A Gambling Man
A bead of cold sweat traversed from the nape of Deckard’s neck and down his back as he sat nervously waiting to meet his maker. His fingertips rapped rhythmically against the cool steel of the table in front of him, the motion rattling his handcuffs every so often, eyes darting around a the bare grey walls of the cold interrogation room. Every now and again, his gaze would settle on the one-way mirror to the left of him, and he’d stick a hand up and wave with a malicious smirk at his reflection.
Detective Kiramman stood on the other side of the mirror, her icy glare settled on Deckard in his seat, counting down the seconds until the interrogator entered the room. As Caitlyn had brought in the druglord, Heimerdinger had ruled it a conflict of interest for the detective to conduct the interview herself; he’d not provided the name of who was to undertake the interrogation instead. The concept played on Cait’s nerves – she had so much she needed to ask him, so much intelligence she needed to extract, yet the outcome of the interview was solely placed in the competence of whoever the commander had selected instead.
This was the first time Caitlyn had been sat in the observation chamber, in the onlooking seat of an interrogation. Normally, she was the one in the question-asking chair, having a natural knack for wearing suspects down with a bombardment of queries one after the other that would eventually get even the hardiest of subjects to slip up. From here, however, she felt powerless, unable to control the outcome.
If Deckard didn’t let up, or the other detective didn’t ask the right questions, her case would be straight back to square one, and it would’ve been more helpful if they’d have just left him back at Jericho’s.
The door to the observation chamber creaked open. Cait broke her attention away from Deckard briefly to see her pilot standing in the doorway, flight suit tied off at her waist revealing a grease-covered tight white vest.
Vi came to attention to salute her senior officer. “Captain,” she said briskly, before entering and shutting the door behind her. The faint scent of oil slick followed her.
Cait nodded in her direction, taking a moment to check Vi’s outfit out before settling her eyes back on their subject. “You’re late,” she said flatly, crossing her hands over each other and placing them in the small of her back.
“Yeah.” Vi sniffed and stood next to Cait, peering in at Deckard, who was still running his fingertips along the tabletop. “Yeah, sorry. I was on ex with Ek- Lieutenant Lanes.” She corrected her wingman’s rank quickly.
Both officers had had a brief conversation regarding their new unprofessional entanglement, and had come to the agreement that outside of the comfort and privacy of their living quarters, they were to be extra careful with how they spoke to each other and interacted with each other on base and on missions, even if it seemed like they were alone. Caitlyn was now a rank higher than Vi, which meant fraternisation rules could be enforced, and neither wanted to take any chances.
Especially not Cait. That was a conversation with her parents she really, really didn’t want to have.
Vi walked up and joined the detective in watching Deckard, peering in curiously at the disgruntled subject, who had turned to wave at them again. Vi knew that he couldn’t see the pair, but it was still unsettling. “Who’s interviewing him?”
“No idea.” Caitlyn sighed, and Vi got the impression she wasn’t used to being out of the driver’s seat. “Heimerdinger didn’t say. Whoever it is, their questions have the capability to turn the tide of the war.”
“Huh.” The pilot tilted her head, looking at Deckard one last time before scanning the observation room for any of their own cameras or peering eyes. Confirming the coast was clear, she looked up at Caitlyn and asked, “Would you like to have dinner at mine tonight?”
The detective’s cold eyes snapped down to the shorter officer beside her. “That’s hardly professional, Lieutenant.” Her voice was monotone and scolding, her tone almost forced and rehearsed.
Vi just snorted. “You can drop the act, Cait. There’s no-one here but us.”
Caitlyn’s nostrils flared as she exhaled slowly through her nose. She stiffened up momentarily, but then let her shoulders drop, her eyes softening. “Dinner would be nice,” she replied quietly. “Thank you.”
Before Vi could run menu options past her, the door to the interrogation room swung open, and a short tuft of gelled ginger hair walked in.
Caitlyn pinched the bridge of her nose as she realised why Heimerdinger hadn’t told her who the interviewer was. “You’ve got to be shitting me.”
Vi scoffed and barked out a sarcastic laugh. “Fuckin’ Corps of Justice.”
Maddie Nolen took a seat opposite Deckard, shoulders pulled back tightly, her chest puffed out with an air of arrogance. She placed a single file on the metal in front of her and placed her hands on the table. “Good morning, Mr Deckard. I’d like to ask you some questions about your involvement with the war in Zaun and Ambessa Medarda.”
Vi looked over at Caitlyn in disbelief, but the detective was too focused on the scene in front of her, eyebrows knitted together in frustration.
