Syd Parker - The Killing Ground

His last look at her reminded Rebecca of a wounded animal trying to understand why it had been hurt. She barely heard the uttered why before he sank onto his knees and dropped his head in his hands, sobbing uncontrollably.

“Two, with mustard.” Jordan pulled her wallet from her back pocket and handed the vendor a couple of bills. “Keep the change.”

“You know when I said you were buying me lunch, this isn’t exactly what I had in mind.” The words came out almost as a stutter against the cold Chicago air. The wind blowing off the river sent chills up and down Rebecca’s spine. Truth be told, she hated winters here in Chicago. Growing up in southeast Texas meant she had never experienced a real winter aside from a few freak storms. When she had opted to go to Northwestern for school, she got the shock of her life the first winter she had been here. It was almost enough to drive her back south to the warmer, balmier Texas temperatures. Almost.

Jordan handed her a hotdog and smiled. “Come on. You’ll love it, I promise.”

Rebecca took the food with a shaky hand. She didn’t bother taking her gloves off, so when a glob of mustard stained her glove, she swore silently. She took a bite and moaned appreciatively. “So, it’s good, okay. Can we at least sit in the car?”

“Nope.” Jordan smiled cryptically and pulled her closer towards the bridge on Michigan Street overlooking the river. “Gotta get the whole experience.”

They walked until they were midway across, and Jordan leaned her elbows on the cold concrete. They could see Lake Michigan in the distance, and Jordan shivered involuntarily. Despite the cold temperatures, the Magnificent Mile was a hurried rush of people, and they ate in silence, watching the world pass them by.

“See, I told you. It’s fucking freezing.” Rebecca stuffed the last bite of her hotdog in her mouth and chewed quickly.

“Hungry?” Jordan said with a throaty laugh.

“Starving. But I was afraid if I didn’t eat fast, I was going to be eating a meat flavored Popsicle, and I have to admit, I’ve never had a taste for those.”

“Hmm.”

“Hmm, what?” Rebecca queried.

“Hmm, that answers one question.” Jordan finished her dog and said the next words around a mouthful. “Whether Detective Foxx is really one of the guys or not.”

“Ahh.” Understanding dawned on her face. “You thought maybe because I didn’t fall for your tortured bad-guy act, that perhaps I liked dick.”

Jordan laughed. “Something like that. Of course, Agent Riley will be sorry to hear that. He’s nursing a little crush on a certain beautiful redhead.”

Rebecca studied her face as if trying to figure out if Jordan was just teasing her. An uncomfortable look broke out across her features when she realized she was serious. “Well, that will make it a little more awkward when he’s around.”

“Don’t worry about him too much…until after the case.” Jordan caught Rebecca’s furrowed brow. “That’s when he is planning to ask you out.”

“Argh.” Rebecca dropped her head in her heads dramatically. “God this happens all the time. Why do all the guys have to fall for the bitchy, red-headed Detective?” Her voice held just enough sarcasm to be humorous.

“Don’t give him too much grief. It’s pretty easy to get a crush on you.” Jordan admitted with a rueful smile. “I’m sure he isn’t the only one that has fallen for the tough as nail's Detective.”

Rebecca met her eyes and looked for a sign that this time, she was teasing her. She found none. Realization dawned on her, and she mentally chided herself for the feelings she was starting to reciprocate. This was suddenly becoming very complicated, and Rebecca didn’t do complicated.

Jordan sensed her discomfort and changed the subject quickly. She felt a rush of warmth in that few seconds when Rebecca let her guard down. Somewhere hidden behind the mask of cool indifference, she sensed a mutual attraction and cursed the inability to pursue it. “So, tell me what got you into this business?”

Rebecca’s husky laugh filled the air. “My dad actually.”

“Really? One of those my dad did it, so I’ve got to follow in his footsteps things?”

“Actually, no.” Rebecca shoved off the bridge. “Come on, let’s walk. If you’re going to force me to stand out in the cold, I need to keep moving.”

Jordan fell into step alongside her. She took the opportunity to study Rebecca. When she looked closely, she saw light freckles splashed across her face, barely visible against her creamy skin. She was just as beautiful in profile as she was head on, despite the fact that Jordan couldn’t see her green eyes, eyes that were quickly becoming hard to look into without getting lost. She stumbled over the uneven pavement and caught herself with a sheepish grin.

“Watch that first step. It’s a doozie.” They said it in unison and broke out in uncontained laughter. “ Groundhog Day!”

Somewhere in between Jordan’s misstep and laughing over their memories of the movie, Rebecca made the mistake of looking into Jordan’s eyes. She felt herself being pulled into them, and rather than back away, she felt herself narrowing the distance. The warmth emanating from Jordan’s body enveloped her and made her blood rush wildly in her veins. Her stomach fluttered pleasantly, and it wasn’t until she felt the cold hit her moistened lips, that she remembered where she was, and she backed away shyly.

She heard her ragged breathing and could tell from Jordan’s sudden silence, that she had affected her as much as Jordan had affected her. “I…I…where was I?”

Jordan stepped closer and brushed a red strand behind her ear with such gentleness that Rebecca thought her knees might fail her. The naked hunger staring back at her unnerved her even further, until she had no choice but to run for safety.

When Jordan finally caught up to her and put a hand on her arm to stop her, she shook it off with more force than she meant to. “Everything okay?”

“Yes.” Rebecca forced herself to nod affirmatively. “I just needed to warm up.” She knew that was a lie. If anything, she needed to cool off. She mentally willed her heartbeat to slow down.

“We can go back to the car.” Jordan offered softly. Right now, if Rebecca had said she wanted to go to the moon, Jordan would have built her a spaceship to get there.

Rebecca shook her head. “No, let’s just walk.” She wasn’t ready for the intimacy being alone in the car would give them. “So, what were we talking about?”

“You were telling me about your dad and how you decided to be a Detective.”

“Oh yeah.” Rebecca ran a tube of Chapstick over her lips, a move that almost pushed Jordan over the edge. If she knew the effect she was having on Jordan, she showed no sign of it. “Pop was a truck driver, but there was always something about law enforcement that intrigued him. He had watched every detective show that was ever on TV. I remember sitting on the couch watching Cagney and Lacey or Magnum P.I., or whichever of the dozen shows that he lived by. He went on and on about how he had always wanted to be a cop, but just sort of fell into driving. I think he just talked about it so much when I was growing up, that it was the only thing I saw myself doing. They made it look a lot sexier on TV.”

“I don’t know, you make it look pretty sexy.”

Rebecca met Jordan’s eyes, and she saw the sparkle of laughter in them. She knew that, at least for now, even if she meant it, Jordan was taking mercy on her fragile soul by throwing some humor in the situation.

“You wear the gun pretty well.”

“Thanks.” Rebecca smiled, and her whole face lit up. “The funny thing is, I found out I was pretty damn good at it, and it makes the old man proud.”