Disclaimer: I do not own Person of Interest or its characters.
A/N: So here's part three of my Re-Crossing series. I would recommend that you read Re-Crossing and Double Crossing first. Some of the original characters were introduced in those stories and you'll better understand how John and Joss got to where they are. Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy. Oh and for those of you reading Loyalties, don't give up on me. It's coming slower than I would like but I will finish it, so stay tuned.
Chapter 1
May 2014
Zoe Morgan leisurely strolled down a busy Greenwich Village street in the spring sunshine. The cold snap had finally ended and the temperatures were warming up. She glanced at her watch. Forty-five minutes until her next appointment which was plenty of time to stop for a much needed double espresso.
"Jocelyn Carter," Zoe heard a feminine voice call out. She turned to see a well-dressed African-American woman in her late thirties approaching Joss Carter. She recognized the look on the detective's face—deer in headlights. Zoe stopped her progress to watch the interaction. She hadn't seen John or his detective since before Christmas when Joss came back from the dead. Any favors the boys needed had come via Harold. Zoe strained to hear, a little too far away to easily catch the entire conversation. She gasped when the mystery greeter moved. Joss Carter was pregnant.
Joss froze when she heard a voice call her name. It had already been a terribly rotten day. She was fighting a cold and morning sickness that didn't tell time. John had been undercover for six days working a number and she was starting the transition to desk duty for the duration of her pregnancy. The last thing she needed was to see Iris Nelson. Joss plastered a smile on her face and turned to face Iris.
"I knew it was you, Jocelyn. It has been so long and you haven't returned my calls." Iris paused to take a breath and then gasped as if she was just now getting a full view of Joss. "Oh, well. I guess that explains it." She gawked at Joss's left hand checking for a non-existent ring. "Oh my, Honey. You must have lunch with me. We need to have a talk." Carter's mind was whirling. She had to get away from Iris. She and Iris had become friends in law school. Iris could never understand why Carter went back to her job at the NYPD—it certainly did not have the glamour of her high-powered corporate law job. If Carter was honest, she liked Iris, but Iris was nosey and had a big mouth. Carter, today of all days, did not want to have a heart to heart about her current condition.
"Joss?" Carter heard another feminine voice call and she groaned when she saw Zoe Morgan approaching and waving.
Iris leaned in to whisper, "You know Zoe Morgan?" Joss was suddenly thankful for the second intrusion. Iris was now focused on networking and not finding out the dirt on Joss's pregnancy.
"Hi, Zoe," Joss responded, her eyes shifting between the two threats to her precariously dangling sanity. Zoe looped her arm through Joss's and began steering her in the opposite direction.
"Sorry, I don't have much time. My next appointment is in an hour but I didn't want to cancel coffee on you again since we have so much catching up to do." Zoe turned to Iris, "I'm going to steal her away. I'm sure you understand." Without waiting for an answer, Zoe dragged Joss into the café, leaving a stunned Iris on the street.
Zoe seated herself at a corner table and gestured for Joss to sit down as well. "Well, Detective, I see there have been some developments since the last time I saw you," Zoe stated as she quirked an eyebrow.
"Thanks for the assist, Zoe, but I really do need to go," Joss said as she sneezed.
"That doesn't sound good," Zoe stated as she handed Joss a tissue from her Prada purse. Joss surveyed Zoe, who as usual was dressed in designer clothing from head to toe.
"Thank you," Joss said sniffling.
"I won't keep you long, but I think I earned at least an answer or two," Zoe stated. Joss nodded silently appraising the woman across from her, attempting to read her intentions. Zoe gave her a soft smile and gestured towards Joss's stomach. "So who's the lucky father?" Zoe had no question as to who the actual father of Joss Carter's baby was, however the real question was what official story she was telling.
"John Warren," Joss responded.
"Ah, the investment banker. Good choice. He has a nice portfolio. Not quite as good as John Riley's or John Rooney's, but less high profile I imagine," Zoe responded.
"Listen, Zoe. I have to go," Joss said as she stood up. Before she could walk away, Zoe grasped her arm.
"Just one more thing, Detective. Tell John he doesn't have to be afraid to call me himself if he needs my help. I'm crystal clear as to where we stand," she said with a genuine smile.
