Working together and managing to keep a majority of the actual truth from Voight, Hailey and Jay secured a buy with Booth. They informed the team of the details and quickly convened as a group at the specified location. Hailey felt her body threatening to tremble as the nerves coursed through her, but one look at Jay helped to calm them. This was her chance to finally bring Booth down, to avenge Garrett and maybe bring some peace for herself and Lucas knowing that the man responsible for their broken family was gone. As they watched Booth pull up, Hailey couldn't help but shudder at the sight of him. Booth noticed her apprehension, motioning for her to step closer before yanking her arm and shoving her against his car. Jay reacted which only spurred Booth on. She felt sick when his hand slid between her legs, memories of that awful night flashing before her eyes. When Jay protested loudly at his behavior, Booth pressed into her again, harder this time. Hailey tried to choke back the scream threatening to leave her mouth. Jay couldn't handle this, couldn't handle seeing her being man handled like this. Booths nephew saw Jay raise the him of his shirt, reaching for his gun. It hit the fan after that. Shots were fired and Hailey watched as Booth bolted towards the stairwell, she chased after him quickly, she couldn't let him escape…not when she was so close to ending him. Hailey crashed into the stairwell after him, but her emotions were getting the better of her and Booth was able to catch her off guard. He grabbed a hold of her, slamming her into the wall, one blow after another. She was able to fight back, the anger that had been boiling inside of her for three years finally getting its release. Somehow, despite Booth being twice her size, she was able to subdue him and he was now on the ground in front of her. She straddled him, gun pointed directly at his face and ready to pull the trigger. But before Hailey shot him, hoping she'd be able to chock it up to self defense, she wanted to hear him say the words. That he had killed Garrett. She needed him to confess so that she knew she had won.
"You'll never find him." Booth laughed, blood pooling out of his mouth. Her body reamed with anger, she screamed, striking him with her gun. Jay was behind her then, watching as she once again leveled her gun to Booth's head.
"Hailey…" His voice was soft, trying to get her attention before she went to far. "Hailey if you do this…he wins. It can't go down like this."
He was right, she knew he was. But that didn't make this situation any easier. She wanted nothing more than to pull the trigger, to watch the life fade from his eyes. Hailey blinked away tears as Lucas's face flashed before her, if she did this there was a chance they would charge her with murder. This wasn't something Voight could get her out of and that would mean Lucas would have lost both parents to this man. She couldn't do that. Slowly, she lowered her gun and moved her body off of his. She felt Jay's hand on her shoulder as she brushed past him but she didn't stop. Hailey needed to get out of here before she fell apart.
Booth was taken to the precinct and Hailey was perched on the back of an ambulance after Brett had checked her over. Jay came up to her, his body somber in the flashing lights. She didn't want to talk to him right now, didn't want him to see her like this. Before she had the chance to push him away, Voight rounded the back of the ambulance. If looks could kill, they would be dead. He went at Jay first, bellowing about not following orders and keeping him in the loop with things he needed to know. This was definitely something Voight should have been in on, but given all the details of the situation, Hailey had begged Jay to not tell him the whole truth. When he was done, he dismissed Jay, ignoring Jay's protests to stay with Hailey. Hailey wanted to reassure him, to give him at least a look to let him know she would be okay, but she couldn't even muster that. Instead, she hung her head and waited for Voight to unleash on her.
"You…" He started, his voice much calmer than she was expecting. "Look like hell." That brought a small chuckle to her lips and she risked a glance up at her superior.
"Thanks." She pursed her lips in a sheepish look.
"We are going to discuss this. All of this. Every last detail." He drilled into her, his face coming closer with every word. "Because I know things Hailey, I know things now that I should have known before this operation started. Things that you should have been forward with from the very beginning." Hailey's chin quivered as she fought back her emotions, her eyes glued down on her hands as she blinked away tears. "But for tonight, I want you to go home. Clean yourself and be with him." Hailey lifted her head up, tears falling freely now at the thought of her son. Voight placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, but she couldn't bring herself to look at him. "I'm giving you a few days off. We'll need to discuss this before you can come back to work, but I need you to clear your head first."
She watched as he walked away from her then. She stood and made her way to her vehicle, not surprised when she found Jay leaning against it. Hailey managed to give him a small smile, which he returned with worry filled eyes. She still couldn't do this right now, she was a mess and simply didn't have the energy to talk to him tonight. Jay offered her a ride home but she denied him. He protested briefly before deciding not to push her any farther. Hailey drove herself home, placing a call to Stephanie to let her know she was on her way but asking if she could shower before she picked him up. Once home and in the shower, Hailey fell apart as the hot water poured over her skin.
