one of charmings finest

Rubbing at his eyes, Austin muttered a harsh curse beneath his breath and sighed hard. He knew he’d felt tired, but tired enough to fall asleep with the keys in the ignition was a new low– one he hadn’t reached in quite some time, or while sober. Shaking his head, he glanced over at Adriana and managed a weak laugh, “I mean, I’m never gonna object to coffee.” And soothing music didn’t sound half bad either.

Gazing up at the sky, Austin huffed another curse word and leaned back against his car. After midnight? Groaning quietly, he scrubbed a hand down the side of his face, “Fuck– a few hours, then,” he answered, still stunned by how easy it had been for him to pass out. When he’d done his fair share of traveling, he’d spent most nights crammed in the back seat of a car instead of a warm bed, but that had been years ago– looking back, he wondered how he even pulled it off; it wasn’t as comfortable as he remembered.

Focusing his attention back on Adriana and the touch of panic in her voice, Austin shook his head, quick to shoot down her worry, “No, no– she’s with my mom.” Thankfully. He nearly blanched just imagining if he’d fallen asleep with Fallon in the car with him. He reached up to shove the wild strands of his hair back and away from his forehead, only for them to stubbornly flop back into his eyes. Sighing, he eyed her again, noting at once that she was still in uniform– which made him worry this wasn’t just a friendly stop. “Shit…I’m not under arrest for anythin’, am I?”

“I could go for some coffee right about actually, if you’re up to it?” The mere mention of her only drug of choice was enough to have her craving the stuff when she didn’t even need to stay awake. It was counterproductive on her part to even offer seeing as she didn’t need the caffeine but maybe he did, and usually Austin would never outright say he needed anything. Though she had a feeling that a new daughter was going to teach him to be humble in asking for that help because he was in over his head. From the bags under his eyes telling of just how much any extra rest was needed to the literal scenario they were in now, parenthood was getting the best of him. As it did many in town and she could only feel for him as she had never really understood first hand what came with the job. However he seemed to be taking everything with stride and was pretty adamant about doing whatever he needed to do for Fallon. And that pretty much trumped anything he would do or not because that love right there was special enough.

Tonight though the extra go go juice might just be needed, or at least the conversations that flow over a cup or two. “You know the diner is still open this late.” Doing all she could but snort since it was about the only hot spot to be at besides the bars and even then the drunks would show up shortly. Brought her back to her patrol days when she’d frequent this late for the inevitable drunk and disorderly charge she could slap on someone after a hot cup. Charming made it too easy that way in being the smaller town it was. Though if he’d been out already a few hours it might be too much to ask even with his mom watching the baby. Mrs. Monroe was not a woman that Adriana wanted to upset and was not about to deepen the older woman’s hatred of her tonight. Not if she could help it. 

“I’m gonna need backup.” Cursing the situation as she spoke into the radio clip attached to her uniform as she entered the bar. This disturbance was more than just a drink or a punch thrown and instantly she knew that she’d have to call it in. Better to have backup even if she was friendly with the two men coming into sight as she entered La Luna. Someone had called in a disturbance at the bar minutes ago and Adriana had been the first to respond being but a couple blocks away. She had picked up one of the overnight shifts for one of the deputies whose wife was in labor and had been hoping for a generally easy night. Except in Charming that was too much to ask for given the residents and their inane obsession with getting into trouble. 

“Mr. Morrow!” Her voice stern and raised an octave or two as she addressed the man who’d taken center stage in the bar as she came back to the present. Everyone had backed away to the corners to leave the two alone with nothing but an overturned table and steam literally coming off the two of them as they stood there. The other man who was trying to take on the larger man looked almost humorous as just in size alone there was no match. She was pretty sure it was blood coming from the other’s nose and she wasn’t quite sure what was on his shirt but she moved her hand to her belt. Not really wanting to pull her gun but being ready just in case. “Both of you out, come on. Let’s go.” Still demanding her authority despite their attention being each other because it was time to go for both of them.

“I mean it, I’ll drag you out myself if you don’t start heading for that door.” Giving both of them a pointed look as she moved closer. 

