Chapter 41

Jean

Jean stepped in front of the wide glass door and then… he hesitated. The man knew if he would enter this door, there would be no turning back. He wasn't worried about himself, he was only worried about his own family. But there were times in life when you had to take a risk. It was one of those moments.

Since Mikasa disappeared, he hadn't been able to recover. He couldn't sleep, he couldn't eat, he couldn't function normally. He had no way of contacting Armin and Eren, so he had to act on his own.

His relatives lived far away, most of them were abroad. He doubted, with his organization crumbling, Grisha would have used his resources to get his family... Either way, Jean knew he would have to warn them of danger, to make them watch out for themselves. He also knew that if he would do this, he would have to say goodbye to them as well.

He made a decision, which was equal to stepping inside.

Jean looked around the bright interior, not knowing where he should go. He bit his lip as he saw the busy police officers ignoring him. After a moment, one of them stopped, then walked over to Jean and looked at him closely. The man was tall, he had dark, short hair separated by a part and brown eyes. His cheeks were covered with numerous freckles.

"May I help you with something?" the man asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I... I have information about a certain criminal group," Jean confessed, feeling his heart pound with nervousness. "I'd like to speak to the detectives who are dealing with this case. It would be the best if I could speak with this one detective... Um... Acker...man? He's... my friend."

The man pursed his lips as he considered something, then shrugged.

"You got here at a bad time. They are busy at the moment. You can always leave your number, I'll tell them about you."

"It's very urgent, can't wait," said Jean, taking a step forward.

The officer gave him a distrustful look again, only to sigh softly after a moment. Then he waved his hand at him and led him down the long corridor. Jean quickly followed the man. They walked through the bright hallway until at one point they stopped in front of a gray door. Brunet stepped inside, Jean followed in his footsteps. He looked around the room, it looked like a normal workplace, piled high with papers and forgotten tea cups. There were several desks, all empty at the moment. The man took a seat at one of the worksites, turned on his computer, and then looked at Jean, who sat in the chair in front of the policeman's desk.

"Just for the record, my name is Marco Bodt. I can write down your testimony and take your contact number. Is that enough for you?"

Kirschtein frowned slightly. He shifted in the chair, feeling a little nervous. Not that he didn't trust the police, it was just...

"M-maybe I can wait? You know, for the people who are actually working on this case?" He asked, trying to keep his voice neutral. "I think it would just be better this way..."

The freckled man gently raised his eyebrows, then laughed. Jean pursed his lips, feeling a little irritation and a flush of shame on his cheeks.

"What? It's just…"

"Hey, dude, don't make me some kind of a villain. Who do you think I am? A secret spy?," The man laughed out loud again. "That would be interesting, but my life is much more boring. If you want it so badly, you can wait for Ackerman and for the rest, but be warned. It may take a long time."

Jean's eyes suddenly widened.

"Is it because they are in the field right now?" Jean asked, hope suddenly flooded into his heart. "Are they looking for a certain person, who..."

"Geez, man, I have no idea. It's strictly confidential," Marco shook his head, then leaned back against the chair. "Apart from taking your testimony and handing it over to Ackerman, there's nothing else I can do. Well, maybe apart from coffee, to make our talk much more enjoyable. Coffee from that old drinks machine is terrible, I could bring you one from our office. Recently we got a new coffee machine..."

Jean lifted the corner of his mouth.

"Coffee would be fine."

Eren

His afternoon never stretched this much in his entire life.

Meeting with Ragako's mayor, supervising the lab with Zeke, checking trucks with Yelena, and finally collecting cash from the dealers. Only in the evening Eren was finally left alone and was able to set off to the place that Armin had sent him earlier. He informed Zeke that he needed to see Reiner. Braun was supposed to cover for him, just in case.

Eren stopped the car a little further from the place, where he was about to enter. He got this habit from his own brother. He got out of the vehicle and walked down the dark alley, looking back every now and then to make sure no one was following him. He couldn't help it, his heart was pounding madly in his chest.

