It quickly became apparent to Maura and the rostered psychiatrist, Doctor Greenburg, that Jane was not going to come out of her catatonic state on her own. She failed to respond to stimuli and continued to look right through them. As a result Doctor Greenburg injected Jane with a two milligram dose of Lorazepam intramuscularly in an effort to bring the detective back to reality. In general it would take approximately half an hour to take affect, so Maura chose to use that time to make some necessary phone calls.
The first call she made was to Frankie to let him know what was happening with Jane and that she had concerns, but that it would be best to stay away for the time being. She promised to keep him informed in an effort to placate his desire to drop everything and rush to the hospital. He reluctantly agreed when she explained that Jane was not going to want to be seen in the state she was in; he knew Maura knew his sister better than anybody. They both agreed that they shouldn't break protocol to contact Angela; her safety remained paramount.
The second call was to Korsak to update him on the situation and to advise that Jane was definitely in no state to give a statement regarding the horrendous events from earlier that night. She let him know that she would call him as soon as Jane was well enough to give her statement; from there he could pass that information along to the FBI.
Done with the two calls of the utmost importance she found she still had time up her sleeve before the medication would take affect. Twenty minutes where there was nothing else for Maura to do for Jane's benefit and that was twenty minutes too long. She had to take a seat in the waiting room because her legs simply wouldn't support her any longer as her body finally gave in to the guilt and grief she felt for Riley.
Logically she knew that there were a multitude of factors that culminated in Riley's death, most important of all being the existence of the psychopath running the show, but she found herself questioning her own role. She had demanded Riley retrieve Jane and that was the direct impact she had had on the events. What if she had simply trusted Jane to look after herself? What if she had let it be when Riley told her to? Would Jane ever forgive her when she found out her role in it all? Maura shook her head softly in an attempt to push the thoughts away
I do not deal in what ifs; I deal in facts, in logic, in science. This was a convergence of numerous actions that led to a terrible tragedy. Hold it together!
Maura focused on her breathing, calming down enough to maintain her professional exterior, knowing that if the emotions escaped she wouldn't be putting herself back together for a while. Jane needed her; she didn't have time to wallow in guilt and self pity. Riley's loss hurt and it was horrendous, but Jane had to remain the focus. Jane was her entire world.
She glanced at her watch and decided enough time had passed; she met up with Doctor Greenburg outside of Jane's room (which Maura had insisted upon for privacy, using all the clout being an Isles, provided) and he led her inside. She hovered out of the way, allowing the psychiatrist space to do his job; she dare not interfere, she was only allowed in the room as a favour.
"Detective?" Doctor Greenburg enquired softly, frowning when she didn't openly respond. She was lucid again, this much he could tell as she lost her rigidity of position and was staring at her bloodied hands. "Jane?" He tried again.
Her eyes snapped to attention, locking onto his curious blue orbs, before her gaze fell back to her hands. "What happened?" She asked quietly, clearly disturbed by the blood staining her hands, and her clothing.
"I was hoping you may be able to tell me," he prodded softly, analysing the way her brows furrowed in clear concentration before her features crumpled, agitation and sadness warring one another.
"I don't know," Jane glanced furtively around the room, taking in her surroundings, recognising the disinfectant smell, the basic decor and the bed she was sitting on. She recognised that she was in a hospital room, but she didn't know the doctor that was clearly assessing her every action.
Her eyes fell on Maura, who was standing further back closer to the door, hands clasped firmly in front; eyes also clearly assessing. Jane heaved a sigh, returned her gaze to Doctor Greenburg and said, "Where's Ma?"
Alarm bells were sounding in Maura's mind before the question even hit the air. When their eyes had locked briefly it had been clear that Jane did not recognise her at all and it took everything she had not to break down into an inconsolable mess. She knew that she had to keep it together so that she could help Jane work through her diagnosis, whatever that may be. Her mind was instantly flashing towards dissociative amnesia; she hoped she was wrong and that the fog would clear.
Remaining as calm as possible Maura cleared her throat and said, "Angela is out of town Jane, do you recall?"
