"I think I may have found some informants who can give us a start," Allura said excitedly.
I was sitting in Corran and Allura's beach-side condo discussing our plan of attack. We were all surrounding a cork board covered in papers and articles all relating to the case. I had added the police files to the corner. Allura was staring intently at the papers as if trying to find some new evidence, Corran was in the kitchen making tea.
"Allura, no offense but why do you care so much about this case?" I asked the minute I had added the file and showed them the audio recording she had squealed with delight.
She hesitated a bit, "It's not something I want to get into right now."
I didn't ask anymore, I didn't need too, we were one in the same. Without knowing anything I could tell she had lost a lot in her life. Now both of us were desperately holding onto what we had left, and reaching to get back what was lost.
"Who are these informants?" I asked changing the subject.
"A man named Rolo and a girl called Nyma. They are Galran exporters, but they will do anything for some extra cash."
I stare at her, she wants to trust actual Galra thugs to not only give us information but to not rat us out either. "What do the export?"
"Drugs mostly, they have a ship that goes to England and they unload there. The Galra are known for their vast drugs exchange." She replied. "They are willing to give us any information we need for cash. I know they probably aren't the most trustworthy people, but it's a start right?"
That seemed to be her catchphrase, "It might not be much but it's a start" almost as if she was desperately trying to keep the case going.
"Okay well then let's go." I sighed.
"Alright, do we have everything?" Corran asked rifling through a duffel bag.
Allura smiled and took it from him, "Yes everything is in the bag, I just know I am forgetting something."
she tapped her foot and thought as hard as she could, giggling I called out things in an attempt to help, Corran decided to join me.
"Sunscreen."
"Baby oil"
"Neckties"
"Rubber ducks."
She glared at us but couldn't keep the amusement from her eyes. Then she slammed her palms together and excitedly called out, "Code names!"
I blinked and said, "What?"
"We can't go and give our real names to actual cons now can we?"
"Well yeah maybe you can't but I've already got a false name, Pidge Gunderson," I replied.
"No that's your street name, sure, for now, it could work but if you go about throwing out the name Pidge for everything the dots will connect. I'm thinking you go by Darrell Stroker. It's a name that isn't too common to be suspicious but also not so unique it's obvious." Allura said taking in my face, "You look kind of like a Darrell anyways."
I crossed my arms and asked, "And what shall your code name be O' giver of names?"
She thought for a moment and then grinned and said, "Fara Stroker should do."
"Yeah, such a common name. And besides, we look so much alike the last name thing shouldn't be a red flag." I stated sarcastically.
Allura grinned, rolled her eyes, and went into her room to change.
"Here you should change too," Corran said handing me a bag of clothes. I went into the bathroom to change.
I took off my hoodie and stared at my reflection, I looked so much like Matt with my hair so short. I shook my head and dried my eyes. I turned back to the bag and opened it; inside was a black tee shirt and jeans.
When I came out I had to do a double-take, Allura was wearing a black wig that was much shorter than her actual hair.
"Can't ever be too careful."
I shrugged and went with it.
Allura checked her watch and said,"We had best be going, it's bad practice to be late." She grabbed the bag from Corran and we went outside. The familiar salty breeze ripped at us and almost took off Allura's wig.
"Make sure to text me when you arrive and after you leave." Corran called as we walked out the door."And please be careful."
I turned and waved at him while Allura called out her promise to abide by his rules. We got into her car and we drove off, praying this wouldn't be a mistake.
Allura parked a few blocks away from the meeting spot. We were in the warehouse district of a nearby city and it was full of, well, warehouses. She finished up her message to Corran and turned to me with an uncertain smile.
"I've never done this before, let's hope it goes well." She said handing me a handgun, which I put in my waistband. It took a second to register what she had said and I sat up and grabbed her arm, disbelief in my mind.
"You're an FBI agent, how have you never gone under cover before? That's like 90% of the job."
Her smile became sheepish and she replied, "Well, technically, I wasn't a field agent."
"But wh-what did you do then?" I stuttered.
She sighed and said, "I was the, um, secretary of the assistant to the chief of the Information and Technology Branch. In Boise Idaho."
"How the fuck did you even find out about this case?" I yelled.
"Oh come on Pidge, my job was to run coffees between departments and I just learned, by ear as they say. The advisor brought some agents from our branch to help investigate and my interest was piqued." She pulled my hand off of her arm and started fidgeting with her wig. I noticed her hands were shaking slightly and it wasn't from her outburst. She was scared, this was her first time in the field. "I happen to want the Galra gone just as much as you so that's why I am here, this is the closest lead anyone's had to catching them."
