────── LONELY HEART

chapter eight

viii. Don't Blame Me

MARLOWE ROMERO HAD PROBLEMS TRUSTING HER INSTINCTS and Greg Gerwitz was at the top of the list of reasons why. During the span of their long-term relationship, she had been so sure that he was the one. She saw him as the one that she would grow old with, the one she would be beside watching the Chicago sun set over the skyline every evening over dinner and a glass of wine. Greg and Marlowe had spoken in depth about moving in together, what their future held, with subtle mentions of marriage and children.

But the vision had been shattered after Greg had reenlisted in the military without even telling her.

All of the hope Marlowe had installed in her definition of a happy ending had disappeared with a snap of a finger. Everything she believed would come from her relationship with Greg was never going to come true.

Marlowe looked into the mirror hung on the wall at the base of the stairs next to the front door on her way out the door that morning. She sighed at her reflection, the concealer that she had applied barely covered the purple bags under her eyes from the lack of sleep she had been getting at night. Her slept-in t-shirt shirt had been hurriedly tucked into a pair of jeans with a blazer thrown on to make it seem more presentable. Her heeled boots were scuffed at the toes but had been the first pair of shoes she had pulled from the shelf that was suitable for the cold Chicago climate that morning.

"Get a grip," Marlowe scolded herself before heading out the door.

Her townhouse was much too big for only one person, Marlowe had told her parents that when she had first stepped into it after being gifted the lot, but David and Gloria Romero reassured her that one day it would not be. But for the time being, Marlowe drowned in silence when it was just her lounging about the house. It was boring, it was deafening. For a while, she had debated on cleaning out the spare room upstairs she used as storage and going in search of a roommate to give her some company.

Marlowe had not felt this alone in a long time.

With Hailey dedicating her time to off-duty surveillance and Kim spending most of her time with Adam and Kevin, Roger had been the only one Marlowe had been around outside of the precinct. They would go to Molly's of the nights and go to lunch on the weekends, but he had also been preoccupied with a woman he had been seeing in the background of it all. The company Marlowe had been craving the most was one she could barely think to have around in the state she was in.

She had not spoken to Jay much and not at all outside of work, only at obligated times. It was not like he had not tried to communicate with her or get her to talk, but Marlowe always politely excused herself from conversation. Even Hailey and Roger had started intervening when they noticed how uncomfortable Marlowe would become, pulling her nonchalantly to the side to help them with a made-up task. She was surprised with herself that she had not caved, especially after the occasional times Marlowe even occasionally found peach cups and pastries left in the lounge fridge with her name scrawled out in permanent marker on the packaging.

Marlowe stopped to get her a cup of coffee and breakfast before she made her way to the precinct. Throwing a quick greeting Trudy's direction, Marlowe made her way to the stairs. Scanning herself in, the gate buzzed and unlatched.

"Marlowe," She had not even made it near her desk when she heard Hank's voice call out to her from her office.

Quickly laying her bag and coffee down next to her computer, Marlowe strolled across the bullpen in the direction of his office. Besides her, the only ones in the office were Jay, who was sitting quietly at his desk, and Adam and Kevin were occupied the lounge room eating their breakfasts. Jay watched her walk by, Marlowe refraining from glancing his direction as she stepped across the threshold into Voight's office. He was seated behind his desk, hands in his lap as he awaited her arrival.

"Hey," Marlowe greeted, standing relaxed with her hands in her pocket, "What's up?"

Voight motioned for her to close the door and take a seat. Complying, Marlowe sank down into one of the cushioned seats on the opposite side of his desk.

"Look, I know there's been a lot of things going on," He started, leaning against the desktop on his elbows, "But I need to know your head's clear."

Marlowe nodded in understanding, "Crystal."

"Good, because you're in charge of this."

Hank reached into the top drawer of his desk and slid a small, purple business card in her direction. Curious, Marlowe reached forwards to take it and read over it.

"I'm sorry, but a therapist?" Marlowe asked, still glaring at the contact information on the piece of cardstock, "I'm sorry, but the last one I had didn't exactly work-"

Voight interrupted her, "I need you to schedule Jay an appointment."

"Oh..." She licked her lips nervously, "Alright, but if he doesn't go?"

"Get him to or he's out."

After agreeing, Marlowe excused herself, feeling that the conversation was already over. She returned to her desk with the card in hand, placing it just before her computer monitor with a small huff. Settling in her chair, Marlowe sighed and leaned back into her chair. Glancing down at the business card laid on the desk before her, a frown settled on her lips.

For a few seconds, she allowed herself the moment to finally look up at Jay. He had purposefully busied himself with reading unimportant papers in front of him, a crease in his forehead from his eyebrows being drawn together in frustration. The shadows under his eyes nearly matched the color of the dark blue t-shirt he wore beneath a black zip-up, and the stubble lining his jaw was longer than usual and unkept. His lips were also contorted into a deep frown as he flipped to the next report in the pile, leaning his right cheek against his hand.

Jay's eyes strayed from the illegible writing on the report held in his hand, flickering back over in Marlowe's direction. Their eyes met for the first time in weeks, Marlowe instantly feeling a painful pang spread throughout her chest. Her chest heaved and she anxiously tapped the nail of her index finger against the surface of her desk. This had been a mistake.

His frown only deepened seeing the torn expression on her face, opening his mouth to speak, but as quickly as their gazes had met, Marlowe tore hers away and forced herself to look at the screen of her computer.

Marlowe typed the address of the assigned therapist into the recipient bar of a new email and marked the label of it as urgent. She could still feel Jay's eyes on her as she wrote out an explanation as to why she was emailing on Jay's behalf and inquired about the earliest appointment that he could get. After sending the message, she placed the business card in the top drawer of her desk on her right, further adding to the disarray of papers inside. A reply came in just before she left her desk, wanting to be anywhere but in view of him in that moment. The email read that Dr. Sloan could get Jay in at one that afternoon without any problems.

Jotting down the office address and appointment time on an orange sticky note, Marlowe rose from her chair and started down the aisle splitting the office space. She paused before Jay's desk and stuck the note onto the pile of reports before continuing towards the breakroom without a word. Adam and Kevin greeted her and wished her a good morning, their mouths still full of food. Marlowe managed a quiet greeting in return that went unnoticed by the pair still happily eating their breakfasts as she opened the door to the refrigerator. Reaching for one of the peach cups stuck in the shelf of the door, she paused upon seeing a parchment wrapped item sat on the top shelf with her name scribbled on it in black marker. Feeling her stomach grumble, she mentally cursed herself for skipping breakfast before coming into work.

Meanwhile, Jay had quickly unstuck the note from the paper beneath it, reading Marlowe's cursive carefully.

Session Dr. Rebecca Sloan

Appointment at 1PM

Go.

- M

JAY HAD BEEN CARRYING A HEAVY FEELING ON HIS SHOULDERS FOR WEEKS and he felt as though he was about to crumble under the weight of it. The morning was dragging on, and he had not seen Marlowe since she had scurried out of the break room and down the main stairs with the parchment wrapped Danish he had left for her in the fridge in her hands. He had meant to ask why she had set him up with a therapist but had pieced it together that Voight probably had put her up to it after their brief meeting when she had come in.

He felt guilty for how he had treated Marlowe and wanted to make it up to her but seemed to be failing in his attempts. Marlowe ignored all his calls and texts, barely spoke to him at work, would not meet his gaze, she avoided Molly's... Jay could only hope that if he kept try and leaving her food like he would in normal circumstances, that she would eventually come around.

