Antonia stood at the computer, slamming on the keys as she shouted at the computer. Nothing was working, and she had lost complete communication with the lab. "That son of a bitch! I'm going to kill him! I am going to kill him!" She screamed at the screen as her access was continually denied, she grabbed at the screen and growled.
"Hey." Ace said from the doorway, watching as she frantically screamed at the screen. "Toni, what's going on?" He said, watching as she continued to try to access the lab.
"That son of a bitch locked me out!" She shouted, slamming her fist into the desk angrily.
"Your father?"
"No! Aiden!" She said, looking up at him. "He said he had to 'shake some trees and see what falls out', then he just shut it down. He shut down everything, cameras, the live link. He shut off all access to me. I don't know where he's going, if he has backup. He said he wasn't going to talk to Dad!" She said, tears streaming down her face. "Ace, he's going to get himself killed."
"Hey." Ace said, coming into the room. "He's a trained agent. He'll be fine." Ace said, pulling her close to him as she wrapped her arms around him and sobbed into his shoulder. "He's not an idiot."
"He's angry." She sniffled. "He's angry, and he's not thinking straight." She said, holding tightly to Ace as she cried, unable to contain her frustration.
Ace lifted his phone to his ear and waited a moment, after a second, Booth picked up the line. "Ace. Have you heard from Fitz? Charlie said he took off, and he's not answering his phone."
"That's what Toni said. She can't get back onto the lab cameras. He turned off her access and then took off. What's going on over there? He said he was going to shake some trees, see what falls out? What does that mean?"
"Shit." Booth muttered. "He has names. There were names in that journal. We haven't had a chance to look over it. Do you think he'd be stupid enough to confront these people?" Booth sighed.
"He's pretty pissed, Booth. You've seen him in action, he's a risk taker." Ace said, feeling Antonia hold him tighter at his words. "But he's not an idiot. He's probably prepping somewhere. He hasn't read through the documents thoroughly. He wouldn't make a move without researching it first. Check his apartment, the Hoover. Hell, he may not even have left the lab for all you know."
"His car is gone." Booth said as he stood in the parking garage where Aiden's car had been pulled up alongside Temperance's. "The son of a bitch is gone." Booth grunted. "What do you think we should do?" he asked, sighing as he lifted his hand to his forehead.
"You can only wait, Booth." Ace said. "He went off the grid, and we have no idea what he's thinking. We just wait."
"Wait for what? For his body to show up?" Booth snapped.
"Hey, don't talk like that." Ace said with a grunt. "Trust him. Trust that he knows what's on the line, and that he won't do something stupid. Trust him like you trust me, Booth. Trust him like you trust him with your daughter." Ace said, listening to a slight whine come from the other end of the line, Ace kissed the top of Antonia's head. "You know I'm right."
"I hate you." Booth sighed. "I'm going to the office to work on this research, get some information on some of the names. Toni has the files. Look them over, see if anything jumps at you from when you were researching the two suspects that we do have." Booth said. "Try to keep her calm." He said, disconnecting the line.
"Hey." Ace said, pulling at Antonia's arms a bit, he gently took her face in his hands. "It's going to be okay." He said, swiping at the tears on her cheeks. "I promise."
"You can't make promises like that, Ace. You know that." She said, sighing grumpily.
"He loves you very much, kid. He's not going to put himself in danger." Ace said confidently.
"Well, he put himself in danger when he hung up on me, and blocked me out of the lab." She said grumpily, sighing. "I'm so mad at him." She whispered.
"I know. It's out of our hands right now." He said, kissing her head. "Let's go check on Shadow." He said softly, nudging her, she nodded against him, and walked with him out into the hallway.
Saturday, July 14- 11:00pm-
The door to the Founding Father's bar opened slowly, and the uniformed officer walked inside. Looking around the room, it appeared to be quite busy, but also tame compared to some of the other bars in the D.C. Metro area. The officer glanced to the bartender, who lifted an eyebrow as she approached, leaning slightly over the bar. "Hey, Mark." Grace said to the bartender, nodding her head, she watched the bartender smile and walk toward her. "You said someone needed a ride?"
"That one over there." He said, pointing to a booth in the corner. "He's been here for about three hours, alone. He's pretty wasted and beat up. I think he's your sister's guy. That's why I called you."
