Chapter 10: Chapter 10

Grayson and Kendall arrived at the bar in less than no time; she dropped him off first at the entrance to look for a parking space. As soon as she got the perfect spot, the boys were already inside regaling like there was no tomorrow. Meanwhile, Kendall decided to stay at the parking spot to blow some chaff off.

She grabbed her pack of cigarettes from her side pockets and lit up the stick. Kendall rarely smoked. However, she did when she felt like she needed some air to breathe in. Guarding Grayson Hoffman had already given her a lot of stress and pressure, so much so, that she had barely visited her family.

'Ah, finally! A minute for myself.'

She smiled while relishing the heated smoke of nicotine and tobacco down to her lungs. Kendall knew she needed this as it would help her calm down before facing that git again.

After whiffing the last remnants of the burning cigarette, she threw it on the ground and crushed it with her snuff-colored combat boots. She then walked ahead to the venue to get to the boys. With her palms crunched up in the pockets of her leather jacket, she moved to the black front door of the pub when, suddenly, a young woman halted her.

Kendall tilted her head up to face her. The woman looked familiar to her as though she had seen her before. She was wearing a tight pink crop top and a checkered miniskirt that perfectly accentuated her bright auburn hair. Kendall noticed that the red-haired woman was backed up by her other friends, who were already waiting behind her.

“What do you want, miss?” Kendall asked, seemingly tired from all Grayson’s girl drama.

The short-blonde woman behind the red-haired challenged her with a feisty smirk. “Is this the girl you’re talking about, Sandra? She looks so awful and with no breed!”

“How dare you get close to Grayson? He’s Sandra’s! So back off, bitch!” Another high-pitch valley girl added.

“Is this the girl he chose over you? Eww, what happened to his standards, girl?!”

Then, Sandra sneered, “Get away from my man, slut!” She pushed her away, to which Kendall soon recovered from stepping forward.

Simultaneously, her violent actions made Kendall remember her as the woman walking toward them when Grayson kissed her. Realizing this, she now understood why the red-haired woman was hopping mad.

Regardless of their insults, Kendall had none of them, as she just rolled her eyes and ignored them. She thought of them as shallow teenagers who were so engrossed in girl drama and Grayson. With this, she went back to the front door with the plan of following where Grayson and his friends were hanging out.

“You fucking bitch! He’s mine!” Sandra yelled, slapping Kendall in the face.

Instantly, Kendall felt the massive weight of Sandra's palms. She dabbed her cheek and realized it had gotten swollen. “Hey, miss... First, I don’t care about him and I don’t care if he’s yours. Second, I don’t like him and will never like him at all. Third, I’m not one of his girls who’s so dumb to impose themselves on a guy who is only interested in sex.” Kendall brushed her lips with her thumb and warned, “So please, for the love of God, back off.”

“What the fuck did you just say?” Her response miffed Sandra with annoyance.

Kendall neglected her and walked out of their way.

Even so, the gang was too adamant about it. They recklessly pulled Kendall to them and attacked her with no leniency. They surrounded her in the middle, giving Kendall scratches on her face and hitting her abdomen.

“You bitch! How dare you say that?!” Sandra yanked Kendall’s hair so tight that she could almost feel the blisters on her scalp.

Another girl beside Kendall clawed her arm, bashing it with full force. “Fucking slut! You don’t have any right to say that!”

Kendall didn’t know what was already happening. It was like she just got mauled by every species of a feline animal intending to nail her in the coffin. Still and all, she tried to practice maximum tolerance and let them hit her until she found a way to get out of the plight.

Sandra added as she continued to pull her hair. “You man stealer! Get away from him!”

“Ah! Will you guys stop it?!” Kendall tried to request.

However, the ladies disregarded her plea and continued to hit her. Leaving her with no choice, Kendall then shoved her head back and covered her face with her forearms.

“You fucking bitch! You stole him away from me!” Sandra shrieked with passion and outrage.

“Hell, lady, I don’t even like him! You can have him all you want! I don’t frigging care!” Kendall responded while shielding herself from the incoming attacks.

Sandra's feisty gang incessantly attacked her on both sides and back. Kendall bore it for a minute while waiting for an opening where she could get out. Soon after, when she saw Sandra’s arm retracting away from her hair, she immediately grabbed and twisted it on her back to stop her.

“Argh! You fucking whore! Get your hands away from me!” Sandra cried in pain while her arm was curled up sideways.

Kendall’s sudden move took Sandra's friends aback. However, this didn’t make them stop, as a short-haired woman was about to pounce on her when she kicked her in the gut.

“Arrghh! You crazy bitch!” the short-haired woman shouted as she was thrown onto the ground.

The others tried to hit Kendall again, but to their dismay, she had quickly booted their asses to the floor before they could ever jab her. Heaps of cries coming from them surrounded the entire area, as though the bar had become a public place for brawling.

Kendall spat, while she gripped Sandra’s wrist tightly. “I told you, ladies, to fucking stop it!”

“Let me go! Damnit! I’m going to sue you for this!” Sandra yelled.

“Sue me? Like hell, you will!” Kendall was already at the point where she had enough. She couldn’t take any of these anymore, eventually arriving at the point where all odds were against her.

