Hi friends! Thanks as always for reading this story and showing it so much love. Here's chapter 14 as promised, but I must preface with a strong disclaimer that the last bit of this chapter made me cry while writing it, so take that as you will. See ya soon for 15!
Two more days pass with no luck, the frustration palpable in the bullpen come Monday as the Intelligence team comes up empty handed time and time again in their search for Booth and his nephew.
It's growing later in the morning, the team hunched over their desks and still digging, when Jay's phone goes off, a number he doesn't recognize flashing on the screen.
"Hello?"
"Yo, it's me."
It's the dealer from their surveillance operation.
Jay stands from his desk quickly, snapping his fingers at the rest of the team and pointing at his phone when he gets their attention.
"You got good news for me?" Jay says into the phone.
"Yeah, I got in touch with your boy and he's itching real bad. I set up a buy like you told me to. He'll be here at my place at one."
Jay glances at his watch, seeing it's only 9:40AM, then says into the phone, "I'll be there at noon."
"Yeah, alright," the guy says before he ends the call.
Jay looks at the rest of the team, grinning at them. "The dealer set up a buy. Tyler's meeting him at one this afternoon."
"Thank God," Kim sighs.
"Finally!" Adam shouts out, clapping his hands together loudly as he sits back down in his chair, the others smiling and shaking their heads in relief.
Voight comes out of his office from all the commotion, eyeing Jay and the grin on his face. "What's up?"
"Dealer came through. Tyler's meeting him to score."
"About time we got some good news. You and Atwater," Voight tells him, glancing between the two men. "Get there early."
"Already ahead of you. Told the dealer we'll be there at noon," Jay says.
Voight nods, smiling in approval before he turns around and heads back into his office.
Jay breathes out a heavy sigh of relief. They were one step closer to finding Booth. One step closer to being able to bring Hailey and Avery home.
He heads into the break room and takes a seat on the couch with a smile still on his face to call Hailey, happy that he can finally give her some good news.
"Hey," She answers after a few rings.
"Hey you," Jay says, the grin on his face coming through his words.
"You sound happy."
"I just got a call," Jay tells her.
"What kind of call?"
"That dealer we were sitting on? He came through. Set up a buy with Tyler this afternoon."
"Really?" She asks with a tone of surprise and excitement, and then she sighs in relief. "That's great news!"
"I know. Kev and I are gonna head over in a bit so we're ready, but I wanted to call you and let you know," he says. "You'll be home soon. Don't worry."
"Thank you," Hailey says quietly, a hint of a smile in her voice. "For everything."
"You don't need to thank me," he tells her.
"Yeah, well, I'm still gonna," she says matter-of-factly. "We're closer to finding Booth, to ending all of this, me and Ave going back home. Not to mention a Bartoli's date I was recently promised."
Jay laughs, shaking his head as he leans back into the couch. "So you're saying yes then?"
"Of course I'm saying yes," Hailey tells him and he knows she's rolling her eyes at him.
"It's a date then," he says, a soft smile on his face and she hums back at him in reply.
He's sure she's smiling from her end, and then he sighs heavily before he says, "God, I miss you."
"I know, I miss you too," she says quietly, grateful they're separated for that one moment so he doesn't see the bright flush of pink fill her cheeks. "Be safe today. Tyler's squirrelly even when he's not high or trying to score. Make sure Atwater has your back."
He nods, forgetting for a moment she can't see him, then says, "I'll be careful. I'll call you later once we've talked to him."
"Okay. Later then," she sighs.
"Later," he says, that soft smile of his still on his face and in his voice. "Bye Hailey."
"Bye Jay."
He ends the call and breathes out a heavy sigh once more, but the smile doesn't leave his face as the thought hits him again that soon, Hailey and Avery will be home. Soon, his girls will be with him again.
Jay and Kevin leave the district at 11:30AM on the dot, Kevin driving them in his less conspicuous car, and they arrive at the dealer's house just a few minutes past noon.
