Author's Note: I have noticed, that the more reviews I get, the faster I update. Nothing like knowing people care to feed the writing bunny :) (hint, hint).
Chapter 12-Waiting
Gemma woke slowly with a slight smile, burrowing into the warm form at her back. She kept her eyes closed, relishing the faint scent of sandalwood and the strong arm wrapped around her waist. She let the soothing sound of Cho's deep, even breathing keep her relaxed, and dozed lightly in happy contentment.
She felt when he woke, and snuggled closer when his arm tightened slightly to bring her closer.
"You okay?" Cho asked, his mahogany voice sleepy.
"I am now," Gemma replied, before turning around to face the compact Asian man. She traced her fingers lightly along the side of his face, teasing the dimple that showed when he smiled at her. "Hi there, stranger."
"Hi there," Cho replied, and they kissed lingeringly. Gemma curled herself into the crook of his arm, hand on his chest and they lay there simply enjoying to moment.
"I heard what happened," Cho finally said. "The psychic thing you did for that crazy woman."
"Charity isn't crazy," Gemma sighed. "Just desperate."
"I was worried. You don't get migraines," Cho added after a moment. Truthfully, he had almost had a stroke when Lisbon had poked her head into the garage van to let him know Gemma was ill. The small agent knew her people well, and neither she nor Rigsby had begrudged him when left to join her. The raven haired woman was already asleep when he entered her bedroom, and he had quietly joined her on the bed. Moments later, he had followed her into sleep.
"I used to. It's been years since I had one. I guess my little show triggered one," the dark eyed woman replied tiredly.
"Why did you do it, then?" Cho asked again, gently petting her hair.
"I had too," Gemma replied, picking at the button his shirt. "She wasn't going to let it go. One way or another, she would have found Janey and tried to force him to do a reading. I couldn't let her do that to him."
"You were protecting Jane," Cho said slowly. He shifted to look into her eyes. "Why is he so angry? Van Pelt said he burned the money Charity left."
"Guilt," Gemma said shortly, sitting up.
"I don't understand," Cho replied, also sitting up. Gemma rubbed her eyes, and got up.
"He can't stand the lie anymore," Gemma explained. "Especially from himself. He will never stop blaming himself."
"But it was you who played psychic. Why would that make him so mad?" Cho asked in confusion.
"Kim, he knows why I did it," Gemma said sadly. "That I did the deed so he wouldn't have to. Because of what he sees as his lies and now cowardice, he feels that he basically forced me to into lying for him."
"But that's irrational," was Cho's reply.
"Yes, but when are guilt, grief and self loathing rational? Because it certainly isn't for Patrick Jane." Gemma asked, leaning over to give him a soft kiss. "Come, my love. Our little party is about to get started. You have a job to do, and a thief to catch."
Cho reluctantly agreed, and after giving her a deep kiss, left Gemma alone in her room to return to his job. Gemma used the bathroom, putting herself back together. Leaning over the sink, she stared into her reflection, noting the persistent tightness around her almond eyes and the tired look in her eyes. The migraine was gone now, but a few hours of sleep did little to repair several days worth of insomnia and emotional turmoil this house had brought her. After brushing her teeth and washing her face, she started to feel almost normal again.
Lisbon was sitting in the living room, getting updates from the CBI teams tailing the art house delivery crew Jane had decided were casing the houses prior to the robberies. She nodded, her eyes asking the silent question as Gemma passed her. Gemma gave the small agent a reassuring smile, and joined Jane in the kitchen. She pulled out a bottle of water from the fridge, and turned to look at Jane.
The tall, blond man was sitting quietly, a cup of half finished tea at this side. He was working on his logic puzzles, and Gemma chose to ignore the slight brittleness of his grin.
"Feeling better?" he asked.
"Much," Gemma replied, sipping her water. "Everything set for later?"
"Pretty much," the blue eyed man replied. He looked seriously into her eyes. "You didn't have to do that with Charity, Sparks. You can't protect me from myself forever."
"Maybe not," the dark eyed woman replied calmly. "But that won't stop me from trying. You don't want to see them, your old clients. They still talk about it, you know."
Jane had no reply, his eyes sad. The eerie quiet in the kitchen was broken when Lisbon entered.
"Gemma," Lisbon said, "It's time for you to leave. I've got a car on the way to take you back to Sacramento."
Gemma sighed, but nodded. She had agreed to being evacuated the anticipated night of the robbery, partly because she knew her role was done but mostly to relax Cho and Jane. Quietly, she left to get her things, and gave Jane a quick kiss on the cheek as she passed.
"I'll see you later, Janey," Gemma said. "Teresa. Take care of them?"
"I always do," Lisbon promised. "And thank you. If this works, we couldn't have done it without you."
Gemma gave a wicked smile, her almond eyes crinkling at the corners. "It's been fun. Almost like being in a James Bond movie. Too bad I couldn't get the good Agent Cho to do the naked gold dust thing. He can be such a stick in the mud."
Jane and Lisbon both laughed as the dark haired woman left. Lisbon looked at Jane, glad to see him smile again.
"So, are you sure this is going to happen tonight?" Lisbon asked.
"Yes," Jane replied. "This guy, he is good but driven by something more than greed. Otherwise he would have changed his MO after the first robbery. But four heists, each one done the same way and at the same time? Common sense would say change, but he hasn't. Something else is driving him."
"Like a ritual," Lisbon mused. "But why?"
Jane shrugged. "How should I know?" Lisbon just gave him an exasperated look that made him smile, before peeking out the large windows and watching the dark car pull away with Gemma inside. She pulled up her handset to signal the waiting teams.
"Ok, everyone in position. Teams 1 and 2, bring your cars into position. Cho, Rigsby and Van Pelt, you know what to do," Lisbon ordered. Jane placed his tea cup in the sink and they turned off the lights. Gemma had very obviously left, so the house should be empty, alarm system armed and yet irresistible to their thief. Lisbon and Jane then joined Van Pelt in the surveillance room, carefully locking the door behind them, leaving the rest of the large Malibu home empty.
Jane and Lisbon settled into their chairs, while Van Pelt manned her computers.
"Now we wait," Lisbon said, eying the spread of monitors showing just about every inch of the home.
Jane just tilted his head in agreement, and the CBI team settled in. Lisbon had several discrete but (to the wary) identifiable CBI surveillance cars planted outside and along the long, winding road up to the house. The local police had increased their patrols. The illusion was complete and the trap set.
Achingly slow, the daylight gave way to night, and they waited.
