Episode 25 Recall (part 1/2) (Patreon)

Pamela Hastings nee Hall

Taking a honeymoon within the country was indeed a great idea. There wasn’t any stress for missing international flights, lost passports or getting stranded in a foreign country. It was cheaper and more convenient.

 For her, this removed a good amount of worrying and stress throughout the trip. This made her two week honeymoon more enjoyable with James far more pleasurable. With a rental where they arranged to return it to a branch in New York, they used the two weeks driving along roads with no real strict itinerary.

Driving from the start point of Daytona they headed to Jacksonville, Savannah and then finally Charleston after four days. They definitely picked the scenic route, and she and James enjoyed taking turns driving, sometimes camping. They were in no real hurry as they headed further north to Greenville and then Norfolk as they capped off their first week.

Their second week was as good as their first, despite their rental suffering two flat tires. Getting service was easy and they were on the road once more within the hour and they passed through Delaware and New Jersey, spending a few days in Philadelphia because they enjoyed the food. Now on their last few days, they had just surrendered their car to the designated branch office of the rental company and were now taking the sights of New York before they flew back to L.A.

Walking along the upper east side while waiting for James to return from meeting some friends for coffee, she noticed that her phone was ringing. She saw that it was Jack, one of her best friend’s husband that was calling.

“Hi Pam, I was just calling to ask how was your honeymoon road trip.”

She smiled and stopped for a moment. That walk took longer than expected and she was slightly out of breath. “It was great, thanks for asking. Tell Zoe that road trip honeymoons are the best.”

“I’m glad to hear that, I’ll tell her.” Jack replied.

“So… what are you up to?” Silence.

She looked at her phone screen and realized the call was still active.

“Jack?” She asked again.

“Get some rest Pam, you look tired.”

The call cut off and she immediately turned around, shocked. Jack was nearby? What the hell?

She spent a minute panicking, looking around frantically until she felt her phone vibrate once more and she saw she received a text message.

[Sorry, I saw you from a window right above you. On a special assignment here in the city and had to drop the call when VIP walked in. I’ll tell Zoe I saw you. Take Care.- Jack]

She breathed a sigh of relief. That scared the shit out of her. She looked at the building she was standing right in front of. Carlyle Hotel. Interesting.

She headed inside and decided she too needed something to drink, and this place looked as good as any. Jack was right, she did look tired since she spent an hour walking to central park and back.

After messaging James where she was, she decided to tell Zoe what her husband did.

Jack Routh

New York was a strange place. They arrived ahead of schedule, and feeling restless after being confined to a small space for hours no matter how luxurious, he headed out to explore the city. With Taylor safe and secure and with no plans for the first day outside of the hotel, Angela agreed when he asked if he could explore the city.

It was colder here, and he bought a cheap scarf to wrap around his neck. Los Angeles was not the cleanest of cities, but New York was a different beast. There was grime, and smells but it all felt strangely familiar, but he was pretty sure he had never been to the city at all.

Around ten minutes into his walk he realized he was being followed. Three men, by the looks of it. They tried to be discreet and pretended they were ordinary pedestrians, but they matched his walking pace. They followed him when he crossed a street, and they waited as he had a cup of coffee from a nearby restaurant.

Having grown tired of being followed, he increased his pace and turned to an alley. He immediately crouched down behind a dumpster and waited for his pursuers. As he expected the three men ran past him, only to stop when they realized he was missing.

“I assume you’re here for me.” He stated out loud, causing the three two tense up and immediately spun around to face him.

“Mr. Routh, you need to come with us.”  One of the men stepped forward.

“I’m not obligate to go anywhere.” He replied, calmly observing their movements. He had a suspicion where these men were from, and after a few more moments analyzing the way they stood and their clothing, he had a pretty good idea.

“And since I haven’t committed any crime, and you know my name, my guess is this is some sort of training exercise.” He continued speaking.

“What the…” One of the younger men muttered.

“Quiet!” The lead pursuer hissed back to his colleague. “How did you know?”

“You haven’t pulled out your weapons yet.” He explained. “That means you’re unwilling to escalate the situation, since you know I’m armed as well and we don’t want any misunderstandings.”

“Let me guess, FBI… no DHS?” He smiled as one of the men tensed. He wondered what Jessica Russo’s bosses were up to, sending these men to tail him. “Tell your superiors I’m not in any mood to play secret agent. I’m on assignment here and I don’t like being followed. That’s your only warning.”

