CHAPTER 29-COPPING OUT

Walking out of her bedroom, Jessica noticed Lena sitting on the couch, kicking her legs in the air. "Hey...Is it cool if I take you to school?" She asked knowing she wouldn't have a problem with it.

She jumped up with a smile on her face in order to hug her. "I thought Daddy was going to take me. That's what Uncle Pope said"

Pope had been standing in the kitchen area, eyes locked on her. It was clear as to what when on and he was already casting judgement. Jessica could feel his eyes burn into her; it was a feeling she was having trouble ignoring. Her attention was focused on Lena, but she took a glance at him in order to get him to stop.

"I mean, he can if you want him to, but I thought I'd take you. You get to ride in my Jeep with the top down again"

Lena's face lit up when she said that, something that she hadn't done often. Jessica did everything she could to make Lena feel wanted, the opposite of what Baz was doing. It was nice having another girl in the family and it was clear that she and Catherine didn't get along. Lena wasn't only her niece, she was family.

"Where is Baz anyway?" Pope asked she, knowing that she was going to keep ignoring him. "She's going to be late if you keep talking"

Jessica didn't want to get into any argument with Pope, so she moved over to the front door and ripped her keys off its hook. She guided Lena outside before looking over her shoulder at Pope. He moved past her, nearly knocking her over when she took a glance towards the bedroom. Pope was right, Baz never appeared, and she couldn't figure out why.

After Lena hopped into her Jeep, she made sure she was hooked in before pulling out of the parking lot. Jessica occasionally peeked in the back seat to see if she was alright. It wasn't that she was acting differently, she just wanted to make sure things were okay.

"How is school? Uncle Pope told me that you really like art class" Flipping her turning signal on, she turned the corner before stopping behind some traffic.

Lena had been rolling down the back window an inch before looking up at the front. "It's okay, I'd rather stay with Grandma Smurf because she bakes things all the time. I want to be a painter when I get older"

"A painter? That's pretty cool, maybe you'll be the next Van Gogh" Jessica told her and glanced in the rearview mirror. Lena's face filled with confusion and for a moment, the elder Cody forgot who she was talking to. "I used to like painting. I don't do it anymore, but I always enjoyed doing so"

"What's your favorite color? I like green...Grandma Smurf thinks I like the color pink, but I hate it. She always buys me pink teddy bears. My outfit is even pink"

"My favorite color is sea green, or I think it's called seafoam. Aqua is a pretty color too" Jessica pulled ahead to another stop light so she turned around to look at Lena. She did have on a light pink shirt with magenta colored jeans. "Wow, she really decked you out, didn't she? I'll make sure to have your Dad pack clothes that Grandma Smurf didn't buy"

As Jessica had been approaching the school, she clicked her phone on in order to see the time. Lena was going to be late no matter how quick she drove. "Hey Lena, can I ask you a question? Will you be honest with me about it?" She asked her the second she pulled up right out of the school.

The little girl nodded her head, staring at the back of Jessica's seat. "I know you've been having a hard time with your Mom being gone and everything but...You know I would do anything for you, right?" She nodded again in response and Jessica turned the engine off. "Is Uncle Pope taking good care of you?"

"Yeah, he takes me places whenever he has to go places and Amy is really, really nice. I have friends at church now" Lena told her, making Jessica crack a faint smile. "Why doesn't my Dad like me?"

"What?" Jessica questioned a little too quickly before whipping around in her seat. "Who told you that he doesn't care about you?" Lena looked at her nervously and fiddled with her fingers. "It's okay Lena, you can tell me"

It wasn't a shock that Lena was picking up on how absent Baz was being in her life. Most of the time she was with Pope, then would sleep at Smurf's. In all honesty, it started making Jessica feel guilty for spending so much time with him. Jessica wasn't ever letting his bad parenting slide as she was always on his back for it. The problem with Baz was that it went in one ear and out the other.

"Grandma Smurf..." Lena said quietly but Jessica could hear her easily.

Turning back around in her seat, Jessica put her fingers to her temple and rubbed slowly. It shouldn't have surprised her that Smurf was saying things to Lena but for some reason it did. Despite Baz being an absent parent, he still cared for Lena. She bit her lip thinking something over before getting out of th keep. She walked over to her side; Lena was already unbuckled when she opened the door.

