That night Erin, Jay and Lily went over to Adam and Kim's to visit little Lucas. Jay was unsure how it would go for Erin. He was preparing for either outcome, good or bad.
They stood at the doorway and knocked, Lily was chatting to herself or trying to make conversation with her dad as she sat on his hip, "Hey guys come in." Adam said opening the door.
"Hi Miss Lily, how are you?"
Lily clapped and waved very excitedly to Adam as she held her arms out for him, "Hi."
"She's missed you guys, need to bring her around more often." Jay smiled.
"We've missed her too. Beer?" Adam offered as the four of them walked into the kitchen.
"Yeah love one. Er?" Jay asked looked at Erin who had stayed quiet.
"I'm good, where's Kim?"
"Feeding Lucas, go on in if you want." Adam smiled and Erin nodded then walked off.
Erin lightly tapped on the nursery, Kim waved her in, "Hey Mumma. How's it going?"
"Good. This little guy can eat though." Kim and Erin chuckled as Kim finished up breastfeeding Lucas, "Did you want to burp him?"
Erin smiled, "I'd love to." She took hold of Lucas and got him to burp easily, then he laid content in her arms as Erin rocked him gently.
"How you doing Erin? And I mean really doing, I'm your best friend, you can talk to me."
"Better, well getting better," She shrugged, "I'm sorry I haven't really been around."
"It's okay, I completely understand. I'm really sorry Erin." Kim said rubbing Erin's back.
"Guess it just wants meant to be. We'll be okay though, I'm kinda glad Lily's not old enough to really know what happened. She still asks where the baby is or when it's going to arrive but I think she will soon forget."
Kim sighed, "That wouldn't be easy. You know we are here if you, the both of you need anything."
"Thanks Kim. I think I have been really harsh with Jay but I just don't know how to be around him." Erin said tearing up.
"What do you mean?"
"I told him I don't know if I want to try again, I don't know if I can bare the thought of that happening again." Erin shrugged.
"Oh Erin..."
"Don't Kim, you can't tell me it won't because no one knows that, this wasn't suppose to happen but it still did."
"No it wasn't suppose to happen. And I'm not going to tell you it won't happen again because I don't know that it won't. But that doesn't mean you can never try again, your a great mother Erin and your going to continue being a great mother, especially if and when you decide to have another baby. But don't let this moment, this horrible horrible moment change your future. Lean on Jay, lean on us. But remember Jay went through this too, you have to be there for him as much as he is there for you, you gotta support each other. That's the only way your going to get through this."
Erin nodded, and then she felt all her emotions come out. She passed Kim Lucas then bought her hands to her face, letting the tears rush out. Kim stayed and comforted her until Jay came in, Erin hadn't even noticed them trade spots. But when she finally wiped her tears away she looked up and seen those bright green eyes staring widely back at her.
She smiled then kissed him, something she hadn't done in weeks, "I'm sorry. Seems like all I do lately is cry."
He wiped her cheek, "I don't care. I'm glad to see you letting your emotions out."
"I love you."
"Love you more."
Just before they were about to leave Erin saw Jay holding the little newborn in his arms, her heart melted. Something about seeing him with a little baby in his arms made her forget what had just happened, she walked over to him and stroke Lucas's head, "We will have another one of these Jay, one day."
"And I can wait. But only when your ready."
Three months later and things were going well, Erin and Jay had reconnected and Lily was growing up way to quickly for their likings.
"Lilian Halstead!" Erin shouted at her daughter who was running towards her father in the kitchen.
Jay picked her up and looked at Erin confused, "What has the little devil done now?"
"If I have to dress her one more time I'm giving up and she can go to daycare naked," Jay started laughing, "Don't you laugh Halstead."
Jay stopped laughing and looked at his daughter, "Miss Lily, you have to wear clothes to daycare remember, just like me and mummy have to wear clothes to work."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"I'm not having an argument with a 15 month old, clothes now." Jay said sternly.
"No." Lily said shaking her head furiously.
"No frozen then." Jay shrugged.
"No daddy no!" Lily said starting to cry.
"Can you let mummy dress you then?"
She nodded defeated and went back to her mother, Jay smiled at Erin, "She's all you Er."
"Is not. Your the one that likes to be naked half the time, she takes after you." Erin shot back as she walked off.
