Friends Close

by Chaz

As she had for the past twenty-three minutes, Captain Karen Simms stared down at the blank piece of paper on her desk and wondered how the hell she was going to write this report. How was she supposed to explain time travel and demonic forces to her superiors without them thinking she was crazy? Especially when those superiors had never had first hand experience with the insane Shaolin world of the Caines? The commissioner didn't believe his own son's claims of the supernatural, for gods' sake. He certainly wouldn't be amused by this.

Sighing gustily, the captain put down her pen and stretched her arms over her head. If only Kermit and Peter hadn't broken into that top secret government facility, then she wouldn't have to write this stupid report. She could just pretend it didn't happen, like she did half the incidents involving either Kermit or the Caines. Of course, if her two detectives hadn't defied the very laws they were sworn to uphold, she and Caine would still be stuck in time . . . ah, it was enough to make her head hurt.

Karen didn't know what made her look up at that particular moment or what got her to her feet, but she suddenly found herself standing in the doorway of her office. She automatically began scanning the bullpen for whatever had caught her subconscious attention. At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Broderick was maintaining chaos control at the front desk. The Chief was passing out cases. Jody and Skalany were booking a pair of strident perps. Kelly Blake was escorting her own perp down to holding. Peter and Kermit were standing on either side of Blake's desk, laughing at something with the seated detective.

It was their laughter that had caught her attention. Bemused, the captain leaned back against the doorjamb and continued to watch the three men. They were such an unlikely trio. Peter was such a smart ass -- a good cop, but one with a little trouble with following the rules. Kermit was like a coiled snake ready to strike at any moment. And Blake? He was usually such a quiet, unassuming man. Oh, he had his own set of quirks and pet peeves, but he had a real knack for fading into the background. How did three such disparate men even tolerate one another's presence, let alone become as good of friends as they obviously were?

The answer came in the form of spatial arrangement. She noticed how their desks were placed in relation to her own office, and a single word popped into her tired brain that explained it all. Blaisdell. The common denominator.

Peter's desk sat directly in front of the captain's office. Well within reach for effective discipline or instant defense. Blake's desk was positioned to the left of Peter's and conveniently located in front of Kermit's office as well. The perfect spot to keep an eye on the younger man as well as be accessible for quiet conferences with his fellow mercenary when necessary. And Kermit's office had a beautiful view of the whole bullpen, even if he did have his back to it most of the time. Not that it seemed to matter a whole lot. Not much ever got past Kermit's attention. Certainly not someone as hyperkinetic as Peter.

Yes, Karen thought as she reviewed the positioning of the desks. Blaisdell had made damn sure that his foster son was unobtrusively watched by men he'd hand-picked and trained to his own satisfaction -- undoubtedly with methods that weren't approved by any police academy. But with the way Peter attracted trouble, it was probably for the best.

And it wasn't just Peter that was being protected, she realized. By bringing first Blake and then Kermit into the precinct, Blaisdell had been protecting them and himself as well. She didn't know a whole lot about the other captain's past, but she did know that it was dark and dangerous. She'd seen enough of Kermit's enemies to know that, and Blake knew way too many things that no ordinary electronics expert would. By banding together once again, the three former mercs could all relax a little with the knowledge that someone they'd fought with and survived terrible odds with was watching their backs.

Unfortunately, that hadn't been enough for Blaisdell, but it did seem to be working for the other two. The other three, she corrected herself as the trio she was observing again burst into quiet chuckles. When Peter and Kermit had broken into the government facility, it had been Blake they'd asked to back them up. Karen strongly suspected it was not just for his electronics expertise. There had been a strong bond forged between Blake and Peter since the whole cliff incident, everyone at the precinct had seen that, and somehow that bond had combined with one Peter already had with Kermit and the one from the past that had bound Kermit and Blake to form a trinity. A lethal team of experience, bravado, and skills that few could withstand.

Well done, Captain Blaisdell, Karen smiled to herself as she turned back to her office, well done. Now if you could just get one of them to write this report for me . . .

The End