So I'm not over them and I will mourn them by giving them my own closure. I just hate it when shows/ships with potential are not allowed to evolve. There's been a few cancelled shows I enjoyed but last time I was this annoyed was with Firefly so y'know, it's been a while ;) I know about that petition to C. Taylor and I did sign it but I admit I'm not holding my breath. Netflix would probably be a good fit but what network will take over a show with such a small following? It's sadly all about money. Who cares if the product has potential if it doesn't fill network's pockets.
"It's Sara, right? It must be from Sara." Lindy's still pacing the floor, her chosen path firmly set between the kitchen table and the living room couch where Tommy's currently sitting. "It's gotta be her."
"Could be Sophia? She was worried you were doing something dangerous. Maybe she's trying to scare you so you'll stop."
It sounds improbable to his ears and judging by the patronising "don't be stupid" look she's giving him, she definitely feels the same. At least she stopped pacing.
"Ok so it's not Sophia. Can you think of anyone else who would do it, as a joke maybe?"
"You have got to be kidding me, Tommy!" She exclaims in frustration. "You know all of my friends! You really think one of them would do that?"
"Well, Connor seemed quite pissed off with you after that dinner a few weeks ago," he suggests but he knows he's grasping at straws. Connor might not be Lindy's biggest fan but Tommy doubts he'd stoop so low.
Lindy doesn't even dignify his suggestion with a reply. She just rolls her eyes and sits next to him on the couch.
"You know this is more serious than a malicious prank," she tells him quietly.
"I'm just trying to eliminate all other possibilities," he admits and takes her slightly shaking hand in his. His gut is telling him something is very, very wrong. He tries not to show his overprotective side but damn if he didn't wish to pack her things up and ship them both off somewhere far away from here. Hawaii would be nice. They could both use a vacation.
Before he has time to daydream about her in a bikini laying next to him on the warm sand, she puts her head on his shoulder and sighs.
"She never contacted me before. I was in grave danger before and she never contacted me. Why now?"
He puts a small kiss on top of her head, a faint smell of her shampoo that undoubtedly still lingers on his pillows. He wants to go back to that. Everything seemed so simple just a couple of hours ago. There's no way he's letting anyone ruin this for them but for that he seriously needs to switch off the starry-eyed boyfriend mode and get to work. If that's even possible at this point. He gives her one more kiss. Her lips are warm but taste a bit different now. More familiar, yes but more exciting at the same time. There's a small reddened area in the crook of her neck that he only notices now, a mark his stubble left on her soft skin. He wonders what other places on her body carry his trace. If only the universe wasn't such a cruel joker.
He slowly disentangles himself and gets up. It's time to be a cop again.
"Fine. Assuming this was Sara, it's the first time in over five years that you have any direct contact with her. You must be getting closer with your investigation than we thought."
"It also means she's aware that I know she's still alive," Lindy points out. "I mean I never assumed she was dead but maybe she knows that I saw that footage? That I know it was a fake kidnapping?"
"Right, right. But you've been investigating her disappearance in this context for almost 6 months now. You spent 18 weeks in your hometown, alone, no friends, no help and she didn't contact you then. If you've been in danger this whole time, you were an easier target there."
Now he's the one pacing the floor.
"18 weeks? Did you count or something?" Lindy says with a laugh that quickly dies when she sees the look on his face. "You did... you were counting. Tommy, I-"
"It's nothing. I'm just good with numbers." He doesn't want to talk about it. Not now. If they start it'll be another long, emotional conversation and there are more pressing matters. "We'll overanalyze it another time, ok?"
She accepts it with a nod and a small yes.
"I came back here and you helped me with those profiles and that's all. We haven't found anything."
"Yes, but lately we haven't worked on that together. Maybe you found something and you just don't realise how crucial it is?"
"No, Tommy," she shakes her head and says almost shyly, "I wasn't doing anything regarding Sara since that night here. I was a bit... preoccupied."
Preoccupied with other things. Like him. He feels flattered for a short moment but it's quickly replaced by a grim realisation.
"Lindy, between now and then there's only one thing that changed," he tells her, stopping in his tracks. The feeling of unease is firmly settled now.
"What do you mean one thing? Plenty has changed. I came back to New York. Somehow I managed to get my friends back which is just a proof they're better people than I could ever be. I managed to get your help. Hell, I even managed to get you..." Her eyes widen.
"That's the thing. This relationship. Don't you think the timing is a bit strange? That after everything that's happened it's right after you spend the night with a cop that you get this message?"
