Chapter Text
André woke in a painful haze. He swore groggily and rubbed his face exhaustion pulling him back towards sleep. His muscles burned from an extended period on a hard surface. He forced his eyes momentarily open taking in a glimpse of the space around him. It was dark and unfamiliar. He reasoned his mind must be playing tricks on him. He reached an arm out searching for Semir in the darkness. He didn’t feel sheets or a doona or the warm skin of his partner. Instead his hand touched something small, much smaller than Semir. It was the still form of his daughter. André sat bolt up his head throbbing from the action and crawled to her. He brushed her hair away from her face and checked her for injuries. She was unharmed and sleeping soundly. André took a shaky breath to calm himself. Confusion and panic folded beneath professional instinct.
He surveyed the room for movement and found, with some relief, they were alone. He reached for his gun but both it and his holster were missing. His pockets were empty too. André stood clutching his temple sight beginning to adjust to the dimness. Using the tiny amount of light filtering through cracks in the ceiling, he began to gather information. The room was dirty and smelled musty. The cracks and the architecture of the room led André to surmise that it was likely a derelict building. Perhaps an old abandoned mansion. Strewn around the room were random cardboard boxes and bits of trash.
As he crept through the room he narrowly missed a bucket. His instinct told him it might be a makeshift toilet but he wasn’t sure they were prisoners yet. André approached the only door in the room with caution. He pressed his ear against it listening for sounds beyond. There was nothing so he gingerly twisted the handle. It would not turn or open. He put his shoulder against it and gave it a shove but was dismayed to find it quite sturdy. At the sound of the door groaning under his weight Dana stirred.
"Papa?" Her tiny voice shook with tears and André feared a crying fit. He quickly returned to her side scooping her up into his arms.
"Hey Dana it's ok I'm here shhh" he said softly and she curled into him “We have to be very quiet”
"Where are we?" She sniffled confused “Where's Baba?”
"I'm not sure" he whispered rubbing her back soothingly "Do you remember what happened before we were here?"
She shivered with fear and shook her head. André expected she remembered something but was too afraid to say it.
"It's alright" he said kissing her forehead "Whatever happened you're not in trouble. Are you sure you don't remember anything?"
She buried her head in his shoulder and shook it again. Her tiny arms hugged his neck. He smiled softly in spite of their grim situation. He carried her to the corner farthest from the door and sat down with her.
He set her on his knee.
"I need you to listen very carefully" André spoke gently and deliberately "we are going to be ok"
She nodded.
"Whatever happens you stay close to me understand?" He asked.
"Yes Papa" she replied as she wiped the tears resolutely from her face. She beamed up at him with her big brown eyes and André couldn’t help but see the best parts of Semir shining through.
"My brave girl" he said fondly brushing her cheek with his thumb.
"Papa?"
"Yes?"
"Why is your shirt wet?" She asked. It was only then that André noticed dark ruddy marks on Dana's hands and jumper that hadn’t been there before. He looked down at his shoulder. The right side of his shirt beginning near his clavicle had a dark stain. He reached up gingerly pulling the sticky collar of his shirt open to inspect the spot. There was a deep gash. It looked as though it might be a stab wound. He grit his teeth although he did not feel any pain. He suspected his body was in a mild form of shock. He was bleeding badly.
"Hop up Dana" he said and she stood taking a step back. He slid his coat off and carefully pulled his thick t-shirt off blanching with the effort.
“Papa! You’re hurt!” she exclaimed.
“Shhhh it’s ok” he hushed her before grabbing his t-shirt between his teeth and tearing it into strips. He balled up a piece of the shirt pressing it into his wound then reached out to Dana.
"I need you to do a big girl job for me" he said patiently "Take this bandage and tie it around Papa's shoulder here"
"It's gonna hurt" she whimpered.
"Not for your big strong papa" he said "Come on"
He placed a strip over his injured shoulder and diagonally across his chest. Dana walked around to his side and grabbed the two ends.
"Now I need you to do it really tight ok? Like we practiced with shoe laces" he instructed her. She pulled the two ends tight and André felt a firmness gathering across his shoulder.
