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asphaltcowgrrl) wrote2017-01-31 02:15 pm
asphaltcowgrrl) wrote2017-01-31 02:15 pm
Entry tags:
A to Z Challenge Chapter 22: Victim (White Pine Original Fiction)
Title: A to Z Challenge Chapter 22: Victim
Fandom: White Pine Original Ficiton
Pairing: Travis Murphy/Ethan McDowell
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1,170
Summary: Ethan brings Jordan up to speed and then the waiting begins.
Author’s Note: Written for the A to Z Challenge at 1_million_words. So close to the finish line, folks!
Continued from here.
“Who the hell did you get into a fight with, McDowell?” Alex Jordan said from the doorway, arms crossed over his chest, frown firmly etched onto his face.
Ethan looked up from the report he’d been working on and avoided Jordan’s direct gaze. His newfound friend was the last person he’d wanted to see that morning. Focusing on the hallway just over Jordan’s shoulder, he groaned. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Hmm,” Jordan murmured, pulling out a chair and sitting across from Ethan. “Does it have anything to do with the unbearably foul mood our charming district attorney is in this morning?” Jordan tapped his fingers on the edge of the desk before catching Ethan’s gaze and holding it. The man was one hell of a force when he wanted to be. “Because if that asshole is responsible for that lovely bit of artwork on your face, I’ll give him a matching one myself.”
“While I appreciate that you’ve got my back,” Ethan said, feeling guilty and honored at the same time, “what happened was my own fault. No matter who else was involved, this is on me.”
“I find that hard to believe,” Jordan said, leaning back in the chair, studying Ethan intently. “You’re one of the most level-headed cops I’ve ever met. You don’t go looking for trouble. He either provoked you or caught you off guard. Which was it?”
But last night he had gone looking for trouble. Sadly, trouble found him, too. “Look,” Ethan said, getting up and closing the door to the small office. “I went over to Reid’s place last night and I shouldn’t have. I definitely shouldn’t have brought him that bottle of Scotch, knowing he’d have at least two fingers before I even tried to leave.” Damn, that had been a dumb move, but he knew that he’d never gotten inside otherwise.
“But?” Jordan’s eyes were intense, focused on nothing but Ethan.
“But I stumbled into someone who had information last night, something that might pertain to one of our – your – current open cases. It was the kind of information that I couldn’t sit on, not if I was going to help the victim. I had to find out if it was true.” Ethan dropped back into his rolling desk chair and sighed. He moved to bush his hair out of his eyes and bumped the nastiness on his left cheek, wincing.
“Should I go fetch you an ice pack?” He looked toward the door momentarily. “I can get Sheila to bring one for you. She usually has a few stashed in the freezer for those times when our officers get into tiffs with the local population.”
“I’m fine,” Ethan said, waving away Jordan’s concern. “But this information isn’t. Can we talk in an off-the-record way?”
“I guess that depends on what you have to say,” Jordan told him. “But don’t worry, if the information is good, I’ll make sure you’re kept out of it. Deal?”
“Deal,” Ethan said.
And then he began to spill his guts.
**
“Holy shit,” Travis breathed. “And Jordan’s backing this up?”
Ethan loved that little hitch Travis got in his voice when he got excited about something. A plot point, good news, tamales. “Not yet, he’s got another detective re-interviewing Toby Cyrus to see if Muncie’s facts match up to the truth. So, we’ll see.”
“But that means you can come home for good now, right?” He could hear Travis pacing their living room, sidestepping Brennan and Ryan at every turn. “I mean, you said you were sticking it out until you figured this out and then you were done.”
He really hated disappointing Travis, but in this case, Ethan had no other choice. “Jordan asked me to stick around through the end of the week in case he needed verification of something.” Ethan looked at the untouched food he had left on the kitchen counter. “I want nothing more than to pack up and run home right now but –”
“But you have a job to do,” Travis finished gently. “I get it, baby. But, if you don’t come home soon, I think my mama might start looking for your replacement. She’s awfully upset that you haven’t made Taco Tuesday in a month.”
