End of Watch

Judas Carmichael hated rain. He also hated the orc that stood in groups across the street from him. It didn't help that his partner belonged to the same social class as they did. It also didn't help that the orc group hated his partner. 
They were throwing up gang signs behind the other man's back, pretending to shoot at him and it wasn't the first or the last time they would do it. 
"Hey, Ruvik!" He barked, finally tired of standing in one place while the other man decided whether he wanted an orc burger or a bronto thigh. Both smelled like death. "Today, please! Geez, I swear four elves have died in the time it's taking you to decide on that garbage."

Ruvik seemed to let little bother him, or he simply didn’t notice. The latter wasn’t exactly a great quality in a cop. “Yeah, if only.” He replied with a snort of laughter as he continued to go back and forth between his two choices. The orc took a moment to glance away and look at what Judas had ordered. “The hell is that anyway? Looks like something I would feed my dog.”

"your poor dog." Judas muttered, taking an enormous bite of his chilli dog. "You actually pay attention to the allotted time we get to eat? I'm going to make you start bringing food..." On that thought he stopped and made a face. God only knew what an orc kept in the fridge. Probably a human head. 
He sighed and tossed his food in the garbage. "Shit is soggy anyway. Are you done or what?"

Ruvik grumbled slightly, but nodded anyway. “You humans... you waste so much food. Such weak stomachs.” He added with a glance to what Judas had just tossed away. “It’s not like we have anywhere to be, no elves broke a nail today.” He added with an amused chuckle.

"It's not my fault we have to patrol there, big guy." Judas shook his head at the burger the other man was bringing into the car. "If you weren't you we'd be down in the regular neighiborhood like everyone else."

“Yeah, and you’re everyone’s favourite guy.” Ruvik replied before taking an enthusiastic bite of his burger. “You kiss just as much elf ass as everyone else.”

"I like my job and i want to be a sergeant one day so..  yeah. I do." Judas rolled down the passenger window and motioned the other man to it. "Can you leave out there and eat that? I can't breathe."

Ruvik stared at Judas for moment, then took another bite of his burger. “Like I said, weak ass stomach.” He replied, finishing his food in two more bites without leaning out the window. “My cousin told me your women have an even stronger sense of smell, how do you people get anything done if all you do is complain about smells? I mean I can smell ten times as well as you, but I don’t bitch about how much aftershave you put on every morning, choking up the whole inside of the car!”

"That's bullshit. I don't even wear aftershave." Judas protested. It was a lie of course and they both knew it. "You just do your damn job over there and..." It was then that the call came in about a robbery on the edge of the elf district. In a little store owned by a human woman named Molly. 
Molly was close enough on the edge to get harassed by her own kind and close enough that the elves that didn't want her there gave her trouble as well. The poor woman had been advised several times to close her doors but she refused. The book shop stayed open.

At the scene Ruvik actually looked disappointed. “Who steals books?” He asked with a snort, though had his gun out anyway. “This close to the elf distract? All that shiny merch, what use are books to a thief?”

"I would imagine they took cash..." Judas hissed, elbowing his partner into silence. He didn't like how quiet this book shop was. Even for a book shop there should have been some noises. Like the owner perhaps...
"Don't move!" A shotgun greeted Ruvik when he made his way around the counter. A tiny blonde woman sat on the floor, blood streaming from her nose. She had a shotgun aimed at his midsection but she was shaking so hard she could probably shoot him just about anywhere.

Ruvik smirked when he saw the woman. “Sweetheart, if you didn’t shoot the thief, you sure as hell aren’t going to shoot a cop.” He told her rather confidently.

Molly didn't yet drop the gun. Her hands shook and she backed further against the wall, blood dripping onto her jeans. "I didn't call for help." She said softly.

Ruvik glanced at his partner, worried with this information. “Elves wouldn’t call, right?” He asked uncertainly.

Judas shook his head, looking around the shop. Nothing was over turned or broken. This was the strangest robbery he'd ever been called to. "Ask her what they got." He barked, disappearing into back of the store, his gun at the ready.

“Why don’t you...” Ruvik growled in frustration when he realised his partner was already gone. “Did they hurt you?” Ruvik asked, putting his gin away to crouch down before the human.
Neither of them yet knew that the back door of the store opened into the elf district. The perfect bypass of the checkpoint.

Molly rolled her eyes at him as she too put her gun onto the floor. "No. I did this to myself so you'd feel sorry for me." She said softly, not meaning it as rude as it sounded. "There were three elves that came in asking if I had books on magick and where they were. When I turned to show them the tallest hit me and I blacked out..."

Judas frowned when he found the last isle of the store in chaos and the backdoor wide open. "Of course it would be the magick section. What else?" He muttered. "When are these fools going to learn?" He added, stepping into the alleyway.

