Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter One

Being an author must be hard, Rey thought, placing her last book on her LGBTQA+ young adult novel stand. In school, she had always been told to write what she knew, which was harder than most people thought. She wondered if teachers even believed it when they said that. What did Rey know? She knew parental abandonment, foster homes. She knew school and friends and part time jobs. She knew graduation and adulthood -for the most part- and working. God, did she know working.

Working in a cafe/book store wasn’t the most arduous of tasks but it was definitely draining after a while. But Rey refused to complain. She was able to work with her best friends, work with books and she got free food and coffee, which fuelled her. Poe, the owner of Cosmic Cafe in the small town of West Point, often joked that her blood was actually just coffee.

Rey Niima -a name given to her by the foster system- had been working at Cosmic Cafe ever since her graduation from community college, the only type of schooling she had been able to afford with her benefits. There she had met budding business man Poe, who had been working with his husband Finn to open their book shop cafe. After they graduated Poe ended up opening Cosmic Cafe and hiring Rey along with another girl from school named Rose. Poe, his husband Finn, Rose and Rey became the four man team that ran the show that was the Cosmic Cafe.

“I told you, I’m not a muffin guy. I’m a cupcake guy. Cupcakes are like tiny cakes for your hands, hence the name. Muffins are trash and we don’t speak of them.” It was Finn, Rey noted, moving away from the stand of young adult novels and walking towards the cafe counter. “We’ve been married two years Poe, you know this.”

Poe Dameron, a classically handsome man with a square jaw and short, dark curls waved his hand, as if dispersing his husband’s nonsense in the air. “Yes, yes, I know, love.” He made eye contact with Rey and rolled his eyes when Finn wasn’t looking. “I was going to suggest Rose make them.”

Finn nodded his head, “Good, I was ready to suggest the same thing.” He huffed and turned back to the till, busying himself with receipt paper and grumbling under his breath. Poe gazed reverently at the back of his head before he tossed Rey a wink and walked into the back. Rey heard him call to Rose and guessed they were discussing the baking of said muffins.

“So Finn, did Poe tell you the good news?” Rey teased, leaning on the side of the counter.

Finn clapped the receipt printer closed and peered up at her, “Poe is a beautiful man with a beautiful mouth but I can’t think of the good news you’re hinting at.”

Rey rolled her eyes, sticking her tongue out, “We got an author signing. And not just any author.” She clasped her hands together, eyes glinting deviously.

Groaning, Finn crossed his arms, “Don’t tell me - Kylo Ren, the elusive author of The Falcon Trilogy. Traipse through the stars with famed smuggler Alden Falcon and-,”

“Shhh! Don’t spoil it!” Rey laughed, “But yes, the very same. Your charming husband spoke with his agent, Phasma? I think that’s what he said her name was and somehow weaselled us in on the press tour of the thrilling conclusion: The Falcon’s Lament!” She reached up and tightened the bun her hair was curled into. “And I’ll be there! I’ve never met someone famous before, especially not someone I actually care about!”

“Don’t get to excited, Rey, I’ve heard he’s an asshole of the first degree,” Finn warned.

Rey waved his concerns away, “Then the illusion will be gone. But until then, let me have this,” She laughed.

Poe poked his head out from the back, “Rose agreed to make the muffins. You’re welcome.” He disappeared back into the kitchen. Finn and Rey snickered before they were distracted by the bell on the door jingling.

It was Paige, Rose’s older sister. She was beautiful with long black hair and long eyelashes that fanned her dark eyes. Her pouty lips curled up into a smile when she saw Rey and Finn, “Hey, guys, I heard the big news!”

Finn huffed, “This better not be Kylo Ren but rather the muffins your sister is slaving away making for my slave driver husband.”

Laughing, Paige order a turkey and swiss cheese sandwich and a hot chocolate, digging her wallet out of worn, leather purse. “It’s definitely about Kylo Ren,” she winked at Rey who grinned back. “I’m going to be there, so save me a good spot in line. I have unforgiving hours so I’m hoping to make it at a reasonable time.” Paige was a model for a photography company, The Republic of Photos, and had been working for them for as long as Rey had known her. She did everything from hand modelling to dress modelling and seemed to steal the stage in every photo she was in.

“Maybe you two will fall in love and he’ll put you in his next book, Paige. Make you the main character,” Rey daydreamed. “Imagine: being the main character of a book series.” She sighed wistfully at the thought as Finn rang Paige through.

Paige grinned, “I’ll make sure he includes you too, love.” She tipped her cup of steaming hot cocoa towards Rey in a salute sort of way and Rey beamed. “The Epic Adventures of Rey and Paige. It’ll be phenomenal.”

Finn rolled his eyes, “Don’t encourage her, Paige. She’s as hopeless as is.”

Rey cried out, “Hey!” And punched him in the arm, making him flinch and whine.

Poking his head out again, Poe surveyed the scene in front of him, “I heard my husband being abused.” Finn perked up, “Please, continue.”

“Hey, asshole!” Finn snapped, playfully.

Poe grinned and nodded at Paige, “Hey Paige, good to see you. I’m guessing Rose told you?”“Of course! Be ready for the future wedding of Kylo Ren and me.” She joked, poking at Rey’s shoulder over the counter.

“Look at him, stealing my girls already and he hasn’t even shown up yet!” Poe lamented, “This is gonna be a tougher book signing than I thought.” He shook his head in mock sadness. “At least I still have Rose.” He disappeared into the kitchen and they heard him yell, “No, not you too!” at whatever Rose had said. Finn, Rey and Paige laughed as Paige took her sandwich and and sat at one of the small cafe tables, pulling out her phone. Poe poked his head back out the kitchen door, observing the scene in the cafe, “Get to work, what do you think I’m running, a charity?”

Rey and Finn saluted him playfully and Rey rushed back over to the piles of books she had to stock.

Chapter Text

Chapter Two

Rey was late. And not just a cute, five minutes late, she was about an hour and a half late. And of course it the most important day of her career. Kylo Ren day. Well, his book signing at least.

First, her jeep wouldn’t start and she realized the battery was dead. So she plugged it in and then tried to wait for it but then it wasn’t charging as fast as she had hoped (bloody old cars) and then she caught the bus, which turned out to be the wrong bus, going to the opposite end of town so she had to get off and catch another bus going in the right direction which ended up going through an enormous amount of residential areas before finally getting to its destination. When she had found out her jeep’s battery was dead she had called Poe to let him know she was going to be late (by how much, she wasn’t sure).

Poe had laughed and laughed and laughed, seeing as Kylo Ren had been pretty much all she had been speaking about for the last week. And then he told her she could skip coming in because he and Finn had it handled, jokingly of course and Rey refused to be left out. Henceforth the mess that had happened when she was determined to show up.

When she had showed up, it was in the nick of time. Just to see Paige getting her book signed by the illustrious Kylo Ren. He looked bored, was the first thing Rey noticed. He had dark hair pushed back out of his face and away from his glistening eyes, a big rounded nose and large ears that stuck out from the side of his face. His mouth was wide and pouty, bright pink against his stark pale skin.

Rey studied him carefully from the window outside, watching him sign the book Paige was offering him with careful strokes of a black marker. Paige said something to him and his eyes flickered from the book up to her. With a deliberate slowness, he nodded his head and held his hand out. They shook hands before Paige picked up her book and hurried away for the next person in line, going to the cafe counter where Rose was, her face bright red and her eyes glazed over.

Grinning, Rey pulled the door open and slipped inside. And then sighed. After the mess at her apartment, she had forgotten to bring her own copy of The Falcon’s Lament. Upset with herself, she angrily pulled the hair in her bun tighter and peered around the clusters of people to see Kylo Ren again. She could just make out his hair and one eye from between the shoulders of fans. Discouraged, she made her way over to the bustling cafe side and slipped behind the counter. Rose, who was working the till, grinned at her while chatting with the excited customer on the other side of the counter. She poked her head in the back and saw Finn rushing around the kitchen, baking at mad speeds so Rey decided to leave him to his own devices.

And then there was Poe, the captain of the ship. He was weaving his way through the groups of people, checking on them and offering them free samples of the several coffee types that were brewed. He looked in his element and Rey was glad for the experience this gave them. Poe seemed to be thriving off the crowds.

What was left of the book signing went off without a hitch. Rey was impressed with how Poe handled the raving crowds, shoving chocolate and coffee into their hands and sending them on their way. Kylo Ren was just as efficient, shaking hands and signing books and didn’t seem to be flustered at all by all the attention that he was getting. Rey wondered how he managed to look so calm and collected -and not at all panicked- when the crowds were practically brawling with each other to see him up close.

And it seemed as soon as it had begun, it had ended. Kylo Ren was ushered from the building and the hoards of people followed, leaving the cafe in a state Rey had never seen before. Poe looked relieved, despite how well he had done and nearly collapsed into a chair by the counter. “Is it finally over?” He dared ask.

Rey laughed, “Yup, you did it Poe. You got Kylo Ren and did a successful book signing. This should drum up business for sure.” Poe looked relieved at the news.

Finn came out from the back, untying his apron and throwing it on the counter before he came up behind Poe and planted a kiss on his head, “Good job, love. Our first and most successful book signing.”

“Let’s never do that again,” Rose rubbed at her face, “Those people were rabid.”

Paige, who was still sitting at a table with her book, laughed, “Seems like Kylo does that to people.”

Rose raised an eyebrow, “Kylo?” She echoed.

Paige flipped her hair playfully, “He is my future husband after all.” She joked.

Wrinkling his nose, Finn said, “He looks like a weirdo.” Rey was unable to hold back the bark of laughter that escaped her, clapping her hands over her mouth, horrified with herself for laughing. Finn grinned wickedly at her and she glared daggers in his direction, insulted.

It took longer than usual to finally close up, spending a painstaking amount of time cleaning up the mess in books and in the cafe to get the place spick and span again. Rey promised to be at work bright and early the next morning to open and Finn handed her the keys to the building as they were leaving together. To Rey’s surprise, Poe and Finn drove her home that night, making her promise three more times she would open the store in the morning before driving off.

Rey dreamt confusing dreams that night, but, when she awoke, she couldn’t remember a thing.

That morning Rey made sure she was earlier than usual, about thirty minutes before the cafe opened at 8 am. She unlocked the door and locked it after her so one could accidentally stumble in on her and hurried to the back to turn the lights on. And then she paused, the lights in the back were already on.

She rolled her eyes, “Rose, I was opening this morning! Not you!” She called, grabbing her apron and tying it around her waist. She opened the door to the kitchen and saw the back of the head of Paige, sitting perched at the island counter. In front of her was a batch of mini muffins, two of them gone. Rey laughed.

“Paige, what are you doing here this early, big shoot this morning?” Rey asked, flipping the switches up for the rest of the store. “Should you be eating muffins before a shoot?” She wondered, “You know, as much as you’re here, maybe you should just work here, take a morning shift or something,” Rey joked. “I mean already get the benefits, might as well put you to work.”

There was silence. Frowning, Rey turned to her, eyeing the slump in her shoulder, “Are you asleep? Paige?” She walked up to her and grabbed her shoulder and gently tried to rouse her. Nothing happened.

“Paige, this isn’t…” Rey began to mutter, biting her lip and pushing the dark curtain of hair out of Paige’s face. She was pale, weirdly pale but the thing that got Rey was the chocolate froth coming out of her mouth, “Holy shit, Paige?” She gasped, stumbling away.

The back door swung open and Poe peeked his head in, “I came in early anyway because you’re a ho, Rey. I can’t believe you actually made it!”

“Poe, something’s wrong with Paige!” Rey cried out, looking frantically around the kitchen.

Poe kicked into action immediately, rushing through the door, Finn on his heels. Finn whipped out his phone and dialed 911 as Poe pulled Paige awkwardly out of the seat to lay her on the floor. “We need something to suction out her airway, Rey!” Poe ordered, pressed his fingers against her throat, his cheeks paling at there verdict.

Rey rushed to the other side of the kitchen, wrenched open a drawer and withdrew a turkey baster and ran back to Poe as a siren sounded in the distance. “Perfect,” Poe whispered as he counted and pushed down hard on Paige’s chest. He paused to check her pulse again and said, “Now clean out her mouth but don’t touch that. The foam may indicate poison.”

Poison?

Rey’s eyes flicked to the muffins and she gulped hard. Rose’s muffins?

A police car screeched to a halt outside of the store and a couple of cops rushed inside, Finn hurting to meet them and explain what had happened. Before Rey could take stalk of what happened she, along with Poe and Finn, were being pushed out the kitchen as ambulance workers came through with a stretcher. Rey grabbed onto Finn’s hand as they walked past, Paige’s limp body laying on the gurney.

“Who found the body?” A cop asked and another officer pointed at Rey.

“Paige…” Rey told the officer, “Her name was Paige Tico and she was my friend.” She sounded far away like she was floating somewhere high above the real world.

The officer’s stern face crumpled for a moment before he composed himself and nodded, “You found Miss Tico, ma’am? Can I get your name?”
“Rey Niima.”

“We’re gonna need your official statement, Miss Niima.”

Chapter Text

Chapter Three

Her official statement was that she found Paige Tico in the kitchen of Cosmic Cafe at seven thirty in the morning, already dead and frothing at the mouth, two muffins from the package Rose had created, gone.

The official verdict was that someone had inserted poison into the bottom of the muffins with a needle and had waited for results.

Thankfully Rey wasn’t the one who had to tell Rose. Their parents had died in a car crash when they had been young and Paige had taken care of Rose ever since. The sisters and been closer than anyone Rey had ever known. Cosmic Cafe was closed indefinitely until the police and their techs groomed through it to prove where the poison came from if anything else was a potential killer and to rule Poe, Finn, Rey and even Rose herself out of the suspect pool. They interviewed all of them, separately, and asked if Paige had been acting strangely at all if anyone would want to hurt her and more lines of inquiry that seemed to theme itself after those questions.

Rey felt like ice water had been dumped on her. As they questioned her, she realized she felt like she was sitting in a math exam: she had been through all the lessons but as soon as the test was sitting in front of her, there were no answers to be had. It seemed like the more questions there were, the more Rey realized she hadn’t known Paige at all.

She didn’t know Paige was an amateur photographer for The Republic of Photos, she didn’t know she had been dating a guy with a criminal record who had apparently had a history of violence and break and enters. The more Rey thought about it, the more she realized that Paige didn’t talk about her personal life a lot. Or at least, she hadn’t, not with Rey. And, as she circled around the bowl of thought on Paige, the more she realized that she would never know. Not from Paige. They wouldn’t be able to talk anymore and Paige wouldn’t be marrying Kylo Ren and they wouldn’t have a book series together and she wouldn’t be in any more pictures and she wouldn’t take another photo ever again. And the more Rey’s mind swirled, the heavier she felt like the sky was pressing down on her shoulders.

“And you never knew about her boyfriend?” The officer asked. Rey hadn’t paid attention to his introduction, her thoughts to tumultuous to focus.

Rey shook her head.

“And you said you were friends with her?” The officer frowned, posing the question innocently. Rey felt a tear slid down her cheek and the officer shifted uncomfortably at the sight. “I think that’s all, Miss Niima, thank you for your time.”

Managing a nod, Rey practically sprinted away from him to join Finn and Poe at the front of the store. They both looked worse for wear and Poe, who Rey never say as anything less than perfect, looked harried like he’d been working another book signing but this one had about fifty toddlers instead of adults. Standing with a police lieutenant just further down from them was Rose, shaking with deep, heart hurting sobs. They had called her down to identify Paige as her next of kin and inform her of the tragic events and Rose, as Rey had predicted, was inconsolable. A couple of medics from the ambulance were trying to calm her down to no avail.

