Battlefield (14/15)
Previous parts: Prologue, Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six, Part Seven, Part Eight, Part Nine, Part Ten, Part Eleven, Part Twelve, Part Thirteen
It was funny just how much a good night’s sleep and a decent breakfast could change somebody’s perception. Now that she was surprisingly well-rested and well-fed, Lisbon found that the slightest shred of optimism had returned to her current predicament. So, she was inside Visualize with Brett Stiles watching her every move, but she knew he wasn’t going to kill her. Or at least, he wasn’t going to kill her yet. Danger still lurked around every corner, but she had rediscovered her confidence in her abilities, something which had been quickly seeped away from her in her short time on the run. Lisbon was glad that she was no longer running and she could see that glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel.
All she had to do now was make sure that it wasn’t extinguished entirely.
When she next met with Brett Stiles, she was mature and polite. Lisbon managed to battle down her inherent loathing for the man and pretended that she had the utmost respect for him. In some ways, she couldn’t help but do so anyway. He was ridiculously clever and had managed to evade the authorities for so long. Grudgingly, even she had to accept that deserved some sort of admiration. But equally, that didn’t stop her from wanting to bring him down in a heartbeat, nor did it remove her distaste for all that he was responsible for. Usually, Lisbon lived by the mantra ‘innocent until proven guilty’. In her line of work, she could never assume guilt until she had hard evidence on the table. However, as far as she was concerned, Stiles’ hissed ‘prove it’ had been evidence enough of his guilt. Not enough to send him to death row, of course, but a challenge to see if she was clever enough to get him to that point.
So, she accepted his invitation to join Visualize. She pretended that she was ready to start again, that she had been foolish and childishly naïve in her attitudes the night before. Lisbon had claimed that she realized that if she wanted to live as a (semi) free woman, then this was the only door left open for her. All she could do was hope that her doubt in her abilities didn’t flicker through and that Stiles believed her every word and every action. At the very least, he seemed accepting of what she had said. He shook her hand, welcomed her into the fold, into Visualize.
But even as she left the room to go and join her new life, she felt his eyes on her every move. The words ‘prove it’ continued to echo around her mind. And that was precisely what she was going to set out to achieve.
Slowly, she ingratiated herself with the other members of Visualize. Like Danny before her, she listened to the whisperings and the rumors and speculation. It didn’t take her long to discover that yes, Visualize was exactly why Miss Lilith Douglas had sprung seemingly out of nowhere from. And far, far more interestingly she discovered soon after that Ron had also some seriously deep connections with the cult. That revelation had left Lisbon temporarily stunned. Like herself, Ron had been with the CBI for years and she would never have guessed that he was deeply embroiled with a cult. It saddened her, in a way. It also confirmed that it was plausible for one of Red John’s number to be buried within the CBI unnoticed. Of course, she wasn’t that person; it was becoming increasingly clear that Ron was.
This was all rumor and speculation until one person - a woman who had been ‘forced’ to join Visualize in much the same way that she had - confided in Lisbon. Like Lisbon, she had been scurrying away information in attempt to bring down Brett Stiles, but lacked the confidence to actually make it happen. Somehow, she had managed to get hold of Lilith Douglas’ diary from her time with Visualize. Lisbon didn’t ask her how, in all honesty she didn’t actually care. However, she knew that this was precisely the kind of evidence that she had needed to attempt to clear her name.
Over the course of the next couple of nights, she read every scrap of information present in the diary. It surprised her just how detailed it was. Douglas had mentioned being introduced to Ron, getting closer to Stiles and even the planning of her mother’s death. She showed no remorse whatsoever; if anything, her writings indicated that she had hoped she could be involved in the death somehow. The thought made Lisbon shudder. How had she not been capable of seeing the dark and callous side of Douglas when she had interviewed her? But then, she hadn’t wanted to. She had just wanted to find somebody - anybody - to replace Wayne Rigsby. Stiles had provided her with the perfect little mole to fill that space.
And even, if for some remote reason, she had failed to hire Douglas, Lisbon was sure that Ron would have found a way to take her down without her help. Having her within the CBI just eased matters for her. For a brief second, she questioned whether or not the handwriting was actually Douglas’. She was fairly confident it was, but it was only natural that those doubts surfaced. After all, everything she had believed in had been turned upside down and it was taking a superhuman amount of effort to set it right again. She sent Jane a message about this development and he’d replied, stating that he was ‘proud’ of her.
