Can't Wait

Distraction

The next morning Nikki woke up to her alarm blaring next to her. She had not slept well. Nightmares had plagued her sleep, she had woken up screaming for Jack for the first time in months. She remembered how angry Matt used to get when that happened, he was convinced she had feelings for him even back then. He never understood the trauma of that event, and how she had called out to Jack for hours whilst buried alive in Mexico.

She realised how strange it was that she was only now remembering how difficult things were between her and Matt. Yet when they were together in the early days, she had been so completely in love with him. He had been supportive, caring, dashingly handsome and funny. It had taken a while for things to start going wrong, by which time she had already fallen for him. He had said all the right things at first, and now... he had become a monster? She sighed.

She was also now tarnished through association with him, somehow, and not even her steadfast partner Jack was there to help her. She couldn't blame him, could she? Feeling a bubble of anger rise up in her stomach, at how quickly she had been cast aside, she swallowed the feelings back down and told herself that he was well within his right to doubt her. All hard evidence indicated otherwise, however there was this niggling frustration that has this been any other case, he would have explored all avenues before landing on this conclusion. Wouldn't he?

She swung her legs out of bed and picked up Jack's t shirt from the floor. She had discarded it overnight as she had been drenched in sweat. She was upset that it meant she would have to wash it, removing the smell of him in the process. Sighing she padded through to her en suite and started getting ready for the day ahead.

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Arriving at The Lyell she placed her jacket and bag down at her desk, walked into the kitchen and put the kettle on to boil. She tried to put the previous day behind her and concentrate on this latest case. Looking at her phone she realised there was a message from Amy,

"Hey, we still on for tonight? Can't wait to catch up xx"

Nikki sighed, she really wasn't in the mood for seeing anyone, but it had been a long time since they had seen each other, and she thought it might actually turn out to be a nice distraction, or even an opportunity to get some advice. Nikki responded,

"Absolutely, see you at Browns later xx"

Simone arrived for work, taking out an ear pod she popped her head round the kitchen door, "Hey Doctor Alexander! Hope you're ok, and everything is alright after yesterday? Did you get everything sorted?" She smiled kindly at her.

"Err, not exactly but I'll be fine, thank you. Do you want a coffee? Or a tea?" Nikki smiled weakly.

"Tea please, builders, no sugar. Thanks!" Simone walked over to her temporary desk and removed her coat and bag. Opening up her computer she began to review the foliage and soil samples for their case. Nikki placed a cup of tea down at the side of the desk. "Doctor Alexander. I was looked at these yesterday," she said pointing to her screen, "we got results on the foot samples for conifer debris, yes?"

"That's right... why?" Nikki wondered aloud as Adam walked in and joined them at the desk. They both nodded to him in greeting, and turned back to the monitor.

"Well, when I was there yesterday with Mr Hodgson, there weren't any conifers in the wooded area where the body was found. Not this type anyway. I'm just wondering if this was picked up elsewhere." Simone turned the monitor around to better show Nikki and Adam the map of the local area, "So the body was found here," she pointed to the location of the site, "but we know that the cuts you found were likely from this area all the way over here." She tapped the screen with the end of her pen, "so if the victim was running away from something or someone, they would normally follow a straight-ish kind of path, yeah?"

Nikki smiled, "That's right... So trace the journey back to where we find these conifers and we will likely find the location of where she was running from. Well done Simone, let's see what the local area shows us..."

Nikki had a dawning realisation where the similarity with a previous case came in. "Conifers! Amy! That's it! How could I not see it?!" Adam and Simone looked at each other and then back to Nikki, who realised she would need to explain her sudden outburst, "Years ago we were brought in on a case that had many of the hallmarks of this one; a running female victim, gunshot, found in woodland, contaminated with bleach, conifer debris... I had a feeling I had seen similarities with another case, so did Jack, I'll need to tell..." Nikki stopped talking, realising she couldn't share this find with Jack. "Ah, well, he's at his forensic conference. I'll email him our theory later. Could you two investigate this lead please? I will speak with the detectives about the working theory we are developing."

"Sure, but who is Amy?" Adam queried.

"She used to work at The Lyell a long time ago, she was a surviving victim, of sorts, involved in the same case. I'm meeting her tonight for a catch up, talk about crazy timing! I think you mentioning conifers has just brought it all together, Simone, thank you. I don't think it's related to this case, but we learnt a lot from it and could use some of the theory here maybe." Nikki smiled and picked up her phone to speak with the detectives.

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Jack picked up a cup from a table at the side of the hall, filling it with black coffee as he yawned quietly. He hadn't slept well and had spent most of the evening trying to concentrate on the tv shows he was jumping between in a vain effort to not think about Nikki, or what had gone on with her and Matt.

He sipped his coffee and looked at the list of speakers and break-out seminars that were planned for the day. He felt a presence at his side and looked down to see that Abigail had joined him, also holding a coffee.

"Morning Jack!" She grinned up at him and flicked her hair over her shoulder, "What's your first seminar today?"

Jack smiled back at her, "Morning Abigail. Er, I'm in the session on Proteomes first. You?"

"Me too. It looks fascinating, and a really key build from reliance on DNA... I can't wait for the session on Biosensors in fingerprint analysis." Abigail said enthusiastically.

"Yes, there's so much to get excited about in our field. It's constantly evolving. I'm lucky that we invest in a lot of the modern advancements. What's it like in your lab?" He asked, thinking about having to make an effort to find another place of employment soon.

"Yes, we are the same really. If you don't invest you get left behind quickly, then you lose your contracts with the police, hospitals, you know..." she sipped her coffee and looked at Jack, narrowing her large brown eyes. "What are you up to later?" She enquired, "I mean after the conference bit is done for the day?"

Jack took a long breath in. He was used to being hit on fairly frequently, although he wasn't sure if that was what was going on here. He also wasn't sure how to feel about it if she was flirting, still reeling over what has happened with him and Nikki. "Erm, I'm not sure yet. I need to hit the gym, and I was thinking of a run down by the Quayside, see the sights, you know... why?" He asked cautiously.

"Oh, just that a few of us are going to check out The Cluny. It's like a pub slash music venue. Mid week means we will get to see some local bands. In Liverpool there is a big live music kind of culture, so we thought we would check out what it was like here in Newcastle. Join us if you want, give me your number and I'll message you." She insisted, handing Jack her coffee and taking her phone out of her pocket, looking at him expectantly.

"Err, okay" Jack replied, rattling off his mobile number.

"Great!" Abigail flashed wide smile after punching the numbers into her phone. "Now, let's get to the opening speaker." She asserted and they both walked to the main auditorium.

Jack gave a slight smile. A distraction of a night out in Newcastle with Abigail and her colleagues might be just what he needed. He took a seat next to her, and took out his phone. Still no calls from Nikki. He frowned and put it back in his pocket, not even sure what he was wanting from a phone call with her anyway. He sat back in his chair and tried to concentrate on the main speaker introducing the guests, and going through the seminar listings for the next few days.