SVS3-02: Revenge by Kerensa, Part 3 When Jim looked up again, Blair was asleep. The Sentinel wasn’t unduly worried. Because of Blair’s ordeal, the young man would undoubtedly sleep more than he usually did. Jim lay down beside his sleeping lover and covered them both up with several layers of soft blankets, topped by a velvet comforter. The comforter that had been bought specifically to celebrate Blair’s homecoming. Jim didn’t worry about getting too hot under the multitude of layers; he just dialed touch down a little. Not too much, he wanted to feel Blair in his arms. No, it was more a dialing down of his internal thermostat, something Jim hadn’t realized he could do. Carefully, Jim pulled his cell phone out from under one of the cushions. He pushed one of the speed dial buttons and waited. "Banks." "Simon, it’s me." Jim whispered into the phone. "Jim. Is something wrong?" "No, don’t worry. Everything is fine. We made it home from the hospital without a hitch. Blair’s asleep right now." "Good." Even through the phone line, the relief was evident in Simon’s voice. "So, what’s up?" Jim glanced down briefly and after he was reassured that Blair was still asleep, he continued. "Blair helped me remember what it was about that woman’s voice that was bugging me. She sounds a lot like Lilah." "Lilah? The assassin? But she’s dead." "Yes, sir. But what about the cartel that she worked for. There are bound to be a lot of people who would seek revenge." "But you didn’t kill Lilah. One of her own people did." "I know, but she was trying to save me at the time." "True. That’s true." There was a moment’s worth of silence. "So, they might be targeting you. Okay, Jim. We’ll check into it. In the meantime, you take care of Sandburg and yourself. Just because they haven’t tried to hurt you yet, doesn’t mean they won’t." "Yes, sir." Jim put the phone back under the cushion. He would worry about charging the batteries tomorrow. The detective thought about what Simon had said. He looked down at his very battered lover. "You’re wrong, they have hurt me." Snuggling closer to his lover, Jim could hear a slight rattle in Blair’s lungs. So far, it hadn’t gotten any better. Luckily, it hadn’t gotten any worse, either. Hopefully pneumonia or bronchitis could be staved off. Even a cold would be bad, considering how worn out Blair was. Jim heard a noise and his head snapped up. Laying at the foot of their bed were the jaguar and the wolf. Black eyes met blue eyes in an ancient, never ending challenge of protection. The big black cat was wrapped around the smaller grey lupine. The wolf was curled up in a ball and whimpered as it shivered slightly. The jaguar looked away from the Sentinel, towards its mate. The cat licked the side of the sick animal’s head and the wolf relaxed into sleep. The Sentinel laid back down with his mate, secure in the knowledge that all was secure. The two sets of mates settled down. The lovers cuddled together, safe, for the moment, from the dangers lurking outside.
"Time for the next step." The woman’s companion picked up a long case from the floor and pulled out the rifle. He checked over the equipment; making doubly sure that everything slid together smoothly. The scarred killer looked through the scope, seeing that all was in readiness. "Careful!" Jeanine’s hiss sounded like a snake spitting at him. "There might be a bullet in there. The silencer isn’t on yet and if it goes off, everyone on this floor will hear it. You don’t want to call attention to us yet." Eric wasn’t stupid, although Jeanine acted like he was. He wasn’t incompetent either. The younger man had been killing people since he was 14 years old. He knew how to break a weapon down into so many tiny pieces that it could go through an X-ray machine undetected. The young man certainly knew whether or not his weapon was loaded. He thought about chambering a round and just shooting Jeanine where she stood. He was fairly certain that he could get out of the building in all the confusion. He could leave her bloody body on the floor and go get him some more of that sweet anthropologist. As out of control as she was, the young man wasn’t entirely certain the cartel wouldn’t thank him for getting rid of her for them. The young man pondered the idea for a few minutes, salivating inside at the thought of touching Blair again and not too upset at the idea of killing her. Then reason took over. He wasn’t 100 percent sure that he could catch Jeanine off guard. If he didn’t, she would kill him . Remembering the last person to cross her path, Eric decided he could wait. He didn’t relish the idea of being skinned alive. There would surely be other opportunities to kill the bitch. "Of course, Jeanine." Eric’s toadying tone did little to reassure Jeanine. She knew he was good at his job, the cartel would accept nothing less. But she could see the hunger in his eyes too. The tall woman knew that it wouldn’t be long before his unnatural obsession for Sandburg drove him to make a mistake. That could cause a fatal error, for both of them. That was unacceptable. Jeanine was not going to miss out on making Ellison pay for Lilah’s death. So, she would watch and wait. She would be prepared though. Jeanine hadn’t made it this far in life by not having a backup plan. After Eric was no longer useful, she would make sure he did suffer a "fatal error". He was too unstable to keep around any longer.
The next day, Blair woke up to the sound of rain pattering against the balcony windows. He opened his eyes and was not surprised to find that Jim was already up. Blair glanced around the room, trying to see what time it was. He spotted the clock on the bookshelf, but without his glasses the young anthropologist couldn’t see the hands to know how early or late it was. "Hey, Chief." Blair relaxed back against the pillows and smiled up at Jim. His lover was already dressed, in a white T-shirt that looked like it was molded to him. Every muscle on his chest and abdomen was outlined through the thin material. The young Guide’s eyes trailed down the nicely filled pants, down long legs, to the sock clad feet. His mouth went completely dry at the sight. He didn’t give a damn how tired and achy he was, Blair had to have his Sentinel. Right now!