But Douglas’ diary was only enough to prove that she and Ron were involved with Red John. It wasn’t enough to prove that Stiles himself was Red John. Her gut instinct wasn’t enough evidence for that.
Lisbon tried using the computing system, but could never get far enough inside of it to find anything of substance. Besides, she knew that that kind of activity drew far too much attention to herself and that made her feel distinctly uncomfortable. She tried talking to the Visualize members (technically, other Visualize members, she reminded herself) but they either knew nothing, worshipped Stiles far too much or just clammed up at the very mention of the possibility that he could be corrupt. Much to her dismay, it was becoming increasingly obvious that she was going to have to - somehow - force Stiles’ hand in order to make him confess all.
The very thought had her quaking in her boots.
In the end, serendipity had a part to play. When she heard that Ron was paying a visit to Visualize on ‘official police duties’, she could scarcely believe her luck. A message received from Jane confirmed that he knew Ron was visiting Stiles specifically, so Lisbon knew that she had to make every effort to hear said conversation. This, she knew, could be her only chance to actually catch Brett Stiles in the act of talking about Red John. She also knew that she needed a trusted police officer - in other words, Cho - to hear every single word as well; otherwise, she was wasting her time. Nobody would believe her at the moment, not even with the diary which she kept on her person at all times.
It was surprisingly easy for her to hide in Brett Stiles’ office, almost too easy. As she cowered in a cupboard, Lisbon couldn’t help but wonder if he had actually planned for this moment to happen. She didn’t doubt that he had kept his eye on her since her ‘recruitment’ to Visualize. Lisbon also wouldn’t have been surprised in the slightest if Stiles knew that she had never given up on her quest to ‘prove’ his guilt either. Within Visualize, he had eyes and ears everywhere, literally. Was this actually a trap, and was he planning to kill her now? Was he about to destroy Jane for the second time around?
But she couldn’t worry about it now. She had already made her decision. That, and Stiles had just strode into his office with Ron in tow. Peeking through the gaps, she watched each and every move of each of the gentlemen. Surreptitiously, she slipped the cellphone that Jane had given her a couple of months ago out of her pocket, carefully selected Cho’s number and pressed dial. Cho was expecting the call; she had already sent the newly promoted senior agent of the Serious Crimes Unit a text message the night before, explaining her plan. He knew not to speak, just to listen and she trusted him to follow her instructions. After all, it wasn’t Jane she was dealing with.
Lisbon remained deathly silent. She knew that the both of them were just as intrigued by this meeting as one another.
“You said you had an update for me on the Serious Crimes Unit, Ron,” Stiles spoke calmly and clearly.
“They believe that Teresa Lisbon is innocent. Or at least, Kimball Cho, Grace Van Pelt and Patrick Jane do. The newly rehired Wayne Rigsby doesn’t know what to believe. Douglas is trying desperately to convince them otherwise, but it’s hard work. Even the presence of the Jane girl’s necklace in Ms. Lisbon’s safe wasn’t enough to deter them. They were such an established team…”
“I don’t want to hear your excuses,” Stiles roared in response. “I want actions!”
“I know, but-“
“I don’t like the word ‘but’,” Stiles continued.
Briefly, Lisbon saw the flash of a knife. She froze for a second and then, with shaking hands she pressed the phone to her ear. Although she knew Cho wouldn’t dare speak to her, she also had to try and hear what he was saying to the others, if they were going to head over to Visualize. She wasn’t surprised when all she could hear was the sound of a car engine and Patrick Jane speaking quickly and urgently to Cho. It was a relief to hear his voice; she hadn’t heard it since that fateful day when he’d sent her off with his brother-in-law. He’d told her to stay safe. She very much doubted that that was what she was doing right now.
“If you don’t produce results, Ronald, I shall be forced to use this.”
“Please sir, you can’t. I have a wife and a daughter. I never…”
“But you’re becoming a weak link. I believe it’s only a matter of time before you reveal your little secret to Mr. Jane. Tell him that you were partially responsible for framing his dear Teresa Lisbon.”
“I swear I’d never!”
“Lies!”
“I’m not, I promise. I beg of you sir, please! Think of my family! I have to get back to my daughter!”
Then, it was over almost as quickly as it begun. The knife in Stiles’ hand made quick work of the bare flesh of Ron’s neck. Lisbon instinctively closed her eyes when he actually cut the arteries and only opened them again to see his blood coming out in spurts. This was the confirmation they had needed, this was the proof that Brett Stiles had been responsible for all those murders. Dearly, she wished that she was still in possession of her badge and gun. She wished that the CBI still trusted her, and she was still a cop. Then, she would have been able to shoot the bastard down dead. Just because Ron had betrayed them all, it didn’t mean she had wanted to see him murdered by Red John. On the contrary, she would have much preferred to see him locked up.
