Hard Situations!

[Adia]

Brilliant last chapter! Love it. I really like the tension/dynamics between Pete and Clare, it was really good. You've really got me hanging now. Please update soon!

[swfc]

I'm in a generous mood and I think Lil's on a high so here's a few teasers from the next couple of chapters:

The next morning, Dan was having a swim at the beach where Drew sat staring into thin air thinking about all the anger he saw in his dad over the last few weeks. ‘Could he be capable of murder?’ he thought to himself.

Everyone looked over as Colleen was handed the daily paper with the headlines:

‘TOP DETECTIVE CHARGED WITH MURDER’ with a picture of Peter under the headlines. Everyone was shocked as they looked at Dan and Drew for answers.

“How am I going to tell his family?”

“The truth.”

“This is going to hurt them.”

“I know. But, they will understand.”

“I hope so, Lara. I hope so.” Clare said as they headed for the car and took a slow drive back to the Bay where Clare had to break the news to Dan, Leah and Drew.

“Dad, you didn’t, did you? Dad!” Drew said demanding an answer from Pete.

Pete sat up from his chair and he looked into Drew’s eyes.

“Mate, I don’t know. I really don’t.”

Enjoy!

[Lilone]

Next Chapter:

Claire arrived back at the station silent as she couldn’t believe what the results were. She hated herself. She really wanted Lilly to be Pete’s. Now, she had to decide whether she would tell Pete the truth. If she did, it could have the worse consequences ever.

Pete would most likely be sent to prison for Tracey’s murder. She couldn’t bear that, so she decided to do everything in her power to try and keep him out of prison. She did love him after all.

“Claire, what is happening now?”

“I think we have to charge him now, Jack.”

Claire and Jack entered the interview as they both saw Pete in a way they never thought they would. ‘He just looked so distance,’ Claire thought to herself as she walked over to Pete, sitting in front of him whilst Jack stood by the door.

“Pete, I am really sorry, but you are being charged with the murder of detective Tracey Thompson.”

Claire tried to carry on; but the more she looked at Pete the more worse she felt. She could feel the tears filling up in her eyes as she was charging Pete. She couldn’t hold the tears back any longer and just as she was about to carry on she burst on in tears.

Jack knew that Claire couldn’t carry on so he finished Claire’s sentence and formally charged Peter Baker, his good friend.

Pete just stared at Claire as tears fell down her face.

Jack was about to take Pete away but Claire stopped him as she said,

“Give us a minute please?”

Jack wasn’t sure but he knew that if anyone could get through to him it would be her; so he left them alone in the interview room.

“Pete, look at me please?”

Claire placed her hand on Pete’s face as she moved his head so he was looking at her.

“Pete, I know that you had nothing to do with Tracey’s death. Pete, please, I’ m begging you. Just keep fighting. I am not letting you go to prison for something you didn’t do.”

Claire knew that Pete was not listening to her so she decided to leave. Just as she got up Pete grabbed her arm saying,

“Claire, you have to help me.”

Pete put her hand on his face,

“Pete, I will not let you go to prison. I mean it.”

Pete looked at her as he began to cry saying,

“I need help.”

He let go of Claire’s hand as he heard her say,

“I love you.”

Pete was shocked but he was in too much of a mess to reply. He just placed his head in his arms on the table and watched as his life fall apart in front of him.

Jack and Lara saw everything that had just happened. They both watched from the other room where you could see into the interview room. Jack wasn’t surprised by what had just happened but was shocked when Lara said,

“Do you think Claire should be working on the case?”

“What do you mean? Maybe she and Peter were together once, but if anyone is going to get him free it will be her!” he shot at her.

“Jack, Lara!” Claire shouted from her office.

“I want you to call Dan and tell him to come to the station.”

“He is not here. He is at his parents with Drew.”

“Looks like he will have to cut his trip short. Peter needs him and Drew.” Claire said as she walked back in her office and shut the door, taking a deep breath before sitting down at the desk.

