NOT EDITED

Theodore, dressed as close to Mario as he could get, walked alongside Russell and Vera on the sidewalk. While Vera held onto his free hand, occasionally skipping at his side, Russell seemed okay with brushing his fingers against Theodore’s every now and then. Since it made Theodore’s heart flutter every single time, he didn’t much mind it, either.

“All right, baby. I’m gonna stay back here again, okay?” Theodore asked.

“Okay.” Vera let go of Theodore’s hand, skipping around him to grab Russell’s instead. “Come on, Luigi.”

“Lead the way, Toad.”

Theodore snorted, watching Russell and Vera walk up to the house before them. Truthfully, before that night, Theodore hadn’t known a man could look good in a pair of dark blue overalls thrown over a green long-sleeved shirt, but Christ, did Russell look good in them. It didn’t exactly make him want to jump his bones by any means, but seeing him in that Luigi hat made his heart stutter in his chest. Seeing him in those blue overalls made him feel all warm inside.

Seeing him hold Vera’s hand as she ran up to each house to ring a doorbell made him smile.

Russell and Vera came back to the sidewalk. “She had kit-kats, Daddy. She even let me take another for you!” Vera exclaimed.

“That’s awesome. Thank you for getting one for me.”

“Mmhmm! I’ll find it for you when we get home, promise.” Vera grabbed his hand, but she didn’t take any steps forward. “Daddy, my feet hurt.”

“Those shoes are a little thin. They don’t offer as much support as your tennis shoes,” Theodore said quietly.

Vera looked up at him with sad puppy dog eyes. “Does that mean we have to go home?”

“Not until you’ve gotten every house of treats you want,” Russell said. He squatted down in front of Vera. “Climb on up, sweetheart.”

“Really?”

“Yep.”

With a giggle, Vera climbed onto his back. Russell stood up as she wrapped her arms around his neck, her candy bucket hanging at his chest. Russell turned, flashing a smile at Theodore. “Come on, Theo. We’ve got candy to find.”

Theodore couldn’t fight back his own smile as he grabbed Russell’s hand. Maybe it wasn’t the overalls and hat that made Theodore warm and fuzzy. Maybe it wasn’t the overalls and hat that made his heart skip a beat.

Maybe it was seeing Russell act like the second dad Vera never got to have.

***

Back home, while Theodore washed the dishes in the sink, Russell sat on the floor in the living room, helping Vera count out her candy. Russell had offered to do the dishes too, but Theodore needed something to do. His feelings for Russell were what one could call… complicated, and he needed a moment alone to simply think about them.

Theodore set the last dish in the dish drainer and shut off the water. Grabbing a towel, he washed his hands. After folding the towel and setting it back on the counter, he grabbed his cane and walked into the living room. He sat down on the couch behind Russell and laid a hand on his shoulder.

Russell tilted his head back, a smile on his face. “Hey.”

“Hey.” Theodore nodded toward the pile of candy on the floor. “How are we doing?”

“We’re at forty!” Vera said.

“Wow, that’s a lot, huh?”

“More than ever before.”

That much was certainly true. Theodore leaned forward and kissed Russell’s neck. “Are you staying tonight?”

“I promised Andrew and Emelia I’d go out for a drink. Just the one. I can come back after that if you’re cool with me staying,” Russell said.

“Of course I’m ‘cool’ with that.”

He chuckled. “Sorry, I wasn’t sure if the rules had changed now that the case is solved.”

“I think we’ll re-analyze that tomorrow,” Theodore said. “I-if that’s okay with you?”

The detective nodded. “Works for me, Theo.” He rubbed his hands together. “But for now, let’s count out the rest of this candy, huh?”

***

Theodore paused the YouTube video playing on the television as he heard a car pull up outside. The text on his phone let him know it was Russell. A hand wrapped around his cane, he pushed himself to his feet. He made it to the door before Russell could knock. The detective, dressed in his New York Law hoodie and a pair of Rustin Police Department sweatpants, smelled like his body wash. Despite showering at Russell’s house more than once, Theodore still didn’t know what scent it was. As it stood, he identified it as smelling like Russell, and that was more than enough for him.

