ForevaXena's FanFic . . .

Fate

by HLKaia

Disclaimers:

This is my first posted uber story.  The main characters have a striking resemblance to a certain pair that are near and dear to all of our hearts but the story and situations are completely mine.  No infringement is meant.

Love/Sex:  This is an alternative fiction story.  It depicts a loving relationship between to consenting adult women.  If that’s not your forte I suggest you read something else.

Language:  I’m a potty mouth, I admit it!  And therefore a few of my characters have that tendency. If this disturbs you, read no further!

Violence:  Most assuredly there will be some.  After all, one of the characters is an ex-bounty hunter and I’m sure there will be some related in this story sooner or later.  I’ll try not to be too graphic but you never know what the scene may need.

Acknowledgements:  This is for my loving partner who always said I could do this!  She’s been nagging me for years to put something out there and let others read what I write.  So this is for her.  Also, to my supporting best friend, Ty-guy who kept telling me I could do this and just to get on with it!

Cover by ForevaXena

(Click photo for larger image)

Part 18

Lauren rolled over and reluctantly opened her eyes.  The room was dark so she figured she must have slept the afternoon away.  She groaned and closed her eyes once more to take stock of herself.  Everything seems to be in working order, she thought.  Though I feel like someone has been beating me with a baseball bat.  She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.  I really should get up and see what Rachel is up to.  She rolled onto her side and looked towards the closed bedroom door.  The sound of muffled voices filtered through to her and she frowned.  Who is Rachel talking to? she wondered. 

            With a sigh she sat up and ran her fingers through her hair causing it to stick up in all directions.  She yawned and stretched before swinging her legs over the side of the bed and sitting up.  Her eyes fell on the black case of Ash’s guitar as the streetlight from outside bathed it in an eerie glow.  She swallowed the lump in her throat and reached out a hesitant hand to run her fingers down the cool surface of the case.  Oh Ash!  Where are you?  What are you doing? her mind cried.  She sniffed and struggled against the urge to crawl back under the covers and hide in sleep.

            “I need to get up,” she ordered firmly.  Her stomach chose that moment to rumble and she smiled.  “Yeah, I’m hungry.”

            A gentle knock at the door sounded.  Lauren turned her head and stared at it puzzled.  “Come in?”

            A dark head peered around the doorframe and Lauren felt a jolt of surprise course through her as she recognized Sheila through the glare of the hall light.

            “I thought I’d come and see if you were awake,” she said as she entered the room and took a seat beside Lauren on the bed.  She reached out and gently took Lauren’s hands between hers.

            “Sheila?  When did you get here?  What—what are you doing here?” Lauren asked nonplussed by her sudden appearance.

            “Lu and I came over this morning.  We were worried about you and thought you could use a couple more friendly faces around,” Sheila explained softly meeting bloodshot green eyes.

            Lauren nodded as her tired mind tried to wrap itself around the reality of Sheila really being there.  Her very presence soothed something deep inside of Lauren and she felt the tears begin to rise to the surface once more.  “Oh Sheila!  I don’t know what’s going on!” she cried choking back a sob.

            Sheila smiled sympathetically as she pulled Lauren into a hug.  “Its okay, honey.  We’ll figure it all out—together,” she soothed as she rubbed Lauren’s back.

            Lauren nodded into her shoulder as she let the tears come.  It felt so good to have Sheila there--someone who really understood.  She let herself fall into the comfort of Sheila’s arms and let all the grief and frustration pour out of her.

            Sheila held the sobbing Lauren and gently rocked her, murmuring comforting words.  Her eyes fell upon Ash’s guitar and a flash of anger tore through her.  You and I are going to have a long talk, Ashlin.  I know you think you’re doing the right thing, but you’re tearing Lauren apart by your gallantry.  I hope Lu and Benson are able to track you down.  Her mind flashed to the types of places Lu was probably searching at this very moment and fought down the wave of fear that washed over her.  Lu will be fine.  She knows what she’s doing; she reassured her rapidly beating heart.  Benson won’t allow her to get herself into too much trouble—I hope.  Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Lauren’s stomach rumbling.

            Lauren pulled away slightly with a blush.  “Guess I’m hungry,” she said as she wiped at her swollen eyes.

            “I would say so,” Sheila agreed, studying Lauren’s face. “You want to come out and eat, or do you want me to bring you something?”

            Lauren thought about it for a moment as she pulled herself more or less back together.  “I think I’ll go out,” she said with a small grin.  “I’ve been cooped up in here long enough and I’m sure Rachel is frantic.”

            “No, not frantic,” Sheila replied rising from the bed.  “But I do think she’s bored and I’m afraid I’m not that entertaining.”

            Lauren giggled.  “Oh, I wouldn’t say that, Sheila.”  Lauren stretched and stood.  “Rachel is just high maintenance.  She gets bored easily.  Needs a lot of stimulation.  I think that’s why she goes through women so fast—none of them can keep her attention for long.”

            Sheila smiled.  “Well, why don’t I go out and see what we can order in, since Rachel’s cupboards leave a lot to be desired.”

            Lauren giggled.  “Sounds like a plan.  I’ll just go brush my teeth and attempt to become human.”

            Sheila nodded and quietly left the room, leaving a void behind her.  Lauren sighed.  “Guess I better be about it.”  She grabbed her bag from the floor and rummaged through it for something to throw on.  With outfit in hand she headed for the bathroom.

**********

            “She up?” Rachel asked as Sheila reappeared.

            “More or less,” Sheila replied walking over and taking a seat across from Rachel at the kitchen table.  “She’s going to get dressed and then come out.  We need to decide what we’re going to order for dinner.”

            Rachel reached behind her for a stack of coupons.  “How’d she look?” she asked as she began sorting through the various restaurant fliers.

