A week later, Edward stomped up the weathered flight of stairs that led to Emmett McCarty's home. He had not been here since last week when he lost his car in that fucking race. He raised his hand to knock on the door when it was yanked open revealing the one person he wished to see.
Bella McCarty stood there in a pair of tight jeans and a white top. Her face was flushed like she had run a marathon. She had watched as a black truck pulled up on the curb and parked. She raised an eyebrow when she realized it was Edward Masen.
"Fuck.." she muttered, looking down at her tattered sweats and black greased shirt. She would have to change before he came inside. Em wasn't around and it piqued her curiosity why he would come to their house. Bella ripped her clothes off and rummaged through her drawers and found a pair of skin-tight ripped jeans and white t-shirt a minute later.
Rushing to the bathroom she dressed quickly and ran a brush through her tangled hair. It was a record for her, but she pounded down the flight of stairs and yanked the door open as he raised his hand to knock. Bella discreetly eyed him and mentally drooled. He stood there in relaxed jeans, that she knew made his ass look good, and a black t-shirt.
"Hi," she said, flashing him a smile.
"Hi yourself..."
"You looking for Em?"
"Nah," Edward said, shaking his head. "I'm actually here for you."
Bella raised an eyebrow at him, wondering what his intentions were. Shrugging, she stepped aside and let him in. She knew they would only have a few minutes of privacy, Em and his crew would be home soon.
Edward stepped inside the home and realized it was larger than he imagined it to be. Last time he had been here, it was in full swing of a party that Emmett had abandoned him to take his old lady upstairs. Bella had taken pity on him after Jake bucked up to him and kept him company.
Edward monitored Em's crew who still distrusted him and relax. He left soon after that and knew that he would be back. He just didn't know he would back so soon.
He was intrigued by her and if he was honest with himself; he wanted to be around her more. Being in her presence was addicting. It was a pity that once he caught her brother, Edward wouldn't be seeing much of her. Turning to look at her, he took an appreciatively glance and remembered why he was there.
Before he could open his mouth to ask her out for the weekend, the door burst open and Em and his crew walked through the door. Edward and Bella turned their heads at the intrusion and Edward frowned.
"The fuck is he doing here, Bella?" Jake asked hotly before anyone else could speak.
"Yea..." Emmett drawled looking at Edward. Edward could see the question in Emmett's eye.
"I'm here for Bella," Edward answered Emmett while ignoring Jake.
"Yea," Jake stepped forward, trying to assert his authority. "Why do you want Bella?"
Edward smirked and shook his head, turning his head away from Jake's angry gaze. He gave Bella a light shrug and realized he would have to talk to Bella when Jake wasn't around.
"See ya, Bella," Edward said, walking back toward the door, but was stopped by a wall of muscle and an ugly face.
"Where you think you're going punk?"
"Home. Did you want to hold my hand and make sure I make it?" Edward replied sarcastically.
"Fuck you Masen." Jake snarled, stepping into Edward's space. Jake's wide nose was pressed close to his own.
Soft, small hands pressed against his chest as Edward looked down to see an irate Bella. He watched with amusement as she pushed Jake back as she stood between them.
"Get the fuck out Jake!" she snapped, crossing her arms.
"Bella, it's cool. I need to go anyway." Edward leaned down to reassure her. He barely saw her nod her head as he stepped around her and pushed past the angry Jake.
"Edward," a voice called out. Edward paused and turned around, his hand on the doorknob.
"Yea..." he replied, seeing Emmett standing there expectantly.
"You still owe me a car."
"I know," Edward smirked, pulling the door open. "It will be at your shop tomorrow." He turned around and stepped out the door. Pausing his step, he poked his head through the doorframe, smiling widely at Bella. "Nice talking to you, Bella."
With that, Edward turned and stomped down the flight of stairs, unaware of the shouting match that was taking place in the McCarty home.
