Primeval fic: Looking For Answers
May. 29th, 2011 10:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
knitekatTitle: Looking For Answers
Author: knitekat
Word Count: ~7560
Characters: Hilary Becker, Nick Cutter, Abby Maitland, Monty, Ryan Mason, James Lester, Jenny Lewis, Jon Lyle (OC), Danny Quinn, Connor Temple, Pete Yates, SFOC.
Pairings: James Lester/Nick Cutter, Lyle (OC)/SFOC.
Rating: 15
Disclaimer: Primeval belongs to Impossible Pictures. Certainly not me. Writing for fun and will replace. Lyle belongs to Fred, Monty belongs to himself.
A/N: Part of my Under The Moonlight wolfverse and continues on from The Next Move. Uses material from a couple of series 3 episodes. Thanks to the ever-wonderful Fred for the beta.
Lester leaned back against one of the workbenches in Nick's commandeered laboratory and watched as Nick modified his model, checking a scrap of paper as he added another entry. “Does it mean anything yet?”
“No!” Nick snapped before shaking his head and sighing. “Sorry, James. I just don't understand and it is driving me crazy.”
Lester tugged Nick against him and nuzzled his neck. “What don't you understand?” His teeth lightly nipped at Nick's earlobe.
Nick sighed again, although this time in pleasure as he relaxed in Lester's arms. “How Helen does it. How she can know where an anomaly will be. I can't see a pattern.” He ran a hand over his face in frustration.
“I know you didn't want it in a computer, Nick, but that might find a pattern you've missed.”
Nick twisted around in his lover's arms. “And if it can't?”
Lester sighed. “Then we don't have enough information yet.”
“Or I've missed something important or you've spent too much money on my wild goose chase.”
“Rubbish.” Lester pressed a kiss against his lover's lips. “It might still prove useful.” He lowered his voice until he was whispering in Nick's ear. “Even if just for pissing Christine off, somehow.”
Nick grinned and returned Lester's kiss. “Have I told you lately that I love you?”
“This morning, after a rather lovely shagging session.” Lester squeezed Nick's arse as he added, “I love you too, Nick.” With one last squeeze, Lester released Nick and added, “However, you have interviews to chair in ten minutes and I have a lovely date with a mountain of paperwork, so we will have to continue this later.”
Becker casually leaned against the wall as he acted as look-out for Abby. He sighed as he watched Connor look around the atrium in an extremely suspicious manner before strolling towards one of the currently disused laboratories in a way that just screamed he was up to something. Becker raised an eyebrow as he looked over his shoulder at Abby and asked, “What's Connor up to?”
Abby looked up from feeding Rex and sighed. “He's being obvious, isn't he?”
“Extremely.”
Abby sighed again as she stroked Rex's head before closing the lid of his carrying cage. “We had to bring the Diictodons in too.”
Becker just looked at her. “If Lester finds out...”
“I know. I'll go and check on Connor.” Abby pulled a cover over Rex's cage. “Um, stall Lester if he goes on one of his walks.”
“I'll ask him about Monty, shall I?”
Abby leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks, Becker. I owe you one.”
Abby groaned softly as she entered the laboratory, the Dicctodons' cage was in full view of anyone who wandered into the room. “Connor!”
Connor jolted to his feet and into the bench he was crouched beneath. He rubbed the top of his head as he turned to face her, his expression broadcasting his guilty.
“You are supposed to have hidden the cage, Conn.” Abby's eyes narrowed when she heard a squeak. She walked over to the cage and sighed as she looked inside.
“Sid got out. He must have been bored.”
“Well, you'd better find him before Lester does.” Abby shook her head at Connor. “Sometimes, Connor...”
“Sorry.”
Abby smiled at him as she fixed the chewed-through door. “I know, Conn. Just find Sid before Lester does. I don't want to have to explain them or Rex to him.”
“Going.”
Connor exited the laboratory and looked both ways, listening hard as he tried to locate Sid. He thought he heard claws scrabbling on the floor and raced off after them. “Sid, mate. Come here.”
He slowed upon entering the atrium and took a quick look up at Lester's office. At his empty office. He had to find Sid now. Connor was soon scrambling around the floor in the atrium, earning himself several confused looks and sniggers from those members of staff watching his antics. His quiet calls of “Sid,” didn't help matters and left his watchers even more curious.
He had to find his pet before Sid chewed anything else, and most definitely before Lester saw him. Connor knew he wasn't supposed to have Sid and he knew Lester didn't know he had kept one, well two, of the Diictodons. He really didn't want Lester to find out about Sid, because them he'd find out about Nancy and, worse, about Rex. Connor knew that Abby would kill him if anything happened to Rex. Rex who was, no doubt, safely out of sight and secure somewhere in the ARC, unlike Connor's missing Diictodon.
A sequel of alarm had Connor grinning in relief as he dived around the corner to encounter a pair of shiny shoes and a scared-stiff Sid. Putting the two facts together had Connor swallowing hard as he looked up at the face of Lester, the man didn't look happy. No wonder Sid was terrified, coming face-to-face (or face-to-shoe) with an irritated werewolf was scaring Connor, and he knew the man wasn't going to attack him. Snark and be sarcastic at him, yes. Attack him, no. He quickly scrambled to his feet and hugged his wayward pet tightly.
Lester sighed deeply as he just looked at Connor and Sid, his arms folded as he quirked an eyebrow. Several moment of silence passed, broken only by Sid's soft cries as he sought shelter in Connor's arms.
Finally, just as Connor was about to start babbling, Lester pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed again. His voice heavy with sarcasm, Lester asked, “At the risk of sounding like someone from the Old Testament, is there any sane reason why you're keeping animals in the ARC?”
Connor opened and closed his mouth several times, stuttering before his words ground to a halt. He could see Lester was getting impatient for a response and licked his dry lips. Finally he forced the words out. “Gotawaterleakandcouldn'tlettheplumbersfindthem.”
Lester tilted his head to one side and narrowed his eyes as he considered Connor, before finally shaking his head at Connor, “Stop babbling and lock it up. I don't want to see it again.” He sighed softly. “Connor, what part of Nick telling you to keep your's and Miss Maitland's unauthorised creatures out of my way, and thus unofficial, did you not understand? No. Don't answer that.” Lester shook his head again before turning on his heel and heading off down the corridor that led to Monty.
Connor sagged against the wall, relief at his lucky escape flooding his body. Although he knew Lester was serious about... Oh God. Lester knew. He knew about Sid and Nancy and Rex. Oh fuck, Connor groaned quietly, Abby would kill him when she found out Lester knew about their pets.
Connor's thoughts were interrupted when Sid wiggled and squeaked. If he was still here with Sid when Lester had finished with Monty... Connor gave a soft yelp before hugging Sid against him and slipping back through the atrium to reunite his two pets.
Lester sighed as he leaned against Monty and felt the mammoth's trunk brush over his hair. “None of that,” Lester said as he patted Monty's trunk and snorted when the mammoth started to search his pockets. “Yes, yes, I know. You only love me because I feed you apples.” He fished an apple out of his pocket and smiled as Monty tickled his hand as he swept it from Lester's fingers. “Good boy.”
As Monty munched his apple, Lester turned his face until all he could smell was the mammoth. His eyes closed, Lester just breathed that scent and felt himself relax until all his troubles vanished, at least for now.
With his forehead resting against Monty's leg, Lester could feel the deep rumbles the mammoth was making, far too low for even his ears to hear.
Lester couldn't suppress his grin when he felt Monty curl his trunk around him. “My sentiments exactly.” Lester gave the mammoth one last pat when he finally pulled free. “Work calls, old boy. I'll be back later.”
Slipping into the laboratory, Connor took a quick look to see if he was being watched. He gave Abby a guilty smile as he noticed her watching him and shaking her head at his antics.
The two Dicctodons greeted each other with chirps and squeals when he put Sid back into their cage. “Shh, guys, shh. We don't want to upset Lester any more today.” Connor checked their cage once more before stashing it under a bench and covering it. Hopefully, no one would realised they were there. Even more than that, Connor hoped that they would still be there at knocking-off time. If they weren't it would be a toss up as to whether Abby or Lester killed him first. “Please, guys. Stay here. For me, yeah.”
Nick groaned and rubbed his eyes. He needed a break from trying to make sense of this... well, he hoped it wasn't nonsense. It was a hell of a lot of work if it turned out to be useless. Damn it, he was getting nowhere just staring at the data. He wondered if Lester was free...
Trying to appear casual, Connor strolled back to the ADD and sat down, his feet swinging as his mind turned to what he could do after work.
“Connor, you're impossible,” Abby said as she sat down beside him, although she glanced up as something caught her attention. “Conn? Why is that screen flickering?”
“What?” Connor sat up straight. His expression paling as he muttered “Oh no. Oh no, please no.” He was soon scrambling about on his hands and knees again and groaned as he held up the two ends of a chewed-through cable. When he heard the sound of footsteps coming towards him, Connor took a deep breath. “I'll fix it, we'll be back up in no time.” He looked to see whose eyes he'd meet and sighed in relief when they were the professor's”
“Connor?”
“I'm sorry, Professor. Sid escaped. He must have chewed through the wiring. I'll get it fixed and we'll be back on line.
“Have we missed an anomaly?”
Nick's question was straight to the point and had Connor wilting slightly. “I don't know yet. I'll check the hard drive memory backup once it's online. I'll get it sorted, Professor, I will.”