            Sheila shrugged.  “Washed out.  She had a good cry and I think that helped relieve some of the pressure.”  She reached out and took half the stack Rachel was sorting.  “I hope Lu and Benson find Ash and are able to convince her to come back with them.  I think the only thing that is going to help Lauren now is to see her.”

            Rachel nodded in agreement.  “Can’t argue with you there, but Ash is pretty damn stubborn from what I’ve seen so far.”

            A pensive look falling across her features, Sheila glanced up from the fliers and looked at Rachel.  “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

            “What do you mean?” Rachel asked the fliers forgotten momentarily in her hand.

            “I think that once Ash sets her mind to do something, there’s no talking her out of it,” Sheila explained absently shuffling through the fliers.  “And I’m half afraid she’ll talk Lu into helping her with any hair-brained idea she’s come up with.”

            Rachel gasped.  “Oh shit.  I never thought of that!  Ash can be pretty persuasive, huh?”

            Sheila nodded.  “And my Lu would probably be pretty easily convinced.”  Rachel looked at her puzzled.  Sheila saw the look and hurried to explain.  “Lu is leaving the business.  She may see this as her last chance for a big adventure.”

            “You’re kidding, right?”  Rachel asked incredulously.

            “Afraid not,” Sheila replied with a sad shake of her head.  “Hopefully she’ll call tonight and I can convince her that they need to go to the police with the information they’ve gleaned and let them handle it.”  She laughed cynically.  “I’m not going to hold my breath though.”

            Rachel sat back as the implications descended.  “Shit.  So they may go out and try and get this guy on their own?  Don’t they know how crazy that is?”

            Sheila laughed.  “I didn’t say it was logical—just typical.”

            “Well, that’s just great,” Rachel groaned throwing up her hands in disgust.

            “What’s great?” Lauren asked as she stepped into the room

            Rachel spun around and tried to think of something to say—anything.  “Hey, sleepyhead.  Sheila and I were just trying to decide what to order.  What do you feel like?”

            Lauren crossed her arms and leveled a penetrating look at her best friend.  “Obviously I interrupted something.  Care to share?”

            Rachel looked at Sheila pleading for help.  Sheila nodded and turned to Lauren with a reassuring smile. “It’s nothing, honey.  We were just wondering when Lu would call.  Why don’t you come sit down and help us go through this mess?”  She pointed to the stack of fliers on the table for emphasis.

            Lauren eyed the two suspiciously, knowing they were hiding something.  She figured they were probably talking about her or Ash and didn’t want to upset her by coming clean.  “Okay,” she said finally, letting it go for the moment and coming over to the table to take a seat between the two.

            Rachel sighed in relief and diligently began sorting coupons.  “How about Chinese?”

            Lauren’s eyes tracked to Sheila and she couldn’t help but laugh.  Sheila rolled her eyes but laughed indulgently.

            “What?” Rachel asked confused.

            “Nothing, Rach.  Absolutely nothing,” Lauren assured her as she pulled out a flier for a Chinese restaurant.  “This one’s pretty good.  I’ve ordered from there before.”

            Rachel looked to Sheila for an explanation but she just shook her head.  “You guys are messing with me, but I can’t figure it out,” Rachel said with a grimace.

            “Would we do that?” Sheila asked opening her eyes wide and taking on an innocent air.

            “Yes.”  Rachel nodded fervently.

            “It’s nothing, Rach,” Lauren assured her.  Her green eyes danced with merriment and Rachel found herself returning the smile.

            “Okay.  What do you all want?” Rachel asked turning her attention to the menu.

            The three put their heads together and poured over the menu.  After deciding what they wanted, Rachel quickly phoned in the order and the three friends retired to the living room to wait for the delivery.

*********************************

            Ash led the way into the hotel room and promptly did a swan dive onto the nearest bed.  Quickly pulling a pillow under her head she closed her eyes and relaxed.

            Lu entered the room with Benson trailing behind her.  Lu glanced at Ash and snorted.  “Figures.”  She walked across the room and dropped the bags of fast food they had purchased on their way to the hotel.

            Benson looked at his sprawled cousin and shrugged.  He strolled over to the easy chairs, set to one side, and lowered himself into one with a sigh.  As he stretched out his legs and leaned his head back against the wall, he realized he’d never felt so tired in his life.  The drive had been a tense one and he consciously began to try and relax his shoulders that were screaming from the strain.

            Lu collapsed into the other chair and began rummaging through one of the bags for something to eat.  She popped a French fry into her mouth as she pulled out two grease-stained bundles and set them before her.  Pulling one of the Styrofoam cups of coffee towards her, she popped the lid so she could dump a handful of sugar packets into it.

            Benson watched numbly.  His stomach churned as Lu unwrapped one of the questionable burgers and bit into it with relish.  “How can you eat that?” he asked pointing to the greasy mess in her hand.

            Lu swallowed and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.  “It’s not that bad.  You just have to not think about it too much.”

            Benson grimaced and let his head fall back against the wall.  He wasn’t that hungry.  Stretching his legs out he bit back a moan as tight muscles protested the move.  I’m going to be feeling this in the morning.  Hell, I’m feeling it now, he thought rubbing his burning eyes.  A whiff of stale beer and smoke reached his nose.  Ugh.  I need a shower and to get out of these clothes.   He sniffed his shirt and nodded decisively.  “I need a shower,” he announced.

            Lu looked up from her meal.  “Go ahead.”

            Benson pulled himself wearily up and headed for the bathroom.  He stopped halfway there when a thought intruded.  “Damn, I don’t have a change of clothes!”

