A/N: Thanks again for all your support for this story. And apologies for not getting back to those of you who reviewed last chapter of this and my other stories lately. FF was partly to blame when I wasn't able to respond to them due to a glitch but also partly my fault too, so sorry for that. I will try to do better with that from now on as they mean the world to me.

And for those of you writing where I'm following your stories, apologies for not reviewing most of them lately, I'm way behind in reading but will catch up. I haven't stopped following any of them, just need to find some time.

Okay, all apologies done I think. Hope you enjoy this chapter.

"No?" he whispered in disbelief, the word almost stuck in his throat.

She shook her head, slowly uncurling her body from the seat before she tentatively took his left hand in hers as she leaned forward to face him. "No. We don't just catch him anymore. We put the bastard in the ground."

Chapter 37 – A Lead

Jane watched as she fished her phone out of her pocket, her hand trembling slightly as she released his. Grim determination filled her face as she dialled Cho's number. She meant what she said a moment earlier, of that he was certain. But he was unsure if it was simply a kneejerk reaction to the attack on Grace or a more permanent turnaround in change of opinion. In any case, he wasn't about to enter a debate with her about it, it would make their investigative work much easier if she was less concerned with legalities in tracking Red John's accomplice.

He listened to her end of the conversation, quickly surmising that Van Pelt was still in the operating theatre and that her parents had arrived at the Hospital to wait for news. Lisbon quickly updated Cho on their theory and asked him for the names of those present at Rigsby's bachelor party. Jane watched her roll her eyes as Cho seemingly explained that it was a rowdy and busy affair, making remembering all the names of those in attendance difficult, especially when faced with and still affected by what he'd witnessed directly afterwards.

"I can help him with that," Jane whispered at her side. She nodded and put the phone on speaker.

"Cho, Jane can help you remember," Lisbon said.

"He's not hypnotising me," Cho said resolutely on the other end. Jane smiled thinly; his unflappable colleague would undoubtedly be his most resistant test subject if it came to that.

Then Cho conceded in a gentler tone, "Not unless it's a last resort. I'll see what I can come up with myself first. Come and pick me up, I'll come to CBI with you to help run checks."

"Are you sure?" Lisbon asked softly. "Wayne doesn't need you there more?"

"Once I explain why I need to leave he'll understand. He'd want me to do something to help. So would I."

Jane and Lisbon exchanged glances. His tone left no doubt he was becoming increasingly agitated at sitting still when there was a lead he could be working on instead. They couldn't argue with that.

"Okay, we could use your help. We're on our way," Lisbon said.

Cho picked up from the Hospital entrance the three of them drove to the CBI in relative silence, their thoughts fixed on Van Pelt as they stared at the blackness outside. It was three am and the traffic was nonexistent so they made it in less ten minutes.

"I take it this is off the books," Cho said as they entered the relatively empty bullpen, only a skeleton staff working until morning. Lisbon imagined Wainwright was still conversing with techs at Van Pelt's apartment and wouldn't show up until morning after the crime scene was properly investigated. "Wainwright doesn't know about this?" he added.

"No. You got a problem with that?" Lisbon replied.

"No, no problem," Cho confirmed.

He'd written a list of names with Rigsby's help and pulled it out of his pocket, handing it to Lisbon. "I only checked with Rigsby. While I trust all those still at the hospital I...-"

"You don't trust them as much as you do Rigsby," Jane finished for him. "I think that's wise. Keep a tight circle on this for now."

Cho nodded curtly. "There are at least thirty names here," Lisbon said as she read down the list in front of her. "Let's get started." She ordered Cho, "Check their phone logs. You said Rigsby left at ten to eleven, correct?"

"Yeah, that's what he told me."

"Okay. Then check all calls or texts from that time."

"Just how illegal is this?" Jane asked.

"Very," Lisbon replied with barely a look at him. "But it's not like we'll be using this stuff to make an arrest, is it?" she added stiffly.

She noticed his look of slight surprise. "What?" she snapped.

He held his hands up, placating her. "Nothing at all. Makes things a whole lot easier with less bureaucracy, if you ask me."

"Just where he's concerned," she clarified. "Doesn't give you free rein to run amok with every other case."

He smiled softly at her, surprisingly uplifted that her principles hadn't lapsed entirely. A world where Teresa Lisbon didn't argue with him about rules and procedures wasn't a world he'd recognise. Even if sometimes she only argued to make a point it kept him 'mostly' honest. With her, anyway.

She took up a position at Rigsby's desk and Cho at his own, splitting the list between them. For want of something to do Jane went off to fetch tea and coffee for them all until they gave him something to work on.

As he put the kettle on to boil and started the coffeemaker he exhaled deeply and ran a hand down his face. Only that morning in this very spot he'd seen the light in Van Pelt's eyes as she talked to him about her wedding and honeymoon, her words of advice that led to him to make a momentous decision and patch things up with Lisbon and, with hope, move things forward between them again. While he knew there was still work to be done to get Lisbon to trust him fully again he'd been dizzyingly happy and optimistic for a few minutes just hours before.

