Paint the town red

Chapter LIII

It's been six months since Max was arrested, but my life hasn't changed that much. I wanted to leave the police after the trial, but Frederick literally forbade me to do so. Instead, he sent me on a leave of absence for a period that I myself would need. Of course, he wouldn't even listen to my objections, so I had to agree to that. But I even thank Fred for that, because if I left the police, then God knows what I would do, and as everyone knows, because of the abundance of free time many people start to engage in all sorts of heresy. What if I was one of them?

At first it was so hard for me that I practically didn't get out of bed and refused to eat, but the neighbor still forced me to eat, at least at a minimum. I slept most of the time, and when I woke up, I just stared aimlessly at either the ceiling or the wall. And yes, I still need to change the ceiling tiles, because I'm already bored with this one.

While I was lying in bed, I often remembered our conversation with Max, when I casually mentioned that I'd like to solve some high-profile case. But could I have thought then that he would be the one to help me with this? Someone who commits crimes that will make my name known to everyone in town, and the press will literally barge into my office and pick me up on the street? Be careful what you wish for, yeah?

I stayed in Monaco with Yuki under the same roof. The idea of moving often flashed through my mind, but the reluctance to stay alone still outweighed, and I was too used to this kitchen ninja to give it up. So we both lived together, and we continue to live together.

Yuki's career is going uphill, and he has recently become not just a beginner in the kitchen at an elite restaurant, but the right hand of the head chef. I was proud of his achievements, as if I had really become his older brother during this time. After the trial, Pierre's family contacted him and they decided to keep in touch, because since Pierre cared about him, so they wanted to know him better too.

I am immensely grateful to Yuki for helping me get out of the state into which I drove myself with my self-flagellation and longing for Max. He spent all his free time with me, although he wasn't obliged to do it at all and I didn't ask him to do it. He just saw how bad I was, and he was afraid that if he left me at such a time, it would hardly end in something good. By the way, it was Yuki who persuaded me to tell my family about everything, because they still didn't know how the case ended and... and didn't know certain details.

It was difficult for me to decide to call my family, but Yuki supported and encouraged me all the time, so one day I called my family and told them everything. I didn't hide anything, and my story was more like some kind of confession, but I have to admit that when I told everything, it seemed to make me feel a little better. I was frankly afraid to hear what my family would say about everything that happened, but I breathed a sigh of relief when none of them condemned me and didn't scold me like a little child. The brothers immediately offered to come to support and help in any way they could, but I refused, and said that I'd come to them myself when I was mentally ready for it. They, like my mother, promised to be there for me and support me at all costs. We agreed to call each other more often and soon ended our almost two-hour conversation. After telling my family about everything, I felt a little better, because I'd rather tell them everything myself than they'd read gossip in very dubious newspapers.

While I was on a forced leave, Liam, along with Esteban and Logan, often came to visit me. They came both to check on me and to tell me about everything that was happening at the station. In fact, little has changed: everyone worked as always, we didn't have high-profile cases, and Frederick personally supervised my office. He kept it tidy, made sure that it was cleaned in the same way as the others, and that none of the other employees even thought of taking my place while I was away.

"I'm surprised you didn't snap and take a shot at the bottle because of the whole thing."

"I just know that if I do that, I'll do things that I'll definitely end up next door to Ma...."