Despite the strain of the last several days, Jim woke up at his usual time. He indulged himself and stayed on the faux bed a while longer and watched his sleeping lover. Blair was beautiful, as always. His battered and drawn face only added to the appeal. After a while it was obvious that the tired observer was not going to wake up any time soon. Jim went upstairs as quietly as possible and got dressed. He kept one Sentinel ear tuned to his partner’s heartbeat, not wanting Blair to wake up alone. Several hours later, Jim was beginning to get worried. It wasn’t like Blair to sleep this late. At the hospital, Blair had gotten up much earlier than this. Of course, there the nurses came in at all hours, making sure you were asleep and waking you up to make doubly sure of it. The Sentinel wasn’t used to seeing his perpetually on the go lover staying still this long. Even in his sleep, Blair normally wriggled and twisted around. Today, he lay as still as… No. Jim shook his head to banish the images that that thought almost brought to mind. Blair wasn’t dead and Jim was going to make damn sure that he stayed that way. He heard rustling in the living room and realized Blair was finally getting up. Hey, he was a detective after all and a Sentinel. He recognized little clues, like Blair whispering his name. "jim?" The older man hurried into the other room and saw Sandburg peering myopically at the clock. He grinned, his lover was badly off without his glasses. "Hey, Chief." Blair rolled back off his hip and smiled up at his lover. Jim licked his lips as Blair’s hot gaze slid up and down his body. The younger man’s wild curls were lying around his face in a tangled abandon. It was all he could do not to attack the younger man right then, but one look at his lover’s still pale face cooled Ellison’s ardor. "Hi there, lover." There was Blair’s husky, sexy purr. Before Jim knew it, he was lying beside Blair. The younger man rolled easily into Jim’s arms.
"Hi yourself." The Guide grabbed hold of his Sentinel, as best he could, by the front of Jim’s shirt and lunged forward for a kiss. Jim wrapped one arm supportingly behind the younger man’s back and tried to loosen the hold on his shirt with the other. He had seen the look of pain on Blair’s face when the younger man had snatched hold of the material. "Easy, Chief. I’m not going anywhere." The two men were enjoying their soft bed. Hands roamed. Jim’s hands did anyway, Blair’s were still held captive by the Sentinel’s chest. Ellison slid the hand on Blair’s back down to cup the younger man’s behind. Blair moaned his appreciation into Jim’s mouth. Jim’s hand moved purposely up Blair’s thigh, his destination in sight. An image flashed across Blair’s mind and he gasped. A memory of something similar, of someone else touching him just like this. For just a moment, the young man panicked and tried to close his legs at the intrusion. Then everything snapped back into place and he was with Jim again. It happened so fast that the Sentinel missed the second of reaction. Blair was grateful that it had gone unnoticed. ‘I guess I wasn’t as unaware as we thought.’ Blair reasoned. Purposely he pushed the almost memory away. The other hand continued its journey and slid over the front of the young Shaman’s body and Jim carefully caressed the soft mound of flesh between his legs. Blair gasped and let go of Jim’s mouth, his neck arching back in pleasure. Jim liked the sight of that and latched onto Blair’s long neck and began to suckle the soft skin that was so tempting. Both men were panting, beginning to really enjoy themselves when Jim raised his head, and his mouth, from Blair’s neck. It took a few seconds for Blair’s endorphin filled brain to notice the loss. "What’s the matter, Big Guy?" Jim’s head thumped back down on Blair’s chest. "I smell something." "What?" Blair glanced towards the kitchen. He didn’t hear or smell anything cooking, so he knew that their lunch wasn’t burning. "Cigars." "Uh." Jim looked Blair regretfully in the eye. "Simon’s here. He’s on his way up right now." Blair groaned in frustration. "Maybe if we don’t answer the door, he’ll go away?" The Sentinel grinned at his lover’s hopeful expression. "No can do, Chief. He has a key, remember." "Yeah, I remember. Whose bright idea was that anyway?" The young man grinned and kissed Jim on the cheek. Jim straightened Blair’s shirt, to cover the marks on the other man’s neck and pulled the covers over Blair’s body; to keep him warm and to cover up other evidence of their playing. Jim stood in front of the door and waited. He looked back at Blair and raised one hand up in the air, fingers spread wide. Blair watched as Jim counted down with his fingers and then flung the door open wide. "Damn it, Jim. You know I hate it when you do that." Blair turned his head and snorted into the covers, trying to hide his laughter. Simon hated being surprised at the door and Jim loved doing it to the older man. The Sentinel would sometimes stand by the door for a few minutes, waiting for Simon to come up, just so he could startle him. You would have thought that after all these years, the Captain would be used to the things Ellison could do, but he continued to be startled every single time. "Come on in Simon." The older man narrowed his eyes at the detective’s solicitous tone. He didn’t seem fooled. "Jim. Blair." Simon nodded his greetings. "Hi, Simon." Jim turned at looked at Blair critically. He already looked tired. The detective hoped that Simon wouldn’t stay very long, Blair needed to eat and rest some more. "I have some news." Simon held up a file he had been carrying. "I think we’ve found our man." Ellison took the folder from the Captain and sat down on the bed beside Blair. Simon seemed taken aback by the new arrangement, but didn’t say anything. Jim helped Blair sit up, so the younger man didn’t put any undue strain on his hands. "Yes, that’s him. I recognize the scar." Blair peeked over Jim’s arm and looked at the picture. "Who is he?" "His name is Eric LaMonte. He is an assassin for hire." "Does he work for the Hong Kong cartel that Lilah worked for?" Jim’s voice was strained as he looked over what little information the file contained. "Not per se." Simon sat down on the other couch and watched as the Sentinel and Guide analyzed the contents of the file. The Captain pulled out a cigar, but didn’t light it, in deference to Jim’s hyperactive sense of smell and Blair’s health consciousness. "But, as I