Many months had passed since then, and everybody had gone their separate ways in the city as they did their own tasks.

Lily and Christy still worked at the B.E.E.S. as the business had boomed as big as ever. They merged with Mindy’s new scientific research team and Lucy’s reporting branches.

Mindy, Kelly, and Claudia collaborated as a scientific team to make world-benefiting discoveries.

“These results are incredible!” Mindy exclaimed as she examined the papers printed out of the machine. “Claudia, can you write this down?”

“Sure thing!” Claudia replied, holding up her pen and clipboard.

Kelly entered the room with snacks gathered on trays. “Break time!” She chirped. “Hey, what’s this we got here? Is it almost done?”

“Just about,” Mindy replied. “If we keep this pace up, we might succeed by the end of the year!”

“That’s great to hear!”

.-.-.-.

Claudia entered the police station with the gray suitcase in hand. She approached Rick and showed him that the goods were authentic.

“Hello, I’d like to visit someone today.” She told him.

“Ok,” He nodded. “Visiting hours are almost over, so make it quick,” Rick told her.

“I won’t be long, I promise.”

Claudia eventually reached a cell, where Charlie got out of his bed and approached her behind bars.

“Claudia, hey there.” He greeted, tilting his head. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to return this to you,” Claudia replied, showing him the case.

“Sorry, but I’m afraid I don’t need it anymore. Considering the circumstances I’m in, and given what I’ve done, who knows how long I’ll be in here for. I can’t even imagine what I can do once I’m free.”

“Then what do you want me to do with this?”

“Do whatever you want. Relax or get a job; it doesn’t matter. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

Claudia’s eyes widened, but she smiled in response. “Alright, I’ll try my best. Thanks for everything!”

She left the building; just as visiting hours were up. From the other side of the room, James walked up to Rick and showed him some files.

“The chief wants us to look into a case involving Ken’s Shadow Heart gang,” James informed him.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Again?” Rick questioned with a wry smile. “They love to cause trouble, huh?”

“Well, at least that gives us work to do, I suppose.”

“Oh, are you guys leaving?” A familiar voice inquired. The duo turned to find Reginald standing there, ready to leave himself. “Do you guys need help?”

“No thanks, we got this,” James told him.

“Ok, if you say so. But who’s going to be on guard duty tonight?”

“Probably Jim,” Rick answered. “I’ll let him know once he finishes his paperwork.”

“Yeah, it’s not like he’s got any better to do,” James muttered with a shrug. “He’s probably slacking off again.”

“We can handle this, so go enjoy your day off, ok?” Rick asked.

“I will, thanks.” Reginald waved as he turned, about to head out.

“Don’t forget about Greg’s retirement party next week!”

“I won’t, I promise!”

.-.-.-.

Richard rested his elbows on the bridge. He checked his phone and new work attire while waiting for someone to show up. He never took time to appreciate the city lights, not since he got appointed to his new job. Richard glanced over as his younger brother ran over to the center of the bridge, finally having the chance to meet up with him again.

“Hey, sorry I’m late!” Reginald greeted, stopping to catch his breath.

“No worries, you didn’t take long.” Richard waved it off. “Though, I was wondering how long you’d keep me waiting.” He joked under his breath.

“I heard that.” Reginald pointed out. The two of them laughed it off.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah, I heard you got a new job, too. How do you like it?”

“It’s pretty great. Once you get to know Max, he’s not such a bad guy,” Richard replied, scratching the back of his head. “To think that months ago, I suspected him of committing a terrible crime.”

“And to think I almost killed you months ago,” Reginald added. “But that’s all in the past.”

“Yeah, we got to look toward the present and future.” Richard lowered his head.

“Is something wrong?” Reginald asked.

“Um, remember what I said, about how sorry I was, and that I should’ve been a better brother to you?”

“Uh-huh.”

“I meant it!” He shouted through his tears, taking Reginald by surprise. “I don’t expect you to forgive me for what I did, but let me at least try to make it up to you. You’re still my brother. Nothing will change that.”

Reginald got misty-eyed and wiped his eyes. “I should say that to you. Speaking of which, I’m terribly sorry.”

“Oh, about the fight from before?” Richard guessed, wiping his eyes. “I already told you, that’s water under the bridge.”

“No, not that.” Reginald lowered his head. “Do you remember our talk back in the hospital?”

“Oh, yeah, that.”

"I had thought about it since then. Well, there were other things on my mind at the time, but you get what I mean.” Reginald cleared his throat before continuing. “Looking back, I never tried to understand how you felt from your point of view.” He squeezed his arm. “Under different circumstances, maybe we could've..."

"Hey, don't blame yourself.” Richard said, playfully slapping his brother’s back. “I never considered how you felt, either. There's no use dwelling over the past and what we could've done."

"Yes, I suppose you're right."

He walked over and placed his hand on his shoulder. "And besides, we still have the whole night to make up for lost time, right?"

"Yeah, we do." Reginald smiled, as he did the same thing. “I couldn’t agree more.”

The two discussed their plans for tonight as they strolled around the rebuilding city.