A/N: I just wanna thank everyone for all the nice reviews. I really appreciate it and these little things always make my day :)
‚Maura?' she heard him asking hesitantly as he walked through the glass doors. She recognized him immediately but wasn't sure whether she wanted to face him or not.
What if he thinks that I just forgot to switch off the lights before going home, Maura thought and at the same time she knew it was ridiculous. She would never forgot it, even he knew her that well. She thought about staying very still; he might not notice her.
She tried to inhale and keep her emotions under control but failed badly. She bit her lip and closed her eyes, but her body kept shaking and she felt fresh hot tears running down her cheeks. Even as she listened to his steps approaching, she did not move.
'Maura?' he asked again and walked around the table, spotting her behind it. Instantly she started to wipe her tears with the back of her hand, attempting to look fine.
'I just thought about asking you if you're fine but I'll spare you that one,' he said and sat down next to her. His voice was calm and soft. She did not speak when she felt his presence next to herself. Frankie Rizzoli always surprised her. He was so different compared to his sister. He was a lovely young man who secretly admired his sister and Maura couldn't blame him.
She liked him though they'd never been quite close. She turned around and faced him; he too had dark shadows under his eyes. He looked tired and a little worried though he obviously tried to hide it.
'Why did you come down here?' she asked. Her voice was a little hoarse and she wiped the fresh tears away. Once again, the fatigue started to settle.
'I don't know,' he honestly admitted and shook his head. 'I just felt like it'.
'Didn't know what else to do?' she said and a short laughter escaped her lips though there wasn't the slightest trace of amusement in it.
She watched him approaching, her eyes fixed on her and slowly her fear turned into full blown hatred. She wanted to punch that smirk out of his face the moment it crossed his lips.
He took one last step forward and reached out to tear the tape off her face and didn't bother to hide his pleasure when she flinched.
'You fucking son of a bitch,' she hissed, properly filling her lungs with oxygen and it made her dizzy for a second.
'I always thought you were kinda sexy when you're furious,' he said and pulled a chair from aside and sat down in front of her.
'What do you want?' she asked and tried to keep her voice calm. She wouldn't do him the favor and let her temper take control, not yet.
'Why so impatient?' he asks fully enjoying this. He might as well have asked her for a cup of coffee. 'I'd rather have a little chat first,' he said and she spotted the gun he was carrying.
He looked at the blonde pathologist and wasn't sure what to do. The doctor he knew was a strong and confident woman who talked too much but other than that seemed highly intelligent. She was professional, self-confident; always in control of herself and her surroundings. Frankie didn't remember a single second in which he saw her taken down by emotions; she always kept them out of sight.
Never had he seen her like this. A tired and exhausted woman full of sadness and pain. Seeing her crying made him uneasy. He'd never been good with women, especially not when they were crying. He knew her too well to know that she'd rather he didn't see her, but she certainly was beyond caring.
'They will find her,' he said as a matter of fact, staring straight ahead.
'It's been so long already…' she whispered and though she didn't like saying these words, she couldn't help. These thoughts kept lingering in her head.
What if?
'They will find her,' Frankie said again with determination. There was no doubt in his voice; it was full of hope.
He leaned his head against the table and Maura closed her eyes again. She felt her body getting rigid and cold. The floor wasn't quite a pleasant thing to sit on. They both went still; lost in thoughts. There wasn't much left to say at that point.
'We had an argument that night,' Maura whispered and the painful memory of that moment and everything that followed made it hard to speak.
Jane had never been afraid of guns. Not when she was carrying it; it gave her a sense of authority and it made her feel safe. She never understood why some people felt uneasy while having guns around though they were a good thing to protect yourself or others. In the right hands.
Seeing the gun in his hands without a chance to protect herself made her nervous.
'You gonna talk to me now, Rizzoli?' he wanted to know, always keeping his eyes on her.
She decided to give him the silent treatment; it's been going on for about an hour and he was patient, but she didn't know how much longer that'd be the case. She tried to buy some time to think and keep her head clear. She still didn't figure out how to get out of this.
'What do you want?' she asked. Her throat was dry; she couldn't remember the last time she had something to drink. She remembered being vaguely awake at some point after being abducted. They did give her some water and she was sure as hell it was drugged.
She wasn't going to beg for it. Not yet.
'I think you know that pretty well.'
It wasn't the first time she heard him saying that. Rizzoli was good with lying to suspects when she wanted a piece of information; she was good with playing dumb when it was needed but this time her mind was blank.
Not because of the drugs; she really had no idea what they wanted and it drove her crazy.
