My stuff. [[ Don't post ]]

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

Sitting at the bar watching how these people interacted with each other was far more amusing than Jace had expected. It was a hub of activity, people coming in, people leaving. He was surprised at how many people were here at this time of day, even more surprised by how they were dressed. Suddenly he felt more uncomfortable sitting at the bar in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Maybe he stood out a little more than he had planned too already, but so far nobody had come up to him, or said anything. By this time he was already convinced that illegal activity was taking place here, everybody already knew who owned this club. So it went with the territory really, but what surprised Jace was how open these people were about what they were doing. How shameless in their illegal activity, didn't they realize that drugs killed innocent people's children? Taking an other sip from his orange juice he shook his head in disappointment as anger started to bubble up inside him.

Looking beside him, he sort of noticed the scar on the guys face. He definitely looked like a tough, hardened criminal. Jace knew what they looked like, he had seen plenty of them in his time with the police, and before. Moving his eyes to his watch, he sighed at the time he had been here for nearly over an hour. So far he had achieved nothing, he felt like he had just been sitting here leisurely drinking instead of doing his job. Jace moved off the stool sighing as he made his way over to the bathroom, before quickly heading back over to the bar again. As he was heading back to his stool he watched a very glamorous looking blonde woman walk in. She seemed to get a lot of attention once she came inside, honestly he could see why. But it seemed different to the way women usually got attention, he hadn't quite put his finger on what exactly it was. But he wasn't going anywhere just yet, so he was going to figure it out.

Finally something interesting was happen, for some reason he couldn't keep his eyes of her. But he had to be subtle about the way he was watching, because he didn't actually want anyone to know he was watching. Especially not since the moment this women walked in, the atmosphere in the whole club just seemed to have changed since she came in. For some reason Jace felt like he should already know her, or that he did know her from somewhere. But no name or information was coming to him. It was weird when that happened, when you feel like you know someone but you're not sure if you really do. He shook his head to get rid of the thoughts, trying to concentrate on what was going on. Jace watched how she moved confidently to the bar stool, even sitting down next to the most menacing looking guy in this club didn't seem to bother her. Which only added to the interest Jace already had in this woman.

From where he was sitting he could see that their lips were moving, heads close together as they spoke. From this distance he couldn't make out a thing that they were saying, but their secretive behavior only added to his suspicion that they were doing something they shouldn't be. Averting his eyes occasionally from their exchange in order to not raise anyone's suspicion. Then he saw the familiar color of paper being exchanged, then a package being handed over. Which brought a slight grin to his lips, since this was exactly the opportunity he had been waiting for the last hour. If he could get his hands on the package the woman had just received he could at least get her done on possession, dependent on how much she was actually carrying he might be able to get her for something else. If the package was even drugs, it might be something completely different. But his instinct told him it was drugs, or at the most definitely something illegal.

When she moved off the bar stool and headed towards the door, Jace couldn't help but follow her towards the door. Why was she even going to this back door, that seemed weird to him to start off with. Walking behind her slowly he kept his eyes down on the floor, moving his hand into the pocket of his jeans ready to pull out his badge. Of course his plan was to arrest her once they had made it outside. Jace was just hoping that nobody would notice him heading towards the backdoor, since they didn't know him here at all. The moment they stepped outside the door slammed shut behind them. Jace moved quickly to pull out his badge, but to his surprise her hand was on his arm, stopping him from pulling out the badge. He moved his eyes down to hers in surprise as he quickly moved his other hand to grab his gun.



𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

Jace couldn't help but frown when the woman smirked like this was some kind of game. Did she have any idea that he was a detective? If he wanted to he could arrest her right since they were safely out of sight. "I don't pull my gun out on unarmed law abiding women." Jace said slightly smirking himself now, since to him it was clear that she wasn't a law abiding citizen. What kind of woman that looked like her, had the confidence she had, would even come to a place like this? Unless of course they were involved in a place like this. That much Jace had already worked out for himself, since the whole atmosphere of the place had changed the moment she had walked in. When she dropped her hand from his arm he still watched her carefully. He worked out a long time ago never to underestimate anyone. Especially not women, they had their own tactics for getting their selves out of tricky situations. Not all of them even involved their feminine charms, of course that was always their first option, but if that failed they would bite, scratch and try whatever else to get away. So no, he was definitely not taking any chances with this one after all hadn't he ******** up enough recently.

"I think I'll be the judge of what I'll find myself, don't you?" he said curiously watching this woman, wondering if she was really telling the truth about the content of this package. After all if it was just what she said, why the whole hand off, exchange of money. Why even meet in a place like this to conduct a perfectly legal business transaction. No in Jace's mind something was definitely off about this whole situation, and he was going to find out what it was. Raising his eyebrow he looked into her somewhat oddly colored blue eyes "And what does a woman such as yourself need with building plans, and security layouts for an undisclosed building?" Jace couldn't help but say the undisclosed building in a way so that she knew he was very suspicious about the package even if it wasn't drugs. He had been in the business long enough to know how criminals worked. If they wanted those kind of details of a building, it was usually because they were planning a hit. Moving his hand out towards her, well out towards the package he just nodded at her, hoping she was just going to hand it over to him without any difficulties. After all to him she didn't really look like the fighting kind. From what he had already gathered she seemed like the type of woman who would be too worried about one of her nails getting broken in a fight.

"Well officially I have no idea who you are, but I've got some ideas of my own." he said thinking about the opinions he had already formed of her in his mind. "I can always take you in to the station and do an identity check if you would like?" he said smirking a little, his arrogant cop side really coming out now. "Then I'd definitely know who you are, and who to keep an eye out for in the future." Jace said as his eyes moved over what she was wearing, she definitely wasn't a prostitute but he had worked that much out when she walked in. She was too classy to do something like that, she had an air about her that said she had never known the hardships of poverty. Not only did she have that air about her, but the expensive clothes and diamond ring on her finger didn't help to sway his opinion in a different direction. Jace knew how to spot a person, that was his job. But it was something more than that too, he knew the difference between rich and poor. Because he himself had lived on both sides of the track during this life. Which gave him a different insight into situation like this. Luckily now he had made detective money issues weren't really a worry for him anymore, since he only had himself to support.


𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

Jace eagerly reached for the package unwrapping it to inspect the content as the woman said something about her husband needing it which only vaguely registered with him as he looked through everything that was in the package. She hadn't lied to him, exactly the items she mentioned were in the package. But what Jace was really interested in was why her husband needed these. Could he ask this woman why he her husband needed it? or what it was for specifically? Or maybe that would be pushing his luck. Jace guessed it was for some kind of hit, since the building plan looked suspiciously like a bank to him. Since it had a clear area that was a vault or some sort, that was his guess. Maybe his best plan would be to hand the package back to this woman, let her go then look through the plans of local banks. That way he would get nearly all the information needed without asking her anything, but the one thing he wouldn't know was the time and date it would be happening. That of course was pretty essential information to catching criminals in the act.

Moving a little closer to the license he quickly scanned the information since he didn't really read anything, he just scanned things for the most important information. He couldn't even read books or magazines because his mind was just programmed to scan things for information. Jace couldn't help but roll his eyes when the woman who he now knew was called Regina, rattled off her life story to him. It made him think that she was nervous, or that for some reason maybe he was making her uncomfortable. "You know we're not a date here, don't you?" he said almost laughing as he said it. Since she basically told him everything she would probably tell a guy on a date. Apart from the fact she called her own husband a rotten human being. Which of course Jace knew very well was the truth since you name it he'd done it ; murder, extortion, fraud. The list could go on forever he was just a bad guy, not your average kind of bad either.

