Chapter 11
They stayed at the hospital with Frankie until the nurses kicked them all out. To be fair to the nurses, they had long breached the regular visiting hours. But Frankie needed some rest and everyone agreed to head home for the night.
Maura wanted to discuss things with Jane. What had happened with Frankie and what Jane thought would happen now, the envelope from Doyle Maura had found, and the wedding. But by the time they got home Maura could see that Jane was exhausted. It wouldn't have been fair to start such a heavy conversation with her after the night she had. So they just headed straight to bed instead.
As soon as they both climbed into bed Jane pulled Maura into a tight embrace. She just needed to feel Maura against her. Needed to hold her. Nights like tonight always reminded Jane of just how close to the edge she lived her life. She loved what she did but there was an inherent danger to her job. She never really considered the danger of bullets flying in the moment but later, in the dark, when the quiet was so loud it was deafening, she would think about what could have happen.
Jane again tightened her arms around Maura. She took in Maura's scent and it calmed her racing mind. "I love you."
Maura, for her part, nestled into Jane as close as she could almost reading Jane's mind on what it was she needed in that moment. "I love you too. What do you need?" she asked softly.
"You. In my arms. Always."
Maura intertwined her arms with Jane's. "Always."
R&I
The next morning was an early morning for them both. Maura had the autopsy for Flynn to complete and Jane had to meet with Cavanaugh to discuss the events of the night before. Considering how much trouble Jane could be in they both decided it was best for them to drive separately to the station. Although they drove separately they walked into the station together. Approaching the elevators Jane hit the up key and Maura hit the down key. When the elevators arrived for both Maura looked at Jane with a reassuring smile. "Good luck." Jane just nodded and headed up to face the music.
Maura had again resisted the urge to start in on Jane that morning. She needed answers. Not about Frankie and what had happened last night. Maura was sure Jane would handle that situation and the fallout would be what it needed to be. The questions she had for Jane surrounded the envelope and threat from Doyle. There was so much about that Maura wanted to know and understand.
When had Jane received it? How was it delivered? And most of all, why hadn't Jane told her about it? She had meant what she said to Jane the night before. She would not settle for less than an honest, open relationship with Jane. She wanted nothing more than to share her life with Jane and while she didn't doubt that Jane loved her, Maura was always concerned when she would discover examples of Jane withholding information.
Maura truly believed that Jane love and trusted her. More than any single person on the planet. But over the years Maura had found that Jane's instinct to be open about issues was sometimes limited. Jane had a habit of attempting to deal with things on her own. Sometimes not thinking to include others. Sometimes trying to protect others from bad or hurtful information. But Maura wanted to be let in. All the way. She wanted Jane to include her in things that were happening in her life. A life shared. That was what Maura believed marriage was. Equally shared. That was what they apparently still needed to work on.
Maura pondered all of this as she rode the elevator down to her office. She was concerned about what was going to happen to Jane. That was why she didn't force a conversation that morning. She felt like it would be piling on and Jane didn't need that. For the moment she figured that Jane would handle the incident from last night and they both could sit down and have a long conversation about everything later that night at home.
Maura exited the elevator and headed to her office. She had the Flynn autopsy to start. And she had a phone call to make.
R&I
"Jane, do you have any idea how my night went last night?" Cavanaugh asked in a tone that Jane knew meant he was not finished and she wasn't supposed to actually answer that question. "My night last night went the same as my morning has gone so far. A morning I might remind you that I'm still experiencing. I'm just on a temporary reprieve so I can start to ruin your day as much as mine is being destroyed."
Jane sat and took her lumps. She didn't have a choice and it was what she deserved. She just wanted to understand exactly what was going to happen as a result of the incident last night. "Sir," she tried to start but the cold stare he gave her meant it wasn't quite her turn to speak yet.
"Do you know what it's like to have to try to convince a US Attorney that one of my detectives is not a complete incompetent?"
"I'm sorry," Jane was deciding that was going to be her new mantra for a while.
"Everyone is frustrated Jane. They'd been undercover for six months trying to build a RICCO case against the O'Donnell family. You show up right before they are to get the information they need to make their case and blow the whole cover. The timing could not have been worse."
"I was responding to a request for help from Frankie. I certainly couldn't control that. What else was I supposed to do? Ignore his call and walk away? I had no idea there was any undercover operation going on a federal level."