Adriana Delgado Eris Moraru Lucas Connolly

Pinching the bridge of his nose, his eyes never left hers. Whilst he wasn’t satisfied with her lack of agreement, he wasn’t surprised by it either. Couldn’t be seen to be bias, after all. Especially if she turned out to be wrong, that would just be embarrassing. Not that he thought she would, he’d be as shocked and angry as the rest of the MC if it turned out to be one of them. “At the bar,” he answered, followed by a shake of his head. “Did I notice any masked murderer hovering around him in a crowded room? No, I didn’t. Like I said, I wasn’t actively looking to notice who was or wasn’t around him.” Axel gave a quiet sigh. “And before you ask, no, he didn’t seem anything but his usual self.” Not angry, not spooked, nothing. Just typical Martin. 

“Trust me, I’ve already went over it in my head on a loop.” Wondering if there was something he’d missed, something he should have noticed but alas, there was nothing. Which funnily enough, didn’t make him feel better at all. “I ain’t got anything to give you. And you know, even if I did, I wouldn’t.” It didn’t need to be said, but he reminded her anyway. “Forensics drew a blank, huh?” It wasn’t too out there to suggest. If she was here questioning him it meant they still had nothing to go on. “That’s unsettling.” He gave off an almost smirk, in spite of the fact he was deadly serious. It was unsettling, for everyone involved. 

It unnerved her, keeping direct eye contact with him but she dared not to look away. She was positive he already knew that she was intimidated by him and she knew doing so would just provoke him further. Make some stupid comment that she’d have to combat yet again and she didn’t have time for that tonight. Not with a killer, or killers, on the loose and not much to go on. Even though he was humoring her questions it wasn’t likely that she’d get much out of him because everyone has the same story. They hadn’t seen anything, no one had been acting out of the ordinary, and the masks had done their job concealing identities. “Come on, you know I have to ask these questions.” Frowning because while he might be frustrated recounting the night with nothing to give her, she was just as tired of it too.

Her eyes rolled at his next comment as he all but told her if he had information he’d already have acted on it. Unsurprisingly that was the case with half of the people she’d taken statements from. “Of course not, you’d what? Take the law into your own hands?” Raising a brow at the other as she egged him on. He was starting to piss her off and the worst thing about it is Adriana believed him, every word. Which meant they were not any further than they’d started and she was wasting her time. Which was what forced her next outburst that she’d usually just bite down and ignore. “What’s unsettling is that you’ve admitted that even if you did have something that would help find the killer of your own friend you wouldn’t give up that information to the authorities. That you’d just continue this cycle of thinking the world is your playground and the consequences don’t apply to you.”

Location: Charming PD

With: @captdelgado​

Status: Closed

Andrea was dreading this meeting. They were supposed to talk about the updates on the most recent case, try to share ideas and their findings - anything that would more them closer to some answers. But so far, Andrea had nothing. All those sleepless nights, all these coffees, revisiting the scene, trying to find anything that would give them at least half an answer, another clue to the puzzle. But it was nothing. The more she looked, the more she analysed she kept coming up with scenarios that just wouldn’t make sense. She looked at the both gangs, the Devils and the Wolves, asked around. But, of course, in a very Charming fashion, people didn’t want to talk. Not only that, they seemed to be wanting to take things into their own hands. Naturally, that meant they would be tampering with the little evidence they had, shutting people off, either not allowing them to talk or making them too afraid to even whisper anything. After all, how scary could they look compared to the Wolves and the Devils. 

Running her hand through her face, Andrea let out a groan, prolonging the moment before she had to go into her Captains office. But she knew it was inevitable. So she grabbed her cup of coffee and headed to the other’s office. She knocked once before entering the room. “Hey.” Her voice was tight and she knew she was going to have to keep her temper calm. She had to at least try. “Did you find anything that would  at least give us some direction.” She didn’t want to sound petty, it wasn’t anything against Adriana. She was just so tired of having no answers. 

Everyone around the station had been on edge lately and no amount of baked goods had been able to lift that mood. Tensions were on high alert because of the night at the masquerade and Adriana couldn’t blame anyone for feeling tired and upset anymore because she was just the same. Everyone she’d talked to had insisted it wasn’t them and had no information to give. The talks with Marcus their office had done hadn’t provided anything useful which sucked being as he was the one to find the first victim. People around town were getting antsy and if they didn’t produce something fast it was going to get ugly. Adriana had been tasked with checking in on her team and starting with Andrea was usually always fun. The two had known each other for so long it was effortless to pick the woman’s brain but she felt the energy when the other walked in her office, and wasn’t surprised by it.

