A/N: Thanks to tingtorn78, Bex, and PinkLady for every Chapter review you all send me, it reminds me to keep going.

Lifting her eyes from the labs that the lab technician brought back for her from the missing person turned murder case, Maura reminisced what Jane would do while she chronicled what she knew of the case. All the signs pointed to the boyfriend. Statistically when women went missing and it wasn't their significant other who reported them missing that would be an immediate red flag. Maura was never one to guess or bring bias to her cases, but in this one with the case close to going cold she can't help but reach for straws. She picked up the phone to see if Nina couldn't do any digital research. Dialing the extension to the brick she was soon answered on the other line by Nina.

"Hello?"

"Hi Nina, I'm taking a look at the labs that the lab technician brought back to me - there is nothing suspicious in her labs, no traces of odd chemicals, and nothing found in her stomach contents. I'm grasping at straws at the moment and i was wondering if you might be able to do some digital digging for me."

"Sure Maura, what do you have?"

"So, her name was Angie Harrison. Her boyfriend's name was James Gene. She was a hostess at Grotto in the Beacon hill area. She was last seen with her boyfriend, but he claims he woke up to her already gone on the day of her disappearance. He wasn't the person who reported her missing, her manager at the cafe was- after her third day of not responding to her missing her shifts. The manager of the cafe. He isn't talking but obviously if your significant other is missing for three days that seems highly suspect."

"Is Maura Isles speculating? Things have definitely changed without Jane around." Nina grinned attempting to lighten the mood.

"Call it a gut feeling." She smiled remembering how often Jane would use her intestines to find her leads. "Frankie has interrogated James but he wasn't able to get anything out of him. He is a lawyer by trade so I'm sure he knows everything he shouldn't say and how to utilize loopholes. There is not a lot to go on beyond the blunt trauma to her torso. It's consistent with a hit and run but the bruising and internal bleeding isn't the best proof to track down who did it."

"He has no prior hits, seems to be an upstanding citizen based on his records here in Boston. I'm not sure we are going to find anything out if he doesn't want to talk and he is a squeaky-clean lawyer." Nina relayed while looking at the screen in front of her with search results.

"I honestly want to believe that, but I've done some research on the cases and people he has defended. I'm not one to make assumptions but there are more than a few of his customers that are of the unsavory type. Known drug kingpins, mobsters, he is a high profile get out of jail free card."

"Okay, I'll keep digging. If he is indeed a get out of jail free card for those types of people, I'm not looking forward to letting him off Scot free."

"Alright, thank you Nina. Keep me and Frankie posted. I'll call you later if i find any other clues in her fingernails or skin samples. The water exposure unfortunately makes that highly unlikely, but I'll be combing through as much as I can." Maura mentioned matter-of-factly.

"You are coming to Rizzoli dinner, aren't you? This will be Frankie and I's first hosting and I'd love for you to be there as support. The Rizzoli's are great but having a non-Rizzoli at my corner is always a great relief. Plus, you and Angela can help me with those Italian dishes. I don't think I've quite gotten the hang of the gnocchi."

"Sure, I'll be there. Is it alright if I bring Edward?" Maura asked cautiously.

"Sure, that's a great idea - I'll look forward to all the wild Maura stories! Is there anything I should know about you two? You know Angela's going to have you married off and having children just with you inviting him!"

"No, no, no nothing like that. I have however considered the possibility of perhaps dating him or maybe some coital options if find myself missing that human closeness."

"MAURA! Don't you dare. You divorced him for a reason. You don't mix up history and let history repeat itself!"

"I know Nina, it's just now that Jane is gone, I've never realized how much of my time was spent together with Jane. In all honesty she was most -if not all of my social interaction for the last several years. Suddenly that stable piece of my life is gone and nothing really to fill that with. I've continued my writing to fill some of that time, but in the aspects of human connection I've not found a replacement for her."

"Look Maura, I can definitely understand that when I lost my boyfriend in the line of duty. In one fell sloop my everything was gone. I know it's not quite the same, but it feels like a part of you left with them. Luckily you still have Jane, she is just far away right now. You can maintain that relationship from far away still and you both talk to each other daily."

