Chapter 5: Monopoly
. . .
Mac quietly entered the bedroom and placed a tray on the nightstand and then he glanced at Christine. She was still sound asleep. He watched her for a moment. She was lying on her back with her arms at her side on the duvet. He sat on the bed beside her and slowly leaned over her. He placed a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose, then pulled away and smiled as he saw how she wrinkled it. He leaned over her again and kissed both her eyelids and finally her lips. When he moved away, her eyes were already opened.
''Hello, darling.'' He told her.
''Hi.'' She answered. Despite Mac's efforts, there was only a hint of the smile on her face. He sighed softly, as he realized she was still angry with him. He turned and reached for the tray.
''I made you breakfast.'' He said and she pulled herself up to a sitting position. She glanced at the tray and then at him.
''Belgian waffles?'' Christine raised her brow and then murmured, ''I don't think it's a good idea to eat those in the bed. There will be crumbs everywhere.''
''So you don't want them?'' Mac asked with an evident hurt in his voice, even though he tried hard to hide it.
''Let's move to the kitchen.'' She told him and rose from the bed. She put on her silky robe and left the bedroom. Mac took the tray and followed her. He placed the plate on the kitchen table and moved the tray away. Then she looked at Christine, who was setting on the coffee maker.
''Sit down and eat.'' He insisted and added, ''I'll make coffee.''
''Fine.'' She obliged and sat at the table. Mac started the coffee maker and watched her as she took a hesitant bite.
''Listen, Christine... I'm really sorry that I couldn't make it to see you for lunch. I got caught up at work.'' He explained.
''Mhm.'' She only murmured as she seemed to be completely absorbed by picking out all raspberries he had put on top of the waffles and leaving the blueberries behind. He sighed. It was like she wanted to make it as hard for him as possible. He crouched down in front of her and placed his hands on her knees.
''Christine, you know I'd rather be with you.'' He told her and she finally looked at him.
''I'm not so sure about that.'' She said bitterly and he frowned.
''Of course I would.'' Mac repeated. He watched how she put her fork down and slightly turned towards him.
''Mac, I understand that your job is... as it is. Unpredictable and demanding. And also very important to you. But somehow I get the feeling it's even worse with this case. You have barely had any time for me in three days!'' She complained.
''I guess you're right.'' Mac sighed. ''This case is really different.'' For a moment he thought of Jo, who was as much affected by it as he was. Or perhaps even more. ''I really wanted to catch those guys. What they did... They truly deserve to rot in jail for that.'' He slowly shook his head in disbelief at the mental image of two dead bodies. ''And I really wanted to find this boy alive.''
''OK, I understand that.'' Christine told him. ''But you arrested them and the boy is safe and sound now. So what? Case closed?'' She asked and looked at him hopefully. Mac furrowed his brows and went silent for a moment.
''Well, technically yes, but...'' He hesitated for a second.
''But what?''
''Those kids lost their parents and they don't have anyone to take care of them.''
''Isn't that child service's job and not yours?'' Christine asked and from the tone of her voice he could tell she was fed up with this conversation.
''You know how child service works.'' Mac murmured. ''And I just... feel sorry for them.'' He admitted, somehow shyly. Then he started to talk quickly, like he wanted to explain himself, ''the girl is only 4 years old. What she had been through caused terrible trauma for her. And the boy... Can you imagine that he feels guilty of not stopping the crime? For not saving his parents? There was nothing he could do. He's just a kid.'' He paused as he felt his voice might crack with the next word.
''So what exactly do you want to do?'' Christine asked. Mac rose to his feet and moved away from her. He leaned back against the counter and crossed his arms in front of him.
''I don't know.'' He shrugged his shoulders. ''At the very least, I want to visit him at the hospital. And I'd really appreciate if you came with me.'' He told her, but Christine showed no enthusiasm towards the idea. ''I'm sure you'd like him, he's a really great kid.'' He added in order to convince her.