Intense would be a good word used when describing the woman who had just entered and it was why she was such a good detective. She took her job extremely seriously and made strides to make sure others did as well. Today though she didn’t even mind the attitude coming from the other because it was justified in all accounts. Things were frustrating and her head shook from side to side in result. “We have two dead members of rival gangs and no one’s talking. The best we got is their cause of death is identical leading me to think this is a single person lashing out. Except what’s connecting both Martin and Katrina? Any leads there?”

He’d stopped by the grocery store to pick up a few things. It had been a quick in-and-out job, with every item scrawled on his crumpled up list checked off and tightly packed in the back of his car minutes before closing time. It was a success, one he’d planned on celebrating by gunning it home and promptly crashing into bed after a hectic shift at the bar. With Fallon safely squared away with her grandmother for the evening, the night had been shaping up to be the first full night of sleep Austin would enjoy since his daughter’s birth.

Except he hadn’t made it that far.

Somewhere between piling into his car and sliding his key into the ignition, he’d drifted off to sleep. He didn’t know how it had happened, or the exact moment when he’d slipped– all he knew was that he was warm and the world around him was enveloped by silence, and that was more than he’d had in recent weeks. Giving himself over to it had been as easy as breathing. He likely would have stayed there all night– at least until the sun peaked in through his windows or a phone call from his mother woke him up.

But neither of those things were the reason why he suddenly jolted awake and flailed about in his seat like a fish out of water. “Oh, shit– fuck,” he muttered through gritted teeth as he followed the bright light beaming in his face. Squinting into it, his features pinched tight with confusion, Austin brought his forearm to his face, shielding his eyes from the blinding light. He reached down, fumbling with the door handle for a moment before finally getting a grip around it and shoving the door open. Shaking his head, he peeked up into the familiar eyes of the police chief and frowned, ”Jesus Christ, you tryin’ to give me a heart attack?” Wincing, he raised a palm to the back of his neck and rubbed at the dull throb that his odd, crumpled position inside the car had twisted into the muscle. “Shit– what time is it?”

Bringing the light down so she wasn’t completely blinding the man she took a step back and giggled as she watched Austin start to right himself. He looked confused and honestly if she’d woken up in her car in a parking lot she’d have felt the same way. It didn’t help that she’d basically accosted him with the tapping on the window and the flashlight but better her than someone who didn’t know he wasn’t just some bum trying to sleep the night off in the parking lot. Glad she moved out of the way as soon as he opened the door, she only felt a tad bit of remorse as she’d evidently given him a scare but the soft laughter that was still being let out in incriments was telling of something else. “Oh come on, how else did you want me to try to wake you up? With soothing music and a cup of coffee?” Not the least bit worried about his heart because he was way too young to truly have one over that.

“I don’t know.” Answering truthfully as she hooked the flashlight back onto her belt and reached for her cell that was stowed away in one of her pockets. “Looks to be about half past 12.” Repeating the time her phone displayed as she lifted her gaze back to Austin’s. “How long have you been out here?” Her shift had just barely ended and while that was late to her there was no telling how long he’d been out for. The market had been closed at least for two hours now so she was betting at least that. Maybe more seeing as he had a child to care for now and probably had a weirder schedule than she now. Parents were always up at odd hours of the night which made her suddenly panic at the next thought as it dawned on her that she hadn’t seen the child when she’d first initially walked the car.

“You didn’t come here with Fallon did you?” Asking in a sightly higher pitch than usual as the fear showed through. He hadn’t seemed too worried when he woke up so that was her only grace for not completely getting scared yet.

“You gotta know we’re not stupid enough to do this,” it wasn’t really a question, it was more like he was accusing her of being dumb if she thought they did. “Hope you’re questioning the wolves the same way you are us. They’re the ones with the teeth, after all.” Even though truthfully, he felt like it wasn’t them either. Only time would tell. He resists the urge to smirk at her when she looks at him, smugly so because he knows he makes her squirmy. “Saw a lot of people that night.” Axel gave a shrug, swinging his feet off the table to sit up straight and lean his elbows against the table. “You included.” He doesn’t say anything more, but he is hinting that he had noticed her in her baby pink gown. Letting the silence linger while he takes a sip from his glass, he relents into a quiet sigh. “I saw Martin, don’t think I saw Katrina. Don’t know her, wasn’t looking for her, don’t really care about her at all, if I’m honest.” 

