[Fic] Sam's No Ordinary Copper - part 7
Next chapter. Enjoy. :)
All parts found here.
Sam’s No Ordinary Copper
Chapter seven
Fandom: Life On Mars
Pairing: Sam/Annie
Rated: R
Warnings: some sappiness, slight fluff, mentions of blood (yes, odd combination huh?), some violence, language, and some adult themes
Notes: Takes place after the end of season two (so spoilers for all the episodes); and it’s up to the reader whether they’ve kissed at the end or not. This could be considered Gen, in a way.
Summary: Just another day in the life of Sam Tyler.
Disclaimer: I don’t own these characters; I’m only having fun.
~**~
Another week went by, and it was Friday again. They had been so busy with cases and paperwork that Sam and Annie hadn’t had much time together. There was one time when Sam was just about to ask Annie if she’d like to go steady, but the Guv interrupted him and he never got the chance to ask her again.
A call came in about a murder that happened on Cyrus Street, and Sam and Gene were speeding toward the location. When they got there, Chris and Ray were already there with a few other officers, including the forensics. The body had been decapitated. When Chris noticed that, he turned and threw up behind the light blue police car.
“You’re such a girl,” Ray told to him.
Sam flinched when he saw it, and he looked at Gene to see his reaction: he had a disgusted look on his face, but his eyes didn’t turn away from the body.
“Laura Lightfoot found him,” explained Ray. “She was in such shock that she fainted. Another, Terrance Carr, found them both and used the pay phone over there to call an ambulance.”
“So Miss Lightfoot is in hospital right now?” said Sam.
“Actually, it’s Mrs. Lightfoot. Her husband is a plod at the station,” said Ray. “Chris, stop being a div and get off the ground.”
Sam checked Chris to make sure he was okay without having to look at his puke on the grass. “All right now, Chris?”
“I will be,” moaned Chris.
“It’s not every day that you come face to face with a beheading,” said Gene. “Cross another one off my list of things I want to do before I die.”
Very glad that he hadn’t had lunch yet, Sam bent down to examine the victim’s head. “Looks like it was done with a clean blade,” he said. “Definitely not something dull.” He moved over to the body and took out the guy’s wallet. He had a feeling he’d be the one that had to tell the wife that her husband was dead, like always.
“How do you know he’s married?” Chris asked when Sam voice that.
“Because he’s wearing a wedding band,” said Sam as he stood up.
“Oh, right,” said Chris.
“Chris, either you’re sniffing glue and killing off whatever brain cells you have left,” said Gene. “Or you’re really that stupid.”
Chris frowned, and then looked down at his shoes. Sam tried to give Chris an apologetic look for the Guv’s words, but Chris didn’t even look at him.
“Right, then,” said Gene after a moment. “You go talk to the dead bloke’s wife while I do the rest of my usual DCI work.”
Sam was only too happy to leave the scene; the smell of the victim’s body was getting to him.
~**~
He thought about going back to the station first and picking up Annie before going to see the wife, but that was a bit out of his way. According to the address in the man’s wallet, his house wasn’t too far from there. It made Sam think that perhaps whoever killed him knew that he was on his way home, or the killer might have hung around near his house for him to come out.
He knocked on the door and waited. It opened and out stepped whom he figured was the wife. She wasn’t too bad looking, actually, but he could tell that she was around his age. She was blonde, with big blue eyes and a little mouth. When she saw him, she smiled politely, and it reminded him a bit of his mum.
“Hello,” she said. “May I help you?”
Sam took out his badge and showed it to her. “Detective Inspector Tyler. I’m afraid I have some bad news, Mrs. Sawyer.”
“My son hasn’t been caught stealing again, has he?” she said automatically.
“Um, no,” said Sam. “I’m afraid it’s worse than that.”
“Is he dead?” she gasped, looking strickened.
Sam frowned. He hated this part of the job, but he knew it was something he had to do. Either he did it or one of the others did, and he couldn’t see any of them being sympathetic about it. Well, except maybe Chris.
“Can we step inside first? You might not want the neighbors to hear about it.”
She nodded and led him into the house. It was a rather nice, spacious house, and it looked as if it belonged to a working class family. Mrs. Sawyer sat on her sofa and stared at him, awaiting the bad news. It didn’t make things any easier.