Trailing through the basement of the precinct, Jay passed Alvin as he entered the technical lab in his search to find Voight. His sergeant looked at him expectantly, leaning back against the desk behind him. Jay felt his stomach churn under Voight's intense stare, The room was empty now besides the two of them, making Jay stumble slightly as he found his words.

"Um..." Jay cleared his throat, "I just wanted to apologize for what happened with Camilla. I put the team in a bad situation. A really bad situation, and it won't happen again. You have my word."

Hank nodded in acknowledgment, his expression remaining neutral, "Well, you're on desk duty until further notice, and I'm sure Romero's informed you that you've got an appointment with the psychologist at one."

Without another word or giving Jay another chance to speak, Hank left the lab, his shoulder bumping Jay's as he passed. Jay was alone with his thoughts once more, a nauseating knot forming in his stomach as he stared at the cement floor in front of him.

Upstairs, Marlowe had been hiding behind the front desk with Trudy, gossiping and earning her keep by helping with paperwork. She had been listening to Trudy drone on about he and Mouch's plans for the weekend, offering a hum of acknowledgement every now and then as she busied herself with placing stamps on envelopes for outgoing mail. Just as Trudy has started asking Marlowe what she thought about some spa in River West, Kim entered the precinct holding a drink carrier of four coffees in her hands.

"Bless your heart," Trudy smiled in thanks as Kim handed her one of the paper cups.

"Double shot latte, three sugars," Kim proudly stated before plucking another cup and holding it out to Marlowe, "French vanilla cappuccino with whip and cinnamon."

Marlowe happily took the beverage, beaming, "You're a godsend."

Trudy happily sipped at her drink, "Have I told you you're my favorite member of Intelligence?"

"Never," Kim shook her head in disbelief.

Marlowe shook her head, a patch of whip cream lining her upper lip as she quickly spoke up in protest, "I'm literally right here."

"Did you bring me coffee?" Platt raised her eyebrows.

"No, but I just cleared you desk of any and all paperwork."

Trudy paused in thought and then looked back to Kim, "She does have a point... How about a tie then?"

Hailey had descended the stairs in the midst of their bickering, greeting them with a warm smile. Kim responded gleefully, handing Hailey the last drink left in the cardboard carrier. Hailey thanked her, placing the drink down on the sergeant's desk in front of her.

"Hey, so did you make a decision on Sienna?" Hailey asked Kim.

Marlowe eyed the pair curiously, "Your CI, Kim? Heard you've been pestering her to come up with something to escape this drug charge."

"Yeah, she gave me a story about some murder happening to deter me," Kim shrugged before turning back to Hailey, "She doesn't deliver, I'm going to file the charges. I gave her a chance and she blew it."

Trudy looked back away from her computer, impressed, "Ooh, nice to see you toughen up. Don't let anyone take advantage."

Hailey turned away from the group as her phone started to buzz, placing the device to her ear.

Marlowe sipped once more on her drink, glancing back down at Kim, "You sure Sienna would make something like this up?"

"Anything not to do time," Kim answered.

Hailey rejoined them, "We got to go."

"Where?" Kim asked.

"Homicide."

Marlowe grabbed her drink and stepped down form behind the desk, "I'm coming. Bye Platt."

Trudy did not respond, only giving the three women a wave of dismissal as she turned back to browsing the internet. Marlowe followed Hailey and Kim outside, thankful to have the warm drink in her hands as they stepped outside into the freezing air plaguing Chicago. Once in the backseat of Hailey's assigned car, Marlowe plucked a discarded beanie out of the floorboard and placed it on her head before digging her gloves out of the pockets of her coat.

Jay had entered the lobby of the twenty-first precinct from the basement, striding up to Trudy's desk, "Hey Platt, have you seen Marlowe?"

She peered back at him from over her shoulder, "Trouble in paradise? That explains why she was so keen in doing my job for me while I browsed get-away locations for Randall and I..."

Jay's serious expression remained.

Platt rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the computer, "You just missed her. She went with Upton and Burgess to see some homicide scene."

He grumbled, turning in the direction of the main staircase.

"Halstead."

Jay paused and turned his upper body so he could look back at Platt, "Yeah?"

"Do us all a favor and just apologize," Trudy did not bother looking away from her screen as she spoke, "It's been long enough."

With a huff, Jay went back upstairs to continue his responsibility of desk duty.

Once Kim, Marlowe, and Hailey arrived on scene they were greeted by the friendly face of Leo Hak. Once she had rounded the car, Leo greeted Marlowe with a warm hug and the other two with friendly hellos. Hak walked through the gravel lot of an old warehouse and down a narrow path surrounded by tall, decaying brush. Marlowe stayed in step with her former partner, placing her hands in her pockets to keep warm as they wounded a sharp bend with a deep ditch line on the left side.

Officer John Winters stood on the end of the slope full of rocks and fallen leaves. The snow that had accumulated over night laid in patches around them, but there was not enough to cover the horror that awaited them. Winters took a step to the side, giving the three Intelligence officers a better view of the clear tarp that encased a body of a woman, blood smeared across the inside of the material. Marlowe grimaced as she stepped forwards first, squatting down to get a better look.

"Looks like she was beaten to death," Hak told them with remorse in his voice, "It's pretty gruesome."

"You're telling me," Marlowe commented.

"Yeah," Hailey agreed, giving the taller man a soft smile, "Hey, thanks for following up. Nice work."

Leo scoffed, "It cost me fifty bucks. Gave Winters over here ten-to-one odds your snitch was talking crap."

"Her snitch," Hailey clarified, pointing at Kim.

Marlowe refrained from laughing as she stood back up.

"Hey, can you do me a favor," Hailey looked back to Winters and Hak, "Make the
appropriate notifications?"

"Yeah," Winters agreed.

Marlowe gave both officers a small smile, "Thanks, guys."

"You owe me a drink after being absent at Molly's for so long," Hak pointed at her as he walked away from the scene behind Winters.

"I can do that," She called back waving him off.

Hailey sheepishly looked from the dead body before them back to Kim, shrugging, "Like I said, it was just a hunch. Sienna's story was a little too weird to be fake. I'm sorry if I overstepped."

"You did." Kim replied.

Marlowe chewed at her bottom lip, glancing between the pair.

Hailey frowned, their attentions settling back on their victim, "Well, at least now you know Sienna isn't playing you, right?"

Bitterly, but silently, Kim nodded in agreement.

They returned to the district after the crime lab had showed up and combed through the scene. Together, the three of them gathered up all the information and documents they had to present the case to the team. Marlowe worked carefully piecing together the crime board, taping photos up and writing key information down on her own while Kim and Hailey printed off their notes. Roger had stood behind Marlowe during the last few minutes of her diligent mindset, teasingly cheering her along. Marlowe was so focused she had not noticed Jay perching himself on the end of a nearby desk to watch her as well before the remainder of the team had started to gather.

"She's a Jane Doe. We ran her prints; they're not in the system," Kim explained, pointing from the gruesome crime scene photo of their unknown victim to another photo of a young, Hispanic girl, "And my CI doesn't know her name either, but her friend's name is Isabel Perez. And she's dating the same guy that looks good for this murder."

Adam pointed to the board, "What do we know about her?"

"Isabel?" Kim clarified, waiting until he nodded in response, "Latina, twenty-one, used to work on and off at a strip club on the west side. A place called Alibi."

Kevin, who was seated on the desk before Marlowe raised his eyebrows, "Okay, so we think her
boyfriend killed the Jane Doe?"

"Yeah, yeah, and maybe Isabel too," Kim confirmed, "Because she's been missing three weeks, I tried tracking her phone. It's dead."

"All right, well, talk to your C.I. again. See what you can find out," Voight instructed from the back of the group, prompting Kim to instantly grab ahold of her coat, "Meanwhile, let's dig into this Jane Doe. What's her name? What's her story? Let me know."

