When The Scales Fall - Part 1 - Secret Santa 2018 for Eriah211

[knitekat]

Title: When The Scales Fall - Part 1
Author: knitekat
Word Count: 3525
Characters: James Lester, Stephen Hart, mention of several others.
Rating: 18
Disclaimer: Primeval belongs to Impossible Pictures. Certainly not me. Writing for fun and will replace.
A/N 1: HAPPY CHRISTMAS to everyone. Hope you are all having a great day.
A/N 2: Secret Santa for Eriah211 and her prompt: Lester/Stephen and 1) 'Are you shivering?', 2) A small black notebook found in a drawer., 3) 'I still regret it deeply.', Sorry but I couldn’t get 4) "At any given moment, public opinion is a chaos of superstition, misinformation and prejudice." (Quote by Gore Vidal) to fit. Hope you like it.
A/N 3: Thanks go to goldarrow for stepping in at the last minute for a speedy beta. All remaining mistakes are mine.
Part 1 Part 2 Epilogue


I wasn’t sure what to believe any more, or rather, I should say, who. I had so wanted to believe Nick, he’d been my friend for nine years, we’d been through so much together and for Nick to just throw it away because of one mistake… I sighed and shook my head. No, I had known who Nick was, who he’d been married to. I knew I shouldn’t have had an affair with Helen but I’d been in love with her… Or maybe I had just been young and stupid and infatuated with her. She’d showered me in attention, she had seemed so interested in me and my work. I had still been captivated by her when she’d returned after so long away, believing everything she’d told me, at least I had before I noticed something that didn’t make sense. And then another one. The telephone conversation and Helen’s response to my question about it had been the tipping point and I knew I couldn’t trust her blindly. I found myself wondered if I had placed her on a pedestal in the years she’d been missing.

They had been the two constants in my life for the past nine years, more in Helen’s case, and now I felt torn between them. Who should I trust? Not with my heart, for both had hurt me too much to ever be trusted with that precious gift. But I still needed to know who was right, who I should trust and work with. I knew the choice would be final, for neither would forgive what they’d consider another betrayal.

Which was why I was here, sheltering from prying eyes in the shadow of a tree, even if it was night. Watching the apartment across the road as I stamped my numb feet in an attempt to keep warm. I couldn’t risk pacing as someone might notice me and I had no wish to explain myself to anyone, especially Lester, as to why I was loitering outside his address. I glanced at my watch and then back at the apartment. The curtains were drawn but I could still see someone moving around in there. Bloody hell, maybe I’d misheard and it wasn’t tonight Lester had tickets for the theatre.

I was just about to call it a night and try again once I’d managed to check Lester’s schedule – or rather, Ms Wickes’ record of it. I wasn’t sure if she booked for Lester or if she just always knew where our boss was every minute of the day and night. I decided to wait five more minutes before I headed home and was rewarded when the apartment was plunged into darkness. I glanced at the time again, hoping Lester wasn’t just having an early night, and moved around the tree so I could keep an eye on the apartment block’s underground garage. I stepped deeper into the shadows when Lester’s car exited so not to be caught in its headlights. I was so near my goal I could almost taste it, but I still waited for a few more minutes to make sure Lester really had left before I sauntered towards the apartment block. I hoped that acting as if I belonged there would convince anyone who saw me that I wasn’t about to break into one of the apartments.

***

I let out a breath I hadn’t realised I’d been holding when I slipped inside Lester’s apartment and closed the door quietly behind me. I sagged against it, letting it hold me upright while my hammering heart slowed. I’d done it… assuming no one had seen me and called the police. I was a risk I’d have to take, had taken when I’d decided to break in here. I swore softly before turning on the lights, it really would look like I’d broken in here to anyone watching if I wandered around by torch-light.