“You will get what sorted, Connor?”
Connor froze at Lester's voice, his mouth opened several times as he tried to speak. But he could only manage a squeak.
“Connor?” Lester's glance took in the group standing around the ADD and then to the flickering screen. “Connor!”
“I'll fix it.”
“Then get on with it and inform me when it is fixed.” Lester stalked off again. “Connor!”
“Lester?”
“I don't want to see your creatures again or else. Do I make myself clear?”
Connor nodded and decided he really didn't want to know what 'or else' meant. He hurriedly started to repair the ADD and hoped that Sid wouldn't cause any more problems, or worse, escape and run into Lester again.
Before he could make much progress, Abby's voice had Connor nervous again. “Connor? How did Lester know...”
Nick cut Abby off before she could really get started. “I told James about the Diictodons when I got home from the hospital anomaly.”
“So, he'll letting us keep them?” Abby sounded sceptical.
“As long as he doesn't officially know about them, or Rex.” Nick smiled reassuringly. “Try and keep them out of James' way and he'll turn a blind eye to them. But I would suggest taking them home before James has to notice them.”
“Right. Hopefully the leak will have been fixed.” Abby sighed as she looked towards Lester's office. “I hope.”
Lester sat down heavily in his chair and sighed. All the good his time with Monty had done was swiftly draining from him, and all because Connor couldn't control his pets. He almost jumped when strong hands began to knead his shoulders.
“We are going to have a nice walk in the park before tea.” Nick's whispered comment blew warm air over his ear and made Lester's cock twitch in interest.
“Mmm. I can think of other things to do.”
“So can I. After tea and the walk.” Nick was whispering directly into Lester's ear now. “I still have some toys to play with.”
Lester moaned softly. “Keep this up and you'll have to do something now.”
“I'm sure that can be arranged.”
Before either man could continue their discussion, the ADD's scream interrupted them and Lester moaned softly.
Nick rubbed his lover's shoulders. “Still not managed to ask Connor to turn it down?”
Lester shook his head. “I'm going to write him a memo. Come on.”
Connor almost cheered when the ADD flickered back to life, however his grin faded when the ADD screamed and he read the result. “We must have missed an anomaly when it was offline. Closed an hour ago. I'll get the location.”
Lester's voice startled Connor so badly he jumped. “Yes, would you do that please? Because that would be extremely helpful.”
Nick grinned at his lover before squeezing his arm. “Connor's doing his best, love.”
“Hmm.” Lester didn't sound convinced. “Well, Connor. What have we got?”
“I'm just narrowing it down.” Connor's fingers flew over the keys. “Got it. It's a house on Rymans, near the canal.”
Lester glanced back at Nick, quirking an eyebrow and receiving a shake of Nick's head in answer. This anomaly wasn't on the model. “Jenny, I'd like you to lead the team. Take...”
Jenny's cultured tones cut Lester off. “The anomaly is already closed, James. I'll take Connor and Abby, if it's a residential area having soldiers present will only cause alarm.” When Lester didn't look convinced by her argument, Jenny swiftly added, “With Harper still sniffing about, I'd prefer to avoid any unnecessary PR. I promise to call for backup the instant we need it.”
Lester sighed reluctantly. “Fine. Have Becker's team ready to go and as close as possible.”
“Of course, James. We'll be careful.”
Lester leaned on the atrium railing as he watched Becker's team grab their gear and slowly trail towards the garage. He gripped the railing so hard his knuckles went white. A soft scuffle had Lester look around to see Lyle standing to attention a few feet away.
“Sir.”
“Lyle?”
“My team's ready to go as soon as Ms Lewis shouts, sir.”
Lester nodded and turned back to watching the door Becker's team had disappeared through. “Anything else?”
“Yes sir,” Lyle looked thoughtful. “You need to relax.”
Lester's lips twitched. “Does Ditzy know you're poaching his job?”
“No, but I'd love to see you threatening yourself with Monty.”
Lester blinked before a slow smile appeared on his face. “Ah, I was wondering when you'd remember that...”
Lyle grinned. “I probably shouldn't tell you,” His voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, “But Ditzy's looking forward to your next medical...”
Lester gave a mock shiver. “And the rest of you?”
Lyle shrugged. “I doubt Finn's realised yet, but I know Dane was horrified at the thought of mucking Monty out.”
“So I noticed,” Lester drawled as he quirked an eyebrow at Lyle. “So, I need to watch out for your revenge, do I, Lieutenant?”
Lyle shrugged. “Now, that would be telling.” He nodded before moving off down the ramp.
A smile flickered around Lester's lips. “Lieutenant?”
“Sir?”
Lester pushed off the railing and moved towards Lyle, as he drew level, he murmured. “I'll look forward to seeing what you've planned”
Lyle frowned. “Sir?”
“It'll be good to have a friendly competition...” Lester looked at the door again. “For once.”
Lyle followed Lester's gaze before nodding. “Yes, sir. Definitely friendly.”
Jenny drew up on the side of the tree-lined road, parking beside the car Abby and Connor were just climbing out of. Walking down a footpath to the canal, Jenny looked around area, it looked calm and expensive, just the combination to have fingers paused on phones if they caused a commotion. Hopefully, Becker and his men wouldn't be needed... Jenny just hoped she hadn't jinked the anomaly with that thought.
Connor pointed to a house across the canal. “That’s the place.”
Jenny nodded as she looked at the house. “We better check it out.” She paused for a moment as her companions proceeded her towards the footbridge. The house looked abandoned and ramshackled, and sent a cold shiver down her back. The place looked like it belonged in a horror film and Jenny just hoped that this anomaly didn't turn into one. As she walked over the footbridge to catch Abby and Connor up, Jenny almost jumped when a deep and grating kraa sounded behind her. Her heart in her mouth, Jenny spun around, her eyes frantically seeking the source. She soon located the large black-feathered bird perched in one of the trees overhanging the canal. Jenny shook her head at her jumpiness, she was over obviously far too tense if even a common crow could scare her.
By the time Jenny had reached the property's front door, Connor was already trying it. “Locked. I'll see if there's another way in, OK?” He didn't wait for an answer before he strolled along the decking around the house.
Abby looked around as they waited for Connor. “Seems quiet enough.”
Jenny nodded. “And hopefully it will stay that way.” She pulled out her mobile and sighed. “No signal, I need to check in with James and Becker before they start to worry. Abby, can you stay here and wait for Connor.” Jenny paused as she walked off and turned back to Abby. “I can't shake the feeling we're being watched.”
“I'll keep an eye out for trouble.” Abby's words were almost drowned out by another harsh kraa and Jenny's eyes followed the bird's flight for a moment before she walked off in search of a signal.
Danny Quinn drew smoothly into his normal spot by the canal. He was still drawn to this place even after all these years. His mind still haunted by what he could have done differently. Danny swore softly as he spotted two kids loitering and joking on the steps of the house. Bloody kids, didn't they have any respect. Well, he'd soon sort them out, sick bastards.
Danny slipped out of his car and stealthy approached them. Once he was close enough, he said. “It's a nice place isn't it?” He covered his grin as they jumped. “Would you care to explain what you're doing here?”
The young white-haired woman stuttered slightly as she said, “Are you the estate agent? We had an appointment with the estate agent.”
Danny snorted as he pulled his badge out to show them. “Likely story. Way I see it, you're either burglars or trespassers.”
“Do we look like burglars to you?” She asked, and Danny almost smiled at her attempt at innocent.
“Well, I'm pretty sure I've seen laughing boy on a wanted poster, yeah.” Danny was curious what reaction he'd get to that comment, and he wasn't disappointed when the boy asked, “He talking about me?”
“I should arrest you both, but quite frankly, I can't be bothered. You people aren't worth the paperwork. Now go.” Danny glared at them until they moved past him.
The boy stopped and turned around, a curious look on his face. “What do you mean, 'you people'?”
Danny almost snarled. “Murder tourists. You make me sick. Now, get out. And if I see you round here again, your feet won't touch the ground. You understand?”
The blonde grabbed the boy's arm and tugged him away. “Come on.”
As far as Danny could see, the boy obviously had a problem with authority, as he had to turn around and get his two-pence worth in. “Do you know what? Can I just say that I think the police do a fantastic job? And you know, the occasional lapse into cliché is completely understandable in the circumstances.”
“Connor!” the blonde hissed as she drags him away, just in time really as Danny was tempted to just arrest him and be done with it.
Abby held on to Connor's arm as she dragged him across the footbridge. “Are you trying to get arrested, Con? Jenny won't be happy if she had to bail you out. And don't get me started on Lester's reaction.”
Before Connor could answer, they both jumped when Jenny's voice sounded behind them. “Abby! Connor!” They turned around to see Jenny waving at them to join her. “Come here. What did Quinn want?”
Connor's eyes widen slightly. “You know him?”
“He called the ambulance for James' hit and run.” Jenny sighed. “I've already warned him off once.”
Abby nodded. “He thought we were murder tourists...”
“Murder?” Jenny looked thoughtful. “There's something strange going on in that house. Abby, stay here and outside. If anything out of the ordinary happens, call us.”
“OK. Where are you going?”
“To see what I can find out about our DC Quinn and this house.” Jenny walked off to her car, before calling over her shoulder. “Connor, you're coming with me!”
Danny noticed the two kids talking to someone, someone who looked familiar. He knew her from somewhere, but he couldn't remember where... His curiosity roused, Danny noted their number plates and quickly ran a check on them. “Let's see who you are.” His eyebrow rose as he read the answer. “Government? Those two?” He frowned slightly before he drove off. He had his own questions to ask.
