Peter's courage
by
Whashaza
AU of Season 4 episode 21
My first story in this fandom. I'm not American, so will keep to my British Spelling. I'm hoping to keep to the essence of the episodes. If you enjoy this - please let me know via a review. Thanks :-)
Chapter 1
Day 1
Hazel eyes, wild hair and a face framed in classical Greek lines, Stella Bonasera was a fighter wrapped up in a small package. She took a breath, letting herself relax while the gun settled heavy in her hand. She smelled her own fear and of those who surrounded her. She tried not to over analyse as she noticed the empty bins kicked over and the overgrown grass that was softly trampled as the SWAT team made their way silently around the house. Flack was comfortingly close. If she reached out, she could touch him. He looked back briefly at her and she nodded quickly, acknowledging her readiness for the next part of this puzzle to be completed. She saw determination settle like a blanket on his shoulders and then the lead swat guy burst through the door. She heard boots trample over wooden floors as she followed close behind Flack, spilling into the house that suddenly screamed emptiness.
Stella stood in the hallway, unable to comprehend the truth of what she was seeing and hearing.
Flack returned to her, touched her arm briefly and as she focused on him, he said, "There's no one here. This place is empty."
She didn't have time to allow the alarm that flooded her system to take a hold. There was no time. Mac was alone in a car with Joe and had no idea that the guy he was trying to save was a liar. She barely glanced at Flack as she dialled a number, hoping they weren't too late.
"Take the next left."
Mac was just starting to explain to Joe why it'd be quicker to through the city when he heard the familiar sound of a gun being cocked. He knew that he had accounted for all the bullets, including the one that Joe had already discharged in the bank. There was only one logical conclusion, one he didn't want to contemplate but he had no choice. So, he said, "You kept a bullet?"
Joe didn't answer, his gun pointed at Mac. The CSI felt numb and angry, all at the same time. He couldn't and didn't want to believe that he had been fooled so badly by this man that at one point had looked pitiful and desperate. Now all he saw is what he had missed all the time he had spent with this man. The duplicity and lies that he has weaved to tell his story. The intelligence to use him to get out of the bank.
"Take the bridge."
Mac indicated his direction, smoothly turning lanes. In the process, his knee pressed against his radio, switching it on.
"The story about your family was all a lie, wasn't it?"
He caught Joe's eyes again and this time Joe lashed out, slamming the butt of the gun down on his shoulder. For a moment the car weaved and then he was back on track.
"Keep your eyes on the road."
His shoulder ached and Mac could feel the bruise forming.
"Where are we going?"
"What's it to you? Just keep driving."
He tried to think of ways out of his situation but at this stage nothing presented itself as a viable option. Talking wouldn't get him very far. Joe was determined and focused on what he was doing. Houses flashed past and then they were off the interstate, entering Jersey at the backside of the statue. The wheels crunched on the gravel and sand, silently bringing the car to a stop when Joe told him too. He heard the other car and as his eyes reflectively went to the rear-view mirror, Joe leaned forward and Mac felt a blinding pain and then nothing more as the butt of the gun bounced off his skull.
Stella Bonasera could feel each thump of the helicopter. Could feel it behind the aching headache as she scanned the roads beneath her. Her concern for Mac was as real as the sound that vibrates around her. So far, no reports on anyone finding the car. She was all too aware how big New York was and how many holes and spaces there were to disappear into. How short a space of time they had to find Mac before the likelihood of finding him alive dwindled away into the negative numbers.
"Any news?" she asked Flack over the radio as the pilot made another sweeping turn on the roads below her.
"No. We put out an APB on the car. Adam said that he'll work on the traffic cameras to try and see if he could follow the car after the last sighting."
Flack's voice was flat and sounded tinny over the receiver.
Stella looked at her watch and then ignoring the little voice inside her saying it has been 2 hours, scanned the road beneath her. Hope burned inside her, still bright but with each passing minute hand it seemed to fade a little.
