Chapter Four
Maura arrived at Bistro Du Midi right on time. As she approached the hostess she was greeted with a smile. "Good afternoon Dr. Isles. It's nice to see you again." The hostess' greeting was warm and friendly. "Your mother is already here. If you would follow me, I can take you to her table."
With that they both headed into the restaurant. Hard as she tried Maura couldn't help but feel several pairs of eyes focusing in on her and she was sure her heard the murmurs increase as she made her way to the table. She was getting used to that reaction towards her. Sort of. Over the last few weeks whenever she had gone anywhere she seemed to draw a lot of attention. The news and paper coverage of Doyle's trial had kept Maura continuously in the headlines as well. She found she was not enjoying her new found sense of celebrity.
Determined to ignore what was happening around her and enjoy her lunch with her mother, Maura tried to tune out the whispers she heard as she approached her mother's table.
"And here you are," the hostess said with a genuine smile. Maura felt a bit more at ease that at least the hostess wasn't trying to act differently towards her.
"Thank you Jessica," Maura said with sincerity as she approached her chair.
"Maura," Constance greeted with a smile as she stood up to give Maura a kiss on each cheek before settling back down into her own chair. "You are right on time."
"Mother," Maura smiled as she accepted her mother's greeting before taking her own seat.
Jessica turned her attention to Maura, "Can I get you started with a glass of wine Dr. Isles?"
"No, I'm working today. But I'd love an iced tea please," she replied.
"Absolutely," Jessica stated. "I'll get that put in for you. Brad will be your waiter for today," she added as she walked away.
"You look wonderful," Maura pointed out as she got settled.
"As do you," Constance returned the compliment. "I'm so happy you didn't have anything come up." She meant it too. She hadn't seen Maura in a couple of weeks and had been looking forward to seeing her.
"As it turns out it worked out for me to be away from the lab for a little while," Maura answered. Looking at her mother's perplexed look Maura explained further. "Jane picked up a homicide from last night quite unexpectedly. I was about to start my examination when she asked me to wait. So, it was the perfect time to join you for lunch."
Constance smiled and couldn't help a rush of pride she felt. She was immensely proud of her daughter and how Maura had turned out. Especially since she realized all too late in her life that she hadn't done enough to support Maura as she grew up. So much time wasted and really no excuse for how she had failed her daughter. A failure she desperately wanted to make amends for. "Why would she need you wait on an exam?" she asked.
"Jane likes to be in the room when I do an exam for any of her cases," Maura answered. She couldn't help but smile thinking about how that habit of Jane's was how their friendship had started in the first place.
When Maura first started as the ME for Boston she was surprised to find out that Jane attended all the autopsies for her assigned cases. In Maura's experience, most of the detectives didn't have the stomach to watch her work and would usually time their visits to the morgue for when she was just finishing up the exam. But not Jane. Jane liked to be there from the start.
Initially it had unnerved Maura as she was used to working alone and in complete silence. Jane, on the other hand, couldn't sit still or stay quiet as it turned out which lead the two down the path of getting to know each other. Somehow, Jane made Maura feel safe and relaxed instead of awkward and unsure of herself. And Jane's instincts and observations had impressed Maura from the beginning.
Maura was surprised when Jane started to show a genuine interest in holding conversations with her that weren't work related. Eventually there was a natural ease between the two and a friendship developed. She wouldn't have guessed that a few years later she would find herself in love with the detective and vice versa but somehow all those innocent chats while standing over dead bodies had lead each to love and happiness.
"Jane is really good at what she does, isn't she?" Constance asked finding herself unsurprised at Jane's level of involvement in an investigation.
Maura's smile broadened. "In my opinion, she's the best detective on the force."
Constance returned the smile as she noticed how Maura's entire face lit up at the thought of Jane. "My guess is that you aren't alone with that opinion."
"She's the most respected detective on the force," Maura acknowledged. Respected for both what she had been through in her past and for her skills as an investigator. There wasn't anyone on the force that didn't know and respect Jane. And that respect was well earned.
"I wish she could have joined us for lunch," Constance added. She really did like Jane and always enjoyed spending time with her.
