I own nothing Rizzoli and Isles

LET SLEEPING BLOOD LIE

Chapter 5 - the blunder

Jane woke up sweating and thirsty and in pain, she moaned a little and covered her face with her arm waking Maura beside her.

"Are you unwell?" Maura asks immediately leaning over her and feeling her forehead she can see covered in beads of sweat, she is hot and clammy and looks pained.

"I'm fine Maur' really" Jane replies batting away her hand, "Just a...bad dream."

The look on Maura's face says she doesn't completely buy it.

Jane smiles shyly at her, and says gently "I am fine Maura, Thank you."

Hiding her pain Jane gets up and starts to get ready for the briefing in the conference room. She may not be needed again depending on how today goes.

Maura watches her suspiciously for a few moments, "I don't believe you Jane".

Jane looks up from finishing tying her boot laces, struts over to Maura and puts an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into a hug.

"I got a few bruises and wot-not from the mission yesterday, can't believe the mission almost went sideways with an attempted mugging. But I'll be fine, I promise." she whispers in Maura's ear before kissing her temple and releasing her. "I gotta go, I'm gonna be late."

Jane tried to stand up straighter as they pointed over the blueprints of the building, trying to organize the teams with the plan they had decided on.

Both teams had to be in sync, but they wouldn't be able to communicate, complete radio silence as they had no idea what operations and equipment were behind closed doors.

She held her side slightly where the pain nagged her, she was having a hard time trying to ignore it.

"Team Two, You will need to split up right here..." Martinez points to a square on the bottom left on the blueprint, "

Her head starts to pound slightly and her vision blurs, she shakes her head frustrated at the interruption. He face pales considerably, luckily everyone is too busy staring at the pile of paper on the table to notice the change in her.

"Then you will need to clear the rooms along this corridor and meet team one at this location..." He points to the north side.

Her side hurts, burns almost, she pulls her hand away from the wound slowly and looking down see's blood seeping through her shirt, her hand is red.

Shit

She pushes her hand back onto the wound trying to slow the bleeding and ease the pain and...well...hide the blood from her comrades.

"Team Four, you will need to gain access through this door and clear this area..." he points to the East corridor, "...and head west along this corridor to..."

She squeezes her eyes shut, the pounding in her head is almost too much. She can't hear Martinez anymore. She takes a deep breath trying to focus, grasping the edge of the table till her knuckles turn white. She tries to steady herself.

"Are you ok?" whispers Korsak leaning in beside her, his brow creased.

"Yeah" she lies. She breathes out slowly, opening her eyes, her heart has started racing and it pounds in her ears, but she has to be strong, she has to be brave.

I am ok, I am ok, take it slow and focus

She opens her mouth to speak but suddenly everything goes dark and she reaches out to find something to grab, there is nothing within her reach. She plants her hands on the table, gasps, the pain shoots through her side like electric lightening, she slides slowly to the floor, her hand trailing a bloody streak across the blueprints.

Korsak sees the blood streak and sinks to her side, cradling her.

"Jane" he calls

She doesn't respond

"Get Maura!" Korsak commands and Martinez who has just been standing there in shock races off to find Maura.

Korsak slips his arm under Jane's legs and his other arm under her back, and with a mighty grunt lifts her into his arms and stands up slightly unsteadily. A cop steps forward to help.

"No" he grunts with a stern warning as he shifts Jane to balance better. He doesn't trust these guys with her. He might be getting older and is sure he just put his back out, but it doesn't matter. He walks to the table in the corner of the room and gently places her on it. Her face is white and her breathing is shallow, her eyelids flicker.

Maura bursts into the room, instantly spotting Korsak standing beside the table with Jane lying on it. She walks across the room assessing the situation. Before she even reaches Jane's side she has already determined the cause.

She knew Jane had been injured in the mission yesterday, She knew it was on her right side just above the hip, She knew Jane had tried to hide it from her, from everyone and had patched herself up, she was stubborn like that, and she knew the injury was externally bleeding based on the blood on the table in the centre of the room and from Korsaks shirt front as he faced Maura, his face etched in worry. What Maura couldn't know was how bad the injury was.

