Hailey would have loved to spend the following day teasing Jay and getting him to crack in some form. She even woke up before her alarm and pressed several slow kisses along his jaw all while her hand began to wander along his chest, but before her phone could buzz to signal she needed to shower, it rang with a call from Voight.
It was the start of a long weekend at work.
And she hated that part of her loved it.
It wasn't often that they caught a serial killer case, so now that it was confirmed that the murders - and attempted murder in the case of Noah - they'd found were all done by the same person, she couldn't help but feel like she needed to jump completely in. There was a rush of excitement and adrenaline with every corner they turned even if nothing was waiting there for them in return. At any possible moment, she could find the key to the disgusting, horrific attacks occurring throughout Chicago, and she couldn't just ignore that possibility.
She wanted this.
The hardest part of it all was that she knew Jay wished he was right by her side. Not to protect her, but to be a part of the action. He may have moved on and accepted his job within the police academy, yet there were still moments where his eyes would light up just to fall a second later at the reminder that he couldn't do a stakeout with her or just pick up her files and know exactly what each note and picture referred to. He missed the rush just as much as she loved it, and she didn't know how to best approach it all.
"Coffee?" Kevin asked Monday morning as he entered the bullpen with a tray of cups in hand.
Hailey looked up from sorting through her latest batch of security footage and held up a finger. "I'll take one, thanks."
Kevin nodded and walked over to pass her a cup before setting another in front of Adam at his desk. "Burgess coming in?"
Adam took a slow sip of coffee and finished reading whatever email was taking up his screen before nodding and tearing his gaze away. "Yeah, she's dropping Mak off at school. She should be here in a bit. Anyone hear from Torres?"
"Coming in after lunch," Hailey answered, pulling her leg up on her seat as she turned to look at them, "He's doing a quick undercover shift, trying to get in better graces."
Kevin hummed and sat on the edge of his desk. "You guys think he's doing okay with that? He's been keeping kind of quiet about some of it."
"I think he's just overwhelmed," Adam said, "It's his first big one, so he's probably not sure what exactly to tell and what doesn't matter. Kim said she'll take care of it. She's been keeping tabs on him."
"How's she doing?" Hailey asked. When Adam glanced over at her, she raised an eyebrow then lifted her left hand to show off her black wedding band. "How's the wedding planning going after the refugee case? Is she okay?"
"Oh, yeah," Adam sighed, tipping back in his chair. "She's good. We haven't been putting too much thought into it just yet, but we have some talks. Makayla has plans involving butterflies and Disney honeymoon vacations…" He trailed off with a laugh and shook his head. "I don't know," he breathed, "Anything's possible at this point. This is for real this time, and because it's for real, I don't want to rush into anything, so maybe we'll wait until this case is over or even just another month or two to really plan. We live together with a kid; I want to marry her, but I know it's not going to change too much. We'll be okay."
There was a beat before Kevin said, "Yeah, but don't forget last time. Don't just push this off like it's nothing. It's different now, but she's still human. Your fiancé's gonna want to know she matters."
Hailey smiled slightly and sat up. "What happened last time?"
"You don't know?" Kevin asked as a smirk spread across his face, "I thought you two dated."
"We did," Adam said, "But you don't have to tell your current relationship about why your last relationship ended."
"Many people would probably disagree," Kevin replied.
Hailey laughed and shook her head. "We were never serious enough for us to go into all the deep dark secrets of our past relationships, but now that I'm married and he's engaged…bring it."
Before either Kevin or Adam could reply, though, Voight came up the stairs with a blonde woman behind him and announced, "This is Jo Petrovic. She's going to be jumping on the case with us from SVU. We're giving her the same privileges and responsibilities that you all have. This is all hands on deck, so…please."
Kevin and Adam nodded at Jo as she walked through the bullpen. Hailey watched her eye Kim and Dante's desks, note the pictures and work spread across them, then make her way to what was once Jay's desk across from her. Jo shot her a small smile then sat down in Jay's chair.
Her stomach dropped.
It had been well over a year since Jay had worked from that desk and close to six months since he'd taken a new job. There was no reason for the desk to remain empty for this long, and it made perfect sense for Voight to fill it.
This was just temporary, though. There was no reason to be angry at Jo for sitting in the seat once occupied by Jay when she wasn't even officially taking it away from him. She was here to help with Noah's kidnapping and the murders they were investigating. She was not the new lead detective; that was still her job.
But none of those reminders helped to ease the tension in her gut or the tightness in her chest. Not as Jo adjusted the height of the chair or when she turned the computer on so she could access the database on her own. Certainly not when she could have sworn Adam and Kevin were burning holes into the back of her head.
She was fine.
She was fine.
She was fine.
That night, Hailey entered the apartment with a low groan.
It was just after 8pm, but the impending winter made it feel much later. She couldn't pull herself away from the case despite knowing that Jay was at home. Jo did end up having some good insights that intrigued her and gave her a new perspective, but that didn't make the thought of her working from Jay's desk any easier to accept. If anything, part of her wanted to stay to observe Jo in Jay's workspace and see what exactly she was like as a detective.
Jo seemed fine; she was certainly different than the rest of them, which seemed to put them all on edge. Adam had even pulled her aside a few hours before to whisper that she actually creeped him out a little bit. Hailey felt like she might have had to agree. Something was eerily different about Jo, and the way she kept stepping away to be by herself didn't sit right. She was hiding something, and Hailey would be damned if the next person who sat in Jay's desk were to tarnish it in any way.
Unfortunately, it all came to an end when Trudy came upstairs and gave her a knowing look. While they weren't still on their strict "7pm is the latest you can stay" schedule, Trudy had taken to making sure she didn't keep herself away from her home any longer than necessary. They weren't at the point in the case yet that she needed to stay until midnight, so she'd needed to gather her things and bid her goodbyes to Voight, Jo, and Kevin. She certainly hadn't liked the piercing look Jo had given her as she slipped her coat on. It was like she was studying and analyzing her as if she was the serial killer.
It irked her.
Jay turned from the TV as she kicked off her shoes and waved. "Hey, welcome home."
"Hey," Hailey sighed. She pulled the ponytail from her hair and made her way to the couch to plop next to him.
"Long day?" Jay guessed, slipping his hand in the back of her hair and tugging her against his chest.
She hummed and closed her eyes. "Who knew serial killers were so hard to catch?"
Jay chuckled and kissed the top of her head. "There's a reason they get away with so many murders at first. Did you get any leads?"
"No. It's frustrating, but…"
She couldn't leave.
The idea of the chase.
Jo.
The possibility that Noah could share what had happened at any second.
Jo in Jay's desk.
The never ending coffee keeping her mind buzzing.
Jo staring at her.
The hope that each new file could be the one.
