#Los Angeles Police Department | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

gi-maeve-rose · 2 years

Text

Dark Matters

Chapter 4:

Shae left the food to simmer on the stovetop before joining the three men in the kitchen. Her dog and Nick seemed to be getting along perfectly, meanwhile Daryl was wandering the room, browsing her decor.

She joined Kandomere on the couch, sitting at the opposite end. Despite how great it was to see him, she couldn’t help but feel a bit of dread deep in her gut. To be fair, how they left off wasn’t the best, and she’d never planned on seeing him again. Crazy how life works, isn’t it?

“So, what happens if you find Nadia and Akila?” Shae dared to ask. She had a feeling there wouldn’t be much they could tell her, but with her work background with Kandomere, maybe he’d give just a bit.

He watched her silently, his frame unmoving but senses always on a swivel, but every one of those was focused on Shae, at the moment. Although it was easier to talk past the lump in his throat he’d felt since stepping into her place, he was still overtaken by her presence, as he always had been. When she placed herself at the opposite end of the couch, he suddenly felt the distance that had been between them for all this time- how had he gone so long without even speaking to her? He cleared his throat. “They’ll be charged and likely be imprisoned, but I can’t talk specifics if they receive harsher punishments,” he explained, meeting her eyes.

“What about the wand?”

Daryl’s body stiffened at the mention. He could say he trusted in Kandomere’s judgement enough to believe Shae wouldn’t be part of any Inferni business, but let’s be real. This man was more pessimistic than he’d ever been before, considering his newly found ability and last run in with Inferni. Daryl turned slightly, eyebrow raised as he looked between Shae and Kandomere. “What about it?”

”Wands are ancient weapons forged from the Dark Lord- only he can truly vanquish them. There has never been a method discovered that effectively destroys them, so we keep them in centers like the ones Nadia and Akila infiltrated,” Kandomere looked to Ward when he spoke. “For now, we can only keep them contained and away from the world as best as possible,” he exhaled, knowing full well how brittle of a solution that was, but it was realistically their only solution. Whatever evil may come knocking on the door, it was his job to keep that door locked.

Shae looked down at her hands, picking at her nails. As much as she hated being that person, she knew Kandomere wouldn’t come up with a plan for all possibilities. “What if it’s too late?” she asked, tone lowered.

That caught Nick’s attention, a pit of nerves forming in his gut. “What do you mean?”

”Girl, that fucking prick at the mercado was giving me a hard time again-“ The door swung open and in stepped a shorter woman with dark, straight hair to her chin and hazel eyes, paper bag full of food and booze in one arm and her sunglasses in the other, looking at each individual face.

“Oh.” She first took notice of the two officers in uniform. When the blue haired elf caught her eye though, the match was made in her head, realization dawning on her. “Oh. I’ve interrupted something,” she winced, looking at Shae apologetically.

His brows pulled together in mild annoyance at the human’s rude entrance. “Who is this?” Kandomere pointed to her, looking to Shae.

Shae dropped her head forward as she snorted a laugh. “This is Rita,” she introduced. “I told you about Rita before.” Shae stood, helping her friend with the groceries. “Rita, you remember Kandomere. And this is Officers Daryl award and Nick Jakoby. Remember the whole wand thing a couple years back?”

Daryl quickly stepped forward. “That was all just a rumor,” he added quickly.

Shae rolled her eyes. “Please, I was MTF for years, I know this works.”

”Oh, I definitely remember Kandomere.” Rita stuck her chin up a little, keeping her big eyes on his scowl until she’d passed. “Nice to meet you,” she nodded and smiled kindly at Ward as she passed, but upon moving closer to the tuskless Orc, she let her eyes linger on his kind face, taking in the way he timidly made himself known around the room. Her heart throbbed a little. “It’s nice to meet you,” she looked at his badge. “Officer Jakoby,” she grinned, following Shae away.

Nick’s eyes followed after Rita. “Uh… I, uh…” His words were lost to him, taken aback by her sweet demeanor.

