- Steele Working
It Out
Part 7
By Kristen McNeil
- Disclaimer: See pt. 1
- Author's Notes: See pt. 1
- *****
- "Steele?" The whispered
voice cut through the silence. Harry lifted his weary head. "Are
you asleep?"
"I'm not now." Was his cool reply. Meeting Murphy's
eyes he sighed. Michaels looked as apprehensive about their situation
as he felt. The difference was, Harry would never show it. His
face always remained incredibly calm and impassive...icy calm
as Laura had put it many times.
"Do you think our captors are going to make an appearance
soon? I'm getting rather bored."
"I'm sure Silver has his own agenda." Harry replied.
His eyes roamed what little he could see of the room. There was
no telling how long they'd been there. Harry guessed maybe a
day or so...possibly more. He wondered if he'd live to see the
light of day. Would Silver kill them after he got what he wanted?
Harry prayed not. The only way he wanted to die was of old age,
with Laura by his side.
"Well I for one don't want to sit around and wait for this
guy to make an appearance." Murphy said sullenly.
"I'm not exactly champing at the bit for a confrontation
myself." Harry remarked dryly. "Still, he'll show when
the time is right."
"Very astute Mr. Steele." A stranger's voice said from
behind. Harry didn't turn for the simple reason that he was unable
to. He didn't need to however, he knew who it was.
"Silver." Was all he said. His voice held more contempt
and hatred in that one word, than Murphy had ever heard in his
entire life. "Or should I say Adam Trent?"
"You remember me Mr. Steele, I'm impressed." Silver
stated as he came into Harry's view. "Or should I say Douglas
Quintaine? Ben Pierson? You're hardly one to talk of aliases."
"What do you want?" Harry spat.
"My demands are simple." Silver replied calmly walking
around Murphy's chair, his eyes never leaving Harry's. "I
want that video tape. Chalmers has it, therefore I believe a
trade is in order."
"I can't believe I fell for your phony case!" Murphy
muttered to himself. "How will capturing me benefit you?"
"It won't." Silver replied with a shrug. "You
my friend were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"Great." Murphy sighed. "I hope that's not what
they put on my gravestone."
"As long as Chalmers gives me what I want, there will be
no need of it." Silver told him smoothly.
"How can we trust that you'll keep up your end?" Harry
asked him, his eyes narrowing into hate-filled slits.
"Why, I sense some animosity between us Steele!" Silver
said in mock surprise. "What have I done to anger you so?"
"You killed Dicky Patterson." Steele replied. His voice
was still as calm as ever Only Murphy noticed the deadly undertone
that laced it. "He was a friend of mine. Daniel Chalmers
is too and there is no excuse for what you did to his Annie."
"Oh, Daniel Chalmers is more than a friend to you Steele
and we both know it!" Silver hissed, his eyes lighting up
with malicious glee. "Is that what this is all about? Annie?
Pity you never met her."
"What do you mean Daniel is more than a friend to me?"
Harry questioned suspiciously. "I'm afraid I don't follow."
"Come off it Steele!" Silver scoffed! "Don't play
dumb with me, I have no respect for it. We both know who Daniel
really is to you!"
Murphy watched the exchange in confusion. Silver seemed to expect
that Steele knew what he was talking about. Yet from the look
on Steele's face, Murphy could tell he really didn't understand.
<I don't know why I find myself feeling sorry for you Steele...>
"Well I don't." Murphy cut in. "Care to enlighten
me?"
Silver turned to look at the detective he'd hired for his false
case and felt himself smile once more. It was clear Remington
Steele had kept the fact that he was Chalmers' son a secret from
everyone. That was obviously the reason he hated him so much.
After all, Silver had killed his mother and a friend of his.
Since Silver loved to brag, however and seeing as how he relished
the idea of repeating the tale to Murphy right in front of Steele,
he decided to tell him. Far be it for him to deny his captives
something so fun.
"Certainly." He told Murphy smoothly. He circled around
Murphy's chair once more and stood to the side, between the two
of them. "I knew Daniel Chalmers along time ago. Long story
short, he double crossed me and the woman I loved wanted Chalmers
instead of me."
"It must have been the homicidal maniac thing that turned
her off." Harry muttered. Silver shot him a murderous glance.
"No woman turns me down, especially not for my best friend,"
he replied ominously.
"You killed her." Murphy whispered with cold realization.
This guy was crazier than he thought! Silver chuckled softly.
"Not right away. She was pregnant you see. All I did was
weaken her so much that she didn't survive the pregnancy. She
died giving birth to her son." He looked to Harry purposefully
and continued the story. "He was a healthy child, who would
grow up one day to be known as the famous LA detective Remington
Steele. Isn't that right Mr. Steele?"
At first Silver's words flew right over Harry's head. What was
he talking about? Surely he couldn't mean...but looking into
his eyes, Harry could see he did. Suddenly, his throat felt very
dry.
