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Crisis & Catharsis -- Part XVII Matthew slid into the booth across from Rachel, picking up the menu. Rachel chuckled at him. “Why are you looking at that? You order the same thing every time.”   Matthew stared at the open menu. “I might change my mind this time.”   Rachel smiled. “Whatever you’d like, little man.”   Matthew looked up. “Can I order flan?”   Rachel nodded. “For dessert.”   The waitress walked up to them. “Hi Matthew. What can I get you?”   Matthew snapped the menu closed. "I'd like some flan."   Rachel peered over at him. "I said for dessert."   Matthew nodded. "I'm going to start with dessert."   The waitress smiled at them as they stared each other down, neither wanting to give in. Finally Rachel turned to the waitress. "He'll have the vegetable plate."   Matthew sat up straight in his seat. "NO! I hate vegetables. Mom doesn't make me eat that!"   Rachel looked at him smugly. "Then order something besides flan."   Matthew crossed his arms. "Fine. I'll have a burger and fries."   Rachel nodded. "That's acceptable."   Matthew looked at the waitress defiantly. "And a chocolate shake."   The waitress nodded, trying to suppress a grin. She turned to Rachel. "And for you?"   Rachel closed the menu and handed it to the waitress. "I'll have what he's having."   The waitress took the menu and hurried off. Matthew stared at Rachel. "That was a dirty trick, Rach."   Rachel smiled at him. "It's one of the perks of being the older sister - pulling rank on your little brother. Get used to it."   Matthew pouted. "When are you going back to Chicago?"   Rachel looked at him seriously. "Soon if mom is really cured."   Matthew's head shot up. "I was joking. You're really going back?" Rachel nodded. "But I was thinking you could stay here now."   Rachel took his hand. "I'd like that too, Matt. But I live in Chicago. I have to get back to my job."   Matthew looked down. "I was getting used to having you around to talk to."   Rachel smiled at him. "I like talking to you too. But we can still do that on the phone. As much as you want. Any time."   Matthew was near tears. "Who's going to help me deal with mom and dad?"   Rachel smiled. "I think they're going to do a much better job of getting along."   Matthew looked at her hopefully. "You really think so?"   Rachel nodded. "Yeah, I really think so. I know you haven't seen it but they used to get along great. I think this whole thing has made them really look at how they've been acting and I think it's going to change a lot."   Matthew brightened. "That would be nice."   Rachel grinned at him. "And if it doesn't, I'll be happy to fly back and give them heck for you."   "What about Paige?" Matthew looked over Rachel's shoulder toward the door as he asked his question. Rachel saw his expression change to a frown and followed his line of sight. Paige had walked into the diner and was scanning the booths. She hadn't seen Matthew and Rachel yet.   Rachel started to gather her stuff. "Let's go, Matthew." Matthew was confused. "We haven't gotten our food yet. Go where?"   Rachel reached for Matthew's hand. "Let's just go. I'll explain later."   Matthew pulled back on Rachel's grip just as Paige saw them. "Matthew, what a surprise!" Paige rushed toward them with a huge smile on her face.   Matthew shrank back and Rachel stepped in front of him. "Stay away from him. Don't take another step or I'll scream bloody murder!"   Paige stopped dead in her tracks. "Rachel, I was just going to say hi to Matthew. We're friends, right Matthew?"   Matthew looked at Rachel. "What's going on, Rach?"   Rachel tugged on his arm. "Let's just go, Matt. I'll explain later."   Rachel shot Paige a death look as she brushed past her and headed toward the exit. The waitress met them on the way out and handed Rachel her order. Rachel pushed some money into her hand and hurried out with Matthew in tow. Paige looked around the restaurant, embarrassed by what had just happened. She quickly sunk into a booth in the corner.   *************** Bo quietly pushed open the door to Nora's room. It was dark and Bo could see that she was sleeping. He let the door close quietly behind him and made his way to the chair beside her bed. He watched Nora sleep for a while, going through the day in his mind. He never dreamed at the beginning of the day that he would be interrogating his own girlfriend for poisoning his ex wife. Bo had to admit, he didn’t believe her story. It was all too suspicious with the way she had been acting lately. The whole mess gave him a headache. Bo laid his head back on the chair with a heavy sigh and closed his eyes.   