Meanwhile Kandomere looked on in exasperation. “She knows?” he implored.

She sighed roughly. “Yes, she knows,” Shae confirmed. “She was the only one there for me when shit went down.” Not just the recent events of the past few years. in all fairness, that didn’t really involve Shae at all. No, Rita was there for Shae from the very start of her Bright revelation, ten, long years ago.

Ward looked between Shae, Rita, and Kandomere. “How much does she know?”

Shae crossed her arms over her chest, looking guilty. Even though she didn’t work for them anymore, it could still mean trouble. “She knows as much as I do,” she admitted, then looked to Kandomere. “All of it.”

Rita looked on calmly, silently unpacking the paper bag and placing the assorted snacks and drinks on the counter. It was really her fault this was an issue now; she’d made the decision to come over unannounced, but this was truly the last thing she expected to find sitting in her friend’s home when all she thought would come of this day was booze, gossip and too much food.

Kandomere looked at Rita, both of their steely glares meeting. Ah, yes- I remember this one, he recalled bitterly.

This wasn’t how things were supposed to be done, but his plan of action to keep the wand safe had been laid out like a drunk. Rules didn’t feel so important to follow when he was desperate to resolve the danger, which meant not taking this liability in and questioning her until she broke. She’d held the delicate information all this time with no incident, so for now, he had no real reason not to trust her.

His eyes shot to Shae. I can trust her judgement, at least.

“Fine. She can stay.” He paused to point at Rita. “You speak a word of this to anyone and I will lock you away from daylight for the remainder of your life,” he threatened.

Rita held her hands up. “I already pink swore to Shae that I wouldn’t tell anyone,” she grinned sarcastically.

Daryl ran his hand over his face, doing his damnedest to keep his frustration down. “Alright, so what now?” he asked impatiently. “We just get a search party going for those two crazy ass elves?”

“And what about what Shae said?” Nick added. “What if we’re too late?”

Kandomere paused, looking at all their faces when the grim question was brought up. “If he comes back, I don’t know what we could do to stop him,” he sighed, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. He knew that news would not sit well with them just as it didn’t with him, but keeping them in the dark that any efforts they made could be pointless didn’t sit right with him, either.

“But we may have a chance to prevent it from happening if you help us, Shae.” He looked to her again, his silver eyes pleading. “You two are the only Brights I have,” he realized the same moment he said it.

Rita’s brows lifted high in surprise, glancing at Shae as she poured them drinks. Too late? she thought to herself, her anxiety stirring under her calm exterior.

Shae nodded gently. “In my experience since knowing I was a Bright, I can feel some kind of... force, I guess, when Magic is used.” She glanced over to Daryl. “That’s how I know the Wand being a rumor was bullshit.”

Nick perked up considerably. “So, you have some kind of sixth sense?” Despite the absolute trauma and horror experienced in just one night with Leilah, he just couldn’t bring himself to think that Magic was anything but cool.

A humble shrug. “Something like that,” Shae confirmed.

”That exact sense of yours can help us locate where they might be collecting, but I’m sure they’re anticipating that. We’d have to be clever about this, if you’re willing to help us.”

Rita grinned when noticing Nick pipe up, sipping her drink and leaned against the counter. “What’s in it for Shae, though?” she asked, looking head on at Kandomere.

”That’s none of your business,” he replied coldly. It baffled him to think he wouldn’t compensate her for the tremendous danger ahead, but how selfish would he sound if he admitted a larger part of him wanted her to help just so he didn’t feel so alone in this matter? MTF never looked good from the outside, he realized that, but having someone he was once close with know the struggles from the inside eased some of the qualms in his heart.

Shae held up her hands, shaking her head. “I don’t need anything,” she assured. “I’m doing just fine.”

Define fine. Shae had gone from living in an Elf Town penthouse, working as a well-known, well-respected Magic Task Force agent and partnered with the only elf to ever catch her fancy, to working as a bartender and den mother at a local strip club.

