Donovan's Curse
A sequel to Donovan's Nightmare
By Ladybug

pg-13

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Bank Of Chicago
5:00 p.m.

“Jesus, Donovan, can’t you even go to the bank without stirring up trouble?”

Donovan turned to glare at Agent Jake Shaw.  “I didn’t start it.”

“You never do, but somehow you always manage to get into the middle of it.  I swear you must be cursed!”  Agents Alex Cross, Monica Davis and computer whiz Cody stood off to one side, looking around the nearly empty bank.  There were two dead bank robbers covered on the floor and the witnesses, which consisted of bank employees and customers, were all huddled to one corner waiting to be interviewed by the police.  “So what happened?” Jake asked curiously.

“Bank robbery,” Donovan answered flatly.  Jake started to say something, but refrained.  Ever since Donovan had nearly died from being injected with poisonous snake venom a few months back, things had been going good.  The UC team had begun to connect, and there was a mutual respect, but the last few weeks something had changed.  Donovan was tense and had closed himself off again.  He was edgy and moody and snapped at anyone who tried to find out what the problem was.  Jake suspected Donovan needed a woman in his life but he wasn’t ready to risk Donovan’s wrath by suggesting it yet.

“Anyone we know?”

“Robbie Jensen.”

“Damn, you snagged Robbie Jensen?  The Feds have been after him for years!”  Jake looked around the bank trying to catch a glimpse of the infamous bank robber.

“He got away,” Donovan admitted angrily, his eyes dark and snapping with frustration.

“Oh,” Jake answered and turned back to face his boss.

“Cody-”

“Yeah, boss?”

“Robbie Jensen.  I want the works and I want it yesterday.”  Cody nodded his understanding already knowing what was expected.

“Monica, I want you to pull the file on this guy and tell me what his next move will be.”

“Right.”  She turned and pushed Cody towards the door, knowing that Donovan wanted them to get started right away, even though it was the end of the day.

Donovan turned back to Jake and Alex.  “Find out who these two were, who they knew.”  He pointed at the two dead men on the floor.  “Check out where they lived, interview their neighbors, I want to know if they were employed and by whom.”  They both nodded and turned to do their assigned jobs.  Donovan glanced down at his watch and cursed softly when he realized what time it was.

“Agents Shaw and Cross-”

They both turned and looked back at him.  “Find out what you can here, then go home.  The rest can wait until tomorrow.”  They both nodded again and turned back to go question a Chicago police officer nearby.

“Well, that was generous of him,” Alex replied sarcastically.

“Lighten up, Alex.”

“Why are you always defending him?” she asked, stopping to face Jake.

Jake stared at her for a moment, not sure himself.  Sometimes Donovan was cool; he laughed with them and joked with them, but there were other times when he separated himself, like now.  Sometimes, like now, he was a real pain in the ass.  “I don’t know, Alex.”  Jake turned to glance back at Donovan, who was talking with a short man in a suit, wearing glasses.  “The guy has no friends that I know of.  As far as I know, he isn’t married or seeing anyone.  His only family was his sister and she was murdered, leaving him with a niece and nephew that according to Monica, he dotes on.”  Jake turned back to Alex.  “He’s a control freak, he can be insulting and he’s a hard ass, but he has a good heart. We have seen it, but for some reason he is not allowing himself to get too close to us, or anyone else for that matter, and I’d like to find out why.  I think he’s worth the effort.”

Alex didn’t look convinced, but she nodded anyways.  “I sure hope you’re right, Jake.”

*****

Central Park
7:00 a.m. next morning

Donovan jogged down the narrow path, wondering if he would see her this morning.  He had been jogging here since he took over the UC Unit a few months ago and noticed about a week ago that a young woman had joined the throng of joggers.  Normally he didn’t pay attention to these things other than just making a mental note of what was around him, but she had captured his attention.

It had been a long time since a woman had captured his attention.  They had actually even said good morning to each other the last few mornings and now he found himself looking forward to seeing her and hearing the soft huskiness of her voice that did funny things to his insides.

Rounding a bend of trees, he nearly froze when he saw her up ahead, off to one side, doing stretches in preparation for her morning jog.  She was dressed simply in a pair of gray sweats and a loose tee shirt.  She was standing, bent over at the waist reaching for her toes, her palms flat to the ground.  Slowing his pace down as he drew closer, he tripped on his own two feet when she suddenly straightened up, raised her arms high above her head and stretched as if she were reaching for the clouds above.  His mouth went dry as he tried to catch himself and sent a spray of gravel scattering out in front of him.  He was going down and he knew it. The best he could do was to try and throw his weight to one side to keep himself from getting seriously injured. Of course there was no saving his pride at this point.  He hit the asphalt hard and rolled to the right, coming to a stop in the grass.  Throwing his arm up across his eyes with a groan, he figured he could play this off one of two ways.  He could either:  1) milk it for all it’s worth and play on her sympathy, or 2) be as embarrassed as he felt and slink off to never jog here again.

Eyes the color of a clear warm summer sky turned and looked at him and suddenly filled with concern.  “Oh my god, are you all right?”  Donovan had just about decided to go with plan number two when she rushed over and knelt beside him.  “Don’t move, I’m a nurse.”

A nurse? Moving his arm from over his eyes, he gazed up into the loveliest face he’d ever seen.  Her long hair was the lightest shade of brown he’d ever seen without being blonde. It looked soft and silky, and he wanted to yank it out of the hair band that held it back in a ponytail.  Her face was oval shaped with high cheekbones and a small blade of a nose that turned up slightly at the end.  Without thought he enacted plan number one.  Always best to go with your first instincts, he told himself.  Groaning softly, he allowed pain he didn’t really feel to show in his brown eyes.  “Where do you hurt?” she asked.

