As promised, here's the next part of this. I've actually wrote the ending already and have decided to stick with the original title. I don't know how many chapters there will be between this and the end but I have a few ideas. I've been crazy busy so I don't know when I'll next have time to write but I do promise to update this even if it takes me forever.
Lisbon was in the break room hunting down her third cup of coffee before noon when her cell phone rang. She had been staring at the metal fridge, or more importantly the cluttered pieces of artwork that adorned the outside of it thanks to their new friend Emma. The girl had visited the healing Jane in the hospital a few times before he was released but they hadn't heard from her since. If anyone in the office was bothered by the child's artwork in the break room, no one said anything. If Lisbon had to guess, no one really wanted to deal with Jane.
"Hello?" She answered after retrieving her phone out of her front pocket. She didn't recognize the number.
"Hello, is this Agent Lisbon?"
"Yes it is. May I ask who's speaking?"
"My name is Mrs. Sandy Albright. I'm the lead teacher at Little Bo Peep, Emma Gable's preschool."
Lisbon's ears immediately perked up. "Is everything alright Mrs. Albright?"
"Oh yes Ms. Lisbon. I'm sorry if I caused you concern. I hate to bother you. I know you agents are always very busy."
"That's quite alright." Lisbon insisted. "What can I do for you?"
Sandy sighed. "Again, I understand you and your agents are very busy. It's just that we completely forgot that today, Emma's parents were scheduled to come in for our monthly career day. It's no big deal really but I was talking to Emma's grandparents and they suggested I talk to you. Now though, I realize this was probably a bad idea. I'll let you get back to more important…"
"No, wait." Lisbon insisted. "What does this career day entail?"
Sandy stopped. "Nothing big. Parents come in, explain their jobs and the children ask questions. This is only preschool after all."
"What time were you expecting the Gables?"
"Eleven o'clock."
Lisbon looked at her watch. "Wow, that's soon."
"I complexly understand if there's nothing you can do."
"No, I just have to approve this with my boss. Actually, my entire team is on stand down due to a recent injury so..."
"That would be fantastic Agent. I'm sure the children would really appreciate it."
"If you don't hear from me then we'll be there at eleven." Lisbon said, hanging up her phone and striding into the bullpen.
Van Pelt was typing away diligently on her computer, Cho was reading, and Rigsby was polishing off a piece of cake or pie if the triangular container was any indication.
"Listen up people, we've got plans in about half an hour. Be ready to go." Lisbon instructed.
Cho looked up from his book. "We're back in rotation?"
"Not exactly. I'll explain on the way."
"What about Jane?" Van Pelt asked.
"He's coming too. Have any of you seen him?"
Rigsby shook his head. "Not since this morning."
Lisbon found Jane lounging on her couch after talking briefly with Wainwright who had quickly agreed to the idea of them visiting the school. Something about this being good PR for the bureau.
She sat on the armrest near his crossed leather-clad feet.
"So, where are we going?"
"Wha…how?"
Jane smiled, eyes still closed. "Van Pelt came and told me."
"Oh."
"So?"
"It's a surprise. I'll tell everyone on the way."
"Soil sport." Jane sighed as he slowly moved to a sitting position.
Lisbon saw him flinch, his injury still causing him obvious discomfort. Without thinking, Lisbon put her hand under Jane's bent elbow, gently helping him stand to his feet.
Jane glanced over at the petite woman, saw the genuine concern in her eyes. "What? Aren't you going to call me creaky or something?" He said, trying to lighten the mood.
Lisbon ignored the comment. "Jane, why don't you take a couple of those pain meds the doctor prescribed?"
The consultant shook his head. "I'm fine Lisbon. It's just those quick movements."
Since when was standing a quick movement? Lisbon silently wondered. She just hoped the refusal to take the meds had more to do with a dislike for pills and wasn't another twisted way for the man to inflict pain on himself. Deep down, Lisbon knew that the tortured man hidden behind the plastered smile of her consultant honestly believed he deserved such discomforts.
"Earth to Lisbon. Are we leaving or do I have to figure out where we're going first? Clearly, not a case since we're all still on stand down…"
Lisbon snapped out of her dark thoughts and followed Jane who was already stepping out of the office, mumbling the pieces of this latest puzzle of his.
It wasn't until Lisbon turned South on the interstate that Jane's mind drew up any logical conclusions.
"Either you're taking us to the beach or we're heading to Emma's. Now since, we have neither swimming gear nor sunblock, I'm assuming the latter."
"But Jane, it's ten thirty in the morning. Emma would be in school." Van Pelt assessed.
"Oh, right. School." Jane visibly slumped in his seat.
Lisbon had to concentrate very hard to keep the grin off of her face. Of course Jane wouldn't think of school. He probably didn't attend past grade school, if that, with dearest daddy dragging him along on the carnie circuits.
She managed to keep a straight face until they pulled into the parking lot. Jane was 'resting his eyes'. He had lost all interest in their current game when Van Pelt has squashed his first idea.
"Huh." Rigsby chuckled.
