chapter 1

Laura Huxley POV

(10 years later)

Laura's heart was racing as she chased after the criminal. She had always prided herself on her tenacity, speed and agility when it came to chasing down criminals. But this particular case had proven to be quite the challenge.

Chasing dickhead wannabe criminals was nice, she thought to herself, that is, until you discover that said dickhead was as fast as a Cheetah. Like damn fast on his two feet.

As she continued to pursue the criminal, Laura couldn't help but marvel at his speed and agility. She had never encountered anyone quite like him before. How this guy was able to keep his body upright, after going this low was a mystery to her, she thought as he ducked past a pole. She knew that if she tried to replicate the move, she would surely fall flat on her ass.

Despite her fatigue and the odds stacked against her, Laura refused to give up. She saw the criminal run into a gas station and chased after him. As she approached the shop, she couldn't help but feel a sense of dread.

"Oh God, Please, no hostages this time…" she muttered aloud, hoping that the guy was not dangerously armed and he didn't have any intention of holding an innocent person against their wishes.

But as luck would have it, the criminal had not taken any hostages. Instead, he had entered the shop to hide from Laura. "Typical," she thought to herself. "These criminals always think they can outsmart the police."

Without hesitation, Laura tapped her earpiece and pulled out her radio. She took in two deep breaths before speaking, "He's at Graceville Avenue and had entered a shop. I guess I'll be needing that backup after all," she said into the radio.

She could hear detective Sam snorting on the other end of the line. "You chased him all the way to Graceville… I really don't know what to call you," he said.

Laura looked back in the direction she had come from and sighed. She had not realized how far she had run in pursuit of the criminal. But catching him had suddenly become a top priority. She knew that other detectives might have allowed the guy to escape and devise another means of catching him, but not her. Once she set her eyes on someone, she was determined to get that person in handcuffs.

Laura couldn't help but think about what had led her to become a police officer in the first place. She had always been drawn to the thrill of the chase, the adrenaline rush that came with pursuing criminals. But she also knew that her job was about more than just catching bad guys. It was about protecting the innocent, keeping the community safe, and upholding justice.

Laura felt a sense of pride in what she had accomplished so far. Despite the challenges she had faced, she had not given up. And she knew that she never would.

As she peered into the shop, she asked Sam, "Yeah... how long before you get here...?" She couldn't see any movement, so the guy hadn't made a move yet. Maybe he was waiting for her to come in or something. Laura had learned the hard way not to follow a criminal into an enclosed space without her partner or backup.

Sam reassured her, "Wait till I get there. I'm calling the station too for backup... I'll be there in five..." Laura sighed, five minutes was too much to wait outside here, doing nothing. She pulled out her pistol and had to deliberate whether going in was better than staying put.

Laura had been to this shop before, so she knew that there was no backdoor. The guy probably didn't know about that before he entered. So except he suddenly built himself a backdoor, he was still inside.

Two women came out of the shop looking spooked. Laura nodded at them and asked, "Did you see anybody who looked strange in there?" One of the women eyed her and the pistol she was holding.

It wasn't their fault for suspecting her. It's not every day you see a female carrying a pistol. She flashed her badge in front of them and they both relaxed.

They both nodded and one of the women said, "There's someone suspicious in there. He's by the left side, fifth aisle. He just sat on the floor and is holding onto his left side..." Laura frowned but nodded in gratitude and said, "Thank you," to the woman who looked ready to run away.

She released the safety of her gun, preparing to go inside when she heard the police siren. Thank goodness Sam was here, she thought.

Sam parked the police van at the entrance, at the same time, two other police vans came into the gas station. It was a relief to see the backup arrive.

Sam approached Laura, his eyes fixed on the shop entrance, " where is he?, Still inside?" He queried.

Laura looked at Sam, "Yes, he's still in there. Are you ready?” she told him, pulling out her own handgun as she took a step forward. She noticed other police officers exiting their cars as they approached the scene.

Sam held her arm firmly and advised, "Wait, we need to assess the situation first. Is he armed? We also need to check the layout of the store."

