Playing the Game Read online

  “No kidding,” Garrett said.

  “I need to go talk to these people,” she added, nodding towards the house.

  “I’m going to ride back around to our cars with Bowman. I’ll come get you.”

  The patrol car drove away, and Berkley knocked on the front door of the home.

  “What’s going on?” the man asked.

  “Our suspect broke into a home a couple of streets over and fled on foot. I was able to catch up to him in your backyard after he hopped your fence. When I tried to arrest him, it turned into a scuffle.”

  “Oh my! Are you okay?” his wife asked. “You look like you rolled around in a pigsty.”

  “Yeah, there’s not much grass in your backyard.”

  “No,” the man laughed. “We can’t get grass to grow over in that area.”

  “Anyway, I wanted to let you all know that everything is safe, and I apologize for us being in your backyard.”

  “No problem. We’re glad you got him,” the wife said.

  Garrett pulled up just then in his cruiser. Berkley nodded and waved at the two people before walking over to the car. Garrett rolled the window halfway down as she grabbed the front passenger doorknob.

  “You’re not riding upfront,” he said.

  “I sure as hell am not riding in the back. You unlock this door or you’ll be the next one I’m scuffling with,” she growled, not liking his humor. The locked clicked and she snatched the door open. “You’re an ass,” she spat as she got in.

  He laughed.

  “Thanks for having my six. I was about to break his damn arms to get his hands into the cuffs.”

  “I got you. Always,” he replied seriously.

  *

  When six a.m. finally rolled around, Berkley was happy to end her shift. She headed home for a hot shower to wash off the massive amount of dirt all over her arms, in her hair, and deep inside her uniform. She had time before meeting Garrett at the gym at nine for a two-hour workout. Her thoughts drifted back to the soccer game. She was still mind-boggled by seeing Randi on the field. She’d seemed just as surprised at seeing her there in a police uniform. Sitting down on the couch, she grabbed her phone and began scrolling the internet. She wasn’t a social media person, but it didn’t take long for her to see that Randi was in fact in a relationship with that other player she’d seen her with in all the pictures, a Canadian named Olivia Zeller. She noticed in her team bio that Randi was 27, so six years younger than her, and she had a degree in journalism from UT. The main thing that stood out however, was the thousands of fan posts about Randi and Olivia. It seemed like their huge fan base was obsessed with both of them and their relationship.

  “I feel like a stalker,” she mumbled, clearing her phone from the Google search screen before going to get ready to meet Garrett. Her phone rang before she got into her bedroom, lighting up with Dena’s smiling face. “Hey you,” she said, answering.

  “Rough night I heard.”

  “Yeah, something like that.”

  “So…do you have anything you want to tell me?”

  “I’m going to murder your boyfriend,” Berkley muttered.

  “Ah-ha! I knew there was something. I just had this odd feeling to call you.”

  “Garrett didn’t tell you?”

  “No. I spoke to him briefly when he called to tell me he was home. I’m on rotation, so I won’t see him until tomorrow. What’s up? He just said you tussled with a guy and came out looking like you’d been trying to wrestle a pig.”

  “Pretty much.”

  “Something tells me that’s not everything.”

  “You should be a psychic or something,” Berkeley said. “You could make money reading palms.”

  “Nope, just reading my best friend. Besides, I told you my abuela had special gifts. I guess she passed them to me.”

  Berkley laughed. She knew better than to hide things from her best friend. “Long story short, I am doing security duty for the women’s soccer games at Richey Stadium for the next month or so. I work the first three to four hours of my shifts there when they have home games, then head over to my zone.”

  “Why do they have you doing that?”

  “The senior officer on duty broke his leg. I’m covering while he’s out. I’m the only other senior officer on our shift.”

  “That sucks.”

  “There’s more,” Berkeley sighed. “So, apparently my coffee acquaintance is a pro soccer player.”

  “What? Are you serious?”

  “Yes. She plays for Richey; she’s really fucking good, too.”

  “Wow.”

  “Oh, and she’s dating another girl on the team…so there’s that as well.”

  “That stinks.”

  “I wasn’t trying to date her to begin with, and she’s really young.”

  “Uh-huh,” Dena chuckled.

  “Anyway, I have to go meet your boy toy and show him how to lift weights. Let’s do breakfast later this week.”

  “I’m down. Just let me know what day.”

  “Alright,” Berkeley said before ending the call. She quickly drank her supplement shake and headed out the door. Working out was the highlight of her day. She always felt strong and energized afterward.

  *

  The distinct clinking sound of metal weight plates smacking together echoed in the large open space. The gym Berkley and Garrett belonged to was set up for Crossfit workouts, as well as regular lifting. They always started with lifting heavy weights to warm up, then moved into Crossfit style routines, before finishing with the weight machines.

  “Are we going to talk about your Latina soccer star friend?” Garret asked, spotting her as she pushed the bar up for another bench press.

  “Nope,” she said, concentrating on moving the heavy weight.

  “Did you tell Dena about her?”

