Law and Order: Blackmail Edition

Demetry Appollon made his rounds of the police station, eating a juicy red apple he had brought for lunch. The sun was shining through the windows, and most of the detectives seemed to be in good moods; meanwhile, Demetry could barely keep his grimace under control. He loathed weather like this; filth had a habit of hiding when the sun was out.

Sunny days were so slow when you were an organized crime detective--what kind of idiot carried out a mafia hit in broad daylight? And so he found himself habitually wandering through the halls of the station. Seeking out filth was more than a job--it was a passion, so if he couldn't fight riffraff in the streets, he'd just have to fight it in the force.

The heels of his expensive shoes clacked ominously against the tiled floor as he made his way to the area where the patrol officers worked.

Since he normally patrolled at night, Gilles tended to do his paperwork during the day. He came into work around noon, and finished up paperwork and took it easy. Then, at 8 he headed out for his patrol, returning home at about 6 in the morning. Though he was supposed to have weekends off, he rarely did. Whenever the stress caught up to him, he would go off and relieve it in a rather unorthodox way.

Today, however, despite having relieved his stress the night before, he was feeling uneasy all over. He owned four uniforms; two of his actual police uniforms, and two uniforms he used for his extracurricular activities. He had a rather nasty hangover when he woke up, and because of that, he had grabbed the wrong uniform on his way to work. Begrudgingly, he had shoved it into the deep recesses of his locker and tried to forget it was there. He was wearing his spare uniform, that needed washed. He tried to ignore his mistake, but he couldn't help but think it was a mistake he'd pay for later.

Sighing deeply, he headed into the break room to grab his lunch.

Demetry cast him an insincere smile as he passed. Messing with officers was one of his favorite pastimes; they grew so unsure of themselves every time they spoke with a detective.

"Ah, Marion City's finest--out to lunch, I see? The streets must be so safe." He took another bite of his apple.

"Tell me, officer, who made that sandwich--you or your mother? Girlfriend doesn't seem much like you." He winked, managing to make the gesture wholly unlikable.

"I'm a detective, I notice these things. I'm sure you'll be the same when you get promoted. Or rather, if."

Gilles unwrapped his sandwich, dissecting it. It was store bought, so he always had to remove what he didn't like. He took off the lettuce and the pickles, and added Mayonnaise.

He glanced up at Demetry, "oh, were you talking to me?" Looking back to his sandwich, he shrugged. "If it's work related, it can wait."

Trying to forget his nervousness over his locker, he bite into his sandwich.

Demetry scowled. What a waste of a perfectly good taunt.

"I was just heading to the locker room," he said, shrugging. "Thought I'd say hello--common courtesy, and all. Enjoy your lunch."

He placed his half-eaten apple next to Gilles as he left.

The locker room was essentially empty when he got there; most people in the station were on their lunch break. He did his normal sweep of the perimeter, glancing over all the lockers; then, something caught his eye. It was the dark fabric of a police uniform lodged in a locker door, keeping it from closing all the way.

He smiled and pulled out the uniform; this was locker 342, Officer Dubois'. It was almost too juicy to be true--he could give him a snarky talking-to about his gross lack of respect for the uniform.

It was only when he shook out the uniform and held it up did he realize it was too small. Far too small for anyone at the station, in fact; the bottoms weren't even pants, they were short-shorts. Closer inspection revealed cheap stitching and velcro underneath the buttons, making the outfit easy to rip away.

It wasn't a police uniform--it was stripper gear.

A faint sense of disgust washed over Dominic as he realized he was holding the personal possession of a sex worker, but it was quickly followed by his ever-present sense of curiosity. Why would this be here, in Dubois' locker? The man was a police officer, not a lady of the night--which left only one conclusion.

Dubois was hiring a stripper.

The realization was almost too good to be true. Demetry could feel the corners of his mouth move upward for the first time that day as he shoved the uniform back into the depths of the locker. What a treat.

He made his way back to the break room, still sincerely grinning from ear to ear.

"Lunch going well, officer?" he said, stopping next to Dubois once again. "Entertaining enough for you, even in our dull, unerotic police station?"

Gilles had finished up his lunch, and was drinking from a plain, blue coffee cup. He sipped the steaming drink, glancing up at the detective again. Why wouldn't he leave him alone? His hangover was bad enough as it was. He really shouldn't have gone out the night before. He'd really enjoyed himself, but now he was paying for it.

Pretending he, once again, hadn't heard the stupid taunt by Demetry, replied with a simple, "hm? Did you say something? I was just getting back to work."

Refilling his coffee cup, and adding the appropriate amount of sugar and creamer, he headed back to his desk.

"Just inquiring about your pastimes...particularly ones that take place after hours. They make police work seem dull, huh?" He nudged his shoulder invasively.

"See, that's the thing about us detectives, we figure out everything sooner or later.