Finally he stood in front of the building that had been his target that evening. He hadn't visited roadside hotels for a long time. He ran up the stairs to the outer mezzanine, where the hotel rooms were placed, then stopped at the right door. Eren knocked four times, and the door opened after a few seconds.

The boy parted his lips, recognizing Levi in front of him.

They stared at each other for a moment, both feeling as if the world had just stopped. Ackerman's face changed just as his eyes saw Eren. His taut features smoothed out, his eyelids gently widened, making his gaze unusually soft and tender. Before either of them could say or do anything, Hanji appeared behind Levi's back. She jumped happily when she saw Eren.

"Eren boy, you're here!" she called, hugging him briefly, then stepping back. "Oh man, it's good to see you after all this time... We've been waiting for you."

"Hi, Hanji," Eren replied, stepping inside and smiling at the woman. "It's good to see you, too. Really."

Eren looked at Levi again and nodded at him, trying to keep a straight face.

"Levi."

"Eren." Ackerman gently pressed his lips together, apparently trying to remain neutral as well. Then he pivoted quickly on his heel and walked down the bright corridor. "This way."

The boy followed the detective, Hanji was walking right next to him. The hotel room was different from the ones they usually met in. It was bigger, it had a corridor, a sitting room, and a smaller bedroom to which they just headed. Eren suddenly wondered if the witnesses or the informants were always located in such a place, then to be escorted somewhere else...

Suddenly, Eren stopped thinking about everything. He entered a smaller room and saw a petite female figure curled up in an armchair. Mikasa was just sipping some warm brew from a huge mug when he stopped in front of her. She looked up at him in surprise and widened her eyes as she recognized her friend.

Eren felt a painful squeeze in his chest as he realized it wasn't a dream. Mikasa was really here. Safe. Far from Grisha.

The girl put the mug on the table just in time. Eren quickly approached her, kneeling in front of the girl and putting his arms around her. He pressed her against him with all his strength and squeezed his eyes shut tightly, feeling the tears beneath them. Mikasa quickly returned the gesture. She hugged the boy, sighing softly, though the sound was a bit like a sob.

Eren heard quiet footsteps behind him and the discreet closing of the door, Levi and Hanji left them alone. The boy took his time, he was hugging Mikasa for a while longer. He could feel her smell, which he associated with home and happiness, and for the first time in a long time he had the impression that perhaps it would all work out for them somehow. Mikasa braided her fingers into his hair and stroked it gently. After a moment Eren moved slightly to look at her. The girl looked back at him and smiled. She didn't seem hurt, just tired. The boy felt great relief.

"Are you okay?" Eren asked, but didn't pull away yet. He looked at Mikasa closely, with honest concern in his eyes, so she could notice it. He owed her it, especially after the way he had treated her for the past months.

"I'm fine" the girl replied, looking at him through tired eyes, but still smiling. She reached back for the large mug and took a sip of her tea. "Now it's fine".

"Did someone..." Eren began, but he broke off, unable to ask the question. His friend didn't look like she had been hurt, but he knew that, like him, she liked to hide her true emotions. He tried again. "Did anyone do anything to you while you were imprisoned?"

Mikasa frowned slightly, to which Eren's heart reacted with a momentary shutdown of its functions. It started again when the girl shook her head.

"One of Grisha's men wanted to hurt me, but..." Mikasa bit her lip as if she had trouble choosing the right words this time. "Zeke killed him. Then he sent Kruger to clean up his body."

Eren widened his eyes, processing the information in his mind.

"Zeke...? Okay," the boy blinked in surprise.

"You're not the only one who doesn't understand him," Mikasa replied, putting the mug back on the table.

"Nevermind," Eren shook his head. "The most important thing is that you're here, safe".

"No, the most important thing is that you're working with the detectives again" the girl corrected him, raising the corner of her mouth. "They're our only chance."

"I know. Sorry about all that has happened lately," Eren whispered, staring into his friend's eyes humbly. "I've been terrible to you. I don't know if you'll ever forgive me..."

"Don't say that... I know you did it for us. Jean helped me understand you a little bit when I was slowly losing faith in you."