  “Yes.” She pushed the bar back into the rack and sat up. “Can we move onto something else? I met a girl…I meet them all the time. It’s not like I’m dating her or plan on ever dating her,” she stated. “We’re barely even friends,” she added, trying not to sound harsh, but she’d honestly had enough of it.

  14

  Randi flopped down on the couch with the TV remote in her hand. They usually had two days off per week, meaning two days away from the athletic trainers and coaches, but they still had to keep active and recover their bodies from the stress of being a pro athlete. She’d spent the morning at the team’s training facility, lifting light weights and doing yoga with a couple of her teammates, before going to her sports physical therapist office for recovery treatment in the new cryogenic tank. Olivia hadn’t been with her because they had very different routines. Their training and recovery programs were unique and customized, so they rarely saw each other at practice or training sessions.

  She was in the middle of catching up on one of her favorite shows when her sister Elisa called. Randi quickly answered.

  “Hola. Como estas?”

  “Bien y tú?” her sister answered.

  “Bien, supongo,” Randi said, sounding less enthusiastic.

  “What’s up? I saw the game, great goals by the way.”

  “Yeah, thanks.”

  “Where’s Olivia?”

  “Still at training.”

  “Is everything okay with you guys?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Spill it, Miranda Francisca,” her sister chided. “We’re Latina women. We never talk in one-word sentences,” she added, accentuating the word never.

  “It’s nothing really.”

  “Does it have to do with this stranger you’ve been hanging around?”

  “She’s not a stranger, Elisa. I’ve run into her a few times at the coffee shop.”

  “Ah! So, it does have to do with her!”

  “Yes and no. She was at my game…working, actually. She’s a cop.”

  “Why does this have you bothered? I thought you w
eren’t into her?”

  “I’m not,” Randi sighed. “I don’t know. She intrigues me. I’m beginning to wonder if it’s just because I’ve been in a relationship for forever.”

  “Stay away from her,” Elisa said, sounding like a stern big sister.

  “We’re only friends, and hell, we’re not even that. I barely know anything about her.”

  “Does Olivia know?”

  “That I know her? Yes.”

  “What did she say?”

  “Nothing. I just told you, I barely know the woman.”

  “Well, don’t do anything stupid.”

  “You sound like Papá,” Randi mumbled.

  Elisa sighed. “I don’t want to see you make a huge mistake. I know you live life on the edge of your seat.”

  “Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if things were different? Maybe a different career, or a different…I don’t know.”

  “Lover?”

  “Maybe. Yeah, I guess. That’s all it is. She made me wonder. It’s no big deal.”

  “You seem to be wondering a lot…and at the hands of this stranger friend whom you barely know. Just be careful.”

  “I’m a big girl. I’ll be fine.”

  At that moment, Olivia walked in. Randi quickly got off the phone. “How was your morning?” she asked, setting her phone down.

  “Not bad. Yours?”

  “That cryo tank is super cold. I froze my ass off.”

  “I told you,” Olivia laughed. “But, it works miracles,” she added, kissing her softly. “What are you watching?”

  Randi glanced back at the TV, which was frozen on two girls in a heated make-out session with their clothes halfway off.

  “Orange is the New Black.”

  “Looks like porn,” Olivia called over her shoulder as she headed across the house.

  “What if it was?” Randi said.

  “To each his own,” Olivia yelled as she entered their bedroom.

  Randi shook her head and turned the show back on. “Elisa says hi, by the way!”

  “Tell her hello,” Olivia said, walking back into the living room. “So, how well do you know that cop?”

  “I didn’t know she was a cop, if that gives you any clue.”

  “Really?”

  “Yep.”

  “Haven’t you talked to her a few times?”

  “Yeah, but it was about coffee or her motorcycle. I honestly know nothing about her.”

  “Well, I’m pretty sure Sasha is in lust with her,” Olivia laughed.

  Randi rolled her eyes. “She’s in lust with anything that has muscles and a pulse.”

  “That’s true.” Olivia plopped down next to her and said, “We should get a dog.”

  Randi’s brow creased. “Excuse me?” she said, watching Olivia toss an M&M into her mouth. She held her hand out, wiggling her fingers for Olivia to give her one.

  “You don’t think so?” Olivia replied, pouring half a dozen colorful candies into her hand.

  “Liv, we’re barely here as it is. We don’t have time for a dog. No,” Randi said, tossing the whole handful into her mouth at one time.

  Olivia shrugged and turned her eyes to the TV. “I haven’t watched this since the first season. Piper and Alex are the only reason I did so to begin with. Then, they broke them up.”

  “They’re back together. You have to keep watching.”

  “I’ll take your word for it,” Olivia said, ignoring the TV as she scrolled through social media on her phone.

  Randi thought back to her conversation with her sister. Elisa was right. She was in a relationship and didn’t need to be having wondering thoughts. At the same time, she was only human. Yes, Berkeley was flirty and very attractive, which she couldn’t deny enjoying their playful banter, but there was something more to it. Elisa had no idea the kind of charisma that oozed from Berkeley without her even knowing it. A distant friendship or acquaintanceship was enough. Any more than that and Randi would be in trouble.