"You know that whatever she tells you isn't true, right?" She asked the little girl. Lena didn't look at her for a moment until they met eyes. "Lena, you know that your Dad cares about you, we all do. You have a family that cares about you and I promise you that it will never change. We'll always be here for you know matter what"

She backed away from the car to let Lena get out. After slamming the door shut, Jessica guided Lena towards the front of the school in order walk her inside.

"Excuse me, do you have a second?" A man asked from behind them which prompted Jessica and Lena to turn around at the voice. "Hi Lena, how are you doing?"

"I'm sorry but who are you?" The Cody sister asked the man with suspicion in her voice. She had never seen the man before in her life and wondered how he knew Lena. He was tall, dark skinned with a faded haircut. Sporting dark pants, a white T-shirt and black jacket, he looked between them before smiling.

"My name is Patrick Fischer, Detective at Oceanside police department. You're Jessica Cody, correct?" He asked, keeping his voice calm and cool.

Jessica didn't understand why a detective was showing up for the little girl, let alone at her school. She was in the dark about everything that transpired with Catherine as she wasn't home to begin with. Turning her head to look at Lena, she didn't answer him which prompted him to continue talking.

"I was wondering if I'd be able to ask Lena some questions. I thought maybe her Father would have been here, but I can get permission from a family member"

That statement made Jessica shake her head hard. A number one rule in the Cody family was to never make friends or talk to police. Even though Lena was a child, she still wasn't allowed to hang around anyone in law enforcement. It was clear that the guy already knew who she was from the get-go and that worried her.

"Yeah, that's not going to happen" She told him, turning the both of them around and started walking to the front of the school yet again. Reassuring the girl that everything was okay, she walked her to the door.

Jessica had hoped the detective would have disappeared as she had taken longer with Lena on purpose. Patrick however did not leave or even move an inch. She didn't know what to do because she had no idea why there was a cop waiting for Lena. Jessica knew Baz didn't know either as she would have heard something.

"You mind if I ask you a couple questions?" He questioned as she was walking back down the sidewalk in his direction.

"I actually have to be getting ready for work" She told him a little too quickly.

"It will only take a couple minutes, twenty tops" Patrick watched her closely as she stopped. "You can ride down with me or take your car, your choice"

Next thing Jessica knew, she was driving down to the Oceanside Police department. It wasn't her first time there as she remembered bailing Craig or Deran out. She followed behind him in her Jeep as there was no way she was going to ride with a cop. Whenever informed her what was going on at the same time, Jessica was interested.

Detective Fischer lead her through precinct before taking her into a cold and empty room. As Jessica pulled out the silver metal chair, she taken a look around the room. She had never been in a police department in her life, so it had been a first for everything. Out of all the Cody's, she was tied with J for not having a background. It was surprising due to her drug abuse, but she learned to stay hidden and out of trouble. Taking a seat quietly, it was uncomfortable. The entire room was colored grey with paint peeling on the corner of a wall. Jessica sat across from a large window which was a two-way mirror. The only objects in the room were the table, chair and folder that the Detective was holding.

"Why are you bringing me in for questioning?" She asked, watching him pull out the other chair.

"Please state your full name. That includes first, middle and last. Just so you know, everything is recorded on that camera in the corner..." The way he lingered the sentence made her question why she was really there. She knew better than to even start anything in a place full of police.

"Why don't you tell me why I'm really here because you already know my name" The Cody's were famous with the cops, mostly Craig who had the biggest record? Pope did the long with his prison time, but Craig beat him out by how many times he got caught.

"Once you cooperate, the faster this will go. Please state your name so I can continue with my questioning"

Throwing her hand up in the air, she shook her head heavily. "Jessica Janine Cody. Now what am I here for?"

"Thank you Jessica" Detective Fischer sat down slowly and took a deep breath. There was this underlying tension filling the air as he watched her as if she was going to sprint out. "So, you are the daughter of Janine Cody correct?"

"Clearly if we share the same name" Jessica told him before leaning back in her chair. She threw her leg over the other and proceeded to cross her arms over her chest. "I was born on May 13th, I'm a Taurus. I have four older siblings, one younger, a niece and a nephew. I graduated high school, got a nursing degree and have been to rehab six times. Anything else you'd like to know?"

