I Remember Your Name [PARKER C.]

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

The wind caused the branches of the tree to tap on the window of the room. Nora blew a strand of hair out of her face in immense boredom and glanced outside at the night sky. As much as she hated the night, she needed to get out of the house. She needed to go for a walk. Her life with her foster father and Sarah was so confusing and scary for her at the moment, and she needed to go walking to sort out everything racing through her mind.

With that settled, Nora threw on her jacket and black boots and left her foster father's large house, jogging out onto the sidewalk and getting started on her walk to the park. She observed the scenery and started to hum to herself softly, thinking of the band Boston in her mind. She enjoyed classic rock because it was soothing and helped her focus on her work. Hard rock and everything else she usually listened to just didn't cut it for her when she was working. Sometimes, when she was in an angry mood, it worked, but usually it was a huge distraction that she didn't need.

Once Nora had arrived at the park, she glanced around with a grin and slowed her pace, wanting to enjoy the scenery and the beauty of nature around her. The trees swayed lightly in the breeze that had picked up, and she wrapped her jacket more comfortably around herself with a slight shudder. She started as something rustled the bushes nearby. Staring at it, she jumped back a few feet when a raven flew out in her direction and landed on the tree nearby. Nora watched it, an unfamiliar sense of foreboding and anxiousness wrapping itself around her like a blanket. She picked up her pace once more, eyeing the bird warily til it was out of sight.

"Creepy..."

[/color] The older teenager muttered to herself in irritation as she walked along the path in the park. She stopped when she saw and heard nothing. That was just it. What she heard was absolute silence. No animals, no more wind, absolutely nothing moved or sounded around her. Her head snapped around in every direction, her eyes wary and nervous as she waited for anything to start back up. It didn't. "Hello? Anyone here?"[/color] she asked loudly, to reassure herself that while she was there, the silence wouldn't be complete frightening.

Real good, Nora...way to clear your mind...going to a creepy park at night! she mentally slapped herself. She started walking again and then froze, blinking as though to clear her vision. What had stopped her was a body of a woman laying in the leaves, her hand open away from her body, and her eyes blank and open, staring off into space. She took a step towards the woman, and then she saw the blood. Nora screamed in horror and ran over to the woman, praying she was still alive, every helpful urge in Nora's body on full alert. Her shaking hand reached into her pocket, and she dialed 911 quickly, putting the phone to her ear as she checked the woman's pulse.

"Hello? Yes...I need an ambulance...I'm at Kittredge Park...I found a woman laying here on the ground...I don't know, she doesn't have a pulse...I think she was attacked...please hurry!"[/color] Nora said frantically into the phone as she looked around hurriedly to make sure no one was still there to return to attack her. And then she began to attempt CPR on the lifeless woman, hoping that she might be able to restart the woman's heart if she had just been attacked. But with every passing minute, the hope in her heart dropped heavily.

[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Can't wait to see Parker here!
Credit: Made By Janella =)

[Parker Christiansen]

It was a quiet evening so far for Constable Parker Christiansen. In fact, he had been happily surprised that he hadn't had to pull over any drunks yet and he only had to break up one fight that was actually a friendly tussle. Add on a couple routine traffic stops and it had been his evening.

Quiet in Kittredge.

That was good. That was very good. Granted, he could definitely have used something to keep him busy, or someone riding shotgun. But between budget constraints and the need to cover a certain amount of ground, getting a right-seater wasn't always a viable option. And that night, it wasn't.

He had just rounded the corner near Kittredge Park when the radio squawked. That of itself wasn't really a surprise. There was a lot of chatter on the KPD's police band, even on a quiet night. Routine reports were given in a free-hand sort of way; there was the customary location reports and of course the informal chit-chat between officers and dispatch as all tried to keep each other amused, alert and awake. But not this time. There was a double-click, as if the dispatcher felt unsure, and when she spoke, there was a shake in her voice. It was real all right.

"All units, we've got report of an assault victim in Kittredge Park. Ambulance is being dispatched from County so it could take them a while to be there. Sounds pretty bad. Who's closest?"

This was when Parker keyed his own mike. Dispatch, this is Christiansen. I'm just outside Kittredge Park. I got it. Where's our victim?" As he was done speaking, the young officer reached for his dash, turning on his light rack and his siren as he bore down the parkway that ran the center of the park. As he drove, he was given instructions as to the origin of the call and before long, he was reporting he was dismounting and making his way over.

But before he left his car, Parker opened his trunk and from it, he withdrew two bags. One was large and red, obviously a trauma kit while the other was a backpack with a single strap, black, with a single word embroidered across it: Evidence. After all, he was the first on the scene and it could take a while for the Forensics guys to show up, and he might need more than his mere notepad to do his thing.

And so, with the evidence-gathering kit on his back, the trauma kit slung across his chest, the small but powerful LED flashlight in one hand and the other on the grip of his Sig Sauer P226 service pistol that he made his way down the trail the call had originated from. After all, one was never too careful, and in this town, it paid to be ready for more than met the eye.

As he walked quickly, the young police officer did come across the scene of the crime. On the ground, the victim, a woman. Over her, administering chest compressions, was another woman. On the ground, he could see his light glinting off a pool of blood and some more liquid pulsating out of a single wound on the victim with each successive press against her chest. And the eyes: they were glazed over: this one had been dead, but not very long all right. And seeing how he'd been there in a matter of four minutes after being told, time of death couldn't have been much more than six or seven minutes ago...

