Chapter 17: I need to Know

The next few days went by without incident. Chris and Amanda went on with their fake marriage and fake business and even made some new friends to keep up fake appearances. He hadn't resurfaced on any public networks, even for a short period of time, and they hadn't seen him following them since the day in the park. Chris was enjoying being with Amanda but she was honestly ready to move back home. She was getting calls from her parents everyday about her sister acting out and her mother had been in the hospital for a few days but was back home now. She didn't go visit her while she was there. She knew the perp didn't go after his victims' family members but she still want to take the chance. There was always a possibility that he his MO could change and she didn't want to put her family in jeopardy. She called Robbie Jr and told him he needed to step up and be the tough big brother. He needed to worry about more than just who she was dating and start worrying about her getting to school and getting her homework done and respecting their mom and dad. After talking to him, she told him to put Jeza on the phone.

"What?" she said getting on the line with an attitude.

"Don't what me?" she said back with just as much attitude. "Jeza, you are testing my patience. Do not make me come home because you will not like what I do. I'm not mami or papa or Robbie. No soy tu amigo. No me importa sobre tus sentimientos. You better get your shit together. I'm not playing around. If I get one more call from anyone telling me anything negative about you, I will come home and I will have surprise for you. And not the fun kind. ¿Entiendes?" She heard nothing but silence from the other end of the phone. "Jeza, don't fuck with me. Answer me when I ask you a question. Do you understand me?"

"Yeah" she said forcefully. Christina took a deep breath and didn't let the attitude her sister was sending her way get her any angrier.

"Goodbye Jezalyn" she said. She immediately heard the line disconnect and then hung up the phone. Amanda came out of the bedroom and sat down on the couch with her. Chris groaned and laid her head in her lap.

"How's your mother?" she asked, rubbing her back.

"Better" Chris answered.

"Your sister's still…"

"Being a spoiled little shit?" she said finishing her question. "Yep". Amanda laughed and shook her head.

"Well, just be glad…" she leaned down and put her mouth next to her ear, "that she's not crazy enough to frame you for murder" she whispered. Chris chuckled.

"I never underestimate her hatred for me" she said. "Can we order pizza? I'm starving". Frannie came over and jumped on the couch and laid her head on Chris' back. "Why do you think I'm your pillow?" she said looking over her shoulder at her. Frannie just laid there comfortably. Chris turned back to Amanda. "So, pizza?" she asked.

"Ok, pizza" Amanda said in agreement. She leaned her head down and kissed her softly on the lips. Frannie lifted her head and watched them. She gave a loud bark before she jumped down and went over to Amanda and started licking her face. Chris backed away and Frannie jumped up on the couch in Amanda's lap and settled down. Amanda laughed and rubbed her behind the ears while kissing her on top of her head. Chris just shook her head.

"You're such a jealous bitch" she said looking at Frannie. Amanda glared at her. "Well, she is….literally".

"Go order the pizza" she said, still petting Frannie. Christina got up from the couch, grabbed her phone and went to get the pizza menu. "She didn't mean it" Amanda whispered to Frannie before giving her another kiss. Chris ordered their dinner and they watched tv until it arrived. They put it a movie to watch while they ate and then took Frannie out for her evening walk. When they got back to the apartment, they took quick showers and got ready for bed. Amanda laid down and turned off her lamp while Chris sat up in bed and read her book. After fifteen minutes of not being able to fall asleep with the light on, Amanda turned over to see if her girlfriend looked tired at all. She didn't.

"How much longer are you gonna read?" she asked.

"Is the light bothering you? I can go in the living room" Chris offered. She started to get out of bed but Amanda stopped her.

"No, stay. I'm fine" she said pulling on her to stay put. "What are you reading?"

"The Hunger Games" she answered.

"Mhnm" Amanda mumbled, relaxing into her pillow and closing her eyes. Chris put her book on the night stand and turned off her lamp then scoot in close to Amanda, spooning her from behind. "I didn't say you had to stop reading" she mumbled tiredly.

"I know" Chris whispered. Amanda fell asleep within five minutes of the light going out. Chris laid in bed and thought about everything that was going on at home. Her mother was sick, her father was struggling to take care of her and Jeza, and Robbie was no help at all. This time with Amanda had been great. She'd grown so much as a person and had learned a lot about herself. But she was ready for this whole thing to be over. She wanted this guy, whoever he was, to make his move and end this. She took a deep breath and tried to clear her mind. It took her a while but eventually she fell asleep. The next day, Chris and Amanda spent all morning and half the afternoon finishing up a big order. Nick and Fin came over to help them deliver it and they decided to meet up later that evening for dinner, purposefully choosing the Italian restaurant that the victims had in common. Amanda took Frannie out for a walk before dinner while Chris stayed home and tidied up their online orders. When Amanda returned to the apartment, they got cleaned up and dressed for dinner. Chris walked over to Amanda who was standing at the closet, trying to decide what to wear.

