14. Chapter 14

A little bit a family time cuteness to make up for the drama that is to come.

In the days following Kate's abduction, Erin and Jay were reluctant to let her out of their sight. She accompanied them to the district, her parents still too nervous to bring her back to preschool. Jay and Erin switched on and off staying back at the district with Kate, the little girl too scared of being taken away that she wouldn't even stay with Platt or Hank. However, on Halloween, both Erin and Jay were needed down at a crime scene. "Do you think you can stay with Sergeant Platt, Squirt?" Jay asked gently, squatting down in front of his daughter, "Mommy and I both need to help, but we'll be back in a few hours, okay?"

"Sergeant Platt's gonna keep me safe?" Kate asked, looking up at the older woman who was speaking with Erin.

Jay nodded. "Yep. You're going to read a few books and play a few games, and then Erin and I will be back so we can all change into our costumes." Kate continued to look skeptical, but nodded her approval. She hugged Jay, wrapping her bandaged arms around his neck as he stood and carried her over to Platt. "Okay, so Kate, you and Sergeant Platt are going to play for a bit, right?"

Kate nodded again, lifting her head off of Jay's shoulder. "Bye Daddy." She gently kissed his cheek and squeezed him gently.

"I love you, kiddo." Jay placed a hand on the back of her head, inhaling the sweet scent of her shampoo. "We'll be back soon, okay?"

"Don't forget about me." Erin accepted her little girl from Jay and held Kate closely. "Don't worry baby, you'll be safe. I love you."

"I love you too, Mommy." Kate hugged her mother back. "You gonna get the bad guys?"

"Mm-hm, that's exactly what they're going to do." Platt piped up, "And we are going to read a story and then make sure all the patrolmen are behaving, isn't that right?"

Kate smiled and took Platt's hand with her splinted arm. "Bye Mommy, bye Daddy!" She called, heading down the steps.

Erin and Jay made it back to the district in time to take Kate home and get her changed into her tiger onesie. She looked absolutely adorable, despite the two casted arms, making tiny claws with her hands and saying "rawr" for pictures. Erin surprised Kate by dressing up like her favorite food. "A banana!" Kate squealed as Erin emerged from her bedroom, dressed in the costume that was on loan from Ruzek. Why he had a banana costume was a question neither Erin or Jay wanted to ask, but the grin from the little girl was well worth the trouble.

"Do I look delicious?" Erin asked, Kate giggling away.

"I'll say." Jay remarked, coming out of the bathroom in a monkey costume. Kate and Erin privately decided that Jay should dress up like a monkey police officer, so he was wearing his badge and hat from his blues, along with the brown monkey one piece suit.

"Detective Monkey!" Kate shrieked, clapping her hands as best she could. She burst out laughing, causing Erin and Jay to chuckle along with her amusement. "So much better than a chicken!"

"How come Erin got to be the banana, Squirt?" Jay asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Because you're a funnier monkey." Kate told him seriously. "Do you think Sergeant Voight is gonna wear a costume too?"

Erin glanced at Jay. "I don't know baby. He's not big on costumes, but he's excited to go trick-or-treating with us." Kate had told Hank that she wanted him to come trick-or-treating with them, and after the experience she had, Voight couldn't say no. His neighborhood was also better suited for it, so he was having the little family over for a Halloween dinner.

"Well, aren't you the cutest little tiger I've ever seen!" Voight grinned at Kate as he pulled open the front door to Kate going "rawr!". She hugged his legs.

"Sergeant Voight, where's your costume?" Kate looked up at him expectantly. "Mommy and Daddy dressed up." Voight glanced over to Erin and Jay and burst out laughing.

"Oh, that's good." Voight chuckled, opening the door wider, "Come on in, I have steaks on the grill out back."

"No pictures, Hank." Erin warned, following her father figure through the house, nearly catching Jay's tail in the door.

While dinner with Hank was successful, taking Kate trick-or-treating was not. The poor little girl caught sight of a mask-wearing goblin and promptly leapt into Jay's arms and refused to go trick-or-treating. "I don't want candy," Kate replied tearfully after Erin asked if she still wanted to go, "I don't want to see the monsters." She buried her face in Jay's neck, trembling against his costume.

