"Now I Lay Me Dow To Sleep"
By: Kasey
(c) 1999/2000
You know the drill by now.

Chapter 4

	Kasey was surprised at the officers kindness. Her
only experience with police men had been years ago,
when she had been out with friends and a group of
policemen had pulled them all over, accusing them of
dealing in drugs. Her impression of them had not been
the greatest so she was surprised, and touched at this
mans kindness. He looked familiar, but she couldn't
place where she had seen him before. His eyes were
nice, she mused as she slipped out of the torn remains
of her clothes and into the cutoffs and sweatshirt he
had found for her. The sweatshirt smelled strongly of
a heavy, oriental perfume that surrounded her and
choked her. But she was grateful to be out of her
other clothes so she didn't want to complain. She left
the torn pieces on the bunk and slowly made her way
out of the cell to find the officer, Howie he had said
his name was, sitting at a desk, reading. He looked up
when she appeared and smiled, a smile that managed to
take her breath away even though she was still reeling
from her earlier experience. He was an extremely
handsome man and she wondered why he had chosen to be
a police officer instead of something more, like a
model.
	" How do you feel now?" he asked, getting to his feet
and coming over to her.
	" Better. Although I wouldn't say no to a shower at
this point," she said.
	" When we're finished talking to you, I'll drive you
home okay? Then you can have that shower," Howie said,
images of her in the shower coming to mind. His face
flushed a red and he had to turn away from her so she
wouldn't see the effect she was having on him. Damn
this wasn't good. He was supposed to be protecting
her, not thinking of ways he could seduce her.
	" Great. So, lead the way," she said and he led her
out of the small room and down a hall, turning right
before reaching another room, this one having the
words 'Interrogation' written on the outside of the
door. Howie pushed the door open and let Kasey enter
before him, then shut the door firmly behind him as
she sat down on the plastic chair at the table. The
Captain was there, as well as two detectives from
Homicide. Howie knew them, by reputation. Big shots,
wannabes, jerks...any number of less than flattering
descriptions come to mind. These two had a reputation
of finding the killers regardless of the danger to the
witnesses or anyone else, for that matter.
	" Cap, Brooks, Linus, this is Kasey," Howie
introduced the, watching as Linus and Brooks cast
disparaging glances at the woman sitting at the table.
As Howie sat down on a chair against the wall, he
looked at Kasey again and realised what they were
thinking. A whore. Someone who was in the wrong place
at the wrong time, someone whos word could not be
trusted, but someone who would help them, and they
would use her. Use her and then throw her aside. That
thought made Howies fists clench in anger but he did a
very good job at hiding this.
	" So, Kasey. Can you tell me what you were doing in
the alley tonight?" Brooks asked, sitting on the table
in front of her. It was a technique used to
intimidate. And it usually did. But the other people
who had this pulled on them weren't as strong as
Kasey, Howie could see that. Her eyes flashed with
annoyance and she subtly moved her chair back a
fraction before speaking.
	" A man, with a knife and a woman," she said and
Linus wrote something on his ever present notepad.
	" What else?"
	" What do you mean, what else? Isn't that enough? I
saw the man put that knife to that poor womans throat
and cut it, like she was nothing more than a piece of
meat. What else do you want to hear?" Kasey asked.
	" How about telling us what you were doing there in
the first place?" Linus asked.
	" I got lost," she said shortly and from the looks
Linus and Brooks shared, Howie knew that they didn't
believe her.
	" Lost? How can you get lost?"
	" Easy. I haven't lived in LA long. Thats why," Kasey
said, a touch of sarcasm in her voice.
	" Really? Where are you from then?"
	" Australia," she said and Howie smiled. So that
explained the accent.
	" Australia? What are you doing over here then?"
Linus asked, like it was a crime to live here instead
of Australia.
	" Working. And before you ask, yes I am here
legitimately. I have a work visa and a good job. I'm
not here illegally, taking a job that could go to some
American," Kasey said and Howie hid a smile. She may
have been through hell tonight but she was still
fighting.
	" Okay so lets leave that alone. Why were you in the
alley?"
	" I got lost. Do I have to keep telling you that? I
was out clubbing with a group of my friends and felt
the need to leave. So I slipped out a back exit and
got lost in the alleys behind the club. I wasn't sure
which was to go. I took a wrong turn, heard the woman
scream and followed the sound of the scream. Thats
when I saw him," Kasey said, her voice wavering a
little on the word 'him'.
	" Okay so describe the scene," Brooks asked and
Howies anger almost erupted. 
	" There were trash cans, and against this wall was a
pile of old papers. The woman was lying on the ground,
her clothes half missing, blood covering her and she
was crying. Begging. Pleading him for her life. He was
holding the knife to her throat when I got there, then
he moved it down between her legs. He licked the blood
from the knife. Thats when he saw me. Either he heard
some sound I made, or saw me in some other way. He
looked up at me and I saw these eyes...they were
black. No emotion, nothing. Just a blackness in them.
Then he looked at me, brought the knife to the womans
throat and cut it. Thats when he got up and started
chasing me," Kasey said, her eyes filling with a
remembered fear, her hands shaking as she wrapped the
jacket around herself, like a protective shield.
Brooks threw Howie a look that asked questions but
Howie managed to keep his face bland. But he was
tightly holding onto his temper, afraid that if he
reacted to this, the Captain wouldn't let him protect
her. And he knew that her safety lay in his hands.
Brooks and Linus certainly didn't believe her. They
wouldn't even think of protecting her. So it was up to
him.
	" Anything else? Did you hear what he said? Can you
describe him for us?" Linus asked. It took several
moments for Kasey to answer. She seemed to be locked
in another world, a world filled with terror. Brooks
had to shake her before she looked at them in
unfocused surprise.
	" What?"
	" Did you hear what he said? Can you describe him for
us?" Linus repeated, this time a little less
patiently. Kasey closed her eyes and nodded slowly. 
	" I can describe him. I can tell you what he said.
Anything you want, I can do," she said firmly and
opened her eyes again.
	" Anything?" Brooks repeated scathingly.
	" Anything."

