Soooooo, I'm really really sorry about not updating sooner. I have no excuse. I am a awful person for making you wait this long! I hope you still enjoy the story and I will try to update more frequent then I am doing now.
Again, I'm sooooooooo sorry! Hope you will let me know what you think. :)
While she opened her front door, Maura still felt the detective's hand on her back. She wasn't able to shrug off the lingering warmth the brunette's hand had left behind. She let out a deep sigh as she pushed her door open, deciding to leave the feeling outside her house as she entered her hallway. Taking off her coat, she stepped out of her heels, when her feet connected with the cold floor she felt some of the tension slip away from her shoulders. She was home.
On her way to her kitchen, she let her fingertips slide over Bass' shell while she muttered a soft hello to the tortoise. She went straight to her fridge and immediately pulled out a bottle of wine. Maybe a glass of wine could help her relax completely she thought while she took out a glass and filled it. While she took small nips from her wine she let her thoughts run freely for what felt the first time today. She was halfway her glass when her mind wandered to this morning. To the sound that startled her while she was changing in her office bathroom. She felt herself tense up again as she remembered the fear she felt. It had been a long time since she felt so unsafe. She had to admit it to herself, she had felt unsafe the last few days. Not only at work but here in her house as well. It wasn't the first time that this happened to her. While growing up she had some periods that she felt unsafe everywhere. Her parents never could help her to get rid of the fear completely, nothing reassured her that she was safe. The last time she had it was when she graduated from medical school, back then she just blamed it on the stress she had from studying for her exams. Maybe stress had to do something with it.
She emptied the rest of her glass in one gulp and turned around to put it in the sink. While she put her glass down she glanced outside just for a second. She froze as she processed what she had seen. Someone had been standing there, looking into her kitchen and staring at her. She snapped her eyes back up and looked outside again. She didn't see anyone standing in her backyard and there was nothing out of the ordinary.
She took a deep breath to bring her heart rate down and relax herself. Maybe she had imagined it again, just like the sound in the morgue this morning. She let out a deep sigh as she buried her face in her hands. God, she really needed a solid 8 hour night. But just to be safe, she would ask around at the precinct if there was unusual activity in her neighborhood. If so, she could contribute about tonight. But to be honest with herself, she wasn't expecting much from it. While forming her plan, she felt herself relax a little. She glanced outside one more time before she made one last tour of the house to secure everything for the night and made her way up to her room. Hoping that the night would allow her some rest and set her mind straight again.
Morning had come too early for Jane, but at least she got a solid 7 hours of sleep, even the dreams had stayed away. That on itself was a big win. Now she was sitting behind her desk again, going through the phone records of both women. As of this moment, she hadn't had any luck on finding a lead. She glanced over at Frost and saw in the way he furrowed his brows that he didn't have any luck either. She didn't even have to look at Korsak to know that he didn't find anything yet, his loud sighs and constant swirls of paper were proof enough. She let out a sigh of her own as she focused on the papers in front of her again.
Fifteen minutes had past, when Franky came in and walked over to her without hesitation.
"Can I talk to you in private for a minute?" Jane heard the pleading tone in her brother's voice, so she knew she wouldn't get away with saying no.
"Sure Franky." She said as she stood, a little happy that she could leave the numbers and names on her desk for a while. But on the other hand she hoped her brother wasn't going to make her bad day worse. "I'll be right back guys." She told Frost and Korsak, but didn't get more than a grunt and nod as approval. Brother and sister walked to a room that everybody knew was empty and provided the best place to have a private conversation. "What's wrong Franky?" She asked as she closed the door.
"First of all, you need to call Ma." Franky started earning an eye roll from his sister. "Don't give me that Jane! If you would call her more or maybe like pick up your goddamn phone, I wouldn't need to play messenger all the time."
"Fine." Jane muttered, she knew her brother was right. She needed to be more considered of her parents, but she had enough of her ma's pampering and constant worry. Of course she couldn't blame her after all that had happened, she was happy that she hadn't decided to move in with her after the Hoyt case.
