A/N: Life happens, a lot of life - hence the delay.
As always, enjoy x
Chapter 56: Mending
Christmas Eve, Saturday 24th December 2016, 4.31am, Sunset Medical Clinic, Sunset Park, Brooklyn
John cursed the 4 medical codes on his pager because the missed messages meant he had to head back to the hospital asap instead of spending the early hours of the morning inside his wife like he'd planned. Only mouthwash could take the taste of her from his mouth, as she stirred alone in a bed big enough for Shaq; ahead of her 6am alarm. The oysters went back in the freezer for another day and the red wine bottles were left unopened.
It was evident on his arrival that his supervisor was pissed at his tardiness but the downcast face of a nurse who cared for Dr Lockett's patient up to their demise was unmissable. "Jane?" John asked, knowing his bedside manner was the only thing he had going for him without Shaw feeding medical advice in his ear. "Can I get you some coffee?" He asked, even though the coffee machine in the break room had a 'Do not use' sign on it.
She sniffed and shook her head, trying hard not to produce any tears as her shift was due to end over four hours later. "I'm okay, Dr Jessops. Glad you're here, we were short-staffed last night."
"Call me Mark. Rough night?" He inquired, wondering what he had missed while he and Joss made love, embers and ashes.
"He's gone. Walter Reeves died an hour ago."
John forced a poker face of steel. Dr Lockett had killed the patient she was allegedly trying to cure and he needed to know how. "Cause of death?"
"Hematemesis." She shook her head. "What a terrible way to go."
If he remembered correctly, heme meant blood, and Dr Lockett's patient must have died painfully. He echoed her sentiments and resolved to find Dr Lockett as soon as he could slip out of the hospital. "Truly."
8.41am, Paul's House, Elmhurst, Queens
Gina was relieved to see her man and his son pass up on breakfast for an early morning workout because her doctor had advised she couldn't take any more stress. She kept the knowledge that the Carter men's drama sent her blood pressure skyrocketing to herself because she wanted to give Paul a chance to make it right instead of bailing on him because it was easy to do, that, and she was already invested in the outcome. Love was funny like that. With her dance team on hiatus for the holidays and the new flat screen TV mounted on the wall in time for Christmas, she assumed a semi-permanent spot on the sofa for an In Living Color marathon. Though her doctor advised her to take a break from all communications and social media, she couldn't miss the +757 area code and number that left messages on her voicemail overnight – obviously from Paul's father in Norfolk, Virginia. That was another secret she kept close to her chest; that they were still on speaking terms. "Jeremy, how're you doing?" She greeted, well-aware that she was playing with fire. "I'm good…yeah, he's here…"
Maybe it was the half-empty Uptown apartment called Home that his mom had moved out of, or the cult that turned his roommate from an aspiring creationist researcher to a dropout in just three months, or the ambivalence he was feeling towards his girlfriend and his ex who was on his mind again, that caused Taylor to lose focus. Paul couldn't trust his son's vacant eyes to spot him properly especially when he gazed off into the distance between repetitions. "Hey." Paul said, snapping him out of it. "What's up with you? It's Bella again, huh?" Paul asked, matter-of-factly, getting out from under the barbell before Taylor did him harm.
"Nope." Taylor replied, as though the thought of walking a mile to her house in Corona hadn't crossed his mind.
"Zahra?" Paul knew it wasn't worth repeating himself the girls ain't nothin' but trouble speech even though that kind of trouble was written all over his son.
"Maybe. I just…I don't know." Taylor couldn't finish his sentence just like he couldn't follow a thought through.
The bench made a decent enough seat for two. Paul didn't know what to say, especially since he was the one who encouraged his son to date other girls and get over Bella asap. Say something… "Let her down easy."
"What does that mean?" Taylor asked.
The Isley Brothers came to mind. "If you don't love her don't tell her that, just be cool about breaking things off."
"I never said I wanted to break up with her." Taylor explained.
Dammit, where's Joss? "Oh. Well, I'm sure Zahra is a really nice girl, but you can't keep her hanging on if you're not into it anymore." That's it, that made sense. What Taylor couldn't admit was the prospect of not having sex for the foreseeable future and beyond didn't sit right with him, and though it wasn't Zahra's fault, he had concluded girls were cut in the name of culture to make them so terrified of sex, they'd avoid it for as long as was humanly possible. But the upside was his dad was trying and with Great Aunt Cammie and her takeover spirit staying in Williamsburg and the place he called home for the past ten years half-empty, Paul's place was the only home that was exactly the same as he left it months ago. "I already told you girls complicate things and here you are, all complicated. Let me guess, Bella's home."
Taylor stared at him with incredulity at how much he knew but had enough experience with his mom to know better than to ask how he knew; because that was an admission. "Err…can you spot me?" Paul laughed and shook his head at how much his son reminded him of his younger self, knowing that meant he wouldn't listen and had to learn the hard way.
