open my eyes. I don't know how you Mounties do it. Facing danger every day, I mean. I could never be a cop. You guys are, like, soooo brave."
Turnbull smiled at his sister. The truth was, of course, that working at the Consulate rarely involved facing danger, unless you counted facing the wrath of Inspector Thatcher when his cleaning efforts weren't up to her exacting standards. "I'm just glad you're alright," he said.
"Me too," agreed Dippy. "And Katy and her mum are OK too. That Jonathan Bell guy went kinda nuts. I don't think even he, like, knew what he was doing. It's really sad, though, 'coz he was in the war and, y'know, that must've been, like, awful having to shoot people and stuff. I mean, that's like the worst job ever, isn't it? Killing people for a job. Although I guess if you're, like, a hit-man, or just a psycho, I guess you enjoy it…I don't know? All that criminal psychology is totally beyond me. I could never be a criminal."
Turnbull couldn't help but smile at his sister's ramblings. It was good to have her here and although he had been shocked when he'd heard what Bell had done, he was proud of the way she had dealt with the situation.
Just then Ray appeared at the door. "Hey, Turnbull," he said. "You're looking good."
"Thank you, Detective," replied Turnbull. He was feeling much stronger today and there had been talk of him being sent home in the next day or two which had helped lift his spirits.
"I left Fraser with Bell," explained Ray. Jonathan Bell was in the psychiatric wing of the hospital for evaluation. Protocol dictated that an armed officer stayed with him at all times, although Ray didn't think the guy was a flight risk. If anything, Ray thought to himself, he's a suicide risk.
"How is he?" asked Dippy. "I know he threatened to, like, kill me, but I still feel really sorry for him."
"Yeah," agreed Ray. "He's, er, well he's not making a whole lotta sense right now. He's giving us information about McGarratt, but he keeps rambling on about, er, Iraq and his son. Poor guy can't focus on anything right now. His head's screwed."
xXxXxX
Jonathan Bell sobbed into Fraser's handkerchief. Fraser glanced up at the psychiatrist who had insisted on staying in the room with them while they talked. She didn't look very happy.
"Constable, I am going to have to insist that you leave," said the psychiatrist. "You are distressing my patient."
"Dr Bailey, a dangerous criminal is at large," began Fraser. "Other lives may be in danger. This man may be able to help us locate him."
"He needs to rest," replied Dr Bailey and she held up a syringe containing what Fraser could only presume was a sedative.
Fraser nodded sadly. At times he had been getting somewhere with Bell, but then emotion would overwhelm the man and he'd lose focus. Fraser understood why Ray had decided to leave the room; he could tell his partner had become completely frustrated with the situation. They needed answers, preferably a location for McGarratt, but Bell was unable to give them the information they needed. Fraser stood up and turned to leave.
"Wait," Bell called out. He took a deep breath before continuing. "Constable, please, don't go. I…I…"
"It's alright, we can talk another time," replied Fraser. "The doctor is correct, you should rest."
"But…but I'm sorry," said Bell. "I'm sorry for all of this. I need to do something to help you find McGarratt. It's all my fault."
"No," said Fraser with a shake of his head. "This is not your fault. Leave this to us now; you must concentrate on your own health."
"But…I don't know how to …" said Bell.
"Lucinda is outside," said Fraser. "Would you like me to send her in?" He glanced across at the door, knowing an armed officer was still standing guard outside and he wondered what must be going through Lucinda's mind. She had seen her brother at his lowest and she had been very upset when they'd brought him to the hospital in handcuffs.
"No," replied Bell. "I can't let her see me like this. I've put her and little Katy through enough already. I didn't mean to drag them into my mess. I didn't even realise everything was such a mess. Oh god, Constable, what am I going to do? What's going to happen to me? I don't understand what's happening." Tears began streaming down his face again and Fraser put a supportive hand on his shoulder.
"Dr Bailey, may I please have a moment alone with Mr Bell?" Fraser asked.
The psychiatrist sighed and reluctantly nodded. "Five minutes," she said and as she left the room, Fraser sat himself back down on the chair again. He drew a deep breath and began to speak.
"The Inuit tell an old tale of a bear cub," he began.
"Oh no, not the bear cub story, son."
Fraser was startled by the sudden appearance of his father. He cleared his throat and rubbed furiously at his left eyebrow with his thumbnail. "Many moons ago, before man came to the river…" he continued, deliberately ignoring the ghost.
