Thank you for being so patient!
Jay always hated lawyers. Growing up, he knew they were successful and wealthy, and that he would have done his father proud if he chose to take a path that didn't involve shipping out to the desert, but that wasn't in the cards for him. He resented that his father even wanted him to do a job like that.
He hated them even more after working with the police. Watching bad people get away with crimes irked him to no end, and was something that honestly kept him up at night. Charlie's lawyer was the lowest of the low, known for protecting criminals from anything from petty theft to premeditated murder.
"You said you recognized Detective Lindsay's weapon, Detective," the lawyer, Charles Schmidt started, "From a chip in the plastic?"
"That's right," Jay replied, steeling his gaze. He could tell the sleezebag was gearing up for a fight, "I recognized the gun. Police issue."
"You're familiar with another detective's service weapon?"
"My partner's service weapon, yes," he shot back, "It's a gun I see every day."
"The gun of your girlfriend, too," Schmidt said, menacing lilt to his voice, "I would guess you see that weapon both at work, and at home."
"I didn't hear a question," Jay snapped, anger bubbling in his throat. This fucking guy.
"Let me rephrase. Detective Lindsay is also your girlfriend, who you live with, is that correct?"
"Yes," he replied shortly.
"But before she was your girlfriend, Detective Lindsay was faced with a few setbacks, wouldn't you say? Her original CI file has her listed for petty theft, intent to distribute, solicitation…the list goes on. Were you aware of your partner and girlfriend's previous life?"
"Yes," Jay growled, sensing the worst was coming, "I am aware of her past, but that is just it. Her past."
"Hm," Schmidt clucked his teeth, "My client has reason to believe the past is not so far gone. Were you aware that Detective Lindsay was in contact with Landon Vanak?"
"As a confidential informant," he said, swallowing his anger in an attempt to keep his cool, "He provided information in exchange for not going to jail."
"And her mother, Barbara Fletcher?"
"What about Bunny?" Jay gripped the sides of the chair. That woman put him on edge like nobody else, and the lawyer could tell.
"Ms. Fletcher has said that Detective Lindsay was aware of the fabricated plot for her kidnapping, and that she was the one who orchestrated it."
"That's rich," Jay snorted, "Bunny Fletcher and Charlie Pugliese worked together to harm my partner in an attempt at revenge. My partner was beaten and drugged within an inch of her life, and I know she had no involvement at all."
"How are you so sure that your partner had no involvement?"
"Detective Lindsay is my partner," he argued, "Our job requires us to be honest with each other, and I can tell you with certainty that she was blindsided. She was in the hospital for two days for crying out loud. Still is working through a variety of complications that your client inflicted upon her. I know my partner, and your allegations are baseless."
"How well do you really know your partner?" Schmidt taunted, "Her call records show several conversations with her mother, who you allege is part of this conspiracy."
"It's her mother." Jay resisted the urge to snap the chair handle in frustration. "For all of her shortcomings and history of bad behavior, Bunny Fletcher is Detective Lindsay's mother, someone who was supposed to protect her. Instead, she was willing to coordinate with a known criminal to draw out and kill a sergeant in the Chicago Police by using her own daughter as bait. I have Bunny Fletcher on recording admitting to being a part of this."
Schmidt paused as ASA Taylor introduced the recording from Jay's cell phone into evidence. Their original plan had been to avoid involving Bunny as much as possible given how unpredictable she could be, but there was no way around it. Schmidt had brought her up.
"Moving on," Schmidt continued, "Mr. Pugliese has said that Detective Lindsay willingly participated in recreational drug use while they were together." He steeled his gaze. "The drugs you referenced in your earlier statement were consensual."
"Bullshit," he hissed, immediately realizing that he was in court when ASA Taylor drew in a breath, and the judge looked less than pleased. "Sorry. That's a lie. My partner was drugged with date rape drugs, and nothing about it was consensual. I was with her when she had the rape kit. I saw the bruises all over her body." Jay swallowed, trying to compose himself. The memory of Erin's battered body was forever burned in his brain, and it nearly brought him to tears thinking about it.
"You, as detective, from the Chicago Police, were in the room with an alleged victim during a medical procedure? What else has the department been involved in? Who's to say this isn't an extensive cover up by the Chicago Police Department?"
