Woohoo! Here's Chapter 4 and it's much longer!!!!! I also didn't leave y'all with an evil cliffhanger this time either. This chapter was fun, but I'm not quite sure it came across like I wanted it. I kept rewriting it, and now I've just decided to post it. I think Minelli's going to be a bigger part of it, because I just like his character. The dynamic he throws in is interesting. I apologize if this chapter seems out of character- just chalk it up to the adrenaline. Crazy situations make us all crazy! I also have a feeling this is going to be a lot longer than I originally planned, but I don't think anyone will mind that! HAH!

For some reason, my review Replies are not working and my inbox won't let me send messages. I wanted to thank everyone for the reviews in the last chapter! I really appreciate it and I can't believe the response this one is getting! It does wonders for my ego! I like what I write (most of the time), but it still amazes me that other people do too!

Anyways, a big thank you to the following: CURELESS, PHOENIXWYTCH, TROMANA, KHALEK, SHOPPINGLUVA, JOCELYN, INNOXIA, JELLOFANATIC, NELLIE, JADESTAR, MYGOLDENGLOW, WILDDAISIES, EMMABERLIN, EBONY10, HAZMAT, and ARCADYA.

Ch. 4

Teresa Lisbon hurried to her car in a blind rage. How dare he put her in witness protection without her consent. She was an adult and was capable of making her own decisions. With her hidden away, progress would slow on the Dr. Valentine case as well as the case against Red John. It was counterproductive and this was the type of situation she was trained for. They were all wound tightly and she deserved a moment to fall apart. It wouldn't affect her work on the case. She struggled to control her breathing as she felt the sting of hot tears prick at her eyes. She had never given Minelli reason to pull her before, and she had probably just lost her job considering she had just walked out on her boss.

She heard a door slam behind her as she fumbled through her bag for her keys. She could hear them jingling in some crevice of her purse, teasing as they eluded her fingers. With a muttered curse, she dumped out the contents of her purse on the pavement and retrieved the elusive metal. Scraping the rest of her items together, she reached for a tube of lipstick when a foot appeared on top of it. Glaring at the offensive brown loafer that was preventing her from reaching her objective, she transferred her anger to the person it was attached to.

"Get the hell away from me," she threatened as Jane just stood watching her. She slammed her fist into his shin causing his foot to jerk up as he drew in a sharp breath. Grabbing her lipstick she stuffed it into her purse before reaching for the car handle only to find a slightly annoyed consultant blocking the door.

"I'm driving," he said sternly and held out his hand. They stared at each other for several minutes before Lisbon handed over her keys with a huff. Jane watched as she practically sulked, but he knew she would regret it if she got behind the wheel tonight. Her emotions were already too high strung and she wasn't thinking clearly. Once the adrenaline rush wore off she'd be embarrassed about her behavior. He just had to get her home first.

"Oh god," she muttered while she covered her face with her hands. They had driven several miles in complete silence and Lisbon had started to come down from her emotional high. "What have I done?"

"You reacted like any normal person would do," Jane replied. Throwing her a sideways glance, he continued to reassure her. "The same thing happened to me after Red John. It's normal to be furious when you feel so out of control."

"When did you get to be so wise?" she grumbled as she leaned her head against the cool window. Even as a child, she had always enjoyed watching the scenery fly by.

"I learned from experience. It comes with age," he said with a small smile as he pulled up to her gated apartment complex while she cracked a grin. The gate slowly creaked open, and they soon pulled in to a nearby parking spot. Shutting the door, she was surprised to see Jane standing directly behind her holding a small duffel bag. She raised an eyebrow quizzically.

"I'm not letting you out of my sight," he said. She opened her mouth to protest, but stopped herself with a shrug.

"Where did the bag come from?" she asked as she started towards the sidewalk.

"I stuck it in your car earlier. It's always good to have for emergencies!" She rolled her eyes at his cheerfulness as he practically bounced up the steps. Setting the bag down by the door, he held out her keys. Snatching them out of his hand she unlocked the door and paused.

"I left my purse in the car," she said with a sigh as she turned. Once again, Jane was right behind her and the pair made their way back down the steps. She wondered how long he was going to keep up the shadow act. The man was like a jack russell. Once he had a hold of something, he wasn't going to let go. She smiled at the thought of Jane running around in circles making high pitched yipping noises. Unlocking the car, she could hear her phone ringing. She pulled out her purse and groaned when her cell phone hit the ground.

"You sure are klutzy today, my dear," Jane commented as he watched her drop to her knees and reach for her phone which was still ringing. He wasn't going to complain too much. The view wasn't all that bad. He frowned when she failed to respond.

"Lisbon?" She turned her head towards him and their eyes locked.