As he approached, Parker cleared his throat. "Kittredge PD. Miss, I'm going to need to ask you to step away from the victim and..." Only then did he flash his light at this Good Samaritan's face and he recognized her, the girl from the guitar shop, Nora; he knew her name all right, and they chatted on a pretty regular basis when he was actually walking the streets of Kittredge and he would stop in most shops over the course of his shift to talk to the patrons and those working in there. She was a pretty girl, and he had a crush on her. And she was definitely at the wrong place at the wrong time, but he just knew she couldn't have had anything to do with that death. Nora, you can stop, there's nothing you can do for her anymore. In fact, it would have been fairer to say there was nothing that could have been done at all: after all, it looked like it was a single stab wound in the shoulder, right where he knew the sub-clavian artery was located; nothing short of being in surgery within 2 minutes could have saved this woman...

"Dispatch, cancel the ambulance and get the coroner and forensics here as fast as you can." The words were quietly spoken into his mike as he evaluated the scene. In Kittredge, a run-off-the-mill homicide wasn't something that happened a hell of a lot...

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

Nora's phone fell from her hand as she ended the call with the emergency people. Her eyes never leaving the woman, she started working on getting the woman's heart restarted. She gave her two rescue breaths and then began the cycle of thirty chest compressions to two rescue breaths. Once she had done her five cycles of breaths and compressions, she felt for a pulse. Her hope faded as she realized she felt nothing there. She began the cycles again, determined to get this woman breathing again. But nothing was happening, and Nora knew there was no hope for the lifeless woman beside her. She saw blue and red police lights reflected on the tree beside her but never stopped working.

She stopped as she heard footsteps behind her, and she started in surprise. Thinking at first it was the man returning to attack, she spun around in fright only to relax visibly when she saw a police uniform. And then she turned back to the woman and kept working on her, even though she knew in her heart it was useless. The attacked woman was gone, and Nora felt that if she had left her house earlier, maybe she could've gotten here sooner to keep her alive for an ambulance. The policeman asked her to step away, and she shook her head with a lump in her throat.

"No. I can't leave,"

[/color] Nora told the man as she stared at the woman on the ground and sank back on her heels, sighing sadly. The LED flashlight in the officer's hand shone on her face, and she narrowed her eyes as she squinted to look at him. It was Parker, the policeman that always walked around town and talked to the townspeople. He even talked to her, and she had to admit, he was one of the nicer, cuter cops around town. Of course...he'd be the one to answer the call...when she was involved. Well, okay, so she wasn't involved, but he didn't know that...and she was on scene trying to save the woman's life. She bet that they police would ask her questions. Great...it all started with a stupid walk to get away from her stupid foster father, and this is how her night was going to go. Faaaabulous.

"Uhm...okay...Parker, this isn't...normal...people don't get killed in Kittredge...the worst that happens is drunk teenage drivers...right?"[/color] Nora finally gave in and moved back from the woman, glancing down then at her hands covered in the victim's blood, her eyes widening faintly. Yeah...it so didn't help that blood wasn't really her favorite thing. She always got dizzy and weak around the smell and sight of blood. That's why Nora would never be a doctor...she couldn't handle blood or telling families bad news. It broke her heart because she was the type of person that helped everyone and wanted everyone to be happy even when she wasn't. She glanced at Parker, hoping that he had something to clean her hands off quickly.


"I'm scared..."[/color] she admitted to the police officer as she looked at him seriously, wondering if he had the answer, or even words to calm her down for the time being.

[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Hoorah! So the fun begins!
Credit: Made By Janella =)

[Parker Christiansen]

When Nora first refused to back away from the dead woman, Parker did not raise his voice or even repeat his command. Especially after he had recognized her for who she was. And when he had addressed her by name, it was not with a commanding voice that he did so but with a quiet tone that sounded more like a request. There was no need for him to raise his voice or to resort to the less civil ways he could get her to cooperate.

Not to mention that, well, she looked terrified and horrified at what she had apparently stumbled onto. Not that he could blame her.

When Nora finally stepped away from the body, Parker's hand came off the grip of his pistol and he gently took her elbow, leading her away from the body and guiding her until she could sit down on a fallen trunk, facing away from the crime scene. That was not much, a small gesture to get her to relax a little while he would be asking the first few questions and gathering preliminary evidence. Not that he could do much as a mere street cop when Forensics were on their way.

But the girl's words, that people didn't get killed in Kittredge, weren't exactly true. There were homicides, like in any other place that had their own internal gang, drug and money problems, and attracted a lot of tourists. But not many involved the victim exsanguinating from what looked like a very well-aimed stab. So, Parker did not answer what was to him a rhetorical question. However, he had other things to address.

"All right, Nora, I know you're shook up, but I need you to work with me here, okay? First, I'll need to take a sample of blood off your hands." It wasn't much, but it was the start of the process. Slowly, he set down the trauma kit and he unslung the evidence kit that was on his bag. Basic sample collection was something he'd been cleared to do, and so he would.

But, as he shone his light at her hands, he was quick to notice the bloodstains on the cuff of her jacket. "And, uh, I'll be needing your jacket too, I'm sorry." As he spoke, it was clear that the young cop was actually embarrassed at making this request. Not that it was a cold night, but it was cool enough. Not that he really noticed it through his long-sleeved duty shirt and the concealable body armour he wore beneath.