"I was there in my capacity as her partner," Jay replied firmly, "Detective Lindsay is a part of the Chicago Police, and was targeted by your client, beaten and drugged by your client, and nearly killed, by your client. Nothing about her past or current relationships warranted any of the abuse she endured."
Schmidt glowered at him, and Jay knew it was finally over for him. "No further questions."
Jay had seen his partner on the stand several times. She was a textbook excellent witness – calm, cool and collected. She had quick answers, and was sharp, sometimes sassy but always, always on her game. It was usually he who found themselves nervous and easy to unravel on the stand, but not Erin. In fact, it was almost a running joke between them, because more often than not if both of them were witnesses, the state's attorney would always call Erin.
He barely recognized his girl as she sat rigidly in the witness stand, and raised her right hand. She was trembling, ever so slightly, and Jay's heart ached. She was trying so hard to be brave, but in the days after her abduction, he recognized the tell-tale signs that she was barely holding it together.
After his testimony, Jay exited the building and took a deep breath of chilly fall Chicago air. He wasn't permitted back into the waiting room, but all he wanted to do was hug his partner, and tell her that everything would be okay. After the cross examination by Schmidt, he was dreading watching his fragile better half experience the same thing.
His partner was pale, paler than he'd left her in the waiting room. Her eyes darted across the gallery, taking in all the people, acutely aware of every noise. When she found his gaze, her shoulders dropped ever so slightly in relief. Jay gave a small and encouraging smile. He was so proud of her.
"Can you state your name for the record, please?" Taylor requested, doing his best to be gentle. In his conversation with the sergeant and the recollection from the other detective, he knew just how anxious the woman on the stand in front of him was.
"Erin Lindsay," Erin said, her voice steady. She could do this.
"And what is your current occupation?"
"I'm a detective with the Chicago Police, in the Intelligence Unit." She took a breath when Jay nodded. She was so glad he was there, and that she could see him.
"Thank you, Detective Lindsay. Can you take me through what happened to you the week of the ninth of this month?"
Erin nodded. "I uh, I got a text message from a confidential informant who I had worked with before. He said he had intel on some guns being brought into Chicago, and asked if we could meet. He gave a good tip a few months back, and I didn't have a reason to be concerned." She took in another breath. "I-I arrived, and I knew something was off, since he wasn't giving me anything. I turned to get into my car but then I felt myself get hit hard on the back of my head, and everything went black."
Taylor nodded, "And what is the next thing you remember?"
"I came to, and my head was killing me. My wrists and ankles were bound, and I had a gag in my mouth." Erin shuddered slightly at the recollection, "I was in a basement, on the floor, a-and it was really dusty. I heard someone come down the steps and recognized him to be Charlie Pugliese."
"You knew him?"
"Yes. I-I knew him growing up, he was someone I used to spend time with. He was older than me, I was probably thirteen at the time but he was good to me, at first. Kept the heat on when my mother was unable to care for us but uh, he was really manipulative. He got me into some bad stuff before I got out of that life when I was sixteen. He didn't like that. He came back in town a few years ago, and was involved in attempting to blow up a building. I thought he was still in prison but," her breath hitched, "I knew his voice the second I heard it."
"Mr. Pugliese has alleged that you reached out to him, to orchestrate a pretend kidnapping, in conjunction with your mother." The lawyer was attempting to be gentle, but the allegation was severe.
Jay watched as Erin's eyes widened. How he wished he could have warned her and protected her. "That's a lie," she spat, her voice as menacing as she could manage, "I hadn't spoken to him in years. I've tried to separate myself from my mother for years. I-I wouldn't have asked for anything he did to me."
Erin drew in another shaky breath, "He-he beat me, knocked me out cold on multiple occasions. I almost had my spleen removed, and I can barely walk across my apartment without excruciating pain. I-I can't sleep, or eat, or do anything myself. I wouldn't have ever asked for this."
"Mr. Pugliese has said that you participated in recreational drug use-"
"He dosed me," Erin interrupted, "He gave me a bagel that had GHB in the cream cheese, forced me to eat it. The drugs showed up in my bloodwork. I didn't willingly take anything." She stopped, doing her best to slow her rapid heart rate, "I-I've been scared to eat anything since."
Jay felt like he'd been stabbed. His poor girl. He knew just how bad it was, but every time she released another piece of the traumatic experience and the impact it had on her psyche, it broke his heart.
Taylor nodded. "Do you remember anything else?"
