Greater Love Hath No Man
So Alex thought she knew about him. Gene reached into the filing cabinet for the bottle and the glass. The second glass remained, as ever, untouched, a silent tribute to years of shared drinking before solitary drinking once again became the norm. Sam loved him - that was no surprise. He knew that, had known it for years. He poured himself another drink. If anything she sounded more surprised than he was - after all, shouldn’t all law abiding citizens love the Gen Genie? For a second his smile was one that the Manchester scum had long ago learnt to fear - DCI Hunt was right and there was no escape. But Sam, Gene’s expression softened, Sam’s love had been different.
“You were the love of his life,” Alex had said. No, that was never the case. Annie was the love of Sam’s life. You just had to see the two of them together - even once they were married - behaving more like teenagers in the park than grown up members of CID.
Gene peered through the office blinds - what did she think she was going to achieve? There she was, covertly looking in her desk drawer, so sure about the relationship he had had with Sam and so very wrong.
There had been times, of course, times when Sam had told Annie he would be working late on surveillance, catching up on paperwork, whatever excuse he thought she would be most likely to accept. And he would come to Gene shaking, looking for comfort. And Gene would let him talk and unburden himself of the emotions that he dare not share with Annie.
Like the time when they’d met the lovely Ruth Tyler again. It had been quite by chance, they’d been to interview one of the prozzies who was in hospital, having been badly beaten by her pimp. The woman in the next bed was the victim of a hit and run. Gene, on recognising her, had begun to ask her how she was keeping, but had thought that even for him it would be rather tactless and neatly, he felt, changed it to asking about her son. At that point he’d become aware of how pale Tyler had gone and thinking that the nurses had better things to do than deal with a DI who had fainted on the ward, had decided it was time they left. That evening Sam had sat in Gene’s office, bawling his eyes out, saying that he hadn’t known, that all he’d done was complain about missing his friend David’s birthday party because he’d had to stay with Auntie Heather and how he could never say he was sorry. In the end Gene had held him in his arms and stroked his hair until he calmed down. Then he’d filled him with whisky so that Annie would never suspect he’d had another ‘episode’.
Re-enacting the scene in his mind Gene poured another glassful and then he let his thoughts move on to that last fateful day. They’d known for a while that this job was going to happen. He and Sam had discussed the best way to proceed. Sam had told Gene that his plan was too risky - far too dangerous. Gene had countered by saying that they needed hard evidence and a heated argument had ensued which Gene had won by the simple expedient of shouting louder and longer. On reflection he should have realised that Sam had already begun to mentally change the plan when he agreed with him far quicker than might have been expected. Gene had been going to act as decoy with Sam being told to wait. Gene had known that he was putting his life on the line, but was confident that his DI would ensure a conviction if the worst happened. Instead of which, Sam, against orders, had taken the position of decoy.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for that of a friend.”
“You were the love of his life,” Alex had said. No, that was never the case. Annie was the love of Sam’s life. You just had to see the two of them together - even once they were married - behaving more like teenagers in the park than grown up members of CID.
Gene peered through the office blinds - what did she think she was going to achieve? There she was, covertly looking in her desk drawer, so sure about the relationship he had had with Sam and so very wrong.
There had been times, of course, times when Sam had told Annie he would be working late on surveillance, catching up on paperwork, whatever excuse he thought she would be most likely to accept. And he would come to Gene shaking, looking for comfort. And Gene would let him talk and unburden himself of the emotions that he dare not share with Annie.
Like the time when they’d met the lovely Ruth Tyler again. It had been quite by chance, they’d been to interview one of the prozzies who was in hospital, having been badly beaten by her pimp. The woman in the next bed was the victim of a hit and run. Gene, on recognising her, had begun to ask her how she was keeping, but had thought that even for him it would be rather tactless and neatly, he felt, changed it to asking about her son. At that point he’d become aware of how pale Tyler had gone and thinking that the nurses had better things to do than deal with a DI who had fainted on the ward, had decided it was time they left. That evening Sam had sat in Gene’s office, bawling his eyes out, saying that he hadn’t known, that all he’d done was complain about missing his friend David’s birthday party because he’d had to stay with Auntie Heather and how he could never say he was sorry. In the end Gene had held him in his arms and stroked his hair until he calmed down. Then he’d filled him with whisky so that Annie would never suspect he’d had another ‘episode’.
Re-enacting the scene in his mind Gene poured another glassful and then he let his thoughts move on to that last fateful day. They’d known for a while that this job was going to happen. He and Sam had discussed the best way to proceed. Sam had told Gene that his plan was too risky - far too dangerous. Gene had countered by saying that they needed hard evidence and a heated argument had ensued which Gene had won by the simple expedient of shouting louder and longer. On reflection he should have realised that Sam had already begun to mentally change the plan when he agreed with him far quicker than might have been expected. Gene had been going to act as decoy with Sam being told to wait. Gene had known that he was putting his life on the line, but was confident that his DI would ensure a conviction if the worst happened. Instead of which, Sam, against orders, had taken the position of decoy.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for that of a friend.”