Charming: Part I - 8. Chapter Eight

It was already nighttime when they arrived at the police station. Zev got out of the car with Lucky deciding to stay inside and he entered the station. Looking around, it did not take long for him to spot the bright red jacket that Velvet was wearing as she sat on a chair with her purse on her lap. He swore that girl never took that jacket off no matter the time of day or weather forecast, and he could easily pick her out in a moving crowd all because of that article of clothing. However, her getting spotted by Zev the police officer by wearing red in a sea blue cops was not a good thing for her. Not one bit.

“Velvet,” Zev called out to his sister.

“Zev!” Velvet said, stand up. “I’m so sorry, Zev! I didn’t do anything at that party! I didn’t know they were doing drugs there! I—”

Holding his hand up, Zev said, “Save it. Let me do the paperwork first, and then you can explain how the hell you ended up at the police station.”

“Well, that’s the thing. I’m free, and it’s all because of…”

“Because of what?” Zev asked impatiently.

“Because of me.”

Turning his head, Zev saw Wendy walking towards him and smiled. “Well, I’ll be damned. Look who the cat dragged in.”

“Should you being say wolf instead?” Wendy said with a smirk. “Come here, you bastard.”

Zev complied and hugged his friend and former partner with a firm embrace. “It’s been a while. I’m happy to see you, Wendy.”

“Same here, Zev,” Wendy said, eventually releasing her hold on him. “Both of us working full-time at different sides of the city doesn’t leave us with a lot of time just to hang out, does it?”

“Nope. I’ve been meaning to ask you out, so we can catch up, but—”

“It’s fine,” Wendy said with a smile. “It’s good enough just to see you in person again…as well as your sister who me and my partner drove here by the way.”

Zev looked at Velvet who was looking down as she tugged her hood over her head. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that.”

“Don’t worry. I managed to convince my partner to let her go since she wasn’t caught doing anything illicit except for being at that house party. So, she’s free,” Wendy said with a wink.

“I can’t thank you enough, Wendy,” Zev said sincerely.

“No problem. What are former partners for, eh?” Wendy said before laughing. Then her face turned serious face as she said, “Hey, Zev. Do you mind if we talk privately for a minute?”

“Oh, yeah, sure. Velvet, stay where you are,” Zev ordered.

“Don’t worry I will,” Velvet said with a little attitude that caused Zev to sigh in frustration.

Leaving Velvet, Zev walked with Wendy to a nook in the police station where a small kitchen was and where the stale coffee was made with the sole purpose of waking up the police officers here who were working the night shift. Tossing the remainder of the cold coffee into the sink, Wendy began making a new pot as she hummed a small tune. Zev was also greeted by a few of his fellow police officers as they walked by him.

“So, how’ve you been, former partner?” Wendy asked as she poured water into the pot.

“Eh, I’m all right. Just working a lot and doing my part for this city,” Zev answered as he grabbed the container of grounded coffee beans and poured it into the coffee machine.

“That’s good, and have you been dappling in other things…off the record?” Wendy asked, placing the pot into the coffee machine before pressing the button to start it.

“Uh, well…”

“Don’t lie to me, Zev. Right now, I’m raising two of the biggest five-year-old liars in the world, so don’t be pretending that you’re not doing anything sketchy.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll tell you. Just keep your voice down,” Zev said, looking around to make sure no one overheard.

“Sorry. I must’ve gotten that sass from my African-American father, a former police officer and the world’s most accurate lie detector,” Wendy said with a small smile.

“And he’d be proud that you decided to continue his legacy,” Zev said with a hand on her shoulder.

“Thank you, Zev. But let’s not change the subject here. You’re still going undercover as a wolf bodyguard to infiltrate the secret bases of those…things,” Wendy said, shivering after she said it. “I heard the news today about what happened in that five-star restaurant at the downtown area of the city and I’m pretty confident the media is covering up what really happened back there. That it was caused by…”

“Vampires. You’re right. And yes, I’m still posing as a bodyguard for those people. And I’m not going to lie to you about this either, Wendy... I believe I finally found the key to finally ending this all,” Zev said confidently.

“Zev, you can’t be doing this. At least not alone. We need to get the police involved,” Wendy insisted.

“And what? Tell them that there are vampires running amok? Fairies and mermaids are one thing, creatures that live for centuries by feasting on the blood of innocent people is entirely different. And I can’t risk ruining my reputation now since everyone’s been treating me with respect ever since our little debacle with those creatures two years ago. Remember that?”

