Nina placed the phone back on its receiver and got up from her desk. Her meeting with Nick was in a few hours and already she was exhausted from work. The manuscript she was currently working on had way too many errors to look past. For the past three hours, she had been editing and correcting several mistakes. How could one work have so many errors? Now she knew what editors went through before a good book was published. Her meeting with Nick was going to be stressful since he was as stubborn as a mule always trying to impose his will on others. She sighed and walked to Claudia's office to discuss plans for her next work. She had a lot of material on ground but none of it was coning together. Claudia wanted big, something eye catching, gripping storyline with drama mixed with passion and Nina had always delivered on it but due to several distractions on every side, she was suffering from writer's block—the worst kind—so her writing was on the back burner. "Hi Ann, is she in?" Annabella Ross was a pale skinned woman with a banana body shape and an oval face. Her raven locks were draped like a curtain at the back of her head. She was twenty four years old and she was Claudia's PA. She had been working for Claudia before Nina got there and she was the friendly type. "Yes she's in. She's not in a good mood though. Stephen, Michael and Simone are not in today and she's stressed with personal issues as well." "I'll be careful Ann, I just really need to speak to her." Ann smiled and waved her off wishing her luck which she would definitely need if Claudia was in a bad mood. Nina sighed and knocked before walking in. She spotted Claudia pacing around while speaking on the phone and she just sat on the couch waiting for her to finish. It was time to send some manuscripts to the slush pile and it had to be today. She was getting headaches from the errors in each manuscripts. What happened to editing your own work before submission? Maybe it wasn't the mistakes that was irritating her, maybe it was the idea of bring around Nicholas Mackenzie. He was so work oriented that he pushed other things to the side. He didn't care for any other thing apart from his work and what he could do to crack whatever case he was working on. Imagine him climbing all the way to her room window just so he didn't lose an important suspect in the case. She never felt so insulted and worthless before in her life. At least her family cared a little, they just wanted her to follow the family thing is all where as Nick did everything he did for the case and as much as she respected and admired his professional sense it being her friends case and all but still, being on the receiving end of such 'care' sucked. "Sorry, I was trying to arrange for extra staff tomorrow. Simone, Simon and now Stephen are 'ill', all at the same time." Nina immediately got the message loud and clear; her boss didn't actually believe they were sick, well at least not at all of them. "You don't believe them?" Claudia sighed and sat down, adjusting her glasses. "I believe Simone and maybe Stephen because he's never taken a break from work but since he's taking one now, I assume it's pretty serious." "So Simon then?" "Yes, it's him I don't believe. He has tried on several occasions to get a leave outside his officaially approved leave. I don't appreciate slacking off work, if you feel you're not up to it then just quit after all Books and Coffee isn't the only publishing house there is. Anyway what do you want?" "I just wanted to apologize for not putting in my work before the deadline as usual. Things have been really crazy with Jenny's case and I can't concentrate on much else at the moment. Can I take my time and get back to you when I've finished?" Nina said and waited patiently for her response. The manuscripts thing wasn't a big deal and all she had to do was contact the writer so they could talk. Ever manuscript was a dream and a lot of work was put into each line, sentence and paragraph. It would be cruel of her to throw that dream in the trash because she was feeling irritated. Claudia looked up at Nina and smiled. "You know what, I was actually going to call you to talk about that. I'm not cruel Nina, hard and strict on some occasuons yes but I have feelings too. You can take all the time you need, I'm not running away and besides your last work was a major hit, it's still selling." Nina smiled happily grateful for Claudia's soft side. Now she could concentrate on the case without having to worry about deadlines. "You better go, lunch break is almost over. You can take the rest of the day off if you'd like so long as you promise to hand in your piece on time." "I'll Claudia, I promise. I could hug you now because I'm so excited!" "Okay that's enough kindness for one day and now please go away before I change my mind." Nina walked out of the office and did a happy dance all the way to her cubicle drawing attention to herself. She ignored them and packed her stuff putting the manuscripts in her bag. She'd go over them at home with a cup—or two cups—of coffee and her pillow. She waved at Jessica and the other people; men and women, sitting around her and walked out of her office, heading towards the coffee shop where she was supposed to meet Nick. Perhaps she was getting too familiar with him calling him by his first name and all that. He would probably prefer a more serious work relationship so she should probably just stick to Detective, it was more formal and it didn't leave room for any ideas. Arianna was right to question her motives. They were supposed to have a professional relationship—thanks to Jenny—so