"Aiden?" She asked, glancing to the booth and back to the bartender. "Aiden doesn't drink." She said, pushing off the bar, the bartender shrugged.
"He looks familiar, that's all I'm saying." Mark replied.
Grace walked slowly toward the booth, noticing immediately that the table was littered with papers and empty glasses. The lanky form of Aiden sit slumped over a notepad, his hand moving slowly over the paper, to a point where it was barely even legible. He didn't look up at the approaching person, assuming that it was just the waitress, he flipped the page to the next and dropped the pen, looking up at Grace.
"I'm sorry officer." He said, his face blank. "How fast was I going?" He squinted his eyes a bit, as if trying to recognize her.
The moment she saw his face, Grace's jaw dropped. His lip was swollen, a small crack in the skin, the side of his face was bruised, and his nose had a fleck of blood just beneath it. "Holy crap, Aiden, what the hell happened to you?" Grace asked, moving toward him, she reached for his face, trying to get a good look at it.
"Stop." He slurred, pushing her hands away. "I fell out of a tree." He said, then snorted out a laugh. "What are you doing here?" He mumbled. She continued to try to get a better look at his face. "I'm fine, Grace. I'm fine." He swatted at her hands. "Why are you here?" He asked again.
"The bartender called me to come get you. He recognized you. What the hell are you doing here?" She asked, sitting across from him. "Why are you drinking? You don't drink. What the hell is all of this?" She asked, trying to look at the papers, he suddenly reached out and placed his hands on hers.
"Don't touch. It's organized." He stumbled over his words. "I fucked up, Gracie." He said simply.
"What happened to your hands?" She asked, grabbing them into hers, she observed the raw and torn skin on his knuckles. "Aiden, did you get into a fight?"
"In a manner of speaking, yes." He said. "You don't have to babysit me. I can walk… somewhere when I'm done here. I won't drive." He muttered. "I'm trying to work here."
"I'm not leaving you here. Does Antonia know you're here?"
"Antonia doesn't know where I am, nobody does. I did get that asshole though. I got him. He kind of got me too though." He chuckled, pointing to his face. "But you know, it was worth it."
"What are you talking about, Aiden?" She said softly. "What do you mean you fucked up? Who did you get? What the hell is going on? What are all of these papers?" She asked, reaching for one of them, he put his hand on hers again.
"No. Need to know basis. FBI stuff, and whatnot." He said, watching her scowl.
"Shut up." She said, flipping one of the pages over, she scanned the words on the photograph of the journal, her eyes moving across the page. "What the hell is all of this, Aiden?"
Aiden sighed, turning the pad that he was writing in around, he slid it across the table slowly. "This is my hit list." He said, watching as Grace's eyes widened. She looked up at him, shocked. "Come on, Grace. Not a real hit list. Who the hell do you think I am?" He said, letting out a laugh. "The journal belonged to Melody's mom." He whispered. "Based on what I learned today from a very reliable source, and these documents, these are my top four suspects."
"Was it the reliable source that gave you the bruise on the side of your face?"
"And cracked ribs." He laughed, grimacing as he sat up a little more. "Probably just bruised." He mumbled. "I arrested him. Melody's mom's drug dealer. I got the asshole. It's all good." He muttered.
"Talk to me, Aiden. Tell me what happened." Grace said, touching his hand. "What happened today?"
"I messed up." He mumbled.
"You messed up the case?" She asked.
"No, no. The case is okay. I messed up with Tex. I messed up big time." He sighed, reaching for a glass on the table, she reached for his hand to stop him. "It's water, Grace." He muttered. She moved her hand back and he took a sip. "I messed up with Tex. I was pissed. We had the journal, we had a letter from Melody's mother." He explained, sighing as he moved the water around in the glass, staring at the ice for a moment. "We read the letter, and it's all about how her mom loved her, and how she fucked up, and how Melody was her world, and all that bullshit." He said, tapping the cup on the table. "If you love your kid, you shouldn't be getting yourself in dangerous situations, you know?"
"You mean like getting your ass kicked by a drug dealer?" Grace lifted her eyebrow.
