Chapter 40 : Confrontation
This night, they came home blessed, happily smiling. Everybody knew about them. Except Hicks but they will meet him the day after with Hondo. So it was only a formality. They knew not working together was a possibility. They were prepared for this for months and they had taken those last two weeks working in 20-David together as a blessing.
They knew the probabilities but they also knew that spending their life together, being happily married and sharing moments only the two of them required some concessions, even if they broke their hearts and also the ones of their teammates.
They would rather not think about this tonight, tomorrow will come fast enough. They sat in the sofa. They were not hungry. They had eaten so much at Elena and Sarzo. She even gave them doggy bags "in case you don't have time to cook when you come back from work". They had food for the whole week now.
"Your uncle and aunt, wow, another level really!"
"You say this because they teased you about your love for Clippers?"
"Ah ah, easy girl and do not criticize them. They are good, just in the shadows of the Lakers."
"Come on, how is it even possible to live in LA and not supporting the Lakers?!"
He loved seeing her a little pissed. Her little nose frowned every time she disagreed with him. And he found this quite cute. He looked her standing from the sofa, walking till the bathroom, still cursing about his unconditional love for the Clippers.
"Are you coming or not?" He was surprised to see her head passing the doorstep of the bathroom. She was naked, looking at him.
He rushed to the bathroom taking off his clothes and throwing them all over the room. When he came in, she was already in the shower. He entered the shower, just behind her, surrounding her thin waist with his muscled arms.
"Finally!" She told him as she turned to face him, feeling the lust rushing through his body. She kissed him before biting his lower lip.
"Hey!" He told, pretending to be offended, before letting out a laugh. "Come here."
"Won't listen to orders. Except at SWAT. You, come at me!" She was using her bossy tone. He couldn't resist and listen to her, coming right in front of her, stuck against her. He felt he was ready but she liked foreplays, maybe too much. But who cared? She was good at it.
She pushed the button. The water was hot, steam quickly surrounded them. He felt her hands running down his back, till they focused on his bottom. He loved this, this way she had to touch him. He just felt different of what he had experienced before. Envy took hold of him, he couldn't resist anymore. She knew this, he could read thi in her large brown eyes. She let him invade her personal space, with her whole consent.
She grabbed him, she scratched his back as he reached her breaking point. For a moment, he felt her totally at his mercy. He enjoyed to kiss her neck, her breasts, all wet with the hot water. All sweaty with pleasure. She moaned, telling him he was on the right road. She eventually eased her clasp and opened her eyes again. Facing him, facing the man she was married to.
She didn't say a word. He knew she was not the talkative kind. She just smiled. One of these sincere, blissful smiles which didn't need a commentary. He knew she was fine. What surprised him was that she laid her head over his chest and put her arms around his waist. Staying here under the running water, just hugging. He embraced her at his turn and kissed her hair. They could have stayed here for eternity.
[…]
They got back to work the day after. Chris was so excited she got up at 4 in the morning. She kissed Jim's forehead, got up from the bed and walked up to the living room. She took a book, tried to read, she couldn't. She finally took her mat and opened it. She did some abs, push-ups and ended in the shower.
"5:30? Jim won't be long before being up." She thought. She went to the kitchen and started to prepare some eggs with bacon and coffee. She got muesli, grilled bread and jam from the closet and set the table.
"Hey! Already up?" It was Jim emerging from the bedroom. Still sleepy, rubbing his eyes and yawning. His hair was a mess, as every morning, which made him sexier. She smiled shyly, biting her lower lip.
"Couldn't sleep. Breakfast is ready by the way…"
"Just time to take a shower and get dressed and I'm here."
"Another one?"
He let out a laugh. "Last night was nothing but an ordinary shower."
He left, letting her laugh and think dreamily of last night. He was fast and joined her within the next 10 minutes. Almost surprising her as she was reading the news on her phone. They ate, fingers intertwined on the table, teasing each other about who the naughtiest of them was after the shower episode.
"Think I've still tricks to learn you, Jim Street."
"All ears, Chris Alonso."
"Soon, soon. Don't be so impatient! And it's time to go to work!" She got up from her chair, in a hurry, letting his fingers all alone on the table.
He soon imitated her and went to put his shoes. She drove till HQ, he enjoyed the road talking about Thomas and him going to a race car at the end of the month and Diego probably joining them if he could find someone to replace him at work. She parked at her usual spot and took a deep breath while Jim was taking their bags out of the trunk. She was excited, but she was also scared to face the man who almost cost her to lose the life of her husband.
"24-David, time to go to work!" Tan knocked on the car window.
"Hey! Let me take my phone and I'm here!"
Tan, Chris and Street entered SWAT HQ joyfully, changed in the locker room and quickly met the rest of the team in the control room. Hicks joined the team and nodded at Chris and Jim.
"Think we need to talk later, you two."
Hondo should have told him about their wedding as he promised them at restaurant. A relief. And a step forward toward their new life. Now they were able to focus on closing Karlsson's case.
"Karlsson has been in custody for the last 60 hours. The FBI questioned him for 57 hours and the man has barely talked. He's waiting for his lawyer who at the latest news was blocked in JFK airport. Courtesy of our colleagues from Big Apple. He should be here in less than 3 hours. Alonso, I negotiate some times for you with Karlsson starting now. Go!"
"Yes Sir!" Chris nodded and left the room, under the worried looks of all the members of her team.
When she arrived in the observation room, Lynch was there with two FBI agents. "Alonso, we were waiting for you. "
"Right here, lieutenant."
"I was explaining to our colleagues that you were the person Karlsson was after for the last 2 years."
