Chapter 6 - The Lion Sleeps Tonight - Part I

Lucy

6 Months Probationary….

Present Day…

My eyes snap open at the pain pulling at my wrists. I slowly lift my head—my head hanging, my chin dipped to my chest—trying to fight through each ache and wave of torture I feel as I move. It felt as if I hadn't used my muscles in days, stagnate in the same awkward cramped position.

My head was throbbing, the skin at the base of my skull and neck sore as if I had either taken a big blow to my head or stabbed. Maybe both for all I knew.

I bite my lip, as I managed to lift my head until level, my brows furrowing together as I worked to catch my breath. My arms are bound by zip-ties behind my back to the metal chair. I tried to pull at them with enough pressure to break them, but they didn't budge. The only thing it managed to do was pull tighter and dig into my flesh, my skin so raw that my wrists started to bleed.

The feeling of heaviness in my arms and a slight tingle of numbness as if they had fallen asleep, told me I have been in this position for some time.

I can taste an unfamiliar taste—a residue—on my tongue, but I can't yet pinpoint what it could be. I am certain the pain I am feeling at the back of my neck was some sort of drug, something strong enough to knock me out through an intramuscular injection. The fact that the events leading up to me opening my eyes just now had been hazy the more I try to remember.

instinctively, I try and tug at my binds, but they only tighten and cut further into the flesh of my raw wrists even more. I hiss at the pain, trying to choke back my sob.

"It's been a while, Officer Chen. Oh, how I have looked forward to us meeting again," a voice cuts through the room. A voice that I know is familiar, but I am having a hard time through the fuzziness in trying to remember.

The figure is standing at the top of the stairs as I squint, looking back around at my surroundings for the first time since I woke up. I try and focus on sound first, but I don't hear anything. No cars, trains, people…nothing. My room looks like every typical low budget basement or storm shelter, a combination of cement and wood. No windows to make for an easy escape. Only one door in front of me as a means for exit.

There is only one small cheap fluorescent light towards the top of the stairs that provides a glow of light in the room. As I look down; I swallow slowly seeing the entire floor underneath me has a clear tarp spread out. The same kind of tarp people use to ensure they don't create a mess.

The voice to the person steps out of the shadows and into the light, a smug and sickening smile etched in their expression. It's the first time I am able to get a look and I instantly grow cold. The person that tried to kill Tim and I a few weeks ago by locking us in a shipping container with no air and obscene temperature. He hadn't succeeded then, but the look he was shooting me now, told me he was hoping to rectify that outcome.

I was face-to-face with none other than the serial killer known as, 'The Sleeper.'

Just saying his name hits me with a wave of fear, bringing me right back to that night months ago. I tried to block out that time, just as I know Tim did, but I struggled for weeks after that ordeal was over. For the first week, I feared even going to sleep with the irrational fear that I would never wake up. Tight spaces never used to bother me. They did now.

The sluggishness in my brain was starting to wear off as my adrenaline started to kick in.

Tim.

I instinctively looked around, but I already know he wasn't here from the sweep I had done earlier. That didn't mean he was safe from Carl's clutches. Carl liked to play games, and there was no guarantee he didn't go after Tim before or after he managed to subdue me.

As I looked back up at the person standing before me, the sinking feeling in my stomach isn't giving me hope I might make it out of this game of his, a second time. Regardless, I would fight until the very end. I wasn't going to let him decide my death like a date in his calendar book.

I shake my head trying to remember the last thing I could recall before regaining my consciousness here. How I ended up here in Carl's hands. How the hell he even broke out of prison when he was placed under solitary confinement, a place for only the most dangerous criminals, which he certainly was.

My hands balled into fists, instinctively pulling at binds again, only wincing at the pain against my raw flesh.

"There's no use," Palmer says, descending from the last steps, his boots crunching on the plastic from the tarp as he moved closer, so he is now standing directly in front of me. His eyes travel up my body, a smug smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. Satisfied with himself.

"They'll find you," I say tersely, my voice hoarse and cracked.

