"Bet you're getting a bit of deja vu right about now," Atwater commented, allowing his attention to stray towards Ruzek as they walked towards the doors of the emergency department, and noting that he received a slight twitch of the mouth in response to his comment, in the process, "Voight say anything about why he wanted us for this?"

"The man wants a shot at the guy that hurt his daughter. Can't say I blame him."

"And you?"

"And I what?"

"Do you want a shot at the guy, too?"

"Maybe I do," Ruzek admitted, slowing to a stop to allow two nurses to pass through the open sliding glass doors, before stepping through them himself, with Atwater at his side, "Why the hell would she want to go back to him in the first place if he tried to kill her?"

"Could always ask her."

"Yeah. That would go over well."

Sharing a laugh at the thought, both men made their way into the lobby of Gaffney's ED, the sight of their superior's presence, leaning against the edge of the nursing station desk sobering them almost immediately as they moved to meet him halfway, sharing a glance that was more than a little apprehensive along the way. Both of them would have been blind to miss the strain that made itself apparent in the older man's expression, from the tightening at the corners of his eyes, to the slight twitch of a muscle in a rigid jaw. But each of them knew enough about Hank Voight to realize it was far wiser to remain silent on the matter, rather than attempting to ease his mind in any way, another sidelong glance passing between them before Atwater took the liberty of breaking the silence on his own.

"Where you want us, Sarge?"

"Charlie's in bed seven," Hank supplied, glancing back towards the aforementioned location, and working his jaw for a moment as he saw his daughter picking absently at what appeared to be a loose thread on her jeans, "Manning says she's almost ready to be discharged."

"We taking her home?"

"No detours. Straight there. You up for this?"

Sensing the question might have been directed more towards him, than his partner, Adam managed a determined nod, his own gaze straying towards the young woman that seemed to hold herself so stiffly in the hospital bed it was a miracle she didn't bolt at any second. In truth, he wasn't entirely certain how Charlie would react to the prospect of being under house arrest again, particularly given how things turned south the first time around. But regardless of his own misgivings, he would be damned if he gave Voight the opportunity to believe he was not ready to prevent the same thing from happening again, his attention turning back towards the older man as he swallowed once, before he replied.

"Absolutely, Sarge. We've got this."

"You'd better. Until we get this guy behind bars, I don't want Charlie leaving our sight."

"She won't. We'll make sure of it."

Voight's curt nod seemed to be the only acknowledgement they would get in response to the assurances that had been provided, his head turning back for one final glance at Charlie, before he was moving past the two men stood before him, and heading towards the doors, himself, in preparation to depart. Briefly, Adam wondered to himself if the man had even bothered to say goodbye to his daughter, the tension between them certainly no secret, whether the two of them had wanted to make it known or not. But almost as soon as the thought had come to mind, he was dismissing it, his attention turning back towards the present as he moved alongside Atwater towards the young woman in question, and found himself biting back an unexpected smile as Charlie noted their approach, and raised a brow in what might have been either amusement, or resignation before she spoke.

"So you brought back up this time. Good call."

Just as Adam had suspected, Charlie was, as always, in rare form…

"She okay?"

"She's fine, Alvin," Voight confirmed, moving past the man with barely a passing glance, and zeroing in on the man locked behind the bars of what their unit often referred to as 'The Cage' instead. It would have been a lie to pretend he was not almost absurdly grateful for the defiant cast to the younger man's expression, the sharp angles of the man's cheekbones shifting just a bit as he had the audacity to offer Voight a haughty smile. Almost instinctively, he felt his fingers curling into fists, the desire to hurt this man as much as he had hurt Charlie paramount, regardless of the witnesses to the act, or lack thereof. And before Olinsky could say anything to stop his current trajectory, Voight found that he was leveling a curt glance towards where Halstead stood before the locked door to the impromptu holding cell, a slight jerk of the head serving as the only indication the younger man required to withdraw the key stowed at his belt, unlock the door, and then move away.

"How's my girl?"

"She's none of your concern," Voight growled, moving forward to haul the younger man to his feet, and slamming him against the wall of the cage not long thereafter, "You're going to tell me if you had other people on your payroll."

"And why the hell would I do that?"