''I can't go with you today.'' She answered and rose from her seat. ''I'm busy all morning. I'm in charge of preparing catering for a party for over 50 people.'' He didn't say anything in response and only looked sadly at her. ''Maybe tomorrow, OK?'' She offered.
''OK.'' He agreed. Not like he had any other choice.
''I got to run.'' She told him, gave him a peck on his lips and left the kitchen.
''You're not gonna finish your breakfast?'' He asked her.
''You can finish it, if you want!'' She yelled back. He glanced at the plate and murmured,
''You know I'm allergic to blueberries...''
. . .
Jo looked through the window as she sipped her coffee from the mug. She always enjoyed this little morning ritual, although today she felt too gloomy to actually pay attention to the world outside. She was thinking about Lily. During the day she seemed to be quite fine. She played just like any other kid would and smiled a lot. However, during the night she was going through the same nightmare over and over again. It was really heart-wrenching for Jo to watch the poor kid crying and calling out for her mother. But at least she was there for Lily, cuddling her and soothing her and making her fall asleep again. She doubted that there was anyone in the social service who would be able to give her attention and the tenderness she needed so much right now.
The sound of her phone ringing pulled her out of her thoughts. She didn't even have to check the caller's ID, as the room got filled with the tunes of 'In the Jungle'. It was Ellie's favorite song from the times she was a small kid and Jo used it as a ring-tone only for her number.
''Hi, sweetie!'' She answered the phone.
''Hi, mom!'' Ellie said happily.
''What's up?''
''Did you remember that I'm coming back home today in the afternoon?'' Ellie asked.
''Of course I remembered!'' Jo snorted slightly. ''I'm not that old, you know...''
''I know, I know...'' Ellie said and, even though Jo couldn't see her, she was sure that her daughter rolled her eyes. ''I just wanted to be sure.''
''OK. So what time exactly do I have to pick you up from the parking lot in front of the school?''
''You don't have to. Lacey's parents are picking her up and she said they could give me a lift. Our place is on their way, anyway. That's why I'm calling.''
''Oh, OK... So you don't want me to come and pick you up?'' Jo asked as she felt slightly sad.
''Mom, it's not that I don't want you to, but what's the point in it? I know how you hate being stuck in the traffic.''
''Yeah...'' Jo sighed and sat down on the couch.
''And it's even better for you to stay home, as I want to ask you for something.''
''Yes?''
''Could you please make my favorite potato casserole? The food here was really dreadful.'' Ellie said. ''Please? Pleeease?'' She added in a pleading voice.
''Sure, hon. Anything for you.'' Jo told her with a smile. ''Anything else?'' She asked. Then she heard a quiet creak from the bedroom door and glanced towards it. She saw Lily standing in the doorway and looking at her. Jo smiled lightly and crooked her finger to beckon her. The girl smiled widely, made a few jumps towards her and climbed onto the couch.
''Nah, casserole is all I dream of right now.'' Ellie said and Jo laughed slightly.
''OK, you can be sure that hot casserole will be waiting for you, El.''
''Awesome.'' Ellie sighed in delight and Jo smiled upon hearing her. Then she glanced down at Lily, who was already sitting next to her and cuddled to her side. She stroked her hair and the girl looked up at her.
''Umm... Listen, honey. I have to tell you something...'' Jo said to Ellie.
. . .
Mac entered the lab and saw that Adam was still working on a video from the surveillance camera. He furrowed his brows.
''Why haven't you finished it yet?'' He asked slightly too harsh, even for his 'bossy mode'.
''Umm... well... i-it turned o-out, it's not that easy as... as I thought.'' Adam stuttered.
''I told you I need it ASAP.'' Mac reminded him.
''I'm doing my best.'' Adam told him quietly. ''I even skipped my coffee break...'' His voice trailed off. He saw Mac's expression and quickly added, ''ASAP. Got it.''
''You better be ready before I come here again.'' Mac warned him. He headed towards the door, but before he exited, he heard Adam's murmur, ''I wished Jo wasn't on a leave... He's never like that when she's around.''
