Chapter 4: Tension
"That some kind of substitute to a Taser or some shit?" – John Shepard
In which John compares Kaidan's cologne to a Taser.
The police department was just as cheery as Shepard remembered.
Clear of dust, confined and incarcerated, smelling of lukewarm coffee and newly-pressed uniforms, the jingle of handcuffs and keys echoing the halls, stuck-up officers swaggering the mostly empty pathways like they were on the top of the world.
Last time he was there was just about fifteen years ago. He was a kid running in circles through his dad's office with a model spacecraft, making engine sounds, taking what little he had of his childhood to the extreme. Shepard had always been fascinated by space. By science fiction and science in general. The more you understood of the world the less likely you were to end up dead in some ditch.
He had been taught that having fun just for the sake of having fun was wrong, and taking that into consideration, he never had the chance of a real childhood.
First 'toy' ever shoved into his hand was a loaded gun, three bullets, and instructions to crack a store window.
Down the hall, his gaze was directed at the plain grey door before him that beckoned him closer. A sharp pain swept up his arm, clasping his shoulder as some asshole had bumped into him without even bothering to apologize.
Like he wasn't even there.
Just empty air.
At this point, he was used to it.
"Hey," the officer said, but Shepard kept walking. "Hey, kid! I'm talking to you."
Shepard stopped, taking a deep breath through his nose, calming himself down.
He plastered on a smile and spiraled around. "May I help you, offic -?" he said, only to jerk a step back as he'd ended up face-to-face with the guy he could've sworn was at the opposite end of the hallway.
"What the hell are you doing here? This isn't a damn bar." The officer grasped his arm, yanking him in.
"Whoa, hey -hey! Easy with the leather. It's Versace," Shepard said, flaunting his sarcasm.
"Don't make me laugh. As if you could afford it," he replied, nails like talons burying into his bicep nearly making him squirm. "Now tell me what a godforsaken street urchin without handcuffs and a black eye is doing here."
"Your daughter. She's a kinky girl, that one. We might use those handcuffs after all."
The officer looked ready to tear him in half, but seemed to consider his answer. With narrowed eyes, he looked him up and down. He showed no signs of letting go of his arm.
If anything, he squeezed harder.
"I see. You're Anderson's protégé, aren't you?" he finally asked, scowling. "Well, then. Daddy dearest isn't here to help you now, is he? I could throw you in a cell right now and he wouldn't know. Only solution to shutting up a smartass like you."
Shepard frowned. "Throw me in a cell for what? You don't have proof for shit."
"I don't need proof. Only a convincing story."
"Careful, old man... or you'll be the one with a black eye."
"Why you little -"
"Arterius, stand down," came a familiar, honeyed and now somewhat sharp voice.
Shepard froze.
Arterius.
He knew that name.
Saren Arterius were one of those fuckers intent on finding him. A Spectre. Anderson had told him about them.
Shepard swallowed hard under his gaze. It was as if his clear blue orbs bore straight into his soul. The vibration of a low growling sound emitted from his crooked mouth, sending cold shivers down his spine, nails digging into tender flesh.
"He's with me," Alenko added.
"This lousy back-talker of wasted air just threatened a senior officer, Alenko. If Anderson won't put his kid in place –- teach him some damn respect - someone has to," Arterius spat.
"It won't happen again, sir."
Arterius fell into a pause, but he eventually let up his grip and settled for a shove that nearly knocked Shepard off his feet.
"See to it that it won't."
Shepard fought the urge to rub the area of effect, but settled for balling his hands into fists, eyes unmoving as he watched Arterius turn and continue on his way as he grumbled unintelligibly to himself.
Alenko sighed, regaining his attention. "Sorry about that. Saren takes his job seriously."
"Are all of you people corrupt?" he asked agitated as he turned.
Alenko stood by an open door, arms folded across his chest, his expression drained as if he'd missed his daily cup of coffee. Shepard straightened his back. It didn't look like he needed this right now. With a cock of his head, he was gestured to follow him down another hallway.
"Thankfully, no," Alenko said as they walked. "Saren's always been kind of an ass. I'm surprised Anderson hasn't mentioned him."
He had, but not in this context.
"Why would he?"