His temporary partner waits in the driver's seat as Jay makes his way up the front of the house. He raps his knuckles against the door twice before it opens a bit, and the guy nods at him, pulling the door open wider and allowing Jay inside, and then they wait.
The dealer sits on the couch at one end, Jay at the other with his knee bouncing up and down as time ticks by almost painfully slow.
"So what'd this guy do anyway?" The dealer asks, turning his head to look at Jay. "Y'all seem to want him real bad."
"He has information on someone," Jay says, glancing at him. "Someone responsible for murder."
The guy's eyes widen as he shakes his head quickly. "Man, I don't know nothing about no murder."
"We know that," Jay tells him, rolling his eyes. "Just relax, will you? We don't want you. As soon as we get Tyler, we're gone."
"Yeah," the guy nods. "Yeah, alright."
The room goes quiet after that, Jay glancing at his watch every few minutes, and when he checks the time again at 12:45, there's a quick succession of impatient knocks at the door.
Jay looks over at the dealer, nodding his head slowly, then whispers, "Be cool man."
The guy nods back as he stands from the couch and heads out of the living room to the front door.
"What's up, bro?" He hears the dealer greet Tyler, followed by the sound of the door closing, and then footsteps approaching.
"You got it?" Tyler asks, his voice as hurried and impatient as his knocking.
"Yeah, in here," the dealer says, coming around the corner, Tyler hot on his heels.
They enter the living room and the kid quickly spots Jay sitting on the couch, leaning forward with a smirk on his face.
"What's up Tyler?" Jay calls over to him.
"Shit," he mutters, turning around and bolting for the door and when he opens it he comes face to face with Kevin.
"Where you going, bro?" Kevin asks as he steps toward the guy.
He grabs onto Tyler and turns him around, pushing him up against the wall roughly and pulls his arms around his back to cuff him as Jay walks up to them.
"You set me up, man!" Tyler yells, looking over Jay's shoulder at the dealer standing behind him before his eyes land back on the detective. "This is entrapment!
"Nah, not exactly. You were coming here to buy drugs from him," Jay says, hooking a thumb over his shoulder to the guy behind him. "Not us. Let's go."
Kevin wraps a hand around the kid's bicep and pulls open the door as Jay turns around to look at the dealer, nodding briefly.
"Thanks," Jay tells him.
"Yeah, whatever," the guy nods back. "We straight now?"
"Yeah, we're good. Stay out of trouble," Jay smirks.
The guy rolls his eyes, then nods as he closes the door after they step out of the house. Jay follows after Kevin and Tyler, and grips tight to the kid's shoulder as he fights against the officer.
He struggles with them for a moment, but the kid is no match against both Kevin and Jay, and they get him into the back of Kevin's car easily enough.
They arrive back at the district a short while later, searching the kid and confiscating everything he has on him, and then they bring him upstairs. Kevin leads him into an interrogation room while Jay goes to get their Sergeant.
He makes his way through the bullpen to Voight's office, rapping his knuckles against the open door and the man looks up.
"You get him?"
"Kev's got him in a room," Jay nods.
"You and me. Let's go," Voight says as he stands from his desk and walks toward Jay.
Jay nods again and follows him through the bullpen. They deposit their guns in the safety lockers then make their way down the hallway.
"I want a lawyer," Tyler says as soon as Jay opens the door and he and Voight enter the interrogation room.
Voight juts his chin over to Kevin leaning against the wall behind Tyler and glances to the door. He nods before he heads out of the room, leaving his Sergeant and Jay with their suspect and closes the door behind him.
"I want a lawyer," Tyler says again sharply.
"A lawyer isn't gonna help you out of this one, Tyler," Voight smirks, crossing his arms and leaning back against the wall behind Jay as the detective sits down in a chair on the opposite side of the kid.
"You're in a lot of trouble man," Jay says, leaning back in his chair as he stares across the table at him. "Intent to buy drugs, the crank we found on you when we searched you. That's a parole violation. Not to mention the stalking and trespassing charges – oh, and the murder of an innocent man that we're gonna pin on you. That's life for you."