"Tighter" he urged "as tight as you can"
She gave an exaggerated groan of effort pulling it with as much strength as she could muster. As she created a mangled knot pain seared through André's body, his nerves coming alive under the pressure of the wraps. He pressed his fist against his mouth trying not to swoon.
"Good job" he forced out willing himself to keep a positive tone and held out a second strip "Let's do another one"
***
“Ok. Let’s go over this again” Semir said pacing the length of his and Tom’s office going over the details of their current case “The Blutmarsch Biker Gang has been using truck stops along the A4 to run drugs for somewhere between 10 and 15 years. Over the last few weeks people have been poisoned because the product has gone bad. Might be a new cook? Might be tampering from a rival gang? We don’t know yet. We do know there is going to be a big shipment coming in soon...”
He paused by the corner of his desk tapping his phone’s screen.
“With the potential to kill dozens more…” Tom finished, “Have we tried getting an informant to warn them that something is off with their product?”
“Yeah” Semir confirmed “Apparently they don’t believe the reports given to them by the informants. Dead customers aren’t good business but I think the body count will have to go significantly higher before they do anything about it”
“Alright we have extra personnel posted along the highway to keep an eye out for possible shipments, though we’ve rarely caught them this way before” Tom said reviewing his notes “We are keeping an eye on their network. What else can we do?”
“Guess there’s nothing we can do but go back to interviewing truckstop owners” Semir sighed heavily crossing his arms.
“We’ve already talked to all the owners we know are located within the gangs operational route,” Tom griped “they don’t know anything or if they do they aren’t saying anything”
“So far they are the only people who would commonly…” Semir mused, tapping his phone again before drifting off “...run into the gang...we need to….”
Tom waited a moment before frowning at his partner. He clicked his fingers loudly startling Semir.
“We need to what?” Tom asked.
“Oh uh review their statements” Semir answered dropping heavily into his desk chair “if we’re not going to follow up with them”
“Hey what’s going on with you?" Tom asked “Why do you keep checking your phone?”
“It’s nothing...” Semir dismissed him turning to his computer to pull up the truck stop owners interview transcripts.
“Clearly” Tom said sarcastically “Your head’s been in the clouds all day”
“It’s just…it's Dana's school production today and André said he would keep me updated about it but he hasn't called or texted" Semir admitted defensively.
“This is a little more important, Mother Hen” Tom said crossing his arms.
"I know I know" Semir agreed glumly “there’s always something though. There's always some guy we need to catch or some angle we need to work. Dana is only going to grow up once and I...don’t want to miss it..."
Tom's perturbed expression eased and after a long moment, he spoke.
"...we've all been burning the candle at both ends on this case. If it's gonna bother you so much maybe you should take a few hours and go catch the end of the production" Tom suggested "It’ll give you a chance to recuperate a bit. Maybe taking a break will help freshen you up”
“Maybe,” Semir said thoughtfully. Before he’d had a chance to make a decision Andrea stuck her head through the door.
"Semir, call for you” She announced.
“Who is it?”
“Dana’s school”
"Oh...send it through" he replied confused. The light on his desk phone flashed and he picked up.
"Hello?"
"Good afternoon Mr Gerkhan this is Mrs Müller of Kepler Elementary. I'm calling on behalf of Mr Fischer your daughter's homeroom teacher. Are you aware that Dana has not come to school today?" The affable but slightly concerned voice of Mrs Müller floated down the line.
"No. My husband André was supposed to drop her off this morning and attend the school production. Are you sure she isn't there?" Semir asked apprehension washing through his nerves.
"She hasn't been signed in and she isn't in the hall where the production is" Mrs Müller answered.
"Ok...thank you for notifying me I'll check in with André and get back to you" Semir replied.
"Of course," She said reassuringly “I’m sure it’s all fine”
The receiver scarcely hit the phone before Semir lifted it again typing in André's number at speed. Tom gave him a quizzical look.
"Dana didn't make it into school today," Semir explained the call tone buzzing in his ear. André's voice carried through the phone in the form of a voicemail. Semir hung up and redialed.
“How did André seem this morning when he left with her?” Tom asked.
