Justice is ServED
SurprisEd
Disclaimer: I don't own EEnE, or the characters, nor do I claim ownership of Nat as he belongs to c2ndy2c1d. All I own is the plot.
D-Double D? Kevin kept the confusion and slight fear from showing on his face as best as he could as he recognized the poor guy being held in the beefy, smelly arms of the criminal. A loud maniacal cackle interrupted his thoughts and he focused hard emerald eyes darkened with anger on the sweaty guys' sneering face. The beefy arm under Double D's chin jerk up hard eliciting a soft squeak from the man as long fingers itched to grab the man's arm but not wanting to actually touch the guy, because of the germs or because he thought it might antagonize the guy further, Kevin wasn't sure, and didn't want to find out should it be the latter.
The whole precinct was silent as everyone waited with bated breath, this guy could literally snap Double D in two if rubbed the wrong way and no one wanted to provoke the man. Kevin clenched his jaw, not looking from Double D's wide, frightened eyes. He could see the slight tremble of his lips and his hands shaking as they hung in the air. He needed to get the dork away from this guy without resorting to shooting either of them, he knew that. To be honest, he tried his best to never use his gun on anyone if he could help it. Icy green eyes flicked to the dark brown of his suspect and he steeled himself for the upcoming fight.
"Alright MacConnell, let him go," his voice gruff but passive, giving an order but not being too demanding about it, "No one needs to get hurt here, alright?" Green eyes narrowed slightly when all the tall man did was laugh and tighten his hold on the nerd's thin neck as he slowly inched closer to the door.
Edd clumsily tried to follow on his tip toes but stumbled eliciting an aggravated growl from his captor. A strangled gasp escaped his lips and he was forced to grip the man's thick arms, oh dear, oh dear, as his feet were lifted from the ground. His neck and lungs were on fire as his air was cut off even more. Trying to breath as best he could and ignore the pained wheezing noise, Edd focused on the emerald eyes that stared at him. Kevin was something familiar and although they weren't the best of friends when they were growing up, Edd knew he could trust him in this situation.
Bumping against the strong chest, Edd realized they had made it down the stairs to the main lobby and his pulse quickened. If they made it out the door, what would happen to him? It was his first day on the job and he was already in a bad situation…today was now officially his worst day ever he mentally sighed as he closed his eyes. He didn't really want to see anyone else stare at him with a mixture of pity and fear. It wasn't really helping his heart stay calm so he tried to drown out the surprised gasp from Bridget as the neared her desk and tried to not picture the looks on the faces of the officers who'd teased him on his way in.
"Double D, you're gonna be fine, yeah?" Ocean blue eyes flew open at the sound of his nickname rolling smoothly off the detectives' tongue. It's been a long time since someone has called him that. He stared at the tall man for a moment and he managed the slightest of nods before a soft whimper that he would love to deny escaped his lips. His eyes scrunched up in pain when that silver chain tightened more and he could feel it cutting into his skin. He moved one hand and tried to get his fingers under the chain but to no avail.
"Hey! Come on man! Let the guy go, he's got nothing to do with this!" Kevin growled out as he slowly followed, anger only growing. If he made it out the door with Double D, things would only get worse for him and Kevin didn't want to see that happen. He raised his gun a bit higher trying to see if maybe he had a shot but MacConnell noticed.
"Put the gun down! Put it down! All of you!" MacConnell yelled jerking the chain back for emphasis and lifting Edd in front of him as a shield. Kevin suppressed a grimace as a choked cry came from the frail mans' lips and he slowly held his hands up in a surrender then lowered to the ground, placing the gun on the floor before rising again and kicking the weapon to the side, just as the other officers in the room followed Kevin's lead. Edd was fully aware now of everyone's eyes on him but he tried hard to just focus on Kevin.
From his peripherals he could see the Chief holding a terrified Martha back as Presley stood in front of her with a glare that Edd was hoping wasn't aimed at him. but at the man holding him hostage. Okay, come one Edd! Think! There has to be something you can do to stall him! A wide sneer spread across the man's ugly face and he made his way backwards to the door faster, Kevin still trailing after them.
"W-wait! Y-you will need the k-key! F-for the h-hand-" Choking as the man jerked the chain again he stopped, breathing heavily he looked at Kevin, hoping desperately that he would understand what he was planning. Wide green eyes filled slowly with understanding as he elaborated on what Double D said.
"Yeah, you'll need the key to get those off if you plan to get away. We'd catch you easily if you're still handcuffed," Kevin slowly lowered a hand from its' surrendered position to his pocket and grabbed a set of keys and showed them off to the criminal, jiggling them slightly. God he hoped this guy was that stupid and that this would work, seeing those wide, desperate shiny blues staring back at him with so much trust was making Kevin's stomach churn.
