I still do not own Person of Interest, nor any characters in here except my OC's. This is yet another chapter that I had to go back and do some serious will be a little more different in this chapter, as she begins to have a few... discoveries... about her new surroundings.

Thank you to my reviewers, and again especially to msgemgem!

Thank you again everyone, and I hope that you enjoy this new revised version of the chapter, and also that Chessie is a little more to your liking.


20: Fortitude

John listened as the gunshots rang out. Luckily for him, Chessie's father was drunk and hadn't managed a gunshot once. But he could hear Finch through the earpiece, just not what he was saying.

"Sir, can you hear me?" Chessie's worried voice came in through the earpiece, and he knew that this fight was one that would be won with her help. "Zyid?"

"I'm not sure what that means, but go ahead," He said covering his left ear.

"Get him out onto the streets. If he's drunk, he'll follow you. But be careful, he'll try to get you when your back is turned. Don't let him see the whites of your eyes, he'll be able to shoot you then even if he is drunk off his a-I, I mean, rocker. Stun him if you can, but don't shoot him or he'll be trying to turn the charges around on you for when you're in court. The boys will testify against you, they always back him up, they're his little orcs."

"Alright, got it," he said quickly before readying himself for flight. "Hey, booze-hugger! What do you think you're doing?!"

"Punishing my kids for losing their sister, now fuck off!" the man yelled.

"I can get you near her hiding spot so you can see her if you look for her," Reese offered, and Chessie paled, "That is, if she wants to let you see her."

Chessie's father roared with rage and raced towards Reese with a knife. He turned tail and ran, dodging and throwing trash bins behind him as he raced away from the man with a gun in one hand and a knife in the other.

"You're almost there! Turn left and then a hard right and you're right at a police station!" Chessie encouraged, "He's drunk enough and more than mad enough to follow you to hell and back if it means catching me through you!"

"I can't," Reese breathed as he ran, "Wanted-man!"

"So what? They'll arrest my dad! All you have to do is make a quick U-turn and hide inside one of the abandoned buildings! I'll give you instructions on how to get back here through the abandoned districts if you'll just GO!"

Reese hit his speed dial for Fusco.

"Help!" he breathed, "Man-gun-chasing-outside-station!"

He heard Fusco leaving his chair quickly and hung up his phone. He knew where he was now and quickly made a U-turn as he vaulted himself over Chessie's dad, who shot at him a few times with his gun as his back was turned.

"You're under arrest for-!" he heard Fusco begin, but he was shot in the arm and leg by a more than angry and more than drunk man that he now knew why Reese was running. "Ow! Shit! Carter, back me up here!"

"What the-?!" she yelled as the drunk tried to shoot her in the chest before running off. "What the hell was that about?!"

"I think… he was… chasing someone," Fusco rasped. "Hospital?"

"Yes, you dimbo," she said lifting his other arm and helping him limp to her ride. "If I ever get my hands on that bastard, he'll be in jail for life!"

"You're telling me," Fusco breathed, "Something tells me he won't live that long."

"If you're talking about that Vigilante that's been giving me grief, then I would hope that he could get his hands on him as well," she snapped angrily. "Oh, I hate it when things like that happen!"

...

Meanwhile, Reese had been backed into a corner by Chessie's dad.

"Where is she?" he snarled, "You said you knew where Chessie was! Where is she?"

"I said that was if she wanted to see you," he retorted, "She wasn't around, so I figured I'd leave!"

"Go to hell!" he spat, and Reese put up his gun and shot the man in the arm. "OW, SHIT!"

"Self-Defense, bastard, and I've got camera coverage to prove it," Reese said looking up at a street camera before limping to the gun and kicking it out of his reach. He hit the speed dial he had one for Detective Carter.

"What?" she snapped, "I'm taking a colleague to the hospital! What do you want?!"

"A little help," he panted. "I was just shot twice. If I hide the gun and then tell you its location, will you come back and dig it up for me to use as evidence against a child-beater?"

"Yeah, sure," she agreed, "You wouldn't happen to be referring to the one who just shot a cop twice and tried to shoot me, are you?"

"Yes, I saw that," he breathed, "That's why I tried to confront him. I could smell the alcohol on him a mile away, literally. I'm going to wrap it up in my suit, is that okay?"

"No, don't, those things aren't cheap. Use something from one of the garbage cans or something. Oh wait, that's cross contamination. Okay, um… do you have a handkerchief?"

"Ah, use that to pick it up and then go off and hide it," he realized, "Good idea. Call me back when you're in an ally next to your station with blood all in it. I'll lead you to it then. Thank you, Detective Carter."

"Sure," she said hanging up. "Well, the Vigilante shot him in the arm. Unfortunately, he got shot in a similar manner to you, Fusco."

"How?"

"He saw the drunk shoot us and figured he'd step in," she shrugged, "I don't care. He got the gun away from the drunkard, though, so who cares? I'm in on this one, him being a felon or not. I'll catch him another day."

"Yeah, if Snow don't get to him first," Fusco snorted.

"Detectives, where are you?" Mark Snow's voice just came in through their police radio.

"I'm taking Fusco to the hospital since he just got shot twice by a drunk with a gun, as he tried to apprehend the guy," she shot back, "It's not looking too good, Snow."

"Yeah? Any sign that it was John?"

"Not that I saw. The guy had a completely different build. Short, stocky, had a temper and a drinking problem to match it," she described, "Sorry, but no. I'll let you know when I hear anything from him."

"Yes, I recall last time," he said calmly. "I still have to reward you for that job well done, Joss."

"Yeah? Then how about a day off?" she asked, and she could hear him chuckling on the other end. "I have a son and mother in law to spend time with, you know! Unlike some people, I have a life outside my work!"

"Sure, sure, just don't get comfy with the enemy, Carter," Snow sneered before hanging up.

Chessie glared as she heard this particular conversation, and let out a low growl.

"If it's a war Aslan wants, it is a war he shall get," she growled putting the headphones back onto the table. "Next time he messes with our operation, let me know."

Finch blinked at his niece, who seemed to be letting off anger, frustration, and sorrow in large waves. He almost shuddered to think of what she would be like if she were on the force.


Okay, that reference should have been a little more obvious...

But anyways, I'm having a hard time coming up with Chapter Nine's remake. I want Finch to be more of a part in Chessie's life, dad-gummit, but I can't seem to work that out! I guess I'll have to go back to that when it's not half past eleven at night...

Anyways, please review and let me know what you guys think of this revision!