The Crime System

Will You Help or Not

Rules were rules in the Special Crimes Unit. Every investigator was required to have a tracking app on their phone, allowing leadership to monitor their location at all times. It was a necessary precaution, ensuring they could respond quickly if someone landed in danger during an investigation. And, of course, Aaron Dawson was no exception.

That's why it didn't take long for Bella to find his location. But instead of being holed up at home working on the case like he'd promised, the tracker revealed Aaron lounging at a local pool hall. While Luke was busting his chops over the investigation, that sneaky, dishonest rat was playing pool!

"Don't worry, leave this to me!" Luke told Bella. "You focus on the new evidence regarding Lily Xavier. If anything comes up, let me know."

"Senior, what are you going to do to Aaron Dawson?" she asked, her voice laced with concern. "He's an official investigator—you can't just… do something rash! Please think this through."

Luke laughed at her worry. "Don't fret. Your senior isn't stupid. He'll definitely help me investigate—whether he wants to or not."

With that, he left her behind and made his way to the pool hall. It was a quiet noon, with only two of the eight tables in use. As Luke walked in, his eyes immediately locked onto Aaron Dawson. There he was, standing at a table, rubbing chalk onto the tip of his cue stick. He looked like he didn't have a single care in the world. His opponent? A young officer from the Dispatch Department—a guy with a reputation for being good at pool but no match for what Luke was about to unleash.

Aaron noticed Luke as he approached. He looked up, his lips curling into a smirk. "Oh, hey, Luke! What brings you here?" he said with a laugh, as if they were old friends meeting for coffee.

Luke could feel the fire rising in his chest, but he smiled. "Nothing brought me here, Aaron—except a fire," he said, pointing at his chest, where the metaphorical flames of irritation burned hottest.

"Haha! A fire, huh? Relax, man. What's the rush? It's just work!" Aaron had the gall to laugh in Luke's face, and the young officer joined in, chuckling along with him.

Luke didn't have time for this. "Aaron," he said, letting the smile drop from his face, "you know why I'm here. One word: help or not. Just tell me straight up." Luke knew Aaron was stalling, waiting for him to offer some incentive. But no way was he giving him the satisfaction.

Aaron's smirk faltered, but it didn't take long for him to recover. "Luke, come on. Don't be like that. Help or not, we're all friends here! What's the rush? How about this—let's play a few rounds first! Hit a few shots, loosen up a bit."

He wasn't budging. Fine. If that's how Aaron wanted to play it, Luke would show him exactly what kind of game he brought to the table.

Luke glanced at the pool table, his eyes narrowing. "How much are you playing for?"

"Hehehe!" Aaron chuckled, clearly misreading Luke's intent. "Not much—fifty bucks a cue. Are you interested?"

"Fifty per cue, huh? And I can take as many shots as I want?" Luke asked, feigning curiosity.

"Of course!" Aaron said, beaming. "What's this, Luke? You planning to make a quick buck off me? Hahaha!" He was laughing so hard Luke half-expected him to choke on his own arrogance.

"Alright, you said it!" Luke pointed at him, sealing the deal. "Fifty bucks per cue."

"Boss!" Aaron shouted to the man behind the counter. "Set the table—we've got a game!"

But before the burly owner could set things up, Luke grabbed a cue stick off the rack. Without warning, he swung it against his thigh with all his strength. The sharp ka-cha of wood splitting in two echoed through the room.

"Fifty!" he yelled.

Luke grabbed another cue stick, this time snapping it over the edge of the pool table. Ka-cha! "One hundred!"

The entire room froze. Aaron's grin vanished, replaced by a look of utter disbelief. Luke didn't stop. He broke a third stick, then a fourth. Each c***k of wood splitting filled the hall like thunder. "One fifty! Two hundred!"

Finally, the boss lunged at him, shouting, "You wanna die?!"

Bad move. Luke sidestepped and sent a punch straight to the man's face, knocking him back into the pool table with a loud crash. He crumpled to the floor, groaning. The room fell silent again, except for the sound of Luke's breathing. To him, this wasn't even a workout.

Luke turned back to Aaron, holding his gaze. "Hitting shots isn't exciting enough. How about we throw balls instead? Twenty bucks per ball. Sounds good?"

Aaron's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. He couldn't form words.

Luke didn't wait for his answer. Picking up a ball, he lobbed it into the chandelier above, shattering it into a rain of glass. Crash! The crowd flinched.

Next, he hurled a ball at the window. Smash! Shards flew everywhere. Then, Luke pretended to throw one straight at Aaron. The poor guy panicked, tripped over his own feet, and fell flat on his back.

Grinning, Luke finally let one fly past Aaron's ear. The ball whizzed by with a terrifying whoosh, and Aaron let out a strangled scream, curling up like a frightened puppy.

"Okay! Okay!" he yelled, throwing his hands up in surrender. "I'll help! I'll look! Just stop already!"

Luke dusted off his hands, satisfied. "That's more like it."

Some people needed a nudge. Others? They needed a shove—and maybe a broken cue stick or two.