Hell & High Water (THIRDS 1)

Dex looked thoughtful. “So you didn’t actually see or hear this Therian attack Ortiz?”

“No.” The waiter grew less certain. “But he was up to something. So I confronted him, told him I was going to call you guys to pick him up. The prick kept on working like I hadn’t said anything. So I called it in. Of course when I went back, he was gone.”

“What time was this?”

“It was before eleven when I confronted him,” the man replied.

“Could you describe this Therian for us?”

“Yeah, he was tall, pretty big, over six feet. Amber eyes,” His gaze darted to Sloane before moving away. “Um, dark hair. If I had to guess, I’d say a Felid.”

“What makes you say that?”

“A lot of the time you can tell, you know? The way he moved. Like he was stalking.”

“Can you tell us anything else?” The waiter shook his head and Dex looked over at Rosa who’d been recording everything and converting it to text. “Okay. Agent Santiago will go over your statement with you. She’ll also need a signature from you. Thank you so much for your time.” He motioned to Rosa who ushered the waiter to the table. Dex met Cael’s gaze and motioned to the doorway, Sloane followed.

“What was that?”

“What?” Cael looked confused.

“You let that racist prick shut you out of your own investigation.”

Cael merely shrugged. “If talking to you meant he was going to cooperate then I don’t care.”

“You should care, damn it. If you don’t, how can you expect assholes like that to care?”

“They don’t care, Dex, and they’re not going to. That’s why they’re assholes.” Cael leaned into Dex and poked him in the vest. “This isn’t the HPF. You’re in our world now and it’s scary, and ugly, and fucked up. They won’t pat you on the head and tell you how special you are because you have a black daddy and a Therian brother who proudly waves his rainbow flags with you. Here, you’re a freak like the rest of us, so don’t tell me how to do my job.” Cael stalked off and Dex stood speechless. The silence didn’t last long.

“What just happened?”

Sloane let out a low whistle. “Wow. I didn’t even know he could get that mad. Guess I was wrong. Nice going, Rookie.”

Dex blinked at him. “What did I do?”

The hurt expression on Dex’s face was too much for Sloane to bear, and he

took pity on his partner, guiding him toward the front door. “Look, I understand what you were trying to do, but it’s not that easy. I know you’re proud of your baby brother, and believe me, he’s proud of who he is too, but what you need to understand is that being a THIRDS agent means facing a whole new level of stupid.” They stepped outside into the crisp, late September air, the sun shining and the neighborhood peacefully quiet. The only indication anything was amiss were the scores of agent vehicles blocking off both ends of the street and the numerous agents securing the area.

“As an HPF agent, you only had to worry about dealing with other Humans, getting shit for being a cop. Here, everyone hates you for one reason or another, and sometimes it feels like you can’t win no matter what you say or do.” Sloane let out a heavy sigh. “Some of us have learned how to deal, but Cael’s a sweet guy, grew up in a loving home with Humans who accepted him from the start. It’s harder for him. You need to let him cope in whichever way is best for him.” Sloane chose his words carefully, knowing in the end it wouldn’t matter. Dex would come face to face with harsh reality sooner or later. “I’m more worried about how you’re going to deal.”

“Me?” Dex gave him a smirk. “Maybe you haven’t noticed, but I’m a big boy. I know the world’s not all sunshine and unicorns.”

“What I mean is, how are you going to deal when someone decides to be a little more proactive with their hate than that prick of a waiter? You’re going to come to his rescue? Because I can tell you right now how well that’s going to go down.”

“So I’m supposed to stand there and do nothing?” Dex let out a frustrated breath. “I can’t do that.”

“No, you let your brother do his job, handle things his way, and if he needs you, he’ll let you know. Your job is to back him up and protect him from any physical threat that puts his life in danger. It is not your job to come riding in on your white horse to slay all the dragons because they insulted him. Or threw bricks.”

Dex’s eyes clouded with anger, and when he spoke, it was through his teeth. “Someone threw bricks at him?”

“Don’t worry. Ash threw them back.” Sloane gave Dex a smile. He wasn’t sure why he was going out of his way to reassure Dex. He told himself he was doing it for Cael. “You’re not the only one looking out for him, Rookie. Okay?”

Dex nodded, though there was no telling if any of what Sloane said had actually found its way into that thick skull. They headed to the BearCat, a deep frown on Dex’s face. “Sometimes the amount of stupid in this world confounds me. I swear some of these citizens are evolving backwards.”

“We’ve come a long way,” Sloane offered, though he had to admit, sometimes he found it a little difficult to believe it himself.

“Not enough if you ask me.”