Disclaimer: See part 10 Other Info: See part 10
part 12
Her key was stuck in the door, causing her to shift the bags to one arm. Nix struggled with the key in her left hand, cursing the door, then the key, then both together as if it were a conspiracy on their part. Thinking her stronger right hand would work better, she shifted the parcels and bags once more and struggled with the key again.. Finding it did nothing more than twist her key, Nixia decided to set the bags down and kick the door in. *Hey, it's MY place and I AM a cop...*
Just as she leaned over to put the packages down, she felt the buzzing creep up on her. Quickly pulling her back-up gun from the ankle holster, Nix crouched down and pointed the .38 towards the landing.
"DAKOTA! I WANT SOME ANSWERS!!!"
The phrase was bellowed from the bottom of the steps, the sound hitting all the walls and echoing about her. Once the sound stopped, she popped her head over the rail, gun still pointed in the general direction of company. "Cripes, Ellison!" Nix started. "Like to give me a heart attack sneaking up on me that way... I should shoot you just because! Now what ARE you yelling about?"
Jim took the steps in twos, leaving his partner to catch up breathlessly several minutes later. "You want to explain something more about you and Taolvik? Something you maybe FORGOT?"
"There's a point to this line of questioning?" She said fooling with the door once more.
"We've come across some information..." Blair said in a bit of a wheeze. "You really ought to install an elevator or something."
She jiggled the handle, then tried the key, then rattled the door with her fist. The pounding started near the edge of the door, then flowed into the center, then finally she added the other fist and banged in determination. Several words of nasty verbal connotation issued forth from her mouth. "Aaarrrrgggghhh!"
"Problems?" Blair asked innocently.
In as few words as possible, Nix explained about the stuck lock and everything she'd tried to that point to open the door.
With a gentle smile, Blair edged the woman away from the door. "Let me give it a try..." As he reached for the key, though, a few golden sparks arced between his finger tips and the metal knob. *That is SO not good.* he thought, then turned to face his partner, who was standing opposite Nikya and glaring down at her.
"Uh, Jim? You wanna give it a try?" At the sarcastically raised eyebrow, Blair merely smiled. "He's got a magic touch. Trust me." The soothing tone of his voice must have worked because he saw her run a hand through her curls, then step aside. "There's something VERY wrong with this scenario, man." The young man whispered for the Sentinel, relieved at the slight nod the man gave him.
Thinking he could simply remove the key then reinsert it slowly enough to feel out which tumbler was sticky, Jim grasped the key in his fingers. Something oily seemed to have gotten on the metal, and he went to wipe his hand on his coat, stopping only as his smell kicked in. "Do you smell that?" He asked quietly, stepping back and kneeling to examine the brass of the lock. There was something there, actually a couple somethings. One minute trace of something and one sharper, more pungent scent that seemed to be mutating quickly.
"Smell what, Jim?"
"Smells like an epoxy resin..." Careful of his senses, the Sentinel touched the key and the lock again, finding the front of the tumbler assembly covered with a sticky substance. He tried to remove the key and found it stuck tight. A bit of black goo was seeping out from the edge of the key. Another inhale and Jim knew something was definitely going on. "It IS epoxy. I can smell the two parts as they harden. And it's in your lock. No way that key's coming out now. You're gonna have to get another lock. Probably have to have the thing cut out of the door." His fingers had confirmed the steel skin covered a wood core. Pretty standard security door.
"Well, if you wanna stand back, I'll just shoot it out." *Not like I can't afford another damn door.*
But as Dakota was replacing her small back-up in favor of her heftier .45, Ellison held up his hand and stopped her. "Hold that thought. Who would put epoxy in your lock?"
After a second or two, Blair added. "And why?"
"Someone who wants me locked OUT?" Nix rationalized. "But what's the point of keeping me OUT of my own home? It's not like it's that crucial that I get in. I could just stay somewhere else tonight or call someone to come take the door off. OR just shoot the lock..."