Mac froze and for a moment, he considered turning around and scolding Adam for his silly remark. But then he sighed, as he had to admit there was something in it. On his way back to his office, he glanced into Jo's. As always, he shook his head when he noticed the mess on her desk. He stopped for a moment and thought how really empty the lab was without her. She was able to lighten up even the gloomiest mood. He was sure she would have tried it today with him, making him smile with her usual silly banter. With a sigh, he started to walk towards his office. While inside, he pulled out his phone and toyed a little with it as he considered calling her but he couldn't come up with any reliable excuse. He could call and ask how Lily was doing, but it seemed just ridiculous. He placed his phone down on the desk with a frown as he saw the documents that were forming a huge pile on his desk. He started to sign them one by one. He wasn't even half way through them when his phone rang. He quickly grabbed it, silently hoping it was Jo, but as soon as he glanced at the screen, but he felt disappointed. It was some unknown number.
''Taylor.'' He answered it.
''Hello, I'm Maggie Sullivan, I'm calling on behalf of St Mary's hospital. You wanted to be informed about Rick's condition?''
''Yes.'' Mac confirmed quietly, feeling uneasiness in the pit of his stomach.
''I'm happy to tell you that he regained consciousness less then an hour ago.''
''That's a really good news.'' Mac said as he released his breath.
''Yes and he's asking about you.'' Maggie told him.
''Hmm...'' Mac checked his watch and thought for a moment. ''I think I'll manage to visit him during my lunch break.''
''That's good. So see you there. Goodbye.''
''Goodbye.'' Mac said and he hung up. He rose from his desk and grabbed his jacket. He stopped by the lab again on his way out.
''Adam...'' He started. Adam turned around abruptly, obviously startled by his sudden appearance.
''Umm, boss, I haven't...''
''That's OK. I just wanted to tell you I'm off for my lunch break. I'll be back in an hour.'' Mac told him and smirked as he saw how Adam's eye widened. ''I hope the video will be ready by then.''
''Errr... Sure. By then.'' Adam murmured in shock.
''OK, see you later.'' Mac told him and rushed out of the lab.
. . .
Jo was sure she heard the front door being closed, so she hastily left the kitchen as she wanted to check it. She saw Ellie standing near the door. She clearly just entered and she was staring at Lily, who was standing in front of her.
''You must be Lily.'' Ellie said and smiled lightly. ''Hi, I'm Ellie.''
''Hi.'' Lily answered quietly.
''I have something for you.'' Ellie said and she reached her hand towards Lily. She instantly got curious and moved closer to her. She took a ball from Ellie's hand and studied it carefully.
''It flashes and makes sounds when it hits the floor.'' Ellie told her and Lily looked up at her with her eyes wide open. ''Try it.''
Lily hesitated for a moment and then bounced the ball against the floor. It lit up in green and made a sound of shattering glass. Lily looked at Ellie with her mouth opened. She picked up the ball and repeated her action but this time she enjoyed a red flash and the sound of a whistle.
''Pretty cool, huh?'' Ellie asked and Jo laughed, as she saw how proud of herself she was for picking up the gift that enchanted Lily right away.
Ellie looked to her left and spotted Jo standing in the doorway.
''Mom!'' She exclaimed happily as she rushed towards Jo. She wrapped her arms around her mom and gave her a strong hug.
''Hi, sweetie.'' Jo greeted her with a smile. She placed a kiss on the top of her head. When Ellie pulled away, Jo looked at her and asked, ''how was the ride back home?''
''It was okay. Slightly boring.'' Ellie said and glanced at Lily, who was watching them from afar, her new ball forgotten for a moment. Jo followed her daughter's eyes and smiled sadly.
''So... you've met Lily?''
''Yeah... she's cute.'' Ellie said and moved to the kitchen. ''Yaaay! I smell potato casserole!'' She exclaimed.
''Of course!'' Jo told her, as she stood right behind her. ''I promised you I'd make it for you.''
