"We got confirmation on all the injuries. The bruises and swelling on the right knuckles indicated Angelo put up a fight before he was outnumbered. Angelo also had four fractured ribs that caused internal bleeding. Even if he hadn't been shot in the head, his lungs were severely punctured. He wouldn't have made it," Erik finished softly as he laid his tablet on Xavier's desk.

Erik, Xavier, John, and I were all huddled in the office, gathering information and going through Angelo's case again. I didn't mistake the softness in Erik's tone as any emotion but simmering anger. I clenched my fist at the treatment one of our brothers had suffered. Looking at Xavier and John, they were just as furious and desperate for vengeance.

"They made sure all their tracks were covered. There were particles found under Angelo's fingernails. While prints were found on the body, it couldn't be identified by forensics in their database. Whoever was involved are ghosts. We found a security feed of where they dumped the body, but no one could be identified. Then, the damn security feed was dead before they arrived and when they left, there was no way to see where they went. The black van used had a stolen license, most likely switched so they wouldn't be tracked. It's practically a dead end," Erik finished and ran a hand over his head in frustration.

"Sounds like they are taunting us. Have you found the results yet for the nail particles?" Xavier asked as he crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair at the head of the table, while I stood at his right side. The tension and debriefing left me too restless to stand.

"There were multiple dioxins and furans, which can mostly be found in wastewater, or sewage sludge. Angelo could have been scratching or clawing at something with the substance on it." Erik said.

"Like a sewer," Xavier confirmed. "So the people we're looking for were at least navigating underground to stay hidden. That's probably how they got Angelo in and out."

"Yeah, but there are too many ways they could move through the city. It would be impossible to find where they entered or exited."

Xavier nodded in agreement, his eyes staring out into the room.

"What do you have on the sensors from the bomb in Rosaline's apartment?"

My fingers twitched at Xavier's question but kept my face neutral. Erik swiped through his device, showing pictures of the bomb design.

"I hacked into the NYPD service. It turns out that the mechanism wasn't a knock-off. The company name was barely legible on the device, but they were able to retrieve it. I sent it to our analysts, who are having a field day and drooling over the damn thing. It's a bomb used in war zones. The company, Arms and Protection Corporation, is widely popular with the US Army." Erik explained and pushed the device to the center of the table.

"Let me see this," John said before getting a closer look at the image. He analyzed the picture before nodding his head. "I recognize these. When I was deployed, my squad would place several of these on the field. It was meant to take out groups before they could infiltrate our site. But the blast from those is too big to only take out Rosaline's apartment. It would stretch to the entire hall."

"You think someone stole the device and tweaked it so it only targeted Rosaline?" I asked. My mind spun with several possibilities about how that damn bomb got into the apartment.

"The murder could be staged as a gas leak. Someone could tamper with the crime scene before police arrived if it was successful." Xavier frowned.

"The apartment complex is cheap and old, no one would bat an eye on the issue. The case would be pushed to the side," I cursed and started pacing.

"What are you thinking?" John asked Xavier, who was looking at the case file.

"I just find it strange. If you say the sensors are military hardware, I'm thinking some Diablo-owned government officials have access to them. Why would this device– that was modified to only destroy one room– be in Rosaline's apartment after she left LA, especially after the shooting? It has to be someone higher we are dealing with or else the bomb would've been made in someone's basement. We're missing something big."

Cold realization dripped down my spine. How involved was Rosaline in this?

The idea of Lorenzo even touching a hair on Rosaline's head made me see red. Not even thinking, I grabbed the first thing I could find on the table and threw it against the wall, watching it shatter into pieces. It wasn't nearly as satisfying as I hoped it would be.

A hand firmly gripped my bicep and I turned to see Xavier standing next to me.

"You need to calm down or I am making your dumb ass sit out for the rest of this mission. I can't have my right-hand man running into danger. Be level-headed, all right?" Xavier squeezed my arm firmly to show how serious he was about this.

I gritted my teeth but nodded and he slowly released me, like he was waiting for me to strike. Seeing that I was calming my temper, Xavier turned to Erik and John.

