Back to Chaos

C H A P T E R - S E V E N

~ The events in this chapter are based on the Chicago Fire episode Leaders Lead (Season 1 Episode 22). This chapter features events such as sexual assault and false accusations of sexual assault. The rights to the episode Leaders Lead belongs to Dick Wolf and NBC. It is strictly used for information and entertainment purposes.

Thank you,

Ray ~

June 20th.

Kelly Severide knew that it was a bad idea to be waiting outside the store that Tara Little had entered. But he couldn't find another way to talk to her. She had falsely accused him of forcing himself onto her and both of them knew that that wasn't true.

When he noticed her walking out of the store, he pushed himself off of his car and slowly walked over.

"A promotion, huh?" he asks. The sight of the man caused Little to walk faster.

"You need to stay away."

"You get a promotion and I might go to jail?"

"Get away."

"They're talking about filing criminal charges! Why the hell are you doing this? I didn't do a damn thing to you?"

"I told you to stay away."

A pedestrian who was walking to his car looked between the two of them before turning to Tara who was high-tailing it to her car.

"Are you okay, ma'am?"

"She's fine," Kelly answers.

"Ma'am?"

"We both know nothing happened that night!" Severide calls to the woman who was entering her car. "Tara!"

Kelly shakes his head before walking over to his car, still in awe that the woman wouldn't come clean.

During the first four hours of the shift, after Kelly exited a bathroom stall and made to wash his hands, Chief Boden walks over, looking upset.

"You confronted her in a parking lot?"

"I'm facing criminal charges, damn right I confronted her."

"You are not helping yourself -"

"Chief, I did nothing wrong," Kelly cuts the man off.

"You did today - you strengthen her case."

"Whose side are you on?"

"I am trying to help you here."

"It doesn't feel like it," Kelly says as the chief steps closer to him. "I can handle this myself, thanks."

"Nah, nah, you contact her again, you go within a hundred feet of her, you will force me to take away your Squad."

Severide looks at the older man with wide eyes.

"That's your way of helping?"

"Yes."

Kelly shakes his head as he exits the room, throwing the paper towel into the garbage with a loud thud.

He heads to his office, sitting on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands before he pulls out his phone.

"Hey, Lys," he sighs, a small smile on his face as he imagined her response. He didn't know what to say - he had spent every voicemail in the last week or so talking about everything was Tara, and then the most recent thing with Hadley, and Mills moving to Squad. "I miss you. And ... I'm afraid that they're going to bring you into this. Everyone knew that you lived with me after everything and then they knew that was started dating. I don't know how they'll get your statement if they do but ... is it wrong that I want them to pull you into this? There's a chance that I'll be able to hear your voice or maybe even see if you if they do and that chance, Lys, I don't wanna pass that up."

He talked for a few more minutes, describing everything that had happened - how he had confronted Tara in a parking lot, how Boden had threatened to take Squad away, etc.

After shift, Severide made plans to meet up with Antonio Dawson, trying to see if he could rack anything up on Tara.

"Hey," Antonio says.

"Hey, man," the lieutenant answers, shaking his hand. "Thanks for meeting me."

"Sure you know what you're doing?"

"Like I told you on the phone, I'm feeling out of options."

Antonio nods. "Well, it might be worse than you think. I called the Assistant State's Attorney, and Rutkowski's testimony landed. They won't be accused of playing favorites for a firefighter. They're going to prove criminal charges."

A smile of disbelief crossed his face as he shook his head.

"I ran a background check on Tara Little, she worked at an ad agency. There were criminal charges filed and withdrawn."

"Against her?"

Antonio shakes his head. "Clay White - a fellow employee there. There's an address on there."

"I appreciate it."

"If I was smart, I'd tell you to let a lawyer do the rest," the detective says before walking away.