It didn’t take an idiot to realise that Cait and Maddie had a thing going on. The thought made Vi sick to her stomach; whether it was a fling of the past or an ongoing situation, she hated the sight of the stupid ginger freak.
In the interrogation room, Deckard ran his tongue over his front teeth, lips pulling back into a snarl. “Have you actually got anything to charge me with?” he snapped. “Or just trying to rattle my cage?”
Maddie smiled sweetly and tapped the folder in front of her. “It would be easier to list off what you haven’t been accused of, Mr Deckard. Now, if you could turn your attention to the following.” Flicking open the file, the officer produced a blurry image of the druglord, the same one Cait recognised from her analysis before. “Could you explain what you’re doing in this photo, please?”
Deckard didn’t even look down at the image. “Fuck you.”
Unfaltered, Maddie slid the image across the table. “Mr Deckard, with the evidence we’ve collected regarding your various business ventures and involvement with Ambessa Medarda, there’s a lot here to put you away for a very, very long time. You’re an enemy of the state of Piltover and the state of Zaun. Give us something to work with, and we could talk about striking you a deal.”
The druglord’s demeanour shifted almost instantly. A panicked look flashed in his piggy eyes, the expression of a rat desperately trying to flee its sinking ship. He shuffled in his seat and picked the picture in front of him up, placing a knuckle to the corner of his mouth and wiping.
As much as Vi hated Maddie’s guts, the pilot had to admit, she was fucking good at her job.
“I was there on business.” Deckard spoke quietly, his voice laced with defeat.
“What kind of business?” Vi suddenly noticed an accent tinging Maddie’s words, one which she failed to recognise.
Blowing air through his nose, Deckard threw the picture back on the table. “I was finalising a deal on a property I wished to acquire.”
“What kind of property, Mr Deckard?”
“A casino.” Caitlyn watched a lump form in the detainee’s throat. “In Noxus.”
“And why in Noxus? Why not in Zaun, where I’m guessing you’re from?” Maddie leant forward, piercing eyes boring into Deckard’s skull.
Deckard cackled and shook his head maliciously. “The great detectives of Piltover, and you need me to spoonfeed that information to you?”
Maddie kept her gaze on him. Unflinching. “Answer the question.”
With a sigh, he leant back and took one final glance at the image before settling his eyes on Officer Nolen’s. “It’s a hub. Medarda needed somewhere clean to run everything through, I offered up as long as I could keep any profits.”
“A hub for what?”
“Everything.” Deckard scoffed. “Information, weapons, drugs, people, you name it, it goes through my casino.”
“What’s the name of this casino?”
“The Black Rose. Have you heard of it?” the druglord jeered sarcastically, tilting his head with a smirk.
Maddie gathered the evidence back into her folder and stood up from her seat, her expression deadpan. “Thank you for your co-operation, Mr Deckard. I’ll be back shortly with more questions.”
Without another word, she scurried out of the interrogation room, leaving her interviewee shouting about their deal behind her.
Both Cait’s and Vi’s eyes followed Maddie as she left. Violet was the first to break the silence. “She’s good.”
Caitlyn didn’t respond to the pilot’s comment. “I’ll see you at 8,” she said sharply, before unfolding her arms and leaving Vi in the eerie silence of the observation chamber on her own.
***
Cait was pissed off to say the least, especially at Heimerdinger.
Maddie had just about scraped through detective school. There was a reason why she was posted on the gates and not allowed any of her own cases to investigate herself. Baring that in mind, why the fuck was she chosen to interrogate Deckard?
It had opened a can of worms with Vi, too. Cait knew that she’d have to address the elephant in the room eventually, and let Vi know about the nature of her and Maddie’s past relationship. Still, it’s not something she wanted to think about in the middle of an ongoing investigation, and certainly not something she wanted to bring up when she was on her way to dinner at Vi’s house.
With her regular reasoning methods shortcircuited, Caitlyn had phoned Mel on the walk back, desperate for a second opinion on how she should tackle the issue.
“Afternoon, darling,” Mel had cawed down the phone.
“Hey, Mel,” Cait said breathlessly as she pushed open her quarters door with her shoulder. “How are you?”
“Oh, so-so,” Mel retorted casually. There was a rustling of papers on the other end. “How is your investigation?”
“Nolen did the interview this morning,” the detective responded bluntly.
“Ah.” Mel sucked in air through her teeth. “Did it go okay?”
“Surprisingly, yes. Vi was there to watch, too.” There was a moment of silence before Cait added, “We slept together the other night.”
