I guess I'm in a destructive mood. I've had this idea running around my head for a couple of months and no matter how hard I try I can't get it to disappear. It's like that cat - it keeps coming back. So I decided to finally give in and write it.
Now if only I knew where it was going to take me.
This is a Blair as a cop story. It just makes sense to me, all the guff the University had been giving would have gotten a lot more dedicated person (if that's possible) to quit, retire, make a career change, or even just a school change.
OK, as you read the story you will realize I have no idea on what a big city police station is like, either in looks or security. Also, the only thing I know about explosives is that a quarter stick of dynamite in the gas tank might be enough to take out this old clunker I use to have. {Actually, for a $300 car it lasted me over 2 years and at least 50,000 miles. However it always chose to break down at the furthest point from home [20-40 miles], or a phone.} I also know nothing about how an evacuation would happen.
The beta-ing was done by my friend and roommate Lorena, who's 81, but has been writing for years.
I'd rate this PG-13 because of an almost naked Blair, a little language and explosions.
I'm not very good at titles.
Debra Baschal
"I'm gonna run downstairs to Records and grab a copy of the files on the Esquelle case. I wanna go over it before we have to talk with the ADA again." Blair informed his partner.
"Good idea. Last thing either of us need is to get chewed out like Bates over in Homicide did because she didn't know the exact time of the arrest." Jim agreed.
"Who does ADA Schneider think he is?" Brown asked hotly as he joined them. "Nancy had just come off a major stakeout to catch a pair of serial killers and that jerk had her in tears after popping up on her in the parking lot? Took Ed and I almost three hours to get her calmed down. Ed almost had to call the doctor to sedate her."
"How are she and the baby doing, man?" Blair asked.
Henri grinned, "They're doing fine. Although the doctor insisted she be stuck on desk duty until after my niece or nephew arrive." His grin grew larger. "Of course when Mom and Dad found out what happened, they went straight to the DA and raised Cain."
"It's official as of last night, people. The DA has placed Schneider on suspension and reminded him that the DA's office and the PD are suppose to work together, and that we are not the enemy." Simon informed them as he joined them. "He has also been informed, that if he received another job offer, he should take it. There's no reason for him to act like a defense attorney towards the people he's suppose to be working with."
"I heard Lappert over at the Harbor district resigned because of Schneider's treatment of him. Accused him of obstructing justice in front of his wife and kids while they were out celebrating his eight year-old's birthday party over at Chucky Cheese's. Artie said he could not work for a city that allowed its cops to be harassed like that by the DA's office." Rafe told them.
"I heard that case was open and shut. They had the guy on tape and a full signed confession, until it was given to Schneider. Five minutes after meeting with the guy and he had recanted the confession and had filed a suit against the PD for false arrest." Brown commented.
"Did you guys hear?" Megan began as she exited from the elevator and hurried over. "That ADA, the real jerk one..." trailed off trying to remember the name.
"Schneider" Five voices supplied for her in unison.
"That's him. He was just arrested downstairs. Turns out he's working for Mason Burch. Seems the DA noticed the cases he's been giving the department the hardest time over, all had something to do with Burch." She told them.
"Including the one that caused Lappert to quit." Rafe added.
"Since Esquelle is allegedly Burch's right hand man, he would've given us a real bad time." Blair pointed out.
"At least until he came face to face with Jim here." Brown said, then grinned. "I would've loved to have seen that. Especially if he had gone after Hairboy first."
"Or what Sandburg would've done if they had gone after Jim first." Simon added. "OK, now that the PD is safe from the ire of ADA Schneider, let's get back to work. Sandburg, you'd still better go get that file. Jim, call over and see if that case has been reassigned yet."
Both nodded as they all went back to work.
Blair came out of Records, reading one of the files in his hands as he headed back towards the stairs. Passing the storeroom, he jumped as a crash startled him. Opening the door, he had time to notice a newly installed set of iron bars dividing the room in half before a hard object struck the side of his head, knocking him unconscious.