“My right knee,” he groaned.  God, he couldn’t believe he was doing this!  He was a grown man for crying out loud and here he was playing silly coy games to get the attention of a woman.  Suddenly all thought flew from his brain when he felt soft, warm hands on his bare calf.

“There doesn’t appear to be too much damage,” she said as she gently prodded his knee, then moved her fingers upward grazing along his bare upper thigh.  “I think you’ll be alright.”

Donovan felt a tightening in his groin.  That’s what you think, sweetheart, he thought to himself as he forced himself to sit up before she noticed the reaction of another part of his body.  “I think the only thing that was injured here was my pride.”  He smiled at her, his cheeks flushing slightly in embarrassment.  “Frank Donovan.”

She laughed softly, her whole face lighting up.  She reached out and took his offered hand in a handshake.  “Nice to meet you, Frank Donovan.  I’m Amy Peterson.”

“Amy.” He repeated her name like a caress as his large hand enveloped her smaller one.  Amy suddenly found it hard to breathe as she felt a warm flush rise up her body to bloom in her cheeks.  “I’ve been jogging out here for several months now, Amy.  How come I’ve never seen you here until recently?”

He still held her hand as they sat in the grass.  Amy took a deep breath, trying to get a grip on her hormones.  “I work in the ER at Chicago Memorial.  Up until recently I was working the morning shift and jogging in the early evenings, now I’m working the graveyard and jogging when I get off.”  She wasn’t sure what possessed her to tell him this.  He was a virtual stranger and coming from a family that had a long line of cops in it, she should have known better. But there was something about him that drew her, that told her that she could trust him.  “And you?” she asked almost breathlessly.  “What do you do?”

Debating on how much to reveal to her, he simply answered, “Law enforcement.”

Amy flashed him with a brilliant smile that nearly stole his breath.  “My dad and brother are both police officers.  Maybe you know them?  Howard and Steve Peterman?”

Donovan shook his head. “I just moved here a few months ago and I’m with the FBI.”

“Oh I see.  Well, how do you like Chicago so far?”

“It’s windy,” he answered with a slight grin.  He was still holding her hand and was reluctant to let it go.  He noticed that she didn’t seem to be in any hurry to get it away from him, so he continued to hold it lightly, enjoying the feel of it in his.

Amy laughed.  “Yes, if anything, it definitely is windy.”  Pausing a moment, she didn’t want the time to end, but she knew she needed to get her morning jog in before heading home to get some rest.  Reluctantly she pulled her hand away from his and stood.  Donovan stood with her brushing loose gravel off his shorts.  Amy swallowed hard as she followed the down sweep of his large hands across his body.  “Uh, well, I guess I should get on with my run.  It was nice meeting you, Frank Donovan.  Maybe I’ll see you around?”

He lifted his dark gaze up to meet hers.  Amy thought she would drown in those soft brown eyes.  Her gaze dropped briefly to the fullness of his mouth and wondered if his lips were as soft and pliant as they looked.  “Is this your regular jogging time?” he asked, an amused look in his eyes.  Her gaze shot back up to his and her cheeks flushed a bright red.

“Um, yes as long as I’m not having to work a double shift.”

“Then perhaps I will see you tomorrow morning,” he replied with a slight nod.  Amy nodded with a smile.

“Tomorrow morning,” she repeated and watched him as he jogged off, noticing how well his dark short clung to his derrière.  Slowly she let out the breath she’d been holding and put her hand to her chest.  She had definitely noticed how well formed he was.  When she had had her hands on his leg, she had found its muscle hard.  “Daaaamn girl!” she exclaimed softly to herself as she forced herself to get moving.

~*~*~*~*~

“Cody, talk to me.”  Donovan entered the area known as “the crib.”  He passed by an assortment of machines and computers and stopped before a long rectangular table where Cody and Monica sat.

“Robbie Jensen, 34 years old, last known address 2966 East Frankford, Chicago.  Divorced, his ex still lives there.  Wanted for a dozen bank robberies and as many murders.  Did a few years in the state penitentiary when he got caught knocking off some liquor stores, got out in ’99 and has been hitting banks ever since.  Apparently he got smart, cause he hasn’t been caught yet.”

“Yet,” Donovan repeated in a tone that suggested that Jensen’s days were numbered.  He turned to Monica.  “What will be his next move?”

Monica straightened in her chair.  “I think-”

“We’ve been through this before, Monica.  I don’t want to know what you think, tell me what you know in your professional opinion.”

Monica was learning.  At first she’d been put off and sometimes hurt by Donovan’s gruffness and rudeness, but she was quickly learning that it was his way of building up her confidence in her job as a profiler.  She was of the same mind frame as Jake.  She saw something worthwhile in Frank Donovan and though his methods usually pissed everyone off, they usually worked and everyone seemed better off because of it.  Even Cody seemed more confident than he had before.  Donovan expected his team to give 100% and it was what they gave him.  In return, he didn’t let them down.  He didn’t take the credit for himself on a successful job, but shared it with the whole team. But on the flip side of that, when the team failed, he took the whole blame and kept Bloom off their backs.

“My professional opinion is that Robbie Jensen will be coming after you.  He has a history of seeking revenge against those who thwart his plans.  You not only disrupted his bank job, but you took out two of his people.  That will cost him time in finding replacements and will add to the vendetta he already has for you.”

“Good,” Donovan answered, satisfied.  “That is how we will nail him.  Where are Agents Shaw and Cross?”