When Erin walked out with Lily Jay was clipping his badge on and holstering his gun, then he held Erin's out to her as she put Lily down, "Hank just called, they matched plates to that car that fled the scene of that bombing last night. Wants us to head there now, everyone's suiting up."
"Okay let's go then." She said smiling as she gave him a kiss before they all walked out the door.
"The car's license plate was registered to Archibald Fosse. He lives alone in a fourth-floor apartment. This isn't his first rodeo, either. He got in trouble playing the ponies so he took out his bookie with a car bomb six years ago." Ruzek said as the team gathered together.
"Six years and he's already out?" Jay questioned.
"Well, he was supposed to do 20 years to life. But his case got overturned on appeal three months ago." Ruzek continued.
"Any idea about the motivation for last night's bombing?" Jay asked.
"No, we just ID'ed him 20 minutes ago. There's a lot we have to learn about him yet." Ruzek said.
"Yo, Sarge. This is Diego Jiminez. Uniforms intercepted him on his way up to pay Mr. Fosse a visit." Atwater said as he walked over with Diego.
"How do you know him?" Voight questioned.
"I don't, really. I've never even met him. We connected on-line. I'm a collector. He said he had some baseball cards from the '30s he wanted to sell. That's all." Diego explained.
Voight nodded, "Well, we know this much. If Diego had an appointment, Fosse's probably in there. Let's go. Halstead, Lindsay, Antonio and I will stack on the door, the rest of you stay on the ground incase this guy decides on running."
Everyone nodded, Jay walked over to Erin, "Be careful in there."
"Always. You got my back anyway yeah?
"Always." Jay winked.
Jay knocked on the door, "Chicago PD, Open up!"
Nothing happened, Hank nodded at him, "Breach." Jay kicked the door down and they all entered. Clearing each room.
Erin looked down the fire escape when she heard a noise, she saw the suspect running, "Guys, he's coming your way."
"Chicago PD! Stop!" They all yelled once Fossi hit the ground.
"Let me see your hands," Ruzek yelled, then saw him pull something out of his jacket, "Drop it! Drop it now! What is that? Why is it flashing!Answer me! Answer me!"
Fossi didn't say anything but stay there kneeling with the device flashing in his hands. Then slowly putting it down onto the ground.
"Hey Sarge, get outta there now. The suspect had some kind of device in his pocket. I think he armed something." Ruzek said over the radio.
"Copy that. Everyone out now. Let's go. You guys, out." Voight ordered everyone who was in the apartment. They are copied and started walking out.
Erin was the last one of them about to exit the apartment when she heard a noise and felt something shift under her feet, Jay turned to her with a worried look, "What was that?"
"Jay I think I'm standing on a bomb." She gulped.
"Once Bomb squad finishes their sweep, we'll know if there are any other bombs you could step on, or if I'm standing on the only one." Erin said as calm as possible as Jay stood in front of her. She tried to get him to leave but that was not happening.
"We don't know that you're standing on a bomb. It could be nothing." Jay shrugged.
"It didn't feel like nothing. Something gave way under my feet. It felt like a trigger plate."
"Could be a wonky floorboard."
"With a metallic click?"
"Loose nail. "That's how floorboards get wonky."
"Well, I hope you're right." Erin breathed out.
"I'm right. I mean, think about it. Who puts a live bomb in their own apartment? It makes no sense," Jay said trying to believe it himself, "You hungry?"
"Why?" Erin raised an eyebrow.
"Because any minute, someone's gonna come through that door and give us the all clear. And there is an amazing diner not three blocks from here." Jay smiled.
She smiled back at him, "Yeah? Well, I did miss my breakfast this morning because of your devil of a daughter."
"Yeah. They make these incredible, foamy lattes, cups as big as your head and a goat cheese omelet to die for," Jay frowned, "Which would be a poor choice of words if you were standing on a bomb, but guess what. You're not."
"You know, if I have to be, uh, stuck...not standing on a bomb, then I'm glad I'm stuck with you." She said trying to ease the tension that she could feel coming off Jay.
"I know." Jay smiled.
"Captain Mahoney, Bomb Squad. Which one of you is Detective Lindsay?"
"I'm Detective Lindsay. This is Detective Halstead." Erin said pointed to Jay.
"We've X-rayed the entire apartment from the floor below. There are no other explosives." The captain explained.
"No other explosives? So..." Erin dropped her head.
"Detective, I'm afraid you've stepped on a sensor plate wired to a detonator. Depressing that plate was sort of like cocking the hammer of a gun. You take your weight off there, it's like pulling the trigger. So it's very important that you don't move until we figure out how to disarm it." The captain said.