However, he wasted no more time in collecting the blood samples from Nora's hands, and after he bagged the long swabs he used, he collected her jacket for Forensics and he handed her some antiseptic wipes to remove the blood from her hands.

And only then did her admission of fear register with him. Slowly, the cop crouched before her and his hands came up to rest on her shoulders, giving them a gentle squeese"It's okay, Nora, it's all right to be afraid. But you're safe right now, okay?"

It wasn't a hell of a lot, but it was all Parker Christiansen could come up with in a hurry.

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

Nora backed off and then felt the gentle touch of Parker's hand at her elbow, taking her away from the grotesque scene she had found herself at just seconds ago, attempting to save a life that was hopeless. She sat on the trunk of a tree and looked at the officer in front of her with a deep frown. She held out her hands for him to take the blood sample and that was when she realized she was shaking. Her hands were trembling badly, and she shot him an apologetic look while he tried to take a sample off of them. Once he was finished swabbing the evidence, she took the wipes and cleaned off the red stains from her hands.

"B-but...this is one of my favorite jackets...j-just take care to not completely rip it to shreds please...it's important to me..."

[/color] she hesitated with a heavy sadness, remembering when her mother had given it to her the week before she had passed. But knowing it was useless to argue, she shrugged off the black suede jacket and shivered once, handing him her jacket slowly and then dropping her hands back down onto her lap. She didn't even notice he had been embarrassed asking her for the jacket, she was still so absorbed in her thoughts and memories. After she had told him she was scared, he knelt next to her and she stared over at him as he put his hands on her shoulders. Her brown eyes roamed his face as he told her it was okay to have that fear.

"I'm safe? I wonder if that woman heard the same thing before she died..."[/color] she told Parker with a glare over at the body. She wasn't mad at him. He didn't do anything to her. She was angry at whoever was responsible for killing this woman. She looked pretty innocent to Nora. And she was probably just going for a jog in the park, seeing as how she was in exercise clothes. And this is how her night turned out. "What if she has a husband? Or kids? They'll be wondering what happened to her...who'll tell them?"[/color] Nora's voice dropped to a soft whisper as she shook her head and bit her lip anxiously. And to think, the madman was still out there somewhere. That's what terrified Nora the most.

To calm herself down, she decided to look back at Parker and force a smile for him. She saw more flashing lights and cringed, knowing she'd probably have to deal with more cops. A heavy sigh escaped her lips, and she raked her now clean hand through her long brown hair, her head dropping into her hands with a groan. Well, then again, anywhere was better than facing what she had to face when she got home. Once her foster father found out she had left without telling him, she'd probably end up with a bruise or two by tomorrow. So maybe she did want to be out here, to prolong that outcome when she returned home.

Her head came back up from her hands, and she saw a man with a body bag and another with more things, probably for the body, and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before resuming her gaze on Parker. He'd probably talk to her some more, she hoped that he would be the one asking her the questions. She didn't want someone she didn't know asking her, because they'd probably be a lot harsher than he was with her. Of course, it didn't really help much that she liked Parker, but she wasn't about to go there, especially not tonight when he had work to do.

[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Aaws...the poor jacket...
Credit: Made By Janella =)

[Parker Christiansen]

Parker did offer the girl a nod when she asked him to make sure her jacket wouldn't be ruined. Well, it wasn't up to him, but in his experience the KPD Forensics lab was pretty gentle with evidence that belonged to a witness and would do their best to return it in usable condition if feasible. And in the case of a coat with blood on the cuffs, along with a few testimonies, should see it released from evidence fairly quickly. Hopefully.

However, Nora's angry words were something of a surprise. Well, not really. It was common enough for folks in her position to lash out. It only turned out that he was the one present when she did. Not that it affected him personally. Parker was a cop; he was used to abuse and insults and being the target of irrational anger, typically by folks who ought to have known better. He could deal with this. However, at the mention of the victim's family, he looked down, his hands still on the girl's shoulders.

"I don't know if she heard that before. But I'm here, there's more police coming, and there's no way whoever did this is getting through all that to get to you." It wasn't much to say, but at least it was something he could get out there. The distant sirens were hardly a sound to hear in the silence between these two.

"As for telling her family... it's probably going to have to be me." Parker's voice had grown sombre as he said these words. He'd had to bring bad news to people before and he hated that part of the job. Oh, the Chief would have had no problems doing it, seeing how he saw it as a personal responsibility to the entire town to look after their safety. However, to Officer Christiansen, it seemed like it was his responsibility as the first officer on the scene to deliver those dark tidings.

As backup arrived, Parker did not even need to point them towards the body. After all, it was pretty obvious by itself, as were the evidence bags that were sitting next to him as he was there, crouched in front of a shaken witness. While the coroner and the Forensics team started to do their things, it was with some regret that he pulled a notepad out of his breast pocket along with a pen and he first wrote down his own information, from the time he got the call up to this moment, when he would start questioning the one witness he had.

"Nora, I know you don't want to do this right now, but we really have to, while it's fresh in your mind, all right?" He was not speaking unkindly. In fact, he was calm and quiet, making a point to keep his voice reassuring and as gentle as possible. He needed this girl to be in as much ease as possible right then and there.

"I need you to tell me everything you did, from the moment you went home up to my getting here. I need to know what you saw, what you heard, everything. Even if it sounds stupid or inconsequential. Can you do that for me? Can you do that for her and her family?"

