Redemption
Chapter Thirty-Eight
After working herself dizzy for most of the day, Danni set down her pen with a satisfied smile. Everything was done on her end. She just hoped the rest of her team hadn't dawdled and got their work done as well. Even if they hadn't, though, she was sure she had gotten enough done for the FBI to be satisfied. She couldn't help that she was a workaholic and a perfectionist when she set her mind to it; she'd always been that way. It was just who she was, even when she was younger. Her good habits had slipped a great deal in college, but she'd regained them quickly and it was like she'd ever lost them at all.
With a content sigh, she closed her notes and leaned back in her chair to give herself a rest. She stretched her stiff muscles and heard a few joints crack when she did. She should have felt soothed by that, but something was picking at the back of her mind. Instead of relaxing, her mind strayed to Jack and Bobby. She wondered how their conversation was going and there was an itch in her fingers as she topped them upon her cell phone which sat upon her desk. She was more than tempted to call up the Aussie and ask how things were going, but she knew these kinds of things took time. She was, after all, an expert at feeling angst-ridden and she understood how hard it was to pull your self out of such a deep hole of despair. She just hoped Jack wasn't anything like her and would confide in his best mate.
She worried her lower lips as she contemplated whether or not to pickup the phone. She knew she shouldn't, but she couldn't help the curiosity that was building inside of her.
Thankfully, she was saved from her inquisitiveness when Jeff suddenly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and sat down at his desk, which was connected to hers. He plopped heavily in the leather chair and rested his arms upon the desktop before his head fell on top of them.
"I'm guessing it didn't go well?" Danni asked with a teasing tone to the question. She didn't mean to be cynical as she asked, though. It just came out that way whenever the two of them would have a conversation. It was just the design of their rapport.
"I swear, I don't know what got into me," he said, incredulously as he ran a hand through his sandy hair. "I marched straight into his office and I told him everything. His face got so red that I thought it was going to explode. He remained calm, though. He took a deep breath and he spoke so softly that I had to strain to hear him. Then he did something I never expected." He laughed stupidly as he thought back to the encounter. It was like it was a dream that he was waiting to wake up from, yet he was already awake.
"What did he do?" She furrowed her brow in confusion. It had to be very un Martone-like for DeMarco to seem so frazzled over it.
"He hugged me."
"He what?" She wanted to make sure she'd heard him correctly, because that certainly was something their Captain would never do.
"He hugged me," he repeated. "When he got up from his desk to do it, I thought he was going to hit me. I even flinched and waited for the contact from his fist. But, no. He wrapped his arms around me and hugged me." He had to continue to repeat it, because it was so unbelievable he was trying to convince himself that it had really happened.
"That's because Daddy's always liked you," Amber said, appearing behind him as she heard him reveal his story. She wrapped her arms tenderly around his so her hands rested upon his broad chest and her cheek was nestled up against his in a loving manner. "He may have a strange way of showing it, but he does like you." She placed a kiss upon her boyfriend's cheek before she turned her attention to the lieutenant before her. "By the way, he said he had something to give you. He wants to see you before you leave."
The brunette nodded as she collected her belongings. "Well, then, I suppose that's my cue to exit." She got up from her chair and slung her jacket over her arm before she picked up the files and rested them in the crook of that same arm. She paused as she looked at the lovebirds before her. They seemed two whole different people when they were together. Both were detectives, though they worked on different teams in completely different units just so they could be together.
A slight curse escaped her. Yet again, her mind strayed to Jack and the worry she felt for the man. If he was in such a terrible situation, she hoped he wouldn't break Sue's heart because of it. There were far better reasons for that to occur and this was not it. He could at least embrace her willingness to stand by his side and keep him strong. But, he was a man and a damn-fine agent to put her in danger. His heart may have been in the right place, yet she wasn't so sure about his brain.
Danni knew and understood that her cousin loved that man more than anything and if he hurt her, he would have to answer to her. She didn't want to have to slap some sense into him in a literal implication, but she would if she had to. She growled low in her throat as she caught herself doing it again. She needed to get her mind off of the subject, yet it was so hard. While taking in a deep breath, she closed her eyes and focused on something else, just so she wasn't tempted again to call up Bobby and find out what he'd been told.
She turned her attention to the loving couple before her and let a smirk cross her lips. She leaned in close so no one else would hear their conversation. "Remember to stay out of the file room. People actually do use it." Her smirk turned sly as her voice lowered even more and she inched closer so they wouldn't be overheard. "If you really want some privacy, there's an empty storage room that no one uses. It's bigger and no one will even bother to think to look in there." She gave them a wink before finally leaving them be to ponder over the information she'd just given them.
Danni arrived at and entered Martone's office only a few moments later, despite everyone bustling around her to get to where they needed to be and those who were also waiting to speak to Martone before she'd arrived. She would have been more than willing to let the others go before her, considering they were there first, but the Captain was more eager to speak to her.
She took a seat opposite his desk and waited for him to speak. She let a small smirk alight her features as he saw how happy he'd seemed. He whistles as he scrounged through his drawers, looking for the item that he was obligated to give her. "I know how hard this past week has been for your team," he began when he finally looked up at her. "But, I knew you will all make me proud. Stern's killer won't know what hit him with you on his tail."
"Thank you, sir," she said modestly with a nod. He certainly had a lot of faith in her team and that pleased her. They all had a close connection that let them operate as one, even the two newbies who'd been frightened of her on their first days at the precinct. How he had so much faith in them, though—especially with the tragedy still fresh in their minds—she wasn't sure. She just knew that they would do the best they could to but Marie and Caitlyn's fears to rest.
