Page 57 of Spark

“Seriously, play along!” she hissed through her teeth.

His face turned stern, the face of the man she had seen giving orders when the cops raided the car show. He grabbed the money. “Thanks.”

Mia gave him a warm, friendly smile. She saw from the corner of her eye that Detective Daniels was heading towards her with a pleasant smile.

“Ah, Mia!” he called, reaching out a hand to shake hers.

She turned, feigning surprise, and grabbed his hand. “Detective Daniels!”

Aurelio's surprise slipped past his mask only for a second. He quickly regained his composure and turned to look at the detective.

“Charles, please,” Detective Daniels said to Mia, putting his hands on his hips and flashing his badge. Mac's eyes were wide, and Mia gave him a light kick under the table.

“Oh!” Mac cried out, rubbing his knee and eyeing Mia, who was avoiding his gaze.

“What brings you by?” she asked, knowing exactly why he was here.

“I missed my lunch break, and talking to you reminded me about the chili cheese fries here. I had to stop in,” he explained, not missing a beat, smile never faltering. “I saw the Bug outside. Is it all fixed?”

“Yes.” Mia nodded, gesturing to Aurelio as she spoke. “This is Mac's friend, the mechanic. He fixed her up for me; no more engine trouble.” She let her hand sit on the table. Aurelio, who nodded slowly, took up the story from her.

“Yeah, Mac brought her by, and I spent some time working her over, took her for a long drive, and gave her everything she needed.” Aurelio smiled, his innuendos notslipping by Mia, who gave him a kick under the table as well. He didn't even flinch.

“Great, good to hear. You must be Mac,” Detective Daniels added, turning his attention to the teenager, who may as well have been sweating bullets because of how nervous he looked.

“Yaa... Yeah... Yes, sir,” Mac stammered out, his face paler than a sheet. “That's me.” He gave a weak smile.

Detective Daniels smiled back before turning to Aurelio. “And what's your name, if I may ask?”

“Valen.” His gruff voice was a distraction to Mia. She closed her eyes for a moment and focused on the problem at hand.

“And you own a garage?”

“It was my dad's, but yeah.” Aurelio met the detective’s eyes, giving away nothing.

Detective Daniels’ smile faltered, eyeing the man in front of him. Then suddenly, he smiled, giving everyone a friendly little head nod. “Well, I'm off to clog my arteries with cheese. Have a wonderful day, guys.” He walked off to the counter and ordered food with Amy.

“Shit,” Mia whispered, mind reeling. “We have to go.”

Aurelio did not meet her gaze. “Mac,” he said, holding his hand out.

The kid reached into his pocket and took out his keys without hesitation. Aurelio stood, finally meeting Mia's eyes. She couldn't read anything there; the book of Aurelio was slammed closed. He nodded and walked out the door to Mac’s Challenger. She watched him leave toward the highway, gone in a heartbeat.

“Shit,” Mia muttered. Closing her eyes, she let her head fall back against the wall behind her.

“What the fuck was that?” Mac hissed under his breath, waiting for an explanation. All she could do was shake her head and exit the booth. She patted his shoulder as she passed, and he nodded quietly.

Mia moved quietly to the door, hoping to sneak off without any more questions or confrontations, when Amy called out to her. “Mia! My mom said it's fine. I can stay and work your shift.”

Detective Daniels raised a brow at her, and she laughed lightly. “Thanks, Amy. The deadline for my dissertation is really stressing me out.” Mia’s smile was forced as she looked at Detective Daniels again; his eyes glinted with questions.

“Detective, oh, uhm, Charles.” Mia’s voice was shy.

“Yes, Mia?” he asked, his eyes were as curious as ever.

“This is a kind of awkward thing to ask, but...” She stepped closer, leaning in as if to share a secret. “...can you ask Oliver to stop watching me if I'm not under investigation?” Her face reflected fear and concern, playing up the damsel in distress role she knew Detective Daniels would try to protect.

His face became serious. Drawing in a breath, he nodded at her. “Of course,” he answered, opening his mouth and pausing before speaking again. “Has he done something that you think I should know about?”

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