Everything in Time

Автор: Ravenschild

“He wouldn’t go willingly, Connor, he was in a relationship.”

“So he left a lover behind. Okay maybe we can talk to him, was he investigated?”

“He was beyond reproach and had an alibi. Won’t do you any good, talking to him.”

“You sound sure.”

“Very sure, Connor.”

***

“So, basically what you’re telling me is that we’ve still got nothing?” Jarrod asked. He was not used to the round table approach, but found it comforting and understood now why Doyle’s team was so close knit. Axon’s eyes had dulled to a dark blue, almost reflecting the pain he felt in being in the room, and would not draw the other man’s gaze. A fact, Jarrod was certain, that did not go unnoticed with Doyle, who was a shrewd observer.

“No. What I’m telling you, Jarrod, is that unless the DA wants to go ahead with a case that has no facts to tie the group to the murders, we don’t have anything to get a warrant, let alone a conviction,” Ray said as he closed the folder and frowned.

“That’s not necessarily so,” Anton added. “The lab reports have come back and we can tie at least one member of the group to the purchase of the narcotic substance used on the last victim. That, and the circumstantial evidence we have, could us get as far as a pre-trial, which means they may make a mistake in the interim.”

“These people don’t make mistakes.” Peter’s voice was soft and echoed in the room. They were the first words he had spoken in over two hours and all heads turned to regard him.

“Everyone makes mistakes,” Anton answered kindly.

“Hey, don’t take my word for it, Anton, ask Jarrod. He’s been through this before. How many years have you been tracking them now? Seven? Eight?”

“Nearly ten, actually, and this is the closest I’ve come to tying an actual member to the murders. The background reports you’ve given us on the chemical composition have come back from the database at Quantico. We can tie Uebel to the purchase in at least eleven different locations over the past eight years. It’s a start.” Jarrod spoke directly to Peter.

“You heard Ray, it’s not enough.” Peter finally looked up and directly at the man opposite him. He felt pain lance through his heart. Firmly tramping down the feelings of hurt, he closed his eyes slowly and the cold face was back. “Take it to the DA and see what she says. The last thing I want,” Peter stood up and gathered his notes, “is for them to get off on a double jeopardy plea. Having said that, the CDC are expecting my call to see if we can tie any more of this toxin in residual handling to the group.”

“Bring them in for questioning and swab them? Is that possible?” Lindsey asked.

“We are developing a protocol for the test now. We should have it down within the day. Are we done?” Peter asked Connor directly.

“Yes, for the moment. In the meantime, Lindsey, keep digging on the paper trail, this group is funded somehow; if we can’t pin the murders on them, try for something else, give us time to build the rest of the case. Ray, help her out on it.”

“Good plan, at least it will get them off the streets.”

“Might even save a couple of lives.” Jarrod nodded and watched Peter shoulder his way through the door.

“Anton, Lindsey will handle all the normal stuff, we have contacts in various occult organizations around the country. See if they can come up with a whisper, or a connection we may have missed, as well as any background psychiatric histories we may have overlooked. Get Sims over at Central to put the call out.”

“On it now.” Anton was pleased to at least have a direction, so far five days without a break was grating on his nerves and he had slowly watched Axon unravel in front of him.

Once alone, Connor turned his considerable gaze on the FBI agent and, after a long uncomfortable silence for Jarrod, finally spoke.

“I’ve asked him and he won’t tell me apart from basic details. I know Peter well enough to know that there is more. I strongly suspect that you know more than you’re telling me as well.”

“Peter’s personal life and past are his own to divulge, Connor; not my place.”

“I understand professional ethics, Jarrod, I wrote the book on protocol. Nevertheless Peter is my friend, one of a very few, and I value him highly. If there is something I’m missing which puts him or his wellbeing at risk and you could have prevented it, I will take it personally.” Connor stood up. “Are we clear?”

“Crystal,” Jarrod answered.

***

“Did it work?” Jarrod leaned against the lab door and watched as Peter made notes on a white board.

