ks
07-17-2001, 03:48 AM
"A Gain and A Loss"
by: ks & sourbabie or sourbabie & ks
Inspector Angela Reide climbed up the stairs of the rather dumpy apartment building. She walked down the hall, her destination: the apartment where the incident happened just a few weeks earlier. She got to the door, took a deep breath, and knocked. Her heart was pounding. She HAD to apologize. She couldn't stand the guilt. The door opened to reveal the deceased man's wife.
She looked sad - then again, what would you expect? Her husband had been killed a few weeks earlier. And who killed her husband? Angela did. She didn't mean to kill the man - it was honestly an accident. But it happened and now, Angela was faced with a legal battle and a fight with her conscience. She had to express her sorrow to the poor suffering woman. Angela felt guilty about the man's death, even though she truly knew that it wasn't her fault. Angela brushed aside her thoughts as she gave the woman a sympathetic smile. "May I come in?" Angela asked her, knowing that if she could explain the situation to the woman that things might turn out ok. "My lawyer has advised me not to speak with anyone," the women said nervously. "This will only take a moment, and it has nothing to do with the case itself," Angela said with hope in her voice. She needed so badly to clear her conscience of all the guilt that she had been carrying around for weeks. The woman held up her hand. "I'll be back in a second," she stated barely loud enough for Angela to hear what she was saying. The woman closed the door and disappeared into her apartment. Minutes passed by as Angela anxiously waited outside. She wasn't sure whether or no the woman was going to come back, but she was sticking around just in case. 'Just a few more minutes' she thought to herself. She shifted her weight from foot to foot.
She sighed, thinking it was hopeless and that the woman wasn't going to return. She turned to leave, but before she took a step she heard the door behind her crack open. She turned around just in time to see a gun pointed at her. A shot was fired as Angela fell to the ground motionless.
Jinny and Magda were standing outside of San Fransisco Savings and Loan - a large bank in downtown San Fransisco. The loud, flat sound of the sirens flooded the cool July air. "Can you tell me what the hell is happening?" Magda shouted over the loud sirens to a police officer at the busy scene. "34 year old Carl Hazelton, holding hostages," the portly cop replied. Jinny looked at all of the cars surrounding them. She sighed, "Do you have the phone number for inside the bank?". The officer nodded and pulled out a small piece of paper from his pocket, "Right here," he responded. Jinny pursed her lips, "Why don't you give Mr. Hazelton a call? Someone needs to try and persuade him to surrender."
Angela lay there in pain. She felt the world around her spinning. It took her a moment to realize that she had been shot and by the time she did, the woman was hovering over her. "You killed my husband and now I'm going to kill you," the woman said in an evil tone. Angela tried to beg for her life, but she couldn't get any words out. The woman took the gun and pointed it at Angela's chest. With a look of rage in her eyes, the woman pulled the trigger. Angela felt the bullet pierce her insides and tried to scream out in agony but couldn't. Suddenly, a man from across the hall opened his door to see where the shots were coming from. His jaw dropped in astonishment when he saw what was happening. "Oh my god," he gapsed. The women dropped the gun and ran down the hallway. The man ran over to Angela's immobile body. She was badly bleeding and the man knew that he had to call the paramedics immediately.
He ran into his apartment, leaving Angela lying there on the floor in a pool of her own blood.
The officer who had the number dialed it up and then handed the phone to Jinny. "Why the hell are you handing it to me?" she asked. "I'm not authorized to speak with him, ma'am. I'm a rookie and have yet to have the proper training for this situation." The officer walked off. "Great, a wise cop with a big vocabulary," Jinny muttered under her breath as he walked away. She pressed the phone up to her hear and took in a deep breath as a man answered it. "Carl, this is Inspector Jinny Exstead with the S.F.P.D. You can call me Jinny though. I need to know how many people are in there with you." Jinny spoke softly and bit her lip as she waited for a response. "Fifteen. Five workers, then there's six customers, and four kids. Ones crying and want shut up so I'm gonna have to blow it's brains out." Jinny listened to the crying in the background and again took in a deep breath from the fresh air around her
"Why don't you let the kids go, Carl? They aren't doing you any harm or any good. Let them free." Jinny looked at Magda with concerned eyes as she waited for a response.
Captain Kate McCafferty stood at her desk with the telephone to her ear. She wore a worried expression on her face as she listened to the voice on the other end of the telephone line explain to her the current situation that one of her top inspectors was in. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, but she did her best to listen attentively. Once the officer was through explaining the situation to her she hung the phone up, sat down in her chair, and buried her face in her hands.
'How did this happen?' she questioned herself silently. She massaged her forehead trying to regain her train of thought. She knew that she had to break the news to C.D, and she was n't sure how C.D. would take it. "Dick was murdered nine months ago, and now this," Captain mumbled as she stood from her chair and walked to the door. "C.D, could you come here for a second."
"Sure Cap," C.D. replied. With a puzzled look on her face, she walked into Kate's office. "Have a seat," Kate said, motioning towards a chair. C.D. sat down in the chair as Kate sat down at her desk. "What is it, Cap?" C.D. inquired. Kate took a deep breath. She hated being the bearer of bad news, and she knew how this was going to affect C.D. "There's been an accident," Kate gently informed C.D. "What kind of accident?" C.D. queried with a questioning glance. "Well," Kate began, "Angela was shot this morning." C.D.'s face instantly grew pale white after hearing those five devastating words.
"Oh my gosh," C.D. choked, "Is she okay?" Kate shrugged, "She was rushed to the hospital. The police have no news on her condition. All they know is that she was shot twice." C.D. rose to her feet, "Who did this?" she asked angrily. Kate pursed her lips, "That man that Angela killed - it was his wife. She shot Ang."
C.D.'s blinked, "I'm going to see Angela." Kate got up from her desk, "I'm coming, too."
Jinny could hear Carl breathing heavily through the phone. "Carl?" she asked. "Yeah?" he replied, his voice shakey. Jinny licked her lips, "Do we have a deal?". Carl sighed deeply, "Alright, I'll leave the children go. But the others gotta stay." Jinny responded, "Okay, but don't hurt the others. Got it?" He didn't say a word. "Carl?" she said with a hint of irritation in her voice. "Okay," he said lowly. Everyones attention turned to the two front doors of the bank opening and five terrified children running out screaming. Jinny smiled, thrilled that kids hadn't been harmed. Her thoughts were interrupted when Carl began talking again. "Do you know why I did this?" he asked. Jinny furrowed her eyebrows, "No, why?". Carl sighed, the way a person does before telling a long story.
C.D. rushed into the hospital, the captain not far behind. She looked around and flashed her badge to the first doctor she saw. "Inspector DeLerenzo. An Inspector Angela Reide was brought in shortly ago with gun shot wounds. I need information on the situation as soon as possible." The young doctor looked down at the chart which was in his hand and then back up at C.D. "You're best bet will be to go up to the third floor.
The emergency room is located there, and the nurses will be of great assistance." C.D. and the captain nodded their appreciation and hurried off to find the elevator.
Once on the third floor C.D. walked up to the nurse's desk and once again flashed her badge. "I need information on an Angela Reide that was brought in shortly ago." The nurse nodded, "Yes m'am. I'll notify the doctor and he will be with you as soon as possible." C.D. ran a hand through through the back of her hair and mumbled a 'thank you' to the nurse. She then walked over to the waiting area and nervously began pacing the floor.
Captain starred at the look of pain that was on C.D's face. She walked up to C.D. and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's going to be ok," the captain said reassuringly.
"Angela Reide?" a doctor walked into the waiting room and stated.