I took a deep, calming breath, knowing this might be the only chance I’d get to look around. I knew I’d only have a few hours at best until Lester returned (less if the police were on their way) and that I needed to use them wisely. With that thought in mind, I glanced around – the apartment was immaculate, all wooden floors and elegant furniture, the walls painted off-white – and either Lester was a neat-freak or he had a cleaner, or both. Not that I was here to critique his sense of style (even if it was excellent). No, I was here to find something, anything, that would prove his guilt (or his innocence, I supposed) and then… maybe I’d know who to trust.

I shook my head, knowing I was wasting time and that I had to start somewhere… but where? Well, I worked in my living room or bedroom so… I glanced down the corridor before heading towards the living room, unwilling to start in Lester’s bedroom. I paused just inside the doorway, smiling when I spotted the TV, even if I doubted Lester used it for more than watching the news. I peered around the room and my smile widened when I spotted the laptop. I reached for it before stopping, my fingers just brushing it, and glanced around again. Lester seemed the type to know exactly where everything was and I wouldn’t put it past him to notice if the laptop was even the slightest out of place and that would tip him off that someone had been snooping about. I took the time to memorize how he’d left it before I placed it on his glass-topped coffee table. I switched it on and cursed when the password prompt appeared. What the hell would Lester use as a password? I looked around the room once more, almost as if seeking inspiration, but I didn’t know Lester well enough to even guess what it might be. In the end I just typed his name and hoped a password hint would appear, but it appeared the paranoid bastard had turned that function off. Bloody hell, with no idea how many attempts I’d have before it locked me out, I knew I’d have to leave it alone. At least for now. Maybe if I was lucky Lester would have written it down somewhere… however unlikely that hope was.

I reluctantly put the laptop back, checking it was exactly how Lester had left it, and searched the rest of the room. I flicked through his letter rack, although what I thought I’d find I wasn’t sure. Most of them looked like bills although my eyebrow rose when I noticed one had a school logo on it. I didn’t even know if Lester was married, let alone had kids. Maybe this was the information I was after, hidden in plain sight? I wasn’t going to find out by staring at the envelope, so I pulled the letter out.

Damn! It was a school report and I quickly stuffed it back inside, I had no wish to read about Lester’s kids. It made the man far too human and what I was doing… No, I had to know the truth. I had to know if Lester was the traitor. If Helen was telling me the truth or… I almost crumpled the letter before remembering myself in time. I straightened out the slightly bent edge and put it back.

It didn’t take long to finish my search and before I knew it, I was outside the door to Lester’s bedroom. I stood outside that door for what felt like hours before I snorted. I had faced down creatures from across the world and the past, poachers, guerrillas and the bloody dean, but I couldn’t open one door and step into a bedroom. Even if it was Lester’s. Except I knew I had to if I was to find the evidence I needed.

It still took me several moments to gather myself before I could open the door. Once I had, I quickly entered before I lost my nerve. I stopped when I took in the king-sized bed which dominated the room – the sheets looked expensive, as did the throw. For all the minimalistic styling of the rest of the apartment, Lester clearly liked his luxuries when it came to his bed… and I really didn’t want to think about Lester and bed in the same sentence.

I quickly turned and opened the nearest wardrobe, unsurprised to find it full of expensive-looking suits, silk ties and highly polished shoes. I found nothing incriminating and turned to the next wardrobe before stopping. I frowned and turned, opening the door once more and just stared. I hadn’t imagined it, but the thought of Sir James Lester owning jeans, even if they were an expensive brand, was just… well, not Lester.

I shook my head again, firmly suppressing the nagging thought that Lester was proving to be far too human and continued to search. I opened various drawers, finding shirts and socks and silk boxers. I stared at them for a moment before having a quick rummage, trying not to mess them up but it was somewhere I’d hide something. The silk was cool and soft under my fingers and I jerked back to awareness to find myself fondling a pair.

I swiftly dropped them before refolding them and shutting the drawer firmly. I took a deep breath and checked the room for a final time, wanting nothing more than to be finished. I almost groaned when I finally noticed the bedside cabinet and wondered how I’d missed it earlier… except I’d been doing my best not to even look at Lester’s rather comfortable-looking bed. Especially as I hadn’t found any pyjamas and… and I really didn’t want to think about that.

