Chapter 4: Plumbing New Depths

In the days that followed Jane had started to divide his time between the bullpen and the attic, coming down periodically for updates before retreating to his man cave to mull over the latest facts. There was a sense of despondency hanging over the investigation; no one expected a positive outcome.

Guessing Jane and Rigsby would be the most likely to be affected by the case, Lisbon kept a wary eye on them. Fortunately Van Pelt was on hand to support Rigsby, but Jane neither wished for nor invited any intrusion into his private world.

His guard was still resolutely in place, the occasional chats with Cho were little more than a diversion. Noticeably more acerbic than usual, Jane had no time for humouring people outside the team. On their rare forays into the bullpen both Ardilles and Partridge were kept well away from Jane, the mere sight of them had the consultant bristling. Jane habitually used them for target practice at the best of times, and already in a dark place the bounds of propriety meant nothing to him.

Lisbon rued that their late night chats were a thing of the past; they'd never recaptured the easy going relationship they enjoyed prior to Vegas. Conversation was desultory at best these days and largely confined to case work. Never one to openly intrude into Lisbon's private life, Jane affected total disinterest when some poor sap tried to press his attentions on Lisbon. The gentle teasing which would previously have accompanied such an event was a thing of the past.

The revelation that Jane had slept with Lorelei had been like a slap in the face to her. Although she understood the cool logic that had compelled Jane to follow that route, it still felt like a rejection. Up until that stage Lisbon had been reconciled with the status quo, in the context of Jane's unwavering devotion to the memory of his lost family. The ease with which he had tossed his ascetic life to one side when it suited had completely thrown Lisbon. Perhaps he wasn't leading the celibate life they all assumed, her thoughts inevitably drifted to Erica Flynn. What if Lorelei wasn't Jane's first fling?

It was true, he had never shown anything other than sibling affection for her, even the Love You he'd blurted out spoke nothing of romance, the missing 'I' muddied the meaning of his careless bluster. Jane had been her closest friend, and her relief at his return had almost wiped out the resentment of his sudden departure. But all of that counted for nothing when she had suffered the ignominy of Lorelei humiliating her in the interview room. Lisbon began to feel foolish that she had assumed a closer bond between them, and felt unaccountably lonely and bereft of human comfort.

The first free weekend after the Lorelei revelation Lisbon took off to a singles bar in San Francisco, which she was familiar with from her days with SFPD. Of course she was younger then, but she cut a slightly more polished figure these days, and by her own admission still brushed up pretty well. A couple of cocktails had loosened her tongue enough to feel like a normal human being again. Discarding her St Teresa mantel for the night, Lisbon soon engaged with a number of interested parties. Not that desperate that she had to lower her standards, most were politely sent on their way. Finally Lisbon hit the motherload with a personable realtor, who was passing through town, and was just looking for a mindless no ties diversion. Throwing caution to the wind, in the knowledge they would never meet again, Lisbon let loose in a way she hadn't done for years.

Though by no means a prude; Lisbon had become so used to the rigid discipline of her work persona that it almost felt like a sign of weakness to have given in to desire with such gay abandon. So much easier to blame it on the alcohol, than to admit her needs were real and perfectly natural.

The initial outing had settled the boat for a while, until the time when Jane conceded he had some feelings for Lorelei, whatever they were. That admission triggered the start of more regular weekend jaunts to San Francisco, where Lisbon could hook up without any repercussions back home. The need for human contact overrode her ingrained guilt complex, and she became increasingly reckless when the shots she took for Dutch courage started to cloud her judgement.

Waking up alone in a strange bed one Sunday morning after a bout of unexpectedly rough sex, any affirmation she felt of her desirability soon came crashing down to earth, when she surveyed the evidence of her reckless abandon. Once again fortune had vomited all over any hopes of a guilt free outlet for her needs. The bites and marks could be easily disguised by suitably high necked clothing; more worrying was the unmistakable evidence that at some stage in the frenzied coupling no protection had been used.

As the hangover wore off Lisbon pulled herself together, she had to get this under control. It was totally out of character for her to get so wasted as to put her health at risk. Her routine health check would have to be pulled forward to ensure there were no long lasting effects. Lisbon soon returned to normality, intent on renouncing her lapse of control.


Whatever Jane observed, he kept his thoughts to himself. The slightly bloodshot eyes on Mondays were an indicator that Lisbon had been hitting the bottle over the weekend, but as there were no signs of that spilling over to the working week Jane let it pass. There was a regretful air about the way he looked at her, but whatever turmoil Lisbon was going through she had to sort it out herself. Although Jane had no doubt he was the cause of Lisbon's malaise, he couldn't afford to weaken his resolve. It would do neither of them any good in the long term.

Some weeks down the line from there, Lisbon was back in control and channelling all her energies on the case. The team had gathered round the white board to go through the latest findings, as usual Jane stayed aloof though he was clearly taking everything in.

