Immortal Cascade 03 Immortal Champion

by Carol Roi

  Part 2

  Pouring himself a cup of coffee, Blair sat down at the table in the break room by Major Crimes. After outlining his idea for protecting himself and Megan to Captain Banks, he had been laughed out of the office by the other man. Dee and Jim were in there now, trying to convince Simon that he wasn't crazy. He'd been pissed when he'd stormed out of the bullpen, but now he was just resigned to his fate as the comic relief of the police department. He slumped in the chair, and wondered why Jim and Simon, and the rest of the guys couldn't look any further than the surface. He knew they all cared about him, but he felt it was the way you cared about the team mascot. He knew he did a good job for the PD. Sure, he'd made mistakes, but then so had every cop on the force, and many times he'd been the one to come through with a lead or a theory that helped them catch the bad guys. In fact, it had been his friendship with one of Cristo's subordinates that had gotten him into this situation to begin with. Hell, if it hadn't been for him, and Megan, they would still be trying to catch him at something.

  "Why couldn't Jim and Simon be more like Dee?" he wondered. Sometimes he felt she knew him better than his Sentinel did, knew what made him tick, knew how much he had to offer if only someone would take him seriously. He felt a smile tug at his lips, and he gave in to it. She had always believed in him, as a person, as a fighter, and as a Guide. She'd seen things inside him he hadn't known were there. Under her tutelage he had become what he considered a true Guide to his Sentinel, combining what he'd already figured out on his own with the physical abilities of a warrior and the talents of a Shaman. All of those accomplishments meant nothing to Simon and the rest of the PD, because he didn't carry a badge or wear a sidearm. He felt the smile fading.

  "Why the long face, Sandy?" Megan asked as she entered the break room. Walking over to the vending machine, she dropped in some change and punched the button for a soda. She wore her injuries like a medal of honor, refusing to cover them up with makeup, wanting the whole department to see Cristo for the scum he was. That, Blair thought, must have been Dee's influence. It certainly wasn't Jim's. Last time he'd been beaten up, Jim told him to put on a pair of sunglasses, so he "wouldn't scare anyone." The case of the murdering computer hackers had been another example of his instincts, his theories being ignored by the detective.

  Realizing he hadn't answered her question, he said, "Just thinking. I'm just so tired of having my ideas shot down out of hand."

  Megan sat down across from him. "Jim and Dee are still in there talking to him, Sandy. I'm sure they'll work something out."

  Blair laughed half-heartedly. "Yeah, right. I'll bet Jim's siding with Simon right now, and we'll end up dead by tomorrow morning in some supposedly safe house."

  "I wouldn't count Dee out, she seems pretty persuasive to me. She managed to talk Ellison into your idea."

  Blair brightened considerably. "Yeah, she did. She's good at that."

  Megan took a sip of her drink, then leaned towards him. "So, Sandy, tell me about Dee. Is she easy to live with? I mean, I haven't had a roommate since I was at university."

  Blair grinned. "She is if you don't like to sleep in." He remembered the time they had spent together over the summer, rising at 5 am to run before the day got too hot, the hours spent in the gym as she taught him how to defend himself, the lunches shared on their bench on campus. He had been falling in love with her then, he realized, and it had all come together the evening they had spent flirting and dancing at Joe's. He remembered the first time he'd kissed her, out on the dance floor, in their own little world. The love they'd made later that night had been both tender and ferocious, both of them finding what they had been searching for for so long in each other's arms.

  "Sandy? You still there?" Megan asked.

  Blair looked at her, but didn't really see her. All he could see was Diandra telling him she had to leave. "I... um... I have to... uh, later, Megan," he stuttered. Getting to his feet, he left the break room, forcing himself not to run. Ducking into the men's room, he closeted himself in a stall, and gave in to the pain. Until this moment, he'd thought he could do this, he thought he could work with Dee and be just friends. After all he'd gotten along just fine these past two months without her. "Who are you kidding, Blair?" he said under his breath. "You've been a mess." And now what was he going to do? At this moment, all he wanted was to lose himself in her arms, and make the whole ugly world go away.

  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  "How many times do I have to tell the two of you no?" Simon said, biting the end of his cigar in frustration. "I'm not going to risk Sandburg and Connor's lives just because you want to play head games with Cristo."

  "Sir," Jim said, "right now Cristo is out on bail, and he is so sure he's going to get out of the drug charges that he isn't even making an attempt to flee. He's laughing at us Captain, thumbing his nose at the PD."

  "If we can catch some of his men making a try on either Blair or Megan, we can get him on attempted murder charges," Dee argued. "Get him behind bars and then really put the moves on his operation, shut them down completely."

  "What's with this we stuff, Dr. Pallas? You're not a police officer; hell you're a history teacher. Why are you sticking your neck out?"

  Dee drew herself up to her full height, and crossed her arms over her chest. "Because Blair and Megan are my friends. And if that's not enough for you, I am Seacouver's Champion. Cristo brought his evil to my territory when his men attacked Megan. I am honor-bound to defend her, and Blair." She paused, her brow furrowing in confusion at an overwhelming rush of emotion. Glancing at Ellison, she saw he was experiencing the same thing.