Groaning, Blair opened his eyes. Realizing he was cuffed to the bars and gagged, he looked around. Confused to find himself in a storeroom, he looked over his shoulder. Eyes widening in surprise and fear he recognized the large mound of gray bricks as C-4. The LED read out flashing from 4:32:00 to 4:31:59 sent a terrified shutter through his body.
Turning back around he saw a note taped to the floor beside him.
He felt his heart jump into his throat as he read it.
BEHIND YOU IS ONE OF TEN BOMBS SET THROUGHOUT THIS BUILDING. THEY ARE SCHEDULED TO DETONATE AT 5 PM.
THE PEOPLE OF CASCADE WILL LEARN THE PRICE OF OPPOSING MASON BURCH WHEN MOST OF THEIR POLICE OFFICERS AND ALL OF THEIR ELITE DETECTIVES ARE DESTROYED WITH THIS BUILDING.
THE BARS ARE ATTACHED TO SEVERAL MERCURY SWITCHES, ANY STRUGGLING BY YOU WILL DETONATE THE C-4 EARLY, SETTING THE OTHERS OFF IN A CHAIN REACTION. THE WALLS, CEILING AND THE FLOOR ARE ALL WIRED ALSO. ANY ATTEMPTS TO ACCESS THE DEVICE THROUGH THEM WILL DETONATE THE C-4.
ENJOY YOUR LAST FEW HOURS.
Blair sighed in despair as he took stock of his situation. Though the cuffs he was wearing weren't wired, the bars behind him were. He had been stripped down to his shorts; his clothes neatly folded into a pile near the door. His feet were tied to an eyebolt that had been driven into the floor in front of him, making it impossible for him to move more than a few inches. Gagged with, what felt like, one of his own socks and duct tape, he was unable to make any sounds that could actually reach more than a few feet outside of the room.
In despair, he closed his eyes. Blair knew Jim would be looking for him soon. He had left the bullpen around 10:45am. According to the timer, it was now about 12:30pm. He had been gone almost two hours, surely someone had to have missed him by now.
Listening hard, he tried to hear past the pounding of his own heart and the rushing of his blood, both of which sounded so very loud in his ears. Forcing himself to breathe slowly, he tried to relax, knowing there was nothing he could do until someone found him.
Hopefully in enough time to find and disarm all the bombs.
Glancing at his watch for the fifth time in 15 minutes, Jim impatiently grabbed the handset of the phone on his desk and dialed the number for Records.
"Yea, this is Ellison in Major Crimes. My partner, Sandburg, went down there for a file almost an hour ago. Is he still there?... That long, huh?... Thanks."
Concerned, he hung up and headed for Simon's office.
Knocking, he entered at Simon's summons.
"Something up, Jim?" The captain asked, seeing the frown on the other man's face.
"Yea, Blair's been gone an hour. I called records. They said he left 45 minutes ago."
"Go see if you can find him. I'll call around to see if anyone has seen him." Simon said, as he reached for the phone.
"I hope he just got caught up in conversation, but knowing Blair..." Jim admitted.
Simon started to nod, but was interrupted by the phone ringing.
Picking it up, he spoke, "Banks... Yes, Sir... The both of us?... Yes, Sir. We'll be right down." Hanging up he arose and grabbed his jacket. "The DA wants you and I to escort Schneider over to the jail, personally. Seems he's already received threats against his office and the PD over the arrest."
"Just the two of us?"
"Yea, just the two of us and a SWAT team and 14 uniforms." Simon informed him.
"Overkill?" Jim asked.
"Just a little." Simon agreed with a grin.
"What about Sandburg?"
"I'll have Rafe go look for him. He needs a break from the phone." Simon stated, nodding towards the harried detective. Jim nodded in agreement.
At 1:45pm Banks and Ellison strolled determinedly off the elevator and into the bullpen.
"Any word on Sandburg, yet?" Simon asked Rafe as he hung up his phone and rose to meet them.