"Come on, now you're just flattering yourself. This case doesn't revolve around you." It's a cheap joke and they both know it. She's clearly rattled by his reasoning.
"Me helping you isn't new. Whoever is behind it must have known that for weeks. I mean I was trying to find you all that time you were gone and I've been compiling the files for you once you came back. But this," he points between them, "this is new."
"Yes, it's new, but why would my love life matter? I mean I already dated a cop, remember?" She refutes with a certain apprehension in her voice. Some day soon they're going to need to have another conversation about Ben.
"You didn't know Sara faked the kidnapping then," he quickly replies and goes to grab a long forgotten cup of coffee. It tastes particularly bitter.
"Again, why would it matter that I'm seeing a cop?" She doesn't give up, still challenging his idea. She gets off the couch and follows him to the kitchen.
"I have access to information?" He suggests.
"I'm a hacker and a damn good one at that," she reminds him, pride clear in her voice and he can't help but give her an indulgent smile. "I usually don't need anyone to get information for me. Unless you've found something that you forgot to tell me? Yesterday you said you had nothing new. What if it's you who uncovered crucial element and you don't know it yet."
He quickly gulps down the rest of his coffee, trying to remember the files he looked through in the past three weeks. Nothing caught his attention then but maybe she's right. Another thought hits him and he pales a little.
"Lindy," he says lowering his voice to a whisper. "How would anyone know about us already?"
"What?" She automatically whispers back.
"How would they know-"
"I heard what you said but come on. Someone could have followed me, could have seen me coming in and staying for the night. Someone could've tapped into the security cameras you have on your street. Hell, for all we know Sophia could've just tweeted the whole world about it."
He shakes his head at that. He's really not convinced. This is beyond gossip posted on social media. It feels too precise, too sure.
He grabs her arm and in a normal voice states, "Let's just leave it for now, ok? We should get dressed, get some actual food and I need to call work to tell them I'm taking today off."
She looks confused and somewhat annoyed. He puts a finger to her lips and murmurs, "Don't say a word."
His hand is still firmly on her arm as he guides her to the bathroom. He closes the door behind them and turns on the shower looking around worryingly.
"What the hell, Tommy?" She hisses in his ear.
"What if my place is bugged?"
"Are you serious? Wow, I never knew you could be this paranoid."
"Lindy, I am serious. Being paranoid is what saves a cop's life. I just have a bad feeling about it."
"You don't think it's Sara," she crosses her arms defensively. "You think it's someone pretending to be her. Playing games with us. Trying to scare me."
"I honestly don't know," he admits. "Either way someone is using your sister to get to you."
"And for once it isn't you." He winces. He foolishly hoped they were past that.
Lindy looks shocked by her own words. She takes a deep breath and hesitantly puts one hand on his chest.
"I'm sorry," she mouths silently. He shakes his head and gives her a sad smile. She can lash out all she needs as long as there's still forgiveness. And truthfully if there's one thing he'd change, it would be the way she found out. He was such a coward and it cost him so much. He should have told her. Even a damn psychic figured that out.
"It's clearly working. Whoever is doing it knows how to get to me," she says as she moves to gently touch his cheek. He turns his head a little, his lips caressing the palm of her hand. And then he leans forward and kisses her with a sudden desperation. He rests his hands on the sink, pushing her back against the cold, dark marble, successfully trapping her against his body. Her t-shirt is damp and he realizes the hot water is still running, fogging the mirror behind her, covering them already with a thin layer of sweat. He finds the same reddened spot on her neck he saw earlier and grazes it with his teeth. She lets out a low groan, clutching the front of her clothes now, ready to toss them aside when she opens her eyes and looks at him with a sudden panic.
"Wait, what if you're right?"
"Huh?" He answers inarticulately, his brain unable to process any information beyond her almost naked form pressed against him.
"What if your place really is bugged?" She stops his hand currently tracing her hip, trying to lower her underwear.
"Now you believe me?" He chuckles. "With the water running they won't hear us."
"I'm not putting on a show for some creeps," she states with a firm conviction and already starts straightening the t-shirt. "Been there, done that, right?"
She winks at him but he can see she's nervous. There's more to it than a memory of a heated kiss during an undercover op.
"Tommy, I need you to tell me something but you have to be honest," she bites her lip and hesitantly glances at him.
"Of course," he assures her with a small kiss to her temple.
"Remember that medallion Ben used to wear? The one with the patron saint-"
"I know which one," he interrupts her and adds jokingly, "I come from a long line of Irish Catholics."
"Right. I know it was bugged," she says with a visible distaste. "Ben was wearing it all the time when we were together. Did he ever record... you know, did you ever hear us..." She clearly can't bring herself to finish that thought.
