Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Rizzoli & Isles. The characters belong to Tess Gerritsen, Jan Nash, Janet Tamaro, and TNT. I am in no way profiting from this. It's just for fun.

At first I was going to have this new case just a minor storyline, barely even mentioned, but I decided this could be an interesting one to write. So I hope you guys enjoy it!

Once again, sorry for the delay. I've been extremely busy these past 2 weeks. I'll busy this whole month basically for my 21st bday, but I didn't wanna wait to post this chapter until after all that. As always... Thanks for reading and reviewing! :D


When Dreams Become Reality Ch. 48

"It's been a while since it was just us working a case together, huh?" Frankie says to his sister as they pull up to the crime scene. The body is just about to be released to the medical examiner filling in for Maura, but he wants to wait for the detectives to get there and investigate a little.

"Yeah, it has." Jane agrees with a small smile. "It won't be like this for long, though. Before you know it, Frost and Korsak will be back."

"I sure miss those two, it's scary we almost lost them both." Frankie comments, and Jane knows he doesn't mean anything against her. She too misses her partners, even though hasn't been that long since they've been gone.

"I know... But they're going to be ok. We've had close calls like those before, and we always manage to come out of it somehow."

"We do."

Their conversation ends as they approach the scene, a large crowd of people watching behind bright yellow tape cordoning off access to the victim. As they walk over, Jane and Frankie can see the teen's feet sticking out of the thick blanket that had been thrown over her.

The new medical examiner looks up from his crouched position and spots the siblings, standing up to greet them.

"Morning, detectives." Kent Drake says, getting a brief nod by each of them. "I'm ready to bring the body back for the autopsy, you're welcome to sit in once you're done here."

"Thanks, Kent." Jane replies, snapping on her blue latex gloves. "So what can you tell us about her?"

"She's approximately 15 to 18 years old, it's a little difficult to get an exact age due to how severely she was beaten but I'll know for sure at the lab. The person who discovered the body doesn't know her, so we don't have an ID yet, I'm afraid."

"Were the beatings her cause of death?" Frankie questions, but the war vet shakes his head no in response.

"In addition to the beatings and signs of sexual assault I found, she also suffered a deep stab wound to the abdomen. I believe that's what killed her."

"How long has she been dead?" Jane asks, leaning down to get a peak at the victim without removing the blanket, giving the young girl some dignity with several gawkers and onlookers just a few yards away.

She almost immediately puts the cover back down, looking away in sadness and disgust at the sight of the teenager's bloodied face.

"Based on liver temperature, I'd say around 4 am this morning."

"7 hours ago... That's a pretty big window for the killer to get away." The brunette frowns, but isn't losing hope. They've worked with much less information and still got the killer in the end. "Alright. Take her back... We're going to stay here and question the person who found her. We'll drop by for the autopsy as soon as we can."

"Of course. Should I find anything before I see either of you, I'll call your phone."

The pair thank him, and watch as Kent signs the necessary paperwork to release the body into his custody. He hops in the coroner's van a moment later, before driving back to the autopsy lab at BPD.

Frankie nudges his older sister and tilts his head towards a uniformed officer speaking with a middle aged woman, who looks as though she's been crying hysterically.

The two head over to her, and Jane uses a very gentle tone in an effort to calm the woman down.

"Hello, ma'am." She says, discreetly signaling for the officer to give them some privacy. "I'm Detective Rizzoli-Isles, and this is my brother Frankie. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

"Y-yes, go ahead." The woman stammers out, seemingly shaken up still. "I'm Margaret Adams, but I think I already gave my name to that gentleman over there."

"Do you need a moment, Miss Adams? Maybe you'd like to sit down?" Jane tentatively asks, gesturing to a nearby squad car.

"I'm ok, thank you. It's just... Hard to process what I saw."

"Tell me what happened."

The witness takes a deep breath, pulling herself together.

"I was going to the grocery store to pick up a few things, and I ran out of gas along this road. I pulled over on the shoulder and was about to call a friend for help when I spotted something out of the corner of my eye..." She briefly pauses, shivering at the horrific memory of only an hour ago. "I saw what looked like a human hand, and when I peered around that bush over there... I saw that poor girl. Dead."

"I'm so sorry you had to discover such a horrible thing..." Jane sympathizes, even a hardened detective such as herself had a hard time stomaching it. She can only imagine what it must be like for someone not in her line of work. "Did you see anything else? Maybe someone driving in the area, or anything at all?"

"No, nothing. It was still kind of early... I wasn't even supposed to be out this way, but I wanted to get some food shopping done before work. I suppose that's why I ran out of gas, I didn't expect to be driving this much today. I'm sorry I can't be of any of help..."

