Semper Ad Meliora (Law & Order)

virtute et valor

Latin: "by virtue and valour"

In which values and morals take center stage when it comes to a con artist in court and someone Frank really wishes could have just stayed away like he was told to.

Also known as "Only The Lonely." Lots of canon divergence in here, not so much in terms of episodic content but in the form of a certain prosecutor's backstory. I wrestled with what I wanted to do, and you'll see pretty quickly what won out. Also, my new favorite teenager makes her first appearance!

***

"Alright, and you're working after school on your group project, right?" Frank asked.

"Right," Lily nodded as she unbuckled her seat belt. "Mrs. Greyson is letting us stay after." She made a face as she picked up her backpack from the back seat. "I hate biology."

Frank laughed. "Unfortunately, you got that from me, sweetheart."

Lily grinned as she opened the door to the car. Sirens suddenly pierced the air, and she groaned. "Again?"

"What?" Frank frowned and twisted in his seat to look at the main road.

"That's the fifth time in the past two weeks the ambulance has been called out at this exact time," Lily shook her head in annoyance as she looked at her watch.

"How do you know it's an ambulance?" Frank raised an eyebrow.

Lily pointed to the main road, and Frank turned just in time to see it was, indeed, an ambulance speeding through traffic. "Because it's always the ambulance at this time," Lily answered. "Wait in the parking lot if you want. I bet it'll be back in . . . " She checked her watch again. "Thirty-one minutes."

"Thirty-one minutes?" Frank repeated blankly. "For paramedics to be called to an emergency? You're kidding."

"I'm not," Lily shook her head. "Wherever they get called to at this time in the morning, it's got to be the same place. They always leave at the same time, and they always get back to the firehouse at the same time. Give or take a minute, maybe, but I swear, Dad . . . it's the same thing."

Frank hummed thoughtfully, then nodded. "Thanks for the heads-up."

"Yeah," Lily nodded, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for the ride, Dad. Be safe at work."

"You're welcome, sweetheart," Frank kissed the top of her head. "Have a good day."

Lily waved at him as she stepped out of the car, and she shut the door before running up the steps into the school. Frank waited until he saw her enter through the doors, then he peeled out of the drop-off lane and headed to the parking lot.

Surely Lily had been exaggerating, right? What medical emergency only took thirty-one minutes round-trip?

***

"What's got you making that face?" Jalen asked as they met up for a crime scene a few hours later.

"So get this," Frank snapped on a pair of latex gloves. "I dropped Lily off at school this morning, and an ambulance comes from the firehouse that's just down the street. She told me exactly what time it would return to the firehouse."

Jalen's eyebrows rose in surprise. "You're kidding."

"No," Frank shook his head. "Thirty-one minutes. Maybe a few seconds off, but that was the amount of time it took for it to come back."

"An ambulance?" Jalen repeated. "You're telling me a medical emergency took under an hour?"

"I know!" Frank nodded. "We've attended scenes where even if it's a minor medical emergency, it still eats up a lot of time for paramedics . . . but Lily called it. Fifth time in two weeks, according to her"