Tommy waved animatedly from his seat in the booth "Jane! Jane!"

Jane raised a hand to single she had seen him before walking toward the bar and leaning against it. Her mother had just clocked in and was polishing glasses while glancing every now and then to the corner booth where her two sons and ex-husband sat. "You okay with this?"

Angela Rizzoli huffed but then looked back to her daughter. "He's your father, Jane. He can speak to you if he likes but he better not come over here." She threw her polishing rag down on the bar but then seemed to halt her distain when she remembered something. "Are you still depressed?"

With an eye roll Jane pushed herself off the bar and made her way toward the booth with her brother's and father. "Hi Pop."

Frank Sr had aged mostly around the eyes but other than that Jane couldn't really tell a change in him physically and for some reason that bothered her. Shouldn't he have lost wait for not eating lasagna every Sunday, or the guilt he harbored for what he had done to them, put them through?

Her father offered her a thin smile. "Sweetheart, thanks for coming."

Jane slid into the seat beside Frankie and reached for a straw for the strawberry milkshake that sat untouched in front of her. "Yeah well, I'm on a case. What's going on?"

"Yeah spit it out, you're not sick again right?" Tommy asked worriedly.

"No, no." Frank Sr. shook his head. "But I've been taking some time to think about what would happen to you kids if something happened to me or your mother."

Jane tried her best to let the sugary goodness of her milkshake calm her but after all it was just a milkshake. "Now you worry? Now?"

Frank Sr. sighed. "I've always worried about you three—"

"Was this before in the middle or after you screw over our Ma and then Lidia?" Frankie asked finally not being able to remain quiet.

"Listen I'm not perfect and I made my mistakes that I'm paying for, but I'm trying to make it right by yous three okay?" Frank didn't think this would be easy but looking at their three adult faces now made him increasingly aware that they were seated in a bar. The irony that his ex-wife was the bartender wasn't lost on him. "You may get to a point in your life where you have to make a decision for your own happiness and not anybody else's, even if you do care about them and what they think, and even if you aren't sure of the outcome. That's life alright?"

"You still drinking, Pop?" Jane finally asked. She wasn't above being lectured about decisions of happiness, hell she understood his words more than he would ever realize, but she wasn't about to be lectured by a hypocrite with no responsibility and poor impulse control.

"I'm working a program, Janie."

"Working a program." Frankie repeated. "So sometimes?"

"From time to time, I'll have a drink, so what?" He motioned to where they were. "Your favorite hangout is a bar for Christ's sake."

"It's different." Tommy spoke up surprising both Jane and Frankie. "You gotta stick with it Pop, that's the only way."

"Tommy's right." Jane nodded. "Whatever doing right by us means you do it completely sober, or you don't do it at all."

Frank Sr. nodded slowly. "We can't be like how we were then can we?" He realized allowed. No more ballparks or family dinners at Mario's. It had taken all the courage he had to come back here today; he didn't have any left to pretend as if he wasn't hurt by the reality of the situation.

Jane shook her head and then looked to Frankie who followed and finally Tommy who did as well albeit a little hesitant. "You gotta get help."

Frank nodded again before leaning back in his chair. "Well regardless I wanted to talk to you about Rizzoli Sons."

The three exchanged looks. "What about it?" Tommy asked.

"I've gotten into a bit of a bind before all this recovery…. I'm selling it."

"You're what?"

"What it's worth these days you three wouldn't believe, something about a business license that isn't given out anymore, with it I can pay off this one thing and set you three up." No one said anything. "You gotta let me do this."

"So it's not really about us is it?" Frankie pushed his milkshake aside. "You're just in some trouble."

"I think about you three all the time, but I aint perfect, Francesco."

"Yeah we got that part." Jane shook her head. "What going on here, Pop? You couldn't have done all this without us, sent us a check, an email, something."

"I wanted to tell you all that I'm gonna be moving to New York for a job, I'm going to be a little closer and I wanted to know if you three would be open to trying to have some kind of relationship." The table was quiet. "I'm not perfect, but I'm still your father."