Jo.
"It's addicting, isn't it?" Jay murmured. He brushed his fingers through her hair and down her back, sending a shiver down her spine.
She nodded and pressed herself closer to him. "I wish you were there."
Taking Jo's place.
On her ride home, as she'd thought about all the ways in which Jo bothered her - starting with and not ending with how easily she'd just sat in Jay's desk like nothing - she didn't think telling Jay about her would be the right idea. He was already feeling left out by not being a part of her biggest case in a year, he didn't need to feel like he was being replaced either.
But she didn't know if she really could keep all her feelings in about the new detective lurking around the bullpen; not when her husband knew how to listen to her with all he had.
"You know I'd love to be there too," Jay breathed, "But this is where we're at, and that's okay. You can bounce ideas off of me if you feel up to it or I can tell you about my day at the academy to distract you or we can even just lay here. I was watching this golf thing, if you're interested."
Hailey didn't miss the way his body stiffened beneath her when she said she wanted him there or when he said the same thing, and guilt flooded her. Jay couldn't work with her anymore, and there was nothing either of them could do about it. There was no point in wishing for something that could never happen.
There was also no point in trying to protect Jay from her reality when he'd been so insistent that he could handle it. Maybe he wouldn't understand every single thing she had to say about the case, but he would be able to relate to working with someone who seemed to have an ulterior motive. It didn't matter if said new coworker was sitting in his previous desk; she could still share her feelings with him about her.
Sitting up, she ran a hand through her hair as Jay's dropped to her waist. "Voight brought on a detective from SVU," she said, "And I don't like her."
Jay raised an eyebrow and a ghost of a smirk flickered across his face. He sat up more against the armrest and said, "Really? Who is she?"
"Josephine Petrovic," Hailey stated, "Heard of her?"
Jay pulled his bottom lip between his teeth as he thought it over then shook his head. "Name kind of sounds familiar, but I'm not positive. What's she like?"
"She's pretty quiet, but she's definitely willing to share her opinion, especially if she disagrees with you," Hailey began, "And she's good at her job. Not like you-"
"Of course not," Jay chuckled.
Hailey smiled and placed her elbow on the couch so she could hold her head up. This was one of the reasons she missed Jay at work: his ability to make her relax when her mind was going everywhere.
"She's good at looking at all different angles of something," she continued, "And she's analytical about it all. I understand why she has such a strong track record in SVU. I think Voight was right in bringing her on."
There was a beat, and then Jay said, "But…"
Hailey bit her lip and looked down at the small space between them.
"She's judging me," she said quietly, "And I don't know why - like why she was staring at me so weird and…and…" Her gaze flickered upward at him, and she sucked in a breath. "And she sat in your chair."
Something like amusement crossed Jay's face, and Hailey blushed at what she'd said. Maybe it was fair to not like Jo for all the lingering, judging looks, but sitting in Jay's chair that didn't even belong to him anymore…
"I don't work there, Hail," he said softly, reaching over to brush her hair back behind her ear, "You were there when I erased my name from the call signs. You've even visited me at my new job."
Hailey sighed and slumped further against the couch. "I know, I know, but…but…it's dumb."
"Not dumb," Jay gently interrupted, "I'm bummed I'm not there too. We can both be upset over what we've lost; that's not dumb. We've said that before, right?"
Hailey nodded and let out a breath.
"So let's ignore that part of it," Jay continued, "We'll be disappointed, but we don't have to linger on it for long. It's life."
"Yeah, I guess," Hailey murmured. She grabbed Jay's free hand and rubbed her thumb over his wedding band.
He was right, and it wasn't like she hadn't thought the same things. Jay wasn't going to come back to Intelligence, and she needed to accept that. Most days were easier than others, and random cases were going to come up where she wished he was sitting across from her in the bullpen, but what was important was how she - and he - worked past those feelings and focused on the good: like the fact that she could come home to Jay every night and spend quality time with him, just like she was doing right now.
"What I don't like," Jay said, pausing until she looked up to meet his eyes, "Is that she's bothering you. If you don't think she can do her job-"
"That's not what I'm saying," Hailey interrupted with a sigh, "She can do her job, I know she can, but why does she have to stare at me throughout the day as if she's analyzing everything I'm doing instead of focusing on the case at hand?"
"How was she staring at you?" Jay asked, squeezing her hand.
"Like…like there's something wrong with me," Hailey said, "I don't know." She sat up on her knees and let out a soft huff of air. "Jay, I am good at my job. No one is allowed to question that."
"I agree," he said as he nodded.
"So why does she have to stare at me like I might explode at any moment?" she asked exasperated, "She doesn't even know me!"
Jay pursed his lips and completely sat up. "Do you need me to come in?"
Hailey sighed and ran a hand through her hair again. Shaking her head, she looked over to the window and mumbled, "No. I…I can handle it myself. Maybe I was just imagining it anyway."
"No, I don't think you were," Jay said softly, "You have a strong gut, so follow it. You're going back tomorrow, lean into that feeling and try to figure her out more. It was just the first day of getting to know her, and if she was sitting at my desk-"
Hailey couldn't help but smile at the words and glanced back at him, raising an eyebrow and tilting her head to the side.
He waved her off and visibly held back a smirk. "What I'm saying is, there was a lot going on. Your read wasn't wrong, but give it another day and see if you can back it up with more evidence. Treat it like a case. You're not going to just focus on one piece of evidence or one angle; you're going to study it all. Watch her tomorrow, and if you have to confront her about it, do it. We've all done it. Don't let her get to you. You're better than that."
Hailey let out a breath and nodded. She could do that. It was one day, and she really didn't know Jo yet. Jo could have just been trying to get to know her like she was doing herself. There was no reason to completely write her off so soon. She could do one more day.
"And if she really is a crazy, analytical bitch out to get you, I will kick her ass," Jay said. The second Hailey snorted at his words, he laughed with her and pulled her against his chest, kissing the top of her head.
"You don't mean that," she laughed.
"Maybe not, but I bet I could get Kim to do it for me," Jay chuckled.
Hailey smiled and shook her head. She kissed the center of his chest and curled up against him. "Speaking of Kim, you need to catch me up on something I probably should have heard years ago."
"Years ago?" Jay repeated. He turned further to slip his legs beneath hers on the couch and held her close. "What do you need to know?"
"Why she and Adam called off their engagement," Hailey answered, "How do I not know this? Kevin made some comment today to Adam about taking the wedding seriously this time around, and before he could explain what he meant, Voight brought Jo in. I feel left out."
"Oh god," Jay said with a laugh, "All right. Well, everything I know is from Erin, so it might be kind of one sided because it's all Kim's thoughts. I don't think I ever got the real thing out of Adam; he didn't like talking about it."