“I’m sorry, but your husband is dead.”
Her eyes widened, apparently shocked to hear that it was her husband and not her son. “My… husband? Zach?”
Sam nodded, frowning. “Yes. I’m sorry.”
Still in some shock, she looked at him and asked, “How?”
“We’re not sure what weapon was used yet, but he’d been decapitated.”
Mrs. Sawyer covered her mouth. “Oh my god…”
Slowly, Sam handed her Zach Sawyer’s wallet. “I’m really sorry.”
She stared at the wallet in her hand, tears sliding down her cheeks. Sam wasn’t sure what else to say, but he stood there and waited, letting her have a moment.
“Where?” she asked, voice faint and scratchy from holding back her sobs.
“Not too far from here,” said Sam. “But we will need you to identify the body… once it’s brought in to the morgue.”
“Okay,” she sniffled.
“You going to be all right?” he asked, placing a warm hand on her shoulder. She nodded, and then slowly looked up at him when he moved his hand away. She smiled a little in thanks.
“You sure you’re a copper?” she said.
Sam smiled back and nodded. “Yes.”
He was about to leave, but then she grabbed hold of the sleeve of his leather jacket before he could. He turned back around.
“Wait,” she said, tugging him down. He knew that she was grieving, and he knew that everyone grieved differently. Sometimes people needed time alone, and sometimes people didn’t want to be alone, and it looked like the latter for her. He sat down on the sofa with her, ready to offer her his shoulder; it was the least he could do.
“Hey, it’s okay…” he tried to comfort, putting an arm around her shoulders. He wanted to show her that she could go ahead and cry on him if she wanted, if she needed to let it out. She moved her head, as if she were about to put it on his shoulder, but then she leaned forward, taking him unawares, and pressed her lips onto his. Startled, Sam only let it go on for a few seconds before moving his head back.
She stared at him with a hopeful look in her eyes as he stared in shock. This was not something he had been expecting when he came here.
“Mrs. Sawyer,” he said, finally finding his voice.
“Call me Hannah,” she said, almost breathless.
Sam stood. “Sorry, I know that you’re grieving, but I can’t… I have to go. I’m sure my DCI is wondering what’s taking me so long.”
“Please, Inspector,” she pleaded, standing up and following him to the door. “Don’t go, I didn’t mean to scare you away…”
He took hold of her hands in a warm gesture. “I’m really flattered, but you have to understand I’m involved with someone, and you’ve just lost your husband.”
She had tears in her eyes, but she nodded in understanding. She looked away. “As I figured… all the good-looking ones are usually taken.”
Sam smiled shyly, his face feeling warm. He left her house, a little relieved to do so, and with Annie on his mind.
~**~
Mrs. Sawyer had identified the body as her husband, which was rather hard on her after noticing the way they put his head back on. She cried softly on Annie’s shoulder, and Annie did her best to calm her down. Sam wondered if Mrs. Sawyer wished she’d been crying on his shoulder instead.
“I promise I will find the person that killed your husband,” he told her, hoping to bring her some feeling of hope.
“Thank you, Inspector,” she said.
“Let me get you on the bus,” said Annie, slowly and gently ushering her out. Annie glanced at Sam before they left the room.
After getting Mrs. Sawyer on the bus, Sam and Annie walked back to the station in silence. The fact that Mrs. Sawyer, Hannah, had kissed him was looming in the back of his mind, and a bit at the front as well. He wasn’t sure if he should tell Annie about it now or wait until tonight after he had invited her over to his place. At least that was the plan. But for all he knew, she could have another night with her girlfriends again. Although he hadn’t necessarily been ignoring her lately, they’ve still been incredibly busy, and it only gave them time to flirt a little when they were near each other.
When they were halfway to the station, Sam threw caution to the wind and took hold of Annie’s hand. Annie looked over, surprised but smiling wide.
“Sam?” she said softly. “What’s all this?”
“It’s called holding ‘ands,” he said, smiling back at her. “Is it all right?”
Annie nodded, blushing a little and smiling. “Yeah, it’s all right. Just unexpected.”
“I don’t like staying predictable all the time,” he said, and then laughed. Annie chuckled.
“Mrs. Sawyer, though,” she said after a moment. “She sure seemed to like you.”
“How do you mean?” Sam said tersely, feeling his stomach churn somewhat from nerves.