said, he works for whoever is willing to pay his price and according to Rafe’s sources, it’s a hefty price." "What about the woman?" Simon and Blair both watched Jim, as the Sentinel tried to control his anger. "We’re not sure. LaMonte usually works alone. There have been rumors that he is paired with a woman at the moment, but we don’t know her name." "Damn." Blair shivered violently, recapturing Jim’s attention. The younger man was looking at the picture of his attacker. He didn’t remember very much after he was knocked unconscious, but just the thought of this man touching him, made Blair’s skin crawl. "Are you okay, Chief?" The younger man smiled, first at Jim and then at Simon. "Sure, just a chill." Neither man believed the lie, but they were willing to allow the fiction, if it helped Blair. "Jim, would you give me a hand up." Blair blushed in embarrassment. Simon turned away for a moment, to give them some privacy. Out of the corner of his eye, Banks watched as Jim helped the younger man stand up. Blair shuffled off to the bathroom, leaning heavily on the detective. It was hard to watch him creeping along like an old man. The Captain waited and wondered what was going on; Jim hadn’t returned yet. Then Simon thought about Blair’s impaired hands and closed his eyes in sympathy. "Do you want something to drink?" The Captain turned to his friend; the pain he was feeling was mirrored in those pale blue eyes. "Sure. Do you have any coffee?" "Yeah." Blair was eased back down onto the floor, his face was alternately pale and flaming. Simon racked his brain, trying to think of a way to defuse the situation. Finally, he decided that just ignoring what had taken place was the best course of action. "Blair, what do you think of powwows?" The young man raised startled blue eyes to the captain. "What do you mean?" "Well…" Ellison handed his friend a cup of coffee. "Thanks, Jim." "No problem." The Sentinel sat his cup of coffee and Blair’s cocoa down before effortlessly folding up his legs and lowering himself beside his lover. They watched as Blair awkwardly held the cup in his hands and took a tentative sip of the dark brew. "Cocoa?" Simon raised an eyebrow. "I can’t have caffeine for a while. It restricts the blood vessels and inhibits blood flow." "Oh. Of course." "So, anyway. Powwow’s?" "Yeah, Daryl has the chance to attend a powwow later this month." "Oh man, he is so lucky. Those are so great. The cultural enrichment is just awesome. I went to one in Oklahoma once. The costumes were so colorful and the dances very authentic. I remember…" Simon smiled as Blair expounded on the significance of the Indian headdress and what the different dances meant. Jim caught the Captain’s eye and nodded his thanks; Blair had been distracted from his earlier embarrassment, just as Simon had planned. The animated young man almost bounced as he talked. His gloved hands waved around, if not as enthusiastically as he normally would, then fairly close.
A knock at the door startled the anthropologist. Jim, of course, was already heading that way and opened the door to reveal a delivery boy. "I have a package here for Jim Ellison." The young man made the statement sound like a question. "I’m Ellison." "Here you go, sir." The package was handed to the detective. "Thank you, sir!" The young man was delighted with the size of his tip. Jim shut the front door and closed his eyes. He used his senses to scan the package, as Blair kept him grounded. "It’s fine. There aren’t any ticking sounds, no unusual smells, nothing." Banks watched as Jim slit open the envelope to reveal a VHS tape. "What in the world is that?" Ellison didn’t answer as he used a dish towel to pull out the video. He turned the TV on and put the tape in. For a few seconds electronic snow filled the screen and then, real snow could be seen. Along with Blair, lying secured to the front of Jim’s truck. "Oh my god." Banks practically levitated, he jumped from his chair so fast. The tall Captain made good use of his long legs and managed to race down the stairs and catch the delivery boy before he got away. Simon’s voice could be heard coming down the hallway as he returned to the loft. "I don’t care what you’re doing, get over here now! I want this tape in Forensics within the hour." He snapped the cell phone shut with a decisive click. "That kid was from Horizon Messenger Services. He doesn’t know anything about who sent the package. I’m sending Megan out to check on the company. The perpetrators might get sloppy. Who knows we could get lucky." The trio stared as Blair shivered and called Jim’s name on the television screen. Blair watched as the two men glared at the television like it was responsible for the images being shown. "Turn it off." Ellison winced and ejected the tape; worried about what they had seen would do to his lover. Still using a towel, the detective placed the cassette back in its box, ready for whoever was picking it up. "Now stop it." The two men froze, wondering what the anthropologist was talking about. "It wasn’t your fault." Blair pointed to Jim. "And it wasn’t yours." He gestured to Simon. "Nobody, except that guy," A wave at the police file. "…is responsible for what happened to me. So, just stop with the guilty feelings." There was another knock at the door, this time Blair was really startled. If Jim had known someone was coming, he hadn’t acted like it. Rafe and Brown hurried into the loft. Pleasantries were exchanged and then they quickly exited the loft, taking the tape and envelope back with them. Not long after that, Simon took his leave. It was easy to see that Blair was losing any energy he had. "Well, that’s it gentlemen. I’m outta here." Blair smiled half-heartedly and waved good bye. Jim walked the Captain to the door. "Don’t worry, I’ll keep you updated." Simon said as Jim opened his mouth to speak. "Thanks, Simon." "Take care." The Captain’s gaze flickered between Jim and Blair. "We will." Jim quietly closed and locked the door. He knew from the sound of Blair’s breathing that the young man was already asleep. Ellison watched from his post by the door as the younger man tucked his hands in close to his body and burrowed down in the covers. The Sentinel walked over to the balcony doors and looked out at the city. Somewhere out there were two people who wanted to take the most important person in his life away from him. Jim clenched his fists and glared out at the night. He would not fail to protect his lover again.