"They've got somewhat of a personal feud. Collaborated for a mission that went FUBAR where Saren made the decision of blowing up a refinery, killing hundreds of civilians in the process. He did it without any hesitation or mercy. Couldn't care less about the lives that was lost and the families that were torn apart. Worst of all, he blamed Anderson. Said he had 'blown his cover.' He's been in the force longer than Anderson has - being one of our most respected officers - so the authorities ate it up."
Saren should be glad he wasn't there right now.
Shepard would've killed him.
No hesitation.
No mercy.
There was no wonder why Alenko despised him as much as he did.
Alenko swung up another door, and across the floorboards, he watched Chase's amber eyes go wide. Shepard let his gaze fall. Chase was propped up in a singular chair in the interrogation room, his wrists slapped in iron, the hands trapped by them clutched so hard the knuckles were white.
"I'll, uh... I'll leave you two to talk," Alenko said, heading for the exit.
After yesterday's confrontation, it didn't take much effort to notice how Alenko seemed far more resigned. Careful. On edge. He was a smart guy, no doubt, and he wasn't letting down his guard anytime soon. Alenko had called him over to get some information out of Chase, and logically, Shepard didn't waste a moment to head down and meet up with him.
He had a thing or two to say to him.
"You look like you've seen a ghost," Shepard said, taking another step inside.
"John, thank god you're all right -"
"Spare me," he snapped, watching the expression before him mellow in feigned hurt. "Sorry to break it to you, pal. Finch was never a good shot. You should've hired a better assassin."
"C'mon, babe. You don't honestly believe that I tried to hurt you, right?"
It came out frail. Small. Apologetic.
Shepard withered in disgust at how Chase's tone had softened, remembering how that penetrating voice used to be his whole world, his safe place away from all of his troubles. Now, it was nothing but a withering cry, a reminder of all the mistakes that he had made. Trusting Chase was one of them. A mistake that would haunt him for the rest of his life.
He towered over him as he palmed determined hands at the table with an accompanying scowl.
"You don't have the right to call me that," Shepard said, not easily swayed. "We both know why you turned against me. Your pride's always been important to you."
Chase clenched his jaw, his eyes beginning to burn with an undistinguishable fury.
His breathing turned heavier.
Shepard had hit the nail on the head.
"I know what the hell you're playing at, Chase," he added, staring him down. "You're too fucking high and proud. A poor fucking rich-kid who expects to have anything his way - someone who expects everything to be served on a silver fucking platter –- and when that doesn't happen, you want to erase all evidence, and I happened to be evidence walking."
"Laugh it up all you want, but you can't un-suck this dick," he replied. "Sorry that I hurt your precious feelings."
It took everything out of him not to uppercut the bastard.
"You're not exactly in the position of shit-talking me."
Chase frowned. "And what if I did anyways? You'd kill me? As if."
"How do you think I knew the guy in the ally, huh? The guy you paid? Finch. Guy's a scumbag grunt. A member of the Tenth Street Reds. I'm sure you're already aware of that. Thing is, so am I. Difference is, I happen to be one of their front men."
"What?" he asked, brows furrowed.
"The name 'Shepard' ring any bell to you?"
Chase's eyes went wide.
"Who's gonna believe you, huh?" Shepard asked, revering in the pure look of terror before him. "For all they know, I'm just David Anderson's son. One of their most respected officers. No way he would raise a killer... and before you get all 'smart and cocky' up your ass, I'll have you know that I turned off the sound systems before I walked in here. I can off you right now and no one would know. How's that sound, huh?"
Of course, it was a one-way mirror, but Chase was too much of an idiot to know that.
Kaidan tapped the speakers. "What the hell? This thing is supposed to be on."
"Must've been a fault in the systems. The kid looks spooked. I wonder what your friend said to him," Ashley said, stepping up before the one-way mirror. "Think we should go in?"
He considered it, but they probably had a lot of steam to sort out.
"Let them talk."
Ashley pursed her mouth. "I don't know about this, Kaid. Are you sure you can trust this 'John' guy?"
Hell no.
"John's a... good... guy. I wouldn't allow him in my apartment if he wasn't. I know what I'm doing, Ash."
