4

Tennyson

It didn't surprise Ten one bit that Cisco Jackson agreed to meet for lunch at Greek Life. The chief was under the impression Ronan and the others wanted to speak with him about a sensitive subject but hadn't told him that subject was an open case assigned to other detectives.

When Ten and the others got to the restaurant, Cisco was already there, sitting at a table in the back with a half-empty glass of iced tea in front of him.

"Hey, guys," Cisco greeted when Ten and the others filled up the other seats at the table. Their waitress came by and took everyone's orders. Pizza for Jude and Fitz, while Ten, Ronan, and Cisco ordered sandwiches.

Ronan and Cisco talked about the Red Sox's pitching woes until their waitress returned with their food.

"Okay, Ronan, you've buttered me up. What's this meeting really about?" Cisco asked before taking a huge bite from his meatball sub.

"We had a visit from Paul Stark this morning," Tennyson said, figuring Cisco would take the news better from him as opposed to Ronan.

"Paul Stark," Cisco said softly. "He's been through more pain than any man should ever have to bear, losing his son and wife within a year of each other."

Ten nodded. He'd spent their entire meeting this morning feeling the weight of those losses. "He came by the shop to see if I could connect with his son and to ask if Ronan and the guys could look into Bash's case."

Cisco was silent. He took another bite of his sandwich before looking back up at Tennyson. "It doesn't surprise me that Stark came to you. What does surprise me is that it took this long. Sebastian died nearly three years ago."

"Like you said, Paul Stark was dealing with the enormity of his wife's illness and then her death. To be honest, it doesn't shock me at all that it took him this long to walk into West Side Magick." Grief worked differently for everyone it affected. He'd worked with widows who'd been on the phone to him minutes after their husbands died. He'd also spoken to people whose losses were decades old.

"Were you able to connect with Sebastian Stark?" Cisco asked, looking as if he didn't want to hear the answer.

Ten shook his head. "No, but I let his father know that the conditions might not have been right for him to appear. I gave him some advice to follow and let him know we'd try again later, when Paul wasn't so angry."

"Where do you chuckleheads come into the mix? Or are you just here for the free lunch?" Cisco pointed between the three detectives.

Ronan grinned at his boss. "Ordinarily, I'd say I was here for the lunch, but I could feel Paul Stark's pain. It made me wonder how I'd cope if anything happened to Ten or the kids. It's unbearable to even think about, never mind to live through. I know the case is assigned to the homicide unit, but there's been no work done on it in nearly a year. The only new additions to the file are stacks of unreturned messages from Stark to the detectives on the case. I know it's a breach of protocol to even ask to have the file transferred to cold case, but I'm asking all the same."

Tennyson had to admit he was impressed with Ronan's speech. It was well thought out and calmly delivered. Who was this imposter-Ronan, and what had he done with Ten's husband?

Cisco sighed. "You know there's nothing to go on, right? Just a bunch of drunk frat brothers who were too wasted to have seen Sebastian fall."

"We know," Ronan agreed.

"If I assign this case to you, and that's a mighty big if, what's your game plan?"

"I want to start with the autopsy. There were no signs of a struggle on his body at the time of the autopsy, but there might be now."

"Jesus Christ," Cisco muttered under his breath. "You want to exhume him?"

Ronan nodded. "Maybe. Especially if Ten can't connect with Sebastian's spirit. The ME at the time was Vince Walker, you know, the doc who was caught drinking and performing autopsies?"

"Don't fucking remind me." Cisco shook his head. "Do you know how many convictions were overturned on appeal because of that asshat?"

"I can only imagine. Paul Stark trusts us to work this case. I'm sure he won't object to Sebastian being exhumed if I explain how I think it can help the investigation." Ronan took another bite from his sandwich.

"What else have you got?" Cisco asked.

"I want to reach out to the frat brothers and the girls who were at that party. Time is the enemy of truth. Those kids' memories of that night weren't so good the day after Bash died, but with three years passing and those kids growing up a bit, there might be a person or two who needs to get something off their conscience."

"Where are you on this, Fitzy?" Cisco asked.

"I'm one hundred percent in on investigating this case. I know I speak for all three of us when I say we'll do everything in our power to find out what happened that night, and with Tennyson as our ace in the hole, I think we've got a good chance of solving the mystery behind Bash's death."

"Does Stark know this might not go the way he wants? It's entirely possible that his son drank too much and fell down the stairs. Stark is looking to assign blame for his son's death, and the person at fault here might very well be the person he's mourning."

"We'll make sure he understands that before we make any moves. I want to get my hands on the case file and the evidence reports before we get back in touch with Paul Stark. Ten told him he needed to take some time to get his temper under control before he attempted to contact Bash's spirit again, so I figure we've got a few days to do the legwork and get caught up on the case to date."

"And if Jimenez and Watts object to the case being assigned to you guys?" A smile played on Cisco's lips, indicating he knew the overworked detectives wouldn't mind one bit.

"They've got seven open homicide cases sitting on their desks. Cases that are actual murders with suspects to interrogate and witnesses to interview. There's been no activity on this case for nearly a year because, according to them, there's nothing left to investigate." Fitzgibbon offered Cisco a grin.

"You're always prepared, Fitzy." Cisco laughed.

"Former Boy Scout." Fitzgibbon waggled his eyebrows and reached for another slice of pizza.

"Okay, the case is yours." Cisco looked back and forth between the detectives. "We do this by the book. I get that you all feel a certain kinship toward this man, but that cannot play into the way you investigate this case. If we do have to exhume his son, I want an honor guard there. I want you four dressed in suits, even if it's hot as balls outside. We do this with all the kindness and respect this boy is due. Got it?"

"Got it," all four men agreed.

"I'll speak with Jimenez and Watts myself. There's bound to be a bit of butt hurt, even if this case is DOA in their eyes. I might have to offer them a few extra days of PTO."

Ronan opened his mouth, looking as if he were about to ask where his extra paid time off was, but apparently thought better of the idea and went back to eating his lunch.

Tennyson couldn't believe his husband's behavior. He was somehow more mature, and his arguments for working the case were well thought out and not abrasive in the slightest. Maybe it was all the ice cream and hot fudge Ronan inhaled yesterday?

Stranger things had happened.