Hidden Nature
by Shadowriter
Part Five
They didn't make it till sunrise.
Cindy finally nodded off around midnight, and Lindsay's phone rang at a little after three. Even disoriented, the inspector was able to find the cell and flip it open.
"Boxer."
Still wiping sleep from her eyes, the reporter came awake quickly when her lover reached for the light.
"When?" She flipped the covers back, looking around for her pants. "Where?" The answers came as rapid fire as her questions. Cindy, sensing the seriousness of the conversation, climbed out of bed and helped Lindsay gather her clothes. "Have you called Jacobi?" The reporter said nothing as she watched the tall woman slide long legs into her jeans. "I'll be there as soon as I can. I hate to do this, but do you want to wake Claire?"
And Cindy knew right then what was happening.
"Fine, you call Jacobi, I'll call Claire, she can call Jill. See you soon, Tom." She disconnected and looked up to find Cindy facing her, the Inspector's bra and wife beater in her hands. "I guess you heard?"
Cindy nodded. "Another body?"
"Venner. Down near the docks." She took a breath. "Tom says he looks even worse than Sandra Montserat."
The reporter winced. "Tell Jill not to eat before she gets there."
"I'm sure Claire will take care of that detail." She smiled at the younger woman. "Cindy, I --"
"Don't." Holding up a hand, Cindy stopped her words. "You have a job to do. You need to go do it. Besides," she smiled a little mischievously, "You'll see me at the scene in a while."
Lindsay smiled and nodded. "Yeah. I probably will." She reached out and gathered the woman into her arms, then kissed her soundly. "I'm sorry I can't share breakfast with you."
"Well, maybe I'll be nice and get bagels for the club."
"Ooh, really? I love blueberry bagels. With strawberry cream cheese." Cindy made a face. "Not your favorite?"
"Onion. Or egg. With garlic and chive cream cheese."
"Well, ick."
"It's good!"
"Garlic anything is not a breakfast type food."
"Says you."
"Damn right." To Cindy's surprise, Lindsay leaned over and kissed her hard on the mouth. "And I have to leave. Thanks for letting me stay last night."
"You're always welcome, you know."
Boxer smiled. "Remind me of that if I forget, okay?"
"You got it."
They kissed again, and then Lindsay was gone, straightening her clothes and heading out the apartment door, already pulling out her phone to wake the Medical Examiner.
True to her word, Cindy bought bagels, handing a box to Officer Chou at the crime scene, with orders to make sure Jacobi and Boxer got first choice of the generous mix. He smiled, but warned her that not many people were going to feel like eating. She nodded, but said to keep it. As the morning wore on, people would be grateful.
Claire had already been there when she arrived, but Jill was a few minutes behind her, a half filled mocha cup in her hand. The ADA winked at Cindy, then ducked under the tape that Chou held up for her.
The reporter noticed that Lindsay stopped the blond attorney well away from the body and had Claire lift the blanket only briefly. Jill immediately whirled around, one hand to her mouth, her eyes squeezed shut. Lindsay put a hand on her shoulder, and Cindy watched, feeling helpless and useless.
"Thomas."
The voice was quiet but deadly serious, and Cindy looked up to see Drake staring at her. With a glance toward her friends, she moved quickly to the other woman's side.
"What are you doing here?"
With her own quick look at the scene, Drake folded her arms. "I found the body. I was trying to track the bastard, but I lost him on the docks."
"You're the one who called it in?"
"Are you insane? Why the hell would I do that?" Drake ran a hand through her short blonde hair. "I was doubling back to retrieve it and toss it in the water. I should have done it first, but I was hoping to catch him."
"Drake, what's going on? Is it the same guy? I thought you said you were handling it."
"I am. But it takes time." She motioned toward the scene. "He had this guy since night before last. Dumped his body maybe an hour ago."
"How long has he been dead?"
"I'm not the M.E., all right? Speaking of whom, I'm guessing she's a friend?"
Cindy looked uncomfortable, remembering her long conversation with Claire the previous day. "Yeah, she is. Why?"
"Can you get me into her office?"
"What? Why? No!"
"I need to get the samples she took off the other body. Before she figures out things that she shouldn't."
"Drake, you --"
"Are you going to help me or not?"
"I can't."
The blonde laughed. "Damn it, I hate it when humans do that."
"Do what?"
