Disclaimer: Anything familiar belongs to JE and the creators of Criminal Minds.
Warning: Adult situations, adult language
Chapter 78: Saturday, September 3rd, 0900-1500
Atlanta
Joe's POV
I've been in Atlanta for less than a week, but I already love the change. Atlanta is such a beautiful city. Everything here is laid back, well, at least laid back compared to Trenton. I like the weather, so far, though it is hotter than I'm used to. I visited the precinct, and with the help of my former boss and Tank, I was hired as a transferred Detective in the Special Victims Unit, in other words, dealing with sex crimes. Now, I've dealt with Vice and Homicide, and I must say, this will be a nice change, but I'm not sure how good I'll be in this role.
I am partnered with a veteran detective with about five years more experience than myself. She's been a detective in this unit since she was promoted to detective. Her name is Katrina Donham. She is happily married to a good man who is a firefighter. She has two kids, ages 10 and 13, a boy and a girl. We met yesterday for lunch to get to know each other. Her partner asked to be transferred to another division because he couldn't handle dealing with the victims anymore. He was emotionally drained, snapping at every suspect, and risked a suspension by being a little more aggressive than necessary. He realized that it was time for a change. So, before he could do something to cost him his career, he switched divisions. He's now working white collar crimes and is happy. Katrina has been working for the most part, solo, for the last month.
Katrina told me how we need to handle the victims with kid gloves, that often they are uncomfortable talking to men, even the police or detectives, about what they experienced, and if the man is at all confrontational or abrupt, she'll often shut down. It's important to treat them as we would a little sister, to not pass judgment on the events leading up to the alleged assault. It is important that while we are taking their initial statement, we do not start questioning everything that happened or to start to plug holes in their story, even if they are glaring. Getting down the initial details, going over the events of the assault, are the first priority. Once we have that information, we can start to attempt to either find the evidence to support their accusation, or we find the evidence to repute the event. Katrina was very upfront that the victims were assaulted exactly the way they describe in about ninety-five percent of the cases. However, about five percent of the time, the victims are lying, either to punish the alleged perpetrator or to cover up something they did, like having an affair.
I'm a little apprehensive about working in this unit, but I'm willing to give it a try. I'll be starting on Tuesday morning. Katrina invited me to her house on Monday, Labor Day, to a barbeque. She said that several of the other detectives and officers from our unit will be there, and it will be a good opportunity for me to meet everyone. I agreed to attend and said I'd bring some beer. She graciously accepted my offer.
During my downtime, I've been looking for a place to live. While I'm not opposed to getting an apartment temporarily, I'd prefer a condo, townhouse, or house. I've gotten used to owning my own space. To have to suddenly follow the rules of a landlord is not something I'm looking forward to doing. I have an appointment for this afternoon with a real estate agent to look at some townhomes in the heart of Atlanta. I want to be close to most of the places I'll need to go to for work and to be near the social scene.
I dropped off Bob to Rangeman early this week before I left, and it was very difficult for me. I do love Bob. He is a great dog and a great companion, but it just wouldn't be fair for Bob to come with me here. I wouldn't be able to give him what he needed. If I'm honest with myself, I really haven't been a great dog owner. I mean, I had my brother Anthony, my cousin Mooch, and Stephanie available to walk Bob during the day or to take him if things got crazy at work, but I never really took him out much. I didn't run with him, let me be honest, I don't run, but I didn't exercise him. I'm sure his diet wasn't the best. I know that Steph will be a better owner, especially now that she's with Manoso. I know he regularly runs, that he has a house, and that he will make sure Bob eats properly. If for some reason, he doesn't work out with them, then I know that he will make sure Bob has a good home with one of his men. I would think that someone in his company knows how to train dogs.
I was told that Bob would be going down to Miami yesterday, as the men who were sent up to Trenton from Miami would be returning and the Trenton men would be coming home. They were going to escort Bob on their private jet. I hope Ranger has good insurance on the jet. I'd hate to see the damage Bob would do, but I'm thankful he won't be flying in a cargo hold.
I decide it's time to give Stephanie a call to see if Bob is in Miami. I dial her number and wait, holding my breath, hoping she'll answer the phone.
"Hello." She answers.
"Hi, Cup, er, Stephanie."
"Hi, Joe, how are you?"
"Good. I like Atlanta so far. It's a nice city."
"That's great. Did you start work yet?"
"No. I'll be starting on Tuesday, but I met my partner. She's a nice woman who has been a detective for a while. I'll be working in the sex crimes division."
"Sex crimes? Like dealing with rape victims?"
"Yes."
I hear Steph groan. "I hope you treat them with more respect and dignity than you treated me."
"Listen, Steph, I'm sorry. I know I wasn't the nicest person to you, especially in Florida. I'm sorry. After having lunch with Katrina, I understand some of how I acted like a jerk in the past. I'm sorry."
"Well, I hope you see the errors in your ways."
"How's Bob? Did he get to Florida yet?"
"Bob's great! He arrived yesterday with Zip. He was renamed Champ."
"Why?"
"Zip said that he didn't seem to respond well to his name. He started giving him basic obedience commands with a variety of different names, and when he said 'sit, Champ,' he sat. He gave other commands with the name Champ, and the dog responded to all of them. So now his name is Champ."
"Wow. Who would have thought that changing Bob's name would have made him a better dog?"
"He is also on a doggie diet and exercise program. He needs to lose fifteen pounds. He is no longer going to eat meatball subs and pizza. Ella didn't like any of the dog foods on the market, including the fancy ones, so she decided to look up recipes. She made him his own dog food from organic people food. She sent the recipes to Maggie, her counterpart here in Miami. He loves his food and hasn't been begging too much at the table."
