The Temptation - Part 3



   The room was humid. Puddles of water gathered on the ground where old pipes had leaked. No light penetrated the room. It smelt of damp and neglect. Something in the air felt wrong, as if something, or someone, evil had just passed through.
   When Sam and Rick entered the battered old house, the metallic smell of blood hit them in a strong wave. The scene inside was a like to the one they had seen before. It would be the same everytime this man, or woman, struck and killed. Old houses. The bodies placed in an order only he will ever understand.
   Even before they arrived at the scene, Sam had a feeling that she would be surprised at who was inside. It was a strange sense of knowing that she didn't care for.
   She was right.
   Lying in a pool of blood was Eddie Dics. His body had been placed next to the sofa, the blood smeared across the wooden floor. The woman on the couch had also been placed. Her body made to look as if she were in slumber. It was sick. He used the bodies as his own personal dolls. He made this one look innocent, almost childlike. Yet he had used her for whatever sick game he was playing.
   Anna cleared her throat and said: "We should have known Eddie would be next. He was trying to tell us something."
   "Do you think Chandler Long was part of this? Eddie did give us his address," Rick asked.
   Sam shook her head. "I honestly don't know what Eddie was playing at. Chandler explained where he was, and we've got proof he was there."
   "Before we start picking at Chandler Long's story, we need to find out who this woman is. When we know that, we'll be able to focus on connections and follow the links," Anna told them as she walked towards the front door. "Close this place down and get back to the station house as soon as you can."
   Sam and Rick watched her go. They turned to face each other, feelings of unresolved emotions filling them both.



   Sam pushed open the door and walked out into the back yard. The grass was overgrown. The place was a wreck. She noticed a window, maybe the only one in the building not boarded up, and looked inside. It was a small bedroom with only a childs bed inside. Sam wondered who had lived here, made a home here, before it was left to ruin. It could have been a pretty place, a real home. Yet no one loved it enough to care. Sam was familiar with that.
   Would she, too, go to ruin?
   She turned around and noticed Rick standing at the door. He looked awkward, and she felt likewise. He came over to her and said: "What are we going to do?"
   Sam wanted to turn around and run away. Yet she had to answer. "I think we made a mistake."
   "I know we did."
   "I wish we hadn't."
   "I think we should take a break from this friendship."
   Stunned, Sam folded her arms. "Do you think you can just end it like that?"
   "I'm not saying end."
   "Doesn't it mean anything?"
   Rick stepped forward. "If you don't know how much you mean to me then your blind."
   "Then why do you want to end it?" Sam almost yelled.
   "Your not understanding me..."
   Sam held up her hand. "You made it clear."
   Rick was about to respond, but Sam walked away. He could hear her car start up and the tires squeel as she sped away.
   'Damn' he thought.



   Standing at the open door, Chandler wondered if he would ever be able to make this stupid woman move. She had become a burden, an in convince that he could do without. At first it had been fun. They would get together for a night of drinking, then sex, followed by more drinking. Now, she had taken control of his life.
   "Are you just going to stand there?" she asked, her tone as sweet as ever.
   Chandler rubbed his eyes, not a sign of tiredness but of annoyance. "Are you ready?"
   "Of course I am. Don't you think I look nice?"
   "I do. Lets just get out of here, I don't want to be late."
   "I don't think when we leave is really up to you. This is my event, not yours," she pointed out.
   "It's for MY colleagues!" he pointed out.
   She sighed. "Yes, but I planned everything. We don't have to be at the bar for another hour. And, we're eating here so what' the problem if we're a little late?"
   Chandler sighed. "Do what you like. I'll be in the car."



   Sam pulled into a parking space and got out of her car. As she approached the house where Chandler Long lived, she wondered if she should have called first. Her cell phone might not even be there after all.
   She was about to open the gate when Chandler stormed out of the house. He stopped as he noticed her standing there, his face turned from anger to surprise in a matter of seconds.
   "Detective Cardlins, right?" he asked as he stepped out of the gate.
   "Correct. I'm glad you remember me. Now I won't have to go into details of my visit. I seem to have lost my cell phone, and was wondering if I left it here?" she asked.
   "Actually, you did. I was meaning to bring it to the police station, but I didn't get around to it. I'm sorry."
   "No harm done. I'm so stupid, leaving it here. I normally make sure I have it where ever I go," she explained.
   Chandler stepped inside, picked up the cell, and handed it over to her. "There we go."
   "Thanks. Sorry to have bothered you. Have a nice day, Mr. Long," Sam said as she walked over to her car and hopped inside. She started the engine and pulled away, all the while aware of Chandlers eyes burning into her taillight.



   "Nice coat," Mel said as Rick approached her. "Your not going to flash me, are you?"
   Rick looked down as if to confirm he was wearing a coat. He looked up, and said: "Not unless you ask nicely. I spilled some soda over my shirt so I'm forced to wear this until it dries."
   Mel make a gesture towards the chair next to hers. "I'm guessing you want to talk to me about something, since you know Sam isn't here."
   "If you have the time."
   "Honey, I've got all the time in the world for a fellow in a mellow."
   Rick raised an eyebrow at her. "What?"
   "You look glum. What happened between you and Sam this time?"
   Rick took a deep breath before he spoke. He needed to word this well, or she might end up thinking he was only after one thing from Sam, which he wasn't. "Okay. Last night we did something stupid."
   "You had sex."
   Rick turned to face her. "How did you know?"
   "How else could you finish that sentence? Last night we did something stupid...we ate too many donuts and killed too many badgers?"
   Rick rubbed his eyes. "No, we came in on the limit with badgers."
   Mel giggled. "I guess it has ruined things?"
   "Well, yeah. I wanted to know if you have any suggestions about how to fix this?" Rick asked, hoping beyond all hope she would.
   "What do you want out of this relationship, Rick?" Mel asked bluntly.
   "I wanted to take it to the next level. I think I'm falling for her."
   "And last night you took it further, but it didn't turn out like you wanted it to?"
   Rick nodded
   "I don't know if you two would be a good match, Rick. It could work, but I don't know if either of you have the patience to try. You have to ask yourself if you want to make it work as a friendship, or a romance?" Mel explained.
   Rick nodded. Everything she had said was right. They were both too focused on work. They would irritate each other. Was it worth trying? Wouldn't it be easier to just remain friends, if she would let them be that.
   "Thanks for the chat, Mel. I need to think this over," Rick told her as he stood.
   "Just do what you both think is best. Talk, it's not that hard to do you know."
   She watched him walk away. It was on the cards for years, their sleeping together. It had just been a waiting game. Now, it had turned into another waiting game...whether or not they will survive this bump.