The group began to disperse, and Marlowe grabbed the folder from Hailey, heading across the office to the copier to start putting together their official report.

"You know, if you want me to jump in-" She heard Jay start before Voight cut him off in a sharp voice.

"No, we're good," He stated, "Your appointment's in ten minutes. If I were you, I'd be on time."

Marlowe shook her head, pushing the copy button on the copier, watching the papers begin to sift through the top tray of the machine. Feeling a presence walk up beside her, she stared intently at the screen, watching the number of pages rise as each document sifted through. She could smell Jay's familiar cologne as he leaned against the side of the machine where the copied documents were being spit out. Continuing to refrain from acknowledging him, Marlowe tapped the toe of her right boot against the linoleum.

"What do you want me to do?" Jay asked her, "Mar, I'm sorry."

Marlowe's voice cracked as the copier finished its job, taking the originals and making sure the pages were even, "I don't want you to do anything."

"Look at me, would you?" He plead standing in front of the tray the copies had fallen into before she could reach them.

Marlowe looked around them and to her relief everyone had either left or was paying them no mind, before finally meeting his eye with the hardest gaze she could muster, "I'm busy and you heard Voight. Don't be late to your appointment."

"I don't need it. I don't need therapy."

With a scoff, Marlowe angrily threw the papers down on top of the copier and gave up on her task at hand, "Whatever you say, Jay-"

"M, just let me at least try to make this all up to you," Jay interrupted her.

Marlowe gazed up at him incredulously, "That's what all of this is about?"

"I'm tired of the silent treatment, I'd rather you just say you hate me," He admitted.

There it was- that stinging feeling in the center of her chest once more. As much as Marlowe wanted to at times, she could not hate Jay Halstead. She did not think she had it in her whatsoever to hate the person who had seen her through one of the darkest times in her life. Jay had been there through the binge drinking, what would have been empty holidays, drunk and hysteric phone calls at three in the morning... He had seen a lot of the ugly side of Marlowe she fought so hard to keep hidden. Jay had been so compassionate when meeting Cody for the first time, he was polite when Gloria Romero insisted on having him over on the occasional Sunday dinner, and it was Jay who had encouraged Marlowe to join Intelligence. They could have just been out for coffee and lunch in the truck, and both could claim that they had fun hanging out. When things were good, everything was so simple with Jay.

So, as much as she disliked some of the things Jay did or said, Marlowe could not find it in her to hate the man who had held her hand though so much. But she remained hurt and angry.

Frustrated, her gaze flickered up to the clock hanging on the wall above them, "You want to make it up to me? Go to therapy."

His face scrunched up, eyebrows drawing together, "What? I don't-"

"No, you start there. Get help," Abandoning the copier, Marlowe stepped back, "Not for me. For yourself."

Marlowe ducked into the hallway leading to the secondary interview rooms and turned the corner out of sight, pressing her back against the pale-yellow painted wall. She leaned her head back, taking a deep breath.

Arguing. Jay could argue for hours. While it came handy in interrogations, Jay's argumentative antics could get out of hand in a personal battle. Marlowe was not going to waste the day away by arguing about him going to therapy of all things. He needed the help and if he wanted one more second of her time, he was going to at least try. As much as he had seen Marlowe through, she knew of Jay's own struggles before coming back to Chicago and what he recently faced on the job. Even when Greg was around, he had stated that Jay's seen hell and back, that the person who had faced war was always going to be a part of him. Jay needed guidance and this was a step in the right direction.

And Marlowe did not move from her spot until she heard the metal door to the back stairwell open and slam shut.

THE SNOW FALLING OVER CHICAGO WAS BEAUTIFUL BUT THE REALITY THE TEAM FACED WAS FAR FROM THE SAME. Their victim had gone a horrific death. She was beaten to death with what the M.E. could only guess to be a pipe of tire iron. The time of death was estimated to be at least a month prior; the body having been preserved so well due to the frigid Chicago winter. Due to the lack of defensive wounds on her, the team believed that their victim most likely knew her attacker- which was fitting the CI's story of the boyfriend killing his girlfriend. Another revelation of the autopsy came in the form of several botched cosmetic procedures to their Jane Doe's breasts, buttocks, lips. It turns out that instead of the usual filler, whoever operated on her had injected her with motor oil.

Marlowe felt as though she was going to be sick.

After finishing adjustments to the board after their new findings, she sat staring out the window overlooking the street in front of the precinct, watching the patches of snow slowly grow into gathering mounds. Kim and Hailey were getting more information from Sienna and following up on a lead at a local shelter while Adam and Kevin were digging for an ID on their victim. Roger, Antonio, and Alvin had returned from the coroner's office and had planted themselves at their desks with lunch to warm up.

"You sure you don't want any of this?" Roger called to Marlowe from his desk, pointing at the pile of wild rice and chicken stuffed into a styrofoam container, "I'm actually in the mood to share for once."

Marlowe shook her head, watching as a large snowflake drifted past the window, "I'm good. Not all that hungry."

"Huh, that's new."

Alvin and Antonio laughed, continuing to pick at their own meals.

"Very funny," Marlowe mocked their laugher, "I don't know how you three can eat after seeing what happened to that poor girl."

"One day you'll adapt," Alvin commented.

The buzzer from the staircase sounded followed by two sets of footsteps trudging up the stairs. Marlowe turned in her chair to see Kevin and Adam come into view.

"We got good news," Kevin announced, "We got a positive ID on the Jane Doe. She goes by the name of Sylvia Castro."

Marlowe grabbed a marker from her desk and stood up, walking to the board.

"We stopped by the strip club that Isabel used to work at. It turns out Sylvia worked there too," Adam pointed to her photo Marlowe was beginning to label, "Boss ID'd the crime scene photo, but he did not know anything about a boyfriend."

"Okay," Voight nodded, "What else do we know?"

"We know she's nineteen, originally from Cleveland, and she's been missing from work for about three months."

"Nineteen?" Marlowe wondered aloud, staring at the photo before her, "She's just a kid..."

Hank turned to Antonio, "All right, track down the family and let them know what happened." After Antonio dismissed himself, he turned back to Roger, Marlowe, Kevin, and Adam, "Talk to Sylvia's friends, co-workers, roommates. Someone's got to know who this boyfriend was."

Marlowe nodded, holding her parker between her hands as she stared at the information littering the board.

"Marlowe," She turned her head to look at Alvin, who was just finishing his lunch, "Take a break, you've been updating that thing all day."

She tilted her head, "Al-"

"You can't work with an unclear head."

Marlowe's eyes flickered to the open doorway of Voight's office, thinking back to her conversation she had had with him that morning.

She caved and sat in the break room picking at a peach cup and the plate of food Roger insist she take until Kim and Hailey returned from arresting one of the men doing the harmful procedures with motor oil. Marlowe had returned to her desk to look up phone records and search for any social media presence on either Isabela or Sylvia when Antonio hung up the phone and called for Voight. Marlowe looked up from her computer, still hunched over with her chin resting on her palm as Antonio began speaking.

"Just talked to our DOA's sister," Antonio looked down at his notepad, "Right before she met
this mystery boyfriend, she was living in a shelter called Jenny's Haven."

"Wait," Kim and Hailey perked up form where they were both seated at the desk opposite of him, "Did you say Jenny's Haven?"

"Yeah."

Kim straightened up, "That's the same place Isabel stayed at."

"That's now two things Isabel and our DOA have in common," Hailey theorized, "They both got plastic surgery at the same underground clinic. Paid for by the same guy, Damien Soto."