“You know, I heard a couple of them talking…” Finn muttered, jerking his head to some officers nearby and crossing his arms, “They think it might have been something to do with the book signing yesterday. Lots of people, lots of publicity, a pretty model. They think it’s some sort of sick and twisted…” He trailed off and shook his head, grimacing. “You know, some fucked up guy, like a terrorist. Poisoning treats that will be sold to the public.”

Poe shook his head, rubbing his temple, “That’s impossible, Rose was in the kitchen all day. No one would have been able to sneak in and poison muffins without her noticing.”

Rey thought hard, “What about the back door? You just changed the code right? Who knows about that?” The back door, unlike the front which had a key, had a computer system where one had to enter the correct six-digit code. It was the same set up as The Republic of Photos, which was right next door.

“Just us, Rose, Paige…” Poe frowned deeply, “That should be it.”

Rey nodded in agreement, unable to think of anyone else who would know the code to the cafe. “They kept asking me about her ex-boyfriend, do we know him?”

Sighing, Poe shook his head, “She went through so many guys it was nearly impossible to keep track. I think this guy’s name was Lars? Criminal record, not a super stellar guy but Paige did always like the bad guys. Too bad this guy had the attitude to match.”

Finn frowned, “I heard that he apparently broke into The Republic a while back. Nothing was stolen and there was no proof so he couldn’t be charged so it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility for him to break in, poison some of our food and wait it out.”

“Was Paige for sure the target?” Rey wondered, “Or was it an accident? Anyone of us could have eaten those muffins. Hell, we could have put them out for people to buy.” Poe and Finn nodded in agreement and the three lapsed into silence, their minds racing with dark possibilities.

After the police were done with them, they let them all go home and Rey drove with her radio turned down all the way back to her apartment building. As soon as she got home, she had crawled back into bed and within moments, was fast asleep.

Her sleep hadn’t felt that long when her cell phone ringing woke her. Groaning, Rey contemplated ignoring it but then remembered the events prior and shot over to her nightstand, snatching up the offending item and swiping yes to answer the call.

“Rey Niima speaking.” She answered politely into the speaker.

“It’s Poe, babe. Come over to the house, we need to talk to you.”

Rey yawned and nodded before she realized he couldn’t see her and said, “Sure thing, boss.” They hung up and Rey checked the time. It was just after noon. Grimacing at herself, she sat up and straightened out her clothes, went into the bathroom to fix her hair into once again a neat bun before heading down to the car park to drive over to the Dameron’s house.

The Dameron’s lived in a beautiful but small house, with a neat front lawn and rows of flowers in front, to a small deck in front with a porch swing. It was quaint and charming and Rey could picture herself living in something similar when she could afford it.

The door was open when Rey approached so she pushed it open and stepped inside, closing the door behind her and locking it. “I’m home!” She called, kicking her boots off. As soon as she did she heard nails rapidly clicking on the ground and she grinned widely, bending down and anticipating the greeting. “BB!” She gasped, grabbing onto the chubby face of the orange and white welsh corgi. BB gave a soft ‘woof’, his tongue falling out of his mouth as he tried to nuzzle into her face and merge into one being with her. “Oh, your collar is crooked,” Rey laughed, reaching out to fix the piece of leather, correcting it so the tags were hanging in front of his chest. After that, Rey moved her hands up and scrubbed at his ears and ran her hands down his chubby flank to his swaying belly and scratched at it. BB panted and fell over, exposing his belly to her and wiggling his back around on the carpet.

“Come on in Rey!” She heard Finn call and she reluctantly pulled away from BB, patting her thigh so he would follow and walked into the living room. It was cluttered with chairs, couches and love seats, colorful blankets and throw pillows covering nearly every inch of the seats. There were pictures on every shelf and on the walls, featuring the Cafe, BB, their wedding, and many with Rey and even Rose in them.

It smelled like chocolate inside the house and Rey took a deep breath, her nose leading her to the coffee table where a tray of hot cocoa and cookies were. She beamed and grabbed one of each, sitting cross-legged on the floor right in front of the table so she could have easier access to the assortment of cookies and to BB. Of course, quite loyally, BB made his rounds to Finn and Poe for pets before returning to her side and collapsing against her leg, peering up at her with wide eyes his tongue sticking out from the corner of his mouth as he keenly watched the cookie in her hand.

“Look, we were thinking of maybe doing something…” Poe started off, sipping his hot chocolate, watching her over the brim of his mug.

“Doing something?”

Finn nodded, “The police are gonna be dragging their feet on this and they already suspect it’s one of us. They probably won’t look much further.” He shook his head and Rey nodded in agreement. She could tell they were looking closely at Rose, looking for some sort of resentment towards her sister. Rey hoped that they soon realized there was none. Rose could barely hurt a fly, let alone her beloved elder sister.

“I got a call from Officer Lockett, the one who interviewed me, he wanted all the names of people who attended the book signing if we had any and the contract information we used for Kylo Ren. They called him in from DC, big time cop.” Poe huffed, to let Rey now exactly what he thought of that.

Rey gasped, “They don’t think!” She couldn’t believe the idea. Her beloved author, an actual killer?

Finn rolled his eyes and Poe said, “They must think he was the actual target. A big celebrity like that must be a top priority.”

Snorting, Finn grumbled, “And he’s a straight white guy, of course, they’re worried about him.”

“OOOH!” Rey yelled, high-fiving Finn, “Get wrecked, Kylo Ren.” She joked, trying to lighten the mood. Finn grinned back at her and Poe rolled his eyes but a smile was itching at the corner of his lips.

“As I was saying, they’re obviously investigating the book signing but they weren’t there. We were. If anyone has a better chance of solving this, it’s us,” Poe finished, sipping his hot chocolate. “We should pool together what we know and investigate it ourselves.”

Rey looked dubiously between the two of them, chewing on her bottom lip. Her immediate thought was no, that it was a horrible idea. But their faces were so hopeful and she thought of Paige and what Paige would have done. Would she have insinuated herself into an investigation for one of them? Did she care enough? Rey sighed; she cared enough about Paige, that she was sure of.

“For Paige, I’ll help.” Rey decided. “Are we telling Rose?”

Poe and Finn exchanged looks before Poe said, “She’s not in a good state right now so it would probably be preferable if we left her out of this one.” Rey nodded in understanding. She could only just imagine the kind of hell Rose was experiencing.

“What should we do first?” Rey asked, taking another cookie.

“We need to find out if Kylo Ren was the actual target or not. He might know something.”

Rey snorted, “As if we can get close enough to interrogate him. And he probably won’t tell us even if we got the chance.” BB drooped his face onto her knee sadly, realizing he wasn’t getting any cookie. Rey rubbed his belly in sympathy.

Poe’s face broke out into a devious grin, “Well, that’s where you come in.”

Chapter Text

Chapter Four

In the back cover of Kylo Ren’s book series, there was a small blurb about the author. It didn’t give much away other than the fact he lived in West Point with his cat, Scully, a plump, orange tabby with a big head and wide yellow eyes. Rey only knew this because instead of a picture of Kylo Ren on the back to accompany the blurb, it was, in fact, Scully, staring up accusingly into the camera like it was a mug shot.

Paw-sitively Pets was the fanciest pet store in town with ten dollar customizable treats and dog food bags that could range up to forty big ones. And of course, this was where Kylo Ren bought his cat food. Usually, Poe and Finn took BB to the main street store West Points Pets for his food, treats, and toys because of the more localized location and more reasonable prices. But today, it was Rey’s turn to treat BB and that included following Kylo Ren from his slick black sport’s car into Paw-sitively Pets.

BB was absolutely excited, a German shepherd was walking out of the story just as they arrived, parking behind Kylo Ren’s car. BB whined and tried dragging Rey behind him to greet the dog but the German shepherd’s owner seemed to have no interest in letting them make friends and dragged her dog away before BB could even get close.

The store was a stone building with vibrant blue coloring for the sign and the interior looked like it had been designed with a lakeside cabin in mind. Very cozy and comfortable and maybe a little bit too warm.

Led in by BB and his nose, Rey peered anxiously around the store but didn’t spot the man in question. At first, she was worried but then told herself that she had in fact seen his car outside, the same car that Poe identified from the book signing, she knew he had to be around someplace.

BB led her into the toy aisle, his nose snuffing against the ground as he tugged her forward. Along the bottom shelves, he found a stuff Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson plushie and immediately grabbed on it, hitting the squeaker with his teeth. A laugh bubbled out of Rey before she could help it and she slapped the hand that wasn’t holding the leash to her mouth to cover the loud sound. Bending down, Rey grabbed onto Dwayne’s leg and tried to tug the toy from BB’s mouth but BB was having none of it. Instead, he began to give a low throaty growl, pushing his bum up and lowering his front legs like he was about to leap on her. His bum began to wiggle and his ears perked up high.

“No, BB, we’re not playing. Give me back Dwayne.” BB growled again. Rey frowned and tugged harder on the plush leg, resulting in a harder pull from the dog. “BB, you’re gonna wreck this and I’m not spending….” She glanced at the price tag on the bin, “Jesus, I’m not spending $21.99 on Dwayne for you. You gotta ask your dads.” BB whined and dropped down onto his belly, still clenching Dwayne in his teeth. Dwayne squeaked and BB smacked him with a little paw as if telling him to shut up. “BB, please!” Rey hissed, letting the loop of the leash drop onto her wrist and using both hands to grab each of Dwayne’s legs. She tugged again, this time a bit harder and BB leaped to his feet. Dwayne squeaked in protest as he was being pulled. Rey relaxed her grip on his legs as if she was going to let BB have it and then suddenly yanked upwards. This resulted in BB leaping onto his back legs and dancing, growling much louder as Dwayne was being pulled. Carefully, Rey dropped him down, frowning in disappointment.

“This isn’t funny,” she told BB, “We’re here on serious business. Pull yourself together.”

Someone snorted from behind her. Flushing, Rey whipped around, ready to tell them off for eavesdropping on her conversation and then halted. Of course, of all the people to hear her, it was Kylo Ren himself. Dressed in a worn out jean jacket over a black t-shirt, he looked far too casual to be a famous author, yet there he was, holding a package of golden, catnip infused mice, his eyes watching her. He wasn’t smiling but he wasn’t quite frowning either.

Up close, Rey could see his eyes were a blend of pale green and brown, a swirling hazel. She had thought at the book signing that his eyes had been dark brown but was pleasantly surprised by the revelation that they were quite bright.

“He’s not my dog,” she blurted. Kylo Ren’s eyebrows slowly raised as he looked down between BB and her. He didn’t say anything; he didn’t need to by how expressive his face was. Rey realized what she said and felt her face burn like she had a nasty sunburn, “I mean, I’m babysitting. Or, well, dog-sitting. He’s like their baby though so babysitting works too, I guess.” Behind her feet, Dwayne squeaked and BB huffed.

Something, perhaps a smile, twitched at Kylo’s lips before he found himself again and his lips thinned into a neat line. Deliberately, he nodded, “I see,” he murmured his voice low and painfully slow like he was thinking about each syllable he spoke. He didn’t say anything else, his eyes drilling into hers and Rey felt her heart pick up speed.

“Cat,” she finally managed, “You have a cat.” Seeing the guarded expression on his face she pointed at the mice in his hand. Kylo glanced down at them before looking back up at her and nodding, shifting on his feet. The movement turned his body more towards her and she was suddenly aware of the immense height difference. If he found out she was ‘investigating’ him, he could throw her into a wall no problem. Or break her back over his knee like Bane did to Batman in the Dark Knight Rises movie.

Realizing her mind was racing, Rey tried to calm herself down, rubbing sweaty palms on her thighs. “More of a cat person then?” She tried, forcing herself to smile. This was not going as well as she had hoped.

Kylo nodded, “Works better for my schedule,” he shrugged, glancing down at BB, who was still holding onto Dwayne like his lifeline. Rey realized he meant his writing schedule. He probably had an at home office that he spent most of his time in. Rey realized she probably couldn’t give away knowing him in any capacity lest she scared him away. He seemed… relaxed? As relaxed as he possibly could be, speaking with a stranger who had been having a very serious discussion with a dog not even two minutes before. “I’m Rey, by the way.” She stuck her hand out, “And this is BB.” BB was too busy with Dwayne to acknowledge the author.

Kylo nodded his head, “Kylo,” he introduced, slowly bringing up his hand. They shook and Rey was painfully aware how rough and cold his hands were in comparison to hers. He wagged the plastic containing the mice in the air, “For Scully.”

Rey couldn’t contain her grin, “Scully, you are the only one I trust,” she quoted.

Nodding, Kylo added, “Trust no one.” Rey flushed at the implication of the quote -better not to trust her probably seeing as she was low-key investigating him- but quickly shook it off, liking the way his eyes seemed to be dancing with intrigue.

“Well, I better get this big baby his treat…” She shifted on her feet, unsure what else to say. Poe hadn’t trained her on what to say when she ran into the man. Just that she was the perfect bait. How he thought that she wasn’t sure. Rey turned back to BB, “Drop Dwayne right now or no treat,” She threatened. BB growled at her, narrowing his eyes.

Putting the mice back on the shelf, Kylo walked around her and crouched in front of BB. BB eyes him distrustfully but didn’t growl when Kylo reached out a hand to stroke his head. He brought his fingers down the center of his nose, up between his eyes before circling his ears. BB’s eyes shut and he leaned into Kylo’s hold. Then, with his other hand, Kylo reached out and grabbed Dwayne. Dwayne popped out of BB’s mouth and BB didn’t seem to notice until Kylo had already stood and faced Rey. He opened his mouth to say something when Rey’s phone went off, jarring her out of her awe.

Rey yanked her phone out of the pocket of her jacket and peered at the name. Rose.

“I’ve gotta take this.” She told him, “It was nice to meet you.” Brows furrowed, Kylo looked ready to say something but Rey bent down, picked the chubby BB up and swept out of the store. Just as she made it outside the call dropped and she was staring at a wallpaper picture of her friends, grinning up at her. Carefully, she placed BB down on the cement, frowning at her cell. BB peered up at her, his butt wagging back and forth as if he was expecting something from her. “Maybe we should go see Rose…” She whispered, eyeing BB over the top of her phone. “Can you help cheer her up?” BB huffed as if insulted by the thought that he couldn’t. “Fine, fine, I was just asking.”

“Hey!”

Rey jumped at the deep voice calling her and turned around, BB waddling in front of her like an overprotective potato.

It was, weirdly enough, Kylo. He was clutching a small paper bag and Dwayne. He approached her, frowning deeply like he was confused by something. “You forgot this,” he told her, thrusting the items out to her. Pocketing her phone, Rey gingerly took them, taking Dwayne under her arm -despite BB’s protests- and opening the paper bag. It was a dog bone with a hard icing on it reading Big Baby. Rey blinked in surprise.

“I… Thank you. How much do I owe you?” She closed the bag and peered up at him.

He looked startled by the question and then shook his head adamantly. “Nothing. They’re yours.” He seemed just as surprised by his answer as she was. His frown deepened and his eyes bore into hers, waiting for her response.

