Chapter Six

Returning from lunch, Lisbon was accosted by Van Pelt in the hallway. Her eagerness was always over the top, if a little endearing. After all of the years they'd worked together, she was growing into a fine agent and that was something she gave herself some credit for. She was the one person who took a chance on a relatively unknown student at the academy; most people would have gone for the person with the most charisma or the most passion for solving murders specifically. Lisbon had found Van Pelt's coyness as an opportunity to mould her into a confident agent with the tools she needed to progress onto bigger and brighter things. Her technological abilities were also an appeal, one that Lisbon didn't doubt for a second would be advantageous to her previously technologically inept team. Rigsby and Cho attempted to understand the finer details but they were all from a generation who didn't grow up around computers like Van Pelt.

'What is it Grace?'

'I think I've made a break on the Palms' case. Doctor Stone's hard drive was difficult to get into but I finally cracked her password. I was able to access her email account and it turns out Tanya Goodwin was fired two weeks ago. I found a copy of her dismissal letter along with emails back and forth from a recruitment agency.'

'She doesn't even work there?'

Van Pelt shook her head and handed over the case file. Lisbon glanced down at a couple of sheets of paper with copious amounts of information on with a few select pieces of text highlighted. As they walked into the bullpen, Lisbon ignored the majority of the file, choosing instead to listen to a summary of the rest of the information Van Pelt had provided.

'A replacement was in the process of being hired and they'd employed a temp named Larissa Samuels. I double checked the phone records and she made a call to Doctor Stone's office at approximately nine am on the day of the murder. I called her up this morning and she's been down with the flu, when she got through to Doctor Stone's office a woman answered in a hushed voice. She didn't think anything of it at the time, but I think it could have been Tanya.'

'Have you done a,' Lisbon began, but Van Pelt cut her off.

'Background check? She's facing criminal charges for harassment of a patient. I spoke to the local PD; they're still attempting to gather enough evidence to formally charge her.'

'Don't tell me, the patient is Helena Briggs?'

'Yes. Helena Briggs received several hoax calls and a number of threatening emails over the space of a week since seeking Doctor Stone's help.'

Van Pelt sat down at her desk and pulled up a website on her computer. Lisbon watched as the page loaded to reveal the smiling face of their suspect.

'Tanya Goodwin is also a member of a church in the area who strongly oppose abortion and the distribution of contraception,' said Van Pelt, scrolling down the page and pointing to a number of distorted statements about human rights.

'And she worked in a family planning clinic because?' said Lisbon, closing the file and resting it on Van Pelt's desk. 'Nice work, Grace. Try and get a hold of someone from the church, but tread carefully, I don't want to cause Goodwin to run or we'll never find out where Helena and Doctor Stone are. When Rigsby and Cho come back from lunch they need to go back to Helena Briggs' family and find out what they know about this woman. Have we got an address for Goodwin?'

Lisbon headed to her office with the usual formula in her mind. She checked off a carefully constructed list of steps they'd taken and added a couple more before she'd even reached her office door.

'I've forwarded you the details,' Van Pelt replied.

'Thank you.'

Retrieving her jacket and phone, Lisbon marched on up to the attic where she knocked hard upon the door to the room Jane chose as his own. She waited impatiently, tapping her foot until she could hear him moving about inside.

'Jane, get up, we've got a suspect in the Palms case.'

Shuffling of feet and the screech of a chair moving died away before the door slid open and Jane looked back at her, his hair dishevelled and his shirt barely buttoned up.

'The receptionist?'

'What is this?' she looked him up and down. 'Get dressed.'

The door closed again and Jane returned a minute later with his waistcoat fastened and his jacket over his arm. Lisbon stood against the wall and watched him in his nonchalance.

'You knew?' she asked, cutting through the silence.

Lisbon marched back towards the staircase cautious that Jane was following close behind.

'She had shifty eyes,' Jane replied.

'Shifty eyes?'

'She looked lost,' he said, continuing to talk as they set foot in the elevator. 'Like someone had come in and moved everything. Someone with her background at the clinic would have it running like a well-oiled bicycle. What did she do?'

'Aside from potentially kidnap a doctor and her patient?' asked Lisbon, frustrated at yet another of Jane's tricks. She marched ahead through the parking garage, her keys in hand. 'Why didn't you tell me you suspected her?'

'Do I have to do all of the work?'

Lisbon stopped beside the state issued SUV and pointed to the passenger door. 'Get in the car, now! I don't have time for your mind games.'

They pulled up outside the residence of Tanya Goodwin sometime later; Jane climbed out of the passenger seat and wandered across the street. Lisbon watched as he stretched his arms up above his head then walked back towards her.

'What are you doing?' she asked.

'What does it look like I'm doing?' he said, shrugging in response.

'Like you're wasting my time and putting our case in jeopardy.'

'You're being ridiculous.'

'I'm being ridiculous?' Lisbon scoffed and set off up the garden path of a small suburban home.

'You're just still pissed because I left you alone.'

