Malcolm looked down at his phone after it vibrated.

There was a text message from a sender without a number. It was simply listed as "UNKNOWN".

I know what you did.

Almost immediately, a video appeared under the message. He made sure his phone was on silent before clicking it. As soon as it started, Malcolm's blood ran cold. There he was, on the deck of Bennet's boat, Luca on his knees, as he pulled the trigger. His hands started shaking as he fast forwarded, praying it cut off before, but it didn't. Bile creeped up his throat, as he watched the Malcolm in the video raise Bennet's gun and pull the trigger. Ezra's body fell backward and Malcolm exited the video, unable to watch any more of it.

The video looked to be filmed from another boat a few slips over from Bennet's. Someone else had been there, had witnessed the whole thing. He knew he couldn't panic. Not in front of Dani. He stared at the text message for a moment, trying to calm himself enough to pass as normal.

Dani looked up at him, "Everything okay?"

Malcolm immediately locked his phone, and forced a smile, "Yeah. Everything's good."

TWO WEEKS LATER

"Okay. Let's break here for a minute," Malcolm slowed his pace from a steady jog to a walk. Dani, however, did not. "Dani," he said her name like a father warning a child she was about to get in trouble. Her pace slowed and her head, powered by an impressive eye roll, flopped backward. He grinned at her obstinance.

She turned around and put her hand on her hip, "It's been half a mile, Bright."

"Rest," he ordered, pointing at the bench between them.

The morning sun was beaming down on them, as they sat looking out at the harbor. Battery Park had become their accidental morning tradition, since Dani had gotten the clear to advance to light jogging. Other than the ferries to Liberty Island, which were prepping for the day's first round of tourists, at this time of the morning, the park was primarily populated with other joggers. As he always did, Malcolm covertly watched Dani's every move while they rested. He paid particular attention to her breaths, making sure they didn't sound too labored, or shallow.

Nothing made him happier than the fact that Dani was making an incredible recovery. It had only been seven weeks since the worst day of his entire life, since he held her in his arms, blood pouring from her wound, as she took what he thought were her last breaths. And now she was jogging around The Battery with him every morning, itching to go further and run faster. Malcolm watched her as she checked her stats on her watch.

"You're watching me again," she informed, never looking up from her watch.

He grinned and turned his gaze to the water. There was no point in denying it; watching her was second nature at this point. That particular habit started long before they went undercover with Ezra Bennet, though.

"I talked to Gil yesterday," Dani continued to fiddle with her watch as she spoke, "I've got an appointment to get cleared for desk duty in two days."

Malcolm turned in shock, his brows furrowed, "What?"

She finally looked up at him, "I know you think I'm not ready yet, but I am. If I don't get back to work soon, I'm going to lose my mind." She paused for a moment, trying to read his reaction, "Sorry I didn't tell you ahead of time." Somehow Dani managed to look both apologetic and unwavering at the same time.

He leaned in and gently kissed her, their lips barely touching. "I know you're ready." Then, he leaned back against the bench and watched a cargo ship in the distance. "Honestly, it's me that's not ready."

"I'll be okay. Gill will probably have me pushing papers for a month anyway. At least it will be something to do." She leaned into him and he picked up his arm, wrapping it around her.

"I'd give anything to be able to work a case right now," he admitted, brushing her upper arm with his thumb. "When you go back, there won't be anything for me to focus on. I've still got four and a half months of exile left."

Dani giggled, "Exile? Feeling a bit dramatic this morning, are we?"

"Maybe a little," he smiled, kissing the top of her head. "Just promise me one thing," when she sat up attentively he finished, "You have nothing to prove to anyone. Listen to what your body is telling you."

She jumped up off of the bench and extended her hand, agreeing, "I promise."

Malcolm took it and stood as well. To his surprise, Dani pulled him into another kiss. He didn't even consciously respond to her, his body just did it automatically. Before he knew it, one arm was around her waist and the other was at the back of her head. Every part of him reacted to her at once.

Before the kiss got too heated, Dani pulled back, "In the spirit of honoring this new promise, you should know that my body is definitely telling me something right now."

"Is that so?" he laughed.

"Oh yeah," she leaned into his ear and whispered, "and we both know yours is too." As soon as she'd finished the sentence, Dani turned and jogged back in the direction of the apartment.

"You realize I have to jog back, right?"

Her laugh was audible even from a distance, "Yep!"

"That's just cruel," he muttered as he followed, uncomfortably, behind her.