"Bomb squad just confirmed it. Lindsay's standing on a bomb. Trace detection estimates 10 kilograms of RDX. Enough to take out the whole building." Voight said once he returned back to the others that were outside the apartment building.
"So what's the plan?" Ruzek asked.
"They're working on it. Right now our job is to get back to the district, Halstead's with Lindsay, we have to figure all this out in the meantime."
"What do we have on that bomber?" Voight said leaning up against a desk in-front of the whiteboard."
"Looks like his motive was revenge. Kelly Runther, the woman he blew up last night, testified against him at his arson trial six years ago." Hailey said.
"Then why would he booby-trap his own apartment?" Atwater scoffed.
"The defense at his trial centered on allegations of evidence tampering by police, so..."
"He's got a vendetta against cops." Voight cut Hailey off angrily.
"Yes, Sir. He wanted this to happen." Hailey nodded.
"Well, we're not gonna let it. Get him talking. I want to know how to deactivate that bomb." He said storming off.
Hailey and Antonio sat down in front of Fossi and started questioning him, "I want to know how to deactivate that bomb."
"What makes you think it can be deactivated?" Fossi said.
"You better pray that it can, because the person standing on it, she's a friend of mine." Antonio said angrily.
"Not for long."
"That's where you're wrong. See, you're gonna help us. You know how the bomb is made. The detonator, the fuse, all the other little parts if they can stop any one of those parts from working, the bomb fails." Hailey said.
"It's not gonna fail. I'm not done yet. None of this is over."
"Well, then you're going back to jail a cop killer, and there's not a prison around that's gonna..."
Hailey was cut off, "You want to save your friend? I want a lawyer. Now."
Captain Mahoney came back up to the apartment drawing a circle around Erin, "We're estimating the trigger plate is about 3 feet by 3 feet. So no one crosses this line."
"And the disarming process, how long does that usually take?" Erin asked, Jay could hear the worry in her voice.
"Well, that depends on the bomb. We still don't know what kind of device we're dealing with." Mahoney said.
"So what are we supposed to do in the meantime, just...you can't have her just stand there." Jay pointed at Erin angrily, he couldn't just stand there and watch Erin's life on the line.
"Jay I'm okay." Erin tried assuring him.
"No, you're not okay. You're standing...Look, you said, uh, stepping on the plate was like cocking the hammer. Stepping off the plate was pulling the trigger. What if we replaced Lindsay with something of equal weight? You know, just the old Indiana Jones bag of sand/golden idol trick." Jay shrugged.
"Remember how that turned out?" Erin said to Jay trying to joke.
"Look, the plate she's standing on can sense even minor fluctuations in pressure. You try to transfer the weight, you'll set off the bomb. Put any kind of protective gear on her, you'll set off the bomb. She shifts too quickly from one foot to the other..."
Jay cut him off, "Set off the bomb. I-I get it. Thank you. I'm sorry I asked. So what are we supposed to do, just stand here?"
"Not you, Detective Halstead. All nonessential personnel must evacuate." Mahoney said.
"Oh, no. I am essential personnel." Jay said forcefully.
"Jay, it's okay." Erin said nodding at him telling him it was fine for him to go, that she wanted that.
"We'll take good care of her. I got guys downstairs right now figuring this out. Meantime, Detective, sit tight. I'll check back with you soon." Mahoney said before walking out, waiting for Jay to follow him.
"I appreciate it. I'm staying. She's not just my partner but she's my wife, I'm not leaving her." Jay told the captain, he nodded and walked out.
"Jay, please. There is no reason to put yourself in danger. There's nothing that you can do here."
"Nothing? Excuse me. Who's gonna be your bomb buddy?" Jay said trying to crack a joke, relax Erin a little.
"My bomb buddy?"
"You heard what he said. You're gonna be standing here, maybe for hours. If I don't stay, who's gonna keep your spirits up? Who's gonna take your mind off of getting tired?"
"Think about Lily, she can't have both of us blowing up."
"Lily has nothing to worry about, we are both walking out of here."
"Jay I'm fine, I feel fine." Erin said wanting him to leave.
"That would be great if you were a reliable judge of your own feelings, which clearly, you're not." Jay shrugged.
"What does that mean?"
"I'm sorry. Exhibit "A", according to you, you felt nothing for me when we first met, which we both know..."
