"You wanna tell me what in the hell is going on here, please?" Bo asks, his voice full of morning-spent-on-the-turnpike exasperation, as he plops down on the couch next to Tea.
Tea can't help but grin at him, at his typical abruptness. "I'm fine, Bo...how're you?"
Bo does a take at that, stoically studying her with the Buchanan squint, before breaking out into a grin himself. He shakes his head a little, chuckling as he reaches out and takes her hand, planting a kiss on her fingers.
"I'm sorry. How are you, Tea?"
She tips her head, back and forth. "Eh."
"That good, huh?"
She grins again, leaning into him, giving him a friendly push. "I'm...okay, I guess."
Bo nods. "Y'know you gave us a pretty good scare, disappearing like that. You had a lot of people worried about you."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"RJ especially...I mean, he was goin' nuts..." Bo continues, noticing the change in Tea's expression at the mention of RJ. Del pulls up a chair, sitting down in front of her. Tea looks between them, and sighs, realizing she's surrounded now.
"...and now I got Manning sitting down the hall with a gunshot wound in his shoulder, and RJ...is suddenly MIA."
Tea shuts her eyes, turning her head and looking at Del. "He got shot?" she whispers.
Del shrugs. "Looks that way."
Tea stares into him, shocked and somewhat disgusted by her brother's lack of reaction...then she looks at Bo.
"You know what happened, don't you?" he asks.
She sighs. "Well...no...and yes."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning...I can't say for sure what happened, because I wasn't there...but I can GUESS."
"Yeah...so can I," Bo replies, glancing at Del. "So they called you, RJ and Kevin, right?"
Del nods. "They claimed they had Manning there with 'em, and they were trying to get me to give up Tea's location. Buch---I mean, Kevin, seemed pretty damned sure that Manning had..." he starts, looking intently at his sister...
"...DONE something to you."
"Which I TOLD you, was NOT TRUE," she interjects, and Del just shakes his head.
Tea feels a surge of anger at that. "What?? You STILL don't believe me?? What else can I tell you?!"
"How 'bout the TRUTH??" Del spits back, getting in her face. "That you wouldn't say anything if he DID...because YOU'RE a SLAVE to that asshole!!"
Tea just stares at him, in shock, as he tosses the chair aside angrily, and paces over to the other end of the room. Bo gets up, putting himself in between them.
"Alright, whoa, just hold on. Tea..." he says, watching as her eyes slowly move back over to him.
"...look, we all know the history here. We don't have to go back over it. But the fact is, Manning's a pretty unstable human being, so..." he continues, searching for the right words as he kneels down in front of her.
"...so it's...it's not like anyone's going to hold YOU responsible for what he's done."
Tea straightens up, eyebrows furrowed. "What?"
"Tea, I talked to Kevin before I came up here. He told me what happened."
She lets out a humorless laugh at that. "With all due respect, Bo...your nephew's full of shit."
Bo takes the hit, shaking his head. He continues on, disregarding her comment. "Look, I know Manning...I know how intimidating he can be. And I know the connection you two have...and given how volatile he can be---"
"Oh, for god's sake, just say it. YOU think he raped me, too."
Bo shrinks back a little, and Tea just shakes her head. "Y'know, if I didn't know the both of you as well as I do, I'd be really insulted. Because you're BOTH making it sound like I'm pretty damned stupid."
Del glares at back at her. "You KNOW that's not true."
Tea just shakes her head again, as she stands up. "Alright. I'm only gonna say this one more time, so listen carefully. Todd...DID...NOT...RAPE...ME," she says, making a point of clearly pronouncing every word. "And I'm not protecting him, I'm not covering anything up, and I'm certainly NOT in some kind of delusional state, so..." she says, with an exasperated sigh.
"...can we just call this whole mess OVER, PLEASE??"
Bo and Del exchange glances...then Bo hauls himself up, slowly, tiredly. "No...I'm afraid not."
Tea's eyes widen. "Why??"
"Because...RJ is STILL missing. Kevin has no idea where he went, and Manning's not talking. So until *I* find out what the hell happened to him, for sure...I can't afford to let Manning get out of my sight. I'm taking him back with me."
Tea's shoulders drop at that, and she rubs her forehead, knotted with stress. "You gotta be kidding me, Bo. You have no probable cause!"
"Hey! I know exactly what I can and can't do. And believe me, I CAN hold him...and I will."
She looks to Del, but he makes no moves to jump in, so she walks right up to Bo, lowering her voice.