A tear leaked out of her eye as her thoughts strayed to his wife and daughter. They were probably oblivious to the fact that Ron had been living a double life all these years. And now, instead of having him back alive - and albeit in jail - they would be burying him instead.
She couldn’t focus on the tragedy for too long. Brett Stiles immediately stalked over to her hiding space and threw open the doors with delight.
“Well, well, well. What do we have here? A little mouse?”
Lisbon glanced down at the knife in his hand. It was still dripping with Ron’s blood. She remained wordless and gripped hold of the phone tightly. Silently, she offered a prayer that Jane and Cho would be here soon. They had to be. If they didn’t hurry up, then Stiles would slip through their fingers. He’d probably be far more successful at ‘disappearing’ then she ever had been.
“Pass me the phone, Ms. Lisbon. I would rather like a word with Patrick.”
“No,” she snarled and instead, she ended the call. They would be here soon. She had backup, just like she had always done in the past. The only difference was the fact that she wasn’t personally armed.
He laughed and it chilled her down to the bone. Warily, she watched as he cleaned the knife down on his pants. And then, the phone on his desk started ringing. He shot her a glance, but eventually went to answer it. Slowly, Lisbon tried to edge her way out of the cupboard and out of the room. All the while, she was listening to Stiles’ responses to the person at the other end of the line. The CBI were here, they had pushed their way in and were on their way up.
But Stiles ended the call. With significant athleticism, especially for an older gentleman, he quickly closed the gap between them and pinned her up against the wall. She wasn’t going to go anywhere. Slowly, carefully, he moved the knife up to her exposed neck and she swallowed deeply. He had her in a lock and she couldn’t move a muscle. Despite the fact that she knew Cho was coming, it didn’t stop her from believing that she needed some kind of miracle and fast.
“Your Patrick will be here in a minute. But don’t let that fool you into believing he’ll see you alive, Teresa. It’s been… fun.”
She let out a piercing scream as the knife blade slowly, carefully cut through the first layer of her skin.
To Part Fifteen
It was funny just how much a good night’s sleep and a decent breakfast could change somebody’s perception. Now that she was surprisingly well-rested and well-fed, Lisbon found that the slightest shred of optimism had returned to her current predicament. So, she was inside Visualize with Brett Stiles watching her every move, but she knew he wasn’t going to kill her. Or at least, he wasn’t going to kill her yet. Danger still lurked around every corner, but she had rediscovered her confidence in her abilities, something which had been quickly seeped away from her in her short time on the run. Lisbon was glad that she was no longer running and she could see that glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel.
All she had to do now was make sure that it wasn’t extinguished entirely.
When she next met with Brett Stiles, she was mature and polite. Lisbon managed to battle down her inherent loathing for the man and pretended that she had the utmost respect for him. In some ways, she couldn’t help but do so anyway. He was ridiculously clever and had managed to evade the authorities for so long. Grudgingly, even she had to accept that deserved some sort of admiration. But equally, that didn’t stop her from wanting to bring him down in a heartbeat, nor did it remove her distaste for all that he was responsible for. Usually, Lisbon lived by the mantra ‘innocent until proven guilty’. In her line of work, she could never assume guilt until she had hard evidence on the table. However, as far as she was concerned, Stiles’ hissed ‘prove it’ had been evidence enough of his guilt. Not enough to send him to death row, of course, but a challenge to see if she was clever enough to get him to that point.
So, she accepted his invitation to join Visualize. She pretended that she was ready to start again, that she had been foolish and childishly naïve in her attitudes the night before. Lisbon had claimed that she realized that if she wanted to live as a (semi) free woman, then this was the only door left open for her. All she could do was hope that her doubt in her abilities didn’t flicker through and that Stiles believed her every word and every action. At the very least, he seemed accepting of what she had said. He shook her hand, welcomed her into the fold, into Visualize.
But even as she left the room to go and join her new life, she felt his eyes on her every move. The words ‘prove it’ continued to echo around her mind. And that was precisely what she was going to set out to achieve.
