A/N: Maura's book tour
Week 1: NYC/Boston
Week 2: Philadelphia/Chicago
Week 3: Madison/Minneapolis
Week 4: Seattle/Portland OR
Week 5: Pheonix/Denver
Week 6: Boston/Baltimore
Week 7: San Francisco
Week 8: Los Angeles
Week 9: Los Angeles
Week 10: Dallas/Houston
Week 11: Atlanta/Miami
Week 12: DC
Jane liked kissing Maura. It was probably her new favorite thing in the whole world. Better than that satisfying smack of maple on tightly woven leather amid that perfectly timed swing. Better than that first sip of a cold beer on a Friday night. Better than that first incredible bite of homecooked Italian food. Okay, so kissing Maura was absolutely her new favorite thing. Jane grinned as she walked through the airport. She had walked Maura in, helping with her bags. She had walked with Maura all the way to security. When Maura asked her to leave first, Jane had kissed Maura goodbye and walked away. Afterall, Jane was a woman with a plan to implement.
Jane hummed as she waited in line at the ticket counter. She played peek a boo with the baby in front of her and grinned at the toddler staring from behind her parent's legs. It had taken some discreet arranging but it would all be worth it. Jane had discreetly called in to work. Then she had discreetly asked their neighbor to watch the dogs for the weekend and then she had discreetly packed a bag and discreetly loaded it in to the trunk behind all of Maura's. Yup, her name should be Jane Discreetly Rizzoli.
An older gentleman with a bald crown and white hair beckoned her forward, 'Good morning Miss. How may I help you?'
Jane fished out her wallet and ID. 'Hi, I'd like to buy a ticket to New York please, preferrably landing before this evening.'
The gentleman took her ID and began to search his computer. After a moment he said, 'I can have you landing by 2:30 this afternoon.'
Jane grinned, 'that's perfect!'
'Would you like to book a return trip as well or will this be one way?'
'Can I fly back sometime Sunday evening?'
The man spent a moment typing. 'I can have you on a returning flight landing at 6 pm or at 10:30 pm.'
'The 10:30 please,' Jane said with a smile.
'Are you a member with us?' The man asked. Jane nodded and provided the account details. 'Very well, Miss Rizzoli, I see you have enough miles to cover this trip. Would you like to use your miles or would you prefer to pay in some other way?'
'The miles are fine,' Jane answered. Thank the Lord Maura had a bajillion miles.
'Very well, is there anything else I can do to assisst you Miss Rizzoli?' the man asked. Jane shook her head and the man handed over her ID and boarding pass. 'Have a wonderful day!'
Jane glanced at the ticket in her hand. She had a few hours to kill in the airport but that was fine. She grinned as she headed back to the car. She'd move to long term parking and grab her bag. Jane hummed happily. She was going to blow Maura's socks off, or... heels... because Maura.
Maura Isles was not an emotional sap. She was not someone to be found standing crying in an airport alone. It was a near thing, her lip quivered and her eyes self lubricated, as Jane walked away but she refused to allow anything more. Maura wasn't sure if the kiss had helped or hurt. Maura wanted to stay forever in that kiss. To share a thousand more like it and it wasn't even that intense of a kiss. A chaste goodbye at best but it did make leaving hard. That was why she asked Jane to leave first. Sometimes it was easier to be the one left than it was to be the one leaving.
Maura tugged at her blazer, adjusted her watch and stepped in line. With each step, Maura began to morph in to Dr. Isles. Maura pushed away from her personal self, personal feelings, personal life and slipped in to Dr. Isles, the consumate professional. Maura thought of it like switching outfits. 'Maura' was for friends and family. 'Maur' was just Jane's. Dr. Isle's was for everyone else. By the time Maura handed over her boarding pass and ID, Maura felt completely settled in her role and ready to face the world one interview at a time.
When Maura reached her gate, Maura called the social worker from the night before and left a voicemail. She hadn't been expecting an answer, the social worker had been out as late as she had, probably later. Still, Maura wanted to know everything she could, as soon as she could. She also texted Jane.
'Made it to the gate. I miss you already. Give the girls my love!'
It didn't take long for Jane to text back. She was probably stuck in traffic.
'Miss you too Maur! It won't be too long! I'll see you in Philly! Cheesestakes on me!'
