Love Against the Law

by Justine Klavon

  While the girls took a lunch break and sat in the kitchen, the doorbell rang. Sammi and Kodi looked at each other with much less shock than the day before. Still being cautious, Kodi walked over and looked out the window by the front door, but she didn’t recognize the man and had to call Sammi over.

  “Ugh, that’s Mazzeline,” Sammi groaned as she took a peek out the window. “We’re supposed to be partners.”

  Sammi opened the door, not exactly thrilled to see her not-so-likeable coworker. Mazzeline entered the house slowly and handed Sammi a white Styrofoam cup that had a lid and a straw. Looking at the cup suspiciously, Sammi held it out in front of her to inspect it.

  “It’s a chocolate milkshake,” Mazzeline told her reassuringly. “I remember you had one at lunch the one day we got to work together.”

  “Oh, thank you,” Sammi replied awkwardly as Kodi made a weird face out of his view.

  Sammi led Mazzeline up to the loft while Kodi made herself scarce. Mazzeline sat on the couch so Sammi sat in the recliner and sucked on the almost-melted milkshake. It was a good milkshake, but an oddly specific thing for Mazzeline to remember about the ten hours they had spent working together.

  “I just wanted to stop by to see how you were feeling,” Mazzeline finally explained after a bit. “You’re clearly tough as nails and I’m really looking forward to working more with you.”

  “Thanks, I really do appreciate that,” Sammi replied. “I’ll be back in less than two weeks, but they’re gonna keep me on light duty until I’m healed. How do you like being a detective?”

  “Last week was great because they paired me with Palma while your husband was out,” Mazzeline told her. “But now that he’s back, there’s not much for me to do.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry. You should ask Hobbs if you can work with the two of them. You’d learn a lot, especially from Mack.”

  Mazzeline made a face that made Sammi laugh. It was no secret that Mack didn’t have the greatest reputation around the office. He wasn’t a total jerk; he was just very serious on the job and didn’t care for any tomfoolery while he was on the clock. But most people took that as him being unapproachable.

  Sammi and Mazzeline chatted a bit longer and Sammi urged Mazzeline to give Mack a chance. If he could overcome the assumptions, he could really find a great mentor in Mack. Palma had been given that opportunity by being partnered with Mack, but he had allowed his intimidation to keep him from bonding with Mack at all.

  After Mazzeline left, Kodi came out of hiding with a lot of questions. She expressed her belief that Mazzeline was infatuated with Sammi as she and Sammi settled back onto the couch to get back to their work. Sammi couldn’t deny her suspicions but she assured Kodi that it was a harmless work crush if anything. And she was pretty sure Mazzeline’s interest only existed because of her one heroic moment while working with him.

  When Mack came home that night, the girls told him about Mazzeline’s unexpected visit. Mack laughed as he joined them at the kitchen table and kept laughing harder at their confused looks.

  “I sent him,” Mack said between chuckles. “He was being annoying, and everyone knows he has a crush on Sammi, so I casually suggested he make the drive out to check on you, just to get him out of the way.”

  “You’re a jerk!” Sammi exclaimed but laughed anyway. “No wonder everyone at work hates you.”

  “Hey! I am a delight!” Mack argued, still giggling.

  “Yep, you’re so delightful that you are going to take Mazzeline under your wing and teach him everything you know,” Sammi shot at him.

  Mack threw his head back and groaned. Sammi got up and stood behind him to lean over and kiss him. He smiled under her lips and she knew Mazzeline had himself a new mentor.

  “I’m getting more accomplished at home than I ever did at the precinct,” Sammi joked.

  “They should make you Captain,” Kodi added for a laugh, which earned her a death glare from Mack.

  “Nah, my baby’s going to be the next Captain,” Sammi cooed as she wrapped her arms around Mack’s neck from behind. Mack reached around the chair and pulled her into his lap so he could kiss her properly.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Hard to Believe

  The following Monday was Sammi’s first checkup with Dr. Brock. Mack had to work, so Kodi happily accompanied her best friend and they decided to make an afternoon of it with a little shopping and grabbing lunch in town. Sammi still had a slight limp due to the soreness of her calf muscle but she hardly noticed it and never made a big deal out of it.

