Tough Justice Box Set

by Carla Cassidy

  CHAPTER NINE

  Meghan stormed over to the bar without another word and certainly no backwards look. Lara felt the heat from earlier go cold. It slid back down her neck and cooled in her stomach. She unballed her hands.

  Had she expected that conversation to go a different way?

  Her phone vibrated against the tabletop. It was a text from Cass.

  Meghan Leary, formally Grant, has no criminal record, no ties to Moretti’s crime org. She’s clean as a whistle. A boring whistle.

  A small amount of relief came at the digital words, but it was still far outweighed by the many unknowns.

  Lara decided against staying inside Hot Spot. Her presence might cause Meghan to act rashly out of spite, putting her in more danger than necessary. Plus, she wasn’t too confident that the bartender wouldn’t throw her out. She left the building and made her way quickly over to the company van Ty was stationed in, taking care not to be seen entering it. Xander sat in the back, eating an order of greasy French fries, a camera feed playing on a small monitor attached to the wall of the vehicle.

  “I know that look,” Xander greeted, around a fry. “Maddy gives it to me when I won’t read her her favorite bedtime story.”

  Lara raised her eyebrow.

  “What?” he said. “One man can only take so much Little Pink Pig before he has to put his foot down.”

  Lara shared a look of astonishment with Ty. Xander continued to devour his fries. She hadn’t known him long enough to see the man’s paternal side.

  “How about I translate what he just said into, ‘I’m guessing the talk with your sister didn’t go well,’” Ty said.

  “Bingo,” Xander mumbled.

  Lara moved out of her seat and into the back with the only dad on their team. He didn’t move over to give her more room on the low bench opposite the monitors, but he did offer her a fry. She took it.

  “Meghan’s clean—nothing in her background is throwing up red flags—but it can’t be a coincidence she’s here.”

  “Are we sure?” Ty asked. “Maybe there is an Eve who frequents this place. It’s pretty popular.” Even as he said it, she could tell there was doubt at the root of each word.

  “We can’t rule out anything yet.”

  But what could they really do? Watch the building? Go back inside until last call, hoping to get lucky? Was the NYPD going to call with the news that someone named Eve died tonight, MM stamped on her cheek?

  Lara sighed. She might not be close with Meghan, but she knew she couldn’t leave her either. “All we can do now is wait and watch.”

  Patrons started to file out in groups that only got smaller the closer to closing time it became. Mei returned to her company car behind them a half hour before last call while Nick stayed until the sign was flipped over. He sidled up to the van and did a series of rhythmic knocks that made Ty laugh.

  “What is this? A tree fort?”

  Xander popped open the door, and the tall, dark and delicious drink of a man quickly came inside.

  “You didn’t say the password,” Xander said, shutting the doors behind him.

  Nick snorted. “No girls allowed?” he tried.

  “No way,” Ty called back. “I would go with something more inventive. Something catchy.”

  “What?” Xander said around another fry. “Like boobies?”

  “Men,” Lara jumped in. “Just little boys in grown-up clothes.”

  “Did you hear that, Ty?” Xander said. “Lara likes your shirt.”

  Lara took a beat to remember what the man was wearing. She laughed when she did. His version of dressing for an undercover stakeout had consisted of a graphic tee that read: Will work for tacos.

  “Hey, I’m trying to blend in here,” Ty, said defending himself. “I think the man wearing a suit in the unmarked black van would kind of give us away.”

  Lara had to agree there. Though the decal that read Lonny the Locksmith slapped on the side of the vehicle wasn’t as inconspicuous as she would have liked. Then again, they had been on a tight deadline to set up.

  “So, did you have fun?” she asked, turning to Nick. He settled down on the other side of Xander, instantly focusing on the camera’s feed from the back of the bar.

  “Do you know how difficult it is to stay in a bar all night drinking without actually drinking? Your sister wasn’t a fan of me, I can tell you that much,” he said.

  Join the club.

  “Still nothing on everyone else’s end?”

  “Affirmative,” Lara answered. “Nothing suspicious out here. Anything when you were leaving?”

  Nick shook his head. “Two other patrons were inside, but one was completely pissed—they were calling him a cab—and a guy who came in around twenty minutes ago.” Lara perked up at that. He noticed. “They talked like they knew each other. Maybe a boyfriend.”

  “Here they come now,” Ty said from the front seat.

  Lara moved closer to see out of the tinted windshield. Meghan waved to someone inside of Hot Spot. A man walked out with her, close together. They were definitely familiar with each other. They walked up the street, away from the van, hand in hand and hailed a cab.

  “Let’s follow them,” Nick said to Ty who had already started the engine.

  Meghan and the mystery man stopped but only to share a kiss.

  “Whether or not that’s her boyfriend,” Xander started, “I’d guess someone is getting lucky tonight.” He glanced at Lara. “Sorry, was that inappropriate?”

  “Let’s just make sure no one gets killed,” she responded. “If we can save another potential victim, I’ll count us as the lucky ones.” She hesitated. What if there was someone still inside working who was the real target, and Meghan was a distraction?

  Xander must have shared the same thought.

