Part 3
"Hey," Traci said following Gail out of the main room. "I'm really sorry. She just turned up five minutes ago. I didn't have time to call you."
Gail ignored her friend as she wandered around Steve's house, heading for his office.
Traci watched her friend open a few drawers.
"Ah ha!" Gail grinned having found her brother's stash in his desk drawer, lifting the bottle of whisky up to show Traci before she opened it and took a deep swallow.
Traci stepped closer to her friend, eyeing the door wondering if Holly or Elaine Peck were suddenly going to appear. "Is that really a good idea?" She asked as Gail took another drink.
Gail winced at the burn in her throat. It wasn't a great idea and she knew Holly wouldn't be pleased that this was Gail's answer to getting through dinner with her mother, but for Gail it was either some Dutch courage or she was heading out the front door and not coming back.
But she couldn't run out without Holly and her brother had dragged her into the kitchen so it was either this, or talking to her mom.
Easy decision.
"Yes, Traci." Gail replied finally, taking one last drink before placing the open bottle on her brother's desk and heading back into Hell. "Best fucking idea I've had tonight."
Traci sighed and followed her friend out. She'd told Steve they should have called Gail but he'd been convinced Gail was just dragging her heels with introducing Holly to their parents. Traci hadn't been able to refute that and then it was too late.
xxxxxx
Avoiding her mother Gail headed straight into the kitchen looking for her girlfriend.
Spotting Holly laughing at something her brother had said made her angry, but she tried to let it go as Holly saw her and her face lit up in greeting.
"Hey!" Holly said as a frowning Gail joined her and Steve as she helped him plate up.
Gail blanked Steve as she walked over to Holly.
"Hey, where did you-" Steve began to ask but Gail flipped him the bird as she got toe to toe with Holly and butted her head on to the older woman's shoulder with a distressed whine.
Gail huffed into Holly's neck and wrapped her arms around the other woman's waist. She sighed feeling Holly begin to rub her back, it calmed her but she didn't know if it was enough to face her mother over the dinner table. Maybe she should have kept hold of the whisky.
Steve frowned at his sister. "She called to ask if you would be there tomorrow, and when I said I'd try talking to you again tonight at dinner she said that was fine. Then she just turned up, what was I supposed to do, send her away?" He asked feeling defensive.
Gail turned her head to glare at him. She wanted to snap at him, tell him he shouldn't having been talking to their mother about her behind her back, that he shouldn't have told her about dinner. But if she started she wasn't sure she'd be able to stop and she couldn't drag Traci and Holly into the mess that was her relationship with Elaine Peck.
"I don't know Steve, maybe you could have kept your mouth shut for once?" Gail finally replied only to watch Steve shake his head at her. It made her stomach bottom out to see, he never took her arguments with their mother seriously.
She watched him pick up two bowls of food and head for the dining room where they were due to have dinner.
It hurt how easily he dismissed her feelings.
Holly studied Gail closely as she turned back around. Gail's eyes were clouded with emotion, sad and vulnerable, as they searched her own for answers. Holly's heart hurt for her girlfriend so she ignored the fact Gail had obviously found alcohol somewhere and pressed her lips to the blondes and she ran her hand through Gail's loose hair before cupping her cheeks and pulling back from the kiss.
"Do you want to leave?" Holly asked, more concerned with what this dinner was doing to Gail than how Gail's mother would think of her for just abandoning the whole thing.
Gail shrugged, her eyes dropping to her hands as she played with the bottom of Holly's top.
"Just…just promise that after this, no matter what happens, we go get drunk somewhere and just forget this night ever happened?" Gail asked quietly.
"We can do that, sure." Holly replied with a nod then she grinned. "But from the smell of your breath you're already ahead of me by a few."
Gail smiled widely. "You are driving tonight Hol."
"Oh, is that your excuse?" Holly asked with a chuckle. If a drink or two got Gail through this then she was okay with that, but she had not intension of drinking herself, Holly wanted to be sober enough to remember everything that happens tonight.
"Hey," Traci says interrupting them as she enters to pick up some more of the food that was laid out. "You guys coming in?"
Gail pouted at Holly but released the older woman from her hold and wandered over to her brother's fridge. She tuned out the conversation between Holly and Traci and reached for a beer, it was the least her brother owed her.