“And then what?” One of the men asked.

“And then I get violent.”

He gave them a look and resumed his walk.

Paul Franklin

“Should we bag him and take him to the safe house?”

He turned to the junior agent and shook his head. “You think you can take on that guy? Go ahead, Carl. Be my guest.”

Carl, as expected remained silent.

“Call it off.” He ordered.

It was supposed to be a simple surveillance operation. Their target was a prospective recruit, highly recommended by one of their senior agents in the west coast. Unfortunately, the station chief decided to bring him in for an informal interview when his name popped up on their registry, and decided to use the opportunity to train their field team.

Suffice it say it didn’t go well. Their target was somehow aware that he was under surveillance, and walked around like he knew the city like it was the back of his hand. Jack Routh led them through a merry chase in east side and even took a coffee break, as if mocking their abilities. He picked a perfect spot, one crowded with people, with two exit points.

Their target seemed to get tired of the cat and mouse game and decided increase his pace, and finally they lose sight of him in an alley.

 How a man of that size could just vanish surprised him. He still remembered how his pulse spiked up when they realized their target was behind them, ready to act at a moment’s notice. They could have forced the issue, but their target was also a decorated cop, one with an impressive list of accomplishments. He didn’t miss the sharp eyes watching their every move and he knew the man could turn violent at a moment’s notice.

“Agent Franklin, you called off the operation?”

His earpiece came to life with the station’s chief’s voice, sounding annoyed.

“Yes chief. The target became aware of our surveillance team moments after he walked out of the hotel.” He reported.

“That’s not acceptable.”

“Sir, the target is an armed, law enforcement officer.” He replied, fighting to keep the frustration from leaking into his voice. “He got the jump on us when we lost him in an alley.”

“That’s a pity. It seems I was right to increase your team’s training then.”

Damn stupid glory hounding station chief. He knew his boss’ curiosity was peaked when they received word of a prospective recruit arriving in their area of operations and ordered the surveillance team to get some practice. Judging by the disappointed tone in the chief’s voice, he knew the man wanted to score points with the director by trying to impress and scare the recruit. They always did. Cops usually became uncomfortable and submissive when faced with the powerful federal badge.

Well, that plan backfired spectacularly.

“Sir, he immediately deduced that we’re from DHS just from a casual glance. He also warned us that he didn’t like being followed.” He added. “He might be reporting the incident to Agent Russo as we speak.”

“Fine. Call off the operation, pull back the scout team from the roof.”

The call ended quickly and he breathed a sigh of relief. There was one thing he knew now. He didn’t want to meet Jack Routh in an alley at night despite his training and being armed. There was just something about the larger man that screamed predator to his senses.

Jack Routh

Once the game with those DHS ended he had a pleasant walk exploring the city. He wished LA had a large inner city park like New York’s central park, but he knew that idea was not feasible due to the city’s geography.

 Manhattan was easy to navigate through, they were staying at the Carlyle Hotel on 76st street and hours later he ended up in 71 st. He looked up and saw a building that was strangely familiar, but he knew he had never step foot inside that one before. Strange.   

He was crying, locked in a cell. His hands were swollen, his fingers broken. There were bruises on his wrist and slashes?

Needles, strange blue pills. Green pills. He had a fever and saw he was chained to a gurney inside a worn down hospital.

He had a sudden headache and touched a nearby wall to regain his balance. A few moments later and the dizziness he was feeling vanished. He remembered strange memories he knew weren’t his. It wasn’t from Jack Reacher, Charlie Puth or Lucy Worsley’s. It wasn’t this body’s memories as far as he could tell.

“You okay there buddy?”

He looked up to see a middle aged couple looking at him with some concern.

“You’re bleeding. Do you need an ambulance?”

He touched his nose and realized he was indeed bleeding. He wiped it off with his handkerchief.

“Yeah, just got dizzy.” He replied and waved away the couple’s concern. He took a deep breath and stood up straight and started moving again. Maybe he was more tired than he thought, and he decided to retrace his steps back to the hotel to get some rest. That night his dreams were not pleasant.

He was always a light sleeper, so it was an unusual feeling to wake up to the sound of knocking on his door.

“I swear to God, if I don’t hear you from you in the next five seconds…”

He hurried to open the door, revealing his impatient looking partner.