  He opened up the back doors and got out.

  “I’ll stay with Mei to watch the bar,” was all he said before closing them back inside the SUV. Nick took a position in the passenger’s seat while Lara settled just behind him for a better view.

  They followed the cab and watched as the couple got out near an apartment building on the border of the Lower East Side and Chinatown. A one-way street with roadside parking limited their surveillance exponentially. All Ty could do was drive past Meghan and the man as they opened the door and then went inside.

  Lara pulled out her phone and texted the address to Cass.

  The tech guru sent a yawning emoji back after a minute.

  Apartment 4B is rented to Meghan Leary. No suspicious activity since she’s lived there, she added.

  Lara relayed the message to her team.

  “What’s our play here, then?” Ty asked as they looped back around to the apartment building. Since no one was on the sidewalks or outside, they slowed. “Should we find a place and settle in?”

  “I think that’s the best bet for now,” Nick answered. “We monitor who comes in and out.”

  Ty and Lara agreed. They circled the block and lucked into a spot with a mostly clear sight line to the apartment’s front door.

  “I don’t have the patience for this,” Lara muttered.

  “Says the agent who spent a year undercover,” Ty pointed out.

  Lara didn’t comment. In her time undercover she’d never had to sit and wait to see if someone else would die because of her. She’d also never had to stake out her sister’s apartment in hopes that she wasn’t a serial killer’s next victim. Once again, because of her.

  The minutes went by and turned into an hour and then two. The bar was closed and clean. No one came or went that was overtly suspicious. Xander and Mei found a spot near them and also settled in. By the third hour, Lara couldn’t take it anymore.

  “I need some air,” she said, hand already opening the back door.

  She took a big breath and paced back alongside the van, unable to sit inside and wait in silence anymore. Her thoughts were too loud. Her fear was too real. Seeing Meghan again after all of these years had sh
aken her more than she’d like to admit. Was she the real target? Or would they get a call that the body of a woman named Eve had been found, having slipped unnoticed between the cracks in their surveillance?

  Meghan’s reintroduction into Lara’s life had created even higher stakes. What had already felt personal, now was doubly so.

  “You’re distracted.”

  Lara jumped. Nick shut the doors behind him and leaned against the SUV. His expression was dark, devoid of any humor. He was right. She hadn’t heard him get out at all.

  “Can you blame me?” she said, not bothering to make an excuse. “This—” She waved her hands around her. “It’s—” She let her hands fall to her sides. A shuddering sigh streamed out between her lips. Nick watched her with a stare that didn’t soften. He wasn’t giving her an inch. She didn’t want him to. “It’s just been a long day.”

  Nick didn’t respond. Instead he held up his wrist, checking his watch. He raised his eyebrow when he had the time.

  “What?” she asked, curiously.

  “Technically it’s been two days.”

  Despite herself she laughed. The sound bounced around the sidewalk, moving through the early morning hour and disappearing in the dim light left by the street lamps. She looked around them with an odd appreciation for the calm that the darkness brought.

  “I’m useless right now,” she said, not meeting his stare.

  “You’re distracted,” he repeated.

  She nodded. “This case...” Her brows furrowed together. Whatever thought had prompted their escape was unknown to her. She hadn’t lied to Dr. Oliviero earlier. The case was getting to her. But she didn’t want to tell Nick that now. She let her eyes slide up his body and rest in hold of his stare. No, she wanted him to know a different truth. “I just want to forget about everything for a few hours.”

  Nick’s expression remained blank, but he answered all the same.

  “I think we can arrange that.”

  * * *

  The beer stayed in the refrigerator while the whiskey came out to play. Nick had offered his partner something a little less intense but Lara went straight for the amber. She wanted to forget and found the one bottle in his apartment the contents of which promised just that if enough was consumed.

  Lara Grant had definitely already met that requirement plus some.

  “One time I called myself Eve,” she said, an empty glass sliding from her hand onto the coffee table. Nick sat in the chair facing her, his own glass in hand. Instead of the bar—it would probably be closed anyways—they’d gone back to his place.

  Nick believed what Lara needed now was someone to talk to—that she wanted to talk to. Someone who knew what was going on with the case and could share the unspoken burden. Someone who had a semblance of an idea of what she was going through. Someone to get sloppy drunk with when it all became too much.

  And, maybe, Nick wanted that, too.

  They’d spent the past hour or so barely brushing by small talk. The kiss from the other night hanging somewhere in the air between them, but they didn’t broach that topic once. Instead they drank in solidarity. He was finding he enjoyed her company, even as her sobriety declined considerably.

  “Well, it was your cover name,” he pointed out.

  Lara shook her head emphatically. “When I first came out of lockdown, I had to meet a lot of higher-ups. You know, the tight asses that don’t understand hindsight is twenty-twenty. That it’s easier to judge someone after the fact, you know?”

  Nick nodded, wondering if the woman was derailing from her original thought.

  “Well, I met a whole gaggle of suits one day and introduced myself as Eve.” She gave a small shrug. “I didn’t catch it either. Not at first.” She stopped.