"I got him," Roger announced from his station, Antonio and Adam moving first to look at his screen, "Here... He has two priors. One for assault and battery the other for pandering."

Marlowe scoffed as she strolled around the end of his desk, crossing her arms, "So he's a pimp."

"I'll have his photo... there we go," Roger announced as a photo of a Hispanic man that looked to be in his mid-thirties with a round face and long hair that was pulled back into a ponytail popped up on the screen, "Meet Mr. Soto."

"That's Juan," Kim was in disbelief, "From Jenny's Haven."

Voight raised his eyebrows, "You're telling me this guy works at the shelter?"

"No, he's the founder," Kim gaped at the screen, shaking her head.

"This is beyond evil," Marlowe grumbled.

Antonio pointed to the screen, "That's a fox guarding the henhouse."

"All right," Hank announced, "Grab this son of a bitch. Now."

Marlowe and Antonio both patted Roger on the back as they all scrambled to gather what they needed and concocted a plan. As she grabbed her coat from the back of her chair, Marlowe glanced over at the empty desk across the room. She tried not to give Jay a second thought as she followed Adam out the back entrance, already beginning to secure her vest across her chest.

It was past nightfall when they stormed Damien Soto's listed address, Kim kicked in the front door while Marlowe followed in behind her with Hailey in tow. Roger, Adam, and Kevin had broken in from the backyard. To their dismay after a sweep of the house, there was no one home. Flicking on the lights to the kitchen, Marlowe frowned seeing plates of food half eaten left out on the table. Soto had been tipped off, taking all the girls in his possession with him.

"Well, they left in a hurry," Kim deadpanned.

"Looks like Isabel wasn't his only girl," Hailey pointed out the three beds in the nearby bedroom.

Kim pushed angrily at one of the locks hanging on an ajar doorframe, "You mean prisoner.
He's locking them up."

Hailey and Marlowe shared a look, Kim brushing by them hastily calling for a crime lab to get there to dust for prints.

"She's beating herself up," Marlowe whispered.

Hailey nodded, "I know."

Kim stopped at the end of the hallway to answer her cellphone, her face contorting into one of worry, "Burgess... I'll be there in fifteen..."

"We'll go with her," Hailey volunteered, calling out to Adam, Roger, and Kevin in the other room, "Hey, guys, we're going to break off."

"Yeah, copy that!"

Marlowe and Hailey had barely made into the car before Kim was pulling away from the curb. Marlowe nearly fell over in the backseat before she was buckled in, catching herself by grabbing onto the console and the headrest of the passenger's seat. Kim drove all the way to a park and ride alongside the river, where Sienna was stood in wait for them. Marlowe was the last one to exit the vehicle, giving Sienna a small smile as Kim introduced them. Marlowe leaned against the side of the car; her arms cross in front of her as she listened to Sienna talk.

"So your friend saw Isabel on Racine Avenue last night?" Kim asked.

Sienna nodded, "Yeah, around midnight. She was with some guy."

"Doing what?" Hailey asked.

"Don't know, but I'm guessing looking for dope," Her face contorted into an expression of worry, "She's got to have it, and I've been trying to help her, but—"

"Well, at least you know she's still alive," Kim added, "That's something, right?"

Hailey and Marlowe agreed.

"Right," Sienna seemed to be more enthused, "Now we just need to get her away from that awful boyfriend."

Kim scoffed, "Uh, you mean pimp. His name is Damien Soto. He's got six other girls, too."

"Makes me sick," Sienna scrunched her nose.

Marlowe's shoulders sagged, "That makes four of us then."

"You said Isabel has a drug habit. That means she'll be looking to score sometime soon," Kim theorized, Sienna nodding along, "So why don't you ask around, see who's selling to her? We'll track her down that way."

Now, Marlowe and Hailey looked at each other, unsure.

"Walk around Pilsen talking to heroin dealers?" Sienna clarified, looking to the others, "Nah, I'm clean. I don't like hanging out in that area."

"Yeah," Hailey spoke up, glancing at Kim, "that's dangerous, no doubt."

Kim seemed to ponder before turning back to her informant, her voice sterner than before, "Sienna, we had a deal. I said if you help find the killer, I wouldn't file charges. So far, you haven't
done much helping."

"Wow," Sienna sneered, "That's pretty hardcore."

And Marlowe had to agree.

"Don't blow it," Kim continued, "You're taking cooking classes. You're working hard
to be a chef."

"Real hard," She confirmed tearfully, "And I'm good, too."

"It doesn't matter. If you don't cooperate, the only place you'll be cooking is Stateville."

As much as she knew Kim was trying to play it by the books with her first CI, Marlowe and Hailey both thought her tactic was too harsh. Kim was desperate to try to fine Damien and the girls, as were the rest of the team, but she was really baring the burden of not having taken Sienna seriously in the first place. The streets of Pilsen were barely safe to wonder in the daytime, let alone under the cover of darkness. Sienna was clean, she had a future, and the last thing she needed to be doing was playing tag with dealers on corners.

After a few minutes of silence, Sienna spoke with a trembling lip, "Okay, okay, I'll give it a shot."

"That's a good choice," Kim dug around in her pocket, pulling out a wad of cash and handed it to Sienna, "Here's five hundred, grease the dealers. Tell them there's more cash if they deliver a lead."

Marlowe watched Sienna walk away from them without another word, her lips parted before turning back to look at Kim. Kim was grinning, turning back to her partners excitedly.

Hailey had stepped back towards the driver side of the car, looking hesitant of the brunette standing opposite of her, "Look, I'm not going to tell you how to do your job, but that was pretty hardcore."

"She's a C.I., Haley," Kim's expression faltered, quickly snapping in return, "That's what she signed up for."

Kim got in the passenger's seat, slamming the door closed behind her. Marlowe mouthed 'wow' as she brushed past Hailey to get back inside the car, eager to get the heater running. Hailey loitered outside a moment more, caught up in her own thoughts before eventually joining the others inside. Marlowe tossed the borrowed beanie she had borrowed earlier in the day to the opposite side of the bench from her, sighing in relief once the engine had roared to life and warm air began to fill the vehicle. Asking Hailey to turn up the radio, Marlowe readied in her seat for the tense drive back to the precinct.

 As soon as Marlowe had returned to the office, the first thing she did was discard her coat and head for the break room for a cup of coffee. There was not much to do but wait for Damien to resurface. Adam and Kevin had a BOLO out for their perp's car and Roger was still coming up empty handed with all the surveillance footage they had gathered. Marlowe could only hope that Sienna would get them a lead.

As it got later and check-ins with Sienna became slow, the team started to one-by-one call it a night. Alvin, Kevin, and Adam had already headed out after no BOLO hits and Hailey and Kim paused by Marlowe's desk to tell her goodnight and that Kim would update her on Sienna. Roger remained hunched over his desk looking half asleep as he fast forwarded through the last of the PODS footage. Jay sat swiveling around in his chair as he read over a news article on his phone, ready for his desk shift come to an end once ten o'clock rolled around.

With a tired sigh, Marlowe herself silently declared it a night for herself.

"M," Jay's voice carried across the office, "You leaving?"

"Yeah," She responded, pulling her coat on, and zipping up the front, "It's been a long day."

"I'll walk you out." With that, Jay left her no time to protest, already grabbing his coat and rising from his seat.

Roger watched the pair with raised eyebrows, no longer caring about what was on the screen in front of him. He made eye contact with Marlowe as she stopped in front of his desk, adjusting her purse on her shoulder.

Breifly glancing at Jay who had strayed around them towards the stairs, Roger looked up at her, "You okay with that?"

