"Excuse ?"
The voice was sharp and ca from directly in front of him.
Liam’s head snapped up, and he found himself staring at a woman who looked decidedly less than pleased with the current situation.
She was wearing a police uniform, but it looked... different from the standard issue he’d seen around the neighborhood.
The skirt was shorter, way shorter than what seed regulation.
It stopped mid-thigh, showing off long, toned legs that seed to go on forever.
Her white button-up shirt was tucked in neatly, but the fabric was pulled tight across her chest, straining slightly against buttons that looked like they were holding on for dear life.
Her face was stunning—the kind of beauty that graces fashion magazines.
Sharp cheekbones, full pink lips, and srizing brown eyes that glowed amber in the light, frad by long, thick lashes. Her sleek bob perfectly showcased her sculpted jawline and graceful neck.
She was absolutely gorgeous—the kind of woman who commands attention effortlessly.
The number above her head
[20/100]
And her body...
Her breasts were large, pressing against the front of her uniform in a way that would’ve been distracting under normal circumstances. But right now, with Liam’s hands still planted firmly on them, it was beyond distracting.
Her ass was just as impressive from what he could see, the short skirt hugging curves that were impossible to ignore.
But what really caught his attention was the fact that her face was turning red. Not angry red. Flustered red.
She was blushing.
"Um... your hands?" Her voice was softer than he expected, almost shy despite the uniform. There was no anger in it, just... flustered confusion.
Liam blinked.
’Wait, what?’
He’d just accidentally grabbed a cop’s chest.
He yanked his hands back like he’d just touched a hot stove, stumbling backward a step and nearly tripping over his own feet.
"I’m sorry!" he blurted out, his voice coming out louder than he intended. "I’m so sorry, I didn’t an to, soone pushed and I just, I wasn’t trying to, I’m really sorry!"
He sounded like he’d never touched a woman in his life, let alone just spent the morning doing exactly that with Elena.
The officer’s blush deepened, and she quickly waved her hands in front of her, looking almost as panicked as he felt. "N-no! It’s okay! Really!" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear nervously."I ran into you, so it’s my fault..."
She bit her lower lip, glancing away for a second before eting his eyes again. "I’m really sorry about that. Are you okay?"
’Wait, she’s apologizing to ?’
Liam stared at her in disbelief.
’She’s not making a scene about this? She’s not arresting or calling backup or anything?’
As she adjusted her uniform, tugging the front of her shirt down slightly, Liam caught a glimpse of sothing he definitely shouldn’t have been looking at.
Black lace panties.
The short skirt had ridden up slightly when she’d adjusted her shirt, and for just a split second, he could see them clearly before she smoothed everything back into place.
’Oh my god.’
He imdiately looked away, focusing very intently on a spot sowhere over her left shoulder.
The officer seed to notice his sudden shift in attention and looked down, realizing what had just happened. Her blush deepened, spreading down her neck.
"I have to go," she said quickly, already moving past him. "Those guys I was running after... I need to find them."
And just like that, she took off in the direction the three guys had gone, though her pace was slower now, more cautious. She moved down the sidewalk carefully, her head turning left and right as she scanned the area.
Liam stood there for a second, watching her search.
He looked down at his hands, still tingling from the contact.
’So soft... and big...’
"Lucky guy."
Liam turned to see the hot dog vendor looking at him with an amused smile, shaking his head slowly.
"But hey," the man continued, pulling out a fresh hot dog from his grill. "You still want this? On the house, like I said."
Liam hesitated for a mont, glancing back in the direction the officer had gone. She was still searching, checking between parked cars and peering down side streets, clearly lost.
Those guys had knocked his food out of his hand. Then they’d caused him to accidentally grab a cop’s chest. And now they were making her job harder by hiding sowhere.
’At first I was just gonna let it go. It’s just a hot dog. But if they’re criminals and they’re stressing out a gorgeous girl like her... they need to be treated like criminals.’
He looked back at the vendor and shook his head. "I’ll be back for it. Thanks."
The man raised an eyebrow but nodded. "Alright. I’ll keep it warm for you."
Liam turned and started walking in the general direction everyone had gone, but after a few steps, he ducked into a nearby alley between two buildings.
The alley was narrow and dimly lit despite it being afternoon. Trash bags were piled against one wall, and the sll of rotting food hung in the air. Old newspapers and empty bottles littered the ground.
Liam stopped and took a breath.
’Activate Silent Stride.’
The familiar sensation washed over him imdiately. It felt like soone had wrapped cotton around his feet, muffling every sound his shoes would normally make. His movents beca lighter, smoother, almost effortless.
**[Silent Stride Activated]**
**[Duration: 10 minutes]**
The change was instant. When Liam took his next step, there was no sound. Not even the slightest scuff of rubber on concrete. Just silence.