“I’ve been knocking for over a minute.” Angela complained. “You’re usually up before me. Did you go out drinking?”

“No.” He replied. “I guess I was more tired than I thought I would be. Got dizzy in the middle of my stroll and decided to head back.”

“Dizzy?” Angela suddenly peered at his eyes and felt her fingers on his neck and checking his pulse. “You shouldn’t have gone off to explore the city if you’re not feeling a hundred percent. Do you know what would the captain do to me if something happened to you?”

“Hey, Zoe’s not like that.” He replied.

“Maybe not to you.” He heard Angela mutter.

“When it comes to your wellbeing, the captain kicks into another gear.” Angela explained. “Your first shooting incident, those incidents you went through, you should have seen the captain’s face. She was really worried. People were literally diving out of the way whenever she passed by.”

“Anyway, you seem to be fine.” Angela stood up. “Just saw some faint bite marks on your neck… and scratches on your back. Did you have a nice farewell with the cap before you left?”

“Did you have one with Wes? Should I check under that collar for hickeys?” He asked. His smile grew wider when he saw he saw the faint flush on his partner’s cheeks.

They entered the presidential suite after a nice breakfast, where three security staff stepped aside to allow them to pass through. They found the pop star having breakfast with her team, while making final preparations for the day.

He grabbed a plate and filled it with bacon at the nearby breakfast buffet table along with a few pancakes and sat on the couch. Angela followed his lead, and soon they were drinking quality coffee after the hearty meal.

“So it’s rehearsals in the afternoon, and then a press interview. The team’s not leaving the hotel.” Angela leaned over and filled her cup with coffee once more. “Want to shop for clothes now?”

“Sure.” He replied. “I’m not sure where to buy additional clothes, but we could head over to a nearby mall. I’m sure we’ll find something within our budget.”

“You two are going shopping?”

They both turned to the table where Taylor was looking over at them.

“Yeah, we just realized we lack the amount of proper clothes to blend in.” He replied.

“Let me join you, I know a good place.” Taylor stood up and looked at him and Angela head to toe with a thoughtful look in her eyes. “A few suits, a coat, yeah that should be easy, I think they stock that.”

“You really don’t have to…” He tried but Taylor seemed determined.

“No, and I’ve looking to get a new coat and outfit for myself as well.” The pop star continued speaking. “I’m feeling like I need to get out, and it’s a nice morning! Let’s go!”

 A few calls later and an hour before even the store were open, he found himself with a pair of attendants helping them try on various clothing. It was ironic though, considering the historic store he was in. He looked around, admiring the elegant décor that seemed like it was more suited for the 1800s than the ultra modern styles of modern Manhattan boutique clothing stores.

Tall mirrors, tasteful wood paneling with engraving and thick carpets was the theme of the place, with ornate chandeliers providing adequate lighting from above.

“Is something amusing?” Taylor Swift asked.

For some reason, she and Angela made him wait, as they completed their shopping first. When it was his turn, it seemed like he was forced to try on every style of clothing in various combinations, with the two and the pop star’s staff commenting on every outfit he wore. He honestly felt like a doll at this point, and ignored the poorly concealed grins worn by some of the security staff.

“Nothing.” He replied as another coat was presented to him to try. It was tan in color, and he shook his head as he was forced to try it on.

“C’mon Routh, you were thinking about something amusing. Spill.” Angela demanded.

“It’s just this store was originally made to cater for men’s clothing only.” He revealed. “I find it ironic now that half its stock is for women’s clothing.”

“We have to adjust with the times.” Giovanni, the apparent store manager responded. “Brooks Brothers have a rich history dating way back to the 1850s.”

“It actually started at 1818, by Henry Sands Brooks.” He replied. Noting the surprise in the man’s face, he continued speaking. “His motto was, to make a deal using the finest merchandise, and to sell at a fair profit for people who appreciate quality.” 

“I see.” Giovanni replied and gave him an off look. “Are you a scholar, Mr. Routh?”

“He’s a professor.” Taylor replied. She stood up from her seat and walked around him and gave a satisfied nod. “We’ll take this too.”

“I already have two coats.” He replied. “Don’t you think this is too much?”

“Nope.” Taylor grinned. “You wear that today, okay? And put this on.”

He stared at the pair of glasses and hesitantly took them from the pop star’s hands. “What am I supposed to do with this? I don’t need glasses.”

“Just put them on.” Angela stated. “It has no grade anyway.”