Often times it was found that the people who tried to deflect responsibility were the ones who had something to hide. This time her commitment to her relationships with other MC members had blinded her to a degree because she didn’t think they were involved. Adriana still had to question them though because just because she thought there was no way didn’t mean that was true or that someone didn’t know something. The accusation from Axel hadn’t bothered her because it wasn’t the first time someone had assumed she wasn’t as smart as she let on because it was that assumption where she could trick information out of most people. Then again the man across from her was not most people and wasn’t going to let up anything of importance if he did know it. She knew that and knew just how difficult this conversation would be as well as knowing she could be under attack all the same. He had a way of doing that, making her feel uneasy in a way others couldn’t. It was why she was now gritting her teeth to not say anything at his comment of seeing her that night.

It wasn’t something she was proud of and certainly wasn’t planning to take another night off again seeing as how that had played out. “Then lets focus on Martin. When’s the last time you remember seeing him? Did you notice anyone around him specifically?” Trying to get some sort of flow of consciousness going. 

he gave a firm nod, more than happy to tell her exactly where he was & what he was doing, since he really didn’t have anything to hide. though he figured that she knew him well enough by now to know that he definitely had nothing to do with anything that had happened. “ yeah, well — i was with her before everythin’ kicked off & then i went outside to meet cain for a smoke. that’s where we were when marcus found martin. ” he recalled calmly, though the frown that settled onto his features at the all too fresh memory deceived him a little. shaking his head, he snapped himself out of it. “ after that all went down, i came back inside to find my mom & the kids & make sure they were all okay. sana too. apart from takin’ the kids out to alara’s car, i’ve been in here since. ” he explained, hoping she could tell that he was telling her the whole truth. “ i haven’t seen sana since i spoke to her, but i’m sure she’s just fine, darlin’. it’s not like she ain’t used to all this shit by now. ”

Scribbling down the whereabouts of where he’d been before Martin was found, she knew it was useless to think there was anything but the truth behind his words. Adriana was pretty trusting in general which would normally hinder someone’s ability to think clearly when questioning people they knew rather than strangers. Everyone had to be treated like a suspect except she used that knowledge in her favor and truly did believe every word he said. CJ was not stupid and had two young kids at home that he would never do something that would separate them. Now she was sure there was a lot he would do, but murder? No.

“While you were outside with Cain did you see anyone else before Marcus?” Wondering just who else was in the general vicinity who might have seen or heard anything. “Oh you’re right in that she can handle her own, but doesn’t make me worry any less.” Tonight was a night she wished she could spare from the people she really cared about. 

location: clubhouse status: closed tags: @captdelgado​

“guessin’ ya here for me?” raising his brow when he saw her walk inside, it was the obvious option given that he was one of ( 2 ) people till lingering around. “took your time, sweetheart. had me thinkin’ maybe you were avoiding me.” there’s an almost smirk that crosses over his lips. his general dislike of her wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon but it sure was fun to make her squirm. he’d even consider it a highlight on some days. “i’d offer you a drink, but…” he paused to tip his head too and fro. “you’re on duty and i simply just don’t want to, so…” axel gave a shrug, gesturing for the seat opposite him.

The devil’s clubhouse was not a place that Adriana loved being in, but getting Axel to talk to any cop was hard enough, so sacrifices would have to be made. It was a huge relief to see that the audience inside wasn’t huge and that meant at least the only glare she’d have to endure was his and that she was already used to. “The one and only.” Nodding her head as she walked over towards where he was seated. “Patience is a virtue Mr. Sharp, surely someone’s told you that before?” Adriana was pretty sure that’s why she had volunteered to talk to him specifically, because she knew he didn’t like her. She’d always been a sucker for people’s approval and it bugged her that even this long and she hadn’t gotten him to waver on his stance.