“Uh, don’t remind me,” Wendy said, rolling her eyes with a slight smile on her face.

“So, you understand. I must do this by myself, without anyone in the police force knowing about what I’m doing when I’m off-duty. Except for you, of course. Will you continue keeping this a secret for me…Gwendolyn?”

“Don’t call me that!” Wendy said, playfully pushing Zev by the shoulder. “There’s a reason why I changed my name tag because of asses like you.”

“Yes, but am I an ass who you’re willing to keep a secret for?”

Wendy looked at Zev with her arms crossed for a while before saying, “Sure, but only if you promise me that you’re not going to do anything too risky like taking on a room full of those people, okay?”

“I promise,” Zev said, extending his arms out for another hug.

Sighing, Wendy accepted the hug and said, “You better, you ass… So, what’s the key to solving all this?”

Releasing Wendy, Zev said, “I don’t want to get you too involved, but I will say it has to do with the current Prince Charming.”

“Really? I saw him in a magazine a while back. Not half bad looking,” Wendy said, taking a paper cup right after the coffee machine dinged to let them know it was finished.

“Yeah, and he’s in my car right now.”

“Wow, seriously? I’d ask for selfie with him since my girls are obsessed with all things princess being rescued by a dashing prince in those animated fairy tale movies, but I’m assuming you’re on a mission,” Wendy said as she poured her cup with hot coffee.

“You can say that.”

“Well, I don’t want keep you then. Stay safe out there, former partner and watch over your sister,” Wendy said with a wave of her hand.

“Aye-aye,” Zev said with a nod before walking back to Velvet who was thankfully still sitting there at the front area of the police station.

Zev could not thank Wendy enough again for not only letting his sister go without any charges, but also two years ago when she lectured the police officers who treated Zev like crap just because he was a wolf and the only wolf in the city’s police force. She did not like him in the beginning either since as a black woman who was expected to live up to her father’s example, being partnered with a wolf was not the most ideal situation she wanted to be in as a new officer.

However, after their heroic mission that saved dozens of people from being sold as slaves to an unknown buyer, most likely a vampire, they were promptly awarded for their heroism and given a pedestal to stand on when confronting those cops who disagreed with Zev’s place in the force. And though they were no longer partners since Zev preferred to work alone, he at least knew he had someone who would definitely watch his back if needed.

“Let’s go, Velvet. I’m taking you back to your dorm,” Zev announced.

Velvet simply nodded and followed her brother out of the police station. “So…is that it? I’m not in trouble?”

“Not by the cops. But if I find out you’re doing something sketchy in a house party where people are doing drugs or even jaywalk, I’ll be forced to tell Grandma,” Zev warned as he pulled out his car keys.

“I promise I won’t get in trouble again. I honestly didn’t know people were doing drugs there. Almost everyone there were college students too and I thought there would just be beer, not hardcore drugs like crack,” Velvet explained.

“Well, you should just focus on your studies, Velvet. And if you want to have fun, just stay in campus. The last thing that I want for you is to get something serious in your record and you won’t able to become a nurse. Is that what you want?”

“Of course not. I’ll be careful and not doing anything to jeopardize my future… Besides, the house party was not my scene anyways. A bunch of people getting drunk on cheap beer and dancing to crappy pop music isn’t what I call fun. I’d rather spend time knitting while drinking tea and listening to classical music with Grandma,” Velvet admitted.

Zev smiled. “You always did have an old soul, and wanting to use your major to assist elderly people in a nursing home is because of that, right?”

Velvet nodded. “Yeah, even though they won’t be on this Earth for long, it’s nice to connect with people I relate to in many ways.”

Stopping, Zev turned around and placed his hands gently on Velvet’s shoulders. “So, we’re in agreement then that you’ll focus on your studies like always and won’t get into any further trouble with the police, correct?”

“I promise,” Velvet said before hugging Zev.

Zev hugged back and patted his sister on the head. “You’ve always been a good kid.”

After the embrace of affection, they reached the car which Zev opened with his key remote and got inside. However, when Velvet opened the passenger’s side door, she was stunned to see someone else seating on the passenger’s seat, specifically a Prince Charming named Lucky. His sister literally lost her breath when she discovered the identity of the stranger and it seemed that even a girl who rejected most of mainstream culture was also fond of the Prince who killed evil witches and rescued damsels in distress. This was going to be a long ride.