Maura scrunched her nose. Every Philly Cheesestake she had ever had, had taken offense to her gastrointestinal system. Maura wasn't sure that even a week apart would be enough to get her to eat another one. Maura shot a text back.
'Perhaps we should meet in Baltimore instead.'
Maura got a two word answer back.
'Lol. No.'
Maura sighed and slipped her phone back in to her purse. Maura took a sip of the tea she had picked up and watched the airport around her until the attendants called for her boarding group. The flight and car ride from the airport had been short and uneventful. Maura unpacked her things as quickly as possible before heading out to find some lunch. She had researched some vegetarian and vegan options in close proximity to her hotel she was excited to try. After lunch she met up at her editors office.
'Dr. Isles,' a polite and kind looking man greeted her, 'hello I'm Andrew Paxton. Margaret asked me to apologize on her behalf, she was called away on family business.'
'Mr. Paxton, pleasure to meet you,' Maura replied holding out a hand in greeting.
Andrew shook it and smiled, 'Andrew please, you say Mr. Paxton and I start looking for my father. Margaret said that you were to record a couple of studio interviews. Have you ever used a recording studio before?'
Maura liked the man, he was polite and direct. 'Well please call me Maura then. I have not used a recording studio although I am familiar with some of the software that overlaps with my recordings for autopsies.'
The man paled a bit though not nearly as much as Maura usually saw. 'That's right, you're a forensic analyst.'
'Was. I've stepped away to write and do some volunteer work.' Maura replied following as the man lead her down to a hallway.
'That's admirable Maura,' Andrew said with a smile, 'so here's the studio. I have a sound tech on the other side of this room. They will help you balance your levels, make sure you aren't getting any unfortunate feedback, the whole nine yards. You will be given a list of questions at the start of each interview but the interviewers may stray outside those. Just do your best to point your answers back to your book. We want it to feel natural and conversational. You and I will, of course, go over the final interview edit to ensure everything sounds good and isn't taken out of context. Any questions?'
Maura peered inside the empty room with a table, a head set, and a microphone. 'How personal will these questions be and how personally should I respond to them?'
Andrew smiled reassuringly, 'beyond asking a bit about you and your interests, they shouldn't get too personal. You should feel free to share whatever you're comfortable with.'
Maura nodded, 'very well. I should warn you I am expecting an emergency call for one of my patients this afternoon so I may need to take an unexpected pause.'
'We'll do our best to work around it,' Andrew said with a smile. Then he was gone, heading back for the elevator. Maura entered the room and took a seat. She slipped the head phones on and listened as the sound tech began talking.
'Hello Dr. Isles. My name is Sonja. We are going to do a sound check, can you please tell us about your day.'
Maura had never been good at small talk but she did her best. After several painful minutes, the tech told her she could stop.
'That's perfect Dr. Isles. Now I'm going to patch through the interviews as they call in but if you need to pause or go to the bathroom or whatever, please let me know. I'll be listening and adjusting the whole time but you shouldn't be able to hear me.'
'Thank you Sonja.'
The next thing Maura heard was the sound of a phone ringing in her ears. Maura spoke when she heard the distinctive click of it being answered, 'Hello, this is Dr. Isles.'
Vincent, Vinnie, Russo was troubled. He took a long draft of his drink hoping he would find an answer at the bottom of this bottle, even if the last four hadn't. Vinnie was a good man, a good father. He provided for his family. He fed them, clothed them, housed them. All he asked for in return was a little respect and that was the problem. His wife didn't respect him. She had directly disobeyed him. Then she had lied. Vinnie had been forced to use his fists to get her to tell him the truth. That was just plain wrong. He was the husband. She was the wife. When he asked a question, he expected her to answer him the first time.
Vinnie stared at the glass bottom of his drink. People were going to be asking questions now. That was a problem. He signalled the barkeep for another. He sighed. He knew his rights, knew what he was due as the head of his household. The idea that someone, any one, could try to mess with those rights... that they would challenge his authority churned his stomach. Mia had given him the information he needed and now it was up to Vinnie to make it right. He would show his wife and the world that his word was law. He would show them what a man's role was and one stuck up she-doc wasn't going to stop him. He would show the world how corrupt the system was. He was the leader of his family and if he played his cards right, he would show the world what a leader looked like.