"'Oh, don't worry, I'll protect your secret', and then when I need them to truly help protect it, they can't do it."
Cindy sighed. "Drake, you don't have to do anything. Claire isn't going to --"
Drake's piercing gaze pinned her. For a moment Cindy bit her lip, trying to remember what she was saying. Then she saw the other woman's eyes go wide.
"You told her, didn't you?" The voice was soft, and just as deadly. "You gave her the answers to her questions."
"I--" She couldn't lie. "I told her about the night you saved me."
"Aw, Thomas." Drake turned away, hands going in her back pockets.
"Look, she's not --" Her sentenced ended in a yelp as the shape-shifter pushed her back against the wall and held her there.
"You betrayed me, Thomas. I fought for you, and you betrayed me." A hint of fangs poked through the taller woman's mouth.
"I didn't."
"You swore you'd never tell."
"And you swore you'd find this guy." Cindy pointed at the scene, still partly amazed that she was arguing with her friend. "If you can't stop him, maybe you should ask someone for help."
"And I suppose your friends can help?"
"Maybe. Can't hurt to try."
Drake snorted. "Right. And after we catch the killer they can lock me in a cage next to him so they can study us both. No thanks."
"I'll thank you to let her go."
Both of them turned to see Lindsay Boxer several feet away, her hand resting comfortably on her sidearm. Behind her, Warren Jabobi glared at the blond who appeared to be manhandling the smaller reporter.
And behind him stood Jill Bernhardt and Claire Washburn. Jill was glaring, while Claire looked merely concerned.
Drake pulled back. "No harm, Inspector. Just having a talk with my old 'friend'." There was a touch of irony and anger in the word.
"I'm fine, Linds."
"Are you sure?" The Inspector was angry enough over what had happened to the young man under the tarp; she wouldn't have minded pounding on someone at the moment, and if that person was harrassing Cindy? All the better.
"I'm sure. Drake and I were just having a discussion." She saw Claire's eyebrows shoot up at the name.
Drake just snorted.
"We'll take it a little further away so we don't bother you." With that, Cindy grabbed her friend's arm and pulled her quickly down the block away from the alley where the police were waiting to remove Anthony Venner's body.
"What do you think you're doing?" Drake yanked her arm free.
Cindy glared at her. "Listen, you overgrown puppy. I did not betray you. I trust Claire Washburn with my life, and with yours. I trusted you, and I haven't broken your rules once in the last six years. Now it's your turn to trust me. I've kept your secret, I helped you when you asked me to, I learned not to ask questions about how you got the information you passed on to me. Now you tell me that one of your clan has gone rogue, but I'm not supposed to say anything to the very people who could help you find him?"
"You can't just --"
"I can't just what, let you put me in this position anymore? You're right. So I told Claire, because I needed an objective opinion on the situation."
"What situation?"
"The fact that my lover is investigating this murder and I can't help her because I can't tell her what I know."
Drake folded her arms. "So that was her I smelled on you."
Cindy's face turned red. "What?"
"I know your scent. There was someone else's mixed in. It was all over you." She couldn't resist smiling a little. "So little Thomas has a girrrrrlfriend."
"Shut up. So what if I do?"
Leaning down, Drake let her eyes darken and her fangs protrude just a little. "So, maybe you should take a look at what happened to your two victims. And then imagine your Inspector lying there instead." Cindy's blush faded quickly and she went suddenly pale. "Because that's what he'll do to her if she gets in the way." She pulled back slightly, letting the image she'd planted sink deep into Cindy's mind. "So you think twice about what you might want to tell her. You know her better than I do, but do you really think she'd stop if she knew the truth?"
Cindy's voice was quiet. "Do you really think she'll stop if she doesn't?"
"I'll plant some false leads. Set it up so she thinks it's somebody she can't touch, cause he's dead or something, or maybe in Mexico."
"And Claire?"
Drake shrugged. "I can't take back what you told her, but I can take the evidence. Without it, she can't prove anything."
"How will you get in the lab?"
The shapeshifter smiled down at her. "That's not a problem. You just need to keep your friend out of her office for a while."
"Me!"
"You." Leaning in again, Drake said softly, "I call upon your bond to help protect the clan."
Her eyes widened, but all Cindy could do was drop her mouth open. After a few moments, it shut with a snap. She let her eyes close as well, hiding the tears in them.
With a final nod, she sealed her fate.
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