Here we are.
Guest; I know, he can so frustrating!
She had never really tried to read him, to really read him. Yes, many times she had wondered what was going on in that head and heart of his, what he was up to and how he truly felt about things: but she had never tried to intentionally and purposely apply his science on him. She thought there was no point, he could be literally impenetrable if he wanted, but she had never really felt the need to try anyway.
Not until the moment he had blurted out that he loved her, mid laugh and out of breath, as if some hilarious demon had possessed him and taken full control of him.
It had been the day after they had closed the unfortunate Claire's case, the day after - Gillian knew that because Cal had later told her once, months after that moment - Emily had questioned her father about his feelings for her. That day he had been strangely distant, something that Gillian had found really hard to understand. From the moment she had mentioned she had a personal case and explained exactly how personal it was, Cal had been all over it and all over her: in a way, it had been refreshing for her to see that he could obsess and go all in on a case for someone else too. And of course as the case had gotten harder for her he had ramped it up, exhibiting incredible restraint when he was with her and unleashing all of his rage on Mosley. He had come to Claire's funeral: Gillian hadn't asked him to and he hadn't asked if she wanted him to be there, but she had been not surprised at all and very glad to have him there. Then he had thrown himself at it again for the final push and got that son of a bitch the punishment he deserved, and with that accomplished he had been there for her again as she tried to find closure.
But the day after Emily's…exhortation Cal had stayed clear of her as much as possible. He hadn't spoken to her unless he had to, avoided her eyes and whenever possible even avoided being alone with her. She had been confused, at times offended, wondering if maybe now that it was all over he was resenting her doing something he had done countless times. Fed up with it, whatever it was, at the end of the day Gillian had marched into his office and found him sunk on the armchair in the library with a glass of scotch in his hand, brooding in the deem light of the room with an empty stare.
For some reason, the sight had infuriated her. She had stared him down and then started on a tangent, barking at him that whatever it was he had to get over it, that he had no right to be upset with her and that if it wasn't that then he had no right to sulk all day in silence and pretend like there weren't people around who cared about him and he could talk to. She had had more, it had felt like breaking down a damn and the flood had come down on him. That was not what friends did, how could he go from hot to cold in the blink of an eye and what was she supposed to make of it? That being there for her had been just a short lived act, that their friendship only meant something when shit hit the fan and when everything was fine he was the only one authorised to pout and commiserate, and- And what the hell are you laughing about?!
Because yes, she had been still mid sentence and going at him like she had never done before when Cal had started laughing. First a quick chuckle, but that had soon exploded in uncontrollable laughter that had brought tears to his eyes. Gillian had been speechless, feeling shocked and insulted and many other things but certainly not amused, looking down at him with bugged-eyes as he had kept on laughing and trying to catch his breath. She had asked what was wrong with him and between laughter and short breaths Cal had managed to mumble that he never heard use any kind of bad words and slur and her literally saying 'shit' in a conversation had just short-circuited his brain. She had not found that as hilarious as he had, asking how that was one the one thing he had taken away from her speech and if he'd ever grow up and what the f-. She had stopped herself short of dropping that bomb, one because it wasn't a word in her vocabulary and two because she had realised it would have probably made him pee his pants at the rate he was going.
And then he had said it, after a slap on his knee trying to stop himself and another burst of laughs. Then he had managed to regain some kind of composure and catch his breath, long enough to stand up and blurt out 'I love you' before his own confession coming out of nowhere had led to another wave of nervous hilarity.
Gillian wasn't surprised, months later as she sat in the lab in front of the screen, that that moment came to her mind as she watched the recording of Cal's interrogation with the police. Back then, after those words had left his mouth she had looked at him in shock, for the first time since she had met him really trying to read him and figure out if what he had said was true or just a crazy statement. It had been hard, what with his face scrunched up in laughter and the widest smile she had ever seen on him; but then he had calmed down, taken in a long breath and even though the funny expression had gone the smile had stayed, steady and honest as he had said the words again without trying to hide anything in or behind them.
