V.
Jack Malone was trying his best, but he couldn't concentrate on the paperwork he was supposed to fill out. The letters kept blurring before his eyes and his mind kept wandering off. He was thinking about the youngest member of his team.
He had hired Danny at the age of only twenty-five – eight years ago from now – against a lot of people's advices. But so far Danny had never really proved him wrong. Of course, he was a bit impulsive sometimes – that didn't have that much to do with his age, though, it was just the way he was – but he was a good, capable agent; courageous and intelligent.
Malone's Golden Boy – as they used to call him in the office. Behind Jack's and Danny's back of course but everybody knew since it was actually a badly kept secret.
Partly because of that Jack had never really understood Danny's reaction to Martin joining the team. Why Danny had felt so threatened by the other man – who was almost a year older than him, but way less experienced.
After wondering for a while Jack had finally put down Danny's bad attitude towards Martin as simply a sign of envy, considering who Martin was – son of the Deputy Director of the FBI – and what background he'd come from. Danny himself had had a difficult childhood and had had to learn how to take care of himself at a rather young age – that was part of why Jack had hired him – while Martin always had his parents to watch over everything he was doing and tell him which way to go.
Can't have been always easy, either, Jack thought. Martin's father for instance – that much Jack knew – had wanted his son to go into politics. Martin had tried that direction for a while but had then decided to join the FBI – which probably his parents' hadn't liked – when he was twenty-nine and a little more than two years later had joined Jack's team – which definitely Danny hadn't liked…
However, after a difficult start, the two unlike men had become friends eventually, and Jack knew that Danny had been very shaken up by what had happened to Martin.
But was it just that?
That was the part Jack was still trying to figure out. Danny's behaviour had been strange, lately; more impulsive than usual, nervous and very irritable. He'd asked the Bureau's psychologist for help, but she had told him there wasn't much she could unless, unless Danny would cooperate.
"I can't see anything unusual about his behaviour, anyways, Jack."
"You haven't noticed anything? Because to me it seems he's not quite himself lately."
"Well, if he isn't, he's good at hiding it from me. I have to tell you I can't help if he doesn't open up to me."
"So what am I supposed to do?"
"I don't know. That's all up to you now because all I can say is I'd clear him."
So Jack had talked to Vivian about it, asking her for help, when he'd visited her a few days before she'd returned to work – and he hadn't liked what she had told him:
"You know, he's worked hard over the last couple of month, and you also know I still think he was too young when you hired him, and so I guess, it's possible he was burnt out, even before the ambush. Especially with all that trouble he's been going through, with his brother back in jail and all. And now added that he's probably suffering from post traumatic stress after the ambush it's no wonder he's not himself."
So was it maybe partly his – Jack's – fault?
Was there anything he could have done? Or could still do?
"He may just need a few days off."
"I suggested that. He didn't want it."
"… and you won't force him, I get it."
"You want me to suspend him or what?"
"No, of course not, but you could try and talk some sense into him."
"He'd rather listen to you, wouldn't he?"
"I tried. You've got the authority of being the boss."
"Yeah, and he'll probably take it all wrong… – given how Danny had reacted to being assigned to the Bradfort case Jack knew he had a point there – …no, I'll just leave him alone, maybe get him another appointment with Dr. Harris..."(which he would probably not attend to, but Jack didn't say that) "He should get over it sooner or later."
That had been a week ago. And Danny hadn't yet showed any signs of improvement. In fact, judging by his appearance he was only getting worse. Jack had seen him that morning on his way in; much to his surprise Danny had already been heading out of the office again.
And he hadn't even greeted his boss.
Jack had wondered if maybe Danny hadn't seen him, but after thinking it through, he was almost sure that younger man had just pretended to not having seen him.
After all, Jack had got a chance to get a good at his agent and had started to worry that maybe, Danny was getting ill – physically ill – now, as well. At least, he definitely hadn't looked well that morning; definitely paler than usually – and maybe thinner as well?
Or was it just Jack's guilty conscious talking? Maybe he was just imagining it? Because he felt bad about giving Danny that new assignment he'd been so angry and unhappy about?
