Shades of Sins (New York Sinner Series Book 2)

10| Missing

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Missing

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Chapter 10: Missing (Dante's POV)

Within a few hours of investigating together, both of us had reached our limit and could no longer tolerate one another. We couldn't agree on a single thing, and everything started to go off the rails once we started arguing in front of the officers and giving them different directions. 

Someone at the scene had called Marshall without informing us, and when he walked into the gallery and saw us arguing, he decided enough was enough. "Stop it, both of you!" he said sternly. 

"I'm not the one who started it," Anastasia said, staring at me. 

"No, but you've certainly decided to be the one to finish it, haven't you?" I asked, lifting a brow as I looked down at her. 

"Neither one of you will be starting or finishing the rest of this case if you continue," Marshall warned. 

My hands flexed into and out of fists at my sides until I pocketed them for good and let out a breath, taking a step away from Anastasia, suddenly very aware of the mere inches that were keeping us apart. In the heat of the moment and the anger surging through us, we hadn't noticed how close we had gotten. 

Huffing, she ran a hand through her hair, tugging it out of the bun it was in, and spun around, pacing back and forth for a moment. 

"If the two of you want to work on this case, then you better stop acting like children. An officer had to call me here because you two wouldn't stop going at each other. Do you hear how ridiculous that is?" Marshall stared at the two of us in disbelief. 

I turned to him. "It's impossible for two people who are working together to agree on everything, Marshall. But at times like this, people compromise and meet somewhere in the middle. Someone here clearly doesn't want to." I glanced at Anastasia. 

"Someone here," Anastasia said mockingly, glaring at me, "is being far too unreasonable. For a case like this, one can't jump to conclusions. We have to be thorough, and if he won't let me, I'll do it myself." 

"This is not a case you're solving yourself, Anastasia," Marshall told her. He then turned to me, "And this is not a case you can wrap up within a few days by cruising through the rest of it." 

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and remained silent. 

"I know you like working on your own, not being told what to do," he said to Anastasia. "And I know you're known for solving cases quickly and efficiently," he said to me. "But this is not child's play. Don't get overconfident in your abilities, Dante. And don't be so stubborn, Anastasia. If you two continue like this, neither one of you will work on this case. I won't repeat it again, so have I made myself clear?" 

Silence. 

"Have I made myself clear?" he asked, louder now.

"Yes," we muttered in sync, glaring at one another. 

"That's enough for today," he announced. "Both of you, come back to the office right now. If there's more to cover here, come back tomorrow. For now, start on the paperwork for this case."