The whole Intelligence team had been instructed to gather in the bullpen first thing Monday morning, apart from the unavoidable absence of Gonzalez. They were all there when Halstead walked in, with Vega sitting on the edge of Purrazzo's desk. Lindsay had hung back to talk to Trudy Platt at the front desk, mainly so that she could come in last, he suspected.
The first thing Halstead noticed was that Burgess looked a lot better than the last time he had seen her. Physically looking better didn't mean she was mentally in a good place though, he knew.
"Morning all," he said in a sombre tone, picking up on the mood in the room. The mass shooting was still raw for everyone.
Muted greetings came his way from everybody.
"Kim, how are you?"
"Okay," she said after a moment of consideration. "But tired. My sleep is all screwed up."
Night terrors, Halstead suspected, but he wasn't going to question his friend on it in front of the whole team. He made a mental note to get a few minutes with her one on one when he could. Aside from their friendship, he was going to have his first shot of being the boss for the next two weeks, and that made her wellbeing his responsibility. Giving her a compassionate smile, he sat down at his desk.
"You okay?" Purrazzo asked him.
"Yeah. You?"
"Yeah."
In this case, yeah was relative for both of them. No cop could be okay after what had been done in their city, much less when it had affected one of the members of their team in such a big way.
Lindsay came up the stairs then, ready to hold the team meeting. "Morning, everyone," she said as she walked to her usual place at the top end of the room, by the big white board.
Greetings of 'morning' or 'sarge' came from everyone.
"Right, I'm sure you don't need me to go into the basics of what happened Friday night. I'm also sure everyone here joins me in gratitude to Kim for what she did, and in admiration of her incredible bravery."
"Absolutely," Atwater said, while everyone else's faces showed agreement. They kept their reactions muted because they all knew that was what Burgess would want.
"Kim, I'll speak to you in my office when we're done here."
"Sarge," Burgess acknowledged.
Halstead knew that conversation was going to be about getting Burgess fixed up with counselling and any other help she might need.
"Now, the investigation into the mass shooting has been given to the FBI, so unfortunately we're not going to have a part in it. But I can tell you that they have found a video message recorded by both of the perpetrators. Apparently they were a couple of incels with no friends, apart from each other, who were mad at the world and everyone in it. What made them think that shooting innocent people in the mall was something they needed to do is beyond me."
"Pieces of shit," Purrazzo snarled.
"Quite. But here in Intelligence, we have to go on with our jobs. Friday's events will change things in that regard for a time. Firstly, Kim, I'm assigning you to desk duty for at least two weeks. I hope you can understand why I don't want to put you out there right now, potentially..."
"I understand," Burgess cut in.
And so did Halstead. The nature of Intelligence's work was such that on any given day they could find themselves under fire, even potentially having to shoot people. It was too soon to know how Burgess would react to that kind of situation after what she had gone through.
"Okay," Lindsay said gently, looking at Burgess. They all felt for her. But there was other business to discuss too. "Some of you will be aware of the next thing I'm going to bring up. Some of you may not. Friday night, Jay and I went to the mall to try and help victims. We started searching stores, and I found an eleven year old girl hiding under the sales counter in a toy store. Her parents were behind the counter, dead. Long story short, Jay and I have taken her in. Her name is Clementine, she's an absolute sweetheart, and we hope to be able to adopt her permanently."
"Oh, amazing," Atwater said.
Despite Lindsay's careful introduction, Halstead had been aware that Vega and Atwater were actually the only ones who hadn't known about Clem, since he had been the one who had told Burgess, Ruzek and Purrazzo.
"It's a wonderful thing you've done," Purrazzo added. "If you ever need anything, you can ask me, or Sylvie."
"Yes, I'd be happy to help if needed," Atwater said.
"Me too. Although I have no experience with kids," Vega said. "You guys are the best. Seriously. Not many people would do what you've done there."
Burgess and Ruzek didn't need to say anything. There was a personal connection that meant the offer to help went without saying in their case.
