What moves in the depth of darkness? Part 5

Andy Flynn moved restlessly around the squad room of the Major Crimes division, the pace taking him by his desk many times. If he sat down, he would fall asleep so instead he paced. The team was back at headquarters in downtown Los Angeles, coordinating the preliminary findings and setting up the murder board. So far, there was not a lot to go on.

Buzz had gone home, Amy Sykes was somewhere in the building, and the rest, seasoned and embodied by their work, found nitpicks to do. Going home before everyone else, especially before the Captain, was not an option for him.

Their two victims were still without identity. Andy couldn't very well do a master search on John Doe number 1 and 2. Heck, he had scrolled though missing persons in Los Angeles County twice already with a photo of the two victims next to his computer screen and the descriptions of both men post mortem from Kendall. So far there was nothing. Maybe the autopsy would lend a clue to the identity of the two men.

The hour was late and the sky was once again darkened by night, Andy hadn't even had a chance to change clothes from his yesterday's evening dinner with Sharon.

Julio had ordered a stack of pizzas for the team and the younger detective sat by his desk with a pizza slice in his hand, rereading incidence reports from the manhunt of Philip Stroh on his computer. It was a lot of sightings and other peculiar discrepancies that naturally bombarded hotlines and patrol when a man hunt was ongoing. With thirty plus years on the force, Andy had been through his fair share of manhunts. With men like Philip Stroh, it rarely ended in the Police's favor. Stroh was cunning and not the regular 'dumb dumb' criminal Robbery/Homicide usually dealt with. Andy could only hope the psycho's ego would eventually get him captured.

The tight grimace on Julio's face deepened as the evening wore on and Andy could only sigh. He understood the younger detective all too well; reading fruitless incidence reports – when that was the only available thing – felt better than doing nothing.

The aroma of pizza was thick in the room and Andy strode back to his desk, glaring at the offending yet deliciously looking fast-food. He had a doctor's appointment coming up next week, and even if it was just a regular checkup, and his blood pressure was low from medication, he still did not feel like eating the junk.

Mike Tao was typing away fast at his keyboard with one hand while the other held a slice of pizza, melted cheese hanging precariously from the apex of the slice, threatening to fall off and land on the desk. Mike seemed unconcerned by this fact, engrossed with something on his screen and typing while he muttered under his breath, something with numbers and 'aha's'.

After working with the other man for close to ten years, Andy knew to leave him alone to his computer magic. That was, unless he felt like being drawn into another one of Mike Tao's infamous lectures on mathematical intricacies. The man was a walking encyclopedia. Andy figured the lieutenant was working on the SIM card from the first victim's phone, or maybe setting up internet traps for Stroh. Who knew, the man was probably doing both with his magical computer prowess.

Amy Sykes came striding in from the hallway, a bounce in her stride. Her hair was wet from what Andy assumed was a shower since she carried a gym bag in one hand and had changed from wellingtons into sneakers.

Her eyes gleamed when she spotted saw the four boxes of pizzas on Julio's desks, "Oh please tell me that's pizza for everyone?"

Julio grinned from his desk, "It sure is."

The girl immediately grabbed a piece, folded it in half and started gulping it down. Andy stared hungrily, and slightly annoyed, as Sykes finished one slice only to start on another. Julio chuckled and took another slice himself, turning his eyes back to his computer screen.

"Flynn?" Julio ventured.

"Yeah?" Andy turned away from his desk and sauntered past the pizza boxes again, the scent sneaking into his nostrils. He read over Julio's shoulder, it was a report from two weeks after Stroh's escape, "Something caught your eye?"

"Look here, this report says someone called in about a man with Stroh's characteristics renting a van up north, close to the border. Patrol looked into it but it didn't lead anywhere conclusive. You don't think Stroh is going to move to Canada, do you?"

Andy grunted, "I would be happy if the creep relocated to the Arctic Circle and died of frostbite and hypothermia, but we're not that lucky, I think."

Tao joined in from his own desk, "Philip Stroh is most likely staying within a certain comfort zone; not too far from Los Angeles and California if I had to guess. In ten years the man rarely moved out of the state. I guess he could have procured business outside the state, but according to bank records and the IRS, he rarely did."

Julio nodded, "Canada's a no, then."

Andy grunted, "If the creep has a little sense about him, he would stay well out of California."

Julio agreed with a dark countenance.

"Stroh is smart. If I were him, I would lay low for a while until the general public forgets about me," Amy supplied.

Julio nodded again and then with a shrug, he continued reading the many reports on the computer. Andy turned and leant against Julio's desk, facing the pizzas.

Sykes started on her third piece of pizza and between chewing, she continued, "Maybe he is out of the country?"

Andy rolled his eyes, "You have plenty of time to chew your food, Sykes. We are not on a deadline here. The only way out of the country for Stroh is through Mexico or Canada; the airports are a no go. And as Tao pointed out, he rarely left this state and he might not be able to get across the border without us picking it up."

The girl stuck her tongue out at him, smiling cheekily, "Stroh has lots of contacts. Someone could easily have smuggled him across the border, or maybe he changed his appearance. He could be in France for all we know."

Andy shrugged, "No way to know for sure right now." Sykes consented and kept munching on her pizza.

The day had been long and the little food they had managed to grab while working out at the crime scene all day was not near enough to make up for it being close to 7 pm. Andy's stomach growled in protest when he passed the pizzas again, still not taking a slice.

