A/N: Here is the next part of this story, enjoy!

Rated M for violence, graphic images, language, and sexual references


January 22, 2013

Brittany S. Pierce, a newly promoted special agent homicide investigator for the Ohio FBI unit, walked up to the elevator pushing the up arrow. It lit up at her touch indicating the elevator was called. She sipped her coffee as she waited. She was dressed in black dress pants and a blue button up blouse which made her blue eyes pop out even more. Brittany's blonde hair had a french braid 'headband' which framed her face perfectly as the rest of her hair hung past her shoulders. She found her refection in the elevator doors – her freckles spotted each of her cheeks at random along with her forehead. She smiled at the thought of her first love's habit of pretending to connect the dots with her fingers on the freckles of her cheeks as they cuddled in bed after a long day.

She shook the feeling remembering that she shouldn't be dwelling on that old habit because of the pain she went through when she was kicked to the curb. Not to mention the current state of her lover wasn't something she could exactly forget. She was so lost in her thoughts until the ding of the elevator snapped her out of her internal battle. The elevator doors slid open and Brittany was surprised to see a blonde man about her height.

"Hello." He said with a fake smile.

"Hey Sam." Brittany sighed. "We have to work together, you can at least pretend a little better to actually want to be around me. We are partners after all and damn good ones at that."

"I do want to be around you, in more ways than one." He admitted.

"Sam I told you, it wasn't working out for me." The blonde girl refused to make eye contact with Sam as the elevator doors shut.

Sam Evans – not only an ex-boyfriend but her partner. At first their relationship was strictly professional, until Sam kept asking her to go on a date with him even after she refused on numerous occasions. Finally she said yes to one date, one date turned into another, and they ended up together for a few months before Brittany broke it off. Of course no one in the work place knew about their relationship; everyone just thought they were really good friends.

"Yeah it wasn't working out because you are still in love with a monster who is currently serving a 25 to life sentence." His tone was cold as he gritted his teeth.

"Don't talk about her like that." Brittany replied simply. "I don't care what people have said she's done she's not a monster. You don't know her like I do." The elevator let out another ding and the doors opened. The duo was greeted with chatter and commotion of the homicide unit that currently employed both of them. Sam quickly disappeared obviously frustrated with the current events in the elevator.

"Good morning special agent Pierce." A man with a military shaven head appeared from behind a desk handing her a file. "The team has been assigned to the Lopez case. Her appeal went through yesterday evening."

"God damn it Puck, why didn't you tell me before now?" She playfully slapped his arm.

"Sorry, I was distracted last night. I went to Juicy Lucy's with SA Chang and computer geek Abrams." He wiggled his eyebrows at the blonde who rolled her eyes.

"Hey that computer geek saves our asses with his genie so don't call him a geek. I'm pretty sure he rather be called an advance computer tech." Brittany may be a top homicide detective but she is still dyslexic and slightly lacked the right vocabulary in non-work situations.

"I think you mean genius Brittany."

"Yeah that's what I said." The girl opened the file, the first thing she saw was a mugshot of Santana. She knew she shouldn't react like this and be professional but she fell in love with the girl at age nine so it was pretty difficult not to react like this. She felt like the wind was knocked out of her and she was ran over by a ten ton truck six times.

"Hey you okay?" Puck asked when he watched Brittany turn from her usual pale skin tone to as white as a sheet.

"Uh fine." She lied closing the file. "Is Schue waiting for us in headquackers?" Her feet were on autopilot as she turned left at the end of the hall, then a quick right.

The 27 year old male snickered. "Yeah he is waiting for us in headquarters. We have to review the case." Puck followed Brittany to the room where the team discusses cases that they are investigating, where they had team meetings, and where the team reviewed their work. Usually when they reviewed the work they would hang crime scene photos on the bulletin boards, made time lines of the victim and/or unsub (unidentified subject), along with any other information they needed to solve the crime.

When the two arrived, everyone was already there except for the senior special agent, William Schuester.

"Hey Chang and Abrams, I heard about your late night at Juicy Lucy's." Brittany sat down next to Artie – he is the computer tech for the team. To Brittany he looked like the average nerd – glasses, a new sweater vest every day, and he has an eidetic(photographic) memory. He has been in a wheelchair for most of his life but Brittany is always to scared to ask him why his legs don't work.

"Oh yeah that Juicy Lucy is a fine piece of ass!" Artie nodded his head as he spoke. "She gave me a lap dance last night and I was like 'Hey baby, at least you don't need me to move and sit at a booth.'" Mike Chang let out a loud laugh from next to Artie.

Mike was another member of the team. The tall Asian man was the nicest guy Brittany has ever met. He works in the office with Noah Puckerman, going over evidence and putting together the time lines.

"Yeah she's pretty hot, but lady Asian is even hotter." Mike replied.

