𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗔𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗔𝗦 𝗪𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗥 ⚔︎

24

ashkenazy and agent rye brought eddie to the 13th precinct in central manhattan, where he was held in custody. after three hours, he was granted a phone call.

a police officer came and knocked loudly on the bars of eddie's holding cell, garnering his attention. he was a short, mean-looking man with a wiry face and ears far too big for his head. eddie was sat on a little bench inside, anxiously bouncing his leg up and down, waiting for the time to pass. he was still in cuffs — his wrists were beginning to throb from how tight they were.

"how you doin', mr lavigne," the officer said, subtly tipping his hat. "guess what."

eddie looked up at him through the metal bars, an exhausted expression on his face. "what?"

"you've got a phone call," he answered, unlatching a key from the big ring of them he had attached to his belt. he put it through the lock and stopped. "you wanna come answer it?"

eddie stood up. "yep."

linking their arms together, the officer lead him over to the phone booths at the other side of the station, past the filing cabinets and the desks where other officers were sat doing paperwork and interviews. he uncuffed eddie and stood directly opposite him, his fingers tucked into his belt loops as he watched the don.

eddie blinked at him. "what, i ain't gonna get a little privacy?"

the officer shook his head. "i'm afraid not, mr lavigne. gotta make sure you don't go runnin' off."

eddie scoffed and raised his brows. "seriously?"

the officer shrugged. "seriously."

eddie sighed and picked up the phone, eager to find out who had called him. "hello?"

it was chantelle. "dad, it's me," she said, voice filled with worry. "why'd you get arrested? are you okay?"

"yes, i'm fine," eddie said. "don't worry, i'll be outta here in no time. where are you? are you with anybody?"

"i'm at my house. sal's here with me."

"okay, good," eddie said, looking skeptically around the police station. "hey, could you put him on the phone please?"

soon enough, sal came to the phone. "i can't believe this shit," he said gruffly. "they got no right to lock you up like this, ed!"

"tell me about it," eddie tutted. "they've had me in for three fuckin' hours. do the guys know i'm here?"

"yep. i called mike and benny, i called giovanni, and i called jesse," sal said. "they got any dirt on you yet or what?"

"no, they don't," eddie said, lowering his voice and casting a glance at the officer still loitering behind him. "the fuckin' chief's pulling me in for an interview at three o'clock. can you believe that?"

sal laughed sarcastically. "well then— be a good boy and tell 'em the truth."

"trust me, i will."

the interrogation room that eddie was escorted to later on was small and square, altogether measuring nine by nine feet. on one end of the room, there was a big two-way mirror, and on the other, a heavy, metal-bolted door with a detachable grate at eye level. it was artificially lit by harsh, silvery-white lights from above, the floor bare concrete, and the walls an unflattering shade of dark grey. in the centre of the room, there was a metal table with two seats sat opposite each other. eddie sat slouched in one of said chairs with his head lolled back, staring up at the ceiling like a bored schoolboy. his hands were still cuffed and laying flat on the scratched surface in front of him. he tapped his short nails in an impatient manner, letting out a huff of air from his mouth.