Laura bit her lips and replied, "As far as I know, he's not. If he was, he would have taken a hostage. So far, I’ve heard nothing from the inside. And I know the layout since I've been here before. Let's go in."

"Okay then, let's proceed," Sam said, taking the lead as they entered the shop. Laura watched as Sam signaled the shopkeeper and other people at the counter to leave, which they quickly did.

As they moved further into the store, Laura tapped Sam's shoulder and directed his attention towards the left side.

Suddenly, someone screamed, and she locked eyes with Sam, who nodded his head in response. They quickly moved to the left side, with Laura's gun ready to fire in case the suspect decided to attack them.

Although she had not seen the suspect carrying a weapon when she was chasing him, she still had to be cautious. Laura had suspected that he was an associate of the Mafia, and her suspicions were confirmed the moment she saw him leave the midnight club. She was determined to do anything to bring the Mafia down, and that meant the suspect might be carrying a weapon.

As they reached the fourth aisle, Laura positioned herself, ready to take action if necessary. Sam took the lead, pointing his gun down the aisle, and then abruptly stopped.

Laura frowned and moved in behind him to see what was wrong. She blinked, staring at the suspect who was on the floor, slumped against a shelf.

"Is this the guy?" Sam muttered. Laura nodded, taking cautious steps towards him. Yes, it was definitely him, she thought, as she studied his face.

"Call for help," she instructed Sam, as they waited for the help to arrive.

Laura had always been a tough and dedicated police officer. She had seen all sorts of crimes and dealt with countless dangerous criminals, but this situation had her puzzled. She couldn't quite put her finger on what was going on with the guy lying unconscious on the ground. All she knew was that she needed to act fast to save his life.

As she gently moved her fingers to check his pulse, she could feel the faint beats of his heart. Laura knew that he needed medical attention urgently, but she also had to be cautious. Holding her gun steady, she kept an eye out for any danger that might be lurking nearby.

When Sam alerted her that help was on the way, she breathed a sigh of relief. The medical emergency response team arrived quickly and began tending to the man. As they wheeled him out of the shop, Laura couldn't help but feel that something wasn't quite right.

She watched as the other officers handcuffed him to the gurney, and she couldn't shake the feeling that this was a dead end in her investigation. She had been following this particular guy for weeks, hoping to gather information on the mafia. But now, with him lying unconscious and unresponsive, she felt like she had hit a roadblock.

Laura cursed under her breath as she watched the ambulance drive away.

Sam sighed next to her and suggested they head back to the station. As they walked to the police van, Laura couldn't help but feel frustrated.

"Things just don't add up, Sam," she said as they got in the car. "It's as if he swapped bodies with someone. He was okay when he was running."

Sam nodded in agreement. "It could be that he was wounded or hurt while running and entered the shop to rest or die in his case... Or..."

Laura knew what he was about to say. They wouldn't know until they got the results of his toxicology test. She asserted that they needed to check it out as soon as possible.

As Sam drove back to the station, Laura couldn't help but reflect on her life as a police officer. She had joined the force right after finishing high school, driven by her desire to seek revenge for her father's death. She had been working tirelessly for almost ten years to bring his killers to justice, but she was nowhere near her goal.

Hadley, her mentor, had told her that she needed to be patient and gather solid information before making any move. Laura knew that she had to keep her head down and keep working hard if she wanted to achieve her goal. She just hoped that this latest case wouldn't set her back too far.

Exiting the car as soon as they arrived at the station, Laura headed straight to Hadley's office, without waiting for Sam. She needed answers and wanted to know if there were any leads on the case that she had been working on for months.

As she approached the chief's secretary, she asked, "Is he in?" Margaret nodded, adding, "But he's in a bad mood."

Laura wasn't surprised - it seemed like Hadley was always in a bad mood.

Stepping into his office, Laura found Hadley looking peeved as he dropped the phone receiver.

"Just the person I want to see," he said as he looked up at her.

"I heard you caught a boy who is on his way to the hospital as we speak. The case, hand everything you have on it over to the prosecution... they would be in charge of the case from now henceforth…" he told her.

Laura blinked in shock. "What?!" she spat.