GCPD meets London

[breakstherules]

Continued from here

[Louise stood up, pushing herself away from the wall, a grimace marring her delicate features as her shoulder made her wince slightly.]

The Falcones--they know your face, then, do they?

[Casing the cellar of the small tower block, she was looking for a lift that might take them up and inside the building, unseen. Taking her phone out of her blazer, she texted Lestrade back at HQ:

Check Chatham House, Charing Cross. See if vacancies. How soon can we rent one? Need to lay low for the time being. Keep this quiet. --L.]

They do.

[They knew the GCPD far too well, if you asked Jim. As she looked in one area, he looked in another, checking on the people, taking note of each of their faces before meeting back with Louise.]

Find anything?

Comments

[doomed_copper]

She shook her head. "Only the pilots." Straining, she could then see the barest flicker of black movement from the small spate of woods just off the airstrip, her team assembling.

"Don't seem to notice anything, though," she murmured in a low whisper. "Good thing, too." Just then, her radio crackled.

"All ready, Ma'am."

Turning to Jim, she flashed him an anxious look. Suddenly, the door to the jet began to open, and the air stairs being folded out. The first two henchmen filed out, seemingly unawares, followed by three more.

Then.

The man himself took a step out of the plane, pausing at the beginning of the air stairs to light a cigarette. At 6'4", Adam Wiles cut an impressive figure in his black Armani suit; his pale Scots skin offset it, giving him an almost ethereal look, but the barest scruff of a beard lent a roughened edge. He scraped fingers through his perfectly-coiffed fauxhawk and began his descent, his steps languid.

[breakstherules]

That was Jim's cue to move out, watching closely of the creeping movement of the SWAT team, thankful the airstrip itself was barely lit. They needed to get closer although they currently have the upper hand in the situation.

"There's probably more inside." Jim whispered to Louise, not trusting that he flew with this few of people.

[doomed_copper]

Louise began to move with Jim, her eyes darting from right to left. Coming up next to him, she whispered back:

"That's an almost certainty," she muttered, "He never travels with less than a full entourage. They're likely hanging back inside, waiting until Wiles gives the all-clear."

Moving forward ever so slightly, the redhead was careful in her footfalls so as not to tread too harshly upon the grass, giving their position away. Holding up a hand to the rest of the team, she halted their progress, waiting for a cue from up ahead.

...It seemed ages before the young drug lord pulled out his slim Vertu mobile from his inner suit coat pocket and dialled, murmuring low words into it before sliding it blithely back into his jacket. Soon after, the remaining five guards came out of the aeroplane, treading a short path upon the tarmac upon landing. Wiles glanced at one of them, ostensibly the main heavy, and the other nodded, pulling out a phone and speaking orders into it.

[breakstherules]

That was enough for Jim, not wanting them to signal even more people while on their phones. His gun is aimed high and without another say, shoots, connecting the bullet to Wiles's thigh. He wasn't aiming to kill or severely main, but the stairs will help do some of the rest as the target slid down a few stairs.

He quickly aims again, this time targeting a man that was behind him and managed to get him in the shoulder.

[doomed_copper]

Louise's eyes popped wide open as she shot Jim an anxious glance at seeing the bullet pierce Wiles' thigh, the drug lord slipping and crumpling under the weight of the pain. As he fell, he groaned.

"GET THEM!! FUCKING KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM, MACMANUS--TO THE LEFT!" he shouted in a refined yet rough brogue, made so through the searing feel of the wound.

Louise quickly moved behind a tree, and unlatched her other holster, drawing her other Glock 17. In one fast movement, she reappeared, firing both weapons simultaneously, taking one of them out after they'd killed three of her team.

Another one, ostensibly Macmanus, came at her from behind, but as his hand touched her shoulder, she whirled round and plugged him in the jugular.

Just then, the pilots came out with large shotguns, themselves trained assassins, and they began to fire as well upon the group.

[breakstherules]

Jim dashed to where a vehicle was waiting on the airstrip beside the plane, checking the inside to make sure no one was inside (was it abandoned here for them to use once they landed?) and used the front as a cover. Raising up, he uses the hood as a stabilizer, allowing him to fire off a few rounds in succession mostly targeting the pilots that just arrived to the stairs with their larger firearms.

There were already men of his lying on the ground and he hated the thought they got caught up on this drama because of him, but now wasn't the time to second guess everything.

[doomed_copper]

As soon as Macmanus fell slack towards her, Louise used his body as a human shield when the pilots turned on her after being unsuccessful at pinning down Jim. Wrapping one arm about his chest, she fired with the other, her eyes focused and intense. One of her shots hit the pilot in the gut, and he slumped over, his shotgun misfiring as he did, finishing him off.

Shoving the body of the henchman to the ground, she ran, darting through the trees to the other side of the airstrip to where Jim was. Flinging herself low to the ground next to him, she backed up against the car, reloading her magazines from two holders strapped to each ankle. Tossing him a glance, she nodded back towards the plane.