Her entire speech made him chuckle before he rubbed his mouth. Jessica knew better than to even discuss anything with police and he should have known that. He leaned back as well, flipping through some pages before taking a look at her again.

"So...I haven't seen your brother locked up in a while, that's a first...Was it fun hitting up that church for the money?" He asked her calmly.

"Yeah, I heard about that. Pretty big church, right? If you think my family had something to do with it, you can guess again. We were all together that night so I think I could be a good alibi" Jessica told him, tightening her arms. They pulled that job off a while ago; she didn't understand why he was questioning her now.

"Your brother Pope was in prison after a robbery, correct? I mean, your brothers break into a place to rob it. He gets caught, does some prison time and now he's out. Old habits die hard..."

"Apparently they do" Jessica felt her phone buzz in her pocket but she didn't move to look at it. It was probably the clinic wondering where she was considering she decided to pick up a shift today. She opted to keep her eyes on him to show that she wasn't going to back down from his challenge.

Detective Fischer's dark eyes lingered towards her pants pocket after hearing the noise. "You gonna answer that?" He asked as Jessica shook her head no. "Isn't it a coincidence that you all happen to be together the night of a robbery? Most of your family have records with stealing and you expect me to believe that none of you pulled that?"

"Look Detective, I'm a registered nurse. I've been to school and I've held a job. Do you really think I'm going to risk that to do time in prison? I already told you that my brothers and I were together that night and we sure as hell didn't take almost half a million from a church"

If he thought Jessica was easy to break, she had another thing for him. The Detective hadn't ever handled any kind of case with a Cody family member. He assumed that he'd be able to get some sort of information from Jessica and break her enough to get it.

"Okay, well then what were you doing that night?" He questioned.

"We met at Deran's bar and then we went over to Baz's. Is that good enough for you?" She told him coolly.

"Interesting..." He grabbed the tan folder on the table again and focused his attention on it. Jessica wanted to take a peek at it, but she was leaning to far back. It piqued her interest and her nerves. "Baz is your brother, right?"

She nodded her head yes before narrowing her blue eyes towards him. He slipped a piece of paper out of it before sliding a picture towards her. "Then you must recognize who this is then. Go ahead, take a look"

Sliding the picture against the cold, silver table, Jessica didn't move an inch. Her eyes glanced down at it, but she knew who it was by the brown hair. She bit her lip before looking up at Detective Fischer. He nodded toward so Jessica sighed and leaned forward.

"It's Catherine, Baz's girlfriend" She said quietly, taking a hold of the picture. She had never seen it before, but it didn't stop her from looking it over. "Is this what you brought me here for?"

"Catherine Ortiz hasn't been seen or heard from in the last few months. Do you have any idea where she could be?"

She stared at the photograph for a few more seconds. Cath's disappearance wasn't talk about by anyone in the family. She had her own assumptions and believe that she decided o leave Baz for good. She used to threaten it all the time but the thing that bothered her was Lena. Catherine would have never left her daughter behind.

"I have no idea where she is. Actually, I haven't seen in a long time" The fight she had with Catherine over Baz floated into her mind. That was the last time she saw the family for a while as she headed to rehab shortly after that.

His face had filled with skepticism and Detective Fischer leaned towards the table. "You haven't? She's practically your sister in law but you haven't seen her?"

"What? You don't believe me?" Jessica fired back, leaning back once more in the chair. "I was in rehab a year ago, stayed in a sober house and kept to myself. When I came back around, I found out Cath was missing so no, I haven't seen her since we got into a fight at a party"

The last sentence slipped out of her mouth and Jessica nearly raised her hand to cover her mouth. That was the best part of being a detective, get the person angry enough and they'll start spilling secrets. Detective Fischer watched her shift in her chair, reached for the picture and put it back in the folder.

"So you two got into a fight? How long ago did this happen?" She now has no choice but to tell him a year ago in order to get her off of her tail. "Okay so you and Catherine get into a fight at a party and now she's nowhere to be found. What was the fight about?"