I found myself reluctant to poke through the contents, feeling the pang of knowing I was looking through someone’s personal belongings. I just stood there staring at it for a moment, wondering what I would find out about Lester if, no when I looked. I still hesitated, looking instead at the top of the cabinet instead. A wind-up clock sat ticking on top of an electric clock-radio, a drinks coaster sat beside them and an angle-poise lamp stood behind them.

I started when I saw the time on the clocks, realising I was running out of time. The cabinet had two open sections, with a drawer separating them. I wasn’t keen to start with the drawer and instead poked in the open sections, finding a selection of painkillers, a torch, a bookmarked book from an author I didn’t recognised and other odds and ends, but nothing incriminating. Which just left me with the drawer to check and I opened it cautiously to peer inside. I dismissed most of the items within, before swallowing and feeling myself blush when I saw the box of condoms. I felt my blush grow when I noticed the bottle nestled beside them and I couldn’t close the drawer quickly enough. Bloody hell, I had no wish to think about Lester’s presumably active love-life… I froze, realising I had glimpse something in the drawer and turned back to the drawer, reluctant to re-open it but I had to check.

There! A small, black notebook that I had almost missed was peeking out from beneath the condoms. I reached in and carefully pulled it out, trying not to touch the items it was hidden beneath. I turned it over in my hands but there was nothing remarkable about it, if I ignored the fact it was obviously well-used, the leather worn thin in places. I was about to open it when I glanced at the condoms, wondering if, instead of the proof I’d been looking for, I had instead discovered Lester’s little black book. I had even less of a wish to read about Lester’s love-life as I had to think about it, or the condoms and lube in that drawer.

I was still trying to decide if I should open the book when a throat was cleared behind me. I spun around, the book clasped to my chest and I cursed when I came face-to-face with Lester. I swallowed when I met Lester’s hard eyes, he didn’t look happy and, well, I could hardly fault him for that, even if I could for coming back early. It was just my luck that whatever he’d gone to see had been crap.

“Enjoying rooting through my belongings, Dr Hart?” Lester asked in a deceptively mild tone.

I tried to think of something, anything, to say when I noticed his expression blanch and I followed his gaze to the notebook clasped in my hand. It was obviously important to him, although whether it would prove his guilt or be a list of his lovers was another question. I doubted Lester would be happy with me either way. “Er...”

Lester appeared to be resisting the urge to roll his eyes before he sighed. “I promise you that it doesn’t contain my nefarious plans to take over the world.”

“Nefarious?” I repeated, my gaze flicking guiltily back down to what I was increasing convinced was Lester’s little black book.

“Or, indeed, any other claptrap Helen had told you.”

“What?” My automatic denial died on my lips when Lester raised a quelling hand.

“Please don’t try to deny it, Hart, I know you’re in contact with her.”

“How?” I asked before I uttered, “Fuck!” as I realised I had just confirmed Lester’s suspicions.

“Because I am not a fool, Dr Hart,” Lester said in a tone that clearly implied he thought I was.

“You’ve been having me followed? Who? It isn’t anyone at the ARC.” I racked my brain as I tried to recall seeing anyone who might have been following me. Maybe it was a colleague of the soldier Nick and I had run into in the Silurian?

“Considering you’ve broken in here, do you really think I’d tell you who it is?”

“Probably not,” I agreed before realising something. “I assume someone else drove your car away earlier?”

“Yes.” Lester seemed to consider me for a long moment before he gave a sharp nod. “And, as one of us has to make the first move, it was Ryan.”

“Ryan?” I hadn’t realised he was healed, the last I’d heard he was still struggling to regain his fitness after the Permian incident. Not that I’d paid too much attention, I’d been too wrapped up in the disintegration of my own life after Helen’s reveal. Some friend I’d turned out to be… I frowned at Lester, realising he’d kept Ryan’s recovery a secret and why. “You kept his return a secret because you knew there is a traitor in the ARC!”