“Well, she kept staring at you with this certain look in her eyes,” Annie said. Then her gazed at Sam grew more intense. “Is there something going on that I should know about?”
“I was going to tell you about… something, but I wasn’t sure when,” he said haltingly.
“Now would be nice.”
“Actually, I was kind of thinking about waiting until you came over to my place. That is, if you’re interested in coming over.”
Annie smiled softly. “Sure, I’d love to.”
“You don’t have any other plans?”
“Nope.”
“Good.”
That was all he could think of to say at the moment. They were closer to the station when Annie finally broke the silence.
“You’ll tell me about it at your place tonight?”
“Yes,” he said. “I promise.”
~**~
Two hours later, Mrs. Lightfoot was brought in for questioning since she was the one that found Mr. Sawyer’s body. She was still a bit shaken, but she gladly talked with them in the canteen. She recounted the events to them as best she could, nervously playing with a straw.
“I heard this… scream,” she said. “So, I went to see what was going on.”
“Did you find out who screamed?” Sam asked, pen and paper at the ready.
“It was some girl,” said Laura. “She’d been running away from the scene, toward the park, so I only caught the back of her when I arrived.”
“Did you see anyone else around?”
“I thought I did. I saw some shadows move about in the alley, but I didn’t see any faces.”
“What about the girl that ran off?” said Sam. “What was she wearing at the time?”
“A flowery dress,” said Laura. “I don’t know if she had any shoes on; it didn’t seem like it. Her hair was long and blonde… that’s all I know I’m afraid. Sorry.”
“That’s all right,” said Sam.
“Anything else?” Gene asked, looking a little annoyed that they didn’t get much information.
“Well, I saw Mr. Sawyer… lying there… and I couldn’t help it; I fainted.”
“Terrance Carr said that he found you and Mr. Sawyer’s body, so he went to call an ambulance.”
“Right,” she said. “That’s what I was told. All I remember is waking up in the ambulance with a cold rag on me forehead.”
“Nothing else you could add?”
She shook her head. “No, sorry.”
“That’s all right,” said Sam. “Thanks for your time, Mrs. Lightfoot.”
They walked back into Gene’s office, and immediately Gene poured himself a glass of scotch.
“Bang lot of good that was,” he grumbled. “Half the city’s wives ‘round here wear flowery dresses, so how are we supposed to find this woman?”
“I don’t know,” said Sam. “But we must, because if she saw who it was that murdered Mr. Sawyer, then we’ve got it solved.”
“I know that, Einstein,” said Gene. He took a swig of his drink. “Well? You’re the brain box of the team; you should have some ideas.”
“The only thing I can think of doing is going back to the crime scene. It might help us, since we know there was a possible witness to the murder.”
“Just how does that help us?” said Gene. “We supposed to look for a lost glass slipper that she dropped when she fled, go ‘round knockin’ on every ‘ouse, and have every girl in Manchester try it on?”
Sam sighed. “Your imagination astounds me sometimes, Guv.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t you remember? Laura said that she didn’t think the woman that ran off was wearing shoes. She thought she was barefoot.”
“So?”
“So, we might find something that’ll help us locate her.”
“Like what?” said Gene, draining his glass. “A missing sock? A toenail clipping? Maybe we’ll get lucky and find some dog shit with her footprint on it.”
Sam wanted to roll his eyes, but he refrained. “Well, we won’t know what we’ll find until we find it.”
“It’s late, so there’s no way we’re doing this tonight.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Sam sighed. “It’s nearly beer o’clock.”
“Too right it is, Gladys,” said Gene. “So, first thing in the morning we’ll have a look at the crime scene, so that you can do your magnificent detective work. Now, let’s get a few beersies in us.”
~**~
“Welcome, DCI Hunt,” greeted Nelson. “And mine bro’,” he gestured at Sam. “Your usuals?”
“Thanks, Nelson,” said Gene.
Chris, Ray, and the others were already sitting at a table, having gotten a few pints in them already. Sam sat on a barstool and sipped at the beer Nelson handed to him, and Gene sat on his left. He knew that he couldn’t talk much about work right now during Gene’s beer time, so he just let himself relax for a while as he slowly sipped his drink.
“Cognac,” said a soft, familiar voice on his right. He looked over and saw that Annie had sat down beside him.