Sure, she was doing fine, but it wasn’t what she expected for herself.

”Don’t be so humble, Shae,” Rita whispered under her breath at her friend, checking to make sure no one had heard her.

He rolled his eyes. Humans really are naive. “She’s right, you have every right to name your price,” Kandomere stubbornly agreed, annoyed that once again he’d been interrupted before he could say the same thing. “But you’ll help us?” he asked again. Please, please, please, Shae.

She didn’t hesitate to nod. “Of course, I will.”

All of this felt wrong to Daryl. This girl just happened to know the two elves that stole the wand, and she had no affiliation with them in this? It was too convenient, too easy.

Kandomere concealed his sigh of relief but felt it wash over him. “Thank you, Shae. And I’m sorry. I didn’t expect to be barging in like this,” he apologized, glancing down to adjust the sleeve of his coat. There was no denying he felt peace just being in her presence, that already he felt like this impossible mission of theirs might actually be possible.

“Honestly, it’s not a big deal,” Shae insisted, waving a hand dismissively. She glanced over toward the stove, doing a double take as she remembered the food was still simmering. “Ready to eat?” she asked, turning off the stovetop flames.

Nick sauntered over to the kitchen. “It smells great,” he complimented. “Need help setting the table?��

Shae smiled brightly. “I would appreciate that.”

Kandomere watched Shae, observing as she smiled and spoke to the Orc… He should’ve been the one to stand and offer help. Fool, you’re just sitting here, he belittled himself, crossing his legs in annoyance, tugging the end to his coat again. God forsaken fool.

Rita looked over her shoulder when Nick approached, slyly watching him from the corner of her eye when she leaned on the counter opposite to stand beside Shae. For a big thing like him he was awfully agile.

“When did he come back?” she whispered to Shae, her mouth hidden behind her cup as she silently observed the men around them. “Did he even call?!” she hissed a little heatedly, looking at her with curious eyes.

Shae sighed softly, shaking her head as she loaded up the plates with food. “Him and the officers came this morning to question me,” she told her friend. “Remember those girls I told you about? The ones I went to college with?” She felt uneasy, but continued when Rita nodded. “Apparently, they went Inferni,” she said bitterly. “When they’d asked me for help with a recent project, I’m guessing it was to help steal back the Wand from MTF archives.”

Her eyes grew wide. “Are you serious!?” Rita hissed, pausing as she came to better understand the gravity of the situation she’d stumbled into, and looked at Shae in wonder. How did she so willingly agree to help them? Without any hesitation?

“Are you sure you wanna get involved in this?” she asked Shae, taking a half step closer.

Kandomere couldn’t hear over the clattering of the plates being filled or the Orc setting the table, but the way her friend would glance back put him on edge, in addition fueling the urge to get up and try to walk over as nonchalantly as possible and place himself at the table to better hear, but every move he made felt stiff, and too thought out.

Shae paused when serving up the last plate, an almost far off stare in her eyes. “I know how this looks, Rita. I know it’s suspicious. Hell, Officer Ward has been giving me dirty looks all night.” A soft smile graced her features. “But, if I’m being honest, I missed doing this kind of work. I was a damn good agent. Things just couldn’t work. But just because I’m a Bright doesn’t mean I agree with any of this ‘raising the Dark Lord’ crap that the Inferni got in their heads.” She glanced back toward Kandomere at the table. “I want that as much as I wanted to never see him again,” she inadvertently thought out loud.

The moment her eyes met his he didn’t want her to pull away. There’s so much I want to talk to you about, he wanted to tell her. But now, was not that day. With her helping though, maybe it could come soon.

Rita nodded, understanding the longing she spoke of now the same way she did when she’d recall it other times, but also deeply understood the complexity of having Kandomere involved, and the emotions that must’ve come with it. “As long as you’re sure, I trust your judgement. I just want you to be okay.” She bumped her elbow against Shae’s.

