Home Is Where the Heart Is

by Hart, Abigail

  “That’s damn good news,” Dylan said. “Kyra will be glad to hear that he’s behind bars. Keep me in the loop, okay?”

  “I’ll call after the interrogation is complete. He’s not fighting anything. He confessed to the stabbing before we even left the bar. I think there’s more to it, though. Hopefully, he’ll spill.”

  “Good luck,” Dylan said. “I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes tonight.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Once Dylan ended the call, he headed to the patio to share the news with Kyra and Paula. If they were lucky, the case would be wrapped up soon. He didn’t know what Kyra’s plans were, and he didn’t dare ask at this point. He only hoped that she wouldn’t leave for Houston right away. When he stepped out onto the patio, the girls were laughing and having a great time. He hated to end such a perfect night by bringing up the death of her mother, but she would want to know. “Ty called.”

  Kyra sat up straight, the smile that graced her face falling away instantly. “What did he say?”

  “He picked up McAllen. They’re interrogating him as we speak. He promised to keep me informed.

  “That’s great. What happens now?” Kyra asked hesitantly.

  “They’ll question him. Find out what happened and why. Ty said McAllen isn’t fighting it. He’s already confessed to… he confessed about your mom.” He placed his hand on Kyra’s shoulder.

  “This is crazy,” Paula said, shocked by the information Dylan shared. “I can’t believe a cop did that.”

  “There’s a good many dirty cops on the force in Sizzle. Jake and I couldn’t stand it anymore so we bowed out and started the detective agency,” Dylan said as he refilled his wine glass. “There are still some damn good cops in the department. Ty’s a great example of that. Now we wait to see what he learns from McAllen.” He didn’t mention how much pull the dirty cops had on the outcome of the case. He wondered if Ty could handle it.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  Ty hadn’t been with the Sizzle police department for very long so a lot of the officers didn’t trust him just yet. That didn’t bother him. They shouldn’t trust him. He had been placed within the department as an undercover agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation about six months ago, after receiving reports from confidential informants that the department was on the take and several city officials were involved.

  When the case broke open, the town would get an overhaul that just might put it back on track. The fact that two upstanding members of the community had lost their lives weighed heavily on Ty, along with the fact that at least one of those murders had been committed by the man he’d been working with.

  After interrogating his former partner, he felt like he was losing his mind. The situation was bad and getting worse by the minute. McAllen had offered a confession… but only if he could speak to Ty without the conversation being recorded. It was a strange request, but Ty had agreed, curious to hear what the dirty cop had to say.

  McAllen had sworn that he went to Liz Michaels on orders from the Chief of Police to threaten her into keeping quiet, that if she didn’t stay quiet, she’d end up like her husband. Ty had asked McAllen if he killed Mr. Michaels, but McAllen swore he hadn’t, and that he didn’t know who did, although he suspected either Michaels’ business partner or the chief himself did it.

  Everything McAllen had shared was true as far as Ty could tell, based on the FBI casefile, but he shuddered at the thought of the chief being involved in murder. This case was getting out of hand and fast.

  Ty had taken notes as McAllen quickly rambled on about different events and things he’d been ordered to do. He even told Ty where the knife was he used on Liz.

  Ty was floored by McAllen’s stories. They were almost too crazy to be true. He needed to talk with Dylan. He grabbed his phone off his desk and dialed Dylan’s number as he headed for the parking lot.

  “What’s up, Ty?”

  “Dylan, man, we need to talk. Now. This case is bigger than… hell, it’s huge.”

  “Sure. Come on out to the house.” He gave Ty directions.

  “Alright. I’m leaving the station now.” Ty said, disconnecting the call as he headed to his car.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Kyra and Paula sipped their wine as they listened to the one-sided conversation, trying to figure out what was happening. Dylan grinned as he ended the call, quietly taking his seat at the patio table with them.

  “Well! What did he say?” Kyra eagerly asked.