"I'm ready," Hailey said.
Smiling, she closed her eyes and listened to Jay's quiet story about Adam and Kim's relationship timeline. As interesting as she thought it was to finally have the full story behind what had happened the first time her friends were engaged, she couldn't help but slowly fall asleep as he spoke.
Without it, she wasn't quite sure she would have been able to peacefully sleep with all the possibilities of what Jo thought of her running through her head.
Unfortunately, the intense stares and the second glances didn't end in the bullpen. Hailey found herself growing more and more frustrated throughout the day whenever she caught Jo looking at her.
She kept going between confronting Jo about it and just leaving it all be. On one hand, talking to her could clear the air and allow her to put all her energy into the case. On the other, it could make things even more awkward between the two of them and put the case at risk. They didn't even seem to have a second alone with each other. The bullpen was filled with energy.
And she really didn't feel like seeking Jo out on her own.
Despite Jay saying she should treat this like a case herself, confronting Jo could open doors she would rather ignore. There had to have been a reason that she was being studied so intensely, and she didn't know if she was strong enough to find out the answer.
Everything would have been fine had Voight not then sent them all out to chase down one of the suspects. She tried catching up with Kevin to drive with him just for Voight to say, "Actually, Jo, ride with Hailey. I'd rather we all go on this one."
"Oh, I don't mind staying-"
"We're all going."
Hailey closed her eyes in frustration and stopped at the top of the stairs. Jo could fight back. She could probably make some sort of argument about not really being in this unit and preferring to watch the radios. No one would blame her.
"Okay."
Hailey held back a sigh as she turned to face her. Forcing a smile on her face, she asked, "You cool if I drive?"
"Uh, yeah, sure," Jo breathed. She holstered her gun and grabbed her jacket before quickly crossing the floor to hurry down the stairs.
Hailey led her over to her car and silently prayed that they could have a quiet drive. Inside it, she started it up then glanced over at Jo opening the passenger side door.
"Oh, sorry," she breathed, reaching over to grab a bag off the seat. She tossed it in the back and added, "I keep forgetting to make a return. Haven't really had the time."
Jo smiled slightly and nodded. "I get that," she said as she got in, "I had a pair of pants that I ended up having to donate because I kept forgetting to return them and completely missed the thirty days."
Hailey laughed softly and began the drive. "Always sucks. I think I have another week or so before the window closes. My husband…"
Trailing off, she glanced over at Jo and bit her lip. Talking about Jay was not supposed to be happening right now. She didn't want to give Jo any more leverage than she might already have about whatever theory she was forming in her mind.
At her silence, Jo raised an eyebrow.
"Sorry," Hailey murmured, "You probably don't want to hear about him."
"Because I'm divorced?"
Hailey's eyes widened, and she tore her gaze from the road to look back over at her. "No!" she said, "No, I-I didn't even…no. I'm just saying, we don't have to talk about non-work stuff at work."
Jo slowly nodded then said, "Okay, well, I don't mind. Really. It's a ten minute drive anyway."
"Yup."
Hailey tightened her grip on the steering wheel and took a deep breath. She did mind. They did not have to talk about anything right now. Not when there were much more important things to do and think about.
Everything would have been fine had Jo agreed and kept her mouth shut, but they were about two blocks away from the grocery store when she suddenly said, "Jay Halstead, right? That's your husband."
Hailey swallowed hard. "Yes."
Jo nodded and looked out the window. "I've never met him, but I heard he moved to the academy. Good for him."
Hailey didn't know how to reply to that. It was good for Jay to go to the academy. He was doing a good job there, and no one should judge him for that. Least of all Jo.
"Oh, I see Kevin's car over there," Jo said after a moment of silence as they approached their destination.
"Mhmm," Hailey hummed.
Parking the car, she tried pushing it all to the side. There was no reason to bring Jay up, especially not now when they could be within the same vicinity as the serial killer they've been going after for days now.
Instead, she ignored Jo and hurried over to where she could see Kevin and Adam talking.
Better things to do right now, and none of it was going to involve Jo.
"She's asking about you," Hailey announced loudly as she entered the apartment that night.
Jay looked up from the stove and said, "What?"
"Jo asked about you today," Hailey repeated. She kicked her shoes off and practically threw her coat at the hooks by the door.
Jay raised an eyebrow and waited for her to make her way to the island before asking, "What'd she want to know?"
"If you were my husband," Hailey sighed, plopping down on one of the bar stools.
A smile flickered across Jay's face, and he nodded slightly. "Is that…is that it?"
"Yes, like she was trying to distract me from the case," Hailey said, "I told you, she has it out for me."
Jay couldn't hold back his amusement any longer, so he shook his head and turned off the flame below the pan of carrots he was cooking. "Babe-"
"No, you don't get it," Hailey said, "Jay, she's studying me like I'm the issue here. A kid was kidnapped and tortured, and she's asking me about my life and staring at me constantly. What aren't you understanding?"
"She's trying to get to know a new coworker; what aren't you understanding?" Jay said gently. He walked around the island and set his hand on the side of her face. "Did she ask about why I left Intelligence or what happened to me in Bolivia?"
Hailey chewed her lip before shaking her head.
"No," Jay confirmed, "I don't think she's doing anything wrong."
His words sank in, and Hailey let out a breath. If she focused on everything that Jay knew about Jo - the staring and the one question she bothered to ask - then maybe he was right: Jo probably wasn't trying to undermine or analyze her; she was just trying to get to know her. That was normal. Most people would want to know who they were suddenly working with.
She'd done it with Jay.
Though she'd been smart enough to know that Jay wasn't interested in sharing too much information about himself. For weeks, she'd gotten the bare minimum from him: two tours in Afghanistan, five years in Intelligence, family from Chicago, and black coffee only. She didn't push too hard until they were on more stable ground and had proven to each other that they were the real deal. If she'd come in swinging from Day One about all she wanted to know about Jay, he probably would have pushed her away and refused to get to know her as a friend, let alone as a partner.
And that's exactly what Jo was doing. She might not have been asking deep questions about how she grew up or what had happened to her in her years in Intelligence, but she had some sort of motive beneath her huge eyes, and Hailey refused to believe anything else.
Jay also wasn't on the other end of the intense gaze. He didn't know what it was like to look up from the computer to see two large eyes staring at you instead of the file right below them. He might be right that she was - perhaps - overreacting to all of this, but until he was experiencing it for himself, he wouldn't completely understand where she was coming from. She was going to keep her guard up regarding Jo until she knew exactly what the other detective wanted from her.
Jay did know, though, that Hailey didn't completely believe him because he chuckled beneath his breath and leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead. "She's gotten in your head," he whispered, "You need to let this go."
"It's only been two days," she mumbled, "What happened to treating this like a case?"
