Caught

Chapter 16: Catching Up

We headed to the police station on foot. Luke's laptop was secretly hidden in his bag. As we opened the door, we found a cop drinking black coffee from a cup and looking at the stain on his blue shirt.

"We need to speak to someone," I insisted for the umpteenth time. The police officer only slurped his coffee and stared at the paper lying in his hand.

"Are you two adults?" he asked. We both shook our heads. Sighing, the cop drained his coffee then gazed at the rim of the cup. Luke place the laptop in front of him then turned it on.

"Sir," Luke explained calmly. "We have something that you need to see-" "Hey Frank," someone asked. "You have someone on the phone." Bobbing his head, the police officer ignored us and hurried to answer the phone.

"Well, that was hopeless." I grumbled. Luke placed his laptop in his backpack then rubbed his forehead. "I knew this was a bad idea," Luke groaned. "Should we get started on our investigations without them?"

I was about to answer until Jason entered the police station. His blond hair was combed back, he wore his dark blue uniform, but his eyes were gazed on his phone.

Without a word, I walked over to Jason and tapped him on his shoulder. He looked up at me then smiled. "Hi Cole," Jason greeted. When he saw Luke, he gave him a kind wave. "Hi Luke-"

"We found footage on what happened before Kimberly went missing." Luke interrupted. "Nice to meet you too," Jason said nervously. I gave Jason a nonchalant smile then filled him in with the details.

"Wait," Jason began. "You two hacked into the servilance system?" "Technically Luke did," I admitted. Luke shrugged in response. "That's illegal," Jason whispered. "You guys shouldn't be doing that."

"Yet, the police associates with thugs behind people's backs." Luke snapped. "And tried to kill Luke," I added with a hiss. "And hated us for quite a while."

Jason took a deep breath then said, "I understand, but you two need to talk to the police." Luke gave him an annoyed look. "Thanks for the advice, Captain Obvious, but apparently they were wasting our time."

Luke let out a sigh then said to me, "I'll find more dirt of Madison and her friends." He kissed my lips then stormed out of the station, leaving Jason dazed. "Nice boyfriend you have." he said.

"He does have a point," I snapped. "I don't understand why he trusts you, but doesn't listen to me." Jason explained. "I wish he would talk some sense into himself."

"Lay off of my boyfriend," I growled. "I get that it is your duty to protect us, but I can't let you stand there and badmouth how amazing and smart he is. Yes, he is mysterious, and yes he doesn't like people, but he is the only person who is there for me. And you need to respect that."

"Fine," Jason said. "I won't tick him off." "You better," I snarled.  "But I have to tell you something," Jason said calmly. "I have looked into Luke's records, and let me tell you that he is not what he thinks."

What? I thought to myself. "That's none of your business," I insisted. "You said that you wanted to know more about him." Jason replied sharply. "I want Luke to tell me," I responded. "Not in his records, that's private."

Jason took me by the arm then led me outside so we can talk in peace. "Luke has been arrested when he was a kid," Jason explained. "He pushed a man down the stairs."

"He was trying to hurt Seth," I say defensively. "I know that Luke is your friend," Jason sighed. "But let's face it: the freak has problems." Without a warning, I punched him hard in the face.

Jason's head jerked for a minute then faced me. "Why would you do that?" Jason snapped. "I was trying to help you." I took a step back. "No, you're not," I said finally. "Like I said, Luke is a good person unlike you."

"What kind of a rookie snoops through Luke's records? You knew that it was illegal, and yet you did it anyway." Jason was clutching his nose as the blood poured out of his nostrils.

"I don't want anything to do with you," I said. "I don't want to look at you or even know you. Luke is right; you don't deserve to be trusted." "So, I am out of The Expedition?" Jason joked bitterly.

"Seems like it," I answered truthfully. Just when I was about to walk away, Luke appeared out of nowhere. He wore the same olive brown t-shirt, khaki, and sneakers.

His backpack was sitting impatiently on his shoulder. "Hey guys," Luke said, like nothing happened. "Hi," I greeted with uncertainty. Jason glared at Luke then back at me.

"How are you doing, Jason Clark?" Luke asked suddenly. Jason stared at him for an hour. "What did you say?" he asked. "You know what I said," Luke growled, reaching into his pocket.

He pulled out a small black wallet then tossed it at him. "Before we met, I took a peek in your wallet." Luke explained. Jason snatched the wallet in mid-air then shoved it in his pocket.

"You have no right-" he snarled. "Just like you have no right to look through my records?" Luke interrupted. I stared at him in awe, so he has been listening.

"Come on Cole," Luke said. "We have some work to do. See you around, Jason." Barely containing my laughter, I hurried to Luke's side and joined him as we walked the path to my house.

As we were walking, I asked how he knew that he was Kimberly's brother, other than Jason telling me that he has a sister. "Easy," Luke said with a shrug.

"I went to the Clarks' house one morning and saw pictures of a blond boy playing with Kimberly, an old boy's bedroom, and I even saw a picture of Jason being recruited to the police."

"What were you even doing at their house?" I asked. "I had to give them the details of what we have found." "Okay," I said. "But we still don't know what happened during the "ritual"."

"Why don't you go undercover?" Luke suggested. "You did a cool job being a cheerleader." I gave him a deadpan look. "I'm pretty sure Madison kicked me out after finding out that I was investigating her."

I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. Using my finger, I flipped through pictures until I found the photo of the voodoo doll. What kind of sick prank did Madison and the girls concocted?

Sensing my frustration, Luke hesitantly gave me a small hug. I stopped walking then looked at him. "Thanks," he said quietly. "For defending me." I gave me a small smile. "That's what friends and crime partners do."

"You forgot to leave out the 'boyfriend and girlfriend' part," Luke reminded, kissing my nose. Smiling, I kissed him back. "Sorry," I answered. "That's what friends and crime partners AND boyfriends and girlfriends do."

As soon as we made it to the house, Luke slid his hand into mine and joined them. "Let's find and put the killer in prison," I insisted. He nodded and allows me to unlock the door and enter into the living room.