Breathless | David Rossi

Chapter Thirteen

Breathe Y/N, just breathe.

Your footsteps are light, inaudible in comparison to Rossi's. He strides after you, staying as close as he can yet not close enough to crowd you. Inmates catcall and yell out to you, desperate for a reaction or even just a glance in their direction.

Don't let him see just how petrified you really are.

You hold your head high, your body visibly relaxed but on the inside, you're a nervous wreck on the verge of a breakdown. Your thumb instinctively plays with the ring on your finger, trying to distract yourself from the person beyond the hallway.

You are not that person anymore Y/N, he doesn't intimidate you anymore.

Standing in front of a door, you wait for the guard to open it and step through, not allowing Rossi a chance to see through you. With each step, your heart pounds against your ribs like a caged animal fighting for its freedom.

"Press the button and I'll open the door." The guard tells you, for when you're ready to leave the interrogation.

Rossi's thank you fall on deaf ears, as you stare at the wall separating you from the man you despise. You've made a point to show him just how much you hate him, just how well you can survive without him, and yet here you are, fifteen years later sent to question him by your boss.

Rossi walks into the room first, taking a seat and opening his mouth, only to have the prisoner speak first.

"Where is she? I know she's here."

"Who?" Rossi asks, narrowing his eyes.

Inhaling a deep breath, you step through the threshold and lock your eyes on him. "There she is." He smiles sadistically, his eyes following your every move. You ignore Rossi's confused stare and stride to sit beside him. "I've been waiting for your visit, shame it took fifteen years."

"If it were up to me, you and I, would never share the same space again. But my job requires me to be here today, so the sooner we start the sooner I can leave." Venom drips from your voice, your eyes hard and your face emotionless.

"Ahh, your brother told me you betrayed the family. Jumped from one side of the law to the other. How's that going for you?"

"We're not here to catch up on lost time-" Rossi interrupts, feeling the tension brewing.

The man puts his hand up to silence him, his gaze fixated on you. "This is between my daughter and I, best keep out of it Agent Rossi."

Rossi's head snaps to yours, his eyes burning holes in the side of your head. What the fuck is he talking about. You refuse to meet his eye.

"I am not your daughter," You grit, your jaw so tense your teeth begin to grind together. "I stopped being your daughter fifteen years ago."

"I didn't kill your mother!" He shouts, startling Rossi beside you. You blink at him, unfazed by his sudden outburst, you're used to it.

Inhaling deeply to calm the raging storm within you, "I'm not here to dig up the past, Conrad. I'm here to find out where Ingram is." Once again you feel Rossi's eyes on you. "I'm sure you've heard what's been happening in your city." You emphasise the 'your', mocking him for all the times he would remind everyone that he owned Los Angeles.

Two days ago the Alpha team was called to Los Angeles for a new case, where eight bodies have turned up. Each victim was brutally tortured, as though they were withholding information as it was done so in a way that made your brother the prime suspect. Each wound is a signature of Conrad Luxe, that he passed down to his son, Ingram Luxe.