"Can you zip me?" she asked. She turned around and moved her hair so Amanda could get to the zipper on her shirt. It was red and sleeveless and came up around her neck like a choker chain would. She wore long black slacks and red heels with a black bracelet and stud earrings. She looked at Amanda who was still wrapped in a towel, undecided on what she was going to wear. "You know we're supposed to be at the restaurant in…forty minutes" she said looking at her watch. Amanda turned around and glared at her and Chris held up her hands defensively, "I'm just saying". She stood there watching her for a moment longer before walking up behind her and wrapping her arms around her waist. She rested her chin on her shoulder and looked into the closet with her. "What about that shirt?" she suggested pointing to a green and black wrap around that she'd never seen Amanda wear before. "You can wear those white pants and I have a pair of black boots you can wear". Amanda thought about it for a minute before pulling the shirt and pants down from their hangers.

"Are you gonna suggest what underwear I should put on too?" she asked.

"Well, none would be easiest…" she whispered seductively, "for me anyway" she added. Amanda laughed and pulled away from her so that she could get dressed. "I'll go make sure that Frannie has enough food and water" she said walking towards the living room.

"Ok. I'll be ready in a couple minutes" Amanda said stepping into her pants. "I need the boots" she yelled to Chris as she walked into the bathroom. She quickly put on her make up then came back out to the bedroom to put on Chris' boots. They both grabbed their wallets, keys and phones and headed out the door. They arrived at the restaurant right on time. Olivia had made a reservation for them so they were seated right away. Each of them tried something different than they'd had their first time there. They were enjoying a nice meal all the while keeping their eyes open for any middle aged white men paying special attention to Chris and Amanda.

"Christina?" Chris looked over her shoulder to see a very familiar face from her past. "Christina Reyes. God, I thought that was you" she said looking into familiar eyes.

"Beth" she said in disbelief. She couldn't believe that Beth Potter was standing in front of her. Beth was a tall, biracial beauty with light caramel skin, compliments of her white mother and black father, and beautiful brown hair. She wore a black shirt and slacks with black heels. She looked stunning. Chris stood up and hugged her. Beth took in her familiar scent and warm embrace. It was the same as she'd always remembered. She pulled back before she could catch her web like she knew Chris had the ability to do. "What are you…what are you doing in New York?"

"I live here" she said. Chris could've been knocked over with a feather. "Don't look so excited" Beth said seeing the look of dread on her face.

"Uh, no, I…I'm just….I'm…I'm surprised is all" she said barely able to string together a sentence. "You always said you'd never leave California".

"Yeah, well" she said with a shrug, "I've changed". Christina could tell by the tone of Beth's voice that the "I've changed" she just gave her was a hint. It was the "I've changed so maybe we can try this again" kind of "I've changed".

"Oh" she said, not sure how else to respond. Everyone sat at the table quietly watching the reunion between what looked like old friends, most likely more than friends. Amanda was uncomfortable but she didn't say anything. She just sat and listened like everyone else. "So what changed you?" Chris asked curiously. "I mean, what changed your mind…about leaving California?"

"A job" she said simply. "I'm starting on the board of directors at the David Zwirner gallery in two weeks" she said proudly.

"Oh my god" Chris said genuinely excited for her. "That's…that's great. Congratulations".

"Thank you" she said smiling.

"Oh my god" Chris said realizing that she was being completely rude to her friends but most importantly her girlfriend. "I'm sorry" she said looking at Olivia, Nick and Fin. She turned around and looked at Amanda, who'd finished her entire glass of wine during their little chat. "I'm sorry" Chris said again. "Ummm, Beth these are my friends Olivia, Nick and Fin" she said pointing to each of them as she said their names. She turned back to Amanda and grabbed her hand, pulling her from her chair to stand next to her, "And this is Amanda….my wife" she added hesitantly. She didn't know what kind of reaction Beth would have to the news but she was sure it would be interesting.

"Your wi…your wife" she said surprised. "Wow. Con…congratulations" she said looking at Chris. "You must be…really special to get this one to settle down" she said looking at Amanda.

"She is" Chris said softly. Amanda smiled and blushed lightly. She suddenly didn't feel so insecure. Beth was now visibly uncomfortable. She took this as her opening to excuse herself.

"Well, I should go. My dinner companions are waiting" she said. "It was nice to meet you all" she said looking at Chris' friends, still seated at the table before turning back to Amanda. "And it was nice to meet you, Amanda" she said nicely.

"Nice to meet you too" she said back.

