Pros Novel Read-Along - Painted Angels by Angelfish - Chapter Five

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

At last!

Painted Angels by Angelfish.
Cover art by firlefanzine

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

There has been a bomb explosion, and like the other emergency services, Bodie and Doyle, now working together as a team, responded. On arrival, however, Doyle remained by the car, too scared to go any further, while Bodie ran straight into the cloud of smoke to help.

Eventually Doyle screws up his courage and joins Bodie, who is assessing what seems to be a detonator. Doyle recognises it as a specific Irish terrorist group, and Bodie immediately knows who he's talking about. They realise that there's a second device nearby, ready to go off when the emergency services have arrived. They find it, and Doyle uses his penknife to cut the wires - a mad guess between red or blue, because it could be either - and saves the situation.

Even as they're laughing in relief, however, one of the first bomb's victims staggers into them and collapses. They're badly burned and blinded, and asking for Richard. Bodie recoils but Doyle pretends to be Richard as comfort as the man dies in his arms.

The next thing Doyle knows is that he's sitting on a wall outside a church with Bodie, though he can't remember getting there. Bodie is rubbing his back, then "tangles... fingers into his hair, carressing" and explains that the first time in such a situation is the worst, and he'll be okay. Doyle points out that he doesn't ever want to be "okay" with this situation, and begins to feel guilty about not having been able to stop it. He knows London so well, he should have seen some sign. Bodie rejects this - "Jesus Christ, Doyle. You'll sink both of us."

Doyle realises he's been in shock, recovers, and just as he's getting up spots a priest helping the victims. He's not impressed - "Oh great... God's here." Bodie's puzzled by this, and Doyle realises that the priest is giving first aid, not the last rites. As he watches the priest, however, and then hears his voice, Doyle realises that he's familiar. ""Gabriel. Gabe!" and begins to walk into the crowd."

So - what did you think?

Comments

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

but have no idea what Bodie is really feeling, only getting to see his perfect behavior under pressure
Maybe that's something else that throws me though - because we do get the story from Bodie's pov sometimes. Like when he thinks about how he thought Doyle was going to abandon him because he didn't follow Bodie straight in - "he'd gone cod white...", that bit. I suppose below that we get a bit of Bodie's positive view of Doyle, in the bomb defusing scene, but it's not the sort of hero-view that we're shown of Bodie... When we see Doyle he's quite often scared or nervous or summat, but when we see Bodie he never is... It just seems unbalanced as writing, as much as anything, I think....

a Bodie who knows it all, and has so much more experience
And that - that right there's what I don't get, or believe! Different experience yeah, but in fact Doyle's been the one dealing with the IRA's terrorism in London since he started in the police force...