"But what if that's what they WANT you to do?" Blair said quickly. "Jim. Is there anything going on inside?"
He listened for a second or two... "Nothing. Where's Connor and Methos?"
It suddenly hit her. The two men were supposed to be there. "They were supposed to meet me here for a late lunch, then we were coming to see you two this afternoon... DAMN!" She raised her gun to shoot the lock, but before she could squeeze the trigger, Jim grabbed her arm and forced it up. "What?"
"There's a second smell coming from your loft. GAS!" Jim hadn't been able to get it before, because of the epoxy. But as the two-part resin began to harden, the acrid twinge had subsided and a sulphurous smell had become evident to him. "Put it away, CAREFULLY!"
She did as she was told, watching Jim glancing about intently. "What do you need?"
"Is there a ledge leading to your balcony?" Jim asked, but Nix was shaking her head.
"It's an old factory. Guess they didn't want to give anyone a place to jump from..." She looked around the landing herself, staring straight at the door to the roof. "The roof! My bedroom is under the skylight. It's locked, but my bedroom door is shut. Punching out one of the panes should be safe."
He nodded at the plan. "Chief, take Dakota and head downstairs."
"No."
"Now's not the time to argue, Nixia." Jim said calmly, his hand on her back to lead her away.
"I said NO! YOU take Sandburg and head downstairs. Those are my friends in there, and I WON'T just stand by helplessly!" Nik said as she shirked away from the contact.
"Believe me," Ellison said with no little anger. "Watching over Sandburg has never, EVER meant just standing by..."
"As amusing as you may think you are, detective, this is NOT a funny moment. This is MY home, therefor I'M the one who's gonna take the risk."
Blair could see that Mr. and Ms. Hardhead weren't going anywhere fast. Reaching into Jim's coat pocket, Blair grabbed the cell phone. "I'll head downstairs to the officers on duty, call Simon and the fire department, then see what we can do about evacuating the businesses on this block. You TWO go take care of this."
"Chief?" Jim said to the retreating form.
"I know, Jim." he said and looked his partner in the eyes. "Be careful." It was as much an answer as a reminder.
Ellison turned away from his retreating partner to find that Dakota was already on her way to the roof. *How the hell does she do that so quietly?* Making his way through the door and up the ladder to the roof, Jim found Nix kneeling next to the skylight. It looked as if she was examining the glass, picking which one. As he drew closer, he realized she was moving her hand in circles on the pane closest to the lock. Kicking up his hearing, Jim heard a distinctive screeching. "Where'd you get a glass cutter?"
"Duh." she said, holding up the large ring that she usually wore on her left hand. "Diamonds cut glass."
"You're gonna use a carat and a half diamond to cut through industrial glass?" Jim asked, trying not to sound too incredulous.
Without thinking, Nix laughed and looked at Jim as he knelt next to her. "Does this look like a measly one and a half carats? You need your eyes checked. It's THREE and this isn't industrial glass. Cheap replacements sometime in the last year... But believe me, I've done this before..."
The half-smile on her face clued Jim that there was certainly a good story to be heard later. *Just hope I get to hear it from you.* He watched her score the glass a couple more times, then pop the hole and stick her fist through it to unlock the window. After a quick glance through the hatch, Jim caught Dakota taking a couple deep breaths before suddenly turning to face him.
"Look." Nix started, suddenly serious. "I want you to head back downstairs. Don't stay up here."
"You might need a hand..." Ellison said, setting a hand on her shoulder. His intent was only to keep her from moving too quickly. As soon as he touched her, though, she turned those violet eyes up to him. Jim automatically picked up on the higher level of sweat and the erratic heartbeat. As if the look of panic in her eyes wasn't enough. "Is there something else going on here? Taolvik wouldn't be around here, would he?"
She shook her head, then ran a hand through her hair.
