Tolerance Book II

Chapter Ninety-Two: Assessing a Killer

After another two days passing without any sign of King the men gathered in the conference room alotted to the investigation in the local RCMP office.   Jay as usual had taken up residence at the back of the room, close to the door for a quick exit if necessary. His fight or flight instincts were at war with each other each day that passed without news. He knew his friends didn't hold him responsible for any of Kings' acts but he couldn't accept their absolution easily. The fact was King had started a killing spree to get his attention. The revelation yesterday that King had in fact been involved in a business which collapsed due to Bart Wilkes' shady dealings only compounded matters. The Psychologists' theory about Jays' name being used had proved correct, much to everyones' disgust. That news had been met with a rigid silence from the injured man when the IT Specialist had reluctantly imparted his clandestine findings which were subsequently officially confirmed a short time later by Marks. The men had all witnessed the brief glimpse of torment which crossed the beleaguered mans' features which was quickly replaced by an expressionless gaze. There were no words available to take away the hurt so no one tried. For his part Parker was genuinely sorry his theory had proved accurate. Although his professional role in the investigation was primarily as a Profiler the Psychologist in him had been observing the injured Detectives' responses to the various acts by King ever since their first meeting. It was second nature for him to analyse and assess people and he did so without conscious thought. The latest revelation seemed to have struck a deeper nerve and he suspected it was simply a case of too much. Months of cruel acts by a relentless Murderer had engendered a stoic response from the young man when others would have been filled with outrage and a lust for revenge. The New Yorker suspected however that although anger or a desire for payback had not been at the forefront of Jays' actions they existed but were being kept at bay. The young man had proven he had a greater capacity than most for being level headed but Parker knew that every man had a threshold beneath which calm could not be maintained and he suspected the Detective was close to reaching his threshold and no one could blame him. King was relentless in his quest to pull the Detective into his orbit and time and again the Killer had shown he was not going to stop of his own volition. Although after his siblings' demise they had contemplated the possibility that the man might seek to instigate an end game it had become excruciatingly clear that was not going to happen.

Sitting beside Jay Adams' thoughts unknowingly mirrored the Profilers. Adam had been keeping a keener eye on his best friend ever since their reunion in Harper Bay. Oh he had always looked out for him but it had become evident that by that stage Jays' weariness has been increased tenfold, not that he had uttered one word of complaint to confirm this. It was something indefinable which lurked hidden beneath the surface but something had shifted for the injured man after his latest ordeal. As he pondered that it struck Adam just how many other ordeals his friend had endured since their first days on the case in New York. Add to that all that went down with his old man and it was no wonder a toll was being exacted. He was no fool. He knew Jay still hadn't had the time to properly deal with the childhood traumas he had been forced to revisit and knew that hurdle still lay ahead, despite his friends denial. He was determined as ever to be by his friends' side for that but the more immediate issue of King required their full focus at the moment. He just wished they could catch the Murderer and wrap up the investigation. He wanted to get Jay back home, home where he could finally take some time to deal with everything. Adam wasn't naive however and expected his friend would maintain he was okay for work as usual upon their return. Heaving a sigh at his inability to do something constructive to help his friend Adam forced his attention back on Marks and Voight who were outlining their present efforts. No sightings had been reported of their elusive quarry.

