"What's going on with you?" Matteo looks at me weirdly. "My sisters been acting weird too."
"Can we focus on this please, Matteo? It's important." I look at the map in front of us. We've narrowed down a geographical profile of where the possible next sex trafficking ring will be.
"Xena, you'll need to go undercover for this-"
"Did you two fight or something?" Matteo says again.
A couple other agents in the room sigh but he was not bothered one bit. He knows we rely on him, how he acts here we just have to deal with.
"Matteo." I look up. "Not now, please."
"Is it because she's going to Chicago?"
That's news to me.
I look at him blankly, then look down. "They'll be officers from the SVU there too, we expect this location to be holding at least 30 victims and 5 suspects-"
"It is because she's going to Chicago." He says quietly.
"I'm going to need somebody to go undercover with me as a fireman that needs to investigate a gas leak."
"What I'm going undercover as?" Xena asks.
"You need to wear revealing clothes and hang around that area. If the gas leak doesn't work, sure as hell you will." I say.
"She'll be back bro-"
"Matteo, please shut up." I stand up tall. "I'm leaving in an hour. There's surveillance there at the minute. Xena, you need to leave earlier. My father will tell you what to do." I walk away, knowing Matteo followed after me.
I walk into the office i've been assigned and he helps himself in. "She refused to answer me too."
"Why is she in Chicago?" I ask.
He's quiet. "You didn't know she was in Chicago?"
"No. Is she with Arturo?"
"Yeah..." He narrows his eyes suspiciously. "How do you know that?"
I sit down.
Interesting.
"What are they doing?"
"Romeo randomly gave her the okay to visit him instead of him visit her. So they're just... dating?" He questions it himself. "Now why do you look so mad?"
"I'm not. Do you know anyone in the area we're going?" I divert the conversation.
"None at all."
"Okay, do your disguise, you can come with me."
"They might know me."
"We'll be wearing firefighter costumes and have a disguise." I point to the door. "Go get ready."
He smiles, but just stands there.
"Matteo." I frown.
"I'm just saying that Ilaria didn't seem happy getting on the plane and you're Mr. Moody all day today so I'm putting two and two together, and I'm nosy... tell me."
"None of your business. Now, go and get ready." I walk out, jogging down to the FBI van where our disguises were.
I put the lighter coloured contact in, change into the firefighter uniform.
I'm Lopez and Matteo is Cruz. The two firefighters in the back of the FBI van teach me how to literally just check for a gas leak, how to change fire alarms and carbon monoxide alarms.
It's our aim to try and get into the house, that's it, just for confirmation.
If they're aggressive and refuse to let us, there's people there. If they're compliant and we conclude there's nobody being held, we leave it. But if we go in and see suspicious activity, we carry on.
Matteo joins me, eyes flicking over one of the firefighters. "You're hot." He says to him.
Cruz just smiles awkwardly.
"You let me do the talking, Reign." We get into the fire car.
I start driving us to the house.
And then regret picking Matteo.
"Is it because of Arturo?"
"Shut up."
"She is looking for a husband, she told you that."
"Shut up."
"She likes fucking around with you but-"
"Matteo, what part of shut up don't you udnerstand?" I snap.
He leans back with a smirk. "she ditched you for him, didn't she?"
My fist tightening against the wheel was enough confirmation for him.
He laughs out. "God, she is a heartbreaker, ain't she." He takes his phone out of his pocket. "Look, I'll put your mind at ease." He rings someone, turning the radio off.
"Matty." Ilaria comes on through his speaker. "Thank god. Everybody is doing my-" She stops. "Did you just touch my fendi?"
"No?"
"Not you, Matty." She tuts. "Arturo, your stupid maid!" She squeals. "Matty, I need to come home."
"What happened?"
"She just went through all of my stuff." She huffs. "The pilot is refusing to fly me alone."
"It's only a couple more day-"
"I am miserable."
He laughs. "I'll call Ro and see what I can do."
Ilaria squeals again. "Get your musty hands away from my Chanel." She huffs. "Okay, okay, text me, bye, love ya!" She hangs up.