"Yeah, it's okay," She assured him with a tight smile, taking a small step backwards, "Don't stay much longer, okay? I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya."

Marlowe joined Jay at the top of the stairs, walking alongside him down the wooden stairs towards the gate. Purposefully, Jay stepped ahead of her to push open the metal door and held it for Marlowe. He caught Trudy's gaze as they descended the remainder of the steps into the lobby, the pair of them sharing a nod as they passed the front desk. Jay mimicked his previous gesture with the front doors to the building, waiting for Marlowe to step outside before letting the door close behind them.

Marlowe placed her hands in her pockets, side-glancing at Jay as they walked around the building to the back lot, "How was therapy?"

"I don't know," Jay shrugged, "I don't really think it's for me."

"Your ego never ceases to amaze me," She responded.

"Woah, woah," Jay's hand found the bed of her arm and gently pulled her to a stop alongside the exterior wall of the precinct, "At least I went. Right?"

She looked up at him, her lips pursed into a straight line, "But did you try?"

Jay seemed unable to come up with an answer.

"I figured," Disappointed, Marlowe continued towards the parking lot.

"Can't we talk?" He tried justifying, jogging to catch back up with her.

She shook her head in disagreement, pulling her lanyard from her purse as they neared her car, "I'm tired, Jay. We'll figure it out later, okay?"

"M," Jay had stopped at the hood of the vehicle, watching as she pulled open the driver's door, "I'm sorry."

Marlowe gulped, tapping her fingernails nervously against the metal frame held in her left hand. They stared at one another; Jay's eyes noticeably glassy under the faint yellow light emitting from a nearby lamp post. It was a painful silence, both Marlowe and Jay wishing the other would say or do something to make it stop.

Finally, Marlowe broke their prolonged gaze, "Jay, I'm going home. You should too."

Jay's lips parted to say something else, but Marlowe had already hurried inside her car and slammed the door shut behind her. He took a few steps backwards once the engine roared to life stuffing his hands deep into his coat pockets, leaving Marlowe enough room to pull out of her parking spot and enter the alleyway leading to the street. He could hear the bass of the music emitting muffled by the closed quarters of Marlowe's car as she drove past him, barely giving him a second glance.

And Jay could not do anything but watch her leave.

TWO GUNSHOTS TO THE CHEST, AT CLOSE RANGE HAD TAKEN SIENNA'S LIFE OVER NIGHT. Marlowe had received the notification not long after she had arrived home and began nursing a couple bottles of beer in hopes of getting a goodnight's sleep. Kim was taking the news hard, as expected, blaming herself for pushing Sienna into the position that led to her demise. The team had spent most of the morning in a meeting over the whole ordeal, catching Voight up to speed with their findings.

On Sienna's phone Roger had found a text message from the dealer last night just after ten o'clock stating that he was meeting up with Isabel in the park where her body would later be found. It was not a robbery of any sort, Sienna's wallet with the cash Kim had given her was still in her pocket. It looked as if Sienna had been setup and Damien had taken care of her to protect his business. The dealer in question, Eduardo Varela was in for a rude awakening and Kim Burgess was hurrying the others along after Voight signed off on a search of his property.

"Chicago PD!" Kevin yelled, banging on the chipping, wooden door of Varela's apartment.

Before Adam could slam the ram forwards into the door, it was pulled open. A very confused, Caucasian man with unkept stubble and greasy hair that was slicked back from his narrow face stood on the other side.

"Hey, you Eduardo Varela?" Kevin confronted him, pushing him backwards through the entryway, "Move your punk ass out the way!"

"You have no right talking to me like that," Eduardo argued as the warrant was forced into his hand.

Kevin began to search him, having pushed the man back into the living area, "Hey, don't talk to me like that, Eddie, 'cause I'm not in the mood. Turn around, get your hands up. Hands up!"

Marlowe, Roger, Kim, Adam, and Antonio had entered the house behind Kevin, quickly sweeping through the small space Eduardo lived in. Once the immediate space was cleared, Kevin ordered Varela to sit down on the couch before him, the Kim, Kevin, and Marlowe grouping up in front of him. Adam, Antonio, and Roger continued to sweep through the back rooms.

"Where's Damien Soto?" Kim asked him, eyes narrowed.

Varela scoffed, "Don't know nobody with that name."

"Dude, we don't got time for that," Kevin argued, "We know you just got off the phone with him right after you met with Sienna."

"And then you sent her a text, and now she's dead," Kim added.

"So, Eddie, it's your turn to talk," Marlowe hooked her thumbs behind the straps of her vest, "Or you're coming with us."

The others reentered the living room, Antonio holding up a plastic baggie full of a crushed, white, substance, "Look what we found!"

"Heroin, huh?" Kevin asked, hands placed on his hips, "I'm not surprised."

"You have two choices, Eduardo," Kim took a step forwards, "One, we bust you for heroin possession and conspiracy to commit murder. Or two, you help us find Isabel Perez."

"Or Damien Soto's bitch ass," Kevin threw in, "It's up to you."

Varela hesitated.

Marlowe's eyebrows rose, holding her hand out to Roger who started unclipping his handcuffs from his belt, "Tick-tock."

Once the metal cuffs were placed in Marlowe's hand, Eduardo began talking, "Okay, okay. I know who he is. And I know Izzy, but I didn't help get no one killed. That's not what I'm about."

"Right, because you teach Sunday school." Kevin jabbed.

"Damien told me to send that text so Isabel could talk to her friend," He explained.

Kim's patience was wearing thin, "Tell us where Damien Soto is."

"I don't know," He claimed, "But I do know that Izzy's coming over in a few hours to score some product."

Roger laughed as Marlowe reluctantly handed him back the cuffs, "Wasn't so hard now, was it, Eddie?"

Antonio jumped back into the conversation, "Now, you're going to pretend like everything's normal and let us do our job."

"Okay," Varela crossed his arms over himself anxiously, "What happens after that?"

"You work for me as an informant or you go to jail," Antonio shrugged, holding the bag of heroin up.

Eduardo complied.

Antonio and Kim remained in the house with Eduardo to monitor him and wait for Izzy to arrive while the other four returned to stake out the house in their cars parked on opposite sides of the street. An hour into their waiting, Marlowe had already had enough and huffed from the passenger's seat of Roger's Jeep, leaning her head back against the head rest. A loud gurgling sound followed her silent complaints.

"You good?" Roger asked, obviously withholding laughter, peeling his gaze away from the road.

"Skipped breakfast," Marlowe grumbled, crossing her arms over her front.

He hummed, looking back towards Varela's house, "That's unusual."

"Just another thing out of routine," Marlowe sighed, turning her head to look at his profile, "Speaking of routine, how was your weekly check-in at casa de... Audrie was it?"

"Aubrey," Roger corrected with a chuckle, "And if you must know, she's good. It's starting to not be just a one day a week thing."

"Ooh, that's serious," She joked.

Roger remained amused, "Someone's got to try to be in this unit. You're all a wreck."

"Listen-" Marlowe cut herself off, starting to laugh, "No, no you're right. Someone's gotta have a good personal life out of us. Adam and Kim are a wreck while Kevin always deals with his younger sibling's issues. Antonio has a bitter ex-wife and two teenagers to raise. Hailey's so secretive at times it scares me sometimes. God only knows what Voight and Al do outside of work."

Roger waited a moment to reply, "And Jay?"

"Wouldn't know," The bitterness in her voice was unintentional, but present.

Her partner shook his head, "He's still on a short leash then?"

"Roger, at this point I've cut him loose," Marlowe's lips fell into a frown as she glared out the windshield, "He lied to me. I- We all wanted to help him, and he lied. Am I supposed to just forgive that and trust him again?"