  "Sandburg?" he asked, meeting her gaze. She nodded, and as one, they headed for the door, leaving Simon shaking his head in frustration.

  Sentinels, he thought. Way more trouble than they're worth.

  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  The sentinel and champion easily followed the tangled trail of Blair's distress, pushing open the door of the men's room barely a minute after they'd left Banks' office, their simultaneous questions of "Lobo?" and "Chief?" echoing in the empty room.

  Blair came out of his hiding place, his red-rimmed eyes flicking quickly from Dee to Jim. "What? What did I do?" he asked.

  "Nothing, Chief," Ellison said, "we were just worried about you."

  Staring at his partner, he asked, "Why?"

  "You were... are upset. We both felt it," Dee answered him.

  "Both of you?" This was something new. Diandra had felt his pain before, and come running, the night Jim had gone off on him at the hospital, but for Jim to sense what he was feeling... wow. What had triggered that?

  Jim's voice interrupted his theorizing. "Are you okay, Chief?"

  "I... um... " Shit, there was no lying to them; they probably knew better than he did what was going on. "I need to talk to Dee, Jim. Alone if you don't mind."

  "Okay, Chief," Ellison replied and left the room.

  Dee raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't say a word. "Can we go somewhere other than the john?" he asked. Nodding, she held the door for him as they exited.

  A couple minutes later, they were seated on the steps in the stairwell, it being the closest and most private place Blair could think of in a hurry. She sat down next to him, her hand closing over his where it rested on his knee. "What's going on, Lobo?" she asked softly, though she had a pretty good idea what was bothering him, since it was the same thing troubling her.

  Giving her a quick glance, he looked down at his feet. "I don't know if I can do this, Dee. Not the cop stuff, I'm used to being in danger... god that sounds awful doesn't it?" He sighed. "I don't know if I can do the 'us' thing. I thought... I thought I was fine, you know? You left and I hurt for awhile, and then I got caught up in this case, and kind of pushed everything I feel for you aside. But I can't hide from those feelings anymore." He looked up at her, his eyes glistening. "I
still love you. I thought it would fade, thought it would go away, but sitting here with you right now, I... I just want you to hold me and not ever let go. Stupid, I know."

  "No," she replied, "No, it's not stupid at all. Ever since last night, since the moment I knew I had to call you, I've been having the same feelings. This is not some infatuation, some crush, Lobo. This is the real thing." She ran the back of her fingers lightly over his cheek, and he leaned into her touch, his eyes closing in bliss. "Nothing's changed for me either, just the thought of being in the same room with you makes me high. But we can't allow ourselves to give into those feelings now; I don't know if we ever can. And yes, I know that hurts like hell, but we have Jim to think about. I will not come between the two of you."

  Blair ran a hand over his face wearily. "Jim's better than he was. I don't sense the hostility towards you that was there before. He's more at ease around you, and is agreeing to work with you, instead of against you. He never would have done that two months ago. Why do you suppose that is?"

  Dee was silent for a moment, thinking the situation over. "It may have something to do with the fact that I'm in Seacouver, that I've claimed my territory, and right now it doesn't conflict with his. I also haven't marked you in nearly three months. He knows you're his, there's not that uncertainty there was before. That may change once I move back into the loft next to yours, and I spend more time with you."

  He refused to give up hope. "But if things don't change, if Jim is okay working with you, once this stuff with Cristo is all over, can we... could we give us another try? I mean look at us," he said, gesturing to their positions on the step. "We started out two feet apart, and now smoke couldn't get between us."

  Dee realized he was right. They had gravitated toward each other, so close they were touching from their shoulders all the way down to their feet, and it still wasn't close enough. She wanted him under her skin; she wanted him to be a part of her. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, then said, "I don't know, Lobo, I don't know. I want us to be just as much as you do, but I don't know if that can ever happen. I still don't have a companion, you know, and Jim may interpret any overture on my part towards you as my trying to take you away from him again."

  "So you're saying no," Blair said, the pain in his blue eyes intensifying, if that were possible.

  Goddess she wanted to hold him, needed to hold him. "I'm just saying I don't have any answers, Blair. This is killing me just as much as it's killing you. I... last night, before I rescued Megan, Joe was telling me how sad I seemed, a big change from the person I was the last time he saw me with you. And he was right, I was unhappy, I am unhappy. I even caught myself thinking that maybe 2,800 years is enough... "

  "No," he said in a stunned whisper, "no, god, Dee, no... " He gave into the desire to put his arms around her, to comfort her, and be comforted. She leaned into his embrace, hugging him so tightly he had trouble breathing, but he didn't care. It had been bad for him, he realized, but not so difficult that he wished he was dead. Why was it so much worse for her? The thought struck him that he had at least had Jim, another person, another connection, a support system for him to turn to, and it had brought them closer together, healing the tensions his relationship with Dee had caused. But Dee had no one else, no companion, no soulmate to ease the pain of her broken heart. This was his fault. "I'm sorry, Dee, I'm sorry. I should have fought harder to make Jim understand to... I don't know, I just should have done more, should have kept in closer touch... "

  "Hey, hey, it's not your fault, Lobo. Shit happens, even to something as wonderful and beautiful as what I feel for you. Maybe it's just not my lot in life to be blissfully happy and completely fulfilled. Maybe the fates have more important things for me planned."