The soft bump brought Shae back to reality. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t think about Kandomere often, especially now that he was back in her life. There was so much to tell him. Not now, she thought to herself, opting to smile instead as she brought plates to the table.

He stood with a low grunt, fixing his coat before approaching the table to find a seat. He watched the others move around, picking a chair to pull out as she placed the plates down. “So, how have things been?” Kandomere asked her, desperate to hear if she’d been as plagued with loneliness as he, but also hopeful to hear that she was thriving.

Rita came to meet Shae at the counter before the last two plates were delivered, gently stopping her hand. “Let me take these ones, yeah?” she whispered with a coy smile, gesturing over towards the Orc cop with mischief in her big eyes.

“They’ve been,” Shae answered Kandomere, just barely catching her friend’s subliminal message. Christ alive, Rita was into the orc. She chuckled quietly to herself, watching her friend take the plates and go make a move on Nick. “Titty bar down the way is picking up traction, so the money’s good. It’s been amazing nannying the neighborhood kids and watching them grow up. Honestly, it makes me want one of my own.”

Kandomere’s brows jumped in surprise at the mention of her wanting children, but did it really surprise him, being the way she was with everyone? Of course she would be a good mother. “That’s good, I’m glad to hear you’re doing well.” He gave her a small grin. “You haven’t had any trouble living here?”

Shae scrunched her nose. “Well, not anymore, at least.” She kept it very vague, not wanting to set off any alarms with anyone. “Everyone has been lovely nowadays.”

He twisted his utensil in his food, catching that small little detail. “’Anymore’?” he repeated in question, looking at her. His fist rested at the tables surface, clenched. What kind of harassment had she endured? The mere thought she had endured any at all was enough to anger him.

“It’s nothing. Everything’s fine now.”

Even more like Shae... No one was allowed to worry about her. She always believed there were bigger fish to fry, putting whatever she was going through on the bottom of everyone’s list. Kandomere nodded, looking down at his plate to take a bite. “it’s very good,” he grinned at her around his mouthful.

She hummed with a soft smile. “I remember how you like it.”

Kandomere smiled, a little bashfully. Nothing really had changed about her, had it? The kindness was still warm on her, the peace she emitted calming the wildest of his nerves that had been ringing since this all started. He wished he could stay in this bubble, without any of the dangerous obligations he’d have to return to.

Bu the more the two spoke, the more Daryl realized what their history was or might’ve been. And the more he realized that, the more he was uncomfortable with the situation. All of this could end very poorly for everyone.

Daryl approached Kandomere in the living after they’d all eaten, using the opportunity of Shae busying herself with cleanup and Nick speaking with Rita outside to voice his concerns. “You sure this is a good idea, man?” he questioned, eyes on Shae, voice low so she couldn’t hear him. “None of this seems any kind of wrong to you?”

The agent looked to the officer, turning slowly so his back was to Shae and pretending to be observing the room around them. “None of this feels right, but we don’t have the time to do this by the rules. She’s strong, she’s trustworthy, and you two together are our best shot against the Inferni,” he replied quietly, glancing over his shoulder to make sure their conversation had not been detected.

“How do we know she’s not part of that shit?” Daryl challenged. “Just take her word for it? You haven’t seen this girl in years, you don’t know what could’ve changed.” He wasn’t wrong. That could be a possibility, but then again, it just didn’t make any sense.

“Why would an elf that was Inferni willingly live in an orc neighborhood such as this? For cover? Inferni don’t do that, Officer. They do their business in broad daylight, I’m sure you remember,” Kandomere noted, looking at him critically.

Daryl scoffed. “Yeah, well, maybe after getting their asses handed to them by an orc and a human, they started taking some precautions.”

“There’s no denying that,” Kandomre half grinned. “But I truly think we’ll only benefit from having her on our side. She’s well versed in my side of the line and is- was an excellent agent.” It was almost painful to have to correct himself like that. “She also has insight you might find helpful.”