"Because it's the only thing that's gonna stop me from ending you right now," Voight informed, crowding the man backwards, his simmering anger only growing as he realized the harsh sound that had escaped was what might have amounted to a laugh, "You think this is funny?"

"As a matter of fact, I do."

"I'm not laughing."

Before the younger man could have anticipated it, Voight used the hold he had on the man, with both hands fisted in his shirt, to turn them around and force him back, the sudden freedom of his hands giving him leave to throw a right hook towards the man's jaw, and knock him to the ground in response. Dimly, in the back of his mind, he registered Halstead moving just a fraction of an inch closer to the cage, just as he heard the muted plea from Olinsky encouraging him to take it easy. But now that he had the man in his custody, Voight was finding it increasingly difficult to hold back at all, the hoarse chuckling coming from Mack's frame as he shoved himself up onto his knees giving his adversary all the motivation in the world to aim a sharp kick to his ribs, sending him sprawling once again in next to no time at all.

"Who are you working for?"

"No one."

"Bull," Voight spat, stooping to haul Mack upright by the fabric of his shirt once again, and shoving him against the barrier separating them from the room at large, the obvious bravado in the younger man's expression only spurring him on as he relinquished the hold he had on one section of his shirt to reach that hand up and take hold of his jaw in a hard grip, instead, "You're not smart enough to run this whole thing yourself."

"I was smart enough to get to her."

The merest mention of Charlie had Voight almost immediately reaching for the gun holstered at his belt, the weapon in his hands and tucked just beneath Mack's jaw even in spite of the sudden sense of Olinsky's hand resting on his left shoulder. Fighting against the instinct to shove that restraining hand away, Voight remained stock-still, his eyes boring into Mack's as though daring him to say or do something that would force his hand. And inasmuch as he wanted to try his hand at putting as many holes in this man as he could before someone intervened, Voight resisted; Alvin's words succeeding in bringing him back to the present, and persuading him to take a singular step back from their prisoner in the same motion.

"Take a breather, Hank. Let Halstead handle this for a bit."

"Backing down that easily, old man?"

Words that might have persuaded him to forgo the need to get information from the man in the cage were rather effectively rendered ineffective as Voight became aware of two pairs of arms forcefully pulling him away from Mack's still chuckling form, the rage he felt over the taunt causing blood to pound in his ears, though his struggles to get free were futile. Before he could fully comprehend it, Voight found himself being herded towards the far end of the room, Jay's presence receding to tend to their prisoner himself, while Olinsky remained nearby, with a cautionary hand placed upon Hanks' arm. He wanted to chastise the man for holding him back. For keeping him away from the man that had nearly taken his daughter from him before he could stop it. But when anger made the words stick in his throat, Voight found he could do nothing else save for give Alvin a warning glare, the gesture clearly not even phasing the other man as he kept himself as a firm barrier between Voight and Mack, as he spoke.

"You're not doing her any favors if you get yourself in jail, Hank."

"I know that."

"Then back off," Olinsky said, aware of the flash of frustration in his companion's gaze, and yet refusing to flinch back in response, "Let's go get some air."

"Yeah. Okay," Voight relented, shrugging away from Olinsky's cautionary grasp, and heading over towards the door leading from the room they occupied, instead. It was more difficult than he cared to admit to walk away, though even he had to admit to some satisfaction when he heard the dull thud of what could only be Halstead's fist colliding with Mack's jaw. But no matter how he might chafe at the idea of allowing anyone else to wring the information he wanted from the man in the cage, Voight also knew that in his current frame of mind, it was far more likely that Mack would get what he wanted, than the other way around.

He would never tell Olinsky such a thing out loud, but he was well aware that if he had not been pulled away from Mack like he had, he very well may have ended his life, and destroyed any chance they had at discerning if there was still a threat against his daughter, in the process…

After all the times he had let Charlie down, he knew he could not afford to do it again.

"Need any help?" Atwater inquired, watching Charlie carefully as she made a grab for the bag of items that had been handed to her prior to her discharge from Gaffney's, and frowning a bit as she seemed to instinctively hold onto it just a bit more tightly in response to his offer of lightening the load.

"I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Positive," Charlie insisted, brushing past Atwater, and biting back a sigh as she realized that his partner had moved to flank her side as she did so, "And I hardly need an escort to the front door."

