Chapter 6

Jud walked into the station ahead of schedule. He clocked in and sat at his desk. It gave him just a few moments to collect himself.

His team wouldn't be in tonight. The chief had denied their request to work overnight with him. He understood the man's reasoning. Jud was covering four nights for a man who had just had a baby. Thursday night was his last night. He would have the weekend off and then his normal schedule would be back.

That wasn't his only reason. Narcotics was constantly getting new information about their operations. If a deal was going down, they had to be ready to bust it. Jud's team was one of the best and they had the most confidential informants. If they were out of commission anything could happen. The chief didn't want all of Team 6 unavailable.

Jud was in an interesting position. Not only was he the captain of the team, but he was also dating a mafia prince whose family was being investigated for drug smuggling and distribution. The only one who knew anything about it in the whole station was Myka, though he didn't tell her. She just figured it out. It was a relief, but it also meant she would be his voice of reason should anything go squirrely.

Speaking of squirrely, this whole night had gone wonky. His body was relaxed several hours ago. He'd spent himself with Luke, enjoying the entanglement of their bodies. Most importantly he'd loved being close to him once again. He'd thought he was going to have a quiet night at work with hopefully very few distractions.

Well, that had gone down the drain with the phone call thirty minutes ago. He didn't usually lose his mind when he talked to his lovers' parents. In fact most of them loved him. He had only met a handful of parents when he thought his relationship was going to go further than it did, but he had never given them a reason to doubt him. At the time when he'd met them, he'd been on active military duty. They'd welcome him home from deployment, but once he was home the relationship never lasted.

His relationship with Luke had been going on for four years. Luke hadn't gotten tired of him. He kept coming over and doing things with him despite knowing who he was and what he could do. He hadn't cared and he still didn't. As long as their jobs didn't cross paths, they were happy.

Now… now he was meeting the father of the man he cared for above all others. Amos Meyers was a name most people didn't like to utter. From what Jud knew about him, he was a decent man despite being a mafia boss. His businesses had always seemed to be on the right side of the law, and he tried to keep his men that way. The only thing going against him was the territory rivalry with the South Bay Saints and the rumors he had a gun pipeline with the Irish in New York. He was a real-life Sons of Anarchy.

No one had managed to tie him to the Irish pipeline, but the rivalry with South Bay was legendary. The last two leaders of the rival gangs had killed each other, and their sons had taken over. While Amos had started legitimizing his businesses, Colin Wayne hadn't done that. He was still in the drug buisness and was looking for new territory to branch out into.

If Luke had been telling the truth, and Jud had no reason not to believe him, then Amos had no inclination to start running drugs. All the drugs their infomormant had seen had been staged. For the first time in his career, Jud hoped to everything anyone ever believed in that this was only a rumor. He did not want to have to arrest his lover's father or his lover.

"Captain?" He looked up at the gentle voice that called his name. "You have a visitor."

Jud looked past the woman. Dressed impeccably in a pinstripe Armani suit, Amos Meyers and his left hand man Lou Rayes stood just inside the doorway. They looked out of place in the extremely casual overnight station. Jud was wearing a button up and jeans simply because he hated dress pants. As long as it was business casual, he was able to get away with it.

"Thank you, Sergeant," he said. "I'll take care of it."

He stood and crossed the room full of desks. He was nervous as hell, but he wasn't going to deny that he had always wanted to at least meet Amos Meyers. The man was a legend in the police force even though very few had met him.

He extended his hand, watching as it clasped around the older man's. They looked at each other, not in an intimidating way but as they tried to size each other up. Amos retracted his hand first and clasped them in front of him.

"Captain Jud Payne?" he said. He posed it as a question but he already knew who he was. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you."

Jud nodded because his throat was dry and his tongue thick. He motioned towards a room surrounded by glass. "Would you care to sit down?"

Amos nodded emphatically, and the captain led him to the room. It was used for family members and informants who were checking in. Narcotics didn't have as many family members come through, but every so often some would come through to help bring their family in. Most of the time the questioning was left to the detectives downstairs.

Jud made some coffee as the two men sat down. It gave him something to do. On the outside he was very calm, but his mind was running a thousand miles an hour. Luke was worried about him sitting down with his dad, but how would he feel doing Jud alone? And in the station of all places. He was going to get hell for it when Luke found out. Jud wasn't going to keep it from him.

He fixed three cups and carried sugar and creamer over with them. He set the cups on the table and sat in the free chair across from them. Amos took one and grabbed the sugar and creamer. Lou waited until he was done before doing the same. Jud didn't usually drink anything other than black, but he knew where Luke got his sweet tooth from.

"You don't have to be so nervous," Amos mused.

Jud looked up at him. He smiled slightly, cup paused at his lips. "It's not that I'm nervous. Curious is the better term."

The older man nodded. "You had no plans to ever meet me, did you?"

He swallowed the sip of coffee slowly. "I wouldn't say that. I was just waiting for Luke to tell me it was okay. My track record with meeting parents isn't exactly the best."

Amos looked up into his face. "It was Luke's idea to keep you a secret?"

Jud smiled slightly. "He didn't want to, but I'm not exactly someone you take home to your mafia father."

Lou laughed. The two men looked at him. He wiped the laugh off his face, but a smile still played about his lips. "You have to admit, Amos. He has a point. Even you were shocked when you found out Captain Payne was a police officer."

"Yes, you are correct. It was a shock when I found out, but that was before I realized what was going on in my organization." Jud propped his chin in his hand as he leaned against the arm of the chair. He wondered how long the polite chatter would last. "I understand Lukas has told you what we discussed."

"He may have mentioned it."