"Hey Jim, how about we go by the station for a few minutes." Ellison glanced over at his lover and saw the hopeful look in his eyes. They were on the way home from Blair’s latest doctor visit and Jim could see that the excursion had already tired the young man out. "I don’t know, Chief." "Oh, come on, Big Guy. I haven’t seen the guys in almost a week." It was true, what with the investigation into Blair’s attack and Jim’s already ongoing cases that had been reassigned, the rest of Major Crimes was working overtime and hadn’t been able to visit. Jim had been noticing the signs of Blair going stir crazy. "Okay. A quick visit and then we get some take out and go home." Blair bounced happily. He would have tapped his fingers in excitement, but his hands still bothered him. According to the doctor, they probably would for another couple of weeks. "Cool. How about Chinese?" "Mao Jang’s?" "Sounds great to me." The younger man grinned at his lover. The trip from the truck to the Major Crimes bullpen took a while. Several people stopped the duo, checking on Blair and generally being friendly. Jim was glad of the interruptions, because they gave his lover a chance to rest. By the time they got to the elevator, Blair was puffing for air and limping badly. "Hang on." Jim pulled the younger man over to lean against him. Blair sighed, relieved that for once they had the elevator to themselves. They might be "out" to their friends but showing that kind of closeness to the rest of the PD could get them killed. The elevator pinged and Sentinel and Guide reluctantly separated. "Ellison! Sandburg!" Simon’s much vaunted bellow distracted Blair from his misery and made the trip to Jim’s desk go by quickly. So did the ever increasing support of Jim’s arm around Blair’s waist. Friends and co-workers greeted the two men. "Hey, how’s it going?" "Well, look what the cat dragged in." Blair grinned up at Jim from his chair and Jim smiled back. Since the first time Jim had seen his jaguar spirit guide, any mention of a cat was amusing. "Hi everybody." The observer waved at the gathered group. "What are you two doing here?" Simon’s smile showed how glad he was to see them. "Well…Blair was getting bored." "Yikes!" "Woah!" "I’m outta here!" The anthropologist crossed his arms and smiled. "Smart asses." "You have to admit," Simon did his best to look sincere and not laugh. "…a bored Sandburg is a dangerous creature." "Tell me about it, Sir." There were assorted laughs, giggles and snorts from around the room, when Blair glared up at the detective. "I’ll show you bored." Blair promised in a Sentinel soft whisper. The other men couldn’t hear what Blair was saying, but they grinned anyway. "Why don’t you two come on into my office." Ellison followed the Captain, while Blair walked between them. Blair sat down on the comfortable couch and listened as the other men discussed some of Jim’s former cases. Jim thoughtfully brought the case files over to the hampered anthropologist. Blair put his glasses on, a tricky maneuver, what with the gloves on his hands, and began to peruse the information. The new doctor frowned at some of the information he was reading. He picked up a pen from the side table and began to mark on the pages. Blair’s actions were largely ignored by his friends and Blair was concentrating on what he was reading so much that he tuned them out. "I tell you Jim, this Simmons kidnapping has me at the end of my rope. The mayor calls daily for updates and so far, my only update has been a bunch of side-stepping." The Sentinel opened his mouth to answer Banks when Blair spoke up. "What about his savings accounts?" Jim and Simon stopped talking and looked over at Blair questioningly. "What do you mean, Chief? It was her money that was used for the ransom." "Yes, but if you look here," Blair pointed to a line on the printout. "…five days after she was kidnapped and two days after her body was found, ten million dollars was deposited into his accounts." Ellison picked up the paper and looked at where Blair had marked. "As you see, the deposits were spread out over 16 different accounts, but when added together they come to the total amount of the ransom." "You’re right." "Damn, how did we miss that?" Simon was peering over Ellison’s shoulder. "Nobody thought to connect the dots." Blair smiled up at the two cops. "I’m used to having to find funding for projects at the University by combining several grants, so I knew what to look for." Jim watched his lover proudly, as he blew the case wide open. Simon was already on the phone, calling for a warrant to arrest Anthony Simmons for the murder of his wife.
The three men made their way out of the building. Blair was bundled to within an inch of his life. Even so, he still shivered in the cold air. Jim pulled him closer as they walked to the parking lot where Jim’s truck was located. "Excuse me, are you Jim Ellison?" It was another delivery boy. "Yes." The Sentinel looked over the hapless young men speculatively. Squirming under such close scrutiny, the young man held out another package. "I have a delivery for you." "Connor!" Simon’s bellow startled the younger man and several bystanders, who hurried on. The young delivery boy wasn’t so lucky. Megan hurried over. She had just come back from lunch and had seen Blair standing there. Not wanting to miss an opportunity, the Australian inspector was on her way to greet her good friend when the Captain yelled for her. "Find out what you can from this young man. Another package was just delivered." The woman pursed her lips and nodded. "Come with me." "Uh…" The poor young man started to argue and then took a good look at Megan’s face. Any protest was lost in the angry look. "Yes, ma’am." He smiled contritely and followed her into the police station. Meanwhile, Jim was busy scanning the busy street, looking for danger. Simon snatched the envelope out of Jim’s hand and ripped it open. "There’s a note in here. It says, ‘You couldn’t protect him then and you can’t protect him now.’" In the outer edges of Jim’s hearing, the slide click of a rifle registered. "Get down!" Protect Blair. That was the only thought that entered the Sentinel’s mind. Before Jim even realized he had moved, he had knocked Blair to the ground, as Simon dropped beside him. The sound of cracking glass erupted a split second later.