2.11pm, 8th Precinct
With her shaky signature on the paperwork and her partner's blessing, Joss verbally accepted her promotion with bated breath. Captain Noguerra looked happy for once and she guessed the homemade Christmas cards from his children were the cause. He looked over her contract twice before inviting her to sit down on the other side of his cluttered desk. "So you're willing to take the test?"
Joss was confused, the multiple-choice exam was compulsory. "Yes, sir. I'm prepared."
He stared into her eyes. "I mean the drug test."
She nodded, thinking he was acting strange. "Of course. I don't use drugs." That was mostly true…if one didn't count getting high off John on the regular.
"Have you given any thought to our previous discussion? About working relationships?"
Joss took a long breath because she knew he was referring to Fusco, and that was a tie she had no desire to break whether they were officially still partners or not. "I understand the need to forge new relationships, but I'll never forget Fusco was my partner. Can't erase history. And you know we've been through some troubled times together."
"Indeed." His ominous tone suggested there were more troubled times ahead.
Christmas Day, Sunday 25th December 2016, 11.26am, Finch's Townhouse, Carnegie Hill, New York
There was laughter. A kind of laughter Shaw wasn't used to hearing because eavesdropping on Finch's dates wasn't her style; she was more of a voyeur and they weren't interesting enough. But there she was; Zoe Morgan in her plump second-trimester glory, sharing a continental breakfast with Finch and joking in French. And there went her appetite.
3.21pm, Evelyn's Condo, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Evelyn Magnolia Willie-Mae Taylor-Clement was not a patient woman but even baby Jesus himself would've praised her efforts when it came to enduring her pernickety and unbearable elder sister Cammie especially without the backup of her allies. Her daughter was absently-present, setting the table as CeCe gave her the rundown of the misadventures in online dating she wasn't really listening to, and Taylor and Reggie were still recovering from the night before. John was late as usual and his tardiness prompted Cammie to coin the term "T. P. Time" or Tall People Time as she tossed the pretentious tuna niçoise salad she made as a 'friendly' reminder to her sister to watch her waistline. Evelyn bit her tongue hard enough not to point out that her brother-in-law was nowhere to be seen. He wasn't spoken of either.
"Do you have to make that cake?" Cammie asked, aging herself down to about 12 years old with her tone.
Evelyn figured she needed someone to control with her husband flaking on her again, like he did that summer. "Yes, Cammie. I make it every year."
"Hmmm. And the sugar?"
Evelyn smiled as it was borderline diabetic. "Still the same."
"Fine, then I'll make Mama's pie."
"No."
"Excuse me?"
Evelyn stated the obvious. "Tullie's the one who makes Mama's pie and she's taking care of Jane right now so you can make the mac and cheese and stop acting like you run my kitchen."
Cammie rolled her eyes because New York was actually the last place she wanted to be with a dozen eggs on her face. She would never tell her barely-younger sister that Hamilton never missed his flight; the one he took was to the Bahamas with his former assistant, so she was in a fouler mood that usual, taking a dig at a sister who wasn't there to defend herself. " Taking care of her alright."
"Come on, we knew since she was 10." Evelyn reasoned, sensing the cheap shot meant husband number 3 was due to become ex-husband number 3 in a matter of months.
"I didn't."
"Of course not. Couldn't see past your nose then either. " Evelyn rebutted, pouring a large glass of wine. " Drink, Cammie."
"Why? It's not even five."
"'Cause we like each other better this way."
It was an offer she couldn't refuse; the wine, not the olive branch. And Cammie drank, until she became more tolerable and took the clips out of her hair. When she let her hair down, she looked more like their mother and it was endearing to see someone long buried come back to life. Cammie was still tight-lipped about her situation because she didn't do well with embarrassment or any other emotion than assaulted her public face. "Why'd you do it, Maggie?" She asked, uttering a childhood nickname she hadn't said in over forty years.
"Do what?" Evelyn asked, knowing the list of things she'd done to get back at her sister was longer that her left leg.
"Cut my hair in my sleep." Cammie asked, giving her one of those glares Mama would give that was as good as any switch.
Evelyn laughed, because she couldn't take credit for that one. "That wasn't me. It was Rosie. Then Tullie hacked off the rest 'cause she didn't like your attitude. Bossy."
Cammie sighed and sat back in her chair, sipping away her thoughts. "Guess that makes sense. And Joe? Did you really have to go first?"
Evelyn licked her lips and said something she'd never admit to otherwise. "I didn't marry Joe just to beat you down the aisle and out the house. I did it so he'd have to come back for me. Now, let me check my cake…Jocelyn?"
She knew that look anywhere; something had come up, even on Christmas and her daughter was headed out the door. "I'll be back soon, I think…"