FIC: Duplicity (7/7); The Mentalist
Title: Duplicity
Disclaimer: Nope.
Rating: T
Summary: AU 4.24- Her last words, much like the temptress of a woman who had spoken them out loud, could have held more meanings and there was only so much time left for them both. J/L.
Epilogue:
Inside the dimly lit interrogation room, Lorelei Martins sat across from Teresa Lisbon. Both women, in Jane’s mind, were equally matched and he couldn’t stop himself from thinking about what if both women had taken a different path in life? Teresa had said that she had joined Red John, because of the beatings that her had father continued to dole upon her and her brothers after her mother had been killed, but what if Teresa’s father had ended his life days prior to Red John’s offer of friendship to the brunette fifteen-year-old? Would the brunette have still somehow found her way on the other side of the table or would she had been the one asking all of the tough questions instead of Martins?
Martins, dressed in a white collarless shirt and black dress pants, started the conversation. “I’m happy to meet you, Teresa. We rarely get the chance to talk to somebody who knows Red John so well.” Teresa wore a smirk and Jane frowned. Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to free her from the suggestion, as the CBI had almost refused to let him into the room.
“It’s nice to meet you too. Patrick has told me so much about you.” Hands cuffed together, denim jacket on her shoulders-Teresa looked every part of a prisoner. Teresa’s eyes darted toward his and he drew in a sharp breath. “We were lovers,” her eyes lingered on his, “him and me.” Jane almost rolled his eyes; just because two people were attractive, didn’t mean they necessarily had to have an attraction toward one another. He hadn’t even thought of having a relationship with anybody, until he had met the broken Teresa and her unforgivable sins. “Did he tell you that?” Martins said nothing, though she already knew. Jane had confessed their night together and Martins had merely batted an eye at the idea that he was no longer celibate. “No?” Teresa glanced in his direction again, a slight pout on her lips. “Why not? Are you ashamed of us? Did we do something bad?” He saw the light tremble of her lip and he wondered when had she gotten to be such a good actress and when had her eyes become less honest? Had it between the hypnotic suggestion and their last meeting? Or had it been within the time that Red John and she had sped away?
At the end of their night together, Teresa hadn’t done anything bad. He had. He had allowed himself to gain feelings for a woman, who had probably been just as tainted as the red devil himself.
Jane pushed away from the wall in anger. “I know it’s hard to believe now, but you’re going to tell us.” Jane slowly approached her, as he knew he had to break the suggestion. “You’re going to break down and tell us everything you know about Red John?” He placed his hands upon her shoulders; she didn’t flinch away from his touch. “You’re going to sing like a bird.”
Teresa grinned. “No, I won’t.”
“Yes, you will.” Jane whispered, as he bent down and placed his lips against the top of her head. Teresa said nothing at the tender contact. Her dark hair smelled of vanilla and he pulled away from her, the pleasant aroma creating knots of worry within his stomach. Why was she quiet? The gentle press of his lips against her head should have broken her from his earlier suggestion, but it hadn’t. His eyes briefly met hers; the brunette’s beauty marred by the twisted little smirk she wore and her eyes-once full of life and full of warmth-held nothing, except an overwhelming amount of hollowness and darkness.
Jane stepped back in alarm, his lips parted slightly. He had hypnotized and un-hypnotized hundreds of individuals before, but he had never seen anything like that. His heart pounded within his chest, as Martins placed her hand to his shoulder. Jane saw her mouth move, but he couldn’t hear a word of what she had been saying.
He wondered what had gone wrong with his entire plan? Had Red John been two steps ahead of him the entire time or had Patrick Jane just underestimated Teresa Lisbon?
Before he could say anything, Teresa spoke again. “Maybe next time, Patrick.” Her voice-unlike the sweet one he had heard days prior to her interrogation-held a somber note. He felt the icy tendrils of fear grasp at his heart.
Unable to admit he had been wrong about her or Red John, Jane quickly left both women in the interrogation room alone. Her last words, much like the temptress of a woman who had spoken them out loud, could have held more meanings and there was only so much time left for them both.
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To Prologue - Part One - Part Two - Part Three - Part Four - Part Five