Wasn’t much to do, thankfully, in the office today—the ever-exciting paperwork and filing followed by the never-ending busy work that kept Nick’s mind in check. No missing persons reports or anything unusual (or updates on Tommy). The work companion jabs back and forth made the day go by, and Nick also made sure to fix the name plaque outside the door.

  As the workday finally came to an end, Nick grabbed his gear and headed to the door.

  “Hey Nick, is everything ok? You seemed a bit off today.”

  “I’m good, I just didn’t get any sleep last night.” (How could he with the little road stop “Encounter” he made on the way home?)

  “Some bad news in the envelope?” Adam asked.

  “Just something I gotta take care of.”

  Adam just looked at his friend and co-worker. “Just please be careful, and don’t do anything stupid. I have enough missing persons reports to fill out without adding to the pile.”

  Without looking back, Nick waved over his shoulder at his friend. “You know me.”

  “I know; that’s what worries me,” Adam said before Nick walked out of the office and closed the door.

  "How'd she get that ID? Does that mean her and that creature are connected?"

  “I’m not sure what to expect on this, but I better go prepared for anything and grab a few things before I leave,” Nick says to himself while heading to the evidence and munitions hold.

  Any reluctance was shoved to the side as his resolve hardened. If this was a trap, he wasn’t about to be caught off guard. He had questions, and tonight he was going to get answers, no matter the risk.

  Being a detective had its perks; it gave him access to the evidence locker without needing to bother anyone who had access to both the munitions closet and evidence storage.

  Swiping his ID, he was greeted with a green light followed by a *fuchunk* from the door. Nick heads to the locker that had some confiscated weapons and ammo from some would-be bank robbers that the special tactics and rescue force took down a couple of weeks ago.

  The only reason they still kept the items in evidence was because they still had a few members of the group that gave up instead of fighting to the death and needed what evidence was left for the court case. Luckily, the ammo was plentiful, and none of the other guys picked through the boxes of armor-piercing .45 ACP, although the boxes of 9mm were missing—not that he cared at the moment.

  There were a couple of folks he knew who would pick the cabinet, probably to go blow up pumpkins and beer kegs on a Friday night with heavy drinking involved.

  Nick went through his gear with practiced efficiency, checking and rechecking to ensure he grabbed only what he needed—and some of what he hoped he wouldn’t. He added boxes of armor-piercing rounds to his bag. Experience had taught him that preparation meant survival, and tonight, he planned to be ready for anything. Nervous energy tugged at him, but he pushed it back to the darkest reaches of his mind. Whatever awaited him at the playground, he wouldn’t be going in blind.

  He stuffs the boxes into his shoulder bag, then before closing the locker, he notices some stubby compact cylinders. He picks one up to inspect it—*P/N 1750-002 Stun Grenade*. “This looks like a good backup just in case.” He grabs a few, then closes the locker back up and makes sure the rest of the evidence is secure.

  Nick leaves the police station, still having a few hours to spare. “Well, I’ve got time, maybe I’ll head to Frank’s for a bit, get a bite to eat, and some coffee,” Nick says to himself. He starts thinking of a plan on his way, playing out different scenarios in his head of what possibly to expect.

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

  A few minutes later, he pulls into Frank’s and parks to the side of the building, then goes inside to the register.

  “Nick! Back so soon?”

  “Hey Elis, did I miss any excitement?”

  “Oh yes, you missed the Friday extravaganza,” Elis replied, dripping with sarcasm. “Frank even bawled out one of the girls for daydreaming and burning the burgers, you know, the usual excitement.”

  “Egads! Burnt beef, you say? That’s, dare I say, a felony! I have half a mind to take her in right now if I wasn’t off the clock!” Nick retorted, matching her sarcasm. They both started laughing.

  “Y’all keep it down out there, or I’m gonna have to charge you for all that fun and excitement you’re having!” a voice hollered from the kitchen.

  “Hey, Frank!” Nick hollered back to the kitchen area.

  Elis asked if he wanted the usual—(two eggs over easy, bacon, and a biscuit).

  “You know, im feeling adventurous this evening, how about a number two with extra mushrooms, add bacon.”

  “Hey, Frank! One mushroom Swiss burger, add bacon, extra shrooms, with a side of fries! Oh, and Frank" Elis looked over at Nick giving him a wink before turning and hollering back to frank in the kitchen. "Nick said to make sure not to burn the burger this time.”

  “Got it,” Frank replied.

  “Another crack like that and I’ll have Maggie cook your burger, Nick!” (Maggie was already in hot water for the beef offense earlier.)

  “Anything else, dear, before you antagonize the cook any further?” Elis joked with a grin.

  Nick shook his head at Elis. “You know, if he poisons—or worse, burns—my burger, I’m blaming you, right?”

  “Burn the burger, maybe. Poison one of our best customers? I doubt it. Besides, he knows he’d be sleeping on the couch for a month if I had to help him hide the body,” she said jokingly.

  Nick paused for a moment, patting his pockets. “Dang it, I must’ve left my cigs at work. Could you give me another pack of Reds?”

  “Sorry, hun, that was the last pack you bought this morning.”

  “Ugh, fine. Any Lucky Strikes?”

  “Yeah, two packs of those left; the truck’ll be in tomorrow.”

  “I’ll take the two packs of Luckies then. Oh, a cup of coffee also.”

  She handed the cup and cigarettes to Nick while he gave her the money. She handed him his change back.

  “I’ll let ya know when the burger’s ready, hun.”

  “Thanks, ma’am,” Nick said, turning to go get his coffee. He poured a cup and put it at a table on the outside patio, out of sight. He went back and got his food from Elis. Heading back to the table, tray in hand, he sat down, pulled out the boxes from his bag, and then pulled the magazines from his holster and gun.

  He sips his coffee as he starts flicking the bullets from the magazine into his palm, swapping the hollow points for the armor piercers. Once the magazines are switched, he tucks the hollow points back into the box, reloads the magazines into their pouches and his gun, re-racks the round, and sets the safety.

  After finishing his burger and fries, he lights up a cigarette and sips his coffee. When finished, he tossed his trash out and brought his tray back to Elis.

  “Thanks, ma’am, that was really good.”

  “Anytime, Nick, you know where ta find us.” They smiled and waved at each other as he walked to his bike.

  (Alright, time to get this show on the road,) Nick thought to himself.