"Jane, run!" she cried as she scrambled to her feet. She could feel the rough pavement tearing at her hands and she propelled herself forward. Jane looked confused as he watched her dart straight towards him and was surprised when he felt her tiny body impact against his own. Her momentum sent them both to the ground as a large explosion echoed across the parking lot. He shivered in spite of the heat he felt rushing around them.

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Virgil Minelli squeezed the bridge of his nose in frustration as he hung up the phone. The media was clamoring for information about the latest victim of the Valentine serial killer and to top it off Red John wasn't thrilled with the attention being shown to the new criminal and was determined to take it out on the woman he thought of as a daughter.

He trusted Jane to watch over her until he could get her out of state. He wouldn't often make such a drastic decision but she was too valuable to the department and somehow Red John was getting stronger. He knew it would kill her to not be involved in the case, but he refused to let the bastard walk on a technicality brought up by the defense. He just hoped he could get Teresa Lisbon out of town before the serial killer caught wind of his decision. He grimaced when his secretary stuck her head in the door.

"I thought I told you no interruptions," he said grumpily as he stared the young woman down. The girl looked nervous as she tried to find her voice.

"I think this one is important," she started. "He's called several times and claims to be a personal friend of yours and Mr. Jane." She looked around nervously before meeting her boss' gaze. "He knows things," she whispered. Minelli felt an icy cold feeling of dread flow through him as he picked up his phone and motioned for the girl to close his door.

"Virgil Minelli," he said as he hit the blinking line one button. He was greeted with silence until he heard a low chuckle.

"I'm impressed you had the courage to defy my orders," the strange voice rasped. "Next time, I won't miss."

The line went dead, and Minelli processed the message before leaping to his feet. Other agents stared curiously as the director ran through the halls with a cell phone pressed to his ear. Whispers had already begun to circulate about the Serious Crimes Unit's recent threats. Cho looked up in surprise when Minelli burst into the room.

"Grab your things. I just got a message from Red John and Lisbon's not answering," the director frantically said. "I'm coming with you," Minelli added as the team rushed to the SUV.

"This is turning into a nightmare," Rigsby muttered as they peeled out of the parking lot with Minelli barking orders into his phone the entire time. Less than five minutes later, they could see a cloud of smoke rising from Lisbon's apartment complex.

"Oh my God," Van Pelt whispered as she catalogued the number of fire trucks and police cars that had already arrived. They drove through the open gates and caught a glimpse of yellow police tape fluttering in the wind. A large group of people had already gathered outside and were craning their necks toward a waiting ambulance. The piled out of the SUV and flashed their badges granting instant access. A collective sigh of relief was exhaled as the spotted their colleagues.

"Welcome to the party," Jane said with a forced smile. A butterfly bandage covered a small gash on his cheek and his wrist was wrapped in an ace bandage. Lisbon was lying on her stomach arguing with the paramedic who seemed to be removing small shards of glass from her back. She drew in a sharp breath and glared at the man behind her. Thankfully, the paramedic seemed immune to the agent's glare.

"What happened?" Van Pelt asked as she took in their disheveled appearance. Lisbon looked slightly worse for wear.

"I'm getting tired of people destroying my car," she murmured with a pointed look towards Jane. "Car bomb," she rephrased.

"He's playing with us. He could have detonated it at anytime, but chose to do so when we could get far enough away," Jane added. "I just don't understand why."

Rigsby headed over to look at the bomb fragments while Cho and Van Pelt started to canvas the neighborhood to see if anyone had seen anything strange. Minelli stood, silent and immobilized as he inventoried Lisbon's injuries.

"It's my fault, Lisbon," Minelli said shakily. "I withheld information from you." He looked away when she turned the intensity of her green eyed gaze on him. "Red John contacted me earlier and warned me not to remove you from the case or he would take drastic measures."

"I'm sure he would have done something either way," Lisbon added softly. She could feel the guilt pouring off her boss in waves. For the first time in her life, she had caught him in a distraught moment and it scared her. Minelli was her mentor. He was always strong in tough situations and always conducted himself professionally. This sort of thing just didn't happen.

"Anyways, I hate to be dictated to by a serial killer, but he seems to be one step ahead of us," Minelli said as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm back on the case?" she asked.

"You're back on," he said with a small smile.

"On one condition," Jane broke in. Lisbon and Minelli turned to the consultant. Jane almost laughed at their similar expressions of mixed annoyance and interest. "I want you to talk to someone. You can't keep all this bottled up inside, and I believe it will help the case." Minelli stared thoughtfully for a few moments before nodding.

"I do think that would be a good idea. I can bring in the department psychologist." Lisbon glared at the two men standing before her as the paramedic started to bandage her back.

"I'll agree if the whole team sees the shrink too," she grumbled as she rested her head on her arms. She could argue more later. Right now, she just wanted them to finish so she could sleep.