────── LONELY HEART

chapter five

v. Officer Friendly

BROOKLYN ROMERO OFTEN WORRIED ABOUT HER YOUNGER SISTER. She watched Marlowe with furrowed eyebrows as the younger of the two sighed peacefully as a cool breeze blew past them, leaning forwards against an iron fence with her forearms. Brooklyn sipped her iced coffee through a straw with maroon painted lips.

Marlowe held a cup of steaming hot coffee, keeping both of her hands warm in the chilly air of a November morning. She was dressed in an oversized brown turtleneck tucked into simple pair of jeans, topped off with a navy peacoat. Her tall, dark socks could be seen from the high-cropped legs of her jeans underneath the black ankle boots she wore to protect her feet from the damp grass of the park lawn. Her dark hair was divided into two neat braids, tied off with small ribbons that matched the color of her coat.

Brooklyn was the same height as her sister, but the high heels she often wore made her a few inches taller. She never was as into sports as Marlowe, and she had more of a lankiness to her and had a slim build. The pair were alike in features, favoring their mother in the face and skin tone. The elder sister usually dressed much more preppy, wearing a flowy white button-up and a pair of wide-legged peach pants with matching heels. With the season growing colder, she was bundled up in a crème wool coat and gloves that matched the color of her pants.

Having driven to Marlowe's house, Brooklyn had left her faith in her fiancé to get their two children ready for the day. Caspian was five and Harley was only eight months old, both boys favoring their father, Trey Hawthorne, in looks but both were extroverted and intelligent like their mother. The Romeros had been impatiently waiting for the pair to get engaged since Caspian had been born, but the pair took their time and Trey had only popped the question a few months after Harley was born.

"Care to remind me why I left home earlier than I usually do, drive for forty minutes just to stare at an old tomb with you?" Brooklyn asked, "It's just after six-thirty, Mar."

After the pair had walked down the block to a corner coffee shop, they had strolled into the grounds of the Chicago History Museum and stopped just before the Couch Tomb. Marlowe had always had a curiosity for the odd and historical things, so it did not come as much of a surprise to Brooklyn that her sister had wondered to the last remaining sign that the south end of Lincoln Park had been a cemetery for victims of cholera and small pox in the 1840s.

Marlowe shrugged, still observing the stone structure before her, "Because you love me."

"Debatable at times," Her sister retorted, leaning back against the metal fence next to her, "I do, however, have to be in the office by seven-thirty to-"

"Yeah, yeah," Marlowe interrupted her, "Organize the books and make sure Dad's breakfast is on his desk."

"You make it sound so simple," Brooklyn laughed, "Don't sound so bitter, Mar. If I could, I'd jump at the chance to work with some of those men at your precinct."

Ever the flirt, Marlowe thought to herself as she chuckled, even when engaged.

"Have at them," She responded simply, "More brawn than they are brain."

"Sounds like my type."

Marlowe had to give Brooklyn credit when it came to deciding to settle down with Trey. He was a tall, handsome man with dark, curly hair and brown eyes. Brooklyn often joked about her past lovers, all being rich and athletic, but not much else. The youngest Hawthorne seemed the be the whole package with a family of successful realtors and contractors, he was college educated, and was completely selfless. The pair had met in college and graduated together, and now had two sons and were set to marry in the upcoming year.

The sisters walked back to Marlowe's townhouse where Brooklyn insisted that she had to start towards the bank to open and set everything up, thanking Marlowe for the coffee as she got into her car. The younger sister shook her head as the shiny, luxury car pulled away from the curb and turned to walk through the front gate of her own property.

Inside, she readied herself to start her own shift early to sort out a new shipment of hidden cameras and microphones, as well as the required filing of the precinct's technical repair requests. Marlowe clipped her holster to the waistband of her jeans alongside her badge, grabbing her purse from the coffee table. Making sure the notebooks and folders she needed was inside, she stepped back outside with her car keys in hand.

The drive to the precinct was uneventful, Marlowe stopping on the way for another caffeinated drink before she was subject to the stale coffee in the breakroom. She greeted Trudy on her way towards the stairs, entering through the metal gate to continue to the second story. Marlowe was preoccupied in stuffing her lanyard into her purse when she was startled by the sound of footsteps across the room. Her head snapped up to see Adam leaving Voight's office, looking just as surprised to see her as she was to see him.

"Hey, I was just seeing if Voight was in yet," He greeted her.

"Uh," She craned her neck to look into Voight's office as she rounded her desk, "You're in early."

He nodded, nervously clapping his hands together as her approached Marlowe's desk, "Yeah, I got desk duty."

Marlowe gave him a suspicious look as she placed her bag down in front of her computer, "Funny, Voight assigned that to me yesterday."

"Must be a lot of paperwork."

She knew Adam could not be that stupid to keep the game he was trying to play going.

Before she could further question him, the brief silence was broken by the sound of faint crying. Marlowe picked up on it first, shushing him before he could question her confused expression as she stepped back into the middle of the bullpen. The gasps and whimpering grew louder the closer they got to the far side of the office, walking past Voight's office towards the break room.

Laid on the couch near the doorway of the room was Jay, asleep and having a nightmare. Slowly, Marlowe and Adam stepped into the room, watching Jay hug one of the throw pillows to his chest as he writhed and sobbed in his sleep.

"Jay," Marlowe stepped forwards towards the couch, "Jay. Hey, wake up."

She reached forwards, her hand slightly brushing his arm. At her touch, Jay shot up out of his slumber defensively, his hands balled up into fists ready to swing. Adam grabbed Marlowe by the shoulders and pulled her back, out of reach from Jay while he was taking in his surroundings. Seeing that it was just the two of them, Jay halted in his movements.