Lester rested his forearms on the back of the chair someone had placed in Monty's enclosure, his mind musing over who had put it there. It was a recent addition, no doubt in response to Lester's frequent visits. It also looked fairly comfortable, he'd have to try it latter, but for now, he could only spare a few snatched moments with Monty.
As Monty swiped the apple from Lester's hand and tickled his palm again, Lester smiled. He knew Monty tickled him on purpose and tickled the beast's trunk back, listening to Monty's low contented rumbling as he did so.
The ringing of his mobile broke the comparative silence of the room and Lester sighed as he looked at the screen, so much for his break. “Jenny?”
He listened and sighed again. “Just what we need. Someone else curious about us. I'll check him out.” As the mammoth ruffled his hair, Lester stroked the creature's trunk. “Enough of that. Don't mess up my hair.” He snorted. “No, it's Monty.” Lester chuckled softly. “I'll be sure to tell Nick that for you.” He sobered as he asked, “Anything else you need me to check out?” An elegant eyebrow rose. “A murder. OK, I'll get back to you. Meanwhile, track down the estate agent, he might be able to tell you something useful about the house.”
Danny tracked his chief down to the firing range. Good, he could do with the practice and it might get the other man into a talkative frame of mind.
He soon settled into position and fired several times. He smiled at his scores. Excellent, if he said so himself. “Clear.”
Danny waited for his chief to finish shooting and check his own scores. Once he had also called 'Clear', Danny joined his chief as he walked towards the exit.
Deciding that this was the opportune moment, Danny asked, “So, chief, have they reopened the case?” He hoped he didn't sound too eager.
“What case?” His chief sounded confused. He should have known if the case was reopened, maybe he just didn't know what Danny was referring to...
“Well, I caught some government spooks sniffing around the... er Brooks house.”
His chief shook his head and sighed. “Not this again.”
Danny wasn't ready to give up. “They said they were house-hunting, but I checked their plates and it was a government vehicle.
“Just leave it.”
Danny was not going to give in that easily. “So the way I see it is they're gonna have another enquiry.”
His chief just shook his head. “You're losing your mind, Danny. I haven't got time for this.”
As his chief walked off, Danny just couldn't let it go. “Well, make time, sir.” As soon as the words are out of his mouth, Danny cursed himself for a fool. He couldn't afford to antagonise another ally.
The man turned around and got in Danny's face. “Because of your history with that house, I'm going to pretend that you didn't just speak to a senior officer like that. Forget it, Danny. It's over.”
Danny waited until the door closed behind his boss. “Not for me.”
Jenny pulled up at the address the estate agency had provided and soon spotted the man responsible for the Brooks house. Walking towards him, she called out, “Excuse me? Mr Yates?”
Mr Yates looked up and smiled. “Hello?”
Connor walked up behind Jenny and called out, “Hi.”
Yates nodded. “Hi.”
Jenny turned on her charm. “I just want to ask you some questions about a property.”
“Oh yeah, which one?” The estate agent looked interested at the possibility of a sale. “Call me Pete.”
“Pete.” Jenny smiled. “The abandoned house on Rymans.” She and Connor both had to duck as the man swung the For Sale sign slightly too close to them.
Pete looked a little taken back at her choice, before he quickly recovered. “Oh yeah, you interested?”
When Connor slipped an arm around her waist and said, “Uh, yeah. Yeah. We're looking, aren't we, darling?” Jenny took great pleasure in elbowing him hard in the ribs. His quiet grunt of pain had her smile, although Connor gamely kept his pretence up. “We were wondering why it hadn't sold yet?”
Pete took a moment too long to reply and Jenny knew there was more to the story. “Oh, you know, the market's been a bit soft.”
Jenny closed for the kill. “That's not the only reason, thought, is it, Pete... Something happened there, didn't it?”
Pete sighed. “Oh, you mean the kids?”
Connor asked, “Kids?”
The estate agent nodded, “Three of the local lads. They broke into the house for a laugh.”
Jenny enquired, “Oh, what happened?”
Pete shrugged. “They disappeared.” He pushed the sign into the ground. “Not a trace of them since. Fourteen years.”
Jenny shook her head. “But there must be some explanation?”
“Well, only one of them ever came out. Boy called Ryan Mason.”
“Mason?”
Pete nodded. “Yeah. Ryan Mason.” He laughed, “Man, some people say the place is still haunted. They hear screams, noises.” He reached into his jacket pocket and handed Jenny a card. “If you're interested, I can get you a killer deal, now.”
Jenny looked at the card and nodded. “I'll think about it.”
“You better be quick. I'm going to get rid of it soon.”
Jenny nodded, “Thank you.” As she and Connor walked back to the car, she pulled her mobile out and dialled a familiar number. “James. I need to find a Ryan Mason. He's connected to that house and the murder.” She opened her door and slid in. “Yes, thanks.” Jenny paused and watched the estate agent as she listened to Lester. “He might be a witness. Fourteen years ago three boys went into that house, only Ryan came out.” Jenny nodded. “It is possible, James. I'd like to see what he has to say. No, it's fine, I'll wait.”
Jenny waited in silence for Lester to get back to her, however, she was soon distracted by a steady tapping and looked over to see Connor drumming his fingers on the dash. “Connor!”
Connor looked up guiltily. “Um, sorry.”
Before Jenny could add anything, her mobile rang. “James?” She nodded. “Thank you. It won't take long to get there.” She smiled, “Yes, James. I will keep you informed.”
Lester sighed softly as he put the phone down and called up the progress report for the interviews. Glancing through the names and notes, he noticed that Nick and the other scientists on the panel had a few possibilities for additional staff. Good. He'd really would hate it if all of his (and Jenny's, of course) hard work had been for nothing.
He closed his eyes and opened up one of his own files of a very short list of names and sat considering them. He really needed to find himself a trustworthy deputy and soon, before Christine was tempted to suggest people to him or, worse, to the minister.
Jenny cursed softly as she and Connor ended up having to chase Ryan Mason across the fairground. She really wasn't in the right shoes to run, something she'd have to remember next time. “Ryan?” She sighed as he leapt onto the carousel. “Ryan, can I talk to you?”
“Just leave me alone.”
Jenny felt for the young man. From what Lester had discovered, Ryan had been accused of murdering his friends, but it had never reached court. But, ever since then, he'd lived under a cloud of suspicion in the 'no smoke without fire' theory. “But you are Ryan Mason?” Jenny asked as she climbed onto the carousel.
“You ain't paid.”
Jenny frowned before she noticed Connor on one of the horses. She took a deep breath. “Ryan, I know you didn't harm your friends.” When Ryan stopped and turned to face them, she added, “We just want to know what happened in the house.”
Connor nodded. “It must have driven you crazy all these years. Knowing that people thought you were a killer. When you've done nothing wrong.” Connor paused, “We know you weren't responsible, mate. Just tell us what you saw.”
Ryan looked uncertain for a moment, until the chance that someone believed he was innocent overrode his caution. “There was a light shining. It wasn't there before.”
Connor cut in, “Did it flicker?”
“How'd you know that?” Ryan demanded.
Jenny touched Ryan's arm and drew his attention back to her. “Please, just tell me what happened.”
“I just ran. I left my friends there. I heard screaming and then... it looked like an animal.” He shook his head. “No animal I've ever seen.” He took a deep breath. “Never saw my mates again. I just left them there.” He sighed as he gazed over the fairground. “Look, this is my job. Please, no one here knows.”
Jenny nodded. “I understand. No one needs to know, Ryan.” She reached out and squeezed his arm. “You're got nothing to blame yourself for, Ryan.”
Ryan nodded, “I've been back to that house a thousand times since and never had the guts to go back in.” He looked determined. “But I will.”
Jenny nodded, “Come on, Connor.”
Danny sat in his car and kept watch on the government spooks as they walked towards their cars. He still had trouble believing that those two kids were old enough to work for the government. As for the third member of their little team, Danny still hadn't had a clear look at her but he knew he knew her from somewhere.
He just wished one of them would set foot inside the house, and then, government workers or not, nothing would stop him arresting them. He just wished laughing boy would be the one, then maybe he'd get him to spill his guts.
As the mysterious woman and the blonde got into the car and drove off, Danny quickly had to ducked from sight or be seen. He really didn't want them to know he was watching them. Not yet, anyway.
Sitting up again, Danny settled himself for another long wait. Although, when the boy made for the house, Danny sat up. Come on, go inside. Danny slid quietly out of his car and shadowed the boy towards the house. As soon as he stepped inside, Danny charged and pressed the boy against the wall, cuffing him.
“What you doing?” The boy... what had the girl called him, oh yes, Connor, sounded confused. Certainly not government material, in Danny's considered opinion.
“Arresting you for breaking and entering.”
Connor squirmed in Danny's grip, sounding almost panicky. “Ah. Oh no. You can't do that. That's a mistake. I can't leave this house. Something bad might happen.”
Danny quirked an eyebrow. “Oh, really? What?” When Connor stayed silent, Danny grabbed him and dragged him out of the house, “Come on.”
Lester shifted in his chair, he was no closer to choosing a deputy than when he had started, and those several hours of sitting still were reminding him of just how thoroughly Nick had shagged him the previous night.
A soft knock had him looking up at Lorraine. “Sorry to interrupt, sir. Ms Lewis needs to talk to you.”
