She Was Like a Bright Light

Shaun

I flinch as my partner puts a small cotton ball on the side of my forehead. I move away angrily and she let's her eyes grow wide. "Let me take care of you, Ashmore."

"No," I say with a firm look. "Instead of taking care of me, we should be out there. Following that twerk and his gang of drug dealers."

My partner rolls her eyes at me. "Relax. Others are out there on their tails. Now. Stop moving!"

I take an abrupt hold of her wrist and shake my head. "Stop. I'm fine." I move out of her way and go over to my desk. The cut on the side of my forehead still burns, but I ignore it as adrenaline runs through my veins.

When I was suspended from the facility for two weeks, I took in that time to concentrate on my outside job. The Chief thought that I should join this group of policemen chasing down a drug dealer in the city. I guess I'm getting a little too excited. I'm starting to do the detective or FBI work. Even Tobias gave me an impressed look when I suggested an area that happened to be the right place where they were hiding.

My partner sits on the desk behind me and she turns in her seat to watch me mumble to myself. She does a small chuckle and says, "Are you always like that at home? I bet your wife enjoys having you by her side in bed."

The mention of Vivica brings me out of my concentrated thoughts and I turn around in my seat to give her a small smile. "As a matter of fact, she does. She enjoys my presence by her side. Talking about my wife, I'm going to check up on her."

I start to take the phone on my desk and dial her number. I wait the ringing as my partner nods. "I'm sorry for your wife's accident. It must've been bad if you had to miss a whole week of work."

"Mhm," I say with a fake smile. I had to lie to my boss that Vivica got in a car accident and that I had to look after her. My heart lightens up when I hear her soft voice.

"Hello?"

My playfulness kicks in immediately and I put on my police voice. "I'm sorry, ma'am, are you the wife of Shaun Ashmore?" My partner furrows her brow at me and I put a finger on my lips with a whisper of a chuckle. She smiles and listens as Viv says, "Um...yes. Is something wrong?"

"We would just like for you to come down the station to answer a few questions for us about your husband."

"Is he okay?!" I stop when I start to hear the panic in her voice and I slowly chuckle on the phone. Vivica still seems confused as she firmly says, "Who is this?"

"It's me! It's me!" I playfully say. My partner shakes her head at me and gestures a slitting throat at me. I do a small laugh and say to the phone, "I'm sorry. I just had to."

"Very funny," Viv says sarcastically. "I just got out the restroom. I haven't been feeling very well lately."

I furrow my brows at this. "What? What do you mean?"

My playfulness disappears as I hear her say, "Maybe I ate something. I don't know. But don't worry. I'll be fine. Hey. Hazel wants to talk to you."

"Okay." A smile starts at my lips as I hear her little voice on the other end.

"Hi Daddy."

"Hey sweetheart. How are you?"

"I'm good," she says. I can tell she's probably with her teddy bears by the way she talks slowly. "I miss you."

"I miss you, too, baby girl," I tenderly say to her. "What are you doing?"

"I'm playing with Mister Bear," she says. "Mommy's head hurts."

"Really? Why? Were you a bad girl?"

I can imagine her shaking her head. "No. Mommy's tummy is bad. She's sick!"