"You okay?" Adam asked him worriedly, "You all right?"

Jay exhaled deeply, tossing the throw pillow back to the end of the couch and sinking back into the cushions, "Yeah, man. I just came in to take a nap."

Marlowe checked the watch on her wrist, furrowing her brows, "Jay, its seven-thirty in the morning."

He sighed once more, running a hand over his face, "What are you two doing here so early?"

"Paperwork," Adam told him before Marlowe could reply, earning a pointed look from her.

"Both of you?" Jay questioned, rising from the couch.

Marlowe grumbled loud enough for both men to hear, "Must've been a mix up."

"There can't be that much filing to do," Jay told them, having been in the office when Voight told her to come in early that morning, "Well, I guess if Adam's here, you and I can go get some breakfast, Mar."

Marlowe threw a knowing smirk at Adam, walking towards the door behind Jay.

"I am slightly offended," Adam admitted, pursing his lips, "Jay, are you sure you're all right?"

Pausing slightly in the doorway, thanking Marlowe softly as she handed him his jacket from the couch, Jay nodded, "Yeah, man. It was just... a bad dream."

Marlowe frowned to herself, leaving the room with him. They stopped at her desk to retrieve her coat and cup of coffee before heading out the back door. The gravel of the back lot crunched underneath their shoes as they walked towards his truck, the headlights flashing as he unlocked the doors with the key fob.

She climbed into the passenger's side, closing the door as she settled into the seat, "You want to talk about it?"

"No," Jay was thankful for her concern as he started the vehicle, but still felt tense from his nightmare, "Not really."

"Okay."

Marlowe was aware of Jay's struggle with reoccurring nightmares and flashbacks from his days serving in the military. It was something that she had witnessed firsthand with Greg, who also suffered from the trauma of war. She was no stranger to waking up to thrashing or yelling in the middle of the night, hallucinations, excessive stimulations, and heard the cries of guilt from the opposite side of the door. Marlowe had seen the looks on Jay's and Greg's faces when cases included heavy explosions or stared down the barrel of a gun, and it pained her every time she thought about it.

They ended up going to a small bake and coffee shop, Marlowe sticking to the coffee she still needed to finish, and Jay bought her a couple chocolate croissants while he settled for a large coffee. They sat in the truck and listened to dispatch calls.

"Need a car at 5490 South Ellis," Marlowe rolled her eyes as Jay flipped to yet another channel on the radio, "Drunk and disorderly. 2221, you close?"

"2221. 10-4, We're riding on it."

Jay turned the channel again, glancing over at Marlowe. She was happily eating her pastries, doing a small dance in her seat. Her mouth was half full, her right hand in the process of wiping the melted chocolate that had fallen onto her chin when she caught his eye. She snorted as she laughed, turning away from him.

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Units in 21 and units on the city-wide, we have multiple calls of a man with a gun," Both of them glanced at each other as the call came through, "Randolph Park. Male, black, 5'11", wearing a hoodie and blue jeans."

Marlowe swallowed the rest of her food, chasing it down with a gulp of coffee, "Showtime."

"5021 George, hold me down on that," Jay radioed in, "Advise responding; plainclothes officers will be on the scene."

"Copy that."

Their destination was only a few blocks way. Jay put the truck back in drive, flipped on the response lights, and floored it back into traffic. Marlowe undid her seatbelt, carefully making sure she was steady as she reached back into the backseats to retrieve two vests and another walkie just in case they got separated.

It would have been a hilarious sight if they were not responding to an emergency. Marlowe was assisting Jay, who was still speeding to get to Randolph Park, to pull off the sleeves of his jacket and get his kevlar over his head. She cursed at him as he took a sharp turn around a corner and would have been sent flying into the dashboard if she had not caught herself beforehand. Quickly, as they were approaching the front lot of the community building, Marlowe discarded her coat and pulled on her own vest.

The tires skidded across the pavement as they truck halted in front of a patrol car. Any other time, Marlowe would have been happy to see Leo and his new partner, Amy Kimble, as they got out of the car. Leo had his gun drawn already, making eye contact with Marlowe as they approached.

"You got shots fired?" Jay asked.

"No shots fired," Leo told them, "No eyes on him yet."

Jay nodded, "Get a perimeter set up, Hak. Tell him to keep the cars coming."

"I got you two."

"Thanks Hak!" Marlowe yelled over her shoulder, racing up the front steps of the limestone building after Jay.

They weaved through the crowd of frightened citizens running from the interior of the building, ushering them out the front and behind the officers already out front. Marlowe pulled her gun out of her holster, keeping her eyes on the upper level windows as they approached the front door.

"5021 George. We've got people running out of 1014 Randolph Park Ave. Send us some help now!"

"Copy that."

Jay threw open the front door, scanning the lobby for any sign of their man. There was no sign of him, just civilians trying to rush out of the building. They both aimed their guns upwards as they passed under the open rotunda towards the staircase, Jay asking panicked people running down them where their guys way.

"Up there, up there!" A woman shouted, pointing up to the rotunda.

Marlowe nodded, "Okay, go. You guys get outside!"

Halfway up the stairs Jay took his right arm and crossed it over his chest, tapping his left shoulder with his index finger quickly, "You stay behind me. Do not shoot unless you see him."

"Got it."

She placed her left hand on his shoulder, keeping pace behind him up the stairs as they followed along the wall to the top landing. Upon seeing a shadow duck in the hallway directly across the rotunda, Jay retracted behind the corner with his weapon pointed in that direction.

"5021 George, shooter's on the second floor of 1014 Randolph—"

His radio call was interrupted by a woman's scream, followed by two gunshots echoing through the building. Quickly Jay went forwards with Marlowe's hand slipping from his shoulder.