"Yeah, yeah okay! Give the little bitch the keys," he yelled making Edd wince from the assault of noise in his ear and the spray of spit that hit his cheek before a shiver went up his spine when what the man said next made his skin crawl, "And you, you are going to unlock them," MacConnell said huskily in the dork's ear and Edd could feel the smirk on the man's lips. A black beanie bobbed slightly as he nodded and Kevin slowly came forward stretching his arm out toward Edd but froze when MacConnell yelled for him to stop. Kevin stared into panicky and tearing blue eyes, he could see that the poor man was shaking badly as Edd was told to reach for the keys.
Long, trembling fingers reached out and gently brushed against strong, callused ones as Edd grabbed for the keys with difficulty; he had to quite literally choke himself more to reach far enough. Don't drop the keys, don't drop the keys, please god don't let me drop these keys! He cried mentally as his trembling fingers picked through the keys on the ring to find the bright silver one that could possibly mean his release.
It took him longer (and a lot more touching) than he would've liked before he found the keyhole and nearly dropped the keys in premature excitement. He closed his eyes and tried hard to focus on the task at hand. Once he heard the click of the lock he felt a hard blow to his back and he pitched forward forcefully. Squeezing his eyes shut tighter, he waited for his face and the floor to have a fantastic introduction but was thoroughly surprised to be jerked back slightly by an arm around his waist. Fearing for a moment that the criminal was not done with him, Edd gripped the arm holding him and a rush of relief filled his body. It was a thinner muscular than the one from before and he vaguely heard a smooth voice above him yell out as a slightly familiar scent of leather wafted into his nose.
"Nat! Grab him!" Kevin lowered Edd to his hands and knees as the man wheezed, hacked and coughed, trying to regulate his breathing once more. Placing a strong, gentle hand on the trembling man's back, he rubbed a couple soothing circles as he watched Nat and a few other officers tackle the escaping criminal.
Edd opened his eyes and winced at being so close to the dirty, dirty floor before they widened slightly at small drops of blood that littered the tile. He gasped and immediately had a violent coughing fit which alerted Kevin to the smaller man. It didn't surprise Edd that he was bleeding, the chain had been tight around his throat and he could feel the fire and sharp pains still surrounding it.
"Double D? How you doin' man?" The detective bent his head down level with the nerd's and was a bit shocked to see blood not only from his neck but a small trickle from his mouth dripping on the floor. "Oh shit!" he said then gently grabbed Edd under his arms and lifted him so that he sat on his butt on the cold, filthy floor to get a better look at him. Kneeling down in front of the man he gently lifted his chin to look at his neck.
He could see the red and blue links, bruises and cuts, from where the chain had dug into the poor man's throat and thicker strips and longer cuts on the outside from the actual cuffs themselves. Hissing in sympathy Kevin looked into the pained and uncomfortable blue eyes of the man he knew for most of his life as he wheezed and stuttered out infrequent coughs. Kevin opened his mouth to say something, what he didn't know but he was interrupted before he even began.
"Oh my god! Edd, are you okay?" screeched Martha as she hobbled over to the two men on the ground. Two sets of eyes settled on her and she pulled a handkerchief from her white lab coat and handed it to Kevin to apply light pressure to the quivering man's neck. He flinched back at the touch to his neck, not really surprising but he still felt bad that he did it though Kevin didn't seem to mind.
"He should probably go to the hospital and get checked out, Martha," Chief Donald said as he stepped up to the little group a saddened smile on his face. He hoped that Edd wouldn't decide to quit after this…he was the only one Martha had approved of to take over for her and with his intelligence, they could use him.
"I'll take him Chief," Kevin offered helping Edd stand up and holding him steady on his shaky and weak legs.
"You will?" The Chief looked skeptical at the two and Edd nodded his approval, still not wanting to even try to speak at the moment. Martha watched the two carefully, a protective look on her face as she placed her hands on her hips and glared at the detective.
"Now Kevin, if you're gonna be mean to this kid I'm gonna have to kick your ass," Martha threatened shaking a finger at the wide-eyed detective before he burst out laughing.
"I won't Martha, me and Double D go way back, and it was my suspect that roughed him up so it's the least I can do," Edd was a bit surprised that Kevin admitted to knowing him. They weren't really (ever) friends so why wouldn't Kevin just ignore him? The Chief seemed to take his answer as sufficient reason and shooed them off saying that Edd could take the rest of today off but would need to be back tomorrow for his training with Martha.