"Hey, I'm doing my damn job!" He said, his voice a little louder than he had intended, and when Grace lifted her eyebrow at him and crossed her arms over her chest as she sat back, he instantly felt like he was being scolded by Temperance. He mumbled an apology. "So she has this pity party in her letter, and all I can picture in my head is her autopsy pictures, and that poor kid who has to live her life without her mother because she made shitty decisions. His name is right there in the journal, his information, his address. I have Tex in my ear, and I know that if I tell her what I'm thinking, I know she's going to go crazy. I knew that she wouldn't want me to do this, so I… I shut her off."
"What does that mean?"
"I let my gut, and my instinct take over, and I just went blind to what was around me. I disconnected her from the lab. I delayed it so she wouldn't have your dad go after me, and I just left your dad and that dolt Nichols behind, and I went after the bastard." He said, sighing.
"Aw, Aiden." She sighed.
"So I figured out where he was, and when I was ready to go in, that's when I called in backup. I'm not stupid. It appears though, that I did get a little banged up in the process." He sighed. "So your dad is pissed at me, your mom is probably pissed at me, your sister is pissed at me, I'm sure Ace is pissed at me. It sucks, it all sucks. I fucked it all up." He muttered. "You can be pissed at me too. I think I can take it." He muttered.
"Have you tried to call Ant?" She asked.
"What's the point? She probably doesn't want to have anything to do with me anyway." He muttered, as he started to shuffle the papers in front of him.
"You're willing to defy her in the first place, knowing full well that it's going to make her angry. You're willing to go after a dangerous drug dealer with nothing but a gun and your pretty, pretty face, but you are afraid of a little phone call?" Grace asked, leaning forward slightly.
"Uh, yes." He nodded, leaning forward as well.
Suddenly, she stood up, reached across the table and grabbed hold of the loosened tie around his neck. She gripped it tightly and yanked him toward her so that he was face to face with her, staring into her shining blue eyes. "Stop being a dick and call my sister before I pull out my gun and put you out of your misery right here at this table." She sneered as she suddenly pushed him backwards so that he hit the seat hard, cringing at the pain.
He let out a yelp and grabbed his side, sucking in a deep breath at the pain. "Tiny and fierce." He whimpered.
"And don't you forget it." Grace grunted, shaking her head at him as she pulled her phone out of her pocket.
"Grace, please." He whined, shaking his head. "I'm too drunk to talk to her, she'll know."
"Just add it to the list of things that she has to be pissed off at you about." She said, dialing her sister's number. She sat back and glared across the table at Aiden, waiting for her sister to answer.
"Grace?" Antonia answered the phone, her voice sounded tired, but happy to hear from her sister. "It's late, is something wrong? Did something happen?"
Grace reached across the table and handed the phone to Aiden, watching as he shook his head, but still took the phone in his hand. He lifted it to his ear, and listened to her slightly panicked voice as she asked her sister what was wrong.
"Hey." Aiden croaked out, suddenly having a burning feeling in his throat as he listened to her gasp slightly. "I'm sorry." He whispered.
"Aiden, are you okay?" Antonia asked. "Is Grace okay? Why are you calling on her phone? What's going on?" She exclaimed into the phone.
"We're okay, we're both okay." He said, trying to control his voice. "Grace is here with me, she just let me use her phone."
"Where is your phone? Did something happen to it? Is that why you're not answering my messages?" She asked, sighing heavily.
"It's right here. I'm… not doing very well right now." He whispered, resting his forehead in his hand as he leaned on the table. "I'm sorry." He whispered, practically in tears.
"You're okay?" She whispered. "Where are you? You kind of sound weird." She sighed.
"I'm at Founding Fathers." He sighed. "I am reading over the evidence, and just, I'm sorry." He whispered.
"Are you drinking?" She whispered. "Aiden?" She said. Her voice didn't sound disappointed or anything, only concern, but because of the disappointment he was feeling in himself, he couldn't bear to hear the sound of sadness in her voice any longer. "Aiden." She said softly again.
"I'm sorry that I screwed up." He said, closing his eyes tightly. "Please don't hate me."
"Aiden, you took off. You disappeared, and you wouldn't answer your phone. You blocked me out."
