Mary walked back down the hallway and found Bobby and one of the uniforms just finishing up processing the scene. The other officer had loaded the two thieves into the patrol car and taken them back the precinct so that they could begin processing them. By the time Bobby got back with the evidence and the report, they'd be ready for his questions.
When she entered the room, Bobby looked up at her. "That Marshall on the phone?" When she nodded, he continued, "Can I talk to him a minute?"
Mary rolled her eyes. It was like they were on the same wavelength. "One sec," She answered Bobby and then turned her attention back to her boyfriend, "Shockingly, he wants to talk to you. I'm gonna go put on some coffee, it's going to be a long day, I can tell." She passed the phone to him, but couldn't help a parting shot to Bobby, "He's all yours, Florence." She crossed the dining room and disappeared into Marshall's kitchen.
Bobby followed her with his eyes, confused at the name, before putting the phone to his ear, "Hey man, any chance you'd tell me where you are?"
Marshall considered a moment and then answered honestly. "I had to go out of town on a job, I'm in Kansas at the moment. I'll be home later today."
"Alright cool, I'm sure Mary already told you, but the damage isn't too bad. One of the panes was broken in your back door. And somebody threw a chair, not sure who, but my money's on your girl. Looks like some of those pretty rocks you've got on display are pretty heavy, judging by the dents they made in your wall. Nothing some spackle and a sander won't fix, I'm sure. And maybe a steamer to get out the blood, but other than that…I'd say you got off pretty lucky, considering Mary found them." Bobby quickly ran through the list of damages, wanting to make sure Marshall knew what he was coming home to, in case Mary tried to downplay it too much.
But Marshall's mind had stopped working after Bobby'd said the word blood. "Back up a minute, detective, blood? Whose blood is it, exactly?"
Bobby should have known Mary would leave that part out. "Oh, well, that would be your partner's. She's got a nice gash on her forehead, probably from one of your rocks."
Marshall shook his head, he should have known Mary'd been hurt worse than she was letting on. "Can you just do me one favor, Bobby?"
"Yea, sure man. What do you need?"
"Can you just make sure she's alright? You know how she is, if someone's not physically holding her down, she won't bother taking care of herself."
Bobby could hear the worry in the man's voice. His greatest fear was something happening to his partner, and him not being there to stop it. This must be excruciating for Marshall. "I'll make sure she's taken care of."
Marshall thanked him and said goodbye, asking to have Mary back for just a moment. Bobby followed where he'd seen her disappear and wound up in the kitchen. She was dabbing a paper towel to her forehead, trying to mop up some of the blood. As Bobby watched, he could see her hand shake slightly. "Just hang on a minute, I've got to find where she walked off too." He moved the phone from his ear and put it down.
Mary watched his approach warily, knowing exactly what he was going to do. She didn't fight him when he reached for the paper towel. "I'm fine, Bobby. Just a little cut, numbnuts is worried for no reason."
Bobby rolled his eyes, but didn't miss the lack of bite. Mary was exhausted. If she weren't, she would have never let him administer first aid. He decided to test the waters. "Of course he's worried. He's in love with you, and here you are bleeding in his kitchen. And what's worse, he's not here to help you. Poor man is probably going out of his mind right now." He watched her face closely, checking for a reaction. But he didn't get the one he expected.
"I know, but this one is in no way my fault. Stupid out of town assignments, I don't understand why they insist on separating us like this. We're much better together, none of this sideline worrying or sleepless nights." Mary opened and closed her hands slowly, trying to stop the slight tremors from left over adrenaline and too little sleep. She needed to call Stan, but she knew that once she did, it would be the beginning of a whole new kind of drama. So much for getting any sleep tonight.
Seeing the exhaustion on her face and the display of nerves, Bobby decided to let go the fact that she made no denial of Marshall's affections. "Is there anything I can do?"
Mary looked up at him with sincere gratitude, knowing that he meant the offer whole heartedly. "When you interrogate these guys, find out if they were targeting Marshall specifically, and if so why. I'm really hoping that it was just a random break in, but if it wasn't, the sooner I know the better."
Bobby was quick enough on the up take that he understood the need for that information. He nodded. "No problem." He moved the paper towel away from her forehead and looked at the cut. "This isn't too bad, I don't think you need stitches. Maybe a band aid though."
"Thanks, Bobby, I'll take care of it." She gestured toward her phone, where he'd placed it on the counter, "Is Marshall still on the line?"
"Oh, yea, he wanted to say goodbye I guess, make sure you weren't bleeding out." Mary took the phone and turned to rummage through the cabinet for a mug. Before tending to her head, she'd started the coffee pot, needing the caffeine if she was going to have to work tonight, or this morning as it was. She didn't realize that Bobby remained in the room. When she spoke into the phone, her voice was soft, "Marsh?" The few minutes alone in the kitchen had not been good for her over tired, adrenaline high brain. She was starting to worry about what Stan would do and her head was really starting to hurt.
"I'm still here. Are you all right?"
His worry helped restore some of her equilibrium. "I'm fine, just exhausted. And now I have a really long day ahead of me. It'll be okay, right?" She let her mask slide for a moment, needing the reassurance that only her partner could offer. "Whatever Stan says, we'll be okay?"
Marshall's heart broke for his partner, his girlfriend. Even after a year as a couple, and eight as partners, she still feared losing him. He knew that she trusted him to never leave, but she was too cynical to believe in happy ever after, there was too much uncertainty and danger in the world. "Mare, listen to me, there is no one on this planet who is keeping me from being with you, not Stan, not the Attorney General, not anyone. If they insist we can't work together, then we deal. But I'm yours. If Stan splits us up, I fully intend on proposing to you, you got that?"