Nodding weakly, he leaned heavily on Kevin, feeling his body losing strength from lack of adrenaline. In any other situation, Edd might have blushed a deep red and pulled his beanie over his eyes in embarrassment at having Kevin so close to him. In this one though, Edd was a bit saddened to know that the pain was overshadowing any other emotions he might have felt about the man with his arm around his thin waist and warm hand clutching his arm over broad shoulders.
Kevin shouted to Nat that'd he'd contact him later and lead Double D out of the doors to his police issue Dodge Charger. He helped Edd into the passenger seat, making him take over holding the cloth to his throat before getting in and driving to the nearby hospital. The drive was a silent one but not as awkward as Edd thought it might have been. The radio played softly and Kevin hummed along with it sometimes, probably not even realizing what he was doing. It made Edd feel more comfortable and for that he was grateful. It's been too long since he's felt happy or comfortable with anyone regardless of the relationship. The only surprising thing was that he felt this with Kevin and this was the first time in years that he's seen the man.
Upon arriving the two got out of the car and made their way in where Edd allowed Kevin to do all the talking, not that he could have even if he had wanted to. Edd was quickly led to the back and given an MRI at the advisement of a passing female doctor who smiled cutely at Kevin before they were settled in one of the waiting rooms. The two men were only there for about ten minutes, long enough for Edd to file out the paperwork, when a short male doctor entered the room with a file and frowned at Kevin upon seeing him. He was an older man with dark skin and dark eyes that glared at the detective in annoyance.
"The hell are you doing here Detective? Surely you haven't injured yourself or another suspect again," the man's deep voice was laced with irritation giving Edd the impression that he's had to deal with a stubborn Kevin Barr on multiple occasions. Emerald eyes rolled as Kevin crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall next to the small examination table Edd was situated on.
"No I haven't," Kevin bit back before jerking a thumb at Edd, "He's been hurt, so could ya just look at him?" The two seemed to be at odds with each other and Edd could almost see the sparks of anger as they glared at one another. The atmosphere in the room grew colder and Edd shifted on the table awkwardly, catching the attention of the doctor as he handed over the forms.
"You're probably responsible for his injuries huh? That'd be the only other reason for you being here," Edd frowned at the man as he caught Kevin's face turn red with anger and his arms fell to clench his fists at his sides. But the doctors' eyes were on Edd and the dork felt like he needed to defend the detective, so he did. He shook his head and gave the doctor a mildly displeased look, hoping that he would understand, but he didn't.
"K-Kevin, is not…to blame," Edd choked as he spoke for the first time in a while, his voice hoarse and scratchy as he ended with a slight cough. He winced slightly in pain as the doctor nodded unenthusiastically, as if he didn't really care either way, before gently lifting Edd's chin to see his neck. The bruises were darkening but the light bleeding had stopped. Letting Edd's head fall slowly, the doctor took a small flashlight from his coat breast pocket and instructed Edd to open his mouth.
"There's significant bruising to your neck but your windpipe looks better than the outside according to your MRI, you'll still likely have trouble eating solid foods for a while but you'll heal up just fine. There's nothing to be too concerned about. Try not to talk too much for the next week or so and it'll go by a lot faster." The doctor said placing the flashlight back in his pocket.
"What about the blood? He had some coming out of his mouth." Kevin asked mildly, one again leaning against the wall but with his hands in his front pockets this time, trying not to show his concern.
"He bit his tongue." Was all the response the detective got and it pissed him off but he remained silent. The rude doctor took out a prescription pad and wrote something on it before handing it to Edd.
"I'll have a nurse come in and clean the cuts for you. This," he said motioning toward the paper, "is for the pain, inflammation, and an antibiotic just in case. Your throat might swell a little but this anti-inflammatory will help. I suggest drinking a lot of soothing teas and only liquids or soft foods for the next few days, lukewarm if you have to heat it. If you think you can handle solid foods, add them slowly. Stay away from anything with a lot of acid, sugar, or pepper, it'll only aggravate your throat." Edd nodded in understanding and smiled slightly to thank the doctor before the man left with one last glare at the detective. Hearing the redhead tsk in aggravation, blue eyes regarded him questioningly. Once Kevin saw his look he sighed, took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair before replacing it.
"For some reason, every damn time I get hurt on the job, he's the guy that has to fix me up. Like, every time, no fuckin' joke. Dude's just tired of seeing me." he responded ignoring Edd's admonished look. He smirked knowing exactly what that look meant, even after all these years, and didn't bother to try and tone down his language. He knew Double D would try his best to not talk, wanting to heal as quickly as possible, so he wouldn't actually say anything about his cursing.