"It's a good thing that King did business with Wilkes," Jays' response to the Sergeants' request for any insight caused raised eyebrows.
"Why do you say that?" Murphy asked the question everyone wanted to.
"Because he's after coming full circle," the younger man quietly explained his reasoning, "it's a sign he may be nearing the end of his run."
"What do you think Doc?" Voight eyed Parker speculatively.
"It makes sense," the New Yorker nodded, "but if losing his fortune triggered his actions there's no silver lining for him. The money is gone."
"So he has nothing to gain or lose by his actions," Murphy stated rather than asked, "where does that leave us?"
"Dealing with a ruthless Psycho!" Mouse stated with obvious disgust.
"Well it's not entirely accurate to say he has nothing to gain," Parker pointed out to the room.
"Explain," Marks directed before Voight could, he was intent on doing his job and that meant a power struggle with the Americans at the moment.
"He has shown time and again that he wants Jays' attention. Whether he's looking for admiration or something else we don't know but whatever about the trigger Jay has provided the impetus for him to continue and ....,"
"Now hang on a second," Adam protested, "you make it sound like Jay has been encouraging him!"
"That's not what I'm saying. What I mean is his quest to ...... impress ... for want of a better word ... Jay has compelled him down the path he's taken. That need to make himself relevant in Jays' life has completely consumed him.  His actions tell us this."
"But we don't know for sure if he does want to impress Jay," Kevin argued sceptically, "you mentioned before King might be jealous. If that's the case surely impressing Jay wouldn't be on his agenda."
"Well not per se but think about it.   If he's jealous and trying to outshine him ....,"
"Which ultimately leads to wanting to be better than him," Voight interrupted in concurrence even though he didn't like the suggestion one bit, "and if he thinks he's better at things than him King would reason Jay would be impressed.  Have I got it right Doc?"
"Exactly."
"Whether or not that's the case we still have no way to move forward in the investigation," Al gravely noted, "King doesn't leave breadcrumbs."
"Unless he wants us to find him," Antonio shrugged a shoulder.
"Maybe we should leave some breadcrumbs for a change," Jay stated drawing all eyes his way.
"What do you have in mind?" Al looked at his young friend trying  to decipher what was going on behind those shuttered eyes but as always met only a stoic front.
"Give him another chance to get me," the former Ranger stated so matter of factly that he could be talking about something mundane.
"Damn man have you forgotten how we ...... you ..... wound up here?! Adam incredulously demanded.
"No I haven't," Jays' response was delivered quietly but the edge of steel that crept into his tone couldn't be mistaken.
"Well then you know whatever plan you got in mind is not happening," Adam insisted with a certainty which rankled more than his best friend.
"Ruzek you want to be in charge find another Unit," Voights' no nonsense voice joined in, "I want to hear what Halstead has to ..,"
"But Sarge ...,"
"No harm in listening," Al pointed out pragmatically, he fully understood the concern because they all shared it but right now they were at an impasse and needed to get around it.
"Explain," Voight directed the injured Detective.
"He's still interested in me, for whatever reason, maybe we should lay our cards out and let him know we've gained insight into what happened with Wilkes."

Silence greeted Jays' proposal as each one considered it and weighed up the pros and cons.    Jay had known the seasoned Sergeant would not be swayed by any emotional arguments on his part so he stuck to the rational reasoning.  What he had outlined made practical sense.  No one could deny that.  As his eyes moved from one man to another he tried to gauge who he would need to convince.  Al met his gaze head on and gave an imperceptible nod which released some of the tension that he had built up.  Having the ex-Sniper on his side always gave him a boost for he respected and admired the older man a great deal.   Antonio and Kevin were engaged in a serious conversation n hushed tones but neither looked pleased which did not bode well for him.  As expected Adam and Mouse were openly unhappy.  Looking over to the New Yorkers Jay found both men eyeing him speculatively.  He did his best not to squirm under their open appraisal and met their eyes without flinching.  He subsequently shifted his gaze to Marks eventually.  The Canadian wore a frown and Jay couldn't really blame the guy.  He was trying to maintain control of an investigation on his turf where outside people knew all the intel.  Jay didn't envy the position the man was in and felt guilty he was partly responsible for same with his suggestion.  It was necessary however.   He was under no illusions whatsoever.   As Adam had so unnecessarily reminded him the disastrous turn of events in Med which resulted in his unexpected trip across the border proved once again  that their quarry was adept at out manoeuvring their every ploy.  Heaving in inward sigh the young man rubbed his eyes tiredly wishing there was an easy fix to their problems yet knowing there wasn't.  That untenable truth meant risks needed to be taken and Jay was adamant he was going to be the one taking such risks despite the outcome of their last plan to catch King.   He turned his focus on the main obstacle in his way.  The gruff Sergeant met his eyes with s steely glint.  Hell this was going to be harder than he thought and he hadn't even laid out his plan yet!

Al looked from his old friend to Jay and back again.   The atmosphere in the room had changed and voices died down.   He would back the younger man wven though Voight would not be impressed.   The harsh reality was that short of waiting for King to do some other dastardly deed the only other option was to  engage with him.    It frustrated the moustached man no end that his young friend needed to face even more danger yet there was no choice other than going along with whatever  the former Lieutenant proposed.  The problem would be convincing his old friend of that.   He foresaw stormy waters ahead ......

tbc