Malcolm dumped the bowl of eggs into the skillet and sprinkled onions, mushrooms, and peppers onto them afterward. What was meant to be breakfast had now become lunch. As soon as the apartment door shut behind them after their run, they couldn't keep their hands off of each other. Dani had only recently been approved for that particular brand of exercise and she was clearly keen to make up for a month's worth of lost time. Not that he was complaining.

He smiled as he flipped the omelette in the pan, replaying the morning's extracurriculars in his head.

"What's that look for?" Dani surprised him, leaning against the wall in a towel. The scar below her collarbone, the exit wound from Bennet's shot, was still a bright pink. Malcolm knew every millimeter of it without looking, as well as its companion: the entry wound on her back. The third of the trio, a scar from the chest tube that drained the blood from her lung, was hidden about three inches below where the towel wrapped around her right side. Dani had never once been self conscious of them, as well she shouldn't. She had jokingly told him that they were her involuntary tattoos. She called them her reminders- of how lucky she was to be alive, of how swiftly that can change.

The smile on Malcolm's face widened, "Just thinking."

"About?" she pried.

"You."

One of her eyebrows raised, "About earlier, you mean."

"Both are true," he laughed, sliding the omelette onto a plate. "Perfect timing."

Dani hopped up into the closest bar chair at the island and pulled the food toward her. "Thank you," she mumbled, her mouth full of egg.

"You're welcome." Malcolm watched her eat a few bites, then started cleaning up the used cookware.

"Oh by the way, my mom asked if we could meet her for dinner tonight. There's a new Italian place a few blocks away from her she's been wanting to try. Also, this is delicious."

He turned from the sink and leaned on the counter across from her, "Again, you're welcome. And Italian sounds great."

Dani was already texting her mother the response. "7:00 okay?"

"Perfect."

Watching Dani interact with her mother was always entertaining. They had suffered through a great loss together and relied on each other in equal measure, despite Dani's age at the time. With that came a bond that was like nothing he had ever witnessed before. Michelle Powell respected and adored Dani, not just as a mother would her daughter, but as a peer, and a protector. He knew there were times that adolescent Dani had been the only thing keeping her mother going, making sure she had eaten, paid the bills, even bathed. The two of them had seen each other at their lowest and helped the other survive.

Now, as they sat at dinner, Malcolm couldn't keep from perpetually smiling. The love that radiated off the two of them was infectious, as was their laughter.

Michelle was in the middle of telling Malcolm about a night in which Dani had snuck out and attempted to return to the apartment via the fire escape, when he felt his phone buzz repeatedly in his breast pocket. He ignored it, laughing through the rest of the hilarious tale, which ended in fourteen-year-old Dani forgetting that their fire escape led into her mother's bedroom and not hers.

"In my defense," Dani began.

"Oh no. There's no defense for that," Malcolm interjected, as Michelle wiped tears from laughing so hard.

Again, his phone buzzed. This time he pulled it out and checked it. Two missed calls from an unknown number. He thought nothing of it and was in the middle of deleting the notifications, when a text message appeared. It, too, was from an unknown number.

Do they know?

A second later a picture popped up, of the three of them laughing at the table. Malcolm's blood ran cold. It couldn't have been taken more than a few seconds ago. Immediately, he started scanning the room, profiling everyone he saw. He tried to do so covertly enough that his companions wouldn't notice, but Dani had been watching him since he took out his phone. She knew.

"What's wrong?" she asked in a low voice. Her mother knew that tone and looked over at Malcolm with concern.

He glanced up at Dani apologetically, "We need to go."

She was about to pry further when Michelle interrupted, "No questions, Danielle. Let's go."

The three of them stood. Malcolm pulled out his wallet and quickly tossed two, hundred dollar bills on the table both to make sure he covered a well-deserved tip and as an apology for leaving without notice. Then, they swiftly exited the restaurant.

"Right," he ordered once they reached the sidewalk.

Michelle obeyed without a second thought, Dani close behind.

"What's going on, Malcolm?" she asked, eyeing everyone they passed.

"Not now," he had already pulled out his phone and was dialing. "Hey. I need a favor. Yeah. I'll text you the details."

"At least tell us where we're going."

"Your mom's place."

"Is that safe?" At Dani's inquiry, Michelle stopped to look at him.

"It will be," he assured, urging them to continue.

Once they were inside Michelle's apartment, Malcolm set out checking every room and closet. "Lock the door," he instructed.