"It's not the same. I agree though, she and I still talk often, and I just need to find something additional to fill my time beside reading medical journals. Jane has started dating Cameron as well. So, I know she has support and someone to replace me there with. I guess I just need something as well to feel like I'm keeping up with her progress in her life so we have something to talk about." she spoke that last part quietly pondering what that could mean.

"Jane will always be there, you know that Maura. Plus, you never had struggles for what to talk about when she was here. You are not about to start now."

"That's true. Well, I have to get back to collecting samples, I will see you at Rizzoli family dinner." Maura hung up and walked from her office back to the autopsy area where the body was enclosed in a body bag. Finishing up the collection of scraping underneath the fingernails and any impacted areas of the body that she believed could have made contact with anything of a person's last moments, Maura then refrigerated the vials and put them into the sample fridge ready for the lab transports in the morning. She had promised Hope that after work today she would help in the clinic. This time rounds would be with more infants.

During her internship for medical school, she had settled into Forensic Pathology towards becoming a medical examiner, but with the work she had been doing in Hope's clinic, she was starting to feel like she could speak for newborns and infants with less tragic circumstances in her cases. She was seriously considering becoming a neonatologist if her role at BPD was too sadness inducing without Jane. She had a skill for speaking for those who couldn't speak for themselves. With her knowledge she would be able to spot things on high-risk infants or how they were progressing just based on appearance and palpability- effectively speaking for the newborn who can't speak for themselves.

Clinic work had been rewarding for Maura. The last she had helped an infant her whole family had faith in her saving the baby. The science told her there was no way for the child to survive. By the end of the treatment a miracle had happened. Not all cases would end up like that but in her current job all the beings were already dead. It was exhilarating to save someone's life from the depths of despair.

"Hey honey. Thank you again for showing up as my neonatologist. All the parents seem to love you. You have great maternal instincts." Hope commented as she passed the locker room.

"I guess so. I always thought I might be a mother someday. I did freeze my eggs, but I just never can decide for myself that I'm ready or if I'll ever be ready." Maura reminisced and how close she came to hoping to raise Jane's baby with her. "I was looking forward to helping Jane with her baby, but I get it wasn't in our destiny."

"Oh! I'm so sorry Maura, I didn't realize you were in a relationship with Jane. It makes so much sense now how angry she would get at me when I didn't treat you well. I had no idea you and Jane were expecting. That must have been so difficult, are you no longer together? Is that why she moved to Quantico?"

"What?! Oh no, sorry Hope, that's not what.. I." The younger blond tried to explain that Casey had put his career before Jane and his relationship and because of that Jane had rather he stay out of her child's life, and she raise the child herself. However, saying that aloud would not help to change the perception. If she explained it that way - why would Jane not want the father of her baby in the child's life but ask her best friend to help her raise her child. Maura's brow knitted and her though processes were spinning and leading to her head feeling like cotton on how to explain it in a way that would make sense to other people. It made perfect sense to her at the time- but now when trying to explain it to her biological Mother it even confused her. Because of the pause, Hope understood it to mean that everything she had said was correct and took that moment to hug her former long-lost child.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that." Hope hugged Maura tenderly hoping to convey support and comfort of her relationship and loss.

"I, I, I.." Maura was dumbfounded but enjoyed the hug from her mother and decided to leave it as is because they both didn't have time in the current shift to explain everything. She sunk into the hug and for the first time let herself mourn her lost baby and relationship with Jane all at once but for whole different reasons than her mother spoke of.

"Hope, if I could, I'd like to be a part time neonatologist here instead of a temporary shift stand in." the medical examiner, needed to keep herself busy and she did enjoy the role.

"Oh! Maura that's wonderful! How will you fit this into your schedule! A double doctor and a part time writer! My child is absolutely amazing. I would love that."

"I've been thinking about changing my profession completely to neonatologist. I want to make the difference for someone before they die." Maura said the words aloud and immediately was torn from what she had said out loud and what she had been feeling lately working around BPD.

"I'm so excited my daughter with a permanent role in my clinic. I couldn't ask for a better doctor. Cailin is going to be ecstatic!" Hope raved as she headed toward the door. "Well, I can't keep my patient waiting. I'll talk to you later honey." Maura too headed off to exam room one toward her next patient.