"Psh. Yeah, right. I might've believed you if you weren't constantly giving him the gooey-eyes," she murmured, earning her a scoff. "Look, he's cute, and those baby-blue eyes of his is a crime itself - shit, I've looked his way, too –- and his ass is great... but something about him is rubbing me the wrong way. We know nothing about him other than that he's Anderson's kid."
Her voice softened. "I just... I don't want you to get hurt, is all."
You're far closer to the truth than you believe, Ash.
"I get it," he replied "...and thanks, but really, I'm good -"
The door swung open.
Kaidan released his arms, turning the way of the commotion. John stepped out. He looked undisturbed.
"Anything?" Kaidan asked.
"Ask him yourself," he replied, beginning to move towards the coffee can to pour himself some liquefied caffeine and flopped down in a nearby chair by the monitors.
Narrowing his eyes, Kaidan turned to the one-way mirror.
The suspect looked on-edge as he was tapping his feet against the floorboards. Kaidan wasn't too big on leaving Ashley with John, but he seemed entirely disinterested in causing any havoc. He let it slide for now. They were in the middle of a police department, so hell, John had to be smart enough not to draw any attention to himself.
Kaidan stepped into the interrogation room where Chase sat ready to be interviewed once more. He was staring blankly at the ground, jaw clenched and still tapping with his feet, looking even more on-edge than before.
Clearing his throat, Kaidan plopped down at the table with a new list of questions on a clipboard.
"All right, Reynolds. This'd be a lot easier if you simply cooperated -"
"I didn't want him dead, okay?" he snapped, taking him aback. "It just... hell, things got out of hand. Fuck. I didn't want this."
Kaidan let him speak.
"Two weeks ago, we were... John and I were an item. I already told you that," Reynolds' said, biting into his lower lip. "We'd been together for close to three months by then. I was never at his place; he was never at mine, either. We usually met up in town and shit for dates or whatever. I knew he was Anderson's kid, but I never met the guy, and John never met my parents in return."
He watched Reynolds shift in his seat. "The whole thing between us just didn't seem like something serious, you know, so I just... I –I had a guy over, that's all! Nothing big, and suddenly he steps in, just freaks out and dumps me."
"Simply put, you cheated on him."
"I –Fuck, yes! Okay? Yes, I did," he spat, agitated. "Hell, he probably fucked loads of guys while I was away."
"How can you possibly know that?"
Reynolds scowled. "Have you seen the guy? Guy couldn't keep it in his pants even if he tried."
"Just because you cheated doesn't mean everyone does."
"It doesn't fucking matter, okay?" he snapped again, leaning in. "I didn't want him dead, I just... wanted 'em to roughen him up a little."
Kaidan arched a brow, considering his options.
"So, this whole thing is simply about a dispute between forlorn lovers?" he asked rhetorically. With a sigh, Kaidan rubbed his eyes with an index finger and thumb. "Oh, for god's sake..."
This... this is ridiculous.
"All right, then. What do you know about the guys that you paid?" Kaidan asked.
"Fuck, man. You don't know what I know. I don't... I don't want to piss Sh -John off any more."
"I know more than you give me credit for, Reynolds," he replied. "Trust me; you'll want to tell us everything you know. Don't hold back. If you do hold back, you'll be spending one hell of a lot more time behind bars. I'm sure you don't want that."
Silence.
"Finch," he finally said.
"Hmm?"
"The –the guy I paid. His name's Finch. He's part of the Tenth Street Reds, I hear."
"From whom?" Kaidan asked.
"...John."
"John said that, huh?" he asked, tapping his pen. "What else did he say?"
Reynolds remained silent.
"You're afraid of John Anderson, is that it?" Kaidan claimed, taking his silence as a 'yes.' "Okay, I understand. That's reasonable considering everything that's been going on. There's a lot of bad blood between the two of you, I get that, and I'm not here to pick any sides. I just want to know what happened. Whatever you believe that, uh... that John's gonna do... we won't let that happen. That's a promise.
"I just need you to cooperate and then we can both walk out of this door with fresh air but a hint closer. No doubt, you will be charged for first-degree murder, but how long your sentence will be depends on your cooperation."
Averting his eyes, Reynolds bit into his lip again.
"His... his real name is, uh... is John Shepard. He told me. Said no one would believe me 'cause he's Anderson's son."