Nora stirred and looked around her room. She was surprised to see Bo dozing in the chair beside her bed. She turned on her side and watched him silently. Bo opened his eyes a short while later and saw her watching him. He smiled at her. “Hi there. How are you feeling?”   Nora smiled back. “I’m doing okay. How are you?”   Bo sat forward in his chair. “I’ve been better.”   Nora turned serious. “What did you find out?”   Bo sighed. “I asked a lot of questions and got a lot of contradicting answers.”   “What did Paige say?”   “She seemed mystified that we found poison in the cookies. She claimed that they’re just ordinary cookies that she’s been baking for years.”   Nora sat up. “Did you believe her?”   Bo shrugged. “Not really. But I don’t have all the facts yet. I’m having all the ingredients analyzed at the lab right now and waiting for the results.”   “Speaking of results, Matthew’s test came back negative. Thanks for thinking of that.”   Bo nodded. “That’s a relief. I had to be sure he was all right. I stopped by the lab on my way here to get my blood tested. I want to know everything we’re dealing with. But it appears the poison was only in the ginger cookies that were your favorite and not mine or Matthew’s.”   “It makes it more suspicious that the poison was only in the cookies Paige knew I was eating and Matthew didn’t like.”   Bo shifted in his chair. “That was my thinking too. But she claims there is an extract she uses in the ginger cookies that Spencer Truman gave to her.”   Nora watched him closely. “What kind of extract?”   Bo shrugged. “Don’t really know. Paige says she ran out and was waiting to get more. Seems Truman gets the extract from his mother.”   Nora shook her head. “Seems a bit convenient, doesn’t it? Why would Paige use an ingredient from Spencer? I thought they hated each other.”   Bo nodded. “Seems odd to me too. We’ll know more when the results come back. So where is Matthew?”   Nora noted the change in topic, but let it go. “Rachel took him home. I thought it would be best if we both talked to him about this. And I wanted to wait until we had more of the story to tell. This is going to be so hard on him.”   Bo sat back in his chair with a sigh. “I know. Thanks for handling him. I honestly don’t know what to say to him.”   “We’re going to tell him the truth, Bo. I just wanted to wait and be sure I knew what the truth is before discussing it with him.”   Bo nodded. “I agree. It’s just he’s been through so much already in his young life, and now this. I hate to destroy his faith in people yet again.”   Nora looked away. “Yeah. We sure haven’t shown that we’re the best judges of people we’ve brought into his life, have we?”   Bo looked at the floor. “No, we haven’t.”   They were silent for several minutes, each lost in their own thoughts. Finally Nora looked at him. “Bo?”   Bo met her eyes. “Yeah?”   “How did we get here?”   Bo shook his head. “I wish I knew. But that’s not what matters now. What matters is where we go from here.”   Nora nodded slowly. “That makes sense but where do we go from here?”   Bo looked at her seriously. “I’m not sure but I do think it’s imperative that we go there together. We’ve been pretty selfish the past few years. Matthew isn’t a baby anymore and we need to be more aware of how our decisions are affecting our son. And in the past year or so, it’s been all bad.”   Nora nodded, unable to meet Bo’s eyes. “Yeah, he’s paid a high price for our poor judgment.”   Bo leaned forward and took her hand. “But it doesn’t have to be that way going forward, Nora. We can make the decision right now to end this pattern and put Matthew first. Are you with me on this?”   Nora looked at Bo’s hand on hers. She was about to respond when the door edged open and Michael stuck his head into the room. When he saw that Nora was awake, he pushed the door open and made his way to the end of Nora’s bed, picking up her chart. Bo pulled his hand away from Nora’s. “Hey, Michael. How’s our patient doing?”   Michael read through the chart, nodding slowly. “This looks good, Nora. How are you feeling?”   Nora shrugged. “I’m feeling better. Still a bit tired, though.”   Michael nodded as he took her pulse. “That’s pretty normal. No nausea?”   Nora shook her head. “Nope. Just exhaustion.”   Michael turned to Bo. “I got the results back on your blood test. It was all negative.”   Bo nodded. “That’s good to hear.”   