Chapter 6
The team made a successful arrest and the case was closed by the evening. They were all exhausted by the lack of sleep and the worry about one of their own as they piled into their cars to head back home.
Jane was quiet and withdrawn, still trying to process the fact that he had hurt that poor woman at the hotel. He was trying to focus on the past months to find if there had been anything unusual that would have made him not to pay attention at the time, but now taking the new situation into account might be significant. He came up with nothing and it was deeply worrying. He had long ago made his peace with insomnia and the nightmares as there were plenty of material in his past, but he had never before acted out his dreams or sleepwalked. There must be a reason for that and his thoughts entered back into the vicious circle of trying to find reason where there was none to be had.
Lisbon was sitting in the front while Cho was driving, Abbott, Fischer and Wiley occupying the other car. She kept glancing at Jane who was sitting in the back, deeply in his thoughts but visibly upset. She was feeling reassured by that as it meant that Jane was willing for her and Cho see how this was affecting him and not trying to hide it as was his usual habit.
"How are you holding up?" asked Cho quietly as he glanced in the mirror at Jane and then turned to look at Lisbon. She looked exhausted with dark rings under her eyes, but at the same time highly wired and the amount of coffee she had been drinking didn't help.
"I'm tired," she confessed rubbing her eyes, "we need to find a doctor who can keep this confidential, but who also understands his past," she continued.
"FBI must have someone with a clearance and the experience dealing with trauma," Cho said.
"We'll also need to find someone that he trusts and is willing to talk to," Lisbon continued, "and that might be difficult."
"We'll cross that bridge once we get there," Cho answered, "at least we have a clear plan now."
"Get you in a hotel so you can sleep safely, find a doctor for Jane and make him talk," he continued.
Lisbon looked up sharply.
"I can't leave him alone," she whispered vehemently as she glanced at Jane to see if he had heard. He was totally oblivious to his surroundings as he stared out of the window.
"It's not safe for you to sleep in the same house than him and you clearly need sleep," Cho said looking at her making his voice to match the serious expression on his face.
"I'll sleep few hours now and then stake out your house to observe him overnight," he continued quietly.
"That way I can make sure that he doesn't leave the house and that he isn't at danger from himself without him knowing that somebody is keeping an eye on him."
"That also leaves you a bit more refreshed and gives you time to find a doctor for him," Cho concluded.
Lisbon looked at him torn between the options as she really didn't want to leave Jane alone. However maybe that would clarify the situation and show whether it was her presence that was making it worse or whether it wouldn't make any difference. Also there was a small voice in the back of her head reminding her that if Jane could attack a stranger in his sleep, there were no guarantees that he wouldn't attack her again.
She was still pondering at the options in the silence of the car as they pulled over for a quick break. Cho and Wiley filled the tanks of the cars while Lisbon and Abbott collected food for them all while Fischer and Jane stayed put. Once they headed back to the cars, Lisbon climbed in the back and offered the food to Cho at the front. Cho nodded at her and took them back to the road again while Lisbon strapped herself in.
She reached out for Jane's hand and found it cold and clammy, but the physical contact made him surface from his dark thoughts.
"I can't find anything," he said in a rough voice, his eyes pleading Lisbon to believe him.
"It's okay, we'll find something," Lisbon answered while stroking his hand. She lifted her left hand to stroke his stubbled cheek, slowly rubbing with her thumb and Jane closed his eyes leaning into her touch. They all stayed quiet during the rest of the journey, but it was comfortable and they all could relax a little. When they were nearing home Jane spoke up.
"I think Cho is right, you should stay in a hotel tonight," he said having heard what they had discussed before.
Lisbon started to protest but Jane lifted a finger on her lips.
"You need to rest and I'm afraid that I will hurt you if you stay with me," he said finding it difficult to admit that he could hurt her.
Cho looked at them in the mirror and seeing Lisbon's deflated look, he took a new turn and drove them towards a local hotel. Once they were parked outside, Lisbon looked at Jane, desperation in her eyes.
"We need to get to the bottom of this soon," she said as she released her seatbelt and scooted closer to Jane, who willingly lifted his arm and held her close. Once again he was inhaling her scent and drawing comfort from it.
"You find someone you think will help and I'll talk to them," Jane said into her hair, putting his trust completely in her hands. She looked up surprised and found Jane smiling drily.
"I want to put this in our past as soon as possible," he said quietly as he lowered his face and kissed Lisbon briefly while Cho was staring out of the window. Lisbon was encouraged by his determination and grabbed her bag and left the car walking into the hotel.
"Call me if you need me," she called out meaning both Cho and Jane, who both waved their hands and took off.
XXX
"Are you going to be okay for few hours? Cho asked as he looked at Jane in the mirror.
"Yes, Cho, I will be fine," Jane replied distractedly.
"I don't think I will be doing much sleeping anyway," he continued.
"You won't notice when I'm around. I won't disturb you unless you leave the house or start brandishing a knife again," Cho said as he turned down towards Lisbon's house.
Jane got out of the car and entered the house as Cho left to get some sleep before returning to keep an eye on him. He wasn't as bothered about that as he should have been and at this point he was willing to do anything to keep Lisbon safe and if that included Cho observing him sitting and reading, then that was it. He was glad Cho hadn't offered to stay with him inside, he had understood that Jane needed some space and he could keep an eye on him as effectively and safely from outside.
Jane went in and locked the door carefully. He took his bag upstairs and unpacked everything and then he walked around the house to make sure that all the windows and doors were locked. Just in case if he fell asleep and took off again, hopefully the locked door would stop him.
XXX
Cho returned few hours later, dressed in black and scouting the surrounding area to find a good spot to keep an eye on the house, but not that visible as he didn't want to arouse suspicion from the neighbours or from random people walking their dogs. Eventually he found a nice spot on top of a slope with lots of trees and bushes that should keep him hidden. He parked his car a bit further down on the street where it looked less out of place and walked with his backpack back to the slope. He looked around and finally settled on a spot quite deep in the woods, but still giving him a good view of the house. With binoculars he could clearly see Jane making tea and taking it back to the living room sitting down on a couch. This should do it.
He settled in comfortably and was sitting quietly on the ground leaning against a tree, Jane visible in the light of the window as it was getting darker. He hadn't been bothered by anyone and nobody had called the police to come and ask why he was sitting in the dark stalking this particular house.
So when he heard a car approaching with lights off, he was surprised. He kept still and quiet and waited. A quick look at Jane told him that the man was still sitting on the couch, reading this time, nothing moving around the house and nobody approaching.
The car came to a stop and silence returned to be interrupted only by the muffled sounds of somebody carefully opening and closing the door. After few moments Cho could hear soft footsteps approaching him and he tensed, but the footsteps never reached his location. The distant streetlights gave enough illumination for Cho to see a dark figure who took out binoculars from its coat pockets. To his surprise the figure was looking at Lisbon's house and seemed to make himself comfortable for longer stay.
Cho stayed still and observed the dark figure carefully while keeping an eye on Jane. He decided not to reveal himself, at least not yet as this was much unexpected and maybe he could learn something about why the man was keeping Jane under surveillance.
And so the night continued; a mysterious man observing Jane while Cho observed him.
TBC