Datterson is the former relationship between David Wagner and Patterson.
Patterson and David started their relationship before the events that brought Jane to the FBI.
Even though they were a solid couple with almost a year of dating, they still lived apart due to Patterson’s reservations; she believed that as soon as David moved in with her, they would split as it happened with her other relationship. Before Patterson left to work, David brought the subject of moving in with her, alluding that most of his stuff were in her apartment and that he practically lived there; she avoided the conversation and left the place promising they will discuss it later.
David decided to solve the arch tattoo by following its clues to the Brooklyn Historical Society from where he called Patterson to meet him there; a few hours later they discovered a secret Russian cell that communicated through books. They were surprised by Mayfair who took them both to the FBI and put David under custody after submitting him to several tests. He was told by Patterson that he was released with no charges and was free to go but it was necessary for them to break up after her job was compromised by their reckless behavior.
Trying to get Patterson back, David left a message on the board of Patterson’s favorite coffee truck but she insisted that she had to focus on her job, allowing no distractions in her life. That same day, he went back to the library and followed a woman to whom he caught leaving a message in a few books without knowing that she was a Russian spy. At night he followed the woman who murdered him in an alley with a bottle by cutting his throat.
A month before their one year anniversary David booked a table for two at Bacchus his and Patterson’s favorite restaurant. Conflicted by her grief over David’s death, Patterson asked Borden if it was a good idea to have dinner at the place, to which he encouraged her to go to celebrate the good times they had as a couple and as a way to give closure to her loss. At the restaurant, David appears as part of Patterson’s imagination who suggest to finish that day’s crossword puzzle; in there he hid a clue telling Patterson that he had managed to solve a tattoo before passing. A waiter brought a dessert with a little wooden sheep on top taken from David’s and Patterson’s favorite board game: Agricola.
After the end of David’s scavenger hunt and a nearly-death experience for Patterson, she said goodbye to David before letting him go.