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

Nora listened to Parker reassuring her that she was safe, and she let her eyes fall from his face to her lap, shifting her body a bit more comfortably on the trunk underneath her. She knew she'd probably be on the uncomfortable wood answering questions for awhile, so she figured she might as well get comfy. She heard him tell her it would probably be him that told the family, and she glanced back at him with sympathy in her eyes. She knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of horrible news, and to be the one to tell people bad news as well. It wasn't the best job in the world, by far. She patted his hand once to assure him she knew what it was like, and then let her hand drop back once more.

"Sorry..."

[/color] she told him quietly as she swallowed hard and sighed once more. She knew he was right. The attacker wouldn't be back tonight. He had finished his job and would probably move on to another place to keep it up. This didn't seem to her like a one time thing. It seemed too professional from what she had seen. She was silent for a few moments while she watched some of the men working, and one man handed her a blanket to wrap around herself to keep the cool air from distracting her while she spoke to Parker. Nodding gratefully, she wrapped it warmly around herself and breathed in the smell of the fresh cotton blanket before her attention turned back to Parker. He told her to tell him everything, and she nodded, relieved that she didn't seem like the only one uncomfortable and not wanting to talk about it.

"Okay...I came home from Hollins, my college, around 5:30 earlier, and I helped my little sister with her math homework before cooking dinner for the three of us at home. My foster father came home, and we all sat down to eat. Then, I did a little bit of homework before I..."[/color] she hesitated shortly, not wanting to share exactly why she left the house, so she sidestepped the real truth and gave him a shortened version. "I decided that I didn't want to really stay at home and do nothing. I was bored and wanted to get out of the house for awhile. I love coming to the park to walk and think. It clears my head when I need it...and so I left the house and walked here...and it was so quiet that I was a bit creeped out...like, I didn't hear anything. No animals, no people, nothing...and I saw a bird fly out past me, and I jumped at that, but I kept walking...and that's when I saw her."[/color]

Nora stopped to breathe, pointing and shivering at the body that was being checked out by forensic people with gloves and cameras. Her head turned back to Parker with a another frown, the usual happy glint in her eyes gone. She tucked her legs into her chest and wrapped the blanket tighter around herself, trying to think if she left anything out of her answer. Parker was a really nice polie man and a really sweet guy for being patient and understanding during all of her talking and freaking out. She didn't see how he could be so calm and cool in something like this. She'd never be able to be a police officer because of everything that had just happened here in one night...imagine doing it for years! No wonder police officers retired early...Nora resumed speaking after a moment, and her voice was hesitant and shaky.

"I ran over and felt for a pulse. I didn't feel one, but I didn't think anything of it. I called 911 and began trying to do CPR on her...I didn't really think at first what I would do if the attacker came back, but I was just looking at the woman and attempting to help her...nothing else was in my head at the time. That's when I heard you, and I thought you were...you were him, but it turned out to be you."[/color] Nora seriously wanted to find whoever had done this and put them in jail herself. She overheard the forensics talking about the ID they had found, and once they said the victim's name, she gasped sharply and snapped her head back to look at the woman's body. And then she recognized her. It was Sarah's science teacher! Oh, no...Nora couldn't help but stare over at her and lick her dry lips once with anxiousness. This was frightening that it was someone she knew...and she didn't even know who it was with everything that had happened until the coroner had identified her with her ID from her purse.

[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Woahsers...done for you...
Credit: Made By Janella =)

[Parker Christiansen]

When Nora apologized to him, squeezing his hand in the process, Parker did not say a word, although he did curl his fingers around hers, gently returning her gesture. Apologies weren't something cops were receiving a lot of. Well, they did get the insincere, forced ones every now and again, the ones that were at best platitudes by people who knew they were guilty of something and were trying to get the cops to go easy on them. But the heartfelt ones? They were damned scarce all right.

As Nora told her tale, the cop was writing furiously, keeping up with her words as well as adding a few comments of his own, lines he would refer to at a later time for questions of his own so he could clarify what he deemed was a bit foggy.

Of the whole tale, though, what drew Parker's attention the most were the parts about an unnatural stillness in the park. Granted, he'd gathered she was trying to evade part of the story, about the reasons she had gone for a walk, but that was inconsequential at this time. He was good at judging people and Nora, well, she didn't have what it took to hurt people like that and then fake helping them out. And besides, if she had indeed stabbed that woman where the hole was, there would be a whole lot more blood on her hands and on her coat sleeves. Something about severing an artery that tended to make for some really impressive blood splatters.

As the girl finished giving her testimony, the officer reviewed his notes and only after a few moments did he speak. "You were pretty brave, and probably really lucky tonight. Not many people would have tried to help her." Parker did not say a thing about the fact that she was beyond help the moment that blade had gone in; that particular wound was one that would require immediate surgery to be survivable. And that was just not going to happen. And if it hadn't been of his proximity to the park, Christiansen had the very distinct impression there could have been two victims that night and that it was the siren and flashing lights that had prevented that murderer from striking again.

"Now, just give me a minute to talk to the detective, and I'll be right back with you, all right?" Once more, Parker had kept his voice low and quiet, warm even and he left Nora behind after gently squeezing her arm through the blanket before he want to the man in a wrinkled jacket who was obviously looking at the scene. The conversation was brief and it ended shortly after Parker turned over his notepad to the detective.

Once he returned to Nora, he offered her a smile. "Just so you know, we might need to ask you some more questions about tonight so you're not to leave town until further notice. Also, if you think of anything, you can call these numbers..." As he spoke, Parker pulled out two business cards from his pocket. One was the detective's and the other one was his. Although, before he handed them over, he scribbled his cell number on his business card.

