Nick & Co. are the property of J.P. & Co. I am just borrowing
them for a little while.

This little tale follows my story Puzzles, although you can
easily read this one by itself. Both stories follow Last Knight.
For those not too keen on Tracy, stick with it. There is some
nice Nick and Nat stuff as well. At least one part is going to
get sent under an Adult header. 

For the purposes of this story LaCroix never "whammied" Tracy
into forgetting what happened to Vachon.




Excess Baggage
part 1/12
by Kathy Whelton
(c) 1996

"Knight, Vetter in my office."  The sounds of Joe Reese's
booming voice echoed through the precinct.

Nick looked up across his desk and smiled at his partner.
He never realized how good it would be to hear those words
again. It had been three months since the events of *that* night.
Nick had been working solo since then, this was Tracy's first
week back on the job.  They had been kept occupied doing
busywork all week, maybe things were looking up.

"You ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Tracy replied. She smiled thinly,
hoping to cover the sudden anxiety that had begun creeping
up on her.

They rose in unison and headed toward the office.

Joe Reese had been the hero of that night. Without his timely
arrival at the loft, he and Natalie would undoubtedly be dead.
Nick would always be grateful for Reese's actions that night.
Reese had taken a leap of faith in removing the staff that had
penetrated Nick's chest, and in remaining by Natalie's side at
the hospital.

Fortunately, Nick had been able to work around Reese's
initial resistance to hypnosis. Reese's knowledge of his true
nature would have made remaining here impossible. As it was,
Nick knew he had remained in this life far too long. It was only
his feelings for Natalie and his sense of obligation to Tracy
that kept him here. He also knew that it was only due to the
intervention of Commissioner Vetter with internal affairs that
he still had a job here, a job he was no longer sure he wanted.

"What's up, Captain?" Nick asked as they entered the office.

"We have an apparent homicide--female, Caucasian. The woman
appears to be the victim of a sexual assault and had her head
caved in with a rock to boot." Reese stated, the disgust evident
in his voice. "She fits the general description of a woman
reported missing from the area several hours ago. Of course we
will have to wait on a positive ID. Dr. Lambert is already on her
way." Reese jotted the address done quickly and handed it to
Nick.

Nick and Tracy turned to leave. "Keep in touch people, er,
Nick hang on a minute." Reese waited for Tracy to depart before
continuing. "How is she doing?"

"Fine, Captain," Nick replied. "She's anxious to get her
feet wet again."

"This could be a rough one. From the description of the victim
she's a mess."

"Tracy doesn't want to be treated with kid gloves Captain,
she has to know that we respect her."

"Okay, okay Nick, I hear you. Just *please* be careful out
there." After all the heat that had come down on him after the
shooting, the last thing in the world he wanted was Tracy Vetter
back here on his shift. She insisted, though. She wouldn't hear
of going anywhere else, or be partnered with anyone but Knight,
and whatever Tracy Vetter wants, Tracy Vetter gets.

Tracy was waiting for Nick by the caddy. "Let me guess. Is Tracy
going to be all right with this?" Tracy asked, rolling her eyes.

Nick's grin answered the question for her. "Don't take it
personally, he's just concerned." He held the door for Tracy as
she slid into the passenger seat."

"I don't really have much of a choice, now do I?"

end part one




Nick and Tracy drove to the crime scene in silence. Nick's
mind wandered back to the first few days after the shooting.


~~~~~~~~

Nick stuck his head into Tracy's hospital room. "Hey, partner. I
heard you were waking up. You look pretty good for someone who
was pronounced dead three days ago."

Tracy smiled thinly. "Everyone keeps saying it's a miracle."

Nick and Natalie had speculated on Tracy's recovery--miraculous
might not be the best word to describe it. They felt that Tracy's
amazing recovery and the fact the bullets had passed through Nick
before striking her may not be a coincidence. It was not a theory
he planned to discuss with Tracy Vetter anytime soon.

"You look good, how are you feeling?" Nick asked,forcing his
voice to remain cheerful. He was not unused to a hospital
environment, but she looked far worse than he had imagined.
Her face was drawn. She had a nasogastric tube coming out of her
nose, draining her stomach contents. He noticed a urinary
catheter hanging off the end of the bed and a significant area on
her head had been shaved for the surgery.

Nick moved about the room as he spoke--anything to avoid looking
into her eyes. He was grateful that she was alive, but seeing her
like this, knowing that he was at least partially responsible was
tough.

"The doctors say it's going to be a long haul. I have a
significant weakness on my left side--they're not sure if or
when it may resolve. Nor will I be eating a steak dinner
anytime soon," she quipped, motioning to the tube coming
out of her nose.

Nick winced as she spoke. "Captain Reese said that things are
kind of hazy for you."

"I remember being at Laura Haynes', after that things are
a little fuzzy," she acknowledged.

Nick felt the relief wash over him--she didn't remember the
Dawkin's incident, or the events in the locker room. With
any luck, those memories might never return. "That may be for the
best. Look, Tracy, I've got to go. The internal affairs
investigation into Delbert Dawkins death is scheduled for
tomorrow, and I have to meet with representation before then.
I'll be back to see you soon, I promise." Nick stood and quickly
headed for the door, barely sparing her a glance as he moved
towards the hallway.

"Did you drive over, Nick, or did you fly?"

Nick stopped dead in his tracks. He responded without
turning. "I guess I deserved that."

"Yeah, Nick, you did. But it would have been much more
satisfying if you didn't look quite so awful yourself."

Nick turned and faced Tracy. She was holding a hand out
to him. "What's up?" she asked quietly.

Nick quickly crossed the room and sat down beside her on the bed.
He enfolded her hand in his and looked her directly in the eye
for the first time since entering the room. Nick did look rough--
she had never seen him quite so pale and exhausted.

"It shows, huh?" He paused. "Natalie's in the hospital too,
up on the ninth floor. I've been here, pretty much around the
clock, for the last three days."

Tracy struggled to sit up. No one had said a word of this to
her. "What happened?"

"She's okay. Actually, she'll be going home in the next
few days."

Tracy noticed that he didn't answer the question but let it
pass.

"Tracy," he started slowly. "I'm so sorry for what's happened.
I feel that if I'd been honest with you sooner, this wouldn't
have occurred."

"No, it was my fault." Tracy shook her head. She was determined
to take responsibility for her own mistakes. "What an idiot I
was, going into that locker room alone, in the dark. Always
trying to prove myself. Always trying to prove that I'm not where
I am because I'm the Commissioners daughter." She looked up at
her partner. All that didn't change the fact that he didn't
trust her--he never had. Their whole relationship was built
on a lie. That had hurt her more than anything else that had
happened. "Why, Nick? Why didn't you say something?"

It was a question he had asked himself a thousand times. She
had proven she could be trusted--why hadn't he said anything?
Did keeping it from her somehow make him feel more human? "By the
time I felt I could trust you, there never seemed to be a good
time to bring it up." Nick managed a thin smile. "It's hard to
work 'I'm a bloodsucking creature of the night' into casual
conversation you know."

"Hey! That's my partner you're talking about." Tracy squeezed his
hand tightly

"Sorry." His smile broadened. "I assure you my intentions were
good. I was only trying to protect you. I promise that if you
ever catch me being patronizing or paternalistic again you can
whack me."

It was the best offer she'd had all day. "It's a deal."

"Tracy, I'm sorry about Vachon," he said quietly.

Her eyes welled with tears at the mention of his name. So they
did know one another--it seemed that Nick wasn't the only one
who didn't trust her. 

"If it's any consolation, his death has been avenged."

Tracy looked at him in surprise. "How...?" She paused as
a nurse entered the room. 

Nick stood abruptly. "Now I really do have to go. Take care. I'll
be back soon." He bent over and kissed her on the forehead.

"Good luck at the inquiry Nick," she called after him. Tracy
leaned over and reached for the phone. He may not trust *her*,
but he was still her partner. 

~~~~~~~~end flashback~~~~


Nick's mind returned to the present as they pulled up to the
crime scene. He parked the caddy behind several marked
police cars already on the scene.  They had come to a rather
seedy residential area. The homes were run down, trash littered
the sidewalks. Following the bright lights, Nick and Tracy made
their way through the dense underbrush to a vacant lot.

Natalie was standing over the body of a woman, nude except
for a bra. The brush around the body was matted and bloody.
A large depression was evident in the skull of the victim--
Tracy braced herself for the inevitable churning of her stomach,
and was surprised when it didn't happen.

Natalie glanced over her shoulder at the pair. She inhaled
deeply--her heart catching at the sight of Nick. It would be
just her luck that they drew the case. "Hi, Nick," she managed.
"Welcome back Tracy."

"Thanks Natalie," Tracy responded. It was good to see Natalie's
familiar face. Maybe this wouldn't be so tough after all. "What
have we got?"

"Well, the phosphate test is positive for semen. From the
looks of her, she put up quite a struggle--there's skin under
her fingernails. The bruising around her neck that suggests she
was strangled, but I'd assume it was the blow to the head that
killed her, instantly, would be my guess."

A young, uniformed officer approached the scene. "We found a
purse a few yards from here, the money and credit cards are still
in it. ID belongs to a Mary Clark, looks like she worked at a
place called the Pink Flamingo--that's a strip club downtown. I
guess you should expect something like this when you work in a
place like that."

"Excuse me?!" Natalie exploded. "You mean to tell me...
*officer*...that she deserved this because of what she does for a
living?"

Nick moved forward, stepping quickly between the two. "Let's get
back to the case here, shall we?" He aimed a stern gaze at the
uniformed officer. "Do you have anything else to add?" he asked
in clipped tones.

The officer faced flushed deeply. "The woman who had reported her
missing is at this address," he said, handing Nick a piece of
paper. "It's two streets in that direction." He glanced quickly
a Natalie. "I'm...sorry," he mumbled as he headed off.

Nick turned to Natalie, looking at her closely for the first time
since his arrival at the scene. He was pained at how thin and
pale she still looked. She had large dark circles under her eyes
as well--he could only guess at the nightmares that must be 
plaguing her dreams. "I guess you raised his consciousness, or at
least he learned not to tangle with you, I'm not sure which."

Nick's comments brought a thin smile to her lips. "I didn't
mean that to come out quite so strongly, I just can't believe
some people still have that attitude."