"From where I'm standing, I think you do," Adam disagreed, maintaining his position at Charlie's side, and simultaneously allowing his gaze to stray around their immediate vicinity to discern if anyone were paying too close attention to their movements, "I'm not really looking forward to telling your dad we let you slip through our fingers, again."

"You gonna follow me into the shower, too, then?"

"The thought had crossed my mind."

Charlie froze in response to the admission, her brow furrowing as she turned from the door that was just a few feet away, and regarding the man stood at her side with a skeptical glance for a moment or two as she struggled to reconcile the startled laugh that wanted to break free with her frustration over the realization that the remark seemed at least partially earnest, as well. At the back of her mind, she registered Atwater's presence at her other side, his hand reaching to unlock the door while she remained focused upon his partner, instead. And although Charlie would have been a fool to pretend she was not more than a little surprised at how easily Adam had pinned her to the spot with just a simple glance, she was soon shaking herself from the distraction, a smile that was not at all genuine pulling at her lips as she effected a shrug, and turned away from him to head into the door Atwater had just moved through, himself, before she spoke.

"Suit yourself. Don't think you'd be winning any extra favors from my dad by watching me take a bath, though."

Not even bothering to suppress the exasperation that made itself known in a scoff, Adam followed behind Charlie as she passed into her home, his eyes following her movements as she made a beeline for the stairs, and he was forced to relive the moment she had done the precise same thing, before, only to run out on him and land the two of them in a fair amount of trouble as a result. As though she sensed him watching her, Charlie turned back to look over her shoulder, one brow quirked as though she was daring him to say something about whatever it was that was on his mind. But before he could fully determine whether or not he truly wanted to give into the desire to do precisely that, Adam found himself distracted by Atwater's hand coming to rest on his shoulder, his eyes meeting the other man's as Charlie continued on her way up the stairs, and he felt the tension he had not even been aware he had been holding leave him bit by bit.

"I'll take a look around outside. Make sure she doesn't get any bright ideas like last time," Kevin supplied, giving Adam's shoulder one final squeeze before heading back towards the front door, and effectively leaving his partner alone to his thoughts in the process. With the exterior of the home covered, Adam was faced with nothing to do save for moving towards the foot of the stairs, and taking a seat on the lowest step with a sigh, his eyes drifting around the parts of Voight's home that were within his line of sight without really seeing them at all. And although he was more than a little hopeful that this time around, he would be able to prove himself as equal to the task that Voight had set before him, Adam was also more than a little wary of what may come to pass if he and Atwater were left alone with the man's daughter for very much longer.

She had made no secret of her distaste at being forced to remain in the home she had grown up in before, and Adam was not entirely foolish enough to believe that she would not make the attempt at breaking free for a second time, whenever the first opportunity presented itself to her.

Suppressing a frustrated groan over the prospect of being in her childhood bedroom once again, in a faded t-shirt and an old pair of sleep shorts with her damp hair tied up in a haphazard bun, Charlie plopped down on the edge of her bed, and allowed her fingertips to trace idly across the pattern of the comforter while her mind struggled to remain in the present, instead of travelling back to the events of the past few days, instead. As the thought of Mack, and how their relationship, such as it was, had blown apart far faster than she could have ever imagined it would, Charlie was forced to bite down on her lower lip, one hand lifting to dash at the beginnings of tears that had endeavored to trace their way down her cheeks while she simultaneously forced herself to stand once again, and head towards the window she had used as her escape route, the last time around. Somehow, the prospect of leaving via the same route did not seem so appealing, now, even in spite of the fact that the idea of spending any extended amount of time sharing the same roof as her father filled her with dread. And although she truly wished she could have found some other means of escape, Charlie would have been a liar to pretend that she did not also feel the strangest sensation that something was holding her back, as well.

Even in the face of her penchant for refusing to acknowledge any sort of self-preservation instinct at all, when it came to keeping up appearances, Charlie could not deny that the idea of venturing out on her own when she knew full well that the man Mack reported to would have her head in seconds if she did.

She had never known much about Hugo Jeffreys, since Mack had never seen fit to tell her anything about the job they were running beyond what she needed to know to take care of her part successfully. But what little she did know was enough to have her honestly fearful of the man, a shaky sigh escaping as she fought against the panic that wanted to claw its way up her throat, and turned from the window as soon as she saw the shadow of Atwater's sturdy frame moving around just below.

