Jeez, rough crowd . Final chapter--no more pitchforks! Title: My Brother’s Keeper, chapter 4 “Let me see that,” Lindsay demanded, walking over to see the log sheet that Don was holding. “That’s not Danny’s handwriting,” she said confidently. “You sure about that?” Flack asked. “Believe me, I know Danny’s chicken scratch, and that’s not it,” Lindsay said. Stella peered over her shoulder and nodded in agreement. “I’m sure we can give you something from the lab to compare,” Stella said. “I’ll take this to dust for prints, though I’m sure there’s probably hundreds of prints on there,” Lindsay said. “Narrow your comparison to known associates of the Tanglewood boys,” Flack said. “Where’s your suspect now?” Lindsay said. “I sent him to booking and then they’ll take him back to his cell,” Flack said. “We’ll need to process him for evidence,” Lindsay said. “I’ll take the two of you down to booking, I’m not taking any chances,” Flack said as he accompanied the ladies to booking. Tony grabbed Danny by the hair and pulled him to his feet. Mac winced to see his co-worker treated so roughly. “Meet the new generation of the Tanglewood boys,” Tony sneered. “The days of Sonny and Louie are over. Say hello to our new blood,” Tony said, roughly slapping Danny on the back. Danny struggled to retain his footing. He looked at Mac and shook his head back and forth. Mac nodded to indicate he understood. “You said if I brought the tape you’d let Danny go,” Mac said. “I’ve got the tape right here,” he said, holding up a cassette tape. “Mac, don’t give it to them. I’m not worth this,” Danny said in dismay. “It doesn’t make much difference anyhow, both Louie and Sonny are dead,” Tony smirked. “We’ve got other plans for you. Do it Messer.” Danny looked at Mac, then at Tony, then stared straight out in front of him. “Forget it, I’m not doing it.” “Remember what I told you Messer, you do what you’re told. Waste him,” Tony threatened. “Where’s Lindsay, Mac?” Danny asked. “She’s safe, she’s with Stella and Flack now,” he assured Danny. “They’re on to you boys. You really think after what happened to Sonny they’d take their chances?” Tony pointed a gun at Danny’s head. “Do it Messer!” he shouted. “Do you think I really care what you do to me? Do you really think I want to live with this tattoo on my back, huh? Take your shot. I’m not doing it,” Danny said defiantly. Tony aimed his gun at Mac. Danny lunged at Tony and the two wrestled over the gun. They both fell to the ground. A gunshot went off. A moment passed, and Danny rolled away from Tony. There was blood on his shirt, but it wasn’t his. Tony lay on the ground, dead from a single gunshot to the chest. Joe moved to pull out his weapon. Mac grabbed his gun and trained it on Joe. Danny raised the gun that was in his hand and pointed it at Joe. “Drop it,” Danny said. “It’s over.” Joe dropped his weapon. Mac walked over and handcuffed Joe. “You alright,” he asked Danny. “Yeah, I’ll live,” Danny said. Mac called for assistance, and the police and ambulance came. Flack arrived with Stella and Lindsay, just as Danny was being looked over by the paramedic. Lindsay went over to Danny and he wept as she took him in her arms. “Thank God you’re okay,” Danny said tearfully. “You too,” she said, running her fingers through his hair. “They marked me, Montana. I’ve got this awful tattoo on my back now. They tried to make me one of them,” Danny sobbed. “I see that,” she said, tracing his shoulder with her fingertips. “You can have it removed, Danny,” she said gently. “It will still be there, under the surface. C’mon Montana, how many cases have we done where all it took was burning a vic’s skin to reveal the tattoo underneath,” Danny said. Lindsay broke their embrace to take Danny’s face in her hands, looking him square in the eyes. “That tattoo doesn’t change who you are,” she said. “You stood up to them. You are not one of them.” She kissed him firmly and wrapped her arms around him again, holding him tight. “I could have been,” Danny said. “I came real close to doing what they told me. Had Mac not told me you were safe with Flack, I might have killed him.” “But you didn’t, Danny,” Lindsay said, kissing his forehead. “You didn’t. Don’t beat yourself up. Any one of us would have been severely tested in these circumstances. But you passed the test,” she said, lifting his face towards hers. “You passed,” she said, kissing him. A few weeks later, Lindsay accompanied Danny to the doctor’s office to have his tattoo removed. She sat beside him, holding his hand as the doctor performed the laser procedeure. Tears rolled down Danny’s face as the doctor worked. He felt he had been branded, violated, that the awful black mark scrawled across his back would never really go away. He hated himself for how close he had come to betraying the people he cared about most. Lindsay reached up and stroked Danny’s cheek as he cried. He reached up and covered her hand with his, bringing it to his lips and kissing it. The doctor finished the procedeure and gave Danny instructions for follow-up care. Lindsay caressed Danny’s face. “It’s gone now,” she said. “It’s over.” “For now,” Danny said uncertainly. THE END
Thanks, I'm glad you all liked it. I'm pretty surprised myself at how it turned out, considering it started out as a oneshot, missing scenes piece.
Wow, that's a fantastic story. I like it so much. Brilliant work! I'd like to read some more from you
I've got a bunch posted over at www.fanfiction.net/~labgeekluvr . That's probably the easiest way to find my stuff, rather than trying to remember what all I've posted on here.