"My life is so screwed up," he started, his voice crackley, "My mom blew her brains out when I was six 'cause she couldn't handle being a parent. My dad said that it was my fault that she killed herself and he was always telling me that I was a mistake and that I would never amount to anything. I sucked at school. All my grades were bad. When I was 16, my dad died in a car accident. I was so lost, you know? I dropped out of school and started doing drugs. I fell in love with this beautiful girl when I was 19 but she dumped me 'cause I was a druggie. I can't tell you how much that hurt So I tried to freakin' kill myself by slashing my wrists. Needless to say, it didn't work 'cause I'm still here.
Anyway, I went from job to job. I was a construction worker, an electrician and lots of other stuff but I always got fired 'cause I can't do anything! Last year, I met this woman named Shelly. God, she's so beautiful! She was my reason for living, ya know? We moved in together and everything. Well, a few weeks ago, I lost another job and started dealing drugs since I was desperate for money. Yesterday, Shelly found out and got pissed. She dumped me!
Kicked me out of the house. I am so screwed! And there's no use in trying to correct my mistakes. They're all over and done with." Jinny was shocked; this poor man was in so much pain and he had just poured his heart out to her. For some odd reason, she felt like he was a source of comfort - probably because she had rough problems like that, too, and she could relate. She realized that if she told him about all of her mistakes, he wouldn't feel so alone. So, she took a deep breath and began: "I always make mistakes, too.
I made a really big mistake just a few days ago," Jinny paused for a moment and looked at Magda, then resumed speaking to Carl, "My friend needed me. She was being hurt by these jerks and I should have been there to back her up. But I wasn't. Instead, I was drinking. . .something I always do. So ya see, you're not the only one who makes mistakes. Just come out, please. I'm begging you." Jinny looked at Magda. Judging by her expression, Jinny realized how shocked, hurt and disappointed Magda was at this sudden revealation. Their gaze was broken by the sound of the doors of the bank opening.
"Yes," both C.D. and Kate answered anxiously. "Hi, I'm Doctor Willsan," the tall, dark man said, walking towards the two women, "Angela was shot twice. Once in the chest and once in the stomach. When she was brought in here, her pulse was weak. As we were working on her, her heart stopped. We had to crack open her chest and shock her heart. Luckily, we got it beating again. She lost a lot of blood, though, and we had to rush her to the OR to remove the bullets. She's in surgery right now." C.D. arched an eyebrow with worry, "Will she be okay?". The doctor sighed, "Well, she was bleeding internally and I believe that there is going to be some tissue damage." C.D. rolled her eyes and became hasty, "It's a yes or no question, doc. Will she be okay?" The doctor shrugged, "I'm not sure. We can't be sure of anything until she gets out of surgery." Kate walked up to them, "Thank you, doctor."
The doctor nodded, "I will let you know when she gets out of surgery." Having said that, he walked away.
Jinny turned her gaze to Carl, who was standing in front of the doors with his hands in the air, a blank look on his face. His gun was laying on the ground next to his feet. The police rushed up to him and arrested him. Jinny just stared, thrilled that she was able to persuade him to give up. "Jin?" Magda said softly. Jinny looked at Magda, expecting her to say words of anger, "Yeah?" Magda motioned for Jinny to follow her to the side of an abandoned building.
Once they were out of the large crowd, Magda spoke, "You lied to me! I can't believe it. What makes me even more mad is that you drank on the job. How could you?" Jinny lowered her head, feeling like a child being scolded. "But," Magda continued, "I'm proud of you. You managed to save 16 lives today." Jinny looked up at Magda who was smiling. Jinny gulped, "I'm sorry, Mag." Magda nodded, "I know." All of the sudden, Magda's cell phone rang. "Hello?" she answered rather annoyed that her and Jinny's conversation had been interrupted. Jinny looked at Magda, whose eyes slowly widened. "Oh my god," Magda gasped, "We'll be right there!" As soon as she hung up, Jinny grabbed Magda's wrist, "What the hell is going on?" she asked. Magda's expression was that of disbelief and shock, "Angela has been shot."
Jinny and Magda stood in the elevator. Each were starring at the door impatiently, waiting for the elevator to come to a stop and the door to open. "I can't believe this happened," Jinny said unbelievingly as she folded her arms and leaned her head up against the back elevator wall.
"No one can, Jin," Mag said confused. She wasn't sure how to react to this situation, but she was sure of how she felt, and she felt awful.
"It isn't fair. She goes to see the lady who's husband she killed, and the lady shoots her. That's a bunch of bull if ya ask me." Jinny was no longer just talking to Magda, but she was talking to herself as well, trying to convince herself this situation was real and not a nightmare.
"There's nothing we can do about it now, we just have to wait it out."
They each breathed a sigh of relief as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened wide.
Jinny jumped out and Magda followed. "What's happening?" Jinny asked, walking over to C.D. and Kate, who were sitting impatiently. "She's in surgery," Kate replied. "You know what happened?" C.D. asked. "Yeah," Magda nodded, "We were already filled in." Jinny and Magda couldn't help nut stare at C.D. - she looked so worried. "Hey," Magda said gently, sitting down next to C.D., "I'm sure she'll be fine." C.D. shook her head, "Yeah, whatever." Magda looked at Jinny who was nervously biting her fingernails. Everyone was in utter shock; how could this have happened?
- IN THE OR - Doctor Willsan was pacing through the halls when a nurse walked out of Angela's room. "Doctor, she's awake," the nurse notified him. Doctor Willsan hurried into Angela's room and sat down next to her bed. "Angela," the doctor spoke softly, "Do you know what happened to you?" Angela nodded. "There were two gunshot wounds, one to your chest and one to your stomach.
We had to perform a thoracotomy after you went into cardiac arrest, which means we had to cut open your chest to get your heart beating again. You lost quite a lot of blood and you had some internal bleeding. We had to perform an operation to remove the bullets. There was some damage to your liver but we were able to repair it. However, we had to remove your spleen. I'm sorry." Angela choked as she felt hot tears forming in her eyes. "There are some people here to see you. Want me to send them in?" Angela nodded. "Okay," Doctor Willsan said with a smile.
Captain, Jinny, and Magda agreed C.D. should be the first one to go in and see Angela. C.D. was reluctant at first, but in the end the three inspectors one out, insisting they wouldn't have it any other way. The doctor gave a small smile to the women once they had decided who would go in first, and the motioned for C.D. to follow him. As they walked down the hallway he began to explain a few things. "Mrs. Reide is very weak, so don't be surprised if she can't talk. She is conscience and responsive however, so feel free to say whatever to her." The doctor stopped a door that had a brass plate on it which read 'O.P. 2." He motioned for C.D. to go in. "I'll give you about five minutes," he whispered with a smile and watched as C.D. entered the room and shut the door behind her gently. C.D. looked over at the bed her partner was laying in and pressed her fingers to her mouth. She shook her head in disbelief, for the woman lying on the bed looked nothing like her partner at all. She took in a deep breath and gathered all her strength as she walked over towards Angela. Once at Angela's bedside she looked down at her partner and forced a smile. "Hey there." "Hey," Angela said weakly as she gave C.D. a weak attempt at a smile.
"How you doin'?" C.D. questioned as she folded her arms and leaned her leg up against the bed railing. "I've had better days," Angela smirked. "I think we all have." C.D. rubbed her hand through the back of her hair nervously. Angela noticed this. "C.D, there's no reason for you to worry." C.D. wiped away the tears that were now escaping her eyes. "I can't think of a better time." "C.D, you've been a great partner, and more importantly a great friend, and don't let anyone tell you different." Angela was now tearing up. "Angela, you can fight this. You're a figher, not a quieter." C.D. tried to keep a stiff upper lip as she spoke with mild force. "You can't give up." Angela shook her head. "It's over, C.D. I went to the woman's house to bring myself peace, and even though I left with gun shot wounds, I left with peace as well." Angela fought back the tears, as she could feel herself getting weaker. "Thanks for everything, C.D. You will never know the effect you've had on me. Thanks for giving me a chance." C.D. wiped away the tears that were now pouring from her face. "You can't give up--you CAN'T!"