"That's what I convinced them of Jane. So relax. Like I said, they are mostly frustrated. But I will tell you this. You broke protocol using that cellphone to communicate with your brother. He's being pulled from the assignment. Lieutenant Sexton was pretty pissed. He's worried that his undercover operation is blown too. He doesn't want Frankie anywhere near the docks again."
"Sir, it's my fault. I got that phone for him. But he's my brother and I was worried about him. I'll accept the responsibility for this. Frankie didn't do anything wrong. Please make sure no one holds it against him. It's bad enough he is being pulled from the assignment. That was his ticket to making detective." Jane was worried this would end up in her brother's record and interfere with his ability to get promoted.
"He knew the rules too Jane. Just because you're the older sister doesn't mean he couldn't have said no to you or chose not to use the phone. He made the call and there may be a price to pay for that." Cavanaugh was angry and Jane knew he had a right to be.
"What happens now?" Jane asked.
"Now, you go home." He said it with such finality
"You're suspending me?" Jane was a bit surprised by that. She had expected to be yelled out or even had a reprimand placed in her file but a suspension wasn't something she really thought would happen.
"Technically you're taking a personal day. Go home Jane until I can finish smoothing this over. The Captain thinks it will play better if it at least looks like we are addressing the protocol violations sternly."
"I've got a murder to investigate," Jane complained. She hadn't done anything with the Flynn case since Frost and she left O'Donnell's house the evening before.
"Frost and Korsak are more than capable of handling the investigation until you return. Look Jane. It's not an official suspension or a reprimand. Not yet anyway. Let me deal with the feds and the US Attorney and we will go from there. But I can't see you around the station for the rest of today."
"And tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow we address tomorrow. Let me handle the rest of today first."
Jane understood she had screwed up but the notion that she was being benched from a murder investigation did not sit well with her. But looking at Cavanaugh she knew the best thing she could do for Frankie and for herself was to disappear for the day.
"Look out for Frankie. That's all I ask," Jane offered up as she exited his office.
R&I
Maura made the call she needed to make and arranged a lunch meeting. Having accomplished all she could on that matter it was time to get started with the autopsy. It seemed like a routine GSW but Maura was always careful to treat each body with the same attention to detail and professionalism. She had Flynn's clothes processed for hair and fibers. She had bagged his hands the night before to ensure any traces of skin, DNA or particulates weren't compromised. And she was in the middle of attempting to extract the bullet from the chest cavity when Jane walked into the lab.
"Before you even ask, I just got started so I don't have anything yet. Although I'm about to have the bullet ready for the crime lab to run through ballistics," Maura stated as her greeting.
"That's not why I'm here," Jane answered flatly.
Maura looked up from the body to look at Jane. It wasn't a good look on her face. "Cavanaugh?" she asked piecing together Jane's mood and the most likely cause.
"I'm being sent home while he tries to finish fixing this mess."
"They suspended you?" she was surprised by that.
"Not officially, no. But he needs me out of the building until he cleans up the mess I caused. I was just letting you know that I'm going home. Actually I'm going to the hospital to see Frankie and take him home and then I will be going home. Frost and Korsak will handle this case for right now so anything you get you can give to them."
"And Frankie?"
"He's getting pulled off the undercover assignment which should make Ma happy but I think it may cost him his shot at a gold shield." Jane couldn't hide how upset it was making her from Maura.
"I'm sorry Jane. I really am."
"We both knew the rules. We both chose to ignore them. I guess we both will have to deal with the fallout." Jane was quiet for a minute and then added, "I'll see you at home later tonight."
Maura didn't know what to say or do for Jane. She knew Jane would process everything with a little bit of time and she hoped Cavanaugh would be able to handle everything. She watched Jane leave the lab and resumed the bullet extraction from Flynn. She had it out with no issues and placed it into an evidence bag. She labeled the bullet and set it aside with several other items to take to the crime lab.
Looking at what was accumulated Maura walked over to the phone to call the tech to come pick up the items. Bagged and ready for analysis were the bullet, Flynn's clothes and his shoes. She then returned her attention to the body to finish the rest of the autopsy.