"I'm not saying that-"

"We've got company," Marlowe cut him off, her eyes locked on the passenger side mirror.

Roger looked in the rear-view, spotting a blue sports car with dark windows getting ready to pass them. They sank down in their seats as the car drove by them, stopping in the middle of the road just in front of Eduardo's house. Kevin's voice came in over the radio, alerting those inside to what was happening out front. Marlowe and Roger watched closely as Isabela got out of the passenger's seat of the blue car and shut the door behind her.

She had been inside the house for no longer than a minute when the engine of the mystery car began to rev and peel down the street.

"Moving," Adam radioed.

Kevin's car had peeled away from the curb and blocked the car's way. Kevin and Adam exited the vehicle with their weapons raised, yelling for the driver to get out of the car. Marlowe and Roger were exiting their vehicle and were just about to approach the car from the opposite end when the engine began to roar loudly once more.

"Hold on," Roger spoke up, pausing before he shut his door.

The blue car began to speed backwards, reversing down the street.

"Drive!" Marlowe yelled, clambering back inside, "Drive!"

Roger and Marlowe had not even bothered with seat belts as he quickly threw the Jeep and drive and peeled out onto the road before Kevin and Adam had made it back to their car. The car before them skidded into a three-point turn and whipped down an adjacent street. Roger floored it as Marlowe radioed their movements into dispatch.

Marlowe held on to the overhead bar tightly with her right hand as Roger made another sharp left turn, her walkie-talkie still clutched in her left, "5021 Kennedy, still in pursuit of- Shit, Roger! Watch out!"

At an intersection of the neighborhood they had been speeding through, a large truck had come perpendicular at them. Turning the wheel sharply and slamming on the break, Roger quickly forced the Jeep out of the way before there was impact to Marlowe's side. The driver angrily blew their horn at them as it continued by, Roger grasping onto the steering wheel with one hand while his right arm was extended to the side to ensure that Marlowe did not hit the dash.

Roger hit the steering wheel, "Dammit!"

Who they expected to be Damien Soto, was now long gone.

Marlowe blinked, still hearing her heartbeat in her ears, before letting herself fall back against the seat, "Did you just try to mom me?"

"Shut up."

Antonio and Kim took Isabela into custody, telling the others to head back to the precinct behind them. Roger made a pitstop on the way back to the twenty-first at a corner diner to grab a take-out lunch for him and a silently suffering Marlowe. She had the majority of her meal was gone before they had pulled into the parking lot, but still packed what was left back into the bag it came it to save for later.

"Romero," Trudy called over to her as they entered the building, sliding a paper coffee cup across the desk towards the end as the pair approached.

"You got me coffee?" Marlowe asked, grinning, "Platt, you shouldn't have."

"Well, I feel left out then," Roger joked.

"I didn't," The older woman bluntly stated causing Marlowe's smile to disappear as quickly as it had developed, "Some delivery service dropped it off. Your order's written on the side."

"French vanilla cappuccino with whip and cinnamon," Marlowe read, her eyebrows furrowing, "But it's past noon?"

Platt placed her hands on her hips, "So?"

"I usually only drink regular coffee with just cream after lunch."

"Maybe its Halstead still crawling around on his knees," Trudy continued to shrug it off, returning to her work.

Roger gave Marlowe a concerned look, noticing her hesitance.

Not entirely grasping the meaning of the sergeant's words, Marlowe stepped away, "Yeah..."

But it was unlikely for the coffee to have been a gesture from Jay. He, together with most of their co-workers, had learned about Marlowe's coffee habits. Sure, she would occasionally deviate on days when there was a craving for something different, but there had not been time to make pitstops recently to grab anything other than a quick brew of black coffee and some packets of creamer. And Jay had never used delivery services to the precinct.

Everyone knew Trudy hated the interruption.

Marlowe was still stuck in her thoughts as Roger led the way upstairs.

"Are you going to drink it?" Roger asked her, eying the cup in her hand.

"Are you nuts?" She asked as they reached the second floor, "No, I don't know who it's from."

They both stopped at the end of their desks, still looking at each other.

Roger peered over his shoulder at Jay who was pretending to be invested in something on his computer, "Are you sure it's not him?"

"He out of all people should know my coffee orders," Marlowe glanced down at the drink again, "This is just weird."

Voight and Kim had begun talking to Isabela already, telling her of their disinterest in pressing charges against her. Isabela had been anything but informative during their discussion. She wouldn't give up Damien, even after being informed of Sylvia and Sienna's murders. Marlowe watched from the other side of the glass with a sympathetic expression as the young girl on the other side was obviously going through withdrawal and continued to deflect when questions about Damien was asked.

"She's in love with him," Marlowe said aloud to Hailey and Roger, "She believes he saved her."

Roger nodded, his hands in the pockets of his jeans, "They've been at it for hours. She's not even close to giving him up."

"Love makes you do crazy things," Hailey remarked, "Makes you believe crazy things."

Marlowe hummed in agreement.

Kim and Adam were assigned to escort Isabela to a safehouse for the night. The team had not gotten anything on their outstanding BOLO, so Kim concocted a plan to catch Damien by leaving Isabela a phone in case of emergency. Like she had predicted, Isabela made a phone call and radioed in to have Roger and Marlowe ping Damien's location.

Parked under the cover of night just outside the mouth of the alleyway between Irving and Fifteenth Street, Marlowe sat in the driver's seat this time with Roger sitting shotgun in her car. Marlowe and Roger leaned to stare down the dimly lit pathway, seeing a shadow jogging alongside the fence.

"We've got eyes on a figure matching Soto's build in the alleyway," Roger spoke into his walkie.

"That's a male Hispanic," Antonio radioed from the spot he and Hailey were stationed, "Approaching from the east."

"And action," Marlowe muttered, the pair quietly exiting the vehicle.

Damien had just gotten Isabela in an embrace and wrapped a coat around her when they were surrounded from three directions. Antonio announced their presence loudly, startling the couple.

"You set me up, you lying whore!" Damien seethed in Isabela's face, quickly forcing her to turn around and reached to pull a gun from his waistband.

Isabela begged aloud, "No, no, don't shoot."

"Drop your weapon!" Kim yelled at him, "Drop your weapon!"

BANG! BANG!

"Nice shot!" Adam praised.

Before Soto could pull the trigger, Kim had popped off two rounds that sent Damien backwards onto the cement. Roger rushed to kick Damien's gun from his reach, glaring down the man writhing in pain and grasping at his shoulder. Isabela was in a fit of hysterics, screaming and begging for Damien to forgive her as Kim held her back. Adam flipped Damien over to lay on his stomach, cuffing his hands behind his back, Marlowe assisting him in getting the heavier-set man back to his feet. Soto tried to resist; Marlowe shoved at his bleeding shoulder.

"Walk," She seethed through gritted teeth, forcing him forwards towards Adam and Kim's car.

"What are you doing here?!" Isabela shrieked as they took him away, "Why did you shoot him? Please don't die, I love you!"

Marlowe assisted Adam in dragging Soto towards the car he and Kim arrived in, both of them not being so gentle in their handling of him. Kim and Adam drove Damien to Med where he would be taken into surgery to dig the bullets out of his shoulder, but he would live otherwise. Antonio was tasked in taking a hysterical Isabela to a clinic to help her, but through her withdrawals and trauma of Damien being shot in front of her, the team only hoped the clinic would but her on the right track.

Back at the precinct, Voight turned to them, "Okay, well, what about the phone call? We got a location?"

"Yeah, pinged off a cell tower on the south side, near a bar named Vinnie's," Jay confirmed, sitting back in his desk chair, "The waitress there confirmed he was there from ten to eleven."