Erin cut him off, "Are you act...oh, I get it. I know what you're doing."
"What?"
"You know what, Jay? Forget it. I'm not going down that path. You can just go now."
"Fine, I'll leave if you admit to me you had feelings for me when we first met." Jay smirked.
"Fine. I did have feelings for you when we first met. I couldn't stand you. Do you even remember what you were like in the beginning?" Erin chuckled reminiscing on the day they first were signed up as partners.
"Well, apparently, I was irresistible."
"Irresistible? Are you joking? All the times you begged me to drive. The constant lame jokes you made. Always trying to get up in my business. Okay I will admit I may have had a slight attraction to you, you aren't the worst person to look at all day."
Jay smiled, "I guess I take that as a compliment. But if you couldn't stand me when we first met, tell me this. Why couldn't you keep your hands off me?"
"What are you even talking about?"
"Oh, you know what I'm talking about." Jay said remembering all the times she supposedly accidentally touched him.
"Well go on tell me." Erin said waiting.
"Fine. All the times you'd look over my shoulder at paperwork or on the computer you'd rest your hand on my shoulder, every time we'd bump into each other after getting coffee you'd snake your hand around my waist to sneak your way past me. If we'd go out to Molly's for a drink you always use to sit so close your leg would rub up against my leg. Oh and let's not forget how handsy you were at the sex club, you can't tell me that was purely just you being under..."
Erin cut him off, "Seriously Jay? I think it's quite sad that you noticed all of that. And most of the time those things happen at work, it meant nothing."
Jay chuckled, "Or one could see it as a small part of a larger pattern unwanted touching in the workplace."
"Oh, so you're being harassed? Is that it?"
"You know, you're very lucky. A less understanding man would press charges with all the...inappropriate things you've said to me."
"Really? Like what?" She scoffed.
"Oh, jeez. How do you even get in that position?" Jay said looking at a raunchy photo while working on a case involving a cheating wife.
"Right? It's not even possible." Adam and Kevin said in sync.
"Oh, it's possible." Erin said walking past them sneaking a quick glance.
...
"The closest I ever came to taking an art class was posing for one as a model." Erin said after walking out of an art studio on a case.
"Wait. Posing in?" Jay gave her a questionable look.
"Not a stitch." She said casually.
...
"Oh, Jay, me in a swimsuit under the hot...blistering sun?" Erin whispered to Jay.
"I'd be happy to rub lotion on you." Jay whispered back.
...
You think this is crazy, you should see some of the clubs I've been to." Erin said as they waited at the sex club for answers.
"You know any good tricks?"
"I do this one thing with ice cubes." Erin said as she rubbed her hand along Jays leg, causing him to uncomfortable shift.
...
"There is one hot... wild...kinky thing that I do like doing." Erin said slowly to Jay, he nearly fell over.
"Putting killers behind bars." She said rolling her eyes.
"Please, let's just stick it in and get this over with." She said putting a disk into the disk drive.
"That's not how I meant it. I can't help it if you get off by putting things in my mouth." She said cutting him out of his thoughts.
"See? Like that. I can't even...it's uncanny." Jay shrugged.
"Oh, like you've never been inappropriate."
"Me?" Jay pointed back at himself, "I've never been anything but a perfect gentleman."
"Really?" Erin said starting to reveal her memories.
"Sex?" Erin asked the coroner, meaning was the victim male or female.
"I'll explain how that works later." Jay joked, as he nudged her.
...
"Slutty nurse." Jay said holding up a costume after they'd done a bust.
...
"You're very good at bossing men around. I find that hot." Jay said to Erin after they'd talked to a suspect.
...
"Did you call to tell me a bedtime story?" He answered the phone one night knowing that it would probably be work related.
...
"Kinky. Strangely arousing." Jay said one time when they were in a comprising position when they got locked in a room.
"You better not be enjoying this, Jay." Erin said annoyed.
"I'll let you know in a minute." Jay laughed, getting Erin's elbow to the ribs.
...
"If you are not comfortable in a swimsuit, you can just skinny-dip."
...
"So I wear boxers. What do you wear? Thong? Cheekies? Bloomers? Granny panties?Commando?" Jay said when they were waiting to talk to a salesperson in a lingerie store.
"And talk about unwanted touching?" Erin said before listing off the times he always 'accidentally touched her.'
