Life is...Love, Family, Friendship

Puzzle Pieces

"Seriously Maya, how do you stay in shape when your wife cooks like this?"
Travis reached for another cookie and stuffed it in his mouth. Maya was pacing back and forth blindly chewing on her thumb and barely listening as Carina came in from the living room.
"Grazie Travis. Do you want to put them in a bag so you can take them with you?"
Carina opened the drawer, took out a Ziploc and handed it to Travis who began filling it. She stared at her wife who was still pacing and oblivious at the moment. Carina knew that look. Maya was bordering on an anxiety spell and her entire face was completely in 'eyes forward' mode. Carina reached out her hand to grab Maya's wrist as she brushed past her.
"My love, I need you to come back to me. Maya? Look at me por favore."
Maya stopped and blinked, staring at Carina. Her eyes were wide and Carina knew this meant her wife's mind was racing as if she were on the track. Carina pulled Maya toward her and cupped her face in her hands.
"Bambina, we are safe. You kept us safe. You followed us home and checked everything. Liam is sleeping and I'm not going anywhere else until you finish your shift and come home to us. The alarm company is coming tomorrow morning shortly after you get home. Maya, listen to me, everything is ok. Maya? Eyes only on me, caprie Bella?"
Maya blinked again and focused on Carina. She slowly nodded and pulled Carina close to her.
"Ti amo per sempre."
Carina smiled and kissed her.
"Ok, dai ora andiam. The sooner you go finish your shift, the faster you will be back home."
Maya held on to Carina and just stared at her in silence. Carina smiled and turned to Montgomery.
"Ok Travis, I'm trusting you with my wife. Get her through this shift por favore, preferably without any more trouble."
Travis was sealing the bag as he nodded.
"I am certainly going to do my best. Come on Bishop, let's roll."
He grabbed his jacket and headed toward the door. Maya kept a solid hold on Carina's waist, her eyes never leaving her wife's face as she called over her shoulder.
"I'll be right out."
"I'm giving you five minutes and then I'm turning the siren on and waking your baby."
Travis shut the door. Maya simply stared at Carina.
"I would have died if something had happened to you or Liam. I'm not sure I can even let go of you right now."
"Bambina, it's ok. When you come home in the morning we can talk about it all. But for right now, I need you to focus on your job, I need you to come home to us and the only way you can do that is if you leave now and finish your shift. I swear to you on Andrea's name that Liam and I will be safe and sound until you come home. Capire?"
Maya nodded and pulled Carina in for a deep kiss, not wanting to let it end. Carina wrapped her arms around Maya's waist and held her close. Stifling the pain she felt, Maya let the kiss linger as Carina held her tightly. Reluctantly, Maya released her wife and reached for her coat.
"I'll be home soon my love."
She grasped Carina's hand as she backed away, keeping their fingers interlocked until the space between them was too great. Turning, Maya looked over her shoulder as she opened the front door and headed outside. Carina blew her one last kiss and waved. It was only once the door closed and Carina heard the Aid car pull away that she began to cry.

Backing into the station, Maya and Travis saw the SPD cruiser parked in front of the lobby. Maya opened the door once Travis parked the rig to see Vic standing there.
"Captain is in her office, cops want to talk to both of you for a statement."
Travis nodded and headed into reception. Maya gently grabbed Vic's arm and looked at her.
"You ok? How's it going with Diane?"
Maya stared at her friend and waited for a reply. Vic had been dealing with some personal stuff and while everyone had thought she was doing better, Maya knew the signs and had quietly been checking in with Vic. The women would go on runs on their days off and Maya had really taken Vic under her wing in the healing process.
Smiling, Vic put her hand on top of Maya's.
"Today's a good day. Thanks for checking in."
Giving her arm a squeeze, Maya headed into Andy's office.
"Ahh Bishop, this is Detective Lord and Officer Ramirez. They just need your account of what you and Montgomery saw at the farmers market."
"Nothing beyond what I radioed in. Five males, I'd say around mid to late twenties or so. All in camo, hats and ska masks. The two with guns were a bit taller than the rest but I honestly couldn't give you any other details. I was focused more on getting inside the marketplace."
"Because your wife and child were inside?"
"Because I had a job to do. The fact that my wife and son were there was a complete coincidence."
"And what about the fact that those men are part of the Protectors of Humanity gang that have been protesting lately? We have a CI who has provided us with a bunch of names. One of those names is Mason Bishop. Do you know him?"
Maya's blue eyes went steely ice cold as she stared at the detective.
"Are you saying that my brother is one of the shooters? Are you asking if I know anything about that?"
"I'm asking if you have any information about this gang your brother apparently has ties to lieutenant. If you do have anything to share, it would be most helpful to our investigation. Four people were killed this afternoon and eight others were injured, some of them may not make it. We need to explore any and all possible ways to find who did this and bring them to justice."
"So you think that I would be protecting my brother when my wife and child could very easily have been victims of this hateful violence? I love my brother detective, but clearly he and I stand on very different ends of this hate crime. And for the record, I don't think my brother is capable of this kind of violence, but you'll have to ask him that directly."
Maya had moved to within a couple of inches of the detective's face and Andy could see that she was ready to explode. Stepping in, Andy put her arms across Maya's chest and pulled her back.
"Ok guys, I think you've got all you need for now. If my people remember anything more or we find anything else out, I will be in touch. Montgomery, can you please show the officers out?"
Travis motioned for the men to follow him out of Andy's office. She held on to Maya as they left and Travis closed the door.
"Maya, listen to me. Carina saw Mason. He was there. He wasn't carrying a gun, but she saw him as they were running out."
"She told you that?"
"She was on the phone with me when she saw him pass by."
Maya felt the hot tears begin to form. She shook Andy's hands off of her and began pacing.
"What the actual fuck am I supposed to do now Andy?"
All Andy could do was silently support her friend in that moment.