"He had a gun," she said, "I heard someone come down the steps, I-I didn't realize it was my partner, and my team. I saw my partner, but then I saw Charlie, with a baseball bat and a gun, ready to shoot him." Erin coughed, her voice cracking ever so slightly, "I remember I screamed and then he fell to the ground. My-my partner untied me and carried me out of the basement, and I remember never being so relived in my life."
"Thank you, Detective Lindsay," Taylor said kindly, "No further questions."
Erin nodded and shakily took a sip of the water. All she wanted was her hands to be steady, but they couldn't stop vibrating. She self-consciously adjusted the blazer and court top that were rubbing against her stitches uncomfortably. She couldn't wait to go home.
Jay drew in a breath when Schmidt rose from his seat. His girl instinctively recoiled in her chair, and he felt his own heart rate increase. She'd only been around men she was familiar with in the days following her abduction, and the lawyer's aggressive stance had all the alarm bells going off in Jay's head.
"You and Mr. Pugliese were once involved in a romantic relationship, is that correct?" Schmidt started, narrowing his gaze at the detective.
Erin swallowed and searched for Jay's gaze. He gave a small nod, hoping his eyes could convey all he wanted to say.
I love you.
You're being so strong.
I'm so proud of you.
You can do this.
"I met him when I was thirteen," Erin said, "He introduced me to drugs and booze, and convinced me to start selling drugs to keep the lights on in our apartment. He said I owed him."
"But you were involved in a romantic relationship?"
"I was thirteen," she replied, "He was in his twenties. He paid the bills that my mother couldn't. I-I was loyal to him, but I was also a child." She swallowed, "I wouldn't call it a relationship, because I didn't have another choice."
"Hm," Schmidt shrugged, shuffling the papers on his desk, "You were also in a romantic relationship with Mr. Vanak, a few years ago, isn't that right?"
"Briefly," Erin managed, "It wasn't a relationship. We were friends when we were kids."
"So you had, for all intents and purposes, romantic relations with both Mr. Vanak, and Mr. Pugliese, and relationships, both romantic and non-romantic, going back fifteen years?"
Erin took a shaky breath when ASA Taylor gave her a nod. "Y-yes."
"And in those romantic relationships, what was the nature of your sexual relationship?"
Jay's heart stopped as Erin's face paled further. He knew the cross examination was going to be difficult, but he hadn't anticipated the lawyer would stoop so low. His partner was now visibly shaking.
"Objection," Taylor jumped in, "Relevance?"
"It speaks to a pattern," Schmidt argued, "If Detective Lindsay is claiming that her encounter with Mr. Pugliese was rough and abusive, we should know if this is consistent with her previous relationships."
"Your honor," Taylor said in exasperation, "There is no precedent for this degree of interrogation."
The judge nodded. "Move along, Mr. Schmidt."
Erin gripped her hands together tightly as the lawyer shuffled his papers again. She couldn't believe that Charlie was claiming her kidnapping was of her own orchestration, and that her experience was consensual. She coughed, and her lungs burned.
"You mentioned that Mr. Pugliese introduced you to drugs," Schmidt said, "What types of drugs did you use?"
"I didn't choose to use any drugs when he kidnapped me," Erin snapped angrily, "He dosed me with a date rape drug."
"Let me rephrase. When you knew Mr. Pugliese previously, before the alleged kidnapping, what types of drugs did you use?"
Erin swallowed again, her mouth dry. "Uh, marijuana. Cocaine. Pills, I-I don't remember. It was a long time ago and I don't do that anymore." She swallowed yet again, her mouth feeling like it was full pennies, like she was going to vomit, "I haven't for a long time."
"But you are on drugs right now, yes?"
"No," she spat back, "I'm not. I am fully sober, and lucid." Erin coughed again.
"Your hospital records submitted by the state shows that you were prescribed some pain relief-"
"After I got out of the hospital with stitches in my stomach," Erin growled, "And with bruised ribs and a lung infection that makes it hard to breathe, but I stopped taking them after a day and a half because they made me sick. The only medication I've taken, that I was prescribed, is a non-opioid. It's administered by my partner, and highly regulated by a doctor. I haven't had any medication in over twenty four hours."
"Do you have a drug problem?" Schmidt asked, almost in a teasing way.
Jay nearly jumped out of his seat. The nerve on the fucking lawyer had his nails digging into his palm as he tried to keep his composure for Erin's sake.
