Twists of Fate - Chapter 6 (PG-13)

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francis
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Twists of Fate - Chapter 6 (PG-13)

Post by francis »

Betaed by redwinter101.
Disclaimer: I don't own Josh, or Beth, or Mick, or anything in this fic, but I like to play with them, so bear with me.

Josh tries to save his relationship, works on the Fayed case and meets a beautiful woman. But it's not Beth.
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link from chapter 5: viewtopic.php?f=75&t=544&p=2711#p2711
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Josh was seriously angry. Beth still wouldn’t talk to him about what happened after she shot LeeJay, and the attorney had to prepare for a really important case and was stressed at work. The only positive fact he could think of was that Mick was out of the picture for now.

A day after Julia was rescued Beth had given a statement, Mick had given one, and when Josh wanted to see the files Carl told him in no uncertain terms that it wasn’t his case and as Beth wasn’t in danger anymore there was no reason to let him have a look.

When he stayed with Beth that night she had a nightmare again, but she wouldn’t tell him what it was about. Beth went to work as if everything was fine, but she seemed distracted, like something was preying on her mind.

The next day Beth told Josh she needed space to work through what happened. She didn’t want him to come over. He was afraid that she was thinking about leaving him and was mute with panic.

He knew it was a cheap move but he asked nonetheless. „Are you going to work with Mick again?“

„I haven’t seen him since that night,“ she answered, neither apologetic nor defensive, which calmed him a little.

„Why not?“

She shrugged. „I don’t need his help with any of my stories at the moment.“

He understood now that she wasn’t only withdrawing from Josh, but from Mick, too. Maybe she really did need some time for herself. Her life had been hectic lately. He tried to get a grip on himself and not jump to conclusions.

Josh had a complicated case to distract him. Arms dealer, Amir Fayed, had been suspected for years of having links to HEM, a dangerous gang of thieves, kidnappers, drug dealers and blackmailers. But there had never been any proof, and as he always gave money to lots of charities his reputation was both impeccable and impenetrable.

Josh had a possible witness, Jack Toland. He was a minor business partner of Fayed and undoubtedly knew a lot. He wanted to cut a deal - evidence against Fayed in exchange for acquittal in the cases that were pending against him, and he had contacted the police. Josh tried to arrange to meet him, but Toland was scared of Fayed finding out he was an informant. They corresponded using an undercover cop as a contact.

In the meantime Josh searched for any incriminating evidence he could find on Fayed, using Toland’s notes to draw new conclusions in some old cases that the D.A.’s office never dreamed of linking to Fayed. The proof had to be airtight. A previous trial against Fayed had gone wrong, as they didn’t have enough evidence to nail him. Now that they had Toland, they had a second chance.

And then Jack Toland vanished from the face of the earth. At first Josh assumed he got cold feet and disappeared, but as time went on he became convinced that Fayed had him killed. As always, there was no evidence. Josh’s case of the year had just evaporated into thin air.

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Two days later Beth called to ask if she could come over.

He was relieved. „Of course, Beth. You’re always welcome.“

When Josh opened the door for her she started to apologize. „I’m sorry that I’ve been avoiding you for the last few days, but I really needed to think about things.“

„It’s okay, Beth. I had lots of work anyway, and I don’t expect you to be at my beck and call all the time,“ he smiled. She relaxed. They sat down on the couch, he took her in his arms, comforted by having her close. „I missed you,“ he admitted.

„Yeah, me too,“ she nodded and leaned on his shoulder. They just sat there for a while, content.

As they got started on dinner, she helped cutting the vegetables while Josh told her as much as he could about the Toland case.

She was intrigued. „Would it be okay if Buzzwire reported this?“

„Wait until we have an actual trial. I don’t want the media to compromise the case.“

„Of course. Do you have any clue as to where Toland went? Did he go on the run, or has he been killed?“

„At the moment I’m almost sure Fayed had him killed, but there’s no proof whatsoever. I hate not being able to do anything.“

She nodded and continued to work in silence, a silence that was making Josh uncomfortable. He felt like they had lost the ability to communicate in the two days they hadn’t seen each other. She was so solemn, and there was still something she wasn’t telling him. It irritated him that he couldn’t shake this feeling.

„What are you working on?“ Josh asked to break the silence.

She told him about two cases with eery similarities: a brutal homicide at a store and another at a parking lot nearby. While talking about the details she got more and more animated. Josh could tell that she was loving this investigation.