Now, less than twenty four hours after their conversation, the redhead's dreams lay in shatters, her life in jeopardy. And the impact her fate might have on those closest to him if her life ended would be catastrophic. Lisbon was already pushing him away, afraid of shattering if she allowed her emotions out. She'd blame herself for Van Pelt's death and push everyone else away too, most likely choosing Law Enforcement as her one and only refuge. He could only hope that he'd be able to find a way through to her somehow if that occurred. Cho would soldier on but add more armour to his already reinforced exterior. And Rigsby...well he imagined he was likely to find a new partner in his revenge crusade against Red John if his soul mate died. If he didn't self detonate first. And Jane himself...would he leave again as the life of someone he cared for was lost by Red John's hands?

Alone for the first time since the news about her surfaced he closed his eyes, wishing he believed in god or some form of higher entity that he could pray to and find some comfort. His shoulders sagged as he lowered his head, a tear rolling down his cheek as he opened his eyes again, shaking his head, his hands gripped on the edge of the counter. He took another deep breath and straightened himself upright again, wiping the tear away before resuming his tea making.

"How's he holding up?" Lisbon asked Cho as they tapped on their keyboards opposite each other.

"Rigsby?" He shrugged, "As you'd expect." He paused, "But he was out of line earlier."

"No, he wasn't. He was entitled. But he should have thrown a punch at me, not Jane."

"It wasn't Jane's idea, was it, the subterfuge about your relationship?"

She shook her head. "No. I should leave the crazy plans to him, huh?" she said with a sigh.

"We all agreed. You and Jane okay now?" he asked.

She flushed as images of them rolling around her living room carpet naked entered her head followed immediately by a wave of shame and guilt. "Yeah, we're fine," she replied evenly from behind her screen.

Cho stopped clicking the keys in front of him for a split second before he continued again.

Five minutes later Jane brought back the beverages. "Anything?" he asked brightly as he stood between the two desks.

"Nothing yet," Lisbon said, taking the coffee mug from him and taking a long sip. "We've discounted some calls already, husbands calling their wives or calling for cabs. Nothing suspicious yet."

Jane nodded and took up a seat on his couch behind them. He drank some tea and waited, intermittently tapping his thigh with the palm of his hand to the sound of fingers hitting keys furiously.

"Here's something," Cho said twenty minutes later. "Agent Forster texted someone at eleven. Burner cell."

"Who's Agent Forster?" Jane asked, raising himself from his couch at speed to stand between them again.

"Works in Narcotics," Lisbon supplied. "Been here...a few years, right?"

Cho nodded. "Might just have texted a friend who doesn't have a registered phone. Might be nothing."

"Did he receive a text back?" Jane said.

Cho tapped on a few keys. "No."

"Interesting," Jane said.

"Why?" Cho asked.

"Because who doesn't text back to a text message," Lisbon commented.

Jane smiled at her. "Precisely, Lisbon. If you receive a text message it's protocol to text at least once back, isn't it?"

"And if he didn't receive a text back then it could be a tip off or instruction to Red John," Cho nodded.

"It's still thin," Lisbon suggested.

"What's his background?" Jane asked.

Lisbon was already ahead, bringing up Agent Jeff Forster's staff profile. "Thirty five, single, worked in Sac PD before joining CBI four years ago. Assigned to Organized Crime first and moved to Narcotics a year ago. I don't really know him to be honest, just in passing. Cho, how about you?"

"Goes to same gym as Rigsby and me. Tough background. Single mother, dad left when he was a kid. Quiet type."

"Possible for Red John to manipulate him somehow?" Lisbon asked.

"Don't know. Anything's possible."

"Let's go talk to him and find out," Jane suggested. "You got an address?"

"It's four in the morning," Cho reminded them.

"So?" Lisbon said, taking a note of Forster's address and getting up from her chair.

They arrived at his apartment complex and took the stairs to his place on the fourth floor. Chipped painted beige walls and a creaky iron staircase highlighted the less than salubrious surroundings Agent Forster lived in. Smells of fried food permeated the air and Jane grimaced as he stepped over an empty beer can on a landing. "I know civil service pay is atrociously bad but surely it's not this bad," he said with a shake of his head.

"He should be able to afford better than this," Cho replied.

"He has no dependents so where's his money's going? What about his mother?" Lisbon asked.

"Died a few years back."

"Well something doesn't add up," she muttered, climbing another step.

They made it to his door and knocked. When silence greeted them they knocked again. "Pick the lock," she ordered Jane after a few seconds.

Jane tilted his head to the side with a smile as he took out his lockpick set. "Like I said earlier, this police work is much easier with no paperwork."