He pointed to their left, "Go around that way."

Marlowe did as she was instructed, keeping her guard and weapon high as she went opposite from him. She peered into every corridor she passed carefully, making sure the immediate area was clear before passing the doorway. For the most part, she kept up to pace with Jay on the other side and they quickly met each other in the middle at their targeted corridor.

They peered in from both sides of the doorframe, expecting to see a figure dressed in black pointing a gun back at them. There was no one, but there was an open door labeled as restroom.

A sudden clattering of metal against the polished flooring caught their attention, something rolling against Marlowe's boot. She looked down with a confused expression, finding what looked like an opened black spray can next to her.

"Marlowe!" The panic in his voice scared her more than the after thought of her poor reaction time.

Jay quickly reached out and grabbed her by the arm. He tucked her against his chest, throwing them both to the ground in the opposite direction of the bottle. They landed, both grunting from the impact on the hard floor. A loud POP! filled the room alongside a mask of smoke, causing both of their ears to begin ringing.

As quickly as it had happened, Jay recovered and pushed himself up off of Marlowe, urging her to get up as well. He stumbled back to his feet and against the wall to peer back around the corner. She groaned, still trying to recover from the ringing in her ears and the impact of Jay throwing them both to the ground, but still managed to follow after him to the backroom.

"Chicago PD!" A voice yelled from behind them.

"Police!" They both yelled back, "Police!"

Jay further ordered the two-approaching officer, "Take the exit!"

The two of them rushed into the bathroom, finding the body of a young girl sprawled out on the floor with one gunshot to the chest, another to the head. Marlowe dropped down quickly to check if there was a pulse in her wrist as Jay radioed dispatch again, but there was nothing they could do. She was gone.

"5021 George. Emergency. We got one down. Roll an ambulance."

Marlowe just shook her head and stood back up, looking back over her shoulder as they left to clear the building.

Voight met the two of them out front by the yellow line, lifting it up for them to pass under. Marlowe was in the process of taking her vest off over her head, looking down at her feet as they descended the front steps.

"How you two doing?" Voight asked.

Jay nodded, "Hey."

"You both okay?"

He glanced at Marlowe, who still had not said anything before responding, "Yeah, we're alright. Offenders are in the wind. The way this went down, there's gotta be more than one of them, 'cause he couldn't have moved corridors that fast."

Voight nodded, "How many victims?"

Jay nudged Marlowe quickly, silently telling her to say something.

"One," She finally met Hank's eye, "We looked in her wallet. Her name was Theresa Mattel, she was a student at Central Chicago University."

"Sarge, the offender fired three rounds," Jay continued, "Two center mass, one head tap."

He looked skeptical, the three of them descending back into the parking lot, "Doesn't sound like
a mass shooting."

"Yeah. It did not feel like one," Jay agreed, leading them to the truck, "He used a military
stun grenade. M84."

He took both his and Marlowe's vests, stuffing them back into the truck.

"Huh," Voight looked between the two of them closely, "You two were the first two on scene?"

"Yeah," Jay nodded, "We were getting coffee right around the corner."

Hank hummed again before shrugging, "All right. Start pulling footage from the park, inside the building. Let's find out where they were coming from."

"Sarge," The three of them glanced over to find Hailey approaching them, having been interviewing witnesses, "We have a witness who saw our female victim running inside with a kid. She hid, heard gunshots, looked up, and saw the offender running for an exit with a boy over his shoulder."

Marlowe and Jay shared a concerned look while Hank's forehead wrinkled as his brows rose, "Any sign of the boy?"

Hailey shook her head.

All four of them glanced amongst one another.

"So this is a kidnapping?" Voight asked.

"WHAT HAPPENED BACK THERE?" Jay asked Marlowe, who had been mostly silent on their drive back to the Twenty-First, "It's not like you to be so quiet."

She shrugged, shutting the passenger door as they met at the hood of the truck, "I don't know how I didn't see him..."

"C'mon Mar," He shook his head before opening the back door for her, "You saw those corridors, there's too many nooks and crannies to count. We were both focused on the one our DOA was found anyways."

"I still could've been more careful..."

The next hour went by, Marlowe sitting at her desk marking footage from the park. She'd tag each screenshot they were in with a flag before continuing to the next frame, trying to get a solid look at their kidnappers. Her chin rested in the palm of her left hand, her right one holding the computer mouse as Jay sat at the end of the desk watching her work.

Hank returned from his venture downstairs, looking around the room, "Tell me we got an ID
on this boy."

Kim rose from her desk with a folder in hand, "Not yet, but we do know more about the DOA. She is originally from Dayton, Ohio. Biology major, worked part-time as a nanny. So I assume the boy was under her watch."

"We're dumping her phone," Adam added in, "Got a car on the way to her dorm. Local police are on the way to talk to her parents."

Hank nodded, "Anything that might make us think our DOA was the intended target?"

"No," Jay interrupted Marlowe's further browsing and reset the footage on her screen, turning the monitor to face the rest of them, "Sarge, it looks like these guys were there to kidnap the boy, and Theresa just got in the way."

Ignoring the annoyed look Marlowe was giving him, pointing at the screen as Theresa and the little boy she was watching rushed into the lobby of the building. A moment later, a man dressed in a hoodie followed them in with his partner not far behind.

"When this guy comes in, he scans all the exits like he's never been there before," Jay continued to explain, "Then he goes up as cover. I don't think they meant to go in. I think this went wrong. Theresa saw them in the park, and she ran to protect the boy, and it got her killed instead."

Marlowe fixed her computer screen and sighed, "She was just doing her job..."

Antonio joined the group gathering around her desk, "It might be a long shot, but Narcotics has had a bead on a kidnapping and ransom crew they can't make."