The heart monitor that was hooked up to Angela stopped beating. Doctors and nurses rushed in, and as they did they pushed C.D. out, informing her she had to leave. "YOU CAN'T GIVE UP ANGELA!" C.D. yelled as a nurse pulled her out of the operating room. "You can't," C.D. mumbled to herself.
She watched as Angela was quickly being wheeled down the hall "Where are they taking her?" C.D. asked the nurse. "Back to the OR," the nurse replied. C.D. looked at her in confusion, "Wasn't she just there?". The nurse nodded, "Her heart stopped so they have to get it beating again. Go back to the waiting room. The doctor will update you soon." C.D. stormed away in anger. She couldn't believe what was happening. As she entered the waiting room, Jinny leaped up from her chair. "What's going on?" C.D. fought back tears, "I don't know. I was talking to her and she seemed fine and then her heart stopped. They had to take her back up to surgery." Jinny, Magda and Kate were in shock. Jinny sat back down, a look of disbelief on her face. Kate put her head in her hands and Magda silently wept. C.D. gulped, "Did anyone call Daniel?" Jinny nodded, "He's on his way." - IN THE OR - "Charge the paddles to 15. Clear!" Doctor Willsan shocked Angela's heart with the internal paddles. It was a rather intense scene. Angela was lying unconscious on a cold table while two doctors and three nurses desperately tried to revive her. One of the nurses shook her head, "Still in V-Fib." Doctor Willsan was discouraged, "Charge to 25. Clear!" he shocked Angela's heart once again. "Nothing," a short man named Doctor Malachak said. "Charge to 30. Push an amp of epi. Clear!" Doctor Willsan hollered. The monitors continued to wildly beep. "Sats down to 59," one of the nurses said. "Charge again.100 of lidocane. Clear!" Doctor Willsan shouted. "Still in V-Fib," one of the nurses declared . "That's it, we've done everything we can," Doctor Malachak said, "Hold compressions." The flat drone of the heart monitor filled the room and was quite haunting at that point. Doctor Willsan glanced at the clock and sadly announced, "Time of death: 10:32."
Dr. Willsan removed his gloves and exited the Operating Room. He walked down the hall to the waiting room, playing out how he would break the news to the friends and family of the victim. This was the only part of the job he hated... Once in the waiting room he shrugged, "I'm sorry, there was nothing else we could do-we lost her." "Are you sure," Jinny asked, not sure what else to say. "Yes, ma'am," we did our best, the doctor replied and then turned to leave. C.D. starred at the spot where the doctor had just been standing. Her eyes were wide as she leaned back against the wall and slowly slid down it until she was sitting on the ground with her knees pulled up under her chin. "I don't belive this," she said outloud, but the only person she was really talking to was herself. "This can't be happening, she isn't a quiter." Captain, Jinny, and Magda starred at each other, neither one of them sure of what they should do. The captain finally walked over to C.D. and knelt down beside her. "You gonna be ok?" the captain asked with concern in her voice. She knew it was a rather dumb question, but it was all that came to mind at the moment. C.D. continued starring at the same spot on the floor as she sniffed back her tears. "This isn't right. This isn't fair. She was just trying to do what she thought was right." Magda and Jinny watched how C.D. was taking the news. Magda nervously entwined her fingers as Jinny chewed on her bottom lip until it started bleeding. She couldn't help but ownder how she would feel if the same thing happened to Magda... "That women sure as hell better be locked up, or I'll see to it myself she never sees sunshine again," C.D. said bitterly as she broke her stare from the floor and turned to face the captain. The captain nodded, "We're going to do all we can to put her behind bars." "Damn right we are," Magda spoke up. C.D. nodded, "good." She was trying to suck it all up and put on a brave face, but inside she was experiencing insdescribable emotions. She had hate in her heart towards the woman who had taken her partner's life away, and she had a sick feeling in her stomach, knowing she would never see Angela again...
"Where is she?" Daniel said, jumping off of the elevator, "Where is Angie?!" Everyone's eyes grew wide at the site of Daniel. Who was going to break the bad news to him? C.D. decided to do it, even though she truly didn't want to. She got up and walked towards Daniel, stopping when she was five inches away from him. "Um, there was a complication," C.D. explained, desperately trying to fight back tears, "Angela died." Daniel stood there silently for a moment with no expression on his face. Then suddenly, in a fit of anger and sadness, he violently overturned a cart of supplies. "SON OF A BITCH!" he cursed. He put his head in his hands, rubbed his temples and then looked up to meet C.D.'s compassionate eyes. "I was just talking to her this morning," Daniel said, shaking his head in disbelief, "We were joking around about her cooking. She CAN'T be dead." C.D. tried to so hard to remain calm and keep her tough exterior showing. She felt like bawling her eyes out, but she just couldn't; at least not in front of her co-workers and Angela's distraught husband. "I'm so sorry, Daniel," she said apologetically. Daniel took a deep breath, "I want to see the doctor who worked on her," he said. Kate, who had sadly been watching the entire melancholiac scene with Jinny and Magda, nodded, "His name is Doctor Willsan." Daniel nodded in appreciation and walked up to the admin desk. A young brown haired girl in her early 20s was sitting behind the desk, typing something up on the computer. "Excuse me miss," Daniel said in a shakey tone. "Yes?" the girl replied. Daniel glanced at her silver nametag which read 'Savannah Maylan'. "I want to see Doctor Willsan," Daniel said.. Savannah needed no explanation; she witnessed the disturbing scene that had just occured moments before and knew that Daniel was Mrs. Reide's husband. Savannah nodded, picked up the telephone and dialed a number. "Hi, Doctor Willsan...there is a man here to see you...yes...he is Mr. Reide, you know, Mrs. Reide's husband? Okay, bye." She hung up the phone, looked at Daniel and smiled sympathetically. "He's on his way out," she said. Daniel muttered a quick thanks and stood in the hallway, waiting for the doctor. Jinny and Magda suddenly broke down into sobs and hugged eachother while Kate stood quietly next to a motionless C.D. There was muteness for a few moments until it was broken by Doctor Willsan's voice, "Mr. Reide," he said, walking towards Daniel and extending his hand to be shaken. Daniel didn't shake his hand, though. He got right to the point; "What the hell happened to my wife?" he angrily demanded. Doctor Willsan sighed deeply, prepared to give the explanation that he had given to so many families before, "Well, she was brought in here with two gunshot wounds - one to the chest and one to the stomach. While we were working on her in the ER, her heart stopped, so we cracked open her chest and shocked her heart to get it beating again. Once we did that, she was rushed to the OR and we removed the bullets. After she came out of surgery and regained consciousness, she went into cardiac arrest and we had to rush her back into surgery. Unfortunately, we had to cut her chest open again because we had to shock her heart. We tried to get it beating again but we couldn't. We did everything we could, sir. I'm terribly sorry for your loss." Daniel shook his head and gulped. "Is there anything you would like to know?" Doctor Willsan asked gently. Daniel just stood there, a shocked expression on his face. Kate decided to step forward, "No, doctor. Thank you." With that, Doctor Willsan disappeared down the hallway. "Daniel," C.D. tried to comfort him, "I'm so sorry." Daniel turned to face her, "So am I." He sauntered out of the hospital without saying a word. C.D. put her head in her hands, "This is NOT happening," she told herself. Kate put her hand on C.D.'s shoulder, "I know this is difficult for you. . ." but C.D. interrupted her in mid-sentence. "No!" C.D. shouted, "You don't know what it's like! I've already lost two of my partners. I can't believe this!" She shrugged Kate's hand off of her shoulder and stomped out of the hospital.
