⋆° დ ༄ RISKY BUSINESS
chapter seven. the price we pay.

"Here you go guys" the waitress, Pauline, says, setting down plates in front of Maxine and Adam. 

"Thanks Pauline" Maxine says, giving her a tight lip smile. As the older woman walks away, Adam says, "you know the waitress by name?"

Maxine nods her head and says, "I know all of them by name. Even the busboy. I come every morning. Or I try to at least"

"Well, the food is pretty good" Adam says, taking a bite of his French toast.

"Told ya"

"So, how was your date with halstead? Do I need to have a talk with him?"

Maxine rolls her eyes, as she sets down her cup of coffee, "it wasn't a date, Adam. Just two friends, partners. Going to see a movie together"

"Whatever helps you sleep better, Maxie"

🪩🪩🪩

Erin walks into the roll up where Jay and Mickey were and asks, "Anyone see Voight?"

Hank walks around the corner and says, "what is it?" then they walk away from the others, as Maxine and Adam walk in through the back.

Jay notices Maxine and they both smile at each other. Obviously not going unnoticed by Adam and Mickey.

"We got a problem. Justin showed up at my apartment last night, blood on his hands. He said he got into a bar fight but I don't know"

"Where is he now?"

"He took off"

~~~

"Alright, we got a new case" Hank says, writing a name above a picture on the board, "This is Frank Fitori, caught napping in a ditch by the marsh where he was dumped. He's had his own little racket on the southside for years"

"He swims with a lot of big fish" Antonio comments.

"Swam" Jay corrects him. Dawson looks back at the detective and says, "Swam"

"Well..." Jay says, pointing to the picture on the board of him dead. Maxine gets up from her desk and says, "Alright, Halstead and I will check out the murder site"

"Great idea. Why don't you and Jay do that" Hank says, looking at the former ranger, who scrunches his face up with confusion, as he gets up from his desk, "Everyone else go through the confidential files on Taylor street, Bridgeport, Chinatown and Melrose crews. Let's see who's running what nowadays"

🪩🪩🪩

"Did you see the look on his face?" Jay asks his partner, who is driving down the streets of Chicago to get to their crime scene.

"Yeah. So?"

"So?"

"We haven't done anything"

"Don't I know it" Jay jokes. Maxine rolls her eyes and says, "please would you spit out whatever you're trying to spit out?"

"Okay. Maybe, this last month I don't like being the guy you use to get a rise out of your father figure"

"First of all, Voight isn't my father figure, thats Erin, he was just my partner when I worked gangs. And second.." she says, looking her partner up and down, "You wish I was using you"

"Oh, I'm serious. You have issues you need to work out, work 'em out without me"

"I repeat, we haven't done anything. And if you want to keep it that way..."

"Hey, that'd be great"

"Alright, perfect"

"Fantastic"

"You done?"

"I was done long before this conversation started"

"Really? Then shut up" Maxine smiles, as she pulls up to the crime scene.

Bishop and Halstead get out of the car to meet with patrol and Maxine asks, "Hey, where's the dead guy?"

"Homicide already came and went. Then the crime lab. Then the motor patrol" a patrolman says.

"Thanks" Maxine says, then looks around to see a camera, "Is that one of our pods? Dinner at the purple pig, it's got the dump"

"Those things suck" Jay says, writing into his notepad.

"I don't think so"

"Besides you just told me to shut up and that we're done"

"No, you told me we were done but a girls gotta eat" Maxine smiles, walking away.

"Now you're hungry" Jay sasses.

🪩🪩🪩

Jay and Maxine are back at the district with Jin, looking over the pod footage, when Max points out the car rolling up and says, "There. Surf and turf"

"It sucks. Like I said, you can't see anything" Jay states.

"Can you make this brighter?" Maxine asks Jin, who turns up the brightness as much as he can. Max then goes to turn it up more and Jin smacks her hand away, "No, no. Hey, hey, hey"

"Dinner depends on this"

"What do you want from me? I can't make it daytime. I told you. The image on the file is the image on the file"

Maxine sighs and says, "Fine"

Jay sticks his arm through the two of them and points to the screen, asking, "What is that?"

"Kane Builders?"

"If they have a private security cam in the lot, I bet you we get at least a plate off the Escalade"

"Genius"

"I am. Thank you. And let's roll the bet onto that camera cause that's where the answer is"

🪩🪩🪩

"It would help us out if you let us see any footage your security cams caught" Jay says to the construction worker, "I mean, we could come back and get a warrant but..."

"I'd be more than happy to, sincerely. But I don't even know if we keep 'em on. Tell you what. It's all run by some company in India or something" the worker says, writing something down, "Here's the number of our office downtown, ask for Libby, tell her Don told you to give you the number. She'll take care of you" then he rips the paper off and hands it to Jay.

"Great, thanks" Maxine says.

"Thanks" Jay says, as they walk back to the car, "I'll call the purple pig. Seeing as how you're buying, it's the least I can do" making the brunette laugh, "Just so you know, I'm thinking truffles."

Maxine laughs and says, "Yeah, right"

🪩🪩🪩

"Wait, what? Is he okay?" Maxine asks, after Erin had dragged her into a stairwell and told her about what happened with Justin.

"I don't know. He just took off"

"Alright, let's think about it like this. Justin is Hanks kid. He's a survivor. And Hank always knows what to do, right?"

"Right"

"So, he's gonna be okay"

