Fandom:

The West Wing AU

Pairing:

C.J./Danny

Rating:

PG-13 for topic

Distribution:

How much do I owe you for hauling it off?

Spoilers:

Up to and including Full Disclosure, from which the series follows on

Email:

exfilia at livejournal dot com

Disclaimer:

if I owned them, they'd have a lot more fun

Warning:

discussion of murder details, and further missing person angst. series deals with nonconsensual sex

Note:

Hoynes lovers should probably be hitting delete right about now.

C.J. met Danny, quite by accident, in the hall outside the press room as he came in looking for her.

"Was it...?"

"Worse. C.J., can you arrange with the president for Secret Service protection?"

"For whom?"

"All of you. Everyone involved in this."

"That would be... Danny, what's going on?"

"Something beyond ugly. Stay with me tonight?"

"I hope that's a nonsequitur."

"C.J., I just saw somebody we knew in a pretty gruesome condition, and I don't want to wake up in the middle of the night and wonder...."

"Let's get out of the hallway," she said, but when she took his hand he pulled her into his arms and buried his face against her.

"I don't want it ever to be you," he whispered, and she held him tight until she became aware of the strobe of flashbulbs.

"Okay," she said, pulling away, "somebody start a tally of the number of cows to which senior administration officials have given birth, here. Is it four or five, now?"

"Nine," someone called.

"Uh-uh!" she snapped back. "I am not taking credit for someone else's cattle! Six, tops! Come on, Danny, this is why they gave me an office."

"C.J., what about the Christmas Party Kiss?"

"Okay, seven! Absolutely no more than seven!"

"Josh?"

"Did you find it?"

"Katie Witt is dead."

"What happened?"

"They gave her something to put her almost to sleep, and rolled her car into a pond."

"Almost?"

"She tore up her hands trying to get out."

"Oh, man, that is sick! Do they know who did it?"

"Can't you think of anyone on earth who wanted Katie to just shut up?"

"Do the police know?" he asked.

"You think cops don't read the papers?"

"Oh, man."

"They're asking about Amy Gardner."

"What about her?"

"Did she say anything to you before she left?"

"No, she did not, and I already had to deal with Officer Danny on this, so... Donna? Do you think...?"

"You knew she was pregnant?"

"Yeah."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to...."

"Too late."

"Huh?"

"'Cause if I don't when the police ask you you have to say I wouldn't."

"I could say...."

"No, you couldn't. This is not Congress, not that I am advocating lying to Congress, but this is the D.C. Metro Police, and they...."

"Actually it's the Delaware State Police."

"I don't know about the baby. I don't know if it was or not. I told her it didn't matter, that I'd take care of it, take care of her anyway. I told her I didn't want to know."

"Do you love her?"

"No. It was never about love, Donna, it was just... high spirits, I guess. We never got inside each others skins the way...."

"The way what?"

His voice dropped to a whisper.

"The way you and I do."

She hugged him then. When she tried to pull away, he stopped her and held her while he talked.

"I don't have a lot of family, Donna. My sister's dead, and my father, and Mom's in Florida and pretty soon that baby'll be all I have in the world. I was so scared she'd get rid of it...."

"No, no, she'd have done that before anybody ever knew. No, she meant to keep it. Of course she did."

"I offered her money. I told her I'd pay, that I'd support... she wouldn't take it."

"She didn't need it. She had a good job, and she's probably got savings."

"Yeah."

Josh tipped Donna's face up and looked into her eyes.

"You know if the baby turns up...."

"Yeah, sure. It'll be all right. You'll be a great dad. Everything's going to be fine."