“How thoughtful.” Clearing her throat and deciding to ignore the obvious disdain in his voice and took the opposing seat. “I do apologize for the delay, but you’re not the only one on my list tonight.” Making eye contact again and instantly regretted it, looking back down to grab her notepad from the bag she was carrying earlier that was now resting on the floor. “Let’s just make this quick and easy, you see Katrina or Martin the night of the Masquerede?”

Slowly spinning his glass between his hands, Jasper chuckled low and shook his head, “Nah, darlin’, I ain’t ever been one to say things I don’t mean.” She really did look beautiful and Jasper had never been one to hold back when it came to verbalizing things like that. Humming in agreement as he sipped at his whiskey, the biker nodded and craned his neck to survey the crowd again. The town had really outdone itself, and despite the reservations Jasper had about the whole thing, he could still give credit where it was due. “Yeah, I gotta say I’m impressed; I was still half-expecting most people to show up in denim and leather.” And he might have been tempted to join them, had a certain someone not picked out his suit for him. Jasper snorted out a laugh, “He couldn’t have picked a better mask if he tried.”

His eyes widened to the size of saucers behind his mask as he leaned forward suddenly, unsure that he’d heard her correctly. She was taking a night off? Jasper blinked at her, unable to help the breathless laugh that sputtered out of him, “Wow– has hell frozen over or something?” Smirking, he raised his drink as though toasting to her night of freedom, “I didn’t think you took nights off.” Jasper grinned wide; he meant it as a compliment, a testament to her hard work. She was dedicated, incorruptible– and though that posed a potential problem for the MC, there was something to be said for a person who was so passionate about their work that they couldn’t be bought and sold. He admired Adriana for that.

“Well, there’s definitely no shortage of liquor,” he said, knocking back a quick sip of his whiskey just for good measure. Setting his drink back down on the counter with a dull clink, he glanced over at her and smiled crookedly, “So– you bring a date?” He rolled his lips together to keep from laughing; he knew that despite the differences stacked against them, they aligned when it came to their feelings towards commitment– or their lack of them.

It was flattering that her efforts had not been for naught tonight, and if she didn’t know Jasper better she’d have said he was trying to flirt. Except theirs was purely friendship and one that she certainly valued. So she flushed at his honesty and laughed when he mentioned that he had thought the formal attire requirement of tonights event might be ignored. “You and me both. I would have paid a pretty penny to see the mayors face if that had happened though.” Just imagining now the horror that would display on the man’s face because his whole party had been ruined. Supose he won this round because tonight everyone looked the part.

“I know.” Dragging out the last syllabal as she hung her head, smiling despite her posture. Her hours were close to being twenty-four seven and she herself had been surprised to actually have a weekend night off. “You know when they promote you they also give you one night of your choosing off. They really do you a favor there.” Turning her head back towards him in time to catch the cheers and straightened up to lift her own glass up.  A gesture that she was happy to follow with downing the drink in hand. Wine was more of a sipping drink but the night was young, she didn’t work in the morning and so why couldn’t she have a good time?

“Oh my god, Jasper!” Almost choking on the air as she sputtered out her astonishment at the question. As long as they’d known each other it wasn’t unlike him to ask but she just figured he’d have known the answer. “Did you?” Rolling her eyes as her head shook along with it. “Of course not, half this town would rather get locked up than befriend me and I have a significant other. She’s also known as my job.” Laughing but now wondering just who had he put on a tie for. There was no way on this earth that he’d decided to dress up just because those were the rules.

Adriana.

WITH:  @captdelgado​ WHEN:  The afternoon of September 10th WHERE:  Outside the grade school

Sana sunk deeper down into the passenger seat of her sedan despite it’s tinted windows. With her stomach tied up in knots, and her nerves working she hadn’t felt like driving, thus Adriana was behind the wheel. She looked over at her hopefully as the bell rang and kids began pouring out of the doors in droves, the thought that her daughter would walk right by as much of a stranger as any of the others tore her up inside. “Do you see her?” She asked longingly. 

It wasn’t one of her best ideas, but when inspiration stuck she tended to just stick with it. She was helping a friend and it what they were doing wasn’t illegal. Creepy maybe, but not when you think about the fact that it’s not unusual for a parent to be outside of a school their child attends. Currently they were parked and just as kids started to pour out the doors, Adriana was on high alert to try to pick out Lilah from the others. It was her idea to try seeing her at school because it gave them an easy out because of its public location. Sana was her best friend and it killed her to watch her struggle with not even being able to recognize the girl. Except she was absolutely positive that her friend would immediately know because the little girl looked exactly like her. 