Palmer's smile only widened. "Lucy, Lucy…" he leaned in, so his breath was close to my face, his hand coming up, palm flat against my cheek. "I'm counting on it," he whispered.

I turned my head away, thankful his hand slipped from my face.

I pursed my lips, my eyes narrowing. "Why are you doing this?"

Palmer offered up a sickening smile. "How does it feel to be good, but not good enough? To know the only reason, you have any success is because you cheated?"

My brows furrowed in confusion. "What are you talking about? We beat you at your own game."

"You cheated!" He yelled, getting right in my face, his eyes flashing with anger. "You…you and Officer Bradford were supposed to die. You were about to die, but then you were saved. That wasn't part of the rules." His voice was calmer, as if he somehow cornered the beast back in his cage. "You were supposed to die and prove that you're catching me was only a fluke. But once again, you cheated to secure your survival. So, the only way to be certain is if I do it all myself."

His biggest mistake was forever thinking that when it came to me that he thought he had everything under control. Like remaining way too close to my face. I let him get close, just before I thrusted my head forward, clocking him right in the nose. The force caused him to stumble backwards, his hand instantly reaching his nose to stop the blood.

"That's a real gusher," I taunted.

He roared with rage, striking me hard on the cheek. My head snapped to the side, the taste of metallic against the inside of my cheek created a cut on the inside of my cheek causing me to taste blood.

"Don't test me, Officer Chen. I might need you alive for what I have planned, but that doesn't require you to have to be in perfect condition," he warned.

I slowly turned my head so I could look at him, his deranged eyes filled with a murderous rage. We stared each other down for another moment, before his footsteps started to retreat from me, snapping back into his perfectly controlled, meticulously, serial killer persona.

"I have a follow up call I must make. I'll be back," he declared as he turned and started to walk towards the door.

Finally. At least with him gone, I could use the time to search and assess and find a way out of wherever he was keeping me.

Palmer stopped just as he reached the stairs and turned back his strides coming at me in full force. His hand reached into the pocket of his pants, pulling out what I already knew to be a syringe full of liquid. It was no doubt his M.O. on how he incapacitated his victims without calling any attention to himself.

"No!" I cried squirming in my chair. I couldn't go under again. I had to stay awake to find a way to break free.

"So, you stay put." He jammed the needle in the same area as he must've with the last one, my eyes squinting as I hissed the moment the prick of the needle broke through my skin.

Palmer leaned in again, but I was already feeling sluggish and too tired to attempt to strike him again. "Maybe I will take care of Officer Bradford first before I come back for you."

"You—"

My word slurred, as I could feel my eyes beginning to roll in the back of my head before my eyes closed and I passed out.

Tim

12 Hours Earlier….

"A ninety- one," Chen boasted, holding up her exam paper in my face at the end of our shift. "Ever have one of your Boots score that high on one of their exams?"

My expression was not amused. "I bet you think you know everything," I guessed.

She grinned. "This piece of paper says I am pretty close."

I snatched the paper from her hands. "If you think that, Boot, clearly you haven't been paying attention and I haven't been hard enough on you."

Chen looked taken back. "Geez, lighten up. This is a good day for me. I am not going to let your grumpy, 'nothing is ever enough' speech get to me today. I aced this test."

I held the paper up. "This test doesn't always reflect what happens in the real world. Or did those lessons with the drug dealer and the serial killer teach you nothing?"

Her eyes narrowed, mostly because I could see she knew I was right.

"Alright, I get it. I still have a lot to learn from you, Yoda."

"Charming." I shoved the paper back at her. "Rest up, because the second part of your additional six months starts tomorrow."

She gave me a mock salute. "Eye-eye, Captain."

I shook my head. "Make sure Connor doesn't keep you out late. I am serious, tomorrow we start early. Be prepared."

"Ah, well, that won't be a problem." I glanced at her a little confused. "Connor and I broke up about a week ago."

That news did surprise me. I wondered how I didn't pick up on this before, but then, she wasn't exactly showing any of the signs of a breakup.

"I'm sorry," I offered.

She shrugged it off casually. I looked for any sign that she was trying to play it tough, but she generally seemed ok with the decision.

