Blinded
Chapter 8
"You have to let me go!" The man pleaded to the woman and man sitting across from him. His face was tearstained, his eyes frantic.
"Marty…" Jack started, struggling to contain his own emotions amidst his utter fatigue and worry. "We think you're the target – just because…. they won't necessarily do what they said…" Marty put his head in his hands.
It was just past 11pm. The moment they had realized Marty was missing, everyone had acted. He had been found in the back alley near the hotel, waiting, when he had to be forcibly brought back inside by the security detail. The officers had reported him screaming to let him go as they noticed a white van drive towards then suddenly speed away when they say the police. Everyone suspected that was likely the abductors.
Once he had been settled in his hotel room, Sue and Jack had raced over. Jack had been planning to drop off Sue regardless, only now they had to comfort their distraught colleague who very well knew this could mean his wife was dead.
Jack felt torn. The right thing to do was to stop Marty, but what if that meant Gayle was killed? That the abductor followed through on their threat? The heaviness he felt, the guilt, the accountability was crushing, and he knew this was only a part of what was going on. He couldn't even look at Sue knowing it would break him in worry for her.
"Marty." He started again. "You have to trust us. We won't stop until we find her. We are hoping to identify the body in the park within the next few days. Who knows what leads that will provide." Marty said nothing, looking more and more despondent. Sue sat quietly next to Jack, having barely uttered a word all night. Jack sighed.
"Jack, I don't know what I'm going to do…" Marty started.
"I know. Try and get some rest. She needs you strong." Marty nodded as Jack and Sue stood, making their way out of his room. Jack grabbed her overnight bag, and they walked together to a room across the hall that had already been booked for her. They made their way inside as she sank onto her own couch, clearly exhausted.
Jack put down her bag, feeling the weight of it all and sat down next to her. They sat in silence for a while. Before long, he put his head in his hands. Within moments, he felt Sue's hand on his back, gently moving in circles of comfort. Raising his head and turning towards her, he finally confessed in a quiet voice,
"What if she's dead" Sue bit her lip.
"I don't know Jack. But we couldn't just let Marty hand himself over either. We have to trust that whatever motive this person, or persons have will be clear. We have to hope Jack." He looked at her intently.
"And what about you? I couldn't live with myself if something happens to you." Sue sat taken aback by Jack's blatant confession.
"Jack, you've done everything in your power to keep me safe… You… you make me feel safe." It was such a small thing but warmed his heart in a way he didn't know was possible in light of the heaviness on his shoulders.
"Promise me you will just stay here until I come get you in the morning. Promise me you'll call if there is anything suspicious." She nodded and gave him a weak smile.
"Promise me you'll tell me when you get home safely, and you'll try and get some sleep. You need to be strong too" He returned her small smile. He stood up and she followed.
He didn't even think about the optics, how improper it may have looked for him to be alone with her in her hotel room. Nor did he think about it when he pulled her into a tight embrace, feeling her warmth and comfort as he tried to pass on the same back to her. He held her for longer than what would have been appropriate between friends, but noticed she didn't pull back either.
He could smell her shampoo, floral with a hint of coconut as he moved his lips to her forehead and gently kissed her there, praying protection over her.
Sue bade Jack a soft goodnight, holding on to the feeling of his arms as the one good thing that seemed to be happening amidst so much pain. As she shut the door, a few tears fell both in fear and gratitude, as she made her way to unpack and settle into her temporary home.
-STFBE-
The news came on Thursday that it would be a few days before they could have a forensic anthropologist come and try to do a match on the body's identity and cause of death. There had been no DNA hits in the system. Rather, forensics was trying to sort through particulates and other evidence that may indicate where this woman had been and what may have happened to her.
What was confusing is the coroner's report that preliminary analysis suggested the woman who had been killed had only been dead for likely 1-2 weeks, but the advanced decomposition was likely due to environmental factors, including animal activity and brutality towards the body that made it more likely for insect activity to flourish. It was sickening.
Myles and Bobby were out patrolling near where the body had been found as well as around the hotel where Marty and Sue were staying to watch out for any suspicious activity. It was little to go on, but it was better than doing nothing.
Tara and Lucy had continued to follow up on Martin Stack, but nothing was adding up to indicate he was involved. They had tracked him down, and it seemed he was working in a small shop in Baltimore, and there were no connections or indications he was at all involved. They were hesitant to reach out knowing that someone had eyes on their team, unless necessary. Instead, the decision was to continue to monitor him remotely for any suspicious activity.
Concurrently, Tara was trying to track down the source of where the emails were coming from but as of yet had come up short.
Marty remained in his hotel room all day Thursday. The officers had reported he was mostly despondent or checking his emails every few minutes and pacing as he waited for the inbox to refresh. There was nothing but silence from whomever had called him the day before, which only left pain and uncertainty.
Jack was at a loss. There were no clear next steps. He felt utterly helpless.
He and Sue hadn't talked about their moment the night previous, not even when he had picked her up that morning, but he felt, and believed she did too, that something had shifted in their relationship. Without words spoken, it was as if they had both made a decision towards each other. It was the only bright spot he could hold onto, which concurrently increased his worry of her safety.
A unfulfilling day had passed, and Jack lay in his bed at home staring at the ceiling. He had had so little sleep in the last few weeks and yet could not seem to settle his mind. While years of experience had trained him to remain functional on minimal sleep, the prolonged exhaustion and the weight of the personal and professional realities of this case were wearing him down.
He had dropped Sue off, again enjoying a few moments just holding her before leaving her hotel room. It was a new routine for them that just seemed natural and fit. He knew they needed to talk – really talk – once this case was over. He hoped it would be easier with the line between them becoming increasingly blurred. He knew he was ready. And in light of what was going on at work, ready to let that go too if need be.
He had finally drifted off only to be jolted awake by the ringing of his phone. It was D.
"Jack." D started, his voice tired. Jack looked over and saw his alarm clock flashing 323am. Jack's stomach dropped.
"D" He responded hesitantly.
"The kidnappers sent another message. They said there's a body in Garfield Park and to bring Marty as retribution for not following their last instructions. They said he'd want to say one last goodbye to his wife."