Post by ebron on May 26, 2004 17:03:46 GMT -5
A/N: Well, I finally got around to the second chapter...(I lost my interest in the internet for a while, okay?) and now I have the beginning and the end and a fanfic inside the fanfic....uh...a conversation inside this that lasts the entire chapter...uh...I have the good parts, I just can't link them together...*sobs* I'm sorry! 
Hey, the smileys freeze after you click on one! Okay, ONWARD! (I've forgotten the element of flash backs...it's more like a story now...grrrrrr)
A five minute walk was all it took to get to their townhouse.
"You live right next to the agency, and it took you a year to find out I existed."
"No, it took us three hours to figure out that we were in the junction of the Agency and the DA's office. Then it took Candace two days to find you. And then it took us a year to establish to our neighbors that Katie was eighteen." Rush pretended to understand. Kristen knocked on the door. "If a swimmer sees a cheerleader, what do you call it?" Someone asked from the inside. She rolled her eyes.
"Does it matter?"
"Who's with you?"
"Katie and Detective Lilly Rush, homicide. We'll vouch for her." Some inaudible muttering came, and it sounded suspiciously like "You better."
The very first thing to meet her eyes was a bar, made of mahogany. A young girl about the age of 17 stood behind it, with shoulder length blonde hair.
"Could I get you anything?" No harm in just one shot. It was probably just water....whatever was making her rebellious today was going to kill her tomorrow... She nodded, and the girl reached under the counter for a glass. She filled the shot with liquid from a bottle with no label. Rush held it apprehensively and with a decisive motion, tossed it. Her eyes bulged, and her throat caught on fire as she struggled to find her breath.
"Hi. I'm Ashley." Through her wavering vision, she saw a hand in front of her face, and clutched it tightly. "I see you've met Candace," Ashley remarked dryly. "Don't ask what it is. You don't want to know." She nodded weakly, too shocked to answer. "Good. Have the K's filled you in?" She managed to recover enough breath to gasp,
"Yes." Ashley handed her a glass of water.
"Drink it and follow me." She walked behind the tall girl, and thanked the lord that there were no stairs to climb.
"My resources tell me you could help me with my case. My experience tells me you can't be trusted. So you tell me: Are you against me or not?" Rush had no idea what she was saying, but she had the vague idea that the girl wanted her "on the team," so to speak.
"I'll help you." Ashley smiled. It was a nice smile. She wondered why four people would share one room, judging from the amount of junk on the floor.
"Casey Charles was my coach. He was killed in April, 200o. Four years to the day in a week. I used every means I had to figure it out, and now I have to enlist the help of the law. I want you," she pointed a long, slender finger at the detective, "To get me what I want." Well somebody was assertive today.
"Sure, sure, whatever you need. But," she paused before taking Ashley's hand, "I have a job here. What do you expect me to say when I hunt up the box?"
"You tell them that the K's wanted you to. And in case you want to know..." She held up a check. "The amount on this is a thousand dollars, made out to Lilly Rush. You get this one. If you get me enough material to help within a week...I sign another, and you walk away two grand richer. Oh," she mentioned lightly as they shook hands on the deal. "I'll be your partner on this along with Valens if you want any information on Casey." A high school junior wanted in on the investigation that she requested, with a bribe. Fine.
"Yeah. You can. But not for the money. For you and your friends." Ashley smiled again.
"Thanks. Now, I'm going to show you Casey at one of our practices. This was the night before he died, and it took me a hell lot of time to get the copy, without sound." She popped a tape into the VCR. Almost immediately, a man flickered on screen, standing next to a pool, yelling at a group of swimmers. "The guy is Casey. The girl on the far right is me, and the short one next to her is Katie. The two staring at him are Candace and Kristen, the taller one being Kristen. Watch. Casey turns and smiles at someone right...here." The television paused, capturing his profile.
"He looks nice enough." Ashley rolled her eyes.
"Don't let ADA Kite hear that. Besides, he was getting married in two weeks. His fiancé would graduate in a month. She was there that night. And so," Ashley zoomed in slightly to a door on the deck, "was she." Rush leaned forward and frowned.
