new york wolves } { of closed cases and moving forward

[hereditare]

Laura: [tells them to let him up, and waits for him to knock on the door]

Esposito: [which he will, along with Chinese food because he knows what she likes now and he hasn't had dinner so hopefully she's hungry]

Laura: [actually, she is starving and she smells the food before she opens the door] Oh, you're amazing.

Esposito: Well, I do try to please. Luckily I already know your order, and I got extra eggrolls.

Laura: Perfect. C'mon in. [steps back so that he can come inside]

Esposito: [walks in, heading to put the food on the living room table. Why go all the way to the dining room, right?] You alone?

Laura: [she nods] Peter took Nik out to get Malia, and Stiles and Cora are with the Castles.

Esposito: Well, your brother went home with Beckett. Which is part of the reason why I was coming over to let you know. He's okay, just a bit rattled after everything today.

Laura: [nods a bit] It's fine. I think the more scattered we are right now, the better.

Esposito: Well, I've got a team hunting down Kate's accomplices and the van so we can get the last piece of evidence tied down. [he goes to unpack the food, handing Laura her container]

Laura: [takes it easily, curling up on the couch next to him] So this is all going to stick. She'll actually go away.

Esposito: Our undercover did a good job getting a drunken confession on tape, and your brother pretty much gave us video on how much of a psycho she is. [he opened his container a moment] We've got her only for the kidnapping and assault here, but California is going to have the better case. You've got arson, eight counts of murder...... [deep breath]… and sexual exploitation of a minor.

Laura: [her teeth grit, before she nods in agreement] Hopefully they can keep her long enough to get her there.

Esposito: I think that was your brother's plan. The psycho had amazing anti-interrogation skills. She knew the law up and down and what to say to keep anything from slipping. But she admitted stone cold sober to one of Derek's quips about sexual and psychologically manipulation of him when he was 17, and she confirmed it. She thought that because he was 17 and it was consensual, it wouldn't stick. But that's enough to get her held without bail and transferred to Los Angeles for a bail hearing. And the arson is connected to it, and no judge is going to let her out on bail when her family is an international arms dealer - which she also admitted to.

Laura: Yeah, that's not a guarantee, though. The Argents ... they've been doing this a long time. I'm sure they have all kinds of loopholes that they will try and slip her through.

Esposito: Maybe, but they're going against the testimony of a well-respected detective who is also the Captain's favorite, and Flack has a lot of pull with the DA. And I'm sure you have a good relationship with the Sheriff out in Beacon Hills, right?

Laura: I just saved his only son's life. I'm pretty sure he owes me forever.

Esposito: And the psycho all but threatened Derek in the interrogation room, so we can use that.

Laura: That doesn't surprise me.

Esposito: Just trust us. I may not know how the whole hunter side of this equation works... but she's behind bars and we're good at our job. Flack and I went over every piece of this to make sure Derek didn't touch any part that would get the case thrown out on procedure. He wasn't a part of the arrest, and Beckett was with him both in the interrogation room and during the wire taping. I ran lead, and he went by the book. [he reached over to put a hand on her knee] It's going to take that family a lot of work that will expose their good name a lot more than they may be comfortable with to try and loophole her out.

Laura: [nods slowly, before she exhales and leans against the couch] I'm just not sure I'll believe it until she's gone for good.

Esposito: You trust me?

Laura: Of course I do. [she glances back to him] It's everything else I don't trust. [there's a beat] We were raised believing the system wasn't going to be able to help us. In the end, we'd have to help ourselves. So believe me, the fact that I'm not sitting in the precinct staring her down to make sure she isn't going anywhere is a sign of how much I trust you.

Esposito: Well, the twelfth takes care of their own, and Derek is one of us. The fact the team now knows what's really happening, it's not like we're protecting you blind. We know the real story, and we know how to use the law to match it. Murder is still murder, and we caught a murderer. She tried to go spouting about werewolves in court, she'll end up in a maximum security nuthouse. She doesn't, she still has to explain the testimony of two already in prison who gave your sheriff a drawing of her necklace and face years ago that Derek only saw after we arrested her.

Laura: [she nods a bit, but she can't relax. It's not that she doesn't believe his reassurances, or that he knows what he's doing, but they don't get lucky. They're Hales. That's not the way their lives go.]

Esposito: And if this family tries to come into my city and go after my partners or my girl, I'll bring hell down on them and I won't be alone. [and he's serious about that]

Laura: [and she's just going to change the subject, looking at him with a small smirk] So I'm still your girl, huh?

Esposito: You never stopped being my girl. What, you think the fact you got some claws was going to scare me away? Baby, I've been to Iraq. I don't scare easy.