“Thank you, Kylo.” She blinked, “I, wow, this was really sweet of you…umm,” she immediately wondered if there was anything she could give him in return and dug into her purse. Instead, she found a red pen. Smiling to herself, Rey placed the bone inside her purse and, with Dwayne still safely tucked under her arm much to BB’s outrage, Rey boldly grabbed Kylo’s hand and wrote her cell phone number along his palm.

Watching her with cartoonishly wide eyes was Kylo, as if he couldn’t believe what was happening. He then inspected the number carefully when she released his hand. “Oh…” He breathed and a blush swept across his cheekbones to the tip of his nose. He cleared his throat and nodded, “Okay.” He gulped loudly, “I’ll… talk to you later?” He mumbled, unsure. He looked angry at himself and Rey was unsure why.

Instead, she beamed up at him, “I hope so.” She turned on her heel and BB hurried to walk in tune with her, approaching her beat-up jeep. As she climbed in, carrying BB with her and putting him in the passenger seat, she watched Kylo slid into his car across the parking lot. Flushing, she backed out quickly from her parking spot and swore she wouldn’t look at him again. But, as she was leaving the parking lot she glanced in her review mirror and saw him banging his head against the steering wheel, the hand with her digits posed in front of him.

Snickering, Rey drove off with every intention of seeing Rose.

Chapter Text

Chapter Five

Rose was holding up better than Rey thought she would be. Her hair was shiny and her face fresh, like she had just washed it. She lit up when she saw Rey and BB and immediately ushered them into her apartment. It was a two bedroom apartment which she had shared with Paige. As far as Rey could tell, she hadn’t touched anything since Paige’s death. There were still dishes in the sink, blankets pulled over the couch, candles burning on the coffee table.

“Rey, hi!” Rose greeted, smiling widely.

Rey eyed her, almost distrustfully at her enthusiasm before bending down to unclip the leash from BB’s collar. “Hey, Rose. Sorry I missed your call. I was at the pet store.” BB jumped up on her leg, his little paws pressing against her knee and he cocked his head at her. Rey pulled Dwayne out from under her arm, “Here you go you little menace.” BB gleefully took hold of Dwayne in his teeth before running off into the apartment with his new pal.

“How are you holding up? I’m here if you need anything, anything at all.” Truth be told, she had no idea how to help when one lost someone close to them. Her parents hadn’t died, just merely abandoned her at a young enough age she couldn’t even remember their faces. She hadn’t had anyone close to her die so having the situation with Paige was jarring. She imagined this was the worst case scenario for Rose, especially after the loss of her parents.

Waving away her concern, Rose chortled and said, “Where the hell did you get that?” Pointing at Dwayne.

“At Paw-sitively Pets.” Rey left out the fact she didn’t buy it herself.

“Spoiled doggo.”

“Ugh, I know right.”

Rose waved her in, “I hope you weren’t busy, I was hoping you’d just hang out for a bit. The apartment feels empty.” As soon as she said that, there was a growl and Dwayne went flying into the air, smacking into the tv stand and knocking over a box season of F.R.I.E.N.D.S onto the ground. Rey and Rose blinked, making faces at each other before slowly turning to face the living room. BB grabbed Dwayne and jumped onto the couch, ignoring them both. “Anyways, as I was saying, the apartment just feels empty now. I don’t know what to do with myself.” She stared at Rey for a moment before she suddenly burst into tears. Full on sobbing, with her shoulders shaking, nose running and shuddering breathes shaking her small frame.

Grappling, Rey looked wildly around the apartment for any sign of what she should do before dropping her purse on the kitchen counter and coming around to hug Rose. She gathered the smaller woman up in her arms, tucking her wet face into her chest and caressing her black hair. “I’m sorry, Rose. I’m so sorry. I’m gonna fix this.”

She, along with BB, spent the rest of the day at Rose’s. They filled the silence with episodes of Adventure Time and Rose even laughed several times. Rey let Rose paint her nails a pale pink that was hardly noticeable and the focusing on the task at hand seemed to settle her down. When that was done and Rose was shifting restlessly, eyes drawn to the hallway like she was ready for her sister to just pop out from behind the closed door of the room, Rey recruited her to make a batch of cookies. The recipe said it made twenty-four chocolate chip cookies but they ended up with nearly forty and spent the night eating cold pizza from the fridge and stuffing their faces with cookies. They made it through all of season three of Adventure Time and by the time the fourth season was almost through, Rose was asleep on the couch.

Texting Finn that she still had his dog and that they were spending the night at Rose’s, Rey went to Rose’s room, grabbed the fleece blanket and curled up on the opposite end of the couch, throwing the blanket over the both of them. She fell asleep listening to the gentle snores of BB, who had settled on top of Dwayne for the night.

The next morning, after making scrambled eggs and bacon for both her and Rose (and tossing some bacon to BB) Rey pulled Rose into one last hug before departing with Dwayne and BB in hand.

Jumping in her jeep, Rey headed to Poe and Finn’s house. The door was locked when she arrived so she banged her fist against it, rattling it enough to make BB bark excitedly. Poe flung the door open, wearing a tank top and sweatpants, his hair an unruly but attractive mess and falling into his beautiful dark eyes.

“BB!” He crouched down and BB jumped on him, licking his face and letting his dad rub at his belly.

“Jeez, I can’t wait to see what you do with a real baby,” Rey intoned, moving past them and chucking her boots off on the front carpet. Poe and BB followed her, the door shutting and locking behind them.

“I’ll be a great dad.”

“Where’s Finn?” Rey asked in lieu of answering.

Poe led them into the kitchen where BB made a dash on his short little legs for his food bowl where he shoved his snout into it, sending kibble flying. “In the workout room.”

“You’re disgustingly rich.”

Laughing, Poe pointed at Dwayne which was under her arm again, “What’s that?”

“A gift from our favorite author.” She pulled the paper bag out of her purse and showed the bone to Poe, “Along with this.”

Poe’s brows furrowed as he poured two cups of coffee. “What?” He leaned a hip against the counter and sipped his coffee, wincing at how hot it was.

“I ran into Kylo Ren like you said, and he bought Dwayne,” she held up said plushie up, “and the bone for BB. Was that part of the plan?” She frowned.

Poe burst into laughter, nearly dropping his coffee. He composed himself long enough to place his coffee down on the counter and bent down, holding his knees as he howled. “And? What did you find out?” He finally managed.

Rey huffed, “Nothing, I gave him my number and asked him to call me and that was it. I couldn’t exactly accost him in the pet store! Your plan was shitty!”

Shaking his head, Poe took another sip of coffee before saying, “No, that was exactly the plan. I didn’t want you to accost him. I just wanted him to meet you, fall madly in love, confess to killing Paige and then we get him arrested.”

“You think Kylo Ren… killed Paige?”

Poe nodded his head, looking severe, “I think he was involved, whether he knew it or not. Rose made those muffins for the book signing and someone had to know that.”

“I think you’re grasping at straws,” Rey sniffed. “She dated a criminal, who broke into her studio. I think Lars the Loser is a perfect suspect.”

Shrugging, Poe gulped down the rest of his coffee before filling it up again. “I mean, if Kylo Ren is innocent, then you just gave your favorite author your cell number and there’s a potential love story in the making.” Rey rolled her eyes but was unable to hide her blush, “And if I’m right, then we’re bringing Paige’s murderer to justice.”

And that, Rey, couldn’t argue with.

Chapter Text

Chapter Six

It had taken Rey three tries to finally make a dish she liked. There were scalloped potatoes in her fridge and containers of stew in her freezer but she ended with creamy tomato and spinach penne pasta. Transferring the pasta into Tupperware containers, she loaded them into a reusable bag and jumped into her jeep, headed over to Rose’s. It had been four days since Paige’s murder and the cafe had yet to open again. Knowing that Rose was living off of takeout, Rey decided to cook her something that would last her a few days and would be healthier.

She walked down Rose’s hall and as she was about to knock on the door, there was a crash from inside. The door suddenly swung open and a skinny man with faded purple hair and a rat-like face appeared in front of her, in his hands was a laptop. Rey recognized the laptop with The Republic of Photos sticker on it immediately.

The guy yelped and tried to shoot past her but Rey dropped the bag of food and threw herself at him, colliding with him and sending him to the ground. The laptop went scuttling along the hallway, just out of arms reach.

And then Rose appeared at the top of the steps, mouth falling open at the sight. “Rey! Lars?”

Lars elbowed Rey in the cheek, startling her and sending her back on her ass. He scrambled to his feet and tried to grab the laptop but Rose jumped into action, throwing herself over the object in question and tripping him. He caught himself on the railing and took off, disappearing down the steps.

When he was gone, Rey and Rose stared at each other. “What the fuck was that?” Rey gasped, rubbing her face.

“That was Paige’s ex-boyfriend.” Rose groused, standing up with the laptop. The plastic case it was in was cackled like a spider web but the computer itself seemed fine. She pointed at the bag that Rey had dropped, “What’s that?”

“Food, but that’s not important right now. Why the hell did he break into your apartment and try to steal Paige’s laptop?”

Rose frowned and inspected the laptop, “Maybe there’s something on it he wants?” She guessed. She fished her phone out of her pocket and Rey yelped, leaping to her feet.

“What are you doing?” Rey cried out, snatching the laptop out of Rose’s hands.

Rose frowned, looking offended, “I’m gonna call the cops! He broke into my apartment!” She waved her phone at Rey, scoldingly.

“No! Not yet! They’ll take the laptop and we’ll never find out anything! We’ve gotta look first.”

“And then the cops?”

Rey nodded, smiling deviously, “Let’s take a look, shall we?” Rose reluctantly nodded and followed her into the apartment.

Sitting on Rose’s couch with pasta in their laps and Paige’s laptop on the coffee table, Rose turned it on. There was a passcode necessary. Rey groaned but Rose typed something in and the laptop came to life. The background was Paige and Rose -with their parents- as preteens, standing in front of a lake during a holiday. “Where should we start?” Rose asked, flitting the mouse around the desktop.

“Photos, definitely,” Rey declared, leaning in close as Rose opened up photos. There were different folders with dates. Rose clicked on at random and several pictures popped up. Gasping, Rose and Rey jerked back, exchanging glances.

The photos seemed to be taken from a car, facing a house Rey was sure she had driven past at some point in her life. In the photos, Lars was climbing through a window and exiting with a tv under an arm and in the other, a bag filled to the brim with other stuff.

Eyes wide and blinking like an owl, Rose turned to Rey, “Paige was blackmailing Lars?”

“That would explain why he wanted the computer so bad, he couldn’t risk the police seeing it. What are the other photos?” They flipped through the rest, with Lars leaving and entering a motel and him in a car, things they didn’t really care about. They opened the other documents. Each was of different people doing things that most would consider ‘shady’ or ‘illegal’. And then they came to one in particular.

“Is that... Temmin Wexley?” Temmin Wexley was a portly man with short black hair and an even shorter beard who ran The Republic of Photos with his wife Carrie. They had been big supporters of Paige and her career, helping her and encouraging her to take new opportunities. In the pictures, however, he was in… compromising situations with another woman ranging from entering and exiting hotels to full-blown make-outs in cars. “If Paige was blackmailing Lars, then was she…” Rose paused and looked at the photos again.

Rey nodded slowly, following Rose’s lead, “Then was she also blackmailing her boss?”

“That would be a definite motive for murder,” Rose agreed. Rey took a moment to be impressed with Rose, with how well she was handling finding out the so-called skeletons in her sister’s closest. She looked more determined than anything and Rey felt something akin to hope that Rose, despite everything, would be okay.

“We’ve got to get this to the police.”

Officer Lockett, the officer who had originally interviewed Poe, was not thrilled to see them and even less thrilled to find out they had gone through the laptop instead of bringing it straight to him. After a thorough tongue lashing, the girls left the laptop in the capable hands of the police before diving into Rey’s jeep and racing off to Poe and Finn’s.

As soon as they pulled into the driveway, Poe flung the door open raced outside, “Good news and bad news. What do you want first?” He snapped. Rey and Rose exchanged glanced as they climbed out of the jeep. Poe eyed Rey for a quick second before yelping, “Jesus, what happened to your face?” The spot Rey had been elbowed had blossomed into a big purple bruise right on her cheekbone.

“Nothing. Something. I’ll tell you later. Bad?”

Reluctantly, Poe continued, “They found poison in the cafe. Rat poison.”

Rey and Rose immediately bristled, “No way!”

“That’s impossible!”

“Fuck that!” They chorused, heading up the steps into the house where Finn and BB were waiting for them. Oblivious to the tension, BB barked and raced around their feet, at one point dropping on his butt and raising his front paws in the air as if wanting to be picked up. Poe swooped in and scooped the chubby pup up, leading them to the living room where they all dropped into chairs.

“Okay, what’s the good news then?” Rose asked. Rey wondered how Rose had suddenly become part of their investigation squad when they had agreed not to include her.

“The good news is that they’re letting us open back up tomorrow,” Finn finished for his husband. Rose cheered and Rey grinned, letting BB, who had jumped off his dad’s lap, onto her thighs to settle down.

“Thank god, four days of no work makes me a broke, sad girl.”

Finn snickered, “The name of your sitcom.”

Rey nodded, “Broke Sad Girl staring Rey Niima and this corgi.” She held BB up who wiggled around in her grasp but looked quite happy nonetheless.

Sighing, Rose brushed a hand through her hair, “I can’t believe they’re letting us open again even though they found poison.”

Poe nodded, looking just as puzzled, “For now, let’s not look a gift horse in the mouth.” Rey had no doubt his mind was whirling with possibilities, “I had to go to the store and buy all new supplies, everything from flour to coffee grounds and I’ve put in rush orders for everything that should be here this week. Tomorrow is going to be hectic so be prepared for some hard work.” He paused, “Even you Rey, make sure you don’t have any dates coming up.” Rose whirled to look at her in shock but Rey rolled her eyes as if their boss was the most ridiculous man in the world. Which he was so it wasn’t hard.

“Good news or bad news, boss?” Rey teased, a smirk curling her lips.

Narrowing his eyes, Poe took stock of her before saying, “Bad.”

“I don’t have a date.”

Poe nodded, “Whatcha gonna do about?”

“Nothing. Not right now. Anyways, the good news, we had a run in with Lars the Loser,” Rey grinned, pointing at her bruise, “And you’ll never believe what we found on Paige’s laptop.”

Finn clapped his hands together, “Oh boy,” but his eyes were lingering on the bruise on Rey’s face and she had no doubt that he was thinking of a thousand ways to make Lars wish he had never been born.

Rose and Rey stayed long into the night at the Dameron’s. They stayed until Poe declared it too late for them on a work night and Rey drove Rose home before she went home herself. Her apartment was cold and dark when she arrived and she made her way through it without turning any lights on and dropped into bed, fully clothed. Making sure to set alarm on her phone and plugging it into the charger, Rey fell into a fitful sleep.

Chapter Text

Chapter Seven

Rey was happy she didn’t -usually- work the cafe side of the store. While they had been allowed to open, they spent most of the day getting reorganized for the next day which would be their big return. The rush order Poe must have spent a pretty penny on came in later in the afternoon and while it included plenty of things for the kitchen, there were also several boxes of books for Rey to price, enter into the system and then stock. She spent most of her day in the shelves, pushing aside books, pulling them out, placing them back in and then realizing they weren’t in the right spot, getting frustrated and starting all over again.

When the evening finally came and Poe called it a day, happy with what they had achieved, Rey felt relieved but satisfied with her work, ready to drop into her bed with a peanut butter and Nutella sandwich. She had just climbed into her jeep, ready to put the key in the ignition when the unexpected happened.