"Come on, can't hide away in here all night." Holly says reaching for Gail's hand to lead her into the dining room as they followed Traci.
"Says who?" Gail muttered as she was hauled along.
xxxxxx
"So, Molly-"
"It's Holly." Gail muttered but knew her mother played this game every time and wouldn't give it up.
"As I was saying," Elaine continued after giving her daughter an annoyed look for interrupting. "What is it you actually do for a living?"
Holly swallowed her food and flicked her eyes to Gail and Steve before looking back at the woman talking to her. She'd assumed Elaine Peck knew this much already. "I'm one of the senior forensic pathologists for the city." She explained.
"Senior?" Elaine asked sounding impressed. "And how old are you?" She asked off Holly's nod.
"Thirty." Holly replied.
"That's remarkable, you must be very good at your job to have advanced so quickly." Elaine said giving Holly a smile. "My son was the same, made Detective on his first try." She continued, aiming a proud look at Steve as she spoke.
Gail tried not to wince as she figured where her mother was trying to take the conversation.
"And you Traci, how long have you been a Detective?" Elaine asked.
Traci cleared her throat awkwardly, not feeling comfortable with the conversation but Elaine hadn't been overtly rude at all. "Almost two years." She replied quickly before trying to go back to her dinner.
"Oh, that's right!" Elaine said in a surprised tone, she then looked from Traci to her daughter who she gave a scathing look to. "You joined 15 at the same time as Gail, didn't you?"
Not wanting to reply, Traci just nodded and gave a quiet, "Yeah."
Elaine let the silence continue for a moment before humming. "Well good for you dear, I applaud good hard work and dedication, and you have a young son at home too don't you?"
"Yes." Traci replied before lifting a fork full of food into her mouth to prevent her continued contribution to the conversation.
"How wonderful." Elaine continued unfazed. "I only wish my own daughter would take your lead and apply herself more."
Gail finished off the beer she had and shot up wandering back into the kitchen for another.
"She's doing fine mom." Steve pitched in when Traci levelled him with a glare.
Elaine made a show of shaking her head in disagreement with Steve. "She's already been passed over for Detective, and with her record…"
Gail returned and slumped back into her seat. She took a drink before allowing herself to respond to her mother's subtle digs at her. "What about my record mom?"
Elaine sighed and sipped at her wine. "It's just, your father and I can only do so much."
Gail's eyes hardened at that. She'd never wanted her parents to give her a helping hand in her career, so it pissed her off that her mother was implying that she did.
"I've never asked-"
"You were suspended!" Elaine cut in. "Do you know what would have happened to you had you not been reinstated?"
Gail clenched her teeth together. That whole incident had been brought about by a series of mistakes but rather than let one of her colleagues lose their badge, which is what the investigator was planning to do, she'd walked in and taken full responsibility for it. She'd been suspended pending a full investigation but while that had been going she been asked to work on the missing call girl case, which had resulted in her kidnapping and…
Gail reached for her beer and drank down as much as she could.
"You were lucky to just be demoted." Elaine continued.
Licking her lips Gail had to wonder if that was all her mother remembered from that time, if it was the only thing she was concerned about. She snorted to herself and finished off her beer no longer interested in the plate of food in front of her.
It wasn't like anyone in her family had even visited her afterwards, not in the hospital, and not in the weeks after her release when she barely slept due to the nightmares and panic attacks she had suffered through.
Traci watched Gail's eyes glaze over and wished she could reach over and give her friend a hug. The shooting in the holding cell was the result of more than one officer making a mistake and they all should have been reprimanded but Gail had stepped forward and took the sole blame for it, and no one had thanked her for it either.
And then the Ross Perik case had happened, starting with Gail's kidnapping and ending in Jerry's death.
Traci couldn't form the supportive words for her friend as a lump formed in her throat at the memories of her loss and Gail's guilt at having survived.
Gail shook her head to dispel her thoughts. She wouldn't let her mother do that, take her back there. She knew the mistakes she'd made, and the cost of them on people she cared about, but she was a good cop.
She was.
"Maybe you've just spent too long behind a desk and don't remember what real police work is about." Gail hit back at her mother.
Elaine narrowed her eyes at her daughter. "I did my time in uniform and I was one of the best around." She insisted.