Kate looked back at Jinny and Magda who were starring at their Captain for guidance in this situation. Kate just shrugged, "There's nothing we can do now. You guys have a case, so I guess all I can say is hop to it." Jinny and Magda both nodded as they rose to their feet. "I'll need a ride because I'm assuming C.D. has left me." "Sure thing, Cap" Magda said. The three women left the hospital, each in their own world, dealing with the news their own way...
C.D. walked briskly to her car, talking to herself all the way. She couldn't believe this was happening. Everything was going by so quickly and trying to register in her memory so fast. Angela's last words kept echoing through C.D's mind, 'thanks for giving me a chance...'. C.D. cursed herself. She had given Angela a chance, but it had taken her forever to do so. The very first time she had met Angela she had got on Angela's case about not backing her up properly. Now the reason Angela was dead was because she had backed C.D. up properly...
C.D. got to her car and got in. She locked the door behind her and then slammed her fist in the steering wheel. "That S.O.B." C.D. leaned her head back against the headrest and bit her bottom lip. She didn't know why, but the tears that had so badly been wanting to fall earlier no longer wanted to come. At the moment there was no sadness in her heart, the sadness had been overcome by hate. She hated the women for killing her partner and she hated herself for not being there when her partner needed her most. She rubbed her hand across her forehead, 'this can't be happening', was the thought that was racing through her mind.
C.D. remained in her car in the hospital parking lot another half hour. She had been going over things in her mind, trying to asses what thoughts she could. She knew hate wouldn't bring Angela back, nor would revenge. She knew that nothing would. All she had left of Angela was memories, and she was slowly coming to terms with that. She snapped out of her trance and started the ignition of her car. She pulled out of the parking lot and began driving...
Jinny and Magda were sitting at the bar at Anchorside. They both were in utter shock. Angela was dead. Neither of them could believe it. They sat there in silence, Jinny moving her shot glass around in circles and Magda resting her chin in the palm of her hand. "Angela's dead," Magda said outloud. God, it sounded so weird. Jinny sighed, fighting back tears, "I know." Magda bit her bottom lip, which was quivering, "Why her? She was such a good person!" Jinny shook her head, "I don't know, Mag. I honestly don't know."
Magda felt a tear roll down her cheek, "Daniel didn't even get a chance to say goodbye. That has to be hard, you know? Not being able to say that last goodbye. I know that from now on, I will cherish every moment that I spend with my son. Each hug, each kiss, each homework assignment that I help him with will mean the world to me." Jinny gulped; she had never gotten to say goodbye to her mother. She wiped away a tear and got up, "See you, Jin." Jinny didn't even turn to look at her - she just continued staring into space. "Bye, Mag," she said dully.
She drove until she reached a four story apartment building that was ragged in appearance. She entered it ans climbed the stairs to the roof. Once on the roof she walked over to a piece of plywood that was about five feet tall and sat up against it. She pulled her knees up under her chin and starred out over the city. This was where she and Angela had first met...
*FLASHBACK*
Angela had just asked a guy to 'pretty please' put the kinfe down that he was holding to a ladies throat...
C.D: Pretty please? You forgot to say with sugar on top.
Angela: I just thought it would be easier to try and difuse the situation.
C.D: Save it. If it works for you that's fine.
Angela: He was just looking for an excuse to put the knife down. I gave it to him.
C.D: Like I said, if that's your style you should go with it, and I'll see you around....or not.
Officer: We're taking him to central, C.D.
C.D: Thanks buddy.
Angela: You're C.D? Inspector DeLerenzo?
C.D: Yeah
Angela: Inspector Angela Reide.
C.D: So?
Angela: I'm your new partner.
*END FLASHBACK*
Now the tears that had been coming and going for C.D. were flowing heavily. The anger had returned, but not anger towards the lady, she was feeling anger towards herself. She had treated Angela like hell when she first came to work at the division. C.D. picked up a handful of gravel off the roof and flung it as far as she could.
*FLASHBACK*
Captain: How's it working out?
C.D: It's not
*END FLASHBACK*
C.D. sighed. She an Angela might not ahve started off well, but they had become good friends over the months they'd known each other...
*FLASHBACK*
Angela: This is my first case as primary. I just want to make sure I don't forget anthing.
C.D: You forgot the most important thing.
Angela: What's that?
C.D: LUNCH.
*END FLASHBACK*
Magda walked into her quiet apartment. Gabriel was asleep on the couch, lightly snoring. She smiled at the sight of him and crept into Ben's room. The moonlight that was shining through his window fell on the child's precious face. He was sleeping soundly in his bed, tucked away under his covers. Magda sat down on his bed and ran her fingers through his hair. She leaned down, kissed him and whispered, "I love you, Ben."
C.D. wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, causing her face to get dirt on it from the gravel she had just handled. "It's so hard... I gave her such a hard time. Did she realize that she had earned my respect as a partner?"
*FLASHBACK*
Angela: C.D, WATCH OUT!
......
C.D: Thanks, partner
*END FLASHBACK*
C.D. closed her eyes as tightly as she could. Angela was gone and wouldn't be coming back. C.D. took in a deep breath, as if she were sucking in the reality. She quickly wiped her tears away and cleaned her face with the end of her jacket sleeve. She rose to her feet and made her way off the roof and back to her car. She had a visit to make...
Jinny was at her apartment, in her bedroom rummaging through her walk-in closet "Found it," she said, picking up a box full of pictures. She set the brown box down her bed and began going through it. She came across pictures of herself, her friends and her family. She stopped once she reached a photograph of a tall brunette with a bright smile. Jinny picked the photo up and scanned the woman's face. She touched the glass and began crying. She sniffled, "I love you, Mom."
Kate walked to her front door and opened it. She was relieved, yet shocked to see C.D. standing there. It was obvious to Kate that C.D. had been crying, but C.D. stood in front of her now with a small smirk on her face.
"You know, Cap, the last thing Angela said to me was 'thanks for giving me a chance'. "
Kate's first instinct was to invite C.D. in, but she knew not to interrupt C.D. because this was taking alot of guts.
C.D. wiped away a few more tears and rubbed her hand across the back of her neck. "I was thinking. It took me a while to give Angela a chance. You though, you gave it to her right off. She was allowed to go on the street with no experience, because you had faith. She was a young, African American woman who could have easily been overlooked. I know I overlooked her capabilities at first, AND regretted them as well." C.D. wiped away a few more tears and tried forcing a smile. She could tell the captain was beginning to cry. "When Angela thanked me for giving her the chance, I didn't deserve that thanks. At least not as much as you. You gave her the chance, Cap, and you'll never know how much either one of us appreciated it." C.D. pressed her lips together and nodded. "And that's all I think." She put her hands in her pocket and starred at the Captain for a second who was wiping away a tear. She then gave the captain a quick hug, whispered a 'thanks', and left.
Captain Kate McCafferty turned around and entered her house. She closed the door behind her and then walked into her living room. She sat down in her favorite chair and pulled her legs up underneath her. "A chance was given to me years ago, so I owed it to someone else." Then the strong and seemingly unbreakable Kate McCafferty broke down in tears.
This fic was our own finale.