"Good." Franky said, locking eyes with his sister. "Believe me, it isn't funny to have ma breathing down my neck almost every day." That earned him an understanding look from Jane. Oh, how she could imagine how her brother must suffer from time to time. "But that's not why I came to talk to you."
"Okay. What happened Franky?" A confused Jane asked. It had been a while since her brother asked her for a private talk. Usually he didn't have a problem discussing work related stuff at her desk.
"It's about ." That caught Jane's attention, remembering how tense and jumpy the ME was yesterday. She felt her heart rate quicken as all kind of possibilities passed through her mind.
"Did something happen to her?" Jane asked quickly, trying to shut down the negative trail of thought she had at the moment.
"No, nothing of that kind." Franky said quickly, seeing the alarm bells going off in his sister's head.
"Good." Jane said, taking in a breath to calm herself. "What's wrong then?"
"Well, this morning she came to me and asked some questions about our patrols in her neighborhood."
"Why did she want to know about those?" Jane asked, as she felt her heart rate settle down a little.
"I don't know." Franky said as he shrugged. "I tried to ask her, but she deflected the questions every time."
"Sounds like something she would do." Jane muttered.
"Well, maybe you should have a talk with her."
"Why me?" Jane asked confused.
"Well, you are kind off the only one who has some sort of relationship with her." Franky put up his hand before she could go against it. So she shut her mouth, before it could escape her how ridicules that statement was. "Just go talk to her Jane. She seemed troubled and maybe she will open up to you a little more then she would towards me." With that said, he left his sister standing in the empty room before she could start listing the reasons why she wouldn't go talk to the ME.
"Goddammit Franky." Jane whispered as she ran a hand through her hair. This was definitely not making her day, hell even her week, easier. She let out a sigh as she left the room, she would go talk to the ME after lunch. It's the least she could do, she told herself, but deep down she knew she did it because she was sure something was going on with the doctor.
The morning only had brought more frustration to the detectives. Their frustration was getting to its highest point yet on this case, before they got forced by Cavanaugh to go on a lunch break. That's why Jane was pacing in front of the ME's office, with lunch for the both of them of course, trying to put together how she would handle this conversation. Let's just say that each approach she had in mind was put away under 'That just sounds stupid Jane' category.
What was her brother thinking for coming to her with that kind of information and then force her to get to the bottom of it. Because that is what this is. She doesn't know the blonde well enough to have these kinds of conversations with her. There must be someone more appropriate to take this task upon them right?! Before she can start mentally listing who would be more equipped to take on this conversation, the ME steps out of her office. Jane stops her pacing just in time to avoid a collision with the doctor.
"Detective Rizzoli?" Maura is surprised to see who had been pacing in front of her office door. She started to get annoyed by the constant passing, so she decided to put the person, who was obviously scared to just knock and come in, out of their misery. She quickly recovers from her surprise, as she folds her arms in front of her chest. "Care to enlighten me about why you are pacing in front of my office?" She locks with eyes with the brunette and feels a smile creeping up at the startled look the detective is giving her, but she manages to keep it back. She hoped that they had formed some kind of relationship based on mutual respect during their current cases, but catching the detective pacing in front of her office took that hope away.
"Uhm…" Jane not only felt caught, she was caught. She saw surprise and then something resembling hurt in the eyes of the blonde in front of her. She could smack her head against the wall for being such a coward and not just knock on the goddamn door. "I brought you lunch." She said lifting up the bag she had in her hand. Worst recovery EVER Rizzoli and nice stutter with that!
"Oh." Again Maura was surprised with the detective. As silly and stupid as it sounded, this hadn't happen to her in a very long time. People usually never stuck around long enough to have lunch with her, let alone bring it to her twice in two days. It has been a while since she had someone she could call a friend.
"I hoped we could talk a little while we ate." Jane continued, mentally high fiving herself for making at least one decent sentence at this point.
"Of course." Maura said as she took a step aside. "Come on in." Jane gave her a relieved smile as she passed the blond.
"You weren't planning on eating anything, were you?" The detective said as she stood in front of the ME's desk, taking in all the papers and pictures of one of the cases Crow and his buddy were working on.
