Continuing Saga of Andy and His Boys
James happily handed off the bartender to the uniforms. He wanted to get away from that bar as fast as possible. He also wanted to take as many showers as he could stand to get the brunette's scent off of him
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"What the hell, Reyes?" he exclaimed when he saw who it was.
"I was bored since Hil kicked me out so she and Rollins could get a head start on their girl's weekend," Zayne replied. "So I thought I would see what you guys were up to."
"So you're not checking up on me to make certain I wasn't lying to Andy?"
"No. I knew you weren't lying since I had heard about this bust going down, and before you ask, I left Andy alone tonight. Sometimes, we need a break from each other," Zayne explained.
"Who are you, again?"
"Yeah, yeah, asshole," Zayne tossed
back.
"That's better."
"You need help with Bart there?"
"You've got to be kidding me," James remarked. "His name is Bart?"
"Yes, it is," Zayne replied. "I picked him up a few times when I worked patrol."
"I won't say no to you helping us, but I'd like to know why you want to," James said feeling like Reyes was up to something.
"You have a nine am appointment with Andy tomorrow morning, so let's get this done. You need all the beauty sleep you can get," Zayne answered.
"I knew you had an ulterior motive besides being bored," James accused.
"So sue me," Zayne retorted. "You want my help or not?"
Just then Jake walkex out of the room. "That asshole has been through the system before," he grumbled.
"A few times," Zayne said causing Jake to do a double take.
"What the hell?" Jake asked once he recovered from the surprise of seeing Zayne standing next to James.
"Since he's acquainted with the asshole, he's offered to help us out of the goodness of his heart," James explained.
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“I’m not going to hit you, idiot,” Zayne said, rolling his eyes.
“You did the last time you picked me up.”
“Ah,” Zayne said, pulling out a chair and turning it around. He straddled it and rested his arms across the back of the cheap, plastic chair. “So you do remember me then?”
“How can I forget the cop that knocked my lights out,” Bart grumbled.
“It told you not to resist.” Zayne shook his head and looked at J-squared. “He resisted.”
“So we figured, Reyes,” James sighed. “Can we get on with this?”
Shrugging, Zayne turned back to Bart. “Look, we know you’re dirty. You’ve been dirty since the day you were born, but these two?” He pointed to the pair of narcos. “They’ll cut you some slack on this most recent incident if you offer them up some decent intel on your boss. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“I don’t know who he is,” Bart said, mouth set in a stubborn line.
“Okay, sure, maybe you don’t know the big boss, but you sure as hell know the one above you, right?”
“Maybe,” he hedged.
“Of course you do,” James cut in. “Otherwise you wouldn’t have access to the product you’re pushing. Give us his name and we’ll work you a deal.”
“He’s a small fish,” Bart said, unconvinced.
“Maybe,” Jake agreed, “but he’s one step up the ladder.”
“So, what do you say, Bart old buddy? You going to help them or do I get to take another crack at that glass jaw of yours?”
“Reyes,” James sighed. “Behave.”
“Fine,” Zayne sighed, drawing the word out. “But it’d speed up this process. You could be home getting your beauty rest in ten minutes.”
“I say let him try,” Jake grinned.
“Noooo!” Bart’s hands flew up in front of his face. “Don’t let him hit me. I’ll give you whatever information you want.”
James shook his head but kept his mouth shut. It worked, and that was all that mattered.
“Damn,” Zayne groaned. “And I was looking forward to smacking your ugly mug around tonight.”
“Reyes,” James said again. “Go home. Or go anywhere that’s not here.”
“I get you the info you need and this is how you treat me,” Zayne said, rising from his chair. “This is why cross-departmental task forces never work.”
“Thank you, Zayne,” Jake sang.
James laughed. “Seriously, thank you.”
Zayne shrugged. “I’d like to think y’all would do the same for me.”
“Let’s hope we never have to find out,” Jake teased.
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"You got a bucket list, narco?"
"And you don't?"
"Can we knock off the macho posturing and get this info turned in?" Jake asked hoping he didn't have to step between them. His night had been entertaining enough.
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“God help me, Jake, but he’s right.” James looked at Zayne and wondered why he even bothered some days. Scratch that, he knew exactly why he bothered. Andy, and no other reason.
“Anyway,” Zayne said, interrupting before anything more could be said. “Get your shit together and don’t be late in the morning, got it? I’ll come find you if you fuck with my partner.”