“Fine. Normal” Semir replied.
"Maybe.... he took her out of school for the day for some reason" Tom offered. Semir shook his head.
"He would have told me," Semir said heartbeat steadily rising as André's answering machine tone sounded again. He scribbled a number onto a notepad and tossed it to Tom.
"Call André's informant Leon. He was going to update Leon on the case today" Semir said and Tom caught the pad ducking back down to grab his phone. Semir hit redial again walking over to their office door.
"Boss!" He shouted over the usual hubbub catching Anna Englehardt's ear as she walked down the hall.
"Yes?" She paused looking back at him.
"Has André called in today?"
"No. He took a day of leave for Dana's production. Why do you ask?" She responded making her way over to him. As she arrived, André's answering machine picked up a third time.
"She wasn't signed in at school this morning and I haven't heard from André about it" Semir replied returning to his desk. He sunk into his chair setting the receiver down haltingly.
"Thanks" they heard Tom say as he hung up. He looked to Semir shaking his head.
"André didn't touch base with Leon. Apparently, Leon tried him a few hours ago but didn't get through" Tom hesitated. Semir felt sick. He felt saturated in the memory of André sinking beneath the waves and the idea that Dana might face a similar fate.
"Boss I know we're in the middle of an important case and this might seem like an overreaction but this is just not like André" Semir said thickly "I want to go look for them"
Anna crossed her arms weighing her options.
"Have you picked up any leads about the shipment?" She asked.
"No we've been going over the details of the case and following up with the gang informants all day" Tom answered, “Nothing new has come of it. We were just about to re-evaluate the truck stop owner interviews”
"Ok...take a couple of hours - go see what you can find out about André and Dana" she said firmly, “Keep me informed and be back to work on the case by 4:30pm at the latest”
"Yes boss" Semir replied snatching his coat off the back of his chair.
"And Gerkhan" she said grabbing his arm "if you need back up let me know"
"Thanks" he said gratefully before striding out of the room Tom close behind.
"Where should we start?" Tom asked.
"Dana’s school" Semir said voice ridgid with resolve.
***
André fell out of consciousness his head dropping. His mind instantly filled with thoughts of Dana defenceless at the hands of their captors. A sickening bodywide clench jolted him awake as though the images were an electric shock. A few feet away from him Dana was playing hopscotch on an unfolded cardboard box. André shook his head futilely trying to clear the sleep from his mind. He checked the cracks in the ceiling and could see it was still daytime. He assumed his blood loss was at fault for his struggle to stay awake.
"Papa"
"Yes little bee?" he responded.
"Are you sleepy?" She asked.
"Yes" he yawned "Are you?"
"No. I'm soooooo awake" she replied enthusiastically, holding her arms wide to indicate how awake she was.
"Mmm" he murmured, knowing he couldn't fight sleep forever "come here"
She walked over and sat down on his lap.
"You've been such a strong girl for Papa today" he said "you've done so many important jobs"
"Uh-huh" she said proudly.
"I need you to do one more ok?" He asked "last one. It's very easy"
"Ok" she replied magnanimously.
"I need you to sit with me while I sleep and if anyone opens the door I need you to shout as loud as you can," he explained, pointing at the door, "I know you love shouting but you can only do it if someone comes in"
"Ok Papa"
"That's my girl" he said leaning back against the wall finally allowing his eyes to close on purpose.
"Papa"
"Mmm?"
"I'm bored. Can I have a story?'"
"Alright…” He exhaled searching his memory for a story she would like “Did I ever tell you the story about the time me and your Baba got trapped?"
"No"
"Some bad men caught us and put us in a big metal box for 3 days and your Baba found it difficult to sleep because the floor was so hard. So to help him I held him in my arms just like I'm holding you now and low and behold he fell asleep" André mumbled trailing off "I think...it might have been...the day I started falling in love with him..."
"Blegh" she said, her current standard response to anything love related "then what happened?"