"Ready?" Jay said looking over at Erin as they tried to get out of the locked room throw a air vent.
"Yep." Erin nodded then stood on Jays shoulders. "Okay. I'm gonna go up. Ready? Grab my legs," Jay grabbed her ass unintentionally causing Erin to gasp, "Jay, I said "legs," okay?"
"Oh, legs. Sorry." Jay apologised.
"Yeah, but that's simply because your legs are so close to your...other bits." Jay said stuttering.
"Oh, yeah. Keep telling yourself that, Jay." Erin chuckled and then went quiet. Jay looked over to her, she was tense and worried again, "It's gonna be okay, right?" She asked him.
"Yeah. Those guys downstairs, they've done this thousands of times." Jay said trying to assure her and himself.
"Captain Mahoney just called with an update." Antonio shouted as the team gathered around his desk.
"Lack of access is limiting their options. The handheld remote definitely activated the bomb. Good news, Tech thinks it could deactivate it as well. But they need the right 5-digit code." Antonio explained.
"That's, what, a hundred thousand combinations?" Adam said rubbing his hands over his face.
"Yeah, and it's tamper proof.Enter the wrong code, and..." Antonio added.
"Hailey, Antonio, go talk to the lawyer, we need that code." Voight ordered.
"My client says that he's willing to give you the
disarm code, but...he has some demands." The lawyer passed over the paper.
"Full immunity? You gotta be kidding me, right?" Antonio scoffed. "This guy killed someone last night."
"Uh, allegedly killed," the lawyer corrected, "Look, I know. I-I told him that you wouldn't go for it, but if you haven't noticed, he's got a screw loose."
"I can work on these other things food, clothes, even the phone isn't impossible, but..." Antonio said as he paced back and fourth.
"He said he won't go back to prison."
"Okay?" Hailey nodded.
"He walks or he won't help her." The lawyer shrugged.
"Boyer, right?" Antonio said.
"Yeah."
"You been out of law school, what, two, three years?"
"Ten months."
"Ten months?" Antonio asked and the lawyer nodded, "Okay, listen to me. That detective standing on that bomb, she needs to get through this. You understand me?"
"Look, I-I swear. I'm...I'm doing what I can."
"All right. I'll take this list to the DA, but we're gonna need a plan "B."" Antonio said as both him and Hailey walked off.
Voight hung up his phone then walked out into the bullpen, "The DA's not going for it, nor should he. Turning this madman loose on society to save a single life, even hers, is against everything we stand for. And Lindsay...she'd be the first to agree with that."
"I'll go back to the lawyer. See if he can get through to Fosse." Hailey said, Antonio followed her.
"So I told him that there was a deal to be had, just not for immunity..."
"And?" Hailey asked hopeful.
The lawyer shrugged, "And he's still insisting he walk. I figured I'd give him a few minutes to think and try again. Detective, I swear, I'm doing everything I can."
"Thanks." Hailey and Antonio nodded as the lawyer walked off.
Voight approached them, "Do me a favor? Why don't you keep Junior over there busy for me, will you? Im moving our boy to the cage."
"Sarge."
"We need that code." Voight said as Adam followed him.
Voight and Adam started walking to the interrogation room then noticed Fossi on the ground, blood pouring out his neck, "Call an ambulance!"
"How in the hell did he get that pen?" Voight yelled out.
"That friggin' lawyer gave it to him." Antonio said angrily, "He was trying to encourage Fosse to come up with some alternate demands."
"And instead he just cost us any hope of getting that disarm code." Voight said as he paced back and fourth frustrated.
"The guy just got out of prison a couple of months ago. Why would he start killing people, and why would he take his own life?" Kevin stated.
"I think I can answer that." Adam said walking towards the white board, "Turns out...Fosse had stage IV brain cancer. Found out last month. He was gonna die anyway."
"So if he was dying, why not take his enemies with him?" Kevin questioned.
"Exactly, and his enemies weren't limited to cops and last night's bombing victim. There was another bombing last week in Connecticut. That victim worked for the ADA that put Fosse in jail six years ago." Adam went on.
"Hey, Fosse said, "I'm not done yet."" Antonio said as he pointed to Hailey getting confirmation.
"Make a list of everyone involved with the prosecution at his trial. We need to warn them. There may be other bombs out there. And get all the information on any fragments that were recovered from both bombings. If those bombs were made with any common components, it could help Bomb Squad deactivate the device that Lindsay's on." Voight said.