"It's ok. We're better off as friends. We just didn't have the right chemistry or temperament," she admitted. After a beat of silence, she smiled. "Good night, Tim. I'll be well rested and ready for whatever you have to throw at your ninety-one percent Boot. I'm the best and you know it!" She laughed, as she walked away.

I shook my head as I walked to my truck.

Lucy

It had been a long day. A long, long day.

I placed my keys and bag on the counter of my apartment, unholstering my weapon and securing it in my safe just underneath my entertainment center as I made my way to my bedroom and bathroom. I had about fifteen to twenty minutes before the pizza I ordered would arrive.

By the time I flipped the light on in my bathroom, my shirt and pants were already removed and shoved in the hamper as I worked my brush through my hair to make sure I got all the remnants of dirt and grime from the day out. I let the warm water and soap rinse away the roughness from being on patrol.

It seemed as if every call Tim and I took today wanted to add assault on a police officer to their charges.

Once I was dressed in a comfortable tang top and a pair of pajama bottoms-feeling human again-I turned on a classical station, and waited for my pizza to arrive so I could catch up on the latest episode of Top Chef.

The doorbell rang a few minutes later, the pizza delivery guy smiling on the other hand.

"So, glad you're here," I said as I opened the door.

He took in my outfit and smiled. "Me too."

My cheeks flushed, as I turned to grab the cash I had set on the counter, when I turned back, the delivery guy right behind me shoving the box in my face.

I stumbled backwards; swatting the box aside as my fight instincts took over. I had moved out of the way just enough before his fist connected with my head, using my counter to regain my balance and give me some distance.

My eyes immediately went to the counter near the front door where I had dropped my purse and keys. My phone was still in my purse to try and call for help. His eyes followed mine and he grinned.

He maneuvered himself so that he was between me and my personal items. I adjusted my stance so I could be ready for his next move. His next attack.

"What do you want?" I demanded.

He said nothing as he came at me. I was quick to block, bringing my leg up, to kick him back as he slammed into the counter, putting more space between us. I turned to move towards my entertainment center to grab my weapon, but he managed to grab my ankle and trip me to the ground.

I rolled out of the way just in time, before he could jump on me, grabbing my lamp on the table next to me and throwing it at him. He managed to swat it away, the lamp shade and bulb shattering on the hardwood floor.

I was back on my feet as we sized each other again. He wasn't even wearing a mask or anything to hide his identity. He didn't even seem the least bit worried that he would be caught. This didn't feel like some random robbery. I was the specific target.

He lunged for me again, trying to grab my arm, but with both my hands free, I grabbed hold of his shoulder, delivering a blow to his solar plexus. He stepped back, hitting the large chair and knocking it over.

I made a move to my entertainment center to grab my gun, but he recovered too quickly, grabbing me behind the waist. I brought my elbow up, cracking him in the head, but he managed to hold onto me as we fell backwards onto the couch, the force and weight knocking it backwards on the ground. I hit him again with my elbow, until he released me so I could get to my knees and move away.

He wasn't giving up coming after me, as I picked up whatever was on my coffee table and threw it at him. I chucked candles, magazines, and coasters at him, his arms coming up to block as he growled at me.

He apparently didn't think I was going to give him this much of a fight.

I pushed the wet strands of my hair from my face, my attacker already back on me panting equally from the exertion of our fight. I brought my hands up ready for his next attack.

He reached out, but I grabbed hold of his wrist to push him back. His knee hit me square in the stomach. I groaned; but wrapped my ankle around his, bringing it up to slam it into the back of his knee. He called out in pain, his hands falling as I punched him in the face.

I made a beeline for the door to grab my purse and my phone, but he grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked me backwards hard, causing me to land on my coffee table, the wind sucked out of me.

He jumped on me, his hands on either side of my shoulders to keep me pinned down, but I landed another punch, pushing him off until we rolled so that he was now on the ground with me on top punching him the face once and then twice.

Shards of broken glass were digging into my hands and knees.

My attacker managed to block my next punch, shoving me backwards until I landed on my back, jumping on top of me until he struck me right in the chin. My vision went blurry, my head instantly whipping to the side.

