Disclaimer: see part 6 Other Info: see part 6
part 8
~~~~~
Blair followed Nixia towards a rapidly retreating form. She'd snuggled into his side and whispered into his ear to follow her. Trusting she was onto something, he did what she said, knowing Jim had heard and would be on his way to meet them. The Sentinel would know exactly where his Shaman was.
The well-dressed man headed towards a large door, keys jingling in his hands. Blair figured the man was either management or sales staff. He figured it was even worse when he saw the look of recognition on Dakota's face. *Another Immortal? How many of them are there, and what are they all doing in Cascade?*
"Bernie!" Nix fairly screamed the greeting, causing several pairs of eyes to turn in her direction. "Imagine finding you here. Baernids? OH, Come on. That's just too stuffy for you..."
"Nixia," he said sweetly, turning away from his office door. As he turned, he noticed the young man next to her. "You're looking extremely well." Bernie knew what was coming, but swallowed heavily and asked anyway. "What can I do for you?"
She glanced around before removing her earpiece and handing it to Blair. There was a look of panic on the smaller man's face, but before he could stop Nix, she'd opened the office door, pushed Bernie inside ahead of her, then shut the door in Sandburg's face.
With the earpiece still in his fist, Blair beat on the door a bit. Jim's voice in his ear, though, brought that to a stop. Not knowing how far Dakota would go, Blair attempted to reason with her through the door. It was only a couple minutes before Jim and Methos, followed by Simon and Connor, appeared at the observer's side. Still, the group didn't know how far Nix could - or WOULD - go in just those few minutes. Banging on the door had done nothing to help Blair, but Jim tried it for himself anyway. Gaining entrance to the office would be a difficult thing. Jim could tell by the feel, the door was steel and secured with three locks - two of them deadbolts.
"Can you get in there?" Blair asked quietly. Jim's raised eyebrow was all the answer he got or needed.
~~~~~
"Where is he, Bernie?"
The little man tried to back away, but Nix held him by his paisley ascot. Neck stretched a bit, standing on tiptoes, Bernie was hanging by the piece of cloth. She wasn't very tall, but Bernie was still shorter and Nix stronger. Her hand twisted the ascot again, causing the man to gasp and choke.
"I want an answer, Bern."
"C'mon..." he rasped. "I just went through this with Connor, Nix. Nixia..." The voice was getting louder and thinner, until it wasn't much more than a whine. "Niiiixxxxiiiiiaaaaa...C'mon. Don't hurt meeeee...." He really didn't like the smile she flashed him, and the look in her eyes didn't thrill Bernie much either.
"You'll tell me what you know, or I'll give you another reason for not being able to father children."
~~~~~
You didn't need Sentinel abilities to hear Bernie bargaining for mercy.
With a slight movement of his head, Jim tuned in the conversation that his companions were missing. From the sounds, Jim feared Nix was truly going to harm her captive. The venom in her voice made a pain start in his loins. It took him by surprise, then, how much he wanted to be there to help her get the information. He returned his focus to the pair's conversation.
"Look, Nix...You gotta know I had nothing to do with it." Bernie said quietly, his voice full of apology. "It's the Game! It's just that WAY!"
She sighed a bit. "What's he doing, then? What's he planning?"
Bernie let go with everything he knew. Evidently, the man was an excellent trader, bargaining for information as well as trinkets.
It was as bad as she'd feared. The four women had just been the bait. The primary game in the villain's hunt was Nixia. So he'd drawn out four of her best students, people who knew her best, and he'd gotten to them the same way he intended to get to her - through their men. Exactly what Jim and Nix had figured. And exactly what they were going to let him do. Their Samurai was taking this methodically, hunting her. He banked on her sense of loyalty to her friends. He also banked on her losing.
He didn't bank on a Sentinel and Shaman there, though.
~~~~~
Blair handed the cup of coffee to his partner, watching Banks and Dakota still in the corner of the office. Once Nix had unlocked the office door, it had been open season on the woman. First Jim took her aside and laid into her for shutting Sandburg and him out of the interrogation, not to mention compromising Blair's safety by not waiting for backup. Then Connor and Methos had taken a turn to calm her down, while firmly informing her they were ready to call her out themselves. The two men had just gotten her to the point of admitting she'd been overzealous, when Captain Banks had grabbed her by the arm and lead her to a corner.
There the two had stayed for the better part of an hour.