"Tell him the one about the two caribou and the furry night crawlers," Bob Fraser interrupted him.
Fraser let out a slow breath and turned away from Bell. "The caribou die," he mumbled, hoping the man wouldn't notice.
"Oh yes, so they do," agreed Bob. "Well then maybe it's not really appropriate. Alright, son, stick with the bear cub."
Fraser glared at his father who just shrugged and made himself comfortable in the other chair.
"The bear cub would fish with his older siblings at the same place every day where they knew it was safe," Fraser continued, returning his attentions to Bell.
Bell listened intently as Fraser recited the story he'd first heard from his old friend Quinn when he was a boy. Fraser hoped the tale of the cub who, when he found himself lost and alone, discovered an inner strength he never knew he had, would inspire Bell. From the look on the man's face it seemed to be working.
"So in the end," Fraser concluded, "the bear cub realised that he wasn't quite as lost as he thought he was."
Bell nodded slowly. "He…he said something about getting a job," he said suddenly.
Fraser's eyes widened in anticipation. "Do you remember anything else?" he prompted.
"I…I'm not sure," replied Bell. "He said he needed the money. And he always smelled of…I don't know…tacos, maybe?"
"Tacos?" queried Fraser.
Bell nodded. "I thought maybe he had a job in a kitchen. I didn't ask. McGarratt doesn't like people asking too many questions."
Fraser smiled. It may not be much to go on, but at least it was something. "Thank you kindly," he said and got up to leave, just as the door opened and Dr Bailey walked back in pointing to the clock on the wall.
"I promise I'll try to be more like that bear cub," Bell called out to Fraser. "I don't think it's going to be easy and maybe I'll slip on a few wet rocks along the way," he continued, alluding to Fraser's story, "but I will sort myself out and I will make up for all the mistakes I've made. I owe it to Lucinda…and I owe it to my son."
xXxXx
"So, er, is there anything else you remember?" Ray asked Turnbull. He was keen to get back out on the streets to look for McGarratt, but they had no idea where to start looking. Dippy had offered a few suggestions, but Ray decided it was unlikely the man would be getting his hair cut, or at the movie theatre when he knew the cops were after him. "I know ya said somethin' about the building across the street, Turnbull, but we searched the whole place right after it happened and there was no one there."
Turnbull tried to pull himself up straighter in the bed, but a sharp pain at the site of the bullet wound made him wince. Dippy grabbed his arm and looked at him with concern.
"You OK?" Ray asked.
"Yes, I'm fine," replied the young Mountie. "I think my meds are wearing off, that's all. I don't like taking them, but the doctors say…"
"Renfield, you have to do what the doctor tells you," replied Dippy with a frown.
Turnbull nodded and smiled. "You sounded just like Mum when you said that," he said.
Dippy smiled back and then her smile faded. "I wish they would hurry up and get here," she said quietly. "It's been days."
"Fraser said something about a storm up in Snowsville," said Ray. "He figured that must've held up your folks for a day or two."
"Most likely," agreed Turnbull. "Although I must object to your use of the sobriquet of 'Snowsville', Detective. I believe you meant it in a derogatory fashion and besides, it is somewhat inaccurate. For one thing, the temperature in that part of Canada regularly rises above freezing, particularly at this time of the year and…"
"Turnbull, it was a term of, er, endearment," Ray interrupted him with a grin. Although he was glad to see Turnbull almost back to his old self, Ray was reminded how annoying he could be…more annoying than Fraser, which was saying something.
"In that case, I apologise for my over-reaction," replied Turnbull, humbly. "And to answer your previous question, I'm afraid I remember very little about the shooting."
"You were in a pretty bad way," noted Ray. "You pointed across the street and said 'window'. D'ya remember that?"
Turnbull closed his eyes and tried to think back. He remembered the pain as the bullet hit him. He remembered feeling as if he'd let everyone down by getting shot. He remembered thinking that Constable Fraser would have seen or heard the bullet approaching and somehow avoided it. He remembered…a big hat.
"It was a reflection, Detective," said Turnbull, his eyes snapping open. "The perpetrator wasn't firing from the window, I saw his reflection in the window. At least, I saw the reflection of his hat."
"His hat?" queried Ray. "From all the way across the street?"
"Yes," confirmed Turnbull. He closed his eyes again. "It was a very large hat," he explained.