"What are you talking about?" He whispered, his icy
calm composure dropped completely. The fear and horror in his
voice was recognizable even to Murphy.
Looking at Chalmers' son's face, Silver was suddenly struck with
a realization. Chalmers never told him! When Silver had been
Adam Trent and had known Remington as Douglas Quintaine, Steele
had told him all sorts of stories about the time he had spent
with his mentor. When he found out who Steele really was, he
simply assumed Steele knew as well. Apparently this was not the
case. <This is even better!> He thought to himself. "You
know what I'm talking about." Silver told him quietly, taking
a step towards him. "If you don't, you will now. I suppose
Daniel should have been the one to tell you, but it hardly matters
now, does it? The truth is, you are the son that Annie died giving
birth to and Daniel is your father."
"No," Harry whispered, shaking his head as if to block
Silver's words from his mind. Murphy watched the scene unfold
in shock and surprisingly enough, sympathy. It was no secret
he had never liked Steele. Still, this kind of pain he wouldn't
wish on his worst enemy. "No, you're lying! You have to
be lying!"
"I'm not lying Mr. Steele." Silver told him simply.
"We both know it's true. You don't want to believe it, but
I can tell you do. Years ago, I killed your mother and if I don't
get that video tape, Daniel will lose yet another relative."
He turned to Murphy. "Maybe I'll kill that lovely young
associate of yours as well for good measure."
At this, something in Harry snapped.
"You hurt Laura and I'll kill you with my bare hands, that
I promise you!" His voice was low and every bit as threatening
as the words he spoke. A corner turned up on Silver's lips.
"Ah, that's right. You and the young lady have a history
of sorts don't you? You'd better hope Daniel co-operates. You
wouldn't want the saying 'like father like son' to hold much
meaning in this case now would you?"
With a cry of fury, Harry struggled at the ropes that bound him
to the chair. This man had ruined his life. He'd killed his mother
and prevented him from ever having known the woman who gave him
life. He'd estranged his father and now he threatened the only
woman he had ever dared to love completely. God help him, he
was going to get out of that chair.
Murphy watched Steele struggle blindly and felt his anger. He
couldn't even begin to imagine how he would feel were he in Steele's
position. The fact that Silver was only laughing softly as he
struggled worsened things.
"Steele, it's useless." Murphy said gently. "Don't
give him the satisfaction of knowing he got to you. He won't
hurt Laura. You and I will see to that."
Harry paused a moment and looked up at Murphy, not bothering
to try to disguise the tear that ran down his cheek. Even though
he'd never known his mother and she had been dead all his life,
just finally finding out the truth opened the wound fresh again.
Almost as if it had just happened.
Still, he heard the sense in Murphy's words and ceased his futile
struggle against the tightly bound ropes. It seemed as if, for
once he and Murphy were not enemies, but allies.
"Daniel should be here soon." Silver said casually.
"I'll leave you two until the time comes to make the switch.
Let's hope your father cares enough about you to try and rescue
you eh?"
<My father...> Harry thought to himself. <Why didn't
he tell me? > No, now was not the time for that. He would
think about it later when he wasn't in grave danger. Looking
around, he realized that Silver had already left while he was
lost in his own thoughts.
"You all right?" Murphy asked after a few moments of
awkward silence. The last person Harry had ever wanted to emotionally
lose it in front of, was Murphy Michaels.
"Bloody wonderful." Was his sarcastic retort.
"Hey don't take it out on me Steele." Murphy said,
his anger replacing sympathy. "I was just asking all right?"
"Yea, I know." Harry conceded with a defeated sigh.
"I won't let him hurt Laura. I'll die before I let him near
her."
"You're serious!" Murphy exclaimed in surprise. Steele's
eyes burned with anger and a fierce determination to keep Laura
safe. Why hadn't Murphy ever seen that in him before?
"You're damn right I'm serious!" Harry agreed. "Did
you think I didn't care for her enough Michaels? Was that it?"
"No," Murphy replied calmly. "I didn't want to
see Laura get hurt."
"Your dislike for me is deeper than that, and we both know
it." Harry replied. "Tell me, what is it that I ever
did to you?"
"You know what you did Steele." Murphy said with a
weary sigh. "You did what I couldn't. You made Laura fall
in love with you. You, with your shady past, and dozen aliases.
You broke through her defenses. All I was to her was a buddy,
a partner. Never a man. It drove me nuts that someone as likely
to stick around as you were, could make her feel that way. Is
that what you wanted to know? Are you happy Steele? Petty jealousy,
that's all it was. I guess none of that matters now, does it?
We're probably going to die anyway, so the truth might as well
come out, right?"
"I never realized." Harry said softly. A small, rueful
chuckle escaped his lips. "You want to hear something weird
Michaels? I've always been jealous of you."
"Me?" Murphy exclaimed in complete surprise. "Why
me? Laura doesn't have feelings for me, she's in love with you."
"Yes, but you have her confidence." Harry replied sadly.