"Whatever you say Michael Chang." Puck teased.

"Alright guys, take a seat." Will Schuester called out as he entered the room. His hair was in a shaggy do, the curles poking out in different directions.

Brittany let out a giggle as he set down his satchel on the table.

"Something you need to share before we start Agent Pierce?" He asked sipping from his coffee.

"It's just that...you look like an way older version of Nick Jonas." She said clear as day.

The rest of the team let out laughs and her boss couldn't help but join in. "Well thank you Brittany." He took a deep breath and sat in the seat in front of him. "Artie can you take the floor and explain to those who aren't familiar with the case?"

Sam scoffed and rolled his eyes knowing already which case they were assigned. Artie wheeled himself up to the projector and turned it on, the lights dimmed with the remote control he hooked up to his chair. "On January 20th 2010 our victim Joseph Andrew Hart was stabbed over twenty times outside of a gay club called Trexx in downtown Lima. He was preaching outside of the club about how it was a sin to have opened it in the first place." Artie clicked through the first few slides as he spoke, showing the team crime scene photos.

"It's not a sin, you fall in love with a person not their gender." Brittany spoke in an as-a-matter-of-fact tone.

"I agree." Artie smiled at Brittany and continued with his briefing. "After a twelve day deliberation, Santana Juliana Lopez was convicted of the murder on December 13th 2010. Her cell phone was found at the scene along with her DNA. She claims that she lost her cell phone at the club and her hair got on the scene because she found Hart in a pool of blood and she checked for a pulse. Lopez also didn't deny she was on cocaine that night and many nights before that. She was a stripper at Juicy Lucy's as well."

Puck spit out the coffee he was currently sipping on. "Lopez was a stripper at the club in 2010?"

Artie nodded in response.

"Does anyone know what her name was?"

"Why does it matter Puckerman? It's not important to the case..." Will asked calmly.

"It was Snix." Brittany mumbled.

"Are you kidding me?" Puck put his head in his hands rubbing his temples trying to calm himself. "She was the highest paid dancer there. I spent over three hundred dollars for an hour dance."

"She was always good at that." Brittany smiled to herself.

"What am I missing here? Is there something you'd like to share with the team Brittany and Noah?" Schue asked, still in his calm voice.

"No sir." Puck answered.

"Brittany?"

"Dildo." She smiled.

The boys on the team burst out laughing, all except for Schuester who just seemed embarrassed. His face turned three shades of red before returning back to his normal color.

"I think you mean ditto Agent Pierce." Artie finally told her.

"Yeah that's what I said."


After an hour of reviewing the case, Sam and Brittany headed out to Sam's bureau SUV. Once they were both in safely with their seat belts buckled, the blonde male started the engine and the duo were on their way to the jail in Lima Heights Adjacent where the girl was serving her time.. In school, Santana would tell everyone that Lima Heights Adjacent was 'on the wrong side of the tracks' but it was actually way nicer than Lima, even the crime rates were down in that town compared to Lima.

"You know you better watch what you say around Schue, he will take you off the case if he knows about your previous involvements with Santana." Sam said looking right on the road.

"Don't tell me what to do Sam." Brittany rested her head against the window attempting to cool her body down. She was going to see Santana for the first time in three years. She wanted to see her before now but she couldn't bring herself to visit her in jail. What would she say to her? Would she still look the same? Would she still be herself? Brittany didn't know and that scared the crap out of her.

Although Brittany hasn't seen Santana, she still goes to the Lopez house once a month for dinner like she has done for many years until they broke up. After Santana broke up with Brittany, she cut off all contacts with the blonde without as much as an explanation – that included refusing to come to dinner if Brittany would be there.

After Santana was convicted, she ran into Carmen and Maribel at the grocery store and Mrs. Lopez invited Brittany over for dinner. Even though it was nice to see them all again, the empty chair besides the blonde broke her heart. However, Brittany's last visit to the Lopez house lasted longer than just a dinner.

"She didn't do it Brittany. She doesn't deserve this."She muttered in between breaths. "It's not the same without her here. My dad is only home on the night of your monthly visit. This family is falling apart and I don't know how to keep it together. Santana was always so good at that." Carmen stopped talking and just cried until she made herself sick and then she begged Brittany to stay the night before she fell asleep in the blondes arms.

Carmen Lopez looked exactly like Santana, people often had mistaken them for twins. She is a lot nicer to people than Santana is, don't be fooled though, she is definitely a Lopez when it comes to certain things. She also followed in her big sisters footsteps by becoming head Cheerio freshman year.

Brittany was so lost in thought that she didn't notice that the engine cut off.

"Britt we are here." He placed a hand on her shoulder. For a second Brittany thought he was going to sneak in a kiss, but he opened his door and climbed out.

She was not far behind him and he waited in front of the SUV for Brittany. They both walked into the lobby of the jail and showed their badges.