Oh if someone could get a glimpse of everything going on inside of Zeke’s head, surely they’d want to bust out just as much as he did but he had gotten a full three hours of rest so for now he at least looked like he was doing better than he actually was. Chugging a few red bulls by now, letting that donut he scarfed down soak it all up. He had planned to go pick up so he could make a drop which truthfully should’ve been done already but he had gotten a bit sidetracked - no surprise to anyone. With the events at the masquerade he had been a little out of it, understandably. Although he couldn’t say that it had been so surprising that it went wrong but how wrong it went was. Not just one but two people had dropped and each side was looking at each other with question marks all over their heads, confused as ever. 

Turning his head at the sound of his name, it took him a second to realize it was Adriana approaching, distracted by the text he had been sending. “Oh, fuck.” he muttered under his breath. He didn’t dislike her company but he also knew what it brought. He could see the way she wanted to look out for him and it always made him feel like he was letting her down even though he shouldn’t, right? It wasn’t like he truly owed her anything. Well, maybe he did considering she had already saved his ass before. “Me? Why?” There was a bit of genuine worry that spilled through his tone but with a deep breath, it washed away. He really needed to sleep more. “I-” He glanced down the street, looking back at her afterwards offering a smile. “Yeah, yep. I got all the minutes. I’m headed over to the store to grab a redbull, so,” he was now anyway. Motioning, he began down the sidewalk again. “What’s up?”

It didn’t surprise her in the least that Zeke was confused at her interest in needing to talk, because she knew what seeing her meant. For most people it meant they were in trouble with the law in some degree. For others it meant she was sticking her nose into yet again someone’s life who didn’t ask for it. “Yes you, silly.” Rolling her eyes but instantly laughing as she changed her demeanor. All she wanted to do was check in on the kid for now. He was safe and she’d even hold her tongue on whatever lecture she was sure would come to mind given his responses. A travesty had just occurred in town and everyone was affected by it one way or another.

“And how many redbulls is it today?” Following the other as he started down for the store and noticing the bluish bags under his eyes. That couldn’t be a good sign. “Just checking in is all. Seeing how you’re holding up after the masquerade.” Pointing out the real reason for her interruption in his regularly scheduled program. “Did you know Katrina well?” Turning to look at him as they walked.

“This is some fucking bullshit, man,” Cliff repeated before showing Adriana a playful smile. It was no secret that the man had had a thing for the woman since they were pretty young even though nothing really happened between the two of them, but life sure had a funny way of making him friends with the most unexpected people. After all, he didn’t really think he’d be getting chummy with a cop, let alone the police captain, but her job didn’t really erase the fact that she still reminded him of his stupid little crush on her when they were younger. 

“You guys got any clues yet? Anything that could us some fucking peace of mind because my brothers and sisters aren’t– I mean, I probably shouldn’t even tell you this but I know you already thought it yourself, but my brothers and sisters? Me? We’re not going to let this shit happen without some form of payback. I don’t want a fucking war either but this entire thing is nothing but a time bomb between the Devils and the Wolves and once it blows up, I don’t really think there’s anything anyone can do to stop it.”

It never got any easier, having to see people you care about go through the heartbrakes of life and loosing someone you’d called a friend for years was one of those. So she fullheartedly agreed with Cliff that it was bullshit because no one ever deserved to have their life taken from them. It was reassuring that he was even able to get a smile to appear and she matched his with the sympathy she wanted to give him. Especiailly when it would be all she could offer after his next question that brought a frown now to her lips. Though she was used to having to evade questions, this time she wished she truly had some news to share.

“You know I can’t tell you anything reguarding an active case.” Clearing her throat as she scooted in just a hair closer because she really didn’t need anyone else to overhear. Not that she had much but people liked to talk and someone taking one piece of information they thought they heard could spread and make matters worse. “While I understand that at first thought it would be easy to blame the other side but how are you so sure it’s not a third party?” Everyone affiliated with one side was too eager to blame the other but both victims had the exact same cause of death. She wasn’t about to point out that it very well could be one of the wolves, or even one of his own because she’d learned long ago what fine line to tread when dealing with these things. Adriana was even positive that if they hadn’t grown up together and had been friends for so long that she wouldn’t even humor the conversation. 