##

Maura watched her closely asking something with her eyes she hadn't even noticed she asked until Jane wordlessly shrugged in response. The detective's head was resting against her own right arm which was resting on the back of Maura's couch, she looked exhausted.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Maura decided words were best now, especially because she were unsure of what the small twitch to softness of Jane's features meant.

"No." Her friend groaned.

"Do you want to sing about it?"

Jane exhaled quickly. "Sing Maura?"

The ME smiled. "Studies have shown that singing often can alter ones long term state of mind. It acts with the zzygomaticus major and minor muscles tricking the brain into happiness." Jane just stared at her. "If you'd like I can put something on." She motioned to the far corner of her living room where a small table top radio sat. "It might make you feel better."

"I'm fine, Maura." Jane sat up a little as if her posture would help prove her point. She was clad in long plaid pajama bottoms and a white tank top, something Maura had gathered from her apartment when packing her overnight bag. Jane intended to sleep at the station again but decided against it when Maura made promises of pizza and wine. It sounded a lot better than the stale vending machine cookies and the pm crew's terrible habit of mixing the old coffee in the precinct coffee pot to the new brew.

"Fine implies a state a neutral condition." Maura rested her hand back on her knee. "I'm not sure if you are aware of how you look right now."

Jane looked over at her. "If that's supposed to be reassuring or comforting in any way—"

"It wasn't,"

Jane chuckled. "Oh good."

Maura folded her legs under her on the couch and leaned her elbow against its back. "I wish you'd tell me how you really feel."

"C'mon Maura."

"You said once you could tell me anything, why is this so different?"

"You really never forget do you?" Maura only shrugged softly. The motioned causing her shoulder to peak out under the loose cashmere sweater she was wearing. Jane looked back to the half-eaten pie on the coffee table and the bottle of wine they had finished. "How do I feel…" She began. "I feel annoyed most." She turned to look back at the shorter woman. "Y'know it's always something…"

Maua nodded. "It's rather untimely isn't it?"

Jane chuckled. "Yes rather, I shouldn't even be here; I should be at the precinct." She shook her head. "I still have to find those other women…"

"You cognitive ability will suffer if you don't rest."

"Yeah I know, that and sausage pizza and- what's this called again?" Jane motioned to the empty bottle of wine."

"Nero D'Avola."

"Yeah, it's the only reason I'm letting you talk me into not going back tonight."

Maura laughed lightly. "So the only means of getting you to say or do anything beneficial for your health is alcohol and food?" She wrinkled a brow. "That seems a little counterproductive don't you think?"

"No."

Maura shook her head with amusement. "No? Annoyance is fleeting. Why do you look so upset? Tommy has moved on and is doing well, and unless you are considering a career change…"

"That's not the point, Maura."

"What is then?"

Jane shrugged with one shoulder. "He's just…It's just…. It was my first job okay?" She leaned forward for another slice of pizza. She wasn't hungry. "and let me tell you something it wasn't as cool as I thought it was when your father was fixing everyone in the neighborhood's toilet." She took small bite and Maura waited for her to chew. "We took a lot of shit for that, but I was never more proud to be a Rizzoli." She reached to her lap to pick up a rogue sausage crumble and pop it into her mouth. "It's not the end of the world… but once again he's come in and trampled on something good we all shared." Jane took a larger bite of the slice in her hand to signal she had nothing more to say on the matter. Maura was always able to get her to say things she rather keep private and she had no idea how.

Maura watched her enlarged cheeks break down the food slowly before swallowing. "Hopelessness." She read sadly.

Jane looked over at her. "Is that what it is?" She wiped her mouth.

"The foundation in which you put most weight on is your family, and it's changing in ways that you can't control."

"I'm okay with out of my control, what I'm not okay with is not knowing if I'm doing the right things at the right times. I've always been so sure, Maura."

