Simple Diversions

A/N: Here is the next chapter! I think this chapter is a little bit longer... Oh, I also wanted to thank all of you for sticking with me and this story for my +/- month long hiatus... I really appreciate it :')

Disclaimer: I don't own the Mentalist or any of the characters or ideas.

Chapter 29

"Where did you disappear off to?" Lisbon asked as Jane strolled into the makeshift office.

"Oh, you know," Jane said with a simple wave of his hand. "I just went to get lunch and walk along the beach."

"Which one?" Lisbon asked with suspicion.

"Does it really matter?" Jane asked. "Where are we with the case?"

"Same place we were when you left," Lisbon said as she and Jane started walking towards where the rest of the team's desks were placed. "We're going to question some of Harry's employees and see where we get with that."

"Good idea," Jane said. "Maybe one of them will know if Harry went through a rough patch or not."

"That's what I'm hoping." Lisbon replied as Rigsby and Cho walked into the room.

"Hey Boss," Cho said as he sat at his desk. "Jane."

"Hey Cho," Jane replied with a small smile.

"Cho, Rigs, I want you two to go and talk to Harry's co-workers and see what you can find out." Lisbon said as Rigsby and Cho stood once again.

"Sure thing boss," Rigsby said as he and Cho started making their way towards the door once again.

"Wait up!" Jane said as he ran after the two agents.

"Be good!" Lisbon yelled after the three men.

The three of them together definitely spells trouble.

xxxxx

They arrived at the grocery store that Harry owned and were heading towards the front door, when a young woman came rushing out with tears in her eyes.

"Excuse me," She said as she bumped into Cho on her way past.

"Stop her," Jane mumbled to Cho. "She's Harry's daughter."

" Ma'am," Cho said a little hesitantly as he followed after the brunette. "I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions."

"Sorry, but I have somewhere that I have to be." The woman replied with a sniffle as she kept walking.

" Ma'am, we're CBI and we're investigating the murder of Harry Garcia, the store owner." Cho said as he showed the woman his badge. "We just want to talk to you."

"I…" The woman stuttered and Jane could tell she was getting nervous. "I don't… I can't…"

Suddenly the young woman started to run as fast as she could in the opposite direction and Cho ran after her with Rigsby in tow.

"Stop!" Cho yelled. "CBI!"

But the young brunette just kept running.

Rigsby turned down an alleyway while Cho kept hot on the woman's heels.

Just as the two were about to turn a corner, Rigsby popped out of nowhere and the woman bumped into him with a hard thud.

"We just want to talk." Rigsby said as he grabbed hold of the woman and held her still.

"What do you want me to say?!" The woman yelled with tears streaming down her cheeks. "That Mr Garcia was my father and he didn't even know it? That he didn't know I even existed? How do you think it feels, living most of your life wondering who your father is, then having him deny it once you finally find him? Huh?"

Rigsby and Cho shared a glance as Jane's suspicions about Harry having a daughter were confirmed.

"Why don't you just come with me and we can talk about Mr Garcia." Rigsby said as he led the crying woman to the SUV they had arrived in.

Cho leaned on his knees as Jane carelessly strolled up behind him.

"How did you know that that was Garcia's daughter?" Cho asked as he turned to Jane.

"I smelt her strawberry scented perfume when she bumped into you," Jane replied simply. "I also recognized her eyes; definitely her father's eyes."

"Well, I guess you were right," Cho said. "Again."

"Why don't you and I go and talk to the employees while Rigsby takes Ms Garcia in for questioning?" Jane said as he motioned towards the grocery store.

"Sure," Cho replied. " I'll just tell Rigsby."

"I'll go inside so long." Jane said as he started walking back towards the grocery store.

Jane heard the little bell as he opened the door and immediately started looking around the little store. It wasn't too big, or heavily stocked, but it had an air of welcoming.

A man behind the counter welcomed Jane as he walked further into the building.

"Can I help you with anything?" The man asked as he wiped down the countertop of the checkout desk.

