Chapter Nine

"I just felt so bad for her, Maura."

Jane and Maura were having lunch in a hole-in-the-wall sandwich shop not far from the station. Jane was having a hard time eating her meal.

"I just can't imagine my parents reacting like that to anything. Sure we were Catholic, religious enough, attended Mass regularly; but I just can't imagine them reacting so… so… And now, she doesn't have anyone. Her parents haven't tried to find her or bring her back home. She's not in the DCF system so no one is taking care of her except her. Poor kid. She's done so much to get back on track. She must be really scared under all the toughness. Reminds me of…" Jane was momentarily lost in thought.

Maura placed a hand on Jane's forearm. "I imagine it must have been very difficult, Jane. I don't know how you do it."

"Do what?"

"Approach everyone as if they're a suspect, only letting them in far enough to get the information that you need for the case. Then not allow yourself to feel guilty when you find out you've interrogated someone innocent."

"Who said I don't feel guilty?" Jane withdrew her arm from Maura's grasp at the statement.

"Oh, I'm sorry Jane. I didn't mean…"

"You think that it's easy going through people's dirty laundry… or… or… interviewing a grieving widow? You think I like it when I'm fooled by someone who actually committed murder which means I have to treat everyone with the same skepticism? I can't believe… "

Jane's phone rang. It was Frost.

"Rizzoli."

"Jane, Kaye's alibi checks out. She's on camera coming and going from the movie theater and the girlfriend and the girlfriend's parents confirm she was there for the rest of the night."

"Good to know; thanks Frost."

"That's not all… Korsak wants to talk to you. Hold on…"

"Jane, we've got a lead. Found out that John was about to lose his house, and his car was scheduled to be repossessed this week if he didn't make a payment. Turns out records on his laptop showed he owed more than fifty grand in gambling debts."

"Sounds like fifty thousand reasons to break in and not think twice about killing a guy to me. Who was his bookie?"

"We think it's Jonathan Pryor, a.k.a. Johnny Cash. God! What an awful nickname. No creativity these days." Korsak gruffed into the phone.

"Yeah, no kidding. Alright. I'll be back in fifteen… then let's go have a talk with the man in black."

Jane hung up her phone and stood from the table. "I have to go, Maura."

Jane placed money on the table for her half of the check and left the doctor sitting there, agape at being brushed off so quickly before she could apologize to Jane for… for…

Drat! I don't even know what I said wrong.


Korsak and Jane pulled up to an abandoned looking storefront.

"This is the guy we're looking for?" Jane was holding a mug shot in her hand. Jonathan Pryor a.k.a. Johhny Cash was 5'7", had a stocky build, jet black hair, and looked like a pimp out of a bad movie with his track suit and thick gold necklace.

"Yep… and I think it's our lucky day, Jane. Look." Korsak pointed to a man walking toward the storefront that served as a shell company to nearly 200 overseas accounts. He was thoroughly enjoying his cannoli when he saw the dark, four-door sedan.

"Shit, he's running!" Jane jumped out of the vehicle while Korsak sped ahead to cut him off around the block.

"Boston PD! Stop!" Jane was fast. Real fast. Her long, slender legs and strong core could easily carry her through a marathon, and she knew it wouldn't be long before she caught up with Johnny.

"I said stop, Pryor!" Jane's voice matched her mother's shrill when she was in pursuit of a perp. She hated that.

For his extra weight, Jonathan Pryor could scale a fence. As well as knock over trash cans and anything else that he thought would slow up the pursuing officer.

After three fences and rounding a corner Johnny went crashing through a door on his right in the alley up ahead. She heard screaming from the startled residents and drew her gun. As she rounded the corner she saw Johnny holding a small child in front of him as a human shield. He couldn't have been more than seven years old.

Jane was breathing hard. Fucking coward. "Johnny, put him down. You don't want to make this worse for yourself that it already is."

"I am not going back to jail!"

Johnny was backing his way through the house looking for an exit making his way up a staircase. The child and his mother were screaming.

"Shut up! Everyone just shut the fuck up!" Johnny was looking as desperate as he sounded.

"Johnny, you're going to go to jail for a hell of a lot longer if you don't let that kid go and talk to me."

Johnny had backed his way into a small bedroom and kicked open a door out onto a veranda. "You want him? Fine. Here you go!"

Johnny threw the child at Jane, knocking her off of her feet, twisting her right ankle, and sending her down the flight of stairs she just climbed.

After quickly checking that the child was alright, she raced back up the stairs. Johnny had already scaled the fire escape ladder and was running again down another alleyway.

"Dammit, Pryor! You're going to pay for that one!" Jane made her way down the ladder and felt a sharp pain as her right foot hit the ground. She was sure it was broken.

"Korsak! Where the hell are you?" Jane was muttering to herself through the pain.

Jane was catching up though, and she could swear that she could hear Johnny huffing and puffing from ten feet behind.

"Johnny! This is your last chance. I'm telling you to stop!"

Johnny looked back over his shoulder to call out…

Thwack!

Jane didn't know a body could contort in the air like that. Johnny's body fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes after Korsak's cruiser clipped him as he ran out into the street.

Jane slowed to a jog, grabbing her sides as Korsak got out of the cruiser and handcuffed Johnny.

"I told you… that… was my last warning…" Jane said while battling for air.

"Man, Rizzoli. You're not getting old on me are you?" Korsak was laughing before reading his newly cuffed catch his rights.

"Korsak! Where the hell were you?"

"Catching the bad guy. Where were you?"

"Where was I? Oh you know; his cannolis looked so good so I decided to stop and eat one out of the box that he dropped. Sorry there was only one left or I would have brought you one too." She took a step forward, "You're such a smart… ow!"