"I think you did great." He returned the smile. "We better go
check out this address--we'll catch up with you later."

~~~~~~

Nick and Tracy approached the address of the woman who
had called in the missing persons report. They stepped heavily,
if the victim was the missing woman they were loaded down
with the worst of news. The house appeared run down but
neatly kept. An older woman answered in response to their
knock.

"I'm Detective Knight," Nick stated, bringing his badge into
her view. "This is Detective Vetter, may we come in?"

The woman shifted her gaze from one to the other, trying to
discern the truth from their faces. "Is this about Mary?"

"I'm afraid it is." Nick handed her the purse. "Do you
recognize this?"

The woman slowly took the purse from his hands. "Yes," her voice
caught. "This is Mary's."

"May I ask what your relationship is to Miss Clark?" Nick
asked.

"I'm her son's babysitter...and I'm her friend. I watch her
little boy while she is at work. I called when she didn't come
home at the usual time."

"I have bad news, I'm afraid." Nick paused, motioning for
the woman to take a seat. "We found a body a few blocks from
here. Her general appearance matches the description you
gave us earlier."

The woman's hand went reflexively to cover her mouth, she
stifled a sharp cry. She looked towards a door off of
the living room, the door was cracked and a Power Rangers
nightlight glowed softly beyond. "She was a good mother, she
only worked at that place because it paid well."

"I'm sure she was a good mother," Tracy responded
gently. "Can you think of anyone that might want to hurt her?"

The woman shook her head from side-to-side. "No, no one that I
can think of."

"What about a boyfriend, the child's father, maybe?"

"Mary hasn't seen Danny's father in years. She wasn't
dating anyone that I knew of." The woman stood and began
pacing the floor. "I told her it wasn't safe for her to be
walking around the streets this late at night--it was four blocks
from the bus stop. Mary said she just didn't have the money to
get her car fixed."

Nick and Tracy stood to go. "If you think of anything that might
help us out, please give me a call," Nick stated as he handed her
his card. "Again, we are sorry for your loss."

"Yes," she muttered absently, "of course. Thank you."



Nick and Tracy's visit to the Pink Flamingo yielded
little except giving Tracy the feeling that she needed to
take a shower.

The manager of the club and Mary Clark's co-workers
had little to say about her. She was a hard worker, quiet
and kept mainly to herself while at the club.

No one there was aware of any relationships or personal
problems that the victim may have had. The club was quiet
at this hour, most of the patrons having left hours before.

"Well, that was a complete waste of time," commented Tracy
as they left the club. "Any ideas?"

"We don't seem to be coming up with much," Nick
acknowledged. "No enemies, no old boyfriends. Why don't
we swing by the morgue and see if Natalie has come up with
anything before we call it a night."



~~~~~~


Tracy dreaded going to the morgue with Nick. As much as
she had come to like Nick and Natalie individually during the
last three months, being alone with the two of them made
her distinctly uncomfortable.

Tracy's mind wandered back to the events of three months
ago...


~~~~~~

The morning after Nick's visit to her in the hospital, Tracy
was surprised by the sight of Natalie being wheeled into her
room by one of the nurses.

"Hey there." Natalie smiled for the first time in days. Despite
everything that had happened, it was good to know that Tracy had
managed to pull through. The sunlight streaming in Tracy's window
stung Natalie's eyes and she shielded them with her hand. The
shades in her room had been kept drawn because Nick had been
there so much. Her reaction to the sunlight surprised her and
scared her more than a little, but she was determined not to let
it show--not now, not in front of Tracy. "Would you mind closing
those blinds before you go?" Natalie requested of the nurse.
"Thanks."

Tracy's eyes widened as she looked at Natalie. She could scarcely
believe this was the same woman she had known for over a year 
now. Natalie was extremely pale and drawn--too pale, really. A
square of white gauze covered the left side of her neck.
"Natalie? What...?"

Natalie held her hand up to interrupt Tracy, if she couldn't get
this all out at once, she might never be able to say it. "I asked
them to bring me here this morning so that I could be the one to
talk to you. I know Nick was here last night and I know what you
spoke about." Natalie paused as if to gather her strength. "I'm
not going to beat around the bush here, Tracy. I'm not
going to tell you the 'mysterious stranger' story that I've
told everyone else. Nick did this, in fact, he very nearly killed
me."

"Nick...?" Her head was reeling. She wondered fleetingly if this
whole thing was some sort of nightmare. This certainly didn't
sound like the partner she knew, then again, how well did she
know him? He had somehow managed to keep his secret from her--she
still couldn't quite figure out how he had done that. Maybe she
didn't really know Nick Knight at all.

Natalie sighed. She could see the confusion on Tracy's face.
How could she even begin to explain this when she didn't 
understand it herself. "Before you say anything, let me explain,
or at least try to. This was a mistake, a terrible mistake on
both our parts," Natalie stated in a low voice.

"I was terribly upset after Laura's suicide," Natalie continued.
"Upset about the way it made me see my own life. I felt that
there needed to be a change, that I couldn't continue with Nick
as we had been any longer. We've been in limbo for six years
now," she acknowledged,"unable to go forward, unwilling to go
back."

"Nick was very upset when we heard you had...died. He
blamed himself. He was going to leave. I felt we had to try
something." Natalie shrugged. "This was some half-baked
cross between an attempt for a cure and making love."

Tracy could remain silent no longer. "Attempt for a cure? A cure
for what?" she asked, confused. None of this was making any
sense. The making love part she understood--she had found herself
in the same dilemma all too recently.

"Didn't Nick mention that? That's what we've been doing
for the better part of six years. A cure for vampirism--Nick
doesn't want to be a vampire," Natalie explained.

Tracy shook her head in disbelief. This was sounding more and
more like a nightmare--only it wasn't her experiencing it.
No wonder Nick had looked so awful. 

"Anyway I pushed him, I pushed him too hard. He tried
to tell me that night, but the way I was feeling, I just couldn't
listen."

"Still...he must have know what could have happened--what
almost did happen."

"I guess Nick let the way he was feeling get in the way
of his judgment, his control. Things have not been going...
well, not for some time now."

"Oh, Natalie, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for both of you."
Tracy held her arms out to embrace Natalie.

"I'm sorry too, but I'm also scared. Every time he leaves
my sight I'm afraid I'm never going to see him again. I just
don't want it to end like this." Natalie's resolve began to
crumble and tears slid down her cheeks.

"What does Nick have to say? Is he planning on leaving?"

Natalie looked down. "We haven't actually talked about
it."

"You haven't talked about it?! Natalie!" Tracy tried
unsuccessfully to rise from her bed. What was wrong with these
two? "Why the hell not?"

"He's been here for me since...since it happened. Neither
one of us seems able to talk about it just yet."

"I guess I can understand that," Tracy said slowly. She really
couldn't understand it at all, but there wasn't much she could
do about it, not right now anyway. When she got a hold of that
partner of hers though...

"Here I am, babbling on about myself," Natalie interjected. "How
are you doing?" Nick had at least prepared her before she had
come to the room. It was truly amazing that Tracy seemed as well
as she did considering the magnitude of her injuries.

"I'm hanging in there." Tracy forced herself to sound more
confident than she felt. The reality of her condition was far
more difficult than she was willing to acknowledge. Life confined
to a hospital bed was frustrating at best and degrading at worst.
She couldn't wait to get back on her feet again. She would get
back on her feet again no matter what it cost her. "There's talk
that I might be able to move to a rehabilitation hospital by the
end of next week..."


~~~~end flashback~~~~

"Here we are."

Nick's words jolted Tracy back to the present. The morgue--
of course, that was where they were headed.

"Are you all right?" Nick looked at her closely.

"I'm fine." Tracy exited the caddy, slamming the door shut
behind her.

Natalie was just finishing up as they arrived, scarcely
acknowledging them as they entered. Nick and Natalie stood
silently on opposite sides of the room, their eyes never quite
meeting. The body of Mary Clark lay between them, a gruesome
reminder of recent events. As if anyone in this room needed
reminding.

Tracy sighed in exasperation. She wanted to shake them both or at
least knock some sense into their heads. Anyone with eyes could
see how much they still cared for each other. She also knew that
forcing the issue would undoubtedly backfire. They needed to work
this out for themselves, if it could be worked out.

"I don't have much new to tell you guys." Natalie spoke
without looking up. "She was definitely raped, and she put
up quite a struggle. She had skin under her fingernails. We'll
have plenty of available samples for DNA comparisons, assuming
you're able to catch someone."

"Did you determine the cause of death?" Tracy inquired.
Nick was staring off into space, he seemed unable or unwilling
to enter into the conversation.

"She was asphyxiated by strangulation, hopefully into
unconsciousness, but the fatal blow was to the head. I'd say this
was someone out of control, someone without a plan, just a lot
of rage."

"And he may do it again?" Tracy ventured.

"Definitely a possibility, I'd say."

That comment finally seemed to get Nick's attention. "We'll
do a records search, looking for a similar M.O. Is there
anything else?"

Their eyes met briefly.

"No I say that's just about it," Natalie replied,immediately
busying herself with some paperwork.

"Thanks Nat," Nick said softly as he turned to go.

Nick and Tracy stopped in the corridor outside of the
morgue. "It's been a long first night back for you, why don't we
knock off and get some sleep. We can always go over the paperwork
tomorrow night," Nick suggested.

Tracy gratefully agreed. She had forgotten just how wonderful
staying up all night could make you feel.


End part 4
Comments welcome
Kathy  103045.2473@Compuserve.com

Excess Baggage
part 5/12
by Kathy Whelton


Nick arrived back at the loft just before dawn, his thoughts
heavy from the contact with Natalie at the morgue. The
distance between them seemed to grow, almost daily. There
appeared to be little left of even their friendship. Why should
there be? She had finally come to understand the truth about
him--he was a monster, at least he had been one. Her glimpse into
the reality of his existence was more than she could stand. The
thing that he had feared the most had come true--that once
Natalie knew him, really knew him, she could no longer love
him.

There were times, even now, that he still could not believe
what had happened, what he had done to her. He had fallen into
a trap of his own making, letting his need for her, his love for
her override his judgment. It didn't matter that she had sought
it out. Natalie had no idea what she was really asking, there was
no way for her to know. She only knew that the feelings inside of
her had been neglected far too long. He knew all too well the
dangers that lie along that path, and still, he had chosen
to go down it.

He walked over to the refrigerator and took out a bottle, he
considered briefly before drinking, then went ahead. What was the
point in denying himself any longer? It was over. Natalie had
made that plain enough in the last few months--she couldn't
even stand to be near him.

Nick thought back to the days immediately after she had
been released from the hospital. He had brought her home and
got her settled. He had stayed with her because she needed
someone with her, and he didn't know what else to do. She was
so weak and pale, it broke his heart to see her like that,
knowing it was his fault. There was a wariness in her that had
never been there before, even in the earliest days of their
relationship.

Being around her was excruciating for him as well. The
scent of her, her blood was everywhere. He wanted to taste her
again, he wanted it desperately. At times the scent of her pushed
his control to the very edge. Perhaps she sensed that, perhaps
that was what drove them apart in those first few days. Neither
one of them seemed able to talk about it. There were a few things
they had been unable to discuss...

~~~~~~

Nick sat in the darkened corner of Natalie's living room. He had
carefully opened the curtains, allowing the sunlight to stream
across the floor. Natalie may be too weak to venture out by
herself, but perhaps brightening up the place would dispel some
of the gloom that was hanging over them. He'd do anything to be
able to cheer her up a bit.

Natalie emerged hesitantly from the bedroom. "Shut the curtains,
Nick."

Nick smiled back at her. "I'm fine, Nat, I'll just hang out
over here. It's a beautiful day out there--you should try and
enjoy a bit of it."

Natalie tensed visibly at his words. "Shut the goddamn curtains,
Nick." There was an edge of hysteria in her voice.

Nick quickly complied with her request, then stepped over
to her and embraced her lightly. "You didn't tell me."

"I was afraid to, Nick. I'm afraid. I can't bear to look at the
sun, and I'm so thirsty all the time." Her voice cracked under
the strain. "I don't want to be like O'Neal."

"You won't be, Nat. You won't be." Nick struggled to issue the
vague reassurances he didn't really feel. He really had little
idea of what might happen, nor did he have anyone to ask.

"Hey, you can already pick one of us out nine times out
of ten. The other symptoms will fade, I'm sure of it," Nick
stated, not so sure at all. He looked at her closely--there
was no trace of humor on her face. This thing really did have
her scared.

"Nick, I think you should leave," Natalie stated, gently
disengaging herself from his arms. "I appreciate your trying to
help me out, but it is just too hard for me to be near you right
now. I need some time, and I need some space to heal."

Nick nodded sadly. He was torn by the hurt he felt and the
feeling of relief. He needed some space from her too. In the end,
he just left.



Nick walked slowly up the stairs to his bedroom. There was
no point in second guessing his decision now. What he needed to
do was figure out what, if anything, could be done to
close the distance between them.


End part 5
Comments welcome
Kathy 103045.2473@Compuserve.com

Excess Baggage
part 6/12
by Kathy Whelton


Nick and Tracy spent the following evening going over the
paperwork on the Clark homicide. They reviewed the forensics
reports and reread the witness statements. Everything was a dead
end. This was a woman with no enemies, no one in her past that
meant her any harm. It was looking more and more like a totally
random act, one of the most difficult kinds of cases to solve.
Hopefully, some new evidence would turn up, otherwise it was
beginning to look like they weren't going to get this guy.

Joe Reese stalked across the floor of the bullpen accompanied by
another man. "Knight, Vetter, this is John Davis. He's new with
the Crown prosecutor's office. He's going to be following this
one closely with you two, getting to know the ropes around here.

John Davis was thirtyish, six feet with dark hair and an
open,friendly face. He immediately extended his right hand to
Nick. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Detective Knight, I've heard
a lot about you."

Nick extended his hand as well. "None of it good, I'm sure,"
he returned. "And please, call me Nick. We're pretty casual
around here."

"Nick it is," Davis acknowledged. "And this is...?"

"Detective Vetter--Tracy," she replied. "Welcome aboard."

"Captain," Sgt. Wilson stated, approaching the group. "We just
got a call in. It seems a vagrant found the body of a young
woman in an alley off of Yonge--there seems to be some
similarities with the Clark case." She handed Reese the slip with
the address on it.

"Why don't you two check this out," Reese said, turning to
Nick and Tracy. "Let me know what you think, I want to hear about
it if you think there could be a connection here."