"I will," Joss responded as she exited the café.
As Joss entered Dr. Robert Sabatini's Greenwich Village office, she wasn't surprised to see Anthony Marconi exiting the exam area. He put on a megawatt smile when he saw her standing next to the reception area. "Well, hello, Gorgeous. What brings you to the Doc today?" As if in answer, she sneezed.
"I don't see any open wounds," she said looking Marconi up and down. "I could ask you the same."
"Damn allergies," he responded as he sniffed.
Carter laughed. "You mean to tell me Elias's lieutenant has been brought down by the sniffles?"
"Allergies are no laughing matter, Detective," Marconi huffed. "So how is Mr. Personality?" Marconi asked as he glanced behind her as if he expected John to appear.
"Working. How's Sam?" she said with a smirk.
"You would know better than me, Detective. I've been with high maintenance and low maintenance women, but Sam is a whole different story. She's no maintenance. Haven't heard from her in two weeks."
"Jocelyn Carter," the nurse called from the open doorway to the exam area.
"You better get going, Detective. And steer clear of the boss. He's still pretty sore about the ATF raid on Lou's," Marconi stated as he went for the door.
"Hey, Tony, try not to get arrested. It's so much paper work for me with all of the many crimes I'm sure we'll link you to the next time you slip up," she said smirking.
"Mr. Finley," Deena Sanders called to her second grade teacher.
"Yes, Deena," John Reese responded to the red-headed pigtailed Deena.
"Are you coming with us on the field trip to the zoo tomorrow?" Deena asked innocently. He heard the other members of his class begin to chatter excitedly. Before John could respond the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day.
"Line up, kids. Ms. Angela is here to take you to your rides. Roger, it's your day to be line leader," Natalie Jacobsen called from the doorway. The children gathered their things and quickly lined up to leave for the day. John sat back in exhaustion, and looked up when he realized their latest number remained in the doorway.
Natalie smiled and tucked her blond hair behind her ear. "So how's the first week going?" she questioned John.
"I don't see how you do it," he responded good-naturedly. He had been at Woodson Elementary in Brighton Beach for four days now. The students' regular teacher, Mrs. Hedgepath had mysteriously won a month-long dream trip to the Galápagos Islands, so the principal had been quick to hire Mr. Finley as a substitute to finish out the year.
After six days of surveillance, John was no closer to figuring out why the Machine had given them Natalie's number. All they knew about the twenty-five year old was that she was a runaway at fifteen and refused to give Social Services any personal information besides her name. They applied for her a new social security number and she remained in a group home until she was eighteen. Natalie appeared to be an exception to the failures of foster care. She excelled in school and received a full scholarship to Columbia. After graduation with honors, she had teaching offers from several prestigious private schools, however, she chose to teach second grade in Brighton Beach. As far as John could tell, she led an exceedingly boring life. She occasionally had coffee or dinner with some of the fellow teachers, but most nights she stayed in and graded papers or worked on lesson plans. He noticed she wore a modest diamond solitaire ring on her left hand, but he had never spotted a man in her life.
"Well, I guess I better get going," Natalie stated as she gestured to the door. "Don't forget, the zoo field trip is tomorrow."
"Zoo field trip?" John asked warily.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Did no one tell you?"
"Deena was asking as the bell rang, but that was the first I'd heard of it."
"We take the second graders on a trip to the zoo at the end of the school year. I promise it's not that bad. We have a lot of parents who volunteer as chaperones." Natalie laughed when she saw the expression on John's face. "See you tomorrow, John."
"See you, Natalie," John said with a wave. When the door to his classroom shut, he pulled out his cell phone to call Carter. He hated being away from her as she progressed in her pregnancy. He knew that Shaw and Fusco were keeping careful watch on her, but after all the turmoil in the last several months, he couldn't help but be uneasy when he was away from her. He dialed the familiar number and it went straight to her voicemail. He then tapped his earpiece. "Finch, where is Carter?"
"Let me check her phone's location, Mr. Reese," Finch responded. "That's odd," he paused.
"What's wrong, Finch?" John demanded as his heart rate sped up.
"The last ping from her phone was two hours ago in Greenwich Village."
