Risk it All

by Fiona Price

  III

  Alissa wanted nothing more than to go home after she was released from the hospital, but her house was still being processed by the Crime Scene Unit. Alissa also wasn't sure if she ever wanted to go back there, to the place where her lover died, where a violent crime occurred. She wasn't sure if she had anywhere else to go, until the blonde Brooklyn detective offered her a stay at his house. His words were, as long as Shane's breaking protocol for witnesses, you can sleep at my house. They also weren't sure if Alissa would be safe, if Alex's killer would come after her, too.

  At Matt's house, he opened the spare bedroom to Alissa, who was emotionally and physically exhausted. Though, as hard as she tried, she couldn't sleep, she was kept awake with thoughts of how she could be in bed with her fiancée right now, sleeping soundly, safe next to Alex. Just like the sudden impact of a crystal glass being thrown onto a concrete floor, Alissa realized that her whole life was shattered, all her hopes and dreams. She was daunted with the task of rebuilding everything, and the thought of how big a project that would have overwhelmed her. Especially because there was a strong possibility she didn't know Alex at all.

  She laid awake the whole night, tossing and turning, staring up at the ceiling. Her mind was running a million miles an hour. Little did she know, the blonde cop struggled with constant insomnia and was in the living room watching late night infomercials. Alissa walked out of the bedroom and sat down on the couch next to Matt, letting him be the one to steer the conversation.

  "Can't sleep, huh?" He asked.

  "Nah. It seems impossible these days." Alissa answered. Matt understood.

  Alissa knew she would need time to heal her wounds, but for now, she didn't feel bad. She also didn't feel good, she was stuck in that gray area, somewhere in the middle where nothing and everything felt real all at the same time.

  The detective was able to get a little bit of sleep, but Alissa got none. Matt woke up on the couch to see Alissa still sitting there, her knees pulled close to her as she had draped a blanket over her shoulders. He could tell she had been doing a lot of thinking. He groaned and got up off the couch, going towards the kitchen.

  "How's breakfast sound?" Matt asked Alissa, who had nearly fallen back into her state of shock. Being alone with her thoughts all night wasn't helping her. Alissa heard his question and nodded, not sure if she could muster up enough strength to use words.

  Matt and Alissa had eaten breakfast in the kitchen, and it wasn't long before Matt's phone was ringing, and they both knew it was Shane. Matt put down his fork and picked up the phone, pressing it against his ear, supporting it with his shoulder as he continued to eat breakfast.

  "Wait, what?! Why do we need more coffee? I just bought a new package for the office a few days ago!"

  "Vicki drank it all." Shane responded.

  "Did you guys go home last night?"

  "No. Vicki said that there were just a few firewalls she could get through in no time, but once she got in, she had to stop the computer from self-destructing and doing all this crazy shit, so she was working at it for a while, accessing her files, which were all encrypted. It was an entire process, I have no idea what she did, but she does. Just get here, we've got the autopsy report, and she's almost got it all unlocked."

  "I'll be right there." He said, hanging up the phone. They were out the door and driving towards Headquarters in less than two minutes.

  When Matt arrived with more K-cups for their brewer, Shane started a new pot of coffee and walked over to Vicki who finished typing away. The computer made a final beep, allowing them access to Alex's files. She then got up off her chair, stumbled into Shane's office and laid down on his couch, getting some well-deserved rest. Shane had his tie loosened, the top buttons undone, one shoe off, hair a mess, head on the table, his mouth surrounded by an ever-growing puddle of drool. Every so often, he would doze off and snore softly, waking himself up every few moments.

  When the pot of coffee was done brewing, Matt took their coffee mugs from the table and poured some strong black coffee into the mugs, and brought it to each of them. Immediately, Shane was downing the mug like it was the only thing keeping him alive.

  "Alissa, it looks like you're going to be cleared completely very soon. We cracked the computer and Scarlet is bringing up the autopsy report now." Shane spoke to their main witness. Alissa hadn't met Scarlet, but there was a part of her that wished she hadn't once Scarlet walked in.