Kylo Ren called her.

She had totally forgotten about the author possessing her phone number, without the presence of BB and his stuffed Dwayne to remind her. She answered on the fourth ring, taking a deep breath and squeaking, “Hi!” into the speaker and then wincing at herself.

“Hello.” Came the deep, electronic voice from the other side, “Is this Rey?”

“Yup! Is this Kylo?”

There was a deep breath and then, “Yes. I… I was told to wait before I called you.” Rey could have screamed. Was he getting dating advice!? And if so, from whom!?

Grinning and nearly squealing with laughter, Rey managed a soft cough -to compose herself- and said, her voice much softer, “That’s okay. Whatever makes you comfortable.” There was a long pause on the line and Rey could make out his breathing, reassuring her he hadn’t left. When he didn’t say anything, however, Rey plucked up her courage, gulping so loud she was sure he heard it, and managed a breathy, “Do you wanna go for drinks?” She cringed at how breathless she sounded and pulled her phone away from her mouth -keeping it pressed against her ear- to gulp again, clearing her throat.

There was more silence to follow her question. Chest tight, Rey bit her bottom lip hard enough she was surprised it didn’t bleed. “I mean if you’re alright with that?”

“I… I suppose.” He said nothing else and it made Rey wanna throw her phone out the window.

“Meet me at Maz’s in half an hour?” She asked, trying to keep the hopeful lit out of her voice.

There was a deep sigh on the other side of the line and sound of something rustling, causing static on the line. “Yes, I’ll meet you there.”

Rey beamed into the phone, “See you in thirty!” She chirped before hanging up. Throwing her phone into the passenger seat, Rey took a moment to collect herself and fix her bun before she squealed out of the parking lot of Cosmic Cafe and headed to the other side of town to Maz’s Pub and Grill.

Maz’s was old and had a filthy alley next to it filled with dumpsters. It seemed more like a building one would find in New York, not a small community like West Point. There was a stage for live entertainment and a jukebox that had seen better days. Rey spotted several people she knew, including the principal of her old high school, Bazine Netal. They made eye contact and Bazine, who had been reading a novel and nursing a beer, beamed and waved.

Working the bar was Maz herself, short, with heavy wrinkles on her leathery face. Not the typical bartender but Maz was a town favorite. Everyone knew her and her pub. “What can I get yeah?” Maz asked as Rey slipped into one of the seats by the bar, right near the door. Rey glanced nervously over her shoulder, expected Kylo to walk in at any moment.

“Um, stout.”

“Good choice.” Maz was quick grabbing a glass and filling it at the tap before sliding it across the counter. “How’s Rose?” She peered up at Rey, “I’ve been worried about her.”

“I think she’s doing alright. Now that we’re back open she has something to focus on and she has a support system,” Rey admitted, glancing over her shoulder again.

Nodding, Maz took the order from a waiter before turning back to Rey, “I’m real sorry to hear about Paige. It’s heartbreaking, this happening. She was sitting here just two weeks ago.” She pointed to an empty cane-backed chair by a small table close to the door.

Rey perked up, “Really?” She tried her best not to sound too excited. “Did she come here a lot?”

Maz shrugged, “Once in a while.”

“The last time she was here, was she with someone?” Rey asked, glancing over her shoulder. She swore she saw someone pacing outside but the shadow through the door window stopped when she looked back at it.

“Well…” Maz looked reluctantly around the bar as if checking for eavesdroppers. “She had an argument with someone when she was here.” She looked worried as if she had broken some kind of barkeep code by telling Rey.

“With who?” Rey nearly shivered with excitement. She would have something to report back to Finn and Poe if all went well tonight. Two birds, one big accidental stone.

“Some guy,” Maz said, “He was pretty pissed off.”

Rey tilted her head, “Did you recognize him?” And then she added, “Was it Temmin Wexley?”

Maz seemed confused with the question and then adamantly shook her head, “Of course not. The Wexley’s come here for date night. No, this guy was scrawny. She showed him some photos and he blew a gasket. He grabbed them from her and she laughed which really drove him nutty.”

There was some loud hollering from the pool tables and Rey had to raise her voice to ask, “What happened next?”

“Well, I didn’t hear much of what he said -it was three dollar beer night and it was packed- but she looked pretty shaken. She had put on a tough act in front of him but as soon as he left, it collapsed.”

Rey nodded, mulling the story over in her mind, “Did she say anything to you?”

Shaking her head, Maz had to pause to fill some orders before coming back over to Rey, “I asked her if she was alright and she said she was fine and that she didn’t wanna talk about it.” Maz shrugged in a ‘whatcha gonna do’ kind of way. “Asked me to walk with her to her car. Didn’t say anything though. Thanked me and drove home.”

Rey frowned and nodded her head slowly, trying to imagine Paige in Maz’s, imagine the fight with the man who was most likely Lars (it seemed). She glanced back over her shoulder. The door opened and Kylo Ren’s head appeared. And when they made eye contact, the rest of him slowly followed.

Rey waved at him and Maz made an apprehensive sound from behind the bar before she hurried off. He approached her, rather hesitantly with keen eyes darting around the place, Rey took time to notice his outfit. Black tee again, this time with dark pants and a black blazer. His hair was parted to the side, a rogue curl falling at the corner of his eye.

When he got up to her, he stood awkwardly for a moment, drinking her in and he gave a slow nod as if he approved of what he was seeing. Gingerly, he sat down in the bar seat next to her. unable to handle his quietness any longer, Rey asked, “What do you want to drink?”

His eyes flickered over the tap and he said “Irish red.” Beaming, Rey called Maz over who poured him a glass of the frothy red liquor before disappearing again. Rey missed Maz’s lingering gaze on her companion, too focused on him to notice.

“I-I’m glad you called,” Rey called over the whooping from the pool tables. Kylo’s eyes flicked from his glass to her eyes and his expression seemed to lose some tightness. “BB really appreciates Dwayne and bone you got him.” A curl of the lip, not quite a smile but it was something.

His eyes left her gaze and wandered down to her cheek, where even in the dim lights of the bar, it was much darker than the rest of her skin. He must not have noticed it before because his face tightened up once again and his mouth screwed into an unpleasant twist. He lifted a hand as if he was about to brush his fingers against it but saw her shocked reaction and he quickly dropped his hand away. He moved his gaze back to his Irish red and narrowed his eyes as if trying to think of something to say. He couldn't seem to find the words though, his eyes flicking back up to her with something akin to worry and perhaps even anger.   

Because of his aloof silence, Rey spent most of the night prattling on. She told him about school and how she met her friends, making sure to not mention the Cosmic Cafe. He seemed intrigued by her lack of family, turning fully towards her when she mentioned she had grown up in foster homes. 

Kylo Ren was definitely a silent man. He was stoic but his face was easy to read, whether it be a glint of the eye or a curl of the lips.

Rey had not realized he was also a stupid man.

He was nodding, looking thoughtful at her words. “You’re nothing,” he decided as she concluded her story about going to community college because that was all she could afford after growing up in the foster system. “You come from nothing.” It wasn’t cruel… how he said it. No, it was like he was talking to himself, making notes about her and adding them to some checklist in his head. But Rey, she felt like something between them had snapped.

Falling silent, Rey could only gaze at him in abject horror. And then, in a brutal moment of pure instinct, she took what was left of her stout, poured it down his front and stormed out of the pub.  

Chapter Text

Chapter Eight

“You did what?” Poe sputtered, nearly spitting out his coffee the next day at the cafe.

Rey huffed and crossed her arms. “I poured my beer down his shirt and left,” she repeated.

Finn laughed, clapping her on the shoulder, “Thatta girl!” He grinned, revealing pearly white teeth.

Rose nodded her head, “I think that was brave, Rey. He was a jerk. You aren’t nothing.” She looked worried like she thought Rey would actually take the author’s cruel words to heart. Little did she know Rey had spent most of her childhood thinking the same thing that Kylo Ren had said. Hearing it come from someone else was jarring but Rey knew better now. She had loved ones; she was important. She had self-worth and she earned everything she got and she prided herself on it.

Poe frowned and seemed to be thinking about something, his eyes gazing far away. The rest of them waited for him to speak. “Well, when one door closes another opens…” He finally announced, “The Kylo Ren theory seems to be dead but there may be a chance he could be the next target.”

Rey huffed and crossed her arms, “Let the smug bastard be,” she grumbled. Finn nodded in agreement but Rose and Poe immediately shook their heads, looking horrified at the prospect.

“Maybe we should stake him out?” Rose asked, “Or let the police know? They’d be able to actually do something.” They lapsed into silence, like none of them were convinced talking to the police was actually a good idea.

Rey poured herself another cup of coffee and glanced around the empty cafe, frowning. “We should go over the variables again. We need to figure out who knew our security codes because not only did they break into the studio but they broke in here too and was able to plant poison. They must know the codes to just about everything.”

Finn nodded, “I’m on it,” he whipped his phone out of jeans and dialed the number for the security number, disappearing into the back. He was only gone for several minutes before he emerged from the back, a plate of cookies in hand. He set them on the counter next to the till and said, sounding annoyed, “They won’t tell me anything. Not while it’s an on- going investigation.”

“Bullshit,” Rose grumbled, crossing her arms. “Don’t we deserve to know how someone broke in, for our own safety?” She grabbed a cookie angrily and bit into it with a lot more anger than Rey had ever seen subjected to a cookie before.

Rey tapped at her chin, thoughtfully, “You know, I have Kaydel’s number from the time she fixed the camera in the back hallway.” She pulled out her phone swiped down in the contacts to Kaydel Connix. “I think it’s time for Kaydel to check out our broken camera.”

Poe raised an eyebrow, “ What broken camera?”

“The one I’m going to break,” Rey said.

Kaydel Connix was the daughter of the security company’s owner, hired as soon as she had been able to join two wires together, which had been way below the legal age. Luckily for her, no one really minded because she was so sweet natured and hard working. Rey had run into her a couple times and they had always gotten along well.

Kaydel had knocked on the back door and Rey opened it, leading her to the hallway with the camera. Pointing she said, “The light to the camera isn’t on anymore.”

Smiling, she evaluated the height, “I’ll need a ladder.”

Rey nodded, “We have one in the storeroom.” The same ladder she had used to pull the wire out. Walking together to the storage room, Kaydel told Rey about reviews for a new space opera movie coming out and while they had been mostly bad, it was a sequel that she had been eagerly awaiting. Rey hummed at the appropriate times, letting the girl take the ladder and balance it on her bony shoulder as they walked back to the camera.

As soon as the ladder was set up, Kaydel shot up it and inspected the camera, “Looks like the wire fell out.”

Crossing her arms, Rey sighed, “Seriously? How does that happen?”

Kaydel shrugged, “Dunno. Probably something got caught on it. A little tug would have done it.”

“Oh, okay. Sorry, we’re just a little nervous after what happened here.” Kaydel turned and looked at Rey with wide eyes, looking intrigued as if she didn’t know what had happened. “I mean,” Rey continued, “how could someone turn off both alarms and the camera? They’d have to be a tech genius.”

Kaydel brushed her blonde hair out of her face, taking a pair of pliers out of her toolbox that she’s placed on the top rung of the ladder. “Not really,” she admitted.

Rey blinked, nodding and then said, “Is your company big?”

“Nah, there’s only six of us but dad’s been talking about expanding to other towns.”

Rey could hear the someone in the kitchen and tilted her head to try and figure out who. She figured it was Rose but wasn’t positive. “Is it hard finding qualified people? You must know so much stuff. I mean, it’s not like you can just google how to get around a security system.” She gave a nervous laugh and Kaydel grinned, shaking her head as if she knew something Rey didn’t.

“You see, usually people change their codes regularly,” Kaydel started, climbing down the ladder with her toolbox in hand, “But some people don’t.” She shrugged and Rey was pretty sure Poe was one of those people. “But if you’re having trouble with the code, you would just need the backdoor code.”

“A… backdoor code?” Rey’s brows furrowed.

Kaydel nodded, “Yeah, sometimes the owner will use the same code to get into all the stores or apartments or something.”

“So Ackbar has his own code for getting in?” Gial Ackbar was the landlord for the shops on Main, including The Republic of Photos and Cosmic Cafe.

Kaydel nodded, smiling brightly, “Exactly! He wouldn’t use it though unless necessary. It’s just a safety precaution.” She seemed thoughtful about something and Rey prodded her to go on. “Well, it’s just that it’s in the files. So anyone who has access to the files would know the backdoor code. Another reason we gotta be careful with who we hire.”

“Can you tell on your computers if that’s the code used to get in the morning Paige was killed?” Rey asked eagerly. Seeing the way Kaydel’s face dropped, Rey realized her mistake was immediately and held her hands out in front of her in a pacifying gesture, “Sorry, I was just curious.”

Kaydel nodded, “I’ll get back to you on that.” She grinned.

Chapter Text

Chapter Nine

The days were slow. There was nearly no business and Rey was worried. So was Poe, she could tell. Finn kept glancing anxiously at his husband whenever there wasn’t a customer, which was most of the time. They had a few people come in, even Kaydel, wanting to talk about books with Rey. She bought several YA books that Rey recommended and a tea, sitting at one of the tables near the front windows. A couple walked by, googling at her as if they couldn’t believe there was someone inside.

Rey found herself anxiously taking her hair out of its bun, twirling it in her fingers before curling it up into another ridiculously tight bun before following the same process of taking it out within ten minutes. It seemed ridiculous that people actually thought they were some sort of Sweeney Todd cafe, bringing in customers and killing them off and maybe even putting them in meat pies. Well, they didn’t serve meat pies but Rey wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what people thought.

She hadn’t heard from Kylo since the first date and she found herself almost relieved. She wasn’t sure what she would say to him if she saw him again. He had seemed.. sweet, at first if not majorly awkward. And then he said that... She wasn’t sure if he was saying that to get rid of her or because he actually meant it but she supposed it didn’t matter. At least, that’s what she told herself when she thought too hard about him and the things he said. She thought that would be the end of Kylo Ren.

And then he walked in front of the cafe. His head was down as he was on his phone and Rey found herself frozen in the window, a spray bottle and clothe in her hand as she cleaned the window panes. As if able to sense her, his feet froze in mid-motion and his head whirled up from his phone screen. And their eyes met.

Instinctually Rey dove away from the window, abandoning the spray bottle and hiding behind the comic book shelf. She stood, pressing her back against the shelf, panting and looking horrified. And then the door jingled and boots hit the linoleum and Rey knew he had entered the cafe.

Cursing, she sunk down, curling up in the corner of two shelves and hoping he wouldn’t see her and leave. But he walked through the shelves with heavy steps, peered around until he finally found her, hunched down with her knees up to her chest.

He blinked down at her as if he had never seen her before. Of course, he didn’t say anything.

Rey gulped, “Heyyyy,” she tried, slowly getting up to her feet, wringing the clothe in her hands like a safety net.

“Go on another date with me,” he ordered.

Rey blinked, completely taken aback, “Do you remember what happened on the first date?” She asked in disbelief.

He nodded his head, “I called you nothing and you poured your drink down my front.” He frowned as if thinking about it for the first time. “I was told that wasn’t proper etiquette.” He rolled his eyes and huffed, his nostrils flaring, looking as if he thought it was ridiculous.

“Who told you that?”

“My publicist; Phasma. She’s... headstrong in her interrogation techniques.” His lips twitched up into what looked like a smile for the briefest second before his lips dropped down in its regular flat line.