The next morning, Edward drove toward the junkyard to hunt down a car that would appease the street racer. It didn't matter what year it was nor what kind of car it was; he just needed a car. Before he left his house, he called several junkyards hoping to find a car that could work on.
Six calls later, he found a junkyard that would help him out. As he turned off the 710, he heard the unmistakable sounds of sirens. Checking his rearview window, he saw an unmarked cop car behind him, trying to pull him over.
"Fuck," he cursed quietly to himself as he pulled his truck over toward the curb.
"Show me your hands. Open the door." Edward heard the man instruct over the speaker.
Placing his hands on the outside of his truck, he looked back at them in confusion. As he climbed out of his truck, the man instructed him to place his hands behind his head and walk backward toward the rear of his truck.
In seconds, Edward felt handcuffs snap around his wrists and tossed in the back of the car by two of his superiors. It was a long silent drive toward the suburbs as Edward sat in the back of the car.
Half an hour later, they pulled up to a house. Stepping out of the car, Edward demanded to be uncuffed complaining about how tight the cuffs were.
Sgt. Swan led Edward inside the house where there was a team of investigators and cops who were milling around the living area.
Coming face to face with Agent Dwyer, Edward realized this would not be a pleasant meeting. As he followed Agent Dwyer and Sgt. Swan into the dining room, Edward took a seat in a nearby chair and looked expectantly at his superiors.
"We now have more information about. It's now up to four hijackings in the past two months. The DVD players and cameras are worth two million. Which brings the grand total of six million-plus." Agent Dwyer stated as he paced around the room.
Stopping in front of a desk, Edward watched as he flopped a folder onto the desk. He nodded in appreciation as someone handed him a coffee.
"Listen, Cullen, if you want that detective badge badly enough, help us. And you know what else? The F.B.I. can come through to help you." Agent Dwyer spoke up, ignoring the smells of coffee.
"What does the truck driver say?" Edward asked, leaning back into the chair.
"Same M.O. that was in the file we gave you. Three Honda Civics with the same neon green glow from under the chassis," Sgt. Swan explained. "Even found out what brand of tires they use. Which means they are in the street-racing word."
Edward rubbed his hands on his jeans and nodded. "Fine. I'll see what I can dig up..." he stood up from his seat and looked at Agent Dwyer and Sgt. Swan, "Oh—you two owe me a car."
With that he turned and headed out of the house, ignoring the calls of protest from his superiors. When he was halfway across the expansive yard, he heard his name being called. Slowing his pace, Edward turned around to see Sgt Swan badly chasing after him.
"There's one thing you need to know about McCarty..." Sgt. Swan said, bending over to catch his breath, "He did hard-time for nearly beating a guy to death. Do not turn your back on him, Cullen."
The next day, Edward loaded up a beat-up red '93 Toyota Supra MK IV on the back of a 16ft trailer that he found in the junkyard the day before. Winding his way through the rising summer traffic of Los Angeles, he merged onto the 105. Thankfully, today wasn't nearly as congested, but that changed when he eased onto to 110. Looking down the long line of cars, Edward sighed. Another hour passed, with the bumper to bumper traffic, he finally passed the city skyline of downtown Los Angeles.
As he merged onto Highway 101, Edward passed the green sign for 'Chinatown'. Maybe tonight he would have dinner there. As he joined the Hollywood Fwy, he saw Exit 4A. Getting into the right lane, he exited and drove toward McCarty's car shop.
Backing beside a large building with a metal-plated sign with 'EMC Mechanics' he slowly backed the trailer in where a large opened door was and parked the truck. Getting out, he aroused the attention of Emmett's crew.
"Hey... what on earth do we have here?" Emmett called out from inside the shop, his voice becoming clearer as he neared the opened doors.
"This is your car."
"MY car?"
"I said a ten-second car, not a ten-minute car," Emmett reminded him with a smile as Eric and the blonde, Rosalie, laughed.
Edward's eyes cut toward Bella, who was standing behind her brother. She gave him a smile, but Edward knew she was trying not to laugh. He noted that Emmett was still staring at the car in disbelief that he could make it work. Edward had to think fast before they demanded another car.
