Living In Infamy

Chapter One- Colby

I never should have accepted this mission. I never should have. I should have just said no. "Heh," I chuckled under my breath. "Like they'd let me."

I was currently staring down at my computer, looking at the image of a smiling girl with (h/c) hair. Her hair fell just right, and her eyes shone in the bright, multicolored concert lighting. She was standing next to a man with raven black hair and gauges in his ears. He had an electric guitar slung over his back, and she had an acoustic guitar in hand. Based on the number of posts I'd scrubbed through by this point, he was her brother.

I took in every detail of the photo, looking for anything amiss. I shook my head and moved onto the next one. She was laughing at the beach, a plain straw hat on her head. The waves crashed up behind her, making for one hell of an Instagram photo. No wonder it had over a million likes. I continued scrolling down, looking at her Instagram. Despite my wavering attention span, I tried to scan every detail of the pictures. Nothing stood out. I sighed and shut my laptop in frustration. There was nothing there.

My superiors, if you could call them that, have reason to believe that Ms. Smith is a member of the most notorious gang in LA. I don't believe that for one second. And even if she was, there would be no point on posting anything on Instagram. They didn't get to be the worst crime ring on the west coast if they did. My frustration became palpable when I smacked my hand against my desk. Before I could act out any other way, my phone rang.

"Agent Brock. How's the investigation going on Ms. Smith?"

"I've spent the past hour scrolling through her Instagram and there's nothing in there. Just her brother."

"Maybe he has some information on his feed. Check into his next, Agent Brock."

"Boss, do I have to? There's nothing-"

The tone from the call being ended cut me off.

"Just great. Just great." I stewed in shallow anger, thinking of the task ahead. More looking at Instagram photos that would tell me jack shit. I ran a hand through my hair before grabbing my coat. I needed to get out of my apartment. Before I walked out, I slipped my gun into the holster on my back. Then I shut the door, locking it with my key.

The air blew colder and I pulled my coat around me tighter. It was an abnormally cool day in LA today, which wasn't uncommon due to the cool early spring air. I waited at one of the many bus stops nearby, not having a destination in mind but knowing I had to get some fresh air. A blast of cooler air hit me as the bus pulled up. I climbed onto the bus and sat down as far back as I could. Old habits die hard. I used to be a field agent, but now I was just tasked with observation since I apparently couldn't be trusted. One girl managed to break through my mental walls, and she turned out to be working for the enemy. I ended up with a nasty scar and a broken heart. I still don't know which hurt worse. From so many bad experiences, I preferred to know what was going on around me, and that meant eyes on everything. I was just starting to relax when my phone rang. I swore under my breath and answered it.

"Brock."

"Agent Brock. I have live camera footage showing Ms. Smith at the bus stop near-"

I mentally cut him off because I saw Ms. Smith climbing aboard the bus. Due to the lack of seats, she sat down fairly close to me. I could even smell her perfume.

"Yeah, I gotta go. I got eyes on the target. I'll keep you updated."

I hung up before my boss could say anything else. Being able to see her, and not some perfectly curated Instagram posts, made a world of difference.

"I'm telling you," the girl laughed. "I didn't think my brother would act like that! Believe me, I saw the music video! The man had eye liner on!"

I listened to her laughing and one thought that had been persistent since I had first seen her picture. How could this girl know the masterminds behind the biggest crime ring in LA?

"No, Amy, I'm serious! The man looked absolutely insane! I still can't believe I'm related to that loser! Ok, ok, I get it. We're both in the music business. But that's all we have in common! Anyway, Ams, I gotta go. I'm almost at my stop. Talk to you later!"

She hung up the phone and stood up when the bus pulled to a stop. She walked out with the rest of the passengers before I could even say a word to her. That's when I saw it: her wristlet purse. I was stuck in a moment of indecision. I was just supposed to watch her. Follow her. Those were my orders. Nothing more, nothing less. My phone rang in my pocket but I ignored it. Snatching it up, I took out after her.

"Miss!"

I sprinted off the bus just as it started up and moved back into traffic.

"Hey miss!" I waved her small bag, hoping she'd stop. The bus had just moved past when I saw her again. "Miss! I have your bag!" Luckily for me, she heard my shouts.

She turned and saw me running towards her. A smile came to her lips and she started back towards me, her bag still in my hand.

"Thank you so much! I can't believe I left that on the bus!"

She was almost back across the street, and not a moment too soon. A car came out of nowhere, but in the split second I saw the driver, I knew it was no accident. I grabbed Ms. Smith and yanked her out of the way, just in time.

"Are you ok?"

She started hyperventilating as I held her. I hoped she would calm down soon. I knew the reason for her actions were adrenaline. In the right situations, adrenaline could save your life. In the wrong ones, it was an addictive drug that completely shut down the rational side of the human brain.

"It's ok. You're safe," I tried comforting her, hoping the adrenaline would wear off just enough for her to realize she's ok.

"I, I'm just so shaken up. I can't believe that car almost hit me! Thank you so much, sir!"

It was my first time getting a personal look at Ms. Smith. She looked so much prettier in person than perfectly curated photos on my screen. She looked like the most perfect girl I've ever seen.

"Uh, you're welcome. Are you ok though?"

"I'm fine now. Thank you for saving me."

"Uh, no problem. What's uh, what's your name?"

"My name's (Y/n). And you are?"

"Colby."