His hands were around my neck, cutting off my air circulation. Our eyes locked, his filled with a rage and excitement that had me feeling a sense of dread and fear. He squeezed at my throat making breathing even harder, but not enough to knock me out—just immobilize me as I clawed at his hands, my legs kicking wildly to gain some traction.

He adjusted his grip removing one hand to his pocket, before holding up a syringe right in front of my face. I felt a prickling sensation at my neck followed by a sharp pain.

"No," I exclaimed that at came out more like a whisper.

I started to feel the strength leave me, any attempt I made to strike him easily thwarted away from him. My eyes started to open and flutter close, no matter how much I tried to fight what I knew was coming, I couldn't.

My arms went limp at my side.

"That's it…nice and easy," he soothed.

My eyes opened and closed, and I slipped into darkness.

Tim

"Cheers," Lopez said, clinking her bottle to mine as we sat down at the booth.

"Someone has been awfully happy lately," Harper commented.

"That's because she has been shacking up with the lawyer guy. What's his name…"

"Oh, yeah, Wesley," Harper added picking up where I left off.

"Shut up," Lopez said, throwing her napkin at us.

Harper took a drink. "Why are you hiding it from us? He seems to make you happy."

"He drives me crazy," she said, with a smile on her lips. "He criticizes everything I say and do and seems to have a vengeance against cops."

"The crazy ones are always the good ones," Harper commented.

"Anyway, how has the first week of shadowing detective work going?" Lopez asked.

"Challenging but good. Trying to split duties what my new role will be and Nolan until a new T.O. has been assigned is a lot of work."

"Quit your complaining. You love it," I said, taking another sip of my beer.

Harper elbowed me in the side. "I didn't say I didn't like it." She grabbed her bottle of beer. "How is your Sergeant studying coming along?"

"Just fine," I answered taking the final swig of my beer.

"But that's not why he seems extra crabby," Lopez said, leaning forward with a gleam in her eye.

Harper rested her elbows on the table as she looked at me.

"What?" I snapped.

"What is going on with you and your Boot?" Lopez asked.

My forehead scrunched upwards. "What do you mean what is happening with me and my Boot? Nothing."

"You sure about that?" Harper asked.

"Yes," I answered irritability. "First I am too rough on my Boots and now I show a little kindness and you all think there is more to it."

Harper laughed as she traced the neck of her empty beer bottle. "It looks a little more than just T.O. safety concerns for their Boot."

"There is nothing going on between Officer Chen and I. End of story," I repeated.

"I heard she broke up with Connor. Seems like they didn't really have the right…chemistry," Lopez goaded.

I growled. "I am going to go and get another beer. Anyone else want one?"

Harper and Lopez both smiled knowingly at me. They just got me to get them another round. They would pay for that.

I scooted out of the booth and made my way over to the bar, signaling I needed a couple of more to our friend. I caught the glances of two single females as they looked over at me, smiling and looking at me up and down. I nodded; but didn't engage as I waited for the beers.

My phone buzzed in my back pocket. The caller ID came up as 'unknown' which I almost didn't answer, but figured taking this call would be better than going back to the table for Lopez and Harper to continue to get under my skin about Lucy.

"Bradford," I said into the receiver as I picked up.

"Oh, how I missed hearing your smug voice, Officer Bradford," the voice on the other end said.

The bartender came back and dropped down three beers taking my card right along with it. I turned back to my booth, Harper and Lopez still laughing and talking, until Lopez looked over and must've seen the look on my face.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. "Palmer. How did you get this number?"

"Hmmm…." I could hear the tantalizing smile in his voice. "It would be more fun if you could trace where I am at."

Lopez and Harper got up from the table and started to make their way towards me.

"Where are you?" I demanded. I put my hand over the receiver. "Call the station. It's Palmer. Find out if he is missing from jail."

"Bradford, tell me you haven't hung up on me already," said Palmer.

I moved my hand away from the receiver. "I'm still here," I confirmed.

I started to move away from the loud bar towards outside, both Harper and Lopez on my heels. Once I was in the parking lot, I put my phone on speaker so they could hear the conversation.

