A huge thank you to everyone who reviewed/followed/favourited! I was a bit unsure about this story so it's nice to see that people are enjoying it. There will probably only be one more chapter after this one - it wasn't really meant to be a long story and I have to have it done before the end of the month ;) I hope you enjoy chapter 2!


Chapter 2

Lisbon found herself checking Jane's pulse frequently. She noticed that his breathing had become shallower, but faster, and his pulse mirrored that change. The bunker they were in had no windows, only a small battery-operated light in the corner, so she had no idea how much time had passed, but she still worried that he had been asleep for too long.

There were so many things she wanted to tell him. She wanted to tell him – again – that he was worth saving. She wanted him to know that he deserves happiness. She wanted to tell him that he was right all along; she did play the clarinet in high school. She didn't want to leave so many things unspoken. It seemed that three quarters of their relationship relied on things they hadn't said.

A sudden banging at the overhead hatch shook Lisbon out of her thoughts. "Jane. Jane," she hissed, gently shaking him. She wasn't sure who was up there, but she didn't want to be facing their captors with Jane lying unconscious on top of her. "Come on, Jane, please wake up." She pinched his skin again, this time on his forehead. It seemed even less elastic than before. Pressing her fingers against his throat, she breathed a sigh of relief when she felt his pulse still going.

The hatch suddenly swung open, and Lisbon was blinded by the bright light of a flashlight.

"Boss!"

Although she couldn't see him, she had never been more happy to hear Cho's voice. "Cho! Thank God. We need an ambulance now. Jane's in really bad shape."

She heard Cho calling for an ambulance before jumping down into the shelter and rushing over to them. "Are you okay?" He asked, spotting a trail of dried blood down the back of her head that hadn't been noticeable in the dark.

"I'm fine. But Jane…he hasn't had any food or water in days, he was pretty confused, and then he fell asleep and I haven't been able to wake him up."

Cho leaned forwards to check Jane's pulse, and then did the same with Lisbon. "Here," he said, as he reached into his jacket pocket and tossed her an orange juice box. "Rigsby had it in the car. Thought it might come in handy."

"Jane needs it more," Lisbon whispered, shaking her unconscious friend again in a futile attempt to wake him.

"No. You give him something while he's unconscious, he'll end up choking it or aspirating it. And even if he was conscious, it needs to be done carefully. Too much too fast could kill him."

Lisbon deflated a bit, but nodded. She quickly drank the contents of the juice box and tossed it on the ground beside her. "We need to get him up." She eyed the hatch. It was a good six feet above the ground, with no ladder.

"The paramedics will help with that," Cho said.

"Where are the others? How did you find us?"

"Rigsby and Van Pelt are arresting the son of a bitch. Randall Kirsch. He's the same guy who killed our girl. Neighbour recognized the photo of the girl on the news. She saw him taking three girls out of here one day about six months ago. They were wearing t-shirts, but it was February…that's why she remembered them. She remembered Kirsch wearing the letter jacket that the girl was buried in. Also, they sounded like they were speaking some sort of Eastern European language."

"Human trafficking," Lisbon groaned.

"Yeah. Family-run, looks like. The owner of the house you went to is Kirsch's brother."

"But why take Jane?"

"Don't know. Maybe he stumbled onto something."

Just then, the paramedics arrived, and their conversation became unimportant. The only thing that mattered was getting out of there.