Chapter 6 #2
The cops shuffled their feet as their blunder sank in.
Captain Patrick narrowed his eyes at them. “So you both reacted to the word of the person we were here to find and ended up letting her go and detaining the man who asked for our help. That’s not how this is supposed to work. Not in my department.”
“Yes, sir,” the cops said together.
“Mr. Joseph would be within his rights to sue you both for putting him in handcuffs tonight.”
The cops glanced up at Damien as if they were afraid of him.
“That’s not going to happen,” Damien said.
“But it could,” Marcus continued. “It’s not Mr. Joseph’s responsibility to teach the two of you how to treat a Black man.
You need to know this on your own. He’s being kind, and I’m not pushing him to do anything different, just making sure you both understand that errors like this are damaging to the people you commit them against. You two need to pay attention to all the things that happen on a call.
You reacted in the moment, and you read things as they were presented to you instead of remembering what you were told when you got this call.
This job isn’t always about seeing what’s right there, it’s about what people want us to see. ”
“Yes, sir,” they said.
“I think you both have the potential to be excellent cops, but it’s about more than just catching someone. It’s about catching the right someone and protecting the ones who need it.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Head back outside and see if you can find that woman. I’m sure she’s long gone, but look for anything that’s out of the ordinary.”
“Yes, sir,” the cops said, rushing to get to the hallway and out of the building.
Marcus looked at Damien with shame. “There is no amount of apology I can offer you, but I am sorry for what happened.”
Damien shrugged. “I know how it looked. Even without that woman telling them to come and get me. All that matters is Harmony.”
Both men turned to look at her.
She hadn’t changed out of the dress she wore on their date.
The dark blue color complemented her skin tone and her auburn hair.
The silver swirls made his finger itch to follow the same lines all across her body.
She’d ditched her leopard print flats, but that let Damien see the dark blue color of her toenails.
He’d never thought twice about a woman’s toes until he was staring at Harmony’s and wondering what other colors she painted her toes, if she changed the color depending on her outfit, and if he’d be any good at painting them for her.
“I’m okay,” she said, dragging Damien’s thought from her toes. “I don’t know who she was.”
“Did she hurt you?” Damien asked.
Harmony shook her head and looked between the two men. “No. She… I guess you know she followed me into the bathroom?”
Damien nodded. “I asked the manager to see the security footage. She watched it and saw the woman follow you out of the restaurant. She shared a screenshot of the woman, and I called Marcus on my way here.”
“It’s nice to see you again, Harmony.”
“You, too,” she said, smiling shyly at him.
“Damien is a good man. If anyone ever tells you otherwise, they’re lying,” Marcus said.
Damien chuckled at Marcus’s vehement defense of him. “Thanks, Marcus.”
“I mean it. It’s hard to trust someone, and even easier to doubt that trust when it’s new. We are going to look into the woman who followed you. My next step is Demeter to speak to the manager. Pryce is going to meet me over there.”
“Good. Hopefully you can find this woman. Find out what she wants with Harmony.”
“She told me you weren’t who you said. She knew you’d started showing up all of a sudden and said you wanted to get to know me. It was…”
“Spot on,” Damien provided, meeting Marcus’s gaze.
“She could have been following you,” Marcus said.
“I think someone’s been following me,” Harmony whispered.
“What?” Damien barked. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Harmony exhaled a laugh.
“Right. Sorry. We barely know each other,” Damien said.
“Have you gotten a look at them?” Marcus asked.
Harmony shook her head. “No. I noticed a car behind me when I stopped for food one night, and the woman who was here tonight. I’ve seen the same vehicles at work a few times.
Even here. But it’s crazy. The people who live here are going to park their cars here.
The people who go to school or work with me are going to have their cars there.
I never paid much attention before, and now I’m paranoid. ”
“It’s not paranoia if it’s real,” Damien said.
Harmony nodded and shifted slightly closer to him.
“Do you feel safe in your apartment?” Marcus asked.
Harmony chuckled. “I never thought twice about it before, but right now…” She shrugged. “I’m not sure I feel safe anywhere.”
“We have an empty room at the shelter if you want to stay there for a little while,” Marcus offered.
Harmony shook her head. “No. I couldn’t do that. Someone might need it. I’ll be fine here.”
“I can stay with you,” Damien blurted, not thinking about his words before they were out. “If you wanted. Not… I can sleep on your couch.”
“I think that’s my cue to head out. Harmony, I’d like you to come to the station sometime to tell me what happened. I’ll let you know what we find on the footage at the restaurant.”
Harmony nodded.
“Thanks, Marcus. I really appreciate your help,” Damien said, shaking Marcus’s hand.
“Always happy to support Rose, and know it works both ways.”
“Absolutely.”
“Glad I changed my mind after we talked and you weren’t in cuffs longer. I’ll talk to those two again.” Marcus shook his head. “Take care, Harmony. And the offer stands if you decide you want to come to the shelter.” Marcus clasped both hands around Harmony’s and smiled warmly at her.
“Thank you. I’ll let you know if I change my mind.”
Marcus nodded, then went toward the exit.
Damien stared after Marcus until he turned the corner. He lifted his gaze to Harmony and found her watching him with her lower lip between her teeth.
The rest of his night, and maybe much longer, depended on what was going on behind those beautiful eyes of hers.