"Without the disarm code, we're gonna need to get eyes on the device. We use a fiber-optic scope...go in through the ceiling downstairs. We'll do everything we can to minimize the risk. We'll start across the room, snake the cable over. Still, there'll be some vibrations. So there's always a chance that..."
Erin cut the captain off, "Just do it. I can't keep standing here forever."
"All right. We'll go as quick as we can but as slow as we have to." Mahoney nodded before walking off.
"Thank you. Jay, listen to me..."
"I'm not leaving." Jay cut her off.
"And I appreciate that, but we really have to..."
"And by the way, you may have convinced yourself about not having feelings, but...you weren't fooling anyone else...Not me, and certainly not your friends." Jay said going back to their earlier chat, trying to get her mind off the reality.
"Really? 'Cause no one ever said anything to me." Jay shot her an 'oh really' look. "They might have said something, but...but they were completely misreading the situation."
"Oh. Much like I must have been misreading the situation all those times you dressed up in revealing outfits to try and, uh, turn my head." Jay said smirking to himself.
"The only reason that I was dressed up was to go undercover." Erin laughed.
"Oh, I guess it was just a coincidence that...each time, I just so happened to be there." Jay shrugged.
"No, it wasn't a coincidence, your my partner idiot."
Jay nodded, "Fair point."
"Anyway this just shows that you were just into me, always noticing that stuff. Not being able to take your eyes off me."
"Me into you?" Erin nodded at him, "Mm. I-I admit, I found you not unattractive and occasionally...fun to be around.But into you? No-mm...No. Definitely not."
"Well, it's obvious that you and I are not gonna resolve this."
"So you concede?"
"I know a way we can settle this. Ring the team." Erin said.
"Fine." Jay got his phone out and rang Antonio.
"Jay, how's it going." - A
"Still the same. On another note we need to know something, feel free to put me on speaker." - J
"Okay?" - A
"We are discussing who of us like the other one first." - J
"Seriously? Who liked who first?" - A
"That's right. Who was into whom first, me or Jay?" - E
"You do realise that we busy trying to save your life?" - A
"Just answer the question, Tony, and don't be afraid to hurt his feelings." - E
"And don't forget about how jealous she got that time we worked that involved an ex girlfriend." - J
"Or how jealous he got when I was with Kelly." - E
"Or before that, how jealous she got about me and my ex weed boss." - J
Back at the bullpen, everyone was chuckling when Hailey walked back, wondering what they were doing when she heard Erin and Jay on the other end of the phone bickering, "They starting to lose it?"
"Big time." Adam nodded.
"Listen, I ran down the bomb fragments from Fosse's previous attacks. The components he used were completely different. They're not gonna be any help in determining what this third bomb is like. So it's up to Bomb squad now."
"Oh, God. There's a timer, too. Seems like the timer was activated when she stepped on that triggering plate." An officer said to Captain Mahoney.
He walked up and explained it to both Erin and Jay, "Okay, Well, how much time is left?"
"30 minutes and 47 seconds." He said and both Jay and Erin shared a shocked look.
"All right. Um...Well...Can we deactivate it by then?" Jay asked as he and the captain walked into the other room.
"We'll try. Trouble is, our usual targets...the fuse, the detonator, the timing pin...they're all shielded by a steel plate."
"Well, there's gotta be something we can do. We could line the floor with armor. I could just put on one of those suits. I could tackle her
right off of it." Jay said trying to think of a solution. All his work and time as a ranger and a cop was proving nothing today when he was trying to save his wife's life.
"Detective, if that thing goes off, the whole building's going with it. There's not a suit in the
world that's gonna..."
"Hey, Jay. What's going on?" Erin yelled from the other room.
"Uh, be right there." Jay yelled back.
"I promise we'll do all that we can. But I urge you to be realistic..."
"Okay, thank you. Captain, thank you." Jay said shutting him up before walking back to Erin.
"What did he say?"
"There's a timer on the bomb." He said sadly.
"How long?"
"About 30 minutes."
"Yeah, well, it's probably just as well. I can't keep standing here anyway." She said dropping her head.
"Hey, we will get you out of this."
"And what makes you so sure?" Erin asked hun bluntly.
"We've been in bad situations before." Jay shrugged.
"So how are we gonna find our way out of this one?" Erin asked him.
"I keep thinking the answer is in Fosse's story. I mean, something must have set him off. But what?"
