Tolerance Book I (Chicago PD/Med FF) by Frances51163

Chapter Fifty-Nine: Deja Vu

To be fair leaving the house had not initially been Jays' intention but once upstairs various scenarios had begun to go through his mind.  He knew his older brother had not picked up on the fact that he was not willing to kill his father, even to save himself.  He could never disappoint his mother like that.  As he considered the likelihood of his brother realizing that detail he decided leaving there and then was the better option.  At least this time he did not have to go for a swim in order to escape.  After triple checking the clothes, boots and knapsack to ensure they were free of any tracking devices the Detective quickly packed taking his medication and the cash he had left from Jimmy. Taking his wallet he once again left behind his credit cards and phone.  He would pick up a burner phone as soon as he could.  As far as the weary man was concerned tomorrow couldn't come soon enough.  He wasn't naive.  He knew as long as his father had the Porter siblings he held the winning hand.  That was the first task.  Take the two innocent men out of the equation.  Once he accomplished that anything else would be a bonus.  He had not looked back at the house as he left, afraid the melancholy which had enshrouded him since he made the decision to leave would alter his choice.  This was no time for being emotional.  It was a time to act.

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Adam had read Jays' words with a heavy heart before going downstairs.  Reading the same words aloud to the others caused his voice to falter ......

I will always be grateful to each and everyone of you for everything ye have gone through and all ye have done for me.  I will never know why ye would willingly put yer lives on hold for someone like me but ye did.  Whatever happens tomorrow is on me and me alone.  I will be glad when it is over and whatever the outcome, favourable or otherwise, I want ye know I will be fine with it ....

The stunned silence as Adam finished reading the note soon became a spawning ground for airborne curses as the men alternated between anger and distress.  Will alone had remained eerily silent and when the loud voices once again surrendered to silence, this time contemplative, Conor asked his friend if he was okay.

"Hank's right," the Doctor spoke hoarsely, "I should have known Jay wouldn't be willing to kill the b*****d.  Even if it meant saving his own life."
"He really believes he's worthless?" Ethan had focused on what had been revealed between the lines
"We know from the profile Dr. Charles completed that making Jay feel inferior and worthless was something he drilled into him," Al pointed out gruffly, he hoped he would see his young friend again to convince him otherwise.
"So what do we do?" Mouse asked as he got to his feet restlessly and looked at his Sergeant.
"He take anything with a tracker on it?" Hank asked his own question, although he was fairly certain of the answer, looking over at Adam who had remained standing leaning back against the closed door after reading the note.
"No.  Left his cards and phone.  Again."
"Well?" Mouse demanded an answer when none was forthcoming.
"We wait."
"But.....,"
"We wait for now," Hank reiterated firmly, "gotta respect the kids' wishes."
"Boss shouldn't we go down to the precinct?  See if we can come up with anything?" Antonio asked as he watched the IT Specialist sit back down resignedly.
"We will.  First I want to talk about what's going to happen tomorrow."
"We know what's going to happen," Kevin spoke morosely, "Jay is going to do his best to save the Porters and then he's going to .......,"
"Do not finish that sentence! Jay is not going to die tomorrow," Adam interrupted angrily, "he'll find a way.  Have some faith in the guy."
"Hey we all have faith in Jay," Antonio spoke softly, "it's just the old man is an unknown factor in the equation."
"Guys I'm not going to sit here and feed ye false hope," Hank looked at each man carefully, "but I am going to remind ye the Kid is strong, in every possible sense, and I honestly believe he has a good chance of making it out alive.  He has more heart than any man I have ever met, and let me tell you I've known some great men."
"So what's the plan for tomorrow?" Lance finally joined the conversation.
"Well if you three and the Docs agree I'd like to split into three groups."
"We'll do anything you want to help," Ethan affirmed without hesitation, not needing to check with his colleagues.
"Since we still don't have any trace on the source of the assault rifles for now we're going to concentrate on being ready when the Kid needs us.  I want one of the Docs with each group and one of the Rangers," the unspoken likelihood that the young man would likely be hurt was left unvoiced.
"I understand having a Doc but why the Rangers?" Kevin frowned.
"We don't know what condition the Kid will be in when we find him.  Figure it's best to have Lance, Jack or Mark there in case he has a flashback.  I want to cover all eventualities.  Mouse will be at the 21st."
"No way!  I'm going too."
"Need you to check surveillance.  You won't have citywide access if you're mobile.  You will at the precinct.  We need that.  We'll be spread out so hopefully when he contacts us or you locate him one group will be close."
"You sound confident he'll contact us," Conor noted.
"He's not a fool. If he can he will," Hank pointed out pragmatically.
"'Can' being the operative word," Will muttered darkly.
"Halstead this isn't the time to dwell on worst case scenarios.  We all need to be at the top our game tomorrow."
"We will be," Conor assured wishing there was something he could say to allay his friends' fears.

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The following day Jay arrived at the location for the meeting early.  Hoping to catch sight of his prey and to scope out the park.  The AT&T Plaza located in Millennium Park was busy as Chicagoans and tourists enjoying the end of their Christmas visit mingled in the open area around the Cloud Gate.  The snow falling had not deterred many people from coming out to brave the elements.  Jay had been surprised his father had picked this place as it was so open.  The Detective had however stipulated that despite the open area if he did not see the Porters he was walking away.  Of course the old man had blustered out threats to the siblings but Jay had remained resolute and in the end the other man had capitulated, albeit cursing unhappily.

Looking around now as midday approached he wondered where his father could hide the twins.  Jay knew this place but his opponent also knew it.  The pain in his head was unrelenting despite the three painkillers he had taken before heading for the Park and he donned sunglasses to avoid the suns' glare which wasn't strong this winters' day but was enough to make him squint due to the headache.  Sighing as a few tourists passed by he wished he had only sightseeing to do.  He looked around again and froze.  Halstead Senior approached with a twin on either side.  This was unexpected and Jay felt his heart sink.  Had he exposed the public to danger?  He had expected his father to approach him alone and take him to the brothers somewhere close by.  This was not good.  Not good at all.

tbc