15

Jude

Jude sat in an uncomfortable plastic chair in the emergency room, waiting for Cope to come back from his CT scan. He'd never forgive himself if his husband was seriously hurt. What the hell had he been thinking, asking Cope to stand off to the side like he wasn't part of the team? Tennyson was always front and center when he worked on cases so Ronan could keep him safe. Jude had failed his husband. It was day one of Cope being on the case, and he was in the hospital.

"Jude?" Tennyson asked, walking into the room. "Ronan called to say Cope was in the ER. I came as fast as I could."

"I'm so glad you're here." Jude held his hand out to Tennyson, wishing for once the psychic could read him so he wouldn't have to recount his pain out loud.

Ten took his hand and held on tight. "He's going to be fine. A little sore, but fine."

"Did you run into the doc in the hallway, or is your gift telling you that?" Not that it mattered. Ten's word was as good as hearing it from the doctor himself.

"My gift." Ten patted Jude's shoulder and took the empty chair beside him. "What happened out there? I was watching Ronan's press conference online, and when it ended, I shut off the video feed, so I missed everything that happened next."

"We walked into City Hall. Ronan needed a minute to calm the hell down. I was standing by the glass doors and saw Vic Rothschild run up on Cope. I could see him screaming, and I ran out the door to get to Cope. Members of the media and guys with cameras swarmed Cope, so I couldn't get close to him before Rothschild shoved him. Cope fell backward and landed on his back, hitting his head. There was so much blood." Jude felt tears scalding down his face. "This is all my fault, Ten. I should never have left him unprotected. I couldn't have hurt my husband worse if I'd shoved him myself."

"That's not true, Jude," Ten said softly. "You had no way of knowing what was going to happen."

"I knew Rothschild was enraged, and fucking Ronan shouting at him in return didn't help. Jesus, Cisco begged him to stay on point. Said that everyone would be watching the way we handled this case. That we'd be under a microscope and subject to more scrutiny than ever before."

"The man is unhinged," Ten said.

"Which is another reason I shouldn't have left Cope to fend for himself." Jude was beside himself. His emotions swamped over him like a tidal wave.

" Cope was fending for himself just fine," Cope said as the orderly wheeled him back into the room. "I didn't want to put my hands up and have people think I was going to fight a sixty-year-old man."

"Next time, put your hands up," Cisco Jackson said as he came into the room. "Are you okay?"

"I'm sore, and I'm seeing three of you, but other than that, I'm fine." Cope rested his head back against the pillow.

"One Cisco is bad enough," Ronan said, pushing his way into the room. Fitzgibbon followed behind him.

"What is the doctor saying?" Fitz asked.

"Cope needed twenty-two stitches to close the gash at the back of his head. The docs think he's got a mild concussion, but since he slammed the back of his head against the concrete sidewalk, they wanted to do a CT scan to make sure he didn't fracture his skull."

"The only thing fractured is my pride," Cope said. "What happened with Rothschild?"

Ronan lifted a questioning eyebrow at Jude, who nodded. "I arrested him for assaulting you and for disorderly conduct. Fitz and I brought him to the station and turned him over for booking and processing before we came here. He ranted and raved the whole way back to the station that we were trampling his rights and that he was going to sue all of us to within an inch of our lives."

"Fuck," Jude mumbled. The last thing he needed was to be sued by that raving lunatic.

"Is he mentally ill or just filled with rage?" Cisco asked.

"Yes," Cope said.

"Yes, what?" Jude asked, looking confused.

"Yes, he's mentally ill, and yes, he's filled with rage. Weren't you listening?" Cope sounded exhausted.

Jude knew he should get everyone out of the room so his husband could rest, but he needed to hear what Cope thought of Rothschild. "When I got to you on the ground, you said Rothschild was pure evil. What told you that?"

"I felt it when he put his hands on me. I would swear his hands burned my skin."

"Pull down your hospital gown so I can see your chest," Jude ordered, getting out of his seat to stand at Cope's bedside.

"This is hardly the time for a bit of afternoon delight, don't you think?" Ronan asked.

"God, you're an asshole." Jude rolled his eyes.

Cope pulled down the gown to reveal his chest. He was black and blue.

"Jesus Christ," Ronan muttered. "Jude's right. I am an asshole."

Jude didn't have time to gloat. He was staring down at the bruises on Cope's chest. He could clearly see the heels of Rothschild's hands marking his husband's skin. "We need photographs of these marks."

"If Rothschild had the strength in his sixties to send Cope flying, imagine the strength he would have had against his wife forty years ago. There were no autopsy photographs of Domenica's chest or back. I hate to say it, but we might need to exhume her remains." Ronan's eyes were on Fitzgibbon.

"I already made out the request. All I have to do is submit it to Judge Rodgers. I'll wait until we speak with the medical examiner and get a look at Domenica's file."

"Do it," Cisco said. "If there's any pushback, we'll use the photos of Cope's injuries to bolster our case."

"I hate to say it, but the medical examiner could have been in the Rothschilds' pockets. That's why the body wasn't photographed properly." Fitzgibbon was out of his seat and pulling out his phone. "Ronan, let's head over there now. Jude, stay with Cope and get him home safely. I'll call you later to update you."

"Thanks, Cap." Jude sat on the edge of Cope's bed, tracing his hands over his husband's bruises.

"I'll take you guys home. We can keep Wolf and Lizbet tonight so you two can have a chance to rest. I'll be in the waiting room. Let me know when Cope is discharged."

"Thanks, Ten." Jude turned back to his bruised and stitched husband. "Nothing like ending up in the hospital on day one."

"I'm going to be fine, Jude." Cope reached for his hand. "I feel like one of you guys now. I've got a groovy scar I'll be able to show off when you all compare your injuries like Quint and Hooper in Jaws ."

Jude barked a laugh. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, Jude. Really. I mean it. None of us thought Rothschild would show up at the press conference and act the way he did. I didn't see it coming either." Cope's eyes slid shut. "He charged like a rabid dog when he recognized me. As if I were the one responsible for what was happening to him. He didn't have to appear on the latest episode of Ghost After Dark . I know he was brought in to psych me out, but all he did was bring more attention to his wife's death. He single-handedly brought this case back into the public eye. How could the Salem Police not reopen it?"

"I know. I totally agree." Jude's admission didn't make him feel any better about the situation.

"What's our next step?" Cope's usually bright eyes were dull and looked out of focus. Jude could clearly see the effect the concussion was having on his husband.

"Our next step is to get you home and into bed. I promise to take such good care of you." Jude felt his emotions rising again. He wasn't usually an emotional man, but seeing his husband on the ground and bloodied was something he'd never forget or forgive himself for.

"Jude, I'm not a child. I feel much better already." Cope squeezed his husband's hand. "You always take good care of me. Go find the doctor so he can spring me, and we can go home." Cope's eyes slipped shut.

"I'll be right back." Jude hurried out of the room in search of the ER doc who'd done Cope's initial assessment. All he wanted to do was get his husband home. He'd promised Cope to keep him safe, and he'd broken that promise today.

The one person who wasn't going to be safe was Vic Rothschild. Jude was going to make sure the man paid for killing his wife and putting Cope in the hospital.

Jude knew that was one promise he could keep.