"And I'm onto you," he added in a whisper, leaning close. He winked again.

Gilles blinked at him, then he clenched his teeth. Did he know? But how? He was entirely too careful with keeping his lives separate. Completely separate.

Then, it all made sense. Demetry had been headed to the locker rooms. He must have broken into his locker. This was bad; he knew it, too. Demetry knew what he did on the weekends, now. This could lose him his job, and he really couldn't do that.

"...what do you want from me," he demanded, nearly grinding his teeth together. "If you say anything..."

He bit his tongue. Threatening him would only make it worse.

He smiled down at him, his gaze practically dripping with condescension.

"What do I want? Why, Dubois, I thought you and I were friends. Coworkers. Partners in crime, if you will." He chuckled. "Why would I want anything from you?

"No, I just wanted to deliver a message, was all. Make sure you know where we stand.

"I'll be keeping in touch, let's say."

Resisting the urge to punch him yet again, Gilles swallowed roughly. His grip on his coffee tightened, but instead of doing something he'd regret, he slowly took a sip.

"Get out of my face," he hissed, glaring at Demetry with everything he could muster.

"Ooh, I wouldn't say that," he cooed. "Why, I'd want me around, if I were you. Because when I'm unoccupied I grow...restless, Dubois. And you wouldn't like me when I'm restless."

He pulled away, laughing heartily as if Officer Dubois had told a funny joke.

"Ahaha, good one, friend! I'll talk to you later--we can even discuss that little hobby of yours you mentioned." He waved with his fingers and turned away, smiling smugly to himself. Today was a good day after all.

-x-

Demetry waited to make his next move; he was a man of patience, of strategy. He loved buying things, when that was the fastest route, but some things legitimately required time for the best result. Blackmail was one of them.

A few days after their first conversation, he waited for Officer Dubois by his car.

Scowling once he saw him, Gilles crossed his arms.

"Get out of here." he demanded as he approached the car. "I don't have anything to say to you."

He reached for the drivers door, attempting to move around Demtetry completely. Now he was really regretting his sidejob. Maybe he'd quit? Though he did enjoy the extra money, it wasn't worth losing his real job.

"I know what you do when you're not at the station," he said, grinning. "I know all about your little side project. So if you don't want me to report you, you'll meet me at 5th and Evergreen in twenty minutes. I've been looking forward to this all day."

He patted Dubois on the shoulder, unable to contain his satisfaction.

"You will come, won't you? I never figured you for that shitty of a cop--then again, you think you know a person..." He leaned against his car, chuckling softly to himself.

"What do you say, Dubois? Care to make a date with me? I'm sure your...extra activities can wait."

Gilles smacked his hand away, grabbing Demetry by his collar.

"I have had enough of you, you will tell me exactly what you want from me or I'll take my service weapon and shoot you right here and now."

Oops, so much for not losing his temper. Growling, he shoved Demetry away from him.

"Stay away from me."

Demetry laughed, tossing his head back. It had been a while since he had found something this hilarious.

"Shooting a detective outside of a police station? Have you really lost your mind? My father is a senator, Officer Dubois--you would hang. Come on, try to get a sense of who you're dealing with. Don't make this more pathetic than this has to be."

He wiped the tears from his eyes, righting his posture. "Aha, sorry. Now, really, be there. There will be consequences if you aren't--just imagine the field day the press will have for your little scandal? All the sweet publicity I'll get, too. Face it, Dubois--this is a lose-lose situation for you. The only question is, do you want to do it the easy way, or the hard way?"

He smiled unpleasantly.

"Now, I'm going to get in my car, and take the scenic route to 5th and Evergreen. And if you aren't there within five minutes of my arrival, you can expect your name to be splattered on tomorrow headlines and your badge to be a thing of the past."

Tipping his hat, Demetry turned on his heel and made his way to his car, smiling to himself. On the way to 5th and Evergreen, he listened to Mozart's Rondo Alla Turca.

Begrudgingly, he drove to the designated meeting spot. Once there, he took off his tie and his belt, making himself more comfortable. He still looked like a cop, but at least he felt a bit more relaxed. All the stress was really getting to him lately. How he wished he could just kill Demetry and get it over with. He had never fired his service weapon before, but it would make him so happy to do so if he could just kill that annoying detective.

Leaning back in his seat, he checked the time. He might as well get out of the car and wait properly. As he got out, he realized he hadn't even bothered to see why they were meeting at this place.

Demetry pulled up to the sidewalk, parking his car and turning off the headlights. He smiled when he saw Dubois's car in the dim glow of the streetlights.

Pocketing his keys, he walked up to the other man.

"Good evening, Officer--fancy meeting you here." He smiled, extending his hand. "Come on, now, let's be pleasant--I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you to meet me here, at night, by this shady street corner. Right?