"Your heart's going a mile a minute, your eyes are getting bloodshot from tension, and you really need to find a stronger antiperspirant if you're gonna try running bull on me..." Crossing his arms over his chest, Jim looked down at her with a face he learned from an old drill instructor. "GIVE."
"I figure if Taolvik rigged the front door from the outside, he might have rigged the interior first, then done the door on the way out."
"Are ALL Immortals crazy?" The detective shook his head at the woman. "If Taolvik HAS rigged the interior and you set something off, you'll DIE! What are the chances that a blast or something WON'T blow your head off?"
"I've survived explosions before." Nix said, looking away quickly. "Unless you lay your head directly on the charge, it's unlikely you'll lose it. Just some extremities like fingers or limbs." She couldn't hold in the nervous chuckle and found Ellison looking skyward to avoid direct eye contact.
"I'm not buying it," came the monotone reply. "You can go first, but I'm gonna be right behind you..."
"NO. Dammit, Jim!" Turning away from him for a second, Nikya took a deep breath and mumbled.
"What did you say?" Ellison knew he'd heard her correctly, he just wanted her to say it louder.
"I said," and she turned to face him, anger and pain clear on her face. "I already lost ONE partner because of my curse - I'm not even close to being ready to lose another. Go help Sandburg clear the block. I'll go in and head directly for the balcony windows. If Connor and Methos still have their heads, the fresh air will revive them." She caught the odd look on Jim's face. "We die. We live again when the circumstances get reversed. Nuf said. Just give me 15 minutes before you come busting in."
Taking a couple more deep breaths, Nix grabbed the edge of the frame, swung her body over gently, and then carefully let go. A quick feline flip and she landed softly on her back in the middle of the bed, a smile finding its way to her face as she caught a glimpse of Jim smiling down at her prone form.
One more graceful flip and she was off the bed and out of Jim's sight. He turned his attention to heading down to street level and his partner. That's when he heard Blair's voice.
"Oh, man. Why does this stuff always happen to me?"
~~~~~
The smell in her bedroom wasn't that bad, at least not until she opened the door. She'd opened the window in the bathroom in addition to the windows in the bedroom, then headed out into the rest of the living space. As she moved from the hall to the kitchen, Nix stopped, taking time to step OVER the trip wire three inches off the floor directly in front of her. Seeing it was attached to a crude boom arm rigged with a blade, Nix decided to disarm it later.
As she turned to head to the windows, Nixia found Connor and Methos. They'd been strapped to a couple of her kitchen chairs with duct tape. In each of their mouths was a make-shift gag. Only this gag was meant to force them to breathe. It consisted of rope fed through a piece of small diameter PVC pipe. The gag was tied at the back of the head, forcing the jaw open and ensuring the victim wouldn't be able to hold their breath. Either Taolvik didn't know they were BOTH Immortals, or he just didn't care. Swallowing hard to push back the dryness in her mouth, Nix worked her way towards he windows. She'd untie them in a few minutes.
*Vik must have surprised them, from the looks of the place...* There were plenty of weapons all over the floor. Most of her stuff from the wall was strewn about the practice area. The furniture in the living room was knocked askew, and two of her cases were completely cleared of their contents. "Still looking, is he?" she said to no one. Hearing the sirens outside, Nix crossed the rest of the floor quickly but stopped abruptly at the obvious booby-trap. A small electronic device had been attached at the top. Half on one door, half on the frame. A brief examination confirmed the device was meant to fire a quick burst of electricity when the connections were separated. The burst would certainly ignite the gas. It didn't take more than a minute to wrap each piece in foil, then open the doors. The air was sweet and refreshing, as Nixia closed her eyes to the slight dizziness and took a couple deep breaths.
The sounds of cursing met her ears. Looking down over the edge, Dakota took in the scene. One door of the unmarked cruiser was open, a uniformed body slumped out onto the street. Ellison was yelling and screaming in between pounding on the hood of the police car.
"BITE ME!" Nix cursed through clenched teeth and sat down hard on the balcony bricks.
~~~~~
"He did WHAT to the door?"