            Lu swallowed, belched, and pointed to a duffle bag she had tossed on the other bed.  “Look through there.  I grabbed you some clothes while you were changing before we went out.”

            Benson nodded in thanks and was grateful Lu had thought of it.  He knew he wouldn’t have.  He opened the duffle and pulled out a pair of pressed jeans and a clean green oxford. He smiled at the sight of fresh clean clothes. “This is more like it,” he said taking up the clothes and heading for the bathroom for a much needed shower.

            Lu chuckled as she finished off her first burger and took a long swallow of lukewarm coffee.  Enviously, she eyed Ash’s sprawled form.  She’d love to just lie down and forget for a while, but she knew she couldn’t.  Shit, I better call Sheila and let her know we found Ash and are okay.  Wiping her hands on a napkin, she began searching her pockets for her cell phone.  Finding it, she flipped it open and dialed.  She glanced at her watch as she listened to the rings.  Shit!  It’s after two.  Hope Sheila won’t be too upset.

            “Hello?” a sleepy voice answered.

            “Sheila, honey?” Lu asked leaning back in her chair with a groan.

            “Lu?  Is that you?  What time is it?”

            “Yes, baby, it’s me.  Just after two.  Sorry for calling so late, but I figured you’d want an update.”

            “Did you find Ash?”

            “Yeah, we found her,” Lu replied looking at her friend lying spread eagle on the bed and wondering idly if she was really asleep or just faking it.

            “Is she okay?  Are you okay?”  Sheila asked in concern.  “You don’t sound okay.  What happened?”

            Lu rubbed her eyes as she tried to think of someway to reassure her wife.  “No, we’re fine.  Honest.  Just really tired.”

            “Lu,” Sheila said in that tone that Lu knew meant she didn’t believe a word she had just said.

            “We found her and we’re all in one piece.  We’re at a hotel,” Lu said trying to sound reassuring.

            “Hotel?  Why are you at a hotel?”

            “Because we couldn’t talk Ash into going back to Ben’s.  This was the compromise,” Lu explained tiredly.

            “I see.  Do you think you’ll be coming back here anytime soon?”

            “I’m not sure, hon, I’ll keep you posted,” Lu replied regretfully.  “Hopefully this will all be over soon.”

            “I hope so.  Get some sleep.  You sound exhausted,” Sheila ordered in a loving voice.

            “Yes, dear,” Lu said a smile tugging at her lips.  “I’ll call again tomorrow.”

            “Okay.  And Lu?”

            “Hmm?”

            “Try and talk Ash into calling Lauren.  The poor girl is beside herself with worry.”

            Lu sighed, her good mood banished.  “I’ll try, but I’m not making any promises.”

            “Okay.  Guess that will have to do.  Good night, love.”

            “Good night,” Lu said softly.  She clicked off the phone and tossed it on the table amidst the refuge of her dinner.

            “What did she say?”

            Lu started and looked over to the bed to see Ash looking back at her.  “She wants you to call Lauren,” Lu said bluntly.

            Ash cringed, but didn’t turn away.  “I can’t do that, Lu.”

            “Why the hell not?” Lu demanded in frustration. 

            “You know why,” Ash said quietly as she picked at the bedspread nervously.

            “No, Ash, I honestly don’t have a fucking clue,” Lu replied, glaring at her friend. 

            Ash dropped her eyes and gritted her teeth in frustration.  “You saw me tonight.  Do you really think I’m what Lauren needs right now?”

            Lu snorted in disgust.  “You are clueless you know that?”  Lu practically shouted as she stood and began to pace.  “Lauren doesn’t give a rat’s ass about that!  She’s scared and probably thinking you don’t give a damn about her.  And you” —she pointed an accusing finger at Ash—“seem bound and determined to reinforce that very idea!”

            Ash’s own anger rose at her friend’s accusations.  “You don’t know a damn thing about it, Lu!  I’m doing this for Lauren!  And the only way I know how to do that is go back to being the Wolf!”  Ash shouted as she sat up and scowled at Lu for making her admit it.  “I can barely stand to be around myself and you want me to expose Lauren to that?  Are you out of your mind?”

            “Bullshit,” Lu growled coming to a stop before Ash.  “You are full of shit.” She poked Ash in the chest with each word.  Ash brushed her hand away but Lu wouldn’t be dissuaded.  “That’s just an excuse to run and you bloody well know it!”

            “Do I?” Ash growled back as she slid back off the bed to face Lu across it.

            “What the hell is going on out here?”  Benson demanded storming out of the bathroom with a towel around his neck.

            “Your cousin is showing what a dumbass she really is,” Lu informed him, waving towards Ash.

            Ash shot her a dirty look before spinning on her heel and stomping over to the window.  She pulled the drapes aside with a jerk and stared moodily out into the rainy night.

            Benson glanced between his cousin and an obviously furious Lu and struggled to think of something to say to defuse the situation.  “Okay,” he said slowly.  Oh that was brilliant!  “I… uh… I’m going to go get some ice.”

            Lu blinked in surprise at the announcement and watched mutely as Benson grabbed the ice bucket and left the hotel room in a hurry.

            “Why the hell did you have to bring him along?”

            Lu turned at the question and eyed Ash’s back warily.  “He invited himself along.  He was worried about you.”  Lu sank back into her chair and waited for Ash to say something.  When the silence grew too long she said, “I decided it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to have him as backup.  The guy is as big as a tank and I figured you wouldn’t be in the nicest of places when I did track you down.”

            Ash’s shoulders slumped and she bowed her head in acknowledgement.  “True.”

            “So you want to cut the crap and get down to business or what?”  Lu asked.

            Ash nodded and walked over to the table taking the chair Benson had recently vacated.  She grabbed one of the bags and pulling out one of the burgers began to eat without thought.

