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Loki was an undercover cop for the Benton Police Department.
Right now, he was in the middle of an undercover operation that made him grow his hair out, as well as look and act like an addict. He even used sterilized needles to break his skin at certain popular body parts that most junkies used to shoot up for authenticity.
He also looked shittier than I’d ever seen him look in my ten years of knowing the man.
Silas only waved as he went about working on his laptop, which he’d been doing for the entire time I’d been there, and would probably continue to do for the rest of the night.
I never asked what he did for a living, but I assumed it had something to do with the US Government. Maybe one of the ABC agencies.
Not that it mattered what he did.
Silas was a good man, and I’d follow him into the pits of hell.
“Where’s she live?” Loki asked as he mounted his bike.
I noticed that he no longer wore a helmet like he’d done before this job, and had to wonder why he’d made such a drastic change in something that was so ingrained that it became second nature; but I wasn’t sure I wanted to pry right now.
“The Eastland’s. She has a town house in the first complex.” I explained as I moved to my own bike.
The helmet that I normally wore slid on my head, and I got a faint whiff of Adeline, making me sad that I wouldn’t be smelling that anymore. I’d purchased Adeline her own helmet that morning.
Loki followed me to Adeline’s school where we both pulled up to the red fire lane before turning our bikes off.
School had let out over an hour ago, so we were alone in the parking lot, which was why Loki said what he said next.
“After this next assignment, I’m thinking about going nomad for a while. I can’t breathe here.” Loki said, surprising the shit out of me.
I looked over at him sharply, taking in his appearance, the bruises on his arms, scrapes on his fists, and finally, the way his clothes were starting to get loose. They weren’t fitting anywhere near how they used to.
Therefore, I said the only thing I could, knowing Loki was going to do what he wanted to do, no matter the consequences. “Do it.”
His head hung, as if having the support of another brother took some hidden weight off his shoulders and made him limp with relief.
“I met someone. She hates cops.” Loki admitted a few silent minutes later.
I leaned forward, resting on the gas tank and asked, “Why?”
Loki studied the brick facing on the schools outer walls and shrugged. “I should’ve never taken this job. I knew going into it that it’d be my last. I was tired of playing somebody else. The girl, Channing, lives next to my ‘house’ and looks at me as if I’m the scum of the earth. Scared shitless of me. Anyway, I have all the evidence on Varian Strong that I’m going to need and this case will be wrapped up by the weekend. I’m going to talk to Silas once it’s all done and probably take off after the run this weekend; they’re going to need me to stay gone until the trial. Might go visit my momma in Florida for a while.”
“You love her, don’t you?” Adeline’s sweet voice said from in front of us.
My eyes snapped forward, surprised to see Adeline standing in front of us. She had a bag over her shoulder, and the sweatshirt I’d let her borrow was tied around her waist, allowing the tattoos on her arms to be seen clearly.
And her face looked stricken.
For my brother.
Something about her being concerned for one of my brothers, my family, made a piece of my jaded heart start to burn. I didn’t know with what, yet, but I knew it was something important.
My brothers meant the world to me.
When my father kicked me out of the house, I’d joined the Army since I had no other options. I didn’t have anybody I could turn to; no close friends or family that might be able to help me. Over time, though, I’d made good friends and gained a family. Consequently, it was important to me that Adeline liked my family and that my family liked Adeline.
Loki shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. I’m not pursuing anything with her. She’s already made up her mind about me, and I have a feeling that finding out I’m a cop might make it even worse.”
“I think you’d do better giving her the benefit of the doubt. You don’t know what she’d do until you ask her.” Adeline said softly before handing her bag to me.
I stowed her bag and smiled when I saw her place a soothing hand on Loki’s shoulder before she came to me, gave me a soft kiss on the lips, and mounted the bike behind me.