Unable to bear all those nagging maybes any longer, Jack rummaged through the paperwork that had piled up on his desk until he found the little note with the telephone number. Hopefully it would provide the possibility of getting at least a few answers. Picking up the phone he dialled the number and waited, impatiently, for an answer.
………………
Sighing, Lilly surrendered to the adamant noise of her ringing cell phone: "Rush."
"Hi… um… it's Jack Malone. Agent Taylor's boss."
Lilly grinned. "I still remember who you are, Sir", she said and couldn't help the amusement that was probably detectable in her voice as well. "What can I do for you?"
"I… uh… was wondering if you could meet with me."
She hesitated a moment. Why the hell would he want to see her? "Just me?" she finally asked.
"Yes."
"Okay… we're… we're on our way to the office anyway so I guess it wouldn't be a problem." As she hung up she gave Taylor a glance and he was looking back at her, curiously.
"That was your boss", she explained, confused. "He wants to speak to me."
"Probably wants to control if I'm cooperating with you." He frowned.
Now Lilly was even more confused.
Meanwhile, they were, indeed, on the way to the office. Scotty had promised to fax them the full report on the autopsy and so Lilly had given him Taylor's fax number. It was a cold morning, given the time of the year, and it was raining, too – just like it had been for days. But other than being pissed off by the weather Lilly was in a good mood.
The only thing that was beginning to bother her was that call she had just got from Agent Malone. She wouldn't have been surprised if he'd inquired about their investigation, but she would have expected him to call up his agent and ask him.
Something was going on – she couldn't put her finger on it but there was something – something that she wasn't supposed to know. She gave Taylor another curious look, but – after having seen him smile considerably often that morning – she had to experience his face being expressionless once again. Just like when she'd first met him.
Not for the first time that morning, she wondered what was going on behind those well-guarded features, those intelligent, dark, almost black eyes. One thing, though, Lilly was pretty sure about, was that Taylor, too, was bothered by his boss' request, probably a lot more than he let on.
Whatever it was, she was going to find out. She was a detective, after all, and it was her job to uncover people's secrets – and she would uncover this one.
………………
Agent Malone was a less impressive looking man than Lilly had imagined him to be after hearing his voice on the phone. He was sitting behind his desk when Lilly entered his office; a dark-haired man in his mid-forties, eyes the same dark colour as Taylor's but a softer look in them, as he eyed her curiously through his reading glasses.
He got up from his seat just slightly to shake Lilly's hand before he sat down again and politely asked her to have a seat as well.
"Thanks", she simply said.
"So… how's it going?"
"Yeah, well… I think you could say we're making some progress." She was about to tell him what they'd found out so far, but hesitated. He wasn't quite content with her answer; she could easily tell that by the look on his face, even though she hardly knew him yet. So, with raised eyebrows she waited but nothing happened.
"Sir?"
He just looked at her.
Damn it, the man was difficult. "Something else you wanted to ask me?"
"Yes… actually I was wondering… are you… are you getting along?"
"What – me and Agent Taylor? – Yes. Why wouldn't we?"
"Just curious. So… tell me about the case."
Lilly resisted the urge to shake her head and simply asked: "Sir, may I ask you what this is all about?"
"Nothing really. I just want to get an update on your investigation. I need to keep informed on what's going on."
"With all due respect, Sir, why ask me and not Agent Taylor?"
"I just wanted to meet you."
Really?
Lilly was getting angry. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was here because Malone wanted to check on his agent, but why? What was it that neither Malone nor Taylor wanted to tell her? She really didn't know if she wanted to play this little game much longer.
Neither of them said anything for what could only have been one or two minutes but felt like an awfully long time to Lilly.
"So… any news on Amy Bradfort?" Malone finally continued their odd conversation.
Stifling a sigh – just in time before it came out a very impolite way – Lilly told him what they knew. It wasn't much, but Malone knitted his brows when he heard about the results of the autopsy.
"So… there's a chance we have a case of mistaken identity here?" he finally asked.
"It seems so. I just don't understand how it could have happened."
"You know what strikes me about it?"
