Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

The little girl slowly tiptoed to her parents' bedroom. She'd heard someone walking upstairs, and she hoped it was her daddy that had finally come home. She always hated it when he wasn't there to kiss her goodnight before she went to bed. Couldn't fall asleep without daddy wishing sweet dreams to his little princess.

A shiver ran down her spine as she crossed the dark corridor. There might be a monster lurking in the shadows, but her mommy always told her that monsters actually didn't exist. She heaved a sigh of relief when she finally reached the bedroom and saw a dim light filtering through the door left ajar. As she pushed the door open her breath suddenly caught in her throat.

There was someone in the room, and it wasn't her dad.

The stranger was running his gloved fingers on the wall, painting a strange smiling face in red. Then the child lowered her gaze onto the bed, and her body began shaking uncontrollably.

"Mommy…"

She didn't realize that the stranger was now staring intently at her. He closed the distance between them and placed his thumb under her chin. This was one of the monsters that sometimes haunted her in her sleep. The mask he was wearing was even more terrifying than any nightmare she'd ever had.

"Who are you? What have you done to my mommy?"

The monster-man leaned forward and whispered something in her ear.

"Tell your daddy this is a gift from a friend."

Then he disappeared into the night, leaving the frightened kid to sink on her knees and curl up like a wounded little animal.

That was how her father found her some hours later, as he opened the bedroom door with trembling hands. Behind the bed an ominous red smiley loomed in the dim light of a lamp.

Jane had done it again. Each and every time he happened to meet a victim's child, he simply freaked out and left. She knew that her new consultant had specifically asked not to work with children; Minelli had told her so when he'd assigned him to her team.

However, she couldn't prevent kids from running about their own houses.

And now she was beginning to wonder what Jane's real issue with kids was. It was one thing refusing to work with children, and another was being unable to bear the sight of them.

Truth to be told, she'd come to question his sanity of late. And she'd rather not have to work with a lunatic, no matter how many cases they'd already closed with his help. Maybe the grief over his wife's death had been too much for him; it was pretty clear that he blamed it entirely upon himself, even if Red John had been the one to do the deed. The crazy look that showed in his eyes whenever he focused on the serial killer wasn't something particularly encouraging either.

It didn't help that she'd heard rumors and speculation. She'd read things about a missing daughter, a child who had witnessed Red John and survived. Lisbon had disregarded it, of course. There was nothing about it in the case files. If it was true, it was one heck of a cover up.

But, of course, she had to know more.

That's why she had decided to follow him this time. It wasn't fair on him, perhaps, but she needed to know what was going on. So far he'd been inside that nondescript building for more than an hour. When he finally stepped outside, he looked definitely more broken that she'd ever seen him before. Only when he got into his car and drove away did she dare to enter the building. Fighting back a small pang of guilt she approached the doorman, flashed her badge and asked him which kind of activity was running inside there. The man raised an eyebrow at her and answered that this was one the best psychiatric hospital for children in California.

Lisbon felt her blood run cold.

It had taken some effort, but she had eventually managed to get access to a Dr. Sophie Miller. Without her badge, she wouldn't have had a chance. But, she had told them it was for an investigation into Red John, and their defenses had crumbled. It wasn't a lie, but Lisbon still felt guilty. Sophie was very understanding and answered all of Lisbon's questions, or at least, to the best of her ability without compromising the patient's right to confidentiality.

She'd had Charlotte Anne Jane in her care for the last year, ever since the kid had witnessed her mother's murder. Sophie claimed she was undergoing a range of treatments, which Lisbon knew was a doctor's code for 'there's been no progress to her condition'.

Lisbon still couldn't quite believe it. Jane had a daughter, and he'd never mentioned her to his colleagues. Why on Earth there wasn't anything about a daughter in the case files? She'd gone through them more than once after all. But, the rumors had been right all along and she'd never have found out if she hadn't followed her instincts and investigated further.

Sophie seemed to guess what was going on in her mind. "The child had suffered enough already. A judge ordered that all the information about her had to be taken off the murder report. It wasn't relevant to the case anyway."

"Wasn't relevant? Well, if she's an eye witness to the crime…"

The psychiatrist shook her head. "Apparently the murderer was wearing a mask. And he'd have killed her by now if he thought she might be able to identify him."

Lisbon nodded slowly. Red John was careful enough about such details.

"May I see the little girl?"

She didn't know what had prompted her to ask such a thing, and was quite surprised when Sophie agreed, albeit reluctantly.

"We'd actually need her father's permission, but I'm quite worried about him as well. Perhaps you're in a better position to help him, since you're his boss at work."