"I know." She smiled thinly. "A little uncertainty is perfectly healthy, a lot is changing." She thought of their meditation class tomorrow and looked elsewhere in her living room before turning back to Jane. "Tomorrow can wait." Jane looked at her then. "It's only a class." The woman across from her narrowed her eyes subtly; Maura had seen her do it before when questioning a witness at a crime scene. It wasn't a declaration of suspicion but more so aired on the side of a silent request for the truth.

"It's important to you." Jane read.

Maura nodded. "Is it to you?"

"You are." She said slowly. "You are important to me." Jane touched her arm then and the two stared at one another. "What's going on here, Maura?" Jane whispered after the gaze failed to break after their usually allotted time expired, her hand still remained gently covering Mura's elbow.

Maura wasn't certain what this feeling was; Jane looking at her like this, but it was warm and gooey and all she wanted to do was continue to look at the detective, continue to feel her looking at her. Maura shook her head slowly and attempted a small smile. "I don't know, Jane."

"Well, cut it out." Jane blushed some as her fingers gently brushed the soft skin of Maura's arm. "It's distracting, you're distracting."

Maura smile grew showing her dimples now as she tilted her head. "I distract you? Me?"

Jane made a face. "Is that so hard to believe?"

Maura let herself sigh. "Jane, I don't know what to believe…" Her experiment to give in and embrace the feelings that made her nervous was beginning to backfire. She never felt safer in its failure though, and she knew it was because of Jane. The ME glanced at Jane's hand on her arm. "I don't want you to move your hand though."

Jane looked to her right hand. She curled her fingers around Maura's arm gently and then looked back at the other woman. "No?"

Maura shook her head. "No."

They stared at one another for a moment more before Jane let her hand slip to her lap. "Maura."

Psychophysics was the branch of experimental psychology that fascinated Maura the most. If one could understand the study of sensation and perception couldn't one understand everything else in life? She had to stop herself from mentioning aloud the difference threshold of the fuzzy cold that covered the particular area on her arm where Jane's hand had been. Instead she chooses to study the half of her friend's face she could see. Jane almost seemed ashamed. "Something has changed."

Jane looked over at her and nodded once. "What?"

Maura smiled softly at the worry wrinkling Jane's brow now. "Nothing we have to decide tonight."

Jane leaned against the back of the couch and nodded more to herself before looking at Maura again. "Or tomorrow?"

"Or tomorrow." The pathologist agreed, and though it was so clearly delaying whatever it was delaying Maura couldn't help but feel better, it was the solace you got when you realized you weren't alone she recognized.

"Let's watch something." She didn't wait for Maura to agree before flipping the television on. Beside her Maura began to get comfortable by pulling a throw over her legs and leaning her weight slightly against Jane as she always did when they watched television together. Had they always sat so close the detective wondered? "No games tonight…" Jane glanced at her and suddenly felt a little bad. She wondered how Maura's day had been, had she found that poky thing she was looking for? Was the big guy on her table a criminal or just a klutz? What'd she do with the rest of those jellybeans Jane saw her purchase at the vending machine? She sure as hell wouldn't eat them… maybe it was for an experiment. "You wanna pick?"

Maura looked at her curiously. "Really?"

Jane shrugged and handed her the remote. "Yeah."

Maura took the remote control happily and began pressing a series of buttons. "There is a Finnish opera on the satellite network I've been dying to see!"

Jane groaned as Maura smiled at her excitedly. "I don't know Finnish, Maura." As if the other woman didn't know.

Maura curled back up onto the couch beside her after finding the correct channel. "It's okay, I will put on the subtitles." She dismissed while tucking her legs under herself. "Or if you'd like we can watch the English adaptation after."

"How long is this one?" Jane asked as the thick red curtains on screen began to be pulled away revealing the set of a sleepy town in what she supposed was somewhere in Finland.

"Three hours."

"Three hours, Maura!?"

"Shh, it's starting."

##

"Hey, Ma." Jane whispered over her shoulder an hour and a half later. The entire living room was dark save for the bright television casting shades of light on herself and a now sleeping Maura. The volume to the tv was muted and for the past hour Jane had been watching the images of big men and sturdy women singing into nothingness while she got lost in her own thought.