"All right, thanks for the information. We'll certainly be looking into this. You made our job one hell of a lot easier, Reynolds," Kaidan said, smiling, as he pushed up from the table.
Reynolds' eyes shot open, stunned by the abrupt end of conversation. "You believe me?"
"I keep an open mind," he said, winking.
With a push of the door, Kaidan was out. Ashley stood with her arms folded by the one-way mirror and John was exactly where he left him. He'd finished his coffee and parted from his jacket, though.
"I couldn't get the sound systems working again, so I'll need a debriefing. While you were in there, your phone's been ringing," Ash said.
He caught the small smirk curving John's lips.
Kaidan rolled his eyes.
"Probably turned up more evidence, I take it," he replied, working his way over to the table. Kaidan shuffled up his phone. Looking down at the contact, his features mellowed. "Huh. It's, uh... it's my mom."
Ashley frowned as he called her up again, bringing it to his ear.
"Hi, sweetie," came a familiar voice at the other end, but it didn't take much effort to hear the strain in it.
She'd been crying.
"Hey, mom. What's going on? Are you okay?" he asked, an uncomfortable lump forming in the back of his throat. He despised seeing his mom cry. Hearing it was nowhere near any better.
He saw John's eyes peek up in the glass reflection. Ashley watched him closely. There was a certain resigned look about her.
"I'm fine. I just received a tough phone call, is all."
"Mom, this -what's this about? Don't keep me in the dark, here."
"It's your dad."
Kaidan frowned. "Wait, dad? Isn't he –isn't he deployed on active duty in Vancouver right now? One last mission before he retired? What about him?" he asked, pacing the room as the anxiety crumpled his stomach.
"He... he's reported MIA, sweetie. Something about a bombing. They... they're investigating it now."
His body went rigid.
"But... they haven't found anything, right?"
"No, sweetie. Not yet."
"So he could –dad could still be alive."
"It's looking grim, honey, but... we have to hope for the best. Always. The both of us," she replied, tone weary. "I figured you wanted to know, even if nothing is solid just yet. When anything else shows up, I'll uh... I'll call you back up, okay?"
"Yeah... yeah, okay."
"We'll talk later, sweetie. I –I have to get back to it, okay? I love you," she said, him hearing the strained smile on her lips.
"Love you, too," he muttered, and with that, she hung up.
He knew she wanted to cry. He knew the conversation ended so abruptly because of that very reason. His mom was a strong woman. A fighter. She avoided showing any signs of weaknesses in front of her kid. It had always been like that. Military wives were of the tough sort, and hell, he knew that all too well. He could still remember gazing out his Vancouver window as a kid and waiting for dad to come home. Waiting through fall, to winter, to spring, and finally back to summer.
He kept asking his mom when dad would come back. She always gave encouraging words and gentle smiles that let him know that everything was going to be all right. That dad was coming home.
He wasn't that kid anymore, and now, he was preparing for that summer to pass without a word.
It didn't make it any easier.
"Kaid... you all right?" came Ashley's voice, gentler than he'd ever heard her, as he stared down at the phone. He cleared his throat. Kaidan quickly wiped his eyes with his thumb and forefinger and straightened his back.
"Yeah, I'm good. Just, uh... yeah. Dad's, uh... he's MIA."
Ashley knew him well enough by now. She knew he wasn't a guy who sought comfort. Not anymore.
He wasn't that kid anymore.
Averting his eyes, he wanted something else to focus on.
Kaidan frowned, searching the room. "Wait. Where's, uh... where's John?"
"He was here a minute ago," she replied, casting a suspicious glance above her shoulder towards the chair left abandoned. Only coffee ring stains and his leather jacket were left at the plain round table.
"Dammit," Kaidan muttered, taking to his feet. He couldn't have gotten far.
There was time to grieve later.
Shepard couldn't stay back there. Couldn't hear the whole sob story that presented itself. It wasn't an option. Knowing about stuff like that made you care and he wasn't about to let that stand in the way.
Alenko wasn't getting under his skin.
Arms thrown over the banister outside the police department, Shepard stared out on the streets, observing as cars of different shapes and sizes flew by. A couple motorcycles joined the queue, followed by two minivans, then a supposed environmental-friendlier one. A Ford Fusion Hybrid if memory served him right. There were some strange vehicles that only a guy of his stature could find the matching parts for.
