Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Rizzoli & Isles. The characters belong to Tess Gerritsen, Jan Nash, Janet Tamaro, and TNT. I am in no way profiting from this. It's just for fun.
Detectives Without Borders Ch. 3
Jane wakes up hearing her favorite song at 10:30 in the morning, letting her know it was time to get up. She shuffles to the bathroom to shower quickly. When she finished there was a text from Frost.
'Just woke up. Meet you outside your place in an hour'
The detective texts back saying that's fine and resumes getting ready. She dries her thick jet black hair with the towel and brushes out the knots which are few in number for once. It surprises her, usually her hair is a difficult atrocious mess in the morning but doesn't question it. Too much is on her mind at the moment to be worried about something as silly as tangled hair. She ties it up in a pony tail and throws on a baseball cap then goes to her mattress.
Underneath are her guns, not the most ideal place to hide them but where else would she put the weapons she thought. She considered getting a safe of some kind but hoped that her and Frost wouldn't be here long enough for that. It's not like Jane expected to be back on a plane to go back home within a day or two but even two days were long enough for them.
Lifting up her desert colored cargo pant leg, Jane slides a gun in her ankle holster. The other she puts in the holster on attached to her belt, the comforting feeling washing over was the same she felt each morning before work. Except there was a big and equally powerful piece missing.
Her badge.
Victor 825... She said it almost every day entering a crime scene, first memorizing it the moment Cavanaugh first handed the badge to her several years ago. It felt kinda empty not having it on her waist but Jane pushed the thought aside and left the apartment to wait for her partner outside.
It was hot out, but not as bad as yesterday. Cool air breezed past as Jane made her way down the steps and rounded the side of her building. She spots a bench and goes to sit when she bumps into someone.
"Excuse, I'm sorry- Maura, hey!" Jane smiles widely, happy to see her again so soon.
"Jane, I was hoping we'd see each other again. Even better we didn't have to wait very long."
"Yeah, I know what you mean." She scratches the back of her neck, unsure of what to say.
'Cmon... Think of something to say dummy. Stop acting nervous around her.'
Maura speaks before the brief silence becomes uncomfortable, much to Jane's relief.
"Listen, I know we just met but I was wondering if you would want to have dinner with me sometime. Are you free tonight?" Her smile is so adorable and hopeful to Jane, her heart skips a beat hearing the request.
Then her heart sinks, knowing she has to say no. "I would really love to but I can't tonight. I have... Plans. A job actually."
"Oh of course, I understand." She was about to ask what Jane does for a living when her eyes fell to the gun on her hip, they widened slightly not out of fear, but curiosity. "Are you a police officer?"
"Um..." Crap, what do I say? "No, nothing that exciting. Just private security." Phew. Not a complete lie, right? Wait, why do I feel bad if I lie to her?
"That sounds like an interesting career." She comments, genuinely intrigued.
"It can be sometimes, yeah. Maybe I can tell you a little about it over dinner? If you still wanted to go with me that is."
Maura beamed at her, and Jane thought she was a little giddy too. "Yes, I would still love to. Here's my number, text me later?" She says, getting a small piece of paper from her purse and quickly jotting down her cell phone number.
"I promise." How the hell can I keep that promise? I'm not here to go on dates. I'm on an important undercover operation. I need to focus. Damn it... Maybe there's a way to make this work? Ahh.
Jane takes the note from her and puts it in her wallet. Maura looks at her watch and frowns. "I hope this doesn't become a habit every time we meet. I have to go to work. I look forward to hearing from you, Jane."
As she watched Maura leave her for the second time, a warm fuzzy feeling that had nothing to with the heat built up within her.
Frost walks by Maura and the two exchange a hello, and he looks at Jane with the same grin as yesterday. Now it's even more mischievous than before.
"Not a word. Do you hear me? Not. A. Single. Word." She warns, knowing her partner all too well judging by his facial expression.
He throws his hands up in mock surrender. "Hey I didn't do anything. I'll keep my mouth shut as long as you promise to tell me all about your date when you get back from it."