"Doesn't this get old? Interrogating people until you get what you want?" Jessica now asked him, knowing that she wasn't about to tell him anything. He shrugged at her remark but didn't answer. "It's none of your business"

"Was it about Baz?" The detective inquired with a hint of suspicion in his voice. He knew something was up between them, but Jessica was still playing it cool. "I'm curious to know how close you to are. He's your brother, correct?"

"Look, if your issue is finding Cath, I suggest focusing on that. I have nothing to do with her disappearance, neither does Baz or my family. My personal life is not any concern to you so unless you have to charge me with something, I'm out of here"

Jessica wasn't going to deal with questions her relationship with Baz. She had already dodged issues with Smurf, Lucy and now she was onto Pope. Everyone could have their suspicions and neither one of them were going to say anything. It clicked in her brain that Detective Fischer knew something was up between them which meant he had been holding a look out on the family.

"You were never charged with anything in the first place, so you were always free to go" He told her as Jessica stood up quickly from the chair. "It's interesting that the person you are closest to in that family is a suspect for his missing girlfriend. You Cody's really think you are untouchable, don't you?"

He also stood up from the table, popped the folder up to move the picture around but didn't even take a glance at her. The last sentence really rubbed her the wrong way as did the whole conversation in general. On top of being late for work, Jessica had to tell the family, let alone Smurf her run in with the police.

"You seem to think you have my family figured out" Jessica responded, keeping her hand on the door handle but turned in order to face him. "That we are such criminals who are greedy, hungry for money. Well guess what? You can continue to think you can take us down, but we are going nowhere. We are human and we are family at the end of the day. You come after us, you already know what happens"

"Is that supposed to be threat Jessica?" After talking the folder on the table, his eyes burned into her.

"You can take it however you want and then you can fuck off" Ripping the door open, Jessica made strides down the hallway, a few police glancing at her but she didn't take any time to pay attention to them. She was angry for unknown reasons but the whole thing made her become more aware of her surroundings.

Later that night, Jessica had pulled into Baz's driveway in order to talk about what happened. After it being a long morning, she wanted nothing more than sleep, but he wouldn't get off of her back if she cancelled. Jessica also didn't tell anyone else in the family about the situation and she wanted to let it die down for a day or two before telling Smurf.

More importantly, Jessica had other things to talk to Baz about and that was Lena. Her issue with the Detective was one thing but the little girl hadn't left her mind. It bothered her that Smurf told her that Baz doesn't car because it was the same thing she heard when she was little.

With a fresh set of clothes on, particularly just grey sweatpants and a white T-shirt, she knocked on the front door and waited to see Baz pop into view. He waved his hand for her to step inside and she quietly did, assuming Lena was with him for the night. He told her earlier that Smurf supposedly had plans, Pope had things to do yet again so she was going to be with him for the night. As Jessica moved in, she slid the door behind her closed before taking a peek into Lena's room.

She smiled faintly before reaching for the doorknob to shut the door. Even though Lena was sound asleep, Jessica didn't want to talk about anything in front of her. Baz had been cleaning up a couple of things in the kitchen, so she went to sit down at the breakfast nook.

"I see Lena made you make her pancakes again" Jessica commented, watching Baz grab a couple of plates.

Baz nodded at her before tossing them into the sink. "The sooner I get done, the quicker we can get to talking about whatever happened today"

"I think we've got more important things to talk about rather than me practically getting arrested"

The only reason he knew something was because Lena had told him that she had gotten arrested. Of course that hadn't been the truth but she was going to put in on the back burner for now. Jessica wondered if she should wait in order for him to finish but she was afraid that he was just going to blow it off. If Baz was distracted, things would be possibly be different because she had more important things on her mind. He glanced in her direction out of curiosity and waited for her to continue.

"You know what Lena said to me today? She thinks you hate her because you don't spend enough time with her. It really bothered me, and I sure hope that bothers you" She told him sternly before leaning back. Jessica looked towards him and watched him stop right next to the sink. "Come on, you can't be that surprised Baz"

He hadn't answered her as a few thoughts ran through his head. It was the truth, he hardly ever spent time with Lean or paid attention to her. Despite Jessica trying her best to make him realize it, it was Baz's choice on what to do. Taking a deep breath, he moved away to lean against the kitchen island in order to face her.

"You know I love Lena and she knows that. Where did she get that idea from? Was it Pope?"

