A/N: Jade has some misplaced anger (which is unlike her, I know) but the way she handled Adam Marcus in the morgue shows she does have a heart and is commendable at her job. From her interactions with Dr. Reynolds and Andre, we can infer that she is well-liked for the most part.

A reoccurring theme for me regarding Jade is that she is distrustful of people who come off as friendly or virtuous. Oftentimes those people are putting on an act and show their true colors when you let your guard down. That's why we spent so much time with these two separated in the beginning third of the story. I wanted to show how Jade or Tori are behaving isn't out of pocket. They both made mistakes, they both had been hurt.

But enough of that, buckle up for an exciting chapter...


Traylor jumped when Hal burst through the bedroom door.

"SHIT!" she blurted out.

"HE KNOWS!"

Bircham was already an unwelcome presence in her life. But when he got more animated like this, Traylor was especially frightened.

(My God, his eyes!)

The large man looked absolutely frenzied as went from one side of the room to other like a rubber ball, paying his prisoner no mind. She couldn't discern what he was muttering. It was never gibberish, but it went in and out, she only caught bits and pieces. But she got shivers when she caught wind of a name that cropped up from his lips: Doug.

One thing she knew was days like this...

...when "Doug" came up...

were really BAD days!

"I'M SO SORRY, TRAYLOR!" he hyperventilated. "I TRIED TO HIDE YOU! I DID!"

It was then that his left hand opened up and she saw them. The silver handcuffs dangled like wind chimes by his side.

"Oh, no!" she whimpered. "What are you gonna do?"

"He knows I have you..." he admitted. "He has eyes everywhere! Everywhere..."

Traylor tried to talk him up, prolong whatever he was planning.

"Hal, listen, you're not making any sense!"

Her voice was positively trembling. It took her whole body to remain as calm as she appeared. She didn't know much about psychology or psychotherapy. Maybe these were panic attacks but because he was unhinged and unhealthy, this is how he looks when he shuts down?

She had witnessed people have panic attacks before and it often took a steady presence for someone feeling unsteady to grab onto.

One thing was for sure, Traylor could not allow him to take her "somewhere else."

She had listened to some true crime podcasts back in high school. One of the major things the hosts warned to anyone who is ambushed by someone is to cooperate until they get what they want like a mugger. But in the case of sexual assault or kidnapping, kick, scream, fight, claw, do whatever it takes to get away. But above all else, never let your attacker take you somewhere else!

He could grab or threaten you in a public area like a parking lot, but even with not many people around you still had a chance. It's when he gets the opportunity to spirit you away elsewhere - a place where he has the upper hand like a van or a house - that's when most people don't come back.

Hal had taken Traylor "somewhere else" for days, but they were limited to the various rooms in the house. This time felt very different. She just had a sinking sensation in her guts! If Bircham takes her away this time, it's going to be it for her!

Traylor had never met or heard from this Doug person before. Was he someone he knew? He always claimed that Doug called him off and on through the phone, but she barely witnessed such conversations. Then she pondered about his fragile state.

Was Doug even real? What if he was just a psychotic alter ego? Hal took her away, babbling about how dangerous it was out there and how he didn't want her to end up "like the others." He had to be talking about Lin and Bethany. Is that what happened? Did "Doug" take over and murder those women in cold blood and left Hal to pick up the pieces.

It seemed too fantastic, like something out of a paperback thriller or a move of the week!

But Traylor could not shake this thought. There were only the two of them in this room...in this house...so why did it feel like three?

SHINK-SHINK

In a flash, Hal cuffed her wrist and threw her arm behind her to secure the other.

"NO-NO-HAL-PLEASE!"

Her cries fell on deaf ears as he did his routine of relocating Traylor.

"HAL?"

The mountain of a man picked her up and hung her over her shoulder, giving her an upside-down view of his back.

"HAL! HAL! LET ME GO!"

He just remained silent.

Before descending the stairs, he grabbed a rag from the linen closet and stuffed it into her mouth. Her jaw had hurt so much from screaming that she couldn't spit it out. All she could do was listen to the heavy steps as they got to the ground floor.

She continued to call out to him, as loud as she could, but still no response.

(Jesus Christ! Is Hal not here right now? Is this Doug?)

Traylor's screams, while unintelligible, grew as loud as her lungs could manage.

"STOP SCREAMING!" he finally said.

She didn't heed his request and continued on. He grumbled and marched to the kitchen and threw open the pantry to snatch a yellow plastic bag from the grocery store. Hal laid her on the table and proceeded to cover her head with the bag. He held her down as she withed in fear while reaching for the duct tape and used it to affix the bag around her neck.

"You'd better stop screaming!" he warned. "Or you'll suffocate before we get to the car!"

(THE CAR!? Where THE HELL is he taking me?)

(He's going to take me in the woods and KILL ME, just like those two girls!)

Traylor suddenly stopped fighting and did her best to be dead weight to hopefully tire him out. Even a big guy like this can get winded after a ton of physical activity, especially with his blood pressure no doubt being through the roof.

