Lisbon was curled up on her sofa with her head resting on Jane's chest. They were spending the evening watching a movie, which was more difficult than it sounded, due to the fact that Lisbon's home was now being shared by five other CBI agents. Said CBI agents were all currently sat in her kitchen, discussing plans for her protection, with the exception of Cho, who was sat in the armchair on the other side of her living room. Apparently, it was essential for an agent to have eyes on her at all times and Jane didn't count.
Lisbon completely understood why it had to be like this after all, they were only one day away from the day Red John had vowed to kill her. She just found it damn annoying to have her every move watched. Especially when it was one of those two idiots that Hightower had sent. Agents Tompsett and Hammond were two of the most unsociable, humourless, emotionless jerks that Lisbon had ever met. Hammond was clearly older than Tompsett and when asked any sort of question gave a non-committal shrug and answered in one word sentences. Tompsett seemed like a bit of a rookie, but it appeared that he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his superior because talking to him was also like trying to get blood out of stone. Lisbon was glad that she had Van Pelt, Cho, Rigsby and Jane there to keep her company, otherwise she was pretty sure she'd have gone insane.
Jane had managed to entertain her earlier that evening by trying to hypnotise Agent Tompsett. He failed big time. When Jane had told Tompsett that
he would now go and make him a cup of tea, the agent just blinked and didn't move. She and Rigsby had been in hysterics at the look of confusion that appeared on Jane's face.
The show they had been watching finished and Lisbon sat up, offering Jane her hand and headed up to bed. As she laid in bed with Jane that night she tried to forget that this could be the last night she ever slept with Jane's arm around her. This time tomorrow it was entirely likely that she'd be dead. Well she said slept, sleep was pretty hard to come by under these circumstances.
This was it. The day had finally come, it was the day on which Red John promised to kill her. Surprisingly the day had been mainly uneventful. Now, it was the end of the day and Lisbon was laid in her bed with Jane. Hightower had insisted that she didn't leave her house all day and all five agents stationed in her house, as well as Jane, had stayed with her. So far the day had passed without event, which meant that while she and Jane looked as if they were trying to sleep they were both, in fact, wide awake. Lisbon's Glock was hidden under her pillow and her off duty weapon was on the bedside table, just in case. She'd drawn the line at having an agent in her room so Rigsby was currently sitting outside her bedroom door.
All day everyone in the house had been on edge, the slightest hint of anything suspicious going on in had been investigated by someone. Even when it turned out to be Lisbon's nosy neighbour, Mrs. Pilkington. If she hadn't been so on edge, Lisbon would have laughed at her neighbour's face when she was confronted by Cho and Rigsby. That was quite literally the only thing of note. Which scared Lisbon because knew Red John would come; it was just a matter of time.
"Jane," she whispered softly.
"What?" he whispered back, sounding just as scared as she was feeling.
"Are you awake?" Lisbon asked.
"No, I'm talking in my sleep," he answered sarcastically. She knew the humour was his attempt to keep her calm, but it didn't stop her from giving him a sharp jab to the ribs with her elbow.
"Ow!" Jane exclaimed rubbing his ribs gingerly. "What was that for?"
Lisbon opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a loud clattering from her back yard.
"What was that?" Jane asked, sounding nervous.
Lisbon didn't answer but opened her bedroom door to talk to Rigsby "Did you hear that?" she asked him.
"Yeah, I'm going to grab Cho and check it out. Boss, I think you should get your gun, just in case," Rigsby said making his way downstairs hastily.
Lisbon returned to her room to see Jane stood by the window, looking absolutely petrified but there was a glint of something else in his eyes: anticipation.
"See anything?" she asked as she grabbed her Glock from under her pillow, checking the ammunition and taking the safety off. Jane shook his head.
"Here," Lisbon said, handing him her off duty weapon.
Jane eyed it with apprehension, "Lisbon, isn't it illegal?"
Lisbon pushed it into his hands ."Take it. Right now I don't care about the law, I just want to know that you're safe. You're only to use it if there's no other way, okay?" For a moment she wondered what she was doing. She was giving him the tools to do the one thing that she desperately didn't want to happen. But she trusted that he'd make the right decision and remember his promise.
"We'll wait in here until Rigsby comes back," Lisbon instructed him, sitting down on the edge of her bed.