Peter was just crying into his arms as he took his watch off. He turned it over and looked at the words, “Worlds greatest dad”. He began to cry even more as he realised he had let his son down.

Claire stared at the wall in Peter’s office as thoughts ran through her mind. ‘He couldn’t surely?’ Claire said as she began to doubt herself. ‘Pete’s not like that he wouldn’t!’ Claire just sat in her chair pondering her thoughts. She didn’t even realise that Jack had entered the office and said,

“Claire.”

“Claire? Are you ok?”

She suddenly looked up and said,

“Sorry, did you want me?”

“Dan, Leah and Drew are here. They don’t know why you want to see them when I rang Dan. All I said was Pete needs him. I thought it would be best to let you explain when they got here.”

“Ok, thanks. Let them in here.”

“Claire, what’s wrong with Pete? Where is he?” Dan demanded to know.

“Is dad ok?”

“Yes, Pete’s here. But he has been charged with murder.”

“What?! Who’s murder?”

“Tracey Thompson.”

“What the hell? He can’t have!” said Dan as he fell back in shock.

“I don’t want to believe either, but the evidence points towards him. We can’t ignore that.”

“What happened?”

“He was found on Green Lane in the Old House holding the gun next to Tracey’s body.”

“He is not a killer!” Drew said angrily

“I want to see my dad!” Drew insisted

“Drew, let me go in first. If he’s in such a state, I don’t want you to see him just yet.” Dan said thinking about Drews feelings.

Drew gave Dan a stern look but deep down he knew it was for the best. Claire led Dan towards the interview room where Pete was. Dan slowly walked over to Pete who just sat quietly at the table. As soon as Peter saw Dan, he immediately stood up and ran into his arms bursting into tears.

“Are you ok?”

Dan tried to get Pete to open up, but nothing was working. He just remained silent. Claire watched as Dan tried his best to get Peter to talk but she decided it was best to leave Pete alone until the morning. She entered the room and said,

“Dan, I think we should leave this until the morning.”

Dan was reluctant at first but he eventually left the room reeling from his conversation with his brother. Drew looked over as he watched Dan just look at him before leaving the station. Drew chased after him as well as Leah. Peter was escorted to the cells where he was to stay until the morning, when he will see if he will be granted bail.

The next morning, Dan was having a swim at the beach where Drew sat staring into thin air thinking about all the anger he saw in his dad over the last few weeks. ‘Could he be capable of murder?’ he thought to himself

Preview

How does the town react to the news that their respected Detective is a murderer? Will Pete be granted bail?

[Drew]

Ok I'm up to page 15 so I don't know how many chapters I just read but great work guys!!!

Loved Tracey's explanation to how Zoe held a gun behind her back etc. But I can't believe she took her own life ... Well that's the way I read it

Pete dumping Amanda! The poor lambs, using each others weaknesses to hurt each other lol. Great writting there!

Pete and Sally! Aww, young love... Not to sure about Sally calling Pete babe, but hey, I loved it.

I also loved that flashback when Dan was trying to shave lol. And the introduction to Jason... And Jason was left for dead in the bushes... Wonder who did that.

And Pete is left for dead in a car accident! That was the last chapter I read.. Will read the rest later!

Great work!!!

[Drew]

Wow, alot has happened from pages 15-22

Christie made an appearance and Peter was found! Yay! But he has a daughter with Clare! That was a major shock!

Jason dying! The poor thing and by his own father!

You had me fooled when Peter was shot and they went to the funeral haha, I really thought Peter was dead.

Great job!

[swfc]

Thanks Drew. Glad you're enjoying the fic.

Next chapter:

"Dan, I think you need to know something.”

“What’s that?”

“Just before Dad was charged, I saw him lose it with Jack. He looked really angry and well it was about 10 minutes before Tracey died. What if he was still pissed at Jack and lost it with her?”

“Drew, I can’t believe you are even thinking that!” Dan angrily said towards his nephew.