"Do you want to go back inside?" Jay asked, glancing down the street at the throngs of children on the sidewalk, clad in various costumes. While there didn't appear to be many wearing masks, the one was enough to frighten his little girl to no end. Kate nodded against his neck. Hank had stayed behind to hand out candy to other children, pulling open the front door in surprise.

"Back already?" He asked Erin, who shook her head in response.

"Lots of scary monsters out there," She informed him after Kate was out of earshot, Jay carrying her to the living room, "Poor thing practically had a heart attack."

Hank grimaced sympathetically. "I got some strawberries in the fridge, do you think that would help?"

"Maybe." Erin mused, following him to the kitchen, "She loves fruit. Way more than she likes anything else, so it could work." She poked her head into the living room. "Kate, Hank has some strawberries. Does that sound good to you?"

"Okay." Kate replied, lifting her head off Jay's shoulder. Hank gave the little girl a bowl of cut strawberries with a fork and passed a beer to Jay. "Thank you." She whispered, carefully eating some of her fruit.

"Feeling better, Squirt?" Jay asked after Kate seemed to have calmed down a bit. She nodded.

"I'm sorry." Kate croaked, looking nervously at Jay and Erin, "I didn't mean to be scared and cry."

"No need to be sorry, baby." Erin reassured her, "It's perfectly okay if you don't want to go."

Hank sat down in his favorite armchair, "I still can't believe you got Jay and Erin into those costumes." He winked at the little girl, "The banana was a good choice."

"It's my favorite food." Kate told him seriously. The doorbell rang loudly, causing the little girl to jump and turn back to her father's embrace with a petrified squeak.

"It's okay, kiddo, just trick-or-treaters." Hank told her, heading for the door with a bowl of candy. He passed out a few handfuls to a princess, a fox and a werewolf. Kate glanced at the door, quivering violently.

"I-I don't like Halloween," she whimpered, Jay rubbing her back soothingly, "I don't like the monsters."

Jay and Erin exchanged knowing looks. "You know what, I think it's getting late and we should probably head home." Erin stood, swallowing the last of her beer, Hank and Jay both nodding in agreement.

"I'll see you on Sunday, kiddo." Hank hugged Erin and gave Jay a pat on the back, "Drive safe."

Most days, both Halstead and Lindsay worked late. While they tried to establish a good bedtime routine, Kate happily the afternoons and some nights at the district, not bothered by the irregularity of her schedule. Her arms were healing faster than expected and she had already been switched from a hard cast to a removable split on her fractured wrist. Her sprained wrist was better too, and the bruises on her ribs were fading. Kate returned to preschool after ten days off and seemed to be easing back into it well. Platt had even detailed a patrol car to the school from drop off to pick up in an effort to ease Kate and her parent's anxiety over leaving her side.

Every weekday morning, Erin's alarm went off at six though Jay was usually already awake. Since being taken, Kate had spent more nights in her parent's bed than her own, often too scared to be alone. According to Dr. Handel, Kate's response to the trauma she endured was proportional, but it still broke Erin and Jay's heart whenever they would wake up to the tearful whimpers of a terrified little girl and carry her to the safety of their bed.

When the alarm went off, Erin stretched her other hand over to find her partner. Reaching over the tiny body in between the two of them, she stroked his stubbly cheek. "Your turn to shower first." she mumbled, closing her eyes again.

"It's always my turn," Jay half yawned, half grunted and dragged himself out of bed and into the shower. The night before Kate had one of the worst nightmares yet and spent an hour in her closet, cowering in fear before Erin finally coaxed her out. The couple barely had time to go back to sleep before the alarm went off, leaving them exhausted before the day began. Kate, woken up by her father's moving, cuddled in closer to Erin, pulling the covers up to her eyes.

After taking a shower to wake himself up, Jay walked out of the bathroom and approached the bed. "Er, wake up." He took her hand and rubbed it delicately before pressing a kiss to her lips, "Greet the day."

"I don't want to." Erin cracked one eye open and fake pouted. "And neither does Kate."

He laughed quietly, smoothing the hair off her face. "Come on babe, get your ass out of bed."

"Jay. Little ears," she scolded, peeling the covers off her body and gently scratching the top of her daughter's head.

"You too Squirt," Jay tickled her softy. "You're going to be late for school." Kate emerged from the covers and flashed a cheeky grin at her father. Jay waggled his fingers, indicating that he was going to tickle her again.