"Who do you think told her that?" Jessica raised her eyebrows towards him before it clicked. "Yes, it was Smurf, Lena told me herself that it was she told her that…Will you promise me that you are going to start spending time with her? I'm just going to back off for a while and…"

Baz quickly cut her off and shook his head. "No, you don't need to do that. I'll figure something out. I'll talk to Pope about everything. Just give me time to figure things out, okay?"

"I'm serious, I want you to take care of her. Look, I know your angry right now over what Smurf and you're probably not caring what I'm saying now but I've been in her shoes. Before she took you in, or even after, she used to tell me that all the time. I'd ask her where my Dad was, and she'd tell me the same thing. I remember having bring your Dad to school day and I was the like the only kid in there without one. Smurf used to tell me that he didn't care about Deran or I, that he abandoned us and that he never cared. I don't even know what the guy looks like, I've never even saw a picture of him. Lena needs you because she doesn't have Cath around anymore"

The name nearly stung Baz and he moved back over to the sink. Jessica watched his reaction with confusion, and she leaned forward to see him past the cabinets. Any time she would bring her up, it never bothered him so clearly something was up. At the same time, Baz seemed a little distance the second she walked in the house.

"What is it? Did you find something out?" She asked him, watching the shift not only in his face but also his movement.

"I hired a guy to see if he could dig up anything on her, if there has been any trace of her but there hasn't. Did you know that she had a separate bank account? Twenty thousand dollars just sitting there"

The information shouldn't have surprised Jessica, but it did. At the same time, she didn't blame Catherine for hoarding money. It all came down to protecting herself as well as Lena and if Jessica were in the same shoes, she'd do the same. She looked out for herself her whole life so she couldn't blame Cath for the same thing. Lena was also a push to keep secrets. Jessica's eyebrows shot up and her eyes widened when she heard the piece of information, but it all started making sense now.

"Did Lena tell you what happened today after you picked her up from school?"

This momentarily distraction Baz from his thoughts on Catherine. "No, what happened? IS everything okay?"

"Well let's just say I got sent to a police station by a detective. He knows Lena, Baz. I don't know how but he greeted her first before he even paid attention to me"

It was now Baz's turn to look shocked as his blue eyes lit up in surprise. He shut the water off from the sink as he had been washing dishes and moved away from the kitchen. Glancing towards Lena's bedroom, the door was still closed as he had been double checking. Moving over towards Jessica, he rested his forearms on the chair across from her. "How would she know a detective?"

"I don't know, believe me I didn't understand it either. He wanted me to go down to the station, so I went because I wasn't going to look suspicious or anything" Not that Jessica was guilty of something, but it was bad enough police were lurking. "He started asking me about the church that you all robbed but I gave us alibis. Then out of no where he asked me about Cath. The last time I seen her, last time I talked to her. I slipped and said we got into that fight at Smurf's then he questioned me about you. He began wondering how close truly were so then I came to the conclusion that…"

"He's snooping around" Baz cut her off before she finished her sentence. It was the only way that the Detective would know if they were seeing one each other. Another possibility was if Catherine had been talking to him and spilling secrets. It would explain her disappearance but wouldn't explain why she left Lena. "Does he know anything?"

"It didn't seem like it by the questions he was asking me. I really don't want to ask you this but…" Jessica stopped talking and glanced down at the ground. She folded one leg in front of her before setting the other up. She placed her chin on her knee and glanced towards him. "You didn't do anything to her, right?"

"Are you kidding me Jess?"

"I'm just making sure because I really don't want to know that I'm sleeping with a murderer" She told him just taking precaution. Jessica didn't believe that Baz had anything to do with Cath's disappearance, but it did slip into her mind throughout the day. Despite Pope being the most unstable, Jessica just wanted to make sure.

Baz stared for a brief second. Out of all people, he didn't expect Jessica took look at him differently. Taking a deep breath, he thought about something that had been bothering his mind all day. "I didn't do anything to Cath, I would never hurt her. What I do know…She's dead"

"What?" Jessica furrowed her eyebrows after his last statement. In all honesty, she started wondered about it from the get-go but who would have had it out for her? She stayed true to the family unless she was really talking to the cops. "Baz, you don't really think…"

"She's dead Jessica! Where in the hell else would she be?" He yelled faintly before pulling away from the chair. "She's dead and that's the reason that Lena was left behind. I mean come on; she hasn't touched her twenty thousand dollars in her bank account. She hasn't come back for our daughter or even left a trail. She's dead, that's it"

Jessica quickly shushed him before raising her hand to her mouth thinking. It had been the first time that Baz showed any kind of emotion to her about Catherine's disappearance. She didn't care really about it either as it was hardly her concern or business. The only thing that bothered her was how much it affected Lena.

