ENDS AND MEANS
Teaser
FLASHBACK: Kwai Chang Caine's apartment
Master Khan sharpened the blade against the leather strap. After testing it lightly with his finger, he gently placed it against the smooth scalp of Kwai Chang Caine. Running it over the crown of the Shambhala master's head, he shaved the remaining hair. Caine gasped when the blade nicked his skin, but the pain was only momentary and Master Khan began the process again. Lo Si observed, nodding his approval. After a moment, he spoke softly to his friend. "Did you ever tell Peter the truth of Ping Hi?"
"No, I never did tell him." Caine paused for a moment, thinking of his past with the man who was now helping him complete this ceremony. "Perhaps you will," he suggested.
Lo Si smiled and nodded. "After you have gone. . . I will tell him that, of course, I am Ping Hi."
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Part 1, Scene 1
Peter sniffed at the contents of the jar and turned up his nose. "So what does this one do, Pop?" His question was greeted with silence. Kwai Chang Caine had been absent from the city for seven days and already Peter missed him.
His father's voice rang in his head. "I am Caine. I will help you." Every time those words played in his mind, Peter's immediate response was to think, "Unless with my ignorance, I kill you first."
He was now the 'Caine' that his father referred to and he was completely inept at the job that had been left behind for him. Who did he think he was trying to step into the shoes. . .sandals of his father? He had no business planting herbs, let alone administering them.
He looked at the healing wounds on his wrists. The tiger and dragon, strength and wisdom, stared back at him. "Well, Pop, I'm not feeling real strong or real wise at the moment."
Peter put the cork back in the jar and returned it to the cabinet. "This is useless."
"It is not, young Caine." Lo Si's voice caused Peter to jump. He couldn't help but wonder just how much training it would take before he would be able to predict the Shambhala master's 'sneak arrivals'.
"I wish you would stop doing that," he scolded the old man.
Lo Si gave him a playful grin. "With the absence of your father, it has fallen upon my shoulders to keep you. . .on your toes."
"Great. . .keep me on my toes, but try not to give me heart failure in the process." Peter turned back to the contents of the table. "I hope you're here to take care of these."
"No, Peter, that is your responsibility. Your father left these in your care."
"Well, that was a mistake. I don't have a clue what I'm supposed to be doing."
"You will learn. In time, you will come to understand the function of each in life, as you will come to understand your function in life."
"My function? I have no function, Lo Si. I gave up my job. . . I'm not qualified to do anything else. Hell, I don't know how to do anything else." Peter's frustration made each word harsh.
"You are wrong, young Peter. You know the most important function of life. You know how to care. . .how to love."
Peter laughed harshly. "Great. That'll help a lot of people."
"You are correct. It will. It already has. . .more than you realize."
"What do you. . .?" Peter started to ask but Lo Si turned and walked into the garden, motioning Peter to follow.
"We must talk."
"Talk? I thought that's what we were doing."
Lo Si ignored the sarcastic comment. He took a seat on the bench, near the small pond, and folded his hands in his lap. Peter sat next to him, watching the effects of the light breeze on the water, ripples floating across the surface.
The silence was deafening. Peter tried to exercise patience, but finally his personality won over. "So what do you want to talk about?"
Lo Si was silent for a while longer. He then said softly, "The past."
"The. . ." Before Peter could complete the thought, his cell phone rang. Lo Si's expression turned to one of surprise. Peter grinned sheepishly. "Hey, you didn't expect me to give up everything, did you?"
He ran for his jacket and pulled the cell phone out of the pocket. "Caine."
"Peter, it's Kermit."
"Hey, how ya doing?"
"Pete, this isn't a social call. Captain Simms asked me to find you and have you come in. She needs your help."
"I'm not a. . ."
"I know. . .she knows. . .you're not a detective anymore. But she says she needs your help. Can you come down?"
Peter paused for a moment, realizing that his heart rate had increased. This was the first excitement he had experienced in a week. . .and it felt good. He missed the adrenaline rush.
"Yeah, sure, I'll be down in a bit."