I stepped back when Lester glared at me. “Traitor? What bloody traitor?” He frowned at me for a moment, long enough for me to shift nervously, before he spoke again, “I believe we are going to have a long and detailed discussion, Dr Hart.” Lester paused for a moment before adding, “But first things first, and that is a shower.”

I just stared at him, wondering what the fuck he was on about. He really wasn’t reacting the way I’d expected. If I had found Lester, or more likely, his men searching my flat, I’d have been furious. Maybe Lester was trying to trick me, to… I had no idea what.

“Hart!”

“What?” I jumped as his voice startled me out of my thoughts.

“Are you shivering, Dr Hart?” I shook my head in confusion, although Lester took it for denial and sighed. “Really? I’m not having you taking time off for a cold just because you’re too stubborn to do something about it.” Lester looked… exasperated might be the word for it, as he added, “Hart, just have a bloody shower and warm up.”

Now Lester had pointed it out, I was bloody cold. Freezing actually. “Why? Why do you care?”

Lester sighed softly before shaking his head. “I’ve already told you why, but if you’d prefer to be ill than be sensible and make others cover for your work... Bloody scientists.”

I had to, reluctantly, admit he had a point and nodded. “OK.”

Lester raised an eyebrow before visibly not saying whatever was on his mind. “Excellent,” he drawled instead. “Towels are in the cupboard.” He sighed before adding, “And I suppose I better find you something dry to wear.” His lip curled in disgust. “And a bag to take your own clothes home with you.”

Wearing something warm and dry would be heavenly at the moment, until I imaged how I’d look in shorter man’s clothing. “Something of yours?”

“Dear God, no!” Lester exclaimed in clear dismay at the thought.

“Ah,” I said, glancing in horror at the notebook as Lester chuckled, clearly following my chain of thought about the previous owner of said clothes. I took the opportunity to make a swift exit but hadn’t taken more than three steps when Lester’s voice stopped me.

“Oh, and leave the book here, Hart. You’re not getting it wet.”

I frowned at him, understanding why he wouldn’t want the book wet but… “How do I know you won’t swap it?” The accusation and distrust clear in my voice.

“Bloody hell, Hart, have you seen another book like it in your rummaging?” Lester snapped before he sighed. “Fine, wait here.”

I waited, wondering what Lester was up to now, when he returned moments later with several polythene bags. “Put it in these to keep it dry.” When I had under his watchful eyes, Lester added, “Don’t get it wet, Hart,” in a tone which implied dire consequences if I did.

***

Hard shivers racked my body as I stood beneath the hot water, slowly warming up. Still, I washed quickly, my gaze fixed on the well-wrapped book as I wondered what Lester was doing. When I finally felt warm, I stepped out of the shower and roughly dried myself. I eyed my damp clothing with disgust before I firmly wrapped a towel around my waist and eased open the bathroom door to peek outside. I smiled as I spotted the neatly folded pile of clothing waiting for me as well as a plastic bag.

I glanced down the hallway for any sign of Lester before retreating into the bathroom with the supplies Lester had left for me. I sorted through the clothing and dressed quickly, trying not to think who might have owned the boxers, jeans and shirt before they’d come into Lester’s possession and what that man might have meant to Lester. Must have meant for Lester to have held onto them. Finally dressed in clothing that was slightly too big, I took a deep and hopefully calming breath, grabbed the book and opened the door once more. My stomach rumbled when I smelt a delicious aroma wafting from the kitchen, reminding me that I had missed a meal. Not that I believed Lester would feed me, not when I had invaded his privacy, when I still was invading it. “Lester?”

“I’m in the kitchen,” Lester called back. “I’m sure you remember where it is.”

Ah, Lester was definitely not happy with me or my presence in his apartment. However, he hadn’t thrown me out or called Ryan to do it for him and I still wanted, needed to know the truth. I stuffed my damp clothing into the bag Lester had provided and left it just inside the bathroom before I headed towards the kitchen. I stopped in the doorway, a smile tugging at my mouth, when I found Lester at the cooker, his jacket and tie absent and the top few buttons of his shirt undone. I forced my gaze away from the revealed, and rather distracting, scattering of chest hair and frowned when I realised he was cooking from scratch. “I never knew you cooked.”

