Two months ago.

CBI. Lisbon is busy as ever in her office but that would be the last thing she's concerned about. She sits at her desk and stares at that pile of paperwork in front of her but her mind wanders to Jane. It has been 4 months since she had last seen him, and there was still no hint of his whereabouts. No calls, no messages, no trace at all.

A wave of anger and distress rises in her, again. She keeps checking on her phone now and then, hoping to see his name popping up on the screen but it's no use. It has been a month since she stopped calling him. Every time her phone rings, she momentarily lights up and hopes it is him. When she realizes that's not the case, she hopes that at least she won't get any ill news about him. She hopes he is safe and well, so that one day he will be back. Though, here's the question: does she really want him back after all she has been through?

Yes, she does. It wasn't long ago that she realized she is in love with that stupid man. At first she tried to deny it. She couldn't believe it, how could she? They were partners. The case with her ex-fiancée, Greg, gave her hope. She thought Jane was growing jealous of him. She remembers being in the car with the blond and he teased her about how she was "very busy with Greg," even avoiding her gaze.

Thought, it must have been only something her mind made up. She felt stupid that she ever thought something like that. She was never Jane's type. She didn't have the dazzling looks of Erica Flynn or Christina Frye. She was just his sidekick, his pawn in his game with Red John. He doesn't care about her, and he proved it clearly, disappearing like this.

At some point, the reality struck back in her mind and she shook her head to vanish those thoughts. Overthinking of what has been and what could have been is no use now, and she still needs to finish the paperwork. Suddenly, a knock on the door broke the silence and Rigsby half-opened it.

"Boss, we have the brother-in-law in the interrogation room 2. What do you want us to do?"

"Take Cho and talk to him." Her voice was kind of tired and low.

"Alright, boss," he said and he left as hurryingly as he entered.

After a few moments of silence, Van Pelt enters too.

"Hey boss… a detective from Chicago is here and he wants to see you. His name is Nathaniel Matthew. He mentioned something about a case… should I let him in?"

Lisbon's brothers immediately popped up in her mind. She told Van Pelt to send the man to her office.

She stood up from her chair and fixed her jacket. She waited for a few moments and finally, the door opened. It was a man in his mid-thirties, he was tall, athletic and attractive, with brown hair and dark blue eyes. His posture indicated restrain and anxiety.

The moment he saw her, his lips curled into a smile and he offered his hand for a handshake. She responded with a kind smile and shook his hand. Then, with a nod she indicated the chair in front of her desk. She looked at Van Pelt, who was still standing by the door, and she asked the redhead to leave them and close the door behind.

She took a deep breath and sat down. Once she made herself comfortable, she locked her hands in front of her on the desk and asked the man if the case was related to her brothers.

"No, agent Lisbon. I'm not here about your family, don't worry. I work in a case about a gangster named George Montgomery. Ever heard of him?" He asked in a soft tone.

"Yes… I've heard about him. He is the owner of many night clubs in Chicago and if I remember correctly, he is involved with drugs too," she responded in a mild serious tone.

"Well, you are correct. For many years I've been trying to make a case against him but he is smart. He knows how to cover his tracks and leave no traces of his dirty work, and he is in contact with some powerful people."

Lisbon nodded the whole time, listening carefully. Then, she spoke in a low tone with hints of confusion in her voice.

"I still don't understand what I have to do with this, and why you came to me."

"This is the hard part. I thought it would be better if I discussed this matter with you in person, rather than during a phone call. Agent Lisbon, I own a personal journal of a man called Mark Steiner… the person who killed your mother in a car accident 25 years ago."

A wave of shivers ran down Lisbon's spine, and extended to the rest of her body. She fixed her position on her chair and tried to remain cool and composed.

"Yes, I remember him. He got arrested and sent to prison. He died after 3 years. I still don't see what that has to do with me now, detective."

"I'll get there soon. The reason that journal is in my possession now, after all these years, is because his daughter was in abroad for many years. She returned a year ago. At first, she hesitated to give us the journal. She was afraid. Anyway, this journal contains information about the car incident and about why he did it."

Lisbon's expression froze at the last words and she looked deeply in his eyes, bearing hints of an unraveling concern. His next words confirmed what she didn't want to admit she understood. He spoke softly and in a low tone.

"Agent Lisbon… that wasn't an accident. It was planned. He murdered your mother."

