Of Broken Things

Chapter 1 - Scene 5.

On the way back, Aiden surreptitiously watched his friend and pondered if he should bring the conversation to Marjory and Ricky’s unusual behavior. Richard was an extremely private man who rarely spoke about his personal life. They had been partners for ten years and friends for over fifteen, but all Aiden really knew was that Ricky had never known his parents. Even his last name was given to him after the Benson School and Orphanage where he grew up. He also knew that Ricky had entered the Police Academy straight out of high school, taking advantage of the grants awarded by the Orphan Reintegration Program. The police had been his family ever since.

Ricky was always friendly and easy going with everybody, but rarely let anyone close enough to really be called a friend. It had taken Aiden three years of working every day with the man, and the fact that he had once pushed Ricky out of the line of a blaster shot, to finally earn that honor.  And because he was Ricky’s friend, and also because he was feeling guilty for neglecting that friendship after the funeral, he decided to try and find out what had made Ricky act the way he did.

He debated on how to subtly stir the conversation towards Mrs. Fortworth, but then remembered that subtlety had never been his strong point.

“So what’s the deal with you and Marjory?” he asked bluntly.

“What?” Ricky gave him a startled look.

“Come on, Ricky. I know you. I know how you are with women. Your behavior back there,” he gestured at the gated community they had left behind, “was anything but normal. You know as well as I do that getting involved with victims and witnesses is a horrible idea…”

“What? You think that I… that Marjory and I… Aiden!!! It’s nothing like that!”

“Then what is it?”

Ricky took a deep breath and ran a hand through his already unruly hair.

“It’s just that I feel for her. I understand exactly what she is going through, because I have been in her shoes. No, no, nobody died!” he added, seeing Aiden’s expression. “What I mean is I know how it feels to live with someone, to trust that person, only to find out that everything about them had been a lie.”

Ricky shifted in his sit and messed up his hair even more. He only did that when he was nervous or uncomfortable, so Aiden not to push it by asking who had betrayed him and when. Ricky had already shared more personal information that he was usually comfortable with. So Aiden shifted the conversation back to the case instead.

“I thought you didn’t buy into this whole gambling debts scenario?”

“I don’t. But unless his murder was a case of mistaken identity, which I find unlikely seeing how professional the execution was, Steven Fortworth was definitely mixed up in something bad.”

Aiden couldn’t argue with that, since he had been thinking along the same lines.

“Marjory is a smart woman,” Ricky continued. “If both me and you have come to this conclusion, you can be sure she has as well. That’s why I want you on this case. You cannot imagine what that doubt can do to you. It can destroy you from the inside and poison your relationship with other people forever. She needs answers, because she is right - not knowing hurts more than knowing the truth, no matter how ugly. I know you. I know you will keep digging until you find the truth, no matter how long it takes or how much shit you stir up in the process.”

“Heh, stirring up shit seems to be my specialty.” Aiden smirked.

 We are almost done with Chapter 1 - just one more scene left to post on Friday. Then we will start a new week with a new chapter!