She giggled at her father, wiggling her fingers back at him. "Okay I'll go pick out my clothes." She scampered off to her bedroom with the stuffed tiger in her arms.

"We're lucky she's so well behaved." Erin told him before going into the bathroom. "She still may need help getting changed though, Daddy."

Jay grinned and headed for the kitchen. He poured Kate's cereal and sliced a banana. "Breakfast, Squirt." He called, the little girl rushing out of her bedroom and catapulting herself into her father's arms. Jay loved mornings with his daughter because she tended to be extra cuddly and sweet. They were his second favorite part of the day, the first being the greeting he received after being at work all day.

"Daddy, guess what?" she said enthusiastically, as he carried her over to the breakfast bar. Asking the people who she trusted to 'guess what' had become a favorite conversation starter for the little girl.

"What?" Jay replied, setting her down in front of the banana and cereal. He started the coffee and turned to face his daughter intently. "What?"

"Today, Sergeant Platt and I are gonna read a new book about the pilgrims. And native-mericans. Because soon it's gonna be Thanks-givin'." Kate smiled brightly, "Thank you for the banana."

"You're very welcome." Jay responded, sneaking a slice off her plate, "So pilgrims and Native Americans, huh?"

Kate nodded, "And tomorrow we're gonna go to the library again to get more books."

"Well, that sounds like fun." Jay poured the coffee into two mugs. His phone chimed with a series of text messages. "Oh, boy." He sighed, glancing down at his device.

Kate ate her last bite of cereal and noticed her father was looking worried. "Daddy?"

"Sorry, kiddo. I think Mommy's going to have to drop you off today because it looks like a CI of mine needs to talk about something really important." He kissed the top of her head, "Do you remember what a CI is?"

"Confidential informant." Kate replied, "They tell you secrets in exchange for not getting locked up cause they're not too bad."

"That's right." Jay was continually impressed by his little girl's intelligence. "Hey, babe, I gotta meet with a CI."

"I'll meet you at the district then?" Erin asked, accepting the mug of coffee that her partner handed to her.

"Sounds good." Jay kissed her, then the top of Kate's head again. "I'll see you both later tonight."

"Halstead and Lindsay, you two take point on this one. Everyone else, back 'em up." Hank ordered, gesturing to the white board with two major criminals on it. "Gear up." Intelligence was working another high-profile case, this time involving a plot to transport a major shipment of unlicensed hand guns from a Ukrainian shipping container. One of Jay's CI's had alerted them to it and had set up a meeting in an abandoned warehouse on the edge of the city.

"I don't know, I got a bad feeling about this," Erin murmured into her radio, crouched behind a stack of large shipping containers. She and Jay were on opposite sides of the warehouse. Atwater and Olinsky flanked Erin while Jay, Voight, Ruzek and Burgess sat higher up, prepared to get the drop if need be.

One man, who appeared to be a bodyguard, entered the warehouse with the Ukrainian gangsters. He surveyed the area and nodded, gesturing for his counterpart to enter the warehouse as well. The second body guard hauled Jay's CI's lifeless body into the warehouse and dropped him on the floor in front of the Ukrainians. Erin could see Jay's muscles tense from where she was stationed. In an instant, one of the men began yelling in Ukrainian and fired at the containers that Intelligence was behind. Bullets flew across the warehouse, one of the Ukrainian gangsters and two body guards falling to the ground. "Suspect fleeing northbound!" Jay shouted into his radio, sprinting after the remaining offender on foot, Atwater behind him.

Erin jumped into the Sierra and sped off, noticing that Jay was cutting across people's yards in pursuit of the suspect. The man turned down an alley, not realizing he was running into a fence. Halstead pulled him off as he attempted to climb but was smacked in the head by the end of the man's gun, sending him reeling backwards and onto the ground. Luckily, Atwater came in as backup and pulled the offender off the fence again, cuffing him tightly. "Shit, man, you good?" Atwater asked Jay, glancing at the gash he sustained on the left side of his head.

"Mm, yeah." Halstead winced and sat up. He reached his hand up and pulled it back, blood on his fingertips.

"Jay!" Erin shrieked, jumping out of the Sierra and running down the snowy alleyway. She knelt down in front of her boyfriend and partner who had blood trickling down the side of his face. "Jesus, he got you good."

"I'm fine, Er." Jay reached out his hand for assistance to stand but Erin shook her head.