“Hey there,” he said.
“Hey,” said Annie. “Weren’t I supposed to come over to your place tonight?”
“Yeah, if you still wanted to.”
Nelson gave her her drink, winked at Sam, and then walked over to the other side of the bar.
“Well, I thought maybe since you’d rather spend some time in here getting pissed out of your nut instead of waiting for me…”
“Sorry,” he said, putting an arm around her waist. “Just got carried away with the case today and then the Guv wanted a beer, and…”
Annie laughed. “I know, I was only taking the mick. I really don’t mind that you’re here with the Guv.”
Gene looked over at the mention of him and smirked, raising his glass to her. “Cheers.”
“I was rather hoping that you’d have a drink with me anyway,” she said to Sam.
“Oh. That’s good then, I guess.”
She leaned in closer to him and put her head on his shoulder. “I don’t mind doing whatever you want to do, as long as I can be with you.”
His chest tightened with sudden emotion, and then he remembered something. “Um, Annie?”
“Yes?” she said, looking up at him. Just as he was about to say it, Gene got up from his barstool and went over to play darts with the guys. He slapped Sam on the back a few times as he walked by, telling them to get a room already. Sam laughed.
“Sam?” Annie urged.
“Oh, um… well, I was wondering if…” he cleared his throat, about to go on, then the noise in the pub drowned out what he said next.
“I’m sorry, what?” said Annie, leaning closer to him. There was another cheer from the dart players, and then Gene laughed about something boisterously.
“I said…” Sam spoke louder. “Will you … with me?”
The roar of people made it hard for Annie to hear everything Sam said.
“What?” she asked louder.
“I SAID, WILL YOU …” repeated Sam, this time louder over the racket. The noise leveled off, and suddenly everyone in the pub heard him shout, “…GO OUT WITH… me?” he finished lamely when he noticed everyone stopped talking and was now staring at him.
Annie’s eyes were shining with mirth, but were nonetheless happy. “Yes, of course I will, Sam.”
“About bloody time!” Gene shouted from across the pub, raising his glass to them. The rest of the gang clapped.
Sam smiled, raising his glass back, and when Annie lifted hers, he clinked them together.
TBC
All parts found here.
Sam’s No Ordinary Copper
Chapter seven
Fandom: Life On Mars
Pairing: Sam/Annie
Rated: R
Warnings: some sappiness, slight fluff, mentions of blood (yes, odd combination huh?), some violence, language, and some adult themes
Notes: Takes place after the end of season two (so spoilers for all the episodes); and it’s up to the reader whether they’ve kissed at the end or not. This could be considered Gen, in a way.
Summary: Just another day in the life of Sam Tyler.
Disclaimer: I don’t own these characters; I’m only having fun.
~**~
Another week went by, and it was Friday again. They had been so busy with cases and paperwork that Sam and Annie hadn’t had much time together. There was one time when Sam was just about to ask Annie if she’d like to go steady, but the Guv interrupted him and he never got the chance to ask her again.
A call came in about a murder that happened on Cyrus Street, and Sam and Gene were speeding toward the location. When they got there, Chris and Ray were already there with a few other officers, including the forensics. The body had been decapitated. When Chris noticed that, he turned and threw up behind the light blue police car.
“You’re such a girl,” Ray told to him.
Sam flinched when he saw it, and he looked at Gene to see his reaction: he had a disgusted look on his face, but his eyes didn’t turn away from the body.
“Laura Lightfoot found him,” explained Ray. “She was in such shock that she fainted. Another, Terrance Carr, found them both and used the pay phone over there to call an ambulance.”
“So Miss Lightfoot is in hospital right now?” said Sam.
“Actually, it’s Mrs. Lightfoot. Her husband is a plod at the station,” said Ray. “Chris, stop being a div and get off the ground.”
Sam checked Chris to make sure he was okay without having to look at his puke on the grass. “All right now, Chris?”
“I will be,” moaned Chris.
“It’s not every day that you come face to face with a beheading,” said Gene. “Cross another one off my list of things I want to do before I die.”
Very glad that he hadn’t had lunch yet, Sam bent down to examine the victim’s head. “Looks like it was done with a clean blade,” he said. “Definitely not something dull.” He moved over to the body and took out the guy’s wallet. He had a feeling he’d be the one that had to tell the wife that her husband was dead, like always.