Simon's voice hadn't raised that much, but then it really couldn't while his teeth were clenched. In respect to his captain, Jim turned his dials down and ignored the conversation. Ignored as best as any of them could, that is.
"Yeesh. He's really ticked."
Jim nodded to his partner. "And well he should be, Chief. She took matters into her own hands and disregarded procedures. Dakota let her emotions take control. She compromised the security of the team and the investigation. Even YOU know better, Chief. If she weren't important to the case, I'd recommend she be taken off it."
"Speaking of which," Blair started. "Are you going to impress on Nix the need to let Simon in on her secret?" But he saw Jim shake his head. "Why not?"
"Cause I'm gonna kill her myself and let him find out that way." The men exchanged smiles. "We might get through this without him knowing. She has to tell him her relationship to the victims. It's the only way she's gonna salvage the plan. You, on the other hand, may just get out of this."
"C'mon, Jim. We talked this out. I'm in." Blair argued clearly. They had decided that he would be the better companion for Nix. Jim was the better choice to monitor the operation and protect them. On top of that, Nix had said she felt more comfortable in Blair's presence. The anthropologist would never forget the look of confusion and hurt on his friend's face. "Besides, we know the guy's an Immortal, we can't just put Methos or Connor in - he'll know. And Simon's out of the question."
"Why's that?" Jim asked, amused by just how far Sandburg had thought things through.
"Yeah, Sandburg." Simon said rather loudly. "Why AM I out of the question?"
"You heard..." But Blair stopped, seeing the stern look on the captain's face. "I don't think Nikya - uh, buh, Detective Dakota - would date a superior. She's got too much respect for the system and its protocols."
"Protocols?" Banks repeated. "And what about the protocol on fraternization? Got a line on that Sandburg?"
He smiled. "Actually, I do. See, I'm a Field Specialist for the entire Cascade PD. I'm only assigned to Major Crimes. Technically -" and he paused, seeing Simon cast eyes heavenward. "I'm a free agent."
"Free?" Banks laughed. "I'll remember that when I submit my fiscal budgets, Sandburg."
"Nicely handled, Chief." Jim said, seeing Simon smile. As Nix humbly made her way to the men, Connor and Methos behind her, Jim cleared his throat over the conversation. "Are we ready to call it a night?" Everyone nodded. "I'm hungry. Anyone else?"
Typical Blair, "I could eat."
Nix smiled lightly. "So, what else is new?" Through the chuckles, she grabbed Blair's arm to lead him away. "We'll meet at my place - I think the least I owe you guys is dinner."
Methos and Connor looked quickly to each other then back to her. It was the older Immortal who spoke. "You owe us something along that line. But you're NOT cooking."
In the course of six words, Nix was transformed into an adolescent again. (And that was a LONG trip back.) She stuck her tongue out at the two men then turned to her "date," not even justifying the question. Blair just smiled, letting the woman lead him out of the office towards the front doors. The rest of the group made their way out front, finding Nix waiting for them. Handing her apartment key to Methos, she told the men to go ahead, since she and Blair would be stopping at a local market for a few things. They grumbled all the way to the cars, but a few minutes later, three vehicles were making their way towards Nix's loft.
~~~~~
Jim pulled into the market behind the SS, letting Connor pass by. He and Simon had begun to relax, watching as Dakota and Sandburg entered the establishment. Simon had just begun a run-down on Daryl's latest achievements when Jim's hearing jerked him into action.
"Oh, man. And it was beginning to look like a clear night." Came Blair's voice. "Why does this always happen to me?"
"Shut up, Curly." the loud voice menaced. "Or I'll shut you up."
A gun cocked, the sound clearly reaching the Sentinel's ears. Jim stood in front of the truck, gun at the ready, Simon right there with him. "I'm getting three rapid but regular heartbeats - I know one's Sandburg's, one's Dakota's, and the other's probably the clerk. Two more - racing, stressed and uneven. Like they're on something..." Once again, Jim's hearing lead his attention, this time turning him to face the store's front glass window. His hearing and sight joined forces to get inside. A large, button-style mirror in the back corner reflected the scene in the aisle. There stood Blair, a couple boxes in his hands and a gun to his head. The creep with the gun had his back to the mirror and Jim could see Nix skulking up the aisle.
"Get the money, Larry, then take care of the clerk. I can handle this one." Came the voice again. "Okay, Curly." the guy said then started to rummage Blair's pockets. "I'll just see what goodies you've got in these pockets."
