Voight yawned as he gradually awakened to the sound of his alarm. As he tried to rise from bed, he sensed a weight on top of him and noticed a tuft of brown hair in front of his face. The gray-haired man recalled the events of the previous night involving Erin.
Just before two in the morning, Erin had sought comfort in his room after a nightmare, expressing her reluctance to be alone. Initially planning to sleep on the floor, Voight found himself lying beside her as she drifted off to sleep.
Anticipating the challenging days ahead until Erin's recovery, Voight gently ran his fingers through her brunette hair and coaxingly reminded her, 'Hey, Erin, we need to get up and head to the station.'
Erin responded with a soft groan, rolling away from Voight and voicing her reluctance by curling into a ball. 'I don't want to,' she protested, covering her head with a pillow and tugging the blanket off Voight, prompting a playful eye roll from him.
Voight sat up after Erin had moved away from him, quickly grabbing a shirt and a pair of sweats to put on, as he usually only slept in his boxers. 'Alright, you have five minutes,' he stated, observing Erin with a smug grin as she began to drift back to sleep.
After showering and getting dressed, Voight went to check on Erin, who was starting to awaken slowly. 'Good morning, sleeping beauty,' he greeted as he sat on the bed to put on his boots.
When Voight's weight caused the bed to dip slightly, Erin groaned and asked, 'Do I have to leave?' She preferred to stay, but she understood she couldn't handle being alone.
'You are not obligated to, I have given you a few days off, but I don't want you to be alone,' Voight reassured her as he stood up. 'Hurry so we can make a detour to your favorite bagel place and get coffee on the way,' he suggested with a smirk, knowing it would motivate her to get moving.
Erin watched him depart, finding it difficult to believe he had used that card on her. However, despite her reservations, she understood that she could not decline a beagle or coffee, especially when Voight was footing the bill. She rose from the bed and stretched.
The brunette then enveloped herself in a robe, as she had found herself uncomfortably clad in just her underwear and a tight tank top due to overheating. Once dressed, she descended the stairs to find Voight preparing to leave, adjusting his coat and holding his keys.
'Ready to go?' He inquired. 'Yeah,' Erin replied as she grabbed her coat. 'Um, after work, can we swing by my apartment to collect some things?' She queried while following him towards the truck.
'Of course, I can have Al retrieve them for you,' he offered, to which Erin nodded, feeling uneasy about entering her apartment after what had transpired.
Upon arriving at the district, following a stop at Marie's Beagle shop for breakfast, Erin and Voight entered the station. 'Morning, Erin, Hank,' Platt greeted them once they approached the desk.
"Good morning, Trudy," Voight greeted, while Erin simply nodded in return. "Could you please keep an eye on Erin and check on her every hour?" he asked. Erin frowned at Voight, showing her disapproval. "Hank, I don't require a babysitter," she stated firmly, crossing her arms.
Voight insisted, "I understand, but I want to ensure that someone is here to make sure you are okay." Erin reluctantly agreed and followed him upstairs, after Voight instructed Atwater to change out of his uniform and join them in the bullpen. Upon reaching the bullpen, Al greeted them warmly, "Good morning, Voight, Lindsay."
Voight reciprocated the greeting to his old friend. As Erin settled at her desk, Voight conversed with Al. "Would you mind stopping by Erin's place to collect a few items for her and bring them to my home?" Voight asked.
Al agreed, "Of course, I will have Ruzek assist." Voight then assured Erin, "If you need anything, just give me a call, I will be in the basement sorting out something," before heading downstairs.
Erin observed with concern as she witnessed Voight descending into the basement. She questioned his intentions but refrained from further inquiry.
As the rest of the team had responsibilities such as patrols, Erin found herself alone in the bullpen, albeit accompanied by Mouse who was engrossed in his work in the corner.
An hour had passed when Erin, feeling bored and tired, began absentmindedly playing with a pen on her desk. Her hazel eyes gazed blankly as she watched the pen roll off the desk, startled by a voice calling her name.
'Erin, there you are,' her mother Bunny exclaimed as she approached Erin's desk. Startled, Erin quickly stood up, almost falling out of her chair in the process.
'What do you want, Bunny?' she asked with a tremble in her voice, as Bunny reached her desk. With a fearful glance exchanged with Mouse, who then went to fetch Voight, leaving Erin alone with Bunny, Erin awaited a response.
'I just came to check on how you were,' Bunny said, her expression turning to a frown at the tone Erin used towards her. 'I heard about what happened, Erin, and I wanted to see how you were doing and invite you to accompany me for a while,' Bunny offered, taking a step closer to her daughter, who instinctively backed away.
Erin retreated against the file cabinet situated behind her and responded, 'No, I'm fine… Hank is helping me,' she said, flinching as the blonde scoffed, 'Of course he is.' Bunny approached the brunette, who stood fearfully between the wall and the file cabinet, urging, 'Will you cease this behavior? You are behaving childishly,' as she attempted to grab Erin's arm.
'No, don't touch me,' Erin protested, fear evident in her hazel eyes, shoving Bunny away impulsively, nearly causing the older woman to lose her balance. Erin's breath caught in her throat as Bunny's blue eyes flashed in anger, 'You did not just push your mother,' she growled, slapping Erin hard across the face.
'Step away from her, now Fletcher!' Platt's stern voice intervened from behind Bunny, prompting the blonde to turn and face the female sergeant. 'Are you also going to remove me from my daughter?' Bunny retorted harshly.
· In The Basement*
Voight descended the stairs to the basement and noticed Jay approaching. 'Are you still intending to eliminate Roland?' the younger detective inquired, observing Roland in the cage. 'Certainly, Halstead,' Voight affirmed as he continued past Jay, who expressed disapproval by shaking his head.
'Consider this, Voight. How will this benefit Erin?' Jay questioned, causing Voight to halt in his tracks. Voight turned towards Jay, his jaw tight.
'Are you suggesting I allow Roland to escape accountability for drugging, assaulting, and abducting Erin?' he demanded sternly, perplexed by Jay's interference.
Jay took a step back. 'Absolutely not, Voight. Erin is my partner. But taking Roland's life would be an effortless resolution for him,' Jay argued.
'Moreover, if Erin discovers the truth, she will not condone this approach,' Jay pointed out, emphasizing his perspective.
Voight found himself contemplating Jay's statement that killing Roland would be too easy, expressing a desire for Roland to suffer as much as possible: 'But if you wish to physically assault him or intimidate him, I will not intervene,' Jay stated.
The man with gray hair nervously observed Roland's aggressive demeanor and inquired, 'What is the nature of your conversation over there?' Voight turned to Jay and then back to Roland, asserting, 'That is not your concern,' as he approached Roland.
Provoking a physical response, Roland controversially questioned, 'How is Erin faring? Is she missing me already?' Voight swiftly silenced him with a punch to the face, cautioning, 'Do not inquire about her.'
Roland responded with laughter, goading, 'Or else what? Will you and the gentleman there kill me?' Jay positioned himself behind Voight, warning, 'Should you continue speaking, I will permit him to harm you.'
As Voight prepared to retort, Mouse rushed down the stairs, breathless and urgently conveying, 'Voight, you must come quickly!'