A very faint whistling sound was audible from inside her plastic helmet.

There was a hole!

He must've not noticed it. If Traylor just breathed very shallow breaths, she might buy herself a little time. She could stay docile for now, let him lower his guard, and make a Hail Mary once he stops somewhere. It was her only option!

She squeezed the tears from her eyes, praying to whatever deity would listen.


"So... did you have to rough up any gangbangers?"

Tori looked at Sinjin in disbelief.

"Gangbangers?" she parroted. "I think you've been watching too many movies."

He shrugged as he rounded the corner toward the city limits.

Beck and Andre were over at the hospital doing a proper interview with Dr. Reynolds as he had some time to recover enough to speak on the matter. Tori thought better than to tag along for this one as she was worried about running into the icy Jade. She put it together that the pathologist meant a great deal to the blonde medical examiner.

Instead, Tori decided to ride with Officer Sinjin Van Cleef. He was something of an oddball but the two had some decent conversation while the beat cop drove. She asked him to go around the roads leading out of Langley to try and figure out where the driver who hit the doc could have gone. He was on patrol anyway, Tori being the extra pair of eyes while he focused on driving. Sinjin mentioned that these roads could lead to a lot of places, so tracking their guy might be difficult.

"I know this sounds cliche..." she sighed. "But what drew you to becoming a police officer?"

The slightly younger guy bit his lip, mulling over the simple question.

"Just seemed like a good thing to do with my life. People always need help, right?"

Tori blinked, sitting quietly for half a minute.

"Sorry it's not that deep."

"No," she shook her head with a smile. "It's very good, actually."

Sinjin smiled himself.

"You know, back when I was a beat cop I didn't drive much."

"No?" he asked.

Tori rested her hand against the window and leaned her face on it.

"Can I tell you a little secret?"

He cleared his throat.

"What's that?"

"I didn't get my driver's license until I was out of the academy."

Sinjin blew a raspberry, quickly evolving into a full laugh.

"Yeah, yeah, go ahead and laugh at me!" Tori sneered. "Can't hurt me any worse that my friends. Imagine being the only senior who couldn't drive!"

"OH FUCK!"

The man slammed on the brakes, causing Tori to heave forward, only the seat belt keeping her from getting a face cull of dashboard. Sinjin gripped the steering wheel, rendering his knuckles white.

"What the hell!" exclaimed Tori.

"This guy stopped short!" Sinjin pointed. He peered past the red car in front of them and noticed a speeding taillight vanish around the bush. "Looks like he was braking for that one."

Tori huffed and cracked her neck.

"Let's get him," she said, turning on the flashing lights.

They staved off the siren for now, not wanting the speeder to flee. This would alert other motorists to get out of the way. The road finally straightened, and they could see the blue car in front of them, doing 60 in a 45.

"Go around this last car and then we'll hit him with the warble."

Sinjin nodded and sped up a bit to pass the last vehicle and now there were behind Captain Velocity over there. He had the siren make the WHOOP WHOOP noise, which was the gentler siren to request pulling over.

The car eventually obliged and slowed down to a stop, easing onto the shoulder.

Tori rubbed her eyes as she focused on the make and model of the dark blue car: a Chevy Blazer. The midsize SUV was missing the license plate. She didn't see a temporary tag in the window, so that was a big no-no.

"Speeding AND driving without tags!" mused Sinjin.

"I'll cover you," Tori nodded as they both exited the patrol car.

They approached the stopped motorist, Sinjin walking the full distance to the driver's side window while Tori hung back by the rear of the blue vehicle.

"Sir, please lower your window," the officer asked.

Within seconds, the tempered glass barrier came down and he was face to face with the driver.

"I'm sorry officer," the driver swallowed. "Was I going too fast back there?"

Sinjin nodded.

"I'm afraid I have other issues with your vehicle. Can I see your license and registration, please?"

The beat cop was young, but Tori looked past the fresh face and saw he was no rookie! Sinjin kept his dominant hand firmly over his holster whilst keeping his other hand on the roof of the car. The real cops try to de-escalate a tense situation or prevent one from coming up by not causing a civilian to panic. This was a live stop, but it could go bad really quick so Sinjin kept his instructions clear and his movements measured.

He accepted the ID from the driver and looked them over.

"May I ask what happened to your license plate?"

"Um...I was going to the hardware store for screws. Over time I lost mine and yesterday it was hanging by one."

Sinjin blinked.

"Mm-hmm. Let me just run these real quick."

The tall man walked back to his car and booted up the DMV records search on his laptop strapped to the dash. Tori maintained her post, keeping her eyes on the driver. She took fleeting glances at the bottom of the rear hatch. There were scuff marks above the bumper. Nothing strange about that in and of itself but the whole rear of this vehicle bothered her.

(You don't think...)

"There we go!" came Sinjin's voice from the driver's seat.

She looked back as he stepped out, holding the ID in his hand.