''Thanks, mom.'' Ellie said and smiled sheepishly at her. Then she crouched down in front of the oven and looked inside. ''How much longer until it's ready? I'm starving!'' She asked.
''No more than 5 minutes, I guess.'' Jo answered. She looked behind her and saw Lily, who was now standing in the doorway. She carefully watched Ellie and she seemed fascinated and intimidated by her at the same time. Jo reached out and gently pulled Lily in front of her. The movement didn't escape Ellie's notice and she smiled at Lily.
''It smells delicious, doesn't it?'' She asked and Lily nodded. ''And it looks even better.'' Ellie sighed. ''Look.'' She added and stretched her hand towards Lily as she urged her closer. Jo's lips curved into a warm smile as she watched how Ellie put her arm around Lily, in order to be able to stop her from coming too close to the oven and burning herself. Lily peeked inside and then looked at Ellie. ''Do you like potato casserole?'' Ellie asked her and Lily shrugged her shoulders.
''I dunno.'' She answered.
''You've never eaten it?''
''No.''
''Ahh. I bet you're gonna love it. And just to let you know – my mom makes the best casserole in the world.'' Ellie informed her and Lily glanced inside the oven again.
''It makes your tummy rumble, doesn't it?'' Ellie joked and tickled her stomach, which made Lily giggle. Then she looked at her for a longer moment. All of the sudden, she threw her arms around Ellie's neck and cuddled into her. Jo felt her heart melting at the sight and she almost chuckled when Ellie cast her a look over Lily's shoulder that was saying she was taken completely by surprise by Lily's sudden upsurge of emotions.
''Thank you for the ball.'' Lily told her quietly.
''You're welcome, lil' one.'' Ellie answered.
. . .
''Hi there, buddy.'' Mac said as he approached Rick's bed. He was pleased to see that Rick looked much better than the last time when he had seen him.
''Hi.'' He answered.
''How do you feel?'' Mac asked. He pulled a chair and sat beside the bed.
''Not bad.'' Rick admitted. ''But I still cough a lot and I feel very sleepy all the time.''
''Yeah. You can sleep as much as you want.'' Mac smiled lightly at him and Rick nodded.
''How long do I have to stay here?'' Rick asked.
''Yesterday the doctors told me that at least a week.''
''That long?'' Rick winced.
''They have to make sure that you're well.''
''Yeah.'' Rick murmured. ''And then what?'' He asked and he nailed his eyes on Mac.
''I don't know.'' Mac told him honestly. ''I promise you that I'll figure out something. Don't worry about it right now. You have to get better first, OK?'' Rick watched him for a long moment and then nodded. ''Do you need something?''
''Like what?'' Rick asked.
''I don't know. Do you maybe want something to eat? Or to drink?'' Mac offered. ''I could buy you something.''
Rick thought for a moment and then shook his head.
''No, thanks. I'm good.''
''So you don't need anything?'' Mac asked him again as he wanted to be sure.
''Well...'' Rick hesitated for a moment. ''Maybe something to read? I'm getting bored to tears here.'' He sighed and Mac smiled lightly. Being bored seemed like a good symptom.
''OK. Do you want something in particular?''
''No. Just something interesting.'' Rick answered and then he yawned widely.
Mac smiled at him and said, ''you should take a nap.''
''Will you visit me tomorrow?'' Rick asked quietly as he fought to keep his eyes opened.
''If you want me to.'' Mac told him as he rose from his chair and put it away.
''I do.'' He nodded.
''Go to sleep, buddy.'' Mac said softly. Then he moved closer to Rick and lightly tousled his hair. ''I'll see you tomorrow.''
. . .
Around 8 pm Ellie came back from the meeting with her friends and she found her mom in the kitchen, drinking some tea. She made herself a salad for dinner and had a little chat with her mom as she told her some funny stories from the trip. Then she disappeared in her room.