"Just open it," she replied with a roll of her eyes.

He knelt down and after a few turns he heard the satisfactory click he was looking for. Standing up again Lisbon told him, "Stay here until we check it out."

He was relieved she and Cho were wearing bulletproof vests. He nodded, absolute seriousness in his voice as he locked eyes with her. "Be careful."

He saw a hint of a smile as she nodded, disappearing again as quickly as it had arrived. She opened the door slowly with Cho at her back, both with their weapons drawn in front of them.

Jane counted the seconds as he stood with his back against the wall beside the door to the apartment, his right hand fingers automatically seeking the reassuring cold metal of his wedding ring to twist. He smiled faintly, only remembering then he'd removed it earlier. It seemed an eternity had passed since then.

"Clear!" Lisbon called to him and he felt his heartbeat slow down at the word.

He entered the apartment and it was as ramshackle as he expected. A battered brown and yellow flowered upholstered couch lay in the middle of the dingy apartment, an old TV in front of it and hardly another stick of furniture in the room.

"Well if I wasn't already depressed enough tonight this would do the trick," Jane commented with an eye roll as he looked over the place. "There aren't many people I can give decorating tips to but I just found one, it appears."

"He's not here," Lisbon said with gritted teeth as she holstered her weapon.

"Guessed that as you or Cho would have had him in a head lock by now if he were," he replied calmly. "Or had two guns shoved in his face. You check his closet?"

They entered his bedroom and did so, finding most of his clothes missing, the remainder lying on the floor of his wardrobe. It appeared he'd packed in a hurry. "Damn it!" Lisbon seethed, taking a deep breath.

"Why aren't you surprised he's taken off?" Cho said to Jane.

"I'm not entirely. I was hoping he had. The fact he has run off is promising."

"How the hell do you figure that?" Lisbon asked in bemusement.

"Firstly, shows us that he was the one who tipped off Red John." He smirked at Cho, "So luckily no hypnosis for you, my friend." He looked at both of them, serious again. "But it also shows us he didn't know he was tipping off Red John."

Met by two confused faces he explained, "Look, he had an instruction to tell someone if Rigsby left the party. That much we know for sure. If he knew it was Red John and what he was planning he'd already either have made plans to leave or would be here feigning ignorance of the whole thing by now in case we came knocking. He left in a rush, hence no planning. As soon as he found out what happened to Van Pelt he took off."

Lisbon nodded slowly. "So he didn't know what Red John was going to do until he put two and two together afterwards. Okay, I can see that."

"And so likely he didn't know it was Red John asking him to keep him informed of Rigsby's whereabouts."

"But he must know him. Maybe not as Red John but as someone else. That's why he's running. Not from us...but from him," she replied.

Jane shrugged. "Well, probably both but he'll be more afraid of Red John than us. Forster's a loose end and nothing Red John hates more. So you see it's better he's not here. If he were...well...chances are..." Jane nodded at a bare wall in front of him.

"There would be a face there in his blood," Cho commented, looking at the same wall.

Lisbon nodded and took a deep breath. "Still doesn't help us though, does it?"

"If we can find him before Red John does then it might," Jane offered.

"Okay, I'll get a BOLO out on his vehicle-"

"There might be a quicker way of getting him to come in," Jane said. "Or of finding him, at least."

"How?" Cho asked.

"We need to get back to CBI and check something first," Jane replied.

Back in the bullpen again Lisbon shrugged off her jacket. "Okay, so out with it," she said to Jane, weariness in her voice.

He frowned, tapping his index finger against his lips. "Did you say Forster worked in Organized Crime when he joined CBI?" he asked Lisbon.

"Yeah, why?"

"Did Ray Haffner work there then?"

Lisbon creased her brow. "Ray? Uh..." She bent down and typed a few keys on the nearest computer, checking Haffner's profile quickly. "Yeah, he did. Let's see, Ray came from FBI's organized crime to ours. Was in charge of a team there when Forster was recruited. What has that got to do with anything?"

"Haffner went back to work there after-?"

"You got him removed from here to get Lisbon her job back, yeah," Cho cut in.

"But Haffner doesn't work at CBI anymore," Lisbon said.

"He doesn't?" Jane asked, surprised.

"No. He started up his own security firm about...I don't know...eight months ago."

"Really?"

"Yes," Lisbon replied, growing impatient, "what does Ray Haffner have to do with any of this, Jane?"

He shrugged, "Maybe nothing at all. But we should talk to him about Forster. He worked with him for three years after all. If Haffner was his first boss here it stands to reason he mentored him in some way, might be able to help us find him."

Cho replied bluntly, "If Haffner doesn't work for Red John. Or is Red John. In either case we're screwed."

"Well, of course, there are those possibilities too," Jane replied with an eye roll.

The sound of Cho's cell phone stopped any further conversation as all eyes focussed on him. "It's Rigsby," he said, hitting answer.