“Jake called in earlier.  He and Alex are following some leads on the two dead robbers.  They will be in when they are finished.”  Donovan acknowledged Cody’s answer with a nod.

“I want you two to start the process of setting me up as bait.  I want you to be able to trace my every move when I leave here.  Clear?”

“Clear,” they answered in unison.  Donovan turned and left the crib and headed up to his office to make some phone calls.  For once his mind was not on the job. He was thinking of Amy Peterson, and he was bound and determined to find out everything he could about her.

Reaching his office, he immediately picked up the phone to call in a favor when he stopped.  Amy had said that her father and brother were police officers with Chicago P.D.  If he made calls to his regular contacts, word would get out and he didn’t want that, not yet anyways.  He pursed his lips as he drummed his fingers on the desk.  Did he dare trust Cody with this?  If he asked Cody to do the check, the others would hear about it.  Donovan sighed and rubbed his eyes.  And what would be so bad about that, Frank Donovan?  You can’t separate yourself from them forever.  If you are thinking of letting Amy Peterson get close, don’t you think you should trust your own people too?

Taking a deep breath and blowing it out, he hit the button for the intercom.  “Cody, could you come up here, please?”

“On my way, boss.”

Donovan leaned back in his chair and waited.  Moments later, Cody appeared at his door.  Donovan pointed to the chair on the other side of his desk.  “Sit.”  Cody stepped inside and slid into the chair, looking nervous.  Donovan smiled.

“Relax, you haven’t done anything wrong.”  Cody sighed in relief, smiled and bobbed his head.  “I need a personal favor.  It is to be done after you have completed your work-related tasks.”

“All right,” Cody answered, a bit surprised that Donovan was asking him for a personal favor, but also pleased.

“You will tell no one of this, is that understood?”  Cody bobbed his head up and down, indicating he understood.  “I need you to find out all you can on Amy Peterson.  She is an ER nurse down at Chicago Memorial.”

A woman? Cody fought a grin.  Oh, the gang is gonna love this!  “Amy Peterson, ER nurse, Chicago Memorial,” he repeated to make sure he got the correct information.

Donovan nodded, already knowing Cody would tell the others.  “I’d like the information A.S.A.P, but only after you have finished with your other duties.”

“Okay.”  Donovan was already regretting asking Cody.  He knew the others would know about Amy by the end of the day.  He sighed.

“That is all.  Thank you, Cody.”  Cody jumped up and bounded for the door.

“No problem, boss.  I should be able to have it for you by quitting time.”  Donovan watched him go and wondered if he hadn’t made a huge mistake.

~*~*~*~*~

UC Headquarters
Later that day

“You’re kidding?  He actually asked you to do a check on a woman?”  Jake was both shocked and happy by the fact that Donovan would be showing interest in a female.

“Yup,” Cody answered smugly.  “Amy Peterson, thirty years old, single, never been married, registered nurse, works in the ER at Chicago Memorial.  Father and brother both work for CPD.  Made it clear that this was personal.”

“Sounds like our boss is human after all,” Alex commented softly.

“So do we know where he met her?”  Monica asked.  “He never seems to go out anywhere that we know of.”

“Maybe she lives near him?”  Jake suggested.

“No, actually she doesn’t, though she doesn’t live that far.  They have Central Park between them,” Cody replied, gathering up the information he’d collected on Amy.

“My guess is he met her jogging,” Alex suggested.  “Doesn’t he jog every morning through Central Park?”

“Yeah, he does,” Jake answered with a satisfied smile.  “This is great.  I told you he has a heart,” he added, bumping Alex’s arm with his elbow.  Alex rolled her eyes.

“Oh brother.”

“Hey, I gotta get this info up to him.  Don’t say a word, or my ass is grass,” Cody warned them, and scampered off up to Donovan’s office to pass on what he’d found.

~*~*~*~*~

Central Park
7:00 a.m. next morning

“Good morning, Amy.”

Amy shivered as the sound of his voice washed over her.  She smiled as she turned to face him.  “Good morning, Frank.  How are you today?”  Once again she was wearing gray sweats and a tee shirt.  She had had to force herself not to dress up for him that morning.  She was there to jog, not to impress a handsome FBI agent.  Oh, but he looked so good in his black shorts and white tee shirt that formed to his muscular chest.

“I’m good and you?”  She felt as if his eyes were caressing her as they roamed over her face then with a casual ease, they moved down the length of her body then back up to meet her direct gaze.  Her cheeks flushed hot under his perusal and her body responded to the silent call of his obvious interest.

“I’m fine.  Rough night in the ER though, had a gang shooting and a pretty bad car wreck involving two families.”  Donovan saw the pained look in her eyes and knew that they had lost some last night.  He had the incredible urge to gather her close and take the pain away.  Instead he reached up and caressed her cheek lightly with his fingers.

“It’s tough to lose them, isn’t it?”  Amy smiled, knowing that he understood.

“Yes.  It’s hard to separate yourself, especially when children are involved.”

Donovan nodded, reached for her hand and gave it a tug.  “Come on.”

They jogged side by side in silence just enjoying the other’s company.  Finally after several miles, Amy broke the silence.  “Apparently you are some kind of legend in the law enforcement world.  When I told my dad that I had met an FBI agent named Frank Donovan, he about flipped.  Said you were the FBI’s top hostage negotiator for six years.”

Donovan glanced over at her.  “What else does your father say about me?”

“Only grapevine stuff.  Said that you dropped out of sight about six months ago and nobody’s heard from you since.”

