Blind loyalties

Lucas' POV

The sun seems to be gloomy today as it sits in the sky, I sigh continuously as my mind races. I am still shaken from the event that occurred a few hours ago.

Everything had been cleaned up. The blood, the broken glass- the bodies, it gave me chills. The fact that whoever this is can snap his fingers and have things done at his beck and call.

I and my team had been chasing the leader of the drug ring here in Brooklyn, but we seem to be chasing shadows. Everything we managed to come across led to a dead end.

I turn to my side, Joey is standing with the same expression as me, watching the sun quietly and sighing.

Today was a pretty rough day.

I sigh again, rubbing my hand over my face as I walk over to him. He has a glass of alcohol in one hand and his pistol in the other. I understand his frustration, having something- or in our case someone, slip through your fingers over and over again can be a bit too much, could even drive a man to a point of insanity.

I place my hand on his shoulders and frown at the permanent worry lines on his forehead, his hollow cheeks and under eye bags that seem to get worse every day.

"I'm going to kill him when I eventually lay my hands on him," he says venomously.

I can hear the hate in his voice, can feel it in the way his body shakes violently.

He had lost his daughter to this case, we believe she got too close to something tangible and had to be eliminated by them. So while the rest of us are passionately trying to get whoever this drug boss is, out of the streets, it was personal for Joey.

We never managed to get an actual name and the people we came across who were willing to talk, didn't seem to know anything that could lead us to him. They all called him a common name though, Shadow. And that was all we knew about him. The rest of it were facts, he was vicious, fast and powerful. Whoever he was, he had access to top security places, high value people and the thugs on the streets. He was literally feared everywhere, there wasn't much I could do at this time.

He slams his fist on the table, rattling the pen container and causing it to fall over. I take his half empty glass from him and put it away.

"Fuck!" he yells, annoyed at himself. I can tell because I have worked with him for long enough to know. After his daughter died, there seemed to be a part of him that snapped, and I don't blame him.

The board had considered getting him off the team but I had pleaded on his behalf, the worst thing we could do to him at this time is stop him from getting his revenge in the only way he knows how to.

I grab his shoulders and shake him roughly, "Pull yourself together man!" I yell, trying to call him back.

"Why do I keep letting him get away?" he sinks into my arms, tears spilling out of his eyes.

I swallow hard, I really don't do well with extreme emotions like this.

"It's not your fault. We've been on him for a year now. You are doing everything you can- we all are. And we are going to get him, he can only stay hidden for so long.

He nods, trying to pull himself together.

"I need you to do something for me, I need you to go home and have a cold shower. Get some sleep and show up to work tomorrow. It might take some time but we would get whoever he is eventually."

He seems to have a new sense of hope and he finally straightens up, tucking his gun into his hostler.

I sigh and pat his back, watching him as he walks stiffly out of the office.

Fiona is standing by the door, wearing her uniform, her hips were popped to the side as she eyes me, a smile spread across her face.

"You should be a therapist. You really know how to handle people," she says, walking over to me.

"God no, I can't handle that much emotions on a daily basis," I laugh softly.

She caresses my face gently, something I had grown to love. It had a way of putting my head back in order, and man was it peaceful. I closed my eyes, enjoying the feeling.

"Too bad, I thought it would suit you perfectly."

"Hmm," I hum.

I feel her hand leave my face, causing my eyes to open due to the absence of her touch.

"Are you okay?" she asks, raising an eyebrow, something she did when she expected me to lie.

I sigh, "No."

Her eyebrows relaxes, showing she believed me and was ready to listen. I love this about her, she is always ready to listen, and if she doesn't have a solution, she would provide comfort.

People say we should be together, but sadly we are not one of those childhood friends that end up together romantically.

"Tell me about it," she say, getting sited and pulling me to sit with her. I don't bother trying to get out of it, I know she wouldn't let me leave until she is convinced that I am okay

So I sit next to her and sigh, I've been doing that a lot lately.

"It's everything. We keep going round in circles and chasing someone who doesn't even have a face yet. Joey is a mess, the team is losing hope and I don't know what to do. Today- today was terrible. They were eight of them, an entire family- freaking slaughtered in their living room. The little girl was missing though, no trace of her anywhere."

I am starting to get migraines from thinking too much. And I can't even break down or be in a mood because I'm the guy who cheers everyone up.