“How do you know he’s married?” Chris asked when Sam voice that.
“Because he’s wearing a wedding band,” said Sam as he stood up.
“Oh, right,” said Chris.
“Chris, either you’re sniffing glue and killing off whatever brain cells you have left,” said Gene. “Or you’re really that stupid.”
Chris frowned, and then looked down at his shoes. Sam tried to give Chris an apologetic look for the Guv’s words, but Chris didn’t even look at him.
“Right, then,” said Gene after a moment. “You go talk to the dead bloke’s wife while I do the rest of my usual DCI work.”
Sam was only too happy to leave the scene; the smell of the victim’s body was getting to him.
~**~
He thought about going back to the station first and picking up Annie before going to see the wife, but that was a bit out of his way. According to the address in the man’s wallet, his house wasn’t too far from there. It made Sam think that perhaps whoever killed him knew that he was on his way home, or the killer might have hung around near his house for him to come out.
He knocked on the door and waited. It opened and out stepped whom he figured was the wife. She wasn’t too bad looking, actually, but he could tell that she was around his age. She was blonde, with big blue eyes and a little mouth. When she saw him, she smiled politely, and it reminded him a bit of his mum.
“Hello,” she said. “May I help you?”
Sam took out his badge and showed it to her. “Detective Inspector Tyler. I’m afraid I have some bad news, Mrs. Sawyer.”
“My son hasn’t been caught stealing again, has he?” she said automatically.
“Um, no,” said Sam. “I’m afraid it’s worse than that.”
“Is he dead?” she gasped, looking strickened.
Sam frowned. He hated this part of the job, but he knew it was something he had to do. Either he did it or one of the others did, and he couldn’t see any of them being sympathetic about it. Well, except maybe Chris.
“Can we step inside first? You might not want the neighbors to hear about it.”
She nodded and led him into the house. It was a rather nice, spacious house, and it looked as if it belonged to a working class family. Mrs. Sawyer sat on her sofa and stared at him, awaiting the bad news. It didn’t make things any easier.
“I’m sorry, but your husband is dead.”
Her eyes widened, apparently shocked to hear that it was her husband and not her son. “My… husband? Zach?”
Sam nodded, frowning. “Yes. I’m sorry.”
Still in some shock, she looked at him and asked, “How?”
“We’re not sure what weapon was used yet, but he’d been decapitated.”
Mrs. Sawyer covered her mouth. “Oh my god…”
Slowly, Sam handed her Zach Sawyer’s wallet. “I’m really sorry.”
She stared at the wallet in her hand, tears sliding down her cheeks. Sam wasn’t sure what else to say, but he stood there and waited, letting her have a moment.
“Where?” she asked, voice faint and scratchy from holding back her sobs.
“Not too far from here,” said Sam. “But we will need you to identify the body… once it’s brought in to the morgue.”
“Okay,” she sniffled.
“You going to be all right?” he asked, placing a warm hand on her shoulder. She nodded, and then slowly looked up at him when he moved his hand away. She smiled a little in thanks.
“You sure you’re a copper?” she said.
Sam smiled back and nodded. “Yes.”
He was about to leave, but then she grabbed hold of the sleeve of his leather jacket before he could. He turned back around.
“Wait,” she said, tugging him down. He knew that she was grieving, and he knew that everyone grieved differently. Sometimes people needed time alone, and sometimes people didn’t want to be alone, and it looked like the latter for her. He sat down on the sofa with her, ready to offer her his shoulder; it was the least he could do.
“Hey, it’s okay…” he tried to comfort, putting an arm around her shoulders. He wanted to show her that she could go ahead and cry on him if she wanted, if she needed to let it out. She moved her head, as if she were about to put it on his shoulder, but then she leaned forward, taking him unawares, and pressed her lips onto his. Startled, Sam only let it go on for a few seconds before moving his head back.
She stared at him with a hopeful look in her eyes as he stared in shock. This was not something he had been expecting when he came here.
“Mrs. Sawyer,” he said, finally finding his voice.
“Call me Hannah,” she said, almost breathless.
Sam stood. “Sorry, I know that you’re grieving, but I can’t… I have to go. I’m sure my DCI is wondering what’s taking me so long.”
