Cactus Wren

Chapter Ten - Blonde Angel

"I never knew boots could carry so much stuff." I hear Travis say from behind me.  I look back to see him standing just inside the open doorway watching me. I place the last of my supplies on the bed and give a playful shrug.

"Beats carrying everything in your bra." I reply. I unzip one boot and slip my leg out, then repeat with the second. The silence between us is deafening. Travis is the first to break the quiet.

"Rebbie," he starts quietly, "we need to talk about what happened tonight." The tone of his voice isn't angry, it's more cautious.

"Okay. I was just going to change before the debriefing." I tell him, rolling off my boot socks in the process. Travis steps further into the room, shutting the door behind him.

"That's not what I mean, Rebbie. I think you know that." He tells me. He pauses briefly in front of me and I finally look up into his pale eyes. "Why were you in Duke Harris's office tonight, Rebbie? I didn't authorize you to take that kind of risk." His thick tattooed arms are crossed over his chest. The corner of his mouth is pulled down into a frown. I don't like this look on him, I much prefer him to be smiling. His eyes sparkle when he smiles. My own frown pulls at my lips as the thought passes through my mind. Focus, Rebbie.

"When he invited me into his office before my shift, I saw him hide that file and then lock the drawer. If it was simple club business, he wouldn't have to take the extra step to lock it. I knew there had to be evidence in there we could use. That's why I sent you that text."

"And I acknowledged it." He replied. "I still didn't authorize breaking into his office. Why were you there?"

"I wanted the information, for us. For this mission." I snap back.

"If you felt strongly about it, why didn't you just ask me?" He asks me.

"I was trying to do my job, Travis. Why else am I here?" I reply. "I'm supposed to help you, your team. To gather evidence, that's why I was in there."

"You're not answering my question, Rebbie. I know what our assignment is, I know why we brought you on, but we work as a team. You were acting alone, without authorization. Why were you in Harris's office?" He demands.

"Because that's how work!" I snap. "I work alone, Travis! I have for four years. Hell, longer than that even. This is what I do!"

"Not anymore!" He growls back. "Not anymore and not in the Academy. We are a team, Rebbie! We work together. We are a family. No one works alone here, we're all in this as a unit. If you would have asked-"

"If I would have asked permission, you would have said 'no'. So I didn't ask, I acted." I interrupt. Travis's blue eyes are blazing like the core of a flame.

"No! If you had asked me, we could have made a plan, as a team, that didn't involve you almost getting caught. Harris is a dangerous man, I don't know what would have happened if he had found you in there, and I don't plan to ever find out." Travis steps closer to me. His hands now at his sides, gripping his hips. His body is radiating tension and I see his fingers flexing as if he's holding himself back from throttling me.

"So, what? Are you sending me back now?" I spit back at him. Great, Miranda is going to send me away, out of state. I can't even get along with a dog team. "Sure, fine. I'll pack my shit and get out of your hair." I huff. I turn to pick up my things that I dropped on the bed but Travis stops my movements with a gentle but firm grip on my elbow.