A/N: New to the fandom and hoping you enjoy this! I'm writing mostly from stock knowledge, but please do correct me where it's due.
Disclaimer: All rights to Brooklyn Nine-Nine belong to Fox and NBC.
Autopsy result...strangulation...11:40 PM…
With one hand still typing on the keyboard, Jake Peralta picked up his coffee and took a sip. It was one of those mornings in the Nine-Nine when all closed reports were due by midday, as mandated by Gina Linetti for reasons undisclosed.
It was also a seemingly quiet morning in Brooklyn.
Next field…
Until-
"Jake."
Jake looked over his computer just in time to see Rosa Diaz slap his shoulder. "Briefing room, now."
"Who's calling?" Jake furrowed his brow and hurried after Rosa. He noticed Charles Boyle pick up the pace behind him adjusting his tie.
"Morning, Jake."
"Charles."
Jake noticed that other uniformed officers had already filed into the briefing room. The white board in front was empty and the podium had been moved to the side. Jake took his usual seat next to Charles and crossed his arms over his chest. Rosa sat in the next table.
As soon as everyone was settled, Sgt. Terry Jeffords and Captain Raymond Holt walked into the room and shut the door. Holt was first to speak, "I need Sgt. Peralta and her squad up here."
Terry nodded quietly and called out to Gina in the bullpen. After relaying the request, he shut the door again.
"We can start, sir."
Holt stood at the center of the room and folded his hands. The room was silent.
"There will be no board for this case so listen up. We have a horse theft on our hands, and easily 200-million US dollars is at stake. Each horse entered in this year's Longines Masters at NYCB Live can be worth up to 35 and 45-million."
Charles shook his head in disbelief, "The Longines," he said breathlessly. "Those numbers sound like a case of diamonds, sir."
"Exactly." Holt swept his gaze across the room and stopped as soon as he met Jake's eyes. "The Longines requested only the best detectives on the case. I volunteered the Nine-Nine, and given our track record, they agreed. I need all eyes and all ears on the ground looking into the horse show. We barely have another week to make a dent before it opens to the public."
Jake nodded and exchanged looks with Charles. "What are we dealing with?"
"Participants started flying in last Monday. Things were going smoothly until last night when one of the elite competitors from the German team had his horse stolen-bay warmblood stallion named Vizar, leading contender in stadium jumping and dressage."
At this, all present started scribbling in their notepads.
"Rider is Klaus Hofman, who has been competing at the Longines for the last five years. He has only one dedicated groom, Peter Harold, who was supposedly the last person with Vizar at around 8:30 PM last night. When Harold came in this morning at 6 AM, the stall was secure and undisturbed, but Vizar was gone. Police are doing a sweep as we speak."
"Any interrogations done yet, captain?" Rosa asked as she raised her pen.
"That's what I'm leaving you and Boyle to, Diaz." Holt adjusted his position and gestured towards Terry to hand him two folders. "This file is for you to review. Peralta?"
Jake extended his arm and received the second folder.
"I want you to go undercover."
Jake grinned.
Just then the door burst open and Amy Santiago entered along with three members from her unit. "You called for us, Captain Holt?" she said breathless.
"I did, sergeant." Hold nodded. "Thank you for coming on short notice. I need you to assign at least two of your officers to assist at the Longines Masters in NYCB Live. Have them deployed within the next hour."
Amy nodded snappily, "At once, sir."
"Also, I need you to go undercover with Detective Peralta."
Amy blinked in disbelief. "At the...Longines?"
"Yes. Have him get you up to speed. I need you to pose as one of the riders at the competition. Peralta will be your assigned groom. You will be given a police horse to work with."
"Sir, I-" Amy stammered and gulped as Holt raised his eyebrows.
"You have a concern with this assignment?"
All eyes were on Amy. Jake shifted his gaze between his captain and his former-partner-now-sergeant-now-wife. He felt a sinking sensation in his gut. He absolutely dreaded seeing Amy go undercover for high risk cases, but he understood very well why she was the only one the Nine-Nine could get for the job.