“See? Only one drink,” Russell said. He held up the duffle bag in his hand. “I even brought my meds along with my clothes.”

“I’m so impressed.”

Russell grinned. “Thought you would be.”

Theodore took a step back, allowing Russell to come inside. He closed the door, eyes focused on the doorknob as Russell kicked off his shoes. His nervousness had been climbing inside of him ever since Russell had given Vera a piggyback ride for the last hour and a half of their trick-or-treating session, and seeing Russell had increased it ten-fold.

“So, I was thinking we could get an episode or two of Nurse Jackie in before we head to bed. If you aren’t too tired. I was thinking I could try and gently massage and stretch your hip too.” As soon as Russell grabbed his bag and straightened himself back out, Theodore pushed him back against the door. Before he could talk himself out of it, he leaned him and kissed the detective.

Russell let out a soft sound, dropping his bag to the floor before moving both hands to Theodore’s cheeks. His palms were warm, his lips soft. Theodore twisted Russell’s sweatshirt between his fingers, pulling Russell just a little closer. Russell’s tongue pressed against Theodore’s lips, seeking permission to take their kiss one little step further.

Theodore granted it, lips parting as he leaned into Russell, fingers tightening around his cane.

After a blissful eternity, Russell pulled away and leaned his head against Theodore’s, his breaths a little heavier than usual. “Christ, Theo,” he whispered.

“Too much?”

“No,” Russell said through a laugh. “Just trying to figure out what I did to deserve it.”

Gently, Theodore pushed him back to look him in the eye. “Today, you were the second father figure that Vera never had. It made me feel a million different ways, and one of those feelings was how badly I felt like kissing you.”

“Getting to act like a father figure made me happy as hell. I-I’m just glad it didn’t bother you.”

Theodore smiled. “You dressed up as Luigi for my daughter, a kid you have no ties to, just because she wanted you to. No other reason. No ulterior motive. It was… just what you wanted to do.” He reached up, laying a hand on Russell’s cheek. “I’m glad it made you happy, too.”

“Kids are cool as hell, Theo. And like I told you, I’m more into settling down and having a family than anything else. Trick-or-treating with you guys was great.”

“So… count you in for next year, huh?”

If it was possible, Theodore could’ve sworn Russell’s smile brightened even further. “Definitely count me in for next year.”

Despite Theodore’s general fear about relationships, including the one with Russell, the sentence warmed his heart. Russell really did have every damn intention of sticking around. Theodore couldn’t even begin to express how that made him feel, how he felt at the very idea that he’d probably have Russell in his life for as long as he wanted him there.

So instead, he wrapped the taller man in a hug, closing his eyes as Russell hugged him back. It didn’t quite summarize everything about his budding relationship with Russell, but it came pretty damn close to giving the other man the appropriate cliff notes.

BOOK ONE: END

BOOK TWO: HASHTAGS AND HOMICIDE

Thank you so much for reading BOOKS AND BADGES, and I hope you enjoyed!! If you did, consider dropping a comment or a like down below! Book two, HASHTAGS AND HOMICIDE, will start being uploaded next Wednesday. No weeks of waiting or anything! Hopefully, I’ll see you there!

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NOT EDITED

Russell stood several feet away from the car, arms crossed over his chest as he watched Ellie dust the inside of the car for prints. “What, uh, what do you think, El? Finding anything?” he asked.

“Well, there are definitely fingerprints here on the steering wheel and on the dashboard. I’ll be able to tell you if they match anything in the system once we get back to the station,” Ellie said.

Russell nodded, fingers biting into his upper arms. “Hey, El?”

“Yeah?”

“You, umm… You wouldn’t be able to, like… buy out the FBI, right?”

Mid-dust, Ellie froze. After several seconds, she turned to face Russell. “What does the FBI have to do with a stolen car, Russell?”

“They don’t. But the person who stole it, if I’m right, is more than willing to step around the law to benefit themselves, and I know their prints are in the system. So again… would you be able to pay the FBI to remove those prints from the system?”