We worked on this fic for a while and really did our absolute best so it would be interesting and worth reading all at once. Please take just a few seconds to review, because we took a few days to write it! Thanks for the reviews in advance!
by: ks & sourbabie or sourbabie & ks
Inspector Angela Reide climbed up the stairs of the rather dumpy apartment building. She walked down the hall, her destination: the apartment where the incident happened just a few weeks earlier. She got to the door, took a deep breath, and knocked. Her heart was pounding. She HAD to apologize. She couldn't stand the guilt. The door opened to reveal the deceased man's wife.
She looked sad - then again, what would you expect? Her husband had been killed a few weeks earlier. And who killed her husband? Angela did. She didn't mean to kill the man - it was honestly an accident. But it happened and now, Angela was faced with a legal battle and a fight with her conscience. She had to express her sorrow to the poor suffering woman. Angela felt guilty about the man's death, even though she truly knew that it wasn't her fault. Angela brushed aside her thoughts as she gave the woman a sympathetic smile. "May I come in?" Angela asked her, knowing that if she could explain the situation to the woman that things might turn out ok. "My lawyer has advised me not to speak with anyone," the women said nervously. "This will only take a moment, and it has nothing to do with the case itself," Angela said with hope in her voice. She needed so badly to clear her conscience of all the guilt that she had been carrying around for weeks. The woman held up her hand. "I'll be back in a second," she stated barely loud enough for Angela to hear what she was saying. The woman closed the door and disappeared into her apartment. Minutes passed by as Angela anxiously waited outside. She wasn't sure whether or no the woman was going to come back, but she was sticking around just in case. 'Just a few more minutes' she thought to herself. She shifted her weight from foot to foot.
She sighed, thinking it was hopeless and that the woman wasn't going to return. She turned to leave, but before she took a step she heard the door behind her crack open. She turned around just in time to see a gun pointed at her. A shot was fired as Angela fell to the ground motionless.
Jinny and Magda were standing outside of San Fransisco Savings and Loan - a large bank in downtown San Fransisco. The loud, flat sound of the sirens flooded the cool July air. "Can you tell me what the hell is happening?" Magda shouted over the loud sirens to a police officer at the busy scene. "34 year old Carl Hazelton, holding hostages," the portly cop replied. Jinny looked at all of the cars surrounding them. She sighed, "Do you have the phone number for inside the bank?". The officer nodded and pulled out a small piece of paper from his pocket, "Right here," he responded. Jinny pursed her lips, "Why don't you give Mr. Hazelton a call? Someone needs to try and persuade him to surrender."
Angela lay there in pain. She felt the world around her spinning. It took her a moment to realize that she had been shot and by the time she did, the woman was hovering over her. "You killed my husband and now I'm going to kill you," the woman said in an evil tone. Angela tried to beg for her life, but she couldn't get any words out. The woman took the gun and pointed it at Angela's chest. With a look of rage in her eyes, the woman pulled the trigger. Angela felt the bullet pierce her insides and tried to scream out in agony but couldn't. Suddenly, a man from across the hall opened his door to see where the shots were coming from. His jaw dropped in astonishment when he saw what was happening. "Oh my god," he gapsed. The women dropped the gun and ran down the hallway. The man ran over to Angela's immobile body. She was badly bleeding and the man knew that he had to call the paramedics immediately.
He ran into his apartment, leaving Angela lying there on the floor in a pool of her own blood.
The officer who had the number dialed it up and then handed the phone to Jinny. "Why the hell are you handing it to me?" she asked. "I'm not authorized to speak with him, ma'am. I'm a rookie and have yet to have the proper training for this situation." The officer walked off. "Great, a wise cop with a big vocabulary," Jinny muttered under her breath as he walked away. She pressed the phone up to her hear and took in a deep breath as a man answered it. "Carl, this is Inspector Jinny Exstead with the S.F.P.D. You can call me Jinny though. I need to know how many people are in there with you." Jinny spoke softly and bit her lip as she waited for a response. "Fifteen. Five workers, then there's six customers, and four kids. Ones crying and want shut up so I'm gonna have to blow it's brains out." Jinny listened to the crying in the background and again took in a deep breath from the fresh air around her
"Why don't you let the kids go, Carl? They aren't doing you any harm or any good. Let them free." Jinny looked at Magda with concerned eyes as she waited for a response.
Captain Kate McCafferty stood at her desk with the telephone to her ear. She wore a worried expression on her face as she listened to the voice on the other end of the telephone line explain to her the current situation that one of her top inspectors was in. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, but she did her best to listen attentively. Once the officer was through explaining the situation to her she hung the phone up, sat down in her chair, and buried her face in her hands.
'How did this happen?' she questioned herself silently. She massaged her forehead trying to regain her train of thought. She knew that she had to break the news to C.D, and she was n't sure how C.D. would take it. "Dick was murdered nine months ago, and now this," Captain mumbled as she stood from her chair and walked to the door. "C.D, could you come here for a second."
"Sure Cap," C.D. replied. With a puzzled look on her face, she walked into Kate's office. "Have a seat," Kate said, motioning towards a chair. C.D. sat down in the chair as Kate sat down at her desk. "What is it, Cap?" C.D. inquired. Kate took a deep breath. She hated being the bearer of bad news, and she knew how this was going to affect C.D. "There's been an accident," Kate gently informed C.D. "What kind of accident?" C.D. queried with a questioning glance. "Well," Kate began, "Angela was shot this morning." C.D.'s face instantly grew pale white after hearing those five devastating words.
"Oh my gosh," C.D. choked, "Is she okay?" Kate shrugged, "She was rushed to the hospital. The police have no news on her condition. All they know is that she was shot twice." C.D. rose to her feet, "Who did this?" she asked angrily. Kate pursed her lips, "That man that Angela killed - it was his wife. She shot Ang."
C.D.'s blinked, "I'm going to see Angela." Kate got up from her desk, "I'm coming, too."
Jinny could hear Carl breathing heavily through the phone. "Carl?" she asked. "Yeah?" he replied, his voice shakey. Jinny licked her lips, "Do we have a deal?". Carl sighed deeply, "Alright, I'll leave the children go. But the others gotta stay." Jinny responded, "Okay, but don't hurt the others. Got it?" He didn't say a word. "Carl?" she said with a hint of irritation in her voice. "Okay," he said lowly. Everyones attention turned to the two front doors of the bank opening and five terrified children running out screaming. Jinny smiled, thrilled that kids hadn't been harmed. Her thoughts were interrupted when Carl began talking again. "Do you know why I did this?" he asked. Jinny furrowed her eyebrows, "No, why?". Carl sighed, the way a person does before telling a long story.
C.D. rushed into the hospital, the captain not far behind. She looked around and flashed her badge to the first doctor she saw. "Inspector DeLerenzo. An Inspector Angela Reide was brought in shortly ago with gun shot wounds. I need information on the situation as soon as possible." The young doctor looked down at the chart which was in his hand and then back up at C.D. "You're best bet will be to go up to the third floor.
The emergency room is located there, and the nurses will be of great assistance." C.D. and the captain nodded their appreciation and hurried off to find the elevator.
Once on the third floor C.D. walked up to the nurse's desk and once again flashed her badge. "I need information on an Angela Reide that was brought in shortly ago." The nurse nodded, "Yes m'am. I'll notify the doctor and he will be with you as soon as possible." C.D. ran a hand through through the back of her hair and mumbled a 'thank you' to the nurse. She then walked over to the waiting area and nervously began pacing the floor.
Captain starred at the look of pain that was on C.D's face. She walked up to C.D. and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's going to be ok," the captain said reassuringly.
"Angela Reide?" a doctor walked into the waiting room and stated.
