Redemption

Chapter Fifty-Three

It was time to pack up and go home. Nothing useful was going to drop into their laps tonight, so they might as well call it a day. D had given the word, eager to head home, himself and everyone was more than happy to shut down. Files were placed in drawers and computers were turned off as the agents collected their belongings and called it a night.

Myles was the first one headed for the door, until he heard Bobby and Danni's voices as they hurried back to the bullpen. He couldn't tell if they were still angry with one another, but he stayed out of the way just in case. He tried to duck out before he became a casualty of their battle, but Danni pushed passed him to get into the room with Bobby on her heels. "The love birds are back," was all he managed to say before they entered and hurried to Bobby's computer. He straightened himself out, adjusting his trench coat in the process as he watched the couple as they remained civil in their actions.

While everyone was focused on their faces and the conversation they were having, something had caught his attention out of the corner of his eye and drew his gaze to her left hand which rested flat on the desk. He smirked, though he tried to hide it. It seemed Koala Boy didn't something right for once.

Danni's quick actions on the keyboard drew everyone's attention as Bobby stood above her and watched. Sue looked to Jack who only shrugged before crowding around the screen with the couple. "What's going on?"

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Bobby asked, drowning out Jack's question completely. His focus was set on the screen so he hadn't heard Jack speak as he voiced his own question.

The internet Databank for the New York Police Department appeared on the screen, asking for a name and password. "He gave me everything we'd need. There's no reason why it won't," she told him as she typed in the information "Mattie" had given her. She was instantly logged on and it only took her a few clicks before she found the right database.

"What is going on?" Jack asked again, making sure he was heard this time and drawing everyone else's focus to Bobby's computer.

Bobby's gaze finally turned to his friend, but he gave a puzzled look as he saw that everyone was ready to leave. "I could ask you the same, mate." He gave a smirk before returning his gaze back to the screen

"We're heading home. There's nothing more that we can do tonight," Price answered as he paced up his laptop in its soft case and slung the pouch over his shoulder.

"That's where you're wrong," Danni said as she pushed print and hurried to the printer, before waiting impatiently for the pages to print. She could have read via the screen, but the printout was easier for everyone to see.

"You've found something?" D asked, skeptically as Danni pulled page after page from the printer and scanned them. He didn't intend to sound as mean as it had come out, but with her snitches not being as reliable as first expected, he still had very good reason to be angry with her. She either didn't notice his scrutiny or didn't acknowledge it, though Bobby had, yet didn't acknowledge it.

"Sort of," she answered off-handedly as she looked for the factor of information she was looking for. "I'm not so sure Richard Palmerro is actually Richard Palmerro." She pulled one more sheet of paper from the printer and read it. Her eyes lit up as a smile formed on her lips.

"What makes you say that?" Tara asked as she adjusted her scarf so it would sit more comfortably around her neck. She couldn't help but feel a little perturbed that Danni didn't believe the information she'd uncovered was accurate. She'd gotten it straight from the FBI's databank; of course, it was possible that their files could have been wrong when they were first entered.

Danni's triumphant smile made Bobby feel proud as she handed him the paper and pointed to the little factoid that she'd been stewing over for hours. She'd known something was up about him and she'd said she'd figure out what it was; he was glad that she had discovered what was wrong with the picture they'd concocted.

He glanced down at where she had pointed, only to gaze back over at her, an eyebrow raised in confusion. She only shrugged and encouraged him to read on. "He's dead." He didn't completely understand it. He, himself, and Jack had spoken with Palmerro's wife, or should he say ex-wife. She had been ranting about some unpaid alimony payments and wondered if they were going to do anything about them whenever her deadbeat husband was found.

"How did you find this?" Sue asked as she took the page from Bobby and read it with Jack looking on over her shoulder.

DeMarco leaned over Myles' desk to take a look at the monitor and furrowed his brow in confusion when he saw the title. "NYPD?" he asked. "How'd you get into their database?

"He's right," Tara said. "You'd need permission from them before accessing their databank and even I can't break through their firewall as quickly as you got in." She nibbled nervously on their lower lip at the thought that Danni had been able to break through an incredibly strong firewall and did it without permission. They could get in serious trouble for it.

"I had permission. I called in a favor to an old friend. He allowed me to log in under his name to get the information."