“No. There are too many people at the FBI, too many requirements, too many checks and balances. They wouldn’t…” Again, she shook her head. “No. I don’t think one person would have enough money to buy out everyone they would need to in order to get away with it.”

“Awesome,” Russell whispered.

Ellie watched him for a moment. “Are you okay, Russell?”

He offered a smile. “Little bit of okay, little bit of not okay.”

“Because of who these prints will match to?”

“Yeah, and because of what it’ll mean, what it will… tie together.” Russell cleared his throat. “I’ll explain it to you once this is all over, I promise.”

Ellie nodded. “Okay, Russ. I’ll hold you to that. Just, you know, let me know if you feel like you’re gonna pass out or something.”

Russell couldn’t help it–he chuckled. “I will. Thanks, El.”

***

Back at the station, while Ellie ran the prints through the system, Russell paced the floor, one hand resting on the gun holstered at his hip.

“Umm, R-Russell?”

He stopped, eyes on the wall. “Did you get a match?”

“One.”

“Got a name?” Russell turned his head toward her. “El?”

“Clouse?” she asked in a whisper. “H-how does she tie into Vince’s case?”

“I found that stolen car on a security camera. The person who got out of it took the ignition cable from Lauren’s car before she was killed, the cable that Clouse and Derek claimed Lauren must’ve taken out herself so she had a reason to ride into work with me that morning.” Russell crossed the room. “Derek and Clouse are corrupt, they killed Lauren, and they killed Vince. That’s how they tie into this.” He nodded toward her camera. “I need you to print that off for me. I’ve got a warrant to get my hands on.”

***

Much as Russell wanted to be there for Clouse’s arrest and the search of her house, he knew his lieutenant was right. If they found any evidence to use, her lawyer could argue that Russell had planted it there as some sort of revenge for when she and Derek had investigated him for Lauren’s death.

The last thing Russell wanted was for either of the fuckers to slip through the cracks now.

So, while Andrew, Emilia, and a few uniformed officers searched Clouse’s home, Russell sat in his lieutenant’s office, flipping his phone in his hand, waiting.

He’d been alone for nearly an hour, sitting and waiting, waiting and sitting. He was incredibly used to being patient, and he was more than used to sitting around and waiting, but this ate away at every damn fiber of his being.

“Russell?”

He twisted in his seat to meet his lieutenant’s eyes. “Yes, Loo?”

“Clouse has been arrested and brought into the station. For the purposes of… a trial, I don’t want you to interrogate her.”

“O-of course. What about Derek?”

He stepped into the office, closing the door behind him. “Ellie went through a burner phone that was found at Clouse’s house. She found a lot of text messages with a ‘Derek’ in the phone. The number doesn’t match his real phone number, but the judge has signed off on a warrant to search his home for a burner, as well. I’m sure it’ll turn up, and when it does, they’ll bring him in, too.”

“Thank God,” Russell whispered.

Marcus shook his head and lowered himself into the chair beside Russell. “Thank you, Steele. Christ, you outed two horrible corrupt cops, Russell. You outed two murderers. You worked your ass off to bring justice to Lauren and Vince. Thank you.”

Russell offered a smile. “Thanks, Loo.”

Marcus gave Russell’s knee a quick squeeze. “If you’re okay with it, I’d like you to stay in here until after they’ve found enough to bring Derek in. It makes sure you’re on time-stamped security cameras at the time of the search of his home. It shows you didn’t have contact with any of the cops performing that search.”

“As long as I’m out in time for trick-or-treating, I’ll stay wherever you need me to, Loo.”

“Good.” He squeezed Russell’s shoulder, pushing himself back to his feet. “I hope it’s not much longer before they find a phone or a certain handgun. But I’ll let you know. I can’t have you questioning them, but I won’t let you be stuck without any updates on it.”

“Thank you. I appreciate that.”

“You’re welcome, Steele. You did damn good on this one. Vince would be proud.”