“I am not afraid of you, Reyes,” James shot back.
“It’s not me you have to be worried about,” he said, calling over his shoulder as he moved towards the exit. “It’s those two women I work with. You hurt Andy, they’ll come for your blood.”
Somehow, James believed him.
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"I know, so let's get this done before anything else comes our way," James agreed.
Jake nodded.
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Or he would and wouldn’t ever get another date.
Groaning, he forced himself upright and into his bedroom. He looked at his bed and contemplated falling right into it but thought better. He reeked of cheap perfume and, on the off chance he got Andy back here tomorrow, he did not want his sheets smelling of anyone’s froofy spray. Especially not a woman’s.
“Why me,” he whined, chucking his shirt into the laundry.
A good shower would help him sleep, he told himself. Hot water, a good scrub, and he’d be golden.
He hoped.
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He found the tv remote and settled in for a night of cheesy made for tv movies.
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Picking up his coffee mug, he topped it off and went to the table where the paper lay. Andrej set his mug in its place and pulled the chair out, only to hear the doorbell ring. Quickly, he checked his watch again. There was no way Zayne was this early.
Sliding his chair back in, he walked to the door and opened it. “Jay?”
“Surprise!”
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"May I come in?"
Andy nodded and stepped aside to allow James to enter.
James walked in and turned to face Andy. "Reyes came by the station last night and helped us out," he answered Andy's unasked question.
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James shrugged. “I think that part of it was that he knew the guy we picked up. Bart something.”
“Oh no,” Andrej sighed. “Bart is a handful.”
“I didn’t think you worked patrol with Reyes.”
“I did not,” Andrej clarified. “However, we have crossed paths with him a few times. It is surprising what a low-level criminal will trade to get out of trouble.”
“This is true,” James said. “Anyway, Zayne made a comment about how much you’d been looking forward to spending time with me and another about how the only thing books were good for were weapons and here I am.”
Andrej laughed. He should have known that Zayne would try to find a way out of going to the festival with him. On the other hand, he’d attended more boring events on the promise of a meal. “I am happy you are here. Are you ready?”
“Never been readier.”
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"If you do not mind," Andy replied with a smile. It would be nice to relax and enjoy himself for once.
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They climbed into James’ car and took the drive to the Historic Fifth Street School in downtown. It was the only time either of them would willingly head into the area. But the festival offered enough incentive to fight traffic. It would be nice to get out and walk around with Andy, meet some authors, get some books, and have a low-key kind of date. They both needed it, that was for certain.
“Have you ever been to this thing,” James asked.
“Every year,” Andy replied, looking away as he said so.
“Reyes teases you, doesn’t he?”
“Everyone teases me,” he sighed. “But it is okay.”
“I’ve never been,” James said, answering Andrej’s earlier question. “But I was intrigued when I saw a flyer for it. I’m glad you’re game. And I promise not to tease you, either.”
“That is a relief,” he said, smiling.
(They're heading to an actual festival here in town that's in a few weeks. LOL)
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Andy nodded. "He does. Hillary and Trisha constantly pick on him about it too."
"You don't?"
(Sounds cool. Are you going?)
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Between his lack of functional English, his love of romance novels, and his reluctance to stuff his face with meat at every meal, he got enough crap as it was. And that was just the fun stuff he was teased about. He wasn’t even going to think about the snide remarks that were made just loud enough for him to hear, although none of that ever came from Zayne or the girls.
He pushed those thoughts aside. Zayne had taken care of the last person to call him something undesirable.
“Are you okay,” James asked, glancing over at Andrej.
“Fine,” he lied. “I am sorry, my mind went to places it should not have. Let’s talk about something other than Zayne’s questionable taste in television.”
James laughed. “I can do that.”
(Probably not. I want to but I can't ever get anyone to go with me.)
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“Not really,” Andrej said. “My favorite author is a bit of a - what do you call it? Someone who never leaves his home?”
“Agoraphobic,” James laughed.
“No, no, not that,” Andrej chuckled. “He can, but he does not like to.”
“Oh,” James said, nodding as it came to him. “Recluse. Can’t say I blame him, I’d never leave home if I didn’t have to either.”
“I have those days myself,” Andrej agreed. “But today is not one of them.”
“I am so glad to hear that.”
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