Nick groaned when he heard the doorbell ring. He knew it wasn't Warrick or Catherine, because they didn't even bother doing that anymore. It was basically a waste of time because knew they were welcomed to just come in whenever they wanted. Everyone else from work that would visit him for whatever reason should all be asleep or pulling overtime right now, so Nick had no idea who it could be. He forced himself off the couch and over to the door. It took him a couple extra seconds to open the door than it used to. Stupid hands.
"Hello Nick." The young man on the other side of the door said. He looked oddly familiar, but Nick didn't think he'd ever met him before. But he knew him from somewhere.
"Do I know you?" He asked politely.
The other man shook his head, his dirty blonde hair moving lightly on his head. "No, but I know you."
Nick was getting a little uneasy. "Okay...how can I help you?"
The other man extended his hand, and Nick took it. "I'm Ryan." Nick didn't need to introduce himself, because apparently Ryan already knew who he was. "I know you because you killed my father."
Realization struck Nick. "Eric." He instantly thought out loud. That's where he had seen Ryan before - kind of. Now that he thought about it, they did look a lot alike. But Eric didn't have any kids...did he?
Before he could react, Ryan ripped his hand from Nick's and punched him in the chest, sending the darker haired man stumbling back into the house. Ryan stepped inside as well, closing the door behind him. He pulled a gun from his inside jacket pocket and held it up, pointing it at Nick.
"What is it with Taylor's and coming over uninvited with guns all the time?" Nick asked when he caught his breath.
Ryan smiled, looking even more like Eric than he had before. "Funny. Sit." He said, motioning to the leather couch Nick had been asleep on minutes ago. Nick complied because he wasn't sure what Ryan was capable of or planning to do. This wasn't Eric, and he didn't know how far he could push this guy. He wasn't too eager to find out either.
"So you're Eric's kid?" Nick asked.
Ryan nodded. "Yeah. Sorry to surprise you like this, I know he told you and everyone else he didn't have any kids. But he does. And even though I wasn't close with my father, you killed him. Now we'll never be anything."
"How did you find out where I lived?"
"I'm a very resourceful guy. But that doesn't matter. I need you to do something for me, and you're gonna do it."
Nick shrugged slightly. "How can I help?" He asked somewhat sarcastically.
Ryan kept the gun pointed at Nick's head. "I need your help with some drugs. I know that was your specialty when you worked with my father."
"Actually, it was stealing the cars that moved the drugs."
"Whatever smart ass. You still know what you're doing. I know how myself, I just don't want to be there when the cops show up. But you will be."
Nick frowned. "I will?"
Ryan nodded. "You're going to take a couple kilos of cocaine to an abandoned warehouse in the desert. You'll be right in the middle of unloading when the cops arrive. Your fingerprints will be all over the coke, not to mention the gun used to kill the dealer back in his apartment."
"What if I don't feel like going to jail for something I didn't do?" Nick asked.
"It's simple really. I'm going to call the cops when I see you get to the warehouse. I won't leave until I see you in the back of the cruiser. If you try anything or if I think you're going to try anything, I will kill you."
Nick nodded slowly. "So you have front row seats to this?"
"Yeah. So I would highly suggest you to play along. Don't fuck with me Nick. This is fairly simple, don't make in complicated. If you tell your cop friends before, I'll kill you. If you don't do exactly what I tell you, I'll kill you. Okay?"
"I guess I have no choice." Nick said, defeated.
"Good boy. I'll be back here tomorrow night at 10. Don't worry, I'll set everything else up."
And with that, Ryan was gone, leaving Nick sitting alone in his living room. He waited 20 minutes before picking up his cell phone, then changed his mind. He couldn't be sure that Ryan didn't hook wires up in his house or to his phones, and he didn't want to chance it. So he grabbed his keys and headed out to his car, ignoring the warnings he'd been given not to drive because of his hands.
He was so busy working everything out in his head he hadn't realized he had gotten to LVPD until he had walked in to Brass' office while the police captain was on the phone. Brass held up a finger to Nick, signaling him to wait a second.
"Okay, file charges on him. My guys have been watching him, they can pick him up." Brass hung up the phone before looking up at Nick. "What's up Nick?" He asked.
Nick wasted no time trying to explain what had just happened. "Eric has a kid and he was just at my house and he's pissed at me and-"
Brass cut him off. "Woah woah...sit down. Take a deep breath and start over, slowly."
Nick took the offered seat and started again, calmly this time. "Remember Eric Taylor?"
Brass nodded. "How could I forget the bastard?"
"Well, he had a kid. Ryan. He's a little younger than I am I think. He was just at my house and told me that I had to-" Nick was cut off again.
"Are you sure it wasn't a dream? You're still on a lot of painkillers Nicky."
Nick didn't blame Brass for his skepticism. He knew how crazy it sounded, so he tried a different approach. "Do you trust me?" He asked.
Brass was taken back by the question. "What are you ta-" This time, it was Nick who cut Brass off.
"Do you trust me?" Nick asked again.
"Nick, you know you're like a son to me. Of course I trust you."
"Then you have to believe me. He was just at my house. He punched me in the chest." Nick said, trying to find evidence Brass has come accustomed to believing. To prove his point, Nick took his shirt off to reveal the dark bruise on his chest.
Brass stared at it for a second before speaking. "What the hell happened?"
Nick started at the beginning, telling Brass the whole story. He made sure he didn't leave anything out. When he finished, he sat back in his chair and waited for Brass to say something. He didn't have a chance before Warrick walked in to the office as well.
"Hey Brass, Gris wanted me to give you the...Nick, what the hell are you doing here? How'd you get here? Please tell me you didn't drive." It took Warrick a couple seconds before he realized Nick's shirt was on his lap instead of his body, revealing a dark bruise on his chest. Nick rambled off what had happened again before Warrick even had to ask. Warrick had taken the seat next to Nick and didn't say anything else, even after Nick had finished.
Brass said what he was going to say to Nick before Warrick had walked in. "He must have changed his name because when we ran a background check on Eric, nothing showed up about any family members. I don't know how to catch this guy."
"I do." Nick said.
Brass shook his head. "No. You're not going anywhere near him again."
"I have an idea. I do what he asks, except you make sure the cops never show up. I can take it from there. It's gonna work." Nick looked from Brass to Warrick, then back to Brass. "I think."