  Blair's hand cupped her cheek, and he gazed into her tear-filled eyes. "What in the world can possibly be more important than love?" At his words, her tears spilled over, and she sobbed silently against his shoulder, trying to stop, trying to pull herself together, and failing.

  He held her, stroking her hair, rubbing her back, letting her cry. He didn't know what else to do. He wanted to promise her that things would be okay, that they would be together forever, but with everything that was going on around them, he didn't even know if he would be alive tomorrow, let alone if they could make things work between them. That uncertainty was what convinced him. Lifting her head from his shoulder, Blair kissed her, his lips melting into hers, promising her that no matter what happened, he would always love her.

  When they finally came up for air, she said, "You always know just what I need. You are my angel."

  Swallowing past the lump in his throat, he wiped at the tear tracks on her cheeks. "You are the angel, Dee, the strong, avenging kind with the flaming sword. I'm lucky to be the wind beneath your wings."

  She kissed him then, her mouth soft and tender against his, her hands caressing his face. "We will get through this," she promised him when they parted, "and we will find a way to make this work, I swear it." He nodded in response, once again putting his trust in her. "Come on," she said, taking his hand and pulling him up with her, "let me go splash some water on my face, and we'll tell Captain Banks where he can shove his bloody safe house."

  Blair followed her back up the stairs, his spirits buoyed by the return of the Dee he knew, the one who took names and kicked butt. There would be no stopping the four of them now.

  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  After much argument, Captain Banks had finally relented, and allowed the two Sentinels to handle it their way. He hadn't liked it much, but he would rather be kept abreast of their plans, than be shut out altogether.

  "So where to now?" Megan asked, as the four of them exited police headquarters.

  "Dee will take you to your place first, so you can pick up some things, then we'll meet back at the loft," Jim said, and Dee nodded in agreement.

  They started down the steps toward the cars, lulled into a little bit of false security, since they were in the Cascade PD parking garage. Dee caught the small noise before Ellison did, perhaps because he was used to the sound of a safety being flipped off. "DOWN!" she yelled, just as bullets sprayed the area where they were standing.

  Dee shoved Megan to the ground, hoping to god Ellison had done the same with Blair. "Stay down," she growled in the other woman's ear, then she was on her feet, vaulting over the trunk of the car they'd ducked behind, heading for the gunman. Following the sound of running feet, she chased him out of the garage and down the access alley, too far away to stop him as he dove into a waiting BMW. The car took off with a squeal of tires, heading straight for her.

  There was nowhere to go but up. Three long strides, a leap, and she was on the hood, watching the shocked expressions on the perps' faces as she continued over the roof, tucking into a somersault, and landing on her feet behind the speeding vehicle. A flick of her wrist, and her knife was in her grasp; another snap of her hand and it buried itself to the hilt in the passenger side rear tire.

  She heard Ellison fire off a shot behind her, the bullet whistling past her ear to puncture the other rear tire. The BMW fishtailed around the corner, and rolled. "Jesus, Pallas!" Jim exclaimed as he ran up to her. "Are you okay?"

  She nodded, and followed him to the street. Several other cops were already at the scene, but the gunman and his driver had abandoned the car and disappeared. She stood there, surveying the chaos for a moment, watching as Ellison went to work, then she turned back toward the station, trusting that the sentinel wouldn't have followed her if Megan or Blair had been injured.

  Blair met her just inside the front doors, his face worried. "You okay?" he asked in a hushed voice.

  "Yeah, I'm fine, Lobo. Where's Megan?" She noticed he was staring at her left shoulder. "What? I get something on me?" She brushed at her coat, and her hand came away sticky and red. "Shit, I didn't even feel it. Does it show much?"

  He nodded, then took his scarf off a
nd placed it around her neck, draping the end of it over the bloodstain. "That ought to get past everything but a really close look. Megan's still out back, directing the team out there." At Dee's irritated look, he said, "It's okay, there's a dozen other cops with her; she's perfectly safe."

  "I'll feel better once we're at the loft and have time to go over some ground rules, and make some plans." She followed Blair back through the station and out to the garage once again. She watched the team work for a while, noticing with disgust that her Cherokee wasn't going anywhere, at least not until forensics finished digging the bullets out of it. With a sigh, she sat down on the bumper to wait.

  "This yours?" Ellison asked as he came to stand beside her. He handed Dee her throwing knife.

  "Yes," she said, glancing up at the bemused expression on his face. "Don't make fun of my weapons, Detective. I was just as accurate as you were with your gun."