This time, Russell’s smile was genuine. “Thank you,” he whispered. Marcus nodded, patting Russell on the shoulder on his way out of the room. Russell bowed his head, closing his eyes. Marcus was right. He had done well, and Vince would be proud.

He couldn’t ask for anything more.

***

Russell pushed himself away from his car as Theodore walked out of the bookstore. “Hey.”

“Hey.” Theodore laid a hand on his chest, fingers wrapped loosely around his suit jacket. “So… wh-what’s the verdict?”

Russell couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face. “They’ve both been arrested. They found the gun’s at Derek’s place, and Clouse’s prints were in the car. I got ‘em, Theo.”

“You got ‘em,” Theodore whispered. He threw an arm around Russell, free hand still wrapped around his cane. For the first time in what felt like forever, the tension seeped from Russell’s body. He wrapped his arms around Theodore, burying his face in the crook of the shorter man’s neck. “I’m so proud of you, Russell.”

“Thank you.”

Theodore patted him on the back before pulling away, hand moving up to his cheek instead. “I am so proud of you.”

One corner of Russell’s mouth lifted. “I couldn’t have done it without you, Theo. You held me together when the only fuckin’ thing I wanted to do was crack and crumble. I am so proud of you.” Russell leaned down and pressed a kiss to Theodore’s forehead. “What do you say we go pick up an excited little girl, change into some awesome Mario costumes, and go get ourselves some candy?”

Theodore smiled, teeth and all. “I like the sound of that.”

Russell reached back and pulled open the passenger side door of the car. “Then your chariot awaits.”

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NOT EDITED

Work had been far stranger than Theodore had been prepared for. He couldn’t help but be worried about Russell, no matter how hard he tried to think about anything else. On top of his worry for Russell, the fear of how much he cared about Russell sat heavy on his mind.

He had cared about Shane more than anything, and that had come back to bite him in the ass rather quickly. Theodore couldn’t push down the fear that it would be the same with Russell, and his worry about the man’s safety only served as fuel to the fire.

A hand came down on the desk, gentle enough not to make much noise, but present enough to draw Theodore’s attention to Gina’s face. “Hey.”

Gina smiled. “Hey. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good. Why?”

“You seem, umm… I don’t know. I guess you’re a bit more… withdrawn than usual.”

Theodore forced a smile onto his face. Thankfully, he had no doubts that it looked genuine. He had gotten damn good at them in his time with Shane. “I’m fine. I’m a little tired and a little sore, but that’s about it.”

Gina raised a nearly suggestive brow. “Your hip, or…?”

Theodore couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “You are a pervert. It’s my hip.”

“What can I say? I’m just making sure Russell’s treating you right.”

“Russell and I will continue to not have sex for… what I imagine is the foreseeable future,” Theodore whispered.

“That’s okay. Taking your time with it and making sure you’re ready for it is the right call. It’s the healthy call.”

Despite his worry for Russell that day, Theodore couldn’t help but want to talk about their relationship the same way he usually did. Hell, maybe that would help him focus on something other than the worry. “You think it’s the right call… for Russell? Or just for me?”

“Have you talked about it with Russell?”

“No. He hasn’t brought it up, either.”

“Think… maybe he doesn’t care if he’s getting laid?”

“I don’t know,” Theodore whispered. “It’s hard for me to admit that he’s not in this relationship just to…”

“Sleep with you?”

“Dominate me.”

“Ah.” Gina nodded, crossing her arms over the counter. She looked around for a moment before leaning closer to Theodore. “Have you asked Russell what he’s into?”

“No.”

“Because unless he’s… the greatest abuser I’ve ever seen, he’s not like Shane. A-and it’s okay for you to be scared that he is. It’s expected for you to be scared that he is. But I think it’s unlikely that he is. He showed genuine vulnerability to you. Hell, he showed that vulnerability to me when he came here looking for you. He has no problem with you having a day with Vera, with me, with your parents. He leaves you alone with other people. He doesn’t drop in unexpectedly like Shane used to. You remember that shit?”

After a moment, Theodore nodded. “Yeah, before he made me stop going out shopping with you and whatnot. He’d ‘accidentally’ end up at the same stores as us.”

