Chapter 4

Teresa stayed in the kitchen mindlessly stirring her now cold coffee. She had a feeling that Jane would leave, he was never one to listen when it came to a Red John case. The case...tears began streaming down again as the image of her dead daughter resurfaced. She covers her face with her hands and cries it out needing Jane more then ever.

"Marie, I am so sorry."

She begins to sob.

"I miss you so much!"

Lisbon can hear the front door open and a giddy Jane enters the kitchen.

"Teresa you won't believe-are you okay?"

Hastily wiping her tears away she nods in affirmation as Jane spots the picture next to her coffee. It's of five year old Marie in her blue Sunday dress.

"I haven't seen this picture in a long time."

"I just, I really miss her."

"Teresa."

He pulls up a chair to sit somewhat across from her.

"I saw Marie today."

"You went to the morgue? I told you I wanted nothing to do with this case."

"No no, I saw her."

Lisbon groans and takes her mug to the sink, pouring out the cold coffee and getting a new mug for more coffee.

"Patrick, she's gone what you saw was someone who looked like her."

"You don't understand! She's a runaway, he renamed her Scarlet Jones. Teresa she is Marie I know it!"

"I do understand! I understand that when you begin to break you suddenly see someone who looks just like Angela or Charlotte or Marie. I know it's hard to grasp but our daughter is dead. She's gone and this runaway that you found is someone else entirely!"

Jane's wife is to angry to notice her own tears.

"How can you do this to me!? Patrick it's only been a few hours! You saw what he did to her and you know as well as I do that the victim was our Marie."

"Why can't you believe in me for once?"

"Because I'm not you, I can't look at my daughter's body one night and believe that she's okay the next morning. Jane I don't have the freedom to chase ghosts, I have to set up a funeral!"

"Alright, calm down, there will be no funeral because she isn't dead. Let me prove to you that Red John's victim isn't our daughter."

"And just how will you do that?"

"DNA test, it shouldn't take long."

Jane gently wipes her tears away.

"I love you and you don't have to believe me but let's put the funeral on hold okay?"

"Alright..."

A few days later:

Scarlet's POV

I was in shock as blood dripped off my pipe. The limp form of a man lay in front of me, blood on his pants and shirt were beginning to pool on the ground. Is he dead? Have I killed him? I begin to poke him with my pipe and he lets out a moan. Thank God. The man randomly tried to attack me but I had the upper hand and beat him with my trusty pipe, now here I am to scared to run. Maybe I should go to the cops, but would they listen to girl like me? I'm filthy and cold, a bloody pipe in my hand, if anything I look like the attacker not the other way around. Jane could help me. Where did he say he worked? CBI? Something about an attic?

I can't believe I'm doing this.

*****

PLEASE COMMENT