"Chris, it was great seeing you. And congratulations again" she said with a little sadness in her voice. She walked away towards her table and Chris and Amanda took their seats again.

"And who was that?" Fin asked. He was asking partly because he thought she was a very good looking woman, but something told him he wasn't her type, and partly because he didn't like the vibe going on between them. He was being like a protective big brother for Amanda, assessing the situation and making sure she wouldn't get hurt.

"Beth…Potter. She was an art history professor, ummm, at my university in California" she answered. Olivia and Fin looked at her like they knew there was more to the story but didn't know if they wanted to ask.

"How'd you cross paths?" Nick asked. "You weren't an art major were you?" Of course he'd be the one that wasn't shy to ask the obvious question, even though it was none of his business.

"No, I wasn't" she said, "but my best friend was. He, uh, did a painting of me for one of his projects and it was chosen for the school of the arts showcase…and I went with him. That's where I met her" she explained. Amanda knew that Nick was gonna keep asking questions so she butted in.

"She seems nice" she said, giving Nick a look that said mind your own business. He got the message loud and clear.

"Yeah" Chris said taking a drink of her wine, "she is".

"Maybe we should have her over for dinner sometime" she suggested. Chris was surprised that Amanda was suggesting it but she thought it would look bad if she argued.

"Yeah, sure" she said agreeing, "if you want" she added, letting her know it was entirely her decision. Amanda nodded her head. Chris smiled and cleared her throat, taking another drink from her glass. They stayed at the restaurant for a little while longer before deciding to call it a night. On their way out, Chris stopped by Beth's table to exchange numbers with her so they could discuss her coming to dinner. She said goodbye and walked out of the restaurant hand in hand with Amanda. Christina spotted a man at the edge of the parking lot watching them as they stood outside the restaurant talking. She took out her phone and sent a text to everyone. Their phones alerted them simultaneously and they took them out to check their messages. It read "He's here. This is our shot". They all nodded and pocketed their phones then started walking to their cars. Olivia and Fin were parked next to each other on one side of the parking lot and Nick was parked one row and a couple cars over from them. Chris and Amanda were parked in the last row so Olivia, Nick and Fin where able to have eyes on them as they walked to their car. They saw the man start to walk towards them and pulled their guns, preparing to move in. Chris opened Amanda's door so that she could get into the car. He increased his pace, knowing this was his chance to take them. He pulled his knife out of his pocket and came up behind Christina, wrapped his arm around her and placed the blade to her throat.

"Don't scream or I'll slit her throat" he said looking at Amanda who was sitting down in the passenger seat. She nodded her head and sat perfectly still, not wanting to make any sudden movements that might startle him. "Get out of the car" he directed. She stepped out of the car and shut the door behind her. She could see Nick coming from one side of them and Olivia and Fin coming from the other.

"Freeze" Nick yelled from behind him, weapon drawn and trained on the perp. He whipped around and pressed his back to the truck parked next to Christina's car, pulling her with him to use as a shield. He pressed the blade firmly into her throat, cutting through the fabric of her shirt and causing blood to trickle from her neck. "Drop the knife" he yelled. Chris breathed slowly through the pain the knife was causing her and tried to remain calm.

"Just let her go" Fin yelled with his weapon also up and trained on the suspect. He didn't have an angle to take the shot or else he would've blown the guy's head off. Amanda stood there assessing the situation. There were three guns pointed at a man who was using her girlfriend as a human shield. Nick had the best angle but one wrong move, one second of hesitation on the shot and Chris could be hit.

"Just back off" he said keeping a strong grip on Chris and the knife to her throat. "Let me finish".

"You know we can't do that" Olivia said, "You're already finished. You've got nowhere to go. Just put the knife down and you won't get hurt".

"But….but they're perfect" he said desperately. He needed to finish what he started. He needed answers and he knew that Chris and Amanda were the right ones. It wasn't supposed to end like this. "I need…I need to know…." He said softly. "I need to know". He repeated that same sentence over and over again and all of them were thinking the same thing. What did he need to know?

"It's ok. All you have to do is put the knife down" Olivia said, lowering her weapon. She looked at Fin and Nick, who held their guns steady and nodded, letting her know they had her covered. She took a few steps closer to the man holding Christina hostage, showing him she wasn't a threat. She was there to help him. "Just put the knife down, ok? I promise….I promise" she said firmly, "We'll help you find out everything you need to know". She slowly stepped closer and closer and he tightened his grip on the blade, pulling it back further into Chris' neck, deepening her cut. She winced in pain and Olivia stopped her movements. "If you hurt her, then you won't find out anything" she said. "You need her. You need both of them. I want to help you, I do. But in order for that to happen, you have to drop the knife" she said hoping he would listen to her. Blood was flowing down Chris neck, staining her already red shirt a deeper shade of red. "Drop the knife" Olivia encouraged him. They waited for what felt like minutes but in reality was only about fifteen seconds. He moved the blade away from her neck and held it out to the side, opening his hand and letting it fall to the pavement. Chris moved out of his grasp and immediately brought her hand up to her neck, covering her wound. Amanda and Fin grabbed her and helped her sit on the hood of the car while Olivia and Nick cuffed the perp and secured the knife. They called an ambulance for Chris who of course argued that she didn't need one. Cragen showed up on the scene and ordered her to let the medics check her out, had the knife sent to the lab and the perp escorted to the precinct. After some discussion, they got in their cars and headed to the precinct to hopefully get a confession and close out this case. They were in the Captain's office discussing strategy when the door opened and Reyes walked in.