Lisbon stopped walking part way up the path and folded her arms across her chest, 'Do you really think this is the time and place to be having this conversation?'

'It's as good a place as any,' he replied, looking around the beautifully landscaped garden. His lips curled into a smile, one which on any given day was sure to make Lisbon smile back. Except today.

'It's not appropriate for us to discuss our personal life.'

'When is appropriate?'

'Not now.' Lisbon turned towards the house and glanced around, searching for any potential clues.

'You can't just pretend nothing happened between us, Teresa.'

She turned back towards Jane, her eyebrows furrowed and her fists tightened. Sometimes he didn't get the hint and more often than not his timing was terrible. Lisbon glared at him but he barely reacted.

'When we're at work you will address me as Agent Lisbon, I am your boss.'

'Then I quit.'

'Really?' Lisbon shook her head. 'What are you going to do with your life this time? Fake another breakdown? Sleep with another one of Red John's girls?'

'So this is what this is all about, Lorelei and I?'

'No, this is you taking liberties with our friendship.'

'What friendship?'

'We are done with this conversation,' said Lisbon, marching up to the front door of the house and knocking. 'We have a case to solve. You can come inside and help or you can go and sit in the car. But we're not talking about…hello, Tanya Goodwin?'

The door had opened mid-sentence, Lisbon smiled at the lady she recalled seeing at the crime scene standing on the opposite side of the threshold.

'I'm Agent Teresa Lisbon,' she said, taking a brief glance behind her to where Jane was still stood. 'This is Patrick Jane. We're with the CBI.'

'Oh yes, of course, I remember you from the other day. Can I help you with anything?'

'If we could come inside,' said Lisbon and Tanya stepped aside and motioned for them to pass.

They sat on a small sofa in a perfectly organised room. Any sign of living had been tidied away and the only indication that Tanya had even been in the room at all was the television set to the news. A woman who kept her home so neat would surely have kept her workplace in an equal state. Several pieces of religious paraphernalia decorated the room supporting her religious activities.

'Have you found Doctor Stone or her poor patient?'

'No, we haven't,' said Lisbon, biding her time carefully. 'We'd like to ask you a few more questions, if that's okay.'

'Of course,' said Tanya, crossing her legs. 'I'm not sure what use I'll be though.'

'Because you don't even work at the clinic, do you Ms Goodwin?' asked Jane, not even looking at the woman as he carefully searched the room.

'I've been taking a sabbatical,' she explained. 'My replacement had called in sick and Doctor Stone asked if I'd mind returning temporarily.'

'Except you weren't taking a sabbatical,' said Lisbon, raising her eyebrows in concern. 'Doctor Stone fired you two weeks ago for harassing Helena Briggs.'

'That's simply not true,' Tanya replied, appearing shocked. Lisbon could see right through her attempts to fool them.

Jane stood up and hovered in the doorway, 'Do you have a bathroom I could use?'

'Upstairs on the right hand side,' she said and stood up too. 'If you don't mind, I left some cupcakes in the oven and I really don't have time to bake some more before our church bake sale tomorrow.'

Lisbon smiled as the woman left the room. She listened carefully for any sign of Tanya Goodwin attempting to escape. When none came, Lisbon moved into the hallway and followed the route into the kitchen.

'Ms Goodwin?' Lisbon called out, but the kitchen was empty. She turned back towards the hallway, but Jane had not returned from his search of the Goodwin house. A sense of foreboding made Lisbon wish that she had the power of telepathy as she sent a message up to Jane to hurry his search.

When she turned around, she spotted a door sitting open on the opposite side of the kitchen. Tanya Goodwin's voice was travelling up from the basement. Lisbon edged closer and listened carefully.

'You'll stay here a little while longer and then it'll all be over, don't worry sweet girl, your baby is safe now.'

A whimpering sound filled the silence, then a slap of skin against skin and the crying only grew more intense. Lisbon pulled her Glock out of her holster and took the stairs one at a time. Unluckily, the third step creaked loudly, signalling her presence.

'You shouldn't have come down here, Agent Lisbon,' said Tanya, a gun resting in her own clutches. Lisbon hedged her bets and waited for a sign that the gun opposite was going to be fired.

'Put the gun down, Ms Goodwin, you don't want to make this worse for yourself.'

'Worse? I'm saving lives, Agent Lisbon. If it wasn't for you and your colleagues approving of this, this, debauchery, then maybe I wouldn't need to make things right.'

'Put. The. Gun. Down. Ms Goodwin,' Lisbon repeated.

In a swift movement, Tanya Goodwin clenched her fingers around the trigger as Lisbon fired her own gun. She watched as a couple of bullets landed in the woman's upper torso, knocking her backwards until she stumbled onto the ground. Helena Briggs' screams filled the room. In the same heartbeat, pain spread through Lisbon's leg and she crumbled onto the wooden steps, her weakened state sending her rolling down the remainder of the staircase before she landed on the concrete floor and her eyes fluttered closed.