"And I'm to drive you home now. If you'll come with me, please?"

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

Nora felt her heart tugging inside of her chest when Parker wrapped his fingers around hers, her eyes softening just slightly. She didn't know why, but Parker made her feel safe and feel as though she could trust him to make sure no harm came to her. She mentally smacked herself, reasoning that it was because he was a cop and all cops made people feel safe. Or that's what they were supposed to do. Yeah, that was all it was. She watched him furiously scribbling on his pad while she told him of her night leading up to finding the teacher. She swallowed silently, waiting patiently til he stopped writing. And she flushed pink at his compliment of her being brave, and she cleared her throat while she nervously scratched her neck.

"Either that, or very stupid...I didn't even think of the attacker coming back...I should've...I couldn't have done anything if he had come back,"

[/color] Nora admitted as she shrugged as nonchalantly as possible for her at the present time. But, she was internally shaking. That realization had been slow to hit her, but Parker was absolutely right. She was lucky tonight. If he hadn't shown up when he had with his sirens, God knows what could've happened to her. Because, the woman had just been stabbed before Nora had arrived, so that meant the attacker...killer...was probably still there, even possibly watching Nora from somewhere and was scared off by the police sirens. Her blanket automatically was tighter around her, and she took a deep, quivering breath.

"Yeah, uhm...that's me, I guess...always trying to help someone out if possible,"[/color] Nora's uncomfortable smile felt weird and out of place for this event, so it faded quickly from her usually light features. She shrugged her shoulders once and stared at the body as the men kept taking evidence and such from the scene. She was snapped back into reality when she heard Parker's calming, warm voice talking to her. His hand squeezed her arm, and she glanced up into his face with a tilt of her head to the side at his simple yet concerned gesture for her. All she could do was nod and stare at him with a soft expression of her own as she watched him walk away from her to talk to the others on the scene. Her eyes never moved from him, the feeling she had now wary and alone.

Nora seriously needed to calm down. She was merely in the definitely wrong place and the definitely wrong time tonight, so there was really nothing to be scared of...Hell, who was she kidding? She couldn't really reassure herself as she looked once more at the body they had begun to examine with gloves. She cringed again and instead focused on observing her surroundings, watching for anyone or anything to happen although she knew she was safe here with Parker and his cops. Once Parker had come back to stand by her, she stood up herself and rubbed her arms together inside the blanket to warm herself up a bit. He told her she was pretty much stuck inside town, but she knew she wouldn't exactly be able to leave town anyway. Her foster father never allowed her to go anywhere besides college that was outside of the two or three cities around them without his presence.

"Don't worry...I won't be leaving town anytime soon...just come find me if ya'll need me to talk to ya'll..."[/color] Her slight Southern accent reared its head in her conversation, and she smiled slightly at the familiar sound of it. "And you'll be the first one I call if I think of anything."[/color] Nora took the business cards with a kind simper and tucked them away into one of her jean pockets before her gaze was upon him again. He told her he'd drive her home, and she almost sighed in relief aloud. Thankfully, she held it in and nodded simply before following him to the cop car he was driving. She took another alert look around her surroundings before turning back to fall into step beside Parker. She was startled when she felt something vibrating in her pocket and jumped about ten feet into the air before remembering her phone was there.

A frustrated groan escaped her lips as she looked down and read her younger sister's text, "The foster monster knows you're gone. He's pissed. Get home...you'll be lucky if you don't get some kind of bruise tonight..." She rolled her eyes and hoped that the man hadn't already hit her sister...she needed to get home for her sister's sake. Briscoe was not one to cross paths with, but maybe seeing as how Nora might have escaped death once tonight, maybe she could do it again by going home. Just maybe.

[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Eek! Bad man on the loose! Or men, I should say... >:-)
Credit: Made By Janella =)

[Parker Christiansen]

"But still, you did something a lot of people would've never even considered. There's even folks who wouldn't even have called 911, you know. You should be proud of yourself." Parker was not one to flatter needlessly. He definitely meant every single word he'd just said. Indeed, ever since he was sworn in and a badge was hung on his chest, the young police officer had realized just how crooked and miserable much of the world was. And he did not like it. He just knew that things could be better, that people could be better.

And he always wanted to see the best out of folks, especially when he was spending so much time dealing with the absolute worst.

As he guided Nora towards his car, Parker did hear the vibration from her cell and in the glow of the screen, he caught her expression, one that spoke of added stress to the current situation. And there was concern in there, too. And even more fear. However, he did not address that matter. It was probably personal and not something he should be delving into. Not at that time. Not when they were both involved in a case.

But not that he didn't want to get to know her better. She was, after all, a gorgeous woman. So far as Parker was concerned, Nora Bryants was probably one of the prettiest girls in town. Oh, people fawned over the cheerleading squad all right, but when it came to genuine beauty, beauty that was not altered by layers of cosmetics and a personality that was not tainted by the side-effects of looks and a position of prestige, this young woman who worked in the music shop was by far leading the pack.

As he reached his cruiser, it was not one of the back doors he opened but the passenger-side front door. It was generally against policy to give someone a lift in the front of a cruiser, but in this case it was not going to hurt. In fact, it might even help some. After Nora seated herself, he made his way to the driver side and gunned the engine to life before quickly punching in her name on the onboard computer and waited for the database to give her address, and once he had it, he quickly cleared that query and started driving, knowing precisely where he was going.