A few seconds later, Jane came and sat alongside her, taking her hand in his and slowly grazing his thumb across her knuckles. He didn't try and tell her everything would be okay and inwardly, she was glad of it because she knew that when Red John was involved, everything was, more often than not, not okay.
They sat there for what felt like a lifetime, without a sign of Rigsby or Cho and Lisbon was becoming increasingly nervous. What if something had happened to them? It would be all her fault. Jane could obviously tell her distress was growing because he'd pulled her into his arms and was stroking her hair. Suddenly, she pulled away from him as she heard a muffled yell come from downstairs. Jane had clearly heard it too because he jumped up from the bed and grabbed the gun that he'd discarded on the mattress when he'd wrapped his arms around her.
"What was that?" Lisbon breathed apprehensively, not wanting to draw attention to herself and Jane.
"It sounded like someone shouting," Jane whispered back.
"I know," she replied uneasily, heading towards the door, but Jane grabbed her wrist to stop her.
"Don't you think we should just stay here?" he asked.
"You can if you want, but I need to go and investigate," Lisbon replied. Jane let go of her wrist and followed her out of the room. Silently, with her gun held out in front of her, Lisbon crept along the hallway with Jane hot on her heels. She was sure she could hear movement downstairs but tried not to let her fear show. As she moved down the stairs, she saw a sight that horrified her: Agent Hammond was laid at the foot of the stairs in a pool of his own blood, his throat cut.
It took all Lisbon's self restrain to prevent herself from crying out in shock. Jane let out a murmured "Oh God." Carefully, she negotiated her way around the body, trying to avoid looking at him. The noise appeared to be coming from her living room; she braced herself before cautiously heading towards the source of the noise.
The door leading to her living room was shut, she turned to look at Jane and nodded at him before flinging the door open and hurrying inside.
There she saw a man in a black hooded sweatshirt sat on her sofa, staring at the blank wall opposite him, with his fingertips pressed together as if he were praying. Sprawled across her living room floor was the body of Agent Tompsett, well what was left of it. The body had been slashed repeatedly and was barely recognisable. Lisbon felt the urge to vomit but somehow managed to avoid it.
"Ahhh," said the man, slowly turning towards Jane and Lisbon. "Teresa, so nice to meet you," he said almost cheerfully "But Patrick, I didn't realise you'd be here."
He wasn't wearing a mask and Lisbon could see his face. He had cold grey eyes, white blonde hair and his voice was cold and emotionless. Lisbon still had her gun trained on him, as did Jane.
"Red John, I'm arresting you for-" she began but Red John cut her off.
"Ah, ah, ah. Not so fast, you see I've got one of your friends here," he said going behind the sofa and pulling something up.
"No!" Lisbon couldn't help shouting out as Red John put a knife to the throat of Van Pelt. The young agent looked terrified and tears cascaded down her cheeks. She had her hands bound with duct tape, which had also been used to cover her mouth. Red John had her directly in front of him and Lisbon couldn't get a clear shot at him, she glanced at Jane and the terrified look on his face told her that he didn't have a shot either.
Red John smiled coldly, "Now put your gun on the floor or I'll slit her throat and don't think I won't." He pressed the knife into Van Pelts throat and Lisbon saw droplets of blood appear. She lowered her gun and placed it on the floor.
"Now, kick it over here." Lisbon did as she was instructed. Jane hesitated a little before mirroring Lisbon.
"Good," Red John threw Van Pelt to the side of the room "I will have to kill her eventually, of course, but at least it won't be on either of your consciences."
"You bastard," Lisbon spat.
"Now, now Teresa there's no need for that," Red John replied, walking towards her. Instinctively, Lisbon backed up into Jane's arms.
"Don't you dare touch her!" Jane warned, wrapping his arms around her protectively.
"Aww, now isn't that sweet? You couldn't protect your family what makes you think you can protect your precious Teresa Lisbon?" Red John taunted.
Jane rushed forwards towards the serial killer, but Lisbon saw the silver glint of the knife in Red John's hand and grabbed Jane's wrist to stop him. He turned to face her, anger burning in his eyes.
"Jane, please come back to me,"she begged him, placing her hand softly on his cheek. Slowly he took her hand in his and lowered it, never once taking his eyes off hers.