"I don't know what you're talking about," he shakes his head.
"Yes, you do, Tyler," Jay scoffs. "You know exactly why you're here. So you either tell us what we wanna know or you're gonna be the one taking the full ride."
"I didn't do anything wrong. You got nothing on me, man."
"You were just trying to buy meth and a man was killed a few weeks ago because of your uncle who's been running meth distribution out of his warehouse that you just so happen to work at," Jay tells him, leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table as he raises his voice. "You've also been stalking a Chicago police officer and we have two witnesses that picked out your photo, so unless you wanna spend the rest of your life in prison, I suggest you start talking."
The kid shakes his head again as he leans back in the chair away from Jay and crosses his arms over his chest.
"You're just a kid man," Jay tells him, his voice quiet as he stares over at him. "You really wanna be held responsible if anything happens to her or her little girl?"
Tyler shakes his head once more, as if feeling guilty, and then he tosses his head back, groaning out loudly.
"I didn't know she had a kid! I swear I didn't know until he told me."
"Who told you Tyler?" Jay presses.
"Nah, I can't. I'm dead if I talk, man," the kid says as he tightens his arms over his chest, his eyes darting around the room as his knee bounces uncontrollably under the table.
"If you don't talk to us," Jay says quietly, leaning further over the table and catching the kid's eyes, his words coming out as sharp as a knife. "And something happens to her or that child, I can guarantee that you will end up with a needle in your arm, and not the kind you're used to."
Tyler swallows hard, shaking his head again as he drops his eyes to the table.
Jay leans back in his chair, then slams a hand down onto the table. "Give us something man! Help yourself! You really wanna go down for this? For him?"
Tyler jumps, his arms dropping from his chest as he looks back at Jay with fear in his eyes, then cries out, "My uncle Ron!"
"Tell us what happened," Voight jumps in, pushing himself off the wall and leaning over the table beside Jay as he stares down at the kid.
Tyler sighs, running his hands over his face as his eyes fill with tears out of guilt and fear and panic.
"I always liked Kelly, er – Hailey, whatever her damn name is…she was nice to me, she looked out for me. She was like an older sister, ya know?" He tells them, shaking his head again quickly. "I didn't mean for this to happen. I swear, I didn't want – I didn't want this. You gotta believe me!"
Voight nods, raising a hand to stop his rambling. "Just tell us what happened."
Tyler sniffs, twitching his nose, and looks between them. "I saw her a few months ago downtown. She rolled up in front of some store, a crime scene or something, but she didn't see me. There were cops all around. I thought she had gone back to Iowa. That – that's where she told us she was from. I didn't know she was a cop until I saw her flash a badge to get past the yellow tape."
Jay scoffs, shaking his head. "And you told uncle Ronnie."
"It just slipped out, I swear!" Tyler says. "He had just gotten out of prison and he was back home. A bunch of us were celebrating. I – I was drinking and high and pissed at my ex. I was running my mouth!"
"What happened after that Tyler?" Voight asks.
He shrugs, his voice cracking. "Uncle Ron lost it. Grabbed me up out of my seat, dragged me into some back room and started asking me questions. He was pissed. He kept asking where I saw her and if I was sure it was her, if she was really a cop and I – I told him what I saw."
Jay shakes his head, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back in his seat, as he quietly says, "That's what you do to someone who looked out for you? Someone who was like a sister to you?"
"I was scared, alright?" Tyler shrugs again, his voice full of fear as much as his eyes, as he throws his hands into the air. "My uncle is – he's not right, man! He lives his life by a different set of rules than you or me. Family or not, he'd put a bullet between my eyes."
"Where is he?" Jay asks.
"I don't know."
Jay shakes his head. "Tyler…"
"I really don't, I swear! All I know is that he's pissed and just as obsessed with her as he was back then, if not more. He's crazy, man!"
"When's the last time you talked to him?" Voight asks.
Tyler swallows nervously, shrugging again. "Few days ago. He told me to lay low and keep my mouth shut. Kept ranting off about how she owes him and he's gonna get what's his, that nobody was gonna stop him this time."