"My life is so screwed up," he started, his voice crackley, "My mom blew her brains out when I was six 'cause she couldn't handle being a parent. My dad said that it was my fault that she killed herself and he was always telling me that I was a mistake and that I would never amount to anything. I sucked at school. All my grades were bad. When I was 16, my dad died in a car accident. I was so lost, you know? I dropped out of school and started doing drugs. I fell in love with this beautiful girl when I was 19 but she dumped me 'cause I was a druggie. I can't tell you how much that hurt So I tried to freakin' kill myself by slashing my wrists. Needless to say, it didn't work 'cause I'm still here.
Anyway, I went from job to job. I was a construction worker, an electrician and lots of other stuff but I always got fired 'cause I can't do anything! Last year, I met this woman named Shelly. God, she's so beautiful! She was my reason for living, ya know? We moved in together and everything. Well, a few weeks ago, I lost another job and started dealing drugs since I was desperate for money. Yesterday, Shelly found out and got pissed. She dumped me!
Kicked me out of the house. I am so screwed! And there's no use in trying to correct my mistakes. They're all over and done with." Jinny was shocked; this poor man was in so much pain and he had just poured his heart out to her. For some odd reason, she felt like he was a source of comfort - probably because she had rough problems like that, too, and she could relate. She realized that if she told him about all of her mistakes, he wouldn't feel so alone. So, she took a deep breath and began: "I always make mistakes, too.
I made a really big mistake just a few days ago," Jinny paused for a moment and looked at Magda, then resumed speaking to Carl, "My friend needed me. She was being hurt by these jerks and I should have been there to back her up. But I wasn't. Instead, I was drinking. . .something I always do. So ya see, you're not the only one who makes mistakes. Just come out, please. I'm begging you." Jinny looked at Magda. Judging by her expression, Jinny realized how shocked, hurt and disappointed Magda was at this sudden revealation. Their gaze was broken by the sound of the doors of the bank opening.
"Yes," both C.D. and Kate answered anxiously. "Hi, I'm Doctor Willsan," the tall, dark man said, walking towards the two women, "Angela was shot twice. Once in the chest and once in the stomach. When she was brought in here, her pulse was weak. As we were working on her, her heart stopped. We had to crack open her chest and shock her heart. Luckily, we got it beating again. She lost a lot of blood, though, and we had to rush her to the OR to remove the bullets. She's in surgery right now." C.D. arched an eyebrow with worry, "Will she be okay?". The doctor sighed, "Well, she was bleeding internally and I believe that there is going to be some tissue damage." C.D. rolled her eyes and became hasty, "It's a yes or no question, doc. Will she be okay?" The doctor shrugged, "I'm not sure. We can't be sure of anything until she gets out of surgery." Kate walked up to them, "Thank you, doctor."
The doctor nodded, "I will let you know when she gets out of surgery." Having said that, he walked away.
Jinny turned her gaze to Carl, who was standing in front of the doors with his hands in the air, a blank look on his face. His gun was laying on the ground next to his feet. The police rushed up to him and arrested him. Jinny just stared, thrilled that she was able to persuade him to give up. "Jin?" Magda said softly. Jinny looked at Magda, expecting her to say words of anger, "Yeah?" Magda motioned for Jinny to follow her to the side of an abandoned building.
Once they were out of the large crowd, Magda spoke, "You lied to me! I can't believe it. What makes me even more mad is that you drank on the job. How could you?" Jinny lowered her head, feeling like a child being scolded. "But," Magda continued, "I'm proud of you. You managed to save 16 lives today." Jinny looked up at Magda who was smiling. Jinny gulped, "I'm sorry, Mag." Magda nodded, "I know." All of the sudden, Magda's cell phone rang. "Hello?" she answered rather annoyed that her and Jinny's conversation had been interrupted. Jinny looked at Magda, whose eyes slowly widened. "Oh my god," Magda gasped, "We'll be right there!" As soon as she hung up, Jinny grabbed Magda's wrist, "What the hell is going on?" she asked. Magda's expression was that of disbelief and shock, "Angela has been shot."
Jinny and Magda stood in the elevator. Each were starring at the door impatiently, waiting for the elevator to come to a stop and the door to open. "I can't believe this happened," Jinny said unbelievingly as she folded her arms and leaned her head up against the back elevator wall.
"No one can, Jin," Mag said confused. She wasn't sure how to react to this situation, but she was sure of how she felt, and she felt awful.
"It isn't fair. She goes to see the lady who's husband she killed, and the lady shoots her. That's a bunch of bull if ya ask me." Jinny was no longer just talking to Magda, but she was talking to herself as well, trying to convince herself this situation was real and not a nightmare.
"There's nothing we can do about it now, we just have to wait it out."
They each breathed a sigh of relief as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened wide.
Jinny jumped out and Magda followed. "What's happening?" Jinny asked, walking over to C.D. and Kate, who were sitting impatiently. "She's in surgery," Kate replied. "You know what happened?" C.D. asked. "Yeah," Magda nodded, "We were already filled in." Jinny and Magda couldn't help nut stare at C.D. - she looked so worried. "Hey," Magda said gently, sitting down next to C.D., "I'm sure she'll be fine." C.D. shook her head, "Yeah, whatever." Magda looked at Jinny who was nervously biting her fingernails. Everyone was in utter shock; how could this have happened?
- IN THE OR - Doctor Willsan was pacing through the halls when a nurse walked out of Angela's room. "Doctor, she's awake," the nurse notified him. Doctor Willsan hurried into Angela's room and sat down next to her bed. "Angela," the doctor spoke softly, "Do you know what happened to you?" Angela nodded. "There were two gunshot wounds, one to your chest and one to your stomach.
We had to perform a thoracotomy after you went into cardiac arrest, which means we had to cut open your chest to get your heart beating again. You lost quite a lot of blood and you had some internal bleeding. We had to perform an operation to remove the bullets. There was some damage to your liver but we were able to repair it. However, we had to remove your spleen. I'm sorry." Angela choked as she felt hot tears forming in her eyes. "There are some people here to see you. Want me to send them in?" Angela nodded. "Okay," Doctor Willsan said with a smile.
Captain, Jinny, and Magda agreed C.D. should be the first one to go in and see Angela. C.D. was reluctant at first, but in the end the three inspectors one out, insisting they wouldn't have it any other way. The doctor gave a small smile to the women once they had decided who would go in first, and the motioned for C.D. to follow him. As they walked down the hallway he began to explain a few things. "Mrs. Reide is very weak, so don't be surprised if she can't talk. She is conscience and responsive however, so feel free to say whatever to her." The doctor stopped a door that had a brass plate on it which read 'O.P. 2." He motioned for C.D. to go in. "I'll give you about five minutes," he whispered with a smile and watched as C.D. entered the room and shut the door behind her gently. C.D. looked over at the bed her partner was laying in and pressed her fingers to her mouth. She shook her head in disbelief, for the woman lying on the bed looked nothing like her partner at all. She took in a deep breath and gathered all her strength as she walked over towards Angela. Once at Angela's bedside she looked down at her partner and forced a smile. "Hey there." "Hey," Angela said weakly as she gave C.D. a weak attempt at a smile.
"How you doin'?" C.D. questioned as she folded her arms and leaned her leg up against the bed railing. "I've had better days," Angela smirked. "I think we all have." C.D. rubbed her hand through the back of her hair nervously. Angela noticed this. "C.D, there's no reason for you to worry." C.D. wiped away the tears that were now escaping her eyes. "I can't think of a better time." "C.D, you've been a great partner, and more importantly a great friend, and don't let anyone tell you different." Angela was now tearing up. "Angela, you can fight this. You're a figher, not a quieter." C.D. tried to keep a stiff upper lip as she spoke with mild force. "You can't give up." Angela shook her head. "It's over, C.D. I went to the woman's house to bring myself peace, and even though I left with gun shot wounds, I left with peace as well." Angela fought back the tears, as she could feel herself getting weaker. "Thanks for everything, C.D. You will never know the effect you've had on me. Thanks for giving me a chance." C.D. wiped away the tears that were now pouring from her face. "You can't give up--you CAN'T!"