"Hey. That's ok, we can figure this whole thing out... What happened after you saw the body?"

"I called 911... I knew she was dead, just by looking at her. I've never seen someone hurt so badly like that before. She seems like such a young girl, too. Oh dear, her parents will be a wreck when they find out!" The woman sniffles again, feeling sorry for the girl and her family.

It's then that Frankie finally speaks, sensing that the questioning is over with.

"We can have a patrol officer drive you home, if you need to." He kindly offers, not wanting someone so visibly upset to be behind the wheel.

"No... I just need gas. I can drive home myself." She responds while wiping away a couple of tears.

"If you're sure..." He subtly suggests, but Margaret politely refuses again. Frankie doesn't argue with her, seeing that she seems stable enough now that she is talking and her tears have stopped. "Ok. Go to talk to that patrol officer right over there and he'll help you out with the gas."

"Thank you, Detectives." She replies before parting ways with them, walking over to the cop Frankie had pointed out to her.

"What do you think we should do?" Jane asks her brother, and he smirks while raising his eyebrows in surprise. "What?"

"You're asking me?"

"Well, yeah..." She scoffs. "I thought that was obvious when I asked what you thought we should do next. I'm letting you take the lead on this one. See how you do."

"Ok." He grins, eager to accept the challenge and wanting to prove himself. "Let's get a photo of the victim from Kent, show it around like I said earlier."

"After you." She says, holding out her arm towards their car in a teasing manner.


Despite delivering a baby or two in her day, Maura is still amazed at how beautiful new life can be, although she's watching puppies being born and not human babies.

She sits by Jo Friday as the exhausted dog has her 5th and final puppy, encouraging Jo the entire time.

"That's it, girl... You did it!" She cheers happily, gently scratching behind Jo's ear. The new mother whimpers softly at the touch, and picks her head up in search of her puppies. "Don't worry, the vet is just making sure they're healthy. You'll have them in just a minute."

"They're doing fine, Maura." Doctor Emerson informs, bringing the puppies over to Jo one by one so they can get their milk and have bonding time with their mother.

"Thank you, Doctor." She barely manages to get out, in awe as she watches the puppies latch on to Jo. Even with their eyes still closed, they all find their way.

The pregnant blonde gets teary eyed when Jo licks at a couple of the puppies, the sweet moment almost too much to bear.

"You can take them all home in an hour." Emerson tells her. "I'm sure you've read up on everything you need to do in order to take proper care of them?"

"Yes, of course." Maura says, barely able to tear her eyes away from the new family before her. "We have everything set up in one of our rooms at home to make them as comfortable as possible. I've already purchased the necessary things required for newborn puppies."

"Excellent. I knew you would have." He smiles. Even though he's only known Maura for a short time, he could tell she wanted to be very prepared for this. "What have you decided to do about the puppies? Are you going to keep them or give them away?"

"We have friends and family members that would like them all. It's perfect Jo had 5, since that's how many people want them."

"That's swell. I'm glad they'll have loving homes."

"So am I. Jane and I are especially happy that Jo will be able to visit her puppies whenever she wants. I was a little nervous about separating them, but we just can't have 6 dogs running around the house no matter how large it is."

"Of course, I understand. That is quite a lot of animals to take care of. I've had clients struggle with just one dog, let alone 6." The older man smiles as he shakes his head, several memories playing in loop of people having to leave their precious pets with him since they were unable to care for them any longer. "Speaking of separation, I'm sure you're aware you need to wait at least a month or two before giving the puppies away. They'll need to be with their mother for a little while."

"Yes, I've done extensive research all about this." Maura assures, almost chuckling at the thought of Jane playfully teasing her about how much reading she's been doing for the puppies.

"Wonderful. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to assist one of the vets here in a surgery. I have a trained technician that knows exactly what to give you before you head home with everyone. Forms you'll need to sign, and any information you may want to take just in case you need to."

"Thank you very much, Doctor Emerson." Maura says with an appreciative smile, standing up from her chair to shake his hand. He tips his head in response and exits the room, closing the door behind him. Hazel eyes return to the beautiful display of Jo nursing her young, who can't seem to quench their little thirsts.

While petting each one with her left hand, Maura uses her right to take out her cell phone and calls Jane. She hopes she isn't too busy at the moment.

"Hey, Maur." Jane answers after only a couple of rings. "Everything ok?"

"Everything is fine. Jo had 5 healthy puppies... They're so adorable, I fell in love with all of them."

"Aw... Well I can't wait to see them. They can come home tonight, right?"