And he knew that address, too. It was the home of some Briscoe Porter, a man who was heavily involved with Child and Family Services, particularly with the foster-parent program. It was the sort of thing that Parker would commit to memory, especially since he did a fair amount of dealing with young offenders and those that tended to cause trouble, well, often they were in foster care.

While he did not paint all youths in this situation with the same brush, he was one to call a spade a spade and he would have no problems with historical precedents...

As he drove, Parker cleared his throat and, with a hesitant voice, a voice that seemed for the first time that evening seemed completely unsure of what to say or how to approach it, he spoke. "So, Nora, I was wondering, huh, would you like to do coffee or lunch at some point? You know, later?"

Good going, genius, thought the cop as he kept on driving, knowing that he would not have much longer in this quiet moment with Nora.

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

The brunette girl smiled a bit more at his further complimenting of her bravery, and she tried to wave it off. He led her to the cruiser, and she slid into the front passenger seat, closing the door behind her and buckling her seatbelt. Leaning back against the seat, she let her head fall back against the headrest and started to calm down a bit for the first time since seeing the woman's body. Nora felt his eyes on her and glanced over at him, where he seemed to be hiding concern after seeing her with her phone. She looked back down and stuffed the phone back into her pocket with a look out the window at the park before Parker put the car into gear. Pulling off from the curb, she watched the park fade away as they drove past streets and wound down different roads with the destination of her home on the computer.

"Family's worried...forgot to tell my sister where I was,"

[/color] she half-lied as she looked over at the brown-haired man in the driver's seat and observed his expressions from where she was sitting. She wondered what he would think when he saw her house, if he hadn't before. Briscoe Porter wasn't a poor man in the least and enjoyed flaunting his wealth, especially with his house. She shrunk down slightly in her seat and fell back into a comfortable silence, getting the feeling that it was all right with Parker if they didn't talk all the time. Sometimes silence was the best thing because it prevented strangulation between annoying people and the people who have to deal with them. And then Nora heard Parker clear his throat, and her head turned back to gaze at him.

"Hmm?"[/color] she asked curiously as her head tilted to the side again. He asked her, a little hesitantly, if maybe she would like to get coffee or lunch sometime soon, and she tried not to smile too much. Well, maybe it wasn't the right night for that kind of thing, seeing what they had seen...but then again, maybe it was the perfect night. It could get their mind off of what had happened, and also it helped that she had wanted him to ask her that since the first time they had talked at Guitar Center. He really was a sweet gentleman with not a mean bone in his body. She settled for giving him a soft smile and nodded her head a few times, attempting a casual air of nonchalance.

"Sure, sounds like a plan,"[/color] she finally answered after a few short moments of silence as she pretended to mull it over. That went well...she would finally go eat with him somewhere...and hopefully they could talk a little more informally when he wasn't in uniform or wasn't on duty. She could ask him about hobbies and sch and tell him more about her...maybe leaving out bits and pieces to start off, but maybe building as they went...if they went. She fell into an easier, happier silence as they pulled onto her street, but as soon as they reached her house, her smile started to droop. Biting her lip nervously, she saw the light on in the living room window and waited for Parker to stop the vehicle before opening the door.

"Thanks for taking me home, Parker...I'll see you later?"[/color] she tried to make a quick escape, and she squeezed his hand before getting out and shutting it behind her, stopping to look at the large mansion before sighing heavily and heading towards the door, getting out her house key but freezing as the door was thrown open. A handsome man in his early 30s stood blocking the entrance and looked past her to the police vehicle, using his charming yet completely fake smile to make the cop think everything was all right before his eyes looked down to Nora's figure standing there waiting to enter the house. His look pretty much said, 'Oh, yeah, you're in deep. Get your ass in here, and I'll deal with you.' Shuddering once, she glanced back at Parker, her fearful gaze turning to pretend reassurance as she hesitated to step inside her house. Briscoe took her arm and pulled her inside gently, shutting the door and locking it before he threw her back against the wall. Luckily, for him, no one could see inside the dark interior since he had switched off the living room lights before opening the door.

[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Eek! Bad bad Briscoe!!
Credit: Made By Janella =)

[Parker Christiansen]

One thing that Parker did not need to be a police officer to notice was when someone lied to him. In fact, even a slight concealing of the truth was something that registered with him just like a 12-foot tall neon sign. And he could tell there was something Nora wasn't telling him. That look of worry on her face? That wasn't just because she hadn't let her family know where she had headed for her walk. It was dread.

But what could cause that?

What could lead her to be afraid of something after stumbling onto a corpse and seeing her life saved only by the dumb luck of one cop being within spitting distance?

He would have to find out sooner or later, but one thing for certain, Parker Christiansen was feeling like he was not going to like what he was going to come across.

When Nora accepted his offer, the police officer could not help the smile that spread across his face. How often had he managed to get himself a date like this? Especially with a girl who was, well, real and genuine? One who actually seemed to enjoy his company, if their talks at the Guitar Center were anything to go by? Not often. In fact, he was pretty certain that this was one of those that had worked out best so far.

Seeing the Porter home was not much of a surprise for Parker. He had patrolled that neighbourhood many a time and he'd gotten used to the sight of the blatantly expensive home and the manicured grounds. That man was one to show off his wealth, to beat people over the head with it. In fact, the way he was acting was as though his money made him everyone else's better. And it did not.