The sound of Mel snorting and liquid spilling onto a surface on the other end filled Caitlyn’s speaker.
“Oh, wow,” the councillor eventually added. Cait could hear the malicious grin spreading across Mel’s lips.
“Yes.” The detective cleared her throat and flung open her wardrobe to pick an outfit for tonight. “I’m going for dinner at hers later.”
“I’m guessing Officer Nolen is off the table now?”
Cait shrugged and sighed heavily. “That’s what I phoned you about. I don’t know whether to talk about it with Vi or not. There’s nothing going on anymore, but she deserves to know, y’know?”
Mel hummed on the other line. “Vi wasn’t born yesterday, dear. I’m sure she could tell if there was something going on between you and Nolen. As long as there’s nothing happening now, no harm done, right?”
Caitlyn eventually settled on a stunning black backless dress which cut off abruptly at her midthigh. She laid the garment down on her bed. “I guess you’re right. Thanks, Mel.”
They spoke a little longer to each other about anything and everything. What the weather was like. How much they hated the shitty food nowadays. How much they missed the Last Drop and their reality TV nights in as a house. What their plans were post-war.
Then, Caitlyn brought up another item on her “Mel catch-up” agenda.
“I saw your mother the other night.”
“Oh?” Mel purred.
“Yes. She shot me.”
“Oh.” Silence on the other end.
Caitlyn sniffed. “Mel, with the way things are going, there might be a time when I need to-“
“Don’t, darling.” Mel cut off Cait’s sentence. “My mother has made her choice. I will always love her, as any daughter would, but she’s chosen her path and I’ve made peace with that. She’s taken the role of warlord, and if she must die by that blade then so be it.”
Caitlyn didn’t know how to respond to that. Mel spoke so casually, so flippantly, as if this was something she’d given lots of thought to or none at all. It made the detective sick with empathy.
Ambessa hadn’t always been the tyrant she was today. Once upon a time, she was a great strategist, offering wisdom and experience to the council meetings whenever warfare was brought up. She was once a kind lady, too, bringing Mel and Caitlyn candy whenever she knew that council sessions would be longer than expected.
But whoever that Ambessa was, was long gone. All that remained was the Matriarch of War, the harbinger of death, the destructor of worlds. A desperate dictator hellbent on conquering Runeterra itself.
“Thank you for chatting, Mel,” Caitlyn finally said coolly.
“Take care of yourself, Caitlyn. Have a nice time tonight.”
There was a click as the line went dead.
***
Vi’s second cigarette stuck loosely out of her mouth as she stood outside her accommodation block, scrolling mindlessly through her Hextagram feed.
It was exactly 10 minutes to eight, and she’d set off with the intention of smoking a single cigarette to tame her nerves. But the more she thought about Caitlyn being in her room, the more her lungs and mind craved the sweet relief of nicotine to calm her down.
This was the first time the detective would be in Vi’s room on non-official business. Their last meeting there had been strained to say the least, and the pilot had been conjuring up an apology in her mind to give to Caitlyn for her actions and words for last time.
Another name was playing on her mind too, however: goddamn Maddie Nolen, and whatever had happened between the two.
Vi wasn’t the jealous type, she never had been. But Nolen sparked something in the pilot; a deep, guttural, possessive rage that wouldn’t die down no matter what.
Vi wanted Caitlyn all to herself. In every aspect. Physical, emotional, sexual. It was a reality she’d fought to divert from, but eventually came to terms with.
And Vi would do anything to keep people threatening that away.
Footsteps broke Vi out of her angry trance, and she looked up to see Caitlyn approaching, her long legs carrying her over to the pilot in a confident stride.
Vi took one last long drag of her cigarette before dropping it to the floor and stubbing it out. “You look stunning,” she managed to say, mouth agape as she eyed Caitlyn up and down.
“Thanks.” Cait laughed sheepishly and ran her hands down the front of her dress. “It’s not much, but I don’t get many opportunities to dress up anymore.”
“No, no, you look gorgeous,” Vi fussed with a smile. “Shall we?”
Caitlyn nodded, and followed Vi up to her quarters, head still on a swivel as she looked for any prying eyes or people looking a little too long.
The first thing that Caitlyn noticed about Vi’s apartment was that it had been cleaned up from the last time she was there on her surprise visit. The dirty clothes had been bundled up and shoved into a hamper, and there wasn’t a single soiled dish in the sink, an effort which didn’t go unnoticed to Cait’s keen eyes. A single pull-out table with two chairs had been set up just behind the sofa with a plain white cloth draped over it. Atop the stove, Caitlyn could see multiple pots and pans bubbling with water, contents unknown.