"Thank you all," Lindsay said. "Having taken Clem in, we have a lot to sort out as I'm sure you can imagine. For that reason, after this meeting and my talk with Kim, I'll be on leave for two weeks. Jay will be in charge of the unit during that time. He will be treated with the same respect you afford me, and his orders will carry the same authority as mine. Clear?"
"Yes, Sergeant," Purrazzo said, looking at Halstead, feeling pleased for her partner to get the chance at the top job for a while.
The others also conveyed their understanding.
"We'll have a review of the current case once Sergeant Lindsay has gone," Halstead said to them. It felt odd not calling her Erin, but he had felt the need to refer to her more formally on that occasion. That kind of thing would probably never not be weird, he figured.
Lindsay moved on to Vega. "Z, you're at the academy this week, right?"
"Yes. Tomorrow, Wednesday and Thursday."
"Do you know how Gonzalez is doing? I haven't heard from her since Wednesday."
"I'm, uh..." Vega stumbled, uncharacteristically failing to find words.
"I'm sure you've been over there to see her," Lindsay said, not elaborating further on how obvious it was to the team that there was a thing between the two of them. "I'm fine with it because I sent you under with her. I know Raquel will keep things safe. She's more than experienced enough for that, and you're intelligent enough yourself not to do something stupid. All I'm asking is how she's doing."
"She's okay," Vega replied, thereby all but confirming the relationship to the team. "Angry of course, as we all are. But she's okay. There was a positive development in the undercover op Saturday night, but I'll let her tell you about it when she reports in, I assume today. She said she wouldn't bother you over the weekend – figured you'd have enough on your plate after the shooting."
"That's fine," Lindsay said. "I'll keep the burner phone with me while I'm on leave in case she needs to make contact. Okay, I think that's it. Anyone need me for anything before I leave?"
No one said anything.
Satisfied, Lindsay looked at Kim, ready for their private chat in her office. "Shall we?"
Deputy Superintendent Miller was at her desk. Like everyone in the CPD, she was angered and appalled by what had happened at the Lakeside Mall. The only positive to come out of it had been the actions of Officer Kim Burgess, who had done the CPD proud to say the very least. Miller was already thinking of ways that Burgess might be able to use what she had done to promote the good that policing did in the world, and to drive recruitment of future police officers. She planned on putting some ideas together, and then approaching Burgess in a few week's time, when she'd had a chance to recover from the shock of what she had been through.
Right now, there were much more urgent things to deal with, and none of them were pleasant. Every time her phone rang, it was someone with more bad news or more urgent work that needed doing.
The phone rang again, and Miller sighed. It was days like this that made her want to throw the thing out of her window.
"Yes?" she said tiredly after picking it up, intending to show her secretary how irritated she was getting with the constant interruptions.
"I have a Special Agent-in-Charge George James from the FBI's Dallas office."
"Regarding what?" Miller demanded. She could imagine no reason for this call, and felt sure that whatever it was didn't need to occupy her attention right now.
"He wouldn't tell me, ma'am."
Miller closed her eyes for a second, asking God to give her strength to deal with these people. "Fine. Put him through."
"Yes, ma'am." There was a click, and the call was connected.
"Miller," she said, still using her impatient tone.
"Deputy Superintendent, I'm..."
"I know who you are, Agent James. As you may be aware, there's been a lot going on here since Friday. Why don't you tell me why you're calling?"
"Ms Miller, are you familiar with the name Bayley Martinez?" James asked, showing no reaction to her manner.
Yes was the answer, but it took her an extra second to recall why she knew the name. Then it all came to her. "Yes, I know who you're talking about. You didn't lose her in wit-sec did you?"
"No, we didn't lose her. Actually, she's just been in my office." He took a couple of minutes to explain why. "With that in mind, I think we should meet ASAP. I can be in Chicago tomorrow."
"I guess we should," Miller conceded. "Let me set that up and get back to you."
A/N: As Erin takes time off to get Clementine settled in her new environment, Jay takes charge of Intelligence for the first time.
What do you think Martinez said to Agent James that made him want to come meet with Miller?
Next time, Jay and Erin need to hire a nanny for Clementine. What do you think they should look for in the person they choose for the job?