  15

  Berkeley walked out of the roll call room with a little pep in her step.

  “Excited to go watch soccer?” Garrett said, bumping shoulders with her.

  “Not exactly, but it’s not so bad.”

  “Uh-huh, you mean she’s not so bad,” he teased.

  “Bite me,” she growled.

  “Hey, are we still on for tomorrow?” he called as they parted ways to go to their cars.

  “Yeah. I need a day in the woods.” I need to clear my head.

  “Watch your six!”

  “You too!” she yelled, getting into her car.

  *

  The stadium was already packed with fans by the time Berkeley arrived. She grabbed the radio mic on her shoulder. “327—10-20 Richey Stadium. Moving to channel three,” she said before changing the channel and radioing the other two officers as she walked inside. Fans and paid security personnel nodded in her direction as she made her way through the crowd.

  Before she could get to her post, she was stopped by a parent who had lost her child. She quickly grabbed her radio. “327—10-57 minor in progress; 10-20 south gate. Richey Security seal the exits immediately. We have a missing child in the stadium. No one in or out until I give the all-clear.”

  The other officers radioed quickly and began rushing to her location.

  “Subject is a seven-year-old, Caucasian male with brown hair and brown eyes. Last seen wearing a blue Richey jersey, black shorts, and black Nike shoes. Goes by the name Leo,” Berkley radioed to them as she tried to calm his mother. “Did he go to the bathroom? Or maybe get in line for a snack?”

  “No. He was right beside me. We were looking at merchandise right over there. I turned around and he was gone,” she said frantically, trying not to cry. Her jaw shook and her voice cracked when she spoke.

  Officers Sanchez and Lowe made their way through the fans who were trying to get to their seats to watch the team warm-ups, which had already begun.

  “What can we do to help?” the head of stadium security asked. He’d also received the radio call.

  “I saw at least thirty kids with that description coming this way from my location,” Sanchez stated. “This is a needle in a haystack.”

  “I agree, but I honestly doubt he went very far. Sanchez, you check the men’s bathrooms along this corridor. Lowe, you check all the food vendors in the area. I’m going to go check their seats. Go up to any child in this vicinity that fits his description and ask if his name is Leo.” She turned to the security manager. “Alert all of your personnel on this side of the stadium. Have them start doing the same thing I’m doing. I want you to stay here with the mother. Her name is Patty.”

  “Got it,” he said and began radioing his workers.

  “We are going to find Leo,” Berkeley said before rushing away. She shook her head as she entered the stands. There were several small male children wearing jerseys in every single row. “Damn it,” she sighed in frustration when she reached their empty seats. With nothing left to do, she began questioning all the children in that section who fit the description. Several parents offered to help, but she told them they had it under control.

  *

  “Where’s your hot cop?” Sasha asked Randi as they walked off the field after warm-ups.

  “She’s not my anything,” Randi replied, shaking her head. “I have no idea where she is. I haven’t seen her since the last game.” She was telling the truth. She’d been to The Grind twice during the week, but Berkeley hadn’t been there. The owner figured out she was looking for Berkeley when she sat at her usual table and waited…alone, while looking out the window the entire time she drank her coffee. Just before she left on the second day, he told her she doesn’t come in every week, but when she does, it’s always around eighty-thirty. Randi kept that in mind but didn’t return the rest of the week.

  “Maybe you should set her up with Sasha,” Carrie said once
they entered the locker room.

  “Why? All she wants to do is have sex with her,” Randi muttered as she changed into her uniform.

  “And you don’t?” Carrie questioned.

  Randi looked at her best friend, who stood with her brows raised and her arms crossed like a scolding mother. “I never said I did.”

  “You didn’t have to. I saw your eyes searching the stands while we warmed up. You were looking for her as much as Sasha was.”

  Randi sighed. “That doesn’t mean I want to sleep with her,” she whispered, thankful Sasha and Olivia were on the other end of the locker room and no one around them was paying attention to their hushed conversation. “Come on. We have a game to play.” Randi finished tying her cleats and walked over to the team huddle.

  *

  Berkeley was about out of options when she spotted two young boys walking with a man, both carrying snow cones. One kept looking around, scanning the seats. She rushed in front of the people seated in the first row as they rose for the national anthem, then sidestepped over to the next section where they were coming down the stairs.

  “Leo!” she yelled. The searching boy looked up in her direction as they stopped for the anthem. “Leo?” she said again, rushing up to him on the steps.

  “That’s my name,” the boy said.

  She held out her hand, pulling him behind her. “Sir, are you his father?”

  “What? No. He knows my son. What’s going on?”

  Berkeley grabbed her radio mic. “I have the boy. Section 29, Row F.”

  “What’s going on?” the man demanded.

  “What’s your name?”

  “John. John Larson. This is my son Jacob. That’s his friend from school,” he said, pointing to the kid behind Berkeley.

  “This child has been reported missing.”

  “What?! I didn’t take him!”

  “Calm down. We can do this nicely, or I can put you in handcuffs in front of your kid until we straighten this out,” she said sternly.

  “I don’t even know what the hell is going on,” he sighed.