~~~

"Alright, this turned out to be more of a homicide thing, as we all suspected" Voight says, taking down Fitori's picture from the board, "I apologize"

Antonio walks onto the unit and says, "Hold up a sec" then he sets a file onto Jay's desk then tapes up a picture onto the board, "Alessio Colo. He was one of the top bosses on the southside" making Erin and Maxine look at each other then at Hank, "Book making, loan sharking, extortion, armed robberies. CPD thought he was retired. But now a tip leads us to believe he's back in the game"

"What are you doing?" Hank questions. Antonio tapes up another picture and says, "And this is Joe Catalano" making Erin's face go pale, realizing who this was, "Habitual felon just released from Stateville and Colo's nephew. He used to work for Colo back before he got sent up" Dawson then takes the picture from Hanks hands and hangs it up between the two picture he just taped up, "Our DOA Fitori, he turned rat on Catalano back in '06. He made a deal with the state's attorney that kept him out of jail and put catalano in"

"Sounds like Catalano got released, he got right to it" Mickey says and Dawson nods. Al gets up from his desk and walks over to the tv where the pod footage from the crime scene is and points to it and says, "Alright, so if that's Catalano.."

"Then who was the driver" Adam says.

"Okay" Jin says, walking onto the bullpen, "I'm tracking down the Indian company that has footage from the construction yard. Just waiting for the sun to come up over there and we should have a clear shot of the driver"

Hank glares at Antonio, who glares back at him and Al looks between them and says, "Yeah, the, uh, the DOA? Uh...Frank Fitori, he used to run with this Ross crew back in the day. A guy named, uh, Dean-o Ross, was the patriarch."

"Along with Fitori, Dean Ross was on the grand jury witness list" Antonio states.

"This him?" Jay asks, holding up a picture.

"Yep. Dean-o, yeah" Al says, taking the pictures from the younger detective.

"Maybe Dean-o's a target, too, huh?" Adam says.

"Alright, let's go. Ruzek and I will shadow him. Tuck him in at night" al says, as Erin and Maxine look through some of the photos.

"That's a good idea. Lindsay and I'll come too" Hank says. Antonio nods his head and says, "Looks like we're all going"

"I'd like to speak to you in my office first"

Antonio walks into Voight's office and Hank closes the door behind them.

🪩🪩🪩

Erin takes her eyes off the road for a second to look at Hank and asks, "What is it?" as they tail Dean Ross, while Maxine sits in the back.

"Justin was there" Hank says.

"Where?" Maxine asks.

"He was the driver. Catalano told me" Hank says, making the detectives sigh, "The minute this other footage comes in...I stopped by the CTA. His supervisor told me he hadn't been there in weeks. He's slipping away on me"

"Alright, don't bite my head off for asking..." Erin says.