"Erik, find every politician you can that can get in contact with those resources." Xavier ordered as he wrote some notes to himself as reminders.

"Yes boss," Erik nodded and grabbed his phone before leaving the room.

"John, I need you to get in contact with your military buddies. Get me some information about the weapon manufacturing company. I'll have Erik send you the name. If they are handing out weapons like candy, who knows what else they're up to."

John nodded at Xavier before leaving and shutting the door closed behind him.

Xavier groaned and faced me once more.

"It seems like your girl is getting more and more interesting. By the way, that was a great paperweight until you destroyed it, Asshole."

I scowled at him, but couldn't deny it. About both Rosaline and the paperweight.

"I can buy you a new one. But I need to see Rosaline." I spoke rapidly before leaving the office, Xavier trailing behind me. "I don't want her out of our sight."

Specifically my sight. Not anytime soon.

"I contacted Frank. The resignations have been accepted early. Rosaline and Maria aren't going anywhere until we figure out what the hell is going on. I don't trust that Maria won't be a casualty in this mess. The mansion is one of the safest places they could be in right now. Marco and Tom are setting up a better house security protocol as well." Xavier said.

I was relieved to hear that I didn't have to worry about her job anymore.

"I don't know how Rosaline will react, but I know Maria isn't going to like that one bit," I told him as we walked towards my wing of the mansion.

"I can convince her." I snorted at the statement and it was Xavier's turn to scowl.

"What?"

"I think it's funny that you think you have a say in anything regarding what Maria does. What Maria wants, Maria gets."

Xavier stopped walking for a minute, thinking about my words before nodding.

"You're right," Xavier admitted before we continued walking. "I'm sure I can figure something out. A compromise of sorts to pass the time."

Xavier winked and I rolled my eyes at the implication.

We were at the entrance when Xavier stopped me. The suffocating tension from earlier returned after our playful banter.

"I've been lenient on you talking to Rosaline, as your best friend and brother. But as your boss, I need the information. A lot of it depends on her now and without her, we can't move forward in our investigation. I'm ordering you to talk to her by tomorrow or I will. Understood?"

I knew he was right, but I was trying to be patient with her. I had barely gained her trust and I didn't want to lose it. But Xavier had a point. Angelo's killers were out there and we needed answers.

"Understood. I'll talk to her tonight," I said firmly, though I wondered how I would make that happen.

Xavier nodded, looking relieved as we patted each other on the back in reassurance. I opened the door to my wing. "I'm confident that–"

I didn't get to finish my statement as my eyes partially widened at the sight. Xavier let out a loose chuckle, patting me harshly on the back. I glared at him as he gave me a smirk.

"I guess Rosaline doesn't have the same culinary skills as you do." Xavier mockingly gestured to the disastrous kitchen. Flour and cocoa powder covered the counter and floor. Bowls were scattered everywhere.

I shook my head, not even bothering to smother my smile as Maria and Rosaline were giggling to themselves, covered in flour. Just watching Rosaline throw her head back in laughter calmed my state of mind. The tension slightly left my posture as we waited for the women to notice us.



One hour earlier

"Maria, I don't know how to cook, let alone bake! I usually order take out or use a microwave."

I groaned as Maria brought another cookbook to the table. We were in my dining room, looking at recipes for my supposed date.

"Besides, Damon made me croissants this morning. I highly doubt anything I make will impress him."

Maria dropped the cookbook at my statement, her eyes widening. I jumped as the book thudded onto the table.

"He made you croissants? Son of a bitch. It's been years since he made those bad boys. It's only on special occasions that he makes something for us...Did I tell you that he used to smack my hand whenever I tried to grab a cookie? I should use the pregnancy card on him," Maria mumbled to herself. She focused back on me. "Don't let his mother's cooking skills intimidate you. It's the thought that counts."

"Why would his mother intimidate me?" I asked and tugged on my hair. Damon told me that his mother taught me how to cook, but she can't be that good right?

Maria smacked my hand away from your hair. "No fidgeting."

"I was not fidgeting. But what about his mom?"

