I know that I haven't posted all of Blame yet, but I have actually finished that story. I just don't want to release it all at once. :) I own nothing of Ashes.

October 12th, 1982

Alex woke with a start and looked at her alarm clock. "Shit."

She was already twenty minutes late for work, and with the primping the eighties required, it would be another hour before she could walk through CID's doors. She got ready as quickly as she could and rushed out the door of her tiny flat. She let herself out into the alley next to Luigi's and started off to CID in a near sprint. Halfway through the alley, something flew above her head. Alex tried to cover her head with her arms, but the object was too fast. With an unhealthy sounding thud, the thing hit her.

Alex fell to the ground, stunned and losing consciousness. She felt someone rifling through her jacket, but she couldn't move. Her world was blurry and fading, but sounds still penetrated.

"Shit. She's one of Hunt's officers! Could you have made this any more obvious?"

"Yes. I could have done it in front of him, or killed her. Would you like me to execute option two now?"

"No. Just call the boss and tell him we've found one for him."

Alex's world went black.

*

Gene Hunt was in his office, slowly working himself into a rage. Alex should have been in an hour and a half ago. She was probably still sleeping off all the booze she had consumed last night. Finally he couldn't stand it anymore.

"SHAZ!"

Shaz timidly approached the door. "Yes, Guv?"

"CALL DI DRAKE AND FIND OUT WHERE THE HELL SHE IS!"

"Yes Guv." Shaz retreated to her desk, where she immediately and quickly dialed Alex's number.

Even though it was only ten thirty in the morning, Gene helped himself to a large scotch. He drank it in one gulp, grimacing slightly as it burned his throat. Shaz timidly approached his door again.

"Um, Guv? DI Drake, well she's not answering her phone."

"Right. Well, I'll just have to go wake up our sleeping beauty." Gene swung his coat over his shoulders and, even though he was only walking to Alex's flat, put on his driving gloves. He started storming out of CID, only to be stopped by Viv, who was bringing in a very distressed woman.

"Guv, this woman reported a kidnapping."

"Just take a bloody statement Viv," Gene growled.

"Guv, you might want to listen to this."

"Fine." Gene ushered her into his office and shut the door. "Tell me what happened, love."

The woman was plainly terrified, Gene's current mood not making it any better. He tried to relax his face, look more sympathetic, but that really was Drake's field. "And she's not bloody here at the moment, sleeping in."

Finally, the woman started.

"I was walking past the alley between that Italian restaurant, and the building of flats next door. I heard something and looked down it. Two men, both wearing masks were talking over the body of a woman, who was bleeding from the head. She appeared to be unconscious. Then they dragged her around the alley. I don't know what happened after that. I came straight here."

"What did the woman look like?" Gene asked, fearing the worst.

"I didn't get a look at her face. She was a brunette though, and was wearing a white leather jacket. One of the men, he took something out of her pocket and a gun too."

Gene rifled through his drawer and pulled out a picture of Alex, one he had secretly kept from the Christmas party in the year before. She had just gotten her hair changed from the perm she had when she first came to CID that July. In the picture, her hair was flipped back, with fringe, a look Gene liked.

"Did the jacket look like the one the woman is wearing in this picture?"

The woman took a look at the picture. "Yes. Exactly like that. In fact, that almost looks like the woman. Her back was to me, but that hairstyle. Its exactly like what the woman had."

Gene looked at her, his worst fears confirmed. "Thank you, Miss…?"

"Meyer. My name is Rebecca Meyer."

"Okay, Rebecca. Go back with Viv, and he'll take your statement. Thank you for your tip, and be assured that it will be acted on immediately."

With that, Gene ushered her to his door. She left CID, and everyone looked up at the Guv as he walked out of the office. He was pale, and though no worry showed on his face, it was clear the next statement he was going to make would be very bad.

"Right. I have just been informed that DI Drake has been kidnapped, and possibly dead."