csi_fiction | Bookends (2)

Title: Bookends (2)
Written by:

rorylie
Rating: R
Fandom: CSI NY/24 Crossover
Pairings: Flack/Stella, Jack/Chloe, Kim/Tony, Danny/Lindsay
Summary: Kim is accused of a surprising crime...
Disclaimer: We own nothing.

"For the murder of Chase Edmunds."

The words hit Jack like a metal pipe, forcing whatever he had planned on saying right out of his head. For a long moment, he just stared at the man in front of him, struggling to understand. Then a small sob sounded behind him, and he turned to see Kim's face fall.

"Chase is dead?"

"And you killed him," Danny said harshly.

Jack's anger came back, quickly replacing the shock that had engulfed him. Threateningly, he took a step closer to Mac. "And what makes you think that?"

Mac didn't budge. "My team found your daughter's fingerprints on the murder weapon. Now if you'll excuse me, I am going to place her under arrest."

"Like hell you are," Jack growled.

The two men stood there, facing off. Rage was radiating off of Jack in waves, but Mac stood his ground, unwilling to back down. Everyone else watched, tensely, preparing for a fight. Finally, Tony stepped in.

"Jack, don't."

He didn't take his gaze from Mac. "I won't let them take her, Tony."

"And if you keep this up, Jack, somebody's going to get shot. Let them take her. We'll follow them to the station and get this all straightened out. I promise."

"You should listen to your friend, Mr. Bauer," Mac said quietly. "If Kimberly is innocent, then we'll let her go. But we've got to get this cleared up."

Jack didn't want to step aside. Everything inside of him screamed to fight back, to protect his little girl at all costs. But he knew that Tony was right – the situation could easily escalate, and he couldn't bring himself to shoot a New York cop. Silently counting to ten, he took a deep breath and stepped aside so that Mac could reach Kim.

"This isn't over," he warned quietly as the other man walked past him.

Mac nodded. "I know."

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Chloe moved forward down the hallway of the precinct, propelled by the man's arm on her elbow. She wanted to shake it off but she didn't. She wanted to turn and run the other direction, out of the building, but instead she kept going forward.

She blinked rapidly, stuffing her hands in her pockets to keep anyone from seeing them shake as she struggled not to sob, biting her tongue until she drew blood. She kept her eyes on the floor in front of her, unwilling to give anything up.

A commotion at the end of the hallway drew her attention and she raised her eyes, taking in Jack Bauer for the first time in years. Her eyes widened as they locked on his, her mouth forming a tiny O as her breathing hitched.

"You okay?" Flack asked her when she stopped walking.

Chloe nodded slowly, eyes moving back to the floor as she started to shuffle slowly forward again.

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"Have a seat," Danny said when he opened the door.

"I want to see my daughter," Jack demanded.

"Not right now."

"She didn't kill Chase."

"Yeah? Well why don't you tell me how you can be so sure of that Mr. Bauer," Danny said, taking a seat at the table.

"I was with her."

"Now how do you know that, when I haven't even told you when Mr. Edmunds was killed?"

"It must have just happened," Jack explained. "If it had happened earlier, I'd know."

Danny nodded. "You flew it today from Los Angeles?"

"You already know that."

"I do," Danny admitted. "And I know that your daughter couldn't have possibly been with you when Mr. Edmunds was killed. You were at the airport, your daughter was no where to be found. We have security footage."

"Do you have any idea how easily that kind of footage can be altered?"

"I think I'll place my bets on the most logical conclusion, but go ahead with your conspiracy theory, don't let me stop you," Danny said, running a hand through his hair.

"Listen you arrogant little punk, you don't know what you're talking about," Jack snapped.

Danny shrugged. "I understand what you're doing. I have a daughter. You're not helping Kim, though. You're just making things worse."

"You don't know a damn thing about me."

"Yeah, maybe not. I know if it was my little girl, though, I'd do anything, even something this monumentally stupid, if I thought I could protect her. If something happened to her mother like what happened to your wife…" Danny trailed off, shaking his head. "I'd take care of my baby girl."

"Touching."

"You can't protect her any more. The sooner you realize that, the sooner you might just figure out a way you can actually help her." Closing the file that was in front of him, Danny stood up and walked out the door.

- Hide quoted text -

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"So. How do you know Kim Bauer?" Flack asked as he sat down across from Tony.

"She's my best friend's daughter. And I used to be her boss."

"At CTU?"

"Yes."

"What kind of employee was she?"

Tony rolled his eyes. "Nothing I say is going to help you make your case about Kim."

"Because you're protecting her?"

"Because she didn't do it."

"And how do you know that, Mr. Almeida?"

"Because I've known Kim for years. Because she couldn't even kill the woman who murdered her mother when she was given the chance. And because she cared about Chase."

"Maybe she was jealous. I hear he was planning on asking his girlfriend to marry him."

"So?" Tony scoffed. "That's a stupid reason to kill someone, and Kim's not stupid."

"Then explain her fingerprints on the murder weapon."

"I can't. But she didn't kill Chase."

Flack sat back, deciding to try a different track. "What about Edmunds' little girl…Angela?"

Tony frowned in confusion. "What about her?"

"She's missing."

"What? Since when?"

Flack shrugged. "She never made it to school this morning. We think whoever killed Edmunds and his woman took Angela as well."

"Why?"

