Everyone noticed the urgency of their exit and as they were getting into the car, Maggie's phone rang.
"Hey Jubal, look I don't know all the details, but something is wrong and it involves OA's mom. I'll let you know what's going on when I can."
"Okay, take your time. Let us know if we can do anything here."
"I will," Maggie replied before they hung up. OA hung up as well and turned to Maggie as he pulled out of the parking garage.
"What's going on?"
"My mom was attacked right in front of her building. Sh-she was targeted because she's Muslim and Egyptian, pure hate crime. Amira is already with her at the hospital. My other sisters Eman and Leila are on their way, too," OA replied while trying to keep his composure.
"Okay, what do you need from me?"
"I don't know yet, just stay with me?"
"Always," Maggie answered as he pulled into the parking lot at the hospital. He parked as close as he could and they walked in. They found Amira waiting and made their way over to her.
"Amira, where is she?" OA asked.
"Just down the hall. But her doctor isn't letting her wear her hijab or listening when I ask him to find a female doctor."
"Let me handle this one," Maggie said before heading over to the nurse's desk, "The personal effects of Halima Zidan, now," She demanded. The nurse didn't even look up so Maggie pulled her badge and shoved it into her view, "I said, now." Upon seeing her badge the nurse complied. Maggie took the bag and walked over to Amira.
"Go put her hijab on. If someone tells you to stop or gets in your way, you call for us and you quote your First Amendment rights to freedom of religion. When she's ready wave us down the hall," Maggie said as she handed her the bag.
"Thanks, Maggie," Amira said as she took it and walked back down the hallway. The doctor who had seen this entire exchange came over towards them.
"Who the hell are you to order my nurses around?" He demands. Maggie and OA pull their badges.
"FBI. And Mrs. Zidan is entitled to her religious beliefs according to the Constitution. This includes her hijab, and a female doctor now that her injuries are no longer in need of emergent attention. You will comply with these laws or you will be arrested. She is here because she is the victim of a felony hate crime and you are committing another against her by not complying with her requests," Maggie replied, purposefully putting herself between the doctor and OA. She could feel the tension between them and his anger was radiating through him. Maggie knew if she didn't handle this then the doctor would likely be the one in need of medical attention.
"All due respect agent, this is my ER and I make the calls here."
"Are you refusing to comply, doctor?"
"Yes." Maggie grabbed his wrist and spun him around before cuffing him.
"Then you are under arrest for committing a felony hate crime on the basis of religion. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you. You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one, one will be provided for you. Do you understand these rights as I have read them to you?" The doctor struggled against her but Maggie tightened her grip.
"I speak English, bitch," The doctor spat. OA waved a pair of uniformed NYPD officers over and they handed him over to them as they explained the situation. Amira popped her head out of the room and waved them over.
"Go," Maggie replied as she turned to speak to Scola and Tiff who had just walked in.
"Did we catch her case?" Maggie asked and they nodded.
"Yeah, what was that?" Tiff asked.
"Her doctor was refusing to comply with requests that she made on the basis of her religion, so I arrested him, you know before OA could snap his neck," Maggie only half-joked.
"Damn," Scola replied and they followed OA down the hall. Maggie stepped into the room and put her hand on OA's back to get his attention. He turned to her and spotted their friends in the hallway.
"The JOC caught the case?" He asked and Maggie nodded.
"They need to talk to her. I'm sure we should be expecting a call from Isobel. You need to make up your mind right now. Can you work this, or do we need to pull ourselves off?" OA looked to his terrified mother and back to Maggie.
"Pull us. I need to be here with her," He responded just as her phone rang. Maggie went back into the hallway and answered it.
"Hey, Isobel. We know the JOC caught the case. OA said he wants you to pull us off."
"Okay, I will. How's she doing?"
"Well, we just arrested her doctor for refusing to comply with her requests including her being allowed to wear her hijab. NYPD should be dropping him off shortly. We advised him about the law and told him that if he refused to comply he would be arrested, and he still refused."
"We'll question him, just in case he knows something but I doubt he does. Tell OA and his family that we'll get this guy and let us know if there is anything we can do."
"I will. I'll come get our stuff later. Is it alright if I grab our case files then and we work on everything outside of the office for now?"
"Absolutely. I'm going to pull a couple of agents from Hate Crimes to work on this with Tiff and Scola since we're pulling you two off. I'll keep you updated."
"Thanks, Isobel."
"Of course. I'll talk to you later, Maggie."
"Yeah, bye." Maggie hung up and motioned for the other agents to follow her.
"OA," she started, "Can she handle this right now?" Scola asked gently.
"Yeah, but we're staying."
"Of course," He replied. He kept his distance and allowed Tiff to stand a bit closer to Mrs. Zidan. OA turned to his mother.
"Am'ma, my friends need to ask you a few questions, okay?"
"Okay, I will do my best to answer them," Halima replied, "Help me sit up more, please," OA pressed the button on the remote to raise the bed and helped his mother situate herself.
While OA was helping Halima, Maggie turned to Amira, "You guys can stay while they take her statement but you can't interfere, alright?" Amira nodded and relayed the information to her sisters. She'd seen the way that Maggie had rested her hand on OA's back and heard the gentleness in her voice as she'd spoken to him earlier and as soon as she could get one of them alone she was going to ask them about it. She's had suspicions about her brother's feelings for his partner for quite sometime and she knew they were already so much more than partners, had been for years.