"Okay fine Regina, I believe you are who you say you are." he said nodding, since he had seen her license and everything. In fact he had known of her father, since they had a lot of details about him. Including the fact that Julian Jackson now ran her fathers empire, they had been keeping an eye on him since the day he had taken over. Holding the package out in front of him, then shaking it a little for effect. "I'm going to have to keep this I'm afraid." he said with a nod, watching her reaction carefully. "Still very suspicious to me you see, especially since we know all about your husbands career." he took a breath never moving his eyes away from her. "If that's what you call what he does." he said finding it kind of amusing that she had no idea who he even was since she wouldn't let him pull out his identification, since he was a detective. Especially since by now, he seemed to know a lot about her, including her father and her husband.



𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

He shook his head at her comments about a date, but he wasn't surprised by her reply. Since Jace was pretty sure that someone like Regina would really expect those things, and probably more. After all it was what she was probably used to, being spoilt, having everything she could materially want. Well Jace had grown up the complete opposite way. He had grown up in a bad neighborhood, surrounded by crime but had somehow been able to distance himself from it. He tried not to envy people who had never known poverty, but sometimes the way they liked to act entitled to stuff made it hard very not to. "I guess it probably wouldn't" Jace said about the handcuff comment. Even though by now he wasn't really planning to arrest her, so there was no need for handcuffs. After all he really had no grounds to arrest her, since technically there was nothing illegal in the package. Even if her husband had some illegal plans for these documents it wasn't even enough to arrest him.

"You're going to get me into some serious s**t if you leave with that package and I show up empty handed." That surprised Jace, but also confirmed to him that the information in the package was definitely about some planned hit. But more than anything Jace was curious about what exactly she meant by serious s**t. What was her own husband going to do if she didn't come home with the package. After all it wouldn't be Regina's fault if Jace took the package, he was a detective. So she would have no choice but to hand it over to him regardless of her husband. Everyone knew Julian Jackson did terrible things, worse than terrible he did sick depraved stuff. But surely he wouldn't do anything like that to his own wife, at least while her father was alive he wouldn't have dreamed of it. Jace knew her dad was a bad man, but he was definitely an old school criminal when it came to the way he ran things. Julian on the other hand was just ruthless, with no morals what so ever.

"A what?" Jace said a little confused about her comment, he was sure she wasn't a prostitute but that comment really made her sound like she was suggesting something inappropriate. Luckily by now he knew her better than to be that kind of woman. Jace shook his head as he listened to the rest of what she was saying. Surprised that she was offering up information to him and also curious how much she actually knew about his business dealings. Or how much she would be able to find out without placing her self in dangerous situations. "Even if we locked him up it wouldn't assure your safety." Jace said to her since putting him away would only be one guy of a whole empire. If the other guys who worked for Julian were to find out that Regina had been giving information to cops then they would kill her. Even with Julian inside he could have contact with the outside world through his lawyer, visiting. It wouldn't completely eliminate the influence that a man like Julian Jackson has, and he wouldn't let betrayal go easily.

Looking at Regina he could see that she was genuinely fearful of her husband, she seemed almost to lose her cool when he mentioned keeping the package. "Look." he said taking her hand the opening it up carefully before placing the package onto her palm. "You take the package." he said surprised that somehow he had been taken in by Regina's plea, but he wasn't easy to sucker. Jace understood that the fear she felt was real, there was no acting involved in the way she feared that man. And it was his job to protect people, not endanger them so he wasn't going to send her away without the package. "You take it okay." Then his phone started buzzing in his pocket, sighing he pulled it out of the pocket of his jeans. Of course it was his captain ringing to check how everything was going because he had been away so long. His captain probably thought he had got himself killed or something along those lines.

Pressing the call away he turned back to Regina "Give me your number so I can contact you." Jace said. Since he didn't think it would be wise to discuss any kind of deal here, since anybody could come out after them. "I'll call you so we can discuss this further." Since Jace was pretty sure that Julian was busy with work a lot so there should be a safe time he would be able to call her to arrange things. Besides if Jace was going to use Regina as in informant he would have to talk to at least one of his superiors about it. Since informants took up a lot of time, and it was a big responsibility to keep them safe. He looked around the alley to check that nobody was watching them, since Jace was starting to feel increasingly uncomfortable. Because they had been out here for quite a while by now, and Jace wasn't even sure if Julian was waiting for Regina right now.

𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

When he gave her back the package Jace could see the relief in her eyes, but also in her body language. It was like the life and spirit that she had just before was returned to her. Things weren't exactly going the way he had planned, but at least he wasn't going to be the reason anyone would get hurt. "Don't worry" he said to Regina when she thanked him, even though he wasn't exactly sure why he chose those words over any other. Jace wasn't even sure why had just handed her back the package just like that. Usually he would have just taken it. But he guessed it was because deep down he did believe her story, and he could see her fear for himself. Now somehow he had got himself involved in this whole messy situation. When all he had really wanted to do was just follow up some simple leads and maybe pick up some more. Really Jace wasn't even sure if he was going to follow this whole thing up, there definitely seemed to be some issues between Regina and her husband and those situations never ended well.

Handing over his cell he watched as she put in her number, he just nodded taking it back before putting it in the pocket of his jeans. For a moment even wondering if she had given him the right number. "Yeah no problem, I'll just send a text first if I want to talk." Since he never called informants because you could never know who was standing next to them if you were talking, or sometimes phones were bugged. Taking risks when peoples lives were involved wasn't something that he did. "Rodriguez" Jace said since he was officially at work. "Detective Rodriguez" he couldn't help but shake his head a little at himself. But until he got to know his informants better he had to keep it on a professional level. It was all about trust, even though Jace could tell this woman wasn't like her husband. If she knew too much she could easily tell her husband all she knew about him. Then Jace would be the next on her husband's kill list, and he wouldn't be the first or last cop to get on that list.

He watched as she walked away down the alley thinking that he should get his own a** back to the station. Since Jace wasted a whole hour waiting for something interesting to happen before Regina even arrived. "Or Jace is fine!" he shouted as Regina turned to thank him again then shook his head at himself once she was gone. Removing his cell from his pocket he quickly dialed the captain's extension waiting for him to answer the phone. He was already walking quickly in order to make it back to his car. "I'm coming back to the station now, I've got something interesting to discuss with you." He said to his captain before ending the call to drive back to the station.

Once he arrived at the station he headed straight to the captain's office to discuss what happened with Regina. Of course his captain was already completely aware of who she was, but said it was interesting that she had offered to give them information. It was the captain's opinion that an opportunity to get inside information about Julian Jackson's dealings wasn't something that they could let go. But to keep informants safe there would be no recorded information or paperwork unless it was really needed for legal reasons, such as getting convictions. Since Julian Jackson even had some cops in the very station where Jace worked in his pocket. So the information that Regina was willing to give them information, would for the time being only be known by Jace himself and his captain. This really meant that Jace didn't have any choice in the matter, he was going to have to get information from Regina.

The next few days passed quickly with little time to think about anything. Jace had to finish closing a case with some rookie following him around. Which never put him in a good mood, since they always had to be told what to do, what not to say, when the speak. Basically it was like having a baby, well Jace wasn't really sure what having a baby was like. He was an only a child with no brothers or sisters so he had never known what it was like to have somebody younger or older around. The one thing he hated about this job was the fact that there was so much paperwork to do. Every time he arrested someone there was a mountain of paperwork to finish, even with the most simple charges. When he was working a murder case it was even worse, the station almost became his home on those nights. Falling a sleep at his desk while he worked then shouting at a rookie to bring him some coffee. That wasn't really a life that went well with having any type of long term relationship.

Saturday and he still had to go to work even though normal people with normal jobs actually had time to spend doing something they want. Although Jace was pretty sure he had some time off coming up. After finally getting dressed for work he made his way out to his car. Sitting his car he turned on the radio to listen to the latest news. Jace rolled up his sleeve to check the time before getting out his cell to text Regina. "meet at 12 for lunch to discuss? you choose the place" He wondered if that would be an okay thing to text, but he pressed send anyway before putting his cell away again. Starting the car he drove to work sighing at how bad the weather was today, raining again. But for some reason Jace still never bothered to wear a jacket, he still had one of his jackets at work if he really needed it though. Jace hoped that what Regina had told him also applied to weekends, because if it didn't he had probably messed up with texting her. But since the captain had told him to get it moving, he had to get a chance to talk to her in person.

𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

"Just didn't want you thinking I wasn't coming." Jace replied as he made himself comfortable. Glad to actually get a break from the station, he had definitely been working too hard the last week. But criminals never took a vacation so neither did he really, apart from when his captain forced him to take his vacation time. Jace smiled as he watched her folding up the newspaper guessing she got bored waiting for him to show up. Ever since getting to detective he had become a terrible time keeper since he had to be everywhere at once. "Coffee please." he said to the waitress when she came over, it was all he seemed to live on these days. Watching her he rolled the sleeves of his shirt up wondering what she was looking for in her jacket. Looking around the bar Jace was surprised that it wasn't really that busy, probably why Regina picked this place. Since she wouldn't want anyone who knew Julian to see her with him, even though to himself he didn't look like a cop.

"I wasn't sure about the whole idea myself." Jace said being honest about the situation, since it was a dangerous situation. Especially for Regina, since he knew how men liked Julian worked. The biggest betrayal would be for someone as close as she was to him, and that would be punished in the worst way possible. "However my captain thinks the information you could provide us with is invaluable." he said with a little nod watching her reactions. "So here I am, and we are the only three people who currently know about this arrangement. It's better we keep it as private as possible, since it's not even safe to share it with everyone at the station." Jace said knowing Regina was pretty aware that Julian had cops in his pocket too. The same way Regina's dad used to have, although he tended not to kill cops if he could help it. Julian on the other hand had no such issues since he recently killed a rookie who he had forced to give him information. Even though the rookie was practically a kid, the whole station was convinced Julian was behind it.

Jace was surprised, he didn't even try to hide it when Regina said she had already been snooping. Since officially their arrangement hadn't started until now. He didn't know that Regina would have already been looking around for stuff, especially when Jace knew how risky it was. Mostly they would only really be asking her to get specific important information they needed anyway. Jace smiled regardless since the information might be useful, even though they would be building their case before arresting Julian. But they needed to gather a lot of evidence and monitor his activities. "You didn't have to do that Regina, but we appreciate it." He said genuinely since he knew the risks she was taking. Jace had discussed the risks in detail with his captain, since if anything was to happen to Regina now it would be his responsibility. His responsibility only since the captain would be in the clear as always.

"I don't know about the phone." Jace said looking down at his hands. "If he finds it you'll look a lot more suspicious. Why don't you just save my number under one of your friends names?" He suggested since Julian wouldn't think anything of it, if one of her friends was calling or texting her. But he didn't know anything about her situation at home, or what their relationship was like. For all Jace knew Julian could be checking her phone all the time. For some reason Regina intrigued Jace, she was clearly a strong smart woman but for some reason she was with a guy like Julian. Now she was choosing to give cops information about her husband's illegal activity. Jace just couldn't help but wonder what the real reason was why she was doing it. Was it because she despised illegal activity even though for years her father did the same thing? Or was it something else that Jace hadn't thought of yet. Time was the only way he might eventually get the answers to the questions going around in his head.

He gave his food order to the waitress then watched Regina, wondering why she seemed to look tired even though he probably looked equally tired. Something was clearly troubling her but he wasn't going to intrude by asking her exactly what it was. They weren't that friendly with each other yet after all. Jace just sat silently for a while watching people come in and out, watching who they talked to. He had always been a people watcher, it was something he had done since childhood. Well as long as he could remember he had been fascinated by people and their behavior. More than anything he wondered what motivated someone to be good or bad, or if people were just born one or the other. Shaking his head to stop himself from drifting off to where his mind was going he turned back to Regina. "So we better think of a code you can send me if you're in danger." Jace said seriously, since it could happen. If it did happen he would have to get cops to the house quick.

The waitress returned with their food, giving them both a smile before disappearing again. Which made Jace wonder if Regina had been here before. Looking at his food he was actually surprised that it looked pretty good. He was actually pretty hungry since he usually didn't eat breakfast, despite him always planning to eat breakfast. His breakfast usually ended up being coffee at the station. Taking a bite of his food he watched Regina wondering if he was making it awkward by not saying anything for so long. Finishing his mouthful he looked at Regina. "When we put Julian away." Jace said with confidence, since he was going to do everything in his power to do exactly that. "You know you'll have to go into witness protection right?" Jace said since they would probably want his wife to testify against him. Since just evidence wouldn't be enough to convict Julian of the crimes he had committed. They would need more than a couple of victims to testify, as well as people close to him who could testify about his true character. He wanted to make sure that Regina knew all the details before she got any further into this. Especially since her life would be changed by this more than anyone's.


𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

Jace waited patiently at the front door a little unnerved by how silent it really seemed to be inside. But at last he could hear footsteps coming towards the door, they were light so he knew it was probably a woman. Since he was expecting Regina to be home anyway he was glad when she opened the door. If not a little surprised by the anxious look on her face. Jace was about to smile, instead he was pulled inside by her before he could even utter a greeting. "warm welcome" Jace muttered a little sarcastically half suppressing a grin since he didn't quite understand why Regina was this nervous. Jace hoped she really was sure that he had gone away, because if he caught them together. Well even he wasn't sure how that would end, he just knew it would be bad.

The first thing he noticed once he was inside was how beautiful their house was. But he also instantly felt that was all it was. A house, because it wasn't a home. As much as the place was beautiful, and beautifully decorated with every lavish extravagant thing you could think of buying. It had no real character or soul, it was like one of those houses that was for show. Everything that it contained was there to make a statement to whoever visited. That they were wealthy, powerful, that there wasn't a thing that existed that they couldn't afford to buy. A pretty typical house for men like Julian, pretty much what Jace had expected before he had even been inside himself. The sad nagging feeling at the back of his mind was that Regina was exactly that to a man like Julian. A prize, a trophy to show people he could have whatever he wanted, that included beautiful women. Jace imagined that if Regina lived somewhere else it would be a totally different place to this. His own simple one bedroom apartment was usually messy but his personality was all over it. Things he had kept since college, photographs of his family, it was a home. Still he imagined what it was like for Regina living in a house like this.

"Yeah it's a very nice house" He said nodding as Regina looked around the foyer commenting on it. When she waved her hand Jace held onto the bag following Regina through the house since she knew the way. Looking around the hallway as they walked, still curious what other rooms of the house looked like. As they made it to the library Jace was surprised by how lavish it was. The only thing he really liked about the room was the wooden furniture, which anywhere else would have looked beautiful. Here, it just looked for show just like everything else.

Walking over to Regina to look at the file boxes, he raised his eyebrows wondering why Julian had moved them to his house. Was he getting suspicious of the people around him? Being the man in charge meant you had nobody who you could really trust because somebody ambitious was always trying to make it to your position. Bending down to pick one of the file boxes up Jace lifted it over to the desk dusting it off before taking some of the files out, spreading them over the desk like he would have at his own. Then begun reading small parts of it, some of them were legal documents. "Do you know when Julian moved these here?" Jace said turning sideways to look at Regina, surprised by how close she was to him now he had turned. "Sorry, I didn't realize you were looking" he was moving backwards a little, for some reason feeling a little more than awkward because of the close proximity they were in.

Going over to where he dropped his bag he zipped it open before taking the camera out. "Gonna take some pictures of these, they seem to be some sort of legal document" he said as he started snapping the pictures that he needed. "Probably some sort of cover business for his illegal activity." Jace said pretty sure that was what it was, but the more information they could gather about everything Julian was doing, the stronger their case would be against him. This kind of thing was exactly what they needed to put Julian away for good. These documents especially great because his name was all over them. Jace couldn't help but smile as he went through some of the other files he had removed from the box. After this find he didn't know why he had doubted Regina's idea, this was exactly what they needed. Even if he would never be comfortable with her snooping around the house, or Julian's affairs.