“Look, I don’t want to believe it, but, like Claire said, the evidence is pointing at him. If he doesn’t get bail, that make things even worse. You saw how he went off at you the other day. He was in a mess.”

“He didn’t do it!” Dan shot at Drew. “Look, let’s go get some breakfast.”

Drew and Dan made their way to the dinner were they saw Colleen, Irene and Sally talking,

“Hey Dan, Drew.”

“Are you not with the horrible brother of yours?” Colleen said in a stern voice.

“What?”

“Dan, Colleen is upset because Pete knocked her over the other day and he didn’t apologise.”

Drew just gave Dan a look as if to say told you so.

“He’s just unbelievable.” Sally commented.

“You had a lucky escape there.” Colleen replied.

Just as Dan was about to tell everyone, Madge ran in the Dinner shouting for Colleen.

“Colleen! Look at this!”

Everyone looked over as Colleen was handed the daily paper with the headlines:

‘TOP DETECTIVE CHARGED WITH MURDER’ with a picture of Peter under the headlines. Everyone was shocked as they looked at Dan and Drew for answers.

Drew couldn’t bear it any more. He had to leave the Dinner and let Dan explain.

“Pete has been charged with the murder of Tracey Thompson, but he assured me that he did not do it. He was there at the scene of the crime and found her dead. Claire seems to think someone has set him up so she is trying to get him bail.”

“Why would we want a murderer back in the community?” Colleen commented.

“Excuse me, Colleen but Pete is no murderer. I wouldn’t be sitting here if it wasn’t for Peter. They have got it wrong! He isn’t a murderer!” Sally spat at her in anger before quickly leaving the Dinner with Dan.

Pete, Claire and Lara sat in the courtroom as they heard the judge say:

“The defendant is denied bail!”

Pete didn’t even flinch as he heard the decision. He felt like his life wasn’t worth living any more.

Clare was not at all surprised at the verdict. She knew that the evidence pointed towards Peter and there was no way any judge would find him innocent in this. Even though her heart told her otherwise, there was nothing she could do for him just yet. She had vowed to find out the truth behind it all and she was going to do just that. She sat there looking at Peter. His reaction only served to strengthen her resolve. He appeared dejected and the Peter Baker that she had known had gone forever. The Peter Baker that she knew would’ve fought back. He would’ve fought for his life just to clear his name. The Peter Baker before her was a man who had been disappointed so many times that he had completely given up and had resigned himself to his fate.

Meanwhile, Lara sat staring at Peter. She believed he was innocent. After all, she had worked with him long enough to know that he was being framed. But none of them could prove it. They needed hard evidence in order to get him free. She looked at Clare. She knew that Clare was most probably thinking of how she was going to tell Peter’s family about this. She reached out towards Clare and squeezed her hands. It was a gesture of support. Lara didn’t need to speak at all. She knew that Clare would understand that she would help her clear Pete’s name. No matter what it took.

“There was nothing we could have done,” Lara reminded Claire

They stood up and walked out of the courtroom. Before she exited, Clare turned back and gave Peter a final gaze. She had no idea when she was going to see him again but she looked at him straight in the eye and didn’t break eye contact for a full minute. He was, at that moment, being taken away by the prison guard. He looked back and then broke the contact feeling flushed. He didn’t want her to see him like this.

Just as Pete was leaving the courtroom, he suddenly turned his head and looked back at Claire. As he smiled at her, Claire sighed in relief. That was Pete’s sign, telling her he was going to fight it all the way. All the time when they were working together, or were together outside of work, Peter always told her that if he was ever in need of help, or if he wanted to let her know everything was going to be ok, he would smile to reassure her.

That smile on Pete’s face just made Claire even more determined to get him off the charges. She stood up and walked out of the court room with a fight on her hands to free Peter. But, she knew if he was still fighting to keep sane she would do exactly the same to get him out of prison.

“How am I going to tell his family?”

“The truth.”

“This is going to hurt them.”