Rey nodded her head slowly, “You talk about your love life with your publicist?”

Shaking his head, Kylo said, “Love life?” He wrinkled his nose as if the very speaking of the word was making him ill, “No. Dating life? Yes.” He shrugged as if it was a normal thing and wasn’t at all weird. Rey wasn’t sure what was weirder, him disregarding ‘love life’ or him being that close to his publicist. She supposed she wasn’t an author though and didn’t know if a close relationship with a publicist was out of the ordinary or not.

His stare flitted from Rey to his surrounding, as if he finally realized where he was. He narrowed his eyes, looking back at her. “I did a book signing here. I never saw you working here,” he accused.

“I was late?” Rey shrugged helplessly.

Expression pinched, Kylo sneered, “You know who I am.”

With the utmost sincerity, Rey replied, “No, I know nothing about you. You called me nothing on our first date and I don’t think I have any interest in getting to know you. Not anymore.”

He licked his lips, eyes glistening in the harsh lighting of the cafe. “I paid for you.” He snapped as if that meant something. 

Rey let out a bark of ironic laughter, “I owe you nothing, Kylo Ren.” She tried to stride past him but he caught her arm and tugged her back. Rey startled, not expected the cold hand on her skin and she shuddered away from him. His expression darkened at her flinch.

“You think I’ll hurt you.” His eyes flicked to the bruise on her cheek but he didn’t say anything about it.

“I think you’re unpredictable and that I don’t know you well enough to trust you.”

His mouth twitched downwards, “Trust no one,” he echoed his words from when they first met.

Rey shook her head adamantly, “Trust those who deserve it,” she snapped, cheeks flushed with anger.

“How do you deserve it?” He asked, brows furrowing. He seemed generally curious by the idea as if there hadn’t been such things as redemption or trust in his life before.

“Were you involved in the death of Paige Tico?” Rey asked instead. She wasn’t sure if she was in the position to get into a deep philosophical debate about trust with him.

Kylo’s eyebrows shot up, not expecting the accusation, “What? The girl who was murdered? You think I had something to do with that?” He sneered, “That’s why you wanted to get drinks with me.”

Rey crossed her arms, “I wanted to get drinks with you because I liked your dumb face.” It was unfortunate that she still did, even when it was sneering, “Now answer the question. It’s a step forward to earning my trust.”

Looking dubious, Kylo’s eyes flickered to the bookshelf behind her as if they would open up and give him the answers he needed. He sighed like he was doing a particularly hard task. “I’ve received death threats, which isn’t new. People who hate my books, my writing. Critics.” He rolled his eyes.

“I would say this is more than a pissed off critic if they were willing to kill. If you’re the real target then you might be in danger,” Rey urged.

“You think I don’t know that?” He huffed, looking frustrated. “The police have already talked to me and have advised caution on my part.”

Rey crossed her arms, clenching the clothe in her fist, “And what are you doing about it? Have you gone through the threats, seen anything that might lead to the killer?” Her heart skipped a beat, wondering if this would be the big break she needed.

His lips curled into something almost cruel, “You think I care?”

What? Shaking with unchecked rage, Rey tried to storm past him again but he grabbed her once more. She whirled on him but before she could shove him away, Poe and Finn descended upon the aisle.

 
“Hey, what are you doing!?” Finn snarled and the sight of the two men seemed to startle Kylo into releasing her arm. He narrowed his eyes at them but Finn didn’t let up, “You can’t just go around grabbing our employees. Do we need to call the police?”

Kylo shook his head stiffly, casting sad eyes at Rey as if she had just ripped up his valentine’s card and stalked away, shoving his hands in the pockets of his jean jacket and storming out of the cafe. As soon as he was out of sight from the windows, Rey’s shoulders slumped and she took a deep breath.

Finn threw himself at her, gathering her in his arms. Poe made a sad noise, “I’m so sorry Rey, I had no idea he was so…” Rey laid her head on Finn’s chest, shutting her eyes tight and let him squeeze her like he was squeezing away all the bad things.

“Utterly terrible?” Finn finished for him.

Poe nodded, looking pale and queasy.

When Finn let go, Rey turned to Poe, “Honestly, it’s fine. I can handle myself.”

“No, it’s really not okay.” Poe chastised, “You don’t have to handle things by yourself, not anymore,” Poe objected. Rey smiled because, yeah, he was right. Not anymore.

Chapter Text

Chapter Ten

Rey thought that if her life was a book, there would be no redemption for Kylo Ren. Perhaps it would have been better off for him to be the killer, to be the monster he was living up to being. Maybe there was still a chance. Maybe he was nothing but a liar and everything he had ever said to her had been him fabricating some poor illusion of a character, a marionette for him to play and dance in front of her.

There were good things about him, Rey reminded herself. He had a cute awkwardness about him, was an avid listener. He had even bought her the items for BB when they first met. And sometimes he looked at her… In a way, Rey couldn’t describe. Yet, somehow, there was something about him, like he seemed to be boarding on the edge of some great discovery. Like he was always a step away from finding his true self and then before he could, his inner asshole would come out and ruin it all.

Rey wasn’t naive enough to think she could ‘fix’ him in any way. He would have to do that himself. The work lay on his shoulders. There was still good in him, she had seen it. It was up to him whether he chose that path or not. She hoped, for his sake, that he would.

Perhaps she was being melodramatic. Good and bad, light and dark. Maybe she was grasping at straws. Maybe, in the end, he was just another asshole man who felt entitled. Entitled to her. Felt entitled to everything.

Turning over in her bed, Rey screamed into her pillow, the sound muffled and hollow sounding. Her thoughts; they wouldn’t shut up. It was like her brain was a merry-go-round, the same thoughts of Kylo parading around on horseback. She grabbed her hair, yanking it and let the pain wake her up.

She needed to stop thinking about Kylo. A man who had called her nothing. A man who had accosted her at work and made light of her friend’s murder.

Punching the pillow away from her face, Rey sat up and looked at her phone. It was 1:30 in the morning and she knew what she needed to do to silence her thoughts.

Within another half hour, Rey was at the Dameron’s house, BB passed out on her stomach. Finn checked up on her one last time with sleepy eyes, turning the lights off and disappearing down the hallway. Rey fell into a slumber plagued with thoughts she didn’t recall the next morning. And it didn’t matter, not really. Not when she was with her family.

Her phone was ringing.

Rey groaned and tried to turn to reach for it, resulting in BB growling in irritation and jumping off her, shaking himself fluffy again and racing down the hallway to his parent’s room. Grabbing her phone, Rey checked the caller ID. Rose. She answered immediately.

“Rey, you’ll never believe what I just found!” Rose panted into the phone.

Sitting up, Rey pulled the blanket over her legs again, “What?” She looked at the clock on the mantel, squinting at it. It was nearly six in the morning. “Rose, it’s not even six. We have work.”

“Yes, yes but this is big. I couldn’t sleep so got up and checked Paige’s room. I was just looking around at things and found some papers on her desk. One of these papers was from an art gallery in Washington DC!”

Rey suddenly felt very awake, “What did it say?”

“It was congratulating her on her work and saying they wanted to portray her pictures in their gallery for several months! She was going to quit modelling and become a photographer and she got in at a big shot DC gallery!” Rose gushed, “I can’t believe she never told me!”

“Another motive…” Rey muttered, “Rose, you need to call the gallery and ask who the other applicants were for the gallery space. Ask if there were any other possible contenders from West Point.”

“Got it.” They hung up and Rey stared at her phone background for a moment, thinking. Paige was going to quit modelling? She wondered if that could be, yet again, another motive. After all, Paige was the number one model at The Republic of Photos, the face of the brand. If she was leaving, the Wexley’s might have a problem with that. But killing her seemed too extreme, especially if they wanted her to stay the face of The Republic. And if she was already leaving, the other models would all have a chance at becoming the new ‘it’ girl.

Sighing and running her hands through her hair, Rey laid back down, pulling the blanket up to her chin. She figured she would just spend the rest of the time before having to get up and go to work thinking about Paige, trying to wrap her head around everything. But instead, just as she thought about Paige’s sudden career change and her dream of displaying her art in the DC gallery, Rey slipped back into a deep sleep.

When she woke up the next time, BB was licking her face as if she had been covered in kibble sometime during her sleep. Swatting his lightly away, Rey sat up, yawning and stretching out her arms. Finn poked his head out of the kitchen, grinning, “Hey, Poe made pancakes!” That got her attention and she leapt from the couch, rushing for the kitchen.

The three of them piled their plates up with pancakes with butter and syrup with a side of hash browns and bacon before sitting around the table. Rey jumped into her early conversation with Rose, the two men rapt with attention yet still managing to shove food into their mouths. “So Rose is going to call the studio and ask about who else wanted the space. One of the other artists may have wanted the studio space bad enough to kill.”

Poe nodded his head, looking thoughtful even with syrup glistening on his lips, “That’s really good, Rey. I feel like we’re getting closer every day.”

Rey hoped so.

Chapter Text

Chapter Eleven

Kylo Ren must have realized coming to Comic Cafe wasn’t a smart idea when Poe and Finn were ready to defend her like loyal guard dogs. Instead, as Rey jumped out of her jeep, she noticed a man lurking around the front of her apartment and as she approached she realized who it was. Before she could turn back to her car and drive back to the safety of the Dameron house, the man, Kylo, looked up and their eyes met. Determined to show she wasn’t afraid of him, Rey crossed her arms and continued to the door, trying her best to ignore him.

“Rey…” Kylo whispered.

“Ren,” She replied, voice stiff and cold.

He winced as if she had hit him and shifted uncomfortably on his big Sasquatch feet. He looked so despairing that Rey found herself sighing and turning to him. “What are you doing here, Kylo?”

“I wanted to speak to you. Without your friends barring down on me.” He frowned deeply, “I wanted to apologize.” He winced at the idea, and Rey raising one eyebrow as she inspected him. 

“Well, go ahead, ” she huffed, turning fully towards him.

Kylo took a deep, shuddering breath, “Rey, I’m… I’m sorry.” His face pinched up like he swallowed a lemon. “I want to know you,” he admitted, “But I’ve gone about this all wrong.” His shoulders sagged and he hunched low. Rey inspected him with stern eyes, letting his words wash over her. He seemed sincere, though rather unsure.

Immediately, her mind began to drum up the beat of Something There from Beauty and the Beast and she could imagine Emma Watson’s Belle gently singing “There's something sweet, and almost kind. But he was mean and he was coarse and unrefined. And now he's dear and so unsure, I wonder why I didn't see it there before…”

Rey groaned and rubbed her face with her palms and could see Kylo anxiously shuffling in front of her. “You acted like an idiot,” She finally told him.

He nodded his head, “I’m aware.” His lips twitched up, “I’m prepared to make amends.”

“You can’t buy me,” Rey responded hotly and he shook his head quickly at the insinuation.

His teeth came out and slid across his bottom lip and then he seemed to realize what he was doing and stopped. “I have a Netflix account.” He offered. “Would you like…To watch something?” He took a deep breath, “With me?” he sounded pained.

Rey considered him for a long moment, the Beauty and the Beast soundtrack still running in her head. She glanced at her apartment before back at the awkward author standing in front of her. “Alright, you can come up but no funny stuff. Just a movie.”

Kylo nodded eagerly, his eyes glinting in the streetlight. He followed her into the building and up the stairs to the second floor where her apartment was. He made a soft noise when he entered and Rey whipped around to give him a stern look. Holding his hands up in an ‘I give up’ motion, Kylo walked into the living room and inspected the sparsely decorated space.

“Set up your Netflix. I’ll make popcorn.” Kylo nodded and turned the tv on.

Rey busied herself with making the popcorn, glancing over her shoulder to watch him. She had no idea if she was doing the right thing or not. She had introduced someone potentially dangerous into her apartment. He seemed to have a bit of a temper and he had been so… rude. Rey sighed and rubbed her forehead with the tips of her fingers. How dangerous was he though? He just seemed like a douche, not a murderer or rapist. He was setting up his Netflix account on her tv without talking, allowing Rey to narrow her eyes at his broad shoulders. He had been pretty much ruled out of Paige’s murder -in her mind-, it was just a matter of how bad a person he was at this point.

The microwave beeped and Rey extracted the popcorn and ripped open the top before grabbing a big plastic bowl and pouring the hot contents inside. She walked out to meet Kylo in the living room and said, “If you try murdering me, I have a detective on speed dial.”

He looked up at her and nodded, “I’m not going to hurt you, Rey,” he promised. “I would never…” He shook his head, looking away like a reprimanded puppy.

Rey nodded, “Good, then we can share the popcorn.” She dropped into the couch and added, “I want to watch Beauty and the Beast.”

Amusement flickered across his face and he flicked through the titles on the screen until he found it, clicking it and letting it start up. They were submerged in silence as he walked over and sat on the couch next to her, sitting stiffly almost an arm’s length away. Rey sighed and scooted closer to him, balancing the bowl of popcorn between their two thighs. As if he had just had the breath knocked out of him, Kylo deflated, hunching over as the movie began with the chime of the Disney logo.

By midway through the movie, Rey had curled up next to him, her head on his stupidly big shoulder, their breathing in sync with each other. Belle was placing The Beast’s paw on the white stallion and began to sing in her gentle voice and Rey jolted at the song.

“New and a bit alarming…” Belle sang.

Rey closed her eyes tightly and buried her face deeper into the soft fabric of Kylo’s shirt. His hand came up, shaking, and he touched one of the curls next to her face that was falling out of the bun on top of her head. She glanced up at him and he whispered, “Don’t be afraid. I feel it too.”

Chapter Text

Chapter Twelve

It started with “Rey, Rose has to make some funeral arrangements, can you work the till?”

Naively, Rey said yes, not expecting anything to happen. Cosmic Cafe was unfortunately still slow, only hardcore regulars daring to enter and order from the Murder Cafe, as it was being called. Or people who weren’t aware of the sudden new reputation but Rey doubted that was that many people that didn’t know.

It was noon and the usual lunch rush they had before the incident was down to practically nothing. In fact, on this day, there was no one. So of course, Rey was feeling a mixture of pretty good because that meant she had time to do her book stocking but also bad because they needed the business desperately.

And, as Rey pushed in the last of some cozy mysteries into their shelf, she heard the overhead doorbell jingle.

“Oh Ben, this place is sweet. I’m so glad you decided to do a signing here! You never want to do anything locally.” Came a woman’s voice, sounding older and distinguished. Rey hurried to the till nearly falling over herself when she saw who it was.

Senator Leia Organa, Mayor Moden Canady and the ever descending plague that was Kylo Ren. (She supposed she shouldn't identify him as that any longer. He was... sweet. And watched all of Beauty and the Beast with her without complaint and let her gorge herself on popcorn.) 

Mayor Canady smiled stiffly at the senator, “I’m glad I was able to persuade him,” He bolstered. He was an older man, early 50s, wearing a suit probably more expensive than anything Rey had ever owned.

Kylo glowered at everyone until his eyes landed on Rey and he froze, standing ramrod straight. Panicky eyes shot between the senator, the mayor and then back to Rey. The senator noticed immediately and raised an elegant eyebrow, saying, “Ben, order me a pastry. You know what I like.” She patted his arm, thrusting a wad of money into his hand. Kylo blinked, surprised, still peering at Rey with intense eyes.

The mayor gave Rey a wave, “A black coffee for me, lad,” he told Kylo, joining the senator at one of the central tables.

