Hope hummed as she finished cutting the tomatoes for Cailin's favourite meal: tacos. Hope had gone out of her way to make sure she would be home in time to surprise Cailin with tacos. After all, Hope knew how hard her daughter had worked this past semester. Hope wanted her tacos to say she was proud of Cailin. That she supported her, was cheering for her, would always be there to… feed her. Maybe that was asking a bit much of tacos, Hope thought frowning at the tomatoes. At least they would make Cailin smile and after a hard final that was all Hope could ask for.

A knock on the door made Hope look up. She rinsed her hands quickly, moving to answer it. She glanced through the peek hole to see a woman wearing a pant suit with her hair pulled up in a severe bun and a darker skinned man dressed similarly, both of them looking grim. Hope opened the door feeling a sense of dread, 'hello?'

'Doctor Martin,' the woman said, 'my name is Agent Jennifer Bennet and this is my partner Agent Andres Cruz.' They both flashed their FBI badges, 'we've been monitoring you since the escape of Paddy Doyle Junior. We've been working in concert with a number of agents placed throughout the country.' Hope nodded, swallowing her disgust at having been surveilled. It wasn't exactly news or even all that surprising.

Agent Cruz picked up where Agent Bennet left off, his voice pleasant and warm with a hint of an accent peaking through, 'we've been in touch with the team monitoring your eldest daughter Doctor Maura Isles.'

'Is everything okay?' Hope asked, reaching for her back pocket to find her phone. Her voice was high, stressed with emotion, 'Is Maura alright?!' Hope almost missed the look the agents exchanged as she realised that her phone wasn't in her pocket.

'Ma'am,' Agent Bennet picked up, 'could we come in?'

'No,' Hope said, her heart hurting, 'tell me what's happened to my daughter.' Hope looked around her, trying to find her phone. Where had she left it?

'This afternoon she received a ransom call,' Agent Cruz said.

Hope gasped stopping her searching to stare at the agents, 'oh god. For who? Jane? Did they take Agent Rizzoli?' The agents exchanged another look. This one was laced in sadness and Hope couldn't make sense of what they were saying to her. 'Tell me Jane's okay. Tell me she's safe.'

'You really should sit down,' Agent Bennet said softly, gesturing at the living room behind Hope.

Hope felt her anger rise, heard herself yelling at the pair, 'tell me what's happened right now! I don't need this coddling you festering pricks!'

Agent Cruz took a breath, 'ma'am the ransom call was for your youngest daughter Cailin Martin.'

Hope's breath fled from her lungs, the world went dark, her ears roared.

That she was falling, registered belatedly. Agent Bennet caught her, lowering the both of them to the ground as the first wails escaped Hope's mouth. She vaguely heard the pair talking above her. She knew that what they were saying was important but Hope couldn't focus. Her baby. Her sweet baby girl was missing. And Maura. Maura was trying to find her. Maura was trying to find her. Which meant Jane was trying too. Maura and Jane were unstoppable. They'd find Cailin. And Hope would help.

Hope took a deep breath, filling her lungs for the first time in what felt like a lifetime. She pushed back at the roaring in her ears. 'I need my phone,' Hope said. It came out in a hoarse whisper. So she said it again, forcing it louder, 'I need my phone.'

Agent Cruz crouched in front of her, 'where is it?'

'I don't know… my purse maybe?' Hope said gesturing vaguely toward the bag. The agent retrieved the bag and brought it to her. Hope dug through it finding her phone there, silenced. What she saw felt like a vice grip on her heart.

The first was text from Cailin: 'Finished! On my way home, see you soon Mum!' It was like a punch to the gut because Cailin wasn't on her way. She wasn't… Hope refused to let herself finish that thought. Cailin was coming home. She was.

The second was twenty two missed call from Maura over the last two hours and a text that read, 'Call me as soon as possible please.' Hope almost crumbled then. Her girls had needed her and Hope wasn't there for them, again. She was making stupid tacos, as though tacos had any value. Hope took a trembling breath, pushing the guilt away to press the call button.

'Hope!' Maura's voice was tight and emotional, 'Jane's on her way.'

Hope strangled a sob, 'Maura? What did they ask for? Why did they take my baby girl?'

'It's my fault, Hope. He wanted to hurt me,' Maura said angrily, 'but we're getting her back no matter what. I'll do whatever it takes, okay?'

'Okay,' Hope whispered, 'what can I do?'

'Go to BPD. Frankie and Nina are already working on it.' Maura sounded firm, in control. 'I have a lead to follow up on here in DC but I'll be there as soon as I can.'

'Okay,' Hope whispered.

'We're going to find her Hope,' Maura said, sounding certain. Absent any other alternative, Hope let herself believe it. Let herself cling to Maura's confidence.

'I'll see you soon Maura.' Hope replied, 'I love you sweetie.'

Hope thought she heard Maura sob, 'I love you too mother.'

Hope hit the end button and pushed herself up to standing. The agents looked at her in wide eyed surprise. 'My daughter is kidnapped. I can't sit around and cry all night.' Hope snapped. She knew she was being unkind to them, especially given how kind they had been to her but Hope couldn't afford softness at the moment, 'so are you driving me to the police station or am I?'

