"What took you so long?" Jamie complained, Vinny returned after staying inside the precinct twenty minutes after roll call ended.
"I was getting this." Vinny held up a tan folder, handing it to Jamie. He looked through the folder and it was filled with almost everything the police had on the Sanfino's.
"How'd you get this?" Jamie wondered, looking over pages.
"Martinez…" Vinny looked over at Jamie.
"Detective Martinez? the hot CID Detective?" Jamie had to confirm, Vinny nodded. "Wow, how'd you score that?" he scoffed.
"Well, it wasn't easy, I had to promise her-"
"You know what… I don't need to hear it." Jamie laughed, interrupting. "Just don't let Witten catch you-"
"I had to promise one of our collars!" Vinny loudly explained.
"I'm sorry one of our collars?" Jamie re-asked, setting the laughter aside.
"Anyway." Vinny cleared his throat. "Witten doesn't like me anyway."
"You serious?" Jamie asked. "You're dense."
"I'm dense?" Jamie nodded. "What about you, huh?" Vinny began. "Janko still loves you and you love her. What do you plan on doing about that once we handle this Noble thing?" Vinny asked the question Jamie didn't even know himself.
"I dunno…" Jamie answered truthfully, "I don't think we can ever go back to how things were." Vinny's eyes widened. "Not right now at least..."
"Even after everything that just happened between you two?" Jamie nodded.
"Look... I love her, that fact is obvious but it's all so complicated-"
"You love her... what's so complicated?" Vinny was confused.
"I don't know if I'm ready, you know? for a relationship, we've been apart for so long, it's like we don't really know each other anymore... plus still have to deal with Noble and-" Jamie was clearly stressed. "Figure out what Joe left-" Jamie bit his tongue.
"What did Joe leave?" Vinny asked.
"Uhhh, nothing important, some things I picked up from Angela," Jamie pulled a photo from the file. "This is Noble?" Vinny nodded. "And this was the guy staring you down?"
"That's him," Vinny confirmed.
"I feel like I've seen him before." Jamie stared hard at his picture.
"I wouldn't doubt if he watches you to Jamie." Vinny pointed out.
"He doesn't even have so much as a parking ticket." Jamie handed Vinny the folder back, starting up the patrol car.
"You're going to have to make up for giving up one of our collars." Vinny rolled his eyes at Jamie's words.
"You're kidding." Erin folded her arms, taking a seat on the couch in Frank's office.
"Danny, called this morning." Frank pursed his lips.
"My office has been working for decades to prosecute!"
"I'm worried, Erin." Frank interrupted honestly.
"For Jamie or Eddie."
"Both of them, I think we should have TARU sweep her place."
"You think she should keep going home alone? Maybe she should stay someplace else." Erin suggested.
"I agree, we'll talk to her after her tour." Erin gathered all of her things.
"Okay dad, I'll give Jamie a call later, I love you." She left his office.
"So, Eddie what's going on?" Rachel asked the whole tour Eddie seemed to have a lot on her mind, she wasn't completely there.
"With what." Rachel squinted her eyes. "Nothing really-"
"I'm your partner, I know we have known each other long but you can trust me-"
"I know," Eddie interrupted, she wasn't sure if she should tell Rachel but Vinny knew so she only thought it was right her partner does. "Listen, I have to tell you something but no one can know." Rachel nodded. Eddie explained everything to her even about her life upstate to when she moved and met Jamie, till when Noble came around and ruined everything.
"I'm sorry," Witten hugged her, Noble sounded as bad as the monster she claimed him to be. "Eddie other than Vinny, Jamie and me knowing… who else knows?"
"No one," She replied, holding back tears, she hated crying, it ruined her mascara. Rachel couldn't believe that she went through this alone for nearly six years.
"You need to report this." Eddie looked at her with horror. "Eddie, this is dangerous now that he knows Jamie knows who knows what he would do! he could hurt you, Eddie! you live alone, you shouldn't be going back to your apartment alone." Rachel genuinely cared, it warmed Eddie's heart, she hadn't had a close friendship with another female since around high school.
"I know, my biggest fear is for Jamie though, Noble knows Jamie knows and I'm scared for him." Eddie feared for Jamie.
"Why does-" A dispatch call interrupted.
"All units, reports of a distress call from 12- David. Corner of 13th and Lennox." Rachel's heart raced.
"12-Charlie responding." Eddie hung up the radio. "What were you saying?" Rachel only assumed Eddie had no idea of the severity of the current situation.
"Eddie." Rachels tone was completely different, serious and concentrated. "12-David... is Vinny and Jamie." Those words seemed to echo.
10 minutes earlier, Lower east-side, Manhattan.
"SS Chevelle? it's all yours?" Jamie nodded conforming. "Wow." Vinny loves cars as well which makes their partnership so much more relatable.
"She's a beauty." Jamie smiled. "I'll bring her by soon, we can open her up, the car hasn't been driven really since my brother Joe died."
"I bet he really took care of it," Vinny stated.