Eric waited patiently. He knew he was going to have to make it look good or Jeanine would have a melt down. Her orders were specific, hurt Sandburg. Oh, he wasn’t supposed to kill the young man, not yet anyway. No, he was supposed to hurt him and thereby hurt Ellison. Eric waited until they were in sight. He aimed at Ellison first, but knew he couldn’t indulge himself; Jeanine would kill him where he stood if he got rid of the detective. The young man adjusted the scope on his high-power rifle and looked down at Blair. Not that he was aiming at the man of his dreams, no never that. He looked through the site at Blair, being careful not to get him in the cross hairs. No, that big captain was in his sights. Who cared if he got shot, anyway? This way the young anthropologist wasn’t in the cross hairs and Eric could watch him. The beautiful young man was to one side, standing there, so innocent and fragile looking, with his bruised and battered face. Dark tinted sunglasses covered his blue eyes, protecting them from the glare of the sun. Even so, the young man held one gloved hand over his eyes in concealment. The sight of those injuries made Eric growl in anger. The fact that he was the one to put them there, was neither here nor there. He watched Blair, the younger man’s tight brown curls with streaks of fire dancing over them mesmerized him, drawing him in closer, making Eric want him even more. There was no way he was going to risk hurting that angel. If Jeanine had any idea of what he was thinking she would kill him and leave his body on the floor of this high-priced office building. Eric could join the original occupants of the law office. They were lying in the bathroom and it wouldn’t take much for another body to join the pile. The young assassin waited patiently. He watched as Ellison got Jeanine’s latest taunt. The other man…Banks, that was his name, Banks, opened the letter. Eric watched his lips as he told what it said. The scarred young man readied the bullet and watched in amazement as Ellison seemed to know what was happening. As he bore Blair to the ground, Eric fired…well above their heads. "You missed him." Jeanine turned to the shooter with a snarl. "You idiot." Jeanine was, predictably, pissed off. Eric turned away from her. "It’s your own fault." Eric calmly, but quickly, broke the gun down and began shoving it into a duffel bag. "If you hadn’t sent that stupid note, taunting him, Ellison wouldn’t have been prepared." The woman ignored him and looked down at the chaos below. "We better get out of here. The place will be overrun with cops in just a minute." Eric quickly shoved the rifle into a duffle bag. Jeanine looked down at the scene far below. Eric slung the duffel bag over his shoulder and hurried out of the room. He ran down the stairs, not noticing or caring whether Jeanine was with him.
"Shots fired in front of the PD. I need backup here, now!" The big Captain snarled the order into his cell phone. The order wasn’t really necessary, because a phalanx of police officers were already pouring out of the building, from any and all exits. More shots splintered the rest of the tinted window of the cab they were standing beside. Military training took over and Jim rolled Blair and himself behind the dubious cover of the older car. Simon followed, placing himself in front of the pair, unconsciously protecting the injured member of their trio. It was only then that Ellison realized that Blair hadn’t said a word during the ordeal. Jim hastily pulled himself off of the smaller man and began to run his hands over his lover, looking for injuries. "…im. Jim!" Ellison looked up to worried blue eyes. "I’m okay. Are you hurt?" "No, Chief. I’m fine. Simon?" "Yeah, I’m okay too." Banks didn’t turn around. He was crouched behind the vehicle, facing the street. If another assault was going to happen, they would probably come in that way. He gripped his gun tighter in anticipation. Jim looked into his lover’s eyes and saw the pain there. He sniffed the air and didn’t smell any blood, so he wasn’t unduly worried. "Chief, where are you hurt?" Simon looked back and waited for an answer as well. It was easy to see the tears of pain welling up in Blair’s eyes, no matter how hard he tried to hide them. Blair just wasn’t any good at hiding his feelings, that’s what made it so interesting to play poker with the younger man. "I…I hit my hand on the c-concrete." Blair held the hand to his chest and tried not to cry. Jim grimaced when he realized his tackle had caused his lover pain. Not that there had been any choice in the matter. "It’s all right. I’d rather have my hand hurt a little than get shot." The way Blair was protecting his arm belied his hand hurting a little claim, but Jim didn’t dispute him. Not hearing any more gun sounds, Jim decided to risk peeking over the back of the car. He looked at the broken window, calculated the aim of the bullet and sent his sight along the target. "Got it. Two buildings over, that way." Jim waved vaguely to the left. "There’s an open window. I can see where the gun site was anchored." By the time the police found the right office, it was empty.