Damn, he missed Taco Tuesdays at the Murphy’s house. But then, he missed everything about White Pine right then, even its crazy residents. “Tell her I’ll be home in time for the next one,” he said, stomach rumbling.
“She’ll be happy to hear that,” Travis said. “And so will my pops, even though he’ll never admit to it. He likes you, you know.”
Not that he deserved it after the things he’d done to Travis back at the beginning of their relationship. But he wasn’t going to turn it down, either. “Thanks, Travis. I need to go eat, but I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
“Sure,” he said, sounding anything but certain. “But there’s something I want to get off my chest first, okay?”
“Can it wait until I get home,” Ethan asked. “I don’t want to fight with you right now.”
“I don’t want to fight with you either,” Travis said. “And that’s not my intention to start one, either. But no, this can’t wait until you come home. I have something bugging me and it needs to be said.”
Ethan felt his shoulders slump and his heart seize in his chest. “Okay,” he said, drawing the words out, terrified of what was coming next. “Then get it off your chest, Murphy.”
“Don’t you ever,” he said, growling into the phone, “and I mean ever do something so fucking stupid again. I don’t care how hot the case is or if someone’s going to get away. Do not go into what you know is going to be a hostile situation without backup.”
“Are you quite done?” Ethan couldn’t hold back the smile forming on his face. Travis hadn’t ever been accused of not being passionate about the things and people that mattered to him.
“No, you jerk,” Travis said, trying not to laugh. “I love you and if something had happened – if that dick had hurt you worse than he had – what would I do without you?”
“Probably the same thing I’d do if I ever lost you,” he said, voice soft.
“And what’s that Detective Jerkwad?”
“Go crazy, you idiot.” Touching a finger to the purple skin beneath his eye, Ethan reminded himself that he had more to lose now than ever before. “But for the time being, why don’t we go crazy together?”
“You get your ass back here to White Pine and we can do exactly that,” Travis teased. “Until then, I love you. Be safe, use your damn head, and I’ll see you on Friday.”
“I love you too, you wild ass Irishman,” Ethan teased. “I’ll be home before you know it.”
“And I’m holding you to that.”
Now, his biggest hurdle was not pissing Reid off until he got the green light to go home.
Continues here.
Fandom: White Pine Original Ficiton
Pairing: Travis Murphy/Ethan McDowell
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1,170
Summary: Ethan brings Jordan up to speed and then the waiting begins.
Author’s Note: Written for the A to Z Challenge at 1_million_words. So close to the finish line, folks!
Continued from here.
“Who the hell did you get into a fight with, McDowell?” Alex Jordan said from the doorway, arms crossed over his chest, frown firmly etched onto his face.
Ethan looked up from the report he’d been working on and avoided Jordan’s direct gaze. His newfound friend was the last person he’d wanted to see that morning. Focusing on the hallway just over Jordan’s shoulder, he groaned. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Hmm,” Jordan murmured, pulling out a chair and sitting across from Ethan. “Does it have anything to do with the unbearably foul mood our charming district attorney is in this morning?” Jordan tapped his fingers on the edge of the desk before catching Ethan’s gaze and holding it. The man was one hell of a force when he wanted to be. “Because if that asshole is responsible for that lovely bit of artwork on your face, I’ll give him a matching one myself.”
“While I appreciate that you’ve got my back,” Ethan said, feeling guilty and honored at the same time, “what happened was my own fault. No matter who else was involved, this is on me.”
“I find that hard to believe,” Jordan said, leaning back in the chair, studying Ethan intently. “You’re one of the most level-headed cops I’ve ever met. You don’t go looking for trouble. He either provoked you or caught you off guard. Which was it?”
But last night he had gone looking for trouble. Sadly, trouble found him, too. “Look,” Ethan said, getting up and closing the door to the small office. “I went over to Reid’s place last night and I shouldn’t have. I definitely shouldn’t have brought him that bottle of Scotch, knowing he’d have at least two fingers before I even tried to leave.” Damn, that had been a dumb move, but he knew that he’d never gotten inside otherwise.
“But?” Jordan’s eyes were intense, focused on nothing but Ethan.