It had been a day and a half since her incident with Booth in the stairwell. She had tried to set up a meeting with Voight, but he told her to take a few more days before coming in. As much as she hated being away from work she was thankful for the extra time with Lucas. They had spent that night curled up in her bed, reading all his favorite books. The next morning they had made his favorite for breakfast, Mickey Mouse shaped pancakes. And then they had spent the day at the park. It was exactly what Hailey needed. Today they were running a few errands. Hailey had turned her phone off that night, and aside from her brief conversation with Voight, that's how it had remained since. She knew that Jay was worried and that he was probably blowing up her phone, but she was too afraid to face him just yet. Hailey pulled into the grocery store parking lot, grabbing her list and wallet before climbing out and going around to pick up Lucas. She was so focused on his laughter as they skipped into the store that she didn't notice the pick up truck parked a few spaces down from hers, the driver watching her intently.
Jay wasn't sure this was the best idea. Hailey had been ignoring his calls and texts and he was worried about her. He had pulled onto her street right as she was backing out of the driveway and he decided to follow her. To his surprise, she hadn't noticed him tailing her. Either that or she was ignoring him there too. Jay watched as they entered the store, a smile forming on his face as he watched her laughing with the small boy in her arms. Jay wasn't sure what to do now, should he just wait here? Should he go in and causally bump into her? He knew she wouldn't buy that, this wasn't even remotely close to where he lived or would shop so she would know why he was here. But, after a moment, he decided to try it anyway. Jay quickly made his way across the lot and into the store. He grabbed one of the baskets and started wandering down the isle, grabbing a few things he didn't really need in an attempt to make this look more convincing. Jay was feigning interest in a boxed muffin mix when he heard her laughter again. He glanced up to see her entering the isle from the other end, she smiled at the boy in the cart as he pointed to a box of cereal on the shelf. She picked it up, teasing him with it before tossing it in the cart. Suddenly, Jay felt nervous and embarrassed at the thought of her busting him, so he quickly ducked around the corner. Deciding that this was an awful idea, he made his way to the registers to pay for his items and returned to his truck. Stalking her at the store was sure to piss her off, so he settled for showing up at her house when he knew she would be home.
After they finished their shopping trip, Hailey drove them home. Lucas fell asleep on the way so she started unloading groceries from her car while he napped. On her second trip out, as she was reaching for the milk that had slide way back into her trunk, she heard a car door shut. Hailey knew who it most likely was before she even turned around. Pretending she hadn't noticed him yet, Hailey continued to grab at the bags of food. Suddenly, he was behind her, close enough that she could feel his presence. Hailey watched as a strong arm reached beside her, grabbing a jug of laundry detergent from her car. Her eyes trailed up the chiseled arm and landed on Jay's face. She was met with a sheepish grin and could tell he hadn't really thought this through.
"Need a hand?" He asked, trying to break the sudden awkward silence. Hailey debated telling him no and that he should leave. She was mildly annoyed he had just shown up without asking first, but then again she had been ignoring him so he really couldn't have done that.
"Sure." She gave him a curt nod before hauling her load into the house. After she set her bags down, she made to go grab the next load, stopping when Jay brushed through the door carrying what appeared to be the rest of her groceries.
"That's everything." He grinned at her and she couldn't help but smile.
"Not everything." Hailey sighed, not sure she actually wanted to do this. Telling Jay about Lucas was one thing, introducing him felt like something else entirely.
"I can leave.." Jay trailed off, realization crossing his face rapidly.
"No…stay." Hailey sighed again, closing her eyes briefly before stepping around him and walking back to her car. Jay awkwardly stood in her kitchen while he waited for her to return, suddenly feeling very nervous, his palms slick with sweat.
Tiny footsteps bounded into the kitchen, stopping instantly when he saw Jay. Hailey stepped up behind the boy, placing a reassuring hand on his small shoulders. She knelt down, giving him a smile and pressing her forehead into his.
"Lucas, this is my friend Jay. He works with me." Hailey placed a kiss on the boys cheek before standing up to face Jay. "And Jay, this is Lucas." Her voiced trembled slightly as she finished, but she swallowed hard and tried to blow it off.
"Hey bud!" Jay knelt down to get onto the boys level, pointing to a toy car clutched in his little hand. "That looks like a pretty fast car."
Lucas gave him a nod, glancing up at Hailey before walking over and handing Jay the car. "Wanna race?" His voice was soft and sweet, bringing an instant smile to Jay's face. Jay nodded enthusiastically and watched as the boy sprinted away to get more cars. Jay stood, eyes meeting Hailey's and found her blinking back tears. He would have been concerned, but then he saw a genuine smile reach her face.
"Do you want to stay for dinner? It's spaghetti night." Hailey asked softly, unsure if this was a line Jay was ready to cross. Jay agreed, finding himself amused at the fact that his hard as nails partner had an established night for spaghetti.
"Sounds great." He gave her a smile and then his attention was drawn away by Lucas, who had brought an entire bin of cars into the kitchen, proudly dumping them onto the floor. Hailey sighed but smiled as she watched Jay get down on the floor with her son, instantly engaging in what she knew would be a never ending race.
This might be okay after all.