~~~~~

Nick glanced over at his partner, her face illuminated by
the soft glow of the dashboard lights. From all outward
appearances, she seemed to have made a total recovery from her
injury. She had worked extraordinarily hard in rehab to overcome
the lingering effects of her wounds. Still, he was not at all
convinced that this was a good situation for either one of them.
Nick had gone so far as to suggest that maybe Metro wasn't the
best place for her, after all that had happened. Tracy was
determined, though, if nothing else. She felt that she had
something to prove, not to her father this time, but to herself.
His suggestion that perhaps he was not the best partner for her
was dismissed as well. Tracy was anxious about being back on the
street and needed to be with a partner she could trust--him.
Great, just what he needed, someone else that trusted him.

She seemed anything but sure of herself at this moment. Tracy's
face was taut, her teeth tightly clenched. "How are you doing,
Tracy, with all this, I mean?"

"Fine, Nick, everything's fine." Tracy hurried through
her reply.

Nick slowed the car and looked over at her. He had come to know
her pretty well over the past year--he could tell when she was
lying. "No, Tracy,I mean really."

Tracy grimaced, she had hoped that the feelings she was having
were not quite so obvious. She exhaled slowly, unaware even that
she had been holding her breath. "I don't know, Nick, it isn't
like I expected. I thought once I finally got back out on the
street, everything would be the same, but it's not, nothing's
the same. I don't even feel like I'm the same person anymore."

"I know how that can be," Nick acknowledged quietly. "Take this
for what it's worth Tracy, you can use that to your advantage.
It's known as experience, and it's worth a lot more than all the
books you can read on police procedure."

"It's not just that Nick...I'm afraid. I keep reliving
the shooting over and over in my head, and I'm frightened. I'm
beginning to wonder if I can do this after all." Tracy put her
hand up to her mouth, she seemed to be on the verge of tears.

Nick pulled the caddy over to the side of the road and
parked it. "Tracy, are you afraid of me?" It was a hard question
to put between them, but one he needed to know the answer to
if they were to continue as partners.

She almost laughed out loud. Maybe she should be frightened, but
somehow the thought had never even occurred to her. Tracy put her
hand tentatively over Nick's. "If it wasn't for you, being here
with me, I never would have made it this far." 

Tracy's expression quickly sobered. It's everything else--I keep
thinking some nut with a gun is going to pop out at me." Tracy
stopped. She could feel her heart begin to race. Just talking
about it was causing her anxiety level to rise. She looked at
Nick intently. "Please don't say anything to anyone, if the
department shrinks  knew I was feeling like this they would pull
me off the street in a heartbeat. I want a chance to deal with
this myself."

Nick hesitated before replying. His instincts were telling
him that Tracy was a danger to herself and possibly others
feeling as she did. He also knew he had a bad habit of making
decisions for other people. "All right, Tracy, I won't say
anything if you don't want me to. But you have to promise me that
you'll talk to me, keep me aware of what's going on with you. No
more secrets between us."

Tracy grimaced again. She had hardly been the guilty one in that
regard. She nodded subtly in assent.

"I just wish there was something I could say to help you
through this, Trace. I guess it's something you are just going
to have to work out for yourself."


~~~~~~


Nick and Tracy approached the alley where the body of the
young woman had been found. The area was cordoned off, even
at this hour a small crowd of on lookers had gathered.

They found Natalie, already at work, kneeling beside the
victim. The body was that of a young woman, she was heavily
made up but the face beneath the makeup looked barely out
of its teens.

Natalie rose when she spotted Nick and Tracy. "I have to
say that there's a lot here that looks like the Clark case.
There is evidence of sexual assault, cause of death right now
appears to be strangulation. There is a lot of bruising around
her throat, and I can't find any other injuries other than some
minor scrapes she may have received in the struggle."

"When will we know for sure if it's the same guy?" Tracy
asked, she had managed to bring her anxiety down to a
manageable level, despite the gloomy atmosphere of the
darkened alley.

"I'll be able to get a blood type back from the semen
almost immediately--that won't tell us for sure if it is the same
guy, but it will tell us if it's not. Unfortunately, the DNA
results are going to take a few days, that will let us know for
sure. We may have some better luck this time with the
fingerprints, whoever did this left some pretty clear
indentations on her neck." Natalie stooped down and pointed out
the distinct bruising present on her throat.

"Is there anything else, Nat?" Nick asked, looking away from
the body.

"No, that's it for now." Natalie snapped off her gloves. "I'll
see you guys back at the shop."

A uniformed officer approached, accompanied by a shabbily
dressed man. "This is the guy who found the body," the officer
volunteered. "He says he knows her too."

"I didn't say I knew her, I said I knew who she was." The
man gestured down the street. "She works down there, off of
Yonge, one of those strip joints. She walks through here most
nights on her way home."

"I'm Detective Knight, this is Detective Vetter." Nick
hurried through the introductions. "Did you notice anything
unusual, or out of the ordinary tonight?"

"Can't say as I did. I came into a little money earlier
today, and I...I've been feeling pretty good tonight."

Nick did not need his special senses to verify that
comment, the man reeked of alcohol. "And just how did you come
into the money?"

The vagrant began glancing about, nervously licking his lips. "I
don't know what you mean...I didn't do nothing."

"Her purse." Nick stepped toward him, looming over the
man. "It was missing from the scene."

The man fumbled through his coat. Finally his fingers
latched onto something and out from his layers of clothing
emerged a small black hand bag.

"I found this in the alley, I swear. I didn't touch her."
the man shrank back from Nick as he stepped even closer, pulling
the bag from the man's hand.

"And now you've managed contaminate any evidence we may have been
able to gather from it." Nick delivered the comment with an icy
tone that made the hairs on the back of Tracy's neck stand up.

Nick stepped away quickly. "Officer," he stated to the
uniformed officer still standing by. "Take this gentleman
downtown for a statement, and see that he is held until we get
there."

"Like I said, this *was* a good night," the vagrant mumbled
as he was led away."

"What now?" asked Tracy.

"I guess we split up. Start making the rounds of the clubs, see
if anyone knows her or saw anything tonight." Nick noted the
tense expression return to his partner's face. "Or maybe we stick
together, start making the rounds of the clubs..." He smiled
easily at Tracy, placing his hand on her arm. "Come on, let's get
going."

"Nick," Tracy started, the discouragement evident in her
voice. "The bag--how did you know? I missed that one completely."

"It was a guess--a total shot in the dark," Nick told her.
"Don't try to push it, it'll come back to you, just give it
time."


End part 6
Comments welcome
Kathy 103045.2473@Compuserve.com

Excess Baggage
part 7/12
by Kathy Whelton

The team gathered several hours later in Reese's office to
discuss the progress, or lack of progress in the case.

"No one seems to know anything Captain." The slightest hint
of a whine had begun to creep into Tracy's voice. "And if they
do, they sure aren't telling us. We spent hours down there, going
in and out of every sleazy..."

"We get the point, Detective." Reese eyed his young officer
sternly. John Davis was sitting in and he didn't need to hear a
litany of complaints. "What do you think Nick?"

"Tracy's right." It had been a long night and Nick didn't
like to see his partner get cut off. "We're not going to get any
information this way. Everyone who knew this girl liked her, at
least that's what they're all claiming now. How about her
background check?"

"Nothing there," Reese replied. "One bust for prostitution
two years ago, since then, nothing. No domestic situations that
we are aware of. What about you?" Reese asked, turning to
Natalie. "Please tell me you have something."

"Well, the blood types from the assailants match, and it's a
rare one, AB neg. The pattern of the hand prints on their necks
are quite similar, I'd say it's more than likely the same guy. We
did manage to lift a partial print from the throat of the second
victim, we couldn't match it with anything so we sent it off to
the RCMP to  see what they can come up with."

"So what you're telling me here, people," Reese began, "is that
we are nowhere on this thing. We may have some headcase out
there, killing these women at random and we have nothing."
Reese rose and began to move around the room.

"I've been doing some thinking on this," Reese continued. "The
only connection that we seem to have is that they were both 
employed as exotic dancers. Nick, I want you and Tracy to go
undercover at one of the clubs--try working it from that angle
for a few nights. I've already been in touch with Captain Randall
from vice, he'll set something up with his contacts down there."

Tracy was slowly turning a rather unflattering shade of bright
pink. "Captain, I was wondering...exactly what you mean by
undercover."

"Relax, Vetter," Reese replied. "We'll get you something
where you'll be fully dressed, something you are well equipped
for."

Tracy's color deepened several shades as she glanced at her
less than well-endowed chest. She could hear Nick struggling,
in vain, to keep from laughing.

Reese turned to Nick. "We'll get you something tending bar
or something. Any problem with that?"

"No Cap, no problem here," Nick responded. He was still
covering his mouth with his hand in an attempt to hide his
grin. Nick shot a glance over to Natalie. She was smiling
broadly. The little exchange had amused her as well. It was good
to see her smile again. Natalie returned his gaze, their eyes met
and, for the first time in a long time, neither one of them broke
it off.

Reese was still speaking. "John, is the Crown going to have
any problem with this?"

"I don't see that we would Captain. I assume any information
obtained will be done so legitimately."

"Okay, that's it for tonight, people. You two check in with me
later about the details of the undercover assignment."


The four filed out of Reese's office. For the first time in
months, Natalie didn't immediately bolt from the precinct but
ambled slowly over to Nick's desk.

Nick felt a small glimmer of hope begin to rise as he followed
her. Don't blow this, he thought cautiously to himself.

"This should be interesting, going undercover with Tracy."
Nick commented casually.

"I just hope it works," she responded, willing herself to match
his tone. "It would be nice to get this guy off the streets
before he kills again."

Nick looked up, across the room he saw Tracy regarding them
with great interest over the rim of her coffee cup.

"What do you think of John Davis?" Nick asked abruptly. Maybe
small talk was the best way to go here. "He seems bright,
friendly. I heard him mention that he was single."

"Nick, what are you talking about?" Natalie was looking at him
with a puzzled expression.

"He's about the right age, he's good looking."

"Nick!" Natalie slammed down the folders she was carrying.
She turned abruptly away from him and began marching toward
the back exit.

"Nat." Nick quickly followed her, he grabbed her lightly by
the wrist. The implications of his comments suddenly occurred
to him. "I was thinking of Tracy, he might be good for Tracy."
He paused. "I was only trying to make conversation. I'm sorry."

Natalie looked down at his hand, still holding her wrist, until
he let it drop. "I don't know what you're thinking anymore Nick,
you never call, I never see you except at work." Her eyes
searched his face as if looking for answers.

"I only did what you asked me to do. You said you needed time and
space from me. I stayed away, and now you are angry at me for
that." Nick stepped back, forcing himself to calm down. The last
thing that he wanted now was to get into an argument with her. He
continued more gently. "I've wanted to call--I didn't think you
wanted to talk to me.

"I've been very worried about you." He glanced around. No one was
paying any attention to them. Nick dropped the level of his
voice. "How have you been? The symptoms you were having, any
change?"

"Things are better, Nick, really, they are," Natalie replied.
"I won't be booking a cruise to the Bahamas any time soon,
but my tolerance to sunlight has gotten much better."

The relief was evident in Nick's face. The fear that he had
driven Natalie out of the sunlight had weighed heavily upon him.
"And the rest?" Nick ventured.

"I haven't been able to sense any...," Natalie let the last word
drop, "if that's what you're asking."

Between the fever and Divia, there wasn't much left of the 
Community in Toronto, but Nick couldn't quite find the heart
to tell her that just yet.
 
"What about the nightmares?" Nick asked gently.

Natalie looked at Nick, slightly stunned. She was sure that
she had not mentioned the nightmares to him. The endless parade
of his victims that haunted her dreams. "How did you know?"

"You look like you haven't had a good nights sleep in months. It
wasn't too hard to figure out what was going on." He slowly
brought his hand up and brushed her cheek.

"It's nothing I can't deal with." She could feel the tension in
her shoulders begin to ease. It felt good to be able to stand
here and just talk to him. It felt good to be able to talk to
anyone about this.

Nick cautiously took one of Natalie's hands. "I really miss
you, Nat, I miss talking to you, I miss your dropping by after
work." He inhaled deeply, filling himself with her scent. This
was the closest he had been to her in a long time. Their time
apart had done him some good as well. The insatiable hunger he
had felt for her was gone. In its place were the warm feeling he
had always associated with Natalie.

Natalie eased her hand from his. "What you're telling me, Nick,
is that you miss my friendship. That you want to be *friends*
again." Natalie's tone had cooled considerably.

Nick stepped back, his face a mask. "Nat, you can't possibly
still think that there could ever be more between us, after what
happened...after what I did to you."

"Thank you, Nick. Thank you for clarifying exactly what I can
and cannot be thinking," She responded angrily. "The truth is
we've crossed a line that we can't back off from, no matter how
much you might like to." Natalie paused. "I guess what I am
saying is that being friends with you is just too damn
expensive." Natalie turned and walked away.