"Look, just forget about Todd for a minute...what about RJ? You know HIM, too...you know how smart he is. WAY too smart to get caught."
Reluctantly, Bo lets out a deep breath, agreeing with a slight nod. Tea gives him a knowing look. "RJ is very much alive, I know it. YOU know it, too."
Bo studies her for a second, then sniffs. "Don't change the subject, Tea. That doesn't mean that Manning has NOTHING to answer for. I mean, what about that little stunt he pulled before? Shooting Gannon in the chest? You can't tell me he KNEW RJ was wearing Kevlar."
Now it's Tea's turn to acquiesce, looking down somewhat guiltily. Bo sees this, and tips his head down.
"Tea."
She looks up...and he smiles, sadly. "You're blaming yourself for that, aren't you?"
She half-laughs, sensing the trap. "No, not really. I used to...but not anymore. It's just very...typical...of him to take his issues with me out on someone else."
Bo nods. "Mmm...yeah, it is. And somehow I don't think he's changed much in the last few weeks."
Tea takes a step back, folding her arms. "You're reaching, Bo...reaching for something that isn't there. I mean, really...you're just gonna run on old history and some bullshit story that KEVIN'S feeding you?? That's pathetic!"
Again, Bo studies her, with a distinctly pissed look. Tea just stands there, waiting, staring right back...after a few seconds, Bo clicks his tongue.
"Del...do me a favor. Tell one of my guys outside to bring the car around," he says, with that official tone...his decision made. Tea laughs again, shaking her head at him...but Bo just walks up to her, a warning finger pointed at her chin.
"I like you, Tea. I like you a lot. But whether you wanna admit it or not, Manning's a menace to society...a disaster WAITING to happen. Fact is, if I can get him on JAYWALKING, I'll do it. So he's going back. END OF STORY."
Tea's eyes flash for a second...then, trying to maintain her calm, she lowers her voice as well. "Bo...please...don't do this. You're a smart guy, you can figure out what happened as well as I can. Todd took that shot at RJ...and RJ got him back. That's all. And Kevin and Todd have always hated each other...Kevin's just being a vengeful prick. I'm not saying any of this is justified...it's completely stupid. But it's OVER now...and sending Todd back to jail isn't gonna fix him, you know that. So I'm asking you, please..." she says, her whisper becoming more desperate. "...please...don't do this."
"Well, what would you have me do? Let him go?" he asks.
Tea stares into him, directly, unblinking. "Yes."
Bo chews on the inside of his lip, thinking...then he shakes his head, which makes Tea's whole body deflate.
"This isn't the nineteenth century, Tea. It might've been okay for guys to go twenty paces over a woman back then, but these days, it's called attempted murder."
"You have no direct evidence of Todd's involvement...you don't even have RJ," she replies, firmly.
Bo looks at her strangely. "What are you doing? REPRESENTING him now? Aren't you tired of that yet?"
Tea sighs hard, glancing away. "I'm just talking shop...y'know, like we used to? ADA to police commissioner...one professional to another? I'm just TELLING you...that without direct evidence, and without the main material witness, you haven't got much of a chance of getting a conviction."
Now it's Bo's turn to look away for a moment. Tea follows him, her head tipping to the side.
"And if you try to push this through, you're gonna look stupid."
He looks back. "Really...and why's that?"
Tea returns his look with a knowing one. "We've been down this road before, Bo...don't pretend like you don't remember. Using your power and position to railroad somebody? Not very appropriate behavior for the police commissioner."
Bo does a take at that...then he leans back into her, teeth clenched, voice barely holding steady. "Well, you're not ADA anymore, Delgado...and you're WAY over the line. Don't you EVER presume to judge me. This discussion is OVER."
With that, he storms away, leaving a cold breeze in his wake. Tea watches helplessly as he heads for the door, then stops for a second, as if he were going to say something else...but then he just continues out, walking past Del, who's standing in the doorway as well.
Brother and sister share a look...then Del just shakes his head at her, saying 'I knew it' without saying anything. Then he clears his throat.
"Look, you better stay here until we get him out of the building. I'll come back for you," he says, closing the door quickly, not giving her the chance to respond. Tea starts to pace, furious...and after a minute or two of walking, she feels herself calming somewhat, and she walks over toward the window, peeking out of the blinds. Down below, she sees the precinct parking lot...all of the cruisers lined up in neat rows, ready to go at a moment's notice. She sighs, as anger turns to worry, and her head thunks against the wall.