"Send Shaw to watch Natalie, Finch," John demanded. Before Finch could respond, John turned off his earpiece and bolted from the classroom.
As John made his way back to Manhattan, he couldn't sit still on the ferry. Every worst case scenario was running through his head. He almost didn't notice his earpiece buzzing. He tapped it. "Yes, Finch."
"Mr. Reese, I spoke with Detective Fusco. He was at Detective Carter's brownstone getting some of Taylor's things. He said he convinced her to go to the doctor and then go home because she's battling a cold. She asked him if Taylor could spend the night. She didn't want Taylor getting sick in the middle of finals."
"How long ago was that, Finch?"
"Three hours," Finch responded.
"So why is she not home, Harold?"
"Mr. Reese, let's not panic. I've checked all the hospitals. She has not been checked in and no Jane Does meeting her description have been admitted."
"So when do we start to panic, Finch? She's sick. She's pregnant and we can't find her," John could hear his voice rising.
"Wait a minute. Mr. Reese, someone just entered your loft using the security code." John could feel his heart rate slowing. It had to be her. They only people who knew his code or his address for that matter were Finch and Joss.
"Thank you, Harold. Tell Shaw I'm taking the night off," John responded.
"Of course, Mr. Reese. Send the detective my well wishes for a speedy recovery."
John quietly let himself into his loft. He was angry. How could she be so careless to not have her phone? As he walked into the living room, he could hear the shower running in the bathroom. He saw her purse and coat discarded on the couch. He rifled through the bag and retrieved her phone and the battery she had removed. John knew Joss had gotten into the habit of removing the battery when she went to the doctor to prevent prying ears from hearing her confidential medical information. She was, however, usually careful about immediately putting her battery back in when she left.
John kicked off his shoes and went to the bedroom, stretching out on the bed. He heard her shut off the shower. He could hear her coughing and sneezing, instantly making his anger at her ebb away. After a few minutes she exited the bathroom in one of his old t-shirts and a pair of pajama pants, her hair messily piled on her head. She gasped when she spotted him. "What are you doing here? I thought you were still working your number," she stated.
Silently John held up Joss's phone and the battery. "I'm so sorry," she said as she seated herself on the bed opposite him, instantly realizing why he was there. Before either could speak, Joss sneezed again. John reached for the box of tissues on the nightstand and handed them to her. John eased off the bed and gestured for her to get under the covers. He helped her prop up and then seated himself next to her.
"I was terrified something had happened to you," he said quietly as he reached out and kissed her forehead.
"I'm so sorry, John. I went to see Dr. Sabatini for this horrible cold. Then I got caught in the downpour and just wanted to get home. I completely forgot about my phone." John knew she felt awful and she was sick, so he wasn't going to continue the conversation about the phone.
"What did Sabatini say?"
"He said it was a bad cold and it had mostly run its course. He said drink plenty of fluids and go to bed early."
"Well, then that's exactly what you're going to do," John said as he stood up and tucked the blanket around her.
"You headed back to your number?" she asked trying to hide her disappointment. This was the first time she had seen him since he started working the Natalie Jacobsen case. Of course they had text and called, but sometimes she was still surprised at how much she missed him. It was strange to think that last year around this time, they weren't even speaking.
"Shaw's got that under control for tonight. I'm going to the deli to get you some soup and juice," he said with a smirk and a wink.
Batting her eyes at him she said, "Cran-apple and oyster crackers for my soup?"
He shook his head in mock defeat, "Of course. Be back in a few."
Gina Belton paused as she heard her cell phone ringing. Hesitantly she answered, "Hello."
"Hello, Gina. It's been awhile. I have a job for you," the male voice stated.
"I'm done with HR. It's over. I'm never coming back to New York," she said defiantly.
"You're done with HR when I say you are, Gina. I made sure that you escaped your husband's downfall. Notice Ryan is at Rikers, and yet no one has bothered to come looking for you. You knew what you were doing when you got involved with Simmons and accepted the perks that came with aligning yourself with HR. Now I intend to collect. The end game is beginning Gina, but I have a loose end that needs to be tied up, before I implement the final stage. That's where you come in. Listen very carefully, Gina."