Maria raised an eyebrow at my question, her lips tightening like she's holding back a smile.

"I guess he didn't tell you his mother is Elizabeth Cohen. Do you recognize the name?"

I gaped at the name. Elizabeth Cohen was one of the most respected chefs in North America. She was known for her skills in the kitchen and for branching out into different fields of cooking. Such as making croissants.

Okay, so his mother can be that good.

"Oh no. Cooking is so off the table now," I moaned and banged my head on the table. I ignored the ache that formed on my forehead. "Why can't I just put a movie on with a dessert? Everyone likes desserts, right?" I mumbled.

Maria smacked her hand on the table, causing me to jump again. I squealed and pressed my palm over my racing heart.

"Will you stop that?!" I scolded. Maria ignored me and skimmed through a cookbook.

"Damon is a sucker for a chocolate cake. If we bake one, you can serve that and have a small intimate moment together. The atmosphere will be perfect."

Maria looked smug at her suggestion before grabbing me and the book. She practically dragged me to the kitchen.

We gathered some appliances, but my eyes widened as Maria plugged in an electric mixer.

"Do you know how to bake? I know the basics, but I've never used special appliances before. I mixed it with a bowl and spoon."

"Uh...yes?" I raised a brow at the troubled look on Maria's face. She was looking at the mixer like it was an advanced math equation. "It shouldn't be too hard. As long as we follow the recipe book, nothing bad should happen."

"Nothing bad should happen." I repeated and pulled back my hair nervously. "That doesn't sound reassuring Maria."

"We'll be fine, Rosie. Now let's get this done before Damon gets here. It says it should take twenty minutes to prepare the batter."

Maria listed the ingredients and we scrambled to find them. Measuring cups and bowls piled up on the counter as we put wet ingredients into the mixer. I cautiously pressed a button and the mixer blended the ingredients together. Maria pressed another button and it went faster.

"This is great! We can make it go faster in case the guys are back early!" Maria sang and stopped the mixer so we could add the dry ingredients. We were measuring out the flour when a large amount poured out of the bag and onto the counter.

"Oops!" I giggled at Maria's expression. "Don't worry, it'll be easy to clean up," I reassured her as we finished measuring and brought the flour to the mixer.

"Should we put in a little at a time?" I asked Maria and she scoffed.

"Please, we're experts with this mixer now. Let's just throw it in. We are already forty minutes into this and we still need to bake and decorate." Maria grabbed the flour from me and dumped everything in. I tilted my head as I eyed it curiously.

"I'm not sure it looks right, but oh well," I shrugged and went along with her. I pressed the high-speed button and everything turned into a cloud of white dust.

"Oh shit! Shut it off!" Maria choked as something wet hit my face. I scrambled to press the off button, but it only seemed to make it go faster. Maria and I grabbed the mixer, turning our heads away as we unplugged it. I waved away the powder in the air and gaped at the kitchen.

Flour almost touched the surface of the entire kitchen. It was on the floor, cabinets, and counter. I touched my face and found that some of the wet ingredients got on me.

"That was crazy." I turned to face Maria and choked on my spit.

Maria looked like a ghost, flour covering the front of her body and the side of her head. Her face and hair were completely white. Goops of wet batter were splattered on her clothes. She was wiping flour out of her mouth, gaping at my appearance.

We stared at each other for a few moments before we began cackling with laughter. Tears were pouring down my face and my sides began to hurt. Maria leaned against me, trying to steady herself from her giggles.

Just when I thought I might throw up from all my laughing, we heard a throat clear. We whipped our heads to the door and found Xavier and Damon surveying the disaster with wide eyes. Damon looked at me up and down, struggling to hold back laughter. I uselessly tried to wipe some flour off my face. He walked towards me and helped by using the long sleeve of his shirt.

"What in the world happened here?" Damon asked, but I didn't miss the amusement in his tone.

I smiled sheepishly.

"We were trying to bake a cake to surprise you. Unfortunately, we aren't pro-bakers. In hindsight, this was probably a poor idea," I giggled as I looked down at my clothes. "I look like Casper the Friendly Ghost."

