Page 4 of Broken By The Devil

“You’re going to need to do better than that, Hale.” I chuckle.

“Stop calling me that! Emilia, my name is Emilia.” She seethes. So, she doesn’t like her name. Surely, she should love being able to be a brat and get everything she could ever want.

She lunges at me at full speed and kicks out viscously with both legs and I block both. I will give her one thing… she’s strong. Her arms strike out next one to my abdomen and one towards my head. I block those too. She crouches down to try and slip through my legs, but I realise too late. She jumps back up at lightning speed and punches me in the stomach with a level of force I wasn’t prepared for. She swivels and strikes me in the face causing a sting. I put my finger to the edge of my mouth and red crimson liquid coats my finger. The bitch made contact… she drew blood from me.

Gasps hit my ears from every corner of the gym. Nobody has ever been able to draw my blood. That’s all she’s getting. I punch her in the gut making her double over and I sweep her legs from underneath her so she lands on her back. I straddle her hips, keeping her pinned there.

“You did well to draw a single drop of blood, but you’re still sloppy and arrogant…you don’t belong in this unit.” I spit out.

“If I had a choice, I wouldn’t be in this unit.” She grits out.

“I’m sure daddy dearest can help you out there.” I tease.

“Get off me.” She seethes.

“You’re going to have to make me.” I retort.

The slightest flicker of panic in her eyes. Her chest heaving but not from exhaustion, it’s panic. I hold my hands up in surrender and I get off her.

“You a sore loser?” I chuckle. She darts up from the floor and exits the ring.

“With all due respect…fuck off, Sergeant.” She purrs and leaves the gym in a huff.

“Satisfied?” Cyrus questions.

“Not even close. See what you can find out about her…dig up whatever you can.” I order and he nods in acknowledgment. Something in my gut is uneasy. There’s something not quite right about her. I always listen to my gut. When I don’t, people tend to die.

EMILIA

Iwake up this morning, sweat coating my bed sheets and my body. I’m plagued by that night not only in every waking moment but in my subconscious too. The nightmares are getting worse. When I dart awake, I can still feel his hands gripping my neck, his scent stifles me and threatens to choke me. The memory of the bruises on my skin, they may as well still be branded on my body.

It’s getting harder to get out of bed every morning, not only because of the nightmares but also because of the gigantic arrogant asshole I now work with. Granted he’s an incredibly attractive asshole, but if he glares at me with his piercing blue eyes one more time, I can’t promise I won’t lunge over his desk. I have worked years to maintain my mask, not for him to look straight through it. He suspects something about me. He saw me panic in the ring yesterday. I can’t let the mask slip, not now.

From the very first moment I saw him lounging in his office chair insinuating I only got to where I am today because of my father, I knew I was in trouble. I had not felt rage like that in years and it was paralyzing. I don’t do feelings. If I let myself feel, I will crumble. I have only known the sergeant a week and already he is cracking my armor. That needs to change. If Cass and Cara didn’t appear in my life when they did, I fear I wouldn’t be here today. They are the only reason I continue to fight, the only reason I endure everything I have. I can’t let them suffer just because they care about me. That’s the theme in my life, if you care about me, you’re soon to realise why you never should have opened your heart to me. Cass and Cara are my family, they have been there for me when the days are dark. They made an effort to get to know me despite being the chief’s daughter. They took me under their wing and we have been inseparable since.

I drag my uniform up my body and walk towards the mirror. I like that it’s black, it matches the darkness I live in, the unending abyss of unfeeling and numbness. All colour left my life that day 11 years ago. I feel comfortable in black, less noticeable, like it gives me the ability to blend into the background, exactly where I prefer to be.

I walk into the familiar office building and report room where Cass and Cara are sat along one of the desk benches. Cass is sitting opposite Cara staring into the background, anything to avoid doing actual work. Cass is one year older than me, very handsome, things have never gone that way with us though, he’s family. You can tell he takes pride in his appearance. His body is toned like an athlete, his cheekbones prominent with a strong jaw and he towers over nearly everybody. His slightly golden-brown hair, cropped at the sides and longer on the top, gently brushes his brow, accentuating the glow in his hazel eyes. Cara seems so petite next to him, her face sweet and pure. Her golden honey blonde hair just brushes past her shoulders and her green eyes almost shimmer in the light. They would make an amazing couple, but Cass is too naïve to see what is right in front of him.

