Page 33 of Lovesick Titan (Lovesick #2)

It was 4PM when Danny and Stella got out of the movie, and while Stella had said she didn’t have to go back to work, Danny insisted.

He had a message on his burner phone waiting for him.

It was from John telling him that Captain Shan wanted him at the precinct ASAP, which had been sent twenty minutes ago while Danny’s phone was turned off for the movie. Great.

Smiling at him supportively, Stella didn’t try to convince him again that he should fight the investigation.

The jig was probably up now. Maybe they’d found something else.

Maybe IA had been led to the electronics shop in Mal’s neighborhood after all but everything had blown up in Danny’s face instead of deflecting onto Zeus.

Maybe the picture of him and Mal kissing was all Shan and Internal Affairs needed to arrest him and they’d only asked him to come in politely to minimize a public scene.

Regardless, Danny didn’t feel hollow about it. He didn’t feel empty or numb. But he didn’t feel scared or angry either. Some of that peace had settled in his chest because he’d done everything he could to protect Mal, and maybe now Mal would finally believe Danny and find some peace for himself.

Shan must have done a good job of keeping things quiet about the investigation because no one who saw Danny walking through the precinct gave him any sideways glances, just smiled or went about their business.

Then Danny passed Liu and Anderson, but while he expected cold stares, Lieutenant Liu offered him a small smile that was almost apologetic.

“Get in here, Grant. Close the door,” Shan ordered like he had the other day.

Danny complied without a word and moved to sit in the chair across from him.

His cell phone, the comms, the photograph, they were all spread before Shan in numbered plastic bags.

The nerves Danny hadn’t felt before surged up in him now.

This was it. They didn’t need any more days to know that he was guilty.

“Here.” Shan picked up the bag with Danny’s phone in it and chucked it at him across the desk. “Hard enough getting a hold of you most days. You’re still suspended for the rest of the week without pay. But I expect you back to work on Monday.”

Danny’s eyes flashed up from the bag to look at Shan, whose expression was a cool mask. “Sir? ”

“Can’t get out of something like this with zero punishment. You still misplaced evidence.”

“Misplaced? Sir—”

“But considering you did all of this to protect Zeus ,” Shan said pointedly, “the mayor is willing to be lenient. So don’t push your luck.”

“But sir,” Danny couldn’t this go, “what about the photograph? I never denied—”

“Are you listening to me, Grant?” Shan’s eye twitched with impatience.

“We know everything. The comms led us right to him. Considering your father’s involvement with Zeus on several cases, it wasn’t a surprise to learn you’ve been helping him behind our backs, but enough is enough.

Once the team finished authenticating the photograph, it wasn’t hard to figure out Ludgate was the one who doctored it. ”

“Ludgate? You think…” Danny couldn’t form the words, couldn’t finish his thought because the picture had been altered , made to look fake, but by who? Andre? No. He’d promised he wouldn’t.

“The combination of footage from various sources is practically superhuman,” Shan said, picking up the photograph’s evidence bag next and tossing it toward Danny.

“Would have to be a composite from Ludgate given what Zeus has told us of his abilities. We get it, Grant,” he said with a subtle shift of sympathy in his expression.

“It’s over. Ludgate was trying to get you out of the picture for helping Zeus, and you couldn’t come clean without implicating Zeus yourself. ”

No , that wasn’t what happened. But as Danny picked up the photograph to examine it, he could see the signs, the differences that proved the photograph was fake, even though that was what had been doctored.

The job was flawless, such a perfect alteration that it still seemed believable as real but couldn’t be authenticated as anything but a forgery. If it hadn’t been Andre…

Hephaestus? Had Mal called in a favor for Danny?

“Unfortunately, another photograph came in earlier today that places Cho in the same neighborhood.”

Danny’s attention shot up again.

“Probably how Ludgate was able to create such a convincing photograph of both of you, if you were in the same few blocks at some point. So far I’m the only one who’s seen this one,” Shan produced a fresh manila envelope that he tossed to Danny as well, “but we’ll have to send uniforms back that direction to keep an eye out for him.

Could be that Cho and Ludgate are working together—”

“Sir, wait,” Danny said the moment he opened the folder and saw a picture of Mal on the street near Janey’s bakery, complete with hat and shades to stay under the radar. “When did you say you received this photograph?”

“This morning. Why?”

“ After authentication on the first photo?”

“Yes. Why does that matter?”

The surge of hope that had filled Danny was quickly replaced with nerves.

He passed the photograph back to Shan. Mal might have made sure the original photo came out looking fake, but Ludgate was the one who’d sent the new one—to trap them, to keep the danger looming even after Mal tried to save Danny.

If Danny allowed Shan to let him off the hook, the police would end up in Mal’s neighborhood again until they forced the truth out of the people there or caught Mal on the streets themselves.

“Sir,” Danny braced himself for the only way he saw out of this, “there’s more to the story than you know.”

“Grant…” Shan rubbed the bridge of his nose as if staying off a Danny-sized headache.

“Prometheus has been working with Zeus to help bring Ludgate down, not the other way around. I know he’s a fugitive, but you can’t go after him—”

“Can’t?” Shan stood from his desk, an exasperated surge that sent his chair rolling backward.

“You’re finally off the hook with this mess, and now you’re telling me I can’t arrest someone who belongs behind bars?

After getting framed around Cho, you’d think you’d be done with him. Do you want to go to jail that badly?”

“Zeus has worked with Prometheus before—”

“Zeus doesn’t work for me! Letting him handle Elementals and even a few cases where normal criminals are upping the stakes, that’s a necessary evil.

If Zeus wants to use people like Cho to take down worse villains like Ludgate, he can do as he likes.

But I can’t turn a blind eye to a fugitive walking free.

Zeus isn’t my employee, Grant. You are.”

“I know, sir, but there’s something else you need to know. ”

Shan sighed in frustration as he leaned forward on his desk. “And what is that?”

Mal was going to be upset no matter how this ended, so he might as well be safe. Danny just hoped the rest of his friends and family understood.

Standing from his chair, he faced down Shan without flinching. “I’m Zeus.”