Suddenly something disturbed him from his concentration on the files, froze him in place with his hand about to turn a page. Turning to Regina he could see in her eyes that she had heard the exact same noise he had coming from downstairs. "I thought you said nobody was coming back here." Jace whispered to her a tiny amount of panic starting to simmer inside of him. The panic wasn't for him, it was for Regina. He was a cop, he would get out of there with some excuse if it was Julian. But would Regina do? What would happen to her?
Again he was pulled from his thoughts by an other noise from downstairs, this time the noise was clear. It sounded like the door opening downstairs, he had only heard the noise the door made when opening once before. But that was all it had taken for Jace to recognize it again, that was the kind of memory he had. But was it Julian? How could it be Julian?





𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

They were both facing each other, frozen with fear at the sounds that were coming from downstairs. His eyes met Regina's and he could see that she was visibly disorientated by the fact somebody was in the house, the color had drained from her face. Jace moved his eyes to her hands noticing that she was also shaking. Watching her carefully go over to the door of the library Jace started to move some of the papers back into the files that he had taken them out of before placing them back into the boxes. But once again something froze him in place, it was a man's voice coming from downstairs. By the way Regina was moving he could tell it was Julian, besides who else would have called her something like that besides Julian. This was bad, really bad. The last thing they needed was for Julian to catch the both of them snooping through his files, there would be no way on earth that even they could explain that away. Jace couldn't think of anything else because Regina was back at the desk grabbing at the files, quickly putting them all back into the boxes. Jace watched her feeling the panic coming from her as she did. As she grabbed his arm, frantically pulling him towards the closet at the other end of the library. Jace was about to protest since he had already figured out her plan. But when she spoke, he knew she was right about what she said. Julian couldn't find them here together, not because Jace was worried about what Julian would do to him. After all he was a cop, he had a gun, but he couldn't shoot an unarmed man in his own home when he wasn't even officially supposed to be there. He was about to agree when he felt Regina's hands on his chest pushing him into the closet before closing the door. All he could do was sigh then sit in the cramped space quietly straining to hear what was going on outside.

Moving sideways so his ear faced the door he could hear Julian's voice, he didn't sound happy. Jace was able to tell that much by just the tone he was using, he was sure even Julian didn't sound like that all the time during casual conversation. After all reading people was his job, as well as arresting them and making sure they followed the law. He was sure he heard something falling, from a shelf or something like that. Shifting position again because he felt uncomfortable his hand moved to the holster of his gun, he kept it there hovering over it. Regina's words still ringing in his ears as he listened to what was going on outside. "Don't make a sound, do not come out here no matter what." Jace knew she was right but in his head he had to keep repeating it to himself, to make sure he did what was right in a situation like this. Stay in the closet, stay quiet otherwise everything would really be over. Well everything would really be over for Regina, all that they had promised her would always remain that, just a promise.

He listened to their argument shocked by the angry exchange that was taking place, also surprised to learn that they were supposed to be starting a family. Regina hadn't previously mentioned it to him, but he supposed that was probably something private between them. It didn't affect their investigation so Jace didn't need to know. Guilt also seared through him when Julian started to accuse Regina of cheating because he knew that the man she was seen with was probably him. Surely Regina wasn't really having an affair and hadn't mentioned it to Jace, because that could definitely mess up the investigation and seriously put somebody else in danger. He couldn't make out what else was happening outside, all he could hear was them shouting, then for some reason Regina fell silent. But still he could hear Julian threatening to kill the man who Regina was having an affair with, and saying he was leaving on his business trip. Had Julian really just come back to the house to have an argument with Regina? Or was he hoping that the man she was having an affair with would be at the house with her? Jace couldn't be sure, but it seemed a little extreme to him either way.

It was starting to get claustrophobic in the closet, the air was stuffy from all the dust which was now all over his clothes. His hand was still on his gun in the holster waiting for an other sound, or an other movement from outside. But all that was on the other side of the closer was silence, sighing he shifted his weight gently pushing the door open a little. All he could see was Regina on the floor on her knees, which was strange. But he couldn't see Julian in the room, everything seemed quiet. So he pushed the door open further finally stepping out of the closet stretching his body to his full height again, his bones cracking in the process. As he moved closer to Regina he was sure he could hear her sniffling, then his eyes moved to the rug. Growing wider with shock as he was sure it was blood that was on the rug. Quickly moving so he was in front of her to see that her face was bleeding. Jace couldn't exactly see what had happened because Regina had her hand covering it. "What did he do to you?!" Jace said half in anger and half in surprise at the state he found her in.

Bending down on his knees to kneel in front of her, he shook his head sighing. Gently moving his hand to hers, so he could move it to see how bad her face was bleeding. "I'll go get something for it." he said getting back up to go and find the bathroom in her house. Once he got there he looked for a while before finding a dry clean bandage which he held under the tap before returning to Regina. Moving her hand again before gently placing it onto her face where it was still bleeding. Looking at Regina sitting there all sadly Jace couldn't help but feel guilty that she was hurt. They should have been more careful when they were meeting. Everyone in this city knew who Julian's wife was, she wasn't allowed to go out and socialize with other men. She was supposed to be his wife, that meant more than just being wife it meant she belonged to him. Because men like Julian only owned things, that included people. "You'll be okay." Jace said his eyes searching hers, not really sure if he was saying it for her benefit or for his own. But he knew that she had to be, because now more than ever Jace was determined that Julian would pay.






𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

Jace couldn't help but shake his head with a half grin on his face at her comment about not having the energy to argue. Once she was seated in the car he started the engine before pulling out onto the expensive road she lived on. Heading towards the city, since he figured Regina would want to stay at one of the big expensive hotels there. Besides it was busier in the city, so people wouldn't notice Regina as much, if she ever decided to leave her room once she got there. Which was something Jace highly doubted, especially after the incident today. As he drove he listened to Regina talk about Julian, how he had accused her of cheating. Which Jace had found almost as amusing as she probably had, although what it had ended in wasn't amusing in the slightest. "Well I have to admit." He said pausing as he turned the corner to head into the city. "I did find it a pretty absurd accusation to make. I haven't known you that long but it doesn't really seem like your style." when she continued to talk to him about what her life with Julian was like. Jace couldn't help but feel, he wasn't quite sure what he felt at hearing that Julian had always discouraged her, told her that she couldn't do something. When it was quite clear to Jace, that if Regina put her mind to something she could without a doubt achieve it. In fact he thought that there wouldn't be much that could stop her if she felt that strongly inclined about something.

But that was all part of the way men like Julian controlled people, making them feel small and worthless. It was easy to imagine what a younger Regina was like, full of ambition to be her own woman, live her own life the way she had wanted. But of course she loved Julian, and as much as Regina had her plans, he had plans very much of his own. Her words about the end of the investigation pulled him from the thoughts he was having. Jace quickly shook his head "It will end, I know that much." he said with all of the certainty that he had. How it would end, well that wasn't something he was sure about. But it would end, all that he could hope was that it would end well. Julian behind bars for life, Regina safe in her new life, maybe a promotion for him. That kind of ending was what he wanted, and he was going to do everything in his power to get it there. "You can go to college, do what ever you want" Jace said liking the idea of her finally being free to do what she wanted, to be who she wanted to be again. Jace imagined how different that Regina would be to the one who he had met.

The rest of the way they drove in silence, it wasn't the kind of awkward silence you get between two people who have nothing to say to each other. Just a comfortable silence where two people are alone with their own thoughts, but comfortable in each others company. As he drove he could tell Regina was thinking hard about something. Maybe it was that she was having second thoughts about this whole investigation. Especially now since she had been hurt because of it, thought he doubted that was high on her list of priorities. It was funny to him that Regina didn't know how much they had in common. Jace wasn't one to open up to anyone about his past though, it was one of the reasons most of his relationships had failed. Well not most of them, probably all of them, that and the fact he worked crazy hours. Was always called out in the middle of the night for some emergency, it wasn't easy being a cop. But it was definitely harder being with a cop that's what he had decided. Finally Jace realized that he should ask Regina which specific hotel she wanted, since they were now practically in the city. "What hotel you are you staying at?" he said not sure if the more expensive ones needed booking in advance, not that he thought they would refuse Regina once they knew who she was.

