Fic Commentary: Persuasion, Ch. 11
Onto one of shorter chapters. In which I mostly tie up my case.
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Chapter 11
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It was just after lunch and Jane was still sulking on his couch. The rest of the team had decided to just let him be. Clearly something (and Cho had his suspicions about what that might be) was irritating the blond. Not that Cho was exactly having a great afternoon either. His contact at Homeland Security had finally gotten back to him. Then Cho had taken a few hours to do his own digging, wanting to make absolutely sure before he mentioned his suspicions to anybody. But unfortunately, it appeared everything he did find confirmed his theory.
It was time to tell the team.
"Hey Van Pelt," he called across the room. "You find anything?"
She looked up shaking her head. "No," she told him. "I mean, I've managed to get employee numbers for everyone involved in the hiring process for the job Jenkins was after, but I've only been able to confirm the identity of about half of the committee, and so far no connection to Jenkins."
"But if you had a name," Cho told her slowly, "You could compare it to the numbers you have?"
"Sure," Van Pelt told him. "It might take a while to get the information, but sure. Why?"
Cho sighed. "I might have something."
All three members of the bullpen turned to him in interest. "Great!" Rigsby told him. "What is it?"
Cho shook his head, "Come on," he told them. "We've got to talk to Lisbon."
Dun dun dun... Heh. That probably would freak them out though, Cho being particularly mysterious and evasive. Usually he’s so blunt.
Rigsby and Van Pelt exchanged serious looks. Cho was being unusually reticent, even for him. This wasn't going to be good. Especially if he wanted back-up just to talk to Lisbon.
Wordlessly the four of them made their way to their boss's office for the second time that day.
Lisbon looked up from her computer when she heard the knock on the door. She grinned when she saw her team, "Please tell me you didn't come to talk about my flowers again," she told them.
Awww... snarky Lisbon. Alas, no, they’re here for far less fun reasons this time.
"No," Cho told her quickly. "We need to talk."
"And all of you needed to be here for this?" she asked playfully.
"Yes," Cho told her.
And just like that, she knows it’s not a joke.
Then she noticed the expressions on her team's faces, all of them serious, if a bit confused. She sobered immediately. "Close the door," she told Jane, who was the last one in the room. "What have you found?" she asked Cho.
He took a breath. "You know I said I know someone at the Department of Homeland Security?" he asked, glancing around the room.
"Yeah," she told him.
"Well, I called him to ask about Jenkins," Cho told her.
"Did your guy know him?" Lisbon asked.
"Not exactly," Cho told her.
"Okay..." Lisbon said, slightly confused. If this wasn't about Jenkins then what?
Cho paused again, not sure how she'd react to what he was about to say. "A couple of days ago I also called him about Elliot," he told her, glancing briefly in Jane's direction. "Just to see what he knew. After all if the guy was Secret Service and he was going to be working here I figured..."
"Know your friends," Lisbon filled in, her stomach turning to lead. "Cho, I've known you've been reading CBI personnel files for years now. You're thorough, some might say nosy," she told him. "Your looking into Elliot isn't a surprise. What did your guy say?" she asked, ignoring Van Pelt's concerned expression.
Because Lisbon knows something’s up. And the way he’s acting, it’s something more than the case. Which means it’s probably also personal. Besides, she always thought something was just slightly off with Elliot anyway.
"Nothing very good," Cho admitted. "He told me that though nothing had been proven there may have been a reason that Elliot moved up the ranks in the Secret Service so quickly, and not a good one. There were whispers of blackmail, of him having information that he shouldn't have. It's part of the reason he's been between assignments so long. No one wants to work with him if they can help it."
"Oh god," Lisbon whispered.
"Like I said," Cho hastened to qualify, "Nothing was ever proven."
"But if he knows where all the bodies are buried, people might not want to stir things up" Lisbon filled in.
"Yeah," Cho told her. "And there's more."
Lisbon gestured for him to continue.
"My buddy said he'd only met Elliot personally a handful of times. Just casually, in a big group of friends. Once Elliot brought his best friend. My guy said he was the same as Elliot, looked to be just a little on the shady side sometimes. Anyway, he said he only remembers the guy because while they were at the bar, my buddy had the misfortune to have to sit beside the idiot for about an hour. The guy wouldn't stop making comments about the waitress."