R&I
John looked at the glowing tracer icons on his computer screen. For the first time since yesterday the detective had separated herself from the rest of the people he was keeping tabs on. He had waited the one day he was asked to wait and it was time to take advantage of the opportunity. It looked as if the detective was would be away from the ones that were not supposed to be able to provide her with an alibi.
He grabbed the file of information to review the target information one last time. By this time he had everything in the file memorized but double checking still always made him feel better. This was the last task. The last thing that stood between him and a half a million dollars. He didn't want anything to go wrong.
He grabbed everything he needed and headed out. Given the information he had been provided he knew the most likely whereabouts of the second target. As long as he could find the target while the detective was still away from the four people on his list he could be done with this job in a matter of hours. He couldn't help the smile that was on his face as he rode the elevator down to the parking garage.
R&I
It was all too easy. The target was exactly where he thought John thought he would be. The elimination would be as simple as the first one. He had the element of surprise on his side. That always made this easier. People, he found, didn't seem to pay very close attention to their surroundings when they didn't know they were a target.
He doubled checked the tracer icons and was satisfied that the detective away from the people on the list. Now would be the perfect time to finish the work. He pulled out the Glock 30 and exited his car. He just had to wait for the perfect moment and he would take care of the man.
Five minutes later the target was walking to his car. He was alone but he was talking on his cellphone. That wouldn't be a hindrance to what John needed to do. He doubted the person on the phone would be able to figure out exactly what was going on and he would have removed the body from the area by the time anyone could react.
He quietly approached the target and pulled the trigger. Same as the first. One shot. He too was dead before he hit the ground. Hitting the ground caused the man's cellphone to skid across the ground and underneath a parked car. John debated going for the phone but decided it was unnecessary. Instead, he pulled the car around and opened the trunk. Just like the first he lifted the man into the trunk. This one was heavier than the first and John struggled getting him into the trunk. But he managed nonetheless. He got back into his car and drove off.
He didn't really think about the man's cellphone that was still underneath the car in the parking lot. Nor had he noticed the small amount of blood on his shirt sleeve from a small scratch to his arm from trying to get the target into the trunk. John was already letting his mind focus in on handling the body dump, destroying the Glock he had used and getting rid of the car he had been using. Just a few more tasks and his work would be finished.
R&I
Frost had spent the morning running down leads for the Flynn case. He traced the ownership of the warehouse to a dummy corporation. He then spent about an hour tracing the ownership of that corporation to four other shell companies until he could link the building and the land to the O'Donnell family. That gave him a possible mob motive. Someone might be trying to send a message by dumping the body of one of O'Donnell's own men on his own property. But the murder didn't seem to fit the typical pattern of mob hit. Flynn was shot in the back. Typical mob hits were execution style with single gunshots to the head. A check of Flynn's cell phone and credit card activity around the time of death didn't yield anything significant. As Frost stared at the whiteboard he wished Jane was here to bounce ideas around.
"I don't see anything here Korsak. Do you?" he asked.
Vince had been looking at the same whiteboard as Frost for as long as Frost had. He didn't have anything either. "No. It doesn't feel like a mob hit but it seems to be set up to look like one. Single GSW. Body dumped on O'Donnell property. But what's the message. Why Flynn?"
Frost shook his head. "I don't know. Not that I expected O'Donnell to tell us anything last night but he seemed genuinely surprised that Flynn was shot. I didn't get the sense that Flynn was a big player in the family."
"OC said he was small time. Connected but small time. Jane was right. He'd been away from the drug scene for years. Fencing was his nitch. From everything OC said he was a pretty liked guy and they were hard pressed for any reason someone would target him on a mob issue. Johnson said he would try to ask around and see if he could get an idea of what Flynn was into."
"Maybe it's personal. Maybe he was involved with the wrong woman. I'll run down all the numbers on the cellphone records and see if I can find some sort of love interest. O'Donnell said he wasn't dating anyone that he was aware of but if Flynn was small time I doubt O'Donnell would know his relationship statuses."
"Are any of the lab results back yet?" Korsak asked.
"You know, I don't know. I'm so used to Jane running down to the morgue all the time to see Maura that I haven't even thought to check. I'll head down and see what's come back. Maybe we will get lucky with the clothes or the ballistics." Frost got up and headed down to see Maura.
Korsak reviewed a few of the files but then headed over to Cavanaugh's office and knocked.