"We are part of the homicide team in the Ohio FBI bureau, we are here to see Santana Lopez." Sam announced to the cop at the front desk.

"What this is regarding?" The man asked.

Brittany looked at the name tag on the officers chest. "Officer Hudson, we can not discuss this information with you. We need to speak with Ms. Lopez please." She replied calmly.

"Of course." He used his walkie talkie to tell another guard about them being here for Santana as he got up and led the two into a visitor room. "When she arrives, she will be handcuffed to the chair so you don't have to worried about safety." He pointed to a metal chair that was welded to the metal floor in the room. "There is a two way mirror in that location but it cannot be heard through so if one of you would like to come with me to insure your privacy since this is regarding a government matter."

Brittany nodded to Sam who followed the officer out. The blonde took a moment to soak up the sight. Santana was being handcuffed to a chair to ensure safety? She wouldn't hurt me like that...but she also said she wouldn't break my heart. Brittany thought. She wouldn't hurt anyone like Hudson implied, would she?

Sam returned without the officer. "It's all set. The mirror is used for safety precaution and there is no switch to turn on a microphone, it's just a plain room with one chair."

A few moments of a very awkward silence filled the room. Mainly it was because Brittany was freaking out. Not only was she nervous about seeing Santana for the first time since their breakup three years ago, but she's scared about seeing her being treated like this – in an orange jumpsuit with handcuffs. Deep down Brittany knew that the Latina was innocent and she was going to get to the bottom of the situation and bring the right person to justice.

A click of a rusty door got Brittany's attention, her heart was thudding against her ribcage as the door opened in what seemed like very slow motion. The brunette kept down her head as she sat, staring at the floor. All of a sudden, her body language changed. Brittany could easily tell that the Latina's heart rate skyrocketed and that she knew who was standing in front of her. She didn't move though, she kept her eyes glued to the floor as she was cuffed to the chair. The guard nodded to them and left the room.

"Hello Santana, I'm special agent Evans and this is special agent Pierce, we'd like to ask you a few questions, if that's okay with you..?" Sam asked unsure of how to start.

"I'd know whose feet are in those shoes from twenty feet away." Santana mumbled almost inaudibly. "Special agent Pierce huh?" She said a little louder as she slowly lifted her head and for the first time in three years she looked into those beautiful blue eyes that she never forgot. Hell, those eyes are what kept her sane being stuck on the property for years. "Carmen didn't tell me that. She only told me you began monthly dinner nights again."

Brittany's pulse was racing and she felt like she swallowed a horse pill dry. Her body got unbelievably warm as she saw Santana's chocolate brown eyes. They didn't look the same as the last time she saw them. They seemed to be duller and not full of as much life. The blonde cleared her throat deciding if she didn't speak now that she'd break down right in front of her former girlfriend asking why she left her alone when she promised she'd always be there. "My team has been assigned to re-investigate the case. I'm-we are here for strictly business." Brittany warned still not breaking eye contact with Santana.

"You are forgetting to blink again Britt-Britt." Santana smirked and watched as the blonde turned red and looked away immediately.

"You will address her as agent Pierce, do you understand?" Sam barked glaring at Santana.

The tanned girl looked up at him, a small smile appearing. "Has anyone ever told you that you have the biggest mouth...like ever?"

Brittany couldn't suppress her laugh, it was so loud that it echoed against the walls.

"Please tell us what happened the night Joe Hart was murdered." The blonde boy had both of his hands on the table in front of the girl cuffed to the chair.

Santana spoke the same story she told the court, it changed a little because she remembered more things over time – she was more descriptive of her surroundings and she also recalled where she last had her cell phone: on the bench outside of Trexx.

"Are you positive that is where you left your phone, Ms Lopez?" Brittany asked all professionally, it kind of threw Santana off for a moment.

"Yes special agent Pierce, I'm positive."

"Is there anything you'd like to add or something you forgot to mention?" Sam wanted to get out of here as soon as possible, it was uncomfortable being in the same room with Santana knowing that she once was with Brittany. He had found out about Santana completely by accident and he wish he hadn't every second of every day.

"No sir, I didn't forget anything nor do I want to add anything. I told you what happened and it's the truth. How do I know that this isn't just some fluke? How do I know you people are really going to try and help me? Because it is obvious that you, trouty mouth, think I'm guilty." The brunette spat out from her chair.

"What I think doesn't matter, we were told to re-investigate and that is what we are doing. But I will tell you, I do think you are guilty and if I find out you lied to Brittany to her face, I will..."

"You will address her as agent Pierce, do you understand?" Santana glared at him, throwing his own words in his face.

"Agent Evans, can you step out and call Abrams and ask him to check her cell phone records while I finish up in here?" Britt pleaded, she couldn't stand seeing the two bicker any longer.