Jay brushed his fingers through her hair and said, "I just don't want you to get too caught up in this that you forget the real case you're working on."
"I'm not," Hailey assured, "I really am focusing on the case. I can tell you all about it if you'd like."
"I don't need that," Jay chuckled before hesitating and adding, "Well, maybe you can tell me a little bit about it, but first." Clearing his throat, he straightened up and tilted her head so he could be sure they were looking in each other's eyes as he said, "You need to give Jo a chance. She's trying to get to know you, even if she has a weird way of doing it. Don't mess up the chance at getting a new partner just because you're annoyed at her one question she had for you or because she sat in a chair I also used to sit in."
Hailey blushed and lightly kicked her leg out nervously. "You really think this is just about me getting a new partner?"
"I think it's change, and neither of us is great at accepting that."
Hailey pursed her lips. "You went to therapy today, didn't you?"
Jay laughed and nodded. "I did."
"Damn me for getting you to do that."
Jay laughed harder and hugged her to his chest. "I love you."
Hailey finally smiled as she wrapped her arms around him. "I love you too," she murmured.
Jay dropped a kiss to the top of her head then stepped backwards. Taking a deep breath, he said, "That all being said, if you want me to come in tomorrow - maybe drop in for lunch and say 'hi' to everyone - I can. I don't want to ignore everything you're feeling; I just want you to look at it a little more objectively than what you are."
Hailey bit her lip and thought it over. Having her husband, whose opinion she trusted more than anyone's - maybe even her own - come in and meet Jo for himself could either settle the nerves in her stomach or confirm what she'd been worrying about all along. She didn't want to have to rely on him for something like this, but it really could help give her perspective. Just like if this was an actual case they were working on together.
"I don't think anyone would say no to you stopping by with at least some cookies for a snack," she said softly.
Jay smiled and nodded. He kissed the top of her head then walked back over to the stove. "Then I'll stop in tomorrow to meet Jo for myself. What kind of cookies do you want?"
"I can't deny you peanut butter," Hailey said, finally allowing herself to smile and turn on the bar stool to face him.
Jay nodded again. As he turned the burner back on, he said, "How's the case going, then? Do you think you'll still be able to get the weekend off?"
The thought of having to miss their second anniversary for a case did not sit well with Hailey. At all. They'd had to skip their first anniversary for work related reasons - an easier way to explain Bolivia than acknowledging the truth of the situation - they could not let something similar happen this year as well.
"I'm taking it off," she assured, hating that he had his back to her right now, "I promise."
"If you can't, I-"
"Jay."
He stopped absentmindedly stirring the carrots around with his spatula and turned to face her.
"I'm not putting work before you," she stated, "Ever."
Taking a deep breath, he relaxed and nodded. "I believe you. I just don't want you to regret not helping out."
Hailey shook her head and jumped down from the bar stool to make her way to his side. "This time last year, I was sleeping in my car on stakeouts, literally working twenty-four hours a day. I've more than earned some time off." She shrugged as she leaned against the counter then added, "And, besides, what are the chances that we're not only going to find out everything we need to about the serial killer within the next three days to even give reason to need to arrest them this weekend? If we haven't figured something out in the last three days, I think chances are low that we'll find something of substance in the next three."
"As long as you're sure," Jay said, "I know what it feels like to chase that high of a crazy case."
Hailey shook her head. "It's a high for sure, but I think some clarity will do me some good too. We'll go up to the cabin, spend every second together, make up for lost time…" She trailed her hand along his side and along his belt, smirking when he chuckled at the feeling and insinuation of what she was saying upon their challenge the other day. "And then I'll come back with fresh eyes. Everyone will thank me when I have the ability to see what they can't. It'll be like magic."
Jay laughed and leaned over to kiss her head. "I love your confidence. Okay, then, the anniversary trip is still on, and your humbleness is still intact. Good to know."
Hailey laughed with him and lightly shoved his side. "Shut up." Nodding to the bedroom, she added, "I'm going to go change into something that doesn't have dirt and slush stains, and then I'll be ready for whatever you made."
"Pork," Jay clarified, "It should be done by the time you're ready to go."
Hailey smiled and nodded. "Perfect. Thank you."
Jay sent her a wink, and she laughed softly while walking away.
Despite still feeling hesitant about Jo, a weight seemed to be lifted from her shoulders and she could breathe a little easier. He wasn't calling her crazy, but also wasn't playing into her nerves and agreeing with everything she said. He was letting her talk through everything worrying her while also grounding her in what could possibly be the truth of the situation. It helped to know that tomorrow would be a new day and that he would be with her in the bullpen to see what was going on in his own eyes. A fresh opinion would be a better opinion than whatever clouds had already covered her judgment.
For now, though, she didn't need to focus on Jo or the case or anything that had to do with Intelligence. For now, she could slip out of her jeans and into a pair of running shorts and a tank top to relax in for the rest of the night.
She might be planning on making up for lost time at the cabin, but that didn't mean she wasn't up for playing games tonight. November air be damned, she wanted to see just how far she could push her husband before he cracked under pressure.
It'd for sure make her feel better about everything happening in her life.
By the time Hailey walked into the bullpen the following morning, Jo was already sitting at Jay's - her desk studying a file of pictures and information in front of her.
She sucked in a breath and tried remembering what Jay had told her that morning: allow Jo to get to know her. This was an opportunity for Hailey to learn from someone new and expand her growth within Intelligence. She shouldn't shy away from a new coworker just because she was unnerved to see said person sitting in her husband's old seat.
She was slightly annoyed at his wisdom and rationale.
Jo glanced up at her and smiled slightly.
At her silence, Hailey sighed and realized the front she'd been putting up was probably rather off-putting. She didn't want to become known as the bitter detective who refused to work with anyone new after her husband left the unit.
"Good morning," she greeted.
"Morning," Jo replied.
Hailey slipped her coat off and rested it over the back of her chair. "How was traffic coming in?"
Jo raised an eyebrow and set the file down on the desk. "It was fine. You?"
Hailey shrugged as she sat down. "Same as usual. I was glad Jay made coffee this morning, though, I kind of slept in so was planning on stopping at that place down the street if he didn't have a pot going. Thank god he did because the line was out the door."
She turned on her computer and tried watching Jo out of the corner of her eye. The day before, she'd refused to even mention Jay and had a rather poor reaction to Jo bringing him up as well. Her change of heart could very well be a call for actual questions and a real analysis of her character, but she needed to ignore that possibility. Jay said Jo probably wasn't out to get her, and she needed to believe that. This was just an extended hand to a conversation.
"I saw that line, actually. Is that place good?"
Hailey smiled and looked up. "Yeah, it is. I'll get you a cup when the line won't make me two hours late to work."