He moved forward quickly, his steps completely soundless as he navigated through the alley and erged on the other side onto another street.
She wasn’t frantically running around or checking random spots. Instead, she’d stopped at an intersection and was scanning the area carefully, her eyes moving in a deliberate pattern as she assessed the most likely escape routes.
She pulled out her radio and spoke into it briefly, probably coordinating a search periter.
She looked confused. Frustrated even.
’She has no idea where they went.’
Liam knew he needed to find them himself. The officer was searching at ground level, which made sense for normal police work, but those guys were probably hiding sowhere less obvious.
That’s when the idea hit him.
’The roofs.’
He looked around until he spotted it.
A tal staircase attached to the side of one of the buildings nearby.
It was old and rusted in places, the kind of fire escape you’d see in older neighborhoods. The stairs zigzagged up the side of the building, leading all the way to the roof.
Liam jogged over to the base of the stairs and started climbing, taking them two at a ti. His footsteps made no sound against the tal grating, which would’ve normally clanged loudly with each step.
The silence was almost eerie. He could hear everything else around him - distant traffic, a dog barking sowhere, the hum of air conditioning units - but his own movents were completely muted.
When he reached the top, he pulled himself up onto the flat roof and crouched low, scanning the area.
The roof was covered in gravel and old tar paper that had started peeling in places. A few air conditioning units humd quietly nearby, their fans spinning lazily.
There were a couple of satellite dishes mounted on poles at the far end, and soone had left an old lawn chair near one of them, the fabric faded and torn.
From up here, he had a much better view of the surrounding area.
Rows of buildings stretched out in every direction, most of them two or three stories tall with flat roofs similar to this one.
So had small gardens or potted plants. Others were completely bare.
Liam moved across the roof silently, staying low as he approached the edge and looked down at the street below.
He could see the officer still down there, now talking into her radio. Probably calling for backup or reporting that she’d lost them.
Liam scanned the area more carefully now, looking for any sign of the three guys.
Nothing on this street.
He moved quickly across the rooftop, jumping over a low concrete divider that separated this building from the next one. His landing was completely silent, the gravel beneath his feet making no sound at all despite the impact.
He kept moving, using the rooftops to get a better vantage point.
After crossing two more roofs, he finally spotted sothing.
Down below, tucked between two larger buildings in what looked like a forgotten corner of the neighborhood, was a small workshop or garage.
It had a corrugated tal roof that was rusted in several places, and walls made of old brick and concrete that looked like they’d been patched multiple tis over the years.
But what caught his attention was the entrance.
The front of the workshop was partially blocked by wooden planks that had been nailed across it at random angles, like soone had tried to board it up but hadn’t quite finished the job. So of the planks were vertical, others horizontal, and a few were diagonal.
They overlapped in places and left gaps in others.
There was just enough space between the planks for a person to squeeze through if they turned sideways.
Liam crouched at the edge of the roof directly above the workshop, watching carefully.
Then he saw movent.
One of the planks shifted slightly, creaking as it moved. A hand appeared through the gap, pushing it aside just enough for soone to slip through.
"Get in! Quick!" a voice hissed from inside.
One of the guys squeezed through the opening sideways, their hoodie catching on a nail before they pulled free and disappeared inside.
"Before she shows up!" another voice added urgently.
The other two guys followed quickly, both of them glancing around nervously before squeezing through the gap one by one until all three were gone.
The plank swung back into place with a soft thud.
Liam stayed where he was, crouched at the edge of the roof, watching the entrance carefully.
Silence.
He looked around from his elevated position.
The officer was nowhere in sight now.
She was probably still searching several blocks away, completely unaware that her targets were hiding right here.
Liam looked down at the workshop below, studying it more carefully.
From this angle, he could see a broken skylight on the roof, the glass long gone and replaced with what looked like a piece of plywood that didn’t quite fit properly.
There were gaps around the edges where light could get in.
And where light could get in, sound could get out.
’If this were nightti, this would be way cooler,’ he thought with a slight smirk. ’Chasing criminals across rooftops in the dark? That’s movie shit right there.’
But it was broad daylight, and he was standing on a gravel-covered roof in the middle of the afternoon watching three guys hide in a rundown workshop.
Still, it felt kind of cool anyway.
Liam moved closer to the edge, trying to get a better look at the workshop below without being seen.
He could hear faint voices drifting from inside now, muffled but clear enough to make out.
"She’ll definitely not find us here."
"Hahahaha, this hiding spot works every ti."
"Let’s just lay low and keep quiet till she gives up like the others."
Liam crouched lower, listening carefully.
His Silent Stride was still active for another few minutes. He had ti.
’Ti to even the score.’
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