"Pop the hood."
"You want me to pop the hood?"
"Yea," Edward said, pointing toward the front of the car. Following Emmett toward the front of the car, Eric lifted the hood and everyone watched as it clanged onto the floor loudly.
"Two J.Z. Engines," Eric said with awe in his voice.
"I retract my previous statement," Emmett muttered, looking over the engine.
"You know what, this car would decimate all cars if you drop say...15K into it," Eric spoke up, eyeing Emmett for number confirmation.
"Yea... yea... Put it on my tab at the auto shop."
The guys stood around for a moment and looked over the engine again. Each one of them could see money fall from the sky if Edward was to continue to win races.
"Yo," Emmett called out, stepping out of the garage. "If you're not working at the auto shop, you're working for me. Every tool imaginable is in this garage and if you can't find it, then you need not be around a car."
Edward shook his head and smiled widely before leaning over and looking over the mess of the project he was about to embark on. A shadow passed by his right shoulder and a voice whispered in his ear.
"He owns you now..." Bella whispered as she walked away, smiling. Edward quickly turned around to watch her walk away with a look of uncertainty on his face.
Soon enough the parts came in for the car and Edward, along with the rest of Emmett's crew, began working on the car. Days passed by as the crew worked tirelessly to have the car ready for Race Wars.
Edward checked in at the precinct every few days with nothing new to report. There were several nights he and Jasper would grab dinner while Jasper worked on the local cases that were tossed on his desk. Technically, Edward was undercover, but he still helped where he could.
A week later, Edward was standing in the backyard of Emmett's house when they heard three cars pull up. Walking over to the grill that was flaming hot with food, he watched as Jake, Rose, and Mike stepped out of the cars.
Jake took one look at Edward standing there and tossed his bags at Mike. "I'm out of here!"
"Jake, get over here and give us a hand," Emmett called out, walking away from the grill.
"Looks like you have all the help you need, brother," Jake called out. He climbed into his car and drove off, the tires squealing as he did.
During the prayer said by Eric, Edward was sitting across from Bella, who couldn't keep her eyes off him. He remembered their upcoming date and couldn't wait until the weekend for it. Once the prayer ended, Edward reached for his beer and took a slow sip from it. The aroma of grilled chicken and other side dishes swam around him and he felt his stomach growl in anticipation.
Half an hour later, as everyone was sitting around the table, Jake strolled up like the lost, hungry dog that he was. Edward turned to look at him, balefully as Emmett let Jake rejoin their group. He watched as Jake sat down and began filling his plate. The tension in the air was palpable but broken up by Rosie who told everyone to eat.
Later on, Bella was in the kitchen alone when Edward brought in the last of the dishes from their cookout. "You need any help?" he asked, walking over to the sink.
"Nah, I am good. You go join the boys watchin' the movie," she said giving him a smile.
"You know where I come from the cook doesn't clean," he said, reaching for a dry towel.
"Yea? Well, I'd like to go there," she said sarcastically but with warmth in her voice.
He stood there rinsing and drying dishes while she washed. There wasn't any use speaking tonight. They would do plenty of that on their date. The clanking of dishes and water rushing were the only sounds in the room.
Jake, who had been in the living room stood up and walked toward the small kitchen itching for a bag of popcorn when he caught Edward and Bella washing dishes together. He snickered seeing Edward doing dishes like a fucking woman.
Oh, how he hated the fucker.
Laughing, he popped open the microwave and ripped open a bag of popcorn and threw it in. He threw a snide comment about Edward needing to wash his car when he finished doing dishes.
"The fuck you say?" Bella snapped, setting her unwashed dish in the water and turning around.
"Not you, Bella." Jake snickered, pushing at the buttons on the microwave. "I'm talking to the punk."
Edward stood there ready to punch Jake's fucking lights out. He was an immature dick who was sniffing around Bella. Edward hadn't known Bella but a few weeks but it didn't mean Edward liked it.