  Dr. Brock was pleased with Sammi’s progress and lack of infection. He believed her to be out of the woods but wanted her to continue on the antibiotics until she ran out of them, just to be on the safe side. They had already scheduled her following checkups, so he decided to keep those appointments for the time being. As this appointment came to an end, Sammi sent Kodi to pull the car around while she asked the doctor a more personal question about her condition.

  “I noticed you’re not wearing a ring,” Sammi said as soon as Kodi was out of the room. “Are you seeing anyone?”

  “Why? Are you newly available?” Dr. Brock asked, only half-kidding. “Because I will buy you anything you want.”

  “No,” Sammi told him, giggling. “What do you think of Kodi?”

  “She’s cute. And she’s obviously a great friend, which tells me more than anything.”

  “Well, if you are really single, you should come by for dinner tomorrow night.”

  “I might just take you up on that.”

  Dr. Brock smiled graciously as Sammi wrote down Kodi’s phone number. He already had the address in Sammi’s file, so they thanked each other and said goodbye before Sammi hurried to meet up with Kodi. She decided to wait to tell Kodi about her date because she knew Kodi might not appreciate being set up.

  When they returned to the house late in the afternoon, Kodi and Sammi were alarmed to find a strange blue Ford sedan parked in front of the house. Neither of them had ever seen the car before, but everything about it screamed undercover police vehicle. Kodi pulled into the driveway and parked before the girls got out of the car, keeping their eyes on the suspicious Ford. As soon as Sammi walked around the back of Kodi’s car, a man got out of the driver side of the blue sedan.

  “Captain Hobbs!” Sammi cried in relief as she ran awkwardly with her limp down the driveway to her favorite boss. Hobbs chuckled at Sammi’s excitement and hugged her with one arm as she reached him.

  “How are you, kiddo?” Hobbs asked with a smile.

  “Just a little sore,” Sammi told him, “but the doc says I’m in the clear.”

  “That’s great. I look forward to having you back at work,” Hobbs replied. “Is there, uh, somewhere we could talk?”

  The Captain’s voice changed with that last question and Sammi knew something had happened. She immediately thought of Mack and her stomach twisted into a knot as she led Hobbs into the house and up to the loft. Hobbs took the recliner so Sammi sat on the couch, leaning forward to ease her nausea.

  “Sammi, some evidence has been turned over to me from your case,” Hobbs said calmly, bringing a red file folder forward in front of him.

  “But I don’t have any cases–oh,” Sammi replied and froze upon realizing he meant the case against Shay.

  Hobbs tossed the thick red folder onto the coffee table between them and it popped open on its own. Right on top was a normal yellow spiral notebook that Sammi recognized immediately as one of the notebooks from the day she and Kodi had planned out a few heists. Sammi didn’t move, but her eyes widened as a cold feeling of fear washed over her.

  “Now, why would a respected member of the New York Police Department have extensive plans to rob the largest bank vaults in the country?” Hobbs asked. He was playing dumb, which made Sammi feel almost insulted.

  “You don’t have any proof that they’re mine,” Sammi finally replied after thinking about it for a second. Her voice shook with nerves, bu
t she was pretty sure she was right.

  “Come on, Sammi, you can do better than that,” Hobbs said, sounding hurt. “But you’re right, technically I cannot prove these are yours at this very second. So, I’m going to keep these, and you are going to return to work as if being a cop is your favorite thing in the world.”

  “Are you blackmailing me?” Sammi asked with a complete look of shock on her face. This was the last thing she would’ve expected from her beloved Captain.

  “How could I be blackmailing you if these aren’t yours?” Hobbs replied coolly. “Seriously, though, it was a pleasure to see you and I look forward to having you back on the job.”

  Hobbs leaned forward as he stood up and patted Sammi’s knee. Then he closed the red folder and scooped it off the coffee table before he turned and left the loft, seeing himself out of the house.