"And?" Lisbon asked. The fact that Elliot's best friend was apparently a bit sleazy, while not an asset, certainly wasn't incriminating.
"The guy was Jenkins' brother-in-law," Cho finished.
And just like that, they’ve got a bit of a mess. From their perspective. From my perspective, again, rather convenient...
Lisbon put her head in her hands briefly. "Okay," she said when she looked up. "We have to look into this obviously, but we look into it very, very quietly. Does everyone understand?" She got a series of nods in response. "Good," she told them. "Because we cannot accuse a highly commended member of the Secret Service unless we're absolutely sure. I don't care if half of his own organization secretly hates him. It doesn't matter. If this goes south then we're the ones up the creek without a paddle. Am I being clear?" she asked again.
Upon receiving another round of nods, she continued. "I'm dead serious about this. No one mentions this to anybody outside the team. This could be career suicide. And all we have right now is circumstantial evidence." Then she paused. "Oh my god."
"What?" Van Pelt asked.
"He was there," Lisbon hissed.
"What?" Cho asked this time.
"He was there," Lisbon repeated. "I just assumed it was a coincidence, but how could I not have realized? Especially since he's Secret Service. I mean, he already technically works for Homeland Security. How could I have been so stupid? Elliot was at the pub that night," Lisbon explained. "I saw him! He helped me when I tripped. He could have been following us, or Jenkins," she trailed off.
Nobody in the room seemed to know what to say to that.
"There is one potentially good thing," Cho told her, deciding that since he'd started this, he may as well do all the talking.
"What's that?" Lisbon asked him dryly.
Heh. She’s not expecting anything at all good right now. After all, her day pretty much has just gone to hell.
"Van Pelt's managed to find a list of the employee codes of the people on the selection committee for the position Jenkins is up for," Cho told her. "That way if we can get Elliot's we can compare them," he pointed out. "It apparently might take some time though."
Lisbon glanced at Van Pelt for confirmation. The other agent nodded.
"Okay," Lisbon said. "You work on that," she told her. "The rest of you, I want you to start trying to find anything and everything you can that connects Jenkins to Elliot, or Elliot to the position, or for that matter, Elliot to any potential blackmail allegations. And like I said, we keep this absolutely quiet."
"What are you going to do boss," Rigsby asked tentatively.
He knows whatever her job is, it’s probably one he doesn’t want. Lisbon would leave herself the terrible job. Of course, she is the boss sooo....
Lisbon sighed, "I've got to talk to Hightower," she told him. "She's not going to be pleased that we're investigating the same person she's trying to court over to the CBI."
The rest of the group winced, knowing full well how pleasant that conversation would turn out to be.
“Hi Madeleine! How’s it going? So, Elliot, funny story. Can you not hire him? We think he’s tied to our double homicide as well as being basically a scheming shmuck. No proof at the moment of course, but still, probably best not to put him on the payroll. K, thanks bye.
"Point out the potential embarrassment to the CBI if we're right," Jane told her. "That should convince her to at least wait a few days."
Lisbon nodded. "Okay, let's do this," she told the team.
The rest of them stood up and went to leave, suddenly Van Pelt turned, "Hey Lisbon?"
"Hm?"
"I'm sorry," she said.
"What?" Lisbon asked. Then Van Pelt gestured to the flowers in the corner of her office. "Oh!" Lisbon exclaimed. "Don't worry about it," she told the redhead.
Heh. I love how that aspect of it doesn’t even occur to her until Van Pelt points it out. It *would* have occurred to her eventually, in about five minutes I’d imagine. But it’s so far from being her primary concern, it’s funny. Besides, she’s far more invested in Jane than Elliot anyway. Elliot is just a guy she went to dinner with who seemed charming and nice, Jane is former!best!friend!Jane. Lisbon likes Jane *way* better. Even if she would insist the comparison is irrelevant.
The young woman looked like she was about to say something, when Lisbon continued. "I knew there was something off about him right from the start, I just couldn't put my finger on it," she explained. "Now I know. I mean, he was probably only going out to dinner with me to find out if we knew anything about his involvement anyway." And that was more than a little mortifying, Lisbon had to admit.