Angela Rizzoli slipped on a small kitchen light and pulled her robe against her as she studied the scene before her. "Hi sweetheart, I didn't know you were sleeping over."

Jane motioned with her chin to Maura's head rested against her shoulder. "Maura's idea…."

Angela smiled. "She'll wake up with neck pain."

Jane supposed her mother was right but she couldn't help but not want to move the other woman at all. Maua was warm and smelled faintly of her perfume and a night cream made from five different age fighting tea leafs, all of which she had no idea how to pronounce but smelt amazing blended with Maura's natural scent. Their conversation earlier came back then. What did it mean if Maura didn't want her to move her hand and Jane didn't want her to move her head?

Angela Rizzoli was already standing behind the couch rocking Maura's shoulder gently. "She's fallen asleep in the tub reading you know." Her mother whispered. Jane let herself chuckle, somehow she could totally see that. "Maura honey…"

Maura opened her eyes sleepily. "Did I miss the third act?" she looked at Jane expectantly.

"Um…" Jane looked back to the tv. "YYessnnn—How can you tell?"

Maura smiled up at Angela who was still rubbing her shoulder affectionately before looking over at the television. "You weren't watching it without sound were you?" she looked slightly mortified.

Jane unmuted the tv. "No?"

Maura shook her head and got to her feet deciding in that moment that she would ignore Jane's misuse of the mute button for a time when she was better able to complete mental thoughts. Right now a cocktail of neurotransmitters were leaning her back to wakefulness and she knew she wouldn't be able to sustain a restful night's sleep if she fought them. "I left the melatonin for you in the guest bathroom, Jane."

Angela crossed her arms. "Mela-what?"

"Oh, N-acetyl-five-methoxy tryptamine is perfectly natural." Maura nodded.

Angela looked down at her daughter who merely shrugged. "Well it sounds like a drug." The older Rizzoli put her hands on her hips and looked between the two of them again.

Jane shed the throw she and Maura were sharing as she stood. "It's not a drug, Ma." She waved her hands toward Maura. "It's a five methoid proxy-limeaide."

Maura gave her a look and then turned toward Angela. "I'd better be going to sleep, excuse me Angela." Jane's mother smiled at her warmly and said goodnight but stood where she was. Maura looked over to Jane. "Good night, Jane."

"Night Maur." There was a slight moment of hesitation between them but before Jane could examine it Maura was gone leaving her and her mother alone. Jane put her hands up in surrender when her mother raised a brow. "I don't wanna talk about today, Ma."

"How'd you know I was going to ask that?"

"Because it's my job to read people okay?" Jane let herself yawn.

"Janie wait." She gripped her daughter's slender shoulders in that lovingly overbearing way of hers. "I just want you to know that whatever you kids want to do I support you all."

Jane smiled softly. "Thanks, Ma." She had no idea she needed to hear it until she heard it, she wasn't sure why but her mother's ability to do that was still a welcomed surprise. She had o idea what she were going to do about her father, whatever she decided though she knew it would have to be in line with what her brothers wanted. They'd do this together, whatever that meant.

Jane pulled herself up the stairs after a goodnight hug from her mother. She could feel the sweet serenade of sleep tugging at her eyelids but something had ticketed her hindbrain a moment ago and like any instinct Jane couldn't ignore it. She paused in front of Maura's closed bedroom door and checked that the light was still on before knocking. There was stillness before the soft padding of Maura's slippered feet could be heard.

"Jane."

Jane leaned against the doorframe and crossed her arms to her chest. "Could it be possible that our victims were primed to react to those trace opioids by normal hormones like melatonin?"

Maura thought on it briefly before nodding. "It is possible."

"Do you think that's what happened?"

Maura shook her head. "I can't know that unless I preform a third autopsy on our first victim…"

Jane nodded to herself. "We just thought the guy was health conscious with all those vitamins at his place. Maybe he interacted with our victims more than we thought."

"Or is not working alone." Maura concluded. Jane glanced back down the hall and Maura cleared her throat.