“It’s nothing that mysterious.  I took some time off and now I am here.”  Amy could tell by the tone of his voice that that was as much information as she would get at this point.  She didn’t blame him.  He didn’t know her and in his line of work, one didn’t just gush information to any Tom, Dick or Harry that happened by.

Donovan hated lying to her already, but he wasn’t ready to offer that kind of information to her.  At this point he was struggling with allowing her to get close to him, period.  Explanations about his past would come later if things worked out between them.  Finally after completing seven miles, Amy came to a stop.  “That’s it for me.”  She smiled and  bent over at the waist, resting her hands against her thighs just above her knees, her breath coming out in short gasps.

Donovan stopped a few feet from her and looked over at her, surprised.  “Seven miles?  That’s it?”

Amy laughed.  “I usually only do five, Frank.  I pushed an extra two just for you.”

He smiled as he walked towards her.  Sweat was running down his face, his shirt was sweat stained heavily at the armpits and around the collar and Amy thought he looked delicious enough to eat.  “Well then, for that I’ll have to buy you dinner.”

She straightened up as he stopped inches in front of her.  “Dinner sounds wonderful,” she barely managed as she craned her neck up to see his face.  His eyes darkened as he stared down at her and for a moment Amy thought he would kiss her, but he suddenly blinked and stepped back.

“What about tonight?”

“Tonight would be fine.  My shift doesn’t start until 10:00 p.m.”

“Then I’ll pick you up at six.”  Amy nodded and fished a convenient slip of paper and pen out of her fanny pack and wrote down her address, home phone number, and her cell phone on it and handed it to him.  He asked for another slip of paper, and snagging her pen, he wrote a number on it.

“This is my cell phone.  You can always reach me on it.  Anytime, day or night.”  He handed it to her.  “Understood?”

Amy nodded and accepted the slip of paper and pen back.  His fingers curled around her hand as hers closed around the paper and pen.  “I’ll see you tonight then,” she whispered softly.  Again Amy thought he was going to kiss her.  His brown eyes seemed so intense as they stared down at her mouth.  But he only raised her hand up and pressed his full lips to the back of it then he was backing away from her.  Amy stood there watching him jog off until he disappeared from sight, then with a breathless sigh, she turned and headed home.

~*~*~*~*~

UC Headquarters
5:00 p.m. that evening

Donovan glanced at his watch for the fourth time in as many minutes.  Paul Bloom sat across from him in his office.  Bloom had shown up unannounced a half an hour ago and showed no signs of leaving soon.  If he didn’t get Bloom out of here soon, he would be late picking Amy up.  Damn it! he cursed silently.

“I want you and your team on this other case now, Donovan.”  It was the same argument, and Bloom just didn’t get it.  “Jensen is low priority-”

“Not where my life is concerned, he’s not,” Donovan interrupted him.

“You have no proof that Jensen will come after you.”

“Monica says-”

“Agent Davis is telling you what she thinks, she doesn’t know!”  Bloom nearly shouted.  Donovan came to his feet and his hands slammed against his desk, the sound echoing throughout the small room.

“Agent Davis is the damn best profiler I’ve worked with in years!  Nine times out of ten she has assessed the target on the nose, and if she says that Jensen will come after me, then I, for one, am not going to doubt her!”  Donovan was furious.  How dare Bloom question the abilities of one of his people!

“Jensen is not an official UC case.  If you work it, it’s on your own time.  I want you on this one.”  Bloom stabbed at the case file lying on Donovan’s desk.

Donovan opened his mouth to reply when a knock on his office door interrupted him.  “What?” he snapped.  He could see Jake through the glass and waited impatiently while Jake opened the door and stuck his head in.

“Excuse me, ah, Donovan, I need to see you sec.”

“Can it wait?  I’m kind of busy right now, Agent Shaw.”

Jake shook his head, trying not to smile.  “It’s important.”  Donovan nodded and pushed away from his desk.

“Excuse me,” he said to Bloom and walked past Jake through the door.  Jake closed the door and followed him down the steps to the main floor.  Alex, Monica and Cody stood close by, watching.  Donovan stopped, looked at them then turned and looked at Jake.

“What is this?”

“We can hear you arguing with Bloom clear down here,” Jake explained.  “You’ve been watching the clock all afternoon like a hawk, so I am guessing you have somewhere to be and if you don’t leave soon you’ll be late.”  Donovan didn’t agree with or deny Jake’s statement.

“So what’s your point?”

“My point is, we want to help you if we can.  If you want to slip out now, we will head off Bloom.”

“Why?”  Donovan asked, looking directly at Jake.

“Why what?”

“Why do you want to help me?”  Jake opened his mouth to answer, but Alex beat him too it.

“Because we heard what you said about Monica.”  Donovan turned and met Alex’s gaze.  They stared at each other for a few seconds then Donovan nodded.

“Thank you for your honesty, Agent Cross.”  He knew that Alex didn’t care for him much.  Truthfully, he thought her a good agent, but she had a lot to learn.

“We know you have a date tonight, Frank,” Monica informed him quietly.  Frank looked directly at Cody.

“And how would all of you know that?”  Cody flushed a deep red and looked everywhere but at Donovan.

“Don’t be angry with Cody, Frank.  Believe it or not, we all do care about you.”  Donovan looked slightly embarrassed as he glanced over at Monica.

“So what do you suggest?”

“You have your keys?”  Jake asked.  Donovan nodded.  “Then just go, now.”

“My jacket is up there, it’s cold out.”

“So turn the freakin heater on, for Godsakes, just go!”  Alex stepped forward and grabbed his arm, tugging him towards the door that exited the building.

“Why Agent Cross, you keep this up and I’m going to start thinking you like me.”