Jane just felt more confused, clearly this woman knew her mother, but she wasn't at all familiar and it was frustrating. Furthermore she really wanted to wash her hands; the blood was freaking her out. She shrugged in an attempt to hide her discomfort, "I guess. Can I clean up before you guys poke around my brain any further?"
Greenburg nodded, "Certainly, I'll have a nurse bring you a gown and a bag to put your clothes in. We'll be right back." He motioned for Maura to follow him, which she did with only a momentary hesitation and sad look in Jane's direction.
"Try not to panic Doctor Isles; we will get to the bottom of this. Yes there appears to be some memory loss, but there's nothing to say it is permanent. I would like to have a full physical assessment done, just to rule out any physical causes."
Maura felt deflated, "She did not recognise me Doctor Greenburg and I have been her best friend for more than five years; we met through work. She didn't react to her title of detective. The trauma she has endured in her life has been directly tied to her role as a police officer…" she trailed out, realising she was ready to jump down the what if path again.
What if this last trauma was too much and her mind has chosen to shut it all down? What if she never remembers me again? What if she never learns to love me again?
He nodded grimly; understanding where her thoughts were headed. "Let me finish my assessment first, before we get ahead of ourselves. Dissociative amnesia can be recovered from, should that be what we are dealing with here." He offered a comforting hand on her forearm before turning to find a nurse to take Jane a gown and to find another doctor to focus on the physical examination needs.
She watched him go about organising the necessary tests and sighed heavily. She couldn't do this alone; she pulled out her phone and called Frankie, as much for her own sake as for Jane. Because to Maura, even though she knew her thinking was flawed and hyperbolic, Jane's failure to recognise her felt like her entire world had fractured violently.
The mood at BPD Headquarters remained incredibly sombre, and by Monday afternoon news of Detective Rizzoli's health had run the gossip gauntlet, only adding to what had turned into a very dark period for the Boston Police. The reception that the FBI received on arrival each day, which had been mild at best before the death of Cooper, had turned downright chilly. Whether it was fair or not, the FBI had been in charge of the investigation and had taken it nowhere useful and as a result another of Boston's finest had lost her life; it was enough to raise the hackles of many an officer.
"I dunno why we even bothered showing up here today," Agent Mancini grumbled as he took a seat in the conference room; his irritation at the looks and snide comments that had circled his arrival abundantly clear.
"Because this is a joint taskforce and while the BPD members are absent, with good reason, we need to maintain an open relationship with the locals." SSA Hopkins responded curtly.
Mancini sighed and his shoulders dropped, his indignation made way for his despondence at the lack of real progress and the loss of life. "Yeah, I'm just… it's hard being around these people when I feel like I dropped the ball, ya know?"
Hopkins, while understanding of his agent's feelings, levelled a stern stare, "While you may feel that way, don't say that in front of the locals. We're going to look at what we know, starting from scratch and we are going to catch this unsub."
Agent Blake nodded at Hopkins, before launching into the facts as she knew them, taking the time to point out different evidence and information tacked to the wall where relevant. "The unsub presents as extremely intelligent, technologically advanced and methodical. He has shown a propensity towards the use of explosives, with the one death attributed to the use of a .22 calibre pistol and last nights stabbing of Detective Cooper showing deviation from his methodology."
"Everything shifted after Rizzoli beat his game," Mancini observed, his eyes following Blake closely. "His fixation has made him bolder, made his attacks more personal. Previously he preferred to distance himself from the carnage, using his technological know how to watch from afar."
Blake nodded as she looked at her superior Hopkins. "Mancini is right, even the explosion at the motel was more personal. We discovered a remote detonator, and suspect the unsub chose when to activate the explosion."
SSA Hopkins furrowed his brow in thought at the latest information that had been brought to his attention. "If he detonated that explosion at the motel did he misjudge his timing and thus miss his target in Rizzoli?"