He sighed and put on the glasses, making a mental note never to shop with these two ever again. As he put them on, he looked at the two women who were now wearing wide grins. “Happy?”

“Very.” Taylor pulled him down from the small wooden platform he was standing on and headed to the entrance. “Let’s go, Mr. Kent.”

He had to admit though, these clothes he currently wore were of nice quality, and he could barely feel the cold as they walked on the sidewalk despite the morning chill. He stared at his partner, and with her new outfit and coat, she already looked the part of a detective.

Rehearsal that day was productive, as he spent the time with Taylor’s musicians practicing their two performances and working with the sound engineer to polish the effects for the two songs. Vocal rehearsals with Taylor proved more challenging, since her friends and entourage kept distracting her from their practice.

“It’s going to be a hit, I’m sure of it.” Taylor declared with a satisfied smile once they finished rehearsals.

It was going well, until they went to the venue itself for stage rehearsals the next morning. With the charity concert starting at the afternoon, they only had morning to practice, but even getting into the venue was proving difficult.

Then there were the other artists, all eager to rub elbows with Taylor Swift. It was a security nightmare, and it took him an hour of heading off artists, managers and well wishers who wanted to visit her while she was singing a few of her songs. It seemed that the organizers didn’t bother to ask the other artists and their teams to leave while Taylor’s rehearsal time block started.

“I’m sorry.” He responded politely to a musician who was asking for a few minutes of Taylor’s time. “Her management team gave clear instructions that she’s not to be disturbed. She takes rehearsals seriously.”

“Does Taylor know how strict you are?” The singer gave him an unimpressed look. “I’m going to message her and tell her how her security team are being rude. Let’s see if you have still have your job tomorrow.”

“Let’s see. Now please move along.” The artists seemed like he wanted to make a run for it, but seemed to think the better of it in the end and walked away. That was the fifth time in a hour. Like a professional athlete, his charge was able to complete their rehearsals and he and Angela accompanied her to a press lunch with other artists. Working with Taylor’s beefed up security team and the organizers, they were able to easily secure the locations.

“Jack! Over here!”

One of the security staff gave him a nod and he headed to Taylor’s table, where she sat with what looked like fellow artists and musicians.

“Yes Taylor?” He asked once he reached her chair.

“Have a seat.” Taylor patted the empty seat beside her. “We were just talking about our craft, and as a fellow musician, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the subject.”

“He’s a musician?”

“You don’t recognize him?” Taylor grinned. “You will after tomorrow. This is Jack Routh, the police officer that saved me. He’s also known as…”

“Sugar!” One of the women gasped.

“Holy shit!”

“You’re that guy!”

“You’re performing at the concert too?”

“I’m performing a few songs with him.” Taylor mock whispered. “So keep it a secret for now, okay? It’s meant to be a surprise.”

Questions poured in, and he calmly answered each and every one of them.

“We have to collaborate.” One of the women who Taylor introduced as Arianna insisted. “I love all your songs, are you sure you don’t want a career in music?”

“I’m happy where I am.” He replied. “And I’m doing this as a favor for Taylor, since she’s a close friend.”

Taylor preened at that, and he noticed the looks being thrown at the blonde pop star.

After a tiring day he was finally able to relax in his hotel room. Feeling restless and missing his wife, he checked the time and decided to call Zoe. His wife was still in her office and he saw how her face lit up when their video chat connected. He was pretty sure he was wearing the same expression.

“Miss me that much?” Zoe asked.

“Yeah. Our schedule’s hectic, but manageable.” He replied.

“Lopez has been keeping me updated.” His wife looked amused. “She sent me a couple of your new outfits, I really like the look.”

“We have to blend in, but I didn’t expect Taylor to bring us to a luxury store for clothes.” He replied. “People here wear… mostly monochrome clothing. It’s honestly very drab and lifeless for someone used to living in Los Angeles.”

Zoe laughed at that. “It’s a New York thing. Only tourists wear colorful outfits, and no New Yorker in his or her right mind would want to be mistaken for one.”

“I haven’t explored much, but the city feels familiar in some strange way.” He admitted.

“Familiar?” Zoe asked. “If I recall, this is your first time in that city.”

“I know, but it feels that way.” He replied. “Weird right?”

