Demons (An AU Nathan Gardner Story)

Chapter 22 - Scene of the Crime

Nathan hugged Burt, his grip tight. "Thanks, buddy." They were standing outside of Sydney's home and Nathan didn't want to go in alone.

Burt rubbed Nathan's back. "No problem. I figured she'd need some things." Burt let go and met Nathan's eyes. "Look, Nate, there's a company that cleans this sort of thing up and...I have some pull with them and can arrange them to take care of what's in there, okay?"

"Thank you." He inserted the key into the lock.

"It's going to be rough," Burt warned.

Nathan opened the door and froze. He understood Burt's words immediately. The house where he and Sydney spent so much time together, innocent and sexual, good and not so great, but resolved...was in shambles. Broken glass and bloodstains made him feel instantly nauseous.

"You're all right, Nate. More importantly, you know she's safe. It always looks worse than you remember."

"She'll never see this?"

"I'll make sure of it."

Nathan nodded and went upstairs without another word. At Nathan's request, Sydney wrote a list of things she would like from home. Spending so many nights there eased his quest and he found what he needed without too much of a hassle. He packed up a few bags, but when he descended the stairs, his eyes immediately went to the blood from Sydney's head.

"Still no sign of him?" Nathan asked, his mouth dry.

"Hospital's on high alert, but, no...it's like he vanished." Burt rubbed his eyes. "I suggested they put it on the news, but with his available funds and his origins being out of the country, Captain figured it'd make him a bigger flight risk and..."

"And what would have happened had I killed him?" He wanted an actual answer. "I could have, Burt, and I wanted to. Seeing him on top of her like that...trying to force himself...she was bleeding and he just wanted to..." He looked up from the stain. "Would I be in jail, or would I be exactly where I am now, but less worried and able to go home and tell her that everything's all right and mean it?"

Understanding his friend's frustration, Burt answered as honestly as he could. "Maybe you'd be here, Nate, with the knowledge that you took someone's life. Or maybe his family would go after you in court and you'd spend the rest of your life away from your daughter - if they have enough money that'd be possible."

"She's going to have nightmares for...what, forever? Until he's caught? Who's going to tell her 'it's okay' and know it's true?"

"I'm sorry, Nate, really. It's not your fault that he's gone. You did the right thing - they just didn't get here fast enough. House alarms have so many false alerts that response times aren't as fast as they should be in a real emergency. You took care of Sydney, that's what mattered."

"Burt...I could have been too late."

"You weren't."

Nathan packed Sydney's bags in his car and made two more stops before returning in home. When the garage door opened, Susan rushed to meet her father and help him.

"I'm here for more than the pizza," she said quickly, taking the pizza box off the front seat. She smiled at her father. "Look, I have the small bag too!"

"How is she?" Nathan felt guilty for leaving, but he was hardly going to send Susan to the crime scene.

"Napping right now, but I'm pretty sure she missed you." Susan's earlier smile grew.

Nathan sighed as he grabbed the bigger bag from the backseat. They walked into the game room and up the steps to the main level of the house. "She just needs someone with her...Beth said that being alone..." They entered the kitchen.

Susan put the pizza down on the counter and the small bag on the closest chair and interrupted her father. "No, Dad, She missed you." She motioned for Nathan to put the other bag down. "I'm so sorry that this all happened, and it's beyond shitty...but Dad, she likes you in more than 'the sex' way."

"Susan!" A discussion about his sex life was more than he could handle right now.

"She told me, Dad." Susan blushed. "I can't be sure that she really meant to because she was a little looped, but she wanted me to talk to her about Charlie. I said that I kinda knew when I started to love him and she said she fell for you in the art room." Susan laughed. "Must've been some study hall."

Nathan turned away so Susan couldn't see that he was now the one with rosy cheeks. "She was just looped, Susie Q."