Alex fought a smile. “Don’t hold your breath, Donovan.” 

A smile played around his lips as he glanced back at the others. “You sure?”  They nodded.

“Go, hurry, before he sees you leaving,” Jake commanded.

“Thanks!”

“Just have a good time tonight with Amy.”  Jake smiled.  Donovan flashed Cody a “I’ll get even with you later” look, then turned and quickly left the building.

~*~*~*~*~

Donovan entered his house a few minutes before six.  He was going to be late.  Picking up the cordless phone, he pulled out the slip of paper with Amy’s phone number on it and dialed it.  She picked up on the second ring.

“Hello?”  Donovan felt himself relax at the sound of her voice.  He hadn’t realized how tense he was until he heard her voice float through the phone.

“Hi there,” he practically sighed.  “I just got home, I’m running late.”

“All right.”

“I need to take a quick shower then I’ll be there.”  He paused in thought, then said, “We never discussed where we were going.  How are you dressed?”

“Dressy casual.”

“Okay, good.  There is a quiet little Italian place not too far from here.”

“Bernardo’s?” Amy asked.

“Yeah, you know it?”

“I love it!  It’s one of my favorite places to eat.”

“Good.  I’ll pick you up in half an hour.”  Donovan hung up and smiled as he headed towards the bathroom.  He was looking forward to spending the evening with Amy.

Six-thirty on the dot, Donovan knocked on Amy’s door.  He had showered and shaved in record time and even managed not to cut himself in the process.  He was wearing brown slacks, a cream colored shirt with a tan suede jacket.  His 9mm was safely tucked under his left arm against his side, and he was a nervous wreck.  He fidgeted on the doorstep, wiping his sweaty palms on his pants just as Amy opened the door.  His breath left his lungs in a loud rush.  Amy looked at him concerned.

“Are you alright?” she asked as she stepped back to allow him to step inside.

He stared down at her, taking in everything.  She had said she was dressed dressy casual, but to him, she looked good enough to eat.  She wore a soft light blue silk skirt that looked crunched up and wrinkled with a dark midnight blue turtleneck sweater that made her sky blue eyes nearly scream out at him.  Her light brown hair hung loose in a soft cloud around her face and shoulders.  He desperately fought the urge to bury his fingers in the silky looking tresses.

“Frank?”  Her gentle touch on his cheek snapped him out of his lustful thoughts and he blinked.

“You look good,” he said gruffly.  She offered up a sweet smile and it was his undoing.  He bent his head, closing the few remaining inches between them and kissed her.

Amy’s first thought was that she’d been right.  His lips were as soft and pliant as they looked.  They molded to hers, the extremely short hairs of his goatee chafing against the skin that surrounded her mouth.  And just when she thought she had died and gone to heaven, she felt the velvety stroke of his tongue against her bottom lip.  Sinking into the warmth of his embrace, Amy surrendered and parted her lips with a soft moan.  Donovan pulled her closer against him. His tongue slipped in just to take a taste; instead he ended up drowning.

Ending the kiss, Donovan pressed his forehead against hers as they both struggled to retain control.  “Wow!” Amy managed after a few moments.

“We need to leave, before I drag you back to the bedroom.”

Amy laughed softly and pulled back until Donovan was forced to drop his arms from around her.  “Let me get my purse.”  She was back a moment later and they left for the restaurant.

~*~*~*~*~

Robbie Jensen watched from the shadows of a car parked half a block away.  His eyes narrowed as he watched Donovan help a woman into the passenger seat of his car, then climb into the driver seat and drive off.  After a few moments, he started his car and pulled out, following them.

~*~*~*~*~

About halfway through the dinner, Amy realized that she was doing most of the talking.  Somehow, Donovan had managed to keep her talking about herself, her family and her work so that she didn’t have time to ask him questions about himself.

“I know what you are doing, Frank and I won’t let you get away with it forever.”  Donovan reached out and picked up his glass of red wine and took a sip.

“And what would that be, angel?”  His eyes swept the restaurant as they had been at regular intervals before settling on her pretty face.

“Keeping me talking about myself so that I can’t ask any questions about you.”  A smile twitched at the corners of his mouth.

“Am I so obvious?”

“No, but I come from a family of cops, so I’ve been trained to observe, just as I know that since we got here, you have regularly swept the restaurant with your eyes making sure that things are as they should be.”

Donovan laughed.  It was a deep, rich sound that sent shivers down Amy’s spine.  “I can see I will not get away with anything with you.”  His eyes slid away from hers casually and he glanced over at the front of the restaurant.  Slowly the smile left his face as his eyes focus on one familiar face in the small crowd that waited to be seated.  Robbie Jensen.

Donovan stiffened as he watched Jensen slowly raise his arm, the flash of metal in the light catching his eye as he watched the gun being pointed at him from across the room.  Then, with a wicked gleam in his eye and a knowing grin, Jensen shifted his arm slightly until the gun was pointing at Amy and he fired.

In one swift motion, Donovan grabbed the end of the table and flipped it, lunging at Amy as Jensen began to rapid fire across the restaurant.  He hit her hard, and she gasped as they crashed to the ground, his body covering hers, protecting her.  Screams came from everywhere as people ducked for cover.  When the gunfire stopped, Donovan’s head popped up in time to see Jensen running out the front entrance of the restaurant.  He was on his feet, his gun in his hand seconds later.

“Are you alright?”  He didn’t look down at her; he was tracking Jensen as he ran across the parking lot.  When she didn’t answer, his head snapped around.  “Damn it, Amy, are you hurt?”