Lisbon was now officially shocked. She wanted to say something but her jaw just hang open and her mind raced in the case's details and with images of her mother. It was all too messy to make something out of that chaos in her head. For a while reality seemed to slow down, then she snapped out of it and tried to compose herself again. She managed to speak some words.

"Why would he do that…?"

The detective drew a deep breath and replied.

"Your mother was a nurse. Montgomery had been shot back then in a gang fight. He needed help but he also had to be careful, to avoid leaving traces behind. He couldn't be too careless, even thought he eventually messed up. He blackmailed your mother to help him recover, otherwise he would hurt her family. She nursed him for a few weeks."

Lisbon looked at him with widened eyes and a mixture of shock and a slight disbelief at the information that was all new to her.

"If she saved his life, why did he kill her?"

"As I said, he got careless. He has on heavy medication and sometimes had hallucinations. He was afraid that your mother would decide to man up someday and talk to the police about him and everything she had heard from his business, so he decided to take her out of the picture. Steiner had cancer, so he needed the money for his little daughter. He wanted to secure her financially. I guess he wanted his daughter to know the truth, so he wrote this journal."

Lisbon's gaze remained fixed on the desk for a few moments, as she processed what she heard. The detective let her took her time to deal with that. It was all too much for her. Shortly, Lisbon spoke.

"Do you have it here with you?"

"No… but I have a copy of it, and of the case as well."

"Could I take a look at those? I want to be a part of this."

"That's the other reason I came to you, agent Lisbon. I need your help."

"What do you need exactly?"

"Like I said, Montgomery has some powerful connections and people are afraid of him. I can't even get a warrant to search his property. My partner doesn't want to play any part in this case. I'm alone in this and I had been hoping you would help me catch this man. I read your file and I must say I'm impressed."

Lisbon slightly narrowed her eyes while looking at him, examining his expression.

"Why do you want him so bad, detective? Is there anything personal to it?"

"Maybe, there is. But that's a story for some other time. So… what do you think? Will you join me? Are we together in this?" He asked eagerly.

Lisbon paused for a second, then spoke.

"Yes, but I have three terms."

"I'm listening."

"First, you will leave my brothers out of this. I don't want them to be a part of it and I don't want to see them hurt."

"I understand. Next?"

"Second, no lies, no secrets, we'll be equal partners in this. No backing off from any side."

"Sounds reasonable."

"And third, no killing. We'll catch him and bring him to justice. Do you agree?"

"If I wanted to kill him I would've been in prison now, wouldn't I?" He answered with a smirk.

"Okay then. Please, give me one or two days to take care of a few things here and we'll be on our way."

"Okay, agent," he said with a smile. They stood up and got ready. "Looking forward to work with you. Give me a call when everything's settled," he said and he gave her his card.

"Thank you Mr. Matthew."

"Please, just Nathan… like my friends call me."

She smiled and her voice warmed up a bit.

"And you may call me Teresa."

"Okay, Teresa. Really glad to meet you. Hopefully, this case is going to end well and without any loss."

"Indeed."

They exchanged one last smile and he left her office.


Wainwright's office.

"Sir, I need to leave. In all these years I have never taken a day off an I think I deserve this," said Lisbon to her chief in a serious and kind of nervous tone.

"Agent, it's not that simple. We already lost Jane, if you leave too, there will be chaos in this office!"

Lisbon tried to calm herself and talk as composedly as she could.

"Sir… my team is good. They don't need me here, and Cho will make a fine leader."

"I said no. Forget it," the chief answered with a stern expression. Lisbon paused for a moment and sighed.

"Then you're giving me no choice but to resign."

Wainwright's eyes widened and he spoke in a quick and upset tone.

"What? No. No way. You are one of our finest agents!"

She didn't respond, instead she gave him that intense look and waited for his decision. He sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"Fine. Take your time, do what you have to do and come back whenever you're done. Is this about Jane?"

"What? No… it's not about him at all." Her expression saddened a bit at the mention of him, as familiar emotions of yearning slightly rose in her.

"Alright… I just asked. Now go prepare your things and keep me up to date. I want to know where you are and when you'll be back."

"Yes, sir. Thank you."

After that, she left the office without even saying goodbye. She didn't want her team to get involved in this, cause even if she had asked them not to, they would try to help her anyway. They had always been her loyal friends. After all, she had a plane to catch.


We hope you like the turn of events. On the next chapter we'll see the reunion of Jane and Lisbon in Chicago.