"You have her trust and respect. She tells you things...her
thoughts, her feelings. Things she would never tell me. I think
part of her is afraid to get too close to me. You say she's in
love with me...but you're closer to her than I've ever been."
"Maybe if you were truthful Steele." Murphy remarked
tartly. "That's always been what's holding you back you
know. If you'd just told her what was going on in the first place,
maybe we wouldn't be in this mess. You always had to play the
man of mystery and it's pushed you apart, can't you see that?"
"Why should you care?" Harry wondered suspiciously.
"We're not friends Murphy. You and I have never had a kind
word to say to each other, so why are you trying to help me now?"
"I don't know." Murphy admitted. "I guess because,
you're what she wants. I may not like you Steele, but I no longer
doubt that you love her. I think that's progress."
Harry was silent, unable to think of a suitable remark to Murphy's
statement. Things were definitely tight at the moment. Silver
was now not only Daniel's enemy, but his as well. The anger he
felt inside him, the burning need to escape overtook him. It
frustrated him because escape, for the moment, was not possible.
Instead he sat there in tortured silence...looking at his only
companion and least likely friend. Maybe friend was the wrong
word to use...definitely the wrong word. They were neutral now.
They'd never spend Christmas together, or barbecue steaks at
each other's houses, but at least they reached a level of truce
and respect. Who knew it would occur in captivity with their
lives hanging in the balance? Life was ironic that way.
****
"They have Murphy as well." Just saying those words
out loud, caused a shiver to run up Laura's spine. The two most
important men in her life were at the mercy of a madman and the
only one who held the key to their release, was Daniel Chalmers,
a man she'd never been particularly fond of.
"Who has him honey?" Mildred asked, her eyes wide with
shock. She wasn't entirely sure why Daniel Chalmers was with
them, or what he had to do with this mess for that matter, but
she was willing to listen. At least he wasn't dead. At the moment,
that seemed hardly much of a consolation.
"Dale Silver." Daniel replied. "We have a past
together. It's long and complicated. Basically, he wants the
video tape in exchange for their lives."
"Well it doesn't take an Einstein to figure this one out
does it Miss Holt?" Mildred exclaimed. "Just give him
what he wants!"
"We can't be sure of their safety even if he does get his
hands on the tape." Daniel argued. "Silver won't just
'let them go'. Especially if they've seen his face. He's a politician
and the slightest hint of scandal could ruin everything for him."
"Well we can't just leave them there!" Laura exclaimed.
Panic in her started to rise. "He's your son Daniel!"
"Dammit I know that!" Daniel yelled in return. Mildred
watched this exchange in wide-eyed wonder. This man was really
the boss' father? Did he know that? "I don't know what to
do." Daniel finally admitted weakly.
"It's a tough spot." Laura agreed. "But we owe
it to Mr. Steele, not to give up on him. In the time that I've
known him, it's always been him fighting to keep our relationship
alive. He's always been the one pushing to take it further, refusing
to let me push him away. Well it's my turn to fight for him.
I'm not going to give up and I'm sure as hell not going to let
him die without telling him how I feel. Somehow, some way, we
have to save him!"
"Here, here!" Mildred cheered.
"The past is repeating itself." Daniel whispered, lost
in his own private despair. "It's what happened with Annie
all over again and I can't do anything to stop it!"
"You can quit whining for starters." Laura stated harshly.
This was no time to be depressed. Action was the only option
at the moment. "First things first, I think we should get
the videotape just in case. I want to have it on hand if we have
no other option."
"I can't do that." Daniel replied quietly. Anger kindled
in Laura.
"Murphy and Mr. Steele are kidnapped. The two men that I
care about most and respect the most could be killed and you
want to play games? Damn you Chalmers, we need the video tape!"
"Do you think if I had the tape, I wouldn't have given it
to him already?" Daniel burst out. "He wanted me dead
for crying out loud! I've been on the run for the last three
or four weeks! He wouldn't listen to me when I attempted to tell
him I didn't have it! I thought disappearing completely was the
only option. Then he hired you and Michaels, and suddenly I was
found again!"
"You mean there is no video tape?" Mildred gasped.
"Not any more." Daniel told them with a sigh. "There
was, but I destroyed it years ago. I didn't want it to come back
and haunt me." He gave a bitter laugh.
"Oh God," Laura whispered softly, for the first time,
hope deserting her. The thought of never seeing Murphy or Mr.
Steele again overwhelmed her. Mildred saw her distress and kindly
touched her shoulder in an attempt to reassure her.
"I don't know what to do." Daniel admitted. "I
never even got to tell him I'm his father."
"He's not dead yet." Laura told him firmly, her composure
restored for the moment. "OK, so we don't have the video
tape. Now what?"
A light went off in Mildred's brain.
"We fake a video tape!" She exclaimed. The others looked
to her in anticipation. It looked as if Mildred had a plan...
****
End Part 7
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