            “You want to tell me what you were asking that guy in the bar?” Lu asked watching her friend devour the burger like a woman half starved. 

            “I talked to one of my old informants and he told me that this Remi guy would have information for me,” Ash explained between bites.

            “And did he?”

            Ash nodded.  “Some.”

            “Care to share?” Lu growled impatiently.

            “I was trying to find out who hired that scum that shot at Lauren,” Ash explained.  “Or at least who hired them to hurt her.  I don’t think the shooting was planned.  It was too messy and totally out of character for a professional shooter.”

            Lu’s eyebrows rose impressed.  “Did you find out who’s behind it?”

            “Yeah.  Rico told me that the Garbacik family was nervous after the shooting.  That’s why I went to Remi.  He’s one of their boys on the street,” Ash began as she rummaged in the bag for another burger.  “I started thinking about it while I was trying to hunt down this Remi guy.  I put one of the Garbacik boys away about five years ago.  Remember Sal?”

            Lu nodded her eyes narrowing.  “What the hell would one of the families be doing getting involved in something like this?”

            “I don’t think it’s the family.  I think it’s a couple of people related to the family.  My brain finally clicked and I remembered where I’ve seen those two guys before.”

            Lu waited for her to enlighten her, but Ash seemed to have forgotten she was there.  Lu slapped the table making Ash jump and look up at her with wide-eyes. “Who the hell are they?”

            “Oh.  Sorry,” Ash apologized sheepishly.  “Guess I’m more tired than I thought.  They’re a couple of brothers.  Roy and Tommie Moreni by name.  They’re small time hoods.  From the information I was able to get on the street, it seems Tommie has a serious drug problem and he and his brothers are neck deep in debt to one of the big drug cartels.”

            “Shit!” Lu exclaimed.

            Ash nodded.  “Yeah.  I think they hired themselves out to whomever and things got out of hand.  I know Tommie was the actual shooter—I recognized him once I figured out who he was.  I don’t know which one was driving the car that tried to run Lauren down in Spokane, but that doesn’t really matter.”

            “Any idea where they’re at or who hired them?”  Lu asked picking up a fry and chomping on it as she listened fascinated.

            “The family’s hiding them, I’m sure of that.  They’re nervous the cops will find the brothers and get the family involved.   It’s going to take a lot to track them down and when we do…” Ash paused with a faraway look on her face.  She finally shook herself and met Lu’s attentive gray eyes.  “When we do, it’s a sure bet they’ll be well protected.”

            “Why don’t you just hand all this over to the cops?” Lu asked even though she already knew the probable answer.

            “You want me to trust cops?” Ash asked incredulously.  “And besides, it’s just conjecture as far as they’re concerned.  I don’t have any hard evidence.  Besides, I bet they think Alexi was the target.”

            “You’re right about that—they do,” Lu replied.  “Did this Remi tell you who hired them?”

            Ash’s eyes narrowed dangerously.  “No.  But I have a pretty good idea who it is.”

            “You do?” Lu asked surprised.

            Ash nodded.  “Judith.”

            “Judith?”  Lu questioned incredulously.  “As in Judith Sinclair?”  Ash nodded.  “You can’t be serious! What the hell is the motive?  How did you come up with this?”

            “It all fits, Lu,” Ash said calmly.  She raised her hand and began ticking off points on her fingers.  “First, no one knew about my relationship with Lauren until the charity auction.  Judith was fawning all over me and trying to get me to take her back.” Ash grimaced at the memory.  “Second, none of this started happening until I rejected Judith’s advances.  Third, why else would Alexi go looking for Lauren?  That’s totally out of character.  She doesn’t know Lauren from Adam!  I don’t think they were even introduced!  But if Alexi overheard Judith say or do something, she may have had a fit of conscience and sought Lauren out to warn her.”

            Lu sat back and thought about it.  It did make sense in a way.  “Okay.  I can see where you’re coming from, but how are you going to prove it?”

            “By torturing Judith until she confesses,” Ash offered only half joking.

            “That may be a bit tough since my sources tell me that she’s spending all her time at the hospital hovering over Alexi.  And I’ll bet you dollars to donuts that security is tighter than a virgin’s—“

            “Lu!  Such language,” Ash interrupted with mock sternness.  “What would Sheila say?”

            “Sheila knew what she was getting into when she married my sorry ass,” Lu replied pleased by the easy banter that was developing between them.  The real Ash was beginning to reassert dominance and Lu prayed she could keep her from spiraling back into the darkness.

            “Okay, torturing Judith is out,” Ash replied with a grin.  “So what does that leave us?”

            Lu rubbed her chin contemplating their options.  “I still think we should go to the cops and tell them.”  She held up a hand to forestall Ash’s objection.  “I talked to Pete and he said that the detective in charge is a good guy.  I think he’d help more than hinder, Ash.”

            “I’ll think about it.  What did Pete tell you?” Ash replied resting her elbows on the table.

            “Let me grab my notes,” Lu said as she stood and went over to her duffle.  She pulled out her notes and returned to the table.  She flipped them open and scanned them quickly.  “Okay, the detective in charge is one Frank Morrison.  Know him?”

            “Yeah, I think so.  Big guy, around 6 foot, blue eyes, salt and pepper crewcut.  Works violent crimes,” Ash replied calmly.

            Lu glanced up at her in surprise.  “Damn.  You got quite the memory for detail, don’t you?”

            Ash shrugged.  “Sometimes.  What else?”

            “He’s got a new partner… umm… name’s Joel Dodd-- young guy, black, around 5’10—just made detective.  Pete didn’t have much information on him other than that.  What he did say was that we could trust Morrison.  That he was a good cop and would be open to anything we had to say,” Lu said looking up to meet preoccupied blue eyes.  “What do you think?”