With heavy foreboding steps, Kylo approached the till where Rey was standing, stunned. “That’s Senator Organa,” Rey breathed. Kylo grimaced, giving a stiff nod. “And she called you… Ben?” Rey had to admit, she was intrigued. He published his books under the name Kylo Ren and even introduced himself as such.

His face twisted and he looked horrified that she had noticed, “Don’t…” He croaked, shaking his head, his hair falling in his eyes.

“Ben,” Rey repeated, softly, trying the name out on her tongue. Kylo’s eyes shot up and he stared at her. He didn’t say anything, just gazed at her with shining eyes. Rey smiled widely at him, enjoying his unexpectedly vulnerable expression. She had never seen him look like that before.

“Where’s that coffee?” Rey and Kylo heard the mayor proclaim loudly and Rey huffed while Kylo sneered, rolling his eyes but offering Rey the handful of money nonetheless.

“Two green teas, a cherry pastry and a black coffee.” He told her. Rey nodded and took the money from his outstretched hand and rang the order through. After giving him back the appropriate amount of change she hurried to work, making the teas, pouring the coffee and scooping the pastry onto a plate.

When she was done, Kylo grabbed the plate and one of the green teas and she took the coffee and the last tea and they approached the table. Kylo gave the tea and pastry to the senator while Rey placed the coffee down for the mayor. She then turned to give Kylo his cup and when it passed between them, their fingers brushed. Rey’s face burned and she hurried away from his intense eyes, which seemed to be boring holes into her. Why was he looking at her like that?

Back behind the till, Rey heard the senator say, “I see why you like this place, Ben. Very cute.” There was a weird amount of emphasis on the last two words and Rey could hear Kylo groan.

“Mother!” Kylo growled, pale face flushing.

Rey, who had headed back to the books she had been sorted stumbled, nearly knocking over a shelf. Mother!? Realizing that the senator had glanced her way, Rey gave her an awkward smile and dove behind one of the bookshelves, seizing the books she had been sorting earlier and shoving them into place with a renewed vigor.

“-and I’m sure you’ve heard all about our new solar project at West Point High School. Principal Netal has been very forward thinking. It will save the school district an immense amount of money-,” Mayor Canady was telling Senator Organa, sipping his coffee. The senator was looking the right amount of intrigued by what he was saying but keeping carefully reserved in her opinion of the matter. Rey herself would have been rolling her eyes. Mayor Canady was always pursuing a new project with some tagline or another for the ‘betterment’ of the community. This must have been his newest venture.

The group stayed in the cafe for nearly an hour with the Mayor ordering two more coffees. At one point Poe had come out from the back to speak to Rey, saw the group and then rushed into the kitchen. Rey knew Poe was a huge fan of Senator Organa and could only imagine his ramblings to Finn as Finn tried to calm down his frantic husband.

“And, of course, this murder business is never good for an election year-,” Mayor Canady was saying and Rey paused in her book tending to listen.

Senator Organa seemed intrigued by this change of topic too, “Yes, I heard the poor girl attended Ben’s signing and turned up the next morning.” She probed gently. Turning to her son, she asked, “Do you remember her, Ben?”

Rey peeked between shelves just in time for Kylo to shake his head no, staring down at his tea. Senator Organa sighed and looked back over to the mayor, “Have there been leads on this?”

Mayor Canady nodded, “Quite a few. Apparently, she had a bit of a sordid past time, this Tico girl.” He chuckled and took a large gulp of coffee. Rey’s fingers tightened their hold on a novel.

“Do tell, Moden,” the senator prompted.

“Blackmail. Nasty business that.” He shook his head, as if disgusted. “Have you been keeping an eye on the case, Ren?” The mayor asked Kylo.

Kylo shook his head, “I only know what I see in the papers.”

“Surely the cops have spoken to you about your signing.”

Nodding, Kylo glanced at his mother before looking down at his tea again, saying, “Yes, we’ve spoken. They were concerned that I was the real target but that seems to be… unfounded.”

Senator Organa breathed a sigh of relief, “Thank goodness,” she placed a bejeweled hand on her son’s shoulder for a fleeting moment, as if reminding herself he was still in one piece right beside her. “If that were the case, I would take you right back to DC with me.” She smiled but Kylo looked aghast at the idea. She chuckled at his expression before she turned back to the mayor, “Well, I hope your police are well on their way to making an arrest.”

Mayor Canady nodded, “That, I have no doubt.”

Chapter Text

Chapter Thirteen

“Rey, you’ll never believe who got the studio space in DC.” Was how Rose opened the conversation as soon as Rey picked up her cell, which had been ringing on its place on the couch.

Panting and sweating, Rey had been doing some workouts in her scarcely decorated living room, having been neglecting them since the murder. “Who?” She panted into the phone, sitting down on the edge of the couch.

“Amilyn Holdo.”

Rey could picture the woman clearly: thin, high cheekbones with heavy mascara and bright purple hair. She was a painter, usually selling her art at a stand during the Saturday farmer’s market. Rey paused as she considered the possibility. The first farmer’s market of the year was coming up and Holdo was working hectically in her studio to prepare for it. Rey wondered if she was hectically prepared for her new spot in the gallery too.

There was a knock on her door so before the conversation could go any longer, Rey was forced to hang up and answer it. It was Detectives Lockett and Lintra. Tallissan ‘Tallie’ Lintra had been a schoolmate of Rey’s and while they had never run in the same circles, Rey knew Lintra was a sweet girl. It had been a surprise that she had joined the police force right after college.

Rey rubbed at her face, sweat beading on her brow. Lockett frowned at her, eyeing her tank top and leggings with disdain before he said, “Niima, keep your nose out of this.”

Rey blinked, startled at the anger in his voice, “What?”

“I’ve heard you and your little gang have been sniffing around and I don’t like it. Stop it or I’ll throw you in lockup until this case is closed.”

Crossing her arms, Rey said, “You’re seriously threatening me? How unprofessional, detective. You would have no grounds to hold me so the threat is empty.”

Lockett flushed and stormed away. Lintra blinked, looking at him and then back at Rey. “I’m so sorry Rey, this has been a mess,” There was something else in her eyes. She looked at where Lockett was and turned back to Rey. It seemed like she was about to say something when Lockett called for her. Sighing, she ran off. Rey watched them descend the stairs before she slammed her door shut.

The next time there was a knock on the door, Rey knew exactly who it was. Shoving her feet into black ballet slippers, she unlocked and swung the door open. Poe and Finn stood on the other side, wearing sober black suits and looking more severe than Rey was used too.

“Ready?” Poe asked as his eyes swept over her knee-length black dress and black cardigan, the pockets stuff with tissue. Nodding, Rey grabbed her purse, keys, and cell, following them out the door. She made sure her door was locked before quickly joining them as they walked down the steps.

With Poe behind the wheel, the three made it to the West Point Funeral home, a dignified red brick building. The parking lot was more than half full and Rey was sure that meant there were other services happening.

The very atmosphere of the funeral home seemed to ooze grief as if past mourners had left some of their emotion behind to gather in corners and attach itself to tastefully decorated walls.

If Poe had any plans for them to gather clues during the funeral, that ended before the funeral even started. It seemed that Maz had a bigger mouth than Rey thought. Gathered in the parlor before the service, she was chatting with Amilyn Holdo and they both turned and looked at Rey at the same time. Then Holdo took off to chat with another group of older women and they all turned and looked at Rey, Poe, and Finn with the same expression of shock on their faces.

“Did you see that?” Rey asked Poe and Finn.

Poe nodded, “Yeah, an interesting case study of small-town dynamics.”

“So you’re not freaked out by the whole town slowly learning that we are investigating Paige’s murder?” Rey asked out of the corner of her mouth, eyes still surveying the parlor.

The group dispersed and soon parts of the whole room were staring at them. “Cat’s outta the bag now,” Finn muttered.

“Maybe it’ll help us somehow.” Poe offered and they left it at that.

Trying to avoid speculative glances sent their way, they made their way into the room for the service, and the funeral proceeded. Paige’s pastor gave a heartfelt sermon and there wasn’t a dry eye in the room when he discussed Paige joining her parents in heaven.

Next was Rose, who shakily took the podium and gave a moving eulogy of the wonderful friend, amazing sister and role model Paige had been for her, especially after the death of their parents.

Then Temmin Wexley’s wife, Carrie, walked up and spoke about Paige’s career, how talented and beautiful she was and how she had been destined for great things.

Lastly, Principal Netal told the funny story of Paige deciding to skip school and then her car breaking down on Main Street, causing a traffic jam. So many people had called and tattled on her that she never played hooky again.

Closing off the ceremony was Mayor Canady, who reassured everyone that the police were working tirelessly to bring Paige’s murderer to justice and that, despite everything, the farmer’s market was still happening, with sponsors Sol’s Solar hosting a booth.

While there were murmurs of relief, Rey exchanged a glance with Finn, both unsure what had just happened. The mayor walked away from the podium and Rey wondered if Mayor Canady was losing his small town mayor touch.

Principal Netal must have been thinking the same thing and -as Rey remembered- was never shy about telling people about doing the right thing. She ushered Mayor Canady to the side and seemed to be lecturing him and while he didn’t look happy about it, he seemed to be listening.

Chapter Text

Chapter Fourteen

The thought of going to a restaurant after with a bunch of people who knew Rey was putting her nose where it didn’t belong bothered her. Instead, she escaped back to her apartment but found she was unable to settle into any of her favorite spots for more than a few minutes. Restless and feeling cramped in her own living room, she got dressed in her work out clothes again, throwing on a light sweater, and decided to go for a run. 

Heat from the afternoon sun was still hanging on but a light breeze sweeping through hinted at a cooler evening. Rey had secured her headphones in her ears, blasting her workout playlist. It was less distracting than hearing dogs barking or the buzzing of bugs around her. 

Her neighborhood was normally pretty quiet but it seemed even more so than usual, as if everyone had left to mourn Paige in their own way. Rey filled her lungs, feeling as if it was the first time she could breathe properly since she had discovered Paige’s body. A couple of cars passed as she hit the two-mile mark and she focused on keeping her pace as steady as possible, despite the burn in her calves. 

One of her headphones popped out of her ears and Rey cursed, faltering as she grabbed it and had to untangle it from the rest of the cord. Another car started to come up behind her, slowing down as it routed the corner like cars usually did when they were surprised by a runner. But then, as Rey was just about to put her headphone back in, she heard the driver rev the engine. The determined acceleration made her head turn to look. A black pickup truck was aiming straight for her. 

At last second Rey jumped to the side of the road like she was playing baseball and was diving for home plate. It felt like she was slowed down, like time itself had been turned down. Her feet crunched the asphalt below when she lunged away, pushing herself off the walkway and into the bushes in front of the house right beside her. The truck rushed the sidewalk, jumping over the lift that separated the sidewalk from the road and Rey felt the heat from the truck’s engine on her backside as she leaped just in time. She crashed into the bushes, her arm coming out to try and protect her but she had thrown herself with so much force she ended up scratching up her forearms instead. She rolled into the bush, grunting and gasping as she collided with the ground and the prickly branches. 

Rey managed to lift her head up and look, seeing the truck slow as if the person was checking their handiwork. Fear made Rey freeze; what if they came back to finish the job? She tried her best to stay still watching until the truck drove around the corner and out of sight. 

Scrambling to her feet, Rey looked around, as if expecting the truck or another car to come at her. When she saw it was clear, she pulled out her phone and called Finn.

Within minutes Finn was there, picking her up and driving her to the hospital despite her protests. “I bet it was that shitty ex-boyfriend,” Finn growled, turning into the parking lot. “Breaking into Rose’s and now this. The cops better get something concrete on this guy.” 

Rey had to admit that that was a good possibility. He could have heard from the small town grapevine, as it seemed everyone knew Rey was investigating Paige’s murder now.

They went through Triage and it took about five minutes for them to be called in to see the doctor. Despite heavy scrapping and bruising, Rey was fine and cleared to go, much to her and Finn’s relief. As they headed back out to the car, Rey tugging on the paper medical bracelet on her wrist, Finn said, “You’re lucky that’s the extent of your injuries, you could have been seriously hurt, or even killed.” He looked horrified at the thought, “I’ll talk to Poe but he’ll agree. Maybe you should stay at our house for a while. I mean, I know we only have the couch but this wouldn’t be the first time you’ve stayed at our house.” He offered her a worried smile. 

“I can take care of myself,” she grumbled but peered down at her arms, which were wrapped with gauze. Sighing, she nodded, having no interest in being mowed down by a truck again. Or something maybe even worse happening in her own place. Living with two burly men seemed like the best answer even if she was more capable then Finn liked to think. 

They made it back to Finn’s house where Poe was anxiously waiting for them on the porch. His face broke out in relief when he saw them and he ushered them inside. It didn’t take long for the doorbell to ring after Rey got settled in on the couch with BB at her hip. And, of course, it was Detectives Lockett and Lintra. Lintra looked distressed seeing Rey wrapped up and bruised as she was but Lockett shook his head in a disapproval like he knew such a thing was going to happen. 

“What can you tell us about the vehicle that hit you?”

Rey had been thinking about that damn truck the entire time she had been in the hospital. “Black, beat up, half ton, Ram. One of the back doors was scratched.” She narrowed her eyes as she thought, “I, I don’t remember the license plate,” she admitted. 

Detective Lockett nodded, having written down the information in a small notebook. Poe led the detectives outside and the talked for barely a minute before they left. When Poe came back into the house, he was grimacing. “They want us to stop looking into Paige’s death. For good.”

Rey snorted, “That’s what Detective Lockett told me this morning too.” She launched into the story of them showing up at her house, Lockett threatening her and how she told him off. By the end of it, Finn looked ready to rip Lockett’s head off but Poe seemed to be considering something. 

“I think we need to look into Lars the Loser a bit more,” he mused. “Rey, I don’t want you going by yourself,” he added, seeing her face. She saluted him, to show she heard. 

As if that was going to stop her. 

Chapter Text

Chapter Fifteen  

“Rose, do you remember the name of that motel that was in the pictures with Lars the Loser?” Rey asked the next morning, parked in a McDonald’s parking lot. Florence and the Machine was playing on the radio and she was forced to turn it down to hear Rose over the phone. 

“Um, I think it was just called Kessel Motel.” 

Rey thanked her and hung up, opening her google maps app to type it in. It was located one town over in Brink. It wasn’t too far, less than half an hour. Deciding to treat herself, Rey went through the drive-through of the McDonalds, got herself a coffee before she headed off, making sure to plug her phone into the aux and cranking her music up for the drive.

When Rey made it to the hotel, she parked just down from it so her car wasn’t in sight. The motel seemed to be designed for fast getaways with open hallways leading through the building to the back parking lot and lots of stairways up to the second floor. 

Rey walked into the motel office and froze.

Kylo Ren, or Ben, was standing speaking in a low voice to the clerk. He passed him a bill that Rey was sure was larger than need be then the clerk handed him a key with a chain that said ‘114’. He turned away from the clerk and went stock still at the sight of Rey. Quickly, she rushed out of the door and Kylo followed her. 

“Rey,” he breathed, following her. 

She whirled on him, wisps of hair falling from her bun, “What are you doing here?” 

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, “I…I did what you suggested. I went through my mail and I had a letter from Lars Shackleton. He told me his girlfriend was in love with my writing and if I ever wrote another book he would bash my head in.” He shrugged, “Heard he was a person of interest from the mayor and thought I would check it out.” 