"And I think he made the right decision when he chose you as his replacement… and that is why I am obligated, though pleased, to give you this." He held up a badge and let it sparkle in the fluorescent lights of the room. He saw her eyes widen and shine from the reflection of her new shield. "Congratulations, Lieutenant."
"Thank you, sir," she said, breathlessly as she stood up and walked up to his desk to accept it. Her vision began to blur as pride welled up inside of her. She'd earned this, no matter how prematurely. She quickly pulled out her other badge and returned it to him so she could place her new shield within its leather confines.
"It's official. Go home and spend some time with the fed. Tomorrow's going to be a rough day." She nodded and gathered her belongings before she turned to exit. He called for her so he could ask her one question that had been plaguing his mind for quite some time. "Has he proposed, yet?"
She shook her head and glanced down at her still bare ring finger. "Nope."
He nodded as if understanding what she was going through. He looked like he was remembering a time when he had done the same. "Don't worry so much about it. It'll happen sooner or later; maybe when you least expect it."
"How do you know?"
"How do you think I got my wife?" He playfully winked at her as a sign of her dismissal. Apparently, the good news of his daughter's romance put him in quite a good mood. She never knew the man to reminisce about the time when he was courting his wife. She smiled back before she finally exited and made her way home.
The silence between the two men was deafening as they each mulled over their own thoughts. Things were certainly more complicated, now that Bobby knew that Jack wasn't just worried about his relationship with Sue. Whatever his friend had fallen into, though, he was more than willing to help him get out of it. But, if Jack didn't want his help, what more could he do?
"I don't' want to hurt her, Bobby," Jack blurted out before the Aussie could even register that they'd struck up another conversation.
"Who?" It had completely slipped his mind that he knew who Jack was talking about because he was worried more about his friend's sanity than his love life.
"Sue. I don't want to hurt Sue. I'm afraid she'll find out what I've gotten myself into and I don't want her to worry or get hurt because of it." Jack threw his pool cue onto the table in frustration before he rested his elbows on it as well. He folded his hands together and rested them against his forehead as he thought to himself and also so he could rid himself of all the stress he was feeling. There had to be an easier way. He didn't want to do this by himself anymore; he didn't want this weight to lie just on his shoulders anymore. "How do you do it?" he asked, bluntly as his head shot up to look puzzled at Bobby.
The other man was very confused about what his friend was asking. He wasn't making any sense, but Bobby could tell that he was at his wit's end. "How do I do what?"
"How do you live every day with the knowledge that you may never go home to Danni? How do you deal with her constantly being put in danger as well? How do you deal with the fact that tonight may be your last night with her and you'll never see her again?" A lump formed in Jack's throat at the very thought of never telling Sue how he truly felt and never knowing she would feel the same. Sure, they'd been seeing one another, but did she love him like he did her?
"Honestly, mate? I think about it everyday and it sickens me to death that I might not have tried my hardest to show her how much I love her." He paused at his own words and let them sink in. He'd delayed the inevitable for too long. He needed to remedy his broken promise. He'd resisted asking her because of Stern's death, but now that things were so different, he knew he had to do something before he wound up losing her. "And I need to remedy that."
"You're finally going to do it? You're ready?" A smile formed on his lips at the thought of Bobby being ready to take the plunge. He'd been ready with Darcy, but when that fell through, he was more than lucky to find Danni. True love was hard to find twice in one lifetime.
"Spark, I've been ready since I met the Sheila. Nothing beats the love of a good woman, remember that." He poked his friend in the chest in emphasis as if telling him to go for it, though Jack would never realize the true meaning.
"I know. If only things weren't so complicated, though." The smile faded in an instant and Jack was quickly back to his sulking self.
Bobby's eyes scanned his friend's dark pools as they darkened with depression. He'd never seen this side of Jack and he couldn't help but wonder. "What have you gotten yourself into, mate?"
A heavy sigh escaped the solemn man as he glanced at Bobby with insecurity. "If I tell you this, you have to swear to not tell a living soul; Danni included." His dark brown pools now stared ruthlessly into the Aussie's confused blue ones. He wanted to make sure this knowledge would not be made public.
"Cross my heart, Sparky," he answered, making a crossing motion over his heart to show that no one would know. As much as he would have wanted to tell Danni, he knew he wouldn't if Jack didn't want him to. That certainly was something he wanted more than anything, Bobby could tell.
"Do you remember all that chatter a few days ago, among the terror cells?" He spoke in a hushed tone, just in case someone was listening in on their less-than private conversation. Bobby nodded as his only answer. He would wait for the whole story before he opened his mouth to comment. "Well, Tara accidentally uncovered a secret about our first three victims—the brothers. She doesn't know she uncovered it, because she just printed it and handed it over. If she read it, she certainly hasn't let on. But, they were the ones the chatter was about, not Stern like we originally thought."
Finally, Bobby couldn't stand it anymore. He had to ask the question that lay upon his tongue. "What did it say?"
"It was completely contradicting our information. They were all fathered by the same man. The papers we received were forged to hide that fact."
"So, who was their father?"
Jack's brow creased as he fought to reveal this little bit of information. When he did, it would mean he wasn't alone in this anymore and that meant that one more member of his team could be putting himself in danger. Despite all of his instincts to leave him out of it, so Bobby would be able to have a safe future with Danni, he opened his mouth and let the information come out. "Out of all the talk, one word stood out—a name, actually. Dessa."