“Please, Inspector,” she pleaded, standing up and following him to the door. “Don’t go, I didn’t mean to scare you away…”
He took hold of her hands in a warm gesture. “I’m really flattered, but you have to understand I’m involved with someone, and you’ve just lost your husband.”
She had tears in her eyes, but she nodded in understanding. She looked away. “As I figured… all the good-looking ones are usually taken.”
Sam smiled shyly, his face feeling warm. He left her house, a little relieved to do so, and with Annie on his mind.
~**~
Mrs. Sawyer had identified the body as her husband, which was rather hard on her after noticing the way they put his head back on. She cried softly on Annie’s shoulder, and Annie did her best to calm her down. Sam wondered if Mrs. Sawyer wished she’d been crying on his shoulder instead.
“I promise I will find the person that killed your husband,” he told her, hoping to bring her some feeling of hope.
“Thank you, Inspector,” she said.
“Let me get you on the bus,” said Annie, slowly and gently ushering her out. Annie glanced at Sam before they left the room.
After getting Mrs. Sawyer on the bus, Sam and Annie walked back to the station in silence. The fact that Mrs. Sawyer, Hannah, had kissed him was looming in the back of his mind, and a bit at the front as well. He wasn’t sure if he should tell Annie about it now or wait until tonight after he had invited her over to his place. At least that was the plan. But for all he knew, she could have another night with her girlfriends again. Although he hadn’t necessarily been ignoring her lately, they’ve still been incredibly busy, and it only gave them time to flirt a little when they were near each other.
When they were halfway to the station, Sam threw caution to the wind and took hold of Annie’s hand. Annie looked over, surprised but smiling wide.
“Sam?” she said softly. “What’s all this?”
“It’s called holding ‘ands,” he said, smiling back at her. “Is it all right?”
Annie nodded, blushing a little and smiling. “Yeah, it’s all right. Just unexpected.”
“I don’t like staying predictable all the time,” he said, and then laughed. Annie chuckled.
“Mrs. Sawyer, though,” she said after a moment. “She sure seemed to like you.”
“How do you mean?” Sam said tersely, feeling his stomach churn somewhat from nerves.
“Well, she kept staring at you with this certain look in her eyes,” Annie said. Then her gazed at Sam grew more intense. “Is there something going on that I should know about?”
“I was going to tell you about… something, but I wasn’t sure when,” he said haltingly.
“Now would be nice.”
“Actually, I was kind of thinking about waiting until you came over to my place. That is, if you’re interested in coming over.”
Annie smiled softly. “Sure, I’d love to.”
“You don’t have any other plans?”
“Nope.”
“Good.”
That was all he could think of to say at the moment. They were closer to the station when Annie finally broke the silence.
“You’ll tell me about it at your place tonight?”
“Yes,” he said. “I promise.”
~**~
Two hours later, Mrs. Lightfoot was brought in for questioning since she was the one that found Mr. Sawyer’s body. She was still a bit shaken, but she gladly talked with them in the canteen. She recounted the events to them as best she could, nervously playing with a straw.
“I heard this… scream,” she said. “So, I went to see what was going on.”
“Did you find out who screamed?” Sam asked, pen and paper at the ready.
“It was some girl,” said Laura. “She’d been running away from the scene, toward the park, so I only caught the back of her when I arrived.”
“Did you see anyone else around?”
“I thought I did. I saw some shadows move about in the alley, but I didn’t see any faces.”
“What about the girl that ran off?” said Sam. “What was she wearing at the time?”
“A flowery dress,” said Laura. “I don’t know if she had any shoes on; it didn’t seem like it. Her hair was long and blonde… that’s all I know I’m afraid. Sorry.”
“That’s all right,” said Sam.
“Anything else?” Gene asked, looking a little annoyed that they didn’t get much information.
“Well, I saw Mr. Sawyer… lying there… and I couldn’t help it; I fainted.”
“Terrance Carr said that he found you and Mr. Sawyer’s body, so he went to call an ambulance.”
“Right,” she said. “That’s what I was told. All I remember is waking up in the ambulance with a cold rag on me forehead.”
“Nothing else you could add?”
She shook her head. “No, sorry.”
“That’s all right,” said Sam. “Thanks for your time, Mrs. Lightfoot.”
They walked back into Gene’s office, and immediately Gene poured himself a glass of scotch.
