"So, how come he only called to you? Wouldn't there be a general call for backup?" Jill asked.
Chris nodded. "Barry's a friend, we have our codes and understand each other very well," he said.
"This isn't serious, is it..." she said.
Chris looked at the clock and sped up. "It's Wednesday and it's eleven in the morning...damn right it's serious," he said. He saw the entrance to the mall and drove in, speeding towards the building.
As they got closer, Jill could see a group of teenage girls standing outside the building's entrance, laughing. One of them looked up at the sound of the approaching police sirens, and her face filled with panic. Jill noticed, and looked to Chris. "Um, maybe you should slow down?" she suggested.
Chris's attention was glued to the group of girls.
"Chris?" Jill asked, worried. "What's this all about?"
He turned the wheel and made the cruiser drift, stopping right next to the sidewalk where the girls were standing. Jill saw the panicked girl turn and run towards the mall's door, but ran into a big tall policeman. She stepped back looking up at him, and turned to run down the sidewalk. Jill watched her go, then heard a car door and turned to see Chris running out of the car and chasing the girl. She got out as well, and looked at the tall officer that had blocked the girl's escape. "Does he need help?" she asked him.
Barry laughed. "You must be Valentine, the new kid," he said as he walked over to her.
She nodded. "Just Jill please, sir," she said.
"Sir?" asked Barry. He laughed again. "Call me Barry, please," he said. They shook hands and watched as Chris chased the girl down the road. She jumped up to climb a fence, but he grabbed her by the backpack and pulled her down. She turned and tried running but he held on to the bag tightly.
"Well, he's got her," said Jill.
The girl moved her arms and took off the bag, then started down the road again. Chris chased her again, carrying the backpack. It slowed him down a bit, and the girl was surprisingly fast.
"She didn't even do anything!" said one of the girls from the teenage group.
Jill turned around. "Shouldn't you all be in school right now?" she asked.
"It's, um, a PD day!" said one of the girls.
"What the hell is that cop's problem?" asked another.
Barry turned around. "I know for a fact that today is NOT a PD day, and if you don't want us to bring you to your parents' work in handcuffs, you might want to march yourselves back to school," he said.
The girls looked at one another, and headed in the mall towards the bus station.
"Nice bluff, Barry!" Jill said.
Barry grinned. "I have two daughters, so I know how to handle these things," he said.
Jill smiled. Barry seemed like a nice man, and she might actually end up liking this job. That's, if Chris stopped chasing kids around and explained to her what was going on. "So, yeah, should we help Chris?" she asked.
Barry shook his head, and they watched on. In the distance, Chris stumbled and almost fell down, and suddenly he seemed filled with anger. Several people were watching this, and he refused to be made a fool. He threw the bag on the sidewalk and picked up his speed, running behind the girl. Once he got close enough, he leaped forward and tackled her to the ground. She cried out as she hit the pavement.
Barry walked to where the backpack was to retrieve it, and Jill watched in horror as Chris handcuffed the girl and pulled her to her feet. He pushed her towards the cruiser, and as they got closer Jill could see the girl's jeans had torn at the knee, which was scraped and a bit bloody. She could see they'd been arguing the whole way, and the girl had an over-exaggerated limp.
"...my freaking jeans, and that was a new pair!" said the girl.
"Serves you right for trying to outrun me, now get in the car!" he said. He got to the cruiser and opened the backdoor.
The girl stopped and looked over to Jill. "Who's this, your girlfriend?" she asked.
"I SAID IN THE CAR!" Chris said as he grabbed the girl by the shoulder and pushed her in the car, and slammed the door shut. He then walked around the car and over to Jill. Barry also returned with the backpack, handing it to Chris.
"What the hell was all that about?" Jill asked, confused.
Barry laughed. "Coffee?" he asked.
Chris nodded. "We'll meet you at Emmy's in a bit," he said. Barry nodded and waved to them both as he headed back towards his own cruiser. Chris turned back to Jill. "You drink coffee, right?" he asked.
Jill folded her arms. "Chris, I need answers please! What just happened? What are you charging that girl with?" she asked.
"I'm not charging her for anything," he said.
"Well what did she do?"
"She's skipping school," Chris said.
"Chris, skipping school is not an offense that calls for police measures such as tackling and handcuffs," Jill said. Chris got into the driver's seat of the cruiser, and Jill got in the passenger's seat.
"It should be a crime punishable by death," he said as he looked into the rear-view mirror.
"Bite me," said the girl in the back.
Jill turned and looked at her. She had blood running from her knee, and she had a few dirt spots on her face. Jill examined her carefully, and noticed the girl had a bruise under her eye, but managed to cover it pretty well with cover-up; it was nearly invisible. Jill guessed her age to be around twelve or thirteen, but she looked like a tiny Harley-chick. She had her red hair tied into a short ponytail at the back, and her bangs were in her face. She wore a black t-shirt with a little red sleeveless jacket over it. The girl looked at her, and Jill could see her eyes were a bright blue, nearly grey. "What?" asked the annoyed girl.
Jill turned back and looked at Chris. "So where are you taking her?" she asked.
Chris turned to look at her, and she noticed his eyes were the same as the girl. "Well we're getting coffee with Barry. I guess she'll wait in the car, not like she has anywhere better to be apparently," he said, glancing up at her again.
Jill shook her head. "We should take her home, Chris."
The girl leaned forward, shifting uncomfortably in the handcuffs. "Yeah, take me home," she said.
Chris shook his head. Jill looked back to her. "Wouldn't your parents be pissed off if they knew you were skipping school?" she asked, hoping to scare her.
The girl blinked and sunk back into the seat, looking out the window. Jill noticed she'd started to cry quietly, and looked back to Chris. "I think I scared her," Jill said confidently.
Chris looked down. "Jill, her parents were killed in an accident," he said calmly.
Jill felt a knot in her throat. "Oh God..." she said, and turned around. "I'm really sorry," she said.
The girl nodded, looking outside. Chris glanced into the rear-view mirror, then sighed and got out of the car. He opened the back door and leaned inside. "Turn around," he said. The girl turned and he took off the handcuffs. He then stepped back and sighed again. "Get out," he said, but didn't sound angry anymore.
The girl got out of the car slowly, and he hugged her. She sighed and hugged him back. "Can I go back to the mall?" she asked.
Chris grinned. "Nice try, but you're getting back in the car," he said.
Jill watched, confused, as the girl pouted and got back in the car. Chris did the same, and Jill saw that they both had the same forced smile on their face. "You know, if she were older you two would pass for twins," she said.
Chris looked over to her, and really smiled this time. "Yeah, and she's nearly as fast, too," he said.
"I saw the resemblance in your eyes. You two are siblings, right?" she asked.
Chris nodded. Jill smiled and looked at the girl in the back. "Well it's nice to meet you, Chris's sister," she said.
"Whatever, can I go home now?" the girl asked.
Chris looked up in the mirror. "Claire, be nice. And no, you can't go home. Not until I get off work, anyways," he said.
Claire folded her arms. "So what am I supposed to do, hang out with you and brace-face over here?" she asked. She saw Jill look away uncomfortably, and felt a bit bad.
Chris turned around. "I said be nice. And you have two options...either go back to school, or stay with us," he said. "Come on, I can get you a cheeseburger?" he offered.
Claire sat up straight, and nodded. "Okay, and a milkshake too?" she asked. Chris sighed and nodded, then turned around and started the car. Jill put on her seatbelt, sinking in her seat.