"I'm going out for a salad," Andy declared to the group, taking his leather jacket from the back of his chair.

Julio snickered, "Are you on cleansing again, sir?"

Andy flipped the idiot off with a smug smile before he made his escape. It was all in good fun.

The smile slipped off his face the moment he was out in the hallway. Beneath the surface of his skin, he boiled with tension. Stroh was out and about; threatening the lives of people Andy held dear. Brenda Leigh Johnson had called him the day after Stroh had escaped to give him a colossal scolding on letting Stroh escape. Andy had kept his mouth shut even if he had had nothing to do with the incidence. The former chief – she would in some ways always be chief to him – had every right to feel angry. Andy was angry on her behalf. Heck, he was angry on Sharon's and Rusty's behalf – and angry on behalf of all the victims and their families that deserved closure. After a two minute raging monologue, the chief had quietened down and Andy had promised her they would get the bastard.

It was the same lie he had given to Sharon only whereas Brenda had huffed irritated, Sharon had smiled so softly and sadly, it had nearly broken his heart. It was not a lie per se, but Andy knew that giving those kind of promises were like shooting yourself in the foot. It was impossible to keep a promise so absurd, it hinged on so many aspects outside his control and yet it was what he always ended up doing. He had done it quite a number of times over the years, mainly with families of victims; broken people who sought some sort of closure. Over the years he had managed to keep most of his promises, and yet some promises were still out there, waiting to be fulfilled.

On top of Stroh being free, and no sleep and little to no food, there was also the absurd spectrum of feelings Andy harbored for Sharon. Somehow, it all seemed to collide in his mind, today of all days. Andy found himself entertaining thoughts with an increasing intensity, thoughts that left him breathless. Frankly, he felt out of his depth. In his entire adult life, he had never had a friend like Sharon. It was so different from what he was used to. It had progressed into something special, something he treasured beyond measure. There was still a slight residual layover from the whole fiasco with his lie to his daughter about them dating. Andy was going to rectify that whole misunderstanding, but still it was back to normal between them and it only kept becoming more and more intense as the year progressed. It was a bit of a puzzle for Andy to navigate their relationship; he didn't want to push her and yet he didn't want to seem too withdrawn. It was a delicate balance. He wavered between trying to deepen their friendship and confessing his, more romantic, feelings.

He was still high from their outing the previous night. The atmosphere had gotten to him. Andy had felt drawn into a different world where lightning out at sea had seemed romantic and Sharon had posed a beautiful figure when she had stood looking out over the ocean. In the end, he decided he did not want to rush it. There was something special about the way they were at the moment. He knew that confessing his goddamn feelings about the woman could lead to greater things, but there was no hurry to do so.

Christ! He was so caught up in his head, it was no wonder the world at times felt like it moved in a different direction than his feet.

Andy waited for the elevator cart, deep in thought.

The elevator doors opened and out stepped an occupied-looking Rusty Beck, two inches from colliding with Andy.

"Hey Rusty," Andy greeted as he sidestepped the boy.

"Oh hey, Lieutenant Flynn. Sorry, didn't see you there."

Andy looked at his watch and then at the boy, "Sharon's down in the morgue – shouldn't you be home? Don't you have a sociology test Monday?"

Rusty made a face, "I brought my sociology homework with me," he raised the shoulder from which his backpack hung. Rusty then held up a brown paper bag, "I thought I would bring Sharon some dinner – from her favorite place. I mean, I'm sure she would like that. She texted me that she haven't had anything to eat since midday."

Andy took a quick look in the bag; it was indeed Sharon's favorite concoction of salad and beans. It did not quite explain what the boy was doing here so late, though Andy had an idea it had more to do with Stroh than bringing Sharon food. Knowing him, the kid would not like to admit that. Rusty wanted a say in his future and to go on with his life without an escaped convict dictating it; Andy understood that. Still, the escape was raw and at night, it was hard not to imagine Philip Stroh hiding around a corner. So maybe the kid did not like being home alone; Andy could understand that.

"I'm sure Sharon will appreciate it," Andy told Rusty with a smile.

Rusty looked sheepish but tried to shrug it off.

"Yeah," Rusty paused and then added, "Julio promised to show me some self-defense moves, you know. Like how to fight off an attacker and make a run for it. I mean, I've already got the 'make a run for it' down to a tee, but yeah, like, I thought it couldn't hurt to know how to get out of a struggle."

Andy nodded and then gave the boy's shoulder an affectionate pat, "There's pizza in the squad room if you're hungry, and Julio has plenty of time tonight if you want to start learning how to defend yourself."

The boy smiled excited.

Andy then added with a grin and half a punch, "Including how to break someone's nose."

Rusty grinned, "Yeah, he said to go for the soft, weak spots."

Andy listed off, "Eyes, nose, throat, kidneys, junk, back of the knees. Pretty easy, huh?"

The smile on the boy's face widened and Andy could practically see tension lift from Rusty's shoulders, "Are you going home, lieutenant Flynn?"

"Nah, grabbing some fresh air and something to eat."

The kid nodded and waved and made his way to the murder room. Andy watched him walk down the corridor until the elevator doors started closing.

…

A/N: Thank you all for the reviews, follows and faves. Much appreciated. =)