That's What You Get

Chapter Sixteen: The Edge of Holding On

The sound of children laughing echoed faintly through the hall, muffled by the closed door of the interview room. Dani sat at the small table across from a social worker, a thick file on Luca and Lincoln spread out between them. Her pen hovered above her notes, unmoving, as she stared through the words without reading them.

"Dani?" the social worker, Callie, prompted gently. "You were saying something about the foster history?"

Dani blinked hard and sat up straighter. "Right. Sorry. Um... their last placement was temporary. Short-term care. Two months." She flipped the page, pretending she hadn't just been staring at it for the last ten minutes.

Callie gave her a look, not unkind but cautious. "Are you okay? You seem... distracted."

Dani forced a smile, the kind she'd perfected over the last few years. "Just a long night."

She didn't elaborate. She couldn't. Not about the way Mikey had looked when she left his house, the desperation he hadn't spoken aloud. Not about the subtle dread she'd felt walking back into Patrick's arms later that night, or how the silence between them had pressed too tightly against her chest. And definitely not about the ache of being pulled between her job, her duty, and the quiet plea in Mikey's eyes she hadn't known how to answer.

"Do you want to reschedule this?" Callie asked gently. "We don't have to push it if today isn't-"

"No," Dani said too quickly. "No, Luca and Lincoln need this."

She didn't say it out loud, but in a way, she needed it too. She needed something to remind her that not all broken things stayed that way. That sometimes, with enough work and care, people could be pulled from the edge. She just didn't know if that applied to Mikey. Or to herself.

A knock at the door interrupted them. Another officer poked her head in. "Hey Dani, Skye's looking for you. Something about a review on the Archer case?"

Dani's chest tightened. "Tell her I'll be there in five."

Callie gathered the files, offering a sympathetic smile. "If you need to talk... I mean, off the record."

Dani nodded once. "Thanks. I'm good."

But as she walked toward Skye's office, her mind wandered back to Mikey again; how small he'd looked in his own home, how Pete had filled the space without even needing to raise his voice. And underneath it all, the same gnawing guilt.

Guilt screaming that she hadn't saved him.

Not yet.

Skye barely looked up as Dani stepped into her office, eyes glued to her screen. "Close the door, babes."

The click of it shutting behind her seemed louder than it should've been. Dani sat across from her, trying to sit up straighter, trying to channel professionalism despite the fog of exhaustion dragging at her limbs.

Skye finally looked at her. "You didn't file the supplemental on Archer's witness. You missed the check-in on that CPS contact. And now Reyes says you blanked in the middle of an interview."

Dani clenched her jaw. "I'm handling it."

"I'm not saying you're not," Skye said, her tone softening, "but you're not handling it like you. You've been off for weeks, and now you're shaking through half your shift."

Dani didn't realize her hands were trembling until Skye pointed it out. She ran a hand over her face before quickly folding them in her lap.

"I'm just tired," she lied.

Skye tilted her head, watching her too closely. "Tired doesn't explain the way you flinch when your phone buzzes. Or why you disappeared for half a day after your friend Mikey got that surprise visit from his ex."

Dani's breath caught.

Skye leaned forward, elbows on the desk. "I'm not accusing you of anything, Dani. I'm worried. Whatever's going on, you're in it deep."

"I can't talk about it," Dani said quietly, the words spilling like water through cracked glass.

"Can't, or won't?"

Silence stretched between them.

"I've covered for you because I trust you. You're my friend," Skye continued. "But I won't keep doing it if it means you're breaking apart while pretending you're fine."

Dani's eyes burned. "I'm trying to protect someone."

"And who's protecting you?"

That question hit her harder than she expected. Her throat tightened. Skye watched her for a long beat, then softened.

"Look," she said, "I know what it looks like when someone's running on empty and refusing to say why. You're trying to save someone else without drowning, but you're both going under. You want to talk? I'll listen. You want help? I'll back you. But don't lie to me and say you're okay."

Dani stood abruptly, afraid that if she stayed, she'd start crying.

"I need some air," she said.

Skye didn't stop her.

As Dani stepped into the hallway, the sounds of the station came rushing back in: radios squawking, boots on linoleum, the hum of ordinary chaos. But inside her, nothing felt ordinary.

She pulled her phone from her pocket. A message from Mikey sat unread, just his name lighting up the screen.

You okay?

She typed and erased a reply. Then typed again.

I'm trying. You?

The dots didn't appear.

Dani stepped back into her office, rubbing the tension from her neck as she closed the door softly behind her. Callie looked up from her side of the desk, concern flickering across her face when she saw Dani's expression.

"You okay?" Callie asked, voice low.

Dani nodded, but it was the kind of nod that meant no. "Skye just needed a minute," she said, setting the case file back down where she'd had it. "It's nothing."

Callie didn't believe her, but she didn't push either. She just waited as Dani settled into her seat again, flipping open the folder containing Luca and Lincoln's updated reports. Dani stared at the page without really reading it once more.

"They're not doing well, are they?" Callie asked after a long pause.

"Not really," Dani admitted. "Lincoln's been acting out again. Luca barely speaks during visits."

Callie tapped her pen lightly against the desk. "What are you thinking?"

Dani exhaled. "I'm thinking they need stability, and fast. But I don't know where we're supposed to find that, not with this many placements falling through."

Callie gave her a look. Not judgmental, just observant. "You and Patrick have been seeing the boys regularly. They know you. Trust you."

Dani hesitated. "That's different."

"Is it?"

The question hung in the air, heavier than it should've been. Dani looked down at her hands.

"I mean... I haven't thought about it. Not seriously," she said quietly. "Taking them in. That's a huge step."

Callie offered a careful smile. "It is. But you already care like it's your responsibility. Sometimes that's the first sign."

Dani didn't answer right away. Her mind was too full... of Mikey, of Pete, of the quiet wounds she'd been covering for too long. But Luca and Lincoln had burrowed into her heart in a way she hadn't expected.

And maybe giving them a home could be a reason to start imagining one for herself.