Jo laughed slightly and nodded. "Thanks." She glanced back down at the file in front of her then held it out to Hailey. "Take a look at these reports. The stab wounds were nearly identical down to the millimeter on each body."
Hailey nodded as she grabbed the file. "We've been looking at this for days now. Did you notice something new?"
"Not really something new, but maybe more of a realization," Jo said, "Think about the coffee you said your husband makes you. The first few times he made it, maybe it was too sweet or bitter or not the right temperature. He didn't make it perfectly the first time around; it took practice."
"Just like these wounds," Hailey breathed. Her finger came out to trace along the picture. They were all identical no matter whose body they were carved into. Exactly the same length in exactly the same spot, all narrowly avoiding major veins, all meaning the person bled out as they watched the same wound be placed into whoever was across from them. It was almost as if a stencil had been used to assure that could happen, but that was illogical. This required consistent practice.
"Maybe we stop looking at the nexus between the victims and start looking at people who knew them that might have access to a practice area of sorts," Jo suggested.
"I'll take the boys, you take the girls?" Hailey asked without hesitation.
Jo nodded and accepted the file back.
Together, they dove into their new plan, working on either side of the desk long after the bullpen filled with everyone else. Occasionally, Hailey announced a possible connection in hopes Jo found the same person. There were a few doctors or facilities that stood out, but nothing of huge notice so far.
Hailey became so bogged down in the work that she didn't even realize Jay had entered the bullpen until his hand was on her back.
She jumped about a foot in the air, and he chuckled while stepping back. "Sorry, didn't realize you were that into your computer."
She let out a breath and turned her chair to stand up. "Just been following some leads."
Jay raised an eyebrow and set down a brown paper bag on her desk. "Anything good?"
"We'll see," Jo interrupted. She stood from her desk as well and nodded at Jay in greeting.
Hailey could feel Kevin, Adam, Kim, and Dante all staring at them. Perhaps, if she'd been more polite to Jo over the past few days and accepted her as a partner, this wouldn't be such a big deal right now. But she'd been the one to possibly overreact to Jo taking Jay's place, so now she needed to accept the holes being burned in her head by her coworkers.
"Jay Halstead, nice to meet you," Jay said as he stuck his hand out.
"Jo Petrovic," Jo responded. She seemed to hesitate before shaking Jay's hand quickly.
"Hailey said you're from SVU. I hope this lot's treating you well."
"As well as they can an outsider."
Hailey's nose scrunched for the briefest of moments in confusion, and she couldn't help but glance to her right to meet Kevin's gaze. He simply tilted his head to the side and shrugged. Neither of them quite understood where Jo was coming from, but Hailey had a feeling it had everything to do with her and not the others in the room. Perhaps her cold shoulder did result in Jo actually analyzing her more than Jay anticipated.
Jo glanced around at everyone as well then said, "I heard you moved to the academy. Any particular reason?"
"Needed a change of pace," Jay answered quickly.
Jo let her gaze linger over him for a moment before lowering back down to her seat.
Jay breathed in slowly then stepped back. Clearing his throat, he faced everyone else and said, "Hailey said you guys have been through a lot over the last week, so I grabbed some cookies for a pick-me-up for you all."
"You were just in the neighborhood?" Adam asked.
"I was on my lunch break," Jay explained. He tossed over the bag of cookies and said, "But if you don't want any, I'm sure Mak would love yours."
"Hey, I'm not going to turn it down," Adam said. Looking through the cookies, he asked, "Who wants what?"
Hailey smiled as he passed out the snacks for everyone. She reached over to nudge Jay's side and asked, "Do you have a second?"
He nodded and set a hand on her back to follow her into the break room. Once he closed the door, he murmured, "Did I say something? It was meant to be a joke."
"I thought we were getting along today," Hailey explained as she leaned against the counter, "I told her you made me coffee and then we worked on the case. Totally normal."
Jay pursed his lips then glanced over his shoulder to see everyone else standing around eating the cookies he'd brought while Jo was still in her seat and now drinking out of her thermos. "Maybe she's just more direct than us."
"I think we're pretty direct people," Hailey said, "I mean, okay, maybe I was kind of standoffish when I first met her, and I judged her, but I think I'm nice. What about that look she gave you after you said you left for a change of pace? That was weird, right?"
"Kind of," Jay said. When Hailey raised an eyebrow, he sighed and said, "Okay, yeah, it kind of put me on edge, but it's just a look. Maybe…"
He trailed off, and Hailey knew she'd won. Jo had been off enough that now Jay had noticed it. She hadn't been imagining things the past few days.
He walked over to the couch and sat on the arm rest. "I am all for being hesitant and figuring coworkers out, but I also know it doesn't always work out. Don't you remember what happened when I first met Torres and looked into him? I almost screwed everything up because I couldn't look past the thought that he was the one leaking information; I didn't even give him a chance to prove himself."
"But you did," Hailey argued, "You invited him back, mentored him for a bit, and here we are. It all worked out even if it was a little rough at the beginning."
"It could have gone over a lot better than it had," Jay said.
Hailey shook her head and crossed her arms. It definitely could have gone better, but Jay had to go with his instincts, and something in her instincts was telling her to keep Jo at arm's length. She didn't want to risk her career by letting a newcomer in so easily.
"Hailey, is she different than you're used to? Yes. Does she seem to like staring people down into intimidation? Yes."
Hailey laughed at Jay's words and glanced back up at him. "What are you getting at?"
"I'm just saying that you're protective - of me and of yourself. Maybe those walls you tend to put up were just put up a little too high this time. Or maybe Jo caught on to that and put up her own. Either way, I think…" He trailed off and looked over his shoulder again with a sigh. "I think you should keep trying. She's different than me or anyone else in the unit, but she's got a hard job. You can't blame her for distancing herself from others and getting sucked into the harsh work. We've all done that before."
Breathing out slowly, Hailey bit her lip then said, "But you get where I'm coming from now? You see what I've been saying?"
Jay nodded slightly. "In the few minutes that I've met her, yeah, I can see where you're coming from." He studied her for a moment then got up to cross the room and say quietly, "I don't want you to regret anything - either way…that means whether she really is psychoanalyzing you or if she does turn out to be totally normal."
Hailey let a smile cross her face and nodded. "I get it. I…" She took a deep breath then looked over to the door where she could see Jo working at Jay's - her desk. Her desk.
No matter what Hailey believed of Jo's motives in getting to know her, she had to accept that she was here to stay for the time being. Voight wanted her to work this case, and she'd proven to be helpful. It was the right choice to keep her on. Hailey could fight past her nerves surrounding the woman and work with her for the right reasons.
"I just feel better that you see it too," she admitted quietly, "It helps to know I'm not crazy."