“Humans are weird, maybe you did do it.” Ruvik replied with a shrug. “Okay, so elves wanted magick books. Why come to you? They have bookshops inside the district. Have you dealt with them before?”

There was blood in the alley, apparently one of the elves had managed to injure themselves even while Molly was blacked out. The injured elf was in fact crouching in wait for the human who had just come looking for trouble.

"One of them I have." Molly said, looking past the orc officer for a rag. She leaned over him, brushing him with her body. "He comes in all the time ask for a Bright book." She added as she sat back down and pressed the rag to her nose.

 "Don't move!" Judas roared, aiming his gun at the elf. "Hands where I can see them." He had a knot in the pit of his stomach that was telling him this wasn't going to end the way he wanted it to.

“And let me guess, you’re only too happy to have nice, civilised conversation with the pointy eared bastard?” Ruvik snorted, taking hold of the rag and helping Molly clean away the blood.

The elf raised his hands, very slowly rising to his feet from behind the cover where he had been crouched. Judas was right to think this was going too well. It took no more than a split second for the elf to reach into the back of his pants and then for the bullet from his gun to slid neatly into the minimal gaps of Judas’ vest. He rushed at the officer, punching him hard in that same bullet wound, before he took off down the alley, a trail of his own blood behind him.

"What?" Molly shook her head, not liking what this man was implying. "No. Most elves are rude and hateful. I wouldn't tell them anything about my Bright... damnit..." Molly didn't get to take back her statement as a gunshot sounded in the alleyway. 

Judas cursed loudly, pain arching through his body. But he couldn't let it stop him. He had to go after the elf. "I...said...stop!" He roared, shoving off the wall he'd slammed into and doing his best to keep pace.

Ruvik was staring at Molly. He had heard it, she truly couldn’t take it back. “Shit...” he knew he couldn’t just abandon her... or his partner.

Lucky for Judas, the elf was injured enough to slow him down to a human pace. Not that it helped, he was soon out of the alley and weaving into the crowds of rich shoppers.

"Go. Your partner needs you. I need to see if they found the book." Molly told him, shoving to her feet.

"Shit!" Judas shouted when he reached the crowds. He was close to throwing down hi gun and wailing like a child. Instead he followed a blood trail that dried up at the beginning of a large spa place. "Goddamn it!" He shouted, using the last of his air with the effort.

“Oh no, you’re coming with me.” Ruvik told Molly firmly. “You think I’m just letting you sit here and wait for them to come back?”

“Are you okay?” Bright elf eyes were peering down at Judas as their owner poked him gently. “police offers aren’t allowed in here, you know that, right?” She continued, seeming to be missing the bullet lodged in his ribs as the wound was hidden by his vest.

"What about my store?" Molly protested, making a point to look at the still open front door. 

"We serve and...would you mind not poking me..." Judas groaned. "Please go about your business unless you saw an elf with a gun run through here?"

“Got keys, don’t you?” Ruvik asked gruffly, surpringly worried about his partner.

“No, just a strange human who yelled for no one to panic, then collapsed on the ground.” The elf replied, smiling at him as she tucked some of her Amethyst coloured hair behind her ear, revealing a rather expensive looking diamond earring.

"Go. I'll be fine." Molly said, sweeping past the orc officer to close the front door and lock it. 

"Stay here. I'll need a state..." Judas' vision swam and he swayed on his feet. "I'll need a..." He stumbled a few steps back and slid down the wall.

Ruvik was having none of it. Once Molly had locked up, he grabbed her arm and pulled out the back of the shop with him.

The young elf woman was quick to slide an arm around Judas and help him find a seat out of sight of passers by. “What happened to you?” She breathed, her vivid eyes wide as they looked him over. “Humans can’t take such physical punishment.”

Molly didn't like the fact that she was being dragged into the elf district. But she didn't fight it. It was strange but her fingers linked in the orc's felt oddly soothing. 

"I was shot..." Judas groaned. "I've got to...where is that human you said collapsed...I need to call this in...my partner..." He had a million thoughts running through his head but not one of them were making too much sense at the moment.

Ruvik had felt her fingers link with his, and glanced down uncertainly for a brief moment. He’d never met many humans who tolerate do him, let alone females. “Do you get broken into often?” He asked, trying to keep his thoughts straight.

It wouldn’t take much for the elf to realise that a bleeding human was going to draw too much attention. Before he could protest she had dragged him into one of the private cars near by and had them driven several blocks away. She couldn’t explain why she had the sudden desire to take this stray in and help him, and yet here she was, lying to the reception at the hotel and telling them he was her friend from out of town who had simply had too much fun. The blood covered police vest had been left in the back of the car.