Agent Bennet sent her a crooked grin that reminded Hope of Jane, 'we'll drive you. We have to stick to you anyways, might as well help if we can.'


Aarna pulled over at the gas station, pulling up to the pump after Maura indicated the side. Maura was doing better than she had two hours ago when she all but dragged Jane back to their car. Maybe it was having a job to do, maybe it was knowing that Jane and Noie were on their way to Boston, maybe it was sheer numb denial. Not that it mattered. Aarna pulled the keys from the ignition. She smiled at Maura, hoping to convey something like reassurance even though Aarna felt completely out of sorts. 'We need gas and food,' Aarna said softly, 'and Jane made me promise not to let you leave my sights.'

Maura laughed harshly, 'of course she did.'

Aarna tilted her head to the side, giving Maura a look in what she hoped came off as playful, 'you aren't going to make this hard on me are you Doctor Isles?'

For a minute, Aarna really thought she might. Then Maura climbed from the car, slamming the door behind her. 'No body tells you this part,' Maura says wryly.

'What's that?' Aarna asked, hurrying to catch up with the shorter woman.

'That the heroes still have to get gas and food to subsist off of. Did you ever consider getting gas as an FBI agent?' Maura asked, giving her a look that Aarna thought was supposed to be a smile but came out as more of a grimace.

Aarna shook her head, 'nope. I can honestly say, I've never thought about filling the gas tank for moments like this.' Aarna did a quick intake of the gas station, noting the exits, the other customers and the bathroom.

'Well even the most fuel efficient car runs out eventually,' Maura said with a sigh, wrinkling her nose at the direction of the hot dogs. 'I recommend you get something processed. It is less susceptible to harmful bacteria like lysteria and E Coli.' Maura wandered the aisles, grabbing various items without really looking at them.

'Have you, uh, done this before?' Aarna asked wandering the aisle behind Maura, grabbing a thing or two herself.

Maura held up a bag of peach rings, 'these are one of Jane's go-to's. These and doritos and beef jerky and the largest size cup of coffee they serve. Sometimes she brings in her own mug for the coffee if she doesn't think they'll have one big enough.' Maura's hand pauses over a pre-packaged cinnamon roll before she grabs several. Aarna expects another comment there as though cinnamon rolls were some inside joke between Jane and Maura. Aarna felt accutely aware that it should be Jane in this gas station with Maura, not her. Maura walked on, 'Jane had a habit of filling up at empty instead of keeping the tank full. She said that homicide detectives rarely do high speed chases and that it meant always having an excuse to buy stake out food. I would scold her, bribe her but it never mattered. I can't tell you how many times, we had to stop mid-way to interviewing a witness or on the way to a crime scene just to fill up the damn tank or risk running out before we got there.'

Aarna grabbed a handful of water bottles to go with their haul. Maura looked at her with teary eyes. Aarna shrugged, 'I like to stay hydrated.'

Maura's lips turned up a fraction at the corners, 'thats the other part they never romanticise. Stakeout or not, you still have to use the restroom.'

'Right,' Aarna said, 'well the, uh, bottles can be, uh, converted.' She felt odd, talking to a woman whose sister was kidnapped elsewhere in the country about peeing in a bottle. She just wasn't sure what else to say.

Maura's nose wrinkled, 'I don't think that will be necessary. We aren't on a stake out.' She walked to the counter and gestured for Aarna to set her things down. Aarna complied. 'Can you fill the tank on three as well.' Maura offered her card. The cashier finished their transaction and Aarna walked Maura back to the car, seeing her safely inside before starting the pump. With that task finished, she settled in the drivers seat, turning to look at Maura.

'Where are we headed to Doc?' Aarna asked.

'I spoke to Nia Williams, the social worker who manages Panda's case. She's going to meet us at Panda's foster home so we can interview her.' Maura said, entering an address into the GPS. Aarna gave it a once over, trying to familiarise herself with the route.

'And you're hoping Panda will know where Russo took Cailin?' Aarna asked, starting her drive.

'I don't know,' Maura said with a sigh, 'we've asked her before and she swore she never knew anything. Maybe…' Maura trailed off.

Aarna was saved from figuring out what to say next by Maura's phone ringing.

'Hope!' Maura answered immediately. 'Jane's on her way.' Aarna felt guilty for wanting to smile at that. Of course that was the most comforting thing Maura would think to say. Jane being on her way probably was the most comforting thing to Maura.

Aarna did her best to focus on driving, trying to give the woman beside her some modicum of privacy. The mere feet between them weren't enough to cushion Aarna from the anger and guilt radiating off the smaller woman though. And then Aarna heard the word 'mother' and it dawned on Aarna that Maura was speaking to her mother. She was speaking to the woman whose child was kidnapped. A sob broke from Maura's lips and Aarna did the only thing she could, she took Maura's hand in her own. Offering the only comfort she could at the moment. Aarna couldn't imagine telling her Mata that her sister had been kidnapped. Aarna couldn't imagine the pain they were both in. Maura squeezed her hand, hard enough to make Aarna wince, but Aarna didn't let go and neither did Maura. Aarna wasn't sure what the night had in store for them but Aarna knew she wouldn't let go. She couldn't. For Jane.