Then she tried to calm down. Kendall breathed in for a moment and puffed another sigh. Momentarily, she let go of Sandra’s wrist and fixed the atrocious aftermath she had encountered with these crazy bitches.

“Are you girls out of your mind? Why are you wasting your time with that git who doesn’t care about you? My God! That asshole doesn’t deserve this kind of attention! Why are you defending him like your life is on the line?! He’s a fucking womanizer who doesn’t even care about your feelings!”

Kendall stopped for a while to breathe in and then added, “You shouldn’t let a man drill you with sex only."

The girls were left flabbergasted. They didn’t expect Kendall to react in such a way or even bring them down with much skill and knowledge in fighting. More so, she was so intimidating that the entire group was pacified to be left in a dumbfounded state.

Kendall was already fed up. She couldn’t take it anymore, starting from Grayson’s childish pranks to these girls’ petty insecurities. This was not what she had expected when she agreed to do this job. It took a toll on her dignity that she couldn’t help but feel besmirched as a police officer. She knew she was better than this and could do more than deal with immature teenagers.

Gritting her teeth, Kendall turned her back away from them and walked towards the main road. She called a taxi and immediately got inside as soon as a yellow car stopped by. Gazing at the distance, she saw herself in the mirror with her face bruised from cuts and scratches. Her hair was disheveled and her cheeks were burning red.

Kendall couldn’t help but laugh at her state right now, as though a skilled and trained inspector like her just got mangled by crazy Grayson’s admirers.

With a trace of downright ache and chafe, she laughed. 'I look like a mess...'

...

She soon reached the headquarters with a single thought to talk with the chief. With her close fist, Kendall marched inside the office with heavy, yet quick footsteps. Her coworkers tried to talk to her, but she ignored them as she eyed Chief Spencer’s room.

When she got there, Kendall immediately settled on the vacant seat in front of the desk, which made the chief gape at her with confusion. Chief Spencer was about to ask Kendall when she preceded him with an exasperated glare.

“I’m quitting this case, chief. It’s not that I couldn’t do it, but I just can’t take this anymore. And no—before you say anything else, hear me out.” She heaved a sighed and continued, “It wasn’t just Grayson’s cocky attitude or his childish pranks. It’s everything and everyone surrounding him. The kid is always attached with drama that even my life has turned into a pathetic mess!”

“What do you mean, Whitlock? I thought you’ve gotten close to the kid? What the fuck happened?” His brows furrowed as he leaned away from the chair.

“This isn’t what I signed up for when I joined the law enforcement. I want to be in front of the action, doing raids and operations! This is not what I’m trained to do! Dealing with Grayson was already a handful, chief, but also dealing with his crazy women? No shit, but I’m completely done.” Kendall lifted her arms in defeat.

She then added, “I want to be assigned to a new case, chief. It’s okay if you punish me by being suspended. I just don't want anything to do with Grayson or his bunch of crazy followers.”

Chief Spencer took a deep breath and waited for Kendall to calm down. When he noticed her getting back to her senses, he replied calmly, “Being police, Janice, is not all about cross swords and lock horns. Yes, our job is risky and may sometimes be dangerous, but being a police is just not all about it. It comes with a passion for our responsibility, loyalty, and sacrifice for the common good. Whether the job is small or big, every single part of the operation is very important. We chose you to do this case, Janice, because we believe you are the only one who can do it. I have seen fire and passion in you, Whitlock, since then. Don’t let this case lose your love for your job. Take it as it is, swallow your pride, and sacrifice for the greater interest.”

“Chief…” Kendall didn’t know how to respond.

He continued, “We serve our people. We sacrifice and we humble ourselves for the safety of everyone. That’s what we do, Janice—that’s what your grandfather did. If you can't do that, then maybe this profession isn't for you, Inspector Whitlock.”

Kendall heeded the chief's words whilst sniffing. She then regretted her actions and thought of her grandfather. She loved being a police officer and would do her job to the extent of her limit. Chief Spencer’s statement reminded her of the real meaning of being a policewoman. She now knew that what she would learn from this assignment would be far more important than the lessons she would have learned from raids and busting operations.

With that in mind, she tilted her head to apologize to him, “I-I apologize, chief. I was clouded, so clouded with everything that had happened.”

Luckily, Chief Spencer understood her. He didn’t reprimand her or punished her for her rash actions as he just let Kendall leave the office to think things through. Spencer knew Kendall’s genuine love for her work and he wanted to let her know how important the case she was handling was.

...

A few minutes later, after Kendall’s conversation with the chief, she came across Noah. The man seemed to notice the distress in her that he'd ask her to join him for a meal.

“Hey, Whitlock. Want to grab some dinner?”

Kendall partly smiled but looked uninterested. “I’m fine. Not really hungry right now, Inspector Green.”

Noah, however, ignored her disinterest and tried to even cheer her up. Pouting, he said, “Come on! It’s my treat.”

Instantly, Kendall’s gloomy face faded into a more pleasant countenance. She nodded and softly smiled at him. “Alright. Just because this is your treat.”