It's Mac, she thought. He was a marine. He can handle this. He'll be okay.
She took a deep breath, centred herself and continued her scan of the roads beneath her.
Danny knew that Adam didn't like it when stood over him and looked at the screen but he couldn't help himself. He watched as the tech's fingers danced over the keyboard. Blocks of code seemed to appear out of thin air.
"Anything yet?"
He turned, watching as Lindsey entered the room. Her eyes reflected his own concern. He shook his head and turned back to watch the screens. The original program they had used didn't have enough parameters and it had failed just after the car Mac was in had gone over the bridge. Adam had changed it somehow, adding extra parameters and was now constantly having to fix bugs that had crept in after he had hacked the program.
"Done."
Adam leaned back, hit enter and they all turned to the second screen that showed the traffic videos. A red light blinked and then the image's speed increased until they could barely follow the flow of cars around the city. Now and again, it would stop briefly, centre a green block around a black blob and then continue.
Danny hadn't realised that he was holding his breath until a nudge from Lindsey reminded him to breathe. He blinked and then the images just stopped.
"What happened? Come on, Adam. Dude, you need to get this working."
"I did."
Danny looked at Adam and back at the blank screen.
"I don't see anything."
"Oh, sorry. Just let me...", Adam mumbled, hitting a few keys and then the images reversed and stopped.
Mac's face was staring right at the camera, Joe's a blurry blob behind him.
"Ok, where's this," Danny asked, daring to hope even as his hand reached for his phone.
"Just outside Jersey," Adam replied. "But Danny, I can't find him after that. I tried. Maybe if I add more parameters..." Adam trailed off, his face showing his frustration.
"No, you did good Adam." He gave the tech a squeeze on his shoulder as he finally connected with Stella.
"We have a last known location. Just outside Jersey on the off ramp to the river."
Danny listened as Stella gave the pilot instructions. His eyes darted back to the timestamp and he swallowed the fear he felt brewing.
The time stamp on the video glared back in yellow.
The last known video of their boss was 3 hours old.
It took 2 more hours before they found the car. Stella had the pilot canvas the area and for some unknown reason had decided to look along the Jersey shore. As they had made another sweep of the same area, she had noticed the shimmer of something dark in the water. The probabilities were astronomical, as the river wasn't the cleanest or clearest to work with. She had known divers that had gotten disoriented in the murky water. But for some reason, maybe the angle of the helicopter combined with the sun's rays had allowed her to catch a glimpse of something lurking.
Her heart had sunk when she had seen the obvious dumping spot but she still clung onto the sliver of hope. Flack, Danny and Lindsey met her on the shore, their faces grim as they had watched the diver squad hook up the car and as it was slowly pulled back ashore.
As one, without a spoken command they moved to the car as it settled back on the sand, water cascading off the edges. And a tension they had all felt suddenly released when they saw the car was empty.
"Nobody is good, right?" Lindsey asked quietly.
Stella didn't answer, instead she focused on what she could see of the waterlogged interior.
Abruptly she turned, caught Don's eye and moved away.
"You think they took him with them?" the detective asked, his voice quiet but a steady determinism steeled around it.
"I don't know?" The logical part of her brain was saying - Why would they? What possible use could Mac be to Joe and his partner?
"How strong is the current?", she asked Flack, not sure she wanted to know the answer.
"Around here? The boys say the car windows were up. His ...his body would've been still in the car..." Flack trailed off, staring at the river. But even though he knew that the divers were still canvassing downstream. "You think he maybe got out before the car was submerged? Swam it out?"
"Maybe." She gave a sigh.
Dammit Mac, she thought. Where are you?
It took an hour before they got the car back to the lab. By then the stink of the river had settled in the interior. Mud was steadily drying on the wheels and even though all the doors had been opened the going was slow. The CSI's worked steadily, methodically through the remains of the car. Scrutinising each small find.
It took 4 hours to finally come up with nothing.
The river had erased what little trace evidence there was.
Nothing remained of Mac's abduction in the car.