“Yeah, a big coincidence, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Shane didn’t bide his time, Theo. He sunk his claws into you as soon as he could, and then he started separating you from everyone who could possibly tell you that he was toxic, that he was abusive, that you didn’t deserve it. If Russell starts cutting you off from people? Run. Run the hell away from that man. But right now, I don’t think he’s looking to dominate you, in or out of the bedroom.”

Theodore let out a breath. Despite the fact that the reassurance had only come from Gina–not Russell–he still felt comforted. Just like every other time he sought advice or reassurance from his only real friend, he felt comforted. Eventually, he knew he would have to take his concerns up with Russell if he wanted true relief, but for now, he couldn’t trust Russell’s word nearly as much as he could trust Gina’s.

“Thank you,” Theodore said.

She smiled, unfolding her arms to squeeze his hand. “I didn’t let Shane scare me away from you forever, and I’m sure as hell not going to let your rational worry scare me away, either.”

Theodore gave her hand a tight squeeze. “You’re a lifesaver, Gina.”

“I’m gonna let that go straight to my ego.”

He snorted. “Please do. Your ego deserves it.” He pulled his hand back to himself as his phone vibrated in his pocket. He shifted on his chair enough to grab the device.

“What’s that?” Gina asked.

“Text from Russell.” Theodore unlocked his screen and opened up the message.

Russell: We found it!! We found the fucking car! Forensics is on the way to check for prints. We. Found. It.

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NOT EDITED

Russell stood beneath the shower head, face tilted back in the water. He hadn’t done much more than speak to Jamal that day, but he was absolutely exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed with Theodore, close his eyes, and not have to wake up again until all of this was over.

“Russ?”

“Yeah?”

“Umm… I’m sorry. How much longer are you gonna be?”

Russell pulled open the shower curtain, leaning out to look at Theodore. “Not long. What’s up?”

“I’ve been thinking about the, uh, needing to take better care of my hip thing. You’re right. I do need to take better care of it. Which means that I… sorta need you to carry Vera back to your room. She fell asleep in the chair.”

“Okay. I’ll be done here in maybe five minutes. Just gotta rinse off and get dressed.”

“Thank you.”

Russell offered a tired smile. “No problem, Theo. Out in a few.” Theodore returned the smile before walking away from the doorway. Russell closed the curtain and leaned back into the water.

He couldn’t wait for the case to be over and solved. He couldn’t wait for life to go back to whatever the hell ‘normal’ would be from then on out. A version of normal that didn’t involve Vince was a kind of normal that Russell couldn’t even visualize. The only time his life hadn’t had Vince in it was a time before he had even met the man. Vince had been actively involved with his life ever since then.

Life would never go back to normal. It would only be able to come to a new normal, just as it had done after every other major ‘event’ in Russell’s life. This time, the new normal would include Theodore and Vera.

He could certainly chalk that up to ‘the bright side’ of his new normal.

***

After carrying Vera to bed, Russell walked back to the other end of the house and slid into bed beside Theodore. It felt odd to be in his brother’s room, even if it hadn’t been his for years.

“Thank you for carrying her,” Theodore said, laying a hand on Russell’s chest.

Russell closed his eyes, covering Theodore’s hand with his own. “No problem, Theo.” He cleared his throat. “You comfortable on that side?”

“Yeah, I’m good. Are you?”

“Comfortable as I can be. Still a little weird.”

“But you feel okay?”

“Yeah, I feel okay.”

“Good,” Theodore whispered. “If you feel like you can’t sleep in here, we can move back to the living room, no matter what time it is.”

Russell smiled, his eyes still closed. “If I can’t sleep in here, I’ll just take the couch, let you sleep. I’ll feel a little less like an ass that way.”

“If it works for you, it works for me.” Theodore carefully pulled his hand out from under Russell’s, threading their fingers together instead. “What’s our plan for tomorrow?”