"See ya later, kid."
Peter disconnected the line and looked at Lo Si with some regret. "Sorry, Lo Si, but the department needs me. Do you mind if we take this up later?"
Lo Si started to protest but Peter had already pulled on his jacket and had begun to make his way to the door. Trying to detain him would be useless. "It is fine. We will talk later."
"Thanks. I'll stop by after I'm done. Someone needs to show me what to do with all this stuff." Peter motioned toward the cabinet. Giving a quick wave to the Ancient, he ran out of the room.
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Part 1 Scene 2
"Hey Pete! Welcome back!" Detective Blake called out from his desk.
"Thanks," Peter said with a smile. His face reflected his comfort at returning to the precinct.
"How's civilian life, Caine?" Frank Strenlich said from his position by the coffee machine.
"Quiet, Frank. . .Very quiet."
"Of course, it is. You don't have the Chief around to yell at you," Mary Margaret Skalany said as she rose from her desk to give her ex-partner a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Don't you have work to do, Detective Skalany?" Strenlich bellowed, immediately grabbing the woman's attention. She obediently returned to her desk, redirecting her focus onto the report she had been preparing.
"Captain wants to see you," Frank said as he escorted Peter to Captain Simms' office. He knocked on the door.
"Yes." Simms' voice could be heard through the door.
Frank opened it slightly. "Caine's here."
"Oh, good. Send him in."
The burly man pushed the door open wider and Peter entered the office. "Peter, it's so good to see you again." Karen came around the desk to greet her former detective. Peter heard the office door shut behind him and he knew that he and the Captain had been left alone.
"It's only been a week, Captain."
"It seems like a year, Detective."
"I'm not a. . ." Peter started to point out his status as a civilian, but Karen raised a hand.
"We've been through that before. You will always be a detective in my eyes."
"So how are things going?"
"Not as smoothly as I would like," Karen answered as she took a seat in her chair and motioned Peter to do the same in the visitor's chair across from her. "We've had three murders and two hostage situations in the past week. I have a new detective transferring into the precinct tomorrow and. . ."
"My replacement?" Peter cut the woman off.
"Yes, your replacement. Unfortunately, just bringing a new detective in is not going to replace what we lost when you decided to move on."
"Thank you, Captain."
"I mean it, Peter. Things have been very difficult around here in your absence. You had a connection to the Chinese community that we have lost."
"My father had the connection," Peter pointed out.
"Don't sell yourself short, Peter. You had. . .have wonderful insight into what makes the community tick. We had the ability to take advantage of that. . .now that's gone."
"You still have Roger."
"Unfortunately, Roger has not been able to develop the same trust with the merchants. I guess he's been doing undercover work for too long."
"What about the new guy?" Peter suggested.
Karen chuckled slightly. "No. . .no, I don't think he's going to be much help in that area."
"Why?"
"Have you ever met James Dakota?"
Peter's eyes narrowed as he ran the name through his memory. "No. . .I don't. . .the name's familiar."
"He was a detective with the 43rd. He's a good detective, but he doesn't quite have your. . ."
"Recklessness?" Peter completed with a smile.
Karen matched his grin. "Shall we say, 'flair'." Peter gave her a crooked grin. Karen leaned back in her chair and rubbed a hand beneath her eyes. "You sure you won't change your mind about coming back?"
Peter's eyes dropped to the floor, somewhat embarrassed. "I can't. I. . .I don't think my place is here anymore. Besides, with my father gone, I need to take care of things for him."
"Couldn't Lo Si take care of those. . .things?"
Peter shrugged. "Probably. But I promised Pop I'd do it. And I need to try. I need to know I can. . ."
"Help?" Karen completed.
"Yeah."
"I have no doubts that you can and will do exactly that." She paused for a moment, then smiled. "Which is exactly why I've asked you here today."
Peter's eyes narrowed, then he grinned. "I am Caine. . .I will help you."
Karen laughed at the line that was so often attributed to the elder Caine. "Well, you've got that part down right."