She crouches beside Jane and lifted her blood-soaked shirt.

A gauze bandage was wrapped around Jane's mid-section several times. Carefully unwrapping the bandage she found a 3 inch mostly superficial cut that had begun the healing process when the skin began to self- seal but had opened up in the middle where it was deepest and looked like it was becoming infected. It had possibly needed stitches and a proper sanitised dressing.

"Oh Jane!" Maura sighed her frustration, mostly to herself.

"I need hot water and clean towels" she demanded to anyone listening.

Opening her black doctors bag she prepared to patch up her best friend...again.

It was several hours later when Jane woke, a little dazed. The room was silent, the lighting dimmed to a comfortable level. She was in her own room again. She tried to sit up but the stabbing pain in her side caused her to moan and lie back down.

"You shouldn't try to move, you will stretch you stitches" came a familiar voice from the shadows.

Jane turned towards the voice, "What happened?'

"I could ask you the same thing." Maura sounded frustrated, angry almost.

"What did I do?" Jane queries trying to sound innocent, already knowing and already not liking the potential answers

Maura sighs, "You're impossible, Jane" She reaches over taking Jane's arm a little more forceful than usual, checking her pulse and making notes.

Maura hands her pills to take, which Jane does obediently while watching Maura carefully, her friend can be a little confusing sometimes, angry at her and yet still diligently looking after her.

"Don't I get any sympathies?" Jane pouts jokingly hoping to elicit a smile from her unhappy companion.

"Yes Jane, yes you do," Maura begins her tone completely serious and angry "I sympathise with your family and friends that you cause to worry unnecessarily, I sympathise with your body that hates being punished by you, and I sympathise with your team that you don't confide in."

Jane's mouth drops in shock. Maura is more pissed than she was showing on the outside.

How could she have explained herself to Maura that she didn't want to worry anyone so she doesn't tell them she was hurt, yet again. She didn't know her body was not as tough as her mind and needed better treatment. She was trying not to worry and scare and use Maura and was frustrated in herself that she always needed her friend so much. And her team, well they might just turn on her like a pack of dogs if they suspected she was weak, she wasn't meant to be there in the first place and it could mess up her job in the future.

"Agh crap" Jane groans realising everyone now knows. Maura would have patched her up and no-one would have even known. Jane literally facepalms herself leaving her hand resting on her face for a few moments.

There was too much to convey and Maura's harsh tone touched a button she didn't know existed. Her eyes started to burn as overwhelming emotion and exhaustion and frustration, escaped her body in the form of tears burning to be released from her eyes...she fought with all her might to stop them escaping...and she succeeded...mostly. Her eyes looked glazed and she swallowed loudly.

Maura watched her as the wave of emotions battled across her features for victory with none victorious. Jane was too stubborn to let any feeling dominate her and they were all felt and then pushed away, temporarily discarded somewhere deep inside.

An awkward silence rested between them, Jane had not answered Maura and Maura knew not to expect an apology.

"Are you in pain?" Maura asked gentler than before

Jane wanted to scream 'of course i'm in pain' but she knew Maura meant physically. She forced herself onto her side so her back was to Maura mumbling "I'm fine" and closing her eyes.

It was a stab in Maura's heart, she knew Jane dealt with feelings in Jane's way but it didn't stop the rejection she felt in that moment. Childhood memories attacked her sub-conscious, of family turning their back on her emotionally and physically, of friends finding better friends to play with than her. Her loneliness leaving a lump in her throat.

Maura stood up and walked silently out of the room.

Jane kicked herself on the inside for not opening up to Maura, but she wanted to stay tough, be tough, she couldn't pretend to be tough just sometimes, ever.

Three times she had been stupid. She was caught off guard, she didn't tell Maura and get help and collapsed in front of everyone, and now she had just hurt the person that cared about her as much as her own family.

She drifted off into a restless sleep wondering if Maura could ever forgive her...

...to be continued...

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