"Jean?" Eren raised one eyebrow higher. "I wouldn't expect that."

Mikasa laughed softly. The boy thought to himself that he missed that laugh very much.

"Eren, as for Jean, I have a request for you. Please, let him know I'm okay. I don't want him to worry about me," Mikasa said, looking at her friend more seriously. The boy knew how important it was to her, so he nodded.

They stared at each other for a moment, smiling gently. Eventually, Eren's gaze turned a little sad.

"You really didn't have to do this. It was my responsibility to help Levi," he confessed with a soft sigh, reaching out and grabbing Mikasa's hand. He squeezed her lightly, and his friend returned the gesture. "Damn it, you risked so much... I was really scared for you. I had no idea what Grisha would do to you."

"Even if he hates me, I felt that he probably won't kill me," replied the girl with strange confidence. "He thinks I'm part of the family. So is your brother."

"Either way, you were risking too much," Eren kept going. "Never do that again."

"I didn't want you to have to make that choice," the girl said, her eyes never leaving her friend. There was a sudden genuine curiosity in her eyes. "You and that detective..."

Eren's eyelids gently widened and a flush appeared on his cheeks. Mikasa couldn't help but smile at that.

"...I wanted to say that you guys get along, right? Since it's him, who can help us, I felt it was right to get him out of there."

Eren looked away, though he knew that Mikasa was reading from his face all the emotions.

"Yeah. It's true, he can help us. I mean, they can all help us."

"He's quite handsome," the girl added innocently.

Eren looked at her quickly, blushing even more.

"Mikasa!"

His friend laughed softly again, just then the door to the room opened. Levi and Hanji came in, looking at them with uncertainty.

"We don't want to disturb you, but time is running out. We have to move Mikasa somewhere else soon," Zoe said with a gentle smile on her lips.

"Sure..." Eren replied and stood upright. His friend finished her tea and got up from her chair. The boy looked at the detectives. "Can I visit her?"

"Not a chance," Levi replied, crossing his arms over his chest. "We have to hide Mikasa, until we can provide you a safe passage from the country."

"What about Armin?" the girl wanted to know. Eren nodded and glanced at Ackerman as well.

"He's going to join you tomorrow. There is something he wanted to do. Yes, I don't like it either, but the kid does it at his own risk," Levi muttered, sighing to himself and looking inconsolable. "Apparently, you're all equally stubborn."

Mikasa and Eren exchanged amused glances. Then they hugged one last time, for goodbye. The boy snuggled tightly into his friend's arms, feeling sad at the thought of another separation. He decided, however, that if it was to help them leave this damn city, he was willing to pay the price. The thought that Mikasa would be safe from now on encouraged him.

They looked at each other for the last time, then Hanji handed Mikasa a dark sweatshirt and black glasses. The girl put on both garments and after a while she headed towards the door. Eren had a few seconds to exchange a glance with Levi, but he knew that this time they wouldn't be able to speak alone. It was Hanji who approached him before leaving, patted his shoulder goodbye and smiled.

"I know that Levi will probably say that it is too much of a risk, but we have to meet to discuss further plans. How about tomorrow?" the woman with glasses asked, her healthy eye sparkling with emotion.

"Hanji!" Levi called, being one step away from the door. The man was reaching out towards the door handle, but he stopped. "You're right, it's too much of a risk. We have to be really careful now."

"Make it so that no one sees you," Zoe whispered, winked at him and quickly followed Levi and Mikasa. Eren watched them for a moment, a faint smile crossing his lips.

Reiner

He took a deep breath, then stepped over the threshold of the Grisha's cabinet. Immediately he felt that everyone was staring at him. This time he wasn't greeted by skimpily dressed girls, no one handed him a drink or gave him a kiss on the cheek. The faces of the people gathered in the room seemed to be in a grave mood. Porco, Marcel, and Annie glared at him from under frowns. Pieck stared at him silently, her face as always thoughtful. The guests from Marley, Yelena and Magath sat slightly apart from the group. Unlike the rest of the assemble, they didn't seem gloomy, but rather a little impatient. Yelena crossed her legs and looked at Reiner with curiosity. Zeke was sitting on the edge of the table, his hostile gaze lingering to the newly arrived detective, but then moved to another place, as if the man didn't have time or strength to honor him with his look.

