Pete didn't know what to do. He had held Betty while she cried herself out. This was a much bigger problem than he thought it would be. Betty Wells was one of the first people he met when he moved to Los Angeles. They had some classes together in college, before he dropped out. She had taken pity on a farm boy alone in a new city. Pete was surprised when he found out that Ed's wife was his old study buddy. It was something that drove Ed crazy and Pete took delight in occasionally reminding Ed of that fact.
When she had finished crying, Pete walked Betty to her car. He had promised to help her, the question was how. Even if he wanted to, he doubted that anything he said would alter Ed's fate. Pete's meeting with Captain Moore was mainly to give Pete advanced warning on his decision. Considering Ed's behavior at Pete's apartment Moore felt it was a matter of Pete's safety. Even if he could change things, did he want to? He could try to help Betty without using what influence he had with the Captain.
Pete knew that Ed wasn't the first person to have to make a choice between two bad options. It was easy to not make a payment when you are seriously worried about a family member's health. You think you can make it up and then the next month comes and you are stuck again. When do you say "enough" and stop helping someone you love. Who do you sacrifice?
Central Receiving's Emergency Room was packed with patients. Pete thought about leaving but this visit to the ER was his alibi. Being in uniform put him just behind people that were actually bleeding. Sally, now head nurse, grabbed Pete by his right arm so she could lead him to an empty room. He gasped and jerked his arm out of her grasp. It wasn't her fault; he was wearing his Class A uniform; long sleeved shirt and tie. Once inside the exam room, Pete stripped down to his bare chest. Sally didn't seem worried about the bruises on his stomach or the bite on his arm. What caught her attention was the nasty scar on his chest. Before she left the exam room, she gave him a peck on the cheek and whispered in his ear."I'm glad you're still around. Don't scare us like that again, okay?"
"I'll try not to." He flashed her smile. "You weren't worried about me, were you?" She swatted his good arm and left. Times like this, he wondered what would have happened had they been able to keep up the romance they started. It wasn't a break-up in the traditional sense. It faded gradually as their work schedules kept them apart. He was thinking about that day in Silverload when Dr. Ankerson came into the room. He poked and prodded Pete's stomach, asking if he was taking his antibiotics. The doctor left the room while a nurse cleaned and bandaged the bite. Pete left with a medical report stating that he could return to full duty after another twenty-four hours.
Pete was happy with another day on light duty. When the shift switched to the PM watch, he would be cleared to join them. He wondered what the reaction of the other shift members would be to whatever punishment Wells received. Their opinions didn't matter to him personally; he knew that Ed's punishment was Ed's fault, not his. Still, it might make the next few shifts uncomfortable, especially for Jim.
Ed deserved to be punished, but did Betty and the kids deserve it too? Pete knew it wasn't fair, but they would also suffer for Ed's actions; they already were. He couldn't let Betty down. If it weren't for her, he might have left LA years ago. Pete was short on money back then and was on the receiving end of daily phone calls from his mother demanding that he come home and work the farm. Everything he had now was because she listened to him. Betty would ask him to come to her parents' home to study in a quieter place than the dorms. He appreciated the fact that their study appointments were always scheduled at dinnertime She convinced a friend of hers to hire him as a bartender despite the fact that Pete knew absolutely nothing about mixing drinks. It was a debt he could never fully repay, but he could start. Before returning to the station, Pete made one more stop.
The station was experiencing its usual mid-day chaos; officers rushing through the halls, prisoners in the holding cells, drunks singing. Pete smiled, some things never change. He fielded a few questions from Sgt. Miller and Officer Demba, but he didn't see any sign of MacDonald. He wasn't in the Watch Commanders office or the breakroom. Pete would check the Captain's office, but the Captain's car wasn't in its usual spot. Charlie, one of the officers on the front desk, told him that Mac had gone home.
Pete went back to the watch commander's office to drop off his medical release. When he picked up his messages there was a note from Captain Moore. He was stuck at Parker Center for the rest of the day. Pete and Mac were to be in Moore's office at 8 am tomorrow morning. Pete was just as glad to have another day. He wanted to talk some things over with Jim.