being on first name basis wasn't appropriate. He called her Ms Marshall so she might as well call him Detective or Nicholas MacKenzie or just Mackenzie, it was only fair. She sighed walking into the shop and made her way to the front where Lila, the owner of the place was standing. Lila had become like the elder sister she never had and she always found comfort in the little shop that smelled like coffee beans. She could remember the day she walked into the little shop for the very first time. She couldn't see past the rage and anger she was feeling at the time and she had almost crashed into Lila's tiny frame. Lila didn't yell or frown—the way someone else would have done given the situation—instead she smiled at her, led her to a booth in a secluded area of the shop and sat with her leaving her workers to worry about the customers. She made her feel special, loved, significant and the attention she gave her was foreign. She was supposed to be in high spirits since it was her birthday but she wished the earth would swallow her up whole so she could escape all the bad energy around her. Her good and wonderful, very understanding and supportive family just turned their backs on her and the pain was indescribable. Did she really have to be a detective? Was that what it took to be a 'Marshall'? Lila smiled at her and finally asked her what was wrong. They talked for awhile and Lila told her to listen to her heart because it never lied. She also gave her a free cup of coffee to go and bought her some of Julie's delicious cakes. Before her talk with Lila she was heartbroken and she was ready to do whatever it took for them to accept her but Lila made her see that she had a right to decide— "Do you get lost in thought often?" That voice, she could recognize it in her sleep. It was him, Mr Workaholic. She faked a smile and walked with him to a table. Lila was by their side immediately taking their order. He liked black coffee, no suprise there. "So why this place?" She asked and waved at one of Lila's workers. Nick noticed the familiarity and the ease with which she interacted with the workers and the owner. "I knew I'd be around here today and your office is so close to this place so yes it's easier—for both of us." Nina nodded and after taking a sip of her coffee, she decided to irritate him. He was too uptight, time to shake him up a little. "So do you come here often? I mean are you a regular here?" His glare brought a smile to her face and she counted the scores in her head. Nina 1, Detective 0. "I think we should focus on your friend's case at this point, it's why we are her but if it's no longer important then I really have a lot of work to get to." He had played her own game and he had suceeded in getting under her skin. Nina 1, Detective 1. Focus Nina, don't let him get under your skin. "What's the latest on my friend's case? Are the swab results out? Have you caught Ryan yet? Has he confessed? Nick eyed her closely as if trying to read her mind. "No to both questions and sadly there are no updates on the case as of yet and if there are no updates by next month, she'll be pronounced dead and the case will be closed, forever." Nina glared flames into his head, her anger rising with each word. "There is a suspect and all you have to do is find him, catch him and interrogate him. The person responsible for my friend's disappearance is roaming the town freely and you're not doing anything about it! If you refuse to do your job, I'll gladly do it for you because unlike you I'll be greatly affected by the outcome of this case. I'm giving you a week, when your time is up I'll take over the case and find that criminal who is walking around like a freeman and then I'll find my friend because she's not dead, she'll never be dead." She sniffed and dropping a few notes on the table, she stormed off ignoring Lila's voice calling out her name. Lila was a sweetheart but right now she just wanted to be alone with her thoughts. Nicholas Mackenzie was the most irritating man alive. Jenny was alive and she was going to prove it to him and to everyone. She had left the house because of James and their brawl but now, she'll leave and not return until Jenny was home safe and sound. ***
Nicholas downed the rest of the coffee and looked at Dylan, his expression thoughtful. Blake Carlos was missing a few days after Jenny was said to have gone missing and Ryan Simmons had been out of town long before that. He didn't know why but somehow the two cases were related. "Dylan, what do you think? First Jenny Flair and then Blake Carlos? No Ryan Simmons." Dylan shook his head at his friend and picked up his coffee mug. "I don't know man, it all doesn't make sense. I do know that there's no connection between the two cases. Blake Carlos's disappearance has nothing to do with Jenny Flair's disappearance and besides the dates don't add up." "Yeah, you're right but I feel...." "Mackenzie, the Chief wants to see you." Nicholas looked up at Peggy and nodded. "I'll be back Dylan." And with that he walked to the Chief's office. The Chief signalled for him to come in and he walked in sitting on the three settee. The Chief was on the phone and from his mumbled words, he was speaking to the mayor. Just what he needed, another friend of the missing person who wanted updates on the case. Nina Marshall had insulted him by telling her how to handle the case. He didn't feel like talking to the mayor or Nina Marshall at the moment. He had no time to waste on people who kept trying to teach him his job, he knew just how to do his job and he didn't need anyone to tell him otherwise. Ryan Simmons