"What else?" Jay presses.
"He said he was close. Kept laughing, sounded like a psycho."
Voight and Jay share a glance, then the older man looks back to Tyler.
"Does he know she's in protective custody?" Voight asks him.
"Yeah," Tyler nods. "Said he'd finish her off this time just like he did her boyfriend."
"Where could he be right now?" Jay bites out, his jaw tense as he clenches his hands into tight fists.
"I don't know if it's where he's hiding out, but he's got a second place by the warehouse. He uses it as a stash house. It's in my grandmother's name," Tyler tells them, sighing heavily.
Voight nods and heads for the door as Jay stands from the table. He walks around it and leans over Tyler, staring down into his eyes.
"You better pray to God nothing happens to them," Jay tells him before he follows Voight out of the room. He slams the door closed behind him then turns to look at his Sergeant as Kevin steps out of the viewing room.
Voight nods at the patrol officer just outside the door, then hooks a thumb over his shoulder. "He doesn't leave that room. No phone calls. Nothing. Not even a pee break. Understand?"
"Understood Sergeant," the officer says with a nod, then goes into the interrogation room.
Voight, Jay and Kevin march quickly down the hallway to the bullpen, the Sergeant shaking his head. "Find that damn stash house."
"I've gotta call Hailey," Jay says.
Voight nods as they enter the bullpen. "Fine. Atwater, get the others up to speed. Let's find this prick."
Kevin nods and makes his way toward the rest of the team as Jay grabs his phone from his desk and heads for the break room again.
He closes the door behind him and dials Hailey, making his way to the counter and leaning back against it.
"Did you get him?" Hailey asks as soon as she answers.
"We got Tyler and he told us where Booth could be hiding out. The team is looking into it right now," he tells her.
"Thank God," she sighs heavily, relief filling her instantly. "What did he tell you?"
"Hailey – "
"Jay, what did he tell you?"
He sighs into the phone, shaking his head, before he relays the conversation with Tyler, knowing better than to leave out any of the details, and the line goes silent when he finishes.
"He'll kill me this time," Hailey says quietly a moment later, sniffling back tears. "If he finds me, he'll – "
"That's not gonna happen," Jay tells her quickly.
"You don't know that. And Avery – " she trails off, her daughter's name cracking as it slips past her lips. "He can't – "
"He won't," Jay tells her. "I promise you he won't touch her."
She blows out a deep breath over the phone, then sniffles again as she tries not to cry, her voice coming through the speaker shakily and quietly when she says, "You remember the other promise you made to me, don't you?"
"Hailey," Jay breathes out, running his free hand over the back of his head. "It's not gonna come to that."
"You don't know that," she says again through a hiccup.
He can tell she's crying now, hears her muffled sniffles from the other end of the line as her shaky breaths come through the phone louder and he realizes she's struggling to breathe.
"Just try to relax, alright? Take some deep breaths for me," he tells her, his voice soft and encouraging and he smiles as he hears her breathe in and out deeply through the phone.
"That's it," Jay encourages, listening to her breathing deeply for a minute or so.
It goes silent over the line again for a moment and then there's one more deep breath that Hailey blows out before her voice comes through the speaker.
"Thank you," she says quietly.
"What are partners for?" He asks with a light tone of teasing in an attempt to distract her from the panic he knows she's feeling.
"Yeah," Hailey chuckles, sniffling back her tears.
"It's gonna be okay, Hailey," he tries to assure her again.
"I hope you're right," she mumbles as Jay catches movement out of the corner of his eye and sees Kevin waving him over.
"Keep doing the deep breathing thing, okay? I think the team found something so I gotta go. I'm not sure how late we'll run so if I don't talk to you again today, try to get some sleep tonight and we'll talk tomorrow, okay?"
"Sounds good," she says quietly. "Be safe. If you find him, don't let your guard down. Not for a second."
"I won't," Jay assures her. "We'll get him."
"Okay," Hailey sighs. "Go, we'll talk tomorrow."