Hailey nodded, "I heard about this. They're going after kids connected to west-side dope gangs."

"Right," He agreed, "The crew, they nab a kid, set ransom, banger pays them with drug money, never calls the cops. No victim, no crime. All they got is what they're hearing on the streets."

Marlowe crossed her arms over her chest and sat back in her seat, "That's sick."

"Crew's three males. Black, Hispanic, white," Antonio looked towards Jay, "Twenties, trained. I mean, if we're to assume our guys had a getaway driver, it's a match."

Hank nodded, turning to his office, "Dig into it."

Kevin who had been helping sort through their victim's personal belongings, jogged up the stairs, "Hey, boss."

Voight turned back around, and all of their attentions turned to Kevin.

"We ID'd the boy. Theresa's calendar says she picked up a Cody Barton," He informed them, "He was at a music lesson two blocks away from Randolph Park. Olinksy's on his way with the mom right now."

Nodding once more, Hank looked at Jay and Marlowe, "Hey, tell Lugo keep a lid on this to the press. If there's a crew out there working a ransom, we don't want word of it to hit."

"Copy that."

Everyone dispersed back to their own areas aside from Jay. Marlowe picked up the receiver of her desk phone to call the Chief Lugo's office when she saw him staring down at the rewound security footage intently.

"What is it?" She asked.

"I don't know," He muttered, "If this is ex-military based, we might be in for more than we bargained for."

Marlowe nodded, patting his arm before dialing the Chief's number.

She understood his frustration, he was biased on account of his own values and experiences in the military. Jay did not understand that not everyone had good intentions, fighting for their country or not. And some people came out more damaged than others, though it was all very traumatic. Not everyone had a heart like Jay, but he wanted to help them find it.

FACIAL RECGONITION SOFTWARE WAS NO HELP TO MARLOWE IN THIS CASE, the images she had pulled from their footage from Randolph Park was too grainy and no amount of sharpening was helping the ancient technology. It was obvious she was frustrated with the lack of up-to-date tools and software that she knew could be at their disposal with a quick call to the Ivory Tower's IT Head. Adam tried reminding her to trust the process, but that only earned him an icy look and Kim pulling him away from Marlowe's desk by the collar.

Someone cleared their throat, "Romero."

Marlowe glanced up from her computer screen to find Platt stood at the side of her desk nearest to the stairs. In her hands she held a large frosted vase tucked full of a bouquet of flowers. An arrangement of tall gladiolus flowers in a variety of colors were arranged beautifully inside the vase, a card reading 'Congratulations' sat in the middle of it all but had no signature with it.

"Oh, Trudy, you shouldn't have," She joked as Platt placed it on the corner of her desk.

"Believe me Romero," Platt told her, "If Burgess hadn't seen them being delivered, I would've kept them for myself."

Kim winked at her from her chair as Trudy left the second floor.

Marlowe picked the card out of the flowers, staring at the sloppy handwriting to see if she could recognize the handwriting but nothing was coming to mind. She was also confused on the context of the word 'Congratulations'. Was it because she had officially been inducted into Intelligence? Just for existing in general? She didn't know and was left to wonder.

"Who's it from?" Kim asked curiously, her, Kevin, and Adam all looking at her expectantly.

Marlowe shrugged, flashing them the front of the small card, "No signature."

"Maybe it's from a secret admirer," Adam teased, sending her a playful wink.

"You're so funny I forgot to laugh, Ruzek."

Jay and Hailey returned from paying a visit to Mr. Barton's house, the missing boy's dad, with the news that a ransom was most likely ordered from the looks of a severed ear found in a box on the kitchen counter. It made Marlowe's stomach churn at the thought of the sight. Voight had interviewed the mother that morning, who Alvin had brought in, but they could not get ahold of the father as the parent's were divorced and lived separately.

Jay looked at the bouquet on her desk as they passed by, "What's the occasion?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," She responded, "No name on the card."

"Weird."

After Antonio returned from meeting with his CI, they regrouped around the whiteboard that Antonio had added to. In the center of the board was their missing boy, to the left was the newest addition to the clutter. It was a military photo of a Hispanic man, smiling kindly at the camera. He looked normal, small, relatively kind in the photo, Marlowe thought as she rounded her desk to stand beside Alvin.

"So what do we got on the crew?" Voight asked, motioning to the board.

"Well, these guys are trained, so ran a query through the VA," Antonio explained, "There's three hundred fifty soldiers injured with similar age, weight, and burn. But only four of them live in Chicago."

Marlowe tilted her head to the side, "You got an ID?"

"Only one matches this well," antiunion nodded, pointing to the photograph, "That's Luis Vega, twenty-eight, first Ranger Battalion."

Upon the mention of the Rangers, Marlowe's eyes glanced at Jay, but his back was turned to her from where he sat on the desk closest to the board.

Kim left her spot to announce the information she had helped Antonio collect, "Luis got booted last year due to an IED injury. Right forearm burned through. After he got out, he spent three months in South America on contract as security."

"AKA, he did kidnapping and ransoms," Jay told them.

"Yep," Antonio pointed to the screenshot on the board of their first suspect that had kidnapped Cody, "Height and weight match this guy to a T."

Voight hummed, "We got someone headed to him?"

"Covert car en route," Alvin told him, "We'll get eyes."

"Good."

Jay stood up from his seat and looked around at his colleagues, "Okay, but what's the plan,
though? 'Cause we can't grab him up on what we got, and odds of him talking are not good. Plus if we spook the crew, we could get this kid killed."

Marlowe's eyes met Hailey's, who had a grim expression on her face.

"Well, that's why we get eyes on Luis right away," Voight explained.

"Or you put me under."

Marlowe sighed, "Jay..."