Eren, seated to his father's right, glanced at Reiner with a colorless expression on his face. He clasped his hands together on the counter, staring expectantly at the detective.

Grisha, in the very center, stared tightly at Braun and gently pressed his lips together. Kruger had a similar expression, standing behind his boss against the wall. Reiner nodded in general greeting, then sat down in one of the vacant chairs.

"So?" Grisha asked, raising his eyebrows.

Braun cleared his throat, then rested his elbows on the table.

"It's Smith and Ackerman's work," the detective replied, getting straight to the point. "They found her and moved her to a place I don't have access to."

"Oh, of course it's Smith and Ackerman's work," Grisha growled, baring his teeth and staring at Reiner as if all that happened was his fault. "I want to know who helped them. And how do you want to help us clean up this mess."

"I still don't have access to some information," Reiner replied, not being provoked. "Too much questioning would put me in a suspicious light."

"Then what the fuck am I paying you for?!" Grisha boomed, then rose from his chair and took a few steps towards the window. Braun noticed that some of the people seated at the table twitched slightly in reaction to this unexpected outburst. Pieck blinked in surprise, while Marcel and Porco exchanged silent glances.

"I'm doing my best," Reiner said, still using the same, calm tone. He wasn't looking at Eren, he was staring at the oldest Yaeger's back. "It may not be much, but I finally have official data about their informant. Although it's not difficult to guess at this point."

Eren clenched fists. He stared at Braun with a nervous look, made no attempt to hide it.

"What do you mean?" he asked, leaning towards the detective.

Reiner shrugged.

"I thought you already knew. Mikasa is their informant."

Grisha suddenly turned around to glance at Braun. His gaze was cautious, distrustful, but Reiner knew Yaeger would quickly believe it. What he had just announced made more sense than the original truth.

Everyone except Zeke, Grisha, and Kruger jumped in place as Eren sprang upright, knocking over the chair he was sitting in. He slammed his fist on the table, so everyone could guess, as to whose face he would like to direct this blow.

"That's fucking bullshit!" He exclaimed, staring at the detective. "Mikasa would never do that..."

"Oh, Eren..." It was Zeke who sighed softly, then got up and walked over to his brother. "I understand you're pissed off, but look at the facts. It makes sense. I told you once that this bitch will cause us problems..."

"Shut up, there's no way!" Eren pushed Zeke's hand away from him, because his brother wanted to put it on his shoulder. "I know that sometimes she disagreed with us, but she wouldn't do it. That's not her…"

"So you're accusing someone in this room?" Zeke asked, looking around. Some of the faces staring at them gently paled. "Why don't you point your finger, Eren? Who of us are you accusing of treason? Don't you think your bird-brained friend just fits? Why do you think she helped Ackerman in the first place?"

Eren shook his head, looking like he didn't want to accept this truth.

"Get your shit together," Grisha spoke suddenly, with a grunted voice. The man looked briefly at his son, then sat back down at the table. Eren and Zeke quickly followed his example. The oldest Yaeger looked briefly at everyone present in the room, then finally fixed his gaze on Braun. He softly cleared his throat before speaking. "I need to know what their next steps are."

"Of course," Reiner replied.

Half an hour later, Grisha's men escorted him to the car, then they were supposed to drive him home. Braun reached out for the sack, which they told him to put on his head as usual, but suddenly he heard footsteps behind him. He looked that way and saw Eren.

"Leave us alone," the boy said coolly. The men nodded and left.

Eren and Reiner looked at each other.

"Nice show," Braun whispered, studying the boy's face. His eyes expressed something like appreciation.

"I'm trying," replied Yaeger, also resorting to a whisper.

"Your friend will be next," Reiner stepped from foot to foot. "You know that."

"I know."

"And what about you?"

"We will see," Eren shrugged. After a moment he waved his hand at the men who were standing in the distance. They started walking towards them. "Be careful."