  Scarlet had long, wavy hair, wore sky high heels with her slim pants and blouse and the metal charm bracelet clinked on her wrist as she moved, catching the attention of Shane and Matt, who gave her a look of respect, since she made it clear that she was serious. For some reason, Alissa felt slightly intimidated by her, she looked like a frontwoman of a rock band, she commanded attention from everyone in the room and Alissa didn't like the feeling of being part of a heinous crime that only a few days ago, she was the main suspect for.

  "So, there's nothing in this report that can link Alissa to Alex's death?" The commander asked Scarlet.

  "Nothing in the report, no." She responded, and Shane looked over at Alissa, having the evidence he needed to fully know that she was innocent. "But in cases like these, it's always the spouse." Scarlet ended, her eyes darting to Alissa.

  "On the computer, we found some emails and some documents that could potentially have caused a problem for Alex, though." Vicki spoke, feeling better now that she was caffeinated.

  "Wait, what emails?! What kind of problem?!" Alissa asked, curious about her fiancée’s work.

  "Hi, who are you?" Scarlet asked Alissa, despite must having already known about her.

  "That is Lieutenant Alissa Montgomery. She is Alex's fiancée, and can hopefully provide us with useful information about her life and her work." Shane introduced.

  "Anyway, Alissa was right about Alex, she was being accused of charging extra fees for the legal paperwork she handled, but we still don't know what got her in this deep." Vicki elaborated, turning towards the emails and files on Alex's computer.

  "So, can I officially be on the case?" Alissa asked as she approached the electronic table and Alex's laptop. Matt brought a chair over for Alissa to sit in.

  "It's a hard decision to make, since it's your fiancée, and it clouds your objectivity." Shane was still hesitant to fully bring the Lieutenant into the folds of the investigation.

  "Put her on the case officially, Shane; she knew her better than any of us here. She could help us a lot. Plus, you already had her work with us to get Vicki, she's been pretty involved from the beginning." Matt spoke.

  "I'll think about it. In the meantime, come on, Matt. Let's go ask some questions at Alex's business."

  Once they left, it was just Alissa and Vicki sitting around in the quiet office.

  "We should go get our nails done some time," Vicki pulled out of nowhere. Alissa had to laugh, because Shane was so right about Vicki and how she was. It went down exactly how he said it would, Vicki would beat her up in the fight and then they'd go get manicures.

  "Yeah, Vicki, I'd like that. I don't really have many friends anymore, so that would be really nice." Alissa answered, Vicki returning to her a big smile.

  "After this cup of coffee, I'm going to go take a nap in Shane's office because I really need sleep, but let me know if there's anything I can do for you, Alissa." Vicki spoke kindly, and Alissa was once again alone with her thoughts. She hadn't slept in what felt like forever, but it felt wrong to sleep and relax now that Alex was gone. She just hoped that Shane and Matt would be able to find her closure. Not that closure would make it hurt less, but at least she would be able to get an answer. Maybe she would be able to sleep again without the feeling of the constant weight of the questions surrounding Alex's death.

  It wasn't long before Shane and Matt arrived back with information, but before any of them got to hear it, the two had to finish their childish bickering over something that didn't even matter. Alissa tried to ask them what they had
found at Alex's office, but they were so caught up in their argument that they didn't even hear the words that were coming out of her mouth. Things abruptly ended between Matt and Shane, and the two walked over to the table where Scarlet and Alissa were sitting at opposite ends of each other.

  "What have you guys got for us?" Alissa asked, trying to move forward with the case.

  "Well, we found out that the guy that was accusing Alex is named Nico Valdez. We swung by his place and he wasn't there, and the neighbors said they haven't seen him in a few days. We cross-referenced his name with anything the neighbors said he was usually into, and he's listed as a participant in a high-stakes poker game." Shane began, letting Matt finish the rest.

  "You see, the entry fee for the game was five thousand bucks, and our guy, Nico, doesn't have that kind of walking around money."

  "So, you think that he was taking advantage of my fiancée, using her for extortion just to get money for the poker game?" Alissa asked.