“No,” she gasped, still trying to catch her breath from Donovan’s tackle.  She waved him off.  “Go, I’m fine.”  One of the up sides to dating someone who came from a cop family, she understood his need to go after the bad guy.

“I’ll be back,” he called over his shoulder as he raced across the restaurant and out the main entrance.

Minutes later sirens filled the air as cops were suddenly swarming the parking lot.  Several officers rushed in with their weapons drawn.  Amy flagged down one of them that she recognized.

“Dan!” she called.  The office in question turned and hurried over to her.

“Jesus, Amy, what the hell happened?”

“Listen, my date is out there and I don’t want him getting shot.”

“What?”

“My date.  His name is Frank Donovan, he’s an FBI agent and he went after the guy who shot up the restaurant.  He's tall, dark short hair and a goatee.  He’s wearing brown slacks, cream colored shirt and a tan suede jacket.” 

Dan nodded and grabbed his radio, informing the other officers on the scene that there was an armed FBI agent chasing after the perpetrator and gave a description of Donovan.  When he was finished he turned back to Amy.  “Did you get a look at the perp?”

Amy shook her head.  “Frank had me pinned to the ground before I even knew there had been gun shots.”  Looking around, Amy noticed there were some injured people.  “I’m going to go make myself useful.”  Dan nodded and turned to start organizing the witnesses for interviewing.

Half an hour later, Donovan entered the restaurant and quickly located Amy tending some of the less seriously wounded.  The paramedics had already come and gone, taking those who were injured the worst to the hospital.  He approached her just as she was finishing up putting a bandage on a woman’s arm that had been cut by flying glass.  She smiled at him in relief as he grabbed her arm gently and led her off to one side for a little privacy.

“Did he get away?” 

Donovan nodded and without a word, he proceeded to check her over for injuries.

“Frank, I told you I was not injured.”

“Just checking for my own peace of mind, angel,” he answered, then leaned in and kissed her hard.  Her hands came up to frame his face as he kissed her mouth over and over.  Finally, he pulled her against him and simply held her.  “My heart stopped when I saw him point that gun at you,” he confessed softly into her ear.

Amy pulled back in confusion.  “At me?  Why would anyone want to shoot me?”

Donovan sighed heavily.  “Because you have the misfortune of knowing me.”

“I don’t understand, Frank.  Who did this?”

“Robbie Jensen.  He’s wanted by the FBI for bank robbery and murder.  A few days ago, I happened to be in the bank he and his men tried to rob. I took down two of his men, but Jensen got away.  We suspected he might try to come after me, but I had no clue it would be this soon.  If I’d known, I would have never asked you out.”

“Never?” she asked quietly, peering up at him through thick lashes.  A slow smile played across his full lips.

“Well, I would have at least waited until after he was picked up.”  Donovan sighed softly, pressing his lips to her forehead.  “I’m sorry, angel,” he whispered.  “I would never knowingly put your life in danger.”

Amy looked up at him and traced her finger along his cheek.  “I know you wouldn’t, Frank, so stop putting yourself on the guilt trip.”  Reaching up and grabbing her hand, he held it so he could turn his head and press his lips into the palm.

“Come on and I’ll take you home.”  Amy nodded and stepped away to get her purse.

When they reached Amy’s house, Donovan went in and did a thorough check to make sure everything was secure.  Amy showed him that she had a gun and she knew how to use it.  “I’m only going to be here for another hour or so anyways, Frank.  I’ve got to work at ten, remember?”

“Good, at least you will be with other people.”  He leaned down and kissed her.  “I’ll call you at the hospital later.”

“All right,” Amy whispered against his lips.  “Please be careful.”  Donovan nodded, then left.

~*~*~*~*~

UC Headquarters
9:45 p.m. that night

Donovan entered the UC Headquarters to find all the lights on.  Hearing voices, he followed the sounds until he found the source.

“What the hell are you guys still doing here?”

“What the hell are you doing here?  You’re supposed to be on a date!”  Jake responded without turning around.

“I was,” Donovan paused.  “Until Robbie Jensen showed up and tried to shoot my date.”

Jake’s head whipped around.  “No way!”

“Oh my God!  Is she alright?” Monica asked.

“She’s fine, but Jensen got away again.”  Donovan stared at the four people that made up the UC team.  “I want him found . . . tonight!”

“He’s really shook up over this,” Alex commented after Donovan had gone to his office.  “Did you see his hands shaking?”

Jake nodded. “I think ‘ol Frank Donovan is falling in love.”

Half an hour later, Jake rapped on Donovan’s door and entered.  Donovan was on the phone and he waved Jake in, then held up a hand in sudden warning.

“What do you mean, she never showed up?” he growled into the phone.  “I dropped her off at her house just before nine and she was suppose to be there at work at ten.  It is now almost 10:30. She should be there!”  Donovan listened as the receptionist in the ER told him that Amy had not shown up for work yet.  His heart pounded loudly in his ears as he slammed the phone down, then immediately picked it up again to dial Amy’s house.  It rang and rang and rang.  No answer.  “Son of a bitch!”  Donovan slammed the phone down again and was on his feet.

“What’s wrong?”  Jake asked as he followed Donovan out the door.

“Amy didn’t show up for work and she’s not answering her phone.”  Donovan practically flew down the stairs to the main level.  He was across the building and practically out the door by the time Jake had yelled for the others.  They had to run to catch up.  They piled into Donovan’s car and drove off.

Jake looked around the inside of the large Pontiac Aztek.  “God, it’s about time you got a new car, that other one was a junker!”

Donovan glared over at Jake.  “There is nothing wrong with my other car.”

Jake laughed. “Other car?  Are you telling me you drive that clunker when you have this one?”