~~~~~~~

Natalie had just returned home and was tending to a rather
impatient Sydney when she was interrupted by a knock on
her door. A quick glance outside told her it couldn't possibly
be Nick, a fact for which she was immediately grateful. She
had no desire to continue with their earlier conversation.

"Tracy, this is a surprise." Natalie remarked as she opened
the door.

"I tried to catch you at the morgue and invite you out to
breakfast, but you had already left. So I decided to bring
breakfast to you." Tracy held up the bag she was carrying.
"Bagels, lochs and a bottle of wine."

"I'm glad you stopped by, Tracy. I wanted to apologize for
laughing earlier, in Reese's office. We weren't being very nice
to you."

"It's okay, Natalie, thankfully I haven't lost my sense of
humor. I think it is fair to say that Captain Reese is not too
happy to have me back on his watch. I can't say that I blame him.
He took a lot of heat from IA and my Dad after the shooting.
Maybe it would have been better to start fresh somewhere
else, I just felt like I needed to be in familiar surroundings,
among friends. I hope that Nick doesn't mind that I'm back."

"I really can't say too much about what Nick thinks these
days, Tracy." Natalie slammed the kitchen cabinet door a bit
harder than she intended.

"I noticed you two talking at the precinct earlier, that's a
start isn't it?" Tracy asked, a hopeful note in her voice.

"Look, Tracy, I appreciate your coming here, but..."
Natalie turned to her, her face flushed.

"I know. It's none of my business. I just thought you might
want to talk."

"It's not that Tracy." Natalie sighed and her shoulders
slumped.  "I guess I've just held these secrets inside for so
long--I've  forgotten what it's like to have someone to talk to.
Come." Natalie gestured to the living room. "Let's sit down."
Natalie poured each of them a healthy sized glass of wine and
led Tracy into the living room.

Natalie sank into the couch. She was tired, tired of the
whole thing. She hated the uncertainty of her life, with Nick, as
always, in the center of it. The idea of leaving Toronto had
begun to seem more and more attractive to her, especially after
her interaction with him today.

"I'm thinking about leaving Toronto, Tracy. I'm beginning to
think it might be for the best."

"No," Tracy stated, a little more emphatically than she
intended. "Nick cares a great deal about you Natalie, I know
he does."

"Has he said something to you?"

"No." Tracy smiled. "He's made it very clear that your
relationship is not something that he's willing to discuss. I
can see the way he looks at you though. The fact that he is still
here after he...after what happened, that must say something."

"Do you know I go into work every night bracing myself for
the fact that I'll find out he's gone? Do you know how awful that
is? I just can't take it anymore Tracy." Natalie felt the resolve
hardening within her as she spoke. Maybe she couldn't control
the situation, but she could take back control of her life.

"Have you tried telling that to Nick?"

"I've thought about it Tracy, but it has to come from him,"
Natalie stated firmly. "I told Nick I loved him, he just never
said it back."  Natalie paused and closed her eyes trying to shut
out the painful  memory. "Maybe I have been deluding myself all
along. Nick always  said that he couldn't love me, I just never
believed him. Maybe it really is true." Natalie stood and walked
to the window.

Outside, life went on as it always did--children playing,
people walking in the sun. All things Nick was denied, things
that she had very nearly lost as well. "Nick always told me not
to deceive myself into thinking that he was human, but he is so
human, in so many ways. Perhaps I should have listened to him."

"I don't believe that." Tracy stood and walked over to
Natalie, placing an arm around her. "I don't think that you do
either. It sounds to me like you still love him, maybe you have
to let him know that."

"I just don't know if I can, Tracy. I don't know if it's
worth the risk." Natalie finished off her glass of wine. "Come
on, Tracy, drink up. You know what they say about people that
drink alone, and at nine o'clock in the morning."

"Actually, I can't." Tracy flashed a smile. "I'm not supposed to
be drinking at all--doctors orders. And I have to drive out to
Oakville this morning, to my Dad's. I should get going. I wanted
to let you know that I was here, if you needed to talk
to someone. I just wish I had some answers for you."

The two women hugged. "Thanks, Tracy, I appreciate your
concern. I need you to promise me something though."

"What's that Natalie?"

"Promise me you won't say anything to Nick--about what I
said. He needs to come to this on his own, if it's going to mean
anything."

Tracy made a face. "I was afraid you were going to say that.
I promise, I won't say anything, please just give it a little
more time." They embraced again before Tracy departed.

I'll give it a little more time, Natalie thought to herself
as Tracy left, but I'm not going to wait forever.


End part 7
Comments welcome
Kathy 103045.2473@Compuserve.com

Excess Baggage
part 8/12
by Kathy Whelton


Nick pulled out another shirt, then quickly discarded it.
What do bartenders wear anyway? He really should have paid more
attention to Miklos when he had the chance. A shrill blast from
the phone was a welcome interruption. "Knight."

Hi Nick, it's Tracy. I was wondering if you could do me a
little favor?"

"Sure, Trace. What's up?"

"I'm afraid my car died, and I was wondering if you
could give me a lift tonight."

"No problem, I'll swing by and get you on my way in."

"Well, that's the problem Nick, I'm out in Oakville, at my
Dad's house. I know it's really out of your way..."

The last thing Nick needed right now was a meeting with
Commissioner Vetter. Nick's interactions with the Commissioner
around the time of Tracy's shooting had left him with an
intense dislike of the man. It still grated on him that the
Commissioner had interceded with IA an his behalf.

"Nick? Are you still there?"

"It's not the distance that's the problem, Tracy." Nick sighed.
He supposed he couldn't hold it against her--it wasn't her fault
who she was related to. "Give me the directions, I'll be there as
soon as I can."

Nick hung up the phone, this night was already off to a
bad start.

~~~~
Nick pulled the caddy up the driveway past the manicured
lawn to an impressive Tudor style home. As soon as he cut the
engine, he could hear the sound of raised voices inside.

Wonderful, Nick thought to himself. Nick sat for a while in
the vain hope that Tracy would see the car and come out. He
glanced at his watch, they were supposed to be at the club by
ten o'clock and it would take them some time to get back into the
city.

The voices of Commissioner Vetter and his wife were clearly
discernible as Nick approached the door--their words filled with
hateful recriminations. Tracy answered the door on the first
knock.

"I am so sorry Nick, I didn't mean to drag you into the
middle of one of the famous Vetter family squabbles." Tracy's
face flushed hotly with her words.

"Don't sweat it partner." Nick felt her embarrassment, he
fought the urge to tell her that she had no concept of what the
term 'dysfunctional family' could really mean. "We've all been
there."

The argument in the other room stopped as Nick stepped into
the foyer.

"I guess we have to go in," Tracy stated, her hopes of
leaving unnoticed dashed.

"Mom, Dad you remember Nick."

"Yes, of course, Detective Knight. We met at the hospital."
Barbara Vetter mentioned as she shook Nick's hand. Her tone
was cool. "It was good of you to spend so much time with her
there, considering everything that happened."

"Barbara," the Commissioner said sternly before he turned
to Nick and changed the subject. "Detective Knight, I understand
the two of you are going undercover tonight."

"Yes, sir," Nick responded. "And we really do need to get
going." He said glancing at his watch.

"Well, good luck with the assignment, I'll be anxious to
hear the outcome of this case," stated the Commissioner.

"Be careful, baby," Barbara Vetter called after the
departing pair.


"I thought your parents were divorced," Nick commented
as they stepped into the warm evening air.

"They were--they are." Tracy paused. "They've been
trying to reconcile. My injury seemed to bring them closer
together, at least for a while." Tracy stared out the window of
the caddy as they drove. Almost every child of divorce hopes
that their parents will get back together. "It's not going to
work though." Tracy spoke with a quiet air of resignation that
surprised Nick.

"You seem pretty sure of that."

"They don't stand a chance of making it together. Neither
one of them can let go of their old...stuff. They have the same
argument every time and they don't even realize it. They might
as well put it on tape. My Mom's drinking, my Dad's cheating--
they go round and round with it. Each one of them is stuck with
all their old, unfulfilled expectations of the other and they
can't even hear what the other person is saying anymore." Tracy
paused. "The sad part is, I think that underneath it all, they do
still love each other, they just have no idea how to salvage
what they've lost."

Nick had sat through Tracy's monologue in silence. His eyes
appeared fixed on the road but his mind was a thousand miles
away.

"I'm sorry, Nick, I didn't mean to bore you with my family
troubles," Tracy commented.

"No, it's not that at all." Nick turned and looked at Tracy
intently. "Actually I was listening to what you were saying. It
sounds like you've really thought this through."

"Well, I have had a lot of time to think recently. And I've
been seeing someone...a therapist." Tracy dropped her eyes
down to her lap. Her petty problems must seem ridiculous to
him, after all the things he had seen and done. "Pretty silly, I
know."

"I don't think that it's silly at all, not if it's helping
you." Nick wondered absently what his relationship with Natalie
would appear like to an observer. What did it really look like
to him?  Natalie had told him once that she loved him, that she
trusted him, that she wanted him. She had asked him to make
love to her. But that was before, before everything had gone so
very wrong. It was impossible for him to believe that she could
still feel the same way about him. Her comments from the night
before stuck in his head.

       "Thank you Nick for clarifying exactly what I can and
    cannot be thinking. The truth is, we have crossed a line here
    that we can't back off from, no matter how much you might
    like to."

 Could it be possible that she still loved him? Maybe the
 answer to this whole thing was right in front of him, and he
 had just been unable to see it.

