Night
Gil sat in the drivers seat
of his SUV, hands gripping
the steering wheel with such
tension that the knuckles
were white. He wasn’t much
of a sleep person, never had
been. There were times when
cases that ran through from
one shift to the next were a
blessing for him. They
meant that he didn’t have to
go home and find something
to occupy him until the next
shift.
Normally after a shift that
went straight through to the
next he was exhausted and
ready to go home. This time
was different. It was a
rarity in his career that
he’d had to leave a case
open. If he hadn’t left
Vegas, he could have had
more time to work on this
one. An officer might not
be dead. The models were so
precise; surely he could
have found something else.
And now it was personal.
He’d worked through the
night, into the day shift,
and through another shift of
his own. After the shift,
he’d told his team to go
home and get some rest.
Lead by example, that was
the only reason he was
sitting here now.
A tap on his window brought
him out of his thoughts. He
pressed a button and the
window rolled down. “I was
just leaving. Did you need
something?” The question
carried a tenor of hope to
it as he silently begged for
something to do.
Warrick shook his head.
“Nah, You okay? Thought you
were out of here almost an
hour ago.”
Gil shrugged, glanced to the
building and back to Warrick
curiously. “What are you
still doing here?”
“Filing some paperwork for
you to sign off on. Left it
on your desk.”
“Oh…” Gil nodded and turned
off the ignition.
“Woah Griss. Don’t have to
do it now. Go home.”
Warrick gave Gil a small
smile.
Gil glanced up at the dark
sky and back to Warrick.
“I’d like to stay caught
up.”
“No one could’ve known what
was in that box. Not even
you… unless what everyone
says is right and you really
do know everything.”
Warrick joked lightly. “Go
home.”
“It’s still night, which
means I still have work to
do.” Gil countered.
Warrick smirked. “Sunrise
is in what, a half an
hour?” He studied Gil for a
moments hesitation and then
walked around the Tahoe to
get into the passenger
seat. “Let’s go.”
Confusion marked Gil’s
features as he looked
sideways to Warrick.
“You’re in my car.”
“Yeah?”
“Where to?”
“Doesn’t the New York New
York have a roller coaster?
Let’s go.” Warrick said
flatly, not leaving any room
for argument. “By the time
we’re done it’ll be
daytime. And you’re gonna
go home.”
The corners of Gil’s lips
twitched in an almost
unnoticeable movement. It
had been awhile since he’d
ridden a roller coaster and
there had been a time that
after a hard shift at work,
he would have found one
immediately. A handful of
arguments filtered through
his mind before finally, he
gave Warrick a half grin and
turned on the ignition.
If anyone understood, it
would be one of his
colleagues. They lived in
the night. Sometimes that
night extended into and
through the day, but the
night was never complete
until the next sunrise no
matter how long it lasted.
