FEARLESS

He imagined it later as the ultimate scene of chaos, but it was actually pretty simple. Tom Turcotte's little move left McKay open. The guy was standing in front of six cops just waiting for an excuse to fire, to avenge the death of a guy not yet thirty years old, and also the bizarre deaths of several women. So when he raised his gun, aiming at them, they did fire. Everybody was shooting, Fearless included, although very few of the bullets seemed to find their mark (the glare of the light on the rooftop obscured their view just enough to make sure of that). Most of the bullets pinged off the rooftop and bounced along to an eventual stop.
One slammed into McKay's left shoulder, splintering the bone and tearing through flesh. Another caught him in the leg, and another in the chest. Blood began pouring from the wounds, and McKay fell to the ground. Just as they were all starting to relax a little, he squeezed the trigger.
That bullet constricted their hearts - everything slowed down. For a moment, they all thought they had got away with it. But then Fearless saw his partner stumble awkwardly, and he knew.
Joel fell to his knees first, then slumped to his side. Fearless was there in a second, turning his head to the side gently and trying to keep him awake. He ignored the viscous, pooling blood under his partner's prone body. He tried to ignore the choking, bubbling sound coming from his partner's throat as Joel fought for every breath. His heavy eyelids began to slide shut.

Fearless shook him gently. "Come on, partner, stay with me here, OK." He thought for a second. "You got things to tell me, right?"

His partner coughed. "Now?" He managed to say weakly.

"Yeah. Now."

"Kelly....."

"...she's OK, isn't she?" Fearless asked in alarm. He remembered a conversation with Joel months before about his wife.....

"She's gone."

"Gone?"

Joel nodded. "OK, but......gone." He said thickly.

"She'll be right there with you.....she'll be right by your side, trust me on that, OK?"

His partner smiled at the thought and nodded again. He wanted to believe it - he chose to believe it. Fearless breathed a faint sigh of relief. He had Joel's attention....and the paramedics were storming along the roof towards him.

KELLY

She lay silently in Alan's bed and thought about what she was going to do. She loved her husband, but she'd just wanted to get out of there for a while. Alan was different. Alan was exciting, and he wasn't a cop. Maybe it was that last part which had attracted her most.
A part of Kelly told her that she had been unnecessarily cruel to Joel, and she did feel guilty about it. Taking their son with her had been a mistake. He missed his father and became more alienated from her every day they spent in Alan's apartment. But another part of her relished the attention she got from her lover. He gave her gifts that her policeman husband could never have afforded to buy. He gave her son things his father couldn't - not that he used them.
There was no doubt that the physical side of the fling had been great, but Kelly knew already what she really wanted. It wasn't right for her to be with Alan. Her son needed his father. She smiled to herself. It was settled.
Just then, her phone rang.

TURCOTTE

He hated hospitals so much. They were clinical, obviously, and they were cold, but it was the smell that really got to him. He'd heard one old guy describe it once as 'the stench of death'. Tom had never been able to think of it as anything but since then.
Added to that, his guilt was immeasurable. Noone was saying it, but he knew they all blamed him for this. And what was worse, he knew they were right. It was his fault. Going to the apartment building was no longer a mere contender for the stupidest thing he'd ever done, but a clear winner.
Detective Smith couldn't even look at him. Even Ray, his own partner, gave off an air of disgust and anger. Tom's guilt topped all that though. He dreaded seeing Stevens' wife - Tom knew Fearless had called her from the pay phone.

"Did the doctor-"

Ray interrupted him bluntly. "He'll tell us whatever he can soon. Wait."

You couldn't really get more clear than that, and from a guy who was pretty tolerant of Tom even in his worst moods. Tom shut up. He vowed to himself that he would never put anyone in a position like that again (if he managed to keep his job). The next second he was berating himself inwardly for even thinking about his job. His mind was jumping from one thing to the next, with barely a pause. Tom's guilt was not borne of the fact that he was looking back with 20:20 hindsight, but that he had known it was wrong before he'd even gone near Lucy's building.
His mind flashed back to the rooftop. ------------------------

Joel had just stood there for the longest time in total silence. He was staring over Tom's head, presumably at McKay. He really looked pissed at them both.