Lisbon started the ball rolling in her usual efficient manner. "So Rigsby, what have we found out about the chemical suppliers?"

A flicker of a look passed between Van Pelt and Cho as they resisted the urge to glaze over as Rigsby began his spiel. "Well Boss, the acetone can be bought in any hardware store so it would be easy enough to amass a stock of that without raising any red flags. Storage of it would be an issue so it's unlikely that it would be held in that volume in a domestic situation. Under the NFPA Flammable and combustible liquid codes, it's classed as class 3 hazard due to its low flash point at.."

"We get it Rigsby, you can buy it anywhere and it can burn your house down." Jane snarked from his sofa. Lisbon flashed a glare at him, followed by an admonishing look in Cho's direction that soon wiped the smirk off his face..

Rigsby looked a bit put out at the rude interruption, but Lisbon indicated for him to carry on. "Anyhow moving on to the polymer, that's covered by a patent and is only available from three sources in the USA as it's imported from Europe. It's used primarily in veterinary science or medical applications for preservation of samples for teaching purposes. The distributors have provided a list of all their customers so that we can check it out."

Lisbon nodded her thanks as the list was passed round. "So Van Pelt what have you found out from that list?"

Van Pelt seamlessly took up the narrative. "There are a number of practitioners of the process in California, and several of the local universities have at one time or another undertaken the process. There appears to have been a degree of rationalisation as some of the faculties no longer carry out the process, and they now subcontract out to other universities."

"Any of those universities close to here?" Lisbon had real hopes they would get a lead from this.

"Yes The University of California in Sacramento now subcontracts out to Davis." Van Pelt confirmed.

Cho intervened "What happened to their process equipment?"

"Rather than lose their jobs, some of the technicians tried to set up as independent contractors and bought up all the equipment and supplies. Looking at the company history they soon foundered, we're trying to track them down and see what happened." Van Pelt looked up in anticipation of the next question.

Lisbon's ears pricked up at that, "Do we know where they were based?

Van Pelt tapped away at her keyboard. "Ah, they had a small industrial unit at Florin Fruitridge Industrial Park in Sacramento."

Without further ado Lisbon despatched Cho and Rigsby to track down the owners of the failed business, while Van Pelt did a search on their finances. It soon transpired that the would be entrepreneurs had little head for business, making no allowances for overheads and health and safety requirements, they had hopelessly underestimated the costs of setting up an enterprise like this, which met the stringent requirements of potential clients. Within a couple of months their ineptitude came to a head as they had failed to budget for the long process times, and a cash flow crisis pushed them over the edge. Desperate to recoup some money, they had accepted a cash offer for their plant and materials, rather than have to pay for the chemicals to be legally disposed of. It had suited them to ask no questions, all they could remember was that someone at the university had apparently put the buyer in contact with them.

The bulky equipment had been collected by a light haulage company that was organised by the buyer, but the sellers affected selective amnesia when pressed about the cash sums and records of sale. They were brought in for formal questioning, in the hope that the combined efforts of Cho and Jane would help them remember the inconvenient truths.

Impatient to get to the truth Jane wasted no time on niceties. "We really don't care that you've broken endless regulations, allowing the transfer of hazardous materials without the necessary permits. It's none of our business that you've defrauded your creditors and possibly the IRS by hiding a cash transaction, but we can make all of that our business and more if you continue to equivocate." Noticing the white mark on one of the men's ring finger Jane added "Or maybe it isn't the authorities that you're bothered about. Your wife's attorney would pull no punches if they found out that you'd been holding money back."

"All of this pales into insignificance against the consequences of your actions; a pervert now has the tools at his disposal to wreak untold damage. It is believed he may have abducted a child. Can you really live with that responsibility?"

Unsure how to react to this, they stalled for time, but soon capitulated after Cho relentlessly badgered them about their finances. They genuinely didn't know the buyer's identity, but they remembered the name of the haulage company, and in turn the haulage company remembered another cash transaction and they were able to find the delivery address from their records.


The chemicals and equipment had been delivered to what turned out to be an old barn in the El Dorado foothills. The local PD had initiated a preliminary search, while the SCU team made their way over. Lisbon told them to stay by the van while she conferred with the officers standing guard. She disappeared inside the building, and one glance towards the plastic tent that housed the grotesquely posed body was enough to confirm their worst fears. Quickly turning away, not wanting to have that image ingrained in her memory, Lisbon made her way back to the team.

Her eyes settled on Jane, he had been edgy and restless in the car. Jane really didn't need to see that, moreover there was little that his skills would divine from the setup anyhow. If needs be he could see the crime scene photographs later, they sanitised the reality to a degree. Making her mind up she turned to Cho. "Can you and Jane check round the outside, while Rigsby and I wait for forensics?"

Well aware of the consultant's unease, Cho gave a quick nod and led Jane off to check out the surroundings for clues.

