CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Ace
This shift is taking longer than I ever imagined it could, especially after the news that Violet shared with me. I’m riding with Tank, and thank God he’s driving, because I can’t seem to stop texting the woman I can still taste on my lips and tongue.
My imagination is wondering how far we would have taken it, had we not stopped. I’m definitely down for figuring it out.
A: Want to have dinner when I get done? Maybe go dancing? Like an honest-to-God date? Not this thing where we stay locked up in either of our homes. You dress nice, I dress nice, and we let other people see us together? Would you be up for that?
I know I’m up for that, I’ve wanted to show her off for a while, show other people who’s stolen my heart, and how happy she makes me. I want to wear the smile on my face that so many of my friends wear on theirs. If anyone had asked me, I would have told them I was happy with the way things were, that it didn’t matter I’m single. Fact is, it does matter. I’ve been waiting for over a year to have this woman as mine, and I can’t believe the time is finally coming.
V: I would love to! Text me as you’re heading home, and I’ll be sure and be ready when you are.
A: I’ll have to take a shower, but it shouldn’t take long.
V: I’ll wait as long as you need me to.
It strikes me as funny, the words she just gave to me. I’ve given them to her a few times. They feel just as good coming back to me, as they did leaving my lips.
A: See you in a few hours.
“Why are you sitting over there grinning like a fool? If I wasn’t mistaken I’d think you had some type of woman in your life. You and Violet finally figure out that you’re hot for each other?” Tank asks as we maneuver through the streets of Laurel Springs. We’re working a mid-shift and these tend to be quieter than most.
I haven’t told anyone what’s happening with Violet, but I find myself wanting to talk with someone. I’m not like Renegade and Tank or even Mason and Holden, with a best friend on the team. With the four of them being completely up each other’s asses most days, that leaves me as the odd man out. Typically I’m fine with it, because that means I can confide in any of them, at any given time without worrying I’ve hurt someone’s feelings.
“Violet’s divorce got finalized today.” Saying the words brings a finality I haven’t experienced yet. Knowing that this woman can now be all mine? It’s something I always wished for, but never hoped would happen. I’m not into being disappointed.
Tank looks over, a huge smile on his face. “Does this mean you two are an item?”
“It means we’re free to stop hiding like we’re doing something wrong. I’ve never once been ashamed of the way we’ve acted with one another, but I know that it’s bothered her,” I admit to my friend. “She never felt right about it and wanted to keep it platonic until this went through.”
He gives me a look, like he can’t believe what I’ve told him. “So the two of you haven’t ever done the deed? Seriously? Not even when we were down in Gulf Shores?”
I shake my head. “Most we’ve ever done is kiss and some heavy making out, and that’s just been recent. You have to understand how she was those first few months, Trev. Nobody saw her like I did, and there was no way I could put my feelings onto her, until she was ready. It would have set her back years, I’m sure of it. Plus she’d just come from a hell of a relationship, I didn’t want to pile on bullshit.”
Neither one of us like reliving those months when she’d been scared of her own shadow, afraid of what would happen if she were left alone at night. Before I’d been able to get her the duplex next to mine, I’d parked my work car or personal vehicle in front of her shitty trailer to make sure she could sleep. I still remember the first night, she reluctantly gave me a hug. It felt like I’d won the lottery and killed a dragon all at the same time.
“That bad?” He stops at a four-way and turns his signal on to indicate we’re going left.
“Worse than that.” I shudder as I remember picking her up from the hospital. “I don’t wish what happened to her on my worst enemy, and I have some motherfuckers in my life that did me wrong.”
“How long was she in the hospital for? At the point all of that was happening, we were still trying to figure out what to do with Jefferson, and I’m ashamed to say I didn’t pay much attention to what happened to her. We all knew you were taking care of her, and none of us wanted to step on your toes.”
“A couple of days.”
Those days bleed together in a fade of memories I haven’t thought about since I brought her home. She’d insisted on going back to the home she’d shared with her husband and had been stubborn as hell. Never asked for help, even when she needed it. But with me she didn’t have to ask for it, I knew and offered, expecting zero in return.
“You’ve been very patient with her,” he comments.
“Not at all. She’s the woman I see myself with. The one who can make me settle down and not have to do crazy shit anymore. So whether we’ve done the deed or not, really isn’t that big of a deal. It’ll happen when it’s supposed to.”
Tank gives me a smirk, looking sheepish. “Didn’t mean to offend you.”
