It Was Always You

Ch. 7 Brief Respite

Angela left St. Thomas hospital feeling exhausted and just a little sad. The decedent she picked up had been expected to pass, but it hurt her heart to see his grieving family around him especially his youngest daughter, who appeared to be in her teens, and had been sobbing in the corner of the room. She knew all too well what it was like to lose a father. Sighing, she checked her phone, hoping there'd be a text from Juice. There wasn't. He had texted her late the night before saying he'd be staying at the clubhouse. It wasn't unsual for him to do, especially if they'd all been busy helping the Oswald family, but it meant a sleepless night for her; she didn't sleep well when he wasn't beside her. It was strange he hadn't texted that morning though. Usually, if he didn't' come home she woke up to a 'good morning' text with extra little emojis. Glancing up from her phone, she saw Hale's Bronco parked on the street and tossed her phone in the passenger seat hoping he hadn't seen her checking her phone while driving and assumed she was texting.

She wasn't surprised when Hale stepped into the street beside his car, waving her down. Cursing softly, she pulled over; she really didn't need to get a ticket with a dead body in the back of the van. She pulled up in front of his cop car, rolling down her window as Hale approached. "Morning, Angela," he greeted with a small smile.

"I'm so sorry," she blurted out, license and registration already in hand. "I swear I wasn't texting. Just checking my phone. I got a dead body in the back of my car, and I was just checking to see if I had any messages."

Hale chuckled, shaking his head slowly. "Not a worry. I didn't see anything. You can step out of the vehicle. You're not in any trouble. Just got something to show you."

"All right," she drawled out suspiciously as she got out of the car. She watched him warily, hoping his next move wasn't to bust out the handcuffs.

He headed towards the bushes in front of the station, gesturing towards the ground. "I believe he belongs to you?"

Angela gave him a quizzical look before looking between the bushes. A laugh escaped her hold at the sight of Juice laying there between the bushes clad in nothing but a diaper and his boots with a pacifier taped to his mouth and a cardboard sign stapled to his chest that read in all caps, "Slightly retarded child. Please adopt me." She chuckled, wondering how the hell he ended up there. "Yep, he's mine all right. I'll be the one adopting him," she stated, grinning up at Hale. "As long as you don't arrest him."

"Don't tempt me," Hale muttered, nudging Juice's side with his boot. "Hey, idiot. Wake up. You must've really pissed off your buddies."

Juice came to with a groan, immediately going to rip the pacifier from his mouth and grunting in pain as he did so. "Oh shit," he murmured, pushing himself up slightly.

He hadn't noticed her there yet, but he apologized to Hale, muttering something about an eight o'clock feeding as he got to his feet. Hale turned to her and gestured to her van. "Get him outta here 'fore I slap indecent exposure on 'im."

"Yes sir," Angela replied, breathing in sharply when Juice forcefully pulled off the sign stapled to his chest.

Juice must've heard her because he glanced over her, his eyes still sleepy, the sweetest smile on his face. "Oh hey, baby," he greeted, rubbing at his back. "What're you doin' here?"

"Makin' sure you get home safely, goof," she replied, frowning at the bleeding little punctures left behind by the staples. "C'mon, let's get some antibacterial shit on that 'fore you get infected."

"Mmkay," he murmured sleepily, draping an arm over her shoulders. Clearly, whatever drugs he'd taken hadn't worn all the way off yet.

Angela rubbed a hand over his back lovingly before nodding to Hale. "Thanks, Dave," she called to him as she helped Juice towards the van. Hale just gave her a little salute before heading into the station.