"That's great news."
"Ranger took him on his run this morning, and he said Champ did a great job keeping up. Zip said he didn't run with Champ one day and he was destructive, but on the days, he ran, Champ was fine all day. Tommy and Julie love him, so I don't think we'll have a problem keeping him active."
I was glad to hear how good Bob, no Champ was doing. I'm glad he's settling in. I don't feel as guilty for giving him up now. After talking to Katrina, I started to rethink some of my actions, and it's time to ask Steph a question that I'm afraid to find out the answer to. "Stephanie, do you think I raped you in the Tasty Pastry?"
She was quiet. I could hear her intake of breath over the phone. When she responded, her voice was soft and full of emotion. "Joe, you did rape me. I was in denial about the event for years, never acknowledging what it was until I was raped the second time. That is when I realized that what you did to me was rape. Even these last few years, you would take away my choices and force me to do things that I wasn't comfortable with, but I somewhat willingly allowed you to, so that wasn't rape, but it wasn't done with full consent either. I made mistakes when it came to what I allowed the men in my life to do to me, and I regret not being stronger."
I feel sick to my stomach. I always thought I was better than my father, but it seems that I'm not really any better than he was. "Stephanie, I'm sorry. I know those words are too little too late, but I truly am. I never understood that I was doing that to you. I want to be a better man than my father, and it seems like I'm not really succeeding so far."
"Joe, you are a better man. You recognize your mistake, your shortcomings. Now, you need to work to overcome them. Maybe working in special victims will help you to change."
"Thank you, Stephanie. I am sorry. I never meant to hurt you."
"Joe, there's something I never told you. You got me pregnant that night in the Tasty Pastry. I miscarried at twelve weeks, but you were almost a father."
I had to sit down. I got Stephanie pregnant. She was almost a mother at seventeen. Steph's life would have been over. "Oh my God, Steph. Not that I wouldn't have loved a child, I am glad that you miscarried. I would have hated to see you stuck living a life you didn't want to live."
"I'm thankful, too, Joe. My therapist thinks that's one of the reasons why I'm so hesitant to have children."
"I hope that you can work through that issue because I know that someday, you will be a great mother. Steph, I'll always love you, but I know that I'm not in love with you."
"Me too, Joe. Good luck."
"Thanks, Steph. Bye." I say before hanging up.
I'm a little overwhelmed by Stephanie's revelation. I don't know what I would have done had she not lost that baby. I was in the Navy. I wanted that. I wanted to be a career Navy man, but I was too dumb to take advantage of the opportunities I was provided with. Maybe having a baby would have put me on the straight and narrow sooner. I know I would have married Steph; I would have had no choice. My mother would have forced me back to Trenton long enough to marry Steph. I'm not even sure if we could have been married at 17 and 19. Either way, I would have supported the child. I'm glad it wasn't a choice we needed to make. A few minutes later, my phone rang, taking me out of my head.
"Hello."
"Joseph, this is your mother. I am so glad that you never actively pursued that Gilman woman outside of high school. Did you hear what happened?"
"Hi, Mother. No, I didn't hear. I haven't spoken to anyone from Trenton in a few days."
"Well, it seems that she was arrested in Florida by the FBI. Rumor has it that she was selling babies and had ordered several people killed. She was with that good-for-nothing Richard Orr, and he was arrested as well. I swear that family was never anything good. Then, today, Connie Rizzoli was also arrested because, as I heard from Mrs. Wilinski, who heard it from her daughter's sister-in-law Margie Gambino that Connie was also involved with Theresa and Richard."
"Mom, are you sure? I know that both Terry and Connie are connected, but I don't see their Families being involved in anything like that."
"Joseph, I'm sure. Vito didn't know about it, nor did Connie's family. They have been completely cut-off from the rest of their family. It is the biggest scandal since Stephanie left here. I also heard that Stephanie had something to do with their arrest. That doesn't surprise me, always trying to taint good families. I'm glad she's in Florida, now at least she can't cause anyone else to get dragged through the mud."
"Ma, I know that Stephanie, as part of her job with Rangeman, was helping the FBI with an investigation. If she uncovered any information, it was with the cooperation of the FBI."
"Really, Joseph, do you believe that someone who is a total disaster could ever be asked by the FBI to help them? The hot weather must be getting to you. Thank God you never managed to knock her up. I'd hate to be tied to her forever."
"Thanks for the update, Mom, but I must go. I am meeting with a realtor in thirty minutes to look for a place to live. While my hotel is nice, I'd like to have my own place sooner rather than later."
"Okay, Joseph. Go do what you need to. I'll talk to you soon. I love you."
"Love you too, Mom. Bye."
"Bye, Joseph." My mother replied before hanging up.
Hmm. Terry, Connie, and Dickie. Damn. I never would have linked them together. Good job, Cupcake. Proud of you.
TNTCE
A/N: I'm sorry for publishing this a little later than I normally do. I had a very crazy, very busy Sunday. It started off with a migraine, following by a birthday party with my older son. Then, I went with two of my besties to the Mixed Tape Tour Concert, which was AWESOME! I had such a great time reliving my youth by seeing NKOTB, Salt n Pepa, Naughty by Nature, Tiffany, and my idol growing up; who grew up in the same county as me, Debbie Gibson. I first saw her in concert thirty years ago, as my first concert ever. Seeing her again was lots of fun. However, the evening ended with me taking my dad to the ER. He's fine and is now home, but I went to sleep finally at about seven this morning. So, know that I'm awake and somewhat functioning, here is the chapter.
I have finished part I. There are two chapters left. Thank you for all your comments and support. Thank you, Susan, for being my beta. You rock, Babe.