Jo made herself another cup of tea. She was slowly sipping it and reading some magazine when she heard Lily crying. She rushed to the bedroom and found Lily sitting on the bed. She was hugging her knees and shaking. Jo sat next to her and Lily reached out her arms towards her. While in Jo's embrace, she calmed down significantly, but she was still weeping for her mommy. Jo rocked her gently until she finally got quiet. Then Jo waited couple more moments to make sure she was sound asleep and laid her down on the bed. She stood up and looked at Lily. While asleep, she looked so peaceful and calm, but she knew that it wouldn't take long for the same nightmare to come back to haunt her again.
Jo sighed deeply and left the room. She sat on the couch and covered her face with her hands. She was feeling truly hopeless. It was impossible to turn back time and there was no way to erase the horrible memories from Lily's memory. The only thing that could bring Lily some comfort was time and Jo knew it. She was only hoping that her heart wouldn't break somewhere on the way.
''Mom?'' Ellie asked close to her and Jo raised her head. Her daughter was standing next to the couch, looking at her carefully.
''Yeah?'' Jo answered as she tried to force a smile, but it was rather a miserable attempt.
''Is she having nightmares?'' Ellie asked and she looked at her mom with her big, dark eyes.
''She dreams about her mother... being killed. Over and over again.'' Jo sighed.
''Did she see it?'' Ellie whispered in shock.
''No.'' Jo shook her head. ''But she heard it.''
''Oh God...'' Ellie breathed out and Jo could see how the corners of her lips turned down.
''Hey, kiddo...'' Jo said softly and reached her hand to Ellie. She sat on the couch with her legs curled beneath herself and slipped into her mom's arms.
''Will she be okay?'' Ellie asked with a hoarse voice and Jo tightened her embrace around her as she knew that her daughter was emotionally affected by what had happened to Lily.
''It should get better with time.'' Jo said and added, ''if she's placed with a loving family, there is a big chance that she will be a happy kid again soon.''
There was a long moment of silence that stretched between them. Ellie sniffed quietly a few times and finally said, ''I feel so bad.''
''Yeah, I know. I feel bad for her, too.'' Jo agreed.
''That's not what I meant...'' Ellie said and pulled away slightly. Jo looked at her and saw that her eyes were moist. ''I'm so lucky to have you, mom.'' She whispered, not being able to hold her tears any longer.
''Oh, honey...''
''But I also feel bad about it. I did nothing to deserve it. I was just lucky that you took care of me.''
''El, darling, you didn't have to do anything, I love you unconditionally.'' Jo told her. ''You know that, silly.'' She added in a light tone but Ellie didn't even smile.
''I know.'' Ellie nodded. ''But then, why me?'' Ellie asked and Jo recalled when she had seen her for the very first time. Due to the cocaine exposure, she was born premature and she was so small and sick. True, she was a fighter, but she still had to have something to hold on to. ''Why not someone else?'' Ellie asked again. ''You've always said that everybody deserves to be happy, to be loved.''
''It's true.'' Jo confirmed. Ellie went silent for a moment, something clearly on her mind. Then she looked at her mom and spoke, ''Mom, if you hit the jackpot and you became awfully rich, would you be able to enjoy it if there was someone right next to you, who didn't have anything?''
''I probably couldn't, but...''
''And would you share?'' Ellie asked rigidly and Jo frowned.
''I think I would, but I don't really know what that has to do...'' Jo started, but Ellie cut her off.
''Mom, I think you should adopt Lily.'' She said seriously.
''Oh, Ellie...'' Jo sighed as it was clear to her how Ellie felt about the whole situation.
. . .
A/N Terribly sorry for that this chapter is up after rather long break, but I had to put writing aside as Christmas took over my life for a while.
Again big huuuug for Jess for correcting this chapter :) I promise you I'll check the next one better in order not to give you a hard time with my silly mistakes, especially those I make over and over again...
And yeah, I know, Christine is really bitchy in this story. Not exactly in character, but what can I say – I really don't like her. So sue me ;) (hehe being cocky, as the only lawyer I know on this site doesn't like Christine either, ufff lucky me ;)
If you have something to tell me, make my day – leave a review.