Slowly, she ingratiated herself with the other members of Visualize. Like Danny before her, she listened to the whisperings and the rumors and speculation. It didn’t take her long to discover that yes, Visualize was exactly why Miss Lilith Douglas had sprung seemingly out of nowhere from. And far, far more interestingly she discovered soon after that Ron had also some seriously deep connections with the cult. That revelation had left Lisbon temporarily stunned. Like herself, Ron had been with the CBI for years and she would never have guessed that he was deeply embroiled with a cult. It saddened her, in a way. It also confirmed that it was plausible for one of Red John’s number to be buried within the CBI unnoticed. Of course, she wasn’t that person; it was becoming increasingly clear that Ron was.
This was all rumor and speculation until one person - a woman who had been ‘forced’ to join Visualize in much the same way that she had - confided in Lisbon. Like Lisbon, she had been scurrying away information in attempt to bring down Brett Stiles, but lacked the confidence to actually make it happen. Somehow, she had managed to get hold of Lilith Douglas’ diary from her time with Visualize. Lisbon didn’t ask her how, in all honesty she didn’t actually care. However, she knew that this was precisely the kind of evidence that she had needed to attempt to clear her name.
Over the course of the next couple of nights, she read every scrap of information present in the diary. It surprised her just how detailed it was. Douglas had mentioned being introduced to Ron, getting closer to Stiles and even the planning of her mother’s death. She showed no remorse whatsoever; if anything, her writings indicated that she had hoped she could be involved in the death somehow. The thought made Lisbon shudder. How had she not been capable of seeing the dark and callous side of Douglas when she had interviewed her? But then, she hadn’t wanted to. She had just wanted to find somebody - anybody - to replace Wayne Rigsby. Stiles had provided her with the perfect little mole to fill that space.
And even, if for some remote reason, she had failed to hire Douglas, Lisbon was sure that Ron would have found a way to take her down without her help. Having her within the CBI just eased matters for her. For a brief second, she questioned whether or not the handwriting was actually Douglas’. She was fairly confident it was, but it was only natural that those doubts surfaced. After all, everything she had believed in had been turned upside down and it was taking a superhuman amount of effort to set it right again. She sent Jane a message about this development and he’d replied, stating that he was ‘proud’ of her.
But Douglas’ diary was only enough to prove that she and Ron were involved with Red John. It wasn’t enough to prove that Stiles himself was Red John. Her gut instinct wasn’t enough evidence for that.
Lisbon tried using the computing system, but could never get far enough inside of it to find anything of substance. Besides, she knew that that kind of activity drew far too much attention to herself and that made her feel distinctly uncomfortable. She tried talking to the Visualize members (technically, other Visualize members, she reminded herself) but they either knew nothing, worshipped Stiles far too much or just clammed up at the very mention of the possibility that he could be corrupt. Much to her dismay, it was becoming increasingly obvious that she was going to have to - somehow - force Stiles’ hand in order to make him confess all.
The very thought had her quaking in her boots.
In the end, serendipity had a part to play. When she heard that Ron was paying a visit to Visualize on ‘official police duties’, she could scarcely believe her luck. A message received from Jane confirmed that he knew Ron was visiting Stiles specifically, so Lisbon knew that she had to make every effort to hear said conversation. This, she knew, could be her only chance to actually catch Brett Stiles in the act of talking about Red John. She also knew that she needed a trusted police officer - in other words, Cho - to hear every single word as well; otherwise, she was wasting her time. Nobody would believe her at the moment, not even with the diary which she kept on her person at all times.
It was surprisingly easy for her to hide in Brett Stiles’ office, almost too easy. As she cowered in a cupboard, Lisbon couldn’t help but wonder if he had actually planned for this moment to happen. She didn’t doubt that he had kept his eye on her since her ‘recruitment’ to Visualize. Lisbon also wouldn’t have been surprised in the slightest if Stiles knew that she had never given up on her quest to ‘prove’ his guilt either. Within Visualize, he had eyes and ears everywhere, literally. Was this actually a trap, and was he planning to kill her now? Was he about to destroy Jane for the second time around?
But she couldn’t worry about it now. She had already made her decision. That, and Stiles had just strode into his office with Ron in tow. Peeking through the gaps, she watched each and every move of each of the gentlemen. Surreptitiously, she slipped the cellphone that Jane had given her a couple of months ago out of her pocket, carefully selected Cho’s number and pressed dial. Cho was expecting the call; she had already sent the newly promoted senior agent of the Serious Crimes Unit a text message the night before, explaining her plan. He knew not to speak, just to listen and she trusted him to follow her instructions. After all, it wasn’t Jane she was dealing with.