"I'm cautious," she said, "I am a detective, I need to be cautious, and I trust my partner." She coughed again, "And as you can see, I haven't had any medication because I can't stop coughing from the lung infection I picked up in the basement where I was held for five days. If you'd like, I can show you the stitches, Mr. Schmidt."
It was the first half-smile Jay had managed all day. Underneath all the hurt and trauma, his girl was still the feisty Erin he knew and loved. "That won't be necessary," the lawyer replied, "Did anyone prepare you for this testimony today?"
"I didn't need to prepare," she retorted, "I'm telling you what happened to me, and what I am currently living with as a direct result of your client's abuse." Erin let out a breath that thankfully wasn't followed by a cough. Exhaustion was settling in, and she was ready to be done.
"The story you and your boyfriend have constructed-"
"We haven't constructed anything. I have no reason to lie to you." Erin winced when she inadvertently shifted in the chair, aggravating her stitches.
"No reason to lie? You allege that Mr. Pugliese conspired with your very own mother to orchestrate a kidnapping of a Chicago Police Detective in an attempt to harm your boss, who happens to be a sergeant with a laundry list of complaints against him. This screams cover up to me."
"My mother barely raised me," Erin gritted out, "She welcomed Charlie into our home when I was a child, and was complicit everything he did to me then. She resents my boss for helping me escape that life, and hates the fact that I don't need her, or want her. There is nothing to cover up, I have told you the truth." She couldn't help but cough again, and shakily lifted the glass of water to her lips.
Erin found Jay's eyes yet again. He was silently begging her to take a breath, to calm down and regain control. It was as if he could sense just how fast her heart was pounding, and how tight her chest had gotten. She closed her eyes and attempted a breath, but it wasn't enough.
"Detective Lindsay," Schmidt started, taking a step closer to the witness stand. He narrowed his gaze as she shifted backwards, panic rising in her throat. In an instant, everything started to unravel. Erin let out a gasp and another choking cough as she shook her head, internally screaming at her body to get it together. "Am I making you nervous?"
That did it.
Erin's vision blurred and she coughed again. She was suddenly so hot. Kim's borrowed airline pants stuck to her body uncomfortably, and the polyester blend blouse caught on her stitches. Her chest ached, and the lawyer's face swam as she tried to find her partner's eyes again.
Jay jumped up from his seat when the judge banged the gavel. He couldn't hear anything beyond the fact that Schmidt was getting reprimanded, and that court was adjourned. He was functioning on autopilot as he pushed past the other people in the gallery who were getting up to exit, intent on closing the gap between him and his partner as quickly as he could.
Erin remained in the witness stand, trying to regain control of her breath. ASA Taylor was speaking to her in a gentle, low tone, but none of his words were getting through. "We've got everything we need," he said to Jay as the detective escaped the throngs of people, "You both did great."
He nodded in response, entirely focused on getting his partner out of dodge and breathing properly. "Er," he said carefully, pulling open the wooden gate on the witness stand, "Let's go home, okay?"
Jay gently touched her arm, wincing as his girl recoiled at his touch. "It's just me," he whispered, "We're getting you out of here, right now."
His heart clenched when her eyes found his. "Hi," Jay tried again, "You ready?"
Finally, she nodded. Jay let out a breath, and held out a hand, which she shakily took. "Sorry," she croaked to the lawyer.
Taylor shook his head quickly. "You did great, detective. Really. Their case is baseless, and everyone knows it. Their questions were disorganized, disconnected and inappropriate, and I'm fully confident in our case against Charlie. I hope you're able to get some rest."
Jay nodded gratefully and helped his partner to her unsteady feet. "Thanks," he said on both of their behalf, "Careful, there's a step, Er."
Erin let out a breath as soon as they exited the courtroom, and leaned into Jay heavily. "You did such a good job," Jay praised, gently rubbing his girl's back as she trembled, "It's over now."
"I want to go home," she said weakly, stumbling slightly as she took a step, "I-I need to get out of here, I can't breathe."
"Okay," he said quickly, lacing his hands behind her back to keep her upright, "We're getting out of here, right now."
Erin gave a feeble nod before drawing in a sharp breath, and punctuating it with a painful cough. She drew in another, her lungs burning in protest. "We're going to get you some cough and pain meds as soon as we get home," Jay promised as he pushed open the door to the parking garage, "And maybe a muffin or two?