"I gotta thank you though," Kevin said before elaborating after a confused Edd tilted his hand and pointed to himself, "Well, you defended me when the doc was being an ass, and you did kinda help us recapture the dick that did, well, all that to you so, thanks man." Kevin smiled sincerely motioning at Edd before voicing his own question to the man as they waited for the nurse to come in to clean Edd's wounds.
"So, uh, what were you doing at the station anyway? I didn't even know you were back in town," he rubbed the back of his neck nervously for a moment before realizing Edd wouldn't speak. He took a notepad out of an inner pocket in his jacket and handed it to the man with a pen. Edd neatly wrote an answer and handed it back to Kevin, a slightly apprehensive look on his face.
New forensic scientist - replacing Martha.
After reading the nice and legible writing, Kevin looked at Edd with furrowed brows and tilted his head to the side a little. He didn't have a chance to ask about his other question that Edd left unanswered because a light knock sounded at the door and a cheery nurse came in with a tray of supplies.
"Hello, Mr. Vincent, I'm Anna and I'll be tending to your wounds today!" she chirped happily setting the tray down on a moving table. Edd nodded with a polite smile on his face, choosing to not look at Kevin. It wasn't that he had a reason for not telling anyone he was back in Peach Creek. It was more that he didn't think anyone but Ed or Eddy would've cared that he came back at all, originally he wasn't going to ever come back. Just as Anna began to clean his wounds, Kevin excused himself to go talk to the Chief about how Edd was doing and left the room.
"Yes, sir, I'll make sure he gets home okay. Nah, I'll take care of it. Yep, I'm calling Nat in a bit. Okay, bye." Sighing lightly, Kevin ended the call and glanced up at the still closed door to the room Edd was in. Why didn't Edd tell anyone he was coming back? Kevin sighed, that one question was just not letting him be, he didn't even know why he cared so much. It's not like they were ever friends. Flicking his finger on the screen of his phone to another page, he saw a small picture of Nat's grinning face and violently jabbed at it before putting the phone to his ear and his other hand in his jacket pocket.
"The Amazing King of Butts, at your service my sexy partner!" the man yelled into the phone when he answered earning an unseen eye roll and growl from said partner.
"Dude, what have I told you about answering my calls like that?"
"To not do it but how often do I really listen to you?" A cackling laugh reached Kevin's ears and he couldn't help the small grin that settled on his face, Nat was an ass sometimes that was certain, but Kevin wouldn't trade his partner for anyone. They worked really well together, Nat being the "clumsy", "clueless", cop to Kevin's serious and stoic-ness. They were practically two sides to the same coin and their personalities meshed well most of the time. Not to say they didn't clash every once in a while but they saw each other all the time, were practically inseparable, the best of friends.
"So, how's the cutie doin? Martha is having a bit of a conniption about you not calling with his condition sooner."
"Yeah, yeah, he'll be fine. Just has to take it easy, no talking, and no solid foods. He was lucky that ass didn't do more damage than he did."
"Oh goodie! Martha says you'd better take damn good care of him - she's apparently adopted the adorable dork." The redhead could hear the chuckle in Nat's voice as the muffled sound of Martha screaming at him came through the phone.
"Were you able to get anything outta MacConnell?" His partner was silent for a moment before Kevin lost the small grin on his face and a scowl replaced it.
"He's refusing to talk about anything but the cutie pie. Says he won't say anything to us but he'll talk to the stud muffin. I'm sure you can guess how he said all that so I won't bother describing how much I kinda wish you'd have just shot his bastard ass." Kevin remained silent as he took it all in. They had the guy for assault at the very least right now and that was enough to keep him in custody and Kevin was definitely going to push Edd to press charges on the man. Hell, even if he didn't they still had a case against him…dude had a whole precinct of witnesses.
"Well, he ain't goin' anywhere near Double D so he can shove it. I'll take a crack at him tomorrow, let him sit in a cell for the night and see how he feels about that. Once we're done here I'll take Double D home and head back to the station."
"Oh? Has my wittle Kevy-kins got a crush on our new lab rat?" The redhead growled into the phone before he hung up on his partner with a smirk before going to the door and knocking lightly before entering when he heard a cheery come in. He saw that the nurse was beginning to clean up and Edd watched him with kind blue eyes. Kevin's gaze fell to his neck and stared at the sharp contrast between Edd's pale skin and the stark white of the gauze bandaging covering the bruises he knew to be there.