"You know, I have thought of nothing else than what it was that you and Officer Chen talked about while you were stuck in the container together. Seemed really deep and riveting," he said.

Lopez's eyes went wide shaking her head. I put the phone on mute.

"Grey just confirmed with the prison. Palmer escaped," she said disbelievingly.

I took the phone off speaker. "I'm not playing games with you, Palmer. You want me, I'm right here. I'll be waiting."

He laughed. "Now, where is the fun in that."

I muted the phone again. "Harper, call Lucy," I instructed.

Harper tried Lucy's phone number, but it went to voicemail. She tried again, but we got the same response.

"Don't worry Tim, you and I will be seeing each other real soon. If I were you, I would keep your phone close by," Palmer suggested.

"Wait—"

"And since you don't seem to be in a position to trace, while you indulge in your beer, Lucy was kind enough to provide me your number. Bye for now, Tim."

"Palmer. Palmer!"

The phone line went dead.

Lopez was back on the phone calling in all available backup and necessary staff to Lucy's apartment.

We jumped in my truck as I slammed on the gas towards Lucy's apartment. We were only about ten minutes away, each minute it took feeling more agonizing by the minute.

My gun was drawn as we approached Lucy's floor, me leading with Harper behind, and Lopez on the rear. As I approached her apartment, the door was ajar.

"Shows signs of entry," I announced as we moved.

I kicked open the door, my shoes immediately crunching on broken glass.

"Oh, my, God," Harper commented.

I blocked out the mess and thrown furniture, my single focus on whether we would find Lucy here alive or dead. Palmer's call told me she would not be here, but alive somewhere. A quick death would not be satisfying for him. He wanted to punish us, and he wanted us to play another game.

The three of us fanned out as we searched the apartment. "Chen!" I called out as I stepped into her bedroom and then the bathroom.

The shower floor was still wet, Chen's clothes from when she had left the station still sitting on her bed. I had already seen her purse and keys on the counter when we had come in. She had come home after she had left the station. There was no way she would have left again without her purse and keys. Her car had still been in the parking lot.

"Tim!"

I raced back out Lucy's bedroom and back into the main area where Lopez and Harper were standing, already holstering their guns. I stopped next to them and followed their gazes to see a small pool of blood on the floor.

"He took her," I said, the anger starting to bubble up inside of me.

"He would have no reason to kill her just yet. His phone call made it seem as if there will be more," Lopez pointed out.

My nostrils flared. "There will be," I confirmed. "We have to get back to the station and come up with a plan."

"Sitting here and waiting is doing nothing. Officer Chen is out there, and the longer we sit here and do nothing, the more time she is in the hands of that wacko," I argued with command at the decision to wait until we hear back from Palmer.

I was never really good at just sitting and waiting, even in my time in the military.

"We wait for now," Lieutenant Pine said.

"No. We can't sit here and do nothing," I protested.

"Officer Bradford, can I see you outside," Grey said more as a statement than an actual question.

I felt everyone's eyes on me in the room Lopez looking at me with sympathy as I turned, shoving the door more forcefully than I needed too.

Grey stopped in front of me with his arms across his chest. "Listen, I get it. Officer Chen is your rookie, and you feel responsible for her."

"I am responsible for her." It wasn't right for me to take out my anger on everyone else that I felt for the serial killer, especially on my own Watch Commander, but I was feeling helpless, and I hated feeling helpless.

"Tim, this is not your fault. It's not your fault that he broke out of prison, or that he has some weird, twisted fixation with you and Officer Chen," he reasoned.

I swiped my hand down my face. "I should have never let her go in there the first time. I should have just gone in there myself and dealt with him, and then she would have never been in danger."

"There is no amount of shoulda, woulda, coulda that is going to make this better," Grey said. "Two, you are one of the best T.O.s I have ever seen, not to mention cops I have ever had on my force. But you are no good to this operation or to Officer Chen if you can't get into the right head space. Can you do that?"

I nodded. "Yes, sir."

As we started to move back towards the briefing room, we stopped short at a squad of agents that entered into the department.