“Hey, hey, you got a lot of nerve thinking I’m gonna be doing any Magic shit,” he said lowly, holding a warning finger up to Kandomere. “I’m doing my job as a police officer. She can keep that Magic shit to herself, alright? I’m good.”

The small pool illuminated the dark damp room, surrounded by Inferni men and women, a low, harmonic chant echoing through. The light pulsed as their Magic grew stronger, their power coming together for one sole purpose. A form of water lifted from the pool, moulding and meshing into a humanoid form. Chants became louder, Magic became stronger. The water became solid, a body of a man forming inside before the water dripped off. Red, dark eyes opened. He was here. He was risen.

It was hard to not hear the conversation. They seemed to forget that elves have heightened senses, but she wasn’t going to make a scene of it. It sucked that Daryl didn’t trust her, but she didn’t blame him. She did, however, find solace that, even after all these years, Kandomere still trusted her. Shae’s thoughts were intruded by a sharp sting of something electric coursing through her body. She gasped sharply, falling to her knees and dropping dishes, shattering.

Just as he was about to respond to Ward’s dismissal, the sudden crashing of plates snapped his head in Shae’s direction, finding her on her knees in the kitchen. Panic flooded him, and he was at her side quicker than the flap of a hummingbird’s wing. “Shae!? Are you alright!?” he asked, mindful of the shattered plates but kneeling down before her to hold her shoulders.

She wasn’t the type to scare easily. Unsettle, maybe, but she was never known to fear anything.

But the look in her eyes as they met Kandomere’s, the way her body trembled. Full of terror. She knew this feeling on a much smaller scale, but this? This was big.

It was him.

It took a moment for Daryl to realize. “Shit...” he hissed, speeding toward the door for Nick.

Kandomere needn’t ask to know this look in her eye, and the chills it sent down his body were enough to make him want to run and not look back, but this was his disaster to handle. “He’s back, isn’t he?” he whispered, as if uttering the words would summon him to that very spot.

Tears filled her eyes, but she wouldn’t let them fall. Now was not the time to cry. She nodded, gripping his sleeves as she tried to stand shakily. “And he’s close.”

”Can you tell which direction he’s in?” he asked as he helped her stand, adrenaline rising in his veins and pulling his phone out, ready to make the call to Montehugh.

“I have no idea,” she said regrettably. “But I can feel his power.” Her arms wrapped around herself, finding whatever comfort she possibly could. “This is bad, Kandomere… We thought Leilah was a hard one when we were working on that case, but we’ve never encountered anything like this.”

He swallowed. Fuck, how had they succeeded so fast!? He’d been a fool to think they had time, and now realized he’d mishandled the time that was now up. “I need to make a call.” He withdrew his hand from Shae’s shoulder, lingering at her eyes before stepping away and dialing Montehugh.

Rita stormed in with Nick, their moment of content flipping on its head when Daryl summoned them. ”What’s going on? Are you okay?” she asked, taking Kandomere’s place at Shae’s side. She tried to read her, but that look on her face… she’d never seen that one before. “What happened?”

“They did it,” Nick answered before Shae could. “He’s back.”

Shae was lost in her own mind, everything else around her hardly comprehensible. She watched Kandomere walk away, eyes lingering. Why did it have to be like this? Everything that happened to date was just one big spiral that didn’t seem to have a bottom and nothing to grab onto. She’d already agreed to help, but now that it was all happening, she didn’t know what to do.

Kandomere stepped onto the balcony where Officer Jakoby and Callie once sat, a hand on his chest and struggling to even the panicked breaths he didn’t want the others to see. He pressed the phone to his ear and waited only briefly before Montehugh picked up, answering with a casual, “What’s up, boss?”

“I need all warehouses and abandoned structures within a 10 mile radius of my location swept for the Wand and any activity from Inferni,” he snapped, his eyes roaming the horizon of East LA.

He paused. “Y-you got it… what’s going on?” he asked hesitantly, but the tone of Kandomere��s voice only brought a great sense of dread.