~~~~~


Nick slid the caddy into a parking space behind the club. No
matter what he was feeling about Natalie, he owed it to himself,
to Tracy, and most importantly to the victims, to stay on top of
things tonight.

The recent murders had done nothing to discourage the crowd at
the club. The air was heavy with the scent of cigarettes and
quiet desperation. Nick wondered how many of the patrons knew or
cared to know what had happened only a few blocks from here.

Nick glanced across the club and noticed Tracy headed his
way for another round of drinks, attempting in vain to add a
few inches to the black leather skirt and laced vest that
she had been forced to wear.

"I still can't believe I have to wear this thing. If I
wanted to work vice, I'd be working vice," she grumbled as she
approached the bar.

Nick considered telling Tracy that the outfit was surprisingly
flattering on her, but thought that was better left unsaid.
Besides,he had troubles of his own. This bartending stuff was
tougher than it looked.

"Tracy," Nick leaned over to her and whispered. "What exactly
is a Fuzzy Navel?"

"Oh this is great!" She threw her hands up in exasperation. "I
worked my last two years of college tending bar. You can't even
mix a drink, hell, you can't even *drink* a drink and you get to
be the bartender. Meanwhile I get to parade around in this
ridiculous outfit..."

"Tracy!"

There was a distinct tone in Nick's voice that she did not
care to hear again. "Peach schnapps, orange juice and vodka," she
answered hastily.

"And you drink that?" Nick asked her with a quick grin and a
roll of his eyes.

"Yes." Tracy smiled correspondingly. "You drink it."

"You coming up with anything out there?" Nick questioned,
dropping his voice even lower.

"No, nothing at all." Tracy began to head off with her tray
of drinks, then turned. "There was one thing. When we first got
here the other girls were fighting over who had to wait on that
guy over there." Tracy indicated a lone man with a flick of her
eyes. "They finally stuck him on me because I'm new, but he's
just been sitting there all night, nursing the same beer."

"Did they say why they didn't want to wait on him?"

"No, nothing specific, just that he was creepy." Tracy
remarked as she walked away.

Nothing did appear particularly suspicious about the man
Tracy had indicated, Nick noted as he observed him, except
perhaps his apparent isolation. The man sat quietly, a stark
contrast to the raucous behavior that was occurring at the
other tables. In fact, he didn't even seem to be watching the
women as they paraded on stage. Still, the fact that the
waitresses chose to avoid him spoke volumes--you didn't last too
long working at a place like this if you were the squeamish type.

"Trace, see what you can do about getting that glass away from
our friend over there." Nick indicated the man with a nod of his
head. "Here give him another beer, tell him it's on the house,
make up some excuse."

"You really think it's worth it to run it for prints?"

"Probably not, but you never know, we might get lucky."

Maybe they were all due for some luck, Nick glanced at the
clock, two AM. Natalie would be finishing up her shift soon. He
had been even less able than usual to keep her out of his
thoughts tonight. Her comments from the evening before were
haunting him. Maybe it was time he stopped assuming what she
thought or felt about him and asked her. What did he have to
lose? They certainly couldn't go on like this any longer.

Nick and Tracy stepped out of the club and into the night air
an hour later. Nick fingered a plastic bag containing the glass.
"Would you mind running this back to the station and have
forensics dust it for prints, Tracy? I have something to do and
I don't want to get hung up at the shop."

"I don't mind going back alone, but how...?"

"You can take the caddy," Nick stated, handing her the keys.
"You can pick me up tomorrow night."

Tracy suspected that this was meant to be an honor. She
managed to squelch the fear that she might actually be seen
driving that thing long enough to plaster on her perkiest smile.

"Great, Nick, I'll see you tomorrow."

Nick waited until she was safely away before taking to the
air.



End part 8
comments welcome
Kathy 103045.2473@Compuserve.com

Excess Baggage
Part 9a/12
by Kathy Whelton


The elevator door slid open and Natalie stepped out into the
loft. The room was illuminated only by candlelight. Despite
the fact that it was August there was a fire burning brightly in
the fireplace. Nick sat on the couch, staring into the fire. He
rose as she entered, unable to contain the smile that spread
across his face. Everytime he saw her, she was more lovely.

Natalie glanced at the coffee table, a bottle sat in front
of him, three quarters of it empty. He had been drinking--a lot.
She kept the disapproval from her eyes without too much
difficulty. What difference did it make now?

"Thank you for coming. After I called you, I realized that
this probably wasn't the best place for us to have this
conversation."

"You're leaving," Natalie stated flatly, a look of
resignation  on her face.

"No," Nick started hesitantly. "That's not why I asked you
to come here. I just felt that it was time for us to talk, to
clear the air between us. If this isn't a good time,...or
place, just say so."

Natalie walked slowly toward Nick and the fireplace, she
had only been here a few brief times since the events of that
night. "No, this is OK. There are a lot of good memories here as
well." Natalie was a little surprised to find that she actually
meant it. "And it is time we talked."

They both sat down on the couch, a comfortable arms length
away from each other.

"If you're not thinking about leaving, what made you decide
that it was finally time to talk?" Natalie questioned.

"Believe it or not, it was something Tracy was saying
earlier this evening."

"Tracy?" Natalie responded. She felt a flicker of concern. If
she had violated her confidence, even with the best of
intentions...

Nick grinned. "Yes, Tracy. She was talking about her parents
and how all their old baggage, their unfulfilled expectations of
each other kept ruining any possibility for any type of
relationship. It made me think of us, and of what we might be
able to do about it."

Natalie turned and stared into the fire. "I know that a lot
of the things that I said that night didn't make sense, but
I was serious about not being able to tolerate the status quo
any longer. I certainly can't go back to the way things were
before I met you, and you keep telling me we can't go forward.
I just don't know what's left."

"I was thinking more along the lines of going forward," Nick
stated quietly. "I don't think I ever quite managed to tell you
that I loved you that night."

Natalie turned and faced him, surprised by his sudden
revelation. "No you didn't. At first I thought you just couldn't
say it, but later I began to wonder."

"I do love you Natalie Lambert," Nick slid closer to Natalie
on the couch and brushed his hand across her cheek. "Very
much. I can't blame you, though, if your feelings for me have
changed after all that's happened."  How could they not have
changed? He had no right to even imagine that she could love
him--he had nearly killed her. He *was* a monster, and now she
knew that too.

"I'm not going to give you the easy answer on this one
Nick, that nothing has changed, because it has." Natalie had
gone over this a million times in her head. It felt good to
finally give it words. "What I saw that night, through you,
terrified me." Natalie hesitated. The visions of that night had
never left her totally--they still haunted her dreams on a
nightly basis. "I thought I had some idea, some concept, of who
and what you were. I didn't have a clue. What I saw horrified
me."

Nick held his expression carefully neutral as she spoke.


"What hasn't changed is the way I feel about you," Natalie
paused, letting her last statement sink in. "Despite all that I
saw, I do still love you. I know that you are not the same person
that you were then. I still love you and I still trust you.
I'm just not sure what that means, where can we go from here?"

Emotions threatened to overwhelm Nick as she spoke, that
she could still accept him, still love him truly amazed him. He
felt his eyes begin to fill up, his voice was thick with emotion
when he tried to speak. There was a lot more to be said here
tonight, though, if they ever hoped to have a future together.

"Natalie, there's something I've never told you about. One
of the reasons, one of the big reasons, I've kept you at such
a distance for so long really has nothing to do with you and me.
It has everything to do with LaCroix."

"Well I realize he has never been happy about me, I'm
sure the thought of us together..."

"It's more than that, Natalie. What do you remember about
last Valentine's Day?"

Natalie's mind went back to that night, mainly it was a
hazy blur of events. There were flashes there, of Nick, of
LaCroix, no that didn't make any sense. Finally, "I had too much
to drink? I really don't remember anything concrete."

"You didn't have too much to drink." Nick said quietly.
"Your memory was erased."

"Erased...? But I'm a--no, that's not possible." Natalie felt the
anger stirring within her. He, or LaCroix, or both of them had
manipulated her.

"Please, Nat, let me finish. That night LaCroix was
planning to kill you." He paused to let the seriousness of his
words sink in. " The reasons are complicated, they have to do
with things that happened long ago. I had to convince him that
I didn't love you. That was the only thing that was going to
keep  you alive that night. I've been terrified ever since that
he would  see how much I care about you and kill you. That's why
it was so important that you never remember that night."

Natalie's anger cooled somewhat when she realized how
seriously Nick had taken this threat to her safety. Still, it
upset her to know that she had been misled. It was so like Nick
to make decisions that dramatically impacted other people's
lives.

"What about the other times, Nick? How often has
something like this happened?"

"That was the only time, Nat, I swear," he said it gently. "I
only went along with it to protect you."

"So why are you telling me now? What difference does
it make?"  If LaCroix felt that her love for Nick was such a
threat, maybe there was no hope for them.

"The reason I bring this up now, is that I feel the threat
is no longer there. He's been changed by the events of the
last few months, as we all have. I don't he'd harm you--not
after everything that's happened."

"So you haven't seen him?"  Natalie had wondered, but
had been afraid to ask. "You don't suppose he thinks you're
dead?"

"No, I don't. The only thing I am fairly certain of is that
he is not in Toronto. Where he is, what he is thinking, I have no
idea. I only hope that he will be more accepting, of us, of this
desire for mortality."


"What about looking for a cure, Nick? Have you given up
on it?" There, she said it. Something she had wanted to say for
a long time. "It doesn't seem like it's been very important
to you for a while now."

Nick took a while to answer. The last thing he wanted to
do was make her feel responsible for not coming up with
some medical miracle. He had been conflicted about his quest for
mortality lately. Was it merely that he had begun to lose hope,
or was it more than that?

"Nat, it is not that I have given up, or that I don't
appreciate  all your hard work, but I do think we have to
accept the fact that there is no miracle cure right around the
corner for us. Maybe the things that we've been doing, cutting
down on the blood, eating, will work, but it's not going to
happen overnight."

Natalie was surprised at the sense of relief that washed
over her. She had long since exhausted any new theories for
a cure, she just hadn't had the heart to tell Nick. Recent events
had begun to shake her long held belief that vampirism was a
strictly physical condition.

Natalie slid over next to Nick and rested against his chest.
He easily slid his arm around her shoulders. It was hard for both
of them to let this dream die, it was the thing that had held
them together for so long.


Nick finally broke the silence. "Which means," he stopped
to kiss her softly on the side of her head. "that we have to
decide if we  can have a relationship as we are now. That would
mean a lot of sacrifices on your part, I need to be sure that
this is something that you still want, that it is worth it to
you."