Tears pricked at her eyes before she could stop them. "I-I need to stop," she said in a gasp, stopping short in the middle of parking garage, "Jay, my stomach-ah!"
"What happened?" Jay immediately turned to his partner, her features twisted in anguish. She bit her lip, hard enough to draw blood and shook her head violently.
"It hurts," she managed, "I-I feel like I'm going to tear them." Tears trickled down her cheeks, "I don't want to go back to the hospital or have Will do them, I can't go backwards, I can't."
"Okay, hold on just a second," Jay said, doing his best to keep his voice even. Erin was rapidly unraveling after an incredibly emotional and taxiing experience, and he could feel her spiraling out of control beneath his palms. "What if I took a look, and then we can go from there? It's been several days, I don't think you would have torn them-"
"I threw up before the testimony," she whimpered, almost guiltily, "I-I didn't want you to worry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry-"
"Hey, hey, you're okay," he assured her, stroking her cheek lightly with cool fingertips, "You don't need to apologize. It was a really tough day, and we're going to get you home and feeling better soon, I promise. We're almost to the car, maybe it would help if we pushed the seat back? I can take a look here, or we can wait til we get home, and I can give Will a call if we need."
Erin sniffed and managed a nod, grasping Jay's hand with shaking fingers. "Sorry."
Jay kissed the top of her head and let his lips linger. "You've been through a lot today," he whispered gently, "It's going to be okay."
"I'm really glad you were there," she replied softly, looking up at her partner with damp hazels, "It helped."
"Good," Jay murmured, feeling his girl shiver slightly at the chill in the parking garage, "Are you okay to take it slow to the Sierra? I can also bring the car around-"
"I want to stay with you," she said immediately, gripping the jacket he was wearing tighter, "I can walk, I-I think I just needed a minute."
The relief was palpable as soon as Erin was settled on the couch, back in a pair of Jay's sweatpants and sweatshirt. As Jay expected, her stitches were still fully intact, and the benefit of the medication helped quickly. The drama of the morning had caused his girl to be completely on edge for hours on end, and he knew that the second she was out of the courthouse and by his side, her subconscious relaxed, allowing her to fully feel all the pain and ache from skipping the meds. As much as it pained him to see Erin not feeling well, he was grateful that she felt safe enough with him to let herself feel what she needed to."I kinda fell apart at the end there," she mumbled when Jay sank beside her on the couch, "He-he really got under my skin."
"He's an asshole," Jay replied, his voice carrying more venom than he originally intended. He was trying to be measured when talking to his fragile partner, but Charlie's lawyer had pushed him to the edge. "You handled him really well. Better than I did, trust me. I swore on the stand. I swear the judge's eyes nearly fell out of his head."
She sniffed and settled closer into his shoulder. He dropped a kiss on top of her head. "It sounds like you're breathing a bit easier now. Are you feeling better?"
Erin nodded. "Part of me wishes the pills didn't help," she whispered, "So I wouldn't have to take them. I-I hate that they could use that against me."
"You handled it so well," Jay repeated, "And Taylor said they have no case. Their questions were disconnected and made little sense. There's the recording of Bunny, the video of Charlie, not to mention how badly he hurt you." He instinctively held her closer.
"I'm really glad you could be there." Erin snaked her hands beneath Jay's shirt, feeling his warm skin on her fingertips, "I-I wouldn't have made it if it wasn't for you."
"You're so much stronger than you give yourself credit for," he murmured into her hair, "I'm so, so proud of you, babe. Today wasn't an easy one."
Erin let out another breath, her lungs feeling far less squeezed than they had earlier that day. "Can we just stay here for the rest of the day?" she asked meekly, settling her head on his chest, "It's helping."
"Whatever you need," he promised, "I'm not going anywhere."
Erin startled awake against Jay's chest, the sharp buzz of his cell phone ripping her from the much-needed dreamless sleep. Her partner's brow was pinched as he read from the screen.
"What's wrong?" she asked, pulling back slightly in the anticipation of bad news, "What happened?"
Jay exhaled heavily. "He's dead, babe," he said gently, "Had a blood clot and stroked out." He reached a hand out and ran his fingers over her cheek, "It's over."
It was over.
Fifteen years of manipulation and trauma and pain trickled down Erin's cheeks as relief flooded in her veins.
It was finally, finally over.
Thank you for sticking with me! There's one more after this I think, unless my inspiration gets carried away.