"I was just writing my last conclusion on the case." Maura said as she passed the brunette and started putting away the papers. "I would have finished on time for some lunch, but then I got distracted by someone walking back and forth in front of my door." She said as she looked at the woman in front of her desk, noticing a little blush that crept up the detectives cheeks.
"Did Dr. Isles just made a joke?" Jane felt a smirk forming around her lips as she locked eyes with the blond.
"Only if it was a good one."
"It actually was." Jane saw a little smile gracing the blonde's face. "I know, I'm surprised as well." That comment earned her a full blown smile. Mentally high fiving herself again, she put down the bag on the ME's desk before sitting down in one of the chairs herself. After putting away the file that was on her desk, the blonde took a seat herself. Their eyes meet over the bag standing between them, both feeling tension creep up on them.
"So what did you bring me?" The blonde had decided to break the silence, since she had caught herself getting lost in the detective's eyes and the tension was driving her crazy.
"Well, I happen to know an amazing sandwich making person who was just a call away." Jane said while she pulled the bag a little closer to take out the food. "And she very happy to come and bring me her special sandwich." That won over the ME's curiosity as the detective pulled out a few wrapped sandwiches. As Jane unwrapped one of the sandwiches, Maura leaned back into her chair, waiting for the other woman to continue. Seeing the blond relax a little, gave the detective confidence to continue. "It's something that always gave me comfort when I was younger."
"Peanut butter and fluff?" The words fell out of the blonde's mouth. Jane chuckled a little before she locked eyes with the blonde again.
"Ah, so you remember." Maura only tilted her head in response of her question. Jane hoped that the sandwiches would open up the conversation, so she could glide into asking the other woman about this morning. "I have to say this, I have never met a person who didn't like it." Jane said while holding out the unwrapped sandwich to the blonde.
"I hope I won't disappoint then." Maura responded as she accepted the sandwich with a little smile.
"I bet you couldn't even if you tried." Jane's mind froze a little as she heard the words fall out of her mouth. God, I need to think more before I say something. Luckily for her the blonde didn't seem to pick up on the possible flirtatious comment she just made. She was clearly examining the sandwich. "Did you just smell the sandwich? I promise it isn't poisoned or anything like that."
"I have you know Detective, that a person eats with all their senses. And smell happens to be one of them. So yes, I just smelled the sandwich." Jane raised her hands in defeat.
"Okay, okay. I won't say another word." The brunette said as she grabbed her own sandwich and started to unwrap it, while keeping an eye on the woman in front of her. When she noticed the blonde was going to pull apart the bread she chuckled to herself. "You don't have to dissect it you know. Just take a bite and get it over with." She saw the blonde narrow her eyes a little at her before she lifted the sandwich to her mouth and took a bite. "See, that wasn't that hard, now was it." Jane said as she kept an eye on the expression of the ME's face. She let out a small breath of relief as she saw no since of disgust pass the blonde's features. "So, what is the verdict doctor? Will you survive?" Jane asked with a smile.
"It is rather tasteful." Maura said as she examined the sandwich a little more.
"Tasteful? That's it?"
"Well, I'm not used to eat such sweet substances on my sandwich."
"That shouldn't matter! This is better than just tasteful!" Jane said before she took a bite of her own sandwich. "This is freaking delicious and you know it!" The brunette stated while she chewed away on her sandwich, which earned her a raised eyebrow and a soft chuckle from the woman in front of her.
"So who is this mysterious sandwich maker you mentioned before?" Maura asked, trying to get the brunette out of her pouting.
"Hmmmmm, I don't know if I should share this knowledge with you." The brunette said thoughtful. "I mean, you aren't really enjoying the beauty that is peanut butter and fluff." While taking another bite she glanced over at the blonde. As their eyes met, Maura saw a teasing glance in Jane's eyes.
"If it makes you happy, I do enjoy it." This earned her a big blown out smile from the detective.