Being a mechanic, he knew cars and MC's inside out, knowing just when to replace the oil or when to save up for a new engine before the old one broke down in the middle of a freeway.
A gush of wind went down his spine as the door flew open.
Shepard blew out a haze of smoke. "Relax, Sherlock. I'm still here. I'd never leave my jacket, either. Can't a guy get a coffee refill without alerting the whole district?" he asked, staring into the tacky 'Enkindle This' mug steaming of shit-tasting coffee.
Must've been a police gig.
"Can't be too careful," he replied.
Shuffling up to stand beside him, Alenko shoved his hands deep into his pockets and joined him. Shepard kept his eyes peeled on the streets before him. A comfortable silence befell them.
"Sorry about your dad."
In his peripheral vision, a jaw clenched. "What's it to you?"
"Just... making conversation."
"Next topic?"
Shepard cocked his head towards him, expecting to catch a hint of his reaction, the frown by Alenko's brow making him appear ten years older as they wrinkled his otherwise smooth forehead.
He sighed. "Look. If it's to any comfort... I haven't heard from my dad in a while, either."
At first, he didn't answer.
"Worried about him?"
"Not... really."
Alenko pursed his mouth, but Shepard couldn't let the slight curving of his scarred lips go unnoticed. It was contagious. Directing his eyes to the smoke in hand, Shepard quickly covered over the twist of his own mouth with a cough.
"You're not very good at this, are you?"
Shepard grimaced. "That obvious?"
"Yeah, that -that obvious," he replied, and silence followed for a while. "How'd you know about me, anyway?"
"Garrus mentioned some new guy walking into the bar one day. I took notice. Did what any smart guy needing an advantage would; I looked you up. You were too clean, Alenko. Had to be some dirt on you. Looks like I found it."
Whiskey-brown eyes were steeled forward. "And what do you plan to do with that information?"
"Nothing. Yet."
"Duly noted," he replied, gaze unmoving"...and I'll have you know that I don't like this collaboration any more than you do."
"Obviously. Would explain the gun you're always carrying around. I doubt you're just happy to see me."
Alenko shifted, obviously hadn't expected him to notice it.
"You'd be so lucky," he replied, as deep, concentrated lines formed in his forehead. "Considering how you've managed to survive for so long, I take it you've got contacts. Know people on the inside. You know Anderson, sure, but I highly doubt he'd be okay with this. It... it's not his style. He's too much of a good guy to let this go unnoticed, you know?"
He knew Alenko's carefully constructed sentence was an attempt at prying information out of him –- information if Anderson was involved or not - but Shepard wasn't about to throw the guy who took him in under the bus.
Alenko's resilience was starting to impress him.
"I'll leave that up to your interpretation, detective. Who knows... maybe that Williams friend of yours is on the payroll, too?"
"You really are a dick, you know that?"
"Noticed that just now, did you?" he replied, shoving the smoke back in between his lips.
Alenko fell into a pause. "Ash wouldn't do that."
"You're right. She wouldn't," he replied, watching as some lady threw a paper cup into the trash at the opposite end of the street. "Girl doesn't have a bad bone in her, but she knows one hell of a lot more than you give her credit for. The term 'Spectre' say anything to you? She's one of you. So is that Arterius scumbag. Garrus almost made it as well, but I bet he already told you."
Shepard smirked. "Guy loves to brag."
Silence.
"Why are you telling me this?" Alenko asked, voice careful.
Brushing some lint off his shoulder, Shepard frowned. "Just letting you know that not all your colleagues have good intentions. Some of 'em are corrupt. They pick favorites. Get on their bad side, then hell, you might never see daylight again. They target individuals and shoves unrelated files into their folders just so that they can spend longer time behind bars. People gets blamed for crimes they didn't commit."
Just like I was.
Shepard was getting those damn files if his life so depended on it. He couldn't give two craps about Alenko's 'reduce your sentence' gig, but he played along anyways, knowing it was his best option.
Once he got what he came for, he was out.
He doubted that Alenko would let him into the archives once knowing his ulterior motive.
Cops didn't do that.
"I'd keep an eye on Arterius, were I you," Shepard added.