As he waited for her reply he drove down a side road which he knew was usually quiet, since he had often used it to park his car. Deciding to take the risk now he parked it there, knowing that most of the hotels from here, were only less than a five minute walk away. "I would walk you there" Jace said knowing that part of him wanted to walk her there, he wasn't exactly sure why. Because Julian was gone, she was safe now. But he always had been over protective, it was just an other part of his nature. "But you know if someone sees us together, going to a hotel, that would really give Julian reason to be mad." Jace couldn't help but grin a little at the whole picture. Especially since he could imagine what Julian's face would be like if he heard some news like that. Julian would be even more angry because he had just warned Regina to end it, so it really wouldn't be good if that happened. Still half laughing to himself he got out of the car to remove Regina's bag from the boot, then opened the passenger side for her to get out. "You are going to be okay, right?" He couldn't help but check one last time that she really was okay, he knew how persuasive she could be at even conniving herself that she was. When the truth was that she really wasn't, but she was tough.

𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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[ [ “You are the noblest, purest creature I've ever met." ] ]

Nervous, was that really what he was feeling as he watched Doc work. No it was something much worse than that, something he couldn't describe. How does someone feel when the one thing that matters to them is so selfless she would risk her life for someone else at the expense of her own happiness. He did make her happy right? His mind just seemed to be racing with too many thoughts, his body feeling so much all at once. The most powerful emotion of all was fear, bordering on utter despair at the thought of losing her. Before all of this was even agreed, they knew there could be risks. Wanda had told them how the procedure would work, had taught doc how to remove souls without killing them. But that didn't mean it would work, besides hadn't they tried on other test subjects before doing this final procedure. Some of the people who came back after having a soul removed, they just weren't the same person anymore. It was like they were ailed my some sort of mental illness, almost like the souls life blurred with their own life. So they couldn't make sense of anything anymore, some after time and patience would start to get better. But it made him angry to think about how selfish Jared was.

Jared who now stood beside him hopefully looking down at Melanie, waiting for Doc to remove Wanda so they could put her in the cryotank. If he hadn't promised Wanda that he would do it for her, he would kill Jared right now. He didn't care that Wanda could be lost, as long as he got Melanie back, that was all that mattered to him. It made his blood boil with hatred, but a part of him understood. The part of him that loved Wanda with a fierceness he had never expected. That part of him would do what Jared was doing for Melanie, that part of him would do a lot more, and much worse. Ian shifted uncomfortably on his feet as he watched Jared holding Melanie's hand. It was Melanie's hand he was holding, not Wanda, that's what Ian had to keep telling himself. But still it hurt, because Ian didn't know if he would ever hold Wanda's hand the way Jared was holding Melanie's. It just seemed so unfair that he could lose her, especially since they weren't even sure that they could get Melanie back. It was a risk, a risk that Ian wasn't willing to take, he wasn't willing to lose Wanda at any cost.

Doc started taking charge of the situation, first by telling the others to leave that only Ian, Jeb, and Jared were needed now. That it wasn't some spectacle for everyone to see or watch, which was something Ian couldn't have agreed more with. He didn't want them to see Wanda like that, he wasn't even sure how he was going to feel seeing her like that. For the first time ever he would see her, really see her the way she was without a host. That wasn't something everyone should see, truthfully it wasn't even something that he wanted Jared to see. But because Melanie was here they couldn't make him leave. Jeb was not standing beside him saying something Ian could barely hear because he was focusing so hard on standing, breathing. "She's going to be fine Ian, she's tough." It was something along those lines anyway. But right now he didn't care for their reassurances. They would have Melanie back, sure they would be upset if Wanda was gone but it wouldn't last. For him it would last, he wouldn't want to exist in this place anymore without her. Knowing that she was gone forever, not even existing on some other planet would be too much for him to cope with.

As they turned Melanie over Doc made the first incision at the back of her neck, which would soon be healed up by the new medicine they had discovered thanks to Wanda. Ian couldn't help but get closer to see what was going on. Maybe Wanda would sense he was there, know that he was holding on. His eyes widened as he could see the parts of Wanda that had entwined with Melanie. They were such a beautiful color, it wasn't what he had expected. The last time he had seen souls were in cryotanks or cut up on Docs table. Those imagines from their sick experiments still haunted Ian. He knew not all souls were like Wanda, take that seeker for example who was determined to destroy them. Shaking his head again he focused on how Doc was carefully removing the entwined parts like Wanda had told him. It seemed to be working they had practiced it before on other souls after all. Before Ian could say or do anything else Doc had taken his hands. There she was, in his hands all he could do at first was just stare, holding her. She was the most beautiful, pure thing he had ever seen her. Her soul, Wanda was as beautiful as he had always imagined she would be. "Put her in the cryotank Ian" Doc said a little frustrated by the fact that Ian was just standing there transfixed.

Gently, like she was the most precious thing he had ever held, in fact she was the most precious thing he had ever held he slid her into the tank. It brought him some peace to have her safe, even if she might never be with him in the way she was before. Now all they could do was wait, wait for Melanie to wake up. Wanda had made them all promise to wait til Melanie woke up, to see if Melanie was still there before sending her to an other planet. "I'm going to be alone with Wanda." Ian said to the others as he made his way out of the hospital bay back out into the caves. Quickly he made his way through the familiar path that lead to his room. Ian placed himself on the floor with the cryotank, still holding it, looking at Wanda inside. "You're not leaving me." he kept repeating it, he didn't know if he was repeating it for himself or for her. There wasn't a promise to her that he would break, but this one he had no choice. He couldn't just let her leave him or leave her to die. Ian knew she had said she would always love him no matter where she went, or what her host was. But that wasn't enough, he couldn't live without her, he refused to. All he could hope for was that she wouldn't be mad once she found out what they had all planned behind her back. Even though anger wasn't something that he had ever really seen Wanda express before.

After what seemed like about an hour Jeb appeared in the doorway, Ian couldn't make out much by his expression. Since it was usually pretty neutral "How is Melanie?" Ian asked genuinely, at least if he couldn't have Wanda someone would have the person they loved back. A small smile played on Jeb's lips as Ian asked which made him pretty sure that Melanie was fine. "She's with Jared and Jamie now, they've gone out on a raid." the fact that he mentioned they were on a raid confused Ian but he didn't mention it. He was too focused on Wanda, the fact that she wanted to die because she hated herself so much for invading hosts. "We have to take her now Ian, remember her wishes." Jeb said as he gently removed the cryotank from his hands. He wanted to hold onto it, never let it go but he knew Jeb was right, Wanda had made him promise to let her go peacefully. Once Jeb had left the room with Wanda, he couldn't focus on anything but the fact that she was gone. Wanda was gone but Melanie was back, he couldn't help himself but all he felt was anger and hatred towards them.

It seemed like he had been alone for hours until he heard an excited voice coming down the cave towards the bedrooms. He couldn't be sure but it sounded a lot like Jamie, he liked that kid. Even his grief for Wanda could allow a little happiness for Jamie, he had his sister back. "Ian come quick!" Jamie shouted once he had made it to his room, "You have to see this, come to medical now." Jamie said before turning around, running through the caves again, only leaving the echoes of his footsteps behind him. Once his limbs finally allowed him to move, he made his way to medical to see Melanie, Jared, Jamie, Doc, Kyle and Jeb all standing around looking at him. "What?" Ian said having no idea what was going on. "You know we had a plan for Wanda and you said you didn't care about her body because you loved her for her. Well we've done it Ian, we found her one." Jamie said excitedly hardly able to contain his excitement as he held Melanie's hand. Ian turned around to see a small, blonde girl laying on a bed. Doc shining lights in her eyes to check for any response. "Is that her?" Ian said his voice full of hope as he made his way over to the bed.