"Nuh-uh, you need to go to Med to get that checked out." She touched the side of his face gently with her gloved hand.

"It's just a bump. I'll put some ice on it and be fine," Jay argued, standing on his own. Erin huffed and followed him down the alley to where Atwater and Ruzek were putting the offender in the back of a squad car.

"You need the hospital, Halstead?" Hank asked, hands tucked into the top of his vest, "That looks like it might need stitches." Erin glanced at her partner with an 'I told you so' expression.

"Yeah, fine." Jay acquiesced, climbing into the passenger seat of the Sierra.

After seven stitches, Jay left Chicago Med with an icepack and a massive bruise spreading across his forehead. "You know, Maggie was right," Erin mused, pulling into the 21st District, "She's seen either you, me or Kate three times in the past month. We may as well get our own bay in the ED."

Jay rolled his eyes, "It has not been that often."

"No? You brought me in when I had the flu. We brought Kate in for an x-ray of her arm and today you got your head split open by the butt of a Glock 19." Erin turned to her partner, who was resting an icepack against his bruised face while he leaned back in the passenger seat. "You look like Frankenstein."

"Frankenstein's monster," Jay corrected her, Erin scrunching up her nose in response. "I know. What are we going to tell Kate?"

Erin sighed, "Well, I told the guys not to mention anything to her until we got back. So what if I go get her and tell her before she sees you? Hank said we're done for the day anyway. Nothing to do but wait for the guy to start talking, and he's lawyered up so I don't think we're getting anywhere tonight."

"Sounds good." Jay replied tiredly.

Erin quickly made her way up to the bullpen, waving to Sergeant Platt who was speaking on the phone as she hurried up the steps. Hank had texted to let her know that he was with Kate in his office, so Erin knew her little girl was in good hands. "Mommy!" Kate exclaimed, looking up from the piece of paper that she was coloring, sitting in Hank's lap.

"Hey, baby." Erin approached the desk and Kate lifted her arms, indicating that she wanted to be held. "What are you up to?"

"Sergeant Voight let me color at his desk," Kate informed her, hugging her mother tightly, "And Sergeant Platt and I learned about pilgrims and the native-mericans."

"Sounds like you had a good day." Erin smiled at her little girl and then to her boss. "Anything you need from us, Hank?"

Hank shook his head. "You and Halstead can head home."

"Where's Daddy?" Kate asked, glancing over Erin's shoulder into the bullpen. Her father was not at his desk.

Erin paused before speaking. "Daddy had a bit of an accident today, sweetheart. He's okay, but he's a little banged up."

The smile instantly dropped from Kate's face as she pulled back to look up at her mother. "Daddy's hurt?"

"He's okay, though. Just a few stitches on his forehead, no big deal." Erin reassured her, "He's in the car waiting for us."

"Did a bad guy get him?" Kate eyes filled with tears as she thought about her father, "Did they shoot him?"

"Oh, no, no, no." Erin refuted quickly, glancing over at Hank, "He got a bump on the head but Uncle Will fixed him right up."

"He got the bad guy too. Your dad was very brave and didn't even want to go to the hospital, but he did and he's going to be good as new," Hank inserted, giving Erin's shoulder a squeeze, "And I bet that picture you drew would make him feel even better." He handed the little girl the picture she had drawn.

"Okay." Kate nodded, allowing Erin to brush the few tears that escaped off her cheeks, "Daddy's in the car?"

"Mm-hm. Let's go see him, huh?" Erin smiled tiredly at her father-figure. "Night Hank."

"Bye Sergeant Voight." Kate waved and blew him a kiss. She waved to Sergeant Platt on their way out, who was still on the phone with someone from the Ivory Tower. The older woman smiled at Erin before yelling into the receiver. "Daddy's okay?" Kate asked as they headed for the parking lot.

"Yep. He's just a little tired, so we're going to pick up some Chinese food and head home, sound good?" Erin tapped lightly on the car door before opening it, as to not alarm Jay. He was sound asleep against the window of the Sierra.

"Daddy's sleeping." Kate whispered, still in Erin's arms.

"Can we wait until we get home to wake him?" Erin asked, knowing that the little girl was desperate to see her father, but also recognizing that Jay was probably exhausted and aching.