"Hello Detective." McKay said calmly.

Stevens flinched slightly at the gravelly sound of the murderer's voice. "Hello McKay."

"You've come, I expect, to ask me to give up my hostage."

He shrugged. Tom wished he could see both sides of the conversation. It was awkward, and he felt like he had to see everything McKay was doing by how the detective reacted. He reminded himself again how he had got into the situation.

"So, how have you been?"

Joel grimaced at McKay's casual conversation. He had taken it all very personally after Officer Germain had died in his arms six days previously. Noone blamed him. "How about you put that gun away now, huh?"

"Why should I do that? I'm in complete control."

"Is that what this is about? Control?" Stevens said, desperately trying to hold his temper back. Tom glanced up at him, and nodded very slightly, his approval. Not that it counted for much.

"Naturally."

The silence, when it reappeared, was broken by gentle sounds from the city below them. The buzz of traffic, the wailing of sirens, and the occasional burst of sound from the building itself were all muffled by concrete, distance and the sound of the wind. Tom maintained eye contact with Detective Stevens, who was his only method of working out what McKay was up to. At the same time, he hoped Joel wouldn't react too strongly to anything. If he got angry, if he got upset, then the porn king had won.

"You know, I had hoped it would be you or you partner in this position, Detective." The man laughed. It was an awful sound, like nails against a blackboard, like chewing polystyrene.

"Yeah? Well maybe you should try it."

Tom realised very quickly what Joel was aiming for. "No! I got myself into this, noone is going to take my place as his hostage!"

"Well well, bravery from the foolish officer." McKay said. Turcotte could imagine his smug face twisted into an expression of amusement. "Your offer is very much appreciated Detective, but you see, I don't care!"

"I do!" Joel shot back angrily. He trembled with fury, only the thought that another officer might get hurt holding him back.

"Now why would you want to save a man who can't keep his mind above his waist!"

That was when the cavalry had arrived. -----------------------------------------

"Have they said anything yet?"

Tom jumped when he saw her sitting next to Fearless. Kelly Stevens had arrived, and he'd been so wrapped up in himself that he hadn't even realised. He let his head fall into his hands.

FEARLESS

He couldn't take the sight of Officer Turcotte, the stupidity of the man just rose up in his mind every time he tried, and only an immense effort stopped Fearless from crossing the corridor and making him the hospital's newest customer. He stared at the wall opposite instead, at a childlike painting of a beach. Presumably it was meant o lighten the place up, but in truth it was just depressing. It reminded him of how good things could be, but weren't.

"Have they said anything yet?"

The voice made him jump. Fearless turned to see Kelly Stevens sitting right next to him. He felt a little guilty for not noticing her come in. Her eyes were wide-open with fear. The detective frowned, and shook his head. There was nothing he could say right now that would make her feel better. All he could do was what he did - place a supportive arm round her shoulders and hug her tightly, just being there for her.

"Excuse me, I am Doctor Crestejo."

Everyone's eyes were immediately fixed upon the white-coated figure who barely held a presence before. He was slight, short, and didn't look much like a doctor. Kelly collected herself and held out her hand. Crestejo shook it politely.

"I'm Kelly Stevens." She said quietly.

The doctor nodded. "Joel's wife?" When Kelly confirmed it, he asked whether she wanted him to speak to her in private.

"No, doctor, that won't be necessary....these men were there. They deserve to know what's going on."

Crestejo hunched down in front of Kelly. She held one of Fearless' hands tightly. "Mrs Stevens......your husband was shot in the chest. We tried.....evrything we could.......but.....I'm afraid Joel died a few moments ago."