Finally catching her breath, Velvet said, “You’re-You’re Prince Charming!”

“Uh…yeah?” Lucky said with an awkward smile.

“Godmother! This is amazing!” Velvet shouted with elation.

“Velvet, are you getting in the car or should I have my cop friends reconsider dropping those charges on you,” Zev warned.

“Okay, okay. I’ll get in and I’ll sit right behind him,” Velvet said with a huge smile as she got into the car.

“What? You don’t want to sit on his lap instead?” Zev joked. Velvet made a face, actually considering it before he stated, “No, Velvet.”

Velvet made a pouting face before buckling her seatbelt. “Then just tell me why Prince Charming is sitting in your car right now. That’s all I want.”

“Yeah, also maybe a selfie to show to your roommates and make them jealous too, right?”

“Would you mind?” Velvet asked Lucky.

“Of course not,” Lucky said which caused Velvet bounce in her seat.

“If it’ll settle you down, then go for it,” Zev said as he started the car.

After the selfie Lucky took with her that made Velvet smile at her phone, Zev drove the car out of the police station’s parking lot and made his way to Velvet’s dormitory where she was staying for her first year of college. He also turned on the car radio and changed the frequency, stopping at a news report that was talking about how giants in the sky and gnomes who lived under a bedroom’s floorboard became to be like how mermaids and fairies who created. Simply put, giants were the manifestation of nightmares and since dreams were always visualized as clouds, that was why witches created them to live in cloudy skies. And gnomes were manifestations of secrets and that was why they remained hidden as they did annoying things like steal food and make noise like how secrets were kept hidden and never revealed. Zev believed this was a crazy world he lived in, minus the vampires who were after Lucky which made the situation unbelievable, psychotic at worst.

Then Zev began to wonder why vampires were made, why his own people were here for that matter. He did not know much about vampires other than they were merciless and power hungry based on his experience with them as an undercover bodyguard, but he heard some convincing theories of how wolves were able to transform into their wolf hybrid. They basically grow a second layer of clothing or skin that granted them enhanced strength and speed that were enabled by their second skin trapping air. This allowed them to run at very fast speeds without losing breath and provided a buffer between the two skins when using their fists to attack enemies. This also granted them the ability to use their breath to blow houses away like in the story of those three pigs, however it was an uncommon ability and Zev could say he was fortunate to be one of those wolves who could do that. This was also the most likely reason for why he was recruited into his former pack despite not having any reputation to back him up.

The second skin acted as a healing agent as well, covering wounds and healing them like a bandage would. However, it could also harm like the gentleman Zeb pierced with Lucky’s sword since shifting too fast into and out of wolf form could severely weaken the body and make them more vulnerable for a certain amount of time. And that was why Zev always took his time to shift without ripping away his human skin that hurt like a bitch the couple of times he did it.

So, that was why those fairy tales with the Big Bad Wolf depicted him trying to trick little girls and goats by using a disguise with clothing because essentially that was how their abilities functioned as. Now whether Zev’s people were created to due to their trickery, their willingness to deceive others by putting on a façade to get what they want or some other reason was beyond him. But what he did know was that his people were in a troubled circumstance in today’s world that viewed most of them as criminals, so him being a cop was at least a step forward to changing his people’s image to be a better one and maybe even changing a wolf’s life positively along the way would not be bad either.

A ringing was heard, and Zev turned to see Lucky answering his phone. With a few nods and yeses, Lucky placed his phone down and looked at Zev with a smile.

“What?” Zev asked.

“Cheri and Cindi already have a couple of leads that will help us in your investigation and they want us to go to Cindi’s agency now to discuss it,” Lucky announced.

“That’s great.”

“What investigation? Can I join?” Velvet asked with unhinged enthusiasm.

“It’s nothing. And besides, we’re close to your dorm,” Zev said as he made a turn into the university’s campus.

Zev looked at Lucky who was still giving him a smile and Zev could not deny the bubbly sensation he felt inside himself, not from the possible new leads to his investigation, but from the man himself who was starting to have a magical effect on him which felt like a blessing than a curse. To start caring for someone other than his grandmother and sister was a totally new thing to feel and the things he would do to Lucky once this was all over was almost making him feel as giddy as Velvet, though he would not admit that to her. Prince Charming and the Big Bad Wolf getting together. Who would have thought of that?