Commissioned [completed]

Chapter 17 - Really should have just called acab

Moonlight shone on you through the cabin window. Reality seemed to snap back all at once. You were in the back of a cop car. You don't remember speaking, don't remember getting in. You shook yourself. You felt your shirt in your arms and saw the remains, the ashes, and Sodo's mask. You had never got around to seeing his face. You swallowed. You felt for your phone and frowned when you couldn't find it, the daggers too; when had you let go of them?

"Hey, sorry, have you seen my phone?" You asked and felt the salt of tears dry on your face.

"Phone? You didn't have one with you, did you?" Brennan asked, sitting alone in the driver's seat. A cage separated the two of you—it seemed bizarre to you at the time.

"I.. I thought I called you," you frowned. "Sorry, may I use yours?"

"Can you wait until we get to the station?"

"Oh, I thought we were going to the church."

"No, you agreed to go to the station with me, so we can get you checked out."

"Oh, right... I don't really remember." You ran an ashy hand through your hair. "Do you mind taking me to the church instead?"

"I told you to say away from them, you know?"

"Yeah, but free will, stupid decisions," you laughed. "Please." You didn't think Terzo would ever let anything happen to Sodo—that didn't seem to compute.

"After the station, we'll talk about the church after the station."

"No," you shook your head, "sorry, I should have really called a cab; I don't know what I was thinking."

"You were in shock; you said your friend may be dead, and you've been stabbed."

"Friend... I don't think.." you would not have told him that. "Sorry.." you looked at the dash in front. "Is..." your stomach dropped. That was your phone on the dash. He had lied to you. You discreetly tried the door only to find it locked. You squinted around in the dark to recognise the scenery. "I-I think I'm going to wet myself..." you said suddenly and felt your bra.

"Oh, shit, I'll pull over at the next stop."

"I can't wait."

"Really?!" His voice raised.

"Sorry."

"Fine, I'm going to pull over." He put his blinker on and slowly coasted to a stop. He let you out and into a forest.

"Thanks, sorry, and thanks for all this," you said, hugging Sodo close. You stepped far enough away into the forest to look busy with yourself. You found a stream and followed it—the water ran clean. You tentatively put Sodo on a nice mossy rock. The ghoul mask seemed to accuse you; you imagined his green eyes behind it. 'Would it be so bad for there to be—people like me in your worldview, ______?'

"I'm sorry," you said softly, a fresh crop of tears beginning to stream down your chin. You washed your hands and face in the running water. The shock of cold woke your senses.

You had a detective lying to you and didn't recognise your surroundings, but you did know the cop station was in the middle of town. This place didn't look built up in the least. What was his game?

You also had a waning vial of ghost pepper. If you were going to do something with it, you couldn't miss. You turned to Sodo again, "And what would you do? ..Asshole?" you wiped at your face again. "You'd probably steal the car, right? And how, Sodo?" Clearly, he'd go in cocksure, spit in the guy's face and give it everything. You watched the stream. You couldn't miss.

"Are you feeling any better?" Brennan had his arms crossed as he leaned against his vehicle.

You kept your head down, cheeks puffed out, eyes watering.

When you didn't respond, he grabbed your sewn shoulder, and it took everything in you not to cry out. "Hey, are you okay? You look a little red?"

And you spat in his face, right in his eyes, then riled back an arm and punched him.

There was a surprised inhale after the spit. Then a scream with the realisation of you spitting actual acid in his eyes, finally an, 'ooft', of getting punched in the nose.

You were okay with spicy food, not that spicy though; ghost pepper fucking sucked. Your nose ran with it. You imagined it sucked way worse in the eyes. You shoved the detective away to reach the car door but found it locked.

You had to be feral; you had to be like Sodo. You placed his remains on the car's hood, and as the detective still screamed bloody murder, you kicked him.

"Keys, asshole, where are the keys? And who the fuck do you think you are abducting me? Vile piece of shit." The anger you let him have wasn't entirely sparked by him alone. Someone killed Sodo. He was dead. You kept wailing on him even when you thought he was trying to talk. "Where are the motherfucking key?"

"P-pocket, I can't let you go... no.." he was still screaming, eyes scrunched.

"Too fucking bad; who is it? Who? Is it Sister Imperator? Papa?" Felt like a betrayal to even suggest Papa. You rifled through his pants, and that's when he finally thought to fight back. He pushed you off blindly, and you got a boot to the cheek. You fell back and nursed your cheek. You caught a glimpse of Sodo's mask as if he was jeering at you.

"Our people have nothing to do with that lot. We are righteous..." he crawled to his knees and tried to pull you underneath him.

"Get fucked," you returned the favour kicking his blind ass in the face. His head cracked backwards, and he stopped moving. "Fuuuckkk... I.. didn't; you're not dead...." you peered at Sodo's mask as if he could confirm. You knelt and felt the breathing coming from the detective. "Fuuuuuckk..." you sighed with relief.

"I'm not going to finish the job," you scowled at Sodo as if he had suggested it, "I don't care who he works for. And stop saying you have a boner." You laughed, but it was painful and turned into a sob.

You rifled through Detective Brennan's belt and found one of the daggers from before. You searched further and came across the keys. He had nothing much else on him but a bible. Seemed like a regular pocket bible; you pocketed it anyway, just in case it was filled with bullshit about kidnapping painters just trying to do their fucking job.

You gathered Sodo up and placed him neatly in the passenger's seat before slamming the door on your side and starting the engine again. You grabbed your phone from the dash but could not locate the second blade.

"I'm not going to run him over," you looked at Sodo and then at the collapsed man on the side of the road. "But it is a good idea not to take this car all the way to the Temple; that could be pretty suss," you lamented.

"Scenic route?... huh, you only live once, I suppose," you sobbed.