He says goodbye and disconnects the call, then looks over at Kevin still standing in the doorway.
"What's up?" Jay asks him.
"Found the house. Voight wants us to roll."
"Let's go," Jay nods.
They meet the rest of the team downstairs and head out shortly after, arriving at a row home almost a half hour later just a few minutes' drive from Booth's warehouse. Antonio and Adam run through the side yard to cover the back while the others take the front, Jay leading the team once again. He glances over at Voight who nods once at him and then he turns back to the door.
"Chicago PD!" Jay shouts, kicking in the door and the team rushes inside.
Antonio and Adam enter through the back door off a small kitchen and they all move through each room, clearing them quickly, and coming up empty handed once again.
"Where the hell is this son of a bitch?" Jay growls out as he holsters his gun and turns around to face Voight.
"We'll find him," his Sergeant says, nodding his head then looking to the others. "Tear this place apart."
They all nod and disperse into different directions, ransacking each room. They dump drawers and flip cushions, lift the mattresses and turn over furniture, but nothing gives them any new information or leads.
"Anything?" Voight asks as Adam and Kim come into the living room from the kitchen.
Adam shakes his head. "Nothing."
"Just some take out containers and a paper bag from a hardware store. No receipts or anything with dates or time stamps," Kim says.
"Got a computer from a bedroom upstairs," Antonio says stepping into the living room with a laptop in his hands. "Can't get into it though. We'll need the tech guys to take a look."
"Bag it and get it back to the district, and lean on 'em. I want whatever's on that computer in our hands tonight," he says, turning for the door, but then he swivels back around. "And one of you get an unmarked car on this house in case this guy comes back. I'm not taking any chances."
A round of nods and "copy you's" sound from the team. Adam makes a call over his radio for patrol, and he and Kim hang back, waiting in the car for the detail while the rest of the team makes their way back to the district. Antonio gets the computer to the tech guys and waits for their report, leaning on them to hurry as Voight had instructed and they get to work quickly.
Jay shuffles into the bullpen, running a hand over the back of his head and sighing in frustration as he flops down into the chair at his desk.
"We'll find him, bro," Kevin says, clapping him over the shoulder as he passes him to go into the break room.
"Yeah," Jay sighs again, shaking his head as he leans back in his chair.
He wants to call Hailey, and pulls out his phone to do just that, but then he decides against it and drops his phone to his desk, sighing heavily once more. All he'll do is worry her even more than she already is, maybe even send her into another panic attack and that's the last thing he wants.
He glances at his watch to see it's almost four in the afternoon and sighs again, knowing it's going to be another long night of waiting for forensics and an even longer night of not sleeping. Not until they find Booth. Not until they end this.
Something jolts Hailey from her pitiful sleep, making her sit up in bed and lift a hand to her chest as her heart beats just a little too fast. She can't be sure if it's some combination of panic or paranoia or just her body's inability to fall into a restful state of deep sleep.
She glances down at Avery beside her in the bed, smiling at the sight of the little girl sound asleep and holding her space teddy tightly, then turns toward the nightstand. She reaches for her phone to see it's just barely midnight and puts it down, taking a deep breath as she leans back against the headboard.
She raises a hand to her forehead, her fingers meeting a layer of cold sweat that covers her skin, and then she runs her hand through her hair. She takes another deep breath, then another just like she did earlier in the day when she was on the phone with Jay. She tries desperately to calm her nerves, but there's something inside of her that she can't quite shake, something that won't allow her pulse to slow or her hands to stop trembling.
She jumps at the sudden sound of shattering glass and skidding furniture, quickly surmising it came from downstairs and her instincts kick in within a second. She leans over Avery and shakes the little girl awake from her slumber, then pulls her into a sitting position beside her.
"Mama?" Avery mumbles, her teddy under her arm as she brings her other hand to rub at her eyes.
"Shhhh," Hailey shushes her gently as she gets out of the bed and leans over to lift the little girl into her arms. She grabs her phone from the nightstand and moves across the room quickly toward the bathroom attached to the bedroom, thankful the floorboards don't squeak beneath her feet.