"None yet." Rafe shook his head. "Kraan down in records got him the files he needed, and watched him leave. She said she saw him head towards the stairway, but after he turned the corner she went back to work. Adair down in robbery passed him on his way to records, but didn't see him enter the stairs. Said he had his nose buried in the file, had no idea what was going on around him. I ran the stairs myself, and he didn't fall. Rhonda's called almost every department, but no one's seen him. He hasn't left the building as far as we know. H is over checking out the security tape for that floor. We're about to start a room by room search. Just waiting for you to get back." He glanced to the side and lowered his voice. "We figured Jim would want to use his abilities to check the area first."
"Good work, Rafe. Jim?" Simon looked at the other detective.
He nodded. "I'll start at records and retrace his route."
Simon nodded his head in agreement. "Go with him." He said to Rafe, who nodded and followed Jim out the door.
As Jim and Rafe exited the stairwell on the floor Records was on, Jim stopped and tilted his head as a sound attracted his attention.
"What are you hearing, Jim?" Rafe asked as he realized what the older detective was doing.
"I hear Sandburg's heartbeat." He said moving to the storeroom. "It's coming from in here. I'm also smelling... C4."
He carefully opened the door checking for tripwires. Spotting Blair and the stack of C4 behind him, Jim hurried into the room telling Rafe. "Go get Joel and the bomb squad. And have Simon start evacuating the building."
"Right." Rafe was halfway to the stairwell before he had the word out.
Jim moved over to Blair carefully scanning for wires or other booby-traps.
"...im!" Blair called to his friend through the gag.
"Just relax, Chief. We'll get you out of this in no time."
"...im!" Blair said again. Getting the other man's attention he glanced down at the note on the floor beside him.
Reading it, Jim shook his head and muttered. "Damn two-bit hoods. They get a little bit of power and they think they can pull off another Oklahoma City. Well McVeigh just died for that. I'll be damned if we're going to have a repeat here."
Gently he ran his fingers over the gag. Finding no wires, he carefully pulled the tape off and helped his friend spit out the sock.
"You OK, Chief?"
Blair nodded as he worked his stiff jaw. "Yea, man. I was beginning to think that no one was going to find me before this thing and its nine ugly brothers announced their presence. Get these cuffs off of me."
"Gotta make sure they aren't wired first." Jim informed him.
"They aren't." Blair assured him. "I've had over an hour to check them out. Please, man. I don't wanna spend anymore time near that thing. I don't care if the entire force thinks I'm a wimp."
"No one thinks that Blair." Jim assured him as Joel hurried into the room followed by Simon.
"Sweet Jesus." Joel's face paled as he focused on the room behind Blair.
"Can you guys get me out of these things," he rattled the cuffs on his wrists. "I really need to get to a bathroom," he grinned. "I'm also freezing here."
Jim looked at Simon. "According to the note there's nine others scattered through out the building."
Simon nodded. "We've got the Bomb squad checking the rest of the building as we evacuate."
Joel nodded to Jim as he finished checking out the cuffs and the bars. "Go ahead and let him loose. He isn't connected to anything."
"Thank god." Blair said as he was finally released. Jim and Simon helped him to his feet.
"The note's right." Joel told them as Blair started getting dressed. "There's no way into that bomb. Everything's rigged with motion sensors and mercury switches. Maybe we'll have better luck with the others."
The lack of conviction in his voice told the others his opinion of that being the case.
"We've still got four hours. Maybe we could get all the important stuff out of the building. Other than people that is." Blair suggested.
"Good idea. Have the Bomb squad take and locate all of these and see if there's anything they can do." Simon told Joel. "Can you identify your attackers, Sandburg?" He asked hopefully.
Blair shook his head. "No. I heard a crash and stuck my head in. I only had time to see the bars before the lights went out. Sorry, Simon."
"Don't worry. If you had seen them you'd probably be dead right now." Simon assured him.
