See Ch 1 for disclaimers…

One more - the case in this story, read with care if you trigger easily.


"Hey Jane, Maura." Frost waited for them to finish giving their credentials before rattling off his own badge number. "Somebody forgot to get the word out that Sunday is for football, not murder."

"Some of us weren't getting to see the game, we were seeing how many trees we could possibly find fault with between here and apparently Stoneham." Jane flinched at the pinch on her arm, scowling at Maura as she walked by and Frost as he laughed into his fist.

Coughing a bit, Frost followed Jane up the driveway. "I take it she won on the real versus fake tree battle?"

"Did you even think I was going to win that one for a moment?" Jane carefully memorized the layout of the house and driveway. "Can you take a picture? This driveway is narrow, steep and lined with granite retaining walls the whole way up. You'd have to know how to get in and out of it."

At the top she noticed Maura crouched by a set of brick steps. "Find anything?"

She pointed to the debris. "It appears to be a significant quantity of pine needles, but here the needles seem to have come under pressure and there is a black mark above. I'm going to sample both."

Jane looked slowly up and noticed pale white streaking on the grey retaining wall. "Something scraped along the wall here too. The finish of the stone is disturbed and it has to be fresh if we can still notice it." She moved out of the way so Frost could get pictures and when Maura was finished she offered her a hand up.

Approaching the front door of the two-family Jane paused to study the house and entry. "Frame and door appear to be intact." They walked over the small patch of grass in front, looking down, careful as they stepped in single file, respecting the markers. "Window casings look undisturbed." She started down the side of the house to the back before she realized neither Frost nor Maura had responded.

Jane looked over her shoulder to check on Maura, watching her intently study the house façade pointing something out to Frost. "Do you guys see something?" When Maura still didn't seem to hear her Jane cleared her throat. "Maura!" An elegant eyebrow arched in her direction. "Sorry. I was just asking if you saw anything."

"Not for the case, not yet." Maura gestured to the building. "They have their Christmas lights up already. Frost just offered to help you hang some at my place sometime this week."

"Are you serious?" Both of them stared at her and Jane threw up her hands. "Come off it Frost, dead body, gumshoe thing, any of this familiar?" Jane spun around and marched off, studying the windows and the house siding as she went, noting that so far everything appeared undisturbed.

Feeling Frost catch up, she growled at him under her breath. "Thanks for nothing. I will have you know, I almost had her convinced to put some candles in the windows and a wreath on the door. Now I'm going to get to hang off the side of her brownstone and pray that Rudolph will save my ass when I fall. I take it she went inside to start processing?"

Frost nodded. "Word of advice, a little holiday spirit wouldn't kill you. What is with you this year? I would think you young love birds would be dancing under the mistletoe all season long. If I remember right a few months ago, you were a bitch and a half to deal with because you thought Maura was going away for Christmas." He paused next to Jane in the backyard. "First glance it looks clean here too."

Jane walked over to the back entry noticing that the leaves plastered in a small pile up between the welcome mat and door were undisturbed. She pointed it out to Frost. "Doesn't look like it's been opened recently, maybe they only use it during the summer to get to the back yard." When he nodded, she sighed. "And I have plenty of holiday spirit. I'm just facing that first Christmas together gift panic."

She held up a hand to stop Frost from speaking. "And before you say it I know she'll love whatever I get her and I know she doesn't care about shit like that." Jane shrugged. "Doesn't mean I don't care though, I wouldn't mind knowing I got her something memorable."

Jane looked carefully around them, making sure they were alone. "I'm going to tell you something that you can't tell anyone, especially my mother or Frankie. Can you promise?" Frost nodded and it seemed sincere. "I think the problem is I think want to propose. But this is Maura. She told me once after the Fairfield case that she has a two year rule. She has to be with someone for two years before she can commit to something as serious as a marriage proposal. It was all studies say this, studies say that, insert mumbo jumbo and in the end you have Maura logic."

Jane glanced at Frost but he was still simply listening. "It's the only gift I keep coming back to. Everything else seems, I don't know, wrong, off somehow. But I don't want to force her into a situation that she is uncomfortable with. What we have is pretty damn good anyhow. The ring thing is a little old fashioned and cliché at Christmas anyhow." She gave a little sigh. "Right now I'm thinking of a weekend away in Vermont at some bed and breakfast thing. It will be fine, but it just doesn't feel right."

Jane leaned back against her heels rocking, staring at the house, refusing to look over at Frost.

"If you wouldn't make my life hell, I'd tell you that this kind of sweet. Foolish, but sweet." Frost smiled at her mock glare, chuckling with her. "Knowing Maura, I don't think that rule applies to the two of you." Frost winked at her. "You'll figure it out and in the end it will be the right choice. Until then, lighten up. Hang up some lights, drink some eggnog. Are you ready to head inside?"

Jane nodded and retraced their steps to the front door, navigating uniforms and absorbing details. The home was well kept and stylish. She studied photos and waited while Frost continued to snap pictures. She finally found Maura hovering over the body next to an impressive Christmas tree.

Jane crouched down next to her, wordlessly accepting a pair of latex gloves. She looked around the room, at the ceiling, at the entryway, before she scrutinized the position of the furniture and noted the broken glass ornaments by the victim's feet. "She was attacked here."