The heart monitor that was hooked up to Angela stopped beating. Doctors and nurses rushed in, and as they did they pushed C.D. out, informing her she had to leave. "YOU CAN'T GIVE UP ANGELA!" C.D. yelled as a nurse pulled her out of the operating room. "You can't," C.D. mumbled to herself.
She watched as Angela was quickly being wheeled down the hall "Where are they taking her?" C.D. asked the nurse. "Back to the OR," the nurse replied. C.D. looked at her in confusion, "Wasn't she just there?". The nurse nodded, "Her heart stopped so they have to get it beating again. Go back to the waiting room. The doctor will update you soon." C.D. stormed away in anger. She couldn't believe what was happening. As she entered the waiting room, Jinny leaped up from her chair. "What's going on?" C.D. fought back tears, "I don't know. I was talking to her and she seemed fine and then her heart stopped. They had to take her back up to surgery." Jinny, Magda and Kate were in shock. Jinny sat back down, a look of disbelief on her face. Kate put her head in her hands and Magda silently wept. C.D. gulped, "Did anyone call Daniel?" Jinny nodded, "He's on his way." - IN THE OR - "Charge the paddles to 15. Clear!" Doctor Willsan shocked Angela's heart with the internal paddles. It was a rather intense scene. Angela was lying unconscious on a cold table while two doctors and three nurses desperately tried to revive her. One of the nurses shook her head, "Still in V-Fib." Doctor Willsan was discouraged, "Charge to 25. Clear!" he shocked Angela's heart once again. "Nothing," a short man named Doctor Malachak said. "Charge to 30. Push an amp of epi. Clear!" Doctor Willsan hollered. The monitors continued to wildly beep. "Sats down to 59," one of the nurses said. "Charge again.100 of lidocane. Clear!" Doctor Willsan shouted. "Still in V-Fib," one of the nurses declared . "That's it, we've done everything we can," Doctor Malachak said, "Hold compressions." The flat drone of the heart monitor filled the room and was quite haunting at that point. Doctor Willsan glanced at the clock and sadly announced, "Time of death: 10:32."
Dr. Willsan removed his gloves and exited the Operating Room. He walked down the hall to the waiting room, playing out how he would break the news to the friends and family of the victim. This was the only part of the job he hated... Once in the waiting room he shrugged, "I'm sorry, there was nothing else we could do-we lost her." "Are you sure," Jinny asked, not sure what else to say. "Yes, ma'am," we did our best, the doctor replied and then turned to leave. C.D. starred at the spot where the doctor had just been standing. Her eyes were wide as she leaned back against the wall and slowly slid down it until she was sitting on the ground with her knees pulled up under her chin. "I don't belive this," she said outloud, but the only person she was really talking to was herself. "This can't be happening, she isn't a quiter." Captain, Jinny, and Magda starred at each other, neither one of them sure of what they should do. The captain finally walked over to C.D. and knelt down beside her. "You gonna be ok?" the captain asked with concern in her voice. She knew it was a rather dumb question, but it was all that came to mind at the moment. C.D. continued starring at the same spot on the floor as she sniffed back her tears. "This isn't right. This isn't fair. She was just trying to do what she thought was right." Magda and Jinny watched how C.D. was taking the news. Magda nervously entwined her fingers as Jinny chewed on her bottom lip until it started bleeding. She couldn't help but ownder how she would feel if the same thing happened to Magda... "That women sure as hell better be locked up, or I'll see to it myself she never sees sunshine again," C.D. said bitterly as she broke her stare from the floor and turned to face the captain. The captain nodded, "We're going to do all we can to put her behind bars." "Damn right we are," Magda spoke up. C.D. nodded, "good." She was trying to suck it all up and put on a brave face, but inside she was experiencing insdescribable emotions. She had hate in her heart towards the woman who had taken her partner's life away, and she had a sick feeling in her stomach, knowing she would never see Angela again...
"Where is she?" Daniel said, jumping off of the elevator, "Where is Angie?!" Everyone's eyes grew wide at the site of Daniel. Who was going to break the bad news to him? C.D. decided to do it, even though she truly didn't want to. She got up and walked towards Daniel, stopping when she was five inches away from him. "Um, there was a complication," C.D. explained, desperately trying to fight back tears, "Angela died." Daniel stood there silently for a moment with no expression on his face. Then suddenly, in a fit of anger and sadness, he violently overturned a cart of supplies. "SON OF A BITCH!" he cursed. He put his head in his hands, rubbed his temples and then looked up to meet C.D.'s compassionate eyes. "I was just talking to her this morning," Daniel said, shaking his head in disbelief, "We were joking around about her cooking. She CAN'T be dead." C.D. tried to so hard to remain calm and keep her tough exterior showing. She felt like bawling her eyes out, but she just couldn't; at least not in front of her co-workers and Angela's distraught husband. "I'm so sorry, Daniel," she said apologetically. Daniel took a deep breath, "I want to see the doctor who worked on her," he said. Kate, who had sadly been watching the entire melancholiac scene with Jinny and Magda, nodded, "His name is Doctor Willsan." Daniel nodded in appreciation and walked up to the admin desk. A young brown haired girl in her early 20s was sitting behind the desk, typing something up on the computer. "Excuse me miss," Daniel said in a shakey tone. "Yes?" the girl replied. Daniel glanced at her silver nametag which read 'Savannah Maylan'. "I want to see Doctor Willsan," Daniel said.. Savannah needed no explanation; she witnessed the disturbing scene that had just occured moments before and knew that Daniel was Mrs. Reide's husband. Savannah nodded, picked up the telephone and dialed a number. "Hi, Doctor Willsan...there is a man here to see you...yes...he is Mr. Reide, you know, Mrs. Reide's husband? Okay, bye." She hung up the phone, looked at Daniel and smiled sympathetically. "He's on his way out," she said. Daniel muttered a quick thanks and stood in the hallway, waiting for the doctor. Jinny and Magda suddenly broke down into sobs and hugged eachother while Kate stood quietly next to a motionless C.D. There was muteness for a few moments until it was broken by Doctor Willsan's voice, "Mr. Reide," he said, walking towards Daniel and extending his hand to be shaken. Daniel didn't shake his hand, though. He got right to the point; "What the hell happened to my wife?" he angrily demanded. Doctor Willsan sighed deeply, prepared to give the explanation that he had given to so many families before, "Well, she was brought in here with two gunshot wounds - one to the chest and one to the stomach. While we were working on her in the ER, her heart stopped, so we cracked open her chest and shocked her heart to get it beating again. Once we did that, she was rushed to the OR and we removed the bullets. After she came out of surgery and regained consciousness, she went into cardiac arrest and we had to rush her back into surgery. Unfortunately, we had to cut her chest open again because we had to shock her heart. We tried to get it beating again but we couldn't. We did everything we could, sir. I'm terribly sorry for your loss." Daniel shook his head and gulped. "Is there anything you would like to know?" Doctor Willsan asked gently. Daniel just stood there, a shocked expression on his face. Kate decided to step forward, "No, doctor. Thank you." With that, Doctor Willsan disappeared down the hallway. "Daniel," C.D. tried to comfort him, "I'm so sorry." Daniel turned to face her, "So am I." He sauntered out of the hospital without saying a word. C.D. put her head in her hands, "This is NOT happening," she told herself. Kate put her hand on C.D.'s shoulder, "I know this is difficult for you. . ." but C.D. interrupted her in mid-sentence. "No!" C.D. shouted, "You don't know what it's like! I've already lost two of my partners. I can't believe this!" She shrugged Kate's hand off of her shoulder and stomped out of the hospital.