All four of them looked like they were about to interrupt at that, "Oh, please don't," she told them. "We all know it's almost certainly true. And if he did actually like me it just makes this whole thing that much worse, doesn't it? Let's say he does like me; that still doesn't make what he did okay. He's a jerk. I've already met my share, and I'm sure I'll meet more. It happens," Lisbon told them trying to brush it off.
I genuinely don’t think she’d want them to try to make her feel better. That would make everything so much more awkward. It’s enough to know that they want to. And after all, Lisbon seriously values her private life.
"Still," Van Pelt said
But Lisbon was done discussing it. "Go to work," she ordered. "I've got to schedule an emergency meeting with Hightower," she told them wryly.
Wordlessly her three agents left her office. To her annoyance Jane did not.
Because Jane has never kept out of her private life. And also, he won’t have her feeling badly about herself. Or undesirable, or whatever. So he is going to be sweet, in a Jane kind of a way.
"He's an idiot," Jane told her.
"Jane..." Lisbon said. "It's not that I don't appreciate what you're trying to do but..."
"He's an idiot," Jane repeated. "Worse than that, he's cruel, dishonest, and yes, you're right, on some level he's probably using you. But he is attracted to you. Evil or no, he still has eyes. He liked you Lisbon. He did. I know it's probably not much consolation, but part of the reason you didn't realize you were being used is because it wasn't all a con. The man definitely checked you out at least once when I was in the room."
"Jane," she repeated, torn between amusement and hurt at his analysis. "Are you just telling me a pack of lies to make me feel better, or is that the truth?"
"Does it matter?" he asked.
She considered that. Whether Elliot had actually liked her or not didn't make her feel much better. She didn't really care about his feelings one way or the other. The fact that Jane had told her that to try and make her feel better on the other hand did mean something. "No," she said finally. "I guess it doesn't."
Because if Jane is trying to make her feel better, even if she doesn’t consciously realize it, it does mean that Jane is being nice to her again. That Jane still cares about her feelings. That, Lisbon is a fan of. Though I doubt she made all those connections consciously.
Jane nodded. "That's what I thought. But for the record it was the truth."
"Thanks," she replied.
"Always," he told her. "And we will get him, and we'll make him sorry he ever tangled with you," Jane promised her.
"Jane," she said warningly this time, her mind rushing through a million scenarios of how Jane might be able to make someone sorry.
And now she’s paranoid again. Because if Jane’s dishing out retribution... That’s a seriously chilling thought. I mean, we know he wants to when it comes to RJ, but he’s never caught Red John, so...
"Oh relax Lisbon," he told her. "I'm not about to go and hypnotize Elliot into submission or something," he told her. "I'll stay on my couch like a good boy. After this week, I think it'll be a while before I defy a direct order of yours again wouldn't you say?"
She smiled. "Get out of here," she told him affectionately.
Awww. Jane has made her smile. Which is all he wanted anyway. And regardless of what he says, given the chance, he totally would punish Elliot.
"Let me know if you want company for that meeting with Hightower," Jane called over his shoulder as he walked out. "After all, those meetings always tended to go more smoothly when we took her on together as opposed to one at a time."
And now he is making himself helpful, in a further attempt to weasel his way back into her life. Crafty Jane. Carry on.
"I may just take you up on that offer," Lisbon muttered as she picked up her phone.
Jane smirked, "Like I said, if you need me I'll be on my couch."
Lisbon smiled briefly before picking up her phone. "Hi Kelly," she said to Hightower's secretary. "It's Lisbon. If she's in I need to speak to her asap. It's important. Half an hour? Thanks."
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All things considered the meeting with Hightower went far better than Lisbon had been anticipating. The Director had been understandably annoyed and angry that her potential new employee might in fact be involved in blackmail and information theft. Still, once Hightower moved past the instant denial, Jane's persuasive tongue eventually brought her around. After briefly explaining the situation and the team's suspicions Lisbon had stepped back and let Jane outline the potential benefits to the CBI. Not only would they narrowly escape hiring someone who would undoubtedly cause dissention within the organization, but think of the public coup associated with exposing a corrupt member of the Secret Service.
Lisbon had been almost amused at the way Hightower's eyes lit up at the possibility. Jane kept going until Hightower'd practically promised to do anything in her power to help them get Elliot. Jane certainly hadn't lost his particular touch with the boss.