Lisbon remained deathly silent. She knew that the both of them were just as intrigued by this meeting as one another.
“You said you had an update for me on the Serious Crimes Unit, Ron,” Stiles spoke calmly and clearly.
“They believe that Teresa Lisbon is innocent. Or at least, Kimball Cho, Grace Van Pelt and Patrick Jane do. The newly rehired Wayne Rigsby doesn’t know what to believe. Douglas is trying desperately to convince them otherwise, but it’s hard work. Even the presence of the Jane girl’s necklace in Ms. Lisbon’s safe wasn’t enough to deter them. They were such an established team…”
“I don’t want to hear your excuses,” Stiles roared in response. “I want actions!”
“I know, but-“
“I don’t like the word ‘but’,” Stiles continued.
Briefly, Lisbon saw the flash of a knife. She froze for a second and then, with shaking hands she pressed the phone to her ear. Although she knew Cho wouldn’t dare speak to her, she also had to try and hear what he was saying to the others, if they were going to head over to Visualize. She wasn’t surprised when all she could hear was the sound of a car engine and Patrick Jane speaking quickly and urgently to Cho. It was a relief to hear his voice; she hadn’t heard it since that fateful day when he’d sent her off with his brother-in-law. He’d told her to stay safe. She very much doubted that that was what she was doing right now.
“If you don’t produce results, Ronald, I shall be forced to use this.”
“Please sir, you can’t. I have a wife and a daughter. I never…”
“But you’re becoming a weak link. I believe it’s only a matter of time before you reveal your little secret to Mr. Jane. Tell him that you were partially responsible for framing his dear Teresa Lisbon.”
“I swear I’d never!”
“Lies!”
“I’m not, I promise. I beg of you sir, please! Think of my family! I have to get back to my daughter!”
Then, it was over almost as quickly as it begun. The knife in Stiles’ hand made quick work of the bare flesh of Ron’s neck. Lisbon instinctively closed her eyes when he actually cut the arteries and only opened them again to see his blood coming out in spurts. This was the confirmation they had needed, this was the proof that Brett Stiles had been responsible for all those murders. Dearly, she wished that she was still in possession of her badge and gun. She wished that the CBI still trusted her, and she was still a cop. Then, she would have been able to shoot the bastard down dead. Just because Ron had betrayed them all, it didn’t mean she had wanted to see him murdered by Red John. On the contrary, she would have much preferred to see him locked up.
A tear leaked out of her eye as her thoughts strayed to his wife and daughter. They were probably oblivious to the fact that Ron had been living a double life all these years. And now, instead of having him back alive - and albeit in jail - they would be burying him instead.
She couldn’t focus on the tragedy for too long. Brett Stiles immediately stalked over to her hiding space and threw open the doors with delight.
“Well, well, well. What do we have here? A little mouse?”
Lisbon glanced down at the knife in his hand. It was still dripping with Ron’s blood. She remained wordless and gripped hold of the phone tightly. Silently, she offered a prayer that Jane and Cho would be here soon. They had to be. If they didn’t hurry up, then Stiles would slip through their fingers. He’d probably be far more successful at ‘disappearing’ then she ever had been.
“Pass me the phone, Ms. Lisbon. I would rather like a word with Patrick.”
“No,” she snarled and instead, she ended the call. They would be here soon. She had backup, just like she had always done in the past. The only difference was the fact that she wasn’t personally armed.
He laughed and it chilled her down to the bone. Warily, she watched as he cleaned the knife down on his pants. And then, the phone on his desk started ringing. He shot her a glance, but eventually went to answer it. Slowly, Lisbon tried to edge her way out of the cupboard and out of the room. All the while, she was listening to Stiles’ responses to the person at the other end of the line. The CBI were here, they had pushed their way in and were on their way up.
But Stiles ended the call. With significant athleticism, especially for an older gentleman, he quickly closed the gap between them and pinned her up against the wall. She wasn’t going to go anywhere. Slowly, carefully, he moved the knife up to her exposed neck and she swallowed deeply. He had her in a lock and she couldn’t move a muscle. Despite the fact that she knew Cho was coming, it didn’t stop her from believing that she needed some kind of miracle and fast.
“Your Patrick will be here in a minute. But don’t let that fool you into believing he’ll see you alive, Teresa. It’s been… fun.”
She let out a piercing scream as the knife blade slowly, carefully cut through the first layer of her skin.
To Part Fifteen