was difficult to locate and every search came back the same. In all his years of working to crack such difficult cases, he had never come across one quite like this and he had been so attached to one of the possible suspects —the way he was attached to Nina Marshall. Somehow everyday with all the work he had, she was always at the back of his mind, his thoughts and now he was doing it again. She was always there in his thoughts amidst other important stuff,—personal or official—she was always there and damn if he didn't want to get her out. Seeing her today had been torture especially since she had decided to be so formal with him all of a sudden. Calling him Detective and beimg so serious and formal with him was supposed to make him happy but all it did was infuriate him to no end and he couldn't understand and neither could be explain why. Why was her sudden change in attitude affecting him so much? "Mackenzie...." The Chief called once again and Nick looked up. "Yes sir. I'm sorry sir I've a lot of things on my mind." Chief eyed him closely as if reading his thoughts. "That was the mayor and he wanted to find out what you've been doing so far. I feel you're too distracted and so I've decided to help you with that. As of now, the Flair case will be handled by Dylan, your partner so you can focus on the mayor's case more." Nick gasped wondering why his day wasn't going well. All of a sudden, Nina was being so formal with a him and now he was being taken of a case which had never happened before. What was happening to him and why was Nina's behavior such an issue? He didn't even want to think too much about it. "Sir, I can handle both cases and somehow I feel the two cases are connected, I just need more time to solve it.". "And time is what we don't have. The mayor is very important in this town and he should always come first before any one else no matter what. It's an order Mackenzie, let Dylan handle it. You can help him—only if he comes to you—but you're not allowed to involve yourself with it anymore. Spend more of your time with this new case and get to the bottom of it as soon as possible. There'll be serious consequences if you disobey." Nick nodded and walked out without a word storming into the coffee room. Today wasn't his best day because everyone was against him. Nina was against him—she didn't think he was competent enough—and now even the Chief was against him. The Chief didn't think he had the energy needed for such a case. He could do with a strong dose of caffeine so he could get through the rest of the day. "Here, drink it." Nick jumped in fright and sighed when he saw Peggy. "Peggy, when did you get here?" Had he been so far gone that he didn't notice her walk into the room? Maybe they were right after all... "You've always been so hard on yourself Nicholas, I can feel the heat of the guilt you're carrying. I was here when you walked in but you didn't see me because you were angry—are still angry. What's the matter?" "The Chief took me off the reporter's case because the mayor is very important. I have never questioned any of his decisions—until today." "That's because you know it's not right, somewhere deep down inside you know that no one is more important and everyone should be given the same level of importance in matters like this." "You didn't even let me finish my statement." Peggy smiled and adjusted her glasses. "You're going to say our superiors are always right and the Chief knows what he's doing. And when I try to convince you otherwise, you'll just make up some excuse to justify your words." "They are always right Peggy, always. The Chief is probably saving me from a very futile case that will not yield any results because the girl is probably dead." Peggy shook her head with a frown on her face. He was so stubborn! "Has anyone told you how stubborn you get?" An image of a red haired flashed before his eyes and he sighed. And she was back in his head again. "Yes—but she's wrong—, she's the hardheaded one." Keep telling yourself that... "I'm not going to tell you what you should do because you're old enough to decide what's right and what's wrong. But, I need you to go home and think about it. Think deeply about it and think hard then whatever you decide is on you. I've stayed long enough, Chief must be looking for me." And with that she walked out leaving Nick alone with his thoughts.
The boy couldn't resist his sister's cute face especially with her mouth in a cute pout. She had him wrapped around her little finger and she didn't know it—God forbid if she did. "Please, oh plea se let me play in the garden. My dolls are really boring now and I'm too old to be playing with them. The swing and the other playthings are okay for me. Please, please...?". The little boy groaned and smiled knowing he was going to give into her, he always did. She was his only sibling and he hated seeing her sad. "Alright Rosie but you know the rules..." Rosie rolled her eyes and answered. "Yes I do. Don't cross over the walls, it's dangerous, don't talk to anyone, strangers are dangerous....can I go now?" The little boy rolled his eyes at little Rosie and chose to ignore her obvious attempt at cutting his speech short. "Just get out before I change my mind." He said and two tiny hands were wrapped around his neck squashing him. "You're the best, Nick."
YOU ARE READING
HER WISH TO PROVE
RomanceNina Marshall has always wanted to belong in her family, a family of law enforcement agents at several levels with her being the only family member so far who wanted nothing to do with it. Now she wants to prove that their blood runs in her veins Wh...