And she wonders, what she could possibly do now...and if she should even do anything.
*****
One of Bo's officers drives slowly around the precinct building, double-parking by the front entrance. Then he grabs his radio off of his belt.
"Commish, come in."
Upstairs, in the interrogation room, Bo grabs his radio, clicking in. "Yeah, go."
"We're all clear."
"Roger that. We'll be down in a minute."
"Roger that," the officer replies, the static clicking off. Bo shoves the radio back onto his belt, standing up.
"Well...shall we?"
Still sitting in the same chair, Todd's eyes roll up toward Bo, glaring. Bo nods, reaching behind him to bang on the door. The officer outside pokes his head in.
"Let's go. Cuff him," Bo says, about to walk out...
...when a horrible noise fills the air in the room, out in the hall, everywhere. Everyone freezes for a second, wondering what the hell's going on...then Bo rolls his eyes.
"A goddamned FIRE ALARM? NOW??" he yells, whirling around, not sure what to do for a second.
For his part, Todd stays perfectly still...wondering too, just what the hell's going on. He watches Bo fumble about, sensing a possible chance to bolt. He works out the odds quickly, of him making it out of the room, then down the hall, and out of the building. He couldn't help it...it was too ingrained in him at this point in his life...see a chance to run, go for it.
But the odds say not too damned likely...and he sighs, seeing the officer approaching with the cuffs. Del comes in just then, and Todd watches as they huddle for a second. The alarm continues to whine incessantly, and Todd's eyes are drawn to the sight of people, walking quickly outside the door...evacuating? He makes a face...then he looks back at Del and Bo, just as they break huddle and Bo walks up to him.
"You. Stay," he commands, then he gestures for his officer to follow him out. They leave, shutting the door behind them, muffling the alarm a little. Todd squints at the door, unable to tell if they've locked it. He waits, counting...one-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-one-thousand...
...then he stands up, as slowly as possible, still not entirely convinced of this chance. He takes the quietest steps, even though the alarm would cover any sound he might make. He puts an ear to the door, and a hand on the knob...listening to the commotion outside. Then, closing his eyes, he turns the knob...
...but it stops, in a half-turn. Locked.
In instant frustration, he grits his teeth, banging his forehead against the door. "Fuck," he whispers...then he laughs to himself, weakly...realizing that if there really IS a fire raging through the building, he's toast.
"Thanks, Bo...you're a real sweetheart." The words come out of him in quiet, defeated tones, as he turns his head, letting the coolness of the door touch his cheek. He sighs, knowing that, more than likely, this was a false alarm...only prolonging his inevitable fate to see the inside of Statesville prison again.
Then his thoughts are suddenly interrupted by the sounds of something on the other side of the door...amplified, with his ear right there. He opens his eyes, and listens to the loud clicks...then he feels the knob moving...turning in his hand. He jumps back, and scrambles back to the chair he was in...putting his head down, trying his best to look like he never moved. The alarm gets louder as the door opens, then muffled again as it closes. He waits...waits for the droning of Bo's voice, for the cold metal that'll bind his wrists, and the long, torturous trip to hell.
But seconds pass, and nothing happens. He wants to look up, but somehow he knows he's not alone in the room anymore. He swallows hard...then he hears it...
"Todd."
A whisper across the room, mysterious and quiet...but also like a fingerprint, unique and undeniable. He whips his head up, and sees Tea standing there...and almost forgets she came in like any other person, through the door...instead, thinking she just appeared there somehow.
She almost smiles, at the look on his face...almost getting lost in the moment. But not entirely, as she blinks herself out of it. She takes a deep breath, and reaches a hand out to him...her long fingers bending back and forth, calling him.
"Come on...hurry up."
Get up...GET UP! his brain yells...but he's still to shocked to move. Tea looks behind her, even though the door's closed...as if she could see through it. Then she looks back at him, with more urgency.
"We don't have much time! Let's go!! Move!!" she whispers, loudly...
...and that seems to do it. Todd springs up, grabbing her hand. One pulls, as does the other, in a mini-tug-of-war that flings them together. They look into each other, deeply...each overwhelmed by the sudden, total presence of the other, after weeks and weeks of painful absence. Todd watches Tea's eyes tear up, as she manages a tiny smile for him...then she sniffs it back, tightening her grip on his hand. She turns around, and he gets behind her as she opens the door a tiny crack.