Some noise did come from behind him, but now his only focus was the girl on the bed. Moving his big hand to hers he gently placed it inside of his to hold it. "Come back to me Wanda." he whispered as he looked down at her with hopeful eyes, waiting for any sort of response. Moving his eyes to Doc to check for some reassurance that Wanda was okay. That she was in there, that she was going to wake up. But of course they didn't know, they just had to watch, wait for her to open her eyes or speak. This was going to be the longest wait of his life.



𝓸𝓸𝓬; name

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

He smiled nodding his head at her assurance that she would be okay, if he really believed it was a separate issue. Even if she wasn't okay, he was pretty sure that eventually she would be. Jace didn't know that to make of the way she awkwardly side stepped him when she got out of the car. He couldn't exactly blame her after what had just happened with Julian either though. Shrugging he handed the bag over to Regina "No problem, just doing my job" was his reply, although he was probably just trying to convince himself that was all it was. But he knew that he always went above and beyond his duties, that was just the kind of man, and cop he was. "Okay, Bye Regina." he said as she turned around to walk towards the city, wondering what she was doing to do all by herself in a hotel. Jace couldn't remember the last time he had an actual vacation from the job. A vacation where he wasn't actually thinking about work, or anything to do with work. He wasn't even just Jace anymore, he was always Jace the cop everywhere he went. If someone was in trouble, or needed help Jace the cop would be there again.

Leaning against the door of his car he watched her as she walked away. Staying there for a long few minutes even after she had disappeared around the corner towards her hotel. Sighing he shut the passenger side door again, it was always a little tricky to close. Probably because of the amount of times it had been slammed shut. Once he was back in the car he switched on the radio before beginning to drive home. Tapping the steering wheel to the music as he drove, he watched all the people on the sidewalks going about their daily business. He wondered how many of those people had experienced horrible things, how they dealt with what had happened to them. His way of dealing with his own experiences was to become a cop, to save other people from having to go through what he had. It was the one thing he dedicated his life towards, that's why he was a good cop. His captain knew that, that's why he was trusted to run investigations.

Finally he made it to his apartment which was located just outside of the city center. The drive wasn't that long but he felt exhausted after all the stress of the incident with Julian. He was even more torn about keeping it a secret, or informing the captain of what had happened at the house. Turning off the radio before getting out of the car, he made his way into the apartment with the bag from the boot. Determined to at least look through some of the pictures to see what he could piece together about Julian's illegal activities. Throwing himself down on the couch he grabbed his laptop before connecting it to the camera. "Ugh" he muttered complaining at how long it was going to take to transfer them all. He had taken a lot more pictures than expected. Wishing he sometimes had a maid himself he made his way into the kitchen to fix himself a coffee. Thinking that he really needed to kick the habit of drinking too much of the stuff. But he always seemed to need it doing this job, he couldn't remember the last time he had a good nights sleep.

A few hours passed of him drinking coffee after coffee while going through all the files he had gathered from Julian's place. It seemed like they had a few call outs to one of the particular businesses mentioned in the files. Which he had checked up with the captain, and their computer database which seemed to match up with what Regina was saying about those two cops. Since they somehow seemed to be the ones to arrive first on the scene when these incidents occurred. Now that they had names it was obvious to see how suspicious that looked, but before you would have just put it down to coincidence. Since those cops were assigned to the area, they would always be around. But it wasn't like the area was small or anything, it had a good amount of blocks, including a busy part of the city district. By the time Jace had finished going through all the evidence he had gathered, categorized it in appropriate files for his captain to review. It had gone completely dark, in fact the sun was already coming up in the distance. Rubbing his eyes he put the laptop away sliding it back under his coffee table where he always kept it. Before heading towards the shower, then finally hitting his bed.

Days, maybe even more than a week passed where Jace heard nothing from Regina. He wasn't particularly worried yet, but it left him with a slight feeling of unease. He had been very busy working on the investigation as well as an other missing person case. But he would have at least expected a call, or a text to let him know she was okay. Day after day, nothing came and he wasn't going to be the one to make contact with her. Because he could never be sure where Julian would be, or if maybe Julian had taken her cell phone. During the days they didn't speak they had gathered a lot more useful information against Julian, a few more of his low level associates had been arrested. The captain had assigned Jace more resources for the investigation as well as keeping the two dirty cops out of the way. While there was no solid evidence against them they couldn't be removed from the job. Cops hated dirty cops more than anyone else but without proof you could get no where. That was the law they enforced, and sadly the law even they had to live by. But Jace hoped that regardless of that he wouldn't have to cross paths with them anytime soon.

Sitting at his desk after working the night shift wasn't the best thing in the world. He knew it was time to go home to take a break, the last time he slept was over 48hours ago. All he was running on right now was coffee and adrenaline. It really wasn't a good look but for some reason he couldn't face going back to the apartment when he felt he was needed here. "Rodriquez, we got a call out. Armed robbery in process at some club downtown." Captain said as he made his way over to his desk. "Seeing as you're still here, you can go check it out. It's at one of Julians places." the last part of that instantly catching his attention. Why would somebody be stupid enough to rob one of his places? Was tension finally starting to rise in the seedy world he worked in? "Okay I'll be there." he said knowing backup was definitely going to be there because it was an armed robbery. Grabbing his gun from the drawer in his desk he placed it back into his holster. Before putting on a vest in the armory, even though he hoped he wasn't going to get shot at. It was pretty much standard procedure when they were going out to a call like this, or out in general. Though Jace sometimes seriously slacked when it came to wearing one.

Finally he made his way out of the station deciding to ride with one of the patrol cars into the city. It was eerily quiet once they neared the club which seemed strange, it only added to the already tense atmosphere. Armed police surrounded the club now, they had all of the exists covered. So who ever was in there wielding a gun, wasn't going to get out without being seen or captured. Jace made his way up to the man in charge asking him to give him the low down on the whole situation.



𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

Tired, no he wasn't tired it was more like exhaustion. Not sleeping for 48hours then being asked to deal with an armed robbery wasn't an ideal situation for Jace. "So how many hostages are in there?" Jace said sighing at what seemed to be a large amount of innocent people inside the club. "That's really ******** bad." he couldn't help but sigh at the thought of how long this was going to take. The idiot inside would think he had all the power to bargain with them about the hostages. Probably even request something insane like a police helicopter to make his escape. Jace couldn't help but chuckle a little at the thought, criminals were some of the most stupid people he had ever met in his life. They really did watch too many movies, if it was up to him right now he would just send SWAT in there to kill him. But they had to think about the hostages, a hostile stand off usually didn't end well. Jace continued to talk to the head of SWAT about the exits being covered, snipers on the roof making sure everything was covered. But by now the place was surrounded so the robber wasn't going to be leaving, even if he did try to bargain with them. "Have you made contact with him?" Jace asked wondering if they had and if the guy had made any demands.

As they continued to talk about the scene, how they were going to deal with it they were interrupted by somebody approaching them. Jace turned to see who it was when he was face to face with Julian. The first question he wanted to ask was what are you doing here. But Jace was entirely stopped in his tracks by the fact he said his wife was in there. Those words were like a knot developing in his stomach. Regina was in there. kept going through his head. It was going through his head so much that he barely made out what else Julian was saying. His facial expression never changed from the blank cop look despite the way he was feeling. Whether it was the exhaustion or something else he couldn't help but feel something about this whole situation was off, wrong. A feeling of dread was building inside of him, something bad was going to happen. His instincts rarely let him down in situations like this. Stay cool Jace he said to himself as he looked Julian straight in the eyes. "We are doing our job Mr.. what's your name?" Jace said pretending he had no idea who Julian or Regina were. But this guy was testing his already fragile temper. Was he seriously pretending that he cared about Regina now somebody else might possibly hurt her. When Jace himself had seen what he had done to her, no he had to stay calm, stay calm. "If she ends up getting hurt it will be because of the robber in there, not because of our incompetence Sir." Jace said half grabbing Julian by the arm, pulling him towards the cordon that had now been set up around the club. "And we don't appreciate threats. Unless you want to be arrested, I suggest you stay behind the cordon with the rest of the public and let us do our jobs."