She sighed loudly herself before leaning back once more. ""Well it's not like she's going to wash up on the beach or anything like that" She commented lowly but knew that he heard her.

"What? Where did that come from?"

Shrugging her shoulders, Jessica responded. "I don't know, I read it in a story once. Believe me, the book was horrible…" She trailed off, looking at his back before he turned around to face her. "So, what do we do about this detective? I really don't want him showing up at the clinic or harass me with more questions"

"This isn't your problem; it all falls on me" He told her with seriousness in his voice.

"It is my problem because all of your shit is now falling on to me" She responded with the same tone. "You know I'm with you on this right?" The look on his face told otherwise. "You and I are a team. Whatever you're going, so am I"

The Cody's always had each other's back no matter the situation. The ride or die mentality was within all of them and since Jessica and Baz are together, it went even further with them. A faint smile appeared on Baz's lips as he walked over to her. He watched her for a minute before looking in for a quick, yet passionate kiss. When he pulled back, she had a smile now appearing on her face.

"We call Pope" He said simply, reached into his back pocket for his phone and began searching through his contacts.

"Call Pope? What is he going to do?" She asked him not understanding why they were dragging him into it.

"He'll handle it. How many times did he handle things when we asked him to? He can keep an eye on the detective for us because the guy isn't going to be after Pope. This way we know what he's doing"

Jessica had to give it to him, it did make sense. Pope was the most intimidating Cody, the most unhinged and the most trustworthy. If Detective Patrick was going to shut down by someone, it was going to be him. At the same time, she didn't want the others to know what happened, but it would come out in due time. She waited for him to make the phone call and it was a matter of time for him to appear.

When Pope arrived, Baz was finally sitting across from Jessica and they seemed like they were in a deep conversation. He wasn't sure what was going on, but it was something if the two of them were together. Even though a month had passed, he had his conclusions about the two of them staying together. When dropping Lena off a couple of times, he passed Jessica's famous blue jeep on the streets.

"What's going on?" Pope asked them as they both turned to stare at him the second, he walked in.

"There's a little favor we want you to do. You don't have to if you don't want" Baz told him as Pope shifted his eyes between them. He moved over towards the table so he could be in between them.

Baz looked towards Jessica who knew it was her turn to speak. "I got called into the police station over Cath's disappearance today. This guy is watching the family, he's apparently watched Baz for a while and now he's onto me. Can you get this guy to go away?"

As Pope continued to look between them, his eyes turned into slits trying to figure out exactly what they were asking. "I'm not murdering a cop"

Jessica's ocean eyes looked towards Baz who faintly laughed. Pope had always taken things to the extreme. "That's not what we mean Pope. Can you just watch this guy for a while? If he's onto Jess, it's only a matter of time he goes to you or Smurf. Just make sure he stays his distance. I understand if it's a no, but he showed up to Lena's school when Jessica was dropping her off"

"He showed up at her school?" The last part started to anger him. Lena had been his world for the past few months, and he wasn't going to let a cop snoop around her. Pope was keeping her out of trouble, doing everything he could for her even though he was the one who killed Catherine. Baz nor Jessica didn't know the truth and they wouldn't at all. The two of them nodded in response rather than speaking. "What's his name? I'll look for him tomorrow"

As Smurf was keeping a hold of Pope, it now looked like Jessica and Baz were doing the same. Craig, Deran and J may having been leaning towards her, but it was time to get someone else to back them up. Even though it had been a small shift, the couple was starting to power play everything. Before Pope arrived, they discussed a few things that were important and would change within the Cody dynamic. It had either been Baz's influence on Jessica, or she simply understood how everything worked from now on. As for Baz, Jessica could have been part of his motivation along with power. Whatever it was, the two were not going anywhere and were not going to back down from anybody.