"I'm going to pretend you didn't say that. C'mon, we need to go see Nico." She gently pushes him along the sidewalk in a teasing manner towards the direction of the house they were at yesterday.
"You ready for this?" Jane asks a moment later, becoming serious now.
"As long as it's you covering my back I'm ready for anything." His confident voice was reassuring for the both of them.
They made the 10 block walk and up the hill to the abandoned looking house that lied just outside the busy streets within a half hour.
Jane and Frost approached it, the two from yesterday standing out front.
"Look Jackson, it's our favorite robots. Miss us fellas?"
One of them snorted while the other had a displeased face, but before any more was said, Nico came out.
"Torres, Jackson. Right on schedule. I like that. Get in here and have a beer." He was oddly friendly considering he was a dangerous cold blooded killing drug and arms dealer.
"Maybe just one." Jane accepts as they stepped inside and took the ice cold glass bottles handed to them. Popping off the caps, Jane and Frost tipped them towards Nico and simultaneously thanked him. Wanting to stay sharp and sober, they only took a couple sips spaced apart.
"So this is what's going down. The five of us are going to an old factory in the industrial part of town. It shut down years ago so we'll be the only ones there. We're meeting with this crew we do business with from time to time. The guy, Marco, is an asshole... but he sells good product. We'll be buying some guns off him and a few special things for the boss. At the same time, Marco wants to get some of this heroin off us, so it's gonna be a big deal. He hasn't screwed us before but just in case I want you to watch out. Think you two can handle it?"
Jane placed her barely touched beer down and looked at her partner, they nodded to one another and said "Piece of cake."
Nico laughs and takes a swig of beer and sets it down. "Alright then, let's get things packed in the SUV and get a move on."
Together, the give of them stuffed the drugs in duffel bags and put them in trunk of the large black truck. They climbed inside and created a trail of dust as they sped off the dirt covered driveway.
The further they drove through the city the more deserted it became. This side was like a ghost town. Occasionally, Jane or Frost would spot a homeless person but not much else than that. The factory, when the group finally arrived, stood tall. Years of being unattended and rain had covered it in rust. The smell of it so strong it hit their noses when they got out of the truck.
"Only grab one bag. Keep the rest in there." Nico ordered as he surveilled the area. One of the 'robots' grabbed a bag and put it at their feet.
The five of them stood, waiting. In the distance, rustling was heard as tires drove over rocks and broken glass. The vehicle came to a stop about 30 feet away, creating a safe and necessary distance. Cars doors opened and out stepped six men.
Jane and Frost again looked at one another, both worried about being outnumbered.
Nico met with who the brunette woman assumed to be Marco at the halfway point. The other men followed but not all the way, sticking pretty close to their own truck.
Something about this didn't feel right to either detective. It felt... Off. The atmosphere shifted from bad to worse by the second.
Marco patted Nico's shoulder in greeting, the usually friendly gesture was nothing but. The two talked while the rest hung back, anxiously waiting for the exchange to take place. Too impatient for needless pleasantries.
"Jackson... I don't like this." She whispered as she had a sinking feeling in the pit if her stomach, Frost most likely experiencing the same thing.
Just then, Marco pulled out a gun and shoots Nico in the abdomen. He falls to the ground immediately, but before he does... Jane, Frost, and the robots open fire on the others.
Everyone ducks and scrambles for cover in a flash. The sound of gun shots would be almost deafening to most in the close proximity they were all in, but in their lines of work they were used to it.
Jane laid flat on the ground behind an empty oil drum, a bullet rips through the flimsy rusted metal easily and narrowly misses her shoulder and head. She lowers herself to the ground as far as she could and leans away from the barrage of bullets.
'If I move I'm dead. If I don't, I'm dead for sure.'
She spots a more solid piece of cover and runs for it, somehow managing to not get hit. It's then she sees Nico across the way, crawling to safety with a long trail of blood behind him.
He makes it to a thick metal door leaning against a utility pole and hides behind it, popping off a few rounds from the side.
