Ok. So here is my latest attempt at trying to get into the heads of the CBI team. As always, read, review, and enjoy!
When they pulled up to the high school, Jane was not surprised to see Chief Burns's police car already there. Lisbon stayed in the SUV, content as a cucumber to wait until the girls got out of school to question them. She tended to avoid high school settings as much as possible. Jane and Rigsby did not comment on her lack of activity, knowing all too well that Lisbon needed her moments of quiet to keep her sanity. Rigsby groaned in the back.
"Is there not any food in here?"
Rolling her eyes, Lisbon looked in her rearview mirror,
"Didn't you just eat back at headquarters?"
"Oh, you know those little yogurt cups aren't enough to sustain a full grown man; especially one of Rigsby's stature." Jane answered in Rigsby's defense.
Looking out of Lisbon's window, a huge smile overtook Jane's face.
"Looks like you have a visitor." Jane teased.
"What?" Lisbon asked, but quickly answered her own question when a tap on her window startled her.
Jane could not help but notice her hand jumped to rest on her gun. However, she was in no immediate danger, it seemed it was only Chief Burns asking her to roll down her window.
Angry at being startled, Lisbon pushed the automatic switch that would allow him access into their bubble of privacy. Chief Burns leaned against the car and stooped to poke his head in. Jane had the strange urge to reach out and push the button that would roll the window back up again.
"There you are." Chief Burns stated, as if he had only just noted the fact. "Are you guys going to come in, or what?"
"Actually, we were going to wait until they got out. That way we would draw less attention from the students." Lisbon replied resolutely.
"Well, the students will know soon enough. Nothing stays a secret long in this town." Chief Burns answered.
"If that's the case, then do you know who murdered…?" Jane began, but was quickly interrupted by Lisbon.
"There they are." She said while pointing at a group of three girls emerging from the school building.
Backing away from the car door so she could open it, Chief Burns waited for the agents to confront the teenagers. Lisbon and Rigsby quickly accosted the girls and flashed their CBI badges.
"Hi, I'm Agent Lisbon. We are with the California Bureau of Investigation. We need to talk to you about the death of Shannon Parker."
The three girls exchanged looks, before the tallest brunette spoke up,
"We figured you would come to talk to us sooner or later."
Lisbon glanced at Jane to gage his reaction. Smiling at the girls, he asked,
"Is there anywhere private we could talk?"
"Sure." The blonde girl replied smiling at Patrick. "The lunch room is always empty this time of day."
The other girls nodded and they took off back toward the school building. Jane heard Lisbon sigh with aggravation and smiled. He picked up his pace partially to eavesdrop on the girls' ongoing whispers and partially to leave the irritated Lisbon to walk with Chief Burns. Rigsby quickly eyed the lunch room to see if there was any food in the general vicinity.
At a secluded lunch table, probably one used by staff, Lisbon began to interrogate the girls. Rigsby was beside her munching on a bag of chips he had come across in a vending machine. After a particularly sharp glance from her, he put the chips aside and began taking notes on the conversation. Meanwhile, Chief Burns was sitting on Lisbon's other side, listening intently to the girl's tale of the previous night's adventures. Jane could not help but notice he was sitting somewhat closer to Lisbon than normal. He also seemed to be high strung, or nervous for some reason. Realizing that he was once again thinking about Lisbon instead of the case, he refocused on the girls and what they were saying.
Apparently, the teenagers had gone out joy riding the night before. After acquiring alcohol from a so called friend, they hit up a party that a couple of friends from school were having. After that, they said they didn't know what happened to her. One of them had stayed the night, while the other two had hitched a ride home. Patrick noticed that the brunette had said little from the beginning of the conversation, in fact, she seemed to be anxious. Putting both his hands on the table, Patrick leaned in toward the girl.
"You." He said looking her straight in the eye. "You know something that you're not telling us."
The other two turned to look at her with shock. The girl cowered under the six pairs of eyes that were staring her down.
"It's just that…I heard someone say that she decided to walk home that night. I can't help but think…well, that someone picked her up." The girl admitted.
Lisbon caught Jane's eye, and it was all she needed to tell that the girl was telling the truth.
"Well, thank you all for your time. If you remember anything else, here is my card. We will be in touch if we have any more questions."
As they were all walking out, Chief Burns suddenly called out,
"Agent Lisbon, I would like to talk to you for a second."
Jane and Rigsby paused momentarily, not knowing whether to stay or continue to the van, but a curt nod from Lisbon made it clear that they were to continue walking. Jane hesitated a second longer than Rigsby, but finally turned away.
Shuffling his feet, and looking at the ground, Chief Burns finally looked up and said,
"Agent Lisbon, I know this case must be hard on you considering all of the key suspects keep coming up as dead ends…but I want you to know, my team and I are working tirelessly to help you in any way we can. If I find anything, you will be the first to know."
Tensing at first with his openness, Lisbon finally relaxed. Placing a hand on his arm, she answered,
"Thank you for all of your help. I'm sure we will find whoever did this soon. After all, we always get our man."
"With your leadership, I'm sure you do." Chief Burns smiled.
This is where I make my retreat, Lisbon thought to herself.
"Well, I will call you when we get our next lead." She said as she began to turn away.
"Until then." Chief Burns responded with a nod of his head; he too then turned to his car.
As Lisbon hopped into the van, she noticed the silence. Looking up she saw that both Jane and Rigsby were staring at her speculatively.
"What?" She snapped.
"Nothing." They both said in unison before turning to look out their windows.