It was that moment that came to her mind more than once as she watched the recording, applying everything she knew about his science and him to read him. Too bad that not much came out of it, and it wasn't surprising. Many officers and detectives in DC had gone through their training, and although Cal couldn't be sure that included the ones in the room he had clearly assumed they had. And he had put up his defences, saying nothing and showing even less. Gillian suspected that the first one had been Martin's advice, a wise one indeed, but the second had Cal's fingerprints all over it. She watched him sit there, hands under the table at all times, ignoring the water they had brought for him knowing full well that often a beverage could become part of the interrogation strategy. She observed him freezing his face muscles, confidently making eye contact while throwing at their faces his superiority, not letting anything through.
That was all great, Cal was giving them nothing to go with and silently pushing back any attempt to get him to talk or commit to anything. Many people thought that silence in an interrogation equaled guilt, that people with nothing to hide would be eager to say that any chance they could: but much like their lawyer they knew that silence was gold, especially when there wasn't someone like them watching to see behind it no matter what. That was comforting, but in all honesty Gillian had also hoped to be able to get something out of it for herself, find something to work on to get him out of there. Which was why she had asked Torres and Loker to help her with that, knowing they'd be more impartial if it needed be, that if they could get over the strange feeling of having the boss/girlfriend asking them to pretty much spy on the other boss/boyfriend.
They were professionals, Gillian counted on that, but despite the combined effort of three pairs of trained eyes the only thing they saw was a quick blink-and-you-miss-it flash of disgust when Detective Bennet suggested maybe that was all a big misunderstanding, that maybe he was stepping out on his girlfriend that night and things had taken a strange turn. The disgust on Cal's face at the insinuation had many layers: he was bemused by the fact that she was suggesting a love escapade could somehow end with 5kg of cocaine in the trunk of his car, offended that the detective really thought that move could work on him - get through to him with a personal attack, get him to say anything at all in the vain hope to stick her foot in the door - and absolutely outraged that she was suggesting he might be cheating on Gillian.
That single reaction made Gillian blush for a moment under the relieved looks of her employees, then they all went back to watching.
In the end it was a rather boring show, and a masterclass in not showing anything that somehow scared the crap out of Loker and Torres. When they finished there wasn't much to discuss, Cal had shown absolutely nothing and they still had nothing but biassed information and wild guesses.
Gillian thanked them for their time and help then left the lab, going back to her office to get her things with the intention to leave and go back to the prison. Martin had come over earlier, bringing food and reminding her that she had had nothing to eat since dinner the night before, the recording she had just watched and a valuable piece of advice: they needed to get a criminal lawyer on board. At that point he too was convinced that something shady was going on, and he knew his limits in fighting something like that: they might have to play a little dirty too, and even if the goal was to get Cal out there was also a chance that should start preparing for a trial down the line. Gillian appreciated his professional candour, and after having asked him to also stay on board she had given him a mandate to look around for a potential playmaker to bring on the court.
That update was one of the things that she planned to share with Cal as she waited for the guards to bring him to the same private room where they had met before, but she kind of forgot about it for a moment when the door opened and he hobbled in. This time the guard didn't take off his handcuffs before leaving them, and when the door closed again Gillian immediately looked at him with concern.
"Nothing love, they're just being childish," he shrugged. "I don't think they liked my performance."
She sighed with relief, worried that there might have been some more serious retaliation, then Cal lifted his arms and brought them behind her, creating a small cocoon for her to come closer and close her arms around him.
"I'm ok Gill, I promise," he whispered, trying to caress her hair with his cuffed hands. "I've had worse bullying from 15 years old, nothing I can't handle."
"I saw that myself, yeah. They also did a number on your office." Gillian mumbled, pulling back and looking at him. "I saw the tape. They're probably hoping this evidence of them is really good because they won't get anything from you."
"Martin seems pretty confident that they are not."
"He also thinks it wouldn't be a bad idea to start looking ahead. He's looking for a criminal lawyer to help us out."
Cal nodded, but his attention seemed to be elsewhere as he gently brushed his finger on her cheek.
"Do you mind if we talk about something else?" He gave her a cheeky smile, obviously trying to be charming. "You know, that cell is a very lonely place."