Indeed, while Parker was raised more than comfortably and that a down-payment of half the worth of his current home had been a gift to him from his parents upon earning his badge at the Police Academy, he knew the value of hard work. Since he was a child, he had worked around his parents' farm. He had worked with the livestock, worked with the harvest, cleaned machinery, hunted pests, rebuilt fences, dug ditches (by hand, not with an excavator either!), split wood, cut the lawn they kept around the house, painted, fixed things...

If it was some kind of labour, he had done it and so he had learned the value of hard work and to truly enjoy the rewards that came from it. And even his home, half given to him as a reward for having been in the top five percent of his class, was something he valued dearly.

Briscoe Porter, on the other hand, had never done an honest day's work in his life, or so word went. It was well-known he came from money, from a lot of money. And when he choose to establish himself in Kittredge, he had come with his money and his realtors, bought out over twelve lots, tore the homes down, consolidated everything into a single lot and had his mansion built. And ever since that happened, he was seen in town acting as though he was some kind of feudal lord, using his money like some sort of club to ascertain his worth over the working class of the town.

So, overall, an asshole all around. And there were rumours from Family and Child Services that he was violent towards the foster children he took in, but there was never a single investigation and should one be started, it was strangely stonewalled or never turned up anything of note, that everything was perfect. But the social workers, apparently, still said a lot of things about bruises on the youths, sullen looks, always jumpy, and speaking as though they'd been coached.

But nothing had ever made it out. And apparently, when one particular investigation had gone to the courts, the matter was settled in record time when it was alleged that the social worker who had run the investigation had a taste for kiddie porn...

Enough "coincidences" to make someone ask questions. But it had become an unofficial rule: Briscoe Porter was to be left alone, just as though he was indeed some kind of old-style feudal lord.

Once Parker drove up to the door, he stepped out of the car with Nora and walked with her. Yes, it was old-fashioned to walk a girl to her front door, but the Christiansen had always been a pretty traditional family with a good deal of old-style values. And that was one of them. As he headed towards the massive entrance, he replied to her wishes to see him later. "Well, I'm off these next few days, once I'll have filled out my paperwork. Call me when you feel like heading out?"

It wasn't much, but it was a good start. And while he wanted to say more, he was quickly quietened by the appearance of Briscoe in the doorframe. He was smiling. That snake was always smiling. But his eyes read different. There was a threat there, a threat directed at Nora. But there was nothing Parker could do, not as a cop. Well, he could do something but it would be thrown out faster than a rotten fish. And of course, Porter knew that too. However, the cop's eyes had met the rich bastard's, and they were hard. I've got my eye on you, pal, his gaze seemed to say.

As the door closed, the young cop returned to his car and pulled out of the parking lot. His shift wasn't done yet...

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

Nora was dreaming of blood and screaming. She had been running through a parking garage and then awoke with a start, shooting up in her bed and glancing around in panic. Her younger sister, Sarah, stared at her worriedly from the door to her bedroom, stopping before she came in. Her look said, 'Are you all right?' and Nora nodded silently. She wiped sweat from her face and ran her hand through her hair, brushing the straight locks back from her face. Sarah smiled at her before walking and handing her one of her mystery books that Sarah had borrowed last week. Nora tossed it over by all her other books, reminding herself mentally she'd have to put it in order later. Watching her sister look around the room, she smiled slightly to herself and winced. It hurt to smile. When Briscoe had brought her inside after she came home from the park three nights ago, he was seriously angry with her. She was lucky he didn't break anything while he was punishing her.

Lucky. There was that word again.

She had been lucky the second time that night, first with living through trying to help Sarah's teacher...which seriously upset Sarah when she had found out...and then with getting off somewhat easy with her foster father. Her hands trembled half out of anger and half out of fear as she remembered how he had thrown her up against the wall and had warned her not to sneak off again, or it would hurt a lot more next time. He then proceeded to drag her into the living room and smack her hard across the face and his hold on her arms had been so tight that he had left bruises on her upper arms. Nora got up after her sister left the room to get ready for school, and she observed herself in the mirror. Her cheek near her jaw had a bruise from the force of Briscoe's hand, and she grabbed her makeup bag. She proceeded to put on makeup, using slight base and powder to attempt to cover up the bruise. Nora applied some eyeshadow, light mascara, and clear lip gloss and smiled at what she saw. Next, she took her comb and ran it through her straight hair to get out the knots from sleeping on it the night before.

Once she was finished by the mirror, she stood up and headed over to her walk-in closet, looking around in thought at her clothing selection. After all, she wasn't going anywhere too fancy. She was just heading over to Mulberry's to meet up with Parker. She stopped for a moment at the thought of seeing Parker again, and she smiled a little to herself. She decided to go for some darkwash jeans and a white cami, layering her red ruffle top over it and slipping on her black leather jacket over her ensemble. She stuck on her comfortable black Converse's and admired herself once more in the mirror before she grabbed her purse and left her bedroom, heading down the steps and into the kitchen to see Sarah and Briscoe sitting eating breakfast. He was reading the paper, so when she told him she was leaving, he only grunted his consent. She rolled her eyes at Sarah, who returned the gesture and waved slightly.