“Yes, we have a swab that we can use which will pick up traces of the toxin up to twelve weeks old. It leaves a signature on the skin that is similar to a bloodstain. I’m working on applying it to fabric as well; might be able to link their bikes in as well.”

“Excellent, I’ll brief a team and arrange to have them picked up.”

“I thought Connor was running the investigation.”

“He is, but we have a break, Peter. I don’t want to lose the window of opportunity.”

“Move too fast and you’ll spook them.”

“I know.” Jarrod finally perched on the side of the bench and regarded his old friend.

“Don’t say it,” Peter warned softly.

“Someone has to. It wasn’t your fault, Peter, you know that.”

“Yes, of course of do.” Peter rubbed his forehead.

“All this hiding, is it worth it?”

“Meaning?”

“Tell me about your life.”

“With all due respect, Jarrod, it’s none of your fucking business.”

“Hey, don’t pull that shit with me, Axon, I was there. You locked us out, remember? Your pain, your hurt, your guilt; well, we were there for you – where the hell were you?” Jarrod was up, pacing. “Hiding, running away from it. It was never your fault; you could not have stopped Nick any more than I could have. He did what he felt he needed to do.”

“You didn’t see him, Jarrod. The bastards butchered him like livestock.”

“I saw, Peter; I was there at the autopsy.”

“Yeah.” Peter’s hand shook as he turned his back away. “They raped him, Jarrod. Those animals raped him.”

“I know, and none of us could protect him; how do you think we felt?”

“I don’t know, I never bothered to ask.” Peter regained his calm.

“No, you didn’t. It wasn’t enough we lost Nick. We lost you; and, by the looks of it, you’re still lost.”

“You have no idea!” Peter spat.

“I do, you know. Your boss, Doyle, read me the riot act. He’s desperately trying to protect you, Peter. Funny thing is, he hasn’t worked out who he’s meant to be protecting you from.”

“Get out.”

“Yeah, good answer. Sooner or later you will have to tell him.”

“Now.” Peter turned back to the board, wiped the sweat from his face, and shuddered as the door closed. He would not fall apart now. He couldn’t afford to. Everything would heal in time; that’s what they had all said and he needed to believe it.

***

“DA won’t go for it, we need a pretext to pick them up otherwise we’ve got a no go. Need ideas,” Jarrod said to Doyle.

“I’m not surprised. Janet is very cautious.”

“Know her well, do you?” Jarrod found a smile and Doyle smirked back.

“We studied together for a little while. I read the case reports again on how Nick died. What I don’t understand is, with all the back up he had, how they managed to get him out of the bar without you knowing?”

“They didn’t. He left on his own. They made contact a day or so later and he went out solo.”

“Foolish.”

“Yeah, Peter was furious, so was the old man. We know he left under his own steam, and that he met up with two other men in a park. He walked some distance with them and got into the back of a van. We found the van dumped a few days later.”

Connor regarded the man coolly. Peter’s name seemed to work its way into far too many of their conversations lately. As if Jarrod was trying to warn him, or tell him something that eluded him.

“And Peter found his body,” Connor supplied the rest.

“He took it badly, Doyle; you have no idea.”

“He told me he had a breakdown, tell me the rest.”

“I can’t – not all of it. He withdrew from the assignment and went missing from the office for nearly two days; we thought maybe they got to him as well.”

“Did they?”

“No, I went to the house and found him sitting in the corner of the bedroom. It was cold – the house had every window open, lights were out, he had nothing on but a towel and was shivering, too cold and too tired to cry.” The pain that raced through Jarrod’s face was telling and Connor allowed the other man to continue. “I did what I could, wrapped a blanket around him, made tea, warmed the place up. He was so far withdrawn I didn’t think he’d ever come out of it. Afraid we’d lost him and afraid of what would happen when he finally emerged. It was the most heartbreaking thing I’ve ever had to see.”

Connor found a lump forming in his heart. It pained him to know what Peter had gone through alone.

“Did you call his father?”

“Ray? Yeah, eventually, that’s what the argument was. Best psych in the business, Doyle, and his father had to put him in care. Peter took it badly when he recovered and I don’t think they’ve spoken since.”

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