Marlowe sat perched on the end of Roger's desk, yawning, "We dumped his phone, but got nothing."

"Checked his car too, no navigation system," Kevin confirmed.

The sergeant's eyes narrowed, "So we still have no idea where this bastard's living? Well, Pilsen
isn't that big, guys. I want boots on the ground. Circulate photos of Damien and Isabel. I mean, you've got C.I.'s in the area, get on the phone. Call in a favor. We need to find these girls, soon."

Marlowe was the first to call dibs on the freshly brewed pot of coffee Adam had just made, dragging Kim along to the break room with her. Hailey noticed Jay's eyes follow Marlowe across the room until she disappeared around the corner, a sigh escaping his lips. Hailey leaned an arm against the back of his chair, pulling his thoughts from Marlowe. Jay gazed up at his partner with his eyebrows furrowed together.

"How's therapy?" Hailey asked.

Monotone, Jay shrugged, "Not really my thing."

"All right, well, if you're not going to take it seriously or even attempt to take it seriously, let me know." Hailey told him, her expression serious, "For real, because I need to find a new partner."

He was left speechless and shaking his head after Hailey had followed the others into the adjacent room to get a cup of coffee. Jay cursed under his breath, tossing the pin he was holding against the surface of his desk in frustration. Glancing up, he noticed Roger still seated at his desk already looking back at him with a look that had mirrored the one Hailey had given him.

The look of disappointment. 

IT WAS FIVE O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE, Marlowe told herself as she sipped on a bottle of beer at a lowkey dive bar in Pilsen. She was seated on a stool next to Kim at the counter, watching replays of a hockey game on the television mounted on the wall opposite of them. It was just a little after noon and technically they were on the clock, but had decided to pass the time quicker by enjoying herself while Hailey was seated at a booth a couple feet behind them talking to one of her CI's local to the area.

"This game is nuts," Marlowe gawked, staring at the screen, "The dude rammed head first into the barricade. That's the second injury already and it's only the first period."

Kim seemed disinterested, silently taking another drink of her beverage.

Hailey approached them from behind, leaning on the bar between them with her own beer clutched between both of her hands, "He can't get the guy's name."

"He can't or he won't?" Kim asked.

Hailey narrowed her eyes, "Can't. Not without consequences."

"So, you're saying Raul has a lead, but you told him not to chase it?" Kim accused.

Marlowe gently set her bottle back down on the bar, "Easy..."

"Okay, think about it," Hailey took a deep breath, straightening up her posture, "Raul asks his Latin Cobra connect for the address. And then we hit the house five minutes later. It doesn't take a lot of math to figure out who our source is."

Kim only grew more agitated, "So it's okay for my C.I. to take on a risk, but not yours. That's what you're saying?"

Her eyes widening, Marlowe spoke back up, "No, no- that's not what she's saying, Kim."

Hailey abandoned her bottle on the bar and turned her body to completely face the brunette sitting on her left, "Kim, he has a wife and two kids. Not to mention I've known him for over five years, and he's given me over twenty cases."

Kim hummed poignantly.

"And let's be clear. It was your choice to push Sienna, not mine."

"I know, because there's six girls out there, probably locked in some basement. And I'm not just going to sit here and let them die," Kim accused.

"This is ridiculous," Marlowe grumbled, sliding off her stool and grabbing her long coat that was draped over the back of it, "Kim, you talk as if none of us want to find them as much as you do."

"Because we do," Hailey tried to soften her voice, "I want to find them as badly as you do, and I will do everything in my power to make that happen."

Kim continued to bicker, "Yeah, everything but ask your informant. Raul's job, an informant's job, is to provide information. He is an asset of the Chicago Police Department."

Hailey's voice strained, "No, he is a person. And he is a friend."

Marlowe watched the pair stare down one another taking another step back from the bar. Kim's face fell at Hailey's statement. She admired both women that stood before her, but drew the line at the pointless back and forth happening between the two. Marlowe led the way out of the bar and onto the streets of Pilsen, muttering to herself as the cold air from outside hit her. 

Alvin and Voight had little luck in their own venture to the hospital to talk to Damien. Just as their intimidations and threats began to have an effect on Soto, they were interrupted by the doctor coming in to check up on her patient. The only thing they had learned was that one of the girls Damien had locked away was a diabetic who needed insulin, so time was of the essence. On their way out, Voight had approached Nurse Atwell who was attending to Soto in the ED and implored her to help them. Hank told Marigold to leave cell phone in Damien's room and to pretend that she had forgotten it, which she agreed to do.

Marlowe, Roger, and Jay were already prepared for when Damien made a call a half an hour later, recording and pinging the receiving end's location. They played it for Voight, Alvin, and Kim to hear.

"It's me, Damien. Look, man, I'm in a situation, like for real. I need some cash."

The man on the other end replied, "So, what are you looking to do?

"Sell some product."

Roger scoffed as they all listened, "They're so gullible. They'll fall for anything."

"How do these people remember phone numbers without having them saved to a phone?" Marlowe sighed, slouching, "I can barely remember my mom's."

Jay turned his chair to face their sergeant, "The other voice belongs to Cesar Ramos. He's another pimp working out of Pilsen."

"Track him down," Voight ordered, "And follow him." 

"Already there," Marlowe stated, already typing away on the keyboard and pinging Ramos's phone, "He's already moving."

Roger clasped her on the shoulder, "Let's go."

Jay's eyebrows lowered and the sides of his nose crinkled as the pair scrambled to leave the room, leaving him in charge of watching Ramos.

Hailey and Antonio were the first to arrive at the possible target location after Jay had radioed that Cesar had stopped in the outskirts of Pilsen. Ramos was about to pry a padlock of the door with a pair of bolt cutters when he was apprehended by Antonio and Hailey, who promptly arrested him.

Once Cesar was placed in the back of the patrol car and the rest of the team had arrived, Kevin led the way up the stoop of the decrepit cottage-house. Announcing their presence, he swung the ram forwards and broke in the front door. Surprise yelps came from inside as the team flooded the house, branching off from one another. They were all reassuring as they passed by each girl during their initial sweep, telling them that they were there to help. The house was a mess and smelt of cigarette smoke. There were mattresses laid in most corners, but only seven looked to be slept in.

"Son of a..." Marlowe lowered her weapon to her side, coming to a stop in the doorway of the kitchen.

On the linoleum floor before her laid a very thin and pale girl, her red hair splayed out around her head and across the yellowed tiles. Marlowe sighed as she knelt down by her, placing her index and middle fingers to the girl's neck. There was no pulse and she was cold.

A few feet away laid a bottle of empty insulin.

"Romero?" Kevin appeared in the doorway.

Marlowe looked up at him, her hand moving back to her lap, "She's gone."

"Damn."

Kim wandered into the room behind him, her gaze falling to the girl laying on the ground in front of Marlowe, "Is she...?"

"She didn't make it," Kevin told her in a solemn voice.

"Oh, man," Kim placed her gun back into the holster, "She must be the diabetic."

Kevin excused himself to go check on the other girls as Hailey loitered on the other side of the threshold. Her blue eyes were glassy and she chewed on her bottom lip, her gaze set on the deceased redhead. Marlowe rose back to her feet, watching as Kim's jaw tensed upon seeing Hailey. 

"Kim..."

She was out of the room before Marlowe could string together a sentence, brushing past Hailey. Hailey's shoulder's sagged at the sight before her.

Marlowe approached her side, placing a hand on Hailey's arm, "You did the right thing."