Lester sighed, “Thank you, Lorraine.” He began to pace his office, glad of the chance to stretch his legs and hopefully get some feeling back into his numb arse. “Jenny? What's wrong?”
His eyes closed and he rubbed his nose as he listened to her. “He's done what?” Lester took a deep, calming breath as he listened intently. “Fine. Call me when you get there and I should have arranged for Connor's release. Oh, and Jenny, do keep a closer eye on him. Next time, I'll let him rot in there. Do I make myself clear?” He paused while she answered. “Good. Be careful, Jenny.”
Danny smiled to himself, hopefully several hours in a cell with no one to talk to would have made Connor more talkative. He strutted around the corner and stopped when he noticed Connor was out of his cell and Ms Lewis with him. Now he knew why the mysterious woman had looked familiar.
This was getting even more interesting. Oh, he remembered her, all right, from when she had warned him off, in no uncertain terms, the attempted murder of that Whitehall suit. Danny could smell that something was rotten and he was determined to find out what. Time to see if he could discover what it was. “Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing?”
Jenny smiled, but Danny noticed it didn't reach her eyes. “Ah, Detective Constable Quinn. I've come to retrieve my colleague. You'd be well advised to stay out of my way.”
Danny almost grinned as his competitive spirit rose to the challenge. “And what exactly are you going to do about that?”
Jenny just continued to smile as her mobile rang. She said, “It's for you,” as she tossed it to Danny.
Looking at the screen in momentarily confusion, Danny raised it to his ear, his voice somewhat cautious as he said. “DC Quinn.” He took a deep breath. “No, sir, of course not.” He shifted his feet as he continued to listen. “Yes, sir.” He scowled slightly, “Yes, sir. I'll do it right now.”
Jenny smoothed her expression into her professional persona. “In my experience, the Home Secretary hates being woken up in the middle of the night. Be wise if you didn't upset him again.” She held her hand out. “Phone.”
Danny threw it back to her and took a threatening step closer. “If you go near that house again, none of your fancy phone calls are going to help you, you understand. Leave it to the professionals.”
Jenny quirked an eyebrow at him, something she had picked up from Lester. “Actually, it's now out of police jurisdiction.” She had great satisfaction in handing a letter to Danny. “It's government business. So if you or any of your people go to that house again, you'll be trespassing.” Jenny's smile was sweet. “Leave it to the professionals.”
Jenny answered her phone as they walked to her car. “Abby?” She frowned. “Damn. I'm calling Becker. Wait for us.”
Connor looked concerned. “Jenny?”
“We have a creature. Apparently one that can camouflage itself.”
Connor looked concerned. “It could have been watching us the whole time.” His worried look grew. “Jenny, Abby's there all by herself.”
“I know...” Jenny's phone cut her off and she swore at the message that flashed up. Hitting one of her quick dial numbers, she barked. “Becker, we have a possible creature incursion. Get to the house now, Abby's gone in alone.”
“Abby!” Connor tugged on the car door ineffectively for a moment until Jenny unlocked it. Once they were heading towards the house, he rocking slightly as if to push the car into going faster.
“We'll get there, Connor.” Jenny spoke in her most soothing PR voice. She just hoped they got there in time.
Almost before Jenny stopped the car, Connor was out and dashing across the bridge. Jenny sighed before running after him, in his state, Connor would hardly follow the cautious route, he'd be more likely to burst in and met the creature on its terms.
By the time Jenny reached the house, Connor had barged in yelling Abby's name. She followed hard on his heels and spotted Abby and Ryan Mason. Damn it, why did the young man have to find the courage to enter the house now?
Abby raised a hand. “Wait.”
Connor nodded. “Okay.” He looked around, before asking, “Is it upstairs.” When Abby nodded, Connor started up the stairs, pausing to quietly ask if she was OK.
Jenny smiled. “After you, Connor.” Maybe taking the lead into a hazardous situation would knock some sense into him.
“Thanks.” Connor's unhappiness at leading had Jenny smothering a grin.
Abby paused and said, “Stay here, Ryan.” She paused. “Actually, wait for us outside.”
Danny had followed them from the station and now could only watch them enter the house. He felt helpless until he saw Ryan Mason. That bastard was here? He jumped out of his car and charged Ryan, pushing him back into the house. As his eyes took in the bloodied body of some unknown man, Danny growled and pointed his gun at Ryan. “What did you do with the others?”
Ryan sounded scared. “It was the creature.”
Danny snarled, now having caught Ryan red-handed he'd finally get some answers. “What did you do with my brother?”
Jenny slowly approached Danny, her hands raised in a placating manner. “You've got it all wrong.”
Danny swung the gun to point at her before returning to cover Ryan. “You stay out of this!” No one was going to stop his chance to find out the truth.
Jenny tried again. “This isn't your jurisdiction, DC Quinn! You're dealing with things you don't understand.”
Danny couldn't believe it, a government spook defending a murderer. “I understand this little creep killed my little brother.”
Connor tried to reason with Danny. “Look, just wait...” He stopped when Danny pointed his gun at him and yelled, “Shut up!”
As Danny's finger tightened on the trigger, he heard Jenny's horrified voice, “No!” and suddenly realised what he was doing. His voice wavered as he said, “He was my little brother.”
The blonde yelled, “Look out.”
Danny swung around just in time to see something with sharp teeth and claws leaping at him. He went down as the creature clawed at his chest. Danny was soon fighting to keep the claws away from his throat. Suddenly Danny felt the creature use him to push against as it leapt off of him.
Danny could hear them talking about the creature as he lay there trying to regain his breath. He finally managed to stand and moved towards the voices. When he heard a scream, he dived through the door and yelled “Get down!” as he fired several times at the creature. It fell back through... what exactly was that?
At the amazed looks he received, Danny tapped his chest and said, “Anti-stab vest. Standard police issue.”
Connor sounded somewhat awed when he mumbled, “I have to get one of them.”
Danny put his hands on his knees as he panted slightly. Turning to Jenny he asked, “I suppose an explanation is out of the question?”
“Totally.”
“Yeah, I thought as much.”
The sound of running feet had everyone looking up as Becker and his men arrived.
Jenny quirked an eyebrow, “You're late.”
Becker nodded. “Sorry. We hit every red light.”
Nick cursed softly as he glared at his model. “How many more don't we know about, James?”
Lester shook his head as he wrapped his arms around his tense lover. “I don't know. Will it help?”
“It might. If the anomalies both opened to the same era, then yes it should. Or at least I hope so.” Nick tilted his head as Lester nuzzled and nipped at his neck. “It all depends on whether I'm on a wild goose chase or not.”
Lester gave his lover's neck a final lick. “Don't give up, Nick. Helen must have some method of locating anomalies.” He gestured at the model. “This could very well be it.”
“And if it isn't?”
Lester grinned. “Than we have the ARC's first piece of modern art for the foyer.”
Nick pulled Lester close. “Thanks, love.” He pressed their lips together, his tongue slipping inside Lester's mouth to tangle with his. Nick's hands stroked down Lester's back to squeeze his arse. “I'll have to thank you properly later.”
Lester grinned. “You'd better. I believe you mentioned having some toys left to play with...” His hand slipped between their bodies to squeeze Nick. “I want this tonight.” He kissed Nick. “Hard.” He nipped Nick's nose. “Fast.” His mouth travelled to Nick's ear and he licked around the edge before blowing across it, smiling when Nick shivered. “Making me howl.”
Nick gasped and bucked into Lester's hand. “Fuck.”
“That was what I was suggesting.” Lester pulled free and smirked on the way out. “Coming, Nick.”
“Damn right.” Nick quickly strolled out of the ARC, hard on Lester's heels.
Lyle leaned against the atrium railings as he looked down into Nick's lab. He grinned and nudged his boyfriend, “Looks like someone's getting it tonight.”
“Sounds good to me.”
Lyle gave a lop-sided smile. “2nd storage cupboard on the left, 3rd floor in 15?”
“Now you're talking.”
Danny sat at his desk and thought back over the recent events. Something fishy was going on, the government knew more than it was letting on, and he wanted to know what it was.
Glancing at the unfinished report in front of him, Danny closed it and opened up a search engine. He frowned in thought for a moment before tapping in 'bright lights and strange creatures'.
Several of the entries were rubbish, but one caught his eye just as he was about to close it. Hmmm. This one sounded almost too far fetched, what with cloned attack dodos. Except he knew the government was up to something and they mentioned a familiar sounding name. Maybe a conspiracy site was just about the place to find out more about a government conspiracy. After all, the way he'd been warned off – twice now – sounded like a conspiracy to him. Danny quickly noted the sites address and the names of its two owners. He'd have to do a little quiet snooping and find out about them and what they really knew, if anything, before he decided whether he'd introduce himself to them.
Author: knitekat
Word Count: ~7560
Characters: Hilary Becker, Nick Cutter, Abby Maitland, Monty, Ryan Mason, James Lester, Jenny Lewis, Jon Lyle (OC), Danny Quinn, Connor Temple, Pete Yates, SFOC.
Pairings: James Lester/Nick Cutter, Lyle (OC)/SFOC.
Rating: 15
Disclaimer: Primeval belongs to Impossible Pictures. Certainly not me. Writing for fun and will replace. Lyle belongs to Fred, Monty belongs to himself.
A/N: Part of my Under The Moonlight wolfverse and continues on from The Next Move. Uses material from a couple of series 3 episodes. Thanks to the ever-wonderful Fred for the beta.