Lisbon looked in the rearview mirror to see both Rigsby and Van Pelt's faces split in all-knowing grins.
"Jane was right." Cho muttered from the furthest seat in the back.
The consultant's eyes sprung open as he jolted awake, glancing around. Lisbon didn't fail to notice as his hand instantly fling to the bandaged area, just to the right of Jane's navel.
Quick movements, She thought to herself.
Despite the discomfort, Jane smiled. "Lisbon, why did you take the whole team on a field trip to Emma's school?"
Lisbon unbuckled her seatbelt and unlocked her door. "Because," She began, climbing out of the front seat. "I volunteered the team to come in and speak about our jobs."
"What, investigating murders and taking down criminals?" Cho asked.
"No." Lisbon said firmly. "Upholding the law, fighting for justice, and protecting our citizens."
"So basically, you're going to show off your shiny handcuffs and talk about the dangers of guns." Jane surmised as the team began to climb the wooden staircase to the front door of the pre-school.
Lisbon looked back at Jane. "Yeah, basically."
The consultant was the last to the top of the stairs. All but Lisbon were waiting just inside the door.
"You sure you're alright?" She asked, genially concerned as Jane tried to catch his breath.
He managed to nod. "In that hospital bed too long."
"How is that different than laying on your couch everyday?" Lisbon shook her head and held the door open.
Mrs. Albright greeted the team as they entered the main room of the preschool. Children were dispersed in all directions. There were a few girls playing dress-up in a far corner, a boy playing with sand at a table nearer to the front, and a small group of children fitting together large foam puzzle pieces on the floor.
Jane spotted Emma in the corner adjacent to the dress-up area, playing blocks with a little boy.
"Boys and girls, can we please all go sit over on the reading carpet."
At the teacher's request, all the students quickly headed over to the colorful carpet centered near the rear of the room. The only exception was Emma, who at the commotion, looked up at the intruders and broke out in a semi-toothless grin. She sprinted over to where the group was standing, barreling into Jane's knees.
"Trick!" She squealed in delight.
"Hey kiddo." Jane grinned, patting the girl on her head.
"Emma would you please show our guests to the reading carpet?" Mrs. Albright asked.
Emma took Jane's hand and began walking towards the back of the room. She took two steps and then paused, looked back at Lisbon and reached out her free hand for the agent to grab.
"Come on Tree."
Lisbon took the offered hand as Emma led them over to where the rest of the class was anxiously anticipating the strangers. The rest of the team trailed behind in silence.
Mrs. Albright stood in front of the cluster of children, her hands clasped together. "Ok, boys and girls can we give a warm welcome to our guests this morning?"
"Good morning." The class echoed in unison.
"Miss, Lisbon I'll let you do the introductions."
Lisbon smiled nervously, half waving hello to the children. She had no fear when it came to taking down a criminal three times her size but give her a room full of children, and she chokes.
Jane noticed and placed a light hand on her shoulder. "My friend Teresa has a bit of stage fright so I'll help her out."
She shot him a cold glare.
"My name is Patrick and these are agents Rigsby, Van Pelt, and Cho. Together, we hunt bad guys."
A girl with short black hair and thick-rimmed glasses raised her hand.
"What's your name sweetie?"
"Jane."
The consultant smiled. The girl with the appetite for rocks. "That's my name too. Well, my last name but most people call me Jane."
"Why does everyone have a police badge except for you?" The girl asked.
"Ah, very observant my dear. You see, I'm not part of the police like my friends here."
"Then what do you do?" a different child, a boy this time, asked.
"I tell them who the bad guy is." Jane said proudly. "We work as a team. Van Pelt finds all kinds of information on the guy or girl with the computer like their address and things they've bought. Cho can make the bad guy admit what he did wrong just by looking at him and Lisbon typically does the arresting with these. " Jane said, pulling out Lisbon's handcuffs.
Rigsby made some kind of noise that sounded somewhere between a cough and muttered statement.
"Oh, I'm sorry Rigsby." Jane said. "Rigsby here is an arson specialist which means he knows a lot about fires. He also makes sure we never forget mealtime when we're out on a case."
The class laughed at that. Rigsby rolled his eyes.
"Can I hold those?" A boy sitting in the rear asked, pointing to the handcuffs.
Jane glanced at Lisbon who shook her head. "How about we show you how they work instead?"
Lisbon smiled at this. "Rigsby would you like to do the honors?"
It took the man a second before he understood his boss. Eventually, his smile matched hers. "Certainly."
Lisbon held out her hand and Jane dropped the cuffs into her palm, for once oblivious to the exchange between the two agents. She then, in turn handed the metal objects off to Rigsby who came up behind Jane and grabbed his wrists before capturing them securely in the cuffs.
The kids cheered as the consultant was subdued.
Lisbon dug her hand into her back pocket and froze. Before she even had a chance to think, the students erupted even louder in cheers and laughter. Lisbon looked up to find Jane holding the handcuffs up proudly in one hand, her cuff keys in the other. He bowed and Lisbon smirked. Once a showman, always a showman.