"He was a Ranger," They all expected that point to be brought up, "We served at the same time. I can connect with him."

"That's a bad idea," Marlowe relaxed at Antonio also disagreeing with his plan, "No. An undercover would only heat him up. We don't have enough info."

"That would be the point," Jay further argued, "I'd get it."

Everyone looked at Voight, but he only turned to Olinsky for advice, "Al?"

Alvin looked indifferent do the idea, shrugging slightly.

"What about you?" Hank turned to Hailey, "You got a take, Hailey?"

Hailey stood next to Jay, her arms across her chest as she glanced over at him, "No. I'm neutral."

Voight nodded, glancing around at everyone else to see if they had anything to say. No one spoke up.

"Okay," He concluded, "Let's give it a shot."

Marlowe was put in charge of syncing the wire up to their system and placing it on Jay. He could tell that she was less than thrilled with him putting himself in the middle of it, Hailey's expression mirroring the same as she watched the two of them from a chair a few feet away. They were in "The Dungeon" or the basement of the precinct, where most of the undercover stuff was kept in an adjacent room with a few monitors and desks.

"Ruzek will log everything," Hailey told him, "Marlowe and I'll stick by you in the field, and Antonio will be there as a third. We'll have eyes on you even if you can't see us."

Marlowe remained quiet as Jay stuffed the remainder of the wire through the opened buttons at the front of his shirt, clipping the body camera into place gently on the interior of his button-up.

"Why the neutral?" Jay asked Hailey, still watching Marlowe work.

"Just been a little concerned lately," She responded.

Marlowe looked between the two of them, "Is this like a partner talk? Do I need to step out?"

"No, you're fine," Jay reassured her, before glancing back to Hailey, "About what?"

"About you," Marlowe nodded lightly in agreement with the blonde's words, "You cover well,
but I got eyes, Jay."

Jay did not respond, apparently speechless at her words. Marlowe took the opportunity to turn on the feed receiver from the camera Jay was wearing, the screen showing that it was pointed back at her.

With a soft smile she handed him the device so he could further adjust it to his liking, "Just... Be careful, okay?"

"You got it," He mumbled to her, looking down at the camera feed.

Kevin entered through the metal gated doorway, "Yo. We just got the undercover narcotics
up to speed. We got the coverts trailing Luis to the Veil Club. Bartender there named Camila. That's his sister."

Jay nodded, buttoning up the remainder of his shirt, "Let's roll."

HAILEY AND MARLOWE SAT IN A BACK BOOTH AT THE VEIL CLUB THAT NIGHT, untouched beer bottles on the round table before them. Red and blue lights shown down on the patrons of the bar, some spots of the room being adorned with violet light as they mixed. She was enjoying the sound of AC/DC playing in the background, bobbing her head a little as she subtly fixed the earpiece in her right ear, hidden behind her now loose hair.

The only thing about being undercover was the changes in wardrobe that would sometimes come about, Marlowe thankful for the vast array of things that Kim and Hailey suggested she keep on hand in her locker for the multiple situations she might be subject to. Thankfully that night, it was the tame roll of a bar customer, which she did not have to pretend to be on most nights.

She changed into something a little more casual than what she wore to work that morning, keeping it simple with a white t-shirt tucked into cropped, loose jeans, and black Chucks. An older and worn leather jacket kept her protected her arms from the cold.

They sat next to one another in a round booth, making sure they had a good view when Jay approached the bar tended by Camilla, Luis sitting isolated on a stool at the end of it Marlowe pretended to be on her phone, glancing up through her eyelashes to where Jay and Camilla were interacting.

"Hey, you like that scrawny dude over there?" She asked, noticing Jay kept glancing to the side at Luis, placing a beer bottle down in front of him, "Well, that's my brother. I mean, he doesn't usually swing that way, but I can make an intro."

Marlowe stifled a laugh, having it behind her hand.

"Keep it together, Mar," Hailey told her, slightly amused herself.

"If she keeps being funny, I'm not going to be able to. I love a good sense of humor."

Camilla was an attractive young woman, Latina and fit. She was a little shorter than Marlowe with a softer featured face and straight raven colored hair that was pulled back neatly. The lights above them casted shadows on parts of Camilla, complimenting the natural contours of her face. She wore a simple black shirt with a scooped neckline under an open green flannel and a pair of jeans.

Jay laughed, "No, just the beer is fine. Thanks... Was your brother in the Army?"

"Yeah," Camilla nodded, "He was. A Ranger."

"Me too. I must have seen him at Benning."

"Hoorah!"

Marlowe looked at Hailey, with pursed lips, "C'mon it was funny."

Shaking her head, the blonde admitted, "Maybe a little."

"That's the Marines," Jay commented under his breath bitterly.

Luis had rose from his stool at the end of the bar and walked further up it to his sister, sliding her his empty bottle.

"Hey, Luis," Camilla greeted him before pointing to Jay, "Luis, this is, uh..."

"Ryan," Jay told them, holding his hand out for Luis to take, "Seventy-fifth. Third Rangers
out of Benning. I must've seen you there, man. I was there the tail end of '06, '07. So where'd you serve?"

Luis did not look taken by the conversation, taking the new beer Camilla had given him, "Hey, man. I just came here for the drink, not to swap stories."

Without another word, Luis went back to his isolated stool. Camilla looked at Jay with an amused smirk.

"That was so nice," Jay commented in a sarcastic tone, "Is he always like that?"

"A dick? Yeah. A solid ninety-eight percent of the time," She told him, "I just thought it'd be fun."

Marlowe sat back against the cushions of the booth with a sigh. Jay turned discreetly in his seat, throwing them and quick and defeated look. In return, Hailey and Marlowe both looked to the coverts who were waiting for their signal a few seats from where Jay sat. They rose from their stools and walked down the aisle that separated the bar from the larger seating area, one of them purposefully bumping into Luis's back as he was mid-drink.