There was a time, early on in their partnership, where Pete wouldn't have asked Jim for advice on anything, but this was years later. Reed had come a long way from that rookie who couldn't even clear the unit properly. He had grown into someone that Pete not only trusted with his life but that Pete respected. He was proud of the cop that Jim had become. Pete changed out of his uniform and left the station.
While Pete was at the hospital, Jim had an unexpected visitor at his house; Rob Fraser, Ed's rookie. Jim wasn't sure why he was there, but he let Fraser in. After introducing him to Jean and Jimmy, Jim led the young officer into the den. They would have some privacy in there. Fraser fiddled with his keys before he finally spoke up.
"I'm scared Reed. I didn't know who else to talk to. I mean, you're his partner." Jim wasn't surprised that Fraser was scared or that he was afraid of Pete. For the longest time, Jim was afraid of him too.
"Are you worried that Pete is going to recommend to the Academy that you be let go?" Reed remembered that feeling; the worry that one day Pete would kick him to the curb. Until he rode with a rookie himself, Jim didn't realize how trying being responsible to teach someone and keep them safe at the same time was.
"Yeah…I mean one word from Malloy and I'm history. You'd be worried too if you saw the way he was looking at me that night. All the rookies know; he's just waiting for an excuse to boot us". Jim was almost positive that Pete would not want him to totally wipe out Rob's fear, but he needed to defend his partner. He would have to be careful what he told Fraser.
"Rob, you've got it wrong. Malloy's job is to see that you are properly trained. He has to be tough on you to keep you alive." This was taught at the Academy but one dressing down from Pete was enough to scare anyone. "He was my training officer. I know better than anyone how it feels to be on the receiving end of one of his lectures. Trust me. He's not out to get you."
"I'm going to lose my job, Reed. I was only doing what Ed told me to, but Malloy won't see it that way." Fraser was holding onto his keys so tightly that Jim would swear they were cutting into the rookie's palm.
"What did Pete tell you? Did he say anything about having you dismissed?" Reed was fighting the urge to call Pete and tell him to come over and deal with this mess.
"No. He told me that he wanted the truth, but then he used it against me with the Captain." Jim sighed, he knew that Pete wasn't capable of twisting the facts nor would he use anything Fraser told him maliciously.
"Wait a minute. Telling Captain Moore the truth is what we are supposed to do. Did you expect Malloy to cover for you?"
"Ed told me that Malloy couldn't be trusted. I should have lied." It wasn't a shock that Ed had said that; what other defense could he come up with? Jim had been in that hall too.
"Listen to me Rob. There is no one that I trust more than Pete Malloy. He wouldn't know how to back-stab anyone." Jim had to get this kid to understand so he wouldn't repeat what Ed told him. "He's doing his job and he wouldn't have that position if he couldn't put aside his personal feelings."
"Maybe, but both of us are going to lose our jobs because of Malloy." This had to stop.
"IF Wells loses his job, it will be his own fault. You don't know what is going to happen to you, but I will tell you this. As a rookie, you can make mistakes that a veteran officer can't get away with." Fraser seemed to be calming down a little as what Jim said sunk in. Pete had already told Jim that he was switching Fraser to Walters for further training. He would love to put Fraser's fears to rest, but that wasn't his place. The two of them talked for another twenty minutes before Fraser left. Jim went into the bedroom to call Pete.
Jean had told Jim to invite Pete over for dinner; that Jimmy wanted to see him. Reed knew his wife was as curious as he was about what Pete and Betty talked about that afternoon. Jim had told Jean everything he knew about the events of the last few days. She was more upset that Ed hit Pete than Jim was. As far as Jim was concerned, Jean was the worse mother hen of the family.
Pete was walking up the driveway when Jimmy came barreling out the front door. He leapt up; sure that his Godfather would catch him. Pete caught the boy, gave him a hug and then flipped Jimmy over so that the child was dangling upside down, giggling. He was laughing as he swung the boy sideways like a wiggling pendulum. Jimmy was still hanging upside down when Pete finally reached the front door and Jean.