Nora turned and walked out, pressing her unlock button on her key to her beauty of a car, the Aston Martin Vanquish. Yes, the foster monster had bought it for her, but that was one thing she was grateful for. She was in love with her car, and she was glad that he had taste in cars. If that man loved something other than money, it was cars, and nice ones at that. She slid into the front seat and shut her door, revving it up and backing out, leaving the mansion behind her as she sped down the street. Once she had arrived at Mulberry's a short time later, she got out of the car, locked it, and headed inside with a smile at the waitresses that greeted her. She then saw the back of Parker's head and smiled to herself before heading over to his booth and standing there next to him.

"This seat taken?"

[/color] she greeted curiously, a light smile playing on her lips as she tilted her head to the seat across from his. Her brown eyes looked him over once as she stood there, patiently waiting for his answer.

[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Yayyyy
Credit: Made By Janella =)

[Parker Christiansen]

Indeed, that shift on which he had been the first responder to a murder scene and had managed to ask Nora for a date was the last of Parker's shifts before getting four days off, five if one counted the morning on which that watch had ended.

Although, shift change had not meant going home. The young officer did have a quantity of paperwork to look into first, and he was always one to take care of such details before going to rest. In fact, he tended not to really rest well until he had seen to the various administrative tasks prior to leaving the station after he had returned his cruiser and punched out.

It had been two days before Parker's cell rang with a call from Nora, and before long they had arranged for a meeting for breakfast and possibly a chance to spend a good chunk of the day together. However, that was not precisely something the young cop was banking on.

In the meantime, he did get some work done. Between the housekeeping tasks and looking after his dog Bonnie, Parker spent much of that downtime period working on his motorcycle. What had started as a crate full of parts had turned into a genuine 1939 Indian Scout. However, despite being as reliable as it could be, but it still needed the odd tweak and a lot of maintenance.

And for the first time, he did bolt on the add-on seat he had gotten made on an impulsive thought. Maybe, just maybe, Nora would care for a nice little ride around town or in the countryside?

The day of the date having finally come, there was little that Parker did to alternate his routine. Granted, he had cut his morning run short but he had increased the intensity to compensate and he had to get up a little earlier, but it was all worth it. When he dressed himself, it was in a comfortable pair of jeans and a plain black t-shirt. He was not particularly one to get dressed up. However, realizing that he was going on a date, he did put on a short-sleeved shirt that was only half-buttoned. That much was a concession for making good impression, but he was getting the feeling that Nora would far prefer the genuine Parker Christiansen in all of his casual glory.

And before he left, he did strap on his off-duty piece, a sub-compact Sig P239 instead of the full-frame service pistol that lived in his gun safe when he was not on duty. And really, for a first social encounter with Nora, it might pay to be discretely armed instead of the full-size pistols he favoured.

And when he headed to Mulberry's, he threw on a leather jacket and grabbed not one but two riding helmets.

Of course, Parker had been early arriving at the diner on the back of his motorcycle and he'd picked a booth that would give him a good view through the bay windows and towards the door, waiting for Nora. While he waited, he hadn't ordered anything save for a tall glass of fresh orange juice and a cup of coffee, something civilized to drink as he skimmed through the paper.

When Nora arrived and addressed him, Parker looked up and smiled. "Why, yes it is." His smile turned into a grin. "I'm waiting for a particular young lady who works in the guitar store. Maybe you would know her?"

[nora leanne bryants]

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I'm only falling apart
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[/color]

Nora watched him drinking his orange juice as she moved towards him, and then her mood brightened considerably upon seeing the smile on his face when he saw her. She decided she liked his smile, and she wanted to se more of that cross his normally sober and professional features. He talked to her about a girl that works at Guitar Center, which was her, of course. Her musical laugh sounded out across the diner, and she nodded at the seat across from his. She stepped around and slid easily into the booth and sat down across from the casually dressed police officer. She liked the way he dressed when he wasn't on duty because it showed who he really was underneath the badge. A relaxed, casual man who didn't have to dress up to impress a girl. He obviously wanted her to see him for who he was, and she liked who he was here.

"Hmm, I think I might have an idea on who you're waiting for..."

[/color] she joked right back with another laugh as she ordered a Root Beer from the waitress and watched her walk off to go get her drink. Nora's head turned back to Parker, and she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear before she smiled at him easily. Her brown eyes roamed over his laid back features and his smile, and she almost completely forgot about what had happened the other night with the woman in the park. Well...she did say almost. "Any news on the woman from the park?"[/color] Her smile turned down only slightly as she met his gaze seriously. She hoped they could get some answers about this case, for she wanted to put Sarah to ease about it as well. Sarah was a frantic mess about it, being so close to the science teacher and being scared about how close the murder had been.

The waitress brought her the Root Beer, and Nora sipped at it thoughtfully, her eyes glancing over the menu before she smiled up politely at the waitress. She ordered a cheeseburger with fries and then let her curious eyes fall on Parker to see what he would get. A grin broke across her lips again, and she shrugged. She wasn't one of those anorexics that ordered a salad and a water. She loved food, especially junk food, and a cheeseburger from Mulberry's was too delicious to pass up. She put the mayo and ketchup in front of her and then resumed taking small sips of her drink through her straw. It didn't really bother her that the waitress was grinning as she looked between the two of them sitting across from each other since she found this kind of normal. She enjoyed Parker's company, and she had a sneaking suspicion that this day was only beginning.
[/color][/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
There's nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

[/font][/center][/size][/i][/color]

Tag: Parker Christiansen
Outfit: PARK
Words: Erm...I dunno...it's more about quality than quantity!
Notes: Yayyyy
Credit: Made By Janella =)