Hey everyone! Life has been getting crazy busy! I'm going to be without internet for the next few days and so I thought I'd post at least this chapter if not another before I lose my connection. Just curious... are you all losing interest in the story? I noticed there weren't as many visits or comments so it got me wondering. Let me know if it's starting to get boring! here's the next chapter!=)

Jane nearly jumped out of her seat. She looked back at the three faces staring back at her and cringed internally.

"You don't want to do that Jane; it's a bad idea," Korsak began.

"You don't have to deal with that son of a bitch ever again Jane," Frost piped in.

"Frost and I will go and get the necessary information," Korsak added.

Maura stood silently watching as Jane's partners tried to talk her girlfriend out of what she thought was a ludicrous idea. Jane made eye contact with her for the briefest of moments, but that's all it took for Maura to let her opinion be known. I don't want you to go.

"Guys, I know that you think this is a crazy idea, believe me, I do. I don't want to see that murdering bastard ever again either; but this is something I have to do."

Maura lowered her gaze and turned her body away from Jane's, feeling betrayed. Jane saw the reaction immediately, and continued on with her reasoning.

"Korsak, you know as well as I do that Hoyt is a sick bastard, and that he isn't one to voluntarily share information. You've heard tapes, you've seen him in interrogations and you know the way he works. Do you honestly believe he's going to give you or Frost the information we need for this case?!"

"We can try Jane, we have to try. Putting you in the line of fire again… I don't agree," Korsak stated with a solemn tone.

"Are you giving me an order, Korsak?" Jane rose to her feet, incensed.

"No, I'm just trying to make you see sense."

Jane sat back down, thinking hard about the possibilities. She knew, deep down she knew that she would be the only one to make Hoyt talk. She looked back and forth between her partners before speaking. "Make the call; make sure we can get him alone." She looked around and saw that Maura was no longer there.

The rest of the day had been a hectic flurry of activity. It turned out that Korsak's call wasn't enough to get the warden to allow the interrogation. They knew they'd be up against something similar since that warden always tended to give them a hard time. Cavanaugh then made the necessary calls and set everything up for the following day.

Jane turned off the engine of her cruiser and sat in silence. She had pulled into the driveway and still didn't know how to go about having the dreaded conversation with Maura. She knew the blonde was upset, she just didn't know to what degree and that made her uneasy. The fact that Maura had walked out of the precinct without a word told Jane to exercise caution, and try to see things from her girlfriend's point of view.

She could see things from the other side; she really could. She knew her partners and Maura were right. She was crazy for going through with this, but she knew deep down that it was something that needed to be done. She needed to face her demon. There were other women, other people he could harm and she had to put a stop to it. Bracing herself, she exited the car and made her way to the house.

She immediately noticed the lights were off on the bottom floor. That in itself was odd; Maura usually stayed downstairs until Jane got home; if not then she'd leave a light on in the kitchen or living room.

"Shit, I really did it this time," Jane muttered as she shook her head and made her way upstairs. She bypassed the office and guest bedrooms and made her way to their bedroom, wondering if she was sleeping on the couch or in another bed that night. Though it was her bedroom as well, she lightly knocked to announce her arrival. There was no reply from the other side. She waited another few seconds before slowly opening the door.

Maura was on her side of the bed, medical journal in hand. Though Jane knew Maura had heard her, she made no indication of having done so.

"Maur?" Jane called out tentatively. Maura sighed and put the journal down.

"Maura?" Jane tried again. It was at least a whole minute before Maura was able to make eye contact. She turned her face to look Jane in the eye, disappointment evident in her features. She said nothing, but raised her eyebrow expectantly.

"I didn't see you leave the precinct today," Jane began.

"It didn't seem like my presence there was needed any longer," Maura replied with a bit of a bite in her tone.

"Maura, what happened… the visit with Hoyt…"

"Apparently it's none of my business Jane."

"But it is your business! You're my girlfriend and"

"Oh! You remember that now?"Maura fired back, voice slightly raised.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jane felt as if she'd been slapped.

"You knew that I wasn't ok with this Jane; with you seeing Hoyt. It's too dangerous, it's unnecessary to put yourself in that situation. Yet you completely ignored your partners and myself."

"This is my job Maura!"

"You're doing your job, but you and I both know that you didn't have to do this. Korsak could've handled it yet you refused to let him. Why does it have to be you Jane? Why do you want to put yourself in that situation again?! Did you not have enough last time?!"

"Maura! I need to do this to keep him locked up for good; to make sure he doesn't end up getting more people killed either by his own hand or by an apprentice. Yes, this is my job, but it's so much more than that. Why can't you see that?!"

"All I see is you walking on thin ice Jane. This is dangerous. You coming face to face with Hoyt again… I'm there every night; do you think I don't know about your nightmares? About the trouble you have with your hands every time the weather changes? Did you forget about all the psychological and physical therapy you had to go through to get back to where you are? That was because of HIM. Whatever the reason for you doing this; don't ask me to understand because I just don't."

Jane paced back and forth, anger and frustration seeping through her very pores. She really thought Maura would react differently to the situation at hand, but it turned out it had just been wishful thinking.

"I really thought, that of all people, you would understand why I have to do this," Jane said. "This is about more than my hands, more than myself. I know that you're not ok with this, but I'm sorry Maura; I'm not going to change my mind. This is something I know I have to do."

Jane turned on the spot and made to leave the room.

"Where are you going?" Maura questioned.

"To one of the guest bedrooms; I figured you wouldn't want to sleep with me tonight."

Maura rose from her spot on the bed and grabbed a hold of Jane's hand. "Don't go, Jane. Just because I don't agree with some of the decisions you make doesn't mean I'm shutting you out of our room. Yes, I am angry; but that doesn't change the way I feel about you. Nothing will change that. Come to bed with me," Maura said as she pulled Jane towards her.

Jane brought Maura close and they embraced. Their bodies molded into one another as they got as close as possible to the other. Tears escaped Maura's eyes as she rested her head on Jane's shoulder.

"I just want you to be ok; I want you safe," she said as she held on tighter.

"That's why I'm doing this Maura," Jane replied. "Because I want the exact same thing for you."

Thoughts?