So it’s probably already been done but i’m wallowing deep in the Wish hook junkyard and this attacked me out of nowhere.
So I thought i’d share lol. Tagging @queen-mabs-revenge cos she’s mah Santiago.
Detective Rogers has a lot of things on his mind that he can’t explain.
He’s great at zoning out. He’s not sure if it’s something he’s learnt to do with the job or if he’s just always been a patient man, but it certainly comes in handy at times like this.
There’s an irritating fellow in front of him doing his best to order the most complicated of drinks, possibly only to get the satisfaction of making the barista’s life a misery. He seems the type of arrogant man that would sue the poor lad for getting the wrong texture of foam on his drink but… he doesn’t want to assume.
He stands with his arms meeting neatly behind his back, a firm and upright stance that resembles something out of the military. He’s not sure if it was something taught at the academy or if it again is just something that came naturally to him over the years.
As the arse in front who’s most certainly suffering from ‘little man syndrome’ continues to dictate to the young barista, he finds his gaze wandering aimlessly around the establishment.
Light wood chairs with the barest hint of fabric on the seat to make them at least appear comfortable to sit on. Plain walls with a mixture of painted stripes in shades of cream and brown he’s sure have names like ‘cream tea’, ‘hazelnut’ and ‘mocha’.
The display cooler is a mix of bottled sodas and plastic wrapped sandwiches that look both unappetising and stone cold. He’s sure they’ve been sitting there a while.
His eyes then land on the glass display that acts half as the service counter. An array of sweet treats litter the glowing glass container. Walnut cake, brownies, apple tarts, iced buns.
Iced buns.
He hasn’t seen one of those in-
“Daddy!” the little girl gushed, careful to keep her voice as quiet as possible but unable to hide the excitement exploding from her.
“There’s my girl.” he chuckled as he swept her up in his arms.
“You’ve something in your coat.”
He feigns confusion, playing the role of innocence to tease her. She’s her father’s double; always able to sniff out treasure when it’s nearby.
“I’ve no idea what you mean.”
“Dad.” she whined as she stuffed her hands into his coat.
He places her back on the ground and steps back.
“It can wait, but first, my little doubloon, tell me. Have you eaten today?”
“Aye.” she nodded. “I’ve had oatmeal.”
He’s relieved that they aren’t cruel enough to starve her in this wretched place.
“Then I guess you’ve no need for these.”
He pulls a cloth wrapped bundle from inside his coat and holds it out for her to take.
She wastes no time in unwrapping it to find two large iced buns, still soft and fresh from the bakery. His smile is bittersweet as he watches his daughter’s eyes light up at the mere sight of such a common delicacy.
He leans forward as if to tell her a huge secret to which she eagerly awaits his words.
“I’ve been told these also have a surprise inside.”
“Raisins?!”
“Raisins.” he nods.
She takes his hand and drags him to sit with her on her makeshift cot. His heart breaks as he watches her place the bundle of cakes between them and shares the two. He wonders how it’s possible he managed to be gifted such a selfless treasure as this angel before him, even in the most bleakest of situations she thinks of others.
“No, no, my love.” he gently protests, pushing the treat back to her. “They’re all for you.”
“Really?”
“Aye. Now don’t go making yourself poorly. And I promise you.” he vows, cupping her small rosy cheek in his palm. “When i’m able to take you with me, we’ll feast on all the cakes and roast dinners you wish for.”
Her beaming smile makes the pain worth it.
-he hasn’t see one in… well, he doesn’t remember really.
He’s pulled from his thoughts by a very stressed voice, fidning the irritating man has gone and the young lad is waiting for his order.
“Just a small black coffee please.” he smiles, watching the relief fall over the young man as he scribbles his drink onto the side of a cup.
“Excuse me?” he points to the display cabinet, unable to help himself. “Do those iced buns have raisins?”
They’re not his favourite cases to work but robberies are easy enough. They’re always the same. Forced entry, vandalised security cameras, and just enough bread crumbs left behind to lead him to the culprit.
Weaver is all too happy to take charge and question the meek old shop owner who’s apparently more useless than the pathetic cash register that’s been torn open with what he suspects was your average crowbar.
He listens to the man’s stuttered explanations as Weaver dishes out query upon query… he’s happy to browse the scene, searching for their first batch of bread crumbs.
Wires hand limp over the brightly lit shelving, now empty where majority of the electronics used to sit on display. It’s next to the rows of home furnishings such as throw rugs, cushions, ghastly ornaments that are a combination of the words LIVE, LAUGH, LOVE.
He gets to a small collection of decanters and ashtrays when he spots a beautiful dark wooden chessboard; a gorgeous set of marble pieces stand proud on their squares looking regal and inviting.
He picks up a dark marble piece that resembles a tower… he’s not even sure why he’s drawn to such a thing but he rolls it between his fingers all the same, observing the smooth surface-
“Checkmate!” she announces triumphantly.
He feels the surge of pride fill his chest at her win.
“You’re getting good at this.” he observes. “Quite the expert opponent.”
He sees her face drop at his words and worry replaces him.
“What’s wrong, little one?”
“I don’t want our games to stop, papa. If I become an expert, you won’t want to play anymore and I don’t want that.”
“Hey now. None of that.”
He gets an idea as to how to remove the glumness consuming her. He picks up his knight she’d defeated to win the game and places it in her palm, curling her hand around it.