Mrs. Albright made her way over to them. She was clapping, clearly as amused as her students. "Thank you very much agents. We're just about to have snacks. Feel free to stay as long as you'd like."
Lisbon nodded in appreciation.
"Boys and girls, please walk to your cubbies and retrieve your lunch boxes."
Mostly obeying their teacher, the students walked, if a bit briskly to their cubbies for their snacks. Some students brought their snacks to the tables while others returned to the carpet to eat.
Lisbon watched as Rigsby and Van Pelt sat down at a table with a group of children. She shook her head as one of the students handed a twinki to Rigsby. Cho had walked in their general direction as well but remained standing, arms crossed. Jane stayed on the carpet with Emma. She was proudly showing the small group of fellow students the coin trick Jane had taught her. The consultant looked on proudly until Emma finished and then showed the children a few tricks of his own.
"This is the first time I've seen that girl smile since her parents…" Mrs. Albright said, coming up to where Lisbon was observing from a distance.
"Emma's not the only one benefiting from all this." Lisbon said quietly.
"What's that?"
Lisbon looked up. "I said, yeah, she does seem to be benefiting from all this."
"Speaking of which." The teacher began. "We're taking a fieldtrip to the zoo next month. You're all more than welcome to come."
Lisbon nodded. "I can't make any promises, but depending on our schedule that week and our caseload, we'll see what we can do."
The agent's phone rang. It was Wainwright and he needed them back at the office, some kind of meeting. The rest of her team had heard the phone go off and knew it was time to go. Jane was the last to join the group, Emma still plastered to his side.
"Trick, you guys really have to go?"
The blonde nodded. "I'll tell you what. Ask your grandmother to give us a call at the office sometime and maybe we can go out for ice cream."
Emma's face lit up at the sound of ice cream. She moved over to Lisbon and gave her a hug at the knees as well.
"You be a good girl now ok?" Lisbon said.
Emma nodded, moving on to Van Pelt and Rigsby. She paused after hugging them and stared up at Cho. At first the agent didn't move but then he squatted down in front of the little girl and looked her in the eye. In a fluid motion, Emma kissed Cho on the cheek, giggled, and then ran away to play with her classmates. The man's lips turned upwards in the slightest of grins.
The agents waved goodbye and headed out the door. Lisbon was halfway down the long stairway, Van Pelt, Cho and Rigsby already at the SUV when she turned around to Jane who was understandably taking his time.
"I'll let you explain to Wainwright why a half hour trip took us…" Lisbon froze, only then noticing the consultant's complexion. He was standing near the top of the staircase, suddenly white as a sheet, gripping on to the railing for dear life.
"Jane?" Lisbon sprinted up the stairs before the obviously weakened man tumbled down the long flight.
"Don't feel so great." Jane said as Lisbon grasped him around the waist and slowly lowered him to the step. By this time, the rest of the team had noticed and were making their way across the parking lot.
"What is it Jane? Your abdomen?"
Before he could answer, a wave of nausea hit him and he retched over the side of the stairs, away from Lisbon.
Cho was first back up the stairs, squatting in front of the fallen duo. He squinted his eyes and then reached for Jane's Jacket, pulling it open to expose the matching vest underneath.
Lisbon gasped. "Jane, you're bleeding." She flashed back to Rigsby cuffing him not so gently in front of the children. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. With Jane wearing so many layers, it had taken a while for the blood to seep through.
"He probably ripped his stitches." Lisbon assessed. "We need to get him back to the hospital."
Cho nodded as he maneuvered himself to Jane's other side. Between the two of them, they managed to get him down the stairs.
"Rigsby, get the first aid kit out of the back. Van Pelt, call the ER and tell them we're coming." Lisbon instructed as the reached the SUV and slowly got Jane in the passenger seat.
Three hours later, Lisbon was back behind the wheel. Jane was again asleep against the passenger window, this time thanks to the drugs they forced him to take in the ER. A doctor had re-stitched the consultant's abdomen, and gave him strict instructions to rest for a minimum of two weeks. Wainwright was none too happy that his biggest asset would be out of commission for longer than anyone had hoped.
The rest of the team was silent, clearly drained by the day's events. Lisbon hoped Rigsby didn't feel too bad about the whole thing. It was her fault as much as his. Neither of them had thought of Jane's injury in that moment. She sighed. At least Jane was going to be alright. Lisbon was sure he wasn't very happy about being forced to take those pain meds but it was clear they were helping. Besides, one phone call to Emma's grandparents would make all the difference. They sold ice cream at the CBI after all. Lisbon looked over at Jane, Trick, and couldn't help but smile. The doctors didn't have all the answers. There were some things that healed much better and faster than pain medication.
I'm an angst junkie, I admit it. Had to throw a little in there for good measure. So, there's a possible couple of chapters already hinted in this one. Ice cream? The zoo? And what is going to happen when the school year is over and Emma's grandparents decide it's time to take her home with them? MORE ANGST! **evil laugh** Like I said, I can't say when I'll have time to write, but write I will. Reviews may or may not help with the motivation xD