Megan hit her hand on the steering wheel in frustration. "Dead ends. Every, bloody where we look, all we find are dead ends." The Inspector pulled out her notes and scanned the list again. There were seventeen messenger services in Cascade, in the downtown area alone. So far, 9 of them had not seen the scarred assassin or his mysterious female companion. The first two messenger services had been paid with cash and the notes were mailed in, so there hadn’t been a chance to see anyone. However, in the 3 days since the shooting at the police station, Jim had received 2 more nasty notes. These had been delivered before Jim could get to the door, so consequently Megan had no clues to follow there. "Where the hell do I check next? I’ve got to find these people before they end up killing Sandy." Megan’s accented voice rolled out of the car’s open window. A passerby heard something about people being killed and hurried on quickly. The Australian woman glanced over at the retreating figure and snorted. "Smart man, this is Cascade after all. You can’t be too careful of nut jobs talking to themselves." Out of the corner of her eye, a flash of red captured Megan’s attention. In the middle of the parking lot there was a small rest area and something was hiding in one of the trees. Megan peered up at it in surprise. "A monkey!" She picked up the mike to find out which zoo was missing an animal when the simian dropped down to the ground. It was then that she noticed the red outfit and hat. The primate looked straight at the young woman and chittered. Megan started to get out of her car, intending to rescue the small animal before it was hit by the passing traffic. The red clad animal screeched at her and started to race away. "Damn." The woman slammed the car door shut and took off after the creature. Every time she got close, it scampered off again. Any time she was afraid she had lost the monkey; Megan would catch a glimpse of red and go in the right direction. A few nerve wracking minutes later, Megan pulled up in front of the Wild Creatures Courier Services. The small ape waited until the Inspector got out of her car. She carefully approached the animal, who raced by her and hopped into her car. Surprised by the happy turn of events, the Australian woman shut the car door so the monkey wouldn’t run away again. Standing beside the car, Megan pulled out her list and compared it with the name on the front of the building. This business was not on it. "Bloody Hell! Couriers. I never even thought of that term. I wonder how many of them are around here. This damn list is probably gonna double." Inside the car the small animal screeched, causing Megan to jump. She looked in the window and watched as the primate bounced up and down several times and pointed to the storefront. "You want me to go in." The cap on its little head almost fell of as the tiny ape bounced happily. Megan smiled at the display. "You look just like Sandy when you bounce like that." She sighed and looked over the ape critically. "Will you behave and not tear up my car?" The simian promptly sat down in the passenger seat and folded its hands in its lap. Megan’s eyes widened in astonishment. "Oh. Right then."
The small spirit guide watched the tall human female stride into the right office. It did a little back flip and then disappeared.
The Australian Inspector narrowed her eyes as she considered the young men in front of her. Their enthusiastic cooperation was not because of a desire to be civic minded. On the contrary, the picture in her hand was given less consideration than her ass and it was ticking her off. "So you haven’t seen this man?" She snapped the picture in their faces, capturing their attention for a good 3 seconds. Then their gazes slid off the picture, down her body, towards the back again. "Nope." "Unh uh." The third young man, who didn’t look like he should even be old enough to drive, was now ogling her breasts. Megan moved the picture until it was in the middle of her chest. The messenger was startled and looked up at her angry face. He had the grace to be embarrassed by his behavior. "Sorry. Uhm, no ma’am. I don’t remember ever seeing him before." "I remember him." Megan looked over at the young woman, who had just come out of the office. Her name tag identified her as Theresa. "You’ve seen him before?" "Yes, he was in here the other day with some red haired bim…uh, woman." Theresa blushed, upset at herself for her petty name calling. "The red head!" "Oh, yeah." "Oh, yes ma’am . I remember her very well." The young men’s eyes glazed over in remembered lust. Megan took one look at their grinning faces and realized she wouldn’t get any useful information from them any time soon. She turned back to the younger woman. "Do you by any chance remember a name for either one of them, or maybe an address?" "Uhm…I’m not sure…" "Jeanine." The name was spoken like an acolyte before a holy statue. Theresa looked at the courier with a pained expression. She rolled her eyes and turned back to Megan, who looked equally nauseated. "His name was…Eric LaMonte and yes, I heard him refer to her as Jeanine. I’m not sure about anything else, but if you want to come into the office, I can look him up for you." "Thank you, Theresa. That would be a big help." Megan followed Theresa into the office and watched as she typed information into the computer. "What is she like?" Startled, the young woman stopped searching through the files. Theresa obviously didn’t want to appear catty, but was fighting against her better nature. "She, uhm…dressed…provocatively." The young woman blushed. Emboldened by Megan’s knowing smile, she continued. "Her skirt and top couldn’t have cost very much, there wasn’t enough material to charge a whole lot." Megan smiled conspiratorially at the other woman. "So…she…" "Let me tell you…" Theresa looked around, making sure no one was listening. "There was more plastic in her than a Barbie doll." Grinning wickedly, Megan upped the ante. "So, those headlights didn’t come with the original model, hmmm." The young woman thought a moment and then came up with the coup de gras. "Nope. The new car smell has long departed from her." Megan was flabbergasted and then she began to laugh uproariously. Theresa joined her and the two women laughed until their sides hurt. The men in the outer office wondered what the hell was going on. David, one of the young couriers, thought to himself how pretty Theresa was when she smiled. "Okay, he didn’t give an address and Mr. LaMonte paid in cash." The Inspector sighed. "Damn, just like all the other times." "However…" Megan looked up hopefully. "I heard her mentioning the Filet de Marquand. She was whining to Mr. LaMonte that that’s what she was going to have for dinner." The Australian woman’s mind was whirling. She had to find out where that dish was served. It sounded like a specialty, so hopefully it wouldn’t be too hard. Theresa smiled at her new friend. "Filet de Marquand is only served at Colter House, the four star hotel on Boulton Street." "Thank you again, Theresa. You may have just saved someone’s life." The young woman smiled, her eyes widening at the predatory look on Megan’s face. Megan raced out of the shop, pulling her cell phone as she went. "Captain, we have a lead." It was only after Megan was halfway to the hotel that she realized the little ape wasn’t in her car. Later on, she would call animal control, only to find that no primates had been reported as missing.