Lester leaned back against one of the workbenches in Nick's commandeered laboratory and watched as Nick modified his model, checking a scrap of paper as he added another entry. “Does it mean anything yet?”
“No!” Nick snapped before shaking his head and sighing. “Sorry, James. I just don't understand and it is driving me crazy.”
Lester tugged Nick against him and nuzzled his neck. “What don't you understand?” His teeth lightly nipped at Nick's earlobe.
Nick sighed again, although this time in pleasure as he relaxed in Lester's arms. “How Helen does it. How she can know where an anomaly will be. I can't see a pattern.” He ran a hand over his face in frustration.
“I know you didn't want it in a computer, Nick, but that might find a pattern you've missed.”
Nick twisted around in his lover's arms. “And if it can't?”
Lester sighed. “Then we don't have enough information yet.”
“Or I've missed something important or you've spent too much money on my wild goose chase.”
“Rubbish.” Lester pressed a kiss against his lover's lips. “It might still prove useful.” He lowered his voice until he was whispering in Nick's ear. “Even if just for pissing Christine off, somehow.”
Nick grinned and returned Lester's kiss. “Have I told you lately that I love you?”
“This morning, after a rather lovely shagging session.” Lester squeezed Nick's arse as he added, “I love you too, Nick.” With one last squeeze, Lester released Nick and added, “However, you have interviews to chair in ten minutes and I have a lovely date with a mountain of paperwork, so we will have to continue this later.”
***
Becker casually leaned against the wall as he acted as look-out for Abby. He sighed as he watched Connor look around the atrium in an extremely suspicious manner before strolling towards one of the currently disused laboratories in a way that just screamed he was up to something. Becker raised an eyebrow as he looked over his shoulder at Abby and asked, “What's Connor up to?”
Abby looked up from feeding Rex and sighed. “He's being obvious, isn't he?”
“Extremely.”
Abby sighed again as she stroked Rex's head before closing the lid of his carrying cage. “We had to bring the Diictodons in too.”
Becker just looked at her. “If Lester finds out...”
“I know. I'll go and check on Connor.” Abby pulled a cover over Rex's cage. “Um, stall Lester if he goes on one of his walks.”
“I'll ask him about Monty, shall I?”
Abby leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks, Becker. I owe you one.”
***
Abby groaned softly as she entered the laboratory, the Dicctodons' cage was in full view of anyone who wandered into the room. “Connor!”
Connor jolted to his feet and into the bench he was crouched beneath. He rubbed the top of his head as he turned to face her, his expression broadcasting his guilty.
“You are supposed to have hidden the cage, Conn.” Abby's eyes narrowed when she heard a squeak. She walked over to the cage and sighed as she looked inside.
“Sid got out. He must have been bored.”
“Well, you'd better find him before Lester does.” Abby shook her head at Connor. “Sometimes, Connor...”
“Sorry.”
Abby smiled at him as she fixed the chewed-through door. “I know, Conn. Just find Sid before Lester does. I don't want to have to explain them or Rex to him.”
“Going.”
***
Connor exited the laboratory and looked both ways, listening hard as he tried to locate Sid. He thought he heard claws scrabbling on the floor and raced off after them. “Sid, mate. Come here.”
He slowed upon entering the atrium and took a quick look up at Lester's office. At his empty office. He had to find Sid now. Connor was soon scrambling around the floor in the atrium, earning himself several confused looks and sniggers from those members of staff watching his antics. His quiet calls of “Sid,” didn't help matters and left his watchers even more curious.
He had to find his pet before Sid chewed anything else, and most definitely before Lester saw him. Connor knew he wasn't supposed to have Sid and he knew Lester didn't know he had kept one, well two, of the Diictodons. He really didn't want Lester to find out about Sid, because them he'd find out about Nancy and, worse, about Rex. Connor knew that Abby would kill him if anything happened to Rex. Rex who was, no doubt, safely out of sight and secure somewhere in the ARC, unlike Connor's missing Diictodon.
A sequel of alarm had Connor grinning in relief as he dived around the corner to encounter a pair of shiny shoes and a scared-stiff Sid. Putting the two facts together had Connor swallowing hard as he looked up at the face of Lester, the man didn't look happy. No wonder Sid was terrified, coming face-to-face (or face-to-shoe) with an irritated werewolf was scaring Connor, and he knew the man wasn't going to attack him. Snark and be sarcastic at him, yes. Attack him, no. He quickly scrambled to his feet and hugged his wayward pet tightly.
Lester sighed deeply as he just looked at Connor and Sid, his arms folded as he quirked an eyebrow. Several moment of silence passed, broken only by Sid's soft cries as he sought shelter in Connor's arms.
Finally, just as Connor was about to start babbling, Lester pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed again. His voice heavy with sarcasm, Lester asked, “At the risk of sounding like someone from the Old Testament, is there any sane reason why you're keeping animals in the ARC?”
Connor opened and closed his mouth several times, stuttering before his words ground to a halt. He could see Lester was getting impatient for a response and licked his dry lips. Finally he forced the words out. “Gotawaterleakandcouldn'tlettheplumbersfindthem.”
Lester tilted his head to one side and narrowed his eyes as he considered Connor, before finally shaking his head at Connor, “Stop babbling and lock it up. I don't want to see it again.” He sighed softly. “Connor, what part of Nick telling you to keep your's and Miss Maitland's unauthorised creatures out of my way, and thus unofficial, did you not understand? No. Don't answer that.” Lester shook his head again before turning on his heel and heading off down the corridor that led to Monty.
Connor sagged against the wall, relief at his lucky escape flooding his body. Although he knew Lester was serious about... Oh God. Lester knew. He knew about Sid and Nancy and Rex. Oh fuck, Connor groaned quietly, Abby would kill him when she found out Lester knew about their pets.
Connor's thoughts were interrupted when Sid wiggled and squeaked. If he was still here with Sid when Lester had finished with Monty... Connor gave a soft yelp before hugging Sid against him and slipping back through the atrium to reunite his two pets.
***
Lester sighed as he leaned against Monty and felt the mammoth's trunk brush over his hair. “None of that,” Lester said as he patted Monty's trunk and snorted when the mammoth started to search his pockets. “Yes, yes, I know. You only love me because I feed you apples.” He fished an apple out of his pocket and smiled as Monty tickled his hand as he swept it from Lester's fingers. “Good boy.”
As Monty munched his apple, Lester turned his face until all he could smell was the mammoth. His eyes closed, Lester just breathed that scent and felt himself relax until all his troubles vanished, at least for now.
With his forehead resting against Monty's leg, Lester could feel the deep rumbles the mammoth was making, far too low for even his ears to hear.
Lester couldn't suppress his grin when he felt Monty curl his trunk around him. “My sentiments exactly.” Lester gave the mammoth one last pat when he finally pulled free. “Work calls, old boy. I'll be back later.”
***
Slipping into the laboratory, Connor took a quick look to see if he was being watched. He gave Abby a guilty smile as he noticed her watching him and shaking her head at his antics.
The two Dicctodons greeted each other with chirps and squeals when he put Sid back into their cage. “Shh, guys, shh. We don't want to upset Lester any more today.” Connor checked their cage once more before stashing it under a bench and covering it. Hopefully, no one would realised they were there. Even more than that, Connor hoped that they would still be there at knocking-off time. If they weren't it would be a toss up as to whether Abby or Lester killed him first. “Please, guys. Stay here. For me, yeah.”
***
Nick groaned and rubbed his eyes. He needed a break from trying to make sense of this... well, he hoped it wasn't nonsense. It was a hell of a lot of work if it turned out to be useless. Damn it, he was getting nowhere just staring at the data. He wondered if Lester was free...
***
Trying to appear casual, Connor strolled back to the ADD and sat down, his feet swinging as his mind turned to what he could do after work.
“Connor, you're impossible,” Abby said as she sat down beside him, although she glanced up as something caught her attention. “Conn? Why is that screen flickering?”
“What?” Connor sat up straight. His expression paling as he muttered “Oh no. Oh no, please no.” He was soon scrambling about on his hands and knees again and groaned as he held up the two ends of a chewed-through cable. When he heard the sound of footsteps coming towards him, Connor took a deep breath. “I'll fix it, we'll be back up in no time.” He looked to see whose eyes he'd meet and sighed in relief when they were the professor's”
“Connor?”
“I'm sorry, Professor. Sid escaped. He must have chewed through the wiring. I'll get it fixed and we'll be back on line.
“Have we missed an anomaly?”
Nick's question was straight to the point and had Connor wilting slightly. “I don't know yet. I'll check the hard drive memory backup once it's online. I'll get it sorted, Professor, I will.”
“You will get what sorted, Connor?”
Connor froze at Lester's voice, his mouth opened several times as he tried to speak. But he could only manage a squeak.
“Connor?” Lester's glance took in the group standing around the ADD and then to the flickering screen. “Connor!”
“I'll fix it.”
“Then get on with it and inform me when it is fixed.” Lester stalked off again. “Connor!”
“Lester?”
“I don't want to see your creatures again or else. Do I make myself clear?”
Connor nodded and decided he really didn't want to know what 'or else' meant. He hurriedly started to repair the ADD and hoped that Sid wouldn't cause any more problems, or worse, escape and run into Lester again.
Before he could make much progress, Abby's voice had Connor nervous again. “Connor? How did Lester know...”