He almost laughed. How do you deliver news that the entirety of the city- of the fucking world was under a catastrophic threat? How do you even comprehend that?! “We we’re too late, Ulysses,” he spoke forlornly, pulling his hand down his face. “They brought him back.”

Silence took the place of any words, because silence was all that occupied his mind. It wasn’t just that this was the worst case scenario, it was that all the hard work they’d done to prevent this had all been for nothing. It honestly left him kind of pissed off. “I’ll uh, I’ll get to those sweeps right now, Boss, he replied, ending the call.

Daryl huffed, staring daggers at Shae. “What a coincidence, right?” And he left it at that, leaving the apartment and going back to the car, ringing his wife on his cellphone.

Nick watched Daryl go, frustration building toward his partner’s attitude. “He doesn’t mean it, Shae,” he assured. “All of this Magic stuff has him on edge.”

Rita turned and scoffed in disgust at Ward’s sour words and sudden exit. “What an ass!” she yelled at his departure, looking back at Shae with brows arched in anger. “Don’t listen to that nonsense.”

She could only shake her head. Again, Shae didn’t blame Ward for his attitude toward her. Honestly it was expected, but she had bigger things to worry about. “I need a minute,” she croaked, breaking away from the two mindlessly walking off toward the bathroom down the hall.

Kandomere looked down at the phone after Montehugh ended the call, his hand dropping to his side and face lifting to take in a little of the sunshine warming his pale cheeks. He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. He needed moments of silence like this to retreat to when shit would eventually hit the fan. He turned to step inside, following Shae with his eyes when she exited the room.

Nick grumbled under his breath, rubbing a hand over his forehead before turning to Kandomere. “What now, boss?”

He stopped beside Jakoby. “For now, we wait to see what Montehugh’s sweep turns up. We don’t know where to start until we have something to go off of,” he explained, again looking in the direction Shae left, but then looking to the front door. “He left?” He asked Nick, his blue brows furrowing.

“Unless he’s walking home, no. Just stepped out.” He shook his head. “He’s not a fan of this. His cooperation with Shae is going to be rocky.”

”He has no choice but to cooperate.” Kandomere said through tight teeth, leaving Nick with a cold glare before following the direction Shae left in, and down the hall.

He quietly approached the only door that was closed in the hall, pausing before gently tapping his knuckles against the door. “Shae? Are you alright?” He called to her softly.

She was hunched over the sink, her head in her hands. You’d think her years of MTF training would’ve prepared her for this. Then again, it had been years longer that she was away from said job. “Yeah,” she called back, voice rough. “Yeah, I’m good.”

Ynshael… Shae jumped at the whispering voice, looking around the bathroom as if someone else was there. No one else was.

”Are you sure?” he asked, shifting to the other side of the door frame. “Listen... I know it’s been too long since we’ve spoke, but I’m still here for you if you need me. To talk, I mean.” Kandomere spoke sincerely, wanting nothing more to see her face when he told her, but the door remained shut. “Shae?”

She pressed her hands to her temples, taking deep breaths to calm herself. First the Inferni, now she’s hearing voices? Fuck this shit. Deep down, she regretted offering her help, but there was no going back.

Once she’d shaken the impending dread, Shae cleaned herself up a bit before heading toward the door. “I’m okay, I just-“ She gasped again as she opened the door, not expecting Kandomere to be so close. Her smaller body bumped into his, her hands grabbing his arms to regain stability. “Ay, Dios mío,” she breathed in a startled tone.

With a loud exhale, Rita reached for the bottle she’d brought with, pouring the cold drink to the brim of her glass. She felt like she should’ve called family to check up on them, but the lack of volcanos erupting and the ground not splitting beneath their feet gave her some reassurance that disaster hadn’t come so abruptly. “Want one?” She asked Nick, tilting her cup in his direction and her smile knocked down a few amps.

He shook his head, holding up his hands. “No, thank you. I don’t drink on the job.” Oh, sweet summer child.