            “I’m not sure,” Ash said slowly as she considered.

            Benson chose that moment to return with the ice.  He stepped into the room and was relieved to see that Ash and Lu seemed to be working together instead of trying to rip off each other’s heads.  He really didn’t want to know the ins and outs of it, he was just glad the crisis seemed to be over—for now.  Setting the ice bucket down and grabbing a handful of ice he dumped it into a cup.  He filled the cup with water and carried it into the room.  Gingerly, he sat on the edge of one of the beds and looked at the two women expectantly.

            “Hey, Benson,” Lu greeted him distractedly as she thumbed through her notes.

            “What are you two up to?” Benson asked hesitantly as he sipped his water.

            “Just trying to pool our information,” Ash replied leaning back in her chair and squeezing the bridge of her nose trying to ward off the headache she felt building.

            “Oh,” Benson replied not sure what else to say.  He fidgeted with his cup, uncomfortable and unable to think of a way to alleviate it.

            “Did you call Louis?” Lu asked not looking up.

            Benson slapped his forward.  “No!  He’s probably worried sick!”

            Lu grabbed her phone and tossed it to him without comment.  Benson fielded the phone awkwardly with one hand.  “Thanks.”

            “No problem,” Lu murmured.

            Benson stood and took the phone to the bathroom for a semblance of privacy.  He really didn’t want to talk to Louis in front of the others; since he had a feeling he was in for a tongue-lashing and didn’t want them to hear him grovel.

            “Okay.  So what’s the plan?” Lu asked.  She gave up trying to read her notes since her eyes were beginning to blur from fatigue.

            “To confirm whether or not Judith is behind this,” Ash said in a tight voice.  “Either by finding the brothers and getting the information from them, or by somehow getting to Judith.”

            “Oh, piece of cake,” Lu replied sarcastically with a snap of her fingers.

            Ash grinned.  “Why don’t we get some sleep and start fresh in the morning?”

            “Good idea. I can’t seem to think anymore,” Lu agreed as she stretched.

            Ash stood and walked over to the beds.  “Who’s sleeping where?”

            “Don’t care as long as I get a pillow,” Lu replied with a shrug.  She looked at the table full of greasy wrappers, but just didn’t have the energy to care or clean it up.  “I think you should either sleep with me or Ben though.  I don’t think Ben would be real comfortable sharing a bed with me.”

            “True.  You snore,” Ash quipped as she sat to pull off her boots.

            “I do not!” Lu retorted indignantly.

            “Yes, you do,” Ash assured her.  “Benson’s a big guy.  Why don’t we let him have a bed to himself and I’ll sack out with you?”

            “Fine,” Lu grumbled as she came over to the bed and began to dig through her duffle looking for something to sleep in.  “Damn, I’m tired.”

            “You and me both,” Ash agreed as she slipped out of her jeans.  She yawned and decided that was good enough.  She pulled back the blanket and collapsed into the bed wearing her t-shirt and boxers.

            “Oh no!  You are not sleeping in that stinky ass shirt!” Lu informed her tossing a wadded up t-shirt at her.  It smacked Ash in the face and she grunted.

            Ash quickly shimmied out of her shirt and pulled the clean shirt on without bothering to sit up.  She closed her eyes and sighed as abused muscles began to relax.  Lu climbed into bed next to her and groaned wearily.  Ash grinned at the sound.

            “What you smiling at?” Lu growled.

            “Nothing,” Ash replied innocently, rolling over to face away from Lu.

            “Uh-huh.  That’s what I thought,” Lu said as she settled into the bed and closed her eyes.  “Think we should turn out the light?”

            “No.  Leave it on for Benson,” Ash replied sleepily.

            “Okay,” Lu yawned.

*****************************

            “Roy!   Roy, get your ass out here!”

            Roy sat up his heart pounding at the sound of his cousin Gary bellowing for him.  He groaned as the effects of all the whiskey he had drank the night before, pounded through his head.  He swallowed convulsively, fighting down the nausea as he swung his legs out of bed.  “What the fuck?” he questioned as he rubbed his face trying to wake up.

            “Roy?  Where are you?” Gary’s voice demanded from the other room

            “I’m coming.  Keep your fucking pants on,” Roy grumbled as he rose from the bed and took stock of his condition.  His mouth tasted like a cat had died in it and his stomach was churning.  Swaying slightly, he reached out a hand to steady himself.  “What fucking time is it?” he wondered as he made his way across the bedroom slowly and out into the main room of the cabin. 

            Gary was pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace, his face a study in annoyance.  He stopped and glared at Roy as he appeared out of the bedroom.  “You have some explaining to do, Roy!”

            “What the hell are you talking about, Gary?” Roy asked grumpily as he staggered towards the kitchen, where he knew there would be a pot of coffee ready since he could smell it.

            “You want to explain to me why the Wolf and Pocahontas are sniffing around?” Gary demanded following Roy into the kitchen.

            Roy’s hand paused for a moment, hovering over the coffee pot.  Keeping his head down, he gulped, not wanting Gary to see the fear in his eyes.  He poured himself a cup as he tried to think of something to say.  “How the hell should I know?” he said deciding ignorance was his best option. Gary grabbed his shoulder and roughly spun him around to face him.  The hot coffee sloshed burning Roy’s hand.  “Damn it!” he cursed setting the cup down and shaking off his scalded hand.  “What the fuck, Gary?”

            “You know something, Roy and I’m sick of pussy footing around it!  I stood up for you with the family and you’re dicking me.  Now spill!” Gary ordered his face contorted in rage.

            Roy sighed as he reached up and rubbed the back of his neck.  “Okay, Gary.  Get yourself a cup of coffee and let’s go sit down and talk about this.”

