Open Case File [COMPLETED]

The Write Service (Part 2)

Cece was aware of the concern in Elliot's voice and Donovan slowly approaching her, but she tuned them out as she focused on the problem. She could feel that they were missing something, but she couldn't put her finger on what.

She looked up and the whole world around her felt hazy. For a moment, she was worried she was starting to lose it. After six months of non-stop research and an adrenaline filled night, she was really losing it. She took a deep breath, trying to clear her head but froze when she tasted flour. She took in another deep breath, tasting the air and that's when everything clicked into place.

"The pizza shop!" she said, barely getting the words out before she dodged around Donovan and started running down the street.

She passed the Wainwright's house and kept running to the end of the block. She could hear loud footsteps behind her and the shouts of Carter and Donovan as they ordered her to stop. She could hear Elliot calling after her too but she didn't stop until she reached the end of the block, where there was a pizza shop.

She rounded the corner into the back alley and found exactly what she had been expecting. The bulkhead from the pizza shop was open. She turned, searching the area for two figures slipping into the dark. A moment later she was slammed onto the ground as Donovan tackled her.

"You're under arrest," Donovan said, pinning her hands behind her back.

"Wait!" Cece yelled. "Look at the bulkhead. That's how the Wainwrights escaped. If you move now, you can still catch them."

Donovan yanked Cece to her feet but he noticed the opened bulkhead.

"They can't have gone far," Cece explained. "And I'm sure they are still on foot. Parking in Beacon Hill is impossible, but you only have minutes."

A moment later, Carter reached them out of breath. She was ready to rant at Cece but Donovan cut her off.

"Carter, we have to move," he said, dropping his hold on Cece.

The rest of the SWAT team was right behind her, unsure about the commotion and in a minute Donovan had explained Cece's theory and had everyone organized and spreading out in all different directions.

"Any guesses where they are headed?" Donovan asked Cece.

Cece racked her brain for that small detail. "Mt Vernon Street," she said.

She pointed in the right direction and Donovan and Carter started running. Cece thought about following them to see if she was right, but she hurt all over from getting tackled by Donovan. She would give this one to Carter and Donovan.

Her legs suddenly felt very weak and she walked back to the main street and sat on the sidewalk. She folded her arms over her knees and rested her head. She thought of Milo. He would never believe all that had happened even though he was part of the reason the night had happened.

He had left for New York six months ago to intern at a publishing house and had taken all of Cece's creativity with him. The morning she had taken him to the airport had been the first morning she had sat at the front window and noticed the Wainwrights for the first time.

Cece heard footsteps clicking along the brick sidewalk and a moment later someone sat down next to her.

"Is someone making pizza?" her brother Tristan asked.

Cece looked at him and then at the flour filled air.

"No," she said simply.

"Is there another reason we are sitting on the sidewalk in the middle of the night?"