Nick cut Abby off before she could really get started. “I told James about the Diictodons when I got home from the hospital anomaly.”
“So, he'll letting us keep them?” Abby sounded sceptical.
“As long as he doesn't officially know about them, or Rex.” Nick smiled reassuringly. “Try and keep them out of James' way and he'll turn a blind eye to them. But I would suggest taking them home before James has to notice them.”
“Right. Hopefully the leak will have been fixed.” Abby sighed as she looked towards Lester's office. “I hope.”
***
Lester sat down heavily in his chair and sighed. All the good his time with Monty had done was swiftly draining from him, and all because Connor couldn't control his pets. He almost jumped when strong hands began to knead his shoulders.
“We are going to have a nice walk in the park before tea.” Nick's whispered comment blew warm air over his ear and made Lester's cock twitch in interest.
“Mmm. I can think of other things to do.”
“So can I. After tea and the walk.” Nick was whispering directly into Lester's ear now. “I still have some toys to play with.”
Lester moaned softly. “Keep this up and you'll have to do something now.”
“I'm sure that can be arranged.”
Before either man could continue their discussion, the ADD's scream interrupted them and Lester moaned softly.
Nick rubbed his lover's shoulders. “Still not managed to ask Connor to turn it down?”
Lester shook his head. “I'm going to write him a memo. Come on.”
***
Connor almost cheered when the ADD flickered back to life, however his grin faded when the ADD screamed and he read the result. “We must have missed an anomaly when it was offline. Closed an hour ago. I'll get the location.”
Lester's voice startled Connor so badly he jumped. “Yes, would you do that please? Because that would be extremely helpful.”
Nick grinned at his lover before squeezing his arm. “Connor's doing his best, love.”
“Hmm.” Lester didn't sound convinced. “Well, Connor. What have we got?”
“I'm just narrowing it down.” Connor's fingers flew over the keys. “Got it. It's a house on Rymans, near the canal.”
Lester glanced back at Nick, quirking an eyebrow and receiving a shake of Nick's head in answer. This anomaly wasn't on the model. “Jenny, I'd like you to lead the team. Take...”
Jenny's cultured tones cut Lester off. “The anomaly is already closed, James. I'll take Connor and Abby, if it's a residential area having soldiers present will only cause alarm.” When Lester didn't look convinced by her argument, Jenny swiftly added, “With Harper still sniffing about, I'd prefer to avoid any unnecessary PR. I promise to call for backup the instant we need it.”
Lester sighed reluctantly. “Fine. Have Becker's team ready to go and as close as possible.”
“Of course, James. We'll be careful.”
***
Lester leaned on the atrium railing as he watched Becker's team grab their gear and slowly trail towards the garage. He gripped the railing so hard his knuckles went white. A soft scuffle had Lester look around to see Lyle standing to attention a few feet away.
“Sir.”
“Lyle?”
“My team's ready to go as soon as Ms Lewis shouts, sir.”
Lester nodded and turned back to watching the door Becker's team had disappeared through. “Anything else?”
“Yes sir,” Lyle looked thoughtful. “You need to relax.”
Lester's lips twitched. “Does Ditzy know you're poaching his job?”
“No, but I'd love to see you threatening yourself with Monty.”
Lester blinked before a slow smile appeared on his face. “Ah, I was wondering when you'd remember that...”
Lyle grinned. “I probably shouldn't tell you,” His voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, “But Ditzy's looking forward to your next medical...”
Lester gave a mock shiver. “And the rest of you?”
Lyle shrugged. “I doubt Finn's realised yet, but I know Dane was horrified at the thought of mucking Monty out.”
“So I noticed,” Lester drawled as he quirked an eyebrow at Lyle. “So, I need to watch out for your revenge, do I, Lieutenant?”
Lyle shrugged. “Now, that would be telling.” He nodded before moving off down the ramp.
A smile flickered around Lester's lips. “Lieutenant?”
“Sir?”
Lester pushed off the railing and moved towards Lyle, as he drew level, he murmured. “I'll look forward to seeing what you've planned”
Lyle frowned. “Sir?”
“It'll be good to have a friendly competition...” Lester looked at the door again. “For once.”
Lyle followed Lester's gaze before nodding. “Yes, sir. Definitely friendly.”
***
Jenny drew up on the side of the tree-lined road, parking beside the car Abby and Connor were just climbing out of. Walking down a footpath to the canal, Jenny looked around area, it looked calm and expensive, just the combination to have fingers paused on phones if they caused a commotion. Hopefully, Becker and his men wouldn't be needed... Jenny just hoped she hadn't jinked the anomaly with that thought.
Connor pointed to a house across the canal. “That’s the place.”
Jenny nodded as she looked at the house. “We better check it out.” She paused for a moment as her companions proceeded her towards the footbridge. The house looked abandoned and ramshackled, and sent a cold shiver down her back. The place looked like it belonged in a horror film and Jenny just hoped that this anomaly didn't turn into one. As she walked over the footbridge to catch Abby and Connor up, Jenny almost jumped when a deep and grating kraa sounded behind her. Her heart in her mouth, Jenny spun around, her eyes frantically seeking the source. She soon located the large black-feathered bird perched in one of the trees overhanging the canal. Jenny shook her head at her jumpiness, she was over obviously far too tense if even a common crow could scare her.
By the time Jenny had reached the property's front door, Connor was already trying it. “Locked. I'll see if there's another way in, OK?” He didn't wait for an answer before he strolled along the decking around the house.
Abby looked around as they waited for Connor. “Seems quiet enough.”
Jenny nodded. “And hopefully it will stay that way.” She pulled out her mobile and sighed. “No signal, I need to check in with James and Becker before they start to worry. Abby, can you stay here and wait for Connor.” Jenny paused as she walked off and turned back to Abby. “I can't shake the feeling we're being watched.”
“I'll keep an eye out for trouble.” Abby's words were almost drowned out by another harsh kraa and Jenny's eyes followed the bird's flight for a moment before she walked off in search of a signal.
***
Danny Quinn drew smoothly into his normal spot by the canal. He was still drawn to this place even after all these years. His mind still haunted by what he could have done differently. Danny swore softly as he spotted two kids loitering and joking on the steps of the house. Bloody kids, didn't they have any respect. Well, he'd soon sort them out, sick bastards.
Danny slipped out of his car and stealthy approached them. Once he was close enough, he said. “It's a nice place isn't it?” He covered his grin as they jumped. “Would you care to explain what you're doing here?”
The young white-haired woman stuttered slightly as she said, “Are you the estate agent? We had an appointment with the estate agent.”
Danny snorted as he pulled his badge out to show them. “Likely story. Way I see it, you're either burglars or trespassers.”
“Do we look like burglars to you?” She asked, and Danny almost smiled at her attempt at innocent.
“Well, I'm pretty sure I've seen laughing boy on a wanted poster, yeah.” Danny was curious what reaction he'd get to that comment, and he wasn't disappointed when the boy asked, “He talking about me?”
“I should arrest you both, but quite frankly, I can't be bothered. You people aren't worth the paperwork. Now go.” Danny glared at them until they moved past him.
The boy stopped and turned around, a curious look on his face. “What do you mean, 'you people'?”
Danny almost snarled. “Murder tourists. You make me sick. Now, get out. And if I see you round here again, your feet won't touch the ground. You understand?”
The blonde grabbed the boy's arm and tugged him away. “Come on.”
As far as Danny could see, the boy obviously had a problem with authority, as he had to turn around and get his two-pence worth in. “Do you know what? Can I just say that I think the police do a fantastic job? And you know, the occasional lapse into cliché is completely understandable in the circumstances.”
“Connor!” the blonde hissed as she drags him away, just in time really as Danny was tempted to just arrest him and be done with it.
***
Abby held on to Connor's arm as she dragged him across the footbridge. “Are you trying to get arrested, Con? Jenny won't be happy if she had to bail you out. And don't get me started on Lester's reaction.”
Before Connor could answer, they both jumped when Jenny's voice sounded behind them. “Abby! Connor!” They turned around to see Jenny waving at them to join her. “Come here. What did Quinn want?”
Connor's eyes widen slightly. “You know him?”
“He called the ambulance for James' hit and run.” Jenny sighed. “I've already warned him off once.”
Abby nodded. “He thought we were murder tourists...”
“Murder?” Jenny looked thoughtful. “There's something strange going on in that house. Abby, stay here and outside. If anything out of the ordinary happens, call us.”
“OK. Where are you going?”
“To see what I can find out about our DC Quinn and this house.” Jenny walked off to her car, before calling over her shoulder. “Connor, you're coming with me!”
***
Danny noticed the two kids talking to someone, someone who looked familiar. He knew her from somewhere, but he couldn't remember where... His curiosity roused, Danny noted their number plates and quickly ran a check on them. “Let's see who you are.” His eyebrow rose as he read the answer. “Government? Those two?” He frowned slightly before he drove off. He had his own questions to ask.
***
Lester rested his forearms on the back of the chair someone had placed in Monty's enclosure, his mind musing over who had put it there. It was a recent addition, no doubt in response to Lester's frequent visits. It also looked fairly comfortable, he'd have to try it latter, but for now, he could only spare a few snatched moments with Monty.
As Monty swiped the apple from Lester's hand and tickled his palm again, Lester smiled. He knew Monty tickled him on purpose and tickled the beast's trunk back, listening to Monty's low contented rumbling as he did so.