Their call continued well into the night, and it got a bit heated as they both teased each other, with him admitting he missed waking up with his wife beside her. Zoe then locked her office and closed off the blinds, and he then experienced his first ever sex video call. Seeing his wife half naked in her office massaging her breasts and pussy while she sat on her chair made him cum within minutes. Zoe demanded a close up view of his cock as he started ejaculating.

“I can’t wait to have you back, husband.” Zoe gave him a kiss as their call finally ended.

He was still not satisfied, and decided to take matters into his own and opened the photo gallery and continued pleasuring himself, looking at the various poses of his naked wife as she displayed her sexy body for his viewing pleasure.

Zoe was such a considerate wife.

Nyla Harper

She hid a smile as Armstrong practically jumped to a nearby office as the captain walked by. The other officers hastily made detours once they caught sight of Captain Andersen, and she had completely understood their reaction.

It was a periodic assessment on each officer, and the Captain was hell bent making sure that everyone was up to code. And if it was just, it would be fine, but it seemed like for the past two days, their captain was in a bit of a mood. It wasn’t unprofessional conduct, but there was something in her demeanor that screamed she wasn’t playing around as she lectured an officer for not leaving the 1 dollar required every time she used the coffee machine.

 Armstrong found out the hard way when he playfully teased her about her having her period and taking a personal day. The veteran detective soon found himself in a meeting dealing with concerned citizens who always had something to say about the LAPD.

She knew the answer though. Poor Captain Andersen was missing the company of her husband.

Back in patrol, after first encountering a college student filming his thesis without any permit to use a prop gun, she continued her route with Nolan. She noticed he was unusually somber, and she strangely missed her talkative boot. Then Nolan smiled and it creeped her out.

“Okay.” She stopped the car and turned to her rookie. “What’s the matter with you?”

“Oh.” Nolan turned to her, the smile still fixed in his face. “Sorry, seeing the costumed priest in that illegal film set made me remember something. Sorry, I’ll be more focused.”

“Remember what?”

“I asked Grace to marry me.” Nolan shared. “She said yes.”

Oh. That answered a lot of things. She released the handbrake and resumed driving. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks.” Nolan replied cheerfully. “I even asked her to go to Hawaii with us. We’re getting married there.”

“Good call.” She admitted. She hadn’t thought much about the upcoming vacation, and in truth she wasn’t that interested in it. She’d rather spend the week with her daughter. She wondered if there was a way so that Lila could come with her, it should be a nice mother daughter bonding time.

“So what’s your plan with surprise?” She asked.

“Surprise?”

“The secret event Lopez is planning for Routh and the captain.” She reminded her rookie.

“Oh that!” Nolan looked proud and took out a slip of folded paper. “I already have that covered.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s a free installation service of a solar powered system.” He replied. “Jack told me that they bought solar panels, batteries and an inverter. My gift is to help them install it, along with some modifications.”

“It seems everyone I know is preparing for the drought.” She observed.

“They should.” Nolan nodded seriously. “I even installed a generator in my own house. I can’t imagine waking up at night sweating because of a blackout.”

 “At least I know where I will knock if that happens.” She teased. “So how big of a generator should I get to run my fridge and A.C.?”

Shane Devon

His brother was part of the staff, and he luckily got hired as an extra hand for the charity concert. With it came a security pass, and he spent the last three days manning the booths. In truth he despised the event, and it was if they were mocking his own condition. He watched and listened at every performance, the crowd cheerful, the musicians belting out their greatest hits, and then in the end gave a token message about Mental Awareness.

It was all bullshit.

He wanted to do something, anything that would leave a lasting statement more than the mockery of what they were supposed to support.

Being called a freak, a loser, being left by his girlfriend, it was all too much. On the last day, he decided to act. He brought his gun easily through security, and he had access to the barely guarded employee entrance. He didn’t even have to pass through the metal detectors.

“Shane! Hey Shane!”

He turned to the voice and saw one of his coworkers in the past few days. Debra. He rather like her, she was fun to be around with and friendly. It made the hours manning their stations to be bearable.

“Hi Debra. Do you need me for something?” He asked politely.

“Nah, but we’re going out after.” Debra replied. “To celebrate, you know? So are you coming?”

He gave a bitter smile. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to go. Let’s see.”

He felt sad for a moment when he saw how Debra’s expression fell.

“Oh, I see. After this I hope we get to see each other from time to time. See you around.”

“Yeah, see you.”