"Hal Bircham, local guy."

Tori touched his arm.

"Let me see that registration."

He shrugged and handed it over.

Her breath hitched when she checked the license plate number, and it read: AGT-1430.

Brown eyes grew huge as Tori lowered the piece of paper and stared at the stopped vehicle.

"Sinjin?" she said just above a whisper, knowing the man's window was still down.

He leaned over toward the Latina.

"Yeah?"

"It's him."

The sandy haired cop turned toward his fellow badge.

"You're sure?"

"I was unsure for days. Believe me, this is the one."

Tori's words came out very quickly, but she enunciated so she would be understood. She knew only seconds counted. If this guy was willing to drive with his plates off, he wouldn't give speeding away without a license another thought. They had to approach Bircham without him getting wise.

She had a bad feeling about this. He was in a hurry. Like somebody dumping a body and fleeing?

The tan officer hung back while Sinjin rolled up on the driver's side.

"Is everything alright?" he asked while Sinjin handed the ID back.

"We're having issues with the registration on this vehicle," he lied. "Please step out. Slowly."

Bircham swallowed, pulling on the interior handle to open the door with a muted click.

Tori observed Sinjin's form. He was looking good, stepping aside enough for Hal Bircham to exit the car. But like her, his hand was at the ready if this got ugly.

Sinjin gently gestured for him to turn around and put his hands on the vehicle.

"What's going on, officer?"

"Did you loan your car out to anyone, sir?" Sinjin queried, trying to keep him talking without letting him in on what they were doing. "Because this vehicle fits the description of one we are looking for. We just want to be sure..."

Faint thumps came from inside the car, alarming Tori.

"What was that?" Tori asked, the first time she audibly spoken to Bircham.

Now her hand was firmly on her hip, unfastening the holster.

Sinjin didn't like this at all. He just kept the large fellow in his sights. There were of similar height, but Bircham had about 150 pounds over the lithe policeman.

"Do you have a dog in there?" he asked him, clearly seeing no other human passengers.

"No, sir!" he huffed.

Tori bent over and knocked on the rear hatch and her heart leapt out of her chest when it knocked right back.

As quick as a cat, she had the safety off, and her gun drawn.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?"

"Tori? Open the hatch."

He didn't have to ask her twice as she rushed over and reached into the passenger side door and pulled the keys out of the ignition. There went his getaway. Tori fingered the fob which had a rear door button. Bircham shifted suddenly in his stance, but Sinjin was also quick with his gun in the large man's back.

"Don't move, pal!"

Tori pressed the button, and the hatch popped open. She approached the rear of the Chevy, her gun pointed midway between shot and no-shot. The woman needed to be ready for anything.

But she lowered her hands and put back her piece when she saw the bound woman with a plastic bag over her head. Tori reached in and tore through the grocery bag with her hands, a loud gasp escaping from female trapping inside. Traylor gazed up at the other woman, eyes darting to the badge on her holster and she started crying.

"PLEASE! PLEASE HELP ME! HE'S CRAZY!"

The brunette leaned in and carefully helped her to a sitting position, letting her legs dangle from the back of the cargo area. Tori noticed the cuffs. She handed Traylor her cellphone for something to hold onto. She didn't know the extent to which this woman suffered but to have a form of communication in her hands had to serve as a comfort for now.

"It's alright," Tori told her in a soft voice, lifting her chin. "You're safe now."

AAAAHHHHHHH!

Tori ran to the painful cry of Sinjin, who was bleeding from the side. Bircham was already taking off on foot as the cop fell to the asphalt. Tori got to one knee, steadying herself to land a shot.

"You're not getting away, motherfucker!"

Then some passing cars honked as they obscured her view, clearly spooked by the lady pointing a gun in their direction. But when the rush of motorists subsided, Bircham was gone. That lug vanished into the brush like goddamn Sasquatch.

She cursed herself for not nailing him but now her worry was on her brother in arms on the ground. He was bleeding like a sieve, so Tori rolled him over where gravity wouldn't let him bleed out and she put pressure on the nasty wound. Bastard must have had a blade hidden on his person.

"Tori...Tori..." he winced. "It hurts so much!"

"I'm sorry," she huffed. "Just hold on, man."

Tori remembered the woman just feet from them.

"Ma'am? Ma'am! Can you hear me?"

It was a couple of seconds before Traylor managed to slink her way to them, still bound. And still holding the phone.

"He needs an ambulance!" Tori shouted, tearing up. "Call 911. HURRY!"

Traylor was in tears herself from her whole ordeal, but she nodded and swiped to unlock the screen. Luckily Tori didn't create a password. She then pulled up the phone app and dialed the three numbers.

The cops were here, though one of them was hurt, but they were here.

She just kept watch in pure paranoia, expecting Bircham to emerge from the woods to reclaim her but he never did. Even then, she couldn't let her body let go of the tension. Only when the red and blue sirens came into view did it finally hit Traylor.

It really was over!