Rey listened, rapt. Had he really decided to do something… good? “Ben,” she whispered, shocked, “I…” She paused and nodded, “Thank you. For listening to me.” 

Kylo nodded, eyes flicking from the old bruise on her face down to her bandaged arms. His lips twisted into a frown. “What happened?” He finally asked, slowly reaching a hand out as if he wished to touch her arms. Rey made sure to stay stock still, to show she wasn’t afraid of him. 

“Oh, you know, the usual. Got elbowed in the face and chased down by a truck.” She gave an exaggerated shrug, as if it was the most normal thing on the planet for someone to experience. 

Kylo pursed his lips in displeasure and he nodded. It looked as if he wanted to say more on the topic but decided against it. Instead he held up the key he got, “Lars Shackleton is in room 114.”

Rey nodded and followed Kylo through the tunnel like hallway to the back parking lot, which was a lot darker without the pinkish light from the neon motel sign. She almost sighed in relief when she saw a rusted Ford Fiesta parked in front of room 114, instead of the black pickup that had run her down. The curtains were drawn but a weak light leaked out from around it. 

Rey was about to lift her hand to knock when she stopped. Her and Kylo noticed the door was open a smidge at the same time, exchanging curious glances. Kylo put his finger to his dark lips. Rey’s heart leapt in her chest and nodded. Pressing his elbow to the door, Kylo eased the door open and walked in. Rey didn’t hesitate in following him. Pulling his sleeve over his hand, Kylo pushed the door closed behind them. 

They found themselves in a tiny room made up mostly of a bed with a stained, mud-coloured bedspread and ugly beige painted walls showing the black scar of carless suitcases and at least one fist through the wall. The chipped sink was outside of the bathroom and the humidity of a recent shower hung like a sheer curtain over the warped mirror, distorting their reflections. Rey didn’t dare inspect the carpet. 

The room looked like it had been hurriedly searched, with the suitcase empties on the floors, drawers hanging open and the mattress hanging off the side. “Shackleton?” Kylo growled, stalking through the room. He went to the bathroom and swung the door open. 

Lars the Loser’s naked body slid to the floor. His head had been bashed in. 

Chapter Text

Chapter Sixteen  

“I thought I told you not to go by yourself!” Was the first thing Poe said when Rey walked into the house, BB bouncing at her feet. Rey wasn’t sure how he could tell; it was if he could smell it on her or something. 

“I didn’t,” she lied for self-preservation purposes. And then she added, “Go by myself.” 

Poe crossed his arms, “Oh, who went with you?” He huffed, sounding dubious. 

“Um, Kylo Ren.” She admitted, bending the truth just a little. 

Eyes widening, Poe hurried up to her and inspected her for more injuries, “Did he hurt you? What happened?”

“We were following a lead,” Rey protested weakly, “Went to that motel Lars was staying at and found him. He was dead. Someone had killed him too.” 

Finn walked out of the kitchen just in time to hear her speak, his mouth falling open, “What? But he was-,”

Rey nodded, “He was our number one suspect, I know.” She walked over to the couch and collapsed onto it, burying her face in one of the throw pillows. BB jumped up onto her back, making her grunt. Carefully, he walked down over her butt and settled into a space between her knees. “We should investigate Holdo next. She’s our next best bet.” 

“For the murder of Paige,” Poe agreed, “But not Lars the Loser. Why would she care about him? She got her spot in the DC gallery.” 

Finn dropped into the chair closest to the couch, “Unless the death of Lars is unrelated? He was a deadbeat. A known criminal. He could have been murdered for any number of reasons.” Rey hummed in agreement but her mind was still reeling. Paige had been murdered and then it just so happened her ex? There was no way that was a coincidence. Rey had a feeling whoever killed Paige had struck again.

The next day Rey was back at the cafe, along with Poe, Finn and even Rose. She was wiping down the tables with a wet cloth when the bell jingled. Head shooting up, she looked at the man who was stepping through the threshold, looking nervously around as if he was expecting a masked murderer to jump out of the shadows. 

“Welcome to Cosmic Cafe!” Rey chirped, moving to go behind the counter, ready for him to order.

“Hello, I was… I was wondering about the property of your next door neighbour.” Rey froze and inspected him. He was rather handsome with a heavily pronounced jaw and dark eyes, his brown hair cut short around his long face. 

“I’m sorry but you’d have to speak to Temmin Wexley,” She told him. 

Immediately, the man shook his head, “No, not The Republic, I wanted to discuss Paige Tico’s work.”

Rey gave him a shrewd look, “Again, I’m sorry but Paige has passed away.”

The man nodded, not looking shocked by the news, “I know, but I was hoping to speak to her next of kin in regards to her photos. You see, I’m the gallery owner she was supposed to meet with the day she died. However, I received a phone call from her assistant saying she had to cancel. Then, I talked to the police and they told me she didn’t have an assistant! Very fishy stuff.” 

Doing a great impression of a fish, Rey told the man to wait just a moment before she rushed into the kitchen where Finn and Rose were arguing about some sort of chocolate recipe they had planned to experiment on. 

“Rose, the gallery owner is here. He wants to discuss your sister’s art,” Rey rushed out. “And he said that her assistant cancelled her appointment the day she died.”  

Finn and Rose whirled on her, looking shocked by her sudden appearance. “The DC gallery owner?” Rose asked and Rey nodded vigorously. “She didn’t have an assistant.” Rey shrugged. Rose rushed past her out to meet the man and Rey and Finn followed immediately, nearly falling over themselves as they stumbled through the door. 

“I would like to purchase the rights to Miss Tico’s artwork. Who would I have to speak too?” The man, who had introduced himself as Raymus Antilles to Rose, asked. 

“Me. I’m her sister. She left everything in her will to me.” Rose admitted. “I know it was her dream to display her art in the gallery so I would love to help with that.” 

Antilles’s eyes lit up, “Wonderful. I’m staying in town so we’ll be able to get together and discuss the details. However, I do imagine my gallery decorated with her beautiful work, filled with the soul of a true artist and interspersed with articles of her untimely death. The story of a promising young artist whose life was cut short by tragedy.” Rose frowned and nodded. 

Rey’s mind was reeling. Whoever had killed her had made sure it was before she met with Antilles and they’d gone out of their way to call him and cancel the appointment. Someone did not want her art to be seen. 

“How about this?” Rey proposed instead, “We do a memorial right here in West Point with the work she was going to show you and Rose gives you the rights to her art.” Rose whirled around to look at Rey, stunned, but Antilles was nodding his head thoughtfully. 

“You run a tough bargain, Miss….”

“Niima. Rey Niima.”

“Miss Niima, but I accept.”      

Chapter Text

Chapter Seventeen  

If she didn’t like work so much, Rey would be jealous. 

Rose had made a call to the police, telling them that as the sole inheritor of Paige’s estates, she had every right to hold a memoriam of her sister’s artwork. Because of this she wished for the files off Paige’s computer that she was going to submit to the Crait Gallery in DC. 

It didn’t take long for her to get a callback and Rose told Poe that she had to deal with some of her sister’s things before running off, throwing her apron over her shoulder as she went. Rey sighed wistfully at the sudden freedom that Rose had. 

Hearing her, Poe whipped around to look at her, “What are you doing? Standing around looking cute? Get to work!” He disappeared into the back to his office. Grinning, Rey went back to the books, deciding to change out one of her displays for a Harry Potter shrine. There were enough Harry Potter books and companion books, it would take a while to make a beautiful presentation on the front table in front of one of the large front windows. 

Taking all the books that were previously out and setting them on the counter next to the till, Rey began working on grabbing Harry Potter books and laying them on the table. She pulled some of the props from the back out from their Harry Potter Halloween Party last year, wiping the dust off and adding them to the table. She had a collection of tiny wands, a model broomstick, Helga Hufflepuff’s cup, Salazar Slytherin’s locket, the Marauder’s Map, some wizarding candy packages and a big stuffed snake with painted red eyes. Inspecting the display, Rey decided that it looked magical enough and moved back to the counter to take the books back to their proper spots. 

Just as she was about to head back into the maze of books she heard the front door jingle and immediately rushed to the cash register, depositing the books on the counter as she went. She grinned when she saw who it was. “Why Ben, we must stop meeting like this,” she teased, enjoying the way it made the tips of his ears and nose turn bright pink.

“I-,” He cleared his throat and walked up to the till, eyes boring into hers, “I wanted to try this again. Out with the old in with the new.” He told her. He paused and thought about what he said, “Mostly.”

She smirked, “What do you mean?” 

“The last time we met there was a dead body between us. Literally.” Kylo huffed at the thought like said dead body had ruined important plans. 

“I mean, you’re not wrong,” Rey agreed, an image flashing through her mind of Lars’s bashed in skull. 

“I want to try again, with no dead bodies or drinks down shirts,” Kylo admitted and Rey took the time to admire the soft, glossy effect his eyes had from the overhead lighting in the cafe. 

Rey nodded, “My schedule is pretty tight, with trying to catch a killer and all.” She shrugged and pretended to brush her hair off her shoulders in a faux haughty gesture. “But… I might be able to fit you in.” 

Kylo seemed to debate what she said, “This is something you’re passionate about.” Raising her eyebrows, Rey nodded in a ‘pretty much’ kind of way, hoping she conveyed that well enough. Pursing his lips, Kylo debated something before saying, “Let me help you.”

“What?”

More determined, Kylo said, “I’d help you if you let me.” 

A slow smiled spread across Rey’s lips.    

Slowly but the surely the day approached of the memorial show. Antilles called Rey regularly to tell her the progress of printing Paige’s photos and even the framing, much to her dismay. To keep on his good side she kept excited and positive, making sure to not mention anything about trying to draw a murderer out with said art he was working so passionately on. 

Kaydel stopped by to tell Rey that the back door code had been the code used the day Paige was murdered but couldn’t tell her much more than that. Chagrinned but accepting, Rey let her go without too much of a hassle, collapsing into one of the cafe chairs and pulling at her bun. Poe stuck his head out of the back door and saw her sitting on the job and called for her to immediately get her cute bun head back into action. Rey jumped up and rushed back to books.  

Later that afternoon Antilles and his assistant drove up from DC with a van full of Paige’s mounted photos in various sizes, stands and lighting, and Rey along with Poe, Finn and Rose started to set up for the memorial photo exhibit. 

Kylo had shown up with his own photographer - a leathery faced man with a big black cowboy hat - who usually worked for reporters doing undercover work. While the others were hesitant and uncomfortable with his sudden appearance, Rey greeted Kylo with an enthusiastic, “Ben!” making his ears turn bright red and rub at his nose nervously. 

(Detective Lintra had answered Rey’s call and was fine with using the undercover photographer for their purposes.)

They worked for nearly two hours setting up the photo exhibit in the community centre. It had somehow transformed it from an empty room with tables to a beautiful gallery dedicated to a woman who deserved more than she got. 

Kylo and the appropriately nicknamed Cowboy set up a pseudo command centre in the back hallway after closing upon the store. Rey thought it was entertaining how it seemed like they were in stealth mode, with all the blinds shut and the lights off. There were boxes of pizza and bottles of soda, donated by Poe and Finn.

The only light was from the desk lamps, which were competing with the glare from the laptops set up on tables they had dragged in from the dining area. There was a tense silence that fell over the group when everyone settled in. Rey wasn’t sure if it was because of Kylo’s presence or the situation at hand that was causing the tension but she didn’t like it. 

Turning to Kylo she asked softly, “Is your mom still in town?” Kylo nodded, glancing away from the computer screens to look at her. 

“She wants to have dinner with you,” he admitted and then winced as if he had said too much. “Well, us. But mostly you.” 

Rey raised an eyebrow, “Me? Why?” 

“She’s invested in my love life,” he huffed with a pointed side-eye as if trying to rid himself of an unpleasant conversation between him and his mother on the same matter. 

“Love life?” Rey hissed, finding herself to be the one blushing. Wasn’t he the one that preferred ‘dating life’ over the use of the word ‘love’?  

Kylo’s entire body went ramrod straight, unearthly still and his eyes darted back to the screens. He resolutely didn’t look back at her. 

Finally, the clock ticked midnight and Rey found herself yawning so Poe told her she and Finn - whose eyes kept sliding closed - could take the couches for a small sleep. “This is cool, right?” Rey asked as she and Finn dozed on opposite couches. 

“It’s definitely weird.” He told her, yawning. 

At one am, Rose said, “There he is!”

Finn and Rey jumped up and dashed to the hallway, pushing their desk chair back to the table.

An outside camera showed a man letting himself in the back door of the community centre. They all scrambled to crowd around Cowboy’s table, craning for an inside camera view. The man walked between the photos with a small flashlight, scrutinizing each picture before moving on. It was impossible to see his features but something about the way he held himself rang familiar to Rey. 

Poe called Detectives Lockett and Lintra to bring them up to speed as Rey bent down and squinted at the screen, her shoulder pressed against Kylo’s. “Who is that?” She hissed, “I swear I know him.” No one responded, all trying to figure it out for themselves.

The man stopped in front of one of the large photos and picked it up from the easel, staring at it for a long time. Then, in one angry gesture, he ripped it off the cardboard backing, folded it and shoved it in his jacket pocket. He lifted a tablecloth and hid the cardboard underneath. 

As he replaced the photo with one from the wall, Rey recognized him. 

Chapter Text

Chapter Eighteen  

Running for the back door, Rey ignored the yells of Finn and Poe, taking off the community centre which was only two blocks away. They caught up with her just as she made it to the centre. Mayor Moden Canady was walking out the back door, freezing when two cop cars came screeching up, lights flashing. Mayor Canady looked around wildly and Rey could see the exact moment he realized he had nowhere to go. 

“You killed Paige? With her own sister’s fucking muffins?” Outrage shook Rey’s voice. 

And it was like everything that had happened at that point played like a film. The image of Paige’s body in her beloved cafe burned into Rey's eyes and for a moment, all Rey saw was a pure rage. Screaming, Rey lunged forward but two strong arms snatched her, dragging her from the ground and hauling her against a brick wall that was someone’s chest. 

“You bastard!” Rey screeched, ripping at the arms holding her to no avail. “How could you!?” She sobbed. “You’re disgusting and cowardly!” 

The mayor shook his head, “I didn’t…” he began but his voice was so full of sorrow that it sounded like a confession. 

The police chief himself walked up to the mayor and read him his Miranda rights, taking the photo from his pocket and clicking on the handcuffs. 

At the sight, Rey’s body went limp and the man holding her let her feet touch the ground again. Slowly, his arms released and she whirled around to face Kylo Ren. “Why?” She snapped, “Why did you do that?” She sounded crazed, her thoughts not making any sense. All she knew was that the beloved mayor of their small town murdered one of her friends and nothing was right. 

Kylo looked sad, unbelievably sad at the sight of her distress and he slowly shook his head, as if that said enough. Nobody said anything as the mayor was taken away in the back of one of the cruisers. They, themselves were then shuttled back to the store.

Rey, much calmer after the car ride, turned to Poe, “Did you see the photo?” She asked, voice still thick with emotion. 

Poe nodded, “An old car moving past a barn. Looked like it was taken early in the morning with some sort of photography trick to it.” He shrugged, “I can’t tell you much.” 

“How do we know he killed my sister then?” Rose asked, worrying at her bottom lip with her teeth.

“Actually, we don’t know,” Poe admitted, “Unless the photo can tell us more.” 

Rey nodded, “Well, what kind of car was it?”

“A black, classic Corvette. Looked like a ’67,” Poe replied.

