Endless

Progress on the Case | Nick

I opened my third pack for the day and put a cigarette into my mouth. For about the millionth time, my attention slipped to the clock mounted above Romano's desk. Almost time. I hated the thought of what I might find at Ryan's apartment. What had I been thinking? I should have shot him up twice. Made sure he couldn't even stand.

Shit. I lit the cigarette, frowning at myself. If I'd overdosed him more than I had, Aleria would have been completely defenseless. Before, she would have been able to take care of herself no problem. Now...we just didn't know. Maybe she'd remember her fighting skills, but I couldn't depend on it.

Romano lifted an eyebrow at me. "In a hurry?"

I forced myself to lean back in my chair and smoke. "No, just bored."

"Good. I was hoping for that drink."

Inside, my control strained, on the edge of snapping. I wanted to find her, know where she was, that she was okay. But it would be a stupid thing to do. The Firm killed rogues the moment they found us.

I couldn't call, either. There was no way I could explain to Romano if he figured out that I was in contact with someone who was supposed to be dead. Romano would see my hiding the fact that Ryan had faked the primary witness's death as obstruction of justice. Or maybe not, since she couldn't remember. Except he'd think she could, because why else would we go through so much trouble to hide her?

He couldn't ever know the truth.

"Yo Parker. You still with me, man?"

I frowned, running my fingers over the old Carnevale mask I always kept on my desk. "I have a date tonight."

Romano's expression eased up. "She hot?"

In more ways than one. "Yeah." My attention wandered back to the clock.

"What time are you seeing her?"

"I'm meeting her as soon as I leave."

Romano smiled. "Well then, pretty boy, get going. I'll cover for you."

"You sure?"

"Of course I'm sure, partner. I owe you a few favors."

"But the case..."

His smile faded. "It's pretty much one big dead end. No one in the task force is getting anywhere. I'll call you if something develops."

"Thanks, man." I shut down my computer and put my desk into something resembling order.

"Sure. Maybe if this one sticks we can go on a double date. Carla loves them."

"We'll see," I hedged. "Don't hesitate to call."

"I won't."

I dropped my pack of cigarettes into my pocket and grabbed my keys. Outside our office was the usual chaos of the bullpen. Phones rang and people talked, yelled and whispered. I only just reached the lift when my own cell phone rang. I took it out holding my breath. Romano. My breath whooshed out and I returned to our office, where I found him pacing like a madman, eyes bugging at the file gripped in his hands.

"New development?" I asked, and he stopped.

He looked up at me, completely bewildered. "All the witnesses said the two terrorists stood by the cockpit, right? They definitely would have been wounded as badly as Ms. Tyson or worse, right?"

"Right." Save for the fact that Ryan had forged her files. I frowned. Why was Dean questioning common sense?

"Right." He resumed his pacing, flicking his way through the pages. "Then how did they walk away from the crash and hijack a car?"

I reeled as if Romano had clipped my head with a heavy club. "What?"

Romano took out two composite pictures, then turned his computer screen to reveal two photos. They belonged to the two terrorists the task team had identified by process of elimination.

The terrorists had walked away from the crash. My stomach dropped to the floor. Immortals. Given Aleria's fight with them, I wagered they were griffons. Now I wanted to throw up. This would draw everyone's attention. The Firm would know about this by tomorrow. They'd start cleaning up, and I didn't want to be connected to the case when they did. But damn it, I didn't want to quit. I didn't want to lie to Romano, either, but I couldn't explain the truth about our existence. This was a nightmare.

I needed to talk to Ryan, but first, I needed to calm Romano down. "Weird," I said, frowning. "We can't let this leak out. The press would have a field day."

Romano nodded and went to his computer. "They'd make it into something from a horror movie."

Which it pretty much was. "Exactly."

I waited for him to type the instructions. "Do you have the BOLO out for the car?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. I think I want that drink you offered after all."

Romano ran his hand down his face. "What about your date?"

"She'll just have to understand." I'd have to find a way to call Ryan. "Come on. There's nothing we can do until someone finds the car."

"Right. Right." We headed out. "Nick." He waited for me to look at him. "This isn't possible, is it?"

Those two griffs had to be in pretty bad shape. Even though we were powerful, our regeneration didn't kick in as fast as a phoenix's did. But it was possible.

I stopped, frowning. That was why they picked that particular flight. They had to know Aleria was on it. They wanted to use her to regen and walk off unscathed. And draw the whole human world's attention with it. Oh... fuck.

"Nick?"

I shook myself out of it. "No. No, it isn't." Not if I had any say about it.

Do tell. What do you think about this twist? Let me know how you like the story so far. And if you liked this section, please don't forget to vote.