"Pete Malloy! Turn my son right side up. Or don't you care that he is drooling on your shoes." Pete really didn't care at all. He was having too much fun with his Godson.
"He likes it. See?" Pete started spinning around, still holding Jimmy by the ankles. Jimmy was yelling "Faster!" Pete wasn't all that upset when Jean stepped in to take Jimmy. His stomach muscles were starting to complain. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box and handed it to Jimmy. It was a Matchbox car. As they walked into the house, he promised Jimmy that they would play cars, including the boy's new lime green tow truck.
After dinner, Pete and the two male Reeds, played cars for half an hour; stopping only when Jean came in and announced that it was time for Jimmy's bath. They cleaned up the cars before going out to the kitchen for another helping of coffee and homemade apple pie. Pete tossed Jim his key and thanked him for the use of his home. He laughed when Jim gave him a look that said "Are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?" Not yet, there was pie to finish and a book needed to be read to Jimmy.
Delaying did serve a purpose; Pete still wasn't sure how much he should tell them. In the end, they waited for Jean so Pete could tell them both at the same time. Without telling them the reason Betty threw Ed out, he explained the main problem. That Ed's brother was very sick. Betty hadn't told him so, but Pete got the idea that Pat's life was in danger. Worrying over that could explain the changes in Ed over the last four months, but it didn't excuse what Ed had done in the station. When pressed, he told them that the Wells' were fighting over money. Jean left them alone to talk in private.
"I don't know what to do. I told Betty that Ed was in danger of being suspended or being fired. I had to warn her. It seems they aren't talking." Pete kept turning his mug of coffee. Jim recognized his partner's nervous habit. "She wants me to help sway the Captain from firing Ed. I'm not even sure I would do it if I could."
"The question is, would you be able to convince the Captain to go easy on him?" Jim knew that only Pete or Mac might have enough influence to change things for Ed.
"Maybe, but why should I? He almost got seven of us shot. How can I justify asking for leniency for Wells?" Pete couldn't stand to sit any longer. He got up and paced back and forth in the kitchen. "I've never spoken up for someone who screwed up this bad. It might not work. Sure, I could convince him about your reprimand, but this is much worse than a dented car. And then there is still the problem of Betty."
Jim had never seen his friend so conflicted. He knew a little about Pete's friendship with Betty; enough to know that Pete felt obligated to help her. However, he also knows that Wells has been a thorn in Pete's side for years. Two of Ed's former partners had told him that Wells resented Pete's authority over him.
"I only have so much influence with the Captain. Why should I waste it on him? Can I compromise my values that much?" Pete failed to notice Jim's impression of someone at a tennis match trying to watch both players. Not only was Pete walking faster, he was running his fingers through his hair and his voice was getting louder. Wisely, Jim didn't try to respond to Pete's ranting. Sometimes the best thing you can do for someone is to listen.
"He just backed me up on this whole training officer fight with Mac. If I put in a word for Wells, I'm going to be going against Mac." Pete stopped suddenly; turning to face Jim.
"Is Ed worth risking my friendship with Mac?" Jean came into the room to tell them, Pete, to lower his voice. It was disturbing Jimmy. He didn't even realize that he was yelling. The frantic pacing continued until Jean handed him a large, very ripe tomato. Pete stopped and stared at Jean. He was totally confused by this.
"Throw it. Go on. As hard as you can; hit the sliding glass door." Pete looked at the tomato in his hand, then back at Jean and then to the tomato again. Suddenly, it made perfect sense. If he couldn't hit Ed, he could imagine that the tomato was Ed. He wound-up and threw it as hard as he could. The tomato slammed into the glass and burst wide open; sending bits of it flying around the room. It was very satisfying.
"Thanks that helped." Pete flopped into one of the kitchen chairs. "God, I'm tired."
It was getting late and Jim had to go to work so Pete thanked them and left. Jean had declined his offer to help clean-up the mess. He was looking forward to the oblivion of sleep, but he had one stop to make before going home to bed. He snuck up on a small ranch house and slipped a plain, white envelope under the door.