            “Fine,” Gary said through gritted teeth as he pushed past Roy to pour himself a cup of coffee.

            Roy picked up his cup and moved into the living room.  He took a seat on the couch and took a tentative sip of the hot coffee feeling it burn all the way down.  Closing his eyes, he tried to sort out this mess in his head so he could tell his cousin without him totally losing it and throwing them both to the wolves.

            “Okay, Roy, I’m listening,” Gary said as he took a seat and looked at his disheveled cousin expectantly.  “This better be good.  The family is pissed and you’re about two steps away from concrete shoes.”

            Roy nodded figuring that was probably the case.  “You know Tommie owes Asim a ton of money, right?”  Gary nodded in agreement.  “Okay.  Well, we were desperate for change since Asim’s bullyboys were starting to get antsy.  This good-looking, high class blonde tracked us down through Johnny T. saying she had a job for us.” Roy shrugged.  “I didn’t think it would hurt to listen to her, so I met with her and she laid it out for me.  Seemed easy enough.  She wanted this little redhead taken care of, but she wanted it to look like an accident.”

            “Why?” Gary asked breaking Roy’s concentration.

            “What?” Roy asked stupidly.

            “Why did she want the redhead whacked?” Gary asked patiently.

            Roy shrugged.  “Hell if I know.  I didn’t bother to ask.  She was offering five gee for the job and we needed the money, so I took it no questions asked.”

            “Did you get any of it up front?” Gary questioned.

            “Yeah, half.  Gave it to Asim to get his boys off our backs,” Roy replied.

            “So how did the Wolf and Darkcloud get involved?” Gary asked not able to figure out the connection.

            “I didn’t know then,” Roy answered truthfully.  “We followed the target to Spokane and I was thinking it would be the perfect opportunity to get rid of her, you know?  She goes to this house and something about it looks real familiar.  So I call up Pablo and ask him about it.”

            “And?” Gary prompted leaning forward.

            “Turns out she was visiting none other than Darkcloud herself,” Roy said shaking his head in disbelief. 

            “Shit,” Gary cursed. “Why didn’t you pull out then?”

            Roy grimaced.  “”Cause we needed the damn money!  I’d already spent the first half and believe me, this blonde wasn’t one I felt like double-crossing.  She’s crazy.”

            “Any idea who she is?”

            Roy nodded.  “I didn’t then, but I do now.”

            “Oh?”

            “Yeah.  When I was cooped up in the room, Hank brought in some newspapers for entertainment.  I was bored so I started thumbing through them.  I opened up the Arts section and the damn bitch was staring me right in the face!  She’s some model or actress or some shit and she was with that Alexi bitch at some damn charity auction.  It gets worse. The target was at the same event and was standing beside none other than the Wolf herself!” Roy announced with a deprecating laugh.

            “Shit!  You have to be kidding me?” Gary asked in disbelief.

            Roy shook his head.  “Afraid not.”

            “Damn, when you fuck up you fuck up big!” Gary replied shaking his head.

            “Yeah, I know.  But I guess that’s why the Wolf and that Indian bitch are sniffing around,” Roy said.  “What do you think the family will do when they find out?”

            Gary sat back and thought about it.  He couldn’t believe his cousins had managed to screw up so badly.  “Well, you know they’re going to throw Tommie to the wolves.”

            Roy sighed.  “I was afraid you’d say that.”

            “They have to.  With the Wolf sniffing around its only a matter of time before she figures it out.  She always does.  They won’t take the heat—not for Tommie,” Gary said solemnly. 

            “Well I have to think of something!  I can’t let them do that to my brother,” Roy said agitated by the thought of his baby brother taken the fall.

            “Well, what the hell you going to do?  You don’t think the family isn’t going to figure this out pretty soon?” Gary asked raising an eyebrow in question.

            “You’re not going to tell them are you?” Roy asked in horror.

            “Jesus, Roy!  I’m going to have to sooner or later,” Gary said sympathetically.

            “Give me twenty-four hours to figure something out, okay?” Roy pleaded.

            “I don’t know.”  Gary shook his head doubtfully.  “What the hell you going to do?”

            “I’ll figure something out.  I have to.  I know Tommie is a dumbass, but he’s still my brother.  Please, Gary, help me,” Roy practically begged.

            Gary studied his cousin’s desperate face and sighed.  “Okay, okay!  I’ll give you twenty-four hours.  But you better think of something fast!  The family is going to start wanting to know what the hell is going on and I’m not going to be able to keep a lid on this forever.”

            “Thanks, Gary.  I’ll think of something I swear!”  Roy gushed profusely.

            Gary rolled his eyes but nodded.  “I better get going.  I’ll be back tonight and see what you’ve come up with.”

            “Okay, thanks,” Roy said gratefully.

            Gary stood.  “Don’t thank me yet, Roy.  I haven’t done anything but keep my mouth shut for awhile.”

            Roy nodded and rose to walk his cousin to the door.  “I’ll call you if I think of something before you come by.”

            “You do that,” Gary replied opening the front door and nodding to the one of the guards on the porch.

            “Okay, Gary, and thanks,” Roy said.

            Gary waved in acknowledgement as he walked down the stairs towards his waiting car.  Roy watched until he drove off and disappeared.  He closed the door and leaned against it his knees trembling.  “I got to think of something,” Roy muttered to himself as he pushed off from the door and strode determinedly towards the kitchen table. 

            He sank into a chair and dropped his head into his hands.  “Think, Roy, think,” he muttered.  “What are your options?”

            He struggled through his hangover to come up with a way to save his brother.  He didn’t want to see Tommie killed by the family or incarcerated by the police.  There had to be another way--but what? 

