Partners

16.

I slept on the couch that night, and woke up with a stiff neck. I groaned and stretched my limbs as I got up. Shitty night. I turned to bedroom and saw Elyssa still in bed. Good, at least she hasn't run away.

I got back into my assignments and worked until I heard shuffling from my room. Elyssa groaned and I went in to see what was going on. She was awake now, and was frantically looking around, when she saw me, I saw her shoulders relax. We looked at each other for few moments before Elyssa cleared her throat.

"My concussion is gone, thanks to you. Now I have to get back to those assholes for jumping on me like that." She got up from bed, then stumbled back for few steps, groaned and dropped herself on the bed again. "Fucking head won't stop fucking spinning." She mumbled. I chuckled as I approached her.

"I don't think you can fight anyone for few days." I sat down next to her. Elyssa didn't say anything. "Also, if you try to run away again, I swear I am going to give you a stronger concussion." I added to which she chuckled.

"Fair enough. I do have some explaining to do." Elyssa said and I nodded. I expected her to start talking, but she didn't. she was looking at the distance, probably zoned out.

I sighed and was about to get up when she spoke. "I wanted to keep you safe." I turned to her but she was still looking at the ground. "The man that I met, the one that you helped me take down, was supposed to be a part of peace offering. He didn't bring the money, and it turned out to be a trap, for me. You got into the thing and both sides saw him die."

"Dawn wanted revenge, they thought I killed the guy, leaders of my gang pinned everything on you to keep me safe. They were supposed to hand you over few days ago." Elyssa stopped, giving me some time to put everything together.

"That day in the headquarters building." I said and she nodded. "I didn't know about it until it was too late and you were already in there. Luckily you got out on your own. I met with Dawn and tried to clear things up, offering payment for your safety, but I guess that didn't work, considering they blew up your work place minutes after we left." Elyssa scoffed at that. She was getting angrier.

"What kind of payment?" I asked. If bets are being made on my life I deserve to know how much I cost. "Information on my gang, and their plans. Maybe they found out that I was lying about the plans." Elyssa thought out loud.

She groaned and put her head between her hands. "This got to complicated, if dad even agrees to let me back in, he would kick me back out if he learns about the Dawn stuff."

Dad. Here it is again.

I cleared my throat. "So, your father is the big scary guy behind all of this?" I asked. I said it slowly, testing if she was willing to talk about it. Elyssa chuckled. "Yeah, he is." She turned to me, for the first time during this conversation.

"Look, I don't want you to think that I am proud of him, or even slightly like him, okay? I am not. I fucking hate him. And we are not same kind of people, I don't do what he does. I just...fuck, I can't. Just, know that I am only doing all that because I have to. If it was up to me, I wouldn't have dragged you into any of this." Elyssa said and her eyes were looking at me so wildly.

I couldn't understand what she meant by that, but I nodded anyway. "It's okay, Elyssa, you don't have to prove me anything." I reassured her. Even though I would love to get my normal life back, she wasn't in the right state of mind to discuss it.

"No, don't say that, I- I need to prove it to you. You deserve it. You deserve to know the truth, I just... I just can't give it to you right now." She mumbled the last part and her head slumped downwards again.

We both went quiet, processing everything that Elyssa just shared. I was looking at my hands, thinking about all the situation that I could have died in. In the headquarters, in the café, and probably if they found me at the docks. Or last night.

Elyssa was putting herself in front of a bullet to save me.

I put my hand on top of hers and gave it a squeeze, she didn't say anything and just leaned her head on my shoulder. After staying like this for few minutes, Elyssa suddenly moved away from me and got up. She managed to balance herself. "I am gonna be so fucked for telling you this but I don't care anymore."

She said and looked right into my eyes. "I am working for the FBI."