“Sorry it was so messy last time,” Vi began, dropping her military ID card onto the side. “I didn’t know I was having company, and-“
The pilot was cut off by Caitlyn grabbing her by the collar of her shirt and slamming her up against the wall, shoving their lips together in a hungry kiss. Vi yelped in surprise but kissed Cait back nonetheless, a hand reaching up the back of her dress and feeling the exposed ropey muscles.
Vi’s lips tasted like minty gum and chow house pancakes and cigarettes and everything good and bad Caitlyn wanted in the world. She slotted a knee between the shorter officer’s legs, a stifled moan pressing against her lips as she worked up Vi’s core.
“Cait,” Vi managed to mutter between the ferocious kisses, slowing down their embrace to the occasional peck.
“Hm?” Caitlyn opened her eyes and looked down, a hand cupped to the back of Vi’s neck.
“I’ve got chicken in the oven.”
“Oh.” Caitlyn stepped back self-consciously and cleared her throat. “Sorry.”
Vi just chuckled. She stepped out from under Cait’s arms and strolled to the kitchenette, using an oven glove to pry open the oven door and pulling a succulent-looking breast out covered in herbs and spices. Vi placed the tray on the countertop and fished two plates out of a cupboard above her head before switching off the hobs and draining the water out of the pots.
Caitlyn couldn’t believe how incredible it all smelled. That was the one thing she hated about the standard-issue studio apartments all officers were given, however; cooking anything remotely good meant the smell would linger in the walls and in your clothes for a while, and was part of the reason why Cait refused to cook her own meals most nights.
“That smells great, Vi,” she complimented as she took a seat at the table.
“Thank you.” Vi didn’t turn around as she begun plating up the roast chicken and boiled vegetables, smothering them with melted butter. “It’s my Dad’s recipe. Want something to drink?”
“That would be nice, thank you.”
“Sure.” Vi pulled open her fridge door and peered inside. “Um, I’ve got soda, beer, water in the tap…”
“You’ve got beer?” Caitlyn cocked an eyebrow suspiciously.
Vi smirked and pulled two brown bottles from her fridge. She set them on the side and closed the door with her hip before using the counter edge to crack the two caps off. “If you’re going to write me up, be my guest, but then you’ll have to explain what you were doing in my quarters.”
Cait took the bottle from Vi with a nod of thanks. “I wasn’t going to write you up,” she mumbled. She placed the bottle to her lips and took a sip.
“Sure you weren’t.” Vi placed the two plates down in front of them and took her seat in front of Caitlyn, taking a swig of beer before slicing into her chicken.
Cait took her first bite of the meat and nearly moaned out in ecstasy. It was better than anything she’d ever had before in her life, and way better than any slop that could’ve come out of the chow house.
“God, Vi, this is amazing,” she managed through bites.
“Glad you like it.” Vi smiled over her own plate before impaling a chunk of boiled carrot. “Any word on how the interview went?” she asked before popping the orange morsel into her mouth.
“No.” Cait sliced at her chicken absentmindedly. “I haven’t spoken to Lieutenant Nolen since before our last mission.”
Humming in response, the pilot took another sip of beer before tucking into her breast again.
“There’s nothing going on with Maddie and I, by the way. Not anymore,” Caitlyn added quickly.
“Yeah, I guessed.” Vi shrugged. “I don’t care who you bang, Cupcake. Just as long as it’s not at the same time as me.”
Violet really did have a way with her words. That’s one of the things Caitlyn really, really liked about her; she never beat around the bush, she was always straight to the point, no matter who or what she might upset.
“Did you… see anyone? When we weren’t together?” Caitlyn asked carefully. She preoccupied herself cutting up a bit of broccoli while she waited for Vi’s answer.
“Mm.” Vi shrugged and looked up at her. “The occasional fling. I haven’t wined and dined anyone, though, if that’s what you’re wondering. Work’s always been too busy for anything serious.”
“Yeah.” It was taking all of Caitlyn’s self-control and willpower not to leap over the table and ravish Vi there and then. All she could think about was sitting on that perfect pretty face and riding until her legs shook and her core ached.
Alas, they both still had a plateful of food to finish, and the meal was really, really fucking good.
The scraping of cutlery eventually ceased as the pair finished eating, and Cait took both their plates to wash up whilst Vi plopped down on the sofa and flicked through the TV to find something to watch. Soon, Caitlyn joined her, groaning as she watched Vi pick some dumb action flick about fighter pilots.