"Are you sure?" He asked in a hushed tone. When he got a nod and a smile as a response, he stepped out.

"His asshole must be as big as his mouth because something seriously crawled up there and died." Santana crossed her legs and Brittany could tell she wanted to cross her arms in her defensive pose but couldn't because of the handcuffs.

"Santana." Brittany crossed her arms, she didn't mean it to come off as mocking but it seemed like it to Santana. "We are trying to help you." The Latina looked at her surprised at her firmness. "Oh what, not expecting that? I love my job and just because I was assigned to your case doesn't mean that you can talk to my partner like that and expect it to be okay. This isn't high school anymore Santana. I understand you are frustrated because you've been stuck here but you can't insult people that are trying to help you. If you are going to act like this then I will simply tell the court that the results of our reinvestigation are inconclusive and you can spend the rest of your sentence here." The blonde was pacing and shaking as she walked.

"You understand that I'm frustrated? You have no idea what it's like in here Brittany. Do you know what it's like to have to watch time pass you by when you are rotting in a jail cell for something you didn't do? Do you know what it's like to be stuck in here day by day wondering what the people you care about are up to? Or wondering how the victims family is coping with the fact that their son is gone and isn't coming back? I've been in this fucking place for so long and I've seen some really fucked up things, so sorry if I'm on edge when sur-fucking-prise my ex-girlfriend is a homicide investigator that was assigned to my case. Go right ahead and tell the court that the results were inconclusive and I'll rot in this place a little more everyday while your tongue is down your partners throat."

Brittany didn't know how to respond to Santana, she just stood there staring at her with a blank expression.

"Oh what, surprised that I knew about you and Lisa Rinna? Please I smelled the not-so-professional relationship the second I walked into the room. I have to say, great pick though, because if his dick is as big as his mouth you've hit the straight girl jackpot."

"San...I...ugh you have no say in who I date anymore." The blonde began chewing on the inside of her cheeks.

"You're right, I don't. I lost that privilege along time ago." Santana looked away from Brittany, finding a spot on the floor. She felt defeated.

"You know I've seen a lot of messed up things too. I'm sorry that you are stuck here." She approached the brunette for the first time, kneeling in front of her finding her eyes. "I will do everything in my power to make sure that you get out of here."

A tear slid down a tan cheek and it took everything in Britt to not wipe it away. "You believe me?"

"Of course I do sweetie. I know you better than anyone in this world, even Carmen."

"Can you do something for me?" The Latina mumbled.

"Just tell me what it is and I'll see what I can do."

"Bring a guitar next time you come...that i-is if you are coming back."

"Of course I'm coming back, no matter what." She smiled sincerely.

"Brittany, we have to go do some other interviews." Sam said as he opened the door and then shut it behind him quickly.

"Okay." She stood up looking at Santana. "I'll see you."

"Soon?"

"Soon."

The last thing Brittany saw before exiting was a smile.


"Were are we heading?" Brittany asked as they got on the highway going south.

"Lopez residence."

The blonde girl felt her stomach drop and suddenly she felt like she was on a roller coaster. All she wanted to do is grab a pinky – but it wouldn't be there. She settled for sitting on her hands.

After arriving to the Lopez house, the duo walked up to the front door and knocked.

A moment later the door swung open "Brittany!" Carmen smiled bigger than ever then she saw the company that tagged along. "Did anyone ever tell you that you have a gigantic mouth?"

"So I've heard." Sam rolled his eyes and showed Carmen his badge. "Are your parents home?"

"Mami, Brittany and some guy with a huge mouth is at the door." She shouted.

"Be nice Carmen." Maribel scolded as she walked up to the door. "oh dios mío, él tiene una boca enorme." (Oh oh my god, he does have a huge mouth.) She stared blankly at Sam for a moment. Brittany heard Carmen laughing from the kitchen, it made her smile. It reminded the blonde so much of Santana's real laugh. Not her forced one that she would use at school – but the real Santana laugh. "Please come in."

The two took a step inside, Brittany's favorite aroma of food traveled into the living room.

"Oh dios mio! Is that tamales?" Britt had picked up on a little Spanish through the years – not much but enough to kind of get the gist of some conversations.

"Si, would you both like to stay for dinner?" Mrs. Lopez asked with a smile.

"No thank you ma'am, we are here on official FBI business." Sam replied.

Brittany turned to him, giving him a look – a look that she knew scared the shit out of the blonde male.

"On second thought, dinner sounds wonderful."


Sorry – kind of a cliff hanger. I'd like to say that was the worst one you'd be getting but I'd be lying.

I hope you enjoyed. It would mean a lot to me if you reviews my work and told me your thoughts on who you think actually committed the crime...do you think Santana did it? Brittany? Carmen? Sam? Hmmmmmmm I'd love to hear your suspensions.