"Let's get moving. I want all the records and any stored evidence, out of here. Kraan and Adair will be in charge of that." He ordered. "Jim, you and Connor co-ordinate with uniforms to get any suspects moved over to the jail. Joel, you co-ordinate getting all of the weapons and ammunition and our own explosives out. Rafe will co-ordinate-evacuating personnel out of the building. Brown will handle the removal of the surveillance tapes. Maybe we've got these guys on tape. I'll notify the Mayor and the Chief. They'll have the other city building checked. I'll also order a 5-block perimeter. Time's running out."
"Um... What about me?" Blair asked as the others left the room.
"I want you to get checked out. If the Hospital OKs you coming back, report to me. I'll have Rhonda drive you." Simon ordered. Seeing the coming protest he raised his finger. "Don't even try it. You are our only witness to this so far. You also look like you took a pretty good blow to the head, so there will be no arguments... For your own good." He finished quietly.
Blair nodded reluctantly as he started to move off.
"You have 15 minutes to get Jim's and your stuff packed. Tell Rhonda she has the same." Simon informed him.
Before leaving for the hospital, 45 minutes later, Blair and Rhonda had quickly packed up the desks of all of the Major Crimes' detectives, including Simon's and had moved the boxes down into Jim's truck and Rhonda's minivan.
The evacuation of the station moved quickly and without too much chaos, everyone worked together to empty the building of the personnel and their effects.
The suspects were quickly and efficiently transported to the jail, several miles away, without incident.
The surrounding areas were evacuated for public safety. Police, fire, rescue personnel and civilians worked together through the procedure.
The Doctors diagnosed Blair as simply having a sore head, luckily there was no sign of a concussion. A trace amount of chloroform was found in his system and the beginnings of a cold were the only other discoveries they made. They released him, ordering him to get plenty of rest and to have someone bring him back if any complications occurred or his condition worsened.
Due to several backups at the hospital, Blair and Rhonda arrived back at the perimeter blockade a few minutes before the deadline.
Jim and Rafe hurried up to the command center where Simon and several other higher- ranking officers were waiting. Everyone was wearing riot gear [aka kevlar, helmets and CPD jackets].
"That last sweep showed the area's all clear. I couldn't hear anyone." Jim informed Simon.
"Good job, Jim, Rafe." Simon complimented them. "Now all we can do is wait."
"I still wish we could leave Schneider in there." Brown muttered as he, Joel and Megan joined them.
"Even he deserves his day in court." Simon lectured then sighed. "Besides, the Mayor refused my request."
Joel shrugged philosophically. "At least you tried." They all laughed as Blair and Rhonda, both in riot gear, joined them.
"What did they say?" Simon asked Rhonda as Jim quickly checked Blair out.
"Evidentially, after they knocked him out, they used chloroform on him. The doctor said that other than the beginnings of a cold, he's fine. There's no sign of a concussion, and they found traces of the chloroform in his system. They released him with out a problem. The only instructions were for him to get plenty of rest, fluids and vitamin C."
"Are you satisfied now, Mom?" Blair asked, glancing between Jim and Simon a slightly annoyed grin on his face.
Jim and Simon made eye contact then said together. "Yes."
Blair groaned then turned Jim's wrist around so he could look at his watch. "How long until 5?" he asked.
"There should be less than a half minute left on the timers." Joel informed them.
They all watched in silence, as a member of the bomb squad counted down to zero.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then a rapid series of explosions was heard, too close together for anyone to count accurately, other than Jim, if he had been listening. Seconds before Blair had reminded him to turn the dial down to protect his hearing.
For 2 long seconds, nothing happened. Then the multiple blasts became visible as the windows of the building suddenly shattered and exploded outward. Glass rained down on the empty streets in a three-block radius. Less then a second later, the building collapsed in on itself. A massive cloud of dust and smoke billowed from the ruins, obscuring the sight from the onlookers.