"How many of them do you reckon we've got left to beat?"

[breakstherules]

He stops to reload with new magazines for his own gun, pleased to see Louise joining him and all in one piece. The rest of the SWAT team continued on their own as they lied low for a moment.

"Looks like there's 4 taken out, I'd guess maybe 6 more." He didn't think there were any more than 10 on the plane, but they ran the risk that whoever they called notified others to join in, and if that happened, they were probably in trouble. They had set up a road block into the place, staked out by two men, but it clearly wouldn't be enough if worse came to worse.

Popping back up, he fires and clips another guy, watching him fall outside the stairs dropping at least 5 feet, "Hopefully only 5 more after that."

[doomed_copper]

Two more shots were fired, and Louise went against possibly every precaution that Jim had given, or would have given, about her injury and post-op, and flung her top half above the car's roof, both barrels blazing, and took out the two bastards who'd fired upon them. A lazy smirk crossed her features as she slid back down the side door of the car and back to sitting beside him. Quirking an eyebrow at him, she tossed him a glance.

"And now there are just three."

[breakstherules]

Three that still had guns as bullets pelted the hood of the car just as Louise sunk down.

Jim glances between the car mirror and the door, hoping he was shielded enough to have a look. She was right, he only was seeing three right then, Wiles, a pilot, and one remaining henchmen.

"Notify P.D. that we'll be heading back soon and can use whatever backup is left." Which was code for Jim wanting to finish business here and end things. Too many lives were lost already on their side.

The SWAT team that remained was moving in closer, keeping the remaining three lingering around the stairs of the plane, leading Jim to come out of hiding and follow close behind them.

[doomed_copper]

Louise fished her radio out of her blazer pocket and gave explicit instructions to despatch before replacing it and picking up both weapons again to follow Jim's lead into the fray. One of their men clipped the last henchman in the back of the knee, sending him sprawling, and the remaining pilot dropped his shotgun in a panicked surrender upon seeing that he was now surrounded.

Officers from the Yard arrived and as the SWAT team began clearing the bodies off the lawn, they arrested both the last of Wiles' toadies and the cowardly pilot, dragging them off to the patrol cars. All that remained were Jim, Louise, and the posh young punk, who was currently clutching in agony at his hip. The redheaded detective moved forward and cocked her pistol, aiming it squarely at Wiles' forehead whilst canting her head slowly to the right, poised to take an accurate shot if he attempted any smart moves.

"Care to do the honours, Gordon?" she tossed out nonchalantly.

[breakstherules]

There's a sneer on Gordon's face as he holsters his gun. He leans over him, hovering, in hopes to be as threatening as possible in a show of dominance. "Were you working with Falcone?"

The look in response was harsh as Wiles glared up, refusing to speak a moment, causing Jim to wedge his foot near the wound. "I asked if you're working for Falcone?"

"Y-Yes!"

"Are there any others following you?"

"I-I don't know!" It was lie and Jim knew it, but he couldn't be for certain of who else was in the family. He adds more pressure to his foot, now encroaching towards the wound.

"Oswald Cobblepot!"

There's a low growl before Jim removes his foot, turning back to the rest of the team, "Lock him up!"

[doomed_copper]

At Wiles' confession, Louise withdrew her semi-automatic, clicking the safety back into place as she did so, a hardened, icy expression marring her features. A faint sigh of relief escaped the Scot's throat at that moment, knowing he'd been spared, and his eyes squeezed shut a moment as the blood slowly came back to his face. But then, it all faded into indignance as the team hauled him away to a waiting vehicle, Wiles tossing them both a truly venomous glance over his shoulder as they led him away in cuffs.

Placing her weapon back into the holster strapped to her shoulder, the detective leaned back against the airstairs, letting her head rest gently against it as she shut her eyes and took a deep breath.

[breakstherules]

The look is met with an unphased expression by Jim. He's seen it before plenty of times, and most likely could be said the same for Louise.

With his own sigh, he makes the slow trek back to the car they were in and leans against the door, crossing his arms after scrubbing at his face as exhaustion set in.

[doomed_copper]

She finally pushed her back off the airstairs to trudge back in order to join Jim at their car. Leaning upon the back passenger seat door next to him, Louise pushed a hand through her hair, which by now had come completely loose from its chignon; the redhead gave no fucks, pulling the last bobby pin free and pelting it into the woods before looking at him, a wan expression on her face.

"It's now 5AM. I reckon we share shifts driving back to London, and I'm going to shower and have the longest bloody sleep of my LIFE," she intoned.

[breakstherules]

Jim nods, eagerly pulling off the vest and holsters to pack away in the trunk to make the ride home more comfortable.

After sleeping like the dead himself, he did little that day before sauntering into headquarters around 4pm. Both he and Louise were given the day off, but he wanted to get a start on the paperwork before he forgot all the details. He did tend to be maybe too thorough in his reports, but it made things easier that way.

