Chapter Text
Footsteps. It has become such a familiar sound to her that she barely registers it anymore. Multiple times per day, the sound of the sheriff scuttling back and forth between her cell and Max's, either bringing them sustenance or freeing them each just briefly for a shower. This morning however, Laura absolutely hears the footsteps. After the events of yesterday, it's almost a relief he's come back to continue taking care of them at all.
Max had gone quiet with her after his failed attack on Hackett. Maybe it was frustration, or embarrassment or some combination of both. Perhaps he blamed her, considering it had been her idea in the first place. All Laura knows now is that brute force is definitely not the direction to take when it comes to gaining the upper hand here. Hackett is too cunning, his senses heightened due to years of police work. It's hard to get the jump on somebody like that. It was a foolish plan in the first place, but she is far too proud to admit that aloud.
Here he is already unlocking the door to her cell. It's early, judging by the dim beams of light shining through. The sun must be just barely up.
She starts to say something, but Hackett interrupts her before she has the chance. “No. I'm not in the mood to hear whatever excuses you have to give. Turn around and put your hands on the wall.”
“Wait- what the hell? Why, man?”
He rolls his eyes. Why must she always argue about every little thing? “New standard procedure. In light of your recent behaviour, I'll be patting you down every morning and evening. Make sure you're not holding anything dangerous. Wouldn't want anybody getting injured, would we?”
Laura scoffs, but does as she is told. Turning to face the wall, she senses the sheriff approach her from behind. For some reason his proximity causes her mind to drift to an idea she can't believe she’d never had hit her until this exact moment. As he begins to feel along her arms and shoulders, she slowly and very deliberately tries sticking her butt out to graze against his crotch.
He tenses as their bodies meet, hands freezing in place on her delicate shoulders. This only emboldens Laura. She can almost picture his face right now – uncertainty, disbelief, possibly even anger written across it? But honestly, why hadn't she nor Max thought of anything like this back when they were drawing up escape ideas? Forget all the violence, the malice and bloodshed. The man was still human. He might be stoic by nature but he couldn't be completely dead from the waist down, right?
Now all she has to do is render him ‘distracted' enough to take full advantage and grab his keys. She's not entirely sure what is about to go down, but she's prepared for a fight if it comes to that. What about Max though, is he even awake yet? Does it matter? No, she decides. This is a job for only her. She'll worry about her boyfriend later.
She decides to have fun with this for now though, putting a little wiggle back there, centering on just the right spot and grinding her hips back. Admittedly, teasing like this is pretty fun and exciting compared to the total boredom of weeks spent sitting in the cell barely talking to the two guys other than during arguments. It earns a small sigh, a huff of bemusement from the sheriff. Before she can register what is happening, his hand has moved over to grasp at her chin, pulling it upward as he leans in close to meet her gaze.
“Not being subtle, are we?” he remarks. It's a tone of voice Laura has never heard come out of him before, not unlike a low growl. She can't deny it sends a throb of ...something shooting down into the pit of her belly. Arousal? No, come on. I'm only acting here, she thinks. It's a means to an end.
Well, this is a slightly unexpected reaction. Playing the innocent, she replies, "I don't know what you're talking about, sir. Is there something on me that's forbidden?"
“Don't think I don't know what you're trying, I'm not an idiot. My mother warned me about young ladies like you. The kind who are willing to do almost anything to get what they want.” There is a tinge of disdain in his voice, mixed with a trace of something else. She can feel his warm breath on her neck, can smell it – he has been drinking something strong during the night. Has he even slept? “Sorry, but I am still an officer of the law.”
Hackett steps back, putting some space between them and leaving her standing in that awkwardly unnatural pose with clear disappointment etched on her face at not getting her way. He's seen that expression far too many times recently and it never fails to make his blood boil. He has to look away to prevent himself from becoming irritated.
“So what you mean to say is you don't trust me? Aw, come on Travis. Even after all this time we've been living here together? You've been taking such good care of me...” She turns to face him again, treading slowly until they're inches apart once more. He has to look at her now, choosing to glare her down.
“I'm a police officer,” he repeats through gritted teeth. “Not your friend. And you don't get to call me that. It's Officer Hackett to yo-" His words are cut off by Laura's finger pressing against his lips, catching him off-guard.
“Shhh. You don't have to pretend you haven't thought about fucking me before, Travis.” She smiles up at him coquettishly, never taking her eyes off of his own. They widen at her in response.
“I-I haven't thought about anything like that!” Oh my God, he's blushing. I’ve made him blush! she thinks amusedly. It's rare for him to lose his composure like this. It's hard for her to not break character and burst out laughing at such a stuttered response.
She uses her index finger to draw a line gently up and down his chest, again and again. His breath catches for a moment, trying to keep it together. “Mhm, right, I'm sure. Come on, why do you always assume I'm trying to trick you? All I want is some fun in here for a change. You can trust me. I just wanna get closer to you...”
“No. No. You're lying. You're always fucking lying.” He sighs, shaking his head but doesn’t move away like before. His feet are planted to the ground. “Week after week spent hating my guts and now all of a sudden you want to be intimate? No, ma'am. This is a game and I am not interested in playing your stupid games.”
Ugh. It's like one step forward and two steps back. “What's with this constant cordial attitude? You can call me Laura you know. We're not strangers. And, uh- well I like causing trouble. Pissing you off is- it's, umm, it's a turn-on. Yeah. That's why I've been such a bitch this entire time. Baiting you.” What a painful lie.
Travis laughs in disbelief. “Come on. You can't be serious.”
She chuckles, masking her nerves. Her cool demeanor masks the thumping of her heart and the tremor she’s trying hard to keep out of her voice. “Duh, of course. You’re a smart boy, I thought you'd figured that much.”
There is a noise, a soft thump from Max's cell. Oh boy, there is gonna be a lot of explaining to do later. If he is awake, and listening... Laura tries to push the thought out of her mind. He'll understand. He has to. He is just as desperate to leave as she is.
Her eyes dart back to Travis still glaring her down. She needs to speed things up a bit. No, a lot. Fuck it.