  "That could be one theory."

  "Why does this guy even want to be in this poker game?"

  "Because the winnings are known to be millions of dollars."

  "You're not telling me everything, I know you're not." Alissa said, able to see right through the two.

  "You're right, we're not. In order to get in, there are steps you have to take. You have to know the right people to get anywhere, and your fiancée knew the people Nico needed to get to."

  "There's a lot I don't know about her. Wow." Alissa muttered under her breath, needing a second to get her thoughts straight.

  She wasn't the woman Alissa thought she was. It was like she was leading a double life, a life Alissa was living with her, but knew nothing about. Her heart sank, knowing that everything she had put together while she knew her was falling apart just as fast as it was all happening. Alissa needed space to breathe, and the room felt like it was closing down on her. It wasn't what she wanted to hear, she didn't need it. And she certainly didn't deserve it.

  Suddenly, the phone on the table next to her started ringing. It was Vicki's, and a name and a number came up on the screen. Alissa answered it, seeing as Vicki was back in Shane's office, dozing off again. Alissa was jealous that Vicki was able to sleep after she worked all night, because that just about felt impossible for Alissa to do. Shane and Matt looked at her like she was crazy for answering her phone instead of letting it go to voicemail, but Alissa said a sweet hello. The guy on the other line seemed particularly confused.

  "Wait, who am I talking to?" He asked.

  "This is Alissa."

  "Where is Vicki?"

  "Hold up, who am I talking to, and how do you know Vicki?"

  "This is Max, her trainer. She was supposed to be at the gym a half an hour ago."

  "I don't know what to tell you, Max, Vicki is fast asleep on the couch here."

  "Is she back with that Shane guy?"

  Shane heard this and tried to tell Alissa no, but she smiled and said yes.

  "Man, I should have known. I'm coming to get her."

  "Sure, unless you want to wake the sleeping beast. It'll probably be the last thing you do, though."

  "I'll take that risk, where is she?"

  Shane also emphasized that she didn't tell him where she was, that he would wake her up himself and tell her to go to the gym where she was supposed to be. Shane grabbed the phone and talked to Max.

  "I'll come and bring her over." Shane said, before walking over to Vicki. Matt was bending over the open laptop, trying to piece things together in his mind about Alissa's fiancée’s murder. She too, was trying to put things in perspective, but everything about this case was like a puzzle, made up only of pieces that didn't fit together, no matter how hard they tried to make them.

  Shane had driven Vicki over to her training gym, but she was still pissed that she worked all night for him, was woken up from her sleep just to go work out, and she still hadn't gotten an official confirmation of her date from the Commander. Shane pulled into a parking space and Vicki grabbed her things, but didn't leave without a verbal confirmation of their date.

  "Your house for dinner and a movie? You promised." Vicki asked him.

  "Absolutely, come around 7. You pick the flick, I'll have dinner ready for you." He responded with a smile. It had been the only thing Shane had thought about all day, because even though his relationship with Vicki was on and off, they always enjoyed the time they got to spend together.

  Shane was grateful he didn't get any after-hours calls and was able to get ready for Vicki's arrival. He had grilled them steaks, broke open a bottle of wine, did the whole nine yards and it wasn't long before he answered the door for Vicki. She stepped inside and before the door was even closed, she cupped Shane's cheeks to kiss him, making up for their lost time. His arms snaked around her waist and lifted her up so she could wrap her legs around his torso. He held her thighs as they kissed, Vicki had unbuttoned his dress shirt from work, and the rest was history.

  At Matt's house later that evening, Alissa had gotten cleaned up and was given clothes for her to wear for hopefully her last night out of her house. The shirt Matt ended up giving her was a large dark green shirt, with Shane's name written in Sharpie on the tag. She chuckled to herself and put it over her head before she was fully dressed and placed herself in an armchair in the living room, joining Matt in watching Seinfeld. His dog was curled up next to him, head on Matt's lap.

