A/N: Hi guys, writing when I can. Life, oh life, oh liiiiiiiife, oh life, do-doo-doo-do (Name that record!)
Thanks for reading!
As always, enjoy x
Chapter 66: Meddling
Tuesday 14th March 2017, 11.49am, Evelyn's Condo, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
The scent of butter wafted through the condo, from the kitchen to the spare room Gregory used to tune his instruments. It wasn't a sign of his wife's excellent baking or the smell of coconut; it was the odour of plot. He shook his head and left the bass guitar standing against the wall. Evelyn wore her satisfied-with-myself smile as she stirred the buttercream frosting and he knew she was up to no good – again. "Coconut cake?" He asked.
"Yes." She flashed another smug smile.
"Six-layer coconut cake?"
"No, just four." She stated simply.
The siren in his mind wailed; this wasn't his cake or Taylor's – it was for Bella. "You're doing it again."
"Doing what?"
"Starts with M. Rhymes with peddling."
She tapped her lips with her fingers. "I don't know that word."
"Meddling, Ev. You're meddling. Again. And we all know what happened last time."
Evelyn's eyes reduced to slits, petty slits from being called out by the one who she thought was always supposed to be on her side. "That wedding was bea-u-tiful. Even Rosie said so and she's never happy for anybody."
Gregory realised he'd already ruffled her feathers so there was no use in biting his tongue now. "Let me remind you: Joss had a panic attack,"
"But-"
"A deer lost its life, Reggie Senior took a bullet to somewhere I'd rather not mention, and if Joss ever finds out about your plan you won't have a grandson left to hook up with his ex-girlfriend…lovely as she may be. Stop yourself now, Evelyn."
She shrugged her shoulders, bearing only 16 of her years. "Can't. Already invited her."
There were only three words for his exasperation. "Lord have mercy."
"He needs this, Greg. You don't understand. If he stays with Zahra and they'll be married two weeks after graduation."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because Joss and Paul did it. And CeCe and Reggie did it. And we have a habit of marrying early in this family; especially to people running from something."
He took a deep, deep, deep breath to find reason in the situation. "I know you're trying to pull him out of it." She nodded emphatically, thinking she had won his over to her side of thinking. "But this will help him out the frying pan into the fire. You know that flame never went out." He looked at his watch. "George asked to me take over his 1pm class. Some kind of emergency. Coming?"
She shook her head. For once, Evelyn felt the hot flash of self-doubt and she didn't like the feeling or the man who gave it to her.
2.01pm, Tom's Diner, New York
Shaw didn't know if what she was doing was gossip or just passing the time because John took the last number and the banjo player took himself off standby. In other words, she was bored, and being bored made her nosy. So nosy she went through Baby Girl Morgan's medical records and Zoe's email and phone records just because. With Fusco in New Jersey with Lee, it was odd for them to be alone together.
"Same old Shaw." Joss said, as half her toasted roast chicken sandwich disappeared off her plate. "I can order for you too, you know."
"I thought you did." Shaw replied with her mouth half-full. "Anyway, you want the lowdown or not?"
Joss didn't know what she was jumping into. "I don't know. I guess. Go ahead."
"It's a girl." Shaw said with the tact of a lead balloon. "No name yet.
Maya for a girl and Maxwell for a boy. Joss got a sinking feeling in her stomach. "Oh. So...umm…it's early right?" It all felt so long ago but it wasn't really.
"Yeah. She has RDS – Respiratory Distress Syndrome – it means has trouble breathing. You know, preemie, NICU, lungs."
"Right." Joss didn't know what else to say because somewhere inside she felt for Zoe, even though she broke girl code and asked something outlandish of her husband. It didn't matter so much in comparison. "So who's there? I mean, besides Finch."
Shaw tore two sugar sachets open and put them in Carter's coffee even though she only took it with cream. Joss gave up the hot drink without a fight like lunch money in a playground. "No-one. Her assistant quit, good thing since she's somewhere flashing guys at Spring Break."
Joss was confused by something important. "But her mom's alive. So where is she?"
"On a juice fast. I mean it, look-" She read the message aloud. "Currently on yoga retreat - I'll be there asap."
"That puts things into perspective." Joss' smartphone vibrated with Sergeant Pullido's call. "Gotta go – interrogation."
"Shouldn't you be happy or something? I mean, you won. She got what she wanted and she's out of your hair."
Shaw's logical explanation had no bearing on the emotions at play; emotions she couldn't understand. "No-one won. And no-one wants this. Later Shaw."
4.21pm, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Queens
Taylor never thought he'd be spending Spring Break doing things he did in High School, but Jeremy and the State of Virginia had drained him of the energy to do much except think. And one person took up most of his thoughts. Her hair smelt like peaches, her t-shirt had the lyric "Isn't it ironic?" on it, and her teeth still flashed when she smiled. He didn't need help or confection to ricochet into his not-so-old feelings. And her response to his brief recount of the Virginia trip hung the moon. "It could be worse, at least nobody got shot."
7.13pm, 8th Precinct
After four hours in interrogation with periodic breaks, Joss came out to a sight she didn't understand. There were only three people at their desks; Laz the Police Aide, Officer Tremaine who had a broken ankle and Sergeant Devoe who was too old to move that fast. She followed the noise to the parking lot where Foster, the Dutch Shepherd and sniffer dog for Narcotics, had bitten a chunk from the back seat of Noguerra's car. She would have said she didn't understand, if Finch's mysterious treasure hunt phone call hadn't come to mind, or if Noguerra wasn't wearing the same "why is this happening to me?" facial expression he had when John staged the dognapping of his beloved family dog. John. John. Damnit…