"Just in time Detective Barr, we've just finished up." Anna said happily before saying get well soon to Edd and leaving the two alone in the room. Edd slowly descended from the table and made his way to Kevin with a paper in his hand and a kind smile on his face but his eyes looked tired. It was only a little after noon but Kevin couldn't fault the man for being exhausted after his ordeal. The redhead coughed lightly, feeling a bit awkward and turned around to leave the room and Edd followed. Kevin waited by the door and watched while Edd signed discharge papers.
He'd grown a bit since the last time Kevin had seen him, which, if he remembered right had been at their high school graduation six years ago. He was shorter than Kevin who stood at a solid six foot two, maybe about five feet eight inches. He was still thin and pale and his eyes, surprisingly, still held that innocent sparkle from when they were kids. That black beanie was ever present on his head, covering his forehead and most of his hair except the jet black strands the covered the nape of his neck to just below his shoulders. The redhead found that he was still just as curious now as he was when he was a kid about what Edd seemed to be hiding underneath it. When the man began walking over to the redhead he briefly wondered if he still had that gap in his teeth but pushed the thought away when those big eyes watched him curiously.
"Uh, well, I was told to make sure you got home alright so, uh, that's where I'm gonna take you. Um, I guess you still have your car at the station?" A nod was his answer and he replied in kind before leading Edd out of the hospital and to the car. "That's okay, it'll be fine there. I'll just come get you in the morning and take you in myself, alright?" He watched Edd out of the corner of his eye and saw the hesitant nod as the man opened the car door and got in.
"So, uh, where do you live?"
"C-Cul-de-sac," Edd whispered out harshly as he buckled his seatbelt before glancing up at Kevin's furrowed brow and slightly tilted head.
"Cul-de-sac? Like, our cul-de-sac?" The black beanie bobbed in confirmation and Kevin raised an eyebrow at him as he put the car in drive and pulled out of the parking lot. "You live with your parents still?" he asked incredulously, thinking that of all people Double D would be the last one to need to move back in with his parents. Stopping at a red light Kevin looked over at the silent man and his eyes widened. Edd sat with slumped shoulders, his hands clenched together in his lap, and sad eyes looking at the floor of the car. Thinking that maybe he'd been rude without realizing it he cleared his throat.
"Uh, sorry, dude. I was just shocked, um, ya know it's not a bad thing. I'm still living with my folks too." Green glanced over to Edd and saw that he had nodded but his eyes were hooded and he felt that there was something the man wasn't saying. Or well, something he wouldn't say if he could without attempting to hack up a lung.
Choosing to leave the matter alone for now, Kevin mentally told himself he'd check it out when he got back to the station, yeah, he was being nosy, so what? He wanted to know why he'd hadn't even noticed Edd moving back home, across the street from him. He couldn't help being curious about it all. How long has Edd been back in Peach Creek? Why didn't he tell anyone he was coming back? Why did he leave right away anyway? The man practically cut all ties after he left for college and Kevin was interested in the reasons.
They drove for about twenty more minutes before Kevin pulled the Charger into Edd's driveway and put it in park. He turned slightly to the unmoving man next to him and nervously rubbed the back of his neck again before he reached into his jacket's left inner pocket and pulled out his badge. He flipped it open with ease and pulled a business card from a small flap on one side before putting the badge back. After grabbing a pen and scribbling something on the back of the card he handed it to Edd who took it slowly.
"That's my cell, you need anything, you call or text alright dork? I'll come get you at seven thirty tomorrow morning." Kevin said quietly, watching Edd carefully. The man smiled gratefully at Kevin giving him a quick glimpse at the still present gap between the man's front teeth before he nodded and unbuckled his seatbelt. Edd opened the door and got out of the car then leaned down to thank Kevin but the detective shook his head and gave him a half smile.
"Don't thank me dude, it's my fault you're in this mess anyway so, uh, see you tomorrow." The beanie-clad man gently shut the car door and walked to his front door, fishing his keys out of his pocket as he went. After unlocking and opening the door, he turned back and waved at the detective as he pulled out of the driveway, after a two fingered wave back Kevin sped off.
I'm updating this sooner than planned! I'm having so much fun writing this and I hope everyone is enjoying it so far. I'm not sure how long this will actually be but with the way it's going right now, it'll most likely be one of the longest I've ever written. I've been writing a lot for this and have chapter 3 about ¾ of the way done and that's without editing!
I may post updates/ask questions on my tumblr. I'm actually not a very social person so I haven't fully decided yet. My tumblr is my name: ReinaKage and I do have AO3 under the same name.