Apparently Hightower agreed with her. "You know, it's been nice having you around again Patrick," she'd told him when he'd finished convincing her that Elliot was not going to be an asset to the CBI.
Jane had positively beamed in response.
After all, his not so subtle plan is to make himself all useful, and then casually drop into the conversation that he could stick around, if they want him to that is. Though he hasn’t consciously admitted this to himself, but it is his plan.
"Even if it is only for a few days," Hightower had added. "I suppose you'll be leaving us soon, off on some case or other. Even if Lisbon's team has proven they're more than capable of completing their job without you, you'll be missed. These past few days have been like old times."
Except that’s not what happens. Oops. Small flaw there Jane, in that you talked up your new life and how great it was a fair bit. Remember when you were trying to show Lisbon how much better your life was now? Yeah... Look what that’s done now that you’ve come to your senses. I have to say, I don’t really feel bad for you. At all. Mainly because you’re going to need to ask her for what you want this time. Tricking her into it won’t work.
Jane hadn't replied beyond a quick smile, so Lisbon had jumped in. "We absolutely appreciate Jane's help," she told her boss. "And it was nice seeing you again obviously," she added.
Was nice, Jane thought. Past tense.
"Well," Hightower said brightly. "As nice as this little reunion's been Patrick, I need to talk to Agent Lisbon about our plan of action, so if you wouldn't mind..."
"Of course," Jane said. "Always a pleasure Madeleine," he added as he left the office.
And... Dismissed.
Jane practically shuffled his way back to the bullpen. Apparently Hightower and Lisbon had no notion that he might stick around beyond the case. And why should they after all? He was a freelance consultant. And he'd always been a bit of a pain. Besides, after what had happened with Hightower's latest potential golden boy, she probably wasn't in any hurry to get another one.
He walked back into the bullpen. "How'd the meeting go?" Rigsby asked him.
Jane looked up, "Hm? Oh, great," he told the other man. "Hightower's on board."
"Good," Rigsby replied. "Hey Jane?"
"Yeah?" he asked as he sat down on your couch.
"It was nice having you around again, for the case," Rigsby told him.
"Thanks," Jane told him sincerely.
"Yeah, well, since you're probably going to be gone soon, I figured..." Rigsy trailed off. "I mean, the case is almost done so..."
And then Rigsby inadvertently rubs it in. Heh. Rigsby is handy like that.
"I got it," Jane told him tersely as he lay down. And he did. He absolutely got it.
Jane let himself wallow in self pity for a few minutes. It was his own fault, he thought. After all, he had told them all he was just back for the one case. What were they supposed to think? And what had he expected? That he'd come back and do such a brilliant job that they'd all just beg him to stay?
Oh for crying out loud, he had. That's exactly what he'd thought. Somewhere buried deep, deep down. He'd been hoping that he'd come back, he'd see the team, they'd decide that they couldn't do without him and Hightower (and Lisbon) would be begging him to stay forever.
Jane almost groaned out loud. Of all the idiotic...
Heh. At least his wallowing has constructive results.
He was having quite the number of revelations surrounding his own stupidity this week.
So what was he going to do about it? After all, if he just gave up he deserved his lot. And it looked like Elliot was almost certainly going to be out of the picture. Which was a stroke of luck he certainly didn't deserve, though he wasn't about to complain. And Lisbon seemed to be feeling pretty positively towards him again. She might not object to his sticking around.
After all, she hadn't ever actually said he couldn't stay, just that she wasn't expecting him to. But he'd never exactly asked her if he could.
And if she was okay with taking him on as her consultant again, it might be a good time to slip in that he also happened to be in love with her.
Yes, because CLEARLY those two things follow one and other as a matter of course. But I have no trouble believing this would make sense in Jane’s head. NO TROUBLE AT ALL. I love Jane-logic sometimes.
Of course neither of those issues were things one could just blurt out. Jane winced. He had a mental image of him stuttering out a disjointed explanation to Lisbon while she watched in complete incomprehension. Clearly that wasn't what he wanted.
I have to say, I would love to see this. I really would. It would be *hilarious*.
He desperately needed a plan now.
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TBC
Wow, this chapter isn’t all that exciting. Just basically, “I am bored with this case business; I will wrap it up.” Next one’s more fun though. It’s THE LETTER. So yay.