"I'm afraid I might not be able to keep the cover." Amy managed.
"Sergeant, you will understand why I need you to do this," came the deliberate reply of the captain. "'8 Shot Amy' may be a terrible equestrian, but I have come to understand that Sober Amy is an excellent one. One does not forget how to ride after all those years training. I trust you will be fine."
Holt gave one last look at Amy before shifting his gaze to Rosa and Charles. "Diaz, I want you to be the primary on this case."
"Yes, sir."
"That will be all for now. Report to me daily. Dismissed."
Everyone rose and started shuffling out the door. Rosa grabbed Charles' elbow and the two started exchanging notes on the way out. Jake placed his hands on his hips and found Amy approaching her officers. As he walked over to them he just managed to catch wind of her instructions.
"-Mark and Tom to the sweep. Take a squad car there now. Officer Sanders will be in charge while I'm away. Dismissed."
Jake smiled as he watched the three men salute their sergeant and take their leave. Amy turned slowly to face him and offered a worried smile. "Hey, babe…"
"Sergeant," Jake opened his arms and took his wife in an embrace. They were alone for now. "Everything's gonna be okay. The captain isn't going to put you in a bad spot if he didn't have faith in you the first place."
"I know," Amy said, looking over Jake's shoulder and up at the ceiling. "It's just...so much to stand by. The Longines, Jake!"
"I get it," Jake looked down on Amy's face and looked her in the eye. "But we got this like all the other times we 'got this', right? You're not the only one who has to learn how to horse in the next 24 hours!"
Amy laughed nervously and pulled away. "Okay. No time to lose, Jake. Let's have a look at that file."
"You got it, boss."
Jake took out the sheets from the file folder one by one, handing them over to Amy. "Klaus Hofman is the competitor and rider on Vizar," Jake pointed out two official Longines photos of Klaus and the horse. "They flew in with the German team last Tuesday after the first wave arrived. Not 48 hours later, Vizar disappeared from his stall in the dead of night. His last known companion is this guy." Jake took out one more photo from the file and Amy examined it with a frown. "Peter Harold."
Amy breathed. "This is terrible. How much is Vizar worth?"
"According to his papers, he's an elite breed worth 26-million dollars. And Ames, I have a sick feeling in my gut that he's just the warning shot."
"You think there could be more horses at risk?"
"Back in the day horses were stolen for their meat. These days you wouldn't exactly go for high value horses just for meat. So my hunch is the thief or thieves are going for their bloodline."
Jake tapped his finger on a line on Vizar's registration papers. "This horse is a prize. He's had a winning streak across three major international horse shows, and his sire is a retired FEI dressage champion, born and raised in Germany."
"My god, how do you even begin to steal a massive animal in the dead of night."
"Possibilities include drugging, or…" Jake gave Amy a knowing look.
"A person the horse is comfortable with."
"Exactly. Which is why our first suspects are immediately Hofman and Harold."
Jake blinked. "Wow that sounds like a luxury clothing brand, what do you think?"
"Focus, Jake," Amy tapped his shoulder. "Vizar was stabled in Barn C. Based on this picture it's one of the three barns that lead directly into the pastures."
Jake snapped, "And as old horse movies go, thieves can open the back door of the stall and lure the horse out in the open!"
"Right. Rosa and Charles will be at the scene soon. They will check that out for sure."
Jake pulled out the list of competitors and judges. "We should tell them to cross-check Hofman's relations with any of these people, see if he's made any enemies over his five years of success."
Amy smiled, "Let's make some friends." She handed Jake the papers in her hands and started to make her way out the room when she felt his hand grab her elbow.
"Ames."
Amy turned to look at him. She felt her heart sink.
Jake's eyes had softened and his brow was creased. He pulled her closer and shook his head. "I can't let anything happen to you on this assignment."
"Jake," Amy said quietly. "We've done these things a million times before. We'll do it again and we'll be even better now."
"It's not the same."