"Thank God, we discovered the bombs in time to get everyone out." Joel half whispered in awe of the moment.
"What are we suppose to do for a station now?" Blair asked as the enormity of the situation finally struck him.
"According to the Mayor, for the time being, we're all on a two weeks paid leave. Once the Feds finish their investigation, the city council will make their decision if we get a new station or not." Simon informed them.
"What about Mason Burch? We know he's responsible for this. That's what the note said." Blair inquired.
"Officially the Feds are in charge if the investigation. It comes under the heading of 'Domestic Terrorism'." Simon told them. "The task force should be here by noon." He grinned. "So I guess we're on our own until then."
"Why don't we meet over at the loft in a couple of hours." Jim suggested. "By the way, where are we storing the evidence and ordinance and security tapes?"
"All evidence has been taken over to the North Side station. The 'ordinance' has been taken over to the Academy, where it'll be stored separate from theirs." Simon stated.
"I stored the security tapes in your truck, Jim." Brown admitted to them. I needed a safe place I could stash them where I knew I could find them again." He grinned. "I hope you don't mind."
"Ok, people. We meet at the loft in 2 hours. Now go home, change, and bring a TV and VCR if you have portable ones. We've got a lot of work to do tonight." Simon informed them.
By 7PM, everyone had made it to the loft. Six TV/VCRs were running, fortunately, only the tapes from the interrogation rooms had sound and they weren't being view. Brown, Rafe and Megan were each watching a tape. Blair was also watching while typing up his statement [with out looking] about the incident. Jim split his attention between two tapes.
Joel, Simon and Rhonda were kept busy co-ordinating the investigation. Fielding phone calls from others who had heard about their investigation and insisted on helping, running down leads and clues. Keeping the others supplied with drinks, food and aspirin as needed. Not to mention, answering questions and writing reports.
By 8:30PM, Rafe had found the first team of six suspects on the security tape for the ninth/top floor.
At 8:42PM, Brown discovered the next team of six on the security tape for the fourth floor.
At 8:49PM, Blair spotted the team that had knocked him out and had left him cuffed and helpless with the bomb on the security tape for the third floor. He watched himself start to walk pass and stop as he heard a noise and looked inside the room only to drop then be pulled into the storeroom. His face had gone pale as he announced his find.
By 9:10PM, both Jim and Conner had found suspect teams on the eighth floor and in the garage. Two minutes later, Jim found the team that had set the bomb on the sixth floor, the floor for Major Crimes.
By11:30PM, they had the video evidence of the suspects for the remaining floors. The teams of six suspects had each spent part of the night and most of the morning setting up two storeroom bombs per team.
By midnight, they realized they needed to bring the DA in the loop. He was impressed by their set-up when he arrived at the loft, wanting to see the tapes for himself. He immediately arranged to get the arrest warrants sign for all the parties involved.
Through a series of warrant and raids, they had managed to arrest all 30 men involved with rigging the station to explode. Of the 30, eight had agreed to turn state's evidence against Burch in return for immunity and being given new identities.
By the time the Feds arrived the next day, the Cascade Police had already closed the case. They had finished the paperwork and were ready to officially turn the case over by the end of the day.
The Detectives of Major Crimes were informed, by the Mayor, that the station building would be rebuilt, through funding from the government and several endowments and donations from both public and private sources. The new building was scheduled to have the most up-to-date technology and security available, not to mention a state of the art computer system and expanded [and expanding] networking capabilities.
For a job well done they were all ordered, by both the mayor and the governor to take well- deserved vacations.
Which they all happily agreed to take.
The End.
I admit it ended a little quickly, no dialogue after they got to the loft, but my dues are due [that doesn't sound right, but is] And I needed to get this finished.
I've been kicking around several ideas for what happens on their vacation, I figure they take it together, with their families maybe. You know that's just screaming to be a very eventful trip. A crossover most likely.
Hope you enjoyed this and didn't get too frustrated by it.
Debra Baschal
dbasch@ccountry.net