"See, she's in a bad mood too." He says.
"Don't call Romeo."
He looks at me. "Why?"
"I'll go over and get her."
"In your FBI owned jet?"
I tut. "I have my own jet."
"Your own?"
"Yes."
"Not fair. I have to share mine." He frowns.
"I'll go pick her up."
"I totally didn't know anything about this by the way." He holds his hands up. "But I am completely rooting for it. While I like Arturo, you seem to make her happier."
And he doesn't speak of it again, and for the first time today, I manage to get my mind off her.
Once at the location, I park up outside and we get out.
I knock on the door, seeing the van Xena is in just parked up too. An old woman answers. "Firemen." She smiles. "How may I help you?"
"There's been a couple phone calls reporting a smell of gas. Would it be okay for us to check around and make sure that everything is running okay? We won't be in long." I smile.
She smiles back. "Just... two seconds." She closes the door. "Girls, bedrooms please!" I hear her shout.
Matteo and I look at each other.
A couple minutes later she opens the door again properly this time. "Come on in."
I walk in first, and the first thing that caught my attention was the annoying beeping sound of the fire alarm. The batteries were low in each one of them through the house, and that caused annoying sequences of beeps.
"We can change the batteries for you, if you'd like." I offer.
"Will it make the beeping go away?" She asks.
"Yes."
"Then please." She smiles.
"Let's just check this gas first." Matteo walks past and into the kitchen.
I see flyers on the table, followed by a gun and a familair looking packet of pills. Date rape pills.
I pretend to look at the cooker and the boiler room, where there was a lot of piled up dirty clothes.
"I think your gas is completely fine, ma'am. Now, let's do something about those alarms." I look at Matteo. "Get the batteries from the car."
He leaves the house.
I reach up, easily able to untwist the first fire alarm. "Old house, hm?"
"Very. My grandmothers before me." She sits down. "Lopez, Mexican?"
"Yeah." I look at my name tag, Matteo walking in with the extra batteries.
"Go check the ones upstairs." I say to him, handing him a handful of batteries.
He walks up the stairs.
I change the batteries in this one, at the same time the door swings open. "Ma, the fuck?" Two big guys walk in.
"They're firemen sweetie." She stands ups
"There was a gas leak reported and we legally have to check every house on the block." I say.
"Then why the fuck you holding a fire alarm for?" He walks up to me.
"I heard the beeping and thought it would be a good thing to do." I reach up, twisting it back up. "That's it."
"Best be it." He snatches the batteries off me, and It took everything in me not to punch him.
"Keep those for free." I smile. "Cruz!" I shout up. "Let's go."
"Ma, you let them up the stairs?" One of them runs up.
The other one stares at me.
Matteo walks down the stairs with the other guy behind him. "You get it sorted?"
"Positive." He says.
"Now out." They shout.
I roll my eyes as I walk out, and see Xena in a short little skirt bending over to load something out of a van.
"Damn." Matteo mumbles.
I push him to keep him walking and when we get in the car, we see the two guys staring and pointing at her too.
She has agents in the van. She's protected.
I drive away.
"There was girls in the bedroom. I went up and opened a door. They were all passed out up there, wearing white and skinny as fuck."
"Yeah there was date rape on the table."
When home, I write up the report, then grab a bag and pack enough for two days.
I call mom. "Can you do me a favour?"
"Course."
"Can you tell dad you need me home for something. Just for two days. Say anything."
"And where will you be going?"
"Chicago."
She's silent, knowing that I'm hiding something.
"To Chicago, I'll come see you but it's for-"
"Ilaria Reign?"
I sigh. "How'd you know?"
"Well, she stopped by earlier to say hello and your father told me all about your shenanigans. I will lie for you but you owe me."
"Thanks mom, love you. Oh, and I'm taking the plane." I hang up quickly.
I work for a couple more hours. Dad excuses me and then I get on the plane, ready to see Ilaria.
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need me a man that will fly to me when i'm upset
word count: 1617