  “He’s coming by here to talk to us. Evidently there have been some developments in the case.”

  “What does that mean?” Paula asked. “And spare us the cop talk, please.”

  “Basically, it sounds like the situation is getting more serious than he or we expected.”

  They sat in near silence waiting for Ty to arrive and fill them in, curious about the new information that might be revealed. Kyra was so happy that at least her mother’s murderer was behind bars, which was hopefully where he’d stay. If Dylan and Jake were right, and the cops were dirty, there was a chance he’d get out and keep on doing terrible things to others. That thought sickened her so she decided to hope for the best, knowing Dylan would do everything possible to keep that from happening.

  When Ty’s car could be seen coming up the driveway, Dylan disappeared inside, returning a few minutes later with a can in his hand. He offered it to Ty as he came up on the porch. “Figured you could probably use a cold beer.”

  “Hell yes!” Ty said, grabbing the offered drink. “After the afternoon I’ve had, I damn sure do.” He glanced at Kyra and the woman sitting next to her. “Hello, ladies.”

  “Ty, this is my friend, Paula White. Paula, this is Ty James.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Paula.”

  “You too, Ty.” Her eyes flicked up and down his body. They sure know how to grow them around here.”

  Kyra blushed, shaking her head with a grin on her face.

  Ty grinned.

  “So, Ty,” Dylan said, wanting to get the conversation back on track. There was time for Ty to work on his love life later. “What did you want to talk to us about?”

  “Well… I guess I should start by telling the three of you that I was placed in Sizzle as part of an undercover operation with the FBI. I didn’t want to break my cover but after talking with McAllen…” He shook his head. “I think it’s best if I level with you. Jake needs to know, too.”

  Dylan hid his shock. He had heard through the grapevine that the FBI might be interested in Sizzle, but he hadn’t expected them to move so fast. “I guess that means there are things you can’t discuss.”

  Ty nodded. “Yeah… but there are things I can discuss, too. McAllen did confess to murdering Mrs. Michaels. He’s not fighting the charges. He also shared a lot of disturbing details, and two of the names that came up shocked the shit out of me.”

  “Who?” Kyra asked.

  Ty glanced at her, then looked back at Dylan. “There’s no proof of their involvement right now… but he mentioned the Chief of Police and Mr. Michaels’ partner.”

  “Oh my god!” Kyra said in a strangled voice.

  “I’ve been trying to build a strong case to take down the dirty cops in Sizzle,” Ty said, “but it appears that it all goes much deeper than initially thought. Even though we have CIs providing information, we needed hardcore proof that would pack a punch.” He ran his hand through his hair, still unable to wrap his head around everything he had learned. “If what McAllen says is true then we have a very bad situation. For starters, with McAllen sitting in a jail cell under the watchful eye of the chief, anything could happen. If he’s as corrupt as McAllen says then McAllen is a sitting duck right now, and the only person who can tell us everything we need to know to clean the department up and get some much-needed answers. He seemed pretty damned scared, but I believe he might work with us.”

  “Do you think you can really trust him?” Dylan asked.

  “He’s scar
ed… but he’s not really bad. He said Kyra’s mom was an accident. He got in over in his head with some very bad people, but if I got the okay to move him out of the area, there’s a chance that he’ll play ball with us.”

  “Jake and I will help any way we can,” Dylan said. “After what happened when we worked for the department, we’d like to see it cleaned up.”

  The girls sat quietly, listening to the men toss around different ideas to get the information they needed to get to the head guys. If they didn’t cut the head off of the snake, then it would just slither away and create chaos somewhere else. They couldn’t let that happen. If there was a chance to purge the bad people from Sizzle, they had to do whatever they could. Kyra wanted so much to be a part of the fight, but she knew Dylan would never let her put herself in harm’s way. With trained police officers involved, someone as unskilled as her was at a disadvantage. She’d sit on the sidelines… for now anyway.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  One week later...