"Affirmative." She told, swallowing hard. And glad she could use past tense to speak about this time. She remained a time, motionless in front of the mirror, looking at this man who had scared her so much and who seemed so harmless now that he was handcuffed to the table in the interrogation room.
"Ready, Alonso?" Lynch asked.
"More than ready, lieutenant!" She breathed hard one last time before walking to the interrogation room.
From the corner of the hall, Street looked at her entering this room. He would have loved to go with her but he knew she needed to do this on her own. But yet he was stressed.
"Easy, bro. She's gonna kill it. As always." Tan irrupted besides Street.
He mumbled. He knew she was gonna be the best. She always was. But he couldn't prevent himself from being worried for her.
"I know… She's the best and she kills at interrogating suspects… But still Karlsson is not a normal suspect. He was Chris's worst nightmare. And despite all she had said to him, he knew deep down she was a little scared to throw in the lion's den.
"Stop worrying, she'll kill you if she could see you now. She's strong… I mean for the both of you. She should be able to handle Karlsson on her own." Tan laughed to his own joke, forcing Jim to let go of the pressure.
"Ah ah ah very funny. You know she's not running everything at home, right?"
"Like what?"
"My bike!" Tan tapped on Jim's shoulder and disappeared in the corridor. Hondo asked him earlier to take care of the training of the new recruits. When Street turned his head, Chris was not in his line of sight anymore.
[…]
As she pushed the entrance door, she knew she needed to break this man, more than she ever broke someone. He almost killed Jim, threatened her life and sanity. He was about to suffer for the bad things he did in her life for almost two years. He looked at her with his sarcastic smile.
"I was waiting for you."
Chris kept her head up and forced herself not to fall in his trap. He wanted her to attack. She will not give him this pleasure.
"So now you're quiet. Change from the time you worked for me… Or should I say spy on me?"
"More like charging you with drug and gun trafficking. But we all have different words to express our opinions, right?"
She could see she annoyed him. She was proud of herself and decided to continue.
"So are you gonna tell me everything? I mean, you're in a pretty bad situation right now… You may need some help. " She announced him with a challenging tone.
"Tell you what? That I'm an innocent citizen that the police arrested and handcuffed by mistake?" He smiled at her, showing all his ultra bright teeth.
"Rather that you're a dangerous criminal facing decades in prison. Maybe a life sentence for plotting a cop murder, almost killing another one, running over him with a car. Doesn't ring you a bell?"
"No, no… Should it?" He answered, giving her a challenging look.
She could feel the anger taking over her body, she knew she shouldn't feel this. She promised herself, she wouldn't but thinking about this moment when she almost lost Jim was unbearable.
"But it should. You almost killed my teammate to take your revenge over me!" She was surprise by the level of hate in her voice.
He remained silent, just smiling. To show her he was enjoying this moment. She hit the table. She tried to contain herself.
"Why this obsession over me? I mean I'm not the first cop to try to make your organization fall down from the inside? "
"But you were the closest one to succeed…"
She was surprised he answered. The first answer he gave her since they were in the room together.
"So you were afraid of me? Still are?" She added with a hint of irony.
"Don't flatter yourself, Miss Alonso. By the way, how are your uncle and aunt? I didn't have the chance to meet them. But who knows when I'm out of there…"
"Don't" She was borderline. She could feel it. She didn't like to feel like this. He gave her a large, cruel smile. "Let them alone." She told between her teeth.
He enjoyed the moment. Smiling all the time. "And what about your pretty cute boyfriend? I was told he had been close to die. How inconvenient it would be if it happened again."
"Don't ever touch to him again. Let them all alone!" She was losing it. He knew it.
"Ah ah ah the little badass cop is not so badass after all!" And he laughed. So hard that he shook her.
"You have no right to threaten them, you hear me. No right! If you have a problem, you come to me. Not them!"
She was out of control. She came closer and almost hit him. Lynch was just behind, holding her arm back.
"Alonso, time to take some fresh air." Chris remained motionless. Not listening to her lieutenant. "Now!" Lynch yelled in her ears.
She got out of the interrogation room like a fury. She walked fast, almost ran and vanished in the corridor. Street saw her from the armory. He was counting bullets with Deac. The only thing he could do when he was as stressed as he was right now.
"If you excuse me…" He didn't need to end his sentence, Deac nodded.
"Go and find her, she doesn't seem well."
Street nodded back and hurried to find Chris in the yard. Behind a container. Crying and punching the poor huge metal box, which had nothing to do in her discontent.
"Hey…" He tried an approach. He knew how Chris could be harsh in those kind of moments. As expected, she didn't answer and kept punching the container to let go of her stress.
"You know you can talk to me, Chris…"
She raised her head, big black eyes on him. It was not good. "To tell what? That I failed to question this bastard of Karlsson? Thanks for reminding me of my mediocrity, Jim. Really, didn't need this right now. Go back to work now and let me alone."
"Stop being so harsh on yourself, Chris. You…"
She cut him sharply. "Stop making your I-know-better, Jim, OK? You make me suffocate right now! Let me alone! What's not clear in this? I want to be alone! Don't you have something more interesting to do than to check on me all the time? Damn, I'm not a baby or a little, fragile, broken thing!"
"Chris, yelling after me won't change a thing that Karlsson is manipulating you right now! Don't you see it? Come on! Open your eyes! And you're exactly doing what he wants!"
"Jim, stop telling me what I can or can't do. I'm an adult. I KNOW what I'm doing and stop with those puppy eyes, please. I'm not 5 anymore!"
"But…"
"Fu** really Jim!" And she left him in the middle of the yard, alone. Always his puppy eyes on his face, but this time, they were sad.