"Don't you think I have considered that, Nick?" Natalie
turned to face him. "It is a choice that I am willing to make. I
realize what I'm giving up--the dream of a normal life, a house
in the suburbs," she paused. "children."

Nick sprang to his feet, startling her. "I just can't ask
this of you Nat. It's too much. You deserve so much more than
this."

Natalie stood and walked over to him, taking his face in her
hands. "I don't know what else I can say to make you see that
I love you, that you are worth it to me." With that she leaned
forward and kissed him warmly on the lips."

She rested her head on his chest, what came next would be
hard for both of them, but Natalie felt it had to be said before
they could go any further.

Natalie began speaking without looking up. "Nick...that
night...I asked you to make love to me, and you...bit me. That
wasn't exactly what I was expecting. I know that we haven't
exactly talked about this." Natalie rushed on before she lost
her courage. "I know the exchange of blood is important to
you...for sex I mean... and if that is all there is, I mean, I
understand."

"Natalie Lambert!" Nick interrupted with a feigned indignation.
"Are you trying to ask me if all my parts work?"

Nick lifted her chin and looked Natalie in the eye. Her face
was a deep crimson. She had not caught the teasing tone in his
voice and was intent on getting her message across. "I just
want you to understand that if you can't, if we can't...have
intercourse, that's Okay. That's not what I need from you."

Every time Nick thought he knew how much he loved her,
she managed to touch him even more deeply. He gently stroked
the side of her face.

"Natalie, I made a terrible mistake that night, and I owe
you an explanation. I knew that once we were making love,
there was no way I could stop myself, no way I could take
only a little. I thought perhaps it was possible if I tried
before  we were intimate. I was wrong. I'll never endanger you
that  way again. I am so sorry, Natalie."

They stood in silence his arms wrapped tightly around her.

Nick finally broke the silence. "Now, back to your question--
all the parts do work." Nick grinned, then continued softly.
"And I do think that it is possible for us to be together, I'm
just not sure what my, what our," he corrected, " limitations
might be. I never want to put you in danger again. I just want
to let you know that I am willing to try...if you are."

Natalie rested her head on Nick's shoulder as he spoke.
She wondered what had brought about this change, this
willingness to be with her, but was afraid to ask. Maybe he
was finally able to accept that she loved him unconditionally,
after everything that had happened, maybe that was finally true.

"I think I can promise you that I won't...bite you." The
words stuck in his throat as he spoke. "At least I hope I can
promise you that. There will always be some element of danger in
this for you, there is no way around that fact. What I can't
promise you is that I won't ...change. In fact I would say that
it is pretty inevitable. If that is too scary for you, we can
stop right here, I would certainly understand."

Natalie spoke without hesitation. "I understand that, Nick,
and I can deal with it. I think we are overlooking the fact that
we have a lot of things going for us here as well. We love
each other, we respect each other. Kindness, patience, trust,
those are always the most important things to bring into any
bedroom, I think that we have all those things."

"I think I would add a good sense of humor to that list, we
may need it before this is over."

Arms around each other, Nick bent over and kissed her
warmly. Natalie took Nick's hand in hers and began leading
him to the stairs.

"Before we go upstairs, is there anything you would like
to tell me?" Nick asked quietly. "This memory thing goes both
ways, you know."

Natalie appeared genuinely mystified at his question.

"Someone hurt you," Nick prompted.

"Well, my grandmother..."

"Someone else hurt you," Nick pressed.

Natalie began to understand what he was talking about.
She turned abruptly and stepped away from him, looking out the
window at the desolate streets below.

Nick followed behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "You
don't have to talk about this if you don't want to. I just
thought it might be better for you if you could."

Natalie really didn't want to talk about this. Not now,
not ever. She had spent years not talking about it, building a
wall  around her pain. Maybe he was right, maybe it was something
that needed to be acknowledged before things went any further.

Natalie gently disengaged herself from Nick's arms. "When
I was fourteen, I went over to a girlfriend's house," she started
slowly. "She wasn't home and neither were her parents. Her
brother was there... and a friend of his." Natalie brought her
hand to her mouth and began shaking her head, as if trying to
dislodge the memory. "They were drinking, partying. It looked
like fun. I thought for once I'd be cool and join in. It wasn't
long before I was totally incapacitated. They took advantage of
that." She forced the words from her mouth. "They raped me."

The tears streamed silently down Natalie's face. Nick
cautiously slid his arms around her again, and Natalie
gratefully accepted. She brushed her tears away and continued
with her story.

"When I got home, the only one there was my grandmother. She told
me that it was my fault, and that I shouldn't tell anyone,
or everyone would think I was...easy.  I never did say anything
to anyone. I went to school every day and had to face them."
Natalie stated, her anger beginning to surface. "I never have
talked about it, until tonight."

Natalie held her breath, waiting for his reaction. She hated the
power this thing still held over her life, then she realized that
she didn't have to wait for his response.  "You already knew."
she said softly.

Nick turned her gently until they were again face to face,
his eyes a silent acknowledgment. "This blood-sharing thing goes
both ways, you know. I am glad that you trusted me enough to
share that with me, that you were able to talk about it." He
placed his hand under her chin and lifted her head until
their eyes met. "You know that it wasn't your fault, and that
what your  grandmother said to you was totally wrong."

"I do know that, Nick," stated Natalie, the barest hint of
a smile on her lips. "But it never hurts to hear it from someone
else."  Natalie rested back into Nick's arms, allowing him to
support her weight.

"You know, I always thought I had put that behind me, but
I've realized recently that it has really impacted my whole life.
I started overachieving right after it...the rape, happened. That
sure did the trick in keeping the boys away." Natalie paused,
reflecting on the decisions she had made in her life. "In
college, the few relationships, you couldn't even call them that,
the few experiences, I did have were pretty miserable. Then it
was off to medical school and residency--pathology of all things,
where it was all too easy to keep people at arms length." Natalie
let the rest  of her thought hang in the air.

Nick finished it for her. "And then there was me."

"And then there was you. I have considered whether I was
attracted to you because on some level you were so safe,
so unattainable."

"Is that what you think now?"

"No." She smiled broadly. "I think that I am in love with you
Nick Knight, and I want to show you how much I love you right
now."

Natalie tilted her head upward and kissed him passionately.

"We've both been through a lot tonight, Natalie. Maybe this
isn't the best time for this." Nick gazed into Natalie's warm
brown eyes as he spoke.

"I have been waiting six years for this, Nick, I'm not about
to let anything that happened in the past stop us now." Natalie
laughed. "We are quite a pair, aren't we, with all the excess
baggage we have, there won't be any room in the bed for us."

"We'll just have to be sure to leave it all downstairs
then, won't we?" With that Nick took Natalie by the hands and
slowly led her up the stairs.



Excess Baggage
part 10/12
by Kathy Whelton

This section has been sent under an Adult header for sexual
content.


Natalie glanced down at the bed and felt the seeds of doubt
begin to creep in on her. Was this the same doubt that she had
felt at the last minute three months ago?  The doubts that she
had pushed away, afraid that if she rejected Nick then, she
would never get a second chance. The fear that she should have
listened to.

Nick came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.
"Nervous?"

Natalie debated the answer within herself. Should she admit
the truth, and risk hurting him? "A little," she acknowledged.
"Maybe more than a little."

"Good, I'd be more worried if you weren't nervous...and I'd
know you were lying." Nick began running his fingers through
her hair, he kissed her softly. "I'm a little nervous myself, in
fact I haven't been this anxious about making love in...in
a very long time."

"Just see that it doesn't affect your performance." Natalie
returned his kiss with a longer, more passionate one.

"Oooh. Talk about pressure." Nick grinned broadly. "You know we
can stop at any time. You have to let me know if anything is
making you uncomfortable. Don't be worried about driving me away,
I'm not going anywhere."

Natalie began slowly unbuttoning Nick's shirt.

"I'll take that as a 'yes' then."

Natalie slid Nick's shirt off of his shoulders. She ran her
hands across his smooth, firm chest. The texture of his skin
always amazed her. It was unusually soft and pliable. "Enough
talk," She managed to mumble. They kissed,tentatively at first,
then more deeply, their tongues exploring each other. Natalie ran
her fingers through his unruly mane of blond hair.

Nick quickly unzipped the dress Natalie was wearing, letting
it fall to the floor. He touched the tops of her shoulders
lightly with his lips. Nick unsnapped her bra and let it drop. He
stood gazing at her until she began to blush.

"I know I haven't told you often enough how beautiful you are,
how long I have waited to see you like this."

"Nick, you are embarrassing me."

"Please don't be embarrassed. I'm sorry for staring, you
are just so gorgeous."

"Enough, enough," she pleaded. "Come on, handsome, your turn,"
Natalie stated as she tugged on his belt.

Nick unbuckled his pants and slid them down, kicking them off
with his shoes. He stood and kissed her ardently, pressing
her to him. He inhaled deeply, her scent was everywhere. He
felt the first stirrings of the beast within in, but suppressed
it without difficulty.

Nick bent down and tenderly kissed her breast, playfully
caressing her nipple with his tongue. He heard a sharp intake
of air from Natalie, he stopped and looked up at her. "Was that
Okay?"

"That was fine." Natalie looked closely at Nick. His eyes
were blue, tinged with only the slightest flecks of gold. "Are
you doing all right?"

"I'm doing great."  With that, Nick swept her into his arms
and carried her to the bed.


Nick laid her down carefully, then slid in beside her. He
began gently tracing his fingers across her body, exploring
every nuance. He cupped her breasts, each in turn, stroking
the nipples, which hardened in response.

Natalie was thoroughly enjoying the feelings that Nick's
attentions were provoking. She felt the yearnings inside her
begin to grow. She wanted him to feel that he was worthy of
her attentions as well. Natalie began to rub her hands along
his body.

"Natalie," Nick whispered. "Let me finish this for you, you
deserve this."  He slid his hand down into the waist of her
pantyhose, watching her closely for a response.

Natalie lifted her hips, and together they discarded her
hose and panties. Nick began tracing his fingers in the
sensitive, inner aspects of her thighs, gently brushing the soft
curls.

The tension inside Natalie was growing rapidly, demanding
to be released. "Don't be such a tease," she whispered at last.

Nick smiled and kissed her tenderly. He slid his hand to her
mons, pleased with the warm wetness he found there. He
separated her slightly and began massaging her, in slowly
increasing degrees of firmness.

Natalie began rocking subtly to his ministrations, a
sense of warmth growing within her. Hums of pleasure
began to escape her lips.

Nick inserted one finger into her, then another, rocking
them in time with her body. He felt the increasing urgency
within her, he withdrew his fingers and used them to rub
her clitoris in earnest.

The warmth within Natalie exploded, the waves of intense
pleasure passing through her. She stifled a cry with her own
palm and curled into Nick. Natalie looked up to see Nick's
warm, blue eyes staring at her. "Thank you. That
was...wonderful."

Nick looked at her closely. "Do I detect the slightest note of
surprise in your voice Dr. Lambert?"

"Well...I..wasn't quite sure what to expect." She grinned.

"You thought I was clueless, admit it."

"I have to admit I was prepared for that possibility."
Natalie snuggled into him. "And you are not off the hook yet."
Natalie began running her hands over Nick's body.

Nick grew hesitant. "Nat, maybe we should be happy
with our success so far and call it a night. Not push our luck."

"I don't want to stop now, Nick, and something tells me
you don't want to either," Natalie stated, pressing herself into
the firmness that was growing between them. "You're doing
so well."