"Next time avoid selecting a French restaurant," Maura said with a giggle. "That will increase the probability of Jane agreeing to lunch significantly."
Both women shared a laugh as Brad approached the table to take their lunch orders.
R&I
Jane and Frost gave a few more instructions at the crime scene and headed back to the station to conduct an initial interview with Kevin Lansing. Frost had run Lansing through the system only to find that he had no priors. He had yet to even be issued a traffic violation.
"When we get to the station we can get Lansing's initial statement. Did Korsak say how old Eric Franklin was?" Jane asked not sure exactly where on the 'kid' range the brother fell.
"I never asked," Frost admitted. He thought he knew why Jane was asking. Korsak was an excellent detective but over the years they had discovered that he seemed to intimidate younger kids when he tried to talk with them. Of the three, Jane easily made for the best option in doing interviews with children. She had the ability to reach kids better and when they got comfortable they said more and certainly recalled more details. "If he's too young for Korsak we can handle Lansing while you speak to him."
It was a good suggestion and one Jane was thinking herself. "I have a feeling that's how we will end up playing this," she agreed.
R&I
Once Korsak knew that Eric Franklin was on his way to the station, Korsak grabbed a few items and headed down to the cafe to wait for his arrival. When Missing Persons had told Vince the name of Eric's sister he had pulled up the DMV photo and knew their victim was Gina Franklin. He figured he would have his initial conversation with Eric away from the bullpen. He thought the bullpen or an interview room would just serve to scare the boy and he didn't want to do that to the kid. Plus, he was fairly certain Jane would end up doing the formal interview with Eric. She was better with kids than he was. The cafe, he thought, would be a good place to ease Eric into having to talk about his missing sister.
He headed into the cafe to get a cup of coffee. "The usual Sergeant?" he heard Angela ask from over the counter.
"Please," he replied as he took a seat at a table where he could watch for a boy to enter the station. He had notified the duty officer that a boy was going to asking for him and that he would be waiting in the cafe.
"Did you want something to eat as well?" Angela asked as she brought over the coffee for Vince.
"No thank you," he answered. "I'm actually just waiting for someone. Do you mind if I talk with a kid in here?" he asked.
"Of course not," she answered. Stanley would get mad at times if detectives spent too much time idly chatting at one of the tables but he wasn't around. "Take as long as you need," she answered but had to excuse herself to wait on another customer.
After a few minutes Korsak saw a boy enter the station looking upset and uncertain. He was sure this was Eric Franklin. He watched as the duty officer listened to the boy and then he pointed over to the cafe. Once the kid made it to the entry way, Korsak stood up and walked over. "Eric?" he asked.
The boy, Eric Franklin, hesitated for a moment but then nodded his head. He was thirteen years old and Korsak could tell he was scared. From the looks of it he had been crying. He stood looking at Korsak with his arms pressed tightly to his sides. In his left hand his fingers clutched a picture so tightly Korsak noticed his knuckles were white.
"Eric, I'm Sergeant Korsak," he tried to be as reassuring as he could. "Why don't you come sit with me for a moment ok?"
Again, the boy nodded his head instead of answering. He started to follow Korsak into the cafe and seemed to move a little faster than earlier. Both took a seat in the cafe and it occurred to him that the boy was alone. "Eric, didn't your neighbor bring you?" he asked looking around.
"Yes Sir," Eric gave as a quiet answer. "But he just dropped me off." The boy didn't offer up a better explanation and Korsak really didn't push for one.
"That's alright," he said. He took in the appearance of the boy in front of him for a moment. The kid was tall for 13 but lanky. His clothes were clean and in good condition but what struck Vince was that the boy didn't seem to fit into them. Whether it was due to being the wrong size or something else he just wasn't sure.
The boy looked just like his sister. Vince knew he didn't even need to see the picture Eric was clutching in his hand to confirm that Eric was Gina's brother.
"Sir," Eric started quietly in almost a whisper. "Do you know where my sister is?"
"Can I see that picture you brought in?" he asked. He didn't want to just blurt out that Gina was downstairs in the morgue.