“I’m not trying to impress you!”  Cody snorted from the back seat and the two women giggled.  Jake just shook his head and looked out the passenger window.

~*~*~*~*~

Amy’s House
9:40 p.m.

Amy rushed around her house like a mad woman.  She was going to be late for work.  Grabbing her purse, she opened the front door and plowed into a hard body.  Amy shrieked as hands grabbed her roughly by the shoulders and shoved her back into her house.  She stumbled and fell to the floor as she heard the door slam shut and the click of the lock as the intruder locked it.

“Donovan will be sorry he ever messed up my robbery!”

Amy gasped.  “Robbie Jensen.”  He was medium height, blond hair and brown eyes and an ugly looking scar crawled over his right eyebrow.

“That’s right, honey.  One thing in Donovan’s favor though is he has good taste in women.  We are going to have some fun tonight before I slit your throat.”

Amy backpedaled as she tried to keep her rising panic from taking over.  Panicking would do her no good; she had to think of a way to get to her gun that was up in her bedroom.  She pushed up to her feet and turned to run, but was tackled from behind.  She tried to scream, but Jensen flipped her over and slapped her hard across the face.  Stars exploded in her head and it was a few moments before it cleared enough to realize that he now had a knife pressed to her throat.

“You try to scream like that again and I’ll cut you up into so many pieces that Donovan won’t have a clue how to put you back together again.”  Straddling her waist, Jensen sat up, his hands moving to keep her arms pinned to the floor above her head.  He shifted her arms so that he easily held them both with one hand and he brought the hand that held the knife to the front of her blouse.  With an evil grin, he began to cut the buttons off, flipping them away.

Amy’s eyes widened in panic.  “No, no, no.  Oh God, please no!”  Jensen laughed and peeled back the ruined blouse.

“My, my,” Jensen crooned as he dragged the flat part of the knife down between Amy’s breasts, stopping at the point where her bra came together in the middle.  Her mind raced as she tried to think of a way to get away from Jensen before he raped her.  She had to get to her gun.

Amy waited until Jensen assumed she wasn’t going to fight back.  She fought back the urge to throw up when he buried his face into the cleavage of her breasts.  She could feel the hard evidence of his arousal pressing against her and knew it was time.

“So soft.  I will enjoy telling Donovan I had his woman before I kill him.”  Amy prayed that she could get enough lift in her leg to cause some damage as she shifted slightly and brought her knee up hard between Jensen’s legs.

Jensen grunted in pain and fell forward on top of Amy.  She gasped as she felt a sharp pain in her right shoulder.  When she pushed Jensen off her, she saw the handle of his knife protruding from her skin.  Without a second thought, Amy took a deep breath and pulled the knife out.  She cried out as darkness threatened to consume her.  Oh God, no, Amy!  Don’t pass out now! Jensen lay beside her, curled in a ball, groaning in pain.  Amy rolled away from him and tried to stand, dropping the knife.

“You bitch!  You’ll pay for that!”  He groaned as he tried to reach for her.

Amy pushed to her feet, her head swimming as blood ran down the front of her chest, soaking her bra and blouse.  She pressed her left hand to the wound in her right shoulder to try and staunch the flow of blood.  Pain rippled through her, leaving her breathless as her right arm could only hang there, useless.  Turning, she hurried as fast as she could through the house towards her bedroom.  Jensen pushed to his feet and stumbled after her, catching up with her quickly.  Amy knew she wouldn’t reach her nightstand in time, so she ducked down another hallway that led to the kitchen and circled back to the living room.  She was getting weak; she was losing too much blood.  Every step she took sent a pulse of pain throbbing through her body.  She could hear Jensen behind her closing the distance; she had to hide, she didn’t have the strength to keep running.

Quickly, she ran over to the wet bar, where there was a small cubbyhole she could crawl into and hide.  She prayed she hadn’t left a trail of blood that would lead Jensen right to her.  She could hear Jensen cursing profusely as he began searching the house for her.  “You can’t hide from me forever, bitch.  I’ll find you and when I do, I’ll hurt you bad!”

Amy stayed as quiet as she could as tears streamed down her face.  She swallowed the desire to whimper as the throbbing in her shoulder intensified.  Desperately she tried to think of a way to get to the phone to call 911.  Her heart jumped when she heard her phone begin to ring.  She wanted to get out and answer it, but she didn’t dare.  Would it be Frank?  Had he tried to call her at work to find she hadn’t shown up yet?  Oh Frank, please help me!

Amy was uncertain how much time passed.  She wasn’t going to last much longer, she was losing too much blood.  Suddenly Jensen appeared in the opening of her hiding place.  “There you are, you bitch!”  He grabbed her leg and began dragging her out.  Amy screamed as she tried to kick and struggle.

~*~*~*~*~

Donovan pulled in behind Amy’s car in her driveway.  His gut twisted as reality crowded in on him.  Something had happened to her. As the team exited the car, they heard a scream pierce the quiet.  Donovan froze for a split second.  Amy!  Gun in hand, he quickly rounded the front of his car.

“You two, take the back,” he commanded, pointing to Jake and Alex.  They left immediately as Donovan bounded up to the front door.  Cody and Monica stayed behind.  Though they both had guns, neither were trained for this part of the work, but they could still cover the front in case the intruder tried to escape through the front door.

“Amy!” Donovan yelled as he tried to open the front door.  It was locked.

“Fraaank!”  Donovan could hear sounds coming from the other side of the door.  He had to get in there.  Looking around, he saw the large picture window that was part of the living room.

