A Just Cause.

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

It was 8:56 PM when I was lying on my bed, looking into the dark ceiling, thinking about how things would turn out. I wasn't going to lie to myself and continue to tell myself that I had nothing to be worried about. I had everything planned out now; I knew what I was going to do. However, the fear of failing wasn't there just because I was scared; I was worried that I could get in more trouble if everything didn't go according to plan. I felt more relaxed than usual at the time; however, since I knew this was the last time I was going to do this. At least, I had hoped so.

My eyes were slowly closing, one by one, when I suddenly got surprised by the ringer going off on my phone, sending vibrations all the way to my pillow from the bedside table. Who could be calling me at this time? I knew I didn't have friends to invite me to the pub or ask me to spend time with them. I snapped just my head up, feeling the strain on my neck as I looked at the phone screen to see who was calling me.

It was Sarge.

Why was she calling me? I already had a briefing earlier today about the investigation, so I couldn't come up with any possible reason she could be calling at this time. I swipe the screen, connecting me to the call.

"Sarge?" I said, picking up the call.

"Charlie! What's up? What are you doing right now?" she said in an enthusiastic tone. It was clear she was excited, which was concerning; I only had seen her excited when she was eager to find out something. This whole interaction already had me stunned.

"Nothing – I mean, it's eight o clock; I didn't have anything planned on a work night." I replied innocently, "Why did we need to talk about something?"

"Yeah - no, I just wanted to talk to you about something if you could spare like ten to fifteen minutes? Nothing too serious, just wanted to cover a couple topics," she said in an incredulous tone. This was already driving me crazy. I was fully awake now, my heading racing with possibilities of what could really be going on. I knew it was something that was serious to Sarge if she had decided to call one of her rookies because she "just wanted to talk to me about something."

"Yeah, of course, anything for the great Sarge," I replied in a jocular tone. "When should I come down to the station?"

"I'm off work now – so if you're fine with it, I can just come by and pick you up, and we could go for a quick drive through the city. Sounds alright?" she answered suspiciously. Sometimes, I really wished I hadn't always been in such a low position throughout my life, so I could feel what it's like to know that your demands were going to be met.

"Uhhh... Yeah! Sure, that's all good with me. Should I come down right now, then?"

I slowly got up after ending the conversation with Sarge and sat by my bedside, trying to gather my thoughts as my head was zooming in with ideas. I look in the mirror, checking to see if I am looking presentable enough, and catch my eyes squinting in frustration. After realizing that Sarge was the one that had made my whole personal investigation so confusing, I started to not like Sarge; however, now, I now knew for a fact that I didn't like Sarge.

Walking outside of the apartment, I felt the cold breeze of the night, and it made me feel comforted. I walked through the main doors, passing by some more hoodlums. However, there were fewer of them in the apartment I was living in. I didn't need to interact with them since they knew my face by now. I noticed a car pulling into the parking lot of the property, and while looking closer, I realized it was Sarge's SUV. Perfect timing, I thought to myself.

I clutch my pockets, trying not to let the switchblade in my pocket fall out. As I got in successfully, I looked over at Sarge and realized she didn't look as happy as she sounded on the phone call. She didn't necessarily look angry or agitated. However, I could tell that a slight interrogation may be approaching my direction.

"Haven't ever been in your car Sarge." I said casually, "I gotta say, the position must be paying well."

"Ha-ha, I'm glad you like it, Charlie," she replied, giving me a friendly chuckle.

"Red leather interior as well– must come in handy for stains," I said playfully.