Fic: Steady As She Goes (32/86), Blue Cortina, dakfinv
Title: Steady As She Goes (32/86)
Author: dak
Word Count: 1273 this part; [56,551 overall]
Summary for Whole: After an accidental shooting at the station, Gene struggles to keep his team from tearing themselves apart.
Summary this Part: Gene reveals some of the truth behind the mysteries.
Rating: still Blue-ish Cortina, uhm, what's slightly darker than blue?
Warnings: angst, swearing, violence, violent imagery, minor drug use, mild sexual situations, self-harm for whole
Spoilers: none here; see each chapter for specific spoiler warnings
Pairing: mild Sam/Annie, Sam/Maya
Disclaimer: Belongs to BBC/Kudos
A/N: And finally, some answers! Not all the answers of course, and maybe it only adds up as one answer. But it is an answer. Of that I am certain. I think.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 Part 24 Part 25 Part 26 Part 27 Part 28 Part 29 Part 30 Part 31 Part 32 Part 33 Part 34 Part 35 Part 36 Part 37 Part 38 Part 39 Part 40 Part 41 Part 42 Part 43 Part 44 Part 45 Part 46 Part 47 Part 48 Part 49 Part 50 Part 51 Part 52 Part 53 Part 54 Part 55 Part 56 Part 57 Part 58 Part 59 Part 60 Part 61 Part 62 Part 63 Part 64 Part 65 Part 66 Part 67 Part 68 Part 69 Part 70 Part 71 Part 72 Part 73 Part 74 Part 75 Part 76 Part 77 Part 78 Part 79 Part 80 Part 81 Part 82 Part 83 Part 84 Part 85 Part 86
"Carling. Skelton. My office. Now."
Chris wished he would’ve yelled. The Guv acting calm when everyone knew he wasn’t was a thing unnatural. It made him unpredictable. Chris was bad enough at guessing his moods when things were going well. If only people’s attitudes could be predicted like the weather. Today’s forecast: overcast with a 50% chance of rain with DCI Hunt’s mood ranging from a low of moderately annoyed to a high of extraordinarily pissed off.
As per usual Chris followed behind Ray hoping his partner would be able to deflect most of the Guv’s impending tirade.
"Shut the door."
Chris closed it firmly, checking to make sure it was latched before facing the Guv. Maybe it was just Chris but he thought DCI Hunt looked tired, defeated. No, he was probably just tired.
Chris snuck a glance at Ray and was slightly relieved to see the DS looking as unsure as he felt. Ray leaned against the filing cabinet and Chris stayed by the door. His mum always told him to keep an eye on the exits in case of an emergency.
"DCI Litton came to see me last night."
Ray forgot that he was supposed to be wary. "Oh what does that twonk want now? Hasn’t he caused enough trouble for us already?" His sudden aggressive stance wilted under Gene’s stare. "Sorry Guv."
"May I continue?"
"Yes Guv." He took up his former position against the cabinet.
"Right then. Litton’s up to his necktie in dog shit an’ he knows it. He came to me asking for help."
Ray crossed his arms. "Like we should give ‘im any after what ‘e’s done."
"Am I not talking?" Gene jumped from his chair and slammed his fists on the desk. Ray cowered by the cabinet. Chris was glad he’d remained at the door. "I will have order in my team." He spoke coldly, mechanically, as if he’d memorized the words from a policing textbook he’d confused with a Bible.
Ray wanted to mumble another apology but decided it was better for his health if he kept his gob shut. Gene’s anger drained away as quickly as it had appeared. A flash of lightning in an already dangerous storm. He pushed around some objects on the desk before sitting back down.
"Litton came to me for help which I am reluctantly going to give him. Would you like to know why DS Carling?"
Ray wished he had some gum. Or a cigarette. Or a pint. "Yes Guv."
"Chris was right..."
"I was?" Chris interrupted then immediately wished he hadn’t. He always did better in these situations when DI Tyler was here. He wished he hadn’t run out of the room like that. That hadn’t been very manly at all.