Blake shifted through a file on the desk and tossed over copies of the photographs that had been found in the motel room Jane had been renting. "I'm of the belief it was detonated as intended. The unsub has moved from a sick game, which whether we like it or not was based on a set of twisted values, to what I can only see as an attempt to completely annihilate the psyche of Detective Rizzoli. He is targeting those around her, I suspect with the same goal as his initial killings…"
"He wants Rizzoli to end her own life." Mancini finished for his partner somewhat solemnly. "The unsub derives sick pleasure from the torment. Releasing footage he recorded in Doctor Isles home of a private moment; recording the death of Cooper and uploading it to the Internet… it's all geared towards building stress and anxiety in the most devastating ways possible."
"The question is," Hopkins mused, "Is he targeting Rizzoli because she beat his game? Or is there something else we're missing?"
"It's hard to tell, but I suspect that something happened, perhaps that he captured when watching Doctor Isles. If this was just a planned escalation for any of his targets who completed his initial challenge I would imagine he wouldn't have blown his cover. With the evidence that led to Eric Haynes, which appears to be a frame job, he has given up one of his fail safes." Blake observed, having spent hours re-examining the evidence the night before.
"Still he was prepared enough to ensure we got nothing from the computers," Mancini objected despondently. "I hate to say it, but at this stage unless the unsub makes a monumental cock up, we have nothing."
"There's the DNA that we're running from under Cooper's fingernails," Blake countered, not enjoying her partner's defeatism.
"That whole killing just rubs me the wrong way. It was too personal, too messy, I don't think it was the unsub himself. Probably hired someone," Mancini mused out loud, "Which means his body will probably show up in the next couple of days. This unsub is so meticulous, his only obvious mistake is challenging Garcia the way he has. She still hasn't had any luck tracking him, but she's one of the best and I can only hope she succeeds."
Nobody in the room dared voice their concern that it never took Garcia this long to trace someone who had so blatantly challenged her in the past. He was more than good; he was exceptional when it came to the world of computers.
"So what else do we have with regards to this guy?" SSA Hopkins asked to break the silence the room had fallen into.
"Well there's Rizzoli's theory that he has or had a close relationship with a police officer, which holds some water, but until we have something substantial to go on it is hard to narrow it down. A lot of cops and ex cops floating around this city." Blake said, pulling out a seat and sitting down at the table with her colleagues. "Something triggered his killings, I suspect a death in the family, but there are still too many deceased cops and ex-cops in the past months to narrow it down far enough."
"That's assuming he is from Boston, and not just plying his new trade here out of convenience." Mancini added with frustration.
"Alright, well let's start by digging into the backgrounds of the employees at Leiland Software and Technology, it was one of their guys pinned for this and it could be one of their guys doing the framing." With this said Hopkins rose to his feet and left the room in search of Cavanaugh.
Blake watched their superior leave before turning her eyes onto her partner, who quite frankly, looked like shit. "You didn't sleep much either huh?"
He shook his head, "Nah, been sick to my stomach over this. Any news on Rizzoli?"
"Not much has changed, she's still missing a huge chunk of her life and the diagnosis of dissociative amnesia is looking solid. She doesn't even recognise Doctor Isles," Blake said sadly, her heart breaking a little bit for the medical examiner. "After everything they have endured, to finally find one another and then this…" she shook her head as the thought was too painful to voice.
Mancini set his jaw and looked at his partner with a renewed vigour, "We gotta catch this guy, for Rizzoli…"
"And Isles," Blake completed.
A/N: Firstly, I am no medico... I do research, but I can only learn so much, so please take medical stuff with a grain of salt, especially when it comes to this dissociative amnesia... its a real thing, and I can only fathom its possible the way I have described (basically Jane's mind has decided this cop business is too horrible and after trauma, after trauma, riley's death has triggered the erasure of everything related to her work - that includes Maura), but like I said, no expert.
Secondly, I'm sick, yuck... so updates might be slow in coming as it worsens, but hopefully I'll be over it in a few days.
Thirdly, you guys rock and I appreciate you all so, so much. I hope this chapter meets my usual standards.