"What?"

"There is nothing you can do right this second without a lab technician and my written approval for a third autopsy." Jane had that look about her like she was calculating how long it would take her to get back to the precinct. Case face. She also had a look about her like she would pass out behind the wheel half way there. "Go to sleep, Jane."

Jane sighed heavily. "Fine." She pulled herself up from the doorframe. "But no lollygagging ." She warned. "We don't have time for your three hour pour over."

Maura crossed her arms. "You said it was the best coffee you had ever had."

"Yes, I've also said that about gas station coffee." Maura crossed her arms. "What I mean to say is Boston Joe's might be just a little faster, just a little."

"Boston Joe's over roasts their beans and seldom sources fermented fruit higher than below average quality markers."

"I don't know what that means."

"Exactly."

##

Jane reclined in her chair and crumbled up the greasy wax paper and tossed it into the bag it came in before reaching for her root beer and sipping through her bendy straw. "Let's run it back again." She decided after having spent the last three minutes at her desk silently eating and staring at the case board. There had to be something said about being able to eat a cheeseburger with such satisfaction while staring at crime scene photos. Knowles was being moved at the end of the week to county and if they couldn't pin these other eleven murders to him he'd be out in a few years with a slap on the wrist. Jane wouldn't let that happen, she couldn't.

Korsak adjusted his tie as he gave himself time to finish his last chew. "Edgar Knowles. Sole survivor of a family fire in '84 as a young child. Grows up in the system until he turns eighteen—"

Jane nodded to herself. "That's when he tries to join the reserves only to not be rejected." She stood form her desk. "Ends up working a string of dead end jobs, pizza delivery, stock boy, grocery clerk—"

"Don't forget his most recent letting go at." Korsak slipped on his glasses. "Rite-Box drugstore in Southie."

Jane looked to the map they had created with red pins signaling Edgar Knowles connection to the area. "and as of six months ago his part time role as a highway toll agent." Jane shook her head at the many red pins. "He's been everywhere. How the hell are we going to triangulate an outlier?"

Korsak moved to stand beside her. "Maybe it's time we pay a visit to his foster mother's home."

Jane found the pin on the map which signified Ms. Rodigel's residence. The elderly woman with all the cats. "It is close enough to the Highway, but that in and of itself means he had a place to store the body, why leave it in plain sight the way he did?" She rubbed her chin. "the toll booth would give him direct sight of the body and the attention it caused right?"

Vince nodded. "An escalation?"

"Well you'd have to imagine Knowles would want to be able to watch the havoc he had caused with every victim at a safe distance."

Korsak nodded. "It doesn't explain the hormones theory." She had run it by him that morning when she got in.

"Maura is running tests from the vic's third autopsy." Jane nodded. "How about we split up and take a look at these last known places of employment."

Vince nodded. "Better than sitting around here, take Frankie with you."

Jane grabbed her blazer from the back of her chair and the paper bag from McGretty's Burger Grill. "Sounds good." She stuffed the bag under her arm and checked to make sure she had her weapon on her waist before grabbing her cell phone off of her desk. "Shit." She muttered.

"What wrong?"

It was five and Rite Box Pharmacy was thirty minutes away without evening traffic. "Nothing." She waved off. "Just didn't realize it was so late."

Korsak chuckled. "Hope you didn't have a date."

"What? Who's got a date?" Frankie asked the room as he emerged clad in a grey suit and brown tie. "It can't be either of you, so what? It's Knowles? I was just up there no one was in to visit him. Not even that lawyer."

Vince shook his head. "Go with Jane."

"I know why he can't have a date, but why can't I have a date?" Frankie opened his mouth. "And before you say anything I'm going to need you to focus really hard on your answer baby brother."

"You sure I can't come with you?" Frankie asked Korsak as Jane made her way into the hall not waiting for his response.

"We're looking for something held in plain sight." Vince reiterated. "We think Knowles held his victims in places where he could keep an eye on them, places many people use but seldom really pay much attention to, think you can handle that?"