"I never thought you were crazy," Jay said, "And I never will."
"Thank you," Hailey breathed.
Jay quickly kissed her forehead then nodded toward the door. "What do you say about getting out of here before they start talking?"
Hailey laughed softly and straightened up. "They've been talking since Adam saw you kiss me in the locker room years ago."
Chuckling, Jay shook his head and led the way to the door. "He really is good at being quiet when he wants to."
Hailey smiled and pushed open the door to see that Trudy was there in the bullpen, now, talking with the others about the case. She raised an eyebrow and stepped over to pick up the now empty bag of cookies.
"You come to visit the district on your lunch run and don't offer me anything?"
"I didn't know if I'd run into you," Jay tried weakly, stopping abruptly against Hailey's back.
"I got you the job, hot shot, I'm always open for a cookie, even if you have to leave it on my desk," Trudy said.
"Noted," Jay replied.
Hailey laughed softly and returned to her seat. "I don't want to keep you, so thank you for stopping by."
"Always," Jay said. He winked at her then squeezed her shoulder. "See you at home?"
"Obviously," she whispered.
Jay laughed and reached over to shake Adam's hand in goodbye. He quickly made his way through the room, bidding all their friends goodbye and nodding at Voight who was coming in from a meeting of his own, then walked down the stairs. As he left, Hailey felt like her nerves surrounding Jo went with him.
Whatever happened with her new coworker, she could handle it.
For the rest of the day, she tried showing Jo that she was a welcoming person. She didn't willingly offer up more information about her own life, but she did smile whenever she caught Jo studying her, which just seemed to increase upon Jay's departure from the bullpen.
No matter what she did, Jo stared at her.
She could be making notes on the white board, printing out forms, reading through more documents on her computer, sorting through files, whatever, and Jo would be watching her either directly or out of the corner of her eye.
It was unnerving and started eating at her.
With every lingering stare or judgemental sound that she imagined came from Jo, her eye would twitch and her gut would flutter. She tried telling herself that it was the nausea she thought she'd finally gotten rid of, but she knew it was Jo.
As much as she wanted to be the bigger person, she knew she couldn't and just needed to find out what it was about Jo that bothered her. However, she had no idea where to even start. There wasn't one specific thing that Jo did that stood out as something she could bring to Trudy or even Voight.
Except for hauling around her giant thermos.
It was everywhere she went.
Even when they stepped out to interview one of the common people from their lists that morning, Jo had grabbed her backpack and took a swig of whatever was in the thermos before they stepped out of the car. And when they returned half an hour later with nothing of use, she took another long drink and started rattling off the entirety of the interview in case there was something beneath it all that could help them.
Hailey would have let it be and chalked it up to being super thirsty, but when she parked outside the district and Jo pulled a cough drop out of her pocket, she knew water couldn't have been in that thermos, so she worked to get a hold of it.
She didn't want to have to barge into her apartment every single day with some sort of news about Jo, but she couldn't get home fast enough tonight.
Again, Jay was sitting on the couch watching TV when she burst through the door. She ignored the golf documentary on the screen, didn't even kick off her shoes or coat, and ran over to the couch.
"Alcohol," she panted, "Jo's drinking alcohol."
Jay tore his eyes from the TV and said, "What?"
"Jo has alcohol in her thermos," Hailey explained as she threw her coat to the floor. She hastily kicked at her shoes then climbed over the back of the couch to land on top of Jay.
He grunted at the feeling and grabbed her waist. "Slow down."
"Jay, she's an alcoholic," she breathed, "I noticed that she kept sucking out of that thermos all the damn time, so I waited until she went to the bathroom to check and it was a hundred percent vodka. She's drinking vodka while on the clock."
Jay stared at her for a minute then repeated, "What?"
"Jay!" Hailey placed both her hands on his chest and said, "You need to listen."
"Jo's drinking vodka?"
"Yes."
"At work?"
"Yes."
"And you found out by grabbing her thermos while she was away? So she has no idea you know?"
"Correct."
Jay nodded against the throw pillow then slowly sat up with Hailey in his lap. "Does she act drunk?"
"I don't think so," Hailey said, "She doesn't slur her words, she's not stumbling around, she seems to think on her feet. I…I don't know how I didn't catch this yet."
Jay shook his head. "You can't blame yourself, especially since it's only been three days of having her in the unit."
"Not in the unit, just helping," Hailey corrected.
Jay smirked slightly and nodded. "Right."
"What do I do?"
The words slipped from her lips before Hailey could even register them. Upon realizing what was in the thermos, she couldn't think of anything besides the fact that her coworker likely had a buzz going on. Not once did she consider telling Voight or Trudy or even the others. She didn't consider confronting Jo about it. She just wanted to tell Jay.
And now that she had, she needed his opinion. She was biased in her opinion of Jo - even before alcohol had a play in it. Jo intimidated her and put her on edge. If she suddenly went after her and exposed her for drinking on the job, everyone might not actually believe her. She needed Jay to coach her through this next part so that people would take her side while also getting Jo help.
That was maybe the most important part of this entire thing.
Jo was a good detective.
She thought things through, introduced new ideas, and was dedicated to the case. No one forced her to help them out; Voight asked and explained what was going on, and she realized the importance of what she could do. Right now, she was an asset, and getting rid of an asset would only hurt the case.
"I…I don't know," Jay said quietly, "I mean, it's illegal."
Illegal.
Yes, it was illegal.
And keeping Jo's potential alcoholism a secret just to keep the case on track was also illegal.
"Dammit," Hailey sighed. She shook her head and looked out the window.
"You can't be serious right now."
Hailey turned back toward him and raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"You're thinking about keeping this a secret."
"How do you know I'm thinking that?"
Jay reached over and brushed his thumb along her forehead. "You kind of crease your forehead when you're really thinking about something. Turning her in should be a no brainer; that means you shouldn't have a crease."
Hailey hit his hand away. "I don't have wrinkles."
She knew that's not at all what he was talking about, but deflecting seemed much easier than acknowledging the truth of his statement.
"That's not what I'm saying," Jay murmured, "I'm saying you're considering breaking the law for this job. Again."
The again stung.
"Jay." Hailey pushed off of him and stood up, waiting until he swung his feet around and was sitting completely up to say, "What the hell does that mean?"
He sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. "It means that I don't support this. At all. It means that we've risked our jobs, our relationship, our selves, over way too much to consider breaking the law again."
Hailey's heart sank, and she looked down at her feet. "You don't…this is different. She's helping us find a serial killer."
Even she was aware how pathetic her voice sounded given the situation.