My family make my job all the easier and I’m glad to be able to be back with them. I do love my job, I was born to be an officer, being the chiefs daughter. I use that term loosely since we haven’t spoken a meaningful word to each other in years. He still wallows in his grief of losing his wife and his favourite daughter. The job allows me to release my aggression and protect the vulnerable from the kind of people I know all too intimately. Flashes enter my head uninvited, the feel of his hands around my throat, the scent of whiskey on his breath and his sweat rubbing off onto my body. “Hey, don’t go back there, you’re here, you’re safe, with us.” I hear Cara’s voice in that moment and my breathing instantly evens out. “Thanks Cara, I’m ok.” They always seem to know when I revisit the past. They are the only two people who are able to get me out of it.

Sergeant Hunter marches through the report room and takes up his masculine stance beside the briefing board. Back straight, chin up, leaning his back against the board with his muscled tattooed arms crossed across his chiselled chest. I despise this man. I hate his onyx hair that seamlessly flops over his brow, almost messy, but he pulls it off somehow. I hate his toned legs that almost look like they’re going to tear through his combat trousers. I hate that his tattoos almost match my own. Swirls of black, almost tribal, peeking through his shirt. They must be covering most of his chest and the big viper swirling around the entirety of his left arm in black and red. Captivating. Most of all, I hate his penetrative eyes, they’re so painstakingly blue, they look right through to your soul.

“Are you alright? You look like you’re giving the sergeant moon eyes?” Cass pressed.

“Never say that again,” I say, scowling at him. “By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask, who is the blonde with the biggest boobs I’ve ever seen, sat right there in front of Kade?” She’s been eyeing me wrong ever since I showed up, scowling, glaring any chance she gets and I don’t even know who she is.

“That’s Breanna, everyone calls her Bree though. She and Kade had a thing last year, but whatever was going on between them ended about six months ago. She’s still hung up on him though, as you can see, with all the drooling she’s doing.” I almost laugh but I scoff instead. The way she’s looking at him, it’s desperate, like she’ll die if he doesn’t look back in her direction.

Bree’s attention is back on me now, her glare could rattle a typical person but I’m certainly not your average type of woman. Her gaze is fixed on me for at least a minute when Kade shouts “Bree! Can I have your attention up here rather than glaring at the new girl?” She flutters her eyelashes at him before she replies, “You always have my attention.” My eyes nearly roll to the back of my head. I cough “desperate” and cough again. “God, I’m so sorry, I have a terrible cough,” I tease. Giggling erupts across the briefing room.

“Hale, enough, this briefing is important,” he announces. “You’re right, I’m sorry, you’ll always have my full attention from now on, Sergeant,” I sarcastically purr. What is wrong with me? I’m behaving like a child all because she’s glaring at me? Sort yourself out Emilia!

“Alright, everyone listen up,” the sergeant’s voice booms across the report room, “it’s normal duties for today but tomorrow night we’re helping out drugs squad with an undercover operation.” Everyone’s gasps fill the room, this must be the first time they’ve been involved in an undercover op. Both Cass and Cara give me a knowing look, they both know I was undercover for three years. I hate to admit, but it was a nice reprieve not to be me, to run away from my past and escape the horrors in my present. It says a lot that I would prefer the company of drug dealers to what I deal with in my personal life, maybe I need therapy— no I definitely need therapy, or my bike and a very open road. Free from absolutely everything.

“It’s going to be a high-end bar in the middle of town. I need the women on the team dressed appropriately, I need three guys on recon in the van and another two guys in the club with the girls. Now I’m not going to be leading the operation, Emilia, you’re going to lead it.” If looks could kill, I’d be dead twenty times over, I can feel the hatred radiating from Breanna at the front of the room. I glare at the sergeant in challenge, what is he doing? Why give me this responsibility? Does he know I was undercover? No, he couldn’t, that file was sealed. “If there aren’t any questions, Emilia, my office.”

I don’t take to authority well, my father can attest to that but there’s something about Kade. My body follows his commands, but my head is screaming at me to push back. I follow him into his office and shut the door. I don’t wait for him to sit down before I ask, “Why put me in for the lead? There are plenty of other officers on your unit that have more experience than I do.”