Ray took out his notebook and a pen and laid them on the bed. "Can ya draw this, er, big hat?" he asked.
Turnbull nodded and began scribbling furiously. Ray and Dippy watched as the image took shape on the paper.
"There," said Turnbull, proudly turning the page around to face Ray. "I'm not entirely happy with the shading on this side," he said, "but the shape is accurate. The patterns are representative, however. I'm afraid my memories are still somewhat foggy."
Ray picked up his notebook and stared at the drawing. "That's, er, that's one distinctive hat there, Turnbull," he said. "Are ya sure this is what the guy was wearing when he shot you?"
Dippy peered over his shoulder and then started to giggle. "Were you shot by Speedy Gonzales?" she asked. "Coz that would be, like, totally weird, right? Oh hi, Fraser," she added as he entered the room.
"Who is this Mr Gonzales?" asked Fraser. "Do we have another suspect?"
"No, buddy," grinned Ray. "Speedy Gonzales is a rat. Did ya get any sense outta Bell?"
"I thought he was, like, a mouse, Ray," said Dippy with a frown. "If he was a rat he'd have a longer tail and it would totally get in the way when he was running."
"Unfortunately not much, Ray, his mental state is very fragile, however he did…" Fraser trailed off. "You believe a rodent shot Constable Turnbull?"
"No, silly," giggled Dippy. "He's a cartoon character, but Ren thinks the guy was wearing his hat."
"The shooter was wearing a hat belonging to a cartoon character?" Fraser began to wonder if he was in the middle of a strange dream.
"Not his actual hat," Dippy explained. "A hat just like it, though. Look." She showed Fraser the picture Turnbull had drawn and explained about the reflection.
"It seems very odd that a person intent on committing a violent crime would choose to wear such a distinctive item of headgear," replied Fraser.
"You're right, Constable," said Turnbull. "I apologise. I must be mistaken. Perhaps this image was something my subconscious created while I was in a coma? I will try to be more observant next time I get shot."
"Turnbull, you were in no position to…" began Fraser, but then a thought occurred to him. "Tacos," he said, suddenly.
"You hungry, buddy?" asked Ray. "We can go for take-out, you up for that, Dippy?"
"Sure," replied Dippy.
"No, Ray, I wasn't thinking of my nutritional needs," Fraser tried to explain. "Jonathan Bell believes McGarratt has taken up temporary employment in the food industry here in Chicago," he continued. "Bell remembers a distinct aroma that reminded him of tacos."
"So he works in a Mexican restaurant?" suggested Dippy.
"It seems likely," agreed Fraser.
"And wearing a sombrero could be a requirement of the role?" suggested Turnbull with some excitement.
"Quite possibly," agreed Fraser.
"OK, I'll call Frannie," said Ray, pulling out his phone. "Get her to give us a list of all the Mexican places in the area."
Dippy squealed with delight. "We've got a lead!" she exclaimed. Then her face fell. "I am really hungry though," she added. "I was kind looking forward to tacos…or maybe a burrito. Back home there's a place where they make this great moose burrito, with a gallon of chilli sauce and some of those little beans and…"
"Dippy," Ray interrupted her. "We'll eat later. Right now we've gotta find McGarratt."
xXxXxXx
Ray ran into the station house to collect the list Francesca had compiled for them, leaving Fraser and Dippy in the car.
"We'll drop you at the Consulate," said Fraser, turning towards the back seat of the GTO to face her.
Dippy folded her arms and frowned. "But I want to help you, like, get this guy!" she said. "I've seen this on TV, like, a million times so I totally know what to do."
"Serendipity, this man is armed and dangerous," Fraser reminded her. "And you are a civilian with no police training whatsoever. Watching television drama does not prepare you for real life situations."
"Can't I at least watch from the car?" she asked.
"No," replied Fraser. "I'm sorry."
Dippy scowled at him and then she turned to look out of the car window to watch for Ray's reappearance. Dief nuzzled into her.
"But he shot my brother," she said quietly. "Renfield could be dead because of that man. I hate him. I can't help it. I just want to, like, shoot him back, to see how he likes it. Or maybe just punch him in the face, or something." She started to sob. "I…I've never felt like this before. I don't like it, Fraser. I want to hurt someone and I don't like it."
Fraser turned round in his seat again. "It's alright, I understand how you feel," he said gently. "I first came to Chicago on the trail of the killers of my father."