"What was that little Cuban restaurant you wanted to take me too?" she asked Jake walking over to him. She snickered watching his eyes light up as if she would finally accept his date. "What was it called?"
"Cha-cha-cha." He smiled happily only to find himself pissed the fuck off seconds later.
Bella smirked and turned around to Edward. She placed a hand on his shirt and looked up at him. "You can take me there since you never brought up a restaurant. Friday night at 10 pm?"
Both of them turned to watch Jake stomp angrily out the kitchen. In his anger, he nearly stepped on his friends as he made his way out the door. Edward smirked hearing Jake yell at everyone to make their own popcorn. The satisfaction on his face when he heard the door slam.
The next day, Edward was wandering in the auto store when Sam Uley walked in with his crew. Edward watched from behind a stack of NOS as Sam approached the counter and listened in as Sam told the guy, Brian, from behind the counter he needed three of every part on some list.
This intrigued him, but he filed it away for another day.
That afternoon, Edward walked into the prescient and saw Jasper sitting at his desk, buried under a mountain of work. Tapping his knuckles on the desk as he passed, Jasper looked up and smiled seeing his best friend.
"Well, well, well... it's about time I've seen you." he snarked, shaking his head. An errant blonde hair dangling over his left eye.
"Haha, funny," Edward replied sarcastically. "You wanna help me out tonight?"
Jasper looked intrigued and got up from his chair to walk to Edward's desk. He sat down on the corner of the desk and looked at his best friend of several years. "Yea, what do you need?"
Edward sighed, then took a heavy breath. "I need to investigate something and I need you to keep an eye out."
"This about your case?"
"Yea, it is. I'm looking for something specific. Someone has been lifting merchandise and I need to know who is doing it." Edward replied, tapping his pen on the desk.
"That's cool. Just let me know when you need me." Jasper confirmed, giving his best friend a nod.
Edward gave him a tight smile. He knew better than to let Jasper in on this, but he needed someone he could trust. He had worked himself into Emmett's good graces, but it didn't mean he trusted the man. Opening up his laptop, Edward found out everything he could about James Baker.
Several hours later, with a file thicker than his arm, Edward shut down his laptop and flicked off the desk light. He reached for the file, closed it, and walked away, giving Jasper a slow nod.
Later that night, while everyone was off doing their thing, Edward drove quietly around the streets of Echo Park trying to hunt down the stolen goods. Reaching for his cell phone, Edward rang Jasper up and told him where he needed to be. Jasper replied that he could be there half an hour. So Edward had to wait before he could do reconnaissance.
Driving slowly down a darkened alleyway, Edward knew this was an area that he was sure James would hide the stolen goods. Turning off his lights to not attract attention, he pulled behind a warehouse and parked the truck. Hoping that no one would see him sitting there alone, he moved some of his stuff in the floorboard and laid down, preparing himself to nap while he waited on Jasper to get there.
Halfway through his waiting, a small tapping sound on his window woke Edward. Cracking on eye open, he saw Jasper standing there looking at him impatiently. Getting out, they quietly climbed a ladder that took them to the roof of the warehouse. Edward motioned for Jasper to stay close and keep an eye out. He continued around the roof and snuck into the warehouse through a window he broke.
Racing down the stairs, flashlight in hand, he saw several things hidden under tarps. Throwing them off, they were cars. Cars with expensive tires. Not finding what he was looking for, he snuck back out and raced along the rooftop.
Motioning for Jasper, he took the lead and started to climb down the ladder. As he reached the bottom of the ladder, something hard whacked him in the back. Grunting from the unexpected pain, Edward fell onto the dirty ground and promptly passed out. He never felt strong hands grab his leather jacket nor drag him in the back of the warehouse away from prying eyes.
"He sounds like a fucking cop!" Jake snarled, pushing the barrel of the gun in Edward's cheek, which woke him up.