She sets Avery down on the bathroom floor and closes the door quietly behind them, then turns around to face her daughter. She kneels down in front of the little girl and sets her phone on the floor beside them, then looks around at the small room in a panic as tears burn in her eyes and her heart pounds harder and louder in her ears.
"What's happening mama?" Avery whimpers, her usual bright blue eyes filling with tears as she looks at her frantic mother and clutches her teddy bear against her so tight her little knuckles turn white.
"It's gonna be okay, baby," Hailey whispers to the little girl as she looks back at her, nodding her head quickly. "You remember what mama and auntie told you about strangers? And what mama showed you with the phone this week?"
Avery nods, squeezing her teddy as she looks at her mother, then whispers, "I call Jay."
"That's right. Mama can't stay in here with you, so you call him and be as quiet as you can and after you talk to him, you don't make another sound, okay?" Hailey tells her, her voice quiet, but shaking with each word as she looks the little girl in the eyes. "You don't say one word or come out of this room unless you hear me or him calling for you. Do you understand me?"
Avery nods again, her tears spilling from her eyes.
"That's my girl. I love you," Hailey says, leaning forward and pressing her lips to Avery's forehead. "I love you so much baby."
"I love you too mama," Avery whispers.
There's a crash then from somewhere downstairs, the distant sounds of splintering wood and more shattering glass floating up to the second floor, making Avery jump.
The little girl takes a step back, staring at her mother with scrunched eyebrows as she asks, "What was – "
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Hailey throws a hand over Avery's mouth in a split second at the sound of gunshots, lifting her other hand to her own face and holding a single raised finger in front of her lips to keep her daughter quiet. Avery nods at the gesture, understanding her mother and clutching her teddy bear even tighter as more tears fill her eyes and her little body starts to tremble with fear.
Hailey knows what this is and she knows how this ends and she knows she doesn't have a lot of time to think or overthink or comfort her daughter in the way that she wants to. Her eyes dart around the room again, quickly spotting a wicker clothes hamper in the corner next to the sink, and then she forces another smile as she looks back at her daughter.
"It's gonna be okay baby," Hailey tells her again, a sudden thought filling her head, and then she lifts her hands to the back of her neck. She unclasps the necklace she always wears and holds it between her and Avery, keeping the smile on her face as she looks at her daughter. "Can you hold onto this for mama? Keep it safe for me so I don't lose it?"
Avery nods, her bottom lip quivering as Hailey secures the necklace around her neck, and then grabs onto one of the little girl's hands and squeezes tightly.
"Can you do one more thing for me?" Hailey asks quietly, her voice cracking in half as her tears spill from her eyes.
Avery nods again, her lip still trembling as Hailey lifts a hand to the little girl's face to brush a finger over her cheek, smiling sadly as she does.
"When you see him, can you tell Jay – can you tell daddy that mama loves him?" Hailey asks her, nodding encouragingly at her daughter and squeezing her hand once more with the same sad smile as her tears continue to spill from her eyes, more forming as quickly as they fall. "Can you please do that for me?"
Avery stares back at her mother, tilting her head with a confused look on her face. "But you said – "
"I know what I said, but I was wrong. Mama was wrong, okay?" Hailey says, brushing a finger over Avery's cheek again and giving another nod of encouragement.
Avery nods back, her head moving slowly as she whispers, "I'll tell him."
Hailey somehow still smiles through the tears that blur her vision as she stares at her daughter, her voice shaking as she says, "You're the best thing that ever happened to mama."
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Avery jumps again and Hailey lifts a hand to cover her daughter's mouth once more, muffling the little girl's soft whimpers.
Hailey shushes her again gently, then drops her hands from the little girl to stand back on her feet. She moves toward the hamper, lifting the lid and setting it down on top of the sink as quietly as she can. She pulls out the towels she'd thrown into it earlier in the night then turns back to Avery, picking the little girl up and putting her inside the hamper. Hailey sets her into a sitting position at the bottom of it with her knees up to her chest and her daughter stares up at her with big, fearful eyes.
