The report landed on Stone's desk by six in the morning.
Eastside Scorpions. The hideout? Empty. No corpses just no sign of the team. Yet everything they ran got torn down fast. Half a hundred bricks of coke disappeared at once. Two hundred grand in cash vanished.
Meanwhile, Carlos Martinez is stuck in an emergency room, got a gunshot wound right through his palm, won't say a word to anybody.
Stone glanced at the folder clear in his mind who'd done it.
The signal came through strong no confusion at all.
He gulped the third cup of coffee today junk from the station's kitchen that burned like acid and snatched his coat. Over at his desk, Rodriguez peeked up.
"Where you going?"
"To talk to our favorite cosmetics CEO."
"Stone, man, you're getting too close to this. Captain already said..."
"I know what the captain said." He was already walking. "I'll be back in an hour."
The trip to Selina's main salon lasted twenty minutes through early traffic. During every minute, he puzzled over his words. Figuring out how to influence her without scaring her off. Getting her confidence even though neither one oughta give it easily.
The salon hadn't opened, though light spilled through the windows. By the entrance stood a security guard tall, solid build, looked like he'd done time in contract work overseas.
Stone flashed his badge. "I need to speak with Ms. Vega."
"She's not here."
"Her car's in the lot."
The guard's face stayed blank. "Can't see her right now."
"Make her available." Stone stepped closer. Not aggressive but firm. "Or I can come back with a warrant and a dozen uniforms. Your choice."
The guard looked at him for a while. After that, he took out a phone and whispered into it. He gave a nod.
"She'll see you. Back office. Second floor."
Stone went up the stairs, every move slower than before. Not just doing his job now pushing past limits he knew were there. Rules about conduct, rules about right and wrong. Once broken, no way back.
Yet he kept coming back to her. The look on her face at the wreckage stained with blood, still standing. How she gripped her brother's hand like a shield against anything close. When their eyes locked in that quiet hospital hall he didn't see panic, just sharp focus sizing him up.
He was drawn to her. Yet she drove him up the wall at times. She sparked urges he shouldn't have felt.
The office door stood cracked. Behind a shiny desk, Selina slumped laptop glowing, eyes heavy, clearly stuck there way too long. Dressed in yesterday's dark clothes. Hair tied tight. Face bare. Pale circles under her eyes. Just someone worn down.
Beautiful.
"Detective Stone." She didn't look up from her screen.
"Little early for a consultation on skincare, don't you think?"
"We need to talk about last night."
"I was at the hospital. All night. Multiple witnesses."
"Your crew wasn't." He closed the door behind him. "They hit the Scorpions' stash house. Took everything. Left Carlos Martinez with a hole in his hand and a message about queens and consequences."
She glanced up now. Her dark eyes hit his hard to read. Quiet. Still.
"Sounds like someone handled a problem for you," she said. "Maybe you should send them a thank you card instead of harassing me."
"This isn't harassment. This is me trying to keep you from getting killed." He moved closer to her desk. "You think the Scorpions are just gonna take that? You think Carlos is gonna sit there with his mangled hand and accept it?"
"I think Carlos is gonna tell everyone what happens when you come at me wrong." She leaned back in her chair. Calm. Controlled. "I think he's gonna be a walking advertisement for why crossing me is a bad idea."
"Jesus Christ, Selina….."
"Stop." Her tone turned hard. Yet you're just standing there, telling me how to run things. It's different for you, you've got a badge; folks hesitate when they see it. But me? I need them to pause… really think. Need fear to do the work.
The moment they see me as weak when they believe they can steal from me with no fallout that's when it ends. I'm gone. Jordan's gone. Every person I love, wiped out
The way she spoke surprised him. Not like the icy boss he knew. More like the real person hiding behind it all. A woman afraid, furious, fighting just to make it through.
"I get it," he said quietly. "I do. But there are other ways....."
"There aren't." She stood up. Came around the desk. Close enough that he could smell her perfume something expensive and subtle. "Not in my world.
You operate in the light, Detective. Laws and procedures and rules. I operate in the shadows. Different rules. Different consequences."
They stood real near almost touching. He spotted a thin scar along her collarbone. Her eyes looked drained, worn out from something unseen. A steady thump pulsed in her neck, visible with each breath.
"The Scorpions have federal connections," he said. "Agent Miller's been working them for months. You hit that house, you got on the feds' radar. That's a whole different level of heat."
A look crossed her face could've been shock. Or worry?
I ain't got no clue 'bout federal agents," she said. Yet her tone sounded shaky all of a sudden.
"Agent Miller was there. At the stash house. Your crew left him tied up with the others." Stone watched her carefully. "He's pissed, Selina. Building a case. When he comes for you, I won't be able to help."
"I didn't ask for your help."
"Maybe you should." He stepped closer. Knew he shouldn't but did it anyway. "Because I'm the only one who gives a damn if you survive this."
"Why?" The question was soft. Genuine. "Why do you care? I'm just another case to you. Another criminal to take down."
You're not." They slipped out before he had a chance to hold back. Not just another file this was different
The air around them crackled. Tense. Almost like getting near a sparking cable.
This was a terrible plan, Selina remarked yet she stayed put.
Yep. Might be the dumbest thing I've done yet. His arm moved on its own, sweeping a loose piece of hair off her cheek. Yet here I am, stuck on you no matter how hard I try
"Detective..."
"Marcus." His voice was rough. "When it's just us, call me Marcus."
She stared at him quiet, heavy. His sharp gaze cut deep, no hiding. Just took it all in, clear as daylight.
"This doesn't change anything," she said finally. "You're still a cop. I'm still….."
"I know what you are." He was close enough now that their breaths were mingling. "I've known since the party. Since the first time I saw you. And I'm still here."
"You're an idiot."
"Probably."
She kissed him at first. Then again, perhaps it was him kissing her. No clear sign who leaned in early. Still, out of nowhere, they were close, her spine meeting the desk's edge, his fingers tangled in her hair as if every charged moment from the past months finally snapped into motion.
It felt hopeless and wild, even. Like everything had gone off track somehow.
Nor did either one manage to halt.
When they pulled away, gasping for air, Stone realized something had shifted no going back now.
This'll go wrong," Selina murmured into his mouth.
I get it," he said, pressing his lips to hers once more gentler now. "Still, none of that matters."
She smiled, that dangerous smile that made his heart race. "You know what they say, Detective. For a cop, you've got the eyes of a man who's about to make a really bad decision."
"Yeah," he said, pulling her close again. "I get that a lot lately."
Out there, streets hummed to life. In here, a pair meant to clash drifted into uncharted ground.
Something capable of wiping out each one.