"Come in," Sean mostly grunted. He had been talking to people all day trying to contain the damage from Jane and Frankie's activities. He wasn't sure he could take another round. So when he looked up and saw it was only Vince he was relieved.
"You're mood hasn't improved from last night," Vince observed.
"All day. I've spent all day letting people yell at me and threaten me. This day just needs to be over." He leaned back in his chair and loosened his tie. He looked exhausted.
Vince felt bad for Sean. But he was also proud of him. Vince knew that he had been busting his ass trying to protect Jane as well as Frankie. He could have cut them both loose. Fed them to the wolves. But he was here. Fighting all day long trying to keep this contained where it wouldn't hurt either one's career. Sean was a standup man and Vince was glad he was their division's lieutenant.
"Are they going to be ok?" Korsak asked.
Cavanaugh released a heavy sigh. "I think so. I think I talked everyone down off the ledge. The fed's investigation was compromised and there isn't we can do about that but Jane didn't know and didn't do it on purpose. So as mad as they are there wasn't anything criminal or negligent about what happened. They are having a meeting to see if there is anyway it can continue but they seem convinced that it ended when Jane and Frost entered that warehouse."
"Did they tell you what the scope of their undercover operation was?"
Sean laughed a humorless laugh. "We are strictly 'need to know' and none of them think I need to know. They told Haynes it was a RICCO case against O'Donnell. And Haynes learned that the other guy injured last night besides Frankie was also FBI."
"They let their own guy take a beating like that?" Korsak was surprised and a little pissed. He saw the guy last night.
"I don't think they knew what was going on. In fact, if you want my honest opinion I think Jane and Barry saved that agent's life last night. But instead of a thank you I'm spending the day having my ass handed to me."
"I'm sorry Sean. Did Sexton say what happened with Frankie in the first place?"
"He got a quick statement from Frankie last night. I didn't get told everything. But from what Frankie told Sexton he was grabbed at the end of his shift along with the other guy. Frankie had been getting information about a group on the group that was stealing merchandise from the cargo bays and fencing the items. Sexton thinks it got out that there may be an undercover operative investigating and Frankie plus the FBI guy were the last two men added to the shift the theft crew worked. Frankie thinks they figured out he was a cop and they were trying to beat an admission out of him or the FBI man."
"So Frankie doesn't know the other guy is FBI?"
"Not that I'm aware of. Sexton and Haynes both knew nothing of the FBI operation and from what the US Attorney told me the FBI knew nothing of our operation. Which sparked a second round of bitching about inter-agency communication and cooperation."
"What about the procedure violations for Jane and Frankie?" he asked turning back to his detective. Command politics always gave Vince a headache.
"That will end up being a matter for Sexton and I to address. Between you and me, I can't blame her for looking out for him. I know how protective she gets about family. It was his first undercover assignment."
Korsak felt the same. He didn't think either Jane or Frankie should be in trouble. How could anyone fault Jane for trying to watch out for her younger brother?
"Will you suspend her?"
Sean shook his head. "No. And Sexton won't suspend Frankie either. No official reprimands either. I think the worst thing that will come from this is I'm afraid it will delay Frankie's promotion to a detective. The entire department knows what happened by now and he will be untouchable for any division for some time. It can't be avoided."
"That's going to bother Jane," Vince said. He already envisioned the guilt she would feel.
"It shouldn't. Frankie wasn't innocent in all of this. He has to take some of the responsibility."
"True. But it will still bother Jane." He looked at Sean and knew Sean agreed with him. Jane would beat herself up over this for a while.
Both men sat chatting in Sean's office for a few more minutes. Vince was about to head out when Sean's phone rang. "Cavanaugh," he said answering the call. He was quiet for a minute but the look that crossed his face shocked Korsak. "That can't be right. Run it again." He looked up at Korsak but his look didn't improve. "Then run it again!" he yelled as he hung up from the call.
"Sean?"
"Vince, we may have a very big problem."
"Alright," he said with caution. "With what?"
"The ballistics are back from the bullet Maura removed from Flynn." He leaned back in his chair again and he honestly didn't know what to do or to think. "You are not going to believe this. We have a match."
Korsak was confused. Usually a ballistics match was a good thing for a case. "Ok...what's the problem?"
"The gun comes back to Jane."