"No, never. He would never do that to you," he confirms firmly. "Besides, it would have probably killed me to hear that. It was difficult enough to know you two were together."
He tries to make the situation lighter but she looks at him curiously. Of course. The idiot that he is, he never actually told her exactly how long he's been nursing these feelings for her.
"I thought you didn't care about me back then," she says offhandedly, reaching to shut off the water.
"I was attracted to you, nothing more but then Ben fell for you and..." He starts explaining and finally adds quietly. "I knew you were heartache from the moment I saw you."
"You still did what you did." She turns her back to him and wipes the mirror with a small towel. He can see her reflection now. She looks closed off.
"Yeah," he can't deny how screwed up that is. "It seemed like a silly crush then. I didn't want it to get in the way of my work."
He gently turns her around to face him, runs his hand through her messy hair.
"Will never make that mistake again."
"Once we've found Sara, we'll have a lot to talk about," she says with a sigh. "Give me five minutes to get dressed. We need to get out of here."
He goes back to the living room and quickly dials Yeager's number. He tries to come up with a decent excuse to miss workday but the news he gets rectify any ideas he might have had.
"Lindy, we need to go to the precinct," he informs her the second she re-emerges from the bathroom. "Yeager didn't tell me the details but looks like Shaw is on the warpath and wants to see me asap."
She doesn't look thrilled by any of this but reluctantly joins him anyway. They're both lost in their thoughts on the way to the CCU but she's still holding his hand and that's good enough for Tommy.
She hesitates a little before entering the building but quickly covers it with a defiant smile. He knows how difficult it is for her though so he leaves her in the hallway while he catches up with his partner just leaving Sergeant's office.
"No idea what's going on but she's angry as hell," Yeager tells him with a quick glance over his shoulder. "Something went down this morning."
"Detective Calligan, you're finally gracing us with your presence," he hears Sergeant Shaw saying. "My office, now."
He steels himself for whatever comes, quickly closing the door behind him.
"Do you recognise this coding?" She asks him without wasting any time.
He takes a closer look. Some of the syntaxes look vaguely familiar but overall it seems quite basic. It certainly lacks Bubonic's audacity or Lindy's creativity. He shrugs.
"Not really but it looks a bit sloppy. New player?"
"You can say that," Catherine replies with an odd look on her face. "This morning I've received a phone call from our ever friendly colleagues at the FBI."
It immediately piques Tommy's interest. FBI is almost always bad news.
"Apparently," she continues, "there's been a series of hacking attempts. Someone was trying to access their highly classified files."
Tommy squirms a bit under her scrutiny. Just a few days ago he was briefly entertaining the same idea.
"A quick investigation led them to the potential hacker. Want to take a wild guess who that might be?"
"Please don't say Lindy," he's silently praying. "Just not Lindy."
"You, Calligan."
She doesn't bother to let him form a coherent reply to that, "What the hell were you thinking, Detective!"
He's too shocked to answer immediately.
"Come on, it wasn't me!" He finally exclaims, his voice filled with indignation.
"Of course, because you're always doing everything by the book," she says with a sardonic smile. "Why would someone set you up? What's going on?"
He's pretty sure Lindy wouldn't want him to spill her secrets to Catherine. He might have been forgiven but there's no way the same applies to his superior.
"Nothing. It's private."
"Private," she repeats coldly. "So it has something to do with Miss Sampson. Calligan, I don't think you get it. I really don't care what you're doing with that girl. You can follow her like a lost puppy, you can fuck her, hell you can marry her but you don't hack for her!"
He winces at her words.
"You're way out of line. And I don't hack for her."
"At least not lately, right?" She says in a dry, measured tone. "You're good at your job but you've been distracted these past few months. Reckless. You need to stop thinking with your pants. Is she really worth losing your badge?"
"It wasn't me," he calmly tells her again.
She doesn't look convinced. Finally she dismisses him with a shake of her head and an exasperated, "They're sending someone over to talk to you. Unofficially for the time being. They should be here in a couple of hours."
He rises from the chair and nods.
"Detective, if I were you I'd come up with a good reason for all this mess. Something that doesn't involve your sex life."
He shuts the office door a bit more forcefully than necessary and takes a deep breath. He spots Lindy standing awkwardly next to his desk and once she notices him he points to the exit.
"What's going on?" She asks immediately.
He sighs and takes out his phone, ignoring her question for the time being.
"George? It's Tommy. Can you meet us in that coffee place you showed me the other day? Yeah, Toby's. As soon as you can, we're in trouble."