"Meeth, I swear! Would you forget the friggin DOOR?" Nix spat harshly, quickly crossing the room from the windows to the kitchen. Jim was still standing on the balcony staring into oblivion and had been that way since the cops had shown up to control the crime scene on the street. He wasn't responding to her voice or touch, let alone Connor or Methos', and Dakota didn't know what she could do. She knew he was distraught over Blair, but thought the man would show some sort of emotion. Glancing once more over her shoulder, Nix stared at Jim's inanimate form.
Methos wasn't aware of her diverted attention and just kept talking. "I just don't understand, Nix. This was a pretty elaborate diversion..." The older Immortal said as he straightened furniture. On Nixia's request, the two men had swept the apartment thoroughly, but hadn't found any more booby-traps.
As soon as she'd untied them, Dakota had found the source of the poisoning. The fittings for all the gas appliances had been completely removed and the studio's main feed fully opened. Once they'd opened all the windows and shut off the line in, the place had aired out quickly enough, considering it had taken a few hours to fill to an explosive level.
Methos thought back to when he and Connor had come back that morning. Nix had gone to the market to pick up some much needed rations - brandy, cigars, chocolate - and left a note for the two men who had failed to return the night before. When they'd come in, they'd found Vik in the studio. He'd been tearing things apart, pulling down all the armor and blades. He'd even emptied a couple of the cases. To their complete amazement, the man had actually bested Connor before simply knocking him out. Then again, neither of them actually had their swords handy at the time. (Not to mention they were both pretty hung over as well.) In the course of the fighting, Taolvik had confessed his desire to take out Nixia only. Connor, while an "enjoyable kill," wasn't on his plan. And in Methos's case, Vik just wasn't interested in the "young Watcher." While Methos was happy to still have his head, he would have gladly traded it for a live Blair Sandburg.
And a very DEAD Taolvik.
A frustrated voice pulled him from his thoughts. Shaking his head slightly, Methos looked towards the cursing. Connor was busy replacing the weaponry on the wall, checking for any damage that might need to be fixed, blades that would need to be sharpened. Methos turned again at the voice, seeing Nix in the corner on the phone. He hadn't even heard it ring...
"Right. I'll tell him. See you in a couple minutes..." She followed that with another stream of curses, then threw the cordless receiver across the room.
Connor picked up the pieces and walked carefully towards his friend. "I take it you won't be calling him right back." He placed the parts on the dining table, then settled a comforting hand on Nix's back. "You need to keep cool. Lose your temper, lose your head. Or didn't Ramirez teach you anything?"
"Who's Ramirez?"
Nix looked over at the voice. "Jim Ellison lives. You had me worried, Big Guy." The glib comment didn't come out as lightly as Nix wished. In fact, it came out with a distressing amount of anxious waver. Enough of a waver, that Nix found herself the focal point of a pair of icy orbs. "I tried everything but a 2x4 to the back of the skull. You were pretty deep in thought."
The old Immortal smacked his head in self disgust. "Zoneout." He hadn't thought about what Ellison was doing on the balcony, just assumed the Sentinel was feeling out the area to see if he could track Taolvik. In reality, without his partner to help him focus, the Sentinel was "stuck in the ON position," in layman's terms. Ellison had opened up all his senses, unconsciously or not, and they were out of control. Methos knew should have seen it, perhaps he could have done something. "I - um - didn't realize soon enough." and he met Jim's shifting gaze. *What brought him out, I wonder.*
Jim shook his head, his right hand rubbing the back of his neck. "S'all right, Meeth. Simon's on his way up."
"That was him on the phone. He wanted me to tell you..."
"Like you really needed to..."
They stared to the doorway, seeing the large, black man appear and examine the lock. "Ellison!"
"Yes, Sir?"