Jeanine and Eric were being followed. They had been since they left the hotel room and both knew it. It hadn’t been hard to find them, after Theresa’s tip. The two criminals were blissfully unaware of Jeanine’s mistake at the courier’s office, so they enjoyed a quiet night’s dinner. It was only the next day that they realized something was up. "Hang on. I’m going to ditch them." Ahead was a stoplight that had just turned red. Jeanine gunned the gas and the car leapt forward, neatly sliding between cars coming from opposite directions. Eric gripped the door handle when he realized what was going to happen. The young man was amazed to come through unscathed. Squalling brakes and screaming metal followed them. He looked back and saw the mess that Jeanine had just created. Grinning maniacally, he looked over at his companion with admiration in his eyes. "Now that’s the way to get rid of a tail." Jeanine laughed and flicked a look out of the corner of her eye. "Enough messing around. Let’s have some fun."
H and Rafe watched in stunned amazement as car after car slammed into each other. Even if they didn’t feel morally and ethically inclined to stop and help the injured there was no way they could get through the tangled snarl of cars blocking the intersection. Rafe grabbed up the mike on the dashboard with a shaky hand and called the accident in. H pulled out his cell phone and dialed Banks. "Sir, there’s been a multiple car pileup. LaMonte and the woman caused it. Sir, they got away and there is no way we can follow them." Cursing could be heard through the phone, as the Captain accepted the disaster.
"Jim!" Simon’s voice rang out over the phone. It was loud enough that Blair turned to see what was the matter with the captain. "Simon…" "Brace yourselves, they got away from the surveillance team." "Damn!" Jim swore as he pulled his jeans on. "Thanks Simon." Jim snapped the phone shut and took hold of Blair’s shoulders, pulling him up off the bed. "Chief, we’ve got to get out of here." Without question, Blair followed Jim down the stairs and towards the front door. Ellison grabbed up his and Blair’s jackets. Jim shrugged into his as Blair slipped his on. Just before they got to the door, Jim cried out another warning. "Look out, Chief. I hear someone outside the door." Jim sniffed the air. "It’s them all right, I smell that unusual cologne." "Let’s go out the back door then." They didn’t even have time to go for another escape route. At that moment, the front door slammed open, knocking into Jim and making the Sentinel stumble. Jeanine and Eric came in through the doorway. Jeanine stalked towards her target and Eric found his. Blair staggered back when Jim fell against him. He tumbled against the couch that was still out of place, but managed not to fall. The anthropologist saw the predatory look in the other young man’s face and backed away. This made Eric grin maniacally. "Come here pretty one." Blair flinched at the saccharine sweet voice. He kept an eye on the killer, as he carefully glanced around for a weapon to defend himself. The young man knew that Jim was going to have his hands full with the woman and didn’t want to cause a distraction that might get his lover killed. "We are going to have a good time, just you and me." Eric licked his lips as he looked Blair up and down. The anthropologist felt a sudden desire to take a bath. He backed away in disgust, circling around the couch as he went. "You’ve got to be kidding me, man." The man with the scarred face didn’t like that. His lecherous leer drained away to be replaced by a murderous gleam in his eye. Obviously Blair was supposed to be happy with his psychotic tendencies. While the other man was glaring at him, Blair picked up a heavy candle off the table and threw it at him. Several weeks of training at the academy, plus lots of practice, helped with Blair’s aim, which was already very good. Unfortunately, his hands were still weak because of the frostbite, and the candle just hit a glancing blow off of the killer’s shoulder, not his head where Blair had been aiming. That pissed Eric off. "That hurt." His voice had gone from sickeningly sweet to deadly. "And now you are going to hurt." The killer lunged forward and grabbed Blair by the front of his jacket. He threw the anthropologist against the doors leading to the balcony. Blair bounced violently off of the glass doors and heard the lock click behind him. Blair reached behind him and pulled the door open, swinging it around so that Eric was hit in the face. The young man grabbed at his eye and Blair took that opportunity to try and grab Eric’s gun. There was a brief struggle that the scarred young man won, again because of the continued weakness in Blair’s hands. Blair saw the murderous fury in the other man’s eyes and backed up a few steps, onto the balcony. Eric followed, so intent on his prey that he forgot about Jeanine and her fight with Jim. Blair hadn’t forgotten the fight and turned his head to see how the Sentinel was faring. Eric used the lapse in concentration to get around the other side of the anthropologist. Blair grunted as the assassin punched him in the stomach. The young man grabbed his belly and fell to the ground, startled. He looked up in time to see the other man aiming his gun. Blair kicked out, catching the man in the kneecap. Pain shot up Blair’s leg, as his still healing foot protested the maneuver. Startled at the resistance from his downed prey, Eric staggered back hard. The killer stumbled over something soft and fell into the railing. Eric’s hand grabbed at the railing, but the wet metal slid slickly under his hand and actually helped in his fall. For a brief second, he hung there suspended. Then the scarred man flipped over backwards. The anthropologist saw fear cross the man’s face for just a second and then Eric was gone. Blair pulled himself up, hugging his aching stomach and inched over to the balcony railing. He peered over cautiously. "Just my luck, he’ll be hanging there. Waiting to grab me and pull me over instead." Three stories down, the body of the killer lay broken on the brown grass. His neck lay at an odd angle, so Blair wasn’t worried about him surviving the fall. The little monkey spirit guide, Raja, jumped up and down on the dead man’s chest. Blair felt something rub up against his leg and looked down at his side. There stood Woof, his spirit guide. Blair saw him and smiled. He was the something soft that Eric had fallen over. "Thanks buddy, you saved my life." The grey wolf woofed a couple of times. A loud crash reminded Blair of Jim and the other assassin. When he looked back down, the wolf was gone. Blair pushed away from the balcony and hurried back inside, just in case Jim needed his help.