Amos smiled at the answer that didn't confirm or deny his thoughts. "It is a little unorthodox for a narcotics officer to be in the know of a gangster's doings, but in this instance it is necessary. Since I took control of the Kings, I have not permitted the manufacturing, sell, or use of drugs. Anyone who was caught doing so was severely punished."

Lou leaned back and crossed his legs. "One of our higher ranking members' son was caught with blow. It had a specific emblem on the packaging; a praying angel."

Jud nodded absently. "The symbol of the South Bay Saints. I'm quite familiar with it, but I have to ask. Are you sure that member was not just buying from a dealer associated with the Saints?"

"He got it from a party at Cumberland Way University," Amos said.

Cumberland Way was a small four year university in South Bay. The South Bay Hornets were the primary rivals of the Baymont Blue Jays. They tried to one up each other every year during the rivalry games. It would make sense if the drugs were on campus. College students were very impressionable and if someone handed them a baggy of white powder then told them to try it, they probably would.

Jud had seen plenty of overdoses in college students because they loved the high and wanted to get higher. Unfortunately the body could only take so much before it gave out. He had to make that phone call too many times to be pleasant. None of it was pleasant, but having to tell a mother her son or daughter died and snuffed out the potential he or she had was worse.

"And is that where I come in?" he asked.

"Not necessarily." The officer tilted his head in confusion. "I do not want you investigating this as an officer. I want you to work for me to stop this."

Jud shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can't. And if you try to use Luke against me, you won't have to worry about getting to know me. I won't be coming around. I didn't survive through four tours in the Middle East to come back and listen to a mobster tell me what to do."

"All I want to know is what you know." Amos's voice was gentle. He already knew all about Jud's past, and he knew how influential he was in the city's narcotics division. If he wanted some information, he would be able to get it.

"I'm sorry, but it's an ongoing investigation. If you're willing to give me some information as a classified informant, then I will reconsider."

They stared at each other for a long moment. Neither one was going to back down. Jud appreciated that Amos wasn't going to use his power as a mob boss and Luke's father to get what he wanted. He didn't understand how much Jud loved his job and Luke at the same time. He wouldn't compromise either of them.

A phone rang. Jud's was on his desk so it left either Lou's or Amos's. In the end it was Amos who moved. He pulled his phone from his pocket and looked at the screen. Without a word, he set it on the table and answered. Then he put it on speaker.

"Lukas?" he said.

"What the hell, Dad?" His voice was hot, and Jud could imagine the look on his face. "Why the hell are you at the staton with Jud? Didn't I ask you not to bother him?"

Jud raised his eyes to the man across the table from him and waggled his eyebrows. Amos shook his head with a smile. "I thought I should meet him since you haven't brought him around. Besides, he has declined my offer."

Luke let out a long-suffering sigh. "Dad~! I told you to let me discuss it with him. I could have told you he wouldn't have done it."

"Lukas, anyone who wants to be part of this family has to pull his weight."

"Dad! I never mentioned anything about bringing him into the family. It would be a conflict of interest for him, and I would never make him choose between me or his job. That's not healthy for any relationship!"

Amos stared at his phone for a minute then lifted his eyes to look at Jud. The officer was looking at the screen with the most precious name on it. His face was unreadable, but the father knew what it meant. His son had said something he had never once said before.

"We will discuss this later. I expect to see you for dinner tonight."

"Yeah, fine. Jud, don't listen to the old geezer. He has a good heart but bad timing. If you don't want to work with him, don't. It's your career, not his."

"It's fine, Luke," Jud reassured.

"Dad, don't be an asshole to him." Luke cut the call and the screen went dark.

Amos picked the device up and put it back in his coat pocket. He finished his coffee then stood. Lou rose slowly, making sure everything was neat on the table. Jud stood despite his shaky knees. He extended his hand and shook Amos's again.

"We will meet again. Please take care of my son when he is with you," the older gentleman said.

"I will. Let me escort you out."

They made small talk as the elevator rose to their floor. Myka was standing in it when the doors opened. She was shocked at first, glancing between the three men. Then she gathered herself and stepped out. Amos and Lou took her place and offered kind parting words as the doors closed.

She turned on Jud as soon as they heard the elevator descending. He turned on his heel and went back to the waiting room to gather the spoiled cups. She tailed him as he went, shadowing his every step.

"Judkins Payne, what the hell are you planning?" she demanded.

"Nothing. He showed up on his own and I wanted to hear what he had to say. Don't worry; I haven't agreed to anything," he said. He washed dishes and put the cups in the drainer.

"And what exactly did he ask?"

"He wants me to work with his organization to find out who's selling the drugs. I told him no."

"Jud!"

He looked at her from the corner of his eye. "Myka, he's Luke's father. I had the obligation to hear him out. I didn't have to agree with him, but I did want to know what his reasoning was."

Myka groaned unhappily. "You will bend over backwards for him won't you?" He cast her a look that told her to drop it. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I'm trying, My, but it's a bit hard when he's living a life that I have spent my entire career trying to bring down."

"But you're also going to end up putting yourself in danger to keep him safe. Can you really handle that? What if you get seriously hurt? Do you know how many people will be on a rampage?"

Jud pulled her to him. She was his best friend and therefore entitled to being upset about whatever he decided. She had always kept him safe and would try to as long as he let her. But he had never allowed her to step over the line and tell him what to do with his relationship with Luke. However, she was able to get him to listen when the rest ofhis team wouldn't and couldn't.

"I don't want you hurt," she muttered.

"I'll do my best. But we both knew something like this would happen eventually."

She looked at him sourly, but Jud didn't have the time to put any thought into it. He had to start looking into all the information Luke had told him and cross reference what he had already. He knew if he went to do this task, Myka would follow him. He counted on it. Two heads were better than one.