Inside he was freaking out a lot more than showed about the fact that Regina was in there. Jace hadn't spoken to her for what seemed like a very long time, or even seen her. What on earth was she even doing in there? He had no idea, but something about Julians behavior seemed off. Now behind the cordon he seemed to be making a frantic call to somebody, yelling still. Just the way he had attempted to yell at him, trying to take control of the cops and the situation. Well this wasn't his show, it was theirs he might own some cops but the good ones couldn't be swayed by money or bribes. "a*****e" he muttered under his breath as he made his way back over to the head guy of SWAT. "Glad you're back Jace, we just contacted the guy inside." Jace sighed wondering what insane request he had made but was even more shocked by what he was told. "He says he's got a woman called Regina hostage who appears to mean a lot to the guy over there" He said pointing over to where Julian was still yelling into his cell phone. "As you know he owns this club." The knot in his stomach was twisting even more at the information he had just received. His mind was racing trying to work out what was really going on here. How did the robber inside know who Regina was? Regina was too smart to just give that information to a guy like him. So he must have known who she was, which must mean the guy knows Julian.

Something fishy was going on, something very fishy Jace was sure of it. But for now his priority would have to be getting Regina out of there. The only thing Jace could think of doing, what he felt he had to do would be go in there his self. Of course the head of SWAT would never allow it, his captain would be furious. But he had to do something to help Regina, what choice did he have. Even if he was sure that the guy inside probably hated nothing more than cops, Jace would try. Walking across the scene to where he knew the entrance was his hand went to his holster, ready to pull out the gun if he needed it. All he could hope for was that this guy wasn't completely stupid. "Move away from the entrance" Jace said to the guys blocking it, who all gave him a look of utter disbelief before asking "Do we have orders to go in?" Jace just shook his head making his way past them to the doors before pushing them open, surprised by how quiet and dark it was inside. "No you guys don't, stay here." before they could protest any further he had disappeared into the club, behind closed doors.

He was their superior anyway, so there wouldn't have been much they could have done to stop him anyway. This club was unfamiliar to Jace, he had never been inside before so he didn't know the layout of it. But he could tell where the hostages were being kept because he could hear crying. Slowly but never removing his hand from his gun he moved towards the sound. Following it until he found himself in the large open space which was the main part of the club, it was so busy he could hardly make any people out in the darkness. But from the atmosphere and the parts of light he caught it was busy. "You there stop or I'll shoot her." he heard being yelled from a corner near the bar. Turning slowly he pulled the gun from the holster holding it up "I'm putting my weapon down, no need to shoot anyone." he said trying to reassure the robber. "It's just me, only I came in here." he was worried, he knew how volatile a cornered rat could get. They didn't care that it would be a thousand times worse if they killed someone, they couldn't think rationally.

That's when he saw her being held by the robber, his gun to her head as he looked around anxiously. His eyes met Regina's and it was like something unspoken was said between them. "I just came in here to talk to you, that's it." Jace said never taking his eyes away from his gun, or Regina. "To stop this from getting any worse, you don't want to hurt anyone." He wasn't sure that this guy didn't want to hurt anyone but Jace didn't want him to that's for sure.

𝓸𝓸𝓬;

[Beautiful Troll]

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{ I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against. }

Watching her as she made her way over to the chair he smiled at her comment about never being happier to see him. In the dark with a gun pointed to her head she had probably completely failed to notice he was wearing a vest. Grinning a little at her reply about the hospital gown, knowing she would never have been seen dead wearing something like that. Although he probably understood that it was the last thing on her mind right now, with everything that had happened.

Shaking his head, he wrapped his arm around his ribs so he could move himself upwards some more. "None of this is your fault, you don't have to be sorry." Jace said knowing it wasn't her fault any of this happened. It was always his way to do what he could as a cop, go beyond the call of duty. Besides he had chosen to go in there, he had to admit the main reason he had chosen to go inside was because he knew Regina was inside. That didn't mean she was to blame though, he had the free will to make choices of his own. It didn't end up that badly after all, Regina was safe. Jace was hurt but he would be fine, hopefully he would get back to the job soon. The boredom of having nothing to do, even just for a few hours was too much to deal with. "I thought the same thing the whole time I was outside, Julian was acting strangely about the fact you were inside." Jace said recalling how weird he was about the fact she was inside, but had no concern for his club or his money. Then how the robber seemed to know exactly who Regina was, who owned the club. Also apparently aware of how much Julian was willing to pay to have Regina back.

His brown eyes met Regina's as she gazed up at him, all he could do was nod silently as she said it. The captain had told him what had happened with the robber, But Jace didn't feel bad for him. Jace moved his hand on top of where Regina had placed hers on the side of the bed "I know, it's okay." he said squeezing her hand a little, trying to reassure her the best way he could. "He was going to hurt you Regina, he tried to kill me." Jace said shrugging knowing he definitely would have killed him if he hadn't been wearing his vest. People like him were selfish, they didn't care about who they destroyed. "You don't have to blame yourself." he said looking into her eyes. "Don't think you're bad for protecting people" Jace knew exactly how many people he had killed, it stayed with him. Not because it haunted him, or because he felt guilty. But out of the respect for human life, for the knowledge that he had no right to take anybody elses life. But protecting other people that was his duty, so he had killed, would kill again if that was what he had to do.

He wished he could convince Regina of that, but Jace understood that she had to come to understand in her own time. To realize that she just did what she had to do, what anyone would have done in her situation. That her instinct to protect, was the right one, it was always the right one. But it was different for Regina, she wasn't a cop the way he was. They were totally different people who had completely different lives. Evil had ruined his life when he was just five years old, he had understood more then than a child should have. That's why he understood now that if you weren't willing to protect what or who you loved, you would lose them. To him it was and always had been that simple. That's why he had become a cop, to protect people so they could go home to their families and be safe.

Before Jace could say anything else a nurse entered his room which made him quickly move his hand away from where it had been. Kind of like getting caught doing something at school that you shouldn't have been. Which made him shake his head slightly, "It's time to rest now." the nurse said looking at both Jace and Regina, with a look that told them there wasn't going to be an argument. Before Regina left Jace told her that if she needed him she could call even though he technically wasn't going to be back at work for a couple of weeks.



𝓸𝓸𝓬; T

[Beautiful Troll]

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𝓞nyx 𝓒ollins

[ [ “∂ιѕтяι¢т 1 ¢αяєєя тяιвυтє" ] ]

Onyx couldn't help but smile at the way Brynn was trying to teach him to dance, he knew he was absolutely useless. Dodging flying knives, or moving swiftly when it came to a fight that didn't bother him. But moving both of his legs at the same time to a rhythm well that was a completely different thing. It had to be one of the few things that he just wasn't good at, he was worried he was going to stand on her feet, or make them both fall over. Besides that he was nervous because they were going to district 8. Out of all of the district this was going to be the worst one for him, he knew it.

As he stood in front of Brynn waiting for directions, he couldn't help but grin at how small she always seemed compared to him. But their once uneasy relationship had really changed to one of ease, they found comfort in having each other around now. No words needed to be passed between the two of them, silence wasn't even awkward. When she places his hands on her waist it wasn't awkward, just different."Now just follow the steps" he just shrugged moving along with her, never taking his own eyes of his feet. Making sure that he didn't step on her toes or trip the both of them up. Just as Onyx was about to move his hand from her waist to turn her when the train jolted sending him flying back against the wall.

Smiling a little he shook his head at the situations they always got into, trying to not feel awkward about how close they were to each other. Onyx watched as she made her way over to the window sighing when she mentioned they had arrived in district 8. "Great just where I want to be." he said a little dejectedly. It was weird being here now, when the games almost seemed like a distant memory. Making his way over to the window he leaned down so he could look out of it. Out on the platform he could already see more peacekeepers than he had seen in any other district. Which instinctively made him wonder if something was going on here, something else that they wouldn't be informed about.