"You too," Reiner replied. After a while he put the sack over his head and stopped seeing anything.

Eren

He spotted a police car in the distance. This time he couldn't pass unnoticed, the entrance from the street was falling off. Eren sneaked through the yard of Levi's neighbors to get to his destination from there. It was already dark, so no one saw him, and the only obstacle was a small, aggressive bulldog. Eren came out unscathed, only his trouser leg was damaged.

The boy jumped over the fence to get to the back entrance. At his request, Armin deactivated the alarm a moment ago. Eren walked through the back gate and then through the familiar backyard. His heart was pounding in his chest with excitement. He was finally here, after such a long time. He reached the back door. He knocked briefly, then pushed them aside. The door gave way to his touch. He stepped inside, immediately headed to the living room.

He paused at the sight of the three detectives sitting at the table drinking tea.

"You're late, kiddo," Hanji said with a smile.

Eren smiled back, feeling as if he had come home after a long time.

Erwin and Hanji looked at him, the man smiled at him too. The woman pointed to an empty chair. Eren stepped closer and sat down next to her.

He looked straight ahead. Across from him Levi was seating, with his elbow on the back of the chair. Ackerman gave him a furtive glance. Eren felt his heart tremble at that brief moment, but quickly suppressed his own emotions.

"Is Mikasa okay? Is she safe?" the boy wanted to know.

"She's well-guarded. She was given the highest priority, and now she's officially our witness," Erwin explained calmly. Smith sat next to Levi and across from Hanji. "You don't have to worry about her."

"I don't know if it'll ever be possible," Eren replied, looking down.

"When Braun will give Grisha another report, Armin will also have to hide," Levi interjected, reaching out to the cup and wrapping his fingers around it. He took a sip of his tea, then set the cup down on the table. Eren couldn't help but notice that Levi spoke Reiner's name with undisguised reluctance. "Unless Grisha starts to suspect him sooner. Tomorrow our people are supposed to transport Armin to the hideout. Please, talk to him so there won't be any more delays."

"Will do. Is that chicken?" Eren asked, suddenly reaching for small, chopped tortillas, piled neatly on a plate. "Oh, yummy! It looks delicious."

"Levi made it all by himself" Hanji confessed, smiling at her friend. "He knew you would probably be hungry as always. There's a cucumber inside, and also an avocado, and..."

"We should bring up more important subjects," Ackerman muttered, reaching for the notes, which were lying in front of Erwin. "We issued an arrest warrant for Zeke, Gaillards and Xavier. It would be the best if we would put at least one of them in custody. Let's start with... What the fuck is this?"

"It's... a sketch of our last strategy, can't you see?" Erwin asked in a slightly indignant tone, but a delicate smile betrayed him. Ackerman sighed.

"Man… Why do I have to put up with this..."

Levi shook his head and pretended he wanted to tear the paper in half, but Erwin quickly reached over and grabbed his friend's hand, trying to retrieve the document. Hanji laughed merrily at the sight. Eren just smiled slightly, suddenly feeling a strange twinge of irritation. Levi must have sensed it, he let Erwin reclaim the document and then quickly looked at the young man.

"Eren, would you like some tea?" Ackerman asked, then hurriedly reached for the empty cup on the tray.

Eren shrugged.

"If it is not a problem."

"Not at all."

Erwin and Hanji looked at them in mild surprise. Meanwhile, Levi poured tea into a cup as if nothing had happened, and then politely handed it to Eren. The boy took it from the detective. Their fingers touched. They exchanged glances again, and Eren felt a strangely pleasant twist in his stomach.

"Grisha might get a little suspicious of you," Hanji said, resting her chin in her hand and looking at Eren as he sipped his tea slowly. "What has he been saying so far?"

"It's true, he's not in the best mood. I promised him that I would contact Mikasa and try to convince her to change the side. Reiner is supposed to get me in touch with her, but he told my father that it would be rather unlikely. Anyway, meeting like that would be very risky.

"Grisha isn't expecting an ambush?" Erwin asked, staring at Yaeger intently. Eren looked back at him.

