Page 86 of The Fate of Us

She pouts. “But where am I supposed to go?”

“I don’t fucking care!” I start to walk away.

“You’re just like him. You don’t care about me.”

I stop in my tracks and turn. “Who?”

Her eyes go big and I know she didn’t mean to say those words.

“Like who, Claire?”

She shakes her head and runs to the guest bedroom shutting the door behind her.

I can hear my phone ringing upstairs and I take the steps two at a time. Marcus called me again. I text him that I’ll be there in twenty and jump into the shower, hoping to wash away the shit show that just became my life.

* * *

Twenty-five minuteslater I am standing next to Marcus at the crime scene. It looks just like the one from last week. We do our job and my headache slowly dissipates.

We head toward Marcus’ car. I had to Uber here since I left mine at Carson’s house.

“Where’s your car?” Marcus asks me.

“At my brother’s,” I answer honestly. He knows I was off my game today. And I am sure he knows I am hungover.

He nods at me. “Want a ride?”

“Sure.” I know he is going to hound me for my behavior. I just hope he doesn’t report it and get me suspended.

I give him the address to my brother’s house and he pulls out on the road. “How much did you drink last night?”

I look out the window. “Enough to not do it again.”

“I could report you. I know you weren’t drunk when you showed up but you weren’t one hundred percent.”

“I don’t usually drink like that. It won’t happen again.”

“What’s going on, man? You were great your first month. But these last few weeks it’s like a whole other person is my partner.”

I sigh as I hear it. I was hoping I had managed to keep up my appearances.

“And in case you are wondering, no one else has noticed. Just me.”

I breathe a sigh of relief at that.

“I know we don’t know each other all that well. We’ve only been partners a handful of weeks but I see this as a long relationship. I don’t see either of us quitting anytime soon. So whatever is going on in your head or your life, you can tell me. That’s the benefit of a partner.”

I know he’s right. My first partner I was close as hell with before he retired. He helped me get through Claire leaving me and the divorce. Niko and I hit it off from the beginning. But for some reason I have kept all this shit under lock and key this time.

“Everything okay with you and Anna?” Marcus asks me.

I clench my jaw as this morning plays on repeat in my head. I can feel Marcus looking at me. I might as well tell him. “No.”

“You two looked chummy has hell that day at Jimmy’s.”

“Things changed,” I mumble, my head turning back to look out the window.

“As in?”

---