With that she preceded Lisbon to Charlotte's room.

The sight of a six-year-old kid painting a red smiley on a wall had Lisbon suddenly flinching. Little Charlotte resembled her father so much, with her golden curls and that sad look in her eyes.

"She uses paint. It's… safer than the other alternatives."

Sophie was trying to remain confidential, and yet fill in the gaps for Lisbon. She didn't need to say anymore for Lisbon to know what the other alternatives were. She could see the marks and scars along Charlotte's arms. Tentatively, she stepped closer and kneeled beside the little girl. "Hi."

The child looked right through her, as if she was made of thin air.

"Charlotte. This is a friend of daddy's. Her name's Teresa."

She shot a quick glance at Sophie Miller, and then turned her attention to the crimson paint that was slowly drying on the wall.

"You bring a present?"

Lisbon frowned uncomprehendingly. "What?"

"He gave me a present. Bleeding… Mommy..."

Lisbon fought back the urge to cry. No child should ever witness such horrible things. Now, she could partly understand Jane's urge to kill the man who was responsible for this.

"How dare you? You had no right, Lisbon!"

It was the first time she'd seen Jane lose it, and it almost scared her.

"I did," she replied hotly. "It's relevant to the case."

"The judges seemed to disagree."

"She's the sole surviving witness to a Red John murder. Of course there's some importance."

Jane didn't answer. Instead, he looked back at her darkly. She hated the look of loathing that had crossed his features. He'd spent the fortune he'd earned as a psychic to protect his daughter from the investigation into Red John, and yet, with little effort, she had managed to see through his lies.

"Why didn't you tell us you had a daughter?" she said softly.

"That's none of your business!"

"I was worried about you, Jane. I could help you."

"How? Can you undo what's done? Make Charlotte forget what she'd seen? Or maybe bring my wife back from the dead?"

"No, but…"

"I don't need your help then. All I need right now is find that bastard and cut him open, that's all."

"Don't talk like this."

"Spare me a lecture on justice and all that crap. Save it for someone else."

"Jane, you can't kill a man. What would happen to your daughter then?"

"Don't… even… mention my daughter again!"

He grabbed her wrists tightly and she was momentarily stunned.

"Go on, hit me. But I swear to God, if you do, you will never set foot in this building again."

Her quiet whisper instantly quenched his anger. He released her and took a step back; shame and guilt clearly showing on his face. Lisbon had told him that her father had been abusive towards his kids. She hadn't told him that she had suffered the most, as the eldest, but he could probably figure that out.

Unable to look her in the eyes, he turned and fled from her office.

Lisbon took a shaky breath and dropped onto her chair. It wasn't in her nature to forsake people who needed her help; and Jane did need help, whether he was willing to admit it or not.

Jane had finally yielded to Sophie Miller's pressing requests and allowed Lisbon to visit Charlotte again. He sat on the small bed, his gaze lingering on all the creepy smiling faces that his daughter had painted. He should be the one inside a locked room, or lying in a grave beneath green grass. Red John had no right to make his family pay for what he had done. Every day he regretted the decision he'd made to go and speak about a serial killer on TV. He had let his ego get the better for him, and his wife and daughter had paid for it.

Lisbon crouched beside the little girl and offered her a tentative smile. Charlotte dipped her fingers into red paint once more and carefully rubbed them against the wall.

"Do you miss your mommy, honey?"

No answer came. Lisbon sighed and went on.

"I miss my mom too, you know. She died when I was twelve."

The child's fingers suddenly stilled. "How?"

"A car crash. The other driver was drunk."

For the first time Charlotte looked her straight in the eyes. "You see her?"

"No, they didn't let me."

"You stay here?"

Jane grimaced at the words, and he knew that Lisbon had noticed.

"No, I didn't. I had to look after my dad and brothers." A sudden flash of inspiration crossed her mind, and she leaned forward to whisper into Charlotte's ear. "I think your daddy needs someone to take care of him too. Could you do that for him, sweetheart?"

Charlotte began to nod, but then she quickly changed her mind. Instead, she flung herself straight back at the paint pot and began to draw her smiley faces once more. The moment was over, and Jane didn't know whether to feel disappointed or thrilled. This was the most that she had opened up in all her time here. He glanced over at Sophie, who gave Lisbon a grateful nod. If she approved, then so did he.

Sophie whispered something in his ear, and he frowned at her. Eventually, he stepped nervously forwards and touched his daughter's head. She stopped panicking for that moment, and so did he. Without both Lisbon and Sophie there, he would never have dared to do it.

Maybe there was a chance for them both get out of this mess.

And if nothing else, this was progress.