"Good" Jane said as she made herself more comfy in the chair. "Ma made them. And she asked to let her know how you liked them." She had called her mother when Cavanaugh dismissed them for lunch, feeling guilty after her conversation with Franky. They were talking about everything and nothing when she had remembered her conversation with the ME about peanut butter and fluff sandwiches and decided that it could be her way into a conversation with the blonde. So she convinced her ma to make her some and drop them off at the department.
"Well, you can tell her I was happily surprised and remind me to thank her for her efforts."
"Don't worry about it. She did it because she likes you and because I am her one and only daughter. She will be over the moon with the fact that you liked them."
Silence fell over both women as they finished off their sandwich. Maura saw that the detective was lost in her thoughts, so she took the opportunity to observe her for the time being. The brown eyes that could look right through her, revealed that something was bothering the brunette. That made her think about the case the detective was working on. Her own mind wandered to the victims and their brutal murder. She knew it wasn't her place, but maybe she could help in some way to help this case move along, because she had seen the level of frustration from the three detectives. But before she could say anything she saw the eyes of the detective focused on her.
"Can I ask you something?" The brunette broke the silence but not the staring they had going on. The ME opened her mouth a little but only gave her a nod. "Why did you ask questions if something came in on patrol yesterday?" The blonde ripped her eyes away from her as fast as the words had fallen from the other woman's lips. "I've noticed you've been on edge lately, scared from sounds and all that." Jane saw her open her mouth to retaliate. "And don't you deny it, you dropped a platter with utensils twice in one day. And that is so not something you would do! Like ever." Maura let out a deep sigh. She had hoped that Jane's brother would keep the information to himself but he obviously hadn't.
"It's nothing really." Maura started looking back in the detective's eyes but regretting it immediately as she felt the hives forming on her chest. She really hated the fact that she couldn't tell a lie without any itching consequences. At least she haven't started hyperventilating yet.
"You know, for some reason I don't buy that." Jane deadpanned. "Just tell me what's wrong, maybe I can help you." The softer tone of the brunette's voice move something in Maura. Maybe it was a good thing to share her feelings with someone for once. Maybe this was the time not to carry everything alone. Maybe it was time to take a leap of faith in the woman sitting in front of her. Maybe she could find a friend in the brunette.
Jane was focused on the ME's face, seeing the inner turmoil she was going through written on her face. That gave her enough of prove that something was bothering her. Now she just hoped that the blonde could open up to her so that maybe she could help her with whatever it was.
"I have been feeling unsafe lately." She whispered after she took a deep breath. She looked over to the detective trying to decipher any reaction from the woman sitting in front of her. But she didn't receive anything else than an encouraging nod for her to continue, so she did. "I don't know what triggered it this time, but every unexpected sound or shadow has me on edge. Which indeed caused me to drop a platter with utensils twice in one day." She continued as she looked away from the brunette's piercing eyes.
"What do you mean when you say 'this time'?"
The ME let out another sigh before she continued. "I've had these feelings before and there is nothing I can do about it. Nobody could comfort me or make me feel safe. Last time was years ago."
"What made those feelings go away then?" Jane asked while she took mental notes of the fidgeting the blonde was doing.
"I don't know, It just disappeared after some time. I never really gave it much thought, I was just happy that I wasn't afraid of my own shadow anymore." Maura explained as she turned to the brunette again, giving her a small smile.
"Okay." The brunette nodded her understanding, giving the doctor a smile back. "But what I don't understand is why you asked questions about patrol last night?" She asked locking her eyes with the woman in front of her. The question must have hit some nerve because the ME broke eye contact the second the question was out there. So must have acted on instinct because in seconds, Jane was kneeling in front of Maura's chair. "Hey, look at me." It was almost a whisper, but it brought some movement into the blonde as she turned to face her again.
It startled Maura to find the detective so close to her. She had see her movements out of the corner of her eyes but she didn't realize she would be this close to her. She felt the gaze of brown eyes go over her but it was not making her uncomfortable, to her surprise it helped her relax a little. She was embarrassed for what she was about to tell.
"What happened Maura?" It was a whisper this time.
