Chapter 1
The grass was still wet with dew where the body lay. Jane crouched in the Kentucky blue giving the victim a cursory look. Remember kids, unless you want to join Frost in the bushes, it's always "the body". Maura walked carefully on the slick grass towards her wearing some kind of ridiculous shoe for this slope. "Morning, do you need help?" Jane smirked as Maura's heel sank a little into the grass. "No thank you, I can make it" After a slow and careful descent Maura knelt beside Jane examining the body. "He was bound, something thin and fibrous. Cause of death appears to be from his throat being slit. It was a blade like object, the left jugular is cut, but the right appears to be completely severed." Jane peered around her hand, "So kill from behind from the angle of the cut, right handed, since the cut isn't as deep on the left side." "Jane, that's speculation until I do the autopsy." "Which will tell you that he was sliced from behind by someone right handed." Jane dug in his pockets, "Nothing in there, but this wasn't a robbery. It's way too brutal." Korsak came giving victim a hard look. "I think you're right Jane. There's a few fibers on his wrist. Let's get that bagged." Maura dug out a pair of tweezers and Korsak handed her a baggy. Maura zipped it closed "I'm taking the body. I'll get you results as soon as possible." Maura started to back up the hill, the very nice shoes providing very little traction. "Here." Jane took her arm giving her enough leverage to make it. "I'm sorry, I didn't consider the dew might not have evaporated yet due to shade." Jane smirked "Those trees always in the way, somebody should cut them down."
Jane was looking at pictures of horrible things. She ran the prints of the victim. He had a sheet. A very long sheet. In fact he had been a very bad person in life that had somehow made it through the cracks of the justice system. At the moment she was looking at pictures of a woman covered in bruises. Evidence had pointed at him as her rapist, but she broke down, and when that happened all the evidence had been circumstantial. He walked. He had raped that girl and walked. She started looking through recent murders, there was something familiar about the scene. An unsolved murder two years ago, he had also been a suspect in a rape case. Hell, I should just let them get away with it. They're a vigilante. While law enforcement could not condone vigilantism it sure made her feel good. But it still didn't change the fact that it was murder.
Jane was deep in thought when Maura startled her out of her thoughts. She leaned against the desk in her very easy on the eyes, but impractical outfit. Long legs descended her desk curving up from those ridiculous shoes that made her calves and butt look amazing. "Hey, what's up?" Maura flipped open the file, lips scrunched like she always did deep in thought. Brow with that cute furrow. "The attacker was shorter, about 5'3'' to 5'5''." Frost and Korsak joined them. Frost holding a stack of photos chimed in, "That fits with the foot prints we found on the scene. Size 5 shoes. Tread from a women's tennis shoe." Jane pointed at her screen, "I knew something was familiar...people, I think we have a pattern. There's a woman targeting suspected rapists." Everyone shared a moment as they processed the information until Korsak cleared his throat, "This is going to sound bad, but I don't know how I feel about stopping her."
Jane caught up with Maura as she was heading out of the precinct and linked arms. "We should get a drink." Maura quirked an eyebrow at her, "Is it because you feel conflicted about this case?" Jane pouted "Yeah." her playfulness dropped suddenly, "It's already in my head." Maura patted her arm, "I think Bass can wait a little longer for me to get home in that case, as long as you're buying." "Really? Come on, I don't even own my own house." "I don't think so."
At their regular booth at the Dirty Robber Maura sipped her wine while Jane tapped her beer on the table, "I ran a background on the victim. He was suspected of raping and beating a girl, but she freaked out during the trial and couldn't testify." Maura nodded giving her time. "And it reminded me of a case about a year ago that went unsolved. Similar set up, but was a high traffic area. No footprints we could tag as the attacker, but the cut was the same. Short attacker, slice neck. A stretch, but the victim was suspected of raping a co-ed he knew." Maura eyed Jane, "That's a thin similarity. How did you remember that?" Jane took a long drink, "I remember all of them. Every case, every victim, every mother, brother, sister, father, and spouse." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "It was a case that puttered out before it could get rolling. There just wasn't enough to go on. Everyone that knew him checked out. Everyone from the rape case was in another state at the least. I remember talking to the girl, Amy Simms. We had to check her out." Another drink to collect the memories. "She was better then most of the girls I see after something like that. She had pulled her life back together, but talking about it." She shook her head, "It was still bad, but she held together. Now someone is out there, basically doing what I would do. I want to give them a medal." Maura closed her eyes, "We can't work like that Jane. There is no perfect system, but people can't just take lives on their own opinion." "A medal I tell you. I know you're right, and I'll do my job, but I just don't feel the burn for it like I normally do." "Jane..." "I mean, I know what it feels like to be a victim..." her eyes were distant, in another place, but that hard line came back to her face, "and I know how fucking good it feels to take that power back." "But in this case the girls aren't the ones getting revenge, someone is taking them on for themselves." Jane looked at Maura over her drink idly reaching out to touch her hand on the table, wanting that small reassurance, "It felt good. I don't regret it." Maura turned her hand to squeeze Jane's "Hoyt?" "Yeah. I don't wake up afraid anymore. It feels good. Now when I have to shoot, it's just quiet." Maura frowned, "You never really talk about when you have to ...shoot. IA has been keeping a watch on you I hear." Jane snorted, "I think I'm about to set a record for youngest detective with the most kills." "I think it's more likely that you have ended up with some very dangerous cases." Jane was feeling a little warm, "You know what Maura, you always manage to make me feel better. I talk to you and it's like I'm draining something in me." Maura rubbed her thumb on the back of Jane's hand, "Talking is very cathartic." "Would it be weird if I wanted to stay at your place tonight?" Maura shook her head, "It's not weird at all. I can understand not wanting to be alone. This case is already getting to you." Jane snorted and took another drink, "You know that's not a good sign. This is how detectives burn out."