"Yeah he loved that car a lot, I remember back in high school for the first time he let me drive it because Eddie and I got in a fight... That was the first time I drove his car, it might have been one of the last too." Jamie sighed.
"Joe seemed like a stand-up guy," Vinny said genuinely.
"He was the best man..." Jamie put his attention on the road ahead. "What is this, a fender bender?"
"Finally, some excitement." Vinny lit up the siren lights, "Can you believe it? they're ignoring us." Jamie honked the horn.
"Go around!" The man screamed. Jamie and Vinny made eye contact.
"Here we go." Jamie opened the car door first, getting ready to get out and approach the two men, Vinny, however, paid close attention to the situation he didn't know what it was but something didn't feel right, and just then the two men made a break for it, climbing back into their cars. Jamie looked over at Vinny confused.
"Wait. wait, wait! Jamie! It's a set-up!" Vinny stopped Jamie from going any further grabbing his shoulder before leaving their patrol car, they watched two men speed off.
"Reagan!" Vinny screamed, Jamie slightly glazed to his left seeing a black shadowy figure approaching him and an object on fire setting his left side and part of their patrol car ablaze. They hardly had little to no time at all to brace for it, Jamie groaned in pain as the fire engulfed his arm, he tried desperately with his left hand to put out the stubborn flames but nothing seemed to work.
"Get out of the car Vin!" Jamie ordered panting, still trying to put the flames out. Vinny wanted to chase after the perp but with the car and Jamie literally both on fire, he did what Jamie wanted, he got out the car running to the other side pulling Jamie out of it, he dragged him to the nearest and best thing to take cover behind and that was the dumpster. "Damn it.." He watched Jamie cradle his arm in pain even in the dim light. The burns seemed pretty bad, he removed his gun from its holster keeping an eye out.
"Reagan are you-" The car exploded bursting into flames, "Central this is 12-David requesting back up, officers in distress." Vinny breathed heavily into the radio.
Current time.
Time seemed to move slowly, Eddie and Rachel turned onto the street. The entire block was lit up with emergency lights, an FDNY fire truck was putting out a burning patrol car, Rachel looked over at Eddie as she trembled in fear over what could happen next. When the two had parked they ran over to their fellow officers keeping eyes out for their boys.
"Hey what happened?" Rachel asked completely out of breath. Eddie right behind terrified but anxious for the reply to her question.
"The only thing we know is the two of them were attacked, we didn't get the perp."
"Where are the officers?"
"They're being loaded into the bus." The officer stared at the ambulance, making their way over to it and they noticed Vinny sitting down inside with an ice pack covering his forehead, upon closer arrival, Jamie was shirtless being treated by two paramedics.
"What happened?" Rachel asked before Eddie could. Both of the men looked up at her and the exhaustion in their eyes said it all.
"Are you both okay?" Eddie trembled, one of the paramedics moved out of the way exposing Jamie's burns up and down his left arm, her anxiety skyrocketed, her breaths even became shaky.
"I'm alright," Jamie grumbled, it was clearly a lie.
"No, you're not Jamie!" Eddie snapped in a worried full tone.
"Excuse me," Paramedic interrupted before their conversation continued any further. "We need to be getting both of you to the emergency room."
"I don't think I need to be-"
"You're going Cruz," Renzulli ordered appearing. "Witten, Janko head over to Saint Rose and provide back up, I'll have additional units set up outside, just in case the son of a bitch who did this decides to show up at the hospital." They nodded, they both watched the ambulance door close and it drove off. When they arrived at the hospital Jamie was taken to a private room where they could assess his burns, Vinny was Simply examined and told to take it easy and he was released.
"What happened Vinny?" Rachel questioned, as they waited outside of Jamie's room.
"There was this fender bender when we turned onto Lennox, two males were arguing when me and Jamie hit the lights they told us to go around when we were about to get out the car… I don't know something about their body language wasn't right, I stopped Jamie, the two of them took off and next thing you knew the someone in a mask was running up to the driver side where Jamie was and threw a molotov cocktail."
"Molotov cocktail?"
"It's a bottle filled with flammable liquid lit on fire," Eddie answered.
"Yeah, luckily Jamie didn't get out of the car, if he had he probably would've been completely engulfed in fire, the car took half the heat." Eddie's stomach crunched.
"You think it was Noble?" Rachel asked the two. Vinny looked over at Eddie completely surprised.
"Who else could it have been?" Eddie looked away. "Just yesterday he told me I would regret this." Vinny began to see the fear in her eyes.
"Janko, this isn't your fault… He needed to know, this has gone on too long, now all we have to do is get the evidence proving that Noble did it and we can lock him up."
"We won't get him that way, it probably wasn't noble who did it it was probably one of his guys." Eddie quaked. "He's way too smart to get caught up doing something like this."
"You're not safe going home Eddie-" Eddie her hearing faded and her eyes lit up seeing Danny walking towards them, she hadn't seen him in six years as well.
"Cruz, what the hell happened?" Danny was as pissed off as he sounded. Danny looked to his left noticing her. "Hey, you." Danny gave Eddie a hug. "Jamie told me yesterday, I wish you came to me kid." He whispered to her. Vinny again explained everything which really pissed Danny off.