"On the contrary. I think he'd like to confront you, but of course not personally. We must be careful."

"Well, we pulled through worse troubles," Hanji remarked, lifting the corner of her mouth higher. "If Grisha wants to meet with us so badly, we can't disappoint him. What do you think, gentlemen?"

"If he wants to pay us a visit, we'll welcome him as befits our department," Levi muttered, squinting his eyes slightly.

It didn't take them long to decide their next strategy. There were also other topics that had come up that evening. Eren summarized to the detectives those few months during which he was away. He talked about his trip to Marley, about gaining new allies, and his job as Grisha's right hand man. He hadn't mentioned the most troubling moments yet... he wasn't prepared to share these memories with agents. The detectives didn't ask him too much about it, even Erwin was rather reserved. Eren didn't know if it was Erwin's intuition, or maybe he had been instructed by Ackerman earlier.

"To sum up..." Eren said as his story ended. "I want to apologize to you for all of this. For leaving you without being initiated into my plan."

"From what we've heard, you did it for us, so... It's just good that you're back," Hanji replied, leaning towards Eren and hugging him briefly. Then she looked at her two friends. "I'm only worried about our supervisor, he's not entirely convinced about our renewed cooperation."

"We'll take care of it," Erwin added, also looking at Eren and smiling sympathetically. Eren returned the smile as best as he could.

As the evening grew late, the guests rose from their seats. Hanji yawned and stretched, Erwin slid his chair to its place and looked at Eren.

"So, everything is set. If something happens, let Levi know."

"Take care of yourself, Eren boy," Hanji added, reaching out and ruffling the boy's brown strands. Eren frowned slightly, but smiled in amusement as he quickly tweaked his hair.

"We'll talk to the policemen who are patrolling the house, so you can sneak out safely like last time," Erwin confessed, then nodded to Eren and went outside with Hanji.

Levi closed the door behind them, then returned to the living room. They were left alone.

There was silence in the air, save for the ticking of the clock on the wall. Eren looked at the shorter detective who stopped next to the table and was also staring at him without a word. The boy felt his heart speed up. He took a step towards Levi and said in a low voice:

"Thank you for finding her."

Ackerman twitched slightly, then gently shook his head.

"I didn't do it myself, all of us did. It's mostly Armin's merit, he found that location..."

"Yes, but Armin said you came up with the idea."

They stared at each other for another moment in silence. Levi finally looked down.

"I owed her that. Anyway, whatever... Hanji and Erwin must be talking to Marlo and Daz right now. If you want to leave, it's about time."

Eren gently widened his eyes at the words. It was really hard for him not to smile right now.

"And if I don't want to?"

Levi looked back at him. Though the man stood still and calm, with his arms along his body, his eyes betrayed him. It was there that Eren saw the same longing and the same desire he was feeling right now. Therefore, he didn't hesitate any longer. He walked over to the detective and took his face in his hands, then pressed their lips together into a kiss.

Eren felt his body was on fire. He felt Levi's lips move as the man kissed him back. He was terrified that he was about to explode from the wave of heat that flooded him from head to toe. He quickly put his arms around the detective, hugging him tightly to feel him even closer. He shivered as the man's hands touched him as well. Levi put his arm around his neck and kissed his lips passionately.

They were exchanging kisses for a moment longer, until Eren's hands moved lower. He touched the man's hips, then his fingers became interested in the belt of the detective's pants. Before he could unzip it, he felt Levi grab his wrists.

Eren widened his eyes. He had a strange feeling of deja vu.

The same thing happened in that unfortunate car workshop, when Levi pushed him away. He didn't want to experience it again...

He looked at the detective and his heart stopped. It began to beat again, however, when Eren saw Levi looking at him with calm in his gray-blue eyes.

The detective took his hand and then dragged him towards one of the rooms: his bedroom.

"Come with me," he said in a whisper, then started toward the door.

Eren's mouth opened in amazement, but he said nothing, fearing that his comment might destroy what was happening. He followed the detective, staring at their clasped hands and fearing that his heart would explode.