„Carl won’t let me report this as a serial, he is afraid of copycats, but I’m sure there is something linking them. The murderer cut their throat in a very messy way and they bled out. Spooky, huh?“

Josh shuddered. He had seen a lot in his career, but mostly white collar crime. He hardly ever had to visit a crime scene. He feared for Beth when she went to scenes like that, worried that the gruesome details would fill her nightmares again.

After dinner they made love. Josh had a strong urge to reconnect with Beth, to reassure them both about their relationship. And from her reaction, she felt the same. Beth clutched at him as if she was afraid to lose him, or lose herself. He reverently stroked over the curves of her body, her back, her arms, her soft belly, her thighs, trying to memorize every detail, thinking about what their relationship meant to him. He knew that she was a tough woman, and yet sometimes he treated her like she was made of glass. He wondered if he was patronizing her too much, or if he just preferred her soft side. Sometimes he wanted to let go and be more passionate with her, but he wasn’t sure if she would appreciate it. For all the bravado she had when dealing with crime scenes, cops and tough interviewees, she was almost passive in bed. He didn’t really mind, he loved her too much to care, mostly. He felt so much tenderness for her that he was close to tears.

She realized. „What is it, Josh?“

He swallowed. „I love you. You know that, don’t you?“

She nodded, looked him in the eyes and kissed him with new urgency. When they finally started a rhythm it was all he could dream of – passionate, sensual and tender. In that moment she was everything he could hope for. Her smile, her smell, the texture of her hair, her perfect breasts, the way she embraced him, all that made him lose himself and want to crawl into her.

He knew that if he ever lost her, he would go insane.

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Josh’s buddy Kevin knocked and led a woman in. „Josh, this is Morgan Vincent. She has some information for you.“

Josh nodded his thanks and got up to get her a chair.

She sat down with the grace of a dancer. He waited until she settled down and watched her. She put her purse under her chair and pulled a hand through her dark, luminous hair. She was a stunning beauty, slender but tall, dressed in stylish but practical clothes and expensive shoes. She wore no jewelry and almost no make-up. The way she was holding herself had an air of self-assurance.

He shook off his musings. „So, Ms. Vincent, what can I do for you?“

„Mr. Lindsey, I’m sure your time is precious, so I’ll come straight to the point. I’m a professional photographer, and I’m working on the illustrations for a book about the beaches of California. I know about Jack Toland’s disappearance through a friend of mine and I think I have something you could use.“

During the last sentence she got visibly excited and her voice went up half an octave. She took a manila folder out of her purse and laid it down in front of him.

He opened the folder and looked at photos of Jack Toland on a beach, arm in arm with a smiling young woman, dressed in casual clothes, redbrown hair braided, clearly in love.

The wheels in Josh’s brain were turning. Had Jack gone on the run after all? „Is this recent?“

„No, it’s from three months ago, Malibu Beach. I’m sure you didn’t know he had a girlfriend.“

„Ms. Vincent, I don’t know how Mr. Toland having a girlfriend would help our case.“

She pouted, clearly disappointed with his reaction. „I just thought…“ He saw her displeasure. She had taken all her courage to show him the photos, suspecting a story behind them, and he had obviously hurt her feelings.

„I’m sorry, Ms. Vincent. Please tell me what you’re thinking.“

„I think maybe you could find her. Maybe she has seen something, or knows something. I was just trying to help.“ She looked down at the hands in her lap.

He tried to reassure her. „You’re right, if he ran she might know. We’ll try to find her.“ He gestured towards the folder on his desk. „May I keep that?“ She nodded. „Thank you, Ms. Vincent. It’s a chance at least.“ Josh got up and extended his hand.

She shook his hand, her grip firm. „If there is anything else I can do, call me. My card is in the folder.“ She grabbed her purse and turned around. He saw a smile play around her lips and wondered what that was about. She had been in distress a second ago, hadn’t she? He wondered if she had been acting, and in that case, what her agenda was.

He hurried to get the door. „Thanks,“ he said again.

She nodded and looked into his eyes. She had such expressive eyes, full lips. He tried to look away, but that made him only stare at her breasts.

„Nice to meet you.“ Her voice was different, honeyed, sultry.

He cleared his throat. „Yes, nice to meet you, too.“

She took off towards the elevator and never looked back. Josh watched her and admired her walk. She didn’t sashay, but she definitely knew that she was being watched and admired.