“But I stumbled into someone who had information last night, something that might pertain to one of our – your – current open cases. It was the kind of information that I couldn’t sit on, not if I was going to help the victim. I had to find out if it was true.” Ethan dropped back into his rolling desk chair and sighed. He moved to bush his hair out of his eyes and bumped the nastiness on his left cheek, wincing.
“Should I go fetch you an ice pack?” He looked toward the door momentarily. “I can get Sheila to bring one for you. She usually has a few stashed in the freezer for those times when our officers get into tiffs with the local population.”
“I’m fine,” Ethan said, waving away Jordan’s concern. “But this information isn’t. Can we talk in an off-the-record way?”
“I guess that depends on what you have to say,” Jordan told him. “But don’t worry, if the information is good, I’ll make sure you’re kept out of it. Deal?”
“Deal,” Ethan said.
And then he began to spill his guts.
**
“Holy shit,” Travis breathed. “And Jordan’s backing this up?”
Ethan loved that little hitch Travis got in his voice when he got excited about something. A plot point, good news, tamales. “Not yet, he’s got another detective re-interviewing Toby Cyrus to see if Muncie’s facts match up to the truth. So, we’ll see.”
“But that means you can come home for good now, right?” He could hear Travis pacing their living room, sidestepping Brennan and Ryan at every turn. “I mean, you said you were sticking it out until you figured this out and then you were done.”
He really hated disappointing Travis, but in this case, Ethan had no other choice. “Jordan asked me to stick around through the end of the week in case he needed verification of something.” Ethan looked at the untouched food he had left on the kitchen counter. “I want nothing more than to pack up and run home right now but –”
“But you have a job to do,” Travis finished gently. “I get it, baby. But, if you don’t come home soon, I think my mama might start looking for your replacement. She’s awfully upset that you haven’t made Taco Tuesday in a month.”
Damn, he missed Taco Tuesdays at the Murphy’s house. But then, he missed everything about White Pine right then, even its crazy residents. “Tell her I’ll be home in time for the next one,” he said, stomach rumbling.
“She’ll be happy to hear that,” Travis said. “And so will my pops, even though he’ll never admit to it. He likes you, you know.”
Not that he deserved it after the things he’d done to Travis back at the beginning of their relationship. But he wasn’t going to turn it down, either. “Thanks, Travis. I need to go eat, but I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
“Sure,” he said, sounding anything but certain. “But there’s something I want to get off my chest first, okay?”
“Can it wait until I get home,” Ethan asked. “I don’t want to fight with you right now.”
“I don’t want to fight with you either,” Travis said. “And that’s not my intention to start one, either. But no, this can’t wait until you come home. I have something bugging me and it needs to be said.”
Ethan felt his shoulders slump and his heart seize in his chest. “Okay,” he said, drawing the words out, terrified of what was coming next. “Then get it off your chest, Murphy.”
“Don’t you ever,” he said, growling into the phone, “and I mean ever do something so fucking stupid again. I don’t care how hot the case is or if someone’s going to get away. Do not go into what you know is going to be a hostile situation without backup.”
“Are you quite done?” Ethan couldn’t hold back the smile forming on his face. Travis hadn’t ever been accused of not being passionate about the things and people that mattered to him.
“No, you jerk,” Travis said, trying not to laugh. “I love you and if something had happened – if that dick had hurt you worse than he had – what would I do without you?”
“Probably the same thing I’d do if I ever lost you,” he said, voice soft.
“And what’s that Detective Jerkwad?”
“Go crazy, you idiot.” Touching a finger to the purple skin beneath his eye, Ethan reminded himself that he had more to lose now than ever before. “But for the time being, why don’t we go crazy together?”
“You get your ass back here to White Pine and we can do exactly that,” Travis teased. “Until then, I love you. Be safe, use your damn head, and I’ll see you on Friday.”
“I love you too, you wild ass Irishman,” Ethan teased. “I’ll be home before you know it.”
“And I’m holding you to that.”
Now, his biggest hurdle was not pissing Reid off until he got the green light to go home.
Continues here.