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Chapter 11
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It was just after lunch and Jane was still sulking on his couch. The rest of the team had decided to just let him be. Clearly something (and Cho had his suspicions about what that might be) was irritating the blond. Not that Cho was exactly having a great afternoon either. His contact at Homeland Security had finally gotten back to him. Then Cho had taken a few hours to do his own digging, wanting to make absolutely sure before he mentioned his suspicions to anybody. But unfortunately, it appeared everything he did find confirmed his theory.
It was time to tell the team.
"Hey Van Pelt," he called across the room. "You find anything?"
She looked up shaking her head. "No," she told him. "I mean, I've managed to get employee numbers for everyone involved in the hiring process for the job Jenkins was after, but I've only been able to confirm the identity of about half of the committee, and so far no connection to Jenkins."
"But if you had a name," Cho told her slowly, "You could compare it to the numbers you have?"
"Sure," Van Pelt told him. "It might take a while to get the information, but sure. Why?"
Cho sighed. "I might have something."
All three members of the bullpen turned to him in interest. "Great!" Rigsby told him. "What is it?"
Cho shook his head, "Come on," he told them. "We've got to talk to Lisbon."
Dun dun dun... Heh. That probably would freak them out though, Cho being particularly mysterious and evasive. Usually he’s so blunt.
Rigsby and Van Pelt exchanged serious looks. Cho was being unusually reticent, even for him. This wasn't going to be good. Especially if he wanted back-up just to talk to Lisbon.
Wordlessly the four of them made their way to their boss's office for the second time that day.
Lisbon looked up from her computer when she heard the knock on the door. She grinned when she saw her team, "Please tell me you didn't come to talk about my flowers again," she told them.
Awww... snarky Lisbon. Alas, no, they’re here for far less fun reasons this time.
"No," Cho told her quickly. "We need to talk."
"And all of you needed to be here for this?" she asked playfully.
"Yes," Cho told her.
And just like that, she knows it’s not a joke.
Then she noticed the expressions on her team's faces, all of them serious, if a bit confused. She sobered immediately. "Close the door," she told Jane, who was the last one in the room. "What have you found?" she asked Cho.
He took a breath. "You know I said I know someone at the Department of Homeland Security?" he asked, glancing around the room.
"Yeah," she told him.
"Well, I called him to ask about Jenkins," Cho told her.
"Did your guy know him?" Lisbon asked.
"Not exactly," Cho told her.
"Okay..." Lisbon said, slightly confused. If this wasn't about Jenkins then what?
Cho paused again, not sure how she'd react to what he was about to say. "A couple of days ago I also called him about Elliot," he told her, glancing briefly in Jane's direction. "Just to see what he knew. After all if the guy was Secret Service and he was going to be working here I figured..."
"Know your friends," Lisbon filled in, her stomach turning to lead. "Cho, I've known you've been reading CBI personnel files for years now. You're thorough, some might say nosy," she told him. "Your looking into Elliot isn't a surprise. What did your guy say?" she asked, ignoring Van Pelt's concerned expression.
Because Lisbon knows something’s up. And the way he’s acting, it’s something more than the case. Which means it’s probably also personal. Besides, she always thought something was just slightly off with Elliot anyway.
"Nothing very good," Cho admitted. "He told me that though nothing had been proven there may have been a reason that Elliot moved up the ranks in the Secret Service so quickly, and not a good one. There were whispers of blackmail, of him having information that he shouldn't have. It's part of the reason he's been between assignments so long. No one wants to work with him if they can help it."
"Oh god," Lisbon whispered.
"Like I said," Cho hastened to qualify, "Nothing was ever proven."
"But if he knows where all the bodies are buried, people might not want to stir things up" Lisbon filled in.
"Yeah," Cho told her. "And there's more."
Lisbon gestured for him to continue.
"My buddy said he'd only met Elliot personally a handful of times. Just casually, in a big group of friends. Once Elliot brought his best friend. My guy said he was the same as Elliot, looked to be just a little on the shady side sometimes. Anyway, he said he only remembers the guy because while they were at the bar, my buddy had the misfortune to have to sit beside the idiot for about an hour. The guy wouldn't stop making comments about the waitress."