Michael nodded toward Nora. “I’d like to give her a quick exam. Do you mind?”   Bo stood quickly. “No problem. I need to check in with the station anyway.” Bo made his way to the door.   “Bo?” Nora called after him. Bo turned to her as he opened the door. “Don’t go far, okay? I think we need to finish our discussion.”   Bo nodded. “I think so too. I’ll be back in a bit.” Bo exited into the hallway, letting the door close slowly behind him. He pulled out his cell phone, smiling when he saw he had 4 messages. Jenkins was obviously taking his orders seriously. Bo made his way out of the hospital, listening to his voicemail as he walked. He was nodding approvingly until he reached the message about Paige running into Matthew and Rachel at the diner. Bo’s face clouded with anger as he listened to Jenkins' report. He hurriedly dialed a number and waited for a response. “Jenkins,” Bo said through clenched teeth.   “Sir,” Jenkins cut him off before he could launch into a tirade. “I was right behind her and Rachel pulled Matthew out before she got anywhere near him. No harm done. Paige just left the diner 10 minutes ago. I’m following her now. It looks like she's headed to Rodi’s.”   Bo nodded on his end, doing his best to control his temper. “Keep an eye on her when you get there. If she tries to leave, arrest her. And if Truman shows up, bring him in too. You got that, Jenkins?”   Jenkins nodded. “Yes, Sir.”   “I’ll be there shortly. Don’t move on her unless she tries to leave.” Bo snapped the phone shut and turned to go back into the hospital. His phone rang as he was walking through the doors. He turned around, snapping it open. “Buchanan.”   “Bo, it’s John. I got the report back on the ingredients from your house.”   Bo nodded. “And?”   “And the ingredients all check out. No Hemlock in any of them. Looks like Paige’s mystery extract is our culprit.”   Bo nodded. “Yes it does. Matthew’s blood test was negative and so was mine. Paige claimed the extract was only used in the ginger cookies and those were Nora’s favorite.”   “So what’s our next move, Boss?”   “I’m at the hospital right now. I’ll let Nora know what’s going on and then I’m going to head over to Rodi’s and grab up Paige. Jenkins thinks that’s where she's headed. If Truman is with her, I’ll haul his ass in too. If not, I’ll send the beat cops out to bring him in.”   John nodded on his end. “Sounds like a plan. You need me to do anything?”   Bo shook his head. “Just sit tight. I’d like you to listen in when I question Truman and Paige. Maybe you can pick up on something I’m missing.”   “No problem, Boss. I’ll be here when you need me.”   “Thanks, John.” Bo snapped the phone shut and was about to drop it into his pocket when he had an idea. He popped it open again and punched in a number, putting the phone to his ear and waiting for Rex to pick up. “Balsom.”   “Commissioner,” Rex smiled as he spoke. “What can I do for ya?”   “I have an assignment for you and I need you to take it VERY seriously. Do you understand?”   Rex grinned on his end. “You only call me when it’s serious, Commish.”   Bo frowned into the phone. “Wipe that grin off your face and listen up.”   Rex held the phone away from his ear, wondering how Bo knew he was grinning. He put the phone back to his ear. “You’re good, Commish. What do you need?”   “Listen to me, Balsom. I want you to go over to Nora’s house. Matthew and Rachel are there. I want you to stay with them until you see the whites of my eyes, do you understand?”   Rex nodded. “Okay, but what…”   Bo cut him off. “Do not ask questions and do not alarm Matthew. Pretend you just dropped in for a friendly visit. You can tell Rachel I sent you if Matthew is out of earshot. Just stay at the house. No one gets in and no one leaves, you got that?”   Rex nodded, the grin gone from his face. “This sounds serious. Should I be packing? Maybe I could stop off at the station and get one of those sleek police issues…”   “Balsom!” Bo yelled into the phone, looking around and lowering his voice. “Just go over there and stay with them. Don’t try to play hero, you hear me?”   “Okay, Commish, but you’re going to owe me for this one. Babysitting isn’t exactly the most glamorous assignment…”   Bo sighed. “You mess this up and you won’t have to worry about glamour, Balsom because you will be trading it in for a fetching shade of orange. Do I make myself clear?”   Rex frowned. “Yeah, I hear ya. I’m on my way.”   Bo softened. “Balsom?”   “Yeah, Commish?”   “Thanks,” Bo said as he snapped his phone shut and rushed back into the ER.   TBC