“Of course this was your choice.”
“What?” Vi chuckled. “Would you have chosen anything better?”
Caitlyn hummed. “Probably not, but I would’ve chosen anything but this. It’s so… macho.”
“Whatever.” Vi put the remote down and held up an arm for Caitlyn to move into. The detective shuffled over, nervous at first, but soon melted into the warmth of the pilot.
Her pilot.
The movie went on, and Cait’s skin crawled with anticipation as Vi absentmindedly drew circles against it, along her upper back and shoulder. For someone with such a formidable military record, Violet was so, so gentle with Caitlyn, treating her like porcelain, like she could shatter at any point. It was a fragile, tender love that Cait hadn’t experienced with any of her past partners, ever.
Caitlyn finally broke the silence. Her next sentence ravaged at Vi’s chest, like the beating thing behind her ribcage might explode.
“I never stopped thinking about you.”
The pilot fell silent. The breath in her throat hitched, constricted and blocked, as she struggled a response.
“Me neither.”
That was all it took. Caitlyn looked up at Vi, and Vi looked straight back, ocean meeting storm.
Their lips crashed together in a flurried frenzy, Caitlyn immediately sitting up to deepen their kiss. In one fluid motion, she swept her hair to the side and swung her legs across Vi’s lap, straddling her waist before placing both hands against her pilot’s cheeks and cupping her face.
Vi craned her neck up to reach Cait, slipping an experimental tongue over the other girl’s bottom lip. Her mouth parted as she welcomed Vi in, hands roaming across the skin of her neck and upper shoulders.
Their embrace grew hungry as the girls explored further, wanting more and more with each swipe of their tongues against each other. Vi broke the kiss and began pecking a trail down Caitlyn’s neck, nipping the exposed skin gently with her teeth, and Cait threw her head back with a moan to give Vi more space to work with.
Another hand trailed up the bare skin of Caitlyn’s thigh, fingertips brushing against the soaked fabric of the girl on top’s panties. “Fuck, Cait,” Vi growled against the skin of her neck. “You’re so wet already.”
“Shut up and fuck me, Vi.”
Violet didn’t need to be told twice. She swiped the fabric to the side, lightly running her fingers between the sopping wet folds, brushing over Cait’s clit before slowly curling a single finger inside her.
Caitlyn gasped a moan and her hips buckled at the new pressure. She felt a second finger slide in and groaned even louder, feeling Vi fill her up to the knuckle and slowly begin pumping.
Vi used her other arm to steady them, wrapping a powerful forearm across the small of Cait’s back, as she continued fucking her, fingers working overtime to give Caitlyn the pleasure she oh so deserved.
Suddenly, Vi’s fingers pulled out of Caitlyn, and before she could complain she felt herself being lifted up by her ass. Vi spun them around and sat Caitlyn where she had been previously, her hands reaching up Cait’s dress to pull her underwear off. Cait lifted up off the sofa to help Vi and she discarded the ruined clothing on the floor before dipping her head between Cait’s legs and running a tongue between her slick folds.
Caitlyn moaned out loudly, a hand grabbing at Vi’s hair, the other gripping into the sofa arm as Vi began running her tongue lightly along Cait’s clit. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she gripped Vi harder, pulling her into her heat, the pressure growing more intense with each stroke as her pilot worked to get her off.
Vi’s tongue worked wonders between Cait’s legs. She felt herself approaching her climax, core tightening and legs shaking, thighs squeezing around her ears as she got closer and closer to that spot.
It didn’t take long for Caitlyn to finally unravel. With one final desperate, airy moan, her hips arched into Vi and she came desperately, heaving and panting as Vi fucked her slowly through her high and her comedown. With one final swipe of her pussy with her tongue, Vi eventually pulled away and inched back up to Cait, planting a hot wet kiss on the breathless girl’s lips, her slick still coating her chin.
Caitlyn smiled down, still gathering her thoughts, a big smile cracking across her face. “Hi,” she whispered to Vi.
“Hey.” Vi returned a grin, the fabric of her jeans pressing against Cait’s swollen sensitive clit as she hovered between her legs.
“We should do that more often.”
“I agree with you, for once.” Vi slid out from between the other girl’s legs and took her place back on her sofa, wrapping a strong but shaky arm around Cait’s shoulders as the film continued to play.
Hidden in Vi’s arms, Caitlyn couldn’t stop the giant grin from spreading across her lips.