She giggled. “Doesn’t seem to matter much at this point, but suit yourself, Officer,” she toasted at him with a grin, taking a few hearty sips of the drink. I’m not leaving this world sober if I can help it.

Nick chuckled softly at Rita’s banter, doing a double take toward the hall.

Kandomere hadn’t expected her to walk right into him, but that’s what he got for staring so intensely at the grain of the door while waiting for her. He grunted when she made impact, his hands flying up to hold under her elbows and look down at her. He blinked a few times; she was so close. He cleared his throat. “My apologies, I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said low, soothingly.

A soft blush dusted her cheeks when she realized how close they were. Not even when working together did they ever find themselves in each other’s arms like this, no matter how often she’d thought about it. “It’s… It’s okay, I, uh…” Her words trailed off as she looked up at him, eyes meeting. Christ alive, she’d forgotten how beautiful this man was. His sleek blue hair, the sharp cut of his jawline and cheekbones, the piercing stare that could intimidate the worst of criminals, but so comforting to Shae. She lost herself in him.

Rita furrowed her brows at the commotion from the hall, throwing back the last of her drink and burping lowly, her eyes narrowing. Are they…? She extended her neck in her struggle to listen to their low conversation in the hall, barely landing the booze in her cup as she poured another.

Kandomere was lost in her gaze, his climbing heart rate quickening his breaths, soaking in this intimate moment with her. His bones ached from her absence... How had he gone so long without taking in her beauty? His hand raised to push back a lock of hair against her cheek, swallowing when his fingertip grazed her warm skin. He just… couldn’t pull away.

The chance was right there. All she had to do was stand on her toes and their lips would lock. It was right there. Instead, she cleared her throat, taking a step back. “I’ll, uh…” She pointed to her bed room. “I’m going to get dressed. Then we can go… do things, or… whatever we need to do.”

Kandomere nodded, taking a step back to allow her passage. “We uh, I have men sweeping the area, so right now we’ll just be waiting to see if they find anything, but we can do that elsewhere,” he told her, blinking clarity back to his vision. “I don’t want to impose.” He exited the hall to leave her to change, walking through the kitchen and living room to the front door with his eyes downcast. He wanted to stop this ridiculous flutter in his gut when he thought of her joining them; now was not the time for these long dormant sensations, or the excitement when thinking of working side by side with her again.

His own hearing was good enough to hear the full conversation. “Maybe Shae should come with us,” Nick proposed. “If they reached out to her once, they may try to do it again. And I don’t think they’ll take no for an answer this time.”

He easily picked up Nick’s voice. “I’m sure you heard him,” Kandomere told her. “And he’s right,” he added. “If they decide to make another proposal in person this time. It’s best you’re not here alone.”

Rita’s brows furrowed, looking at Nick when he spoke. “Huh?” she asked, the conversation going on in the hall only muted murmurs to her human ears.

Nick nodded, turning to Rita. “We’re gonna take Shae with us,” he explained. “A busier neighborhood, somewhere we can keep closer eyes on her with more security.”

She threw back the rest of her drink, an eye pinched shut and her throat burning, a few little coughs following. “I suppose that’s my cue to get going,” she sighed light-heartedly, moving her hair off her shoulder. “Good thing I didn’t drive,” she giggled, gathering her purse and sunglasses that were sat on the counter beside her.

Nick took a bold step forward. “Why don’t you let us take you?” he offered. “It’s getting dark. You shouldn’t be walking alone.”

Inwardly, Rita’d hoped he’d offer a ride, and secretly, she was pretty stoked she had a few extra minutes worth of that ride with the cute cop she for some reason couldn’t stop herself from getting a little flustered over when his golden eyes fell on her. “Sure!” she piped, slipping her purse onto her shoulder a little wobbly.

His ears twitched as he smiled with a nod, walking over and propping his elbow out for her to take.

“Oh, que caballero,” Rita purred, her hand sliding into the crook of his elbow, slyly squeezing the muscle of his bicep.