"Of course. I'll be bringing them home within the hour."

"That's great. I think it's gonna be a late one for me and Frankie, so you don't need to wait up for me, ok?"

"You know I will." Maura teases, and Jane can practically see her smirk through the phone. "Just call me whenever you've got time. I'll have dinner heated up for both of us."

"You're the best, Maura. Thanks."

"I know, that's why you married me."

"I love you too, Doctor Humble." Jane jokes back through her laughter, always loving their friendly banter that's been the same even before they were in a relationship. Their change from friends to lovers was so effortless, it was like they were dating for years. Both were nervous at first, taking such a huge step, but soon realized they could do anything together. That rare dynamic would never change.

"See you soon, my love."


"Only one more week, Angela..." Sean happily comments to his girlfriend, kissing the back of her hand as they talk in the cafe.

"I can't hardly wait."

"You two should at least get a room if you're gonna be acting like that." Jane teases as she enters the room, wanting to grab a coffee for Frankie and herself.

"Oh pipe down, Janie." Her mother retorts with a laugh, Sean trying to conceal his light blushing. "Even before you and Maura got together, you were so lovey dovey. We could barely be in the room with all that eye sex going on."

"Oh my god, Ma." Jane scrunches up her face, somewhat grossed out. "You did not just say that."

"You're a grown woman, I think you can handle hearing the word sex without being such a prude."

"What? I'm not a prude!" The Italian nearly shrieks, while Cavanaugh slowly tries to back away to not hear any more but Angela grabs his arm at the last second, reeling him back in. "Maybe I just don't want to talk about something like that with my own mother?"

"Whatever you say... Prude." She mumbles the last part under her breath, but knows Jane heard it when she rolls her eyes with a smirk. "Alright, so what can I get for you?"

"Just two coffees. Frankie and I might be working late tonight." Jane pulls out a few bills from her wallet and places them on the counter before a thought suddenly occurs to her. "Oh, did Maura tell you about Jo?"

"She did, just called about a half an hour ago. Once my shift is over at 4, I'm heading home to help her with everything."

"That's great, Ma. Thanks." While Angela goes into the kitchen to get a freshly brewed pot of coffee, Jane shows Cavanaugh a picture of the victim from their case. "Take a look at this. Found on the side of the road this morning... The girl can't be any older than 18."

"What a damn shame." Her boss sighs, the photo instantly tugging at his heart strings. "I take it you haven't got an ID on her yet?"

"No, but we're gonna run it through the system just in case something pops up. If not, Frankie suggested we show it around. Schools, doctor offices... Places like that someone might recognize her."

"Smart idea, Frankie's been really getting a lot of those lately. I gotta say, I'm impressed, but not surprised. He's a got a great group of detectives to look up to, including you."

Just then, Angela comes back with the pot of coffee, and her eye catches the photo Jane is showing to Cavanaugh.

"Hey, I know that girl." Both Jane and Sean's heads snap up and in her direction, shocked by the words. "She came in here yesterday."

"Did she say anything to you? Maybe give you a name?" Jane questions, her hopes quickly rising.

"Well, I didn't get a name... Just what she ordered. A salad with fat free dressing on the side. We made small talk and I asked what she was up to. I think she said she wanted to speak to someone here about something."

"She didn't say what it was about or who to?"

"No. By the time she was finished with her food, I had other customers. She left the cafe and I'm not sure if she spoke with anyone else after that."

"Shit..." Jane mutters. "This just got a whole lot more interesting."


After working the case for several more hours, and not finding any leads, Jane decides to call it a day and heads home to her wife.

Frankie is back at the station, still searching for an ID on the young dead girl and promising to call his sister if anything comes up. Although they went to a few clinics, dental offices, and a couple of schools, no one knew the girl in the picture. He decided to wait until the morning to go out and show the photo around some more, hoping he can find her another and much easier way first.

Despite the discovery of Angela seeing this girl, they still aren't able to figure out who she is. Nina, who has been filling in for Frost in his absence, used the computers in BRIC for the security cameras. The victim is seen in the lobby, just outside of the cafe. She briefly pauses, staring at the elevators on the other side of the room. It looks as though she's scared to go over to them, and instead exits out of the front door.

Ever since the recent attack on BPD, security has become tighter. Every person, whether a cop or civilian, must go through the metal detectors by the front doors. The uniform vaguely remembers the girl, since many people are always in and out of the building on a daily basis. He does remember her not having a license or a state ID card, the girl claiming to be underage and too young for either. The officer didn't see this as a red flag, and just gave her a stick on badge. The name scribbled on it turned out to be a fake one, frustrating the detectives over another dead end.