Gail nodded, she remembered, how could she forget really, her mother had made her polish her medals and trophies as she stood over her shoulder retelling each and every arrests often enough.
"Then you should have no problem if I spend my whole career as a beat cop."
Holly watched Elaine's eyes widen at the prospect.
Gail wanted to feel good at her small victory when her mother fell silent and spent timing eating instead of talking but she knew the older woman was just regrouping and looking for another angle to get her views across.
Gail had yet to win the war with her mother, so she knew whatever success she might get tonight, she'll have losses to suffer through as well.
"And what about you Molly, would you be happy if this was all Gail amounted to? Assuming of course you are still…together." Elaine asked as she stared down the pathologist.
"As long as Gail's happy then what does it matter?" Holly replied quickly, her hand moving across to rest on Gail's thigh.
Elaine tilted her head, looking at Holly as if confused by her answer. "But you're obviously a well-educated girl, I'm sure you could have your pick of professional women, why would you settle for someone with no aspirations for herself?"
Traci sucked in a breath as Elaine put her own daughter down again.
Holly blinked then looked at Gail in concern.
Gail shrugged, flicked a finger in Elaine's direction as the table fell silent awaiting her reaction. "My mom." She told Holly giving her girlfriend a dopey grin as the alcohol in her system started to affect her ability to care. Instead she lifted her beer again only to pout as she found it empty.
"Okay then," Holly said getting up from the table. "We'll be leaving." She informed Traci and Steve as she helped a grinning Gail to her feet and tried to escort her out of the room.
"Cool!" Gail wanted to cheer but her head spun as she stood and she had to settle for gripping Holly instead which was just as good.
They were leaving, Holly wanted them to leave.
She couldn't stop grinning at that. She gave what she thought was a wave in her mother's direction. "Been fun as always, we must do this again!" She called back as she was guided out of the room.
Traci scrambled up to help Holly as she realised that Gail was pretty tipsy.
She met the pair out in the hall as Holly struggled to open the front door and keep Gail from helping her into her jacket.
"Let me get that." Traci insisted opening the door and following the pair out into the front yard.
She crossed her arms over her chest as she watched Holly help Gail into the passenger seat of her car. She didn't know what to say to the two of them but as Holly rounded the car to get into the driver's side she leaned down beside Gail.
The blonde was a little pale and would probably have a nice hangover by morning.
"So it's not just the public speaking then?" She asked her friend as Gail blinked at her with sad eyes.
Gail huffed out a breath in a sigh, her head was cloudy but that was okay because Holly was there and Holly would look after her.
"Sorry about Jerry." She muttered at her friend before closing her eyes so she didn't cry.
Traci shared a very concerned look with Holly and mouthed 'call me' to the other woman, worried about what would happen when the pair left. She waited until Holly nodded at her before turning her attention back to the blonde.
"We've been over this Gail, it wasn't your fault. Sleep it off and we can talk later if you want." She said, reaching in to rest her hand on Gail's shoulder but the other woman kept her eyes closed.
She withdrew her hand and stood as Holly turned the car engine over. She waved as they drove off and stayed there long after the car had disappeared from view.
Steve shuffled up to Traci and bounced on his toes. Dinner hadn't gone nearly as well as he'd been hoping. "That could have gone better." He said quietly.
Traci glared at her boyfriend.
She shook her head and then went to her own car as Steve moved after her. As she got in and fastened her seatbelt she wound the window down and Steve rested his hand on the frame.
"Don't call me until you've talked to Gail and fixed this, because Steve, Gail happens to be my friend and I won't be another part of whatever this was tonight." She told him, overcome with the urge to go home and hug her son.
"I didn't do anything!" Steve protested only to receive a scolding look from Traci.
"Exactly." Traci replied. "You just sat there and let your mother say all of that tonight and not once did you even try and stick up for Gail."
Steve frowned. "Hey, my sister's tough, she can hold her own."
Traci shook her head and started her car. "Just talk to her."
"Fine."
Steve watched her drive away and then went back inside. His mother was still sat at the table eating her dinner. She looked up as he sat down.
"So," Elaine began, the beginnings of a smile on her face. "Tell me everything you know about this 'Holly' person."
Steve swallowed, wondering exactly what he'd gotten himself into.