  Ty had spent the last week doing everything he could to get McAllen transferred into FBI custody so his team could close the Sizzle case. So much needed to be done and he was eager to make arrests. It had been the longest week of his career, but he finally received word that the transfer was set. McAllen would be picked up the following morning.

  He’d kept his word and updated Dylan and Kyra, no matter how minute the information seemed. They were always grateful. Dylan had even taken a step back on the case at Ty’s request. Because of his history with the police department, any investigating by Dylan or Jake could cause problems, and none of them wanted that.

  Morning came and Ty hastily showered and got ready for the day. He slipped into a pair of black slacks and a crisp white dress shirt, slid his shoulder holster on, and checked his weapon before tucking it into the holster. At the front door, he snatched his lightweight jacket, the one with FBI in bold print across the back, off the coat rack by the door. It was going to be a busy day. He was prepared for it.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  McAllen was in a damn bad situation. Sitting in a jail cell under the watchful eye of the man who had ruined his life and was partly responsible for his sitting where he was, a man who would do whatever it took to cover his own ass. The chief would do something. He was sure of it. Did he care? Not anymore. There wasn’t a way out of this for McAllen. One way or another, he would meet death for what he’d done. The only thing he didn’t know was who would deal him the death card. Would it be the chief, one of his gophers, or the state of Texas?

  It didn’t matter anymore. He just wanted it to end. No more worries. No more dirty, underhanded jobs to turn his stomach. Just the end of McAllen, a man who had once been a damn good detective.

  He was no longer a detective now, though. He had been reduced to a number, no longer important enough to have a name. Inmate #666987 sat stone-still in his cell. All he could hear was the series of snores coming from the other cells. Sleep eluded him. The murmur of angry voices and the shuffling of feet made him sit up, straight back against the cold concrete wall. He had stood at the bars earlier, craning his head in an attempt to see down the long hallway, but no luck. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, and then another, calming himself as best he could.

  The lights in his cell block flickered, then everything went black. He could hear them coming, the light scratching sound of someone’s dress shoes sliding across the concrete floor, their breathing ripping through the silence like a knife aimed at him.

  He didn’t need to see them. He knew who they were, but the faces and names really didn’t matter. Their choices weren’t their own. They were acting on orders from the top, just as he had. He wouldn’t fight it. They would succeed whether he fought or not. Fighting would only make it take longer, and he ached for the finality of it all.

  The door to his cell eased open noisily, popping and cracking like an old woman’s bones, and all he could do was sit there, staring into the murky blackness, waiting. Something sharp pierced his neck. It burned like all hell. Within seconds, his body felt heavy, motionless. He couldn’t move or speak even if he wanted to. They had expected a fight so they came prepared.

  A rustling sound broke the silence. His body was jostled, causing him to fall over. Someone grunted and he felt the sheet work its way out from under him. A bell sounded in the distance. Ah... the chow bell. There would be no chow for him.

  The rough stiff material of his sheet was wrapped about his thick neck. He felt a sudden pull as his body was lifted from the poor excuse for a bed. The darkness began to breathe heavily as if it was alive, but he knew better. Then it happened. His feet left the ground, his body twisting and writhing about as he gasped for air that wouldn’t come. His lungs burned. The ticking of a watch counted down the seconds he had left, and there weren’t very many.

  Thoughts scrambled through McAllen’s brain in those final seconds, thoughts he wished he could give voice to. Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock and his body dangled. It was done.

  The lights in the cell block flickered and finally sparked back to life. Inmates throughout the block lay curled up on their tough unyielding mattresses and flat pillows, wanting to be anywhere else but there. Keys clinked together and the cell block door opened, groaning on its hinges as a wiry inmate pushed a cart of trays through. The old inmate, a trustee, made his way down the corridor, passing out food at each cell. When he got to McAllen’s cell, he picked up the tray, not bothering to look up. When he finally did, the tray tilted forward, falling to the floor with a loud bang. The man stepped away from the cell, unable to look away from the man hanging lifeless before him.