“As long as you hold on to this.” he begins, turning back to the board to pick up her winning rook. “And as long as I hold onto this, we’ll have a piece of each other’s army. It means no matter what, we’ll always play.”
“You promise?”
“Aye, my darling.”
Her smile returns for a short blessed moment before a distant boom thunders throughout the room.
“I have to go.” he informs her, sorrow filling his heart.
She surges forward and grips his hook, staring up at him with large eyes, boring into his very soul.
“You’ll come back tomorrow? Please come back tomorrow.”
“You have my knight?”
She nods and holds it out for him to see.
“Than i’ll be back, darling.” he assures her, kissing the top of her head. “I promise.”
It tears him apart as he makes his way to the door, watching her clutch the marble steed to her chest.
“Fan of chess, are we?”
He spins to find Weaver watching him with that judgemental glare he can never get a read on.
“I erm… I wouldn’t know.” he mumbles, somewhat embarrassed. “Never played.”
He places the chess piece back on the display and turns to his partner.
“Game of logic, chess. Always have to be one step ahead.”
Weaver’s words always have a cryptic tone to them which irritates him beyond belief but he remains silent.
“We’re done here.” he informs him, not even bothering to see if he’s following.
He follows.
Research can be calming. He’s in the comfort of the bullpen, coffee just in reach, and not stuck out in the cold questioning reluctant civilians. The only downside is it can be mind numbingly boring at times. He sometimes finds his mind wanders when the search takes its time.
Today is one of those days.
He’s scouring Ebay for specific stolen jewellery items matching the photographs in the file beside him. It’s time consuming but they have to cover all their options. It’s been known to work in his favour a surprising amount of times.
He’s all but ready to whizz the mouse up and down the page until the screen becomes a blur, when an image catches his attention.
They don’t match the stolen items, not by a long shot but he clicks the advertisement anyway, bringing up a larger image of what’s caught his eye.
A simple pair of ladies gold drop earrings with some sort of gold discs that dangle down. He’s no idea why they seem familiar… he’s mentally going through old open cases, wondering where he’s seen them before-
She stands on his feet, holds his hook in one hand and braces herself on his right arm with the other, struggling to keep upright as she giggles uncontrollably. He waltzes her around the room, humming a tune and holding her firmly as not to let her fall.
These are the moments he loves most. The sadness that lingers behind her too youthful eyes is completely vanquished and all he can see- can feel, is her joy.
Her laugh encourages him and he vows to spend an eternity making that heavenly sound escape her.
He slows them to a stop when he finally fatigues and lets her hop off his feet as he catches his breath.
She nestles into his side on the small cot as he pulls out a small velvet box.
“Your gift.”
“Another?” she asks in surprise.
“You can never have too many.” he balks.
She opens it to find a set of small gold doubloons nestled on a cushion of silk, both discs with an earring attachment looped through a hole at the top.
“Many years ago, before you were even a twinkle in this pirate’s eye.” he explains. “I ventured to a place called Agrabah. I found many treasures in that exotic realm and among them, these two doubloons remained.”
“But dad, my ears are not pierced.” she worries.
“Not yet.” he insists. “These are a promise, my little cherub. Soon we’ll be free, and you can pierce your ears, become the proper little pirate warrior I know you’ll be.” he tells her as he brushes her hair idly with his hand. “And once we are, we’ll be home on the Jolly Roger. I’ll teach you to captain and we can waltz under the stars… the world will be at our fingertips.”
“And we can go to Agrabah?”
“Wherever you wish to go.”
“I can’t wait.” she mutters wistfully as she wraps herself around his neck, nestling her head further under his stubbly chin and holding on as if he would disappear if she let go. “This has been the best birthday.”
“Nonsense.” he scoffs. “They’ll only get better. Believe me.”
And as he pulls her tighter to him, he hopes and prays she does believe in him, because once he finds a way to free her from this hell, he’s got the world ready to give her.
His tiny little sparkle that lights up his life.
A crude snort has him turning to find Officer Morden leaning over him.
“Keep dreaming, eagle scout. Not on your salary.”
It’s only when he spies the asking price on the earrings that had enchanted him does he realise what the other man is talking about.
He closes the tab and goes back to his search, hoping he’d leave.
“I’m kind of surprised, a lot of us were betting on you batting for the other team.” Morden continues. “So who is she?”
“Excuse me?”
“The broad who’s legs you’re hoping to get between with those things.”
He keeps his temper from flaring barely as he holds up the file he’s working, and shakes it at the vile officer.
“No one. I’m searching for these.”
The man just shrugs at him and waddles off after muttering about it being a shame as he seems to need a good lay.
He knows the fellow officer is probably on his way to inform the others and have a good laugh about the ‘one handed boy scout with a badge’, but he’d given up caring what they thought of him long ago.
He reaches for his cup to find it empty and it puts him on his last nerve. He can feel the tension forming a migraine behind his eyes and it’s the last thing he needs right now.
He’s tired, frustrated… and is sick of losing himself in things that have no meaning to him whatsoever.
Maybe he should look into taking some of that holiday time he’s saved up finally.
A break away might be just what he needs.
Clear his head.
Get away for a while where the likes of Weaver and Morden and countless horrid crimes can’t follow.
He’s suddenly hit with flashes of that little girl’s mugshot, the bold red letters ‘MISSING’ jumping off the page and the countless dead ends that haunt him daily....
And he remembers why he can’t walk away.
He can’t take time for himself.
Somewhere out there that little girl needs him.
She’s waiting for him to find her and he can’t give up until he does.