"'It's not the same' meaning we're better detectives today-"
"Meaning you're now my wife and I don't want-I can't lose you, Amy. Whoever's going for these horses is out for big money. Anyone out for that much money is also out for blood."
Amy turned to face her husband squarely now, and she took his face gently in her hands. "And you've got my back. I've got yours. This is what we chose, and we're not about to let each other down. I need your strength, Jake Peralta."
Jake swallowed and shut his eyes. When he opened them again to see Amy, his Amy looking back up at him with all her sheer determination and ferocity, he realized he was looking at his entire world.
"Alright," he whispered. "Let's do this."
Amy folded her arms across her chest as Terry stowed her bags at the back of his car. Just before leaving the precinct, she had ditched her uniform and dressed down into a plain collared blouse and jeans. Her badge was in a now inconspicuous leather holder in her pocket.
"Sarge, thank you for doing this."
Terry had volunteered to drive her to NYCB Live himself. He also offered to use his 2-year old issue Dodge that he purposefully left unidentifiable as a police car.
Terry shut the boot and turned to face her with a warm smile. "No matter where you end up, Amy Santiago, you will always be like one of my own daughters. I'll be seeing you off on your assignments for as long as I can."
Amy smiled back and rushed in for a hug.
"Okay now," Terry hugged back but started to squeak. "Time to let go. Or else Terry's gonna cry."
"Right, sorry," Amy said quietly, pulling away from the sarge. "Let's hit the road."
Terry got into the driver's seat and waited for Amy to get in next to him. They were just pulling out of the parking slot when Amy's phone started to ring.
"Jake?"
"Nope, it's James Albury now, Miss Chelsea Evans."
Jake's playful tone at least put her at ease. "Okay, James. Where are you now?"
"I'm getting dropped off at the port for the competition horses. I'm picking up your ride there. He's got a real sweet name, his name is Gladiator."
"That is sweet," Amy said in humor. "Where do I meet you?"
"At NYCB. I'll be riding with the transport. Apparently other teams are coming in as well, so I'll try to get chummy."
"Sounds good. See you in a bit."
Amy looked over at Terry. "...Sarge?"
"I'm worried, Amy. Charles pointed out that these horses are worth diamonds. Whenever that much is at stake, something really big and really bad is behind it."
The car stopped at a red light and Terry let out a sigh. Amy placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "You always prepared us for these moments, sarge. We'll be fine. Before you know it, we'll have this case cracked wide open."
Terry nodded. "I know, I know. I trust you, all of you. You'll do great. You and Jake just keep that professional rider-to-groom relationship. I also told Diaz and Boyle to interrogate you to keep your cover."
"I understand."
The rest of the ride to NYCB was quiet and uneventful. Amy took the time to reformat her phone and upload Longines support numbers into the contacts list. She also made sure Jake's number was under 'James Albury', Capt. Holt was now under 'Dad'-much to her amusement-and Rosa and Charles she elected to leave as 'Roselyn' and 'Carlson'.
"Ready, Evans?"
Terry's quip pulled Amy back to attention. "Yes!" she said automatically.
"Good. Because we're here…"
Amy looked up ahead just as the car approached the main entrance to the NYCB. It was large and grandiose. Its dome-like shape twisted around the stadium inside, with precise architectural design adorning the exterior. Horse trailers, luxury vehicles and airport transports were cruising and pausing in a neat line towards the drop-off points.
Terry pulled out a contact card from the cup holder and handed it over to Amy. "This is our inside man. He'll help you get started."
"Thanks, Terry," Amy said softly and took the card.
Andrew Wilson
Competitor Relations Officer
Longines Masters
She added the contact number to her phone.
Terry then pulled up on the driveway. "Good luck, Chelsea Evans." he smiled.
Amy smiled confidently back and whispered, "Nine-Nine!"
As if on cue, her door opened and she looked up to see one of the valet greeting her, white gloved palm open and sweeping gracefully to the side. "Good afternoon, madame," he said confidently. "Welcome to the Longines."
Amy took a deep breath and stepped out of the car.