  “What’s going on down there?” yelled the uniform officer holding the wall up at the end of the cell block, a look of complete and utter boredom on his face.

  “There’s a dead man here,” the inmate whispered, and the cell block came to life.

  “What?” the officer responded as he pushed off the wall and made his way to the cell.

  The other inmates had begun to hoot and holler at the sight of the officer dangling like meat.

  “Quiet down!” the officer shouted, clanging his baton on the bars.

  That’s all it took to send a wave of fear spiraling through the entire block.

  Sound? None.

  Movement? None.

  Fear? Plenty.

  The inmates reeked of fear, the air ripe with the scent of it. They knew the hanging man had been a cop so they didn’t mourn him, but it was a sign. Any of them could suddenly have an accident. They knew, if they had seen or heard anything, they could be found hanging next if the lights went out again.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  Special Agent Ty James pulled into the police department parking lot in a large black SUV ahead of several other agents, a smile plastered across his face with the knowledge that he no longer had to hide his authority from the disgraceful officers inside. The time had come to lay down the law – the untainted law – and see that he wiped the floor with them. He looked forward to slapping the handcuffs on each and every one of them. But today he was here for one man and one man only. It wasn’t much, but it was a start.

  He looked at the group of agents who joined him. “Let’s get in there and get our man. Watch your back and keep your eyes and ears open.”

  Reaching for his hip, Ty’s fingers caressed the cold metal of the cuffs waiting there. The agents nodded and they headed up the steps to the entrance. As the group of agents entered the building, with Ty leading them, all heads turned, eyes wide with concern. The shock he saw on the officers faces as they recognized him thrilled him.

  “Bet you’re rethinking every word you ever said to me,” he mumbled to himself. Ignoring the others, he approached the chief’s office, his good mood evaporating when he noticed the coroner in the office. “Damn it!”

  Ty’s partner, Joe, glanced at him. “They wouldn’t be dumb enough to kill him while in custody, would they?”

  “I wouldn’t put it past
them. Let’s find out.”

  Ty and Joe entered the chief’s office, not bothering to knock. The coroner was rambling on about death by strangulation, saying it was a cut and dried case, obvious suicide.

  “Chief Fox,” Ty announced coolly, “I’m here to collect an inmate your holding.”

  “Detective James,” Fox barked, “Stop fucking around. Wait!” He noticed, for the first time, what Ty was wearing, his angry expression becoming a worried one. “What the hell are you wearing?”

  “Trust me, Fox. I’m definitely not fucking around, but maybe I should introduce myself. I’m Agent-in-Charge Ty James with the FBI. You have an inmate here I need to collect. I suggest you get him. Now!”

  “And just what inmate might that be?” Fox asked, sweat beading on his brow.

  “McAllen. As of right now, he’s property of the FBI.”

  The worried look became one of boredom. “Well, if you want him, you can pick him up at the morgue.”

  “What happened to him?” Joe asked.

  “The pathetic fool hung himself in his cell before chow this morning,” Fox said. The corner of his mouth quirked up in a quick smile before the bored look returned.

  “You better hope that’s what happened to him,” Ty growled, unable to hide his anger any longer. “If we find out otherwise then you’re screwed, Fox.”

  The agents left the department, heading to the morgue, hoping to find some shred of proof that McAllen hadn’t hung himself. As gutsy as these dirty cops were, he bet they’d been very careful to cover their tracks with this one. They couldn’t risk making a mistake.

  The medical examiner, Dale Fountain, was a portly man in his fifties that had seen better days. His skin was as washed out as the corpses he examined. He really needed to get out more. A little sun would do him a world of good. He cracked open the chest of the body on his table, glancing at Ty and his partner as they entered the exam room. “Hey, Ty. What brings you down to the morgue?”