  “I’m sure that happens more than you realize,” he supplied. Lara’s eyes unfocused a moment, as if she was remembering something. Nick found he really wanted to know what it was. Lara Grant was one of the most guarded people he’d ever met. Well, if he didn’t count his reflection in the mirror.

  “They sent me to get a psychological profile that afternoon.” She gave a little laugh. It spiked and then immediately tapered off. “I was undercover for so long, and then I was alone for so long after that... I told them I didn’t have time to transition back to Lara.” She put her hand on her chest for emphasis. “But, do you want to know a secret?” Nick leaned forward a fraction. Lara’s eyes swept his. “I think I liked Eve better.”

  Nick gave her a questioning look. “What do you mean?”

  Lara waited, trying to find the right words. “Being Eve was like a clean slate, in a way. She didn’t have my baggage.” Lara met his stare with bright green eyes. “She wasn’t damaged. I miss that.”

  The pain in her words pulled at Nick.

  “Being damaged is part of what makes us good at this job,” he said. “Wanting anything else is unrealistic and pointless.”

  Lara smiled. “Wonderful pep talk, Agent Delano.”

  It was his turn to smile. “I try.”

  Lara surprised him by reaching forward and grabbing his hand. He watched as she placed it against her cheek. Her skin was warm against his. Without saying anything else, it was Lara who closed the space between them and kissed Nick full on the mouth. The taste of whiskey on her lips kept all other rising intentions at bay.

  He pulled away, slowly.

  Lara didn’t look offended.

  “I just wanted to tell you that it was a nice kiss,” she said with a tiny smile. “At the bar. It was a nice kiss. But we can’t do it anymore,” she slurred. “We’re partners.”

  “And that’s all we need to be,” he finished.

  “And that’s all there needs to be,” she reiterated.

  Lara’s eyelids were heavy as she opened them back from a very long blink. She searched his face, and he couldn’t help but laugh.

  “You’re drunk,” he pointed out. “Very drunk.”

  Lara nodded, not missing a beat.

  “I am,” she agreed.

  Nick stood, outstretching his hand. “So why don’t we call it a night?”

  She took his hand with obvious disappointment. Or, maybe he was projecting. When he’d invited her to his apartment, there had been no ulterior motive. Wanting to forget was a notion he understood, and, in the moment she’d said it, he’d known it was beyond something she simply wanted. Lara Grant had needed to take a break tonight. She had needed a friend.

  Looking down into her bright green eyes, he knew he’d achieved his goal on both fronts. For a few hours they’d just been two people talking over drinks.

  Now, it was time to rest.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Lara didn’t dream.

  At least, she didn’t remember any when she woke later that morning.

  It took her a minute or two to ease out of the haze of sleep to realize she wasn’t in her apartment. She wasn’t in her bed. Sheets wrapped around her, but they weren’t hers. The fabric was heavier against her bare skin. She rolled over from her stomach to back and stretched. The sheet slid off, and the chill of open air hit her chest.

  “Good morning to me.”

  Lara jumped, muscles tensing, ready to act, before remembering exactly where she was.

  And whose deep voice that belonged to.

  “Sorry,” Nick said, not sounding it at all. “But you’re the one just openly flashing the room.” Lara looked down at her chest, not entirely exposed, thanks to her bra. She wrapped the covers around her and sat up. Apparently she hadn’t gone home the night before. Instead she had made a home on Nick Delano’s couch.

  Sans a shirt.

  She groaned. She had a splitting headache. Light from the windows and kitchen blared down at her. Nick sat at the counter, a cup of coffee in his hand and his phone in the other.

  “Let me go ahead and point out, once again, I offered to sleep on the couch and you take my wonderfully dark bedroom for yourself, but you were pretty insistent. You just kept mumbling about n
ot wanting to ‘overstep’ our relationship, yadda, yadda.” Lara groaned. That sounded like her.

  “I suppose I also insisted on taking off my shirt,” she finally greeted. He smirked.

  “That one threw me,” he said. “You didn’t even give me time to leave the room. You were pretty concerned about your shirt wrinkling. Agent Lara Grant, always the professional.”

  That also sounded like her.

  “I wanted to stick around to see if you had an issue with your pants but—” he motioned to her clothed body “—I’m pretty sure you kept those on.”

  Lara laughed and instantaneously winced. Drinking always seemed like a great idea until the hangover showed up.

  Today was not going to feel good.

  “Let me point out also that you declined the T-shirt I offered up, so you’d be more comfortable. So, once again, you can’t complain about this.”

  Lara’s cheeks slightly heated. Bits of the hours before flitted across her memory. She didn’t remember their conversation as much as she should have, and she certainly didn’t remember declining to get into his bed. Whether that was a consequence of her whiskey binge or Lara trying her hardest to field her feelings for the man, she wasn’t sure.

  Nick’s attention focused back on his phone. It vibrated twice.

  “Is that Ty?” she asked, distracted away from wondering what would have happened had she asked him not to leave her alone.

  Nick shook his head.

  “Xander,” he said, texting back. “Just to cover all of our bases, he got the owner of the Hot Spot to let him sweep through it.”