He turned and headed back to the employee rest area to prepare and plan for his own finale. He hated that this world didn’t understand him and his suffering. He would make them listen, and that he mattered too. That he existed and lived.

Monstermash had finished his own set when the excitement of the crowd increased. He knew the reason, one of the main draws of the entire three day event was coming up, and he decided to act on his grand plan.

Taylor Swift started out strong, and the energy of the crowd surged to new heights. He could understand, sort of, but it wasn’t for him. He couldn’t relate to it. Nothing was ever for him. That was why he wanted out.

Song after song, he saw how Taylor Swift and her dancers and musicians worked hard to give a great show to the tens of thousands that filled the arena. His weapon was on hand, ready to act when a new song started playing, and this time it wasn’t Taylor’s voice. It was someone else on stage with her, and he saw how the crowd was initially confused. It looked like a new song too, something he had never heard before.

Now and then I think of when we were together

Like you said you felt so happy you could die

Told myself you were right for me

But felt so lonely in your company

But that was love and it’s an ache I still remember…

He stopped, suddenly remembering his past relationship. The chorus gave him chills, and he rubbed his arms, gun momentarily forgotten in the pocket of his jacket as goose bumps appeared all over his skin.

Then Taylor sang, and in her voice he heard his own ex. Their fights, the misunderstanding, the sorrow until she finally left. Yes, it was his fault, he realized. He too was hung up on a crush from high school.

He thought it was a fitting song to end his existence as the crowd cheered at the duet between the unknown male singer and Taylor, when a new series of notes reached his ears. Taylor spoke something about mental health awareness and how important it was. Then the mysterious singer started singing once more.

All… day, staring at ceiling making,

friends with the shadows on my wall…

All night, hearing voices telling me

That I should get some sleep

Because tomorrow might be good for something…

He stopped and dropped the gun once more to his pocket. He listened closely. The song, the lyrics… they were for him.

I’m not crazy, I’m just a little unwell,

I know right now, you can’t tell.

But stay awhile and maybe then you’ll see

 A different side of me

I’m not crazy I’m just a little impaired

I know right now you don’t care

But soon enough you’re gonna think of me…

And how I used to be… me…

That was right. Fucking right. He listened in, and noticed the crowd around him grew silent as well, their faces wearing contemplative expressions. He wasn’t crazy, just unwell…

“Good song right?”

He turned to his side to see Debra grinning beside him.

“Yeah, it is.” He replied with a slight smile.

“It speaks to us you know?” Debra turned back to the stage. “We all have demons hidden, and it;s okay to speak about it and not get ashamed.”

“Yeah…” He replied. He turned back to the stage as well and listened to the amazing song. Maybe…. Maybe he mattered too.

His brother reached him after the concert, and practically bullied him into joining their party after the event. He really didn’t have a choice, though he did notice how happy Debra looked when she realized he was coming with them.

“By the way bro, you forgot your prescription.” His reliable brother quickly handed him his medication, and he realized he must have missed taking them for the past few days.

“Thank you.” He swallowed and tried not to cry. His brother seemed to have noticed his state as he gave him a hug.

Angela Lopez

“My close friend Jack Routh, also known as Sugar!”

She watched from the side as Taylor introduced her fellow performer. Cheers assaulted her ears in waves as the crowd reacted to Taylor’s introduction.

This was it. Jack was now a bonafide star.  His first song was really amazing, and she knew the tune would get stuck in her head for days. It was really catchy too, and the way Taylor sang the other part, her voice showing the anger and sorrow really matched up nicely to Jack’s vocals.

“I bet he would have felt that.” She turned to see Selena suddenly standing just beside her. “That song is really catchy. Both of them.”

“So that song was for her ex?” She asked. Selena nodded with a smile. “Ouch. Dating Taylor comes with risks.”

“They better behave, or she would immortalize their actions with a viral song, like this one.” Selena laughed. “Look, they uploaded the video too.”

She looked over the star’s shoulder and watched a video of Jack and Taylor singing in what must have been a recording booth.

“I remembered that night. Jack had a song ready that was perfect for Taylor’s request.” Selena shared. “It looks like they dubbed over the original video, but wow, this is still amazing.”

She memorized the title and used her own phone to search the song in Youtube. As expected there were already tens of thousands of views just within minutes of its release.