Amy struggled harder as Jensen grabbed her and jerked her onto her feet.  He slapped her hard.  “Time to die, my beauty.  It’s a shame we don’t have time for anything else.”  He pulled out a gun just as a loud crash sounded from behind him.  Spinning around, he jerked Amy with him, placing her in front of him.

Donovan crashed through the living room window, rolling as he hit the ground.  He was on his feet seconds later with his gun trained on Jensen.  He didn’t dare allow himself to look at Amy.  “Let her go, Jensen.”

“I don’t think so, Donovan,” Jensen growled.  “The lady and I are going to walk out of here.”

“I can’t let you do that, Jensen.”  Donovan desperately tried to not think about the fact that it was Amy that Jensen was holding as hostage.  He couldn’t allow his personal feelings for her to interfere.  “This is between me and you, release the woman and take me instead.”

Jensen laughed.  “I don’t think so, Donovan.  You may try to act all calm and cool, like the woman means nothing to you, but I know better.  I was watching the both of you tonight and you are so whipped it’s enough to make me sick.”

Donovan knew he was going to have to take Jensen out, but Jensen was not a tall man and Amy blocked any clear shot.  Finally he forced himself to meet her eyes and his heart nearly fell to his feet at the pain he saw in her eyes and the blood that was splattered across her face.  Jensen had hurt her.  Donovan’s jaw clenched in anger as his eyes narrowed.  He prayed Amy would understand what had to be done and would obey his command.

Jensen heard a noise, causing him to turn his head towards it.  That slight distraction was what Donovan needed.  “Amy, drop!” he shouted as he took aim.  Without question, Amy let her body go limp, causing Jensen to lose his hold on her.  She slid from his grip, hitting the ground as Donovan fired several shots, hitting Jensen square in the chest.  The impact sent Jensen flying back to hit the wall behind him.  Slowly, he slid down the wall and slumped to the ground.

Donovan holstered his gun and immediately went to Amy.  Jake, who was responsible for the distraction, appeared from the hallway to check Jensen.  “He’s dead,” he announced.

“Amy,” Donovan carefully turned her over, hearing her moan softly.  Gently brushing her hair from her face, he noticed her blouse hanging open and saw the ugly stab wound.  “Call an ambulance,” he choked out as he gently touched her face.  Alex turned and hurried to the phone.  Jake went to the front door and unlocked it, letting Cody and Monica in.

“Frank-”

“Sh-sh-sh,” he quieted her by placing a finger to her lips.  “You’re going to be fine.  The ambulance is on its way.”

“Frank?”  Donovan turned to find Monica standing there with a towel and a blanket.  “To stop the blood flow and to keep her warm.”

Taking the items, Donovan nodded his thanks.  Gathering her up, he carried her to the couch where she would be more comfortable.  He covered her with the blanket and pressed the towel to the stab wound.  Kneeling down on the floor beside the couch, he leaned forward and whispered in her ear.  “Stay with me, angel.  Do you hear me?  Stay with me.”

~*~*~*~*~

Chicago Memorial Hospital
8 p.m. 2 days later

Donovan stood outside Amy’s hospital room, delaying what he knew he had to do.  Every time the scene at her house played out in his mind, he knew he could blame no one but himself.  Jensen had nearly killed her and it had been because of him.  Maybe Jake was right, maybe he was cursed.

Taking a deep breath and releasing it, he pushed the door open.  She was propped up in the hospital bed with her eyes closed, giving him a moment to just look at her.  She was pale and the left side of her face was bruised from where Jensen had slapped her.  His jaw tightened in anger as he thought of Jensen hitting her.  Quietly Donovan moved into the room.  How ironic that in order to keep her safe, he was going to have to hurt her too.  His own heart twisted in pain as he finally admitted to himself that he was in love with her.

Amy’s eyelids fluttered open and she smiled when she saw Donovan standing at the foot of the hospital bed.  “Hi.”

“Hi.”

“I was beginning to think you weren’t going to come by today.”  She lifted her hand up towards him, wanting to touch him.

“It was a busy day,” he answered, staying where he was.

Amy let her arm drop to the bed.  “What’s wrong?” she asked, suddenly nervous.

Donovan fought to keep control of his emotions.  When he had them firm in hand, he answered, “I just came by to say goodbye.”

Amy blinked, confused.  “Goodbye?  You’re going somewhere?”

“No, I’m not going anywhere.”  Amy struggled a moment trying to figure out what he was saying, then it dawned on her.

“I see,” she began softly.  “It’s me you are saying goodbye to.  You don’t want to see me anymore.”

“I think it’s for the best.”  Amy searched his face for some kind of emotion, but could find none.  Either he was real good at hiding it, or he felt nothing for her.

“Why?” she asked, not sure she really wanted to know.  “I thought, I thought we were connecting really well.”

“We were,” he answered.  “Physically.”   Amy felt her heart shatter as tears filled her eyes.

“Is that all it was to you?  We didn’t even get that far.”

He hated lying to her.  He hated hurting her like this, but to allow Amy into his life meant exposing her to the risks of his job and one day it could cost her her life.  He could not, would not risk that.  He loved her too much.  And so, he had to let her go.

“It’s just not going to work, Amy.  I’m sorry.”  He turned to leave, his gut twisting as he heard the soft sobs of her crying.  Everything in him wanted to turn around and gather her close and kiss away the tears and the pain.  The pain that he was causing her.  Instead, he left her room and headed down the hall to the elevators.  He punched the button and waited for the door to open.  Thankfully, the doors opened to reveal an empty elevator car and he stepped in and punched the button for the main floor.  As the doors closed, a single tear escaped and trickled down his cheek.

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