"And?" Lisbon asked. The fact that Elliot's best friend was apparently a bit sleazy, while not an asset, certainly wasn't incriminating.
"The guy was Jenkins' brother-in-law," Cho finished.
And just like that, they’ve got a bit of a mess. From their perspective. From my perspective, again, rather convenient...
Lisbon put her head in her hands briefly. "Okay," she said when she looked up. "We have to look into this obviously, but we look into it very, very quietly. Does everyone understand?" She got a series of nods in response. "Good," she told them. "Because we cannot accuse a highly commended member of the Secret Service unless we're absolutely sure. I don't care if half of his own organization secretly hates him. It doesn't matter. If this goes south then we're the ones up the creek without a paddle. Am I being clear?" she asked again.
Upon receiving another round of nods, she continued. "I'm dead serious about this. No one mentions this to anybody outside the team. This could be career suicide. And all we have right now is circumstantial evidence." Then she paused. "Oh my god."
"What?" Van Pelt asked.
"He was there," Lisbon hissed.
"What?" Cho asked this time.
"He was there," Lisbon repeated. "I just assumed it was a coincidence, but how could I not have realized? Especially since he's Secret Service. I mean, he already technically works for Homeland Security. How could I have been so stupid? Elliot was at the pub that night," Lisbon explained. "I saw him! He helped me when I tripped. He could have been following us, or Jenkins," she trailed off.
Nobody in the room seemed to know what to say to that.
"There is one potentially good thing," Cho told her, deciding that since he'd started this, he may as well do all the talking.
"What's that?" Lisbon asked him dryly.
Heh. She’s not expecting anything at all good right now. After all, her day pretty much has just gone to hell.
"Van Pelt's managed to find a list of the employee codes of the people on the selection committee for the position Jenkins is up for," Cho told her. "That way if we can get Elliot's we can compare them," he pointed out. "It apparently might take some time though."
Lisbon glanced at Van Pelt for confirmation. The other agent nodded.
"Okay," Lisbon said. "You work on that," she told her. "The rest of you, I want you to start trying to find anything and everything you can that connects Jenkins to Elliot, or Elliot to the position, or for that matter, Elliot to any potential blackmail allegations. And like I said, we keep this absolutely quiet."
"What are you going to do boss," Rigsby asked tentatively.
He knows whatever her job is, it’s probably one he doesn’t want. Lisbon would leave herself the terrible job. Of course, she is the boss sooo....
Lisbon sighed, "I've got to talk to Hightower," she told him. "She's not going to be pleased that we're investigating the same person she's trying to court over to the CBI."
The rest of the group winced, knowing full well how pleasant that conversation would turn out to be.
“Hi Madeleine! How’s it going? So, Elliot, funny story. Can you not hire him? We think he’s tied to our double homicide as well as being basically a scheming shmuck. No proof at the moment of course, but still, probably best not to put him on the payroll. K, thanks bye.
"Point out the potential embarrassment to the CBI if we're right," Jane told her. "That should convince her to at least wait a few days."
Lisbon nodded. "Okay, let's do this," she told the team.
The rest of them stood up and went to leave, suddenly Van Pelt turned, "Hey Lisbon?"
"Hm?"
"I'm sorry," she said.
"What?" Lisbon asked. Then Van Pelt gestured to the flowers in the corner of her office. "Oh!" Lisbon exclaimed. "Don't worry about it," she told the redhead.
Heh. I love how that aspect of it doesn’t even occur to her until Van Pelt points it out. It *would* have occurred to her eventually, in about five minutes I’d imagine. But it’s so far from being her primary concern, it’s funny. Besides, she’s far more invested in Jane than Elliot anyway. Elliot is just a guy she went to dinner with who seemed charming and nice, Jane is former!best!friend!Jane. Lisbon likes Jane *way* better. Even if she would insist the comparison is irrelevant.
The young woman looked like she was about to say something, when Lisbon continued. "I knew there was something off about him right from the start, I just couldn't put my finger on it," she explained. "Now I know. I mean, he was probably only going out to dinner with me to find out if we knew anything about his involvement anyway." And that was more than a little mortifying, Lisbon had to admit.