She just waited for him to continue:
"After Amy Bradfort first went missing, we interviewed her mother during our investigation. She wasn't of much help to us back then because her and her daughter lost touch a while ago. She said that Amy started to withdraw herself from the people close to her – after her best friend committed suicide: Dina Larstrom. And she also said that Dina was exceptionally fond of her daughter – to the point of wanting to be like her."
"So…"
"You thinking what I'm thinking?"
Lilly couldn't help being a bit sceptical. "So, Dina murders Amy and takes up her identity?"
"Possible, isn't?"
"Well, I'm sorry but it does sound a bit farfetched, doesn't? I mean, somebody must have identified the body after they found her."
"True. But couldn't she have had an accomplice who verified the body was hers? Couldn't have been too difficult to make people believe that, if there was a suicide note. And – as you said – whoever was buried in that grave, it obviously wasn't Dina Larstrom."
"Well, it's possible." She cleared her throat. "You know what strikes me, Sir?"
He raised his eyebrows.
"Why hasn't Agent Taylor told me all this? He must have known, too."
With a sigh, Malone shook his head. "I don't know." He sounded beat. "I really don't know."
Lilly just nodded. Was this the reason why she was here? Because Malone had expected that Taylor wouldn't quite cooperate with her? She thought of Taylor's words earlier: Probably wants to control if I'm cooperating with you, and decided she would have to talk to him about that.
………………
Danny was sitting at his desk reading through the fax he'd received from Detective Valens. His mood had finally improved – especially since Sam was nowhere to be seen and they finally had a real lead to the case. The thought of Rush sitting in Jack's office probably, no, certainly talking about him made him feel a bit uneasy, though, but for now he'd pushed that to the back of his mind.
When he saw Rush approach with quick steps he waved the fax at her and greeted her with a grin.
"Your partner kept his promise. It's the full report on the autopsy and it confirms that the body isn't Dina Larstrom's."
"Great", Rush snapped, reaching for the piece of paper in his hand.
"Hey!" He was about to complain when he saw the anger visible on her face: "Something wrong?"
"Funny, how I could ask you the same, isn't it?"
"Ask me?"
"Yeah, ask you. I haven't found out, yet, why your boss seems to think it's necessary to ask me to come into his office so he could ask me how we're getting along, but I'm starting to think that maybe it's because you are either incapable of doing your job properly or not interested in solving this case."
"What are you talking about?"
"You know what the difference is between you and your boss?" She didn't even let him answer. "You see, he is collaborating in this with me."
"So that means I'm not?" Danny asked, feeling anger rise inside him as well. Great – second time he got involved in a stupid argument today and all of that before ten o'clock in the morning! And the people used to say he was good with women…
Danny groaned inwardly as he realised that Rush had even more to say: "Well, at least Agent Malone seems willing to share information with me. He told me things you should have told me long ago."
Danny froze at the thought of what Jack could have told her. "What kind of things?"
"Dina Larstrom, for example. Her exceptional fondness of her best friend Amy Bradfort. You came across that, when you were investigating Bradfort's disappearance, didn't you?"
Did we? Suddenly, Danny found it hard to remember much of that investigation. In fact he found it hard to concentrate at all and Rush hadn't even finished yet: "Maybe you're just stupid enough to think you can solve this all by yourself, but I rather think you're just not putting too much effort into it."
"I can't quite follow you…", Danny tried to defend himself, half-heartedly, but Rush cut him off:
"Don't bother. You're not taking this serious? You don't have to. But I do, because I got a job to do. So would you, please, excuse me, I have to call my partner."
Leaving him behind equally to how he'd left Sam behind, earlier, she turned on her heels and marched out of the office, cell phone pressed to her ear. Mouth slightly open in disbelief, Danny watched her slight frame disappear from his view before he even got the chance to say or do anything.
He ran a hand over his face. Things had started good between them that morning; he had no idea how that could have changed so quickly again, but right now he was too exhausted to even care.
………………………………………………………………
Author's notes: You may wonder why in this story Danny's younger than Sam and Martin. It's just because when I first started to watch the show (I missed the first few episodes), I always thought he was the youngest because he looked the youngest (which shouldn't be a surprise because the actor actually is the youngest ;-)