"Really? I didn't know that," replied Dippy, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.
"It's true," confirmed Fraser. "And when I finally confronted the man who had pulled the trigger, I…I had feelings I had never experienced before. Feelings similar to the ones you're describing."
Fraser usually found it hard to talk about his feelings, but it seemed natural with Dippy. She was so open and honest about her own that it was easy.
"What did you do?"
"I saved his life," replied Fraser. At Dippy's puzzled look, Fraser continued. "Some rogue agents wanted him dead, but I could not allow that to happen. I wanted justice for my father. Believe me it took all of my self-control to resist the urge to inflict pain on the man. I would happily have seen him suffer for what he did, but I knew that would have been wrong."
Fraser closed his eyes and an image of himself punching Gerrard in the face popped into his head. It was an image he'd seen in his mind before. He had no control over its appearance and that scared him a little. Fraser imagined his fist pummelling Gerrard's face repeatedly, over and over, until blood ran from his nose and his eyes swelled with bruises. Over and over and over… It's what he deserves…
No, that's not who I am. I am a Mountie…
"Fraser? You OK?" Dippy's voice cut into his thoughts.
"Me? Yes…yes…" Fraser blinked hard and regained full control of his thoughts. "What I'm…what I'm trying to say is that it's alright to have those feelings, as long as you don't act upon them. I know you don't really want to hurt anyone, Dippy. You are a good person, with a warm heart."
Dippy blushed. "Thanks, Fraser," she said quietly. "But say if he tries to get away and Ray has to, like, shoot him or something. I don't think I'd care."
"If that situation arises…" Fraser trailed off and shrugged. Nothing more needed to be said. "I promise you that Ray and I will bring this man to justice and he will pay for what he did to Constable Turnbull."
Dippy nodded and smiled. Then she reached forward and hugged Fraser the best she could in the confined space of the car.
"I'm gonna, like, miss you guys so much," she said, choking back more tears. "A couple days ago I thought about moving here, like, permanently so I could be near Ren. I mean, I've had, like, the craziest time ever and it's been so cool, apart from nearly getting killed of course…but you wanna know something totally weird? I think I'm actually homesick."
xXxXxXx
"OK, we'll start at Pedro's Place, then hit Mexxa Mexxa and Taco World," said Ray as Fraser scanned down the list of addresses Francesca had supplied.
"Be careful you guys," said Dippy as they drove back to the Consulate. "And don't forget to pick up some take-out. I'm, like, totally starving! I might have to bake a cake while I'm waiting. I gotta keep busy or I'll just, like, bite my nails with worry and I don't wanna do that 'coz these are acrylics."
"Try not to worry," Fraser said reassuringly. Then he turned to Ray. "You realise this may be a wild boar chase."
"Wild goose chase, Fraser," Ray corrected him.
"Ah, yes of course," nodded Fraser. "From Romeo and Juliet."
Ray looked puzzled. "Er, I don't think it's gonna be very romantic, buddy," he said.
Fraser was about to explain the connection when Dippy shrieked.
"Oh my god, look!" she exclaimed, pointing out of the window. "A big hat! A giant sombrero! On the side of that van!"
Ray screeched the car to a halt and he and Fraser looked across at where Dippy was pointing. A delivery van was parked outside an apartment block. It was painted in the colours of the Mexican flag and the image of a large sombrero adorned the side.
"Look at the reflection, Ray," said Fraser and he pointed to the window of the building where the brightly coloured design could clearly be seen. "This could be what Constable Turnbull saw reflected in the window just before he was shot."
"It's big enough to be seen from across the street," agreed Ray. He squinted to see the name painted on the van. "Tasty Taco's," he read. "Not very original."
Fraser ran his finger down the list he still had in his hand. "Here," he said, tapping on the name when he found it. "It's over on Eastmore. Let's go there first. McGarratt may be one of their delivery drivers."
"He could be the one in that building right now," noted Dippy.
Fraser and Ray glanced at each other. "She has a point," said Ray and Fraser nodded in agreement.
"I mean, it would be, like, a freaky coincidence, but he could be," continued Dippy. "I love coincidences; they're so weird, aren't they? I mean, like, when you're just thinking about someone you haven't seen for a while and the phone rings and it's them. How totally weird! And I remember this one time when I was out shopping for a new dress and…"
"OK," Ray interrupted her. If McGarratt was in the building he'd have time to leave the country before Dippy stopped talking. "Dippy, stay here. We're gonna go check it out."
