I’m spinning with confusion. I thought I could go on living without her and continuing my old life, but it’s harder than I thought. I keep going back to the night I met that woman. That night changed my life forever. Despite her being a criminal and completely lying to me, I can’t dispute the fact that she opened my eyes to a different life.

Before her, I was content, but I wasn’t living my life in the way that I truly wanted to. I was just floating by and waiting for the day I’d get my pension. Now, it’s like I’ve let the sun in my life in a certain kind of way. Whatever happens in the next few days, I can hold my head up high because I’m not taking this shit any longer. When this case is over and done with, I’ll be gone, travelling the world.

But I can’t go by myself. I just can’t.

When I get to the station the next day, I see a large duffle bag and a note near the door. Freddie walks up next to me and puts his hands on his hips. “What do you think it is?” he asks me.

I shrug. “I don’t know, but there’s a note.” I read the note aloud and Freddie just laughs.

“Why on earth would you return the money? You’re still guilty in a court of law,” he says.

“Some people just can’t live with the guilt,” I say. “Too bad you can’t turn back time.”

I think of Virginia again. She could be anywhere by now. “Where’s Adam?” I ask one of the guys.

“He said he was going down by the docks. He thinks he found something with the case. Something big,” he says.

“And you didn’t think to call me? You know that’s against protocol, right?” I ask him, pissed. He just shrugs. “Dammit!”

I walk out the door and my heart is racing. I get into one of the patrol cars and take off, heading south. There are only a few ports out of here, but she’ll choose the closest one. Still, it’s far away, forcing me to keep my eyes open to every car going in the opposite direction.

I’m going about 110 in the left lane, and I’m not stopping. My foot is slammed against the pedal. It’s make or break time. Am I going to get her out of this mess? There’s no way I can do it without it getting messy. What do I do? Beg Adam? No. Of course not. I’m going to have to turn on my partner. I’m going to have to come up with a plan.

* * *

I slowly pull up to the docks and get out, making sure I keep a low profile. After searching for 15 minutes, I come across Adam’s car. It’s parked and completely empty. I have some time, but probably not that much. My hope is that he didn’t call for backup.

I keep walking, toward the workers at the docks. There’s a small vendor selling some food and drinks. Nearby, I see her. And there’s Adam, talking to her. She looks nervous. No, she looks worse than nervous. She looks hopeless and sad. A sense of guilt starts to creep in my body. My Virginia. The love of my life. Vi… How could I let her down like this?

Maybe it’s for the best. Adam was onto her from the get go, it seems. Now, he’s got her where he’s always wanted her. He’s won his little game. He’ll get his promotion. I’ll get fired, no doubt. There’ll be an investigation. I won’t get charged. Cops don’t get charged. We get torn apart by the media. The city will despise me. Hell, I probably deserve it.

I deserve it all for being so blind to everything. But I don’t give a fuck anymore. I’m not here to play by the rules. I’m here to break them. I’m here to shake things up. I won’t be a pawn in Adam’s twisted game. I’m my own person, who happens to be in love with a known criminal. Fuck it. Sometimes that’s just how life is.

She makes a run for it and a chase ensues. She’s a damn good escape artist, but it’s obvious where she’s trying to go. Within minutes, she gets inside a cab. I’m hoping she doesn’t take off. If she does, the whole squad will go after her and it won’t be long before that driver stops for them.

I watch as Adam smashes the taxi window. He throws on the cuffs and pulls her out. “Hey,” I mutter to myself. “Don’t you dare fucking hurt her.”

I’m getting close. My hand is on my weapon. This is not who I am. This is against everything the department stands for. But Adam is getting rough with her. He slams her down across the pavement and places his knee across her back. “Stand down!” I hear him yell. “Stop resisting!”

She’s not resisting. She’s fully compliant, except for the fact that she’s writhing against his knee. It’s a normal reaction.

I can’t take this anymore. Sometimes cops don’t deliver true justice. When that happens, someone needs to take a stand. My career over there is done. Even if it wasn’t, I’m checked out. You want to know the honest truth? I want Virginia back. I want that feeling she gave me back. I want to feel the thrill of starting a new life with the woman I love. I love Vi. She’s the only good thing left in my life.

“Adam! Stand down!” I scream, getting close to him. He turns his head and immediately points his gun at me.

“Stay back, Marshall!” he yells. “This isn’t about you. This is about Virginia Greene.”

“I’m not here to hurt you,” I say. “Just put the gun down. We’ll figure this out together. We’re partners, remember?”

“You knew all along, didn’t you?” he asks, hurt. “You hid this from me since day one. We were never partners. Admit it. You always thought I was stupid.”