"That's right, listen to dear Teresa," Red John crooned.
"Leave him alone," Lisbon said glaring harshly at the serial killer.
"Oh that's what I wanted to see, the feisty Agent Lisbon." Red John once again started to move towards Lisbon. Jane made an attempt to shield her but Red John hit him over the head with the butt of one of the guns.
"Jane!" Lisbon called out as he fell to the floor, unconscious.
As she tried to help Jane, Red John grabbed her. Lisbon attempted to fight and struggle away from him but he was too strong. When he brought the knife to her throat she stilled. Red John secured her wrists and ankles with the same duct tape that he'd used on Van Pelt. He deposited Lisbon next to the younger, red headed agent. Van Pelt still looked petrified so Lisbon took her hands and whispered soothing words to her as Red John tied Jane up.
In all honesty, Lisbon was just as terrified as Van Pelt, but she just tried not to show it. Years of police work had taught Lisbon that fear was exactly what sadists like Red John wanted to see in their victims. It was what they 'got off' on. Still, Lisbon couldn't help watching Red John and Jane nervously, she was more scared of what the Red John was planning on doing to Jane than anything the psychopath could do to her.
"Don't worry," Red John said as if reading her mind, "I'm not going to hurt him yet. We're going to wait until Mr. Jane wakes up and then he's going to watch as I slit your throat and the life drains from your body."
"No, please," she entreated pleaded him "If you're going to kill me, do it now. I don't want him to have to watch."
"I can't believe the great Teresa Lisbon is actually pleading for death," Red John said, moving closer to her, until his face was inches away from hers.
"No," he replied as he slowly stroked the silver blade down her cheek. The predatory look in his eyes repulsed her. It was all she could do not to spit in his face. "No, I think that Patrick should watch. It'll show him what happens when he gets too close to someone."
So there the three of them sat for what seemed like a lifetime, though probably wasn't very long at all, just waiting for Jane to regain consciousness. The silence was deafening and the only sound that punctuated it was the occasional sob from Van Pelt, which Lisbon acknowledged by squeezing her colleague's hand. Red John just sat there, staring at Jane and playing with the knife in his hands. It was as if he was in some sort of trance.
Then finally Jane began to stir, but rather than feel relief that Jane was okay, Lisbon was filled with dread because she knew what was going to happen next.
"Ah, back with us are you, Patrick?" Red John asked as Jane looked around. With a widening of his eyes Jane seemed to remember where he was and what was happening. "Good," Red John acknowledged, "Because I would have hated for you to miss the show."
The killer now turned his attention to Lisbon, a sadistic smile appearing on his face. He strode confidently towards her and grabbed her by the hair, pulling her into the middle of the room and throwing her down. Fear paralysed Lisbon for the first time in her life. She didn't try to move when Red John moved towards Jane and dragged him in to a position where he could clearly see Lisbon's face.
Lisbon looked up and her eyes met Jane's. She wished they hadn't because he looked like his heart had been torn from his chest. But no matter how much she wanted to look away, she couldn't seem to tear her eyes from his gaze. Through it she tried to convey all the words she hadn't said, 'sorry', 'it's not your fault', 'I love you'. Tears pooled in her eyes as she thought about leaving him. Their obvious connection wasn't missed by Red John.
"Oh, I do hope I'm not interrupting anything," he sarcastically as he drew the knife. Lisbon and Jane didn't break eye contact as the killer lowered the knife, moving it closer to Lisbon's throat she braced herself for cut that never came.
In that moment, several things happened at once: Lisbon's front door crashed in and Cho and Rigsby rushed in, each firing a shot; Van Pelt grabbed one of the guns from the floor and fired a third shot and Red John crumpled on top of Lisbon.
Quickly, Jane ran towards her and shoved the corpse off her. Lisbon sat up and put her arms, which were still tied together, around his neck and pulled him close, their tears mixing together. Rigsby had gone immediately to Van Pelt and was working at the duct tape that bound her wrists. Cho grabbed the knife that had fallen from Red John's hand and set about cutting Jane and Lisbon free. The moment the tape was broken Lisbon flung herself into Jane's arms.