“Didn’t offend me, but I feel like everyone expects us to be so much further than we are. Both of us felt weird being anything other than friends while she was still married. We’re going out on our first date tonight.”
“You do you, man. We’re all rooting for you.”
“Which means you’ve all been talking about us like a couple of high school kids.”
He doesn’t deny it at all.
We tuck in behind a car, going about our routine. Sitting up a little straighter when we see them glance at us through their rearview. Something about the way they give us a look makes me take notice.
“Hey, the rest of us are completely settled, except for Mason. Now that’s there’s no drama in our lives, we have to gossip about you.”
“And you’re nosey as fuck,” I supply as I snort. They’d gossip no matter if they were settled or not. He’s just using it as an excuse.
“Well that too,” he concedes.
And that’s when the car in front of us takes off at a high rate of speed.
* * *
I’m calling in our position on the radio as Tank concentrates on navigating through the bottoms. After I call for backup, I hold on tightly, letting my body ease into the curves.
“You okay?” Trevor almost lost his life in a crash on this very stretch of road. If I could, I would reach over and take the wheel from him. I’m sure this is bringing back memories he’d rather forget. Hell, it’s bringing back shit I’d rather forget.
“I’m good.” His knuckles are white as he grips the steering wheel. I wonder if he really is, but his jaw is held strong, his mouth in a firm line. “This is about my job, not about what happened with me before.” I’m unsure if he’s telling me or trying to make himself believe the words.
The other responding unit is coming from the opposite direction. It makes me feel better when I hear the sirens and see the lights. I see Havoc attempting to box them in through a particularly sharp turn. The car in front of us has to slow down, and as they do, he pulls in front of them, blocking the way. We get behind them, not allowing them to move.
“Turn the car off!” I yell as I get out of my side of the cruiser. Leaving my door open to use for cover, I wait, just like everyone else does.
I listen as the engine of the car shuts off and watch as the driver puts their hands outside the window. “Drop the keys on the ground,” I instruct, voice firm, hands strong as I watch him follow my instructions.
Havoc takes over and starts giving them motions to get out of the car. Once they’re out and we have them cuffed, we get IDs and sit them against the door. My gaze hones in on the driver of the car. A quick flash goes back to where I’ve seen him before. I could have sworn he learned his lesson the first time.
“I know that kid,” I tell Havoc as we meet in the middle. “He was the one Caleb was with the other night. The driver.”
“Well then he shouldn’t be driving again, because his license should be suspended.”
When the license does come back as suspended, Havoc gets irritated.
“Damnit, go ahead and search the car, there’s a reason he was running.”
“Do I have consent?” I ask both the driver and the passenger. When the driver does nothing more than nod, I have to wonder what’s caused the change in him.
Before I get started, I give them the respect of asking what’s in it. “Is there anything you want to tell me about before I search it?” I ask as I put gloves on, to protect me in case I don’t want to touch something. Luckily I’ve never been poked by a dirty needle, and I don’t feel like having it happen today.
The kid sitting next to him is shaking, sweating profusely, and not meeting my eyes. The driver is stone cold. There’s something in this car, and there’s been an emotional change in the driver. He’d been amenable when I pulled him over before. Today he doesn’t even glance at any of us. His dad had been apologetic when he came to get him, saying it was the first time he’d ever been in trouble. When I pulled him over the other day, he’d been almost polite, and quick to offer information. Today he’s not. He’s offering nothing and looking pretty fucking guilty.
Neither one of them have offered me any information, so I search thoroughly, expecting to find any number of things stashed in the vehicle. But when I find nothing in the front seat or back seat, I wonder if maybe I was quick to judge. Wouldn’t be the first time, and definitely won’t be the last.
However, as I open the trunk, I have a tingling at the back of my neck. I’m going to find something in this car. The question is what, and how is it going to affect the kids sitting here. “What am I going to find back here?” I ask one more time, giving them an option for an out. Neither one of them give me an answer, so I open the trunk, and whistle loudly when I get a good look at what they were transporting.
It’s a trunk full of moonshine. Couple this with the rumors about what’s going inside the school? I call Havoc over, wishing I didn’t have to. I wish the person wasn’t preying on the innocent, I wish there were some way we could stop this for good, and I hope like hell these kids are smart enough to realize how dangerous this is. All we need is another kid to die, and it’ll tear a hole in this community as big as it’s ever seen.