Kate nodded and put a finger to her lips, indicating that she would be quiet. Erin smiled and kissed her forehead before sliding the little girl into her car seat.

"Babe," Erin's voice floated around Jay's head, accompanied a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Jay."

"Mm?" Jay opened his eyes and winced at the pain in his head. He glanced around, realizing that he was in the parking garage. "We're home?"

"Yeah. You fell asleep while you were waiting for us." Erin had already climbed out of her seat and was holding Kate in her arms. She made her way around to the passenger side and carefully opened the door. "How are you feeling?"

"Better, now that I'm with both my girls." Jay managed a smile, looking at Kate, who appeared quite nervous at her father's appearance. "Hi there, Squirt."

"Hi Daddy," Kate whispered, intently studying the stitches on Jay's forehead, "Are you hurting?"

"I'm okay, don't worry." Jay smiled and stepped out of the vehicle. "Is that Chinese I smell?" He took Kate's backpack and the takeout bag from Erin's hand so she could hold the little girl easier.

"Sergeant Voight said you got the bad guy." Kate looked up at Jay, still holding tightly to Erin while they rode in the elevator.

"He did." Erin said, running a gloved hand over Kate's head, "And Daddy was very brave when Uncle Will had to stitch him up." She walked down the hall and opened up their apartment door. "Can you go wash your hands while I get Daddy settled?"

Kate nodded as Erin set her down, heading for the bathroom. "Okay, Halstead. Couch for you." Erin ordered, taking the bag of takeout from her partner and setting it on the counter.

"I'm fine, Er." Jay replied, turning to his girlfriend. "Seriously."

"Oh, no you don't." Erin pointed to the couch. "You just fell asleep in the car. I'll bring you some dinner, just sit tight." He raised his eyebrows but complied. After settling against the couch cushions, Jay had to admit it felt way better than sitting at the kitchen table.

Kate emerged from her bedroom, carrying her favorite pink blanket and her stuffed animals. "You wanna help Daddy get comfortable?" Erin asked, smiling at the thoughtfulness of her sweet little girl. She nodded and headed to the couch, gently placing Tiger, Giraffe and Mr. Shark on one end. Kate carefully laid the blanket across Jay's lap. He had closed his eyes but blearily opened them when Kate tucked Mr. Shark in the crook of his elbow.

"Thanks, kiddo." Jay murmured tiredly, "You taking care of your old man?"

"You're not old, Daddy." Kate smiled at him for the first time that evening and placed Tiger and Giraffe on Jay's lap. "I think Tiger, Giraffe and Mr. Shark will help you feel better."

"I think so too." Jay patted Tiger's head, glancing up at Erin as she brought him a plate with fried rice, chicken and sautéed vegetables. "Thanks babe."

Erin sat on the coffee table across from her partner. "Kate, do you want to eat on the couch with Daddy tonight? Special treat?"

Kate nodded eagerly and followed her mother to the kitchen. Erin settled them on the couch with a tray so that they could eat as a family. Before too long, Jay began to doze off slightly. "Daddy's almost sleeping." Kate whispered to Erin, looking up at her father.

Erin chuckled and took both Kate and Jay's plates. "Can you go get your pajamas on and then maybe we can read a story with Daddy on the couch, hm?"

While the little girl scurried off to get changed for bed, Erin sank onto the couch beside her partner. "Babe," she whispered, gently touching his cheek, "We gotta get some ice on your forehead again."

"Mm?" Jay opened his eyes again and touched his forehead with a hiss. "Yeah, okay." He turned to his girl, "You make a good nurse, Lindsay."

"Ha, ha." Erin rose from the couch and headed for the kitchen, wrapping an icepack in a tea towel. She gently pressed it against Jay's bruised face, perching herself on the armrest of the couch. "You scared me today."

"I know. I'm sorry." Jay murmured, resting a hand on her knee, "I'm okay, though, really."

"I brushed my teeth, all by myself." Kate informed Erin, emerging from the bathroom in a pair of flannel pajamas.

"Good job, baby." Erin smiled, "Do you want to pick out a book? Then we can read and put Daddy to bed." She winked at the little girl.

"Does Daddy have to go to bed before me?" Kate asked, holding up a copy of 'The Day the Crayons Quit'.

"Just tonight." Erin scooped her up and settled on the couch next to her partner with Kate in her lap. Halfway through the story, both Kate and Jay were sound asleep.