“Bang lot of good that was,” he grumbled. “Half the city’s wives ‘round here wear flowery dresses, so how are we supposed to find this woman?”
“I don’t know,” said Sam. “But we must, because if she saw who it was that murdered Mr. Sawyer, then we’ve got it solved.”
“I know that, Einstein,” said Gene. He took a swig of his drink. “Well? You’re the brain box of the team; you should have some ideas.”
“The only thing I can think of doing is going back to the crime scene. It might help us, since we know there was a possible witness to the murder.”
“Just how does that help us?” said Gene. “We supposed to look for a lost glass slipper that she dropped when she fled, go ‘round knockin’ on every ‘ouse, and have every girl in Manchester try it on?”
Sam sighed. “Your imagination astounds me sometimes, Guv.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t you remember? Laura said that she didn’t think the woman that ran off was wearing shoes. She thought she was barefoot.”
“So?”
“So, we might find something that’ll help us locate her.”
“Like what?” said Gene, draining his glass. “A missing sock? A toenail clipping? Maybe we’ll get lucky and find some dog shit with her footprint on it.”
Sam wanted to roll his eyes, but he refrained. “Well, we won’t know what we’ll find until we find it.”
“It’s late, so there’s no way we’re doing this tonight.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Sam sighed. “It’s nearly beer o’clock.”
“Too right it is, Gladys,” said Gene. “So, first thing in the morning we’ll have a look at the crime scene, so that you can do your magnificent detective work. Now, let’s get a few beersies in us.”
~**~
“Welcome, DCI Hunt,” greeted Nelson. “And mine bro’,” he gestured at Sam. “Your usuals?”
“Thanks, Nelson,” said Gene.
Chris, Ray, and the others were already sitting at a table, having gotten a few pints in them already. Sam sat on a barstool and sipped at the beer Nelson handed to him, and Gene sat on his left. He knew that he couldn’t talk much about work right now during Gene’s beer time, so he just let himself relax for a while as he slowly sipped his drink.
“Cognac,” said a soft, familiar voice on his right. He looked over and saw that Annie had sat down beside him.
“Hey there,” he said.
“Hey,” said Annie. “Weren’t I supposed to come over to your place tonight?”
“Yeah, if you still wanted to.”
Nelson gave her her drink, winked at Sam, and then walked over to the other side of the bar.
“Well, I thought maybe since you’d rather spend some time in here getting pissed out of your nut instead of waiting for me…”
“Sorry,” he said, putting an arm around her waist. “Just got carried away with the case today and then the Guv wanted a beer, and…”
Annie laughed. “I know, I was only taking the mick. I really don’t mind that you’re here with the Guv.”
Gene looked over at the mention of him and smirked, raising his glass to her. “Cheers.”
“I was rather hoping that you’d have a drink with me anyway,” she said to Sam.
“Oh. That’s good then, I guess.”
She leaned in closer to him and put her head on his shoulder. “I don’t mind doing whatever you want to do, as long as I can be with you.”
His chest tightened with sudden emotion, and then he remembered something. “Um, Annie?”
“Yes?” she said, looking up at him. Just as he was about to say it, Gene got up from his barstool and went over to play darts with the guys. He slapped Sam on the back a few times as he walked by, telling them to get a room already. Sam laughed.
“Sam?” Annie urged.
“Oh, um… well, I was wondering if…” he cleared his throat, about to go on, then the noise in the pub drowned out what he said next.
“I’m sorry, what?” said Annie, leaning closer to him. There was another cheer from the dart players, and then Gene laughed about something boisterously.
“I said…” Sam spoke louder. “Will you … with me?”
The roar of people made it hard for Annie to hear everything Sam said.
“What?” she asked louder.
“I SAID, WILL YOU …” repeated Sam, this time louder over the racket. The noise leveled off, and suddenly everyone in the pub heard him shout, “…GO OUT WITH… me?” he finished lamely when he noticed everyone stopped talking and was now staring at him.
Annie’s eyes were shining with mirth, but were nonetheless happy. “Yes, of course I will, Sam.”
“About bloody time!” Gene shouted from across the pub, raising his glass to them. The rest of the gang clapped.
Sam smiled, raising his glass back, and when Annie lifted hers, he clinked them together.
TBC