"Yo, man," Luid yelled after them, "Watch where you're going."

The undercover officer turned to look back at him, "What, you got a problem, tough guy?"

"What you think?"

"Hey, does your brother know those guys?" Jay turned Camilla's attention to the argument beginning to ensue.

Both of them went to the end of the bar.

"Oh, you a tough guy, huh?" He asked Luis.

Camilla looked between her brother and the stranger, "What's going on?"

"Bitch, get your ass back to the bar."

"What'd you say?" Luis stood up quickly from his seat, Camilla trying to push him back from the guy.

The undercover continued, "I said get back to the bar, bitch. Unless you want to come
to my house— You do whatever you want."

"Hey, watch your mouth!" Jay told him.

"What are you gonna do about it?"

From there a fight broke out amongst them. Luis took on the undercover that was throwing insults at his sister and Jay grabbed the bystanding one by the jacket and tossed him into the side of the bar. Hailey and Marlowe slid from their seats as Luis literally threw the one, he was throwing punches at across the floor. As Jay knocked his undercover to the ground, a civilian from the bar rose to help the two laid on the ground. Without hesitation, Jay clocked him right in the nose and sent him backwards in the floor at Marlowe's feet.

"Get out of here before the cops come!" Camilla told Jay and Luis, pointing towards the adjacent hallway.

Hailey bent down next to the injured man before them, making sure he was alright while Marlowe went between their two undercovers.

There was going to be a mess to clean up between Narcotics and Intelligence.

EXHAUSTED WAS HOW MARLOWE FELT, sitting in the IT room in the basement of the precinct with Hailey and Adam. She had changed again into sweatpants and a simple t-shirt, wishing to be home in bed instead of listening to Jay and Luis's conversation as they sat on the front doorstep to the sibling's apartment.

Hailey looked just as tired, sitting another mug of coffee down before her and returning to her chair on her right.

"You working anywhere?" Jay asked Luis.

"I do private security," He told him.

Jay's camera turned to face directly at Luis, "Me too, man. Where you at?"

"Nothing forma," Luis admitted, "I just work for another vet."

"Hey, man. Who's this other vet? And is he hiring?" Jay's questions earned him a skeptical look from Luis, "Look, my current job, I make seven-fifty an hour. And I gotta wear a frickin' nametag that says, 'Hi, I'm security friendly.'"

Marlowe rested her head back against her chair, taking a sip from her mug, "I gotta hand it to him, he has some of the best improv I've seen."

"Shh," Adam told her, trying to keep his typing up to speed with the information they were getting, "You make it hard to concentrate."

"That wouldn't have to do with your small attention span would it?" Marlowe quipped in return.

Hailey put her hands out, motioning for the both of them to be quiet, "Both of you..."

"It's a small group," Luis told him, "I'm sorry."

Jay just played it off as no big deal, his camera panning to the end of the stoop where Camilla appeared. She looked between the two in confusion as to what they were going outside on a cold, autumn night.

Luis greeted his sister, adding: "I lost my keys."

Camilla walked past them to the front door, pulling her keys from her pocket, the two men laughing in amusement behind her. When Luis went to stand up, he stumbled and almost faceplanted on the ground until Jay caught him, holding him upright. He made sure Luis was okay, helping him into the building.

The camera rustled around as Jay helped Luis all the way up to his and Camila's apartment, loitering around the living area after closing the door behind them. Marlowe was unintentionally chewing on her thumbnail, watching the three of them interact inside the small yet quaint home.

"Thanks for having my back today, man," Luis bid Jay goodnight, leaving the room.

Camila followed after him, "That's it? You going to bed?"

As soon as they were out of sight, Jay glanced over things that were on the table next to the front door like mail and other papers. He jolted slightly at Camila's voice starting him, questioning what he was doing.

"Snooping," He told her, "It's a bad habit."

"You going through my mail?" She questioned again.

"Either you didn't tell me your name or I forgot it, so..." He trailed off momentarily, "Yeah, I'm goin' through your mail. I was just trying to be smooth."

Adam chuckled from his end of the desk, "Hell of a tactic."

She gave him a soft smile, beckoning him into the kitchen. There she took two beers out of the refrigerator, handing one to him.

"Camila Marie Vega," She told him, also placing a bag of frozen vegetables on his swollen hand from his fight earlier.

Marlowe rolled her eyes as he remarked, "I even get the middle name."

"I don't want you digging around for my birth certificate."

"Is, uh, your brother okay?" He asked after a moment, "He seems a little—"

"Wasted?"

Jay paused, "Just alcohol?"

Camila seemed offended for her brother, "Excuse me?"

"Well, usually it's alcohol and opiates, you know?" He cleared his throat before continuing, "If you're stuck at orange all the time, Oxy's the only that brings you back to white. Evens you out."

"Numbs you out," She concluded, "But thanks for your input."

"Sorry, I'm not trying to—"

"Really smooth, Jay," Marlowe commented.

Camila tilted her head to the side slightly, "Pry? Give me advice? Yeah, you are."

"I've just been there," His three friends watching looked confused at his words, Hailey and Marlowe reading into it much further than Adam, "That's all. I spent about seven months doing nothing but drink, smoke, screw, fight..."

Marlowe brought her knees up to her chest, further sinking into her chair. Her eyes flickered down to the cement floor below them, still listening to their conversation.

"So is this how you usually hit on women?" Camila asked.

"What?" He chuckled, "It's not working?"

She looked him up and down, "So how'd you get over it?"

Simply he responded, "I got no idea."