Location: Hale’s Diner

With: Open

@charmingstarter​

if there was one thing that marianne hated it was being cooped up. she had been going over some files. the words had started to blur together and she had enough of sitting at the station. the last thing that she wanted was to go home and stare at the papers. that was what had led her to deciding she was going to go to hale’s diner. she had heard good things but since her move to charming she hadn’t done a ton of exploring. she had opted to claim a booth for herself and ordered herself some food. after that it was back to focusing on the paper work. a small sigh escaping from her as she flipped through the pages. her hand reached up to brush some of her hair aside and she felt like it was possibly hopeless. she had barely realized that the place was getting packed till she felt someone standing near her table. it seemed all the other seats were taken and she was quickly going to slam the files shut,” if you need to sit, feel free, i’m just catching up on some work.” 

On nights that Adriana did not feel like cooking, which ended up being most nights, Hale’s Diner was her saving grace. She had been blessed with the ability to bake, and to make some damn good dishes that to her mama but when taking an hour or two out of her night to do so wasn’t worth it the diner was the next best thing. However, everyone else too seemed to think that someone else cooking for them sounded nice because when she pulled up the parking lot was already getting close to occupancy. Which meant the options for seating would be starting to dwindle down until walking in she noticed a familiar blonde sitting alone. When it came to personal space she really did try to respect everyone’s boundaries but there was not a soul in the world that she didn’t treat like family. So naturally she had to go say hi to Marianne despite the fact that they saw each other on the daily.

“It’s like you read my mind, I was about to ask if that seat was taken.” Flashing a smile at the other and pulling the chair out to sit down. “I guess I wasn’t the only one who thought they’d take the night off from cooking.”

Even off the clock Adriana had a habit of keeping her radio on just in case and tonight seemed like it was one of those times where leaving it on was a good thing. Someone had made a call about what appeared to be someone sleeping in their car in the back of the parking lot down at the grocery store. Normally pedestrian things like taking calls for what probably was a homeless person needing to be herded out of the lot were below her pay grade. Except everyone was running tight hours these days and she’d just clocked off anyways and was on her way home. Which just so happened to be a few miles after the grocery store which is how she found herself taking the call and pulling into the lot a few minutes later. 

Finding the car was pretty easy and she turned off her lights as soon as the make and model registered in her brain. This was no homeless person and in fact, she was now extremely happy that she was the one picking up the call. Tensions were so high right now that even anyone else might have ticketed the man who she was sure had not meant to have dozed off. Then again if this was intentional she’d need to have a few words with the younger Monroe brother. Calling in the false alarm, grabbing the flashlight that was standard issue for the utility belt she was fitted with, Adriana got out of the cruiser and walked around to the drivers side of Austin’s car.

Tapping the glass a couple of times with the butt of the flashlight to try to wake him up, she clicked it on and off a few times for added measure in hopes that the light might work too. “Rise and shine, Monroe.” 

With long hours come copious amounts of coffee and sometimes the poor mr. coffee down at the station didn’t cut it. Which was why when the fairly new coffee shop had opened up it had become a weekly favorite of the woman’s. Regular coffee with some cream would do most days but a hot latte was an indulgence she’d give in to when the extra caffeine was needed. And boy had this week called for long hours and plenty of attention seeking moments in which was why she was in line at Corner Cafe in the middle of the afternoon. It was busy and while some people were not seeming to be happy with the length of the line or how long it took to get their beverages, she didn’t mind as much. In fact after she ordered her own drink, she went to go find a table to sit at until someone caught her eye outside of the shop. 

There were quite a few people on Adriana’s radar that she felt the need to check in on every so often and Zeke Braxton ranked high up there. Especially after the night at the town hall she had been meaning to speak with him so the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. Hurrying out the door to catch him she called out his name before picking up her pace a little to catch up. “Zeke! Hey, how are you? I’ve been meaning to try to run into you but it looks like fate did that job for me.” Breathing out a small sigh of relief.  “Do you have a few minutes?”