            “Tommie’s sick!  He needs help not jail!” Roy mumbled helplessly.  “But how do I get that for him?”

He frowned as he tugged his hair in irritation. 

            Can I go to the cops?  No, they’d just toss him in jail and throw away the key.  That won’t help him any.  He thought furiously trying to come up with an alternative.  The family is going to kill him.  That’s a given.  Gary didn’t say what they’d do with me, but they must think I can still be of use.  Damn, what does that leave?  Blazing blue eyes framed in a mass of raven hair came to mind and he shuddered involuntarily.  That’s crazy!  The Wolf?  His mind wouldn’t let go of the idea so he sat back and thought about it. 

            There’s has to be a way.  All I’ve heard about her is that once she gives her word it’s as good as gold.  He scowled.  So I just have to think of some way to get her to agree to get Tommie into a hospital instead of turning him over to the cops.  Yeah, that might work.

            He got up and headed for the kitchen.  There were some calls he needed to make.  He just prayed he could find someone crazy enough to approach the Wolf on his behalf.  He shook his head at the impossibility of the task.  “I’ll think of something.  I have to,” he muttered as he stepped into the kitchen and reached for the phone.

****************************

            Morrison sat back and rubbed his eyes in irritation.  He glanced at the clock and frowned.  Dodd sure is taking his sweet time getting here, he mentally grumbled.  Hope I was right in trusting him with that background check.  He felt a tinge of guilt at the thought.  He knew Dodd was a good cop and was better with computers than he was.  That’s why when Dodd offered to take it—he gave it to him.  He knew it was just that he hated losing control of anything.  He wanted to be the one to get the information from the “horse’s mouth” so to speak.  He wasn’t known as someone who trusted other people’s judgments, which was one of the reasons a lot of his fellow officers didn’t like to work with him—they thought he was an overly obsessive snob who didn’t trust their work.  Morrison snorted as he pulled his mind away from that train of thought.

            The conference room door opened and Dodd strolled in with a huge grin on his face.  He slapped the folder in his hand saying, “You were right, Frank.  Boy!  Were you right!”

            Morrison leaned forward in his chair and held out his hand for the folder.  “I take it you found out something?”

            “Oh yeah.  Hit the motherload,” Dodd replied taking a seat across from his mentor and handing him the file.  He sat back as Morrison flipped open the folder and began to read.  “Billy had a pretty hard time with this one at first.”

            “Why’s that?” Morrison asked absently as he scanned through the folder.

            “Because she changed her name for one.  That’s not too tough to figure out, but we found out that her real name had a juvenile file and they seal those you know,” Dodd explained a touch of smugness entering his voice.  “Billy thought to run her fingerprints. That’s how we found her.”

            Morrison glanced up and pinned him with a calculating eye.  “Do I want to know how you managed to get her current fingerprints?”

            “That was easy,” Dodd replied breezily.  “She had them taken for security at the last studio she worked at.  We just ran a basic search and they popped right up.”

            Morrison nodded not wanting to admit that he had no idea what Dodd was referring to.  He quickly jumped on the next bit that had caught his eye.  “Juvenile record huh?” Dodd nodded.  “And did your friend, Billy, get into that sealed file?”

            Dodd studied the older detective warily.  Morrison’s face showed only mild interest, but warning bells were going off in Dodd’s head.  What he and Billy had done was illegal and he didn’t know Morrison well enough to know how he’d react.  “Ummm—“

            “Spit it out, Dodd.  I’m not going to turn you in to IA or anything,” Morrison assured him, waving his hand impatiently.

            “Yeah, we got in,” Dodd replied slowly, lowering his eyes to the file in front of Morrison.  “It’s all in there—rap sheet, shrink profile, everything.”

            “Why don’t you just give me the highlights since you’ve already read it?”   Morrison asked leaning back in his seat ignoring the open file before him and giving his full attention to his partner.  Let’s see what you’re really made of, kid.

            “Umm, okay.  Give me a sec to organize my thoughts,” Dodd replied lowering his head and staring blankly at the tabletop as his mind whirled.

            “I don’t seem to have any other pressing appointments, so take your time,” Morrison deadpanned as he watched his nervously fidgeting partner with amusement.

            Dodd tapped his fingers idly on the table as he organized his thoughts.  He looked up finally to meet Morrison’s attentive face.  He cleared his throat and began.  “Well for starters, Miss Sinclair was born Doris Eloise Holcomb of Wichita, Kansas to Bud and Judy Holcomb.  Kind of interesting that she took her mom’s name huh?”  Morrison rubbed his mustache, but didn’t reply.  Dodd coughed and continued, “Father’s deceased.  Died in a fire… umm… there’s a couple of newspaper clippings in there about it.”  Dodd pointed at the folder and Morrison pushed it towards him.  “Thanks.”

            “Sure,” Morrison said watching as his partner dug through the file.

            “Here it is,” Dodd said pulling out photocopies of the articles and pushing them down the table towards the older detective.  “There’s a picture of Doris there too.  Doesn’t look a thing like Judith.  She must have had some major work done over the years.”

            “Just give me the highlights.  What does her dad dying in a fire have to do with anything?” Morrison asked a touch impatient, ignoring the newspaper clippings, but picking up the photo of Doris Holcomb.  She looked like the typical Midwestern fifteen year old to him.  Long straight mousy brown hair, acne riddled face, brown eyes—no particular feature that stood out and made you take notice of her.  She had that unfinished coltish look that most teenagers had at that age—like they hadn’t quite grown into their bodies yet and were all knees and elbows.