At this point, they believed Jay was not focused on obtaining information whether he was now receiving it intentionally or not. It was like a normal conversation that he would have with one of them, a vulnerable and honest talk. He was relating to Luis, something that could potentially be a fatal mistake.

"Yeah, well my brother, he just—" Camila paused, "He hasn't come back all the way."

Jay responded, "I don't think anybody ever does. I think you just kind of... fill up whatever's missing with something else."

BEN BARTON WAS FOUND THE NEXT DAY THANKS TO ANOTHER CI, confessing that there was a threat against his son if he contacted the police. He was responsible for washing money for gangs, the connection to how his son was taken, and was to scrounge up a hundred million dollars in forty-eight hours. If he failed to do so, they would kill Cody.

Out of the forty-eight hours, they had twenty-six remaining.

Marlowe was still exhausted from the long shift that stemmed well into the early morning, carrying a large cup of coffee as she walked between Hailey and Hank from the car into a secluded lot under the subway bridges next to the river. The purple bags under her eyes were noticeable as they approached Jay, who had been waiting in the middle of the empty lot, and there was a sluggishness to her stride.

She was dressed comfortably though, a dark green hoodie styled underneath a light grey blazer. Her grey pants were loosely fitted, cropped too and ending just before the ankle. Accessorized with clean, white sneakers and large hooped earrings to try to further formalize the look. The Marlowe Romero signature statement.

"How you holding up, man?" Voight asked him.

Jay shrugged, "I'm okay."

Hank waved at them as his phone began to ring, pulling the device out of his jacket pocket, "Hold on, let me get this."

Marlowe glanced down at his extended hand, grabbing a folder Hailey handed to him, "How' that hand of yours?"

"Fine," He answered, giving her a soft smile, "It was the right move."

Hailey scoffed, walking alongside them further under the tracks, "Yeah. It was a move. I'm not sure if it was right."

Marlowe pursed her lips, diverting their attention back to the contents of the folder he was sifting through, "Uh, we pulled everything we could find on Luis. Including psych history, medical, details on ops."

"He served in Iraq during the surge. Korengal Valley, '08," Hailey continued, "Probably saw some—"

Jay interrupted her, nodding, "I did a tour there too. I know what he saw."

Hailey glanced over her shoulder at Voight who was still talking on the phone, "So that stuff you told Camila about when you got back... Is that true?"

"All right, talk to you later," Hank hung up the phone, interrupting their conversation.

But all it took was a subtle nod from Jay to them to confirm their suspicions.

Marlowe's expression faltered, taking a sip of her coffee to hide her frown.

This number's Antonio. He's talking to Lugo," Voight told them, "He's trying to get his hands on nine hundred K so we can make the drop. We need you to ID these guys."

He pulled a small bag of yellow and white pills from his pocket and extended them to Jay.

"Are these lookalikes?" Jay asked, but Voight merely shook his head, "You want me to give Luis actual drugs?"

Marlowe and Hailey stood awkwardly between the two men. Marlowe refused to meet Jay's eye when he looked at them all in shock.

"I'm assuming we all know that's illegal."

"We need an easy in. This is it," Voight told him matter-of-factly, "Just make sure your wire's off."

As Hailey and Voight turned their backs on him, Marlowe loitered. The only thing she could offer him was a forced smile and a brief pat on his arm before doing the same.

Back at the precinct, Marlowe was assigned to a "brief" inventory of the electronics in Intelligence's possession. It took longer than Voight had expected it to, but not on Marlowe's part, it was on the idiots she worked with. She made them search their desks and possessions for any IT related gear and lay them out on their desks before taking leave. In the midst of gathering Alvin's unneeded materials he had left out for her fore he left for the evening and checking them off the list to return to the cabinets in the basement, the buzzer for the gate leading upstairs went off.

None other than Denny Woods, the police department independent auditor and the biggest thorn in Intelligence's side strolled into their office. He was a tall and officially dressed black man, with a long history and a longer vendetta against Hank Voight. She had heard stories from Al about the period of time Woods and Voight were partners back in their years in the force, now they could not be on more opposite teams.

"Your sergeant in?" He asked her.

She glanced down at the duffle bag carried in his hand, praying it was their money for the ransom drop, before nodding, "He's in his office."

Woods did not say another word, no thanks or care given as he walked ahead to Voight's office.

"Oh, you're welcome Mr. Woods," Marlowe muttered bitterly under her breath, "It's my honor."

Marlowe returned to her task, moving her box and clipboard over to Kevin's desk to mark off his returns.

"There's an eight-year-old boy out there!" Marlowe jumped at the sudden yelling coming from Voight's office, "You come in here with your ego?"

Woods was quick to get the door, slamming it shut to further prohibit their conversations spilling over into the bullpen. Marlowe raised her eyebrows and went back to her work, slightly disappointed that their voices had become muffled behind the closed door.

Another moment later, Denny stormed out of the office with an angry look on his face.

Marlowe abandoned her things at Kim's desk and poked her head into Hank's office, finding him seated at his desk with a sour look on his face.

"Everything alright, Sarge?" She asked carefully.

He shrugged, motioning to the duffle bag that now laid on the floor next to his desk, "A burn bag. Said they can't afford to sign off anymore funds."

"I thought Ludo approved the funding?"

"Turns out we now go through Denny for that."

Marlowe frowned, "Do you... Do you need me to ask my dad to see if he could loan out some for the drop?"

"No," He shook his head, "I might have a way... Just head home for the night, pick that list back up in the morning."

She looked unsure, "I don't care to stay to finish-"

"Go home Marlowe," He told her again, "You look like hell."

"Yes sir."

On her way out, she decided to finally take the flowers still sitting on her desk home. Marlowe was still curious as to who sent them, but still no one came to mind as she descended the stairs.