One of the men from the other side goes around to flank him, and is about to shoot when Jane hits him in the head, killing him instantly. Nico whips his head around to see the body collapse and back around to give a quick and grateful glance at Jane before emptying his clip and reloading.
The two robots were behind the truck, firing round after round. Together, they manage to take down 3 guys. The only ones that remained were Marco and one of his men.
Frost was just a few short feet away, he got one's attention and hurriedly told him "I have an idea to draw them out. Create a disctraction... Make it look like you're retreating and he might advance on us. Torres is pinned down over there, and if we hurry we might have a chance of saving Nico."
He nodded, then yelled to his partner to fall back. Frost signaled to Jane he had a plan and to stay put, who understood.
The plan worked exactly as Frost had hoped it would, Marco and the other guy spaced out and started to move forward on them.
Jane was down to her last round of ammo at that point, she took the gun out of her ankle holster and was able to hit the one in the leg, causing him to lose balance as he screamed in pain. He fell into the open and all took their shot at him, adding 8 more bullet holes to go with the leg wound. A majority hit his chest, he was a definite goner.
Marco takes one in his arm and he takes off for his truck, getting in without taking more damage and driving off as fast as possible.
Everyone was still tense, making sure the danger was really over. They heard Nico cough, then all ran over to him but were still wary and watched out in case Marco returned.
"We have to get him to a hospital." Jane says as she takes her shirt off, her white tank top quickly gets stained from the air thick with gun smoke and dirt.
"No way... We can't do that."
Jane applies pressure with the shirt, dark blood oozes onto her hands. She looks at him in disbelief. "If we don't, he's going to die."
His internal debate lasts for all of two seconds when he caves, seeing Nico struggle to breathe. "Get him in the truck. Hurry."
The other one helps Jane and Frost carry him into the backseat, who groans in pain at the movement.
Jane rests his head in her lap as Frost presses her blood soaked shirt harder, desperately trying to prevent any more blood from seeping through.
The black truck flew back into the city, going through red lights and blowing stop signs.
"What the fuck just happened back there?" The driver yells, slamming his hand down to honk the horn at another car, who wasn't going fast enough. He swerves around and cuts him off, pushing his foot down more on the accelerator. The engine roaring as he did.
"That's what I'd like to know." Jane wonders as the man possibly bleeding to death in her hands mumbles incoherently.
Frost notices his skin getting pale. "We don't have a lot of time. When the hell are we getting there?!"
Just as he says this, they pull up in front of the hospital's emergency room entrance. The driver throws it in park and jumps out to open the back door. Him and Frost take Nico and quickly drag him into the ER.
They all frantically shout for a doctor as several nurses and a doctor rush to their side with a gurney. They're all told to wait there, not allowed to go any further as they lay Nico down and push him through double doors into another room to attempt to save his life.
"Jane!" A worried voice calls for her.
She turns around to see Maura, who is stunned by the sight of Jane covered in blood.
"Oh my god... What happened? Are you ok?!" She goes to her in a hurry, heels clicking on the hard tiled floor.
"I'm fine, Maura. It's not my blood."
Relieved, she exhales a deep breath then says "I'm glad you're alright. Oh no, is it Barry? Was he hurt?"
"No, no... He's fine. Our friend isn't so lucky however."
"Can you tell me what happened?"
Jane hesitates for a second but quickly thinks on her feet. "We were testing out some new weapons, for the security detail job. He went to put the gun away and shot himself by accident. We got him here as fast as we could."
"We have a very good team of doctors here, Jane. If it puts you at ease any, I can go check and see how he's doing if you want?" Maura asks, and Jane smiles at her concern.
"Yes, thank you. That would be great." Jane wasn't really worried about Nico, but wanted to use the time to talk to Frost and the others. Maura gives her a smile and goes through the same double doors the doctors and nurses had earlier.
"Thanks for that quick cover up story... I wouldn't have known what to say."
Jane turns and sees the three of them walking up to her, who apparently overheard the conversation.
"It might not be a cover up story for long."
"What do you mean, Jackson?"