Frankie huffed. "Hey, you try working with your sister."

The seasoned detective chuckled. "You don't want me doing that."

They moved to take the elevator down together, Jane was already gone. "My eldest sister Mary is a dance teacher in Palm Beach."

Frankie chuckled. "Yeah, you're right. Don't wanna see that."

Korsak capped an arm on his shoulder. "Let's focus on nailing this bastard and not my moves."

Down in the morgue Jane scratched the back of her neck before pushing into the main autopsy room where she found Maura where she often found her - leaning over a dead body. Aside from offering to grab her lunch Jane hadn't interacted much with Maura that day. She wouldn't say she was avoiding her but the build of tension as every hour had passed counting down until their meditation class tonight had been just behind her every thought. She hated the idea that she could be distracted so easily, especially because it seldom ever happened, not when it came to a case but the taller woman couldn't really help herself.

Something had changed, Jane knew it, Maura knew it, but until last night there had been a silent agreement of sorts, something comfortable, something Jane could put away when need be, not anymore though.

"So what's it mean if I can eat and look at crime scene photos?" Jane asked casually as she stepped into the chilled autopsy room. The unmistakable smell of decomposition and various chemicals ruffled her senses some and served as a good reminder for her timeframe down there. Frankie had probably made it to her car by now and was either on his way down here or pulling out his phone to call her.

Maura didn't look up from her work. "A disconnect of visual sensitivity to socially adopted views on morality and violence. It's not uncommon given our work."

Jane shifted her footing. "Hm…"

"Why do you ask?"

She shrugged. "Just had a really good burger—You got anything on this hormone theory?" Maura looked up. She was wearing her full scrubs and goggles a note that it had been another busy day down here for her, the colorful blouse and pencil skirt she had worn to work that day were probably hung up in her office beside her lab coat. "Korsak was curious."

"Just Korsak?"

"Well alright me too, c'mon Maura tell me we got something."

Maura stood upright and motioned to the young woman on her table. "I haven't found anything yet but we should be receiving tests shortly. Cause of death is the same blunt force trauma to the skull. Lividity is the same." Maura moved to show Jane her mouth. "There is something you should note." Jane leaned in. "These lines here indicate dehydration, given the humidity was at a record low the day we received her our analysis initially concluded that that was xerodermia." Jane shifted. "Dry skin."

"Ah."

"After the second autopsy I realized it had to be from an actual dehydration and not a simple drying."

"Alright so he held her for some time before leaving her on the road. Where though?" She shook her head. "Knowles has worked everywhere in the greater Boston area, there has to be some way of finding these other bodies, I don't really feel up for another goose hunt." She looked at her watch again and sighed. "Anyway I may be late to our thing." Maura had taken off her gloves and had moved to the standing desk and computer where some results for another case had just binged and grabbed her attention. She paused and looked over at Jane. "I know." Jane apologized. "Frankie and I are on our way to a few other places where Knowles worked. We think he may have hidden the bodies at his old jobs. I'll call you."

"The class has a strict policy on cell phones, Jane."

"Well you may not even need it because I'm going to be there."

Maura smiled but knew better, they both did. "We can always reschedule." She reminded as she watched the other woman slowly walk backwards out of the autopsy room.

"No no, I said I'll be there, gonna be super relaxed and open to new ideas and mindfulness and barefoot and stuff."

"Right after you find the eleven other victims to a seral murderer?"

Jane snapped her fingers together. "Yes, right after that. I'm yours, promise."

"Jane—"

"Stop talking to me, it's only going to make me late."

Maura chuckled as she watched her turn and push out of the room. Five minutes later she smiled to herself as she continued to examine their victim's mouth and the dryness within it. "Did you forget your gun, Detective?" She teased having heard a familiar strike pattern before her enter the autopsy room.

He cleared his throat. "Maybe you're thinking of someone else."

The Chief Medical Examiner looked up quickly at the voice and fought her surprise to smile politely. "Mr. Rizzoli."

He waved her off. "Just uh, just call me Frank."