'Don't fuck with my, Rizzoli,' he said and got up. She didn't like it; she wanted to keep him in full view, knowing what he was doing.
'Am I supposed to be scared?' she asked.
'Considering your situation,' he simply said.
'Tell me,' she said and her voice had an impatient undertone. 'I really don't know what you want,' she said; she was tired of that game. The sooner she knew what this was all about, the sooner… what?
They'd just let her go? Certainly not.
She heard him taking a deep breath; he was close to her but she couldn't see him. She listened carefully and he took his time. All of sudden her gabbed the chair with both hands and turned her around.
She tried to keep calm and flinched at the sudden changed of her position. She still didn't a chance to move her feet or hands.
'I want that fucking pack of cigarettes!' he shouted and she held her breath. And suddenly scales fell from her eyes.
That was the piece she kept missing. Maura passed her a pack of cigarettes that she found in Danny's pocket.
But Danny didn't smoke.
Maura didn't go any further at that point and Frankie tried to come up with something to say, instead he just looked at her, waiting for more.
Why am I telling him that? She thought. To be honest, there wasn't anyone else to talk about and he knew Jane better than anyone else. Excluding herself.
'At first, I had no idea what the whole thing was about,' she said and her voice got calmer and she didn't have any strength left to cry. 'It was stupid.'
She took her time, trying to think of the next thing to say without revealing too much. She didn't want to tell him that she made his sister feel miserable; she felt ashamed for not noticing.
'It was just… one thing leading to another…' she said.
'Sorry to hear that,' he answered and after a moment of consideration:' I thought Jane seemed different the last time. There was something, but I couldn't tell and I knew better than to ask.'
'Yeah…' Maura asked and the sadness seeped back into her voice.
'You're her best friend. I don't think there's anything that can keep you apart for long,' he said. 'It'll be fine, don't you think so?' he said and waited for an answer. In fact he knew that Jane was different when she was with Maura. She trusted her the way she trusted no one else. She let Maura touch her without withdrawing; she even seemed to enjoy it.
'She walked away from me,' Maura said and Frankie looked at her with a questioning look on his face.
'Why would she do that?'
'I told her that I love her,' she whispered and the familiar pain insider her chest was back for a second. She didn't plan on telling him but she couldn't take it back either.
It took him quite a few minutes to react to that until he admitted:' I have no idea what to say.'
'Just don't…' she whispered.
They left her in the darkness and took their time returning.
'We're going to take a little walk tomorrow,' he said and approached.
'Where are you taking me?'
'Oh come on, can't tell you. Would spoil it all,' he answered and she knew he was still enjoying this very much.
She kept very still when he got a knife out of his pocket and her heart started hammering against her chest. Much to her relieve, he started cutting the take that tied her wrists and ankles.
'And just because I'm so nice, I'll let you sleep somewhere else tonight. Not good if your body is all stiff, not planning to carry you all the time.'
'How lovely,' she answered with false sweetness.
He took her upstairs; none of his little helpers was around. She didn't speak or do anything stupid when he let her use the bathroom and showed her a little storage room; she spotted a bed in one corner, shelves with books on the other side.
There was no chance to get out of here, nothing she might use as weapon. Hell, she wasn't McGyver, she thought as she considered her options in the bathroom. She knew better than to jeopardize her look. They would not kill her tonight; they'll take her somewhere tonight. Maybe her chances will be better.
He lead her into the room and turned around one last time before leaving her, an ugly smirk on his face.
'Maybe I'm not such a bad guy at all,' he said and held up a key. 'Just to be sure.'
She stared into his face and tried hard not to jump up and punch him in the face. He was just one person; she'd done that a million times before. With the difference that she was at full strength and a hell of a lot more possibilities.
She was a cop and so was he. He knew her to well and would defeat her in no time; in addition to that, he was still armed.
She stared into his face one last time and couldn't believe that only hours before she had comforted the cop who was deeply irritated by the death of his partner. Not for once did she consider that it actually was his fault and that he didn't give a damn.
She never expected Bobby to be one of the bad ones.
He waited by the door until she locked everything and turned off the lights.
'You want me to take you home?' he asked calmly and she knew why she actually liked him a lot. He was such a kind and polite man.
'Don't worry, but thank you very much,' she said and finally shut the door to the morgue.
The streets seemed deserted when she left the parking lot. She tried to concentrate on driving without thinking too much. When she stopped at a traffic light, she turned her head and spotted Jane's key in her bag. She put it in there before she left her house early in the morning.
Without considering it twice she took a different route, heading for Jane's apartment.