[Somebody I used to know – Taylor Swift & Sugar]

This was Jack’s formal public debut. She couldn’t wait at the results, though she was pretty sure her famous partner could not perform ordinary patrol duties anymore. He was too high profile for that. It was a good thing Metro units wore masks when responding to emergencies.

The after party was more stressful than the concert itself, but she kept an eye on her charge. Taylor was tipsy and was trying, but ultimately failed to have her and Jack join in on the festivities.

Jack was being approached left and right and she could tell how he was slowly getting uncomfortable with the situation. His usual tactic failed, since Taylor kept a sharp eye on him constantly, forcing him to participate in the conversations around him.

They all moved to a more… exclusive club to party, where she first encountered a potential danger ever since she accepted the assignment. At the VIP section where the pop star, her friends and a few more guests were hanging out, they were interrupted by another group. She spotted the one leading them, her briefing before telling her these were people Taylor were actively avoiding and didn’t want to interact with.

She could see the discomfort on the tall blonde’s body language as she courteously greeted the new arrivals. An hour later, and more and more drinks arrived when she saw her partner stop Taylor from drinking. She quickly headed to the table to see what was happening.

“I think there’s something not right with the drink.” Jack told Taylor who wore a confused look.

“Why is that?” She heard Taylor ask.

“All the cocktails were made by the bar tender here in the VIP lounge.” Jack shared. “And I’ve been keeping an eye on him. This drink came from downstairs. I might be wrong, but it’s better to be safe. Never drink anything you haven’t seen personally made.”

“I agree.” She added. She looked around and spotted the people from the other table taking an unusual amount of interest on what was happening.

That seemed to sober up Taylor and she nodded with agreement.

“I think it’s time to call it a night.” She told her group. With that they all started packing up.

“Leaving so soon?” One of the newly arrived guests asked from the other booth. “We’re just getting started.”

“Thanks, but I need to rest.” Taylor replied with a tight smile. Even tipsy, she had to admire the pop star’s presence of mind. She spoke on the radio to the security teams, and with their arrival no one else commented as they all left the area.

“Thanks Jack, Angela.” Taylor mumbled as they got inside one of the SUVs.

“That’s our job, to keep you safe.” She simply replied.

“I wish I could have taken a sample.” Jack stated. “I’m pretty sure someone was targeting you.”

“What could that have done?” Taylor asked.

“If they put some psychedelic or hallucinogenic compounds in your drink, that can cause you to act out and cause a scandal.” She answered. “I can imagine the fallout from that, just after your performance in the concert.”

“Fuck. You’re right.” Taylor replied. The pop star immediately started typing on her phone, and with the way she was clenching her jaw, she knew the blonde was pissed.

“Look.” Jack pointed at a group of paparazzi that were conveniently waiting outside the club as their convoy of SUVs moved out. “This has got to be a set up.”

“They won’t get anything from me tonight.” Taylor declared.

With the mood at an all time low, they all trooped back to the hotel to rest. When she woke up early the next morning, she was not surprised to learn that Taylor was cutting their New York trip short, cancelling a round of public appearances as she decided to head back to L.A.

“I’m not blaming her.” She shared with Jack as she packed up her belongings in her room. Annoyingly, Jack had packed that night, anticipating Taylor’s decision.

“We have no clear evidence that’s that what happened.” Jack replied. “But the appearance of the other group that’s in our briefing, the drink that came from downstairs and the large group of paparazzi outside the club…”

“Yeah, it can’t be all a coincidence.” She nodded in agreement. “But now we have a pissed off global pop star in our hands.”

“She’ll calm down once we arrived in L.A.” Jack replied. “She was just reminded how cut throat the music industry is, and her image nearly got ruined.”

Yeah, she could see that. Tabloids and the media would have a feast if ever the plan to drug Taylor Swift succeeded.

“I guess it’s a new protocol for her security teams.” She replied. At this rate, Taylor Swift might have better security than the POTUS.

Zoe Andersen Routh

Pam was in her honeymoon, and Reese was busy. She knew Jessica Chastain was busy with her work and that Liz was looking for a new place and had a meeting booked with a property agent. She was bored, alone in her house and she wanted to be productive, but lacked the necessary skills, knowledge and equipment to install the remaining upgrades to their home.

Missing Jack, she decided to see what her husband usually does when he was out of the house. She remembered that Jack usually headed to the comic book shop in Pasadena and decided to go there to see what her husband.