Quietly he's at a loaned desk sipping on a mug of coffee while sifting through some papers before he began typing.

Ooh, late start, Jimbo!! He's beginning to sound like me! LOL

[doomed_copper]

For her part, Louise felt considerably more human as she strode into the building at precisely 2:00, situating herself in her office. She'd been so preoccupied with filing reports on the previous night's events that she hadn't given a thought to looking for Jim just yet, and when her eyes flicked over to the clock next, it was already 4:30.

Pushing herself away from her desk, she decided a nice cuppa--Builder's tea--would suit her just fine, and so she made her way to the break room, occasionally glancing round for her partner. Spying him at a desk normally reserved for uniformed officers, a slow smirk began tugging at the corner of her mouth and she walked over, folding her arms as she paused over him.

"You're casually late," she chided teasingly before gesturing towards her office. "You...could've used the other side of mine, you know," she offered with a nervous cough. "I don't exactly bite. Well. Not too hard, at least." It was a lame attempt at humour, and she knew it.

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

[breakstherules]

"We had today off, technically." He replied back, finishing off a sentence he was writing, half listening to Louise's attempt at humor (which wasn't any better than his, FYI). After finishing typing, he glances up towards her.

"How long have you been here, and how's your shoulder?" She appeared to be in better spirits, which was definitely a good thing.

<3 <3

[doomed_copper]

She rolled her eyes subtly at his queries, shifting her stance and placing a hand on her slightly jutted out hip.

"I've been here since 2, and will you kindly STOP asking after my shoulder, Gordon, for pity's sake. I'm three days post-op, and I've got my big-girl knickers on," she reminded him, lifting an eyebrow in emphasis.

"However, it's rather charming that you care at all."

Brushing her hands several times down her pencil skirt in an effort to blow off the uncertainty, Louise glanced up at the wall clock.

"It's just gone five. Going to be clocking off in a bit. You?"

The breezy sound of her tone was supposed to convey indifference; however, the redhead was itching to blow off some steam after their ridiculously important collar, and she shifted her eyes furtively towards Jim's in a silent query.

[breakstherules]

He blinks at her reply, unsure as how to respond to that other than a blank nod. As she smoothed out her skirt, he clears his throat and shuffles some papers until her next question.

"Nah, I've barely made a dent in this pile. As soon as I get some of it put away, I'll head out." He spent far too many times late at the station, but what else was he going to do?

And as an after thought, "Got any plans?"

[doomed_copper]

She shot him a withering glance.

"We've not even had three hours off after we just delivered probably the most impressive collar of the last five years. Lestrade himself gave us two days of personal time," she reasoned.

"The only plans I have are to stuff my paperwork until Wednesday, have a celebratory meal, get reasonably drunk, and do all that....," she halted slightly, her words beginning to stumble, "...hopefully with you."

[breakstherules]

Tapping his pen on the desk, he's half listening to her list until she mentioned the last three words. And without a beat, "Since you're the only person I know here other than Wiles... I'll go."

He couldn't sit here and do paperwork nonstop for the next two days, "Give me two hours and I'll meet you somewhere."

[doomed_copper]

She smirked at him slyly. "Cheeky sod. If you'd picked Wiles, we'd likely need a chat."

*******

Three hours later, the pair of them were ensconced in a back booth inside the gastropub in Croydon Louise was so fond of nearest her flat, having had a lovely, if rather traditionally British meal. Two pints of real ale (Jim) and two glasses of Pinot (Louise) in, they were certainly less stilted and far more relaxed.

Louise, for her part, had gone home to change and maybe fuss with her hair a little. She'd ended up choosing a simple, black, tea-length wrap dress and left her hair down, probably an attempt to try to get herself to separate work and everything after.

Taking a casual sip from her glass, she smiled gamely at him.

"Okay, then. Worst date. What was it?" she asked.

[breakstherules]

He takes a sip from his beer and pops another french fry in his mouth, mulling over his answer. "Mm, got one! Where this woman showed me where she buried all her pets in this area of one of the parks. It got really awkward."

Unfortunately he didn't have that many dating stories, but at least he could come up with that one. "You?"

[doomed_copper]

Louise rolled her eyes and set her glass back down.

"I was set up on a blind date by a colleague desperate to see me get laid. She talked him up and everything beforehand. He'd won tickets on Capital Radio to see Tom Petty, and needed a plus one, so I agreed, even though his music isn't my cup of tea. So we're sat there at the O2 Academy, and he's getting more and more annihilated with each passing second, and before you know it, he was calling me 'mama' repeatedly, and in the third person. 'Oh! Mama likes this song, yeah?' 'Ooh, Mama likes to dance, mm-hmm, I can get with that.' The sympathetic looks I got from the couple sitting next to us were proof positive." She shuddered in remembrance.

"Needless to say, I didn't call him back, and I seriously questioned if my colleague secretly had it out for me."