The Zidan sisters all took a seat on the small couch in the corner and Maggie stood off to the side. OA sat protectively at the foot of the bed and nodded to Scola.
"Mrs. Zidan, is there anything you can remember about what happened or a bout your attacker?"
"He was white, not too much older than Omar, probably late thirties maybe early forties. He had dark hair but bright blue eyes. He had a scar that cut through his right eyebrow. It was about three or four inches long. He was tall maybe 6'2 or 6'3, average build. The only thing I can remember about the attack is that I could see him coming, he saw me in my hijab and I could see a nasty look on his face. I braced myself for the inevitable comments but I wasn't prepared for him to knock me over and…" Halima paused and tried to control her breathing.
"Take your time Mrs. Zidan," Tiff said softly.
"Am'ma, it's alright, catch your breath, you're safe here," OA soothed as he took her hand.
"I'm alright," Halima replied after a moment, "Anyway, before I blacked out all I remember is him calling me just about every hateful name for muslims and kicking me in the ribs. I saw another gentleman coming but I felt him pulling him away. I don't know what happened after that," She finished.
"Thank you very much, Mrs. Zidan, we're going to do everything in power to catch this man," Scola replied and he nodded to OA and Maggie as he and Tiff turned to leave and go back to the JOC.
"Am'ma, are you alright?" Leila asked as she walked over to her mother.
"I'm as well as I can be, Leila, Omar's team they'll get this guy and I'll go home and be fine," Halima rested her hand against her daughter's cheek.
There was a knock at the door and a new doctor, a woman appeared, "Hello, Mrs. Zidan, I'm Doctor Ibrahim. I understand you've had quite the morning, I just want you to know I am going to do everything in my power to make the rest of your day much easier. If there is anything you need, please let me know or have the nurses page me."
"Thank you, I will," Halima smiled.
"Before I go, may I do a quick exam of your injuries?"
"Yes, Omar, I'll have to take my hijab off," Halima replied.
"Of course, Am'ma. Maggie and I will go grab lunch for everyone. Would you like us to get an assortment from Samra's?"
"That would be delightful, thank you." OA nodded and stretched his hand out to Maggie and they shut the door behind them.
In the JOC Kelly and Elise were pulling traffic camera footage from Mrs. Zidan's block in an attempt to identify her attacker. With her vivid and detailed description it shouldn't be very difficult.
"Jubal, I've got him. Running him through facial rec now," Elise said as she waved Jubal over.
"Alright let's see who we're looking for," Jubal replied as facial rec gave them a match.
"Donald Mitchell, age 38, former Army Special Forces, dishonorable discharge, several arrests for assault and battery and even a prior conviction for a hate crime against the Muslim community. Let's get Tiff and Scola a last known address and have SWAT meet them there," Jubal commanded.
"Got it, last known address on Dekalb Ave in Brooklyn, I sent it straight to Tiff and Scola," Kelly called out.
Maggie and OA had just walked into Samra's to pick up food for everyone when Maggie's phone dinged.
"Is that the JOC?" OA asked.
"Yeah, they got a beat on the guy. Tiff and Scola are at his place with SWAT now."
"Good, hopefully he's there. I can't wait to see this guy behind bars." Maggie could see just how much this was bothering OA. She knew he was blaming himself even though there wasn't anything he could have done.
"I know, we're all rooting for that, babe. I think Amira is onto us, and if she wasn't before she definitely is after the way we left."
"Yeah, she'll try to corner one of us and get her answer but whatever. Thank you for staying with me," OA said as he paid for their order that Maggie had called in on their way.
"Always. I'm here for whatever you need, babe." OA leaned over and kissed Maggie as they waited for them to finish making the food.
"I love you," He smiled.
"I love you, too."
Back at the hospital Dr. Ibrahim had just finished her exam and looked to Halima, "Everything looks alright, your x-rays look good as well. Luckily none of your ribs are broken, though there are a few small fractures, and you do have concussion but it should heal on it's own. I would like to keep you overnight, just for observation but I feel very comfortable releasing you around lunchtime tomorrow."
"Thank you Dr. Ibrahim," Halima replied as her daughters helped her put her hijab back on.
It was twenty minutes later when Maggie and OA returned to the hospital with the food. They knocked on the door before entering.
"How're you feeling Am'ma?"
"I'm alright, the doctor is going to keep me here for observation but other than that I'm going to be fine."
"Good, our team is raiding the address of the man who attacked you. Your description helped them narrow down the suspect pool on the traffic cameras."
"I'll feel a lot better when he's behind bars," She replied.
"How long?" Amira whispers to Maggie as they were setting out the food. Maggie looked to OA who was watching them and he nodded.
"Since Friday," Maggie replied and Amira did a little happy dance.
"Finally," She squealed quietly.
"What are you going on about Amira?" Eman asked. OA flushed and locked eyes with Maggie who shrugged. Amira looked between them and then to Eman.
"Our dear brother and his partner are dating," Amira grinned, "Finally if I might add."
"Is this true, Omar?" Halima asked.