Eric hesitated for a minute. He looked down at the picture in his hand. Vince wasn't surprised to see the conflicted sorrow in the boy's face. He had seen it many times before over the years. He knew what Eric was fighting. Handing over that photo put Eric one step closer to hearing what he must have sensed by now but didn't want to know for sure. Looking into Eric's eyes, Vince knew this kid had been through more than most 13 year olds had and things were about to get worse for the kid.
Korsak was patient. He would let Eric take his time handing over the photo. They both sat in silence for a few minutes until, finally, Eric raised his arm and handled over the 8" X 10" photo of his sister. Korsak took the picture still not really needing it to get a positive ID for their victim. Years on the force had trained him not to react as he viewed the photo. It was a simple photo of the two that looked to have been taken during a trip to the aquarium.
"Eric, can you tell me when was the last time you saw your sister?" he asked as he set the photo down on the table and turned his attention back to the boy.
"Yesterday," Eric offered but then went silent again.
In that moment Vince knew that Jane would get further with Eric than he was. He knew Jane and Frost were on their way so he would try to start to fill in some of the blanks and then let Jane finish talking with the boy.
"Can you walk me through your day yesterday?" he tried again this time making sure to ask something that Eric couldn't just give a one word answer.
Eric sighed but started to talk. "I went to school like always. After school Mrs. Anderson gave me a ride home like normal. When I get home from school I have to do my homework right away or Gina won't let me play video games after dinner. I did my homework and when Gina came home from work I was almost done. I finished and Gina made us dinner. It was Wednesday so it was Mac and Cheese night. We ate, I did the dishes and then I got to play Xbox until my bedtime. That was the last time I saw her. When she said goodnight and turned off my bedroom light. This morning when I woke up she wasn't in the apartment."
Vince had scribbled down a couple of notes. "When is your bedtime?"
"Ten. But Gina let's me stay up til eleven on the weekends," he answered.
"What time did you get up this morning?" Korsak asked.
"Seven, like I always do. But this morning I couldn't smell it," he answered.
"Smell what?" Vince asked.
"Breakfast," Eric answered sadly. "She always has breakfast going when I get up."
The fearful look came back on Eric's face. It nearly broke Vince's heart. "Did you hear anything unusual last night. A knock on the door or a phone call maybe?"
Eric shook his head. "I never heard nothing," he answered.
"Did you try to call your sister?" Vince asked.
"I got up and went to her room because I thought maybe she just was still asleep but she didn't answer when I knocked on her door. I stood there for a while. I'm not supposed to go into her room without permission but after awhile I was worried that maybe she was sick so I opened her door. She wasn't there and the bed was made. That's when I called her phone," he answered all the while just looking at the photo of his sister that he brought.
"Did her phone ring or did it just go to voicemail?" Vince asked.
"It just went to voicemail. I left her a message to call me but she hasn't called me yet," he said and Vince could see tears form in his eyes.
"Eric, do you know if your sister leaves at night when you are asleep?" he asked not sure if the boy was even aware if Gina was dating anyone.
"Sometimes she goes to see Kevin," he answered and Korsak noticed immediately that Eric's tone changed when he said Kevin's name. It was clear that Eric did not like Kevin.
"Who is Kevin?" Korsak asked.
"Gina's boyfriend," Eric answered with the same tone.
"Do you know if Gina saw Kevin last night?" Vince asked.
"I don't know. I tried to call him this morning too but he didn't answer my call," Eric answered.
"You don't like Kevin?" he asked.
Eric looked into Korsak's eyes for really the first time before answering. "I used to," he answered tentatively.
"But?" Korsak prodded.
"But, then he let them," he paused and grew quieter, "he let them hurt her."
Korsak was immediately intrigued. "Them who?" he asked.
Before he could an answer, however, he noticed Eric's attention had been pulled to something outside of the cafe. He looked up to see what Eric was looking at but he wasn't sure. Korsak saw three patrol officers and a man all walking across the lobby of the station towards the elevators. He didn't understand what held Eric's focus.
"Eric?" he asked now looking at the boy who was fixated on what, or maybe who, was in the lobby.
He didn't get an answer. Instead, he watched as Eric got out of his chair and walked towards the lobby. Korsak was up and following a few seconds behind him. "Eric?" he called again.