"Feds," I groaned.

"It would appear so," Grey agreed.

"Are you the Watch Commander?" A female with blonde hair asked as she stepped forward from the rest.

"That would be me. Sergeant Grey and Officer Bradford," Grey replied.

"Bradford?" The female asked looking towards me.

I nodded.

"I am Special Agent, Laura Stensen of the FBI. I am going to be overseeing this case," she announced.

"Is that right?" Grey asked.

Some of her eagerness dropped, but she nodded her head in confirmation. "I am not looking to take control away from you, Sergeant Grey. I have been on 'The Sleeper' case for some time. My only goal is to help assist in bringing him to justice and bringing one of our own safely home," she said.

"Alright. Well, come inside and meet the rest of the team," said Grey.

Laura singled for her team to go ahead, while she stayed back with Grey and me.

"I would like to speak with you, Officer Bradford as soon as we can," she said.

"Of course," I replied.

As we got back into the briefing room, Grey introduced Laura and her FBI team, who debriefed the rest of us on all of the information they had collected on The Sleeper over the last five years and his eleven murders.

Not surprising that he had a background of a dysfunctional home. Mother hooked on drugs until she overdosed, and his father a run of the mill criminal wanted for robberies, drugs, and prostitution to name a few.

Carl Palmer drifted from foster home to foster home, never getting adopted and following right along in his parent's footsteps. At the age of seventeen, he was charged for sexual assault, but the victim went missing and without her testimony the charges never stuck. The victim still hasn't been found to this day, but everyone suspects Carl killed her and hid the body that no one would find her. His first kill.

"Carl is the epitome of a mastermind and extremely dangerous," Laura continued.

"Yeah, tell us something we don't know," Harper said sardonically.

"May I remind everyone in this room that we are working together as a team," Grey interjected, leveling us all with a look for that it was to be the last of our comments.

Laura licked her lips. "Look, I have been creating profiles for criminals for a long time, and Palmer is as dangerous and brilliant as they come. He's patient, methodical, and he has a plan. The only way we are going to defeat him is if we work together and combine the facts, we have from our investigation to the incidents that occurred with Officer Chen and Bradford. Hopefully, we can find a way to bring her safely home."

As soon as Laura was done detailing her next steps of information she wanted from our department, I stepped out of the room. My phone felt like a heavy weight in my back pocket just sitting there and waiting for the phone call that I didn't know if or when it was going to come.

I heard the door behind me open and then shut, the soft click of heels on the tile floor. Laura came to stand next to me as I stared out the floor to ceiling windows of our department into the city.

"I'm sorry about your rookie," Laura said.

I shoved my hands in my pockets. "I don't need a sorry. I need answers."

She pressed her lips together and nodded. "I get it." I looked over at her, but her eyes were focused outside, a determination set in her features. "Normally, I just profile criminals and send the information along to the team to let them capture them. This one…this one…I want to see it personally done by me."

I could tell they weren't just words of promise. This was something more for her. This felt like something I had seen way too many times during my time in the military when you lost someone you cared about, and your goal in life became wanting to capture justice for those that were wronged.

"Who did he take from you?" I asked.

Her bottom lip quivered a little, before she pressed them together tightly. "If you ask the FBI, she is victim number seven," she answered. She looked over at me. "Her name was Abigail Stensen. She was my baby sister."

"I'm sorry," I said.

Laura turned to me. "Look, Officer Bradford—"

"Tim. Tim is fine," I corrected.

She nodded. "Tim. I read your file. I know you prefer to in most cases be the lone wolf and do things your way without having to get the entire army's approval, but I want you to know that I care about bringing Officer Chen home. I want to be there to bring her home. The way that I wasn't there for Abby."

I nodded. "You've been profiling him for the last five years?"

"Yes."

I turned to face her directly. "Then be honest with me. He's planning on killing Lucy, isn't he?"

Her eyes looked down. "Yes," she answered honestly. "And then you."

"I want you to make me a promise, Agent Stensen. We get Lucy out. We get her out first. Even if that means I don't," I said.

