Arrest Me, Officer {Klance}

Chapter 8

mrc2 Note: langst is what i live for
if you tell me keith isn't a good hugger then i will screech because that boy probably is an amazing hugger, he just no one to hug

Gabby's body immediately went limp, sagging to the side before she collapsed the rest of the way to the floor. Blood poured from a bullet hole in the side of her head, running down her cheeks and gathering on her nose before dropping to the floor creating a tiny puddle. Her unseeing eyes were dim and so devoid of life as she stared at the camera. Lotor put his gun away, making a disgusted noise at the back of his throat when he caught sight of a few speckles of blood on his boot. He then returned to standing right in front of the camera, blocking the body from view. That disgusting smirk was back on his face.

"That your fault, Blue Paladin, you're the reason your sister is dead." Lotor said, sounding pleased. This sick bastard... Keith felt nausea in his stomach. They'd just watched him murder an innocent girl. "It was lovely chatting to you all but I'm afraid I must be off. This gem will fetch a pretty price on the black market." And then the FaceTime call was ended.

They sat in silence for what seemed like hours though it was only minutes. Keith spared a glance at Lance to see him staring at the phone with wide eyes and pale skin. The thief's grip went slack, the phone dropping to the floor with a small thud. His hands stayed where he'd been holding the phone, fingers trembling as he stared on with pure shock. Keith watched those long fingers curl into his palms. Shiro was looking down at his lap, face scrunched in a look of anger, while Allura stood off to the side with her hands covering her mouth.

"Lance..." Keith whispered causing the boy to flinch beside him before those blue eyes slowly lifted to meet Keith's. There was a moment of silence where they just looked at each other, the tears gathering in Lance's eyes making them glisten. Keith searched Lance's face. What for, he had no clue. But then a shaky smile spread across Lance's face.

"She's fine, i-it's a joke." He said, head dipping forward as if trying to reassure not just everyone in the room, but himself as well. "She's strong, I can't ge-get rid of her that easily." Keith could hear the edge of desperation in the other's voice. Lance was trying so hard not to break. It made Keith want to gather him in his arms and never let go. To tell him it's all going to be okay just to make him feel better even if it was a lie. He'd tell a million lies to make Lance smile. He didn't have the opportunity to dwell on that thought, the way it made his chest feel slightly warm, because Lance was speaking again with a shaky voice. "Lo-Lotor's just playing with us, sh-she's not de-... She's not... She can't be... Oh god!" That smile crumbled.

Keith immediately pulled the boy into his arms when the dam broke, instinct causing him to tuck Lance's head under his chin and wrapping his arms around him. Lance let out the most heartbreaking sobs, tears streaming down his face as he pressed himself closer to Keith, seeking comfort Keith was trying so hard to give. He steeled his features, clenching his jaw as he rubbed gentle circles on Lance's back. He'd done this many times, held someone who just lost another. The many times Keith or his co-workers failed to save someone, this happened. But, why did this feel different? Why did he feel the small grabs of rage in his chest? Rage at Lotor for hurting Lance like this. He caught Shiro's eyes when his partner looked up. The guilt etched into his features made Keith pause his hand. Shiro was guilty, it was as if they just let an innocent die. They couldn't have stopped it, Keith knew that, but there was still that lingering feeling that if they had just thought about it... They might've been able to save her.

Keith pressed his face into Lance's hair and squeezed his eyes shut. The boy's shoulders shook as he clung onto Keith like his life depended on it, whimpering out apologises. Allura, with silent tears of her own, walked over and sat on the edge of the couch beside Lance. She wasted no time to gently stroke the hair at the back of Lance's neck with soft hushes. It wasn't too long after that Lance's sobs turned into broken sniffles. He didn't ease his grip on Keith's shirt.

They stayed like that, silence enveloping the group aside from Allura's soft whispers.

"It's all my fault..." Lance whispered against Keith's chest, his voice so guilt-ridden, it made Keith want to yell. He wasn't having any of that.

He moved his arms so he could place his hands on either side of Lance's face, leaning back so he could make eye contact. Lance's eyes were red and puffy, his cheeks wet and slightly splotchy. "It's not your fault." Keith said firmly. Lance seemed to search his face, looking for a lie. "He's the one who tricked you, Lance, you didn't know."

"He had the gem this whole time." Lance sniffed, "He didn't need to h-have Gabby."

"You didn't know." Shiro said softly from beside them, "None of us did."

"Gabby wouldn't want you to be sad." Allura said. Keith let go of Lance's face so he could look at the two of them. "She'd want you to do the right thing."

Lance looked to the floor. He then pushed himself to his feet, his hands pulled close to his chest. He leant on one leg, the other probably still hurting from the metal. He ran a still-shaking hand through his hair as the other three all looked up at him. Keith could see how much effort Lance was putting into trying to not to break down again. Keith couldn't blame him, his sister had just been killed. Right in front of them. Lotor... That bastard...

Keith didn't take long to realise that the one hand in Lance's hair became two and they were starting to tug a little too harshly at the brown locks. Keith immediately stood up, wrapping his finger around Lance's wrists to pull them away fro his hair. Lance's bottom lip trembled. Keith didn't like this look on Lance. God... Anything that wasn't a smile was a look Keith didn't like seeing on Lance's face. Then those azure orbs dropped to look at Keith's shoulder in attempt to break eye contact.

"I promise you, Lance, we'll bring Lotor down." Keith said, causing Lance to look back up at him, "I swear to you, I will make sure he gets what he deserves."

"He killed Gabby..." Lance whimpered, "He needs to pay..."

"I know, I know." Keith said, trying his hardest to make his voice soft. Like Shiro had done. "He'll pay by rotting behind bars." That had Lance's features hardening in a look that was clear determination. It was as though he shoved every painful feeling behind a mask.

"He has the gem, it's our job to get that back." Shiro said as he stood up, "We'll arrest him and make sure he doesn't get out. He's a murderer, drug lord and thief. We just need the evidence..." Lance flinched at the word 'murderer' and Keith, who's hands were still on the boy's wrists, ran his thumbs over the inside of his wrists on his pulse point in reassurance.

"Wasn't seeing that evidence enough?" Allura snapped catching Shiro by surprise. Keith felt bad for his partner, receiving a glare from his crush.

"We need viewable proof, something that will no doubt get him put in jail for the rest of his miserable life." Keith replied for his partner who was gulping with wide eyes.

Allura softened again with a small sigh. "Sorry, Shiro." She said, giving him a tiny smile. "How do we get the evidence we need then?"

"That's what we need to figure out." Shiro replied.

"We'll figure it out. We just need to hurry, he's going to sell it on the black market." Allura clasped her hands together in front of her. "We need a plan that won't fail. I'm not allowing a failure. Gabby was a lovely woman, she didn't deserve that." Lance ducked his head down at that.

"If it does fail..." Lance said, staring daggers at the floor beside Keith's foot. He then looked up, letting his gaze roam over them all. "If it does fail, then I'm killing him. Just like he killed my sister."

Keith stared at Lance with a look of disbelief.

He was a thief, Keith refused to let him be a murderer too. No matter how much he wanted that Prince dead himself.

"So, then, we're not going to fail." Allura said firmly, "We'll get that gem and make sure Lotor pays for what he did. Because we're not stopping until we bring Gabby's killer to justice."

mrc2 Note: lotor be going down that piece of shit