"Just ask"

"Are you gonna bury the case?"

"I don't think Antonio's gonna let that happen"

"O, you got eyes on him?" Antonio asks, through the walkie.

"Just approaching now. We got him"

"We're near Clark and Belmont in case he heads to the highway"

Erin pulls over to the side, to see Ross getting out of his car, and Hank takes out his walkie and says, "Hey, Ross is on foot. Heading towards the tanning salon on Sheffield"

"Whoa, whoa. Catalano" Maxine says, pointing to the man who is leaving the salon with a gun pointed at Dean Ross.

"I got it" Hank says, getting out of the car then yells, "Catalano"

As soon as Catalano starts running, Erin gets on the walkie and says, "Suspect is heading south" and the two detectives get out of the car and start running after them.

Once they, and the rest of Intelligence catch up with Hank, he says, "I lost him. I lost him"

🪩🪩🪩

Maxine knocks on Hank's office door and says, "Jin's got the india construction footage. It's downloading in his office"

Hank follows Maxine down to Jin's office space where he and Erin are and the tech wiz is sat at his computer desk and says, "I've asked them to increase the bandwidth down here cause the connections just...oh, wait. Alright here we go" he says, once the footage pops up, "Now we'll see who was with Catalano that night"

"Thank's Jin" Hank says.

"Yeah, no problem"

Maxine and Erin both look at Hank who says, "We'll call you if we need you"

"Yeah, yeah of course" Jin says, getting up, "Um, take all the time you need" then he leaves. Erin sits at the desk and presses play, "It's Justin"

"Damn" Maxine sighs.

"That's it, then" Hank says.

"No, that's not it"

"Yeah, well, the kids a accomplice to murder"

"No, it's not over yet. I know he's not answering your calls, but he's gonna answer mine" Erin says, walking away.

~~~

Maxine stands in front of the blue screen next to Platts desk to take a photo for her ID badge.

"Detective, you ready?" Trudy asks, standing behind the camera.

"Huh?"

"You ready?"

"Oh, yeah. You have any twizzlers?"

Platt rolls her eyes and goes to grab a package to give to her. Maxine smiles, grabbing it and opening it to grab one.

"Thanks Sarg" she says, then looks into the camera for the desk sergeant to take a picture.

~~~

Erin sits in front of Justin in interrogation with Antonio next to her and says, "Tell him what you told me" while Maxine watching from the viewing room.

Meanwhile, Voight walks into the district and onto the unit, past interrogation to see his son sitting in there and his blood begins to boil. Maxine then stops him from going in and says, "Antonio is waiting in your office"

Voight storms off in a huff to his office where Antonio is and yells, "There better be a damn good reason why my son is in the interrogation room and I wasn't notified immediately!"

"You have a problem" Antonio states, "Internal affairs. Gradishar came to me. Wanted to make a deal for you" then he hands the sergeant a file, "Gradishar knows all about you and Colo. Your son was dumb but he was a dupe. Catalano's the target. So, as far as I'm concerned, I never saw that photo, I never heard him say he was there, and I'm gonna move onto the next Intelligence file" then he walks away.

Hank walks into interrogation, where Justin and Maxine are talking and he opens his arms for a hug. Justin gets up and hugs his dad and after the father/son moment, Hank says, "Let's take a ride"

~~~

Max stands in front of the whiteboard, taking down all the pictures when Jay walks up to her and says, "what the hell is going on around here?"

Maxine shakes her head and says, "it's Voight. Let it go"

"What about the bet?"

"Well, technically you did lose"

"He buried the footage, didn't he?" Jay asks and Max stayed quite, "got it. Well I guess I'm not paying for dinner"

"Me either"

"I could, um,," Jay clears his throat, "cook us something at my place?"

"You can cook, Halstead?"

"The more you know, Bishop" he says, making her smile to herself.

"Alright, you're on"

authors note;

so if you're wondering who the love interest is, it's jay and mickey ig, idk rn tbh