It was a question for another day.

JOSH MILLER AND MARCUS TATE WERE THE TWO MISSING LINKS IN THEIR CASE, discovered upon leaving Luis's under Hailey and Al's surveillance the next morning. Jay was sure that pulling Marcus was the right decision, and hoped that it would give him an angle to get in on their "private security business" that Luis told him he would bring up to Josh in exchange for the drugs Jay had unwillingly offered him.

This further solidified Hailey's doubts in his ability to see straight, accusing him of being too trusting of Luis. She pointed out that he had already went too far at the club, now he was further risking his life by standing in the direct line of fire.

Much to Hailey's dismay, Voight signed off on Jay's decision to get further involved with Miller and his business.

It unsettled Marlowe to a degree even though she tried to reassure herself that Jay was capable of taking care of himself. She kept thinking it over as she was finishing up inventory while Hailey filled her in on everything.

Adam and Kevin had already left to pick up Marcus, their only key to making sure this went correctly for Jay. Voight, who was going to handle the ransom call with the Bartons, put Antonio in charge of a tactical move-in once they got a location on where Cody was being held, something they would need Marlowe's help in locating.

She put PINs on Miller's, Luis's, and Jay's phones and she, Hailey, Adam, Kim, and Antonio laid in wait inside a mobile van ready to head off in any direction they needed to go. She was nervous, looking down at the assault rifle ordered to her leaned up against the desk she sat at in the back of the vehicle.

"He's making a call to the Bartons," Marlowe announced, getting everyone's attentions.

Antonio turned around from his spot in the driver's seat, "Can you tap into it?"

With a nod and a few keys pressed on the computer, Ben Barton's voice filled the space.

"Hello?"

"Right now, you're gonna drive to Grant Park. Michigan and Eighth Street," Miller spoke in a dark voice, "On the corner, you're going to see a red trash can. You walk to that can, you put the money in that can, and you walk away. You get in your car, and you drive home. You follow these instructions,
and we will release your son. Do you understand?"

There was a pause.

"Do you understand me, Ben?!"

"No!" Barton responded, "No, I'm not giving you anything. I'm not giving you a damn thing. I'm calling the police!"

And then the line went dead.

"You got a location on that?" Hailey asked her.

Marlowe nodded, turning to Antonio, "Drive."

She gave out the address and Antonio pulled away from the curb that had been loitering next to for almost two hours. Marlowe and Hailey helped each other secure their Kevlar vests in place, watching the blonde as she expertly handled the military grade guns in their possession and sort out their ammo. They would need everything they got going into a building full of ex-military.

They followed the GPS on Tate's phone, leading them to the west side in the abandon factories section of town. Marlowe kept picking at the holes in her distressed jeans, nervously as they pulled into the lot, finding Miller's car already parked in the middle of the yard.

Antonio ran over with his gun raised, finding Miller unconscious, and bound with zip ties in the back of the vehicle.

"Jay and Luis must already be inside," Hailey theorized as they all geared up to follow in after them.

Marlowe surveyed the yard, pointing out the obvious security system wired around the exterior of the building, "And they're probably already aware of it."

They were quick and quiet, entering the back of the old factory and sweeping through the bottom floor with no conflict. Marlowe had her weapon trained against her right shoulder, ready to peer through the scope and fire if needed as they did their walk through.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Rapid gunfire was coming from the next story up, queuing them to make their move.

"Chicago PD!" Hailey yelled throughout the large area; her echoes being drowned out amongst the shooting.

Marlowe moved swiftly among a line of pillars, Antonio running opposite of her with their weapons held high as bullets rained down upon them. They heard Adam call out that he had Cody, while Jay's outcry of Luis's name brought Marlowe's attention to the limp body on the floor a few meters ahead of them. She squeezed the trigger of her gun, taking out one of the last shooters on the upper level.

As the gunfire came to an end, she approached Jay who was attempting to do compressions to Luis's chest, but it was already too late. Luis had sustained a direct shot to the head, most likely killing him before hitting the ground.

Jay was so focused on trying to revive Luis that he did not hear her call out his name, walking closer to him.

"Jay!" She tried again, now only a couple feet from him.

Marlowe stopped dead in her tracks as Jay pulled the gun from his pocket, pointing it directly up at her. A loud gasp left her lips, as she searched his face for any sign of recognition. There was none, he just looked scared. He was breathing heavily, and his finger was ghosting over the trigger.

"Jay!" Marlowe yelled louder than she had, "It's me!"

His body trembled, the steadiness of his arm growing week.

Marlowe's eyes were wide as she called out to him again, "Jay! Put it down!"

Slowly, the life in his eyes returned and he withdrew his arm, almost jolting out of his trance-like state. His other hand was still placed to Luis's unmoving chest, his attention returning to yet another comrade he had watch fall right before his very eyes.

As her body slowly began to relax from the shock of having Jay hold a gun to face, she looked over her shoulder towards Hailey who had witnessed the whole ordeal. Hailey seemed just as shocked and disturbed, slowly walking over to the pair.

Marlowe's lips fell into a deep frown as Jay's cries began to fill the silence, his shoulder's shaking, and his head parallel to the floor.

"What do we do?" She whispered, her eyes never leaving his form as Hailey stood next to her.

The blonde shook her head, watching her partner with sad eyes, "There's nothing we can do."

Marlowe did not want to accept that, but in the moment, nothing came to mind. She handed her rifle over to Hailey before slowly moving closer to Jay. She placed her hand on his left shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

They walked into that mess together, she refused to let him leave alone.

season five, episode seven

Marlowe's outfit inspirations for this episode

This was a longer chapter, but I felt weird trying to split it up.

Hope you enjoyed.

published ── 08.12.20