"I'm scared mama. I don't like this," Avery whimpers, shaking her head as fat tears roll down her cheeks.
"I know baby. I know you're scared, but it's gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay. I need you to be brave for mama. Can you do that? Can you be brave for me?" Hailey asks her hurriedly, kneeling next to the hamper and running a hand through Avery's hair.
The little girl nods her head slowly, whimpering again before she whispers back, "Okay mama."
"Good girl. Remember what I said. Stay really quiet. No matter what you hear, okay? This is really important," Hailey tells her, her words coming out fast as she brushes a finger over her daughter's cheek one more time, and then says again, "You don't say a word or come out of here unless me or daddy calls for you. I need you to do exactly as mama tells you. Do you understand?"
"I understand mama," Avery says, squeezing her teddy bear to her chest again as her shoulders shake and tears continue to fall from her eyes.
"I love you," Hailey tells her again, smiling softly and sadly still before she stands back on her feet, then says, "Call him when I leave the bathroom."
Hailey leans over the hamper and kisses the top of her daughter's head for what she's sure might just be the last time, her heart aching as the realization hits her, and more tears flood her eyes. She grabs the towels from the floor and piles them over top of the little girl in an attempt to conceal her and block out the things she might hear as much as she can, and then puts the lid back over the hamper.
Hailey stands upright, staring at her reflection in the mirror for a millisecond before she wipes at her eyes, taking deep breath after deep breath, and then she turns around and opens the bathroom door slowly. She peeks her head out, sighing in relief when she sees the bedroom door is still closed and steps out of the bathroom.
She closes the door shut behind her quietly and heads back to the nightstand, pulling her gun out of the drawer. She switches the safety off and holds it at her side, her entire body shaking and her finger trembling against the trigger as she makes her way toward the bedroom door.
Hailey takes another deep breath, her chest ready to burst from the pounding of her heart, and then she glances over at the closed bathroom door. Her whole body aches and more tears cascade down her cheeks as a low whimper escapes her. She knows the possibility is too real that she might never see Avery again, but there's a sudden sense of elation that hits her when she realizes her little girl will be okay.
Because she knows Jay will find her daughter. He'll keep her safe and love her and take care of her, and that alone is enough. It's enough for Hailey to do what she has to in order to protect her child.
She takes one more deep breath before she pulls open the bedroom door and steps out into the hallway, pulling the door closed behind her. She walks down the hall on the tips of her toes, staring straight ahead as she moves quickly and quietly toward the stairs. She peers over the landing for a moment then heads slowly down the steps, moving against the wall as she goes and looking over the railing to the main floor with her gun raised in front of her.
When she reaches the last step, she sees Morales lying on his back on the floor next to the stairs, unmoving and three bullet holes in his chest. Her shoulders begin to heave as her breathing quickens even faster and she tilts her head toward the living room, noticing a light on and a shadow moving slowly through the room.
She steps off the stairs and moves toward the living room, and as she approaches the doorway she sees Wilson on the floor just like his partner with three holes in his chest too. She swallows hard, the full force of knowing she's on her own now hitting her in the gut. She takes one more deep breath as she steps around the corner and enters the living room, her gun raised out in front of her in a trembling hand.
Her eyes find him standing in the middle of the room, a gun in his hand and pointed at her with a nauseatingly smug grin on his face.
"Hello Kelly. Oh wait, I'm sorry," he snickers, shaking his head at her as he keeps his gun held out in front of him, still aimed at her. "Old habits. It's actually Hailey, right? Detective…Hailey…Upton."
She swallows hard again, forcing down the bile that rises in her throat as she stares back at the man in front of her.
"Hi Ronnie," Hailey breathes out.
A/N: Shoutout to onechicago-upsteadrhekker on tumblr for the "can you tell daddy mama loves him line" because I originally only had Hailey saying Jay, not daddy, but Em loves angst and heartache as much as I do and suggested that change. Okay, gonna go hide now!