Gene chose to ignore Chris’ interjection. "Chris was right about Martin not being the shooter. Litton told me himself. He also told me he wasn’t aware of it until recently."
Ray scoffed but managed to hold his tongue.
"My thoughts exactly. Course since he looked scared-er than a lame fox at Crufts during the bloodhound preliminary I let him continue." When Gene paused a moment to light a fag Ray and Chris decided it was alright for them to do the same. Soon Gene’s office was coated in a haze of smoke. Everything felt almost normal. Almost because Tyler wasn’t scowling and ranting about the dangers of second-hand smoke.
Chris wondered if it might not be a bad idea to think about quitting but then Ray would probably just call him a sissy and fill his desk drawers with ladies undergarments or something.
Gene tapped the ash into the tray and continued. "He knew his team had buggered it up, the deal with Martin, so he tried to cover it up. ‘Cept he only thought he was hiding the fact his team let ‘im escape in the first place. He didn’t think one of ‘em actually pulled the trigger. Not when they all seemed to have their story straight an’ Skelton here wasn’t correcting ‘em."
"I’m sorry." Chris stared at his shoes letting the ciggie hang loosely from his lips.
" ‘S not your fault you can’t remember, Chris." Ray tried to help. "Traumatic experiences an’ all that."
Chris shrugged. "Where’d you learn that?" They both knew where he had but they didn’t want to risk upsetting the Guv’s unstable mood by mentioning DI Tyler.
Gene pretended Chris hadn’t asked the question in the first place. "Litton found out what Martin told us during questioning. After the scrote died in the accident he knew it’d gone too far. So he came to me."
"Can-could I ask a question Guv?" The Sergeant’s face was crinkled up in thought. When Gene didn’t respond Ray decided silence gave consent. "How do we know ‘e’s not jus’ tryin’ to save his own skin?"
"He is."
"But if ‘e did know ‘bout this all along..."
Gene flicked his cigarette and watched the ash float down. This was when Chris noticed that the Guv was avoiding looking at the spot always occupied by DI Tyler.
"A DCI is nothing without his team Ray, an’ he’s convinced they’re all in on it. We do this case for him he will probably keep his job. But he’ll lose just about everything else that mattered to him. He knew they fucked up but he trusted them because they were his team. So he did what any DCI would do. He protected them. Fought for them. Lied for them...And they abused his loyalty. Fucked him up the arse with it and now he’s got no choice but to get rid of ‘em. Cos they’re not his team anymore."
Chris wasn’t sure DCI Hunt was still talking about Litton.
"That sound like summit he’d do if he didn’t have to?"
Ray shook his head. "No Guv."
Chris tried to remember the face he’d seen. He could picture the expression and enough details to know it hadn’t been Martin but he didn’t know the man from Adam. There had been so much shouting that day, so much pain, so much blood...
"Who does he think it was sir?" Chris asked quietly.
"He’s not certain. But..." Gene stubbed out the butt. "Signs are pointing to his DI."
Ray and Chris held a collective breath while the words sunk in. Someone so absent had never felt so present.
"Where’s Cartwright?" Gene’s words hung dangerously in the air.
"Door to doors. For a burglary we had this morning." If Gene knew Ray was lying he didn’t say.
"Get some lunch. We’ll sort this out later."
Chris and Ray nodded. Chris though the weight in his chest would lift when he opened the door. He was wrong.
"Ray."
Ray gave Chris a silent signal to go on without him then closed the door on instinct once the young DC was gone. He waited and watched as Gene poured himself a drink, gulped it down, and walked to the filing cabinet. It took him a moment to find what he was looking for. It was only because Ray had known Gene for so long that he recognized a brief moment of hesitation from the moment Gene found the paper til he handed it to Ray.
"You’re filling that out whether you want to or not and that is a direct order Sergeant."
Ray took the paper and calmly left the office. When the door was closed he dashed across the bullpen to Chris. "We need to talk to Cartwright," he spoke in a hurried whisper and showed the paper to Chris.