"Could there be something you're missing?" Fiona asks thoughtfully.

"I have spent countless nights studying the case files, looking for loop holes, looking at the situation from different angles, going on stakeouts- I don't think there's something I could possibly be missing. Every time we find a lead, they end up dead. Even when they are kept in the holding cell."

She rubs my shoulders gently, sensing that my stress is getting the best of me.

"Can I see the case file?" she asks.

I hesitated, backing away a little so she could sense my discomfort at her request.

"What?" she asked, throwing her hands in the air.

"You know I can't do that. It's against the code."

"Technically, it isn't, because we are still in your place of work and I'm not just a civilian."

She makes a point, she is a cop, so I am not risking the life of a civilian, or taking documents out of work place. But I would be sharing sensitive information with a third party.

"I can't do that Fiona," I sigh.

I get to my feet and grab my jacket, ready to go.

"What if I am able to see something that you and your team missed," she asks, making me stop and turn to face her.

"Oh, and how is that possible? We've been working on this for a year now- and counting."

"That's precisely my point. The thing about teams is that you all have to be on the same page, and by extension, you all see from the same lens. It's like you all are in the same boat- so you need someone outside your boat to warn you of what's coming."

Another point.

Call me paranoid, but I can't help but suspect her, considering how desperately she seems to want to 'help' me.

But I am out of options and she has hit me with two great points.

"You have to promise me- swear, that this stays between us. No one can ever find out," I tell her sternly.

"What if I crack the case?" She pouts.

"This is serious Fiona, if you tell anyone I could get kicked out."

She scofs and walks over to me, slapping me playfully on the arm, "Quit being so serious would you?"

I relax a bit and hang my jacket back on the hanger, grabbing her hand, I lead her to the room.

The case files are scattered all over the table, Fiona keeps her focus on the pages while I subtly keep my eyes on her.

Personally, I believe Fiona was a great person, but I have been with the FBI for too long to trust that she is just here to help me crack a case because she is bored.

"Have you found anything?" I ask.

The sun is departing from the sky and I am starting to feel uneasy.

"I haven't found anything, but I have noticed a pattern," she says, not taking her eyes off the papers.

"And what is that?" I ask, biting my nails. I walk over to her and stand behind her, watching the papers she is studying.

"In all of these, you go to him. You follow leads that are supposed to take you to him. You plan stake outs, trying to catch him, when you don't even know what he looks like."

"So?" I shrug.

She sighs and put the papers aside, "What if he's playing games with you people. Setting traps and watching you walk into them while he hides in the shadows." She says.

I nod, furrowing my brows as I let what she said sink in.

"Think about it, how can he be so fast, escaping you every single time, unless it was pre- planned, unless he knew you people were coming- and made his plans accordingly."

"That's why he's always one step ahead."

It was all starting to click, the almost encounters and times when he would vanish like a ghost.

"So what do you suggest?" I ask.

"Beat him as his own game, set a trap for him. Let him come to you."

"How are we supposed to do that?"

"I haven't figured that out yet. But there has to be something that he can't help but come after."

I think about it for a hot minuite, dissecting and trying to come up with something that could possibly get his attention.

I found nothing.

"There's a missing girl," I say. "I need to find her."

"Children are messy. Look hard enough and you will most likely find a slip up. Not from him obviously, cause he is obviously too smart for that. The kid is bound to screw him up though."

I nod again, she is right, I have never thought about this at all, he really might be playing games with us.

"Did I help?" She asks with a proud grin.

I place a kiss on her forehead and rub her shoulder lightly.

"Yes you did. Thank you so much."

I start to gather the papers and put them back in their files, Fiona helps me place them back on the shelves.

We get back to the main office and I grab my jacket and start to hurry out.

"Wait!" she calls, making me stop again in my tracks and turn to face her.

"If you people haven't seen a face before, how do you know it's a man?"

I shrug, the question does seem like something to think about, but there is no way a woman would be the leader of such a massive drug ring.

"The things I've seen Fiona, aren't something a woman can pull off," I say.

"That's a bit sexist don't you think?" she furrows her brows and places her hands on her hips.

"A woman can lead a drug ring, very efficiently even," she say.

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind," I reply.

I need to get home, place a call to Givoni and make sure we get something on this "Shadow".