"I'm a college student." Blair confessed. "I don't have squat..."
"I told you to shut up. You are, like, SOOOOO stupid."
"He's not the one robbing a store with a cop inside though." Jim heard Nix say quietly, seeing her standing directly behind the man. Before the perp could pull the trigger, she'd hit him in the back of the neck with her hand, causing the guy to crumple to the floor.
Ellison and Banks burst through the front doors in the same moment, but it wasn't fast enough. Not nearly fast enough. Having switched his focus from the mirror to the front register, Jim could only watch the horror played out in front of him. The perp grabbing the money had seen something down the back aisle, panicked, then fired two shots. Jim heard one shot hit something soft - human. The other went wide and struck the back wall. But even as the two officers went to shoot, they found the perp on the floor with a bleeding hole in his shoulder. Banks was already hopping the counter as Ellison headed down the aisle.
"Sandburg!?!?" Jim said in desperation. *Don't let it be him...*
Blue eyes, rimmed with pain, looked up at his friend, then back down at the woman in his lap. A large red spot had formed over her chest.
Even though he knew the answer, Jim asked anyway. "Are YOU hit?"
The shocked young man barely shook his head. "She grabbed me by the shoulder and pushed - like only a second before Larry, there, fired. She shot him and just as I was standing up, she collapsed back into me. I had NO clue she'd been hit. She didn't even make a sound."
*Yeah, she did.* Jim thought sadly. He searched, but there was no heartbeat to find. *I hope you can do that thing TWICE, chick.* Setting aside the initial shock, Ellison tried to remember the other night's incident. He glanced at his watch, hoping it would only be a few seconds more before Dakota rejoined them. "Chief?" And his unspoken question was answered with a slight nod. Knowing his one partner was recovering - and hoping the other was as well - Jim focused on the last detail ~ how to handle it with Simon. Turning to head off the captain, the detective found the large man directly behind him. "Simon.."
"Jim. I cuffed the guy behind the counter. Good shoot for Dakota. How's the kid? Not perforated, I hope." And he looked around the big man to see Blair sitting on the floor. Then his gaze fell to Dakota, there in Sandburg's lap. "Jesus." was all he could say. He turned to walk away, pulling out his phone and calling in the incident.
Jim knelt next to Blair just as the buzzing started. The two men looked down at the woman as she gasped, drawing in a large breath. Sitting up slowly, she unhappily looked down at her shirt.
"Damn. Another one ruined." She looked at the two smiling men. "This is two shirts in two incidents involving you. That's more shirts than I've lost in the past year alone. It's gotta be you two..."
The three were chuckling nervously just as Simon stepped into the aisle. "Well well. Welcome back." Holding out a hand, he smiled and helped her to stand. As she was straightening her shirt, Simon stared at her and sighed. There was confusion on the faces of his two friends.
"Captain Banks. I can explain..."
"Uhn-huh." He grunted, removed a cigar from his pocket, then stared.
"Would you believe a Kevlar Wonder Bra?" Nix ventured, watching him shake his head. "You're gonna make this difficult, aren't you?"
The three watched the large man place the cigar between his teeth and chomp the end once or twice, then cross his arms over his chest.
"Outside." Was all he said.
~~~~~
Simon stood by the end of the truck, the flame of his lighter casting gold over his dark face. He took a deep draw of the cigar, savoring the flavor of the tobacco. As she nervously stepped up next to him, he graciously held out one of his precious private stock.
"Funny," Nixia started, taking the cigar and lighting it. "I wondered just how long it would be before I would have to have this talk with you. Just didn't think it would be this soon."
"Well, right now? I don't wanna talk about it. Tomorrow morning I'll want to, though." he watched her nod then continued. "I want you to get cleaned up before other more curious officers arrive." Simon glanced over his shoulder, watching his best team approach. "If we're lucky, we can still make it back to your place. You REALLY owe us dinner now. And I'm of the opinion that you will NOT be cooking. Understood?"
She raised an eyebrow to that, but before she could respond Jim walked forward, a couple steps ahead of Blair. "Simon?" he queried quietly.
"Dakota," he cut his friend off with a raised hand and a bit more authority than was necessary, shaking his head at his own stern tone. Simon sighed, puffed his cigar, then continued. "Take Sandburg's sweater and cover up your -uh- wound. Then get your story together - I'll have to trust you on this. You've got a few minutes before the units get here." She turned, puffing the cigar heavily. "And don't smoke that in the store, or I'll have to write you up. Now, go on." Simon answered her smile with one of his own, then watched her drag Blair to her car.