It was an application for the position of Detective Inspector.
___________
Part 33
Author: dak
Word Count: 1273 this part; [56,551 overall]
Summary for Whole: After an accidental shooting at the station, Gene struggles to keep his team from tearing themselves apart.
Summary this Part: Gene reveals some of the truth behind the mysteries.
Rating: still Blue-ish Cortina, uhm, what's slightly darker than blue?
Warnings: angst, swearing, violence, violent imagery, minor drug use, mild sexual situations, self-harm for whole
Spoilers: none here; see each chapter for specific spoiler warnings
Pairing: mild Sam/Annie, Sam/Maya
Disclaimer: Belongs to BBC/Kudos
A/N: And finally, some answers! Not all the answers of course, and maybe it only adds up as one answer. But it is an answer. Of that I am certain. I think.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 Part 24 Part 25 Part 26 Part 27 Part 28 Part 29 Part 30 Part 31 Part 32 Part 33 Part 34 Part 35 Part 36 Part 37 Part 38 Part 39 Part 40 Part 41 Part 42 Part 43 Part 44 Part 45 Part 46 Part 47 Part 48 Part 49 Part 50 Part 51 Part 52 Part 53 Part 54 Part 55 Part 56 Part 57 Part 58 Part 59 Part 60 Part 61 Part 62 Part 63 Part 64 Part 65 Part 66 Part 67 Part 68 Part 69 Part 70 Part 71 Part 72 Part 73 Part 74 Part 75 Part 76 Part 77 Part 78 Part 79 Part 80 Part 81 Part 82 Part 83 Part 84 Part 85 Part 86
"Carling. Skelton. My office. Now."
Chris wished he would’ve yelled. The Guv acting calm when everyone knew he wasn’t was a thing unnatural. It made him unpredictable. Chris was bad enough at guessing his moods when things were going well. If only people’s attitudes could be predicted like the weather. Today’s forecast: overcast with a 50% chance of rain with DCI Hunt’s mood ranging from a low of moderately annoyed to a high of extraordinarily pissed off.
As per usual Chris followed behind Ray hoping his partner would be able to deflect most of the Guv’s impending tirade.
"Shut the door."
Chris closed it firmly, checking to make sure it was latched before facing the Guv. Maybe it was just Chris but he thought DCI Hunt looked tired, defeated. No, he was probably just tired.
Chris snuck a glance at Ray and was slightly relieved to see the DS looking as unsure as he felt. Ray leaned against the filing cabinet and Chris stayed by the door. His mum always told him to keep an eye on the exits in case of an emergency.
"DCI Litton came to see me last night."
Ray forgot that he was supposed to be wary. "Oh what does that twonk want now? Hasn’t he caused enough trouble for us already?" His sudden aggressive stance wilted under Gene’s stare. "Sorry Guv."
"May I continue?"
"Yes Guv." He took up his former position against the cabinet.
"Right then. Litton’s up to his necktie in dog shit an’ he knows it. He came to me asking for help."
Ray crossed his arms. "Like we should give ‘im any after what ‘e’s done."
"Am I not talking?" Gene jumped from his chair and slammed his fists on the desk. Ray cowered by the cabinet. Chris was glad he’d remained at the door. "I will have order in my team." He spoke coldly, mechanically, as if he’d memorized the words from a policing textbook he’d confused with a Bible.
Ray wanted to mumble another apology but decided it was better for his health if he kept his gob shut. Gene’s anger drained away as quickly as it had appeared. A flash of lightning in an already dangerous storm. He pushed around some objects on the desk before sitting back down.
"Litton came to me for help which I am reluctantly going to give him. Would you like to know why DS Carling?"
Ray wished he had some gum. Or a cigarette. Or a pint. "Yes Guv."
"Chris was right..."
"I was?" Chris interrupted then immediately wished he hadn’t. He always did better in these situations when DI Tyler was here. He wished he hadn’t run out of the room like that. That hadn’t been very manly at all.
