Page 24 of Rookie Days

Ellie bit back on the sort of remark that would unleash the wrath of Zeus on her head, and she resigned herself to wait until Quinn decided it was time to let her have it. They drove out oftown and took the coast road. A couple miles further on, Quinn found an empty layby to park in and cut the engine.

“Alright, now we can talk.”

“Is your office bugged?”

“No. But I prefer handling personal conversations out of it.”

Low-level anxiety simmered in the pit of Ellie’s stomach as Quinn’s icy blue eyes settled on her face. Searching... Assessing. Here was the last person on earth she’d want to lie to. Could she even pull it off if she tried?Probably not.Janet Fox assumed that she must be good in the interrogating room, and Ellie was. She’d been watching Quinn at work, learning all the tricks from her.Janet.As an image of the surgeon popped into her head, Ellie relaxed a tiny fraction. It had been nice to share breakfast with Fox. Who would have thought that discussing hormones and their respective training preferences could be so captivating? Listening to Janet’s banter with the café owner had been fun too, and discovering a side to the woman that she had not imagined before. Ellie did not notice herself drifting a bit as she recalled the way Janet had cared for her in the hospital.

“Stay focused, will you?” Quinn grunted when she almost smiled. “What on earth is the matter with you, Ellie? You think this is funny?”

“No, Lieutenant.” Ellie answered firmly. “I do not.”

“Talk to me, then, rookie. Now is your chance.”

“Look, I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

“Nice thought but I don’t think you can say that since you obviously weren’t in control when it happened. And what was‘It’, anyway?”

“I was angry. I lost my head.”

“Yes to both, but that’s not it.” Quinn went on relentlessly. “Your level-headedness is one of the qualities I appreciate about you, Ellie. I know you’re good in a crisis. You proved it duringthe mass shooting. Didn’t even flinch when you had your fingers inside my leg, did you?”

“Yes, I did. Afterwards. I cried with Lia.”

The memory made Ellie cringe whenever she thought about it. It had been so embarrassing. She’d been so damn green at the time.

“Afterwards, you should release your emotions and I don’t care how you do it,” Quinn grunted. “But on the job…” She shook her head. “You know, I expect way better from the officers on my team.”

The reprimand stung. It made Ellie’s stomach twist and roll unpleasantly. She almost started to apologize… But then she’d already told her a few times that she was sorry. What more did Quinn want from her? She raised her good hand to her head and massaged her throbbing temple.

“Are you going to kick me off the team?”

“Are you going to tell me what really happened to you out there?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Neither do I.”

“What?”

“I don’t want to kick you off the team, Ellie.”

“Well, good!” Ellie dared to raise her voice just a little. She didn’t think Quinn would mind this kind of temper. Anyway, she just had to. “I deserve to be on your squad. You know that, Lieutenant. You know I’m a good cop!”

chapter 8

They were going nowhere fast. Ellie was obviously close to her limit, and would not budge any further. Quinn could continue to push her, and damage their relationship; or settle down, and cut herself some slack as well. Butting heads with her crew was not her favorite part of the job. She needed to try another way.

“Yes, you are a good cop,” she approved. “But I also need to be able to trust you in the field.”

“You can trust me.” Ellie answered sharply, without even a blink. “I’d go to the wall for you, Lieutenant. No hesitation, no questions asked. You can trust me. Personally, and in the field as well.”

Quinn held her burning gaze for a solid fifteen seconds, and appreciated what she saw reflected in her eyes. Determination, stubbornness, a touch of rightful indignation... Truth, too. Pure honesty.

“Alright.” She nodded. “Okay. Fine.”

Ellie blew air out like an exploding balloon.

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