He had enough dirt on him to suspect the guy.
Judging by the look on Alenko's face, he seemed taken aback. "I'll, uh... I'll keep an eye out. If he's is dirty, we can't have him in the forces. I'll make some amends. Have him investigated."
Somehow, Shepard believed him. Something about Alenko reeked of justice. Integrity.
Maybe trusting him wouldn't be his downfall after all.
"He doesn't know, right?" Alenko asked.
"If he did, he'd never let me walk out that door," he replied, biting the inside of his cheek. "Now I know he's got a feud against my dad, too. He'd have every reason to gut me right there in the hallway. If he can't fuck with Anderson, he'd fuck with his kid, no doubt. Anything to put him in a bad light, I bet. Once it's out that Anderson kept me away from the authorities, Arterius will have him disbarred from -"
Shepard closed his eyes.
Fuck.
"So... he knows," Alenko said smug.
"Keep him out of this," he warned, pinning him with a glare.
Alenko didn't move. "I don't want to step on any toes, I just... hell, I wanna know why."
Averting his eyes, Shepard clenched his jaw.
"He wants me to turn myself in. Reduce my sentence," he muttered, feeling whiskey-brown eyes upon him. "He disapproves of what I do, but he trusts me, so he stays out of it. Like I said... keep him out of this. Guy's not gonna suffer for what I've done. I owe him that much."
Silence.
"I don't get you, Shepard. Your records are official. Proof that you're only in it for yourself."
John smirked. "Maybe you're not giving me enough credit."
"Or maybe you're full of crap."
"Point taken," he replied, straightening. "So, do you trust me?"
Alenko frowned. "What? No! No one in their right mind would."
"If you don't believe me that I give a crap about the guy I consider my dad, settle for this explanation instead..." Shepard said, meeting his critical eye. "If Anderson gets caught, I've got one less man on the inside, and that'll scramble my influence in your department."
"Let's go with that one," Kaidan said, heading towards the door. "Grab your jacket and let's head back to my place. The sooner we can put an end to the Tenth Street Reds, the better, so let's go."
Shepard retraced his steps. "I'll pretend not to be offended."
"You're a criminal."
"And you've got a stick up your ass. How's that for an answer?" he said with a scowl.
"You know... I've still got handcuffs on me. I could reacquaint you."
"Threatening me with handcuffs, huh? That's petty, Alenko. Even for a cop."
"Listen, jackass -"
With Alenko's abrupt turn before the door, he was forced to barge into a halt. Realization hit the brown hue. Shepard just barely managed to lift from the ground and twist his shoulder enough to avoid the collision. It had occurred too fast to know exactly what happened, but if Shepard hadn't grasped his bicep to take the impact and shove him back about ten inches, his mouth would've touched his jawline.
Planted only inches apart, his nose registered Alenko's cologne consisting of lavender and citrus, accompanied by a hint of aftershave. He had too blink a couple times through the immediate scent that rushed his way. His knees felt like mush as he was briefly rendered immobile.
Christ, he smelled amazing, and his body was reacting to it.
It pissed him off.
Shepard quickly composed himself.
"That some kind of substitute to a Taser or some shit?" he asked with a light scowl, splaying fingers between his pecs to push himself away. He dropped his hand again. Anything to escape from whatever that was.
Alenko blinked. "What?"
"That –whatever you're wearing," he replied, waving a hand.
"Armani Code?"
"The hell's 'Armani'?"
Alenko opened his mouth, only to close it again as he shut his eyes. "It –it doesn't matter."
It wasn't before now when he was all 'up and personal' he took note of the three flecks above Alenko's right brow. He let his eyes fall to see a quaint scar resting between his stubbled chin, directly below his lower lip, reaching from the left side to the right. He'd already seen the one directly across the side, but this one as smaller, being one he hadn't noticed before.
He'd probably earned them after he went all Terminator on that Vyrnus guy.
Good hustle on that one.
Had some damn good lips, though. Shepard hadn't expected their gazes to collide once he peeked up again. He wasn't sure what he expected. Nevertheless, it couldn't keep his heart from racing.
Alenko shortly broke the gaze, beginning to move. "Car's just down here."
Just as he moved, Shepard realized he'd been holding his breath.
...fuck.