Michelle sat down on the edge of her sofa. Dani was standing next to her, attempting to comfort her when he returned from his sweep.

"Bright, what is this?"

He sat on the coffee table in front of Michelle and addressed her first, "Mrs. Powell, I'm sorry for frightening you."

"Malcolm, what the hell is going on?!" Dani's voice got progressively louder with the question.

He stood, "I promise, I'll explain when I get back."

"Where are you going?" Her eyes were full of worry and frustration.

"It's too much to explain right now. But I promise you, we will talk when I return. Okay?"

"Why do I feel like there's a solid chance you're about to do something stupid?"

He chuckled, "For once in my life, I'm not. I'm going to do what I should have done in the first place."

"What does that even mean?"

He leaned in and kissed her forehead, "Later. Stay here until you hear from me." His phone buzzed again, "Perfect. JT is out front keeping watch. Please. Stay here, so I know you're safe."

"And how will I know you're safe?"

At that, Malcolm kissed her softly on the lips, "I'll be back soon," and left.

The buzzer for Lieutenant Arroyo's apartment still said "Gil & Jackie". Malcolm's heart warmed at the thought of how many times she'd answered when he pushed this button. It didn't matter the hour or the circumstances, there was a permanent open-door policy at this home. A large part of him wished Jackie would be the one answering now. She always knew how to make difficult conversations more comfortable.

It was almost 10 o'clock, not nearly as late as his adolescent house calls had been. Yet, somehow the profiler suddenly felt like that scared teenager, running to his surrogate family for help. For fourteen days he had wrestled with the idea of going to Gil. When no other messages came, he foolishly started to believe that the whole ordeal might blow over. Telling Gil about the messages and the video, meant he was giving a lieutenant in the NYPD undeniable proof that he had shot Bennet in cold blood. An honest, moral lieutenant, who would, and should, be compelled to report what he knew. He loathed the idea of putting Gil and himself in that position. But, there was no other choice; people he loved were being threatened now as well. He raised his hand to the button and hesitated, then pushed.

After a brief pause, Gil's staticky voice answered, "Yeah?"

"It's Bright-" Before he could finish the sentence, the door buzzed. Malcolm grinned, grateful that the response hadn't changed in twenty years.

When he reached the apartment door, it was already cracked open. He entered, and made his way toward the kitchen. Gil was standing at his counter, drink in hand. As soon as Malcolm turned the corner, the lieutenant picked up the second glass from the counter and extended it to him.

Bright accepted it from him gratefully and immediately took a sip.

Gil watched him silently, waiting. When his son couldn't find the words to start, he spoke first, "What do you need to tell me?"

Malcolm took a much larger drink from his glass, before looking up at his mentor and letting out a sigh. "Two weeks ago I received a text message from an unknown sender." Gil sat his glass down and straightened attentively. "It said 'I know what you did'. It was accompanied by a video from the marina that-"

"Stop."

The command surprised Malcolm, who stared at him quizzically.

"Don't finish that sentence and keep the video to yourself." Gil read his teammate's face again and explained further, "I can't hold you accountable for what I haven't seen or heard."

Bright nodded and continued, "I didn't respond and nothing else was sent, until tonight. I was at dinner with Dani and Michelle, when I got this." He opened the picture of the three of them laughing at the table and showed Gil his phone. "The text said 'Do they know?'"

"So, someone has video evidence of," the lieutenant held up his hand, "whatever it is that went down at the marina. Have they threatened to release it? Made any demands?"

"That's the thing. Not a word." Malcolm paced the kitchen as he explained. "Honestly, I wish they would, at least then I'd know the endgame. Right now they're just taunting me. And apparently stalking as well."

Gil took a drink, "You should have come to me with this when you got the first message, kid."

Malcolm looked up at him, contrite, "I know."

"That being said, we need to get ahead of it, figure out who's behind it. And you," he pointed at Bright, "are still banished from the precinct, which isn't helpful."

He couldn't roll his eyes hard enough.

Four and a half more months.

A few moments of silence passed as both men attempted to come up with a plan. Finally, Gil cleared his throat, "Okay. Go back to your place. Have Dani stay with her mom tonight, just in case. I'll get a uni to replace JT on watch there. He and I will head to the precinct and do some digging, then we will reconvene at your place first thing in the morning."

Malcolm shook his head, "Okay."

"You better have some strong-ass coffee ready when we get there. Come on, I'll give you a ride back to your place."