"I wish it were all so easy." Peter leaned forward, elbows on knees. "So what can I do for you?"
"We've pulled security detail for the Chinese trade delegation which is arriving next week."
"How'd you get roped into that?" Peter frowned.
"Ever since the success of the Costa Bravan visit, the Mayor has decided that the 101st is the best precinct for the job."
Peter felt a knot tighten in his stomach. His former Captain had no idea how close the visit had come to being a total disaster. . .all because of him. "So you've become the local security experts for foreign dignitaries."
"Not just us. . .you too, Peter." Karen's eyes met her former detective's.
"Me?"
"The Mayor has specifically asked for your assistance. She wants you to be part of the security team."
"Me. . .but. . ."
"Peter, you bring something to our unit that we don't have without you. We need your insight." Karen paused for a moment, then leaned forward. "I need you on the team."
Peter could feel his face redden with embarrassment. "Thank you, Captain."
Karen nodded, a small grin turning up the corners of her mouth. "So what do you say? Will you help with the security?"
Peter said nothing for a moment, weighing his choices. He felt a twinge of anticipation building inside, and he knew that more than anything, he wanted to accept this assignment. However, his father's departing words weighed heavily. He had made a promise to the elder Caine that he would carry on what had been started. Protecting foreign visitors hardly seemed to be what his father intended.
Captain Simms seemed to read the conflict playing in Peter's mind. "Are you concerned that you would be violating your. . ." she fought to find the appropriate word, ". . .vows?"
Peter shook his head. "No," but then he paused. "Well, yeah. . .maybe."
Karen stood and walked around to sit on the corner of the desk, next to Peter. "Peter, I feel like I've been fortunate to know you and your father better than most. I believe that your father would want you to help protect people whose lives were in danger."
Peter cocked his head. "Their lives are in danger?"
Karen nodded. "Yes. . .possibly. There have been rumors on the street that assassins have been hired by those opposing the new trade agreement."
"Street rumors, huh. Reliable?" Peter narrowed his eyes, knowing only too well that street rumors were only as good as their sources.
The blonde-haired woman smiled. "Not very. That's one of the things I need your help on."
"Donny?" Peter guessed.
The Captain nodded again. "Yes. I want to know what he's heard, but it seems he's gone to ground."
"Why?" Peter responded, perplexed.
"I wish I knew. I had Jody and Mary Margaret try to locate him. They actually spotted him near the docks but when they tried to approach him he bolted."
"That doesn't sound like the Donny I know. . .at least not the one I know now."
"Now?"
Peter nodded. "A few years ago, before we had. . .established a rapport, Donny would rabbit on me. But over the years we gained a level of trust."
"Well, something's happened to change that and I think it may have something to do with our new assignment."
"What about Lula?"
"She says she hasn't seen him. Says he's been staying away from the apartment. I think she's frightened for him."
"Why didn't she say something to. . ." Peter started to comment, then stopped.
"Why didn't she come to you?" Karen completed.
Peter nodded . Karen shrugged her shoulders. "You're a priest now, Peter. Some people just don't know how to handle that."
"But you do?" Peter said, doubt suddenly filling his voice.
Karen smiled and patted his shoulder. "Yep. You're still the pain in the butt you always were."
Peter couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips. "Thanks, Captain. . .I think."
"So I take it I can count on your help?"
Peter gave her a quick wink. "Count me in. You want me to see if I can hunt down Donny?"
"That would be great. I'm sure he knows something. I want to know what he knows."
Peter nodded and stood, stretching his legs. Karen chuckled softly. Peter frowned at the woman in confusion. "What?"
"Maybe you aren't the same Peter Caine I've known."
Peter's face fell. "What do you mean?"
"The Peter Caine I knew would never have sat in that chair. . .in the same spot. . .in the same position for thirty seconds, let alone the past fifteen minutes."
The young Shaolin frowned at the woman's words then realized she was right. He had sat long enough that his muscles had started to stiffen. That had never happened before. The revelation of his newfound stillness brought a mixture of joy and fear to the man.
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Part 2