The next day, an unusual tension settled over the small town of Revel. People still greeted each other as usual, but there was visible unease behind every smile.
News traveled fast. Soon everyone in town knew that over twenty people had been killed the previous night at "Crocodile" Billy's repair shop—and all of them were gang members. Then came the real shocker: Billy's shop had secretly been a drug lab.
A drug lab, right on the outskirts of their ordinary little town. It was hard for the residents to believe. People had never liked Billy much, but no one ever imagined he was a drug lord.
Billy had built a drug factory right under their noses, and now, because of it, nearly every resident had been questioned by police and DEA agents—about Billy, about the repair shop, about the Rogues…
Owen's family, being outsiders, didn't escape questioning either. But the interrogations were routine. Both the police and the DEA seemed convinced it had been a feud between Billy and the Rogues. No one would have guessed the entire bloodbath had started with a fight between two children.
Nicole, as Billy's only known relative, came under especially heavy scrutiny. Given his involvement in drug production, her house was searched top to bottom. But she seemed to truly be uninvolved. The DEA ultimately found no evidence linking her to any of it.
Was all this really triggered by two kids?
Owen shook his head as he looked at the exhausted Nicole. Despite how haggard she appeared, he felt no sympathy. It had all started as a simple dispute between two children. She was the one who had escalated it, piece by piece, until things spun completely out of control.
When Owen came to Revel, he had used a fabricated identity. Officially, he was the boyfriend of Amanda, the temporary assistant teacher at Garden Elementary. Every day, he picked her up after school. This identity wasn't something DEA could easily poke holes in—it had been forged by official channels, the most authentic fake identity in the world.
The DEA didn't linger long in town. Their attention was soon redirected to the larger story: the Rogues' headquarters had been overrun, supposedly by a coalition of rival gangs. The town quickly returned to its quiet normalcy.
Mandy clung to Amanda like usual, blissfully unaware of what had truly happened. But Brock's eyes were different. Every time he looked at Owen, his expression was odd. Owen knew Brock was still hung up on his identity. He had probably tried to investigate him and found absolutely nothing—only deepening his suspicions that Owen wasn't just some ordinary guy.
Owen glanced at the calendar. He had been in Revel for a while now. Jack hadn't rushed him, but it was time to return. He decided to stay one more day and leave the day after.
That night, after dinner, Owen called Monica like he always did. Except for the night of the operation, he had called her every evening since arriving in Revel. Their calls were often full of affectionate banter.
But tonight, Monica was different. Distracted. Absent-minded. Her responses wandered mid-conversation. That wasn't like her at all. Owen sensed something was off and asked gently, "Baby, what's wrong? Are you sick?"
"No, no... I just didn't sleep well last night…"
Her voice wavered slightly.
Owen frowned. "Monica, we've been together a long time. You know you're terrible at lying, right? Tell me—what really happened?"
Before meeting Owen, Monica had always been the aloof type. She had few friends outside her FBI/SWAT team. Her personality had changed a lot since getting to know Owen. But lying? She still sucked at it. He could always tell.
After a pause, Monica finally asked in an unsure tone, "Owen… what do you think about kids? I mean… do you like children?"
The question caught Owen completely off guard. "I'm… neutral? I don't love them, but I don't hate them either. Why do you ask—wait… wait a second. Baby… don't tell me…"
Owen's jaw dropped. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
"Baby… are you pregnant?" he asked, voice trembling with a mix of surprise and hope.
"…Mm."
Monica answered softly. That single syllable shifted something inside him. Owen went silent. On the other end, Monica grew anxious.
"Darling, if you really don't want the baby, I can… get rid of it…"
"No, no, no—don't!" Owen cut her off immediately. Even if he was slow sometimes, he could hear the worry in her voice. He took a deep breath. "Baby, I just need to hear it clearly. Say it again. Am I… going to be a father?"
"Yes."
This time, Monica's tone brightened. She could tell Owen wasn't upset—he was happy. Maybe even excited. That made her heart light again. She had been worried—worried he wouldn't want the child, especially since they weren't married yet.
"Oh my god… I'm gonna be a dad. I—I…"
Owen stammered, suddenly at a loss for words.
"Wait—when did it happen? Which time?"
Probably the most classic male response.
"I don't know," Monica replied sweetly. "You're always so intense after missions. And you never use protection. Maybe that time when you came back from overseas…"
Just as Owen was still trying to process the news, footsteps echoed from outside his door.
"Steve, what did you just say? You're gonna be a dad? What?! I'm telling Mom!"
Amanda burst through the door. Owen hadn't closed it while talking to Monica, and Amanda had heard everything. After a shocked scream, she ran downstairs, and a moment later, the sounds of excited screaming echoed up from below.
Owen was dumbfounded. Amanda's mouth was way too fast.
"What's going on over there?" Monica asked, alarmed by the noise.
Owen sighed. "It's Amanda. She overheard us and ran to tell my mom…"
He laughed helplessly. That girl had always eavesdropped on his calls. This time, he'd just forgotten to shut the door.
"Oh no—I'm not ready for this. I—I'm hanging up!" Monica said quickly.
She clearly hadn't figured out how to face Owen's family yet. They weren't even married, and now she was pregnant. Even in open-minded America, this was pushing it a little.
"Oh, alright, baby—just rest, okay? I'm flying back tomorrow. No—tonight. I'm buying a ticket right now. Wait for me…"
Owen knew what she was worried about, but to him, it didn't matter at all. Right now, he just wanted to be with her.
The call ended. A commotion rose on the stairs. Amanda, his mother, and McCall rushed into the room, faces glowing with joy.
"Is it true? You're having a baby?" his mother asked excitedly, staring at him, praying it wasn't Amanda's prank.
McCall and Amanda stood silently nearby, eyes bright with the same anticipation.
Owen smiled and nodded. "Yes."
"Wooo!!"
Cheers erupted in the room. His mom and Amanda hugged. McCall's grin stretched even wider. Owen couldn't stop smiling.
"How far along is she?"
Owen paused. "No idea."
"Boy or girl?"
Another shrug.
"I knew it—men are useless. Go book your ticket. We're flying out tonight. I want to see Monica."
"Uh…"
Owen hadn't expected his mom to be this urgent. Monica wasn't ready yet. He didn't know how to explain.
Thankfully, McCall came to his rescue. "Susan, don't rush. Monica probably just found out too. Let's see what they decide."
Owen nodded frantically, like a bobblehead. His mom finally calmed down. "Alright. What do you two plan to do?"
Owen didn't hesitate. "We want to keep the baby."
"That's wonderful! In that case, you need to start planning the wedding. And don't tell me you haven't proposed yet—what a scumbag! You better hurry up. Every woman wants to look beautiful on her wedding day—not waddling down the aisle with a belly. McCall and I will handle the planning. You just make sure Monica says yes."
His mom snapped into full wedding-planning mode. Owen had no say—just nodding along as she laid out his future.
He looked to Amanda for help—only to see her nodding just as enthusiastically.
That night, McCall drove Owen to New Orleans. He took the next available flight to Washington. Even if he'd wanted to leave in the morning, his mom had already pushed him out the door.
The next day, the kids at Garden Elementary were surprised to find their favorite assistant teacher, Miss Amanda, didn't have her boyfriend picking her up like usual. One curious student asked, "Miss Amanda, where's your boyfriend?"
And strangely, every time she was asked, Amanda would smile and say,
"Him? He ran off to marry another woman."
The kids didn't quite understand. They thought it sounded sad.
So why did their teacher look so happy when she said it?
______
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