The frustration of the day leaves Jane the moment she enters home, finding Maura relaxing on the couch with a magazine in hand.

"Hey." Jane plops down beside her, kissing her on the cheek. "Everything good?"

"Yes, the last time I checked on them, they were all sleeping."

"Good." The detective pulls Maura in close to her, both women singing in content as they cuddle. "What about you?"

"I had a little morning sickness earlier, but I feel much better now. I can only hope the baby won't be doing this the whole pregnancy. I can't take 24 more weeks of throwing up every morning."

"I wish I could take that away from you. I hate it when you're sick."

"I know... But it'll be worth it." Maura smiles, thinking of how happy they'll both be once the baby is born.

"It certainly will be." She agrees. "I'm gonna go take a look at those puppies, get a quick bite to eat and then head to bed. You joining me or wanna stay up?"

"I'm exhausted, which feels strange to say considering I haven't even worked today. I may nibble on a little something before bed, though."

Both women then get off the couch together, walking side by side down the hall to where the guest bedroom is. Inside, they find Jo and her puppies fast asleep in the large bed Maura had picked out for them at the pet store earlier this week.

Quietly, Jane kneels down to get a better look. The moment her eyes see each puppy, her heart nearly melts.

"They're so adorable." She whispers with a beaming smile. "What are they?"

"There's 2 girls and 3 boys. I haven't named them, I think that should be up to the others once they take them home."

"Yeah, if we name them we'll probably end up getting too attached. When did the vet say would be a good idea to give them away?"

"About a month, maybe 2. It all depends on them."

"You know, it won't be too long until this room belongs to our kid." Jane says as she affectionately wraps an arm around Maura's waist, letting her hand rest on the small but growing bump.

"Speaking of which... We should really get started on things we'd like to have in here for him or her."

"You're right, but we should wait until next week for all of that. Our appointment to find out the sex is then."

"That's true... But I was thinking we should do gender neutral colors anyway. I wouldn't want to force blue or pink on a child. Besides, bright colors like orange or yellow helps with early child development."

"I love it when you get all sciency on me like that." Jane can't resist leaning in to kiss her on the lips. "Let's go get something to eat and go to bed. I'm beat."

"So am I."

With that, Jane and Maura take one last look at the sleeping animals before heading off to the kitchen, grabbing a light snack before bed. Maura had prepared dinners earlier in the night for them, but both are too tired to eat much. As soon as their heads hit the pillows, both were out like a light.


The next morning...

"Hey, Maur? You still in the bathroom?" Jane calls out to her wife, but doesn't get an answer. She jogs up the steps and walks through the bedroom, gently tapping on the closed bathroom door. "Maur?"

"Ugh..." Maura's response comes out in a sickly groan.

"Can I come in?"

"Uh huh."

The tall brunette opens the door, seeing the familiar but sad sight of Maura kneeling over the toilet as she empties the contents of her breakfast already.

"I'll be ok..." She weakly assures, but her voice doesn't sound too good to Jane at the moment. "I have to be, I need to go in and complete the autopsy."

"Oh no you won't." Jane warns, sitting beside her and rubbing soothing circles on her back. "That new guy Kent is taking care of it. He's not as good as you, but he'll get the job done. Plus, Susie will be there to help if we need her."

"But Jane..." Maura pouts. "I can't take another day off of work, I've already missed 3 days this week!"

"You're the Chief Medical Examiner who has trained employees more than capable of handling things without their boss for at least a few more days. They understand and aren't mad... We've got things covered for a little while, you don't need to be upset or worried about it. Really." Sensing Maura is about to argue, Jane says "Just stay here and try to feel better. If you get a little stir crazy, just remember that Ma will be here later to help with the puppies. And if nothing comes up in the case, I'll stop by during my break."

"Alright, fine..." Maura huffs in annoyance, but not at Jane. She just hates missing so much work in a small span of time like this. She loves her job as much as Jane loves hers. "But I'll be back tomorrow. I'll see to it I get medicine from the doctor to help with morning sickness."

"That's fine by me. Just don't overdo yourself, ok? If you need one of us to go get something for you because you're not up to it, just tell someone. I'll go right out to the store for you."

"You're so sweet, thank you."

"Yeah, yeah... Is there anything you want me to bring home later? Or have Ma bring it when she comes by?"

"Maybe some chicken noodle soup? I'm suddenly getting a really strong craving for that. Oh, and crackers."

"Soup and crackers. You got it." Jane grins at her, so ridiculously happy even though Maura was sick just moments ago. She can't help the facial expression as she falls for Maura even more each passing day, or second. "I'll call you when I can."