Laura: [she shrugs] People have freaked out over less. [she turns to face him a little more] And I don't just have claws. [she pauses for a moment, before her eyes flash red]

Esposito: Yes, your brother told us. Never met an alpha before, let alone date one.

Laura: Well, the downsides - I'm bossy, territorial and usually on top.

Esposito: I think I can handle most of that. We'll compete on the bossiness

Laura: Good to know.

Esposito: [smirks and goes back to his food a minute, debating on if he should tell Laura about anything in the case, or her brother's shakiness after, but decides not to] How's Cora doing?

Laura: Curled up in a ball with her boyfriend and probably not leaving it for a while. Physically she'll be fine. Psychologically ... we'll take it one day at a time.

Esposito: You don't happen to have a psychologist friend of the family at all? Cause I'm pretty sure Derek's probably going to be in need of help too.

Laura: Directly? No. But I could probably ask a friend of mine to ask around. See if there's anyone in the know who can help.

Esposito: Yeah. I'm pretty sure the department's psych isn't going to be a good fit in this.

Laura: [shakes her head] Not so much.

Esposito: Well, if there's anything I can do... besides the obvious putting this bitch away for life... let me know, alright.

Laura: [nods a bit in agreement, before shifting so that she can lean in to kiss him] Trust me. That's enough.

Esposito: [kisses her back, cupping her cheek] Good.

Laura: [she smiles a bit before pulling back some] So. You said we needed to have a talk?

Esposito: Now see, I was enjoying this whole non-talking thing we were doing...

Laura: [she laughs a bit at that] Well, we could always save the talk for later.

Esposito: Yeah, let's save it for later. Who knows how long we have until your uncle gets back.

Laura: Probably not long. [and with that she's leaning in to kiss him again, placing her Chinese food to the side for now]

Esposito: [and he will lean back, letting her be on top of them as they lay on the couch, just kissing and his hands exploring up and down her back]

Laura: [slips into his lap easily, fingers sliding up into his hair and trying to keep things from getting too heated for the couch. After all, Peter probably doesn't need those particular scents when he first gets home, no matter how careful they are about getting caught]

Peter: [no, no he doesn't. Just like he doesn't need the scents that fill the frat house he's currently at waiting on his daughter]

Esposito: [he's good with that, keeping things nice and light. They can stay like this awhile until something decides to interrupt them.]

Laura: [yep, she'll pick up on the sound of the elevator and Peter and Malia's voices before she'll pull off his lap, reaching for her Chinese food again as the door opens.]

Esposito: [two seconds to flatten his shirt back out, and yup, he's eating his cold lo mein]

Peter: [walks in, seeing the two of them and chuckling to himself] Detective, nice to see you keeping Laura company while I was out.

Malia: [pokes her head inside after her father, and zeroes in on the food] I smell egg rolls.

Laura: [shakes her head] Take mine.

Esposito: Help yourself. I think I'm full, actually. You may need to warm them up a bit.

Malia: [grins at them both, before picking through what she wants and heading off to the microwave to heat them]

Laura: [glances up to Peter] How'd it go?

Peter: Fine. She was well taken care of and I've smelt things that I really wish I had never knew existed, but otherwise well.

Laura: [laughs] I take it frat houses haven't changed that much since I was in college then.

Peter: No, they haven't. Not even since my day.

Esposito: Pretty sure that it's a standard smell.

Laura: The smell of teenage boy and .... far more illegal substances than there should be.

Esposito: Yeah, sounds like a frat house to me.

Peter: Well, not to be rude, but after that I think I need to shower. I don't fully trust my healing factor at the moment faced with that.

Laura: [grins] Go. Please.

Peter: Detective. [nods and heads up to shower]

Esposito: He really is not like the rest of you, is he?

Laura: If by "not like the rest of us" you mean "a bit of a snob" then yes.

Peter: [from upstairs] I heard that.

Esposito: [chuckles] Said lovingly, of course.

Laura: Oh, of course.

Esposito: Well, I should probably get going. I've got a long day of paperwork to hit tomorrow.

Laura: [nods as she gets up with him] I'll walk you out.

Esposito: I'm going to recommend that Derek take tomorrow off, but I'm sure he's going to come in anyway. Want me to pass anything along?

Laura: Come home.

Esposito: Pretty easy to remember. [once they are at the elevator, he smiles and kisses her] You stay safe, alright?

Laura: [nods as she leans into the kiss, letting her hands rest on his chest] You too.

Esposito: I will. [he winked, then stepped into the elevator to start on his trip home]

Laura: [and she will sigh, before heading back into the apartment, and flopping down on the couch with the cold Chinese food]