"W-Are you out of your mind?" She blurted at him. "Cal, we have to talk about this! Please tell me you realise what a mess this is?"
"I do, I'm just saying that for now we're doing everything we can and-"
"We are nowhere near covering this thing, Cal. Do you have any idea what this means, for everybody?" She walked away from him, her anger coming back. "I have to deal with our staff, with clients and organisations we have spent years building relationships with. Did Martin tell you what they are doing, what kind of profile are they putting together?" Cal nodded slowly, he had been duly informed. "Screw innocent until proven guilty. Cal, half of the people running this city are ready to turn their backs on you."
"And I am sure they will turn around again when the truth will come out."
"Oh yeah?" She rebuked him, annoyed by his calm demeanour. "And what about Emily?"
That got him, big time. The moment he heard his daughter's name brought into that Cal frowned and became immediately tense.
"What about her?"
"What am I supposed to tell her, Cal?"
"Nothing, not now. Not until-"
"Until what? Until this all magically disappears?" Gillian scoffed and crossed her arms to her chest, daring him to keep acting as if his life and career were not on the brink. "I'm not going to lie to her Cal, not about this. Sooner or later she will try to call you, which means that she will call me right after. Or worse, she's going to read about this somewhere, then what? She'll want to know why her father is in jail, while her bedroom has been violated by the police. She'll want to see you-"
"Don't let her come." He cut her off, panic driving his instruction as he looked down at himself. "I don't want her to see me like this."
"Then tell me what is going on, Cal. I beg you." She truly did, stepping closer and grabbing the collar of his suit to pull him towards her. "Whatever it is…I know you were not cheating on me, if that's what you're worried about and- Don't." She admonished, seeing his pleased grin at the revelation that her trust on him about something like that was untouched. "Don't do that, Cal. I'm not in the mood for this. I am worried about you and I want to help you but I won't deal with his shit-"
He didn't laugh like the last time - the first time - he actively tried to stop it knowing that it wasn't going to go down well. But he did laugh despite himself, throwing his head back with a loud snort that didn't waiver when she hit him on his shoulder. Then he trapped her in his arms again before she could pull away, keeping her closer as he stopped laughing and gently forced her to sink her face in his chest. Gillian wanted to be stronger, but she missed his proximity and their intimacy even in something as simple and innocent as a hug and eventually returned the embrace despite knowing that it was a damn right deflection.
"What's so funny about me cussing?" She asked then, in a childish and offended tone that made him chuckle again.
"I don't know love, maybe it just makes me happy when you lose it because of me." He pulled his head back a little, giving her a quick kiss on her lips. "And it still makes me love you."
Gillian rolled her eyes at his cheekiness, but then went back into the embrace with a sigh and holding onto his shoulders tightly.
"Fine, but don't think it will get you out of trouble."
"I like this kind of trouble," he mumbled, then once again guided her to look at him as he spoke. "Listen Gill, I know this is difficult but do you agree that they are building a case against me in a very suspicious and half-hassed way?" She didn't say it nor nodded at it, but she did agree and he could see that. "What you and Martin are doing, picking on all the holes and inconsistencies in their case, asking the hard questions and putting them on the spot…that is what is going to get me out of here."
"Maybe, but it would be so much easier if we could understand why they are doing this." She insisted, ready to ride that horse to eternity if she had to. "The way they are working against you, what they did in your office…it almost feels like it's personal, like they were waiting for you to do something that would allow them to expose you."
"If that's the case all we have to do is-"
He was interrupted by a sudden and unexpected knowing on the heavy door, which left them both confused. The door only opened from the outside, and who on heart would knock before entering a prison, of all places? But the sound gave them time to untangle and assume a less cosy position, so that when Martin burst into the room huffing and red in the face they were just standing next to each other.
"We have a problem," the lawyer said as the door closed behind him, rushing to the table to quickly and frantically drop his briefcase and folder on top of it. "A big problem."
They could tell, he looked frazzled and out of his depth for the first time and that didn't bode well for Cal. Then he told them what the new big, huge, problem was and his panicked composure spread like a wildfire.