"Okay." Jim started. "I'm guessing you've got experience with this."
"Enough. We'll just leave it at that." Studying his shoes, Simon sighed. "Call Dakota's place. Tell MacLeod we'll be along as soon as this is cleaned up."
He'd already started to pull out his phone when it struck him that Simon had used Connor's real name. "Just full of surprises, huh Simon?"
"Uhn-huh."
~~~~~
"Simon says gimme your sweater."
Blair blinked at the statement, watching Nix as she placed the cigar back between her teeth, removed her jacket, and started to remove her shirt from the edge of her jeans. " Scuse me?"
"Simon told me to clean up before back-up gets here, and he said it involves your sweater." Nix saw him smile, then shrug out of the garment, leaving only his regular shirt. Her statement echoed through her mind and she chuckled, suddenly realizing what she'd said. "Hold this." Nix ordered, exchanging Blair's sweater for her cigar. She moaned as her arms stretched up and into the sleeves, the shot to her chest tightening up the muscles.
"You all right?" Blair asked, quickly placing the cigar between his own teeth as he grabbed the bottom edge of the sweater and pulled it down for her. "Does your chest still hurt? Or is something else wrong?"
She shook her head, then tilted it back easing it into a stretch. Blair's hand came up to her shoulders and began a gentle massage on her left side. As her body began to relax, the detective went over the events in her mind, gathering the sequence of her story. Everything had just fallen into place when she felt Sandburg nudging her jacket back on. She began to mumble her story to herself, closing her eyes and moving her hands to the beat of her words.
Jim watched the pair, walking slowly towards them, being careful to monitor the conversation so as not to intrude. Blair was leaning against the SS, puffing the cigar and shaking his head at Dakota. As Jim stepped up to his partner, he smiled. "Hey, Curly...How's Shemp doing?" And the two men laughed. "Units are getting closer. You two okay?"
His words made her stop, and Nix suddenly realized her story was missing something. She pushed her hands into her pockets, searching for that something. "ELLISON!"
Jim didn't like the accusatory tone to her voice, and suddenly his hackles were up. "Yeah?"
"I need you to clear something up for me, if you would?"
*Here it comes.*
Seeing the men glance at each other, Nix continued. "How did you know we were in trouble?" *Please have a good explanation.*
"I had a hunch." Jim replied flatly.
*Rasafrassa Migglefricken.* "Not acceptable. You didn't have time to have a hunch." Her hand pointed to the store. "You were in your truck. Blair and I were in there maybe five minutes - MAXIMUM. I didn't even know anything was wrong until I turned around to ask Sandburg a question and found the one perp stuck to him. Your truck is over there, on the edge of the parking lot - WAY too far for you to hear or see anything. And... and.. What did you just call him? Curly?" She stopped talking, staring down at the inactive earpiece in her hand.
Ignoring the questions, Ellison tilted his head slightly as his hearing picked up the incoming sirens. "Can we finish this up? Back-ups a little over two blocks away and I don't think our CAPTAIN wants us to be arguing when they get here."
At the mention of the police units, Nix strained her ears, finally hearing them as they rounded the corner and came screaming towards them. "How did you know... How... how did you know the perp called him Curly, and how the HELL did you hear the sirens that far away?"
*Burton!* her mind screamed. She pinned the larger man with an iced violet stare. "You're one of them, aren't you?" Nix asked with all the breath she could spare. Which wasn't much, considering the weight of her statement.
The two men watched her walk up to them and extend her hand, the earpiece displayed there in her palm. Jim looked to Blair, then back to Nixia and nodded.
Shifting her gaze to the younger man, her mouth gave voice to her random thoughts. "The monograph - your doctoral work - your partnership - it's HIM..." Her hand went to her head, grasping a handful of curls and pulling them taught. "Cripes! This is unbelievable. You're a flippin' myth!"
"Hello?" Blair laughed sarcastically. "And you're NOT? Immortal, meet Sentinel."
"Hnhnhnhn." The strange noise unconsciously emanated from her, as her nervous hands moved to the knot at the base of her neck.
"Great, Chief." Jim said, rocking back on his heels and slapping his partner on the back. "Now she REALLY sounds like one of your dates."
~~~~~