Simon didn't care for the defeat in Jim's voice. Any other time, the detective would be fussing and fuming, chomping at the bit to get out after the party responsible for taking his friend and partner. This, though, was somehow different. There was a sense of helplessness in that monotone. "The officers downstairs have finished with the scene. Did you want to talk to them?" The captain watched as Jim shook his head and turned to head back to the balcony. "All right. Then did you want to go down and run over the area again by yourself?" A hesitation in Jim's step was all the recognition Simon received.
"Is he normally like this?" Nix asked quietly.
Banks shook his head, puffing a bit on his stogie. "Never seen him like this when it came to Sandburg." Wincing as the memories flashed across his face, clarified his statement. "Well, 'cept once."
Connor and Methos noted the shiver that ran through the large man. It was exactly like the one that had run through Blair the night before. Whatever had happened, it had left scars on more than one of their new friends. Turning their attention back to the man's words, they heard him finish his thoughts. "He's usually a one-man commando unit."
Connor nodded agreement. He'd known Jim Ellison as a well-trained Army Ranger, and he'd never seen the man as detached as he was.
Screwing up her resolve, Nix poured two mugs of coffee and headed for the terrace. "Watch my back and hope he doesn't throw me over the edge."
"Why?" Simon said wistfully "It might make him feel better. And it won't hurt...much."
Shaking her head, Nixia walked through the door, approaching carefully. "Detective..."
Ice. His eyes were blue as glacial ice, and just as hard and cold. The attitude seemed to have claimed his entire body and he just stood there, stern and unmoving. Wetting her lips, Dakota held out the mug to him then spoke calmly. "We're wondering what you want to do now?" She watched him take the mug, sip its contents, then bow his head.
"You tell me." Jim said harshly.
"I'm not following."
"You've had this whole thing under your control from the beginning. You knew the victims, you knew the killer, you knew how to work the system around Banks... so tell me. What AM I going to do?" Jim said with a great deal more anger than he was showing. He stared directly at Nixia then.
It took a couple seconds for her to understand Jim's feelings. Even then, after she'd batted it about in her mind, it wasn't completely clear. "You think I knew he was gonna take Sandburg. That I knew the incident here earlier was a set-up." His steely eyes were all the confirmation she needed, and all the fuel as well. In a sudden burst of anger and understanding, Nix's mind formed phrases in a multitude of languages. Taking a couple deep breaths, she grabbed the man's arm and spun him to face her. "You listen to me, James Ellison. If I had thought for ONE nanosecond that this was a trap to get Sandburg, I would have just sent you BOTH downstairs and blown the damn building to bits. It's not like it would have done irreparable damage."
"Believe me, Dakota." came the Sentinel's warning words. "If anything happens to my partner, you can be DAMN sure I WILL do some irreparable damage to you..."
She had to bite the inside of her cheek to stifle the flash of anger until she could actually get control. Realizing that wouldn't happen, she set her mug down and grabbed Jim by the lapels. "YOU should've followed Blair downstairs! I told you! Didn't I?" Nikya said, then released his lapels in a push that did more to move her away from him, than him away from her.
Their raised voices had attracted the three men inside, inching ever closer to the balcony doors.
"Yeah," Jim started, her words suddenly ringing clearly in his ears. "You said something like that. Something about losing a partner too... Care to elaborate on that?"
Connor and Methos had to hand it to Jim. Even as Immortals, they gave WIDE berth to the battleship Nixia became when she was angered. Jim's question peaked their interest, though. Nix had never really told them or Elise just what had happened in LA to make her leave. If they could just get a little closer, they might hear it all.
Simon stood watching his two detectives on the balcony and the two men inside the apartment. He'd been standing close to the balcony, monitoring Ellison for the sake of Sandburg. *If anything happens to you, man, the kid will come after me BIG time. Even if he has to come back from the dead to do so.* That horrible thought made the man shake his head and return his focus to the dueling detectives just to avoid the coming headache.
Jim's mind shifted Nix's words around in his head. Partner, lost... she'd mentioned leaving LA because her partner had died, but she'd never given any other information. "Andy Morales."