All four of them looked like they were about to interrupt at that, "Oh, please don't," she told them. "We all know it's almost certainly true. And if he did actually like me it just makes this whole thing that much worse, doesn't it? Let's say he does like me; that still doesn't make what he did okay. He's a jerk. I've already met my share, and I'm sure I'll meet more. It happens," Lisbon told them trying to brush it off.
I genuinely don’t think she’d want them to try to make her feel better. That would make everything so much more awkward. It’s enough to know that they want to. And after all, Lisbon seriously values her private life.
"Still," Van Pelt said
But Lisbon was done discussing it. "Go to work," she ordered. "I've got to schedule an emergency meeting with Hightower," she told them wryly.
Wordlessly her three agents left her office. To her annoyance Jane did not.
Because Jane has never kept out of her private life. And also, he won’t have her feeling badly about herself. Or undesirable, or whatever. So he is going to be sweet, in a Jane kind of a way.
"He's an idiot," Jane told her.
"Jane..." Lisbon said. "It's not that I don't appreciate what you're trying to do but..."
"He's an idiot," Jane repeated. "Worse than that, he's cruel, dishonest, and yes, you're right, on some level he's probably using you. But he is attracted to you. Evil or no, he still has eyes. He liked you Lisbon. He did. I know it's probably not much consolation, but part of the reason you didn't realize you were being used is because it wasn't all a con. The man definitely checked you out at least once when I was in the room."
"Jane," she repeated, torn between amusement and hurt at his analysis. "Are you just telling me a pack of lies to make me feel better, or is that the truth?"
"Does it matter?" he asked.
She considered that. Whether Elliot had actually liked her or not didn't make her feel much better. She didn't really care about his feelings one way or the other. The fact that Jane had told her that to try and make her feel better on the other hand did mean something. "No," she said finally. "I guess it doesn't."
Because if Jane is trying to make her feel better, even if she doesn’t consciously realize it, it does mean that Jane is being nice to her again. That Jane still cares about her feelings. That, Lisbon is a fan of. Though I doubt she made all those connections consciously.
Jane nodded. "That's what I thought. But for the record it was the truth."
"Thanks," she replied.
"Always," he told her. "And we will get him, and we'll make him sorry he ever tangled with you," Jane promised her.
"Jane," she said warningly this time, her mind rushing through a million scenarios of how Jane might be able to make someone sorry.
And now she’s paranoid again. Because if Jane’s dishing out retribution... That’s a seriously chilling thought. I mean, we know he wants to when it comes to RJ, but he’s never caught Red John, so...
"Oh relax Lisbon," he told her. "I'm not about to go and hypnotize Elliot into submission or something," he told her. "I'll stay on my couch like a good boy. After this week, I think it'll be a while before I defy a direct order of yours again wouldn't you say?"
She smiled. "Get out of here," she told him affectionately.
Awww. Jane has made her smile. Which is all he wanted anyway. And regardless of what he says, given the chance, he totally would punish Elliot.
"Let me know if you want company for that meeting with Hightower," Jane called over his shoulder as he walked out. "After all, those meetings always tended to go more smoothly when we took her on together as opposed to one at a time."
And now he is making himself helpful, in a further attempt to weasel his way back into her life. Crafty Jane. Carry on.
"I may just take you up on that offer," Lisbon muttered as she picked up her phone.
Jane smirked, "Like I said, if you need me I'll be on my couch."
Lisbon smiled briefly before picking up her phone. "Hi Kelly," she said to Hightower's secretary. "It's Lisbon. If she's in I need to speak to her asap. It's important. Half an hour? Thanks."
xxxxx
All things considered the meeting with Hightower went far better than Lisbon had been anticipating. The Director had been understandably annoyed and angry that her potential new employee might in fact be involved in blackmail and information theft. Still, once Hightower moved past the instant denial, Jane's persuasive tongue eventually brought her around. After briefly explaining the situation and the team's suspicions Lisbon had stepped back and let Jane outline the potential benefits to the CBI. Not only would they narrowly escape hiring someone who would undoubtedly cause dissention within the organization, but think of the public coup associated with exposing a corrupt member of the Secret Service.
Lisbon had been almost amused at the way Hightower's eyes lit up at the possibility. Jane kept going until Hightower'd practically promised to do anything in her power to help them get Elliot. Jane certainly hadn't lost his particular touch with the boss.