He rolled and grunted on the dirty asphalt, his eyes closed and his head pounding. It felt like a jackhammer cranked in his head. Sitting up, he watched Emmett stepped out of the shadows. His normally blue eyes were dark and menacing.
Emmett crossed his arms and glared at Edward, who had yet to move. "Edward, this is one of those moments you need to think carefully about what you will say."
Edward nodded his head slowly and sat up as Jake pulled the gun off him. He had to think fast. If he said the wrong thing, they would shoot him and his case would be over, just like his life. Gasping for air, he held the back of his head to keep thinking. Hoping that Emmett would be patient long enough for Edward to come up with an excuse.
"Em, this is about Race Wars." He took a breath as he began to weave his excuse. Jake holding the gun to the back of his head kicked him. "I-I just went in there and Hector is gonna be runnin' three Honda Civics with spoon engines and he came into the auto store the other day and order three of everything."
Jake turned to glare at Emmett, who shook his head and kept a steely glare on Edward. Emmett couldn't believe his fucking ears. What the fuck was this clown going to do? Go around and check everybody's shit out, one garage after another?
Edward panted and slowly stood up. "You know I can't lose again, Emmett."
"He's a fucking cop, Em!" Jake shouted, lowering the gun.
"You a cop, Edward?" Emmett asked, eyeing Edward, who was still panting. He turned his eyes away from Em's intense stare and shook his head at him. There was no way in hell he would tell him the truth.
A few minutes later, Emmett, Edward, and Jake piled into Eric's Volvo and drove away from the warehouse. Half an hour later, they arrived at the same Chinese place from the first race. The three men got out and Eric took off to stand guard. There wasn't any telling who or what might show up.
Hopping the fence, the men climbed up the ladder and onto the roof. Edward followed Jake, who was in the lead to a vent opening. He watched as Jake climbed down on top of a car and hopped down. Edward followed him, his flashlight ready to find whatever he was going to be shown. Behind him, Emmett came through, shining his own light.
Looking around in the dark, they found nothing unusual until Jake spotted several cars. "Yo Em, check this out," he called. Edward was close behind him, his eyes still trying to make out the darkened room. Shining his light onto the car, he saw it had no engine.
This was curious. While Em and Jake were discussing the engine-less cars, Edward was sneaking around. His light came upon stacks of DVD boxes and he could have smiled and danced. This was the stolen merchandise he was searching for. He almost sighed in relief knowing that Em was probably clear now.
Before he could fully investigate, a phone rang. Someone was arriving and Eric was calling.
"All right, we got company!" Emmett called out as the three men scattered to find hiding places.
The lights flipped on and the sounds of engines reverberated throughout the garage. Edward found Emmett hiding behind a red car, a gun ready in his hand in case things got sticky. Pulling his own gun, he turned off the flashlight and waited to see what would happen next.
Doors opened, and he saw the owner of the auto shop, Ted, with Laurent holding a gun to the man's head. James was beating the man into the empty compartment.
"WE HAVE NO ENGINES!" James roared at the man, releasing him. "What do you fucking think is wrong?"
"What you feeling Laurent?" James asked, removing his jacket and setting it down. "Forty weight? Fifty weight?"
"A forty weight sounds nice," Laurent replied, never removing his eyes off Ted nor lowering his gun.
James grabbed Ted and forced him on the ground while Laurent started pumping the red oil tank. Shoving the nozzle in Ted's mouth, oil pumped furiously into Ted's mouth, choking him on it. He couldn't breathe let alone think about what was happening to him.
"Where are the engines, Ted?"
"They're in the warehouse!" Ted shouted the answer as James let him go.
Ted laid over coughing and sputtering the oil out of his mouth. He crawled over to kiss James's shoes only to be kicked away. Emmett, Edward, and Jake looked at each other and realized they needed to get the fuck out. Something wasn't right, and they needed to find out what it was.
The next night, Edward was getting ready for his date with Bella. He donned jeans and a light blue button-up to make sure he at least looked decent for her. As he was getting ready to leave, his phone rang loudly in his pocket. Snatching it out, he checked to see who it was. It was from Jasper.