Damon snorted at my statement before pulling me into a hug, unbothered by my flour-covered body. "You make a very cute ghost. Thank you for the surprise. But for future reference, Maria is hopeless in the kitchen. Don't listen to her if she suggests cooking or baking." He pulled back and I laughed again. Flour covered his black shirt, even lines showing where my arms were wrapped on his waist.

"Goddammit, Sugar! You know I like this suit."

I peeked around Damon and saw Maria smothering herself on Xavier, getting wet batter and flour all over his gray suit. Maria gave him a sloppy kiss on the cheek, cackling. Xavier tried to look stern, but a smile was seeping through.

"You and your swanky suits. I think I should take a tour of our walk-in closet then. They need a bit of a makeover. Have fun on your date, Rosie! I'll keep a guard at the door so no one interrupts!" Maria laughed as she ran out of the room. Xavier looked after her, terrified.

"Who the hell says swanky, Maria? Don't you dare touch my suits, woman!" Xavier boomed as he ran after her.

I watched the scene in amazement.

"Are they always like that?" I asked and Damon nodded.

"It was even worse in high school. Married life has settled them down some. I've been in the middle of their mini spats for years." Damon looked around the kitchen and shook his head. I winced.

"I'm sorry about the mess. I just wanted to make something for–"

"Our date?"

I flushed. I was hoping he didn't hear Maria before she ran out.

"I-I wanted to talk to you but wanted to make a comfortable atmosphere. Maria suggested making a date out of it and you're talented in the kitchen, so we thought it would be a good idea to make you a chocolate cake. But as you can see, that didn't–"

Damon grabbed my face and planted a kiss on my lips. He pulled back and beamed at me.

"Come on, Flower. Let's bake a cake." Damon smiled and I practically turned into batter myself.

~*~

It took us two hours to create the cake. I'm sure if Damon had been baking by himself, he would've been done sooner, but he was being sweet and letting me help - without using the mixer.

We had just finished cleaning up the kitchen from the earlier destruction. As Damon put the broom away, I cut two slices of cake on a couple of plates.

"I'm surprised you don't have a cleaning crew," I teased as I passed him a plate when he came back. "I saw that you guys had house cleaners for the rest of the house."

Damon grabbed forks from a drawer and handed one to me.

"Sometimes I let them in. Xavier and I grew up in a nice neighborhood, but I always had issues with people going through my stuff. I clean up my own messes." Damon said as he took a bite of cake.

I also took a bite and took a moment to savor the dessert.

"This is way better than whatever Maria and I made. I didn't even think of melting actual chocolate for the cake." I admitted and Damon chuckled.

"You didn't even finish making the batter, Flower."

I waved him off with a dorky grin. " It would have been an even bigger disaster if you didn't find us in time. With our luck, we would have set the cake on fire." I laughed and twirled my flour-covered hair.

We made small talk, enjoying each other's company as we finished our slices leaning against the counter. I let myself relax as Damon told me about his mother. I smiled as he talked about baking with her.

"I miss her a lot. I haven't seen her in months since she's been traveling with my father. She's been keeping me updated on new foods she's been trying, though," Damon told me.

I couldn't miss the passion in his voice as he was explaining different cooking styles. It took a lot for me not to swoon.

"My mother used to work in a flower shop before I was born. When I was little, we would both garden in the backyard, planting as many seeds as we could. Depending on the season, we would go to the farmers' markets in LA and sell some of our crops."

I smiled as I remembered dad being in charge of the cash while mom and I would talk to the customers. My smile fell a little at the mention of Los Angeles, but I pasted it back on my face.

"My father was an accountant. He taught me a lot about economics and business. He was the breadwinner of the family, but I didn't get to spend much time with him since he was always working. When he was home though, our house would be filled with laughter as he would tell us about his day or whatever accident he caused. He wasn't the most graceful Sinclair," I giggled.

I looked over at Damon and saw him looking at me with a soft expression.

"What happened to your parents?" Damon asked softly, like he knew where they were.