"Well yeah but-" I was interrupted by a rapping on the glass. I turned and saw a tall pair of figures. The broader one was leaning against the door using his forearm and the slimmer one was behind him with her arms crossed. The streetlight illuminated their silhouettes so I couldn't see their faces.
I glanced at Allura and her grim expression told me, this was Nyma and Rolo.
We got out of the car and followed them to a seemingly random warehouse, Nyma lifted the garage door. Allura clung to the duffel bag through it all.
"So, you got the cash or?" Rolo drawled out, clearly used to these deals.
Before Allura could hand over the money I held out an arm, "How do we know this isn't some trap, or that you'll just tell your bosses about us?" I asked glaring.
It was silent while everyone was still, the light from the street provided a small orange glow. One that neither Nyma nor Rolo seemed ready to bring inside. Then the two cons laughed.
"Please,"Nyma giggled,"They aren't our bosses. Without us, this branch would be nothing. And we do anything for some extra cash, you aren't the only ones to ask us about those purple dicks."
"Yeah, Nyma d'you remember those cops that badgered us about a year ago," Rolo grinned, he said the next words slowly savoring the reaction he wanted to get, "A father and son duo who managed to take down half the mob."
I lowered my hand and stared at them in disbelief. "H-how did, do you-"
"Aww Katie those goons have spread your picture everywhere, you are their most wanted at the moment." Nyma teased, "We knew you off the bat."
Rolo looked past me and smirked, "And you look like that agent they had a few years ago. The one time they killed an FBI field agent, I saw that recording, dreadful thing."
I looked at Allura and she was shaking worse than ever. She dropped the bag and kicked it at the pair in one swift motion, pleasantly hitting Rolo in the face. "You have your money, now tell us how we can find them." She yelled.
Rolo barely flinched at getting smacked in the face by several hundred dollars and some canvas. He caught the bag and gave to Nyma who began counting the cash. He took a deep breath and began to spin his tale.
"They have plans for a new drug, GAC, it's supposed to be this really big stuff too. Like the high is bigger than anything else from what I heard. They haven't said where they got it but they have a shit ton of this stuff. The side effects are worse than fucking krokodil.
"Whenever they want to add a new drug to the load they have a party of sorts. It throughs off suspicion I guess, but they gather all the local officers to get their supplies and celebrate the addition of more next one is this weekend in Milton, at this big abandoned warehouse. We were supposed to go, but we don't particularly feel like making that drive and since failure to show up is subject to punishment, you have to attend in our stead."
Allura and I were silent. It couldn't be that easy.
"Of course,"Nyma piped up,"It's not that easy. You have to represent us and use a proper rendezvous and all that, which we will help you with. However they can't see your faces, or else they will know. Now conveniently they almost always do it as a masquerade so you will need a mask anyways. But you have to stay under the radar, gather your intel and give them the meet point, but you can't leave early without being spotted so you have to stay the entire time and can't be late. If you blow it you will be killed."
Rolo and Nyma gave us the invites, which turned out to be actual knives, the blades were silver and the handle was decorated with the same insignia that was trapped on Keith's biceps. Of course, my mind would drift to him at this moment. He seemed to be in everything about the Galra. I missed him.
We left not long after and formulated a plan back at the condo before parting ways. I went back to my hotel, praying the manager wouldn't see me and ask me for more money. I got through and made it to my room.
I sighed and prepared for a night of relaxation. Unfortunately, as soon as I entered I was confronted by a pissed off Keith.
"So you go and make plans to talk to Galra drug dealers, smart." He growled.
I glared at him, by breaking point was near.
"I mean it wasn't enough to get a cop in this and now an FBI agent?" He continued."How far will you take this before you get killed?"
My breaking point snapped, I grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him around, slamming his back against the door. I got up as close to his face as my short stature would allow and growled at him, "Maybe if you hadn't thrown a tantrum when I partnered up with Takashi I could have gone to you, but you blew the chance to be a part of this when you proved yourself a coward."
My words were biting, the feeling of sadness roared with approval. I knew I had hit him in a bruise. He didn't look at me as he took my hands off his shirt.
His last words before he left were, "This was a mistake." Whether he meant my reaction or his intervention I couldn't tell.
I didn't care. I lay on my bed and got thought through the plan again. My thoughts strayed not long after, soon my mind was on Matt. His laugh and corny jokes. My dad and his bad cooking and tired eyes that always lit up when I showed him my latest project.
And then it was on my mother, how the last I saw of her was a water soaked smile and her booming laugh. How she had always hated the ocean but took Matt and I because we loved it. How it was the very ocean outside my window that took her.