Taking a long look at Rigsby, Lisbon thought it best to forewarn him what he was about to see. "Wayne, you're best suited to ask forensics the right questions. Just stick to the basics and we can go through the rest back at base. Keep away from the tent for now, forensics need to deal with that."

Rigsby nodded grimly. "Boss don't worry about us, we just want to nail this creep once and for all."

Letting her guard down for once Lisbon vented. "I just hope they don't send that ghoul Partridge to cover this one. One joke from him and I won't vouch for my actions."

Rigsby coughed meaningfully as Partridge rounded the corner, causing Lisbon to look round. Crap she hoped he hadn't heard that.

Having already run the gauntlet of Cho and Jane, Partridge just narrowed his eyes at Lisbon's comment. One day the SCU team would get their comeuppance, and he fully intended to be there when it happened. Determined not to give them the satisfaction of knowing their barbs had reached their target, Partridge assumed a jaunty air when he greeted them. "Hey big man, what's cooking?"

"For God's sake man show some respect. Can we just get on with it." Rigsby followed Lisbon into the barn, despite her warnings his eyes were inextricably drawn to the corner of the room. A string of expletives followed. "Sorry Boss, just when you think you've seen it all, some degenerate plumbs new depths."

As Partridge busied around the tent with the photographer, Lisbon and Rigsby put on their gloves and started to check the rest of the barn. The light purr of the vacuum pump indicated there was something in one of the tanks, after checking it over Rigsby shouted over to Partridge. "Is it safe to open this?"

Partridge made his way over, and checked the equipment over, he flicked a few switches off then depressurised the chamber. They had been so impressed by his competence with the equipment that they hadn't noticed at first that he wasn't wearing gloves.

"What the hell are you doing Partridge, where are your gloves? Your prints will be all over the equipment" Lisbon snapped.

"No problemo Lisbon, my prints are on record so they'll automatically be excluded." Belatedly he put some gloves on, before removing the seal on the vacuum tank and placing it to one side. He stood to one side as Lisbon and Rigsby nervously peered into the tank, where a shorthaired Dachshund was being processed.

Lisbon recoiled in disgust "Jeez. The sick bastard deserves some of his own treatment."

Partridge leant over to view the tank and pulled a face "Umm definitely no sauce with that dog."

Seeing Lisbon was about to lose her cool, Rigsby drew himself up to his full height and menaced towards Partridge. "Just shut up and do your job."

Partridge scurried away; if Lisbon didn't know better she would have said he had a hint of a smile on his face.

They made meticulous notes of the crime scene, and watched Partridge work from a distance. It struck Lisbon how familiar he was with the equipment. She pushed that thought to one side, rationalising he was probably used to using kit like this all the time.

Keeping their distance, they watched the forensic team dismantle the tent around the victim so that the photographer could do his work. No one wanted to be there any longer than necessary.

Needing to rinse some dirt off his hands Rigsby shouted across the barn. "Is there a tap over there Partridge?"

"Behind the partition." Partridge replied without thinking. Rigsby disappeared, but Lisbon stared across at Partridge, he caught her eye but hastily looked away and started busying himself.

Lisbon knew she hadn't imagined that, there were too many coincidences. Unwilling to besmirch a fellow law enforcement officer on the basis of her dislike for him, she resolved to bounce some ideas off Jane later. Rigsby had returned and they were about to leave, when Lisbon saw Jane standing in the doorway, transfixed by the vision in the corner. His pallor made Lisbon rush over to try and get him away, but he brushed her concern aside irritably. "Save it for someone who needs it Lisbon. I'm not one of your lost causes." With that he walked away and took a seat in the back of the SUV, refusing to talk to anyone. As soon as they got back to base he disappeared straight up to the attic.

Rigsby was enraged at the way Jane had treated Lisbon, but she made light of it although it had cut her to the quick. They had all been feeling off kilter after what they had experienced, so some reaction was predictable. After writing up their reports Lisbon sent them all home early, in the hope they would wind down overnight.

Lisbon needed someone to discuss her suspicions with, and decided to give Jane one last shot. She just needed a reality check to make sure that she wasn't reading too much into events. Her courage almost failed her as she approached the attic door, doubting the wisdom of disturbing Jane. Although in truth her visit served a dual purpose, she could check up on Jane at the same time. "Jane are you in there?"

The door slid open and Jane faced her, determinedly blocking her way. "Ah the sainted Teresa is still looking after her flock, even when they've told her to leave them alone."

The sneer on his face incensed her. "Just go to hell Jane. I came to discuss the case but forget it." Lisbon slid the door shut with a ferocity that caused Jane to stand back sharply. Resolving to trust her instincts, Lisbon was determined to solve this herself. They'd managed without Jane before and they would manage again.

The coolness of his response had left her in no doubt as to the state of their relationship. Lisbon was on her own from this point on.