What did the walls want from him? He'd got enough of punishment. And the floor was cold, and the walls and he was cold. He was so cold he needed someone to warm him up, warm the pain away but he didn't have anyone he'd lost everybody. And Ang-Angela, oh here we go again he was having another breakdown, another hour of him trying to end his life up and Sophie Miller trying to stop him.

"Talk to me." She was always begging, but he couldn't, he wouldn't. He was trying to strangle himself up. "Talk to me. Please."

After two years of silence and nothing at all he one day had a dream. He saw it, he remembered it.

"Teresa Lisbon." He whispered to himself. "Teresa Lisbon!" He shouted and Sophie heard it.

Jane woke up in a motel room in Las Vegas on Sunday, his sweaty body freezing then as the sheets were pulled off the bed he was sleeping in. The dream brought back feelings and memories he was trying so hard to hide. His wife had died 9 years ago but still he was feeling overwhelmed with guilt every time he felt something to Teresa Lisbon (because other women didn't interest him), besides it wasn't the right time to think about feelings when he still had to catch the murderer. But the thoughts about Lisbon wouldn't leave his head, he missed her, he missed her very much and he was forever grateful for everything she was doing for him. She was there when he found the bodies, she was the one to hug him to stop him from having a breakdown, she was the one who always believed in him, trusted him when nobody did and she was the one to get him out of the hospital six years ago and to make him a consultant for the CBI. After 10 more minutes of struggling with his mind he decided to call her. No matter that he had run away 6 months ago, no matter it was way too late he knew she'd answer the phone and it made his heart melt. He picked up his phone dialed the first number.

"Lisbon." He murmured when the phone was answered.

"Uhm…no it's not her." The sleepy voice answered. What?! The number was right but the voice…it was…well a man was talking to him.

"Where's Lisbon?" His tone was as cold as it could be.

"May I know whom I'm talking to?" After four months of suffering, trying to find Jane, worrying sick about him Thomas Martins came into Lisbon's life out of blue and eased the pain she was feeling, he made her feel beautiful, not as much as Jane always did but he tried after all, and after a month of dating Lisbon he had all the rights to know who was the man calling his girlfriend in the middle of the night and acting like she was his property. Lisbon woke up and took the phone out of Thom's hand before Jane could say anything else.

"Jane!" She hissed. "What the hell!" This was the Lisbon Jane knew.

"Lisbon…" He whispered. "I missed your voice." The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them but even Lisbon's voice didn't make him forget the fact that a stranger was sleeping in Lisbon's bed that night. "Who the hell was that?"

"Jane this is not something I want to discuss with you on the phone and before I tell you anything you need to tell where've you been, what are you doing? You didn't even call me! Damn it Jane! You have a lot to explain to me and you won't get a word from me until you're done telling. Where the heck are you?"

"I'm sorry. You're right I have a lot to explain but still it doesn't mean that that man is not my business. I'm out of Sacramento."

"Well I'm a CBI supervising agent and I can do a place-check in the whole California. You're out of California, Jane! Look, you come back to Sacramento and explain everything otherwise I get madder at you and shoot you." With those words she hung up the phone. If it wasn't that case Jane would've grinned at her words but the seriousness of the whole situation thrilled him. He knew his plan was working but not in the way he'd expected it to. He didn't want to involve Lisbon in any of his dirty schemes. It was the main reason of his runaway. He needed to tell Lisbon the truth and get that Thom out of her bed, her life actually.


It was a usual Wednesday evening and Lisbon was casually sitting on her couch and thinking of Jane's call. Where he was, what was he doing? It was still a puzzle to her but Jane'd soon come back to her and explain everything, at least she hoped so. What about Thom? He was carefully listening as Lisbon spoke to Jane on the phone then, he didn't push her, didn't run away, he wasn't like Jane, he wouldn't break into grin after she'd tell him to shoot himself. She was feeling bad for what she'd said to Thom. He'd offered her his company but she'd told him that she needed some private time to think things over and again he didn't push her. He wasn't a one-night stand but also he wasn't one to be in her bed every day, actually they'd slept only once together. On the Sunday night, yeah… when Jane decided to call her. Why she was still thinking of Jane when she could be happy! She was ashamed of her feelings for him. God he'd just lost his wife and daughter! Also only Thom in the whole universe would consider her sexually attractive, it was better having someone by her side than growing older all alone still dreaming of Patrick Jane. God she was so ashamed of herself for doing such things and besides Jane was there only because of the Red J case, he'd loved his wife way too much to look at another woman. At least it was what she thought.

She turned the TV on and stared at the screen. She looked at the TV but saw nothing, heard nothing unless a knock on the door brought her out of her thoughts. It's probably Thom she thought, he had had enough of torturing she had to be nice to him. She put a fake smile on and opened the door without checking through the peephole. Her smile immediately dropped when she saw who was standing there.

"Jane." She whispered. No matter she was mad at him, she'd also missed him like a crazy.

The smile that gestured him and the way she pronounced his name made his knees weak and he stared at her taking the whole beauty he'd missed in without missing a bit. She'd changed, she looked tired but happier. He was feeling so bad for what he was going to tell her but she deserved to know the truth in every detail about Red J.

"May I come in?" he asked.

"Sure." He stepped in and wanted to take her into a tight embrace but she stopped him raising a hand. She crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Explanations first."

"Well let me start from why I ran away. I didn't run actually, I was trying to protect you but Red Joan messed up my plan this time. She sent him to distract you or me, I don't know yet but I've thought a lot about all of this and I think we're close to the end."

"She?!"

"Yes, she. It's a woman." The usual Wednesday just became unusual.

A/N: I don't want to disappoint all the people who're taking time to read and review this story so here have another chapter. Thank you all very very much, your kind words mean a lot to me 3