“Have you ever been interested in me, Dr Hart?” Lester enquired. “Apart from assuming I’m the enemy?”

I winced slightly. He was definitely not happy with me and I, well, I supposed I couldn’t blame him for that. I watched, slightly confused, as Lester plated up two helpings and motioned me to sit down.

“I’m not in the habit of wasting food.” When I didn’t move to take a chair, Lester added, “It’s not poisoned.” Before I could reply, his gaze narrowed and he continued, “And keep that book wrapped up, I’m not letting you get food all over it.”

I blushed when I followed his gaze to the book and my thoughts turned once more to wondering whose clothing I was wearing, especially considering the contents of Lester’s bedside cabinet. I heard Lester’s low chuckle and I glared at the man, who merely raised an eyebrow and indicated the food.

“Do eat up, Hart,” Lester said as he started on his own plate.

It did smell wonderful and I was hungry. I ate a mouthful and moaned. It tasted just as good as it smelt. I glanced up at Lester, meeting his amused gaze but, thankfully, he didn’t comment on my reaction to the meal he’d cooked.

Part 1 Part 2 Epilogue

Comments

[eriah211.livejournal.com]

Oops! Stephen was caught red-handed, but it could have been much worse, me thinks *g*

It was good to see Stephen using his brain and realizing something wasn't right about Helen *rolls eyes* And the look at Lester's personal space was great, really enjoyed it, especially Stephen's reactions to some of the things he found.

A wonderful Christmas present, thank you! I'm dying to read the rest of it ^_^

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

Definitely oops, but as you said, it could be worse.

Stephen had to use his head in some 'verse. Glad you liked the look at Lester's personal space and, well, Stephen had to react to some of the things he found ;)

*bows* Glad you enjoyed the fic... er... tomorrow ;) Thanks for reading.

[isamazed]

It really feels like being with him all the time. I can’t wait to find out what’s in the book.
You made me laugh at the bit about the jeans - my dad didn’t have any before getting together with my mum! We never get tired of teasing him about it 😜

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

Good to know it felt like you were with him. Hee, hope it is worth waiting for.

Hee, Lester had to have jeans and Stephen had to be shocked.

Thanks for reading.

[nietie.livejournal.com]

Great idea of using Stephen’s suspicions of Lester in a fic and great use of the prompts.

I can feel something brewing here between them. Love that.

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

Glad you liked me using Stephen's suspicions, it was too good an opening not to use. *bows*

Hee... maybe, carry on reading. Thanks for reading.

[fredbassett]

Great start!. I love this looks at how Stephen's preconceptions start to get overturned. And I always like a look at Lester in a domestic context.

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Stephen is supposed to be perceptive, so he should have noticed the inconsistancies. Glad you liked the look at Lester's domestic situation. Thanks for reading.

[fififolle]

Silly Stephen! This is fun!

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

Why silly? For trusting Helen or being caught by Lester?

Glad you are enjoying it and thanks for reading.

[fififolle]

For breaking into Lester's house and poking around! Very naughty.
:D

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

True ;) But I'm sure Stephen doesn't quite see it that way.

[goldarrow]

Enjoyed this before, and enjoyed it again on re-read.

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

Good to know it stands up for a second read. Thanks for reading is again.

[thelibraniniquity]

Good start! It was fun watching Lester keep wrong-footing Stephen, and I am intrigued about the notebook now.

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

*bows* Lester loves wrong-footing people. Hope the notebook lives up to expectations. Thanks for reading.

[purplecat]

Oh dear! I don't think Stephen was really thinking things through at all - good job Lester has been thinking for him!

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

LOL. No, Stephen isn't, but at least he's noticed something is wrong. Lester is an expert in thinking for his staff.

Glad you liked it and thanks for reading.