"I don't know exactly. Well I do, but I'm not sure if what I saw was real" She whispered back. She saw the raised eyebrows on the other woman's features. "I'm expressing myself wrong I think." She said with a sigh, with that she received a little nod from the woman in front of her. "I do know what happened, but I don't know if it was fatigue or shadows or maybe it was real. But then again no one saw something last night, at least not something that was worth calling in." She said in a blur.
"Wow, slow down there. You are rambling a little." Jane said as she reached out and put a hand on the blonde's arm giving it a little squeeze. Maura felt a familiar heat spreading out from the touch. It was the same as yesterday, when the brunette had guided her out of the morgue to her car. While her thoughts where running to yesterday, hazel found brown again and the warmth kept spreading through her. For the first time in days, she felt safe. "Want to try that again?" The brunette said with a soft voice. Maura could only nod at the request, while she took in a deep breath.
"I think I saw someone standing in my backyard last night." She felt the hand on her arm tense a little. "It happened so fast, I don't know if it was real or not."
"So that is why you asked if anything came up on patrol last night."
"Yes. My garden is linked with others, so I thought that maybe someone had called something in. But no one did according to your brother and his partner." Jane stood up again and positioned herself on the edge of the ME's desk.
"What do you want to do about this?" She suddenly asked the blonde who seemed lost in her thoughts.
"There is not much that I can do." Came the rational answer. "I can't prove anything. I don't know if it was real or some shadows."
"Listen to me, you are the most intelligent and rational person I have ever met. If you say you saw a man in your garden I believe you."
"I have to be honest, I am a little disturbed that a detective like you let themselves be lead by such subjective information."
"Aaaaand she's back." Jane said with a little eye roll and a soft chuckle, which caused a little smile to form on the blonde's features. "It's not a real investigation . If this were a real case, I would never be that influenced by 'subjective information' like you so kindly call it."
"Good to know." Maura said as she straightened herself in her chair. Before both women could say anything else the ME's phone startled them both. She reached for her phone with an apologetic look for the brunette. She scrolled through the mail she just got with results from the crime lab. "I'm sorry, but I have to contact Detective Crow, something just came back in regards of his latest case."
"Okay, but we are not done talking about this, just so you know." Jane said as she walked around the desk and started cleaning up the mess she made on the ME's desk. "I will come back before you when I leave tonight and then we can decide what we will do about all this." Maura was about to protest, but a raised hand from the detective stopped her from doing that. "Don't even bother, I will not change my mind about it." She gathered the bag with the trash and what was left of their lunch and walked to the door. "I will see you tonight." And with that she left the office. She could make out the sigh the blonde let out at her departure, which she took as a victory.
The afternoon went by in a blur of names and numbers and with no progress in the case. That only fueled the level of frustration for all parties involved. There were 2 women murdered and they couldn't find anything to go from. Jane was ready to flip her desk and just see everything collide with the floor to be left there until it provided a decent piece of information. Like that would ever happen. While her dark thoughts toward her desk and the papers on it filled her head, she glanced to the clock and saw it was almost seven already. She glanced at around her and saw that Frost and Korsak were still elbow deep in there papers.
"What do say if we should call it a night for today?" Jane saw the two men sink into their chairs with a relieved look. "Good. Let's leave the names and numbers rest for a night. Maybe something will show when we all have a fresh mind again." She said as she put all the papers in a folder and placed it on top of her ever growing stack.
"Let's hope so." Frost muttered as he put away his own papers. "Because this is looking more and more like a case that will end up with dead ends in every direction."
"You can look at it like that." Korsak reprimanded the young man. "It's our job to follow every turn this case takes us, even if it ends up with a dead end. And if we have followed every possible lead at least we will be able to say that we gave it our all and that we have left no stone unturned."
"Let's just hope it doesn't have to come to that." Frost said as he stood up and put on his jacket. "Who's up for a drink to close off this horrible day?"
"Now that is better." Korsak said as he put on his own vest and turned to the door.
"You coming Jane?" Frost asked turning to the detective who was still seated in her chair.
"No, I have to take care of something." She answered while she collected her phone and keys from her desk.
"Okay. See you tomorrow then." Frost said as he turned and left the room to catch up to Korsak at the elevator.