Hailey nodded, sniffling trying to hid it by wiping her face with the sleeve of her coat,

"Come on," Gently, Marlowe turned her back towards the hallway, "Let's check on the others."

Damien had not cared if those girls had lived or died. It was clear that they were just dollar signs to him, but replaceable. There were more impressionable girls out there than Marlowe cared to think about someone like Soto being able to get his hands on. He would have let them all starve if it meant keeping his mouth shut.

The redhead, Lydia, had been proof of how far Damien was willing to go. He was disgusting, and in the end, Kim had helped assemble an air-tight case against him. She had made a break through with Isabela at the end of the day. Holding Kim's hand for support, Isabela gave up everything she had on Damien, including where he had hidden the tire iron her used to bludgeon Sylvia to death with. She broke down in Kim's arms, crying her heart out.

Isabela was free, but not free of hurt.  

Marlowe was in the process of grabbing her belongings from her locker, but had lost her train of thought in the middle of gazing at the photos taped to the interior of the metal door. Kim was in the back corner at the sink, splashing her face with cold water, occasionally glancing up in the mirror towards where Marlowe stood zoned out, oblivious to her presence. Marlowe's eyes were glued to a photograph of the team posed together at Mollys, Voight and Alvin the only ones absent from the occasion. They were all smiling widely, arms thrown around one another as Herrmann snapped the photo. Marlowe had been squished between Adam and Jay, standing under Jay's arm with a glass of wine in her hand.

"Mar?" Kim's worried voice startled Marlowe from her thoughts, causing her to jump, "Hey are you okay?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah, just ready to get out of here," She brushed it off, folding her coat over her arm, "Going to spend the weekend catching up on some rest hopefully."

Kim glanced back at her through the mirror, "You sure?"

Marlowe's eyes flickered back to the photograph, "Kim, you did a really good job today. And if there's anything we can learn from this case, it's that life is short."

"What are you saying?"

"Live. Forgive," Marlowe forced a tight smile as she gently closed the locker and faced her friend, "Especially forgive yourself. You need to let it go..."

Kim paused in thought, turning to lean back against the ceramic sink.

"You've been on this job longer than me, but I know how much it can wear someone down. Be easy on yourself... and be easy on Hailey. You're both good police," Marlowe told her, lifting her purse to rest on her shoulder, "Plus, there's only three of us in this unit and we need each other to ward off the boy's influence."

A small smile appeared on Kim's lips at Marlowe's joke, "You're right."

"Goodnight, Kim."

"Night Mar."

It snowed more that night, the ground now fully coated in a sheet of white. Marlowe sat awake that night on the couch, a half-empty beer bottle sitting on the coffee table in front of her. She had changed into cozier clothes and wrapped herself in one of the fuzziest blankets she owned. A late-night show played on the television, not that she was paying much attention to what was happening on the screen. Marlowe thought over the previous few days with a deep frown on her face. It was a Friday night and she was spending it with a bottle of Budweiser and Jimmy Fallon whereas she would normally be at Molly's with the others. 

A knock on the door broke up Marlowe's silent pity party. She rose from her comfortable spot on the couch and repositioned her sweatshirt to cover her stomach as she approached the door. Pulling back the end of the curtain covering the glass pane of the door, Marlowe peered through to see a tired looking Jay waiting patiently. She swallowed her nervousness and undid the deadbolt before slowly pulling the door open.

"Jay," Marlowe's greeting fell flat, pausing in the gap between the door and the frame.

Jay stood awkwardly, scuffing at the snow that had blown in onto the porch with his boots, "Hey, I know it's late, but I just... I really wanted to talk."

"I, uh... Yeah. Come inside, its freezing," She stepped aside, waiting for him to step inside before she closed the door.

They stood across from each other just in the entryway while the noise of the television continued in the background. Marlowe anxiously linked her hands together in front of her, waiting for Jay to speak.

"Marlowe, I'm so sorry," Jay's voice wavered, "I really messed up. The way that I treated and lied to you... You didn't deserve any of that. Not after all that you've done for me."

She chewed on the inside of her cheek, looking up at him, "I'm tired of being mad, Jay. Being upset with you is exhausting, but I'm not going to be your punching bag when things get out of control. That's not alright."

He gently took her hands in his noticing her white knuckles and carefully pulled her linked fingers apart, "No, it's not. I can't tell you how sorry I am."

Tears welled up in Marlowe's eyes as she watched Jay's thumbs brush over the back of her hands, "You keeping secrets like that and yelling at me just felt like..."

He understood even as she trailed off, "I have another appointment set up with Doctor Sloan tomorrow afternoon. I'm going to try."

Marlowe silently nodded, bowing her head.

"I'll do anything to make it up to you," Jay nudged her slightly, "I'll by you all the food and coffee you want for the rest of our careers if I have to."

To his delight, he managed to get Marlowe to let out a tearful laugh.

Jay gave her a hopeful look, "Can we try? Can we try to find a way to get back to normal?"

"Please, just... don't ever do that again," She squeezed his hands, "Don't lie to me, Jay. I can't take it. Not from you."

"I won't," Jay shook his head, "I won't."

Marlowe's bottom lip trembled as she leaned forwards to wrap her arms around Jay's middle. Immediately, he returned the embrace. Jay enveloped her against him and hugged her around the shoulders. Resting his head to the side against Marlowe's, Jay let out a huge breath of relief. Marlowe closed her eyes as the tears slowly began to subside, resting her forehead forwards against Jay's shoulder. The embrace put both at ease and they stood there for a few minutes making sure the other was alright before gradually separating.

"Do you, um," Marlowe wiped under her eyes with the ends of her sleeves, chuckling softly, "You want a beer?"

"Sure," Jay gave her a soft smile.

She mirrored his grin, "Make yourself at home then."

While Marlowe entered the kitchen to grab another beer from the fridge, Jay stepped out of his boots and hung his coat up like he was used to doing. He settled at the end of the couch closest to the door, angling himself in the corner of it to face the television with his left arm draped over the back of the furniture. Marlowe reappeared from the dimly lit kitchen with an opened bottle in hand, but paused as she glanced over at the bookshelf to the left of the doorway.

The frosted glass vase of flowers that had been delivered to the precinct weeks prior had been sat there and forgotten in the chaos that had surrounded Marlowe. Her eyes narrowed at the blank white card that was still stuck between the wilted petals, pursing her lips in thought.

"Hey," Marlowe rounded the coffee table and settled next to him on the couch, handing him the beer, "Did you send a coffee to me at the precinct yesterday?"

Was it the same person who sent her flowers the same person that sent her coffee?

"No why?" Jay tilted his head to the side, "Someone ordered you a coffee and had it delivered?"

She placed the blanket she had before over her lap, resting her feet up on the coffee table, "I'm sure it's nothing. Must've been some kind of mistake."

He seemed unsure, watching Marlowe relax back against his arm thrown over the back of the sofa.

They stayed up until early the next morning, watching bad late-night sitcom reruns and sipping on beers until they eventually both crashed from exhaustion. The two of them laid sprawled out on the couch only illuminated now by the flickering light of the TV. The small throw blanket Marlowe had attempted to share with Jay now laid to the side, wedged between her and the cushion behind her. She had ended up laying down on the opposite end from Jay so that her legs were draped over his lap, his left arm now thrown over them in his sleep. Jay's snores mixed with the low chatter from the show playing in the distance, head thrown back over the couch arm from where he had settled in his sleep.

The night no longer felt long and insufferable with the weight of where the two of them stood now off their shoulders, and both were sleeping the soundest they had in weeks. 

season five, episode eleven

Marlowe's outfit inspirations for this episode

She's back baby. & We're going to stick to long chapters.

What do we think?

published ── 5.14.22