Her eyes looked up to meet mine. "I am not ok unless you both get out, Tim." I paused, before she exhaled. "You need to know something. It may seem that his fixation is on Officer Chen, but this is really about you."

My brows shot up. "Me? Why?"

"Because you are everything that he could not be. Good to his bad. Ethical where he has none. Fierce and loyal where he has to sulk in the shadows. He is going to want to destroy you and in order to do that, he is going to use Officer Chen to do it." She looked down again realizing how blunt her words had been. "Sorry."

"Don't. Because I am not going to let him," I said.

She smiled. "My profiling said you would say that."

The buzzing in the back of my pocket stopped the conversation. I grabbed the phone, another unknown number flashing on the screen. Laura and I raced back to the briefing room, just as I swiped the call.

"Hello, Tim," Palmer said. "Back at your station, I see. That's good. I know that is where you feel most comfortable. Most in control."

The FBI was working behind the scenes to produce a trace, Laura giving me the signal to keep him talking, but I already knew whatever they were doing wasn't going to work. Not after what Laura just told me about his preparation in every one of his kills.

"Where's Officer Chen?" I asked.

"Oh, she's right here. We're just getting to know each other, her and I," he answered.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"Isn't that the million-dollar question. You know, Tim, do you know how many times I have longed to hear you ask that question when I saw in my little, tiny cell in solitary confinement?"

"Tell me where you are, I would be happy to ask it again in person," I remarked.

Palmer laughed. "Is Special Agent, Laura Stensen having any luck in tracing this call?"

Laura swallowed at hearing her name come from the psychopath's mouth.

"Yes, I know she is there too. You know, sometimes when I look at her, I just see Abigail. Such a sweet and lovely girl," he taunted.

Her hands balled into fists at her side, but I had to give her credit that she was holding it together, not letting his words sway her from the job.

"Yeah, I am not here to go down memory lane. You called me, so what do you want?" I snapped.

"What else…but for you to play my game. You know how I so love games," he replied.

"No. Not until I know that Officer Chen is alive," I countered.

"Oh, Tim, I wouldn't expect anything less," he said. "Just a minute." There was a pause on the phone, and I could hear shuffling, before he came back on. "There, that should do. Direct your attention to your internal broadcast system."

The faces around the room morphed into confusion and shock. There was supposed to be no opportunity that anyone from the outside could hack our internal feeds.

Grey grabbed the remote off the podium and flipped the television in the room on. There was Lucy strapped to a chair, her hands bound behind her back, her feet strapped to the chair. She had a cut on her cheek and a nasty cut with dried blood on her head. Strands of her hair fell around her face, but she was alive.

"Say hello, Officer Chen," Palmer said, though he currently couldn't be seen on screen.

Lucy's head was dipped to her chest, rolling to the side as if it was taking considerable effort to raise her head.

He was drugging her.

"Ti—Tim," she was breathing heavy, but as she lifted her head, I could see life returning to her eyes. "Remote, no sounds, basement or bunker—"

The slap to her cheek was loud and deafening around the room. Lucy's head snapped to her shoulder, as she bit back the groan, her mouth opening and closing as she tested her jaw.

"Behave, Officer Chen, or you will force me to take drastic measures," he warned.

Lucy spit what looked like blood to the floor beside her. "Go to hell, Palmer."

"She is a spirted one, isn't she, Officer Bradford?"

I had to get his focus back on me. "What's the game? What are the rules?" I asked.

"I'm not sure I could trust you anymore, Officer Bradford. I told you last time to come alone and not to break my rules, and then you had your LAPD friends come and save you."

"Yeah, and I bet that just ruined your day that we lived," I said sardonically.

"On the contrary. It's given me the opportunity to now have a bit of fun with you two. Really see if it is a fluke or if you really can beat me."

"I'm the one you're really after. The one you want to test. I give myself up, and you let Officer Chen go," I proposed.

"No, no, Officer Bradford. I am more interested in this partnership that you and Officer Chen have that seems to work so well."

"Don't…don't come," Chen panted.

"Aww…isn't that sweet. You two are just always trying to protect each other," Palmer taunted.

"Tell me where. I will be there. Just you and me," I said.