"And that is a great thing that she's doing," Jay said, reaching over to grab her hands. He squeezed them gently and pulled her to stand between his legs. "Hailey, in the time we've known each other, we've almost gone to jail half a dozen times, at least. Personally, I've dated a CI, gone off book more times than I can count, killed someone-"
"I get it, I get it," she snapped.
Jay raised an eyebrow and rubbed his thumbs over the backs of her hands.
In no world did she want to hear him recount every single thing they've done wrong. Murder and lies. It was exactly what she'd told Jay came with the job when he first started working at the academy.
It was what sent him to Bolivia the year before.
The memory brought frustrated tears to her eyes.
She couldn't lose him again, just like she couldn't risk the FBI interrogating her again. She couldn't dodge the bugs and the tracking and her friends being put in uncomfortable situations that they had nothing to do with.
But this was all on Jo. Just because she knew that Jo was drinking on the job didn't mean that she'd be the one who got sent to jail in the end. She could hold on to the secret just long enough to get the case solved.
"Imagine you two are out in the field together. You're running, you can't get a shot, but she's right there with a clear view. She pulls the trigger, hits a bystander, and suddenly she's having to give a statement. She gets arrested, and you're asked about it as her temporary partner."
Hailey squeezed her eyes shut at Jay's quiet voice. She didn't want his warnings. She came to him to see if she should confront Jo or just ignore the drinking. She didn't want to turn her in and put the case on hold.
"Are you really going to perjure yourself over someone you met three days ago? Or are you going to admit that you knew all along and did nothing?
"I don't know," she whispered.
"It's an impossible situation, and I don't want you in it."
He was trying to protect her just like she was trying to protect Jo.
Finding out that Jo drank vodka from that damn thermos was more of an explanation behind her strange analytical behavior rather than an excuse to get her fired. She wasn't hoping to get her thrown out, not when there was so much on the line right now.
"I'm not budging on this, Hailey. I can't. I can't lose you, I can't let you risk your job, I can't let you be questioned again. I can't. Literally two years ago we were running around, breaking laws, trying to dodge the FBI because Voight dragged you into another one of his grand ideas. Yes, it worked out, but at what cost?"
Her tears finally squeezed out of her eyes, and Hailey shook her head.
Jay pulled her onto his knee and hugged her tightly so that her head was tucked under his chin.
"Do not do this," he whispered, "I love you too much to let you cover for someone else again."
She sniffled and nodded. "I love you too," she breathed, "I…I love you so much."
Jay kissed the top of her head and said, "So please do the right thing - whether that's talking to Jo about it and getting her to turn herself in or telling Voight and Platt so they take care of it without you. Please don't die with this secret; there's too much at stake. Do it for me. Please."
In Jay's warning scenario, Jo accidentally shot a bystander, but if Hailey thought about it, she'd never seen Jo shoot at all. She'd had the opportunity the day before, she even had a pretty good view of the guy as he ran away from them while brandishing his own gun, but, instead, she'd hesitated and claimed she didn't have a good shot. In the moment, something felt off about it, and now Hailey realized why that'd probably happened. Maybe Jo didn't shoot because she knew what would happen if she had; she was protecting herself.
Jo knew what she was doing was wrong.
Hailey could give her a chance and tell her that she knew what was going on. If she told Jo that she was aware she had vodka in the thermos, then maybe Jo could turn herself in or at least take herself off the case. She didn't need to involve Voight or Trudy yet, but she could still do the right thing and keep herself safe.
For Jay.
Their second anniversary was in two days. They should be packing for their trip to the cabin. Hell, this entire week, they should have been teasing each other and getting the other to break their challenge that they set forth the week before about having sex. They should be having fun.
Instead, Hailey came home every single day with some sort of vengeance against Jo. She'd paid no attention to how Jay was doing and spent all their extra time talking about her coworker all because said coworker got under her skin. It did turn out in the end that she had reason to look into Jo, but she shouldn't have spent every second worrying about it.
Hailey swallowed a lump in her throat and sat up to wipe at her face. Nodding slightly, she said, "I'll talk to her tomorrow about it. I can…I can tell her that I know and that she needs to turn herself in before the end of the day or I'll tell Voight."
"I think that's fair," Jay replied. He brushed his fingers across her cheeks to catch the few stray tears then slipped his hand in her hair. "Thank you."
Hailey nodded again and mumbled, "I'm sorry for getting so caught up in this this week. This was not the time."
Jay let out a quiet laugh and shook his head. "You don't have to apologize. We both know you can't just let something go that you know is wrong; I do the same thing, so I can't even really judge you for it. Something was off in your gut, and you followed that feeling. There's nothing wrong with that."
Hailey took a deep breath. "Thank you." She shifted so she could hug him again, this time wrapping her arms around him and squeezing him as tightly as she could.
"I've got you," he murmured, rubbing his hand over her back.
Relief flooded Hailey's system, and she relaxed against his chest.
"In twenty-four hours, this will all be over with," Jay continued, "You'll be leaving work, and we'll be getting ready to finally spend our anniversary together. I know I can't wait."
Hailey smiled and nodded. "It'll be fun," she said softly as she sat up, "Just us and no one else to get in our way. That's all we need."
Jay smiled back at her then pecked her lips. "Maybe some alcohol for ourselves and a pizza?"
Hailey's jaw dropped slightly, and she couldn't help but scoff.
"Too soon?" Jay chuckled.
Hailey rolled her eyes and shoved his shoulder. "Yes," she breathed, "Much too soon."
Chuckling, Jay mumbled, "Sorry," on his way to kiss her.
Twenty-four hours. She could do twenty-four more hours.
Especially if the next twelve consisted of this.
Hailey woke up feeling nauseous, and she chalked it up to being nervous about confronting Jo.
Whenever she or her brothers or her mom would confront her dad about all the drinking, it'd end with someone getting hurt. Uncle DJ would step in as well, and it'd end the exact same way: with him sitting at the kitchen table holding an ice-pack to his face while mumbling about how much he hated her father.
She couldn't imagine Jo becoming violent, but she really didn't know what to expect. She could scream, cry, deny everything. Anything could happen. Maybe she'd even turn it around on her.
Jay sat next to her at the island as she sipped at her water after getting sick in the bathroom. He rubbed her back and tried talking her through it, but she knew there was really nothing he could do to help her. This was something she needed to take care of on her own - both with Jo and her past.
So she gathered herself, took a handful of Tums, and walked out the door.
During the entire drive to work, Hailey went over all the ways she could talk to Jo about what she knew.
She could just ask her what was in the thermos.
She could admit that she secretly smelt it.
She could ask if there was anything she needed to tell her.
She could ignore the entire thing.
No.
She couldn't hurt Jay like that. She'd promised that she was going to talk to Jo about the drinking so that she, in hand, didn't get in trouble with the department. This was for more than just Jo's safety - it was for her own.