"It looks like a blonde." State the obvious.
"It is. And once we find who it is, we'll be three steps closer. One, I know everyone in the area, two, she is somebody's mom, and three, she's tiffed about something, and we'll know why. I want to see the case file." Rush blinked. The girl talked too fast.
"You want what?"
"I want his case file."
"I might be able to get you access. What else?"
"Let me help you." There was going to be a problem. She would find a way around for the girl.
"Sure, we can go right now." She hung back a bit. Fear swam around in her dark eyes. "I'm not going to turn you in until you give me a reason to do so." This didn't help any.
She reached behind her and pulled out a folder. "Check that and see if everything's right." She opened it. The first page: Ellen "Lilly" Rush. A picture of her walking outside the neighborhood was glued underneath the heading. Turn. "Homicide detective, cold case worker. Partner: Scotty Valens. Two siblings, mother alive. Relationships: ADA Kite." Turn. Ashley took it back and continued speaking. "You ran out at sixteen, couldn’t put up with your mom, and plus, you’d have a job. Spent a few years in college, didn’t you?” Pause. "You wanted to be a cop, but you were too proud to ask for help, until it was almost too late. Moseyed around for a little while, did odd jobs. Two years later, you’re in homicide. Maybe you liked it there. Any way, here you are now, not bad in wear and tear, but a bit more bitter.” Rush glared at her.
“Anyone can find this on the web.” Ashley shook her head.
“But not everyone can find this.” She pulled out a picture from the folder and handed it to Rush. Uncertainty washed over her as she recognized a picture of her fifteen-year-old self. She looked much the way she looked now, but with a rounder face, and a genuine smile gracing her mouth. She was laughing with some guy...looked like Scotty, almost, but he was paler...tougher. She knew the face.
"Where did you find this?"
"What?"
"How did you know?" She was beginning to doubt the security of her memories.
"Does it matter how, or where? I found it. I keep it. This job is like being a pack rat. You see something, you take it back home. Sometimes, lots of times, it’s useless. But every once in a while…you hit jackpot. Besides,” she added quietly, "My life is revolving around this case. If I can't do this, I have to go back."
"Go back where?" She asked.
Ashley turned away. "Go back home."
Hey, the smileys freeze after you click on one! Okay, ONWARD! (I've forgotten the element of flash backs...it's more like a story now...grrrrrr)A five minute walk was all it took to get to their townhouse.
"You live right next to the agency, and it took you a year to find out I existed."
"No, it took us three hours to figure out that we were in the junction of the Agency and the DA's office. Then it took Candace two days to find you. And then it took us a year to establish to our neighbors that Katie was eighteen." Rush pretended to understand. Kristen knocked on the door. "If a swimmer sees a cheerleader, what do you call it?" Someone asked from the inside. She rolled her eyes.
"Does it matter?"
"Who's with you?"
"Katie and Detective Lilly Rush, homicide. We'll vouch for her." Some inaudible muttering came, and it sounded suspiciously like "You better."
The very first thing to meet her eyes was a bar, made of mahogany. A young girl about the age of 17 stood behind it, with shoulder length blonde hair.
"Could I get you anything?" No harm in just one shot. It was probably just water....whatever was making her rebellious today was going to kill her tomorrow... She nodded, and the girl reached under the counter for a glass. She filled the shot with liquid from a bottle with no label. Rush held it apprehensively and with a decisive motion, tossed it. Her eyes bulged, and her throat caught on fire as she struggled to find her breath.
"Hi. I'm Ashley." Through her wavering vision, she saw a hand in front of her face, and clutched it tightly. "I see you've met Candace," Ashley remarked dryly. "Don't ask what it is. You don't want to know." She nodded weakly, too shocked to answer. "Good. Have the K's filled you in?" She managed to recover enough breath to gasp,
"Yes." Ashley handed her a glass of water.
"Drink it and follow me." She walked behind the tall girl, and thanked the lord that there were no stairs to climb.
"My resources tell me you could help me with my case. My experience tells me you can't be trusted. So you tell me: Are you against me or not?" Rush had no idea what she was saying, but she had the vague idea that the girl wanted her "on the team," so to speak.