"I didn't want you to get hurt!" He exclaimed, tipping his head back, he felt a wave of nausea. "I didn't want anyone else to get hurt. I just wanted to move forward. I feel like we're in a holding pattern, and I just want to move forward. I know it wasn't fair to you, and it wasn't fair to your Dad, but it was something that I couldn't wait for anymore. I need you home. I need you by my side. I need my partner back. I love you, Antonia. I love you with all of my heart, and it's killing me not to have you here with me." He said, unsure if the sudden burst of energy he had was from his frustration, fear, or the alcohol coursing through his blood. He looked across the table and watched the look on Grace's face. He could see the reflection of her sister in her eyes, and he could feel a pain in his chest. It was then that he realized that Antonia hadn't said anything. "Antonia?" He whispered.
"Mm…" She mumbled into the line as he sucked in a deep breath, releasing it after a moment of silence.
"I'm sorry." He whispered.
"I know you are." She replied, the worry and fear gone from her voice now, the calm in it made him feel on edge.
"I love you." He said in return.
"I love you too, Aiden." She replied, listening for a moment, she could hear the light intake of breath. "Of course I love you, you big dummy. I'm not lugging this stupid thing around on my finger because it's easy to carry. Where did you go?"
"Did you talk to your father?"
"Of course, but I want to hear it from you. I want you to tell me what you did, Aiden. I want to hear what, and why you did it. It's important." She said into the line.
"I found the drug dealer." He said, listening to the silence on the line. "The letter didn't make me feel any better. It just made me angrier. This kid has no mother, and now she and the love of my life are holed up in a safe house, and this son of a bitch is out free?" He said, pain in his voice as he spoke. "So I decided there, to find him, today. Enough of the waiting, and the bullshit. He was in that book, I knew where to find him, so I went to find him." He said, listening to her breathing over the line. "I did call for backup, I didn't do it alone. He wasn't discreet, or ashamed of himself, and went with a bit of a struggle." He said, downplaying his injuries. "I didn't want you to stop me. I needed to start somewhere. I don't think he's the one we're after, but he's not a good person, he needed to be punished. I have a list of people I want to look into tomorrow. Your father told me to get my shit together and if I make another move without him, he's going to drop me from the team." He sighed, staring at the table. He felt absolutely ashamed. He looked up when he felt Grace's hand on his, her support giving him strength. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Aiden." She replied. "However, I do have a five year old little girl here, who loves you, idolizes you, needs you. She has no idea why you disappeared today. She has no idea why you won't answer her phone calls. She loves you, Aiden, so much. She's upset, she's angry. She's inconsolable." Antonia whispered. "I was finally able to get her to sleep."
"Oh, Tex." He whispered, feeling that rush of nausea again, the knot tightening in his throat. "I let you all down." He grunted.
"Listen to me." She said, her voice cold and stern. "Go home. Go home, sleep off the alcohol, sleep off the guilt and the self pity, okay? Wake up tomorrow, take a shower, get dressed, and call me from the lab."
"Tex." He said, his voice almost a whine.
"Go home, Aiden. We will work on the list tomorrow together. We're still partners, right?"
"Yes." He whispered. "I miss you."
"I miss you." She said, her voice softening just a bit. "Take care of yourself, and we will work on the next suspect tomorrow, together. Do you understand?"
"Yes." He said softly, trying to figure out what to say next.
"I agree with you about the letter." She said suddenly. "It made me angry too, knowing that she loved Melody so much, but sacrificed herself. I understand why you did what you did, and I'm proud of you for taking the first step. I am happy that you want to make this right."
"It shouldn't have been at the expense of your anxiety or fears, Antonia. I was wrong. I love you very much. I love Melody very much too. I will see you tomorrow." He said, handing the phone back to Grace.
"Hey, Ant." Grace said, listening intently to her sister on the line, she smiled slightly. "It's no problem at all. If he's lucky, I won't haul his ass out of here in handcuffs." She said, winking across the table at Aiden's glare. "Goodnight, tell that little one I said sweet dreams." She said, hanging up the phone. "You see that? Was that so hard?"
"Excruciating." He grumbled as he started to gather his things. "She is still really pissed at me."
"On the bright side, she told me not to shoot you just yet." Grace smiled sweetly. "Listen, you might want to invest in some cover up for those bruises before you talk to her." She said, sliding out of the booth, she reached for his hand as she helped him stand up. He slid his papers into the bag he had with him, and placed a few dollars on the table. "You're a lucky man, Aiden Fitzgerald."
"We'll see about that, won't we." He muttered, as he took her offered arm, and the two of them left the bar together.