"You girls know him?" I asked, looking between Joe, Patty, and Megan.
"Yeah, you actually know him as well, he's a friend of my dad's, remember that one night?" Megan muttered as she glared at Joe and crossed her arms.
I frowned for a split second before the memory jumped to the forefront of my mind, "Oh…that night."
"Yeah," Megan repeated, her frown deepening as Patty and she walked over to stand next to me.
"I feel like I'm missing some context," Officer Jenny noted as the general mood quickly soured and tensions rose.
"The context isn't important; however, I want Officer Swanson out. I'm afraid he's not welcome in my home." I stated coldly while taking my arm and wrapping it around Megan's waist.
"You bastard, if I'd known you'd be here, I would have brought a second pair of handcuffs," Joe snarled as he glared back at me.
"Joe, what the hell has gotten into you!" Jenny exclaimed, half warning, half shocked that her partner would threaten someone out of nowhere.
"Trust me, Jenny, this guy is scum." Joe brushed off Jenny's concern while not taking his eyes off me, "I don't know how you sleep at night, you destroyed an entire family."
"As a member of that family, I can tell you it was falling apart long before Ramon ever came along. And he sleeps just fine, we make sure of that," Megan replied slyly as she reached down and placed a hand on my shoulder.
Joe turned to look at Megan, his gaze softening slightly, "Look, Meg, you should give your father a call, he's in a bad place. I think if you talk to him, you'll see that he's sorry, and maybe then you could convince your mother-"
"I'm gonna stop you right there," Megan spoke up, interrupting Joe, "My father has been sorry plenty of times, and someone always comes back to forgive him, but he never learns his lesson. So this time he's going to live with his mistakes. And if you think I'm gonna help him get back with my mother, you're dead wrong."
Joe opened his mouth to say something, but I wasn't going to argue with a stranger in my own home. "I think that's quite enough."
I stood up and glared at Joe, "We've been shaken enough as it is tonight, and clearly your presence isn't helping. Leave now."
"Like hell I am, we're still investigating a crime!" Joe roared back.
"Joe, get a hold of yourself!" Jenny snapped her eyes wide in disbelief, "Clearly you're too close to this, go take the suspect down to the car and I'll finish up here."
Joe stared at Jenny for a long second before letting out a disgruntled sigh, "Fine."
We all watched as Joe got Samson up on his feet and started walking him back towards the elevator.
"I'm sorry about him, he's usually more professional," Jenny apologized somewhat awkwardly as she put away her notepad and pen, "I think it's better if I get your account later, maybe if you come down to the station in the next couple of days."
"I think that's more than reasonable, thank you officer Jenny," I replied with a faint smile before extending my hand, which she quickly shook, "I'll see you in a few days then."
"Yes, but I do want something on the record," I said without letting go of Jenny's hand, "This wasn't a random break-in, I think that man was here to kill me."
Jenny blinked, shocked by my sudden reveal, "W-what would make you say that?"
I grimaced, "Because I know him, he's the personal bodyguard of Preston Northwest, him and I have had more than a few less than pleasant encounters over the past month. I was getting ready to take him to court with some damning evidence, and it seems like Northwest didn't like his odds."
"T-this changes everything," Jenny stammered, hearing such a prominent name. "Why would you not divulge this sooner?!"
"I was going to, but your partner was rather disruptive," I answered, placing the blame solely on Joe's shoulders, which seemed to work as Jenny scowled, "Again, I am truly sorry about that, but I-"
"We'll talk at the station, detective, but I'm afraid that I need to get the little rest I can before work tomorrow," I cut Jenny off with an apologetic smile, and after a second, Jenny nodded and let go of my hand. "I understand, but I'll be forced to report this to my superiors, and they might not be as understanding as I am."
"Everyone has a job to do, and I'm sure your only goal is to do yours well," I said understandingly, which made Jenny smile thankfully before she turned towards the elevator.
"Well, that was a lot all at once," Patty muttered after we heard the elevator start to descend, "It's gonna be hard waking up in the morning, especially if we have another shift like yesterday."
"I hate to say it, but I think morning is already here," Megan muttered as she looked out the window and to the horizon that was beginning to glow, hinting at a sunrise.
"You two should sleep in. I'll come by to pick you up later," I responded, "In the meantime, I need to get down to the restaurant and see if Northwest tried anything there. As for your shiftload…I'll see what I can do."
I gave Patty and Megan a kiss on the cheek before rushing off to get dressed. Less than ten minutes later, I was pulling out of the garage and making a call on my phone. It rang once, then twice before connecting.
"H-hello?"
I grinned as I heard Summer's groggy voice come through, "Morning, beautiful."
Summer paused before letting out a stressed sigh, "You know I usually complain about you ghosting me, but this time I would have preferred if you hadn't called."
I glanced at the time and winced, "I know, and I wouldn't be calling unless it was an emergency."
"I swear if the emergency is related to your dick, I will cut it off and feed it to Snowball," Summer muttered, her voice still half asleep.
"I'm gonna assume Snowball is your dog, who is unfortunately gonna have to go hungry," I replied.
"Alright, what do you need?" Summer asked as I heard her sit up in bed.
"How would you and, preferably, a friend of yours like to work a shift at my restaurant?"
"You're joking, right?" Summer nearly growled, clearly not amused, "I've already got a job which I'm supposed to be at in four-"
"I'll give you five thousand dollars for the day, and if you lose your current job, I'll offer you a permanent position and pay you at least twice what you're currently making," I cut Summer off with an offer I knew she couldn't refuse, "That goes for your friend as well if you manage to bring one in, hope you got a favorite."
Summer was silent for a long second before she answered, "What are the hours like?"
"Regular hours are from four to ten, but today I'm gonna need you to get to the restaurant an hour earlier today so I can give you the rundown."
"What do you need us to do?"
"Mostly wait tables and run orders, so are you in or out?" I asked while tapping the steering wheel.
"I'm in, as for my friend…let me make a call."
--[3rd POV]--
Something had gone wrong, Preston could feel it. 'He should have been back by now; it's almost daylight out.'
Preston was, of course, referring to Samson, whom he had sent to finally dispose of the thorn in his side. But as the minutes trickled by with no notification or update from his dutiful bodyguard, the more paranoid Preston became, and before long, Avery's words were echoing in the back of his mind.
'Why couldn't he run a background check on him? What the hell is that cook hiding? Is he even a cook, or is that just a front? No cook could accomplish half the shit he managed, he has to be some secret agent or something, what else could he be?!'
Slamming back the glass of whiskey, Preston stifled a hiccup, trying not to aggravate his already pounding head, "I should have listened to Avery's advice."
"You really should have."
Preston's eyes shot open as a mocking voice responded. Looking around wildly, Preston turned in his chair and looked for where the voice had come from, "W-whose there?!"
"That's the wrong question Preston," The same voice replied, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time, "The question you should be asking is why I'm here."
Gritting his teeth, Preston stood up, throwing his chair back, "That damn cook sent you, didn't he! Well tell that ass-"
The air behind Preston shimmered with a purple glint as a slender gloved hand landed on his shoulders. Preston flinched, but before he could turn around, he felt a sharp prick in his neck, "Wrong yet again, money bags."
Preston felt his entire body lock up, leaving him paralyzed as he collapsed to the floor.
"I would like to say this is strictly business," Sombra muttered as she stared down at Preston, "But honestly, if it were up to me, I'd gut you like a fish."