Disclaimer: Really don't own any part of Rizzoli and Isles world, thanks to Tess Gerritsen and Janet Tamaro.

A/N- OK I am not a scientific forensics expert, I took most of the details for this chapter from the TV show and what gaps there were I embellished. I hope I didn't get too far off being accurate, so if I did please forgive me.

CH 10.

Jane and Maura's quality time had been significantly reduced due their latest case. Jane was working almost day and night. There was a killer out there murdering couples. He had already killed one well to do couple and now was working on his second couple. In both cases, there was forced entry; the men were bound and posed and the wife went missing. The carotid artery and jugular had been transected, Maura had commented it was odd how precise the cut was and all victims had stun gun marks. In both cases, there was a teacup turned on the floor, they wondered what the significance of that was.

There was also semen left at the scene, Jane had said "the sick son of a bitch raped the woman and made the man watch, before he killed them."

That comment didn't even earn an acknowledgment from Maura.

The first wife that was taken, unfortunately had been found. A couple returned home from their vacation and noticed a smell coming from their basement.

Jane had gone down to the morgue while Maura finished up the autopsy on the wife. It was the only time that day they got to hang out together. Maura had told her the woman had adhesive residue on her wrists, indicating that they were duct taped together, she also had blanched indentations on her mouth. She had pointed out slight incisions that were all over her body, then Maura had told her that she was tortured before she was killed. Then she had said something that had given Jane an idea, she had said "This cut was the perfect precision, I wonder if he has had any medical experience, possibly a doctor."

They nicknamed him "The Surgeon" because of his technique.

After the second wife came up missing, they brought in a profiler, he had read the case notes and was here to offer his observations. He said the surgeon didn't know victims and he liked to target couples. He also said that there was something very personal about way chose to kill his victims; he loved control and the ultimate way to gain control was to kill someone you love in front of you. It would create the most extreme level of fear that a human being can feel.

A week later they still had no leads, they had been checking out the local hospitals to see if anything clicked and no, nothing seemed amiss. The only good news of the week was that they had not found any signs of the victim, which was also the bad news. So when the operator transferred a call to Jane stating it might be connected to the surgeon case, she gladly accepted it.

A woman was on the line, stating that she wanted to report a possible break in. Her neighbors were out of town and there is now a light on in their basement that was not on earlier. Jane got the address, thanked her and hung up. She wanted to go check it out in case it turned out to actually be something. She called Korsak but he didn't answer so she left a message.

She got to the house and walked the perimeter for any signs of life, then went into the back yard and noticed the lock on the cellar was broken. She drew her weapon and slowly opened the door; seeing how dark it was she grabbed her flashlight and proceeded down the stairs. She heard moaning but didn't call out; as she approached the bottom of the stairs, she swept the room. She saw the woman bound and gagged on the floor. She called out her name, just as everything went black.

She heard a man's voice somewhere in the back of her head, she didn't recognize it. He kept calling her name, calling her to him, calling her to wake up. She was trying to open her eyes, but couldn't; she couldn't do anything but register the pain coursing throughout her body. Her head hurt her and she had the most intense pain shooting through her hands, they felt on fire. She tried to move them for some relief but that just registered more pain. She heard that voice again, telling her to open her eyes, he wanted her to open her eyes; he had something she would want to see.

She finally willed her eyes to open, and she saw this older man hovering over her; she didn't recognize him. She looked around trying to place where she was when she remembered coming down here then nothing. She saw her hands staked to the floor, that explained the pain. She was too scared to scream, but she wanted to, he wanted her to, too. "Come on Jane, scream for me." He begged as he gently glided the blade of his scalpel over her cheek. "I want to hear you beg for your life."

She was terrified but did not give him the pleasure.

"Oh I like that your stubborn, I'm going to enjoy you." He said eerily calm. "I love your neck and your breast are very firm" groping her with one hand while the other traced the scalpel across her neck giving her a thin cut.

She whimpered.

"Ah yes Jane, that's what I want to hear. I am meticulous in my work and I promise I will take my time with you, you will scream for me."

Just then Korsak charged through the door, fired his weapon twice and hit the surgeon. The force of the bullet knocked him off Jane and he didn't move. Korsak ran over and cuffed him, then rushed over to Jane, took in the picture before him, removed his jacket and knelt down to her.

"I'm not going to move you."

"It hurts, it hurts" she mumbles.

"It's alright." He tried to calm her. He radioed dispatch calling one officer down and two others injured. Within 10 minutes that place was swarming with officers and medical personnel. Korsak had called Maura and told her what happened, she asked for the address and said she be right there. The EMT's had successfully removed the scalpels from her hands, fixed them as best as they could, stating she needed to go to the hospital. Luckily the scalpels went in at a straight shot, missing bone, nerves and arteries. She got her hands bandaged just as Maura ran into the room, she frantically looked for her, then she saw her, Korsak and the EMT's by the stairs.

She rushed over and threw herself into Jane "Oh my Jane, are you alright" She had been crying.

"Yeah, I'll be alright" She whispered wrapping her arms around the blonde careful not to touch her with her hands, she too had been crying.

Maura backed up slightly, cupped Jane's cheeks in her hands and gave her a thorough look over. When she was convinced that there were no other injuries, she tried to pull away "Let me see your hands." She barely spoke,

"No" Jane said as she pulled Maura back to her.

Maura went willingly. "Jane"

"Just hold me...please Maura." Jane finally begged of someone tonight.

Korsak met Jane's eyes, gave her a tender smile and tugged his head toward the door, Jane barely nodded as another tear ran down her cheek. Korsak told the EMT's to follow him and they did.

Jane and Maura just stood there, crying into the deepest embrace either of them had ever known.

They finished up at the hospital, her hands were stitched and bandaged up. The doctor told her she was very lucky that nothing major was nicked and it should heal rather quickly. He also told her that the person who did that to her knew exactly what they were doing a centimeter either way and it would have been serious. He also told her for 24 hours to leave the bandages in place, then she could remove them altogether.

The evening had taken its toll on Jane, when they got in the car Maura had leaned over her to buckle her up. "No" she protested.

"Jane you need to." Sitting back on her side just looking at her.

"No" she said again as she positioned herself across the console and ended up with her head in Maura's lap.

"That can't be comfortable, Jane" She started stoking her hair.

"I don't care" was the last thing she said, she was asleep before Maura left the parking lot.

Maura drove home in silence, gently running her fingers through her beautiful friends hair, replaying what Korsak had told them before leaving the scene. He told them that the suspects name was Charles Hoyt, he was in med school, but got kicked for fondling a corpse. When that happened, he used an assumed name to get into a combat medic training program at Fort Stewart. When Jane had gotten there, he had broke a 2 x 4 over her, that's what knocked her out. Hoyt had been shot twice, but had survived and would be arraigned for the 3 murders and 2 attempted murders on the victim and herself.

Maura had devoted her life to speaking for the dead, giving them a voice so their stories could be heard. She didn't condone murder and appalled all those who did, but right now she wished Hoyt had not survived.