The ringing of his mobile broke the comparative silence of the room and Lester sighed as he looked at the screen, so much for his break. “Jenny?”
He listened and sighed again. “Just what we need. Someone else curious about us. I'll check him out.” As the mammoth ruffled his hair, Lester stroked the creature's trunk. “Enough of that. Don't mess up my hair.” He snorted. “No, it's Monty.” Lester chuckled softly. “I'll be sure to tell Nick that for you.” He sobered as he asked, “Anything else you need me to check out?” An elegant eyebrow rose. “A murder. OK, I'll get back to you. Meanwhile, track down the estate agent, he might be able to tell you something useful about the house.”
***
Danny tracked his chief down to the firing range. Good, he could do with the practice and it might get the other man into a talkative frame of mind.
He soon settled into position and fired several times. He smiled at his scores. Excellent, if he said so himself. “Clear.”
Danny waited for his chief to finish shooting and check his own scores. Once he had also called 'Clear', Danny joined his chief as he walked towards the exit.
Deciding that this was the opportune moment, Danny asked, “So, chief, have they reopened the case?” He hoped he didn't sound too eager.
“What case?” His chief sounded confused. He should have known if the case was reopened, maybe he just didn't know what Danny was referring to...
“Well, I caught some government spooks sniffing around the... er Brooks house.”
His chief shook his head and sighed. “Not this again.”
Danny wasn't ready to give up. “They said they were house-hunting, but I checked their plates and it was a government vehicle.
“Just leave it.”
Danny was not going to give in that easily. “So the way I see it is they're gonna have another enquiry.”
His chief just shook his head. “You're losing your mind, Danny. I haven't got time for this.”
As his chief walked off, Danny just couldn't let it go. “Well, make time, sir.” As soon as the words are out of his mouth, Danny cursed himself for a fool. He couldn't afford to antagonise another ally.
The man turned around and got in Danny's face. “Because of your history with that house, I'm going to pretend that you didn't just speak to a senior officer like that. Forget it, Danny. It's over.”
Danny waited until the door closed behind his boss. “Not for me.”
***
Jenny pulled up at the address the estate agency had provided and soon spotted the man responsible for the Brooks house. Walking towards him, she called out, “Excuse me? Mr Yates?”
Mr Yates looked up and smiled. “Hello?”
Connor walked up behind Jenny and called out, “Hi.”
Yates nodded. “Hi.”
Jenny turned on her charm. “I just want to ask you some questions about a property.”
“Oh yeah, which one?” The estate agent looked interested at the possibility of a sale. “Call me Pete.”
“Pete.” Jenny smiled. “The abandoned house on Rymans.” She and Connor both had to duck as the man swung the For Sale sign slightly too close to them.
Pete looked a little taken back at her choice, before he quickly recovered. “Oh yeah, you interested?”
When Connor slipped an arm around her waist and said, “Uh, yeah. Yeah. We're looking, aren't we, darling?” Jenny took great pleasure in elbowing him hard in the ribs. His quiet grunt of pain had her smile, although Connor gamely kept his pretence up. “We were wondering why it hadn't sold yet?”
Pete took a moment too long to reply and Jenny knew there was more to the story. “Oh, you know, the market's been a bit soft.”
Jenny closed for the kill. “That's not the only reason, thought, is it, Pete... Something happened there, didn't it?”
Pete sighed. “Oh, you mean the kids?”
Connor asked, “Kids?”
The estate agent nodded, “Three of the local lads. They broke into the house for a laugh.”
Jenny enquired, “Oh, what happened?”
Pete shrugged. “They disappeared.” He pushed the sign into the ground. “Not a trace of them since. Fourteen years.”
Jenny shook her head. “But there must be some explanation?”
“Well, only one of them ever came out. Boy called Ryan Mason.”
“Mason?”
Pete nodded. “Yeah. Ryan Mason.” He laughed, “Man, some people say the place is still haunted. They hear screams, noises.” He reached into his jacket pocket and handed Jenny a card. “If you're interested, I can get you a killer deal, now.”
Jenny looked at the card and nodded. “I'll think about it.”
“You better be quick. I'm going to get rid of it soon.”
Jenny nodded, “Thank you.” As she and Connor walked back to the car, she pulled her mobile out and dialled a familiar number. “James. I need to find a Ryan Mason. He's connected to that house and the murder.” She opened her door and slid in. “Yes, thanks.” Jenny paused and watched the estate agent as she listened to Lester. “He might be a witness. Fourteen years ago three boys went into that house, only Ryan came out.” Jenny nodded. “It is possible, James. I'd like to see what he has to say. No, it's fine, I'll wait.”
Jenny waited in silence for Lester to get back to her, however, she was soon distracted by a steady tapping and looked over to see Connor drumming his fingers on the dash. “Connor!”
Connor looked up guiltily. “Um, sorry.”
Before Jenny could add anything, her mobile rang. “James?” She nodded. “Thank you. It won't take long to get there.” She smiled, “Yes, James. I will keep you informed.”
***
Lester sighed softly as he put the phone down and called up the progress report for the interviews. Glancing through the names and notes, he noticed that Nick and the other scientists on the panel had a few possibilities for additional staff. Good. He'd really would hate it if all of his (and Jenny's, of course) hard work had been for nothing.
He closed his eyes and opened up one of his own files of a very short list of names and sat considering them. He really needed to find himself a trustworthy deputy and soon, before Christine was tempted to suggest people to him or, worse, to the minister.
***
Jenny cursed softly as she and Connor ended up having to chase Ryan Mason across the fairground. She really wasn't in the right shoes to run, something she'd have to remember next time. “Ryan?” She sighed as he leapt onto the carousel. “Ryan, can I talk to you?”
“Just leave me alone.”
Jenny felt for the young man. From what Lester had discovered, Ryan had been accused of murdering his friends, but it had never reached court. But, ever since then, he'd lived under a cloud of suspicion in the 'no smoke without fire' theory. “But you are Ryan Mason?” Jenny asked as she climbed onto the carousel.
“You ain't paid.”
Jenny frowned before she noticed Connor on one of the horses. She took a deep breath. “Ryan, I know you didn't harm your friends.” When Ryan stopped and turned to face them, she added, “We just want to know what happened in the house.”
Connor nodded. “It must have driven you crazy all these years. Knowing that people thought you were a killer. When you've done nothing wrong.” Connor paused, “We know you weren't responsible, mate. Just tell us what you saw.”
Ryan looked uncertain for a moment, until the chance that someone believed he was innocent overrode his caution. “There was a light shining. It wasn't there before.”
Connor cut in, “Did it flicker?”
“How'd you know that?” Ryan demanded.
Jenny touched Ryan's arm and drew his attention back to her. “Please, just tell me what happened.”
“I just ran. I left my friends there. I heard screaming and then... it looked like an animal.” He shook his head. “No animal I've ever seen.” He took a deep breath. “Never saw my mates again. I just left them there.” He sighed as he gazed over the fairground. “Look, this is my job. Please, no one here knows.”
Jenny nodded. “I understand. No one needs to know, Ryan.” She reached out and squeezed his arm. “You're got nothing to blame yourself for, Ryan.”
Ryan nodded, “I've been back to that house a thousand times since and never had the guts to go back in.” He looked determined. “But I will.”
Jenny nodded, “Come on, Connor.”
***
Danny sat in his car and kept watch on the government spooks as they walked towards their cars. He still had trouble believing that those two kids were old enough to work for the government. As for the third member of their little team, Danny still hadn't had a clear look at her but he knew he knew her from somewhere.
He just wished one of them would set foot inside the house, and then, government workers or not, nothing would stop him arresting them. He just wished laughing boy would be the one, then maybe he'd get him to spill his guts.
As the mysterious woman and the blonde got into the car and drove off, Danny quickly had to ducked from sight or be seen. He really didn't want them to know he was watching them. Not yet, anyway.
Sitting up again, Danny settled himself for another long wait. Although, when the boy made for the house, Danny sat up. Come on, go inside. Danny slid quietly out of his car and shadowed the boy towards the house. As soon as he stepped inside, Danny charged and pressed the boy against the wall, cuffing him.
“What you doing?” The boy... what had the girl called him, oh yes, Connor, sounded confused. Certainly not government material, in Danny's considered opinion.
“Arresting you for breaking and entering.”
Connor squirmed in Danny's grip, sounding almost panicky. “Ah. Oh no. You can't do that. That's a mistake. I can't leave this house. Something bad might happen.”
Danny quirked an eyebrow. “Oh, really? What?” When Connor stayed silent, Danny grabbed him and dragged him out of the house, “Come on.”
***
Lester shifted in his chair, he was no closer to choosing a deputy than when he had started, and those several hours of sitting still were reminding him of just how thoroughly Nick had shagged him the previous night.
A soft knock had him looking up at Lorraine. “Sorry to interrupt, sir. Ms Lewis needs to talk to you.”
Lester sighed, “Thank you, Lorraine.” He began to pace his office, glad of the chance to stretch his legs and hopefully get some feeling back into his numb arse. “Jenny? What's wrong?”
His eyes closed and he rubbed his nose as he listened to her. “He's done what?” Lester took a deep, calming breath as he listened intently. “Fine. Call me when you get there and I should have arranged for Connor's release. Oh, and Jenny, do keep a closer eye on him. Next time, I'll let him rot in there. Do I make myself clear?” He paused while she answered. “Good. Be careful, Jenny.”
