"This is complete bullshit. Someone is out to get Southwind."
And on and on it went. They were just little comments, but I could hear them all around me. The problem was that I couldn't hear what was being said to Violet. She stood maybe ten feet away, next to the front fender of the first police car, and her arms were crossed over her breasts defiantly.
The officer ripped off a page and thrust it at her, but Violet shook her head and finally raised her voice. "I'm not signing that."
Everyone fell quiet, which made it easy to hear the officer's reply. "This is a ticket for a noise violation. It's not a request, ma'am."
"And I didn't cause a noise violation," Violet said. "I am not signing it."
"You have to," another officer said. "If you refuse, then you can be cited for resisting."
"Arrest?" Cessily asked snidely. "Sadly, that is not how that works. You have also provided nothing to explain why you're ticketing her. Was there noise when you showed up?" She leaned to look at the front of the car. "Are the dash cams running?"
"Just be glad we're not checking the house for illicit substances," another officer snapped, and I recognized him as the same guy who'd made the threat to Luke when Brody had been arrested.
So the first man shoved the paperwork in Violet's face again just as Faith squeezed in beside me, holding up her phone. The girl was recording. When she saw me looking, she tilted her head further down to where Zeke was doing the same from a different angle. Then I saw Berto with his phone out. Evidently, a few of the other women did as well, because more reached for their phones just as the cop wagged the ticket in Violet's face.
"I'm an officer of the law. When I tell you to do something, you do it!" And he kept wiggling the paper so it was knocking against Violet's face.
She tried to put her hand up, but that was all it took. The moment she raised her arm, three officers rushed in. The man with the ticket dropped it, grabbing her wrist and spinning her around. In a split second, Violet went from standing her ground before them to being slammed face first against the hood of the car.
"You want to play tough, bitch?" someone asked.
"Hands behind your back!"
"I warned you people," the first officer snarled, twisting her arm up high and leaning into her hard.
Violet yelped at the angle of her arm, her body twisting to avoid the discomfort. Cessily was talking to her, telling her not to resist, but there was only so much a person could do when being hurt. The body reacted. It was called flinching. She couldn't have stopped herself if she wanted to, and yet the cop hovering over her seemed thrilled.
Holding both of her wrists, the man lifted her up and shoved her back down. Violet's face bounced off the hood, and she didn't try to hold back the yelp of pain, but it was more than I could take. That was my girlfriend. She might be one hell of a tough bitch, but no one hurt her.No one!
"Get your fucking hands off her!" I roared as I charged forward.
"Cy, stop!" Cessily begged, but all I could think about was how many times Violet had been pushed around.
My girl didn't deserve that. If they wanted to beat someone, they could have me. If they needed to make a scene, then I would much rather it wasme.I was supposed to protect that woman, and I would be damned if I stood back silently while some man shoved her around. Not a boyfriend, not a random stranger, and certainly not a fucking police officer.
"Vi, are you - " I didn't even get to finish the sentence before three of the four men pulled their weapons and pointed them right at me: the cop before me, the man beside him, and the guy behind me. The only officer not pointing a gun at me right now was the last man, who was still standing beside his car.
Naturally, I stopped, slowly lifting both my hands even as my entire body relaxed. I wanted to smile, but I kept my lips locked in place. They'd all stepped back, and the guy holding Violet had let her go to reach for his weapon. That meant she was ok, and that was all that mattered. No one was touching my girl, and what these people didn't fucking realize was that I'd gladly give my life to keep that woman from getting so much as a chipped nail.
"Babe?" I asked. "Are you injured?"
"Going to have a black eye, I think," she said. "I'm ok, Cy. I've had worse from middle school girls."
"On your knees!" An officer ordered. "Keep your hands in the air."
So I bent one leg and lowered myself down, moving very slowly. I'd worked in a jail. I knew how these guys thought, and I really didn't want to die tonight. When my second knee hit the ground, an officer rushed in to yank my arm behind my back, slapping a cuff onto my wrist. Then the next. I made no move to resist, not even while he patted me down.
"You can't do this!" a woman yelled, storming down the steps. "This is a family party. There was no loud music."
"Yeah, well, ask the neighbor about that," one of the cops with his gun still pointed at me snapped.
"I am the neighbor!" she screeched. "My husband Paul and I live in the only house even close to here."
The man's gun wavered. "Mrs. Simmons?"
I couldn't help but laugh. I wanted to turn around, but that would be a bad idea. Instead, I just kept listening.