Kate looked back at Jinny and Magda who were starring at their Captain for guidance in this situation. Kate just shrugged, "There's nothing we can do now. You guys have a case, so I guess all I can say is hop to it." Jinny and Magda both nodded as they rose to their feet. "I'll need a ride because I'm assuming C.D. has left me." "Sure thing, Cap" Magda said. The three women left the hospital, each in their own world, dealing with the news their own way...
C.D. walked briskly to her car, talking to herself all the way. She couldn't believe this was happening. Everything was going by so quickly and trying to register in her memory so fast. Angela's last words kept echoing through C.D's mind, 'thanks for giving me a chance...'. C.D. cursed herself. She had given Angela a chance, but it had taken her forever to do so. The very first time she had met Angela she had got on Angela's case about not backing her up properly. Now the reason Angela was dead was because she had backed C.D. up properly...
C.D. got to her car and got in. She locked the door behind her and then slammed her fist in the steering wheel. "That S.O.B." C.D. leaned her head back against the headrest and bit her bottom lip. She didn't know why, but the tears that had so badly been wanting to fall earlier no longer wanted to come. At the moment there was no sadness in her heart, the sadness had been overcome by hate. She hated the women for killing her partner and she hated herself for not being there when her partner needed her most. She rubbed her hand across her forehead, 'this can't be happening', was the thought that was racing through her mind.
C.D. remained in her car in the hospital parking lot another half hour. She had been going over things in her mind, trying to asses what thoughts she could. She knew hate wouldn't bring Angela back, nor would revenge. She knew that nothing would. All she had left of Angela was memories, and she was slowly coming to terms with that. She snapped out of her trance and started the ignition of her car. She pulled out of the parking lot and began driving...
Jinny and Magda were sitting at the bar at Anchorside. They both were in utter shock. Angela was dead. Neither of them could believe it. They sat there in silence, Jinny moving her shot glass around in circles and Magda resting her chin in the palm of her hand. "Angela's dead," Magda said outloud. God, it sounded so weird. Jinny sighed, fighting back tears, "I know." Magda bit her bottom lip, which was quivering, "Why her? She was such a good person!" Jinny shook her head, "I don't know, Mag. I honestly don't know."
Magda felt a tear roll down her cheek, "Daniel didn't even get a chance to say goodbye. That has to be hard, you know? Not being able to say that last goodbye. I know that from now on, I will cherish every moment that I spend with my son. Each hug, each kiss, each homework assignment that I help him with will mean the world to me." Jinny gulped; she had never gotten to say goodbye to her mother. She wiped away a tear and got up, "See you, Jin." Jinny didn't even turn to look at her - she just continued staring into space. "Bye, Mag," she said dully.
She drove until she reached a four story apartment building that was ragged in appearance. She entered it ans climbed the stairs to the roof. Once on the roof she walked over to a piece of plywood that was about five feet tall and sat up against it. She pulled her knees up under her chin and starred out over the city. This was where she and Angela had first met...
*FLASHBACK*
Angela had just asked a guy to 'pretty please' put the kinfe down that he was holding to a ladies throat...
C.D: Pretty please? You forgot to say with sugar on top.
Angela: I just thought it would be easier to try and difuse the situation.
C.D: Save it. If it works for you that's fine.
Angela: He was just looking for an excuse to put the knife down. I gave it to him.
C.D: Like I said, if that's your style you should go with it, and I'll see you around....or not.
Officer: We're taking him to central, C.D.
C.D: Thanks buddy.
Angela: You're C.D? Inspector DeLerenzo?
C.D: Yeah
Angela: Inspector Angela Reide.
C.D: So?
Angela: I'm your new partner.
*END FLASHBACK*
Now the tears that had been coming and going for C.D. were flowing heavily. The anger had returned, but not anger towards the lady, she was feeling anger towards herself. She had treated Angela like hell when she first came to work at the division. C.D. picked up a handful of gravel off the roof and flung it as far as she could.
*FLASHBACK*
Captain: How's it working out?
C.D: It's not
*END FLASHBACK*
C.D. sighed. She an Angela might not ahve started off well, but they had become good friends over the months they'd known each other...
*FLASHBACK*
Angela: This is my first case as primary. I just want to make sure I don't forget anthing.
C.D: You forgot the most important thing.
Angela: What's that?
C.D: LUNCH.
*END FLASHBACK*
Magda walked into her quiet apartment. Gabriel was asleep on the couch, lightly snoring. She smiled at the sight of him and crept into Ben's room. The moonlight that was shining through his window fell on the child's precious face. He was sleeping soundly in his bed, tucked away under his covers. Magda sat down on his bed and ran her fingers through his hair. She leaned down, kissed him and whispered, "I love you, Ben."
C.D. wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, causing her face to get dirt on it from the gravel she had just handled. "It's so hard... I gave her such a hard time. Did she realize that she had earned my respect as a partner?"
*FLASHBACK*
Angela: C.D, WATCH OUT!
......
C.D: Thanks, partner
*END FLASHBACK*
C.D. closed her eyes as tightly as she could. Angela was gone and wouldn't be coming back. C.D. took in a deep breath, as if she were sucking in the reality. She quickly wiped her tears away and cleaned her face with the end of her jacket sleeve. She rose to her feet and made her way off the roof and back to her car. She had a visit to make...
Jinny was at her apartment, in her bedroom rummaging through her walk-in closet "Found it," she said, picking up a box full of pictures. She set the brown box down her bed and began going through it. She came across pictures of herself, her friends and her family. She stopped once she reached a photograph of a tall brunette with a bright smile. Jinny picked the photo up and scanned the woman's face. She touched the glass and began crying. She sniffled, "I love you, Mom."
Kate walked to her front door and opened it. She was relieved, yet shocked to see C.D. standing there. It was obvious to Kate that C.D. had been crying, but C.D. stood in front of her now with a small smirk on her face.
"You know, Cap, the last thing Angela said to me was 'thanks for giving me a chance'. "
Kate's first instinct was to invite C.D. in, but she knew not to interrupt C.D. because this was taking alot of guts.
C.D. wiped away a few more tears and rubbed her hand across the back of her neck. "I was thinking. It took me a while to give Angela a chance. You though, you gave it to her right off. She was allowed to go on the street with no experience, because you had faith. She was a young, African American woman who could have easily been overlooked. I know I overlooked her capabilities at first, AND regretted them as well." C.D. wiped away a few more tears and tried forcing a smile. She could tell the captain was beginning to cry. "When Angela thanked me for giving her the chance, I didn't deserve that thanks. At least not as much as you. You gave her the chance, Cap, and you'll never know how much either one of us appreciated it." C.D. pressed her lips together and nodded. "And that's all I think." She put her hands in her pocket and starred at the Captain for a second who was wiping away a tear. She then gave the captain a quick hug, whispered a 'thanks', and left.
Captain Kate McCafferty turned around and entered her house. She closed the door behind her and then walked into her living room. She sat down in her favorite chair and pulled her legs up underneath her. "A chance was given to me years ago, so I owed it to someone else." Then the strong and seemingly unbreakable Kate McCafferty broke down in tears.
This fic was our own finale.
We worked on this fic for a while and really did our absolute best so it would be interesting and worth reading all at once. Please take just a few seconds to review, because we took a few days to write it! Thanks for the reviews in advance!