"I'll help you." Ashley smiled. It was a nice smile. She wondered why four people would share one room, judging from the amount of junk on the floor.
"Casey Charles was my coach. He was killed in April, 200o. Four years to the day in a week. I used every means I had to figure it out, and now I have to enlist the help of the law. I want you," she pointed a long, slender finger at the detective, "To get me what I want." Well somebody was assertive today.
"Sure, sure, whatever you need. But," she paused before taking Ashley's hand, "I have a job here. What do you expect me to say when I hunt up the box?"
"You tell them that the K's wanted you to. And in case you want to know..." She held up a check. "The amount on this is a thousand dollars, made out to Lilly Rush. You get this one. If you get me enough material to help within a week...I sign another, and you walk away two grand richer. Oh," she mentioned lightly as they shook hands on the deal. "I'll be your partner on this along with Valens if you want any information on Casey." A high school junior wanted in on the investigation that she requested, with a bribe. Fine.
"Yeah. You can. But not for the money. For you and your friends." Ashley smiled again.
"Thanks. Now, I'm going to show you Casey at one of our practices. This was the night before he died, and it took me a hell lot of time to get the copy, without sound." She popped a tape into the VCR. Almost immediately, a man flickered on screen, standing next to a pool, yelling at a group of swimmers. "The guy is Casey. The girl on the far right is me, and the short one next to her is Katie. The two staring at him are Candace and Kristen, the taller one being Kristen. Watch. Casey turns and smiles at someone right...here." The television paused, capturing his profile.
"He looks nice enough." Ashley rolled her eyes.
"Don't let ADA Kite hear that. Besides, he was getting married in two weeks. His fiancé would graduate in a month. She was there that night. And so," Ashley zoomed in slightly to a door on the deck, "was she." Rush leaned forward and frowned.
"It looks like a blonde." State the obvious.
"It is. And once we find who it is, we'll be three steps closer. One, I know everyone in the area, two, she is somebody's mom, and three, she's tiffed about something, and we'll know why. I want to see the case file." Rush blinked. The girl talked too fast.
"You want what?"
"I want his case file."
"I might be able to get you access. What else?"
"Let me help you." There was going to be a problem. She would find a way around for the girl.
"Sure, we can go right now." She hung back a bit. Fear swam around in her dark eyes. "I'm not going to turn you in until you give me a reason to do so." This didn't help any.
She reached behind her and pulled out a folder. "Check that and see if everything's right." She opened it. The first page: Ellen "Lilly" Rush. A picture of her walking outside the neighborhood was glued underneath the heading. Turn. "Homicide detective, cold case worker. Partner: Scotty Valens. Two siblings, mother alive. Relationships: ADA Kite." Turn. Ashley took it back and continued speaking. "You ran out at sixteen, couldn’t put up with your mom, and plus, you’d have a job. Spent a few years in college, didn’t you?” Pause. "You wanted to be a cop, but you were too proud to ask for help, until it was almost too late. Moseyed around for a little while, did odd jobs. Two years later, you’re in homicide. Maybe you liked it there. Any way, here you are now, not bad in wear and tear, but a bit more bitter.” Rush glared at her.
“Anyone can find this on the web.” Ashley shook her head.
“But not everyone can find this.” She pulled out a picture from the folder and handed it to Rush. Uncertainty washed over her as she recognized a picture of her fifteen-year-old self. She looked much the way she looked now, but with a rounder face, and a genuine smile gracing her mouth. She was laughing with some guy...looked like Scotty, almost, but he was paler...tougher. She knew the face.
"Where did you find this?"
"What?"
"How did you know?" She was beginning to doubt the security of her memories.
"Does it matter how, or where? I found it. I keep it. This job is like being a pack rat. You see something, you take it back home. Sometimes, lots of times, it’s useless. But every once in a while…you hit jackpot. Besides,” she added quietly, "My life is revolving around this case. If I can't do this, I have to go back."
"Go back where?" She asked.
Ashley turned away. "Go back home."