"What are you doing here?" Cragen asked.

"I work here" Chris said joining their huddle. Cragen started to talk again but Chris knew he was going to say something about her needing to go home and take it easy. "I got checked out by the paramedics. I'm fine" she said before he could say anything. "I wanna be here".

"Alright" he said deciding not to send her home. "You're watching through the window. Nothing more" he said in a tone that let her know there wasn't going to be any discussion. She nodded her head in understanding. As much as wanted to take a crack at this guy, she knew how either herself or Amanda doing the interrogation could cause problems later on. When Barba arrived, they went over all the evidence they had so far and then the Captain sent Olivia and Nick to start the interrogation. They started with his name and went from there. Their perp was forty one year old Norman Rankins, the pastor of a small church. It turned out that his wife of twenty two years, a petite blonde with blue eyes, left him for another woman. She was a contractor named Hannah who had dark hair and green eyes. They'd hired her to do some work on the building the held their services in. His wife, Lily, had been sneaking around with the contractor behind his back for months during the renovations. When the work was finally done and it was time for Hannah to move on, Lily informed him that she was going with her. She didn't know what had come over her but she'd fallen in love with the woman and she didn't want to be with him anymore. She didn't ask for anything in the divorce. She just wanted him to let her go. She told him all of this, packed up her things and handed him divorce papers all in the same day.

"I tried to convince her that she wasn't well. She needed to fight her….evil, sinful urges" he said telling the story of how his wife left him. "She wouldn't hear any of it" he said sadly. "I was too late. The devil had already taken control of her soul". Olivia and Nick listened attentively and didn't interrupt. He was sharing freely and they didn't want him to shut down should they start asking him questions. He went on and on about his wife and her lover and how he'd lost her and Nick was getting tired of listening to him. He wanted him to start talking about the women he'd killed. He wanted to take his confession and send him to be locked in the hole he'd so rightfully earned.

"Ok, Norman" he said finally interrupting his story. "You're wife left you and I'm sure that was hard to accept. I mean, she took a vow…in front of God and everyone that she'd be with you and only you for the rest of your lives. It must've been devastating when she asked you for a divorce. That's one sin. Then she takes off with another woman….and that's another. You were angry. I get that…but why hurt these other women?" he asking opening the file and taking out the pictures of his victims, spreading them on the table in front of him. "They never did anything to you or anyone else. They were good people" he said.

"They were not good people!" he yelled, slamming his fists down on the table in anger. "They were abominations before God" he said in softer tone. "They lied. They said their union was ordained by the Holy Spirit and that it was acceptable in the eyes of the Lord. Two women taking the sacred vow of marriage, destroying the foundation of the home, planning to bring children into that despicable arrangement, threatening to tarnish the next generation of God's people". He shook his head from side to side, "The Lord does not ordain those things".

"So you killed them?" he asked. "That's not what God wants from his people pastor. God condemns murder".

"And I will be judged for what I have done and rightfully so" he said. "But I had to do it. I needed to know" he said repeating the sentence he'd said so many times when they were in the parking lot.

"What did you need to know, Norman?" Olivia asked. He looked at the pictures of the women he'd killed spread out on the table in front of him and thought about everything he'd tried to get out of them before their deaths. None of them had been helpful. None of them had repented. So he put them to death and sent them to their eternity of fire and brimstone. He knew that the one who could answer all of his questions was still out there. This was his chance to get to her.

"I want to talk to Christina" he said. Chris watched from behind the window and smiled a little when she heard him say her name. She wanted nothing more than to go in there and take this bastard down but she knew convincing the captain to let her would be a job and a half. She waited and listened to see how this would play out.

"That's, uh, that's not gonna happen, Norman" Olivia said denying his request.

"Then I have nothing else to say". He put his hands on the table and intertwined his fingers. "Arrest me and get me my lawyer".

Spanish-English Translations

No soy tu amigo- I'm not your friend

No me importa sobre tus sentimientos- I don't care about your feelings

Entiendes?- Do you understand?