Chapter Text
The scenery blurred past the windshield while Lucy kept her eyes fixed on the road. The border was far behind them now, and the deeper they drove into Baja California, the more real the mission started to feel.
Beside her, Nyla absentmindedly watched the landscape before turning slightly toward Lucy.
— So? How did Tim react?
Lucy shot her a brief glance before immediately focusing back on the road.
— To what? The undercover assignment?
Nyla nodded.
— Yeah. You disappearing for at least a month, the goodbye... all of it.
Lucy sighed softly before shrugging.
— He knows this is exceptional. I’m only taking this assignment because it matters to me. I...
She paused for a second.
— I haven’t told him clearly yet, but I don’t want an undercover career anymore.
This time, Nyla fully turned toward her.
— Since when?
Lucy thought about it for a few seconds.
— I love the job. Undercover work. But...
A small smile crossed her lips.
— I love being a sergeant now. And... I have other priorities.
Nyla raised an eyebrow, already amused.
— What kind of priorities?
Lucy could hear the smile in her voice and smiled a little herself.
— My career as a sergeant. My life outside the LAPD. Tim.
Nyla nodded slowly before asking:
— Why haven’t you told him?
Lucy took her time answering. Her fingers tightened slightly around the steering wheel.
— Because I don’t want him to think I’m giving up a dream for him. He’d never want that.
Her voice softened.
— And I don’t know how to make him understand that I’m not giving anything up. It’s just not what I want anymore.
Silence settled between them for a few seconds, broken only by the sound of the engine.
— But it would be a lie to say it has nothing to do with him, she finally admitted. I don’t want to be cut off from him... from my life... from our life for months at a time.
She exhaled slowly.
— But it’s not because of him. It’s for me.
Then, after a short pause:
— For us.
After a moment of silence, Nyla spoke again softly.
— The goodbye was rough, huh?
Lucy gave her a half-sad, half-nostalgic smile before looking back at the road.
— Yeah...
The word escaped in a sigh.
Then, after a few seconds:
— Did you develop goodbye techniques over the years?
Nyla let out a quiet amused breath.
— When I was doing undercover work full-time, yeah. Honestly? I don’t think they were very emotionally healthy.
She shrugged slightly.
— This is the first time in a long time. The first time since Leah. Since James. I didn’t really have a guidebook for this.
Lucy nodded slowly, understanding exactly what she meant.
Silence settled over the car again for a few minutes, comfortable despite the lingering tension in the air.
Then Lucy spoke again, her voice quieter this time.
— Last night... uh...
She hesitated briefly.
— The evening was calm. He was... gentle. Attentive. Caring.
Nyla turned slightly toward her, immediately understanding she was talking about Tim.
Lucy kept going, eyes still fixed ahead.
— It was like he’d rather focus on how I was feeling... how to take care of me... instead of dealing with his own emotions.
Nyla smirked slightly.
— Very Bradford of him.
Lucy let out a breath through her nose that sounded almost like a laugh and nodded.
— Exactly.
Her smile faltered slightly before she continued.
— But when I finally asked him how he was feeling... he just held me.
Her voice softened even more.
— He held me so tight... his heart was beating really fast against my ear.
She swallowed discreetly.
— And the only thing he said was, “It’ll be okay.”
Nyla reached over and squeezed Lucy’s hand gently for a few seconds, hearing the emotion in her voice.
Lucy took a deep breath before continuing with a tired little smile.
— We talked a little this morning. And I think I’m gonna have to survive on the last “I love you so much, baby. I’m proud of you. Be careful. I love you.” for the next month.
Nyla immediately let out:
— Awwww. You two are disgusting.
Lucy laughed quietly despite herself.
And Nyla, instantly slipping back into her gossip-hungry coworker mode, put on an innocent expression.
— So... Sergeant Softy cried a little?
Lucy burst out laughing this time.
— I swear his eyes were watery.
— That man is sooooo in love.
The two women laughed together, and for a few moments, the atmosphere inside the car felt much lighter.
___
The second day of surveillance was finally coming to an end.
From their RV parked high above the beach, they had only observed a few minor movements. Nothing useful. Nothing that justified the endless hours spent watching through binoculars and screens.
The atmosphere inside the RV had become more relaxed now that night had fully fallen. Dinner was over, and everyone was slowly starting to unwind.
Celina, who had spent a good part of the day lying in a ditch on the beach discreetly observing the area, seemed especially happy to have some level of comfort again. Sprawled across the couch with her legs stretched out over the cushions, she was still absentmindedly eating chips.
Grey and Elena sat at the small table. Whenever the beach was quiet, they used the downtime to remotely assist with FBI operations or catch up on administrative work they could handle from the RV.
Grey pushed his empty plate aside.
— I’m gonna make a call. Get some news from Mid-Wilshire.
The girls nodded distractedly before resuming their conversation.
Grey grabbed his phone and dialed Tim’s number.
The call was answered on the second ring.
Grey immediately heard hurried movement before a tense voice blurted out:
— Lucy?
Grey answered instantly, calm and steady.
— Son, she’s okay.
A deep sigh came through the phone.
Then Tim immediately asked:
— Really?
— Yeah. She’s perfectly fine.
Grey leaned back a little further in his chair.
— I just wanted updates from Mid-Wilshire. Don’t panic.
Tim exhaled again.
Grey then heard a series of muffled noises: a door locking quickly, keys clattering against something, then a dull sound like Tim lowering himself into a chair.
Grey frowned slightly.
— Where were you going in such a hurry?
— I saw your name pop up. Thought she was hurt.
Grey let out an incredulous little laugh.
— Tim, we’re ten hours away.
Tim answered immediately, tired:
— Thanks for reminding me.
Grey waited until he heard Tim settle properly before asking how things were going at the station.
Tim gave him a quick summary. Overall, things were running smoothly despite a massive screw-up from Miles, who had managed to lose a suspect during a chase.
Grey heard exactly what he needed to hear: the station was fine.
Only then did he ask more softly:
— How are you doing?
— Everything’s fine here.
Grey shook his head slightly even though Tim couldn’t see it.
— No, son. I meant... how are you?
Silence passed.
Then a sigh.
Tim finally answered:
— I’m okay.
Another silence.
— I’ll be okay.
Grey didn’t push.
He knew Tim Bradford well enough to understand that sometimes you had to let him choose what he was willing to say.
A few seconds later, Tim finally added:
— I’m not sleeping much.
His voice was lower now.
— I’m trying to keep myself distracted.
Grey nodded slowly.
— Hang in there. We’re watching them. We’ll keep you updated.
— Yeah, I know.
A brief silence.
— Thanks.
Grey answered immediately:
— No need to thank us.
Then, after a short hesitation:
— She’ll be home soon.
This time, Tim didn’t answer right away.
When his voice finally came back, it was quieter than before.
— I hope so.
They hung up shortly after.