"Now go get the bad guys and come home to us."

"Yes ma'am!" Jane laughs as she mock salutes her, something she often does when they joke around. As Maura gets to her feet, feeling well enough to leave the bathroom, Jane stays on her knees and kisses her stomach. "Be good for mommy, ok? Try not to make her so sick. She really misses being at work to keep an eye on me. I'll end up in all sorts of trouble with no one watching me."

"Jane..." Maura half laughs and cries at the funny yet tender moment, always loving whenever Jane talks to their baby. "Don't make them think their mother is reckless and requires 24/7 supervision. You'll make him or her feel guilty."

"Well... I think you and I both know that's why you're so eager to get back to work, apart from your job you love so much."

"While that's true, I think we can protect our child from knowledge of your dangerous behavior until after they're born. Maybe several years after? I think that's long enough." She laughs again, earning herself a devious smile.

"I promise I'll be on my best behavior." Jane snickers, but is serious at the same time. She too agrees that even though she may not come home one night, neither want their kid worrying all the time about the possibility. Not for a while at least.

She stands up to be eye level with her, and leans in for one last kiss, but Maura turns away and offers her cheek instead.

"Not until I brush my teeth, I was just sick a minute ago."

"Right." Jane says, almost lost within their playful banter and the morning sickness already slipping her mind. "See you two later."


When Jane walks into the homicide bullpen an hour later, she is met with Frankie furiously tapping on his keyboard.

"You run into some problems there, little brother?"

"I'll say..." He frowns, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, there's absolutely nothing telling on or in the body. No DNA from the sexual assault, or anything. But what we do have is her body, the dump site, and we know she wanted to speak to someone here at BPD. That should be enough information right there. All we have on this, and there's still no ID. How can that be? Why isn't anyone reporting her as missing? She's just a kid."

"We've had plenty of cases where the parent killed their own child, maybe one of them did it and that's why they didn't report the kid as missing. Remember April Lewis?"

"I wish I didn't. Stuff like that really gets my blood boiling... I just don't understand how a parent could do something so awful to their own child. It's horrible."

"It sure is, I can't imagine ever losing my temper that much on anyone, let alone my own kid..." Jane shakes her head, wondering how some parents could go to that extreme. "What have you been doing since last night? Have you even gone home since I last saw you?"

"I only left the room to shower in the downstairs gym, that's about it. I've been at this all night, going at it at all possible angles."

Jane is definitely impressed with him once again, but doesn't let it show. Instead, she encourages him to continue with whatever he has, if there is anything.

"Does the lack of information tell you something?"

"At first I thought she may have been homeless, but I zoomed in on the security feed from her in cafe and noticed something. Her clothes seem too pricey to belong to a homeless girl, unless they were donated."

"And what did that lead you to do?"

"I looked at that security feed over and over, for hours. I was hoping I'd see something, anything, that might help. I finally did notice something else... She had an iPhone in her back left pocket, the camera caught the Apple logo sticking out at just the right angle."

"No way a homeless teen would have one of those, unless she stole it but I don't really think that's likely in this case. Ok... So what are you working on now?"

"Well, I may be stereotyping her a little... But the typical teenage girl has at least one social media account, especially since she had an iPhone, so I'm running her picture through the database. I started that about an hour ago, but it's still going. There's millions of people online these days, billions even."

"Good plan. Even if she doesn't have any sites she goes on, there's a chance a friend might have posted a photo of her. We can possibly get identification that way."

"Exactly what I was thinking. I called Frost and asked his opinion on it, and he suggested this new software to use. It's sifting through everything much faster." A loud ding sound interrupts him, indicating that the search is over. When Frankie looks at the computer screen, he jumps up from his chair and shouts victoriously. "Yes! We've got a name."

"You've got a name. Nice job, Frankie." Jane walks over and high fives the suddenly energetic and excited man, and the two look back at the screen showing a Tumblr and Twitter account belonging to the victim.

"Audrey Cooke... Only 15 years old. Let's go tell the parents. Man, I really hate this part." Frankie sighs, throwing his blazer back on and ready to head out, but Jane stops him. "What?"

"Why don't you go take a rest? I got this part."

"You drive, I'll nap in the car... I just wanna get this girl justice."

Jane doesn't argue with him, seeing the same determination in his eyes that she has. With one nod of her head, the siblings walk out together and to the car. Dreading to inform the parents of this young girl that they lost their child.


I sure wish we could see what those puppies look like! I bet they'd be so cute...

At least Jane and Frankie finally found an ID on that poor girl. Will they find her justice? Keep reading to find out! Be sure to leave your thoughts and predictions in the reviews! :D