His sound reassurance that everything would work out, and that he wasn't going anywhere calmed her. She took a deep breath before answering, "Don't you dare, you hear me? I don't want your proposal ruined because bureaucratic BS forced your hand. We both know you've had that ring for too long trying to find the right moment. I swear, if it's not up to my expectations, I fully reserve the right to turn your ass down, understand?"
She listened to Marshall laugh, glad that she was able to sooth him. She knew he was worried about her. "I got it. I guess you got your way, you couldn't sleep and now neither will I."
It was Mary's turn to laugh. "Good, because I'd hate for one of us to have a good night and not the other, where's the fun in that?" She dropped the sarcastic tone as she continued. "But seriously, Marsh, go back to bed. I'm fine. Bobby's gonna put those guys in the box and figure out if this whole mess was random. I'm gonna finish this cup of coffee, shower, and head in to start the assessment. I need you home later today, which means you need to be able to drive. You can't get behind the wheel with no sleep. Lord knows, I wouldn't have even called if I didn't know you'd be furious if I waited for you to get back. Like you said, whatever Stan decides, we'll still have each other. Sleep while you can." She didn't finish the rest of that thought, the part where if they were reassigned, there would be significantly less sleep to be had for both of them.
Marshall heard the unspoken words, and a chill ran down his spine. He hated the thought of trusting the life of the woman he loved to anyone else, regardless of their credentials or skills. He had spent years learning the ins and outs of Mary's mind, and she his, so that they worked together like a seamless machine. No one else was good enough to be her partner. "I'll try, if you promise to keep your head with Stan. He's our friend, Mare, it's not his fault he has to follow protocols every now and then."
"I promise to behave; I know Stan doesn't want us split up any more than we do." She had mellowed out in her time as Marshall's girlfriend. While she was still hot headed and as passionate about her job as when she started, she had infinitely more patience and had learned to think before she spoke, even if only to stop herself from hurting Marshall through blunt words.
"That's my girl. I'll see you in a few hours, I love you."
"I love you, too, Marsh, 'night." She disconnected the phone and turned around, nearly dropping her mug when she saw Bobby standing there, mouth open wide enough to catch flies. She recovered from his presence sooner than he did from her words, "Be careful, detective, or your face might freeze that way." She smiled as he hastily closed his mouth.
"Did I just hear you right? Did you just tell your partner that you loved him?"
For a moment, Mary considered telling him it wasn't his business. But then it occurred to her that the news would be coming out today anyway, she might as well use Bobby as a dry run for Stan. "No, I told my boyfriend that I loved him, big difference." The smile grew as she watched Bobby try to put two and two together.
"But that was Marshall on the phone, you said, 'I love you, too, Marsh, as in short for Marshall." Bobby was watching Mary's face, looking for some hint as to the joke. But as he watched, it became clear that she had been serious in both her declaration of love and her claim on Marshall. "Wait a minute, you and Mann, seriously? When?"
The smile turned into a full on grin. Neither she nor Marshall had many friends outside of the working world, including the ABQ PD, the marshal service, and various other law enforcement/government agencies. That being the case, she hadn't had a chance to tell anyone about the relationship. While normally, that wasn't a problem with her because her relationships never really lasted, this one was different. She wanted people to know she had found happiness, but the ties to their job, and fear of being separated, had kept them from sharing. Bobby would be the first person she got to tell, and likely the only one who would have only genuine happiness to offer. "Since I woke up, so going on a year."
Bobby's surprise turned into a huge smile, "Damn girl, off the market for a year, and I didn't even know. Why the big secret? Do you know how many people have bets on this?"
She let out a small laugh at the prospect of the pool, but then her smile fell, because the secret was out, and a part of her feared the repercussions. "At first, we kept it secret because we weren't sure what would happen, and then because we were just so damn happy, we didn't want to take any crap about it. Plus, it's not exactly department sanctioned, we didn't want to get split up."
Understanding her meaning, Bobby's smile faded, "Your chief doesn't know?" When Mary shook her head, he continued, "You don't think he'd honestly reassign you, do you?"
Mary shrugged her shoulders, "If it were up to him, I think he might let us be. But rules are rules, and this is pretty much against them. We'll know after today what's going to happen."
Bobby nodded his head, trying to imagine Mary partnered with anyone else, or Marshall for that matter. He'd been working with them for over three years, and he'd never known two partners more in sync. They understood each other without speaking and were always able to anticipate the other's next move. On top of that, what Mary lacked in diplomacy, Marshall had in spades, and when he lacked in directness, she never failed to cut out the bull. They were also evenly matched, be it in the practice ring, at the shooting range, or, as he'd seen at several PD fundraisers, on the dance floor. Seeing the worry in her eyes, Bobby stepped forward and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry about it. You two are great at your jobs, everything will be fine."
She took a moment to compose herself, and then met his gaze, "Thanks, Bobby, I hope you're right."
Sensing that she had a lot on her mind and needed to get to the office, Bobby said his goodbyes, "I'm gonna go make sure that those two idiots get to the precinct. I'll call once I have your info."
"Thanks again, Bobby. I'll be at the office, so if I don't answer my cell, feel free to try me there."
"Will do, oh, and Mary, I expect a full explanation as to how you and Mann ended up together. Damn, I can't believe you hid it all this time."
Mary rolled her eyes, "When are you going to get it, Dershowitz, that's my job." She silently thanked him for his joke, knowing that he was trying to cheer her up.
"You're good, I'll give you that, you are good." He offered her one last smile before heading back out to the living room and out of Marshall's house.
Mary took a minute, savoring the last of her coffee, before picking up her phone once again, this time hitting speed dial 2. "Hey Stan…we might have a problem…I'll see you at the office in an hour." She closed the phone and headed down the hallway to Marshall's room, to shower and dress for work.