The comic book store was larger than she expected. There were rows and rows of shelves containing comic books and on the walls were various displays of action figures and even swords. A large life sized statue of a white armored figure was in the corner, greeting every visitor with its blaster.

Then there were the people, all men, all staring at her. She looked down, she didn’t have any stains in her clothes. She wondered why they were staring at her so intently.

“Hi. I’m Stuart.” A curly man greeted her from behind the counter.

“I’m Zoe.” She replied. “I’m just looking around for a nice gift to surprise my husband when she comes back. He loves coming here, and I can see why.”

“Husband?” Stuart asked. She was slightly amused to see the curly haired man turn to the others in the store and gave some sort of signal.

“Yeah, you might know him.” She replied. “He recently bought some replica sword from here…”

“You’re… Jack’s wife?” Stuart’s eyes widened.

“Yeah, is something wrong?” She wondered if this man in front of her was under some sort of medication. He was too jittery, and she could tell he was already sweating.

“No, nothing’s wrong!” Stuart replied. “Feel free to look around, and if it’s for Jack, I’m sure he’d love anything you’ll get him.”

“Okay, I’ll look around now.” It was the first time she felt like she had a disease. Whenever she moved to a spot, the other men in the store would move away, as if afraid that they would catch her cooties.

Jack liked Star Wars, but she only found a few comics and those were in poor condition. She found an old batman comic, wearing some sort of strange armor she had never seen before. She pulled it out and realized there was something inside its worn plastic packaging and saw it was an old batman themed USB stick. Jack might find this funny.

“Interesting choice.” Stuart stated as he wrapped the comic book.

“What’s with the batman USB stick?” She asked.

“They used to have that included as additional promotional material.” Stuart explained. “You’re lucky, since most of these get stolen out of the packaging before they even arrived at the store.”

“It’s a good addition if you’re collecting memorabilia.” Stuart added.

After paying 5 bucks, she headed back to her car and remembered that one of Jack’s students, Penny, worked at a nearby restaurant. She decided to head there and see if their cheesecake was really that good as the perky blonde claimed.

\

Rubert Derian

“I’m not happy.” He spoke over the phone.

“I understand, but listen, it’s too risky. They will notice immediately.”

“That’s the main reason that you applied there, to give us intelligence. This, this is barely worth the paper it’s printed on. How can I move my goods without guarantees?” He crumpled the printed sheet of paper showing patrol route schedules.

“We just need time. The captain here runs a very tight ship. Procedure, by the book and no lapses. ”

“That is something I cannot afford.” He replied, a scowl forming in his face.  “Perhaps we should replace the captain?”

“Nearly impossible. She’s too high profile, and she’s got powerful friends, I mean powerful. I’m talking about multiple federal agencies, FBI, DHS, NSA, all the god damn letters in the alphabet. You know what happened to Southern Front.”

“Then what’s your plan?”

“Next month, the whole division will be on leave for a week. Their routes will be covered by the surrounding stations, and that’s the time to move. I already volunteered to stay behind.”

“How selfless of you.” Finally, some good news. “Perhaps Mid-Wilshire isn’t as safe as you proposed.”

“No shit… I didn’t realize how fucked up my situation is here. Perhaps it’s time to slowly relocate, and leave this place with the associates, people you can afford to lose.”

“I’m still not happy.” He reminded his inside man. “I used a considerable amount of resources to build up the infrastructure here. I hate to lose money on my investment.”

“Maybe I can find a solution, but for now… lie low. That’s my advice to you.”

“Very well. The new drop off will on your usual spot.” He didn’t need to remind his contact to dispose of his current burner. He did the same. If the alphabet agencies were operating in his area, then he knew he had to be paranoid.

Mid-Wilshire was supposed to be the ideal location. It was considered a safe enough part of the city that his operation was not scrutinized, and there were no large rival gangs operating in the area to compromise his business. 

But problems arose. Some of his shipments got delayed. Some of his delivery men arrested, and the cops on his payroll were unable to do anything. It was the same excuse, their division was too strict, and that the senior officers were breathing hard down their necks about performance. Mid-Wilshire was especially tough to deal with, since they had increased operational security in their division.

He barely had enough warning to get his men out of raids, and the cops here were too efficient and competent at their jobs.

“Get me a file on the captain.” He ordered one of his men. It was always his policy to know his enemy before he made a move. Everyone had skeletons in their closets.

He was sure he would find one in hers, and maybe persuade her to be more cooperative.