Nick inhaled deeply, the presence of her body against his
was definitely arousing him. "That was easy, I was busy
concentrating on pleasing you. It's no guarantee that things
will continue to go well."

Natalie had maneuvered herself underneath Nick, her hands
were gently caressing his back. "I want to try, Nick." She
kissed him deeply.

Nick's breathing was becoming ragged and uneven. He was
becoming more aroused as each moment passed. Nick suddenly
rolled off of her, to the side. He kissed her fingertips lightly.

"Okay, I'm willing to try. More than willing," he smiled, "but I
think we should talk first."

"More talk? Get you into bed and suddenly you're a chatterbox, I
should have tried this earlier," Natalie returned.

"I'm serious, Nat. This is serious. This is your life."

 Natalie stopped and allowed him to continue.

"I don't think the way that we are now." He gestured to
their positions on the bed. "The standard missionary thing, is
a very good idea. It makes you so very...accessible."

"Well," Natalie grinned and kissed him lightly. "I
certainly don't mind being on...."

Nick was making a face again. "That sort of restricts me,
if I need to leave in a hurry."

"What then, Nick? What do you want me to do?" Natalie was
starting to get a little irritated, this was really putting a
damper on the mood. "You want me to do it on the ceiling?
what?"

Nick threw his head back and laughed. "Well, it is a thought,
but I don't think you are up for that just yet are you? I thought
it might be easier, for me I mean,... if you were facing away
from me."

The slightest trace of sadness, disappointment crossed over
Natalie's face.

"I'm sorry," Nick stated quickly. "I didn't mean to upset
you. I just thought it might...help..me. To stay in control, I
mean. I know it is not the most romantic of positions. Maybe we
should forget..."

"No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to seem disappointed. I was
just looking forward to looking at you when we made love."
She softly stroked his face. "It isn't the most romantic--or
dignified of positions, but it doesn't matter how we make love,
just that we  love and respect each other when we do. I'm
certainly all for anything that will help you stay in control.
Now, things seem to have cooled off a bit here, let's see what
we can do about that."

Natalie kissed Nick passionately, running her tongue along
the roof of his mouth. She slid her hand into the waistband
of his briefs and pushed them down.

"Overdressed as always," She managed to murmur between kisses.
Natalie took his semi-erect member into hand and began stroking
it softly and felt hardened rapidly to her touch. Nick began
to moan softly, his breathing uneven. Natalie began running
her other hand over his body. This body that she knew so well
in one sense and in other ways, not at all. She could be forgiven
for a little curiosity. Natalie teased his nipples and was
pleased to see them respond. She ran her fingers up to his jaw
line. Nick gasped. Probably not a good idea. Down across his
ribcage,almost nothing. She grasped his firm buttocks, now that
got a reaction.

"Are you having fun?" Nick inquired. His tone was light,
but his voice had a definite edge to it.

"As a matter of fact I am," Natalie responded with an almost
school girl giggle. She looked up, the eyes that stared
back at her were golden. Natalie's heart began beating rapidly--
her mouth dry. She really had almost forgotten where she
was and what she was doing.

"I'm sorry," Nick stated quietly. The eyes were golden, but
the look was incredibly tender. "We can stop right now."

"No, I just got a little carried away."

"You're supposed to be able to do that." Nick replied sadly.

Natalie knew that to make a distinction between the man  and the
vampire at this moment would be a mistake that they might never
recover from. She had to trust him, or there could be no future
for them.  "Let's keep going, really. I want to Nick." She kissed
him passionately to reinforce her statement.

"Only if you're sure."

Natalie responded by rolling on her stomach and propping
her knees under her.

Nick felt the tears well up in his eyes. The degree of
trust she had in him, on so many levels astonished him. Trust he
didn't deserve. He was determined to change that. He kneeled
behind her, rubbing her back. Nick didn't want her to feel that
this was demeaning or impersonal in any way. He loved her and
cherished her beyond belief. He also didn't want to kill her, or
have this end in a way that would frighten her.  Nick kissed
her softly along the length of her back. He gently explored her
with his  fingers and finding her still moist, guided himself
into her. The sensation almost overwhelmed him, he felt the
vampire rising  within him and he fought it down. Nick began
thrusting  gently within her.

Natalie was fighting a battle of her own, with her fear. As brave
and trusting as she wanted to appear, the memories of three
months ago were haunting her. She knew that there was no way he
could be sure that at some peak moment he wouldn't lose control
and bite her. It was the thing he had always feared the most. She
felt his hard, cool shaft enter her, tentatively, as if seeking
permission. Natalie rested back into him and he began thrusting.
Nicks hands wandered over her, gently caressing her. She felt him
reach around her and begin to stroke her clitoris, she gasped
at the unexpected sensation. Nick stopped everything.

"Nat?"

"That's great Nick, don't stop," she managed.

Natalie felt the warmth building within her again. Nick
was varying the intensity and depth of his thrusts, all the while
stroking her softly. Her body gave itself over to him completely,
rocking with him. She felt herself rapidly progressing toward
climax.

The intensity was building rapidly within Nick as well. He
was enjoying the sensations of being within her beyond belief,
but he felt the vampire rising within him as well. He wanted
desperately to finish this for her, for him, for what it would
mean  to them. He felt his fangs drop and he knew he had lost the
battle within himself. Nick uttered something between a groan
and a growl, he kissed Natalie quickly on the back and withdrew.

Natalie turned to see Nick lying, curled on the far edge of the
bed, his back to her. He had gulped down half the bottle of blood
he had brought with him.

"Nick?" she questioned softly. She reached out and gently
touched his shoulder. He didn't respond, but he didn't pull
away from her touch.

"I think this is where the sense of humor part comes in."
Nick stated, his voice still rough with the vampire.

A few moments later he turned. His eyes were blue, and
sad. "I'm sorry. I kind of left you hanging there."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, you did so well. It's you I'm
worried about." She was acutely aware that he had received no
gratification that night. Natalie brought her hands down and
clasped his still erect penis. "What if I..."

Nick's eyes flared gold with a suddenness that frightened them
both. He quickly grabbed her hands and pushed them away from him.

"Nat, don't!" He somehow managed a smile. "I'm barely hanging on
here as it is."

Her eyes welled with tears. "This isn't fair. Here I am asking
you to commit to a relationship in which you can't even express
yourself sexually. You would be much better off with someone
else, another vampire...Janette."

Nick looked around as if searching for something. "Janette?
How did she get in bed with us? I thought we agreed to leave
all our old baggage downstairs."

"I sincerely doubt that Janette would appreciate the analogy,"
Natalie replied.

Nick smiled. "I didn't mean it that way." He paused. "I have to
be honest with you Natalie, since you brought it up, part of me
will always love Janette. But it's you that I'm in love with,
it's you that I want..." He wanted her more than anything in the
world. He gently stroked the side of her face. At least tonight
had been a start.

Natalie let the tension ease from her shoulders. A smile tickled
the corner of her lips. "I guess we did do pretty good, didn't
we?"

"Yeah," Nick acknowledged. "We did pretty good. And you cheer up,
maybe next  time it will be you who needs the sense of humor."
he glanced down. "And the shower."

Natalie smiled. "Go on."

Nick scrambled out of bed, taking the bottle of blood with him as
he left. Natalie snuggled under the covers and began to doze to
the sound of the shower running.

Nick finished quickly and slid in beside her. His cool
body startled her and she shivered involuntarily.

Nick tucked the covers in around her. "We'll have to
get you an electric blanket."

"I'm fine Nick."

"This is August Nat, imagine what that will feel like in
January."

"What makes you think I am going to be here in Jan?" She turned
her head to look at him.

"That's something else I think we should talk about."

"Tomorrow Nick, we'll talk tomorrow"


End part 10
comments welcome (be gentle, this was really hard on me too)
Kathy 103045.2473@Compuserve.com

Excess Baggage
part 11/12
by Kathy Whelton


Nick buzzed Tracy up to the loft the following evening. She
promptly stumbled over the two suitcases that had been deposited
rather carelessly in front of the elevator door, spilling her
coffee everywhere. Tracy felt a tingle of fear in her chest.

"You're leaving?" Tracy commented, it was somewhere between a
question and a statement.

"No, I'm not leaving," Nick replied, a slightly puzzled look on
his face. Why did everyone always think he was leaving? "On the
phone you said you had something on the case." Nick walked over
to the window and put up the shutters. The sun was just setting
and he watched the light as it disappeared from the sky.

"We hit the jackpot big time on the prints from the beer glass.
They matched the partials Natalie was able to lift from the
throat of the second victim," Tracy responded.

"That's great." Nick turned around to face Tracy. "Did the RCMP
have any luck matching it up with a name?"

"Not at first, there was nothing in Canada so they went
ahead and sent it to the States."

"And?" Nick prodded. It seemed to be taking her an awfully long
time to get to the point.

"Bingo," Tracy stated. "The prints matched one Robert McKenna
wanted for a parole violation in New Hampshire. He had been
convicted there ten years ago for felonious sexual assault with
attempted murder. He served seven years before being paroled
eighteen months ago. He recently dropped out of sight."

"Well, at least it gives us a place to start."

"It gave us a little more than that. I should say the prints
matched a Robert McKenna AKA Robert Doherty AKA John Doherty. A
John Doherty applied for a drivers license here in Ontario three
weeks ago, giving a Toronto address."

"What are we waiting for? Let's go check it out." Nick was a
little surprised at Tracy's complacency, this could be the end
of the case.

"Um...we already did, Nick." This was hard, Tracy had no
wish to see the disappointment that was stealing over Nick's
face. "Reese felt we couldn't wait. We got a warrant and went in
at two this afternoon. He wanted to call you, but I..."

"It's okay, Trace." The mask was back. "You must be beat, there's
some coffee on the stove, if you like."

"Thanks." Tracy walked over and helped herself to a cup after
first eyeing it with some suspicion. It was surprisingly good.
"Unfortunately, we struck out. He was gone. There was some
indication that someone had been living there recently. We left a
radio car there, staking out the place in case he comes back.
Hopefully, we haven't scared him underground again."


Tracy stood against the counter, sipping her coffee. Her eyes
kept traveling back to the suitcases by the door. She was too
good a cop to let their presence go unexplained. Perhaps
directness was the best approached. "If you're not planning on
leaving, what's with the suitcases by the door?"

"They're not mine," Nick paused. "They're Natalie's."

"Natalie's leaving?"

Nick really didn't want to get into this with Tracy. Adjusting
to the changes in their relationship was going to be difficult
enough for both he and Natalie without feeling like they were
being scrutinized. "It looks like Nat may be spending a little
more time here then she has been, we thought it might be easier
if she had some of her things here."

Almost as if on cue Natalie descended the staircase from the
second floor, a pile of men's clothing in her arms. "Honestly,
Nick, do you ever throw anything out? There are things here you
will never wear again, even in a million years."

"You'd be surprised at what's come back into fashion after
only a few years." Nick grinned broadly, he couldn't take his
eyes off Natalie as she walked through the room.

Natalie dropped the clothes on the couch and walked over to
Nick and Tracy. Casually she slid her arm around Nick's waist
and leaned into him. "What's up with the case Trace?" Natalie
asked, not quite able to keep from smiling.

Tracy found herself glancing at Natalie's neck and simultaneously
hating herself for the thought. Natalie looked great, in fact
they both looked more relaxed and comfortable than she'd seen
them in a long time, if ever.

"...the case, Tracy, you had something about the case?"

Quickly Tracy recapped the days events for Natalie.