He smiled. Trust a beautiful woman to go from hurt feelings to come-hither in a minute. Of course, he was in love with Beth, but what was wrong with admiring a piece of art?

On his way back to the office he went into Kevin’s small cubicle.

„What did she want?“ his buddy asked.

„She had a photo of Jack Toland with his girlfriend. But I doubt we can find her. She could be anywhere.“Josh showed him the glossy photo.

Kevin was startled. „That’s Fayed’s nanny, Leni Hayes.“

„You sure?“

„Yeah, she was among the people we interviewed, but said she hadn’t seen anything.“

„Maybe she’s worth trying again. If she was involved with Toland, she wouldn’t want to let Fayed find out.“

Josh was ecstatic. This was a breakthrough. The photo could probably help to convince her to give evidence. Ms. Vincent had been right.

Josh would have to call her again. And she would tell him „I told you so“, and rightfully so. He regretted now that he had treated her so abruptly. Then he remembered that he should have asked her who her source was. They hadn’t publicised that they were searching for Toland. Was there a leak somewhere? If something compromised the trial, it would professionally damage him and Beth, as everyone would assume that he passed information to her.

But maybe Morgan’s source was another lead to shed light on the case. Josh’s mood continued to improve. The Fayed case was open again, and Josh could smell victory. He hurried to make some phone calls. It was time to get a new trial under way.

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link to chapter 7: viewtopic.php?f=75&t=546&p=2713#p2713
Last edited by francis on Sat Mar 28, 2009 9:57 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Raven
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Re: Twists of Fate - Chapter 6 (PG-13)

Post by Raven »

For all the bravado she had when dealing with crime scenes, cops and tough interviewees, she was almost passive in bed. He didn’t really mind, he loved her too much to care, mostly. He felt so much tenderness for her that he was close to tears.
Beth is this way throughout all aspects of her relationship with Josh. Passive. And Josh accepts it, unconditionally. It's in contrast with the inner consuming love he has for her. And Beth...it's only when she puts forth a forced effort that passion flares...or maybe she's thinking about Mick. Or maybe guilt for having feelings and thoughts of Mick spur her to passion. Either way, it's a fissure in their relationship, and one that they both can feel.
Mogan Vincent...interesting. She's been working sporatically with Buzzwire for two years, I guess she's making her move now that "contact" has been made between Mick and Beth. I'm assuming she hasn't taken the cure yet, that's for screwing with Mick's head. Vampire allure? Seems like she was giving Josh a dose of that.
I'm looking forward to seeing where you take the Morgan thing, francis...how much Morgan is to blame for Mick eventually drinking Beth's blood and sealing that connection they have. Wouldn't that be ironic.
Great update.
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jen
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Re: Twists of Fate - Chapter 6 (PG-13)

Post by jen »

:hearts: Coraline, er Morgan involved at this point?? This is interesting and Josh's involvement with vampires at this point opens up a lot of possibilities. But what is she up to?

Coraline/Morgan a vampire here? I would assume that Coraline has taken the cure multiple times. Apparently she did back during the French revolution, and this is a subsequent treatment. Maybe she is on a dosing regimen to stay human longer. We really don't know any of this.

Off to read more! Thank you! :flowers:
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diane31
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Re: Twists of Fate - Chapter 6 (PG-13)

Post by diane31 »

Morgaline at this point! I like it!!! :twothumbs: One the one hand it feels like sch a shocker, and yet it really makes sense. We know that she has been stalking Mick and Beth from day 1, or day 2 at least, and perceptive as she can see how Mick and Beth feel for each other and where it is likely going, even before Beth does, so, she's starting the games!
I love the way you reverse the situation too having Josh attracted to Coraline, when usually it is always Beth who's got the bad part in their relationship with Josh all innocent. And I can totally see Coraline batting her eyes at Josh to settle score with Beth behind her back for getting closer to Mick!
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francis
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Re: Twists of Fate - Chapter 6 (PG-13)

Post by francis »

Thank you for reading my stories, diane. I'm stuck with RL at the moment, but I plan on finishing this.
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Re: Twists of Fate - Chapter 6 (PG-13)

Post by jen »

This is amazing. Fabulous reread!!!

We know Coraline, er Morgan had been around for a couple of months establishing her new ) or temporary) incarnation as Beth's colleague. Josh would have been putty in her hands.

What am I saying--any guy would have been putty in her hands!

Intriguing!

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