For a moment, Charlie almost considered the idea of simply crawling into bed, blue eyes straying towards the mattress and pillow as she mulled over the likelihood of finding oblivion and a respite from her muddled thoughts if she even attempted to try for sleep. But just as soon as she contemplated the idea, something almost instinctive seemed to persuade her to reconsider, her feet carrying her towards the door, instead, so that she could pad barefoot down the stairs, only to find that her path was blocked by the man sitting at the foot.

"Making a break for it?" Adam mused, turning to glance towards where Charlie stood mid-way down the stairs, and forcing his gaze to look her in the eye about as soon as he noted the ample amount of bare thigh left free by the cotton shorts that hugged her hips. The shirt she had donned after exiting the shower had been rolled up both at the hem, and the sleeves, as it appeared to be about three sizes too large. But before he could allow himself to become distracted by attempting to read the faded writing on the fabric, Adam shook himself back to the present, Charlie's blue eyes holding his own as she favored him with a faint twitch of the lips before she replied.

"Sure. I love the idea of running around Chicago barefoot, in the cold."

"I didn't think you'd let a little thing like that stop you."

"Well you thought wrong," Charlie quipped, taking the liberty of moving down the next few steps until she stood just before where Adam remained seated, and cocking her head to the side while one hand drifted down towards her hip not long thereafter, "You going to let me pass, or did my dad tell you I had to be locked in my room all night?"

"Depends on why you want to pass," Adam returned, moving to stand himself, and noting that when he did so, he still stood at least a head taller than Charlie, in spite of how she was still standing a step above him, "Hungry?"

"More like bored."

"Feel like a little tv?"

"Actually-yeah, I think I do," Charlie acknowledged, more than a little startled that the suggestion suddenly sounded so appealing, though she did her best to avoid letting that astonishment make its way into her expression, regardless, "I need permission for that?"

"Not as far as I know."

"Okay then. Can I get through, please?"

Emitting a short laugh, and standing to the side so that Charlie could do as she had asked, Adam found himself following after her as she made her way towards the sofa, her hands seeming to instinctively grab for the throw tossed haphazardly over the back so that she could wind it around her frame while she sat. She was not blind to how her would-be bodyguard almost immediately took a seat beside her, not close enough to provoke any outright discomfort, but still near enough to give her every reason to believe that if she intended to use this as some means of deception, he would be able to grab her before she could get away. But even with that awareness very prominent in the back of her mind, Charlie could not entirely complain about it, even on principle, her muscles tensing just a bit as she reached for the remote where it rested on the cushions between them, only to find that Adam's apparent move to do the same had caused their hands to brush together for the briefest of moments before she pulled away.

"Sorry. Your house. Go ahead," Adam amended, carefully placing his hand back in his lap, and watching as Charlie seemed to hesitate for a moment, before she was shifting to grab the device, and turning the television on with a faint touch of a button in seconds, flat. From the corner of his eye, he watched as she clutched the remote, while simultaneously folding her legs beneath her in such a way that she had almost curled into a ball beneath the blanket shielding her frame. And although some small part of him wanted to do something to put her at ease, Adam resisted, knowing that in her current state of mind, any attempt to pull Charlie from her reticence would only do more harm than good.

Somehow, the idea of forcing her into anything she did not consent to wholeheartedly left Adam with the notion that he would be faced with her disappearance once again as a result, and that was a reality he simply would not allow.

Well hello there, darlings! And welcome to a new chapter in Charlie's tale! Once again, I am compelled to apologize for the delay between this chapter, and the last, as per usual, the only real reason for it is a new addiction to a brand new fandom, and the stories that came about as a result. But I do hope that you can all forgive me for that distraction, as I have absolutely no intention of leaving Charlie's story untouched!

As always, my heartfelt thanks go out to each and every one of you that has taken the time to read, follow, favorite and review this story so far (and special thanks to last chapter's reviewers: alkadri . layal, Long Live BRUCAS, ChiTown4ever, and July for leaving such lovely feedback the last time around!) I am beyond thrilled that you are all enjoying the story so far, and I can only hope that this installment is just more of the same!

Until next time, dearies…

MOMM