“You should go to work if you want to, and Vera should go to school. She told me she gets to dress up for Halloween at school, and she sounded pretty damn excited about it. I’m going to go over to Andrew’s, tell him not to do any digging on this case until future notice. And then I’m heading out with one of Jamal’s bodyguards to see if we can find the stolen car. The stolen car is my in for the rest of the case, in the assumption there are prints on it.”

“So… you’ll be safe?”

“Yeah, I’ll be safe.”

“Good,” Theodore whispered. He gave Russell’s hand a gentle squeeze. “I hope you find that car, Russ.”

“Me too. I don’t know how I can possibly prove it was them without the damn thing.” Russell let out a harsh breath. “But, umm… enough about all that shit. Let’s get some sleep. In the morning, we’ll have breakfast for the three of us, I’ll take Vera to school, you to work, and then I’ll hand over to Andrew’s. Sound good?”

He heard Theodore shift beside him, felt the mattress dip slightly. “Sounds good to me, Russell. Goodnight.”

Russell squeezed his hand. “Night, Theo.”

***

After dropping Vera off at the school, Russell drove to the bookstore and pulled up to the curb by the door. “Do you need help getting out?”

“I’ll be okay.” Theodore pushed open the door before leaning over the console to press a kiss to Russell’s cheek. “Be safe.”

“I will. You too.”

Theodore nodded, dropping a hand to Russell’s on the steering wheel. “I better see you here when my shift ends. I’m calling Jamal if you’re not here.”

“Okay.” Russell laid a hand on Theodore’s cheek and kissed his forehead. “I’ll be here to pick you up. Are you off early? Or…?”

“Four.”

“Four,” Russell echoed. He smiled. “I’ll be here, safe and sound. Then we’ll go get Vera from your parents’ place, and then… then we’ll get changed and go trick-or-treating.”

“Perfect.” Theodore touched his cane to the ground before looking back at Russell. “Find that car, Russ.”

Russell offered a soft smile. “I’ll do my best, Theo. Have a good day at work. I’ll see you tonight.”

“See you then.” Theodore slid out of the car, offered a little wave as he closed the door, and headed up to the shop.

Russell let out a slow breath and shifted into drive. Adjusting his grip on the steering wheel, he pulled away from the curb. He still needed to swing by Andrew and Emelia’s place. Making sure Andrew didn’t get involved in the case was top priority. He had already lost Lauren. He had already lost Vince. He wouldn’t lose Andrew too. He wouldn’t lose Emelia for being the one to get her husband killed.

He needed to know his only damn friends were safe, even if he had no plans of being at the station that day. Hell, especially if he had no plans of being at the station that day.

***

His chat with Andrew had been mostly smooth sailing. Andrew had been a little against the whole Jamal aspect of the situation, but he was all for the bodyguards and extra help. Russell had chalked that up to a success for the day.

Now, he walked into the largest junkyard and auto salvage lot Rustin had, one of Jamal’s bodyguards at his side. The man was a good two to three inches taller than Russell, his posture much more proper. He had introduced himself as Enzo, his face set hard enough to cut stone.

Even though Russell was willing to admit he was a little intimidated by the guy, he was more than thankful to have the man with him. He felt… safe, and for the first time since his conspiracy theory about his coworkers had arisen in his mind, his paranoia of being followed and at risk had dissipated.

“Mister Pitman has already spoken to the owners of the lot. They don’t know anything about this vehicle, but they said we are more than willing to allow us to look around for as long as we need to, and they’re willing to give us a list of vehicles they’ve crushed or parted out in the last year or so.”

“Thank you.”

Enzo nodded. “I’ll make sure Mister Pitman knows you are grateful.” He untucked his hands long enough to gesture to the rows and rows of cars before them. “Where would you like to start?”

Russell’s eyes roamed over the cars. After what felt an eternity, he shook his head. “I’ve got no fuckin’ clue.”

Enzo chuckled. “What do you say we start at the back? In my experience, you don’t hide your stolen car at the front of the lot.”

Wanting to keep his knowledge of Enzo’s experience as one of Jamal’s personal soldiers as limited as he could, Russell only nodded.

A/N: Only THREE more chapters left!!

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