“I didn’t know until a few days ago. That’s the God honest truth,” I admit. “Adam, put the gun down!”

Virginia is on the concrete, hands bound behind her back. She’s looking straight at me with those beautiful eyes. Only, they’re full of tears, hurt, and pain. I never want to see her like that. I want to protect her, always. I failed this time, but I won’t ever again.

“Marshall, just let me go,” she pleads. “It’s over. I can’t run forever.”

“Vi,” I say. “I love you. I’m sorry about everything. I don’t care about the past. I just want a future with you.”

“Stay the fuck back!” Adam screams, shaking with anger. “Warren Marshall, you’re under arrest.”

“Fuck off,” I spit. I start walking forward without any fear. “Face me like a man.”

“I’m warning you,” he says. “Stay back.”

“What?” I laugh. “You’re going to shoot a cop?”

The bang comes as a huge shock. At first, I stand there in disbelief. My ears are ringing and the smoke from the barrel is looming all around me. “No!” Virginia screams.

I fall to the ground and Adam drops his gun. What he doesn’t know is that I’m wearing a heavy-duty artillery vest, straight from the swat team’s supply room. Still, the bullet knocked the fucking wind out of me. I struggle not to move erratically and give myself away, taking small breaths in. I’m not going to lie. It hurts like fucking hell and I’m pretty sure one of my ribs is cracked.

“Marshall.” Adam runs over to check my pulse. My hand is still fixed around my pistol. “You ain’t dead, right? Come on, man. Hang in there.”

I don’t say a word. He just keeps going on, trying to lay the blame on me. “You shouldn’t have come at me,” he says. “I would have never pulled the trigger.”

Around us, a crowd has started to form. Quickly, Adam checks for my pulse. Now’s my time to act. I throw up a leg and kick him in the jaw. I kick his gun away and hold my pistol, pointing it at his heart.

“I’m okay, Vi,” I say. “I’m getting you out of this mess.”

She’s not saying a word and I don’t have time to look her way.

“No fucking way,” Adam says. “No! This is my case. You can’t ruin this for me.”

“I need you to get on the ground. Put your hands behind your back,” I say. “If you don’t, I’m going to lodge this bullet directly into your groin. Got it?”

He falls to the ground and puts his hands behind his back. I cuff him quickly and keep my gun at him. “Vi!” I yell. “Can you walk?”

She gets up and comes toward me. I uncuff her and hug her quickly. “There’s no time,” she says. “I have to leave. I’m… I’m sorry for everything.”

“I’m coming with you,” I tell her. “I shouldn’t have ever let you go.”

“Marshall, you can’t. You have a life here,” she says. “I don’t deserve you.”

Adam tries getting back up, but I kick him back down on the ground. He groans in pain. “Look, I broke too many rules. I’m done with policing. I want an out. I want to be with the woman I love. Do you love me still?” I ask her. “It was all real, right? The emotions? The things you said to me?”

“I’ve never fallen so deeply in love with anyone before,” she says. “I made so many terrible decisions. If you want to be with me, you have to know that life won’t be easy for us. We’ll have to get new identities. We won’t be normal. We’ll be outcasts forever.”

“I don’t give a fuck what we are. As long as I’m with you, my life is complete,” I say. “So give me your hand and lets get the hell out of this place.”

She looks at me with a slight hesitance. Tears fall down her cheeks and she makes no attempt to brush them away. She grabs my hand and I pull her close to me. “My Virginia Slim,” I smile. Our lips crash together and all the goodness in the world floods into my heart. Her scent, her taste, and her touch all comes back with a familiarity.

I’ve missed this woman so fucking much. It doesn’t matter that we come from opposite sides of the spectrum. We’ve found our middle ground. We’ve decided to live our lives dedicated to our love.

Our lips slide away from each other’s and we open our eyes. In the distance, sirens can be heard. I look over at Adam, who’s looking up at us, dumbfounded.

“Traitor,” he says, shaking his head.

“I’d rather be a traitor than work with the likes of you,” I say.

“There’s no time for this. Let’s go!” she yells, running toward the leaving cargo boat. It begins pulling away from the dock. There’s no time to spare. This is it.

We both hop on at the last second and watch as we float away from the pier. Adam keeps his eyes fixed on me. I stare back at him, knowing this is going to be the big sensation on every news channel for the next year. The sirens are ringing out. Police cars are getting closer, but we’re already far away.

I’m a wanted man now, but I have love. I have her. Maybe this makes me crazy, but I’ve never wanted anything more. Never.