"Auntie Anna broke us out" André said with a smirk "So you see. Everything will be fine"
“...I miss Baba” He heard her small voice say. The memory of Semir’s weight sleeping against the hollow of his own, the sound of his cheeky voice and the brush of his palm on André’s face surrounded him. He swallowed trying to undo the sudden lump in his throat and the rushing ache of not having Semir there.
“Me too honey” he hushed “…me too”
***
Semir's BMW hugged the curb taking the final corner like a rally car. Tom gripped the dash as they pulled up short on Dana's school. Semir had been swinging back and forth between stress and composure for the last hour. He stepped out of the driver's seat and shut the door scanning their surroundings.
“So where does André normally drop her off?” Tom asked shielding his eyes from the afternoon sun.
“Over here”
Semir led Tom to a large pair of iron gates with a smaller set of gates to the right. The smaller set was open in preparation for the end of the school day. Cars were parked along the street by the gate. Semir stopped at the smaller gate.
“This is normally where he sees her off. He stays until she’s inside the gate then leaves”
"I don't see anything out of the ordinary" Tom mused investigating the area before heading off to the left "I'll check the street down this way"
"Alright" Semir called over his shoulder pulling his gaze away from the gate and the memories of his daughter standing there. He set off down the footpath looking for anything out of the ordinary. He’d been walking for a minute or so when he noticed broken glass close to the curb in an empty car park. He frowned walking over to it and crouched down. It looked like the fractured pieces of a front headlight which was strange considering the car spaces where angled diagonally into the curb and there were no obstacles in front of the park that a car might have run into.
He walked the length of the car park looking for any other signs of an accident but there were none. No tire marks from brakes being applied. No paint scratches on the adjacent cars. Semir dropped to his hands and knees to look under the adjoining cars. There was nothing under the car to the left but when he looked to the right he noticed the sunlight glinting off something under the car.
“Semir!” He heard Tom approaching down the sidewalk.
“Down here” he called reaching under the car to pick up the object. As he felt it in his palm he knew it was keys and pulled it out into the light. There laying in his hand was a plain set of Mercedes keys. Semir turned it over looking for the familiar scuffs on the spartan loops. He stood numbly holding them away from him as if they might be poisoned. It was only then that he recognised the car one space over. He rounded to the sidewalk and stared at the car fighting a black hole that was opening inside his chest.
“Did you find any-” Tom reached him, his words petering out to a shocked silence “is that?”
Semir held the keys out to Tom and dropped them into his hand.
“It’s André’s car ...and his keys” He said voice empty “Call it in”
“But-” Tom began.
“Now” Semir barked fixing him with a glower that was undeniable.
“Ok” Tom said calmly holding his hands up “I’ll be right back”
Semir lapped André’s car but it was untouched and locked. He curled his fingers around the drivers side handle and squeezed. He looked up at the tall school fence hoping for some kind of security system but saw none. His focus switched to the opposite side of the street. There like a beacon of hope was a shop front with a surveillance camera attached and aimed at the school. He crossed the street narrowly missing an oncoming car that beeped angrily at him. His focus had reduced to one task. He had to get the footage. He could hear Tom shouting his name in the distance but ignored him shoving the shop front door open and striding over to the counter.
"Inspector Semir Gerkhan, Highway Police" he said to the owner without preamble holding out his identification card. His breathing sounded harsh but he didn’t care.
"And?" the man said surprised and slightly annoyed. He was taller than Semir with a dirty singlet on under a faded red jacket. The fluorescent bar light above him reflected off his balding head and stringy hair.
"Earlier today a crime occurred outside your establishment and your security camera footage is vital to apprehending the perpetrators" Semir continued shoulders squared and voice demanding.
"You want my footage?" He asked incredulously.
"Yes" Semir replied "hand it over immediately"
"No" the owner denied him tersely.
"What do you mean?" Semir asked through gritted teeth.
"I mean no. You burst in here barking orders at me claiming footage you clearly have no
warrant for. My answer, Inspector, is no"
Semir reached over the counter grabbing the man by his shirt and yanked him forward so he leaned over the counter at Semir's head height. Semir saw fear flash in the man’s eyes.
"You give me that footage now" Semir snarled tone low and dangerous.