"Cops are probably going to look into this right? So we need to head back to the house and make it look like Nico was shot there. We still have plenty of weapons and ammo back there don't we?" At his nod, Frost continues. "So we leave some shell casings around. Just to be safe. Put up some targets, too."
"Good idea... I'll need make a couple calls first. Derek, you don't look so good. Go get some air, and get a different car, the drugs are still in the one we came here in." He says to his partner, who looks a little green from seeing all that blood and scared he came close to dying just minutes ago.
"What the hell are we getting ourselves into?" Frost rhetorically asks when Derek and the other were gone.
"I didn't want to kill anyone. I know they were bad guys and shot at us first, still... I wish this all could've been avoided. What's gonna happen now if Nico dies?"
"I don't know... Even if he does that doesn't mean the whole case dies with him. There's still other people we can track down."
"You've got a point... Hey, he's coming." Jane saw the driver come back in the room shoving his cell phone in his pocket.
"Jackson, come with me. We left a duffel bag at the factory. I'll need you if any of Marco's guys show up. We'll only be a minute then we're gonna head over and help Derek with things, not to mention get whatever drugs are left in the house and put them in the trunk and hide it somewhere. If cops come by the house then we don't want them seeing all that. Torres, you stay here and field any questions if a cop or a doctor talks to you. Stick with the accident story. Call if you hear anything about Nico."
"Sure, no problem."
When he turns around, she grimaces at the thought of letting Frost go alone. Her partner gives her a smile of assurance and leaves.
She sat down in an uncomfortable plastic chair for a good while when Maura emerges from the other room, dressed in scrubs. Jane stands to talk to her.
"Maura, how's he doing?"
"Well, he lost nearly two liters of blood. That amount of blood loss is extremely dangerous. It's a good thing you got him here when you did, otherwise he wouldn't have made it. The lead surgeon did his best and assured me that your friend is stable now and will pull through just fine. He's very lucky he's kept himself in such good shape."
"That's great news. Thanks, Maura. Do you know how long he'll be in here or when we can see him?"
"It's too early to tell, but I'll let you know as soon as I find out." She looks Jane over, who is still covered in blood. "We have a shower you can use if you'd like to clean that off. I'm sure I could find some scrubs for you to use in the meantime."
"Sounds good."
Maura led Jane to a private room and showed her where the shower and clean set of clothes were then left to go check on her patients.
Most of the blood and dirt were on here clothes, but what was on her skin took a while to scrub off. The colors mixed together as it went down the drain, making Jane shiver despite being under hot water. No matter how long she's been on the force or how brave she had to be in certain situations, the thought of her or Frost almost getting killed was still a little scary to think about.
She washed all the blood off her and got dressed in the light blue scrubs, throwing her old clothes in a waste bin. Opening the door, Jane was surprised to see Lt. Ballard on the other side.
"What the hell do you want?"
"I want to talk to you about your friend Nico's shooting."
"I don't have anything to say to you." She angrily replies while looking around to see if there was anyone who could be listening. No one else but the two of them were there.
"That's too bad. Come with me." He fakes an ignorant tone, taking her by the arm and gently forces her into an empty room.
"What's going on?"
"Deal gone bad. Frost and I are lucky we weren't killed."
"Where is Detective Frost now?"
"Helping out the other guys. They're worried cops are going to investigate."
"We are. I'm the one they put in charge of it."
"That's good... You can 'believe' our story then. If you come to the house later to check, go with what we say."
"You think they'll believe I fell for it?"
"For all of our sakes let's hope they do. Our covers can't be blown yet... There's still a chance we can do this." She checked her phone for any messages, a text from Frost was sent about an hour ago letting her know they got the bag from the deal site without incident and went back to the house. Jane said she had to go and left the room first while Ballard stayed behind for a few minutes then left himself to avoid suspicion.
She goes outside to get a little air and stops dead in her tracks when a car with tinted windows slows down in front of her. Jane discreetly goes for the gun on her hip only to realize that her gun was left in the truck.
The window rolls down and she fears the worst is about to happen to her.
Whoa, things got a little intense in this chapter. And uh oh! Is something gonna happen to Jane? Let me know your predictions in the reviews!
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