Frayed Edges

Pulling The Trigger

Jake never felt alone while dating Mia. Despite their busy schedules, their time apart was filled with constant texts and calls about their day or their plans for the evening. After a year alone, feeling as though he was sharing his life with someone was a welcome change. He couldn't get enough of hearing about her every waking thought, she absorbed his mind and then suddenly the texts stopped.

It was barely 8pm when the line went dead. He checked his phone incessantly for any update but was met with the cold empty glare of his lock screen. It was driving him crazy replaying every word he'd said leading up to the radio silence.

Have I done something wrong?

Nothing

Mia?

Silence

Tell me what's going on please.

Nothing but dead air. He was restless and his mind spun with thoughts of what might have happened.

Was he too clingy? Was she ghosting him? Is this her saying goodbye?

He went to Shaw's to give himself a distraction. He hoped that the double whiskeys he was downing might clear his mind of his darkening thoughts and replace them with happier scenarios. Instead he found himself dwelling even deeper on the burning thoughts filling his head. He swirled the glass and watched the ice cubes gently clink together, he couldn't stop wondering what she was doing.

Twisted thoughts of Mia with another guy entered his head, over and over again no matter how many times he tried to shake them. He did the only thing he could and quickly sank his drink before ordering another.

Was he too old for her? The thought had danced through his mind once or twice but he did his best to shut it down before he could dwell on it. Had she finally got sick of him and decided she was better off finding one of the countless younger, better looking guys that hit on her each and every night?

He had never been jealous before. Sure she was beautiful but he trusted her, didn't he? He had found solace in knowing that she had chosen him and that had always been enough but as his third or fourth drink slipped down his throat, he wasn't so sure anymore.

He felt his phone buzz in his pocket and almost let it fall from his grasp in his haste to answer. His heart sank when he saw Rosa's name flash across the screen and he sighed deeply before reluctantly answering.

"Rosa it's late and I'm not in the moo-"

She cut him off before he could finish.

"Jake it's urgent. My drug squad got wind of a huge deal happening at that club Mia works at"

Jake's blood ran cold. His stomach churned as he tried to process what he had heard.

"Why didn't you call me? I thought I was on this case?"

"You are but it all happened so fast, we only got intel a couple hours ago, you were already home and we had to act quickly."

A couple hours ago. His mind swirled as all the dark, twisted thoughts as to why Mia wasn't answering flooded his conscious mind.

"What happened? Is she hurt?" Surely that had to be why she was calling. If she knew she was fine she wouldn't have called this late, she would assume they were home, watching a movie, doing things couples are supposed to do.

"No but..." she paused, the space between her words felt like a dangerous valley that could swallow him whole "We found evidence of a huge drug ring, kilos of cocaine, ecstasy and a load of unaccounted cash... and when we found Mia..."