"So what do you think our next move should be?" Nick asked
his partner.

"I thought you and I might go back to the address we have
for John Doherty, see if the guys on stakeout have anything,
maybe poke around the house a bit ourselves."

"Sounds good." Nick replied. He turned to Natalie, easily
sliding his arms around her waist. "And what are you up to
tonight?"

Natalie brought her hands up and rested them on Nick's
shoulders. They were both acutely aware of Tracy's presence--
this was going to take some getting used to. "Technically, I'm
off, but I'll probably go in and catch up on some paperwork." She
leaned up and gave Nick a quick kiss on the lips. "You be
careful now." 

"It's not going to work," Nick stated with a grin.

"What's not going to work?"

"Don't throw the clothes out until I get a chance to go
through them." Nick bent over and kissed Natalie quickly on the
cheek before departing.


Tracy was fairly bursting with curiosity by the time she and
Nick took their places in the caddy, long moments passed
without a comment from Nick. "You're not going to tell me, are
you?" Tracy finally asked.

"No, Tracy, I'm not." The answer was clipped and perfunctory.

A cool silence descended in the car. Nick finally spoke,
histone softer. "Look, Tracy, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be
rude." Nick knew that Tracy had both their interests at heart and
that her interest was more concern than idle curiosity, still, he
wasn't ready to talk about this yet, not with anyone. "Natalie
and I talked for a long time last night,  we may have managed to
work a few things out, at least I hope we did." Nick paused. "We
need to take this one day at a time, and we don't need any more
pressure on the relationship than there already is."

"I understand, I didn't mean to pry. I only want the two
of you to be happy," Tracy replied.

"I know, and thank you. Now, why don't you tell me
where we're heading."


Tracy wished Nick had been more in the mood for some conversation
as they drove to the only known address of their suspect John
Doherty. Tracy began to feel the now familiar waves of anxiety as
they began to lap upon her. She was beginning to regret ever
making the suggestion that they come back here tonight. Going
into the house earlier today was one thing, she was with half a
dozen SWAT team members and Joe Reese. He had been so concerned
about her safety that he had made her stay in the car until they
were fairly certain that the house was clear. Now it was dark,
very dark. It would just be her and Nick in the house. Even
though the likelihood of them finding anything in the house was
slight, she was badly frightened.

Nick pulled the caddy up behind the unmarked radio car. The
house appeared much as Tracy had described it. It was a rather
large Victorian that had seen better days, the shutters on the
house were askew and the front porch caved in. The house was
isolated at the outskirts of an industrial area--it appeared to
be abandoned.

Nick was aware of the tension that had been building in his
partner on the drive over. Her heart was pounding so fast he
could barely differentiate the beats, and she was gripping the
armrest of the caddy like a lifeline. "Tracy," Nick started
gently, dropping his voice to a low, dull, monotone. "Look at me.
Take some slow deep breaths, relax your muscles, drop your
shoulders."

Tracy felt her body responding automatically to his suggestions.
She felt the edge of her fear slip, just a bit. "Thanks, whatever
you did, it helped.

"I didn't *do* anything, Tracy, besides tell you to slow down
and relax. It always works for me when I'm scared."  Nick
responded, smiling warmly.

What a joke she must seem to him. "What have you got to be afraid
of?" she asked thinly.

"Tracy, I'm afraid almost every minute of every day," he said
sadly. "I'm just not afraid of the same things that you are."

"I don't think I can do this, Nick. I don't think I can go
in there," Tracy stated in a small voice. "Maybe you could go in
without me." She needed more time, that was it, she rationalized
to herself. More time to get used to being a cop again.

"The only good reason for going into that house is you,
Tracy. You need to face this fear now, or the next time it will
be a hundred times worse. You need to decide if you still want
to be a cop, or if you want to walk away and turn your life in
another direction."

Tracy nodded, she knew he was right. It was time she took
back control of her own life. "Let's go talk to them." Tracy
indicated the radio car with a glance."

Nick and Tracy approached the car. "Hi guys, what's up?" Tracy
remarked, desperately trying to keep the fear from her voice.

"Not much," the officer responded. "It's been quiet as a
tomb. I heard you went over the place from top
no one has come near the place since you left. I think our bird
has flown the coop."

"We're going to take a quick look around anyway," Nick
remarked. "Just in case they missed something today."

"Suit yourself," the officer replied. "Here, you better take
this." he said, handing Nick a flashlight. "The electricity's
off. As long as you two are going to be here, we're going to run
and get something to eat. We've been stuck here all day."

It wasn't the best procedure, but there probably wasn't any harm
in it. "Sure, go ahead," Nick responded. "We'll wait here until
you get back."


Nick and Tracy approached the house, entering with some
difficulty through the front door. Nick passed the beam of light
across the living room. Some scattered, broken furniture remained
from previous occupants.

"You said there was evidence that someone had been in here?" Nick
asked Tracy.

"Yeah, in the kitchen, some partially eaten food."

The pair wandered through the downstairs of the house. Nick
slowly became aware that he could hear something... the faint,
but steady, beating of another human heart. He glanced at Tracy,
he briefly considered not telling her and taking her outside to
safety, but dismissed the idea.

"There's someone in this house besides us," he stated
calmly.

Tracy glanced at her partner, she wondered exactly how he knew
that, but decided this wasn't the time to ask. "Where...?"

Nick placed his index finger to his lips, gesturing her to
be quiet. His head was angled, trying to localize the sound.
"Upstairs." He glanced upward, then at his partner. "You ready
for this?"

Tracy nodded and headed toward the staircase. She took
several deep breaths, struggling successfully to keep her fear
under control. She removed her gun from it's holster and
checked the chamber as she ascended the stairs. Nick flashed the
beam of light ahead of them as they walked. They passed through
several empty bedrooms, in various states of disrepair--nothing.

The sound was definitely louder here on the second floor, but it
was still strangely muffled. Nick finally came to a stop at a
wall next to a staircase leading to the third floor. In the
darkness, he could make out a thin crack leading up the wall.
The heartbeat was loud and steady behind the wall, there was also
the sound of a radio playing softly. Nick smiled and pointed to
the wall. He was enjoying the old sensations of the hunt a bit
more than he would like to admit. There was a room behind there.
No doubt he had been here all along, hiding from the search team
this afternoon.

Nick led Tracy away from the spot. There was no need to rush
this, the suspect was trapped. "There must be a room behind
there," he whispered to Tracy. "I'll stay put, you go call it
in."

Tracy nodded silently. Nick's head spun suddenly, so he was once
again facing the wall. Beyond the barrier, the radio had been
turned off. The heartrate had shot up, either from fear or
movement, Nick couldn't tell which. "I think he is coming out,"
he said quickly to his partner before moving in front of
the concealed opening.

The hidden door opened abruptly, into Nick, momentarily
blocking him from the suspect. Tracy assumed a shooters stance,
training her weapon on the man emerging from the room.

"Freeze, police!"  She was prepared for him to have a gun,
she was prepared for it to be someone other than the suspect.
What she wasn't quite ready for was him charging at her. She was
knocked aside as he bolted past her, down the stairs to the
first floor. Tracy struggled to her feet and looked around. The
hallway was illuminated by the glow of a lantern from the
concealed room. Nick was gone.

Tracy headed quickly for the stairs and started down them, her
gun still drawn. The suspect stopped abruptly as he saw Nick
blocking the exit, his eyes glowing faintly in the darkness of
the room. The suspect turned, coming face to face with Tracy for
a second time. This time he stopped and raised his hands slowly
in response to her commands.

Nick came up behind him quickly and placed handcuffs on him.
"You're under arrest for the murders of Mary Clark and Linda
Carlise," Nick stated firmly.

John Doherty glanced at Tracy. "His eyes...did you see...?"

"Yeah, right buddy," Tracy responded as she roughly grabbed
his arm. "Tell me about it."


End part 11
Comments welcome
Kathy 103045.2473@Compuserve.com

Excess Baggage
part 12/epilogue
by Kathy Whelton



Tracy was beaming as she and Nick sat and did their paperwork on
the Clark/ Carlise homicides, and she had a right to be. She had
held it together during a tough situation at the house, facing
down her own fear. The interview had gone off without a hitch,
John Doherty confessing to the crimes they had arrested him for
and more. It would remain to be seen whether he would be held
competent for his crimes, but that wasn't their problem.

The view from the other side of the desk was a little dimmer.
Nick had resisted Tracy's offer to do all the paperwork so
he could go home. Home to the loft. Stalking a potentially
dangerous serial killer through a darkened house was child's play
compared to going home to where he knew Natalie was waiting.
Facing their relationship, and the feelings that they had for
each other, now that was scary. He was beginning to have
second thoughts, third thoughts about this whole thing. What
had possessed him to make love to her last night?

Nick suddenly realized Tracy was speaking to him.

"...I said, you're cutting it awfully close."

Nick glanced at the clock, Tracy was right, it was suddenly very
late. The last thing he needed was to have Tracy drive him home
in the trunk of his car. He looked down at the paperwork--he had
barely written a word.

"Don't sweat it partner, I'll do it. I'm so pumped I won't
sleep for a week anyway."

"Thanks Trace." Nick smiled thinly.

"No, Nick. Thank you. And give my love to Natalie."



~~~~~


Nick arrived back at the loft moments ahead of the dawn. Natalie
was asleep on the couch, wrapped in her fuzzy pink bathrobe. He
loved to look at her while she slept, she looked so peaceful, so
innocent. On the coffee table were two glasses, and two bottles,
champagne for her, blood for him. The gesture touched him, to him
it signaled her acceptance of the fact that he had needs which
neither one of them could deny.

Nick walked to the window and closed the shutters to the
brightening sky. Natalie stirred in her sleep, then slowly
awakened. "Hi there," she said softly.

"Hi yourself."

"I heard you guys broke the case. I thought you might be home
early and we could celebrate."  Natalie sat up on the couch,
gesturing for him to join her.

"I'm sorry, the paperwork," Nick said feebly. "Natalie,
about last night, I'm sorry, I don't know what possessed me, it
won't happen again."

"If you're talking about us making love, Nick, it damn
well better happen again." Natalie had been expecting this. He
was as dependent on his guilt as he was on the blood. There
was no way she was going to let his guilt infect their physical
relationship. "I'm through being your poster girl for mortality,
Nick. I don't want to be on a pedestal any longer, it's lonely
up there." Natalie stood and walked over to Nick, facing him
squarely.

"It's been a little lonely down here too," Nick said softly,
taking her by the arm. Then he turned away from her abruptly.
"But no, this is wrong, wrong for you. You know what I've been,
the things that I've done. I can't let that corrupt you anymore
than it already has."

"I can't accept that Nick. I know you are not that person
anymore, and I can't accept that what we feel for each other
could possibly be wrong." She paused, then continued more
gently. "Or that acting on those feelings could be wrong."

"This is so dangerous for you, being here, being together."
Nick was not quite ready to let go of the battle.

"I know we have a lot to work out, Nick. I don't expect
more from you than you can give." She stroked his face softly
as she spoke. "I know your control isn't perfect, that there will
be lots of times when one of us is sleeping on the couch, or I'll
be back at my apartment. I accept that, I expect that. We just
need to talk about it, not let it build walls between us."

"Maybe we could knock out a few walls, make a little
more space around here," Nick ventured.

"Now that's a little more like it." Natalie reached up
and kissed Nick softly. Nick returned her kiss with a stronger,
more passionate one. Maybe that's a lot more like it.



The End
comments welcome
Kathy 103045.2473@Compuserve.com



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