Frost nodded, pointing to the permanent indentations in the rug. "Couch was moved at some point and whoever put it back didn't get it quite right. It must have been a blitz attack. Ornaments only seem to be missing from this part of the tree."

Jane ran a finger along the victim's disturbed clothing, noting the underwear hanging off one ankle, the skirt still pushed around her waist. She brushed the collar of her blouse aside and looked at Maura. "Strangled?"

Pulling the victims lower eyelid down, Maura flashed her penlight against the surface for Jane to see. "Possible."

The spidery veins and dark spots had Jane mentally converting Maura's possible into probable.

Jane looked over to Frost hovering in the doorway. "Who called it in?"

"The husband. He's waiting in the dining room."


Maura looked up as Jane walked through the morgue doors.

Gesturing to the body on the table Jane peered into the chest cavity. "How come you did the autopsy tonight? I was surprised when I saw your text."

Maura carefully put the heart back in place. "I wasn't sure if you were planning to stay with me. It's Sunday and with the murder we were unable to talk about your plans for tonight. I thought I would stay busy until you were done with the husband rather than go home and wait to find out."

Jane tried to get an understanding of Maura's mood. She was in work mode that was clear but there was an edge to her tone. "Plans? Originally, my day was going to be you, me, the Patriots, dinner, avoiding the question of the day from my mother at dinner, complaining to you about my mother's questions and," Jane waited for Maura to look at her, "then carefully counting each of your freckles for the rest of the night."

Maura couldn't stop the smile. "That seems to be a favorite pastime of yours."

The smile was there but the tone was still measured. Jane walked around the table and stood behind Maura, stroking lightly along her lower back. "It's my favorite pastime. Someday I'll actually make it past your shoulders before I get distracted."

Maura leaned against the touch for a moment before she continued to place organs back into the abdominal cavity. "Careful, I always worry when I have the needle." She felt Jane straighten up but the touch remained. "Well you and I went tree shopping this afternoon rather than watch the game, your mother is with Tommy still shopping for TJ's Christmas presents, but I would imagine the last part of your evening could still happen."

A soft sigh escaped as Maura continued working. "You know, you would have more opportunity to practice your staying power if we weren't spilt between two locations. I know I would appreciate knowing you were coming home rather than wondering if you planned on staying at your apartment." Jane's hand stilled on her back but it remained in place.

Jane bit her lip, always back to this. "We've talked about this and I know you don't agree, but I don't want people thinking my entire family is living off you. You already have my mother there." Jane watched the abdominal fascia get pulled together, the needle flashing in and out. She gave Maura a moment but she remained focused on her work.

Maura changed the gauge of the needle and the weight of the thread before starting to stitch the skin. "I simply do not see the difference between living the way we've been living and physically sharing an address."

"There probably isn't much of one. I can't help if I'd rather be with you than not." Unable to help herself, Jane slipped her hand under Maura's scrubs and touched warm skin. "It's not logical, you're right, but it's important to me. You're important to me. We're important to me. When we're old and grey and celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary you can remind me about what an ass I was." That earned her a full Maura Isles smile, complete with soft eyes.

"I may find you so frustrating I may have kicked you out before then."

Jane nodded readily and lightly ran her palm along Maura's skin. "Oh I'm sure of it. Probably, at least three times. But then you'd take me back because you'd miss me too much."

Tying off her last knot, Maura stood up and leaned back, just enough to feel the warmth and connection, mindful of her speckled surgical gown. "Current evidence would lead me to agree."

"I want to kiss you."

"Not in the morgue and you know it. Just be happy I love you enough that I'd rather spare you the potential pathogens." Maura could feel Jane sigh against her back.

"Autopsy give us anything interesting?"

"Actually, yes. She was sexually assaulted as anticipated and the tissue damage was extensive. Enough so that I would believe the assault was the primary motivator. Initial swabs are clear for semen and pubic combing did not reveal any trace evidence to the naked eye. I collected what I could and we'll stain the slides tomorrow when Susie is in to review with me." Maura gave a soft sigh. "I don't expect the trace will reveal much evidence. He seemed to know what he was doing and what to avoid. I suspect he will have a record for sexual assault. As you presumed, the COD was strangulation. But what was intriguing was the ligature mark." Maura stepped away and tilted the victim's chin up, letting the surgical light highlight the purple mark.

"Oh, that is interesting, what could have made a pattern like that?" Jane leaned down and stared at the mark. "Are you done collecting trace?" When Maura nodded, she traced her finger lightly over the small irregular, almost diamond like pattern. "Why is that pattern only on this part of the neck?"

Maura leaned down next to Jane and examined the mark again. "I don't know."

Jane glanced at her from the corner of her eye. "Are you upset with me?"

Tilting her head Maura peered up at Jane "I don't know."

"Can I make it up to you?"

"Perhaps." Maura smirked. "Sing in the BPD Holiday Choir with me this year."

"Oh hell no."


A/N - anybody with me for a little holiday merriment and mystery? FYI - the rating on this will change so please check under "M" if you think you've missed an update.