He had no clue what she said, but he likes how it sounded. He lead her out to the car waiting in the parking lot.

Kandomere’s frown was of mild disgust watching Callie openly flirt with the Orc, his silver eyes rolling and crossing his arms over his chest as he continued to wait, staring at the entrance to the hall. He was impatient, but for what? To get going, or just be by her side and work again?

Shae took a while in her bedroom, getting dressed to properly go outside and packing a bag or two. Her mind reeled at the moment she shared with Kandomere. It was exactly what she’d always wanted, but why did it fill her with anxiety? She tried to push past the thoughts as best she could, slipping the bags on her shoulders and heading out of the room. She dawned a pair of ripped jeans and the same shirt, now covered by a leather jacket.

He looked to the hall again when he heard her steps. He repressed how widely he really wanted to smile. She looked good. “Let me help with those,” Kandomere approached, offering a hand for one.

A soft smile as she slipped one bag off her shoulder. “If they could both go in your car, I’d appreciate that,” she requested. “I actually have my own ride I’d like to take, if that’s okay.”

He eyed her curiously as he reached for her other bag, interested in what means of transportation she had. “Sure. And what about um… Titan?” he asked, looking down at the Corso.

She looked back at Titan who wagged his tail happily, then back to Kandomere, scrunching her nose with an apologetic smile. “Back seat?”

He looked down at the kind eyed beast, nodding stiffly after sharing a few quiet moments with the dog. “I hope he doesn’t puke in cars,” he mumbled, stretching an arm out to let the dog smell his hand.

Shae smiled wide as she watched Titan take to Kandomere so quickly, bumping his nose under his hand for head pats. “Just make sure he has a window seat. He’s a good dog, very smart.” She grabbed her keys from the hook by the door. “I’ll meet you out front,” she called back as she took off for her vehicle.

He nodded, turning towards the door with Titan and the bags in tow. “Now your mother has set high standards for you and that’s what I expect, good boy,” he spoke to the dog, opening the front door. “Please, stay close to us on the road… whatever method you’re taking,” he told Shae before stepping into the hall. He looked up and down; they must be at the cars already.

Nick helped Rita into the back seat, scooting in next to her, as Daryl already took the front passenger. Daryl looked back at the two, then forward toward Kandomere as he brought down bags and the dog. “Where’s Cortez?” he asked.

Kandomere walked beside the trunk of his car and pressed the button, the hatch popping up. “She said she’d ride separately,” he told him, moving to the side to let the dog in the car. “Good thing too, there’s no space left,” he grunted.

”Titan! Ven, ven hermoso!” Rita called cheerily, patting her lap to get the dog to jump in. “You like dogs, right?” she asked Nick.

He smiled wide. “I love them!” He joined Rita in giving Titan all the attention he deserved.

Daryl grunted in response, looking back out the window. He did a double take when a sleek, red Kawasaki motorcycle pulled toward them. “You gotta be kidding me,” he grumbled.

Shae pulled up next to the car, lifting up the visor on her helmet so her face was visible to Kandomere. “I’ll have somewhere to park this, right? Wherever you’re taking me?”

He looked out, slack jawed and staring at the rocket between her legs. “Yeah, yeah there’s parking,” he nodded, his line of sight bouncing up and down between her and the bike. “I have to take your friend home first though,” he gestured to the back seats and the fools ogling the dog.

She nodded understandingly. “No worries, as long as she knows where I’ll be staying.”

He nodded, turning the engine over to the sleek car and pulling onto the street. He looked in his rear view mirror, pressing the button for Titan’s window to lower so he could stick his head out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Art by: @margaritamamaaa

Send an ask/reblog to be on the taglist

Taglist (open):

@morphituu @faeylinn @nheirei

~~~~~~~~~~

I only post to Tumblr and AO3! Please do not repost my chapters to any other website unless i give you my written and explicit permission!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bright or any of the characters except for my OCs!

3 notes · View notes