Cut and Run 1 - Cut and Run

back and forth at each other all night, twisting knives in old wounds and making new ones until they were both curled up in their respective corners and crying. They'd done it before. The part she enjoyed most was watching Ty losing his temper and shouting at her. And the only way he could avoid doing that was to keep biting his tongue or drink. Or both. He preferred both.
    "I believe he's sane and sending a message of some kind. He's an organized killer, probably plans the murders far in advance. Likely follows the victim for days, maybe weeks before he takes them,” Serena shared. “Odds are he's got his next victim, or possibly next two, already picked out."
    "Do you think he's watching the investigations?” Ty asked in a low voice, curious to see if she agreed with them in that respect as well.
    "Closely,” she answered with a smug look at Ty, as if gloating about the fact that he had asked her opinion.
    "And not just in the media,” Ty murmured, letting her know what they had been thinking.
    "Agreed,” she responded easily, still looking at Ty and seeming to measure him.
    Zane got the very distinct feeling that Serena knew a lot about Ty and his past that Zane didn't, and he wondered if he could learn anything about his new partner from what was obviously a biased source. He might have to get Serena alone later just to pump her for information. He couldn't force himself to stoop to reading Ty's file yet. It just didn't seem right.
    "It's possible he has a peripheral role in the investigation that allows him access,” she went on as Ty nodded silently. “You think it's someone internal,” she said to him with a small smile. “Is that why they brought you two in?” she asked as she turned her calculating gaze back to Zane. “To run around in the dark and cause internal trouble? Tyler here is very good at that sort of thing."
    Zane cleared his throat and sat back as the waitress returned with Ty's drink and took their orders. Once that was taken care of, he blatantly ignored her last comment and continued on. “It is possible that it's someone in the Bureau or NYPD,” he acquiesced. “I've flagged a list of items missing from the reports. Different pieces, all small and somewhat inconsequential. It may all be chance ... but I doubt it. So I went looking."
    Serena glanced between the two men, eyes lingering on Ty suspiciously. “What did you find out?” she asked Zane.
    "Nothing,” Zane answered with a shrug. “I'll need to talk to the handling agents in each case, and frankly, the details are so minor they don't rank being worried over, other than the fact they're missing."
    The woman nodded. “If you need assistance with the ME, let me know. Karen and I go way back."
    Zane's face transformed as he smiled openly, eyes bright. “I love it when you're so helpful."
    "You know you'll pay for it later,” Serena cooed as she glanced at Ty again, almost as if the continuing flirtation were a challenge to him. “So. Ty,” she said suddenly. “I won't say it's nice to see you. But at least you've got a good man to work with on this case."
    "Yeah, he's a real Boy Scout,” Ty answered flatly as he met her eyes unerringly.
    Though she smiled at him, her eyes were utterly frigid. “Don't fuck him over like you did your last partner."
    "Serena,” Zane said sharply.
    She didn't turn her chin to look at him. “What's wrong, Zane? Surely you don't think I'll hurt his feelings. He doesn't have any."
    "I see you're still spending more time on your colleagues than your cases,” Ty responded calmly. “How's that workin’ out?"
    "I've still got the highest successful profiling record in the region, so it's working out pretty well, thanks,” the woman answered.
    "Easy to be a success when you hand off the hard ones,” Ty drawled. “Can't figure it out, so you hand it off on an overworked Feeb, let him take the fall if he fails."
    She narrowed her eyes, but continued to smile. “Sometimes the white flag is all you can do for a case. You didn't fail, though, did you, Tyler? Made quite the case out of it."
    "After four more people died, sure,” Ty answered without flinching.
    "That's enough, Serena,” Zane broke in, voice low and serious. “I called you for information, not so you could pick a fight with my partner."
    "But picking fights with your partner is so entertaining, Zane,” Serena drawled. “Surely you've found that out by now?"
    "I wouldn't know,” Zane responded coldly.
    Serena sniffed