"Sergeant Matthew Johnson," Myles read as he joined the others around Bobby's desk. "Why does that name sound familiar?" He ran a hand through his sandy hair and scratched his head in thought. He knew he'd heard that name before, though where and when was a bit fuzzy.

"Because," Lucy began, "that's the name of Danni's ex-boyfriend." She'd meant for it to just be for Myles' ears, but it was obvious that everyone else had heard as well, which made Danni want to hide under the desk and Bobby awkwardly clear his throat. Yes, he was her former boyfriend, but that was in the past. They'd made amends since then, but it didn't mean things weren't still rocky between them. It didn't matter much, anyway. She had the man of her dreams standing right next to her. Mattie may have been at one point, though now he was just a friend.

D and Jack spared a glance toward each other at this new development. Jack was looking for information on what to do, because with this, they could pull an all-nighter and still end up with nothing by morning, which Dimitrius understood. He nodded before making the announcement. He turned to Danni and smiled, which meant his attitude toward her had returned to its previous splendor. "Good work. But, I think we can let this sit for the night. Let's go home. It'll still be here in the morning."

Chatter filled the room, along with tired yawns. The day had been exhausting even though nothing important had been discovered until late. It was funny; doing nothing usually drained you more than running around like a chicken with its head cut off. While Danni and Bobby packed up, Myles stayed behind.

He laughed at himself as he nodded goodbye to everyone who passed him. He'd wanted to be the first to leave before, now he wanted to be the last. Whatever he had to say had to have been important enough for him to say it tonight and when everyone was gone.

"Uh, Danni?" he asked, tentatively as he motioned with his finger for her to join him. "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

She gave him a curious glance before she turned to Bobby to see if he could finish up. He nodded and motioned his head to Harvard. He was waiting for the man to make a snide remark, but he knew he wouldn't be able to make one with the progress she'd made for them today.

Myles pulled her to the side so Bobby couldn't hear. The last thing he wanted to do was eat crow, but if Koala Boy found out what he was going to say, he would be hearing about it for weeks. "I just wanted to tell you something and I ask that you don't tell Manning. If he find out, I'll never hear the end of it." A smile graced her lips at his semi-tender gesture. "And if you tell anyone else about this, I will deny it, got that?"

She nodded, "I got it, Myles. What do you want to tell me?"

"I'm sorry," he stated plainly, though she couldn't see the reason why he was apologizing. He really had nothing to be sorry about. "I haven't exactly given you a fair chance. I seem to pass judgment before the trial, so I just wanted to apologize. I jumped the gun when I passed judgment on you." He was pulling these words straight from his heart and she looked as it if didn't matter to her. But, he had been a real jerk to her since they first teamed up and he needed to make amends for it.

"That's very sweet, but you didn't have to apologize. I figured it was just the way you were. Of course, no one ever bothered to tell me different," she laughed.

"Well, I feel like a complete imbecile," he blushed.

"No, Myles. It was really sweet. Thank you." She had the habit of signing when she said 'thank you', but she didn't stop herself. She wanted him to know that she really meant it and that was possibly the only way.

"You did really good work today. I just can't help but wonder how you knew, though. How did you know to look into the NYPD Databank?" It wasn't something any of them would ever have thought of doing, so he just had to know.

"I came across Palmerro's murder my first year as a detective. He was killed in a car wreck. It really affected me because he'd left a wife and his only child behind. It kind of made me think what would have happened if he had been my father. I suppose I put too much of myself into that case, but it stuck with me for this long." She gave a shrug and a chortle. She could only be thankful for that.

"And we're very glad you did." He paused and made sure that Bobby still was busy before he inched closer and whispered in her ear. "By the way, congratulations. Koala Boy actually did something right for a change," with that said, he turned and made his exit, leaving her dumbfounded in her spot.

Out of everyone in the bullpen, he had been the last one she ever expected to notice the ring. She brought it up to her line of vision and smiled. Myles was definitely something, though she wasn't quite sure what that something was at this point. The diamonds sparkled under the fluorescent lighting, which allowed her to look at it in the proper light. It was a beautiful ring and it was just perfect for her. Bobby had done something right, but then again, he usually did when it came to her.

She cursed under her breath and rolled her eyes at her own thoughts. Of course, he would have to be correct about the one thing that she'd always thought she was right about. But, she couldn't do anymore about it tonight.

"Ready, Luv?" he asked, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and kissing her hair. She nodded as she wrapped her arm around his waist as he led the way.

Tomorrow was another day.