Not one of the people in the room spoke a word to each other; they were all coming to terms with the fact that it was over. After a few moments Jane pulled away from Lisbon and went to stand next to Cho was staring down at the lifeless body of Red John. Lisbon followed him and placed her hand comfortingly on his arm. Van Pelt and Rigsby soon joined them and they all stood around staring at the man that had caused the all so much pain. Three bullet wounds penetrated his chest, it would be practically impossible to tell which of the agents had dealt Red John the final blow. That didn't bother Lisbon though, he was still dead, which was the main thing.
She just hoped that Jane would see it that way.
After that, everything seems to move in slow motion. As soon as they left the house, Lisbon found herself separated from Jane as they were whisked away by paramedics. They were the ones that told her that the noise in the backyard had been a distraction. When Cho and Rigsby went out to investigate, they were attacked by two of Red Johns accomplices. Luckily, the agents stationed outside Lisbon's home had heard the attack and called paramedics before coming to Cho and Rigsby's aid. Unfortunately both accomplices had refused to be taken alive.
Once she'd been checked over and the paramedics had declared the only thing wrong with her was shock, she was left sitting on the edge of the ambulance wrapped in a foil blanket. While she'd been allowed to put on some shoes, the CSI guys said she wasn't allowed to get any extra clothing than what she was wearing: her Lisbon jersey and a very short pair of shorts. She just sat there staring at the scene that surrounded her house, until Jane found her. He, too, was wearing his pyjamas and was wrapped in a blanket, not dissimilar to hers. He came and sat beside her, placing his arm around her waist. Instinctively, she lay her head on his shoulder.
They watched as two bodies were wheeled past, those of agents Tompsett and Hammond.
"You know, they gave their lives to save us and I barely even knew either of them," Lisbon said, speaking for the first time since Red John had been shot. It hurt her to know that she was the reason two people had had their lives cut painfully short. She would never be able to forget that.
"Let's get out of here," Jane said, taking her by the hand and leading her away. He led her to his car and she got in. She didn't ask how he'd got the keys or where they were going, to be honest, she didn't care as long as they escaped the hell that surrounded her place.
Eventually, they reached the CBI headquarters; she should have known that was where he'd take her. They made their way to the bullpen and sat on his couch in silence.
It was Lisbon who broke it, "Jane, we need to talk."
"Why?" he asked, sounding confused.
"Two men died today because of us, because of what we were doing," she said firmly.
"No, Lisbon don't do this to me. It's not our fault. It's not your fault, it was part of their job. Haven't you been trying to tell me that for years?" Jane sounded upset.
"Jane it wasn't part of their job to get murdered by a psychopath!" Lisbon exclaimed.
"There's always going to be danger when you're a cop, they knew that as well as you do!" Jane was shouting too.
"But..." Lisbon began, but Jane interrupted.
"No buts Lisbon, I kept my promise, now you have to promise me that you won't blame yourself for what happened to Tompsett and Hammond. Don't let Red John ruin your life with guilt the way he almost ruined mine."
Lisbon nodded her head slightly,, trying to get her emotions under control. They would need to talk about it later, but it shouldn't be now. And he was right, she needed to come to terms with what had happened, but she couldn't let her own life be destroyed in the process. So instead of continuing the way she'd begun, she asked "Do you mind that it wasn't you that killed him?"
Jane knew exactly what she meant. "Of course I do, it's all I've wanted for years," after he said this Lisbon turned her head away to hide the tears she was blinking back , "But at the end of the day I chose you and I think I made the right decision."
Lisbon couldn't have even begun to articulate how she felt. Even if she'd wanted to. Instead she settled for kissing him passionately. She felt him smile in the embrace and she pulled away grinning from ear to ear. Carefully, Jane lay back on the couch, pulling Lisbon down to lay on top of him. She rested her head on his chest and she felt exhaustion overcoming her.
Sensing it Jane whispered "We can talk later .Sleep Lisbon, I'm still going to be here when you wake up. I promise. He's gone." And with that Lisbon dropped off immediately. And for the first time in seven days, her dreams weren't haunted by red smiley faces and serial killers, but filled with hope and warmth. She knew that she and Jane still had a long way to go but at least their biggest obstacle was out of the way.
They'd face more obstacles certainly, probably the second they woke up. But it didn't matter. Lisbon was used to fighting for what she wanted. And she was sure that she never wanted to let Jane go for the rest of her life.