Gene chose to ignore Chris’ interjection. "Chris was right about Martin not being the shooter. Litton told me himself. He also told me he wasn’t aware of it until recently."
Ray scoffed but managed to hold his tongue.
"My thoughts exactly. Course since he looked scared-er than a lame fox at Crufts during the bloodhound preliminary I let him continue." When Gene paused a moment to light a fag Ray and Chris decided it was alright for them to do the same. Soon Gene’s office was coated in a haze of smoke. Everything felt almost normal. Almost because Tyler wasn’t scowling and ranting about the dangers of second-hand smoke.
Chris wondered if it might not be a bad idea to think about quitting but then Ray would probably just call him a sissy and fill his desk drawers with ladies undergarments or something.
Gene tapped the ash into the tray and continued. "He knew his team had buggered it up, the deal with Martin, so he tried to cover it up. ‘Cept he only thought he was hiding the fact his team let ‘im escape in the first place. He didn’t think one of ‘em actually pulled the trigger. Not when they all seemed to have their story straight an’ Skelton here wasn’t correcting ‘em."
"I’m sorry." Chris stared at his shoes letting the ciggie hang loosely from his lips.
" ‘S not your fault you can’t remember, Chris." Ray tried to help. "Traumatic experiences an’ all that."
Chris shrugged. "Where’d you learn that?" They both knew where he had but they didn’t want to risk upsetting the Guv’s unstable mood by mentioning DI Tyler.
Gene pretended Chris hadn’t asked the question in the first place. "Litton found out what Martin told us during questioning. After the scrote died in the accident he knew it’d gone too far. So he came to me."
"Can-could I ask a question Guv?" The Sergeant’s face was crinkled up in thought. When Gene didn’t respond Ray decided silence gave consent. "How do we know ‘e’s not jus’ tryin’ to save his own skin?"
"He is."
"But if ‘e did know ‘bout this all along..."
Gene flicked his cigarette and watched the ash float down. This was when Chris noticed that the Guv was avoiding looking at the spot always occupied by DI Tyler.
"A DCI is nothing without his team Ray, an’ he’s convinced they’re all in on it. We do this case for him he will probably keep his job. But he’ll lose just about everything else that mattered to him. He knew they fucked up but he trusted them because they were his team. So he did what any DCI would do. He protected them. Fought for them. Lied for them...And they abused his loyalty. Fucked him up the arse with it and now he’s got no choice but to get rid of ‘em. Cos they’re not his team anymore."
Chris wasn’t sure DCI Hunt was still talking about Litton.
"That sound like summit he’d do if he didn’t have to?"
Ray shook his head. "No Guv."
Chris tried to remember the face he’d seen. He could picture the expression and enough details to know it hadn’t been Martin but he didn’t know the man from Adam. There had been so much shouting that day, so much pain, so much blood...
"Who does he think it was sir?" Chris asked quietly.
"He’s not certain. But..." Gene stubbed out the butt. "Signs are pointing to his DI."
Ray and Chris held a collective breath while the words sunk in. Someone so absent had never felt so present.
"Where’s Cartwright?" Gene’s words hung dangerously in the air.
"Door to doors. For a burglary we had this morning." If Gene knew Ray was lying he didn’t say.
"Get some lunch. We’ll sort this out later."
Chris and Ray nodded. Chris though the weight in his chest would lift when he opened the door. He was wrong.
"Ray."
Ray gave Chris a silent signal to go on without him then closed the door on instinct once the young DC was gone. He waited and watched as Gene poured himself a drink, gulped it down, and walked to the filing cabinet. It took him a moment to find what he was looking for. It was only because Ray had known Gene for so long that he recognized a brief moment of hesitation from the moment Gene found the paper til he handed it to Ray.
"You’re filling that out whether you want to or not and that is a direct order Sergeant."
Ray took the paper and calmly left the office. When the door was closed he dashed across the bullpen to Chris. "We need to talk to Cartwright," he spoke in a hurried whisper and showed the paper to Chris.
It was an application for the position of Detective Inspector.
___________
Part 33