The evacuation continues outside, with people rushing back and forth... and not a one paying attention to them. Tea breathes deep again, looking back over her shoulder at Todd. He looks past her to see out the door, then he nods at her. She nods back, and with one more deep, deep breath, she opens the door all the way; and as casually as possible, she walks out, adjusting her purse strap. Todd steps out right behind her, closing the door quietly...then he catches up to Tea, following her like a shadow. They merge into a group of people passing by, blending in as they work their way down the steps.
As they get closer to the first floor, Tea's breathing picks up...seeing the front entrance ahead...and Del, standing there talking to some other cops. She starts to freeze; but as if on cue, Todd steps around her, getting a new grip on her hand as he gets in front of her...taking over, as he sees Del, too. For a second, he wonders where Bo is...but then has to dismiss it, needing to concentrate on the work at hand. As smooth as cream, he pulls them both through the crowd, working his way forward, then to the side...managing to break away from the crowd just as they get to the last step. With one eye on Del, he pulls Tea in the opposite direction of the entrance, both of them walking quickly down the hallway, disappearing into the shadows. Walking turns to sprinting, as they approach the back door...both of them hoping to god there's no one left to stop them.
Outside, the door opens a teeny bit...and Todd peeks out, looking as far as he can, but he doesn't see anyone in range. So he steps out, pulling Tea in behind him. He looks up and down the alley they've stepped into...even looking above, at the rooftops, then back down. He tightens his grip on Tea's hand, glancing back at her...
...then he takes off like a shot, yanking her along with him. Tea has to move twice as fast to get in step with him as they haul ass down the alley, toward the street ahead. She pants with the effort, mixed in with some panic, as she sees the traffic whizzing by. She wasn't even thinking at this point...she couldn't, things were moving too fast, and the consequences if they got caught now were just too awful to consider. She had made the first move, opening the door...literally. Now it was Todd's turn to take over, and all she could do now was...trust him.
Dark turns to sudden light, as they emerge from the alley, coming to a halt on the busy sidewalk. The masses barely register their presence, adjusting the flow of foot traffic to move around them. But no one really SEES them, which is exactly what Todd counts on, as he moves to the curb, scanning the street for a cab. Behind him, clinging to his jacket, Tea sees one coming and points it out. Todd spots it, then, with one more glance up and down the street, he puts two fingers in his mouth and blows.
Tea cringes from the shrill volume of the whistle...but it works. The cab cuts over through three lanes of traffic, and screeches to a stop in front of them. Todd grabs the door handle before it's even fully stopped, jerking the door open and pushing Tea inside before jumping in after her. The cab driver glances over his shoulder casually, not noticing that both passengers are huddled on the floor.
"Where to?"
"Just go, man...GO!!!" Todd shouts, and the driver, as if given a secret command, floors it, peeling away from the curb and back into traffic.
Both Todd and Tea stay low, as they peek out the window. The cab passes right in front of the police station, right by all the cops and now firemen, massed on the sidewalk. The cab driver curses, as he maneuvers around the emergency vehicles double-parked everywhere.
"Goddammit, I hate this shit. Hang on, folks," he says, just as he takes a sharp turn, throwing them back on the floor.
For a moment, neither of them do anything but lay there, breathing hard with relief and the adrenaline rush. Then Todd pulls himself back up onto the seat, and Tea turns her head to look up at him, through some hair that's fallen in her face.
"Do we have a destination yet here?" the driver barks.
Tea licks her dry lips, then she pulls herself up, leaning over to the driver through the little window. Todd watches her as she talks quietly, giving directions. He had no idea what she was telling him, but he didn't care anyway. Impulsively, he reaches out, grabbing her by the waistband, and pulls her back. He throws his good arm around her, binding her to him, squeezing her so tight she gasps. Tea's hands slide up his back, hooking onto his shoulders. And her eyes tear up, now that she can relax enough to let herself cry. She rubs her cheek against his, closing her eyes, relishing the scratchy roughness. She can feel his hands in her hair, his breath on her neck...and his own tears, wetting her skin.
Neither of them know what to say...so they settle for the silence.
*****
The day passes like one big motion blur, the two of them just moving...constantly moving, jumping from one mode of transit to another, trying to get as far away from where they were as possible. This was something Todd was more than used to...living on the lam had become as routine as anything else. He knew how to do it well, and had built up more than enough tolerance over the years. Tea, on the other hand, did not have the same conditioning, and like any other human, she began to tire as the day went on. She never complained...but she didn't have to. He could see it on her face, in her lagging steps. So they finally stopped...and now, here they were, holed up in a motel...somewhere. Even Todd wasn't sure exactly where. But it didn't matter anyway. There was no plan, no goal, no destination in mind. They just...went.