"Maybe Kim was desperate for a family, and Edmunds didn't want to get back together. Maybe she didn't mean to kill him. Maybe she snapped and took the girl, thinking she'd make a little family for herself –"

Tony wasn't sure how it happened, but as Flack's words sank in, he was suddenly on his feet, his fist lashing out. It collided with the cop's face, sending him backwards as he fell out of his chair. Knowing that he had gone too far, Tony kept his distance, trying to let his temper cool.

"You know nothing about Kim Bauer," he said, his voice low. "Or the things she's been through. She would never hurt Chase, and she would never do anything to hurt his little girl."

Flack pushed himself to his feet, one hand holding his jaw. "I could arrest you for assaulting a police officer."

"Yeah, but it would make you look like a pansy," Tony shot back.

Don stared at him thoughtfully for a moment. "Why don't you sit down and calm yourself, Mr. Almeida? I'll be back in a little bit." As he headed toward the door, Flack turned back. "And I'll make sure to tell your friend how zealously you defended his daughter."

Without another word, he left the room.

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"You're treating me like a suspect," Chloe said, eyeing Stella warily when the woman reentered the room.

"We just have some questions we want you to help us answer Ms. O'Brian," Stella explained, taking a seat at the table.

"Do I need a lawyer?"

"Is that would make you more comfortable."

"You're not gonna tell me that you can't help me once I lawyer up?"

"You're not under arrest. We just want to ask you some questions."

Chloe's eyes narrowed.

"Would you like to know why Mr. Bauer is here?" Stella continued, watching Chloe's face for any sign of emotion. "I couldn't help but notice your reaction when you saw him."

Chloe shrugged. "They were partners. If someone from CTU came after Chase, it would only make sense that they'd come after Jack, too, or maybe he knows something."

Stella nodded. "You've given it a lot of thought. You're wrong though. We think Mr. Bauer's daughter killed your friend."

"Then why am I here?" Chloe demanded. "I haven't spoken to Kim in years. We weren't exactly friends."

"You're here to help us find Angela."

"You still think I had something to do with this."

"I think you know where that little girl is."

"Why I would I kidnap her? Check Chase's will, if something happens to him, I become Angela's legal guardian. Why would I kidnap her?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out." Stella studied the file in front of her. "Your parents died when you were very young."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Chloe demanded.

"I was raised in an orphanage."

"Are we supposed to be bonding now?" Chloe muttered.

Stella shrugged. "I'm just trying to help you out. Tell us where the kid is."

"Why do you think I know where she is?"

"Call it a hunch."

"I don't really believe in following hunches."

Stella watched the woman, her arms wrapped tightly around her body as she stared defiantly back at Stella. "You're not emotionless, Ms. O'Brian. You cared about Mr. Edmunds. If you thought something had happened to that little girl, you'd be upset."

"I don't have anything else to say," Chloe snapped. "You're wasting time you could be using to find her."

"I'm sorry you feel that way. I was hoping you'd cooperate."

"And I was hoping you'd leave me alone."

- Hide quoted text -

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"Why did you do it, Miss Bauer?" Mac asked.

Kim glared at him, her eyes still moist. "I didn't kill Chase. Or his girlfriend."

"Did you know that he was seeing someone else?" Lindsay asked.

She nodded. "He was happy."

"It must have been hard," Lindsay said quietly. "Seeing him with someone else. Watching another woman raise Angela."

"Angela was never mine. I loved that little girl, but…I knew that she wasn't mine. I never tried to force my way back into her life."

"Where were this morning, Miss Bauer?" Mac asked.

"Picking up Tony and my father from the airport."

"And you're sure you didn't make a stop at Chase's apartment?"

"Yes. I already explained this to you. I didn't kill him."

"Then why were your fingerprints on the murder weapon?"

Kim frowned. "I don't even know what the murder weapon was."

"Did you know that Angela is missing?" Lindsay asked suddenly.

Kim's eyes widened. "What?" she breathed.

"Just tell us where the little girl is," Mac said, leaning closer. "We can talk to the D.A., get you some leniency."

She stared at him in horror. "You think that I took her? I would never hurt her. I haven't even seen her since…" Kim swallowed hard, tears streaming down her face. "Chloe."

"Chloe O'Brian? What about her?"

"If anything ever happened to Chase, she was supposed to take care of Angela. Maybe she has her."

Lindsay shook her head. "We've already talked to her. She doesn't know where she is."

Kim looked at Mac, fear clutching her stomach. "You have to find her," she said firmly. "You have to."

Mac sighed. "If you would just tell us where –" His phone rang, interrupting him. "I'll be right back," he muttered. He stepped into the hallway, bringing the phone back to his ear. "Say that again…are you sure? Dammit." Snapping the phone shut, he moved down the corridor.

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A sudden knock on the door cut off Stella's next question. Frowning, she turned to see Mac walk into the room.

"Sorry to interrupt," he said. "But there's something I think Ms. O'Brian needs to know."

"And what's that?" Chloe snapped before Stella could respond.

"I just got a call from dispatch. Apparently someone broke into your apartment."

Chloe frowned. "What? Why?"

Mac looked at her intently. "My guess? They're looking for something that they didn't find at Chase's. Do you have any idea what that might be?"

Chloe just stared at him, trying not to squirm uncomfortably. Her mind raced, but she knew that she couldn't tell him anything – not yet. Sitting back, she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"I'm done talking," she said firmly.