The Sergeant's Daughter

Chatper 1: Jay

Hank and Al stepped out of the Dodge, the doors clicking shut behind them. Alvin removed his tinted sunglasses, sliding them into his jacket pocket as he glanced toward Hank.

"Got a search warrant for the residence of Marshall Carter," Antonio announced, walking up to them and handing Hank a photo of the suspect. The image showed a rugged man with a shaved head, a scar running along his jawline. "Carter's the head of the Night Lords. He's got priors for possession and aggravated battery. They've been running operations out of a house in Hegewisch."

"The boonies," Hailey muttered, crossing her arms as she leaned against the car.

"Yeah," Antonio confirmed with a slight nod. "My CI says monthly shipments come through here for distribution. Here's the kicker—there's an estimated street value of at least two million in meth and cocaine sitting in the dining room, ready to move."

Hank's gaze hardened. "How many men are we looking at?"

Antonio glanced down at his notepad, flipping a page. "At least six on-site, probably armed. The address is 238 Five Oaks Road."

Hank exchanged a quick glance with Alvin, then turned back to Antonio. His voice was steady,. "Let's hit it."

⋆˚✿˖°

Kim walked up the steps of the bullpen, carefully balancing a brown paper bag in her arms. "Platt said someone ordered from Royal Siam?"

Adam raised his hand from across the room. "Right here."

"Smells delicious," Kim remarked as she handed him the bag, a small smile playing on her lips.

Meanwhile, Hailey was glued to her computer screen. "Okay, the house with the storm shelter is registered to an LLC in Grand Cayman," she said, standing up from her seat and stretching slightly. "They've got about 200 properties here in Chicago. This one was red-tagged for foundation problems. It's supposed to be empty."

"So, our suspect was squatting," Hank concluded, leaning casually against the corner of Al's desk.

"Sounds like it," Al chimed in, flipping through a folder of notes.

Hank frowned, clearly unimpressed. "So we've got no name, no number, no nothing?"

Hailey shook her head. "Not a thing."

"Unbelievable," Hank muttered under his breath, his frustration evident.

Suddenly, Adam's voice cut through the tension. "Huh. It's chocolate," he said, inspecting the food he'd just unwrapped from the bag.

Everyone turned to look at him, confused.

"It's chocolate," Adam repeated, holding it up like he'd discovered gold. "Quan said the house he was living in smelled like this," he added, his tone matter-of-fact as he tossed the bag to Kim.

Kim caught it easily, opened it, and sampled some. "So, it's gotta be near one of the chocolate factories," she said, piecing it together.

"Right," Hank mumbled, still deep in thought as he processed this new lead.

Across the room, Jay sat at his desk, quietly scrolling through records. His phone buzzed, pulling his attention. A message from Will lit up his screen, but what really caught his eye was the lock screen photo—a picture of him and Erin, both smiling under a golden sunset.

It had been almost six months since Erin left for New York to join the FBI. While Jay was proud of her for taking the leap, the ache of her absence still lingered. He couldn't help but feel a mix of anger, sadness, and pride whenever he thought about her. His thumb hovered over the screen for a moment before he opened the message.