"Jay, why does his story matter?"
"The story always matters. The story points us to the solution. But in this case, we're not trying to catch our killer. Fosse's already dead," Jay stopped and started thinking, "You know what bugs me? Why would a guy on a bombing spree be worried about selling his baseball card collection?"
"He wouldn't. Do you think that Fosse was trying to lure the collector here?"
Jay nodded as he looked over the receipt next to the baseball card collection, "Yeah, I'd say so, seeing as how the receipt says he just bought this collection a week ago. That card collector was going down to the station to make a statement, right?" Jay asked.
"Yes, yes. If he's still there, maybe the team can figure out what Fosse wanted with him." Erin said.
Jay held up his phone, "Already on it."
"You're sure you never met him before? No previous interactions?" Adam said as he and Kevin sat down in the break room with Diego.
"No. He friended me on Facebook a few weeks ago, saw me posting about some trading cards, said he has some old ones for me to take a look at."
"How about any connection to his trial, even indirectly? Maybe your job's related to
the legal field somehow." Kevin asked.
"I'm an administrator for NYSED up in Albany. This is the first time I've even been to Chicago in years. I thought I'd come see family while I was here."
"Okay, what about his victims, Jeffrey Sklar, Kelly Runther?" Adam asked as he showed him photos, "Any connection to them?"
Diego shook his head, "Sorry. I've never seen them before."
"What about this list of names connected to the Fosse trial? Do any of those names look familiar?" Kevin said showing him the list, he shook his head, "Look again. We're running out of time."
"I want to help. I do. But I don't know anything." Diego said sadly.
Jay was pacing back and fourth on the phone to Adam, "Yeah. No, I under...I understand. Thanks Ruze."
Captain Mahoney came in, "Detective Lindsay."
Erin nodded her head, "Ten minutes. I know. It's okay, Captain. You did everything you could."
"We are not giving up. There'll be guys down there working on this till the last possible moment. But I have to withdraw everybody else, and that includes you, Detective Halstead." The captain said looking between the two partners.
"Could I just...Could I have a moment alone with him, please?" Erin said, tears in her eyes.
"Of course." Mahoney said before he walked out.
"It's time to say good-bye." Erin said looking into Jays eyes.
"I'm not leaving." Jay said tearing up himself.
"Jay you have to. I know this is hard but Lily needs atleast one parent. You have to for her."
"Er, no."
"Please, Jay. Please don't make this any harder than it needs to be." Erin said wiping her tears away.
"I-I wish I could...kiss you. I wish...so many things." Jay said wanting to reach out for her, every inch of his body wanted to pull her into his arms but he couldn't.
"No. There's no regrets. All in all, I think we've had a great run. I seriously couldn't have imagined doing these last couple years without you. I'm thankful for Lily, she bought us back together. I'm glad I got to become your wife and I'm glad I got to be your partner again. Make sure you tell our little girl how much I love her," Erin said choking on her last words, "You should go."
Jay nodded, wiping his tears away, "I love you."
"I love you, too." Erin nodded as she watched Jay walk away, "Oh and Jay, I always knew I loved you, even if it did take us a little while to admit to the feelings." The way he smiled at her, meant more then words and it was so hard not to fall on the ground in tears, but there was ten more minutes left of hope.
Erin pulled her phone out and started ringing Hank,
"Hey kiddo."
"Hey Hank."
"I'm guessing this isn't a phone call to tell me some good news."
"I'm sorry," Erin choked out, "I just want to say how thankful I am for everything you gave me in life. How much you helped me even when I didn't want it, without you I wouldn't be where I am today."
"I'm thankful for you too Erin, you have made me so proud. Your about the best thing that ever happened to me."
"Promise me something?"
"Anything."
"Jays going to need you. Lily's going to need you, you have to promise me your will be there for them."
"I promise. No questions asked. They are family."
"I love you Hank."
"Love you too Kiddo."
She took one last deep breath before hanging up the phone.
Erin looked up and saw Jay walking back through the door, "Hey. What are you doing! You said you'd leave."
"Yeah, I said I'd leave, but I didn't promise I wouldn't come back. I got coffee...later...for
when you're off that thing." Jay said setting the coffee down on the kitchen counter.
Erin started getting frustrated, this man she thought, "No, Jay, please. You have to leave now. There's no reason for both of us to die."
"Oh, I didn't come here to die. I came here to defuse the bomb. There's still a chance." Jay said calmly.