  Matt’s bungalow-style house was cleaner than she expected, and minimalist. She knew that he came from Brooklyn but had no idea why, though she thought he might have settled down more than what she saw. She expected to see more photos on the walls, more decorations, more proof that somebody had been living there for any amount of time, but all she saw was a home that hadn’t been moved into. The floors and the walls were white, and his furniture was Ikea-style minimalist and a dark wood, but comfortable. The linen curtains swayed back and forth in the gentle wind. He had a surprising number of green houseplants, and Alissa saw one picture in passing as she walked through his house. It was on a windowsill and it was the portrait of a dark-haired girl. She was curious in that moment, but didn’t give it a second thought. She didn’t want to ask him. But, she did want to know more about he and Shane.

  "So, Matt, tell me more about Shane How did you end up as partners?" She started, getting his attention, and he looked over at her. His dog's ears perked up slightly, turning in her direction.

  "Well, he's the kind of partner that'll give you the shirt off their back, and he did, when he shot me on out first case together. It was one of my first days in Miami."

  "He shot you?"

  "In the shoulder. He wanted me to shut up."

  "Well, that's one way to start a relationship." Alissa laughed.

  "We've actually known each other since high school. That's a story for another time. So, the guy's a control freak. He shot me to shut me up, and then when I was complaining about how much it hurt, he said that he barely scratched me, but gave me his shirt anyway."

  "That must have been interesting."

  "It was, and we've been 'married' since. It was like love at first bullet. It sealed the deal."

  "So, you two can hate each other, but still work together?"

  "He only pretends to hate me. We not-so-secretly love each other. I just can't see a future for my career, or a future here, without him." He explained, smiling. There was a pause before Alissa continued with her questions.

  "So, did he create this task force or something?"

  "Yep, he pulled us all together and we've been solving specialty cases for the county ever since." Matt answered.

  "You know, Alex was to me what Shane is to you. She was my partner, she was my everything. I put all my trust in her and she did the same for me. You're really lucky to still have that kind of relationship, because I think we're all well aware of how fast it can go away." Alissa spoke to him.

  "Even when I was deployed, Alex put all of her trust in me to do t
he right thing and come back. She always knew that I'd be there for her, and she did the same for me. I just don't get how it can all be gone."

  "And even if anyone ever finds the answer to how things can just change like that for us, when things were going so well, I'm not sure there is any way to change that. But you're right, I am really, really lucky. I know you may never find anyone else quite like Alex, but trust me, it won't hurt as bad as it does now. It may not ever go away, but in time it'll hurt less."

  "I think I need to move out of my apartment, Matt." Alissa spoke. "I just don't think I can go back there. I can't live there anymore."

  "Yeah, that's understandable. I mean, that's what brought me here, in part. Let us know if we can help you in any way." Matt answered, leaving Alissa with another question about Matt that she would save for another day. Alissa prepared herself for another sleepless night wondering about who Alex, the person she trusted most, really was. She was determined to find out, even if it hurt her. She was going to see this case through to the end.

  IV

  Little did Alissa know, everyone was having more fun than she was that night.

  Shane was curled up on his couch with Vicki, barely clothed, with a bowl of popcorn and a romantic comedy movie, running his fingers through her hair and kissing the back of her neck. Vicki was covered in Shane's cologne, wearing the dress shirt he wore that day. Scarlet was backstage at a concert, smiling and refusing to make out with the bassist of a popular local band that, coincidentally, Max was the drummer for. Alissa, though, was sitting on a garden chair on the back patio, wrapped in a light blanket, unable to sleep. She wondered how the rest of the world could go on when her world seemed to stay frozen in time. She wasn't sure if she would ever be able to return to any sense of normalcy.

  The insects had stopped chirping, and the night was silent. It was that time of night where it was hard to hear any cars on the interstate, and everything was silent in Miami. She rested her arm on the knee that wasn't injured and she put her chin in the palm of her hand. The Lieutenant was thinking once again, but this time, she felt like this case really would get solved, she would stop mourning at one point and maybe she would be okay. A little bit before five in the morning, Matt came out of his room with a surfboard and his dog on a leash.