Before Brynn or Onyx could say anything else to each other the whole team had arrived. Starting to fuss around them, complaining about how tired the both of them looked. Onyx sighed as the stylists started to undress him in front of Brynn. "Seriously guys can't we do this somewhere else?" he suggest to them as they start to mess with his hair, putting bits of make up on his face. This was really something he wasn't going to miss once the tour was over, being fussed. If there was one thing Onyx hated it, it was being fussed that included by his own mother. "Oh c'mon Onyx it's not like you to be shy" came a voice from the other end of the room. Which only caused him to roll his eyes, since there was more than some truth to the statement. Regardless of that he didn't want to hear it since he really didn't want to go out there to give a speech.

After what seemed like a good two hours both Brynn and Onyx where dressed to impress again, make up plastered all over them, dressed up in capitol luxury, hair done. Yep the president would definitely approve of this, they had really excelled their selves for this particular district. Onyx smiled as he made his way out on the platform followed by the rest of them, he held out his hand for Brynn. Helping her down off the train, since the step down was always harder in the shoes they forced her to wear. It still made him chuckle for funny she looked when she walked in them. You could totally tell that it was something she wasn't born into or accustomed to. But Onyx couldn't say much because he was pretty sure that he would break his neck if he had to walk in those.

The mayor of district 8 came to meet them as they made their way off the train, introducing himself before shaking their hands. Again no people were present in the station, which again seemed off to Onyx. But he wasn't going to mention it to anyone now, in fact he was pleased to not have to deal with hateful stares just yet. The mayor smiled at them both as they made their way to the cars that would take them to the house.

Once they arrived at the mayor's house they were ushered out quickly, before Onyx could look around to see anything they were inside. The door closed behind them all before any could react to anything. Onyx sighed taking Brynn's hand in his as they made their way into the house. The mayor gave them a quick tour of his house, explaining a few things about the district as they went along. Onyx was trying to focus on all he was saying but it wasn't really registering with him. All he was thinking about was the speech, what was he going to say this time. What could he possibly say here that would make them like him, he knew there was nothing. He was pretty sure that they saw him as a monster, and for the first time in his life it made him feel vulnerable. This time he couldn't fight his way out of it, he had to make a speech and stand in front of these people.

Brynn and Onyx were now standing behind the big doors that would lead them out onto the podium for their speeches. They were still being fussed by the team as the final preparations were being made for them to go on. Taking in a deep breath he turned sideways to look at Brynn "I can't do it." he said suddenly, not wanting to go out there to face them. "They hate me, not that I blame them." suddenly grinning a little at the thought that she once hated him just as much. It had never really bothered Onyx before that people hated him, but the games and the tour had changed him.



𝓸𝓸𝓬; name

[Beautiful Troll]

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𝓞nyx 𝓒ollins

[ [ “∂ιѕтяι¢т 1 ¢αяєєя тяιвυтє" ] ]

It was surprising even to him now how open he had become with Brynn, because it was so unlike him. Onyx had never made a conscious decision to be open with her, it was just something that seemed to have happened over time. His feelings, but especially his weaknesses were something that he usually would never show. Something that had been conditioned into him from the day he was born, especially by his father. Who only saw those kinds of displays as weakness.

A smile started at the edge of his lips when she took his hand, for some reason it always brought him some comfort now. To know that whatever it was, he wasn't going it alone because Brynn would be there. Onyx also knew that she was right about what she was saying, it was how he had always justified what happened to himself. The games, was like war. Kill or be killed, it was that simple. But the war wasn't just with the tributes around you who wanted your blood, it was with yourself. Your mind would play constant tricks on you, try to make you doubt the very things you were sure of.

Before Brynn could say anymore the doors swung open temporarily blinding him as flashes started to go off. Turning his head sideways to nod at Brynn about her doing most of the talking, even if he didn't know how much of a good idea that was. They had been told since the previous disasters that from now on he would be the one to do the talking. Especially the speeches since Brynn refused to read hers the way they were written. But right now in this moment Onyx didn't care, because he had no words to give. Stepping out onto the podium his eyes quickly went to all the faces who were watching them. Onyx felt like they were just watching him, waiting for him to do something or say something.

The microphone was shoved in front of him, but all Onyx could do was stare at the faces who seemed to be glaring at him now. He swallowed hard to try and get rid of the lump that seemed to have formed in his throat. "I....I" he was about to speak, well he probably wasn't going to be able to get any words out anyway. Brynn had grabbed the microphone before he could finish, and Onyx had never been more grateful for her usually reckless behavior. Once more before Brynn spoke Onyx turned back to look behind him, all the faces were shaking their heads while motioning to Brynn at the microphone. But all he could was shrug, for once in his life not wanting to stop Brynn, or feeling the need to keep her in line as they always insisted he should.

Onyx just stood there silently listening to Brynn's speech, once the tributes that he had killed appeared above the crowd. He could barely look at them, not because he was being disrespectful but because he understood now. That they had families the way he had a family, the very same reason he wanted to make it back alive. Was also the reason why they had wanted to make it back. Onyx had often wondered if one of them was a volunteer, because they had clearly been a couple before the games. Or was their fate that unlucky that they had been drawn together?

Once Brynn finished her speech he was drawn from his thoughts by the loud cheering and clapping that had erupted. He had to be honest, he missed most of the speech because his mind seemed to be somewhere else completely. But whatever it was must have been pretty good for a change, at least the people here seemed pleased with it. By the looks on their teams face though, they were less than thrilled by her speech. When it came to Brynn however, they always seemed less than thrilled with what she did. Turning sideways a little he smiled at Brynn, glad that she had rescued him from having to do that speech. Glad that she seemed to have made these people happy with her speech. Maybe it would do some good after all, them being here.

He was still watching her when her expression seemed to change from one of happiness to something completely different. It was something he had seen before though, it was fear. A smile was just starting at his lips because he couldn't understand why she would be scared here, right now. Then out of nowhere Brynn launched herself at him with a lot more force than he had ever expected she should muster. Then they both hit the podium falling backwards fast, he wasn't in control because he didn't know what was happening. Once they reached the podium he had hit the back of his head on it, plus the force of hitting the ground with Brynn on top of him had winded him so he was finding it hard to breathe or say anything.

When she shouted his name, his eyes grew wider almost making him jump because he could hear other sounds near him. Wish caused him to panic, those sounds were the sounds of guns he was sure of that. Why were they firing weapons now when they were having speeches? Opening his mouth to reply he was cut off again by some peacekeepers grabbing Brynn, before they grabbed him as well.

Once they were in the car he still felt disorientated, he was pretty sure it was because of the way his head was throbbing. He reached his hand up to the left side of his head feeling something coming out of his left ear. Not entirely sure what it was because he was finding it hard to focus on any single thing. Slightly he moved his hand to where Brynn had hers on his face, nodding but instantly regretting it when the pain his head throbbed worse than before. "Fine." he said simply before somebody else dragged him out of the car that came to a screeching halt.

Onyx was leaning on the peacekeeper who took him towards the medical area of the train. Now as he was sitting there while the medic looked at him, he supposed it was a good thing that they had one. Not that he had ever thought they would have needed it before this. "My heads throbbing." Onyx explained to the medic as he seemed to be checking him everywhere, when the only pain was coming from his head. Once he had told the medic that, he was pretty sure he was given some pain relief because he started to feel very drowsy.

Resting his head back his eyelids were starting to feel heavy, he was sure he hadn't felt tired before. But now he felt as if he could sleep for weeks, "W...what happened?" he said fighting to make his eyes open wide again, searching around the room to see who was going to answer his question because he was still in a daze. Eventually he couldn't fight his body anymore, so he gave into the sleep. He was sure he heard somebody say something about shooting just before he drifted off, but it sounded really distant.



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