"Yeah man..."
"Edward! What the fuck was that last night?" Jasper demanded, barely holding in his anger.
"Man, I..." Edward sighed and leaned against his truck and ran his free hand through his messy hair. "I don't fucking know, but I made a break-through."
"I thought you were fucking dead man when I saw that big fuck hit you with the gun. Then the other guy in the black shirt... Who the fuck were those guys?"
He lowered his head, closing his eyes and wondered how much he could tell his best friend. "They—they were Jacob Black and Emmett McCarty."
There was silence on the other side of the line. Edward pulled back to make sure the call hadn't dropped. He could hear his best friend breathing heavily into the phone, so he knew Jasper wasn't dead.
"Man, you have to get the fuck out of this! Tell whoever the fuck put you up to it, that you're done."
"I can't Jas. I need to see this through. I am so fucking close to closing this case."
"Fine." Jasper sighed in resignation. "What you doing tonight?"
For the first time in days, Edward smiled. "I've got a date with Bella."
"McCarty's sister?"
"Yea."
"Good fucking luck there man," Jasper said, taking a deep breath. "Listen, I gotta go. Alice is here."
"I'll talk to you soon."
He hung up the phone and stared at it for a long minute. Jasper was right, he should get the fuck out while he was still alive. But he couldn't. He was so close to finishing this up. Plus, he couldn't bail on his date with Bella.
Getting into the truck, he turned it on and headed toward Echo Park, where Bella would wait for him. Arriving there half an hour later, he parked the car on the curb and killed the engine. Taking a deep breath, Edward ran his hands over his face and shook the unsettledness he was feeling.
Heading to the front door, Edward knocked and waited patiently. He didn't have to wait long when the door opened and there stood Emmett. "You here to pick up Bella?"
"Yea, I am."
"You hurt her, I'll kill you," Emmett said, glaring at Edward.
"I'll do my best."
"Damn it, Em, leave him alone." the annoyed feminine voice of Bella said from behind Emmett.
Pushing him aside, she smiled seeing Edward. He was looking good though she could tell he was tense. "You ready to go?"
"Yea..." Edward said, motioning for her to follow him. When they got to his truck, he opened the door for her like a gentleman. He knew Emmett was still watching him as he climbed into the driver's side and started the truck.
Taking directions from Bella, they soon arrived at Cha-Cha-Cha where they were seated immediately. The late hour was nice with so few people inside, though Edward figured it was about to change.
Sitting across from her, they chatted about their lives even with Edward editing his current profession. He wanted to know how her brother became involved in racing.
"Our dad raced. It's in the McCarty blood," she took a bite of her Ropa vieja. Edward smiled at her not knowing anything about his own dad.
"What about you?"
"What about me?" he asked, chuckling and picking at his dinner.
"When did you start racing?"
"That," Edward chuckled again and reached for his water. Taking a sip, he figured the best answer was an honest answer. "I started when I got my license. I had a rough time with juvie."
"You boosted cars?" she asked figuring it out.
"Something like that. I just like the feel of racing. Makes you feel..."
"... Free," Bella finished for him. Edward nodded at her and took another bite of his chicken.
They sat in silence for a minute, but Edward kept checking her face every so often which emitted a smile from her. Half an hour later, he pushed his plate back and sighed feeling full.
It had been a great first date. The getting to know one another while keeping up with the lie about his past was boring yet interesting. Walking her out to the truck he stopped her and turned her around to look at him. He better do this before he took her home and Emmett pulled a gun on him.
She looked at him questioningly but smiled when she realized his intentions. Closing her eyes, she felt his lips on hers. When she didn't slap him, Edward pushed into the kiss, his tongue slipping out to graze her lower lip, asking for entrance. When she gave it, she was thankful he was holding onto her or else she would have fallen.
When they broke apart some minutes later, Bella realized that yes, it had been a great date.