Later on, the two went to a nearby food stall while they ate triple cheeseburgers, reflecting on their jobs. Kendall told him about her conversation with the chief, to which Noah listened with much interest.

“I-I God... I really had just enough of it.” She sighed as she dropped the wrapper on the tray.

“I understand. You know I’m your partner and I can clearly see your struggles with this case. To be honest, if I were in your shoes, I would have knocked that git to his senses,” Noah retorted while grabbing the bottle of coke.

Kendall laughed at him. She was grateful that she had Noah’s support ever since day one. If it wasn’t because of him, she would have probably lost her shit on the first day.

“Thanks, Inspector Green.” She lifted her eyes to meet his and curved her lips upward.

Noah then patted her shoulders. “You can do this, and I believe in you. I know because you’re the best police officer who can nail this case. You’re one hell of a fighter, Inspector Whitlock. No one can stop you on that.”

He crossed his arms and winked. “Besides, you also have me as your partner. You can never go wrong with that.”

Smiling at her, his blue eyes wrinkled with delight.

The enormous weight that she was carrying a while ago soon faded. Kendall felt happy with Chief Spencer and Noah’s exhortation to her. Because of this, she was even more determined to do her job better.

Both of them already had a stimulating conversation when her phone rang. Quickly, Kendall picked it up and recognized that it was Grayson who was calling her.

“Hey, I need to go, Inspector.” She pointed at the road and added. “Gotta get back to my work.”

“Is it the kid again? I can offer you a ride. Where is it?” he suggested as he reached the back of his neck to rub it.

Kendall bit her lips. She was hesitant to accept Noah’s offer, but the man was rather too nice for her to turn down. “Uhm, alright… Yeah, sure. It’s downtown at a local pub.”

Consequently, Noah drove her back to the bar where Grayson and his friends were staying. After a couple of minutes of driving, they arrived at the place where Kendall was already greeted by Grayson’s grouchy face.

Immediately, she gazed back at Noah to bid him goodbye. “Thanks again, Inspector Green, for the treat and the ride.”

“Anytime, Whitlock.” He smirked as he leaned closer to her to open the door on her side.

Shocked by his gesture, she felt her breathing pause as she noticed Noah’s body closer to her. When she felt him reclining away and inclining back to his seat, Kendall reflexively released a relieving sigh.

“Go get him and knock down his peg,” Noah cheered.

Smiling coyly, Kendall responded, “I definitely will.” She then stared at his bright eyes and bit her lips. “Thanks again, Noah. I really appreciate your support.”

Noah gave her a playful smirk. “I’m just one call away if you need me.” His lips then pursed in a teasing manner. “Although it’s kind of weird hearing you say my name.”

Kendall raised her eyebrows coyly. “Do you want me to go back with your surname, Inspector? We'd be busted if Grayson hears.”

He bit his lower lips for a moment. “No. It’s just weird—but…” Noah’s pupil narrowed as he continued. “I like it, Kendall.”

She gave him a slight nod of agreement, as her lips couldn’t hide her glee. “Same. Good night, Noah.”

“Good night, Kendall.”

“Don’t stay up late, Green. I might call you when I need you,” Kendall teased.

A deep-entrancing voice of mirth escaped from Noah. Kendall then exited the car as Noah said, “Call me anytime. I’m at your beck and call.”

"I will, Noah. Thanks again..." Replied Kendall as she waved her hand. Grayson, who was at the side, could hear their intimate farewells.

After that, Noah drove off while Kendall was left alone with Grayson to deal with. Bulking up all her renewed patience, she walked toward him. She quickly noticed his frown at her while his foot kept tapping on the concrete ground.

“Where the heck you are, Hailey?” he hissed.

Kendall didn’t respond to his question and just took his keys.

However, Grayson was too obstinate as he asked her again, “Who is that guy? Why did you disappear suddenly and come back with another man?”

She kept her mouth shut and ignored Grayson’s incessant interrogation. Kendall didn’t want to pay attention to his cockiness or his insults anymore. With this, she just went inside the car and drove throughout the ride without saying a single thing.

Even so, Grayson didn’t stop as he asked her another question again. “I heard what happened with you and Sandra. Why didn’t you fight back, Hailey? For someone who could fight a guy easily, those ladies are just nothing. Why didn’t you deal with them right away?”

Kendall only listened to Grayson, trying not to bite back a word towards him.

“And who is that guy you’re just with? Is he your boyfriend? Your fling when you need something to let out?” He gritted his teeth with annoyance.

She stepped on the pedal, and the car came to a screeching halt. “Shut the fuck up, Hoffman! I’m not in a mood to entertain any of your rudeness, lest banter with your childish insults!”

Grayson was about to open his mouth to answer when he met her piercing scowl.

“I’m already so tired of dealing with your antics, so please, keep your mouth shut, before I do anything else that you will surely regret!”

He was astonished by Kendall’s reaction. Grayson wasn’t sure why, but he found himself nodding at her. He then shut his mouth immediately, obeying Kendall’s admonishment. With this, it got him wondering why Kendall could silence him just like that.

He couldn’t explain it, but he got this lingering feeling that she spoke with such authority, as if she was more experienced, more mature, and much more... Older?