"We'll see about that." Palmer didn't seem to sound convinced, but he spoke up before I needed to reassure him. "Do you remember the barge?"

"Yes."

"Go there. Alone. And if you manage to follow those instructions correctly, we can move to the next step. However, fail to follow those instructions and come alone, and Chen will pay the price," he warned.

The line clicked and the screen shut off.

"Palmer!"

"What's the plan here?" Grey asked.

"There is no plan. You heard him. I am going alone. Lucy has already suffered at his hands; I am not going to give him any ammunition to harm her further."

"Tim's right," Laura said. "This is the first of his tests. If he doesn't believe that Tim is trustworthy or will play his game fairly, he will follow through on his threat to Lucy."

"What does that mean?" Lopez asked. "Are you saying he will kill Lucy?"

Laura met her gaze head on. "Yes."

"Tim?" Grey asked.

"It's not even a question," I replied.

"You heard him," Grey said. "Let's get moving."

On the drive over, it was Grey, Laura, and Lopez in my SUV. They would drop me off a few blocks from the barge where I would take my own car the rest of the way.

"Here," Laura said, handing me what looked like a small tracking device the size of a tic tac.

I pushed her hand away. "No. You heard what he said."

"It's state of the art. We have used these on the last five high profile hostage situations. They are virtually untraceable and undetectable. He won't know you have it," she said.

I looked at her hand but made no move to take the device.

"Tim, trust me," she begged. "I promise you; I wouldn't even give it to you if I thought there was an ounce of him finding it or you getting caught."

I looked up at Lopez, her eyes telling me what she always did. It was my call. My instincts. I knew best.

I looked back at Laura and took the device from her hand. I placed it right underneath the back of the collar of my shirt.

"It will transmit starting in one hour. You should be at your next destination by then," Laura said.

We pulled up to the car waiting for me.

"Be safe," said Grey.

"Good luck," Laura offered.

"Tim?" I looked at Lopez. "You and Lucy better come back." Her words were more of a warning than well wishes.

I got out of the SUV and into the car that was waiting for me as I drove back to the barge. I traced the familiar steps from last time, stopping in the same spot where Lucy and I had been trapped.

A black SUV with dark windows pulled up. A man lowered the window and pointed a gun at me with one hand and a piece of black cloth and zip ties in the other. He got out of the car. I remembered his every feature. This had to be the help that Palmer had on the outside.

"Turn around and put your hands behind your back," he ordered.

I did as he instructed, as he placed the zip ties over my wrists and pulled them tight against my skin. He walked around to face me and held up a black cloth.

"Bend over."

I clenched my jaw but did as he asked, so he could place the black cloth over my head. He grabbed my arm and walked me to the back of the car and shoved me inside.

"The package is secured."

Lucy

"Thank you," Palmer said into the phone, before it disconnected. "Good news, Officer Bradford passed the first test, and will be here shortly."

I said nothing. I learned from the last time that keeping quiet was best. I couldn't let Tim show up here and hand himself over to Palmer. Nothing we did was going to earn our freedom. I already came to terms with the fact that I was going to die, there was no way I was going to let Tim die right along with me. Not when he finally just got his life back after everything with Isabel.

I clamped my mouth shut, gritting through the pain as I continued to twist and turn my wrists back and forth on the zip ties. My wrists were raw, and bleeding and every twist and turn was more agonizing than the last.

I pulled as I twisted and turned, until finally the pressure gave away and the zip tie snapped. I sat there for a moment, making sure Palmer didn't hear as I started on my ankles, grunting as I twisted and pushed away from the chair.

When the last was finally free, I rose from the chair and bolted. Palmer turned around, his expression a mixture of surprise and annoyance. Since I had the element of surprise on my side, I was able to kick him in the stomach and threw the nearest heavy object which happened to be a wrench and threw it at him.

My steps were still slow from that whatever drug he kept injecting me with, but I pushed my legs to run as fast as I cloud, climbing one step at a time.

My hand reached the door, when I felt his hand grab my hair, pulling my head back before he slammed my head into the door.

I fell into darkness.