*****

	" I dont believe her story," Howie had been expecting
it, he really had but to actually hear the words left
him almost speechless.
	" How can you not believe her? She's obviously been
through something. She described the scene as we found
it, even right down to the papers against the wall.
She's giving you a description of the man, of what he
said. What do you not believe?" Howie asked, his
disbelief apparent.
	" Hell, what is a woman doing alone in an alley?"
	" Getting lost," Linus said and Brooks laughed.
	" Sure she was getting lost. With a client," he said.
The speed at which Howie moved surprised every one of
the four men in the hallway outside the room, as well
as onlookers and passerbys. Howie had Brooks pinned up
against the wall by his collar within seconds of those
words being uttered, and the look of pure murder
flashing in his brown eyes wasn't to be ignored.
	" Take that back. She is not a whore," he said
through clenched teeth. Brooks looked surprised for a
short while before anger and hatred dawned on his
face.
	" Let me down Dorough or I'll have you suspended," he
hissed. Reluctantly Howie let him go, watching with
fire in his eyes as Brooks straightened his tie," You
have feelings for her already? Didn't that get you
into trouble last time?"
	" That was a different matter," Howie said and Brooks
laughed dryly.
	" Sure it was. This is exactly the same as last time.
You got involved with the woman you were protecting
and she died. Its history repeating itself and you're
being a fool. She's a whore, who saw nothing, who is
making this up so we wont throw her in jail. The story
is as fake as her accent," Brooks said and Howie
laughed dryly.
	" Sure it is Brooks. The accent is real, the story is
real and I intend to prove it," he said, turning his
back on the detective.
	" Dorough, dont get too close this time huh? Dont
want another innocent to die because you fell for
her," Linus called out mockingly. Howie clenched his
fists but said nothing, did nothing as he entered the
room where Kasey was just finishing her statement. She
looked up as he entered and smiled slightly, althought
the smile never reached her eyes.
	" Can I go home now?" she asked and he could see the
fear was back in her eyes. The re-telling of her
experience had put that there.
	" Sure. Just let me grab my stuff from the locker
room and we can get going," he said and started to
leave, but realised that he hadn't told her he was her
protection," Ah, Kasey, there's something I have to
tell you?"
	" What is it? Those detectives are gonna put me in
jail because they think I'm a hooker right?" she
asked.
	" No. Its...I've talked this over with my Captain.
Even though Brooks and Linus dont fully believe you,
Cap and I still believe you need protecting," he said.
	" Oh. So what, do I have to leave my home for some
witness protection thing?"
	" No. Its going to be in home protection," Howie
said," I'll be staying in your home, with you, for
protection," he added and watched as Kaseys eyes
widened.