Grimacing, Kylo confirmed, “Canady’s car.” 

On her third cup of coffee, Rey realized she had a problem. She had gotten up earlier than usual and was practically inhaling coffee like it was a new form of air, very much like Poe. She hadn’t slept that night. Instead, she laid on Poe and Finn’s couch, tossing and turning so much that BB refused to sleep anywhere near her. Despite the fact the murderer and potential danger to her life were gone, the husbands had insisted she still stay at their place, just as a precaution. They still hadn’t found out who owned the truck that had tried to mow her down. 

“It just doesn’t make sense,” Poe was saying but Finn was shaking his head. 

“Absolute power, Poe,” Finn disagreed. 

“Yes, but Mayor Canady uh, Canady, is married well and the mayor! What is his possible motive?”

Rey piped up, “Blackmail.” 

Looking at her Finn nodded but Poe looked dubious, “Okay, so Paige might have been blackmailing him but with what?”

Considering the possibilities, Rey mused, “Well, anything that would compromise his political position such as fraud or slander. Or an affair. You said it yourself Poe, he married well, to a wealthy lady and maybe he wanted to sleep around but not change his lifestyle.” She tapped at her chin, considering the possibilities. “But who would sleep with our married mayor?” 

They fell into silence, exchanging to looks and Rey felt as if the answer was right at the tip of her tongue. She knew but her brain wasn’t willing to produce the answer for her. “We’re missing something…” She muttered, taking her hair out of the messy bun and brushing her fingers through it. “Something obvious. The photo. Why did he take the photo?” She tied her hair back into a neater bun. 

“Because it has his car.” Finn pointed out, coming to sit at the table with her, coffee in hand. 

“But what does that matter? We’ve all seen him driving around at some point.”

There was a knock on the door and Poe put his coffee cup down and rushed to it, BB hot on his heels. 

“Oh, it’s you.” Rey heard Poe mutter. 

“Is Rey here?” 

Rey jumped to her feet and rushed to the door, “Ben!” Standing at the door was indeed Kylo Ren, wearing a worn leather jacket over a dark grey henley. His eyes darted nervously from Poe to her, looking relieved at the sight of her. His eyes wandered down to her outfit and he raised an eyebrow but didn’t dare comment. Rey flushed, realizing she was wearing old boxers and a white shirt of Finn’s. 

“Poe, let him in,” Rey ordered and Poe reluctantly stepped back out of the way, allowing him to step through the threshold. 

Nodding his thanks, Kylo gingerly stepped through, being careful to not step on BB’s feet. 

“How did you know where she was? How did you know our address?” Poe accused, Finn, coming up behind him with his arms crossed against his chest. 

Kylo held up his phone, “From Rey.” 

Rey flushed. During her second cup of coffee, Kylo had texted her saying that he found something important and needed to speak to her in person. Poe and Finn didn’t look amused but didn’t say anything to her, especially not in front of Kylo.

“It’s about the photo,” Kylo told her, “It wasn’t just Canady’s car that was in the photo.” 

Rey frowned, “You mean…?”

“The barn, he was driving in front of a barn. I went to the police station and the Lockett had it on his desk. Didn’t notice me taking a photo on my phone,” he huffed and brought up the photo, showing it to her. 

“So, what am I looking at?” Rey asked, squinting at it. 

“The direction of the sun. The barn is facing south-east.” Kylo smirked, “It’s the old Kenobi farm.”

Rey’s eyes widened in realization, “It is! But why would the mayor wanna hide that?” Just then, her phone buzzed. 

It was a text from Detective Tallie Lintra. Hey, the text read, I really need to discuss something with you. Lockett isn’t listening to me. Tell me if I’m insane or not. Cosmic Cafe in 10? 

Rey blinked because what? She read the text again out loud and the three men standing around her seemed just as confused. Rey checked the time: they weren’t going to open for another half hour, at eight. 

Poe frowned and shook his head, “Whatever she wants, it’s gotta be important. Take my keys and open the cafe. 

Nodding, Rey said, “I’ll go change.” And she grabbed her bag from the end of the couch and rushed to the bathroom. She was done in less than three minutes, throwing on the clothes she had been wearing the night before and hurrying back to the living room. Kylo sat sitting on the steps of the porch, BB sitting beside him and both Finn and Poe were back in the kitchen, muttering to each other. 

Walking out onto the porch, BB jumped to greet her and Kylo’s head whipped up to look. His guarded expression relaxed at the sight of her. “Do you want me to come with you?” He asked her.

She shook her head, “She wanted to talk to me, so I should be fine by myself. I’ll text you after. You can come by for a tea.” She smiled. 

Kylo’s face was relaxed and open as he nodded at her, “I’d like that.” He told her. He stood up and Rey ushered BB back into the house, shutting the screen door and trapping him inside. 

“Alright, I’ll see you later.” 

Rey drove to the cafe, parking in the back. She opened the door and stepped in when the door slammed behind her with an echoing bang. Cursing, Rey couldn’t believe they had forgotten to put the alarm back on after everything. Telling herself she would turn it back on after speaking with Lintra, she switched the lights on and entered the kitchen. 

Principal Netal was standing in the middle of the kitchen holding a gun, a lifeless Lintra at her feet. 

Chapter Text

Chapter Nineteen 

“Principal Netal? Bazine?” Rey blurted and slowly the gun swivelled to face her. “What’s going on?”

“She was going to tell you. She was going to tell you everything.” Had the principal shot Lintra? Rey dragged her eyes away from the barrel of the gun to look at the detective. There wasn’t any blood around her. “You were going to find out anyways. Can’t keep your nose out of anything, can you? You were like that in school too.”

Rey winced, sliding her feet back so she was closer to the door, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Bazine’s gun turned away from Rey for a split second as the principal considered this miscalculation. “Is she dead?” Rey couldn’t help but ask.

Bazine looked away from Rey,  allowing her to make another back step. She kicked Lintra, who groaned. “Not yet.” Rey sighed in relief. 

“I don’t understand,” Rey admitted, “Why do you wanna kill her? Or me?”

“Because you won’t quit. She found out about Canady, got to one of his campaign guys. Figured out his donors.”

“The Solar Company?” Rey hoped she could keep her talking long enough for Poe and Finn to show up. “How did you get in? How did you know the backdoor code?”

“That, I had help with.”

Keydel? Of course, she would trust her principal. They were friendly with each other and Rey couldn’t imagine anyone thinking bad things about Bazine, especially her students. Rey shook her head; it didn’t make sense. Nothing was making sense. First the mayor, then the principal? What was their motive?

And then what Kylo said brought everything together. The Kenobi farm was on the mayor’s housing development on the outskirts of town. Paige’s photo caught the mayor’s car driving by the barn near the mayor’s house, not by his own house. The mayor was driving away from her house at dawn. An affair. That was enough to kill Paige over? To kill Lintra and even Rey herself? 

“So you killed Paige to cover up your affair?” Rey thought she sounded appalled and quickly swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to sound more matter of fact. “ You’re a widow. Why does that matter to you? Wait, were you the one who tried to murder me with the truck?” Rage mixed with her fear as Rey imagined her aiming that truck at her, gunning it and trying to squish her beneath the tires. 

“I did not kill Paige.” She huffed, “That was all Moden. Idiot. We wouldn’t be in this mess if he had just thought things through.” She rolled her eyes. 

“And Lars? Why did you kill him?”

“He was trying to blackmail me! Can you believe it! Me, after everything I’ve down for this town!” She sounded outraged and Rey was worried she was losing control but she shook her head, brushing her hair out of her face, “Most of the people in this town are sheep who fall into place. But not you and not her.” She pointed at Lintra with her gun. “Now pick up that ladle.”

Rey blinked, “What?”

Bazine rolled her eyes, “Obviously Lintra came to tell you to mind your own business, you fought, you were going to attack her with a ladle and she shot you. Classic.”

Rey frowned, “Seriously? A ladle?” Bazine shrugged, looking unconcerned. Sighing, Rey walked over and picked the ladle up from next to the stove. She turned to face Lintra. “Okay, I’m over here and she’s over there. Now what?” 

“Well, come closer,” Bazine rolled her eyes as if she was the only person with a brain. Lintra groaned and her shoulder shuddered. Bazine whipped around to look at her and Rey made her move. She rushed behind Bazine, ladle raised above her head and brought it down on the principal’s head. 

Crying out, Bazine started to turn but Rey was faster, smacking her across the face with the ladle. She then stomped on Bazine’s foot and threw an elbow into her throat. Bazine stumbled back, gasping and the gun hung in her limp hand. Using the ladle again, Rey smacked her knuckles and the gun tumbled to the floor. Rey kicked it away and pulled back a fist, landing a punch directly on Bazine’s nose. The principal crumbled to the ground, blood gushing from her nose. 

“You bitch!” She screeched, trying to stand but failing, cupping her nose. 

Rey pulled her cellphone out and dialled 911, “I need the police at Cosmic cafe! Officer down!” She glanced at Lintra, “Also, my old principal just tried to kill me?”

Chapter Text

Chapter Twenty  

Detective Lockett showed up first, quickly followed by Poe, Finn, Rose and Kylo. 

Even groggy, the principal tried to talk her way out of it, but couldn’t really explain why she had been holding a gun and why she had been in the cafe in the first place. Lockett arrested her for the murder of Lars and for the attempted murder of Lintra and Rey. 

Kylo hovered while Rey sat in the dining area, watching the action. “Worst day?” He asked, looking surprisingly worried.

Rey grinned, “It’s only eight in the morning. It could get worse.” 

Lockett arrived to take her statement. After she was done he awkwardly muttered, “Sorry. About before.” He didn’t elaborate but Rey knew what he meant.

“No worries. It all worked out.” She shrugged and Kylo watched the exchange with narrowed eyes. Rey looked at him and smiled widely, starling him. Two murderers were no longer on the loose and Rey felt lighter than she had in a while. 

For the first time in weeks, Rey woke up with no anxiety. She was back in her own apartment and she was pumping herself up for the farmer’s market. Their booth was going to sell their gourmet coffee and in house made biscotti. She could already imagine all the food and art and handmade jewellery that was going to be there. (Mainly food though.)

The farmer’s market, as always, was in front of the library. They closed the little street in front off and allowed venders premium parking spots right behind their tents. When Rey drove to the library that morning, Finn and Poe had already set up the tent and Rose and her worked on getting the samples ready to hand out. 

Their first customer was Kylo Ren, followed by a gaggle of fans. Strategically ignoring them, Kylo approached Rey, giving the shyest smile Rey had ever seen in her life. Heart skipping a beat in her chest, she smiled back. 

“Tea?” She asked and he glanced at the coffee and biscotti tray in her hand and shook his head. 

“I’ll try one of each.”

Grinning, Rey called to Finn, “One dark roast with a vanilla biscotti!”

“On it!” Finn dove into working on the order immediately. Someone snapped a photo on their phone of Kylo with the flash still on. 

Rey rolled her eyes but was unable to stop herself from smiling, “Have you ever been before?” She asked.

Kylo shook his head, “I’ve spent most of my life ignoring local events,” he admitted. “I only did the book signing because of the ex-mayor and my mother,” He huffed, his cheeks turning red. Finn slid the order across their makeshift counter and Kylo handed him a crisp fifty for the cash box, “Keep it.” he told Finn’s shocked but exuberant face.

“So you did the book signing and decided, why not just keep making local appearances?” Rey teased. 

But Kylo shook his head, his cheeks burning bright pink, “Um, I heard you were going to be here,” he admitted. He waved the biscotti like a flag, “With biscotti.” Rey beamed.

The morning passed in a blur of grateful neighbours and friends, calling, texting and stopping by. Lintra called and told Rey that she only had a mild concussion but was already feeling ready to get back to work. She had gone to the Cosmic Cafe that morning to meet with Rey only to discover it was locked. Principal Netal had shown up and said Rey had told her how to get in. Lintra, not realizing how dangerous she was, allowed her to enter the cafe with her. Everything after that was a haze. 

Kylo, sitting at one of the tables in front of their booth, got a call. Rey, handing out coffee, heard him say, “No, mother, I think I want to stay in town for a while.” There was a pause, “Find my roots.” He suddenly smiled, a bright look that made him seem younger and lighter, “Oh trust me, there’s plenty of inspiration for me around here.” He looked at Rey, meeting her eyes. Flushing, Rey forced herself to look away. 

From the small town gossip mill, Rey had eventually found out the whole story by the end of the market. Mayor Canady had fallen in love with the principal and, realizing he didn’t have any political power to get him out of the mess he was in, spilled everything to Lockett. Once he was reelected he was going to divorce his wife and marry Bazine but then the blackmail letters started to come in. 

Lars’s laptop was found in Bazine’s attic. She claimed she didn’t know how it got there but her fingerprints were all over it. It was fill of pictures of her and the mayor having an affair, along with letters demanding money. Along with that were pictures of her and the mayor in meetings with the president go the solar company. Rey had no doubt in her mind that Lars threatened to expose them though Rey was unsure which was worse in the mayor and principal’s eyes: the affair or the solar company funnelling money into Canady’s campaign in exchange for the town council paying five hundred dollar rebates to their customers. 

It seemed like Lars got the idea for blackmail after Paige blackmailed him and he saw the original photos when he broke into The Republic studios. He might have thought it was suspicious for the mayor to be driving by that barn so early in the morning and followed him. He probably thought he hit the jackpot when he got photos of him having an affair with none other than the principal. 

Paige had pushed Bazine to come look at her photos and see if they were good enough for her to qualify as the school photographer. She saw the photos of the mayor’s car and assumed incorrectly that Paige was the blackmailer. She told Canady. When Paige didn’t get the gig as the school photographer, she applied for the gallery in DC and Canady panicked. He killed her before she could meet with the gallery owner but apparently tried to play if off like it was more of an impulse killing than first degree murder. However, records show he had order a vial of cyanide nearly a month before hand. 

Even after the death of Paige, the blackmail letters were still coming so Canady and Bazine assumed she had an accomplice in Lars. Lars had certainly underestimated Bazine. Canady claimed she was the one who bashed Lars’s head in. 

It would be the only thing anyone in West Point would talk about for a while but Rey didn’t care. Business was back at the Cosmic Cafe, helped by the sudden frequent appearance of author Kylo Ren and Senator Leia Organa. Rose sold her apartment and put all of her sister’s stuff into storage and Rey and her found a small condo to share, closer to Poe and Finn.

Raymus Antilles, the gallery owner, took possession of Paige’s work and while Amilyn Holdo lost her spot in the gallery, she didn’t mind. Instead, she reconnected with her old school buddy Leia and began her political career running for mayor in West Point. Even if Rey suspected her for a brief period of time, she knew who she was going to vote for next election.

And even though Kylo Ren, now known as Ben Solo (“Solo? Your last name is actually Solo?”) to Rey finished his acclaimed Falcon Trilogy, he had started something else. 

Sitting with a laptop in the corner of Cosmic Cafe, Rey approached him with a steaming green tea in hand. “Whatcha writing, Mr. Author?” She teased, reaching out to gently brush a lock of hair off his forehead. 

Ben looked up at her, his eyes crinkling in good humour. “I got another story idea. Same universe as famed smuggler Alden Flacon. Different character.” His eyes glinted deviously. 

“And whose the main character?” Rey’s eyes lit up, heart speeding up at the thought of a new book series.

“A snoopy scavenger who winds up in possession of Falcon’s ship, Ridley Jakku.”