"Uh, yes, I was just wondering what you could tell me about Harry Garcia." Jane said as he leaned against the counter.

"Mr Garcia?" The man asked and Jane could tell that he had a Hispanic twang to his accent. "What about him?"

"What is he like?" Jane asked. "Is he a good employer and store owner?"

"Yeah," The man replied. "One of the best I've ever worked for."

"Hmm… Then why did you two not get along?" Jane asked as he watched the man closely.

"What are you talking about?" The man asked, suddenly becoming angry. "You don't even know me!"

"No, but I do know your boss," Jane replied. "At least I've seen his corpse."

"His corpse?" The man asked with confusion. "Man, are you trippin'? I spoke to Garcia yesterday."

"Was that before you killed him, or are you making it up?" Jane said.

"What?!" The man turned red as his eyes flashed with anger. "Man, I didn't kill nobody!"

"OK, Ok," Jane said as he held his hands up to calm the angry employee. "I was just getting a feel for your facial expressions."

"What?" The man was confused as Cho walked through the door.

"Uh, I'm Patrick Jane and this is Kimball Cho," Jane said as he motioned to Cho to join in the conversation. "We work for the CBI."

"The what?" The man asked.

"The California Bureau of Investigation." Cho said as he held his badge for the man to see. "Who are you?"

"I'm Hose Ramirez," The man said as he pointed to his name tag. "What's he talkin' about Mr Garcia being dead?"

"We found his body this morning on a hiking trail." Cho said simply. "When was the last time you saw him?"

"Well, I saw him yesterday afternoon when my shift ended." Jose replied. "I can't believe the dude's dead… What am I going to do now?"

"How long have you been working for Garcia?" Cho asked as he took out his notebook and started writing down Jose's answers.

"Maybe a year or two," Jose replied as he leaned against the countertop. "How was Garcia killed?"

"Blunt force trauma," Jane said as he watched Jose's features to gauge his reaction.

"Wow," Jose replied. "Well, it wasn't me… I was busy last night."

"Are there any witnesses who can verify that?" Cho asked.

"Yeah," Jose replied. "My girlfriend, but I don't think you'd want her to go into detail."

Jane and Cho shared a glance as they caught what Jose was talking about.

"Are there any other employees that work here?" Cho asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah," Jose replied as he ran a hand through his dark hair. "His name's Zac, but he hardly ever shows up. I think he's with one of the local gangs and that's why he's so shifty."

"Do you have any way of getting hold of him?" Cho asked as he scribbled in his notepad.

"Yeah, his number is here in my phone," Jose said as he reached deep into his pocket. "I doubt he'll answer though."

Cho readied his pen and was about to take down the number when Jose pointed to the door and said, "Why don't you just talk to him right now? Hey Zac!"

Cho and Jane turned to the boy and saw the fear in his eyes a second before he started running.

"Not again," Cho said as he handed Jane his notepad and started running after the teenage boy. "CBI! Stop!"

"Why do they always run?" Jane said to Jose who simply shrugged his shoulders and carried on with his business.

xxxxx

"Why did you run?" Cho asked as he sat in the interrogation room with Zac Rhodes.

The boy sat in silence as he fiddled with the seam of his long sleeve shirt.

"How well did you know Mr Garcia?" Cho asked, with slight annoyance as he scribbled with frustration in his notepad.

Cho heaved a sigh as he slid his chair back loudly and stormed out of the interrogation room.

"Did he say anything?" Lisbon asked as she saw Cho coming towards them.

"Nope," Cho replied simply. "Hasn't said a word."

"Alright, give it some time and we'll try again later." Lisbon said as she stood from her spot at the table in the middle of the room. "In the meantime see what you can find out about both Jose and Zac."

With that Lisbon was on her way to her half of the office, leaving her team to do their jobs.

As Jane lay on the couch looking at the ceiling, an idea popped into his head.

Cho might not have gotten Zac to talk, but I'm sure I can.

As always, please review and let me know what you think! Lara xx