This time there was a reaction from out in the lobby. The man that was walking with one of the patrol officers heard Korsak and turned around. He saw the boy and turned to take a step closer to Eric.
"Eric, what are you doing here?" asked the man clearly surprised to see Eric there.
Korsak caught up to Eric but was now looking at the man who at this point he guessed was Kevin.
"What did you do to my sister?" Eric asked Kevin with nothing but anger in his tone.
"Eric? I didn't do anything," Kevin tried to offer as he took another step towards the boy. "You know I love her."
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY SISTER?!" Eric yelled at Kevin. The shout was loud enough that everyone in the lobby and the cafe fell silent and turned their attention to the scene that was developing in front of them.
Before Kevin could protest his innocence a second time, and before anyone could react to what was happening, a shot rang out through the lobby and in an instant Kevin Lansing was falling backwards. All eyes suddenly turned to see Eric standing with a gun in his hand.
Every cop in the area instinctively pulled their guns and trained them onto the source of the shot. Several cops heard the shot and came running into the lobby guns drawn. Jane and Frost were amongst the cops who came running. They were just about into the lobby when they heard the gunshot.
Eric stood with the gun raised in front of him tensing his arms. He started to look around only to lose count of the number of guns pointed back at him. Tears were streaming down his face but he didn't appear to even notice them.
"Eric," Korsak pleaded. "Put the gun down." Korsak was the closest cop to the boy. His instinct was to just rush the boy given that the size difference alone would have allowed for Vince to handle the boy but he wasn't close enough where he was sure the kid wouldn't be able to get another shot off before disarming him. So, not wanting to escalate the situation, he held still.
"They killed her," Eric stammered. "She's dead. I know she's dead. He...they..." he said between sobs.
"Eric, put down the gun," came a strong but surprisingly gentle voice off to the side. The voice was Jane's.
Eric turned his head to see who else was talking to him and using his name. He wasn't sure how she knew his name but his eyes locked onto hers. "She was all I had left," he said in almost a whisper as the tears continued to fall.
"I know," Jane answered with nothing but compassion. She had holstered her gun and was slowly trying to approach the boy. She held her arms up and open in front of her to show him she wasn't pointing any gun at him. She knew the other officers, including her two partners, had her covered. "I know she was all you had left. I'm so sorry about what is going on but Eric, you have to put that gun down."
As she inched closer and closer to him she knew she needed to get him to let go of the gun. There were ten guns aimed at him and the last thing any one of them wanted to do was to shoot a child. As she inched closer to Eric to keep talking with him and to keep him distracted she gave an almost undetectable nod to Vince who also was slowly holstering his gun. He knew what Jane was doing and what she wanted done. After his gun was holstered he slowly started to inch in behind Eric to get out of his line of sight.
"He did it. They made him. They hurt her," Eric choked out as tears continued to fall.
"Eric, if he did. If they did," she started still not knowing who the 'they' was that both Kevin and Eric seemed to be referencing, "I will figure it out. I promise you I will figure out exactly what happened. But I'm going to need your help and for that I need you to put that gun down. Please. Gina wouldn't want you to get hurt." Jane pleaded. She was buying time. Vince was almost in position to be able to come up behind Eric and secure him.
"You'll catch them all?" he asked in a defeated voice.
Jane inched a little bit closer so Eric could really get a look into her eyes. "I promise I will catch everyone that did this. Please. You have to put that gun down."
She saw his facial expression change. She knew he was going to give up. She gave one more nod to Korsak to get him to make his move. A fraction of a second before Eric was about to lower the gun on his own one of the patrol officers off to the side made a big enough move that it spooked Eric.
The movement was enough to startle Eric and as a reflex he squeezed the trigger and before anyone could stop it, before Vince could protest and make his last move to subdue the boy, three cops pulled the trigger on their own guns and Eric crumpled to the floor.
The next two seconds saw everyone react to the boy falling. Korsak kicked the gun away from Eric's hands. Two detectives turned their attention to Kevin Lansing calling out for someone to call an ambulance. Korsak turned his attention to Eric Franklin also calling for an ambulance.
Above the chaos one more shout for an ambulance was heard. This time it came from Frost who was now leaning down over his fallen partner.
