Safe Place to Hide || Chenford / The Rookie

Chapter 5

She runs into Tim on her way out of the locker room. He nods at her and looks like he wants to say something, but, mature adult that she is, she nods back while avoiding his eyes and keeps her head down as she makes her way to the roll call room.

And, of course, as luck would have it, Grey decides to pair Lucy with Tim on patrol. "Bradford, Chen, see me in my office," he orders before dismissing the rest of the team.

Lucy steals a glance at Tim, but his expression is unreadable as he holds the door open for her.

The intensity of Grey's gaze on her once in his office is enough to make Lucy nervously wipe at her brow in case any beads of sweat have cropped up as she waits to hear what he has to say. There's no way Tim said anything to him about last night, she reminds herself, but his scrutinizing gaze is still unnerving.

"How are you holding up, Lucy?" he finally asks.

She attempts to force an unconvincing smile, before giving up with a sigh and a nod, "Yeah. I'm — uh — I'm hanging in there."

His gaze softens, "We were all very sad to hear about Tamara. I know you two share a special connection. If you need anything, you let me know, okay?"

Lucy just nods, feeling the familiar rise of emotion in her chest at his concern. "Thanks, Sergeant Grey. I will," she finally manages, relieved that she successfully keeps her voice from wavering.

"Now, Tim tells me you want to help with the investigation..."

Lucy shakes her head in confirmation.

"While that's understandable, you know there are specific reasons we don't let officers investigate cases where they have a personal connection. There's the obvious conflict of interest, and it's too difficult to maintain the perspective and objectivity required to do the work."

Lucy nods again, feeling somewhat dejected as she anticipates his refusal.

Grey sighs, "Okay, so here's what we're going to do. You can support the investigation in a limited capacity, as you have downtime on patrol. But everything, and I do mean everything, you do in relation to this case, every action you take has to be fully supervised and sanctioned by the detectives in charge of the case. Since Officer Bradford took it upon himself to plead your case, and since I know just how well the two of you work together, he will act as your supervisor, which means you'll be paired together on patrol for as long as you are supporting the investigation. Are we clear?"

Lucy smiles gratefully at Grey, "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. I won't let you down."

***

As soon as they settle into the shop, Tim turns to look right at her, and with an uncharacteristic directness asks, "Why are you pushing me away?"

Lucy frowns, unprepared for the question and mildly frustrated at being called out for her shitty behavior so directly. That isn't Tim's thing. It's Lucy's thing. It's her job to call him out when he's being an idiot. It's Tim's job to avoid any conversation that could lead to a discussion about feelings and emotions at all costs.

She crosses her arms, not ready or willing to engage with him on the topic, "Are we going to stay parked in the garage all day?"

He ignores her petulance but still pulls out of the garage, and she can feel his gaze on her periodically as they patrol through the morning.

Tim finally breaks the silence, "I didn't ask Grey to supervise you on this, you know? I don't want you to think that I'm trying to babysit you; 13 months was more than enough for me. I was just doing what I said I would do last night. I know you want to be involved with the investigation so I talked to him about it; I had no idea what he was going to decide."

Lucy sighs, her irritation towards him fading, because, try as she might, staying annoyed at Tim, however much he might or might not deserve it, has never been a strong point for her. "I know. Thanks for talking to him. And I know you're just trying to help. I'm sorry I got so upset last night. It just felt like you were giving me an ultimatum, you know?"

He frowns, nodding. "Yeah, I guess I could see that. Believe it or not," he arches an eyebrow, "I was trying to protect you, not threaten you."

Lucy can feel her lips turn slightly upward at his choice of words, knowing that he, too, is fully aware of how the tables have turned between them.

And then she turns to him, her sweetest, pleading smile curving her lips, eyes wide with earnestness.

Tim glances at her, features scrunching with suspicion, "What? Or do I even want to know?"

"It's been a slow morning. I think we should make a stop by Faircrest High and just check things out."

Tim narrows his eyes, "The detectives are handling the questioning of Tamara's friends and teachers, Lucy. You know that."

"Who said anything about questioning? I'm just proposing we stop by, check things out, maybe engage in some polite, casual conversation..."

Tim snorts, "Right, you just want to stop by in uniform to talk to Tamara's friends about the weather."

Lucy attempts to dazzle him with her smile, "Exactly."

Tim rolls his eyes, "All right. Whatever. As far as ideas go, this isn't your worst one, and I guess I should just be grateful you're telling me about it," he finishes with a pointed look. "Next stop, Faircrest High School."

***
Hope you enjoyed! Votes and comments are always appreciated ❤️🙏🏽
— Lana