I gave him a sad smile. I played with the rose charms on my bracelet, unable to meet his eyes.

"Mom died of pneumonia. People can die from a broken heart, and my dad was one of them. It was...hard watching my dad fade away like that. I just graduated college and I was doing my best to keep the two of us together, to make him laugh or smile. I knew he loved me, but he couldn't survive without mom."

My voice broke a little and I wiped my eyes, feeling embarrassed for crying. We had been having a good time and I ruined it. "Sorry, I didn't mean to–"

Damon cut me off by hugging me, holding me tightly.

"You don't have to be sorry, Flower. I can't imagine losing both my parents so close together. However, I know they'll love you once you meet them. They can't replace your family, but will love you just the same."

Just when I thought I could pull myself together, he brought out the waterworks.

I cried into Damon's chest for a few minutes before I pulled myself back.

"I wanted to talk to you about something... I didn't mean to start crying on you already, but I guess I'm emotionally imbalanced at the moment."

I hesitated to say "my past", but Damon understood what I was trying to say. His eyes turned serious but patient.

"Why don't you clean yourself up first? I'll finish cleaning the kitchen."

I wanted to protest, afraid if I didn't start spilling now, I would lose my courage. However, my clothes were getting uncomfortable and the batter on my skin was getting crusty. I nodded in defeat before heading to my bathroom.

I showered as quickly as possible, not wanting to keep him waiting, but I had to wash my hair twice. I gaped a little at the gunk going down the drain before turning off the shower. After getting dry and dressed in pjs, I threw my wet hair in a bun. Walking to the door, I counted to three to keep my composure.

You got this, Rosaline. Time to put your big girl pants on. You. Got. This.

I quickly opened the door before I chickened out and found Damon sitting on the couch, looking at his phone. I trudged toward him, my anxiety suddenly weighing on me. I was scared of my reaction. I made it this far and now I wanted to run away? No cop-outs, Sinclair.

Damon looked up and patted the seat next to him with a reassuring smile. I sat next to him stiffly, pulling at dangling strands of my wet hair. Damon sat silently next to me. I was thankful that he was letting me take the lead. I always followed other people, but Damon was willing to follow me instead.

My throat was dry as I tried to swallow.

"I really want to do this...but I'm scared." I admitted.

"Why are you scared?" Damon questioned as he gently unclasped the hair from my hands and placed it behind my ear.

"I don't want you to look at me differently. What if you see that I am not the partner in crime you're looking for? What if I'm no better than the other people you take down consistently? What if you decide to arrest me and put me in jail for the rest of my life? That's the right thing to do, but–"

"Flower, slow down," Damon stopped my rant and his large hands cupped my face, forcing me to look at him. "You were able to accept me. You saw past my secrets and still let me hold you. Why shouldn't I be able to accept yours?"

I shook my head. He didn't understand. What I've been through, why I deserved to suffer in that disgusting apartment alone in New York City - it was a punishment I subconsciously forced on myself.

I just didn't realize it would lead to him.

"Because you're basically a dark superhero - like Batman! You help people and save lives. You put yourself on the line and protect people from harm. And I...didn't."

And that was it, wasn't it? The self-loathing that I had been holding back for so long reached the surface.

"Why don't you let me decide that? Don't pull away from me now, Flower. I need to know, more than you can understand. We are on a timeline that I don't want to force on you. But I can see it's killing you slowly, Rosaline. You need to let it out," Damon spoke softly, wiping a tear I didn't know escaped. "I have you and I'm not letting go."

I stared deeply into his green eyes, searching for signs of doubt or perception. Why would my past be so important to him? I had so many questions, yet the answers he needed.

Did he need it for a mission? A case?

I closed my eyes tightly. I couldn't watch him as I told the story and his face twisted with disgust and anger. But I needed to do this for myself.

I was done holding back. I was ready to pass some of my burden to someone else, no matter how selfish that made me.

I'm not alone anymore and I need to keep reminding myself that. It was a struggle and I hoped that Damon would prove me right.

"I was finishing my shift at the bookstore..."