Apparently Hightower agreed with her. "You know, it's been nice having you around again Patrick," she'd told him when he'd finished convincing her that Elliot was not going to be an asset to the CBI.
Jane had positively beamed in response.
After all, his not so subtle plan is to make himself all useful, and then casually drop into the conversation that he could stick around, if they want him to that is. Though he hasn’t consciously admitted this to himself, but it is his plan.
"Even if it is only for a few days," Hightower had added. "I suppose you'll be leaving us soon, off on some case or other. Even if Lisbon's team has proven they're more than capable of completing their job without you, you'll be missed. These past few days have been like old times."
Except that’s not what happens. Oops. Small flaw there Jane, in that you talked up your new life and how great it was a fair bit. Remember when you were trying to show Lisbon how much better your life was now? Yeah... Look what that’s done now that you’ve come to your senses. I have to say, I don’t really feel bad for you. At all. Mainly because you’re going to need to ask her for what you want this time. Tricking her into it won’t work.
Jane hadn't replied beyond a quick smile, so Lisbon had jumped in. "We absolutely appreciate Jane's help," she told her boss. "And it was nice seeing you again obviously," she added.
Was nice, Jane thought. Past tense.
"Well," Hightower said brightly. "As nice as this little reunion's been Patrick, I need to talk to Agent Lisbon about our plan of action, so if you wouldn't mind..."
"Of course," Jane said. "Always a pleasure Madeleine," he added as he left the office.
And... Dismissed.
Jane practically shuffled his way back to the bullpen. Apparently Hightower and Lisbon had no notion that he might stick around beyond the case. And why should they after all? He was a freelance consultant. And he'd always been a bit of a pain. Besides, after what had happened with Hightower's latest potential golden boy, she probably wasn't in any hurry to get another one.
He walked back into the bullpen. "How'd the meeting go?" Rigsby asked him.
Jane looked up, "Hm? Oh, great," he told the other man. "Hightower's on board."
"Good," Rigsby replied. "Hey Jane?"
"Yeah?" he asked as he sat down on your couch.
"It was nice having you around again, for the case," Rigsby told him.
"Thanks," Jane told him sincerely.
"Yeah, well, since you're probably going to be gone soon, I figured..." Rigsy trailed off. "I mean, the case is almost done so..."
And then Rigsby inadvertently rubs it in. Heh. Rigsby is handy like that.
"I got it," Jane told him tersely as he lay down. And he did. He absolutely got it.
Jane let himself wallow in self pity for a few minutes. It was his own fault, he thought. After all, he had told them all he was just back for the one case. What were they supposed to think? And what had he expected? That he'd come back and do such a brilliant job that they'd all just beg him to stay?
Oh for crying out loud, he had. That's exactly what he'd thought. Somewhere buried deep, deep down. He'd been hoping that he'd come back, he'd see the team, they'd decide that they couldn't do without him and Hightower (and Lisbon) would be begging him to stay forever.
Jane almost groaned out loud. Of all the idiotic...
Heh. At least his wallowing has constructive results.
He was having quite the number of revelations surrounding his own stupidity this week.
So what was he going to do about it? After all, if he just gave up he deserved his lot. And it looked like Elliot was almost certainly going to be out of the picture. Which was a stroke of luck he certainly didn't deserve, though he wasn't about to complain. And Lisbon seemed to be feeling pretty positively towards him again. She might not object to his sticking around.
After all, she hadn't ever actually said he couldn't stay, just that she wasn't expecting him to. But he'd never exactly asked her if he could.
And if she was okay with taking him on as her consultant again, it might be a good time to slip in that he also happened to be in love with her.
Yes, because CLEARLY those two things follow one and other as a matter of course. But I have no trouble believing this would make sense in Jane’s head. NO TROUBLE AT ALL. I love Jane-logic sometimes.
Of course neither of those issues were things one could just blurt out. Jane winced. He had a mental image of him stuttering out a disjointed explanation to Lisbon while she watched in complete incomprehension. Clearly that wasn't what he wanted.
I have to say, I would love to see this. I really would. It would be *hilarious*.
He desperately needed a plan now.
xxxxx
TBC
Wow, this chapter isn’t all that exciting. Just basically, “I am bored with this case business; I will wrap it up.” Next one’s more fun though. It’s THE LETTER. So yay.