“I know. But, they will understand.”

“I hope so, Lara. I hope so.” Clare said as they headed for the car and took a slow drive back to the Bay where Clare had to break the news to Dan, Leah and Drew.

Meanwhile, back in the prison cells, Peter Baker sat on his bed pondering over the day’s events. He knew he was being framed and whoever was doing it had done a good job. Yet, a part of him really wondered if he had indeed done what he had been charged with. Tracey was dead because of him. She had left the Bay. He started to beat himself over Tracey’s farewell suicide note. He realized now how stupid he had been. If he had not hurt Tracey, none of this would’ve happened. Then a thought hit him. ‘What if the note was not written by Tracey but by who ever it was that had kidnapped her? What if that person had made Tracey write that farewell note? Maybe that person didn’t know about that farewell note that Tracey had written for him? No, she had written it and had left it on his car.’ All these thoughts made him more and more agitated. He sat there wondering what his family were doing. He wondered how Drew was coping with his father being a murderer? He wondered what his parents would think of him now. And most of all, he thought about Clare and about Lilly. A part of him felt glad that there was a possibility that Lilly was not his.

Preview: How does Peter’s family react to the news? Will Peter tell anyone about the suicide note from Tracey and his suspicion? Will they believe him? Will Clare tell Peter the truth about who Lilly’s father really is? How does Summer Bay’s Detective cope with being in jail?

[Drew]

Wow great stuff between page 23-25 Long chapters but alot of drama!

Claire came back! Yay! But the baby might be Rice's! The Baker parents finding out Pete's alive well their reaction was certianetly, different haha.

Claire moving into Brad's hey? Is this going to be a love sqaure with Sally/Peter/Claire/Brad? haha. I'll catch up on the rest later. Great work guys!

[Traceve]

I had so much stuff to catch up on its, rather beyond a joke!

Lots of Drew, thats good, the more the better! and for gods sake dont post any for the next few days cos I wont be on and that means I will have to catch up on tons!

Even f*cking Rice The father! I think im going to be sick..

Peter charged with murder .. Denied bail! Can Tracey come back from the dead again?

[swfc]

Wow great stuff between page 23-25 Long chapters but alot of drama!

Glad you liked it.

Claire moving into Brad's hey? Is this going to be a love sqaure with Sally/Peter/Claire/Brad? haha. I'll catch up on the rest later. Great work guys!

You're going to have to read on to find out if that happens for real....

I had so much stuff to catch up on its, rather beyond a joke!

Lots of Drew, thats good, the more the better! and for gods sake dont post any for the next few days cos I wont be on and that means I will have to catch up on tons!

Lol. Don't worry, I ain't going to be posting until after the New Years. Got tons of stuff to do. I guess it depends if Lil's on high or not. She just might post a chapter. Lol.

Yeah, it's sad, ain't it that Evan is the father? Blame it on Lil. She wrote that part.

As to Tracey coming back from the dead, sorry.... She's really dead for real.

Anyway, just thought I'd wish you all a Happy New Year in advance!

[Lilone]

Wow great stuff between page 23-25 Long chapters but alot of drama!

Glad you liked it.

Claire moving into Brad's hey? Is this going to be a love sqaure with Sally/Peter/Claire/Brad? haha. I'll catch up on the rest later. Great work guys!

You're going to have to read on to find out if that happens for real....

I had so much stuff to catch up on its, rather beyond a joke!

Lots of Drew, thats good, the more the better! and for gods sake dont post any for the next few days cos I wont be on and that means I will have to catch up on tons!

Lol. Don't worry, I ain't going to be posting until after the New Years. Got tons of stuff to do. I guess it depends if Lil's on high or not. She just might post a chapter. Lol.

Yeah, it's sad, ain't it that Evan is the father? Blame it on Lil. She wrote that part.

As to Tracey coming back from the dead, sorry.... She's really dead for real.

Anyway, just thought I'd wish you all a Happy New Year in advance!