Oups, almost forgot to post this, but Klenotka was here to remind me of my promise so, here it is, the next part! Oh, and thanks for the reviews everyone! You are all awesome!
Friday 29 May 1998
07:02 PM
A sweet breeze was blowing over the marina.
Seagulls were chattering noisily, their cries covering the gentle crash of the water on the boats. It was a sunny day and the marina was busy. A lot of people were trying to enjoy the weather and do some repairs; or just to doze off a little in the sun.
A blond haired man kneeled on the desk of a blue and white boat, observing the Marina's life with interest over his sun glasses. He looked young, in his early thirties. Tan skin and light blue eyes accentuated the impression of youth. He wore a long white sleeve t-shirt and jeans, and was busy cleaning the deck.
Long from 9 meters, the boat he was on, had been conceived to sail. Its robust and dense structure made it a simple, solid and economic ship. It wasn't new, but its large room, little living room opening on an external cockpit, comfortable kitchen and bathroom, made life on board as comfortable as in any apartment.
The man loved to live on sea. He needed the independence it gave him. He never stayed too long in the same part of the country, or in the same country.
And in case it was necessary, escape would be easier by sea.
The light wind played with his long hair, his bangs veiling his face. He did nothing to push them back, enjoying the feather like sensation on his skin. It was a perfect day.
He was pleased with the evolution of his plan. Real pleased in fact. All was going smoothly and was on schedule. The corners of the man's mouth turned up in cold satisfaction, distorting his face, making him look abruptly older and colder.
Yes, all was doing well.
His men had reported to him earlier. Their guest was reacting well to his … treatment. As well as it could be expected from an academic. Though the young man was not a soldier or a cop, he proved to be a little more resilient than they had first thought.
It made the challenge more interesting.
His choice had been, once again, the best one. The young man had been the right target to get to Detective James Ellison.
His Achilles' heel.
His man inside the police station had told him that the Detective was completely devastated. The big tough cop was slowly falling apart. He had lost his temper this morning and his captain had had to ban him from the station; some of his cases had been reassigned to another team.
The blond man smiled broadly. Taking the young man had definitely been a genius trait.
He paused a moment in his task, readjusting his sunglasses. He had studied those two closely. They were indeed, a strange pair.
What were the odds that a man likes Ellison, tough cop, ex-Ranger, ex-Cover ops. ended up partnered with a man like Blair Sandburg, grad-student and son of a seventies flower child! And more than few months after they met, Ellison, the well known self-reliant and loner cop, invited the young man to live with him!
"Opposite attracts" was the first thing that came to the mind. But the man knew better. There was more here.
The files he had gathered on the two had been … enlightening. Strangely, it was Mister Sandburg's past that had surprised him the most.
Sandburg's youth had some gaps, but it had to be expected with the kind of life he and his mother had lived. Blair Jacob Sandburg was a very interesting individual. He was well travel and had friends all over the world.
He was an 'activist' but not like his mother. No marches or protests for him, but real work of investigation and analysis. His "cheval de bataille" had been modern slavery and environment. He even went to the Congress with a young friend to testify before a committee about a case of water poisoning in Connecticut. It was also the first time he almost got killed. He was seventeen. There had been some other 'close calls' after that, but young Blair Sandburg always came back with the same passion and determination. And his two years with Detective Ellison hadn't been calmer: kidnapped, shot at. But he stayed with the cop nonetheless.
The man wondered if Detective Ellison knew of his roommate 'tumultuous' past. Somehow, he didn't think so. One on the cases the young man had been involved in was almost twenty years old. He was a minor then and the file had been sealed. The other ones had been sealed too in order to protect the victims and the witnesses.
Strangely, it had been easier to have access to Ellison files than to Sandburg's one. And there had been no surprise here. Captain Ellison had been a good soldier and a very skill one too. Killing in cold blood wasn't alien to him.
Light and darkness. Ying and yang.
That was what bound the two men together.
Blair Sandburg was Jim Ellison's soul.
The cop needed him in his life to accept what he was, what he had done, and still do. He needed him to keep on without losing himself in the violent and dark world he lived him. The young man was his "light in the night". He had to follow him.
Like a lifebuoy, the cop needed him to stay upright, to stay above the horrors he dealt with every day, to stay sane. Without Blair Sandburg, Jim Ellison, the man, would be no more, and only the Detective would remain, a cold and disheartened shell.
And the young grad student stayed with him because it was in his nature to help. He had somehow sense Ellison suffering and his need.
They were 'protectors', the two of them. Ellison was protecting Sandburg physical life while Blair Sandburg was saving Ellison's soul.
A cold shiver interrupted the man reflection. The wind had picked up; the sun had lost its warm and had begun his slow descent, inflaming the sea with long red streak.
He pushed back his hair, finished meticulously cleaning the deck and put away all his utensils; he then headed back inside, all the time humming a cheerful tune.
He still had a lot of things to do.
It was time for stage 2.
TBC (But when, this is the question? Okay, I will try and write the next part in January. For the time being, have a very, very, safe and good New Year celebration! See you in 2006)