Page 15 of Knight

"There are cameras on the back of the buses too." She grabs the remote from my hand and starts looking through the video files. "They were put there a year ago when one of the buses was rear-ended and wound up in a legal battle. After that, the school board voted to put cameras on them all. That way we'd no longer be blind-sided if something like that happened again. I'm sure it's on these video files they gave you. Let me see."

I watch as this woman who's had my heart for so many years, scrolls through the files. Her face lights up the way it does when a kid she's teaching understands what she's trying to tell them; when she knows she's cracked the code for something puzzling. I love to watch her in these moments. She's gorgeous; eyes shining with excitement, lower lip pulled tight between her teeth.

"Here it is," she announces triumphantly as she finds the file she wants and presses play.

Neither one of us is sitting back against the couch cushion. We're both as close to the TV as we can be while still being on the couch. She fast-forwards slightly, and as one we scream out. "There he is!"

"I wish you could see his face." I grab my phone, taking down notes of everything I notice. "Wonder if he's ever in front of it? Could get his damn license plate number?"

"I think we're hoping a little too much," she says as she shakes her head. "It'd be too easy."

"I've had other crazy shit happen in the midst of working a case," I argue. "The question is where do I start watching? I can't expect you to stay up all night with me."

"Why not?" she shrugs. "It's a Saturday, and I don't have work tomorrow. If this is what you need me to do, I'll gladly do it with you."

"I'd feel awful if we stayed up all night and didn't find anything."

"Isn't this part of your job, Mase? Everything you investigate isn't always easy. It doesn't always have a concrete clue or ending. Sometimes you're just spinning your wheels to make progress. We're a team, and if this is what you need help with, I'll sit here and be happy to do it. We need energy drinks in two hours? I'll be the one to head up to the convenience store and get us what we need. You don't get to pick and choose what we're a couple for. It doesn't matter if things get difficult, we are still gonna be married at the end of it, so you might as well let me help you. If not, I'll be lying in bed, wondering what I could've done to convince you to let me help."

"Okay," I relent. "We'll do this like we do everything else – as a team."

Three hours later I'm struggling to keep my eyes open, and Rina is too. We have one more video to watch. If it's not in this one, it's not anywhere.

"Last one, Mase. What if it's not here?"

"If it's not here, we'll figure out some other way to break this case. I couldn't live with myself if we didn't look this hard, though."

"I couldn't either," she replies as she leans her head against my shoulder. "If we didn't look at everything available and it was here this whole time, I'd never be able to forgive myself. I mean I wouldn't be able to look her family in the eye."

"Okay," I sigh. "Let's get through this one and then we'll go to bed. Deal?"

"Deal," she answers, and seals it with a kiss on the cheek.

We watch, bodies tense. There's only a minute left of the video when I see it. The car we've been looking for, the one that was at that intersection, passes the bus. Passes the fucking bus. And right there in living color, slightly blurry but good enough to be seen, is a license plate number.

"Got you, fucker."

Chapter Twelve

Rina

I'm waiting to hear from Mason. Should've heard from him over an hour ago if truth be told. I'm dying to know if he found out who the license plate belonged to. I figured by now, he would've texted or called me. When I started this day, I was super excited to hear that he had found the person who owned the car. Now I'm beginning to wonder what the hell happened.

"Y'all calm down," I try to settle my kids down. For a Monday they're going insane. "If you can calm down for a few minutes and work on the packets I gave you, we'll turn the TV on and watch something we vote on."

Everyone seems to agree. Going to my desk, I take a seat and then pull out my phone. There are no missed calls or texts from my husband. Now I'm starting to get worried. Just as I'm about to make my excuses and go call him, I see Principal Atwater in the doorway. Immediately my stomach drops and I'm scared to death. "I'll be right back," I tell the kids before standing up and almost running to the door. "Is he okay?" I ask before I greet her.

"He's okay, he's here to see you. I got your class. He's outside, in the front."

I take off as quick as I dare, heels clicking in the empty hallways. If I were to pass someone, I wouldn't stop, I have to see him. Getting to the lobby, I can see him standing outside the doors, looking so much like he did that night waiting for me to have dinner with him. The best looking Mason is when he doesn't know anyone's watching him. I love to see the way his gaze takes in everything. He doesn't mess around on his phone like so many others do. He pays attention to what's going on around him. As if he can tell I'm not too far away, he turns to me, a smile transforming his face. Dear Lord he's still so fucking hot. The way his tactical pants hug his firm thighs, the way his t-shirt peaks out from under his bullet proof vest. Today he's wearing a hat turned around backwards, and around his neck, the badge that proclaims him to be an officer of the law. I quickly walk out to meet him.

"Hey Rina," he reaches in, placing a kiss on my cheek.

"Hey," I return the kiss and level him with a look. "What have you found out about the license plate?"

He sighs heavily. "Not enough. It was stolen out of Calvert County. So whoever this asshole is, he's local. I'm going to have another press conference, and I'm hoping you'll speak at it again."

"I didn't do too well last time," I remind him.

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