  Sammi couldn’t move from the couch, she was so in shock from Hobbs threatening her. She was more hurt than anything because she had always liked Hobbs and couldn’t believe he would resort to forcing her to do something against her will. Overwhelmed with emotions of anger, fear, and betrayal, she sat there in silence until Kodi came looking for her.

  “What happened?” Kodi asked, knowing something was wrong by the pale look on Sammi’s face.

  “I got busted,” Sammi told her. “He had the notebooks.”

  “So, what now?” Kodi asked, picturing cops swarming the place to arrest Sammi.

  “I have to go back to work. I don’t have a choice.”

  Then Sammi told Kodi the entire conversation between her and Captain Hobbs while Kodi listened with a look of disbelief on her face. That disbelief turned to disgust as Sammi got to the part about Hobbs blackmailing her into coming back to work.

  “I just don’t understand why he cares so much if you’re a cop or not,” Kodi said as she lounged next to Sammi on the couch.

  “I don’t think it has anything to do with me being a cop,” Sammi told her. “He’s just trying to keep me from breaking the law. I’m sure it would be fine if I wanted to sell cars or something.”

  Both girls giggled at the idea of Sammi being a car salesperson then went back to being quiet. Mack got home a little while later and Sammi had no desire to tell him about the visit from Hobbs. But she did have to tell him about inviting Dr. Brock over for dinner the following evening as they got into bed that night.

  *

  Sammi ended up telling Kodi about setting her up with Dr. Brock over breakfast in the morning. Kodi made a disgruntled face, but she was eager to talk about something else that had been on her mind overnight and willingly changed the subject without getting upset with her friend.

  “This whole Hobbs-blackmail thing bothered me all night and I think I know why,” Kodi said, frowning.

  “What do you mean?” Sammi asked, still upset about the situation, though she tried to let it go because it felt out of her control.

  “I still don’t think your Captain would care that much about your career choice,” Kodi told her best friend. “But Mack would.”

  Sammi didn’t say anything as her face reddened and her hands balled into fists. Kodi’s theory made too much sense that she couldn’t believe she hadn’t realized it earlier. And she was madder than she’d ever been in her entire life.

  Throwing her breakfast dishes into the sink as hard as she could and cracking a plate, Sammi stormed off into the bedroom to sulk. She hid in there, lying on the bed in silence with the shades drawn and hoping to fall asleep, until Kodi asked her if she wanted to tag along to the grocery store to get ingredients for dinner that night. They had plenty of time, so they made a special trip to a cute little boutique in the next town to get a dress for Kodi to wear for Dr. Brock.

  That night, Dr. Brock arrived before Mack got home from work. He wore tan khaki pants and a white polo shirt, making him look only slightly younger than he had in his white coat at the hospital. Kodi was still cooking dinner so he immediately went to the kitchen to assist her while Sammi sat quietly at the kitchen table, waiting impatiently for Mack to get home.

  Mack was in a great mood when he got home from work and warmly welcomed Dr. Brock into his home. He excused himself into the bedroom to change after saying hello to everyone and Sammi followed him. She waited until he was out of his work clothes before she attacked.

  “You couldn’t control my life, so you got your boss to do your dirty work for you?” Sammi asked, getting right up in Mack’s face.

  “What are you talking about?” Mack replied, a look of confusion on his face as he took a step back from his angry wife.

  “You want me to stay on the force so bad that you had Hobbs blackmail me into it!” Sammi yelled.

  “Sammi, I seriously have no idea what you’re talking about. What would Hobbs even have to use as blackmail?” Mack remained calm as he tried to get Sammi to relax.

  Unable to relax but realizing that she may have said too much, Sammi stopped talking. She backed away from her husband and sat down on the edge of the bed, looking at the floor. She wasn’t convinced that Mack was innocent, but it was possible that he didn’t know about the notebooks.