Ray and Fraser got out of the car and Dief bounded after them. Ray checked his gun and nodded towards the building. Fraser set off with Dief, staying in the shadows just in case the driver returned to his vehicle. Ray was about to follow him, but before he did he leaned down and tapped on the window. Dippy wound it down so he could speak to her.
"If things get, y'know, well…y'know," he began, "stay down and call for back up." He nodded towards the radio.
Dippy nodded. Now she was scared. If the man who shot her brother was in that building, then Ray and Fraser could be running into danger.
"Hey," said Ray, flashing her a toothy grin. "We'll be fine."
Dippy watched him run after Fraser and then she sat back in the seat, slowly sliding down so she could only just about see out of the window. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Just a short while ago she had been begging Fraser to let her go with them while they searched for McGarratt. Now the circumstances had resulted in her being here anyway, but she hadn't realised just how terrified she would be.
Is this what it's really like to be a cop? Is this what they go through every day? They're so brave. My brother is so brave… I'm so proud of him… I wish Mum and Dad were here… I'm hungry… I miss my own bed… and the dogs…
Dippy's thoughts were jumbled as she waited, hardly daring to breathe. It felt like she had been waiting for hours, but a quick glance at the clock on the dashboard confirmed it had only been about five minutes. She waited and waited. Another five minutes passed. Her stomach was churning, a
mixture of hunger and fear.
Suddenly a man ran out from around the back of the building carrying a gun. He almost tripped over a low wall, but somehow managed to keep his balance and ran off along the street. Dippy gasped as Fraser came running after him at full speed, closely followed by Ray and Dief.
"Oh my god!" Dippy exclaimed. She tried to get down between the seats, but she couldn't quite take her eyes off the action. A gunshot rang out and Dippy screamed.
Call for back up…
She scrambled to the front of the car and picked up the radio handset with a shaky hand. "Hello?" she said. "Hello? Hello?" She looked at all the buttons on the radio and realised she had no idea how to use it. She threw down the handset in frustration and slowly turned to peer out of the window again, hoping that it was all over.
Dippy clamped her hand to her mouth as another gunshot rang out. This time she could see that it was Ray who'd fired, but the bullet had flown harmlessly past McGarratt. She held her breath and watched in awe as Dief and Fraser caught up with the fleeing man. Dief jumped up and grabbed a mouthful of the man's jacket, pulling him backwards. McGarratt tried to aim his gun at the wolf, but Fraser knocked his arm and the gun went flying out of his hand. McGarratt lost his balance in the confusion and just as Ray caught up with them, Fraser and Dief pinned McGarratt to the ground.
Ray panted hard, trying to catch his breath as he yelled at McGarratt. A rush of emotion overwhelmed Dippy. She hesitated for a moment, but she couldn't stop herself and she opened the door and climbed out of the car just as Fraser and Ray were hauling McGarratt to his feet.
Diefenbaker barked at her to stay back, but she ignored him and ran over to the scene, kicking off her three inch heels after a few steps.
"It's alright," said Fraser. "He's under arrest. It's over."
Dippy's breathing was rapid and her head was spinning as she finally came face to face with the man who almost killed her brother. McGarratt looked her up and down. "Who's the babe?" he asked, wincing as Ray snapped handcuffs around his wrists.
"Shut up, creep," snarled Ray.
Dippy took another step closer. Fraser held out his hand to stop her, he wasn't sure what she was going to do and after their conversation in the car earlier he didn't want her to do something she'd regret later.
Dippy clenched both her hands into fists at her side. Her mind was racing, but then she thought about everything that had happened and she thought about Fraser's words and realised that he was right, she didn't want to hurt anyone. Well, maybe just a little bit…
In a split second Dippy had pushed past Fraser and slapped McGarratt in the face. "That was for my brother and for Constable Conti and for all the Mounties that you said all those totally dumb things about," she said.
McGarratt desperately wanted to rub his stinging face, but his hands were cuffed behind his back. "Did you see what that crazy bitch did to me?" he said to Ray, opening and closing his mouth in an attempt to restore some feeling.
"Hey, show some respect, you jerk," sneered Ray. "She's a Mountie's sister."
Ray looked over at Dippy who was looking slightly stunned and now had Fraser's arm around her shoulder. He couldn't help but grin. "Nice job," he said with a wink.