CHAPTER 01| THE THING CALLED LOVE

" Mic check, Gray." Tanner says from my earpiece.

" I'm in." I reply, walking into the infamous Miami club. 

   It's popular for different reasons and the MPD is yet to discover why. Few months ago, there was news that the club was a sex club. Not just a sex club, but a ring for transporting illegal drugs, trafficking, and sales of illegal weapons. 

   

   So here I am, in the middle of a case I'm not supposed to be involved with because I just graduated from the academy. But out of luck and trial, Chief Bradford decides to give me a chance not to screw this up or— He really didn't get to tell me the 'or' so I'll just skip that part. 

" Mic check, Gray." I hear the bitter voice of Regina Foxx. My arch nemesis. I fucking hate this bitch. You may ask me why, but you'll find out soon enough. 

" Don't you fucking call me by my last name, Regina." I grit out as I look around the club. 

   My eyes zooming in and out from every corner to get an eye on my target. Reynold Boyce. A shitty low life human trafficker who for years has been going on with his illegal job without being apprehended because the force is yet to put together enough evidence. 

" Yeah? Why's that? Because you manage to land a case that's supposed to be my gig?" She asks. I can hear her bitter chuckle from my earpiece.

" Regina, quit it." Roxie's voice comes in through my earpiece. 

   I perch at a corner of the club, pretending to smoke a cigarette. Something I don't usually do, but you gotta fit in here or you get kicked out. My outfit is a simple leather extremely short skirt and a red crop top that shows a decent amount of my breasts and ankle boots. And to top the bad girl look, I had on a trench coat, something I shouldn't wear in here. But who cares? Being all too slutty isn't my thing. It's Regina Foxx's thing. 

" If you were that good like you see yourself, you should be the one doing this. But to burst your bubbles, you're like every other lame bitch." I grit out, blowing out the smoke from my cigarette as I eye the club, hoping to find Reynold Boyce.

    I hear Regina's sadistic laugh from my earpiece and I just want to rip out my earpiece and throw it away. She annoys me and I don't know if I'm being too harsh but I just wish I can get away from her. Like I want her gone out of this planet. Let some good Samaritan blow her out of earth, maybe to some place like Mercury. 

   Regina Foxx is the highlight of MPD. Out of all the cases she has solved , she barely fails them. Something the police department doesn't play with. She's the best undercover agent the MPD has. Unlike me, I am a newbie. Fresh out of the police academy and this is my first real job and I must say it's exciting. Being undercover and posing to be someone else. 

" Ooh. You're just in pain Caleb decided I'm better than you." She says the word I've been trying to ignore this past year. Fucking bitch.

" Regina, I'm so disappointed." Roxie says from my earpiece. 

" Women." Tanner mutters. 

" You know what, Regina, why don't you eat shit and fall off a fucking bridge, you stupid ass bitch. Just pray I don't see you around this club cause I'm gonna punch you in your gut and make sure you die a miserable fucking death." 

" Ignore her, Lauren, she's trying to..." Before Roxie can say whatever thing she has to say, I pull out my earpiece and walk out of my corner to find the restroom. 

   I'm not known to be weak, but thinking about what Caleb did hurts so much. We were supposed to get married. The money I got from my father's will, I spent almost everything on Caleb because he was always asking for money. To invest in his company and to do this. I didn't ask him why because we were supposed to get married and I was in love with him. Found out he has been fucking that ugly bitch Regina Foxx while I was at the academy trying to be like my father who died a great soldier. 

   God it hurts so much. I have never met Regina in person before when I was still at the academy, but I've heard so much about her back at the academy. She was the spotlight of MPD. The agent who always comes out successful in every single difficult case. Seeing her in person and finding out she has been fucking my supposed fiancé while I was at the force hurt so much. God I wanted to punch her, rip out her hair extensions and fucking murder that bitch. 

   But I couldn't. Not after Caleb said we can't be a thing. That I can't be a wife. Four years of relationship gone. I moved on, moved out of our shared apartment and focused on my dream career. But I couldn't focus more not when Regina and I were still in the same police department and Caleb proposed to her. 

   Goddamnit. 

  Two weeks after our breakup, I always asked myself why am I not enough. Why couldn't I be his wife? It's not like Regina was any better except she was a natural redhead and Caleb had a thing for redheads. He even made me dye my brown hair red one time in the name of role-play. 

  I screwed up. It's like these past years of our relationship, I was the one who was trying. I was the one who dedicated her whole life into this thing we called love, and I was the one who worked so hard not to make our ship sink. Maybe I was too forward. Always talking about marriage because my friends were getting married and I'm the one who's yet to walk down the aisle. But after Caleb left, I understand marriage isn't something that I want. And then I realized I'm twenty seven and I'm gonna live like there's no tomorrow. 

  

   So fuck Regina fucking Foxx. 

   When she heard I was given the case to apprehend Reynold Boyce. She was furious, jealous even. She even said it to my face that I was gonna fail. That bitch. 

    I hurry down a hallway which I assume it's the bathroom hallway, ignoring the continuous ringing of my phone in my pocket. I open a door and it's a restroom. I enter the restroom. I turn on the faucet as I pour cold water on my face. I look up at my reflection and I know I look good. Caleb was just trying to hurt me because he thinks I'm weak. 

   The restroom door opens and Roxie enters. I look away from her, not in the mood to talk to anyone. 

" Lauren, you really have to learn to ignore Regina."

" I know." I sigh. 

" She's not even worth your time. I don't know if you noticed but Regina is jealous of you. You're something she can never be." Roxie smiles at me. A genuine smile and I sigh again.

   The minute I joined the MPD, Roxie was the first person who made me feel at home. She is sweet, beautiful, blonde and knows how to make me smile with that beautiful British accent of hers, and she always got my back. She's older than me by a year and she's like my twin sister. 

" I hate that Regina Foxx had to work in the same case as me. We don't even like each other and Chief Bradford knows that."

" You know why, Lauren. He wants you guys to sort whatever thing that's going on between you two. You're both agents and under one department. I think it's time you step out of that shell and tell Regina Foxx, Caleb fucking Shawn is not the man that worth your time. He's a total douche bag." Roxie says and I laugh. 

" Come to think of it, she's been wearing his engagement ring for a year and he's yet to take her down the aisle.  So fucking pathetic." Roxie adds and this time we both laugh. Real hard. I think hearing that from someone other than myself is heart warming and relieving. 

" Come on, officer Gray, we've got a bad guy to catch."

" Sure thing, Officer Francis." I smile at her and we giggle, walking out of the restroom together. 

   This should be fun.