"No word on where the perp went." Vinny sighed, Rachel went to talk to Renzulli to see if they had any leads.
"I'm going to get TARU to clean your place out, make sure there's nothing going in there." Danny made a phone call.
"And we will find you a new place." Erin appeared with Frank. The three officers stood seeing their Commissioner.
"As you were," Frank spoke. Eddie couldn't believe it, seeing her favorite family again.
"Hey, Eddie." Erin smiled giving her a hug, in appearance Erin hadn't aged a bit from the last time she saw her when Eddie was seventeen years old.
"I'm sorry about all this-" Eddie began, her emotions eating her alive.
"Eddie, no one blames you." Erin was dead serious, Frank and Danny agreed in the back.
"You're still a part of the family, Jamie will be fine." Hearing those words from Frank sure as hell was reassuring.
"Commissioner." The doctor greeted the group.
"How is he?" Frank asked the question that was on everyone's mind.
"Officer Reagan has second-degree burns from his left shoulder down to his pinky finger, his forearm in some places have third-degree burns." Those words left them horrified. "I prescribed him pain medication and ointments that will help heal the scarring but other than that he will be okay."
"Will it leave scars?" Erin questioned.
"Unfortunately where the third-degree burns are it will, his second degree burns scars should have little to no scarring if he follows up with his medication."
"When can we see him?" Danny asked impatiently.
"Right this way." She led them to the exact room. "He should be released in a few hours, when I return with the medication I will give instructions on how to handle the bandages." Frank nodded. When the door opened the doctor wasn't kidding, Jamie's shoulder down was wrapped in bandages.
"Hey, guys." Jamie smiled, he still looked as if he was in a great deal of pain, He watched them all mope in, "This isn't a funeral guys."
"How are you feeling." Frank sat aside being commissioner, he was there as Jamie's father.
"I'm uh, doing alright, I feel the pain but I'll be okay," he answered, he looked over in the back at Eddie, he could tell she felt guilt, she wouldn't look at him.
"That's good kid." Danny had to put his brotherly love aside for a minute. "You didn't see a face, Jamie?"
"No, it was dark the guy had a hoodie on."
"Yes or no?" Jamie rolled his eyes he thought real hard.
"Uh... I might have, I don't know." Jamie moved around looking for a more comfortable position. "How're you, Vin?"
"I'm good, not a scratch." Jamie felt relieved at his words.
"When did the doc say I can get out of here?"
"Couple hours," Erin answered.
"Good, I'm ready to go home." Jamie needed sleep, the hospital room was way too bright and the positioning was crazy uncomfortable
"You won't be going back to your apartment." Jamie looked at his father, "You'll be staying with me and pop." Jamie was about to protest. " You and Eddie."
"Wait what?" Eddie asked nervously and was completely out of the loop.
"You both can still leave to go to work but when it comes to going home at the end of the day it will be my home," Frank finalized. "Also telling by those injuries Jamie, you'll be working a desk until you're cleared for duty." Danny and Erin seemed unfazed by the decision.
"You knew about this?" Jamie looked at his siblings, their failure to answer, answered his question. Jamie annoyingly sighed, "Alright, only if you're okay with it." Jamie looked at Eddie.
"Yeah, I am if you are." She replied she felt like a burden.
"Great now, me and Officer Cruz are going to be outside." Vinny looked over at Rachel who gave him a look but for some reason he understood.
"Oh yeah, uh we're going to stay on the lookout." Vinny cleared his throat, "Reagan, if you need anything me know I'll be outside." Vinny shook his uninjured hand.
"Thanks, brother." Jamie smiled.
"Anthony is waiting for me in the car, I need to be getting back to the office," Erin kissed Jamie's forehead, "Love you, little brother." She smiled. "Bye Eddie," Frank and Danny made their exits shortly after Erin, leaving Eddie and Jamie in awkward silence.
"Hey, are you okay?" Jamie thought he'd break the ice.
"Am I okay?" She repeated. "Jamie you're hurt because of me, so the better question is are you okay."
"I'm not hurt because of you, I got hurt because Noble is a psycho, none of that is your fault." She looked like she was ready to argue. Jamie sat up sitting on the edge of the bed taking her hand and bringing her closer. "I'm serious, nothing hurts more than you blaming yourself, so please don't." Her heart beating like crazy with him holding her small hand with his large one.
"Okay." His words assured her, the burden felt a lot less strong.
5 hours Later; 12:00 AM
"Habits don't die do they?" Jamie placed his right arm on the hood of the car, peeking into the vehicle. This is the very first time to his recollection of seeing Noble face to face, Jamie could tell his sudden appearance startled him.
"I don't think they do," Vinny answered Jamie's question standing on the passenger side of the car also peeking into the vehicle parked right outside Eddie's apartment building. Noble gritted his teeth, the two men made cold blank eye contact.
TBC!
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Next chapter soon! sorry for the cliffhanger. :)