"Woah woah woah!" Tom's voice followed the sound of the bell on the shop door opening. He sprinted over extracting Semir's fists from the man's shirt.
"Sorry about him - he's under a lot of pressure right now. Inspector Tom Kranich. You want a warrant right? Fair enough. Any concerned citizen would. Here it is" Tom said holding out a piece of paper and his I.D. The shop owner glared at the paper, Tom and Semir.
"If you touch me again I'll call the police and file a complaint" he snarled at Semir and stormed off through a doorway behind the counter. Semir eyed Tom, puzzled.
"A warrant?" Semir whispered confusion tempering his agitation. Tom held it up with a small smirk.
"Saw you walking over here and thought you might need one. It's one of the old fine forms with our official emblems on them. I found it under the passenger seat of your car" Tom muttered smugly "People rarely bother to read warrants. Especially if you're flashing badges in their faces"
The owner stuck his head back through the doorway a moment later.
"Inspectors" he said castically gesturing for them to follow him.
Semir and Tom joined the owner in the small dark room behind the counter. The room contained a desk with some outdated recording equipment and was lit solely by 3 heafy computer monitors stacked on the desk. Semir scrunched his nose at the dank smell within the room and was partially relieved he couldn’t see his surroundings that well. He shuddered to think of the kind of mess he might find with the lights on. The owner dropped into an old computer chair and swivelled it around to face the monitors.
"What time do you want to see" the owner snapped.
"8:30am" Semir replied. He made a mental note to have this shop owner's background checked at some point. There was something unsettling about the fact that the camera was aimed across the street at the school and not at the front of the shop. Currently though Semir's concerns for André and Dana were more critical.
The owner rewound the tape at top speed, cars and people zipping in and out of shot under moving bands of static. Semir's heart jumped into his throat at a glimpse of André's car flashing through the footage.
"Stop!" Semir said.
"Alright alright!" The owner groaned jabbing a key on the keyboard. Semir held his breath.
For a moment or two the day playing on the screen was normal. Cars pulled up, some pausing, some parking, all ferrying children to school. The footage had no audio which gave it an eerie quality. The traffic was petering out to nothing when André's Mercedes entered the shot. He parked smoothly and André stepped out Dana almost simultaneously slipping out of her seat onto the asphalt. They shut their doors and André locked the car meeting Dana on the sidewalk and taking her hand in his. From behind a van on the left of the screen 4 large men in dark clothing approached. Semir's stomach lurched. They stopped in front of André and seemed to be talking to him. One of them was holding a pipe behind their back. Without turning away from them André cautiously drew Dana behind him. The two men on the outside of the group began to move around André towards his back.
"I should have been there" Semir whispered.
Suddenly the one behind and to the right of André lashed out ripping Dana away from him. Semir choked. André spun around kicking the man in the head. He fell pulling Dana down to the ground though he seemed barely conscious. André turned to face their attackers again trying to put himself between them and Dana. One leapt out to attack and André blocked but the assailant was soon joined by another. André fought viciously forcing all three back.
At one point André managed to snatch the pipe away and swung it at the attacker nearest to him. The man dodged at the last second and André shattered the headlight of the van by accident instead. The one who dodged launched at André bringing his fist down into André's upper chest and André froze. Semir covered his mouth as the man yanked his fist back. He felt Tom's hand on his shoulder. André had been stabbed. He seemed to stagger for a moment before one of the other attackers hit him in the back. He convulsed and fell to the ground. Stun gun. Semir felt a tear fall his body frozen with horror.
While André had been fighting Dana had been engaged in her own struggle to escape her attackers grip. As André fell she pulled out of his grasp but instead of leaving she ran to André. She dropped to her knees covering him protectively. One of the attackers picked her up off André and put a rag over her mouth. She squirmed for only a minute before going limp.
"No" Semir whispered shaking his head "no"
The men carried André, Dana and the injured attacker to the van and got in. The van began to pull out of the car park.
"Stop" Semir spoke.
The owner stopped the tape.
"...Semir…" Tom began but Semir held his hand up to silence him. He hesitated and then with the same hand reached out touching the frozen image on the monitor below the van bumper bar.
"Number plate"