And every person in Chicago, as Jay had pointed out before she'd left home.
Talking to Jo about drinking on the job was important, and Hailey needed to do so as fast as possible. Having the conversation would mean that she could be honest with Jay about work, and then they could go to the cabin without anything between them.
It was the right thing to do.
Jo was already in the bullpen when Hailey walked up the stairs. She wasn't expecting to have to do this so early in the day, but she figured the sooner the better.
"Hey, uh, good morning," she said while slipping her coat off.
Jo looked up from the computer and smiled. "Good morning. How was the drive?"
"Good," Hailey said with a nod. She sat at her desk and quickly spotted the thermos sitting right next to a pile of files. Taking a deep breath, she said, "Can we talk about something?"
"I was waiting for this," Jo sighed. She pushed back slightly from the desk and set her hands in her lap, watching Hailey expectantly.
Hailey's eyes widened, and she straightened up in her seat. "Excuse me?"
"I'm not an idiot, Hailey, I know you've been watching me. You even brought your husband in to see what my deal is."
"I did not."
"Oh, do not lie to me right now."
Hailey narrowed her eyes and stood up. Her gut twisted, and what felt like fire started building in her.
"I'm the liar?" she breathed, "I am the liar? Do not call me a liar. You don't even know me."
"I know that you are not happy I'm here," Jo said calmly, "I know that from the second I sat at this desk, that you were not going to treat me like anyone else. I'm not stupid, Hailey, I know this is where your husband used to sit. You're having a hard time moving on, I get that, but I thought a year would have been enough time to do that."
"This has nothing to do with Jay."
"It has everything to do with Jay."
Hailey breathed in quickly, and her hands curled into fists.
Years before, Voight had accused her of putting Jay and his ideas first. He'd said that she was following her heart before her head. That was not what was happening here. For months now, she'd been working without Jay, and she thought she'd been doing some of the best work she'd done in years. Whether Jay was at home or not, she was fully committing herself to cases and being smart about them. She had not crossed any lines in over two years, even when Sean had been shot and deserved to die. She was herself and had never been more confident in her ability to be a detective.
Jo had no right to accuse her of only ever thinking of Jay.
"I am a good detective," she breathed, leaning over the desk, "I am great at this job. That should not even be a question. It does not matter whether my husband is sitting across from me or if it's you. I am responsible for my own actions, and I do the right thing. I do the job I am asked. If anyone doesn't do what they're supposed to, it's you."
"Me? I don't do what I'm supposed to?" Jo asked.
Hailey's eyes flickered to the thermos, but Jo caught it. She seemed blindsided by the action and stood up.
"I know," Hailey confirmed quietly, "I know what's in-"
"You know nothing," Jo interrupted.
"I know that you have until the end of this shift to tell Voight that you need to take yourself off the case," Hailey continued, "And I know that if you don't, if you continue working across from me while drinking on the job, that I'm going to tell Voight he hired an alcoholic."
Jo shook her head slightly before saying, "I am not an alcoholic."
"Then you're stupid?" Hailey scoffed, "Oh, come on, Jo. You're smart, I know that much, and because of that, I cannot see a world in which a sane, smart detective would willingly drink when they could be sent into the field at any moment with a gun. Only an alcoholic would do something as stupid as drink vodka while working."
Jo's hand shook as she grabbed on to the desk chair to steady herself.
"You have a problem," Hailey continued, her voice lowering, "And you need to take care of it. Every second that you are working while drinking, you are putting everyone in this unit at risk, and I cannot allow that. This is my family, and the only way I will ever allow you to continue working with us is if you get the help you need."
Jo stared at her, and for once, Hailey didn't feel judged. She actually felt like she'd won, like her words really had sunk into Jo and resonated with her.
"You're a good cop," she added, "I like the way you work and how you analyze situations. Maybe I was a little stand-offish when we first met, and I'm sorry. That was nothing against you as a person. I…" With a sigh, she shook her head and realized there was a piece of her attitude that did have to do with Jay. "I'm not used to someone else sitting in that seat, you're right, so that is on me, but not once did I think that you wouldn't be able to handle the job. Now, though, that I know what you're drinking, I do question your ability to work. You cannot have alcohol here."
Jo breathed in shakily and finally tore her eyes away.
Hailey swallowed as she relaxed her hands on the desk. Right now, Jo could walk downstairs to where Trudy was working and excuse herself to get help. She'd done all she could right now, everything was now in Jo's hands.
"I-"
Jo was cut off by Voight rushing up the stairs and saying, "Good, you're both here. I need you both to head out. Kevin will text you the address. We need to move."
Hailey spun around to face him and said, "What?"
"We have a lead, and I need you both there."
The "lead" in question was running.
Right as Hailey pulled her car down the street of the house Kevin had texted her about, she could see a man bolting out from an alleyway. He clearly had his gun in hand and was coming right at them with Dante on his tail.
"Are you drunk?" Hailey all but yelled as she parked haphazardly behind Kevin's car.
Jo stopped from slipping out of the passenger door and said, "What?"
"Are you drunk?" Hailey repeated, reaching behind her for her vest, "Have you been drinking this morning? Can I trust you?"
"Yes, I mean…no, I haven't had anything this morning, so, yeah, I'm good," Jo said.
Hailey nodded and rushed out of her car. "I've got your six."
Jo nodded in reply and finished pulling her own vest on as she stepped out of the car.
Hailey had no further thoughts about the drinking right now. Her point had been made, and there was nothing they could do until they got back to the district. Right now, Kevin and Dante needed back-up.
A shot went off, and she dove beneath the car door to protect herself. Her fingers couldn't work quick enough to fasten her vest at her side, so she swore to herself when another bullet came at her.
"Hailey!"
She shook her head at Kevin's voice and jumped up. Out of the corner of her eye, Jo's arms were raised with her gun firmly held in her hands. Dante was gaining on them with Kevin not far behind.
The man running from the two of them had his sights set on her car. His own gun pointed directly at her.
He wasn't going down without a fight.
Letting instinct take over, Hailey took a step to the left and raised her own gun. "Drop your weapon!" she yelled.
The man's arm didn't even waver.
He was about ten yards away now, and Hailey could tell that Dante was just feet away from him. If she took a shot, she might hit him. She couldn't risk that.
Her head ticked to the right where Jo was trying to get a better shot, but she was in the same position: shooting now would put Dante's life on the line.
As she turned back to the man barreling at her, she saw his hand twist just as Dante jumped. With a bang, the man was flying through the air, and Hailey was stumbling backwards.
She barely registered the pain in her side as she tripped over her feet and fell to the cement; the back of her head smacking against the ground being the last thing she really felt before her eyes shut.
A/N: I'm sorry! But we'll have fun along the way, promise! Talk to you soon!