Jim dodged as the knife swung towards his head. He lunged to one side as the red-headed woman tried to cut his throat. The large blade slammed into the post between the living room and kitchen and stuck there. Seizing the advantage, Ellison hit out at his tormentor and rammed her, face first, into the pillar, right beside the still quivering machete. "The hell with chivalry." He watched as the tall woman fell to the ground with a thump. "Jim." The older man looked over at his lover. Blair tossed him the pair of handcuffs that had fallen out of his jacket during the fight. The younger man smiled and Jim smiled back, relieved to see that his young lover seemed to be all right. The Sentinel pulled her arms behind her back and roughly slapped the handcuffs on. He left her there, unconscious, on the floor of the living room and walked over to pull his lover into his arms. "It’s over Chief." "Yes, it is, Big Guy."
Epilogue Ellison sat at his desk and impatiently waited for Blair to arrive. It had been two weeks since the scene at the loft and over three since Blair had almost died. Blair wasn’t late, but Jim was still worried. It would take a while for the Blessed Protector inside of him to calm down. Jim relaxed when he heard the first beats of Blair’s heartbeat. The young man was still out in the parking lot, but he was definitely getting closer. The Sentinel extended his hearing and heard several people saying hello to his young lover. Since the attack in the police parking lot, people were on the alert more than ever before. Simon watched from his office and sighed in relief when he saw Jim relax. He knew that the Sentinel had sensed his Guide and the young man had arrived safely at the station. Ping. "Hey Hairboy." "Hello Blair." "Hi H. Hey Joel." Blair smiled at his friends, but his eyes automatically went to Jim’s, reassuring his lover with his presence. The young man walked over and started to sit down beside the big detective, only to be forestalled. "Ellison, Sandburg! In my office." The young anthropologist grinned at the Captain’s usual bellow. It was a relief to hear it again. After the attack, everyone had been treating Blair with kid gloves and it was beginning to worry the young man. Now things were back to normal, or as close as it ever got around the chaotic station. Blair followed Jim into the office, like an obedient…cub. Inside, the Shaman snickered at the comparison. Obedient…right. "Coffee?" Simon held out the coffee pot like an old priest holding up a virgin sacrifice. Blair smiled at the thought and what Banks’ reaction would be if he told him. "Yes, sir. Thank you." "Thanks, Simon." After the captain had poured out the coffee, he returned to his desk. There were two files lying on top of the otherwise neat desktop. "We finally got back the final report on those two." There wasn’t any need to explain who those two were. It was just like with Alex Barnes, the evil Sentinel that tried to kill Blair, you didn’t have to specify who you were talking about, everybody automatically knew. Jim took the proffered files with relish. He had been waiting for this moment for weeks. Simon began to explain. "His name was Eric LaMonte, just like we thought. She was Jeanine Groel. Also an assassin. She was vicious though. Her favorite method of killing someone was to skin them alive. Her victims were found to have lived for days." "Days?" Blair looked queasy at the thought. "Yeah." Simon didn’t look much better. "She used IV’s to keep them going." Jim looked up from the folders, his eyes were a burning, icy blue. "I’m glad she’s dead." Banks nodded. "Yeah, I wonder…did she really commit suicide or did the cartel eliminate her too. The Sentinel cocked his head to one side, considering. The assassin had been found in her cell, her wrists had been slashed violently, as had her throat. Whoever had done the job had made sure there was no chance she would survive. "Who cares." "Jim." Banks admonished his detective, yet at the same time he, unconsciously, nodded carefully. He agreed with Ellison’s assessment. Whether she had killed herself or whether she had been murdered, it was out of their jurisdiction and out of their hands. Blair looked from one large man to another. He didn’t say anything during their talk. Even though he was, by and large, a pacifist, Blair was glad that the two would be killers were dead. "Did they ever find out why Anthony Simmons killed his wife?" "Yes, he confessed when presented with the evidence you found." Simon shook his head. "He was greedy." "Greedy?" Blair looked over at the Sentinel who was nodding his head in agreement. "Yeah Chief, greedy. He wanted all the money himself. It seems that Simmons was contacted by the kidnappers after we dropped off the ransom. He went to pick up his wife…" "Is that when she was seen out in public?" "Right. When he got there, Simmons killed the kidnappers and then his wife. He took the money and dumped her body in the alley and the kidnapper’s bodies in an abandoned warehouse." Blair snapped his fingers, extremely pleased at being able to do so. "The people who were killed by a gang." Jim nodded. "Except they weren’t killed by any gang members. Simmons made it look like they had been, to throw off any suspicion of who they were." "I still don’t understand though, why kill her. Still had multi millions of dollars and he was rich himself." Simon pulled out a cigar and lit it. "According to the people who work for him, Simmons is cheap. He insisted on low watt bulbs in the house and at the office, to save on electricity. People had to take their shoes off to prevent wear and tear on the carpets. The list goes on and on." "They’ll probably try to get him off on a psychiatric plea then, won’t they?" Blair shook his head. "Man the waste of life because of his greed." "Well, it won’t do him any good now, not where he’s going." "No. Poor woman, to be betrayed by the man who was supposed to love her." Blair shook his head sadly. "I can’t imagine how that would feel." "Neither can I, Chief, neither can I." Simon noticed Jim surreptitiously taking Blair’s hand and smiled.
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