            “Well, that’s just it.  He died when their trailer burn to the ground.  You know how those things are—damn death traps once they catch on fire and this was an older one.  Guess Judith a.k.a Doris totally lost it after it happened,” Dodd explained hastily noting Morrison’s irritation.  “The fire was ruled an accident, but I looked up the fire inspector’s report and there were suspicions of arson, but it was never proved.”

            “Interesting.  So then what?” Morrison asked rocking back in his chair and stroking his mustache.

            “Well Doris was put in counseling for awhile, but that didn’t seem to last long.  Her mother remarried within six months.  I thought that was pretty damn quick,” Dodd said shaking his head.

            “Keep your opinions until the end, Dodd.  Just give me the facts,” Morrison ordered.

            “Yes, sir.  Okay, let’s see here,” Dodd said sifting through the folder.  “From what I could piece together from her juvenile record and the court appointed shrink, Doris started getting really wild after her father’s death.  Mostly misdemeanor stuff--vandalism, curfew violations--but she did get involved with a pretty rough crowd that were known to deal in drugs and were suspected of a rash of robberies.  When one of the members of the gang was shot and killed by police during a convenience store robbery, Doris ran from the scene and was found a few hours later comatose on”—he flipped through the file to find out the name of the drug—“says here, ‘a mixture of barbiturates and alcohol.’”

            Dodd fell silent and Morrison dropped his eyes from contemplating the ceiling to look at him questioningly.  “What?”

            “Oh, sorry.  I was just thinking that this kid is pretty messed up.  First she loses her dad and her mom remarries some guy she doesn’t know at all.  Then what seems to be a close friend is killed right before her eyes and she almost OD’s on drugs,” Dodd explained with a sad shake of his head.  “Just seems like such a waste.”

            “It happens,” Morrison said coldly.  “Do you have more pictures of her?”

“Yeah.”  Dodd found the envelope of snapshots and handed it to Morrison.

Morrison opened it and began laying out the different photos of Doris starting from when she was a toddler with her parents up until the last available photo, which was her high school graduation picture.  “What happened after the OD?”

            “She was hospitalized and put on probation for the next two years,” Dodd replied, returning to the business at hand, trying to hide his shock at his partner’s callousness.  “Seems she blossomed a bit in rehab.  As you can see by that picture.”  He pointed at one of the pictures before Morrison.  “She got out, seemed to shape up and fly straight.  Graduated high school and then poof!  She disappears three days after graduation with her parents’ entire life savings.”

            Morrison studied the picture of a young woman in the black cap and gown of graduation. The coltish girl of a few years ago was gone to be replaced by a leggy brunette with that mischievous half smile that Morrison had grown to hate on the face of Judith Sinclair.  The acne had cleared up and she had finally styled her hair in a flattering way.  Something or someone had obviously made Doris/Judith more aware of her appearance.  He stroked his mustache as he contemplated the face of that eighteen-year-old girl smiling for the camera.  He studied her eyes and that’s where he saw Judith staring back at him.  She may have changed her nose and her hair color, but her eyes were still cold and calculating—even then. 

            “Frank?”

            Morrison pulled his attention away from the picture.  “What?”

            “What do you think?”

            “I think that Doris or Judith or whatever the hell her name is,” Morrison replied tapping the photo with a finger, “is one crazy bitch.   Did the mother report her as a runaway or did the stepfather report the theft of the money?”

            Dodd blinked in surprise.  “Stepfather reported the theft.  How did you know that?”

            “Because I don’t think they gave a rat’s ass about the girl.  The only thing that would have motivated them would be the money,” Morrison explained his eyes glazing as his thoughts turned inward.  “What does the report say the amount was?”

            Dodd sifted through the folder looking for the report.  “Huh, that’s interesting,” he said studying the report.

            “Not much right?” Morrison asked rhetorically.

            “Nope.  Says here about a thousand dollars and some jewelry of her mother’s,” Dodd replied with a puzzled frown marring his features.  “Doris would have been eighteen so the police probably wouldn’t take the runaway thing too seriously, but they would at least make an attempt at trying to find a thief.  Do you think that’s why they reported it?  To get the cops to look for her?”

            “No,” Morrison said firmly.   “I think her stepfather really wanted the money back.  I bet Doris made off with a hell of a lot more than a mere grand.”

            “Huh.” Dodd read a few more reports and then said, “I think you’re right.  Says here, that John Fordham—that’s the stepfather—made constant calls to the department demanding to know what was going on with the case.  Says here he never once mentioned if they had found the girl, just where the hell was his money.”

            Morrison nodded as he studied the array of photos before him.  Doris had seemed like the run of the mill normal lower middle class kid.  In the pictures depicting her with her father and mother she was smiling and happy and he noted that the coldness wasn’t present in her eyes.  Then in her teens, she changed—even before her father’s death.  She seemed more withdrawn and didn’t smile so openly.  Morrison frowned rubbing his mustache.  “What did her father do?”

            “What?” Dodd asked surprised.

            “What did her father do?” Morrison reiterated pointing at a picture of Bud Holcomb with his arm around a smiling happy pre-adolescent Doris.

            “Says here he was a long haul truck driver,” Dodd replied reading the report.  “Guess he wasn’t home much.”

            “I would think not,” Morrison said tapping his fingers as his mind worked.  “Well something happened that caused Doris to want to erase who she was and become someone else.” Dodd nodded not wanting to break his partner’s concentration.  “You can’t do that with barely a thousand dollars.  I think she made off with a lot more than that. Went to some big city—L.A or maybe New York—hooked up with a crowd probably through her old connections in the gang she hung out with, and got into something to make money fast.  She had the money she stole from her parents to buy her way into something.  Don’t know what.  Maybe she was hooking or selling drugs—but whatever it was made her enough money to get plastic surgery and get papers to change who she was.  Good papers, since no one has questioned them before now.”