Piggy Picked a Pickled Pepper: A Misplaced Shell Casing?

I got to the compound and needless to say I must have looked a sight. Here I was in a halter romper. Dior sunglasses. When I got to work, I didn't see any of my team. It was just my Captain. "Captain, where everybody at? When we going out?" He took his glasses off and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Coyle, sit down." Uh-oh. You see the only time Captain called me by my last name was when he wanted to chew my ass out about something. I did as I was told. "We're not going out tonight. I told you that because I knew you would make yourself available immediately." I guess he knew me. He went on. "CC, you're one of the best cops I got. I appreciate what you do for the team. You know I do." I nodded my head. "Captain, get to it. Please." He reached into his desk drawer. Pulled out a baggie with a spent shell casing in it. I immediately recognized it. This was ammo that only HPD officers use. "That's one of our shells, Captain." He nodded his head. "I know this, CC. Most importantly, the serial markings match a magazine that was issued to you. This shell was found at that warehouse where Salvatore Gitto was murdered. Can you explain this." My heart dropped down to the bottom of my feet. You see I had been effin up. I got so caught up that I was being sloppy. I remember purposefully leaving that shell casing there. "Captain, I don't know how that happened. I reported my service pistol stolen weeks ago." I had. I was on my toes. You see when I took that shell casing outta my bra, and went home after the heist, I knew messing with Albro could get me caught up if I wasn't careful. So I called and had my service pistol reported stolen. I was then issued a new .40 and I kept the old one to reign. Iron Fist, Mike Walker. If Captain doubled checked he would see that report. Boom! I wasn't new to this. I was true to it. He looked at me like he knew I was lying. I didn't care. I had been a cop damn near ten years and one thing I knew, was that it was never about what was true but what you could prove. "CC, you're not in some kind of trouble are you? Because you know you can come to me if you are. I can help. You know I'd do anything for my officers." I shook my head. "Capt, I'm fine. Why do you ask?" He eyed me up and down. "I don't know. You look different. That's all." I smiled. "I'm fine, Fairfield." He continued to stare at me. "You asked me about that Lena Carethers case a while back. Why?" I shrugged. "I heard some people talking about it. I remembered it and was just curious. That's all." "Yeah and that just happens to be your ex partner's case. You ever hear from Chad Blair?" Interesting question. Didn't faze me though. "As a matter of fact I saw him in passing today." Fairfield wasn't a very good liar. Considering he had been a cop before I was born. I happen to glance his desk and I noticed that he had a missing report on his desk. He never handled missing persons reports. I saw the name on it. Alvin Ray Jr. Damn. "Since when are you doing missing persons reports?" He looked at what I was looking at. "I don't but this is a cop. Personnel asked me to check it out. His name is Alvin Ray. You know him I'm sure. He been missing for about the last day and a half. His old lady has been frantic about him. Calling all day. I wonder what's up. You know when cops go missing, it's usually on purpose." I agreed but I knew better. While Fairfield wondered where Ray was I had a pretty good idea where he was. Shannon Monet was behind this. It was time for me to go. "Capt, are we through?" He looked at me for a moment. "CC, if something or someone is bothering you, you can talk to me about it. You want to do it before it's not too late." His words chilled me for a bit and I tried hard not to let him see that. I nodded and left. That was a close one CC. I had really forgot about the Warehouse heist. I mean that was the first one that Chelle, Dynastie and I had done. I stood on the steps of the police station and looked around downtown Houston. I loved this city and would do whatever I needed to do for it. My stomach growled. I knew that I was about twenty minutes from Shannon's Plate. I was in the need for fusion and Soul Food. Why not? I needed to find out what she knew about Ray's disappearance anyway. Monet had an thing about attire when it came to her restaurant. So I slipped on some satin Louboutin black slingbacks and fluffed my locks. Red Velvet Cake lipstick by Ulta and went on my way. I walked right on in and right past the maitre d. I didn't need him to sit me anywhere. I sat myself. I made sure the waitress let Monet know that I was here. I could feel the DSW pendant hitting my breasts and they might as well have been made out of steel. I thought about Albro. He would never leave me. Suddenly I smelled Belluva, Monet's signature scent. I turned behind me and there she was. She was in an Georgio Armani black pantsuit and Armani evening slippers. Pear shaped diamonds hung from her lobes. In my modest attire though, she had to bow to me. What I was wearing couldn't be bought in no store. I now had what I believe the Spanish call cojones. If Monet wanted to see them I would set them right on her nice pristine white tablecloth. "CC, good to see you. Toujours un plaisir!" I smiled. I bet it was always a pleasure. "Monet, I am real hungry. I think I'll have smothered pork chops with Malik from Fakkulty Mashed potatoes. I'll have Green Quail green beans. Bring me some of that Beretta Street Sweet Tea." She nodded and gave my complete order in french to one of the servers. Ordered it twice. "You mind if I join you, CC?" That was a statement and not a question. Out came her little pill box. Yeah go ahead and get comatose. Dodge reality if you want to, Shannon Monet. I looked around her establishment and couldn't help but notice that one of Monet's goons I had seen the night I bust Arnissha Lynn. He stood behind the desk of AB the night I went to see her. Something was up with this dude. Goons came in male or female but there were many cupholders in the city of Houston. King or Queen we all needed them and I wanted to know what he had in common. Y2 Gray started playing in my head. I could hear Mase rhyming it be the same niggas. It's the ones that smoke blunts with you, send you pictures now they wanna grab they glocks and come and get cha. I shook my head. He looked my way and nodded. I nodded back. Monet brought my tea back. It looked cloudy. I knew they put tons of sugar in it. I didn't sip from it. "Hope you're hungry Piggy. That gravy is my special 40 weight gravy. You'll love it. Why aren't you drinking your tea?" I slid it to her. "I'm good. You can have it yourself. I'll have some water instead." This bitch thought I was crazy. You see I hadn't forgotten that she had sent Alvin Ray to kill me. No way was I going to take anything from her. Since she had probably poisoned my tea, I knew my food would be ok. She wasn't going to leave that table and she sure wasn't going to give orders to touch my food. Here we sat across from each other. One Queen who had her time and a new King who had just started her reign. Did I love Shannon? I did like family. What was love without loyalty? Huh. Tell me that. No matter how she wanted things to be different, in a sense I guess they were. I was on top of the world now. She could deal with it or get dealt with. The waiter bought my food and I was famished. I watched her take a bite first. Chess wasn't a game you want to play with Piggy. You'd lose. I look at my once mentor. Did I pity her? Hell naw her venom was like that of a Lousiana water moccasin. I looked her dead in her eye. "Shannon Monet, let's stop stumbling around the real issue. The tables have turned. You now work for me." Her eyes turned another shade. I took a bite of my pork chop. Damn, it was good. You don't like Piggy, that's fine but they'll remember me forever.