"The answer is simple--there's no one around to hear either of us. And I have a bit of a job-saving proposition for you."

"Then tell me," he replied, ignoring the extended hand. "I'm sick of playing around. Spit it out, already."

He leaned against his car, putting his hands into his pockets. He really, really wanted to go home and relax. It was bad enough that he had to stay over to talk to someone like Demetry, but talking about Demetry's blackmail scheme made it even worse. It was stupid, because he doubted Demetry would tell, because it would mean he lost all of his power over him, but he couldn't take that chance.

"Just tell me what you want."

"You're kind of a whore yourself now, right?" he sneered. "Well, my request should be simple for you--be my personal whore, and I won't tell a soul. Say no and don't expect to get another job in this town that doesn't include a name tag and a silly hat.

"Are we clear, you and I?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "I'm not sure if I can be much clearer--I hold all the leverage in this situation, and I will ruin you if you don't humor me. So I'd just say yes, if I were you."

He laughed again.

"Haha, can you imagine it? Me being stupid enough to get into your position? It's ludicrous, really.

"But in any case, what's your answer? I haven't got all night."

He had expected something far worse. In fact, Gilles had thought he'd been expecting him to do something ridiculously embarrassing, or something. This was about as good of a deal as he could of hoped for. It wasn't as if he was incredibly reserved about sex; he had never had a stable boyfriend, and he tended to just stick with one night stands. He had no real reservations against the idea.

Well, except that he hated Demetry's entire being with a passion. But he could deal with that. Somehow. He'd figure it out. The point was, this was good. Much, much better than he had expected. After all, there was (probably) nothing that Demetry could request of him that he hadn't done before. Probably.

"Fine," he replied, hoping that he had taken a long enough pause, so as to not look to eager about the offer. It wasn't that he was eager, so much as he was just glad it wasn't worse.

"So when can you start your new part time job?" he asked, leaning against his car. "I mean, it is pretty much your job, right? You won't mind.

"I'll even pay you. By keeping quiet. And you'll probably be better at it than you are at your day job, right?" He snickered.

"So. You free tonight, or are there any 'appointments' you have to make?"

Though he hadn't planned on it, he supposed it was better to just start sooner, rather than later. Get it over with, then have a buffer period before he had to do it again. It wouldn't be so bad, or that's what he told himself. The more he thought about it, the less he liked the idea.

"Tonight is fine," he replied begrudgingly.

"Really?" Demetry said, raising his eyebrows. He chuckled and shook his head. "That's hilarious, because I was busy. What kind of desperate whore are you?"

He took out his car keys, and his car beeped twice.

"I suppose I'll make an exception, though--I wouldn't want you to feel like I don't care for my close pal Dubois. Do you know where I live? 5574 Adams. Show up if you want to get this over with sooner rather than later.

"Also, if this 'eagerness' is you trying to get on my good side, don't even bother. I don't have one."

He winked and slipped into his car. There was something exhilarating about blackmail; it just felt good to have someone inferior in the palm of your hand. Like the ant too stupid to realize it was sitting beneath your boot.

He made one stop before he went home; a grocery store.

-x-

He placed the shopping bag in his bedroom and sat on the couch, watching TV without truly paying attention. He was far to anxious to see if Dubois would show up.

Before he headed to the house of the most hated Detective, he first headed home to properly shower. He also washed his uniform before he forget, and ate a light dinner. As he sat on his bed, debating on exactly what to wear, he realized that no matter how you got, you always thought you would stop feeling nervous about things, but you never really did.

Gilles thought he would stop feeling nervous about having sex due to a blackmail scheme, but even as he thought about it, and attempted to justify it, it just wouldn't sit right with him. Of course, there were worse things than being blackmailed into having sex. His morals were never perfect, and this was were they lacked the most.

But, nervous or not, he finally just pulled on a black wifebeater and jeans, and made his way to the detective's house. He kept telling himself that, no matter what Demetry said he wouldn't lose his temper. It would just about kill any chance he had of gaining any sort of respect, at this point. If Demetry was even able to give out respect. He had no idea, honestly. It seemed like a long shot.

Gilles knocked on the door, slicking back his wavy, blond hair. He just wanted it to be over.

After struggling with all of the locks and bolts on the front door, Demetry finally let Dubois in. He pulled him by the arm through the large entrance room, their footsteps loudly echoing off the high white ceilings. He practically shoved him onto the living room couch before sitting down beside him.

He smiled in a way that was anything but trustworthy. "I see you made it fine. I trust my house is better than what you're used to--don't be openly intimidated, or you'll annoy me." He laughed. "I'm just kidding--go on ahead, you should be.

"Do you drink, Dubois?" He gestured to the wine laid out on the coffee table next to a platter of grapes and cheeses. "I always try to be prepared when I know I'm going to be entertaining."