  Mack didn’t take his eyes off Sammi as he finished getting dressed for dinner. He wore a pair of black denim jeans with a fitted maroon t-shirt that stretched against his muscles. Then he took a seat next to his wife and cautiously put his hand on her knee.

  “What is going on?” Mack asked with uncertainty.

  “Nothing. It doesn’t matter,” Sammi whispered, keeping her head down.

  “Sammi, don’t shut down on me,” Mack replied calmly. “I’m your husband and I have your back…nine times out of ten.”

  Mack laughed, trying to lighten the atmosphere of the room. But Sammi wasn’t in the joking mood and shot her husband a dirty look. Sammi’s seriousness only made Mack laugh harder, causing Sammi to groan and throw her body backwards onto the bed. Mack laid back next to her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her to him even though she tried to resist.

  “Please tell me what’s going on,” Mack begged dramatically, squeezing Sammi tighter and gently rocking her back and forth.

  Sammi couldn’t hold out against him any longer and giggled at how cute Mack was acting. She snuggled into him and tucked her head under his chin, letting his warmth comfort her. Before Sammi could think of what to say, there was a quiet knock on their bedroom door and Kodi called into the room to let them know that dinner was ready.

  “You’re not getting off the hook that easily,” Mack said as he stood up from the bed and helped his wife up as well. “We will finish this conversation later.”

  Nodding, Sammi followed her husband out to the kitchen. She had plenty of time to decide what to tell him, whether that was going to be the truth or not.

  Dinner went smoothly and Sammi was happy that Dr. Brock, or Anthony, as his new friends could call him, and Kodi seemed to really hit it off. Once everyone had finished eating, the two of them offered to run out and pick up dessert for everyone while the married couple stayed behind to clean up. As soon as they were alone again, Mack wanted answers.

  “I’ll tell you everything if you clean the kitchen,” Sammi offered with a smirk, dropping down into one of the chairs at the table after putting one plate in the sink.

  “Deal,” Mack said, kissing the top of her head as he reached over her to grab the rest of the plates. “I would’ve cleaned up anyway since you’re injured.”

  Sammi stuck her tongue out at Mack as she watched him clean the entire kitchen. As soon as he finished, he swooped down to kneel in front of Sammi at the table and looked up into her face with his hands on her legs.

  “All right, spill it,” Mack said with a pleading look in his face.

  “Ugh, you have to promise to still love me if I tell you,” Sammi replied quietly.

  “Nothing will ever make me stop loving you, sweetheart,” Mack assured her.

  “The day that Shay tried to kill me, I left some notebooks out in the loft a
nd I guess the police collected them as evidence,” Sammi explained. “They had some possibly incriminating details in them and somehow Hobbs ended up with them. He came by yesterday to hold them over my head and demand that I come back to work.”

  Mack’s face fell in complete disappointment as he sat back with his butt on the floor. Sammi knew he was upset and wanted to get up to give him space, but she was afraid to move. She didn’t want to upset him any further, so she stayed where she was and waited for him to make the next move.

  After a little while, Mack stood up without a word and walked into the bedroom, closing the door behind him. He was more upset than Sammi had initially anticipated and now she was really scared that she had hurt him beyond repair. Before she could think of how to fix anything, Anthony and Kodi returned with ice cream and brought it right into the kitchen. They were laughing as they entered, but one look at Sammi’s face told Kodi that something was wrong. Kodi immediately went to her best friend but Sammi didn’t want to ruin her date so she abruptly excused herself and went outside to sit on the back porch in the dark. The only other person Sammi could think of to talk to was Eli so she pulled out her phone and dialed her ex-boyfriend’s number. Eli could tell right away over the phone how upset Sammi was so he told her he’d swing by to pick her up then hung up before she could argue.

  Sammi relocated to the front porch to wait for Eli, but while she waited, Mack came looking for her. He sat next to her on the single cement step and put his arm around her back. She was still too worried to speak, but she didn’t want to push him away, so she leaned into him and put her head on his shoulder. He remained silent as well, but he didn’t pull away from her. As they sat there peacefully, a car pulled into the driveway and Eli stepped up the front walk.