"Yes, a 1 in 100,000 chance."
"Great. While there's still a chance, I'm not giving up." Jay smiled.
"Jay, listen to me. I've already come to peace with this, and that doesn't include Lily losing her father."
"Come on. What am I supposed to do, walk out the door while you're standing all the way over there by yourself? I will leave at the very last millisecond." Jay said shrugging.
"Yes. Yes, that's exactly..."
"Wait a second," Jay held up his hand looking around, "Why are you standing all the way over there? If Fosse set the bomb for the cops, why not...why not set it by the door so they'd hit is as they came in? Unless..."
Erin cut him off, "This wasn't for cops."
Jay started walking around, "Then who was it for? The card collector kid...what was his name?"
"Diego. He was on his way up here. Maybe Fosse was trying to leverage him for information."
"Okay, great. So, uh, what's near where you're standing? The island, cards, computer."
"Jay, I think I can reach that computer from here."
"You stay there. I'll...I'll check it." Jay said spinning the computer around.
"Do you think Fosse wanted Diego to look something up?"
"Maybe, but what? Checking the browser history...porn...more porn, web sites for a couple of PIs, peopletracker.pro. He's looking for someone." Jay looked up at Erin confused.
"Maybe it was someone else that he held responsible for putting him in prison." Erin suggested.
"You can find practically anyone with the click of a mouse. Why hire a private investigator?"
Jay rang the team to fill them in, they quickly rang back.
"Hailey..."
"I think I might have an answer for you. I went through the list of all the people involved in Fosse's trial. One woman's been completely scrubbed from the system. Driver's license, social security number...all gone."
"Who was that?"
"Dorothy Novak. The prosecution's main witness, and Fosse's girlfriend at the time. The DA just confirmed, his office set her up with a new identity when Fosse got out three months ago. She was afraid Fosse would come after her. Looks like she was right."
"Okay, but how is this Diego Jiminez supposed to help find her?"
"Don't know. He worked at the NYSED."
"New York State Education Department. Wait. Were the first two victims related to Fosse's girlfriend?"
"Yeah, the woman he killed last night was the girlfriend's cousin."
"And the first victim worked for the DA's office. They helped relocate her. Fosse didn't want revenge. He was looking for information from them. He wanted to find out his girlfriend's new identity. He was desperate to find them," a lightbulb clicked in Jays head, "Does she have a kid?"
"Yeah. She gave birth eight months after the trial. How did you know?"
"It's his. He didn't find out about it until he got out. And that's why he lured Diego here. Diego had access to state school records. He was trying to find his kid. It was all about fi...That's the code. It has to be. Hailey, see if you can find the kid's name."
"We're working on it."
"Okay, work fast. We got two minutes."
"It's a story that makes sense. Fosse was desperate to see his kid just once before he dies, but the mother has hidden the child away. So Fosse lashed out, doing whatever it took to track them down. Told you we'd figure this out."
"Jay, there's barely a minute left. You've gotta go."
Jay shook his head, "Not yet. The last millisecond remember."
"Please. If they find the name, I'll type it in myself. If not..."
"They'll come through. They have to." Jay said.
"William. The kid's name is William."
"Seven letters."
"Billy. Or Willy." He could hear them saying stuff over the phone about what stupid mother nicknames there kid Willy but the stress started to kick in.
"Guys, 15 seconds."
"Your call, Er."
"Billy. Go."
"B-i-l-l..." Jay said typing it in, then suddenly the device flashed green, his tense shoulders dropped when he looked at the timer that hit zero.
"Oh, God. She's off. She's off." Jay yelled caught Erin in his arms as she fell forward, soaking up every inch of his warmth.
"Yes!" They couldn't hear everyone cheering over the phone.
They walked outside, hand in hand, "Wait, Jay. Listen...Thank you for staying with me."
"Always." He smiled going to kiss her but she pulled back.
"But next time do what I ask please, that was too close to comfort. It's not just about me anymore, our daughter is more important then that. Promise me next time you will listen." Erin begged.
"Okay I promise." He said before kissing her.
"You know, Jay when I was standing up there, I kept thinking about all the times we've kissed. And I was trying to decide on the best one."
"And what do you think?" Jay pulled back smiling.
"This one right now." She said pulling him in close by his neck, showing him every bit of her love she had for him.
Once he caught his breath he smiled, "Let's go get our girl and go home."
"I like the sound of that."