Malcolm didn't sleep much. While his mind had been racing since Gil dropped him off, he had a sneaking suspicion that the absence of Dani beside him played more of a part in his lack of rest. She had begrudgingly agreed to stay with her mother last night, but made it very clear that he had a lot of explaining to do when next they saw each other. A fate he knew he deserved and one that would likely increase in severity once he told her the rest of the story.

Waking up at 4:45 had its advantages. He managed to go on a paranoid jog, take a shower, and run to the coffee shop a few blocks down the street before Gil and JT arrived. They brought with them, a box of files and a laptop.

Malcolm gratefully handed each of them a cup of coffee as they started unpacking the files onto the island counter, "Anything thus far?"

JT shook his head, "Nothing that stands out in particular. We started our search with the marina. From the looks of it, that the video of-"

"Hey. Hey. Hey," Gil interrupted, waving his hands back and forth.

"I was going to say 'what happened on the yacht', looks to have been filmed from two or three rows away. There's at least one boat between them and you. But, that could mean one or more empty slips between as well. These," he pulled a sizable stack of files out of the box, "are the names of everyone with a slip rented at the marina. I figure we should start there first. Cross reference any of these names with people who have association with the Niners."

"Sounds good," Malcolm picked up a file and started looking through it. The other two men did the same.

An hour and ten minutes later, they were no closer to figuring out who was behind this than when they'd started. JT's phone rang; Gil and Malcolm used it as a good excuse to put their files down for a minute. "Tarmel," he answered, "Okay thanks." After he hung up he opened up the laptop, "Soto says he might have something. Sent me a file." JT clicked a few times and his eyes widened, "Whoa."

"What?" Gil and Malcolm asked in unison.

He turned the laptop toward them. It was a mugshot. A woman with caramel skin, amber eyes, and long jet black hair stared back at them. "Joslynn Bennet was released from Lincoln Correctional thirty-six hours ago."

"Released? How?" Gil was incredulous.

JT turned the computer back around and read the details aloud, "Inmate was cleared and released after new testimony was brought before the judge." He scrolled down further and cursed under his breath.

"What?" Malcolm begged.

"Luca Morales testified before a judge that he set her up. He said he had a confrontation with Ezra and wanted revenge. He heard from a C.I. the sting was going down and he set it up so that Joslynn would be there. Claims he's felt guilty for it ever since and couldn't live with himself any longer knowing he put an innocent pregnant woman in prison."

"That's got to be it," Malcolm rubbed his temples with his fingers.

"Are we sure? You said you got the first messages two weeks ago," Gil played devil's advocate for a moment.

"I shot her husband," he was careful to choose his words wisely, "He died because of me. It has to be related. Luca knew he was going away for a long time, assault and attempted murder of an officer, stealing the cartridges. He was protecting the matriarch."

Even Gil couldn't argue the logic there.

"Or," JT added, "She made the call. What if she's running the organization now in Ezra's absence?"

Malcolm agreed, his head still in his hands, "It's not unheard of."

Shit.

His head popped up as the realization hit him.

"What?" Gil implored, as JT stared at him completely confused.

"Damian."

"Damian?" JT repeated the name as a question.

"It's all connected: Luca's confession, Damian's change in testimony at my plea hearing. Joslynn gave the order. She wanted me out."

Again, Gil offered the counter argument, "Why would she want you out though? You were a fish in a barrel in gen pop: a cop with a fresh stab wound. They could have easily taken you out if they wanted."

"They almost did," Malcolm retorted, before remembering he hadn't shared that story with his would-be-father yet.

Gil was genuinely shocked at the confession.

"I was probably seconds away from getting beaten to death at breakfast, when the guard came to get me for the hearing. I could barely move, there were too many of them, I'd just had surgery, there was no way I was going to survive that. But that's the thing. They had already set me up as violating by bail restrictions. I was going right back to The Tombs once the hearing was over and they could have finished the job. Why get me out? To try and torture me with information? It doesn't make any sense."

"No it doesn't. But I think you're right. This all has to be related somehow," Gil affirmed.

As Gil finished his sentence the lock on the apartment door turned. All three of the men jumped at the sound and turned toward it.

Dani entered and immediately froze at the sight of her team in their kitchen. Her gaze slowly scanned the stacks of files and the computer on the counter. Then she met each of their eyes before stopping on Malcolm's and raising her eyebrows and tilting her head accusingly.

He licked his lips while, nodding in agreement with her silent demand, "We need to talk."