Propped up by the wall, Todd keeps an eye out through the blinds, watching the sparse traffic going by. The sky was a dark, dusky blue now, with the sun beneath the horizon line; and he sees one, lone star hanging in the air, a really bright one. He squints, thinking it unusual...but then, he suddenly remembers, hearing the voice of his own star...
It's not a star, Dad...it's a planet, she'd said.
A slow grin appears on Todd's face at that, remembering how Starr had pointed that out to him, that one day Viki managed to get her away from Blair. How do YOU know? he hears himself ask...and her sweet voice, replying with confidence...
... 'cause we're learning about the solar system in science class...and that's Venus...the only one you can see when it's still kinda light out.
Venus... he thinks...the brightest...the most beautiful. That was Starr, alright. He grins again, always warmed by thoughts of her. Then in typical fashion, the warm thought is followed up by a sudden pang of guilt, knowing he's missed a few more weeks of his child's life...and that he's likely to miss a lot more. He sighs at that, tapping his head against the wall as a sort-of punishment.
It was such a familiar succession of emotions for him, yet one that he'd never gotten used to, or broken...the warmth of a great memory, then the longing that goes with it, then the guilt of having been a bad father/husband/person...then the frustration at not being able to do better, then finally...anger at himself, which always ended up getting projected onto others. And round and round it goes, the vicious, unending cycle of his life...the track he seems doomed to run on for all eternity, littered with the bodies of those who lost themselves trying to save him.
He turns his head to look over at Tea, the biggest casualty, who's curled up in a ball on the edge of the bed, sleeping. The measley lamp on the nightstand casts a yellow-orange glow on her, making her stand out from the rest of the darkened room. He thinks back, now that he has time to do so...and realizes that she was the one who pulled the alarm. She was the one who created that huge diversion just to get him out of there. Bo and Del had undoubtedly figured that out by now, too...and now, she was in a world of shit too if they caught her.
Madness... he thinks, with an exhausted sigh. It wasn't fair. Tea had never done anything to deserve this life she lived now. What was her worst fault? Ambition? Impulsiveness? Insecurity? A temper? Hell, that was nothing, that was...normal. She'd grown up with the same guilt and self-doubt that haunts any child of a broken home...and she'd just lived the way anyone in that situation would have, trying to compensate for the loss with superficial things.
It wasn't any of that, that doomed her, though...it was the heart, underneath the surface. The heart she tried so hard to shield from further damage became the weapon. It made her notice him in the first place...it made her open up to him, made her think HE was what she needed, and finally convinced her that she could save him...if she would only give it over to him. She did what she was told, and that...THAT...was her mistake. A mistake she repeated so many times over the years...the lesson she never seemed to learn.
Todd walks over to her, soundlessly...kneeling down by the edge of the bed. He rests his good arm on the edge, his chin on his arm, just an inch or so away from her face. Tea sleeps on, her relaxed breaths blowing on him gently. He can't help but soften at it, having missed it...having missed her, more than anything. And how far they'd come, he suddenly thinks, remembering that there was a time when Tea would not have been able to sleep knowing he was watching her. But as he looks at her, he can tell she's sleeping better now than she has in weeks.
How far they'd come...but...how little has actually changed.
For the first time in hours, he feels the soreness of the wound in his shoulder. It hits him suddenly, like a smack to the back of the head. He stands up and stretches, trying to rotate the joint, and quickly bites down hard at the pain. It was still way too soon to be moving it around like that, but as with most things about himself, he didn't care...because he knew he'd live...that was his punishment anyway. He reaches back, and rips the Velcro straps off, loosening the sling. He tears it away, letting it fall to the floor, as he walks over to the other side of the room, and sinks down into a chair.
He sighs again, heavily, resuming his observation of Tea from across the room. She hasn't moved at all...she just sleeps on, oblivious, dreaming of things that will never be. Todd blinks slowly, his view of her suddenly blurred by saline. It wasn't fair...not to her. She deserved so much better than this. And it wasn't fair for him to keep her tied here...tied, tied...what was it Carlotta had said to him....tied by his suffering.
How right she was.
It was clear what had to be done now...and he was glad that Tea was getting some much-needed rest. Because once she was up, things were going to change. They had to.
To Be Continued...