***
Danny smiled to himself, hopefully several hours in a cell with no one to talk to would have made Connor more talkative. He strutted around the corner and stopped when he noticed Connor was out of his cell and Ms Lewis with him. Now he knew why the mysterious woman had looked familiar.
This was getting even more interesting. Oh, he remembered her, all right, from when she had warned him off, in no uncertain terms, the attempted murder of that Whitehall suit. Danny could smell that something was rotten and he was determined to find out what. Time to see if he could discover what it was. “Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing?”
Jenny smiled, but Danny noticed it didn't reach her eyes. “Ah, Detective Constable Quinn. I've come to retrieve my colleague. You'd be well advised to stay out of my way.”
Danny almost grinned as his competitive spirit rose to the challenge. “And what exactly are you going to do about that?”
Jenny just continued to smile as her mobile rang. She said, “It's for you,” as she tossed it to Danny.
Looking at the screen in momentarily confusion, Danny raised it to his ear, his voice somewhat cautious as he said. “DC Quinn.” He took a deep breath. “No, sir, of course not.” He shifted his feet as he continued to listen. “Yes, sir.” He scowled slightly, “Yes, sir. I'll do it right now.”
Jenny smoothed her expression into her professional persona. “In my experience, the Home Secretary hates being woken up in the middle of the night. Be wise if you didn't upset him again.” She held her hand out. “Phone.”
Danny threw it back to her and took a threatening step closer. “If you go near that house again, none of your fancy phone calls are going to help you, you understand. Leave it to the professionals.”
Jenny quirked an eyebrow at him, something she had picked up from Lester. “Actually, it's now out of police jurisdiction.” She had great satisfaction in handing a letter to Danny. “It's government business. So if you or any of your people go to that house again, you'll be trespassing.” Jenny's smile was sweet. “Leave it to the professionals.”
***
Jenny answered her phone as they walked to her car. “Abby?” She frowned. “Damn. I'm calling Becker. Wait for us.”
Connor looked concerned. “Jenny?”
“We have a creature. Apparently one that can camouflage itself.”
Connor looked concerned. “It could have been watching us the whole time.” His worried look grew. “Jenny, Abby's there all by herself.”
“I know...” Jenny's phone cut her off and she swore at the message that flashed up. Hitting one of her quick dial numbers, she barked. “Becker, we have a possible creature incursion. Get to the house now, Abby's gone in alone.”
“Abby!” Connor tugged on the car door ineffectively for a moment until Jenny unlocked it. Once they were heading towards the house, he rocking slightly as if to push the car into going faster.
“We'll get there, Connor.” Jenny spoke in her most soothing PR voice. She just hoped they got there in time.
***
Almost before Jenny stopped the car, Connor was out and dashing across the bridge. Jenny sighed before running after him, in his state, Connor would hardly follow the cautious route, he'd be more likely to burst in and met the creature on its terms.
By the time Jenny reached the house, Connor had barged in yelling Abby's name. She followed hard on his heels and spotted Abby and Ryan Mason. Damn it, why did the young man have to find the courage to enter the house now?
Abby raised a hand. “Wait.”
Connor nodded. “Okay.” He looked around, before asking, “Is it upstairs.” When Abby nodded, Connor started up the stairs, pausing to quietly ask if she was OK.
Jenny smiled. “After you, Connor.” Maybe taking the lead into a hazardous situation would knock some sense into him.
“Thanks.” Connor's unhappiness at leading had Jenny smothering a grin.
Abby paused and said, “Stay here, Ryan.” She paused. “Actually, wait for us outside.”
***
Danny had followed them from the station and now could only watch them enter the house. He felt helpless until he saw Ryan Mason. That bastard was here? He jumped out of his car and charged Ryan, pushing him back into the house. As his eyes took in the bloodied body of some unknown man, Danny growled and pointed his gun at Ryan. “What did you do with the others?”
Ryan sounded scared. “It was the creature.”
Danny snarled, now having caught Ryan red-handed he'd finally get some answers. “What did you do with my brother?”
Jenny slowly approached Danny, her hands raised in a placating manner. “You've got it all wrong.”
Danny swung the gun to point at her before returning to cover Ryan. “You stay out of this!” No one was going to stop his chance to find out the truth.
Jenny tried again. “This isn't your jurisdiction, DC Quinn! You're dealing with things you don't understand.”
Danny couldn't believe it, a government spook defending a murderer. “I understand this little creep killed my little brother.”
Connor tried to reason with Danny. “Look, just wait...” He stopped when Danny pointed his gun at him and yelled, “Shut up!”
As Danny's finger tightened on the trigger, he heard Jenny's horrified voice, “No!” and suddenly realised what he was doing. His voice wavered as he said, “He was my little brother.”
The blonde yelled, “Look out.”
Danny swung around just in time to see something with sharp teeth and claws leaping at him. He went down as the creature clawed at his chest. Danny was soon fighting to keep the claws away from his throat. Suddenly Danny felt the creature use him to push against as it leapt off of him.
Danny could hear them talking about the creature as he lay there trying to regain his breath. He finally managed to stand and moved towards the voices. When he heard a scream, he dived through the door and yelled “Get down!” as he fired several times at the creature. It fell back through... what exactly was that?
At the amazed looks he received, Danny tapped his chest and said, “Anti-stab vest. Standard police issue.”
Connor sounded somewhat awed when he mumbled, “I have to get one of them.”
Danny put his hands on his knees as he panted slightly. Turning to Jenny he asked, “I suppose an explanation is out of the question?”
“Totally.”
“Yeah, I thought as much.”
The sound of running feet had everyone looking up as Becker and his men arrived.
Jenny quirked an eyebrow, “You're late.”
Becker nodded. “Sorry. We hit every red light.”
***
Nick cursed softly as he glared at his model. “How many more don't we know about, James?”
Lester shook his head as he wrapped his arms around his tense lover. “I don't know. Will it help?”
“It might. If the anomalies both opened to the same era, then yes it should. Or at least I hope so.” Nick tilted his head as Lester nuzzled and nipped at his neck. “It all depends on whether I'm on a wild goose chase or not.”
Lester gave his lover's neck a final lick. “Don't give up, Nick. Helen must have some method of locating anomalies.” He gestured at the model. “This could very well be it.”
“And if it isn't?”
Lester grinned. “Than we have the ARC's first piece of modern art for the foyer.”
Nick pulled Lester close. “Thanks, love.” He pressed their lips together, his tongue slipping inside Lester's mouth to tangle with his. Nick's hands stroked down Lester's back to squeeze his arse. “I'll have to thank you properly later.”
Lester grinned. “You'd better. I believe you mentioned having some toys left to play with...” His hand slipped between their bodies to squeeze Nick. “I want this tonight.” He kissed Nick. “Hard.” He nipped Nick's nose. “Fast.” His mouth travelled to Nick's ear and he licked around the edge before blowing across it, smiling when Nick shivered. “Making me howl.”
Nick gasped and bucked into Lester's hand. “Fuck.”
“That was what I was suggesting.” Lester pulled free and smirked on the way out. “Coming, Nick.”
“Damn right.” Nick quickly strolled out of the ARC, hard on Lester's heels.
***
Lyle leaned against the atrium railings as he looked down into Nick's lab. He grinned and nudged his boyfriend, “Looks like someone's getting it tonight.”
“Sounds good to me.”
Lyle gave a lop-sided smile. “2nd storage cupboard on the left, 3rd floor in 15?”
“Now you're talking.”
***
Danny sat at his desk and thought back over the recent events. Something fishy was going on, the government knew more than it was letting on, and he wanted to know what it was.
Glancing at the unfinished report in front of him, Danny closed it and opened up a search engine. He frowned in thought for a moment before tapping in 'bright lights and strange creatures'.
Several of the entries were rubbish, but one caught his eye just as he was about to close it. Hmmm. This one sounded almost too far fetched, what with cloned attack dodos. Except he knew the government was up to something and they mentioned a familiar sounding name. Maybe a conspiracy site was just about the place to find out more about a government conspiracy. After all, the way he'd been warned off – twice now – sounded like a conspiracy to him. Danny quickly noted the sites address and the names of its two owners. He'd have to do a little quiet snooping and find out about them and what they really knew, if anything, before he decided whether he'd introduce himself to them.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 11:13 am (UTC)Monty was amazing too. There should be more Monty fic, LOL.
The Lester/Nick was rrrrr.
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 09:27 pm (UTC)*nods* Monty is great. There should be more Monty fic.
Glad you liked Lester/Nick too and thanks for reading.
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 01:18 pm (UTC)And ooh-la, Lyle's got himself a boyfriend? Fun. xD
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 09:29 pm (UTC)Yep, Lyle got a boyfriend, has had one for a while now *nods* and I'm sure they both had fun.
Thanks for reading.
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 09:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 10:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 10:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 10:18 pm (UTC)Just checked the fic - you did a lot of flailing in the comment *g*no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 10:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-31 08:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 01:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 09:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 01:37 pm (UTC)And now Danny's sniffing around. *g* Nice to see the CGLG in this :)
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 09:32 pm (UTC)Yep, Danny's decided to investigate, now to see where it takes him.
Thanks for the beta and advice.
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 04:17 pm (UTC)And who is Lyle's boyfriend? *g&
no subject
Date: 2011-05-30 09:34 pm (UTC)Hee, you have 3 options *vbg*
no subject
Date: 2011-05-31 11:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-31 08:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-08-24 06:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-08-24 09:40 pm (UTC)